Trinity - Nature

by Ice4smaster

The gears began turning

From the sky she fall

Special thanks to Alexstrazsa for editing the story.

It was middle of the night when Dave jolted up, hearing sounds that carried danger. Being a cyborg, he could sleep and still be aware of his surroundings. He stood up, noticing the fire was nearly out, most of it being red embers glowing in the dark. His eyes scanned the forest edge, and something caught his attention. It was something familiar, and chilling.

He didn't hesitate and quickly shook Trixie awake. She had an angry look on her face, but that quickly changed as she followed his arm pointing towards a barely visible green glow in the distance.

She recognized the faint light as the monster that tried to eat her and Vinyl. When she spoke, it was quiet but urgent. “I hoped we wouldn't come across one of those again,” she said, dropping her usual third person speech.

“I can second that. Wake the others quietly. I’m not sure if it’s aware of our presence or not, but lets not make a commotion if we can help it,” Dave whispered.

Trixie nodded and began waking Vinyl, while Dave shook Octavia with a hand on her muzzle. Her eyes widened, first in surprise and then fear.
“Psst… Stay quiet. We might have one of those tripod hybrids around.”

She gulped and slowly nodded.

Dave moved his hands from her muzzle and gestured towards the distance where the green light was. It was indeed one of the tripod creatures, and it seemed to be leaving the forest. While it wasn’t heading straight for them, it could definitely spot them if it possessed good enough vision. Partially digested creatures were visible, and one was recognisable as a feline predator. The rest were unknown.

The group watched the creature move for the waves, and once it reached them, it began to drink. It came as a shock to them, as normally no creature drank sea water due to the extremely high salt content, yet this monstrosity did. Once it had it’s fill, it began to retreat back into the forest. While it was good that it had left, its presence was a bad sign. They could stumble into the camp on the way to get their daily 'refreshment,' and there was no doubt they’d be happy to have an extra snack. Several minutes passed before the group was sure it had gone.

“Was that thing… the one that got you girls?” Midnight asked.

“Yeah, and you wanna stay away from it unless you have fire – and not magic based fire.”

Midnight nodded at Vinyl’s reply while she brought the fire to life with new fuel.

“You know, I’d love to have a flamethrower on hand when seeing another one of these tripods.”

“Well, you have that plasma cutter tool,” Octavia mentioned.

“True, true, but let’s just say it lacks some range. A flamethrower ,on the other hand, has a nice range to it and can burn things to a crisp even a few feet in front of you.”

“You humans have a toy for everything,” Trixie said, with a grin.

Dave chuckled. “Oh, you would be surprised. But you ponies have spells for any occasion.”

Trixie gave a smug smile.

“Okay everypony, cut it out with who's got the bigger game. We aren't colts.”

Trixie stuck her tongue out at Vinyl in response and the group laughed. They agreed that it might be wiser to clear more of the forest around them, because from what they’d seen, the tripod could reach in halfway from the edge. For rest of the night, they agreed to have a lookout.

Soon, the sun was up again. Sure, their sleep hadn’t been the best, but it wasn't anything that some stretching and activity couldn't fix. That was when something strange happened to the cyborg, and it brought a smile to his face.

Inside a dark room, illuminated by screens and other holographic displays, several human figures quietly worked. Around the room, the humming of computers could be heard. At the center terminal were two people, one standing and watching eagerly while the one sitting spoke up.

“Sir, SAT-RC1 is online and in stable geostationary orbit.”

“Good. We need that satellite up and running ASAP. Begin locating our recon teams.”

“Sir...”

“What is it?”

“We’re picking up a Level 3 VTOL craft distress signal emitting from the bottom of the ocean.”

“Damn it… which team used it?”

“It was team four, sir… but there’s an island relatively near the location. Twenty-five miles, to be exact.”

“Which could mean survivors with any luck. Alright son, order a UAV blimp to the set location. I’m going to get a team together, and son, send me the participating team members list.”

“Yes sir!”

With this, the technician frantically begun his work while the commander left, disappearing into the darkness of the room.

“Well, well, well...” Dave said, with a grin. He had been standing in silence for several minutes, so the sudden talk caused Octavia to give him a questioning look.

“Are you alright?” She asked, once he had fallen out of his trance.

“My day is much better now.” He sat down beside Octavia, as she cocked her head and raised an eyebrow. “Guess I better explain it. It seems my knowledge of satellites has been somewhat inaccurate.”

“Does that mean…?” She gave a hopeful look.

“Yep,” Dave answered.

Octavia jumped up and hugged him, surprising him.

“This is terrific! We’ll be off this rock in no time!” Her eyes shone with delight and she had already begun drifting away, cello, chocolate, bed, and friends coming to mind.

“Ohoho, slow down there, little pony. They aren't here yet, but the satellite is in orbit. I received its signal, and though I can’t transmit back, with any luck,” His expression turned grim, “Luck… yeah... not for the others. But if the VTOL craft didn't sink too deep, they might be picking up the distress signal it's emitting.”

Octavia bit her lower lip, catching on to the human’s loss. She and everypony else who made it had also suffered terrible loss, and now it left her with mixed feelings. They all buried those thoughts deeply, be it through joking, running for dear life, or just keeping busy with the camp building or food gathering. “Yes...”

“Hey... Better not delve on what happened. It’s in the past. Let’s focus on the here and now, and the future, Octavia.” They shared a weak smile.

“And let’s tell the others, because our hope is brighter now.”

With this, they quickened their pace to drop off the load and meet with the others.

On the northern side of the world, deep within the continent, there was the city of Canterlot. A white alicorn looked up to the sky. With the senses of a demigod, she noticed a new object in the sky, small, but there. Celestia did not know what it could be, but it had arrived recently, and it stole all her curiosity now. The Diarch even tuned out the unicorn adviser who been talking to her about some ridiculous proposal of Prince Blueblood, and without even paying attention she had already shot down the proposal. She knew him and his tendencies to try and get as much as possible at expense of others.

“And then that would sum up–”

Celestia interrupted her advisor. “Noteworthy.”

“Yes, your highness?”

“Could you please deliver a message to my sister that I'd like to meet her in the observatory tonight, instead of the royal hall.”

“Yes, of course, your highness.” Noteworthy stopped for a moment then asked, “What about the proposal, your highness?”

“Put it on hold. Blueblood and his proposals are, without exception, nonsense.”

Noteworthy chuckled at this, and they both knew it was true. Celestia faced her and laughed as well. It was one of many of the Prince’s attempts to rip off the state, and unsurprisingly, he hadn't learned his lesson yet. It was so transparent and pathetic, he became the joke of castle.

“Is there anything else for today, my dear friend?” Celestia asked, in a kind tone. Even though her advisor kept all formalities, they were close.
“There’s nothing else left for today, your highness. It’s a delightful surprise.” She smiled, as it meant she could take it easier as well. Being an advisor for Celestia meant there was no rest, and a little room for leisure was always welcome, considering the nobles gave more than enough headaches to both her and her ruler.

“That's a relief to hear. Now, my good Noteworthy, would you mind sharing a cup of tea and some idle chitchat?”

“Of course not, your highness. I’ll call service to bring the tea.”

Celestia smiled and made her way to her favorite resting spot. While waiting for her faithful advisor to return, she wondered what the object in the sky could be.

“I'm still kind of confused about what these satellites are and how you’re able to communicate with them,” Midnight said, trying to wrap her mind around the concept. Without magic involved, it just seemed strange.

“It's technology, Midnight. Think of it like how you use magic to sum up your strange things.”

“Right...” said the batpony, with a bit of a frown. “Just like being a cyborg is technology.”

“Yup,” Dave replied, putting on a fake southern accent. Just then, Trixie got his attention.

“So, how long could it take for a rescue to come?” she asked, tilting her head.

“It depends, but if they picked up the distress signal of the wrecked VTOL craft then we can expect it within a week, at least. If not, we can wait it out for quite a while. All I can say is that my fingers are crossed.”

There was a short silence as the ponies got used to the human terminology, but then they nodded in agreement.

“So, it would be a good idea to prepare some sort of sign, just to make ourselves more visible. How about rocks? They won’t be visible at night, but it should be fine in the daylight,” Octavia said.

Trixie let out a sigh. “That will be a chore, but Trixie doesn’t mind so long as we get off this island.”

“Now hold on everypony, would you guys take us back to Equestria?” Vinyl interrupted.

“Now that’s a good question. I’m not entirely sure... Well, eventually yes, but how quick is another story. Nonetheless, you wouldn't be in the wild. Food, shelter, and bedding would be covered.” With a little pause, he added, “Though we’d want to stick together, and if needed, request it.”

“I hope you aren’t implying they would eat us,” Octavia said nervously.

“No, that wouldn't happen, but the scientists might get worked up. New intelligent life forms can make them... 'high,' so to speak.”

“Trixie would not like to be dissected as part of a biology class, thank you.” She gave Dave quite a stare.

“We aren't barbarians.” He held up a hand in defense. “But you can expect blood tests, EMR and DNA tests, along with a quick explanation. So, not to give you the wrong idea, EMR stands for Electro Magnetic Resonance. Basically, it allows one to peek into the body at any level, without being touched. As for DNA, it's the blueprint of all living things.”

“They better not even think about it, or Trixie will plant her hooves into their skulls.”

Dave could only give a nervous laugh. “Easy there. I'll be sure to stick with you, and not many are on the world, so it’s likely they’ll want me to.”

“Well, that’s not entirely reassuring, to say the least.” Octavia glared at Dave.

“I can’t deny it. Though, if you feel the risk is too big, you can always hide, but then you’ll be on your own.” This put an uneasy frown on all the ponies. The island was more than dangerous. “Yes… potentially from one frying pan into the next, but I'm confident they won’t want to start contact with a new civilization on the wrong foot. Plus, I can always replay my memories.”

They blinked at this.

“Technology. I'm a cyborg, after all.”

“Well, I suppose the outlook isn’t bright no matter how we look at it, but being alive and safe counts for something,” Midnight said, now the focus of attention. “I just don’t wanna end up in the middle of the ocean again, waiting for it to end. I wouldn’t wish it on anypony else, either.” She stretched, still working out muscle pain from her incredible exertion.

Vinyl put a reassuring hoof on Midnight’s shoulder. “Don't you worry about that. Things are getting cooler and cooler each day, and once I can lay my hoof on some electric instruments, it's party time!” She then gave a wide grin.

“I think the staff might run for their lives once you start playing, mom,” Dave teased.

Vinyl glared daggers at him for several seconds before the frown turned into a smirk. “You’ll see the power of wubs, gramps.”

Everyone laughed while Octavia facehooved. Afterwards, the group began its preparations for the night. Fire and food and stories of their own were shared, along with hope that things would turn out well.

High above the ocean, a small automatic blimp was traveling at full speed towards the location of the downed VTOL craft, surveying the surrounding area. It picked up another airship far below, and quite a large one at that.

The other airship was old fashioned, and the drones cameras zoomed in. On closer inspection, it had somewhat of a victorian era look, being built from wood, other natural materials, and sporting steam engines. The midsection had a large banner, with a light blue base and white stars around the center. Dominating it were two equine-like figures, one white and one dark blue, both with wings and horns, circling around a moon and a sun.

The next thing that got the interest of the machine were small creatures flying and landing on the ship. After a quick readjustment and zoom, it found small flying horses: pegasi. The airship and its interesting occupants were completely oblivious to the presence of the drone as it flew near the edge of space at extremely high altitude, undisturbed by any weather. It relayed all the data back to base. Initial calculations confirmed right away the airship was inching towards the same area where the VTOL had crashed into the ocean many days ago.

The new directive soon arrived to the drone, and it stated to continue approaching the location and remain at high attitude, observing the larger airships activity.

Onboard the South Star air carrier sat a young princess, worried and fearing for the worst when the scouting party returned. They were supposed to rendezvous with the new luxury ocean cruiser days ago around these coordinates, but there was no sign of the ship anywhere. Along with the knowledge of a devastating hurricane had marched through the region around that time, she put two and two together and realized the ship must have sunk.

The theory soon turned to reality when the scouts reported debris floating on the ocean, along with scattered wood and other hoof-built materials. The very thought of thousands of innocent ponies perishing was like a sword of fire impaling her chest.

Twilight had been on many adventures in her life and fought many evils with her friends, but she never had to face such a loss. She could do nothing to prevent it, and she was almost completely alone. Only Rarity was with her, and that was because she wanted to have a look on the new luxury ship as she couldn't clear her schedule to board it for the first trip. It was a painful irony that she couldn’t travel with the ship, otherwise she’d be dead.

Twilight shook her head, thinking there might be survivors. There was an island nearby, and if anypony was lucky enough, they’d end up there and hopefully survive long enough to be rescued. That was the sole thought that keep her on her hooves, as the reality and pain it brought shook her to the very core.

“Faust be merciful on those souls… please...” she whispered, as her friend rested white hooves on her shoulders. They watched the sun set on the horizon, the hard truth of the situation setting in. Little did they know, things would get even more twisted.

Author's Note:

Here's the Nineth Chapter Edited, special thanks to Alexstrazsa for editing the story. =)

Comments

[Yemynameidubbz]

did it say FAUST be merciful???

[Ice4smaster]

3228111

Yup, alas Lauren Faust, mother of G4 Ponies but here the creator deity the ponies belive in.