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- >You are Twilight Sparkle.
- >And war has Equestria in its iron grip.
- >The gryphons are invading.
- >Temporal rifts are opening up throughout the kingdom that you and the Princesses govern.
- >Welcome to office, Princess.
- >The Princesses know of your incredible genius and effectiveness.
- >They wanted you involved in the war in hopes that you can help Equestria snatch victory from the advancing gryphon army.
- >But of course they would not have you in any sort of combat position
- >No, they appointed you as the head of the Equestrian Wartime Research (EWR) department
- >Since then you have directed your department to developing several weapons key to pushing back the Gryphon offensive
- >Many based on colorful descriptions provided by a dear friend and product of the spatial anomalies, Anonymous
- >Chemistry had recently been a new field somewhat akin to alchemy and is in its experimental stages
- >Thanks to help from Anonymous and his previous experience in chemistry, he helped advance the field decades past the work we already had.
- >Your department since then has developed numerous chemical weapons to be used against the gryphons and drugs for medical use, such as painkillers
- >New inventions have been integrated into the Equestrian army, from infantry firearms to great swiveling guns that shot pegasi and gryphon alike out of the sky.
- >The research department has found out a way to apply magical properties to munitions and the containers that hold them.
- >The EWR is responsible for industrial development all across Equestria.
- >Factories, as Anonynous would call them, pumping out the new weapons by the masses.
- >You remain cold and unfeeling to the losses and suffering on both sides despite the weapons that you and the EWR devise.
- >Despite the implications of Anonymous belonging to such a warlike species.
- >But what were we now?
- >This is a war that that has to be won.
- >The gryphons would surely kill us all if we do not.
- >You remember how it all started.
- >It was just a month ago
- >Princess Celestia was meeting with the Gryphon emperor
- >It was somewhat of a haze in your mind
- >You and Luna were assigned to supervise the event
- >You had cast a spell to be able to hear what they were saying from afar
- >You stood, watching, listening, from your balcony
- >"So, Your Highness, are you in agreement with these borders?"
- >Unsure with the redefined borders, the Emperor sits quietly for but a moment, then speaks up.
- >"I er... suppose it could do with a small amount of revision."
- >Celestia sighs quietly in frustration.
- >Apparently these talks have been going on for months.
- >A break is called, and the two rulers part ways, walking down the steps to separate chambers
- >But the Emperor lingers in the main hall
- >Possibly for too long
- >Shards of glass rain down from above as the skylight is shattered as he speaks with a pair of his guards
- >As ducks for cover, several bolts of magic rain down upon the group of three
- >You see the Emperor get struck by two, and he collapses.
- >A bolt comes in your direction, annihilating the balcony on which you stood
- >You hit the ground, and the next thing you remember is waking up in your royal chamber, with a doctor at your side
- >The familiar bed
- >And a bandage around your head, wrapped just below the horn
- >Celestia comes in
- >"Twilight, I'm so glad you're awake, but I'm afraid we have urgent matters to discuss."
- >She gives you a somber look
- >You know she is about to give you bad news
- >"The Gryphon Kingdom has declared war."
- "... What?"
- >"Somepony assassinated their emperor, and they are inclined to believe that we were behind the plot."
- "Did we catch the assassin?"
- >"All we know is that there were multiple. And no, they seem to have disappeared off of the face of the planet."
- >You lay there in your bed, dumbfounded
- >The heart monitor beside you begins to beep faster
- >"I know this is terrible news, but due to the urgency of the situation, we have established the Equestrian Wartime Research department. Luna and I have decided it would be best to place you in charge of it."
- >You don't want to, but you know you must accept.
- "Y-yes. I accept this duty which you have bestowed upon me. I will ful-"
- >Celestia gently puts a hoof to your mouth
- >"Thank you, but that is not necessary. You need your rest."
- >Celestia trots quietly out of your room to let you consider your next course of action.
- >You lay there, thinking
- >"Hey."
- >Again.
- >"Hello?"
- >You blink.
- >You are withdrawn from your daydreaming by a stallion in a white labcoat.
- >"Hey, are you there?"
- >You blink again and shake the thoughts out of your head
- "Yeah, sorry, heh..."
- >"We think it's ready."
- >You feel nervous.
- >You have directly involved yourself in the research for this project.
- >Anonymous once again made himself useful with his detailed description of military technology from his home world.
- >The Equestrian military required a new type of flight.
- >Pegasi are too feeble and are often outmatched by stronger, faster gryphons in the air.
- >Gryphons currently have air superiority in the ongoing war.
- >A new development involving cunning design, advanced mechanical science, ingenuity, and arcane magic.
- >Despite putting all of your heart and soul into this new technology, you bite your lip in hopes that it will work.
- >It strikingly resembles a pony in form, even personality, despite being (arguably) mechanical.
- >With prehensile wings resembling those of high-speed fighter aircraft as Anonymous described that allow it to maneuver in the air quickly, featuring hardpoints for various armaments
- >Twin turbojet engines mounted in the back for high speed
- >Vertical stabilizers near the back
- >Advanced sensor and communication array mounted on the neck, to serve as the head
- >Ground mobility enabled for combat environment flexibility in the form of four legs
- >Indeed, its outer anatomy is analogous to a mechanical pegasus
- >Made of magically enchanted alloys that grant it the flexibility and range of motion of a regular pony
- >7.92mm machine gun mounted in the chest pointing forward
- >And here in front of you it stands, in its off-state.
- >It is magically enchanted to give it autonomous abilities, emotions, the ability for it to think for itself.
- >One could say it is actually a living thing, and you want to disagree.
- >But instinct tells you it's alive.
- >You go up to it, and mutter under your breath.
- "Let's see if this works"
- >You and several underlings (You like to think of them as colleagues) hold your collective breath as you open the protective cover and flip the switch.
- >It opens its eyes, gathering information about its surroundings.
- >It speaks in a vaguely robotic voice
- >"Test model 04B active. Reporting for duty."
- >You look at the small console screen provided near the power switch.
- [PLoNY-OS v0.1]
- visual_sensors....R-100% L-100%
- audio_sensors....R-100% L-100%
- vocal_module......100% / M
- legs...................RF-100% LF-100% RB-100% LB-100%
- ID_FoF...............7B4AE0DA9A5E780EB9B45DC067031DA7
- MG...................100% / 400 RND
- radar.................100%
- >You skim the rest of the numerous readings.
- >The readings show that all systems are working at 100%.
- >You make a few configuration settings and adjust the vocal module to mode F.
- >Nodding to yourself, you flip the cover closed and you order everyone outside for target practice.
- >You and the others walk the new machine to the freight elevator.
- >You step inside and hit the button to be brought to the surface.
- >You look to your left and see the new prototype PLoNY.
- >Looking right, you see excited colleagues who smell a turn of the tables in the ongoing war.
- >You yourself are nervous just as before. You have never seen technology like this in action, but today is the day.
- >The day that the air war changes or the day that you try again.
- >You can hardly think straight, but you make it to the top of the elevator shaft.
- >You take a deep breath of the cool, refreshing night air, knowing that after this test session, you will be retreating back underground.
- >You work in a vast subterranean facility located in a mountain a couple hours by train outside Ponyville.
- >You suppose it's nice to work close to home, but you have more important things to be doing.
- >You and the rest of the group trot out of the elevator
- >To your left appears a rack from the floor: aerial targets transported up from underground
- >You levitate five into the air and set them on flight paths some distance away.
- "Five targets. You know what to do!"
- >"ENGAGING."
- >This time, its voice is feminine, yet still robotic; it makes you smirk.
- >The PLoNY enters a crouched position for a moment, you swear you see a smirk form on its face, and it pounces up into the air
- >You hear the engines roar to life and the prototype accelerates quickly
- >It banks into the flight path of one of the targets and fires its built in MG
- >A short burst on the first target and it explodes
- >Firing off two missiles, they both bank and turn and strike their intended targets.
- >Targets two and three explode.
- >"Oh!"
- >"Nice!"
- >You smile at your vocal colleagues and watch the PLoNY down the last two targets with its machine gun.
- >They both explode a distance over your head, and you cast a shield on your fellow scientists to shelter them from shrapnel
- >You take down the shield as the prototype makes its approach to land near you
- >You hear its engines winding down
- >It hits the ground running and skids to a stop
- >Applause erupts from you and your fellow ponies of science.
- >A successful test
- >You trot over to the PLoNY, and you see it smile.
- >"How'd I do?"
- "You did well, you should be proud of yourself."
- >"Sweet!"
- >You can't blame it, you're holding back your own excitement yourself.
- >You can feel it growing more accustomed to you, and it seems to be speaking more casually.
- >You flip open the back panel again that houses the small console and take a look at the readings.
- [PLoNY-OS v0.1]
- visual_sensors....R-100% L-100%
- audio_sensors....R-100% L-100%
- vocal_module......100% / F
- legs...................RF-100% LF-100% RB-100% LB-100%
- ID_FoF...............7B4AE0DA9A5E780EB9B45DC067031DA7
- MG....................97% / 363 RND
- radar.................100%
- >You frown at the machine gun's status.
- "97 percent? We'll have to look at that back in the lab..."
- >You walk everypony back to the freight elevator.
- >You take one last deep breath of the night air and push the button.
- >The motors start whirring and you all start descending.
- >The elevator reaches the bottom of the shaft.
- >The lower laboratories for you have become somewhat of your home.
- >Not to mention the housing facilities on this level, but that's beside the point.
- >You dismiss the scientists and tell the prototype to follow you.
- >You're beginning to warm up to it.
- >It's your creation, and you can't help but start using different pronouns for her.
- >As far as you're concerned, she's alive.
- >You both trot along the corridors, wordlessly.
- >There wasn't much to talk about.
- >Before you know it, you reach the technician's office, and you lay her out on the table.
- >You flip open the control panel and turn her off.
- >It only takes about ten or so minutes of diagnostics for the technician pony to find the problem.
- >"Ah, I see what it is now."
- "What is it?"
- >"Well, it can be easily rectified. As it turns out, the machine gun was improperly mounted,"
- >"The recoil from the gun was damaging the mount."
- >"We'll install a new gun and mount it PROPERLY this time, and it should be good as new."
- "Perfect! I guess I'll see you tomorrow, then."
- >"Oh, no, no, this is a simple fix. I'm thinking this'll only take about half an hour."
- >He goes over to the intercom panel in the office.
- >He voices a request for replacement parts and a mechanic to help with the installation of the new gun.
- >He then turns back to you.
- >"I'll get in touch with you once the repairs are finished."
- >You walk out of his office and close the door behind you.
- >You are a technician
- >And Twilight Sparkle has assigned you the task of replacing the machine gun
- >You think to yourself that this will be a simple process.
- >The mechanic walks into your office.
- >"So, what do we have to work with here?"
- >You look down at your clipboard
- "Well, Miss Sparkle wants us to replace the machine gun and mount, it's nothing really."
- >"I guess we'll get started, then. I'll take this out first, though."
- >The stallion has already taken the liberty of opening the bottom panel and removing the ammunition belt.
- >You both get to work
- >The intercom in your office flicks on just as you finalize repairs.
- >"Early warning systems suggest gryphon scouts are in nearby airspace. Re-arm and launch the prototype to intercept."
- >The transmission cuts out there.
- >You glance at the console screen.
- MG....................100% / 0 RND
- >You walk over to the phone in your office.
- "Yes, Miss Sparkle?"
- "It's done, I'm taking it to the hangar now to re-arm. Guess it's already going to be flying a mission."
- >She says something that you didn't quite catch, but she sounds pleased.
- >You put down the phone and flip the switch on the PLoNY.
- >You close up all the panels and tell it to follow you.
- >It obliges, and you take it to the hangar to be armed.
- >You are the prototype.
- >You have just arrived in the hangar, excited by the news that your technician has just given to you.
- "You mean I'll get to really fly? For real this time?!"
- >"I mean, they're just scouts as far as we know, but it'll be good to get you out there."
- >You can't contain your excitement
- >You bounce on your hooves as a mare is trying to load a missile onto one of your hardpoints
- >"Hold still!"
- >She sounds mildly irritated
- "Heh, sorry..."
- >Slightly embarassed, you stay still.
- >You've quickly become far more accustomed to being around these ponies.
- >Maybe it's the magic becoming stronger over time.
- >But this thought is shoved out of your head when the mare announces that the missiles are loaded.
- >"Okay, now just for the belt..."
- >She flips open your bottom panel.
- >A stallion assists her as she loads the belt into you and coils it.
- >She closes the bottom panel.
- >"Okay, you're ready to go. Now go get 'em!"
- >She pats you on the back with her hoof.
- >You make a quick check
- MG....................100% / 400 RND
- >You smile to yourself as you take a confident step forward while the hangar door opens.
- >As it does so, target information is loaded into your vision.
- >You fire up your engines and just as last time, they spool up with a mighty roar.
- >You take off into the night and your wings bite into the air.
- >You soar up past the clouds and cruise above them and admire the sight of the moon.
- >You feel like you can see forever from up here.
- >You level off.
- >In the distance, you see a few specks. Undoubtedly the enemy scouts.
- >You decide to have some fun, since you were given some innate, instinctive hatred of gryphons.
- >You engage afterburners.
- >They're circling back.
- >You wonder why.
- >Bullets start whizzing past you.
- >You should have realized that the noise from your engines would have gotten their attention.
- >You dodge and bank.
- >The three gryphons end up behind you, so you loop around to catch them in your line of fire.
- >You ready your MG.
- >One is unfortunately caught in your line of fire, and you let off a short burst.
- MG....................100% / 390 RND
- >A spray of blood from the gryphon.
- >He plummets to the ground.
- >Out of what seems like nowhere, one of the gryphons grabs you by the neck.
- >You start spiraling out of control.
- >You retract your wings and go into a full nosedive towards the ground.
- >The ground is racing towards your face.
- >You're not sure if your plan will work.
- >Just as you had hoped, he panics and lets go.
- >You extend your wings again and pull up as hard as you can.
- >You just barely brush the tree canopy.
- >Flying back up to meet them, you see them doubling back on their original flight path.
- >They must be retreating.
- >You can't let them get away.
- >Keen to keep your distance so they cannot hear you, you climb far, far above them as they retreat.
- >Waiting for your chance to strike...
- >And you hit the afterburners again.
- >You dive at full speed towards them.
- >A loud boom emanates from you as you break the sound barrier
- >You reel your hoof back
- >Your hoof connects with the gryphon's head with a sickening crunch
- >The punch was undoubtedly lethal as you see that the gryphon is launched towards the ground, limp.
- >Your sonic boom stunned the other, who happened to be flying nearby when you attacked.
- >The rush from killing the other has heightened your bloodlust.
- >You retract your wings and whip around and unleash another burst of fire onto the disoriented gryphon.
- >Ah, the benefits of being a mechanical creation.
- >Intense G-forces rarely bother you.
- >Still falling, you extend your wings once again and level off.
- >No more enemy signatures on the scope.
- >Satisfied, you find your way back to the hangar.
- >Cleared for landing, you cut the throttle and skid to a stop in the hangar.
- >Miss Sparkle was waiting there for you.
- >You, Twilight Sparkle, have been watching the radar this whole time.
- >Your own creation has made short work of a patrol of three gryphons.
- >Granted, they were three scouts deep inside Equestrian airspace.
- >But this unplanned sequence of events leaves you pleasantly surprised.
- >You're proud of her and yourself, and you can't hold back a grin.
- >Less because she killed three gryphons and more because she has proven to be extremely functional.
- >"Did you see me out there?!"
- >"I punched him right out of the air!"
- "Ha, you sure did!"
- >"What do I do now? Are there more?"
- >She starts bouncing on her hooves again in anticipation.
- >You place a hoof on her back.
- "No, but I think it's time we gave you a designation. A name, if you will."
- >"Yeah?"
- "I think we'll call you Juliett."
- >"I like it!"
- "You deserve it."
- >You're glad you finally gave her a name. To you, it felt as if she earned it.
- >It's not your fault that Anonymous happened to know the NATO phonetic alphabet.
- >Whatever NATO was.
- >It had only been a couple days since Juliett had her first flights.
- >News had not gotten out that she even exists.
- >Undoubtedly the gryphons know that one of their patrols was taken down.
- >But they likely don't know that it was by Juliett.
- >However, as of late, the programmers have made adjustments to the PLoNY-OS targeting algorithms.
- >You were told that accuracy will increase on the order of 10% on average.
- >And that Juliett has been updated accordingly.
- >Already, small-scale production of the new PLoNYs has begun.
- >And you have just finished enchanting the second model of its kind; you have already designated him Romeo.
- >You flip open the back panel and take a look at the console to make sure everything is in working order.
- [PLoNY-OS v0.2]
- visual_sensors....R-100% L-100%
- audio_sensors....R-100% L-100%
- vocal_module.....100% / M
- legs...................RF-100% LF-100% RB-100% LB-100%
- ID_FoF...............7B4AE0DA9A5E780EB9B45DC067031DA7
- MG....................100% / 0 RND
- radar..................100%
- >You turn him off and close it, satisfied with another job well done.
- >You levitate a report that has been waiting on your desk since early this morning.
- >You bring it closer to your face so that you can read it.
- >You skim the paragraphs for key information.
- >Thanks again to Anonymous, further advancements have been made over recent days in the fields of polymer chemistry.
- >Laboratory scale production of what he calls "kevlar" has apparently begun and patches of it are currently undergoing ballistic testing.
- >Laboratory reports indicate that it performs exceptionally well against small-arms fire, but is by no means perfect.
- >In addition, you read about gryphons slowly taking up Equestrian technology.
- >They're not ahead by any means, but they are able to hold their own on the battlefield.
- >You begin reading technical specifications for Romeo.
- >Design notes state that his 7.92mm ammunition capacity has been decreased to 300 in favor of larger engines.
- >Slightly enlarged air intakes.
- >The engines are expected to put out 12% more thrust than the prototype's.
- >Other technical specifications.
- >Your tiredness isn't really helping you comprehend the words on the paper.
- >You put down the clipboard and rub your eyes.
- >You've been up all night working on Romeo.
- >You'll have him deployed alongside Juliett tomorrow.
- >You decide to catch some sleep.
- [PLoNY-OS v0.2]
- Booting...
- Aux power module starting...
- Done!
- DSG
- Juliett
- Loading drivers...
- Done!
- TIME
- 10:35
- Loading inputs...
- Done!
- >Your vision flicks on, and you begin to hear everything around you
- >You wake up in the hangar
- >You look to your left and see all the ponies working
- >Some moving carts filled with munitions
- >Some carting crates around filled with unknown items
- >Yet others just walking around staring at reports as they walk
- >You look to your right
- >You see Twilight Sparkle's smiling face
- >You shift your attention to something behind her
- >It's another PLoNY
- >"Well, Juliett, this is Romeo."
- >She turns to him
- >"Romeo, this is Juliett."
- >You take in his full form and you would be lying if you say you aren't impressed.
- >He speaks up first.
- >"Nice to meet you, Juliett."
- >You extend a hoof, and he mirrors the action.
- >You shake hooves, and Miss Sparkle speaks up.
- >"There's a team coming through a nearby valley, we figure they're coming out to investigate what happened last night with the scouts."
- >"They're off the radar, but we think there might be a few pegasus mercenaries with them, so be vigilant."
- >You both smile at the news of your new assignment
- >The hangar door opens and the location appears on the scope
- >You both trot to the edge of the hangar
- "Ya ready to go?"
- >"Hell yeah, let's go!"
- >You both laugh and take off
- >As before, you soar into the sky in the company of a wingman
- ALT 2000m
- >You level off and maintain altitude
- >You're flying above the clouds.
- >It looks far different during the day, and every bit as beautiful.
- >You see a few mountaintops rising above the sea of cloud cover.
- >You bank and head west towards the valley
- >You couldn't really think of anything to say to your wingman
- >Oh, well.
- >"So, when were you built?"
- >Well, then.
- "It was a few days ago,"
- "They updated the targeting algorithms since then."
- >"Oh?"
- >"How are they now compared to then?"
- "Well, I dunno. Haven't been able to try it yet."
- >"Hmm."
- >You continue your flight wordlessly.
- >Suddenly, the clouds make way for a sight of the valley below.
- >HQ radios in.
- >"They should be arriving within minutes. I suggest you take up ambush positions."
- >The radio flicks off
- >"You hear that?"
- "Yeah, we'll perch up on those mountains."
- >"Go on..."
- "I take the west, you take the east."
- >"Got it."
- >He retracts his wings and makes his way down to the mountain
- >You look back and see him perch up on the mountain, keeping watch.
- >You make a dive yourself
- >You extend your wings again and slow your descent to land
- >You perch on a convenient cliff face overlooking the valley just to the east.
- >Not much time to admire the view and the vegetation below.
- >Only a couple minutes pass without incident
- >Three blips appear on the scope
- >You turn on your radio
- "Here they come. Come up from behind at low engine power."
- >"Roger."
- >You engage your engines and leap off the cliff's edge
- >You see Romeo do the same.
- >Both of you maneuver into a position side-by-side to one another.
- >500 meters to target
- >You see two gryphons accompanied by a pegasus flying in formation
- "Fire!"
- >A burst from each of your machine guns
- MG....................100% / 392 RND
- >The gryphons fall out of the sky, bloodied.
- >The pegasus circles back
- >Romeo maneuvers to intercept as the pegasus charges towards both of you
- >Gunfire is exchanged from both sides
- Romeo - MG......100% / 268 RND
- >You flip yourself around to help when two more blips appear on the radar
- >You look down to see two pegasi rushing towards you from the trees
- >You get hit twice
- audio_sensors....R-0% L-100%
- legs...................RF-73% LF-100% RB-100% LB-100%
- >All you can hear in your right ear is static
- >You cut off input
- >You growl in anger
- >You pull up into a loop
- >More gunfire
- >This time it's from Romeo
- Romeo - MG......100% / 277 RND
- >One blip disappears
- >You point yourself downwards and max out the throttle
- >You focus all your rage on one pegasus
- >You see the look of pure terror on his face when you pulverize his ribcage with your left hoof and fling him back into the trees a hundred meters below
- >The other pegasus tackles you in mid-air.
- >You struggle to stay aloft as he tries to ready his gun.
- >Romeo sees you in danger and flies just above you.
- >He pulls his wings in and positions himself just so in a way that his engines are pointing at you.
- >He fuel dumps onto the pegasus on your back and ignites the afterburners.
- >The pegasus is absolutely engulfed in flames.
- >He lets go.
- >You are as well, though to a lesser extent.
- >Your engines flame out for a few seconds as the fuel on your back uses up nearby oxygen.
- >The flames go out on their own as the fuel is consumed.
- >You reignite your engines and regain control not too far above the tree canopy.
- >You flip around to see the pegasus still flailing, being consumed by flames.
- >One short burst from your MG.
- >All five shots land and spray blood out of the pegasus's back.
- >He tumbles unceremoniously to the ground.
- MG....................100% / 387 RND
- >You climb up to Romeo's altitude.
- >You and Romeo fly together above the clouds on your way back to the hangar.
- >You report your status and request a technician wait for you when you return.
- >You cut the throttle.
- >You collide with the floor of the hangar.
- >Your front right leg gives out under your weight.
- >You careen to the back of the hangar in a shower of sparks.
- >Ponies jump out of the way.
- >Romeo, who landed successfuly, runs to your aid.
- >He helps you up, helping you balance yourself.
- >The technician pony from a couple days ago runs up to you.
- >"Don't worry, I'll take it from here."
- >Romeo replies to his assurance.
- >"Are you sure?"
- >"Yeah, we'll take her in for repairs."
- >"Follow me, Juliett."
- >You limp with him to the repair bay.
- >You look back at Romeo, who is still in the hangar, and silently motion a thank you.
- >"So what happened up there?"
- "They must've been expecting us,"
- "Two of them came out of the trees, one of them shot me twice."
- >You stop and point to your front right leg and to your right ear.
- >You explain the rest of what happened on your way to repairs.
- >You arrive in the repair bay.
- >Various things were undergoing repairs and construction there, from small weapons for base personnel to scout cars.
- >You see ponies moving items back and forth, it feels a lot like the hangar.
- >You even spot two PLoNY frames sitting on a rack in the back.
- >"Okay, just lay out on this table and we'll take care of the rest."
- >You do as instructed, and he opens the back panel.
- >He flips a switch and everything goes black.
- [PLoNY-OS v0.2]
- >The usual booting sequence.
- Loading drivers...
- Done!
- TIME
- 18:32
- >You check.
- audio_sensors....R-100% L-100%
- legs...................RF-N/A LF-100% RB-100% LB-100%
- >The last part troubles you immensely.
- >You look to your right to see (or rather, to not see) your right leg.
- >It is completely missing.
- >"Okay, testing, testing, testing."
- >A moment.
- >You notice something is plugged into you.
- >"Okay, the audio sensors are both working at full capacity. We'll replace the leg tomorrow, eh?"
- >You don't know what's happening.
- >A flip of the switch and all goes black again.
- [PLoNY-OS v0.2]
- >Another booting sequence.
- Loading drivers...
- Done!
- TIME
- 9:57
- audio_sensors....R-100% L-100%
- legs...................RF-100% LF-100% RB-100% LB-100%
- >You open your eyes, and the technician seems happy to see that you're awake.
- "What happened?"
- >He looks down at his clipboard.
- >"Well, we made basic hull repairs... we replaced your right audio sensor, and your front right leg.
- >"It still requires calibration, however."
- >You are hooked up to some kind of computer.
- >"So, could you move your new leg for me? Try to point at the opposite side of the room."
- "Yeah."
- >You try to do so, but all you end up doing is jerking your new leg all the way upwards.
- >"Mmhmm."
- >He types something into the computer.
- >"Could you try again?"
- >You do so, this time barely able to lift it halfway
- >He looks back at his computer and types some more.
- >"Again."
- >You do so successfully this time, and the new leg feels just like all the others.
- >"Alright, everything seems to be functioning just as before. Thank you."
- >He goes to the back panel, and everything goes dark.
- [PLoNY-OS v0.2]
- Booting...
- Aux power module starting...
- Done!
- DSG
- Romeo
- Loading drivers...
- Done!
- TIME
- 2:15
- Loading inputs...
- Done!
- ...
- >Text flashes into your vision
- [NOTE]
- Report to Cloudsdale Air Base under cover of night.
- Altitude maximum 150m.
- You are being relocated.
- >The destination's GPS position is loaded into memory.
- >You wake up next to Juliett in the hangar.
- >Nopony else seems to be here.
- >"You get the order, too?"
- "Yeah."
- >The hangar door automatically opens, as if it knew.
- "Well, let's not wait."
- >She agrees and you both step to the edge of the hangar.
- >You fire up your engines and leap into the air with her.
- >You make it a point not to turn the throttle up too much.
- >You notice something different.
- >Something is off.
- >Your engines are much quieter than you remember.
- >Hers, too.
- "Wait... let's go to full throttle."
- >Your engines spool up further
- >You notice that your engines and hers are making relatively little noise.
- >As it turns out, your engines are putting out about as much noise as they used to on low throttle.
- >She points out the change in engine geometry as she flies slightly behind you
- >"Your engines look different!"
- "Really?"
- >You look back, and so do hers.
- >More text flashes into your vision
- [NOTE]
- We have made a change in engine geometry to reduce noise.
- You should see no change in performance except for lower detectability.
- -EWR Engineering Division
- >Neat.
- >You look up at the moon and the occasional cloud
- >This is your first time seeing the night.
- >You look down.
- >The darkened trees whiz by, the whistle-hum of your engines being the soundtrack to the whole spectacle.
- >The rest of the flight continues without incident as you fly just above the trees all the way to Cloudsdale.
- TIME
- 6:12
- DSG
- Juliett
- >The sun is just on the horizon.
- >You look up to see a giant mass of fluffy white clouds.
- >The GPS suggests that Cloudsdale is here.
- >You're not sure what you expected, really.
- >You and Romeo fly up and towards the GPS destination.
- >You see the air base.
- >Once the Wonderbolts Academy, the air base is a bustling hub of military activity.
- >You see a large, winged machine parked to the side of the air strip, and pegasi unloading various boxes and munitions racks
- >You come in to land at the air strip.
- >Your hooves contact the ground, and you hit the ground running.
- >You slow yourself down and look up just in time to see the great winged machine departing.
- >Its engines, once facing downward, were now tilting forward.
- >You see it fly away in the direction you came just as another is coming in.
- >A strange pegasus runs up to you as you're taking in the sights
- >He is dressed in sky blue fatigues
- >"Welcome to Cloudsdale, we've been expecting you."
- >"Follow me."
- >You and Romeo follow this new pony to what you assume will be your commanding officer.
- >You walk into an office to be greeted by a yellow pegasus mare sitting at a desk, wearing sunglasses.
- >The nameplate on her desk suggests that her name is Spitfire.
- >Col. Spitfire.
- >"Welcome. This is your new home from now on. Any questions?"
- >You both speak simultaneously.
- "No, ma'am."
- >"You will be deployed alongside other pegasi and provide support."
- >She goes into further detail explaining your combat role.
- >You realize the implications of flying with actual pegasi.
- >You may be faster, tougher, more heavily armoured.
- >However, pegasi don't require fuel. In addition, they can hover in place and change direction with ease.
- >These things you can manage but not with nearly the grace that a regular pegasus can.
- >You're eagerly anticipating for your first such deployment.
- [PLoNY-OS v0.2]
- Booting...
- Aux power module starting...
- Done!
- DSG
- Juliett
- Loading drivers...
- Done!
- TIME
- 7:38
- LAST ACTIVATION
- 961221 sec
- Loading inputs...
- >Your eyes open.
- >Gradually, you begin hearing everypony and the activity around the hangar.
- >All are going about their business.
- >It has been some time since you were last activated.
- >The hangar technician who turned you on mentions what happened while you were out as he makes sure everything is in working order.
- >"So..."
- >He flips open the back panel panel for a cursory check.
- >"How long has it been? About 11 days or so?"
- "Yeah, why?"
- >"Some stuff happened while you were out."
- "Like what?"
- >"Well, for one, you missed Hearth's Warming Eve,"
- >He pauses for a second and you wonder what Hearth's Warming Eve is.
- >"Oh! And there was a cease-fire; no fighting. We're back on now, though."
- >Why was there a cease-fire? What was Hearth's Warming Eve?
- >You decide to speak up.
- "Why was there a cease-fire?"
- >Good enough.
- >"Because of the holiday."
- "Why would they stop fighting for the holiday?"
- >"They just stopped fighting and started singing, burying their dead and exchanging greetings. Nopony ordered it. It just kinda... happened."
- >"From what I heard, the cease-fire is some kind of monkey tradition or something,"
- >He explains in-depth as to what Hearth's Warming Eve is and its meaning.
- >A couple minutes later, checks are completed and you are enlightened on the subject of this newfound holiday.
- >"The Colonel's gonna explain everything you need to do. They're on the airstrip, waiting."
- >Not one to keep anypony waiting, you trot off to yet another flight.
- >You walk into the frigid air that lies just outside the hangar.
- >The pegasi have been keeping the weather away from the air base, so the ground is still dry.
- >Col. Spitfire appears to be waiting, along with a group of eight pegasi near the end of the airstrip.
- >You join the rest of the group, among them is Romeo.
- >"So glad that you could join us," she says to you.
- >You walk closer and take a spot standing next to him.
- >Next to Spitfire stands a map, on which various points of interested have been highlighted.
- >She goes on to quickly run over the details.
- >"Intelligence suggests that the gryphons will be launching an attack on Canterlot soon. Our job is to gain air superiority."
- >"They will be moving down south, we will be getting them before they reach the forest here." Spitfire points to a spot on the map just north of Canterlot.
- >"We're relying on the element of surprise here."
- >She points a hoof at you and Romeo.
- >"These two will lead the way and help you navigate to the area, but in each of your saddlebags are navigational tools that will work in their absence."
- >"Once you're there, there will be additional air forces, with ground forces close behind."
- >"The Princesses have been relocated to an undisclosed location, but that's beside the point. Royal guards as we speak are fortifying the city and readying their defenses."
- >"Any questions?"
- >Pause.
- >"No? Okay, then move out!"
- >Everypony gets up and starts running.
- >They fling themselves off the edge of the runway and begin flying in the general direction of Canterlot.
- >You do the same and spool up your engines, jumping off of the runway alongside Romeo.
- >Before you know it, you and Romeo are ahead of the rest, and you both slow down to accommodate their pace.
- >A long flight ahead awaits you.
- Source: https://archive.moe/mlp/thread/21037430/#21078394
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