A Galactic Goodwill Tour

by Richforce

Chapter 3

Earth Year: 2183

Princess Twilight Sparkle was in her study going over her plans for her goodwill tour of the Milky Way. She had invited a few of her fellow equinites to give some advice.

“So I’ve already planned stops at Thessia, Sur’kesh, Palaven, Earth, and Kahje,”Princess Twilight said. “I’d like to visit Irune and Dekunna but none of my advisors want me visiting an environment potentially hostile to Equinite life. I also want to visit at least one colony world, I heard some nice things about Illium.”

“I can’t allow it,” said Warden General Garibaldi. “It’s too close to the Terminus Systems and if one of your entourage signs the wrong papers they could end up in indentured servitude, Bekenstein would be a safer alternative.”

Twilight groaned. Sometimes she felt that the Horned Owl/Panther griffin who lead the Equinite Star Warden Crops only lived to say no to everyone. Still Twilight knew that from the very beginning the Star Wardens first mission was to protect the Equinite Races by aiding law enforcement and responding to distress calls throughout Citadel Space. “Now that you reminded me of the upper class elites I think Illium was a bad idea, I get enough high class when I go to Canterlot. How about Elysium or Terra Nova?”

“I wouldn’t recommend a world in the Skyllian Verge or the Attican Traverse, the risk of terrorist or pirate attack is too great. Although Elysium is the site of an Alliance garrison, you could even visit Grissom Academy, a little treat for their best and brightest.”

“To be honest I’d thought you’d try to add Tuchanka to the list,” said Princess Flurry Heart.

Twilgiht giggled. “As much as I’d like to know more about krogan history even I know that between the wildlife, warfare between krogan clans and the radiation it’s too dangerous.”

The pink alicorn with purple and blue mane with a cutie mark of a crystalline snowflake giggled. Skyla was definitely Cadence’s daughter and rose up to fill her mother’s horseshoes after that incident… Twilight shook the thought from her head. “I’d take your advice and visit Kar’shan if the Batarian Hegemony didn’t deny me permission.”

“Hey, it took me eighteen years for me to get them to even talk to me. Our peoples were friends once in spite of the actions of their government, I just hope that they can look past our new friendship with humanity and we can come together again.”

“A long shot in my opinion,” said Garibaldi. “Still you vouching for peace with them after what happened to your mother is a considerable sign of forgiveness.”

“I’m sure it’s what she would have wanted. Anyway I’ll be sure to tell you what I can about my next visit when I return from Kar’shan Aunt Twilight.”

“You mentioned that they were talking about showing you a classified research project,” said Twilight. “You think they trust you enough to tell you they DO have the Leviathan of Dis?”

“I doubt they like me that much yet, if they have it at all.”

“Ok, so Elysium it is then.”

“I think you’re forgetting one important stop,” said a familiar looking yellow unicorn over the comm. “Aren’t you going to come visit me and your fellow equinites here on the Citadel?”

“Of course Ambassador Shimmer,” Twilight said. “It’s just I’m not sure I’m ready for a face to face with Stellar yet.”

Sunrise Shimmer was almost the splitting image of her ancestor Sunset, in fact if not for the different way she styled her mane one could say they were identical. “If anything it’s overdue, he’ll be twenty in a few months and I can’t think of a better birthday present for him.”

“I’m not sure if that will be possible,” said Garibaldi. “Stellar Wind is currently on a long term undercover assignment. I can’t say when he’ll be returning to the Citadel.”

“You Star Wardens and your undercover operations. I raised Stellar, was raised to the position of equinite ambassador and he still doesn’t tell me half of what he does. ‘Need to know basis’ is what he usually says, but I think most the time he just doesn’t want me to worry.”

“Well, Spike and Mina did say that the Citadel was the best part of their excursion and not just because it was where they met,” said Twilight. “Alright, it wouldn’t be seemly to make this trip to strengthen our relations with the rest of the galaxy and not visit its diplomatic and cultural heart.”

“You will not regret it your majesty,” said Sunrise.

“In any event the matter of transport still needs to be determined,” said Twilight. “With the Celestia’s Majesty still being refitted and the Luna’s Dream off on a long term survey mission…”

“Actually the refit is ahead of schedule,” said Flurry. “Jath'Amon, my Batarian Ambassador friend, had pointed out a little known but well regarded Salarian team that agreed to help us upgrade the Majesty in time for your trip.”

Twilight gave her niece a hug. “Thank you, I know how well Celestia’s Majesty has served you and the Harmonium and I thank you for allowing me to use it. It was built for the furtherance of galactic peace so it will be the perfect ship to spread the message of friendship.”

“Have you selected what items you wish to take with you?” asked Garibaldi. “I’m going to need an inventory for the ship to check to make sure no suspicious items are snuck on board at any of these stops.”

“Not yet,” said Twilight. “I want to brief the friendship council on the details first. They’ll be taking care of things here until I come back.”

“Except for maintaining the planet’s rotation,” said Flurry. “I’ll be taking care of it for you.”

The responsibility that fell on Twilight since Luna’s death still felt a little strange on her in spite of having it for almost two hundred years now, still she was the most experienced at it of the two Alicorns left. “Between the six of you Equus is in good hooves, or good hands in Ferdinand’s case” Twilight said referring to the Minotaur that currently held the position that Fluttershy once did.

Her friends may had passed away long ago but she made it that their legacy would always live on.

+++

It was about two weeks later Twilight shuttled up to the spacedock where the diplomatic ship Celestia’s Majesty was making final preparations for the voyage. As an Alicorn she rarely left Equus, magic had given their world much but made it so different from the rest of the galaxy. If it weren’t for the Alicorns one half of the planet would boil and the other half would freeze. This was her first offworld excursion in twenty years and it would be the longest one she had ever taken.

“We are approaching the Areion’s orbit,” said a young male griffin dressed in body armor. “The Majesty is currently at a dry dock in orbit of our moon. ETA until rendezvous, two minutes.”

Twilight found his blue highlights among his white feathers quite bold, and thought he’d be quite a catch for any griffin hen. “What is your name again?” Twilight asked. “I like to get to know everyone working for me, as people as well as staff.”

The young tercle turned from the haptic interface and gave a salute. “Ma’am! Star Warden second class Gusto, assigned to be your security escort for the duration of the goodwill tour Ma’am!”

Twilight giggled. “I don’t like being formal with guards and servants, it took me a few decades to even agree to have guards and a domestic staff.”

“Just following protocol ma’am.”

“Very well, then call me Twilight when not on duty and that is an order.”

“Yes ma’am.” The console stated making a beeping noise. “We are approaching the Majesty now.”

The shuttle approached a station that held one of the two most advanced ships created by the Harmonium. About the size of a heavy military frigate, Celestia’s Majesty was built in a sleek, conical shape. Towards the end a large horseshoe shaped “wing” protruded holding the anti-proton thrusters that propelled the vessel. “Just as I left her,” said Twilight.

“Actually she should be better than you left her ma’am,” said Gusto. “From what I have heard she’s even faster and they’ve installed a Quantum Entanglement Communicator with a link straight to Canterlot and the Harmonium Council.” He then pressed a holographic button. “Shuttle E1 to Celestia’s Majesty, requesting permission to dock.”

A voice came of the radio. “Celestia’s Majesty to Shuttle E1, permission granted. Approach from vector one-one-three-eight.”

The shuttle entered a bay in lower portion of the ship and came to a stop. As Twilight exited the craft she was saluted by a number of equinites headed by a red Pegasus with a purple mane, like the others she was dressed in a full body outfit common to equestirans outside of Equus due to nudity taboos among other species in the galaxy.

“Commander Lightspeed your highness, executive officer for the Celestia’s Majesty” said the Pegasus. “On behalf of the entire crew welcome aboard.”

“Thank you, commander,” said Twilight. “Where is the captain?”

“Captain Stargazer has requested your presence on the bridge to give the order for us to get under way.”

“Very well, if you would be so kind as to accompany me?”

“Yes ma’am, I need to brief you on the ship’s layout since the refit.”

Twilight, Gusto and Lightspeed walked across the docking bay and headed to the elevator.

“We are on deck five, shuttle bay and primary cargo hold. Deck four is the location of engineering, additional cargo space and crew quarters. Deck three has the galley, science labs, medical bay, server room and amenities like observation decks, a gymnasium, swimming pool, lounge and a spa. Deck two is the ambassadorial deck and is where your quarters are located. It also houses other ambassadorial quarters, conferences rooms, the library and the captain’s quarters and office. Finally deck one is the location of the bridge and command information center or CIC where the ship is controlled from."

“Seems mostly the same from my last journey on this ship, twenty years ago…” said Twilight.

“Oh and I have a message from Princess Flurry Heart,” said Lightspeed as they entered the elevator. “If you need someone to talk to feel free to talk to the captain and myself.”

“Thank you commander, though I’d like such talks to be casual.”

“Please state your destination,” said the familiar sounding virtual intelligence.

“Deck one Celestia,” said Lightspeed. “Priority transit.”

“It’s good to see you again,” said Twilight. The Majesty’s VI was based on the personality of Princess Celestia, now dead for nearly three hundred years. She thought it was a lovely way to honor her mentor while allowing her to be known by future generations.

“I haven’t logged you in for so long, would you like to catch up when your schedule permits?”

“I’ll be getting settled in my quarters later that would be a good time.”

The doors opened to a hustling command center with a large wall acting as a monitor showing most of the surrounding space. In the center was a big holographic map of the Milky Way galaxy. Spread throughout a number of equinites, mostly her fellow equestrians, were in a flurry of activity.

“That problem with the number three intake value has been repaired, all systems now show green.”

“Galley reports the last of the provisions have been brought aboard. All passengers, crew and cargo accounted for.”

“Path to the Opinicus system is clear, we’ve been given final clearance from the control tower.”

“Excellent,” said a dark blue unicorn stallion with a white mane and beard plus the standard crew jumpsuit complete with a captain’s hat. He turned and noticed the trio that came up to the bridge. “Ah just in time, your majesty would you be so kind as to give the order.”

The crew was silent as Twilight spread her wings for a moment to give the crew a little show. “Take us out.”

“You heard her plot course for the Opinicus system and the Lambda Relay. Final destination is the Citadel, Widow System in the Serpent Nebula Custer.”

The crew began working once again. “Moving ahead at 30 KPH until we clear space dock, priming drive core for FTL.”

“Navigational calculations are in. ETA from Epona to Opinicus fourteen hours, ETA from Opinicus to the Citadel through the mass relay network six hours, all galactic standard time.”

“It amazes me how advanced the protheans were,” said Gusto. “Thanks to the mass relays the shortest part of this first trip is actually going to last the longest going from one star to another and we’ll be crossing huge star clusters in hours.”

“We are clear to jump to FTL captain,” said Lightspeed.

“Do it,” said Stargazer. In moments everything outside the ship red shifted as it accelerated faster than the speed of light. Eventually most of what could be seen was a blue field surrounding the ship. “Well done people that was a textbook departure. After your shift is over treat yourselves to a cold beverage on me.”

“That was very good everyone,” said Twilight. “If you don’t mind I would like get settled in.”

“Of course your majesty,” said Lightspeed. “Once you get to deck two head towards the bow, it will be on the port side of the ship right across from the library. Both rooms are clearly marked and your luggage should already be waiting for you.”

“Thank you, if I may have your leave?”

“Of course your highness,” said Stargazer. “Though you would honor me if you’d have dinner in my quarters at some point in our journey.”

“I’d be delighted, let me know when it would be most convenient for you. Now if you would pardon me.”

Twilight went to her room and after unpacking she spent a few hours chatting to the ship’s VI. She knew it wasn’t the real Celestia but since it had been so long she wanted to pretend it was her long departed mentor. After little while Twilight decided to sleep for most of the trip to Opinicus, Keythong and the Mass Relay.

Twilight found Gusto waiting for her when she woke up. “I trust that my protection is up to Star Warden Standards?”

“About that,” said Gusto. “I think the ship’s new drive core should get us out of trouble fast but the Warden General was concerned about our escort.”

“But we’re supposed to have two turian frigates accompany us during the whole tour once we get through the relay.”

“He wanted four frigates and asked for them to accompany us from the dock.”

Twilight groaned. “That would a bit much since we aren’t going into hostile territory and what are the odds of us getting attacked by pirates this deep in Citadel Space?”

“Very low ma’am”.

“It’s just you and me Gusto, feel free to speak casually. Do you agree with the Warden General?”

“No, but only because I’ve went to engineering and seen what this ship is capable of. If attacked we could rabbit to FTL faster than you can say ‘rabbit to FTL’. We can’t outgun anyone but we can always out maneuver them in this beauty.”

Twilight smiled. “You like Starships don’t you Gusto?”

“They’re half the reason I’ve joined the Star Wardens Twilight. To get to where we’re needed we’ve travelled on everything from garbage scows to luxury liners and automated freighters to dreadnoughts.”

“We’ve certainly come a long way from the early days of Equinite space travel.”

“I’ve read about them but you were there, I bet you have all sorts of interesting stories.”

“Well we still have some time until we hit the relay so how about I tell you about how one of my friends was one of the first ponies in space and how her first mission took an unexpected twist.”

“An understatement, that mission changed everything. I’d love to hear it coming from you.”

Twilight giggled. “Ok, now our discovery of the Precursor’s lab was only ten years before, so it was a big challenge and not just a technical one. Getting so many races working together in harmony was difficult at first. According to what the VI Virtue left behind the Precursors wanted us to obtain element zero from a bunker on a small asteroid and use it to head to Opinicus, the very star we’re going to now but beyond that we had no idea what would be waiting for us there so there were a lot of arguments.”

“Well now we do know what they wanted us to find, the mass relay network.”

“Griffins gave ponies the first flight but insisted on manning the flight to the going to Opinicus. Changelings worked with us in hopes of finding a more sustainable food source but we had to rein them in from trying to devour the love of all the staff from time to time. But a few days before the historic launch I never expected my biggest problem would be my friend Rainbow Dash clashing with an old acquaintance that was selected to go with her into space…”

Author's Note:

Bonus Codex Entries:

Star Wardens: When Equus had first joined the galactic community its nations had almost finished a decade’s worth of global demilitarization. At first the equinites maintained neutrality as they started to spread, however when Equestria’s first colony Clover was attacked by krogan militants the need for protection in a galaxy that didn’t always wanted to make friends was evident.

In addition to gaining the protection of the Turian Hierarchy the Harmonium established the Star Warden Corps to protect equinites and other sapients from pirates, terrorists and other criminals. The Star Wardens assigns one to two members to particular worlds or sectors of space to assist in civil defense and the apprehension of dangerous individuals similar to Earth’s Marshals of the American west or Canada’s Mounties.

Potential Star Wardens go through an intensive examination before being accepted and given an assignment lasting anywhere from a few days to years at a time. Estimates place current Star Warden Numbers around the size of C-Sec with griffins making up a little over half that number though almost all equinite races are represented. Each Star Ranger takes an oath dedicating themselves to civil service, the presumption of innocence and the enforcement of local and galactic law.

Celestia’s Majesty: The largest vessel constructed by the Harmonium government the Celestia’s Majesty; along with her sister ship Luna’s Dream; is considered to be the preeminent diplomatic vessel in Citadel Space. Around the size of an Alliance heavy frigate the vessel had been built with two purposes in mind, the safety of Equinite heads of state and the furtherance of galactic peace.

Celestia’s Majesty has been designed for the optimal comfort of its passengers; among the amenities in its five decks are a full size swimming pool, a luxury spa, gymnasium, lounge, library and a number of personal quarters equivalent to a room in a five star hotel. The Majesty also has sensor and computing facilities seconded only to a fully dedicated science vessel.

In propulsion and defense the Majesty comes equipped with a high end drive core, anti-proton thrusters, kinetic barriers, GUARDIAN laser system but no other armaments since as a rule diplomatic vessels usually come with a full security escort and are expected to jump to FTL at the first sign of an attack. The Equinite Harmonium often lends the vessel to the Citadel Council for diplomatic missions, a notable case is when Celestia’s Majesty served as host to the negotiations and treaty signing that ended the First Contact War.