2000 Cloudsdale Time: Lunar 5
After Pliers was suited up with some help from Aileron. Both went to the cargo bay of Firefly 3, to see if the army ponies were in need of assistance, and were surprised to see that the 'medical ponies' were loading guns.
"What the fuck is going on here?" Aileron sputtered, as she gaped at the weapons, that were actually in some of the medical boxes.
"Our job." Replied Sargent Awdry.
"What." Pliers said flatly, then she eyed a pistol.
"Never mind what, we have a rescue to complete." Milly said.
"NO! When were you going to tell me you brought fucking weapons on our RESCUE mission!" Aileron yelled, grabbing for one of the Soldiers weapons.
Suddenly a unicorn levitated an assault rifle aimed right at Aileron's neck. Aileron's eyes went wide. Then the Soldier was body slammed by Pliers, who had somehow rushed forward fast enough to surprise even the soldier, putting him into a head lock. 2 soldiers instantly had guns trained on her, locked and loaded, ready to blast her head off.
"DROP HIM!" Yelled one, "NOW!"
"You think you can take me on?" Pliers asked, "You're dealing with one of the most badass gangster ponies in Equestria. I've dealt with ponies triple my size and 4 times my weight. You're nothing."
"How many of them were holding a carbine to your head?" Asked a third as he stepped out from behind with a rifle strapped to his side, his mouth on a trigger, as he pressed the barrel of the carbine pushed up against her head.
With a snort, she released the Soldier, who gasped for breath as he shoved her back down. Before picking up his carbine in his own mouth and shouldered it with a grunt.
Aileron helped Pliers to her hooves. Pliers immediately tried to throw herself at the soldier who shoved her down only to find herself to be held back by the surprisingly strong Aileron.
“Let me at him! I’m going to kick he scruffy little ass!” Pliers spat in Ailerons face.
“You can do that after we finish what we came here to do,” Aileron replied, “then when we get back home I’ll let you tear him a new one. Alright?”
After a moment of consideration. Pliers nodded, and Aileron released her. Both had thoughts of what in Equestria the military would want with guns on a rescue mission.
They stood as a group in front of the airlock door. They all checked that their spacesuit were pressurized and sealed tightly. Once they had all confirmed that their suits were indeed safe. Aileron opened the first door. They all stepped into the airlock. Aileron shut the first door. Turning the large circular locking mechanism. Once the door was locked she pressed a button on the wall to the left of the door. There was a hissing sound as the air was slowly drained from the room.
“Listen up!” The Sargent barked. “Primary goal is to secure the personal aboard this craft. Secondary is to secure the craft itself. You all know the layout, it’ll pop up on your heads up display. Good luck.”
Aileron glanced at the layout map in the corner of her visor as she walked across the airlock to open the other door. She unlocked and opened the door. There was the sound of airflow as what little air was left was sucked out. The hallway that it opened up to was long and dark. Lights flickered on and off and the sight felt very ominous.
They stepped forward. The troops quickly pulling out their rifles. Making a circle around the 2 Ponies.
“Now you can’t deny something is going on, why do you need those guns? It’s a damaged space station not the badlands.” Pliers said over the radio. It was weird. Aileron thought. Even though she was a few feet away it sounded as if she was right next to her.
“Precautions.” Was the only answer given to her. Medical ponies carried what boxes of supplies that actually contained medical equipment. But even they had pistols and rifles strapped to them.
They walked down the hallway. Before coming to a junction. To the left, according to the heads up display was towards the safe room and medical. While to the right was to the main control room. Pliers turned right only to be stopped by the same buck who shoved her down.
“I have a job to do. Outa my way jackass!” She said in her thick Manehatton accent.
“So do I,” he replied flatly. “Making sure you don’t fucking kill yourself.”
“Well, my job is to repair this bloody ship. So if you would so kindly step aside before I see how well you can hold your breath.” She said going basically nose to nose with the stallion who only stared back down at her.
“Let her go lieutenant,” the Sargent said, “Milly and you will escort her. Radio if there’s any, trouble.”
The way he said that last but unsettled Aileron. But she shrugged it off, and the group separated. Aileron following the Sargent's towards the safe room while Pliers led hers towards the main server and control room.
Soon after the 2 groups disappeared from sight a lone cloud of mist floated from a nearby vent, and glided silently towards the control room.
Pliers slammed a hoof on the console again.
“Fucking piece of shit!” She yelled, she stretched out a hoof, “Socket power wrench.”
The lieutenant, who’s name was Byron, why, Pliers had no idea, passed her a ratchet from the tool chest. She took it went to insert it into the bolt then noted the fact it was the complete wrong tool. She pushed herself out from under the console and looked at the stallion.
“This is a ratchet. Not a Socket power wrench. Try AGAIN.” She said tossing him the tool and grabbed the correct tool. She overheard a mutter from his com but couldn’t care less. She got back to work.
Milly looked back from the door watching the hallway, keeping a lookout. Though she didn’t tell Pliers that.
“You over react.” Milly said to Byron.
“The hell I do. She treats me like an absolute idiot!” Byron stated.
Milly’s response was a raised eyebrow.
“Ok maybe I’m not the smartest pony in Equestria but at least I know when to shut my trap.” He replied in a huff.
“Still waiting to see that,” Pliers voice cut in, "quarter inch wrench.”
A chuckle came from Milly as Byron shot Pliers a glare while he dug through the tool chest. Before tossing her the wrench. Only to have it thrown back at him.
“I said quarter not 3/4! For Celestia’s sake!” Pliers replied.
This time Byron just slammed a hoof on the floor in frustration, which was silent in the vacuum they were in. Before Pliers rolled her eyes and simply grabbed the tool herself.
“Drama Queen…” she said to herself.
Finally she removed the panels that she’d been working on. She passed them to Byron. Who tossed them to the side. Pliers began to examine the extent of the damage to the console. Of it was this bad the whole station would need a inspection. But there wasn’t much she could do in the clunky space suit. She needed to patch that hole. But first, she had to restore the power system. She began fiddling with wires. Disconnecting and reconnecting them. She had hot wired more than a few cars in her day. But never something this complicated.
“Pass me my Lucky Screwdriver.” She said, “it’s the one with all the burn marks on it.”
Byron shot a questioning look at her before passing the scorched tool.
“What do you plan to do with that? You found the problem?” Byron quizzed eager for this to be over.
“Perhaps. I just need to-“ pliers was cut short by a sudden flash of light and every console and light in the room turned on.
A smile crossed Millie’s face but faded when Pliers came out from under the control panel, her screw driver steaming along with the metal parts of her suit.
“You just touched the live wire didn’t you?” Byron asked.
Pliers nodded. And Byron rolled his eyes.
The Lights then flickered then died. The 3 pony's flashlights on the side of their heads automatically switched on, illuminating a little of the room, Pliers sighed.
"Looks like the generator might be damage, I'll have to take a look, but I won't be able to do much in this space suit. I'm going to start patching up that gaping hole in the hull." Pliers said, before gathering her tools and trotting down the hall, Byron and Milly following close behind.
Aileron peered out into deep space, through the gaping hole the asteroid had created. Then she turned and looked down the tunnel it created, in the flickering lights, and sparks falling from the roof of the tunnel. She swore she saw a pony. Shining her lights down the tunnel. There was a pony, floating limply in place in a lazy spin.
"Sargent, there's a pony down there!" Aileron exclaimed, pointing towards the floating pony.
The Medics didn't even wait for the clear, they stepped out of the effect of the somehow still working gravity talisman, and began making their way towards the floating pony. Aileron and Sargent Awdry followed close behind. When the first Medic reached him, she maneuvered to the front of him. Before her eyes widened and she jerked away, looking as though she might puke. The rest of them stopped dead in their tracks. As the Unicorn mare fought back the urge to puke. Knowing that it would not end well if she did.
Aileron crept forward, to the pony, and spun him to face her. The name tag said Rudder. His visor had been shattered and his skin was extremely red and blue, his eyes bloodshot and dead his mouth open, in a last effort to find air. Aileron's blood ran cold. She stood there in shock. She had come to save ponies, and already she was failing at that.
NO She thought to herself, There has to be survivors.
She reached up to close the fallen astronauts eyes, which were staring just over her shoulder by the way she was positioned. Then they suddenly swiveled in their sockets staring right at her, before Rudder let out a screech that even in the vacuum of space, were heard by every pony there.
"MOVE!" The Sargent yelled as he slammed into Aileron Throwing them both to the side, as whatever that was lunged.
"Shoot to kill!" Awdry barked as he drew his pistol and took a shot, and grazed the creature's neck, who only growled and moved in towards the Sargent, who's shots seemed to do little to nothing against the zombie like creature.
Suddenly the creature was filled with holes, blood froze in the cold. and as the creature turned towards the fire, which was coming from a soldier above him bracing himself against the roof, one last burst of bullets tore through the head.
Silence fell over the radio, as the limp thing spun with the new found inertia from the bullet shots.
The army ponies crept closer. Guns trained on the body. When they were close enough one poked it with the barrel of his gun. Nothing happened and everyone eased up.
Suddenly the medic who poked him was impaled by something. It seemed to flow right through him. Aileron ducked as the rest of them opened fire on it. It dove and weaved through the shower of bullets. Then it seemed to blunder, and it was struck several times. Aileron tried to cover her ears, which was impossible in the helmet, as the wail the creature gave off filled her hearing and head with pain. Suddenly it was silent. She peeked over the rubble she was hiding behind. To see that the creature had vanished, and there was now 2 dead ponies floating in the chasm. The Sargent floated over.
"Are you alright?" He asked, Aileron nodded, "Good, now you see why we brought these."
"What the hell was that?" Aileron said shakily.
"We call them nightmares, they look like the night sky, and they are as horrifying as a nightmare." He replied.