Breaking Dawn

       As it turns out, I never solved the problem of faster-than-light travel.

       But somepony else did.

       The theory went, if you compressed space in front of you, and lengthened it behind you, you technically didn't move, and therefore were not traveling faster than the speed of light.

       It sounded like a loophole, devised by lawyers to get around a law.

       But the thing was, it was happening all the time.

       Years ago, we discovered that the universe was expanding, and even measured its rate of expansion.

       But if you took two points at opposite ends of the universe, even if it was only the part that we could see, those points were moving away from each other at more than the speed of light.

       Space expansion did not count towards the speed of light.

       The theory might actually work.

       But it was a long time, a very long time, before a prototype engine was finished.

       Twenty years.

       Perhaps not a long time for such a surge in technology. But for me, who was waiting uncertainly for the Nightmare's sudden return, it was an eternity. But perhaps it was a good thing that it took so long. Other technologies developed, like more efficient and smaller computers.

       It was dubbed a "warp" engine, since it warped the space around it to move.

       The operation of the engine was magical in origin, while the controls were technological.

       The engine would create a warp field around the ship, isolating it from the rest of space, then direct space around it.

       Unfortunately, this would be disastrous if the space being warped had any matter in it, so traditional engines were required to get it off a planet (or moon).

       The only catch was the power supply.

       The amount of magical power required was immense. The crew would have to contain over 100 unicorns, all working together.

       Or about half of one alicorn.

       Guess who.

       Although there were several ponies that wanted to test the prototype, I insisted on doing it alone.

       I refused to risk anypony but myself.

       Anyway, I might be able to survive the explosion, and I would be able to survive the vacuum of space before I got rescued.

       This was the first test of a theory, after all. There was a chance that it wouldn't work, period.

       I didn't want anypony to die on my account.

       The ship worked, for the most part. It did pass the speed of light. It was a bit bumpy (actually, a lot bumpy), but in the next models, we were able to fix the problems with the first one.

       By the time we fixed those problems, the drive was a lot more efficient, and it could reach Warp 2.1.

       The Warp scale was a new system to measure light speed travel. Almost like the Mach number was used to calculate speeds above the speed of sound, the "Warp Factor" was used to determine these speeds with relatively few zeros.

       It was a logarithmic scale. Warp 1 was the speed of light. Warp 2 was ten times, etc.

       And finally, finally, it was time.

       Time to go after her.

       And time to explore the unknown.

       And the ship was built.

       It was obvious who should be my crew. The original Elements of Harmony.

       They had stopped aging long ago. And right now, they were the only ones that were still personal friends.

       All of them agreed to go, from boredom, want for adventure, or just seeking the presence of friends.

       The ship was named the E.S.S. Night, named after me.

       Not really my first choice, but everypony on the project insisted it be named after me.

       Not necessarily in my honor, but it would be strange to call the ship something other than what it was addressed by the crew.

       You see, there are some disadvantages to being the engine of the ship.

       One of which is that you can't walk around.

       The other is that you have so many wires attached to you that you look like one of those creepy aliens that control large machines in sci-fi films.

       It sort of is exactly like that.

       Magical connections enable me to see anywhere on the ship, as well as outside the ship, control sensors, and use my own magic to cast spells from different points on the ship.

       In essence, I am the ship. Hence the name.

       I would be able to talk to my friends, of course, but through speakers in the walls, not face-to-face.

       I could project a virtual image of myself, but it just wasn't the same.

       And if they did actually meet me face-to-face, the atmosphere would be pretty awkward with me still connected to the ship.

       It was inconvenient, but necessary.

       I had complete access to every system on the ship. Technically, I could fly the whole thing myself. But that would require me to focus on every single detail at the same time. For example, I could use the ship's sensors, but actually deciphering what everything meant was beyond me.

       That's what the crew was for. In emergency situations, I could gain control, but they were the ones that really controlled the ship.

       They were the ones that gave the instructions to the computers, and those computers would use my magic as necessary. Of course, I could override those commands if necessary. Otherwise, I might be in real danger from overdrain. But for the most part, I didn't have to think about much.

       My job was defence. As the one with the access to the magical lines throughout the ship, I could create shields, fire magical bolts, or perform pretty much any magical spell on the outside of the ship. I had gotten quite good at it. We needed to be prepared for the Nightmare.

       Of course, I knew that I still wasn't powerful enough, so there was a station for Twilight as well, but there were less options, and a lot less flexibility.

       Twilight's job was to use the ship's technological and magical sensors to collect and compile data. At least, that's what she said it was. I just called it the Science console. The main purpose of this mission was scientific. Even if I did want to find and destroy the Nightmare, it was no longer the primary goal. I wasn't going to lie to all the scientists under me at E.S.A., and I had grown fond of space.

       I would have made the voyage anyway, even if the Nightmare disappeared forever.

       Rainbow Dash was the pilot.

       She wanted to be in charge of the weapons, too, but Twilight vetoed that. I was slightly relieved. Partly because I knew she would be trigger-happy, but mostly because I would actually have something to do.

       Rarity had the Communications station, and was the unofficial uniform designer.

       Spike was in charge of Special Communications (Dragonfire mail in case of emergency - it was actually faster than our normal communications), and also the cook.

       Applejack was in charge of growing the food.

       Fluttershy was the doctor. She had actually studied quite a lot over the years, and had several degrees now.

       Pinkie Pie was in charge of Engineering. I wasn't quite sure how I felt about that, but she apparently knew her stuff.

       Maybe she broke physics so often that they knew each other personally.

       So, ship ready and crew assembled, we boarded the ship.

       Well, we went to the moon together. I had to get on about an hour before the others, connecting myself to the machine, making pre-flight checks, and initiating certain necessary spells, like the artificial gravity.

       Then they boarded the ship.

       It was a small ship, about the same size as the shuttles that were used to get between the Earth and Moon. The Warp Drive didn't take that much space, being just a computer that translated my magic into the appropriate form.

       I had tried shaping my magic myself, but it was too much concentration to be worth it.

       It looked quite ordinary - the only addition to the mostly standard ship was the two nacelles on the outside of the ship that held the machinery directing my magic into the warp field.

       Apparently they glow blue when I'm using them. Maybe it's because of the color of my magic.

       I wonder what would happen if Twilight used them.

       That was another reason why it was important that she be there. If something happened to me, the ship would be able to return home safely.

       But I dwell too much on disaster. Perhaps I'm too careful.

       The ship itself was streamlined, designed both aesthetically and utilitarian, made to cut through the atmosphere, minimizing reentry heating.

       Its hull was made of adamantium, an alloy of magic-infused steel designed to reflect hits in case my shields failed.

       On each side, the Equestrian flag was painted, along with the ship's serial code: ESA IS-AD-01.

       All in all, a ship that I considered beautiful, and I was proud to call it my own.

       I called it that, but on this voyage, it wasn't really true. I was not the captain. I was the ship's override mechanism, and I could take control in an emergency, but Twilight was the one to make the decisions. She was the one with the most experience with the Nightmare, and although I knew the most about magic, she was more experienced with the scientific method, and that's what this mission needed. She was the best pony for this mission, and I was not about to compromise that for my own selfish desire.

       She was better at leading than me, anyway. I was good at teaching. I was good at learning. And I was good at doing a job well. But leading was not one of my talents. I technically had authority over I.S.A, but I always was the one working with the personnel, not giving orders.

       Twilight was the real leader.