//------------------------------//
// Ascent 
// Story: Celestia I 
// by NegativeVelocity 
//------------------------------//

	The clock on the wall above the table rang, and we all stood up. Moments later, an older looking pony entered to the room, and beckoned for us to follow him. He led us out of the lavishly decorated room, into a hallway, and eventually down a tight concrete passage, brightly lit with the occasional flickering light.
We emerged past an automatic sliding door into a clean, tiled room. Hastily, several ponies ushered us into separate stations sunk into the walls of the room, and began to help us into our EVA suits.
The process was fairly familiar as had done it several times before. When my helmet slid on, the familiar hiss of escaping air rushed past my face before the suit was completely sealed.
The pony assisting me performed one final check before asking, “All good?”
I nodded, and she retreated into a side door.
I turned to look at everypony else in their own suits, my horn almost tapping against the visor. Malin, Trott, and Silent’s ears were all pulled back in their suits and their manes tied back in a very mare-ish way. Morning was the same, but looked more comfortable with the position of her mane.
The name tags on the front of the suits seemed to be colour coded. Morning, Silent and Malin all had their names on dark blue patches, Trott’s was red, while mine was blue bordered with yellow. SECURITY CAPT. A. STARS.
I walked over the where Trott was standing, looking rather awkward in the bulky space suit, a clear juxtaposition to his usually stocky figure.
“Enjoying yourself?” I joked as I approached him.
“Not really,” he grumbled as he shuffled around in the suit, “It feels like an extra layer of skin. One that’s not attached to my bones.”
I chuckled slightly, shuffling around in my own suit. I could see what me meant.
“So… you nervous?” I asked.
“Nope. Not at all.”
“You’re a terrible liar, Trott.”
The interior of the shuttle was exactly like every sci-fi movie ever. Six seats occupied a large amount of interior space with two seats in the front behind the controls, and four in the rear, with a long slit of window running the length of the shuttle. An array of confusing switches and dials spanning the walls was enough to completely boggle my mind as I sat down in my pre-designated seat in the sear of the cabin.
“Okay folks,” a voice buzzed in my ear, “we’re got a few minutes until launch. For you two in the front of the shuttle, please don’t touch the controls. Everything is done from down here.” Morning Dew immediately took her hooves away from the control panel. “Good luck y’all and have a safe trip!”
A faint series of clicks echoed around the cockpit as safety harnesses were engages. I used my magic to set mine and buckle myself in. As soon as it clicked into place, the flashing red light on the harness switched to a steady blue.
“Thirty seconds, y’all,” the ground control pony informed us.
There was a rumble from beneath us as the rocket’s engine engines began to heat up. The vibrations become more erratic and the ground control’s countdown was barely audible. A moment later, I just barely heard to word ‘liftoff’ in my ears.
The vibrations were almost unbearable, before an immense pressure coupled with a sudden lurch of my stomach began to bear down upon us. I could fell the blood rushing to my hooves below me as the magic fueled rocket pulled us away from the planet and sent us skyward.
With tremendous willpower, I turned my head to the left, and looked out of the thin windows next to me. Clouds rushed by and the horizon line gradually grew more curved as we rocketed toward the heavens. 
With another feat of exhaustion, I looked to the front of the ship. I could only see Morning and Malin, but I had to assume that everypony else was experiencing that same feelings, and making the same strained face, as I did.
After a long, long time, I began to feel the immense pressure lifting from my shoulders. I looked to my right and saw Silent squeezing his eyes shut, breath fogging the visor in his suit.
“Okay, guys,” the radio inside my helmet buzzed as Trott spoke, “I think we’re good to take off the helmets.” There was a series of sharp hisses around the cabin as we all removed our helmets.
Stowing my helmet under my seat, I half walked, half floated over to the window on the other side of the shuttle. All that was outside was both indescribable blackness, and the most beautiful sight I’d ever seen.
An enormous expanse of pale blue, and patches of green grew beneath us. Swirls of clouds covered the north, and a glorious golden glow bloomed out from behind the eastern hemisphere. The view became more extravagant as we moved further away from the planet.
“Wow,” a voice breathed from behind me. I turned to see Trott standing behind me, also looking out of the window, “you have to admit that, that,” he pointed towards the planet, “is absolutely stunning.”
“Yeah, it is,” I said slowly.
I stood there for a while longer, simply marveling at the planet below. When I was finally able to tear my eyes away from the outside, I turned back and gazed at the other passengers. Malin and Morning were looking out the opposite window at the Celestia I, which was growing bigger as we neared it.
I joined them to get my first real look at the Celestia I. I’d seen pictures before, but, like looking down at the planet, nothing compared to the real thing.
A long, central spire ran the length of the station, almost a kilometer long. On the left, what I assumed was the rear, an enormous solar panel array glinted and reflected in the bright sunlight. A few meters down, the first of two immense, thin tori revolved around the central spire, with windows dotting the outer surface. Close to the front of the station was the second torus, identical to the first, but revolving in the opposite direction. Both were held in place by two arms which attached to the spire.
At the front of the station, or the right-hoof side were five separate long, thick tubes. These had to be docking ports.
Chatter soon blossomed inside the shuttle as we steadily approached the enormous structure. Cheerful optimism from most everypony, and silence from Silent.
Soon enough, Trott called for us all to replace our helmets and return to our seats. We were now close enough to begin docking. Radio chatter began as our shuttle began to communicate with the station. The whirring of pistons attaching to each other and locking into place rattle the cabin.
“Shuttle one, green lights. Docking complete. Confirm?” I heard over the radio.
“Confirmed,” replied Trott. After a final resounding thud, the flashing lights stopped, switched from yellow to green, and everypony began to unbuckle their safety harnesses for a final time.
Hooves cantered along the metal floor as we all lined up at the airlock. Malin reached forward and pressed a green button on the digital display, and the airlock opened silently. It was barely big enough for one pony at a time, but Malin squeezed his way in.
As the doors snapped shut, the pressure inside began to equalize and Malin floated up into the air. After a minute or so, the display where the button had been turned green, and the doors inside the shuttle opened.
Two smiling ponies greeted Malin and showed them through the door. They gave the rest of us a wave, before the airlock doors closed and the cycle began again. Next was Morning, then Silent, then Trott, and finally me.
A strange feeling enveloped me, similar to being levitated with magic, but without the tingly feeling.
Once the feeling had dissipated, the door finally opened in front of me.
“Hello!” one of the station ponies greeted us.
“Welcome to Celestia I,” said the other, dramatically.
“My name is Blue Moon,” the red pony on my left said, shaking my hoof vigorously.
“And my name is Red Moon,” said the blue pony on my right, also grasping and shaking my hoof.
“Let us give you a tour of the station, and show you to your room.”
Red and Blue floated down the length of the station, me following close behind them. We reached the first torus and stopped, as Red spoke.
“This first ring is the residential one. Can house up to thirty ponies at full capacity.”
“This door next to it is the first security station,” Blue took over, “It has two emergency EVA suits and a security terminal which monitors everything around the station.”
Beyond the security station was one of two immense orange rings. Red and Blue explained that they were only for use in emergencies, and were designed to completely seal off sections of the station. Oxygen and all.
Floating up further, Red, Blue and I reached the second security station. This one housed only a security terminal. Just beyond it was the second seal, separating the first two thirds of the station from the final one.
Next was the second torus. Red and Blue explained that this one housed all facilities. Bathrooms, gymnasium, cafeteria, and study areas.
Finally, at the far end of the station was a tiny door with a radiation caution symbol on it.
“What’s in there?” I asked.
“The nuclear reactor…” said Blue, ominously.
“A nuclear powered space station. I can’t see how that could go wrong.”
“It’s also the solar farm. All the power for the station is generated inside that room,” Red added.
We turned around and floated back down the end of the station, toward the residential torus.
“Any personal possessions you’ve brought with you will be delivered to your room shortly. Speaking of which, choose any one you want, provided it isn’t already occupied,” concluded Blue.
“We’ll give you and everypony a full tour tomorrow,” Red smiled again, “until then.”
As I made my way down one of the tubes, centrifugal forces kicked in, and I was forced to grab onto the ladder to avoid falling down. I hit the roughly carpeted floor and looked down the corridor. A long stretch of white doors separates by a few meters stretched along in front of me, quickly disappearing over the curve in the torus. 
The door immediately to my left read, “S. Night”, and “M. Dew” to my right. I walked a few doors down, and spotted Trott’s name on his door. I decided upon the one opposite my friend’s, and watched as my name flashed over the “vacant” sign as I entered.
I studied the room before me, silently. It was spacious, yet homely. Four blank, white walls enclosed the clean white bed, the clean white carpet, and the clean white wardrobe. I think I began to notice a pattern in the décor.
There was a button on the wall across from the doorway. Curiously, I pressed, and stumbled back onto my haunches as the wall split into shutters and slid away.
The second spectacular view in as many hours revealed itself to me as the windows shutters stowed themselves in the wall. A perfect curvature of steel and aluminum rolled out in front of me, the sheer size of it not apparent until I was this close.
As the ring rotated around the central spire, the sun reflected against the odd surfaces within the torus. Beyond, the void of space and her twinkling stars and clouds of gas flickered in and out of view.
From a few rooms down the ring, I watched as another window opened and revealed a pony behind it. Morning Dew smiled and waved at me from her room which, from the look of it, was identical to mine. I grinned and returned the wave, before turning back to my room.
I took a few moments to fully process that I was finally here. Finally on the station that I had trained for so long to reach. There were too many thoughts buzzing around inside my head, conflicting thoughts of fear, pride and excitement all tried the best to be at the forefront of my mind.
I laid down on the bed, closing my eyes, and attempted to order my emotions. I soon discovered that this was too much, and I drifted into an easy slumber.