//------------------------------//
// Chapter 30 
// Story: My Little Pony: Morphing is Magic 
// by Tricondon 
//------------------------------//

Author's Note: Written by Samaru163 and Tricondon.

Chapter Thirty

Ax

What should have been a simple flight back to the group of equines resulted into a series of irritating detours. The grey pegasus veered off course several times; by the time we finally arrived back in the main room we had seen almost all of the castle. Prince Jake, Marco, and Rachel had already returned before I could get my charge to the others, though I noticed they had morphed into bats.

<Glad you decided to join us, Ax-man,> Marco said in a tone which I believe humans call ‘sarcasm’. <What’s wrong, can’t keep track of one little pegasus?>

<Her flight skills are severely lacking when compared to the others,> I replied. <She does, however, have a future in demolition when one considers the number of windows she smashed.> I flew down and perched on the raised dais, looking over the crowd of colourful equines. <What did you discover in the other chamber? Is it an entrance to the Yeerk Pool?>

<Nope, it’s something else entirely,> Rachel said. <Something we think could go quite a ways in helping us. It’s huge, and looks like it might be able to fly, even.>

<You have discovered a warship? I was not aware these equines were capable of such a technological achievement.>

<I didn’t see any weapons on it, actually. But it is big enough to carry everyone. It would be far better than leaving them here in the middle of a Yeerk-infested forest,> Prince Jake said. 

<Is this the best course of action?> I asked. <The Yeerks would surely send their fighters at us once we are airborne, and I highly doubt this species’ technology would be effective against them.>

<I think we’re in the clear so far as that’s concerned,> Marco said. <Unless I’m completely horrible at judging direction, I’d say we’re rather south of Ponyville, and Canterlot is still to the north of that. Both the Changelings and the Yeerks will likely be directing their attention north, on guard for a counter-attack.>

<And that aside, the cave seems to be dug out of the south side of the mountain. We’ll be launching below the peak, meaning we’ll have plenty of cover until we pull away,> Prince Jake explained. 

I spent a moment thinking over what they had said. <Yes, those are all beneficial factors, though would I be permitted to inspect the airship before we allow anyone on board?>

<Go ahead, Twilight’s already started. As soon as we mentioned it she got all starry-eyed and ran off to inspect it.>

<Thank you, Prince Jake.>

<So what are we supposed to do while Ax is learning how to fly a pony-made zeppelin?> Marco asked.

<On the chance the airship cannot fly, we’ll still need to leave all these ponies here. And they can’t stay in what is essentially two walls and a floor. We’ll be moving them to the large chamber and keeping them out of the passageway to the launching dock,> Prince Jake explained.

<Very well then, Prince Jake, I shall begin immediately,> I said.

<Ax, don’t call me Prince.>

<Yes Prince Jake.>

I promptly took off and flew back into the large chamber again, easily finding the large hole that led down. It did not appear to be ideal for flying in my current form, so after a cursory glance around both the room and the surrounding area I landed and quickly demorphed. When I finished I walked over to the hole and began to focus on my bat morph. I was interrupted, though, by the sound of stone shifting behind me. Quickly I swerved an eye stalk to look at its source. The circular raised platform at the far end of the room had split along its diameter. The two pieces then slid away from each other, and a slightly confused Twilight poked her head out of where they had been.

“Oh, so that’s where this tunnel leads,” she said, as if musing to herself. Climbing out of the hole she looked around and spied me. She gave a startled gasp before calming down and gave a quick bow. “Ah, I’m sorry, Ax, I didn’t see you there.”

<Considering the large amount of impossible skills you already possess, I am surprised you cannot simply sense other beings around you.>

“Well normally I can’t, but I know a few spells that allow me to. It’s rather draining keeping spells active all the time, and I don’t think I need to be on the lookout right now.”

<So what you mean to say is that your species does in fact possess enhanced sensing abilities but can decide when they wish to keep them active?> I asked.

“Yeah, I guess you could put it like that.”

I kept my main eyes focused on her while my stalk eyes observed the passageway she came from. <I assume this leads down to where the ship is docked?>

“Yes. I looked it over, though I’ve never read anything about it. I wasn’t even aware the Princesses had airships a thousand years ago. I thought it was a recent invention.”

<A millennium is a long time. Perhaps the documentation was simply lost in the interim.> I was about to question if there was ever a Queen in the past, but decided to save it for later. <May you show me to the ship? Prince Jake has granted me permission to look it over as well.>

“Oh, of course! It’s just down this passage. I had no idea there was a secret passageway in here. I wonder how many there are in Canterlot Castle?” With a giggle she turned and ducked back down the passage, forcing me to hurry to catch up.

I stumbled a little in the darkness before catching up to Twilight, who was making her horn glow. I couldn’t help but think of how useful it could be to dissect one of these equines, find out how they can do these skills and see if we could duplicate it in some fashion. 

We reached the end of the passageway, which lead into a large open space. Twilight’s light did very little to clear the darkness, so instead of continuing straight she looked towards where the ceiling would be and formed the light into a sphere. I was about to question her motivations when she sent the sphere sailing into the darkness. Peering after it, I saw that it was headed towards what looked like a large, colorless crystal growing from the roof of the cavern. When the light finally made contact it dispersed and was absorbed by the crystal, which then began to glow intensely. The light it was generating then shot out in several directions, each one striking a smaller crystal of different colors. This process repeated until the entire cavern was fully lit.

I stared at the crystals for a time, momentarily stunned that they could be forced to glow in such a way until I spied...

Well, I’m not really sure exactly what it was. At first glance it resembled some form of primitive human boat, perhaps a trireme of the ancient Greeks. It was about three times as large, however, and seemed much more aerodynamic in shape. The front was shaped much like the head of an arrow, with several small fin shaped objects jetting form the sides. From the looks of their construction they could be manually opened and closed from the control center, meaning they were most likely the rudders. Material-wise the ship was mostly wood with some basic metals like iron and copper used to hold key pieces. Finally, attached to its deck were dozens of cables that lead to a massive deflated balloon draped over the starboard side. In its current state there was little I could make out from it, but it seemed to be made of a rather primitive nylon and polyester combination.

<You cannot be serious. This thing actually flies?> I asked incredulously. <Even if that balloon were inflated with helium I doubt it would lift all that weight, and I cannot locate any method of self propulsion. We would be at the mercy of the wind.>

“There’s plenty of fins, aren’t there? And it wouldn’t just be helium inflating the envelope. A few unicorns would need to charge some of the fore and aft stabilizer nodes.” Twilight pointed to a few dull grey bumps on the fabric at various spots.

<Even if what you say is true, this craft has been here for over 1000 years. How can we be sure it is still usable?>

“Well, I’m not sure. I’ve only studied pictures and diagrams of airship engines. I’ve never actually gotten the chance to take one apart for myself.” Twilight brought a hoof to her muzzle, deep in thought. “Though, from what I remember, all we need is sufficient charge. There might still be a suitable power crystal somewhere around here, if we’re lucky.”

<How can you run your machinery on crystals?> I asked.

“Well, if we’re being technical, the crystal actually isn’t the power source. It’s more of an amplifier of unicorn magic, like the one I used to light this room up. It’s more efficient than steam or coal like we use on trains, but it requires a unicorn to always be present. It isn’t fair to earth ponies or pegasi to always give up the jobs to unicorns.”

<Very considerate of your species,> I replied. <Shall we go and find one of these crystals?>

“I’ll check the engine room. You can try the storage room just over there.” Twilight motioned towards a large wooden door set into one of the walls. It was nearly rotted away and leaned away from me, presumably being propped up by something on the other side. I approached it cautiously, my tail blade poised and ready to strike, and pushed on the door slightly. It groaned and scraped against whatever had been holding it up and fell to the ground, slamming noisily and echoing against the far end of the chamber.

Inside there were several crates and boxes that looked to have been abandoned with the castle. Carefully I used my tail blade to open one, revealing that it contained what appeared to be charts and maps of that time era. Other boxes held different things, fossilized food remains, armour, medical supplies turned to dust, and various gemstones of different shapes and colors. Behind them, I discovered a long double pointed crystal that was milky green. Carefully I took it in my hands and walked over to where Twilight was exploring.

I carefully climbed onto the airship, testing the wood each step of the way. Surprisingly it did not seem to have aged like the door, though I did not wish to take anything by chance. I ducked as I passed through the door, finding the ceiling too small to accommodate my form, though I suppose it was an appropriate height for the much smaller equines. 

Twilight was inspecting what appeared to be a steam powered engine, but with several differences. Attached to its front was a tall glass casing, with several copper wirings running from it into the heart of the engine. She turned as I entered and immediately spotted the crystal in my hands.

“Oh, excellent! You found one!” The crystal flew out of my hands and hovered above Twilight, and I was momentarily shocked before remembering her unusual telekinetic abilities. She held it aloft in the air for a few moments, inspecting the crystal from every angle. “Hmm, it’s drained, but I think it will still hold a charge.” 

<For how long, though?>

“I’m not sure. From what I read, a crystal can hold a charge for several days, but this one is rather old.” Without another word Twilight shut her eyes and what I can only describe as a beam of light shot from her horn into the crystal. The crystal began to glow; curiously, I could still see right through it and could spot no reason for its luminescence. Whatever the reason, Twilight seemed to be overjoyed at the sight.

“Ah, it still works!”

<The, ah, crystal might. But would the engine still run after so many centuries of inactivity?> I pointed out. <If it is at all similar to early engines on Earth, crucial components may have corroded away, or seized up.>

“Well, there’s only one way to be sure.”

Twilight turned her attention towards the glass casing and it too was taken by the lavender glow before levitating completely off. She then moved the crystal under and closed the casing. For an Equestrian minute or so nothing happened. Twilight visibly sagged, clearly saddened. I walked closer and placed a comforting hand at the base of her neck, as I’ve seen humans do to comfort others.

<It is a pity, but there was no reason to think it would still function after so long. It is marvelous that something this old even still exists.>

Twilight let out a sigh of disappointment and slammed a hoof against the engine in frustration. She - and I - took a step back in surprise when the machine sputtered and roared to life for a moment before calming down, as dead as it was before she hit it.

Twilight eyed the engine curiously before her eyes widened with realization. “Oh, of course! How could I forget?” She walked up to the engine, looking all around it until she made a triumphant ‘A-ha!’ Turning to me with a smile, she motioned for me to come closer. “Ax, I’m going to go up to the helm. When this light turns on, I want you to pull this lever all the way down.” She pointed to a rusted old metal stick. 

<Are you sure this is a wise course of action?> Twilight either didn’t hear me or ignored me, since by then she was already running towards the exit, laughing giddily.

I simply stood beside the engine and looked around the room, being certain to keep an eye on the light Twilight told me to keep watch on. After a moment it emitted a faint light and I pulled on the rusted lever. It gave a metallic groan as it shifted positions before snapping completely off. I looked at the lever in my hand and shook my head in disappointment. Giving the engine a final look I headed to the helm to give my report to Twilight.

When I emerged from the engine room I was suddenly thrown off balance and scrambled to stay upright, swinging my arms and tail out to steady myself. Once I had regained my balance I shakily continued to the helm, slightly confused. Strange. It almost feels like a Bug Fighter lifting off.

My confusion momentarily forgotten, I rushed to the side as carefully as I could and peered over. By my guess the ship was improbably floating approximately seven feet off the ground. <But...but this is impossible! A wooden ship cannot possibly levitate like this!>

“It’s not, the magic I placed in that crystal is what’s keeping it in the air.” I turned around and found Twilight standing behind me, a huge smile on her face. “Well, technically, the raw magic I dumped into the crystal is powering the stagnant spell contained within.”

<That...how is that physically possible? You’re saying your species’s abilities over deception can be used to power and run complex machinery.>

Twilight let out an amused sigh and shook her head. “Still disbelieving in magic? It’s fine, take your time. I had a hard time believing in Pinkie’s Pinkie Sense.” She turned away from me and observed the ship. “Can you go back and tell Prince Jake he can bring the others down here?”

<You believe the ship will be able to carry everyone?>

“Once we get that balloon inflated, yes. I’ll get started on it while you’re guiding everypony down here.”

I nodded in agreement and promptly made my way off the ship. Once on the ground I swerved my eye stalks around to observe the ship as I continued on. Sure enough, the large vessel was indeed hovering, the fins on its sides even swaying open slightly as it moved. It also seemed different somehow, almost like it was brand new. This was most likely a trick of the lights, though, so I paid it no mind and instead focused on my bat morph. Once that was finished I flew up the passageway and back into the room above.

By the time I returned Prince Jake and the others had moved a fair number of the equines into the room. Most of them were bunched together in groups of four or five, with a few stragglers wandering the perimeter. I quickly noticed Prince Jake perched on a sconce, with both Cassie - who was in osprey morph - and Tobias sitting next to him. Fluttershy, Applejack, and her family stood beneath, and seemed to be having a private conversation with them. I flew over and perched myself next to them, taking notice of the distraught looks on their faces.

<Ah, Ax, there you are,> Prince Jake looked at me as I landed. <What do you think? Can we use it?>

<Twilight and myself have managed to make the dirigible operational.> I cocked my head towards the orange-coloured equine and her family. <Prince Jake, is not the youngest member a controller?>

<Long story behind that, Ax,> Tobias said. <She says that she’s with the Yeerk Peace movement.>

<And how do you know that she isn’t lying? For all we know the movement is strictly contained to Earth.>

<I think she could be telling the truth,> Cassie supplied.

<I am not risking anyone’s life on a ‘could’ or a ‘maybe’!> Prince Jake snapped.

I shifted my gaze towards the controller. <When did you last feed, Yeerk?>

“Ah got out of the Pool last night.”

<What are you thinking, Ax?> Prince Jake asked in private though speech. Cassie, too, seemed to be eyeing me suspiciously.

<I am considering the possibility of starving the Yeerk from her if we could not reach a reliable conclusion on how truthful she is.>

<Ax, she’s just a child!> Cassie exclaimed. <It’s one thing to have Jake go through that process, but to force another so young...> She craned her neck over, looking at the purple reptile that always seemed to be near Twilight. Currently he was talking with some of the equines gathered in a circle, though I was too far to make out what they were saying.

<He seems to have adequately recovered,> I stated pointedly. <I see no reason that the equine child will remain disturbed either. Furthermore...>

“Ya know, Ah’m still here,” the controller spoke. “If yer goin’ t’ talk about me, at least have the courtesies t’ let me hear it.” Cassie looked down at the equine, who was glaring back. “Ah’ve only got three days before Ah starve. Ah’d rather spend it doin’ somethin’ useful rather than sittin’ ‘round an’ arguing about me.”

<And why is it you wish to help us anyway?> I inquired.

“Ah...Ah had a plan. But the Changelings attacked earlier than scheduled. All mah plannin’ fell ta pieces an’ Ah don’t think Ah have enough time to regroup with mah colleagues.” She paused for a moment, looking up at us before continuing “Ah was supposed t’ get Applejack an’ her friends out of the town just as the Changelings attacked an’ meet up with Zecora. A-Ah don’t know what she was plannin’ ta do after that, though.” 

“You mean ta tell me that Zecora’s not really Zecora too?!” Applejack exclaimed rather loudly, drawing attention from some of the closer equines. Applebloom motioned for her to quiet down.

“No, no, no. Zecora’s not a controller. Trust me. She just understood what the movement is tryin’ t’ accomplish an’ wanted t’ help.”

“An she never came an’ told anypony about it?”

“Who would have believed her? Besides, the rest of the invasion force would have heard if she’s tried.” Applebloom shuffled a hoof along the floor. “‘Sides, by the time she believed me nearly half the town was infested. She’d have been captured an’ Ah’d have been found out.”

Before any of us could ask another question a white blur came shooting past us. Applebloom gave a shriek of terror as she was pinned to the ground by a large male equine, snarling and glaring at her. “Yeerk!” he snarled angrily.

<Woah, woah! Calm down, bud!> Marco shouted, still in his bat morph. He quickly flew over and began circling around the two equines. <This is not remaining inconspicuous!> 

I glanced around, noting that most of the other equines were now staring in our direction. A few curious ones were timidly stepping forward. I turned back towards the equine and the controller in time to see Applejack kick the attacker off. He flew into the wall and what I can only describe as a green glowing cocoon made of fire seemed to surround him. For a moment he appeared as a Changeling, with their black carapace and hole-riddled legs, before shaking his head and reforming his disguise.

“Yer a Changeling?”

<Marco, what happened to keeping him out of trouble?> Prince Jake asked angrily.

<It wasn’t my fault!> Marco protested. <He heard your controller buddy getting excited and wanted to investigate!>

<Guys, we have a problem,> Cassie said.

Dread welling up within me I looked back towards the crowd. The crowd of ponies was locked onto us with looks of shock and horror overtaking their faces. 

<Ponies, please...> Prince Jake began, but was swiftly cut off.

“The Changelings are here!”

“They’ve found us again!”

“How do I know you’re not a Changeling?!”

“I’m getting out of here!”

The equines began charging for the archway, sounding much like a distant thunderstorm rolling in.

<Well, we’re bucked,> Marco said.