War for Ponytron

Chapter Four: Illusory Sky

Database entry 58 from the log of Bumblebee:

I’m going with Optimus and Sideswipe to Kaon soon. We aren’t sneaking in though. We’re getting captured. That part of the plan worries me. Optimus said that Air Raid is going to free us once we get inside the city. I hope he pulls it off, for Zeta Prime’s and our sake.

When we received the transmission from Zeta Prime at the Decagon, Ratchet told Optimus that it’s a trap, but that didn’t change anything. Optimus believes Zeta is still alive in Kaon. I don’t know if he’s right, but I hope we come back alive, at least.

End of log.

        “Is this really the only option?” asked Soarin despondently.

        “If you want to get in without suspicion, then yes.” Spitfire watched him as he infused red energon into the remainder of his weapons. “You know, this is a stealth mission.”

        “So was the last one, and look how it turned out.”

        “Do you really need that much firepower?”

        “Spitfire, I’m disappointed that you even have to ask.”

        Spitfire gave him a deadpan look. “So am I.”

        Celestion Prime discussed the plan to infiltrate Lunus Omega with the others. Soarin was onboard with the plan, but was uncomfortable with the conditions. Spitfire had no objections, and thus volunteered to ensure Soarin didn’t cause trouble. The rest of the team was unsure of how it was going to work.

        “We will pose as wounded soldiers, and alert the guards who are posted at the entrance to the city,” explained Celestion Prime. “Then, once they have us prisoner, we will be taken to the holding cells.”

        “What of Nightmare Moon?” Shining Armor made changes to the holographic display they were using to map out the plan. An image of Nightmare Moon appeared on the factor list to the left of the transparent terrain map. The COST, or Chance of Success Tracker, located on the right of the map, lowered significantly. “With her around, there’s no comprehensible way we can escape with our lives.”

        “Scouts report that Nightmare Moon, as well as a large number of forces, have begun moving away from Lunus Omega.” Celestion changed the factors back. The COST returned to its previous result of sixty-two percent. “Fear not. I read that the Ancients once used this tactic to infiltrate the city that once stood where Lunus Omega now stands.”

        “How did they fare?” Twilight added the reduction in troops to the factor list. The COST rose to seventy-four percent.

        “They all survived, except for their rescue target.”

        “How did they escape imprisonment?”

        “They were assisted by one called Air Raid. Once their executioners were dealt with, they escaped to the containment facility, where they were trapped again.”

        “This news doesn’t bode well for our chances.”

        “Did I not say that they escaped alive?”

        Soarin joined the group around the holomap. “An air raid sounds good about now. Have a few pegasi blast open a hole in that dome. We go in, get some info, maybe blast a few Cons, and we’re out. Sounds better than getting captured.”

        “Soarin, sometimes the path of most resistance reaps the greatest rewards. It’s better that they believe we escaped, rather than snuck in to steal information. Our true intentions are hidden this way.”

        Celestion Prime pressed a button on the holomap. The information on the plan was projected into each of their neural hubs. Fluttershy placed the holomap in her med kit, and pulled out a container of energon. Dipping her hoof in, the oozy, blue substance dripped onto the ground, as she wiped it across the bodies of everypony.

Once the container had been emptied, and the team appeared thoroughly beaten, they took positions in various locations. Shining Armor sat against a fallen support beam of the collapsed building they resided in. Twilight Sparkle rested her head on his hind legs, and splayed her limbs next to him. Spitfire and Fluttershy placed themselves under some light wreckage, while Celestion and Soarin lay out in the open.

“Signal them, Soarin.” Celestion placed her body face down.

Soarin, who was in the same position, flipped over, and raised his hoof. The neuron rifle emerged and fired a shot into the air. His hoof dropped to his side like a brick.

A few cycles passed and two Lunarcons appeared over the horizon. “Are you sure about this?” Soarin asked as the soldiers approached. No answer was given. Once they finished surveying the area, the two Lunarcons stood above Celestion Prime’s body. One knelt down and lowered a scatter blaster to her head.

“What are you doing?” asked the other Lunarcon.

“If we kill Celestion Prime, we’ll be heroes,” the kneeling Con answered.

“Are your circuits rusted? Lord Nightmare will have our heads if we do that! You know she wants to be the one to kill Prime.”

Soarin, who was laying a few feet away, activated his optics. He watched the two. He watched the gun, waiting for them to reach a decision. His right hoof had slowly been shifting into a blade since the gun made its arrival. The group had shut down weapon systems, but he left his on five percent power, lowering his equip speed. When the Lunarcon’s gun disappeared, Soarin fully powered his weapon systems to retract the blade, and shut them off again.

“You’re right,” said the Lunarcon as he stood up. “We’ll take them prisoner. That’ll get us a promotion for sure.”

The other Lunarcon placed restraints on each of the Solarbots. “I can’t wait to see the look on Lord Nightmare’s face when she sees that we caught Celestion Prime and the Sparkle Brigade.”

They pretended to regain consciousness when the Lunarcons roused them. In a single file line, they were led to Lunus Omega. Only scouts had ever been near the domed city in person. Everypony else had only seen it in surveillance photos. The team’s optics adjusted as they entered the darkness that enveloped the city.

The artificial sky above Lunus Omega was a sight to behold. Their optics widened as they stared into the stars above. The lights in the city changed to green. An announcement from the alert system explained that the color indicated prisoner transport within the city grounds. Naught but a few dozen soldiers remained within the dome.

The Lunarcon guards led the Solarbots into a room protected by a two-foot-thick steel door, password protected on both sides. Inside were piles of scrap bearing the Solarbot symbol and dozens of restraints. Energon splatters on the walls suggested that the prisoners were tortured before having their sparks extinguished.

The door closed and the team lined up, waiting to be placed in their bonds. After they had all been bound, the Lunarcons exited the room, leaving them in complete darkness. Twilight and Shining switched out their horns and lit up the room, if ever so slightly.

The light coming from Soarin’s optics shifted from the door to Celestion Prime. “I understand that there’s useful information here, but why didn’t we go to wherever Nightmare Moon took that massive group of Cons?”

“That is being dealt with as we speak,” Celestion began, “by much more...destructive hooves. You needn’t worry about that matter.”

“What now?” asked Fluttershy.

“Now, we escape.” A buzz could be heard as Celestion Prime activated her transceiver. “Lyra, begin the distraction.”

“Distraction?” asked Twilight.

The ground shook and empty chains rattled. A clanging sound outside the door indicated the guards had fallen for the bait. The shaking stopped, and a siren began to wail. The lights turned purple, signaling an attack. Dried trails of energon led to a drainage grate in the middle of the room. The grate popped off and flew into the air, landing a few feet away. An aquamarine Ponytronian, striped in cyan and white, emerged from the drainage pipe. “Yo, Prime, how’s it hangin’?”

“Lyra, please release us,” requested Celestion.

Lyra climbed out of the pipe, and was followed by one who was a light cornflower blue, with bluish gray and moderate blue stripes. “Sure thing,” began Lyra, “and I brought Minuette as requested.”

The two rescuers released the team from their bindings. With the added light from their flashlights, everypony’s faces were now illuminated. “So, what’s the plan?” asked Lyra. “We cause a ruckus and take the city?”

“That sounds like a good plan to me,” said Soarin.

“No,” began Celestion, “there are still too many troops present to take the city. Lyra and Minuette will use the pipes to place and detonate explosives to distract the guards. Meanwhile, we will investigate the areas that guards are absent from.”

Lyra raised a hoof in salute. “Demolition and distraction. Got it. If you don’t mind me asking, why’d you ask for Minuette to come along? Not that I don’t like the company.”

“Minuette, I hear you excel at hacking.”

Minuette had been examining the room. She snapped to attention. “I dabble.”

“I want you to extract any sensitive data you find before you set off the detpacks.”

“Can do, ma’am.” She saluted as Lyra had. Then, the two returned to the drainage pipe and made their way to their first target.

After Twilight entered the password the guards had used on the other side of the door, Celestion Prime led them into the city. The distraction had worked all too well. Not a single guard was in sight, save one Lunarcon exiting a building around a hundred meters away. Before they could react, the guard collapsed, and the image of Lyra waving replaced him.

They continued into a nearby building, which appeared to be the communications hub. At the control panel stood the white Lunarcon, Rarity. She frantically hit buttons, attempting to contact somepony. The lights turned red as she activated the alert system. “This is Communications Officer Rarity. I am in the comm. center. Please send—”

The alert system cut off. Sparks flew from the control panel, while Soarin aimed his rifle for another shot. This time at Rarity. She turned around and backed up into the console. The shock in her optics showed she wasn’t aware of the prisoners that were captured. “Celestion Prime! Have you come for my life?”

“Do I have reason to?” asked Celestion. “You were once a student of mine. I haven’t given up on you yet.”

“You can’t be serious. I chose my side, and it isn’t yours. You would let something as ridiculous as that cloud your judgment?”

“My head is clear as the day you no longer see. Do you intend to tell me that you enjoy staying under a sky which never brightens, forever trapped in the darkness?”

“The work environment comes with the job. It wasn’t my decision. Personally, I think some color would make things more fashionable, but my job isn’t to think. My job is to yield results, as is every Lunarcon’s primary objective.”

“Can I please shoot her so we can carry on?” asked Soarin.

“No! Lower your weapon, Soarin,” ordered Celestion. “Rarity is no threat to us.”

“She’ll tell Nightmare Moon were here. In this room. Not escaping. Forgive me if I’m wrong, but doesn’t that go against the plan?”

“Plans can change. There is no need for her to die. Should she give me a reason, I will handle her personally if I must. Trust me.”

“I trust you, Prime.” Soarin retracted his gun. He looked at Rarity with narrowed optics and a grimace. “It’s her I don’t trust.”

Rarity snarled in response. “I never asked for your trust. If you expect me to just stand aside while you have the run of the place, you are sorely mistaken.”

Celestion Prime looked at Twilight and nodded. Twilight looked at the team and commanded, “Spitfire. Shining. Restrain her.”

“Yes ma’am!” they both exclaimed in unison.

“Wh—” Rarity struggled as the two grabbed her forelegs and moved her away from the control panel. “Don’t you dare look at those monitors!”

“Um...you’re in no position to order anypony. Sorry about this.” Fluttershy placed restraints on Rarity. Spitfire and Shining Armor released her, but didn’t let her leave their sight. “Now, please stay still.”

“Twilight, why did you ever choose somepony as gentle as Fluttershy for your team?”

“Don’t let her kindness fool you, Rarity. She may not have killed anypony yet, but she can pretty useful on the battlefield...tactically,” answered Twilight.

Twilight began searching through the databases using the consoles that Soarin hadn’t destroyed. Endless amounts of useless data flashed before her optics before coming across something of value. Future battle plans appeared on the monitor. “Celestion, I think I’ve found something we can use. Looks like, once they’re done at the Axiom Nexus, Nightmare Moon plans on heading up to some space station. Is there even a space station in Ponytron’s orbit?”

“No. Not yet there isn’t,” answered Celestion Prime. “Rarity, what do you know of this?”

Rarity bore her teeth at Celestion. “Why, pray tell, would I tell you anything?”

“Because if you don’t, I may allow Soarin to spill your energon, and we both know you don’t want that.”

“Fine. You’re too late to stop it anyway. Lord Nightmare rebuilt Trypticon Station using the remains of the Nemesis. It won’t transform, but it’ll function. She plans on launching it into orbit from a central spire that we built at Axiom Nexus. That’s why so many troops were taken, to ensure the launch is completed without fault. Even if you left now, you wouldn’t be able to stop it.”

“We’ll have to inform the Wreckers of this. Hopefully, while they’re at Axiom Nexus, they can stop the launch as well.”

“The Wreckers are at Axiom Nexus?!” Rarity’s optics widened. “Ahem. I doubt that they’ll be able to stop the launch, despite the reputation Applejack’s gang of ruffians possesses.”

“That remains to be seen.”

The transceiver buzzed. “Tick tick boom. Get ready for the first explosion,” said Lyra, as the ground began to shake. “Sorry, went off faster than I thought.”

Soarin put a hoof to his transceiver. “Lyra, they’re remote-controlled explosives!”

“I’m sorry? What? You’re breaking up.” The transmission ended.

Spitfire looked out the door and saw Lunarcons galloping to the sound of the explosion. “We better warn the Wreckers once we’re out of here. Time is too important right now and we can’t waste any.”

Celestion Prime removed a disk-shaped object from Fluttershy’s kit. “Twilight, plug in the data drive and begin the transfer. We’ll return for it when we leave.”

Twilight plugged in the disk as instructed, and initiated the download. She turned to face the communications officer. “Goodbye, Rarity. I wish we had met again under better circumstances.”

“You aren’t going to leave me like this, are you?” asked Rarity.

“We can’t have you alerting the guards, so yes.”

“Alert the guards?! Soarin blasted the control panel! It’s scrap now!”

“Ever heard of stepping outside? Wouldn’t be hard for them to spot you. We’ll leave you now, but should you ever decide to return to Canteon, I’ll come for you.”

Two more explosions and two more searches. The barracks and armory yielded no results. Soarin found use in the form of an A-4 Pulsar Cannon, which had eluded him thus far. Requisition forms weren’t needed during a raid. Their final destination was the command tower, more specifically the throne room.

        “You’ve got one cycle. Thought I’d give ya a little warning this time,” said Lyra.

        Minuette joined the frequency. “You may as well, since you purposely detonated the first one right away to aggravate Soar—”

        “Shutting off communications.”

        Spitfire looked behind her to see Soarin messing with the detpacks in the armory. “What are you doing?”

        “Switching these from timed to remote-controlled,” he answered.

        “Ok. Why?”

        “To give the Cons something to remember me by when we leave.”

        Spitfire put a hoof to her face. “Celestion, is it alright to let him do this?”

        Celestion Prime stood at the door, waiting for the tremor to signal their next move. “Yes, provided he doesn’t detonate them prematurely. We can’t afford to misdirect the Lunarcons. It would jeopardize the plan further.”

        The shaking commenced. Lyra reactivated communications. “Time to go!” she shouted. Lunarcons moved to the opposite side of the city, near the barracks, where the latest bomb had detonated. The team exited the armory and crossed the city. Dark, purple lights raced over their bodies, as they proceeded down the expanse of the city. Under the walkway their hooves clomped across, lay a pit as black as the sky projected above them. There was no bottom in sight. At the center of the city stood the command tower.

        Twilight Sparkle was the first to step hoof in the tower. “Well, the room is clear. Now might be a bad time to mention that our transceivers won’t be able to access the Wreckers’ frequency from here.”

        Celestion Prime walked ahead of her. “This tower should have a long-range transmitter.” She began ascending the ramp to the next floor. “Make haste. We haven’t the luxury of wasting time.”

        The tower had been completely emptied of any Lunarcons. Any who had been stationed inside were attempting to protect the city or left for Axiom Nexus. Upon arrival in the throne room, Fluttershy pardoned herself at the sight of the desecrated skulls of fallen Ponytronians. Spitfire followed to keep her safe.

        Twilight began working one of the many consoles that lined the walls. “I think this one has radio access,” she informed. “I just need to bypass the encryptions and...we’re in!”

        Celestion Prime stared at the rotating map of Ponytron, taking note of the blips and indicators that covered its surface. “Signal the Wreckers.” The words “Project Cybertron” were marked on the location of the Axiom Nexus. “I feel there’s more to this space station than Rarity led us to believe.”