//------------------------------// // Chapter Twenty-Nine // Story: Unity // by Kieva Lynn //------------------------------// Unity Chapter Twenty-Nine In terms of what it represented, the fusion of the knowledge and resources of multiple worlds, the airship Harmony was an incredible achievement. In terms of what it looked like, it was absurd. Picture it: An aging motor yacht thirty feet long by twelve feet wide by sixteen feet tall, hovering in the air supported by a layer of levitation-spell enchanted gemstones covering the outer bottom hull. A trio of salvaged Mor-tax heat rays were positioned on it's upper deck, one forward and one to each side. And jutting from hastily carved holes just below the deck were two pairs of outrigger pods, each holding propellers for forward propulsion and guidance. "That's so cool and so funny looking at the same time." Bethany Stanz said as she stood looking up at the newly finished airship. "Eeyup." Mac agreed. "But I'll take function over form any day." "I just hope it does function. We've got a lot of friends, and family in your case, riding on this." "They'll be fine Beth." Roger said. "We put everything we had into her." "I sure hope so." Bethany sighed. She looked around at the crowd that was gathering. It was growing quite large, with more than just Unity citizens present from the launch; Beth saw what had to be nearly the entire population of Brayflox' Longstop, and several dozen Gryphons and Minotaurs as well. "Well, I better get up 't the stage." Mac said. "Most everybody else is already there." Beth leaned over and kissed him. "Break a leg." "Eeyup." Macintosh made his way through the crowd, and climbed the stairs up to the stage that had been erected next to the waiting airship. Already there were the ship's crew (The element bearers, Bert, the Bakker brothers, Xix-xax, Guttrix, and Herbert who would be their pilot). Also waiting were the rest of the Unity town council, and Mayor Steel Forge. Once Mac was in place, Twilight stepped up to the microphone. "Thank you all for coming!" Twilight spoke. "Today is the day! If all goes well, we will return in a few weeks with the knowledge of who has bought us here, why, and perhaps even a way of getting home. This is, of course, a potentially dangerous undertaking. We don't know who or what else we will meet along our way. And we have a known danger to find and counter as well. But anything worth doing is bound to be difficult. So let us go forward, in courage, knowing that all of your hopes, dreams, and prayers go with us. And we will return, successful!" The crowds cheered as Twilight turned and led the way aboard the Harmony. Once the crew was secure, the boarding ramp was pulled back and the propellers began to spin, Harmony gaining speed and altitude as she flew up, away... ...And then down, circling around, returning to the launch site. The ramp was put back in place, and a familiar group of fillies was ushered off of the ship. Crusaders safely on the ground, Harmony departed again, this time continuing over the horizon and out of sight. "Phooey." Scootaloo complained... XXXX Once underway, Herbert set their course for Harnerville, reaching and passing over the settlement mere minutes after departure. It was easy enough to locate the path Carl had melted into the deep snow, and they turned to follow. "I don't suppose there's much chance it'll be this easy all the way...?" Nigel wondered. "Nah." Rainbow said. "All bets are off once we reach the shoreline." Applejack said "Question is, do we keep trying t' follow his path the long way around the sea, or do we just continue on our way?" "I say we should just keep going." Twilight said. Bert agreed. "It might get us ahead of him. Hell, for all we know there is no land route between here and the center. Carl could just end up wandering off and never being seen again. Either way though..." "Either way, our primary goal is to see what's at the center." "Exactly." They flew on through the rest of that day and the following night. Below, the forest continued on seemingly endless until, all at once, the trees gave way to rolling plains, certainly grassy in warmer months though now in the dead of winter they too were covered in a thick mantle of snow. The path Harner had blasted through the snow and ice continued on in a perfectly straight line. As the sun was rising on the second day, the plains surrendered to a wide rocky beach, and then the sea. "He had to turn here alright." Rainbow said, looking over the edge of the ship, down to where the melted path turned to the north, following the shoreline. "Good." Twilight said. "Let's take the lead." "Gladly!" Herbert agreed, and pushed up on the throttle, driving the airship faster than before. It wasn't long before they were out of sight of land... XXXX One day later: The storm had blown up with terrifying speed, turning the previously calm ocean below to a whitecapped froth of massive waves. The winds blew, seemingly in multiple, even opposing directions, and through it all the Harmony fought to stay airborne. "Dash!" Herbert called out, "Can't you do anything!?" "Not against this! This'd challenge the whole weather team!" Peering out from inside the cabin, Rarity asked "Where did this dreadful weather even come from? I've never seen a storm blow up so fast, not even the one that bought us here." Holding tightly to the control wheel, Herbert said "That's the sea for you. It can turn on you in a heartbeat." A sudden gust slammed into Harmony's port side, driving the ship along, and the old marine nearly lost control as the wheel spun free. They were saved from catastrophe only by the quick action of Pinkie who jumped in and wedged herself in place to stop it from spinning any further. "Nice move Pinks. You okay?" Pinkie pulled herself out, shook off. "Ouchie." She shook again, poofing her mane and tail back to normal. "That's better!" "It's like a full blown hurricane out there." Reginald said. "Yeah, I just wish we had radar." Herbert replied. "After all, if this is a cyclone, then somewhere out there is an eye wall where conditions are even worse." Everyone exchanged unsettled looks at this. "Should we turn back? Try to go around?" Applejack asked. "Maybe. Let me try something first." Twilight answered. And then to everyone's shock, she opened the door and stepped out of the cabin, into the howling winds. "Twi!" "What the hay is she doing!?" "Oh my." Rainbow Dash bolted out the door after her friend, fully expecting to have to fly into the storm, fully expecting the unicorn to be thrown off the deck by the winds. And then suddenly the winds seemed to stop. Rainbow stumbled to a halt and looked around. The storm was still raging, as fierce as ever, but there was absolute calm inside an oval shaped area centered on the airship and glowing violet at the edges. "Magic shield. Nice." "Yeah!" Twilight grinned. "But, how long I can keep it up is directly proportional to how much force it's holding at bay. And in a storm like this, well, we'd better get clear as quickly as we can." Dash nodded. "I'll tell Herb to pour it on." She said, and rushed back inside to deliver the message. As Rainbow returned to the cabin, Nigel stepped outside. "Don't you ever scare us like that again!" He admonished. "Sorry. Had to act fast though." "I know. Just, maybe tell us what you've got in mind next time?" "Deal..." XXXX Even at the Harmony's top speed, it took another two hours to get clear of the hurricane. By the time the skies cleared and Twilight felt safe dropping the magic shield, she was exhausted; Applejack carried the unicorn on her back into the cabin, to a bed where she was instantly asleep upon hitting the covers. Ahead of them, the sea continued. But the peaks of mountains were coming into sight over the horizon. ""We're makin' good time, all things considered." Applejack said as she returned to the control room. "Assuming no stops, we should be able to reach the center in another four days." Nigel said. "I just hope we like what we find there." Rainbow mused. "You and me both." XXXX Harmony flew on, through the evening, the night. As the sun rose on the third day of their journey, the mountains which had been just visible in the distance were now towering over the northern horizon, and the new shoreline was clearly visible in the distance. Yawning, Twilight joined her friends on the outside deck, accepting a muffin from Pinkie as she looked ahead. This new land apparently had a warmer, more tropical climate than what they had grown used to at Unity; Thick jungle pressed up against the coastline and the air was hot and humid. As they drew closer, something began to draw Twilight's attention. A short distance inland from the coast, right in the thick of the jungle, the unicorn would have sworn she saw something metallic glinting in the early morning sun. "What the...?" "Twi?" "I'm not sure..." Twilight floated a pair of binoculars to her face, peered through looking for whatever it was she had seen. Found it. Her jaw dropped, and she exclaimed "Stop!" Reacting quickly, Herbert bought the airship to a halt as everyone braced themselves against the rapid deceleration. Once they had stopped, Applejack demanded "What the hay was that for?!" Twilight explained about what she had seen in the distance. "When I thought it was something metal, I was afraid that maybe Carl Harner was somehow ahead of us, that I was seeing light shining off the body of the tripod," She said, "So I took a closer look." Twilight floated the binoculars to Bert. "See for yourself." Bert did so, and after a moment said "It's a town." "But... I thought that all of the towns here were all in a big circle." Fluttershy whispered. "This mean we on wild roc chase?" Muckvik asked. "Maybe." Twilight admitted, head hung. Xix-xax said "Or, maybe this is a colony someone from the circle built here." "Or maybe there's more than one circle!" Pinkie said. "Maybe it's like a big bulls-eye with lots of circles!" "Those... Are both plausible explanations." Twilight said, cheering up. Rainbow asked "You want me to do some recon?" "Good idea." Bert agreed. "Great! I'll be right back!" Rainbow started to fly off when she was stopped by Fluttershy grabbing a hoof. "Um, I'm sorry Rainbow Dash, but I'm not sure if you should leave right now." "What!?" Rainbow demanded of her yellow friend, "Why?" Fluttershy pointed a hoof towards where the mysterious town was. "That's why." She said, and when everyone looked they could see the exhaust trails of multiple objects zooming towards their position. "Missiles!" Bert shouted. "Taking evasive actions!" Herbert yelled as he rushed back to the controls, working swiftly to get back up to enough speed to avoid the unprovoked attack. "Why are they attacking us!?" Applejack shouted. "Maybe we've trespassed in what they consider their territory!" Xix suggested. "Or maybe they think we're someone else!" Twilight said. "Or maybe they're just meanie-meanheads!" Pinkie threw in. "Survive first ask questions later!" Bert shouted. He was holding on tightly to a railing as he took his place next to the forward heat ray. "Somebody man the other two!" As the missiles drew closer, Bert opened fire. his first blast went wide, as did the second, but the third struck home, a missile blossoming in a brilliant shower of light, heat, and pressure. "Goddamn!" Bert yelled, "If they're packing that kind of yield we're screwed if any of them get anywhere near us!" "Then don't let them!" Herbert answered. "Twilight, can you shield us?" "I can try!" Twilight replied. From his place at the starboard heat ray, Nigel managed to blast another missile, which took yet another one with it. Bert made another hit a moment later, and then Applejack and Pinkie who were trying to work the port weapon together struck their first target. "We're down to three!" Xix announced, keeping track of the missiles. "But one's right on our tail!" "We've got no rear weapon!" "Oh yes we do!" Guttrix cheered as he tossed one of his bombs over the rear deck. It exploded just as the missile reached it. "Nice shot! Two more to go!" "Closest one, coming in hot on your side ladies!" Xix warned the earth ponies. "We got it!" Applejack said, firing even as she spoke. It took four shots to get a lock, and the missile's explosion rocked the airship as none of the others had been close enough to do. "Where's the last one!?" Bert exclaimed. "I don't see it!" Fluttershy answered. "Xix, do you see it?" "No! It might be coming up from below us!" "That's big trouble if it does." Nigel said. "It's like they're following us." Reginald said. "They must be heat-seeking or something." Rainbow smirked. "Heat seeking eh?" She leaped into the sky and flew down and under the airship, sighting the last missile in moments. "There you are... Let's have a race..." Pouring on as much speed as she could, Rainbow flew directly in front of the missile, getting the attention of it's sensors. As it banked to follow, Rainbow flew out over the ocean, making sure to fly just slow enough to not pull too far ahead, not wanting to risk the weapon turning back to the airship if it lost it's lock on her. Not that she knew whether or not it was smart enough to do so, but better safe than sorry. Of course, this left her with the alternate worry of what might happen to her if it decided to detonate. Happily, this concern was alleviated when the weapon's engine ran out of fuel, leaving it to crash into the waves below. "Oh yeah, I still got it." Rainbow cheered, and turned to fly back to her friends... XXXX Rainbow Dash returned to the Harmony to find things in chaos. The next-to-last missile, the one that had exploded close enough to the airship for them to feel the shockwave, had left a calling card in the form of a large chunk of shrapnel embedded in the rear port engine pod. "It's nothing we can't fix," Reginald said, "But we'll need to land to do so." "Land. In the jungle. With the beings that just tried t' kill us nearby." Applejack argued. "I don't like that part either. But yeah. We're not making it too much further if we don't." Twilight explained. "I guess we'll just have to hope the thick jungle slows them down from figuring out exactly where we landed." "Well, how long will the repairs take?" Xix asked. "Less than a day, from what we're seeing. Mostly, it looks like it's just a matter of extracting the shrapnel and then replacing a couple of parts, all of which we have spares for." Herbert said "In any case, I'm aiming us as far away from that town as we can get." Harmony descended towards the jungle below, everyone keeping a close eye out for any signs of further attacks. To the surprise of most of those present, none came. As they drew closer to ground level, Pinkie noticed a break in the treetop canopy ahead, which proved to be the course of a wide, slow flowing river with broad sandy beaches to either side. "Perfect." Herbert smiled, and bought them to a smooth landing alongside the shore. "Okay!" Bert said, grabbing up a toolkit. "Let's get to work. The sooner we're back in the air the better." The work of removing the shrapnel from the engine was trickier than originally expected; smaller fragments had broken off and lodged in multiple places throughout the workings of the machine. It took hours to get everything cleared out, and by the time they were ready to begin the actual repairs the sun was dipping low on the horizon. "I guess we're overnighting here." Nigel said. "Ooh! We can make a fire and toast marshmallows!" Pinkie cheered. "Um, no." Twilight said. "Sorry Pinkie, but we don't want to do anything that could give away our position." "And besides darling, we don't even have any marshmallows." Rarity added. "Actually..." Bert said, suddenly whispering, "I think our position may already be compromised..." He motioned towards the nearby jungle edge, where a light could be seen moving in the darkness. More lights appeared. And they were getting closer. Anticipating a fight, everyone moved together, taking positions. Bert and Herbert drew their guns, Guttrix stood with a sword in one hand and a bomb in the other, Twilight and Rarity charged up magic in their horns, and Xix and the remaining ponies took up combat stances, save for Fluttershy who cowered behind everyone else. The lights grew brighter, closer. The nearest tree branches swayed. And the mysterious visitors came into view. Bert could only shake his head as he looked upon them. "I know unicorns and pegasai," he said, "Gryphons and dragons... You'd think this world wouldn't be able to surprise me anymore..." He laughed, still shaking his head in disbelief, "...But even I didn't expect fairies..."