With Time, and Aeronautics

As the New Promise continues its journey through the vast blue above, it's view from Ponyville vanished. And so did Lavender Novas composure. She had been anxious of her family aboard the ship even in her view, but it was less worrying then.

'Oh no. I shouldn't have let them get on. Why did I let them?' She thought.

Questions starting to arise within her mind. What if they are late? Worse, what if something goes wrong? What if...the unthinkable happened?

Thinking logically and reasonably, she stopped. These thoughts would only create unwanted stress. Something she didn't need. After all, that is why she is down on the ground, and they are up there. To keep her thoughts occupied, she observed the mighty Timeless.

'Nah. Everything is fine.' She repeated in her head.

And indeed, everything was fine. Chromes mood had uprisen, so he and Iron were having a brilliant time, admiring the view and talking with their new friend Cornelian Kiwi. And with the thoughts of a new family member, the only way the experience could get any better would be if Lavender was there to share it with them.

"Ok, you won't get it this time." Iron says, playing the guessing game with Chrome again.

"Your number is eight." Chrome replies.

"Damn."

"When would we be going back to Ponyville?" Chrome asks Iron.

"...you want to get off already?"

"No, no I just wanted to know."

"Well, your guess is as good as mine really."

Chromes eyes once again had been drawn to the window. He watched as the ship glided over an unfamiliar forest. Not the Everfree, and gladly in his eyes, but still strangely unfamiliar. They must be further away from Ponyville than they thought.

"We must have to turn around soon" Continued Chrome. "because I have no idea where we are."

"Hmmm, neither do I actually." Says Kiwi. "It is a lovely forest we are above, though."

Giving a confused look to Kiwi, Iron looks down through the window. For a while, the forest that they steamed over was unchanging, until they passed a huge lake of water. It glistened, striking the panels and windows of the New Promise. From the lake extended a dirt path that traced to a small settlement, smaller than Ponyville, and just as unfamiliar as the forest it was buried in. The occupants of this settlement were standing by the lakeside, admiring this milestone in pony-technology. Had they even heard rumors of it's existence? This sight would have been quite shocking if otherwise.

They weren't frightened, as they happily pointed and waved at the ship. Chrome waved back, although they might not have seen this, which amused Iron and Kiwi.

"So are you planning to go back to Manehattan after we land?" Asks Iron.

"Unfortunately yes. Although I will definitely be coming back. Both for business, and because I want to."

"Alright. We should meet up again sometime, I could introduce you to Lavender."

"Lavender?"

"My wife, I mean."

"What a splendid idea! I will have to arrange some time off."

As Kiwi finished, the New Promise began to turn.

For a vehicle of its size, the New Promise turns quite efficently, to eventually be facing in Ponyvilles direction. Chrome became exited to see his mum again, even though it hadn't been long since he left her. The colt was buzzing to tell Lavender about the adventure.

"Mum is gonna be so happy to see us when we get back to her!" He says.

"We can tell her about our adventure too, she loves to hear about those." Iron replies.

"That is what I was thinking! Oh I can't wait to see her!"

They passed over the lakeside settlement once again. Just as before, ponys got out of there homes to witness the machine overhead. Some were pointing like last time, but they weren't waving. A detail Chrome was quick to notice, only to dismiss the thought.

The villagers must have spotted something at the front of the ship, because it jolted. And with it, Kiwis eyes lit up. Silence struck the ship, quickly broken by her concerns.

"Wh-wh-what was that?!"

"...I don't know..." Iron replies as calmly as he could. "Did a Pegasus hit us?"

"Doubt it. How could somepony hit us? We aren't disguised, or anything." Chrome nervously adds.

"Meh. I suppo-"

Another jolt interrupted Iron. This one more violent, making ponies unsettled. Kiwi was completely terrified, Chrome was motionless and Iron became concerned. A long of silence occurred, until somepony noticed smoke coming from the front of the ship.

Smoke began to fill the inside of the ship, making the young Chrome cry out of fright. He jumps into his fathers arms. Kiwis eyes were tight shut as she held her head in her hooves. The smoke quickly progressed to cover the entirety of the inside of the ship, sending ponys into hysteria. Chrome was held tightly in his fathers grasp.

"Don't look Chrome...just...don't look..."

The screams and cries of everypony were the stuff of nightmares for Chrome. He whimpered in Irons arms, as his father watched the panicking ponies run the lengths of the craft. The smoke had thickened, and a fire had erupted out at the pilots end of the ship. It looked like a candle flame through the dense black smoke, but the heat told a different story. Kiwi panicked and ran from her seat, seemingly vanishing.

"Kiwi? Cornilean?!" Iron shouts, upsetting the terrified Chrome.

A feeling of descending had made itself clear, to which Chrome shrieked.

"It's ok, it's ok Chrome, nothings wrong, just keep your eyes closed." Iron began fear for Chromes, as well as his own life.

The ship started to tilt forward. Flowerpots, bags and other small items rolled down the centre of the ship to the fire. The smoke was burning Irons eyes, but he kept them open to look over his son.

The windows had been blacked out, now there was no way of telling how close the ground was. The smoke had became thick enough to cause problems breathing.

With the ever increasing tilt, Iron and Chrome stumbled from their seat onto the one in front of them. Ponys began to lose their footing, and they shockingly fell towards the fire.

"...dad...dad what's happening..?" Chrome sobbed.

A loud metallic tearing sound coming from the front of the airship interrupted Iron Essence. A huge tear had opened up on the floor of the ship, taking out some of the smoke. Through the tear, the ground was visible, and it wasn't very far down. The fire had engulfed a large portion of the front end. The pilots had to be gone, nopony could survive that.

Over his own cries, Chrome couldn't hear the stress that had been put onto the chair. Neither could Iron, the bolts fastening the chair down started to creak. A sudden jolt forward occured. One of the legs had come from the floor.

"I don't want to die dad!"

"You're not, Chrome! Hold onto me!"

A second leg gave way, as Chrome screamed in terror. Another massive tear came from the front of the New Promise, the ship was twisting under the strain of the odd descent.

The floor underneath Chrome and Irons chair had split open, and they were sent flying to the front of the ship. Their grasp on each other had broken.

"Chrome!"

"Dad!"

Chrome couldn't make sense of what to do, he could only scream as he fell to the front end of the ship. Iron fell into another more secure chair, stopping his fall. Just as Chrome fell through a remaining layer of thick smoke, Iron used his magic to catch him. Crying with shock and light relief that he felt a grasp, Iron pulled out his son. But as he lifted him up, his heart broke.

He wasn't holding onto Chrome. He caught a piece of twisted metal and wood that Chrome must have had knocked out of place with his fall.

"...no...oh Celestia no..."

As Iron dropped the twisted metal sheet into the abyss of smoke, the nose of the ship smashes into the forest, and scrapes along the floor. Luckily for the villagers, it didn't hit any farmland that belonged to the village. Trees snapped, and were torn from their roots, as the bulk of the ship comes close to impacting the ground. Iron was send further down the ship surpassing a thick layer of smoke, eventually smashing into the edge of one of the tears in the side of the New Promise. He was winded, and had no time to grasp onto the broken metal panel. He slipped from the belly of the burning ship.

After falling through the air, Iron struck a tree, knocking him unconscious. His damaged body fell from the branches, scarring him up badly. He hit the ground with a loud thump, dust and leaves swirling around him.

The New Promise finally hit the ground with all of its might. Leaving a very long impact trail across the ground, it eventually scrapes to a halt.

Iron woke up to the sensation of whiskers rustling past his face from a curios squirrel, and the piercing sunlight through the trees dotting his body. His ears were ringing loudly. With accompanying groans, Iron attempts to get up, but he couldn't. He slammed into the ship extremely hard, and it had made moving agonisingly painful. He could only lay on his side, making him cough. Sliding his hoof against his cheek, blood could be seen smeared over it. He was bleeding internally.

Dazed from being unconscious, Iron began to drink in his surroundings, and his predicament. The high pitched ringing had gone, and Iron could hear birds tweeting amongst the forest, along with a faint sparking sound. He could also hear hoof steps coming from behind.

Somepony had found him.

From amongst the trees, a Pegasus hovered over to the damaged Iron Essence. He didn't get up, or turn around to see who had come to his aid, probably because it would have caused enough pain to make him pass out, so Iron stayed still.

"Holy mother...are you hurt?" Asks the Pegasus.

"...yeah...badly..."

There was a pause of consideration, as the Pegasus notices breathing troubles from Iron.

"Alright. I'm just going to rest you up against that tree, ok?"

"...yeah...yeah, ok..."

"Ok now. Easy does it. One, two, three..."

The Pegasi lifted up the frail Unicorn. He was gently settled down upright against the tree.

"Dambit that kills!" Iron groaned.

Iron removes his folded hooves from his chest, to show a huge red and blue bruise straight across his chest, which was misshapen. He had fractured ribs, but too many thoughts raced through his head to focus on this.

"Celestia. You took quite a hit. If you can tell me, what is your name?"

"...Iron...Iron Essence..."

"I'm Summer Breeze. You're going to have to stay very calm for me Iron-"

"Chrome...my son, I have to find him!"

Summers jaw dropped.

"Oh my...you lost your son?"

Iron tried to get up.

"Woah, woah, Iron! You'll hurt yourself if you try to walk!"

"I don't care! I..." Iron grasped his chest. "I have to find him!"

He stumbles to his hooves, and step by step walks over to the destroyed path of trees giving way for the New Promise. Iron stopped, to see one of the ships two giant thrusters crippled, lying on the ground. Wires drooped from it's unrecognizable underneath, and laid messily on the ground, some of them still live, which explains the sparking sound. Further up was the bulk of the ship, ablaze, and bellowing black smoke into the sky. The sight filled Iron Essence with despair, he knew Chrome could well be in the inferno of the ship.

With that thought, Iron couldn't bare to see it's remains.

"Dude, please don't do this." Summer says nervously from behind Iron. "You're going to hurt yourself."

"But...but what if he is in there!?" Irons chest pains were agonising.

"I'm taking you to the others. There is a site of survivors, rescuers and doctors just on the other side of the ship."

Iron coughed, bringing him to his knees with a spew of blood from his insides.

"Oh no." Summer helps Iron up, and puts his hoof around his shoulder, supporting the frail Unicorn. "We have got to move, now!"