Chapter 8.- Requirement compliant baking

Applejack studied the three different mockups like somepony had put a thistle under her hat.

Winona, by her side, tried again every one of them not looking convinced neither. Applejack could not blame her: every one of the three different doghouses were flawed by different reasons.

She had choosen to make doghouses because Pinkie wasn't sure yet about the capsule's final shape. And of course, eventually, any of the mockups could be used by Winona since her old doghouse was in very bad shape.

But not even Winona seemed to like them.

For the first one, Applejack had employed wood and tar. Using tar to fill the gaps had made the doghouse waterproof, but unfortunately not airtight. Next, she had tried using rubber instead of tar, but she had found not even the best wood could withstand high structural loads. The rubber, however seemed a pretty good idea for keeping the air inside.

They say third time is a charm, but unfortunately it wasn't true for Applejack third mockup! She had used steel and a quite generous amount of blowtorch. That house, she found, could withstand a tornado but unfortunately was... Too heavy!

Hooves' requirements said clearly that Rainbow's space capsule should:

a) withstand vibrations and structural loads during launch and re-entry.

b) being airtight to keep breatheable air inside.

c) being able to support the heat during re-entry.

d) being as much light as possible.

But none of the materials she could think of was able to achieve that! Only thing she hadn't tried yet was rocks and Maud Pie, still recovering from Tatz-flu, had already not recommended it! She had talked about a stone called bauxite which had a light metal inside, but she didn't was sure of the process to extract it so... It was another dead-end!

Applejack knew Pinkie Pie was not having fun either. She was in charge of developing the heat shield and finding a proper shape for the final "space capsule". The idea was, since they were both earth ponies, they could find something "magic-free" able to keep Dash alive beyond the limit.

But it wasn't easy, darn it!

What was she going to do? Twilight had scheduled the first test for the launcher in a couple of weeks! The mockup should be ready by then!

- The both of you look very tired -observed Granny Smith when she got into the barn-. Why don't you come to eat a piece of applepie?


The final piece of applepie was devoured by Winona.

- If I knew you both were so hungry I'd have made much more -smiled Granny-. How long have you been in the barn, girls?

Applejack was surprised by the question. Actually, she didn't have counted the hours. Despite the worthless efforts, she had actually had quite a good time building dog houses.

- I'm sorry Grann -said Applejack-. I guess I've forgotten my chores...

- Don't worry 'bout that child! -exclaimed Granny-. What you're doing seems important. I'm sorry I can't help. Although ...-she remembered-. I can feed you more to give you strenght! What 'bout that?

- I thought there was no more applepie Grann...

- I think there are chocolate chip cookies in the jar, at the pantry.

Applejack found the jar, empty. "That gluttonous unconsiderate Big Mac!", she grunted. However she found something else, wrapped in napkins.

- Sorry Grann. No cookies. But I found this. What is it?

It was some kind of unleavened loaf, or some kind of tortilla, maybe. Granny Smith laughed. It was a present from the last Apple Family Reunion, from cousin Tall Jonagold.

- I'll bring milk -smiled Grann-. It can be eaten, of course, but it was actually a joke from old Tall.

- What joke?

- You'll see... Your father and Tall were always together whenever he came to visit Ponyville -explained Grann-. They were trying to win their cutie marks all the time when they were foals!

- Apple Bloom will be happy to hear that! -smiled Applejack.

- The thing is... They decided to try baking one day! And they made bread! Tall's mother lost a tooth that evening! -laughed Granny-. After your father passed away... -she added gloomy-, Tall always brings a couple of these every year, you know... We always laugh remembering that day with your father... I'm sorry -said Granny Smith, concealing her eyes-... You can eat some if you use some milk. They taste good once they're soften. Too sweet for bread if you ask me!

Applejack smiled and tried the bread. It was light and hard and it took an eternity in milk to make it edible. Granny was right, though: it tasted sweet and pretty good but... Dry... Holly Molly! Dry it was the toughest, hardest and meanest thing she had ever...!

- Granny! You are a genius!


It was crazy.

It was crazy, right?

Applejack run to the barn and put a piece of bread in the vise. She turned the lever to press it longwise with all her strenght and... And... What in Tarnation? It dented the vise!

Test after test, her father's and Jonegold's unleavened bread passed it. It even seemed airtight! How it was possible? She had to be sure about being airtight: she had to build a mockup out of it... Now... How to build a doghouse with bread? She only needed a mold!

It took her the rest of the day to end a proper cast in steel and two more to build an oven able to fit it. In the meantime, she received the letter from cousin Jonegold with the recipe. With a little help of Pinkie Pie and Apple Bloom, she was able to end a doghouse a week earlier. Thanks to the steel cast, it even had stringers for extra toughness! It was light, it was hard and... It even smelled really nice!

- Now what? -asked Pinkie Pie-. Do we... Eat it?

- No!

- But Winona is licking it! -whinned Pinkie-. Can I at least taste it?

Applejack tied poor Winona away from the new doghouse. It needed to dry well under the sun to adquire full toughness. And varnish to keep moisture away. She handed poor Pinkie one of the slices of bread, which she enjoyed as a lollipop.

- Time to try if it's airtight -smiled Applejack.


A week later, Von Braunie put a zinnia inside the doghouse.

Applejack yawned before closing the rubber sealed door, which everypony was naming "hatch" for some reason. She connected the pressure gauge and wrote down the value.

- What was the hawaiian pony figurine there for? -asked Applejack descending the ladder.

- Good luck, of courrrrse -said Chokorolev from the ground-. We arrrre going to need it.

Applejack shrugged. She was too tired to argue. That was the third bread doghouse she had baked that week (lots of adjustments needed!), and after finishing the delayed work at Sweet Apple Acres, she was exhausted.

It had been quite a relieve seeing "the launcher" that morning. Made in wood and paperboard, it wasn't taller than a grain silo, with its base ending in a thing that Von Braunie called "nozzle". Chokorolev's two enormous fireworks were on its sides. Overall, it seemed an awfully improvised set and the dog house at the top of it wasn't even the weirdest thing.

The launching pad wasn't far from the Everfree Forest. The plan was recovering the "stages" at the lake with a vertical "launch". "Whatever", thought Applejack. She walked off from the pad and sat side by side with the three bragging Wonderbolts who have came to see the launch. Nopony else was around. "Better that way", she thought closing her eyes.

- Rainbow Dash is going to be inside of THAT? -said Blaze.

- I told you -answered Fire Streak-. Spam in a can...

- If Rainbow dares to get into that -laughed Misty Fly-, she's gonna prove herself braver than I thought!

Applejack sighed.

- It is a test, ok? -she tried to explain to the pegasi-. It's not supposed to even work! We are here to see what can be improved, so be constructive y'all.

- Improved? Really? -smiled Blaze.

- I mean... It really stands up. That's something! -laughed Misty Fly again.

- Spam in a can... -repeated Fire Streak.

A powerful, loud and unexpected roaring made those carper pegasi shut up their mouths.

Twilight, Von Braunie and Chokorolev had activated the launcher.

At that moment, Applejack remembered the hawaiian pony figurine. And the zinnia. And that Winona's blanket that for some reason was there even if she... Had... Taken it from... Home... That morning...

Where was Winona?

- Winonaaaaa? -called Applejack looking around-. Wiiiiinooonnaaaaa!

Applejack looked with sheer terror how the launcher, a powerful blast of rainbow light, ascended into the air in might and fury.

- Oh, no! Oh, no! No! NO! WIIINOOOONNAAAAAAA! NOOOO!


(CUE TO MUSIC. END OF CHAPTER)


Edit: OMG! It's Winona! No Ramona! I'm so sorry...!