Coach Spike and have him retake the Equinox. 47%
Spike scratched uselessly at the medical bulkhead, widening the grooves he was making along the lock. Had this been simple steel, he would have been though it hours ago. But they’d built the Equinox to last, and that meant its most important parts could endure anything. Including dragon claws, apparently.
“Don’t bother, Spike,” Fluttershy said, voice weak. “You heard what she said. We can leave the Equinox as soon as it’s about to crash. She’ll take us with her on the escape pod.”
“I won’t let her do that,” Spike said. He didn’t turn around, didn’t stop carving. IT was no use, but he had to do something. “This is my ship as much as Twilight’s I’m not going to lose it while I’m in command.”
“Spike… nopony blames you for this,” Fluttershy said. “I’m not sure anypony is responsible for—”
But Spike didn’t hear what she said next, because something was traveling up his throat. He felt the flames begin involuntarily, the same way they always did. Except that he hadn’t experienced this is over forty years. Magical scrolls were a quaint novelty in a world of radio. Their only real advantage was integrity, since only a pony who he’d given some of his dragonfire could send to him.
It wasn’t an elegant scroll with a stamp and red ribbon that appeared in his claw, but a large blueprint roll, hastily sealed and with something dark red soaking into part of the paper.
It was blood. Twilight had powered this spell with the most potent thing an Alicorn could use. Even magical defenses wouldn’t have stopped it.
Spike stopped clawing at the door, catching the roll as it materialized and turning to face Fluttershy.
“Princess C-Celes—”
“No!” Spike rolled his eyes. “If Celestia was going to start sending us things again, why would she use the blueprints to Node’s artificial legs as writing paper?”
“Oh.”
Spike chose an empty patch of floor, rolling out the plans. They had already destroyed the only camera, so he didn’t have to worry about Cozy Glow seeing them. She was confident in her knowledge that they were trapped. And until very recently, she had been right.
Spike,
There is only one creature who can get the Equinox back—you. After running the numbers on the Prospector’s computer, I can tell you that you have until about 21:00 before the orbital decay becomes critical. If you can shut the thrusters down before that point, our orbit will remain stable for several days. If the Equinox continues to fall after that, you have an additional four hours, until 1:00 hours tomorrow, to reverse thrusters and pull out of the dive. At that point, only the engines could reverse our fall, and obviously repairing them would take too long.
You heard Cozy’s ultimatum, if I make any attempt to board, she will vent the air and kill both of you. This demand is not entirely empty—there is an emergency airlock in medical for loading directly into the medical bay after an emergency. While you continue with what I outline below, Fluttershy needs to sabotage the mechanism according to this diagram. When she says she can’t do it, remind her that airlocks are designed to stay shut rather than open and that I know she can do it.
As for you, Spike, your mission will be much more difficult. It involves great personal risk, and if you choose not to take it, I will not think less of you. You’ve already made me proud with your performance on this mission. I could not hope for a better second officer.
Even if we stop the thrusters from making us lose orbit, so long as Cozy Glow remains aboard, there are a dozen ways she could destroy the Equinox if she has the technical skill. She is your main target—you must subdue or kill her. The first is preferable, but don’t hesitate to do the second if she leaves you no other choice.
First, there is a single section of medical that can’t be manually sealed—medical waste disposal. It travels to an incinerator that would not harm you even if it was running, which it likely isn’t given the emergency status of our reactor.
Once you arrive at waste processing, you will be only a deck below central computer. Travel there, and perform a restore from the crystalline backup stored there. During this process, all computer control will be locked out for the 48-hours or so required to perform the restore.
Once this is done, it should be safe for me to board the Equinox and help you. But even if I cannot join you in time, you should be more than an equal for whatever Cozy has prepared. Find her, retake the Equinox.
Spike, I don’t mean to alarm you, but there is a real chance that if we wait for Cozy Glow to complete her plan, that all our friends will die. After sending this message, I’m going to do my best to hook them into life support, to keep them alive while they wait for Fluttershy. There is no guarantee that I’ll succeed.
No matter what happens, know that I love you Spike. You were the best little brother a pony could ask for.
-Twilight.
“Wow,” Fluttershy muttered, staring down at the scroll. “She really thought this all out, didn’t she?”
“You know Twilight,” Spike answered. It was either laugh or cry—so he laughed, tears streaming down his eyes. The future of the Equinox—any chance that they would ever see their home again—rested on him.
It was his choice to make.
1. Attempt Twilight’s plan. [dangerous]
2. Retake the ship another way instead, chancing dragon resistance to hard vacuum and a biohazard suit to spacewalk to another entrance. [dangerous]
3. Wake Sunset Shimmer and use her unicorn magic to try and retake the ship. [dangerous]
4. Do nothing and let Cozy carry out her plan.
(Certainty 225 required)
Incinerator route it is. Outside of the ship is probably full of sensors, so the crazy is more likely to notice Spike that way and blow up the ship.
9594610
Becous she will allow them to exape before the ship burns up on re-entry.
But even though a few has voted for that option I say:
quickmeme.com/img/b4/b46277aae3b9d336f425c03f2089046ebed6051ec877ea3b0936aa850987be4f.jpg
I believe Twilights plan has the best chances for success.
Option two is even more dangerous, and there is no guarantee Sunset will be in condition to do anything. Why waiting for Cozy is a bad plan (if you even call it a "plan") doesn't even need to be told.
9594618
Assuming she isn't just lying to keep them from trying anything.
Remember, she tried to kill them a few times already.
The plan Twilight outlined seems doable, and there's just too much uncertainty with the other plans.
Regarding the new poll host: Oh my god the ads are just too much. This is what the page looks like on mobile, and it's like that on every page:
i.imgur.com/AEIe9obl.png
Time to Die Hard the horseapples out of this.
9594638
Holy crap I forget how bad the internet can be without adblock. I'll try somewhere else for the next poll
Twilight's plan. It's basically what we already voted on.
The past 10 or so chapters have pretty much been the author screaming “let me kill off characters!”
9594666
I'd recommend fanfiction.net It allows you to have polls on site... though it would alienate some voters who do not want to create an account on that site... though who wouldn't, its all fanfiction on there... less focused and harder to do specific searches... but hey, fanfiction!
You ate her?
Nope, I only chewed in self defense.
He didn't share!
When everything is dangerous the options are all equally viable.
In most stories, I'd be worried about the Unspoken Plan Guarantee working against Spike, but this is as much RPG session as conventional narrative. Twilight's plan seems like the best bet they have, and well within their capabilities. There is a risk that Cozy's already thought of a contingency at the computer core, but it's a damn sight better than trying to crawl along the ship or hoping for a deus ex baconhorse.
9594638
Ah, the joys of using uBlock Origin. Means you'll never have to worry about ads ever again.
Dunno what you can do about mobile devices though. Adguard maybe?
Oh well, obviously let Cozy do her plan, that's the one that's not dangerous.
I say take
Cozy'sEditTypo: Twilight's plan.Go with Twilight's plan. Going into space without an exposure suit is a bad idea no matter how hardened you are to vacuums, and plus the Equinox's hull are probably full of sensors that would pick up Spike if he were outside the hull. Sunset is in no state to be using magic at this time either, even if we woke her up.
Really, they should have executed Cozy. Even setting aside OOC dislike for her based on the original character, she's clearly a freakishly dangerous, ideologically fanatical psychopath.
9594677
I mean that does seem like Starscribe.
I'm all about Twilight's plan. Beyond that I just want to make the case that killing Cozy wouldn't be great if we don't have to. We have (if restored) enough crew to watch her easily (and if not restored might NEED her on hand). Plus Twilight will be able to keep her mental powers focused on her to make sure she doesn't plot. Would just keep her away from robotic crew members. Besides which we haven't really been given a chance to talk to her since all we've learned.
9594772
That better be sarcasm. Cause if it's not let me remind you her plan involves stranding the crew on a planet that just started waking up to kill them while a force that has wiped out entire civilizations races to consume them and Equestria and that's only if it hasn't already gotten to Equestria.
9594914 Uh... the front half of it's sarcasm.
The second half, where I said 'take Cozy's plan', is a typo. I meant to say 'Take Twilight's plan', and voted as such.
Whoops.
9594917
Twilights plan. There is no other sensible option.
Option 1. Its the obvious choice. Besides when else is spike gonna get the option to nom on some real meat?
Twilight's plan is, of course, the obvious, well-understood plan. If Cozy can predict something, she can predict Twilight.
Spike, on the other hand? His plan will be unexpected. That has to be an improvement.
Gotta be 1. Twilight has thought through the possibilities, let's trust her.
We're questioning why cozy cares at this point.
1. No way is Medical waste processing going to be monitored, except maybe a warning light to show when it's in use and when there's a malfunction. It seems like the best plan that keeps the Equinox from major harm.
9594677
It would be downright comical at this point if the rolls were good and Spike beat Cozy. Like a game of cosmic whack-a-mole.
"Your base has turned into a swarm of robots trying to kill everypony!"
*Twilight used Pinkie Sense*
*It's super effective!*
*Robots Fainted*
"Well, crap, then... uhh... Cozy broke out of Cryo and jacked the Equinox!"
*Twilight used Spike 'Em*
*It's super effective!*
*Cozy Glow fainted*
9594638
That's not America's ass!
IDK why you suddenly went with a new poll option... did something happen?
Anywho its apparent that Cozy need to be dealt with in a permanent fashion, she shouldnt have been able to get loose but she did and thats costing them too much
Gonna go with 1. It's no more (or less) dangerous than the others, and it sounds as reasonable as anything else does. Here's hoping...
9594610
Unless, Cozy is lying (which, admittedly, is entirely possible), Fluttershy, Spike, and Cozy Glow will be taking the escape pod once the Equinox is incapable of escaping its decaying orbit. They're all safe if Spike and Fluttershy do nothing.
The ponies in danger are Applejack, Rarity, Rainbow Dash, Pinkie Pie, and potentially Apple Bloom, who are basically in comas after trying to use the Contingency (which Cozy Glow doesn't know about). AB is probably better off, being a robot, and hints suggest that the Contingency has uploaded their minds into a virtual space. If that's the case,AB could potentially download her mind again, but it wouldn't be so easy for the others, especially if their bodies die in the mean time.
9590018
The writer-god has listened, and the writer-god has answered. (@doompownr, I would have tagged your comment from last chapter, but, you know, spoilers.)
Alright. Into the incinerator, up to the computer, flip a switch (turning off cameras as a side effect), and on to defeat
GLaDOSCozy Glow.9594610
Well, I mean, it doesn't specify that anyone dies so it can't be that bad! /s
9597300
Cozy might not want the crew dead.
Now, was she saying that just to keep the prisoners in medical or did she mean that? That's up for debate. (And I think I'm leaning towards the first option.) But I have no doubt Cozy is going to try to get into that pod.
Side note, if she gets away from the crew at any time, open fire with extreme prejudice. The things she could do while out sight for 40+ chapters with unknown tech on an unknown world... *shudders* I don't need to tell you why that would be bad.
Oh for the love of... Every other character who came out of cryosleep was a mess who could barely move. We were told repeatedly that back to back freezing could be fatal, yet after freezing their resident lunatic, she's suddenly up and doing carwheels as she takes over the ship? Really?
9598416
She's been out of Cryosleep for a while now.
She has compromised the computer systems and had an "automatic wakey-wakey" routine in there.
The most dangerous kind of villains are the ones who beilive that they are doing the right thing.