//------------------------------// // T-15:00:00 // Story: Maiden Voyage // by Reviewfilly //------------------------------// Celestia entered her quarters, situated right next to the staircase leading into the gondola and farthest from the engines. All things considered, it was a fairly pleasant room, nothing even royalty could scoff at. Next to the wall opposite to the door was a great, cushioned bed, easily big enough to allow two alicorn-sized ponies to rest comfortably, let alone just the princess herself. In the corner next to it stood a mahogany table and chair, parchment, ink and quills already prepared for work. An oil painting of Mount and Castle Canterlot hung on the wall next to the door, along with another depicting a fight between the Royal Guard and creatures of the Everfree forest. A very supple carpet covered the floor, on it an intricate pastoral scene of ponies playfully chasing each other. Finally, to let in some light and allow her to take a peek outside, a big window sat between the bed and the desk. Celestia trotted to the window and looked outside, spotting two distinct groups below. One of them were the loitering crowds surrounding the ship, lured in by the news of “the Sun Princess taking to the sky on a giant.” Ponies of both noble and common origin gawked and pointed at the beast that was the Lux Aeterna as one, their differences forgotten in the presence of such a monumental sight. Celestia smiled, even if she couldn’t hear what they were saying. It didn’t take her wisdom to see that at least on this side of the globe the airship was already achieving its intended effect. The other group, like small ants, were still scurrying to and from the craft and making final preparations to allow the ship to depart. Celestia saw a quickly-growing pile of luggage on the dock, which she acknowledged with an annoyed shake of her head. First they couldn’t test the ship, then it didn’t entirely fit its parameters. Bad omens. Had the situation not been so dire, Celestia would have liked to spend a few extra months making sure everything was okay. But... At that moment somepony knocked on the door, interrupting her thoughts. “Come in,” she answered without missing a beat, and the door opened. Sky stepped inside, holding his hat in his hooves. “We are just about ready and waiting on your command, Highness,” he said with equal parts solemnity and reverence. Even if she was really just a passenger with no active role in the flight, it was Celestia’s regal word that would elevate the ship from the ground and the old captain was not one to ignore the grandeur of such a ritual. Celestia nodded and said the words, “You are free to take off, Captain Sky. May Harmony grant us a safe and speedy voyage.” “Understood, Your Highness. We shall depart within a half hour. The passengers shall convene in one hour in the main hall for your address following. May Harmony grant us a safe and speedy voyage,” he echoed before ducking out. Right, the address, Celestia thought with a groan. The part of the day she was the least looking forward to. Even less so than the future prospect of listening to the nobles bemoan everypony from the crew to the engineers about how their packages were thrown out whilst trying to earn her sympathy. She was certain they would still complain about it incessantly, even though they were clearly told to pack lightly and only bring essentials, and even though all packages would be guarded closely and returned untouched upon their arrival. With an exasperated sigh, she sat down at her desk and unfurled a scroll already placed on the table. She re-read the speech a few times, memorising it with ease. It was nothing she hadn’t already said a hundred times in other speeches before. Overly drawn out and roundabout thoughts about how happy she felt to be in such an esteemed audience, how these nobles would be key in saving Equestria, and how the Lux Aeterna would serve Equestria’s enduring peace and prosperity. None of them lies, but each a distortion of the truth. After all, it was true that she was happy to be in their company, but she would’ve been just as happy, if not happier to mingle with commoners. Even though their presence really was the key in saving Equestria, the actual politicking was going to be done by a select few ponies who were chosen partly for the very reason that they were loyal enough to do their job perfectly without requiring so much as a ‘thank you’. As well as that, whilst the ship’s purpose truly was to keep peace in Equestria, it would accomplish this task quite differently than how many of its passengers likely thought. Celestia abhorred the very idea of weaponising the craft, a notion popular with the more sabre-rattling side of her court. Still, the machine was set in motion and she had to be one, if not the most important cog in it. When it came to nobility, posturing could not be avoided, so complaining about it was just as pointless as the event itself. The part that actually mattered the most was what followed. After her public speech, she and her chosen would disappear back into this room to discuss their actual strategy. That was where peace between pony and griffonkind would live or die. A couple dozen minutes later, when she was at her tenth re-read, rapping on the table trying to decide whether a certain way of addressing her nobles was ‘regal’ enough or not, she felt a sudden lurch as the ship’s monstrously big magitech engine finally kicked into life. Stepping away from the desk she peered outside the window, the crowd below seeming even greater than before. With an impish smile she unlatched the windowpane and opened it, so that she could slightly lean outside. Immediately hooves began to point at her, as ponies of all ages and standing cheered and waved at their princess. Despite the claims of vile tongues, Celestia had never been doing it for the adoration. She was immortal and over hundreds of years, fame, fortune, and love had all already accrued naturally. At this point in her life, none of it mattered too greatly. But, as she scanned the crowd and saw their smiles and glimmering eyes, the real reason was more obvious than ever; she wanted to protect what she saw below. Behind her the Lux Aeterna quietly groaned and creaked as rotors roared into life, flares ignited, and the until-then stationary giant slowly began to move. The movement was almost imperceptible at first, as the engine had to fight off a truly incomprehensible amount of inertia. However, slowly but surely magic won over matter and the ship began to back off from the mast. This made the crowds below even more excited and loud. Speech and paper forgotten, Celestia spent the next few minutes simply waving and smiling at the ponies below. For her it was a simple act of kindness. For them, it was a story to tell their grandfoals and their grandfoals’ grandfoals. Customs demanded that she spend her entire time practising for the speech, but granting her subjects these priceless moments came at such a negligible cost to herself that she would be selfishly remiss not to give them such long-lasting happiness. She smiled and waved for so long that it took the aide dispatched to gather her three stern series of knocks to finally grab her attention. “Your Highness, the passengers have assembled and are awaiting your speech,” she heard from the other side of the door. Celestia sheepishly pulled herself back from the window, before replying a little more flustered than usual, “Thank you! I’ll be there momentarily.”