//------------------------------// // Prologue // Story: Alien vs. Pony // by Scriber //------------------------------// Prologue (part one) The warm cocoon of air that enveloped Fluttershy was the first thing she noticed upon awakening. Her eyes stirred in their lids as she stifled a yawn with her hoof, yelping slightly when she felt something tugging at her yellow fur. The lids shot open, the dim glow of the pale green fluorescent ambient lighting casting its colour on hers. The mare shook a lock of pink mane out of her eyes as her hoof fumbled around on the console for the chamber’s release switch. When she found it, the sudden whoosh! of air as it was released into the ship’s artificial atmosphere gave her a bit of a start, but she shook her head. “Why...why am I the only one awake? Why is everypony else asleep?” she wondered aloud, her hooves working diligently to free themselves from the array of wires and tubes and less pleasant things still attached to her. As she cast her gaze over the scarcely-lit interior of the Neighstromo, a faint sound rang out in the distance - a rhythmic, wailing klaxon accompanied by hints of yellow warning lights. Oh my...what could that be? the yellow pegasus thought to herself. Stretching out her wings for the first time in who knows how long, she stepped from the pod, the clacking of her hooves against the cold, hard steel floor echoing eerily. Fluttershy surveyed the situation. Since she was the first pony awake, surely more would follow, right? She had remembered Twilight saying something to that effect when she was debriefing everypony on the process involved with magically-induced stasis. The alarm going off on the other side of the ship was her main concern; she checked on everypony still in stasis to be certain, then took off into the bowels of the ship. Dark, stretched-out shadows swirled about as the ambient lighting began to blend with the yellow flashes coming from overhead. As she galloped, she finally decided to take to the air, should the situation be serious - ever since her training for her participation of the pegasus controlled tornado that funneled water up to Canterlot, her wing-speed had been relatively quicker than it had in the past. She used it to her full advantage. Already, she could see signs of damage. Deep, ragged tears in the buckling steel walls spoke of a tremendous impact. Compelled now by a full-out panic, Fluttershy kicked it into high gear. As she rounded a random corner near the bridge, she froze - a massive swath of destruction had been wrought on the ship’s hull. Fortunately, Twilight’s protection spell seemed to have held: otherwise, there would have been a rather distinct lack of fresh oxygen to breathe. Inspecting the carnage more closely, she gasped softly as she realized what had impacted the ship; it looked like shrapnel, odd bits and pieces of what must have once been part of an ancient Equestrian Spaceship. “Oh, my! But how did this get here...?” Fluttershy decided that enough was enough. Everypony needed to be awake, now. Nodding her head in the decision, she started toward the room that housed the ship’s AI core, nicknamed “Mother.” She swept the magically-enchanted ID tag attached to the lanyard around her neck through a card reader, and the door beeped as it whooshed open. Having already spoken with the Artificial Construct, she knew the vocal keywords required to access the system. “Um, Hello, Mother.” A mid-sized, rectangular terminal flared to life, its display projected through an enchantment on an array of gems contained within. “Good afternoon, Miss Fluttershy,” the screen read. Good. That meant all systems were active. “Could I have a damage report on the ship, please? That is, if you don’t mind?” “Processing request...report ready. I am showing significant structural damage to the ship’s hull, necessitating a boost in the magic needed to power the protection spell. Crystal reserves are at 87%, decreasing at a rate of .54% per hour at current usage. Recommend consideration of secondary and tertiary systems to be discontinued to conserve power. Level III Security Clearance Required. Do you wish to continue?” The words lingered on the screen for a moment, allowing Fluttershy to catch up. Then: “Y/N?” “Oh, um...I don’t think I have that high of a Security Clearance, Mother. That’s probably Twilight Sparkle’s job. Speaking of which - if it’s not too much to ask, do you think you could bring everypony else out of stasis?” “Processing request...request processed. Initiating manual override of staggered stasis-regeneration protocol. Do you wish to continue? Y/N?” “Um, yes, please.” “Command executed.” Fluttershy let out a long, thready breath that she had not known she’d been holding in. “Thank you, Mother. That will be all for now.” With little fanfare, the screen flickered once before falling dark yet again. Feeling a wave of relief flush through her, Fluttershy turned around and started back towards the stasis pods. The alarms had stopped, but the bright, flashing yellow lights had yet to cease. She picked up the pace, hurrying along - something just didn’t feel right, and her quickened heartbeat and ruffled feathers betrayed the calm demeanor she tried to exude. As the mare made her way back to her friends, something stirred in the ship, glowing just once. ----------------------------------------------------------------- ALIEN VS. PONY A MLP: FIM fanfic by scriber Obligatory Legal Disclaimer -         My Little Pony: Friendship is Magic is the property of Lauren Faust, Hasbro, Inc. and Studio B. I make no claims of ownership. This a not-for-profit fan work. Obligatory content disclaimer -         This fanfic is rated T for violence, occasional harsh language and mature themes. Reader beware! Last, but certainly not least: this will not be a typical ‘cut-and-paste’ adaptation of the popular ‘Alien’ films. This will be a true crossover in that characters we are familiar with are placed into another familiar (albeit a bit more grim!) setting. Finally, ultimately, this story is run by you, the reader. If there is a concept or an idea you think would fit well into a story like this, let me know! -scriber ----------------------------------------------------------------- Prologue (part two): 8 years ago Ponyville Luna couldn’t believe her eyes. Here, after all this time, ponies were actually glad to see her. To see that the taint of the Nightmare had been lifted, to see that her apotheosis was indeed real. Her regal, slender sister sat next to her on the chariot as it touched down on the firm, lush grass surrounding Ponyville. “Fear not, little sister. Our little ponies have grown more...how shall I say it?...more loving and tolerant in the thousand years that have passed. They are thrilled to see your return, none so much as I. Welcome home, Lulu.” The pale-blue alicorn giggled softly. “We have not heard that nickname in ages, Celestia. Or, shall we say...Celly?” This time, it was Celestia’s turn to chuckle. “It’s good to have you back, Lulu. It really is. Now, if you’re feeling up to it - would you like to meet the new wielders of the Elements of Harmony?” “Oh, that would be most glorious - to giveth our praise unto the ponies that-” “Erm, Luna? You may want to keep the Royal Canterlot Voice in check, for the moment - I doubt anypony has used it in Canterlot for centuries, now.” “We...oh, um...is this better, sister?” “Much, Lulu. Thank you,” Celestia replied. The two royal sisters stood in tandem, disembarking from the carriage with an air of grace that only such regal creatures could display. “Twilight, there you are!” Celestia called out, her pink eyes falling upon the purple unicorn mare. Standing with her self-proclaimed ‘number one student’ was another unicorn, two pegasi and two earth ponies. Twilight turned and saw her mentor - and idol - approach with a slightly smaller, yet still quite distinct blue alicorn in tow. “Princess! Er - princesses! It’s great to see you both again! And, Princess Luna -” Twilight bowed, pausing for effect, “-I wish to formally welcome you back to Equestria. It is an honour to make your acquaintance.” Relishing in the feelings of very real joy rushing through her, Luna extended a regalia-clad foreleg for the mare to kiss. Twilight showed a brief expression of confusion for the slightest of moments, but then recalled that it was custom to kiss the hoof of any visiting royalty during the Equestrian Renaissance. Blushing ever so slightly, Twilight obliged the night’s regent. “The pleasure is ours, Twilight Sparkle. Were it not for thee and thy friends, we would still be corrupted by the taint of the Nightmare. You have our most sincere thanks and appreciation.” “Aw, t’weren’t nothin’, Princess,” Applejack spoke up. “We was just doin’ our part as the Elements of Harmony, s’all.” “Yeah! Didja see it?” Pinkie Pie chirped. “Everything got all bright and then we got all floaty and then - whoosh! - a big rainbow comes crashing into Nightmare Moon! Hi, I’m Pinkie Pie, by the way!” The eight ponies continued to make pleasant conversation for a time, the topics shifting back and forth from any range of things. Pinkie Pie eventually suggested moving to Sugarcube Corner, where she had a few confections on display, as well as a massive punch bowl; both of the Princesses were very pleased with the flavour, apparently, as they kept their glasses filled with a flawless bit of levitation magic. After a while, a question was spoken - one that would change those eight ponies’ lives for ever, as it turns out. If only they knew. “Of course, Luna. Everything is as it was one thousand years ago.” “Do you have any plans?” A beat of silence passed. Then, “We suppose we do, yes.” “Oh, what’s this?” Celestia teased, carrying a mock look of hurt on her face. “We haven’t had the chance to tell thee, Celestia - and besides, it is convenient that our saviours are present for this conversation, for our idea - nay, our dream - is to revive the Equestrian Space Program.” “Why, that would be a wonderful thing, Luna! Really, the whole idea of travelling among the stars fell out of vogue about four hundred years ago...it would be a lovely chance for ponies to pour out their creative energies into something so large. Did you have any particular plans? An idea for a project, perhaps?” “We...we do. Dost thou remember astral body Sigma-6, sister?” “The moon orbiting around the fourth planet in our system? Of course!” “Well, before our...banishment, we had been working on plans to assemble a small colony on the surface of that very moon. The moon is rich with irons and minerals, which are vital for many of our country’s major industries; we would construct a ship that would act as a freighter, carrying mining equipment and the necessary materials to construct a sustainable artificial structure. This, of course, will be done alongside my studies into the workings of modern society...it has already been made present to us that thou no longer uses the royal ‘we,’ sister.” “Hm, yes. You’ll get used to singular pronouns over time, I think. It’s really not so bad, once you get used to it.” “We...I will have to give it a go then, won’t w- I?” Luna replied, chuckling. “If you’d like, Princess,” Twilight spoke, “I’d be more than happy to help you get caught up on what’s changed over the past millenium. I’m actually Ponyville’s resident librarian!” “The offer is much appreciated, Twilight Sparkle. I would be more than happy to be tutored by a mare like you, wise for so few years.” Twilight had to suppress a squee. “Well, count me in on the whole space thing!” Rainbow Dash said. “D’ya girls know just how fast an object needs to travel to escape the planet’s atmosphere? Like...like a bajillion miles an hour, that’s how many! It’d be radical!” “Oh...oh my...” Fluttershy mumbled. “Would it really be that fast?” “About 11.2 kilometers per second,” Twilight affirmed with a nod of her head. “Oh dear...” “Well, I’d be mighty happy t’help out in any way I can, Princess! All this here talk about space travel and what-not’s actually got me pretty excited!” “Oh, can you imagine how romantic it would be?” Rarity gushed. “To dance among the stars, and - oh! We’ll need matching suits! Suits that lots of ponies are sure to see, mind you!” “Miss Rarity is Ponyville’s premier fashion designer, if I’m not mistaken,” Celestia said. “Pinkie Pie, you are so-” “Rhubarb!” “Uh...yeah...” That very conversation was the foundation for a massive undertaking, one that would be the culmination of years of hard work. In only a year’s time, Princess Luna had assembled the funds necessary to kickstart the Equestrian Space Program, referred to as the “ESP” for short. Once the funds had been appropriated, there were disbursed among the necessary expenses and purchases in the plan for the Program’s renewal - the most expensive and large of which being the purchase of a large patch of land in the Moojave Desert. Only seven months after that purchase, the final brick was placed in a sprawling, state-of-the-art facility, complete with a rocket assembly bay and launch pad. It was at this point in the game that Luna formally requested the talents of Twilight Sparkle, Fluttershy, Rarity, Rainbow Dash, Applejack and Pinkie Pie. The six were more than happy to accept the job, and nopony was complaining either about the generous amount of bits they were to be paid monthly for their involvement in the project. Then, the work began. The six went through two full years of intense physical training and simulations. By the time they were finished, each had an impressive array of knowledge on the inner workings of the ship that was still under construction, the Neighstromo. Some of the simulations had even created a zero-gravity environment, which lead to Twilight’s invention of magnetically-charged boots that would stick to the metal-rich surface of the moon Sigma-6. These and other necessary tweaks to the varied aspects of the project as a whole were a sort of specialty to Twilight, one that Princess Luna found immensely useful. Pinkie Pie was in charge of their regimen of calisthenics and specially-tailored workouts; Applejack was working with the Science department on a way to safely store large amounts of food in extreme environments. Rarity had been hard at work designing the suits, having gone through several prototypes before settling upon a form-fitting sort of fabric, magically enchanted to resist the extreme cold in space. Fluttershy had been receiving formal medical training from some of Canterlot’s best doctors and nurses, some of them making the trip out to the Moojave Desert weekly. Rainbow Dash had been training harder than she had ever trained in her life, determined to master the so-far difficult undertaking of flying steadily in an environment devoid of gravity. Over the next five years, training was set on a more relaxed schedule as Luna sought to acquire the funds necessary for a launch. The Neightstromo was completed during that time, and the mares got to work learning the inner workings of the ship almost immediately. It was during that time that Twilight constructed Mother, the ship’s Artificial Intelligence system. When the time finally came for the ship to launch, the six mares bid farewell to their friends and family, as they would be gone for a total of three months; two in transit, one upon the surface of Sigma-6. Little did they know of the horrors that awaiting them, floating like derelicts in the dead, empty space. ------------------------------------