Detour: The Road to Uprise

Chapters

Strangers in Town
A Centerpiece for an Empire
Rain, Sleet, Snow Or Hail
We Deliver What You Mail
The Empire Emporium
Reaching Out
A Plane Out Of Place
In Plain Sight
Too Far Gone

Strangers in Town

The mountains of Canterlot. A vast expanse of tall, jagged peaks and cliffs that serve as a majestic backdrop to the Capitol of Equestria. As the moon rose to it's highest point, it's luminous glow cast down onto the cliffs, and dimly lit the valleys below. There was no wind, just eerie stillness that stagnated the atmosphere.

Two stallions, both wearing black overcoats, broke the silence as they ran up a long, narrow pathway on the edge of a cliff that was once served as a transportation route to and from Canterlot before modern trains had been invented. They rounded a bend, kicking up gravel in their wake. The path narrowed even further where some of it had broken off from a rockslide however long ago. They suddenly skidded to a stop and looked out over the valley below. The slightly larger of the two scanned the peaks of the mountains beyond, causing the other stallion to become irritable.

"Come on! What in Tartarus are you waiting for?! They're not gonna be up in the peaks. They're gonna be further down the path. It's the only way to go! Unless they've fallen into the valley. Then our job is pretty much done!"

He chuckled at his last statement. The larger of the two pulled off his jacket, revealing his dark orange fur, wings, and mark, which resembled ones and zeros in sequence. He inhaled deeply, and spoke in a calm, baritone voice which, despite his demeanor, had a menacing tone.

"We're not trying to kill them, you idiot. We're taking them back to the base. We will keep searching. But why waste our energy running after them anymore and risk our lives on these treacherous paths? We'll take our time and walk to Canterlot, get a hotel room, and plan out the rest of our search from there. When we finally find them, we'll-"
He was interrupted by his partner, who pointed past him to a jagged rock that stuck out of the side of the cliff, protruding onto the path just enough to catch someone off guard. There, at the end of the rock, was a small tuft of green hair, speckled with blood. The deep voiced stallion walked over and examined it closely. After a short investigation, he came to a conclusion.

"It's obvious that she must've cut herself as they ran. But the blood is dry now, and there's no wind to help speed up the process, so it seems they're farther ahead than what we thought. It's possible they're already out of the mountains by now."
They continued walking as the other stallion spoke.

"You think they're in Canterlot?"
He shook his head.

"I doubt it. He's too smart to go to one of the largest and most popular cities while on the run. They're probably headed to some remote village to lay low. We'll go to Canterlot for now to make contact with the rest of the team, and fill them in up to now."

"Makes sense to me."

As they walked, the tallest tower in Canterlot castle became barely visible from behind a mountain. They took off in a brisk gallop at the sight of the Capitol City, wasting no time in their important mission.

"Sad, saaaaad, Sundaaaays."
A blues/rock beat started as the vocalist sang in a low, soft voice.

"That's when my baaaaaby has to go. I feel so downhearteeeeeed, when he leaves me here alone."
A smooth piano riff filled in the pause before she came back in.

"We live for love on the weekends, that's when we hold each other sooooooo close."

Trios was alive with the blues that night as the band played on, filling the club with soulful lyrics and melting guitar solos. Big Mac, not being the typical one for going out on the social scene, tended to enjoy Trios occasionally. He loved jazz music, and had always loved dabbling on the upright bass. Unfortunately his heavy work load and responsibilities of maintaining the farm kept him from taking it any further than an occasional hobby.

Tonight found him sitting at one of the many round tables with his sister, Applejack, and her five friends. The six had invited him along to celebrate the ending of the cider season, which, thanks to the Dodge truck, had been the most profitable one yet.

Suddenly, everything on stage stopped, and made room for a ripping trumpet wail, then they came back in. He went up and down the blues scale, melting his sound into the captive audience. He closed his eyes and leaned back, moving faster and faster throughout the notes until his hoof was moving so fast it looked like a small blur. He landed on a single note, making it growl, then belted off some more high notes until the vocalist came back in with the lyrics.

"Tomorrow will beeee, blue blue Mondaaaaay. Tuesday and Wednesday, not much better."

Jake took the trumpet of his lips and sat back until the end of the song, content with his solo. It had been so long since he had played, he wondered if he would even be up to the challenge of sitting in tonight with the band. Mac, being as stubborn as he was, insisted he do so until the pilot was practically forced to do so.

Mac smiled and turned to his sister.

"Ya see. Ah knew he still had it in him. He was jes nervous about goin' up there after so long."
Twilight nodded in agreement.

"He was wonderful. I'm sure Seline would've loved to hear it."

Rainbow Dash chimed in.

"It's too bad she had that meeting in Canterlot. She's out of town a lot these days."

"It's business, dear." Rarity said. "She's a pony of success, and one must maintain a high standard to keep high expectations."
Fluttershy shrugged.

"Of course, but it's always nice to be home every once and a while. If I was gone for so long at one time, I'd get homesick."
Pinkie Pie slammed her eighth glass of cider down on the table, empty. She hadn't even began to show symptoms of dizziness or lightheadedness yet.

"I'd miss Mr. and Ms. Cake if I was gone for too long! Who would taste test the super duper yummy cupcake frosting if I wasn't here?!"

Mac, who jokingly rolled his eyes, finished off his drink just as the song ended, followed by a round of applause. The vocalist bowed.

"Thank you very much. Lets give a hoof to Jake Weston on trumpet. We asked him only three days ago to sit in with us, and he did a fantastic job." The captain bowed as she continued.

"That's it for tonight unfortunately. We always love playing here. We'll be back in two weeks, everypony. Goodnight!"

Jake walked off stage after shaking hooves with the band members, and walked over to join up with the others as they were putting on their coats and scarfs. The end of cider season always meant the dawn of a cold winter.

Upon seeing Jake, Mac went up to him and slapped him on the back.

"Ah told ya! Y'all'd do fine up there."

"Thanks, Mac. I can't even remember the last time I played exactly."
A waiter came up with a tray consisting of a single glass of hard cider.

"Compliments to the band, sir."

"Hey, thanks!"
The pilot took the glass and downed it in one go, letting some of it drip down onto his brown fur. He blinked a few times after consuming the alcohol and smiled at the server, who simply laughed.

"You gotta stay warm during these months. Cider is the best way to go! Thanks again, buddy."
He turned and walked with the shuffling crowd up the stairs and out the front door into the late fall air. After two seconds he turned to Rarity, who happened to be next to him and jokingly huddled next to her.

"I guess more cider is needed. Jeez it's freezing out here."
The fashionista laughed and pushed him away.

"Well then get home quickly, dear. I'd stay and chat with you all but I too am about to freeze to death."
She said her goodbyes and briskly took off for her shop. Jake turned back and nodded to the group.

"Well thank you all for coming to see me play. It really meant a lot. And congratulations on another successful cider season, you two" He gestured to the two farm siblings, who smiled with pride. "I'm going to get home before this stuff starts kicking in."
The remaining seven of them parted ways and headed for their homes.

Jake began walking down the road to his home as the wind picked up. He turned the corner and started down the long drag to the edge of town where his house was. His black mane whipped around in the gusts, and he kept his head down to shield himself as best as he could.

Suddenly, he heard brisk hoof steps behind him. Before he had time to react, a stallion knocked into him at full force. He landed on the ground, smacking his head against the brick road. He raised a hoof in defense, preparing to be mugged or attacked even more, but as he opened his eyes, he saw two figures running away ahead of him. For a second, he thought they headed out into the field where the C-130 was, but because it was so dark, he assumed they turned the corner when he couldn't see.

The pain from the fall was killing him. His head was forming a bump and he knew he would probably have a black eye. The captain tried to ignore the throbbing as he staggered back to his feet and quickened his pace to get home and finally get some rest.

"Crazy, those two."

"Keep running!"
A blue earth stallion grabbed a mare by the shoulder and dragged her forward, prompting her to keep going. She obviously was tired. Mud spattered her green coat, wings, and mane, and her left hoof was keeping pressure on a deep cut in her right shoulder. With only three legs, she reluctantly pressed on.

"Do we really have to keep running?! We've reached Ponyville already, and I don't think I can keep up anymore!"
The stallion stopped, whipped around, and looked at her with an intense glare.

"They might be just around the corner ready to take us back. Do you really want to go back?! We need to keep going until we're sure we're safe and we can get your cut taken care of."
He looked around at the village for a place that seemed safe.

"Now I could've sworn tha-"
He was cut off by the sight of a large metal object with wings sitting out on a concrete tarmac to the east of the village.

"There!" He pointed. "We'll see if he can hide in there until morning. It's secluded enough from the rest of the town that we shouldn't attract too much attention."
They dashed off down an embankment and onto a road which led straight for their target. He turned his head while running to make sure she was still behind him, and in an instant, found himself colliding with a blunt object. They both stumbled for a second, then he realized he knocked a pony over by accident. The green pegasus pushed him forward, and they continued running down the road.

"We don't have time to stop anymore! Lets just get to whatever that thing is and call it a night."

After a couple minutes, they reached the mysterious metal object. It was a dark grey, with two large wings in the front that donned two propellers on either side. The back consisted of two smaller wings and one vertical tail wing. On the side of the main body, it read EQUESTRIAN TRANSPORT in large white letters.

"What is it?" She said.

"I have no clue. It looks like some sort of flying machine from the fact it has what appears to be wings. Lets just see if we can get inside somehow."

The stallion walked around to the side and tried a handle that said "access door latch" on it. To his surprise, it engaged, letting down a large door that revealed a staircase leading up into the machine. The earth pony, followed by the pegasus, inched his way up step by step until he was inside the dark fuselage.

Once they were both inside, he used his wits to find out how to shut the door again, and quickly succeeded in his task. They crept around in the empty, dark room for at least fifteen minutes trying to find something for her cut. She was starting to lose more blood now, and it began dripping down her leg and onto the cold metal floor.

After another ten minutes, he found a first aid kit strapped to the wall near the back, and proceeded to dress the wound.

She winced in pain as he pressed down on the cut to sterilize it. Through the darkness, she could barely make out his blue face and mane. The black streak running through it blended in to the background, making it look like he had an inverted mohawk. This brought her mood up a bit as she chuckled at the thought.

"There." He said. "This should be ok for tonight." He had placed a large white gauze bandage wrapped around her shoulder holding a cotton pad directly onto the cut.

"Lets just try to get some rest and deal with the situation tomorrow. We can't stay in here for long. Who knows what the owner might do if they find us in here."
The mare's spirits dropped again as she remembered their dire situation. No food, no money, no nothing. They just up and ran and never looked back.

"We can't keep up like this. We can't keep running forever."
He reassured her as they laid down on a makeshift bed he quickly made from jump seat cushions.

"We don't have to. Ponyville is a safe place. That's what he said, remember? The Elements of Harmony live here. Twilight Sparkle, the Princess of Magic herself, lives here. If there's any place to be other than Canterlot, this is it. Now lets try to get some rest. We need it."

They both fell silent as they tried to let sleep overtake them. The wind howled around the metal shell of the C-130, and reverberated within.

Without opening her eyes, the green pegasus whispered through the darkness.

"We'll be alright."

Author's Note

Thanks for reading the first chapter of the sequel! Much more to come soon.

A Centerpiece for an Empire

Dawn broke as the sun popped up over the horizon, giving Canterlot a rich, golden glow. For a city of stature and dignity, being bathed in a hue of gold was the perfect accent.

The orange pegasus with a cutie mark of green ones and zeros stood at the top floor of a hotel, pacing in front of their room window in deep thought.

The room was just like any other hotel room. Pale white walls with one main area consisting of two twin beds, a desk in the corner, and a small dresser opposite of that.

After ten minutes of frantic pacing from his accomplice, the other stallion, an earth pony with a black coat and white mane, rolled over in his bed and cracked one sleep-filled eye open to look at the bed adjacent to him, finding it empty. He opened both eyes now and gazed up to the window, seeing a large silhouette pass left and right across the sunlight streaming in the window. He rolled his eyes at his friend's hectic ways. Always over-thinking things, and never just relaxing and taking a task step by step. He was surprised he'd even suggested taking a break and staying up in Canterlot rather than blazing trails through the valley in the middle of the night searching for those two.

He thought about the ponies they were after. How much they were valued to their cause. The fight they put up, the hours of research...the knowledge.

His train of thought was derailed as the pegasus looked over to him and saw his eyes slightly open.

"I know you're awake, Hertz! Get up. We're burning daylight."

The earth pony rolled over and pulled the warm covers over his head, mumbling through them.

"Five more minutes, Binary."
Everything fell silent, and for a minute, Hertz thought he'd won the argument until the covers were yanked off of him and he felt two hoofs thump his back as he rolled off on to the floor.

"If we don't find those two soon we're gonna have our heads on a platter! So get up!"
Hertz rubbed the back of his head in pain.

"Ok ok, jeez we'll get going, ok?"
The pegasus snorted and put on his overcoat minus the hood, and threw the other one at his partner who had just managed to pick his sleep-conquered body off the carpet.

Binary opened the door and, without word, ushered Hertz out, who complied without argument.

After they had checked out and went on a brief walk, they found themselves standing at the edge of Canterlot, which led down the mountain to Ponyville and the rest of the valley via a long, winding road.

"Can we at least get something to eat first?" Hertz asked as he rubbed his stomach. "We've been up for awhile and I haven't eaten yet. You know," he smirked, "there's a famous restaurant known for their pizza here."

He knew that pizza, especially plain deep dish cheese, was Binary's favorite.

"Whatcha say? We'll sit down and discuss our next move. They could be anywhere in Equestria by now. You made the right call stopping here. We never would've found them at night while on the run. We need to pace ourselves. This isn't a chase anymore, it's a hunt. A slow, tedious hunt that needs to be planned out with the upmost care. We can do this, and after it's done, our tribe will be the-"

"SHHHH!!"
He was cut off by an orange hoof in his mouth as Binary violently whispered to him.

"You cannot speak of our cause here! If anypony finds out, they'll have us in the dungeon for the rest of our lives! Do you understand?!"
A quick nod assured the pegasus he could release his grasp. He calmed down and exhaled deeply.

"Ok then. Let's go get something to eat, and then we're off to reclaim those two."

They turned around and trotted off back into town, unaware of the dark blue figure at the top of the castle tower that had been watching their conversation through a telescope.

Jake dumped his plate of pancake crumbs into the sink and rinsed them off, making sure everything was in order before he left for the day. Seline, not being one for cooking, never made pancakes, nor did she like them. Because she was away on business, today was the first day the pilot was able to make pancakes for himself, and he was happy with the outcome. It's not that Seline was controlling or demanding, it's just that Jake, attempting to be a kind pony, never made them so she could enjoy her breakfast too.

His kitchen, after he got done cleaning, was spotless. The wood floors had been swept, and the granite counters wiped. He walked through the door behind him and into the living room only to find it a mess. There were papers on the small coffee table, and the baby-grand piano in the far corner by a large bay window that rounded around was covered in dust and scrap sheets of music paper. He'd make a mental note to clean up later.

The captain, dressed in his white button down shirt with gold wings and a black tie along with two shoulder boards with four yellow stripes each, threw on his black overcoat and officer hat as he walked to the small foyer that led to the upper level. He opened the door, and immediately the wind struck his face like an icy punch.

When he got onto the street, he looked out to the plane sitting in the field on a tarmac. After the air show, Celestia had approved a grant to build a tarmac and runway for the C-130 in Ponyville, Canterlot, Manehattan, Fillydelphia, and the Crystal Empire. All they asked for in return was that he transport various items between cities to quicken the national delivery process and help to stimulate the economy. So far it'd proven to be a success.

Twilight's weatherproofing spells had made a sheltering hangar unnecessary, as the aircraft just sat out all the time when not in use.

But today, no matter how well the plane was weatherproofed, strong wind would still impact takeoff and landing capabilities. He thought about how he'd approach the situation as he strolled into the town square to pick up his flight plan for the day.

Jake walked into a small building at the end of the square which read Equestrian Transport on the sign above, and approached the desk where a secretary sat filling out paperwork. She took one look at him, and without a word, tossed him the binder and papers for the day and returned to her work. He simply smiled and left. The secretary wasn't rude, they had just been through the process almost every day, and she never wasted any time getting him ready to go.

He reviewed the plan for the day: deliver a sculpted crystal beam to the Crystal Empire. It would be used as a centerpiece for a new park being built. Sculpted in the far west, it had been delivered by rail to this point, and air travel was the best option for the final haul to it's destination. At the bottom of the paper in large red letters it said, "EXTREMELY VALUABLE. HANDLE WITH CARE."

With the wind that would be inevitably tossing the plane around, he prepared for a stressful journey.

He approached the tarmac to find his usual delivery crew ready to go. Sleethoof, a young grey earth pony who was hired so he could work through to pay off schooling, stood in front of a massive crate on rollers. For his young age, he rivaled Big Macintosh in size, which is why Jake knew he'd be the perfect candidate for the job.

"Just came off the train this morning, boss. We had a heck of a time getting this thing here. Those two used all their magic to push this thing along, but we almost had to go get Twilight and have her help with it."
Jake chuckled.

"That's why I trust you three. You haven't failed me yet."
He craned his neck to look around the crate, which was about fifteen feet long and at least six feet high.

"Where are those two?"

"Over here!"
Two blue unicorns came around the right side of the plane and approached him. They were twins, which was obvious by their identical looks with matching white manes and tails. Kline, the slightly taller of the two, which for Jake was the only way to tell them apart, and Klauss, were the key behind the loading operation, being able to push and levitate heavy objects with their magic. Kline handed Jake a checklist.

"We were doing a pre-flight check for you. Making sure everything was up to par before setting off in these hazardous conditions."

"Thanks guys. But I have to be sure for myself that everything is ok. I wouldn't feel comfortable flying. It's not that I don't trust you, but I hope you understand what I mean."

"Of course. We'll do our part and get this thing loaded up for you."

They slowly rolled the crate back to the cargo ramp. The twins on either side, their horns aglow with magic, and Sleethoof simply pushing with his full weight from behind.

Once they got the crate aligned, the earth pony walked around and got up into the cargo bay to release the ramp. Jake hadn't turned on anything yet, so the cargo bay was pitch black save for the small streams of dull light coming through the porthole windows on ether side.

He pulled down on a red lever in the back, and with a whine, the ramp began to drop, filling the interior with light.

Jake was in the cockpit, going over his final checklist. The avionics were on, and he was ready to start the engines. As he reached up for the ignition switch, Klauss ran up from the back.

"Jake! Come quick!"
The pilot, fearing that one of them was injured from the weight of the crate, ran back as quick as he could. He breathed a sigh of relief at the sight of the other two still intact, but when he looked down at what they were standing around, he became confused and slightly unsettled. There, on the metal floor, was a large stain of blood next to some stained jump seat cushions.

He looked at his crew for a moment, who waited for him to decide a course of action.

"Do you guys know anything about this?"
They all shook their heads. Jake sighed and looked out to the stretch of runway down the field.

"Call the sheriff. Let's figure this out before we go anywhere. And get on the line with the Crystal Empire, let them know that we're going to be late."

Author's Note

Sorry about the delays getting this chapter out. It's finals week at school and I'm sure most of you understand. Thanks for reading!

Rain, Sleet, Snow Or Hail

"This is quite unusual."
Luna, the princess of the moon, sat in her study examining some photos that had been magically taken through a telescope. It showed a large orange pegasus holding his hoof over the mouth of a black earth pony, obviously in a way to make him stop talking.

Her sister, Celestia, walked into the dark blue room with purple curtains on one end, and a large window on the other. Luna sat in the middle at her large oak wood desk, head down in concentration.

"What is it, sister?" Celestia said as she approached the table with curiosity.

There was a brief pause as Luna shifted from a photo of the two at the gate to one of two hooded figures standing on a mountain cliff at night. She contorted her face in thought before speaking.

"These photos here."
She laid out both of them side by side for the Sun Goddess to see.

"They are quite peculiar. Last night these two hooded figures were spotted by the Night Guard outside of the city on Stoneclaw trail. Normally we don't look twice at these sorts of things, but at that time of night, and on one of the most dangerous trails in the region, it certainly arouses suspicion. Another photo was taken just a few minutes later, this time one of them, identified now as an orange stallion, without his hood on."
She pulled out a third photo for Celestia to observe as she continued on with her theory.

"He obviously seems distressed, and from what the Night Guard said, they appeared to be looking for something, or possibly somepony."
Her sister interrupted.

"This IS slightly unusual, yes. But there's no evidence they've done anything wrong. For all we know, they might just be two travelers making their way down through the mountains who became confused as to where they were."
Luna shook her head and pointed to the picture of the duo by the main gates.

"That's what I thought at first, but look here. The orange one is silencing his partner, and if I'm any good at reading facial expressions, I'd say he wasn't too happy. I received word just fifteen minutes ago that they left town and were heading south. Inevitably towards Ponyville."
She took a deep breath and looked at her sister.

"As a leader of this nation it is my duty to protect my subjects, and I feel that it is necessary to appoint a guard to be stationed in Ponyville to watch out for when they arrive and keep tabs on them."
Celestia though about this for a moment as Luna resumed her examination.

"I don't feel right about spying on somepony on the basis of a hunch that they might be up to no good. However, if you feel like that's the right decision, then I guess I support it. Appoint a guard of your choice and they'll be there within a couple hours. I have to attend a meeting now with some of the council. I'm trusting that you'll take full responsibility for this operation?"
Without even looking up from the photos, she nodded. Celestia smiled and turned towards the door.

"Very good. I'll see you at dinner then."
With that she walked out of the study and down the stairs to make the meeting on time.

Luna stared at the face of the orange stallion, examining his expression and reading his eyes, something she's always been highly skilled at doing.

"You're up to no good. I'm going to find out what it is."

Jake sat in the cargo bay with his crew as the sheriff and his deputy examined the blood stain. The sheriff, a well-built brown earth pony, swabbed some of the dry blood in an attempt to get a sample. His deputy, much younger than he was but still of same stature, wrote down anything he found that was worth knowing, and occasionally snapped a photo of the scene from various angles.

Outside, the wind picked up and rattled the fuselage of the plane. Jake got a little impatient, knowing it'd just make his job harder, and he wouldn't be getting back until well after dark.

"What's your conclusion, sheriff?" the pilot asked with a hint of impatience.
The officer nodded to his deputy, who closed up his notebook and hung his camera around his side. Then he turned to Jake.

"At this time, I have no idea who made this. All we know is that it happened late last night, and that they were probably taking shelter in here. We found a bandage wrapper underneath one of the jump seats, and part of your first aid kit was missing. Whoever it was came in, bandaged themselves, possibly stayed overnight, and left early this morning. Did anything unusual happen last night? You do live quite close to this field."
Jake suddenly widened his eyes in surprise.

"Of course. I can't believe I didn't remember it."
He lifted his hoof up to his head where a small bump was formed from his encounter last night. Luckily there was no black eye, which he was thankful for under the account that his a job was a somewhat public one.

"These two ponies came out of nowhere last night running in this direction." He motioned with his hoof the way they were heading. "One of them knocked me over and gave me a bump on my head. I looked up to see where they were going, and I assumed they turned the corner before they got to the field. It was too dark for me to see that far. I bet that they were the ponies who were in here last night. I don't really keep the access hatch locked, mostly because anypony who wants to get in here won't have anything to take, nor can they get into the cockpit and touch anything because that's usually locked. I never really worried about it. I guess this is what I get for it. I don't remember anything about their description, nor wether they were male or female. So I'm not much help after that."
The sheriff nodded.

"Well thank you for your help. You guys can clear the scene here. We're all done. I'll call you if anything comes up from this."

"Thank you, officer."
They shook hooves, and the two ponies of the law turned and walked down the ramp. The deputy looked back at Jake.

"Oh, and be careful out there. Our weather forecast said it's crazy up north where you're heading."
Sleethoof nodded.

"Jake's a great pilot. We'll be fine with him at the helm."
The deputy chuckled.

"Good to hear. Have a nice flight."
The two rounded around the plane and were out of sight just as a steady rain began to fall.

Klauss, realizing the crate was still outside, lit up his horn and ran to the precious cargo.

"Let's get this loaded up and ready to go! We're late enough as is."
As Kline magically dissolved the blood spot on the floor, Sleethoof ran up to the front of the cargo bay where a winch mechanism sat, and released the brake and picked up the tow hook in his mouth. He ran it down the length of the plane and right up to the front of the crate, where a metal bar had been screwed in to assist with the loading. He hooked it on and ran back to the controls.

As the winch began to pull the massive piece of cargo up the ramp, it strained with the weight it had to hold. Kline, now finished with the cleaning, and Klauss kept the box in line, to make sure the wheels lined up with the centering rails on the floor of the bay.

Ten minutes later found the cargo successfully strapped into place, as well as the four pony crew in the cockpit. Sleethoof sat in the co-pilot seat going over weather forecasts and maps. For a young stallion, he was very smart for his age and was capable of reading forecasts and planning routes on maps accordingly.

The twins sat in two jump seats against the back wall of the cockpit, Klauss with a manifest of the cargo and all the legal paperwork saying they had full responsibility for the cargo, and Kline reading off pre flight checks.

"All doors, shut. Avionics switch, on. Ignition switches, on. De-icer, active. We'll need it for sure. Uhhh," he turned the page and ran his hoof down to the next relevant item to check, but couldn't find anything. "It looks like we're ready. Let's shove off."
Jake brought the C-130 to life with a loud roar as all four props began whirling in the wind.

He lined the plane up with the long runway and put all four throttles to the floor, hurling the massive aircraft down the strip, rainwater swirling behind the props in horizontal typhoons. Once they were up to speed and the nose began lifting off, he could instantly feel the pull and push of the wind beating down on the plane.

"This is some rough turbulence."

They gradually climbed up to thirty-thousand feet in silence, letting the captain concentrate on keeping the plane on course due north. Finally, after minutes of being on edge, the plane stopped bouncing around as they passed above the cloud line.

Sleethoof looked out the side window to find nothing but a vast sea of rolling white clouds, and above that, a pure blue sky revealing the sun in all it's light. He breathed a sigh of relief and sat back in his chair.

"Should be smooth sailing from here, right Jake?"

"Yes sir. Until we have to descend, we should be fine."
He pulled down his headset and flipped on the communications feed. Jake was surprised that in a nation that was much farther behind in technology than the one he left behind on Earth, they still had long distance radio communications. He pressed the button on the yoke that enabled the mouthpiece and spoke.

"Crystal Empire, come in. This is Metal Eagle."
Over the year and a half since Jake had been in Equestria, his C-130, especially after the air show with the Wonderbolts, had grown in popularity throughout the nation. It wasn't until Equestrian Today, a famous newspaper, did a story on it and referred to it as the "Metal Eagle", did the name stick. Now, whenever Jake was on the radio with various cities, he'd simply refer to it by that name, and they immediately knew who and what was approaching.

The pilot waited a few seconds before a female voice came over the headset.

"Metal Eagle this is Crystal Empire, what is your status?"

"We're about four hours out. We ran behind due to some complications that I'll elaborate on upon our arrival. What's the weather like up there?"

"Not good. Low visibility, high wind, and it's snowing harder than I've seen it do all year. We'll do our best to talk you down and ensure a safe landing. Until then, have a safe flight. Over and out."

"Thank you. Over and out."
He hung the headset around his neck and relaxed a little in his chair. Jake didn't let the calm weather they were in now deceive him. He knew that the second they dropped below those clouds again it'd be a nightmare. Weather up where they were heading wasn't controlled by pegasi like in Ponyville. If it ever got to the point where he couldn't leave town they'd come by and clear a path in the clouds for him. Up here, he was on his own with his wits, and the three stallions on his crew whom he trusted with certainty. He set the plane to autopilot and prepared for a long, quiet flight.

Author's Note

Thanks for continuing to read this story. I like where its heading. It might be a little slow to start but I needed to get some things explained before it really gets good!

We Deliver What You Mail

"I think it's healed by now."
The blue earth pony grabbed the end of his partner's bandage and began to peel it away. She winced in pain and he stopped.

"You have to do it quick." She groaned. "Just get it over with."

"Alright." He warned, "Get ready. One. Two. Three!"
He ripped the bandage off as she let out a quick yelp of pain before settling back down in their cavern.

They had been traveling since four AM, only staying in the plane for a couple hours before they decided to leave. She had suggested going south, where the small towns like Dodge Junction and Appleoosa would serve as a good place to lay low. However, they both knew that their pursuers were not stupid, and that they'd probably figure out their methods of hiding after a short time.

Her partner suggested heading north to the Crystal Empire. The harsh weather conditions would surely slow them down, but it would also do the same for the two they were running from. The Crystal Empire was also huge. It'd be like finding a needle in a haystack.

So after a quick debate, he came out on top and they doubled back and headed north. Eleven hours of traveling brought them to the very start of the giant snow plains that separated the Empire from the rest of Equestria. It was here that heavy wind and snowfall tormented the lands, and visibility was minimal.

Today was no exception. The snow whirled around, and temperatures dropped to twenty below. Being an educated stallion, he quickly was able to dig down far enough into the snow to create a small cavern just big enough for the two of them to sleep. Fire wasn't an option for warmth, as it would just turn their makeshift shelter into a swimming pool, so they just relied on body heat and the one scarf she had wrapped around her neck.

"How long should we stay here?" She asked.

"A couple of hours maybe. Three tops. We have to cover ground and keep our distance. It's just a long trek across this frozen wasteland and we're there where we'll be safe. We can blend in with society, get jobs, start a new life together. No more tyranny. No more toiling away at the mercy of his hooves. We can use our knowledge for good, not the evil we were creating. They can't finish it without us, and if it comes down to taking my own life to keep it that way, then so be it."
She grabbed his hoof.

"Don't say things like that. You won't have to take your life, nor will I. Like you said, we can start a new life together at the Crystal Empire."
She laid her head down and closed her eyes.

"Now let's get some rest before we waste too much time."

He followed suit and laid his head down next to hers, letting the element of sleep overcome him.

"Five thousand feet." said Sleethoof with a worried tone in his voice. He was watching the altimeter like his life depended on it, which, in this situation, it really did.

"Four thousand."
The plane bounced up and down in the wind, and there was no visibility whatsoever. A bead of sweat made it's way down Jake's forehead as he grasped the yoke with both hooves to keep the plane stable. He entrusted Kline, who had moved to the jump seat directly behind the center console, with the throttles.

The Crystal Empire was a very difficult landing. A large magical barrier surrounded the city, keeping out the harsh elements. The final approach was very easy because there was no weather elements to battle while landing. The major problem, however, was entering the barrier at the right spot in order to line up with the runway. There was plenty of room to circle around inside the magical orb, but the end of the runway was too close to the edge in order to line up properly. He'd have to swing around in the middle of the runway and touch down, meaning he'd only have half the distance to stop. To him, there was only one way of doing this: the right way on the first try.

The Empire came on to the radio feed as the crew approached three thousand feet.

"Ok Metal Eagle you're doing great, just keep it steady, continue on your glide path, and should hit your target, give or take a few feet."
Their goal was to hit the barrier at two hundred knots at one thousand feet. So far they hit their target with speed, but were still one thousand feet too high.

"Drop the nose further!" shouted Klauss.

"I know what I'm doing!" he snapped back. "We're almost there."

"Fifteen hundred feet!" said Sleethoof. "The radars indicating we're only a half a mile away from the barrier. We have to descend quickly!"
With one final effort Jake pushed the yoke forward and cut the throttles. A minute later the shuddering ceased, and bright sunlight filled the cockpit as the C-130 slid through the violet wall of magic and into the Crystal Empire. The four of them breathed a sigh of relief as they were almost in line with the runway. A quick tap of the left rudder petal set them straight again, and he pulled the nose up to flare the aircraft.

Up in the palace, Cadence watched from her telescope as the plane touched down on the runway and began slowing to a halt. She cantered back into the Master Bedroom and into the hallway where she met up with Shining Armor, who had been out training the Royal Guard.

"Honey, Jake is in with the crystal centerpiece. Let's go down to the airfield and say hello. The weather is worse than I've ever seen it beyond the walls, so I'm sure it wasn't easy flying that here. The least we could do is give them a formal welcome."
He smiled and showed her to the door.

"Sounds good to me."

Across town, Jake and his crew rolled to a stop at the end of the runway. The pilot sat back in his chair and let out a sigh of relief. Kline chuckled and leaned forward to Jake.

"I never realized how much I took the ground for granted."
A sarcastic laugh from the captain let everyone know he was still in recovery mode from the nail-biting approach. Sleethoof drew the crew back together from their distress as he unbuckled and stood up.

"Alright, let's taxi over and get this thing unloaded. We're late as is."
Without word, Jake throttled up just enough to get the plane rolling. He turned around and taxied back down the runway to the middle, where a large rectangular piece of tarmac was positioned off to the right as a place to park. He swung the aircraft around so the nose was facing the runway, and the ramp towards the opposite edge of the unloading space.

He released the lever in the cockpit and led the other three to the back of the cargo bay just as the ramp hit the ground.

Ten city workers gathered by the ramp to greet them. The foreman of the operation walked up and shook Jake's hoof.

"Rough time gettin' in I hear."
The pilot just shook his head.

"You wouldn't believe it, my friend."

"I'm sure. Let's roll her off so you guys can get out of here."

Jake stepped out into the sun filled Empire, taking in the warm air and calm breeze.

"I don't think I want to get out of here any time soon."

"You don't have to!"
Everyone turned to see Shining Armor and Cadence, who had teleported over from the palace. They all bowed in their presence before he jokingly rolled his eyes.

"Come on, this is informal."
Jake went over and shook his hoof.

"Nice to see you again, Shining. It's been awhile. With you way up here in this nightmare I can't imagine anypony who'd want to visit."
They exchanged a laugh before the pilot turned to Cadance and gave a small bow.

"It's nice to see you too, ma'am."

"Oh please, you know my name." she snickered.

The Princess looked over to the massive crate that was now being rolled off via winch and unicorn magic.

"That's quite a load you flew up here. Thank you for doing that. It would've taken forever by train. This is quite possibly the worst storm we've ever had up here. Not including the time King Sombra attempted a takeover."

"Yeah, it was quite an ordeal flying up here. But," he looked back to the grey C-130, "this tin can saw us through. It's going back that's gonna be tough. Now the wind will be hitting from the front AND at an angle, which will drastically slow me down."
Shining Armor noticed the crate was unloaded and the workers were now in possession, meaning Jake and his crew had finished their portion of the job. He looked back at Jake and the team, who had joined him since then, and smiled.

"Well there's no point in you trying to fly back right now. Let's grab a drink in town. On me. Consider it a thank you for braving this weather."
Sleethoof, still being a student, spoke up at hearing this.

"Uh, I'm only eighteen. I can't go into a bar here."
Cadence raised her hoof to assure him.

"Eighteen is close enough. You deserve one, dear."

They all laughed as they walked off the tarmac and into town to finally catch a break from the weather.

Evening settled over Sweet Apple Acres as Big Macintosh finished raking up the fallen leaves in front of the barn. The weather had cleared long since Jake's departure, and a warm, golden sky cast out over the town.

The farm pony looked out to the rows upon rows of trees, and sighed at the monumental mess of dead, strewn about leaves. Not all of them had to be picked up, but the main paths leading down between the trees definitely needed to be cleared.

Applejack came out to see his progress, and was pleased to see the leeway he'd made.

"We're gettin' there, Mac. Baby steps. We'll have this whole area cleaned up in due time."

"Eeyup."
They stood there for a minute, enjoying the calm weather before Applejack broke the silence.

"Well let's git ready fer dinner. Y'all definitely earned it."

They turned and headed back to the farm house. As they approached the porch, two silhouettes, unable to be identified due to the darkness, walked through the front gate.

Mac became slightly uneasy at the sight of them, and put a hoof on his sisters shoulder.

"Stay here."
He walked over to them so he could identify the duo before they got any closer to his house.

"Can ah help y'all?" he called out.
They met face to face, and Mac was able to see them in detail now. One an orange pegasus, and the other a black earth pony, both wearing dark overcoats. The orange one reached out his hoof, which Mac cautiously shook.

"Hello sir, my name is Doctor Sanders, and this," he pointed over to Hertz, "is my colleague, Professor Hewitt. We're science teachers at Canterlot University, and we have a bit of an emergency. You see, there were two students who went out on an expedition to research the energy and patterns of lightning, and thought Ponyville, because of its crack team of weather pegasi, was one of the best places to do it. However they haven't come back, and it's been three days. Here are their pictures."
The red stallion took them in his hoof and tried to make out the images, but it was too dark. Against his better judgement, he cautiously invited them into the house so he could get a better look. He didn't fully believe them at the time, but if they were telling the truth, he'd like to do everything he could to help.

They walked into the kitchen and sat down at the table across from the two siblings, handing them the pictures once more. As they had their heads down in concentration, Hertz glanced over to Binary with a hopeful expression in his eyes. The pegasus jerked his head, motioning him to pay attention. Once Mac was done looking at the photos, Binary described their escapees.

"The blue one goes by the name of Macluma Watts. He is an extremely intelligent stallion in the field of electricity and electrical engineering. His partner, the green pegasus, goes by the name of Sienna Contour. She is very skilled at designing and building. Both are top students, and I'd be mortified if anything happened to them."
Hertz broke into the conversation, a little too abruptly for Applejack's taste.

"So have you seen 'em?"
Binary cringed at his accomplice's poor choice of words.

The orange mare thought for a minute about their story. Was it true? Even though she knew she'd never seen them before, were they in harms way being pursued by these two strangers? She decided to interrogate a little bit.

"Can ah see some identifications proving that y'all say who ya are?"

Binary, using his wits, had thought ahead and made up two fake ID cards for them. They both pulled them out and slapped them down on the table. Mac took Hertz's, and Applejack took Binary's. After a mutual consent between the two, they looked legitimate. They passed them back, and Applejack continued her questioning.

"They seem real. However, these ponies," she held up both of their photos for the two to see, "they look a tad too old to be in college. Now ah don't wanna believe yer lying to us. Y'all have ta jes realize that this story seems kinda sketchy. There wasn't a single bolt of lightin' scheduled in that storm we had earlier. Ah know, mah friend is one of the weather captains when she ain't flyin' around with the Wonderbolts. And for the other two days before that, there hasn't been a cloud in the sky. Don't ya think they would've scheduled a time when they knew for SURE there'd be lightin'?"
Hertz began to fidget slightly in his seat, hoping his accomplice could come up with an answer. After a moment of silence, he pieced one together.

"First off, the reason they're older is because they're both going for a doctorate degree, which requires at least six years of schooling. They're enrolled much longer than anypony who is just going for a bachelors or masters. As to why they chose this time to go, we're not really sure either. We simply told them we wanted data on the power and striking frequencies of lighting in and around Ponyville. When they chose to leave was up to them. Maybe they thought there would be lightning in this afternoon's storm."
He leaned back in his chair and continued.

"Look. The bottom line is that we are who we say we are. We're simply two concerned teachers looking out for our students. If you haven't seen them, we'll be on our way."
Mac decided to end it there.

"No, sir. We ain't seen anypony like them. We'll keep an eye out though. Is there any contact information y'all can give me so if ah do see 'em ah know who to get in touch with?"
Hertz pulled out a card with an address of their headquarters. To the farm pony, it appeared to be the address of the University in Canterlot. He accepted the card and nodded.

"Thank ya."
The duo stood up. Hertz reached out and shook Mac's hoof.

"No, thank you."
He grinned as they exchanged goodbyes. Applejack narrowed her eyes in disapproval at the expression on the black stallion's face. It seemed...forced.

The farmer led them to the door and out to the porch. Night had fallen since they entered the Apple home, and the moon was nowhere to be found as it hid behind a large mass of clouds that had rolled in. He expected more storms tonight.

Binary turned back as they walked down the steps.

"Thank you again, Macintosh."
With that, the two walked out the front gate into the darkness.

Applejack walked back into the kitchen, Mac in tow, and sat down with him.

"What do ya reckon, sis?"
She pondered for a minute.

"Ah ain't sure. They're probably tellin' the truth, but ah can't help bein' skeptical."

"Ah know what ya mean. Let's get some sleep. It's probably gonna rain again, meanin' them leaves will be one wet mess."
He started up the stairs, sleep beginning to overcome him as he yawned.

"Ah guess we'll jes have ta-"

"Wait a minute."
He was cut short by his sister, who was still sitting at the table. He turned and looked down over the railing at her.

"What is it, sis?"
She whipped around and faced him, a mix of confusion and fear in her eyes.

"What was the last thing he said to ya?"
The farmer, getting progressively tired, had to think for a moment.

"Umm, goodbye Macintosh. Yeah that was it. Wh-"
He instantly snapped to attention when he realized where she was heading.

"Ya never told him yer name."

"Nnope."

Author's Note

Merry Christmas! My present to you? An extra long chapter!
I hope you enjoyed this new installment. Things are beginning to unfold. Mysteries around every corner.
Thanks for reading and have a happy new year! Be careful around the fireworks :)

The Empire Emporium

The barrier around the Crystal Empire was one of the greatest achievements ever since magic had been harnessed in the ancient times. It protected the city from the harsh elements that laid beyond that were far too powerful to be controlled through pegasi. During the day, it shone a light purple, and from inside, made the sky a beautiful blue canvas scattered with occasional clouds. Now, as the sun set and night started to take the helm, it eased into a cool blue that cast a rich night sky over the empire.

In the center of the city, a large square was located for social gatherings. On the north end sat one of the busiest restaurants around: The Empire Emporium. Newly opened, it housed hundreds of ponies looking for a new nightlife experience. Inside was very quaint looking, but with a modern flare to it. It had a stainless steel bar on one end of the building that was lined with oak wood trim, where many gathered to drink and watch as the three bar tenders flipped the bottles of alcohol around like they were a circus act. Glass shelves lined the back, chock full of assorted booze and glasses. On the other side of the building was the restaurant portion. Smooth granite floors with wood tables and cushioned brass chairs gave it a very progressive look. Like the bar, it too was packed to the brim with dinner guests socializing and taking in the new experience.

Jake, his crew, and the Royal Couple sat in the bar section around a high table. The pilot took a sip of his ale as Shining Armor continued the conversation.

"It just doesn't make sense. I train the recruits harder than I ever have in the past, and I still don't get the results I'm satisfied with. Half of them don't even know the proper way to draw a sword! Their ignorance just leads to more discipline, which just wears them out and leads to even more ignorance. It's a vicious circle, but I can't just let their mistakes go without consequences. If they mess up, they're running laps or dropping and giving me fifty push-ups. That's the way the military has to be run. I just need a way to make them learn."
Jake thought for a moment and nodded in agreement.

"I don't disagree with you. Discipline is the key to a successful soldier. However, I think you could maybe tweak the way you train them in the first place to eliminate the mistakes BEFORE you make them kill themselves with laps or push-ups. More personalized training instead of large ranks lined up attempting the maneuvers all at once. Maybe split them off into three groups and go one group at a time. Less recruits to keep an eye on at once."
He took another swig of his drink and sighed as the glass hit the table.

"I don't know. You're the captain of the guard, not me."

"No I get it. I've thought about what you said before. I just might attempt to reconfigure our training around a method somewhat like that."
Just then, Klauss came back from the restroom and sat down with them.

"Jeez this place is packed. Can't use the john without standing in a ten mile line."
Cadence laughed.

"This is just the newly-opened-bustle. It'll calm down in about a week when everypony's been through here already."
Sleethoof looked out a large bay window in the front of the building and up to the sky.

"I wonder how the weather is. We can't stay here overnight."
Shining Armor looked confused.

"Well if it stays as bad as it was, surely you'll stay over, right?"

"We have plenty of rooms in the palace." Cadence added.
Jake just shook his head.

"If I stay over, I'll be a day behind with the next delivery. Which will roll over to the next day and so on until I have a couple days off, which will be replaced with me flying overtime to make up for it. We have to leave tonight, unfortunately. We made it here in one piece, and we'll make it back in one piece. But for now," he finished off his drink and gestured for the waitress to bring him another, "let's relax."

Kline looked off to the entrance of the building to see four Royal Guard ponies walking in and taking off their helmets. They donned golden breast plates and side armor, and wielded swords on their left front leg. He turned back to Shining Armor and got his attention.

"Do those guys wear their uniforms all over the place, or are they just off duty?"
The Guard Captain looked over to the small group of new recruits, and narrowed his eyes in anger.

"Hold on."
He sprang up from the table and marched over to them. When they saw their captain standing right in front of them, steam emitting from his nostrils, they were instantly drained of color, despite them already being white-coated.

"This is a decent, public, place." he said in a low, furious voice. "So I'm not going to make a scene in front of everypony. All of you to the barracks and await further instruction. Right. Now."

"Y-yes sir." One of them muttered. With that, they all fumbled out into the streets and started for their barrack.

Shining returned to the table, still outraged at the event that had just unfolded.

"I can't believe that! Four guards on duty, waltzing into a bar for a break! How do you think that makes me look?!"
Cadence put a hoof around his back to calm him down. He finally did after a couple seconds, and ran a hoof through his mane out of pure stress.

"How do you think this makes US look? The Royal Guard. The symbol of peace in Equestria. Slacking off on duty."
Kline tried to reassure him.

"It's not like everypony in the guard was there. It was only four. Every Guard member I've come across has been nothing but professional and polite."
Shining Armor just shook his head.

"First it's only four. Then eight. Then fifteen. Then the whole guard is slacking off behind my back, unprepared for anything that may come at us."
Jake chuckled, attempting to make light of the situation. That had always been his way of dealing with things, no matter how serious the matter was. He never came off as rude the way he did it, he just tried to make them see the lighter view on their problems.

"You're overreacting to this whole thing. So what. Four stallions got bored one night and decided to stop into a bar while they were on duty to get a buzz going. I'm not saying it was the right thing. I think they deserve whatever discipline you throw at them. But odds are this is just a one time deal. I'm sure everything is running smoothly in the Guard as we speak."

"I hope you're right." Shining said. "We, the Royal Guard, are the divide between peace and uprise, and we're only as strong as our weakest link. One troop slacking off causes an entire unit to fail. One unit to fail causes another unit to fail, and so on. Do you see why this bothers me so much?"
The pilot nodded and took another sip of his fresh drink. Sleethoof, who'd simply been listening the whole time, looked over to Shining Armor.

"Continuous effort, not strength or intelligence, is the key to unlocking our potential. Give them time, sir. They will learn through their mistakes and be pushed towards success no matter what the stakes may be. This nation can sleep at night knowing that a bunch of stallions suit up and keep the peace around here. They're one of the most vital aspects of our day to day life, and half of us don't even know it. So like I said, just give them time. You give a stallion the armor and a weapon, the soldier eventually follows." He looked out the window once more and continued thinking about the weather. He looked back to Jake, who was impressed at the sudden speech he'd just given.

"Let's get going. I have a feeling the weather isn't going to let up anytime soon."

"Now lets jes think about this fer a moment."
Applejack paced the floor of her brothers room as he sat on the edge of his bed in thought. Mac interjected before she could speak again.

"Now sis, it's very possible that he jes asked about this place and somepony told him our names. Ah don't mean ta boast er nothing, but we're kinda well known 'round these parts."
She shook her head in disagreement.

"That whole conversation was jes off ta me. They didn't seem honest. Ah bet ya whoever them two missing ponies are, are actually runnin' away from them."
Mac tried to talk some sense into her.

"Now c'mon AJ. It's highly unlikely that that's what was happenin'. Ahm not gonna write it off completely, because ah surely can't disprove that theory either. But let's try an' be rational here, ok?"

"Fine. But ah have a bad feelin' 'bout them two, and ahm gonna get ta the bottom of this."
She broke off from her pacing route and headed for the door. She stopped on the threshold and looked back at her brother.

"Tomorrow we're gonna go into town an' ask around about those two an' see if we can't get any info from 'em. Ok?"

"If y'all think that's a good plan, ah'll follow along."

"Thank you, Mac. Goodnight."
She shut the door behind her and walked downstairs, leaving the farmer alone to think.

His theory wasn't irrational. Sure it seemed suspicious the professor knew his name, but odds are someone had told him who he was while asking for directions. But why them? Why come all the way out to the secluded farm and ask? It's not like it was a busy area. If two students wanted to conduct research on lightning they wouldn't go to the middle of an apple orchard where trees could easily be toppled and or burnt by the feat of nature. Or would they? He'd sleep on it, and finalize his thoughts in the morning.

Mac turned off the light and slipped under his bed sheets. The wind picked up again outside, and he could feel yet another storm approaching. He shrugged it off and closed his eyes. After a long days work, sleep came easy to him.

"One thousand."
The C-130 rattled around in the harsh wind. It hadn't let up at all since their landing, and it wasn't going to anytime soon.

"Two thousand."
Sleethoof read off the altimeter as they climbed. The goal was to get above the cloud cover as quickly as possible. After that, they were home free until they needed to land.

The wind pounding the nose of the aircraft just made the temperatures even colder. Ice began building on the wings faster than the de-icer could work. Jake noticed this, and began to seriously get worried.

"This is not good. Not good at all. We're taking on too much ice for the system to melt it. We'll lose lift soon if we don't get above the clouds."
Kline spoke up from the back jump seat.

"Well if we go higher won't it just be colder?!"

"Hypothetically, but in weather like this with the wind chill, ice will form here faster than it will up there. It's a desperate climb to the top."

Everyone sat back and held on as the plane was tossed around like a hackie sack. A warning light came on indicating a stall, causing Klauss to panic.

"We're going down! We're going down!"

"NO WE'RE NOT!" Jake roared. "All it is is the stall sensor being covered with ice so no air gets in. It thinks we're doing zero knots right now. I'm sorry for yelling, but don't panic. We're gonna make it."

After ten minutes the wings were caked in ice. Fortunately, the leading edges allowing the lift were still clear. But the back edge still contributed to the lift as well, and it being covered created an immense amount of drag.

"We're only fifteen-hundred feet away!" Sleethoof said. Klauss banged on the wall behind him a couple times in encouragement. "Come on, baby! Lift your ass for us."
Jake, realizing the wings could barely take any more, pulled back and raised the nose to a forty-five degree angle in a last ditch effort to clear the last thousand feet.

The air speed indicator dropped rapidly as the engines just couldn't muster up the power to pull them. They clawed through the air as the altimeter slowed it's ascent reading.

They had five hundred feet to go. Four hundred. Three hundred. Jake thought for a split second that he was going to lose the battle with gravity. That he'd never touch land again other than the inevitable fireball that would be his plane hitting the surface. He closed is eyes, and for the first time since he could remember, prayed. Prayed for his three friends he'd drug into this mess, and himself.

Seconds passed, which seemed like ages, and the plane finally broke free of the clouds and was basked in the moonlight from above. Everyone sat still, making sure it was reality and they hadn't already crashed. They gathered themselves, and Jake breathed a sigh of relief and sat back.

"See, I knew we could do it." he said. "Hopefully that ice melts before-"

He was cut off by a giant bolt of lightning shooting up into the sky from below about twenty miles ahead. It danced around the clouds as it was continuously shot up via whatever was powering it from the ground. Jake was confused. Lightning didn't go straight up, did it? His train of thought was interrupted as well by Sleethoof making a disastrous observation.

"It's heading this way!"
A lightning bolt, much slower than normal, slithered through the sky, bouncing towards them on the clouds like a skipping stone on a lake. Before they could say anything else, it hit. The cockpit was illuminated harshly with white light as all the instruments went off and began malfunctioning. As quick as it came, the bolt receded and tapered away, leaving them awestruck.

All the light faded from Jake's eyes as the four RPM gauges went down and every single component on the plane shut off, leaving them in complete darkness. All four propellers stopped turning as the airspeed began falling. Jake pulled up a little bit on the yoke only to find that the hydraulics had failed as well. He had no control.

"Brace yourselves. Guys just...just brace yourselves."

Once again, the crew found themselves headed back towards the storm as the nose tipped down and led the aircraft into the icy abyss.

Reaching Out

Author's Note

I want to apologize for the gap in between chapters. I got so busy with school I was unable to continue writing. I can assure you all that a gap that large won't happen again. Thanks for reading!

Reaching Out

Wind is a wild feat of nature. It is one of her secret weapons in disguise. At most times it provides a cooling breeze that relaxes anyone or anything around it. But when it wants to, it can unleash a cruel and destructive force that can't be dealt with.

This was the latter in Macluma and Sienna's case. They awoke to the harsh screeching of the wind above their snow burrow and looked around quite worried. It was pitch black, and where there had once been a small opening to the surface was now sealed off by an extremely heavy drift. Sienna hit the wall to try and break through, but to no avail. Macluma had piled snow up from the hole he had dug, which caused more snow to drift up alongside that and seal the opening off. When he attempted what his partner had just tried, he too failed. To his estimate, there had to be at least five to six feet of snow that had piled up since they'd fallen asleep. The amount of snowfall must have increased severely, he thought.

He pounded and pounded against the wall desperately trying to bust it down. He'd never been a stallion of great strength. He knew that. But if there was anytime to use everything he had, it was now.

Sienna joined in, and in unison they bashed into the snow repeatedly, causing it to just pack down even more. He knew this wasn't the best way. Digging it out would've been his first choice if there was actually something to do it with. His hooves proved to be useless as half of the snow was solid ice as well. He might as well have taken a plastic fork and scraped away.

"How the heck are we going to get out of here?!" he asked. "We're snowed in, and if it keeps building up, it's going to collapse in on us. Then we're in real trouble."

"Well we have to try something. We're engineers, remember? We have a problem, we find a solution. Normally it's over entire nights with unlimited amounts of coffee. But, nevertheless, we have to try, right?"

Macluma had always appreciated Sienna's sense of humor no matter what the situation. Whenever they'd been working together and had hit a dead end on a project, it was her who saw them through it with her wits and knowledge. He wasn't ashamed to admit that, either.

He looked up, and already he noticed the roof of the snow burrow was sunk in a little. It wouldn't be long until they were trapped for good and froze to death. He tried strategically digging at the bottom, hoping it would loosen up the wall of snow and collapse it, but it proved to be just as hard as before. How he'd managed to even dig down in the first place he'd never know.

Suddenly, their fears came true as the weight of the snow was too much, and it couldn't support itself any longer. The roof caved in and smashed down on the two, causing the wind to be knocked out of Sienna. They were separated by a foot of snow, and we're enclosed from head to hoof. There was no chance of breaking free.

The weight of the thick, icy snow began to bear down even harder on the two, making the task of breathing very strenuous.

"C-can you hear me, Sienna?!"
He asked in a strained voice. He listened for a moment, then heard a barely audible muffle from the other side.

"Yes! Yes I can!"

"Good! Hang in there. I'll think of something."
There was eerie silence as Macluma pondered his situation. His body temperature was dropping fast, and he didn't have much time before frostbite set in. As he thought, Sienna's voice could be heard through the wall.

"Macluma. I know what can get us out of here."

"What?! Tell me."
There was a pause, and that hesitation made Macluma realize what she was getting at. He spoke up before she even responded again.

"No! I'm not doing it!"

"You have to!" she pleaded. "What other options do we have?! I'm getting so cold I can barely speak! I can't feel my hooves or anything! We will surely die right here and right now if you don't do it. Is this how you want us to end?! To risk everything and run away from that evil, sadistic, stallion only to die because of some snow?! That's not the Macluma I know and love. No, sir that is not! I know you're afraid of what might happen, but you have that power for a reason, and I'll be damned if you're going to die because you won't use it."

A single tear streaked Macluma's face, then froze instantly to his cheek. He had to do it, even if it meant the repercussions later. Those were a much better route to take than dying all together.

He situated himself as best as he could, and spoke for the last time.

"Ok. I'll do it. Just hold on. Don't close your eyes and fall asleep, because in this cold, you won't wake up."

"Thank you, Macluma. I love you."

"I love you, too."

It had been his father who showed him his power. One he never could've imagined. Even though he was an Earth Pony, magic was still capable through him. He had a gift of being able to channel the elements around him into pure energy, which is what drove his passion for electricity and engineering. He was in fact a living conductor of electricity. Why he had the power, he still wasn't sure. He had a few theories a long time ago, but never sought them out and discovered its true origin. Now, after years of being docile, his special powers bubbled to the surface once more.

He closed his eyes and emptied his mind. Letting all thoughts run away like scattering birds on the beach, leaving nothing but a blank slate to work with. He felt his surroundings. The ice. The snow. The chill. The texture. Everything was embedded into his mind. He slowed his breathing, as well as his heart rate, and felt prepared to complete the task. He took his thoughts of the snow he had stashed away, and slowly formed them together in his mind. A white orb was swirled together, then spotted with ice. It started to rotate in the emptiness, going faster and faster. Once it reached speed, it was time to unleash. He channeled magic he gained from the snow and it's elements into him, and his cutie mark, which resembled three sparks, began glowing brightly. Instantly, the snow around it began to melt from the heat. It was working. He concentrated even harder as his mark grew hotter and hotter, not affecting him the slightest.

After a couple more seconds, Sienna could be seen as the wall between them melted completely away. She smiled for the first time while he melted away even more snow. Macluma got up and took it to the next level. He channeled the energy from his mark to his hoof, and shot a small bolt of energy from the tip of it, melting away anything in it's path. He aimed upwards, chipping away the ceiling rapidly. Soon, there was a small spot of black, undoubtedly the cloudy night sky.

He closed his eyes and focused the orb in his head to spin faster, creating more energy. The bolt grew in diameter and heat, causing Sienna's smile to slowly fade.

"Macluma, that's enough. We can get out now. Don't get carried away!"

He was unaware of anything on the outside as he was barred in his own mind, focusing only on the orb. Soon he realized what he was doing, and that he needed to stop. But he couldn't. He tried opening his eyes, but to him, his mind turned into reality and all he could see, eyes open or closed, was the orb. It spun faster and faster and he lost control of it.

In his mind he was screaming for him to stop, but his physical form remained motionless, staring off as the beam shot straight up into the sky growing larger and getting higher. He was screaming for Sienna to run away, because she could now the snow was melted. Despite his efforts, not a sound came out.

"Macluma?! Macluma?!" she cried.
The heat grew to be unbearable, and she clambered up the wall and out of the snow hole. She fell back about ten feet away and looked up to the sky only to see the massive bolt growing even more. Tears flowed freely as she regretted ever asking him to perform such a task. He wasn't able to control his power after such time spent repressing it. There was absolutely nothing she could do but get to cover and wait. Even through the whirling wind and snow the bolt was easily visible as it climbed yet another fifty or so yards.

Inside Macluma's mind, the orb was spinning so fast it began flattening into a disc of ice. The pain grew, as his body could not cope with these levels of energy. The fabric of his mind couldn't contain the mental strain, too, and as the disc reached full speed, it flew apart, shattering his mind with it. The bolt reached it's peak, and a massive wave of energy roared as it shot up into and past the clouds. It remained in fire for a couple seconds, then, like a light switch, retracted down and dissipated, leaving nothing but the empty wasteland, the howl of wind, and a charred stallion laying in a crater made from the blast.

Macluma was motionless on the ground as Sienna slid down the bank and fumbled over to him, cradling his head in her hooves. His fur was burnt from head to toe, and his nose was bleeding very badly. His mane and tail were mere stumps of what they used to be, seared off by the immense heat. The hoof where the bolt came out of was profusely bleeding, causing the snow to turn crimson around the two. She put her shaking hoof on his chest, trying to feel a pulse. There was a slow one, followed by a short, shallow breath. He was still alive, but barely.

"Come on...come on, Macluma speak to me."
She lightly shook him, trying to ease him out of unconsciousness to preserve his life. She packed snow around his wounds to try and stop the bleeding, but it proved futile as the warm blood just ran through the snow.

She was running out of time, and the end seemed imminent. There was no hospital for miles, the temperature was deadly, and she had no medical supplies. All she could do was sit there helplessly, full of regret.

It was over for them. Macluma's breathing slowed to nothing, and became so shallow Sienna couldn't even see his chest rise and fall anymore.

"I'm sorry, Macluma. I should've never asked you for so much." She cried, and her tears would freeze before they hit the ground. She herself was beginning to decline. The weather had gotten so bad since they set out that travel was now impossible. Her hooves were numb and cracked from the cold, her body temperature declined rapidly, and she was feeling very woozy. She realized that she'd probably be joining Macluma soon, and waited out their last moments together.

She closed her eyes and laid down beside the engineer, comforting him until the end. She tried to replay scenes of them together in the past, before all the bad things began happening, but those were the only things she could think of. The pillage, the hostages, the eventual capture and forced labor. These were things Sienna wanted to forget, but simply could not erase them from her mind.

She shivered as the wind howled around them. What were they thinking? Traveling through this land without provisions was extremely careless. The weather had deceived them, and what was once a mild blizzard when they started grew to a massive torrent of a storm that took the lives of anything in its path. But what could she do now? There fate was signed, sealed and delivered.

Macluma, who was completely void of all signs of life save for the very basic task of breathing, flexed his front legs just a bit due to nerve reflexes. Sienna saw this and thought he was gone. That those were his last movements before his body gave in. One final burst of energy before the engine sputtered to a halt. It was almost like he was already dead. No expression, no thought. Just an empty shell of a stallion that had a faint pulse and some air left in him.

All was silent except for the whipping wind as they laid together in the red snow. A couple more minutes passed by, and Sienna began drifting off herself. She was beginning to let sleep take her when she heard a loud bang in the distance. She snapped her head up, covered in mini icicles and snow, and looked out to the direction the sound came from. Seconds later, a large light emerged from the darkness, speeding towards them. It slowed as it neared, and soon was illuminating the entire crater. She thought for a split second that it was the afterlife. She'd heard about dying ponies seeing a light just before they depart. Was this it? Surely it didn't appear this abruptly.

The massive light slid maybe twenty feet away and stopped. The sound of creaking metal could be heard as it shifted in the snow. Then it went out, leaving the darkness to settle in once more.

What lie before Sienna's eyes left her in shock. The same machine they had taken shelter in the previous night was lying before her, leaning to its left on one wing. It's silhouette could only be made out in the night, but there was no mistaking it's unusual shape and size.

Without even thinking, she started for the aircraft, hoping to find help within once more. However, the temperature had made her weak, and she fell down after only three steps. She persevered, though, and stood upright once more and continued for the plane. This was her only chance.

"How did this even happen?!"
Kline yelled out as he braced himself.

"How should I fucking know?! It doesn't matter HOW it happened! What matters is THAT it's happening!" Jake replied.

The plane was losing altitude fast, and they were only a thousand feet from the ground after two minutes of diving.

When the bolt had struck, it shut down everything electronic that was onboard, which meant no readings, no lights, no engines, and no hydraulic pumps that move the control surfaces. Jake had to revert to manual control, where nothing but a cable attached to the yoke moved the ailerons and elevators. The sheer speed of the descent was too much for him to handle, even with Sleethoof helping to pull up. By the time they regained control they had dropped twenty-five thousand feet.

Jake set the plane for best glide slope and prepared to touch down. Suddenly, a light came on on the dash, followed by another, and so forth.

"We have power!" Klauss stated.

"Not quite." the pilot replied. "It's coming back, but according to the gauge, there's not nearly enough to reboot anything but maybe a light or two. Starting the engines is out of the question. Here's what we're gonna do." He turned on the landing light in front, hoping to have enough juice. Sure enough, the bulb barely lit, then grew in brightness until it was shining once more. "We're going to touch down without gear. In as much snow as we're in, landing on the smooth belly of the plane is better than digging the wheels in. It'll be like a water landing, only a little rougher. Ok here we go."
They were only two hundred feet high and coming down quickly. One hundred feet, fifty feet, the ground could be seen racing underneath them as they approached touchdown.

"This is it! It's definitely gonna be interesting!" Sleethoof said as he hung on to the shaking armrests of his chair.

The crew braced as the belly of the C-130 hit the snow and began sliding. The hit caused them to jerk downwards hard from g-force. For a good fifteen seconds or so, the plane slid down the slippery surface, denying all signs of slowing. Jake used the rudder to keep it straight while he still had enough speed for it to be effective. Soon though, it began to stop as Jake dropped the speed brakes completely, causing maximum drag.

They finally came to a halt, and Jake looked back to check the situation.

"Everypony all right?"
They nodded as they were unbuckling their seat belts. Jake had touched down perfectly level, causing no structural damage to the plane except for scratches on the underside and possibly a dent or two. The plane slowly rolled to its right and settled in, propped on its wing. It wasn't going anywhere.

The power went out again, throwing them all into darkness. The pilot got up and walked back into the cargo bay to get the emergency kit.

"What. The fuck. Happened. One minute we're flying, the next minute we're hit with a lightning bolt and thrown into a nosedive."
He opened the kit that was hung on the wall by the door and found two flashlights in it. He passed one to Sleethoof, who'd followed him out.

"Let me tell you all something," he continued. "There's no way in hell we're getting out of here anytime soon. We'll have to stay here tonight, and leave tomorrow."
Kline came out of the cockpit, his lanky outline being the only thing visible.

"Head out? Look at it here. We can't go anywhere."
Jake shined the light up to brighten the cargo bay and see their faces.

"Listen. We have no power, no heat, no nothing."

"Then why did the power start coming back on?" Klauss asked.

"I'm not sure. It probably was a final surge before everything blacked out completely."
He hastily walked to the back of the plane and opened a panel on the wall. Holding the flashlight in his mouth, he checked inside. There were glass frames with hash markings on them. In the center of each frame was a small tube that indicated hydraulic oil levels. All five of them, one for each control surface, was empty.

"Not good." he said as he walked back to the front.

"Not good?" Sleethoof asked.

"No. Not good. Hydraulics are empty, which means the pumps are out for the count."

"Hold on a minute." Klauss asked. "Didn't Twilight put a spell on this plane causing it to be undamaged by weather and whatnot?"

"Yes and no." Jake replied. "It won't freeze. The spell protects it from that. What it can do, though, is break from impacts or other causes like...oh I don't know...a giant lightning bolt from the ground completely wiping us out. I'm gonna get to the bottom of this. How is that even possi-"

He was cut off by a faint rasping sound.

"Hey, you hear that?" Klauss said.

"Shhh. Hold on." Jake whispered.
They waited in eerie silence again, and sure enough, after a couple more seconds there were three knocks on the door that echoed on the aluminum.

Sleethoof aimed his light on it and approached slowly. When he got there, more faint knocks could be heard. He looked back at Jake, making sure he had the clear to open it. The pilot just nodded.

He lifted up on the handle and popped the hatch. Being that the plane was rolled on the side of the door, there was barely a drop to the ground, and the staircase could only lower halfway before it dug into the snow.

The wind howled, and the stallion shone his light around outside, trying to find the source.

"See anything?" Kline asked.

"Jake! Jake come over here!" Sleethoof shouted, waving his hoof at him. The pilot ran over and looked out into the circle of light cast out on the ground.

What he saw left him bewildered. A green pegasus, frostbitten to death and bleeding on one side, reached out to them in desperation, then keeled over. Jake jumped down and ran over to her.

"Can you hear me?! What happened?" He turned to his crew who were crowding the door frame. "Help me get her inside."

"...wait." She was shivering profusely, but mustered the strength to speak once more.

"One more...in...the crater." She slowly pointed out to the hole where Macluma laid, then her hoof fell limp. Sienna was unconscious.

A Plane Out Of Place

Sweet Apple Acres was cold and damp the next morning after it had rained the previous night. The leaves that were supposed to be cleared that day were soaked, making them stick to the dirt like a floor mat.

Luckily for Macintosh, he'd already promised his sister he'd go into town to investigate their meeting last night, so he didn't feel obligated to clean anyways.

The siblings walked out of the front gate and started down the road. Applejack seemed uneasy about what happened last night.

"Ah jes can't shake the feeling that they were lyin'. It all seemed too unnatural."
Mac simply listened to her thoughts, trying to form his own opinion of the two professors that had visited them.

They continued walking in silence until they got to the highest point in the dirt road. There, they could see over the town, along with the landing strip off to the right. The absence of a grey C-130 confused Applejack.

"Wasn't Jake supposed to be home by now?"
Mac shrugged.

"It's possible he left already for his next run. He's always busy. Ahm sure there's an explanation for it."

When they began the downhill leg into town, she started planning out their search.

"Ah think it's best we start with Twilight. If anypony will know anything, it'll most likely be her."

"Eeyup."

The two walked down the main drag of Ponyville, and instantly were thrown off by the street's emptiness. There was nobody on the road, nor in the shops. One colt could be seen running down a back street, but that was it. Applejack leaned over to Mac.

"What the hay is goin' on?"
The farmer shrugged.

"Ah haven't a clue. Maybe somethin' is goin' on an' we didn't get the message."

"Ah highly doubt that, Mac. Whatever it is, we'll-"

"INCOMIIIIIIIING!"
Bam! Applejack was knocked over before she could even blink by a certain rainbow colored pegasus.

The orange earth pony staggered upright again and re-adjusted her Stetson.

"Rainbow Dash, what in tarnation are y'all doin'?! Y'almost killed me."
Before she had time to continue, the pegasus shot up from the ground and clamped a hoof over Applejack's mouth.

"Now is not the time, AJ! Get over to Twilight's house as fast as you can! It's an emergency!"
Before any questions could be asked, she bolted away into the sky. Mac looked over to his sister with a worried complexion on his face. Without word, they dashed off in the direction of her house.

It only took them a good minute or so before they rounded the corner into the large town square where the library sat on the other side. What they saw amazed them. Almost every citizen of Ponyville was gathered there, waiting for whatever it was they were asked to come out for.

Twilight, without warning, teleported with a huge flash of purple light directly in front of the two, scaring Applejack quite badly.

"Jeez, Twilight. Don't get my heart racin' like that!"

"Sorry." she said. "We have an emergency. There's no time to start explaining now, but I want you and the others up front by the treehouse. Macintosh, you go too. This is important."

As quickly as she came, she left in the same flash of purple light. The two siblings just looked at each other, then started pushing their way through the crowd. Mac, being a head taller than almost everyone in town, was able to see what was up front. He leaned down to her and spoke up over the droning of various conversations in the crowd.

"All yer friends are up there." he said.

"What?!" She cupped a hoof over her ear.

"Ah said, all yer friends are up there!"
She nodded and pushed through to the front. There, she saw her friends, save for Twilight and Rainbow dash.

"Over here!" yelled Rarity as she waved a hoof in the air. Applejack walked over and greeted them. The distressed look on Pinkie Pie, who normally was always cheerful and happy, worried her.

"What happened?" she asked. "Why is everypony here?"
Fluttershy stepped forward. "It's Jake. He never came back last night. I'm so worried."

Rarity chimed in.

"They tried reaching him through communication spells, but there was no response. We don't know what happened to him, dear."

Just then, Twilight appeared on the balcony of her treehouse, overlooking everything. Upon seeing her, the huge crowd quieted down to hear what she had to say. Rainbow Dash landed next to Fluttershy just as she began.

"Hello, everypony. I'm sure you're all wondering why you're here. I'll get right to the point. It's an emergency. Around three o'clock this morning, the Ponyville weather pegasus in charge of the airstrip outside of town became concerned on the whereabouts of Jake Weston and his crew onboard their airplane. He tried reaching them with communication spell, and there was no answer. Immediately, he called the Crystal Empire, Jake's last known location, and they said he'd left around eleven that night. I'll let the weather pony who first noticed fill in the rest. Captain Stratos?"
She stepped aside and made way for an older, dark grey pegasus with a long white mane and tail. He nodded to her and faced the crowd.

"Thank you, Twilight. Lets get to business. The plane's last known location was the Crystal Empire, and it had a direct course for Ponyville. This meant that Jake had to fly straight through the Northern Snow Plains, where weather forecasts have described what is said to be the worst blizzard it's ever experienced. He crashed somewhere in there. There's no doubt in my mind that that's what happened. I can't guarantee that he's alive, nor can I say he's dead. I can tell you though, that Jake is an extremely capable pilot, and I'm sure he handled the situation to the best of his abilities. The Princesses have been notified of the situation, and are currently strategizing. I come to all of you today, under their orders, to ask for a monumental task to be performed. We are gathering a search party to go and look for Jake and his crew of three. In those temperatures, they don't have long, so we need to get up there as quickly as possible. If anypony wishes to volunteer, they can meet me in front of the airstrip in exactly thirty minutes. There, I will fill in the other small details. I realize this is an extreme challenge. The north is colder and windier than it's ever been, but I wouldn't come to all of you if I didn't think that the vast majority here is capable of achieving such a task. Thank you. You're all dismissed."

The moment Captian Stratos retreated back into the house, there was confusion and bewilderment amongst the crowd. Inside Twilight's house, the captain descended the stairs, the unicorn in tow.

"Why isn't the Royal Guard assigned to this task?" she asked.

"They are." he responded. "There are plenty of ponies here that are more capable of extreme conditions than the vast majority of the Royal Guard. They're trained to fight and protect, not search and rescue. There's only a couple Guard members that specialize in that, and they're going along as well to lead the expedition. I need a bigger search party in order to do this safely."
He stopped at the door and looked back to Twilight.

"Jake and his crew are going to freeze to death sooner or later. That plane won't hold in the heat forever. I'm sure I'll find suitable volunteers amongst this lot."

With that, he pushed open the door and stepped into the square, where he was instantly bombarded with questions and concerns. He didn't respond to any of them, and kept his head down and walked. Finally, he turned around and spoke once more.

"Like I said, in front of the airstrip in thirty minutes if you wish to volunteer!"
He galloped off down the street and turned the corner.

Most of the citizens went on and continued their day. After a couple minutes, the square was reduced to only Rainbow Dash, Rarity, Pinkie Pie, Fluttershy, Applejack, Big Mac, and around seven others who were willing to volunteer. One of them, who was instantly recognized by Mac as Noteworthy, spoke up.

"I don't blame any of them for not volunteering, this seems like it's a deadly mission. What do you guys think?"

"Ah won't think any different of ya if ya don't wanna volunteer, Noteworthy. All ah know is that ah have ta. Jake is mah friend, an' he's helped me out of a bind plenty o' times. Only seems right that ah help him outta this one."

"Well then I'm goin' too." Applejack declared. "Ah owe Jake this much as well."

"Nnope." Mac shook his head and pointed back in the direction of Sweet Apple Acres. "As much as ah think yer capable of doin' this, ah need y'all back at the farm. Ain't no tellin' how long we'll be gone out there. We have a couple more clients comin' in fer their late orders of cider, an' even though this is an emergency situation, if ah can, ahm still gonna keep the farm up an' runnin'."
Applejack stared at her brother in disbelief.

"Mac! Are y'all kiddin' me right now?! I'm going with ya ta save Jake and his crew. Ah couldn't live knowin' that ah didn't help out the very pony who saved our farm from bankruptcy in his time of need. Either ah go with ya, or we both stay."

Mac sighed and closed his eyes. Deep down he knew it was because he didn't think she could handle the journey. The temperatures were unlike anything in any other part of Equestria.

"Now listen here, Mac." Applejack continued. "Ah've been through those snow plains before, an' ah realize they're worse now than when ah went, but ah sure as heck know what to expect. More than you do to be honest. So ahm gonna go with y'all. We'll deal with the farm later. Friends come first."

The red farmer thought to himself for a moment, letting his signature piece of hay drop from his mouth.

"Fine. Y'all can come, too. But ya gotta be on yer toughest game to handle what lies ahead. Even ahm not sure what to expect."
Applejack looked confused.

"Mac, ah just told ya that ah've been up there before. Ah don't get-"
He calmly raised a hoof to speak. He spoke not only to his sister, but to the other potential volunteers as well.

"What ahm sayin'...an' Clestia forbid...it ain't out of the picture that we..." he tried to gather his thoughts, and put them together in the most delicate way possible."Might find a plane crash with...four stallions that didn't quite make it."
Applejack was appalled.

"Mac! Don't think like that!"

"Ahm jes sayin', Applejack. Them temperatures are extremely deadly up there. Ya have ta think of all the possible solutions. Hope fer the best, but prepare fer the worst."
A couple of the volunteers shuddered at the thought of four frozen bodies up in the arctic wilderness, especially Fluttershy, who couldn't even begin to imagine such a thing.

Just then, Twilight came over.

"Ok, whose thinking about going? I'm definitely in."

"Well then you can count us in too, dear." Rarity said. Pinkie Pie, Rainbow Dash and Fluttershy all nodded as well. Fluttershy seemed very refrained from agreeing, and her nod seemed forced. Applejack came over and put a hoof on her shoulder.

"It's ok, Fluttershy. Y'all don't have ta go if ya don't want to. It's dangerous, an' ah won't blame ya fer stayin' back and taking care of yer animals."
The pegasus shook her head.

"No. I've been through worse with you guys. Jake and his friends need our help. And I'm going to help in any way I can."
Pinkie Pie jumped up in a burst of confetti.

"Yay! Search party!"
Twilight facehoofed.

"Pinkie, it's not a party. This is serious."

"Oh! Okie dokie then!"
She dropped to the ground as the confetti slowly fell around her. "Let's go find Jake!"

She immediately began bouncing off in the direction of the airfield, prompting Rainbow Dash to fly after her.

"I'll wait for you guys there!" She called back.

Twilight turned to the rest of the group, which now consisted, after a couple had backed out, only three stallions including Noteworthy.

"Are you boys coming, too?"
They looked at each other and collectively nodded. One of them spoke up.

"I never knew Jake personally, but I know of all the good things he's done, and it seems in best interest to assist in his rescue."
The purple unicorn smiled.

"Well good! We need all the help we can get. Let's go, everypony."
The eight of them set off for the airstrip, eager to see what Captain Stratos had planned for a rescue.

Applejack trotted up to Twilight, hoping for some quick information about their surprise guests last night.

"Hey Twi, ah got a question fer ya."

"Shoot." She said.

"Y'all see two stallions walking around town yesterday in search of two ponies? They said they were professors from Canterlot who had a couple missin' students. They came to the farm last night."

"Oh yeah! Proffessors Sanders and Hewitt. They came to me yesterday morning, and I said I'd keep a look out. I bumped into them that night as I was coming back from the market, and they said they'd received news they found them. They were off for Canterlot before I could ask them anything else. It was quite strange, but I'm sure if you lost two students you'd be a little off balance as well."

Applejack nodded and fell back to her brother.

"They found 'em, Mac."

"Eeyup. Ah heard."

"Ah jes hope they were tellin' the truth is all."

Jake rubbed his front hooves together and blew into them, hoping to keep warm. They had been stranded in the plane for seven hours now, and the temperature was dropping quickly. With no winter gear to go outside, all they could do was wait. The feeling of helplessness scared him. He had let his crew down, and himself as well.

He stood up from the floor and walked into the cockpit. He grabbed a copy of a spiral bound book titled: The C-130 Referencer. This book had everything from the horsepower of the engines to the correct bolt size for the door hinges. He flipped through the pages and found the thickness of the fuselage wall. Only a quarter inch on the belly and it increases to 1/2 on the sides and top. Being that it was made from aluminum he did the math in his head, and figured that it could keep most of the heat in for a good 24 hours at best. Then the temperature inside would equal out to the one outside. They'd have problems then.

Klauss came into the cockpit holding a blanket.

"You want an extra, Jake? I found a couple more in another compartment under the floor."
The pilot shook his head.

"No thanks. Give it to her." he pointed in the direction of Sienna, who was still unconscious on the floor, wrapped in blankets.

"Ok, then." he said.
Jake walked out after awhile to find his crew sitting in a circle towards the back of the plane, blankets and seat cushions wrapping them. He was lucky that he never took them out of the lower compartments. They definitely needed them. They weren't so much blankets as they were large dark green insulator pads to hang on precious cargo and keep it warm. Nonetheless, they worked perfectly.

The three crew members sat around a hatch to one of the compartments in the floor. There, Macluma had been laid due to his severe injuries. The box he was in was lined with the insulators, and shut with one on top. This was the warmest place in the plane at that moment, and collectively they decided that Macluma should get it.

"What do we do now, Jake?" Sleethoof said. "I realize going anywhere is out of the question. Even with these blankets, they won't protect us like standard gear can. I was thinking we could make a small fire right here. Burn the books and manuals in the cockpit."

"That'd last for maybe ten minutes." Kline said. "Besides, this plane is pressure sealed. There's nowhere for the smoke to go. You can open a hatch, sure. But that'd just let out more heat than the fire is putting out."

"He's right." Jake said. "We need to think about this. A search party is possible, you know. Many ponies knew where we were. I'm sure word got around that we didn't get back to Ponyville yet. For now, we wait. If you want to build a small fire, use the wood off the jump seat bottoms, and start it with the manuals up front. Don't burn the one titled The C-130 Referencer. That has every spec and fact there is about this plane. I may have been flying this for a long time, but even I forget stuff once and awhile."

Klauss and Kline got up and began to work on building a fire.

"Oh." Jake turned around once more. "Be careful with the flames. This is a plane, you know. Not a campsite."

He walked up front to where Sienna lay, and sat down next to her. He checked her vitals. There was a steady pulse, and constant breathing. He'd saved some of their rations for her. In every survival kit, there was enough dry food and bottled water to last for a couple days. However, divided by six of them, even if Macluma wasn't in any condition to eat, it'd last for maybe one.

He looked at her, then back over to the compartment Macluma laid in.

"Why were you two out here?" He whispered to himself.

Just then, the green pegasus stirred. Her eyelids cracked open the slightest bit.

"W...what happened?" She groggily asked. Jake stood up.

"You're safe here. Don't worry." He said.

To the pilot, her injuries weren't severe at all. She was just extremely fatigued and cold, which caused her to pass out. He didn't worry too much when she attempted to stand up. He grabbed her shoulder and helped the pegasus gain her balance.

Sienna opened her eyes fully for the first time, and rubbed the sleep out of them. She looked around at the dimly lit metal interior of the plane. Small rays of sunlight streaked through the windows, giving them just enough light to maneuver around safely.

She looked over to Jake, now becoming more aware of her surroundings.

"Who are you?" She asked.

"I'm Captain Jake Weston, and this is my crew. Kline, Klauss, and Sleethoof." He pointed to the three, who had now stopped their tasks to come and see how she was doing.

"O...ok." She stammered. "How long have I been out?"

"Since last night." Klauss said. We pulled you and your friend out of the snow after-."
He was cut off by the pegasus gasping and frantically running around the fuselage in search.

"Where is he?! Where is Macluma?!"
Jake approached her and calmer her down.

"He's fine. We put him in an insulated box where he'd keep warm until he recovered. We did our best to mend him with what we had in our first aid kit, and in my opinion, he seems stable. I'm not a doctor, of course, but I have had medical training in order to become a pilot. He looks fine to me. Just banged up pretty good. Last night was a different story. We didn't have too much hope for him. He pulled through though."

"Can I see Macluma?" She asked.

"Of course. Sleethoof, show um..."

"Sienna." She said.

"Yes, Sienna, to the compartment, please."

She followed the grey earth pony over to the hatch, and he opened it.

There laid Macluma, breathing steady with bandages wrapping his snout, and front right hoof. His cutie mark had been covered as well on both sides due to excessive burning.

Jake joined the two and looked down.

"Like I said. He's stable as of now, and that's the warmest place to put him. We'll just have to wait and see what happens."

Sienna walked over to her blanket, Jake in tow, and laid down.

"This is all my fault. I pushed him to do it."

"Do what?" Jake asked curiously.

"You wouldn't believe me if I told you."
Kline laughed from their makeshift fire pit in the back, overhearing their conversation.

"Please. We just were knocked out of the sky by a giant lightning bolt that rose up from the ground and cut off all our power. I think we're ready to believe just about anything."
Jake chucked too.

"Yeah, we really got hit hard. I've never seen anything like it. So anyways, what happened to Macluma?"
Sienna just stared at him, jaw-dropped.

"Is everything ok? You look a little pale now." He inquired.

"I...uh. A lightning bolt?"
Jake nodded.

"Yeah a huge one! It rose right out of the clouds and struck us blind. We crashed here after losing power and everything. At least we found you two in the midst if this. You guys wouldn't have lasted much longer out there."
Klauss, eyeing Sienna the whole time, approached the two with suspicion.

"Sienna, do you know anything about the lightning bolt?" he asked. "I mean, you two were on the ground in the general area of where it came up, surely you'd have seen something unusual. Am I right?"

Sienna darted her eyesight between Jake and Klauss, getting very nervous. Would they hate her if she told the truth? Would they even be allowed to stay with them after knowing that they were the reason for all of this?

Despite her internal conflicts, truth trumped over all. She would tell them everything.

Outside, the wind and snow picked up, leaving minimal visibility. To a certain orange pegasus, a large aircraft was easy enough to spot.

"There it is! That idiot's electric charge led us right to him."

Hertz laughed.

"The boss is gonna be happy this time!"
A large black stallion in a camouflaged white overcoat and hat walked up behind them. He spoke in a baritone voice similar to Binary's.

"Why did you two stop? We need to keep moving."

"No we don't." Hertz smirked and pointed in the direction of the crashed C-130.

"There's our two runaways right there."

"How do you know they're in there?" He asked, squinting to see the object ahead.

"The locator spells we used took us directly to this spot where the bolt of energy was cast up. I'm sure they're in that thing over there. It's the only shelter for miles."
He eyed the aircraft for a minute, then nodded.

"Ok then. Initiating operation Take-Down."
He took out a small button clicker from his pocket and pressed it. A couple seconds later, twenty or so highly trained stallions in white camo came out of the snowy gusts and passed the three, slithering towards the plane in dead silence. Binary donned a devious smile.

"I've got you two now."

In Plain Sight

Jake sat down and tightened the black tie on his uniform. Any means of keeping in heat was worth it. His crew stood beside him, eager to hear what Sienna had to say.

Condensation formed before their faces as they breathed, an obvious sign that the temperature was dropping quickly. The silence between them created tension, which didn't help any of their moods.

"Well?" Klauss asked sternly. "What about the lightning bolt? You must've seen something."

Sienna closed her eyes and drew in a breath.

"The lightning bolt that crippled your aircraft...was our fault."

Klauss lunged for her, hooves stretched out aiming for her neck. Jake and Sleethoof grabbed the enraged stallion, keeping him at bay.

"I'll kill you! I swear! You do this to us and expect us to save your life too?! I'm gonna-"
He was silenced by a hoof to the nose from the pilot.

"Shut the hell up, Klauss!"
Kline examined his twin and nodded.

"It's the cold air and confinement. I learned about this in school. He's gone mad. Normally this sort of thing sets in when temperatures are much colder than what they are now."
Klauss looked over at him with rage in his eyes, and, despite the cold, sweat forming on his brow.

"Shut up, Kline." He pointed at Sienna. "This bitch-"

"THATS ENOUGH!!!" Jake shouted. "What in the hell is wrong with you, Klauss!? You were fine a minute ago! Sure we're all confused right now as to why this whole incident is her fault, but let's listen and get the flipping details before you pop off and strangle her! Jeez." He let go of the unicorn, and sat back down, shaking his head in disappointment. "You think you know somepony, then shit like this goes down, and they're total strangers again."
Sienna, tears streaking her face from the incident, attempted to gather herself and explain.

"I...I expected a reaction like that. But...I..."
Jake held a hoof to her shoulder and calmed her down.

"It's ok. I'm sure that there's an explanation for all of this, and that you didn't intentionally shoot our plane down. We're all listening. So just take your time, and we'll-"

Everything stopped as a long metal rod shot through the right side of the fuselage, missing Kline by a couple feet. Jake narrowed his eyes to get a look at it in the dim light.

"What the?"
Suddenly, the end sprang out into four long tips forming a harpoon. Jake reared up and grabbed Sienna.

"Get back!"
The harpoon pulled back out, taking a chunk of the fuselage with it forming a hole about six feet in diameter. The wind whipped around the interior as the elements were no longer held back. Sleethoof, Kline and Klauss immediately ran to the back of the plane to take cover from whatever was outside. Jake held Sienna back, but was still in plain view of the opening.

Before he could say anything, ten stallions dressed in white camouflage ran in wielding knives and surrounded them. They made no sounds, and gave no orders. They simply stood there. Their white goggles tinted over their eyes, making them appear as if they were lifeless. Then, a large stallion, obviously their leader from his poise and presence, made his way in. He walked right up to Jake and glared at him. Jake opened his mouth to speak but was silenced by the leader's katana blade flying out of its sheath and resting on the pilots neck.

"Don't...speak." He growled in a baritone voice.

The other stallions that followed him instantly grabbed Sienna, rendering her motionless. The leader looked at Jake, narrowed his eyes and spoke soft yet menacingly.

"Judging by your captains clothing, I assume you're in command here. So I ask you; where is Macluma Watts?"
Without hesitation, Jake responded.

"He died."
The mystery stallion raised his head in surprise, then got angry. He paused in silence for a few seconds, then stomped his foot in rage, pacing all about the plane.

"No! That can't be! We need him!" He stopped and whisked back over to Jake, putting his blade to his neck once more.

"You're lying! I know it!"
Jake shook his head.

"I'm not. He died in the lightning bolt shock. I'm assuming that's how you found us, right?"
Binary, who trailed in with Hertz, spoke up.

"Indeed! Our eyes and ears in various places around the nation picked up a pulse coming from this exact location. So we set course for this spot. Sure enough, here you are." He looked over at Sienna and donned a devious smile. "It's so nice to see you again, Sienna. I've been so worried looking for you. You know it's rude to just run off without telling us where you're going."

She cringed upon seeing his face and hearing his menacing voice once more. Binary walked up to his leader to get caught up.

"What's he saying, Slinger?"
The massive stallion closed his eyes in frustration.

"Search this machine end to end. Now."
Hertz and Binary nodded.

"Yes sir."
They checked the cockpit. Nothing. They walked back and opened a compartment in the floor. It wasn't big enough for Macluma to even fit. There really weren't many places to look on the inside of a hollow aircraft. Then, as Jake suspected, they aimed for the compartment the missing pony was in. The pilot thought quickly.

"Don't open that!"
Hertz snapped back. "Why shouldn't we?!"

"Because that compartment is the only thing keeping this fuselage liveable. If you'd even call it that."

Slinger looked irritated.

"What do you mean? Explain yourself before I cut you open and get on with my day!"
Jake sighed.

"When we crashed we blew out all the hydraulics in the plane. The pumps exploded and blast through the side walls of the compartment. In that very compartment is a mix of highly toxic chemicals we were transporting. All the containers are shattered to bits, and the chemicals are scattered within. If you open that door everypony here dies within a minute. It doesn't even matter if you run outside. Once you're exposed, it's in your system. Trust me, if I was going to hide a body in this plane, I sure as hell wouldn't put it in there. He's dead. The shock was too much for him according to Sienna. We crashed here because of it and found her laying in the snow. She said his body vaporized in the bolt. Not a trace of anything whatsoever."
Slinger thought this over for a minute, staring into the abyss. After a moment, he raised his hoof at Binary.

"He's lying. Open it."

"NO!" Klauss jumped towards the orange pegasus, and stomped on the door. "You'll kill us along with yourselves! Think about the logic behind this. You completely snuck up on us without a clue. How would we have time to hide a body down there? Jake isn't lying. There's deadly chemicals below us, and that door is the only thing between life and death."
There was an eerie silence inside the plane. Beads of sweat began forming on Jake's brow as Slinger stared him down.

"Please." the pilot begged, "nopony has to get hurt here."

Slinger growled under his breath and raised his hoof once more at Binary.

"Don't open it. Take Sienna and let's go."
Klauss stepped up to the black stallion and stared him down, standing maybe a couple inches shorter than him.

"You're not taking her."
Slinger began laughing. It boomed throughout the plane and made Sienna cringe. She remembered him all too well from previous years. The devious stallion glared at Klauss.

"Listen here. We can do this one of two ways. We can take Sienna, and leave in peace, or we kill you all and take her anyways. I have six guards here," he pointed to the six stallions in white camouflage that had been standing at the ready the whole time," and they can take you all down before you can blink. I suggest we go with the first one, don't you think?"

The guards raised miniature harpoons, small enough to carry but powerful enough to stop anything they hit, at Jake and his crew. Sienna gasped as one of them seized her and cuffed her hooves.

Klauss, filled with anger and rage, lost his head and lunged at her captor without a word. "Klauss stop!" Sleethoof yelled. Before he knew it, he was standing still between his starting point and the green pegasus, unable to move. He was confused as to why he couldn't walk or run forward, which made him angrier. The unicorn was anchored to his spot. He whipped his head around to see Kline, Jake and Sleethoof screaming at the top of their lungs, yet no sound was projecting. Then he felt a tingling sensation slither down his chest to his legs. He gazed down to see what it was, and finally noticed the harpoon sticking out of his chest, causing blood to run down his legs. He trailed the harpoon rope back over to the guard standing behind Sienna. He looked over to her one last time, a blank expression on his face, before he blacked out and dropped to the ground. Klauss was dead.

"No! Klauss no!" Kline broke away and ran to his twin brother in tears, Sleethoof following. Slinger held the fire of the guard's harpoons and ushered for Binary and Hertz to come over.

"Grab her. Let's get out of here."
Sienna was gagged so she couldn't scream, not that anyone would hear her out in the barren wasteland anyways. They drug her out, followed by the other guards, then Binary and Hertz. Kline was too busy in shock over Klauss' death to even notice anything happening, and Sleethoof wasn't too far behind.

Slinger looked over to the body, then back to Jake, who was almost in shock as well.

"Who are you?" he quietly asked. Slinger smirked.

"We, Jake, are what you see when you think of evil. We are who you hear when there is talk of war and disaster. We are everything and everywhere. Hidden for years right under your nose. Macluma's death may put us at a setback, but we shall prevail. And soon, with Sienna at our disposal, we will be finished."

Jake eyed him down, sweat pouring down his forehead by now. He could still hear Kline sobbing up front by his brother.

"Finished with what?"
Slinger walked up to him to the point where their noses almost touched, making Jake coil back ever so slightly. He whispered.

"If you by some miracle survive this snowy wasteland, and make it back to wherever you came from, I suggest you and your friends live the rest of your lives to the fullest...because they won't last much longer."

He backed away and whisked over to the hole in the wall. The wind picked up and rattled the fuselage furiously. Slinger looked back, his black coat flapping in the gale.

"Oh, and don't think about reporting us! You never know who could be an Insider. It could very well be the last thing you do."

With that, he disappeared into the snowy vortex, leaving Jake alone with a broken plane, freezing temperatures, a dead body, an injured stallion, and two crew members in shock. The pilot sat down on the cold metal floor, and for the first time since he could remember, started crying. For once in his life, Jake Weston didn't know what to do.

Too Far Gone

"That's what I was telling him today! He wouldn't stop pestering me about all the work that needed to be done to prepare for his 'amazing arrival'. I'll tell you what some celebrities are just so full of themselves."

Seline picked up her mug of coffee and took a long sip. Jake, eyeing her from across the table, nodded and smiled.

"He seems like a tough pony to deal with. Thinks he's the center of the universe and whatnot."

They sat in the corner table of a coffee house in town. It was the last time to spend together before Seline went off to her meeting in Canterlot.

"So it looks like I'll be a bachelor for this week, huh?" he smirked. Seline shook her head with a stern look upon her face.

"You may be one, but that doesn't mean you can act like one, you hear?"

"What?" He held up his hooves in confusion. "I was gonna buy a keg of cider from Mac and drink from a funnel. Or maybe fly over to Manehattan and hit a couple clubs, go to the casinos, maybe get a hotel room and try to-"
He was slugged on the shoulder from across the little table. He chuckled a bit, making her roll her eyes and smile.

"Well seems like you'll be having a fun week, Jake."

The little window by their table rattled ever so slightly. Jake glanced over, then back at Seline.

"Yep. You know it. In reality I'll just be sitting around like a rock, waiting for you to come back. No productivity whatsoever."

"Awh don't say that, Jake. You're flying soon, aren't you? Something about the Crystal Empire, I heard. That should be exciting!"
The window rattled again. He ignored it this time and shrugged.

"They're probably gonna cancel it. There were talks of some storms coming through our flight path. It's still on hiatus. If we do go though, it'll be interesting. A centerpiece for the new park in the city is what we're hauling. Heavy as hell and very fragile. I'm sure the crew can handle it though."
Seline looked over to the clock. It was quarter 'till ten.

"My train leaves in fifteen minutes. I better get over to the station." She stood up and picked up her briefcase. "I'll see you in probably a week. I'll let you know as soon as I know for sure when I'll be home. You never know what can happen at these things!" She winked, causing him to raise an eyebrow.

"The hell is that supposed to mean?"

She laughed as he stood up and gave her a kiss. She walked towards the door of the shop, and turned back to the pilot.

"I really hope I'll see you again."
Jake was taken aback.

"What? What do you mean 'hope'?"

The small window by the table shattered with a piercing bang, and the wind swirled around the coffee house. Seline just stood there by the door, staring at him and smiling while his body was whipped around by the gale. Snow began filling up the room, and within seconds, his view was nothing but a white abyss, Seline's image blocked by the torrent.

Jake's eyes shot open. He was laying on his side on the floor of his plane, and he saw the huge hole in the side of the fuselage. He tried to let out a scream, but nothing came out. His body was frozen, and he could barely move his legs without incredible pain. Mustering up the strength he still had left, he managed to unstick his body from the icy metal floor, and roll over to face the rear of the plane. He shut his eyes when he saw Klauss' lifeless body lying there, an icy harpoon protruding from his chest. Jake could even see the frozen icicle of blood that had formed at the tip of the apparatus.

The memory of it all came back to him. The intrusion, the murder, Sienna...and Macluma. Jake's head painfully snapped up and looked back to the now icy hatch in the rear of the plane. With a groan of pain, he pulled himself up on two legs, straining to stand. The wind from the gash in the fuselage stung his side, and only caused him more excruciating pain. Dragging his right rear leg due to frostbite, he limped towards the door. He stopped at Sleethoofs body lying on the ground, grey mane frozen and hanging down in little icicles.

"Sleethoof!...Sleethoof come on and get up!" He didn't move at all. "Sleethoof, damnit get up!" He kicked him, and the jar made him helplessly fall onto his crew member. The blunt impact of Jake's body jerked Sleethoof awake. He wheezed and yelled in pain.

"Aaaaahhhggg! Get off me! Get off me!" Jake rolled off and laid next to him. Completely wiped of energy. He looked over and patted him on the back.

"You don't know how happy I am to see you alive, Sleethoof. Don't give up on me now! We..." He caught his feeble breath, having to speak up over the icy gale outside. "We have to see if Macluma is still alive!"

Sleethoof closed his eyes and shook his head with anger.

"What's the point, Jake! We're gonna die out here!" They were both yelling now as the wind picked up even more.

"What's the point?!" He asked. "The point is that I didn't come all this way just to give up now! We survived for a matter of days on this plane in the harshest conditions known to Equestria. I'll be damned if I die now just because of some thugs and their weapons!"

He winced as the frostbite set into his face. Sleethoof scoffed at his remark.

"Jake, you know I've always respected what you've had to say, but I have to disagree with you here, buddy. Listen to yourself! They took Sienna, they killed Klauss, we don't even know if Kline is alive over there yet, and Macluma is most likely dead! We're exposed in a tundra, and frostbite has set in too far already! Face it, this is the end of the line for us. This is where we get off."

Jake stared at his crew-mate. Was this how it ended? He had always thought there'd be more. Oh, how he took life for granted, he thought. Just assuming that everyday would lead to the next without end. He finally saw it all clearly now. He finally understood what it meant to live in the moment and realize the true reality of the situation at hand. This was it.

"I gotta say," he yelled, "it was one hell of a ride, Sleethoof. If this is how we die, I'm damn well pleased it's next to you. However, we need to see if Kline is still alive. If he's going out too, it's only right that he isn't alone."

"I can't move, Jake. My legs are numb and frozen. Just go without me."

Jake lumbered upright again, his back leg hurting worse than before he fell. He reached out his hoof and grabbed Sleethoof's.

"We're doing this together. One last mission as a crew."

Against the pain and agony his muscles were producing, he leaned back and pulled the large stallion upright. He stumbled back down to his knees and screamed between his gritted teeth. His kneecaps were bleeding from being brittle and torn open, and the blood was sticking and freezing to his legs.

"Come on Sleethoof! This is a direct order from your captain! Get up!"

He pulled again, and this time, Sleethoof rose, and maintained his balance. Jake allowed him to lean on his shoulder, and they lumbered back towards the hatch where Kline lay frozen, just behind his twin's lifeless body. They both fell over in front of him. Sleethoof lightly shook his head.

"Kline? Kline! Wake up!"

"I feel a slow pulse." Jake said as he reached out to him. Kline didn't move.

"Kline!" Sleethoof shouted. "Wake up, buddy!"

No response. Finally, Sleethoof lost it. He swung his front hoof around, striking the blue stallion on the side of the head.

"Kline I know you're still alive! Wake the hell up!"

Jake held his hoof back as tears began streaming down his face and freezing instantly to the metal floor.

"He's too far gone, Sleethoof. He's too far gone."

Jake leaned in and tried holding back tears himself.

"Kline, if you can hear me in there, I just wanted you to know that it was an honor working with you. Klauss and Sleethoof as well. You'll be seeing us soon, I promise. Klauss is waiting for us up there. Everything will make sense soon." He racked his brain as his own consciousness slipped. "Look on the bright side. We're a flight crew, we belong in the sky!" Everything began to fade in the corners of his eyes. "Goodbye, Kline." He turned to Sleethoof, and shook his hoof. He straightened his gold wings on his uniform, and tightened his black tie. "No need to make this dramatic." He said sarcastically with a smirk. Sleethoof smiled too. "Always a sense of humor, even in the worst of times." The pain overtook Sleethoof's body with a sharp sting, and he felt like his head was being pushed down by someone else. His muscles were failing. This was it. No questions asked.

"I'm gonna take a nap now, Jake. I'm a little tired. I'll see you later, ok?"

Jake closed his eyes and smiled. "I'll see you later, Sleethoof."

With that, the two stallions laid their heads down on the icy floor, and fell asleep. The snow swirled, and three souls mixed within the winds.
.

"Over here!"

"Come on, move it!"

"Are they okay?!"

"Four of them! One confirmed dead!"

"I feel a pulse!"

"Ah found another one in this hole down here. He looks alive, ah reckon!"

"I'm preparing the teleportation spell!"

"Careful with them! Get them over to the spot."

"The grey one is bleedin' bad!"

"Ok, that's all of them! Go go go go go!"

Author's Note

Hey everyone! Here's the chapter
I promised! So sorry for the gap in chapters.
Writing got away from me, and I'm disappointed
In myself for that. But I'm seeing this through
to the end! I will not let you down! Thanks for
reading, guys.