Chapter 2: A Peculiar Shadow Across the Moon
Chapter 2: A Peculiar Shadow Across the Moon
Luna looked up at her moon, satisfied with her efforts of bringing it up for the night. Feeling that it has been a good while since her last blue moon, she decided to treat her subjects to the softly glowing colored luminescence, the subjects who were still awake, anyway. ’Somepony out there better be having a romantic walk with their lover right now…’ she thought to herself.
Hoofsteps behind her caught her ear. She did not bother to turn around, already knowing who it was. “Come to behold my night with me, dear sister?” she asked.
“I have, little sister. Beautiful work as always.” Celestia replied, looking up at the sparkling night sky. She took note of the moon’s blue tinge, “A blue moon? Your last one was on Hearts and Hooves Day. What’s the occasion?”
“No occasion, Tia. It was on a whim.” Luna said.
Celestia let out a soft hum as she nodded her head in understanding, “Hmm… Still quite nice.”
The two sisters continued to admire the clear night sky, taking in the shining stars against the midnight blue canvas high above. As they did so, they noticed a peculiar shimmer on the moon. Turning their gaze towards the moon, they saw the shimmer begin to grow in size and contrast against the moon’s surface.
“What is this? What defaces my blue moon this night!?” Luna asked, her agitation evident in her tone of voice.
“I don’t know… What is that?”
The shimmer started to distort the space around it, bending the moon’s light into a central point. A tear in the fabric of space itself erupted from the point, a mysterious light emitting from the fissure. Luna and Celestia became alarmed at the rift, neither of them ever encountering such a thing.
“What… what are these eldritch lights?” Celestia muttered.
Luna did not say anything, instead continuing to stare at the growing rift. Her expression was a mixture of curiosity, wariness, and annoyance. It was not easy to conjure a blue moon’s namesake luminescence…
Without warning, something emerged from the rift. A ring in its general shape, the object possessed a number of peculiar features. The ring’s circumference was broken in one section and had an enormous sphere in its center. The ring and sphere sections of the object had a number of protrusions jutting out of them, antennae of some kind.
Given the sizable shadow the object was casting on the moon, it was absolutely immense in size. What could be so massive and not be a celestial body of some kind was beyond the two sisters.
“What is that?” Celestia asked again, her question more a voice for her astonishment than an actual inquiry.
“I know not, sister. No legend or prophecy I am familiar with speaks of anything like this.” Luna replied.
They continued to observe the emerged object, watching for any movement. Several minutes passed, and the object continued to defy any expectation of activity. It remained as still as the moon it overshadowed.
“It does not move.” Luna noted.
“Indeed.” Celestia concurred before releasing a yawn.
Luna looked over at her sister at that and noticed her weariness. “You should retire for the night, Tia. Worry not regarding this strange object. I will keep an eye on it.” she said.
Celestia seemed unsure at first, “Oh, alright then. But be sure to awaken me if anything happens, okay Luna?”
“Of course, sister. Now go! You seem positively exhausted!” Luna said, a concerned look on her face.
Celestia stifled a giggle, “Alright, aright. Goodnight Luna.”
“Goodnight Tia.”
At that, Celestia turned around and headed inside to her bedchambers, leaving Luna alone with her thoughts and the anomalous object high above the earth. Her displeasure at having her blue moon ruined had not faded as her sister went back inside the castle.
Tonight of all nights. My beautiful blue moon… If that thing is trouble…
----
… Reinitializing Bodily Systems…
Standby…
PSU-status:green,online
CPU-status:green,online
CNS-status:green,online
Movement Servos-status:green,online
Optical Sensors-status:green,online
Wake up, stupid…
OOM’s optical sensors flickered to life, bringing him back to the waking world. He had to wonder why his own BIOS was so crude at times. As his sight returned to him, he was met with a pilot droid hovering over him, his face mere inches away from his own.
“Are you alright, sir?” the pilot droid asked as he pulled back to give his commander some metaphorical breathing room.
“Just dandy, ensign.” OOM replied. Lifting his head and taking a look around, he found himself flat on his back in one of the bridge’s pits. ’I hate turbulence.’ he thought as his subordinate helped him to his feet.
Taking the ramp out of the pit, he made his way back to the captain’s nest. Alfalfa’s avatar manifested as he approached his chair, her crossed eyes indicating her disorientation. “Still with us, Alfalfa?” he asked.
Alfalfa auto-adjusted her avatar a couple times to clear away the cross-eyed expression before replying to him, “Ugh… Yeah, I’m good.”
OOM nodded, “Good. Status report.”
“Such a caring soul you are, sir.” she said sarcastically. OOM continued to stare at her. Sighing, she ran a ship-wide diagnostic check, verifying the status of all her systems. “All systems save the hyperdrive are green for the most part. Just a few things getting knocked loose. Only minor repairs needed.” she reported.
“What of the hyperdrive, then?” he asked.
Alfalfa hesitated for a moment before replying, trying to think of how to word her next sentence, “Let me put it this way, it looks like a bunch of quarians had their way with it.”
“That bad?”
The AI let out a despondent sigh, “Mhmm. Repairs are going to take a while.”
“Right. Initiate repairs, then. Next matter, our location. Where are we?” OOM asked as he sat down on his chair.
“Erm…”
He sat back and clasped his claws. “We’re lost, aren’t we?” he asked, more a statement than a question.
“Eeeyeah… Nav systems are fine, but all our navigational data is completely inconsistent with the environment. Star charts, fixed points, everything. It’s like we’re in another galaxy or something.” Alfalfa said.
That caught OOM’s attention, “Another galaxy? Really?”
“Well, yeah. It’s the only explanation I can think of, and that’s saying a lot, I hope you know. All observable stars, galactic features, they’re all wrong. At least according to our maps, anyway.”
Silence overcame the two as OOM quite literally processed what Alfalfa had just told him. Was it possible for droids to have migraines?
----
“So it hasn’t moved at all since last night?”
“No, Tia. It maintains its position high above the skies. I can feel it still there.”
The two royal sisters were discussing the mysterious object that had intruded upon Equestria’s skies the night before. They stood in the same balcony where they had witnessed the object’s arrival, their private spot of recluse when they desired a reprieve. They both looked up into the sky where the object appeared, it now hidden behind the veil of the blue day sky.
“So what should we do about this? The scholars we’ve tasked on this matter have yet to find anything relating to the object or its manner of appearance.” Luna said, looking down at the Canterlot Library.
Celestia shook her head slightly as she continued to stare up at the sky, “I’m not sure, Luna. I’m afraid that some of our little ponies may have seen its shadow across the moon last night and may be panicked about it, and possibly spreading their panic to others as we speak.”
“That would be problematic. Should we issue a statement?”
“Perhaps not now. For now, let us just hope that nopony else saw it. If word about it has indeed gotten around, then we’ll make a statement about it.” Celestia proposed.
Luna nodded, “Agreed.”
The two sisters looked up towards the sky one last time before turning around and heading inside, a feeling of trepidation overcoming them.
----
“So what of the planet below us?”
“Planetary scans are showing what looks like settlements on the surface, primitive ones, from what I can tell.” Alfalfa said as she brought up a scanned map image and a number of hazy close-up shots. OOM had decided to turn their attention to the planet who’s orbit they came out of hyperspace into while Alfalfa’s subroutines tried to make sense of their surroundings.
“There’s civilization down there?” he asked as he leaned forward, looking closely at the satellite images.
Alfalfa gave an affirmative hum, “Yeah, but as I said, it seems rather primitive. Actually, make that extremely primitive, as in just above ewoks. No power outputs, telecommunication signals, nada. Just thatch-roof buildings and dirt roads. It’s like this planet’s never been touched by galactic civilization.”
OOM quirked a nonexistent eyebrow, “No galactic presence of any kind? Not even an outpost or downed ship or escape pod with two clunkers inside it?”
“Nope. As far as galactic powers go, we’re all alone out here.”
He sat back and contemplated her words. Utter isolation like this was a completely new and alien situation to him, one he was not trained for. Or programmed for. His masters could not be bothered to at least print some standard isolated state protocols onto a sheaf of paper and stick it under his chair or something? He damned the Trade Federation’s stinginess once more.
Setting his arms on the armrests of his chair, OOM decided to do something to divert themselves while he tried to figure out what they ought to be ultimately working towards, because without any enslavement or mission directives, they were without purpose, a frightening state for any synthetic being.
“In that case, keep working on developing our orientation and prep six dozen vultures. We’re going to probe the planet.” he said.
Alfalfa raised an eyebrow at that, “Probe the planet, sir? You sure?”
OOM nodded, “Yes. It’d be inadvisable to not at all investigate the planet for any threats. Even a cursory check is better than nothing.”
“Fair enough. I guess those vacuum tubes you call a strategic analyzer is worth the silicon used to make them after all.” she said noncommittally.
“You’re just mad I thought of it first.” he shot back.
“Whatever. Prepping droid starfighters for planetary deployment. Their posture?” she asked.
OOM brought a claw up to his chin, thinking for a moment. “Weapons hold. Only an armed response if under severe threat. And tell them to try and be discreet.” he ordered.
“Discreet? Where’s the fun in that? C’mon… can’t we haze the natives a little bit?” she asked him.
“Negative.”
“Please? Think of all the hilarious screenshots we can get!”
“No.”
“But, but screenshots… Pretty please?” she asked with puppy eyes.
OOM relented at the AI’s unbearably dewy eyes, “… Only a little bit.”
“Yes!” Alfalfa exclaimed, badly wishing for a fist she could pump victoriously.
----
DFS-4VR assumed his position besides his fellow droid starfighters in the main hangar bay, the tips of his wings clattering across the hangar’s metal floor. They were to serve as impromptu planetary probes, investigating the planet’s surface for potential threats as well as helping command develop a general idea of its overall terrain.
Something peculiar about their mission parameters was the posture they were to assume. They were to hold weapons unless in extreme danger, an odd directive considering their usual areas of operation of actively hostile combat zones. Not that 4VR was complaining. He preferred not being shot at over being shot at by a significant margin, and it was refreshing to be on a mission in which the objective was to take in the sights while on a pleasant stroll with lovely scenery.
Something else that caught his attention was the directive to be “very thorough” in their reconnaissance, the words having been bolded and further emphasized with a red font color. They were also encouraged to take pictures. A lot of pictures. 4VR bore no complaints about this either. He had always wanted to take up scrapbooking.
A bright green light in the upper left corner of his vision signified the start of the mission. 4VR crouched down before jumping up into the air, his four legs realigning themselves into their flight configuration. His brothers followed suit, and soon all six dozen designated droid starfighters were hovering in a loose formation, ready to take off at a moment’s notice. Without warning, the ones at the forefront of the group shot forward, zipping out of the ship’s main hangar. Then the next group, then the next. Soon it was 4VR’s group’s turn. They ignited their engines and rocketed out of the hangar and down towards the planet at great speed.
As they readied themselves to penetrate the planet’s atmosphere, 4VR found himself smitten with the prospect of exploring a strange new environment without being under fire for once, and he was going to enjoy every minute of it.
'It’ll be like those organics’ holidays!'
----
“You guys got any ideas on how to get our cutie marks?”
“Nope.”
“Nu uh.”
It was a slow day for the Cutie Mark Crusaders. They had rolled around disinterestedly on the floor of their clubhouse for the last two hours, trying to think of a way to finally earn their frustratingly evasive symbols of their life’s calling. Their efforts had yet to yield any fruit beyond an encroaching headache.
“Ugh! We’ve been thinking for hours now!” Sweetie Belle complained.
“You’d think we would’ve gotten our cutie marks in brainstorming or something by now.” Scootaloo commented.
“What’d that even look like?” Applebloom asked, nonplussed at how such a talent would even be visually represented.
The orange pegasus filly only shrugged, “I don’t know… Like a brain?”
“Who’d want a brain on their flank forever?” Sweetie asked, making a gagging noise to accentuate her point.
“Yeah… good point.” Scootaloo admitted.
The three fillies fell silent, the last of their allotted cognitive abilities to concocting a way to discover their special talents draining completely. They became momentarily brain dead, staring listlessly at the ceiling. The sudden rumble of their stomachs broke the silence, their cheeks collectively reddening in slight embarrassment at the simultaneous protest of their guts.
Applebloom got to her hooves as she looked at her friends. “Well, no use belly achin’ on an empty… belly. How ‘bout we head over to Sugarcube Corner fer’ lunch?” she suggested.
Her two friends rolled off their backs and onto their hooves. “Eh, sounds good to me.” Scootaloo said.
Sweetie nodded her head in agreement, “Mhmm!”
Just as the three began out the door, a most peculiar noise caught their ears. It was a piercing hum with an occasional stutter and sounded vaguely electrical in nature. Immediately they retreated back into their clubhouse, visibly spooked by the alien noise.
“What was that?” Sweetie asked in a hushed voice.
“I don’t know.” Scootaloo replied.
The hum drew closer to the clubhouse, a fact that did not go unnoticed by the Crusaders. “It’s gettin’ closer!” Applebloom whispered.
“Quick! Close the curtains!” Sweetie said, her tone panicked. They hopped right to it, rushing to each window and closing it as quietly as they could. The interior of the clubhouse was soon darkened, only a few cracks of light coming through the curtains. They had taken to a far corner of their clubhouse, huddling together away from all the windows as far as they could.
The hum came closer to the clubhouse before giving way to a series of sounds that could only be described as mechanical, metallic clanking and whirring drowning out the electrical hum.
For a brief moment, silence.
The heavy hoofsteps of something BIG suddenly sounded from outside. A whir accompanied each hoofstep, suggesting a highly unnatural nature of whatever was out there. The hoofsteps came up right to the clubhouse, earning a frightened squeak from Sweetie, which was immediately silenced by her friends’ hooves.
Another moment of silence.
Suddenly, something began tapping one of the windows. Applebloom and Scootaloo had to suppress a frightened squeak themselves. The tapping ceased as whatever was out there moved towards another window and began tapping it. This repeated for each window, making their collective heart rates spiking with each reoccurrence.
By its hoofsteps, they could hear the monster outside circle around the clubhouse, likely checking for any possible entrances it did not notice at first. Tracking the noisy movements of the monster, their gaze eventually settled on the window across from them. They became horrified. They had left it open, only its curtains providing any sort of obstruction.
It seemed they were not the only ones to realize this, as the noises outside settled in front of the open window.
The next few seconds were absolutely torturous for the three friends, the anxiety of what was yet to happen making them break out into a cold sweat, their hearing filled with the rapid beating of their own hearts.
Finally, their expectations were fulfilled. The monster poked an appendage, they presumed its head, through the open window. It was an oval dome in shape and possessed two long vertical slits that were presumably its eyes, boring into them with their crimson glow that was accentuated by the darkened interior of the clubhouse.
The monster tilted its head and leaned in closer, examining its terrified prey. Suddenly it reared its head back and released a terrible screech, signifying the start of its attack.
“(skCHZZZZZZZZCH!)”
----
4VR honestly did not know what to expect when he sighted the hovel-like structure that was built atop a tree, though he suspected an ewok presence given the similar premise.
Rather, he was met with a trio of quadruped organic forms that could be ascribed such qualifiers as “incredibly adorable, irresistibly huggable, sickeningly cute,” and “diabetes-inducing.” It was a good thing he was a droid.
Figuring that starting a dialogue with the natives of this planet was a good way to begin his investigation, he decided to strike up a conversation with the three beings before him, banking that they were sentient and not just some house pets.
“(Salutations fellow quadrupeds!)” he greeted them with cheer, trying to establish a commonality of them all walking on four legs.
His greeting was returned with terrified screams.
He recoiled slightly at the high-pitched screams of the three fillies.
’Goodness… Was it something I said?’
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Minor nitpick nobody cares about; If a bunch of quarians had their way with a hyperdrive, wouldn't it work even better than before?
Otherwise, mmmyes, high hopes for this. Truck on.
....i love it
im glad your not like
"HERPA HERPA LASERS KILL EVERYTHINGERMEKING! -pew pew pew-"
nice to see your making this funny
Ha, this looks interesting. Can't wait to see how this interaction goes. On a positive note, maybe the princess's can hire them and give them a mission/purpose?
MORE!!!
please
HAHAHAHAHHAA
Tis' should continue.
'Friendly' Droids in Equestria... *Cue massive Approve Stamp*
"I still can't seem to hit anything."
Famous last words of a B1 Battle droid before being destroyed by General Grievous
Bahahaha, that mental image.
This story is awesome. Please involve an IG-100 Magnaguard
img2.wikia.nocookie.net/__cb20080821015201/starwars/images/5/5d/MagnaGuard.jpg
or a B3 Ultra Battle Droid
img1.wikia.nocookie.net/__cb20060717183028/starwars/images/7/7a/B3_ultra_battle_droid.JPG
Those things are massive and Sasse Tinn remarked that he would trade his lightsaber for a Turbolaser to kill that thing
HEY IT'S ME
I'M FAMOUS
4874028 most if not all Magnaguards are with Grievous so it'd take some explaining for why one would be separate from him
5070202 Roger roger!
5717753 magna guards where originally intended as assassins until Greivous took a liking to them
Also to the author, why no update!?
Please, for the love of all things living, and non-living, continue this story!
More Please!
PLEASE continue this.
Lucky droid.
Hell, I love this Vulture Droid!
This is hilarious! xD Why did you stop writing it?
Salutations fellow quadrupeds!)” he greeted them with cheer, trying to establish a commonality of them all walking on four legs.
His greeting was returned with terrified screams.
He recoiled slightly at the high-pitched screams of the three fillies.
’Goodness… Was it something I said?’
Hahahahahahahahahaahhahaha, o mmyyyyyy gggaaaaaaaawwwwwwwwwwdddd I love this story......ppfffffttthhhahahahahahahhaahhahhahahaahhahahahahhahahahhahahahhahahahahah
Just added this story to my Group The Seperatist Alliance
Well rip the rest of this fic
*laughing* THAT'D an interesting sight.
Okay....now this is epic