The Copernicus Incidentby RocktaviaChaptersChapter 0: PostscriptChapter 1: Scientific PursuitsChapter 2.1: CastawayChapter 2.2: PlanetfallCodex EntriesChapter 0: PostscriptNovember, 2533 Sounds of chaos and discord came in through the radio. Echoes of a desperate war. At least it would be over soon. Some voices I recognized and could pick through the haze. It was tricky to stay awake in my condition, but keeping the radio on 'All Allied Forces' would have made it somewhat easier, gave me something to focus on— But it really just pissed me off. It seemed we were losing. Badly. “Captain, come in! Captain!” “Royal Guard's breaking off! The Elements have to be protected! WHERE IN EQUESTRIA ARE OUR REINFORCEMENTS?!” “All Equestrian Union troopers, fall back to rally point Delta Five! I repeat! Fall back to rally point Delta Five! ” “This is Griffon Field Command! Whitebeaks, push forward and cover the Human retreat! Winterclaws, break formation and head for the Guards! Fight with honor, Griffons!” He won. In truth, I really should have seen this coming. He wanted me to come here. I was too stupid to see that I was being played. I glanced a few feet over to the still, silent form of a recently killed man. He’d had a longer life than most humans- No, scratch that. He'd had a longer life than the average pony. The average pony, be they Unicorn, Earth Pony, or Pegasus, could boast of a lifespan of 200 years. Nano-Aug'd humans pushed the human lifespan to almost 150, but this man had lived for six hundred and sixty-six years. Obviously, the so-called "Everlasting Demon" bled and died as much as the rest of us did. Granted, it took a lot to take him down. “Computer, Diagnostic report.” I croaked. My powered armor analyzed itself with what little energy stores it had left and then a familiar voice emitted itself through the speakers in my cockpit, stating a bunch of data that I already knew. “Structural Integrity Critical. Energy Stores Critical. Upper Servomotor Assemblies Critical. Lower Servomotor Assemblies Badly Damaged. Primary Power Stores: Depleted. Emergency Power Stores: Five Percent. Warning: Self-Repair Systems Compromised. Warning: Environmental Hazards Detected, User In Danger.” My mind spun, barely acknowledging the computer’s voice as my memories came back to me. Where did I go wrong? Was it just me or was it… something else? Something that happened 500 Years ago? In truth, I don’t know. But if I were to make an educated guess, I’d say it was mostly Grandpa. Especially with what I’d learned recently. The Archives, the Temple of Humanity… My name is Captain Tarquin Lozo, de facto leader of the settlement of Humanity’s Crest… And I’m totally about to die. If I could tell anypony in the world right now, it would be her. “Computer, get me an uplink to Humanity’s Crest.” “QEC Subsystem Damaged, Unable to transmit. Short-range Radio Only.” “A- Anybody… Computer, get me anybody.” With the computer clearly not understanding my meaning, I coughed out another command with what was left of my damaged lungs. "Rights, get me Rights." “Tarquin! Cap, come in.” That was Rights, my commander on the ground. The audio was spotty at best. It sounded like they were getting hit hard down there. I frowned and depressed the comm button on my helmet. “Tarquin here, what’s the situation?” I knew the situation already, but protocol was protocol. “Tarquin! Thank God! What's happening?!” My left hand found my face. I let out a soft gasp as I realized it was thoroughly burned. Trying my damnedest to ignore the pain that just my touch had inflicted, I responded to Rights. “Rights… I stopped him. But he’s rigged the Ruby to explode. I can’t stop it from here.” “What about the-” “The escape plan didn’t work.” An explosion that was a little too close for comfort reminded me my time was short. “It's sealed shut, there’s no more coming through. Just… just hold your ground and push the rest back to their ships.” “Roger that, Cap. Sending a transport to you ASAP.” “Negative, just leave me.” I coldly said. “What?! Tarquin, you can’t make it out of there alone!” “I know. But you can’t spare the ships for a full escort. And that’s what it’ll take - I’m deep in Darkness Territory.” There was silence on the other end as she probably struggled to accept it. “I guess you’re right, sir.” “Just… keep fighting. For me. And tell her I’m sorry I couldn’t make it home.” “I… Of course, Tarquin. Harmony be with you.” A tear forced its way out of my eye. Huh, I guess my tear ducts worked after all. “And with you, Commander. Godspeed.” “Cap, good lu-” Static came through as my Radio finally crapped out. Resigned to its fate, my body crumpled against the chair. With nothing else to do, I fumbled about in the cockpit for a brief moment, looking for something. Finding my quarry duct-taped under the right console, I smiled. A Cuban Cigar. You know, I’d never been much for smoking, but it was something of a tradition among the hot-shot pilots of these walking tanks that if they finished a mission with impossible odds, they’d light one of these up. I think this definitely qualified as ‘Impossible Odds’. I popped my survival lighter out of my pocket and held the gizmo up to the tip, almost immediately gagging on the smoke. “Fuck me sideways with Twilight’s forehooves, that’s awful! The hay were these crazy Armor-Jocks thinking?!” I yelled out to nobody in particular. I snuffed the cigar out on the front panel. Not like I would be around long enough for Donnelly to reprimand me for dirtying one of his precious machines. I noticed the dash had a metal plate on it. Having nothing better to do while waiting for death to find me, I idly read it. Steelhoof Series Ultra-Heavy Power Armor Prototype Model: SH-590-X Manufacture Origin: Humanity's Crest Armorworks, Honesty Element, Humanity's Crest I was rapidly interrupted by a deep voice sounding out over the ship’s internal communications array. The voice was distinctly male and equally synthetic. Must have been the ship's computer core. “Warning: Quantium containment failure. Detonation in 5… 4… 3…” Inside the jury-rigged bridge drive of the ship, a heart-shaped ruby with a cerulean core sparked slightly, then erupted in a blaze of hellfire and quantum turbulance that ripped the ship - and me - apart. -=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=- In Darkness We Die. Chapter 1: Scientific Pursuits"When I despair, I remember that all through history, the way of truth and love has always won. There have been murderers and tyrants, and for a time they can seem invincible. But in the end they always fall." — Mahatmas Gandhi 3 months in space can wear heavily on the body. I'm not talking about zero-g muscle atrophy; after all, we can configure our Symbiotes to compensate for that. I'm talking about the strain on the mind. Being in extremely close quarters with the same people day in and day out can tear through sanity faster than a botched neural mod. Nanostasis mitigates this, but the ship I was on didn't have any Nanostasis facilities. They were removed to free up power for stealth technology. As I shave, I can get a good look at my tired face. My father used to say that I was the spitting image of my Grandfather. Apparently I get my dark brown eyes, simultaneously piercing and kindly, from him. My jet black hair and oval face was also a gift from him. Unfortunately, I also got his genetic affinity for fast-growing and extremely profound hair. I cleaned my glasses, propped them back onto my nose and sighed. Let me put it this way: I would be happy to go to hell after these three months. Ironically enough, that's more or less where I'm going. *////\\* Mid-September, 2529 Undisclosed Location on Macintosh I Sand. The beige wasteland stretched on for miles and miles. The orbit of the Chrysalis unfortunately didn't take it over the base, and I had to take a shuttle to the surface. The Ground to Orbit Atmospheric Transport or GOAT could easily fit 10 people in it. And yet, I was the only one in here. Except the pilot, that is. He was a red-haired fellow of Irish descent with a serious demeanor when at the controls of a shuttle. Spades is a good man, if a bit of a snide jerk when not in the pilot's chair. He's a damn good pilot, though. Apparently, he comes from a long line of skilled and snide pilots of Irish descent. Spades' thickly Irish voice chimed in from the cockpit. "ETA five minutes to Copernicus Base. Beginning descent." I closed my digital copy of Nikola Tesla: The Man Who Built The World. The holographic tome faded into nonexistence as my Xenopad stopped rendering it. I hacked my E-Reader program to create an actual book instead of just a flat display. I'm nostalgic like that. "So... What is Project Copernicus?" "Truly? I don't know. I just ferry folks to the Base. I never actually see whatever they're building. I do know that whatever they've got goin' on down there, it has ludicrous security standards. I seen little metal blisters on the surface around the base. You know what those are?" "Yeah, they're Pop-up Railguns. Any unauthorized ships get close, and they get blasted to bits before they know what hit 'em. They're largely undetectable from orbit." "Well, Oi guess it's a goot thing I'm authorized, then." From here, I could see Spades opening an encrypted link to Copernicus Base and relayed his access codes. A female synthetic voice responded, clearly the base's artificial intelligence, Maria. "Access Codes Verified. you are cleared for landing at pad Delta-Four. Nice to see you again, Spades." "Friend of yours?" I asked. "Naw, more like wife." He spat back at me sarcastically. "Hah! You wish." Maria responded. *////\\* Project Copernicus Facility, Northern Hemisphere of Macintosh I Finally, the endless miles of sand in the window gave way to a sprawling industrial complex the size of a small city. A maze of concrete and steel rolled out before me. Spades descended into the mechanical abyss, weaving between buildings and avoiding the occasional industrial bot or cargo hauler with incredible skill. Finally, Landing Pad D-5 came into view. The Irish pilot set the brick of a shuttle down onto the pad so softly that if I didn't know any better, we hadn't landed at all. The hatch beside me swept open, collapsing into the frame. "Thank you for flying Spades Airlines, please make sure you have all your luggage and limbs before departing the craft. We are not responsible for any blood loss or nausea that may have occurred during the trip. Have a nice day." Saying nothing, I unhooked my crash harness and grabbed the Gear Roll I stashed under my seat, slinging it over my shoulder with no effort at all, despite the fact that 50 pounds of matter is inside of it. Gotta love those Anti-Gravity Discs. "I'm supposed to tell you that you're to head straight to the command center. Doctor Braun wants to see you in person. He'll be giving you your deployment orders. An escort is waiting for you just off the landing pad." Maria said in her sultry yet simultaneously fake voice. I stepped out of the shuttle and found a human-shaped combat robot with an orange paint job waiting for me. Its head was rectangular and it didn't have anything in the way of identifying features. The faceplate was jet black and held its sensor suite. It immediately perked up and spoke in a metallic voice, even more artificial than Maria's. It was just a nonsentient drone, after all. "THIS PLATFORM HAS BEEN ASSIGNED TO ESCORT YOU TO COMMAND CENTER OMEGA-FIVE. DO NOT DEVIATE FROM THE ASSIGNED PATH OR YOU WILL BE SUBJECT TO SUMMARY EXECUTION." The drone made an about-face and started walking, its legs clanking along the concrete pad. Not exactly rolling out the red carpet, are they? I followed the robot, making sure to not fall too far behind. Luckily, it kept a slow and steady pace. *////\\* The "Command Center" was actually just a tiny conference room with a holographic display in the center of the room. Various bits of data floated about while the two occupants of the room bickered, exchanging statistics and scientific formula. A heavily decorated member of the Imperial Guard stood in front of an older fellow with grey hair and a stout build who spoke with a thick German accent. "The Element you need need simply doesn't exist, Doctor!" "My information says otherwise, General. The only barrier is that it only exists naturally in extremely small quantities. Luckily, we only need 1.2 Micrograms of the element for each trip, 2.4 in total. Mining swarms have already acquired 1.6 Micrograms of our requirement." "I see... from these calculations you gave me, the element clearly requires large amounts of energy to mine. I didn't think they'd noticed my arrival until the scientist focused his eyes on me. "Ah, Commander Lozo. I trust your journey was safe?" "Safe enough, I suppose. What're you two arguing about?" I said. "Science," The General said, folding his arms. "... That's... informative." I deadpanned. "Welcome." He said cryptically. The white-haired scientist just rolled his eyes at this. "Well, now zat we have exchanged pleasantries, I believe introductions are in order. My name is Doctor Herrmann Braun, Project Lead for Copernicus. This is General O'Neill of the Imperial Guard, who, I believe, was just leaving." General O'Neill vacated the room quickly. I have never seen a civilian order around an Imperial Guard, much less a General and get away with it. Just another question to put on the list, I guess. "Now, I have something to show you, Commander." He walked over to a window that was covered with vertical metallic slats and poised his hand over a large blue button as I followed closely behind. "Meet Copernicus." He said as he pressed the button down. Immediately responding to the whim of their master, the individual slats rotated about 90 degrees and merged into a metallic brick that slid into the wall, revealing what he wanted to show me. "What the..." What I saw was one of the largest starships I had ever seen. It appeared to be a carrier at first glance, but a number of the fighter bays were replaced by some sort of field emitters. It had a number of living domes that could be found on colony ships, but also had heavy weaponry - from here I could make out at least two oversized Railguns taking up the spine of the vessel and numerous ship-to-ship weapons and point defense turrets dotting the surface. Orange-colored Construction Drones fluttered about the surface. It appeared the ship was about 90% complete. Like most other ESE ships, its design aesthetic leaned toward a rectangular, utilitarian appearance. One doesn't bother much with streamlining when Anti-Gravity technology and Fusion Engines can effortlessly propel a ship out of the atmosphere. Also, I have to admit that they do look pretty damn cool. "This is the ESES Copernicus. It is a test bed for a prototype device called the Einstein-Rosenberg Bridge Drive or ERBD. It is able to traverse vast interstellar distances in the blink of an eye through the folding of spacetime. Of course, that is an overly simplistic explanation." "Sounds like that would be useful. But I don't understand why you need me." "Well, it's due for a shakedown cruise. Needs a captain." "... You do realize I'm just a Commander, right?" "Actually, as of roughly..." He checked the Xenopad on his wrist, bringing up the screen without activating the holographic functions. "... Eh, Five minutes ago, your pay grade has just been increased from O-5 to O-6. Your rank is currently Captain, with all the authority and responsibility that entails. Congratulations on your promotion, Captain Lozo." "Well, that's n- SAY WHAAAAT?" Doctor Braun continued his monologue, ignoring me and not missing a beat. "Furthermore, your new posting is the ESES Copernicus for her Maiden Voyage to the distant Ensnare Nexus to set up a remote colony on the surface of a habitable planet. Until the vessel is spaceworthy, you are to coordinate final construction and crew assignments." I've got a good feeling about this. Author's Note Merry Christmas! I promise the next update will not be so ludicrously late. Fun fact: On several occasions whilst writing this, I misread the title as Scientific Fursuits. ~~You're welcome.~~ Did I say it was going to be 3,000 words? Nope, I most certainly did not. Noooope. ~~actuallyididandiwastoolazytomakeitthatlong~~ Chapter 2.1: Castaway"Not all those who wander are lost." — J.R.R. Tolkien The next few weeks went by in a near blur. I was assigned my own office, workers kept coming and going, the Doctor and General kept bickering over their stupid element. Long story short, business as usual. Interestingly, the estimated construction time when I arrived was about a year. Riding high from my recent promotion, I had quickly set to work accelerating this timetable. Drones were assembling, soldering and welding around the clock, constantly buzzing about the superstructure and surrounding base like the good little worker bees they were. Engineers worked double and even triple shifts. The drones did most of the heavy lifting, yeah; but a human element was still necessary for more sensitive work like installing and wiring up the computer nodes. The Officers on duty were also double-checking over every single bit of metal, crystal and polymer of the Copernicus. Regardless of the time table being pushed up, we were not going to be cutting corners. Doing that gets people killed, and with an estimated population of over 100,000 people including crew, colonists, and support staff... Well, let's just say the stakes were higher than Cloudsdale. And of course, there was still the matter of acquisitions. While our nanotechnology frees our culture and our people from most material wants, data is still an invaluable commodity. Requisition orders regularly passed through my desk for software licenses and databases that ran upwards of 2 Million credits. Each. Surprisingly, I was under direct orders to approve every single one. I don't know where the hell this project gets its funding, and frankly, I don't want to know. You know what they say: you get what you pay for. The best of the best is certainly pricey. The best software, the best armor, the best shields, the best weaponry, the best optical computers - everything on this bucking ship is bleeding edge tech. Some of it won't see widespread production for a year at most. Not since the Second Exodus was such a massive quantity and broad spectrum of next-gen technology put towards a single purpose. Then, of course, there's the crew. The security forces were probably the most diverse of the lot; composed of ex-mercenaries, former Insurrectionists, Colony Police, Fighter Pilots, Marines, Officers like myself... By Celestia, we even had a substantial contingent of highly trained Armor-Jocks ready to go. The pilot was one of the few familiar faces. Yep, Spades was going to be at the helm of this high-tech leviathan. Turns out he wasn't just qualified for ferrying poor schmucks like me around in a shuttle. The scientific team had over 1,000 Nanologists, Xenobiologists, Linguists, Anthropologists, Particle Physicists, Geologists - all pillars in their respective fields. The engineering department had a brilliant man named Jeffrey Adams heading it - as in the Jeffrey Adams that single-handedly repaired a supposedly derelict and inoperable dreadnought on Taurus V and subsequently used it to great effect against Insurrectionists. By doing so, one man had saved the lives of 319 Colonists and 53 Soldiers. The man became a war hero... while not being a soldier at all. I respected him, at least until... well, I'm getting to that part. For now, let's just say that, while we didn't know it at the time, we would soon be fighting a war for our very survival, and there's a sad truth about wars: They all have their traitors. *////\\* Early March, 2530 The Bridge of the ESES Copernicus The completed Bridge was positively spacious. 3 rows of high-ranking officers were lined up on the trapezoidal construct. Each was in charge of one system - Stardrive, Weapons, Damage Control, Defensive Systems, Sensors. I had my own chair on a raised platform in the center of the room. The pilot, Navigator, and First Officer had their seats arranged in a triangular formation in front of me on a slightly lower platform. I had Spades in front of me, the navigator (who I never really caught the name of) to the right of me, and my First Officer, Commander Ray Redmond to my immediate left. A thin layer of Transparent Diamondoid separated 34 people from the deadly vacuum of space while providing an incredibly scenic view of the ugly-as-fuck dockyard. Once we're in space, I think the view will improve considerably. I barked out a single order and the entire ship erupted with life: "Initialize Takeoff Procedures. Let's light the fires, boys." As the atmospheric thrusters engaged, I found myself... anxious and uneasy. Not that I regretted being promoted and sent on this mission, mind you. I just was thinking about the fact that the bridge drive was beyond experimental. If so much as a single variable was off, the entire ship and all its contents would be nothing but interstellar dust. And that's the best case scenario. While Doctor Braun had assured me over and over again that only 1% of the testbeds didn't come back, that was a 1% chance of explosive failure I didn't want to risk happening. I mean, I have complete faith in Adams' math. It's just that risk of obliteration that hangs over my head. The chance that the blood of 100,000 souls would be on my hands. And nobody would ever know. If you screw this up, Adams... I swear to Celestia, I'll bring both of us back from the dead just so I can kill you again myself. The navigator seated to the right of me narrated the ongoing action with a distinct lack of emotion (and enthusiasm, for that matter.) Huh, judging from the two Pegasus wings affixed to his shoulder, he's a Lieutenant. So I'll just call him Lieutenant Navigator. Easy solution. "Atmospheric thrusters at maximum output, Captain Lozo. I estimate 10 seconds until we reach the Exosphere." "Alright. Spades, keep her going slow and steady. Wouldn't want to cut this mission off prematurely." "Roger that, Cap'n." "Exospheric threshold in 5... 4... 3... 2... 1..." "Wait to engage the stardrive once we're about 100 miles clear of the Exosphere. Wouldn't want to ignite the atmosphere of Macintosh I. It'd sure be a shame to replace all that expensive industrial hardware." There was a faint glimmer of a chuckle from the front of the room where Spades took up residence. Well, at least somepony found my jokes funny. *////\\* About 10 minutes later, we had cleared the Macintosh system and were now safely within Interstellar Space. Now, it's time to charge up the drive and pray to Celestia that we don't die in a fiery inferno. But before we do that, I should do what any self-respecting starship captain does before sending himself, his crew, and his ship on an insane endeavor: Say a few inspiring words over the intercom. "Ray, open an internal frequency." "You got it." I paused to take a short breath while he tapped a few buttons on the console next to him. "You're on, sir." "Attention all hands: This is Captain Lozo speaking. A few minutes from now, we will attempt to travel to a distant star. One that is one of the farthest our Empire has ever dreamed of seeing. The technology on this ship is largely untested. If so much as a single number is off by a fraction of a decimal, we could end up light years from our destination... or worse, dust. Our finest scientists tell me that is highly unlikely, but the point remains: Double and triple check everything. We've no room at all for error here, so let's not take any chances. Adams, make sure your math is right. Bridge out." I motioned Ray to close the channel before turning back to the front of the bridge. "Well said, Captain. Very encouraging." Ray said snidely. "Brough' a tear to me eye." Spades said. "Yeah, yeah. Shut it. I'm not good at speeches. Moving on. I need a Go/No-Go for launch. Propulsion?" "Go.", Dr. Braun in the back responded. "Reactor?" "Go." "Weaponry?" "... Go." "Defensive Systems?" "Go." "Power Transfer Control?" "Ah, hang on a sec... Okay, Go." This repetitive exchange proceeded until each one of the ranking officers said their peace. All reported ready. "Right, we are go for ERBD activation. Ray, you may have the honor." "Gladly, Captain. Bridge to main engineering!" Ray said into his console. (Well, really yelled. But I digress.) The posh British voice of Chief Adams piped up over the line. "Engineering here. Equation ready for entry whenever you are." "Roger that. Input the jump equation and load the Quantium sample into the reactant chamber." "Affirmative, Bridge. We're just doing some final tweaks to the equation. We'll be done in a jiff here." A few seconds of awkward silence later, Adams came back on. "We're all set. Loading Quantium now." *////\\* Meanwhile in Main Engineering... Chief Engineer Adams twirled a miniature glass ball the size of his fist between the thumb and index finger on his left hand, eyeing it fiendishly. Inside the fragile ball was a light-blue glowing chunk of matter, Quantium. "Miraculous, isn't it? Quantium is such a fascinating element, really. It's extremely rare in nature. A single asteroid a kilometer across holds, on average, half a microgram of the stuff. It's central to the Einstein-Rosenberg Bridge Drive because, when impacted by a single Muon particle traveling at near the speed of light, the substance detonates. The effect is not noticeable in any quantity of less than 1.2 Micrograms. Anyway, it immediately generates a stable singularity that is expanded massively and can be warped into the shape of a tunnel through spacetime via mass field generators-" Engineer Donnelly always tended to tune Adams out most of the time when he started babbling like this. The man may have been a hero, but holy Celestia, was he annoying! "-requiring an extremely accurate set of mathematic equa-" Finally, Sean Arcturus Donnelly had had enough of him. "Good lord, lad! Are ye still talkin'?! Ya were supposed ta load the damned thing into the Chamber, na marry it!" "Ah, but a sample is already in the chamber. This is the one for the return trip." "What the hell is it doing out? Ye droop that sphere and the element'll decay!" "Ah yes, Quantium decays rapidly when exposed to Oxygen. That's why it's magnetically suspended in these glass spheres. I suppose it would indeed be a shame if I just... let go." To Donnelly, it seemed that time froze. Engineer Adams rapidly flashed a playful grin. In the space of a second, the irreplaceable sphere tumbled out of his hand and towards the floor, shattering and disrupting the solid-state superconducting magnets holding the rare element in the middle of the sphere. The cerulean Quantium rapidly liquefied into an irrevocable aerosol. "WHAT'VE YE DUN, YE BLOODY NITWIT?!" "... Oops." To the shock of Donnelly, Adams quickly drew a 5mm holdout pistol he'd stashed inside his Engineer's satchel and promptly shot him in the chest. In respect of their years of friendship, Adams rushed over and caught the brilliant Scotsman as he fell. "I am sorry, old friend. For everything. Some evils must be committed for Darkness to rise again." As Donnelly gasped for air, Adams stood up and backed away from him. "And It Shall Rise Again." A split second after Adams said that, an implanted microexplosive in his neck detonated. A failsafe. Thankfully, Adams had merely wounded Donnelly who was able to recover in a moment. Looking at the terminal Adams was using earlier to input the equation, Donnelly was able to fully comprehend what had just happened. Oh. Shi- *////\\* Back on the Bridge... The Bridge Drive was nearly ready. Just a few more moments and we'd teleport away into the darkness. Or we'd blow up. Hopefully, we don't blow up thou- "ENGINEERING TA THE BRIDGE! ADAMS MESSED UP THE EQUATION!" Donnelly? What the- "Right. So where is Adams so I can kill him first?" "Ye don't understand, sir! 'e went insane - destroyed the second Quantium Sphere! Then pulled a holdout pistol and shot me! Oi'm fine, ba the way, but there's a bigger issue! 'e intentionally inserted a rounding error into the dimensional compensation algorithm! We're fucked, sir!" Before I had a chance to even bark a cliched but necessary "All Hands to Escape Pods" out, the Bridge Drive activated and swallowed the ship whole. My brain spat out one last coherent thought before unconsciousness gripped me. Goddammit, Adams. You had ONE job. *////\\* Well, at least I'm not a sentient pile of dust. There's that. On the other hand, I'm pretty sure I cracked 2 ribs. I somehow doubt even that's the least of my worries. I also seem to be on top of something. Something warm and fleshy. Ah, not something. Someone. I opened my eyes to the clearly pissed off face of my first officer. Poor guy was pinned underneath my floppy body; his was frozen like a piece of hardwood into a virtual straight line. My brain seemed to deem this the perfect time for an awkward double entendre. "You know, if you weren't so rigidly straight, this would be somewhat more comfortable for the both of us." Ray was unamused. "Sir. With all due respect: Get the fuck off of me before I kick you right through the fucking hull." Not intending to push my luck, I got off of him, careful to stay off my injured ribs. I'd have to see Mitchell about that later. I looked around. The bridge was in shambles, to say the least. Entire swathes of Diamondoid were missing. Not shattered. Missing. Some were even circular. God, this place looked more like metallic swiss cheese than the most advanced vessel in the ESE Navy. Thankfully, the repair systems kicked in to repair some of the damage. I figured that the reason I had lost consciousness was because the bridge fucking depressurized. The odd spark would erupt from an exposed wire. Smoke filled the room. As well as a few dead or unconscious crewmembers. "... Commander, get me a ship status report." I said calmly. "Yes, sir." Ray moved the pile of Lieutenant Navigator off of his console and called up a shipwide diagnostic. "Can't access most of the diagnostic programs. I can get general function readouts, but beyond that... "... Life support is at 100% functionality. Thank god for that dedicated generator, eh? "We've lost Propulsion, Weaponry, Shield Projectors, Primary Computer, Replication Suite, Long-Range Sensor Suite, Cyberwarfare... Almost every primary and secondary system is shot save Life Support and Artificial Gravity. The cryostasis system is largely undamaged. Seems the colonists are fine. "... All in all, we're dead in the water, Captain." "... Better than being dead, I guess... What exactly happened?" "Sensor data was spotty at best. As far as I can tell, the wormhole formed was unstable. Pockets of... something... formed within our hull, erasing certain bits of our ship from existence." I looked outside the ship towards the stars. Something was off about the way they were arranged. "Ray, where the hay are we?" "... I don't know, but the Astrometrics suite is still online. Hang on. After a brief pause, he chimed in again. "... It has no fucking idea either." "Elaborate." "Well, even if we're on the other side of the galaxy, the suite would still be able to automatically adapt its algorithms and get an approximate fix so long as a few stars are in the right spot. The stars here match up with our chart in some spots, but in others, they're completely off." "You think we might have ended up outside our galaxy?" "Possibly. Although, let me check one last thing." He tapped a few more buttons. Far as I could tell, he was bringing up the communications system. It uses entangled particles to transmit data instantly regardless of distance. "... That's not possible." "What?" "The QEC radio is... it's not able to establish a link with Macintosh I. So... I think you know that there are only two situations a QEC radio would utterly fail to connect. One is time travel. However, with how the drive works, I think we can safely rule that out." "And the other being...?" "That we've somehow ended up in an alternate universe." That's. Just. Special. Author's Note Tarquin is what we writers call an 'unreliable narrator'. Just keep that in mind. Chapter 2.2: Planetfall"Maybe it's not always about fixing something that's broken. Maybe, it's about starting over and creating something better." — Unknown Each Equestrian knows a triple-sided existence. Bronies, scientists, soldiers. We still love the show and create songs, movies, stories about it. Our entire culture is based around the fandom, with everything that implies. Data crystals with all 15 original seasons are ubiquitous. 53 additional seasons were also created, with countless reboots, remakes, spinoffs, and spiritual successors. All by us. By Bronies and Equestrians. Science was always our best defense. From our earliest experiences with The Darkness, we expected nothing but violence against us and... adapted accordingly. We first had to defend ourselves, and so we developed specialized, tougher armor and more refined types of Railguns. We were also on the run, and had no places to hide. So we decided to make our own places to hide, leading to electronic camouflage and better electronic countermeasures. Scientific progress ultimately resulted in a progressive and technophilic mentality among our people. Despite our attempts to forget it, we also know the bitter taste of war and chaos. We know what hatred feels like. I wouldn't say it was merely human nature.After leaving Earth, we did have peace. At least, for a time. The story goes that the early Equestrians, upon leaving the Earth during The Second Exodus, vowed to rebuild their strength and bring the gift of peace home - to where they began. They didn't want to, but they left Earth behind. They did miss it so, but found solace in the fact that they would someday come back. 500 years later, the Empire was nearly ready to return home. Our leaders wanted to do it with as little force as possible, as the humans back on Earth had no form of Symbiotes and were much more squishy than those in the Empire. We were so close to making good on our promise. To defeating the Darkness once and for all. Finally, we would be bringing freedom, true freedom home. But The Insurrectionists didn't want to wait. Then, we remembered what war was. 3 Outer Colonies declared independence, vowing to return in a quicker timeframe than the Empire would. They saw their leaders as incompetent and intending never to return. The way they responded may have been flawed, but I can see how they would get that message. After all, 500 years is... well, it's 500 years. Eventually, a loose alliance of 95 Outer Rim planets were fighting a war against the 106 remaining Imperial planets. The Empire had to divert precious resources to fight a senseless civil war. Then came the peace, hardly won, and at great cost. Ultimately, the war delayed our return home by almost 10 years. In trying to head back quicker, the Insurrectionists delayed the journey even more. What I'm trying to say is, despite our knowledge, despite our intense drive for harmony and peace, despite everything we've achieved and been through... we're still human. And the funny about humans... is they're imperfect. Flawed. We make mistakes. Even comparatively small mistakes can snowball quickly and cause incredible harm and chaos. For example... a rounding error. As I received status updates from whoever were now department heads, I didn't like what I heard. Engineering was utterly destroyed. Fabrication systems were shot. Main reactor was offline. Weapons were missing. As in, literally missing. The fire control computer disappeared. While we still had weapons, we couldn't fire them. Attitude control was down. Gravitic thrusters across the ship reported faults. I don't know how we're going to get through this. An Equestrian vessel rarely sees this kind of damage outside of combat. If only- "Sir!" Thankfully, I'm shaken from my imminent breakdown by Lieutenant Navigator. You know, I really should find out his name. "Yes, Lieutenant?" "I've gotten basic sensors back online. Turns out that the communication between the emergency computer core and sensor array was severed. I rerouted it through internal communications." "... And? Anything of note?" "Hmm... We're inside a gravity well. But... I'm getting some truly weird readings. It seems there are two other sources of gravity, but they're oscillating inconsistently. One moment, it'll be in one spot, then- WHOA!" "What is it, Lieutenant?!" "One just moved an entire Astronomical Unit! Something weird is going on here!" The ship groaned under the stress of such rapidly-shifting gravity. Come on, girl. You can make it. *////\\* In one of the towers of Canterlot Castle, off the beaten path, behind 15 layers of guards and protected by magical enchantments, lies the room where the Lunar Princess rests during the day. It is said that there are two nights in Equestria. One is the night you look up and find staring down at you, and the other is in Princess Luna's hair. At night, when her moon and her power are at their highest, her hair gains a godlike sheen, filled with a microcosm of her night. Princess Luna sighed, basking in the magnificence of the night she'd just brought forth once again. After she had been freed from the influence of the Nightmare, the nocturnal Alicorn had gone back to all royal duties she'd fulfilled 1000 years previously. Trotting out from the safe confines of the Lunar Room, she headed up to the watchtower to relieve her sister. The ancient marble floors reflected her celestial mane quite well. Purple hooves clopped against the stone rather loudly. Hall after room after hall, this repeated itself. Silently, Luna cursed the ancient building's long-dead designers for placing the watchtower on the opposite end of the Castle. After 15 minutes of walking, she finally came across an unmarked stone wall with a horn-shaped hole in it. A small, barely-visible crevice ran through the middle of it from floor to ceiling. Her entire body knelt down, almost in a display of fealty, as she inserted her horn into the lock. The two sides of the stone wall magically crumbled into chunks of plaster and dust. As Luna stepped in, the wall instantly reformed behind her, leaving her inside the bottom floor of the watchtower. In a case nearby, Luna saw two sets of extremely ancient, but well-constructed magical armor. One was plated with 24 karet gold, and had numerous brightly colored gemstones inlaid into strategic points on the armor. Celestia's battle armor. Luna's, in her opinion, was considerably less gaudy and ostentatious. A silvery sheen was all that decorated hers, as well as a number of dark-colored gems and a few pearls; it also mounted a number of spikes and fearsome implements designed mostly to intimidate the enemy. Oh yes, much more subtle than Celestia's. Finally, her eyes rested on a cobblestone staircase next to the ancient armor. She moved to head up the stairs. *////\\* Commander Redmond noticed a readout on his terminal and yelled back at me. "Captain! We're drifting!" I frightfully stared out the bridge's window. Dammit, why didn't I do it before? I saw a planet. Green. Earthlike. Lots of water. I also noticed that it looked a little too close for comfort. Oh shit. "TOWARDS THAT?!" I yelled. Redmond only nodded. "Bridge to engineering! We're about to burn into an atmosphere! Raise shields!" "Shields are down, sir!" Dammit, I knew that. I was just going through the motions. "Polarize the thermal sheeting!" "Thermal sheeting polarized!" "And find some way to slow our descent!" "Yes, sir! I may be able to modify the gravity plating on the lower decks! Jenkins, get on it!" Holding down the emergency broadcast button, I yelled into the transmission microphone. "MAYDAY! MAYDAY! THIS IS THE ESES COPERNICUS! WE HAVE SUFFERED HEAVY DAMAGE AND ARE FALLING TOWARDS AN UNKNOWN PLANET! ANY SHIPS IN THE VICINITY, PLEASE RESPOND!" No response. I figured as such. "All hands to escape pods! Deploy the colonization module onto the planet's surface!" As we hit the atmosphere, I gripped my seat with an intense clamp. My knuckles turned white. "All remaining hands, we have Planetfall." Commander Redmond stated coldly. Luna have mercy. *////\\* As Luna happily walked up the last few stairs, she could see Celestia with her eye firmly planted on the arcane telescope. Oh crap, she fell asleep again. "Luna, did you plan any comets tonight?" Guess she's not asleep. "I don't think so, my sister." "Huh. Well, your night is beautiful as usual." The solar princess arose from the spyglass's hold and gave her little sister a hug. "I know I say this all the time, but it is simply wonderful to have you back. Anyway, night shift is all yours." With that, the majestic solar princess walked down the stairs, her multicolored mane losing its sheen and returning to its default bright pink color. Luna silently smirked before walking over to the telescope. She hadn't planned any comets, and one suddenly appearing is very odd. She leaned forth to get a closer look at the comet... and saw something that made her recoil in horror. The telescope is misaligned! And look at these smudges on the eyepiece! Confound you, Celestia! In Luna mind, she could imagine the solar princess laughing up a storm in her room, knowing she'd successfully messed with Luna's head. Oh, I am so going to make your dreams a living hell tonight. After a few seconds of lens polishing and adjustment, Luna finally got a look at this "rogue comet". Which wasn't a comet. At all. In truth, it looked like one at a distance, but Luna had ramped up the magnification considerably. It looked like a huge brick with two rectangular wings on its side. Two angled protrusions shot out from the back. It trailed a number of smaller bits of junk behind it. It was also crashing down to the surface of her kingdom, and fast. As it collided with the ground just north of the Everfree Forest, Luna ran back downstairs, put her ancient battle armor on (just in case), and galloped back up to the balcony. She activated her Royal Canterlot Voice so that she could be heard in the deepest parts of the castle. "WE ARE LEAVING! SOMETHING HAST LANDED IN OUR KINGDOM! After waking up the entire damned castle, she stretched out her wings and took flight, heading in the direction of the downed comet. Codex Entries*// ENCRYPTED CONNECTION ESTABLISHED \* DOWNLOADING ENTRIES: IMPERIAL CODEX Science and Technology Anti-Gravity Discs: Anti-Gravity Discs are miniature saucers derived from Nikola Tesla's research into Gravity whilst forming his Unified Field Theory. They are able to create fields of increased mass, decreased mass, and more. They can also be set to act as low-powered thrusters. The gravitic effect they generate can be modulated to different strengths and effective radii. Data Crystals: The Equestrian Union and the Empire store data in a trinary system on specially-designed optical crystals. Most are triangular prisms that can store up to a Yottabyte, but more complex crystals in the shapes of rectangular prisms or even hexagonal prisms can store even more data. Unique Variants called AI Prisms are specially designed to host sentient artificial intelligences. They are actually in the shape of 5" pyramids, and designed to be inserted 'top-first'. Dreadnought: Dreadnoughts are massive starships that are built around a single, ultra-high-power Railgun mounted along the spinal axis. They are often used for orbital bombardment and long-range engagements. When the Imperial Navy needs something that can split entire moons in two, they call in a Dreadnought. Each one is named after a character from the show. The 6 largest ones called Star Dreadnoughts are part of a battle group code-named 'Mane 6'. They are, in no particular order: ESES Rarity, ESES Twilight Sparkle, ESES Applejack, ESES Pinkie Pie, ESES Fluttershy, and the ESES Rainbow Dash. Electronic Camouflage: Electronic Camouflage was the precursor to modern Spectral Inversion technology. They masked an object's visual profile from view, enabling it to largely move undetected. This does not mask an object's Radar signature or thermal profile. Used in conjunction with other technologies, this could be mitigated, but was largely rendered a moot point with the invention of Spectral Inversion Plating. Gear Roll: Gear Rolls are storage solutions in widespread usage by the Equestrian Stellar Empire. They have a flexible Replication Pad, computer, Matter Storage, and Replication Matrix. Until activated, the device appears to be a black sheet of rubber. When it is activated, the device begins to break down whatever is placed on the surface with microscopic robots and spirits the particles away. A molecular template of the objects are stored inside the computer. Once the device is unrolled and reactivated, whatever was stored by the device is reconstituted. Most users tend to first pack a large bag, then store it inside a Gear Roll to be able to travel lighter than they would otherwise. Gravitic Thrusters: Gravitic thrusters, designed for low-profile stealth missions and atmospheric flight, are non-emissive engine technologies that generate Gravitic fields. They are essentially over-sized Anti-Gravity Discs adapted to function as engines. Matter Stores: Matter Stores store depolarized Quarks, aka the building blocks of subatomic particles. They also come in various sizes. The largest are designed to supply entire planets and can be the size of the Empire State Building. Smaller variants can be installed in Xenopads, Personal Robots, and other personal devices. Matter Stores that are designed to be man-portable are usually combined with Anti-Gravity Discs to mitigate the weight of stored matter. Nanotechnology: While experiments with nanotechnology were in place prior to the formation of the Equestrian Union, most were suppressed by the ancient conspiracy known as The Darkness. During the Foundation Incident, the demonstration of a miraculous device known as The Divine Mist sparked a nanotechnological revolution in the earliest days of the fledgling Brony nation. By the time of the Second Exodus, nanotechnology is ubiquitous and has freed the citizens of the Union from material needs. Unfortunately, they are not able to share this technology with the rest of the world due to The Darkness' ubiquitous surveillance networks and reliance on keeping the population of the world reliant on material goods. This fact, combined with extreme bitterness and anger in the aftermath of the Second Nanotech War ultimately causes the Equestrian Union to build the first FTL starships and set out into the galaxy. (See Second Exodus, below) Optical Computing: Optical computers are merely the latest in the ever-advancing field of information technology. In stark contrast to their copper and silicone ancestors, Optical Computers work by refracting light in a specific pattern to output a result. Prior to the foundation of United Equestria, optical computers were little more than prototypes. However, with the advancements and rapid fabrication that nanotechnology made possible, Optical Computing took a giant step forward. The most well-known examples of Optical Computers are the Replication Matrices that enable much more refined nanotechnological fabrication than previously thought possible. Replication Pad: Replication Pads (or Rep-Pads for short) are frictionless surfaces coated in dormant Nanites. Upon activation, Rep-Pads generate or break down objects layer by layer. If creating an object, it is created from the top-down. The object seemingly rises from the pad. If breaking down an object, the pad works in the opposite manner; the object is seemingly swallowed up by the pad. Replication Matrix: A Replication Matrix is a specially-constructed optical computer designed exclusively to coordinate swarms of Nanobots as they create, destroy, and transform objects. They are extremely fragile and normally stored in anti-shock gel if not immediately installed in a device. If a replication matrix shatters, it must be replaced immediately. Shields: Shields are critical pieces of hardware for most front-line soldiers and are also ubiquitous on starships. Shields use a layer of low-temperature plasma suspended in a finely tuned magnetic field to protect the user from most damage. In order to fire upon the protected person or object, one must first weaken the plasma shell. The shield is completely ineffective against high-band emissions such as Vis and Gamma Rays. Spectral Inversion Plating: Spectral Inversion Plating is a piece of technology that is able to mask all emissions of a vessel as well as absorb Radar waves and Ladar beams. It is part of a class of material called a Metamaterial, that is artificial composites modified to have unnatural and useful characteristics. Another metamaterial is Nanosteel. Symbiotes: Symbiotes is the collective term for Nanite swarms within the human body. By default, they augment the regenerative abilities by repairing cell damage, restoring decayed DNA strands, and combating foreign pathogens with greater effectiveness than the body can on its own. 98.7% of all residents of the Equestrian Stellar Empire are equipped with this miraculous technology, effectively increasing the average lifespan to 170 years. The Symbiotes are theoretically able to also edit the body's structure - growing subdermal armor, for instance. Some users of Symbiotes called Avatars are able to override the microscopic robots' programming and take manual control, effectively truly merging themselves with Nanotechnology. Avatars are very rare, however. Xenopads: Xenopads are mobile wristwatch terminals that are able to interface with and modify an overwhelming spectrum of technology. They are equipped with Miniature Fabricators capable of producing small gadgets like flashlights, blades, saws, screws, and barriers out of simple polymers and carbon nanotubes as well as deploying floating nanobots ("Foglets") that act as displays and interfaces. Weaponry: The Equestrian Union and later Equestrian Stellar Empire extensively use magnetic weaponry as standard equipment. The firearms are standardized, highly customizable, and come in numerous bore sizes, measured in Millimeters. Higher bore sizes always reflect higher stopping power, in stark contrast to the combustion weapons of yore. The largest man-portable weapons are 40mm Heavy Cannons, which are designed as shoulder-fired anti-tank weaponry. Weapon variants that are smaller than 16mm can operate in a rapid-fire mode. Magnetic firearms are also able to shoot an effectively limitless number of rounds thanks to integrated microfabrication technology. Different Ammunition Templates can be activated using the on-board computer for different purposes. Standard ammo templates included with most firearms include Armor-Piercing, Incendiary, Soft Point, Stun Rounds, High Explosives, and more. More tech-savvy users commonly add their own templates that produce even more exotic effects. People and Places Macintosh I: Named after Big Macintosh, this planet lives up to the reputation of its namesake. Macintosh I is quiet, strong and deadly. It is a world of death and peril hostile to even the most augmented humans. Sandstorms rage across the surface during the day, and at night the vilest of alien monsters arise to prey on any being either lucky or foolish enough to survive the day. Nikola Tesla: This Serbian inventor and shrewd businessman is responsible for the technological leap forward in the late 1800s and early 1900s. He started his first moderately successful business whilst still in college at the Graz University of Technology. After graduating summa cum laude, Tesla moved to the United States to become an intern at Thomas Edison's company, the Continental Edison Company. Through crafty outmaneuvering, Tesla eventually managed to take control of CEC, turning it into Tesla Electric Light and Manufacturing. The company would survive into the late 2010s before being purchased by Lozo Heavy Industries. Tesla was a veritable one-man industrial revolution, developing, with success, Radar, Radio, electric vehicles, and more. The 19th and 20th centuries are very different due to this leap in technological advancement. Events and Culture Credits: Shorthand for Matter Credits. Matter Credits are the universal currency of the late Equestrian Union and Equestrian Stellar Empire. A single credit represents 5 grams of matter or just over 12 Million Yottawatt-Hours. It is a less complex way of quantifying Matter and Energy, as both are interchangable thanks to technology. For example, an average personal computer weighs roughly 7 kilograms. It also costs 1400 credits, which means it would require 7000 grams of matter or 16.8 Billion Yottawatt-Hours of energy to synthesize. Thankfully, both are in abundant supply in the Empire. The Second Exodus: Following the period of global devastation and upheaval in the wake of the Second Nanotech War, which once more ended in a stalemate between The Darkness and United Equestria, the UE Council voted 7 to 2 in favor of Operation Starchild. The plan entailed the construction of numerous colony vessels with a singular purpose: leaving earth to start anew among the stars. Vowing to someday return to Earth and finish what they started, the Bronies went off-world, leaving the majority of the planet to the evils of The Darkness. Unwilling to risk civilian casualties and intending to take down The Darkness without collateral damage, they would build their strength and make good on their vow 550 years later. Unification War: In 2502, seven Outer Rim planets broke away from the Equestrian Stellar Empire and instigated a Civil War, known afterwards as the Unification War. Led by the Earth Return movement, these seven planets would soon grow in number to over thirty-five under the ultimate goal of an ahead of schedule, and by extension, more violent, return to Earth. What is unknown to most citizens of the Empire is that the leader of this Rebellion was none other than High Admiral Benedict Lozo, the Great-Great-Grandson of Doctor Joseph Lozo. This man was the only person driving the Insurrectionists forward; once he was assassinated, the Earth Return movement and Insurrectionists were crippled, the remainder of their forces easily being swept away. Ironically, this civil war delayed the return to earth by over 50 years. Meta Concepts Divergence: The human world depicted here is in a divergent timeline from our own, meaning that prior to a specific date, it essentially is our world. After a certain event or Point of Divergence, the timeline breaks off from our own into its own stream, after which events become unpredictable if compared to our own history. The human world diverges at some point in the early 1400s, although the more dramatic changes occur from 1870 and on. See Nikola Tesla above for the majority of these shifts. The key thing to remember is that Nikola Tesla was a much more competent businessman and salesperson in this world and thus was able to avoid the major pitfalls he experienced in our timeline. This resulted in his inventions gaining momentum much easier, the War of Currents never occuring, and a technological growth at almost 5 times the rate it should have been. A global internet existed as early as the 1970s. By the year 2010, humanity has rudimentary optical computers, advanced robotics, railguns, and advanced power generation technology. Author's Note As can be inferred, this isn't actually an update. This is where I will put descriptions of technology and magic in the setting so as to not clutter the story with long strings of pseudo-scientific technobabble. Also, you'll find some historical stuff here.
Chapter 0: PostscriptNovember, 2533 Sounds of chaos and discord came in through the radio. Echoes of a desperate war. At least it would be over soon. Some voices I recognized and could pick through the haze. It was tricky to stay awake in my condition, but keeping the radio on 'All Allied Forces' would have made it somewhat easier, gave me something to focus on— But it really just pissed me off. It seemed we were losing. Badly. “Captain, come in! Captain!” “Royal Guard's breaking off! The Elements have to be protected! WHERE IN EQUESTRIA ARE OUR REINFORCEMENTS?!” “All Equestrian Union troopers, fall back to rally point Delta Five! I repeat! Fall back to rally point Delta Five! ” “This is Griffon Field Command! Whitebeaks, push forward and cover the Human retreat! Winterclaws, break formation and head for the Guards! Fight with honor, Griffons!” He won. In truth, I really should have seen this coming. He wanted me to come here. I was too stupid to see that I was being played. I glanced a few feet over to the still, silent form of a recently killed man. He’d had a longer life than most humans- No, scratch that. He'd had a longer life than the average pony. The average pony, be they Unicorn, Earth Pony, or Pegasus, could boast of a lifespan of 200 years. Nano-Aug'd humans pushed the human lifespan to almost 150, but this man had lived for six hundred and sixty-six years. Obviously, the so-called "Everlasting Demon" bled and died as much as the rest of us did. Granted, it took a lot to take him down. “Computer, Diagnostic report.” I croaked. My powered armor analyzed itself with what little energy stores it had left and then a familiar voice emitted itself through the speakers in my cockpit, stating a bunch of data that I already knew. “Structural Integrity Critical. Energy Stores Critical. Upper Servomotor Assemblies Critical. Lower Servomotor Assemblies Badly Damaged. Primary Power Stores: Depleted. Emergency Power Stores: Five Percent. Warning: Self-Repair Systems Compromised. Warning: Environmental Hazards Detected, User In Danger.” My mind spun, barely acknowledging the computer’s voice as my memories came back to me. Where did I go wrong? Was it just me or was it… something else? Something that happened 500 Years ago? In truth, I don’t know. But if I were to make an educated guess, I’d say it was mostly Grandpa. Especially with what I’d learned recently. The Archives, the Temple of Humanity… My name is Captain Tarquin Lozo, de facto leader of the settlement of Humanity’s Crest… And I’m totally about to die. If I could tell anypony in the world right now, it would be her. “Computer, get me an uplink to Humanity’s Crest.” “QEC Subsystem Damaged, Unable to transmit. Short-range Radio Only.” “A- Anybody… Computer, get me anybody.” With the computer clearly not understanding my meaning, I coughed out another command with what was left of my damaged lungs. "Rights, get me Rights." “Tarquin! Cap, come in.” That was Rights, my commander on the ground. The audio was spotty at best. It sounded like they were getting hit hard down there. I frowned and depressed the comm button on my helmet. “Tarquin here, what’s the situation?” I knew the situation already, but protocol was protocol. “Tarquin! Thank God! What's happening?!” My left hand found my face. I let out a soft gasp as I realized it was thoroughly burned. Trying my damnedest to ignore the pain that just my touch had inflicted, I responded to Rights. “Rights… I stopped him. But he’s rigged the Ruby to explode. I can’t stop it from here.” “What about the-” “The escape plan didn’t work.” An explosion that was a little too close for comfort reminded me my time was short. “It's sealed shut, there’s no more coming through. Just… just hold your ground and push the rest back to their ships.” “Roger that, Cap. Sending a transport to you ASAP.” “Negative, just leave me.” I coldly said. “What?! Tarquin, you can’t make it out of there alone!” “I know. But you can’t spare the ships for a full escort. And that’s what it’ll take - I’m deep in Darkness Territory.” There was silence on the other end as she probably struggled to accept it. “I guess you’re right, sir.” “Just… keep fighting. For me. And tell her I’m sorry I couldn’t make it home.” “I… Of course, Tarquin. Harmony be with you.” A tear forced its way out of my eye. Huh, I guess my tear ducts worked after all. “And with you, Commander. Godspeed.” “Cap, good lu-” Static came through as my Radio finally crapped out. Resigned to its fate, my body crumpled against the chair. With nothing else to do, I fumbled about in the cockpit for a brief moment, looking for something. Finding my quarry duct-taped under the right console, I smiled. A Cuban Cigar. You know, I’d never been much for smoking, but it was something of a tradition among the hot-shot pilots of these walking tanks that if they finished a mission with impossible odds, they’d light one of these up. I think this definitely qualified as ‘Impossible Odds’. I popped my survival lighter out of my pocket and held the gizmo up to the tip, almost immediately gagging on the smoke. “Fuck me sideways with Twilight’s forehooves, that’s awful! The hay were these crazy Armor-Jocks thinking?!” I yelled out to nobody in particular. I snuffed the cigar out on the front panel. Not like I would be around long enough for Donnelly to reprimand me for dirtying one of his precious machines. I noticed the dash had a metal plate on it. Having nothing better to do while waiting for death to find me, I idly read it. Steelhoof Series Ultra-Heavy Power Armor Prototype Model: SH-590-X Manufacture Origin: Humanity's Crest Armorworks, Honesty Element, Humanity's Crest I was rapidly interrupted by a deep voice sounding out over the ship’s internal communications array. The voice was distinctly male and equally synthetic. Must have been the ship's computer core. “Warning: Quantium containment failure. Detonation in 5… 4… 3…” Inside the jury-rigged bridge drive of the ship, a heart-shaped ruby with a cerulean core sparked slightly, then erupted in a blaze of hellfire and quantum turbulance that ripped the ship - and me - apart. -=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=- In Darkness We Die.
Chapter 1: Scientific Pursuits"When I despair, I remember that all through history, the way of truth and love has always won. There have been murderers and tyrants, and for a time they can seem invincible. But in the end they always fall." — Mahatmas Gandhi 3 months in space can wear heavily on the body. I'm not talking about zero-g muscle atrophy; after all, we can configure our Symbiotes to compensate for that. I'm talking about the strain on the mind. Being in extremely close quarters with the same people day in and day out can tear through sanity faster than a botched neural mod. Nanostasis mitigates this, but the ship I was on didn't have any Nanostasis facilities. They were removed to free up power for stealth technology. As I shave, I can get a good look at my tired face. My father used to say that I was the spitting image of my Grandfather. Apparently I get my dark brown eyes, simultaneously piercing and kindly, from him. My jet black hair and oval face was also a gift from him. Unfortunately, I also got his genetic affinity for fast-growing and extremely profound hair. I cleaned my glasses, propped them back onto my nose and sighed. Let me put it this way: I would be happy to go to hell after these three months. Ironically enough, that's more or less where I'm going. *////\\* Mid-September, 2529 Undisclosed Location on Macintosh I Sand. The beige wasteland stretched on for miles and miles. The orbit of the Chrysalis unfortunately didn't take it over the base, and I had to take a shuttle to the surface. The Ground to Orbit Atmospheric Transport or GOAT could easily fit 10 people in it. And yet, I was the only one in here. Except the pilot, that is. He was a red-haired fellow of Irish descent with a serious demeanor when at the controls of a shuttle. Spades is a good man, if a bit of a snide jerk when not in the pilot's chair. He's a damn good pilot, though. Apparently, he comes from a long line of skilled and snide pilots of Irish descent. Spades' thickly Irish voice chimed in from the cockpit. "ETA five minutes to Copernicus Base. Beginning descent." I closed my digital copy of Nikola Tesla: The Man Who Built The World. The holographic tome faded into nonexistence as my Xenopad stopped rendering it. I hacked my E-Reader program to create an actual book instead of just a flat display. I'm nostalgic like that. "So... What is Project Copernicus?" "Truly? I don't know. I just ferry folks to the Base. I never actually see whatever they're building. I do know that whatever they've got goin' on down there, it has ludicrous security standards. I seen little metal blisters on the surface around the base. You know what those are?" "Yeah, they're Pop-up Railguns. Any unauthorized ships get close, and they get blasted to bits before they know what hit 'em. They're largely undetectable from orbit." "Well, Oi guess it's a goot thing I'm authorized, then." From here, I could see Spades opening an encrypted link to Copernicus Base and relayed his access codes. A female synthetic voice responded, clearly the base's artificial intelligence, Maria. "Access Codes Verified. you are cleared for landing at pad Delta-Four. Nice to see you again, Spades." "Friend of yours?" I asked. "Naw, more like wife." He spat back at me sarcastically. "Hah! You wish." Maria responded. *////\\* Project Copernicus Facility, Northern Hemisphere of Macintosh I Finally, the endless miles of sand in the window gave way to a sprawling industrial complex the size of a small city. A maze of concrete and steel rolled out before me. Spades descended into the mechanical abyss, weaving between buildings and avoiding the occasional industrial bot or cargo hauler with incredible skill. Finally, Landing Pad D-5 came into view. The Irish pilot set the brick of a shuttle down onto the pad so softly that if I didn't know any better, we hadn't landed at all. The hatch beside me swept open, collapsing into the frame. "Thank you for flying Spades Airlines, please make sure you have all your luggage and limbs before departing the craft. We are not responsible for any blood loss or nausea that may have occurred during the trip. Have a nice day." Saying nothing, I unhooked my crash harness and grabbed the Gear Roll I stashed under my seat, slinging it over my shoulder with no effort at all, despite the fact that 50 pounds of matter is inside of it. Gotta love those Anti-Gravity Discs. "I'm supposed to tell you that you're to head straight to the command center. Doctor Braun wants to see you in person. He'll be giving you your deployment orders. An escort is waiting for you just off the landing pad." Maria said in her sultry yet simultaneously fake voice. I stepped out of the shuttle and found a human-shaped combat robot with an orange paint job waiting for me. Its head was rectangular and it didn't have anything in the way of identifying features. The faceplate was jet black and held its sensor suite. It immediately perked up and spoke in a metallic voice, even more artificial than Maria's. It was just a nonsentient drone, after all. "THIS PLATFORM HAS BEEN ASSIGNED TO ESCORT YOU TO COMMAND CENTER OMEGA-FIVE. DO NOT DEVIATE FROM THE ASSIGNED PATH OR YOU WILL BE SUBJECT TO SUMMARY EXECUTION." The drone made an about-face and started walking, its legs clanking along the concrete pad. Not exactly rolling out the red carpet, are they? I followed the robot, making sure to not fall too far behind. Luckily, it kept a slow and steady pace. *////\\* The "Command Center" was actually just a tiny conference room with a holographic display in the center of the room. Various bits of data floated about while the two occupants of the room bickered, exchanging statistics and scientific formula. A heavily decorated member of the Imperial Guard stood in front of an older fellow with grey hair and a stout build who spoke with a thick German accent. "The Element you need need simply doesn't exist, Doctor!" "My information says otherwise, General. The only barrier is that it only exists naturally in extremely small quantities. Luckily, we only need 1.2 Micrograms of the element for each trip, 2.4 in total. Mining swarms have already acquired 1.6 Micrograms of our requirement." "I see... from these calculations you gave me, the element clearly requires large amounts of energy to mine. I didn't think they'd noticed my arrival until the scientist focused his eyes on me. "Ah, Commander Lozo. I trust your journey was safe?" "Safe enough, I suppose. What're you two arguing about?" I said. "Science," The General said, folding his arms. "... That's... informative." I deadpanned. "Welcome." He said cryptically. The white-haired scientist just rolled his eyes at this. "Well, now zat we have exchanged pleasantries, I believe introductions are in order. My name is Doctor Herrmann Braun, Project Lead for Copernicus. This is General O'Neill of the Imperial Guard, who, I believe, was just leaving." General O'Neill vacated the room quickly. I have never seen a civilian order around an Imperial Guard, much less a General and get away with it. Just another question to put on the list, I guess. "Now, I have something to show you, Commander." He walked over to a window that was covered with vertical metallic slats and poised his hand over a large blue button as I followed closely behind. "Meet Copernicus." He said as he pressed the button down. Immediately responding to the whim of their master, the individual slats rotated about 90 degrees and merged into a metallic brick that slid into the wall, revealing what he wanted to show me. "What the..." What I saw was one of the largest starships I had ever seen. It appeared to be a carrier at first glance, but a number of the fighter bays were replaced by some sort of field emitters. It had a number of living domes that could be found on colony ships, but also had heavy weaponry - from here I could make out at least two oversized Railguns taking up the spine of the vessel and numerous ship-to-ship weapons and point defense turrets dotting the surface. Orange-colored Construction Drones fluttered about the surface. It appeared the ship was about 90% complete. Like most other ESE ships, its design aesthetic leaned toward a rectangular, utilitarian appearance. One doesn't bother much with streamlining when Anti-Gravity technology and Fusion Engines can effortlessly propel a ship out of the atmosphere. Also, I have to admit that they do look pretty damn cool. "This is the ESES Copernicus. It is a test bed for a prototype device called the Einstein-Rosenberg Bridge Drive or ERBD. It is able to traverse vast interstellar distances in the blink of an eye through the folding of spacetime. Of course, that is an overly simplistic explanation." "Sounds like that would be useful. But I don't understand why you need me." "Well, it's due for a shakedown cruise. Needs a captain." "... You do realize I'm just a Commander, right?" "Actually, as of roughly..." He checked the Xenopad on his wrist, bringing up the screen without activating the holographic functions. "... Eh, Five minutes ago, your pay grade has just been increased from O-5 to O-6. Your rank is currently Captain, with all the authority and responsibility that entails. Congratulations on your promotion, Captain Lozo." "Well, that's n- SAY WHAAAAT?" Doctor Braun continued his monologue, ignoring me and not missing a beat. "Furthermore, your new posting is the ESES Copernicus for her Maiden Voyage to the distant Ensnare Nexus to set up a remote colony on the surface of a habitable planet. Until the vessel is spaceworthy, you are to coordinate final construction and crew assignments." I've got a good feeling about this. Author's Note Merry Christmas! I promise the next update will not be so ludicrously late. Fun fact: On several occasions whilst writing this, I misread the title as Scientific Fursuits. ~~You're welcome.~~ Did I say it was going to be 3,000 words? Nope, I most certainly did not. Noooope. ~~actuallyididandiwastoolazytomakeitthatlong~~
Chapter 2.1: Castaway"Not all those who wander are lost." — J.R.R. Tolkien The next few weeks went by in a near blur. I was assigned my own office, workers kept coming and going, the Doctor and General kept bickering over their stupid element. Long story short, business as usual. Interestingly, the estimated construction time when I arrived was about a year. Riding high from my recent promotion, I had quickly set to work accelerating this timetable. Drones were assembling, soldering and welding around the clock, constantly buzzing about the superstructure and surrounding base like the good little worker bees they were. Engineers worked double and even triple shifts. The drones did most of the heavy lifting, yeah; but a human element was still necessary for more sensitive work like installing and wiring up the computer nodes. The Officers on duty were also double-checking over every single bit of metal, crystal and polymer of the Copernicus. Regardless of the time table being pushed up, we were not going to be cutting corners. Doing that gets people killed, and with an estimated population of over 100,000 people including crew, colonists, and support staff... Well, let's just say the stakes were higher than Cloudsdale. And of course, there was still the matter of acquisitions. While our nanotechnology frees our culture and our people from most material wants, data is still an invaluable commodity. Requisition orders regularly passed through my desk for software licenses and databases that ran upwards of 2 Million credits. Each. Surprisingly, I was under direct orders to approve every single one. I don't know where the hell this project gets its funding, and frankly, I don't want to know. You know what they say: you get what you pay for. The best of the best is certainly pricey. The best software, the best armor, the best shields, the best weaponry, the best optical computers - everything on this bucking ship is bleeding edge tech. Some of it won't see widespread production for a year at most. Not since the Second Exodus was such a massive quantity and broad spectrum of next-gen technology put towards a single purpose. Then, of course, there's the crew. The security forces were probably the most diverse of the lot; composed of ex-mercenaries, former Insurrectionists, Colony Police, Fighter Pilots, Marines, Officers like myself... By Celestia, we even had a substantial contingent of highly trained Armor-Jocks ready to go. The pilot was one of the few familiar faces. Yep, Spades was going to be at the helm of this high-tech leviathan. Turns out he wasn't just qualified for ferrying poor schmucks like me around in a shuttle. The scientific team had over 1,000 Nanologists, Xenobiologists, Linguists, Anthropologists, Particle Physicists, Geologists - all pillars in their respective fields. The engineering department had a brilliant man named Jeffrey Adams heading it - as in the Jeffrey Adams that single-handedly repaired a supposedly derelict and inoperable dreadnought on Taurus V and subsequently used it to great effect against Insurrectionists. By doing so, one man had saved the lives of 319 Colonists and 53 Soldiers. The man became a war hero... while not being a soldier at all. I respected him, at least until... well, I'm getting to that part. For now, let's just say that, while we didn't know it at the time, we would soon be fighting a war for our very survival, and there's a sad truth about wars: They all have their traitors. *////\\* Early March, 2530 The Bridge of the ESES Copernicus The completed Bridge was positively spacious. 3 rows of high-ranking officers were lined up on the trapezoidal construct. Each was in charge of one system - Stardrive, Weapons, Damage Control, Defensive Systems, Sensors. I had my own chair on a raised platform in the center of the room. The pilot, Navigator, and First Officer had their seats arranged in a triangular formation in front of me on a slightly lower platform. I had Spades in front of me, the navigator (who I never really caught the name of) to the right of me, and my First Officer, Commander Ray Redmond to my immediate left. A thin layer of Transparent Diamondoid separated 34 people from the deadly vacuum of space while providing an incredibly scenic view of the ugly-as-fuck dockyard. Once we're in space, I think the view will improve considerably. I barked out a single order and the entire ship erupted with life: "Initialize Takeoff Procedures. Let's light the fires, boys." As the atmospheric thrusters engaged, I found myself... anxious and uneasy. Not that I regretted being promoted and sent on this mission, mind you. I just was thinking about the fact that the bridge drive was beyond experimental. If so much as a single variable was off, the entire ship and all its contents would be nothing but interstellar dust. And that's the best case scenario. While Doctor Braun had assured me over and over again that only 1% of the testbeds didn't come back, that was a 1% chance of explosive failure I didn't want to risk happening. I mean, I have complete faith in Adams' math. It's just that risk of obliteration that hangs over my head. The chance that the blood of 100,000 souls would be on my hands. And nobody would ever know. If you screw this up, Adams... I swear to Celestia, I'll bring both of us back from the dead just so I can kill you again myself. The navigator seated to the right of me narrated the ongoing action with a distinct lack of emotion (and enthusiasm, for that matter.) Huh, judging from the two Pegasus wings affixed to his shoulder, he's a Lieutenant. So I'll just call him Lieutenant Navigator. Easy solution. "Atmospheric thrusters at maximum output, Captain Lozo. I estimate 10 seconds until we reach the Exosphere." "Alright. Spades, keep her going slow and steady. Wouldn't want to cut this mission off prematurely." "Roger that, Cap'n." "Exospheric threshold in 5... 4... 3... 2... 1..." "Wait to engage the stardrive once we're about 100 miles clear of the Exosphere. Wouldn't want to ignite the atmosphere of Macintosh I. It'd sure be a shame to replace all that expensive industrial hardware." There was a faint glimmer of a chuckle from the front of the room where Spades took up residence. Well, at least somepony found my jokes funny. *////\\* About 10 minutes later, we had cleared the Macintosh system and were now safely within Interstellar Space. Now, it's time to charge up the drive and pray to Celestia that we don't die in a fiery inferno. But before we do that, I should do what any self-respecting starship captain does before sending himself, his crew, and his ship on an insane endeavor: Say a few inspiring words over the intercom. "Ray, open an internal frequency." "You got it." I paused to take a short breath while he tapped a few buttons on the console next to him. "You're on, sir." "Attention all hands: This is Captain Lozo speaking. A few minutes from now, we will attempt to travel to a distant star. One that is one of the farthest our Empire has ever dreamed of seeing. The technology on this ship is largely untested. If so much as a single number is off by a fraction of a decimal, we could end up light years from our destination... or worse, dust. Our finest scientists tell me that is highly unlikely, but the point remains: Double and triple check everything. We've no room at all for error here, so let's not take any chances. Adams, make sure your math is right. Bridge out." I motioned Ray to close the channel before turning back to the front of the bridge. "Well said, Captain. Very encouraging." Ray said snidely. "Brough' a tear to me eye." Spades said. "Yeah, yeah. Shut it. I'm not good at speeches. Moving on. I need a Go/No-Go for launch. Propulsion?" "Go.", Dr. Braun in the back responded. "Reactor?" "Go." "Weaponry?" "... Go." "Defensive Systems?" "Go." "Power Transfer Control?" "Ah, hang on a sec... Okay, Go." This repetitive exchange proceeded until each one of the ranking officers said their peace. All reported ready. "Right, we are go for ERBD activation. Ray, you may have the honor." "Gladly, Captain. Bridge to main engineering!" Ray said into his console. (Well, really yelled. But I digress.) The posh British voice of Chief Adams piped up over the line. "Engineering here. Equation ready for entry whenever you are." "Roger that. Input the jump equation and load the Quantium sample into the reactant chamber." "Affirmative, Bridge. We're just doing some final tweaks to the equation. We'll be done in a jiff here." A few seconds of awkward silence later, Adams came back on. "We're all set. Loading Quantium now." *////\\* Meanwhile in Main Engineering... Chief Engineer Adams twirled a miniature glass ball the size of his fist between the thumb and index finger on his left hand, eyeing it fiendishly. Inside the fragile ball was a light-blue glowing chunk of matter, Quantium. "Miraculous, isn't it? Quantium is such a fascinating element, really. It's extremely rare in nature. A single asteroid a kilometer across holds, on average, half a microgram of the stuff. It's central to the Einstein-Rosenberg Bridge Drive because, when impacted by a single Muon particle traveling at near the speed of light, the substance detonates. The effect is not noticeable in any quantity of less than 1.2 Micrograms. Anyway, it immediately generates a stable singularity that is expanded massively and can be warped into the shape of a tunnel through spacetime via mass field generators-" Engineer Donnelly always tended to tune Adams out most of the time when he started babbling like this. The man may have been a hero, but holy Celestia, was he annoying! "-requiring an extremely accurate set of mathematic equa-" Finally, Sean Arcturus Donnelly had had enough of him. "Good lord, lad! Are ye still talkin'?! Ya were supposed ta load the damned thing into the Chamber, na marry it!" "Ah, but a sample is already in the chamber. This is the one for the return trip." "What the hell is it doing out? Ye droop that sphere and the element'll decay!" "Ah yes, Quantium decays rapidly when exposed to Oxygen. That's why it's magnetically suspended in these glass spheres. I suppose it would indeed be a shame if I just... let go." To Donnelly, it seemed that time froze. Engineer Adams rapidly flashed a playful grin. In the space of a second, the irreplaceable sphere tumbled out of his hand and towards the floor, shattering and disrupting the solid-state superconducting magnets holding the rare element in the middle of the sphere. The cerulean Quantium rapidly liquefied into an irrevocable aerosol. "WHAT'VE YE DUN, YE BLOODY NITWIT?!" "... Oops." To the shock of Donnelly, Adams quickly drew a 5mm holdout pistol he'd stashed inside his Engineer's satchel and promptly shot him in the chest. In respect of their years of friendship, Adams rushed over and caught the brilliant Scotsman as he fell. "I am sorry, old friend. For everything. Some evils must be committed for Darkness to rise again." As Donnelly gasped for air, Adams stood up and backed away from him. "And It Shall Rise Again." A split second after Adams said that, an implanted microexplosive in his neck detonated. A failsafe. Thankfully, Adams had merely wounded Donnelly who was able to recover in a moment. Looking at the terminal Adams was using earlier to input the equation, Donnelly was able to fully comprehend what had just happened. Oh. Shi- *////\\* Back on the Bridge... The Bridge Drive was nearly ready. Just a few more moments and we'd teleport away into the darkness. Or we'd blow up. Hopefully, we don't blow up thou- "ENGINEERING TA THE BRIDGE! ADAMS MESSED UP THE EQUATION!" Donnelly? What the- "Right. So where is Adams so I can kill him first?" "Ye don't understand, sir! 'e went insane - destroyed the second Quantium Sphere! Then pulled a holdout pistol and shot me! Oi'm fine, ba the way, but there's a bigger issue! 'e intentionally inserted a rounding error into the dimensional compensation algorithm! We're fucked, sir!" Before I had a chance to even bark a cliched but necessary "All Hands to Escape Pods" out, the Bridge Drive activated and swallowed the ship whole. My brain spat out one last coherent thought before unconsciousness gripped me. Goddammit, Adams. You had ONE job. *////\\* Well, at least I'm not a sentient pile of dust. There's that. On the other hand, I'm pretty sure I cracked 2 ribs. I somehow doubt even that's the least of my worries. I also seem to be on top of something. Something warm and fleshy. Ah, not something. Someone. I opened my eyes to the clearly pissed off face of my first officer. Poor guy was pinned underneath my floppy body; his was frozen like a piece of hardwood into a virtual straight line. My brain seemed to deem this the perfect time for an awkward double entendre. "You know, if you weren't so rigidly straight, this would be somewhat more comfortable for the both of us." Ray was unamused. "Sir. With all due respect: Get the fuck off of me before I kick you right through the fucking hull." Not intending to push my luck, I got off of him, careful to stay off my injured ribs. I'd have to see Mitchell about that later. I looked around. The bridge was in shambles, to say the least. Entire swathes of Diamondoid were missing. Not shattered. Missing. Some were even circular. God, this place looked more like metallic swiss cheese than the most advanced vessel in the ESE Navy. Thankfully, the repair systems kicked in to repair some of the damage. I figured that the reason I had lost consciousness was because the bridge fucking depressurized. The odd spark would erupt from an exposed wire. Smoke filled the room. As well as a few dead or unconscious crewmembers. "... Commander, get me a ship status report." I said calmly. "Yes, sir." Ray moved the pile of Lieutenant Navigator off of his console and called up a shipwide diagnostic. "Can't access most of the diagnostic programs. I can get general function readouts, but beyond that... "... Life support is at 100% functionality. Thank god for that dedicated generator, eh? "We've lost Propulsion, Weaponry, Shield Projectors, Primary Computer, Replication Suite, Long-Range Sensor Suite, Cyberwarfare... Almost every primary and secondary system is shot save Life Support and Artificial Gravity. The cryostasis system is largely undamaged. Seems the colonists are fine. "... All in all, we're dead in the water, Captain." "... Better than being dead, I guess... What exactly happened?" "Sensor data was spotty at best. As far as I can tell, the wormhole formed was unstable. Pockets of... something... formed within our hull, erasing certain bits of our ship from existence." I looked outside the ship towards the stars. Something was off about the way they were arranged. "Ray, where the hay are we?" "... I don't know, but the Astrometrics suite is still online. Hang on. After a brief pause, he chimed in again. "... It has no fucking idea either." "Elaborate." "Well, even if we're on the other side of the galaxy, the suite would still be able to automatically adapt its algorithms and get an approximate fix so long as a few stars are in the right spot. The stars here match up with our chart in some spots, but in others, they're completely off." "You think we might have ended up outside our galaxy?" "Possibly. Although, let me check one last thing." He tapped a few more buttons. Far as I could tell, he was bringing up the communications system. It uses entangled particles to transmit data instantly regardless of distance. "... That's not possible." "What?" "The QEC radio is... it's not able to establish a link with Macintosh I. So... I think you know that there are only two situations a QEC radio would utterly fail to connect. One is time travel. However, with how the drive works, I think we can safely rule that out." "And the other being...?" "That we've somehow ended up in an alternate universe." That's. Just. Special. Author's Note Tarquin is what we writers call an 'unreliable narrator'. Just keep that in mind.
Chapter 2.2: Planetfall"Maybe it's not always about fixing something that's broken. Maybe, it's about starting over and creating something better." — Unknown Each Equestrian knows a triple-sided existence. Bronies, scientists, soldiers. We still love the show and create songs, movies, stories about it. Our entire culture is based around the fandom, with everything that implies. Data crystals with all 15 original seasons are ubiquitous. 53 additional seasons were also created, with countless reboots, remakes, spinoffs, and spiritual successors. All by us. By Bronies and Equestrians. Science was always our best defense. From our earliest experiences with The Darkness, we expected nothing but violence against us and... adapted accordingly. We first had to defend ourselves, and so we developed specialized, tougher armor and more refined types of Railguns. We were also on the run, and had no places to hide. So we decided to make our own places to hide, leading to electronic camouflage and better electronic countermeasures. Scientific progress ultimately resulted in a progressive and technophilic mentality among our people. Despite our attempts to forget it, we also know the bitter taste of war and chaos. We know what hatred feels like. I wouldn't say it was merely human nature.After leaving Earth, we did have peace. At least, for a time. The story goes that the early Equestrians, upon leaving the Earth during The Second Exodus, vowed to rebuild their strength and bring the gift of peace home - to where they began. They didn't want to, but they left Earth behind. They did miss it so, but found solace in the fact that they would someday come back. 500 years later, the Empire was nearly ready to return home. Our leaders wanted to do it with as little force as possible, as the humans back on Earth had no form of Symbiotes and were much more squishy than those in the Empire. We were so close to making good on our promise. To defeating the Darkness once and for all. Finally, we would be bringing freedom, true freedom home. But The Insurrectionists didn't want to wait. Then, we remembered what war was. 3 Outer Colonies declared independence, vowing to return in a quicker timeframe than the Empire would. They saw their leaders as incompetent and intending never to return. The way they responded may have been flawed, but I can see how they would get that message. After all, 500 years is... well, it's 500 years. Eventually, a loose alliance of 95 Outer Rim planets were fighting a war against the 106 remaining Imperial planets. The Empire had to divert precious resources to fight a senseless civil war. Then came the peace, hardly won, and at great cost. Ultimately, the war delayed our return home by almost 10 years. In trying to head back quicker, the Insurrectionists delayed the journey even more. What I'm trying to say is, despite our knowledge, despite our intense drive for harmony and peace, despite everything we've achieved and been through... we're still human. And the funny about humans... is they're imperfect. Flawed. We make mistakes. Even comparatively small mistakes can snowball quickly and cause incredible harm and chaos. For example... a rounding error. As I received status updates from whoever were now department heads, I didn't like what I heard. Engineering was utterly destroyed. Fabrication systems were shot. Main reactor was offline. Weapons were missing. As in, literally missing. The fire control computer disappeared. While we still had weapons, we couldn't fire them. Attitude control was down. Gravitic thrusters across the ship reported faults. I don't know how we're going to get through this. An Equestrian vessel rarely sees this kind of damage outside of combat. If only- "Sir!" Thankfully, I'm shaken from my imminent breakdown by Lieutenant Navigator. You know, I really should find out his name. "Yes, Lieutenant?" "I've gotten basic sensors back online. Turns out that the communication between the emergency computer core and sensor array was severed. I rerouted it through internal communications." "... And? Anything of note?" "Hmm... We're inside a gravity well. But... I'm getting some truly weird readings. It seems there are two other sources of gravity, but they're oscillating inconsistently. One moment, it'll be in one spot, then- WHOA!" "What is it, Lieutenant?!" "One just moved an entire Astronomical Unit! Something weird is going on here!" The ship groaned under the stress of such rapidly-shifting gravity. Come on, girl. You can make it. *////\\* In one of the towers of Canterlot Castle, off the beaten path, behind 15 layers of guards and protected by magical enchantments, lies the room where the Lunar Princess rests during the day. It is said that there are two nights in Equestria. One is the night you look up and find staring down at you, and the other is in Princess Luna's hair. At night, when her moon and her power are at their highest, her hair gains a godlike sheen, filled with a microcosm of her night. Princess Luna sighed, basking in the magnificence of the night she'd just brought forth once again. After she had been freed from the influence of the Nightmare, the nocturnal Alicorn had gone back to all royal duties she'd fulfilled 1000 years previously. Trotting out from the safe confines of the Lunar Room, she headed up to the watchtower to relieve her sister. The ancient marble floors reflected her celestial mane quite well. Purple hooves clopped against the stone rather loudly. Hall after room after hall, this repeated itself. Silently, Luna cursed the ancient building's long-dead designers for placing the watchtower on the opposite end of the Castle. After 15 minutes of walking, she finally came across an unmarked stone wall with a horn-shaped hole in it. A small, barely-visible crevice ran through the middle of it from floor to ceiling. Her entire body knelt down, almost in a display of fealty, as she inserted her horn into the lock. The two sides of the stone wall magically crumbled into chunks of plaster and dust. As Luna stepped in, the wall instantly reformed behind her, leaving her inside the bottom floor of the watchtower. In a case nearby, Luna saw two sets of extremely ancient, but well-constructed magical armor. One was plated with 24 karet gold, and had numerous brightly colored gemstones inlaid into strategic points on the armor. Celestia's battle armor. Luna's, in her opinion, was considerably less gaudy and ostentatious. A silvery sheen was all that decorated hers, as well as a number of dark-colored gems and a few pearls; it also mounted a number of spikes and fearsome implements designed mostly to intimidate the enemy. Oh yes, much more subtle than Celestia's. Finally, her eyes rested on a cobblestone staircase next to the ancient armor. She moved to head up the stairs. *////\\* Commander Redmond noticed a readout on his terminal and yelled back at me. "Captain! We're drifting!" I frightfully stared out the bridge's window. Dammit, why didn't I do it before? I saw a planet. Green. Earthlike. Lots of water. I also noticed that it looked a little too close for comfort. Oh shit. "TOWARDS THAT?!" I yelled. Redmond only nodded. "Bridge to engineering! We're about to burn into an atmosphere! Raise shields!" "Shields are down, sir!" Dammit, I knew that. I was just going through the motions. "Polarize the thermal sheeting!" "Thermal sheeting polarized!" "And find some way to slow our descent!" "Yes, sir! I may be able to modify the gravity plating on the lower decks! Jenkins, get on it!" Holding down the emergency broadcast button, I yelled into the transmission microphone. "MAYDAY! MAYDAY! THIS IS THE ESES COPERNICUS! WE HAVE SUFFERED HEAVY DAMAGE AND ARE FALLING TOWARDS AN UNKNOWN PLANET! ANY SHIPS IN THE VICINITY, PLEASE RESPOND!" No response. I figured as such. "All hands to escape pods! Deploy the colonization module onto the planet's surface!" As we hit the atmosphere, I gripped my seat with an intense clamp. My knuckles turned white. "All remaining hands, we have Planetfall." Commander Redmond stated coldly. Luna have mercy. *////\\* As Luna happily walked up the last few stairs, she could see Celestia with her eye firmly planted on the arcane telescope. Oh crap, she fell asleep again. "Luna, did you plan any comets tonight?" Guess she's not asleep. "I don't think so, my sister." "Huh. Well, your night is beautiful as usual." The solar princess arose from the spyglass's hold and gave her little sister a hug. "I know I say this all the time, but it is simply wonderful to have you back. Anyway, night shift is all yours." With that, the majestic solar princess walked down the stairs, her multicolored mane losing its sheen and returning to its default bright pink color. Luna silently smirked before walking over to the telescope. She hadn't planned any comets, and one suddenly appearing is very odd. She leaned forth to get a closer look at the comet... and saw something that made her recoil in horror. The telescope is misaligned! And look at these smudges on the eyepiece! Confound you, Celestia! In Luna mind, she could imagine the solar princess laughing up a storm in her room, knowing she'd successfully messed with Luna's head. Oh, I am so going to make your dreams a living hell tonight. After a few seconds of lens polishing and adjustment, Luna finally got a look at this "rogue comet". Which wasn't a comet. At all. In truth, it looked like one at a distance, but Luna had ramped up the magnification considerably. It looked like a huge brick with two rectangular wings on its side. Two angled protrusions shot out from the back. It trailed a number of smaller bits of junk behind it. It was also crashing down to the surface of her kingdom, and fast. As it collided with the ground just north of the Everfree Forest, Luna ran back downstairs, put her ancient battle armor on (just in case), and galloped back up to the balcony. She activated her Royal Canterlot Voice so that she could be heard in the deepest parts of the castle. "WE ARE LEAVING! SOMETHING HAST LANDED IN OUR KINGDOM! After waking up the entire damned castle, she stretched out her wings and took flight, heading in the direction of the downed comet.
Codex Entries*// ENCRYPTED CONNECTION ESTABLISHED \* DOWNLOADING ENTRIES: IMPERIAL CODEX Science and Technology Anti-Gravity Discs: Anti-Gravity Discs are miniature saucers derived from Nikola Tesla's research into Gravity whilst forming his Unified Field Theory. They are able to create fields of increased mass, decreased mass, and more. They can also be set to act as low-powered thrusters. The gravitic effect they generate can be modulated to different strengths and effective radii. Data Crystals: The Equestrian Union and the Empire store data in a trinary system on specially-designed optical crystals. Most are triangular prisms that can store up to a Yottabyte, but more complex crystals in the shapes of rectangular prisms or even hexagonal prisms can store even more data. Unique Variants called AI Prisms are specially designed to host sentient artificial intelligences. They are actually in the shape of 5" pyramids, and designed to be inserted 'top-first'. Dreadnought: Dreadnoughts are massive starships that are built around a single, ultra-high-power Railgun mounted along the spinal axis. They are often used for orbital bombardment and long-range engagements. When the Imperial Navy needs something that can split entire moons in two, they call in a Dreadnought. Each one is named after a character from the show. The 6 largest ones called Star Dreadnoughts are part of a battle group code-named 'Mane 6'. They are, in no particular order: ESES Rarity, ESES Twilight Sparkle, ESES Applejack, ESES Pinkie Pie, ESES Fluttershy, and the ESES Rainbow Dash. Electronic Camouflage: Electronic Camouflage was the precursor to modern Spectral Inversion technology. They masked an object's visual profile from view, enabling it to largely move undetected. This does not mask an object's Radar signature or thermal profile. Used in conjunction with other technologies, this could be mitigated, but was largely rendered a moot point with the invention of Spectral Inversion Plating. Gear Roll: Gear Rolls are storage solutions in widespread usage by the Equestrian Stellar Empire. They have a flexible Replication Pad, computer, Matter Storage, and Replication Matrix. Until activated, the device appears to be a black sheet of rubber. When it is activated, the device begins to break down whatever is placed on the surface with microscopic robots and spirits the particles away. A molecular template of the objects are stored inside the computer. Once the device is unrolled and reactivated, whatever was stored by the device is reconstituted. Most users tend to first pack a large bag, then store it inside a Gear Roll to be able to travel lighter than they would otherwise. Gravitic Thrusters: Gravitic thrusters, designed for low-profile stealth missions and atmospheric flight, are non-emissive engine technologies that generate Gravitic fields. They are essentially over-sized Anti-Gravity Discs adapted to function as engines. Matter Stores: Matter Stores store depolarized Quarks, aka the building blocks of subatomic particles. They also come in various sizes. The largest are designed to supply entire planets and can be the size of the Empire State Building. Smaller variants can be installed in Xenopads, Personal Robots, and other personal devices. Matter Stores that are designed to be man-portable are usually combined with Anti-Gravity Discs to mitigate the weight of stored matter. Nanotechnology: While experiments with nanotechnology were in place prior to the formation of the Equestrian Union, most were suppressed by the ancient conspiracy known as The Darkness. During the Foundation Incident, the demonstration of a miraculous device known as The Divine Mist sparked a nanotechnological revolution in the earliest days of the fledgling Brony nation. By the time of the Second Exodus, nanotechnology is ubiquitous and has freed the citizens of the Union from material needs. Unfortunately, they are not able to share this technology with the rest of the world due to The Darkness' ubiquitous surveillance networks and reliance on keeping the population of the world reliant on material goods. This fact, combined with extreme bitterness and anger in the aftermath of the Second Nanotech War ultimately causes the Equestrian Union to build the first FTL starships and set out into the galaxy. (See Second Exodus, below) Optical Computing: Optical computers are merely the latest in the ever-advancing field of information technology. In stark contrast to their copper and silicone ancestors, Optical Computers work by refracting light in a specific pattern to output a result. Prior to the foundation of United Equestria, optical computers were little more than prototypes. However, with the advancements and rapid fabrication that nanotechnology made possible, Optical Computing took a giant step forward. The most well-known examples of Optical Computers are the Replication Matrices that enable much more refined nanotechnological fabrication than previously thought possible. Replication Pad: Replication Pads (or Rep-Pads for short) are frictionless surfaces coated in dormant Nanites. Upon activation, Rep-Pads generate or break down objects layer by layer. If creating an object, it is created from the top-down. The object seemingly rises from the pad. If breaking down an object, the pad works in the opposite manner; the object is seemingly swallowed up by the pad. Replication Matrix: A Replication Matrix is a specially-constructed optical computer designed exclusively to coordinate swarms of Nanobots as they create, destroy, and transform objects. They are extremely fragile and normally stored in anti-shock gel if not immediately installed in a device. If a replication matrix shatters, it must be replaced immediately. Shields: Shields are critical pieces of hardware for most front-line soldiers and are also ubiquitous on starships. Shields use a layer of low-temperature plasma suspended in a finely tuned magnetic field to protect the user from most damage. In order to fire upon the protected person or object, one must first weaken the plasma shell. The shield is completely ineffective against high-band emissions such as Vis and Gamma Rays. Spectral Inversion Plating: Spectral Inversion Plating is a piece of technology that is able to mask all emissions of a vessel as well as absorb Radar waves and Ladar beams. It is part of a class of material called a Metamaterial, that is artificial composites modified to have unnatural and useful characteristics. Another metamaterial is Nanosteel. Symbiotes: Symbiotes is the collective term for Nanite swarms within the human body. By default, they augment the regenerative abilities by repairing cell damage, restoring decayed DNA strands, and combating foreign pathogens with greater effectiveness than the body can on its own. 98.7% of all residents of the Equestrian Stellar Empire are equipped with this miraculous technology, effectively increasing the average lifespan to 170 years. The Symbiotes are theoretically able to also edit the body's structure - growing subdermal armor, for instance. Some users of Symbiotes called Avatars are able to override the microscopic robots' programming and take manual control, effectively truly merging themselves with Nanotechnology. Avatars are very rare, however. Xenopads: Xenopads are mobile wristwatch terminals that are able to interface with and modify an overwhelming spectrum of technology. They are equipped with Miniature Fabricators capable of producing small gadgets like flashlights, blades, saws, screws, and barriers out of simple polymers and carbon nanotubes as well as deploying floating nanobots ("Foglets") that act as displays and interfaces. Weaponry: The Equestrian Union and later Equestrian Stellar Empire extensively use magnetic weaponry as standard equipment. The firearms are standardized, highly customizable, and come in numerous bore sizes, measured in Millimeters. Higher bore sizes always reflect higher stopping power, in stark contrast to the combustion weapons of yore. The largest man-portable weapons are 40mm Heavy Cannons, which are designed as shoulder-fired anti-tank weaponry. Weapon variants that are smaller than 16mm can operate in a rapid-fire mode. Magnetic firearms are also able to shoot an effectively limitless number of rounds thanks to integrated microfabrication technology. Different Ammunition Templates can be activated using the on-board computer for different purposes. Standard ammo templates included with most firearms include Armor-Piercing, Incendiary, Soft Point, Stun Rounds, High Explosives, and more. More tech-savvy users commonly add their own templates that produce even more exotic effects. People and Places Macintosh I: Named after Big Macintosh, this planet lives up to the reputation of its namesake. Macintosh I is quiet, strong and deadly. It is a world of death and peril hostile to even the most augmented humans. Sandstorms rage across the surface during the day, and at night the vilest of alien monsters arise to prey on any being either lucky or foolish enough to survive the day. Nikola Tesla: This Serbian inventor and shrewd businessman is responsible for the technological leap forward in the late 1800s and early 1900s. He started his first moderately successful business whilst still in college at the Graz University of Technology. After graduating summa cum laude, Tesla moved to the United States to become an intern at Thomas Edison's company, the Continental Edison Company. Through crafty outmaneuvering, Tesla eventually managed to take control of CEC, turning it into Tesla Electric Light and Manufacturing. The company would survive into the late 2010s before being purchased by Lozo Heavy Industries. Tesla was a veritable one-man industrial revolution, developing, with success, Radar, Radio, electric vehicles, and more. The 19th and 20th centuries are very different due to this leap in technological advancement. Events and Culture Credits: Shorthand for Matter Credits. Matter Credits are the universal currency of the late Equestrian Union and Equestrian Stellar Empire. A single credit represents 5 grams of matter or just over 12 Million Yottawatt-Hours. It is a less complex way of quantifying Matter and Energy, as both are interchangable thanks to technology. For example, an average personal computer weighs roughly 7 kilograms. It also costs 1400 credits, which means it would require 7000 grams of matter or 16.8 Billion Yottawatt-Hours of energy to synthesize. Thankfully, both are in abundant supply in the Empire. The Second Exodus: Following the period of global devastation and upheaval in the wake of the Second Nanotech War, which once more ended in a stalemate between The Darkness and United Equestria, the UE Council voted 7 to 2 in favor of Operation Starchild. The plan entailed the construction of numerous colony vessels with a singular purpose: leaving earth to start anew among the stars. Vowing to someday return to Earth and finish what they started, the Bronies went off-world, leaving the majority of the planet to the evils of The Darkness. Unwilling to risk civilian casualties and intending to take down The Darkness without collateral damage, they would build their strength and make good on their vow 550 years later. Unification War: In 2502, seven Outer Rim planets broke away from the Equestrian Stellar Empire and instigated a Civil War, known afterwards as the Unification War. Led by the Earth Return movement, these seven planets would soon grow in number to over thirty-five under the ultimate goal of an ahead of schedule, and by extension, more violent, return to Earth. What is unknown to most citizens of the Empire is that the leader of this Rebellion was none other than High Admiral Benedict Lozo, the Great-Great-Grandson of Doctor Joseph Lozo. This man was the only person driving the Insurrectionists forward; once he was assassinated, the Earth Return movement and Insurrectionists were crippled, the remainder of their forces easily being swept away. Ironically, this civil war delayed the return to earth by over 50 years. Meta Concepts Divergence: The human world depicted here is in a divergent timeline from our own, meaning that prior to a specific date, it essentially is our world. After a certain event or Point of Divergence, the timeline breaks off from our own into its own stream, after which events become unpredictable if compared to our own history. The human world diverges at some point in the early 1400s, although the more dramatic changes occur from 1870 and on. See Nikola Tesla above for the majority of these shifts. The key thing to remember is that Nikola Tesla was a much more competent businessman and salesperson in this world and thus was able to avoid the major pitfalls he experienced in our timeline. This resulted in his inventions gaining momentum much easier, the War of Currents never occuring, and a technological growth at almost 5 times the rate it should have been. A global internet existed as early as the 1970s. By the year 2010, humanity has rudimentary optical computers, advanced robotics, railguns, and advanced power generation technology. Author's Note As can be inferred, this isn't actually an update. This is where I will put descriptions of technology and magic in the setting so as to not clutter the story with long strings of pseudo-scientific technobabble. Also, you'll find some historical stuff here.
