The Wrong Stuff

by DashEight

Season Finales Are Built On Hope

The setting sun cast long shadows across the desert, offering relief to the critters who'd spent the scorching hot day hiding under any shade they could find. As Celestia's fiery orb dipped towards the peaks of the distant mountain range, the coyotes, snakes, and other animals who'd made their home in Equestria's southern wastelands made their way out of their burrows, eager for another night of foraging for food.

Eager, that is, until two dozen pegasi zoomed over their heads, kicking up dust and rocks as they hugged the desert floor at breakneck speed. Most wildlife turned right back around and crawled back into their dens as the squadron of speedsters rocketed by. The desert heat was bad enough; they didn't need this shit.

"Red Leader to all flights, keep it tight, full power! Target one-seven-zero, five five miles!"

"Copy, Red Leader. Gold Group is six up, IP inbound."

Rainbow willed her wings to beat harder and tucked in closer to the other fliers in the formation as the desert rocks whipped past the group. She was off Spitfire's wing, Soarin and Fleetfoot on their commander's other side. Misty and Lightning were behind them, with several fliers from the other squadrons. Surprise took up the rear with Rapidfire's ponies. The Bolts pressed on as they tore up a cloud of dust across the empty flats, racing onward towards their objective.

"Guards, sailors, Wonderbolts, I present General Stalwart Sentry, chairpony of the Joint Operations Command."

"Thank you, Mike." Mike Check stepped aside to allow the general to take the podium. "Fellow warriors, by now you've certainly all heard the rumors. One week ago agents of Her Majesty's Royal Service, though a heart-wrenching tale of courage and hope of which all records are sealed for the next forty years, obtained the location of the Citadel of Queen Chrysalis. Their sacrifice will enable us to put an end to the changeling threat once and for all."

Cheers erupted across the briefing room. The general waited patiently for the commotion to subside, then motioned for silence. He clicked the overhead projector's controls, bringing up a map of the Equestrian Badlands on the screen behind him. "The changeling stronghold is located here, in the southwestern quadrant of the Badlands. This is nearly one hundred miles distant from friendly territory, across open terrain and harsh conditions. These factors all make a ground assault next to impossible, thus we must make our approach by air. The troop carrier dirigible RES Hurricane will depart for Appleoosa, where she will rendezvous with gunboats Osprey and Timberwolf as well as elements of the Wonderbolts First Tactical Wing. This group, which we are calling Task Force Anvil, will then proceed to the border of the Badlands. Make no mistake, the approach to the target area will not be easy. The citadel's primary means of defense is a magic nullifying field that extends to the edge of these salt flats some forty miles distant. This field can strip our airships of their defensive and targeting capabilities, leaving them vulnerable to Changeling fliers and ground batteries."

Murmurs broke out among the various officers in attendance. The skipper of the RES Timberwolf voiced his concern. "Sir, without our magic those bugs'll rip the Timberwolf to shreds before we can ever hope to bring her in range! Even with Spitfire's ponies flying cover a gauntlet like that is suicide!!"

"Patience, please," General Sentry intoned calmly, silencing the hushed whispers echoing across the room. "I have no intention throwing away good ponies' lives. Captain Spitfire, if you would be so kind?"

In front of the group, the shimmering heat radiating off the salt flats slowly parted to reveal a dark spire peeking over the horizon.

"Red Three, tallyho! Visual on tower twelve o'clock!"

"Look at the size of that thing!"

"Cut the chatter, Red Two! Red Leader to DRAGON KILLER, approaching nullification field. All flyers get ready!"

As the ponies crossed an invisible line in the salt flats, they wobbled in midair. Each pegasus felt their flight magic start to drain awa, and adjusted their wings and their harnesses' thrusters to compensate with aerodynamics. Rainbow grunted with the effort. Her helmet emitted a series of dings and several caution messages popped up on her visor.

MK16 MASTER CAUTION
GEN 1 CRYSTAL INOP
GEN 2 CRYSTAL INOP
AIM-9 TRGT INOP
EMER DC BATT

Okay sooo nothing too important, then. Maybe, like, fifteen minutes before the battery's dead? Plenty of time before we're all sitting ducks for the love-sucking murderbugs. Rainbow sighed to herself. She focused on holding her slot off Spitfire's wing. Flying without magic was uncomfortable to say the least. The acceleration from her flight harness's thruster kept her aloft and at speed but felt wrong somehow, like somepony else was pushing her through the sky. She gritted her teeth and tucked in behind her squadron leader as the list of system faults projected on her helmet's visor grew longer and longer.

Ahead of the ponies, something rose up from the desert sands on a pilliar of fire, gaining altitude and turning directly towards the Bolts.
"Red Eight, mud spike two-zero-zero!"

"Keep it steady, ponies! Rapidfire, break formation and suppress!"

"Wilco, Red Leader. Gold Two, Gold Five, on me!"

Rainbow saw Surprise drop out of the formation with Rapidfire and Blaze, peeling off to the right and barreling towards on a cluster of black dots on the ground. Plumes of smoke erupted from both the pegasi and their target as they traded rocket fire. The ponies of Gold Dust Flight wove back and forth as rockets whipped in between them. They increased their fire, quickly overwhelming the missile site on the surface and burying it in orange-gray dust.

"With pleasure, sir." Spitfire took her spot at the podium and cleared her throat. "Good afternoon, everypony. I'm Captain Spitfire of Wonderbolts First Demonstration Squadron. I've been ask to devise a plan that counters the citadel's defenses for the very reasons that Captain Downdraft has pointed out. We've pinpointed the source of the field here, Queen Chrysalis's throne at the top of the main tower." She pointed out the citadel's throne room on the projected image behind her. "Phase one of this operation is an aerial strike to destroy the top floor of that tower and the throne with it. Fliers from the wing will be divided into two strike groups: Red Apple Group will engage the changeling defenders in the air and provide escort and screening for Gold Dust Group, which will be armed with ordnance and bombing wagons for an air-to-surface attack against the tower itself. Once they've neutralized the field the gunboats will move in and begin phase two: heavy bombardment and suppression. The Hurricane will then land here, deploying her marines who will execute phase three with a sweep of the stronghold's remains."

Conversation again broke out amongst the audience. "Ma'am," a guardspony asked, "how can the Wonderbolts fly a mission like that without your magic? Won't you lose it like anypony else as soon as you approach the tower?"

"Bandits! Bandits! Multiple fliers lifting off from the structure, two zero miles and closing fast!"

"I see them! Red Group, break! Break and engage!"

Black dots swarmed out of the tower like wasps defending the hive, racing towards the approaching pegasi. Rainbow banked to follow Spitfire as she pulled away from the formation. Plumes of fire leapt from behind them as they pushed their harnesses into afterburner.

The Wonderbolts scattered as a storm of green bolts flashed by them. Rockets leapt off launch rails, streaking across the sky and exploding into angry gray weals of smoke in between the attackers. The two clouds of fliers merged together, looping and diving in attempts to gain the advantage on one another.

"Red Seven defending!"

"Red Twelve, fox three!"

"Dizz, you got one on your six!"

"I see him, I'll bring him across and you splash him!"

Spitfire threaded her way through the roiling furball, Rainbow sticking to her squadron leader as close as she could. Spitfire pulled into a high gee climb, neatly bringing an enemy flier into her sights. A rocket flew off her hoof gauntlet and closed the distance to the bug in an instant, enveloping it in a cloud of smoke. Without taking even a second to admire her handiwork she rolled herself upside down and arced into a nosedive, lining up another defender. As she bore down on the second unsuspecting flier yet another dark shape swooped in, maneuvering behind her for a clear shot.

"Watch it, Cap! You picked one up!" Rainbow pulled harder into her turn, leading the black-armored flier for a shot with her rockets. Her vision tunneled down to narrow points as she wrenched herself around, laser-focused on the dark blob spitting green bolts ahead of her.

Fwoosh

Her rocket flashed in front of Spitfire's pursuer. It peeled away from Spitfire, abandoning its quarry and turning to flee. Rainbow narrowed her eyes and darted after the escaping flier. "I'm on him, Leader!"

"Red Five, where are you going!? Get back here!!"

"I've almost got him, Cap! Just... one... more... second!" Rainbow ground her teeth as she pulled harder into the turn, bringing him back into her sights. "Red Five, fox two!"

Fwoosh Smoke and fire streaked away from Rainbow's harness. The rocket leapt forward, closing the distance towards the black-armored creature and enveloping it in orange smoke. "Whoohoo! Red Five, splash one bandit!"

*Whoo-EEP* "Target lock!"

"Break, Crash! Break!"

Green light flashed past Rainbow. She snap-rolled into a dive, twirling and dodging as energy blasts danced around her, coming closer and closer to their mark. Out of the corner of her eye, she spotted the dark shape behind her taking aim...

Fwoosh BOOM until it disappeared into a cloud of dust. "You're clear, Five! Now stay in formation next time!"

"Thanks!" Rainbow replied into her radio as she followed Spitfire back into the furball. She took deep breaths to quell the quaver in her voice. Too close.

Spitfire nodded to the Guard officer. Now for the part she really, really didn't like. "Yes, we will lose both our natural pegasi magic and our flightsuits' crystal power sources as we cross into the nullification field's area of effect, but the strike is possible without those. We've determined that a capable flier using a Mark 16 or Mark 10 pegasuit can stay aloft using their wings for solely aerodynamic lift and their harness's thrusters as propulsion. We'll be at a disadvantage, but it will give us some ability to counter the changelings and destroy the target before our equipment's backup batteries run dry." Spitfire paused for a second to clear her throat. "Nopony is saying this is ideal, but that's why we're the Wonderbolts. We won't let your dragoons down."

The infantrymare nodded, satisfied at Spitfire's answer. As Spitfire abdicated the podium to General Sentry, she caught the eyes of the other Wonderbolt officers in the audience. Fleetfoot and Soarin both nodded in acknowledgement, as did Rapidfire, Wave Chill, and Sun Chaser. They all looked worried at the prospect of attempting what Spitfire and the general had proposed. No magic meant klutzy flying, no guidance for their weapons, and a ticking clock until they dropped from the sky, one by one, where they'd be helpless against a swarm of hungry changelings.

Privately, Spitfire couldn't help but agree with them. Her idea was the best anypony had came up with, but that hardly made it a good one. No matter which way one looked at it, ponykind's triumph over the changelings would come with a heavy price.

"Path to the target is clear!" Rapidfire crowed. "Gold Group, form up on me for attack run!"

"Roger that, Gold Leader! You heard the colt, Red Apples! Cover them!"

Rapidfire pushed forward as fast as he could, skimming the surface towards the craggy spire of the citadel. Surprise, Blaze, Wave Chill and the others followed his lead, flying as low and fast as they could under the fearsome battle raging above the tower.

"Watch the crossfire, Three!"

"This is Four, I'm getting some shimmy in my wing bracers!"

"Four, if you can't make the run then disengage!"

"Negative, negative! She'll hold!"

"Wheeeeee! Guys, we should do this every weekend!!"

Gold Dust reached the base of the tower, pulling up at the last minute to skim the gnarled walls of the citadel towards its peak. Green fire spat at them from craggy spires. Black-armored flyers dove at them from above, but the ponies of Red Apple Flight intercepted them before they could reach the bomber Bolts.

"Stay on target!"

"Lead, we're too fast! We can't hit it at this speed!"

"Stay on target!"

"Bandits, six o'clock high!"

"DROP!" Bombs rolled off Rapidfire's harness, freeing a great weight from his barrel. He and the rest of Gold Group blew past the tower's spire, peeling away into the open sky.

Fire blossomed from the top of the citadel, shrouding it in smoke and flame.

"Shack! Direct hit on target!"

"Wait, where's our magic then?"

"Standby for damage assessment!"

As the dust cleared, the Wonderbolts got a good look at the citadel. The top floor of the structure had been shattered by Gold Dust's attack. Soarin and Fleetfoot zoomed in for a closer look, dodging green bolts of magic all the way.

"Negative, dudes! The big chair thingy is still there! Repeat, the big chair thingy is still there!"

"Copy! Golds, form back up for another run!"

"New contacts, three bandits bearing zero two zero!"

Three dark silhouettes swooped in on Gold Dust Flight from above. The Golds scattered in an attempt to flee the newcomers but to no avail. One by one they were struck down by green bolts as they tried to flee.

"Mayday! Mayday! Gold Three going down!"

"Two, punch out!"

"I'm hit! I'm hit!"

"Wheeeeeee I wanna go againnnn!!"

Spitfire stared as Gold Dust Flight fell. The new attackers rounded on the remaining Wonderbolts as they prepared for another pass. The flyer in the center wore more ornate armor than the others, with lime green trim and a small crown atop its head. "It's her..."

"C'mon, Cap! It's over! We gotta leave, now!" Misty Fly yelled at Spitfire. They'd taken their shot and failed. Everypony was flying with their wings tied behind their back, so to speak, and they'd lost the element of surprise. Also the actual Surprise, from the sound of it.

"Is anypony armed?" Spitfire asked in a daze. A chorus of no's sounded over the airwaves. All of the Bolts had spent their rockets in the fierce battle.

All except one. "I've still got one, Cap." Rainbow replied. Not that one rocket mattered against the horde of changelings now buzzing from the hive.

"Roger. Here's what we do: Crash, you hit that hole in the tower, smash the throne." She paused. "The rest of us, we cover you."

"What?? But you said--"

"I know what I said, Red Five! Now do it!"

Rainbow growled in frustration and dove towards the citadel, juking in between black clad defenders. She felt the pressure in front of her build as she gained speed. Almost there...

"Incoming! Queen bee at mark point seven!" Lightning Streak called out.

"I've got her! I've got her!" That was Soarin. "...I don't got her!"

*Whoo-EEP* "Target lock!" Dash gritted her teeth and shut out her harness's warnings. She squinted at the smoking crater in the top of the tower, searching desperately for her target. Rubble lay scattered amid the now-open throne room, crowding her view until... there!

She fired.

The rocket streaked towards a plywood cutout with a picture of a spiky obsidian throne taped to the front. The missile impacted the light wood, splintering it into a thousand pieces.

Rainbow narrowly missed the top of the tower, her high-speed dive sending her straight to the ground. She pulled up as hard as she could, shallowing out her descent into a beeline across the desert.

*WHUMPF*

Almost shallowing out her descent into a beeline across the desert.

Rainbow opened her eyes. The radio blared nonsense in her ears. Her vision swam, smoke trails and streaks of green danced across the sky above her. She pulled off her helmet and tossed it to the ground, then yanked on her Mk16's release handle. The broken pegasuit clattered off her haunches. She dizzily began to climb out of the crater her landing had formed when a dark shape swooped over her.

A black-armored equine haughtily strode over to her, the green trim of her armor glowing malevolently. Rainbow flared her wings and growled, merely eliciting a chuckle from the enemy leader. The horn protruding from its helmet glowed with a harsh light as it charged. Rainbow gulped.

"Goodbye, little pegasus."

Blat.

"Thank you, Captain Spitfire." General Sentry said as he stepped back up to the podium. "All units under the Task Force Anvil umbrella be conducting maneuver exercises at Neighvada Test Site in the coming weeks. Wonderbolts Tactical Wing, you will report to Tonopony Test Range with full combat equipment and chalk-marker ordnance. The red force for this op will be compromised of volunteers from the Night Guard; their gear will be modified to emulate changeling combat capability. The Corps of Engineers has also rigged up a jammer to mimic the citadel's nullification field. This is your chance to fine-tune your plan, ponies, and I implore you to use it to the full extent. Princess Celestia did not come by this decision lightly. If she says coexistence between ponies and changelings is impossible, then know that she has exhausted every other course of action. We are the ponies to carry out those orders... that being said, I'd like to see you all again in this briefing room after this battle is over. So run your drills, get your ponies' shit locked down, and get it done. I'll see you aboard the Hurricane. Dismissed!"

Rainbow jerked as the magic paint pellet struck her in the face. She grimaced and tried to wipe the goop clean with a wing as 'Queen Chrysalis' crowed with pride.

"I woooon! I wooooon! Take that, Spitfire!" She danced happily, removing the helmet of her black 'changeling' styled armor and revealing her bright pink mane and eyes, tufted ears, and stubby fangs. "Eve rules, Wonderbolts drool!"

"You sure about that!?" Rainbow challenged the Night Guard officer.

"You're the one with the Smooze facial, you tell me!" Eve chuckled.

"No. Also, ew." Rainbow gagged. "I mean, take a look at the throne!"

"Huh?"

"All squadrons, terminate exercise!" Orders blared over the military test range's loudspeakers. The Wonderbolts and 'changelings' still in the air suddenly stopped their aggressive maneuvers and started to fly away from the mock-up of the Changeling hive, towards the observation stands where their 'dead' comrades waited.

The Bolts of First Demo fluttered down to where Rainbow stood. "Hey Dash, nice shot!" Soarin chirped. "You okay? That was some crash landing!" He was covered in green paint, as was the rest of the squadron. More 'changelings' joined them, removing their helmets and gauntlets to reveal themselves as members of the Night Guard's Aggressor Squadron. Several of them were marked with chalk dust from the Bolts' dummy rockets, though fewer of them than the victorious heroes had been tagged.

"I'm fine, guys! I'm fine!"

Fleetfoot nudged Soarin. "C'mon, you know Crash. That skull of hers has taken worse. Besides, wouldn't be her if she didn't show us all up, would it?"

"Poo," Eve pouted. "I thought for sure I had you jerks!"

"Sorry to disappoint, ma'am," Fleetfoot offered the Night Guard captain a salute. "But First Demo's got a thing for thrilling heroics. Better luck next time."

Captain Evening Mist let out a frustrated sigh and trotted off to join her fellow batponies. Lighting called after her, chuckling. "You can square your debt up anytime! Come talk to me about a payment plan!"

The squadron guffawed at that, their leader stepping forward to chide their lack of discipline. "Yeah, yeah, alright, you've had your fun, ponies. Lightning, try not to take her for everything she's worth. I have to work with her, you know." Spitfire glanced around at her ponies. All of them bar Misty had been marked with green paint. She hesitated, feeling something catch in her throat. Soarin and Fleetfoot both met her gaze with serious expressions, giving quick, solemn nods to their captain before putting smiles back on their faces and rejoining the squadron laughter. Spitfire shook off the feeling in her gut and leapt into the air, free of the constraints of the magic-sapping field the Guard had placed in the desert for this test. "C'mon everypony, follow me!"

"Where?" Rainbow asked. Before Spitfire could reply, the loudspeaker blared again.

"This concludes Anvil Phase One exercise. All ponies, clear the Citadel area for Phase Two. RES Osprey, RES Timberwolf will begin aerial gunnery drills in T minus one five minutes."

"To watch the fireworks!"

* * * * *

One Week Later...

"CANCELLED!? WHAT DO YOU MEAN, CANCELLED??" Spitfire roared at the pony quavering in front of her desk. Radar squacked in his cage, his owner's sudden outburst startling him. Spitfire struggled to contain her rage. Sure the Wonderbolts normally played it fast and loose with the military's 'don't shoot the messenger' policy, but bending such a rule was still considered a major faux pas for a squadron leader.

"J-just what I said, ma'am!" The terrified airpony sputtered. "Priority one message from General Sentry's office! All Task Force Anvil members are to stand down immediately!" He flailed the paper in front of him. Spitfire snatched it and began to read.

"This doesn't make sense! Why would he..." Spitfire spotted the royal seal at the bottom of the document. "This originated with the Princess?"

"Yes, ma'am! Straight from the top!" The poor sap cried, praying that this could help direct the captain's wrath elsewhere.

"Hmm... Okay, okay, you can breathe now. You're dismissed, get lost already!" The airpony dashed out of her office with a shot, slamming the door behind him. "CLIP! Get in here!"

"What's up, boss--" *CLONK* "Ow!" The door clicked open and Soarin trotted in. "What's up, boss?"

"Muster the wing. I've got some, uh, news. Anvil is cancelled on Princess Celestia's orders."

"Huh." Soarin mulled it over. "Not gonna lie, I'm a little relieved. The squadron will be disappointed, though. They did good against Eve's girls that last matchup, they're all raring to go kick some bugflank. Why'd the Princess get cold hooves?"

"I don't friggin know. The general's dispatch just said an immediate stand-down, no details provided. Is everypony present today?"

"Uh, Rainbow left base last night, something about seeing her friend off for a trip home. You know, that pony that helped us with that little time paradox mixup. What's her name, Stardust?"

"Starlight. Starlight Glimmer."

"Right. Seafood Dinner. Crash is overdue for a check-in but that's not that, y'know, unusual for her." Soarin quickly mimed resting his head on a pillow and let out a few loud snores.

"Don't worry about Crash for now. Gather everypony else, and get ready for some disappointment..."

Author's Note:

This chapter takes place in the weeks and days preceding "To Where and Back Again."

Brought to you by watching the Battle of Scarif scenes in Rogue One far too many times.

Comments

[homicidal doktor]

That was awesome.

[Dusk_Writer]

That was great! I love fighting scenes

[DashEight]

8181059

Thanks! It was the best way I could think of to have a big battle and have it still more or less fit in with the show continuity. Though maybe the zeppelins could've used different names, like the Genre Shift or the Cerebus Syndrome.

[forbloodysummer]

I'm really glad I read this story, and I very much like your portrayal of the Wonderbolts. Obviously more Spitfire is needed, but that's a universal constant, so...

And I really liked the way you did Shining Armor, too - I'm not exactly fond of the character, but you chose a really neat way to play it, that there's nothing wrong with him beyond unbearable good fortune.

I have to say I'm not too sure about following film plots overly closely - I think the Aliens references mostly worked (though Bill Paxton's bit might have gone on a bit long, if you don't mind me saying), but the Star Wars bits in the latest chapter were a bit much for me.

Although I love the idea you had of the carriers being named Genre Shift and Cerberus Syndrome. Bonus points for reminding me of the airship names in the Mortal Engines series and the GCUs and GSVs in the Culture series (Elon Musk already copied the best two for his floating rocket recovery drone ships, the Just Read The Instructions and Of Course I Still Love You).

Good job, thanks for writing, looking forward to seeing more!

[DashEight]

8301444

Thanks! The Aliens plotline was more of a crutch than anything else--I'd started with the idea that the squad would go to Las Pegasus and Spitfire would be stuck dealing with red tape while the rest of the team got to have fun. Then I gave Surprise what is essentially an Iron Man suit with stealth capabilities on a whim at the end of the first chapter and only after that realized just how difficult it would be to get her back.

Surprise is an obvious Pinkie clone--hence the 'long lost sister' joke in the beginning of that arc--but unlike Pinkie she's got no sense of tact or when to dial it back and her squadmates find her less endearing and more annoying. She's also an unarmed combat instructor, so now I'd taken a high energy pony who loves fighting and has a few screws loose and accidentally made her bulletproof, fast, and invisible. Obviously the Bolts aren't going to lure her back with a cupcake under a net. So they had to be armed to the teeth, and then I needed to move them away from innocent bystanders. Crazy as she is, I didn't think Surprise would really want to hurt them just for ignoring her, but this gang isn't really the most disciplined group of military ponies, so while their innate Wonderbolt durability and blind luck could protect themselves from lethal ordnance they were still in the middle of a crowded casino in downtown LP. I'd made some Aliens references in the first chapter (the power loader) and at that point I was just like, "Ok, whatever, I'll run with that." End result is an emotionally unstable xenomorph with power armor that wants to throw you a party you'll never forget.

I kinda realized then that ripping off, ahem, parodying my favorite movies was kinda 'eh' as far as writing went. Felt cheap. I'd wanted to write something that showed the Wonderbolts doing actual military stuff instead of celebrity meet-and-greets and air shows--my idea was they are on perpetual PR assignments but have to do combat training every so often to stay qualified--but then I binge watched Star Wars a bunch and noticed that Chrysalis's evil plans had the same stupid weakness as the Empire's: smash one little weak spot and the whole thing comes crumbling down. So I couldn't resist doing one more.

The whole thing is a warmup as to not interfere with canon, but it made sense to me because the changeling palace was too damn big to go unnoticed. A building that size should be visible from space, much less Appleoosa or Dodge City. So ponies had to know where Chrysalis lived, and the royal guard would getting ready to go swat her until she beats them to the punch and replaces their princess with an impostor under her control. So they get a whole tense buildup only to then be told to stand around and do nothing--from what I've heard from friends in the military that pretty much describes 90% of what they did while they were in. Then Starlight swoops in and gets all the canon glory, which is all for the best because her way kept to the show's 'E' rating while what I came up with would've been a Phyrric victory at best.

I'm not actually familiar with the work you're referring to in regards to the airships, but always happy that you liked it. I thought that chapter got kinda dark and serious for a while, hence the 'genre shift.'

As far as headcanon goes: The Royal Navy's three flyer carriers, the flagships of the fleet, were named after holidays with connections to the alicorn princesses: The RES Summer Sun (Celestia), the Longest Night (Luna), and the Hearts and Hooves (Cadance). In universe, maybe there's a taboo on naming a ship directly after a princess but in reality I just thought it sounded more poetic that way. The rest of the fleet were given more conventional names, like those of important historical figures or whatever the ponies thought would sound fierce and predatory. (Being ponies, they're a bit hit-or-miss with that. I doubt dragons or minotaurs would be scared of something called the Timberwolf)

Glad you liked it :) I will probably write more of this, but I can't say when as I've gotten very busy with work and I'm trying to get past a block on my other story.

[Eroraf86]

I saw references to Star Wars and Independence Day, and probably more that I missed. You rock.

[Stormsky9]

Seafood Dinner.

Someone watches bronys react