Space Blimps: Planet of a Million Blimps
Let me just start by giving you a bit of a back story.
A long time ago, a place used to exist. It was called Equestria, and it was a beautiful place. My ancestors lived there. Indeed, all of our ancestors did. Equestria had massive green fields called 'grass.' At least that's what I'm told. Giant solid rocks called 'mountains' were also abundant, with 'cliffs' and 'cities'. I bet I would have loved to live there.
Then again, what about God?
I've been up here now for what seems like forever. I've never lived without God. Equestria wasn't afraid of God. Equestria had solid Ground, which shielded them from God's wrath. They could walk around comfortably on their Ground, not having to worry about falling into God's infinite jaws.
Not here. All we have is the Blimps. As long as we stay on board, we are safe. My mother always told me not to look over the edge, so as to reduce the risk of becoming God's Food, but I never listened. All I ever see is darkness, stars, clouds and the moon. It wasn't scary.
Would you like to know what became of Equestria?
I can tell you what I know. On that fateful day, God had had enough. He crushed that shield, the Ground. The Equestrians had been so disrespectful to him, and he wanted his Food. His victims helplessly fell to their collective Doom, into the infinite void.
The remainders, my ancestors, were lucky, however. They sought protection, and they were lucky enough to live near certain Blimp facilities, which allowed them refuge. This event was known as the Great Purification.
That's what they tell me. I don't believe a word of it, though. Not even 'and.'
Whatever. It doesn't matter anymore. We can only live on. On these Blimps.
There are so many of them. One million, if I remember correctly. Every one of them has a stockpile of food and resources left over from the Great Purification, so there are plenty of opportunities to refill our supplies. They aren't too far apart, either. On average, a lone Blimp can meet about 15 other Blimps in a day. Most of the time, the meetings are totally interaction-free, due to one or more of the Blimps being derelict. Other times, one Blimp may be tied to another, allowing the residents to get across and take the Blimp or the supplies inside. Also, and this is the worst case scenario, a Blimp may be filled with Pirates, who may be hostile to any passers-by, and may very well lead to deaths. Each Blimp is 250 metres long, so they are very, very large. Most are painted white, but occasionally flags or symbols may be painted on their sides to indicate family branches.
There is a legend among Blimps that there exists one Blimp which is greater than any other. One which contains a resource more precious than any other in the world. A resource for which countless ponies would be prepared to risk their own lives in order to attain.
Money.
It is called the Mysterious Blimp, and it is only distinguishable by the one extra metre of length it possesses.
Personally, I'm not particularly interested in this legend. I only live up here to meet new ponies, which is actually quite fun. There's such a limited number of ponies in this planet. If I remember correctly, there are only one thousand left. We've met many Blimps along this ride. By my count, I've witnessed 36 meetings. Luckily, none of them have been hostile, and 6 Blimps have even joined our fleet!
I guess I should introduce myself too, before I go too far off track. I'm Sea Salt. I'm a female earth pony, and I'm 16 years old. I live with my mother, Applejohn, and this fleet of Blimps.