//------------------------------// // Chapter 10: Grappling a Plan! // Story: Lightning's Birthday Bash (#4) // by LightningStar626 //------------------------------// Chapter 10: Grappling a Plan! ~On the blimp, the five minions were guarding Karly in unique ways. Minion 1 and 5 were playing a board game, Minion 2 and 3 were still wrestling with each other on the floor, and Minion 4 tried to make some pep talk with Karly. Minion 1 was rolling a dice, to begin with.~ "6! Yes!" ~He then moves a small figurine 6 spaces forward on the board game. Minion 5 glares at him and snatches the dice off him.~ "Darn it! Give me that dice!" "This is for laughing at me!" Minion 2 threw a punch at Minion 3. "And this is for calling me a cry baby!" Minion 3 swung his fist at Minion 2. ~Minion 4 was leaning against the cell door, not looking at Karly, but just talking to her.~ "So…nice weather we're having, huh?" He suddenly slams the cell door. "…What's Lightning's weakness?! I want to be the one to defeat her in a battle!" ~Karly doesn't give the him a response and just glares and turns away to the wall, clinging the chains too.~ "Stubborn, huh? Well, guess what, I am too!" ~Minion 4 growls at the stubborn Karly and punches the cell door so hard, he indented it. It makes Karly jump and she begins to sob again. But, Minion 4 doesn't feel remotely bad and just walks away, and loafs beside Minion 5 as he rolls the dice.~ "Prisoners can be so annoying and stubborn…" Themas grumbled. "What did you expect?" Portas asked, rolling his eyes. "I don't know. Maybe a nice conservation would be polite!" He yelled that as he turned back to the prison. "You mean a shout or beg from them to let them go…?" Johnas asked in an off tone. "No, didn't think of that…" "Just-Why don't you go and get a drink from the bar…since we are going to be doing nothing for a long time…" "Fine." ~With that Minion 4 walks off to the bar. Minion 2 and 3 also see him and stop quarrelling and fighting.~ "...How about we take a short break...?" "You know, I was just thinking the same thing…" ~Minion 2 and 3 walk to the bar, following Minion 4, this left Minion 1 and 5 to look at each other cluelessly.~ "...You guard the prisoner." ~Minion 1 runs off in an instant to catch up with his fellow workers for a drink. This left only Minion 5 to guard Karly.~ "Fine. I'll red alert if anything happens…" ~The lonely minion sighed and took a good look at Karly through the bars. He then slapped on his thighs and got up from where he was sitting.~ "...Well, I'm bored…" ~The minion walks off but doesn't head to the bar, instead, he just wanders around the blimp. Karly tried to see if she could escape and get out of the blimp, but when she tugged at her chains, she had no luck in freeing herself, she just made them jingle.~ "someone…please…help…" She sobbed softly. ~Directly below Devil's blimp on top of CHS, Lightning and the Pixels are there. Lightning was going through the plan again by making a diagram with her fingers in the air.~ "So, just to remind you all of the plan…we are here...and the Rainbooms are here. They will search the upper floor for Karly when we search the lower floor. We all will keep scanning the area until one group finds Karly. When we do, we will call one another we meet in the middle of the blimp and together we will find an escape route. Got it? Let's go!" ~Lightning was about to transform into her raccoon form but was distracted by Mirus who was also waving his fingers around in the air, trying to copy Lightning's diagram.~ "It's not working!" "Mirus, that was just a diagram." Lightning said. "Well, we couldn't see it." Fierra said bluntly. "No, but just-whatever. Is everybody in position?" ~Lightning looked down on her wrist calm, she was talking to the Mane 7 who were at the bottom of the building waiting for a signal.~ "We're ready when you are, Lightnin'." Applejack nodded firmly. "If I knew this was going to happen...I would have brought up my best sneaking outfit." said Rarity. "I don't think now is the time for that, Rarity…" Fluttershy replied. Rainbow Dash began sneaking and she peeked her head around a corner. "Ok, we're all set! Let's just hope we make it in time. What do you think, Pinkie? Pinkie Pie? She was just right here. Where did she run off to?" "I'm right here!" ~Pinkie suddenly appears from inside the building wall nearby Rainbow Dash, completely covered in dark-lime paint, same as the building walls colour.~ "Aahhh! Pinkie! What are you doing? Why are you in the wall? And why are you covered in green paint?" Rainbow asked. "Camouflage, Silly! Wouldn't want to ruin Dr. Devil's surprise party!" Pinkie answered happily. "We're just going to save our friend and get out! Not throw him a surprise party! That's what we're trying to avoid!" "Oh, Sorry! Sometimes I get these things mixed up!" "Ok...How exactly are we all going to get up to the blimp?" Lightning asked herself. "I can fly and the Rainbooms have leaviation powers and diamonds and...cannons, but I'm not sure about you." She addresses the Pixels. "This is the highest building in the city, but we aren't high enough yet. We-we are close." "But not close enough…" Arianna sighed. "Just need one more boost…" Jace said. "Thanks for pointing out that obvious thing, Jace Donar!" Fierra grumbled. "I'm just saying." "Fierra, don't yell at Jace, he's trying to help." Arianna said calmly. "His girlfriend is in danger, he probably has alot of stress on his shoulders right now." "Thank you, Aria." Jace smiled. "I mean, how would you feel if your boyfriend was in immediate peril?" "I wouldn't care much, since our relationship has been rocky recently." Fierra shrugged. "Sometimes you confuse us, Fierra." Lightning sighed. Mirus looks up to the blimp then smiles. "...You know, Lightning. I think you should open the present I got for you!" ~Mirus reaches behind his back and gets out a present, wrapped in green and yellow paper. He shoves it in Lightning's hands as she and Fierra looks in confusion.~ "You brought that with you?" Fierra asked. "Mirus, is this really the best time to be opening presents?!" Lightning said. "Yep!" "Oh, Whatever. I haven't opened one yet." ~Lightning begins to rip off the wrapping paper and open the box once she had access. She pulls out the gift and it reveals a grappling hook.~ "Uh...a grappling hook? Thank you, Mirus, but what does this have to do with-" "Mind if I borrow this?" ~Mirus takes the hook off Lightning and swings the hook all over the place. Fierra began to yell at Mirus what the heck he was doing until he throws it up and it hooks on to a part of the blimp's railing at the landing dock.~ "Nailed it!" He clicked his fingers. "Oh! Good thinking, Mirus." Arianna smiled. Mirus blushed. "Thanks!" "Ok, girls, now!" Lightning shouted in her wrist calm. "Got it, Lightning!" ~Twilight lifts herself, Rainbow Dash and Pinkie up on the blimp, sneakily. Rarity lifted herself, Applejack and Sunset to the blimp with her diamond shield, without creating a lot of noise too. Fluttershy got some help from her bird friends, lots of them. They gently lifted her onto the blimp, but the birds couldn't handle her weight and when she made it to the blimp, the birds let go and she almost fell off, if Applejack had not grabbed her hand and pulled her forwards until her feet were flat on the surface. She gave Applejack a soft, thankful smile when she was safe.~ "Begin the search!" ~Lightning smiles at her wrist calm and flies up to the landing dock and where the grappling hook was hooked up to. The rest of the Pixels then also started to climb up the hook.~ "Easy, easy, Pixels." Lightning said steadily. "This is tiring…" Fierra groaned. "Just keep doing what you're doing and don't look down." "You say that, but when you do, you know that we immediately look down. Always!" Mirus suddenly looked down. "Oh! Yep. She's right! AH! We are so high up!" ~Mirus shakes on the rope and begins to sweat on his palms. His sweat suddenly makes him slip and he starts to slide back down where Arianna was still climbing. His foot kicked her right on the chin and both began to slip down.~ "Mirus!-AH-Whoa!" Arianna cried out in panic. "Lightning! We're slipping!" ~Lightning looked down to see her two friends falling and quickly flew down to help. In desperation, Arianna grabbed at Mirus's leg. It was no use. All she succeeded in doing was dragging Mirus with her down faster. Mirus' fingers began to slide off the rope, but before the last finger could release it, Lightning made a smooth gesture with her hand that brought Mirus and Arianna's slide to an immediate halt.~ "I gotcha, I gotcha." ~Lightning took Mirus by the hand and helped him cling on to the rope again. She did the same with Arianna too. Lightning then wheeled underneath the two and held her hands out, ready to stop them if they slipped again. Mirus and Arianna breathed out in relief and continued making their way up the rope. Once they were near enough, They grabbed Jace's hand, who had it out for them, and pulled themselves up and over the railings of the blimp.~ "There we go. Ok, Feet flat down on the floor." Lightning smiled. "Oh my gosh, Thank you so much, Lightning." Arianna gasped. "I'm glad you're now a superhero! It's both thankful and awesome!" Mirus chuckled. Jace Donar nodded then looked around. "Ok...where to now?" "This way!" Both Lightning and Twilight said to their team. ~Lightning points right and Twilight points left and the two groups zoom off.~