The Lunar Worlds

The Lunar Worlds

Chapter 4:

The Haymaker

* * * * *

Morning in Canterlot shimmers, and everything is perfect for today is the day.

An old and weary pegasus stallion takes to the stand, one sporting an orange coat and blue mane. The crowd whistles, stomps hooves and clap claws; he's everyone's favorite royal guard after all.

He begins his speech, one he had carefully planned for this very special ocassion. But I pay barely any heed to it, for all of my attention is captivated by the pink blur sitting by my side.

Finally, the stallion raises a hoof in my general direction, and without further ado, proudly announces:

"Let's hear it for the newest captain of the royal guard, Gallus!"

The crowd explodes in cheers. Everypony, everycreature is here for me, they look up to me, because I'm here for them. But most importantly, her and I will finally be able to be together.

I head to the stage, albeit reluctantly, for I dread being apart from the love of my life, even if just for a little while.

Arriving at the stand, I clear my throat and manage to muster the willpower to address the crowd. "Thank you everyone!" The crowd now falls silent and attentive.

"So when I first enrolled in the academy, I was asked the question." I pause a little, to let the members of the audience express their curiosity in their own way. "Yeah, that question, the one every single recruit gets asked."

"So, why're you enrolling?" I feel the weight of their full attention fall on me, yet I continue. "And to no one's surprise I answered with the same thing that just about does… well, everyone except maybe Flash. Heh, no hard feelings bro!" The pegasus rolls his eyes with a smirk as a collective snicker is heard around the stage.

"Anyway: to protect my country from its enemies, that’s what I said," I say firmly as the creatures before me nod in approval.

"And of course, the drill sergeant would look at me as if I was an idiot and reply: You fool, Equestria has no enemies!" The crowd explodes in laughter.

"A little harsh for a new blood, eh?" I fail to contain my own laughter, and do my best to regain my composure. "But yeah, back then I had no idea how to respond to that and would just hang my head embarrassed."

I allow a few moments for everyone to get their bearings before continuing.

"However, if I was told the same thing today, I would counter with…" I make a little pause again, just to let the audience hype up. "Equestria has no enemies, because it's a wonderful place made by wonderful creatures such as you and myself, and it's unthinkable that anyone would stand against it or what it represents."

Again, a thunderous cascade of hoof stomps and claw claps fill the stage, impatient for me to land the final line.

"And I'm proud to be a member of its military, so that I along with my brothers in arms, may ensure that the dream lives on!" The crowd goes wild. Cheers and tears of joy break all over the place.

* * * * *

"I heard you're getting engaged, congratulations!" A very familiar white hoof with blue tips shakes my claw.

I find myself in the afterparty, already a little worn out from the constant attention. Although I would like nothing more than a little time to myself for some rest, I’m really in no position to turn anyone down right now, especially since they're here for me after all.

"It's all thanks to you, Shining!" I say joyously, tightly hugging the white unicorn. A pained grunt escapes his aging body, but darn if I was gonna let that stop me from squeezing him just a little bit more. "Without your recommendation, I’d still be peeling potatoes in the barracks."

"No way! You're the most talented griffin I know." He says with a slightly pained smile, prompting me to release him from my grasp. "Kind of the only one, but still!"

"Well I still appreciate it! You know how my roots are very humble, and Silverstream, well, she's from the royal Seaquestrian family." I can't help but blush a bit, "If it wasn't for the help of you and my other friends, it wouldn't have been possible!"

"Come on, it's not like you didn't put in any effort yourself. You deserved it, captain!" he reiterates with that gentle smile of his, before it suddenly grows stern as he looks somewhere behind him. "Hey, Flurry, don't be rude and come congratulate Gallus!"

"Ugh, do I have to?" the little princess groans in annoyance.

"Yes. Yes you do!" the white unicorn counters with the authority only a former captain would have. "Public relations are very important, we've talked about it."

With that said, the pink alicorn huffs before reluctantly approaching me. She shakes my claw with her hoof, and with her penetrating eyes locked on mine, she utters, "One day I'll rule my own nation, one in which anycreature can be on equal footing and be together despite their social upbringing, so that none may suffer again what you had to endure."

"Ugh, not the republic talk again," Shining pouts as if he's about to have a stroke. "I really can't leave you a moment alone with your grandaunt Luna anymore, can I?"

"No, not a republic," Flurry scoffs. "That's clearly not enough."

As entertaining as this is, it’s clear to me that I don't want to deal with parenting drama right now, and thus I do my best to try and defuse the situation. "It's fine, Shining. She's showing how much she cares in her own way."

"Teenagers these days, eh? I don't get what's not to like about the imperial system," the prince says as he makes his leave, motioning for her daughter to follow. "It's given Equestria thousands of years of peace after all."

Before I can say anything else, another white hoof meets my claw.

"My most sincere congratulations, darling!" the refined unicorn mare exclaims.

"Oh, Rarity! Glad you could make it!" I say before taking notice of the other white unicorn beside her. "Oh, and your sister too!"

The other unicorn mare takes my claw, and with a gentle smile, her powerful voice thunders, "Now approaching: The Haymaker."

And just like that, the perfect tranquility of my dreams is broken by the arrival of harsh reality once again.

* * * * *

As I restlessly shift above the dusty sheets of my bed, an already familiar filly's voice deafeningly echoes throughout the ship's hull, "Initiating docking sequence. In T minus five minutes you'll have arrived at your destination."

I thought I had only shut my eyes for a minute, but it feels as if several hours had already gone by instead. I must've been really worn out.

Queen must've been up all this time, as I can hear her tinkering with something at the workbench in the engineering bay. By all the racket she’s making, it sounds as if she’s working on some sort of twisted torture device to use on the victims of her future raids.

Groggily, I muster the strength to open my eyes. Blurs begin to take form, and I soon recognize the captain's quarters of The Surly Reveler.

I'd hoped for some more sweet, pink, silvery dreams... yet my luck seems to have been cut short. A part of me wishes I had woken up in Equestria and dismissed everything that happened yesterday as a bad dream. Now… I believe that was yesterday, but in all honesty I’m not entirely sure. With space being so... spacey, time kind of has a way of sneaking past you. All the same, if Lunaria is supposed to be the kingdom of dreams, what with an adequately titled ruling princess and all, then the service I just recieved shouldn’t have been as lousy.

Through the windshield, I can see it clearly. A few square miles large, as big as a city, The Haymaker lays before me. Countless guns of every caliber cover nearly the entirety of its hull, from those more suited for clearing space debris than for use in actual combat, to those which would turn my insignificant vessel into space debris in a blink.

At the cruiser's prow, the pride and joy of the Equestrian Fleets and an early adoption by their Lunar siblings: the legendary Starlight Cannon. Signature of every battlecruiser worth its salt, the monstrous artillery is capable of decimating entire fleets in a single shot; or so they say as, to my knowledge, none of the daunting weapons have ever been fired at live targets for it was deemed to be inequine to do so. Just having it pointed in your general direction would've been more than enough to cause you to fall on your knees in tears and beg for mercy. Such a fine piece of plasma artillery is no laughing matter, and promptly secured ponydom's supremacy on the space race in the early days, much to the envy of the other kingdoms.

Several wings of smaller fighter craft make their rounds around the cruiser. These lunar ponies are certainly obsessed with their leader and make a point to keep everything moon-themed, as even their ships are shaped in an arc reminiscent of a crescent moon. My ship is likely an exception as just like seemingly everything Luna's Choice™, it's probably yet another cheap reverse-engineered Equestrian knockoff model.

In surprising synchrony, two crafts break formation and head my way, zipping past to then follow closely behind and escort my ship into the cruiser. I assume Sweetie Belle must've taken care of all the proper protocols for my sake. It's sure nice having an astrogator AI to take care of such mundane tasks.

* * * * *

Having gathered my bearings, I walk downstairs towards the boarding ramp. My balance briefly fails me as I feel the motions of the ship gently hovering over a landing platform within the cruiser, causing me to reach for a nearby railing.

From the engineering bay steps in Queen, who regards me with a smile while keeping perfectly in balance despite the landing maneuvers. "Sleep well?" she asks.

"I guess," I reply with a slight grunt. "What about you? Do you ever sleep?"

Her grin grows ever so big as she deviously says, "No rest for the wicked."

Yeah, my consciousness probably wouldn't let me sleep either if I was a murderous bastard.

Speaking of… "By the way," I begin saying as the ship finally locks firmly in place, "is it really okay for you to be here, bounty and all?"

"Eh, these lunar ponies have really short memories," she says with a roll of her eyes and a dismissive wave of her hoof. "Blame Eternium if you may. Besides it's not like I look anything like in the posters."

She then sharply points a hoof in my direction and says, "You, on the other hoof…"

I point a talon at myself and question incredulously, "What about me?"

"You're a fucking griffin!" she snaps. Leaning closer, she wraps a hoof around my neck and whispers, "If anyone asks, you're a harrot farmer from Haywater. Born there after your griffin parents illegally immigrated from Equestria on the third fleet." Her voice lowers as she presses my face closer to hers, "You lived and breathed Luna's Choice™ harrots for decades until you lost your shit and went rogue."

I take a step back to free myself from her grip. Not buying any of it, I grit my beak and say, "I don't get how that’s any different from just saying I came aboard The Ha-"

Before I can say the forsaken ship's name, she presses her forehead to mine, her eyes throwing daggers at me. With a grave tone she tells me, "No matter what, don't tell anyone about The Harmony!" She pushes me away and makes a shooting motion with her hoof, "And if they press you about it, pow, put a bullet through their skull."

From what I'd heard so far, mentioning the long lost colony ship certainly is taboo around these parts, though I don't know if that's something worth killing someone over.

Ow! Did she just kick me in my shoulder!?

"Yeah, don't clench your beak at me like I'm an idiot when I can clearly see it," she fumes. "A bullet through their skull I said!"

I just grunt in annoyance and head towards the exit hatch, eager to explore the battlecruiser. Queen closely follows, her gaze not drifting apart from my beak, as if waiting for it to make any mistake to justify further assault on my person.

I make a point to double check that I'm still wearing my jacket, bag, blades and pistols before heading out. I guess I had actually slept with the damn things on as I now feel the sting of one of the blade's hilt as it had buried in my fur the whole night. That's gonna be bothering me the whole day now… Ugh, right, there's no day nor night up here, or 'up' even...

* * * * *

Hardly two steps down the boarding ramp and I already regret coming here. The interior of The Haymaker is annoyingly dark, cold and damp, not unlike a cave--I guess just like them damned batponies like it. The ship's crawling with them! Dozens of unfriendly-looking bats ge about their business in a creepy, perfectly orderly fashion as deafening high-pitched screeches echo disorderly throughout the hull. Their gloomy, stoic looks and wickedly large fangs that complement their devilish slitted eyes suggest they ain't those cutesy mangosuckers you'd ocassionally stumble upon during the wilder Canterlot nights. No, these are the Nightkin, the true Luna's chosen so to speak: The Children of the Night. From all the stories I heard, I wouldn't be surprised if they feed on the blood of innocent unicorn fillies, though the faint fruity scent in the air reveals that there must be at least one deviant among them.

The landing bay of the battlecruiser itself is massive. A dozen perfectly lined up platforms that could each easily fit ships as big as my own, if not bigger. Surprisingly, they're mostly empty save for another freighter class ship on the opposite end of the bay. Guess there ain't much transit this time of the day. Argh! Right--there’s no day nor night!

As I reach the bottom of my ship's ramp, I notice a single unremarkable batpony-gray mare standing near the prow and calmly operating a hoof held datapad. Her batpony-blue mane stands out from the rest of the crew, however: I don’t know what it is about it, but it’s arguably bluer, I think.

"Uhm, excuse me," I say as I casually approach the batmare. "If you don’t mind me asking, what're you doing?"

"Checking the ship's manifest," she answers without looking away from her datapad. Noticing that I might be left staring, she adds, "Standard procedure, sir."

Not minding her indifference, I still feel prompted to ask, "Um… Is everything alright, then?"

"The procedure… it's standard, sir," she replies in annoyance, still not bothering to look away from her datapad. "Nothing to worry about."

"Okay then…" I say, worry building within me as I walk further away from my ship and into the… bigger ship.

Leading into the cruiser is a checkpoint, guarded by what must be the grayest batpony stallion of them all. And just on the wall to the side, a bulletin board, in which--among other things--hang dozens of wanted posters with mean looking ponies pictured on them. I manage to spot Queen's picture in there, and to my surprise, she's easily overshadowed by several other wanted criminals with much fancier posters and likely juicier bounties.

I point at Queen's poster and tell the pegasus herself with a smirk, "I don't know, the resemblance is remarkable."

"Please, they ain't even colored," she casually dismisses my comment, though seems compelled to lean closer to the board all the same. She kind of has a point though; without their distinctive colors, all ponies look exactly the same to be honest.

I take a closer look at the rest of the posters, and immediately recognize one of the names: Havoc, that one name the raider's kept bringing up. The wicked, twisted horn above her head indicates she's an unicorn mare. Going by her long spiky mane and the artist's interpretation of her foal-killer expression, she must be the incarnation of evil itself. ‘Wanted: kill on sight,’ the reward for her very dead and rotting corpse is one million bits. Impressive, five times that of my partner's bounty.

Mostly out of having nothing better to do, and trying to make friendly conversation with said partner, I say, "So, Havoc… is that your ex-boss?"

She seems taken aback by the question, judging by how she flinches. "No, what makes you think that?!" she says, alarmed.

"Well," I say, waving my claw. "Everypony in the sanctuary kept talking about her as if they looked up to her."

"Yeah, she gives guidance and purpose to the raiders." The marauder takes a hoof to her chin as she contemplates her answer, "She's their inspiration and symbol of hope."

"So, she tells them all what to do?" I counter, raising an eyebrow inquisitively.

"Well, yeah," she says in annoyance.

"I see, so she's their boss then," I say as a triumphant smile paints on my beak.

Defeated, she sighs, "Whatever, it's not like they've any obligation to do as she says though."

I press on, unconvinced, "Really? What happens if they don't, though?"

After pondering for a second, the pegasus just scratches the back of her mane with a hoof and smiles awkwardly, "Uh, if she's in a bad mood I guess she'll brutally murder them." The former raider cocks her head slightly sideways before further elaborating, "If she's in a good mood however, she'll uhmph, murder them quickly and… nicely?"

"What?!" I squawk almost involuntarily. "Aren't you worried she'll come after you since you ditched her?"

"Heh, not anymore than any other day, really." My partner sweats bullets as she tries to dismiss the thought with a shrug, though the terror in her eyes betrays her. "She's a very intense, violent, and unpredictable mare after all."

The leader of the Crystal Raiders, the pony who's said to be the best chance at restoring Equestria. The inspiration and symbol of hope for some rather articulate ponies like Tresh... is a very intense, violent, unpredictable mare who will murder her followers at the drop of a hat if she's had a bad day.

Okay then.

I can't help but silently judge my partner's life choices, thus I give her a cold look of disapproval as I slowly shake my head. I feel pity for her.

Trying to distract myself from the pegasus' revelations, I turn my attention back to the bulletin board. Front and center of it surely is the largest poster showcasing what must be the most dangerous psycho of them all. Surprisingly, she looks like a rather normal mare, at least as normal as the flamboyant criminal artist could possibly draw. The name: PhD. Ditzy 'Derpy' Doo of Hooves. This is it, Dr. Hooves, my target. The bounty on her head's very real after all.

As my claws motion to reach for the poster and rip it off the board, my eyes wander into the reward amount. Time almost seems to cryofreeze as I become aware of the number of zeros on display, though my blood definitely begins to chill. I can't really tell, but I do feel like my pupils can't decide whether to dilate in ecstasy or shrink in terror. It's an impossible, absurd sum. Queen's a rather dangerous pony and I failed to claim her meager bounty, and from the looks of it, Havoc's a feared and respected mare too who’s bounty is worth more than double that amount. If the awarded sums are proportional to their target's threat level in the slightest, then the mad scientist mare--despite her looks--must fucking be nothing short of a trotting apocalypse.

A hundred million bits.

A hundred motherfucking MILLION!

Just for a tip leading to her capture.

Could that be because it's unthinkable for a single creature to capture her, and it would require nothing short of an entire army to get her? Her list of heinous crimes has everything in it after all, from stealing muffins from the jar all the way to terrorism and genocide.

Maybe she didn't notice me firing at the screen and just thinks it busted on its own like the one on my short-lived helmet at first. Perhaps it's not too late to get on her good side, as I'd rather not have another crazy powerful mad pony chasing after me, as Havoc might as well murder me too for associating with Queen!

Speaking of the devil, Queen notices me panicking, prompting her to lean closer to me in concern. "You're not having second thoughts, are you?"

"Yeah, and fucking third, fourth thoughts even!" I snap.

And as if I wasn't having enough of a bad time already, the shadows around me start warping and twisting in weird, unnatural ways, seemingly coming to life.

I stare, perplexed. It seems the universe wanted me dead so badly, yet a simple bullet through my skull wasn't gonna cut it anymore. Nope, I was to be engulfed by darkness itself, dragged to the depths of tartarus and tortured for all eternity.

Except, oddly enough they weren't coming after me. The shadows sit in place, quickly shaping up and appearing to solidify, revealing four elite night guards clad in onyx armor. By their sides, painted over their shoulders, Lunar Defense Corporation logos proudly announce their allegiance. And of course, they're armed to the teeth with heavy Void-Ray weapons, or V-Ray for short.

Now I haven't heard much of said weaponry, but it appears that if you get hit by but a single one of their very many fully automatic shots, there'd be literally nothing left of you... as your atoms practically vanish from this dimension.

"Crew of the Lyre, you will come with us quietly," the lead guard orders us in an unexpectedly high pitched, squeaky tone that immediately kills the eerie mood that their impressive shadowy entrance had created. Huh, wasn't my ship’s official name the Surly Reveler? How do they know about its other name?

In any case, knowing far too well that we are very much vastly outgunned and in the middle of some rather hostile territory, we have no choice but to promptly comply. I mean, we don't really know what's this about yet, so might as well not get too trigger happy just yet.

Did I mention how much I hate batponies yet…?

* * * * *

The guards take us to what seems to be the dampest, darkest corner of the cruiser. There we finally see it, a black towering building many stories tall beautifully adorned with silvery carvings. A very official looking Lunar Corporation Embassy if I've ever seen one. And there we finally hear it...

"What do you mean you've lost your seal?! Well you'll go unlose it, IMMEDIATELY!"

A terrifying scream echoes throughout the Haymaker's hull, shortly followed by a golden magic beam whizzing past us, dragging a poor batpony mare in bureaucratic attire with it and crashing soundly on a far wall.

"Wait…" Queen utters in shock. "Was that the ambassador herself flying just now?"

"Heh," I snicker. "Probably!"

The pegasus practically starts hyperventilating now, "No! This isn't funny! This is bad news!"

I look at her agape and ask, "How so?" In the short time I've known her, I learned it takes a certain amount of bad to distress my partner, thus I really hate it when she gets like this.

"For the ambassador to get assaulted like that without anypony flinching, there must be a high ranking officer visiting," she mutters frantically. "It could be an auditor, or an executor or worse!"

Damn… While your run of the mill middle management batpony who likely hates her job wouldn't bat an eye to who we were or where we came from, a high ranking officer with a clear passion for her job was a completely different story. Ok, this is bad news.

The guards lead us closer into the embassy. Every step on the fancy staircase now feels like eons as I find myself nervously gulping way too frequently. A brand new and rather distinctive batpony shaped hole adorns the otherwise pristine obsidian doors. Behind them, an ornate desk sitting in the middle of an office in which each and every individual piece of furniture likely cost more than I could earn in ten lifetimes.

And there, sitting behind the desk, on a rather comfy and very expensive looking reclinable executive chair, and in a manner I had thought impossible by equine anatomy, was her…

"Speaker Heartstrings, ma'am!" the lead guard addresses the mare respectfully. No, fearfully. "These are the filthy mongrels you requested."

Without flinching, golden magic swiftly grips me and my partner by our throats, pins us to the marble floor and drags us across all the way to the desk. I'm very thankful for the squeaky clean state of the floor that let us slide nicely, as that would've hurt badly otherwise.

The magic grip tightens as we are lifted into the air slightly, just above ground level, enough to make us struggle to breathe. Being this up close I can now clearly see to my surprise that the officer mare's clothing are more militaristic in nature, with a tunic sporting countless medals and decorations along with a peaked cap. Obviously a unicorn, that much is clear, with piercing golden eyes not unlike her magic signature and a contrasting teal coat with a minty mane. A few streaks of gray already run through this rather young looking mare's mane, perhaps due to excessive work stress… or are they in fact naturally white?

"You've got twelve seconds to tell me…" the mare begins speaking with astounding authority. "Where. Is. BONBON?!" That last part was uttered in a volume previously thought to be only achievable by alicorn royalty.

SHIT.

Immediately I begin to vainly struggle against the mare’s magical grip on my neck. I’m sure my attempts must look pretty comical, like one of those tiny yapping dogs being lifted by the leash.

This mare knows. She knows! Oh my Grover, what do I do? I'm so dead!

"Eleven."

She's actually counting! Don't let her reach zero! You don't want to find out what happens at zero!

"Ten."

She's a quick counter too, that's not fair!

"Nine."

Queen just frantically looks at me, shaking her head ever so slightly. I can practically hear her voice in my mind. Don't tell her!

"Eight."

Think, Gallus, think. You might be half featherbrain but you're also half cat. I need that part right now.

"Seven."

Just tell her the truth, sugarcube. It was an accident, she'll understand.

No she won't understand you stupid apple junkie. You're not helping. Anypony else got any ideas?

"Six."

Maybe half the truth? Y'know, the cooler and more convenient parts.

Like what?! All of it is bad!

"Five."

Just remember what you're fighting for! I mean, if you want to...

I don't even know anymore, I'm just trying to survive!

"Four."

Well… You've gotta survive with style, darling~!

Wh-wha-?

"Three."

But remember to have fun doing it!

H-how?

"Two."

And maybe make some friends along the way?

She could be… my friend?

"One," the unicorn says, looking absolutely furious. A layer of overglow envelops her horn, likely ready to crush us with her magic.

Say literally ANYTHING, just don't say she's dead!

"She was captured!" I scream desperately.

"What? Did you say captured?" She's perplexed by my unexpected answer. Tightening her grip further in anger, she inquires, "By who?!"

Who can be blamed for that? Is there somepony who's easy to pin the blame on around these parts? Somepony with a criminal background. Maybe Queen? I can pin the blame on her and get rid of her once and for all. No, that’s a terrible idea--she's travelling with me, which would make us accomplices...

"D-doctor…" I barely manage to say in my current state of choking. "Hoo...ves!"

I… should've probably said Havoc.

Something seems to click in the officer's mind however, as she begins to loosen her grip and release us. My statement must not have been too far fetched for her to consider it.

The unicorn's expression slightly shifts from rage to something like skepticism as she proceeds with the interrogations, "How did you end up with her ship?"

I have the initiative now. I just need to make up a story that explains everything up to this point in a way that undoubtedly puts me on her side as a good law abiding citizen of Lunaria!

Please send help…

"Bon Bon, she…" I begin saying between raspy breaths. "Saved me from the mad doctor."

With a completely incredulous look and a slight smirk, the unicorn says, "Oh yeah, well elaborate."

From the corner of my eye, I can see Queen mouth the words. Remember, don't mention The Harmony.

"I can't remember much from the time before I was captured by the doctor myself," I explain. "But I witnessed as she ran countless horrific experiments, both on myself and many others." Yes! So far so good. "Yesterday, Bon Bon broke into Dr. Hooves' hideout and set me free, but didn't make it out herself." Not bad, not bad at all. "She… told us to wait at her ship, and if she hadn't returned after a few minutes that we were to come here and seek your help." Damn it, dude, you should've been a novelist! "We'd waited for nearly an hour when the doctor's evil minions came after us. We barely made it out ourselves!" And the academy award goes to: Me!

Surprisingly, my pegasus partner's hoof doesn't seem to share my enthusiasm as it proceeds to meet her face. Perhaps the last bit about the evil minions was too much…

"Yeah," the unicorn sighs. "That sounds like my Bon Bon alright…"

Seriously?

Before I can screw this up, Queen takes the lead and blurts in. "We came here to turn in Dr. Hooves! We have her hideout's location in Bon Bon's ship's logs!"

A collective gasp fills the room, as both the guards and the unicorn are stricken in unison.

An heroic flame reignites within the officer's heart, stringing her into motion with a new found passion like dancing to harpic tunes, causing her to announce, "If what you say is true, you'll be deemed heroes of the Lunar Corporation!"

"I know what happened might sound pretty far fetched, so I understand if you don't believe us." I sigh. "Maybe there's some way to earn your trust, like running some errands or so?" So that we can escape before all of this grows out of proportion and our lie is exposed...

With ultimate determination, the unicorn declares, "No! If there's even the tiniest chance for this to be true and Bon Bon's life is on the line, then this cannot wait!"

A small, tiny part of me is moved by her words and really, truly wants to tell her the truth, but I know I'll drop dead the moment I do. I have to defuse this somehow. Of all the ponies we could've given our lead to the doctor, this was the worst possible one.

Just then, the batpony mare with the bluest mane bursts in, screaming, "The Lyre's manifest has a set of coordinates labelled Dr. Hooves' secret lab!"

With no doubts left within her, the unicorn yells at the top of her lungs, "I want everypony! I want the whole fleet on the move right now!"

"The whole fleet?" a stupid guard asks.

"ALL OF IT!" the mare wails.

However, a stupider guard manages to blabber, "But ma'am, this is a neutral vessel, the Lunar Defense Corporation has no authority-" A brilliant beam of gold magic sends the foolish stallion flying across the main hall, crashing into the far wall and landing neatly on top of the ambassador's still unconscious body.

"I'm a speaker of Luna," the unicorn asserts. "The only pony in this system who can override my authority is the Chairmare herself, and she isn't here!"

Alright, I bet 'speaker' is one of the things that's worse than 'auditor' or 'executor'. There's no way this could end well for us…

"Hold on!" Queen speaks out, to everyone's surprise.

But before she can elaborate, a golden beam vaporizes her… No wait, she actually dodged it with that mad speed of hers.

Perplexed, and rather annoyed to have missed her target, the unicorn launches a second beam of golden magic. Once more, my partner dodges it with remarkable ease.

Not having any of it, the enraged unicorn begins launching a flurry of magic at the orange pegasus, without any heed to us innocent bystanders.

The batponies and me hurry for cover as we watch the mad mares go at it, wrecking the office in their wake. I know better than to draw any weapons, as I don't want this to turn into a bloodbath, with most of the blood being likely ours.

"Just hear me out!" Queen yells as a magic beam near misses her, making an unique and likely invaluable Blaze dynasty jar explode behind her. "If you go in guns blazing…" she somersaults as the purrsian carpet gets torn apart in a golden shower. "The doctor is just gonna get away like every other time!"

Damn it, not the limited chibi Luna's Choice™ collector's edition statuette too... It was very cute.

Anyway, the speaker seems to settle down for a moment, if anything to pique her curiosity. "What do you suggest then?" she says before blowing away the smoke from her horn.

"Dr. Hooves is completely delusional," the raider says with a smug grin on her muzzle as she points a hoof my way. "She thinks that blue griffin over there is her best friend in the universe."

"Go on," the officer says, looking positively amused.

"If all she sees is the Lyre approaching her hideout with Gallus on board, she'll lower her guard." And that's when she shows her signature devious grin, "She won't see us coming."

The unicorn nods in approval and finally exclaims, "Love it! Let's do it!"

I breathe a sigh of relief. Everything seems to have worked out well after all.

"It's settled then," I casually say as I come out of my cover. "We'll bring her back quickly, I promise."

Believing I was now in the clear, I begin to make my way out of the room, only to then have my parade so rudely rained on...

"Oh no, we're coming with you, idiots," the officer glares at me for a moment before shoving me aside and walking past me. She adjusts her cap and with a serious look, gazes into the distance, "This is personal now."

"Wha-" I say dumbfounded.

My partner and I just stand still in silence for a long uncomfortable moment before one of the guards pushes us to follow.

I don’t know how it happened, but things were about to get a whole lot more complicated...

* * * * *

Footnote: New Companion Available

Speaker Heartstrings - Don't even think for a second that she has joined your party. No, you have joined HER party. By the way, your ship is also HER ship, always has been. In fact, now that you think about it, she probably legally owns you as well.