Fallout: Equestria - The Spark of Life

Chapter 11: The Heist of the Millenium

Friendship didn't fail me. I failed friendship.

We sat around the fire we managed to build, looking upon the hoard that had belonged to the dragon. Unfortunately, the dragon had frozen most of its treasures, probably under the pretenses of keeping them timeless. A few heat spells and a fire had managed to thaw some bits and bobs, but most of it was just useless junk.

I scowled as I sifted through the stuff we’d managed to get thawed, thinking absently about the events of the day. Surprisingly with the dragon gone, the cavern had managed to heat back up just enough for us to be comfortable and not freeze completely to death. My mind’s eye kept jumping back to what Violet had done. The magic required for such a feat was absolutely insane. The pearl had to be the cause. But how? Tempest had used her magic on us, but her magic was that of the pearl. Were we all going to undergo such transformatory magic?

My mind turned to more immediate matters. With the destruction of the skyway, the skywagon we’d come here for had likely been destroyed. At the very least I wasn’t going to fly down and check. Regardless, it had seemed like any batteries for the thing had pretty much been gone. It stood to reason that the skywagon was visiting at the time everything went to shit, so its battery had been obliterated from the get go.

I worried about back home and how the others were doing. We needed to get to Canterlot fast in order to use the power of the pearl to destroy the Storm King. A nagging feeling kept getting to me though that this was just a ploy for me to be out of the way when he attacked. If it was, it had definitely worked. Still, I knew deep down that the pearl could be used to defeat him. We just had to find the Heart of Equestria to do it.

Unfortunately we were still stranded many miles away from Equestria itself. And freezing cold. Fuck, I really hated life sometimes.

“Everything okay?” Violet said as she walked up to me.

“I’m fine,” I said absently. “Just thinking.”

“About back home?”

“A little bit. I’m worried, Vi. It seems like things are getting worse. Did we make the wrong decision coming here?” I asked softly.

Violet sighed, nuzzling me before taking a seat next to me. “I think we made the best decision we could have made at the time with the information we had available.”

I nodded. “I suppose you’re right, but still. Without a good way to get to Canterlot now, what are we going home to? If the alicorns of Fort Knowledge couldn’t stop the Storm King, how are we going to do it?”

“The Storm King is at his very heart, a coward,” Tempest interjected, sitting down in front of us. “He’s a child, playing with power he doesn’t fully understand. He didn’t even understand the Staff of Sacanas when I originally procured it for him.”

“Twilight had the staff, right? After he was defeated?” Violet asked.

“Yes, she placed it in the Canterlot vault for safe-keeping, but at some point during the war it disappeared. There was an investigation, but without alicorn magic the Staff was useless,” Tempest said, scowling. “Things sort of went by the wayside in the world of the Ministries. They had ponies working the case, but in the grand scheme of things…”

“It wasn’t worth the effort,” I finished for her. “It’s odd though, where would the Storm King have gotten alicorn magic to fuel the staff before attacking the Fort?”

“Sweetie… didn’t you say you were under some spell that impacted your magic?” Violet said, her eyes widening.

I blinked. “No… it can’t be. He fueled it with my power. At least just enough to make it strong enough to gain more. Dammit. I feel like a fool.”

“You couldn’t have known that was why the spell existed,” Tempest offered, placing a hoof on my shoulder. “The Storm King is also a trickster. He manipulates others, tricks them into doing what he wants.”

“Absolutely,” Violet said. “We didn’t even know the staff existed until recently. It’s not your fault, Star.”

I nodded, looking down at Violet. I smiled softly and nuzzled her. “Thanks. To both of you. I still have a lot to learn, I guess about putting myself down for every little thing.”

“Now that we have that out of the way,” Tempest said. “We still have a problem where we are stuck in the middle of nowhere. I may… have an idea as to how we can get to Canterlot quickly. It’s… it’s probably a lot crazier than that stunt Violet pulled. By about six thousand times.”

“Go on,” I said, raising an eyebrow.

“We’re still not too far from Mount Aris. The Storm King is gone, but his forces are still there attempting to secure the facility and its research. We saw them. They have an airship,” Tempest said.

My eyes widened. “Are you suggesting what I think you’re suggesting?”

“Yes. Let’s steal an airship.”

* * *

“You want to steal a what?” Sunshine Sky said, staring slack-jawed a bit at Tempest. “You’re kidding. You’re kidding, right?”

“I’m not kidding. We need a way to get to Canterlot. The Storm King’s forces possibly have a way to get there. We take that way. It’s pretty simple really,” Tempest replied casually.

“Star, you can’t be entertaining this idea. We’re already a bit weakened from having lost Trick Shot, and doubling back to near Mount Aris would lose us precious time we have to get home,” Sunshine said, scowling. “I don’t like this idea one bit. I mean, what if they’re not even there still?”

“Sunshine’s concern is fairly realistic,” I said with a sigh. “We’d be wasting a bit more time to try to put this plan into motion, and there’s no guarantee that it would even work.”

“Perhaps we could send our scout?” Tempest said, her gaze falling on Bright Ember. “He had no problem going off last night to find this place.”

“Wait, what?” Sunshine said, looking over at Ember. “You didn’t.”

Ember looked down at his hooves. “I did. I was only meaning to check for danger, but then I found the skywagon and I… I was only trying to help.”

Sunshine sighed loudly. “You could have gotten hurt or killed. We don’t know these places, Ember. What if that dragon had attacked you by yourself? Wait…” She looked dead at me. “You knew, didn’t you?”

“I did. I’m sorry, Sunshine,” I said, averting my gaze. “We should have been more up front with everyone.”

Sunshine huffed in frustration before looking back at Ember. “How long would it take you to get there and back by yourself?” she asked.

Bright Ember looked surprised. “You aren’t mad?”

“Oh, I’m furious, but we’ll discuss that later. Right now, the mission comes first. Tempest is right about one thing. We need transportation of some sort. The Storm King’s army has that. We need to know if they’re still there or on the move,” Sunshine said. “So… how long will it take you?”

“Probably half a day at best,” Bright Ember replied. “There and back, I mean.”

“Fine,” Sunshine said. “Get your gear and get going then. We don’t really have time to waste.”

Ember nodded, moving to his pack. He gathered his things up as I watched Sunshine appear next to him. She hugged him and gave him a kiss before he walked off out of the cave and out of sight. She looked over at me and nodded before coming back to the group.

“So… next time someone I love does something that stupid without saying something, you tell me, alright?” she said, looking right at me.

I sighed and nodded. “Agreed. How did you know, Tempest? Bright Ember only came to me after you all had left.”

“Simple deduction. I noticed he was missing. Also, I saw him leave. I’m a soldier. Trained to have a good eye for things,” the other unicorn replied before addressing Sunshine. “If I hadn’t had that kind of training, I’d have never seen him. He’s incredibly talented. You should be proud of that.”

Sunshine blushed fiercely. “I know. I forget that he lived out here on his own before he met us,” she said. “I’m sure he’ll be fine.”

“It’s hard to think of someone you love being in danger,” I said, smiling down at Violet. “Violet and I have for a long time recognized that we’re both strong and capable of surviving out here. I trust that she will do the right thing implicitly.”

Violet nodded. “I also trust that Star will soak up all the bullets and pass out when it’s convenient,” she said, giggling.

My eyes widened. “Oh, you totally did not just–”

“Anyway,” Sunshine interjected. “You’re right. I should give Ember more credit. He deserves that much. But… I would like to at least know what’s going on.”

“I will agree to that. Now, we should get some rest. I’ll keep watch until Ember gets back,” I said.

Sunshine begrudgingly agreed while Tempest and Violet both nestled in to rest quietly. The warmth of the fire kept us up in the dragon’s lair, dark and cold as it was beyond the confines of our camp. I sat and watched for what must have been hours before I heard movement at the entrance of the cave. I stood, gathering my thoughts together silently as I watched the form of Bright Ember move quietly into the gap.

He made his way to the fireside and smiled softly.

“They’re on the move,” he said quietly. “But I was able to trace their movement. The airship isn’t well guarded. This is doable.”

“Wake the others,” I said, gathering up all the materials. “We go now.”

* * *

The cold winds blew across my coat as we stared down the mountainside into the valley below. Bright Ember’s tracking had served us well, despite taking several hours to reach the location that he had figured the airship would be. Down below in the dark valley was a large skiff decked out in purples and silver, emblazoned with the crest of the Storm King. It was currently moored to the rocky terrain below.

“Even the bad guys need a break,” I said under my breath.

“They probably assume they’ve won this region, so there’s no reason to be in a hurry,” Sunshine said, peering through her scopes. “In fact, most of their forces are on the ground. Staff on the ship itself seems to be minimal.”

“What are their communication capabilities?” I asked, looking over at Tempest. “If we pull this off, can they warn other ships?”

“I have to imagine they have some form of radio communicators, akin to what you have told me about the Grand Pegasus Enclave, especially if some of the Storm King’s ranks include members of the former military,” Tempest said. “Still, it probably is prudent to approach the airship hopefully undetected. A stealth mission is the best way to sneak off without causing much of a ruckus.”

“What about the ground forces below?” Violet said.

“I may have an idea there,” Bright Ember said, looking up at me with a grin. “You can teleport others, right?”

“I probably can? It’s sort of theoretical. I’ve done it before but always by myself,” I said, putting a hoof up to my chin. “Why?”

“Their ground forces are going to be too busy chasing a Nirik,” Bright Ember said confidently before looking over at Sunshine. “Is that… acceptable?”

Sunshine smiled and playfully pecked him on the cheek. “I know you can do it,” she said. “I believe in you. Just come back to me alive, alright?”

Bright Ember nodded before looking back up to me. “So? What do you think? I get the ground forces to run off and then you teleport me away while they’re occupied. The others sneak onto the airship and take care of business.”

“It’s a good plan. I have an idea of how to handle the teleportation spell too,” I said, thinking hard. “If I’m there, invisible, I can teleport us away to safety and then we can assist the others.”

“I can handle leading Violet and Sunshine onto the ship. I’ll deal with any remaining crew members and then Sunshine can get the ship going, right?” Tempest said.

Sunshine nodded. “You cut it loose and I’ll take care of the rest. They don’t look too difficult to actually fly,” she said. “Might be a little rough with the reduced crew, but I think we can manage.”

“Excellent,” I said. “Bright Ember, with me. The rest of you, move once you see the ground forces move. We’ll reconvene aboard the ship. Just for clarification, this is crazy as fuck, but it’s the best option we have to get to Canterlot faster than walking. Just… don’t die, alright?”

“Star, seriously, after we just had the discussion about trust?” Violet said with a wink. She blew me a kiss. “It’s going to be fine, love.”

“I know… I just… you know,” I said softly, catching the kiss with my hoof.

Violet smiled knowingly as she and the others made their way down the mountainside, staying low to be stealthy. I sighed as I watched them disappear out of sight.

“Just… be safe,” I said under my breath.

* * *

Star

* * *

Immediately after the others left, Bright Ember and I made our own way down the mountainside, taking a far more direct route that would inevitably take us into the path of the Storm King’s forces.

I shifted my magic and used it to turn invisible. Bright Ember used his smaller stature beside me along with his natural colorations to blend into the surroundings. I respected his inherent ability to make himself unseen. I had to use magic to do that, and quite frankly I didn’t think I was very good at it.

We made our way down the mountainside into the valley below. I watched warily as Ember moved quietly through the fields, ever closer to where the Storm King’s forces lay. Up above, the airship sat, almost like it was a statue. A mooring line held it to an anchor that was embedded in the nearby rock formations. A ladder appearing to be made of black rope extended from the bottom of the airship to the camp below. In all reality, it was not as high off the ground as it appeared, using the natural ebb and flow of the hills in the valley to push the camp higher off the ground.

The camp itself was more or less just a group of Storm Guards and raiders, milling about around a fire in the center of the camp. The raiders were a mixture of unicorns and earth ponies, but none of them looked particularly military-ready or even happy to be there. It felt more like the Storm Guards drove the ponies more than the other way around. At the very least there were only three of the creatures watching over the group. My eyes drifted up to the airship again, briefly wondering how many were up there watching the ship.

I shook my thoughts away. I couldn’t worry about Violet and the others. I had to trust in Tempest’s ability to lead. Right now I needed to worry about Bright Ember and keeping him safe.

“Are you ready?” I whispered.

Bright Ember nodded. His eyes glowed slightly as he began the transformation, willingly this time. As the radioactive fires began to spill forth from his mane and tail, his face became feral in nature, his teeth sharpening into fangs and his eyes blazing with glowing flame. His hooves became claws, scraping at the rock as he walked into full view of the small camp. He roared loudly, gaining the attention of every member of the camp.

To Ember’s credit, he definitely got the drop on them and several of the group shrieked rather loudly and began to scramble away. The Storm Guards, however, ever watchful, only growled and started forward. This managed to galvanize some of the fleeing raiders into stopping just a bit. If the Storm Guards weren’t afraid…

Ember roared again, stomping one of his front hooves into the ground and scratching at it with his claws. A gout of flame erupted from his mouth, spraying forth at one of the Storm Guards who was charging forward. The monstrous guard screamed loudly as the fire caught its fur, setting it ablaze in greenish flame.

Now the whole camp was mobilized and shouting. I saw weapons being loaded and I shared a glance with Ember. It was time to move. Ember began to run as a blast of laser fire struck the ground where he’d been just moments before. The camp began to give chase.

I glanced once more up at the airship, hoping that the others could make it through okay before following behind Ember, ready to protect him at a moment’s notice.

* * *

Tempest

* * *

Tempest Shadow watched intensely as the camp began to mobilize, chasing after Bright Ember as the Nirik roared loudly. She grinned as she looked over to Violet and Sunshine.

“They’ve taken the bait,” she said. “Get ready to move.”

The other two unicorns nodded silently. Tempest scowled as she watched the camp give chase after the Nirik. Her eyes widened as the rope ladder up to the airship began to shift.

“They’re pulling up the ladder,” she said. “We have to go now.”

Tempest leaped forward, Violet and Sunshine right behind her as the group headed down the ridge towards the floating airship. The ladder began to rise as the group approached.

From behind Tempest, Sunshine Sky’s horn lit up, creating a set of vines that whipped out and lashed onto the ladder, wrapping around it.

“Grab on!” she shouted, tossing a vine each to Tempest and Violet.

Tempest snatched up the vine with her teeth as Sunshine’s magic caused the vine to pull each of them up to the ladder. Spitting the vine out of her mouth, Tempest pulled onto the ladder and held on tightly as it started to rise. Below her, Violet and Sunshine had done the same.

Tempest looked upwards at the base where the ladder was being pulled up to. A pegasus stood there, frantically working the device she assumed was the control panel for the ladder system. He seemed to not be paying attention to the three ponies on the ladder. He cursed loudly and hit the panel before looking straight down at Tempest.

“What the–” he started to shout.

Tempest’s horn ignited, sending a burst of electrical energy right into the pegasi’s face. The pegasi didn’t have much time to dodge the blast, taking the full force of it before slumping over on the console. The ladder stopped retracting immediately.

“Come on, we gotta move up,” Tempest said to the mares below her, pulling herself up towards the entry bay rung by rung. As she crested the entry, a blast of laser fire singed her hairs as it passed over her. Another pegasi stood across the way on the deck of the ship.

Tempest pulled herself up and out onto the deck swiftly, rolling behind the console to use the other pegasi’s dead body as a shield.

“Violet, Sunshine, incoming fire!” she shouted.

“I’m on it!” Sunshine called back from below. From below the pegasi’s hooves, a green glow emanated and several vines erupted, wrapping the pegasus before it could move to get away. The pegasus yelped loudly but then another vine wrapped around his neck. With a constriction and a jerk the pegasus went limp.

Violet and Sunshine pulled themselves up onto the deck as Tempest stepped out from the console. The rest of the deck appeared to be empty. Tempest walked over to the other pegasus, the vines slowly retracting from its corpse. She reached down with her magic, pulling away a belt of what appeared to be grenades.

“That was… dark,” Tempest said. “I did not know you could use your magic for that sort of offensive capability.”

“There’s a lot about my magic I’m constantly figuring out, but how to use it for offensive purposes is something I’ve definitely figured out,” Sunshine replied with a wink.

“Duly noted,” Tempest said with a grin before looking over at Violet. “Any hidden things I should know about you that I didn’t know before?”

Violet pulled out her laser rifle with her magic and smiled softly. “Nah. What you see is what you get,” she replied.

“I see why Star likes you,” Tempest said. “We should move. The bridge is our priority here. Let’s hope the others are doing okay.”

* * *

Star

* * *

I made my way over the next ridge as Bright Ember roared once more, coaxing the camp away from the airship into the nearby valley. In the distance, I saw a flash of green and three equine forms floating up towards the airship as the ladder retracted.

The raider group and the Storm Guards were not making it easy for us to get away, and now Violet and the others were on board a ship that was suddenly mobile. We needed to do something fast before this group realized they were duped.

Fortunately, I had a bit of a hat trick up my proverbial sleeve. Bright Ember rushed by and down into a bowl shaped quarry as the Storm King’s forces began to surround us. They lifted their weapons, preparing to fire.

A magical shield of purple energy flared into existence as I allowed myself to become visible once more. The raiders had already begun to fire, but their bullets and energy weapons fell on deaf ears against Shining Armor’s shield spell, which promptly disintegrated them. The presence of an alicorn must have severely shocked much of the Storm King’s army, because they did what any raider would do and kept firing.

“Are you doing alright?” I said down to Bright Ember.

“Yes, but I uh… I don’t know how much longer I can maintain the form,” the Nirik said, gritting his fangs. “I’ll burn myself out.”

“Can you expand it? Let it out around you?” I asked. “Out in a circle around you?”

“I can… I can try… but what about you?” Ember said.

“Remember what I said before? I can take it. I’m an alicorn. Radiation sort of… enhances us,” I said with a grin. I winced as one of the Storm Guards took several swipes at the shield. I could hold it, but more and more damage would take it out for good pretty soon. “When I say go, I’m going to drop the shield. I want you to let go all of your energy around you.”

“What if it doesn’t work?!” Ember shouted, growling as he struggled to keep aflame.

“It’ll work! You have to trust me. I believe in you, Ember. You got this,” I said. “Ready?”

“I…”

“Go!” I shouted, dropping the shield.

Bright Ember’s body flared as a pulsing wave of green flames expelled from him. The radiation washed over me in bright colors, making my body feel even better than it ever had before. I’d only ever felt this kind of magically irradiated healing a few times before. It felt rather amazing, honestly.

The raiders on the other hand, didn’t fare so well. The flames caught onto them immediately, burning them to cinders in mere moments. Bright Ember roared as more and more fire poured forth from his small form. The Storm Guards, initially unfazed by the radiation, also began to drop to the ground, melting into puddles of dark goo. The more energy he put out, the more it began to affect not just how I felt, but also my size. I felt myself growing a bit larger with the radiation. It was as if I was standing in the epicenter of an actual balefire bomb going off.

My eyes widened. The Storm King’s forces were completely decimated. At the center of it, Bright Ember shrieked in pain as the last bits of flame dissipated from his body and he became a Kirin once more. He slumped over, seemingly unconscious. I blinked. The ground all around us had basically turned to glass. Just like with Violet, the impossible had become possible.

The pearl’s magic is… it’s changing all of them. I don’t understand it, I thought to myself as I looked down at Ember. He groaned, his eyes still closed. That took a lot out of you, I thought once more. Of course… I’m going to be bleeding radiation for days at this rate. I’d better get him somewhere safe and hope the others are doing okay…

* * *

Tempest

* * *

Tempest scowled, looking through the glass into the bridge. Several pegasi moved to and fro, manning different cloud based stations. They had yet to notice any of the three unicorns skulking about, seeming to be more focused on keeping the airship afloat. One of them, a commander by the looks of his armor, was handling what looked like a large wheel.

The pegasi weren’t the problematic part. The bigger issue was not one, but two Storm Guards situated in different corners of the bridge. Tempest scowled. She knew that the Storm Guards weren’t very smart, but they were exceptionally strong and hard to put down.

“This is going to be awkward,” she said, lifting up the grenade belt. “Violet, I want you to focus on the pegasus commander. Sunshine, your job is going to be to delay those Storm Guards. I’ll handle the others. I’ll kick things off with a bit of a bang.”

“Are we worried that a grenade will damage the ship?” Sunshine whispered.

“Cloud terminals are generally much more resilient than they look to explosives,” Tempest replied. “Besides… these are energy grenades. They won’t won’t cause much of a bang, but it will be enough to give us cover. Got it?”

“Got it,” Violet said, lifting her laser rifle. “On your mark.”

Tempest nodded, creeping slowly towards the entrance to the bridge, the other two behind her. With a flourish, Tempest threw the door open and tossed one of the grenades directly into the path of the two pegasi fluttering back and forth. Their eyes widened as the grenade went off, spraying green plasma into the air. The two pegasi groaned, getting knocked back against the wall as Tempest unleashed a blast of magical energy at the third pegasus that was headed towards the doorway.

The pegasus growled, attempting to fire at Tempest. A vine appeared out of the frame beneath him, wrenching the battle saddle’s barrel upwards at the last minute, sending the bolt of energy into the ceiling. Another bolt of magical energy struck the pegasus in the face, rocking him back onto the deck. His entire body glowed briefly for a moment before suddenly disintegrating into a pile of goop.

“Fuck!” the pegasus in the back behind the wheel of the airship shouted. “You’re not getting this ship, you fucking ground pounders!”

With a flourish, the wheel turned sharply, rocking the ship as it began to turn onto its side with a massive groan. The pegasus laughed as Tempest and the others began to slip on the deck, the entire thing beginning to lean nearly sideways. The pegasus walked calmly, seemingly anchored to the floor via his power armor, aiming his battle saddle at the three unicorns.

“Got you right where I want you,” he said, grinning.

* * *

Star

* * *

My eyes widened as the airship began to shift, turning almost entirely on its side as I flew towards it. The others were in trouble! I growled under my breath, looking back to check on Bright Ember secured to my back. This was going to be a pain. I turned and flapped my wings, using the extra radiation powering my body to gain speed in order to get right up to the airship in a manner of seconds.

My eyes scanned, hunting for the bridge, finding it in the central back portion of the airship’s upper deck. Inside I could see three different colored blobs of unicorns, hanging on for dear life. An armored pegasus stood at a different angle on the actual floor, very nearly perpendicularly from the three unicorns. The pegasus appeared to be aiming some sort of weapon at the three off of a battle saddle.

My eyes widened. There was no way I could fly fast enough to shield the others. I had to dig deeper into my wells of power, my horn lighting up with arcane energy and be quick enough to be in and out before directly harming my friends. I released the intended spell, feeling my body suck through time and space as I reappeared directly in front of the armored pegasus. The bolt of energy from the battle saddle struck me but barely sizzled through the radiation emanating from my body as I latched onto the pegasus and teleported once more, taking him with me.

The pegasus screamed as I apparated in the air above the airship. I growled, pulling on his wings as he began to fight back, biting into his battle saddle bit and firing wildly all around us. I yanked hard with my magic, snapping the metal tissue of the pegasus power armor connecting one of their wings at its base. It went limp. The pegasus began to howl in pain.

With a snarl, I lifted the pegasus and threw hard, sending him soaring towards the ground below. The pegasus attempted to flap their other wing, slowing their descent as they drifted away.

I looked back at the airship. It was still lopsided… and heading towards a mountain in the distance.

* * *

Tempest

* * *

The blast of energy never came. A flash of white hot fire appeared in the space above Tempest and the others, disappearing just as quickly along with the pegasus. Tempest winced at the heat, her stomach feeling queasy.

“What the… fuck was that?” Violet asked, pulling herself up onto the railing she’d been hanging from. Her horn alit, pulling out three small orange bags from her saddlepack. “My PipBuck just registered a huge spike in rads. Better down some of this fast.”

Tempest and Sunshine had both pulled themselves up on the railing as well, taking the RadAway from Violet. Tempest ripped open the pouch and began slurping it out, tasting the tangy burnt orange that accompanied it. Immediately the hot flash of pain subsided.

“....mountain…” a crackle came to life on Violet’s PipBuck.

“Star?” Violet said, lifting the PipBuck. “Star, is that you?”

“MOUNTAIN!” Star’s voice came through the PipBuck’s tiny speaker.

Tempest craned her neck to look out from the bridge to the front of the airship. The airship was still lopsided, headed straight for the wall of a mountain.

“Oh… OH FUCK!” Tempest shouted, scrambling onto the railing. “Sunshine, I need to get to the wheel!”

Sunshine scowled and nodded, her horn glowing fiercely as several vines began to sprout from the floor, making a ladder for Tempest. The unicorn began to climb up towards the wheel as more vines appeared, giving her even more handholds. Tempest growled, reaching out with her magic to grab ahold of the wheel, turning it against the pressure being put on it.

Slowly it began to turn and the craft began to level out, returning things to normal. Tempest slumped and groaned.

“TEMPEST!” Violet shouted. “PULL UP PULL UP PULL UP!”

Tempest’s eyes snapped open. The airship had leveled out, but the airship was still heading towards the mountain. Tempest yelled and yanked on the wheel to start pulling up the airship. She felt the entire ship rise as it started upwards, but it was not going to be good enough. The ship was simply moving too slow.

*CRUNCH*

Tempest closed her eyes, waiting for the inevitable. It never came.

“YOU DID IT!” Sunshine yelled. “We’re free!”

Tempest’s eyes opened once more and she looked into the monitor. There was damage on the hull, but nothing major. They had barely scraped the top of the mountain. Tempest breathed a sigh of relief and then stood. She set the wheel for autopilot and stepped down onto the bridge.

“Violet?” Star’s voice crackled back to life on the PipBuck speaker.

“Star? Are you alright?” Violet said back. “Where are you?”

“Flying outside, you can see me a ways away,” Star’s voice replied. “Going to be a bit before I can come back in, unfortunately. I can drop Ember off, but you’re going to have to stay away from him for a bit.”

“Is he okay?” Sunshine asked.

“He’s alright, but he also sucked up a lot of radiation and he’s sleeping at the moment. I’m gonna drop him off on the front deck, probably best to leave some RadAway and Rad-X for him,” Star replied.

“I’m on it,” Sunshine said, grabbing those items and running out towards the front deck.

“Thought you all were goners there for a moment,” Star’s voice returned to the tiny speaker. “Sorry for butting in and taking your pegasus friend.”

“Not at all, we appreciate the assist,” Tempest said aloud. “Well… onto Canterlot, right?”

“Roger,” Star said. “I’ll drop back in as soon as I’m done bleeding off this radiation. Good job today. You all did good.”

Author's Note

I know, I know, it's been a bit! I've been slowly working on this chapter trying to get the escalation and feel right over time as well as switch between Star and Tempest throughout. I wanted to show each "team" doing their thing, as well continue the thread we started last chapter of the escalation of "power" since the group left Seaquestria and had been exposed to the pearl's magic.

That's going to come up again for sure.

Hope to start working on Chapter 12 soon! As I said in a comment, I don't expect chapters for this to be as big as Starlight's ever were and this is a good example of that, but I've packed a lot in to these chapters, and we're humming along. Not near the end yet though!