//------------------------------// // Breakout // Story: Spark // by Fyn16 //------------------------------// Breakout Two minutes; for two minutes they’d left the Sol alone, and now it was under attack. They’d been fooled by decoys- the oldest trick in the book. Now Nimbus and Storm Runner were trying their hardest to make it back to the ship- to fend off its attackers- but they knew already, as they watched Pegasi land on the deck, dropping off their non-flying companions, that they were too late. “Windigo, we need help now!” the Sol’s captain called out. “We are engaging now,” Nimbus said, making sure to transmit to both the Sol and the base. “Wait a minute- you’re engaging?” Cloudsplitter called back, “what’s going on up there?” “Decoys,” Storm Runner said, breaking right to pursue an evading Pegasus. “We were sent to escort two unidentified Pegasi, and while we were gone they came up from below madar. Probably launched right off the street; that’s why we didn’t detect them until they were airborne.” There was a groan of frustration on the other end before Cloudsplitter came back on. “Dammit, you two. Engage the targets and don’t let them take that ship.” “Roger,” Nimbus said, targeting a Pegasus carrying a Unicorn to the deck. He fired a few short bursts from his shoulder-mounted CAL-2 charged air launcher, most of which the Pegasus evaded. With no other choice, he rammed the enemy just as he threw his Unicorn companion onto the gondola below. Nimbus shifted his focus as his foe regained control, moving towards another Pegasus flying towards the captain’s cabin. Below, the deck was a scene of pure chaos. Guards were quickly overpowered by the enemy’s sheer numbers as ponies rushed around, trying to get below, to the airship’s quarters. Aggressors were already rounding some of them up, taking them towards the gondola’s prow. It was a hostage operation. “Windigo Actual,” Nimbus called, locking up his target’s wings with a well-placed burst, “multiple bogeys are on the ship’s deck. We can’t engage without hitting VIPs.” “What? Argh, just- okay, you two circle the ship for now. Prevent anypony else from boarding it. The Manehattan Police are already scrambling on the ground. Hopefully they can take care of the hostage aspect.” “Roger,” Nimbus said, following another target over the airship’s gas envelopes and taking care not to hit the flammable structures with a stray shot. His target rolled inverted and pulled hard, arcing over the ship and diving towards the buildings below. Nimbus gave chase, folding his wings in for speed and closing the gap. The pony tried pulling up, but Nimbus resumed the dive, flaring his wings at the last second. “Just- leave- us- alone!” he said through gritted teeth as he smashed the Pegasus into the street below. He wouldn’t be waking up from that one for a few hours. “Windigo One, there’s a bit of a problem up here,” Storm Runner called out. Pushing himself off the street and back into the air, Nimbus went into a steep vertical climb. “What is it, Storm?” he asked, clearing rooftop level. “The Sol’s changing course.” Nimbus’s eyes widened as he saw the humongous airship rotating in place and descending, heading straight for the center of town. “I can’t stop it,” Storm Runner continued, forming up off Nimbus’s wing, “and even if I could, the hostages are still on that ship.” A sharp crackling sounded over both ponies’ radios, followed by static and a few chirps. When the white noise died away, a new voice took its place. “This is the Awakening. Aviators following this airship- I suggest you back off immediately, lest you witness the true strength and commitment of our ponies. We have taken everypony on this airship hostage, and no amount of negotiating will get them released. We will continue to hold them in captivity, as insurance. You and your armed forces stay away from us, and we won’t harm them.” “You expect me to believe that?” Nimbus radioed back. “I expect nothing, but I also know that you have no choice in this matter. You will do as I say, or ponies will die. It is that simple.” Nimbus growled and shook his head. Things couldn’t possible get any worse, could they? … Silky Sunset hadn’t slept all night. They were coming, she knew, but she had no idea when. Therefore, she had made it a point to be awake when the time came. Hours of silent solitude had started her thinking- she was the leader of the Awakening now. Where and how could she succeed where so many of her predecessors had failed? She couldn’t lead as the pony she once was- it was clear to her now that she had to be stronger. She had tried to meet the Aviator the previous day- the one called Nimbus- without violence, but in the end, he had forced her to attack. It was his fault… he made the first move. Standing up, Sunset began to pace. Yes, everywhere they went, it seemed, the Awakening was faced with violence. They had no choice but to retaliate. Society painted them as bloodthirsty revolutionaries without a real cause- they were wrong. The Awakening was being driven to violence. If Equestria wasn’t ready to listen to them, then it would be forced to hear their message, and if spreading such a message required violence, well then… Sunset shook her head, collapsing onto her bed. Violence wasn’t her way. She couldn’t bring herself to justify killing… she snapped her head up. She’d had the courage to attempt to kill the Aviator yesterday. She was capable of violence, if necessary. She’d made the step- she’d grown. She knew now that she was ready, and when the time came, she would have no hesitation to threaten Equestria with whatever power lay in the mysterious site Echo. As her breathing slowed and she began to calm down, Silky Sunset smiled. She was going to be the one- she alone would herald a new era for Equestria- one of equality and complete order. The rise of the Awakening was coming. She could almost see it. A steady drone of propeller blades filled the air outside, slowly growing louder, and Sunset smiled again. Soon, very soon, her voice would be heard. … Things had quieted down on the airship, from the looks of things, but it didn’t make Nimbus any less uneasy. A few of the passengers and guards were sitting on the deck, circled by Awakening ponies with crossbows. Below, police were following the airship anxiously. They were below rooftop level now, and headed towards the city center. It was still unclear as to what exactly the Awakening were planning on doing- they were completely surrounded. Eventually, they’d have to give up. “This is pointless,” Storm Runner said, “they’re just prolonging the inevitable.” “I know,” Nimbus said, “and that’s what makes me uneasy. I mean look at what they’ve done in the past. The majority of their strikes against us have been a bit more… subtle. It’s like they’re just asking to be taken in.” “Well, speak of Cerberus…” Storm Runner said in amazement, suddenly staring straight ahead, “I think they’re taking themselves in. Look!” Nimbus followed Storm Runner’s gaze. The Sol was headed straight for Manehattan’s police station. It didn’t make any sense. Why? In disbelief, he engaged communications with the base again. “Windigo Actual, this is Windigo One with an update.” “Go ahead, One,” Cloudsplitter replied, her voice edged with stress. “The Sol is headed for the city police department. I have no idea why, but in all honesty, this looks like a mass surrender.” There was silence on the line for a moment. Then Cloudsplitter finally spoke again, haltingly. “A mass surrender after a hostage operation? That makes no sense. Why else would they be headed there? Didn’t you send two ponies there yesterday?” “Well yes,” Nimbus admitted, “but they were errand lackeys- nothing more. I don’t see why they’d be significant.” “Right, well let’s assume this has something to do with them. I want you two to draw in closer. If anything strange starts happening-“ she sighed, “-I want you to fire on the Sol. Just sever one of the envelopes. Without it, she’ll fall relatively slowly.” Nimbus nodded, “understood.” “Understood?” Storm Runner said, “what are you even saying, Nimbus? If we start shooting, those crossbows will find their targets a hay of a lot faster than the police will get there.” “Not if one of us sweeps the deck first. We go in with low intensity charge and hit everything on that deck. We’ll knock everypony out, even the friendlies, but it’s better than losing hostages.” The radio buzzed to life again as the Awakening came back into contact. “This is the Awakening. We’ve noticed that you two Aviators have been rather persistent.” “Give the hostages back,” Nimbus said, “they’ve done nothing to you.” “You really don’t know how to bargain, do you?” The voice chuckled as the airship slowed to a halt in front of the police station. Below, dozens of crossbows were aimed at the ship, while Unicorns trained their horns on it. This operation was over. “You can’t honestly think you’re in an advantageous situation,” Nimbus said, “you’re surrounded, you have no support, and-“ “Fix your little eyes on the observation deck, then, my dear Pegasus.” Nimbus obeyed. Below, four ponies where wheeling out what looked like a metallic dish on a rolling stand. As he watched, they positioned the dish facing towards him. “That, Aviator, is an ADS, otherwise known as an Aggressor Denial System. Ships use them to keep Sea Serpents at bay, but they do just fine against soft targets like you two as well.” “He’s bluffing,” Cloudsplitter said, “those are hard to come by. What do you see?” “Four ponies and a dish,” Storm Runner said, “the dish is silver.” Cloudsplitter’s response was immediate. “Get out of there now! I’m pulling you two back. Fly away as fast as you can, and hug the terrain. You do not want to be out in the open when that thing hits!” Nimbus had heard of Aggressor Denial Systems before. They worked by producing a 360 degree magical shockwave, which discouraged larger sea predators from taking chunks out of merchant vessels. They were extremely expensive, and illegal for civilian sale. Why these ponies had one, he didn’t know, but the threat was very real. He punched Storm Runner, who was staring in horror at the device, in the shoulder, and the two dove to the ground, wings pounding the air as they clawed for more speed. “Fly home, little Pegasi,” the voice said, laughing, “if you survive, you’ll remember this day- the day you learned that you cannot truly defeat us.” Nimbus spared one glance back as he took off down the street, barely clearing the rough asphalt below. There were three Unicorns directing magical beams into the dish, which was beginning to glow red. Cloudsplitter was on the radio with the police forces, screaming at them to take cover. Then everything seemed to slow down. The first thing Nimbus noticed was the absence of any sound. It was completely silent, like being in a vacuum. Then the device discharged, with a sound he could only describe as some unholy cross between a tuba and a sheet of metal that had been dropped, only this sound was ten times more amplified. The shockwave that followed was raw fury incarnate. Nimbus struggled to keep from impacting the ground as the waves of magical energy bombarded him and Storm. Then, as quickly as it started, the blast subsided. Nimbus and Storm Runner formed up in a hover several blocks away. “Windigo, confirm you’re alive please,” Cloudsplitter radioed. Nimbus shook his head, coughing and panting- his sides felt as if they were about to split. “Actual, Windigo One and Two survived. We’re fine.” “Return to base,” Cloudsplitter said, voice weary with what Nimbus was shocked to discover was defeat, “we’ve been beaten.” … Octavia sat on the hard wood deck, huddled against her trembling colleagues, feeling the ropes that bound them together biting into her skin. The ponies on board the airship had protected them with magical shields, but the blast from the ADS was still traumatic. Below, the police were already retreating, and all that was left of the station itself was a pile of wreckage. “She’s alive!” she heard a pony from the front of the deck shout, “get the rope!” Moments later, several more ponies appeared and secured a rope to the deck, which they then threw down towards the station. Less than a minute later, a blue Unicorn boarded the airship. Once all four hooves were on deck, the airship started to lift off. The Unicorn fixed the hostages with a glance, and for a moment, Octavia saw a shred of hesitation. Then her brow furrowed and she approached them, circling the group as she spoke. “Manehattan’s elite and the handful of musicians who support them…” she began, and smirked. “Such gluttonous wealth together in one place is sickening, but now I have the chance to do something about that. I am Silky Sunset, the leader of the Awakening. Doubtless you already know who we are, but if you need a refresher, this is our purpose: to cleanse Equestria of its corrupt rulers and restore peace and order through equality.” “You liar! You betrayed Princess Luna in a heartbeat!” Sunset turned towards the pony who spoke, and in an instant one of the nearby Awakening guards bucked him across the face, knocking him unconscious. “We never betrayed Luna because she was never our leader,” Sunset continued, “we served Nightmare Moon. Now that she is gone, and Night Eternal is impossible to achieve with both royal sisters alive, we have been forced to seek… new means of obtaining control.” By now, the city was rapidly falling away, and the airship was making its way towards the clouds above. Escape was completely impossible. “You lucky few will be among the first to see our country’s biggest lie- Site Echo,” Sunset went on, “legend states that during the Griffon War, a weapons program by the name of Project Spark was under development there. Our government quickly covered it up, claiming the place was destroyed. Many say it wasn’t however. Until today, nopony has dared approach it. We are going to change that.” Octavia struggled against her bindings, attracting the attention of Sunset. “Trying to escape? I’ll bet you miss your comfy estate back home already.” Octavia glared at her. “For your information, I’m a cellist, and I live in an apartment.” Sunset raised her hoof as if to strike. “Do not talk back to me, hussy! Don’t forget who controls whether you live or die here.” “I’m not afraid of you,” Octavia retorted, “you reek of incompetence, and I doubt you even have the courage to hit me.” “So sure?” Silky Sunset snarled, “just yesterday I was unprovokedly attacked by two Aviators, so if you think I won’t hit another mare, you’re sorely mistaken. Chivalry is dead, my dear cellist. Welcome to the modern world.” Sunset’s hoof collided with the side of Octavia’s face. She was out cold before she even hit the deck. “Now, barring any more interruptions, let’s get this journey underway,” Silky said, “guards, I want this cellist locked in the cargo hold for tonight. She will earn her freedom with compliance.” Sunset watched as the guards dragged the Earth Pony away. Part of her, the old part, was screaming at her that everything she’d just done was wrong, and that she’d acted completely contrary to her personality. She quickly quelled her thoughts, though. That was the old Silky Sunset. She was a leader now, and hard choices had to be made. Sunset turned her attention back to the airship gondola’s prow. The sooner they found Site Echo, the better.