• Published 31st Jan 2019
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Starship Ponyville: Homeward - Vylet Pony



Satyrn ventures across the galaxy on the Starship Ponyville in the search to find a place to found New Equestria. However, the mission digresses when they're attacked during an asteroid excavation.

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XIII. Penumbra

(In Equestria)
June 17, 2051 / 9:23am

Statera was formally assimilated as a dependant city-state of Equestria after it was liberated from Satellite. In the months that followed the liberation, the promises of a better life there became a false hope as Equestrian sovereignty fell into its depression; it became unable to revitalize the broken city. It had become an anarchic slum, though this wasn’t a new development to those who were living there before.

The mists that suppressed the city from the rest of the world had dissipated without Satellite’s magic. Dazzling billboards and neon signs beckoned outsiders to a counterfeit sojourn that had been staged upon a sinister grave. The destitute wandered the dirt avenues into any one of the gaudy taverns that lined the streets. Copious apartment complexes permeated the majority of the municipality, and an enormous steel wall encompassed the city. The central spire had been left untouched and uninhabited, as it had been severely damaged and left unattended as a result of the offensive that Satyrn led against Satellite.

Starlight trotted against the dusty trails of Statera. She was a pink unicorn with a purple and mint-green mane, and bright violet eyes to match. Glancing through each avenue she made her way down the central street, but she couldn’t keep her eyes off of the spire that loomed daunting over. The city smelled of dirt and charred rubble. Citizens would stare at Starlight warily as she passed by.

When Starlight eventually entered the spire, she prepared her AMCD so that she could record any findings to share with Satyrn. Although it would seem redundant for a unicorn to use a device like an AMCD, the long-range communication was not possible through any spells known by even a gifted unicorn (it would take the power of an alicorn to be able to communicate such colossal lengths). Starlight began to descend the spiral staircase, down to the enigmatic underworld that lay below.


A magnificently sinister chamber lay below Statera. Large glass stained windows spanned the walls of the main passageway that led to Satellite’s empty throne room. The chandeliers that hung from the beams were as macabre as they were ornate; they casted an eerie fluorescence with their green crystalline nodules, which radiated hauntingly. Crude cobblestone floors stretched through the labyrinth of halls and corridors in what seemed to be an endless maze.

Starlight peered into the throne room, where the battle between Satyrn and Satellite had taken place. The corpses had long been disposed of, but a familiar lifeless stench hung about. As she advanced into the room, Starlight noticed various runes and carvings that were embedded throughout the throne, which towered nearly ten feet above her. She ran her hooves along the imprints and examined them closely.

In a moment of abruptness, Starlight convulsed and collapsed to the floor. An agonizing pain swelled through her head and into her body. She writhed and screamed in a surreal display of torment. Then, all was silent. Trembling, Starlight struggled to right herself on all four hooves.. She was surprised to see that everything had disappeared; she was no longer in the throne room, but, rather, was surrounded by absolute nothingness. Her eyes widened as she began to whirl around madly in a pitiful attempt to assess her predicament. Her horn radiated profusely as she searched for any clues to what had transpired.

“My dear, do not be frightened,” a serene voice echoed through the darkness.

“Who’s there?” Starlight’s voice cracked. She was shivering, and her body had become strangely weak.

“It will come to pass, you have my word. Be at ease.” An amorphous blaze materialized before Starlight and it began to contort, becoming the shape of a pony. A figure emerged from the embers, “I don’t intend to harm you,” it assured her.

“Who are you? Where am I?” Starlight demanded, her voice faltered.

As the blaze dissipated, the figure became clear. Spectre stood amongst Starlight in the darkness. “You are still in Statera,” he said.

“Then where in Statera am I?”

“You are in the throne room.”

“What is going on?!”

Spectre drifted closely towards Starlight. He settled onto the ethereal plane where she stood. “We are in your mind.”

Starlight staggered backwards, “That’s… impossible. Only the Princesses have the capacity for this kind of magic.”

“Look into your heart, you know what I say is true.”

“But how…”

The alicorn paced around Starlight. He moved in a theatrical and dramatic manner, exaggerating his movements as if he were performing in a play, “I know what you’ve done,” he taunted.

“I… I don’t understand,” Starlight was faint-hearted.

“All those years ago. Subjugating and shackling the lives of so many. All in the name of Equality.”

“The Equality Village.”

“Yes, the very same. Does that guilt still linger, Starlight? So many years of so many lives, wasted!” Spectre raised his voice in an damning display, causing Starlight to wince acutely. He stood before her, “Is this arrogant act of treachery compensation for your crimes?”

Starlight’s eyes began to tear up, “That was so long ago! I’m only trying to pass information along, nothing more,” she opposed him.

“You had been the voice of reason and truth for Twilight, ever since the day you were forgiven. Why sully your honesty with lies?” Spectre glared, patronizing Starlight. It was clear he was beginning to display a temper, but he quickly settled down and composed himself, “I am no ally to the crown. Yet surely you can understand my suspicions.”

“Just leave me alone. Let me go back.” Starlight looked back at him firmly. “These things were all long behind me. I’ve changed.”

“How sure are you? You are endangering your friends’ lives by being here.”

“Go away.”

Spectre opened his mouth slightly, as if he had something more to say. Instead, he simply grinned, and a magic aura surrounded him. In an instant, he had disappeared.

The gravel was frigid beneath Starlight as her eyes fluttered open. She shuddered up onto her hooves and surveyed the room. Nothing had changed. Rubbing her eyes, she took out her AMCD and began capturing photos of the throne. After she had taken enough, she warily left the room.

Starlight attempted to navigate the maze of hallways. During the infiltration, the Equestrian Task Force did not have the opportunity to explore the spire further, as their goal was to stop Satellite as quickly as possible. The further Starlight explored, the more lost she became. Slowly, Starlight’s expression became more frantic as the corridors began to seem familiar to her, yet she was unable to navigate anywhere.

She wandered aimlessly for about 20 minutes without any idea as to where she was going. Soon enough, she began to trot frantically. Her pace became faster and faster as the halls seemed to repeat at every twist and turn. The same paintings. The same windows. The same divergence at every end.

“Where am I? Where am I?” Starlight questioned herself aloud. Her horn sparked about as she tried several spells, in an attempt to reveal hidden paths and to see through walls. It was as if the chambers had a magic of their own, and they refused to let her have any chance. She started rushing every which way as an insanity came about her. Eventually, she came to a place where four paths met. She threw herself into the middle of it, and broke down. Tears streamed down her face onto the brisk floor.

“My dear… you know it to be true,” Spectre’s voice entered her head.

“Shut up!” Starlight was covering her ears in a futile attempt to shut him out as she weeped by herself.

“How long you have run from your past? Deep down, we are imbued with a sinister aspect. You’ve tried for so long to deny your craving.”

“Who do you think you are! You don’t know anything about me!”

“I am he who will cleanse Equestria from its wretched crown. Your heart has been suppressed to value friendship over truth.”

Starlight screamed through her tears, “Just stop with this facade! If you’re so powerful and righteous, how about you come right here and face me instead of taunting me from a distance like the coward you are!”

“Your invitation is generous, my dear. Now run along and keep deceiving yourself,” Spectre said. “If silence could speak for a moment, you could hear her say: ‘When the wind blows, that’s a warning. But when the storm comes, that’s the end.’” he said this slowly, as if he were serenading her.

“Fuck off!”

Starlight’s voice rang out. Her shouts echoed through the halls. No further response came. She wiped her eyes and sat for a moment to recover. A few moments later, she stood up, and considered the different paths before her. She contemplated each of them, evaluating and examining them with a deep scrutiny. Suddenly, she felt a wind blowing from what appeared to be the northernmost corridor, which she began to follow.

Unlike the other hallways, this one continued down for a long time. She trotted for nearly 10 minutes before finally reaching the end of it. A large doorway stood 20 feet tall, opulently carved and painted with a scene of Satellite murdering the original founders of Statera. As she drew closer, the doors opened on their own.

She advanced cautiously into the chasm. Her horn illuminated the room to reveal hundreds of corpses sprawled out along the floor. Starlight gasped and covered her mouth, staring blankly at the carcasses, which bore a compelling resemblance to the hive mind changelings. Most of them were impaled with daggers, though some still held a dagger, even in death.

“They died by their own accord,” Spectre’s voice was heard again.

“They… killed themselves?” Starlight’s voice trembled.

“Satellite had instructed them to take their own lives, should he have been compromised in any way. When Satyrn defeated him, they scattered here to the Ardent Crossing.”

A gentle wind came from behind Starlight and blew towards the end of the room. She discovered an open door that led to another dark chamber. Looking back toward the bodies, her face became sympathetic.

“Even in war, the loss of life is a tragedy,” Spectre sighed.

Starlight bent down by one of the remains, “In this state, they seem so innocent,” Starlight examined. The room itself resembled the place that Satyrn and Vylet had discovered on CX38; monitors and machines sat on counters and desks. Plastered onto them was the same geometric symbol from the asteroid. Starlight gestured to one of them, “Can you tell me what this is?” she asked.

“It is the crest of my kingdom.”


“What is it doing here?” Starlight pondered. She looked around trying to determine if the voice was still coming through her head. Nopony was around.

“Satellite was once my second in command. This room transmits and receives data and other information between my communication outposts.”

“Why are you telling me this?”

“Unlike Celestia, I fight for a noble cause. I have nothing to hide, and nothing to keep from you.”

“So, I ask again, why haven’t you actually shown yourself then?” Starlight challenged him.

There was no answer.

Starlight photographed and documented the room,stepping over the corpses as she made her way towards the doorway at the other end of the room, she found herself on a bridge known as the Ardent Crossing. It arced far down into an endless abyss that sank below. Down and on the other side of the bridge, a monsterous cathedral stood reaching the ceiling of the chamber. It was gothic and quaint. Starlight could hear bells begin to ring out ad-infinitum. She made her way down to the basilica entrance.

The room was unlike the gothic appearance of its exterior; the style and substance of the spire’s corridors were echoed in the aesthetics of the interior. As she walked down the aisle, Starlight noticed a throne much like Satellite’s, only it was golden, and made for a pony of her size. The same runes and inscriptions were present across its finish. A wind howled through from the entrance towards it, pulling her attention to a ghostly aspect of Spectre, who was sitting on the throne. The spirit was monochromatic and translucent.

“Will you ever actually show yourself?” Starlight derided him.

“I am very far from Equestria. Such an extensive teleportation spell would take some time to recover from.”

“And you’re saying you’ve done that before?” Starlight was suddenly bewildered.

Spectre nodded, his mane followed his head weightlessly, “My power is only fathomed by few.”

“Why do you keep following me. To scare me?”

“I have said so already that I wish to simply warn you of your actions. When you report back to your friends with what you have found here, you will trigger the beginning of the end.”

Starlight stared at him, her eyes questioning, “It was nice of you to give me an unguided tour of this place, but everything here is stained with blood. I should know better than to trust anyone with any relation to Satellite.”

“We are not so different, Starlight. One day, I will free Equestria from the shackles that Celestia has made for you. Yet, while your mind is still imprisoned, you are simply a penumbra of your former self.”

“Go to hell.”

Spectre gazed down at her, his expression was that of feigned benevolence, “Then perhaps my visit has been without reason.” He smiled disturbingly.

“So be it,” Starlight’s horn glared suddenly, and a massive bolt of magic shot out to strike the vision of Spectre. Dust and rubble blew about from the blast. When the dust and debris cleared, the throne had been destroyed and Spectre was nowhere to be seen. All that was left at the front of the cathedral was a torn flag with Spectre’s emblem on it. Starlight could swear she heard thunder rumble outside the spire as she started to find her way back out.


(At the Norphae landing site)
June 18, 2051 [Sol 68]
11:40A.M. Equestria Time / 3:42P.M. Norphae Local Time

Starlight contacted Satyrn later that afternoon. Everything that she had documented in Statera was sent to be analyzed by Satyrn, Vylet, and Sylver. She also described her encounter with the aspect of a powerful alicorn. Satyrn explained that his name was Spectre, and that she had encountered him in his physical form herself before they evacuated CX38.

“I’ve told you everything I could find out. What now?” Starlight’s voice came through the watch.

“I’m not sure…” Satyrn replied.

“The asteroid, the changelings, Spectre and Satellite; we know they’re all connected now.” Starlight’s tone was no longer skeptical.

“Yeah. I think it’s safe to say that Celestia knows something about this. I’m not sure if we’ve been out here searching for a planet to terraform after all.”

“Otherwise, wouldn’t Norphae be the answer to the overpopulation crisis? It’s similar to Equestria aside from—”

“Aside from the eternal winter,” Satyrn managed to chuckle.

“Yeah, that… Spectre told me he wanted to cleanse Equestria of its crown. Do you think he could mean Celestia?”

Satyrn tilted her head in contemplation. “That could be why we were attacked on the asteroid.”

“Do I tell Luna what we’ve discovered?” Starlight questioned. Satyrn sat for a moment to consider this.

Rayna floated up from the watch to give Satyrn a dismal look. She shook her head, “If Celestia is hiding something, so is Luna. I don’t think this is out of character for them, considering nopony other than those who were invited onto the expedition knew about the starship program.” She drifted onto Satyrn’s shoulder. “I mean, Luna had already been spying on other ponies’ dreams.”

Satyrn blushed. “Isn’t that her job, though? She’s, the Princess of the Night.”

“From what I know, she used to only monitor ponies’ dreams when it was necessary and she wouldn’t stay for prolonged periods of time. She essentially spied on everypony when it came to this mission.”

Satyrn looked back to the watch and sighed; Starlight was still awaiting an answer.

“No. We can’t tell her. You need to keep this a secret for right now, Starlight.”

“Alright… I have to go then. I’ll let you know if I find anything else out.”

“That sounds good. We’ll let you know too.”

“We’ll talk soon.”

Author's Note:

Art by SolR