It was considered the ultimate in Equestrian high society to say that you owned your own airship. It was the perfect symbol of class, taste and refinement, and told everypony that you were rolling in bits. Naturally, Prince Blueblood owned three of the most ostentatious and ridiculously fancy airships in the sky, but then again, everypony in Equestria who was remotely interested in the high society life learned the only hard rule: Nopony pays attention to Blueblood.
The Omni was a particular oddity, though. The ship was not owned by a single pony, but rather by a corporation of ponies, each of whom owned a share of the ship. As a result, the ship was comparatively plain and unornate, but an undoubted favourite of many of the Canterlot Nobility.
“Tickets?” asked the boarding guard, a blue pegasus, for the hundred thousandth-time, and was rewarded with a pair of tickets floated over for him to stamp, a pinkish aura surrounding them.
“Welcome aboard the Omni, Lord Fancy Pants, Lady Fleur de Lis. We hope you have a pleasant trip with us.”
“Jolly good!” said Fancy Pants, levitating a few bits from his suit pocket, and placing them in the boarding guard’s own uniform pocket.
After the unofficial Lord and Lady of Canterlot had boarded, the guard leaned up against the rail, his eyes flicking around the dock, waiting for the next set of passengers.
“A-hem,” came a haugty, regal voice, and the guard refocused his attention on the two new unicorn mares in front of him.
“Tickets?” he asked
“Twinkle?” prompted the purple one, who seemed to be in charge here, and the other mare, a grey unicorn wearing the traditional plain dress of a hoofmaiden magically produced two tickets for the airship.
“Welcome aboard the Omni, Lady Moon Shimmer, and Twinkle Star.” Passing the tickets back to the apparent hoofmaiden, the pegasus went back to leaning up against the railing of the boarding ramp, as the two mares walked onto the ship.
******
“You are an idiot, Twinkle. You almost blew it,” hissed Moon Shimmer, magically grabbing the grey unicorn’s ear.
“I’m sorry, Miss Shimmer!” moaned the unicorn, as the pink magic pulled on her ear.
“Well, at least you seem to be getting better at staying in character. Now come on. We need to find our room, and then, with Luna’s blessing, we might actually get some work done. Now, carry my bags.”
“Yes, Miss Shimmer, you self-loving piece of...” muttered Twinkle, picking up the bags with her magic.
“What was that, Twinkle?”
“Nothing, Miss Shimmer!”
*****
Unless otherwise stated, the good airship Omni had an open bridge policy. Anypony could come up to the control centre of the flying vessel, and take a look at exactly what went into the running of an airship. As the ship cruised around the Canterhorn shortly after it’s take off, Moon Shimmer and Twinkle Star made their way to the bridge, and marvelled at the ponies running around, pulling levers and twisting valves in order to keep the airship flying. As the ship moved behind the mountain, and out of view of Canterlot, Moon Shimmer dramatically collapsed, drawing the attention of the flight crew. While the ponies crowded around, desperate to help a mare in apparent distress, Twinkle Star moved around the outside of the frantic crew.
All of a sudden, Lady Moon Shimmer jerked upright with a loud gasp, knocking her head into that of one of the flight crew, knocking him unconscious, and Twinkle Star fired up her horn, quickly encasing all of the crew of the Omni in a purple magical glow, and tossing them out of the door, and locking it, leaving only herself and Moon Shimmer in the control centre.
[Time]
“Well done,” praised Moon Shimmer, and Twinkle just rolled her eyes as her magic latched onto the various controls of the airship, manipulating them according to the dials that she could read, and had spent months prior studying. For her part, Moon Shimmer’s own horn lit up, and two disguise spells dissolved, revealing Twinkle Star to be Twilight Sparkle, and Moon Shimmer to be Trixie Lulamoon.
Trixie immediately took control of the ship wide communication system.
“Do not be alarmed, peons,” she announced, drawing another roll of the eyes from Twilight, “The Great and Powerful Trixie has taken command of your precious ship. In order to save your precious lives, Trixie demands that you place all valuables in a pile on the central deck. Do this, and Trixie will promise to land the ship safely. That is all.”
As Trixie hung up the communicator, Twilight turned to Trixie.
“I still don’t see how hijacking an airship and robbing the ponies on board is a lesson for a Princess to know. Or why Celestia told me that this would be a good idea.”
“Firstly, do you honestly think that Trixie is some kind of common thief? Please, Trixie has more integrity than that. And as the Princess of the Sun put it, ‘Teach her how to control her demeanour. A Princess must be as humble as a hoofmaiden, but as unbending as the pride of a noble. She must know when to stick to her principles, and when to let them go in favour of a more beneficial outcome.’”
Twilight blinked, “So how does robbing an airship do any of that?”
“Trixie never said it did!”
Twilight glanced at Trixie, who had found a safety glider, and was poised by a freshly broken window.
“Also, Sparkle? Trixie has evidence that all of this was your idea. Now you have a choice: land the ship by yourself and be accused of organising this whole scheme, or chase after Trixie, be completely innocent, but risk the ship crashing. Who knows if the crew can correct in time? Have fun choosing, Sparkle,” finished Trixie, jumping out of the window, and beginning to glide to safety.