It was two days later and Fluttershy was all packed and ready to leave. Not that she packed much. Some clothes and her tools, that was it. The Empress had given them two days before they had to leave, so she had been able to finish Old Drifter for Pinkie Pie before they left. The hyper mare wanted to fly her own ship in this quest.
They had agreed to all meet at Pinkie's garage and that they would all fly in her ship for this adventure. The only one who objected to that was Applejack, on the grounds of she didn't like flying. But then they pointed out how silly that was, and that they would need to fly, regardless of what they wanted. So, with reluctance, she agreed.
Now Fluttershy and Pinkie Pie stood there, waiting for the rest. They had to be out of here by around high noon, so they could meet up with the main fleet and leave. They had to get to the Sunset Mountains before nightfall. Well, technically, they didn't HAVE to, but they all wanted to make good time.
The first to arrive was Twilight. She was sporting a large bag stuffed full of something, and a belt with a bunch of weird looking objects on it. Huh. Considering Twilight was an alchemist, Fluttershy assumed Twilight's bag was full of... whatever she used in her potions.
Next up was Rarity. She looked... formal. Her dress was long, and her hair was styled. What? Why was she all dressed up? She did know they were going a quest to save, possibly, the whole world, right? She also had a satchel, probably full of... Fluttershy didn't know what Rarity was, so she just guessed something a high class citizen would carry. Did she say anything about her job that one day, at the palace?
Applejack showed up next. She was dressed exactly how she was at the meeting. A trench coat, a cowboy hat, and a shotgun. Well, she did have a few new things. She had a pistol as well, on her flank, and a satchel, carrying something Fluttershy assumed must be dangerous. That whole mare was dangerous. She also had shotguns shells lining her belt. Fluttershy saw no other clothes around the pony, so she assumed she didn't change much.
A finally, not long after the others, was Rainbow Dash. She looked... interesting? Her outfit was... kind of messy looking, and her hat was dirty. She wore some sort of gold shoes, and on her back was a machete and on her flank was a pistol. The strangest part was the war paint on her face. Red, yellow, and green stripes on her cheeks.
“Uh, Rainbow?” Applejack asked. “Ya think we're goin' ta war or somethin'?”
“Nah, I think this makes me look cooler.”
Twilight rolled her eyes. “Whatever. Pinkie?” She turned to the pink mare, who was in the process of juggling a couple of balls.
“Yeah?”
“Is your airship ready?”
Pinkie threw the balls into the ship. “Yep! Old Drifter's ready to take off and start the adventure!”
“Well, let's get going.” Fluttershy said as she entered the ship. Everyone else followed, Applejack last. Fluttershy noticed she looked a little nervous. Maybe she really was afraid of flying? Well, she'd have to get over it.
Pinkie hopped inside the pilots seat, shaking with glee. This was the first time she'll have flown Old Drifter since the crash. She flipped some switches and pressed some buttons, and the old ship jumped into the air.
Fluttershy's stomach lurched. That was a fast take off, for sure. She heard a gagging noise and turned to see Applejack turning green. She almost laughed. A bounty hunter, and she's afraid of flying? How did she get around?
Soon, they were high in the sky, sailing through the air with ease. Fluttershy was pleased with how well the ship ran. No shakes, no coughs, no stalls. Smooth sailing. And considering how bad shape he was in before hand, she swelled with pride, though it went unseen.
She looked around the inside of the ship. She had flown in many ships before, but never this one. It had a... homely feel to it, despite being smaller. Not like she could live here, but it just felt, comfortable to be in. It seemed big enough to fit about ten ponies, not including the driver, twelve if they crammed themselves in there. It had seats, several windows, and a tall locker, but that was it. It all was made out of a gold colored metal, save the seats, which had cushions on them.
“Hey Pinkie.” She called. “This is one nice ship you have.”
Pinkie turned around and beamed. “I know! It's amazing, isn't it! I've had him for about... five years now. I remember one time...”
“Pinkie!” Applejack shouted. “Eyes ahead, please!”
Pinkie frowned. “Don't worry, I know what I'm doing.”
As the words left her mouth, the ship lurched forward and down. Everypony gripped their seats as Pinkie fixed their course. Applejack cursed under her breath. But Fluttershy caught what she said. “Damn mare's gonna get us killed!”
Fluttershy looked out her window. The city below passed by fast. She saw the market, were she had visited just the day before to purchase some more food. She saw the palace, where they had all met, a couple days back. How small it looked from up here. The sun shone off it's gold exterior, giving it a radiant shine.
The were headed towards an area away from the city to meet up with the fleet. Rarity confirmed the area as close to her dig site. Fluttershy didn't really care. She just watched as they passed over the dig site. It was big, deep, and dusty. She looked again at Rarity. She tried to remember her saying she had been an archeologist, but nothing rang a bell. She must have forgotten. Everyone else seemed to remember her saying something as they nodded at her, complimenting her dig site. Okay, really only Twilight and Pinkie Pie said anything.
Soon, the fleet came into sight. Or maybe it was always in sight and she hadn't noticed, because when she saw it, it was already pretty close. Fifty airships, each one different than the other, yet the same in color and weapons. And of course, the biggest one of them all, the flag ship, piloted by Captain Derpy.
They flew into the swarm of mechanical wonders. Fluttershy noted out of all the ships here, only two were actually smaller than Pinkie's. All the others pretty much dwarfed her ship.
They closed in on the flag ship. It was obviously meant to be a mobile command center. It had several landing pads big enough for the ships that were twice the size of Old Drifter. They landed on one of those pads with a light thud. Applejack got out first, only to realize they were still flying. Standing out there to meet them was Captain Derpy, as well as a few other ponies. How did the Captain know they would land on this pad?
Pinkie bounced over to them “Hiya Captain!”
Fluttershy followed, as did the others, until they stood before the Captain. “Hi guys.” She said casually. Huh. Fluttershy thought Captains were supposed to be more... professional than that. “No need to stand on ceremony. This isn't the army right now. We're aren’t here to go to war, we're here to take back something we lost.”
She pointed to the ponies behind her. A stallion and two mares. “This fine stallion is Mac, he's in charge of all things security aboard this ship. While here, if you aren't answering to me, you answer to him.” He was massive, muscular, and didn't look like the friendly type, nor the talking one.
Fluttershy saw him constantly looking at Applejack. Did he like her?
“This,” Derpy said, pointing at one of the mares, “is Lyra, she is in charge of weapons. If you need a gun, go to her.”
The mare was an aqua blue color, with a mane the same color, though a bit duller, and a white streak going down it. She looked almost psychotic.
She pointed at the last mare. “This here is Octavia, and she is responsible for maintaining our ships.”
A gray mare, seeming to be sophisticated yet dirty at the same time. Like herself, she also had spots of oil in her hair. She seemed... like the snotty type.
Derpy gestured to a nearby ship. It looked like it was only slightly larger than Pinkie's ship, but it seemed a bit more decked out. And it's design was different. Instead of looking like a blimp, it looked more like... something alien like. It had a flatter body, and two wings jutting out the sides. It was also moving rather fast. The engines appeared to be under the wings.
“That is the ship of our best pilot, Spitfire. She couldn't come down to meet you, she's taking her ship on a practice run.”
Fluttershy noted that the shape of the ship seemed like it would make it more aerodynamic, making it faster and more agile.
“And lastly, my second in command, who is right now on our medical ship, so he couldn't come right now either.” She pointed at another ship, a bit away. It was big, but not the biggest ship, It looked like a hoofball, but with a lot of different wings and towers jutting out of it. It didn't look like it should have been able to fly.
“If you happen to meet a stallion named Caramel, that's him.” Derpy faced the group. “Well, that's enough introductions. Most of the fleet will be flying, but the smaller ships will be docking on this one until we need them. Feel free to explore. If you want, take a shuttle to the other ships if you feel like taking a look at them.”
Derpy turned and left, along with Octavia. Mac and Lyra and stayed, Mac wearing a look of shock on his face and Lyra eyeing each member of their group, like she was sizing them up. They all just stood there in awkward silence.
Mac spoke up. “Uh... sis... why are ya here?”
Fluttershy turned around. Applejack looked just as surprised as Mac did. Applejack was Mac's sister?
“Uh...” She seemed nervous. “I.. uh...”
Pinkie jumped up. “Oh! We were all given letters from the Empress, so we all answered her and then we met then we got ready then we left then we just got here!”
Everypony stared at Pinkie Pie. Applejack nodded. “Right... something like that.”
Mac grabbed his sister and pulled her away to talk to her. Fluttershy wondered about what they were talking about, but she was interrupted by Lyra, who was still staring intently at them.
“Hi! My names Lyra. Like you know, I'm this fleets armorer. You all look like you've never been in a fight, save that orange mare.”
Rainbow Dash sputtered out, “Hey! I've been in plenty of fights!”
Lyra gave her another look. “Um... no, you haven't.”
Rainbow tried to protest but was hushed by Twilight. “So what are going to do?”
“Well,” Lyra's eyes brightened up. “I'm going to outfit you all based on your style of fighting. Not really clothes, though there will be a few additions, but mainly weapons.”
Rarity didn't seem amused. “Well, I simply refuse to wield a weapon of any kind!”
Lyra gave her a blank stare. “Uh... you do know we are going to war?”
Fluttershy shook her head. “No, we aren't.”
“Well, you know what I mean!” Lyra looked annoyed now. “Look, you're more than likely going to have to fight, so if you want something to save your life, come with me.”
She turned around and walked away. Fluttershy and Pinkie followed immediately, then Rainbow Dash and Twilight. Rarity refused, instead deciding to tour the rest of the ship.
Fluttershy walked through the halls of the ship. It was really big for an airship. More like a super ship. It seemed big enough to house a whole city. The halls were small, but doors lined them all, leading to bedrooms, closets, and places Fluttershy didn't know.
They turned into a room which, from the weapons and armor hanging off the walls, looked to be the armory.
Lyra turned to Pinkie Pie. “I'm guessing you are the pilot?”
Pinkie shook her head vigorously. “Yep!”
“How about some lighter weapons, and a mic to keep in contact with the other pilots?”
“Okie dokie lokie!”
Lyra handed Pinkie a pistol, a knife, and a mic. Pinkie donned her new gear and admired herself in a nearby mirror. While she oohed and ahhed, Lyra turned to Twilight.
“So let me guess. You've never been in a fight, but you aren't afraid to, but you also have little experience with weapons save the ones on your belt.”
Twilight nodded. Fluttershy was impressed. That took skill to know that about a pony's combat skill when you've never seen her before.
“So, how about something easy to use, yet still effective?”
She handed over a weird looking weapon thing. It was shaped like a crossbow, yet it didn't look like it held bolts. It had a space for something bigger.
“It can fire any sized vial of fluid, with enough force to shatter on impact. The heaters inside make sure the fluid is a gas, so it doesn't just splash and do nothing. Just be careful.”
Twilight looked over the contraption with a analytical eye. Pinkie was still staring at the mirror.
“So, Rainbow Dash.” Lyra said.
“How do you know my name?”
“Captain told me. I know you've fought before, but nothing serious, yet you can still use most weapons with relative ease.”
Rainbow's mouth hung open. Lyra picked out a weapon. “This baby here, it's called a harpoon gun. It fires spikes. Similar to a crossbow, but with more range, and a sleeker design. You can also attach ropes to it so as to create a zip line or anything like that.”
Rainbow Dash took the gun and looked it over. The look of awe was obvious in her eyes. She shook her head, trying to look unimpressed. “Meh, I've seen better.”
Lyra tossed a few balls to Rainbow as well. “Just pull the trigger on those, then throw. They send spikes every direction for a short distance.”
Rainbow Dash flew off with her new toys, trying to contain her excitement. Fluttershy rolled her eyes. Some adventurer.
Lyra finally turned to Fluttershy. “So, the mechanic, never been in a fight, yet somehow still knows how to use most weapons, specifically close quarters.”
How did Lyra know this stuff? Sure enough, Fluttershy was very skilled in CQC, but she had never been in a fight before. “Uh... yeah.”
“Okay, here. I think you'll like this.” Lyra pulled a weird looking blade off of the wall. Well, actually, it was two blades. They both were thick, but not long. They also had small chains hanging off the ends of them.
“Here, wrap these around your forelegs, to keep your self from losing them in battle.”
Fluttershy did as she was told. The chains wrapped around her legs, making it look like she was wearing chain gauntlets. The chains connected to the blades hilts, long enough for her to mover her legs with ease if she had them put away.
She marveled at the blades. She had always been most skilled in the ancient art of sword fighting, yet she had never actually owned a sword, so this was like a dream come true. She would have to practice some more, but she didn't care.
Lyra seemed to read her mind. “There's a training ground down the hall, tenth door on the right.”
Pinkie Pie jumped up in front of Fluttershy. “Let's go!”
As they left, she remembered something. “Lyra!”
“Yeah?”
“Um... how did you know all that about us?”
“Skills.” she said, putting on her poker face. She couldn't hold it as Fluttershy looked at her with awe. “Nah, I'm just kidding. Celestia keeps records of all of her citizens, so I just read those before hand.”
Fluttershy nodded in understanding before exiting the room with Pinkie Pie. Well, she needed to practice, but she couldn't stop thinking about the quest, now that they had their weapons. This was actually happening. Huh.
She glanced out a nearby window. They were moving, high in the sky, away from the city. There was no turning back now.