Spark

by Fyn16

Journey

Journey

Nimbus and Storm Runner slipped into the landing pattern for Manehattan Air Base, both weary and distracted by their own troubled thoughts. Only a few miles away, the Awakening were making their escape. For the first time in a very long time, Nimbus realized, the good guys had lost.

“Windigo, cleared to land runway Two Six,” the base’s air traffic control pony called, “and you’re both ordered to report to Colonel Cloudsplitter immediately upon landing.”

“Great,” Nimbus said, flaring his wings and touching down a tad rougher than usual, “we’re done, aren’t we Storm? We screwed up.”

“I don’t know what to say, Nimbus,” Storm Runner said, shaking his head, “I mean- we were trusted with protecting that airship. Are we- are we going to get fired for this?”

“Who can say?” Nimbus said, making sure his slightly worn flight suit was at least passable for reporting in. “Let’s just get this over with.”

The atmosphere inside the squadron building wasn’t helping. The receptionist was gone, and everything was eerily quiet. Nimbus and Storm Runner shared an anxious glance, then headed for Cloudsplitter’s office. Inside, Cyclone Sprint and Star Burst were already waiting. Star Burst, who was casually sitting by the Colonel’s desk, nodded as they walked in, but Cyclone, who had been pacing frantically, immediately cornered Nimbus and Storm Runner.

“What were you two thinking?!” he yelled, “you left that airship alone, and look how long it took the whole situation to go to manure! If I were in your position, I would have-“

“Oh you’re really one to see the side from our point of view, aren’t you sir?” Storm Runner shot back.

“Storm, no. Please-“ Nimbus said, putting a hoof in front of his friend. The Pegasus pushed him away and approached Cyclone.

“No, Nimbus. I’m done taking this crap. You, sir, are above us by one rank, and frankly, that’s not a lot of experience-“

“It’s more than enough to know that you two royally screwed up this time! If I was in charge, you’d both be out the door in five minutes!”

“But you’re not,” Storm Runner growled, “and you weren’t there, either. We were ordered to pursue two unknown potential hostiles when the airship was attacked. We were doing our job!”

A movement out of the corner of his eye forced Nimbus to turn his head, and he immediately paled. Cloudsplitter was standing by the doorway, watching while Storm and Cyclone went on, completely oblivious.

“You failed in the line of duty! You are two of the most- no, you are the most incompetent Aviators I’ve ever seen, and I don’t want you two in my squadron!”

“That’s enough!” Cloudsplitter snapped, storming into the room. Both Storm and Cyclone nearly jumped out of their skin in shock.

“Room, tench-“ Cyclone started.

“Don’t bother with it,” Cloudsplitter growled, “I’ve got a potential national threat and a very real hostage crisis on my hooves, so as you can imagine, I’m just a bit on the edge right now. The last thing I want is formality.” She sat down at her desk and glared up at Cyclone Sprint.

“Lieutenant Cyclone Sprint, you and Star Burst are dismissed for the moment. Wait outside for your brief.”

“But-“ Cyclone began.

“That was an order,” Cloudsplitter snarled, “are you questioning it?”

“No, ma’am,” Cyclone said, performing a sharp about-face and fixing Storm Runner with a glare as he passed. Star Burst simply passed by, nodding quietly to the two Aviators. When the door finally closed, Nimbus felt isolated. It was like being in a cage with a Manticore, covered in Canterlot’s finest seasonings. In other words, things were hopeless.

Cloudsplitter sighed. “I hope you two understand the gravity of what’s going on here.”

“Ma’am, I-“ Nimbus said.

“Please, Nimbus- I’m tired. Let me finish.”

Nimbus immediately shut up, practically trembling over every square inch of his body as his commanding officer continued.

“You two left the Sol unguarded. If you’d done this of your own volition, I would have you fired right here and now. You’ll notice, however, that there are no discharge papers on my desk. There are several reasons for this. First, I can’t say you two didn’t try warning me about this. The hostage operation was carried out by the Awakening, probably in direct support of the goal they tried to state last night. Secondly, as I said, you two were under orders. One might say to blame the wielder, not the instruments, and you two actually handled the situation as best you could. Third, and probably most importantly, I’ve been convinced by an outside source to redeploy you two.”

Nimbus and Storm Runner glanced at each other, confused, and Cloudsplitter picked up on this.

“I didn’t think this would be a good idea- after experiencing what you saw today, I thought you two would need a rest- but two certain ponies brought up your ‘off the record’ records, if you catch what I’m saying. I’d heard rumors about you two of course; word travels fast among the Aviator community. Now, however, I have proof to back up what I know.”

“Ma’am, if I may ask, who told you?” Nimbus said.

“The ponies who are about to be our guests,” Cloudsplitter said, “and they should be arriving-“ she checked her wall clock “-in about five seconds to brief you two.”

Nimbus barely had time to react before a bright flash filled the room. Dazed, he almost missed Cloudsplitter call the room to attention. He started bringing his hooves together for the proper position, but as soon as he saw who had just appeared, he tripled his speed and straightened up as tightly as he could. Princess Celestia and Princess Luna stood near Cloudsplitter’s desk.

“At ease, Aviators,” Celestia said softly. Nimbus tried relaxing, but even so he was on edge. If the princesses were here, things were really serious.

“We shall take the briefing from here,” Luna said with a hint of uncertainty in her tone. Nimbus felt sympathy- Luna was dealing with a multitude of challenges. She’d been gone over a thousand years, and had returned to a much different world than the one she’d left. On top of this, she was readjusting to being a ruler, while still trying to deal with the public perception that, as Nightmare Moon, she’d tried to take over the nation only a few months prior. Nimbus did not envy her at all.

“You have the floor, Your Highnesses,” Cloudsplitter said, saluting and returning to the at ease position.

Clearing her throat, Celestia stepped forward. “My sister and I were informed just today that you two discovered evidence that the Awakening were looking for Site Echo, am I correct?”

“Yes ma’am,” Nimbus replied, “yesterday.”

“That information was not relayed to me,” Celestia said, “I’m sure it was held up somewhere on the chain of command. While I’m sure many of your superiors consider it to be a myth, and believe that searching for it would be a waste of time and money, I’m here today to tell you different. Site Echo exists.”

Storm Runner shot Nimbus a quick glance that seemed to say “well, that was easy.” Nimbus countered by shaking his head ever so slightly.

“Site Echo,” Celestia continued, “was created during the Great Griffon War as a research facility. Towards the end of the war, the facility’s chief scientist, Doctor Bright Future, informed me that he had begun work on a new weapon capable of bringing the war to a complete halt for the Griffons, and if necessary, provide a contingency plan if our country ever fell. The weapon sounded powerful, and I immediately grew wary considering what such a weapon in the wrong hooves could do, yet he insisted that I allow him to continue. I made one of the biggest mistakes of my life then and there- I agreed. I was foolish to assume that I could simply read his mind and discover for myself whether or not his project, which he called “Spark,” was safe enough to be in development at all. However, Bright Future is one of the greatest minds to grace this land since Starswirl the Bearded himself. He kept his actions hidden from me, and with the Griffon War drawing to a close, I felt that every day he continued testing and production, the more potential for danger his weapon gained. To that end, I shut down funding to the site and ordered its demolition. I had assumed that the area was long gone, but if there is any chance I’m wrong, and the Awakening get their hooves on whatever lies inside Site Echo, I fear for the worst.”

“Then we have to get there first,” Storm Runner said, “where exactly is Site Echo?”

Celestia and Luna shared an anxious glance.

“We don’t actually know,” Celestia admitted. “The site was constructed outside of my jurisdiction by a private firm, and Bright Future kept its location a secret as well. However, I was able to find out that it lies somewhere in the Badlands.”

“Which means that if the Awakening knows where to go, they’ll be heading south,” Cloudsplitter concluded. “A normal route would take them directly over Fillydelphia and Baltimare, so they’ll have to divert east to avoid drawing attention. They may have an ADS, but those only work so well against sheer numbers. I doubt they’d want to test their luck.”

“Correct,” Luna said, “which would put them over the Foal Mountain Range and the Hayseed Swamps. Going over the mountains will take time as well, so we have estimated at least three days until they reach the Badlands.”

“That,” Celestia said, nodding to Nimbus and Storm Runner, “is where you two come in. I know you two were just commissioned, but there are two primary reasons you are ideal choices. The first is that despite your lack of recorded combat experience, you two showed yourselves to be more than capable during the off-record events of the Summer Sun Celebration earlier this year. Also, you two were the first Aviators to discover these plans. To most, Site Echo is a myth, and it should stay that way. The less ponies who know about the place, the better.”

“I understand,” Nimbus said, “when do we deploy?”

“In ten minutes,” Cloudsplitter answered, “but here’s the kicker- you can’t fly under REAF control. You’re doing this as civilians.”

“Wait, what?” Nimbus blurted out, immediately regretting doing so as the three senior ponies in the room fixed their eyes on him. Cloudsplitter chuckled.

“Well, you’re clearly enthusiastic about being an Aviator, and I respect that. However, Princess Celestia is right. We’ve already found out that you can’t be funded for this operation through the Air Force, and if we chose to just ignore the chain of command and send you two out on a mission that, at this point, could either save Equestria or be a big waste of money, it could mean the end of our operations as a whole out here.”

“I see,” Nimbus said, “but what about gear and communications?”

Cloudsplitter tossed two unmarked flight suits with helmets towards the two Pegasi. “As far as anypony else is concerned right now, you two are mercenaries. Also, keep in mind that for all intents and purposes, this is a combat sortie. You are cleared to engage the enemy when you have a chance, but how you do so will be at your own discretion.”

“Heh, cool,” Storm Runner breathed, “so what’s our first step?”

“Locate Bright Future,” Celestia answered. “He’s retired, living on an estate on an island off the coast of Baltimare. He’ll know where to go.”

“We cannot stress enough how important this undertaking will be,” Princess Luna added. “Thine objectives will be to bring back the Sol and the hostages, as well as stopping the Awakening. We have full confidence in your ability to succeed.”

“We have to be going now,” Celestia said, nodding to Luna, “but before we leave, I wish you luck, and remember- no matter what you see in Site Echo, no matter how much Bright Future might beg you to do otherwise, do not hesitate to destroy Site Echo if it is, in fact, still operational.”

“Yes, ma’am,” Nimbus said.

“Let thine flight be true, Aviators,” Luna said, bowing slightly. Nimbus, unsure of what to do, saluted her in response.

“Thank you, your Highnesses,” he replied. The sisters took two steps back, nodded, and disappeared in a flash of light as quickly as they’d appeared. Nimbus and Storm stared at Cloudsplitter for a moment; the entire situation had been nothing if not surreal. Cloudsplitter quickly broke the awkward atmosphere.

“Well? What are you two still standing around for? Star Burst, Cyclone Sprint and I will hold down the coast- we’ve been doing it for nearly a year before you two got here. Scramble!”

“Roger that, ma’am!” Storm Runner said enthusiastically. Cloudsplitter stared at him for a moment, then facehoofed.

“No, no, no, I can’t let incorrect radio phraseology go uncorrected. Roger is for radio transmissions only. If you want to imply that you will do as I ask, either say affirmative or wilco. Celestia have mercy on your soul if you say wilco to me outside of radio usage though…”

“Right, er… affirmative, ma’am!” Storm Runner said, snapping to attention and popping off a sharp salute. Cloudsplitter rolled her eyes and sighed.

“Dismissed, Aviators. Go kick some flank for me. I’ll expect you to get in contact via a civilian radio frequency daily. The frequency is 118.5.”

“We’ll be in contact, ma’am,” Nimbus said, making note of the frequency and heading for the door.

“Good luck,” Cloudsplitter said as the two left her office. “You may very well need it.”

The two Aviators headed down the hall for the runway exit, and as they passed by the waiting Star Burst and Cyclone Sprint, Storm Runner couldn’t help but shoot Cyclone a smug grin. The irate Pegasus was completely speechless. Star Burst, meanwhile, approached Nimbus.

“You destroy that site, you hear?” he said, “it’s still there, I guarantee it. Equestria can’t know…”

“That’s the plan, sir,” Nimbus said, a bit uncomfortably. Star Burst had that effect on most ponies.

Star Burst nodded silently and dropped back. Alone again, Nimbus and Storm Runner donned their flight suits and helmets, and pushed open the door to the runway and tarmac.

“You ready?” Nimbus asked.

“Let’s do this,” Storm Runner replied, setting hoof on the runway’s edge.”

“Nimbus and Storm Runner,” the tower called, “you are cleared for takeoff. Celestia’s light guide you and Luna’s night shield you.”

Nimbus shivered with excitement as he and Storm Runner took off in formation. Maybe it was the fact that he and Storm Runner had been addressed by name, maybe it was the fact that this was their first combat sortie, perhaps it was due to the nature of the mission, or, possibly, it was a combination of all three. Either way, Nimbus considered as he banked to the south in perfect formation, his career was about to finally get serious.

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[TheFullCrumb]

Shit just got serious.