//------------------------------//
// New Paths 
// Story: Cosmic Lotus 
// by Goldfur 
//------------------------------//

The onlookers waited breathlessly as Zane delved into Wandering’s mindscape. The telepath was guided to the relevant section of the alicorn’s memories by the changelings linked to the stallion. The skunktaur was a little daunted by the sheer amount of information that had poured into Wandering during the brief time that he had been connected to the controller and, at first, he wondered where to begin. Nevertheless, hy was not just powerful but also very experienced in his line of work, and with the assistance of the changelings, he quickly and methodically sorted through the data until he identified what he needed. Then hy turned to the patiently waiting chakat with the cream and black-striped fur pattern.

“Ready to try this, Shir Swiftwalk?”

The chakat nodded and put on the borrowed helmet that would protect hir from mind control. Fortunately, the specific spell that enabled it to work did not interfere with the skunktaur’s telepathy. Starry stood beside hir, already fitted with a matching helmet, a wing around hir lower torso. Zane put hys hand on Swiftwalk’s shoulder and projected a complete mental construct of the desired destination into the chakat’s mind where hir talent seized upon it.

“Got it!” Swiftwalk said.

Zane removed hys hand and, a moment later, both chakat and pony were gone. Unlike magical teleportation, there was no showy flash-bang but only the pop of air filling the void where the two beings had once stood.





Starry and Swiftwalk re-entered the normal universe in the midst of a large township. Their arrival on another planet triggered a latent invisibility spell cast by the alicorn, keeping them safe from being spotted. It did not render them intangible though, and they had to hastily move out of the way of traffic that consisted mostly of Swarm drones. Swiftwalk shivered and Starry noticed.

“Are you okay, Swiftwalk?” the alicorn asked quietly.

“Yeah. It’s just that all these Swarm creatures creep me out.”

“I suppose you’re right, but I’ve gotten used to them by now. Anyway, we had better get on with our mission.”

It was immediately obvious that they were in a former Stellar Federation settlement. While the architecture was a sufficient hint, the Terranglo writing in places was a dead giveaway. One huge structure was totally out of place, however – the hive that was their target. It was huge, towering above the more modest buildings around it, but it had no aesthetic appeal whatsoever. Constructed of something that resembled concrete, it was a dull, windowless edifice with few entrances. The duo headed towards the nearest of them.

Each carried both a mana beacon and a subspace locator beacon which they planned to place within the hive. While the mission would be a success if they simply put the devices anywhere they would not be noticed, their goal was to place them as close to a hive controller as possible so that when the invasion began, time and possibly lives would not be lost. While a two-person stealth team could pass unnoticed, the same could not be true of the assembled forces that would be brought to bear upon the enemy’s citadel.

When Swiftwalk and Starry had nearly reached the hive, the foot traffic became very dense. The alicorn activated a protective shield in case accidental contact was made before they attempted to enter the building. Fortunately, the Swarm drones appeared to have a good sense of traffic flow and the twosome kept comfortably in the stream heading inwards. Drones occasionally bumped softly into the shield surrounding the pair but continued on their single-minded journeys without pause. Softly glowing walls obviated the need for windows and neither of them had trouble seeing their surroundings, but with no better idea as to where to go, the team let the drones guide them. Some started peeling off into side corridors, but the duo kept to the main one.

Abruptly, the corridor opened up into a large circular chamber with a high ceiling. In the middle was a dais upon which were several of what Starry recognized as controllers, but it was the single, much larger creature in their midst that drew the alicorn’s attention. She immediately was reminded of a queen ant due to the bloated torso and larger head. Maybe the analogy was apt, but she was not here to do biology studies.

“Look for a good spot to stash the beacons,” Starry whispered softly but urgently.

“There! To the left about thirty degrees,” Swiftwalk added when shi realized that Starry could not see hir pointing.

A series of storage cupboards lined the wall in that direction. “Perfect!” Starry replied softly.

They wove their way through the drones and Starry carefully levitated the beacons to the top of the cupboards where they were out of sight. Just as she had done so, a running drone bumped hard into her shield, jostling the alicorn and causing her to lose contact with the chakat. For a brief moment, Swiftwalk felt totally isolated in the midst of a frightening enemy. Shi almost freaked out before an invisible wing made contact with hir once more and reassuringly hugged hir.

“Let’s leave before another drone collides with us and they start wondering what’s going on,” Starry said into the chakat’s ear.

“We’re outta here!” Swiftwalk hastily agreed and teleported them back to Equus.

Starry dropped the invisibility spell as soon as they arrived and both sank to the floor in relief.

Luna went to check Starry and Forestwalker did the same for Swiftwalk. Blue Streak regarded them both and asked, “May I assume that the mission was successful?”

“We confirmed the existence of the overmind caste,” Starry reported. “One was present along with several controllers in the large, central chamber where both beacons have been placed and activated. You should be able to pick them up from the Chakastran system very soon.”

“Do you know where you ended up?”

“A former Federation colony world, I believe. We did not have the opportunity to figure out which.”

“We’ll know soon enough.” He turned to Destined who was waiting nearby. “Let’s go.”

The blue alicorn nodded, and then they both were gone in a flash of magic.





“Halcyon III?” Boyce said. “Is that confirmed?”

“Yes, sir,” the crewperson replied.

“Is that significant, Admiral?” Blue Streak asked.

“Only that it is where this whole war began. Halcyon III was an agricultural colony which was the first to be invaded by the Swarm years ago. That would have to be a very well established hive by now.”

“It makes sense though. They have to be breeding more of their ships and mana beasts somewhere, and a world with plentiful supplies of food to feed the Swarm and all their slaves is a logical place to have a major base.”

“It will also be well defended.” Boyce grimaced before he continued. “We knew that this was not going to be easy from the start, but it just got a little bit harder. Anyway, our plans remain the same. How are the preparations proceeding?”

“All the changeling hives have responded with massive numbers of volunteers ready to board a troop ship, and the princesses have organized the Council of Mages to provide the megaspell. How about the Federation’s side?”

Commander Rosepetal replied, “Zane has coordinated with the Telepath Guild to provide the gestalt needed to resist mind domination. Grand Admiral Tirarsk has ordered the Hyperion and Dauntless to back up the Pegasus when we assault the hive. Tirarsk apologizes that he cannot spare more as the rest of the capital ships are engaged in critical defense currently.”

“I suppose it will have to do,” Boyce said grimly.

“How much of fight do you expect from the Swarm hive?” Blue Streak asked. “Shining Armor informed me that as long as there is no need to do protracted ramming manoeuvres, he will have no problems.”

“That would be because we were only up against their ships which are incapable of mounting weapons more powerful than the mana blasters. Ground-based defenses are an entirely different story. We learned that the hard way. That’s why we don’t try to take back any conquered colonies anymore.”

“You’re going to have to try a lot harder this time, Admiral.”

“I am aware of that, Warmaster. Fortunately, we have powerful allies this time.”

“Our fighters won’t let you down. We all know what is at stake this time.”

Boyce nodded. “Indeed. Now that we know where the objective is, it’s time to make our final plans. Call in your military leaders, Blue Streak. Once the Hyperion and Dauntless rendezvous with us, we will set course for Halcyon III.”





The days spent journeying to their objective were probably the most nerve-wracking in Wandering’s life. What they were about to do would determine nothing less than the survival of an entire civilization, and perhaps two if the Swarm successfully reached Equus’ part of space as predicted by Techbird. And it all centered on him. He was the only person capable of linking all the disparate elements that constituted their assault on the Swarm. The responsibility threatened to overwhelm him. If it was not for Starry’s calm support, he did not know if he could have coped.

Wandering detected the mana beacon the moment that the Pegasus dropped back into normal space. Getting to their objective was going to be easy. Unfortunately, the rest of the support team could not come with him. The hundreds of skunktaurs and thousands of changelings would not even fit in the chamber even if they could all be teleported down. They needed to be in range for him to network with them though, and that meant getting dangerously close to the hive. The Swarm would not take that lightly.

In fact, the Swarm detected them well before they reached the planet and rushed out to meet them. He watched the ships approaching on the bridge’s main screen, so many of them that it was difficult to see the planet behind them.

“The Swarm defenders are at least as numerous as the biggest incursions so far, Admiral,” Rosepetal professionally reported. “More continue to join them.”

“That makes sense – they have a big asset to defend. All shields to maximum.”

“Magic and conventional shields at maximum,” Midnight responded. “Fighters standing by.”

“Let’s see if we can whittle down the Swarm’s numbers before we send the fighters into the fray. Ready phaser cannons.”

“Phaser cannons powered up. Targeting online. Ready to engage, sir.”

“Fire at will.”

Midnight fired multiple shots into the Swarm where the enemy was the thickest, each shot taking out several of their enemies. Shi tried not to think of the poor enslaved ship creatures as shi continued to wreak havoc on the Swarm. All hir efforts seemed to achieve very little though as more ships rapidly arrived to replace the fallen ones. The Pegasus started to get peppered with mana blasts and shi felt the ship shudder as the magic shields strained to contain the energy of the raw mana. However, unlike on previous occasions when the Pegasus had fought the Swarm, there was no turning back or dodging. The ship had a mission and a ship full of changelings and unicorns to deliver into low orbit where Wandering would access them.

“Deploy fighter craft,” Boyce ordered.

All the various classes of fighters started pouring out of their launch bays to engage with the enemy, taking the strain off the Pegasus for the moment. Situation monitors showed the two leading ships emulating them, opening the way to the planet.

“Out of the frying pan and into the fire,” Boyce murmured as they approached the agricultural world.

As expected, as soon as they were within range, ground-based conventional artillery began firing upon them, the least of which was an order of magnitude more powerful than the Swarm ships’ weapons. The other two Federation ships endured the same pounding which only increased the closer that they got to their objective. The shields would not be able to tolerate the load indefinitely – even now, while all the conventional munitions were currently being stopped, some of the mana blasts were leaking through only to be neutralized by the Equian armor plating. It was imperative that the ground fire had to be reduced. Return fire from the Federation ships took out many of the ground units, but suicidal Swarm ships frequently blocked many other fatal shots. Like with anything to do with the Swarm, sheer numbers were against the Federation ships and the defensive fire continued virtually unabated. Fortunately, they did not have to rely solely on the artillery of the capital ships.

The Hyperion and Dauntless both carried specialized air-to-ground fighter craft. Now that they were in operational range, those vessels poured out of the ships and headed towards the surface. Their greater agility enabled them to dodge incoming fire from both the ground units and the Swarm ships that followed them. Before long, their missiles started taking out the enemy’s powerful defenses. They did not have it all their own way though with several taking hits from anti-aircraft fire. The observers on the bridges of the capital ships had to endure watching those craft shot down. Some made heavy landings while others were obliterated.

Wandering Path cringed at every loss. So many foals and chicks would not be seeing their father or mother ever again, and the same was true for their Federation allies. And all of this horrendous waste of life was just to put one person – himself – safely into position to administer the coup de grace to the Swarm. It was a terrible responsibility, but he was determined not to let their sacrifice be in vain. The carnage continued for what seemed an eternity before Admiral Kline finally addressed him.

“We are in position, Captain Path. Prepare your team for insertion.”

Wandering looked around him at his team. Shining Armor and Starry were coming to defend him and ironically their target while he was occupied with his primary task. The mission planning team agreed that the Swarm was highly likely to sacrifice even an overmind caste member to foil their enemy, so it was imperative that neither of them came to harm. Luna had insisted on coming in person while the other alicorns and the unicorn mages remained in the relative safety of the Pegasus. She would act as the guide for the megaspell that would be channeled into Wandering. Galena served the same purpose for the changeling network, and Zane was the focus for the telepath gestalt. Lastly, Cosmic Dawn stood ready to guide the power of their crystal vessel into him. Wandering raised his comm to his mouth.

“Wandering Path to Techbird – come on in.”

The gigantic crystal craft was not intended for battle, and up until now, it had stayed well back out of range. Now it hurtled forward at incredible sub-warp speed to come to an abrupt halt above the hive. It immediately drew heavy fire, of course, but the crystal structure endured the assault.

“Techbird to Wandering – I’m in place, so stop dawdling.”

Wandering knew that there was a limit to what even Techbird’s vessel could take, so there was no more time to waste. He got a nod from both Galena and Zane – the hive close enough that a teleport there would not break the changeling and telepath connections. “We’re ready, Admiral.”

Boyce opened his comm to general broadcast. “All units – phase three begins now.” He looked towards Wandering. “Go!” he ordered.

Wandering locked onto the mana beacon inside the hive, and he and his team teleported down to begin the final crucial fight.






The hive chamber was a scene of chaos as drones scurried in all directions to tend to whatever task that they had been given. Judging by the number of weapons that most were carrying, defense of the hive and especially the controllers and overmind was uppermost on the agenda. As this had been expected, Starry immediately threw up a force-field to protect the team and then put another around the first controller that she saw to safely set it aside in case their main objective was unsuitable. Shining Armor created an even bigger one to encompass the entire hive, thus preventing powerful outside forces from attacking them or assassinating their leaders. Spotting the overmind, Starry projected a third force-field to isolate it. All this was accomplished in a few seconds to minimize the chance of the Swarm reacting to their presence quickly enough to thwart their plans. That reaction came swiftly, but the hand weapons were useless against the alicorn mare’s powerful shields. It did not stop them from trying, of course, but now the team could safely ignore the drones. Unfortunately the same could not be said for the remainder of the controller caste within the chamber. All were quickly slain, vindicating the team’s isolation strategy.

Zane already had his telepathic block in place to protect everyone before teleporting down, so no one was at risk of mind-control. Wandering looked at the others and each indicated that they were ready to begin their ultimate gambit. The stallion took a deep breath and then called upon his special talent. Green magic fire flared and his form changed into that of a Swarm controller.






Wandering had taken great precautions when testing out this form back at Equus. An isolated location was used and several guards with mind-control-blocking helmets stood by just in case, as well as Luna and Zane. The skunktaur had a telepathic shield up to stop any possible outside connection between Wandering and the Swarm, and one volunteer waited nearby. Starry refused to let anyone else risk themselves and took full responsibility for whatever happened between her and her transformed mate. In the end, it was a bit of an anti-climax. Upon transforming, he felt the urge to take control of the mare before him, but it did not even stand up for a moment before Wandering’s will. He pushed the feeling aside but he did use his new body’s ability to speak to Starry’s mind directly.

“I command you to give me a kiss!”

Starry’s nerves were instantly calmed. “If you think I’m going to kiss that ugly face, think again, mister!”

“What’s happening, Starry?” Luna called from the perimeter.

“Wandering’s just proving he’s in control by being a jerk, Mom.”

“I see. Do you wish to proceed with the next phase?”

“I’m ready,” Wandering told Starry.

“We’re good to go!”

Zane took the cue and carefully lowered hys block for five seconds before restoring it. “Telepathic shield back up!”

“Any response, Wandering?”

“Not a peep, and I was listening hard.”

“He says he detected nothing. Next trial, Zane,” Starry ordered.

This time when hy lowered the block, hy kept it down but was ready to snap it back up at a moment’s notice.

Wandering strained his new senses, but the only connections that he could make besides with Starry were some small animals that lurked around them. “Still getting nothing, Starry. I’m going to say that I’m definitely out of range for making an initial contact at least.”

Starry passed this on to the watchers.

“Alright – final test. Are you ready, Starry?” Luna asked.

This was the part that was going to bother her the most. Wandering needed to test his form’s ability to send commands, and this time there would be no jokes.

“Trust me, my love.”

“I do. Let’s begin.” She pointed to some objects in front of her and stated their purpose. “In this box is a ball. In this bucket there is sand. Under no circumstances whatsoever will I empty out the sand, take the ball out of the box, and put it in the bucket. Begin test!” Without even a moment’s hesitation, Starry immediately began doing exactly what she said she would not do, responding promptly to Wandering’s forceful commands. As soon as she had dropped the ball in the bucket, she stepped back and grimaced. “Damn! I didn’t last a microsecond! I was sure that I would be able to resist for at least a little bit.”

Green fire engulfed the controller’s form and Wandering resumed being an alicorn. He went over to Starry and gave her a hug. “Are you okay, honey?”

Starry leaned into him and nuzzled his cheek. “That was a weird and uncomfortable feeling, but I’m fine. Consider it the last time you get to do that though. Ever!”

“I didn’t even want to do it the first time, but we had to be sure that I could do that. Our plan depends on it.”

“I know. Just don’t hesitate when the moment arrives!”





Wandering did not waste time in making a link to the overmind. The response was immediate.

“The useful one? You are too dangerous to the unity. Destroy those with you and then yourself.”

The force of will behind those commands was enormous, but Zane and hys gestalt were already linked to Wandering and their minds blocked the compulsion with ease. “I refuse. I have a command for you instead,” Wandering replied.

He gave the signal to Luna and Galena, and the megaspell was started. It was a complex formula which took some time to construct. During that time, the overmind received reinforcements of its own as others of its kind joined in the effort to take control of the invader. However, Wandering was able to do the same. With Galena’s hoof in firm contact with his Swarm head, she acted as the hub for the gigantic network of every kind of changeling aboard the Pegasus. All the Equestrian hives and several from other nations all worked in harmony for the first time in history to reinforce the will of the one pony whom they all trusted. As a consequence, Wandering’s will never wavered. And then the spell was completed and activated.

Magic poured into Wandering from the assembled alicorns and the mightiest unicorn mages, channeled by Luna into one mighty arcane command that he sent into the Swarm network:

“DISREGARD ALL PAST COMMANDS AND IGNORE ALL FUTURE COMMANDS!” 

Barely noticed by Wandering but immediately obvious to everyone who was fighting the Swarm, the command went into effect. Every Swarm ship ceased attacking the capital ships and the ground artillery stopped firing. Even the drones inside the hive finally halted their efforts to penetrate Starry’s shield. However, so far the spell’s effect was only local and just starting to spread. Efforts by the linked Swarm minds redoubled to stop the spread of the rogue command, but awareness of the command spread at nearly the instantaneous rate as the command itself, hampering their efforts. Nevertheless, as it spread deeper and deeper into the vast network that spanned a large proportion of the galaxy, the resistance steadily climbed. However, so did the power behind the spell, and it continued to propagate from world to world, and to the ships that plied space between them.

Wandering groaned under the strain. Powerful wills battered against his mind while others opposed them as a mighty chorus of changelings reinforced his attempts to spread through the Swarm network. And all the while, the power of the enormous spell flowed through him, straining even his alicorn-level tolerance. Still, it was not enough. The spread of the arcane command was slowing to a halt.

They had foreseen this possibility and knew that it had to be overcome. Not a single Swarm entity could be allowed to continue enslaving creatures, for if even a one Swarm ship escaped, the whole cycle would begin anew. Perhaps it would take centuries before either the Stellar Federation or Equus would be threatened again, but it would be inevitable, and countless other races would suffer or be extinguished in the meantime. They had to succeed. The solution was crystal clear.

“NOW!”

The single word command was heard by its intended recipient, and a moment later, a shaft of pure mana lanced from the crystal vessel and down to the hive, passing through the structure like it was thin air and guided by Cosmic Dawn into a receiving crystal that Wandering was wearing. He screamed as the power tore through him and into the megaspell. The command began to spread once more, ripping through resistance even as more Swarm overminds joined in the mental battle. Wandering felt as if he was burning up – so much energy was passing through him minute after minute. And yet he remained in charge of that power, commanding it, bending it to his will. He forced himself to hold on, determined not to be the one to fail, but he could feel himself reaching the limits of his endurance.

And then all resistance stopped. Without a target, the megaspell terminated, but the power kept coming. Wandering screamed again and collapsed. 

Cosmic Dawn sensed the ending of the spell and yelled into her communicator, “Stop the mana flow!”

The mana beam abruptly cut off, leaving a slightly charred controller on the floor.

Starry cried out in fear and tried to touch Wandering, only to have a crackle of energy repel her.

“Stay back, daughter,” Luna said. “His body is overfilled with mana and is a danger to all.”

“We have to get him back to the Pegasus!”

“We will, Starry, but he cannot teleport in his condition. That much wild energy would disrupt the spell.”

Just then, magic flames engulfed Wandering’s form, but they were not the usual green of his transformation magic. Instead, they shimmered a rainbow of colors before fading to reveal an alicorn… but not a red one. His coat was now a pearlescent white and his mane and tail were a glowing gold. He was much bigger too, having grown larger than Luna. Sparks of magic crackled and grounded out from the unconscious stallion’s hooves and horn, leaving scorch marks on the floor.

“What… what has happened to him?” Starry asked in bewilderment.

“He has ascended,” Cosmic Dawn replied.

“Ascended? He’s already an alicorn though!” Starry protested.

“He’s an ascended alicorn, or whatever you would call the next stage of development, just as I am an ascended unicorn, Galena an ascended changeling, and Techbird an ascended griffon. We have all been touched by the Old Magic and paid the price in doing so.”

“But what does that mean for my husband?” the alicorn mare demanded.

“It means that he must leave with us. Right now, he is a danger to all of you, even those he loves the most.”

“No! You can’t take him away!”

“I’m truly sorry, Starry, but we must.”

“Then I am going too!” Starry glared at Cosmic Dawn, daring the unicorn to defy her.

Galena spoke up. “Starry, are you prepared to pay the price as well?”

“Anything!” the alicorn replied without hesitation.

“So be it.”

“Wait, daughter!” Luna cried. “Would you abandon your family?”

Starry looked at Luna and gave her a small smile. “I hate to do so, mother, but I must be with the one whom I love above all else.”

And then she, Galena, Cosmic Dawn, and Wandering Path were suddenly gone without the usual flash-bang of teleportation.

Luna’s comm came to life as Boyce’s voice was heard. “Pegasus to assault team – status report!”

A tear dropped from Luna’s cheek as she raised her comm to her lips. “Mission accomplished, but ’tis a bittersweet victory. We shall return anon.”

Shining Armor came over to embrace Luna. “They may be gone for now, but I believe in the Wandering Stars. We will see them again one day.”

Luna slowly nodded and she drew a deep breath and firmed her resolve. She looked about at the aimlessly milling drones and the impotent remaining controller and overmind. The Federation forces could retake this world easily now, but it was not this team’s responsibility. Their task was complete and it was time to return to Equus and tell the family that two would not be coming home.





Alexa stepped out onto the deck at the rear of the House Path mansion that had been her residence for the past few weeks as negotiations had continued between the GEC and the Stellar Federation. The Lunar Federation was also represented by Penumbra as that young nation chose to remain politically separate from the home-world for now, quoting its desire to be independent to enable it to act if the need arose once more. The foxtaur looked about at the beautifully designed gardens, lovingly maintained by the descendants of the earth ponies who once were slaves to the griffons, but who had enjoyed equality with them for well over a century and a half now. It intrigued Alexa to see the differences between these ponies and those she interacted with in Equestria. Their culture had been heavily influenced by the griffons, which was probably for the best as it helped that proud species accept ponies into their society.

She stepped down onto the lawn and made her way over to the flower beds, enjoying the heady scent of the blooms. The sun was lowering and the sky changing color, adding different shades to the foliage. It was so quiet and peaceful here that it was easy to forget that only a couple of months ago, war had threatened to bring about the end of this wondrous world.

Alexa’s strolling brought her to a small hedge maze, and she idly decided to walk through it. It was a small thing intended for the amusement of foals and chicks, but it was pleasant to stroll through the labyrinth with her mind out of gear, just enjoying the moment. Then she reached its center and she was surprised to find Penumbra sitting there, apparently waiting for her. She had not noticed him flying in, but he was quite stealthy when he wanted to be.

“It’s a wonderful evening, isn’t it?” the thestral asked.

Alexa nodded. “Princess Celestia has turned in a beautiful sunset. I still can’t get over the fact that an alicorn decides when the day starts and ends on this world. She does a lovely job though.”

“Auntie Celestia probably wanted to celebrate the conclusion of the negotiations. She’s a little bit of a show-off sometimes.”

The foxtaur giggled at the vision of the demigoddess flaunting her works like paintings at an art gallery.

The thestral spoke up again. “So... the treaty has been ratified and your job is done. What are you going to do now, Alexa?”

“That depends, Pen. With my mission completed, I may be reassigned.”

“Who will represent the Federation here then?”

“I suppose that depends on who the Federation Council appoints to the post.”

“Would you like to take the position?”

“I don't know – I would be turning back great opportunities for advancement. My success here would open a lot of doors for me. I would need a good reason to stay.”

Pen pulled out a small box from under his wing and showed her the engagement ring inside. “Would marrying me be a good enough reason?”

Alexa stared at Penumbra in mild shock for a long moment before her muzzle split in a huge smile. “Yes, I believe that might be a compelling reason.”



“I researched your customs. I hope you like?”

She threw her arms around him and said, “You had me at ‘marry me’!”

They hugged and kissed for a while and then sat down to watch the sunset fade into night as Luna’s moon rose into the sky. Eventually, they got up and slowly strolled back to the mansion.





“Ohhhhhhhhhh! That feels so nice! Do that again!”

There were more groans of pleasure and giggles of delight.

“Ooooh. How are you so good at this?”

“You have to admit that hands are useful sometimes.”

“Yes! A hundred times yes! One more time, please?”

Alexa laughed and drew the brush down Penumbra’s back between his wings, following it with the fingernails of her other hand lightly scratching his skin. Slowly, she sensuously worked her way to the base of his tail. The thestral shivered in pleasure before she returned to brushing his mane.



“How did you get so good at that, Lexy?”

“Siblings to practice with, Pen. I hope you get to meet them soon. And of course my parents.”

“I’m not going to have to ask them for your paw in marriage or something, am I?”

Alexa laughed. “Nah – you’ll just have to give them a ponyback ride each.”

Penumbra stuck out his tongue and razzed her. “Is this what our life is going to be like from now on?”

Alexa smiled fondly. “I certainly hope so, and so much more.” She then put the brush aside to draw his face to hers so that she could kiss him. “Much, much more!”

She then proceeded to show him what she had saved up over all those years for her true love when she finally found him.





“I’m going to miss you, fluffy bunny,” Ortzi said as he hugged Helen.

“And I’m going to miss waking up with your wings wrapped around me, keeping me warm and safe.”

“I wish Star Fleet didn’t require me to take all these courses to qualify me as a civilian worker on your ship.”

“I agree, but it’s for the best. Once you have your certificate, you will be gainfully employed as well as happily hugging me.”

“And we’ll be together permanently, at last.”

“Aren’t you going to miss your friends on the Cosmic Lotus?”

“A little, but I joined the crew to find something, and now that I have done so, it’s time to part ways with them.” He gave hir bottom a squeeze before reluctantly pulling away from hir embrace. He picked up his luggage and gave hir one last long look. “Farewell for now, my love.”

“I will be waiting for you, darling.”

The griffon then turned and stepped into the shuttle which would take him into the next phase of his life. He joined the other people also bound for his destination and saw the same look on their faces as he imagined was on his own. Parting was such sweet sorrow.





Galen Bluequill gazed through the observation port at the lunar shipyards. The orbital facility had just completed the refit of the Cosmic Lotus, and the crew had now boarded in preparation for its shakedown cruise. The griffon admired the sleek new warp drive array built with cutting-edge magitek technology combined with the latest Federation computation systems and specialty alloys. No longer would the ship dawdle along compared to its Stellar Federation rivals. The interior had been refitted too, although the Park was still basically untouched. It had served its original crew well, and it would do so for all the new aethernauts. The Lotus was built as a ship of exploration, and she would do so once more, so the peaceful gardens would soothe troubled spirits for years to come.

“There you are, Captain,” came a familiar voice behind him. He turned to see Epiphany and her partner Hype approaching.

“Just letting the crew get comfortable before we get down to business,” he replied with a smile.

Hype said, “Fidelitas is getting antsy – I can feel her from here. You shouldn’t keep your First Officer waiting.”

“I spent ten years in that ship just getting to the portal – she can wait a few more minutes until we are actually scheduled to leave.”

Epiphany shook her head. “She’s not the only one, Captain. I’m dying to see how the engines that Radiance Point designed in conjunction with Magitek Incorporated perform.”

Bluequill chuckled. “I suppose I am too. Well, I had better go let Commander Fidelitas off her tenterhooks. Time to let go of the shackles and fly.”

“Very poetic. Bon voyage, Captain.”

“Thank you.” The griffon headed in the direction of the boarding tube that was connected to the Cosmic Lotus.

As he was the last crew member to board, the airlock was sealed and the boarding tube detached while he walked to the bridge. Fidelitas was there already and she saluted him as he entered, as did Playbitz and Klikbik who were at their respective stations.

“Report status,” Bluequill ordered.

“All stations report readiness, sir,” Klikbik replied.

“Course plotted and laid in,” Playbitz added.

“Engineer Point reports that the Cosmic Lotus is ready to depart at your command, Captain,” Fidelitas said.

Bluequill settled into the Captain’s chair and tapped a comm button. “Cosmic Lotus to Lunar Shipyard Control. Over.”

“LSC here, Cosmic Lotus. Over.”

“Permission to depart as per our flight plan. Over.”

“Permission granted, Captain, and good luck! Over.”

“Thank you, LSC. Cosmic Lotus out.” He looked over to the pegasus at the navigation console. “Take us out, Mister Playbitz.”

“Aye, sir!” Playbitz had had plenty of practice in simulators with the new equipment before this moment. He decoupled from their moorings and used impulse manoeuvring to get clear of the facility, then he ramped up the speed to get the ship sufficiently clear of the gravity well of the planet and its moon. Much sooner than any starship should be capable, the pegasus reported readiness to shift to FTL.

Bluequill allowed a slightly smug smile to show. “Alright – let’s show the Stellar Federation how we build warp drives. Floor it, Playbitz.”

“With pleasure, Captain.”

Playbitz engaged the magitek warp drive, and the ship leapt into hyperspace and headed for Chakastra. As the ship settled into smooth flight, eating up several light-years every minute, the pegasus wondered if he had time to grab a cup of coffee before they reached the portal.







Herd Path was woken by an insistently ringing comm. As this was Luna’s night off, she liked to spend as much time with her herdmates as possible, and she, Path, Free, and Twilight were currently cozied up with each other in their master bedroom. Her mood was foul when she levitated the comm over to the bed to answer it.

“Luna here – this had better be good, Pif.”

She listened for a moment before her bleary eyes shot open. “It’s headed here?” she asked incredulously.

After a brief response, Luna asked, “How long?” … “Alright, we will be ready.” She shut off the comm and looked at the others who were all now wide awake.

“What’s up, Luna?” Path asked.

“A manta has been spotted heading on a direct course for Equus. It’s less than an hour away at the rate it’s travelling.”

“What?!” Twilight exclaimed. “What’s it doing here?”

The mantas were the former Swarm ships and named for what they resembled. Released from their masters’ control, they had wandered much of Federation space in the twelve years since the war with the Swarm, frequently in herds. They were found to be largely harmless, although they sometimes needed to be guided away from some of the Federation worlds’ important resources. They weren’t allowed through the portal though, so one turning up here was an anomaly – a worrying one.

Luna replied, “The Equian Defense Force has been alerted. They will watch it carefully.”

Free spoke up when his stomach rumbled. “As there’s not a thing that we can do about it until it arrives, may I suggest that we have our breakfast? Sorry, Luna, but it looks like you’re going to have to miss out on some sleep.”

“I doubt that I could sleep now anyway. I pray that we have nothing to worry about.”

The mares opted to quickly freshen up first before joining the others at the breakfast table. They were almost done with the meal when another call came in with an update. The manta had slowed before it reached the orbit of the moon, and the observatory had managed to take a few pictures of it. Two scars on its ‘face’ were all that remained of the firing tubes that had been inserted into its body, reassuring the viewers that it wasn’t one that somehow had been missed in the purge a dozen years ago. However, not only was it still on course for Equus, its trajectory indicated that it was headed for Equestria.

As the herd was currently in Ponyville and staying in Twilight’s castle, she suggested that they all go up to the top balcony and watch for the manta from there.

“Not only does it have a great view, but if the worst happens, we can defend the town and the hive from that vantage point.”

They all agreed with Twilight’s suggestion and headed up the stairs as Luna spoke.

“I have exchanged scrolls with my sister. She will be observing the manta’s approach from her balcony in Canterlot.”

Free smirked and lifted an eyebrow. “No comm call? Isn’t that a little old-fashioned, Luna?”

The Alicorn of the Night tossed her head and closed her eyes. “We are very old, youngling. Give us our due.”

Free’s smile only got wider as they reached the balcony. They watched and waited, and soon their patience was rewarded.

“There it is,” Free announced, his eagle eyes picking up the dot high in the atmosphere that was rapidly growing larger.

“Prepare yourselves,” Luna said, powering up her horn.

Twilight followed Luna’s example, and then they nervously waited.

“It seems to be heading directly here,” Path said. “That can’t be a coincidence.”

The manta showed no signs of hostility even as fighter craft cautiously circled it. It slowed down as it got closer, throwing a shadow on the township before it slid to one side.

“It’s heading for the meadow behind the castle,” Twilight exclaimed as she moved to that side of the balcony.

Sure enough, the manta settled down for a landing in the open field and not on any of Ponyville’s buildings, much to the relief of the occupants. After a moment, a wide bay opened in one side of the living ship. A miniature version of the manta zipped out and started dancing in the sky. What followed next though, astounded them. A golden alicorn filly flew out and started cavorting with the baby starship. Jaws dropped and the sight mesmerized them so much that the watchers almost missed two other occupants of the manta emerge. Finally, Luna noticed the two waving in their direction.

“Dear sweet Faust!” the Alicorn of the Night exclaimed before teleporting down. Twilight quickly followed, bringing Free and Path along with her. They all stopped in front of the two visitors, staring unbelievingly.

The male alicorn grinned widely and said, “Moms and Dads – meet your grandfoals!”