Maiden Voyage

by Reviewfilly

Rating: teen
Tags: Violence, Princess Celestia, Death, Original Character, My Little Pony: Friendship is Magic, Dark, Tragedy, Windigos
Length: 16110

Standing on the brink of war, Equestria gambled her fortune to build a machine that could end the conflict before it even began. During the ship's maiden voyage, however, a force nopony could have reckoned with intervened.

Just shy of two decades before the return of Nightmare Moon, Princess Celestia received an ultimatum from the Griffon Kingdom's recently ascended heir: Concede a part of Equestria, or prepare for war.

The Princess chose neither, instead ordering her engineers to create a craft great enough to terrify the griffons and put an end to the war before it could have even begun. Two years after her order, Equestria had constructed its greatest airship yet, the Lux Aeterna.

With no time to spare, the craft was sent on its way almost immediately after its construction was finished, carrying with it five hundred esteemed guests and nearly a hundred crewponies. However, such a massive endeavour piqued the interest of not just the griffons', but also of an ancient presence nopony could foresee, let alone contend with...

(Release schedule: 2 chapters / day.)

Edited by Jinxed and Equimorto.

Loosely based on Iron Maiden's Empire of the Clouds.

Published 2024-01-10 21:10:00 UTC
Last updated 2024-01-14 21:12:51 UTC

T+17 years

Canterlot Royal Cemetery sat mostly out of place, far from the beating hearts of the city’s main boulevards and squares. Its tall iron fences hid a well-groomed garden behind, housing long cobblestone paths lined with benches, lonesome trees, and rows upon rows of orderly headstones, commemorating lives long, short, and in-between.

Few ponies visited the garden, despite its haunting beauty, mostly just those who had reason to come, so it served as a perfect retreat to those who wished for reprieve from the chaos of the city. Twilight did not visit often, she much preferred the solitude of her tower to ponder over the questions posed by her teacher. But today was different, she was done with her tests for a while and she was free for once. She figured that before she carefully dipped her hooves back into social life, she would wind down with one last peaceful trot through the cemetery.

She arrived early in the morning in front of the great double gates of the resting grounds, which she opened with utmost care to remain silent. As with everything else, they too were kept in good shape and often oiled, but Twilight, being both a veteran of libraries despite her young age and somepony who considered herself a pony of decency, did not want to risk disturbing the peace of the other visitors.

As she made her way down the main trail, she decided on a whim to take one of the side-paths she had never visited before. Her eyes passed over the graves next to her. Most headstones looked the same; rectangular blocks of marble, with the ponies' dates of birth and death, names, and finally the symbol of the Sun engraved on them. Occasionally the oldest families of the city requested tombstones that featured the Sun and the Moon together, but the reason for this practice was lost to time even to the families themselves.

So when Twilight quickly noticed a massive curving wooden arch enshrined into an even larger stone plinth, it took her by surprise. The solid beam towered high above her, its end intricately carved into an alicorn flaring a singular wing—the other having seemingly been torn off—whilst reaching upwards. The statue was battered, like it was dragged through the ground, much of the alicorn’s body was missing its paintwork and its horn ended in a slanted edge where its end had chipped off. Twilight glanced up with her mouth hanging open, slowly scanning the structure from the peak down to the bottom. It became a great deal darker as it approached the base, as if it was speckled with layers of dark mould or dust, or perhaps even burned. Twilight leaned a little closer to inspect the spot, though before she could get a better look, a voice gave her pause.

"Hello, Twilight. I did not expect to meet you here."

The voice was unmistakable. Twilight immediately spun around and threw herself into an awkward bow. "Princess! I... I could say the same thing!" she stammered.

"Twilight, I have told you plenty of times, I prefer to look my ponies in their eyes. Please stand up." Celestia smiled with a tiny, bemused chuckle, but her eyes remained distant as she continued to stare at the towering beam and its sculpture. "Tell me, do you know the origin of this beautiful carving?" she asked, not looking at her.

Twilight stared at the wooden alicorn again, wracking her brain as hard as she could. "No, Princess," she finally admitted. "Nothing comes to my mind."

"I see. I suppose you couldn't have been more than a yearling at the time." Celestia nodded to herself. "Have you ever been aboard an airship?"

Twilight was slightly taken aback by the seemingly non-sequitur question. "I think so? Once or twice. I prefer hot air balloons, honestly. You can steer them all alone."

Celestia snorted again, this time with no humour. "I see you're still not too keen on socialising. But the reason I was asking is because what you see in front of you is the former figurehead and part of the hull of the Lux Aeterna."

"'Eternal Light'," Twilight mumbled, as she reflexively translated the Old-Ponish name in her head.

"Correct, my little pony, it was the name of the biggest airship ever built in Equestria." Celestia's paper thin smile began to waver. "They built it in my name. It could carry five hundred passengers, plus eighty more ponies as crew, along with all the cargo necessary for a pleasant journey with no need or want."

Twilight listened to her teacher's words with open awe. "It must be an engineering marvel," she said.

"It was."

Twilight blinked. "So... Where is it now?"

"Twilight," Celestia said quietly and slowly. "Where do you think we are?" She nodded towards the base of the monument.

So far Twilight's attention was fully taken by the figurehead, so she hadn't even noticed that the plinth below held an engraved plaque as well. "Four-hundred and eighty-two," she read with growing dread. "No..."

"I'm afraid your assumption is correct, Twilight." Celestia turned to the side. "Please walk with me." Twilight silently followed and the duo began to make their way towards the gate.

"As you have correctly ascertained, the Lux Aeterna was unique amongst its kind, created for a very specific task." Celestia's face darkened as she spoke. "At the time there was a bit of a diplomatic issue with the neighbouring Griffon Kingdom. A border dispute, if you will. A few frontier towns in Equestria, high in our mountains where mostly only pegasi can live, were claimed by the griffons, as the rightful soil of King Grover's heirs." She scoffed. "It was a pile of rocks without any real worth or value, that I would have been happy to part ways with for favourable deals elsewhere, if not for my subjects."

"Couldn't you have asked them to move? You're the Princess!" Twilight asked with a little indignation in her voice, but the side-glance Celestia cast towards her made any further comments die in her throat.

"You see, Twilight, I might rule Equestria, but I do not rule my ponies' hearts and minds. Pegasi have lived in those ranges ever since the era of Unification. Asking them to move would be to them as if I asked you to raze Canterlot and salt its ruins." Twilight frowned at the analogy and nodded. "So now you might understand that I had to be very careful. Not only did I need to preserve my ponies' best interests, I had to be especially wise about the choice I was to make. The Kingdom's heir had recently risen to the throne and he wanted to prove his worth to his subjects; an outright denial of his demands could have resulted in very ugly outcomes."

The two reached the main route towards the entrance, drawing surprised glances from the others passing by. Twilight said nothing as the princess slowed down or stopped at some of the graves, one question brewing in her mind.

"Princess," she finally said. "What does the airship have to do with a border dispute?"

"Astute as always, Twilight. Throughout my centuries of reign, one thing was always the same about the griffons. They loved war and expansion, yes, but what they loved even more was opulence and spectacle. Since I care very little for the former, I decided to appease them using the latter. I ordered my engineers to create an airship that would awe an entire nation. My intentions were entirely peaceful, naturally, but I had to project some measure of power."

Twilight stared at her with wide-eyes. "You wanted to show that Equestria could defend itself without shedding any blood!" she said almost too loudly.

"Yes," Celestia replied wistfully. "If only it had worked. I remember the day vividly, it was very similar to this one," she began, her words transporting the duo into the past.

T-2 weeks

The Lux Aeterna stood finished in the Central Canterlot Dry Docks after nearly two years of construction. It was the biggest airship ever created by Equestrian engineers. Even though it was docked as deep as possible, its bowsprit poked out from the building. No expenses were spared for the creation of this wondrous craft after all, including heavy-duty crystal lamps placed all across its tan envelope, enchanted by powerful unicorn magic to be able to pierce the darkest of nights. Standing on the gangway and staring down the giant, Celestia nodded approvingly, allowing unashamed smiles of pride on the muzzles of a few nearby supervisors.

The craft’s financing had taken considerable budget cuts and Celestia was certain the backlash would be hers to bear later, but so long as the plan worked, everything would be fine. In total the project gave work to over two thousand ponies of all three races. Earth ponies providing raw strength to transport and weld materials, pegasi serving as the logistical backbone for delivering wares and tools all over the gigantic frame of the ship, and finally unicorns pouring weeks’ worth of magic into crystal batteries that would power the rotors of the vehicle.

Everything about the operation had gone smoothly. Everything, except the time-frame. The Griffon King made it clear that if Celestia wished to parley, then he would not wait for more than a year, and even unofficial back-channel concessions could hardly bring him to wait another. Though she didn’t want to admit it even to herself, war was on their doorstep and everypony was feeling it. The end of construction swept over not only the brigades, but all of Canterlot as a sigh of relief.

Yet this was not the end of their woes. Not even a week passed and a letter was placed in front of the princess, in which the king demanded the airship’s immediate departure towards the Griffonlands. Posturing, likely, Celestia thought, or perhaps he’s simply anxious to see just what we are capable of. Either way, the message was clear: There would be no more extensions, no more cordial letters, and no more patience. Equestria was to send her minister of war posthaste either on hooves to receive the declaration or on the Lux Aeterna to sue for more favourable terms.

“Are you certain it is safe enough to fly?” Celestia turned to chief-engineer, Heavy Wrench.

The addressed pony wiped her brow with a dirty rag before throwing her soot-covered green hoof into a salute. “Absolutely positive, Your Highness. We worked tirelessly day and night to make sure everything was as safe as possible. The chance of catastrophic structural collapse, ehm, that is to say to crash is one in a million,” she said with a beaming smile.

Celestia nodded. “Good, I myself intend to lead the diplomatic party.” As she expected, the earth pony immediately began to silently stammer and mutter. This is where the truth would rear its ugly head. “Is there a problem, my little pony?”

“Your Highness, the craft has not been tested, I cannot guarantee your safety!” she protested loudly.

“You said ‘one in a million’.”

“Well yes, but...”

“That means it would take extremely unusual circumstances for anything terrible to happen, correct? You made sure of it during construction, didn’t you?”

“Yes, Highness, still...”

“Well, then I hope accommodating me will not interfere much with upholding that promise.”

“As you wish, Your Highness,” Wrench relented.

Celestia sensed she still needed something to butter up the deal so that Wrench didn’t feel so apprehensive right up until the journey was underway. She draped a wing over her little pony, using the other to sweep over the hull of the ship in front of them. “I’m certain your name will be known for generations to come if we pull this off. I certainly shan’t forget it anytime soon,” she added with a wink.

That did it. Wrench positively shone from pride and happiness. “Thank you so much, Your Highness! You’re too kind! I’ll go and, uh, make some final preparations now!” she added quickly before excusing herself and rushing off... only not towards the ship, but rather the crews’ quarters. Celestia just smirked. She supposed Wrench had plenty to talk about with the others.

T-17:00:00

It never ceased to amuse Celestia how easy it was to gather extra dignitaries beyond the core crew who were actually necessary to broker peace. But then, it was hard to blame them. A fully-paid luxury trip to a foreign country, a chance to rub shoulders with the princess herself, and save Equestria without actually doing anything? What noble wouldn't do anything shy of throwing themselves off Mount Canterlot for an opportunity like that?

Celestia didn't bother to read the names she was presented with, approving the list as-is. She was known for scrutiny, but in this case she knew the choices ultimately didn't matter much and her mind was entirely occupied with the details of the peace plan. While the Lux Aeterna might cow the griffons temporarily upon her arrival, she still needed something more binding than a verbal agreement that the two countries would not unleash Tartarus on each other. A war would've been suicidal, especially when She would return within only a couple decades.

Days passed in a blur and she soon found herself on the steps leading into the cabins, shaking hooves with the names she hadn’t bothered to check. Truth be told, she found herself reassured; whilst she knew who each individual pony was, she also realised she didn't miss too much on not personally following up on them. As much as she cared about them, in this mission they were set dressing and mostly unimportant. The only ponies her eyes and hooves gained a measure of glint and enthusiasm for were the ministers she had personally picked.

She was about to greet one of them, when another pony butted in front with such ease as if cutting in line were his prerogative. "Greetings, Your Majesty!" the snow-white stallion addressed her without missing a beat. Celestia answered his perfect, charming smile with a polite and slightly cold nod of her head. In return he glanced proudly towards a mare and a small colt next to him, causing his immaculate, hay-coloured locks to flutter in the wind. "These are my wife and colt, they shall be accompanying me on the journey."

"I welcome you, Count Blueblood," Celestia answered mechanically. "Countess, and little?"

"Prince Blueblood!" the colt answered with a fierce smile. "One day I'll rule Equestria!"

Celestia was about to forget the count's insolence and pet the little ‘prince’ on his head, when his father's smile froze on his lips and he quickly ushered his family inside with a grim look on his face. Celestia automatically tuned out the myriad of apologies he muttered with an imperceptible roll of her eyes as the Bluebloods quickly disappeared into the woodwork. Though she was ageless, seeing her ponies act like sycophants who couldn't even imagine her as anything but a perfect, humourless figurehead that couldn't find a colt like him amusing made her feel centuries older than she really was.

The rest of the reception was uneventful and, soon enough, everything was ready. It took the nearly-hundred crewponies almost eight hours to pack all of the cargo. In the meantime Celestia climbed down into the gondola, where the captain was already waiting for her. The gondola was a surprisingly spacious room compared to what she was used to, but then everything about the Lux Aeterna was far greater than what could be found on any airship before. The farthest wall from the door was a massive curved pane of glass, allowing the crew to see outside. Various gauges and instruments lined the other walls, measuring various things from air humidity to magical background radiation that could interfere with the engines.

As she entered the room the six ponies posted in front of the various devices neatly threw salutes towards her, but only one of them made his way towards her whilst the rest immediately returned to their stations. The old stallion gave Celestia a light bow whilst taking his beaten naval cap off, before gesturing for her to move deeper inside the room. In the olden days the mark of a red balloon on his navy blue coat had made him assume he would be best at creating balloon animals, until he once rode in a balloon and everything suddenly clicked. Since then he'd slowly climbed the ranks until he was known as Blue Sky, First Captain of the Royal Guard's aeronautical branch.

"Your Highness, we are almost ready to depart..." he began, though before he could continue the door flew open and an orange unicorn mare—Sky's long-time crewmate and steerspony, Steady Hooves—hurried down into the room, carrying a bunch of papers in her magic.

"Oh! Your Highness,"—she addressed Celestia with a haphazard bow, before immediately turning back to Blue Sky and passing over the papers to him—"Captain, I have finished gathering the reports," she said with such speed that it made Celestia wonder how she didn't trip up on her own tongue.

Blue Sky placed his hat back on his head. "Well then, Steady, what's our status?"

"All passengers and cargo on board. Crew's at their stations, awaiting orders." Steady suddenly stopped and nervously cleared her throat, glancing towards Celestia. Her tail twitched. "Engineering reports that the ship is over-encumbered. They cannot guarantee a safe takeoff like this."

Blue Sky sighed and raised his eyes towards the ceiling. "Heavy Wrench swore on the Sun and the Moon that the ship would still be within limits, even if all cargo magically became twice as heavy as accounted for, but apparently that was just a wishful estimate," he said drily, whilst massaging his temple with a hoof. A few seconds of silence later he shrugged and looked at the mare again. "Tell the crew to start throwing out cargo from the front until we're buoyant enough."

"But Captain, this is nobility—"

Celestia raised a hoof to silence her. "It's fine, Steady. The Crown will insure all packages left behind. The ship should still have more than enough supplies for everypony, isn't that right, Sky?"

He nodded. "Yes, Highness, we have stockpiled two and a half times as much food as strictly necessary, as per your instructions."

"Excellent," Celestia said with a smile. "It is up to your more than capable hooves, then, Steady."

"R-right! At once, Highness!" Steady yelped, darting out of the room just as quickly as she'd entered.

Sky smiled and shook his head. "Feisty that one," he said with a chuckle. "But I couldn't ask for a better coxswain." He then cleared his throat and the smile washed off his face. "Forgive my imprudence, Highness, but I would like to ask you to return back to the deck now. As soon as we have solved our little... weight-problem, we shall be taking off and that requires utmost concentration from everypony in this room."

Celestia nodded. "Don't apologise for wanting to do a good job, Sky. I place myself in your care."

T-15:00:00

Celestia entered her quarters, situated right next to the staircase leading into the gondola and farthest from the engines. All things considered, it was a fairly pleasant room, nothing even royalty could scoff at. Next to the wall opposite to the door was a great, cushioned bed, easily big enough to allow two alicorn-sized ponies to rest comfortably, let alone just the princess herself. In the corner next to it stood a mahogany table and chair, parchment, ink and quills already prepared for work. An oil painting of Mount and Castle Canterlot hung on the wall next to the door, along with another depicting a fight between the Royal Guard and creatures of the Everfree forest. A very supple carpet covered the floor, on it an intricate pastoral scene of ponies playfully chasing each other. Finally, to let in some light and allow her to take a peek outside, a big window sat between the bed and the desk.

Celestia trotted to the window and looked outside, spotting two distinct groups below. One of them were the loitering crowds surrounding the ship, lured in by the news of “the Sun Princess taking to the sky on a giant.” Ponies of both noble and common origin gawked and pointed at the beast that was the Lux Aeterna as one, their differences forgotten in the presence of such a monumental sight. Celestia smiled, even if she couldn’t hear what they were saying. It didn’t take her wisdom to see that at least on this side of the globe the airship was already achieving its intended effect.

The other group, like small ants, were still scurrying to and from the craft and making final preparations to allow the ship to depart. Celestia saw a quickly-growing pile of luggage on the dock, which she acknowledged with an annoyed shake of her head. First they couldn’t test the ship, then it didn’t entirely fit its parameters. Bad omens. Had the situation not been so dire, Celestia would have liked to spend a few extra months making sure everything was okay. But...

At that moment somepony knocked on the door, interrupting her thoughts.

“Come in,” she answered without missing a beat, and the door opened.

Sky stepped inside, holding his hat in his hooves. “We are just about ready and waiting on your command, Highness,” he said with equal parts solemnity and reverence.

Even if she was really just a passenger with no active role in the flight, it was Celestia’s regal word that would elevate the ship from the ground and the old captain was not one to ignore the grandeur of such a ritual.

Celestia nodded and said the words, “You are free to take off, Captain Sky. May Harmony grant us a safe and speedy voyage.”

“Understood, Your Highness. We shall depart within a half hour. The passengers shall convene in one hour in the main hall for your address following. May Harmony grant us a safe and speedy voyage,” he echoed before ducking out.

Right, the address, Celestia thought with a groan. The part of the day she was the least looking forward to. Even less so than the future prospect of listening to the nobles bemoan everypony from the crew to the engineers about how their packages were thrown out whilst trying to earn her sympathy. She was certain they would still complain about it incessantly, even though they were clearly told to pack lightly and only bring essentials, and even though all packages would be guarded closely and returned untouched upon their arrival. With an exasperated sigh, she sat down at her desk and unfurled a scroll already placed on the table.

She re-read the speech a few times, memorising it with ease. It was nothing she hadn’t already said a hundred times in other speeches before. Overly drawn out and roundabout thoughts about how happy she felt to be in such an esteemed audience, how these nobles would be key in saving Equestria, and how the Lux Aeterna would serve Equestria’s enduring peace and prosperity. None of them lies, but each a distortion of the truth.

After all, it was true that she was happy to be in their company, but she would’ve been just as happy, if not happier to mingle with commoners. Even though their presence really was the key in saving Equestria, the actual politicking was going to be done by a select few ponies who were chosen partly for the very reason that they were loyal enough to do their job perfectly without requiring so much as a ‘thank you’. As well as that, whilst the ship’s purpose truly was to keep peace in Equestria, it would accomplish this task quite differently than how many of its passengers likely thought. Celestia abhorred the very idea of weaponising the craft, a notion popular with the more sabre-rattling side of her court.

Still, the machine was set in motion and she had to be one, if not the most important cog in it. When it came to nobility, posturing could not be avoided, so complaining about it was just as pointless as the event itself. The part that actually mattered the most was what followed. After her public speech, she and her chosen would disappear back into this room to discuss their actual strategy. That was where peace between pony and griffonkind would live or die.

A couple dozen minutes later, when she was at her tenth re-read, rapping on the table trying to decide whether a certain way of addressing her nobles was ‘regal’ enough or not, she felt a sudden lurch as the ship’s monstrously big magitech engine finally kicked into life. Stepping away from the desk she peered outside the window, the crowd below seeming even greater than before. With an impish smile she unlatched the windowpane and opened it, so that she could slightly lean outside. Immediately hooves began to point at her, as ponies of all ages and standing cheered and waved at their princess.

Despite the claims of vile tongues, Celestia had never been doing it for the adoration. She was immortal and over hundreds of years, fame, fortune, and love had all already accrued naturally. At this point in her life, none of it mattered too greatly. But, as she scanned the crowd and saw their smiles and glimmering eyes, the real reason was more obvious than ever; she wanted to protect what she saw below.

Behind her the Lux Aeterna quietly groaned and creaked as rotors roared into life, flares ignited, and the until-then stationary giant slowly began to move. The movement was almost imperceptible at first, as the engine had to fight off a truly incomprehensible amount of inertia. However, slowly but surely magic won over matter and the ship began to back off from the mast. This made the crowds below even more excited and loud.

Speech and paper forgotten, Celestia spent the next few minutes simply waving and smiling at the ponies below. For her it was a simple act of kindness. For them, it was a story to tell their grandfoals and their grandfoals’ grandfoals. Customs demanded that she spend her entire time practising for the speech, but granting her subjects these priceless moments came at such a negligible cost to herself that she would be selfishly remiss not to give them such long-lasting happiness.

She smiled and waved for so long that it took the aide dispatched to gather her three stern series of knocks to finally grab her attention. “Your Highness, the passengers have assembled and are awaiting your speech,” she heard from the other side of the door.

Celestia sheepishly pulled herself back from the window, before replying a little more flustered than usual, “Thank you! I’ll be there momentarily.”

T-14:00:00

By the time Celestia entered the main hall it was already full of ponies chatting and complaining loudly about their misplaced luggage. The hall was an opulent chamber, its several-metre tall hardwood walls and chequered marble floor would have made anypony forget they weren’t hosted in a palace on the ground, if not for the great windows peering into the rapidly shrinking landscape below.

Ready and waiting for her at the end of the chamber was a small elevated podium. She made her way through the crowd, nodding politely towards all of the praise, greetings, and quiet grumbling she received from both sides of herself. As she reached the top of the structure, a pregnant silence filled the room. The crowd settled and she finally took a good look at them. Horned and hornless heads peered back at her with not a wing in sight. This was by design. Until now, an unsaid yet obvious advantage of the Griffon Kingdom was that only a third of Equestria could be effectively mobilised in direct one-to-one combat against them if push came to shove. Now, however, with only a few machines like the Lux Aeterna the combined Royal Guard could march upon Griffonstone. Or at the very least, that was the idea Celestia wished to insinuate.

Her horn shone briefly as she cleared her throat, allowing her magic to amplify her voice loud enough so that even the end of the great chamber could comfortably listen.

“Esteemed Fillies and Gentlecolts, I greet you on this voyage towards our neighbours, the Griffon Kingdom, and thank you for taking the time to grace me with your presence. It brings me great joy and honour to be here with you...” Celestia wasn’t listening to her own speech, as she spoke. It was unbecoming of her to care about the drivel. No, she was instead combing through the crowd, trying to make eye contact with the ponies actually important to the mission. Her gaze also crossed with the Blueblood family. The count still seemed slighted, whilst his son, the little lord-that-would-be-prince, waved towards her with a bright smile on his face. She almost waved back, only to realise she was still in the middle of the same boring speech. With a heavy mental sigh, her gaze continued to scan the crowd. “...with this in mind, I thank you all for your kind cooperation in these troubling times. You, and you alone, are saving Equestria, the fate of the nation is in your hooves. Now please, enjoy the trip. We shall arrive in Griffonstone in a little more than a day from now. The crew will cater to each and every one of your needs to the best of their abilities. Thank you.”

With her part of the charade done, she stepped down amidst the deafening thuds of almost a thousand hooves rhythmically stomping against the floor. Their carriage-related annoyances forgotten, glasses were raised towards her. “To Her Majesty’s good health, to Equestria, and to avoid that one in a million chance!” somepony shouted, the cheer followed by loud laughter and even more stomping.

On the way out she once again excused herself from a hundred invitations to sit with noble families trying to elevate their standings, hoping the dinner served right after the speech would take attention away from her. Exuberant chatter filled the room behind her, but all she cared about was leaving as soon as it wasn’t too impolite to do so.

As soon as the door was closed behind her, she exhaled a breath she hadn’t realised she’d been holding in. She closed her eyes and inhaled, letting her shoulders drop and wings relax.

“Tough crowd, Highness?” a familiar voice called out to her. She opened her eyes to see Blue Sky standing in front of her with a knowing, fatherly smile on his face. “I was just about to head off to sleep, however, it’s not often you see the Princess of Equestria so much more tired than you are.”

“On the contrary, Captain,” she replied with a soft sigh. “The problem is that you can say anything to them as long as it’s flattering enough.”

“Heavy is an honest heart, that’s what my wife always says.” Sky nodded along in sympathy. “You know I really wish she could have accompanied us, it’s not every day you pilot a machine like this,” he continued on with a wide smile as he looked around. “You almost forget you’re sitting on a hundred tons of metal.”

“Indeed,” Celestia said flatly, her mind elsewhere.

“Is there an issue, Highness?” Sky asked immediately.

“No, no.” She held up a hoof. “It’s just that I’m not entirely sure if I’m doing the right thing.”

Blue Sky remained silent for a few seconds, listening to the cheerful laughter and banter inside the hall. “By the sounds of it, I think you’ve done a plenty good job, Highness. They’re practically cheering your name.” He coughed awkwardly. “That said, and please forgive me the prodding, how come you’re outside? Is there nopony inside worth talking to that you’re rather wasting your time talking to a simple airpony?”

“Come now, Sky, I appreciate each and every one of my ponies equally. You’re not any less important than the rest,” Celestia said with an admonishing smile. “Not to mention, I have said what I had to say to them. As much as etiquette demands otherwise, matters now urgently call me to my room.”

Perhaps it was her intonation or her pleading eyes, but the Captain immediately understood the meaning of her words. “I see! Well then, Highness, there is still plenty of fuel in this old tank, so please, allow me to entertain the crowd while you attend to your business.”

With a grateful nod, she stepped away from the door and began to make her way towards her quarters. On the way as she passed Sky, she briefly laid her wing on his back. “You’re a great captain, Sky, and an even better pony. I shall not forget you this kindness.” She then continued like nothing had happened, unaware of Sky’s blue cheeks suddenly flushing a deep red.

T-10:00:00

It did not take long for ponies to slowly filter into the royal quarters. One by one the chosen ministers and dignitaries entered the room and took their places on the carpet. Yet, despite the ten or so heads present, there was a heavy silence draped over all of them. Eyes glanced at each other. Some chewed on their lips or coughed awkwardly to feel the uncomfortable quiet. If one would have peeked behind them, they could have even spotted one or two twitching tails, not that anypony could have blamed them for it.

"Friends," Celestia finally began, breaking the silence. "Thank you for hurrying to my call. I'm sure it is no surprise to any of you that unlike my previous speech implied, things are far more dire in reality. As we are unable to give up the disputed territories, this is our one chance at establishing ourselves in the eyes of the griffons as a force they can not only not trifle with, but should consider their equals." Her voice dropped. "It was far before your times perhaps, but hubris and rivalry have once nearly brought Equestria to ruin. We cannot sacrifice our ponies in a pointless war fought only to legitimise a ruler who thinks the price of the crown is blood and conquest." Once again eyes met eyes, this time, however, the seeds of conviction could be seen glinting within them. "I made sure that your aides told you the basics of the plan so you could prepare accordingly, but I did not wish to go into details as I did not want any chance of it slipping out how deeply we are in trouble."

If there was any chance of melting the tension before, it all flew out of the window. "What do you mean, Princess?" asked Carrot Stick, minister of war. The caerulean mare timidly tapped her hooves against the floor. "Is there something we don't know?"

"I don't blame any of you for not realising this earlier, but it is obvious that this border dispute isn't about settling a score. Isn't it a little suspicious that the Griffon King would demand a few peaks lying far beyond the reach of Griffonstone, up until now accepted to be ours? Why such a place that holds little value to a griffon and not, say, a river city where they could tax our ships or an industrial city where they could cripple our production?"

"Evidently, it must hold some yet unknown significance to them," interjected Stalwart Shield, minister of defence. He shook his silver mane. "Who knows what's in the head of these birds? Maybe they have some hidden treasure buried there or maybe one of their old kings?"

"I believe I do have the experience to make an educated guess about 'what's in the head' of the griffons." Celestia turned to him with her eyebrows furrowed. "I have ruled Equestria for well over one thousand years now and I've always kept a close eye on their fledgling empire. Not a single griffon king so far had even a rhetorical, let alone a legitimate claim to this specific region," she paused for a second for emphasis. "I think the answer is much, much simpler."

"They are testing us," Carrot suddenly said, her lips quivering from the implications.

"I am glad that you are thinking the same, Carrot," Celestia replied. She stood up, towering above the rest of the delegates. "Think about it clearly; today, it's a few nameless peaks, important only to a couple of pegasi. They expect us to eventually cave in and give it up, since justifying a war for such lands would be extremely unpopular and worse, cost both sides far too many pointless deaths. If we do concede, they will be emboldened by this and will certainly ask for something bigger next time, assuming that we would avoid bloodshed at all costs." Her words rang clearly through the silence, not a single pony daring to interrupt or do as much as cough. "They are looking to slowly whittle down our borders until we eventually find their demands too outrageous to accept, at which point they can use this as a casus belli to launch an all out assault on us, which we wouldn't be able to stand in such a weakened state."

A rumble passed through the room as ponies gasped, groaned, and winced upon hearing the prospect of total war against an overwhelmingly powerful foe.

"You understand now that the situation you believed to be bad is even worse." Celestia sat down again. She remained silent for a second, flaring her wings, then tucking them back in to work out some tension. "However, not all is lost. If it were, we'd be at home planning our angle of attack. The Lux Aeterna gives us a shot at winning with spectacle instead. We must move as one and convince the griffons that Equestria is not up for grabs, and that the only road forward besides mutual destruction is the one of friendship and Harmony."

The meeting reached deep into the afternoon, and then the night, stopping only to allow Celestia to set the Moon on its course. After much arguing and debate, a plan seemed to finally crystallise in their minds. Using the ship as a striking visual metaphor, the delegates would make soft, but unmistakable hints towards the amount of gold and lives it would cost Griffonstone to contest even the most remote location in Equestria. Whilst they did, they would openly offer a chance to put aside their misgivings, and instead foster friendship and dual hegemony over the rest of the continent.

As the room slowly emptied to leave her alone with her thoughts, she briefly wondered if any of the guests were disappointed not to see her on deck, however she couldn't put their disappointment above the situation at hoof. With any luck she'd reappear the next day like nothing had happened and court etiquette would silence any gossip about where she had disappeared, if only for a little while.

T-02:00:00

With nothing else to do Celestia lay in her bed, tired, nervous, but finally not hopeless. Even if they still had to actually accomplish their plan, the fact that everypony agreed on it and seemed mostly hopeful restored her own faith as well. Yet, as much as she turned and twisted, sleep evaded her, an unending, dull reminder of her sister’s absence.

With a groan, she got up and stepped to her window. It was hard to see through the clouds illuminated by the ghost-light of the enchanted crystal lamps, but she eventually managed to make out the mirror image of the Moon below, which meant they were already over the sea. It was all very peaceful, just endless gentle waves of water below, crested by the soft creaks and rumbles of the airship.

Still, she felt a sense of unease, one whose origin she couldn’t exactly pinpoint. She supposed it was due to the mission, but it felt different somehow. Just then, the rain began to fall from the clouds above, obscuring the image of the Moon. The loud pitter-pattering as the drops began to beat against the window shook all tiredness from her eyes.

She sighed and turned from the window, choosing to venture out of her room instead of continuing to languish inside. She figured perhaps stretching her legs would allow her the rest she so desired. Not wishing to disturb any rooms where others were surely already asleep, she decided to climb the staircase connecting the cabins to the engineering deck out of curiosity. Passengers technically were prohibited from entering the deck, but she also was the monarch of Equestria and the primary financier of the project, so surely she would be forgiven a little curiosity.

Unlike the welcoming wood-covered corridor of the cabins, engineering was a lot more utilitarian and bare. Metal corridors with low hoofrails ran up and down the tight hole between the envelope of the ship and its gargantuan gas balloons, which hung above like great cocoons in the half-light of the hull. Though ‘tight’ was perhaps an overstatement, as due to the size of the Lux Aeterna even its utility gaps were big enough for an alicorn like herself to comfortably walk in them with her head held high.

“Halt! Who goes there? This is a restricted area!” a stern, yet familiar voice called out towards her, quickly followed by the light of an oil lantern.

“Hello, Heavy Wrench,” Celestia called out with a snicker. “I’m happy to run into you here.”

“Wha- Your Highness?! Up here?” Wrench asked in shock.

“Indeed. Are you perhaps insinuating that the princess may not tread where she pleases?” Celestia replied with feigned offence, before dropping the act and laughing into her hoof.

The mare shifted nervously on her hooves, clearly in trepidation about what to do. “Technically... you can’t,” she finally muttered, eliciting another chuckle from Celestia.

“It’s alright, I’ll be very careful and I promise to cause no issues. Especially with you next to me.”

“Please forgive me but I cannot accompany you, Your Highness. I was making my way towards the engine, it’s the start of my shift. Almost everypony else is asleep by now.”

“That’s alright,” Celestia said with a wave. “I’ll accompany you instead, then.”

“I... don’t think...”

“Please?”

Hearing her monarch actually ask made Wrench both awfully proud of herself and a little bit ashamed that she tried to be such a stickler for protocol, when there wasn’t any chance that Celestia would cause any trouble.

Heavy Wrench sighed heavily. “Very well, Your Highness,” she finally said. “Please follow me.”

The two mares made their way down the winding corridor, their path lit only by Wrench’s lamp and the occasional dim luminescent crystal hanging from the hoofrails every couple dozen metres or so. They remained mostly silent through the walk, the quiet broken only by the soft hum of the machinery which the cabin’s thick padding had filtered out before.

Every once in a while the duo stopped and Wrench pointed at something she helped build or design. For a pony that lacked wings, she was entirely in her element in the air, her natural confidence further heightened by her years of experience tinkering with the various flying machines sailing Equestria’s skies. Wrench nodded towards a set of tubes running high up into the upper half of the ship. “That’s where inputs from the gondola to inflate or deflate the balloons goes through.” Later, as they were passing a slightly brighter crystal, she pointed at the faintly visible frame of the ship which provided the structure for the gigantic envelope. “We had to design it to be both as light as possible whilst also being capable of holding so much weight. There’s pegasus magic imbued inside, the three tribes can make really fancy things together, isn’t it so, Your Highness?” she asked and Celestia beamed back towards her with a wide smile.

“It is very much so, my little pony.”

After some more trotting, the pair finally reached into the engine room at the back of the airship. Six stocky rows of giant crystal-batteries surrounded a tube-shaped machine. The moment they entered Celestia immediately began to feel the immense power stored inside as a dull throb in her horn. She grimaced and raised a hoof to it. There was another feeling too, a far more violent and chaotic magic, but she couldn’t exactly figure out what it was. It dulled her senses and for a moment she nearly lost her hooves. Almost like brain freeze, she thought, but that’s ridiculous.

Wrench rushed in front of her. “Oh my apologies, Highness! I forgot to tell you this shift is only filled in by earth ponies. Unicorns are unable to comfortably work in this environment. If you’d rather go back to your quarters...”

Celestia rolled her shoulders and stepped deeper inside. “No, it’s fine, the pain has already passed. It was just unexpected.”

“V-very well.”

The engine hummed loudly next to them as the force of the raw magical current was captured and turned into angular velocity that drove the giant rotors of the ship. Barrels of oil stood in one corner of the room, used to fuel the non-magical lamps found on the ship. “Each of these rows is capable of producing the magic of five-hundred unicorns,” Wrench explained. With a few ballpark calculations and seeing the amount of crystals along with the pressure she was feeling in her horn, Celestia figured it was unlikely she could muster anything more than a few seconds of concentrated magic capable of matching this sort of output.

“Hmm, from what I can see”—Celestia looked around the room—”the engine seems to be working just fine alone. What exactly do you have to do here?”

Wrench stepped deeper inside and began to walk between the rows of crystals, occasionally gently tapping her hoof against one or listening to their hums. She spoke as she worked, “I still don’t suppose this will be very exciting for you, Highness, but mostly my job is to just inspect the crystals for structural stability and to make sure the connection between them and the engine is stable.” She reached the end and stepped into another row. “Routine work, really. While an earth pony isn’t attuned to unicorn magic, our ears are keen enough to make out the different tunes that crystal resonance makes without the, well, less than desirable effects of the method of storage on our minds.” She gently tapped the battery next to her. “The timbre allows you to precisely estimate the crystal’s output and status,” she looked to meet Celestia’s eyes. “And believe me, Highness, a faulty crystal’s tune is one you don’t forget for a long time.”

Celestia followed her and began to listen to the crystals herself. Though she wasn’t a trained engineer, she had both earth pony and unicorn magic at her disposal. As she listened, everything seemed fine, only... “So, as I was saying, poke the crystals a few times, listen to their timbre, simple job really. Truth be told I was only really told to come here and do it myself because of that little cargo mishap. Very sorry about that, Highness. It was an honest mistake,” Wrench babbled on whilst Celestia tried to concentrate.

“Shh,” she suddenly said, causing the engineer to quickly fall silent.

“Huh? Is there a problem, Highness?” She tipped her head to the side. “I can’t really hear anything wrong.”

“The power draw feels too strong,” Celestia whispered. Wrench’s eyes slowly grew wide as she began listening earnestly herself.

“That’s... Yes. Yeah, it’s very faint, but it does sound a bit stronger than usual,” Wrench listened for a few more seconds. “You have a truly exceptional ear, Your HIghness. Still, it’s probably not a problem.”

Celestia raised a brow. “Probably?”

“Well, we might just be making a manoeuvre, or perhaps there’s a bit too much drag, or...” Wrench’s monologue was suddenly cut short, as the previously dull hum of the crystal climbed to a piercing whine. “A faulty crystal,” she finished with the blood drained from her face. “This isn’t good at all.”

Suddenly the crystal flashed. Time seemed to slow as Heavy Wrench’s eyes lazily turned towards the crystal which burst into a million fragments in slow motion. She closed her eyes and waited for impact.

It never came. The engineer slowly opened her eyes. In front of her, like snow inside a snow-globe, the crystal’s many shards glimmered against a pale-yellow shield. Still in shock, she slowly looked to her left. Celestia stared back at her panting, another shard-covered shield drawn in front of her.

“We must report this to the Captain at once,” she stated flatly.

“Y-yes, Highness.”

The two ponies raced back to the bow of the ship and quickly climbed down into the gondola.

Inside they found only Captain Sky and the coxswain Steady Hoof. The rest of the ponies were likely on break or asleep.

“Oh, Princess!” he greeted Celestia warmly, before turning to the engineer. “And Wrench... How pleasant,” he added with less warmth in his voice, still feeling sour over the cargo fiasco. “What do we owe the visit?”

Celestia didn’t waste time greeting him back. “Captain, the engines are drawing abnormal amounts of magic. One of the crystals has already blown. I am not willing to endanger my subjects any further, we must land at once.”

Sky tipped his head to the side, confusion written on his face. “Forgive me, Highness, but I’m not entirely sure what you’re talking about. While it is true that we’re about to head into a storm and flying through those requires a bit more power, we haven’t measured anything that could cause worry.” He pointed behind himself, where one of the gauges labelled ‘Magic Output’ was showing a steady level, far below red. “See? This machine is almost perfect, it has not dipped below or risen above that level for hours. Smoothest machine I’ve ever flown,” he said with a confident smile. “You have plenty on your plate, please leave these things to your subjects.”

Celestia’s face darkened as she listened to him. “Don’t you understand? She was nearly eviscerated by one of the crystal-batteries. Her only luck was that I was present,” she said, pointing to the still-shivering Heavy Wrench.

“Still, Highness, the levels are fine.” Sky gulped nervously. “We check them every five minutes as per protocol.”

Celestia stepped closer to the gauge, making the captain awkwardly move out of her way as she looked at it. The base of the needle seemed wrong somehow. She leaned even closer. The detail that caught her attention was very subtle, but as she moved her head, she saw a glint. It was like the machine was...

“This is frozen!” she almost shouted. Not wasting any time, she melted the ice with a bit of her magic and the needle immediately sprang deep into the red, almost breaking in the process. “How long has this been showing the wrong value?”

“What?” Sky’s mouth hung open as he read the new value. “That cannot be, this-this is way too much power!” He spun towards Steady, forcing some composure on himself. “Wake the crew, all hooves on deck! Prepare to switch to temporary non-powered flight, the engines must be taken offline and restarted,” he rattled off. Steady saluted and darted up the stairs.

“Go with her and help,” Celestia told Wrench, who followed immediately.

“I... My apologies, Your Highness. This is my fault entirely.” Sky nervously fiddled with his hat. “There is not much we can do at the moment until I get the crew. The ship was not designed to fly without its engine, so there is no method of turning it off from here. I also cannot lower the speed, we need all the momentum we can get to weather the reboot,” he explained to Celestia, before turning to the gauge. “I don’t understand! Who could’ve sabotaged our machine? I’ve been on watch almost the entire day and whenever I had to leave, Steady was here to mare the post.”

“Perhaps it wasn’t sabotage then,” Celestia replied gravely.

“What else then, Highness? This is a heated room and our instruments are behind glass. What if not magic could have caused the ice? I have seen heat generated by faulty instruments before... but ice?”

The princess glanced outside where the previously thin blanket of clouds had since become an impenetrable dark curtain, split by lightning and thunderous rain. “There is one explanation...”

T-00:45:00

Despite the crew’s best attempts, the general emergency call still caused panic on board. The magic lamps on the deck blinked in and out as the ship gently began to sway from the gathering storm outside. Nobles of all ranks flooded into the corridor, almost trampling each other as they tried to make their way into the main hall. The sound of the thunder outside was muffled by the anxious demands and threats made by the crowd, expecting to be guided and consoled. More and more were asking for the princess, who was still in the gondola.

“Windigos?” Sky baulked at the notion. “Aren’t they a foals’ tale?”

Celestia shook her head grimly. “I’m afraid not. They are all too real. The magic of our unity kept them far from our borders, yet out here they still occasionally linger and attack other species. But I cannot imagine why they targeted this ship, when until now they knew to keep a fair distance from all ponies of Equestria.” She wracked her brain for an answer. Her eyes suddenly snapped open. “All this time we wanted to intimidate the griffons, but we missed our mark,” she hissed. “This ship was created through the cooperation of earth ponies, pegasi, and unicorns equally.” She slammed her hoof against the floorboard, slightly cracking it. “It’s the one thing that terrifies these monsters, they must think we’re hunting them!”

“What can we do?” Sky nervously took off his hat, fiddling with it as he spoke. “I have about forty pegasi on board as crew. Shall I send them out to deal with the storm? Or maybe you could raise the Sun and dispel it?” His eyes desperately begged Celestia, but she just shook her head.

Outside the shadows and dark clouds began to shift, receding first, then coming closer with each pulse. Celestia’s stomach sank as she noticed the figures slowly emerging from the darkness. “Captain,” she muttered with a wavering voice. “This storm is nothing you’ve seen in your life before. It’s not natural and it cannot be controlled. Not by pegasi, not even by my magic. We must turn this ship around this instant. Nevermind the mission, survival is now our first priority.”

“B-but Princess, we cannot do that,” Sky stammered, crumpling his hat in his hooves. “With this much inertia and these weather conditions, even slight changes in course could severely stress the frame. A full turn would tear us apart!” He glanced outside, watching a bolt of lightning surge across the sky. ”Can’t we parley with them? Surely there is something we could offer for our safe return.”

“They’re monsters beyond reason,” Celestia stated grimly. “There is nothing they want or need. Their need to hunt and kill us is as it is for rain to fall, or my Sun to shine.” She hugged her wings close to her chest as she tried to regain her composure, taking a ragged breath. “If we cannot turn back, then we must take our chances and rush through the storm.”

The very moment the words left her lips, the ship’s inertia threw them forwards as the engine suddenly disconnected. Celestia jumped to her hooves and helped Sky up. Seconds turned into an uneasy, tense minute as nothing else immediately happened.

“What are they waiting for?” Sky hissed, slamming his hoof against the floor. “Why is the engine not restarted yet?”

Celestia glanced towards the ship’s stern. “Stay here, Captain, and be ready to steer the ship the moment you’re able to. I’ll go and check.”

“Don’t bother, Princess,” he shook his head. “You should rather go to the cabin deck and talk to the ponies there.”

Celestia stopped in her tracks and looked back. She could not make sense of Sky’s words. “I don’t think that’s...”

“Princess,” he shut her down coldly. His voice suddenly became hoarse and raspy. “I know better. You wouldn’t be able to do anything up there.”

The Lux Aeterna glided through the night sky, beaten by rain as lightning surged all around the ship. The nobles, forgetting their rank and prestige, huddled together in the main hall, not understanding why the ship was suddenly moving so erratically.

Following Sky’s suggestion, Celestia galloped down to the deck as fast as she could and burst inside, taking the podium and bringing light into the half-gloom. “My ponies, please remain calm. We’re just experiencing turbulence and you have been gathered here as a precaution. Rest assured the crew is working hard to get us out of this storm.” She winced inside as she delivered the words. She didn’t want to withhold so much of the situation, but she couldn’t risk telling them the whole truth. Windigos thrived on conflict and negative emotions. A panic would likely drive them rabid.

The crowd, however, was less than convinced.

“Turbulence? I’ve been aboard plenty of airships in my life, none of them threw me against a wall!” a fearful yet indignant voice rang out from the crowd. “Is the captain drunk?”

“Your Highness, we demand an explanation!” another called out. “This is not what you promised us! What are you doing?” More and more voices joined in, all demanding some explanation or what to do. The yelling mixed into an incoherent gibberish that grated on her mind. Celestia remained still, grinding her teeth behind her lips, trying to figure out what to say.

“Are we going to crash?” a young voice cut through the growing pandemonium. The question plunged the room into silence. All eyes first turned towards the littlest Blueblood and then, slowly, towards Celestia. This time no admonishment came from the count, who sat next to him, his already white-coat turning deathly pale.

Celestia forced her body to remain still, almost crumbling under the gaze of those tiny blue eyes. “No,” she replied a bit too quickly and forcefully. She could see the colt’s face darken with fear and doubt, which washed over the rest of the crowd. “No,” she said again in a voice a little calmer and softer. “The crew has everything under control. Please just stay here and wait for further instructions.”

Uneasy silence filled the room, disturbed only by the lashing of rain and the thunderclap of not so distant lightning from outside. “This is unacceptable,” a voice called out. Emboldened by it, another joined, “We expected a luxury cruise, not emergency drills!”

“Unbelievable! I hope the captain will be sacked for this.”

“They threw out the expensive parachuting gear I packed for this very reason!”

Before Celestia could answer anypony else, the door to the hall opened once more and Steady stuck her head inside. The crowd, entirely focused on themselves and their woes, ignored her, so the mare quickly snaked through the hall and made her way to the podium.

“Your Highness, you’re needed in the gondola,” she whispered. “Right now.” The tremble in her voice immediately told Celestia that something was very wrong.

She nodded and stepped off the podium to follow Steady. The crowd, which until now booed and jeered at her, suddenly began to shift in mood. As she passed them, ponies began to beg and plead for her to stay, the reality of losing her again quickly reevaluating their feelings and breaking their flippancy and bravado. Celestia’s heart throbbed as she had to ignore them. Even if they were flawed, they were her little ponies and she wished she could personally console each of them. Her eyes, however, were firmly focused on the door.

As they made their way towards the staircase, Steady turned her head towards Celestia. “There is something wrong with the captain,” she whispered. “I’ve only just returned from the engineering deck to ask for further orders, but no matter how much I called out to him, he didn’t react. I apologise for calling you away, Highness, but I think your expertise is needed here.”

The duo quickly descended back into the gondola, where they found Sky standing next to the window, still staring catatonically out into the rainstorm beyond. “Since you’ve left, he’s been like this,” Steady whispered. “I’ve been flying with him for years and he’s never once acted like this.” She looked at Celestia pleadingly. “Please, Highness, I tried everything, but he’s just not budging.”

Seeing the telltale shiver in her body and the quiver in her lips she tried so hard to hide, Celestia flashed the mare a reassuring smile despite feeling more than worried herself. “Thank you, Steady. You’ve made the right call. Please just stay here and take a moment for yourself.”

With that, she stepped closer to Sky, leaving Steady behind to calm herself. “Captain? Are you feeling alright?” He didn’t react, continuing to stand frozen like a statue. “Sky?” she said a little louder, noticing that her exhaled breaths were visible.

“It’s... it’s no use,” he slurred, staring vacantly at something outside nopony else could see. His eyes were pale and colourless, as if foggy lenses were placed in front of them. “There’s just too many of them and too few of us.” Celestia’s eyes slowly followed where he was looking.

Dark shapes were circling the ship. Within them were small orbs—like glowing empty eyes—glaring into the gondola with ancient malice. The shapes chased each other, looping and twisting in a wild and unbridled dance. The room itself was rapidly dropping in temperature, the droplets of rain hitting the window slowly freezing onto the glass.

“Sky!” Celestia called out again. “What they’re showing you is not real! Snap out of it!”

“It’s over, don’t you see? I should have never agreed to this. This was a suicide mission from the get go.” Sky let out a deranged cackle that made Celestia shrink back a little. “We will never fight off so many griffons.”

“Sky. We’re not fighting anything,” Celestia’s voice turned stern, as she stepped back to him. “Snap out of it. We can get through this storm. The ship is still flying, we’ll be fine.”

His reply was just another cackle. “You know, Princess,” he slowly said, wobbling on his hooves as he slowly raised his eyes from the beings outside towards Celestia, staring past her. “You’re almost right. We can’t fix it. But I can.” He chuckled and took an unsteady step towards the controls. “I’m Blue Sky after all. Best airship captain in Equestria. Not like those feather-brained pegasi. They’re born with flight and don’t even think about it. Must be so easy for them. But me? Haha! I’ve learned it. I’ve learned it well! It’s in my cutie mark! It’s in my blood!” With each word his voice grew louder and raspier. “I am Blue Sky! I will land this ship! I will save everypony! Those hornheaded freaks can’t do this! Nor those winged imitators!” He jabbed a hoof towards Celestia, the sudden movement knocking his hat off. “Hah, even you can’t do this! But I can! I’ll drop the ballast and land now!”

“Land?” Celestia asked in horror. “We’re over the sea!”

Sky, however, did not relent. “Lies and nonsense,” he muttered. “You’re just trying to confuse me so you can take this achievement from me. I know you’ve never once appreciated my work.” He reached for the quickly-freezing controls, only to suddenly stop in place.

His body began to shine in faint-golden light. “I’m sorry,” Celestia said, her horn alight with magic. “You’re out of your mind and I cannot let you touch the controls. Steady,” she called out behind herself. “Please bring some rope. We must restrain him and somehow navigate the ship ourselv—” She stopped abruptly, a great pain throbbing through her head as a loud crack rang out, making her wobble to one side. Stars danced in her eyes as her nerves began to scream from the pain. “Wha—” she slurred, whilst sluggishly trying to turn around, only for another blow to arrive and knock her from her hooves.

“I’m sorry, Princess, but you’re the one out of your mind,” Steady droned, as her magic threw a metal pipe yanked from a wall to the side. Her eyes stared out of her head vacant and unfocused. “You have controlled ponies for far too long. You cannot subjugate the unicorns any longer. We’re a proud race, we do not wish to live under your hoof.”

The world was spinning with Celestia. The whites and greys of the outside mixed with the brown of the room and the blue and orange of the two ponies present into a colourful splotchy canvas that continued to circle inside her vision before fading away. She slowly felt herself sink lower and lower into the floor as her senses shut down. The darkness draped over her like a cool and comfortable blanket. All the noise of the thunder slowly faded out. She was alone. She was safe. She could just let go and rest, she deserved it after all... The tribes can deal with their own issues, I’m really not that necessary, she thought.

Her consciousness slowly faded away.

T-00:18:00

It felt like she was sinking forever. The cold that was once so pleasant became harsher and harsher. She was freezing in the dark, and something wasn't right. This wasn't natural. That snug blanket became heavier and heavier, filling her nostrils and mouth. Her limbs and wings were bound tightly against her body as she suffocated.

Suddenly an awful feeling of nausea washed over her. She couldn’t die here. Her ponies were counting on her. She had to stay alive for them, and for Her. The darkness receded with a disappointed snarl. Celestia retched as her eyes snapped open. Despite her screaming head and twisting stomach, she slowly clambered onto her hooves.

"No," she snarled. "I am not your plaything!"

The laughter of several inaudible, mocking voices filled the gondola in return. Too late, they whispered. Her gaze snapped towards the controls just as Sky bucked with his hindlegs, ruining the machinery.

"We're down, fillies!" he laughed maniacally. At that moment a dull explosion could be heard from above and a huge shockwave passed through the ship from the aft. A moment later the wave reached the room, shaking it violently and causing furniture and trinkets to fly everywhere. Sky tumbled forward, smashing against the window. Already brittle from the cold, it shattered under the impact. Rain and wind howled into the room, silencing the captain's screams who quickly disappeared into the darkness, followed by the controls and many of the instruments at the helm. Steady who was standing a bit further back looked into the hole in a daze.

"Is that the exit?" she asked Celestia flatly, her voice hardly audible through the thunder. She took a step towards the gaping abyss.

"No, Steady, stay where you are!" Celestia screamed, but Steady lumbered forwards undisturbed, stepping into the ice cold puddle that began to gather on the floor.

Celestia gathered her magic, ignoring the painful jolt surging through her horn, and grabbed Steady as best she was able. "Listen to me! Sky is gone!"

"What? Where is he?" Steady asked, her eyes suddenly regaining their colour. "Sweet Harmony!" she screamed at the roiling clouds in front of her. "What is going on? Where's Sky?"

"I'm... sorry," Celestia said quietly as she pulled Steady in, setting her safely on the ground. "He fell."

Steady stared at her with uncomprehending eyes. "Y-you're lying," she muttered, before her voice suddenly rose in pitch. "You're lying! He can't have fallen! He's the best captain in Equestria! It's not possible!" She sobbed.

The ship groaned and the room began to slightly tilt forwards. Steady screamed as she drifted forwards, only to be caught in Celestia's magic.

"It's not safe here, we must go!" Celestia yelled through the thunder. Steady gave her a weak nod, her eyes darting around in a panic. Celestia began to pull her in, when the ship tumbled again, throwing them both forwards. Her hoof slipped in the puddle, but she remained standing and continued to pull.

But it was all for naught. With little chance to notice it, let alone react, a piece of debris flew into the room, dragged inside by the roaring thunder, and smashed against her horn. As if struck by lightning, her mind was filled by a brilliant pain and her magic faltered.

Steady screamed out as she tumbled towards the hole, her voice silenced by the screaming wind that dragged her outside. She disappeared after her captain into the void before Celestia could grab her again.

All that Celestia could do was silently stare after her for a few seconds. No tears came to her eyes. Silently, she got to her hooves and climbed the stairs. She ignored the chaos coming from down the corridor from the direction of the main hall, squeezing her eyes together to shut out the mental image of screaming and begging ponies, running left and right, and holding onto each other. Without a working engine, she couldn't do anything for them by staying.

T-00:15:00

The engineering deck was mostly silent, aside from the muffled echoes of the panic below and the rhythmic thumping of a million raindrops on the envelope. Celestia galloped towards the aft, her way illuminated by the crystal lamps. As she ran, the air became colder and colder, and the lamps' steady light began to shift and wobble, casting swirling shadows onto her. A gust of freezing wind flew past her, bringing chiming laughter. A scream rang out from the direction of the engine room. Too late.

Celestia rushed even faster, crashing through the door separating her from the source without slowing. As she entered the room, she came to a sudden, skidding halt, as she nearly lost her balance, the floor suddenly becoming slippery underneath her. She could barely see a step or two in front of her, the previous warmth of the room having turned into a thick fog in the cold. Moments later the frost began to mar her own coat, but the princess's internal magic was stronger. With a flash of her horn the ice liquified and dripped off her. She began to move deeper inside, much more slowly and carefully this time. With each step the frozen floor cracked and groaned below her from the pressure.

As she stepped forward into the silence of the room, she saw the lonely silhouette of a pony in front of her, illuminated by the ghost-light of the flickering flame from a lamp carried in their hooves.

Celestia gently approached, "Hello? Are you alright?"

The pony didn't react. As she moved closer, she noticed that the pony's coat was sparkling like fresh snow. At that moment the temperature in the room shifted and the fog dropped to the floor, causing Celestia to shrink back from the nightmarish sight. The pony was a frozen statue, her face stuck in an eternal scream. Tears like gemstones twinkled over her eyes. Her oil lamp was still clenched in her hoof, its flimsy flame unable to fight off the encroaching frost. A shimmering puddle spread out below her, hardly visible from the fog which clung to the floor, which snaked back all the way behind the now-dull crystals. The machine itself laid in ruin, its pieces strewn across the partially-destroyed crystal-rows.

"Wrench," Celestia muttered in disbelief as she stepped closer. "Not you too..."

Focusing her magic on the pony, she still felt an inkling of warmth and life in her. Celestia gasped and quickly called upon her connection to the Sun. Throwing caution to the side, she raised her wings and allowed her magic to swell. Drops of water began to form and fall from the ceiling as the entire room started to warm. Wrench's hoof soon twitched and she moaned, as a drop of liquid fell on her face.

"S-so cold," she grunted heavily. Her eyes slowly focused and raised until they met Celestia's. "H-Highness?"

"Shh," Celestia cooed. "It's okay, I'm here now. Just preserve your strength."

"No, Highness," Wrench whispered weakly. More drops began to fall from her body as she continued thawing. "Save yourself."

Celestia did not relent. "I will not let any more of my ponies die."

"You don't understand... They've tricked me..." Wrench groaned from pain, falling silent as her body slowly warmed. The drops turned into a trickle.

"It's alright, this is not your fault. Let me just warm you up." Her magic grew even stronger. It had been centuries since she'd last needed to thaw magical ice like this and, just like then, the malignant cold easily contended with her own inner heat. However, as she continued to grit her teeth and press on, slowly and unwillingly the cold began to lose its grip and shrink back from her.

Still, whilst she was taking care of Wrench, something definitely felt wrong. Celestia's ears flicked rhythmically with the drops of water hitting the floor. The rational part of her brain couldn’t stop nagging her that she was missing something.

Something crucial.

Celestia's eyes slowly wandered over to Wrench’s thawing body, the lamp held in her hoof, and the slick of ice underneath her slowly melting that led across the room towards the barrels. Then the lamp slipped from Wrench’s grasp.

Celestia’s instincts screamed. It’s oil!

T-00:12:00

It took less than a moment for the puddle under Wrench to ignite, quickly climbing the mare’s legs and covering her in flames. For a few brief and seemingly endless moments, her entire body was engulfed. Celestia screamed at the mass of fire covering Wrench, and without hesitation she rushed forwards to drape her wings over her. Ignoring the pain and noisome stench of her burning coat and feathers, she didn't stop until the fire finally suffocated in her embrace. Blackened feathers fell to the floor. Mercifully, Wrench took a ragged breath in. Frostbitten and burnt, but still alive, she looked up at her saviour with endlessly grateful eyes through her obvious pain.

Meanwhile the rest of the flames snaked their way back to the barrels which stood in the back of the room, where the fire made its way into the vessels. Mere seconds later the pressure became too great from the sudden shift in temperature. Celestia looked up from her hold over Wrench to watch with alarm as they exploded one after the other with deafening blasts. Immediately, the freezing cold was replaced by extreme heat as the room burst into a hellish inferno.

With a moderate flash, Celestia's horn ignited as she instinctively covered the two of them in a powerful shield each whilst the blast from the barrels washed over them with great force, drowning out all other sounds. Holding strong, the shields shimmered as they braced against the incoming firestorm that twisted over their protection.

Short, painful breaths filled Celestia's lungs as the raging blaze receded and she stared into the hellscape in front of her. She shivered and grunted whilst her body slowly regenerated the damage she'd sustained. New feathers grew from her skin, forcing out the charred remains of old ones, covering her burns which would take a little longer to heal. Celestia glanced over Wrench with concern, though she hadn't come under any further harm. The gusts brought by the swirling fires rang with whispering and cackling laughter. Warmed her up, they taunted.

Celestia grit her teeth as tears began to fall from her eyes in earnest, wanting nothing more than to unleash the power of a thousand suns to vanquish these monsters without mercy. Currently, she just growled in frustration as there was nothing she could do right then at that second. Strong magic could destabilise the already-weakened crystals, and letting in the rain from outside would just sink the ship even faster. To defeat the Windigos in this moment she would have to pay with her ponies' lives as collateral, and that was unthinkable.

She stared into the flames for a few more seconds, before realising that Wrench was still in front of her. Celestia quickly forced a bit of composure upon herself.

“Are you able to run?” she asked Wrench, who after trying her limbs gave a weak nod in return. “We must gather everypony and figure something out. This ship will not stay in the air much longer in this state.”

The two mares rushed through and ahead of the inferno, leaving the burning engine room behind. The catwalk in front of them was illuminated by the fire which lazily followed after them. Smoke was filtering out into the hollow between the balloons. Time was of the essence, they had to get back to the main hall and… and then they would figure it out.

T-00:08:00

The catwalks swayed left and right as the ship continued to be thrown around by the thunderstorm outside. The path occasionally plunged into near-darkness where the crystal lamps had cracked or fallen and the firelight had not yet reached. The duo didn’t stop, galloping on with a single purpose: They had to reach the hall.

They were almost at the stairs when the ship then harshly tumbled to the left, throwing them off balance. Surrounded by a choir of screams from below, Celestia threw her legs under herself, grabbing Wrench in her magic and using her wings to glide the remaining distance.

The cabin deck was dark, the weak flames imbued in the lamps extinguished by the malignant magical currents emanating from outside. Celestia used her hornlight to find her way through the rows of doors until she found the one opening into the main hall.

What they found inside was utter chaos. Ponies of both the crew and passengers were huddled into groups, screaming and begging for some kind of salvation. The tables and chairs were scattered all over the marble floor, most upturned, some smashed to pieces. The great windows above had been shattered from the abnormally strong wind, coating the passengers below in shards of glass and ice cold rain, further adding to the pandemonium. Water pooled in the centre of the room, sloshing in all directions as the ship continued its violently erratic sway.

Celestia's arrival was hardly even noticed. Some looked at her with hope or anguish in their eyes, but most continued to ignore her and huddle in place or wail incoherently. Celestia briefly took to the air and landed on the podium. Her horn ignited, bringing light into the room. Briefly, even the storm and the thunder seemed to falter from her presence.

"Ponies," she called out, projecting her voice far and wide to overpower the chaos and quickly quiet the room. Almost a thousand fearful eyes turned towards her. "We're in grave danger. I need all unicorns who are capable of creating shields to take as many ponies as they can and defend them. The ship is on fire and it might plunge any moment. We must help each other survive. I shall guard the room as much as I can, but I cannot save you alone."

Not a single soul moved inside the room for a few seconds.

"What happened?" a voice asked.

T-00:04:00

"We have been attacked by Windigos," Celestia admitted. There was no point in lying anymore. "The captain is dead, the engine has been sabotaged, and a great deal of the ship is burning.” She glanced towards Wrench, who was gently nursing her wounds next to her. ”We don't have any time to spare. If you're able to help, then step up. Do it now."

"Windigos... The captain is dead... The ship is burning... She expects us to shield ourselves? We're going to plunge... She can't save us..." came a myriad of fearful whispers from the crowd. Meanwhile, the rain began to pour inside even harder, a low fog starting to gather across the bottom of the floor. The whispering quickly rose in volume. "She can't save us! We're going to plunge!" the passengers screamed as one pony. "We're going to die!"

What little order Celestia's words had bought swiftly crumbled as ponies began to scramble in a blind panic, stumbling over their own hooves in the gathering fog, making it swirl and swell. Like a candle being blown out in reverse, the fog rose whilst wandering blue ghost-lights ignited inside. The screaming slowly faded, replaced by the pattering of rain as the fog coalesced around the shining motes into ponylike shapes which began to circle and dance around the room.

T-00:02:00

Celestia watched in horror as the ponies that the shades passed through suddenly lost all life in their eyes. They slowly began to move towards her, the closest ponies trying to claw their way up the podium or pulling off planks to make it collapse. Her head snapped up at a shrill voice crying out, piercing through the rain. Through the thick fog, Celestia saw a tiny unicorn grappling for his life. Her mind blanked as she sprang from the podium into the crowd below. Ponies from all sides threw themselves against her, but she shot in front of them, even deeper into the fog. The ghost-lights began to dance around her. Too late.

T-00:01:00

As the fog parted, she saw the colt lying on the ground and realised it was the young lord, wet and muddy, his empty-eyed father standing over him with his hooves raised to crush him. "Not this time," Celestia hissed through her teeth as she ran head first into the count, smashing him out of the way, before immediately spinning around and taking the colt into her wings.

T-00:00:13

"Close your eyes. It's going to be okay," she whispered to the bawling child in her grasp, before wildly glancing around. Nopony else dared to approach her. No... The fog parted and, as Celestia took a better look, she realised the other ponies weren't even looking at her. They were all staring out of the giant gaping window. She followed their eyes...

T-00:00:08

And she saw green.

T-00:00:07

Before any other thought could form in her mind, her body sprang into action. She jumped up and placed the young Blueblood onto her back, not forgetting Wrench as she took to the air and rocketed across the chamber to snatch her up before launching herself towards the broken window. Shooting out of the ship with as much energy she could muster, she tried to gain as much distance as possible. It felt almost hopeless, even as she achieved her maximum flight speed she knew the ship was moving too fast, she wouldn't make it. There was simply not enough ti—

T-00:00:00

Behind her, the underbelly of the Lux Aeterna hit the treeline. Branches snagged and teared up the envelope, before the barren hull itself smashed into the ground. A deafening thunderclap could be heard for miles, as the sudden increase in pressure, combined with the heat from the burning engine room and the destabilised batteries resulted in a fiery explosion the size of a hamlet.

Celestia and her quarry cried out as they were sharply torn from the sky by the sheer force of it, smashed downwards as if struck by a colossal hammer. She just managed to cast a shield around everypony before she ploughed into the ground like a pale star falling from the heavens. Through the blunt trauma she immediately fell unconscious, and behind her, hell followed.

As the burning hull met with the earth, the forest was set ablaze, with the explosion toppling over several hundred trees. The strong current of air rushing inward invigorated the spreading flames even further, whilst elevating the dark smog of the burning ship into a ghastly cloud. The spectre of the disaster hung over the sky for several more hours, blending into the night.

T+00:24:00

Celestia's head painfully ached, groaning as she regained consciousness. Immediately, she retched from the acrid stench of smoke rushing into her as she took a deep lungful of air. Compounding it, burning tears filled her stinging eyes for a few moments whilst she blinked, trying to see in front of herself. Despite open eyes she found herself still shrouded in darkness, her inner clock screaming at her that it should be far past dawn by now. She felt deathly exhausted and quite a bit disoriented, thoughts sluggishly chasing one after the other in her mind. Regardless, her duty was calling for her.

Without moving, she concentrated and connected the remaining figments of her energy to the Sun, guiding it to its rightful place in the sky and slowly bringing light over the ravaged field she was lying in. As the pitch blackness faded, she found herself face to face with the ship’s wooden alicorn, its broken horn barely an inch or two from poking into her eye.

So it begged the question in her mind, Where does that leave the ship?

Forcing herself to take short, shallow breaths, she slowly acclimated to the lack of oxygen, until the throbbing in her head dulled a little. Having regained a bit of her awareness, she realised that she was laying upside down, her wings strewn painfully and her limbs bent awkwardly. The shimmering, bubble-thin shield she'd cast had remained around her, however weak, though it dispelled the moment she tried to move her body, her magic almost completely spent from moving the Sun.

With more pain than she was expecting, she slowly crawled away from the figurehead and sat herself up, placing one hoof after the other carefully. Beyond the dull headache she felt and perhaps one or two cracked bones she seemed to be fine, her shield had done a stalwart job.

She grunted as she rolled her shoulders, slowly looking at the landscape. Barren remnants of trees lay around her, their charred, smoking bodies lacking leaves and smaller branches. As she took a careful step, the very ground cracked dryly under her hoof as if she was walking on charcoal. She turned around and saw a disturbingly large tar-coloured pillar looming high above the horizon, blotting out half of her precious Sun that she always worked so hard to raise.

Yet, as she kept staring at it, she realised the pillar she figured was perhaps a building at first was in fact a rolling column of black smoke. Her eyes slowly followed it down, and to her horror as she reached the source, she noticed the remains of the ship sticking out like the ribs of a great rotting carcass, its skin hanging loosely, smoke and fire belching from its insides. Besides the whistling wind and crackling embers, nothing else could be heard in her immediate vicinity.

Behind her, in the other direction, she saw black roiling clouds receding towards the sea. Smoke from the pillar wafted lazily towards it, as if the storm still tried to drag whatever remained of the ship with it. Despite the distance, she could still see the mass occasionally illuminated by lightning, vague shapes and figures shifting and twisting inside. She turned away in disgust.

She closed her eyes and tried to quiet the chaos in her head, but her thoughts were sluggish and disjointed. She was missing something, however upon hearing a faint moaning and whimpering, her eyes snapped right back open as she realised her folly. How could she have forgotten her ponies?! Her broken ribs ignored, she sprang to her hooves through the pain and began to desperately search.

She raised piece after piece of debris, no matter how exhausted she felt. Burnt earth and scorched grass were the only things to greet her under every stone and tree she upturned, until she sharply halted. Under the next fallen piece of hull, she found two beaten bodies. Celestia’s lips quivered and she stumbled back, tears filling her eyes.

The Count and the Countess shared one final embrace, illuminated by the dim light of the smoke-hidden Sun. A measure of peace was written into their faces, somehow preserved through the impact of the crash. Celestia reached out with her magic, and even though she still felt some warmth remaining in the bodies, their lives had certainly ended. Sadly, there was nothing she could do for them at this juncture.

She stared at her former subjects for a few more seconds, mourning their loss deeply. But if they were here, that likely meant… The thought jolted her from her daze and she began her search with twice the fervour.

Neither of them could have been far away. She'd lost so much in one day, but she could not lose them too. After fruitlessly turning over several heavy remains of tree trunks in her haste, she noticed a haphazard pile of trembling wooden debris. Regardless of her lack of energy, her horn blazed into golden light as she grabbed the whole pile and tossed it aside without a word. Nestled beneath it she saw the blood-spotted and slightly singed, but still breathing Heavy Wrench, and in her hooves still shielded by her body, the little lord Blueblood, now a count.

They looked up at Celestia with wide, unfocused eyes. For a moment everypony remained silent.

“I am so incredibly relieved to see you both again,” Celestia mumbled, fighting with her tears.

Wrench slowly sat up, a little shaky, raising her hoof into a weak salute. “I managed to snatch him while we were still in the air, Highness,” she said, her pride and happiness shining through her obvious pain. “Body hurts like Tartarus, but I think we’ll be just fine.”

Blueblood passed his vision over the desolate landscape surrounding them, then towards Wrench, before finally coming to a halt on Celestia. He took a ragged breath and opened his mouth to say something, but no words except a few ragged gasps came to his throat. A moment later, his shining teal eyes began to water as he began to bawl. His voice was raspy and forced, causing him to cough again and again.

With unexpected speed he clambered to his hooves and threw himself at Celestia, who gladly embraced him with her wings, pulling him close gently, but firmly. Slowly, he raised his hooves and hugged her back, burying his face into her chest. The two remained that way for a long time as Wrench looked on with a smile, whilst the last straggling fires continued to crackle and burn.

"I..." Celestia muttered, fighting her own tears. "I will take you in," she gently rocked him back and forth. "I will make you my little prince."

T+17 years

As Celestia finished her tale, she exhaled a long pent-up breath. She wiped away a tear from the corner of her eye whilst Twilight stared ahead wordlessly.

"We scoured the surrounding area and remnants of the ship for other survivors, though the rest of the story after that is not very interesting. I flew back to Equestria in secret, taking the few who were able to fly with me," Celestia continued flatly. "There was not much we could do with the burnt wreck. Our only luck, ironically enough, was that the Windigos had blown us far off course and we'd touched down in the wilderness, far from the griffish border. I tasked a team of pegasi to covertly return the other survivors and any bodies they could find. While we searched restlessly, finding some alive, many more dead, there were sadly some we never managed to locate. We retrieved the figurehead as a way to remember all of the fallen, but perhaps it's a little more for those we never brought back home, they never got a final resting place," she added with a sigh as the duo reached the gates of the graveyard. "Widows had to be informed, orphanages opened, lineages redrawn, and industries reorganised. The incident completely halted all public interest in bigger airships too, the ones you see today use a far less powerful and greatly more stable engine with no batteries."

Twilight frowned. "Princess, how come I’ve never heard of this before?"

Celestia's ear flicked. "I suppose ponies rather focus on positive things. But make no mistake, the silence is one of respect, not ignorance. The tragedy was a heavy shadow on our nation for a decade after it happened."

"So then why tell me about it now?"

"I trust that you will grow up to be a strong and important pony, Twilight. And with strength and importance come important choices to make, some of which will inevitably result in outcomes you could never foresee, even if your intentions were pure and you tried your best."

Twilight nodded silently, swallowing the lump in her throat.

“What happened to Heavy Wrench?”

“Well, despite her experience that day, she could not be kept on the ground. She continued to fly, and pioneered the new, safer airships currently used.” For a moment a hint of a smile flashed across Celestia’s face. ”Who knows, maybe I could introduce you to her one day? She remains to date one of the most respected sources of information about hazard-proofing magical crystals.”

Twilight matched Celestia’s quivering smile. “I think I’d like that.”

The two continued to walk in silence for a few more seconds, before one final question bubbled up from her. "But I still don’t understand. What happened to the griffons? How did you avoid war without the ship?"

Celestia chuckled mirthlessly. "Oh, thankfully they never found the wreck to put two and two together. With a little sleight of hoof, I had numerous weather teams create a flurry of patterns to cover the ship's crash whilst we worked to fully remove the wreckage. Of course, we couldn’t exactly silence the entire nation about a tragedy of this extent, but the tireless work of our diplomats helped us evade scrutiny for a while. By the time the news officially broke out and crossed into the Kingdom, the common opinion was that I had called them on their bluff and made them look weak. By that time, the king had also been assassinated for his inability to come through with his promises of conquest. His successor knew better than to throw out wild claims about going against Equestria and then delaying them for two years, and is in general a far more agreeable griffon than his predecessor had ever been. Another win for us, I suppose." She shrugged a little. "Since his ascension our two nations have fostered something of a friendship. If you ever visit Cloudsdale, and I have a feeling you might, you will surely run into one or two griffon exchange students. It's foal-steps and far more tenuous than I’d like, I admit, but still a far cry from the previous threats of pointlessly murdering each other."

Celestia suddenly stopped and looked away, causing Twilight to miss a step and almost stumble on her own hooves.

"And yet, to think that Equestria paid the price of almost five hundred ponies for something we could have gotten simply if I had played it more carefully." Her words were scratchy and far quieter than usual. Twilight trotted in front of her. As much as Celestia was trying to look to the side, Twilight could still see her tears.

“Now you understand, I hope. Patience isn’t a sign of weakness. It is a virtue and a means of avoiding tragedy.” Celestia turned to look back at the figurehead, standing tall over the many gravestones in the back of the cemetery. “These ponies may have died, but the lesson their loss has taught us lives on. After so many centuries of relative peace and growth, the moment war was on the horizon I acted rashly rather than with careful consideration. It was a harsh reminder that came at too great a cost. Twilight, promise me that you will learn from my folly and not make the same mistake.”

Twilight followed her teacher’s gaze and looked at the figurehead, just as a great cloud passed through the sky, obscuring the Sun.

“I promise.”