Crimson Sweeper didn't like this job one bit. Being reassigned to the Koprulu Sector was bad enough, finding out he'd been assigned to PPYSM-5457469 specifically was even worse. Despite its isolation, it was a common mid-jump point between Jaredia and the Lylat System. This made it home to a variety of rogues. And more recently, the Combine, a totalitarian dictatorship. A while back there had been multiple skirmishes here between the Combine and the N-Team, a group of dimension-hopping freedom fighters and the ragtag bunch of misfits he was now in the care of.
At least they were nice.
He was just a temp, so he didn't get their chips. Not that he wanted to be microchipped. It just sounded wrong somehow.
The things he'd do for a paycheck. At least his adopted sister Velvet Cupcake was with him.
The outpost structure looked derelict. Apple Bloom had quickly whipped it up to serve as a temporary shelter. It didn't do much for the thirty inhabitants, just some basic open space with a commons including a kitchen, a single toilet cubicle and co-ed bunking. Then again, one of the crew here was intersex, so gendering things wouldn't help. And it wasn't like this was a fucking mall or something like that.
The surrounding area was just rock and dust. It looked so desolate. The wind was so wispy, Crimson swore there were ghosts around.
They were one of three bases stationed around a magical weakening. The other two were just over the horizon... Which seemed to upset Mémofòlàtsmílec, the youngest crew member, whenever he said it.
The patrol consisted of himself, Velvet, two girls both apparently named Sapphire... Slug... & Knuckles. All decked out in full suits. Crimson was posted at the entrance, just the way he liked it.
He suddenly shivered. The temperature right now was minus 40 according to his pipbuck.
Crimson slowly turned to his sister. "Hey, Velvet, you cold?"
"I'm cold too," Velvet replied, holding her arms to her chest, "It really does get cold here, doesn't it?"
The wind roared. A thick dust cloud slowly reared itself on the horizon.
"Dust storm!" Knuckles called out from the top of the shack, "And it's a magically-charged one, too! I'm sensing strange energies in there! Everyone get inside and brace yourselves!"
The chilling wind suddenly picked up. All six guards quickly ran inside, Knuckles forcing the door shut behind them.
The pink ghost filly was asleep on the kitchen floor, muttering something about her mother. According to Sweetie Belle, that was normal for her. Weird as it was. The only other crew member awake was Snowdrop, who was "reading", however it worked for her. The rest were fast asleep.
Most of the crew suddenly started stirring. Archer and Snuzzle jumped out of their bunks in panic.
By the time the storm hit the entire crew was awake. There was little panic, except from the three foals and Velvet. Sunny Milk was using her nanocommunicator to call the other bases.
As the storm passed over them, Crimson and Velvet hugged each other, hoping the shack wouldn't be thrown around like a ragdoll. To their surprise, it held, rocking slightly, but otherwise remaining firmly in place.
Crimson and Velvet stepped outside to survey the scene. Other than Chipcutter's SCV being knocked over there wasn't any visible damage.
In the distance was a strange glowing light.
"Permission to investigate that light, Sassy?" Crimson asked the giant pegasus.
"Permission granted. Be careful." Sassy Lost replied.
Crimson and Velvet walked up to the glowing light. A mysterious ghostly noise was coming from within.
"What't that?" Said Crimson.
"A... Ghost...?" Said Velvet.
The voice spoke gibberish at first, but eventually formed coherent words.
"Give up the ghost..."
"The one inside, return her..."
A white form appeared before the two ponex.
"She's one of us!"
Crimson opened fire.
Obviously, there was no effect.
Crimson and Velvet turned around and started to run, but were suddenly surrounded by a thick pink mist.
Their pipbucks advised against approaching the cloud.
"We will take her!"
Several ghostly yellow forms surrounded them.
"She's one of us!"
"She's one of us!"
"She's one of us!"
"She's one of us!"
"She's one of us!"
"She's one of us!"
Everything faded to pink, then yellow, then black.
Crimson Sweeper and Velvet Cupcake looked at the planet PPYSM-5457469 below them.
They barely remembered the event the other day.
Ghosts. Pink clouds.
And who were they after? The ghost filly, whatshername?
After being surrounded, they awoke in the outpost ship's medibay with Reisen and Snuzzle looking over them.
They didn't care. They were just glad to be off that accursed Faust-forsaken rock.
They'd known of the incident that occurred there a few years ago, where a pocket dimension was destroyed and its contents scattered across the planet's surface.
Was that ghostly storm one of them?
That ghost...
Crimson turned around. Out of the corner of his eye, he saw a yellow ghost float past, staring at him.
This experience totally wasn't worth the thousand credits.