//------------------------------// // Bright Future // Story: Spark // by Fyn16 //------------------------------// Bright Future After staying awake all night, Nimbus concluded that once yawning actually became painful, you’d been awake too long. He and Storm Runner had been flying non-stop since their deployment time the previous day, and by the time they finally saw the faint, twinkling lights of Baltimare, both were having trouble staying awake. It wasn’t that they hadn’t been up late before- in fact, Pegasi running presence sorties (flying up and down the Griffon coast to remind Equestria’s former enemy not to start another war) often flew for nearly twenty-four hours straight. Nimbus and Storm, however, had been in the middle of a dogfight and a hostage crisis in the past few hours, and had then gone straight to a cross-country flight, while presence missions dictated at least ten hours of sleep before launch. As Storm Runner began to drift off and nearly collided with Nimbus for the third time in the last hour, Nimbus decided to take action. “Hey,” he said, nudging his friend and indicating the lights ahead, “we’re nearly there.” “Wha-?” Storm Runner gurgled, “oh yeah- lights. That’s… that’s really cool.” “Do you want to radio Cloudsplitter, or shall-“ “Go for it,” Storm Runner yawned, lazily waving his hoof at Nimbus. “Right then,” Nimbus said, shrugging and swapping to the civilian frequency they’d been given. “Raider One and Two broadcasting on civilian frequency, any monitors?” “So, you’re Raider now, huh?” Cloudsplitter replied almost instantly. “Yes, ma- I mean affirmative,” Nimbus said, remembering not to affiliate himself with the REAF over the radio. “You will then refer to me by callsign Cicada, clear?” “Clear,” Nimbus confirmed, “as requested, we are starting our initial report. Baltimare is below us.” “Excellent,” Cloudsplitter replied, “I’m not going to sleep on you two yet, then. Find Bright Future- I’ve got enough Morningstar coffee here to last me another couple of hours.” Nimbus’s mouth watered. Morningstar was practically Equestria’s go-to coffee house, and their coffee was legendary. Most Aviators swore by it. “Now that sounds amazing,” Storm Runner spoke up. “None for you two- finish your task first and report back to me. Then you can do what you want.” “Roger,” Nimbus said, “Raider out.” “Cicada out.” The ponies circled above the gleaming city below, and Nimbus felt mesmerized by the lights. While Baltimare was nowhere near as large as Manehattan, there was still a lot to it, and while Manehattan had its share of penthouses and luxury suites, it was nothing next to the almost obscene wealth of Baltimare. Many large estates bordered the city, set apart by their cleaner-looking pure white lights. Nimbus had always wondered why somepony would actually want to live in such a giant house, but there were those out there who enjoyed that sort of thing, he supposed. “Let’s descend,” he said to Storm Runner, “we’re looking for an island just off the coast.” “Roger,” Storm Runner said, entering the coordinates they’d been given before leaving. Once both Pegasi had them punched in, a green circle appeared on each’s HUD, indicating the location of their target, and hopefully, Bright Future. “Let’s wrap this up,” Nimbus said, tucking his wings in and initiating a dive to pick up speed, “it’s early and I want my coffee.” “No arguments there,” Storm Runner said as the two banked towards their target, slipping through the slowly brightening morning sky. Nimbus would later observe that if they’d flown just a few knots faster, they would’ve been able to prevent what was to happen next, but as it usually is with fate, this thought didn’t occur to either of them at the time. So, the Pegasi continued onward, oblivious to what was to come. … The Aviators-in-disguise alighted on the front lawn of a gargantuan estate and removed their helmets to take in the fresh air. With all four hooves on dry land, Nimbus marveled at the building’s sheer size. It was three stories tall, and the lateral area of it made him dizzy. “Three bronze fountains,” Storm Runner said, shaking his head in amazement at several of the courtyard’s unique features, “who the hay has the money to do that?” “Apparently Bright Future does,” Nimbus answered, taking a few steps towards the house. Something didn’t feel right- everything was simply too quiet. It took a moment for his sleep-deprived brain to make sense of what was out of place, but when he did, the hair on his mane rose and a chill racked his body. He’d initially thought that the front door was simply ajar, but upon closer examination he could see that this was not the case. The entrance to the house was open, but the front door was lying in the dew-soaked, manicured lawn almost ten feet away. This was a break-in. “Look sharp,” he whispered to Storm Runner, “we’re not alone here.” Nimbus heard a sharp intake of breath as Storm Runner saw the same thing and motioned with his hoof to enter. Both Pegasi slipped in through the door, taking care to make as little noise as possible. Inside, it was more of the same- somepony else had definitely been here. Furniture was haphazardly scattered everywhere, a few priceless paintings lay on the floor, vases were smashed… whoever had been here had not been careful. “Look for blood,” Storm Runner said when he’d regained his calm. “Only way to find out what really happened is to see what degree this violence went to.” Nimbus nodded. “Keep helmets on- we’ll stay in radio contact. I’ll check out the ground floor if you want to go upstairs.” “Good luck,” Storm Runner said, giving his wingpony a punch on the shoulder as Nimbus headed for the living room. Nimbus smiled faintly, then turned to his work as Storm Runner made his way upstairs. The living room was full of furniture, and several pieces were flipped. What instantly caught Nimbus’s eye, though, was that it appeared as if somepony had been searching for something. In fact, there was no evidence of an actual struggle down here at all. Shaking his head in perplexity, Nimbus made ready to move to the kitchen when his radio squawked. “Nimbus, it’s Storm-“ “You found something?” Nimbus radioed back. “No,” Storm hissed, “Nimbus… don’t move. Stay away from the window.” “Why?” Nimbus said hesitantly, the hair of his mane rising. “I see two ponies crossing the yard,” Storm Runner replied, “and they’re headed for the house. Both Pegasi.” Nimbus didn’t dare risk exposing himself to look out the window, but they were in a bad predicament. Soon, the Pegasi would be inside the house with them, and the last thing they needed was a confrontation. “The window will be out of their sightline in a few seconds,” Storm Runner added, “find a place to hide!” Nimbus scanned the room frantically. There wasn’t much he could use for concealment Most everything was overturned or too small to be an effective hiding place. A squeak nearby indicated that the front door had opened. There were only seconds left. “Hide!” Storm Runner hissed. Nimbus had almost resigned himself to preparing for a fight when he saw it- a gap between one of the cabinets and the wall- just big enough to squeeze behind. He bolted towards it and slid behind the furniture, desperately hoping the rasp of his uniform against the wood wouldn’t be enough to give him away. As he sat frozen behind the cold wood furniture, he heard hoofsteps and three distinct voices. “Well he’s obviously not here,” one of the voices said, “we’ve covered every square inch of this property.” “Think he knew we were coming?” another asked. “Hardly,” the third answered, “he’d have no way of knowing. This thing is time-critical, so we can’t afford to just wait for him to show up. We need some way to get to Site Echo.” “How about this?” the first voice said, followed by the rustling of paper. “Where the hay did you get that?” voice two said. “I got it upstairs- there was a panel in the back of his dresser. I think it’s a map.” “And you didn’t think to tell us this just a bit earlier?” There was a slight pause. “I, uh… the thought didn’t really cross my mind.” “Wave Racer,” voice three sighed, “you are an idiot.” “We have what we came for, more or less,” two cut in, “maps don’t try to fight back. I say we head back to the Sol immediately.” “I concur,” three agreed. “Yeah, sure. Why not?” Wave Racer said, followed by what Nimbus decided was most definitely the sound of a facehoof. “What’s going on down there?” Storm Runner whispered. Nimbus adjusted the volume in his helmet. It was unlikely the ponies could hear Storm, but it never hurt to be cautious. “They have a map,” Nimbus answered, “and I think they’re leaving.” “Oh, this is bad,” Storm said, “we need to intercept them! If they get that map back to the Sol, they won’t need Bright Future.” “If you say so,” Nimbus said as the hoofsteps started again, heading for the front door. “In that case, I’m engaging now.” Without a doubt, Nimbus had the element of surprise, but he was also outnumbered three to one. His priority would have been the map carrier, but since he had no way of knowing who that was, he tackled the first pony he saw. The Pegasus barely had time to display a look of utter shock before he crumpled to the ground. Nimbus didn’t waste time trying anything fancy- he went right for a buck to the face. The other pony, however, was ready, and countered his attack. A whooshing sound overhead told Nimbus that Storm had joined the fray as well, and another pony went down. The third escaped, heading for the sky. Nimbus stood up to pursue him, but was knocked down again by his aggressor. “Oh come on!” he growled, rolling to avoid the pony’s powerful hooves as they impacted the floor inches away from his head. As the two grappled, Nimbus couldn’t help but remember his experience with hoof-to-hoof combat at Field Training. Storm Runner had pretty much helped him through the two-week course, and when it was finally over, Nimbus had gone away wondering just how the things he’d learned would ever be applied in a career where most of the fighting took place in the air. He was feeling awfully stupid about that now. As his opponent reared up to bring his hooves in for another strike, Nimbus finally saw his chance. With both front hooves high in the air, balancing on his back legs, the pony was in a fairly unstable position, and more importantly, his belly was exposed. In a fraction of a second, Nimbus brought his back legs in and bucked his aggressor in the stomach. The force of the kick sent the pony into the air, and he doubled over in pain. Nimbus braced himself, anticipating that his attacker would fall on top of him, but nothing happened. In fact, he heard no impact at all. Opening his squinting eyes, Nimbus saw the Pegasus enveloped in a field of blue magic, frozen. His eyes wandered over to the front door, where he was surprised to see a Unicorn standing with his horn glowing and pointing at the levitating Pegasus, looking rather displeased. “I leave for one hour to grab some breakfast downtown and my house turns into a battlefield?” he said, quite calmly. Before anypony could answer, he threw Nimbus’s attacker into a wall, knocking the pony unconscious. “Sir,” Nimbus said carefully, slowly standing up, “are you… Bright-“ “Bright Future, yes,” the pony said, irritated, “and I’d like to know why two Royal Equestrian Air Force Aviators have decided to show up at my house and start a miniature war.” Nimbus and Storm Runner exchanged glances. “We’re not REAF, sir,” Storm Runner said, “we’re mercenaries for the… National… Airspace Defense Company.” “The what now?” “It’s a multinational air force for hire,” Nimbus said, “you probably haven’t heard of us. We’re relatively new.” “That’s funny,” Bright Future said, “never heard of them. Also, when did TA-4B flight suits make it to the international market? I thought they were just out of the prototype stage.” “I, um, we-“ Storm Runner stuttered. “Look, let’s be honest- I know you’re both REAF Aviators, I know that whatever’s going on, the Air Force doesn’t want their name on it, and I know you were after the ponies that were just in my house,” he nudged one of the unconscious Pegasi with his hoof, “so the only question I have is- why?” “They’re after you, and Project Spark,” Nimbus said simply. Bright Future nodded. “Fair enough. Why don’t you two tie these ruffians up, and I’ll get some coffee going. I think we’ve got some things to talk about.” … Silky Sunset anxiously paced back and forth on the deck of the Sol. Daylight was upon them, and her retrieval team still hadn’t made it back yet. If the Air Force was getting involved again, which by now seemed like a distinct possibility, she would be expected to take stronger action. She wanted to avoid doing so at all costs. A lone Pegasus appeared over the clouds about a mile out. As he neared, her heart began to beat faster. Where were the other two? The Pegasus landed on the deck, and hastily rushed over to her. “Ma’am, there are other forces involved. We were attacked by ponies with unmarked flight suits. I don’t know who they work for, but… the rest of my team is down there. I managed to retrieve this, though.” The pony held up what looked like a map, and Sunset took it. “Good,” she said, “our comrades knew the risks going in. We must leave them and continue our journey as soon as possible if we are to succeed. Excellent work, Wave Racer.” The Pegasus nodded and headed below deck. Sunset, meanwhile, made her way to the airship’s control bridge. They were far from safe, with a new group of ponies chasing them, and if they were going to have any chance of finding what they were looking for, they would need to set out immediately. … Nimbus looked down at the steaming hot cup of coffee in front of him, his mouth watering- Morningstar brand. It was exactly what he’d wanted an hour ago. Anxiously, he had a sip, and was rewarded with a scorched tongue for the trouble. He made a point to let his beverage cool for a little while before sipping it again. Bright Future set his own coffee mug down on the table and took a seat opposite Storm Runner and Nimbus. “Thank you,” Storm Runner said, “I can’t tell you just how much we needed this coffee.” “You’re welcome,” Bright Future said, placing a binder on the table. “My turn to ask something from you, though- why are the armed forces expressing interest in Project Spark?” “We’re not,” Nimbus answered, “but those ponies who ransacked your house- the Awakening- are very interested.” “Ah yes, the Awakening. I’ve read the papers, I know who they are.” “Yes, well they seem to believe that Project Spark, or at least some part of it, still exists at Site Echo,” Storm Runner said. “So that brings us to the question- is it worth pursuing them? Is there any chance that Site Echo wasn’t destroyed?” Nimbus asked. Bright Future didn’t respond at first, instead staring off into space. Finally, he clapped his hooves together. “I knew it wasn’t finished,” he said at last, “I knew I shouldn’t have written it off.” “Wait- are you saying you didn’t destroy the site?” Storm Runner asked, eyes widening, “that was a royal order! You could face charges of treason for that!” “For what- preserving the security of Equestria? You don’t even know what happened there. Once Celestia found out that we were in the process of developing a biological weapon-“ “Which is against the law,” Nimbus pointed out. “Biological weaponry is unnecessarily cruel, and excessive. The Binational Conference explicitly states that.” “I know about the Conference,” Bright Future said, “a bunch of ponies and Griffons with no idea about how to conduct a war. Let me ask you something- what do you suppose would have happened if the Griffons won the last war?” “Well it would have been terrible,” Storm Runner answered, “the Griffons are known to be ruthlessly territorial. Equestria would have been under their rule in months.” “Precisely,” Bright Future replied, “and that is why Spark was developed. If there was any danger of a prolonged war, or any possibility that Equestria might fall, we would unleash it- the spark to ignite a wildfire- that wildfire being the destruction of the Griffon Empire. An aptly named project, don’t you think?” “But still, biological weapons are unpredictable,” Nimbus said, “unleashing it on Equestria in the event of an invasion would have been disastrous.” “Wrong again,” Bright Future said, “this weapon was unique- the first fully-controllable biological weapon. Zero civilian casualties.” “Then why would Celestia order the site’s destruction?” Storm asked. “Because what we were working on, Aviator, was power. Pure power. Power frightens authority figures when it’s beyond their control.” Storm Runner shook his head. “Figures. Maybe we can get this project back on track after this, then. I’d vouch for you.” “I appreciate that.” “I can’t say I support this,” Nimbus said, “but since you say the site exists, and still holds Spark, we need to make an effort to get there and secure Spark before the Awakening does, and if possible, rescue the hostages.” “Hostages?” Bright Future asked. “Yeah, they took an airship full of musicians,” Storm Runner said. “Then we must leave at once.” “Wait-“ Nimbus said, sipping his coffee, “what do you mean ‘we’? With all due respect, sir, you can’t fly. It’ll be faster if we clear this up ourselves.” Bright Future stood up suddenly, his horn glowing with pulsing, blue light. As the two Aviators watched, two translucent blue wings- magical projections- grew from his back. His spell complete, Bright Future fixed his gaze back on Nimbus and Storm. “I can fly just fine, and I’d assume you’ll want someone to help you past the various anti-intruder measures the site contains. Plus, that Pegasus that managed to escape took my map, so it doesn't look like we have much of a choice. Just say the word, and I’m ready to launch.” Finishing his coffee, Nimbus picked up his helmet. “Okay, then. We launch outside in five minutes, and we’ll brief Cicada in-flight.” “Excellent,” said Bright Future, “and by the way- I didn’t get your names…” “Second Lieutenant Nimbus-“ “And Second Lieutenant Storm Runner,” Storm finished. “Nimbus and Storm Runner,” Bright Future said, nodding to himself. “Glad to meet you. I think this could be the start of one hay of an adventure.”