• Published 8th Sep 2016
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Where No Pony Has Gone Before - RK_Striker_JK_5



Equestria makes contact with the Enterprise. Star Trek/MLP crossover.

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Chapter Seven

Scotty looked out and up at the two-story cottage in front of him, and the six ponies standing in front of it. Five were earth ponies, and the sixth was a unicorn. He, several science officers, and four security guards, had beamed down to a 'rock farm' on Captain Kirk's orders for a survey mission. An equal number of Klingons were there as well, clustered together in their own group. He paid them no mind as he walked up to the sextet. “Good morning...” He focused on the lone stallion. “Mister Igneous Rock Pie, I presume?”

Igneous slowly looked up at Scotty, a stalk of wheat in his mouth twitching back and forth. “Aye, Lieutenant Commander Scott. I welcome you to my family's rock farm. May providence favor you.” He waved a foreleg to his right. “Allow me to introduce my wife, Cloudy Quartz, and my oldest daughter, Limestone.”

Cloudy Quartz adjusted the glasses perched at the tip of her muzzle. “A pleasure to meet you, Commander,” she said, her voice never rising or lowering.

Limestone stalked forward, head high and upper lip curled back. She jabbed a hoof at Scotty. “You and the rest of your gang better not get in our way too much. We've got a lot of work, especially in the south field.”

Scotty held his hands up. “Don't worry, lass. We'll stay out from under your hooves. I know what it's like to have people underfoot when you're trying to get work done. Or perhaps underhoof in this case?”

Limestone continued staring at him, but her expression softened slightly. “Well... okay. Just keep that in mind.”

Igneous waved his foreleg to his left, his expression never changing. “This is Marble, our youngest, Maud, the second-oldest, and Maud's marefriend, Trixie Lulamoon.”

Marble shrunk back, her cheeks flushing from gray to beet-red and her mane flipping over her eyes.

Maud slowly looked up. “You're from space? How fascinating. How many rocks are there?”

Trixie stood up on her hind legs and waved her forelegs about. A strong breeze kicked up, sending her cape waving about. “Welcome, visitors from the stars! I, the Great and Powerful–sorry, the Humble and Penitent Trixie, am most eager to hear your tales from beyond!” Her horn lit up and fireworks blossomed above her and the others.

Limestone slapped her forehead. She walked around and right up to Trixie, literally butting heads with her. “For Celestia's sake, Lulamoon! Can you tone it down a bit?”

Trixie growled and pushed Limestone back. “This is neither the time nor the place, Limestone! We have visitors!”

“I know. That's why I'm cutting your horse apples short!”

Scotty held out a hand. “Ah, lasses. I think–”

Limestone's eyes narrowed. “Yeah, and you're embarrassing the Tartarus out–”

Maud shoved herself between the two. Her eyes shifted from Trixie, then to Limestone, both mares quickly quieting down. She looked up at Scotty. “My apologies, Lieutenant Commander. Limestone and Trixie can be a bit volatile.”

Scotty held a hand up and waved her off. “No worries, lass. Truth be told, my own sister and I can have a devil of a time getting along. Then there's my brother-in-law.” His expression suddenly grew distant. “I can only hope young Peter takes after his mother.”

Limestone backed up slightly. “Okay. Sorry, Trixie. Sorry, Lieutenant Commander Scott.”

Trixie bowed her head. “I also apologize. That was the old Trixie. The new Trixie is supposed to not be so overbearing.”

Igneous spoke up. “Trixie, Maud, if you could, please take Lieutenant Commander Scott to the north field. Show him the basics of how rock farming operates. Answer any and all questions he has.”

Trixie started to stand up on her hind legs, but a quick glance from Maud settled her down. “Trixie and Maud would be honored,” she said.

Igneous looked to Cloudy, then to Marble. “Very well, then. If there's nothing else, Cloudy, Marble, Limestone, and I have several things to do around the farm. Lieutenant Commander Scott, you have our itinerary if you need to find us, correct?”

Scotty reached back, unclipped a PADD from his belt and held it up. “Aye, I do, Mister Pie. If I need you or the others, I'll come running.” He paused. “By the way, no need to be so formal. You can just call me 'Scotty',” he said, smiling.

Igneous slowly nodded. “I shall keep that in mind, but I would prefer to use your full name and rank. If you'll excuse us?” At Scotty's nod, he and Cloudy turned and headed for the house.

Limestone walked over to Marble, who had shrunk down and was studiously examining a clod of dirt in front of her hooves. “One thing, Scotty,” Limestone said. She pointed to a huge egg-shaped rock near the farmhouse. “Don't go near Holder's Boulder. Okay? Holder Cobblestone found it in a dragon's nest, and it brings the family good luck. You wanna use your doohickeys and scan it, go ahead. But don't touch it!”

Scotty bit back a sigh. “All right, lassie. We'll leave your... boulder alone...” His brow scrunched as he followed the direction of Limestone's foreleg and took his first good look at Holder's Boulder. “Are you sure that's really a boulder, lass? I mean, found in a dragon's nest? Why would a dragon have an egg-shaped boulder in a dragon's nest?”

Limestone waved him off. “Dragons are instinctive hoarders. If it was an egg, it would've hatched by now. It's completely solid, through and through.” She started to lead Marble off, but stopped, glanced over her shoulder at Scotty, pointed a hoof at her eyes, then jabbed it back at him before finally turning and walking off in a southerly direction, Marble right behind.

Maud and Trixie walked up to Scotty. “Mister Scott, if you'll follow Trixie and I to the north field? I think you'll find our work interesting, there.”

Trixie glanced to Maud. “More weeds?”

Scotty's brow furrowed. “Wait, lassie. 'Weeds'? At a rock farm?” He barked a laugh. “Aye, and if my mother had wheels, she'd be a wagon!”

Maud shook her head. “No. She'd still be your mother.”

Trixie walked right up to Scotty. “As odd as it might sound, calling them 'weeds' is rather appropriate. However, I think it'd be better for us to show you, rather than just stand around and talk about it.”

Scotty rubbed his chin. “Good idea, lass. I might need a geology expert for this.” He pulled out his communicator and flipped it open. “Ensign Naraht, please report to the Pie's house.” He looked back down at the ponies. “Now, Ensign Naraht is a bit... unique. He's a Horta from Janus VI.”

Trixie barked a laugh. “Oh, Scotty! Equestria is populated by a wide variety of people. In my travels I've been all over, and seen a–”

A loud shuffling and scraping cut Trixie off. She and Maud stared as a large, bulbous mass of brown-and-red rock passed through the fence's gate and shambled over to the trio. A Starfleet utility belt was fastened to his hide, a tricorder, phaser, and standard-issue communicator attached to it. “Ensign Naraht, reporting as ordered,” he said, drawing himself up. A pseudopod of rock extended and doubled back, almost as if in salute.

Scotty smiled. “Excellent timing, Ensign. We've got work to do in the north field.” He waved at the ponies. “May I introduce Maud Pie and Trixie Lulamoon. Ladies, this is Ensign Naraht, a silicon-based lifeform.”

Maud's ears twitched back and forth. Her eyes lit up slightly, but her expression otherwise remained unchanged. She walked up to Naraht, reached into her blouse, and pulled out a small, gray rock. “Hello, Ensign. I'm glad to meet you. This is my pet, Boulder.” She held the rock out. “I think you two will be good friends.”

Trixie stared at Naraht. She looked up to Scotty. “Okay. Definitely... unique.”

Naraht shuffled around. Though he had no face or visible eyes, everyone could tell he was looking at Trixie. “Well, thank you. Truth be told, though, back home there's a lot of us crawling around. You'd be the odd one out.”

Trixie grinned. “Perfect. I love being the center of attention!”

Scotty chuckled. “Now that I can believe, lass.” Movement to his left caught his eye. Scotty looked up as Kellett, son of Grix, approached. “Mister Kellet. I'd ask what you're doing here, but I reckon it's the same as me.”

Kellett nodded. He held out an arm and waved it around. “If it's preparing survey teams before our date with destiny at the Punch Bowl, then you're right.” He suddenly grinned. “You're not thinking of backing out, are you?”

Scotty turned to fully face him. He crossed his arms and furrowed his brow. “Not a chance, Mister Kellett. I'm quite looking forward to our little contest.”

Trixie looked from one to the other. “You two aren't going to start fighting, are you?”

Kellett looked to her. “No, small pony. Our battlefield will be a tavern. Our weapons, liquor! A far better fight than the last one we were in.”

Trixie arched an eyebrow. “'Small pony'?”

Maud shrugged. “Well, to them, we are.”

Scotty slowly nodded and smiled. “Aye, Mister Kellett. I'll be looking forward to that, too. Soon as I'm finished here.”

Kellett looked to Maud and Trixie, then to Naraht. “What is going on, here?”

Scotty paused for a moment. He scratched the back of his head. “Well, Trixie and Maud are about to take Naraht and I on a tour of the north field and show us some 'weed's. Care to come?”

Kellett frowned. “Weeds?”


Trixie and Maud walked along a wide, barren, gray-hued plain. Crystals, gems, and other minerals were strewn about the ground, each one glowing and quietly humming. The very ground beneath the objects glowed and pulsed rhythmically, creating a hypnotic light show.

Scotty, Kellett, and Naraht all shuffled along, giving the spots of light as wide a berth as possible. They held their tricorders out, the portable scanners whirring and beeping. Scotty held his up and looked the display screen over, eyes wide. “Ensign, is your tricorder registering this?”

Naraht rumbled along. “I can smell the pergium, sir, along with a number of other valuable minerals and crystals. If I had a traditional mouth, I'd be salivating.” He shuffled up to a line of shaped ingots, his body quivering. “Oh, duranium, cesium, it's like an all-you-can-eat buffet!”

Scotty barked a laugh. “Laddie, what do you call that acid you can pump out to tunnel through rocks and eat them up, then?”

Kellett knelt down besides a line of rocks. He shook his head. “I have been on planets in over a hundred star systems in two quadrants of the galaxy. I have seen many things, but by Kahless, I have never seen anything like this.”

Maud walked up to Kellett's side. She looked to a lightly-glowing crystal as she spoke. “Energy from the planet can leak through the ground, here. Normally it's spread evenly throughout the area, but certain kinds of rocks and crystals draw the energy to them, concentrating it within them and absorbing it, becoming power sources for all kinds of things. Metal gets strengthened when it absorbs the energy, too.”

Kellett slowly nodded. “The energy gets concentrated in those few spots, which would explain why the rest of the land looks so... desolate.”

Naraht piped up. “I don't think it looks too bad. Kinda reminds me of home.”

Maud's voice rose, almost imperceptibly. “I've been studying the energy's effects on different materials all my life. It's so fascinating.” She suddenly turned her head and glanced down, her cheeks coloring the slightest shade of red. “I apologize, Mister Kellett. I didn't mean to let my emotions get the better of me.”

Kellett stared at her. “Maud, you would make a Vulcan look gregarious.”

Maud arched an eyebrow. “Thank you, I think.”

Trixie walked up to a mound of white crystals jutting up haphazardly from the ground. She scowled as her horn glowed and a pickaxe floated out of a saddlebag. “Gentlemen, you were wondering about weeds?” She stood up on her hind legs and waved both forelegs at the mound. “This is what we're talking about when we mention weeds.” She dropped back down to all fours as the three looked to her. “The crystals and other minerals don't capture all the energy. Some of it leaks through the ground and forms these useless growths.” She groaned as she tapped her pickaxe at the base of the mound. “Stupid darned useless...”

Scotty's mouth slowly dropped as he took in the shape and color of the crystals. He walked over to Trixie, his gait increasing with every step. As soon as he reached Trixie's side, he dropped to one knee and ran his tricorder's scanner over the crystals. He barely noticed as Kellett dropped down beside him, his own tricorder whirring. “If I dinna' see it with my own eyes, I would never have believed it!”

Kellett snapped the top of his tricorder shut. “I see it with my eyes, scan it with my tricorder, and if someone told me this was happening, I'd call them a liar and fool!”

Trixie stared at the two. She slowly lowered the pickaxe and slid it back into her saddlebag, her eyes never straying.

Maud trotted over, Naraht shuffling behind. Maud walked up to the mound and tapped the mound. “What is it?”

Scotty waved his hand at the crystals. “This-this is insane! Do you have any idea what these are?”

Trixie slowly shook her head. “No...”

Kellett barked a laugh. “If they did, I doubt they'd call them 'weeds'.” His expression turned serious. “These are dilithium crystals. They're the key component in our ship's matter/antimatter reaction assembly.”

Scotty continued. “When exposed to high-enough temperatures and electromagnetic pressures, it becomes porous to antimatter. It's one of the the only known substances to be able to do that, and it does it the best by far.”

Trixie slowly nodded. “I see...”

Naraht rumbled forward. “Sir, may I?” At Scotty's nod, Naraht continued. “Dilithium is one of the key components on our ships being able to go faster than light, and move between star systems. Without it, there might not be a United Federation of Planets, or Klingon Empire. It's one of the most valuable substances in the galaxy!”

Trixie gasped. “Oh, now I get it!”

Kellett stood up and waved his hand around. “Tell me, does dilithium grow like this in all your fields? Or at other rock farms?”

Maud looked to the crystals. “They do, and from what I've read about and seen, they form at other rock farms. They've been growing like this since the Pie family settled here.”

Trixie tilted her head back and forth. “Okay, so what we've been thinking of as 'weeds' are really the most valuable thing in the entire galaxy?” At Scotty's slow nod, she grinned and lightly jabbed Maud in the barrel. “I think your rocktorate's tuition just got paid.”

Maud looked to her. “We might be able to afford you that new wagon you've had your eye on, too.”

Scotty rose to his feet. “Are you two daft? That mound of dilithium alone would be enough to buy your own moon!”

Trixie gasped. She looked up at the sky. “The moon?”

Scotty held his hand up. “Well, not your moon, but a moon, at least.”

Kellett also stood up. “Well, Mister Scott. I must speak with Igneous Pie, talk with my survey team, then make a report to Captain Kang and Commander Mara. I shall see you at the Punch Bowl?”

Scotty nodded. “Aye, Mister Kellett. I have a feeling we'll both be needing a bit o' the strong stuff before this mission's all said and done.”

Author's Note:

1. Thanks to M E Lovecolt, sun tzu, and Talon and Thorn for pre-reading and help.

2. I'm contractually obligated to include Trixie in my fics whenever and wherever possible. :p She's a canny negotiator. ;)

3. Naraht is from the Rihannsu series of novels written by Diane Duane. If you have not read her books, I HIGHLY recommend them.