Chapter two. The Crescent Moon.

Date: 4508.07.26

As Walker went around the boarding bay, he saw many ships with different destinations on them, but none of them had the name of Crescent Moon.
Last day, he accepted the mission to aboard that ship… but now, he didn’t was able to find his transport.

He stopped in a central to ask. He saw a white mare in the desk.
“Excuse me. I’m looking for a transport.”
“Of course. Name of the ship?”
“The Crescent Moon.”

The mare turned to him with a surprised look on her face. Walker already knew that her superiors had warned her about him.
“I’m not the badass you thought, right?”
“Oh… w-well…”
“Relax; I’m not here to kick some tails. I’m here to aboard a ship named the Crescent Moon. Please?”

Walker pointed toward the computer on the desk. Then, she remembered her work.
“Oh, I’m sorry. Let me see… the Crescent Moon. Door nineteen, if you please.”
“Thank you…?”
“Oh… Sunset. Sunset Ray.”
“You already know my name. See you.”

He left the surprised mare in the desk and head toward the nineteenth door. When he arrived, he saw two guards at both sides of the door.
“Hey, you! Stop right there!”
“Identify yourself.”
“Class B. Private Space Walker. I’m assigned to aboard the Crescent Moon in a few hours.”
“Let me see your ID.”

Walker showed them his ID, which was a necklace with the name and grade of his user.
“Private Space Walker. Alright. Proceed.”
“Thank you.”

The gate opened to reveal a small ship. It could transport a max of six ponies on it. It didn’t seemed to have a pilot, neither.
“Umm… hello? Anypony in here?”
“Private Space Walker, confirmed. Please, have a seat, for us to be taking off in a few minutes.”

Walker instantly knew that ship was equipped with an AI. It was logical, for him to be a presumably dangerous dude. He sat on a seat, waiting for the ship to get started. Several minutes passed until Walker got bored.
“Computer, when are we going to take off?”
“When the other passenger arrives in here.”
“May I know who the other passenger is?”
“Negative.”
“That’s great. Now we have to wait for this unknown dude.”

Suddenly, a young mare boarded the ship. She was wearing a cloak and dark glasses. Walker thought she had seen before this unknown mare. She saw the ship up and down, until she saw Walker in the back row.
“Private Space Walker. I have been assigned to watch you closely, in order for you to arrive safely to the Crescent Moon.”

Walker saw her closely. Black cloak, dark glasses, dark clothes. Surely, she would be a well trained kind of spy, or something like that.
“Why? Do they think that I’m going to hack the ship and fly to another planet, or something like?”
“… That’s what we think you’re going to do.”
“… hm. Do YOU think I’m really going to do that?”
“…”
“While you think about it, may I ask you to have a seat and fasten seat belts, please?”
“Why should I listen to a dangerous criminal?”
“Because the ship is ready to take off.”
“Alright.”

The mare sat on the front row of seats, watching him with a mirror in the upper part. Walker was too quite to simply pay attention to her.
“Passengers aboard. We’ll be taking off in 3… 2… 1…”

With a crashing sound, the ship took off, sending the heads of both of them to the edge of their seats. Several minutes of pressure and pain over them passed, until they were out of the atmosphere. The ship took a more relaxed flight in order to reach the EAC’s space station. Walker turned to see upon the mare in a few seats ahead of him. He could recognize the familiar sound of a snorting.

While going to space, someponies experienced that the pressure of getting out of the atmosphere was too much for them and they couldn’t help but to fall asleep. This was one of those cases.

He could easily jam up the ship in order to escape. However, he remembered his mission.
Date: 4508.07.25

Celestia came to the keep on which had Walker closed in. When she arrived, she saw the earth pony in the floor, along with many hits on the wall, which were signs of he trying to escape. However, trying to escape of the military keep was almost impossible.
“How long has he been trying to escape?”
“Since he awoke in there.”

Celestia looked at the earth pony. His hooves were bleeding; his fur was covered in blood and sweat. She could feel his uneasiness.
“I am going down there.”
“What? But, Princess, he’s a dangerous dude and-“
“I said I am going down there.”
Minutes later, Walker lifted his head at the time he saw a pair of white hooves standing in front of him. What he saw was one of the most beautiful, yet powerful being in the entire known universe.
“Why do I have the honor to have you in my presence?”
“Because I am here to beg for something.”
“What is that?”
“For you to join to the EAC. We need your help.”
“If you need my help, then let me stay in Equestria.”
“You can’t help here more of what you can help in the Sparkle of Dawn.”

Walker lifted his head even more by the mention of that name.
“The Sparkle of Dawn? The lost ship?”
“Yes. We thought it was lost since we lost all the communications with them. However, three days ago we received a signal of help, along with a distressed message.”
“What did it say?”
“…come with me.”

Walker followed Celestia to a control room. All the ponies lead his sight toward Walker. One of them even aimed him with his Hawke.
“Do not worry. He is with me.”

All the soldiers went again to their works. Celestia made a sign to Walker to keep following her.
“What I am about to show you is a deeply important matter related to the Sparkle of Dawn. Computer, play the message arrived from the Sparkle.”
“Sparkle of Dawn. Date 4508.07.25. Message arriving.

I’m the captain of the Sparkle of Dawn! We’re under attack of an unknown enemy! Survivors are less of twenty! We’re almost out of ammo and food! If somepony hears this, please, come to save us! Oh, shit! Here they come! Fire! Over there, Gahhhh!
End of transmission.”
“…hmm. An unknown enemy, uh?”
“Yes. Do you have an idea of how much ponies were aboard the Sparkle?”
“Maybe over a million, right?”
“Two millions, actually. As you could hear, the survivors of the attack were less of twenty, and that was three days ago. We don’t know how many last in there.”
“And you want me to go. Right?”
“Yes. We are sending the best units available in the army. You are one of the bests in the army. Therefore, I am begging you to go. We do not know what we are facing there.”
“… alright, I’ll go. But on one condition.”
“What are you asking?”
“My freedom.”
“Granted.”
“Right. I suppose I’m going to aboard a ship, am I right?”
“Yes. You will be boarding a Battlecruiser Class B.”
“Why. A class B?”
“Yes. Its codename is “Crescent Moon.””

Walker opened his eyes. He had been sleeping the past six hours, judging by the time. He turned to look for his companion, finding her sleeping. He thought about waking her up, but stopped by the gaze that she had a Hawke in her hoof.

He turned to the window, only to see amazed at how big was the ship at the side of him. He could calculate that the little ship was at least one thousand times smaller than the bigger one.
“That’s not our ship.”

The mare had awakened during the short period that Walker got from her side to the window. However, Walker was intrigued.
“What do you mean by saying that this is not our ship?”
“No, it’s not. Our ship is at the other side.”

Walker went to the other side of the ship, only to see amazed a ship as triple as big as the anterior. Walker mouth went wide open only of seeing that.
“Do you mean this colossus is the Crescent Moon?”
“Yes. That’s the Crescent Moon.”

The ship got into the docking bay of the Crescent, only to find a unit of five ponies waiting for him. Each one of them had a gun ready to be used at any time.
“Looks like they don’t trust me.”
“Nopony can trust in a dangerous criminal like you.”
“And what about you?”
“Me?”
“Can I trust you?”
“…no. I’m not the kind of mare to be trusted.”
“Of course not. Not with that cloak and sunglasses. Those are quite difficult to trust upon, don’t you think?”

Once the ship landed, the mare got out to speak to the guards. Walker saw she gave them a panel with his picture upon it. He thought it was some kind of personal profile. However, the guards left the place and the mare returned to the ship.
“All done. They can’t trust you, but I can.”
“Why. Thanks. It’s nice to have somepony like you.”
“Don’t mention it. I’m in charge of you right now.”
“And may I know the name of my foalsitter?”
“… Eagle Eye.”

Walker let is saddle bag to fall to the ground once he recognized the name.
“Eagle Eye? You’re… the Sniper?”
“I’m not used to that name.”
“Yes, sorry. But you have the best snipe shooting all over Equestria. That’s the why you earned that name.”
“Listen. I’m here only as an employee of EAC. Once the Sparkle of Dawn is found, my task is done and everypony’s gone. Got it?”
“So, your task is to watch me until we find the Sparkle and then… you will go? Just like that?”
“Yes. Just like that. Now come on. We have to go and find your room.”
“Hm. I have the feeling that these three months are going to be a living hell.”
“Indeed.”

Walker followed Eagle to his room. However, he noted the room had two beds instead of only one.
“Am I going to share my bedroom with somepony else?”
“Yes. I have to watch over you twenty four hours.”
“Wait. You’re telling me that these three months you’re going to be like my shadow? Even by sleeping in the same bedroom as me?”
“Yes. Got any problem with that?”
“Umm… no. I suppose not.”
“Fine. We’ll explore the ship later. I have to take a bath.”

The mare started to strip in front of Walker. Even by seeing upon every mare in Equestria naked, the sight of one of the better reputation ponies striping in front of him made him to start to have nose-bleeding.
“What? Is something matter?”
“Do. Doffing.”

The mare turned to see Walker covering his nose. The dark red fluid flowing down his hooves made her to react.
“You’re bleeding.”
“Yeah. I’ll have to clean. May I use the bathroom first?”
“Sure.”

As Walker went into the bathroom, he saw Eagle entering the bath too. She turned the water on and started to bath in front of him.
He got out of the bathroom, still with his nose bleeding. He thought about what he said earlier.
“A living hell, indeed.”

Author's Note

Apologizing for this chapter to be like this. But it took me over a week to think about it. And it was like: "%/##, it's done."