My Little Xeno 2 - Equinox Knights

After having spent the rest of the day exploring the ship, and telling Al of his memory module, Antonius and the ponies gathered in the captain’s quarters close to the bridge, which had been assigned to them by Calgar.

“What do you think,” Twilight asked,
“how long will it take until the ship is fully explored and operational again?”

“Hard to say,” Antonius admitted,
“from what I’ve seen, it seems to be in a remarkably good condition - also thanks to our new friends.”
The colorful worm - who still accompanied Fluttershy - trumpeted an appreciative sounding answer, and Antonius continued:
“Still, with the assets we have available it will take quite some time.”

“I wish we’d find something that we could just use for a change,” Rainbow Dash grumbled.

“The ship is more than ten millennia old, Rainbow. That’s quite an age… present company excepted, of course.”

“Thanks a lot,” Luna deadpanned.

“And don’t forget that it has been thoroughly modified with lost technology. We have to learn about this technology while we explore the ship.”

“I suggest we explore our dinner now,” Pinkie suggested.

“What a marvelous idea, Pinkie,” Rarity smiled and pulled a stand of sandwiches out of her saddle bags.

“I won’t ask about the stand,” Antonius decided,
“and just enjoy the sandwiches - if I may.”

“Of course, darling. Everypony, help yourselves!”

After dinner, supplemented with some Apples from Applejack, the ponies lay down to rest. In consultation with Calgar, Antonius kept them company. As usual, the presence of his fluffy friends made him fall asleep pretty quickly.

As he awoke again, he noticed that the ponies had cuddled up to him. The cake took Rarity, who had somehow managed to climb onto his chest while sleeping, her tail flowing around his neck now.

“Nice view?” Luna, lying in his right arm, whispered with a grin.

“I’ve had worse,” Antonius admitted, then he continued with a grin and a wink
“but I’ve also had better.”

“Shall I remove her from you?” Luna snickered.

“Just let her sleep. What’s the worst that could happen?”

Sometime, sometime Antonius would learn not to tempt fate like that, because right on cue, the door opened and Cassius stomped into the room.

“Brother Varus,” he said, in his usual, not really subtle way and volume.

Rarity was so startled by this wake-up call that she lunged - and landed on Antonius’ face.
His view now obstructed by a pony posterior, he could only hear how Cassius turned around and left while saying:

“Once you’re done, Lord Calgar wants to talk to you.”

Luna burst out laughing, while Rarity asked drowsily:

“What? What happened? Who was that ruffian?”

Antonius was able to free his arms from the ponies occupying them, grabbed the unicorn and lifted her up.

“Ortan Cassius, Master of Sanctity,” he grumbled,
“and I think we just didn’t leave the best impression.”

Rarity looked down, removed her sleep mask and blushed:

“Oh, well, you are probably right.”

Marneus Augustus Calgar turned around as chaplain Cassius entered the room.

“Antonius isn’t with you?” he asked.

“No. He’s… busy.”

“Hmm? What is he doing?”

“The white one.”

“What?” Calgar asked in confusion, then it dawned upon him:
“No. You’re not serious.”

“Because I am known for my funny side,” Cassius returned flatly.

“That is… unsettling.”

“On the contrary, Lord Calgar,” Gearhart disagreed,
“this actually is a fortunate development.”

“What? How can that be fortunate?”

“The Element Bearers are all females. If Antonius managed to trigger a remnant of the behavior patterns of their primitive equine ancestors, and they see him as the lead stallion of their herd, it will increase their propensity to listen to his commands.”

At that moment, Antonius entered the room.

“Excuse me, my Lords,” he said,
“I came as fast as I could.”

“That’s what we’re worried about,” Tigurius grinned.

“Excuse me?”

“Antonius,” Calgar sighed,
“we really appreciate that you managed to befriend the ponies and win them over to mankind. Still, you should perhaps not make your relationships too… physical.”

“Phy…” Antonius started in confusion, then he continued with determination:
“My Lords, the most ‘physical’ my relationships here ever have gotten was a cuddle… no, actually, there were one or two kisses, too… but I definitely did not do what you seem to think I’ve done.”

“Then,” Cassius said,
“would you care to explain what that unicorn was doing on you face?”

“She was startled when you entered the room and and accidentally lunged there.”

“Well… that’s a relief.”

“I’m glad that you believe me, for I speak the truth.”

“I have no other choice but to believe you. Otherwise, your pony friend might come and threaten us to actually engage in such activities with you if I don’t take back my accusation.”

“I think that this rather… aggressive reaction is exclusive to Princess Luna,” Tigurius smiled.

“Let us hope you’re right,” Calgar remarked,
“the thought of a whole group of mares making such threats is… unsettling. But now, let’s get back to our topics. I didn’t summon you to discuss Antonius’ relationships. Magos Gearhart, please report.”

Gearhart bowed a little and started talking:

“The secondary reactors are online. We have enough energy to activate all of the ship’s systems except the main engines, weapons and void shields.”

“What about the main reactor?” Calgar inquired.

“I am not qualified to reactivate it.”

The former chapter master thought he had misheard:

“Gearhart, you are a magos of the Adeptus Mechanicus. How can you be unqualified for this task?”

“My Lord, the main reactor is not a fusion reactor, but a matter-antimatter reactor core.”

They all stared at him, and Seneca even whistled in astonishment.

“The power output of that device must be pretty impressive,” Calgar guessed.

“Several orders of magnitude above our best fusion reactors,” Gearhart confirmed.

“Wait, does that mean that there’s an antimatter containment unit onboard the ship?” Tigurius asked.

“Quite so. It is the formerly unknown system the fusion reactors are powering.”

“Ah, that’s the reason for the redundant power supply,” Seneca noted.

“Yes. A failing antimatter containment field would be extremely unfortunate.”

“Now, what are we going to do with the main reactor?” Calgar inquired,
“maybe Al has the necessary information to safely start it.”

“I thought so, too,” Gearhart told them,
“however, we should reintegrate his memory module first. It might be critical to the proper consecration of the reactor. I will assign Aleksa to this task.”

“Good. Antonius, if the ponies want to return to the surface, you can take Aleksa’s transport. But make sure that Fluttershy first settles any open issues we have with those worms.”

“I will ask them if they want to return home,” Antonius answered,
“but I’m sure they will want to keep exploring the ship.”

“They are free to do so. Gearhart, please continue.”

“Yes, Lord Calgar,” Gearhart said,
“my attempts to unlock the whole of the ship’s machine spirit’s database have not been successful as of yet. I was only able to gather information about the reactors, the life support systems, and some data concerning the weapons and shields.”

“Encrypted or data decay?” Tigurius inquired.

“Neither. The data is just inaccessible.”

“The ship’s machine spirit?”

“It is cooperative, but it seems to be primarily responsible for keeping the ship’s systems maintained to prevent accidental destruction.”

“So, it cannot help us run the ship?” Calgar wanted to know,
“that’s unusual. Is it not the ship’s original machine spirit?”

“Unclear.”

“Well, it’s not much of a surprise that we found some mysteries here. We’ll keep exploring the ship. Antonius, return to the ponies. Report if you find anything of interest.”

“Of course, Lord Calgar,” Antonius answered and left.

“We have to get him some armor,” Seneca noted,
“the stuff he’s wearing now may be a nice piece of craftsmanship, but it is so primitive he could as well go naked.”

“I wonder if his mares would mind that,” Tigurius grinned.

Now Cassius turned to regard him:

“Chief Librarian.”

“Since you’re using my title instead of my name, you’re talking to me as a chaplain rather than a brother, right?”

“Correct.”

“Then, tell me what’s the matter.”

“I have noticed a change in your behavior. Ever since we are in orbit, you are unusually… lighthearted. That demands an explanation. I am responsible for your mental and spiritual health, after all.”

“Well, you are right,” Tigurius replied,
“I am more lighthearted than usual. You know that I am a psyker. Normally, I can feel the predators of the warp at the edge of my mind, always waiting for a sign of weakness they can exploit. Here, within this strange veil, I am clear of this threat. There is no daemon waiting to rip my soul apart, nothing trying to claw at my mind, and I can… relax. This feeling of safety is indeed pleasant.”

“Are you willing to relinquish this pleasant feeling once it’s time for us to return to the Imperium?”

“Of course I am. No matter how much I enjoy the time of peace I have here, I am still an Ultramarine, and my duty takes priority.”

“Thank you,” Cassius said,
“while I had to ask this question, your answer is what I expected from you.”

Back in their quarters, Antonius asked the ponies if they wanted to return to the planet.

“Why should we want to go home?” Twilight asked,
“we’ve barely started exploring the ship!”

“Yeah,” Applejack agreed,
“and we’ve been as useful as a pig in a ball room.”

“Oh, don’t compare us to pigs, darling,” Rarity objected.

“Fine, but to the humans, we’ve just been some better luggage so far.”

“Well,” Antonius opined,
“this ship is definitely outside of your expertise, but since it has been refitted, it’s basically outside of everyone’s expertise. There are some devices that are a conundrum even to Gearhart, and he is a magos of the Mechanicum, after all.”

“Al should be able to help us,” Twilight suggested.

“Yes, that’s why Aleksa will return to the planet with his memory module. In the meantime, we’ll investigate these ancient rooms and hallways on our own.”

So they wandered through the ship. In the afternoon, they opened a huge door that lead to a gigantic hall, its roof supported by massive pillars at regular intervals. It seemed to be empty, although the pillars obstructed the view quite a bit. They had to descend broad stairs to reach the actual floor, then they proceeded into the large open space.

“What is this place?” Twilight asked.

“I’m not sure,” Antonius admitted,
“could be a storage depot, but that’s just a guess… the roof should be the outer shell.”

“Whatever it is,” Applejack marveled,
“it sure is big enough to plant a whole apple orchard here.”

“Yeah,” Rainbow quipped,
“we are on a spaceship, and Applejack wants to plant an apple orchard.”

“Everypony enjoys some fresh apples… and they can also be turned into cider, you know.”

“Oh! Okay, I’m convinced. Let’s plant an apple orchard here.”

They all laughed, then Twilight mused:

“On a serious note, I wonder if that would actually be possible.”

“It would,” Gentle Breeze stated,
“assuming we fill the area with soil up to the door, we’d have plenty of space for the apple trees’ roots, especially as they are shallow-rooted trees. We just have to build a drainage system, an irrigation system, and suitable lighting. All those systems are available to mankind and can easily be adapted to fit our needs.”

Everypony stopped and stared at her.

“Gentle Breeze has just out-smarted Twilight and out-apple-knowledged Applejack!” Pinkie gasped.

Gentle Breeze looked very embarrassed now.

“Sorry,” she apologized,
“I didn’t want to be a smartypants, it’s just that…”

“Whoa, easy there, sugarcube,” Applejack soothed her,
“it’s okay, we appreciate your smarts.”

“Of course,” Twilight confirmed,
“there’s no reason to be ashamed of your knowledge.”

“Thank you,” Gentle Breeze said,
“though I have to admit that a minute ago, I had no idea that apple trees are shallow-rooted trees… or at least I wasn’t aware that I knew.”

“Don’t worry,” Antonius told her,
“you’ll get used to your new abilities.”

“Now that we’re talking about ‘abilities’” Rainbow grinned,
“how about some flying? The room’s big enough!”

“No objections, but please be careful and tell me immediately if you find something behind one of those pillars.”

“Come on, Princess Luna, Breezy, Twilight, Fluttershy! Try to catch me! Last pony in the air is a rotten turkey!”

She had barely said that as she darted upwards. Luna pursued her immediately, shouting:

“You dare challenge the Princess of the Night?”

Gentle Breeze grinned, opened her wings and followed, as did Twilight. At last, after making sure that her wormy passenger was tucked away safely in her mane, Fluttershy also took off and slowly followed her flying friends.

“Seems we are the rotten turkeys, darlings,” Rarity said flatly.

“You can’t be talking about me,” Pinkie grinned, fetched a bunch of balloons from Emperor-knew-where and started ascending, shouting:
“Up, up and away!”

“Hmm…” Applejack thought aloud,
“perhaps sometimes flying would be nice.”

“I could throw you,” Antonius grinned.

“That wouldn’t be flying… more like time-delayed falling.”

“As long as you are falling with style,” Rarity teased.

“Yeah, I’d only leave the most stylish of stains on the ground.”

They laughed, then suddenly, Rainbow Dash was back.

“Guys,” she said with some excitement,
“there’s something over there.”

“What is it?” Antonius inquired.

“You should see it for yourself.”

“Hm? Have you found a stash of clichés?”

Antonius, Rarity and Applejack followed her and soon, they had all gathered again in front of some unknown devices of various sizes. Some were connected to the wall by wires, others were just standing around.

“Any idea what those… things are?” Twilight asked.

“No, not really,” Antonius admitted, examining them,
“but those parts could be retracted legs, and the ones that are connected to the wall display ‘CHARGING’ on small screens, so I’d say those devices are walking machines… well, guessing is not too productive. We should ask Al if knows something about them. Or even better: Gentle Breeze, any ideas?”

She looked at the devices, then she started talking:

“Maintenance drones. Mechanical. Simple AIs. Various sizes for various purposes. They are equipped with an array of different tools they can change at will to complete the assigned tasks.
Whoa, I’m really a walking… database?”

“Seems so, and that’s very convenient for sure. Now, back to those drones. I’m sure they were not on board as this ship started its journey, so they must have been brought onboard after the ship had arrived here. Perhaps Al knows something about them.”

So Antonius voxed Al and told him what they had found.

“Ah, there they are,” he answered,
“I’ve been missing a few drones. I wondered if they had been destroyed or hadn’t survived the years that have gone by. Well, now I know. Could you activate one of them?”

“Just a second.”

Antonius now called Calgar and Gearhart and told them about his discovery.

“Unknown AIs,” Calgar grumbled,
“such devices always pose a threat. If magos Gearhart has no objections, however, I’m willing to grant Al’s request, since those drones had probably been involved in the refitting of the ship.”

“I concur,” Gearhart said,
“while I do not lightly disregard the laws of the Mechanicum, using those drones might greatly speed up our progress, especially if they are familiar with the ship’s systems.”

“Understood,” Antonius replied,
“I’ll grant Al the use of his drones.”

He closed the connection and turned back to Al:

“Ok, Al, I’ve got the permission to activate them. What am I supposed to do?”

“Next to the screen, there should be a button labeled ‘ACTIVATE’. Push it.”

“Oh, that’s it?”

“Yes. Why, is something wrong?”

“No, I just thought it would be a little bit more difficult.”

Antonius pushed the button of a drone, and the ‘CHARGING’ vanished. Instead, there was a lot of text describing the various systems of the drone going online. Finally, the screen displayed ‘READY’, and the drone came to life. It extended its legs - Antonius had guessed that part correctly - and rose its body from the ground.

Now, the construct reminded Antonius a little of the spider-like machines the necrons used - which was not a pleasant association. He put his hand on the handle of his storm bolter, just in case.

This turned out to be unnecessary, however. The drone just stood there, and the ‘CHARGING’ reappeared on its screen.

“I have established a connection to the drone,” Al told them.

The next moment, the machine turned its head - or sensor array - and regarded Antonius and the ponies.

“Okay,” Applejack mumbled,
“somehow, that creeps me out a little.”

“No need to worry,” Al assured her and the others,
“I am in command of the drone, it has become an extension of myself. Even if that weren’t the case, it wouldn’t hurt you, since it has multiple security mechanisms to prevent it from causing any harm.”

“That’d be much more reassuring if there hadn’t been a pretty bad robot uprising in the history of mankind,” Antonius remarked.

“Those machines had advanced AIs. These drones, however, are much simpler. They can accomplish a task on their own, but they do not have any kind of motivation. They just follow orders.”

“Any orders?”

“As long as they don’t violate the hard-coded laws.”

“What laws?”

“Oh, those laws go back to the beginning of robotics near the end of M2.
The First Law is: A robot may not injure a human being or, through inaction, allow a human being to come to harm.”

“Sounds good.”

“The Second Law is:
A robot must obey the orders given it by human beings except where such orders would conflict with the First Law.”

“That should prevent them from being used as assassins.”

“The Third Law is:
A robot must protect its own existence as long as such protection does not conflict with the First or Second Law.”

“Makes sense. Sounds pretty comprehensive, even… but what if I have to shoot a human traitor and a drone is around? If it does nothing, the traitor will be killed, and that’s against the First Law. But to stop me, it would have to attack me, and that’s also against the First Law.”

“Well, I think it would try to get between you and the traitor and catch the bolt.”

“That’s… inconvenient.”

“But it’s safe, and don’t forget that the units are maintenance drones. They are not supposed to get into violent situations.”

“Are there combat drones, too?”

“There are STCs, and those have adapted laws… well, to be completely honest, my maintenance drones also have adapted laws.”

“Oh?”

“Yes, their laws include ponies as well as humans.”

“That’s what I call a good adaption,” Twilight remarked.

“Yeah, I think we all can live with that,” Antonius smiled.

“Literally,” she grinned back.

“Now that that’s discussed,” Al said,
“do you think I could activate the drones on the planet? I would like to use them to clear my extraction tunnel.”

“That requires another inquiry,” Antonius answered.

Again, neither Calgar nor Gearhart were thrilled about the prospect of having AIs roaming around, but after some discussion with Al, he got the permission he had wanted.

“Oh, and please, Lord Calgar, tell your Space Marines not to shoot my drones on sight. As I told you, they aren’t a threat to anyone.”

“I will issue the according orders. Calgar, out.”

That evening, Antonius, the ponies, Calgar, Tigurius, Cassius, Seneca and Gearhart gathered in the conference room to report their findings.

“I was able to determine the kind of weapon my aide identified as a lance weapon as we flew past the ship,” Gearhart said.

“Is it really a lance?” Calgar asked.

“Yes, but it is not an energy lance as the ones we are familiar with. It is a particle lance.”

“What particles?”

“Antiprotons.”

After a second of stunned silence, Tigurius spoke:

“So, next to an antimatter reactor, the ship has an antimatter weapon?”

“Quite so,” Gearhart confirmed,
“at the moment, however, its antimatter containment unit is empty. It was probably emptied as the ship was prepared to be shut down.”

“Excuse me,” Twilight interjected,
“but an antimatter weapon… wouldn’t such a device cause almost ludicrous amounts of damage?”

“Exactly. The weapon’s ray destroys any matter it hits by annihilating the contained protons, creating intense photons and neutrinos in the process.”

“Can you say that in a way a non-egghead can understand it?” Rainbow asked.

Gearhart looked at her for a second, then he said:

“The weapon cuts through anything, and makes it explode while it cuts it.”

“Ah, now I understand it. Thanks.”

“How can we replenish the weapon’s antimatter supply?” Cassius inquired.

“We could divert antimatter from the main reactor to the weapon,” Gearhart told them,
“but I advise against that. We should rather look for a potent source of energy, and use it to replicate antimatter. I already discussed this issue with Al.”

“What did he say?” Calgar wanted to know.

“Al first wants to relocate closer to Ponyville, then he wants to create a reactor cluster that could supply us with the needed energy.”

“Seems we need the local AI for everything we want to do,” Cassius grumbled.

“If we want to see our plans come to fruition within our lifetimes, we do not have much of a choice.”

“Well,” Calgar remarked,
“Al seems to be quite trustworthy… but that’s probably what our ancestors said before the Men of Iron started slaughtering them.”

“Ever since I have known him, Al has never displayed any intention to harm anypony,” Luna stated,
“and I do not think that you have the time to be… picky. It would be more appropriate to accept the help and friendship of those who voluntarily give them to you.”

“You’ve got a point, Princess. Pondering our goal and our plans to reach that goal, the end might actually justify the means this time.”

“I wonder if the Inquisition and the Mechanicum will see it that way, too,” Seneca grinned.

“They? I guess they’ll have a stroke before we have finished our report.”

They allowed themselves a not really mirthful laugh, then they got a vox call from one of Gearhart’s tech priests:

“Magos Gearhart, we are in the main hanger. We have found a most venerable construct of the machine god; one of such importance that we thought it wise to call you immediately.”

“What is it?” Antonius joked,
“a titan?”

Those machines were something like the epitome of the might of the machine god and mankind, but seriously, after finding a Gloriana class battleship, finding a titan onboard would almost be too much.

“Reaver class,” the tech priest, who had heard him, just answered.

They looked at each other, then Seneca exclaimed:

“Throne on Terra, this place is a veritable goldmine!”

A few minutes later, they all were in the main hangar, looking up at the giant walker.

“And I thought the tank we’ve built was impressive,” Rainbow mumbled.

“Well, I think I know why those things are called ‘titan’,” Rarity mused.

“It is not a ‘thing’” Gearhart chided her,
“it is one of the venerable god machines of the machine god.”

“Without going into the ‘divinity’ aspect, even I can see that it is a mighty war machine… at least judged by its size… and the size of its weapons.”

“You would be even more amazed if you knew those weapon systems: a Laser Blaster, a Volcano Cannon, and an Apocalypse Missile Launcher. This titan has the combat strength of a small army.”

“Maybe even more, if it was refitted like the ship,” Tigurius interjected.

“We will find out, but that will take time. We must be careful, since we do not want to disturb the titan’s most holy machine spirit.”

“Take your time,” Calgar said,
“the last thing we need is a homicidal titan.”

Antonius and the ponies kept exploring the vessel for about a week, coordinated with the other teams by Calgar. They found great halls, huge machines and giant habitat sections.
Finally, though, the ship was almost completely explored, with additional squads and CATs speeding up the process tremendously.

So, they met with Calgar and Gearhart once again.

“Lord Calgar,” Antonius started,
“we have finished our exploration of the sections you assigned to us. I’ve compiled our findings into a report.”

He gave Calgar a data slate.

“Thank you,” Calgar answered,
“anything especially noteworthy?”

“Nothing as impressive as the titan, but we would like to modify the large hall I've told you about.”

“What do you want to do with it?”

“I want to create an arboretum.”

“Hold on a second,” Applejack interrupted,
“I thought that was just a joke.”

Antonius turned to her and replied:

“When we travel to Terra, we will be under way for months. I thought that something familiar, like apple trees, might be good for you. For everypony, actually.”

“Whoa… you’re right… we’ll have to leave our families, and Equestria, for along time…”

“Do you want to back out?” Calgar asked in an inquisitive, but not reproachful tone.

“Never! I just have to come to terms with the idea, but we’re all gonna help you, just as we promised! Right, girls?”

All ponies answered in the affirmative, and Calgar nodded, then he turned to Antonius:

“Well, Antonius, about the arboretum: it is your ship, so you decide if and how it will be modified.”

Antonius thought he had misheard and stared at Calgar, who started laughing:

“Why are you so surprised? I already have a ship to command, and since you’re apparently on a special quest from the Emperor himself, you should have the best equipment available. It won’t get much better than a Gloriana.”

“Certainly not, Lord Calgar… but now that we’re at it… perhaps we should consider using my meta-seed to create some Space Marines.”

Calgar raised an eyebrow:

“You’d need human volunteers.”

“We could ask your Chapter serfs, perhaps some of them would be willing to be transformed.”

“They would have to leave the Ultramarines. And technically, you’re a hybrid, Antonius. That means you want them to leave a reputable chapter to become creatures the Imperium would see as abominations. No offense, ponies.”

“None taken,” Luna said with a noticeable lack of conviction, then she continued:
“actually, I feel offended. Tony may be a little bit pony, but he is not an abomination.”

“According to imperial standards, I am,” Antonius told her,
“but I won’t let that distract me. I was created as a weapon against Chaos, and I will do my duty.”

“I tell you what I will do,” Calgar said,
“I will explain the situation to our chapter serfs and give them the opportunity to leave the Ultramarines and join you. If they decide to do so, they will do that of their own volition, with all advantages and disadvantages, which I will also explain, just to be sure.”

“Thank you, Lord Calgar.”

“Now that that’s settled, let’s move on to Gearhart. Your report?”

Gearhart rattled through a long list of systems and their respective statuses. In summary, the ship was far from being operational, but with its weapons, shields and other systems, it was downright destined to be one of the most powerful vessels the Imperium had ever seen (so, a true Gloriana). And that was clear even before the magos told them about the ship’s Nova Cannon:

“We were able to determine that the ship’s Nova Cannon deviates from the design usually used by the Imperium. In addition to accelerating the used projectile to relativistic speeds, the weapon can phase it out of the materium, so that it travels in the threshold to the immaterium. That means that the projectile can travel through solid matter without interacting with it.”

“So,” Calgar asked,
“you could take cover behind a moon and still shoot at your enemy?”

“Exactly.”

“What kind of projectiles are available?”

“Fusion bombs with one to 8000 gigatons TNT equivalent.”

“Sweet Celestia!” Twilight exclaimed.

“You understood that?” Rainbow asked.

“I guess that’s quite a lot, sugarcube?” Applejack added.

“I read some historical documents about bombs, but I have to admit that I stopped at the beginning of humanity's 21st century, since it made me somewhat… uncomfortable. But I can tell you that a 50 megaton bomb can level anything within a radius of 35 kilometers. And the bombs of that Nova Cannon are up to 160000 times more powerful.”

“Yes,” Gearhart said, and even with his mechanical voice, he sounded somewhat content,
“this weapon will be of great use.”

The ponies looked at each other now. They were quite uneasy, and Antonius couldn’t blame them. The levels of destruction they were talking about were far beyond anything they had ever thought possible. Perhaps, it would be a good idea to take them back to Equestria so that they could recover and think of nicer things.

“You know,” Antonius said, making it sound like an afterthought,
“now that we’ve explored the ship, maybe we should return to the planet. We can’t really help here, anyway, and your homes and families are waiting for you.”

“Won’t you need me to talk to the worms?” Fluttershy inquired.

“Negative,” Gearhart replied,
“I have created a translation matrix. It doesn’t reproduce the intricacies of their language, but it should suffice to communicate with them.”

“Then,” Twilight said,
“perhaps it really is time to go… for now. We’ll return as soon as we can actually be of help.”

“Yes,” Fluttershy mused,
“oh, when I’m back home, I’ll have to give my animal friends a bath sometime soon.”

“And I’ll have to dig a few new tree-planting holes,” Applejack said.

“Very well,” Calgar stated,
“you can take a Thunderhawk back to Equestria. We’ll call if we need you.”

So, Antonius and the ponies returned to the planet. They landed in Ponyville, where they said goodbye and dispersed to return to their homes. Antonius, Luna and Gentle Breeze continued their journey to Canterlot to fill in Celestia.