//------------------------------// // The Escape // Story: Three Abducted Ponies // by sbloom85 //------------------------------// Applejack and the others find Stor and Greg in a room adjacent to the shuttle bay. "Alright, I've done my calculations." He tells Stor. "I can guess that we can fit up to fifteen people in one of these shuttles." He continues. Applejack trots up beside Greg. "So we're gettin' outta here then." She says hopefully. Greg nods. "I also found a program that will activate the translation system not only throughout the whole ship, but in the shuttles as well." He says. Big Macintosh and Apple Bloom approach the two. Apple Bloom hops up onto her brother's back and whistles. "Those are a lot of ships." She observed. "Yup." Mac agreed. Greg is still working on the terminal. "I figure that we can get everyone off... minus the scientists and security guards of course." Applejack looked horrified. "Yer not plannin' on abandonin' them, are ya?" Greg grumbles. "Considering what they've done to all of us, I was planning on sending them a message." He says, turning the chair around, standing up and walking out of the room. Applejack and Stor follow Greg to the hall. "Stor, you and Applejack round everyone up and get them ready to leave." He orders, walking away from them. Applejack catches up to him. "And what's this message yer gonna send?" She asks. "I'm going to blow up the ship." He said flatly. Applejack stops in her tracks, shocked that this creature would do such a thing. Stor walks up beside her. "Is he really gonna to do it?" She asks. "I'm afraid so, Applejack." He answered. "Considering what he's been through, I'm surprised he hasn't done anything sooner." He added. AJ nods. "Yeah... he told me about what happened to his girlfriend." She says. Stor nods. "Yes. That was a truly messed up day." He concludes, walking past her to catch up to Greg. Applejack reenters the control room. "Let's get this started!" She yells. The path to the engineering section was more crowded than Greg anticipated. They didn't think that one of their guests would be brazen enough to inspire the rest to escape the ship, let alone try to blow it up. Greg found himself to be outnumbered by nineteen more security guards. They'd try to subdue him in groups of four, but with his agility and dual batons, he took out two groups before the groups' numbers grew. This is when Stor finally catches up, helping him to take out the rest of the security guards. "I told you to help Applejack and the others." He told the bird man, who scoffed. "I thought you could use the help." Stor responds. "I'll head back once we get to engineering." Little did they realize that said section was right around the corner. Greg opens the section's door and they see the reactor, which to Greg's surprise was powered by kinetic energy provided by a trio of rings circling it. The room itself was teeming with scientists. "Ah hell..." Greg said quietly before the two enter. "Careful they don't use their gems." He advised, knocking out two scientists. "Noted." Stor responds, taking out three. Applejack and the others' roommates stand back as the aliens' "guests" race past them toward the shuttle bay, led by Big Macintosh. "Ah never did get yer names." The two glance at the crowd before returning their attention to her. "I am Gwen." The deer lady says. "I'm Jessa." The other one says. "Ah'm sure you two know mah name already, but Ah'm Applejack." She says, keeping an eye on the group passing them. "We should probably head back to the shuttle bay." Gwen suggested. Jessa and AJ agree and take off. The aliens' numbers seemed to dwindle as the trip back to the shuttle bay wasn't as eventful as it had last been. "Alright, everyone!" A large man yells out. "Let's quickly get inside the shuttles!" He continued, turning to Applejack, Gwen and Jessa. "I wonder if Stor and Greg are alright?" The two had finally taken out the scientists and approach a terminal. "This is the part where you head back to the shuttle bay." Greg says. "I've got wings, Greg. I can take you back as fast as I can if I went alone." Stor shot back. Greg wasn't going to argue as he muddled through the systems to find the reactor's settings. "Ah! There it is!" Greg exclaims before turning up the speed on the rings. Stor sees them spinning faster and faster. "What's the idea?" He asks. "I'll let you know once we get outta here." Greg answers. Stor picks him up and flies to the shuttle bay. It took no time to return to the shuttle bay. Stor lands and sets Greg down. "Okay, here's what I'm hoping is going to happen." He begins, walking toward AJ and her siblings. "I'm hoping that the centripical force of the rings' speed will overload the energy reserves in the power cells." Stor laughs. "Setting up one hell of a chain reaction." He says. Applejack gallops up to Greg and Stor. "Everyone's ready to go. We're waitin' on you two." Gwen steps up to them and nods. "Yes, but two ships still need pilots." She said. "I guess this is goodbye." Greg says, shaking Stor's talon. "I hope to see you again, Greg." Stor said optimistically. Gwen went with Stor to his shuttle, leaving Applejack, Big Macintosh and Apple Bloom to ride their own. With just the four of them in it, it was quite comfortable. "Are ya sure ya can fly this thing?" She asks as Greg sits down at the navigation. "I'd be lying if I said anything but no." He answered, buckling himself in. "I'd do the same if I were you." He says to Applejack before knocking on the ceiling. "You two better buckle in as well, this is gonna be a bumpy ride!" Greg's shuttle was the last to leave and after it does, he receives a transmission from Stor's. "Thanks to you downloading their ship's nav records, we can get these people back home." He says. Greg nods. "Do you think you'll return to your world after dropping them off?" Stor continued. Greg shrugs. "I don't think I'll be able to take off once I land." He admits. "You focus on getting everyone back to their planets." Stor nods. "Godspeed, Greg." He says before cutting the transmission. The shuttle starts rocking. "What the hay was that?!" AJ asks. "That might've been debris from the ship." Greg answers. "It did blow up, remember?" He continued. The shuttle begins shaking up even more, but not as bad as the impact from the debris. "What's going on?!" Apple Bloom asks. "It's alright, we're just reentering your planet's atmosphere." Greg answered. Applejack points to a lightly populated area in front of them. "That's gotta be Ponyville." She says. "Fluttershy's cottage is just outside the town, near the Everfree Forest." She continued, pointing to a lake near her friend's home. "I see the lake." Greg says. "Brace yourselves!"