Unexpected Visitors to Equestriaby Robert Emerald FountainChaptersThe Captain and the AgentsRescuing Walker and his FamilySearching the StarshipRescuing Callie, Marie, and their FamiliesRescuing Lizzie, Angelo, and AtariRescuing DJ Octavio and the OctariansRescuing the SalmonlingsTaylor Becomes a Big BrotherReason for the Unexpected VisitThe Captain and the AgentsIt took two hours for Flurry Heart and the Young Six to reach the old castle, but they did not give up. They spotted the escape capsule in an instant, thanks to its safety light and the bright orange parachutes that had deployed from the top. When they reached the capsule, Gallus grabbed the latch handle and twisted it to unlock the hatch. Inside the capsule were four figures that none of them had ever seen. They had two legs and two arms, and their hair looked like the tentacles from either a squid or an octopus. Three of the figures' nametags identified them as Agents 3, 4, and 8. The fourth figure wore a brimmed cap, and her nametag said "Captain". "Have you come to rescue us?", asked Agent 3. "Yes we have.", said Silverstream. "That's great. If you can take us to your leader, we will show you where everyone else landed.", said Agent 8. Flurry led the four individuals to the forest outskirts, and then to a train to Canterlot. At the palace, Twilight shook with the four figures and then struck up a conversation. "Who are you?", she asked the Captain. "My name is Christina Cephalopod. I am Captain of the Squidbeak Splatoon, and I was the Captain of the ship that crashed in the woods.", said the figure wearing a brimmed hat. Agent 4 said that she, Agent 3, and Christina were referred to as "inklings", a cross between humans and squids. Agent 8 was an "octoling", a cross between a human and an octopus. "What about Agents 1 and 2?" asked Ocellus. "Agents 1 and 2 are Callie and Marie Cuttlefish. They are the granddaughters of Craig Cuttlefish, my recently deceased predecessor, and the former Captain of the Squidbeak Splatoon.", replied Christina. "Well then, we will waste no time rescuing everyone.", said Flurry in determination. "Music to my ears, Flurry. Be careful out there, because the radar shows some of the pods have landed in treacherous places.", said Twilight. Rescuing Walker and his FamilyAs Silverstream, Gallus, and Ocellus flew southeast to the Celestial Sea, Twilight gave them a heads-up on the weather. A huge thunderstorm had developed two days ago and was now passing over the escape capsule's location. So it was likely that there would be strong wind gusts and heavy rainfall present during the rescue. Silverstream acknowledged this and put on her wetsuit. Upon reaching the origin point for the capsule's tracking signal and seeing the exterior safety light, Silverstream grabbed an orange float ring and a raft before jumping into the ocean. She swam over to the capsule, climbed up to the window, and knocked on the hatch. Inside, she could see Walker, Becka, and Jacob all seated side-by-side. Walker gave her a double thumbs-up to indicate he saw her. At the same time, Gallus put on his rescue harness and a helmet in case he fell out of the helicopter. Then he clipped a basket to the winch. The basket had a canopy on it since Walker was a robot. This way he wouldn't be damaged by the water. "Gallus, I have the floats attached and the raft is inflated. Drop the basket.", said Silverstream over her headset as she started pulling Walker out after opening the hatch. "Here it comes.", said Gallus as he started the winch. Once the basket reached the water; Silverstream helped Walker get in and lie down. After Walker had fastened the safety straps over himself, he nodded to Silverstream, who nodded back and flashed a light at Gallus to pull the basket up. Once Walker was on-board the helicopter, Gallus dropped the basket again and Silverstream helped Becka get in. Once she handed Jacob to Becka, Silverstream signaled Gallus to bring them up. As Becka and Jacob were hoisted up, Silverstream opened the pressure relief valves on the float ring and the raft to deflate them. Then she rolled them back up and waved to Gallus to drop a line for her. Once Silverstream was back on the chopper and Gallus had closed the door, Ocellus turned around and flew back to Canterlot. On the way there, Gallus had a question for Walker. "Since you're a robot, how were you and Becka able to reproduce and have Jacob?", he asked. "I temporarily turned myself into an inkling. That's how we did it.", Walker replied. "Interesting.", said Gallus. "I was First Officer on the starship. I can contact the rest of the evacuees if you can't rescue everyone at the same time.", said Becka. "Understood, I will inform Twilight.", said Ocellus as she landed the helicopter in Canterlot. After disembarking from the chopper, Twilight confirmed that she was planning for the Octarians and the Salmonlings to be picked up the next day. Becka reached out to everyone else with a data-pad, telling them to hang tight until the next morning. She received replies from DJ Octavio and Admiral Kyle in a flash, acknowledging that they would be ready when the rescue units came to get them. Searching the StarshipForty minutes after the Young Six arrived in Canterlot, they heard a loud roaring sound outside. They, along with Twilight and Flurry, ran to a balcony and watched as the mysterious starship's body glided over Equestria. Moments later, it touched down loudly in the westmost part of the Everfree Forest. This just happened to be close to the Ponyville Airport, so Twilight contacted them and said to ground all flights until the wreckage was cleared. "We need to get to that ship and figure out where she came from.", said Sandbar in a determined tone. "Agreed.", said everyone else. Twilight sent them outside to a helicopter equipped with two nozzles for spraying foam to put out a fire. This chopper was piloted by Spitfire, and she was quick to fly them to the woods. She did not land until all of the flames had been knocked down, which was for safety concerns. After landing, Flurry led the Young Six up to the ship's body and told Gallus to pull out a plasma cutter. Since none of them knew where the ship's main hatch was, they were going to make their own entrance. Surprisingly, Gallus spotted a handle and realized it was part of the main hatch. So he took a scan to find out which way the hatch opened. Upon finding that the hatch opened to the left, he cut through the hinges and had Smolder help him pull it off. Flurry noted that the ship's wings had broken off during reentry, but she had only seen the fire from the main body, which meant that the wings had likely burned up in the atmosphere. Once inside the ship, Flurry brought Gallus, Sandbar, and Yona with her towards the bridge at the front of the ship. Everyone else split up to search the other areas. The search would have been quick to carry out, but there were safety airlock doors that had closed and sealed portions of the hallways. Smolder found the medical bay and noticed there was a hatch along one wall. Looking at the hatch revealed the words "Pediatric Escape Pod" and "Emergency Use Only" were written on it. Silverstream found where all of the other escape pods were launched from, and reported to Flurry that all of them were gone. "I can confirm that, Silverstream. Yona just found a screen that says all of the escape pods were launched.", said Flurry. Ocellus found several crew cabins and said that some were large enough to occupy whole families. Flurry was astonished by this. On the bridge, Gallus found a tracking device which was programmed to show the locations of every escape capsule on radar when they were launched. Sandbar looked under a broken chair and found a tablet computer which contained the crew manifest. Flurry was pleased to see this, because they now knew the names of everyone that was on-board the ship. Flurry spotted something very intriguing on the bridge, which was a notebook in the Captain's chair. This notebook said that the ship was designed for emergency evacuation purposes. Upon seeing this, she opened a direct channel to Twilight. "Aunt Twilight, I don't think we need to defend ourselves. A notebook that I found on the ship's bridge says that this is an evacuation ship. That means the crew consists of evacuees.", she said. "I understand. Gallus has transmitted the signals from the tracking device to me and it seems that one of the escape pods is fairly close to you. It's on the other side of the forest, near Celestia and Luna's original castle.", replied Twilight. "We're on it.", said Flurry. She radioed everyone and told them where they were headed. Once outside the ship, they began traipsing through the woods to reach the capsule. Rescuing Callie, Marie, and their FamiliesAs the Young Six were getting ready to rescue the rest of the crew, they all looked at the manifest to know everyone's names. ** Squidbeak Captain Christina Cephalopod Squidbeak Agents 3, 4, and 8 Callie Cuttlefish Sally Cuttlefish Jerome Cuttlefish Marie Cuttlefish Iris Cuttlefish Michael Cuttlefish Mike Dreemurr Taylor Dreemurr Aaron Grady Athena Grady Andrew Grady Lizzie Grady Angelo Grady Atari Grady Walker Johnson Becka Johnson Jacob Johnson DJ Octavio Jenny Octavio Rosa Octavio Octarian Commanders Grax, Soran, and Koval Octarian Agents Robin, Eloise, and Geneva Salmonling Admiral Kyle Salmonling Sergeants Troy and Grant Salmonling Agents Randy, Dakota, and Jaxon ** Just as everyone was about to begin the rescues, they noticed eleven tracking signals grouped together in the Ghastly Gorge. A closer look at the signals revealed that they belonged to multiple entities with matching names. Flurry realized that Callie, Marie, the Ammonites, the other two Cuttlefishes, three of the Gradys, and the Dreemurrs were in the gorge together. All seven friends quickly loaded up on three extreme condition rescue crafts and flew to the gorge. When they saw all of the safety lights flashing, they knew that everyone was accounted for. One thing that stood out was that everyone had already exited their pods. "We are here to rescue you.", called Gallus to everyone. Hearing this caught everyone's attention, and they gave the seven friends a rundown of who was who. Callie was married to Mike, and Taylor was their 2 year-old son. Callie was also in a wheelchair, and the reason was clear when Flurry saw that her belly was bulged, meaning Callie was pregnant. Sally and Jerome were Callie's parents. Marie was her cousin, and she was married to Andrew. Her parents were Michael and Iris. Aaron and Athena were Andrew's parents. Most of the inklings were relieved to hear they were being rescued, but Smolder noticed that Marie and Andrew were crying. "Are you two okay?", she asked them calmly. "We got separated from our precious angels, Lizzie, Angelo, and Atari.", said Marie through her tears as she handed Smolder a photo of the three kids. "Lizzie is our oldest. She's almost 4. Angelo is next in line, and is close to turning 1. Atari is our newest baby, and she's only TWO MONTHS old.", screeched Andrew. "How did you get separated from them?", asked Silverstream. "We were rushing to get off the ship as soon as possible. Callie had Taylor wrapped up warm and strapped in his carrier, and Mike frantically told us to hurry and get our kids because the medical bay's airlock was going to close at any minute. Unfortunately, we tripped on the tips of our shoes and got to the door as it finished closing. Lizzie was banging on the window in panic, but I put in a keycode to remotely activate the Pediatric Escape Pod so they'd know how to get out. Lizzie nodded, picked up Atari and Angelo, and climbed into the pod. Once we saw the hatch closing, we turned around and ran to our own pod to get out before the ship crashed. Sadly, they did not land with us, so we're scared to death and hoping they're not hurt.", said Marie. "Fear not, Marie. We will bring them back to you.", said Flurry in assurance. Everyone followed the crew onto the rescue crafts and they were flown to Canterlot. During transit, Callie said that she and Mike had been expecting for eight and a half months, which meant Taylor was about to become a big brother. The sibling was due any day now. Once everyone was shown to their guest rooms, Flurry started gearing up to rescue Lizzie, Angelo, and Atari. Their signal was coming from the Frozen North, so she made sure to bring her winter coat. Rescuing Lizzie, Angelo, and AtariFlurry Heart opted for Smolder to go with her as a second set of hands to rescue Lizzie, Angelo, and Atari. Their capsule had touched down in a remote area 2 miles northwest of the Crystal Empire. After giving a radio to Andrew and Marie, Smolder brought the kids' changing supplies onto the rescue craft and joined Flurry in the cockpit. They took off and flew into the late evening sky towards the capsule. Upon reaching the Frozen North, the view outside the craft was whited out. There was a heavy snowstorm raging outside and they had flown straight into the heart of it. Thankfully, the capsule's signal did not disappear from radar. Upon seeing the capsule's safety light on the ground, Flurry touched down thirty feet away. She and Smolder put on their winter coats, scarves, hats, snowshoes, and goggles before opening the loading ramp and rushing to the capsule to open the hatch. Flurry knocked three times on the hatch to alert the kids that help had arrived. Five seconds later, they heard three knocks from inside the capsule. This meant at least one of the kids had heard them. Flurry peered through the hatch's window and saw that Lizzie was the one who had knocked back. She was completely lucid, she had her winter coat on to keep warm, and she was wearing an orange oxygen mask over her mouth and nose in order to breathe. What pleased Flurry was that Lizzie had tears of immeasurable joy in her eyes since she and her siblings were being rescued. Knowing the wind outside was too loud for Lizzie to hear over, Flurry typed out a note on her tablet computer and held it up for Lizzie to read. "I need you to move away from the window so I can get a look at Angelo and Atari." Lizzie nodded, sat back down in her seat, and put her seatbelt back on. When Flurry saw Angelo and Atari, she became worried even though the two were wearing oxygen masks just like Lizzie was. Angelo didn't look too swift. He was pale and he was hardly moving. Atari was flailing her arms and her legs, and she seemed to be squalling, or crying loudly, as if she was either scared or in pain. Thankfully, the safety straps kept her from falling on the capsule's floor and hurting herself. Flurry shouted to Smolder over the howling wind that they needed to put the capsule on the rescue craft's cargo sled in order to reel it in. Smolder nodded and ran back to the rescue craft to get the sled. Once Smolder had hooked up the sled and brought it to the capsule, Flurry used her magic to set the capsule in place. After securing the capsule with cargo straps, she started the winch to pull the capsule up the ramp. Once the capsule was pulled on-board the rescue craft and the ramp was closed, Flurry started assessing the kids from outside after she and Smolder had taken off their winter clothes. Lizzie appeared to be the same, and she seemed excited to finally climb out of the cramped capsule. Angelo remained motionless, even though Smolder flashed a light at him four times. Atari had her eyes shut, so she didn't know what was going on. She continued to squall and flail her arms and legs. After depressurizing the capsule, Flurry radioed Andrew and Marie to update them on their progress. "Andrew, Marie, this is Flurry Heart. We have your children's capsule on-board our craft. We are about to pull them out.", she said. "That's great to hear. Are they alert?", asked Marie. "Lizzie is fully lucid, and she seems eager to finally get out. Angelo is pale and he's not responding to Smolder flashing a light at him. Atari is alert as well, but she won't stop squalling. We will see what's going on once we get them out. I am going to put you on VOX so you can hear us better.", replied Flurry. Andrew and Marie became worried after hearing Flurry tell them Angelo didn't look too swift. Regardless of this, they acknowledged what Flurry said and prepared to hear the reports on their kids. Smolder had tried twice to unlock the hatch, but the latch handle was frozen and wouldn't turn without the risk of breaking. Smolder came to realize that she would need to cut the hatch open. As she was getting a laser ready to cut the hatch free, Lizzie got up and held up her hands as if she was trying to warn Smolder about something. Since Atari was squalling so loudly, Smolder wasn't sure if Lizzie would hear her speaking. To compensate, she pulled out her notepad and wrote a question with a pencil. "What's wrong?" "Flurry, this is Marie. What's going on? We hear how loudly Atari is squalling.", said Marie. "I'm not sure. Smolder is trying to find out by asking Lizzie questions with a notepad and pencil.", Flurry replied. Lizzie took in a gulp of air and lowered her oxygen mask. She pointed to Atari and pinched her nose. Then she put her oxygen mask back on. Smolder erased the first question and wrote another one to ask what Lizzie meant. "Does she have a nosebleed?" Lizzie shook her head as if saying no. Suddenly, Smolder remembered what Andrew and Marie had said about Atari. She was only two months old. This made Smolder weary as she wrote the next question. "Is she stinky?" Sweat beaded on Lizzie's face as she nodded her head to say yes. Smolder shuddered nervously and then set her macro-binoculars in a scanning mode for tracing odors to their point of origin. When she focused her gaze on Atari, her eyes widened and she gritted her teeth. The camera showed bright yellow around Atari, and *DANGER* flashed up. This was not good. Atari needed her diaper changed at once. "FLURRY, MASK UP!", she yelled as she put away her binoculars after turning them off. "SMOLDER, NOT SO LOUD!", shrieked Flurry as her ears began ringing. "What's happening?", asked Andrew. "Atari has inked badly. She needs her diaper changed as soon as we get her out.", said Smolder as she and Flurry put on gas masks. Smolder proceeded to cut open the hatch and then Lizzie jumped out in one fell swoop. Lizzie began coughing after taking her oxygen mask off, but she soon started breathing normally and buckled herself in a child's seat without help. After Flurry extracted Angelo to assess his condition; Smolder put on rubber gloves, climbed into the capsule, and scooped Atari up carefully. Then she got out and hurried to the craft's medical bay in order to change her diaper. Even though the change was going smoothly, Atari was continuing to cry loudly. Realizing the possibility that Atari was in pain, Smolder took a quick look between Atari's legs with a flashlight before strapping the fresh diaper on, which revealed nasty redness in Atari's skin. Gasping, Smolder realized Atari had diaper rash, a common and very painful skin irritation for babies. She informed Marie and Andrew of what happened, and they were shaken up. "Oh dear, that's not good.", said Marie worriedly. "I have a special cream with which to stop the irritation quickly. However, the treatment will not be instantaneous. You will need to apply the cream during the next three changes.", said Smolder. Andrew understood what Smolder meant and told her to go ahead. As Smolder applied the rash cream, Atari gently stopped crying and went to sleep so Smolder could finish changing her. Then, Flurry informed them on how Angelo was doing. "Angelo's temperature is 83 degrees. He has moderate hypothermia. That explains the state he was in when Smolder tried to rouse him.", Flurry said as she wrapped Angelo in a heated blanket before strapping him in a child's seat next to Lizzie. "We're on our way back.", said Smolder. "See you back here.", said Andrew. After Smolder turned off the radio, she gave Atari her pacifier and wrapped her snugly in a blanket. As she prepared to lay Atari down, Lizzie got up and walked over to her. "Let me hold her. I could sing to her if she wakes up.", she said. "Sure thing.", said Smolder gladly as Lizzie walked back to her seat. After Lizzie had fastened her seatbelt, Smolder handed Atari to her. Lizzie cradled her baby sister lovingly in her arms for the ride to Canterlot. Two thirds of the way there, Angelo started to come around. His vision slid in and out of focus, but he soon got a clear look at Lizzie after blinking several times. "Sis?", he asked. "Angie, you're awake.", said Lizzie in a loud whisper. Flurry happened to hear Lizzie and came to check on her. When she saw Angelo was awake, she gave him a warm cup of milk to help his temperature come back up. Three minutes later, his temperature was back to normal, and Flurry helped him put his coat on. They arrived in Canterlot ten minutes later. Lizzie followed Flurry off the craft while carrying Atari in her arms and Angelo rode on Flurry's back. After they had gone inside the castle to reunite with Andrew and Marie, Smolder took the craft to be refueled and restocked. "We're so glad you're alright.", said Andrew as Lizzie handed Atari to Marie. "So am I, Daddy.", said Lizzie as she and Angelo gave him a hug and a kiss. "Lizzie, how did you know that Atari needed to be changed?", asked Twilight. Lizzie's reply was very startling. "Her loud cries were what woke me up. When I went to calm her down, I caught a whiff and realized what happened. I tried singing to her and playing peekaboo in order to distract her, but it didn't work. I dropped the oxygen masks in order to avoid the bad smell. Angelo was already awake when I was roused, but he was pale and motionless like your friends saw him. I was about to wrap my coat around him and cuddle up to help him stay warm when Flurry knocked on the hatch.", she explained. "What a brave and loving sister you are.", said Twilight in amazement. "Indeed, Cupcake.", said Andrew. Lizzie thanked Twilight for her compliment before Andrew and Marie led her to their guest room for the night. Two minutes later, Silverstream, Gallus, and Ocellus boarded a rescue helicopter and flew south to rescue Walker, Becka, and Jacob in the Celestial Sea. Rescuing DJ Octavio and the OctariansSandbar and Yona were up at dawn the next morning. DJ Octavio's location showed him and the Octarians had touched down in the Dragon Lands, so it was crucial to get them out before the temperature rose too much. Even though they were in the outskirts, The Dragon Lands were scorching hot all year. Ember was waiting for the rescue craft, so she waved her scepter to show Yona where to land. After putting on heat-resistant suits, Sandbar and Yona got off the craft and quickly met up with Ember. "We had an eruption two hours ago. Red-hot igneous rocks were propelled EVERYWHERE, including around those escape capsules you're looking for. They're getting too hot, too fast.", said Ember worriedly. "Then let's get going. If we don't move fast enough; the Octarians are going to be cooked alive.", said Sandbar. Ember gathered twelve dragon soldiers to help out with the rescue, and they moved as fast as they could to reach the capsules. Yona and Sandbar deployed two fire vehicles from the rescue craft in order to shoot super-cold brine on the lava rocks. The brine consisted of water mixed with strong amounts of calcium. Upon reaching the site, they opened the main valves and started blasting the rocks to cool them off. This took just ten minutes to do, as the thermometers showed the brine to be at negative 40 degrees Fahrenheit. Once Sandbar used an infrared thermometer to confirm that the rocks were not emitting heat anymore, he pulled out his plasma cutter and sliced the hatches loose from the capsules. Unlocking the hatches wasn't an option, because the intense heat from the lava rocks had melted them shut. Once Yona had kicked the hatches to knock them free; the Octarians climbed out of their pods. If the rocks had remained hot for another 20 minutes, it would have gotten too hot for them to breathe, so they were left coughing when they got out. "Thank you for getting us out of there. We were almost fried.", said DJ Octavio. "No problem. We came to rescue you after your ship went down last night.", said Yona. "Jenny and I are his twin daughters. He is the Octarian General, and we are right below him as the Associate Generals.", said Rosa. After the Commanders and the three Octarian Agents had introduced themselves, they followed Sandbar and Yona onto the rescue craft and strapped in for the flight back to Canterlot. After landing, everyone was led to their sleeping quarters and the Octarians were able to get some rest for a few hours. Rescuing the SalmonlingsSix hours after the Octarian rescue, Flurry, Silverstream, and Twilight headed for the South Luna Ocean to rescue the Salmonlings. The floatation cylinders on the Salmonlings' capsules had burst, causing the capsules to sink under the water. After arriving at the water, Flurry and Silverstream put on their diving suits and Twilight lowered them underwater in a dive bell to reach the Salmonlings. Walker had told Twilight that the Salmonlings could swim in water, since they were part-fish. Knowing this, Twilight instructed Flurry and Silverstream to bring small oxygen tanks down with them. "Good luck to you both.", said Twilight over the radio. Flurry's last scan showed the Salmonlings to be on a ledge 300 feet underwater. As she and Silverstream descended further and further into the water, the light faded until it was very dim. One hour later, when the depth gauge showed they had reached 300 feet, Flurry and Silverstream exited the dive bell and turned on their headlamps. After spotting the two safety lights in the water, they swam over and started cutting open the capsules from the bottom to keep water out. As they opened each capsule, they handed air tanks up through the floor and then waited for the Salmonlings to exit and swim over to the dive bell. Once all six of the Salmonlings had moved into the dive bell, Flurry and Silverstream radioed Twilight to say that they were ready. "I'm reeling you in.", said Twilight as she started the winch. "Thank you for coming to get us. We were really feeling like sardines while inside those escape pods.", said Agent Jaxon and Admiral Kyle after everyone got out of the bell. "I'm glad we were able to get you out. We hope to learn what brought you to our world relatively soon.", said Twilight as she flew the rescue craft back to Canterlot. Twilight, Flurry, and the Young Six were very glad that the rescues had gone fairly smoothly. After the Salmonlings were brought into the palace and given a chance to rest, Twilight gave the crew a tour of the palace and told them about how she grew from a young unicorn to being ruler over all of Equestria. Once her story was concluded, everyone went to bed for the night. They had a long day ahead of them tomorrow. Taylor Becomes a Big BrotherThe morning after rescuing the Octarians and the Salmonlings, Mike came running to Flurry. He looked frantic. "It's Callie.", he said in between breaths. "Is it time?", asked Flurry. Before Mike could say yes, they both heard Callie let out a scream in extreme AGONY. "Does that answer your question?", asked Twilight. Flurry ran to get Silverstream, Gallus, and Ocellus while telling Mike to wheel Callie to the palace infirmary. Once Callie was in a gown and lying on the bed, Flurry took a quick examination and realized there was a problem. "Callie, your baby is in breech position. That can be dangerous.", she said worriedly. "Are you telling me I need a c-section?", asked Callie in alarm. "I'm afraid so. It's the safest way to do this.", said Flurry. "Good luck, dear. I'll be waiting with Taylor in recovery.", said Mike as Flurry wheeled Callie into surgery. In the operating room, Gallus gave Callie an intravenous line for her medicine and then he gave her the anesthesia to put her under. Once Gallus said Callie was stable, Flurry started the incision to open her up. Five minutes later, she slit the amniotic membrane and extracted the newborn inkling. "We have a girl.", said Flurry proudly after she cut the umbilical cord and went to give the crying baby to Ocellus. Silverstream began getting ready to suture, but then she saw something that startled her. "OH MY GOSH!", she yelped. Gallus stepped over to see what was happening, and then he got a shock. "OH MY GOSH! FLURRY, COME BACK!", he shouted. After Flurry gave the newborn girl to Ocellus, she came racing back upon hearing Gallus and Silverstream yelling for her. "What's going on?", she asked nervously. "It's twins.", said Silverstream as she stepped aside and Flurry could see an arm reaching out. "Goodness gracious.", gasped Flurry as she reached in and grabbed the second baby. "It's a boy.", she said as she cut the cord. Once Flurry had stepped back, Silverstream confirmed that there were no more surprises and then began suturing until Callie was closed up and bandaged. Ocellus had just finished dressing the daughter when Flurry came rushing in with the new son, which startled her. Once Ocellus had assessed the new boy's health and dressed him, she and Flurry went to see Mike and Taylor in the recovery room. "You have a new brother and a sister.", said Flurry in a sweet voice to Taylor. Hearing this made Taylor squeal happily, and he gave Mike a tight hug. Later on, Callie woke up next to Mike, who was smiling warmly. "How are you feeling?", he asked her. "I feel much better.", said Callie. Just then, Ocellus and Silverstream rolled in two bassinets, each with one of Taylor's new siblings. "Did I have twins?", asked Callie in astonishment. "You certainly did, Callie. Congratulations.", said Ocellus. Callie began to cry, and tears of joy began to splash down her cheeks. Taylor's new brother looked just like him, except he had a different hair style and he had Callie's gold eyes. He was named Tamaki. Taylor's new sister had Mike's red eyes and Callie's hair color. She was named Takara. Both of these names meant "treasure", and they were fitting for the twins. Taylor began to shed tears himself, and he kissed both of his new siblings on the forehead as they slept in Callie's arms. Reason for the Unexpected VisitThe day after Taylor's siblings were born, Twilight and Flurry Heart held a meeting with Christina, Walker, Octavio, and Kyle to ask what brought them to Equus. "The original inhabitants of Earth are called "Humans". They were thought to have been driven to extinction when the oceans rose. It turns out that a large number of them survived the flood. They rose up without warning and began construction in the outskirts of our hometowns of Inkopolis and Splatsville without permission. Some of our friends disappeared in the process, which leads us to think they've been captured. We were forced to build ourselves a spaceship and escape. The remaining Inklings, Octarians, and Salmonlings have found underground bunkers and are currently on standby, gearing up and waiting for us to come back.", said Christina. "That's terrible to hear.", said Twilight. "We thought we had gotten away unseen, but our ship was damaged by one of their weapons during the launch. What hit us was a missile that seemed to just appear on our radar once we were in space. When we were hit by it, our engines were reduced to half-power.", said Octavio. "That doesn't make sense. Something like that can't just appear on your radar if it was fired from the ground and you were already in space.", said Flurry. "I understand your confusion, Flurry. We have several open water surveillance outposts that watch for bad weather and unexpected surprises. Outpost number 12 recorded the missile being fired from a submarine. Spies from the outpost also managed to take pictures of the humans’ missile blueprints and make copies of their stats.", said Walker as he handed Flurry two discs and a brown envelope. Flurry watched the footage closely and saw that the missile looked like it exploded before reaching space, which made no sense in how it could’ve appeared on a radar without warning. To dig deeper, she scrolled back in the footage to a point when the missile was visible. Then she zoomed in on the missile’s serial number, which was G S M-12. She looked at the blueprint for the missile and saw that the full name was Ground to Space Missile-Mark 12. The engine assembly showed that there were four outer engines for the preliminary takeoff, and a fifth engine in the center for reaching space. This prompted Flurry to examine the missile’s stats, which revealed something she was not expecting. A note from the missile’s test logs said that the missile accelerated abruptly when the center engine was fired. This also involved a loud exploding sound and a cloud of smoke appearing. After getting this information, she played back the footage after converting it to a hologram. Sure enough, she saw the missile moving much faster once the smoke cloud appeared. She rushed to share her findings with Walker. When he saw the first part of the recording, he was skeptical. “How does an explosion explain how the missile appeared on radar without warning?”, he asked. "That’s just it, Walker. This isn't an explosion. It's an aftershock. The four engines on the outside are what launch the missile initially. The fifth engine in the center is what shoots the missile into space. When the center engine is fired, the missile speeds up drastically. This abrupt acceleration is why the missile appeared on your radar in the blink of an eye.", she said as she showed the last part of the playback. Walker's eyes widened in amazement. This prompted Twilight to explain how Flurry had designed the airports and the Space Force's ships with such precision. She was a total GENIUS. "Our wings were hit by asteroids as we shot towards this planet. We were testing an experimental engine to travel faster than light, but we miscalculated our course. At least we know the engine works though.", said Kyle. "I hope we can make peace with the humans. Otherwise, we will be forced to find a new place to live. That's not the kind of environment you want to be in when you've just gained new members to your family. I am specifically addressing the Squid Sisters. Atari is only two months old, and Callie gave birth to Tamaki and Takara just yesterday.", said Christina. "I know how you feel. I will send Equestria's Space Force to help you push back the humans. With their assistance, you should be able to reclaim what's yours.", said Twilight. Christina shook with Twilight and then informed the rest of the crew that they were being helped out to confront the humans. The entire crew cheered and the oldest members began getting ready for the war to take back Earth.
The Captain and the AgentsIt took two hours for Flurry Heart and the Young Six to reach the old castle, but they did not give up. They spotted the escape capsule in an instant, thanks to its safety light and the bright orange parachutes that had deployed from the top. When they reached the capsule, Gallus grabbed the latch handle and twisted it to unlock the hatch. Inside the capsule were four figures that none of them had ever seen. They had two legs and two arms, and their hair looked like the tentacles from either a squid or an octopus. Three of the figures' nametags identified them as Agents 3, 4, and 8. The fourth figure wore a brimmed cap, and her nametag said "Captain". "Have you come to rescue us?", asked Agent 3. "Yes we have.", said Silverstream. "That's great. If you can take us to your leader, we will show you where everyone else landed.", said Agent 8. Flurry led the four individuals to the forest outskirts, and then to a train to Canterlot. At the palace, Twilight shook with the four figures and then struck up a conversation. "Who are you?", she asked the Captain. "My name is Christina Cephalopod. I am Captain of the Squidbeak Splatoon, and I was the Captain of the ship that crashed in the woods.", said the figure wearing a brimmed hat. Agent 4 said that she, Agent 3, and Christina were referred to as "inklings", a cross between humans and squids. Agent 8 was an "octoling", a cross between a human and an octopus. "What about Agents 1 and 2?" asked Ocellus. "Agents 1 and 2 are Callie and Marie Cuttlefish. They are the granddaughters of Craig Cuttlefish, my recently deceased predecessor, and the former Captain of the Squidbeak Splatoon.", replied Christina. "Well then, we will waste no time rescuing everyone.", said Flurry in determination. "Music to my ears, Flurry. Be careful out there, because the radar shows some of the pods have landed in treacherous places.", said Twilight.
Rescuing Walker and his FamilyAs Silverstream, Gallus, and Ocellus flew southeast to the Celestial Sea, Twilight gave them a heads-up on the weather. A huge thunderstorm had developed two days ago and was now passing over the escape capsule's location. So it was likely that there would be strong wind gusts and heavy rainfall present during the rescue. Silverstream acknowledged this and put on her wetsuit. Upon reaching the origin point for the capsule's tracking signal and seeing the exterior safety light, Silverstream grabbed an orange float ring and a raft before jumping into the ocean. She swam over to the capsule, climbed up to the window, and knocked on the hatch. Inside, she could see Walker, Becka, and Jacob all seated side-by-side. Walker gave her a double thumbs-up to indicate he saw her. At the same time, Gallus put on his rescue harness and a helmet in case he fell out of the helicopter. Then he clipped a basket to the winch. The basket had a canopy on it since Walker was a robot. This way he wouldn't be damaged by the water. "Gallus, I have the floats attached and the raft is inflated. Drop the basket.", said Silverstream over her headset as she started pulling Walker out after opening the hatch. "Here it comes.", said Gallus as he started the winch. Once the basket reached the water; Silverstream helped Walker get in and lie down. After Walker had fastened the safety straps over himself, he nodded to Silverstream, who nodded back and flashed a light at Gallus to pull the basket up. Once Walker was on-board the helicopter, Gallus dropped the basket again and Silverstream helped Becka get in. Once she handed Jacob to Becka, Silverstream signaled Gallus to bring them up. As Becka and Jacob were hoisted up, Silverstream opened the pressure relief valves on the float ring and the raft to deflate them. Then she rolled them back up and waved to Gallus to drop a line for her. Once Silverstream was back on the chopper and Gallus had closed the door, Ocellus turned around and flew back to Canterlot. On the way there, Gallus had a question for Walker. "Since you're a robot, how were you and Becka able to reproduce and have Jacob?", he asked. "I temporarily turned myself into an inkling. That's how we did it.", Walker replied. "Interesting.", said Gallus. "I was First Officer on the starship. I can contact the rest of the evacuees if you can't rescue everyone at the same time.", said Becka. "Understood, I will inform Twilight.", said Ocellus as she landed the helicopter in Canterlot. After disembarking from the chopper, Twilight confirmed that she was planning for the Octarians and the Salmonlings to be picked up the next day. Becka reached out to everyone else with a data-pad, telling them to hang tight until the next morning. She received replies from DJ Octavio and Admiral Kyle in a flash, acknowledging that they would be ready when the rescue units came to get them.
Searching the StarshipForty minutes after the Young Six arrived in Canterlot, they heard a loud roaring sound outside. They, along with Twilight and Flurry, ran to a balcony and watched as the mysterious starship's body glided over Equestria. Moments later, it touched down loudly in the westmost part of the Everfree Forest. This just happened to be close to the Ponyville Airport, so Twilight contacted them and said to ground all flights until the wreckage was cleared. "We need to get to that ship and figure out where she came from.", said Sandbar in a determined tone. "Agreed.", said everyone else. Twilight sent them outside to a helicopter equipped with two nozzles for spraying foam to put out a fire. This chopper was piloted by Spitfire, and she was quick to fly them to the woods. She did not land until all of the flames had been knocked down, which was for safety concerns. After landing, Flurry led the Young Six up to the ship's body and told Gallus to pull out a plasma cutter. Since none of them knew where the ship's main hatch was, they were going to make their own entrance. Surprisingly, Gallus spotted a handle and realized it was part of the main hatch. So he took a scan to find out which way the hatch opened. Upon finding that the hatch opened to the left, he cut through the hinges and had Smolder help him pull it off. Flurry noted that the ship's wings had broken off during reentry, but she had only seen the fire from the main body, which meant that the wings had likely burned up in the atmosphere. Once inside the ship, Flurry brought Gallus, Sandbar, and Yona with her towards the bridge at the front of the ship. Everyone else split up to search the other areas. The search would have been quick to carry out, but there were safety airlock doors that had closed and sealed portions of the hallways. Smolder found the medical bay and noticed there was a hatch along one wall. Looking at the hatch revealed the words "Pediatric Escape Pod" and "Emergency Use Only" were written on it. Silverstream found where all of the other escape pods were launched from, and reported to Flurry that all of them were gone. "I can confirm that, Silverstream. Yona just found a screen that says all of the escape pods were launched.", said Flurry. Ocellus found several crew cabins and said that some were large enough to occupy whole families. Flurry was astonished by this. On the bridge, Gallus found a tracking device which was programmed to show the locations of every escape capsule on radar when they were launched. Sandbar looked under a broken chair and found a tablet computer which contained the crew manifest. Flurry was pleased to see this, because they now knew the names of everyone that was on-board the ship. Flurry spotted something very intriguing on the bridge, which was a notebook in the Captain's chair. This notebook said that the ship was designed for emergency evacuation purposes. Upon seeing this, she opened a direct channel to Twilight. "Aunt Twilight, I don't think we need to defend ourselves. A notebook that I found on the ship's bridge says that this is an evacuation ship. That means the crew consists of evacuees.", she said. "I understand. Gallus has transmitted the signals from the tracking device to me and it seems that one of the escape pods is fairly close to you. It's on the other side of the forest, near Celestia and Luna's original castle.", replied Twilight. "We're on it.", said Flurry. She radioed everyone and told them where they were headed. Once outside the ship, they began traipsing through the woods to reach the capsule.
Rescuing Callie, Marie, and their FamiliesAs the Young Six were getting ready to rescue the rest of the crew, they all looked at the manifest to know everyone's names. ** Squidbeak Captain Christina Cephalopod Squidbeak Agents 3, 4, and 8 Callie Cuttlefish Sally Cuttlefish Jerome Cuttlefish Marie Cuttlefish Iris Cuttlefish Michael Cuttlefish Mike Dreemurr Taylor Dreemurr Aaron Grady Athena Grady Andrew Grady Lizzie Grady Angelo Grady Atari Grady Walker Johnson Becka Johnson Jacob Johnson DJ Octavio Jenny Octavio Rosa Octavio Octarian Commanders Grax, Soran, and Koval Octarian Agents Robin, Eloise, and Geneva Salmonling Admiral Kyle Salmonling Sergeants Troy and Grant Salmonling Agents Randy, Dakota, and Jaxon ** Just as everyone was about to begin the rescues, they noticed eleven tracking signals grouped together in the Ghastly Gorge. A closer look at the signals revealed that they belonged to multiple entities with matching names. Flurry realized that Callie, Marie, the Ammonites, the other two Cuttlefishes, three of the Gradys, and the Dreemurrs were in the gorge together. All seven friends quickly loaded up on three extreme condition rescue crafts and flew to the gorge. When they saw all of the safety lights flashing, they knew that everyone was accounted for. One thing that stood out was that everyone had already exited their pods. "We are here to rescue you.", called Gallus to everyone. Hearing this caught everyone's attention, and they gave the seven friends a rundown of who was who. Callie was married to Mike, and Taylor was their 2 year-old son. Callie was also in a wheelchair, and the reason was clear when Flurry saw that her belly was bulged, meaning Callie was pregnant. Sally and Jerome were Callie's parents. Marie was her cousin, and she was married to Andrew. Her parents were Michael and Iris. Aaron and Athena were Andrew's parents. Most of the inklings were relieved to hear they were being rescued, but Smolder noticed that Marie and Andrew were crying. "Are you two okay?", she asked them calmly. "We got separated from our precious angels, Lizzie, Angelo, and Atari.", said Marie through her tears as she handed Smolder a photo of the three kids. "Lizzie is our oldest. She's almost 4. Angelo is next in line, and is close to turning 1. Atari is our newest baby, and she's only TWO MONTHS old.", screeched Andrew. "How did you get separated from them?", asked Silverstream. "We were rushing to get off the ship as soon as possible. Callie had Taylor wrapped up warm and strapped in his carrier, and Mike frantically told us to hurry and get our kids because the medical bay's airlock was going to close at any minute. Unfortunately, we tripped on the tips of our shoes and got to the door as it finished closing. Lizzie was banging on the window in panic, but I put in a keycode to remotely activate the Pediatric Escape Pod so they'd know how to get out. Lizzie nodded, picked up Atari and Angelo, and climbed into the pod. Once we saw the hatch closing, we turned around and ran to our own pod to get out before the ship crashed. Sadly, they did not land with us, so we're scared to death and hoping they're not hurt.", said Marie. "Fear not, Marie. We will bring them back to you.", said Flurry in assurance. Everyone followed the crew onto the rescue crafts and they were flown to Canterlot. During transit, Callie said that she and Mike had been expecting for eight and a half months, which meant Taylor was about to become a big brother. The sibling was due any day now. Once everyone was shown to their guest rooms, Flurry started gearing up to rescue Lizzie, Angelo, and Atari. Their signal was coming from the Frozen North, so she made sure to bring her winter coat.
Rescuing Lizzie, Angelo, and AtariFlurry Heart opted for Smolder to go with her as a second set of hands to rescue Lizzie, Angelo, and Atari. Their capsule had touched down in a remote area 2 miles northwest of the Crystal Empire. After giving a radio to Andrew and Marie, Smolder brought the kids' changing supplies onto the rescue craft and joined Flurry in the cockpit. They took off and flew into the late evening sky towards the capsule. Upon reaching the Frozen North, the view outside the craft was whited out. There was a heavy snowstorm raging outside and they had flown straight into the heart of it. Thankfully, the capsule's signal did not disappear from radar. Upon seeing the capsule's safety light on the ground, Flurry touched down thirty feet away. She and Smolder put on their winter coats, scarves, hats, snowshoes, and goggles before opening the loading ramp and rushing to the capsule to open the hatch. Flurry knocked three times on the hatch to alert the kids that help had arrived. Five seconds later, they heard three knocks from inside the capsule. This meant at least one of the kids had heard them. Flurry peered through the hatch's window and saw that Lizzie was the one who had knocked back. She was completely lucid, she had her winter coat on to keep warm, and she was wearing an orange oxygen mask over her mouth and nose in order to breathe. What pleased Flurry was that Lizzie had tears of immeasurable joy in her eyes since she and her siblings were being rescued. Knowing the wind outside was too loud for Lizzie to hear over, Flurry typed out a note on her tablet computer and held it up for Lizzie to read. "I need you to move away from the window so I can get a look at Angelo and Atari." Lizzie nodded, sat back down in her seat, and put her seatbelt back on. When Flurry saw Angelo and Atari, she became worried even though the two were wearing oxygen masks just like Lizzie was. Angelo didn't look too swift. He was pale and he was hardly moving. Atari was flailing her arms and her legs, and she seemed to be squalling, or crying loudly, as if she was either scared or in pain. Thankfully, the safety straps kept her from falling on the capsule's floor and hurting herself. Flurry shouted to Smolder over the howling wind that they needed to put the capsule on the rescue craft's cargo sled in order to reel it in. Smolder nodded and ran back to the rescue craft to get the sled. Once Smolder had hooked up the sled and brought it to the capsule, Flurry used her magic to set the capsule in place. After securing the capsule with cargo straps, she started the winch to pull the capsule up the ramp. Once the capsule was pulled on-board the rescue craft and the ramp was closed, Flurry started assessing the kids from outside after she and Smolder had taken off their winter clothes. Lizzie appeared to be the same, and she seemed excited to finally climb out of the cramped capsule. Angelo remained motionless, even though Smolder flashed a light at him four times. Atari had her eyes shut, so she didn't know what was going on. She continued to squall and flail her arms and legs. After depressurizing the capsule, Flurry radioed Andrew and Marie to update them on their progress. "Andrew, Marie, this is Flurry Heart. We have your children's capsule on-board our craft. We are about to pull them out.", she said. "That's great to hear. Are they alert?", asked Marie. "Lizzie is fully lucid, and she seems eager to finally get out. Angelo is pale and he's not responding to Smolder flashing a light at him. Atari is alert as well, but she won't stop squalling. We will see what's going on once we get them out. I am going to put you on VOX so you can hear us better.", replied Flurry. Andrew and Marie became worried after hearing Flurry tell them Angelo didn't look too swift. Regardless of this, they acknowledged what Flurry said and prepared to hear the reports on their kids. Smolder had tried twice to unlock the hatch, but the latch handle was frozen and wouldn't turn without the risk of breaking. Smolder came to realize that she would need to cut the hatch open. As she was getting a laser ready to cut the hatch free, Lizzie got up and held up her hands as if she was trying to warn Smolder about something. Since Atari was squalling so loudly, Smolder wasn't sure if Lizzie would hear her speaking. To compensate, she pulled out her notepad and wrote a question with a pencil. "What's wrong?" "Flurry, this is Marie. What's going on? We hear how loudly Atari is squalling.", said Marie. "I'm not sure. Smolder is trying to find out by asking Lizzie questions with a notepad and pencil.", Flurry replied. Lizzie took in a gulp of air and lowered her oxygen mask. She pointed to Atari and pinched her nose. Then she put her oxygen mask back on. Smolder erased the first question and wrote another one to ask what Lizzie meant. "Does she have a nosebleed?" Lizzie shook her head as if saying no. Suddenly, Smolder remembered what Andrew and Marie had said about Atari. She was only two months old. This made Smolder weary as she wrote the next question. "Is she stinky?" Sweat beaded on Lizzie's face as she nodded her head to say yes. Smolder shuddered nervously and then set her macro-binoculars in a scanning mode for tracing odors to their point of origin. When she focused her gaze on Atari, her eyes widened and she gritted her teeth. The camera showed bright yellow around Atari, and *DANGER* flashed up. This was not good. Atari needed her diaper changed at once. "FLURRY, MASK UP!", she yelled as she put away her binoculars after turning them off. "SMOLDER, NOT SO LOUD!", shrieked Flurry as her ears began ringing. "What's happening?", asked Andrew. "Atari has inked badly. She needs her diaper changed as soon as we get her out.", said Smolder as she and Flurry put on gas masks. Smolder proceeded to cut open the hatch and then Lizzie jumped out in one fell swoop. Lizzie began coughing after taking her oxygen mask off, but she soon started breathing normally and buckled herself in a child's seat without help. After Flurry extracted Angelo to assess his condition; Smolder put on rubber gloves, climbed into the capsule, and scooped Atari up carefully. Then she got out and hurried to the craft's medical bay in order to change her diaper. Even though the change was going smoothly, Atari was continuing to cry loudly. Realizing the possibility that Atari was in pain, Smolder took a quick look between Atari's legs with a flashlight before strapping the fresh diaper on, which revealed nasty redness in Atari's skin. Gasping, Smolder realized Atari had diaper rash, a common and very painful skin irritation for babies. She informed Marie and Andrew of what happened, and they were shaken up. "Oh dear, that's not good.", said Marie worriedly. "I have a special cream with which to stop the irritation quickly. However, the treatment will not be instantaneous. You will need to apply the cream during the next three changes.", said Smolder. Andrew understood what Smolder meant and told her to go ahead. As Smolder applied the rash cream, Atari gently stopped crying and went to sleep so Smolder could finish changing her. Then, Flurry informed them on how Angelo was doing. "Angelo's temperature is 83 degrees. He has moderate hypothermia. That explains the state he was in when Smolder tried to rouse him.", Flurry said as she wrapped Angelo in a heated blanket before strapping him in a child's seat next to Lizzie. "We're on our way back.", said Smolder. "See you back here.", said Andrew. After Smolder turned off the radio, she gave Atari her pacifier and wrapped her snugly in a blanket. As she prepared to lay Atari down, Lizzie got up and walked over to her. "Let me hold her. I could sing to her if she wakes up.", she said. "Sure thing.", said Smolder gladly as Lizzie walked back to her seat. After Lizzie had fastened her seatbelt, Smolder handed Atari to her. Lizzie cradled her baby sister lovingly in her arms for the ride to Canterlot. Two thirds of the way there, Angelo started to come around. His vision slid in and out of focus, but he soon got a clear look at Lizzie after blinking several times. "Sis?", he asked. "Angie, you're awake.", said Lizzie in a loud whisper. Flurry happened to hear Lizzie and came to check on her. When she saw Angelo was awake, she gave him a warm cup of milk to help his temperature come back up. Three minutes later, his temperature was back to normal, and Flurry helped him put his coat on. They arrived in Canterlot ten minutes later. Lizzie followed Flurry off the craft while carrying Atari in her arms and Angelo rode on Flurry's back. After they had gone inside the castle to reunite with Andrew and Marie, Smolder took the craft to be refueled and restocked. "We're so glad you're alright.", said Andrew as Lizzie handed Atari to Marie. "So am I, Daddy.", said Lizzie as she and Angelo gave him a hug and a kiss. "Lizzie, how did you know that Atari needed to be changed?", asked Twilight. Lizzie's reply was very startling. "Her loud cries were what woke me up. When I went to calm her down, I caught a whiff and realized what happened. I tried singing to her and playing peekaboo in order to distract her, but it didn't work. I dropped the oxygen masks in order to avoid the bad smell. Angelo was already awake when I was roused, but he was pale and motionless like your friends saw him. I was about to wrap my coat around him and cuddle up to help him stay warm when Flurry knocked on the hatch.", she explained. "What a brave and loving sister you are.", said Twilight in amazement. "Indeed, Cupcake.", said Andrew. Lizzie thanked Twilight for her compliment before Andrew and Marie led her to their guest room for the night. Two minutes later, Silverstream, Gallus, and Ocellus boarded a rescue helicopter and flew south to rescue Walker, Becka, and Jacob in the Celestial Sea.
Rescuing DJ Octavio and the OctariansSandbar and Yona were up at dawn the next morning. DJ Octavio's location showed him and the Octarians had touched down in the Dragon Lands, so it was crucial to get them out before the temperature rose too much. Even though they were in the outskirts, The Dragon Lands were scorching hot all year. Ember was waiting for the rescue craft, so she waved her scepter to show Yona where to land. After putting on heat-resistant suits, Sandbar and Yona got off the craft and quickly met up with Ember. "We had an eruption two hours ago. Red-hot igneous rocks were propelled EVERYWHERE, including around those escape capsules you're looking for. They're getting too hot, too fast.", said Ember worriedly. "Then let's get going. If we don't move fast enough; the Octarians are going to be cooked alive.", said Sandbar. Ember gathered twelve dragon soldiers to help out with the rescue, and they moved as fast as they could to reach the capsules. Yona and Sandbar deployed two fire vehicles from the rescue craft in order to shoot super-cold brine on the lava rocks. The brine consisted of water mixed with strong amounts of calcium. Upon reaching the site, they opened the main valves and started blasting the rocks to cool them off. This took just ten minutes to do, as the thermometers showed the brine to be at negative 40 degrees Fahrenheit. Once Sandbar used an infrared thermometer to confirm that the rocks were not emitting heat anymore, he pulled out his plasma cutter and sliced the hatches loose from the capsules. Unlocking the hatches wasn't an option, because the intense heat from the lava rocks had melted them shut. Once Yona had kicked the hatches to knock them free; the Octarians climbed out of their pods. If the rocks had remained hot for another 20 minutes, it would have gotten too hot for them to breathe, so they were left coughing when they got out. "Thank you for getting us out of there. We were almost fried.", said DJ Octavio. "No problem. We came to rescue you after your ship went down last night.", said Yona. "Jenny and I are his twin daughters. He is the Octarian General, and we are right below him as the Associate Generals.", said Rosa. After the Commanders and the three Octarian Agents had introduced themselves, they followed Sandbar and Yona onto the rescue craft and strapped in for the flight back to Canterlot. After landing, everyone was led to their sleeping quarters and the Octarians were able to get some rest for a few hours.
Rescuing the SalmonlingsSix hours after the Octarian rescue, Flurry, Silverstream, and Twilight headed for the South Luna Ocean to rescue the Salmonlings. The floatation cylinders on the Salmonlings' capsules had burst, causing the capsules to sink under the water. After arriving at the water, Flurry and Silverstream put on their diving suits and Twilight lowered them underwater in a dive bell to reach the Salmonlings. Walker had told Twilight that the Salmonlings could swim in water, since they were part-fish. Knowing this, Twilight instructed Flurry and Silverstream to bring small oxygen tanks down with them. "Good luck to you both.", said Twilight over the radio. Flurry's last scan showed the Salmonlings to be on a ledge 300 feet underwater. As she and Silverstream descended further and further into the water, the light faded until it was very dim. One hour later, when the depth gauge showed they had reached 300 feet, Flurry and Silverstream exited the dive bell and turned on their headlamps. After spotting the two safety lights in the water, they swam over and started cutting open the capsules from the bottom to keep water out. As they opened each capsule, they handed air tanks up through the floor and then waited for the Salmonlings to exit and swim over to the dive bell. Once all six of the Salmonlings had moved into the dive bell, Flurry and Silverstream radioed Twilight to say that they were ready. "I'm reeling you in.", said Twilight as she started the winch. "Thank you for coming to get us. We were really feeling like sardines while inside those escape pods.", said Agent Jaxon and Admiral Kyle after everyone got out of the bell. "I'm glad we were able to get you out. We hope to learn what brought you to our world relatively soon.", said Twilight as she flew the rescue craft back to Canterlot. Twilight, Flurry, and the Young Six were very glad that the rescues had gone fairly smoothly. After the Salmonlings were brought into the palace and given a chance to rest, Twilight gave the crew a tour of the palace and told them about how she grew from a young unicorn to being ruler over all of Equestria. Once her story was concluded, everyone went to bed for the night. They had a long day ahead of them tomorrow.
Taylor Becomes a Big BrotherThe morning after rescuing the Octarians and the Salmonlings, Mike came running to Flurry. He looked frantic. "It's Callie.", he said in between breaths. "Is it time?", asked Flurry. Before Mike could say yes, they both heard Callie let out a scream in extreme AGONY. "Does that answer your question?", asked Twilight. Flurry ran to get Silverstream, Gallus, and Ocellus while telling Mike to wheel Callie to the palace infirmary. Once Callie was in a gown and lying on the bed, Flurry took a quick examination and realized there was a problem. "Callie, your baby is in breech position. That can be dangerous.", she said worriedly. "Are you telling me I need a c-section?", asked Callie in alarm. "I'm afraid so. It's the safest way to do this.", said Flurry. "Good luck, dear. I'll be waiting with Taylor in recovery.", said Mike as Flurry wheeled Callie into surgery. In the operating room, Gallus gave Callie an intravenous line for her medicine and then he gave her the anesthesia to put her under. Once Gallus said Callie was stable, Flurry started the incision to open her up. Five minutes later, she slit the amniotic membrane and extracted the newborn inkling. "We have a girl.", said Flurry proudly after she cut the umbilical cord and went to give the crying baby to Ocellus. Silverstream began getting ready to suture, but then she saw something that startled her. "OH MY GOSH!", she yelped. Gallus stepped over to see what was happening, and then he got a shock. "OH MY GOSH! FLURRY, COME BACK!", he shouted. After Flurry gave the newborn girl to Ocellus, she came racing back upon hearing Gallus and Silverstream yelling for her. "What's going on?", she asked nervously. "It's twins.", said Silverstream as she stepped aside and Flurry could see an arm reaching out. "Goodness gracious.", gasped Flurry as she reached in and grabbed the second baby. "It's a boy.", she said as she cut the cord. Once Flurry had stepped back, Silverstream confirmed that there were no more surprises and then began suturing until Callie was closed up and bandaged. Ocellus had just finished dressing the daughter when Flurry came rushing in with the new son, which startled her. Once Ocellus had assessed the new boy's health and dressed him, she and Flurry went to see Mike and Taylor in the recovery room. "You have a new brother and a sister.", said Flurry in a sweet voice to Taylor. Hearing this made Taylor squeal happily, and he gave Mike a tight hug. Later on, Callie woke up next to Mike, who was smiling warmly. "How are you feeling?", he asked her. "I feel much better.", said Callie. Just then, Ocellus and Silverstream rolled in two bassinets, each with one of Taylor's new siblings. "Did I have twins?", asked Callie in astonishment. "You certainly did, Callie. Congratulations.", said Ocellus. Callie began to cry, and tears of joy began to splash down her cheeks. Taylor's new brother looked just like him, except he had a different hair style and he had Callie's gold eyes. He was named Tamaki. Taylor's new sister had Mike's red eyes and Callie's hair color. She was named Takara. Both of these names meant "treasure", and they were fitting for the twins. Taylor began to shed tears himself, and he kissed both of his new siblings on the forehead as they slept in Callie's arms.
Reason for the Unexpected VisitThe day after Taylor's siblings were born, Twilight and Flurry Heart held a meeting with Christina, Walker, Octavio, and Kyle to ask what brought them to Equus. "The original inhabitants of Earth are called "Humans". They were thought to have been driven to extinction when the oceans rose. It turns out that a large number of them survived the flood. They rose up without warning and began construction in the outskirts of our hometowns of Inkopolis and Splatsville without permission. Some of our friends disappeared in the process, which leads us to think they've been captured. We were forced to build ourselves a spaceship and escape. The remaining Inklings, Octarians, and Salmonlings have found underground bunkers and are currently on standby, gearing up and waiting for us to come back.", said Christina. "That's terrible to hear.", said Twilight. "We thought we had gotten away unseen, but our ship was damaged by one of their weapons during the launch. What hit us was a missile that seemed to just appear on our radar once we were in space. When we were hit by it, our engines were reduced to half-power.", said Octavio. "That doesn't make sense. Something like that can't just appear on your radar if it was fired from the ground and you were already in space.", said Flurry. "I understand your confusion, Flurry. We have several open water surveillance outposts that watch for bad weather and unexpected surprises. Outpost number 12 recorded the missile being fired from a submarine. Spies from the outpost also managed to take pictures of the humans’ missile blueprints and make copies of their stats.", said Walker as he handed Flurry two discs and a brown envelope. Flurry watched the footage closely and saw that the missile looked like it exploded before reaching space, which made no sense in how it could’ve appeared on a radar without warning. To dig deeper, she scrolled back in the footage to a point when the missile was visible. Then she zoomed in on the missile’s serial number, which was G S M-12. She looked at the blueprint for the missile and saw that the full name was Ground to Space Missile-Mark 12. The engine assembly showed that there were four outer engines for the preliminary takeoff, and a fifth engine in the center for reaching space. This prompted Flurry to examine the missile’s stats, which revealed something she was not expecting. A note from the missile’s test logs said that the missile accelerated abruptly when the center engine was fired. This also involved a loud exploding sound and a cloud of smoke appearing. After getting this information, she played back the footage after converting it to a hologram. Sure enough, she saw the missile moving much faster once the smoke cloud appeared. She rushed to share her findings with Walker. When he saw the first part of the recording, he was skeptical. “How does an explosion explain how the missile appeared on radar without warning?”, he asked. "That’s just it, Walker. This isn't an explosion. It's an aftershock. The four engines on the outside are what launch the missile initially. The fifth engine in the center is what shoots the missile into space. When the center engine is fired, the missile speeds up drastically. This abrupt acceleration is why the missile appeared on your radar in the blink of an eye.", she said as she showed the last part of the playback. Walker's eyes widened in amazement. This prompted Twilight to explain how Flurry had designed the airports and the Space Force's ships with such precision. She was a total GENIUS. "Our wings were hit by asteroids as we shot towards this planet. We were testing an experimental engine to travel faster than light, but we miscalculated our course. At least we know the engine works though.", said Kyle. "I hope we can make peace with the humans. Otherwise, we will be forced to find a new place to live. That's not the kind of environment you want to be in when you've just gained new members to your family. I am specifically addressing the Squid Sisters. Atari is only two months old, and Callie gave birth to Tamaki and Takara just yesterday.", said Christina. "I know how you feel. I will send Equestria's Space Force to help you push back the humans. With their assistance, you should be able to reclaim what's yours.", said Twilight. Christina shook with Twilight and then informed the rest of the crew that they were being helped out to confront the humans. The entire crew cheered and the oldest members began getting ready for the war to take back Earth.
