The Galactic Federation is on the brink of destruction, forced into a corner by the human-supremacist Rebels. The crew of The Kestrel find the help they desperately need in an unlikely location.
The galaxy is in peril. The Galactic Federation is on the verge of being destroyed by the human supremacist Rebels, and their last hope is Captain Chris Malott and the crew of The Kestrel.
While fleeing the Rebel Fleet, the crew investigates a planet with signs of intelligent life, obtaining help in a way they never would've expected.
With the help of their newfound allies, can Captain Malott and his crew save the Federation? Or is the Milky Way Galaxy doomed to be oppressed by the Rebels and their hatred for anything not human?
Extremely special thanks to GIULIO for helping me with editing! This fic would still be as stiff as sandpaper without your help! EDIT: GIULIO has been promoted to the rank of coauthor! This should make the fic better than before, as well as make it easier to crank out chapters!
3/1/2017, 5:45 PM MST: In the popular box already? Wow! Sure, it's not exactly Featured, but it's a close second! I'll take it!
A rectangular starship, one that looked more like a collection of junk thrown together to somewhat resemble a misshapen metal donut, suddenly jumped to a Faster Than Light (FTL) beacon that hadn’t been used in quite some time. The system housing the beacon didn’t match the descriptions from Galactic Federation star charts at all; somehow, the system was geocentric, which was supposed to be scientifically impossible.
“New objective: investigate central planet,” the humanoid robotic lifeform in the captain’s chair ordered in an emotionless female monotone.
“Affirmative, Captain,” another robotic lifeform replied as the green rectangular screen that served as its eyes started scrolling letters and numbers. “Linkup complete. Now piloting ship to central planet. New science ours upon arrival. Benefit both Engi society and Galactic Federation.”
These beings were known as Engi: fully-sapient, robotic lifeforms who lacked most emotions and were made of nanites instead of cells. In spite of their almost complete lack of emotions, they still had their own forms of entertainment, and clung to the same social structures as many of the more organic races.
As the ship approached the planet in the center of the system a comet collided with their ship, disabling the shields and heavily-damaging the oxygen system. Even the mechanical Engi needed to breathe, and no oxygen would quickly become a problem.
As warning lights blared and alarms went off, the crew aboard the ship didn’t panic. There was only a strong sense of urgency about them as they employed their race’s knack for machinery to try to repair things quickly.
“Captain, message from engine room,” the pilot announced. “Engine performance depleting rapidly. Immediate emergency landing highly recommended by engineer. Awaiting orders.”
“Commence emergency landing procedures,” the captain replied after taking a picosecond to process the information. “Repair ship on planet surface.”
“Affirmative,” the pilot replied, taking hold of the controls in the event of linkup failure.
The ship entered the planet’s atmosphere, but was struck by a meteor on the way down, which smashed into the already failing engines, shutting them off entirely as the engineer scrambled to repair them.
“Captain, impact imminent,” the pilot announced. “Requesting orders.”
“Aim helm at upward angle of 45 degrees. Change trajectory and reduce damage from impact,” the captain replied. “Expected probability of crew survival with successful trajectory change… 86.34 percent. Expected probability of crew survival with no trajectory change… 0.56 percent. Probability with incomplete trajectory change incalculable within allotted time preceding impact.”
The pilot wrestled with the controls after wireless communication with the navigation computer failed to work, but even the manual controls were sluggish in their response. It was too late to pull up enough, and the spacecraft smashed into the ground in a formerly-serene forest, crushing trees and scaring away animals that weren’t killed by the impact. The entire crew perished instantly upon impact, and the resounding crash heard for miles was followed by dead silence aboard the cruiser as all lights went dark.
Moments earlier, in a settlement near the aforementioned forest, brightly-colored sapient equine lifeforms who called themselves “ponies” looked up to see the approaching object. Fear quickly gripped the residents of the town of Ponyville when they realized the object was headed straight for the town. Before they could even begin to panic however, the object began to tilt upwards, changing its trajectory enough to miss Ponyville and plummet into the Whitetail Woods instead.
CRASH!
The sound of the impact could be heard for miles in every direction, and though most of the residents decided it would be best to just leave it be, a lilac Alicorn Princess wanted to investigate. That was no meteor.
With that in mind, Twilight Sparkle left her tree castle and made a beeline for the impact site. Along the way, a yellow pegasus joined her, a very worried expression on the newcomer’s face.
“Oh, hi Fluttershy,” Twilight said, addressing the mare, “What’s wrong?”
“The poor animals must be terrified after that thing crashed,” Fluttershy replied with almost motherly concern. “I have to help in whatever way I can.”
Twilight smiled. Fluttershy’s concern was heartwarming to see.
“Well, as for myself, I want to inspect the impact site itself,” Twilight explained, in spite of not being asked. “Whatever that was, it wasn’t a meteor.”
“Oh, my,” Fluttershy replied quietly. “Do you think it’s dangerous?”
“We’ll find out when we get there,” Twilight said with a shrug. “If it’s dangerous, we can head straight back to Ponyville and get help.”
Fluttershy nodded, and the two went silent; the woods were abnormally quiet for the middle of summer. Whatever had crashed into the woods had apparently shocked every living thing into dead silence.
After an hour of nothing but the sounds of their own hoofbeats, the two reached a crater in the ground where the trees that had been there were snapped in half, thrown in every direction.
Fluttershy separated from Twilight to check on the animals in the area, and Twilight continued to approach the crater until she finally saw what had crashed: an amalgamation of parts that resembled junk loosely held together to take the shape of a lopsided rectangle with a gap in the center.
“What is that?” Twilight asked aloud. “And where did it come from?”
“Beats me,” a raspy voice responded from behind Twilight, causing the the Alicorn to jump into the air and spin around, gasping for breath.
“Rainbow Dash! Don’t startle me like that!” Twilight berated the multi-hued pegasus. “How long were you following us?”
“The four of us saw ya two leave Ponyville,” Applejack cut in as she joined them. “We couldn’t let ya’ll go alone.”
“Thanks for the concern, Applejack,” Twilight said with a smile, also noting the arrival of Pinkie Pie and Rarity. “I came here to inspect whatever that thing is. Does anypony have any ideas?”
“It looks like a starship!” Pinkie exclaimed, bouncing excitedly.
The other five turned to stare at her, their expressions all asking the same question: What the buck is a starship?
“You know, like the ones from Spike’s science fiction comics!” Pinkie explained. She was met with more confused stares. “You haven’t read any of them?” The others shook their heads. “Well, it’s a ship that flies between worlds!”
Rarity shook her head. “Pinkie, dear. Wouldn’t such a craft have to be elegant? You have to leave a good first impression when you go somewhere new. This is just a pile of junk!”
“What about that?” Pinkie exclaimed, pointing a hoof at a large rectangle of metal in an indentation in the side of the object. “It’s gotta be a door!”
“Well, let’s see if you’re right,” Twilight said hopefully before approaching it. She lit up her horn to engulf the panel in her magic, but the instant the magic touched it the aura around the door split apart, with magic flying in all directions before fading into nothing.
Taking a deep breath, Twilight focused more magic to her horn than before and wrapped the door in magic again. Once again, the magic instantly flew everywhere, charging the air before dissipating and making everypony’s fur stand on end.
Growling at the stubborn piece of metal, Twilight focused even more magic to her horn, causing the magenta glow to bathe the entire area, washing out all other colors. Now bent on wrenching the door open no matter what, Twilight covered the door in a thick layer of magic, which still exploded in all directions, this time severely damaging a tree before fading to nothing.
Biting back a scream of frustration, Twilight focused so much magic to her horn that the aura around it became blinding.
After noting the shattered tree, Applejack quickly cantered over to Twilight and placed a hoof on her shoulder. “Sugarcube? Ah think Ah should handle this. Ah’m gettin’ the feelin’ magic ain’t gonna work.”
Twilight opened her mouth to protest that it was impossible for magic to not work, but Applejack stopped her and simply gave the piece of metal a hard buck, sending it flying into the object’s interior.
“Ow…” the farmpony grunted before announcing, “There ya go, Twi! See? It’s open now!”
Twilight stared for a couple seconds before she tried to save face. “I loosened it for you, at least,” she grumbled.
Pinkie bounced up to Twilight, gave her a caring smile and said, “Don’t worry, Twilight! I’m sure you’ll get it next time.”
Twilight sighed but nodded, right before Pinkie bounced away towards the metal object. The party pony bounced right through the opening and shouted, “C’mon, girls! We’ve got a ship to explore!”
“I still doubt something like this could be a ship of any type,” Rarity groaned as she and the others followed the pink mare inside.
After Applejack bucked down another door, they found a room with a strange metal object with a red medical cross adorning it, as well as three bipedal metal forms collapsed on the ground.
“See? Aliens!” Pinkie cried excitedly.
The majority of the group stared at Pinkie in stunned silence, but Twilight shook her head and approached the party pony.
“Pinkie,” Twilight groaned, “There’s no such thing as…” She suddenly noticed the appearance of the forms on the ground and did a double take. “Aliens?”
Twilight was stunned into silence like the rest, but Rarity regained her composure and trotted over to one of the clusters of scattered parts that vaguely resembled bipedal entities, placed a hoof behind what appeared to be the closest thing to a head, then glared at the green rectangle she assumed served as its equivalent to eyes.
“Franky, I am appalled at the appearance of this ‘craft’ you arrived in!” the fashionista exclaimed. “Have you ever heard of ‘first impressions’? By the look of this poorly-designed excuse for a ‘ship’, it certainly looks like you don’t!” She clicked her tongue, shaking her head in disappointment.
The being didn’t say anything in response, nor did it do anything to show it heard Rarity at all.
“Don’t you know it’s rude to ignore a lady?” Rarity snapped, “Don’t they teach that where you come from?”
“Rarity?” Pinkie cut in. “You’re talking to a girl.”
“How did you…?” Rarity began before blinking and cutting off. “Never mind. I don’t think I want to know.”
“I think they’re all busted,” Dash remarked, getting up close to one of the beings. “They didn’t move at all while Rarity yelled at them.”
“You mean, they’re dead?” Fluttershy gasped. “The poor dears!”
“They’re made of metal,” Twilight remarked. “I think I can revive them. I’ll just take them home with me and try to energize them with magic.”
With that, Twilight carefully wrapped one of them in magic, but before she could lift it, the magic scattered, just like it had with the door from earlier.
“Not this again!” Twilight huffed. “Rainbow? Pinkie? Applejack? Could you help me get them home?”
“Okie dokie lokie!” Pinkie chirped as the other two mentioned mares nodded. The three of them each put one of the metal beings on their backs and the group left the ship, heading back towards Ponyville.
Once they had arrived back at Twilight’s castle the procession headed to the basement, where Twilight’s lab had been relocated to after the loss of the library she used to live in.
The three metal beings were laid out on a large table, and Twilight bid her friends farewell as they left before turning to her three new specimens.
“Let’s see if I can wake you up,” the Alicorn muttered as she pulled on a lab coat and goggles. She aimed her horn at the one Pinkie had called a girl and tried to probe “her” body for anywhere that could be easily shocked so as to to revive the metal being.
Still, just like before, the magic split apart as if repelled, and Twilight groaned. This could take years to figure out.
Captain Chris Malott of The Kestrel sighed as he observed the remains of the Rebel ship his crew had worked together to destroy. They had only recently begun to flee from the accursed human supremacists to bring the knowledge of how to beat them to Earth a few days ago, and things were already looking grim.
Sure, they had gotten lucky and found a Slug mercenary at a space station and convinced her to join them. The Rebels were still in hot pursuit however, and they showed no signs of slowing.
As of April 2814—the previous month—the Galactic Federation was dead. At least, that’s what everyone believed. They might as well have been right, for the last remains of the Federation Fleet (with the lone exception of The Kestrel) were desperately trying to hold off the Rebel Fleet’s advances into the Federation’s original sector of Sol Prime, which contained the Federation base and capital planet: Earth.
“Captain Malott?” a female voice cut in over the intercom. “We’re approaching the FTL beacon you had me set a course for. We should reach it in approximately five minutes.”
“Acknowledged, Lieutenant Commander Noemi,” Malott replied after pushing a button on the captain’s chair to send his reply. “Once again, thank you for sticking with me through this. I know we lost all of our officers except me in our raid of Outpost Delta Seven, but—”
“No need for that, Captain,” a second female voice cut in. “We’re the only ones who can save the Federation. The Rebels will oppress the other citizen races of the Federation if we don’t stop them. We’re just doing our job.”
“I agree with Lieutenant Nazia,” a male voice added. “It’s an honor to serve with you, sir. The Kestrel may be outdated, but she’s all we’ve got. She’s the last cruiser of the Federation fleet not fighting at Sol Prime. Ironic that she was also the first Kestrel class cruiser ever built.”
“Ensssign Matthieu, know your placcce!” a third female voice snapped. “Captain Chrisss Malott isss well-known for captaining The Kessstrel all the way back when ssshe wasss the flagssship of the Federatttion fleet! I may not be human like the ressst of you, but I know my hissstory! We Ssslugsss aren’t alwaysss thinking about how to acquire more Ssscrap, you know! He’sss practically married to The Kessstrel!”
“Thank you, Ensign T’ten, but it’s fine,” Malott cut in before the argument could heat up. “I understand that she really is an old girl, but The Kestrel was retrofitted to make her spaceworthy again. She is all we have, and she can be a bit… temperamental at times, but we need to focus. The Rebels are seeking us so they can wipe us out before we arrive in the Federation Capital sector. We can’t let that happen.”
He shifted in his seat before asking, “Lieutenant Commander Noemi? Are we at the beacon now?”
“Yes, Captain,” Noemi’s voice replied. For a brief moment, all went quiet as the ship proceeded into the system. Suddenly Noemi’s systems produced a screen that caught her eye. After she took in what The Kestrel’s systems were telling her, Noemi gaped.
“Impossible,” she muttered under her breath, as she punched in new commands into her console. Regardless of her attempts, the screens showed her the same impossible data.
After an internal debate within her mind, Noemi opened up the comms channel. “Captain? I know that this’ll sound crazy, but… this system is geocentric!”
“I’ve run the numbers, Captain. You can remotely access the Sensors system yourself.”
“Very well,” Malott replied before interacting with the console in front of him. After entering the remote access codes into the console, the screen lit up with data obtained from scanning the strange system. Rubbing his eyes in disbelief, Malott repeated the commands again, presuming there was some kind of malfunction occurring. No matter how many checks the Captain ran, the data remained the same, and there was no sign of any malfunction. As impossible as it seemed, Noemi hadn’t taken leave of her senses. The system really was geocentric, no matter how much it defied the laws of astronomy. Stranger still, intelligent life was detected on the planet in the middle, but it didn’t match any known form of intelligent life in the Federation database.
“Bridge to all crew,” Malott announced after pushing the intercom button on his chair, “the planet in the middle of the system is home to a form of intelligent life not in the Federation database. It may go against standard Federation First Contact protocols, but maybe we could receive some assistance from them. All hands report to the shuttlebay immediately. Lieutenant Commander Noemi, engage the autopilot.”
The crew responded with a chorus of affirmatives, and they were all waiting in the shuttlebay below the main deck by the time Malott arrived.
Without a word the entire crew climbed into a shuttle with Noemi at the controls, piloting the craft down to the surface of the planet, aiming for the outskirts of a settlement the sensors was indicating as the greatest concentration of advancement.
The citizens of Ponyville gasped as one as an object descended towards them. However, before fear could grip any of them, the object stopped losing altitude and leveled out before moving away towards the fields of Sweet Apple Acres. The townsponies, now filled with curiosity, followed the object, eventually coming to a halt as it gently touched down in one of the farm’s fields.
A panel on the side of the object opened, and five beings emerged. Four were similar to Princess Twilight’s descriptions of the beings from the other side of the mirror to another world, but the fifth was far different. Two of the first four resembled Twilight’s descriptions of the males from the other world, but with pale skin. One wore purple, while the other was clad in red. The other two appeared feminine, one with dark brown skin and clad in green, the other with tan skin, almond-shaped eyes, and clad in yellow. The final member of the group was a grayish-purple slug-like creature with two arms wearing a red uniform of its own. It was about the same height as Big Macintosh without counting the creature’s eyestalks.
Twilight and her friends stood near the rear of the crowd, all of them taken by surprise, but Pinkie, Rarity and Fluttershy were quite excited as well.
“Another starship!” Pinkie exclaimed. “And more aliens! I have to throw them a ‘Welcome to Equis’ party!”
“Unlike that monstrosity from five years ago, this is something I can acknowledge as a craft from another world,” Rarity mused. “It’s far smaller than that piece of junk, but it’s sleek, elegant and appears to be quite sophisticated in design!” Noting the four bipeds all wearing nearly-identical clothing, her smile fell. “Well, their outfits could be better, though. Perhaps I could make more elegant clothes for them?”
“They’re so fascinating!” Fluttershy whispered. “I wonder what they eat?”
Dash and Applejack simply stared, but Twilight was thinking about what to say to them. There were so many questions she wanted to ask. Especially if they knew about those frustrating metal beings she’d been trying to revive for five years, but with no success. Magic didn’t seem to have any effect on them, but that couldn’t be possible… Right?
Captain Malott looked around at all the brightly-colored equines staring at him and his crew. The settlement they were close to had looked somewhat primitive, but if these creatures were sapient, there had to be a way to communicate.
Stepping forward to differentiate himself from the crew, Malott raised his right hand in a gesture of peace, then introduced himself.
“Greetings, denizens of this fair planet,” he said, raising his voice to reach to the back of the crowd, “I am Captain Chris Malott, from the Galactic Federation.” When he was merely met with more stares, he tried miming the meaning of his statements to try to get them to understand him. “We mean you no harm.” He gestured to his crew, then curled his hand into a fist, began to throw a punch at the air, but halted it after only moving his arm a fraction of an inch. He shook his head and uncurled his fingers. “We are seeking to communicate with you and ask for your assistance.” He gestured to himself and his crew, then made a speaking gesture with both hands, imitating moving mouths, then gestured to the crowd. He finished by clasping his hands together in a pleading gesture, then looked at the crowd again. Still nothing but stares from all the beings in the crowd he could see the faces of.
“Um… Uh…” Malott was stumped. He was trying to follow the Federation protocol for first contact as best he could, but the truth of the matter was that the Federation had only made first contact four times, and the only one that had truly gone over well was with the energy beings called Zoltans. First contact with the Engi had been instigated by the Engi, which was how the Federation was born. The Federation just wasn’t very good with first contacts.
“Captain?” Nazia said, her voice filled with worry, “What are we going to do? We can’t communicate!”
“I know, I know!” Malott sighed. “I guess we should just return to The Kestrel—”
“Captain? Don’t give up jussst yet,” T’ten said, cutting him off. “Let me try using my Ssslug telepathy to communicate.”
“Permission granted,” Malott said hopefully. “Maybe there’s still a chance after all.”
Without another word, T’ten oozed her way over to a red equine who was about the same height as her, not counting her eyestalks. Closing her eyes, the Slug focused and tried communicating with the creature’s mind. With telepathy, there hasn’t ever been such a thing as language barriers.
Greetingsss, the Slug thought, projecting her mind’s voice into the creature’s mind. My name isss T’ten. Can you comprehend my psssychic voice?
The red equine jumped in surprise, but quickly replied. Eyup, was the only word he thought in response.
I am a traveller from beyond the ssstarsss, asss are my companionsss, T’ten told him. Do you have any knowledge of outer ssspaccce?
Eenope, was the full reply, and T’ten was growing a little frustrated. This being appeared to be very simple minded, unfortunately.
Sssorry to have bothered you, T’ten thought before closing the link and moving on to the creature next to the red one: a white one with a horn and glasses with purple lenses. Surely, this one had to be intelligent.
Excussse me, T’ten’s psychic voice said into the being’s mind, My name isss T’ten. Can you—
A continuous bass beat was resounding in the creature’s head so loudly, that T’ten could make out nothing else. She tried to telepathically ask the equine to reply to her, but she got no response.
Hissing in frustration, T’ten turned her attention to a pair of smaller equines, likely not fully-grown yet. The younger mind may prove to be the key to getting an answer. Young minds were different from adult minds in most races: full of imagination and wonder, believing anything to be possible.
Reaching out to both at once, T’ten tried again.
Hello, young onesss, she began warmly, My name isss T’ten. My friendsss and I are looking for help. Could you two be of asssissstanccce?
The thoughts forming in the young ones’ minds were not T’ten’s “cup of tea”, to borrow a human term. Other Slugs would’ve enjoyed the scheming thoughts forming, but T’ten was a rare kind of Slug: she was honest through and through.
Instead, T’ten tried reading their memories, and discovered that an Engi cruiser had crashed nearby five years earlier.
Never mind, T’ten thought into the pair’s minds, I’ve gotten the info we need. Thank you for your time.
Shuddering, T’ten returned to the rest of the crew.
“It ssseemsss thessse beingsss are a bussst,” T’ten sighed. “They’re sssimple and enjoy a peaccceful life. But, another ssship wasss here before usss. An Engi ssship crassshed nearby. Follow me.”
As the beings from another world left to inspect the crash site, the ponies started to disperse. In truth, they’d understood every word. They were just too stunned to speak.
“Welp, that sure was strange,” Big Mac remarked before returning to working on the trees.
Vinyl Scratch still didn’t say anything, but she looked thoughtful as she watched the newcomers leave.
Diamond Tiara and Silver Spoon were far from happy. Their plans to exploit the situation had been foiled the instant they started to devise them.
Twilight bolted after the beings from space, hoping to learn things by observing them.
“Twi! What’re ya doin’?” Applejack hollered after her.
“I’m going after them!” Twilight called back. “Wait for me at the castle! I’ll be back!”
The others shrugged and headed for Twilight’s castle while the lilac Alicorn chased the humans and Slug into the Whitetail Woods.
Twilight slowed to a trot once she was only a few feet behind the crew from the new ship. Taking extra precautions, she took to the air and flew slowly, making sure not to bump into anything that would alert them to her following them.
“Captain, we’re here,” the slug-like being announced. “Ssstrange. The airlock’sss detached. It’sss been knocked into the ssship and isss sssomewhat bent.”
“This cruiser took quite a beating,” the male human who wasn’t the captain remarked. “The engines are completely dead. Crushed by an impact with a comet, by the looks of it.”
“Well, at least we can scrap the ship,” one of the two female humans remarked. “Engi ships almost always have a supply of drone parts, and we can take some of the fuel back with us.”
“Don’t forget the Ssscrap!” the “Slug” exclaimed excitedly. “Think of what we could buy with the Ssscrap from thisss ship!”
“A cloaking device would do us a world of good,” the other female human said with a nod. “I mean, what good is that Stealth Weapons augment we picked up without a cloaking system?”
The captain pulled out a box and began to wave it around slowly. Suddenly, it beeped.
“My scanner is picking up DNA signs from inside,” the captain declared. “There might be an Engi still in there!”
“Well, what are we waiting for?” the “Slug” demanded. “Let’sss get in there!”
Nodding, the group walked through the entrance and waited as the captain waved the box again. After it let out another beep, he motioned his crew over to a door that was still sealed tight, and they pulled out objects shaped like tubes with handles.
“Blast the door open!” the captain ordered, and red beams of light started launching from the objects, hitting the door over and over. Eventually, the door gave a high-pitched whine and parted in the middle with a hiss, granting them access.
Twilight entered as they left the room and then watched as they performed the same task again, breaking open another door, which led to a room with a cylindrical room beyond it. Twilight cast a spell to blend in and joined them in the circular room, keeping close to the ceiling so none of them would detect her.
Or so she thought.
“Captain!” the Slug whispered. “I sssenssse a sssixth presssenccce in the lift with usss!”
“Probably one of those creatures you deemed to be simple after we failed to communicate,” the captain replied. “Maybe one of the winged ones followed us. It’s no matter. It’s their planet—they can go where they want.”
The second human female pulled out some tools, and started messing with a panel on the wall of the “lift”. Suddenly, sparks crackled as the small room lit up and the panel became covered in numbers.
“Take us up,” the captain ordered. “My scanner is detecting signs where the bridge should be located.”
The woman who turned the “lift” on nodded and touched the number at the top of the panel, and doors slid shut right before the room began to ascend.
Twilight had to keep gaining altitude to keep from being discovered, so she flew higher and higher until the room stopped rising and the doors slid open, revealing a very dark room with a chair in the middle. The chair was covered in buttons, and a broken glass screen was on the wall opposite the lift.
But in the chair was another one of the metallic beings. Twilight had missed one!
“Yep, it’s an Engi, alright,” the captain remarked. “Most likely the captain of this ship. We should be able to use the shuttle’s power to reactivate it. Okay, let’s carry the body out of here.”
Twilight quickly teleported back to the castle and dropped the spell she used to blend in. So many things were running through her mind, but one was at the forefront: it could be revived!
Granted, Twilight still didn’t understand how these strange aliens were going to achieve it, and she seriously doubted that they could do much more than she could have. It had been five years, and no amount of study and magic poured into the three broken bodies had accomplished anything beyond frustration.
She had to get the girls.
Not too long afterwards, Twilight’s friends arrived at her castle, and Twilight did her best to retell what she observed.
“There was a fourth metal being on that ship!” she exclaimed. “And they’re going to revive it!”
“But you’ve failed so many times, Twilight,” Rarity replied. “How are they supposed to do it?”
“Apparently, whatever powers their ship can be used to revive it,” Twilight explained. “I don’t know about you, but I want to see them wake it up. They said it’s called an ’Engi.’”
“It’s the miracle of life!” Fluttershy gushed. “I have to see it happen!”
“I still don’t know what they like, and I’m not about to miss out on giving them a party!” Pinkie chirped. “I’m coming, too!”
“And I can finally explain the atrocity of that ‘ship’ to one of them,” Rarity added. “I shall accompany you, Darling.”
“Well, their ship’s on mah farm, so Ah might as well,” Applejack said. “Ah’m gonna watch it with ya, Sugarcube.”
“After reading some of Spike’s sci-fi comics, I just have to see this!” Rainbow exclaimed. “This is gonna be awesome!”
The six huddled together, but before Twilight could teleport them, Spike entered the room and dashed over to Twilight. “Twi, can I come too? Please?”
“Sure,” the lilac Alicorn replied with a giggle before she added Spike to the spell and teleported the whole group to Sweet Apple Acres.
Upon arriving, Twilight and company found that they had arrived first, so they hid among some of the apple trees and waited.
Not much was said while they waited, but eventually, the aliens arrived carrying the metal being called an “Engi”.
“Hook it up to the reactor with some cables, Lieutenant Nazia,” the captain commanded.
“Yes sir,” the woman who had fixed the lift on the Engi ship replied before taking some cables out of a box in the ship and connecting each of them to a glowing machine on one end, while connecting them all to various parts of the Engi’s body with the opposite ends. There were cables connected to both legs, both arms, the chest, and even the head.
“Let ‘er rip!” the captain shouted, and the woman called “Nazia” grabbed a switch and pulled, causing the machine to emit a loud hum as its glowing increased.
Suddenly, electricity crackled all over the Engi’s body, causing it to spasm and actually lose shape and collapse into a pile of shiny metallic goo.
Fluttershy started to cry, but stopped when the “goo” began to change shape, molding itself into the form it had taken before, and stood up. The green panel on its face was now lit up, and it turned to face the captain.
“Functionality restored. Gratitude syntax error [value too high],” it said in an emotionless feminine monotone. “Request compensation.”
“We would like you to join our crew,” the captain remarked, extending a hand for a shake. “There has been a rebellion by a human supremacist group in the Galactic Federation. The Federation has nearly completely fallen to the Rebels, with only the Capital sector of Sol Prime remaining under full Federation control.” The human’s face fell. “But that won’t last. Our ship, The Kestrel, is the only cruiser left in the Federation Fleet besides the few remaining at Sol Prime, and we’re heading to the Federation base to deliver information on how to stop the Rebel Fleet.”
“According to calculations, probability of pursuit: 99.99 percent,” the Engi replied, shaking the captain’s hand. “Assistance granted. Name: Xin Xin. Any undivulged information remaining?”
“Yes,” the captain replied. “The Rebel Fleet is in fact pursuing us. And every time they reach an FTL beacon, they install planetside Anti-Ship Batteries on every planet in the area with a surface to install them on. Not to mention that they also oppress every planet their fleet finds while pursuing us. I fear for the denizens of this planet. Ensign T’ten, our Slug crew member, has determined them to be simple beings who enjoy a peaceful life. The Rebels will likely do terrible things to them upon landing. But we have our mission to complete, so we’ll have to just hope they don’t get exterminated by the Rebels.” Reaching inside the craft, he pulled out a blue uniform, which he offered to the Engi. “Also, as one of the few remaining COs in the Federation Fleet, I am granting you the position of Commander upon induction into our crew, for you captained a ship before.”
“Understood,” Xin Xin replied with a nod, accepting the uniform and donning it. “Mission objective: save Federation. New designated rank: Commander.”
Twilight and the others exchanged looks of utter shock when the human captain revealed the situation to the Engi. Twilight quickly decided she had to do something.
“Spike, I need to send a letter to Celestia,” Twilight whispered. Spike removed a quill and scroll from a backpack he was wearing and stood at the ready.
Twilight cleared her throat and began reciting what she needed to tell the Solar diarch:
“Dear Princess Celestia,” she began, “it has come to my attention that our entire world is in grave danger. Not from some enemy from the distant past, but from beyond the stars. A small group of beings recently landed in Sweet Apple Acres and removed a fourth metal being from that ship I showed you a few years ago. Unlike me, they managed to revive it with ease, using science, not magic.”
Twilight paused long enough to give Spike time to catch up, then continued when the sound of a scratching quill ceased.
“I overheard them talking to the metallic lifeform,” she resumed, “and they mentioned that the government of a ‘Galactic Federation’ has almost entirely fallen to a rebellion by bigoted supremacists. They are chasing the aliens who landed here, and will most likely arrive here soon. You must prepare for them. They likely use weapons that fire beams of light, for the crew that recently landed all carry such weapons.
Pausing again, Twilight glanced at the aliens for a few seconds, taking note of tools and weapons, then turned back to Spike and continued once more.
“Their technology is eons ahead of ours, but if they aren’t held off, they will likely enslave our entire planet, if they don’t just kill every inhabitant outright,” she said with a grimace and a shudder.
“I will be unavailable to assist in the fight against this enemy when they arrive here, however.” Twilight hummed in thought as she rubbed a hoof along her chin. “They had asked for our help,” she said, almost as if she were admitting it to herself, “but everypony just stared at them in stunned silence. I plan to rectify that. It will be quite some time before I’m back, but you have to hold them off without my help. I will be accompanying these aliens to assist in their cause.
“Please don’t fail us,” she said in a nearly pleading tone, garnering a piqued eyebrow from Spike. “There’s much more at stake than just Equestria this time.”
Twilight let out something in between a sigh and a groan. “Your friend and fellow Princess, Twilight Sparkle.”
After Spike finished writing the letter, everypony stared at Twilight as if she’d gone insane.
“You can’t be serious!” Rarity exclaimed, grabbing Twilight by the shoulders and shaking her. “None of us know what it’s like out there! They’ll be fine without you, I’m sure!”
“Sugarcube, ya don’t hafta go with ‘em,” Applejack added. “It’s mighty selfless of ya ta want ta help ‘em, but what about us? Them ‘Rebels’ sound nasty.”
Before the others could protest, Twilight held up a hoof to silence her friends so she could explain.
“When they first arrived, their captain asked for our help,” Twilight began. “Nopony stepped up. Someone should have, and I’ve decided that I’m going to be that pony. If Equis falls to these Rebels, we won’t be able to do anything. We’ll have to simply hope that those aliens beat the enemy for us so we get set free. But with one of us up there, even if Equis falls, we’ll still have a chance to do something, for one of us will be helping out.
“Besides,” she continued, her expression determined, “if I can get them to realize that we’re not just simple beings before they leave our area of the universe, they may give us some information before they leave.” After the others nodded in understanding, Twilight turned to Spike and said, “Send the letter, Spike.”
Spike nodded and burned the letter to ash, which floated away towards Canterlot.
“I don’t have time to wait for a reply,” Twilight sighed. “I need to leave now, I’ll miss all of you.”
After hugging each of her friends, Twilight scooped up Spike with her magic and plopped him on her back before teleporting herself and the surprised dragon aboard the aliens’ ship. They immediately hid in the box of cables, which barely had enough room for the both of them.
Spike opened his mouth to ask why Twilight brought him along, but she immediately shushed him. If they were found before the ship got into space, they’d most likely be thrown out.
Hopefully, the Slug wouldn’t notice them.
As the craft began to slow, Twilight prepared to get her and Spike out of the box unnoticed. They couldn’t be discovered until Twilight revealed herself.
The crew left the ship, and Twilight pulled Spike out of the box as she got out of it herself.
“Twi? Why’d you bring me along?” Spike asked in a whisper, confusion etched on his face.
“You’ll find out soon,” Twilight whispered back before climbing out of the ship in time to see the aliens moving towards a door.
“Wait!” she called out, galloping towards the group, who spun around to face her, staring in utter shock. “I need to talk to you!”
“Ensign T’ten, I thought you said they were simple beings,” the captain said before addressing Twilight. “And I thought you couldn’t understand us!”
“Everypony could understand you, sir,” Twilight replied. “It’s just that your sudden appearance stunned the entire crowd into silence.”
While the aliens gave her a myriad of skeptical looks, Twilight brought a hoof to her chest. “Please, I can help,” she explained. “I’m Princess Twilight Sparkle. I overheard your conversation with Xin Xin and realized that we need your help, and that you really could use ours as well.”
“Your people were quite primitive,” the captain replied doubtfully. “What could you possibly offer us? I’m sure we could assist you in preparing for the Rebels, but I don’t know how you could assist us.”
Instead of answering, Twilight lit up her horn with magic and lifted the captain’s weapon out of the pocket attached to his belt. For once, magic seemed to work on their technology. Maybe it was just the Engi and their ship that was immune?
All of them stared at the hovering weapon in silence until Twilight returned it to its pocket.
“H-how did you do that?” Captain Malott squeaked, his voice a full octave higher than it had been before.
“You don’t know about magic?” Twilight asked, now suddenly confused. How could any living thing not be aware of magic?
“Probability of magic existing: 0 percent,” Xin Xin droned with a shake of her head.
“But that was magic!” Twilight insisted. “Every unicorn or Alicorn can use magic because of his or her horn!”
“Well, we’ve never encountered either until today,” the Slug explained. “But if magic isss real, it would be a ussseful assset to our caussse. Do you agree, Captain?”
After a few seconds, Malott shook himself and nodded. “Yes, it would prove quite useful, Ensign T’ten. Welcome aboard, Princess. Now, how can we help your people?”
“Spike? Over here please,” Twilight called over her shoulder. The young dragon joined her after a few seconds. Turning back to address the aliens, Twilight put a hoof on Spike’s shoulder.
“This is my number-one assistant, Spike the dragon,” Twilight explained. “He can send letters to my former mentor, Princess Celestia, as well as receive letters from her. The Princess, along with her sister, Princess Luna, rule over Equestria, and have magic so strong, that they can move our Sun and Moon, respectively.”
“Well, that would explain your system’s unique geocentricity,” Malott mused. “So, let me guess, you want me to send a letter to this Celestia to communicate with her about the situation?”
“Exactly,” Twilight replied. “Also, if you have time, could we return to the surface for a little bit? My friends wanted to talk to you before you leave.”
“Taking a bit of shore leave sounds tempting, and we did hire a mercenary to delay the Rebel Fleet,” Malott said thoughtfully, “but we just don’t have the time. Can these letters go back and forth quickly?”
“Almost instantaneously, regardless of distance,” Twilight affirmed with a nod. “Spike’s method is faster than any other.”
“Very well,” Malott said, beckoning for Twilight and Spike to follow him. “Everyone, return to stations. Commander Xin Xin, please man the Doors system. Twilight and Spike, please accompany me to my quarters.”
Twilight nodded, levitated Spike onto her back, and followed Captain Malott out of the large room and into the rest of the ship.
After traveling through the crew quarters just above the cargo hold, Twilight, Spike and Captain Malott arrived at a door. The sign next to it read: “Captain’s office and quarters.”
“Here we are,” Malott declared as he touched a glass panel on the wall. In an instant, the panel filled with green text. “Crew bioelectric signature match,” it read, “Access granted.” The doors slid open with a hiss, and the captain led Twilight and Spike inside.
There was a desk in the middle of the room with devices (of which Twilight couldn’t even begin to guess their purpose) on top of it. A chair was placed so as to have access to the devices on either side of it, as well as providing a good view across the desk. The room had some potted plants in the corners, and a stack of chairs lay off to one side of the office. Finally, there was a door to the right with a sign that read: “Captain’s personal quarters. Authorized entry only.”
“Please, pull up a chair,” Malott said warmly, gesturing to the stack in the corner as he sat down at the desk. “It’ll be easier to talk sitting down.”
“Thank you, Captain,” Twilight replied as she used her magic to lift two of the chairs, separated them, then set them on the floor on the opposite side of the desk from the captain. She and Spike sat down, and waited for the captain of The Kestrel to speak.
“Now, I guess we should get this underway,” Malott began, opening a drawer and pulling out two shiny rectangular objects with black glass screens in the middle. Turning to address Spike, he asked, “Can you send other things besides letters, uh…” Malott’s words died, and he snapped his fingers, as if struggling to remember something.
He sighed and asked, “What was your name again?”
“It’s Spike,” the young dragon huffed. “And I sure can!” Spike’s mood brightened as he proudly puffed out his chest slightly. “What do you want to send?”
“One of these communicators,” the captain replied, gesturing to the rectangular objects. “They can be used for much more than just communication, but for now, that’s all they’ll be needed for.” He gave a small smirk. “At least, when it comes to speaking with your leaders.”
Malott turned right to face a tall and thin object held up by a stand. “I’ll just type up a message on this computer really quick, and then we can send both.”
A device on Malott’s left then started to produce whirring sounds as a sheet of pure white paper covered in text started to slide out of it.
Once the device finished producing the sheet of paper, the captain picked up the sheet and pulled out a stick-shaped object with a metal tip.
“Now that the printer is done, I just have to sign it,” Malott announced, scratching the paper with the metal point. A second later, as he finished signing it, Malott offered the letter to Twilight and asked, “Will this be suitable?”
Twilight took the letter in her magic and looked it over.
Dear Princess Celestia,
My name is Chris Malott, Captain of the Galactic Federation cruiser named The Kestrel. My crew and I recently met with some of your citizens, and one of them has offered us assistance with our mission to safeguard the galaxy.
My crew and I are on the run from a supremacist group that has overthrown the majority of my people’s government. Unfortunately, the Rebels will likely find your planet during their pursuit, and will most likely try to turn your planet into another base of operations for their rebellion. They will probably either try to exterminate you and your citizens outright, or attempt to enslave you. They are highly advanced, and without our instruction, you will likely fall to them.
The device accompanying this letter is a multipurpose device that my people use for long distance communication. I believe speaking to each other instead of using further letters would be ideal.
To use the communications feature of the device being sent with this letter, first push the button with a broken circle and a straight line depicted on it. The screen will light up, and a display of options will be projected into the air in front of you. Simply tap the “call” option to pull up the list of contacts in the device. There will only be one at the current time, so simply tap it to select it. The device will then communicate with the one I have with me. If I ever try to contact you, it will alert you and give you the option to answer my call. Simply tap the option to answer to allow me to contact you.
Sincerely, Chris Malott Commanding Officer of The Kestrel and Captain in service of the Galactic Federation Fleet
“It looks fine,” Twilight affirmed with a nod. “Let’s get this to Celestia.”
Malott nodded and handed over one of the rectangular devices. Spike took both the device and the paper in his grip before breathing his signature green fire on both, sending them to Princess Celestia.
“Wait, so, he breathes fire on things to transport them?” Malott exclaimed. “Incredible!”
“I know, right?” Spike said proudly, soaking up the praise.
Before Twilight could cut in to stop the captain from stoking the young dragon’s ego further, the remaining rectangular device beeped, lit up, and projected a floating image over it containing the words: Incoming call. Sender: Celestia. Answer?
Malott tapped the word “yes” with his finger, and the projected image changed to a depiction of the Solar diarch herself, a very shocked expression on her face.
“Are you Captain Malott?” Celestia asked, sizing up the human with curious eyes.
“I am, Your Highness,” Chris replied, inclining his head. “Captain Chris Malott of The Kestrel, at your service.”
The shimmering image of Celestia nodded cautiously, still taking in the marvel of the communicator. “By what your device is showing me, I can see that Twilight and Spike are there as well,” Celestia noted. “Twilight? Is everything fine up there?”
“Well, Spike and I are doing fine, at least,” Twilight replied, walking into view. “Captain Malott wants to talk to you about the incoming threat. I think Luna should be involved in this conversation as well.”
“I am already here, Twilight,” the Lunar diarch’s voice said as Luna stepped into the projected image. “I thought I’d let Celly do the talking.”
“Well, the coming invaders will likely keep up their assault both day and night, so it may be best for you to actually take part in this discussion directly,” Twilight replied.
“Understood,” Luna acknowledged with a nod. “Go ahead, Captain. Please tell us about the enemy chasing you.”
“Well, first, I’d like to apologize for putting you in danger by coming here,” Malott said sadly. “The Rebels would likely have ignored you had we not stopped here on our way out of this sector of the galaxy.”
“Even if you hadn’t come here, that doesn’t guarantee they would have ignored us,” Luna shot back. She offered a consoling smile. “Don’t apologize, Captain. Your coming here actually gives us a chance to learn about the enemy before they arrive.”
“In that case, let’s get right to the point,” Malott replied, smiling in gratitude. “The Rebels are human supremacists—they are trying to establish humanity as the rulers of the galaxy, with every other race either being hunted to extinction or forced into servitude under their iron-fisted rule. It is unlikely that you’ll be able to defeat their starships once they enter your area, and negotiation is out of the question.
Following the gloomy explanation, Malott offered an encouraging smile. “However, they will have to land troops to make it possible to subdue your planet. I have an idea that may help to repel their infantry indefinitely, at the very least.”
“What is it?” Celestia asked, leaning forward to catch every word. Luna did the same, and Twilight and Spike also gave their full attention to the captain.
“Princess Twilight has shown me that you have magic,” the human began. “A power believed to be fictional by the rest of the galaxy. The Rebels won’t expect you to have such a force on your side. They still have no idea that magic even exists, after all.” After pausing for a moment to think, his eyes lit up. “Can you enchant things to, say, repel light?”
“We can,” Celestia replied with a nod. “Does this have anything to do with the light-based weapons Twilight informed me about in the letter she sent right before she left to help you?”
Malott gave a sideways glance at Twilight, who smiled sheepishly in return. “I had no prior knowledge of this previous letter,” he said with something of a grumble, “but that is most likely correct.”
Malott pulled out the same tube with a handle he and his crew had used aboard the Engi ship to open the doors. “This is called a ‘blaster,’” he explained. “Pulling the trigger fires a light-based projectile. Almost all races rely on them for combat between troops, and the same goes for the Rebels. If you could enchant your military uniforms to repel light, the only option the Rebels would have left would be close-quarters combat. And that means they’ll be limited to their fists. I’m certain that you’d have the upper hand.” The captain paused for a moment, glancing downwards before adding, “Or hoof, in this case.”
“I see,” Celestia said thoughtfully while Luna nodded. “If we enchant the armor of the Royal Guard to repel light-based attacks, the enemy would be forced to engage our troops close up, at which point their spears should prove superior to simple fists.”
“Spears?” Malott repeated before shrugging. “Yes, I suppose spears are a good choice,” he said, nodding in approval. “Fists won’t do much against armor, while even bronze spears would easily penetrate the Rebels’ fabric uniforms.”
The man pouted pensively. “Of course,” he continued, “the heat from the blasts would slowly melt holes in the armor, even when repelled, but I believe that ten of your soldiers could hold off thousands of Rebel troops,” he pointed out. “The Rebels will attack in large waves, but I believe they’d have to outnumber your troops at least two hundred to one to actually make progress. If there are other nations on your planet, you’d do well to warn them of the approaching Rebels.”
“Understood, Captain Malott,” Luna acknowledged while Celestia nodded in agreement. “Is there anything else you wish to speak with us about at this time?”
“I’m thinking of inducting Princess Twilight into my crew,” Malott replied, stealing a glance at Twilight. “With your approval, of course,” he added quickly. “As a princess, she must be an important figure in your society, correct?”
The majestical alicorn before him narrowed her eyes, but nodded slowly.
“If she accepts, whatever rank or standing she has on your world will mean nothing,” Malott explained, earning a deteriorating scowl on Luna’s visage. “She’d start as an Ensign, and she’d have to work her way up the ranks, just like everyone else here.”
Even though the Princess before him was but a mere projection, her glare felt as if it could penetrate into his very being and incinerate him where he sat.
Finally, with a sigh and a headshake, Celestia said, “That decision isn’t ours to make.” She looked to the side, eliciting a reluctant nod from her sister. “Twilight will have to make that decision.” Turning to face Twilight, Celestia asked, “Would you be willing to join these aliens? Their mission sounds more perilous than anything than you have faced until now.”
“I am,” Twilight declared without a moment of hesitation. Turning to face her new Captain, she saluted and said, “I am at your command, Captain.”
“What about me?” Spike huffed.
“You’re too young,” Twilight replied immediately with a shake of her head. “You’re not ready for such a responsibility yet, even if you aren’t a baby anymore.”
“She’s got a point, Spike,” Malott said, folding his arms and nodding in agreement. “If your size is any indicator, I don’t think you’re even old enough by Federation Fleet regulations to even be part of the crew. Someone your age might be able to pass as a first-year Cadet at the Space Academy, but you’re too young to even be an Enlisted.”
Spike became crestfallen, but the Captain was still gauging him with careful eyes, humming in thought.
“However,” he began, “you could still serve an important role. I can talk to the Princesses through the communicator, yes, but we are unable to perform teleports over incredible distances. You could allow supplies to be sent back and forth between The Kestrel and Equestria.” With a renewed smile, he asked, “What do you say?”
“Sure,” Spike said with a shrug. “But since I’m not part of the crew, how am I supposed to use the doors? The door said you had to be part of the crew to use it.”
“I can just register you as a guest,” Malott replied simply before tapping the buttons in front of his computer. “Done—the two of you have been scanned, and Twilight is now registered as a member of the crew, while Spike has been registered as a guest. That should grant both of you full access, except during combat,” the man added, giving Spike a lopsided frown. “Guests are locked out of the system deck and the bridge during combat.”
Celestia straightened up. “Now that Twilight is a member of your crew, I believe this conversation is finished,” Celestia declared, giving Malott a questioning look to see if there was anything else.
“You are correct, Your Majesty,” Malott said with a nod. “I appreciate your patience. Talking to you was a pleasant experience.”
“Agreed, Captain,” Luna replied. “May our next discussion be just as pleasant, even if we are under siege by that time,” she said with a chuckle. With that, the connection was cut, and the image vanished.
The Captain sat for a moment, nodding slightly to himself before finally turning to Twilight. “Ensign Sparkle, you are to report to the main deck; we still need someone to man the Sensors subsystem,” Malott requested firmly.
“Mister Spike, you and Twilight will be sharing the same room. Follow the signs to the crew quarters and enter room number five.” He straightened in his chair. “If there is anything that you want to know, there is a device in every room where you can push a button to speak to it and make requests. If this ship is capable of supplying it, it will.”
Both Twilight and Spike saluted before leaving for the locations Malott had requested, the Captain following Twilight to the lift.
“Ensign Sparkle,” Malott greeted as they entered the lift to the main deck. Once the lift got going, he said, “The Sensors subsystem doesn’t necessarily require an operator, but it can only function at its best with a manual operator. I will show you the controls there before I take the lift to the bridge.”
“Understood, Captain,” Twilight replied with a nod as the doors opened to the main deck. “Lead the way.”
“Follow me,” Malott ordered. Twilight complied and followed him through door after door until reaching a room with a screen and a large console.
“Now, the screen here is the sensors monitor,” Malott said as he began his explanation. “The more effective the Sensors become, the more it will display. Right now, it can only display a map of the main deck and the positions of every crewmember.”
The Captain pushed a button, and the display changed. “This is a map of the quarters deck,” he explained. “You generally won’t be needing this map, but just so you know, the button can be used to cycle between decks. Keep it on the main deck most of the time, as the map shown here can be transmitted to every console on the ship.”
Pointing to a button labelled “scan”, the Captain continued his instructions. “Pressing this button will allow us to see into enemy ships during combat, as well as to scan for other things. The sensors aren’t powerful enough to do much more than identifying the ship as of right now, and you have to keep track of the controls while we’re in combat. We may be able to upgrade the Sensors later, but for now, all they can do is see into our ship, and enemy ships if manned.
“Asides scanning for lifesigns and a few other things, of course,” Malott added with a small wave of his hand. “If this room gets damaged by enemy fire, you’ll need to be able to repair it.”
He squatted down and pointed to beneath the console, indicating a sealed book. “There’s a manual beneath the desk with instructions on repairing the Sensors. As of now, you are one of two security officers, the other being Commander Xin Xin, who will be manning Doors for the time being at the very least.
“If you have any questions, feel free to ask,” the Captain finished with a smile as he offered Twilight a red shirt that was a little too large for her. It had an insignia on the collar that most likely marked her as an Ensign, as well as a badge shaped like a two-armed barred spiral surrounded by a laurel of peace.
“Sorry about the shirt,” he mumbled with a weak smile and a hollow chuckle. “That’s the smallest size they come in. Up until now, Slugs were the smallest people to serve in the Federation Fleet. We’ll see about getting you a better uniform later on.” He came down to Twilight’s level and pointed to the badge on her shirt. “I think you’ll like this though,” he said. “Touch the badge to communicate with any other member of the crew. Just say the name, and it’ll open up a communication channel directly with them.
Twilight pressed the badge and said, “Captain Malott.” Both her badge and that of the man both began to emit static.
He smiled and replied, “Yes, Ensign Sparkle?” Much to Twilight’s wonder, her badge repeated Malott’s words. They were a near perfect replication of the his voice, although there was an odd tinny quality to it.
“Amazing,” she said, her tone full of childlike wonder, as she excitedly tip-toed on her hooves. That got Malott to laugh. Once Twilight sobered up, she cast an academic glance at the badge and hummed in thought.
“What is that symbol supposed to be?” she asked, pointing. “It almost looks like…”
“This?” Malott grabbed at his badge. “This is the symbol of the Galactic Federation. The spiral in the middle is actually a depiction of the whole Milky Way Galaxy.”
Twilight’s eyes lit up in recognition. “That’s what you call it?” At the man’s nod she asked, “The whole galaxy?” Another nod. Twilight rubbed her chin thoughtfully, saying, “I’ve always seen parts of it. I never thought that it had so many arms!”
The captain beamed, but as he rose, he let out a reluctant sigh. “I wish I had more time to chat,” he said, “but I’ve got to take my place at the bridge so we can get moving. Welcome to The Kestrel, Ensign.”
With that, the man left the room. Twilight looked over the console before her and grinned, rubbing her hooves together. This ship was far more advanced than anything she’d seen before. Some of the switches and buttons did look a bit weathered, but they were all still eons ahead of whatever Equestria could put out. After putting the shirt on, glumly noting that she’d have to just deal with the bagginess of it, Twilight took her place in front of the screen and waited for further instruction.
“Attention all hands,” Malott announced after settling down in his chair on the bridge, “prepare for an FTL jump. Lieutenant Commander Noemi, set us on a course to the FTL beacon at these coordinates.” He keyed in a set of numbers on a small pad on the left armrest of his chair.
“Acknowledged, Captain,” the pilot replied. “We’re heading out!”
Just as The Kestrel was about to jump away from Equis’ space, a black starship with cyan markings and an emblem of a cyan eagle bearing the letters “MFK” jumped to the same beacon.
“Captain! Another ship is here!” Twilight announced as the Sensors began scanning the newcomer. “Do you recognize it?” With the push of a button, the available information about the other ship was distributed to all consoles.
“That’s not good…” Malott muttered before addressing Twilight. “Yes, Ensign, I do recognize it. That’s a Rebel cruiser. And not just any Rebel cruiser, either. That’s an Eliminator-class Rebel cruiser!”
“And that’s bad, right?” Twilight said lamely.
“They’re always armed to the teeth,” the Captain explained rapidly, “and like all Rebel cruisers, they have ship-mounted Anti-Ship Batteries. These are very dangerous opponents, and I’d rather not fight them if we can avoid it.”
He was about to give the order to retreat to the next FTL beacon, but hesitated as his eyes flicked over to the great blue-green planet to his right. Malott had a mission that took priority over everything else, and for a moment, a small voice urged him to give the order to launch.
“What do we do now, Captain?”
Malott blinked, looking down at the sensors’ display. His attention focused on a single blip in the Sensors system room. Almost immediately he felt the pang of guilt; Malott had made a promise. The newcomer to The Kestrel was technically under his command, but he couldn’t bring himself to leave.
After a long moment, his hand balled into a fist. “We can’t just let your homeworld fall to the Rebels.” Malott growled when his badge broke out into static. “Shoot! We’re being hailed!”
"Prepare to die, Federation scum!” a female voice suddenly cut in. “We noticed the life signs on that planet—we know that you established first contact! This won't be allowed to stand!
“As soon as we destroy that pathetic tin can you call a cruiser, we'll take news of this world back to Command, and we'll return in force to enslave them!” the Rebel captain taunted. “You've foolishly sealed not just your own doom, but theirs, as well!"
As alarms blared, Malott fell back unto his training and opened a ship-wide channel. “All hands, man your battlestations!”
Meanwhile, on the surface, all of Equestria saw the black object appear in the sky. The Federation’s craft hadn’t left yet, and as lights started to fly back and forth between the two craft, it grew immediately clear that the Federation ship was under attack.
Celestia and Luna immediately knew what they had to do, and called for every unicorn in the Royal Guard to assemble outside. Within minutes the palace garrison had congregated in the courtyard.
“Brave soldiers of Equestria!” Celestia began as she addressed the assembled troops. “Above us, a group who have allied themselves with us is under attack! The black object in the sky belongs to the enemy!”
Heads craned upwards to see the dark figure against the blue skies. Pointing to it, Celestia yelled, “We need to do our part to assist them in any way we can! Combine your magic into one attack and launch it at the enemy ship! Do not let up until the enemy craft is dealt with!”
The courtyard rang with a single affirmative as the soldiers replied as one. The guards soon began to focus their magic into a single growing sphere of hard magic.
“Captain Malott!” Twilight called. “It says here that the enemy has a—” She paused momentarily as she read the words in her mind. “A ‘Zoltan Super Shield.’” Twilight finished, noting to herself to look up what that exactly meant later. “How bad is that, exactly?”
“Pretty bad,” Matthieu’s voice piped up. “A Zoltan shield is extremely rare to see on any ship besides a Zoltan-built one.” The gunner ran some quick calculations in his head, and he found himself grimacing at the results. “And with our meager weapons, it’ll take awhile to take down.”
Suddenly, the enemy ship vanished, as if it had never been there.
“Captain,” Matthieu said, his tone tainted by a growing sense of worry, “they’ve cloaked! I can’t get a weapon lock!”
“Don’t panic just yet, Ensign,” Malott said calmly. “I doubt they’ve upgraded that system at all. After five seconds, it should wear off.”
Amazingly, the captain was right on the money: the Rebel ship reappeared after exactly five seconds. Any relief from its reappearance died nearly instantly as alarms suddenly went off, and the words “INTRUDERS DETECTED” appeared on all screens.
“Boarders! We’ve got boarders!” Nazia’s voice cried out, soon followed by distant shouts. “Four of them just beamed into the Engine room!”
“Lieutenant Nazia, retreat to the Medbay,” Malott ordered. “Commander Xin Xin, open the airlock doors behind the Engines.”
“Affirmative, Captain,” Xin Xin droned as a whooshing sound came from the back of the ship. From Nazia’s channel there was only the sounds of blaster shots and grunts of pain while the engineer made her escape.
The image of the Engine room started to gain a reddish hue on the monitors as the Rebel boarders continued to fire at the systems over and over. A system energy bar on the monitors turned red as the systems grew ever more damaged.
Twilight stared at her display with a stumped glare. What would venting the engine room achieve? After all, Princess Luna had explained that her innate pony magic had enabled her to breathe during her banishment to the moon, so Twilight had no idea how such a tactic could have any effect.
“Captain! How will venting out the air stop the boarders?” Twilight inquired curiously.
It took the briefest of moments before she wanted to smack herself in the face. They don’t have any magic!
Malott momentarily glared at the blip that was Twilight Sparkle, forgetting for a moment that she was not accustomed to space. “Space is a vacuum, Ensign,” Malott briefly explained, watching the enemy boarders suddenly make a beeline for the sealed blast doors to try to force them open as the room’s image became covered with diagonal red stripes. “No one can breathe in a vacuum.”
“Sorry, Captain,” Twilight apologized, feeling her cheeks burn from her stupid question from before. “Princess Luna discovered that it is possible for ponies to survive in space with their magic,” she explained. “I ah, I just forgot that you don’t have magic.”
“Well, we can’t breathe in ssspaccce,” T’ten’s hissing voice joined in, speaking patiently. “If you poniesss can breathe in ssspaccce, then that’sss jussst you. The ressst of usss sssuffocate in thisss void.” There was a short beat. “Well, there are legendsss of another raccce that can sssurvive the vacuum of ssspaccce, but there’sss no evidenccce that they exissst.”
The boarders appeared to be growing frantic, grasping their throats as scans provided by The Kestrel confirmed they were getting weaker. In fact, according to the scans, they were on the verge of death before they suddenly vanished, reappearing on board the enemy vessel just as Matthieu’s repeated volleys had finally beaten down the Zoltan shield.
“The enemy is firing!” Malott growled. “Evasive maneuvers! Commander Xin Xin! Reseal the doors! Lieutenant Nazia! Return to your station!” He began to punch in some commands on his console. “I’m diverting all the auxiliary power we can spare to the Engines from the Bridge!”
The enemy cruiser fired a blue rocket, a red rocket, two purple blasts of energy, and finally, a red beam that raked across the ship. The beam would have cut straight across the bridge were it not deflected harmlessly out into space due to the The Kestrel’s upgraded shields.
The purple blasts were also blocked, but the rockets cut through the shields as if they weren’t even there. The red one missed, but the blue one struck the Engine room.
After a static burst from the Engines channel a very quiet voice came through the din. “Captain!” Nazia called, “that was a Khione Missile! They ion-locked the Engines!”
“The ion missssile locked up the Ssshieldsss, too!” T’ten’s voice growled, still managing to hiss at the same time. “At leassst that Apollo Misssile misssed usss! Now isss not the time to be dealing with firesss!”
A new alert caught Malott’s attention. “They’re deploying drones! Three of them!” Observing the display before him, he ran his finger over every drone, trying to identify them.
“A Mark I Defense Drone, a Mark I Combat Drone, and…” Malott paused before muttering, “No, not one of those!”
The Captain reopened the shipwide channel. “They’ve got a Mark I Anti-Ship Ion Drone!”
The Defense Drone shot one of The Kestrel’s missiles, the projectile harmlessly exploding before it could reach its target.
“Oh, come on!” Matthieu groaned.
The Combat Drone began firing purple blasts at the cruiser. The bursts failed to penetrate the shields completely, but the fire did make the shields less effective, as they had to regenerate after every strike.
The Ion Drone began firing blue spheres of energy at The Kestrel, and each one that hit weakened the shields further, leaving it up to the ship’s engines to evade the firepower of the enemy cruiser.
Twilight watched the battle unfold with a growing sense of trepidation. The craft had rocked slightly when the blue rocket had struck The Kestrel, and it was only then that she had realized that she was perhaps in it over her head. The Engineer had been shot at with those “blasters!” Had it only been the luck of the draw that the boarders hadn’t teleported straight into her station?
Before the Alicorn could contemplate any further, a new symbol popped up on her display. It was a green triangle with the letters ASB etched across it.
“Captain! The Sensors are detecting an Anti-Ship Battery being launched!” Twilight reported.
Malott was about to say that she must’ve been reading her display wrong, but a cursory glance at his own console produced a green triangle. He did a double-take and re-read the green symbol: “ASB—Allies!”
“What in the name of—?”
Before the Captain could finish his thought, a massive sphere of energy smashed into the Rebel ship, shearing off a sizeable chunk of the hull.
“That was magic!” Twilight gasped. “Captain! It looks like Equestria is helping in this fight!”
There were many questions as to just how the locals down below were providing such support, but right there and then, Malott didn’t really care; all he saw was a friendly battery, and he’d use it to its full advantage.
“Well, we can use all the help we can get right now,” he said in a stunned tone, almost tittering, and let out a breath he hadn’t realized he’d been holding.
“The enemy’s Artillery is fully charged!” Twilight announced as more warnings flashed and sirens blared.
The Captain immediately sobered up and shouted, “Brace for impact!” Immediately after the command, a sphere of pale yellow energy fired from the Rebel cruiser and headed straight for The Kestrel.
The projectile smashed into The Kestrel, doing considerable damage and tearing a hole in an empty room. The whole ship shook, but held firm.
Malott recovered quickly enough, and barked into his badge. “Aim for the enemy’s Weapons System, Ensign Matthieu! We can’t take continuous bombardments from so many weapons!”
“Yes, Captain!” the weapons technician replied. “Target locked, weapons charging!”
Suddenly, the enemy craft vanished from sight again.
“Captain! They’ve cloaked again!” Matthieu exclaimed, panic in his voice. “I can’t do anything!”
“So, they think they can stall us out, huh?” the captain snarled. “Wait five seconds, Ensign. It’ll pass, just like last time.”
Just as before, the enemy craft reappeared after a mere five seconds, and The Kestrel responded in kind by firing three purple blasts and a missile at the enemy ship.
The enemy Defense Drone fired at the missile, but the missile made it through. It struck true into the enemy’s Weapons room and damaged the system. As a result, the launcher that had fired the blue missile retracted itself back into the hull of the cruiser.
The laser barrage was absorbed by the enemy’s shields however. Luckily, another quick volley got through before they could regenerate and dealt even greater damage to the Weapons room, knocking out the weapon that had fired the red beam.
“Another attack is being fired from the surface!” Twilight cheered, jumping up from her seat. “That Rebel ship should be almost defeated after this!”
The next shot tore straight through the enemy’s Shields System, killing the already faint blue bubble around the cruiser.
Twilight watched, unable to control her excited shakes, as the bars indicating the integrity of the Rebel cruiser’s hull shrank in number. A small part of her wondered just how she had gone from dreading what was to come to looking forward to it, as if somepony flipped a switch. She was beginning to draw connections to the high one experienced during, say, a rollercoaster ride, when a new symbol appeared on her display.
“I’m picking up chatter from the Rebel ship, Captain!” Twilight announced. “Should I patch it into the intercom?”
“Do it,” Malott ordered.
After Twilight punched a few buttons, the whole crew heard renewed alarm sirens, though not from their ship.
"—can't continue to take this kind of punishment!” the captain from before screamed. “Charge the FTL Drive and get us out of here! We can't deliver our information if we're dead!"
Renewed vigor flowing through his very veins, Malott cried, “Hurry! Finish them off!” He pointed straight at the enemy ship on his display, as if his gunner was right there with him. “We can’t let them inform the Rebel Fleet, the locals will be overrun by the Rebels if we can’t buy them more time to prepare!”
Suddenly, a fourth drone joined the other three, and Malott bit back a curse.
“They’ve got a Repair Drone!” the Captain said, frustrated. “Open fire, gunner! We have to destroy them before they get away!”
The enemy happened to cloak right at that moment, giving the fourth drone time to slowly patch up its hull before the drone broke apart. At the same time, the Sensors gave an indication that the enemy’s FTL Drive was charging.
An increasingly irked Matthieu began to rap his knuckles against his keyboard, impatiently muttering, “Come on, come on, come on...”
Right as the cloak faded, Matthieu let loose another volley of shots at the crippled ship, but they failed to destroy it. A groan filled the communications channel.
Twilight was on the edge of her seat. Just how much punishment could that ship take? A flashing red light caught her eye. Her breath quickened when she read “JUMP IMMINENT.”
“Captain! Jump imminent!” Twilight exclaimed, panic beginning to overtake her.
Another shot from the surface flew towards the enemy ship, but with a loud hum and a single line of yellow light, the Rebel ship managed to get away right before impact.
Malott stared at the now empty space on his screen where the Rebel cruiser occupied and slunk back into his padded seat. The Kestrel had survived a difficult encounter, but there were no two ways about it: Twilight’s people were in serious trouble.
He straightened himself with a dejected sigh and spoke calmly, almost as if out of breath, into the intercom. “Ensign Sparkle, are you still there?”
“Yes, Captain,” came the disheartened response.
“Damage report?”
Trying her best not to tear up, Twilight looked over the monitor. “Hull integrity has lost five bars in that fight.”
“A sixth then,” Mallot provided, running a hand along his face. “Anything else?”
“Um, the room right behind mine has a breach and is entirely out of air,” Twilight reported, sniffing. “Nothing else to report.”
“Well, I never thought I’d survive a run-in with an Eliminator,” Malott said, stretching in his seat, “let alone so well. We’re in your people’s debt, it seems. But this isn’t over; we’re going to have to chase them down.”
Even as he finished saying that, the man racked his mind for possible ways to achieve that. Without long-range scanners or sensors, there was very little chance that The Kestrel could pursue that cruiser.
In the open channel he heard some more sniffing from Twilight’s station.
Malott opened up a private channel. “Ensign?”
The sniveling stopped. “Yes, Captain?” Twilight whispered in a pained tone.
“You did good.”
Even though he couldn’t see it, the Captain could imagine the grateful smile among the tears on that lilac muzzle. “Thank you,” Twilight said in a quiet voice, belatedly adding, “Captain.”
Malott felt an upwards tug at the corners of his mouth and nodded to himself. He made to close the communication.
“Captain?” Twilight suddenly piped up, sniffing once more. “The sensors have one more thing to report. I just missed it at first.”
“Go ahead, Ensign,” the Captain said, his smile falling in anticipation of more bad news. “What do you have to report?”
“Nothing bad, sir,” Twilight replied, her voice starting to fill with a sliver of hope. “The enemy’s FTL drive was horribly damaged in the fight, so they were unable to mask their signature. The sensors have a perfect lock on their trajectory. We could chase them down now, if you want.”
“Well…” Malott really wanted to make up for even considering abandoning the locals to the Rebels. He had too many regrets already, and he didn’t want to add any more to the list.
Even so, the Rebel Fleet was gaining on them with every jump they made. Sure, they could only track them when they made a jump to another beacon, but he wasn’t sure if they could chase down the enemy and make it out of the sector before the Rebels caught up to them.
“I’m sorry, Ensign,” he began, his own voice shaking with remorse. “We might not have enough time. The main Rebel Fleet is still pursuing us. If they catch up to us, we’ll have to fight our way through them all the way to the exit beacon.”
The Captain didn’t even need to use the communication channel to know that the pony had begun tearing up again. This was beginning to look all too familiar, painfully so.
“I don’t want to say this, but—”
Just then, Malott’s communicator signalled a call from Celestia, so he closed the channel to answer the call.
After touching the option to answer, Malott was greeted with Celestia’s concerned face.
“My sincerest apologies, Your Highness,” he began glumly, quickly rubbing at his eye. “They got away. We have a lock on them so we can pursue them, but the Rebel Fleet is getting closer and closer every time we make an FTL jump.”
Malott shook his head. “I don’t know if we can finish them off and leave the sector before the Rebels catch up to us.”
“How are they able to track you, Captain?” Celestia inquired, her frown starting to soften as if she felt she could offer help.
The man was about to politely thank her for the concern and tell the Princess that it was very unlikely that she could do anything to help.
Then he remembered how absurd it had been when the same low-tech locals had provided him and his crew with ASB support: that sort of weapons platform was rare, even within the Federation.
So, he decided to humor Celestia. “Well,” Malott began, “every time we make an FTL jump the Rebels can locate what we call a warp signature and advance towards us.” He paused for a moment, thinking how he could simplify astrophysics into terms that the diarch could understand. “I suppose you can compare the signature to, erm, a— a trail that can be followed.
“The Rebels only stop after each jump because the ship’s autopilot has The Kestrel orbit beacons and planets erratically” Malott explained. “They can’t lock onto us very well like that, so the pattern confuses them until we make another jump.”
“What if we were to make you untraceable?” Luna’s voice suggested as the Princess of the Night walked into the projected area. “We couldn’t make it permanent, mind you, but I’m certain we could make it last for quite a while.”
Again, the skeptical side of Malott almost wanted to scoff at the suggestion, but he had seen what they had achieved earlier.
“Is there anywhere where we could land The Kestrel?” Malott asked, raising an eyebrow in interest. “She’s quite large.”
“Nowhere close to Canterlot, unfortunately,” Celestia admitted. “However, there may be another way. That smaller ship you used to land near Ponyville. How many of them do you have?”
“The Kestrel used to be the Federation’s Flagship, so she’s got five shuttles,” Malott replied with a grin. “Are you suggesting that we bring some of your people up here to assist in making us untraceable?”
“Exactly,” Luna confirmed with her own smirk and a nod. “Twilight’s friends would like to see her one last time before you have to leave, anyway. That,” she continued, her voice softening, “and I’d like to have a look at your craft, myself. In the olden days, I was more than just the princess who summoned the night and calmed dreams, you know. I used to be Commander-in-Chief of the armed forces.”
Suddenly, Luna’s face fell. “After certain… things happened, Celly forbade me to resume my role as head of the armed forces, but I’ve always had the more tactical mind of the two of us.” Turning to her sister, Luna’s smirk returned, a mischievous glint in her eye. “Isn’t that right, Sister?”
Celestia groaned as her face turned beet-red. “Please don’t bring up all the military errors I made in your absence.”
“If you allow me to resume my role as head of the military until this problem is dealt with, I won’t,” Luna said with a chuckle. “Do we have a deal, Sister?”
“Fine!” Celestia huffed. Until the enemy is defeated, you can have your old post back. Just please don’t bring them up!”
Malott cleared his throat to remind the sisters that he was still on the line, prompting a startled flinch from both Alicorns.
“Sorry about that, Captain,” Celestia chuckled sheepishly. “I didn’t mean to ignore you.”
“That’s alright, Your Highness,” the captain said with a patient smile. “We can get the shuttles down to the surface in about ten minutes. I can remotely control them from here.”
After pressing a few buttons on his console, Malott nodded. “They’re on their way to you now. I look forward to meeting you in person soon, Princess Luna.”
“The feeling is mutual, Captain Malott,” the navy Alicorn replied warmly before the sisters cut the connection.
Pressing his combadge, Malott said, “Ensign Sparkle? Do you read?”
“Yes, Captain?” the Alicorn’s voice replied.
“Some of your people are going to come up here to help us in keeping the Rebel Fleet from tracking us,” Malott explained. “Before they get here, could you help repair that breach in the hull? I mean, since you can apparently breathe up here and all.”
“Of course, Captain,” Twilight’s voice replied. “It’s the least I can do to help out around here.”
Twilight got up from her seat before trotting over to the door leading to the breached room. After pressing her hoof to the pad on the wall, the door opened, allowing her entrance into the damaged room.
In an instant, her body reacted to the lack of heat and air by projecting a bubble of air the same color as her magic.
So, this is how we’re able to breathe in space? she thought as she began rummaging through a repair kit attached to the wall. I wish I had the time and ability to study it.
Filing that thought away for later, Twilight levitated a welder out of the kit, donned the protective mask that came with it, then switched it on. Luckily, the Sensors room had granted her complete access to the ship’s data suite, which she’d studied to learn everything she could about the various skills required for serving in the Federation Fleet: combat, weapons operation, shields operation, repairs, piloting, and engine management. Though she had yet to apply any of that knowledge (and there was still much for her to learn), Twilight was getting the feeling it was going to feel like second nature in no time.
Her feeling was dead-on. She’d never welded something like this before, but everything just seemed to click, the knowledge quickly turning into instinct as she continued repairing the breach.
After a few more seconds the hole was successfully repaired, allowing warmth and air to fill the room once more. As the environment returned to normal, the magic bubble faded away, no longer required for keeping her alive.
Touching a hoof to her combadge, Twilight gave her report. “Captain, I’ve repaired the breach.” She took in a deep breath: the air felt cool, but it was gradually warming up. “The internal atmosphere is returning to normal.”
“Great job, Ensign,” Malott replied, his voice filled with a sense of pride that Twilight found infectious. “That was really quick! You’re a natural!”
“Thank you, sir,” Twilight chuckled as her face started to feel warmer. “It’s the least I could do to help out.”
“Well, since we’re going to be staying at this beacon a bit longer than I originally anticipated…” Malott’s voice trailed off before the ship-wide intercom began broadcasting his words to the whole crew.
“Everyone, you’re free to leave your stations for the time being,” he announced. “Feel free to socialize in the quarters deck. I’ll be heading there as soon as the shuttles return. At that time, please assemble in the mess hall for a crew meeting. You’re all dismissed until then.”
Deciding that now was as good a time as any to check on Spike, Twilight headed straight for the lift and rode it down to the quarters deck.
Heading straight for room number five to check on the young dragon, Twilight hoped that he hadn’t been too shaken up by the effects of the recent battle.
After pressing the pad on the wall to open the door to the room she now shared with Spike, Twilight trotted inside, immediately noticing the preteen dragon shivering on a cot, clutching a comic book to his chest.
“Spike! Are you alright?” she called breathlessly as she galloped over to her number-one assistant. She draped a wing over him, and pulled Spike close. Twilight spoke gently, trying to calm him down. “It’s okay, Spike. The fight’s over now.”
“Space battles were a lot more fun when I was just reading about them in comics!” Spike whimpered as he leaned into the embrace. “The alarms, the explosions, the shaking of the ship, the flashing lights…” Wrapping his arms around Twilight, Spike began to cry. “I’m scared, Twilight! What if one of them had blown up the ship? I’m not having fun anymore!”
“Hey kid, I know the feeling,” Noemi’s voice said from the doorway, startling the pair already in the room. “My first time wasn’t exactly like yours, but it came pretty dang close. May I come in?”
Twilight and Spike both nodded, so the green-clad, dark-skinned woman strode into the room and pulled up a chair, sitting down.
“I read the old historical fiction comics back when I was a wide-eyed preteen tomboy full of wonder,” she admitted with a hollow chuckle. “Ah, those were the days. I wasn’t even thirteen, and I was already planning on joining the Federation Fleet.” A longing smile found its way on her face. “Heh, to be young and naïve again.”
“You don’t look that old to me,” Twilight remarked, looking the human woman up and down, comparing her appearance to what she knew of the humans from the other side of the mirror. “You look like you can’t be older than thirty.”
Noemi’s eyebrow shot up. “Huh, not a bad guess. I’m hitting my mid-fifties,” the human woman chuckled. “Life extension treatments are pretty much standard these days. Take Captain Malott, for example,” she said, jerking a thumb towards the doorway. “You might think that he’s in his mid to late sixties.”
“He’s not?” Twilight said, surprised.
Noemi shook her head no. “Nope. That old coot’s actually over a hundred and thirty! And he’s shown no signs of throwing in the towel any time soon!”
Twilight just stared. Their technology was incredible if it could do all that! She tried to imagine how such a thing would impact life in Equestria, but was brought out of her musings when Noemi continued.
“Anyways, as soon as I turned thirteen, I signed up for the Federation Space Academy instead of attending a normal high school. When I first walked through those doors as a Cadet Fourth Class, I felt like my dreams had come true. The galaxy was my oyster, and I planned on making it big.”
Chuckling darkly, Noemi shook her head. “I passed every year with flying colors across the board, and before I knew it, I was trading in my gray Cadet First Class Academy uniform for a black Enlisted uniform.” She leaned back. “A graduate and an official member of the Federation Fleet.”
She snorted. “I was ecstatic. I didn’t need to read the comics anymore, for I was going to live the glory myself.”
The pilot then shook her head and scowled. “What a fool I was. My very first deployment was on a vessel headed for Engi space to repel the Mantis.”
Twilight cocked her head to one side at the mention of the insect, but Noemi went on.
“The Engies can’t fight very well, but they’re real good at working with machines and making repairs,” she explained. “In contrast, the Mantis excel at close-quarters combat, but they can’t tell the difference between a wrench and a hammer.
“So,” Noemi said, sitting up, “the Mantis routinely raid Engi colonies to force them to serve as slaves on Mantis ships. We were supposed to prevent a large-scale raid, but what actually happened wasn’t exactly what we left to accomplish.”
Her face hardened. “The butchers boarded our ship and tore us apart with their bladed arms,” Noemi continued, her voice growing an edge, as if she was trying to suppress a long-forgotten pain.
“We retreated to the Medbay to use it as a chokepoint.” Noemi leaned in closer. “That’s standard Federation anti-boarding protocol by the way.”
She sat back up and sighed. “But there were just so many of them. We beat them back, but many of us were severely wounded.” Noemi eyed the two newcomers, offering a dark glare.
“I lost a close friend that day,” she almost whispered. “She’d been my study buddy all the way through the Academy. I was declared a heroine for my actions in saving the rest of the crew.” The chuckle that followed rang hollow.
“‘A heroine,’” she repeated, her voice heavily laced with sarcasm. “I just wanted to make those butchers pay for killing my best friend. We didn’t even manage to completely stop the raid. Hundreds of innocent Engies were taken prisoner, and we couldn’t do a blasted thing about it.” Her head sank, shaking slightly.
“I got promoted to Crewman for my ‘heroics,’ but I couldn’t care less.” Noemi sighed, before sitting back up again. “But I learned something from that experience: We can’t change the past, no matter how much we want to. We can only look to the future, facing what the present tries to throw at us head-on while not letting our fear control us as we do our best to not repeat our past mistakes.”
Noemi smiled, but Twilight recognized it for what it was; it was the tired kind of smile that indicated somepony trying to keep a lid on their true feelings. She had seen it before on Applejack, even though the pilot was doing a considerably better job at hiding it.
“Anyway, just hang in there, kid,” Noemi said. “Everyone gets scared. It’s what we do when we’re afraid that separates the brave from the cowards.”
Her tale finished, Noemi got up from the chair and started to leave the room, but stopped right in front of the doorway.
“By the way, there’s still a few minutes left before the shuttles get back, Twilight,” she said over her shoulder, her smile softer and more genuine. “Maybe you could use the remaining time to get to know some of the others. Just a thought.”
And with that, Noemi left the room, turned a corner, and was gone.
“That doesn’t sound like such a bad idea,” Twilight mused. “Before that, though…” She looked over to the young dragon and smiled warmly. “Are you feeling any better, Spike?”
“Actually…” Spike paused for a moment, then nodded, a small smile adorning his face. “Yeah, I am.” Within seconds, his face fell. “I can’t help but feel sorry for her, though. Sure, she acts like it only made her stronger, but it looked like Noemi’s really hurting on the inside.”
“I noticed it, too,” Twilight agreed with a grim nod. “I could maybe help her to deal with her demons. But for now, I think I’m going to take her advice and chat with the rest of the crew. What about you, Spike?”
“I’ll stay in here for a little longer,” Spike replied as he set down the comic he’d been holding. “I think… I think I need a little time to myself, first.”
“Suit yourself,” the Alicorn smiled before getting up and leaving the dragon to his thoughts.
“Hey there, Twilight!” an excited masculine voice called out from off to the right. Twilight turned her head to see Matthieu approaching her, a big grin on his face.
“The Captain finally let me use the missile launcher!” he squealed, sounding a lot like a colt in a candy shop. “I’ve been wanting to try that baby out ever since we first got it back at Outpost Delta Seven, but Captain keeps saying that we’ve gotta conserve ammunition.” He shrugged.
“‘The Burst Laser is more than enough,’ he keeps saying.” The weapons technician stuck out his tongue and blew a raspberry.
Twilight gave a genuine chuckle. “You’re a jolly one.”
“Yeah, well...” Matthieu scratched at his neck. “We’ve all got our ways of coping, right?”
“Wait, coping?” Twilight repeated, her smile fading. “You seem as happy as my friend Pinkie! It’s all just a façade?”
His smile cracked, and Matthieu looked unsure of himself. “Um, yeah. Pretty much,” the human said, rubbing his arm. “I don’t really like to talk about it, though. I’d rather talk about it in private. Can we talk in my room?”
“I guess?” Twilight replied slowly, now unsure herself. If Noemi was any indication, would she have wanted to hear what the gunner had to say?
Without a word, Matthieu led her to room number three. After he pressed his palm to the pad on the wall, the door slid open, revealing his quarters.
Posters depicting battles between starships covered the walls, as well as a few other posters.
One showed a cyan eagle pinned down by a human hand, an Engi hand, a Slug hand, a hand that appeared to be made of stone, and a glowing hand appearing to be made of energy while a green, scythe-like appendage appeared to be rushing towards its neck. It read: “Don’t let equality die. If we work as one, the Federation will survive.”
Another depicted a yellow circle with a smiling face. It read: “Keep a smile in your heart and another on your face, and you can overcome anything.”
Before Twilight could take a look at any of the other posters, Matthieu’s door shut behind her with a click—locked. The human sat down on his cot and motioned for her to take a seat in the chair nearby, which she did.
Once he was certain he had Twilight’s undivided attention, Matthieu let out a heavy sigh, his cheery expression shifted into a troubled one.
“To tell you the truth,” he began, his shoulders shaking slightly, “I ah, I come from a broken home. My Dad was…” Matthieu’s infectious smile returned for a brief moment. “He was the best. Couldn’t have asked for a better friend growing up. We did everything together: we watched Saturday morning cartoons; played video games; went to the local park every Wednesday…”
Matthieu sighed happily. “He was everything to me.”
Once more the smile vanished, replaced by a scowl that did not suit his face at all. “My mother though...” His voice became a venom-laced growl as his expression darkened further. “She was a total witch—a monster. I wouldn’t be surprised if she was incapable of loving anyone besides herself.
“She didn’t deserve a man as wonderful as my father,” Matthieu insisted. “Every day he’d look at her her and wonder what had happened to the woman he fell in love with. If he ever got sick, she’d beat him senseless if he even reached for the commpad to let his boss know he was sick and ask for the day off.”
Twilight brought a hoof to her mouth, aghast.
“That wasn’t even the worst of it,” he told her. “If his boss let him go home early either because of illness or just because he worked so hard his boss told him that he’d earned the rest of the day off, she’d beat him senseless the instant he got home anyhow, demanding that he go back to work.”
A loud sniff shook Matthieu’s body. “He tried to endure it, but that—” He stopped himself. “Th-that she-dog was slowly destroying him.”
Tears started to well up in the man’s eyes as his lip trembled and he sobbed. “I tried… I-I tried to stand up to her one day,” he said softly. “I tried to protect him, but she hit me so hard that she broke the skin.” His hand unconsciously touched at his cheek, feeling the ghost of the sting from all those years ago.
“When Dad saw that, he had finally had enough. He finally stood up for himself and fought back, though only defensively. He still tried to avoid hurting her, but she threatened to call the police on him anyway.”
Twilight was at a loss for words and just barely able to keep herself from shedding her own tears. Still, she managed to keep a straight face.
“He sought help,” Matthieu added. “But nobody believed his side of the story.”
“Why?” Twilight inquired, her brow furrowing in confusion. “It sounds like he was an upstanding person.”
The man’s expression somehow became darker still, so much so that Twilight only barely recognized him as the man she’d run into just a few minutes prior.
“That stupid personality psych test,” he spat.
Twilight’s ears folded. “Psych test?”
“A dumb quiz that attributes a color to people who take the test,” the man explained. “Clinics from my home colony use it in ways that it was never intended for. They only look at the numbers, and not at the person.”
A deep sigh permeated throughout the cabin. “Twenty-seven red, twenty-six yellow, twenty-four white, and twenty-three blue,” Matthieu murmured, letting out another mirthless chuckle. “One point too red.”
“Red?”
“‘Power wielders,’ according to that test.” He sat up again. “The one classification that disqualified Dad from being seen by a doctor, because it didn’t fit his testimony.”
“That’s horrible!”
Matthieu’s hands kneaded his temples. “Your indignation is just two decades too late,” he said sardonically, before breaking out a small yet genuine smile. “I still appreciate it. If only the Federation had met your people sooner. Your ideas would mesh well with ours.
“After weeks of searching for help and coming up short,” Matthieu resumed, “Dad filed for a divorce when I was eight.” Another soft, mournful chuckle rang out. “He promised to get me out of that dump, that we’d leave that she-devil forever and move to Earth to start a new life together, just the two of us.”
The scowl from before returned in full force. “But the judge ignored all the evidence brought up by my Dad’s lawyer when he tried to obtain custody of me. Oh, she insisted that the letter of the law was beyond reproach, but I knew it then too.”
Matthieu bared his teeth, turning the somewhat docile appearance of the human’s face into one of a predator. “That judge was a misandrist, so she abused her power and held both my Dad and his attorney in contempt of court for no reason at all, forcing them both to leave the courtroom. I tried to testify in my Dad’s defense, but the judge threw me out of the room as well.”
“But…” Twilight stammered, utterly stunned by the revelation. “That’s a blatant abuse of power!”
“Yeah, well,” Matthieu huffed, “you weren’t the only one to see it that way. Apparently that judge had been treading the line for a long time, and her ruling was the straw that broke the proverbial camel’s back; she was ordered to resign once the Federal Judiciary Committee on Earth got wind of it.
“And wouldn’t you believe it? That phony’s supposedly gotten herself a job as a Rebel judge!”
He let out another shuddering sigh. “My mother was granted custody of me, and my Dad had to pay child support. That was the one thing that the FJC couldn’t resolve.
“And believe me,” Matthieu insisted, patting at his chest, “they tried. The colonial judiciary system cited the Federation code of interdependent governance to worm their way out of it. The Federal Legislature revised the code to prevent that from happening again, but they couldn’t use the new code to overturn past abuses of the old code.
“That creature ruined my life!” Matthieu wailed, burying his head in his hands, his sobs wracking his body. “My mother never spent a single credit of the child support from my Dad to actually support me! She turned me into her new punching bag, beating me just like she used to beat Dad. And she spent the money Dad was sending for my support on Slug-made alcoholic drinks! My only reprieves were whenever the Slug beverages made her drunk enough to pass out!”
Suddenly, Matthieu’s expression brightened just a tad as an impish smile started to form. “One day when she was passed out, I found where she hid the child support money Dad kept sending. So I took every last credit out of the box, took advantage of her extremely drunken state to trick her into signing a change of address form, then ran away.
“I used the money to join the Academy, and I submitted the change of address form to redirect all the child support money to me.” Matthieu grinned deviously. “After my Dad found out that the new address his money was being sent to was the Academy’s own address, he sent me a letter congratulating me on escaping that hag.”
He spread his hands. “Of course,” the gunner said, “I felt the need to have the last laugh, so I sent her a letter explaining everything: that I took the money, joined the Academy, and that she would never get another credit from Dad again.” His lips broke into a sadistic grin as he said, “I hope the withdrawals from running out of booze were painful. In fact, I hope she’s stuck living as an alcoholic hobo, having to chug mouthwash to feed her stupid addiction. It’d serve her right.
Much as she was relieved at the somewhat happy ending, Twilight felt trepidation gnawing at her when she heard the savage delight in his voice. She got the very distinct sense that crossing the gunnery officer would only end in tears.
“I adopted my ‘rubber banding’ persona during my Academy years,” he added with a light chuckle, not noticing the Alicorn’s growing frown. “I became the guy everyone wanted to have as their friend. On the inside, though, I was still hurting—still am.
“Even after I graduated, the pain never left,” the human sighed. “One thing is still missing: my Dad. I… I haven’t seen him in twenty years.” Tears welled up in his eyes again, his shoulders shaking even more than before.
“I muh‒ I miss my Dad!” he blubbered, looking on with desperation in his eyes. “I miss him so much! I just want to see him again, to… to hear him tell me how proud of me he is! I want to hug him again, to see his smiling face again!
“For ten long years I’ve been looking for him—ten years!” he cried, “And I’ve got nothing to show for it! The only thing that keeps me going is the knowledge that he’s still alive.”
“They’d notify me if he died,” Matthieu stated resolutely, though his form wavered. “It’s in his will, he told me so in the letter he sent to me at the Academy! They have to!”
Matthieu collapsed into a sobbing, broken wreck as the pain he’d tried to suppress for fifteen years overwhelmed him. His whole body shook with every sob, wails of pure anguish escaping his throat as he shed enough tears every second that it seemed as if a dam inside him had burst.
Three words were repeated in a chant-like manner, slowing and softening each time: “They have to.”
Twilight had long since understood that there were fundamental differences between her and the humans and aliens that she had encountered. Asides from the obvious biological ones, there were simply too many times where their beliefs deviated from hers. As such, she suspected had almost anypony else been in her place, they would have been at a loss.
Not Twilight.
Just like how grief seemed to be universal, she hoped that joy was something that anyone would recognize. That was what she was telling herself when she closed in for a tight hug.
The effect was immediate: the shakes diminished; the sobs ceased, and a loud gasp reverberated in the cabin.
“I’m so sorry, Matthieu,” Twilight whispered, pulling hard against the large man. “I can’t—” She inhaled sharply. “I can’t begin to imagine what you’re going through.”
She didn’t know how long she held Matthieu close. It could have been minutes for all she was concerned.
Eventually however, she felt a long limb reach around her form and pull her closer to the man. Nestled against his chest, Twilight could sense the faint drumming of a heart.
A soft voice reached her ears: “Thank you.” Something wet splashed against her wings—tears? “You’re like the mother I wish I’d had growing up,” Matthieu muttered, tightening his embrace.
Twilight felt her lips part to form a smile. Not so different after all.
Just then, Captain Malott’s voice could be heard on the intercom:
“Attention crew. The shuttles have returned and are currently docking. Please proceed to the mess hall for a crew meeting.”
With heavy sighs, the two broke the embrace. Matthieu’s trademark smile returned, but Twilight saw that it was noticeably more genuine than before. Which was saying something, since the mask-like smile from before had been extremely convincing. His new smile still appeared to cover up pain, but it was much less noticeable.
“Well, orders are orders,” Matthieu said with a chuckle as he pressed his palm against the wall to unlock and open his door. “And Twilight? You can call me ‘Matt’ from now on if you want. It was my Dad’s nickname for me, and I only let close friends use it, like Noemi, Nazia, and Malott. Though that old vet refuses to use it because he claims it sounds too casual.”
With another chuckle and a shake of his head, he added, “Let’s go.”
Wow! Sure, it's not exactly Featured, but it's a close second! I'll take it! 