//------------------------------// // Escaping the Space Station // Story: G5 Adventures in Space Buddies // by ponydog127 //------------------------------// The Buddies, the Mane 6, the Pippsqueaks, Spudnick and Night Star immediately froze once they had been spotted from Yuri, who had come down in search of the dogmonaut and unicorn astronaut he had spent all this time in space with. The Pippsqueaks were the most fearful, wondering if Yuri was going to get angry upon seeing them here. However... his reaction was something that the group was not expecting in the slightest. Instead of becoming angry, Yuri whooped and cheered before doing a Russian dance right in the middle of the space station. The Buddies barked while the Mane 6 and Pippsqueaks looked incredibly shocked. “Can you believe it, Night Star and Spudnick?!” Yuri asked the duo excitedly. “Our American comrades have given us a surprise gift! Lots of pretty ponies and five fluffy puppies to keep us company here in space. Thank you! Thank you!” “Uh… h-h-he doesn’t understand, guys,” Rosebud told Night Star and Spudnick. “We're not staying long.” “Rosebud’s right,” Zipp whispered. “Wherever that shuttle goes, we go with it.” “Maybe I can clear this up,” Sunny spoke before clearing her throat. “Uh, Yuri, we’re so sorry that we have to tell you this, but we’re not really--”  However, Yuri interrupted her before she could finish. “All right, come on, Night Star and Spudnick.” “...I’m sorry, we have to go,” Night Star apologized regretfully to her friends before she and Spudnick regretfully walked out the door. “Good,” Yuri praised. “We will finish refueling and then... we will celebrate.” “Dude,” Mudbud whispered to Night Star and Spudnick as they glanced back, “you have to help us!” However, Spudnick and Night Star knew that they couldn’t… at least not yet, so they just sighed and walked away. “Do svidaniya!” Yuri bid farewell before he closed the door, trapping the Mane 6, the Pippsqueaks and the Buddies inside. “Puppy puppies!” “Guys, this may seem like a bad time to say so,” Hitch said to the others, “but I think we just got hoodwinked!” “You’re telling me!” Budderball said in frustration, looking toward the refrigerator. “Okay, this food is all vegetables!” “Now what?” Rosebud asked. “First things first, we have to find some way out of here and back to the shuttle before it leaves,” Zipp said, looking around. “We’ll try our magic first, and then… if that doesn’t work… we’ll have to try this the old-fashioned way.” XXXXXXXX Back on Earth, the mission control team was keeping a heavy eye on their fuel level. “Uh, we'll be ready to leave in less than 30 minutes,” Slats told Pi, who seemed relieved to hear such news. “The sooner we can get refueled and get away from this bucket of bolts the happier I will be.” XXXXXXXX However, no one was aware that the fuel line was beginning to leak little by little due to the pressure building, and if it kept building, the results would be disasterous. XXXXXXXX Back in the living quarters of the station, Yuri poured himself a drink and stood before Night Star and Spudnick, raising his glass as a sign of victory. “To life in space,” he said with a smile, “for eternity and forever. And to you and Night Star, Spudnick. A spaceman's set of best friends. And to the new pretty ponies and puppy puppies. We will live together as a happy family, till the end.” Yuri immediately downed his drink in one gulp, causing Night Star to shudder-- who knows how long that alcoholic beverage had been up here? She and Spudnick needed to get Yuri tired long enough so they could get their new friends out of the kitchen and make a break for the shuttle before it left... ...but how? That was the real question. As if Spudnick was reading her mind, he used his paw to turn on a record player, which played lively Russian music. “You want to get the dancing started? That's a good idea, Spudnick!” Yuri smiled. “Let's get jiggle with it.” And so, Yuri began to dance in a Russian kind of manner, humming happily… XXXXXXXX …unaware that the Vision One team could hear everything back in mission control. “Yeah, I'm not sure he's flying with a full jetpack,” Astro told her team with concern. XXXXXXXX Yuri continued to dance around until that record ended, causing him to collapse exhausted in his chair. But Spudnick knew they wouldn't be able to get away if Yuri was only tired-- he had to be fast asleep for their escape plan to work. So, doing what any dog in his situation would do, he immediately began to play another record. “Another, you party animal?” Yuri asked, exhausted. “I am sorry, old pal. I am pooped.” “Oh, come on, Yuri,” Night Star said, playing along with Spudnick’s plan. “What’s a celebration without good dancing, am I right, Spudnick?” Spudnick barked in agreement, and this caused Yuri to smile in relent. “All right, one more, one more!” And so, Yuri began to dance once again, and the crew back in mission control really wondered if stopping here for fuel was the best course of action. XXXXXXXX Back in the kitchen, the ponies had tried to use their magic to escape, but the door was so thick, their magic had zero effect on it. Luckily, Mudbud came up with a plan of his own. The Pippsqueaks, Buddha, B-Dawg and Mudbud would push Budderball forward on a cart, and hopefully, the impact would be enough to create a hole big enough for the group to squeeze through. “Mudbud, I’m not exactly sure this is a safe plan,” Zipp said with concern. “I agree,” Misty frowned. “If this doesn’t go exactly the way you want it to, any one of you could get hurt!” “Dudes, you don’t have to worry,” Mudbud reassured. “I saw the Jamaican bobsled team do this at the Winter Olympics!” “Besides, our magic didn’t work, and kicking and pawing at the door didn’t work,” Glory added, “so we have to at least give it a shot.” “Okay, but please be careful,” Sunny made them promise. “Getting out of here isn’t worth one of you hurting yourselves.” “Don’t worry, guys-- we’ll be fine,” Seashell smiled. “Ready, guys? Three, two, one, push!!” So, with all their might, the Pippsqueaks and their friends pushed the cart toward the door as fast as they could, and as they got closer to the door, Budderball instantly began to freak out. “Wait, guys! I changed my mind!” The Mane 6 immediately cringed upon impact, and when they opened their eyes, they discovered Budderball had been knocked out and there was only a Budderball-shaped dent in the door-- no real escape route.  Rosebud sighed and shook her head to this. “We told you guys this was a bad idea.” “The dawg’s down for the count,” B-Dawg looked over at Budderball. Luckily, Mudbud had an idea for that too. “What a shame, cause these space nachos are gnarly!” “Huh?!” Budderball immediately sat up. “Space nachos?!” “He’s okay,” Seashell reassured the others, causing them to sigh in relief. “But now,” said Hitch, “we still have to come up with another way out and we need it quick. The shuttle could be leaving any minute!” XXXXXXXX Back up in the living quarters of the station, Spudnick and Night Star watched as Yuri continued to dance to the lively Russian record… …still unaware that the mission control group was still listening, causing Pi to sigh in annoyance and frustration. “These are gonna be the longest 11 minutes in my life.” But it still wasn’t enough to get Yuri completely exhausted. In order to do that, Night Star even went as far as using her magic to speed the record up faster and faster and faster until… …Yuri finally finished the dance, collapsing in his chair once again. “Yuri is knickered and knackered,” he sighed in exhaustion, looking toward the unicorn and bull terrier sitting nearby. “Night Star, Spudnick, you know Yuri. Too much dancing, Yuri gets too much sleepy.” “That’s exactly what we’re counting on,” Night Star whispered, and used her horn to open a music box, which began to emit soft music that relaxed Yuri further. “Oh, that's nice. Hold me closer, tiny dancer…” Spudnick walked over to a shelf nearby and picked up Yuri’s teddy bear in his mouth before bringing it over to the sleepy cosmonaut. “Oh, that’s nice,” Yuri smiled as he cuddled the teddy bear. “Little Yuri… that’s very nice.” That’s when Night Star handed Spudnick a soft blue baby blanket, which Spudnick brought over for Yuri to snuggle as well. “Oh, Sputnik. My blanky,” he said before sighing contently, slowly drifting off to sleep. “Maybe Yuri take 40 blinks… just until the refueling is done…” And just like that, he was asleep, much to the bewilderment of the mission control team. But, on the bright side, this also gave Spudnick and Night Star the chance to slip into their space suits and down the ladder to the bottom-- they had to get their friends out of here, and themselves too, before Yuri woke up from his power nap. XXXXXXXX As the Pippsqueaks, the Mane 6 and the Buddies tried to figure out how else they could escape, they suddenly heard a rattling coming from the ladder outside the kitchen door, and fear immediately sparked up. “Quick!” Rosebud said to the others. “It’s Yuri!” “Hide!” Pipp said as she and her sister, as well as all her friends, ducked into hiding to the best of their ability. However, it didn't turn out to be Yuri at all-- it was Spudnick and Night Star, who opened the door in order to release their friends and get out of here. When Spudnick opened the door, he was quite surprised to see the room empty. “Ponies? Buddies?” he called out. “Where are you?” This caused the ponies and their puppy companions to peek out of hiding, Zipp sighing in relief. “Night Star, Spudnick!” XXXXXXXX Back in mission control, Slats immediately noticed an alarming situation. “Sir, I'm showing that the tanks are full but the pressure is building,” he said before going to contact Yuri. “Yuri, this is, uh, Vision Enterprises, do you hear me?” However, Yuri was still snoring, much to the bewilderment of the crew. XXXXXXXX “Hold on a second,” Rosebud spoke to Night Star and Spudnick. “What happened to the crazy cosmonaut?” “He’s asleep,” Night Star explained. “We had to get him to fall asleep so we could break you guys out.” “This is my last chance to go home to my boy, Sasha,” Spudnick explained. “The station is falling apart anyhow.” “And Yuri’s plan is to go down with the ship!” Night Star added, her voice filled with complete fright. “So, what we’re trying to say is, can we hitch a ride home with you guys?” “For shizzle, dawg,” B-Dawg responded with a smile. “Well, if we’re really gonna leave this place once and for all, we gotta get moving,” Sunny told her friends. “Let’s go!” And so, the group crawled from their hiding places and walked out of the kitchen, into the main sector of the station... ...all except Budderball and Peach Fizz, the former looking back at the broccoli he had found in the fridge earlier. “I hope I never need it, but better safe than sorry.” That’s when Budderball opened the fridge, grabbed the broccoli in his mouth and he and Peach Fizz ran after the others. XXXXXXXX “Can you hear me?” Slats continued to call out to Yuri. “Wake up!” This caused Yuri to immediately wake up and tried to pretend as if nothing had happened. “Da. Da. Yuri is just having a little kitty nap.” “Refueling is complete,” Slats then told Yuri. “Can we disconnect the ship?” Yuri was just about to respond to this, but that’s when he saw the ponies, the Buddies and their new friends down in the main sector, since they had escaped just a minute or two before this. “The ponies and puppies are loose!” he cried. “You American dognappers!” “What…?” Slats murmured, completely unsure of what he meant. XXXXXXXX The Mane 6, the Pippsqueaks, the Buddies, Night Star and Spudnick were getting ready to leave the station once and for all when an alarm rang out, much to Spudnick’s alarm. “Oh, no… the station is going into lockdown! Yuri’s onto us!” “Dudes!” Mudbud cried. “I say we make like a bread truck and haul buns!” “In other words,” Seashell cried, “RUN!!” And that’s exactly what the group began doing, with Budderball and Peach Fizz following a bit behind because they had to go for their broccoli.  Little did any of them know it, but the fuel leak was beginning to grow bigger and bigger as the pressure rocketed to sky-high levels. Once they were close enough, Rosebud pressed the button to activate the door to the shuttle, and most everyone made it inside and prepared for launch. Well, all except for Peach Fizz and Budderball, who managed to run past the ladder with Yuri hot on their tails. “No! No, come back! Puppy! No!” Peach Fizz managed to duck under the almost-closed doorway with Budderball and ran into the shuttle to join her friends, but that’s when Sunny looked back at her. “Peach Fizz! Where’s Budderball?!” Turns out, Budderball had dropped his broccoli in the middle of the doorway, and Yuri was right on the other side of it.  Rosebud turned to the others, determined to keep the team all together. “We can’t leave without him!” “You know our motto, dudes,” Mudbud reminded them. “No pup left behind.” “Budderball!” “Hurry!” “Come on!” “We gotta go!” Budderball heard their cries but was determined to get his lunch as well. “Not without my broccoli!” And so, he made a quick snatch for the broccoli, only for Peach Fizz to use her magic and pull him to the safety of the shuttle just before the door closed, leaving Yuri on the other side to yell out in Russian. XXXXXXXX “No, please!” Yuri yelled over the sound system, much to mission control’s confusion. “Don't take away my puppy puppy pups!” “Wait a second,” said Slats. “Is he talking about puppies?” “He's got more screws loose than the space station,” Astro said, just as Yuri began to open the door just enough to try and get to the shuttle, but it closed just before he could get inside of it. “Come back! You cannot leave! You cannot take my gift away from me!” “I think he might be trying to shanghai the Vision One!” Pi immediately suspected and began to put out strict orders. “Enact emergency evacuation measures! Let's detach from the station now!” “Copy that,” Astro said and began to detach from the station. XXXXXXXX Yuri began to press all sorts of buttons and push all sorts of levers in order to keep the shuttle in place, and even went as far as using a monkey wrench to try and shut off the entire system. However, as he did this, sparks from the electrical box came down onto the fuel that was left on the floor during the leak, and Yuri immediately realized what was about to happen. “That’s not good.” Fire began to spread all over the station as the shuttle was finally able to detach and break away, and Yuri ran through the station until he got to an emergency escape pod at the very end, sealing himself inside of it and waiting for just the right moment. XXXXXXXX Back inside the shuttle, the others watched in complete terror as the space station exploded right in front of their eyes. “Guys!” Glory cried out. “It’s coming apart!!” The others continued to watch the scene, beginning to mourn the loss of Yuri when suddenly, the escape pod burst away from the exploding station. “Wow!” Spudnick cried. “That's the Cosmopod escape vessel. He made it!” “Thank goodness for that,” Sunny muttered under her breath, holding Seashell close. “Now… let’s get out of here.” XXXXXXXX Back in mission control, the crew stood in shock and dismay when they saw different warnings flash across the main screen. Signal lost. Termination detected. RRSS destruction confirmed. One thing was for sure when they saw these messages... it was clear that if he was on that station... ...Yuri would not have survived.