Celestia's sun rose the next morning, bathing the field in its warm light. Silverstream's body clock naturally woke him up at seven o'clock sharp, and he sat up on the top bunk in the guards tent. Wiping his eyes clear of sleep, he remembered what happened last night.
'Shit, I need to go and set things straight right now.'
He tiptoed out of the tent as to not wake the other two, still snoring quietly.
The C-130 was still sitting there, sunk into the mud. It's fuselage reflected the morning sun, and it's left wing cast a shadow that almost reached the tent. As Silverstream looked out towards Ponyville, he cursed under his breath. The black Dodge could be seen thundering across the field, kicking up dust and mud in it's wake. It's engine growl could be faintly heard from a distance.
After a minute or so, it skidded to a halt, fishtailing slightly to the right upon stopping. Jake got out and started towards the guard. He raised a hoof to try to explain himself.
"Ok Jake listen, I can explain."
The pilot had an angry glare in his eye as he continued his approach.
"What is it then? Is it how you deceived Applejack like that? I thought you were better than that Silverstream. You're a Royal Guard for Christ's sake! You should have better morals than THAT."
He got right up in the guard's face and stared at him.
"But no, you had to lie to an innocent mare. The Element of Honesty herself! You're a lying sack of shit you know that?!"
"Look Jake hear me out PLEASE. I promise you it'll all make sense."
He eyed Silverstream suspiciously for a moment.
"You got one minute buddy. Hurry up."
The guard let out a long sigh and hung his head.
"My wife is dead."
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"Spike come in here! I figured it out!"
Twilight was in her laboratory slash basement studying the contents of the fuel Jake had given her. The purple dragon descended the stairs and went up to the table where she was at.
"What is it Twilight?"
She held up a full gallon of the fuel and looked into it.
"I've come up with a solution that's much better than duplicating thousands of gallons of fuel. It's a replenishing spell. All I have to do is pour this gallon into one of the fuel tanks, another gallon for the other tank, and cast the spell. Once casted, the fuel will multiply itself until it is filled up."
"That's genius!"
"That's not all Spike. The best part about this spell is that when the fuel levels start to decrease from usage, the magic kicks in and duplicates more, thus giving Jake's aircraft an unlimited supply of power."
She set the container down and walked over to a graph chart on an easel.
"According my calculations, the size and volume of the fuel needed to fill the tank is immense. Therefore, my magical ability will only allow me to cast the spell to last for around three months. After that, Jake will need to give me another cup of fuel, and I will have to start the process all over again. But I think it's worth it. I'm going to take this out to Jake's airplane now. I talked to Applejack earlier this morning, and she said that he should be out there by now. You stay here and keep an eye on things."
He gave a salute and went back upstairs. The unicorn picked up the two containers in her magical aurora, and set off for the field.
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Neither the pilot nor the guard said a word. The only sound that could be heard were the buzzards chirping in the grass. Jake sighed and sat down, putting a hoof to his forehead.
"I'm so sorry. I feel like a complete ass now. If you don't forgive me, I'll understand."
Silverstream put a hoof on his shoulder.
"It's fine. You were just looking out for a good friend. I would have done the same thing."
He sat down as well.
"She died about five years ago in an explosion. Her name was Arrowsheen. We were giving a demonstration of a new type of canon for Canterlot's defenses, and she was the city's defense coordinater. Hard minded, but she did her job right, and didn't get pushed around because of her gender. Anyways, while we were setting up the canon, the box of explosive powder sitting next to it caught fire from a stray spark off of the ignition fuse and exploded. She was the only one who died in the blast. Everypony else just had burns and small cuts. The investigators said she was simply in the wrong place at the wrong time."
The guard sounded choked up as he finished. Jake patted his shoulder.
"I'm sorry. I really am."
"No worries. But I guess keeping her picture in my wallet kind of freaked Applejack out a little."
They both laughed lightly.
"I'll try to explain myself to her later. Things were really going well between us."
Jake stood up.
"I'm sure they were. She's a good hearted pony. Well anyways, I came here today for more than just to ream you out."
The guard chuckled.
"Silverstream, the day has come. I need to get this plane out of the ground and in to the air. I still have to wait on Twilight for the fuel, but in the meantime-"
"Jaaaaaake!"
He turned around to see the purple unicorn running towards him. He looked over to Silverstream with a confused look, but he simply shrugged and turned back to look at the approaching pony.
Twilight finally made it to Jake, still panting from the run.
"I...got...the...fuel!"
The captain was stunned.
"Already?! It's been one night!"
She finally caught her breath and spoke fluently.
"Yes. Here it is."
Twilight held up the two gallons in front of Jake, who began laughing.
"Twilight, it's going to take a LOT more than two gallons to fill this thing."
She rolled her eyes and spent the next minute explaining everything to him. At the end, his jaw was slack.
"So, your saying that this will give me a three month unlimited supply of fuel?"
She spoke flatly.
"That's what I just said."
There was a brief pause of silence before the pilot burst with joy, wrapping Twilight in a tight hug.
"Oof! Jake...you're...choking me!"
"Sorry!"
He let go and looked over to the plane.
"Ok then, what are we waiting for?! Twilight, you fill her up with fuel, and I'll think of a way to get her out of the mud."
He turned to the guard.
"Any ideas Silverstream?"
He raised a hoof and smirked.
"Already covered buddy. Princess Celestia set up a plan to get this out whenever you were ready. At least thirty Royal Guard unicorns will be here within the hour upon my call, which I shall do right now."
He turned around and walked back into the tent. Jake could hear his muffled voice from inside.
"You two! Get your lazy asses up and out of bed. We're getting the plane out today!"
Twilight went up to Jake, who was opening the main access door on the side of the plane.
"Why do you want to get it out now? Don't you have a race to prepare for?"
The door swung down, revealing the staircase leading into the cargo hold.
"That's just it Twilight. How else am I supposed to get the Ferrari to Appleoosa? The way I see it, I've got about twelve hours to get this thing up and running, and I'll spend all of it doing so if I have to."
He walked into the plane to start preparations, Twilight following.