CHAPTER FOUR
Commander Dawn, the kind stallion he is offered me a gift to make up for the year I was in prison. At first, I thought he might give me some money and send me back down to my apartment, but oh how wrong I was.
He was giving me a ship.
And not just any ship mind you, I had my choice of top-of-the-line Imperial ships. Like the Clipper, Fer-de-Lane, or even the Imperial Cutter, which rivaled the size of most medium-sized buildings. I weighed my options carefully, and put a lot of thought into my choices.
The Cutter was a massive ship, good for intimidation factor, and had a decent jump range. The Fer-de-Lance, paled in comparison, and so did the Clipper.
I mean, let’s be real, there was only one choice to begin with.
I was now the proud captain of an Imperial Cutter, dubbed the HMS Palarion.
I was still in shock that I was being handed the keys to a ship that was worth more than a few city blocks. I glanced back at Dawn, who gestured me further up the boarding ramp.
To be honest, I was a foal in a candy store…a very expensive one at that. I spend the better part of the night, and most of the day just exploring around the ship, finding all the different compartments, service hatches, weapons’ maintenance, fuel tanks, cockpit, living quarters, observatory, and navigation. Of course, these could all be accessed from the cockpit’s extensive array of HUD panels and system diagnostics.
I loved it.
“How do you like it so far?” Dawn asked, sneaking up on me.
We both shared a laugh when I told him it was a step up from my CD Eagle. He sat me down and ran me through the basics of flying such a large ship, for example, other spacecraft will turn tail and run from you if they see you’re headed their way. Also, the Palarion packed enough firepower to level a couple square kilometers of land.
I could hardly wait to get going.
However, before I could even spool the drives up, Commander Dawn said he needed to get somepony to accompany me on my journey.
I wasn’t complaining when I found out who it was.
“Alright, Luyten’s already agreed to everything, and will explain a few things once you get underway. I’ll let the tower know you’re leaving. Fly safe, you two, and I’ll see you when you get back.”
With those final words, the Commander raised a hoof, and the Palarion was towed out to the appropriate takeoff zone.
“Ciedan Ground to Palarion, you are cleared to ascend to three kilometers, weather is clear. Contact Traffic Control when at altitude.”
“Roger that, Ground. Ascending to three kilometers.” I clicked the radio off, and listened to the engines lift the eleven-hundred-ton craft into the air. I kept an eye on the radar to make sure we didn’t accidently take out an unsuspecting Eagle or Viper.
However, our ascent went without an incursion, and once we hit three thousand meters, I hailed Traffic Control.
“Ciedan Traffic Control, this is the HMS Palarion, request permission to engage hyperdrive.”
“Permission denied, Palarion. Be aware of several unidentified vessels headed your way.” The radio crackled a small amount before the message continued.
“Also, if I were you two, I’d high-tail it out of there, it looks like you’ve got a few pirates locked onto you. We’ll try and hit them with the ground-to-air, but you’re just outside their range. Oh, and before I forget, feel free to fire your weapons if you see fit.”
“Roger that tower, thanks for the warning.” Not sure why the sudden drop of formalities, but that's not the most important matter at hoof.
I shifted more power to the weapons, and pitched down to face the supposed pirates. Surprisingly, they slowed down and stopped about a hundred meters from the nose of my ship. Then, one of the Vultures hailed me over the radio.
"Attention to the crew of the HMS Palarion, submit your ship to us immediately and no harm will come to you."
Luyten nearly died laughing, "The best part about that is most Cutters aren't armed to the gills, but ours is."
“Listen, I don’t know who you are, but you’re getting closer and closer to being wiped off everypony’s radar every second that you’re within five kilometers of this city.”
Laughter answered my threat, maybe they thought it was open-ended?
“Do you think we’re idiots?! What’re you going to do? Ram us? I don’t see a single…a single…hard…point…” The radio clicked off. I guess they figured I was just a harmless little Cutter.
Oh well, can’t say I didn’t warn them.
“Hey, Luyten, should we fire some warning shots?” The alabaster mare nodded vigorously in agreement.
Laughing to myself, I fired a quick burst of all four beam lasers, and then nearly lost my breath at how fast their shields and hull went down.
“Holy shit, I did not expect that.” I said, still staring at the almost totally destroyed Vulture limping away. Luyten had a similar expression on her face.
I very carefully retracted my hardpoints and hailed the tower.
“Uh, Ciedan Tower, this is the Palarion. Requesting permission to engage drives.”
“Permission granted, Palarion, FSD departure is clear. Safe travels.”
Finally, a chance to get away from my home of twenty years. Granted, I’d never done this before and I was somewhat worried I would mess it up.
So, select a destination? Check. Lock the destination? Check. Engage FSD? Sure.
A display showing the FSD charging began slowly filling and when it was done, a countdown began.
“Four, three, two, one…engage.” The ship’s AI read out.
Most ponies don't have a way to describe hyperspace. To us, it was as if the space around the Palarion wa sa tunnel of lights and stars. To others, it was a less pleasant experience. “Witch-space”, some called it, and for good reason, the ship creaked and groaned like it was alive.
And just as it began, that starry tunnel turned into an orange star filling the canopy, nearly blinding me as my eyes adjusted to the sudden light. That what really the one problem with Frame Shift Drives, they just set you down smack in front of the stellar body with the highest mass, which resulted in a lot of jump scares if you weren’t ready for it.