//------------------------------//
// Chatper 12. Ballistic Spin 
// Story: The Epsilon Pegasus 
// by Sparky Brony 
//------------------------------//

“All ahead flank! Thirty-five degree left rudder!” Blue Lagoon screams. 

The helmsman calls out, “Thirty-five degrees left rudder, aye sir. No course given, sir.”

Blue looks out the windows, directing, “Bring her into the wind; course, one twelve.”

“Bearing one twelve, aye!” the helmsman replies, his eye on the compass.

Blue Lagoon moves over to the ships phone and her magic envelopes the handset, which she brings to her ear. “Engineering, I need a hundred fifteen percent on the reactors right now.” She listens for a moment, nodding to herself. “When you can, give me everything you can, I want a hundred thirty percent on both reactors.” Again, she listens to the phone. “Very well.” She hangs up the phone and looks at the helmsman, ordering, “All ahead emergency flank.”

“Sir, my rudder is at thirty-five degrees left.” the helmsman calls out. The ship lurches as the two twenty-nine foot tall rudders turn the ship. The acceleration of two hundred sixty thousand horsepower pushes my flank to the deck plate. All over the bridge, crew members hold on to their seats or convenient rails at their stations. Soon, the ship straightens out.

Blue hops off her chair and heads towards the air boss, barking, “Chappie, I want every plane that is capable to take off, off this ship. We can’t launch everything in the time we have, but priority will be to the greyhounds. And get the ospreys up and moving, too! I want to clear as many crew off this ship as possible.” She looks at the radar operator, who shakes his head. “It’s not visible on radar yet, but we have less than thirty minutes to get everything off.”

“Aye aye, captain.”

Around the ship, klaxons start to wail, and I can hear a voice over the loud speakers saying, “All non-essential personnel to flight and hangar decks. This is a ship-wide evacuation.”

I turn around and Blue Lagoon is standing before Lightning Dust. I move over and sit next to Dust as Blue Lagoon directs, “I want you three off this ship. One of the Ospreys, one of the Greyhounds, I don’t care, but get off the ship.”

Moon Shadow trots onto the bridge quickly sitting down next to Dust, who huffs, ears falling flat as she brusquely neighs in Eponese, “I’m not leaving. Let your crew-members get off on those ships. Moon Shadow can teleport us if we need to.”

Blue Lagoon stamps a hoof, snorting, “No, Dust. I want you off this ship. Now.”

Dust shakes her head, flaring her wings and nickering, “Blue Lagoon, I met you when you had just changed. Do you honestly think you can get me off this ship without having your security drag me?”

Blue sighs and turns away, switching back to English. “Fine. I have work to do.”

Dust leans over to Moon Shadow, nuzzling her and quietly asking, “Do you have a place in mind?”

Moon Shadow nuzzles Dust and smiles. “Of course! I know where the island is. I can teleport us all out of here.”

I look at Dust, “Kendra!” I moan. I gallop off the bridge and barrel down several flights of stairs. The ship vibrates as the steam catapults shoot off two aircraft, and seconds later, another two planes take off. I slide on the decking as I make a wing-assisted turn and end up at Kendra and my stateroom. I slam through the door, seeing Kendra sitting at the desk and looking very pale.

“Loopy, what’s going on? I don’t know where to go.”

I smile at my friend, quickly nuzzling her. “I’m going to get you on a plane getting out of here.”

She nods and I turn a bit. “Climb on!” 

She looks unsure, eyeing me dubiously. “I’ve ridden plenty of horses, but you are my friend, Loopy. I can’t ride you.”

I grin, shaking my flank at her playfully. “Sure you can! Then you can say you’ve ridden a genuine pegasus!”

She hesitantly throws a leg over and I flare my wings a bit so she can get her knees right behind the shoulder joints. Her fingers grasp my mane gently and I push through the door. I take off as quickly as I can down the deck—I can’t fly inside the corridors of the ship, but I know where the hangar bay is. 

A few minutes later, I follow a stream of humans into the hangar bay. A quick glance around shows a C-2 Greyhound being fueled up, so I flare my wings and fly over to the loadmaster standing at the back of the airplane. He turns and looks at me, and I ask, “Are you getting ready to go?”

He nods, looking at his tablet. “Kendra Bustos, part of the civilian team. You are on the priority list to be evacuated. Go ahead and board.” He looks at me, “Loop de Loop, you are also on the priority list.”

I shake my head. “I’m not going, yet. Use that spot for another crew member to get out.”

I see tears well up in Kendra’s eyes. “Loopy, get aboard. We need to get out of here!”

I rear up and nuzzle Kendra’s cheek, softly telling her, “I’ll be okay. Something tells me we’ll all be okay. But I want you off this ship. I’ll catch up with you later.”

She looks at me for a long time, then finally turns around and finds a seat. I move back as several other humans get aboard and strap in. I stand there as a trolley hooks to the nose wheel of the airplane and pulls it slowly towards the midships elevator. As it slowly ascends towards the flight deck, I turn and spread my wings. I’m going back to the bridge.

One of the enlisted men comes up to Blue as I get back to the bridge. “One Osprey and a few fighter aircraft won’t be able to launch, either due to technical problems or we simply not having enough time.”

Blue Lagoon nods. “Have the planes that won’t be able to take off lashed down tight. We don’t have much time.” She looks at the engineer, asking, “What are the reactors operating at?”

“A hundred thirty-two percent, Captain. Chief Engineer Scott was able to get a little more than you ordered.”

She smiles at her crew. “That means all the planes able to take passengers are getting off now.” Her words are punctuated by the sound of the catapult shooting off a C-2. I wonder if that’s the one Kendra is on. She continues, “There are a few unicorns that can do teleportation, so anyone here who wants to join the rest of the non-essential crew being teleported away from the danger zone, go now.” 

I look around at all of the bridge crew, who are at their posts and looking silently at their captain. She sighs. “Thank you,” she murmurs, then stands up straight. “How long?”

The radar operator looks at his screen, replying, “Eight minutes, Captain.”

“Very well. All ships need to power up the jammers; we need to create as much electronic noise as we can. Those projectiles are just about a ton each and they have terminal guidance, but we need to confuse that as much as possible.

“Captain, I’ve got the Chinese president on the line.”

Blue Lagoon jerks, incredulously questioning her coms officer, “You were able to break their internet security?”

The com operator chuckles, “I had some help from the mainland. She’s a consultant; a pony… I think you know her?”

“Thank Celestia for you, Cipher.” she says as she trots over to the screen, which shows a late-middle aged man in a neat western suit. 

He’s blinking at his screen. “Who are you? How did you get on my systems?”

Blue Lagoon squares herself, fixing her screen with a steely glare. “I am Captain Blue Lagoon of the United States Naval Aircraft Carrier Ronald Reagan. We have been targeted by the DF-21D missile that you fired not very long ago.”

His expression turns guarded. “And?”

“If my ship does not survive your unprovoked attack on US strategic assets, I can guarantee you that what remains of my task force, along with more US naval units, will react accordingly.”

“The attack was not unprovoked. You attacked our plane. You sunk our ships.”

“I think you were misinformed. The plane crash was caused by an inadvertent collision brought about by your plane’s refusal to veer away from US controlled airspace. This can be corroborated by both radar and communication transcripts, which will be sent to you. The corvettes, regrettably, were in the pathway of the task force, and the captain of the US destroyer not only ordered them to change course, he fired a warning shot to let them know it was time to turn. They instead turned towards our destroyer, firing their weapons and killing my crew members. The destroyer acted to defend itself from attack. We are currently using our assets to locate and save as many of your crew members, both air and naval, as possible.”

“And yet, even now, you are responding with threats.”

“No, I’m simply telling you what will happen. And if, by some miracle, this ship survives, I want to lower tensions. Our nation does not want war, and I’m quite certain that your nation does not either. So, here is what I propose.”

The man shifts in his seat, and folds his arms in front of him. “Go ahead.”

“Provided the Reagan survives this attack, Chinese warships will withdraw from the area. You may still assert your claim to the island, but your willingness to use force will not bode well in the decision.”

“You ask a lot.”

She stamps a hoof on the deck, her voice rising. “My ship is under attack from your nation. My ship, which happens to be a United States strategic asset, is the one under the gun. I am doing everything I can to save the ship, or failing that, to minimize casualties. Assuming my ship survives, we will not be retaliating for this attack. That is what you get from me.”

“I must think this over.”

Blue huffs, “In less than four minutes, we will find out if this ship survives. If we survive, I would much rather begin aircraft recovery operations. But if Chinese war vessels are still heading towards us, I will assume you must prefer war to peace.” She looks at her com officer and growls, “Get him off my screen.”

The Chinese president’s face disappears from the screen as Blue Lagoon turns around and down heavily. Lightning Dust steps up to her, nuzzling her withers. “That was awesome.”

Blue looks at Dust with a soft chuckle. “I may very well get court martialed for what I just said, but damn it, I don’t want a war. If this ship is lost, with over a thousand souls aboard, though… I don’t see a way to stop it. I just hope we can make it through this.”

Dust nuzzles her again, smiling gently. “I have faith in you.”

We all turn and look at the display. A countdown timer is flashing on the screen.

The radar operator turns and looks at the captain, calling, “Captain, the incoming track has broken up. Now reading five projectiles.”

“Tell the unicorns to teleport to safety now!” Blue calls.

Dust leans over to me. “Blue told me about this: the missile breaks into several independently maneuverable vehicles. They don’t have explosives… they are simply a ton of steel moving at hypersonic velocities. If one hits this ship, it will punch right through, and the energy release will be like a nuclear explosion… but no nuke, no radiation. And it allows them to say they didn’t use nuclear weapons.” She glances at the timer. “If Blue can’t get the ship moved out of the way of this scatter shot, Moon Shadow will teleport everyone she can to the island at the very last moment.”

I look around at the crew. “The humans too?”

She nods. “She can’t get everyone here, but she’s going to try.”

I nuzzle Dust as the timer approaches one minute. My thoughts are interrupted by Blue Lagoon’s voice barking, “Thirty-five degree right rudder, new course two nine two.”

“Thirty-five degree right rudder to course two nine two, aye, Captain!” the helmsman calls out.

“Damn, this boat can’t turn a hundred and eighty degrees at this speed in less than a minute.” Dust murmurs. Once again, the ship leans as she starts to turn, then I hear a grunt. I look over at Blue Lagoon and see her horn shining brightly. Her entire body is glowing, especially her cutie mark. I gasp as she blinks and her eyes glow white. What is she doing?

The ship shudders and I look forward. The ship is turning faster. I watch the crippled F-35 that landed earlier slide off the deck of the ship and into the water. A loud groan becomes audible… the ship itself is groaning from the strain.

“Come on old girl, I know you can do it!” Blue grunts through clenched teeth. “Make this turn for momma.”

Moon Shadow comes up close, speaking to Dust, “She’s using the ocean itself to help turn the ship, and she’s using her magic directly on the structure of the ship. How powerful is she?”

Dust looks at Blue, who is now hovering off the deck a few inches. She’s whining softly as she pours more and more of her magic into the ship and the ocean around it. “Near Twilight Sparkle levels, I think.”

“I don’t doubt it.” Moon Shadow says.

I look at the timer… less than thirty seconds left, and we have turned almost all the way around. Blue Lagoon starts to pant. “It’s too much!” she moans.

Moon Shadow steps closer. “You’ve almost got it, Blue! You are doing it!”

The helmsman turns the wheel again. “Captain, my rudder is amidships. New course two nine two.”

The ship continues to groan but now I can feel acceleration. “Just a little… more…” Blue Lagoon pants. Moon Shadow walks toward the back windows, watching the froth created by the cavitating screws of the massive ship.

I look behind the ship as the timer approaches zero, then everything shakes around me. Behind the ship, a tremendous plume of water explodes into the sky.

Dust is screaming, “She did it! It missed us!”

“Blue!” Moon Shadow shouts as she gallops over to the blue unicorn. The aura around Blue Lagoon vanishes and she lands on the decking. She smiles at Moon Shadow, blood pouring out of both nostrils, then her eyes roll back and she nearly collapses to the deck, only to be caught in Moon Shadow’s aura. “I’m taking her to sick bay.” she calls and teleports away. The executive officer steps forward and calls out commands behind me as I follow Dust, galloping toward the door.

***

The sickbay of the Reagan is like every other part of a carrier: surprisingly small, despite the ship being so big. When I arrive, Blue has already been lain out on one of the beds inside the compact space, lit by the harsh fluorescents above her. She is quiet and deathly still, her muzzle still stained by the blood from her nose. I watch as a needle floats over to her, a vein pops up, and the needle is inserted with no reaction from her. Clear tape floats over and attaches to the needle’s puncture site; in moments, an IV bag is hung, all without any human touching it. I look over at Moon Shadow, but her horn is quiet, so I look around. Moon is the only unicorn around other than Blue Lagoon. 

“Moon, how is it…” I say softly.

A human walks forward as the work completes, an amber aura fades from his hands as he opens Blue’s eye and flashes a small flashlight at her pupil. He smiles gently at his patient, seemingly pleased by what he saw. “Welcome to sickbay, Captain.” he murmurs as again his hands glow and a blanket floats from a supply cupboard and unfolds itself over the prone unicorn.

“You are a magic user.” I breathe.

“We actually like the term weavers, as in elemental weavers.” he says offhandedly as he continues examining Blue.

“Oh,” I murmur, “Sorry.”

“Don’t be. Most humans haven’t met any weavers either. There are quite a few of us, but as a percentage of the population… not so much.” His magic attaches a blood pressure cuff, and a clean cloth floats over, then proceeds to gently wipe the accumulated blood and tears from Blue's snout.

“Well, if you are magic, and you are a doctor, why don’t you just…?”

He looks at me, a smile on his face. “Why am I not just healing her? She has a case of extreme magical exhaustion. She can’t be healed that way, though I’m very good at magical healing.” He runs his glowing hands over Blue. “After I got my doctorate, I spent five years working with Star Crossed. And the Navy paid for my education, so I decided to do my hitch where I can do the most good.” He stops for a moment and looks at Dust and I, bowing his head slightly. “I’m Schorsch.” He notices as Blue’s eyes flutter a bit, turning his full attention to her. “Oh good, the glucose IV is bringing her around.”

Blue’s eyes open, and she looks around, blinking several times before finally focusing on Schorsch. “Oh, Dr. Gundlach… nice to see you.” She says softly.

He smiles. “Captain, what have I told you about overdoing it?”

Blue Lagoon grins, still softly speaking, “The ship was in danger. I had to get her out of danger.”

He looks at her sternly. “But at what cost to you?”

She cocks her head to the side. “All of your lives… I’m glad I’m still alive after that, but my first priority is this ship. You know that.”

He sighs, “Yeah, Captain, I know.”

Another man comes into sickbay. I’ve met him before, the Executive Officer of the Reagan. He steps up to Blue Lagoon, eyes full of concern, but focused on his duty. “Captain, you did an amazing job saving the ship, though there was damage. Damage control parties are being dispatched to do a full inspection of the hull. Your turn actually popped some welds throughout. She’s taking on water, but the pumps are able to keep ahead of it. The chief engineer suspects some actual structural damage to the ship from that, so dry dock is advised.”

Blue sighs, looking at the doctor, then at her XO. “We’ll head to Pearl after we are done here.”

“That’s not all, Captain, the incoming projectile hit the top mast as it came down. It missed the stern by less than ten feet. We’ve lost our AN/SPS-48E 3-D, the AN/SPS-49(V)5 2-D air search radar, and our AN/SPN-46 air traffic control radar. They were all ripped off by the incoming projectiles.”
Blue groans, “So, the entire upper third of the mast is gone?”
He nods.
“It’s better than a direct hit. Have you begun recovery operations?”
He nods. “And I’ve radioed PACFLT. The Enterprise is being sent to replace us; she’ll be in the area in eight days.”
Blue lifts her head heavily off of the bed, giving the XO a shallow nod. “Very well.”
The PA system crackles to life, calling, “Bridge to Captain Lagoon.”

Blue tries to sit up only to be restrained by the doctor, who wags a finger back and forth as he shakes his head. She sighs and the XO brings over a com device, it’s set down on the table next to the unicorn. “This is Blue Lagoon.”

“I’ve got a very angry Chinese president on the line right now. He’s demanding to talk to you.”

Blue glances over at the doctor, who grabs a tablet and powers it up, handing it over to her. “Send me the call.”

I sidle next to the bed so I can see the screen. The same man from earlier is on it, though he does look as angry as described. Blue taps the screen a couple of times before putting on her best game face. “Yes, Mister President?”

“We have adhered to our agreement. Your ship survived the attack, and our ships turned around. When, then, have you stabbed us in the back?” he growls.

Blue Lagoon furrows her brow. “I’m sorry, I’m not certain what you are talking about.”

He rolls his eyes, his voice raising as he nearly shouts, “As if you didn’t know! The Thais have grounded a landing craft on the disputed island!”

Blue’s eyes widen as her eyebrows raise. “This is news to me, Mister President. I will deal with the situation immediately.”

“You had better, or our ships will turn back, and damn the consequences! Understood?”

Blue nods and ends the conversation. She sets the tablet down, looking at her XO. “Send some speedsters to the island, especially anypony than can speak Thai. Emphasize that they are not to actually touch the land. They can hover, but not land. We are not trying to make a claim to the island. All Thai military personnel are to leave the island immediately.” She stops and thinks for a moment. “No uniforms, no insignia. They are simply to go there and let the Thais know they are violating agreements by landing military there.”

Dust growls, “Those ponies need support, right now.” She turns and starts to gallop towards the door, only to check herself, sliding a bit on the decking. “Celestia damn it!” She looks at her wings, then at me. “Loopy, you get to the island, right now. And when you get there, give Mindy a call. Let her know the ponies need support. Understood?”

“Okay Dust.” I say, only to be stopped by a scream from Blue Lagoon.

“We have to remain neutral in this, Dust!”

Dust growls at the Captain, “My first priority is to help the ponies.”

“I know that, Dust. But we don’t want to start a war.”

Dust comes forward, her wings ruffling agitatedly. “Those ponies need help. We can only have Royal Guard ponies help. They are Equestrian.”

“They are part of the US armed forces.”

“The Royal Guard isn’t. They are actually under the command of the princesses. The EUP is US Military, but not those that keep the peace in pony cities.”

Blue Lagoon thinks for a long time, then nods. “But remember, if they get in a fight with the Thais, we are treaty bound to defend them. So, no more escalation.”

Dust nods. “Understood. Did you hear that, Loopy?”

I nod and start again for the hatch.

“You know,” Dr. Gundlach pipes up, “Since you can’t fly, I can cast a cloud walking spell on you and have you brought to the island on a cloud.”

I wince as Dust looks stricken, then she turns and walks towards the hatch. “Loopy, get going. Now.” she growls.

I gallop past Dust and down the hall, heading up the stairs and finally finding the hatch to head out to the flight deck. I turn and gallop across the non-skid decking of the ship, leaping off the side as I spread my wings. I’m in the air. No plane around me, just the sky. I accelerate and do a loop, then turn and take off towards the island.

Only about ten minutes of flight has me landing. I fold my wings as Blueberry Muffin comes up to me and points at the landing craft, telling me, “They just got here a little while ago. They were polite, and simply said they were security for the geology team.” She starts to whine, “But they won’t leave! Mint Leaf has been talking to them, and they are firm. They said they are going to do their surveying, and the soldiers are there for safety, since the US aircraft carrier was attacked.”

I tap my phone, and after a few moments, the satellite phone connects. “This is Mindy. Hiya, Loopy!”

“Mindy, Dust told me to call you.”

“Oh yeah, I’ve already talked to her. Hold on a moment.” A moment later, “You are on speaker. Can everypony hear Loopy?”

“What?”

“Now go!” Mindy shouts into the phone. Suddenly, the pop of teleportation comes from all around me. I look around to see that Royal Guard ponies of all tribes are standing there. In full armor. With weapons. “Thanks for giving us the lock, Loopy. Hope they can help you.”

“Wait! What am I supposed to do?” I call out, but the phone connection is closed.

One of the guards, a unicorn, steps forward. “Loop de Loop, we are your support. What do you need us to do?”

I look over at the humans and the ponies from the Reagan. I think for a moment and tell them, “Follow me.”

The ponies get in formation, the pegasi of the guard taking to the air. I simply walk over to them.

I can hear the pegasus in charge from the Reagan. Its Crescent Moon again, telling one of the Thais, “It looks like you have made a claim for the island, and China is furious about it.”

“All we are here for is to protect the scientists.”

“With all of that hardware? You don’t need two armored personnel carriers and two tactical vehicles, along with twenty-four troops.”

I think for a moment, then come up next to Crescent Moon, addressing the Thai gentleman. “The Equestrian Royal Guard will guarantee your scientists’ safety.”

The soldier looks at me. “Equestrian Royal Guard?”

“Yes. They aren’t part of the US military, while they do train with them. Their command is the Equestrian princesses: Twilight Sparkle, Cadance, Luna, and Celestia. In their absence, the mayors of the pony cities are their commanders.” I point to the guards all around. “This island belongs to the ponies here.”

“That is under dispute.”

“That is the fact as of right now.” I snarl, “Whether things change is best left to the politicians, but if you want your geologists to be able to do their work in peace, this is the only way. Otherwise, we will have to force you all to leave.”

“Hold on, we didn’t say they could do a geological survey.” Mint Leaf whinnies.

I silence her with a look and a quick whinnied, “It’s better than fighting.”

“You’ll guarantee their safety?”

I nod, thankful that this conversation is going on in English. “Yes, and we will handle transportation back to your vessel when their job is complete.”

The soldier looks at me for a long time, then at Crescent Moon. “We are not trying to escalate anything, but if any harm comes to our people, we will retaliate.”

Crescent Moon cocks his head to the side. “Against allies of Taiwan?”

The human looks flustered as he turns around, calling to his men. In a matter of minutes, the landing craft is reloaded and is backing away from the island.

Crescent Moon offers me a hoof for a high five. “You did good. Gotta get back to the Reagan.”

***

“Cutie Mark Crusader pastry chefs!” the three foals call out, slapping their hooves together as several ponies in earshot shy away. Cookie Crisp, though, is unfazed. 

She smiles at the three foals before her. “I know some of the adventures you three have had, and I remember quite well the shenanigans of a previous generation of Cutie Mark Crusaders, but today is going to be work.”

Dizzy sits down, her ears flopping. “Previous generation?”

Cookie Crisp chuckles as she directs the foals to sit before her. “In the last twenty-five years, there have been a lot of different foals to call themselves the Cutie Mark Crusaders. Growing up with the show, watching them finally get their cutie marks, those foals all wanted their marks just as much as Apple Bloom, Sweetie Belle, and Scootaloo. And their adventures were just as fun, I think. I can’t tell you how many foals I’ve hosted in my shop over the years, wanting their own cutie marks.”

The three foals look at each other and smile. “That’s awesome. Did any of them get a cutie mark in pastry cooking?”

Cookie looks thoughtful for a minute, then she nods. “I was witness to two ponies over the years getting their cutie marks with me.”

“Awesome!” the three say in unison.

She smiles at their enthusiasm. “But the foals I’m talking about were when we all first changed in this world. The three of them were named Feather Pinch, Cotton Cloud, and Cotton Candy. They were taken in by Twilight Velvet, and they set up their own Cutie Mark Crusader clubhouse, first at Fort Bragg, then over in New Beginnings.”

They are interrupted by Dizzy’s phone going off, she taps it and holds it up. “Hi, Dad!” she says happily.

As she listens, her face falls and her ears splay back. “Is she okay?” She visibly deflates at the answer. “Oh, thank Celestia.” she moans, “I’ll be home as soon as possible.”

She hangs up and looks at Cookie. “I’m sorry, but I’ve got to go. My mom is in sick bay on her ship. We are going to Hawaii.”

“Your mom? What happened?” Zap asks, nuzzling her friend.

“They were fired on… Mom moved the ship out of the way, but she passed out. Once things settle down, she’s going to be airlifted to Pearl Harbor.” She stands up, only to be stopped by Berry.

“Can we come too?” she asks, her eyes big.

Dizzy giggles at her friend. “Let’s ask my dad. He can never say no.”

Cookie smiles, telling the foals, “Go ahead, see what’s going on with your mom.” and the three foals gallop out of the kitchen, heading towards Dizzy’s home.