Sky Pirate Cowboys

Chapters

Ghosted
Appointment
Audience
Failed Promises
Truth
Lost
Loyalty
Project
Adventure Time!
Friction and Hearbreak

Ghosted

It has been eight months now that I have lived in Equestria. Eight months since I was mistakenly taken from my home on Earth from a botched spell that was meant to explore other dimensions. Eight months since I have seen my friends and family. In those eight months, I have done nothing but sit in my newly built house, fly, and wait for the pony wizards to find me a way home. These eight months have felt like eight years.

When I first arrived, I freaked the hell out. Made a whole scene. The worst part was when I realized that I was no longer human. Thought I was dreaming or lost my marbles or something. Maybe I did... Anyway, I am now something called a hippogriff, which is half-eagle and half-horse. Or pony in this case.

Despite this, I also tried to find the silver lining and found this experience to be once in a lifetime. There were some pretty awesome and exciting things to see in this world. I got to experience what it was like to be a bird horse, see new creatures, and even experience some magic! The coolest part was that I could fly, something that I always wished I could do.

Unfortunately though, as time continued on, my excitement and bewilderment had slowly cascaded and I had become depressed and homesick. Especially when I was told that my return may take a long while as they had to start back at square one on their project. "They" being the pony wizard scientists. They wanted to tread a little more carefully to not repeat their mistake again, which I can understand, but I still can't help but be impatient about it.

When I had arrived to Equestria, the Princesses graciously gave me a stipend for living expenses until they could find me a way home. At first I had roomed with her student, Twilight Sparkle, a unicorn that was skilled at magic, but about two months in, they built me a small home near the Everfree. I was exceedingly grateful for their generosity and kindness, but I also knew that my journey home would be long. They wouldn't build that for me if it didn't mean that I would be here for an undetermined amount of time. While they did their best to send me back home, I had to keep myself occupied.

Unfortunately, my boredom quickly set in as my usual hobbies, like gaming, didn't exsist the way it did here. They had some retro games and stuff, but it wasn't the same. I eventually started to exercise my wings and learn how to fly to hopefully make the time go by, which was extremely fun and became a new hobby of mine.

Since I flew so much, I had made some fairly good progress on improving my stamina and my overall fitness. When I first arrived, I had carried over some chub from when I was still human. Blame the many midnight trips to Taco Bell. Anyway, since my diet consisted of mostly greens and the occasional Everfree game, I had lost a lot of weight and put on some lean muscle. Nothing crazy, but I was proud of myself.

I also made a friend named Rainbow Dash, one of Twilight's friends. Well, friend might be pushing it, we arent that close, more of an acquaintance that I say hello to or hang out with during my flights. She's still fun to be around though and I have spent many days flying around and getting advice on how to fly properly. It was a good distraction from my anxiety as I waited for updates about the project to send me home.

Though, recently, I have not been able to contact Princess Celestia in the last few weeks.

Usually, she either sends brief letters or gives me sharp replies to my letters, usually the same thing about how "Her best ponies are on it," or that "Progress is slow, but there are new breakthroughs everyday." Lately though, I haven't heard a single thing, seen a single letter, and haven't felt any closer to making it back home.

I thought maybe perhaps she was busy and didn't have the time to contact me, but as a week turned into two, then into four, I decided that something was up and tried to contact Twilight about it. Unfortunately, she also couldn't reach a response out of the Princess about it either, and only got letters about her friendship reports (whatever that means), which was strange. Twilight tried to defend her saying that Princess Celestia is a very busy pony and that she's sure she will reply as soon as she can and that she would let me know when she gets a letter back, but I still felt reluctant to believe that for some reason.

Not like the Princess was malevolent or anything, it just felt like she ghosted me or something. I didn't tell my feelings to Twilight of course, so I said thanks and went on my way.

Despite my rising concern, I decided today that I would carry on with my usual activities until I heard something back. Hopefully it would be soon. It was about 6:00 am, which happened to be a perfect time to go flying. It was about mid fall so it was quite cool and cloudy in the mornings, my favorite type of weather. Plus, not many ponies were up at this time and it was the perfect time to be alone. Back on Earth, I never got up this early without a good reason, but now? I get up as early as I can now to get some flying in.

Anyway, I got up and did my daily morning routine before setting out to do my daily dose of flying.

Outside felt nice and cool and as I began flying, I felt that same cool air flow between my fur and feathers, which was a stress-relieving experience that I needed. Spending time alone was a way for me to recharge and to think about things. Right now though, I didn't want to think about a single thing and elected to just drift in the sky.

That was until a certain someone, or rather somepony, shook me out of my daze with a her voice.

"Hey, Mav, what's got you up so early?" The rainbow pegasus gave me a slight scare and I shifted the opposite way out surprise, throwing off my rhythm for a moment.

"Oh, hey Rainbow. You gave me a scare there," I say, my heart racing a tad.

"Haha, yeah I saw that, bud. Might or might not have done that on purpose." She put a hoof to her mouth as she tried to push back a giggle.

"Ha. Ha. So funny. Anyway, why are YOU up this early? You usually sleep 'til noon." I gave a slight elbow bump to her side.

"Weather. There's supposed to be storm later this morning so I'm helping the Weather Team prep for it." Ah, work. Lovely.

"Ah, gotcha." I continue my flight in resumed silence as I flew around some clouds. Rainbow followed her own way, doing loops and tricks all the while.

Although I wanted to fly alone, I didn't mind Rainbow flying with me. It was soothing in its own way.

"What's got you all yapped up? Seem a little... down about something." Am I that easy to read? Or is she that perceptive?

"Uh... Well, I haven't heard anything new about the project to send me back home. Tried to contact Princess Celestia, but she hasn't sent anything back. It's been a few weeks now," I say.

"Oh, got ya... Oh! Have you talked to Twilight? She might be able to help you with that. She is the princess' student after all."

"Already did, still got nothing. She still sent letters to Twilight though about her studies. I... I think she's ghosting me right now or something for some reason."

"Ghosting you?" Rainbow gives me a slight confused look on her face. Oh yeah, human term.

"Back home, ghosting means someone is intentionally avoiding contact with you. In other words, it feels like she's ignoring me," I say. She gave me a apprehensive look.

"Uh, that doesn't really sound like the Princess, Maverick. She wouldn't just "ghost" you. I think the nerves are really getting to you. Just take some time to breathe, rushing the princess to send some letters won't send you home faster." I wanted to be mad at what she said, but what she said rang true. I sigh.

"Be as that may, it still feels like I was pushed to the way side."

"Well, if it has you so worked up, why not go see the princess for yourself? I'm sure she would gladly see you, with your situation and all." I also thought of that, but I honestly wasn't sure if I should. That's like going to see the president because I wasn't given get my passport yet. Alright, maybe it's a bit different than that, but still. She saw the reluctance in my face.

"Alright, alright. How about this. I'm off work tomorrow, why don't we go see the princess together? We'll get some train tickets." She gave me an elbow back.

"You'd do that? You know you don't have to..." I say, a little embarrassed that I wasn't confident to go on my own.

"Heck yeah I'd do that! I'm Rainbow friggin' Dash, the Element of Loyalty! I don't let none of my friends hanging. And Mav, you're my friend." She crossed her forelegs as she smirked at me. I guess it wouldn't be a bad idea. Ah to hell with it, might as well. Can't ghost me in person right?

"You know what? I'll take you up on your offer, then. Tomorrow morning, let's say around eight, we'll head over to Canterlot and give Ms. Princess a hello." I put up a claw for a fist bump.

"Alright, let's do it!" She returned my fist bump with some of her Rainbow gusto. She's a good pony. I didn't really think she was a friend before, but I guess that changes now.

"Say, Rainbow, aren't you supposed to be working right now?" I say. She looks down dejected as she let's her forelegs hang and sighs. Her mood changes so fast, haha.

"Trying to get rid of me just as I try to help you out, huh? We'll work on that. But yeah... I guess I have to go now. Are you gonna be flying later after the storm?" She asked.

"Uh, maybe. If not, I'll be in and around my house, you can come by if you want to hang out," I replied.

"Awesome, sounds like a plan! I'll be over after I'm done. Make sure to stay dry until then, dude!" With that, she took off like a jet into the clouds. She's so goofy.

I decided to fly for a while more before it started to drizzle. I headed back home to do some chores and clean up a bit. Didn't want Rainbow to see my mess of a house. I also prepped for the morning by putting a satchel together.

Hopefully, the princess would see me, especially with Rainbow there. Maybe she really was just busy or something. Or maybe she really has been ghosting me for some reason and I'm gonna blow up on her. I guess we'll see. Oh well, that's an issue for the morrow.

Author's Note

Hello :)

Appointment

Today was the day that I would meet up with Rainbow and head out to Canterlot. Last night, we spent some time hanging out and talking about my life back on Earth. Rainbow wasn't the type to talk about personal issues, so I didn't let it get deeper than "I'm sad I'm not home," which was fine by me. It was still a cool time though. We did some late evening flights, but ended the night early so that we could be ready for the train ride.

Since I had woken up quite early for a morning flight, I decided to just head to the train station early. I got us both a ticket for Canterlot since she hadn't shown yet, and sat down on a bench. The train should be coming into the station soon, but I wasn't too concerned. Even if Rainbow and I missed the train, I would just wait until the next one came by.

I took out my Walkman to listen to some music while I waited for her.

"Ah yeah, Retrofile, forgot I had this in here. Hell yeah, I'll listen to them." I throw on my headphones and start the cassett.

I pull out my sketch book and began to draw whatever came to mind. Took me a minute to start sketching, but I decided to just draw a large boat cruising on water. It was a little awkward at first when I picked drawing back up to use a claw to draw, but I eventually got used to it and it became natural. I spent maybe another twenty minutes drawing before taking a break to see if Rainbow made it. As I do so, I realized that she had been sitting next to me watching me sketch. I take off my headphones.

"Oh, hey there. When did you pop up?" I ask, surprised. She puts a hoof to her mouth as she suppresses a giggle.

"I don't know, maybe like five minutes or so. I was gonna say something, but you looked like you were in your own little world. Nice sketch by the way, looks real." She points her hoof towards the page. I give her small smile.

"Thanks, decided to pick it back up since I've had nothing else to do. Oh yeah, by the way, I got you a ticket. Hope you didn't grab one yet." I put my satchel on my lap as I grab her ticket from one of the pockets.

"Oh sweet! Yeah, I was about to ask when we should grab them. Train should be leaving soon, wanna find a spot before everypony takes the good ones?" She asks.

"Yeah, sure. Lead the way." I put my sketch book and Walkman back in my bag and follow her.

The train ride went by fairly quickly. Canterlot wasn't really that far away, maybe an hour or so by train. I decided to spend that time thinking about how I want to ask the princess about the progress on sending me home without sounding too pushy. Rainbow chose to spend her time sleeping. Sleeping quite loudly, actually. She had her whole body spread out on the seat and was snoring up a storm. She's such a goober. Anyway, we had just left the station and set hoof in Canterlot.

I haven't been here for a while, and I didn't really get to explore when I first arrived here so I chose to let Rainbow lead the way.

"Alright, you know the way, dude?" I ask. She nods.

"Yup! Here, follow me." With that, she flew up. I followed suit. We flew only for like two minutes before she looks behind to me with a smirk on her face.

"Wanna race? See that spire over up ahead? That's near the entrance to the castle. Last one there has to pay for lunch. Alright, readygetsetgo!" She took off like a bullet towards the spire. Dammit.

"God dammit, Rainbow. Wait for me!" I tried to catch up to her, but the rainbow pegasus was way to quick for me. Took me a few minutes to make it to the spire. As I flew up, I saw the mare flying on her back with her hooves behind her head.

"Took you long enough, Mav. Been sitting here for like twenty minutes!" I shook my head.

"More like two minutes, but sure. Pat yourself on the back." We land on the ground at the gate leading into the palace. It was guarded by two white guardponies in golden armor with spears in hoof.

They didn't say anything as we entered the gate. I assumed it was because of who I was in company with. She is the Element of Loyalty after all, would be strange to be difficult with one of the heroes of Equestria that sees the princess pretty frequently. Can't believe she's one of my friends to be honest. Anyway, it takes us another ten minutes or so wondering through the palace before we ended up near the throne room. Out front of the throne room was a grey earth pony mare behind a desk filing away some paperwork and typing away at a typewriter.

The pony had her black mane up in a bun and she wore red glasses that fell down to the end her snout. She must be the secretary pony. Cute. We walk up to her.

"Hey Raven! It's nice to see you," Rainbow props her forelegs into the desk as she gave the mare a greeting. Raven only moved her eyes upward to see who spoke to her.

"Oh. Hello, Ms. Rainbow Dash. What can I help you with this time?" She looked uninterested. Rainbow didn't take the hint.

"Weeeell, my friend here, Maverick, has been trying to contact the princess for a while now. You see, there's been a whole thing where he was kinda taken from his home from a messed up spell and now the princess has been helping him get back. Was wondering if we could speak to her about some updates?" Rainbow put on a large smile as she looked expectingly at the other mare. Raven was unfazed.

"If it isn't a matter of great importance, like Equestria being attacked by another villain, then you need to schedule an appointment for an audience with her like every other pony." Damn, shot down instantly.

"Oh come on, even if it's for me?" Rainbow flew up to Raven's face with an even bigger smile on her face. Again, Raven was unfazed.

"Especially for you, Ms. Rainbow Dash. Now, the soonest appointment we have is... about two months from now, December 11th at 9:00 Am. You can always come by to see if somepony canceled for a closer spot." Yeah, no way. I decided to interject.

"Hey look, I know you're just doing your job, we ain't special or anything, but I do really need to speak with her about this. Princess Celestia told me that I could come by any time to see what's going on, I'm just taking her up on her offer. Could we maybe see her now or soon?" I ask. To be honest, she didn't exactly say that, might have twisted the truth a little, but it was true that she said that I could reach out to her any time, so close enough.

The mare didn't seem to appreciate my disregard for what she said.

"Again, sir, unless it's a matter of great importance, I will have to set you up an appointment with an audience with her." Ugh, this mare. Rainbow spoke up again.

"Alright, look here, this is something important. It might not be "The Demise of Equestria" important, but it's certainly important for my friend here to find out why the princess hasn't given any new updates about him going home. So how about we just skip the rabble and you let us see the princess already!?" Rainbow got into her face with a growl. Raven pushed back with her own.

"And I SAID you have to have an appointment to see the princess, so that's what you're gonna do Ms. Rainbow Dash!" This was getting out of control. I noticed some of the guardponies looking our way. Alright time to de-escilate. I pull Rainbow back and set her down in the chair.

"Alright, I think we're going a little far here. I apologize for giving you any trouble. It's been difficult not seeing my home for quite some time, something I'm sure you can understand, and Rainbow is just concerned for me. Let's just take a breather for a sec." I also take a seat next to Rainbow. It seemed to work slightly, but the mare still looked miffed.

"So, you said it would take two months, is there anything else we could do to get a better time?" I ask.

"As I said, you can always come in and see if there's been any cancellations, but other than that, there's not much I can do for you." She gave Rainbow a side eye as she said this.

Um, alright, think here. Is there any way I could convince her? No, not after what Rainbow pulled. Maybe some favors? Ugh, I don't even know this mare, so that's probably a no. God dammit, why do the princesses gotta be so busy...

...Wait. Holy shit. Hold on a second. Princesses? We've only asked about Princess Celestia. Princess Luna must have a court too right? I smile deviously.

"Well, how about Princess Luna? Can I see her instead?" Raven gives me a blank look for a moment before looking down at her schedule and then closes it.

"Um, give me a moment, sir," The grey mare then disappears under the desk.

Rainbow looks at me with one of her signature smirks and gives me a slight nudge with her elbow. She leans in to my ear.

"Nice, that was a good idea." I nodded back in agreement.

Raven pops back up with another scheduling book from under the desk and plops it down. Dust flew off the book as it hit the desk. She opens it up and scans for a brief moment before looking back up at us.

"... There's nothing scheduled for Princess Luna at this time. The night court doesn't open until later tonight, so the earliest I can schedule for is at 8:30 pm. Does that work for you, Mr... Maverick?" I give her a nod.

"Yes, ma'am. That definitely works for me." She jotted it down in the scheduling book.

"Alright, all set, Mr. Maverick. Have a... good day." The mare said hesitantly.

"No, thank you for your time, ma'am. Have a good one also," I say with a fake smile. With that I get up and make my way out. Rainbow follows along. We didn't say anything to each other until we made it back outside.

"Aagh! That mare needs to be taught a lesson. We even asked nicely! That should have totally given us brownie points. Ugh, guess I should have seen it coming. Not like it's ever worked with her before, I guess." Rainbow pouted with her forearms crossed as she hovered in the air.

"Yeah, she was little stuck up, but that's her job. She can't just let anyone see the princess at any time without reason." I tried to reason it with her, but all I got was an upset look in return for not agreeing with her sentiments. Oops.

"But yeah, totally, she needs to be taken down a notch or so," I say quickly. Rainbow nods her head sharply at my comment. Woo, good save.

"Yeah... oh well, it worked out for the most part. Sucks that you have to wait until tonight though."

"Yeah, but its not that bad. Better than two months from now. Might actually get a reply by then haha," I joke.

"Yeah... Oh shoot! I totally forgot that I have to work tomorrow morning." She puts a hoof to her forehead. Damn. Well, I can probably handle it. I haven't really talked with Princess Luna before, but she can't be that bad.

"Its fine, Rainbow. I was a little worried at first about meeting the princess, but I'm not a total wussy. I can handle it. I do appreciate you coming out here with though, more than what anyone else would have done." I give her a smile and a pat on the head with my claw.

"Are you sure, Mav? I can totally stay. I might get in a bit of trouble for being late or something, but I don't want to leave you hanging. Especially after that thing I said before about how I don't leave friends hanging!"

"Dash. It's fine, If you need to work, then go to work. Earning bread should always take importance. I didn't expect you to put your job before me to begin with. You aren't leaving me hanging, I promise," I tried to convince her, but she was hesitant still.

"If I need you, Dash, then I'll be sure to come and get you, alright? I can probably fly around the same time it would take the the train to make it back." That got a reaction out of her.

"You? Fast as a train? Ha! Maybe if you were on some of Zecora's spices." That cheered her up a tad.

"Yeah okay, maybe haha. But still, my point still stands. I'll be okay." I put up a claw to give her fist bump.

"Thanks for wanting to stick by me. It really does mean a lot." She gives a small smirk and bumps me back.

"Yeah, yeah. Alright, enough about the sappy stuff. All that arguing earlier has made me hungry, let's find some place to eat. I think Donut Joe's is this way. Oh and yeah, don't think I forgot about you losing the race we had earlier. You're buying, buddy." She gives me a nudge with her flank and takes off to find some donuts. Damn, that mare is such a huge goon. I flex my wings and follow after her. Hopefully tonight will bare some fruit. But for now, I need some donuts in my life.

"Alright, alright, wait for me! Dash!"

Audience

It was almost time for my audience with Princess Luna. I had said my goodbyes to Rainbow a little while ago after spending most of the day hanging out with her. She was fun to be around and made the time enjoyable. She also took my stress and anxiety away when I was with her. Her energy made it hard to have any worries.

Anyway, I had decided to arrive early, as per usual, and made my way to the throne room. As I entered the foyer, I noticed that Raven wasn't at the desk, but instead a night guard. She seemed quite bored sitting at the desk, her head resting on her hooves as she looked at nothing. Poor kid. I made my way to her. She heard me trot over and sat up surprised at my appearance.

"Hello, ma'am, I'm here about my appointment with the princess," I say.

"Uh, sir, you know Princess Celestia's last court time was several hours ago, right? Sorry to say, but you might have missed your appointment," she was utterly confused. I laughed to myself.

"Uh, no, I'm not here for Princess Celestia. I had an audience with Princess Luna at this time. Ms. Raven scheduled me this morning," I corrected. Her eyebrows rose up.

"Oh I see, my mistake. Most ponies... most creatures come to see Princess Celestia. Princess Luna is currently doing something at the moment. If you could wait here, I'll go and let her know of your arrival," she got up from the desk as went to go get the princess. She didn't even check the scheduling book, just got up and went to go get her. I like this guard.

I went to go sit down on one of the couches nearby and waited for her to come back. It took about fifteen minutes before the guard came back with the pony of the hour. When I had initially met Princess Luna, she was a bit stiff and kept talking at a minimum. She kept her distance, only speaking to me about an apology for accidentally kidnapping me. I could tell her social skills, and her social life in general was... lacking to say the least.

I got up from the couch and went over to meet them. I didn't really know princess etiquette, so I just gave a deep bow to compensate.

"Princess Luna, it is an honor to meet you again. I thank you in advance for seeing me," I say, trying to be poised. She looks me up and down.

"Apologies, visitor. I was not told that I was requested for an audience. I had been in the realm of Dreams when Corporal Edge found me." Of course Raven didn't say anything. I mean, the guard also didn't check the scheduling book to begin with. Also, realm of dreams? Was she asleep? I thought she was up during the night.

"You don't have to apologize, your majesty. I should be the one apologizing for waking you. I think it was just a miscommunication. I am thankful that you have granted my request for an audience." I kept my bow. Is she gonna tell me when to rise? I didn't see her face, but she looked confused.

"I was not asleep, young one. I was tending to dreams." Her face went from confused to realization.

"Oh, I remember you. You're name is Isaac, is it not? You were the creature that was torn from your world from one of Celestia's experiments. Forgive me, what I mean by being in the realm of dreams is that I protect my subjects from night terrors." Oh. I didn't know she could do that.

"Got it, my mistake, your highness. And, yes, your majesty, thats correct. Isaac was the name I went by when I first arrived. I go by a different name now: Maverick," I chose to raise myself to meet her eye. Didn't seem like she was gonna tell me to rise.

Being that I am a hippogriff, I am generally taller than the average pony. For the princess though, I am about eye level with her.

"Maverick, hm? Why did you change your name?" She asked, her head tilting like a puppy . Oh that was cute. Focus, Mav.

"Ahem, well, your majesty, my human name didn't really fit the naming scheme of Equestria, so Princess Celestia had suggested that I choose a different one in mean time. It has allowed me to fit better with the rest of the ponies. At least as much as I can be."

"Hm, well it's certainly not a name I would have chosen; I think it's an odd choice. Why would you want to be named after a yearling?" She asked. Well, she is really straight forward it seems. I don't sense any malice though, just curiosity. My feelings were only hurt partially.

"Maverick doesn't just mean calf or yearling. It also means independent and free-spirited. I thought it was a nice name to have being that I feel free when I fly. It can also mean unorthodox and unconventional, but I don't personally think I'm like that... Well, other than being from another dimension I suppose, but thats besides the point," I say. That was a half truth. I did choose Maverick as my name since I could fly, but that's mostly because of Top Gun. Great movie.

"Oh, I see. That makes a little more sense. I find that to be a fair reasoning, I suppose. I too feel free when I fly; it helps clear my head when I am overwhelmed. Now, I don't believe you arrived here to talk about names and such. What can I help you with, young Maverick? Here, follow me to the throne room." Ah, yes. To the meat and potatoes. I follow Princess Luna as she enters the throne room.

"Well, your highness, as you probably know, Princess Celestia has been trying to find me a way home for some time now. We usually exchange some letters here and there about progress and set backs. Lately though, I haven't received anything. For a few weeks actually. I thought maybe she was busy, which I believe to be true, but even after her student, Twilight Sparkle, tried to ask for me, we still didn't get a reply. I'm not sure what is going on so I decided to come here in person and find out." We made it to the end of the throne room where Princess Luna went and sat on the throne. She looked to be in thought for a moment.

"Well, truth be told, young Maverick, I have not been "in the loop" as it were about sending you home. I have heard from my sister that there has been much going on during the day, so it may be as you say. My sister can be quite busy, especially when she has to handle the day court, raise the sun, and do diplomatic negotiations. Most dignitaries and our subjects seek her guidance over mine." Damn, that is kinda sucky to hear. I guess they really don't like her for some reason. She might be a little stiff and straight forward, but she seems chill so far.

"Oh, I see. Well, if it's not too much trouble, your highness, could I perhaps get an update from her or from the team she has on my project to get me home?" I ask as respectfully as I could. She looks over to one of her guards.

"Sergeant Hardball, has my sister already bedded down for the night?" The guard in question looks to her.

"I believe so, your highness. Her majesty had mentioned that she was to send some letters to her student before "hitting the sack," as she said. I am also unsure about whether or not SAM-D went home for the night." Princess Luna put a hoof to her chin in thought.

Also, Princess Celestia will send letters to Twilight, but not me? Errg... no, keep your cool Mav, relax.

"What is SAM-D?" I ask.

"The Science and Magic Division. The team that is working to send you back is part of SAM-D." Oh. The princess continued on.

"Well, it doesn’t hurt to see if there is anyone left, I am sure there is somepony who stayed late. How about we go take a walk and see, dear Maverick?" Sounds good to me!

"Of course, your majesty. Please, lead the way," I say with short bow. As she trots down the stairs of her throne, she waves a hoof at me.

"You need not to bow, young Maverick, we wish to be seen more... personable. Come, walk beside me while we scour the halls." Scour the halls? I like the way she talks haha. Man, it's really cute.

As we make our way through the halls, I followed the princess as she took the lead. It was interesting to see the palace, the place looked so big and intricate. Whoever built this place put a lot of thought and artistic ability in their design. Masters of their craft it seems.

"How has your time been here in Equestria, young Maverick?" The princess looks to me as she asks the question. I reciprocate a look of my own.

"Well, it hasn't been terrible, I guess. Pretty boring to be completely honest. I have found flying to be the most enjoyable, second to that is drawing. I have been mostly spending my time home. I'm trying to not get too attached, I'm still trying to go home after all." Princess Luna hummed at my response.

"I see. Perhaps that is why you came alone then? I am surprised that my sister's student didn't venture with you." Twilight? Why would Twilight be here?

"You mean Twilight Sparkle? We aren't really that close. Actually, I didn't even tell her about me heading here to he honest. I brought someone else with me, though. One of Twilight's friends, Rainbow Dash. She had to leave a few hours ago though because of work tomorrow morning."

"Oh. I was under the impression you were closer to my sister's student. Still, I am glad to hear that you have made a friend while here, young Maverick. Even if you are only here in Equestria for a brief time, it is good to still have somepony beside you. Especially her. The Element of Loyalty will never betray your trust."

"Yeah, it seems that way. She's a good friend. What about you, your highness? I know that you have recently made it back here to Equestria not too long ago. I don't really know any specifics though." The princess stopped briefly.

"... I am fine, dear Maverick." She spoke softly as she turned her eyes to me. They seemed... almost sad.

"It has been a journey to acclimate to this new era, and there have been many obstacles in my way. I have missed many things while I was gone. Ponies I knew... gone. The life I knew, just gone. Fortunately, and thankfully, I have my sister. She has been there for me every step of the way." The words she spoke resonated in me unexpectedly. For a brief moment, I felt my blood run cold as I became much more conscious about her words. We were both in the same boat. Although she belongs to this world, it might as well be a whole different planet from how long she had been gone for. She still had to find a way to adjust, just as I am acclimating to this world. I pause for a moment before replying.

"I slightly understand what you are going through, your highness. I too feel like I have been going through a journey, trying to acclimate and adjust to this world. The obstacles feel a little too much sometimes." I tried not to say it pathetically, but it kind of came out that way. She fully stops and turns to me.

"Indeed, young Maverick. You do understand it too. But just as I have my sister, you have Rainbow Dash to be there for you. Do not fret over your worries, I am sure my sister has been working diligently to find you a way home. You will get there soon enough." Her words were encouraging. I barely knew her, yet I felt like I could confide in her. I give her a short smile. Maybe everything is fine. Maybe I just over reacted about all of this. The process is slow going, but that's okay. I can survive for as long as it takes to get back.

"Thank you, Princess Luna," I say. She put a hoof on my shoulder.

"Of course, dear Maverick. Now, let us continue."

We kept our trot through the place for a while in silence before finally coming to a stop at two metal doors with code locks on them and large bold letters that said SAM-D on them. This certainly seemed to be our destination.

"And here we are, young Maverick. This should be the lab. If I recall correctly, this is also where you first appeared."

"I woke up in the infirmary, I wasn't conscious when I first came through. Never saw this place with my two eyes until now." I walk up to the intricate engraved doors and put a claw on them. It was cold, but I felt a slight hum coming from the door. Magic, perhaps?

"These doors are enchanted to only open for those authorized to walk through. It is impressive what our little ponies are capable of now. The arcane locks and mechanical engineering is flawless in design." The princess walked up beside me and placed her own hoof onto the door. With a wiz and a wir, the door began to unlock itself and then opened.

The room inside was certainly something. The entirely of the room was white. There were some offices and filing cabinets everywhere. Although it was neat and tidy, I could tell that this place is busy during the day.

The best part was all the complex gadgetry and devices. The place was covered with machines. On the tables, I saw an assortment of parts that I could only guess what they were. I am surprised to see such advance technology in this place. The level of technology I see on a daily basis is a little all over the place. They have sound systems and sub woofers, but they don't have Walkmans. They have trains and honest to God airships. Like, boats that actually fly, but no cars. It's weird.

I hear someone clear their throat. I turn to see an old grey stallion with a white mane and beard. He had a white lab coat on with an ID that said 'Doctor Spanner' pinned to his collar. Must be one of the scientists here. He walked up to us and gave a bow.

"Hello, your highness. Your arrival is unexpected, but certainly welcomed. What can I do to help you?" Doctor Spanner picked himself up.

"Greetings to you too, Doctor Spanner. I can't say that I am surprised to see you still here." The doctor gave a laugh.

"Haha, yes, I know. If I could, I would live in this lab. In my defense, your highness, I was on my way out." He didn't appear to be disgruntled with staying, it actually seemed to be the opposite. Guess when you love your job...

"And who might this be?" Oh, he was talking about me. The princess spoke up first.

"Ahem, yes. This here is young Maverick. He is our visitor here from out of this realm. Maverick, this is Doctor Spanner, the Executive Director of SAM-D." Ah, so he's important.

"Its nice to meet you, doctor." I went for a handshake. Or I guess a clawshake. A hoofshake? Oh whatever.

"Visitor...? Oh! You're the interdimentional extraterrestrial being from the accident a few months ago. I am so sorry, I have so many things on my mind right now... Uh, anyway, it's nice to meet you again, Mr. Maverick." He returned my hand-claw-hoofshake with some added gusto. Again? He must have been there when it happened. Princess Luna spoke up again.

"Yes, well I am sorry to say, doctor, but we are not here for a social visit. Dear Maverick is here to see if he can get a progress report on the happenings of the project to get him home." The doctor gave a confused look. My stomach already started to lurch.

"Project to get him home? Uh, well, I can certainly go get the project file for you, your highness, but I am not sure we have a current progress report. Please give me a second." Doctor Spanner heads over to one of the filing cabinets to search for the file. I didn't like where this was going. There's not a recent progress report? Is that why Princess Celestia hasn't sent anything yet? It's fine, maybe there just wasn't a breakthrough yet. Its interdimentional travel, so it can't be easy. Just calm down.

I decided to distract myself by looking around at all the trinkets in the lab. Although there were many pieces of tech lying around, like engines, machines, and other doohickies, what really caught my eye was a fancy looking metal sphere. It was gold in color and had a bunch of blue glowing arcane symbols on it. As I got closer to it, I could hear it humming.

"Impressive isn't it? That is our newest creation. Project: Promethius. That there will be the future of Equestria, an arcane engine that can run with no fuel for centuries." I didn't realize that Doctor Spanner had trotted up beside me. He spoke again.

"Everything here, all the devices and all the trinkets. This is all from SAM-D's finest. We only accept the smartest ponies from the top schools in Equestria. Together, our scientists use their intellect, creativity, and talents to make new bounds and breakthroughs everyday. There's no other place I would rather be than in this lab." The doctor is certainly proud. I can't really blame him, an engine that can run without fuel? If there was something like that back in my world... There would certainly be less problems.

"Did you find the file, doctor?" I ask. He snapped out of his daydream.

"Oh yes- your highness, I have the project file," he called over to the princess as she made her way over to us.

"Excellent, please inform us on its current status." The doctor laid the file on the table and took a deep breath. Oh no.

"Well, after looking over it, there hasn't been any recent activity with the project. And, as I thought, the project was closed about three months ago due to our findings on interdimension linking to be... finicky." No, dear God, please. My throat felt dry as I spoke up.

"Finicky? What... what does that mean?" I ask.

"Well... to start, the entire project on interdimentional duel-linking was centered around on connecting our dimention to another dimension, not to send or receive objects. Or you in this matter. Due to arcane flux and a series of other miscalculated variables, you appeared. A million and one chance. Even more than that.

"And what I mean by finicky is that, when we tried to replicate what we did to make you appear, and while ensuring that we take the proper precautions this time, we could not make the same connection that our readings gave when you arrived.

"What I mean is, every time we connect, we are linking with a different dimension, despite doing the same things as before. SAM-D is still conducting research on being able to connect with specific dimentions, but we don't have the technology, nor the magic yet to pinpoint exact dimentional coordinates. What we concluded was that your appearance was not only an unfathomable number of a chance, but, in the most simplest example, your universe made a stop at the train station at our universe, you got off, and your universe continued on its way." He finished his explanation with an awkward look. My body shook uncontrollably.

"I... I don't know how else to put this, Mr. Maverick... But you are stuck in Equestria."

Failed Promises

I couldn't speak. My body was shaking and my heart raced. They gave up. They ended the project and gave up. Three months ago. Princess Celestia gave me letters up until about four weeks ago. She had to of known about this. Why would she lie? Everyone keeps saying that she wouldn't ghost me, that she was doing everything she can to help me. It doesn't make sense.

"Doctor Spanner, who closed the project?" This time, Princess Luna spoke up, her voice even, but demanding.

"Princess Celestia did, your highness. She didn't want to risk anything further trying to conduct this experiment. Linking dimensions creates a friction, at least the way we are doing it does, and those frictions cause accidents. Just like Mr. Mavericks arrival." I wanted to yell at the doctor, I wanted to yell at Princess Celestia. I felt my blood boil and tears start to form in my eyes.

"W-wait, so you guys can't find my universe? What if, uh, I don't know... Maybe you just need me or something! Like maybe since I'm from there, we just need some of my DNA or something and see if it'll connect again!" I looked to the doctor with some hope, but it was quickly squashed with a head shake.

"I'm afraid that wouldn't work, at least not at this point. We've tried." Within the file, he used his magic to pulled out a zip-loc bag of a blue feather. My feather. I remember giving it to Princess Celestia before leaving for Ponyville. She had asked for it and that she would hold onto as a reminder to get me home. But here it was, in a baggie.

"We did use a piece of your DNA to see if it would work. Hypothetically, it can, but we are missing several other pieces of the puzzle. What those pieces are, though, we are unsure." The doctor placed it back in the file. I tried to plead to him.

"You've gotta be able to do something! You guys have magic! There's no spell? No crazy artifact or something that can do it? Please, sir, you have to help me. I have a family back home that needs me, I have friends that I want to see again. Please..." I couldn't take it anymore. Call me a wussy or a bitch, whatever, but the tears started to fall. There was pain, heartache, and a sense of crushed hope within me. But there was also something else there too. Anger. Rage.

I felt so much rage.

"Maverick... Interdimensional duel-linking is a subject we know very little about. With our experiments so far, we have barely scratched the surface. Even if we attained Princess Celestia's approval again for the project, it could take us a lifetime to figure it out. Personally, I would love to help more, but I can't. I'm sorry, Maverick. I'm so sorry." Doctor Spanner went to put a hoof on my shoulder, but I swiped it away.

I looked to Princess Luna, who had been staring off into space. She was thinking, and she was thinking hard. I briskly walked up to her and shoved a talon into her chest. All of my sense of formality left at that moment.

"Let them continue, tell them to open the project again. I don't care if it takes years or a lifetime, if I can't see my family again, I want to be able to at least be buried where my family can find me." I snapped her out of her daze.

"Maverick, you need to calm down. I am just as livid as you are. My own sister has kept this from me until now as well. And I can't just open up the project again, I will have to talk with Celestia." It wasn't enough.

"Livid as me? Bullshit. And why do you need her permission for that? You take orders from Celestia? I thought you were on equal footing. Fine then! Lets go talk with her right now." I go for the door, but before I could make it there, I felt something force my body to stop. I looked down to see a blue hue of magic holding onto my entire body. Princess Luna was using her magic to hold me there.

"Maverick, you need to calm yourself before you force my hoof. What my sister did wasn't right, but that doesn't mean you can do whatever you want. We will go to her when you have calmed down." At first I tried to struggle and move, but my fight against the princess was useless. She was stronger than me.

"... Why? Why would she lie? Did she think that giving me false hope would somehow make me feel okay? Was she going to even tell me the truth to begin with? None of this makes sense." I was more or less talking to myself. I looked over to the doctor. "Why didn't you guys say anything? You guys didn't think that telling the interdimensional alien that he was stuck in Equestria would be important enough?" Doctor Spanner rubbed his hoof.

"Although it wasn't within protocol, Princess Celestia had told us that she would contact you personally about the project closing. I apologize, if we had followed procedure, we wouldn't be in this situation right now." I wanted to be mad at the doctor as well, but he was given an order from the princess herself. Maybe he should have made a formal statement about the project closing to me, but overall, the fault lies with the Celestia, here.

Princess Luna put a hoof onto the doctor's shoulder as she passed him and made her way to me. Her compassionate, but serious eyes didn't leave my own as she approached.

"I don't know why my sister held such a secret from you, dear Maverick, but we will find out when we confront her here soon. I'm going to release you; will you behave?" Behave? What does she mean by behave? Am I not supposed to be mad? Is this not a fair reaction? How am I in the wrong, here?

"... Behave? I am behaving just as anyone would in this situation! Weren't you kicked out of Equestria or something? I thought you understood what it was like to lose those you care about. To lose your everything. Yet here you are, defending your sister, even after all she's done to us." The venom of my words stung me to say, but I was compelled to let my thoughts known. I immediately regretted it though as I unleashed hidden, pent up frustration from the princess.

"THAT IS ENOUGH, MAVERICK." My ringing ears folded against my head as Princess Luna screamed. Frustration was an understatement.

"I DO KNOW WHAT ITS LIKE TO HAVE EVERYTHING TAKEN FROM ME. I HAVE FELT RAGE, SADNESS, DESPAIR, I HAVE FELT IT ALL, YOU KNAVE. I LIVED WITH IT IN ISOLATION FOR A THOUSAND YEARS. IT WAS NOT HER WHO WAS WRONG, THEN, MAVERICK, BUT ME. EVERYDAY I LIVE WITH THE FACT THAT I HURT MANY PONIES, THAT I CAUSED HARM TO THOSE WHO I CARED ABOUT, BETRAYED THOSE I LOVED!" She paused gave a deep breath, her teal eyes slightly watering.

"... And I have learned to deal with it in stride. I have learned to analyze my situation and act upon clear judgment. The last time I lashed out with emotion, left my temper unchecked, I caused Tartarus for my ponies, to Celestia, and to myself. I only thought about myself. Never again. So calm down, Maverick. Take a breath. Clear your thoughts so that you can act accordingly." My ears rang badly at her shouting, but I heard every word. She wiped the tears that formed on her eyes.

"And, Maverick- I am not defending my sister. When she banished me a thousand years ago, it was because I was in the wrong. In this instance, she clearly did something unfair to you now, something I didn't think she would do to anypony. At least, not without a good reason. That is why we need to go find out her reasoning with clear heads, so that we do not act upon rash ideas and violent tempers." I felt a sense of guilt flood over my body. Was Princess Luna right? I don't know. Maybe she was. Either way, I shouldn't have said what I said to her. She has been helping me with this situation without and complaint, but here I am directing my anger at her.

I do still feel angry. Guilty as well, but mostly angry. I don't think I can be talked down from that, but I know that Princess Luna is doing what she can to help me, here. It would be unwise to punch the embodiment of the sun in the face because I'm angry. I might leave the room in ashes.

Princess Luna is right. I need to control my temper, at least long enough to hear Celestia out. She better have a damn good reason to have left me in the dark like this, or else I'm still gonna give her a piece of my mind. Hell, maybe I'll leave in ashes no matter what.

I close my eyes and give a deep breath before speaking.

"... Fine. I'll "behave," your highness. Please, let me go, my leg is starting to cramp up." As requested, Princess Luna releases me and the blue hue of her magic dissipates. I can't say I enjoyed that all that much.

"Alright then, let us go find my sister. She is in her bed chambers currently," says Princess Luna as she marched toward the entrance to the lab. Damn, she's mad at me now. Why did I say all that shit before? Ugh.

Before following her, I turn to the doctor. Poor guy was also caught up in this mess. He should be glad my anger for Celestia out weighs my anger for him.

"Thank you for the apology, and thank you for letting me know of the situation, Doctor Spanner. But next time, if you're supposed to do something a certain way, please do it. You're the Executive Director for this place or whatever, not just another scientist straight out of school," I say, scolding him like a child. I turn to follow Princess Luna, as she waited at the door for me.

We say nothing to each other as we make our to Princess Celestia's room. I noticed that the guards on shift throughout the palace were a lot more rigid in their patrols and stations than I have seen today. No doubt that they heard the princess shout. I didn't even know her voice could be that loud. Must of been magic.

Anyway, I wasn't sure what was on Princess Luna's mind, but from how she carried herself, her frustration was apparent. I said some pretty gnarly things to her, which I don't believe she deserves. It didn't help any for me to do that, I have to be more conscious about what I say in the future. Especially to one of the leaders of Equestria that is trying to help me.

"Your highness... Princess Luna, I'm sorry for saying all that to you. You didn't deserve any of it. I'm... I'm just so angry right now. It's not an excuse, of course. You've helped me even when you didn't need to. I had a feeling since the beginning that shit didn't seem right, but I tried hard to convince myself it was just me being paranoid. I think my internalized anger and anxiety since arriving in Equestria hit a boiling point. I sincerely apologize for being a dick to you." I hoped she at least would accept the apology, even if she didn't actually forgive me.

Princess Luna didn't look to me or anything, but maybe after a moment or so, she replied.

"It is fine, young Maverick. You're hope to return home was crushed and you reacted. It is hard to fault you for being angry. I will say though, it is certainly unwise, perhaps even gallantly foolish, to speak to me that way. Most wouldn't have the audacity to do so, especially back in the day. I have certainly punished ponies for less. Do be careful next time, yes?" At her last words, she turned to me with a slight smile.

Despite my anger, I couldn't help but give her a smile back. We continued in silence. That is, until we made it to what appeared to be Princess Celestia's bed chambers. The doors that led into her room were made of a beautiful wood, perhaps mahogany, with a gold-lined trim, and a pink gemstone centered on each door. Two guards, white in appearance and wearing the standard gold armor, held their posts on each side of the doors. I noticed they had orange and yellow plumes on their helmets, differing from the normal blue or white I have seen so far. Her personal guard, perhaps?

"Sentinels, please retire down the hall until we are done speaking to my sister. It is a matter of great importance." The sentinels looked to one another.

"Erm, of course, your majesty." They both gave a bow before going down to the end of the hall.

We stood in front of the doors. My heart raced out of both fear and anger. I hadn't thought of how I was going to approach Celestia yet, but I was going to be direct and try to be somewhat respectful. Key word here is "try." Princess Luna knocked on one the doors.

It was time for a long needed confrontation.

Author's Note

Hey everyone, here is another chapter. IK there are readers here who want to get into the meat and potatoes, but I need to create a build up. Please be patient, and I thank you all for reading liking this story, it means so much to me.

For the future, I am willing to see what types of potential OCs some of yall might have to offer for being part of the crew. Those that want to do so, please let me know. Hope you enjoyed the chapter!

Truth

I anticipated for this moment. Not under these conditions of course; I was hoping it would be in a better circumstance, one where we all were happy and that I was on my way home. That is not the case.

She should have told me about all of this; I cannot find a fathomable reason not to tell me—She would have to face me one day. Was she going to continue to lie and break it to me down the road? How long would that have been? A month? A year? Ten years? A part of me wants it to be a perilous reason, perhaps she was being threatened by someone powerful or that the moon would blow up if she told me, but it’s just wishful thinking. In the back of my mind, I knew it would be something far less than perilous.

I heard nothing for a moment as Princess Luna and I waited for an answer. Eventually, the sound of steady and slow hooves made their way to us, only stopping right at the door.

“Guard, it is almost peak hours of the night, what is it?” Celestial said, her usual kind and caring voice was replaced with a gruff and stern one, likely not appreciative of her surprised awakening.

“It is your dear sister, Tia. I wish to speak with you about a private matter that deserves attention.” The doors opened as Princess Luna finished her sentence.

“A private matter? Could this not have waited until the transition? It’s almost midnight and I’ve had a long da—“ her voice got caught in her throat as she made eye contact with my own. We stood in silence for what felt like hours, staring at one another. You can imagine the face she was making, it was quite a shock for her. I spoke first.

“Celestia.” My voice came out much more venomous than I expected, but I didn’t heed it any mind. I had initially wanted to be respectful, but that was tossed aside the moment I saw her. A second bout of rage grew inside of me.

She ended her shocked stare as she glanced over to Princess Luna confused.

“… Sister? W-what is the meaning of this? Why is he here…?” I must have certainly put her off.

“This is Maverick—or Isaac as he was once known. He is our visitor we received during our trials with dimensional dual-linking. I am sure you are well aware of this, though.” Celestia cleared her throat and gave me a side-eye before speaking.

“I know who this is, yes. He has been our guest from a crossing dimension. That doesn’t answer my question though, sister. Why are you both here at this time of night?” Is she…? No way. She’s trying to act innocent. I immediately spoke up.

“You know exactly why we’re here. When were you going to tell me about it?” I started to tap my claw against the ground anxiously. Wait—maybe out of anger. Celestia paused for a moment before sighing and trotting over to her bed and sat down. We followed her inside and I closed the doors.

“…Maverick, please take a seat.” She pointed a hoof at the bed. Her voice was gentle now.

“I think I’m good standing. Now explain to me the reasons for this whole thing, please.” I was being quite stern, not really caring about formalities. She gave a face.

“Suit yourself. Listen, Maverick… Isaac. You’re right, I do know why you are here. Am I to assume you spoke with SAM-D?” I gave her a nod.

“Dr. Spanner to be precise,” I say. She gave a nod back.

“Before I continue, please understand my reasoning behind this. Did Dr. Spanner tell you why the project was shut down?” I gave another nod.

“Yeah, said it was too dangerous or something. Still doesn’t change the fact you could have told me. It’s been months.”

“Yes, well… the reason I shut it down was because of the repercussion that could have happened if we had continued. Our understanding of dimensional duel-linking is limited right now. In simple terms, we are forcefully grinding other dimensions with our own. This grinding can create tears and for that, I decided to suspend any further development and progress.

“As for not telling you… I did so because I believed we could still push for the project once we have a better understanding of it. For your sake, I decided that it would be… easier if you thought everything was going smoothly. There wasn’t supposed to be such a long interim, but I had decided it wasn’t worth the risk to send you back and possibly endanger my ponies. I see now that I have made a mistake in not telling you right away, and for that I apologize for not considering your feelings. I hope you understand why I did what I did.” She ended her speech with her head down and eyes closed.

That was it. That was the whole reason for this headache. To spare my feelings. What does she think I am? A little fucking kid?

“So that’s it? That’s your whole reason for not writing a simple letter? Or spending five minutes of your time to invite me here to tell me? You ghosted me for weeks just because of that? No. That’s a crock of horse shit and I am fucking appalled at your approach on this. You’re like over a thousand years old, but you’re still acting like a small child!” I started to yell. She put her head back up and met my eyes.

“Maverick, pleas—“ I cut her off.

“No! I don’t want to hear any excuses. Don’t lie to me, or try to coat it. You didn’t tell me because you were ashamed that you couldn’t send me home after promising me that you would. You were embarrassed and thought it would be easier to forget about me. Well, fine. You can forget about me. I’m fucking gone. You can have your bits back, your fucking house back, all of it!” I grab my satchel and throw it towards her and storm out of the room.

I felt the steam of anger leave my ears as I made my way out of the castle. The guards tried to stop me to ask what was going on, but I just passed them as continued my out. I only made it to the front gate before hearing the sound of flapping wings above me.

Princess Luna made her way down, landing in front of me, blocking me from my exit.

“Maverick, please calm yourself. I understand you are angry, but you need to control yourself.” I was tired of it.

“Please, princess, just shut the fuck up. I can’t deal with any of this. I should have just stayed in Ponyville and pretended everything was fine.”

“No, Maverick. You were right to come here. I am sorry for my sister’s actions, but she is honest about her apologies. Please, come back to the castle and we can discuss this matter more.” She came up to me and placed a hoof on my shoulder. I shrugged it off.

“Fuck that, and fuck her. What else is there to discuss? She won’t initiate the project again, not with the dangers it holds. She can’t take back the fact she lied and kept up the charade until we exposed her ass, so what’s the point in talking? I’m going back to Ponyville, Princess. If y’all want to talk to me, you can find me there. Until then, kindly fuck off and tell your sister that she’s a fucking asshole.” I continued my way to the train station, not giving a single look back at the castle.

I was mad. I was frustrated. But above most, I was just tired.

“Never again. Never again will I trust a single thing out of her mouth. Never again.”

Author's Note

Sorry for the long wait folks, things came up in my life and had to deal with them. I’m back though so expect more updates soon :^) hope y’all enjoyed this chapter.

Lost

The train station had done its last run for the night; the next one wouldn’t be until the morning. Wouldn’t matter anyway, all the bits I brought with me were all in my satchel that I left behind at the castle. I also left my sketch pad and Walkman as well. Damn. I debated with myself to get it back, but I don’t want to go back to the castle. Not with her there, at least. It’s fine, I’ll just fly back home tonight and ask for it back later. Right now though, I just want some peace and quiet.

I took a seat on a bench, looking out to the train tracks. In my peripherals, I saw the light of the station finally going out and the pony working there finally leaving for the night. I was finally alone.

Alone. I was alone.

It finally started to really set in. Nostalgic memories flooded my mind as I thought about what I left behind. I would never see my family again. Never see my sister again. Never hug my mama again. I would never see my nieces grow up. I would never see any of them again. I would never see my friends, the brothers I made throughout my life. This was it. I was truly, utterly alone. This is my reality now. I felt hollow and my chest started to ache. I put a claw against my heart and the pain throttled tenfold. It was a pain that I never experienced before—different from anything physical. Something I couldn’t describe or define. Heartache. Torture.

My body started to go numb. From both the chilling air and whatever was happening to me. The tears I’ve been trying to hold back with all my might, all my strength…started to fall. I wasn’t one to cry, at least not openly. But in this instance, in this moment, there was nothing I could physically, mentally, or emotionally do to stop myself. So I didn’t. I didn’t care. I let them fall.

I felt someone sit down next to me on the bench. I knew who it was, but I didn’t acknowledge her. At least not right away. I felt a wing wrap around my cold body as I continued my long awaited breakdown. In the back of my mind I felt embarrassed and emasculated. I wasn’t supposed to cry. I wasn’t supposed to act this way, something my mind was telling me excessively. Yet, I also didn’t care.

We sat in silence for a few minutes before she tried to speak. I spoke first, my voice wavering.

“I’m sorry…for bursting out on you like that. You didn’t…deserve it. Celestia does, but not you.” I wipe away my tears as I try to control myself. Princess Luna lets go of me and sits up on the bench.

“It is fine, dear Maverick. I understand the pain you are feeling. I shall let it slide for now.” She gave a jokingly smile. I didn’t smile back. I couldn’t. She frowned and put a hoof on my shoulder.

“Do you want to go back? To the castle I mean. You are still a guest—my guest. You can bed down for the night until the next train,” Princess Luna said.

“No. I don’t want to be in the same place as that witch.” I caught myself too late as it slipped. Princess Luna didn’t say anything about it.

“Then do you plan to stay on this bench until the morning? It is quite cold already, it will be freezing in a few hours.” I thought about it. I was thinking of just flying home, but I also didn’t have the mental or physical energy to do so. I also didn’t want to stay out here tonight. I didn’t even have bits for a train tomorrow morning. It’s a big castle, I probably won’t see the witch if I try to avoid her.

“…I don’t really have the bits to take a train back on me anyway. They were in my satchel I left behind at the castle.” Princess Luna got up from the bench.

“Well, let us go retrieve it. If along the way you decide to stay then we will prepare a room for you. If not, I know of a luxurious hotel you may stay in. Paid for by the Royal Treasury of course.” Princess Luna was being exceedingly nice. Too nice. I can’t fault her though—I would be too if my unexpected, dimensional-kidnapped guest was stuck here as well. I gave a sigh.

“Lead the way,” I motioned a claw towards the castle. She started to move so I got up from the bench to follow. I personally didn’t think it was wise for me to go back there, but I did want my satchel back.

We walked in silence as we made our way to the castle. The wind was chilly and the night was quiet. Despite being such a huge city, there was no noise or a single pony in sight. Come to think of it, Ponyville is the same way. It was quite different to what I’m used to on Earth. This place really is different.

Earth. Despite all the crap that it had, it was my home. The pain started to come back, but I pushed it out if my mind so I wouldn’t breakdown again. The feeling of wanting to give up was brutal, but I did my best to hold out.

We finally made it to the castle where she guided me to a room. The events of today were finally catching up to me as I just wanted to lay down and sleep. I didn’t have the energy to go to a hotel, so I reluctantly decided to stay at the castle. I didn’t really have to say anything though as Princess Luna seemed to already figure out I was going to come to that decision. She turned to me.

“Two guards will posted at your door. If you need anything, please let them know. I’m sorry that I have to go, but I am still a Princess after all. As much as the awaken need me, so as do those asleep.” Made sense. I don’t want to impose anymore than I have to on her.

“Thank you, Princess. I’ll be sure to grab my satchel sometime tomorrow. Thank you for everything, your highness. I know its been hard to deal with me and my situation, and even though it’s…not the outcome I would have liked, I appreciate actually giving me answers. You have my appreciation.” I have a short bow to her.

“It is nothing, dear Maverick. It is my job to protect my ponies—you included. I hope to see you tomorrow morning before the transition, but if I miss you, I hope that all goes well for you. If there’s anything you ever need from me or Equestria, we will ensure you are taken care of. Now, have a good night’s rest and have pleasant dreams.” As she left, she turned to say one last thing.

“And Maverick…it is without a doubt that my sister has been misguided by her own pride and certainly needs to be corrected—which she shall be—but as her sister, please do not call her a witch.” I wanted to tell her no, but I didn’t have the mental strength to argue so I just nodded instead. I don’t know why she keeps trying to defend her, but I let it go for now. She continued her way and left.

I decided that it was a great time to finally hit the sack and entered my temporary quarters. It was quite fancy inside, large bed, soft looking blankets and pillows, nice bathroom off to the left of the room, everything a royal guest could ask for.

As I made my way to the bed, there, sitting on a pillow, was my satchel. It seemed the Princess knew from the get go that I was going to stay here. She certainly has a good sense for that it seems. Sneaky bastard.

Anyway, I made no effort to fight against my tiredness as I fell onto the bed. Tomorrow would be a new day. A new, permanent day in Equestria.

What was I going to do now? I don’t know. What is there to do? The job skills I fought tooth and nail to learn and be proficient in don’t matter here. They don’t have things like computers yet.

I could always try to find something to keep me busy, but at this moment, I have no motivation for anything. I wish I could ask my mama for advice. Or some good ol’ Christian wisdom. Something that could keep me going or help me find my way. I didn’t realize it, but the tears started to quietly fall again. I didn’t fight back as I began to remember all the good times I had with my family and friends. The time I went to Disney World with my buddies, or the time my family had a fun road trip to Colorado. When we would play Mario Party or Mario Kart.

It hurt so bad, so incredibly bad. I just wanted to see them again, one…last…time…

I drifted off to sleep, dreaming about what I had lost, and will miss for the rest of my days. Thank you Princess Luna, for letting me see them again, one last time

Author's Note

Hello everyone! This is the final for the beginning portion. Time to get into the meat and potatoes, to the good stuff! Thank you for staying patient—I promise it will pay off!

-love,
yours truly 😘

Loyalty

I had woken up in the late morning of the next day. I had planned to get up earlier, but everything that happened last night had left me drained and exhausted. Unfortunately, I missed Princess Luna too, who is more than likely sleeping right now, so I wouldn’t be able to say goodbye. I will definitely write her a letter every now and then.

That was earlier. Right now it is about midday. Although I wasn’t a torn up mess like I was last night, I was still feeling the same emptiness I had felt at the train station. I did my best to not think about it.

Speaking of train station, I had just departed from Canterlot back to Ponyville. Being that the ride would be a while, I opted to just draw and listen to my Walkman. Decided to listen to some Johnny Cash. I was a bit stuck on what I wanted to draw, so I went through my sketchbook to see what I haven’t drawn yet. That was until I landed on the ship I drew yesterday. I have never been on a boat before. I’m not one for water, my desire to fly was much greater. I would like to try it out one day, though, just to experience it.

Now that I think about it, I’ve seen some sky ships around here, especially near Canterlot and Cloudsdale. Wouldn’t that be cool, to be on a ship in the sky. There’s literally not a single place you couldn’t go in a sky ship.

My mind started to drift and my imagination took hold as I started to think about flying one of those babies. I also began to draw a sky ship as well. A very simple one with a simple design, but that’s alright, I like simple.

I wonder how much it is to buy a sky ship anyway? Maybe I could get a smaller one to try it out…how do they even fly anyway? Jet propulsion? Nah, they don’t have anything remotely close to that right now. Perhaps it’s powered like a hot air balloon? Maybe, but sky ships can be quite big so maybe not. It’s like a blimp almost, so maybe something along those lines. Either way, they’re fairly cool. Maybe they got some in Ponyville I could check out that wouldn’t be too bad…Maybe I could travel or something. Maybe in the future. I don’t have much in terms of motivation right now, but it’s a nice thought.

For the rest of the trip back, I had finished my drawing and decided to take a quick nap. I awoke to a voice coming from a speaker box overhead announcing our arrival to Ponyville. I made my way off the train to my home with no rush to make it back, just taking a slow, methodical walk. I didn’t really have anything to look forward to anymore, my life was completely stripped away with no hope of ever getting it back. Right now, I just wanted to go to my new home near the Everfree and spend some time alone. I didn’t even feel like flying, which was unusual, nor did I feel like drawing or listening to music.

Life just seemed so… pointless now. What was I supposed to do? I don’t think I could live out the rest of my days doing nothing, I would certainly need to get a job. Not because I need the money, more so because it would give me something to do so I wouldn’t lose my sanity to boredom. Thing was, I didn’t really find any interest with the jobs in Ponyville, nor did I have the motivation. Stuck between boredom and depression was a helluva experience.

Well, that wasn’t entirely true, I do like making things, and they have some jobs like that here. Back on Earth, I built computers, worked on cars, and had a whole assortment of projects that I had crafted with my own hands. I could always find something similar to that. Then again, I didn’t really have the motivation to even do anything to begin with. Ugh.

Anyway, I made it home and was about to enter my dark abode before something caught my eye. A letter was peaking out from underneath my welcome mat. How odd. I have a mailbox that the mail mare uses. Mostly anyway, sometimes she handed it to me. Nice mare by the way, apparently everyone calls her Derpy because of her eyes, but I didn’t really feel comfortable calling her that. I just called her Muffins instead as she always gives me a muffin when she delivers mail directly to me. Ugh focus Mav.

I picked up the anonymous letter and brought it inside with me. After settling in and finally eating some food, I decided to open the strange letter. It was folded expertly and the hand writing looked quite familiar. Too familiar.

Dear, Maverick

Let me first say that I sincerely apologize for the way I treated you. I know my actions have caused you great emotional harm and what I did was unacceptable. I understand your anger and frustration with me and I want to reconcile with you once you are ready. If you ever need anything, please do not hesitate to reach out to me. I don’t want this small conflict to interfere with our friendship. Anyway, please tell my student that all is well and that I said hello.

Sincerely,
Princess Celestia

Heh.

Hah.

Hahaha.

HahahahaHAHAHAHAH!!

She really sent this to me. She really just sent me this god-awful letter to me. “I sincerely apologize”, give me a damn break. “I don’t want this small conflict to interfere with our friendship.” Small? SMALL!? HA! Yeah right! Friends? We aren’t friends you dumb horse. After what you did, I don’t ever want to see you again. I never want to talk to you again. AND I DON’T EVEN TALK TO TWILIGHT. Why does everyone think I’m friends with her!? Oh man, I can’t believe the audacity of this woman. This mare.

I ripped up the letter and threw it across my kitchen with some force as it scattered onto the floor somewhere.

“She really said “small conflict.” What in the ever living hell, man.” I could only rub my ever-growing headache from all of this stupidity. There’s no way she’s this unsympathetic. God, I need a drink. Why don’t these ponies have alcohol when you need it? Ugh.

I just sat at my dining table as I tried not to think about it all. The more I thought about her, the angrier I felt, and the more I thought about what lies ahead, my stress and anxiety grew. I tried to block it out, dissociating completely for what felt like hours. I felt such hopelessness that it like I was floating. My reality started to feel distant as I tightly shut my tearful eyes. I’ve never felt like this before. Not even when my father died. I had accepted what happened and moved on. But this? This was far beyond what I could mentally and emotionally handle.

This cold feeling finally hit a breaking point and an intrusive thought crossed my mind. It was small, barely noticeable. But it was there. And when I did notice it, it began to grow. The thought turned into an idea, and the idea turned into a question. Then, it turned into a statement. And finally, it turned into a desire. A desire of anguish. A desire of death.

I want to kill myself.

A knock at the door broke me out of my thoughts. The day had turned into night as my home was dark and cold. I hadn’t noticed how late it got. I didn’t even know what time it was. I grabbed a lighter and lit some candles and made my way to the door.

“Hey, Mav! You there? Don’t tell me your already asleep!? Mav!” I heard Rainbow call from the other side of my door. A part of me didn’t want to open it, I didn’t want company right now. But I would feel bad if I ignored her. If I could even feel worse at this point.

“Mav?” I heard her say softly through the door. She heard me it seems. I unlock the bolt and open the door.

“Hey there you are. Sorry, I’ve been working all day. I was just wondering what happ-“ She cut herself off as she made full eye contact with me. No doubt I looked as bad as I felt. Which was bad if you needed a clue. Her normal, upbeat expression fell.

“… Mav? What happened?” I didn’t respond. I left the door open as I walked further into the darkness of my home, finding the couch. She took the invitation and shut the door behind her. She took a seat next to me as I stared at nothing. We sat in silence for a moment before I finally decided to talk.

“I can’t go home.” I couldn’t put any energy into my voice even if I tried. Rainbow’s eyes widened. “What do you mean you can’t go home?” She asked. I gave a sigh.

“Exactly what I said. Celestia shut down the project to send me home. It was too dangerous to keep experimenting. Didn’t tell me until last night.” I didn’t look over to Rainbow Dash, but I knew what her expression was. Shock, some confusion, and my favorite—anger.

“She did what!? No way! Princess Celestia would never do something like that! She would do whatever it takes to help her ponies! There’s gotta be some mistake about this.” She threw up her hooves as she shouted. I didn’t want to do any of this right now. I just wanted to di… I just wanted to go sleep for the night already.

“No. There’s no mistake. Both Princess Luna and I spoke with her and the Executive Director of SAM-D about it. They shut it down. She didn’t tell me to spare my feelings. She also sent me a letter saying she was sorry after I left the castle. I left it in the kitchen somewhere.” I couldn’t bring myself to put any emotion behind my words. All I felt was empty.

Rainbow just sputtered before looking down to the floor. Her eyes squinted and her face turned red as she gritted her teeth. “How could she do that!? That is so uncool! You know what!? I’m gonna go give her a piece of my mind! Come on, Mav! Let’s go have a talk with her about opening the project again.” Rainbow was ready to up and head down to Canterlot. I respected her tenacity, she really is a good friend. But there’s nothing she could do about it. It was too dangerous.

“No, Rainbow. She won’t. It’s too dangerous to keep doing the experiments. She said it creates too much friction or something between dimensions when they connect to them. Could cause some weird time and space issues.” She didn’t take that as an answer.

“No, Mav, we need to do something. Like, right now! Let’s go—“ I stop her with my claw as she tried to get up from the couch. “Stop. I already tried to do something. I can’t go home and that’s that, so just fucking drop it already!” Unfortunately, the only emotion I felt now was anger. I didn’t want to yell at her, but I was already passed my breaking point and she was pushing it too far.

Her face dropped as I cursed at her, her ears drooping down behind her head. I let go of her as I held my head with my arms as I covered my eyes.

We sat in silence for a while, before I felt something wrap around me. Took me a moment, but I realized it was Rainbow hugging me. I was surprised, she’s usually not intimate like this, but I let it go. I decided to just accept her embrace as we stayed like that for the rest of night. I thought I was done crying before, but I was wrong. I cried harder than I ever have, putting last night to shame. She didn’t let up. She just hugged me and whispered that everything will be okay. That she was there.

And she was. Rainbow Dash was there when no one else was. When I had no one else. Loyalty indeed Princess Luna. Loyalty indeed.

Author's Note

Sorry about the wait folks, had many things in my life all pop off at once. Finally free now. I think.

Anyway, I hope y’all enjoy this one. :^]

Project

It was early Saturday morning. I did my usual morning routine of flying through the cold morning air. It was a great time to think about everything that’s happened. After Rainbow and I had our heart to heart, I felt somewhat better. I decided to put my focus into something that could distract me from it all. After telling Rainbow about my idea of getting an airship, she was totally into the idea of it. I didn’t plan on going through with it at first, but she was pretty adamant on me doing it. I thought about asking her to join me, but decided against it. She had a life here, had friends here that cared for her. Hell, she was the Element of Loyalty for God’s sake. It didn’t feel right to ask her to join me.

Anyway, today we’re supposed to head down to a seller in Cloudsdale about it. I wasn’t sure how much it was gonna cost, but I was sure I could cover it. Instead of taking all of bits with me, I’ll just make a money order or something. Do they even have money orders? Eh, I don’t know. I have a bank account with the Equestrian Bank Association so hopefully they have one of those in Cloudsdale. I’ll figure it out when I cross that bridge. I don’t even know if I’m gonna get an airship, I’m just entertaining the idea of it right now.

I decided to end my flight here as I headed back home to clean up and take a shower. Rainbow would be by there around eight or so, so I had plenty of time to prepare for the day trip. A part of me is really excited about this, it would certainly be fun to explore Equestria. No, to explore the world! Maybe… maybe I’ll actually do this. I guess I’ll make that decision when I get there.

I had gotten ready fairly quickly and decided to spend the rest of the time just drawing something up. I didn’t really have anything in mind to draw so I just decided to sketch a dog. I used to have a beagle named Orange, sweet little guy. Loved him to death. He lived a good life, only ending through old age. Maybe I should get a dog… maybe, let’s just focus on the airship for now Mav.

As my thoughts came to a close, I heard a knock on the door. Just in time. I pack up my sketchbook in my satchel and met an impatient Rainbow outside. “Hurry up, Mav! We gotta meet the guy in like an hour.” She began to pull my tail as I locked the door and said a small prayer. “An hour is plenty of time, Rainbow. I don’t know why you’re so stressed, you could make it there in like five minutes.” I said jokingly. She rolled her eyes.

“Yeah, of course I can make it there in five minutes, but I’m not worried about me; I’m worried about you!” She pushed a hoof into my feathered chest as she floated up to my face. I just laughed. “Rainbow, I might not be as fast as you, but I’m not a slowpoke either. I’ve been flying everyday for the last nine months.” We took flight as she argued with me.

“I know foals who can fly faster than you Mav. Heck, if I had to bet on my life on a race between you and Tank, I’d put my money on Tank—and he’s a tortoise!” She was very expressive today. Think she’s just excited about this whole thing. Can’t blame her, I’m excited too. I’ve never piloted anything like this before either so I was also a little nervous about it. Come to think of it, do I need a license to fly an airship?

“Hey, Rainbow. Do I have to have a license to fly an airship?” I ask, ignoring her insult. She took a moment to think about it, even making a cute face as she tried to remember if that was a thing. “Honestly, Mav? I have no idea. Eh, never mind that, we’ll get you one if you need it. Can’t be that difficult to get.” Uh oh, don’t jinx it.

“Well, hopefully I don’t need one to purchase a junked airship at the very least. Couldn’t imagine why I would though. Could make some complications though if they do.” I say.

“Yeah, I think it’ll be fine, Mav.” Rainbow did some twirls in the air as we continued to Cloudsdale. If I needed one, I’ll just go get one. I hoped it wouldn’t take too long to do so though.

Wait. I can just ask Princess Luna! She did say that if I ever needed anything… I’ll write her a letter about it. Also gives me an excuse to check up on her as well.

Anyway, as we discussed some things about the airship with one another, Rainbow and I made it to Cloudsdale in record time. We immediately headed over to where the seller was at, which supposedly was at an old airship junk yard or something. Made sense for what I trying to get. Rainbow was concerned about me buying some old junk heap, but I was into building things up. Just an old passion that my father and I had. It’d also distract me from the thoughts I’ve been having lately.

“Well this is the place. “Rap Scrap’s Air Junk”. Simple name.” Rainbow said, looking at the sign that overlooked the entrance to the gated yard. I could already see some ships within the yard, some destroyed and certainly unusable, and others that looked exactly like what I was seeking.

We headed inside to talk with the seller. Hoped it’d turn out well. Knock on wood!

Well, that ended up way better than I was expecting. Rap Scrap, the Pegasus that owned the lot, had a few pickings for me. A few racers, a cruiser, and some cargo ship that seemed to be worse off than the others. I decided to go with the Cabin Cruiser. It was simple in design, had quite a lot of room, but still seemed agile enough to fly through the air without being weighted down. At least, that’s what I hoped anyway. He didn’t want that much for it either, only five hundred bits. After heading down to the bank to get a deposit, I made the purchase that would change my entire life. I didn’t know that yet so don’t tell me yet.

Anyway, Rap Scrap said he would have it delivered to me tomorrow afternoon, which was perfect. I wanted to go get some paints, and some tools and parts that I would need to fix her up. When we went through the cruiser, we inspected the ship pretty thoroughly. It seems she is missing her fuel tank, apparently her propulsion engine runs, but there’s a loud noise while it’s running, she seems to have some hull damage that can be easily fixed, and lastly, I have to get a new balloon for it, but I was fine with that. Those were the things we could tell we needed to fix, but it’ll take some more work to find out any other issues she has. I was confident in my ability though.

Sure, I’ve never worked on more than an automobile, but it can’t be that hard to learn. I’ll also get some books on airship mechanics as well just in case. Rainbow wanted to help as well, but I wasn’t sure how. She literally has no experience in any sort of mechanical engineering or repair. Yet, I would feel bad if I told her no, so I decided that she could assist me with things I needed. I also let her name the ship as well. She seemed quite excited about it.

For the rest of the day, I spent it going through machinist shops, hardware stores, and everything in between, doing what I can to find everything I would need. It was gonna be a hard job, but I was starting to get into it quite a lot. I mean, I already spent a lot of bits on this project already, not about to let it go to waste!

It has been roughly a month since I’ve started my project. Although I was new to this, after reading some blueprints and doing my research on airship mechanics (as well as asking experts about some questions I had), I was able to get the ball rolling and made some decent progress.

There were a few times that I had messed up on some things, but Rainbow was a huge help where I needed it. When she was available, anyway; she had job after all. She also has been trying to think of names for the cruiser, but has been shooting them down as quickly as she says them. I know she’ll find a good name, Rainbow is awesome after all. Or so she says.

Anyway, I was able to get a makeshift fuel tank attached so I could test the propulsion engine. Right now, I’m trying to figure out what that thunking sound coming from the engine is so I could fix it. I was thinking maybe it’s cracked somewhere, but I wasn’t sure. I didn’t have Google or anything, so it’s gonna take some work to figure it out. Never seen an engine quite like this before, after all. I was thinking about ordering a new engine completely, but I really wanted to get intimate with the machine that I would be flying, so I ultimately decided to rebuild it instead. Wish me luck on getting this thing fixed!

Its been about two months since I had gotten the Cabin Cruiser. Yeah, I had to replace the engine entirely, unfortunately. Like I thought, there was a crack in it, among other issues that made it unusable. It would be more of a hassle to fix it than replace it, so I just decided to bite the bullet and get a new one. Thankfully, it arrived quickly and I was able to get it installed.

While I was waiting for the engine, I decided to fix the hull by removing rotted pieces and replaced them with brand new wood panels. I also had to fix the framing a little, but with a little welding and some reinforcement, it seemed to do the trick. I also started to work on the balloon as well. I would have to make the frame for it first before getting the actual balloon itself, but that was fine. Progress seems good right now. I currently have Rainbow working on the interior of the ship, finding any signs of rotted pieces or broken pipes and having her repair them. I’ll go through it later myself to make sure. Trust, but verify is what I always say. She also apparently found a great name, but hasn’t revealed it to me yet. She said she wants to wait until it’s completely finished before telling me. She’s silly like that, but I humored it.

Also, because of the nature of the project, my worksite was huge. Many ponies from the village would come to see what I was doing, more so curious than angry with the noise. I even had some older gentlemen come up to me with some advice about fixing her up. I took all the help I could get. I also received more letters from the Witch, wondering what I was doing after Twilight told her about it. I didn’t answer of course, only ever telling Princess Luna of my progress.

Speaking of Princess Luna, she was able to get me a flight license for the airship, the caveat was that I would have to do a course after the ship was running, which was understandable. Still though, Princess Luna is such a blessing to me, I’m so glad I became acquainted with her. She even invited me up to the castle to visit her.

Anyway, the project is turning out great. Here’s to hoping it stays that way!

It has been over six months now since I started my project in rebuilding the Cabin Cruiser. I have made a lot of progress now. The new engine runs fantastically, all the damaged internal parts have been replaced and repaired, the hull was good as new with a new, fresh paint job. The balloon was more or less done now, only needed to inflate it using the helium I got. Glad they didn’t use hydrogen, don’t need another Hindenburg.

The last thing was the fuel tank. Now, with this, I ran into an issue. Cabin Cruiser Airships are not supposed to be used for long distances, they were designed for easy sailing in a small locality. Unfortunately, I did not know this when I bought her, but that’s fine, I would just have to build a bigger fuel tank for the propulsion turbines. I’ve done the math for it though, I should be able to double it’s size without having to worry too much about weight. It’ll cost more to refuel, but that’s only if I use the turbines.

Despite small hiccups, everything seems to be on track. I’m so excited to finally be near the finish line!

It has been seven months. She is done. She’s finally done!

Author's Note

I am not an airship engineer, don’t kill me about it lol

Anyway, hope you enjoyed this chapter.

Adventure Time!

Its been a few days since Rainbow and I had our fight on the Free Spirit. It took about a two days before I saw Rainbow again, and like it never even happened, she was back to her usual self. Well, on the outside anyway. I knew that deep down I pretty much broke her heart.

…Which was for the best. Maybe its cruel for to say that, but its true. She won’t follow me now… I won’t lie—a part of me wanted her push for it again. I don't think I could manage to say no this time around. But the responsibilities she shares is just too much for her to leave. I think she realized this too, hence the reason she didn’t bring it up again. I want her to bring it up. Please.

Maybe… Maybe I shouldn’t go?

No no, stop. I can’t think about this anymore, it’s literally breaking me. I need to focus on something else.

As per usual, I had my early morning flight in the cool spring breeze, to which Rainbow had already been waiting for me. Seeing her made me feel lighter, but as the thoughts came back, I felt a heaviness in my chest. Keep it together, Mav.

We flew a little longer together this morning as today was the day I would head out to on my journey. Rainbow decided that she would help me finish gathering all the supplies I would need in Free Spirit, which happened to be almost everything I owned, except for the house itself, which I was sincerely thankful for. I took out all of my funds from my EBA account, packed it all into lockbox in a secret compartment I made in my private quarters. I ensured I packed all my non-perishables, a hefty amount of water and extra fuel reserves for emergencies. I also packed extra hydrogen tanks, not really enough to fill the balloon, but just in case I needed it. With that, I should have everything I needed.

I also spent yesterday doing the course Princess Luna needed me to do to get my license. It was easy enough, just needed to make a few turns, stops, and make a docking attempt—which was by far the hardest thing, but not as hard as I expected it to be. I didn’t scratch anything so it was a pass. I now have the proper paperwork for air travel!

As I finished counting my personal inventory, I turned around to see Rainbow standing in the doorway of my private quarters, blocking me from leaving. My heart leaped a good bit, anticipating her being adamant about going with me again, but she didn’t say anything. Neither of us did, for a moment.

“Rainbow…” I started, but she cut me off.

“Mav, I’m not angry with you. I… you’re right. I can’t just pack my things and leave. As much as I want to, I know I can’t.” She looked away, trying to cover her tears. My chest was hurting seeing her like this. I didn’t say anything, letting her continue. “I talked to Flutters yesterday about it. She kinda… made things make sense for me. About a few things.” Her cheeks started to flush. She coughed into her hoof and wiped some of the tears away. “I don’t want you to leave with tension between us. You mean a lot to me and I want today to be exciting for you.” I tried to say something, but she continued.

“Um, I also have parting gift for you. Twilight helped me make it.” She reached around the corner of the door way, pulling out what looked to be a mailbox—the ones you would place on a door or wall. It was small, about eight inches long and four inches high, and white in color. It also had a little flag with Rainbow’s cutie mark at the tip. “It uses the same magic that Spike uses to send letters to the Princesses. Y’know… so we can send letters to each other, even when you are in the air.” Her blush deepened. I was blown away.

“Rainbow… I don’t know what to say. This—this is great gift! Thank you so much!” I gave her a hug that she didn’t hesitate to give back. Did she always smell like rain? After a long hug I pulled away. Rainbow again wiped away some tears. I didn’t know she could cry this much. “I’m sorry it’s not the greatest, I just wanted to be able to talk to you somehow.” I patted her head with a claw.

“This is perfect, Rainbow. I’m sure it will get lonely at times. I’ll write to you as much as I can.” I gave her a small smile that she also reciprocated. Then, as if remembering something important, her eyes lit up. “Oh shoot! Fluttershy wanted me to give you a gift as well! Give me ten seconds!” With that, an exuberant Rainbow Dash dashed out of the ship off to who-knows where.

And, just as she said, ten seconds later, I saw her dash right back onto the ship with something in hoof. “Whew that was a close one, I almost forgot this little guy!” In her hoof was a cage that held what looked to be a dazed hawk. Poor guy wasn’t expecting to be snatched up like that. I gave her a confused look.

“A bird?” I asked with a brow raised. Rainbow sat it down and opened the cage, allowing the bird to hop out. “Yup! Fluttershy said she didn’t want you to get lonely out there and asked if you’d like to adopt this little guy!” The hawk met my eyes and gently flew up to my back, where he perched up. Huh, cute. I took a moment to think about it—it would be nice to have another person with me, but a little companion wouldn’t be too bad. I was thinking of getting a dog, but this would be better. Wouldn’t have to worry about a bird falling off the ship. Rainbow spoke up again.

“I thought a parrot would fit better, with it being a flying ship and all, but Fluttershy didn’t know any parrots that needed to be adopted.” She grumbled a bit.

“Aren’t parrots for like pirates? Fairly sure I’m not a pirate, Dash.” I say, rolling my eyes in amusement. “Well yeah, but I think it would still fit better!” She said, her hooves crossed. I laughed.

“Yeah, yeah alright. A hawk will do though. He looks dope.” Appearing to understand me, the hawk stroke a dramatic pose as the wind ruffled his feathers. “Does he have a name?” I ask. Rainbow perched her lips and squinted her eyes in deep thought. She looked very cute. Then she looked to the cage to see if a name was on it somewhere. “Hm, I don’t know, I guess I didn’t ask. I don’t see one on his cage either. Oh! Why don’t you name him?” She said with excitement.

Name him? Hm what would be good na… Oh I have the perfect name. No no no, don’t do it. Oh but I have too! It’s just too perfect to not pass up! But think about it, no one will understand it! I don’t care! I’m doing it!

“Oh I know the perfect name for this little guy!” Both Rainbow and the hawk looked to me with anticipation. “Goose!” Rainbow took a second before bursting out laughing. The hawk, now named Goose, gave me a deadpanned stare.

This is it. I looked over the port side of the ship down at my now empty house. I had everything aboard and stored away. All I needed to do now was… well, go. Rainbow walked up beside me and Goose landed on the railing next to us. The cool breeze blew through our fur and feathers as we just looked out at to the sky. Rainbow spoke first.

“So… this is it.” She said, echoing my thoughts. Her voice was bittersweet.

“Yeah… this is it.” I gently placed my foreleg around her, bringing her closer to me and laying my head a top of hers. “Thank you. For everything. I don’t think I would have done well without you by my side.” I say, quietly.

“Of course. I’ll always have your back—I am the Element of Loyalty after all.” She said, giving a small smile. I gave a soft chuckle. “It fits you well… I’m… I’m glad to have you in my life. Even when I felt like I lost everything, you remained by my side.” And now I’m leaving without you. I’m a terrible friend.

“When will I see you again?” She asked, removing herself from me and looking me in the eyes. I wanted to place a claw on her face, but I didn’t. “I don’t know. Once my wanderlust dies I guess. Don’t worry though, I won’t be gone forever. I’ll come back and we can go flying again like we always do… everyday if you want.” She gave me one last hug.

“I would like that a lot.” She let go of me and we began walking to the cockpit, Goose landing on my back. “I’m going to miss you, Mav. Please be safe, okay? Don’t make me come and find you.” She bumped her shoulder into mine as I laughed in response. “Don’t worry Dash, I’ll be sure to message you every day.” She just rolled her eyes. “You better. I’ll sick Tank on you if you don’t.” She joked.

As I walked into the Cockpit behind the control console, I saw Rainbow stopped at the doorway.

“Goodbye Mav. I lo—I’ll miss you.” She said.

“I’ll miss you too. Goodbye, Rainbow.” Although hesitant, she flapped her wings and flew away, looking back a few times, and leaving only me and Goose in the cockpit.

I’m going to miss her. I’ll be back Rainbow, I’ll be back.

I looked over to Goose, who was standing on the control console, looking at all the lights and dials. “You ready to go, buddy?” I ask as I throw the thruster controller forward, turning on the turbines. He looked up at me and squawked in excitement as we began to depart from Ponyville.

Its time for adventure.

I watched as Mav, Goose, and the Free Spirit sailed away. I had to fight myself from flying back, to just say to Tartarus with it and just go with him. I saw it in his eyes, he wanted me to ask again, this time saying yes, but we both know I can’t.

I wanted to say it when I said goodbye, but I choked. I’ll say it when he comes back to Ponyville. I’ll wait for him. I swear it as the Element of Loyalty. I flew up in the air higher, matching the altitude of the ship, and used my hooves to cup my mouth.

“MAV! I’M WAITING FOR YOU! I’LL WAIT AS LONG AS I HAVE TOO! PLEASE WAIT FOR ME TOO! MAV! WAIT FOR ME!” I should with all my might, my voice going hoarse at the end, I also felt my eyes water. He was the only one that could make me cry. Damn that hippogriff.

I waited as I watched the ship sail further away. Hoping for a response. After a moment of not hearing anything I started to fly away. But as I do, I heard a voice shout back to me.

“RAINBOW! I’LL COME BACK! WAIT FOR ME! PLEASE! RAINBOW!” The voice came from a blue figure standing on the back of the ship’s hull waving at me and a bird flying in loops. I could only smile and wave back as he drifted away.

“See you later, Maverick.”

It has been two days now since I left Ponyville. Nothing eventful has happened since I left town, other than seeing some beautiful sites, drawing and listening to my Walkman, and sending some letters to Rainbow. Which was perfectly fine with me. I needed some time to adjust to the ship and get a feel for how she flies.

At first, I wasn’t really sure which direction I should head too, but I after some thinking, I chose to go to the Western reach since there was a large port called the Western Skyport, or just WestSky for short, in that direction. At least according to the map I have, anyway.

WestSky was the hub that separates civilization and the wild. That entire region beyond WestSky also has yet to be documented and explored by Equestria, which is exactly what enraptures my curiosity. It very exciting to go to the frontier of civilization, I just had to be wary of the weather and elements, as well as other ships. Equestria might be mostly friendly, but I can’t guarantee it’s like that in the wild frontier. I brought some precautions with me just in case—though I hoped that I wouldn’t have to use ‘em.

Anyway, I spend most of the day just enjoying the beauty of the sky, and ensuring that everything was working perfectly—which it was. It was smooth sailing. Literally. Haha.

After a long while just drawing and looking at the scenery on the deck, I spotted what appeared to be a large, compact city within the clouds that seemed to be floating by large red balloons. Attached to the balloons were tethers that reached towards the ground that disappeared in the clouds. I could also see a bunch of other ships—both recreational and commercial—flying and buzzing around the area.

It was certainly a sight to behold—something you would see in a movie or video game. I can’t explain it other than it’s just awesome. I slowed my pace down by turning on the turbines, and lowering my decent. I could see a few open ports available, so I chose the nearest one to land in. I really wanted to take a look around at WestSky and see if anyone knew of any interesting sites to visit.

As I lowered my decent, I aimed for the port dock until I was level with it and then turned off the turbines. It was a perfect parking job. Even better than when I took the course. Couldn’t help but pride myself at being a natural.

I made sure to lock up Free Spirit as I made my way off the ship, with Goose in tow, and met with the port-pony to pay for my docking. I also asked for a refuel, but he said I’d have to wait until tomorrow morning since that’s when they get their new fuel supply from the ground. Guess those tethers are for more than keeping WestSky from drifting.

It was about evening time, so I wasn’t worried about waiting. I had planned to stay overnight. I paid the port-pony some more bits to dock overnight and set out to explore WestSky.

I spent the last few hours going to different shops and stores, mostly just browsing, but I did find a few tools and trinkets that I really wanted. The place was crawling with creatures of all types. Unlike main Equestria, WestSky was diverse—There were minotaurs, griffons, and even other hippogriffs! There were even creatures I’ve never even heard of or seen before. It was quite mesmerizing. It also felt better that I didn’t stand out, like I felt in Ponyville.

I was feeling fairly hungry at this point and decided to go find some good food before venturing off into the wilderness, and although there were some good options, I also saw what appeared to be saloon. It had been a long time since I had a drink, and I had time to kill so I decided to go there. Even before entering, I could hear a cacophony of yells, singing, and laughter. It was glorious.

This would also help me loosen up a bit. The last few days were quiet and peaceful, but the feelings were coming back again… of what I lost.

No, stop it, man. Shake it off, Mav. Shake it off.

As I stepped into the saloon, it was exactly what I imagined. There were groups of sailors and marines laughing and cheering as they danced with some of the waitresses, while some others were playing some poker and billiards. The place smelled of alcohol, but it also reeked of fun. Goose gave some squawks of excitement as he also saw the chaos in here.

As I made my way to the front bar, a large bird-like creature stumbled in front of me, taking the seat I was going for. As he sat down, he fumbled his drink as it leaked from his beak and then sat it down on the counter harshly. All the while looking at what appeared to be a purple mare siting by lonesome self at the bar. Uh oh.

“W-well howdy t-there, beautiful. F… fancy seeing you here, heh.” The bird creature stumbled over his words as he tried to talk to the mare. I decided to sit on the other side of her, eavesdropping out of curiosity. I silently hoped he would just walk away.

The mare said nothing as she stared at her drink, and then taking a small sip of it. As I stole a glance at her, I saw something quite interesting—the mare had a broken horn. In all of my time in Equestria, I have never seen a unicorn with a broken horn. I started to get some intense vibes from her.

H-how about you put that drink d-down… down, and we have some… f-fun in my racer?” The drunk bird slurred hard as he put his face closer to the mare. She continued to drink her drink, ignoring him completely. The bird started to get angry.

“Hey, bitch, I’m t-talking to you! Hey!” As he went for a grab her shoulder, almost in a blink of an eye, she grabbed his arm with one hoof, and then used the other one to bring his head down on the counter, slamming it hard against the wood, the bird-creature squawked in both surprise and pain. She got close to his head and began whispering.

“Touch me again and I will break your beak off.” She growled in a low and intimidating tone.

“O-okay! Okay! I’ll leave you alone! Let me go!” He said in a pained voice. She held onto him for a moment longer before letting him drop to the floor. He held his head and got back up, looking at her with disbelief and anger. “You crazy bitch!” He said as he stumbled off in pain.

Me and Goose just looked at each other in bewilderment. The rest of the saloon didn’t even seem to notice the altercation though, as the noise continued. The mare sat back down and gave a deep breath. Then took a sharp glance at me as I found myself staring at her. Shoot! Both Goose and I looked away quickly and tried to ignore her intense stare. I saw the bartender, who appeared to be a bear-like creature wearing an apron, walking near me, so I called out to him to get me a drink to save myself from the embarrassment.

I carefully glanced over back at the mare, which thankfully wasn’t looking at us anymore, but instead looking at her drink again. She’s kind of a badass. And scary.

After some time drinking, and eating some decent food that I ordered, I was feeling pretty good. I took in all the noise and was looking around to see if there were any spots open for billiards. Unfortunately the guys there seem to be hogging it. Oh well, it’s been a long time since I’ve played so I probably wouldn’t be all that good, anyway.

The mare was also still here, doing the same thing as before, but I elected to ignore her—mostly to save myself from pain—and just played with Goose a little, feeding him some bread crumbs. He’s actually a really expressive little guy; I forget how smart animals are in Eques—

“PIRATES! THERE ARE PIRATES!!” someone shouted. Almost simultaneously, everyone started to run, and yell—some running to leave the bar, while others went to go hide under tables or into the back rooms. The bartender reached under the desk for what appeared to be a blunderbuss. Holy shit!

“Hazel! Lock the doors!” The bartender yelled. A waitress, now identified as Hazel, ran over locking the doors. I doubt they would hold.

Now that the noises in the saloon had died down, I could hear the sound of swords clashing, gunfire, and screaming coming from outside.

Fuck! Pirates? Now? Of course! Just my damned luck! I don’t have anything on me to defend myself, just my satchel. I could see the pirates out the windows of the saloon. A mass of different creatures holding torches, swords, and guns were running amok. Shit. This is real. Not even a week into my journey and I run into pirates.

I couldn’t go outside, not now, so I elected to hide behind the bar, but as I was doing so, I heard the sound of the front doors being being blown off its hinges as group of creatures with sword rushed inside. I made it over the the counter top, but landed hard on my back, knocking the air out of myself. I slowly got up, but as I did so, another blast went off right next to my head as the bartender shot off the blunderbuss, deafening and disorienting me. I again fell to the floor, and then so did another body as well as a shower of glass and red. It was the bartender, his face gone.

I was too frozen with fear to scream or shout, or even move as I stared at the body. My hearing was still shot, but I could hear muffled talking and laughing, as well as screaming and yelling. Then more gun shots. They were executing people. I needed to get out of here, right fucking now. I shook my head and tried to ground myself. Come on, Mav! MOVE!

As I lifted myself up, I cut my talon from the glass hissing in pain. As I reeled back, I felt something tap me on the top of the head. As I slowly looked up with dread, I saw a metal cylinder pointed right between my eyes.

There was a gun pointed at my head.

Shit.

Author's Note

Hello guys, sorry it’s been a while, I was taking a nap.

Anyway, I hope you guys liked this chapter, I’ll try to get more out soon!

Friction and Hearbreak

*Two months after Maverick left Canterlot*

Ever since dear Maverick left about two months prior, my sister has been sending letters to him asking for forgiveness. Maverick hasn’t given a correspondence back yet, to which I believe he won’t be doing any time soon. Not that I told my dearest sister this as she is still faithful in making amends, but despite this “positive” attitude, I can see it wearing her down. She hasn’t done her makeup for a while now, and she seems distracted every time anypony tries to speak with her. As if her mind is elsewhere, which it is. But that wasn't all.

After Maverick left, we had a discussion about her actions, actions that were out of her character. During our talk, I took notice of... something. I wasn't sure what it was, but there was... something that my sister's eyes held. Something I couldn't describe. It gave me a strange, instinctual feeling; she still isn't telling the whole truth about why she kept everything from dear Maverick. Not to mention there’s been something amiss about her lately as well since then, but I just don’t know what it is. It will make itself known eventually, when she is ready, so I'll let her keep her secrets. For now.

What I won’t allow her to do is hide what she had done to Maverick. After our discussion, I had told her that she needed to make an apology to not only Maverick, but to everypony involved in this whole debacle. And to also make it known to her student as well. “Cover it in a friendship lesson if you have to, but tell her of your mistake,” I told her. We also discussed how I will no longer be left out of personal projects and that anything opened or closed with SAM-D will take both of us to action. Although I doubt anything like this will ever happen again, it would be wise to make preparations for future events. She agreed.

Today, though, I wanted to see my sister again. This time, just to have a morning tea with her before I make my way to my bed. It has been a busy few days, so I was looking forward to having some quality time with her. To make up for lost time. As I neared her chambers, I saw that her two sentinels looked like they were trying to talk through my sister's door. I trotted up to them hastily. "Sentinels, is there something wrong?" I say. At my presence, they stood rigid; one of them spoke up. "Your Majesty, there seems to be a ruckus in Princess Celestia's royal chambers. We heard yelling and things being destroyed. There's something blocking the door and we can't get in there. She also isn't responding to us. We are unsure what is going on." The sentinel seemed to be a bit spooked. I narrowed my eyes.

"Your job is to ensure Princess Celestia's safety. My sister's safety. Why haven't you blown the hinges off? Step aside, I shall ensure of her safety for you, sentinel." The Royal Guard is not like it was back then, that's for sure. "Y-yes, Princess Luna." The sentinels stood back as I readied a spell and discharged it at the door, turning it, along with the dresser blocking us from entry, into woodchips.

"Sister! We are here to save you! What has happened!?" As I entered the room, I immediately saw chaos and broken furniture. Dressers and drawers were broken and their contents littered the ground. The beautiful pictures that were hanging on the walls were nothing more than broken frames and ashes. Her bed was flipped and her pillows were torn apart. The stone walls themselves had cracks and scorch marks. It was a mess. "Sister? Where is thee...?" As I scanned the dark room, my voice drifted off as I saw a dark figure in the corner of the room, quivering and crying. She was in bad shape. Her form was sweaty, dirty, and full of cuts and scrapes.

"Sister? Are you okay?" I ask as I made my way to her fetal form. She didn't answer, instead she wrapped her hooves around me as I knelt down to her. She continued to cry, her tears staining my coat. I hadn't known what happened, but I was here for her and I always will be. "Shh... It's okay, Tia, just let it out." I repeated the mantra as she cried harder. I heard the sound of somepony walking over the broken door pieces; it was the sentinels making their way in, albeit they did so reluctantly. I used my hoof to shoo their useless flanks away.

Through her crying, my sister finally said something to me.

"W-why did we do it, Luna? W-why d-did I do this? I-I should have l-left it alone, but I-I didn't," she gasped through her tears, "why did we do this!?" Celestia cried, looking into my eyes. She was more than a broken mess--she was utterly destroyed. The hairs on my coat rise and I felt goosebumps on my body. "What? What do you mean, Tia? Do what?" She held onto me tighter. She leaned into my ear as she whispered to me.

"Friction, Luna. FRICTION."

At first I was confused. Friction? What friction? But as I thought about it, it dawned on me. Friction. Friction between worlds. The danger of it all. Oh no. Oh gods no.

"Sister, you don't mean..." I couldn't finish my sentence as she gave me a tearful nod.

My pupils shrunk into pinpricks. That's why she kept it from him. That's why she ghosted Maverick. Why she lied to him. Oh dear gods, no...

"...D-dear sister, why didn't you tell me this sooner?" I say, slightly shivering myself. How could I tell Maverick? How could I tell him that... his.... his... I shut my eyes, tears forming in them as well.

I understood now. I understood why she couldn't tell him. I don't even think I can. No, I know I can't. She has kept this to herself for so long now, it just finally hit a breaking point now. She was trying to protect him. I can't tell him, it would destroy him. Dear gods... please forgive me, Maverick.

Please.

*Seven months after Maverick left Canterlot and three days after finishing the Cabin Cruiser*

Rainbow was very excited to show me something she did to the Cabin Cruiser, leading me to the site with a blindfold on. After we finished the build, she told me that she needed to do some final touches to it and to not go the cruiser until she went and got me. I obeyed her and stayed home, though I was quite anxious that I couldn't fly my cruiser right away. I figured that she was painting on the name she thought of, to which I was also excited to finally see. I was hoping it would be a good name, but I trusted Rainbow. If there's one thing she's good at, its being awesome. Either way, even if I didn't like it, I was gonna keep it.

"Alright, Mav, almost there. Oh man! I can't wait for you to see it!" Rainbow flew above me, guiding my head with her hooves. Why is she so weird. "Yeah, I can't wait either. Mostly because I want to take this blindfold off." I gave a smirk as I teased her. "Oh har har. Alright, here we are. On the count of three, go ahead and take it off." She let go of me as she flew to somewhere in front of me.

"One... two... three!" With that I took off my blindfold. My eyes took a second to adjust, but when they did, I saw what she named it.

Free Spirit was written on the side of it in a fancy font. Not a bad name at all.

"I decided that her name is gonna be Free Spirit! I think it fits with this whole thing about exploring and being able to be free. Hope its not too cheesy." Rainbow looked at the ground with a sheepish smile and a hoof behind her neck. I studied the name for a moment longer before trotting up to her and giving her a large bear hug. "I think its a great name, Dash! It fits perfectly. Thank you." Her cheeks turned slightly red as it contrasted with her blue coat. "Uh... haha, yeah. I know, I'm awesome." I ended the hug and looked towards the ship again. She was finally ready. I felt a gust of air as Rainbow flew above me to the deck of the ship and looked down at me.

"Well? What are you waiting for? Lets go take her for a spin!" She disappeared, presumably to the cockpit of the cruiser. Sorry, of the Free Spirit. Might as well make it habit to say her name now. Anyway, I followed up, making it to the cockpit. Already, I saw Rainbow at the console trying to start her up. I just laughed. "You gotta turn on the master power switch before anything else. Its the lever right there. Yeah that one." Rainbow flipped the master power switch and the console lit up with some buttons highlighting different things as it went through a power cycle. After a few seconds, some warning lights and gauge lights turned on.

"Awesome, what next?" She asked, not even trying to hold in her excitement. "Alright, we gotta make sure all the fluids in the ship are primed, so go ahead and turn that dial to run. Yep just like that." As I explained how to turn on the ship, I walked up next to her. After a moment, the gauges and warning lights turned off. Good. "Next, after all the warning lights have shut off and the gauges are reading good numbers, go ahead and prime the ignition. It'll be a series of sets to get it going. First hit the first switch--yup right there." With a flick, the first switch was flipped and a loud turbine could be heard turn on. Excellent, all is going good. "Go ahead and hit the next switch--do it in sequence with about five seconds a part with each switch. There's four of them." Rainbow listened attentively and flipped all the switches. Everything was working smoothly. Thank God.

"Okay, Rainbow. Last thing. You ready?" I ask with a smirk. She smirked back at me. "I was born ready, lets friggin' do it!" With that, we pushed the helium inflation system button together and the ship made a loud groaning sound before a loud rumble sounded. As the balloon began to fill, a gauge showed how much was in the balloon. As it made its way to a steady one-hundred, we began to lift off the ground. Its finally happening. All those of months of work, putting this thing together with my own blood, sweat, and tears--and with Rainbow's help--its finally in the sky. I was ecstatic.

I glanced over to Rainbow, who happened to look to me as well. A large smile was plastered on her face. "Its working, Mav. Its actually working!" She went in for a bear hug of her own, lifting me up somehow, and crushing my ribs. "Yup! A-all thanks to your h-help, Rainbow!" I said between breathes. She set me down and gave a confuse look. "All thanks to me? Mav, I barely did anything. YOU did all the work." I gave a nod. "Well, I did all the super complicated things, but without your help, I'd still be fixing things inside the ship. Hell, you even gave it a better name than what I was thinking. This couldn't have been done this quickly and this well without you, Dash." I gave her an honest smile as she stared up at me with flushed cheeks. I think mine were too to be honest. We sat in silence for a moment before her face lost its redness and her expression turned serious.

"I want to go with you." It wasn't a question, but more of a demand. I sighed, way to ruin the moment, Rainbow. "Rainbo--" I was immediately cutoff.

"Before you say anything... yes. I know what I will be leaving behind. I love my friends, I don't really like my job, but I do enjoy my time here. And I don't want to give up my dream in becoming a Wonderbolt... but I want to go with you. I want to explore the world with you, Mav." Her voice was quiet, different from her usual brusque attitude. She was serious. Dead serious. Rainbow... dammit. I had a feeling she was going to do this. Don't get me wrong, I love being in her company--she's my best friend in this world... but her life is established here. I can't just whisk her away, I can't let her just dump her dreams. She's on track to be a Wonderbolt for Christ's sake. Hell, she's the Element of Loyalty! I can't take her away. What if they need her?

I took a moment to think before saying anything brash. I gave another sigh, "Rainbow. I want you to go with me too. I'd love for you to be in my company..." I hesitated. She looked to the ground. "But?" She asked.

"...But, you can't. I know you're willing to drop everything to go with me... but you're too important." I say. She didn't say anything, so I continued. "You're a hero here, Dash. THE Element of Loyalty. If you went with me, what would happen if Equestria needed you?" She immediately retorted. "They'd figure it out! I believe in my friends, they are resourceful and capable. They could... they could find another way to save Equestria." Her words seemed to hurt her as she said it.

"Not only that, what about your dream about becoming a Wonderbolt?" She tried to say something, but I kept going. "You just said you don't want to give that dream up! I don't want to take that from you! You even told me that they are scouting you right now. And your friends... they love you too. You're the Element of Loyalty, what would everyone say if you just left? For your sake and reputation, you can't go Rainbow. Your friends... they need you. Equestria needs you!" I say.

"Well, I need you!" Rainbow yelled in response. I froze. She froze too. What? She closed her eyes for a moment, before gulping and meeting my gaze again. "I need you, Mav. Don't my needs matter too? I might have not known you as long as my other friends, but you... we get along so well. Its like you're a piece of me that I finally found. Somepony I can get along with and you understand me. I mean, I've told you things that no pony else knows. I feel like I can be myself around you. You mean... you mean a lot to me." For the first time since I've known her, I saw Rainbow Dash cry. I didn't know she felt this way. I couldn't help but slowly tear up a bit myself. A large part of me wanted to say fuck it and let her go with me, but the small, more logical part of me knew that I'd be taking someone who was a key person for the peace in this land. The embodiment of life or death. I can't take her. I want to, but I can't.

My heart began to hurt. Not like when I found out I couldn't go home, but like something else. I could only stare at Rainbow. Her face began to tense up. "Well? What do you say?" She asked. Fuck. Fuck fuck fuck.

I slowly walked up to her and put my claw up to her face. She looked up to me, meeting my eyes. I closed them out of shame of what I was going to say. "Rainbow. Your needs are important too. And you are my best friend. Maybe... even more... but I can't. I'm so sorry, Dash, but I can't let you come with me." I said the last part quietly. She didn't say anything, for a long time.

"...O...Okay." She said quietly. She turned to leave. "Wait--Rainbow..." I went to stop her but she moved away. "I need to be alone for a while, Mav. I'll see you later." With that, she left the cockpit and flew away. It was just me, myself, and the Free Spirit now. I could only sigh. Its for the best. She might hate me right now, but she's just too important. Important to her friends, to Equestria... to me.

She's just too important to me.

Author's Note

*Preview of Next Chapter Name: Adventure Time!*

Hey guys, sorry for the drama in this one. I know, I know, I should probably change the genres around. I do think this will be an important step for the next chapter: Adventure Time! Be ready for the fun stuff to come.

Hope this was a good one for y'all! Don't hate me too much now. I can feel your gazes :,)

Also, I did have another name for the ship, but I saw a comment that suggested "Free Spirit," and I thought it was better. So thanks for the name @AstralFlare42!