//------------------------------// // Part I // Story: Habitat // by wackedoutpet //------------------------------// Spike's head rolled lazily, as the cockpit shuddered. He remained asleep, however. "Don't we have enough people on this mission?" Spike asked. "Not enough to keep you out Spike. Besides, we need your claws, they're much more efficient than hooves!" Twilight smiled. Both of them watched the main structure of the landing craft being finished, as welders and engineers labored tirelessly to get it done on schedule. Steel working had never been done on this scale, and not too many looked forward to doing it again, but that was progress. The structure was completely spherical, minus the four landing legs that jutted out from the inside, and various mechanics. It was large enough to carry 9 people safely, but small enough to replace a hot air balloon basket. Spike did not envy its passengers. "So, they're just gonna drop us from the sky? Nopony can survive that!" Spike worried. "No! The jet thrusters slow us down! It really is a masterpiece of scientific engineering; nopony has ever attempted s-" Twilight gushed. "Right, right. This better be one cool island." Spike mumbled, clutching his stomach to stop the churning. "Spike! These are the Tidal Islands, a wonder of science. The lander is designed to be able to break through the thick storm cover that has blocked out so many explorers before." "We don't know that it's that great though! Anything people have died doing too many times is not worth anything!" "Trust me on this one, Spike." Spike's head rolled and his eyelids slid slightly. The lander had shook again, and this time he could barely hear Twilight shouting. Sleep's grip was too tight, however, and he kept on dreaming. Testing had not gone well the next several weeks. All the windows had shattered instantaneously once placed inside the wind tunnel, and leaks turned into liquid oxygen sprayed everywhere. More tests came to discover flaws like cracks in the oxygen tanks or electrical failure, each pushing the launch date back more and more. Even worse were the thruster controls, which ended in abrupt explosions or dangerous spins. None of the test pilots had found the courage to try a practice landing, even Princess Celestia's highest-ranking officers who had been chosen. But progress is a fickle thing that forces what even may be unnecessary, and the first pilots began. A landing requires 3 ponies, and naturally such a matter of science brought Twilight Sparkle aboard. Twilight's role as the Element of Magic was too valuable, and the back-up pilots were brought aboard for testing. It was when the capsule returned that the engineers had realized they had forgotten insulation aboard, and the returning crew was suffering from hypothermia. The heights above Equestria were a frigid and windy place, and the crew had been stranded for hours before the cables actually ejected themselves and they descended. Even the descent had been uncertain; the lander had dropped in at several miles an hour above the recommended feet per second. One pilot had suffered a broken hoof, and was taken off the team for good. This, however, was not the only grumbling from the group. The Elements of Harmony were selected to be ambassadors for the islands, and while it was a risky move considering the chances of survival, friend or foe would need the best representation Equestria could offer. Still concerning though was the rigorous training they needed to go through. Twilight too had concerns about what she was putting her friends through, because they weren't some magical relic; it would be the cost of her friendships, but it would have to mean something. The feeling caused from the physical strain of training, mental strain of studying and practicing operations, and overall tedium made for one unhappy group of campers. Twilight was made aware of every complaint of her friends, and was offering less and less solutions daily. A thinning strand of friendship was questioned every day. Yet still, Spike did not complain. Perhaps even he was silently judging Twilight's ridiculous calling, and just not vocal enough. Applejack requested that it's best to see what a landing actually looked like before climbing in and finding out on the fly. When the insulation accident happened right before all of their eyes, amongst the valid rumors that the landing thrusters had blown up several times, Spike's silence was the greatest concern, because he was the only one who hadn't given a very vocal opinion. But Twilight's suspicions got the better of her, and she asked. Spike spent a lot of time watching the construction of the baskets, where a lot of replacements had needed creating. The large hall that housed the assembly process formed grid with balconies and walkways for inspection, and overlooked the newly created pods or those in the way of getting there. He would often stand upon a stool and lean on the safety rail, and just stare at the workers weld the panels on and hook up electronics. The usual Spike would enjoy the company of friends, but the company of his friends was not enjoyable lately. Twilight approached from the side, expecting to be a surprise, but was greeted by the same big boyish smile she never failed to receive. "Are you mad at me too?" Twilight sheepishly grinned. "No Twilight, I'm really proud of you for pursuing what you believe in!" Spike beamed. Twilight wasn't really comforted, as she turned, sat, and rested her chin on the railing. Her eyes hadn't landed on Spike for a bit; while she wanted to believe him, she couldn't really want to know if it was true or not. It was really possible she had gone ahead and wasted the resources of the Princess on a useless venture and then dragged her friends uncomfortably into it. "Don't beat yourself up over it, you're doing something honorable and historic." Spike soothed. The statement had forced Twilight's eyes shut; it only reminded her that there was a big possibility she was just being selfish in doing this. Spike was right, but at the expense of her friends, unfortunately. "It's okay Twilight, we'll do it together!" Spike was beginning to worry he had said something, but offered a reassuring arm around her. "Yes Spike, together." Twilight had made eye contact and smiled. The alarms and shouts had finally gotten to Spike and he fully awoke. Twilight had just slammed into the ground after floating in mid-air, along with the two assistant pilots had just done so. Rarity had been wailing and Applejack had been returning the expression with shouts to stop; whether or not it was for the falling or the panicking unicorn was to be determined. Descent had begun, and while Spike had now just awakened, his recommendation was to sleep through the entire flight. The rigorous training prescribed for all of the ponies onboard regarded that dragons were still in the "experimental phase", and he should remain asleep to avoid any problems. He had avoided altitude sickness in most balloon flights, but this was unusually high. Landing, however, would be the most difficult and strenuous, and he did wake up. As the descent had entered the last phase, the rockets fired and the whole craft shook. All three of the pilots had been forced to the ground by the lack of free-fall present, but still shouted commands amongst one another and slapped delicate switches, buttons, and levers. Twilight had been the worst offender of the shouts, but the other two had been just as obnoxious and strained. Celestia had appointed Spitfire and Soarin to learn all the specifics of high-altitude flight for the mission. As the pegasi that they were, flight was a specialty of theirs, and quickly joined with the control team. Rainbow Dash had been included with the command to not talk about the Wonderbolts, though, as the pilots could not be agitated. The lander wobbled and bucked the closer it got to the ground, where the winds brushed harshly against the ground. Outside the windows the lights got brighter and brighter as the flames from the thrusters blasted the ground, continuing to get closer and closer, until- THUD All that could be heard was the roaring winds against the side of the craft. A light went on in the control switchboard that indicated that contact had been made, and all three of the pilots shook hooves with victorious grins. Outside, where the rocket lights had faded, the sky was occasionally obscured with thick sand-filled gusts on the night sky. While Spitfire and Soarin rose up to check the instrument gauges, Twilight got to her hooves and inspected the outside landscape of the island. She turned to face the guests of her scientific endeavor with bright and determined eyes. "Suit up, everypony!" Habitat: Chapter 1 Being the biped he was, Spike was suited up first. Spike stepped out of the pod and into the sand with a boot covered foot. There was little he could see through the glass-covered visor of his EVA suit, but from what he could make out through the sandstorm and moonlight, they had landed on desert. Sand stretched across the land, only ending in ocean. Twilight stepped out next, beaming a geeky smile through the glass visor. In a single leap she landed on the dune gave a brave look around. The smile on her face faded as she counted the dunes surrounding, and came up with one massive one. But then her grin returned as she came alongside her number one assistant, pulling him into a hug. Spike wrapped his arms around through the thick padding, and found her warm body. Twilight, after all, was inspired by Spike to be just as positive no matter what. "It isn't what I expected, but we're here! We did it!" Twilight beamed. "Yeah! And the best part is-" "We did it together!" Twilight chimed in. She pulled him out of the hug and faced him to deliver the next serious points, after looking to the lander door. From out of the saddlebags incorporated into her EVA suit, a weird metal box with a glowing screen atop it levitated out. "Okay Spike, I'm going to wait for Spitfire and Soarin to get out here, but in the meantime I need you to track down our supply container." Twilight informed Spike, floating the device to him to handle. "Yes, Commander Sparkle!" Spike snapped a salute while failing to hide a grin and snicker. Twilight giggled and shooed him off, turning to face Soarin exiting the cockpit. Spike bounced across the dunes to get to a high point to look along the islands. He feared for a moment that it might have fallen beneath the waves, but it had landed on the next island over. It wasn't like Twilight had a choice in landing, so Spike would have to honor her as assistant. Luckily, the bay in-between islands had frozen over. Standing on the shore, the ice was fresh and not incredibly thick, but walkable to those with lighter feet, which Spike would have to have. With the present being a better time than never, he picked up his tail as he took a delicate step onto the surface. Spike's EVA suit featured extra traction boots, in the event the high winds would sweep him away. Flying by any and all pegasi had been banned, because it was life or death here. Spike got pretty far onto the ice before there was a loud cracking noise behind him. The storage unit was about halfway out, and he couldn't turn back now. He moved to the side slightly, but the cracking noise continued. "Twilight, I think I n-" Spike breathed. Suddenly the ice gave, and while Spike had dived ahead, the panel he had landed on flipped and dumped him into the frigid sea. He kicked and swam, but the weight of his environmental suit continued to drag him under. While the oxygen tank would give and he would breath underwater, the hypothermia would soon get to him and kill him. "Twilight! I need you!" Spike shouted inside the thin margin of his mouth to glass, which wasn't a thick enough space to feel safe in. *** "Spike's electrical systems are failing, something's happened." Spitfire said from inside the lander, before putting on a helmet to go talk to Twilight, who was in a hurried conversation already. "How far out are you? You're breaking up Spike, come in!" Twilight panicked. "Ma'am, w-" The pegasus under the lander began. "I need to go help him, I'll be back!" Twilight shouted before she galloped off. Spitfire stepped out and turned to Soarin, who was working on the landing gear. His expression was grim, but he delivered the news anyway. "We've got a failure on the second leg, we're not going to be able to land again. Too much more of this storm and the pod will collapse, and it'll destroy the boosters." "What does that mean?" Spitfire asked. "We're going to be stranded if we stay out here too much longer, and this entire island is incapable of supporting life. Plus our communications array is about to go, so we won't be able to call for help. We need to abort soon." The repairing pilot wasn't very happy at all. Both sighed. It had been a close mission, and a lot of faith had gone into this landing, but the entire chain of islands was devoid of anything but sand and rock; nothing more special than the resources of home. Perhaps the sciences they had so much faith in had been oversold, and while they had accomplished the first step, today was not the achievement. "Twilight come in, we need you to return to the lander." Spitfire radioed with a grudge. Shortly after the landing gear creaked under the swaying craft. "Sparkle here, go ahead Spitfire." Twilight crackled in, her breath short on the other end. "The conditions here have increased to critical levels, we've agreed that an abort is in order. Return to the lander." Spitfire informed. "Okay, if they get too much worse, launch without us. I can teleport within the storm cover. We'll-" Twilight was cut off by the communications array blasting away in a large gust of wind that rocked the cabin. "Get ready for launch!" Spitfire called. Soarin finished his preparations beneath the landing gear as his superior climbed into the module. Before her helmet had depressurized and was off, she was bombarded with questions. "Where's Spike?" asked Rainbow Dash. "Is he in trouble?" Applejack stared suspiciously. "What could have happened?" Rarity started. "Oh my, is something wrong?" whispered Fluttershy. "Is he DEAD?" bounced Pinkie Pie. "No! Get back into your seats! We're launching!" shouted back Spitfire. A large commotion began, wondering why she would betray both Twilight and Spike, following futile attempts by Spitfire to get them to settle into their seats. The lander rocked more with the oncoming winds approaching, and the other ponies would not stop. It was a mess. Suddenly Soarin opened the door, leaving perfect opportunity for Rainbow Dash to fly into the night. The pilot toppled over as Spitfire ran after but was caught at the doorway. Rainbow Dash's short-lived flight quickly got her sucked deep into the storm winds. "We have to launch now. Twilight's going to teleport aboard if we stay within range, but we need to fly after Rainbow Dash before something awful happens to her; but now, if you would please take your seats..." Spitfire shot nasty glares across the capsule. *** Twilight skidded across the ice to a halt, just outside the hole Spike had dropped through. Time was running out for everyone, and she had just given the lander orders to depart. The radio silence, however, was disturbing. Should her suspicions be confirmed that the wireless communications had been knocked out, time was much more incredibly short. A light flickered below the ice just as she turned, as Spike's electronics finally gave out. Twilight couldn't teleport him out if he wasn't visualized, so she would have to go in. With all four hooves she jumped in and fully submerged, swimming downwards into the abyss to beat Spike's fall rate. Her helmet's headlamp scanned the murky darkness, as she pulled herself farther under. Spike's sinking had caused copious amounts of small bubbles to float to the surface, as a sign of struggling. Even more concerning were the larger bubbles that rose to the surface, implying Spike's oxygen supply was going. Just before her visor had fogged up from her tense breathing, Spike's shadow came into view and Twilight levitated his body over; he did not protest as he faded deeper into unconsciousness. Upon closer examination, the water pressure had cracked his visor and water had flooded his ability to breathe. With a spark of magic they had landed on the sheet ice surface, and Twilight quickly flipped Spike to dump water out of his helmet. Twilight depressurized her own helmet, looking up to the sky to see the red trail of rocket fuel burning across the now night sky. Conditions must have worsened on the lander, as Twilight might have predicted, and taken off before any chances could be taken. But it was moving too quickly away, and was impossible to reach. The front spotlights had focused on a fleeting object in the sky, one that Twilight squinted to see. She could barely make out the form of a blue pegasus flipping out of control; Rainbow Dash being sucked into the storm into her eventual death. Twilight's knowledge of the craft's physics showed the grim possibility of being unable to perform another landing very real. Fear flashed into Twilight's head, faced with the possibility of being marooned on a desolate island with near impossible survival conditions given. For many of the nights leading up to the mission, this exact scenario had been the subject of her nightmares. Perhaps she had earned it for her poor treatment she had given her friends, her blinded determination, and her awfully convincing argument she had given the Princess to get them here. But she had dragged Spike along today, and might have cost him a respected life in civilization. *** The lander had flown into the sky with little problems, but Rainbow Dash's lighter and smaller frame was flying faster than possible. She had not lost consciousness, so there was hope they could perform the maneuver quickly and fly away. Meanwhile, they were waiting on Twilight's return. "Rarity, how strong is your magic?" Spitfire called over several loud electronic beeps. "What? Well, if you think I can do any of Twilight's complicated teleportation magical nonsense you have the wrong mare. I am a lady, and-" Rarity protested. "We don't need no magical nonsense! Come here Fluttershy!" Applejack argued, removing a rope from the supply box. Applejack tied the rope to a solid steel fixture, and then tied herself to it. With the rope in her hooves, she could open the door and climb to the roof with a sense of confidence and safety. There was still a loose end she had not tied herself to, but held securely, and tossed down into the cabin. "FLUTTERSHY! Get yourself up here!" Applejack shouted over the wails of the winds. Everyone except Fluttershy backed to the rear wall. "Oh goodness!" Fluttershy shrieked. "Keep the lander level." Spitfire barked, tying the rope around Fluttershy's waist. Spitfire returned her attention to piloting the spacecraft while Fluttershy inched her way out the door. While encouraging comments were welcome, no one had much else to say; nobody would dare place herself in their position. As soon as she had left the doorway, the wind caught her wings and she entered the sky, putting the rope at full tension. The lander lifted higher into the sky and Fluttershy extended her arms to pull Rainbow Dash in, who tried to stabilize after constant flipping in air, but was near passing out from thin air. Applejack remained on the roof, tied to the same rope and barely standing, trying to keep Fluttershy from dragging the craft down. Rainbow Dash's attempts to stop flipping were met with little success, but while Fluttershy was within range, catching now would be extremely lethal. Applejack's calls to take the opportunity were lost in the wind quickly, but Fluttershy went ahead and grabbed her. The whole lander shuddered as she became apart of the whole, and her flipping came to a sudden stop, throwing Fluttershy far away if not for the rope. A tired and oxygen-deprived Applejack reeled the two exhausted pegasi in. Once she had grip on them, she used her legs as a lever to push all three indoors. When the rope was cut, the doors were sealed and all was okay, almost. "Why aren't we going back?" Pinkie asked. "We can't the winds are too strong. Our thrusters are off now, we should be dropping." The pilot said without looking up. Suddenly he turned to Spitfire. "Sir, check our horizontal velocity?" An alarm went off in the lander, as it began to shudder a great deal. "We're hitting a high patch of wind." Soarin groaned. "Reverse thrusters! We need to stay within the islands!" Spitfire shouted. A large rumbling was felt beneath the floor as the engines revved up and pushed the craft back, but it didn't even slow the progress. The entirety of the craft shook and an earsplitting roar was felt beneath, as the rockets went to full capacity. Low fuel sirens rang out, as the time was getting far too short. The rumbling cut out and was replaced by the entire lander flipping and shaking. "Wind tunnel sir! We're going way too fast!" Soarin yelled as he stabilized himself in free-fall. "Speed of 95 miles per hour, the chute casing broke!" "WHERE'S TWILIGHT AND SPIKE?" "WE NEED TO GO BACK!" "9 miles off course!" "WE'RE GONNA CRASH!" "Everybody calm down! We're going to think of something!" Spitfire shouted. Everyone had stabilized himself or herself in zero gravity, giving one another panicked looks. The two pilots remained stern. There was a pause among the panic. Everyone had stabilized himself or herself and stood in the lowered gravity, looking amongst one another for the solution that would come to no one. The two Wonderbolt pilots were the authority, whether it be self-declared or their knowledge outranking the other passengers, they took command. "We've lost communications, fuel, and landing capabilities. We're going home first." Shouts of protest filled the cockpit. "EVERYONE BE QUIET!" Soarin shouted. "We'll put it to a vote!" Pinkie suggested. "There will be no voting! This is an emergency situation and we're in charge!" Spitfire commanded. She silenced them before the protests began. Every one of them looked her in the eye and gave her their worst glare. "Go to sleep, it's late." She said before turning to the controls. The lander had stabilized but was carried along by the wind still, which had not stopped shaking the craft. Soarin and Spitfire prepared for splash down to wait for the rescue ship, while it's inhabitants floated in the controlled free-fall. Rarity turned to Applejack and gave a very scrutinizing and specific glare. *** Spike’s eyelids slid open, when he had expected never to ever again. But in all reality, the way his life had gone, Twilight and her friends would come through. But at what cost? Getting up off the sand was not enjoyable, as his limbs brushed against a water filled suit in ice-cold temperatures. The visor had been smashed underwater, and once useless, tossed to the side. With it removed, he could observe his surroundings much better. Twilight had been alongside him the entire time, helmet off and silently weeping. She tried to hide her tears, but had only begun when they made eye contact; he had noticed. “Twilight! You’re crying, why?” Spike quickly asked. He realized too late he had developed a massive headache, and his words amplified his pain. “We… may be in a lot of trouble…” Twilight whispered. Spike stood up, ignoring the cold, looking for Twilight’s other friends who could offer support. But the lander across the sea had disappeared, and left evidence by the charred sand that it had blasted off without them. “Are they coming back?” Spike asked, quietly and failing to hide any worry. “They shouldn’t, they’d risk more lives.” Twilight hung her head. “But they’re our friends! They’ll come back!” Spike tried to reassure; he failed. “No Spike, they won’t. The winds have grown too strong, the legs are weakened, there won’t be a rescue mission, we can’t leave, there’s, uh…” Twilight broke down. Spike looked around the area for someplace warm and safe. Both of them were clearly overtired, and the night wasn’t expected to be friendly, so overnight accommodations were in order. Still, the islands remained barren of everything but sand, ice, and water. But then his eyes fell on the storage container, where it’s goal had been to keep the extra supplies for the crew untouched from the elements of nature. Twilight and Spike could remain warm, cozy, and safe for however long their stay would be; hopefully not forever as predicted, but this would remain their only alternative for the time being. Spike trudged through the ice water in his suit up to the entrance of the steel container. Twilight inferred his direction out of the corner of her eye, but largely wanted to remain alone, and stayed. With two claws, he gripped the opening wheel with all his might and cranked. Above the whistle and rush of wind came a loud metal clang, and the door swung open. Spike began to pull boxes aside to get to the power switch, and turned on the lights. Once the spare boxes had been cleared, the shelves that lined the right made a walkway to the right, ending in a wall. The last two shelves were rotated, with one lining the back wall, and another parallel to it. Spike was folding a few of the tarps onto the floor to make a faux mattress, when Twilight closed the door behind her. “Good idea Spike, this will be the safest place for tonight.” Twilight quietly smiled, before unzipping her environmental suit and tossing it on an empty shelf, becoming somber again. “No problem Twi, hope you’re feeling better.” Spike returned a smile, sliding past her to place some boxes outside and take his water-filled suit off outside. Twilight shuffled some of the equipment filled boxes, looking for the food in case they needed it in the near future. Spike returned, leaving his suit outside, as it would never be used again. He handed her one of the fire blankets as she settled down on top of the tarps, and he switched off the storage unit’s lights. Spike returned to the sleeping area on the purple glow of Twilight’s horn, draping himself in the fire blanket he retained. He too settled into the tarp next to his caretaker, who still remained in depression. His eyes remained fixed on the ceiling, thoughts staving off worry by thinking of how to cure Twilight’s depression. He reached a claw out and found her hoof, holding it softly in order to reassure her. Twilight didn’t protest, but she was tense, shivering slightly. “It’s not awesome Twilight, but we’ll be okay. We made it here together, and we’ll make the most of this toge-“ Spike was cut off by Twilight rolling opposite him, mentally running away from him and his words. Spike was far too kind, but it in all reality it fell mockingly on Twilight’s ears. Somehow, his reassurances were found to be confirming of the suspicions that had become her reality; suspicions where she had dragged Spike into this, got what she herself had deserved for abusing the kindness of her friends, and brought her punishment on her dearest friend. Sure, Spike would be kind; it was his own infectious nature. But Twilight never deserved it, and she never will, because it was her fault she threw away their lives. It was also further silly to deny the fact that there was hope for a rescue. Between their already shortened food supply and the approaching winter, seeing next year was impossible. There would be no way to tell if they lived either, the thick cloud cover kept out any radio transmissions and Spike's magical letters, with it's near magical properties. Even worse, what if they were wrong? And they would grow old alone? No, they would have each other. The only thing Twilight could agree on at that moment in time, was that Spike was right, and the best thing they could do was be happy together. Together, they might just make it fun. “Goodnight, Spike.” Twilight’s voice was shaking, despite her best efforts. It was hope, but it was about the size of the eye of a needle.