//------------------------------// // Prologue: A Best Mare in the TARDIS // Story: The Doctor Whooves Chronicles Episode 5: Prisoners of War // by Doctor Perseus //------------------------------// The Doctor Whooves Chronicles: Episode 5 Prisoners of War Prologue: A Best Mare in the TARDIS Gaia, 1002 C.E. The city of Canterlot was filled with the sounds of cheering and singing. The whole city was caught up in celebration in honor of the marriage of Princess Cadance and Captain Shining Armor. The celebration was also in honor of the fact that the city had just survived an invasion of a dangerous species known as changelings. While the citizens of Canterlot danced the night away and ate, talked, laughed, and sung in honor of the newlyweds, the Doctor stood at one of the food tables and eyed a large, juicy pear with caution. "Whatcha doing, Doctor?" asked Derpy as she approached the Doctor with a collection of sweets (mostly muffins) balanced in her forelegs. "Oh! Hello, Derpy. I'm just thinking about whether or not I should taste this pear," the Doctor replied. "Why are you thinking so much about this?" "Because I hated pears back in my universe. I'm curious to see if I've taken a liking to pears in the pony form that I've acquired in this universe." "Well you don't know unless you try." The Doctor turned to Derpy with a large grin on his face. "You know what? You're right, Derpy!" The Doctor grabbed the pear with his hoof and took a huge bite out of it. The Doctor instantly regretted this for he proceeded to run over to a nearby potted plant and spit the bite of pear out of his mouth and into the dirt. He then took the pear he was holding and tossed it away. "Nope! Nope! Still don't like them!" The Doctor heard Derpy giggling and he quickly returned to a calm state of mind. "This has been a great wedding!" Derpy exclaimed as she took a bite out of a muffin. The Doctor took a blueberry muffin from Derpy's grasp and bit into it. "Yes. It has certainly been interesting." "You know, aside from the whole invasion thing." "But that was the interesting part! What an interesting species: changelings! Creatures that feed off love. I myself would love to take a closer look at them!" Derpy rolled her eyes at the Doctor's pun. "After seeing what they did to Princess Celestia, I'd prefer to stay as far away from them as possible." The Doctor crossed his forelegs. "Come on, Ms. Hooves! Where's your sense of adventure?!" "I still have it, Doctor! It's just that I was kind of hoping that this wedding would have been simple and peaceful." "Well it's simple and peaceful now. And, hey, you and I didn't even have to take care of the problem ourselves! The newlyweds managed to take care of the changelings on their own." "Yes, but still, I'd like for us to visit a place without having to deal with political disputes, monsters, or invasions. Why don't we just take a relaxing trip to the beach or something?" "Is that where you want to go next?" "Anywhere relaxing. I'm ready to get out of these fancy clothes," Derpy replied as she tugged at her gray gown with silver lining. The Doctor looked at his own, fancy black suit with black tie and pushed his chest forward. "Well the fancy clothes don't really bother me!" he stated with a smirk. "Well, of course they wouldn't! You're always wearing a suit!" "Not all...okay, you've got a point." "Thank you." The Doctor and Derpy then began making their way back towards the TARDIS. "Your mane looks really nice like that," the Doctor said. "You really think so?" Derpy asked as she swatted at her ponytail. "Yeah." Derpy began to blush and the Doctor looked away swiftly. "Anyway, I'm surprised that we haven't run into Celestia or Luna yet." "Do you want to try and find them?" Derpy asked. "Nah. I don't want to give them heart attacks. You know the ritual. Wherever the Doctor is, trouble's bound to be not too far away," the Doctor replied. "I guess you've got a point." As the Doctor and Derpy walked past a group of excited ponies, a white carriage pulled by Equestrian soldiers and pulling along strings with cans rushed past them along a city street. "There's the bride and groom right now," the Doctor chuckled. "I hope they're happy together," said Derpy. "I'm sure they are. It probably took a lot of energy to blast those changelings away and I can tell that Princess Cadance and Shining Armor have a strong bond. Besides, it's obvious that they're going to stay together because there's at least five generations coming after them." "True." The Doctor and Derpy crossed the street and made their way over towards the TARDIS, which was parked next to a closed shop. "I really enjoyed that song that the Best Mare sung. What did you think, Derpy?" Derpy tilted her head from side to side. "I liked it." The Doctor unlocked and opened the TARDIS doors. "Mares first." Derpy smiled as she trotted into the blue box. The Doctor was quick to follow. He closed the doors and ran over towards the main console. "So, where to next?" "Somewhere relaxing," Derpy replied as she leaned back against the console. "Somewhere relaxing," the Doctor repeated as he began to work the controls. However, for some reason, the TARDIS didn't move. "Now what?!" The Doctor began fiddling with the controls. No matter what he pulled, pressed, or bent, the TARDIS refused to go anywhere. "What's wrong?" Derpy stood up and let out a loud yawn as she stretched her legs. "The TARDIS has decided to be a stubborn mule once again." "Hey! That's not nice! Not all mules are stubborn!" "What? Do you happen to know a few?" "Actually, I do." The Doctor was silent for a moment. "Right. Universe with talking ponies. I'm guess mules talk too." The Doctor pressed six buttons and pulled down two levers but the TARDIS still refused to budge. The Doctor threw his hooves up and walked over to the console chair. "What is it that you want? Is there something here that we're forgetting?" "I think it's safe to say that the problem is taken care of." "Exactly. So why is the TARDIS keeping us here? What else is here in Canterlot at this particular moment?" "Oh my Celestia!" gasped an unfamiliar voice. The Doctor nearly fell from his chair out of surprise. He and Derpy turned towards the TARDIS doors to see a mare standing just inside the threshold. She was a unicorn who appeared to be around Derpy's age. She had a purple mane, a lavender coat, and a cutie mark that consisted of a purple star surrounded by five smaller white stars. She was wearing a green, flowery head garment and a dark pink gown. "But...it's just a tiny, blue box! How can this be inside it?!" "This is a problem," the Doctor stated. The unicorn looked at the Doctor and Derpy and eyed them intensely. "Who are-" The unicorn fell silent when her eyes fell on Derpy. "Wait a moment...do I know you?" "Uh...maybe," Derpy replied awkwardly. Suddenly, the TARDIS doors slammed shut and locked. The unicorn looked back at the doors in surprise. "Did you do that?!" The unicorn asked. "We didn't do anything!" Derpy replied as she raised her forelegs up in defense. "Oh no, no, no, no, no!" cried the Doctor as he began running around the main console. "You decide to start working NOW?!" The TARDIS began to shake as its signature sound echoed through the air: VVVRRROOOMMMPPP! VVVRRROOOMMMPPP! VVVRRROOOMMMPPP! The unicorn tried to balance herself on the shaking TARDIS floor. "What's going on?!" asked the unicorn. She quickly turned towards the TARDIS doors. Her horn gave off a purple light and a blast of purple, magical energy shot from her horn and towards the TARDIS doors. Unsurprisingly, the magical blast had no effect. "What sort of magic is this?!" The unicorn turned towards the Doctor. Their eyes met in a sharp, terrifying stare. "Who in the name of Celestia are you?!" "I'm the Doctor!" replied the Doctor as he held onto the main console. "And you're the Best Mare! What's your name!?" "Twilight Sparkle!" "Well, Twilight Sparkle, here's some words of advice: you better hold onto something because we're in for a bumpy ride!" Twilight grabbed onto the column closest to her. The TARDIS gave a few last, powerful lurches and Twilight Sparkle screamed as the blue box flung itself into the Time Vortex.