The residents of Ponyville could hear it way before it came into view. A low drowning roar that grew louder until it was almost deafening. The few pegasi that had not heeded the warning to move back started to do so, and not a moment too soon.
With a flash of the portal, out shot a twin-engined passenger jet, narrowing missing the last stragglers by a few feet. Passing over Ponyville, it cast a dark shadow over the town's inhabitants. Cowering from its ear shattering noise' they watched as flew over their town and towards the barren fields that the Diamond Dogs called home.
Twilight started giving chase but she was hopelessly out passed by the jet.
“What is that!?!” Rainbow Dash asked as she drew alongside.
“Its a transporter,” Twilight panted’ finally releasing that she was never going to catch up with it’ but…
She turned her head and looked Dash in the eye. “They're going to need help!”
Recognising the call’ Dash gave one of her determined grins.
“Leave it to me” she shouted’ as she shot off in hot pursuit.
They were well over the dusty wastes by the time Dash caught up with the plane. Approaching it on its right-hand side, she drew level with the wing.
Grasping it’ she peered into the cabin. It was a scene of chaos and pandemonium. There were ponies, griffins and even a Minotaur' all crying, shouting, screaming or staring at others and themselves in dumbfounded disbelief.
Dash Searched amongst them’ trying to find someone who is in command. It wasn't until she reached the plane’s cockpit that she found them. An old grey coated earth pony, sitting beside a crimson-coated pegasus’ both were fighting desperately for control.
The pegasus was barking a mayday over radio, not releasing that no-pony could hear it. The other one was trying to make sense of where he was. Neither had noticed that plane had been gently turning to the right. A result of pony hoofs using controls designed for human hands. It was now heading back to Ponyville.
Dash waved and shouted at them, trying to raise their attention but they didn’t see her.
Periodically she would look up ahead of her to check their path, then on doing so another time, she saw danger ahead.
Coming up on them fast was a mountain. It wasn’t a big mountain, but it was tall enough.
Now Dash screamed at the top of her lungs to get their attention but it was focused elsewhere.
Thinking quickly, Dash dropped back to the right wing of the jet. Grasping it with both hoofs, she put every ounce of strength into her wings and pulled.
The mountain was now seconds away, and it would be the planes right ring that would snag it.
“Come on…” Dash grunted through her teeth’ as at last the wing started to lift.
The mountain was now on them, and for a brief moment, Rainbow Dash let out a triumphant smile, as she could see that the wing was now going to pass over the mountain peak with a few inches to spare.
Suddenly a violent jolt knocked Dash off the wing, sending her sprawling into the air.
The wing had indeed cleared the rocky peak’ the under hanging engine had not. It was torn from its housing and cascaded with the remains of the peak down the side of the now shortened mountain.
Rainbow Dash was momentarily knocked senseless. Plummeting to the ground’ she regained her composure and pulled out of the dive at the last possible moment.
Rubbing her bruised chin’ she looked round for the jet, and her heart sank.
Severed fuel lines had ignited, sending a long orange plume trailing in the plane's wake. The damaged wing was now dragging the plane into a dive.
It was doomed.
The jet’s pilots fought hard till the end but to no avail. The right wing made contact with the ground first, just inside Sweet Apple Aches east orchid, sending the plane into a cartwheel. When the nose hit the ground, the aircraft started to break up, disappearing in a cloud of kicked-up dust and sickly black smoke. From this cloud, an immense fireball ripped in almost all directions and towering high above Ponyville. The Heat was staggering, and the explosion was one of the loudest sounds ever heard in Equestria.
High up in the city of Canterlot, Princess Celestia looked up from her paperwork and out of a window towards Ponyville. After a moment of silence,’ an assistant stepped forward.
“Your Highness?”
“Gather up the royal guard,” She replied. “I fear something terrible has just happened in Ponyville.”