Moonstone was staring at the floor, trying to fully understand the images in her mind that Pennington's story had conjured up.

Pennington chuckled, leaning back and laying sideways on his bed. "You wouldn't believe me if I told you, Moonstone."

Moonstone finally looked up, giving Pennington a quizzical glance. "All of THAT, and how you LIVED is what I wouldn't believe?"

Moonstone flopped back onto the bed alongside him, letting out a long sigh of frustration.

"I was washed out to sea, where I was rescued by a siren named Concerto. A pretty swell guy, considering their reputation! He nursed me back to health and gave me a lift back to shore." There was a brief moment of silence, Pennington's words hanging awkwardly in the air.

"So..." Moonstone rolled onto her side, looking up at Pennington's face. "The mask followed you from that day on?"

Pennington nodded, letting out a long sigh in the process. "Ever since that day, he deemed me a 'worthy host' and refuses to latch onto anyone else except to try to blackmail me into putting him on voluntarily. A voluntary host is the only way he can act with his full power."

Moonstone nodded. "But... whatever happened to Full Sails? You talked about him earlier like he was still alive."

"Oh, he is! He survived..." Pennington nodded, staring wistfully up at the ceiling. "He always hated me for what I did that day. He's been chasing after me for revenge ever since. Makes me glad I never told him where I lived during our days as partners!"

Moonstone could feel her eyelids beginning to grow heavy. She had been so engrossed in Pennington's storytelling and so isolated from the outside world in their cabin, she hadn't even realized the time passing. Looking up to see if Pennington was exhibiting the same symptoms, something else caught her eye. Not only were Pennington's eyes closed and a smile on his face, but his entire body had relaxed, and she could almost feel the relief coming off of him in waves.

"You know, it's been a long time since I got to tell that story to anyone. It feels good to get it off my chest.... to not be hiding that from you any more."

Moonstone nodded quietly, trying and failing to suppress a yawn as she stretched out on the bed.

"I guess maybe I'll have to share one of my secrets with you to make us even, huh?"

Pennington shrugged. "If you feel like it. I won't force you to tell me anything..."

Moonstone returned the shrug, feeling her body slowly shutting down to go to sleep. "Maybe later. Thank you for telling me about Mozun Akai, Penn."

"Hey, when we met you said we were going to have to trust each other. So I trust you..." Pennington's mouth stretched wide as he let a yawn of his own escape. "Well, I'm going to head to sleep, you should probably get some rest, too!"

Moonstone nodded, scooting herself closer to Pennington's warm body as she pulled the blanket up over them.

"There's no fireplace to sleep in, so you're the warmest thing in the room. Now shut up and go to sleep..." she muttered.

Before Moonstone had even had the chance to open her eyes, she was already sailing through the air as Pennington bolted upright in his bed. Her heart nearly leaped out of her chest as she spread her wings, twisting through the air and landing on the chair on the other side of their bunk, claws out and the assuring pressure of venom pumping into her fangs. Looking over, Pennington was already up on all four hooves, eyes wide open in panic and sword floating at the ready. Both of them were bathed in blood-red emergency lights, dying the whole room and both inhabitants a deep crimson.

EVERYBODY STRAP IN! THERE'S AN AVALANCHE COMING AND WE NEED TO MOVE NOW! THINGS ARE ABOUT TO GET ROUGH!

As Glacier Summit's voice rang out over a loudspeaker in the corner of the room, Pennington and Moonstone both glanced up, then at each other, each knowing that the other was considering grievous bodily harm to their host. After a moment to collect themselves, each took up their positions, pulling the belts taut over their bodies. Moments later, the entire room lurched violently forward, accelerating in a matter of seconds to a blinding speed, making Moonstone feel as if a massive weight were pulling her body down into the seat. The acceleration, however, was only the beginning. As suddenly as they had taken off, the ship began to jump violently up and down and to either side, threatening to pound them to a pulp against the walls if they so much as thought about unbuckling their restraints. Feeling panic swelling up in her chest, Moonstone glanced at Pennington, strapped to the cot. His expression was tense and terse, frightened, but not panicked.

Up and down, up and down, constantly swinging from left to right with no sense of rhythm or rhyme, the Surprise felt like a living thing leaping from one point of safety to another as the world fell to chaos around it. There was a near-deafening screech of feedback from the speaker in the room, followed by Crankshaft's panicked voice.

There was a loud crash against the roof in response, sending a shudder through the entire ship. Moonstone felt her heart skip a beat. She quickly looked to Pennington for assurance, hoping to find solace in his calm.

Pennington was staring back at her, his eyes wide with fear and searching for the same solace.

There was another moment of zero gravity, longer than any of the others, that made Moonstone's heart feel as if it had stopped completely, before the entire ship began to fall, swinging to the side until they were entirely perpendicular to the ground, the ship hanging vertically. Moonstone could feel herself held onto what was now the ceiling as Pennington hung from the wall, both still held securely in place against gravity.

Silence. Silence and stillness. The entire world frozen still as the last grip of the Surprise was lost and they fell. They all fell.

Moonstone felt the first impact throw her against her restraints, then back against her seat, the impact knocking her unconscious.

Twilight found herself at a loss for words. The story she had just been told was fantastical, horrifying, and unbelievable. A light cyan glow surrounded a mug of hot chocolate as Lily slowly passed the beverage to her, which she gladly reached up and took in her hooves.

"I... I don't understand. If Sails was so badly injured, how did he survive to tell you all this?"

Delta shrugged, shaking his head. "I think he might have fallen into some kind of hallucination from there, but... he told me that he got rescued by a siren when he reached the ocean!" He held up a hoof as Twilight opened her mouth to protest. "I know, I know... Makes the whole thing sound even more impossible, doesn't it? But that's the story he was sticking with, I couldn't get anything else out of him."

"NOT Penn!" Lily interjected, jabbing her mug at Twilight angrily. "It was Cha'Qued using him. When you have that mask on your face, you lose control. It's not just forcing you to do what it wants, it makes you lose your will to fight it! What happened there wasn't Penn's fault."

"Cha'Qued used Pennington to kill the entire village... No wonder he was so upset about the ponies who died because of the changelings! And now he follows Penn around, reminding him day after day of what he did!" Twilight shook her head. "That's horrible..."

"And no wonder he never told you about it!" Spike muttered. "I don't think he'd want anypony to know about that."

Lily shook her head. "No, he wouldn't. So be careful with whom you speak about this, both of you." Lily gave Twilight and Spike wary glances. "Just the name 'Mozun Akai' can open some very unpleasant doors."

"Delta, you're absolutely certain that one of the ponies Pennington is traveling with is a traitor?"

The pegasus nodded. "I'm not certain who, but I know that they're on board that ship, and that if they're not stopped, the HMS Surprise will go down in flames!"

Twilight shook her head. " I still think you're wrong about that, Delta Raider. Celestia's Solar Empire are all specially screened and loyal to Celestia, just like the Lunar Republic!"

"My friends inside the Lunar Republic were the ones who TOLD me about this!" Delta stamped his hoof angrily. "The only reason I can't tell you who they are is because if they were discovered by the saboteurs, they could be in some major trouble!"

"Twilight!" Lily rose to her hooves, slamming her empty mug down on the coffee table. "I don't know whether your faith in Princess Celestia is right, but I do know this: Pennington has an awful habit of getting into danger in situations that should be safe! Remember what happened on his last camping trip?"

Twilight shuddered at the memories of twisted carnival music and corrupted ponies Lily's words raised.

"Twilight, I think he's right. And if Penn is about to be ambushed, he's not nearly as strong as he used to be! He needs help!" Her eyes narrowed in determination before turning to Delta. "I'll go with you, Delta Raider. We'll have to leave as soon as possible."

"So, let me get this straight..." Spike stepped forward, pointing critically to Lily and Delta before pointing at the torrent outside. "You two, a single unicorn and pegasus, are going to go out in lethal weather and travel across the country? For the sole purpose of making it to a country FULL of giant dragons who will happily snap you both up in one bite for an afternoon snack? To catch up with a pony who is not only travelling in one of the best ships in the country, but has almost an entire day's head start?"

Twilight nodded. "Spike's right. We at least have to see if Luna can get you some kind of transportation, or maybe Princess Celestia can even call the Surprise back before anything goes wrong!"

"There's no time! If we want to catch up to them in time, we have to leave now!" He reached into a bag on the floor, pulling out a large map and laying it across Lily's table. Covering what looked like a map of Equestria were countless red lines, forming a massive, warped spider's web.

"Everypony knows there are caves and tunnels under Equestria, from the lairs of Diamond Dogs and trolls to the yearly migration paths of tatzlwurms! What most ponies don't know is how those passageways are connected! If we plot it out properly, we can avoid all the weather issues and travel just as quickly as Penn and the Surprise!"

Twilight's eyes were immediately glued on the map, soaking the information into her brain as fast as she could. She recognized a small tangle of tunnels underneath Ponyville from her experience with the Diamond Dogs, but most of the pathways were foreign to her.

"Now, I've already plotted the most efficient route to the border of Equestria..." Delta tapped the map's depiction of Canterlot, dragging his hoof along several winding lines to form a continuous path to the southeast. "Most of these should be safe from cave-ins, flooding, or other dangers. The only thing that brings down Diamond Dog engineering is an earthquake, and those seem to be one of the only things Equestria isn't suffering from, at the moment!"

"I've met Diamond Dogs before, they weren't exactly accommodating..." Twilight muttered. "Are these abandoned?"

"Correct. Since their culture is based on gem mining, Diamond Dogs are nomadic, moving from one rich area to another. The tunnels they leave behind aren't maintained, but last for decades!"

Lily nodded quietly, items in the room floating behind her with a blue glow of magic as they all levitated their way into her bag, which had somehow been brought into the room when Twilight wasn't looking.

"I never even liked taking the subway here in Canterlot... But I'm ready to do this." Lily's smile seemed forced to Twilight, but she didn't being it up.

"Well, I'm not! Why can't we just ask Princess Celestia for help? I can get a letter straight to her!"

"I never said that we can't!" Delta shook his head as he rolled the map up again. "We even need to pass pretty close to the castle on our way into the tunnels. But we can't stand around and wait for the ruler of a country under attack to respond to a letter!"

Twilight raised an eyebrow. While his reasoning made sense, Celestia had always been quick to respond to her letters, even when times were at their worst or most stressful for her! She couldn't help feeling slightly insulted at the idea that Celestia wouldn't answer when she needed help.

"Twilight, I know you care about Pennington, but I won't force you to come with us..." Lily spoke softly. "You've already done more for him than anypony else has, and this lead is shaky at best. No offense, Delta."

"If you want to stay here, nopony will blame you." Lily stopped to put a hoof on Twilight's shoulder. "This is illogical and crazy and... ugh!" She removed her hoof from Twilight and dragged it down her own face. "I can hardly believe I'm doing it, myself."

"No, you're right. If there's a chance Penn's in trouble, we can't afford to wait. We just have to make sure that we're not running in blindly." She turned back to Delta and nodded gratefully. "Even if you couldn't bring any proof, I really appreciate you braving this storm to get this message to us, Delta!"

Delta nodded, giving a quick salute. "It's my honor as a member of the New Lunar Republic, ma'am!"

"I'm going to go and fetch Spike and the rest of my own things, I'll be back as quickly as I can. Don't leave without me, okay?"

Lily nodded, pulling Twilight into a tight hug before unlocking the door for her to leave. Casting a barrier over her head to shelter her from the rain. she sprinted into the night, her mind racing with the new information that had been thrust upon her.

I still can't quite believe that story. The idea of Pennington wearing that mask and doing all of those horrible things... It doesn't seem right.

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Spike had been easy to convince to come along on their journey, claiming that he was eager to learn more about other dragons. Trying to convince the rest of her friends that a small party of four was the safest, however, was markedly less so. The last time that she had left following Pennington, she had been gone for more than a month without warning. Upon discovering that the real-life Daring Do was in danger, Rainbow Dash had been one of the most eager to take up the fight.

"Well, if he's in danger, there's no way we're going to just stand by and wait!" she shouted, sprinting for the door. She only made it two steps forward, however, when Applejack brought her to a stop with a rough yank on her tail.

"Hold your horses, RD! From what Twilight said, it sounds like this is gonna be a pretty exclusive trip!"

Twilight nodded. "I'm going to be bringing Spike with me so that I can keep Princess Celestia up-to-speed on the developments, but aside from that, I think that the rest of you should stay behind."

"WHAT?" Rainbow Dash exclaimed, pulling her tail back into her own hooves. "Come on, Twi! You're joking, right?"

"Moonstone was pretty clear that if we wind up in dragon country, we're all going to be considered more of a delicacy than anything!" Spike shrugged from his perspective on Twilight's back. "The more ponies that come with us, the more likely it is that somepony's going to get eaten!"

"Well, that WOULD certainly put a damper on things..." Rarity muttered, shaking her head.

"But Twilight, you know I can handle myself out there!" Rainbow Dash started punching at the air for emphasis. "I'm not afraid of any dumb dragon!"

"Right... just like you handled that dragon that tried to make its home in the mountains outside Ponyville?" Applejack asked, raising an eyebrow.

"Yeah!" Rainbow Dash grinned for a moment, then turned on Applejack as the memory in question returned to her. "HEY, wait a minute!"

"As much as I cannot approve, darling, I'm afraid that you may be right." Rarity sighed, followed by nods from the majority of her other friends. "But DO stay safe on your journey! I don't know about the sound of this 'Delta Raider' fellow! Anypony can spin up a good story to make themselves sound important!"

"And don't forget to bring back souvenirs this time!" Pinkie cheered, bouncing up and down with excitement. "Like those cool metal wings Penny has!"

Twilight chuckled at her friend's levity. Pinkie always knew how to make an aura of dread fade away.

"I don't think I could see myself coming back with wings, but I'll do my best! First of all... Spike, take a letter!"

I was recently contacted by a pony making rather outrageous claims. He came to me and another of Pennington's friends, claiming at a traitor from the Solar Empire is aboard the HMS surprise and planning to kill Pennington in an act of sabotage. I write to you asking for your assurance that these claims are as baseless and ridiculous as they seem.

Spike wrapped a ribbon around the letter and held it up in front of his face. He happily took a deep breath and burned it away, sending it to Celestia directly.

To everyone's surprise, however, the letter did not simply disappear, instead dissolving into a blazing mess of smoke and ashes.

"Spike!" Twilight screwed one of her eyes shut to avoid the shower of soot. "This is no time to be fooling around!"

"I- I don't get it!" Spike stuttered, quickly retrieving another scroll. "I was trying to send it, honest!" A few seconds later, he had rewritten the letter and tied another ribbon. Taking a deep breath, he once again lit the letter ablaze, only for the same destructive result.

"You don't think the storm's messin' with whatever kinda magic sends dragon mail, do ya?" Applejack asked, scratching her head.

"No, I saw Penn and Moonstone sending letters just fine yesterday!" Twilight narrowed her eyes, staring at her own muzzle in thought. "I can't think of anything that would cause Spike to stop being able to send letters to Princess Celestia!"

"Well, you might be out of luck, Twi!" Rainbow Dash sighed, shaking her head. "No mailpony is willing to go out in these storms, so there's no getting it to her the old-fashioned way!"

Twilight sighed, filing the problem under "solve later" in her mind. For now, there were more pressing matters.

"Then I'll have to get my message to her the oldest-fashioned way! Face-to-face!"

Giving each of her friends a heartfelt hug goodbye, she dashed out into the storm, casting a barrier above herself and Spike as she sprinted towards the castle.

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"I'm sorry, Miss Sparkle, but Princess Celestia is no longer available." The guard sighed, shaking several drops of rain off his already-soaked armor. "She and Princess Luna have moved to an undisclosed locale to monitor the progress of the storms after opening the castle to refugees."

"I know what 'undisclosed' means!" Twilight shouted, her panic momentarily overwhelming her. There was a brief pause as she took a deep breath.

"We don't know when they'll be returning, but we can try to do so as soon as they do."

Twilight nodded, taking the fifth parchment letter from Spike's claws. He had tried two more times on their way to the castle to send the letter, but the result failed to change. She cast a quick waterproofing spell before passing it to the guard, who tucked it inside his armor with a solemn nod. With a long sigh of her own, she gave him a grateful nod, a quick salute, and walked away, heading back towards Lily's apartment.

If the Princesses actually left to try to look into stopping this storm, things must be much, much worse than they're letting on... Could the fate of Equestria really hang in the balance?

Penn and Stone: Dynamic Duo

by Pennington Inkwell

Communications Breakdown