“Get down!” Storm Chaser shouted as one of the airship’s damaged propellers began to tear itself from its axle. Once free, the metal blades viciously tore into the Cloud Treader’s gondola. Shards of glass and splinters of wood rocketed from the walls like a barrage of bullets from a frantic gunman. The haze of powder quickly dissipated as the pressurized air was quickly pulled from the cabin, and the dust with it. The craft leaned violently to the side as the perfect balance had been thrown off by the loss of a turbine. Storm Chaser grabbed hold of the decorative fireplace, praying the masons who had constructed it had put a bit of effort into its structure.
“Storm Chaser!” Another voice shouted over the deafening noise of wind, turbine, and adrenaline. “Storm Chaser help!” The voice was of a mare who was pinned against the wall of the gondola by a large table.
“Hang in there!” He shouted over the commotion. Taking in a deep breath, Storm Chaser let go of his hoofhold. Half purposefully, half dictated by the whims of the out of control craft, Storm Chaser quickly made his way toward the trapped mare. During the few fleeting seconds of his trek across the room, the table had managed to slide several feet closer to the ever widening hole. “I’m…” Storm Chaser struggled to yell in the unpressurized air. “Coming!”
He reached the table and carefully crawled beneath it. “On three!” He said, his hushed, wraithlike voice carrying urgency of a shout. Fueled by his adrenaline, Storm Chaser kicked the table with his hind legs. The jolt knocked the assailant furniture clear off of the floor, and the mare. It raced towards the hole and flattened itself against the wall. No sooner had it come to a stop than the powerful wind had splintered the wood and pulled it into the endless void of sky and cloud.
‘Follow me.’ Storm Chaser mouthed as he beckoned for the mare, the only acts his lungs would allow him to perform. He could not tell whether or not her assent was on account of his words or his actions, but at this point, communicational trivialities were the least of his concerns. It took nearly ten times longer for the duo to traverse the sloping room than it had taken for Storm Chaser to get to the mare in the first place.
By the time the duo had reached the door, they were both panting for breath. He flung the door open and braced himself in its frame as he hoisted the mare into safety. The mare was all but exhausted and Storm Chaser was hanging on with all of the energy he had left. The thin high altitude air had made breathing a chore, and everything else an insurmountable task.
“How nice of you to join us.” A shockingly calm voice said from the other side of the room. It was the captain. He stood as steadfast as a statue with no hint of worry about him. “I am afraid we are in grave danger.” His hooves flew over the controls with speed and precision that seemed impossible.
“What happened?” Storm Chaser asked in a hoarse whisper.
“Bird strike.” The stallion said as he flipped switches in a vain attempt to regain control of the aircraft. “I cannot help but feel sorry for those poor animals. They must have been as frightened as we are now when they hit the turbines.”
Storm Chaser struggled to the front of the cabin and rested himself on one of the control panels. “Is there anything we can do?”
The captain shot him a remotely quizzical glance. “Unless we can eject the other engine from the craft, then there is nothing we can do.”
“I’ll do it.” Storm Chaser said immediately. “Whatever it takes to keep those still in this craft alive, I will do it.”
“Would you sacrifice your life for them?” The captain asked.
“Ye-” Storm Chaser caught himself before he could answer the question.
“Not as ready to agree to sacrificing your life I see.” The captain said as he continued adjusting knobs and reading dials. “The engine is weighing us down too much and the only way to keep us afloat is to get rid of it. The only way to do that is from the inside.”
“You mean-”
“You will have to get inside the engine and pull the emergency release lever from the inside.”
“Can you turn it off?” Storm Chaser asked, trying desperately to find a more sensible solution.
“I can turn it off, but it will still be extremely difficult to accomplish.” The captain said as he made a few more adjustments and pulled the yolk to the right. The craft leveled out slightly at the command, but a steep downward tilt stayed.
Storm Chaser looked back at the small group of ponies who sat clutching one another. Back on the instrument panel the altitude gauge was steadily spinning toward zero. In a few short minutes they would contact the ground. “Alright.”
The captain shot Storm Chaser another glance. This time his eyes bore as much respect, sorrow, and curiosity as shock. “Are you sure?”
“It’s either one death, or seven.” Storm Chaser said as he took a deep breath. “Let’s keep our losses minimal.”
“You sir, are a true stallion.” The captain said as he swiped several switches. “The emergency exit door has a catwalk to the engine. From there you need to open the cowling and find the emergency release handle.”
“Understood.” He said as he pulled himself, hoofhold by hoofhold to the door of his fate. As he crawled past the group of ponies he kept his eyes on the door. There was no use in them seeing the face of their savior before his untimely death. He grabbed onto the door’s latch and, with nearly all of his effort, pulled the release handle. The roar of the wind immediately greeted him like a howling specter beckoning him to death. “I’ll see you on the other side.” Storm Chaser shouted as he struggled through the door.
Bracing himself against the guardrail, Storm Chaser pulled himself through the buffeting wind. The blast of violent cold forced tears into his eyes, all but blinding him. He dragged himself to the engine and carefully felt along its surface to the cowling latches. It took several seconds, several fleeting moments of time, for him to manage to unlock the panel. As he lifted it above his head the wind sheared it off of its hinges and pulled it off into the abyss of sky.
This is it. He thought as he climbed down into the engine compartment. The emergency release handle was not far from reach, but it did require him to maneuver himself into a position. A position that forced his entire side to be pressed up against the scorching engine block. As he squeezed into the compartment the heat of the motor assaulted his coat, burning it to a char in seconds.
With the last bit of energy his body could give toward his noble cause, Storm Chaser reached out and grabbed the yellow striped handle. With one quick pull he ripped the latch open. Immediately the engine shuddered and a falling sensation overcame Storm Chaser. As the engine fell from the craft, he could see, out of the hole where the support beam had once held the engine in craft, the crippled airship. For a few fleeting seconds he could perceive the crippled airship pitch up, not by much, but enough to prove that his final mission was successful. As soon as the image had come it vanished, the engine twisting away from the ship and careening toward the ground. Storm Chaser closed his eyes and whispered, “Just one.”
