8 DAYS TO MIDNIGHT
"Ah, Luna! Good morning dear sister."
"Good morning, Celestia. Did you sleep well?"
"I did indeed."
Inside the Royal Castle, as the sun was raised for the morn, the two royal sisters—Princess Celestia and Princess Luna—greeted one another. Another lovely day had begun in the kingdom of Equestria, and the two alicorns—well, one of them, for the most part—were ready to start the day and serve their ponies.
Luna tilted her head, "You're up earlier than expected."
"Definitely," Celestia replied. "I had this awful nightmare last night."
"The one where she takes form? That of your very flesh and blood?"
Celestia sighed, "Yes, Luna. Her."
Luna walked towards her sister, "I apologize for not being able to be there for you, sister. I was so unbelievably tired from last night. And yet, when I finally got in bed, I couldn't sleep! Truly a travesty."
Celestia smiled, "Worry not, sister. It was merely a nightmare, after all. Terribly unpleasant, without a doubt, but ultimately unreal." The Sun Princess put a hoof to her chin, "Say, speaking of the unreal, you're not wearing your crown! I must say, sister, that's awfully uncharacteristic of you."
Luna sighed, "Indeed, sister. After turning my crown in to the royal polisher after the Gala, I was too tired to go back and get it. Right now, it's likely in the same container as it always is. Waiting for its owner to return, the poor thing."
Luna smirked, "Besides, sister, it's not like you have any room to talk; You're missing your crown, too."
Celestia rolled her eyes jokingly. "Only because you took it to the royal polisher as well. I woke up this morning to see it gone. Sent a devious shock through my brain at first, I tell you."
"Me? I thought you took it?"
"...What?"
"Your crown, I thought you took it to the royal polisher. You know, before you went to bed... Did you not?"
Celestia squinted her eyes, perplexed. "...No, no, I thought you did that."
"I did not. As I said, sister, once the Gala ended, I practically hovered straight to bed. It was a miracle I made it to the polisher in the first place, really."
"So... Where's my crown?"
The two princesses stared at one another as though it were a contest. Luna piped up, "You… Do you mean to say your crown… is missing? You don't have it?"
"No, sister, I do not."
The air surrounding the two slowly filled with a dark musk like the ether of the dark blue above. Princess Celestia's eyes began to lose focus as she attempted to remember the events of last night. Perhaps she had forgotten something and had a mere hole in her memory.
Luna took a breath. "Er… Perhaps the polisher went ahead and took your crown instead? To be polished, of course."
"No," Celestia replied. Her voice deeper than before. "Nopony is allowed to enter our royal chambers when we're asleep. Especially when we're asleep... Captain Flash Sentry and his guards patrolled our quarters, did they not?"
"I would assume so, sister. However, due to over half the guard operating amidst the Gala, some places would've been freed up from any patrolling. At least until the Gala ended. Why do you ask?"
Celestia peered down towards the ground, "I... I have this strange, shaky feeling sister. I can't describe it, but... It feels as though something treacherous happened last night."
Luna approached her sister and put a hoof on her shoulder. "Nonsense, 'Tia. Whatever happened last night, I'm sure was an honest mistake. Here, why don't we visit your room? We shall, um, what do the ponies say... Double check! We shall double-check for any treachery. Not to say I'm in disbelief of your intuition, dear sister. At least, not totally, of course."
Celestia sighed and smiled, "Of course. Perhaps I'm just weary. There's very likely a short and simple explanation for last night."
Luna smiled, and the two sisters teleported to the hallway outside Celestia's room. Luna, immediately after taking a step forward, noticed something just left of Celestia's door frame. It was faint. Virtually inconceivable to the average pony. But not to an alicorn with immense power and sight.
Luna approached what had grabbed her attention and ignited her horn. A dark blue hue outlined her eyes. She utilized a spell that allowed her to see the remnants of objects and entities long, long gone. And what she spotted was bewildering.
Celestia tilted her head and approached her sister. "What is it you've spotted, Luna?"
Luna waved to her sister to come closer. "Use the spell of past-time and come look at this." Instantly, Celestia did as she was told and ignited her own horn. A dark orange hue outlining her eyes. As she closed in on her sister and what she had spotted, Celestia's eyes narrowed.
"Saliva," the Moon Princess proclaimed. "Approximately eight hours ago, a pool of saliva was made here. And small strands of arctic blue fur. Why do you imagine this could be, sister?"
"I... I don't know, Luna. Could it have been a guard?"
Luna whirled her head around at breakneck speed. "A sleeping guard? Outside her Highness' chambers?"
"Of course. No honorable guard would ever dream of failing their duty in such a horrendous manner. But then what could... Oh... Oh no..."
"Sister? What is it?"
"Luna... Look around us. All over the floor."
The Moon Monarch stood up from the ground and used her decelerated vision to scan the floor. She raised a brow, "Sister, I do not understand. What of them?"
"Hoofprints, Luna. Don't you see?"
"The patterns are indeed weird, but I see nothing out of the ordinary."
"Look here!" Celestia exclaimed, and she pointed to the inside of her room. Luna peered in and felt her eyes bulge. Hoofprints trailed inside and around Celestia's room. Also eight hours ago.
The two stepped into the room and followed the hoofprints. Said hoofprints entered from the door and approached Celestia's side of her bed. Stopping just before her head. It then trailed back towards the door before heading over to Celestia's dresser, and then finally exiting the room.
They took a step out and scrutinized the hoofprints further. They determined that there were two, no three, other sets of hoofprints. One set merely inches away from the puddle of saliva. And another trailing from up the steps. The three sets of hooves then collided before approaching the window at the end of the hall.
A window that now sat unlocked.
Luna gaped and turned to her sister in surprise, "What... W-What has happened here, dear sister?" Celestia's pupils shrunk as she stared at the spot where she left her crown last night. Her jaw hung open in shock.
The dark musk that once filled the air before the sisters teleported had returned and engulfed the hallway as if it had never left; Its poison, that of revolting, detestable thievery, oozed out of every microscopic hole in the walls. Entering each and every one of Celestia's pores like vile, wretched snakes. Concentrating on her heart. Squeezing it all around like it was some mere toy. Like shewas some mere toy.
Luna could've sworn that if she increased the intensity of the spell she used by a hundred-fold, she'd be able to witness her sister's gorgeous flowing mane gradually putrefy into something darker than Nightmare Moon's. With a soft voice, though full of a sentiment she'd rather not admit, Celestia spoke.
"...They've stolen my crown..."
"And so it begins."
Century sat bored in the same chair as last night. Remaining in the warehouse tower overlooking the body of water that housed the hypercarrier. Hours after the events of last night, he'd awoken from a slumber. He slept less than he'd liked, but it was enough to get him through the events of today.
Last night, after a long fit of boredom, Century had learned how to open the windows surrounding the warehouse after fiddling with the console. And with them now open, he could see the sun's mighty light shining through as the morning began. Which meant she was up. And for an alicorn as old as her—as perceptible and as knowledgeable as her—it was only a matter of time until all of Equestria was on high alert.
As for him, he was running out of time. The mares down in the hypercarrier should've alerted him almost half an hour ago. But he had faith they were fine. Despite the delay, Spirit and Trixie would power up the hypercarrier, pull the horn, and he'd open the warehouse's main door. Then use the elevator, get set up on the hypercarrier, blah, blah, blah, badda bing, badda boom, mission accomplished. Well, half of it, at least.
The thing is, he contemplated just how smoothly this would go. A number of things could go wrong. Like, the hypercarrier needing some special keys in order to activate its hyperdrive. Or they'd realize that they left something important behind. Or Celestia teleporting to their exact position as soon as the ship engages its hyperdrive and forcefully throws the entire ship onto the Manehatten Bay.
Eh, what are the chances of that happening, Century thought. It's not like the ship's being tracked, or something...
.
..
...
"...The ship’s being trac-"
Century's realization was interrupted by the single loudest horn he'd ever heard in his entire life. So loud he fell out of his seat and almost instantly lost his train of thought. "Finally!" He shouted. His previous thoughts would have to wait for later. They'll cross that bridge when they get to it... Which, you know, would literally be the worst possible time.
Stumbling at first, Century rushed towards the console. Navigating its interface for a couple of seconds before spotting the command to open the warehouse doors. With tremendous force, Century slammed his right hoof down on the prompt before looking up towards the door.
The steel panels that made up the entrance's door screeched and cried like a foal in agony as it sluggishly rose. There was no doubt in Century's mind that the guards outside heard the thing. How couldn't they?
The stallion took a deep breath before exhaling. "Okay… Goodbye Equestria. You’ve… been good to me. Time to return the favor," he whispered, before turning about, grabbing his bag with his teeth, and galloping down the dark hallway to the elevator. Sweat not taking long to greet his forehead after a couple of seconds. He wasn't exactly fit, after all. But that didn't matter now.
It was time to finally leave Equestria.
*CRASH*
"Ah! Spike!?
"Twilight! You have to come outside!"
"W-Why?! What's going on!"
"Royal guards! They're all over Ponyville!"
"W-What?!"
"Come! See for yourself!"
Mere minutes after Twilight had woken up for the day, Spike had smashed through her kitchen door. His eyes were almost bloodshot. With sweat beads rolling down his forehead like she just got out of the shower. Twilight was appalled.
"W-Wait, Spike, slow it down! I-, Y-You look like you just saw a ghost! What are you even talking about?!"
Spike took a deep breath, "You don't understand, they're turning the whole town upside down! Twi, please! Get out here! You have to see this!"
"Okay, okay!" Twilight exclaimed. Her wings shot upward as if they were offended or annoyed. And with that, Twilight hopped out of her chair and trotted out of the kitchen. "This better be bad, Spike..."
"Would I lie to you?!"
"Maybe."
"Shut up!"
...
Princess Twilight and Spike stepped out of the Friendship Castle to find the entire village of Ponyville swamped with royal guards. There had to have been a dozen at each building in sight. The sky above was chock-full of pegasi royal guards as well. Their shadows flashing over the princess every few seconds.
The citizens of Ponyville had congested the walkways near Twilight's castle so rapidly, that it looked like Manehatten’s Time Square. Everypony was being interrogated randomly. The princess' eyes shot back and forth between ponies she'd recognized, and ponies she'd just seen around town.
Applejack, Mrs. and Mr. Cake, Vinyl Scratch, Octavia, Lyra, Bon Bon, Fluttershy, the Cutie Mark Crusaders, Rarity, the list went on and on. Virtually everypony in Ponyville was being approached and interrogated by several royal guards. For a second, she thought somepony had tried to hurt the princesses. But she shook that thought out of her head not a moment later. Not a chance, she thought. Not a chance.
Bewildered, she stepped down the steps, Spike right behind her, and approached the nearest guards who were interrogating Starlight Glimmer. The bags on her back signifying she'd just returned from her visit to her old village. Twilight listened in as she got nearer.
"Listen, you guys," Starlight began, "I just got off the train from Our Town twenty minutes ago! How could I have-"
"Where's your ticket?" One guard interrupted. "If you were riding the Friendship Express, surely you'd have brought a ticket with you, right?"
Starlight rolled her eyes before using her magic to pull out her train ticket from her bag. Whipping it out with sass, she nearly shoved it in the guard's face. "You mean this ticket?"
The other guard scoffed, "How do we know this isn't a fake? Surely a unicorn of your caliber could pull off a spell like so!"
"A fake?!"
"Woah!" Twilight interjected. Entering the conversation before it escalated too far. She stepped between the two guards and Starlight before asking, "Excuse me, what is the meaning of this? What are you accusing my friend of?"
The two guards' eyes locked onto Twilight immediately. But just as they were about to greet the Princess of Friendship, something caught their eyes behind her. Not a moment later, the two stepped back and fiercely stood at attention. Twilight waited with bated breath for an explanation from the two of them, but they stood silent. She raised a hoof, "Uh... Hello?"
"It is I, Twilight Sparkle."
Twilight, Spike, and Starlight whirled around to find the blinding shadow of the night, Princess Luna, standing before them. Starlight and Spike lowered their heads out of respect for royalty, while Twilight took a step forward.
"Princess Luna?" She began, inquiring. "What's the meaning of all this? I've never seen so many guards in Ponyville before."
"I shall be blunt, Sparkle. Spike. Glimmer. My sister's crown has been stolen."
"What?!" Starlight inappropriately shouted. She stammered in the realization of her actions, "I- uh, I apologize, Princess. Forgive me, a-and continue, of course."
Luna resumed, paying no mind to Starlight's outburst. "In elaboration, last night, highly likely during the Grand Galloping Gala, the Royal Castle was breached. Interlopers, three ponies, intruded Princess Celestia's chambers and stole her crown."
Twilight's mind flashed to three ponies she'd met last night as soon as Luna described the number of intruders. Her eyes narrowed as she put two and two together, but she found herself unable to commit to the correlation.
She raised a hoof to her chin, "...Uh... I... W-Well... D-Do we know if they took anything else, I guess?"
"Of course," Luna responded. "Upon further assessment and inspection, we've found that the same book used to turn you and Cadence into an alicorn was also stolen."
"That?" Starlight began. "Why? The amount of magical prowess and energy needed to turn anypony into an alicorn is astronomical. Do we know anything about these intruders? Are they like, super powerful unicorns or something?"
"As of right now, we know nothing. However, we can only assume at least one of them is a unicorn. A powerful unicorn at that. Or, two pegasi. Or maybe they were all pegasi. But that's why we're here anyway."
Spike tilted his head, "You think the intruders would be here?"
"We're not entirely sure. It was just the closest town to Canterlot. After we're done here, the guard will split up. Some to Dodge City, some to Baltimare, some to Cloudsdale, and so on. We've also contacted Princess Cadence, and her guards are already sweeping the Crystal Empire."
"Hey, Princess!" A voice from above shouted down. The three ponies looked up to find a certain aqua-colored pegasus approaching them from the sky. Recognizing her immediately as Rainbow Dash.
The pegasus landed a couple of steps away before trotting over to them. She sighed, "Not to be rude at all, and I truly, truly mean at all, but maybe you could give everypony a quick warning that hundreds of guards are gonna be flooding the city within minutes, next time? Pretty please?"
Luna toyed with the idea of a smile, but it didn't get far. "I apologize, Rainbow Dash," she replied. "But you could say my sister felt the situation was… vital."
Starlight turned to Rainbow Dash, "You know what's going on here?"
The pegasus nodded, "Yeah, learned about it from Spike. Honestly, I thought it was way worse." Rainbow Dash chuckled before noticing Princess Luna's incredibly unamused face. Her chuckles didn't last long afterward.
Twilight stared at the ground below. Her mind racing at a thousand miles a second. Luna noticed instantly. "Twilight," the Moon Princess began. Her voice threateningly serious. "If you know anything, you know you have to tell me."
Starlight raised a brow, "You were at the Gala, right Twilight? Surely you must've seen something. And what about you Rainbow Dash?"
Rainbow Dash shrugged as she tiredly attempted to jog her memory. Twilight raised her head from the ground, but her eyes remained glued to the grass. "I... I really wanna be wrong, but... Last night, at the Gala, there were three ponies that caught my eye."
"Yeah, those three!" Rainbow Dash interjected. "I remember now! Those two unicorns, Spirit and Trixie; And that Earth pony, Century."
Starlight raised a brow and took a step forward, "Trixie Lulamoon? You don't mean her, do you?"
"Yes," Twilight answered, "She means her. All three of them left the Gala as a trio last night. And they were very strange when leaving, as well. Like they were hiding something."
"But, a-are you implying Trixie was potentially part of this?"
Luna sighed, "Indeed, Glimmer. It might just be that your friend Trixie has returned to a life of minor depravity." Starlight turned away from the group and let her mind run wild. Luna continued, "Sparkle, you said they were acting strangely last night; As if they were hiding something. Can you elaborate?"
"Of course," Twilight replied. "When Rainbow Dash, Rarity and I first spotted them, they were stepping onto the path exiting the Gala from the grass field to the right. They also seemed tired, and a little sweaty. The unicorns were especially exhausted. It was so weird at the time."
Rainbow stepped forward, "Weird, is an understatement! Century was so off. And when we asked him about his satchel, he said it was boxed biscuits. But when Rarity asked and approached him about having one, he freaked out! Shouting stupid-loud! Everypony could hear him yell, "No!" at the top of his lungs. Then the three of them just stammered and scampered away like a bunch of weirdos."
Luna raised a brow, "So, what you're saying is, our culprits could possibly be those three. And you're absolutely sure of this?"
Twilight thought for a moment. Staring down the grass yet again. "...I can't think of anypony else who could be a suspect."
"So... An Earth pony named Century, and two unicorns named Spirit and Trixie. I should inform Celestia."
"W-Wait, maybe we should take some more time to analyze this! We don't want to end up pouncing on the wrong ponies!"
"Nonsense, Sparkle. You're Elements of Harmony! Your word is more than enough for my sister and I."
"Well, thank you, but why would they-"
"Onyx! Sapphire!"
The seven of them, including the guards whose names had been called, turned to a loud voice behind them. A pony stood in the distance, a couple of yards away, waving at them. A stallion, from the looks of it. "Get over here! I require assistance!" He called out again. An incredibly deep voice reminiscent of King Sombra, with a twinge of Zekora.
The two guards ran over to the stallion, leaving the others behind. The five of them exchanged glances before rushing over. Intrigued at the sudden order. And while it could've been minor, that quickly became the opposite case as Princess Celestia was spotted. Surrounded by a festering crowd of Ponyville citizens and royal guards.
Luna led the other three into the jagged circle to find her sister and several other guards standing near a locked wagon. As Celestia spotted her sister and the two Elements, her ears perked up.
She trotted towards them, "Twilight! Rainbow Dash! It's lovely to see you all! You as well Starlight, of course. And how could I ever forget Spike."
"Sister," Luna began, "What's going on here? What is special about this wagon?"
"There's a certain someone inside; And they don't seem very willing to cooperate."
Spike raised a brow, "Someone? What do you mean someone Princess?"
"I mean that our friend in here isn't a pony."
"Oh yeah? How do you know?" Replied a voice from inside.
One of the guard ponies responded. Larger than the rest, and the booming voice from before. "Lies. This picture out here with your face on it definitely isn't doing you any favors, cat." He pointed at a photograph on the wagon's front door.
Hearing this, Rainbow Dash neared the wagon and swiftly analyzed the photo before shouting, "Capper! Is that you?! What are you doing in there?"
Celestia nodded, remembering the name from before. "Capper, hm?"
"No!" Capper shouted from inside, "I- uh, no! Um... I'm not Capper, I'm just... Uh... Dapper! Yeah! Dapper... S... Swivelfoot! I'm a... white Earth pony with a... Uh... Uh- a-a a swivel chair cutie mark! My mane is lavender, and I'm a mighty stallion! So... uh... go away? ...Please?"
"Dapper Swivelfoot, hm?"
"Y-Yes!"
"Well, Dapper, as your princess, I'm sure you'd be more than willing to cooperate with me, yes?"
"Uh-"
"Lovely," replied Celestia as she used her magic to force open the wagon door and pull Capper out. She held him up in the air before speaking, "Well... You don't look like an Earth pony to me."
"I, well-"
"Capper," Spike interrupted, "What's going on here? Why are you hiding in your wagon?"
Capper sighed, the jig was clearly up. "Look, if you saw hundreds of royal guards rush into the village from all sides, above and below, you'd probably wanna hide as quick as possible, wouldn't you?"
"Uh, no?"
"Oh, you lying-"
"Enough games, feline!" Luna shouted. "There's no good reason for your first response to an immense amount of authorities entering Ponyville being to hide. Unless you didn't want to be found."
Twilight stepped forward, "You think he knows something?"
Capper waved his paws cautiously, "Come on, cut a cat some slack! Look, I come from a rough part of the world! It's different out there! At this point, hiding from the fuzz is just instinctual for me."
"The what?"
"Nothing, look, I've nothing to hide! I just came to visit Spike and the rest of my friends, that's all! Why would I ever steal something from Equestria!"
Celestia's horn turned a bright shade of blue, "If you've nothing to hide, then surely you won't mind if I purveyed your mind."
This statement shocked the surrounding crowd, including the Elements. Capper responded, freaking out slightly, "Wait! Wait, wait, wait, wait, wait! N-No! C'mon! I-I'll tell you whatever you want! I swear, I've done no wrong!"
Luna noticed the irritation in Celestia's eyes and voice. Worried, she approached and nudged her sister, "Celestia, perhaps Capper here could truly be innocent. But if he isn't we shouldn't use such magic with so little to go on. Especially while surrounded by our subjects. We should just ask him some questions."
Without looking away from Capper, Celestia silently agreed and placed the cat back on his feet. She then ordered him to tell her, "Where have you been since you started your visit to Equestria."
Capper smiled and stood on his feet, "Well, Princess, I'm glad you've decided on such a reasonable course of action! I applaud-"
"Talk."
"I-I, uh, yes, of course," Capper replied before clearing his throat. "Well, since I've been here, I've visited Manehatten, Dodge City, and Ponyville. I wanted to check out Saddle Arabia on Monday, but-"
"What ponies have you spoken to?"
"Gee, uh... Crap, um... I... I-I've spoken to a whole lotta ponies, Princess. I probably can't name them all."
"Try."
"...Uh... Big Mac, Autumn Gem, Derpy Hooves, Crystal Beau, Twilight and Spike, Rainbow Dash, Apple Flora, Amethyst Marebury, Mr. Waddle, Electric Sky, Trixie Lulamoon, Century, Dark Moon, Cirtus Blush-"
"Stop!" Twilight shouted, "What were those last two names you said?"
"Dark Moon and Citrus Blush?"
"No, the ones before!"
"Mr. Waddle and Electric Sky?"
"No, after those two!"
"...Trixie Lulamoon and Century?"
"Those two... You spoke to them? Where? When?"
Capper groaned, he hated snitching, at least when it didn't benefit him, but he explained. "...At your castle, princess. I believe it was a Sunday. Maybe?"
"And what did you talk about?"
"Ah jeez, they asked me about a grand source of incredibly destructive power. So, for the price of a couple bits, I told them about the Rorsch Drill of Meridio."
Luna stomped forward, "You did what?!"
The crowd surrounding began murmuring and gossiping amongst themselves in confusion. This was the first time the nation Meridio had ever been mentioned to the public of Equestria. Even catching all of the Elements off guard. Celestia cursed herself internally, just more fuel to this fire, she thought. Handling this news regarding the public would be an annoyance for quite some time.
Capper awkwardly shrugged, "I don't know, I figured they just wanted to see it or something! Why, did they do something?!"
Luna huffed, "As of this moment, it's believed that those two, and another unicorn named Spirit Candy, have stolen Princess Celestia's crown, and the book that transformed Princess Twilight into an alicorn. So to answer your question, yes! They did do something."
"But that can't be everything," Celestia exclaimed. "Meridio is on the entire other side of the world. It would take months to reach that nation."
Capper stammered, "Y-Yeah, you're right. That would take months. So you could probably catch them pretty easily."
Celestia levitated Capper again and glared straight into his eyes, "But they already knew how long it'd take because you told them. And because of that, they would've tried to find the fastest possible way over there. So tell us, how do they plan to get there?"
Capper shrugged, "Uh... I don't know, but they definitely didn't take that one ship stationed at Manehatten Bay."
"What are you eluding to? What ship stationed at Manehatten-"
.
..
...
"Son of a-
"Hey! Trixie, Spirit! Let me in! Why is this locked!? Open up! Open up! Open up, open up, open up, open up, open up, open up, open up, open up, open up, open up, open up, open up, open up, open up, open up, open up, open up, open up-"
"Shut up!" The door swung open, and an incredibly irritated Trixie stood before him. "Trixie heard you the first time, for Celestia's sake! Are you like this with Mayor Mare?!"
"Only when I'm freaking out about Princess Sunbutt rapidly approaching a super-submarine that we occupy, now let's get out of here!" Century charged past Trixie, making sure not to bump into her, "Where's Spirit!?"
"She's at the core, waiting on Trixie," the magic mare replied, running up beside him. "Look, we thought we left the door unlocked, but clearly, we were wrong. I have to get to her as soon as possible... W-Wait, I just realized, what do you mean Celestia's rapidly approaching us?!"
"I-I don't know for sure, but the sun was up later than usual, so she must know something's up! For all we know, the Royal Guard could be searching across half the nation by now! And I'm not really fond of waiting to find out!"
Trixie bemoaned like a bratty filly, "Look, all Trixie and Spirit need to do is get the hyperdrive up and running. You, on the other hand, need to reach the top of the ship! It's navigational systems! Only you can get us on track to Meridio, so there's no time to waste!"
Trixie, now ahead of Century, stopped at a small industrial elevator. As Century stopped behind her, she pointed to a panel interface to the side of the elevator. "Step inside this lift and select the 'helm.' It'll get you to the steering wheel and whatnot. As soon as you're up there, set a course for Meridio at the console where the wheel sits."
"What about you and Spirit?"
"We're already at the hyperdrive's floor, so Trixie just needs to gun it, and hopefully not pass out before she gets there. Now get in the lift already!"
"Alright, alright," Century replied as Trixie pushed him inward with her hooves as if he were a large box of bricks. She pressed the button that would bring Century to the helm before stepping out.
"Alright, alright, "she mocked. "As if you weren't just screaming at Trixie to open the door."
"Oh, shut up! Next time, don't lock it!"
"Blah blah, get a move on!"
With an eye-roll from Century, the two parted ways as the elevator began to rise, and the magic mare galloped away to meet up with Spirit. Century lifted his head and stared at the ceiling.
Navigation. Setting a course for Meridio. Easy, Century thought. With the small problem of locating exactly where Meridio was. Then again, it was just on the other side of the planet. Couldn't be that hard to find. Just look for the island with the astronomically large laser sticking out from it. Simple.
He wondered how Trixie and Spirit were gonna power this ship in the first place. Was it gonna zap them of everything they had again? And he'd just be alone on the ship? Maybe, and that would suck an awful lot. But at least he'd have time to really relax and think. But he had other questions.
How did the Meridians power this thing without the use of unicorns? Was this thing specifically constructed for equine use? How long does this secret relationship between Equestria and Meridio go? And why aren’t the nations on good terms?
But those thoughts and potential answers would have to wait as the elevator dinged. He'd reached the helm, and it was time to get to work. With no delay, Century trotted over to the console next to the wheel. It was remarkably similar to the tower, with the only difference being the interface and color scheme.
Setting down his sachel on the far right of the console, Century began searching the menus until he spotted the navigation tab and tapped it. Surprising him, a massive white hologram shot up from the console and displayed the entire globe. Indicating the ship's location as a blue arrow at Manehatten Bay.
The Ponyville official was, as expected, astounded and at a loss for words. There was no magic at work here. Only an extraordinary feat of science and technology... That thought felt odd as it pinged his head. Shaking out of his sudden silence, Century noticed a prompt below the arrow.
Would you like to enable D.H.A.I.A.?
"Uh... Yes?" Century spoke, curious and confused. He tapped the 'yes' prompt below and waited with bated breath for something, anything to happen. Staring at the prompt as it loaded his selection. And it continued loading. And loading. And more loading. And some more loading. And loading some more.
"...Okay, this is a waste of time-"
"Hello!"
"Ah! What the heck!?"
Spontaneously appearing from the right of the globe hologram was another hologram. A small, cyan emoticon with odd fluffy cat ears upon its head. It continued, "Welcome aboard the FRMS Ancylus Adhara! I am this ship's D.H.A.I.A.! At your service! How can I help you today? Are you my new captain?"
"W-What?!" Century replied. Stammering and baffled. "W-What are you?! What's a D.H... W-What?!"
"Designated Hypercarrier Artifical Intelligence Assistant! Or DHAIA, for short! I must advise you, the last 'a' in my name is silent!"
"...Dhaia? Like... 'Die' Dhaia?"
"Correct! You're a fast learner! What is your name? Are you a canine or a feline? Are you even from Meridio?”
“I-I, canine? Feline? W-Wha-“
“My apologies, too many questions, I see. My program did not recognize you at first, seeing as your entry onto my ship lacked a thorough facial scan, along with my ship currently being outside of internationally recognized Meridian waters. And so, in compliance with the FRM DOT MARAD legal policy and terms of service, a total factory reset had been enabled in order to protect classified intelligence belonging to both the Federal Republic of Meridio and the Hermes Shipping Company. Along with all previous data records belonging to the extensive use of this hypercarrier over the last nine years of service. Have I made a mistake?"
Century shook his head, temporarily mentally blocking the insanity of the technology before him. "Look, I don't have time for any of this! Set a course for the closest port at Meridio! And do it now! Like, yesterday, now!"
"My apologies, but I do not remember meeting yesterday-"
"Oh, shut up, you know what I mean!"
Not replying, Dhaia began calculating a route just as Century had ordered. Landing on the closest port of Meridio. Dan Forlexiyan Bay, the hologram displayed. The Ponyville official smiled, "Oh wow, we'll be there in four days! Guess Capper really came through for us. Now I just need Spirit and Trixie to activate the-"
*CRACK*
Out of nowhere, a sharp crack and shockwave broke the air from seemingly outside the ship. It was as if someone had fired some highly advanced railgun into the sky above Manehatten. The sound beat at Century's eardrums for a split second, and he staggered at the sound. He chuckled, "Well... Uh, I guess that's the hyperdrive...? This is going way smoother than I anticipated..."
"No it wasn't," Dhaia replied, visible confusion on its face.
"Uh... W-What do you mean? Doesn't the hyperdrive make like a... Uh, a loud noise when it starts up or something?"
"The hyperdrive was activated two minutes ago."
"...What? Then what was that noise?"
"I'm sorry, but I haven't the fondest clue... Maybe it has something to do with the steering wheel glowing yellow?"
"...The what?"
Century jerked his head, and just as Dhaia had stated, it was indeed glowing yellow. The magical essence was gradually enveloping the wheel. Century whirled his head around to find several other objects and components of the ship shrouded in this yellow glow. The console, the floor, the roof, the elevator he used to get here, every support beam, heck, the entirety of the helm was glowing yellow in a matter of seconds.
To add to the unknown, the ship had stopped moving what little amount it did. And Century shifted forward roughly, along with the hologram spazzing out for a moment, and his sachel tumbling to the floor; The crown falling out of it. Realization began to fill Century's mind, and terror began to shake him from his very core.
He couldn't believe he had underestimated her.
"O-Oh wow! This is so... New! And exciting! It seems everything in here is now glowing yellow! I have never witnessed a phenomenon such as this! Is this an Equestrian custom?"
"...Yeah."
"What's it called?"
"'We're screwed.'"
No more than an Astro-second later, Century felt his entire body get flown to the back of the ship! Hitting it with a vicious crash! Following him were several other bits and objects on the deck. Buckets, mops, loose components, now-broken glass, several tools, and the crown all splashed against the wall Century now found himself stuck on. A mallet almost smashing straight into his face. It would appear the ship had tilted, and was being pulled out of the water!
"Alert!" Dhaia began, "Unidentified collision of gravitational forces detected! Emergency disengaging of submersible mode has been activated!"
Century, despite the insanity occurring all around him, spotted the ship transform from a submarine to a standard ship. The roof above him hastily ripped apart in two separate directions and withdrew into the sides of the ship. Its metal creaked and cried at the sudden change in form, and the opening began to flood the vessel at the lower half of the deck.
As the roof pulled apart, the sun shined brilliantly and straight at his face. The hot glare and rays beat down on his eyes and forced them shut. And he'd keep them closed as water from the sea flooded the ship from all sides, drenching the Earth pony. And for a split second, he could've sworn he was drowning.
Eventually, Century would emerge from the water as it splashed down to the lower end of the ship. The cries of the disturbed ocean being defiled filled his left ear, while the roars of the infuriated exterior of the ship being brutally yanked out of the water like a fish, filled his right.
As the ship balanced out, Century, and the several objects attached to the wall, fell to the ground thunderously. Cautious, soaked, and almost petrified, Century rose to his hooves and shook about his body to quickly dry himself off. As he wiped his face, he noticed the deck had been flooded with almost a foot of water. He also noticed the crown float past him and hit the console. (Thank Celestia that thing was waterproof).
"Who... is that?" Dhaia asked, bewildered at the last few seconds of madness, and spotting a figure in the sky. Century coughed and rubbed his eyes. His fear being replaced, just a tad bit, with that familiar feeling of annoyance. "...A massive problem."
Lo and behold, hovering above the deck of the ship and glaring down at Century was none other than the mare of the hour. Her Highness Princess Celestia. Her mane was as luscious and flowing as ever, but she herself was... Off. The Princess featured a river of sweat running down her face, and she wore a furrow. An absolutely livid furrow, to be specific. And he could feel the heat from that furrow intensify as soon as she spotted her crown sitting in the water near his hooves.
However, she wasn't alone. Next to her was a pegasus royal guard in armor that was far heavier and flashier than his fellow soldiers. It was a dazzling radiant white all over, featuring a much heavier helmet that hugged the stallion's face. Century remembered him from the Royal Castle's chamber. He hovered close to Celestia's right. Perhaps the Princess' personal guard? How did he not know of this pony's existence? He shrugged it off internally. He'd deal with that later if he had to.
"Century of Ponyville! What is the meaning of this larceny?!"
Century stumbled back as Celestia used her Canterlot voice. It must've been centuries since she'd done that, he thought. He was prepared for the Sun Princess to be upset about the thievery of her crown, but this was far beyond what he predicted. Might've screwed myself here, the Earth pony thought.
"Never, in the tens of thousands of years I have perambulated this planet, have I ever encountered a being foolish enough to pilfer personally from me!"
Perambulated?
"To commit such a frivolous, such an asinine act, is simply beyond reason! And then to attempt to steal one of Equestria's most invaluable ships! Have you gone mad, little pony!?"
Century stared down the Princess as he contemplated his reply. His mind running a thousand miles a second. Okay, Century. Super enraged demigoddess just traveled a maddening distance in a matter of milliseconds and is currently controlling a ship that weighs almost forty-three thousand tons. Gotta play this smart...
.
..
...
"Your mother!"
"I-I, w-what?!"
The pegasus flared his wings, "You dare insult the Princess of Equestria?! After all the crimes you've committed in the last week?!"
"...Yes."
"Such repugnant behavior! Princess, allow me to apprehend this wretched malefactor!" The pegasus turned to Celestia, who silently nodded. However, Century noticed that she was seemingly struggling to keep restraining the ship. But he needed to worry about this pega-
"Century! It's Spirit, can you hear me?!"
The Earth pony whirled around, "Dhaia? W-Was that you?"
"It was not," Dhaia replied. "Someone has patched in through emergency communications. I believe they are trying to reach you... as you are Century?"
The pegasus reached the deck and tilted his head, "Who in the world are you talking to?! Don't go crazy on us now, hand yourself over to me so we can end this charade!"
"Listen," Spirit continued, "Century, the hyperdrive is already activated, but it hasn't necessarily engaged, I guess. But once it does, the outcome isn't gonna be pretty if we're still stuck in Celestia's grasp! You need to get her to stop, now!"
Century scoffed, "Yeah, because telling the alicorn to screw off is so easy, Spirit! H-How are you even speaking to me right now?!"
"Just do it!"
The pegasus shouted, "Fine! We'll just do this the hard way then!"
Century turned around, "The what-"
The pegasus pounced on Century! His tackle unknowingly threw the two across the console, and they hit the deck below hard! Century attempted to rise to his hooves, but the pegasus shoved his muzzle into the ground!
"It didn't have to end like this, brownie."
"Brownie!?"
"Indeed! You look like one! Now enough talk! This joke is over..." The pegasus replied as he pulled Century up to his hooves and dragged him back up the steps. His wings gripped Century by his throat and left front hoof. It wasn't until now that Century realized just how large this pegasus' wings were. He was baffled, they had to have been twice the size of a normal pegasus', and they were far stronger. Struggling was futile.
As they reached the deck, Century's mind began running at the speed of light. He needed to get Celestia to let go of the ship already, or this plan was over. Not to mention what might happen to the bay.
Century thought to himself, ...The Princess is struggling badly. She's sweating even more than she was before, which means she's vulnerable. I just need to get her to let go of the ship already, but how?! Not to mention this giant loser holding me back... Man, this dude called me a brownie, what a jerk! Was that his idea of a good joke?! Man, I hated that! Just because I'm brown?! So cheap! I-I'm not a brownie! Man, that crap reminded me of those stupid dad jokes Trixie found!
.
..
...
Oh.
"Hey, Princess!" Century shouted, and Celestia glared down at him. The ship was still being pulled back towards the bay, and her eyes were slowly turning bloodshot. She did not need to hear his voice right now.
The pegasus arresting him raised a brow, "Don't you dare speak to her, you criminal scum! Keep your mouth shut-"
"Have you heard the joke about the butter? I better not tell you, it might spread!"
"W-Wha... W-What?!"
The ship's deck began to jerk violently as Celestia's magic began to falter! The Princess' immediate irritation at such a joke clashed with her capacity to utilize her magic!
Century had remembered back at Twilight's library what Trixie had discovered in that one stupid book. Certain alicorns and unicorns' magic is weak to bad dad jokes. It was his only option, a very stupid one at that, and while Celestia was an incomprehensibly powerful alicorn, her already struggling to hold tight to the ship meant the jokes might actually be able to get through. And it would seem he was right.
The pegasus growled as he attempted to keep his balance. His vexation for this annoying nuisance of an Earth pony growing by the second. "W-What are you doing now?! Enough of-"
"I went to a seafood disco last week! Pulled a mussel!"
Century and the pegasus fell to the floor as the ship vibrated as if a hurricane was running over it! The crown washing over to Century. Celestia's wings grew tired, and she found herself struggling to keep her head up as Century's unbearably stupid jokes drove the Princess insane.
"Alert!" Dhaia began, "Hyperdrive engagement imminent at ninety percent!" Minorly inconvenient news to the Earth pony's ears. He seriously needed to wrap this up. With all the might he could conjure, Century rose to his hooves one last time and took a deep breath.
"...What do you call a fly without wings?"
Celestia pleaded as the magic on the ship began to lose its yellow glow, and the hyperdrive gradually started to roar. "S-Stop! Century... D-Don't you-"
"A walk."
In one split second, the hypercarrier rested in Celestia's grasp. And in the next, it was gone! Like Spirit's spell that she cast as a distraction when she first entered the hypercarrier's warehouse, the ship left an indescribably colossal splash in its wake. Towering higher than the tallest skyscraper in the city, and then stretching into the clouds! The trail it left behind was so vast, that the waves shooting from the sides of the ship could be seen from orbit! Almost totally parting the entire ocean!
Century and the pegasus, along with every conceivable item on the deck, were practically one with the back wall of the ship, as the speed of the vessel had garnered enough force to throw them into it! Knocking the pegasus unconscious, and making Century look like a cartoon. His eyelids were practically tearing themselves away from his eyes. His mouth blew in the wind, his muzzle shoved upward, and his hair was as flat as paper against the wall.
"HO—L—Y CRA———P," Century screeched. Barely able to get the words out, or even hear himself. The ship shook, not as if it were experiencing an earthquake, but as if the ship actively causing it. Brutally and violently assaulting the Earth's ocean below. It was a miracle Century hadn't blacked out yet.
The Earth pony felt his body begin to literally sink into the back wall of the ship. Denting it as he the hypercarrier swallowed him whole. Same for the pegasus, and the abundance of other objects against the wall. Including the Sun Princess' crown.
"DHAIA! DO SOMETHING! PLE——ASE!! I-I need! I-I... ugh..."
"Ah!"
"Eek! Shut up!"
"I-I... W-Wha- Trixie?"
"…Yes... The great and powerful."
Century opened his eyes to the sight of Lulamoon poking his face. He tried to move but realized he was still stuck to the wall. Only now, he was legitimately stuck within it. A dent so deep, he couldn't even move his head. He looked left and right, trying to find Spirit, and reintroduce himself with his surroundings.
One of the first things he spotted was the new glass dome that now surrounded the transformed ship. He quickly figured it was how the hypercarrier protected its interior while still giving its passengers a view of the outside. Just, without the hyperspeed blowing their faces off.
He coughed, "W-Where's-"
"Spirit?" Trixie replied, "She's just getting rid of the water that's flooded. She should be back anytime now-"
"Is he okay?" Spirit asked, trotting up the steps.
"What do you know," Trixie whispered before turning to the unicorn. "The Earth pony is fine, just a tiny bit stuck. No biggie."
Century scoffed, "I can't move my head, what do you mean no biggie?! Get me out of here, you bum!"
While chuckling, Trixie used her magic to gently pull Century out of the wall. "Ow!" He shrieked, "Splinters! Be careful!"
"How is Trixie supposed to be careful?"
"I don't know, you're the magician! Figure it out!"
"Okay, Trixie says suck it up!"
"You are a terrible magician!"
Trixie, as delicately as she could, gradually tugged Century out of the wall. Leaving him with many splinters and bruises that he'd spend hours dealing with. Shouting at Trixie that she'll be helping him later.
"Ow." Century groaned as Trixie dropped him on the deck. He stood up, struggling; but soon enough, he regained his strength.
He stared at Trixie, she stared back. He stared at Spirit, she stared back. Spirit stared at Trixie, and Trixie stared back. The three of them traded stares as the realization of their situation slowly filled the air.
"Holy crap," Spirit spoke up. "We did it. We actually did it."
"We did?" Trixie asked, and Century responded, "Well, we're on the hypercruiser, sailing away from Equestria to Meridio..." He trailed off as he analyzed the deck for the crown. And lo and behold, it sat near the top of the left steps. "...And we have the crown. So yeah, I'd say we did it."
The trio continued standing in place. They had all imagined that they'd be celebrating and jumping for joy at the fact. Relieved and ecstatic that the first two phases of this wickedly insane plot had been completed.
But instead of elation, they felt distress. Fear. If all of Equestria wasn't after the trio beforehand, they undoubtedly were now. Princess Celestia herself had burned the image of Century's face in her mind, and it wasn't going away for a long time. If ever.
Trixie stammered, "...H-How did Celestia know? How'd she know we'd take the hypercarrier? How'd she know we had the crown?”
"Capper," Spirit replied, almost emotionless. "The Royal Guard must've entered Ponyville, and he spilled the beans. This means the hope of us getting away without having to worry about being pursued is certainly dashed now. Not that the hope was all that strong in the first place."
"And," Spirit began to add, "If Equestria knows our plot and plan, then they're bound to tell Meridio. Which means we'll be walking into hostile territory in the most advanced country in the world." She looked over her shoulder at the unconscious pegasus guard. "And then there's this guy..."
"Unbelievable," Trixie began, "We have Celestia's closest guard as our stowaway. I don't even know if we'll be able to contain him."
"We'll just have to try," Century responded. He stared at the floor below him. "We... We need to get it together, guys." He raised his head, "We were incredibly doubtful about finding something to destroy Celestia's crown. We were incredibly doubtful about stealing Celestia's crown. And we were incredibly doubtful about escaping with Celestia's crown... But we've done all of it.
"We can do this!" Century exclaimed, stomping his left hoof. "I-I don't mean to shout, but we've shown ourselves more than capable numerous times! It's time we stop doubting ourselves, and start believing. A-And I know that sounds really corny, but if it works for the Elements, then it can work for us. We've come too far to fail now. Y'all with me?!"
Trixie glanced at Spirit, and Spirit glanced at Trixie. Silently debating with one another and determining the other's thoughts through vicious silence. After a short moment, the two mares nodded. Spirit sighed, "We're probably hundreds of miles away by now. No point in turning back."
Trixie scoffed, "As if doing such was ever an option! The Great and Powerful Trixie will see this dastardly plot to the very end! Mark her words!"
Century smiled and nodded at his allies. "Good, we need each other for this." After a moment, he approached the ship's navigational systems. Dhaia noticed his approach and reappeared. "Is everything alright now," the AI asked, and Century nodded. "Well, as you can see, we're all not dead and the ship's still intact. So, yeah, I'd say everything's alright. We still on our way to Meridio?"
Dhaia displayed the global map again and highlighted the ship's position. "Due to the... explosive launch we received, we should be arriving at Meridio eleven hours earlier than normal."
"So we'll be there by Tuesday instead, huh? Works for us."
Spirit stepped beside Century, gaping at Dhaia's form. "So... are you gonna tell us about whatever this... thing is?" Century didn't reply, but instead trotted over to the crown. He picked it up, brought it to the console, and set it down. Gleefully staring at it.
"As soon as I get done marveling at this thing."