//------------------------------// // Chapter 6 -- Knowledge // Story: Magi Chronicles: Fires of Equestria // by Xeadin //------------------------------// Planet Jumping—it was an intergalactic game of Cat and Mouse. For some, it gave a thrill of exploration and adventure by cataloguing strange planets strewn off from the bulk of society. For others, it was a time of recollection. The peace and serenity of travelling through space was an experience not many get to partake in. For two particular civilizations, the concept of Planet Jumping was neither a fun game, nor a relaxing vacation. It was a race of daring survival against brutal dominance. The aggressors had sworn to crush the civilization with an iron fist. Their brutal nature led them endlessly and effortlessly into bloodshed and cruelty. Things were not always like that from the start. The first of the Rygoliths were, once, nomadic, peaceful and wise. Separated by the bonds of their ancestry, they were the sentinels of the shadows. Their words once carried the whispers of the faithful and spread unity upon the lands. The Nobles, ambassadors of the faith, once held a truce with the civilization to provide safety and security in exchange for land to cultivate and thrive. Fate had taken a drastic turn when the Nobles were usurped and executed by one of their own. A blood-thirsty, power-hungry individual brought the truce to a bitter end and accused the civilization for failing to provide them with their ‘promised land.’ This began a downward spiral of relations between the civilization and the Rygoliths. That situation, alone, was not the only problem that they were faced. What, ultimately, blew a hole in their relations was the rise of a Metal Head resistance against the voracious czar. Split between two different feuds, the Rygolith clan was forced to retreat into the shadows, hiding their presence and their plans. They had sworn to defeat both the Metal Heads, which had already shown great remorse against the clan from earlier debacles, and the Magi, who were deemed a greater enemy. ~~~~~ The spaceship Harmony made its way to a point between two giant, fairly cloudy planets—each with a strong magnetic field that overlapped, and danced with, each other. It functioned as an effective cloak to avoid direct contact with the aggressor’s radar, while maintaining crucial communication with the reserve forces that were on the way to the rendezvous point. The pilots of the spaceship closely examined a holographic screen, which took up much of the view of the canopy. The screen displayed vast colonies of planetary solar systems and key vantage points. There were several mobile marks on the screen—each of them representing different units. A deep blue chevron represented the Harmony’s present location, and was, virtually, at the center of the map. A set of red circular icons to the top-left represented the approximate location(s) of the aggressor squadron. Several blue marks to the right of the screen depicted the locations of the incoming support team, including the Atlas Command Vessel. The final mark on the top-left corner of the screen was a pulsating green chevron, which represented the approximate location of their objective. No one on board, except for one of the engineers, had seen the Atlas vessel up close, but they assumed it would be a great enough deal to send it out into early deployment. The Atlas was a large command vessel that was, literally, a floating fortress. It resembled an aircraft carrier—more than doubled in length and width, and supported by four gigantic double-propped rotor units. The amount of power needed for the operation of such vehicle was unfathomable. It took a record amount of eco crystals to draw basic auxiliary power, and another set to produce enough power to jumpstart the arc reactor that powered the essential systems of the Atlas—including the rotor units themselves. To move such a large vessel around space, a propulsion system was necessary. Ion drives were fairly common amongst smaller vessels, like the Harmony, which was built mainly for reconnaissance missions, but for larger vessels like the Atlas and any other large dropship/ mothership, it would need more than just ion drives to move around the emptiness of space. The Atlas had a combination of, both, ion and eco drives—boosters which harnessed the energies of both blue and power ecos. Both the static nature of blue eco coupled with the conductive force of power eco provided a very large, very heavy form of thrust that could easily move a small dropship across the cosmos at staggering speeds. The designers of the Atlas had solved two major hurdles in the creation and production of the Atlas project: capacity and efficiency. The ability for the Atlas to function as a highly stable transport vessel and to control the effective input and output for the Atlas’s flight envelop gave it a remarkable advantage in the front lines. Not only was the Atlas built to last, but it was also built for stealth. Many of the surfaces of the Atlas were designed and arranged in non-linear patterns and shapes, which rendered it virtually invisible to common radar systems. It would have to take more than a dot-and-point or Doppler radar system to detect the presence of the Atlas. Randan stood next to the canopy window, his hand underneath his glowing beak, looking out toward the still, black skies. The halo of light that was reflected off of one of the gaseous planets illuminated much of the cockpit, which eliminated the need for artificial light. There was an air of uncertainty that circulated around his thoughts. He knew that the mission would come with outstanding risks and consequences, but the price of those risks would be offset by the reward—keeping ‘him’ alive. The presence of the boy would keep the cycle of the elemental bonds flowing, and would ensure the safety of the civilization. Without him, things would unravel quickly. This thought was what gave everyone onboard the starship Harmony greater hope, courage, and determination. It was a grim time for all—with the civilization on the brink of war and a brutal, savage army gaining the upper-hand; the slightest slip could undo all that the civilization had worked for. In the darkness, there was a light at the end. All of the crew members knew that the threat to their existence was there, but it was that feeling that gave them an unusual drive. It was not a normal situation and few were not trained for combat, but in the presence of expert militants, there was always the feeling of hope that stood strong within every single living being. Cassandra stood next to Randan as he continued to gaze upon the cosmos. His still posture diluted the air with questionable uncertainty, which she picked up on almost immediately. Eagorans were notable for their passive quality to sub-consciously feel the thoughts of their own kind. Randan turned his head toward Cassandra for a brief moment and faced the speckled darkness. A watch on his arm beeped and vibrated for a few seconds and he looked down to look at it. The small screen lit up and words scrolled across. It was a page from the incoming crew. He waved his hand across the control panel in front of him and a holographic screen flashed in front of the canopy. The blue chevrons were drawing closer, and one was flashing. Cassandra heard a slight crackle emanate from the communications console. A few seconds later, a voice spoke through. “Harmony MG-1, this is Atlas GHQ. Over.” Cassandra sped to her seat and quickly put on her headset. “Atlas 1, this is Harmony. We read you loud and clear.” “Copy that. We are approaching the rendezvous point, at vector 307, on schedule.” “Roger, Atlas. Requesting express permission to board the vessel upon your arrival?” “Harmony MG-1, landing request accepted.” Cassandra slid the holographic screen to the side, ending the transmission link. It didn’t take long for them to notice the brief shaking of the Atlas vessel. The canopy was, soon, obscured by the vastly giant vessel. In all honesty, it was bigger than they had expected, and the gargantuan rotor units only made it more so. The rotors were not active, since there was no air to act on in space, so the entire vessel had to rely on the ion drives to maneuver it into position. Thankfully, it had enough drives on all parts of the vessel to do so. The crew members also noticed that they were oriented in an inverted position—opposite of the Atlas. They had to maneuver the starship so that they could execute a safe landing inside the vessel. An inverted landing would cause some headaches for sure. After reorienting the ship, the ion drives fired up and pushed it along toward the Atlas. Ortan flipped a few switches on the overhanging console and Renae guided the ship toward the docking bay. The heavy doors of the bay slowly opened and lights flashed across the floor. A few crew members from inside, who wore spacesuits and were tethered to the bay walls, assisted in guiding the Harmony to its requested position. The doors opened to full length, allowing the starship plenty of clearance to maneuver inside. Once the wings crossed the threshold, Renae pushed the throttle handle to the idle position, and gently pushed it forward to activate the smaller, forward-facing ion drives. The force of the drives pushed the Harmony to a gentle stop. Once the ship was at a standstill, the vessel crew members flew over and pulled the ship down to the bay floor. Several panels opened up and hooking mechanisms deployed, ready to accept the starship. When one of the hooks clamped down on one part of the ship, the rest soon engaged, securing the Harmony. The crew members pushed off toward their tether hooks and one of them activated a console. The bay doors closed and locked themselves in to place. The silence was soon replaced with a blaring alarm that increased in volume. The docking bay filled with air and pressure, which allowed the members to walk on their feet and take off their suits. Renae gave the thumbs up to the rest of the crew. Cassandra spoke through the speaker of her headset. “Atlas 1, this is Harmony. We have boarded the vessel.” “Landing confirmed. You have permission to enter the vessel.” “So, let me get this straight. Palierelia, or whatever your name is,” Rainbow Dash stuttered, floating beside Cadence and Twilight in an effort to gauge her current understandings, which the others desperately needed as well. “If we’re not dreaming, then what ‘exactly’ do you mean by our physical selves still at where we are?” She cocked her head towards Celestia. “Does this mean we’re still at Canterlot?” Celestia shrugged and nodded in possible agreement. Paleia let the reins of her hair flow gently in an oncoming breeze from the outside, pushing aside some curtains along the walkway. It reminded both princesses of a Canterlot they once knew, but their memories only recalled the peace they had while they were still the royal keepers of the Elements of Harmony. “It must be tough to sink in what I have told you, is it not?” “We have never heard of this type of concept, O’ graceful Paleia of Aniliath.” Luna’s voice echoed quaintly through the hallway. Paleia was impressed by the dark one’s tone and regality. She’s always had an interest in the studies of other lands, but to come face-to-face with those from a land she has not spoken of was a true blessing—if not timely. “I implore your efforts to keep this situation as civil as you possibly could.” Her smile quickly turned to a frown. She came to a sudden halt as she heard the whispers of a passing elemental strand. The voices of the Elementals slowly worked through her mind. As she attempted to gather what she could, the air around the complex began to grow heavy, and the sun started to fade and darken the hallways. Paleia’s eyes snapped open, and a sudden tremor was felt throughout the hallway. Her heart raced as she knew, exactly, why. The others were curious, but soon noticed Paleia’s growing concern. Celestia held a straight posture. “What is the matter? Is something wrong?” “The architect…” She whispered out of her mouth. She regained her focus just as quickly as she had lost it, and turned to face a long, dark hallway, which was only beginning to darken even more. “We don’t have much time to explain. Hurry, the Halls of Nigh are closing!” With the others trailing as closely as they possibly could, and fear starting to take hold, the group made it to the inner parts of the complex. Another strange tremor was felt—this time, a light, harmonic hum filled the air. To the equestrians, it sounded like a small batch of bees over a garden nursery. The resonance, shortly, began to intensify, and another tremor shook the hall. “We are where we need to be,” Paleia shouted, as the humming grew louder to where it enveloped all other sounds, including the howling winds that wracked through the halls. Paleia’s voice still carried soundly, as though she were standing right next to them. She had made a connection to them even before the pandemic resonance engulfed their senses. ‘We are at an impeccable impasse. You must keep the boy safe at whatever costs necessary. He resembles a beacon of hope for all who have known of his existence. It is only a matter of time before ‘they’ find him—his nemesis. We will be watching out for him, but you must keep him out of harm’s way. We pray that you will not let us down, fellow Equestrians…’ Silence and darkness enveloped… Twilight could only moan after what seemed like a grueling headache. Her body laid slump on the ground next to Fluttershy and Rarity, who were still in a deep slumber. Twilight opened her eyes as she gazed upon Celestia’s room. The air was silent, and the atmosphere was calm. It became apparent that something in the room was amiss—an absent presence. She couldn’t get a fix on what that was, but as soon as the rest of her mind came back in to place, she suddenly realized that the bed was completely flat. The boy was gone. There was no hint of any struggle, or of any motive of where he may have gone. Cadence and Luna began to show signs of their re-emergence from the strange mind delve, as they were to put it. Shining Armor also started to awaken, with the guards following up with stretching their legs. It was a strange daydream that they had put up with, and soon everyone was wide awake from the events that they had experienced. Twilight and Celestia held woeful expressions, as well as Cadence and Luna, who continued to chatter with each other about what they had been through. It was at that point that Rainbow Dash had swiftly flew out of the balcony and held her hoof above her eyes, searching the landscape below for any signs of ‘foreign’ movement. Twilight, who noticed Rainbow’s unannounced exit, could only take one step before Rainbow disappeared from the balcony. She turned around to see Shining Armor, engaged in heavy conversation with the guards. After a few minutes-worth of talking, the guards dispersed out of the room in a moment’s notice. Twilight walked up to Shining Armor, still holding a depressed expression. Shining Armor helped lift his little sister’s spirit by hugging her closely. “Don’t worry, Twilie. We’ll find him and bring him back safely.” He glanced up towards the princesses and Cadence. “I have a feeling that whatever that Paleia individual said, I’m sure we’ll need to be prepared for whatever she mentioned is coming. If what she said is true, we’ll need to keep a close eye on him and make sure he doesn’t make any sudden mistakes.” Celestia nodded. “I shall let the light of the sun be my eyes to look upon him, wherever he may be.” “I’ve sent my patrols to do a thorough search of Canterlot grounds. He couldn’t have gone far. Knowing Rainbow Dash, though, she’s probably ahead of the pack by now.” “Like she’s always had. Rainbow’s nevah given up a challenge, just fer anypony.” Applejack brushed her head, and sped out of the doorway, with Pinkie Pie bouncing and prancing behind. Twilight, Cadence, and Luna trailed, with Rarity and Fluttershy being the last ones out before the doorway closed. Inside, Celestia gazed out upon the balcony, letting the autumn air flow through her mane. Her essence sparkled in the sunlight, letting it flow upwards toward the afternoon sun. Its radiance sparkled and intensified, giving her a birds-eye view over much of Canterlot, and part of the forested valleys below the shadow of the mountain. If he had gotten farther than Canterlot, then he would not have gone any further than the valley foothills.