Need for Feed

by totallynotabrony

Rating: everyone
Tags: Crossover, Human, Main 6, My Little Pony: Friendship is Magic, Alternate Universe, Other, Comedy
Length: 8201

An advanced aircraft prototype is stolen from Canterlot Aeronautical Laboratories. Searching for it are the Mane 6, Maverick, Goose, and a vanload of meddling kids and their dog.

An advanced aircraft prototype capable of transcending spacetime is stolen from Canterlot Aeronautical Laboratories. Princess Celestia tasks Twilight Sparkle and friends to solve the case and catch the culprit.

The chase is on - to a completely different planet! Enter US Navy Lieutenants Pete Mitchell and Nick Bradshaw. Also a vanload of meddling kids and their dog.

Strap in and chow down. This ain't Saturday morning cartoons.

Concept by Mysterious Stranger
Editing by Themaskedferret

Published 2014-12-02 19:50:06 UTC
Last updated 2015-04-29 00:02:55 UTC

Chapter 1

Indian Ocean. Present Day.

"Well, that didn't work, Scoob," muttered Shaggy. The Mystery Machine was sinking in the distance, the typical result of dropping a passenger van into a large body of water.

Scooby Doo let out a quiet whine of frustration, and also hunger.

"Well gang, I think we're in trouble," said Fred. It would have been more helpful if his remarks were, well, helpful.

"I've already rigged sails and we're on course to reach Diego Garcia within a few hours," Velma said, having taken charge of the situation.

"Who's Diego Garcia?" asked Daphne.

"More like what," answered Velma. "Despite the name, Diego Garcia is an island. More importantly, it's the nearest land. The United States has a lease for a facility there, but before you ask, no, there isn't a tropical resort."

While Daphne pouted, Fred put his arm around her. He looked up. "We brought an emergency radio, right?"

"It's in the survival kit," Velma replied. She opened the emergency box, finding to her surprise that it was filled to the brim with snacks. Even behind her glasses, the look she gave Shaggy and Scooby was more than a little stern.

"Hey, this is how we survive." Shaggy grinned. Scooby giggled.

Velma dug through the assorted treats until she eventually found the radio. It didn't work. The battery compartment had been filled up with snacks.

"Well, at least we won't die from starvation," she commented.

"What was that you were saying?" Shaggy said, wiping his lips with the last, empty, candy wrapper. He and Scooby were surrounded with paper, plastic, and foil.

Before Velma could start making up straws to draw for determining who would get to eat who first, there was a rumble in the distance that built into the roar of a fighter jet passing overhead. The grey airplane banked to the side, its wings spreading wider as the jet slowed down.

"An F-14 Tomcat!" Fred shouted excitedly.

"The configuration indicates it's loaded for an air-to-air mission," Velma added. "Based on the markings, I make it to be a US Navy jet operating from the USS Enterprise."

"Well, who else would it be?" Fred asked.

Velma shrugged. "It could have been the Iranians. With external fuel, it's not impossible for a sortie to reach this far out. They're the only other operator of the Tomcat. At last count, they still had plenty of airframes in operating condition."

Nobody was willing to ask how she knew that. She might tell them.

Overhead, Maverick, the pilot of the Tomcat, said, "Is that a bunch of kids and their dog?"

Goose, the Radar Intercept Officer in the back seat confirmed, "Sure looks like it, Mav."

"Report it to the ship. I'm going to keep circling." Maverick put the jet on its wingtip and completed another orbit over the small life raft. The occupants hadn't responded to radio calls, but they looked pleased to see Goose and him. The seemed to be rigging something to the top of the mast. Maverick circled closer. It looked like a sturdy loop of rope.

Realization dawned on him as all of the stranded passengers, even the dog, began gesturing invitingly toward the rope. Maverick grinned and reached for the tailhook lever.

In the backseat, Goose noticed a change in the indicator lights. "Hey Mav, what's with the tailhook?"

"We're going to give them a tow."

"What?! This is a really bad idea, Mav! We're not authorized to do this!"

Ignoring his RIO, Maverick dropped the jet lower and pulled the throttle back. As slowly as he was able to go, he overflew the raft and snagged the rope.

The tailhook was designed to catch the airplane when it was landing on the aircraft carrier. It had no problem pulling along the life raft. However, it must have been a very rough ride. The Tomcat was still going faster than just about any boat could under its own power.

Goose looked over his shoulder towards the back of the jet to see if the crazy plan had actually worked. He reported, "It's working. I don't believe it, but it's working. Also, the dog's water skiing."

The buffeting from the waves and the jet exhaust made the ride in the raft more like riding inside a washing machine, water and all. However, they were making outrageous speed and would soon make it to dry land. In just a few minutes, the shoreline of Diego Garcia came into view. Fred cut the rope loose as they approached the beach and the raft coasted forward, sliding to a halt upon the sand.

Daphne was the first to get out of the raft, falling facefirst into the sand. She sat up, wailing, "My hair's ruined!" Fred, again, put his arm around her.

Velma's glasses had been swept off her face at some point and not even enlisting Shaggy and Scooby to help find them worked. She stumbled up the beach, only vaguely able to tell where the waves and sand were.

Shaggy and Scooby were unharmed, of course. Not finding Velma’s glasses, they had already turned to other pursuits. They soon discovered coconuts by the beach and began the process of trying to break them open. There wasn’t much available to use as tools. Teeth didn’t work, either.

Meanwhile, Maverick and Goose found themselves in a predicament. Having ignored orders, towed a boat with their jet, and gone off course, they were low on fuel. It would be a stretch to get back to the ship. Fortunately, there were a pair of 12,000-foot runways at Diego Garcia and it was no trouble to land there.

In only a few minutes, island security had picked up the visitors - all of them, and brought them to the HQ building. It had a large "HQ" painted on the wall.

The military police officer in charge introduced himself as Petty Officer Branson. He didn’t say much else. He had a gun and a badge, and that said enough.

The two aircrew and the five sleuths were escorted into a small, rather drab military-spec room to await the base commanding officer.

Maverick and Goose were still wearing their bulky flight gear and were sweating in the tropical climate. The kids from the Mystery Machine were still wet from the ocean and sandy from the beach.

They had a few minutes to wait. The two groups appraised each other. Maverick used his perfect movie star smile on Daphne. "Hi. I'm Maverick."

"Nice to meet you," she said, slightly envious of his tooth whitening treatment.

Velma squinted in his direction, but without her glasses was only able to make out a vaguely pilot-shaped blob. "I have a question, sir. Why in the world didn't you jettison your ordnance before trying that dangerous stunt?"

Taken aback, Maverick hesitated, but Goose jumped in. "We were getting low on fuel, so there was no need to get rid of anything to get down to maximum landing weight."

"Be that as it may, I'm talking about a safety issue," Velma said. "If I remember correctly, you had Sidewinders and Sparrows on the pylons and Phoenix missiles under the fuselage. You were already pushing the envelope by also taking on the load of pulling our boat. You're dangerous."

Before Maverick could retort, the door to the commander's office flew open. A man in a Navy uniform stood there, looking very displeased.

Maverick and Goose shot up. Angry officers were nothing new to them. "Captain," Goose greeted, recognizing the man's rank.

"Whose bright idea was it to bring civilians here?" the Captain growled.

"Well sir..." Velma trailed off, squinting and taking a few steps closer until she could read his nametag, "...Smuth."

"Smith," he corrected crossly.

"Captain Smith, these two aviators may have saved our lives," Fred said. "We had nowhere else to go."

It was a flimsy argument, but the gang had gotten away with more for less. Grumbling under his breath, Smith pointed at Maverick and Goose and ordered, "They're your problem now. I want you two to stick with them for their entire stay on the island."

He turned and walked back into his office, slamming the door.

"So, like, is there a food court or something around here?" Shaggy asked.

"Yeah, yeah, yeah!" Scooby panted.

Maverick and Goose traded glances. Goose suddenly frowned and turned back to Scooby. "Did that dog just talk?"

Shaggy frowned. "Is that a big deal? Nobody else has ever said anything."

"And you," Maverick said to him. "Why does your voice sound so familiar? Have you been on the radio or something?"

Goose gestured to Fred. "Plus, who wears ascots these days?"

"Hold on," said Velma, holding up her hands, "before we start a comparison of representative phallus quantity, let's just calm down."

"Why are you talking to the wall?" Daphne asked.

"I still haven't found my glasses," Velma snapped.

"Iceman would know what to do in this situation," Goose muttered.

Maverick got in his face. "Don't you ever say he's better than me!"

Everyone started shouting at once.

That was when a tremendous crash shook the building. A blast wave rattled the windows and pelted the building with sand kicked up from across the island.

"What could that have been?" Daphne asked.

"Well gang, it looks like we have a mystery on our hands," said Fred decisively, putting his hands on his hips.

Maverick stared at him. "It was a sonic boom."

"Mystery solved."

"But where did it come from?" Velma asked a chair.

Goose was standing closest to the door and poked his head outside. "Uh, guys? I think you're going to want to come see this."

Everyone pushed out of the building. There was a dark hole in the sky. Streaming out of the hole was a trail of rainbow that spewed from the back of a fast-moving aircraft . As they watched, what appeared to be a small chariot pulled by pegasi also came through the hole. Both the airplane and the chariot began to converge on the island.

"Ruh-roh," remarked Scooby.

Author's Note

Tagged for Alternate Universe because Goose.

Chapter 2

Twilight Sparkle was in a Pickle. She didn’t know why Pinkie Pie had named the chariot that, and had decided that she didn’t want to know. There were more pressing matters on her mind, such as the stolen Tunnel Jet she and her friends were pursuing through the sky.

The aircraft was the best product of science and magic that ponykind had ever produced. Built by Canterlot Aeronautical Laboratories, it was the perfect prototype to perform advanced scientific study. And then somepony had to go and steal it.

Rainbow Dash and Fluttershy pulled the chariot in pursuit of the stolen jet. Unfortunately, despite being the fastest pegasus in Equestria, the extra weight slowed Rainbow down. The chariot was pretty heavy, too.

“We’re never going to catch up at this rate!” Applejack shouted, bracing her hat as she stared ahead at the jet pulling away from them.

“We can’t give up!” Rarity reminded her. “That is a very important piece of technology that we have to recover!’

The jet kept pulling away, however. A cone of magic and compressed atmosphere began to form around its nose. The sky ahead seemed to shimmer and then the Tunnel Jet did just as its name suggested and punched a tunnel through reality.

“Not the fabric of the universe!” Twilight shrieked. “We just got that stitched back up!”

But her cries were in vain. The jet escaped through the wormhole that it had just torn open.

“So, do we follow it or what?” Rainbow called from her place at the front of the chariot.

“I don’t think…” wheezed Fluttershy.

Twilight’s jaw tightened. If they didn’t keep up their pursuit, the jet might be lost forever. “No choice. We’re going after it.”

Meanwhile, on a small island called Diego Garcia in the middle of the Indian Ocean, Maverick and Goose were sprinting for their Tomcat.

Proper safety precautions and following checklists were important, but responding as quickly as possible to a potential attack shoved that aside.

The refueling truck was parked by the F-14, refilling the tanks when the two of them ran up.

“Get that out of here!” shouted Maverick, waving his arms wildly at the fuel guy. He and Goose scrambled aboard the jet. Goose kicked the ladder away and jumped in the backseat.

The gang arrived just in time to see the engines spin up. The canopy was already down and Maverick released the brakes.

The scream of two afterburning jet engines was enough to make everyone seek shelter in a ditch beside the runway. The Tomcat turned onto the pavement and accelerated into a takeoff roll.

Meanwhile, the strange new jet that was potentially from another dimension was getting closer, still pursued by the chariot.

Fred, watching the F-14 race for the other end of the runway, directly towards the oncoming unknown aircraft, exclaimed, “They’re going to crash!”

However, Maverick hauled the control stick back at just the right moment and the Tomcat leaped into the air, barely passing over the otherworldly airplane. The chariot was not so lucky and was knocked for a loop in the jetwash.

The F-14’s wings were still spread for takeoff and it instantly leaned into a turn as Maverick pulled around to give chase to the mysterious jet.

“It’s heading straight down the runway,” Goose reported. “Bring the nose around and let me get the radar on it.”

Maverick complied, shoving the throttles forward as the Tomcat came around. The other jet was accelerating, but there were very few things that could outrun an F-14.

The first thing Maverick noticed about the foreign jet was that it was fuschia and made of a lot of soft shapes. It looked like a little girl had designed it. The second thing he noticed was that there seemed to be a pony inside it.

Of course, he observed this by flying upside down directly above the other plane. If there was another way to do an intercept, he and Goose didn’t know it.

“So, what do we do now?” Goose asked. “I mean, I feel like a dog that caught a car. What are we supposed to do with this thing?”

“We politely ask him to land,” Maverick decided. He shrugged inside his flight harness as he hung upside down. “And if he doesn’t, we put a missile in him. Simple.”

Meanwhile, the girls should have had things so easy.

Unused to flying over pavement baking in the tropical sun, Rainbow and Fluttershy struggled, losing lift in the hot air and making an involuntary dive for the runway. The Pickle and the ponies made a crash landing, tumbling across the pavement and landing in a heap.

The gang were the first ones on the scene. They all stopped a short distance away, staring with apprehension at the dazed ponies picking themselves up from the ruins of the chariot.

Shaggy started to speak, but then shook his head. “Nope. This isn’t happening.”

“Well, I’m pretty sure that I’m not under the influence of anything,” said Daphne. “And I’m also pretty sure those are miniature horses in technicolor.”

“While I can’t see what any of you are talking about,” said Velma, “I think we should send Scooby to check it out.”

“Nuh uh!” Scooby disagreed, sitting on his haunches with his paws crossed.

“You have keener senses and you're more alert to danger,” reminded Velma, putting her hands on her hips and squinting the wrong direction. “Plus you’re faster at running away. You’re the best qualified to investigate, uh, miniature horses in technicolor.”

“Would you do it for a Scooby Snack?” Fred asked.

Scooby considered it, glancing at the small, colorful ponies still picking themselves up from the crash. “Reah, okay.”

Fred gave him the treat. Scooby reacted as he tended to do, and once he calmed down, went to take a look.

Sniffing as he got closer, Scooby stopped just a few feet from the wreck. There was something pink sticking out from under the ruined chariot. It looked somewhat like cotton candy. However, before Scooby could take an exploratory bite, the fluff vanished, replaced by the thing that was apparently on the other end of it.

“Hi!” said the thing. “I’m Pinkie Pie!”

Scooby frowned in confusion and sniffed her.

She screwed up her face and sniffed right back at him. “Do I smell Scooby Snacks?”

Chapter 3

“Unknown aircraft, identify yourself!” demanded Goose over the radio.

Said jet did not respond to the hail.

In the front of the Tomcat, Maverick spun the jet right ways up, falling to a trailing position behind the pink pony plane. His thumb moved the weapons selector to the position for a heat seeking missile. The pony did not seem to care very much about the Tomcat, the pilot either unused to evasive maneuvering or not deeming the F-14 a threat.

“There’s still no response on the radio,” Goose said. “I’m trying every frequency.”

Maverick considered it, and then moved the selector to the gun setting. “I’m going to fire a warning shot. That’ll get his attention.”

“Hang on,” Goose protested. “Was that some sort of small horse or pony in the cockpit? How do we know he has any idea what he’s doing?”

“He might know how to fly a jet,” Maverick pointed out. “But if he doesn’t know the rules and common courtesies of international aviation practices, then he has no business being in the air.”

“Mav, you’ve probably broken more of those than anyone else.”

“You’re probably right,” Maverick agreed. He paused, shrugging to himself. “I’m going to fire a warning shot.”

As he pulled the trigger, the gatling gun in the nose of the Tomcat spun up and fired fifty rounds, the tracers zipping past the fuschia jet. Shoving the throttles forward, Maverick and Goose pulled up alongside the pony plane. The pilot glanced to the side, looking wary. Apparently he understood machine guns.

Goose pointed his hand at the ground, again sending a radio request to land.

Instead, the pony cranked the jet over and pulled into a hard turn.

“Fight’s on!” Maverick called, jerking the controls to follow. Vapor streamed from the Tomcat’s wings as the jet banked hard into the turn. Goose hung on for the ride, waiting for Maverick’s weapons requests.

Calling up a Sidewinder missile, Maverick pointed the jet’s nose at the escaping pony plane. He waited for the distinctive sound that told him the heat-seeking missile had found its target. However, he never got tone.

Brow furrowing under his helmet, Maverick cycled the switch and tried again. Still nothing. A brief glance downward at the status panel showed that the Sidewinders on the jet appeared to be functioning correctly.

Realization dawning, Maverick called, “I don’t think this thing has a heat signature!”

“Huh?” Goose replied. Thinking quickly, he said, “Try a Sparrow.”

Slewing the radar to catch the fleeing target, Goose got a lock. “It does have a radar return, at least. All those soft angles aren't good for low observability.”

Maverick pulled the trigger and a Sparrow left the rail. The rocket motor fired and the weapon raced away.

And then the pink jet disappeared in a flash of light. The missile went sailing harmlessly through the spot of sky where it had just been.

“What the-” Both aircrew had nearly the same reaction. Twisting in his seat, Goose spotted the jet heading in the opposite direction. “Four o’clock low!”

Turning hard again, Maverick continued the chase. “I’m going for guns this time!”

However, before the Tomcat could close the range, the pony plane teleported again. This time, it was just a speck on the horizon.

Going to full afterburner, Maverick attempted to again gain the advantage, but one more hop and the mysterious aircraft was gone. Scanning the horizon with radar, Goose found nothing.

Barely believing what he had just experienced, Maverick reluctantly turned the jet back towards Diego Garcia.

Back on the island, the gang and the girls were getting acquainted.

“So cute!”

“I love the different colors!”

“They’re all so awesome!”

“Yeah, I guess you ponies are okay, too,” said Shaggy.

“What are we looking at?” Velma asked, squinting.

Meanwhile, Scooby was attempting to keep Pinkie from sniffing out his Scooby Snacks. This was turning out to be more than a little frustrating because she was harder to stop than his nephew Scrappy.

They were all interrupted by the incoming Tomcat, touching down on the runway and rolling into the parking area.

Shutting down the engines, the two aircrew climbed out looking dejected.

“It got away,” Goose said.

“This is bad, this is so very bad!” the purple pony said. “Without that aircraft, we might not be able to get home.”

“Where is home?” Fred asked.

“Equestria, the land of the ponies,” the purple one said distractedly. She continued to fret. “What are we going to? We can’t go back without completing our mission, but more importantly, we might not be able to go back at all.”

“Maybe I’m missing something,” said Goose. “Are you saying you’re an alien?”

“That’s-” Twilight paused, flustered, and really looked around for the first time. The expanse of pavement, the jet, the group of strange looking inhabitants of this world. “I suppose I must admit that it’s true.”

“Aliens,” muttered Maverick.

“You don’t have to rub it in!” Twilight snapped.

Maverick glanced down the runway, spotting a truck filled with security personnel zooming towards them. He said, “Not to cut things short, Princess, but security is on the way.”

“That’s great, we can explain the situation to them,” Twilight said.

Maverick frowned, noticing that the purple one hadn’t seem insulted by being condescendingly called Princess. He replied, “No, I don’t think you understand. They’re probably coming to lock you up, you being aliens and all.”

“Let ‘em try!” the rainbow one said, punching the air.

“They’ll probably just shoot and kill you,” Goose advised.

“I don’t want to be killed,” said the yellow one, quietly.

Fred rubbed his hands. “Well gang, it looks like we need to help them.”

“We’re going to harbor extraterrestrials we just met and lie to base security personnel who are just trying to do their job and keep everyone safe?” questioned Velma.

“Yep, that’s the plan,” said Shaggy. “Especially if this one keeps the cupcakes coming.”

“No problem!” declared Pinkie with a giggle.

Chapter 4

Petty Officer Branson, the military policeman the gang had encountered earlier, stared at the group of civilians. “Where did these others come from?”

“I don’t know what you’re talking about,” said Daphne.

Branson pointed at the three, somewhat lumpy, people. “Them. They weren’t here earlier.”

“You should know about assexual reproduction,” Twight said. Balanced on Fluttershy’s shoulders and wrapped in extra clothing for a disguise, it was hard to keep her balance and say smart-sounding things at the same time.

Branson crossed his arms. “Are you saying that you budded from someone else?”

“Got a problem with that?” said Rainbow. Although no one could see Applejack hidden beneath her, she was rolling her eyes.

“That doesn’t make any sense!” protested Branson.

“I feel like that all the time,” Shaggy said. “Maybe if we solve this mystery, we’ll do a big reveal for your benefit. That’s kind of what we do.”

“I like big reveals,” said Rarity. She glanced downward at the hastily assembled outfit that she wore in conjunction with Pinkie. She thought about including a snide comment about the garishness of it, but decided that it went without saying.

“I think we should be more concerned with the strange plane that overflew the airfield,” Goose pointed out.

“It could be communist,” added Maverick ominously.

Branson looked at them all, skepticism clear on his face. He reached for his radio. “I think I need to call my boss.”

“Great,” said Shaggy, “We’ll see you after lunch.”

“Lunch?” said Rarity’s lower half.

“What was that?” Branson asked, looking away from his radio.

“It was Scooby, the dog,” replied Velma quickly. “He talks.”

Branson snorted. “Yeah, right.” He turned away.

The rest made their getaway. The only place to go on the tiny island was the beach, out of sight of the military installation.

Applejack threw Rainbow off her shoulders, gasping for air. The other ponies also disrobed.

Pinkie laid out a huge blanket on the sand and already had food set out and ready to serve by the time the rest were ready to sit down. “So I thought it would be great if we had a little party so we could say hello and everyone could meet everyone!”

“Sounds great,” Shaggy said. “We’ll eat and then we can talk.” He and Scooby were the first to attack the bounty.

“I don’t know where all this came from,” said Fred, staring at the huge party picnic.

“It does smell good, though,” said Velma.

The gang sat down. Maverick and Goose had a little trouble, doing their best to sit cross legged while still wearing flight gear and g-suits.

“Thank you for the refreshments, Pinkie,” said Twilight, around her own snack. Addressing the rest, she said, “I suppose formal introductions are in order. I am Twilight Sparkle, Princess of Friendship in Equestria.”

“I understood some of that,” Velma deadpanned. The rest said nothing, not wishing to reveal that they had understood even less.

“My friends and I-” Twilight pointed to them each in turn “-Rainbow Dash, Pinkie Pie, Applejack, Rarity, and Fluttershy, have come to your world recover a trans-dimensional aircraft that was stolen.”

“So you want it in one piece,” Goose said. Maverick gave him an unhappy look.

“Indeed. We have to use it to get home,” Twilight replied.

“Isn’t it a little unwise of you to go through a mysterious wormhole without having a backup system of return?” Velma asked.

“Princess Celestia was confident that we would succeed,” Twilight said.

“She sounds like she doesn’t care about you,” Maverick told her.

“She cares about everypony!” Twilight argued. “Not only that, she’s my mentor and taught me most of what I know.”

“My statement stands.”

“Like, what if you never get that airplane back?” Shaggy asked, briefly coming up for air.

Twilight stuttered, “Well, I guess...um, we might be stuck.” Fluttershy burst into tears.

“But think about all the new friends we’ll have time to make!” Pinkie said.

“...who will want to dissect you for being aliens,” Velma added.

“Well gang, it looks like we have a mystery to solve,” commented Fred. “And boy is it a headscratcher.”

“That’s not very helpful,” observed Maverick.

“That’s not unusual,” Velma told him.

“But seriously, what are we going to do?” Shaggy asked around a mouthful of sandwich. “It’s not like they can just stay here.”

“And why not?” demanded Rainbow. “What if we want to, huh?”

“We don’t want to!” Applejack countered.

“That and the dissection,” Fluttershy whispered.

Maverick waved his hand. “Let’s not talk about who’s an alien here and instead focus on what we’re going to do. What’s our first step?”

“Typically, we’d start by looking for clues,” Velma put in. “I doubt we’re going to find many around here from an airplane that didn’t even land, so we’ll have to settle for reconstructing first contact. I bet there’s equipment somewhere around the airfield to play your mission tapes from the fight.”

“That could work,” agreed Maverick.

“Wait, what about our visitors?” Goose said. “And the…sensitive nature of the data on the tapes?”

“Oh yeah, we probably can’t give secret material to aliens,” Maverick acknowledged.

“Or random civilians,” Goose added. He glanced at the gang. “No offense.”

“None taken,” Shaggy said.

“Some taken,” Daphne disagreed.

“Well that’s too bad, princess,” Maverick replied.

Goose glanced at Twilight’s crown and added, “No offense.”

“Some taken,” said Twilight.

Chapter 6

Maverick’s fist was beginning to hurt from banging on the door.

“Are you sure this is the place?” Goose asked, looking around. The metal building didn’t have any kind of identifying signage.

“I asked about berthing, and they said to try the building down at the end of the runway,” Maverick said, referring to a conversation with an Air Force person a few minutes previously. “This is the building on the end.”

Goose considered it. “I have a theory.”

Maverick paused. “What’s that?”

Goose gestured to the building next door, the base hospital. “‘Berthing’ is a Navy term for a place to sleep. What if the Air Force person you asked got it confused with ‘birthing’ and pointed you to the hospital, which is pretty close to the end of the runway?”

“A misunderstanding that would make someone think that two tired-looking Naval Aviators were looking for the maternity ward? Yeah, sounds like the Air Force.” Maverick resumed beating on the door in front of him.

Goose stared at him. “So...this probably isn’t a place to sleep at all.”

“I know.”

“So what makes you think that knocking is going to get anyone to let you in? It looks like a hangar. For airplanes to rest. Not people.”

Maverick sighed. “Because after the day we’ve had, rescuing some kids, fighting an alien airplane, meeting some more aliens, reviewing the tapes, going back to find our new friends but discovering that they’d left the beach and were nowhere to be found, and unsuccessfully searching for them, I’m ready to give up. If, in trying to find somewhere to sleep, we’ve suffered an error in translation between sailor speak and airman lingo, I really don’t care anymore. If we’re trying to break into a secure facility, then base security will pick us up and put us in a cell that should at the very least have a bed.”

Goose thought about it, shrugged, and started helping Maverick knock.

Meanwhile, in a stuffy pile of ponies and people stuffed up inside the bomb bay of the B-52 parked inside the hangar, Pinkie said, “Maybe we should answer the door.”

“We don’t know who that could be,” Rarity reminded her.

“At least it would get us out of this unseemly cramped compartment,” Rainbow muttered.

“It would be even more cramped if this thing was loaded with bombs,” Velma reminded her.

“I’m going to answer the door,” Daphne decided. “Only people who really care about you would knock that long and hard.”

“What do you know about long and hard?” Pinkie said with a giggle.

“That’s how she knows people really care about her,” Fred replied. He frowned. That wasn’t exactly how he meant to say it, although still not far from the truth. Fortunately, Daphne was already on her way to the door.

She wrenched it open, expecting the light from outside to be blinding but surprised to see that it seemed to be getting towards evening. More surprised still, she found herself greeting the two aircrew from the Navy jet.

“Well, this is a pleasant surprise,” said Maverick. “Makes our job of finding you easier, too.”

“Is everyone else here?” Goose asked as Daphne let the two of them in.

“They are,” Daphne confirmed. Goose took a flashlight from his gear and clicked it on. The first thing the beam illuminated was the huge bomber sitting in the hangar. He swept the light around, checking out racks of tools and some scrap metal in the back.

The girls and the gang had departed the cramped confines of the bomb bay by the time Daphne, Maverick, and Goose made it over to the B-52.

Twilight, all business, asked, “Did you manage to find out anything interesting from your postmission analysis?”

Goose replied, “Based on the distance the jet was jumping, it seemed to be running out of power.”

Twilight nodded. “It only has a limited charge. It’ll either need some time or a fresh power source before it’s able to jump again. It’ll need quite a bit of juice to jump back to Equestria.”

“So if we can get its charge depleted, it won’t be able to escape?” Maverick said hopefully.

“That’s correct,” Twilight replied. Seeing his gleeful look, she added, “And no shooting it down! We need it!”

“But how are we going to capture it?” Goose asked. “I mean, if it can’t jump, then the Tomcat has more than enough speed to run it down, but how do we convince the pilot to land?”

Twilight was silent for a few seconds, but then her face lit up. “I’ve got it! We’ll use the magic of song!”

“The what now?” Velma asked.

“It’s basic magic-pony herd mentality. When somepony breaks into song, others around them feel compelled to join in, even if they don’t know the words. Sometimes, entire towns can get involved. We can use that to attract the pony in the plane.”

"Ah, the 'ol duet-with-evil!" Pinkie said.

Maverick looked skeptical, but asked, “So what do we do with him when he shows up?”

“We’ll have to convince him to land. If we play our cards right and sing well enough with a catchy song, he’ll be on the runway and still harmonizing before he realizes what happened.” Twilight frowned. “Which leaves the problem of how to get all of us airborne so we can get close enough.”

“Well, it’s convenient that we’re standing right next to a B-52,” Velma pointed out.

“Do you know how to fly this thing?” Fred asked.

“I do, but I can’t without my glasses,” she said. “Fortunately, it should only take me a little while to get everyone else trained.”

“So we need a catchy song to catch a pony, and also a training montage to learn how to fly a bomber,” Maverick summarized. He looked at Goose and the two of them nodded in an unspoken decision.

Maverick went over to an emergency phone on the wall and picked it up.

“Hello, operator? Get me Kenny Loggins.”

Chapter 7

“Electronics check,” Velma called, reciting the B-52 preflight checklist. She still couldn’t read, so it was from memory.

“Check,” replied Twilight.

“Controls check.”

“Check,” replied Rarity from the cockpit.

“Check,” repeated Rainbow, looking at the tail surfaces of the massive bomber.

“Ordnance check.”

“Ain’t any.” Applejack’s voice echoed from inside the bomb bay.

“Shame,” muttered Maverick from his place on the hangar floor. Goose nodded.

“Engines check.”

“They’re, um, here,” said Fluttershy, hovering near one pair of the bomber’s eight turbofans.

“Countermeasures check.”

“Checkaroonie!” called Pinkie. There was a pop and a cloud of confetti-like chaff burst out of the dispenser on the underside of the B-52.

The next item wasn’t on the checklist, but Velma said, “Sound check.”

“Check,” replied Kenny Loggins. His amplified voice echoed around the hangar from the speakers that had been quickly installed on the bomber.

“Thank you for helping us out, Mr. Loggins,” said Velma. “You’re the best.”

He sat beside her in the B-52’s control station. While she couldn’t see the handsome bearded face of the mystical guru who had manifested unto them because he sensed that his music was needed or the fancy electric guitar across his lap, she could imagine it.

Kenny Loggins nodded and smiled modestly. People paid him megabucks to write songs, but it was nice to get a sincere compliment once in a while. In light of Velma’s temporary blindness, he added verbally, “You’re very welcome.”

The improvised aircrew checked out their machine for a few more minutes before Velma decided that they were ready.

Maverick and Goose walked outside to climb into their jet. The rest of the humans and the ponies began loading up in the B-52. Pinkie’s secret-stash-of-instruments-for-band-emergencies-yes-that’s-totally-a-thing-you-never-know-doesn’t-hurt-to-be-prepared had come in handy, but Kenny Loggins had also arrived with state of the art sound equipment.

Everything was as ready as it was going to be. Settling herself into the cockpit with Rainbow, Twilight pulled the lever on the wall of the hangar with magic. The massive doors began to open, spilling bright sunlight into the hangar. Rainbow flipped some switches and the bomber’s eight engines began to spin.

Outside, Maverick and Goose were preparing for the show. The Tomcat was ready and waiting. Goose shifted uncomfortably in the back seat, sharing his space with the keyboard that had been jammed into the cockpit.

“Fireball, are you ready?” said Twilight’s voice in the radio.

“If you are, Purple Rain,” Maverick replied. They’d picked each other’s callsigns. Goose added his own reply with a quick riff through the keys.

Rainbow nudged the throttles forward, and the massive B-52 started to move, the jet blast trashing the back of the hangar. They should have gotten a tow onto the flightline, but that would take a while and someone would wonder why half a dozen ponies, about that many kids, and Kenny Loggins were stealing a nuclear bomber.

The two aircraft turned onto the runway, the Tomcat quickly accelerating down the strip and into the air. The bomber lumbered behind, but got airborne after a lengthy takeoff roll.

By now, the entire airfield was going nuts. Two airplanes taking off without permission, one of them stolen, would do that. It’s not like they could do anything about it, though. Maverick and Goose’s F-14 was the only fighter within a few hundred miles. However, as fast as Tomcats were, some more might be deployed from the carrier within minutes.

With that in mind, Goose said, “Okay, we don’t have time for a traditional ballad with multiple solos, just a quick power anthem. We’re going to have to give everything we’ve got. This might be our only chance.”

There hadn’t been time to rehearse. Everyone just assumed Kenny Loggins would do most of the work, being a professional musician/God.

He didn’t disappoint, either. The guitar opener was basically the best thing ever, combined with Pinkie’s drum setup and half a dozen other instruments thrown into the mix. Rainbow was rocking in the cockpit. Applejack was on bass in the tail turret. Rarity had a decidedly different kind of bass stood up and was playing it with a bow.

A tambourine rattled around the bombardier station. Fluttershy was vaguely responsible.

The song went a little something like this:

Fly, fly, soar up in the sky
All you gotta do is try
Fly, fly, it’s all right
All you gotta do is try!
When you’re cruisin’ at the limit
Of the stratosphere
When you’re in it to win it
One thing’s got to be clear…
You gotta fly, fly, soar up in the sky
All you gotta do is try
Fly, fly, it’s all right
All you gotta do is try!

There was a brief pause in the lyrics as Kenny Loggins shredded.

“Contact!” Goose reported, glancing at his radar screens and playing keyboard by feel.

They had the target. Now it was time to draw him in.

Feelin’ that heat, wind beneath your wings
Eyes wide open, jetstream sings
Flying together, partners in crime
Throttles to the limit, soaring through time
Fly, fly, soar up in the sky
All you gotta do is try
Fly, fly, it’s all right
All you gotta do is try!
If you’ve got the guts, come and fly with me
The two of us, happy and free
Moving in sync, rhyme and verse
Making friends across the universe

The timespace-altering jet was now within visual range. Maverick could vaguely see the pony inside bobbing his head with the music going out over the airwaves. Just a little closer…

Fly, fly, soar up in the sky
All you gotta do is try
Fly, fly, it’s all right
All you gotta do is try!
We’ve got the best kind of friendship type
Between two worlds, we share one life
We’re all in this together
Friends forever!
Fly, fly, soar up in the sky
All you gotta do is try
Fly, fly, it’s all right
All you gotta do is try!

Apparently singing and attempting to dance while strapped into the cockpit of a jet was a terrible idea and the pony in the pink plane juked upward at the worst possible time. The B-52 was directly overhead and the sophisticated magic-powered aircraft slammed into the underside of the Air Force bomber.

The bomb bay doors crumpled and the pony plane ended up mostly inside the B-52, sticking out of it like a pregnant whale halfway through giving birth.

“Well gang,” said Fred in the control center behind the B-52’s cockpit, “somebody’s got to go down there into the weapons compartment that’s exposed to the sky and make sure our aircraft’s structural integrity is still intact and check that we aren’t going to lose our unexpected detainee, and while you’re at it, unmask him, all the while we’re cruising at 500 knots at 40,000 feet.”

Shaggy sighed and traded glances with Scooby before replying. “Just give us the Scooby Snacks.”

Shortly thereafter, strapped up with radio headsets and bottles of emergency oxygen, Shaggy and Scooby descended through the bomber’s fuselage to the bomb bay. The part that wasn’t crumpled metal was a hole with nothing but miles of air beneath. They could vaguely see the F-14 hanging out below the B-52, providing another set of eyes.

“It looks like it’s pretty well stuck,” Goose reported through the radio.

“You’ll have to find the cockpit and press the emergency-open button,” Twilight added.

With as much caution as they could, which was quite a lot considering who they were, Shaggy and Scooby picked their way through the wreckage to the front of the plane. The canopy was cracked, but intact. The pony inside looked as if he’d had his brains scrambled by the impact, but was otherwise unharmed.

Shaggy found the button and the canopy popped open. As it did, the transdimensional camouflage properties of the glass fell away to reveal…

“Captain Smuth!” Shaggy exclaimed.

“Smith,” he grumbled in reply. “I can’t believe you hippies caught me.”

Chapter 8

The situation was not good. It was better than it had been, but there weren’t many options left on the table.

As soon as they landed, the plane with another plane stuck in it would probably be swarmed by security forces. Not only that, but the magical teleporting jet had been damaged in the collision.

With a quick conference between Velma and Twilight, a plan was hatched. It would cost the United States a bomber, but it wasn’t like hippies paid taxes.

With more Scooby Snacks, they convinced Shaggy and Scooby to run a thick electrical umbilical from the B-52 to the pony plane. After extracting Captain Smith, they tossed him out with a parachute and a note pinned to his back that read: “Like, arrest me.”

Once the experimental plane’s electronics were hooked up and powered, and a few calculations made, everything was set to go.

The goodbyes were heartfelt, especially when Pinkie pulled out the cupcakes. The humans nearly experienced coronaries, unused to the sweet pony fare, although that didn’t stop Shaggy and Scooby. It was the thought that counted, though, and everyone parted on good terms.

Drifting down on parachutes after bailing out, Fred called, “Well gang, I’m glad that we were able to help them.”

“Everything worked out okay,” agreed Daphne.

“Especially if we claim that we were hostages and managed to escape,” Velma added. “Just remember to deny everything and wait until a lawyer is present.”

Scooby giggled.

Overhead, the B-52 shimmered and blinked out of sight with a sparkle of magic.

The Tomcat screamed by, Maverick and Goose giving the gang a final salute before breaking off to return to the carrier.

Maverick rolled the jet and took a vector back to the ship. In the backseat, Goose played a few notes on his keyboard listlessly. “We’re going to get in trouble for this. We’ll be lucky if we don’t get court martialed.”

“Probably,” Maverick acknowledged. “Although, depending on how we spin it, we can say we saved American lives and drove off an alien invasion to be the heroes. Either way, this is a really good excuse to do a flyby.”

For one of the first times in his career, Goose agreed with him.

Chapter 5

After deciding on a course of action, the group split up. Maverick and Goose went back to their jet and picked up the tapes on which the electronics had recorded the brief battle with the pony plane. Finding a place to play the tapes was quite a bit more difficult.

After wandering the base for a little while, they managed to find an electronics building. It was a little difficult to talk their way in, but aircrew (cough, Maverick, cough) were masters of telling stories.

Sitting down in a small room with tape players and TVs, Goose pulled out a small notebook and kept track as Maverick played the tapes. Carefully annotating events and the exact time, they painstakingly reviewed the data.

“Okay, here’s where we first picked it up.” Maverick pointed to the display that showed the forward camera mounted on the jet. It showed the artificial horizon and view through the heads-up display in the cockpit. They spun the tapes a little further until the moment the Tomcat was behind the colorful jet. Goose recorded relevant information from the radar display.

Walking through the intercept, they noted shots fired and the maneuvers of the foreign aircraft. They played through its teleport jumps several times. And, near the end, something interesting happened.

Goose had noted the distance the jet had jumped, and upon further analysis saw that it had shrunk each time. When the jet made its final leap, there was a barely perceptible flicker at the edge of the radar screen.

“I think I’ve figured something out,” Goose said.

“You hate ponies?” Maverick replied.

“You know I’m allergic to horses. Besides that, I think this transdimensional thing might be running out of power. Its jumps kept getting shorter. It might not be able to do that again until it recharges or something.”

“Interesting.” The wheels in Maverick’s head were turning.

Goose saw the look and reminded him, “Before we shoot it down, we have to find it.”

Maverick shrugged. “Maybe our guests might know something about that.”

“Nah, that nerdy one didn’t even seem to know.”

“The pony or the woman?”

“Either.”

The two of them packed up and left the building, heading back to where they last saw the rest of the group.

While the two of them were reviewing the tapes, the gang and the girls had sat on the beach for a while longer. The picnic was one attraction, but the chance to converse with aliens was even more interesting. Even Shaggy, Scooby, and Pinkie managed to work words in edgewise between bites. Everything was going well, so well that the next logical step was a downslide straight to heck.

Sand ninjas.

At least, that’s what Pinkie exclaimed when a group of men wearing tan uniforms burst upon the scene of the picnic. The pleasant lunch turned into a mad dash in the blink of an eye.

Food was flying, hooves and feet were scrambling, in the background somebody had started some music.

The two groups chased each other up and down the beach for several minutes, weaving through palm trees, avoiding crabs and sea life, and taking turns getting swept away by waves.

Finally, Twilight got her wits about her and teleported the group.

“Wow, that was some trip,” muttered Shaggy. He looked around, but wherever they had ended up, it was dark.

“Reah,” Scooby agreed. It sounded and felt like he had ended up on top of Shaggy. In fact, the whole group seemed to be piled up.

There was a flicker of light and Twilight’s horned glowed. “Sorry about that. I had to get us away, and I guess in the heat of the moment I didn’t have time to take a precise aim.”

The group got themselves disentangled. The room where they had ended up was apparently very large and echoed. The floor appeared to be smooth concrete, covered in salt water and sand from the beach.

“Hang on, let me get some more light,” Twilight said. She pointed her horn up and shot a magic flare into the air. It hovered a few dozen feet above them, shining brightly.

Everyone gasped. “What’s that?” Rainbow asked in awe.

Velma squinted, and wandered over to the thing they shared the room with. She put a hand on it. “It feels like a B-52.”

“Like, I thought they just made music,” Shaggy said. Everyone ignored the terrible joke.

“Is this another kind of airplane?” Twilight asked.

“Sure is,” Fred replied. “You teleported us into an aircraft hangar.”

“The lights aren’t on,” Rarity said. “Perhaps they won’t think to look for us here.”

“Who were those guys, anyway?” Pinkie asked.

“Maybe more security people,” Daphne speculated.

“It sure looks like this place is locked up securely,” Twilight noted, looking around at the plane and the locked hangar doors.

“They tend to do that with nuclear bombers,” Velma said.

Fluttershy let out a frightened squeak. Rainbow put on a huge grin.

Just then, someone started pounding on the locked door that lead to the outside.

Scooby said, “Ruh-roh.”