Chapters Equus' Mysterious Visitors
Thirty-six hours after the rescue, Walker came to meet with Twilight, Flurry, and the Young Six. Everyone was recovering from their injuries at an excellent rate.
"I'm sorry that we arrived the way we did. I'm Walker Johnson.", he said.
"Welcome to Equestria.", said Twilight.
"What brings you to us? You said on your radio call that you were in terrible danger.", said Flurry in concern.
Nobody was prepared for the story that Walker had for them.
"Our species are called Inklings, Octarians, and Salmonlings. We come from a planet called Earth. The original inhabitants, called the Humans, were thought to have become extinct when the ocean levels rose. Over time, the sea life evolved to live on the land. We cannot enter the oceans anymore, or we will die in a split second. Just a few days ago, ships were spotted rising out of the ocean, and there were Humans on-board. Later on, we noticed that several of our friends had disappeared. Thinking that they were captured, we started fighting to rescue them, and the humans started shooting back.", said Walker.
Everyone in the room was speechless when they heard Walker's story.
"That's terrible.", yelped Silverstream
"Were you captured?", asked Sandbar.
"No, we managed to get on a ship to escape. We thought that we had launched without being noticed, but a patrol spotted us and gave chase. That's why the Inkstar was damaged when we arrived on your radar. From what we can guess, the patrol ship was equipped with a cloaking device, which would have hidden it from radar.", explained Walker.
"I have an idea. Nine months ago, Equus established a space defense force. If we sent some of our soldiers to Earth with you after we repair the Inkstar , we might be able to help you beat back the Humans.", said Ocellus.
Walker said that sending soldiers would be a great idea in order to help fight the Humans once the Inkstar was repaired. Two convoys of heavy-duty helicopters were sent to retrieve the two halves of the Inkstar , and they returned four hours later. The two parts of the ship were taken to a hangar and the repair work began.
Equus' Mysterious Visitors
When the repair work began, Flurry Heart and the Young Six were up bright and early to get the ship in perfect working order again. Following Walker's blueprints, the Inkstar's front and aft sections were attached to each other before metal plates were welded inside and out to combine the ship into one solid vessel once more. Once the ship's body was sealed together and tested to confirm it was airtight, the electrical systems were carefully checked and broken components were replaced and rewired. After the electrical was rewired, the seats and cabins were reinstalled, and the air ducts were reassembled.
The last part of the ship to be repaired was the engines. During the chase, the Humans had done a considerable amount of damage, which resulted in the engines being on fire when the Inkstar passed through the atmosphere. After the engines were rebuilt, the ship was refueled. The Inkstar's repairs took a total of two months to complete, but she was better than ever when all was said and done.
Once the ship was repaired and ready for launch, she was transported to a giant launch platform in the Celestial Sea. It was now a matter of time before everyone was ready for war, and then the ship would be blasted into space, along with the Equestrian Space Force pilots.
Equus' Mysterious Visitors
Two hours after the Young Six arrived in Canterlot, Twilight was about to start laying out plans, when she was interrupted by a loud ROAR coming from outside. Running to the window, everyone saw the starship screaming down from the sky. As the strange vessel flew through the air, a bright flash lit up the throne room and an explosion broke the silence. The flash was so bright that everyone had to shut their eyes and blink for a moment. Once the light had cleared, Flurry pulled out her binoculars and looked out through the falling snow. In the warm glow from the sunset, she saw that the ship's engines were no longer attached to the front portion.
"We will need to split up. The ship's aft has broken off of the front.", she said after putting her binoculars away.
Just then, the radio started giving off a staticky noise. It sounded as if the ship's crew was trying to call for help. Everyone rushed over and Yona hit the "Talk" button on the microphone.
"This is Yona the yak. Please identify yourself.", she said calmly.
Initially, the response was hard to make out through the static, but a filter cleared up the transmission.
"This is Walker Johnson. I'm Captain of the Inkstar . Our aft section is gone, and we're on emergency power. We're in terrible danger, and there are children on-board. Requesting assistance.", said a male voice.
"How many of you are on-board?", asked Yona.
The signal died out before she could get a response. Then another signal came in. This one was slightly stronger, but mostly sounded like loud cries, screams, and hushes. Through the noise, Yona managed to pick up a female voice.
"This is Rosa Octavio. We've been separated from our parents. My twin sister Michelle and I are the oldest ones here. The rest are all babies, five of which are newborns.", said the voice.
"I hear you, Rosa. We are preparing for rescue. Sit tight and keep as calm as you can.", said Yona.
Rosa's signal died halfway through her response, but Twilight heard her start to say "Acknowledged".
"Ocellus, it's time for your new skills as a pediatrician to get their first field test.", said Flurry.
"I agree. I was certified just last month.", replied Ocellus.
As the Young Six began determining who would go where, their tablet computers beeped to indicate that a message had come in. Upon reading the message, they saw it was the Inkstar's manifest.
**
Walker Johnson
Becka Johnson
Jacob Johnson, Age: 5
Erica Johnson, Age: 3 months
DJ Octavio
Rosa Octavio, Age 13
Michelle Octavio, Age 13
Aaron Grady
Athena Grady
Andrew Grady
Lizzie Grady, Age: 4
Angelo Grady, Age: 1
Atari Grady, Age: 3 months
Callie Cuttlefish
Marie Cuttlefish
Sally Cuttlefish
Jerome Cuttlefish
Iris Cuttlefish
Michael Cuttlefish
Mike Dreemurr
Taylor Dreemurr, Age: 2
Tamaki Dreemurr, Age: 2 days
Takara Dreemurr, Age: 2 days
Marx Scales
Sally Scale
Goldie Scale, Age: 2
Shine Scale, Age: 3 months
**
After a few minutes, it was decided that Ocellus would go with Gallus and Silverstream to rescue the children from the aft section, which had come to rest in a shallow gulley between two of the Crystal Mountains. Sandbar, Smolder, and Yona would go to the front section, which had skidded to a halt in a snowbank on the east side of Mount Everhoof. Both crash sites were just outside the Crystal Empire; so they opted to try out a brand new plane, which was bright red and designed for transporting injured citizens. Flurry would be piloting this medical plane back to Canterlot, and Twilight would bring them in. They boarded two extreme condition rescue crafts and took off into the twilight sky.
Author's Note
The names with an age next to them are the children.
Equus' Mysterious Visitors
As the two rescue crafts flew north towards the crashed ship; Flurry got on the radio to contact the Crystal Airport.
"Flurry Heart to Crystal Tower. A starship has crashed in two pieces within the Empire's vicinity. The Young Six and I are expecting injured crew members, so we need a medical plane on standby.", she said.
"Crystal Tower, we copy, Flurry Heart. Med Flight 5379 will be ready in 20 minutes.", said the radar technician.
As Sandbar's ship neared the Crystal Empire 15 minutes later, Flurry put on her helmet and goggles before jumping off and gliding to the ground. After touching down, she rushed to help load medical supplies onto the plane. This plane was not constrained to have seats in fixed positions. Instead, the chairs could be rearranged and gurneys could be wheeled into their place. Children's seats and small beds could be added for babies as well. The plane's interior was also decorated with cute designs to make sure that little ones wouldn't be scared.
Once Flurry had indicated how many gurneys would be on the plane, the medical crew began moving the seats around to make room for the injured, along with keeping seats for five of the Young Six in an equalized placement and with Smolder joining Flurry as her co-pilot. Flurry made her way to the cockpit after everything was in place, and two of the injured crew members were found. These were Marx Scales and Sally Scale, and they were bandaged. According to witnesses in the Crystal Empire, they had been in the middle of the ship when it split. They had tried to open parachutes and land safely, but the chutes opened too late, so they landed hard and scraped their hands and their cheeks. Their injuries had already been treated when Flurry arrived.
**
After Flurry had jumped off the rescue craft, Sandbar set a course for the front section's crash site. When they landed, they put on headlamps with their winter clothes, and rushed through the snow until they reached the mangled portion from where the ship had broken. They were hit with a loudly wailing siren and flashing red lights when they broke open the hatch. Thankfully, there were no fires in the main corridors. The first crew members they met were Sally, Jerome, Michael, and Iris. They were Callie and Marie's parents. Their injuries consisted mainly of bruises and a few scrapes on their hands. Sally and Iris also had nosebleeds, but they had them under control with ice packs and tissues. Octavio, Aaron and Athena were the next ones to be met. Octavio's only ailment was a cold; but Aaron and Athena had severe headaches and double vision, resulting from falling on their faces during the crash-landing.
As Sandbar, Yona, and Smolder made their way to the bridge, the air grew warmer, which worried them about a possible fire. Sandbar called to Flurry and said that seven more chairs could be set up on the plane, since the first seven crew members were lucid and needed minimal treatment. Upon reaching the bridge, Smolder stood ready with a CO2 extinguisher while Yona kicked open the doors. When the doors were kicked down, the air abruptly became hot and a bright light poured into the hallway. There was a massive fire raging on the bridge, so Smolder squeezed the valve handle on the extinguisher and began shooting carbon dioxide to put out the flames.
Once the CO2 had dissipated, Sandbar raced in to see how badly injured everyone was. Callie and Marie had wrenched their arms, so they were splinted quickly. Mike and Andrew each had a sprained left ankle. Marie had second-degree burns on her right palm from trying to turn a hot lever to activate a fire suppressant gas. Callie had severe burns around her eyes from a console sparking in her face, which blinded her. Smolder gently brushed off the ashes before taping shields over Callie's eyes, then she applied burn cream to Marie's hand before wrapping bandages around it. Becka only had a black eye, whiplash, and cuts on her cheek and her forehead. Walker was found to be a robot, and he had been knocked out by the sudden jolt in the crash-landing. No-one was able to walk, so they were put on stretchers and wheeled to the rescue craft. As Sandbar lifted off for the Crystal Airport, everyone began explaining their relationships.
"Callie is our daughter.", said Sally and Jerome.
"We're Marie's parents.", said Michael and Iris.
"I'm married to Callie. Taylor, Tamaki, and Takara are our children.", said Mike.
"I'm Andrew's wife. Lizzie, Angelo, and Atari are our children.", said Marie.
"Andrew is our son.", said Aaron and Athena.
"Walker is Becka's husband. Jacob and Erica are their kids.", said Callie through her groans.
"Michelle and Rosa are my twin daughters.", said Octavio.
Yona quickly explained that another group was busy with rescuing the kids, which came as a relief to everybody.
"Rescue craft Alpha to Flurry Heart. We're headed your way.", said Sandbar.
"I hear you, Sandbar. Proceed to the eastmost set of gates. The marshaller will wave you in.", replied Flurry.
When they reached the airport, Flurry helped them move from the rescue craft to the plane. The gurneys were locked in place and safety belts were fastened to make sure no-one fell on the plane's floor. Now it was a matter of time for the others to arrive with the crew's kids.
Equus' Mysterious Visitors
Rescuing the Evacuees' Children
During the main rescue...
Gallus, Ocellus, and Silverstream located the aft section when they saw its safety lights blinking through the blizzard. Touching down, they put on their winter clothes and backpacks with medical supplies for the children. After disembarking from their craft, they rushed to the hatch on the side of the starship. Silverstream turned the latch handle to open the hatch, and they hurried inside. The lights had gone out, so everyone had to switch on their headlamps in order to find where the children were consolidated. After a few minutes, they found the pediatric ward and Gallus started working to open the door.
Shining her light through the door's window, Ocellus could see Michelle and Rosa waving their arms as if trying to warn them about something. However, there was too much background noise to hear over. When Gallus wrenched open the door, he, Silverstream, and Ocellus were hit with a rancid stink that made them all cough. Gallus quickly shut the door and they took a moment to let the smell dissipate. The three friends looked at each other after Ocellus had taken off her winter coat and put on her doctor's coat and badge.
"I recognize that smell from my training. Several of the kids are babies, and Rosa said five of them are newborns. That means several of them need to be changed stat.", said Ocellus.
"You're right. We need to put on oxygen before we go in there.", said Silverstream as she pulled out three air tanks.
After masking up, Gallus opened the door again and they were able to step into the room. They saw Rosa and Michelle immediately and then shone their lights further, which lit up the rest of the kids. Amazingly, Rosa and Michelle had put oxygen masks on all of them. Since this was a pediatric ward, the masks and tanks were decorated with bright colors and cute animal faces. Jacob, Lizzie, and Taylor were the only others that were alert, but they looked dizzy and they were shaking with their arms crossed over their chests, even with their coats on. Ocellus pulled out a special scanner to trace the stink to its origin, and she discovered something scary. ALL FIVE of the newborns were stinky. She got right to work changing them, but they seemed to not notice. Atari, Erica, Takara, Tamaki, and Shine were completely passed out from the cold.
"The heater broke before we touched down. That's why most of the little ones are not alert. They didn't know they'd inked before they passed out.", said Michelle.
"Lizzie and Jacob were trying to hush everyone when we radioed you. That's before the cold started getting to us.", said Rosa.
After Ocellus had finished cleaning up the newborns and putting them in fresh diapers, Silverstream put pacifiers in their mouths and quickly wrapped them in baby blankets to keep them warm. Angelo was partially wearing his winter coat, but he seemed to have faded before he could get his left arm in its sleeve. Gallus removed Angelo's coat and wrapped a heated blanket around him to warm him up. Michelle and Rosa had banged up their legs during the crash, so they had pulled themselves into two wheelchairs. They were the only ones with injuries, because their seatbelts had broken, which caused them to fall out of their seats.
Jacob, Lizzie, and Taylor were too cold to walk. So they rode piggyback on Gallus, Silverstream, and Ocellus while they carried Atari, Angelo, and Erica to the rescue craft. Rosa and Michelle held Goldie, Shine, Takara, and Tamaki in their arms while Gallus and Silverstream wheeled them down an emergency ramp to get them to the rescue craft. Once the craft's rotors were spinning, Ocellus got on the radio.
"Rescue craft Omega to Flurry Heart. We are airborne and headed your way.", she said.
"Copy that, Ocellus. We are standing by. Once you are on the plane, I will signal the crafts to fly autopilot back to Canterlot.", Flurry replied.
"Acknowledged, Flurry. We need spaces for two wheelchairs on the medical plane. Here's the drill for the rest of the children. We need five infant seats for Atari, Shine, Tamaki, Takara, and Erica. We need three rear-facing convertibles for Taylor, Goldie, and Angelo. We need two forward-facing convertibles for Jacob and Lizzie.", said Silverstream.
"Understood, Silverstream. The convertible seats will be ready when you get on the plane. All you need to do is set Jacob, Lizzie, Taylor, Goldie, and Angelo in the seats and fasten them in. For the newborns, I will have the seat portion waiting at the bridge entrance. The seats' cradles will be in position on the plane, so you will need to fasten the little ones in the seats, carry the seats onto the plane, and set the seats in the cradles.", explained Flurry.
"Crystal clear, Flurry. See you at Crystal International Airport.", said Gallus.
Equus' Mysterious Visitors
Twelve minutes after making her call to Flurry Heart, Ocellus and her group landed 20 feet away from the stairs leading to the medical plane's gate. After everyone was taken inside to the bridge, Ocellus told Flurry that she could send the rescue crafts back to Canterlot. Flurry acknowledged what Ocellus had said and activated the automated flight mechanisms. Sandbar, Smolder, and Yona came to help with getting the kids onto the plane.
After the newborns were unwrapped from the blankets, they were placed in their carrier seats, and then the blankets were laid back over them. Smolder, Silverstream, and Gallus carried the babies onto the plane, set the carriers in their cradles, and locked them in snug. By this point, Lizzie, Jacob, and Taylor had warmed up enough to walk. Angelo and Goldie had woken up as well. To make the bridge not look scary for children; it had a kid-friendly trail of shiny stars that led to the plane. Ocellus told them to follow the trail to board the plane, which they did gladly. On the plane, Yona helped the five adorable little kids into their respective seats and then Ocellus fastened their seatbelts. Siblings were seated next to each other in order to hopefully keep them calm. They were also placed across the aisle from their parents. Since Lizzie and Jacob were older than the other children in their families, they were given window seats.
As Smolder was closing the plane's door, the five newborns began to wake up. Erica remained calm upon seeing Jacob, but Atari became scared and started to cry. Lizzie and Angelo were on both sides of her, so Lizzie was able to reach over and gently rub her forehead. Angelo pulled on a small soft toy hung on the seat's carrying handle, which played a soothing melody when he let go. Hearing this music and recognizing that her siblings were next to her, Atari gently stopped crying and settled down. Taylor was sitting between Tamaki and Takara, so he was able to keep an eye on both of them. Goldie was able to keep Shine calm as well. Walker had also been rebooted by this point, so he was able to help Smolder place Erica's seat in its cradle.
Once Smolder had joined Flurry in the cockpit and put on her headset, Flurry got on the radio to communicate with the ground controllers.
"Ramp 17, this is Med Flight 5379, requesting pushback.", said Flurry as the bridge was retracted.
"Med Flight 5379, this is Ramp Control, pushback approved.", said pushback technician Garnet.
"Ground, this is Med Flight 5379. Our pushback is approved.", said Flurry.
"Release brakes please.", said ground controller Aqua.
Flurry flipped a switch to disengage the parking brakes.
"Brakes released, you are clear to push back.", she said.
Once the plane was pushed back from the ramp, Flurry switched on the taxi lights, and then she and Smolder checked the cockpit controls. Fifteen minutes later, a controller in the tower, whose name was Onyx, radioed Flurry and Smolder.
"Med Flight 5379, this is Tower. Proceed to Runway M-39 for immediate takeoff.", he said.
"Copy that, Crystal Tower. Proceeding to Runway M-39.", said Smolder.
Flurry gently taxied through the airport until she reached the runway. Then she slowed to a halt to wait for takeoff clearance. She didn't have to wait for long.
"Med Flight 5379, you are cleared for takeoff.", said Onyx.
"Smolder, we are clear to take off.", said Flurry as she began throttling up.
As the engines purred to life and the plane rolled faster and faster down the runway, Smolder kept a close eye on the speed.
"100 knots.", said Smolder a few seconds later.
Flurry gently pulled back on the yoke and the plane began to ascend.
"Positive climb.", she said.
"Positive climb acknowledged. Wheels up.", said Smolder as she flipped a switch to retract the landing gear.
Once Flurry had brought the plane to an altitude of 6,000 feet, she accelerated to a cruising speed of 450 knots. An hour and a half later, Flurry slowed down to a landing speed as she neared Canterlot.
"Canterlot Tower, this is Med Flight 5379 requesting clearance for immediate landing.", said Smolder as she deployed the wheels.
"This is Canterlot Tower. We read you, Med Flight 5379. You are clear to land on Runway R-46.", said Twilight.
"Copy that, Aunt Twilight. Setting a course for Runway R-46.", said Flurry.
After Flurry had touched down, she slowed to taxiing speed and rolled up to Gate A15. Once she had set the parking brakes, the bridge was extended and the door was opened at 10:30 PM. Paramedics were standing by to take everyone to the palace infirmary to have their injuries treated. Each of the families was taken to a private room where they would stay during their recovery.