Sunset held on tight as her hover cycle bucked under her grip, the speed being much higher than she'd anticipated and nearly twice as fast as the one she'd ridden on Dinosaur Planet. The others were all on their own bikes around her, taking whatever paths they were most comfortable with. She could see Pris leaping off every slope, oversized log, or ravine she could, performing various flips and stunts while in the air and firing on gun emplacements that targeted the group before landing safely and shooting off faster than before. Raquel was dodging in and around the rest of the group, using focused fire to clear obstacles for the group or create them for the gun emplacements, occasionally tossing a small device into the mechanism of an auto-gun that caused it to target other fortifications rather than themselves. Jackie was right out in front, triggering the turbo on her cycle to bash through any obstacles to big to shoot through, and once or twice she kicked the barrel of a turret aimed at her, causing it to bend and explode with the next shot fired. Faris stayed close to Sunset, carefully maneuvering over obstacles and keeping her med kit open and ready to use, just in case.
Diane was nowhere in sight, save for explosions that occurred randomly just when they were needed to let the group pass through. Having seen some of what the poodle girl was capable of, Sunset quickly put that from her mind.
Glancing up, Sunset noticed numerous aerial drones flying about, and some were beginning to lock onto the group. She checked the guns on her cycle, but found she couldn't make them point up without making a jump, something she didn't presently have the ground for. Noticing one drone coming a bit too close to Pris for her liking, she reacted by launching a beam of flame into it. However, as soon as she did, her cycle began sparking and slowing down. "Ik-tosha!" she snapped angrily as she struggled to gain control.
"What happened?" Faris asked worriedly as she pulled close.
"I must have released more magic there than I meant to, and the excess is screwing with the cycle's circuits!" Sunset replied in frustration as she tried to maintain heading and speed, only for smoke to start leaking out. "Dammit!"
"Hold us steady!" Faris instructed as she pulled in close, locking their cycles together as she pulled out a multi-tool and some circuitry.
"Wha?" Sunset began, startled, but quickly grabbed both controls as instructed.
For her part, Faris popped the engine compartment of Sunset's cycle and began switching out parts and repairing others even as they moved at high speed, only bothering to even dodge if a rock came between them. Leaves she let brush her harmlessly, and branches broke against her armor. Before long, the smoke stopped pouring out. "That's the best I can do, but it'll just fry if you use magic again," she offered apologetically.
"Use this!" Raquel called out as she pulled close, handing Faris a bit of the ACSU fabric she and Sunset had studied when trying to apply the Diffusion Weave to her suit. "Draw a circuit pattern on it and stick it in close to the main power converter! That should let the cycle handle stray magical energy as long as Sunset doesn't try and pump energy into it directly...at least to the dorms!"
"Got it!" Faris replied as she drew the proper pattern on the fabric before slapping it into the engine and slamming the compartment shut.
Sunset grabbed hold of her own controls again, glad to find it responding properly once more. "Thanks!"
"Don't mention it!" Faris called back as she hunched low over her own cycle as she took control once more.
"Good ta see you two alright!" Jackie called back as she lowered her arm, an energy barrier she'd been holding in front of the pair lowering as a disc on her wrist stopped glowing. "Glad mah reflector held out as long as it did, but we got company!" She pointed upward.
A strange, purple, butterfly-like creature was descending towards the group rapidly, easily large enough to squash the entire group through sheer mass. Odd energy waves and beams of pure heat lashed from it, striking the area around the group as it pursued them.
"What is that?" Raquel demanded in disgust.
"Whatever it is, don't let it touch you!" Sunset called out as she felt a slimy sensation in her magic as she looked at the thing. "There's something...evil about it!"
"Of course there is!" DIane called out as she zoomed in. "It's an Aparoid! Don't any of you pay attention in history class?"
"Don't take that course," Jackie pointed out.
"Puts me to sleep," Pris allowed.
"Excused from it due to my developments," Raquel added.
"Tested out of it," Faris and Sunset responded together.
Diane just gave them all a flat-eyed stare before blowing her poofy hair out of her eyes. "Well, don't let it touch you, it might infect you!" With that said, she turned her cycle into a hedge. "Come on, we need to take a shortcut!"
Without hesitation, Sunset turned to follow Diane, as did the others. The Aparoid shot past them, only to disappear as they took a few odd turns under an overhang, only to come out at the hanger next to the dorms.
Sunset quickly shut her cycle down as she turned into the hanger, looking up at the mass-produced Arwings that awaited them. "Pity it won't work with my magic," she murmured under her breath, "but at least it'll get us into the air and out of danger."
"Move fast, everyone!" Pris called out as she leapt off her still moving cycle to land in the open cockpit of one of the Arwings, strapping herself in even as the cycle smashed into a tank that was turning to shoot at them, the resulting explosion disabling the assault vehicle.
"Don't gotta tell me twice!" Jackie called back as she clambered into another Arwing. "Hope these are up ta snuff."
"We'll just have to deal with what we've got," Raquel pointed out as she vaulted into another. "Beggars can't be choosers, after all."
Faris leapt into the only fighter that showed signs of customization, having bulkier shields and an odd sheath on either side of the cockpit. "Oh good, Zeke remembered the field repair kits," she murmured happily as she worked the controls. "I should be able to patch any damage we take, though not too much..."
"We'll just try to avoid damage, then," Sunset declared as she climbed into one of the last two Arwings. Diane seemed to appear in the last one, and it was only a few moments before everyone was strapped and sealed in. "Engines hot!"
With that call, all six Arwings shot out of the hanger and into the air, heading for space and - hopefully - away from the conflict.
Well now, this will be interesting. Personally, I think either they're going to get caught up in the battle, or Fox and his team will show up in the nick of time.
Mother X: father ?
(Thank you!!!!!!!!!!!!!!)
Well, this was worth the wait.
What's the name of their big ship again it's been awhile since I read this but it'd be funny if that ships did a mecha transformation. Depending that could be a little op but could be fun
We are the Aparoid.
Lower your shields and surrender your ships.
We will add your biological and technological distinctiveness to our own.
Your culture will adapt to service us.
Resistance is futile.
Well kiddos time to earn you ace status. I hope you are ready for the battles that are going to spring up around you.
It lives!
10106766
if ur referring to the home that Sunset maintains with her family, that ship is the Great Fox...and it IS in orbit...hmmn...
Was just thinking about this the other day. Nice to see it back.
Well now, THIS was a lovely little surprise. Good chapter!
Oh yeah...Aparoids. Given that Star Fox 1/64 and Adventure have been done, this marks the beginning of Assault.
Yay it updated, also loving the action scenes (Diane is crazy and I love it)
Also hope no one gets aparoided.
10106770
death is futile
Yay Tats is back
Am I the only one Imagining a voice ala SNS Sgt Pepper saying "Good Luck" as they took off?
This was something i thought mia and possibly kia
nice work
(sees new chapter)
Glad to see this series back in Action your stuff remains some of my favorite crossovers on the entire site
And now we're at Assault. I've been looking forward to this.
So great to see this update as well.
Too bad those are just stock Arwings, hopefully they will work out well enough.
10107380
Hay don't diss a stock arwing even stock a Arwing is damn near one of best craft in the stars.
I was looking for a metal cover of the church hymn, but I found this instead:
I almost feel sorry for the baddies. Almost! Very nice teamwork by our heroines and I can’t wait to see how they fare in the Arwings!!!
Im so happy to see this is still alive. Thank you thank you thank you.
Waiting to see if Pigma will succumb or not...
internal power to enable (enabled)
external power to disable (disabled)
astrogation system to enable (enabled)
life support to enable (enabled)
alpha interface to enable (enabled)
beta interface to enable and prime (primed)
twin lasers to enable (enabled)
primary weapons to enable (enabled)
secondary weapons to enable and prime (primed)
star-flight mode to enable (enabled)
nova bombs to prime (primed)
all range mode to prime (primed)
all systems go
{acknowledged all systems are go, ar-wings primed and ready.}
Good to have you back!
10107228
I so agree with both you and Jon Tron.
Glad to see more form this fic
10106918
Let's hope we don't go the route assault went.... So many sacrifices....
Darn! I'm out of chapters to read.
Is it just me, or did Sunset form her own version of the “Mane six”? Focus on the colors when sunset’s five friends were introduced and compare with the ponies we know.
10364410
That seems to be a theme with stories that are essentially alternative takes on Equestria Girls... Which, yes, i am personally counting this as because of many parallels. Including the Rainbooms. (Human versions of Rainbow Dash, Fluttershy, Applejack, Rarity and Pinkie Pie.)
The key differences are that Sunset did not break up the existing friendship, and the over arching plot is that of the Star Fox series adapted to the PWNY-verse.
As a side note, Lightning Mage Fox McCloud is a lot more fun to think of as a Vulpine Amatsumagsuchi. (For those of you who have played the monster hunter games prior to MH World, Amatsumagatsuchi would be the full name of Amatsu, the Living Storm. For those who need more context, imagine if Kushala Daora from Monster Hunter World looked like a cross between a sea serpent and a sea horse, could control lightning, water and dragon element as well as wind, which it uses to move as opposed to that bullshit aura of "fuck melee users," and causes the tornadoes and other storms just by floating passively while angry as opposed to having to actively make them. And then stick it on top of a mountain. Because Elder Dragon.)
10364410
Given that the team outline included a purple "lab rat" with an older foster brother who is straight up this universe's Spike?
...well, assuming that those two are still canon, anyway. They haven't been introduced yet after all, and plans can change.