//------------------------------// // Setting Off // Story: Shadows of Giants // by kaiju and pony fan //------------------------------// Kenji groaned as he opened his eyes. He then reached over to where Fluttershy was only to be greeted with more blanket. He then rose out of bed, only to see Ami still curled up next to it. Kenji then noticed his Totoro sleeping bag was gone. Maybe it was a dream he thought. Maybe he just imagined finding a naked girl with long pink hair who had just materialized in the backyard forest. Sure felt real. he told himself. As he climbed out of the futon, his bare foot nudged Ami who looked up at him groggily before yawning and going back to sleep. Kenji yawned and stretched himself out of his own lethargic state before shambling to the stairs. He could hear the sound of the television on in the relaxing room and the sound of Aki preparing breakfast in the kitchen. He could hear his sisters talking among each other. Then he heard a fourth voice. Fluttershy's voice. Nope. Definitely wasn't a dream. "Well, look who decided to join us." Kimiko commented, folding her arms across the long black shirt she wore as a sleeping shirt, "We were starting to worry whether or not you'd join us in time for breakfast." Kenji groaned, "Shut up, Kimiko." He then noticed Fluttershy looked the same as he saw her last night; yellow and pink sundress, long, pink hair (with a slight case of bed-head) and barefoot. As soon as Kenji sat down, whatever was being shown on the TV was replaced by a black screen along with a neon green outline of a sword with a pair of wings at its side and a 'G' in its center all set to a screeching noise. While this startled Fluttershy, it prompted Asuka to roll her eyes, Kimiko to mutter something under her breath and Haruka to scream, "Oh, come on! And during the best part too!" Then a voice emanated from the T.V. "This is a test of the Kaiju Alert System. Do not be alarmed. If a Kaiju is attacking, you would hear this noise followed by news updates and proper safety instructions. Repeating. This is only a test. This concludes the test of the Kaiju Alert System. We now return you to your regularly scheduled programming." This was followed by another screeching noise, much higher pitched this time, before returning to what was originally being shown on TV, in this case an episode of Sailor Moon. Fluttershy then turned to look at Kenji and asked, "What's a 'Kaiju'?" Kenji tried to find the best definition for the beasts that might as well have been forces of nature made physical. Beasts that could render entire cities clean of life if they so pleased. Beasts who had taken the lives of countless men, women, elders and children in a devastating war with seemingly no end. " A really big monster." he finally replied. Way to make it an understatement. his mind reprimanded. Fluttershy was about to speak again until Aki called them for breakfast. "Thanks for helping keep an eye on the library while I'm gone, Jade." Twilight told the turquoise unicorn in front of her as she adjusted her saddlebags. The unicorn, Jade Singer, shrugged at this. "Eh, no problem, Twilark, or should I call ya 'princess'?" "Um, it's actually 'Twilight' and I'd really appreciate it if you didn't call me that." Twilight replied sheepishly. Jade chuckled. "Well, at least that power hasn't gone straight to your head." Twilight smiled at that. "Oh, by the way, here's Owlowiscious." she continued, gesturing to her brown-feathered pet currently observing his master and her guest on his perch. "He needs to be fed three times a day with that." Twilight continued pointing towards a brown bag with the outline of an owl on its front, "Don't worry, I have a year's supply of extras so you don't have to worry about buying more." Jade nodded as she listened. "Well, seeing as you know what to do, I'd best be off." the young princess said. "Wait up!" Spike's voice came from upstairs. Twilight looked up and saw the drakeling dragging what looked like a suitcase down the stairs before coming between both alicorn and unicorn. "Okay, all set and ready to go." he announced. Twilight bit her lip as she tried to find the right way to put it to the young dragon. "Um, Spike, I know I've left you out before, but this time, I'm going to just say it outright, you're gonna have to sit this one out too." Spike raised an eyebrow. "Why? Fluttershy's my friend too, I'm not just gonna leave her out like that. Besides, last I checked, you seemed okay with me going with you yesterday." Twilight sighed, "Yes, I did, but you saw what lies on the other side. This might be too dangerous for you." Spike gave her a deadpan expression, "So?" he asked. "As in really dangerous." "So?" "As in you-could-get-killed really dangerous." "So?" "Spike!" Twilight snapped, starting to have enough. "What?" "You're a baby dragon. Let me repeat that, baby. Dragon. What would happen if you got lost? What if I couldn't protect you?" Spike closed his eyes and groaned. "Twilight, I have nearly been eaten by a hydra, ran away from home and was almost killed, went double or nothing to save Rarity from some Diamond Dogs, faced ridicule, hazing and more from teenagers of my own kind even going so far as to risk my life for a phoenix minutes away from hatching, witnessed a full-scale invasion on Canterlot, helped Princess Celestia fight off giant cockatrices, was almost skewered by a crazed former unicorn tyrant just to save the Crystal Empire, went into the Everfree Forest when it was going out of control, went into a supposedly 'haunted' castle and got sucked into a comic book. I'm going." Twilight tried to find a good argument but she let out a sigh of defeat. "Okay, you can come, but just stay close to me once we're there." Spike smiled at this and both dragon and alicorn left the library side-by-side. As soon as they left, Jade turned to Owlowiscious. "Well, my feathered friend, I guess it's a coincidence to be a friend to yet another princess." "Who?" the owl asked. Jade chuckled quietly before going to work and rearrange the recently turned in books. "Applebloom, while Ah'm gone, Ah want ya ta listen to yer brother an' granmother as if Ah were still here, understand? Dat means, get up bright an' early fer school, help yer brother with th' chores, bed by nine. Stop me if Ah missed any certain details." Applejack told her sister, Big Macintosh standing behind her and Granny Smith snoring in her rocking chair. Applebloom didn't answer instead she just stared at her sister with big open eyes. "Okay, do what Ah told ya and Ah'll see ya in six weeks." Applejack paused for a second, thinking about what Celestia and Luna had shown her and her friends. "Maybe." "Come back safe, sis." Applebloom told her. Applejack smiled and rubbed her sister's mane, "Ah'll try ma darndest." Suddenly, Winona came running in, barking excitedly as if to send her owner off. "Winona, ya'll didn't think Ah'd leave ya out didja?" the orange earth pony asked letting the cattle dog lick her. As soon as the dog settled down, Applejack gave her a nuzzle. "Keep an eye on things while Ah'm gone, 'kay?" Winona answered with a bark. "Atta girl." With that, Applejack walked out of the house, saddlebags tight and secured. As soon as she closed the door, Granny woke with a jump. "Eh, what was that? Did Applejack leave?" she asked. Big Mac responded with his usual, "Eeyup." "This is Tank's food. Feed him twice a day, although he can have a little snack in between meals, but that is if he's still hungry. Otherwise, twice a day." Rainbow Dash explained to her housekeeper, a pink pegasus with a blue mane and tail and a blue cutie mark that looked like two lightning bolts parallel to each other. "If you're bored, there's some Daring Do books you can read on that shelf behind you, actually you can read all the books except for one." "And which one would that be?" the pegasus asked. Rainbow Dash frowned, "The bright blue and rainbow one that reads 'Don't Even Think About It, Firefly'!" Firefly rolled her eyes. "Sis, we're not foals anymore. I've grown up. Move on." Rainbow Dash calmed down. "Still, stay out of my diary. Got it? Wing-Shake just to make sure." With that, she extended her left wing and pointed it towards her sister. Firefly sighed, "Dashie, do we really have to do this?" Rainbow narrowed her eyes, "Just shake the wing." The pink pegasus rolled her eyes and extended her right wing beneath her sister's. With that, both pegasi raised and lowered their wings in unison, giving off the illusion of a handshake. "I, Firefly, daughter of Jetstream and Bifröst, your sister, promise not to read your diary while you are away." Firefly told her in a bored tone. Rainbow Dash smiled. "Good. Well, best be off." She turned to Tank who was currently hovering next to her. "Be good for Firefly, 'kay, Buddy?" The tortoise just hovered closer to his master and nuzzled her. Rainbow blushed before flying off, leaving a rainbow streak and a very unimpressed Firefly behind her. "Wow," Firefly sarcastically remarked, "even grown up she's still a show-off." "I can't thank you enough for coming to help keep an eye on the Boutique, Sparkler." Rarity told her cousin, a light blue unicorn with an indigo mane just like her's but with red streaks and a similar cutie mark with six blue diamonds instead of three, "Who else would I turn to?" Sparkler chuckled amusingly at her cousin. Rarity then cleared her throat. "Well, on to business." she announced as she led her cousin to Opalescence who was currently taking a cat nap. "You remember Opal. She needs to be fed three times a day with this." Rarity instructed holding up an elegant-looking can of wet cat-food. "Only the best for my widdle Opal Wopal." she baby spoke rubbing her nuzzle into Opal's furry belly, causing the snow-white cat to look briefly at her owner before falling back to sleep, prompting Sparkler to roll her eyes. "Oh, before I forget." she paused. "Swee~tie Belle!" Rarity called out to the stairs. Almost immediately, the pearl-white unicorn foal came down from her guest room, having been left in Rarity's care by their parents while on their annual trips. Her eyes, drooping with sleep, widened when she saw the second unicorn. "Cousin Sparkler!" she cried out, giving her cousin a hug. Sparkler smiled at this, "Nice to see you too, Sweetie. How's that cutie mark coming along?" she asked. Sweetie looked away sheepishly before showing her cousin her bare flank. Sparkler smiled sympathetically, "You'll get it soon. Don't you worry." This caused Sweetie to brighten up. Rarity cleared her throat as she addressed her younger sister. "Sweetie, I'm going to be gone for awhile, I need you to listen to your cousin, go to school on time, bed by nine, understood?" Sweetie nodded. Rarity smiled in satisfaction. "Good. Take care you two." she told them as she trotted out the door, saddlebags at her side, leaving her sister and cousin in the room. "So," Sparkler spoke up, "you wanna play War Boat?" "And this is Gummy's water bowl. And this is his food bowl. Make sure to feed him lots of semi-solid foods because he has no teeth. Make sure to give him a bath, one for cleaning and the other just so he can swim around." Pinkie Pie instructed her cousin, a white pegasus with a blond mane and tail as well as a cutie mark consisting of three lavender balloons named Surprise. "Did ya get all that?" she asked. Surprise took in a deep breath, "Gummy's water bowl," she started, pointing at a green and pink bowl with the baby alligator's name etched on it with bright pink marker, "Gummy's food bowl," she pointed at a much larger bowl adjacent to the water one with the colors reversed and Gummy's name written in green, "Feed him semi-solid foods, give him a bath for cleaning and another for swimming. Got all that?" Pinkie smiled before turning her attention to Gummy. "Gummy, I want you to be good for Surprise, okay? I'm going to be gone for three months and I want you on your best behavior, okay?" she asked, earning Gummy's response in the form of his eyes blinking individually. Suddenly, her bright pink coat dulled and her long, curly pink mane and tail seemed to deflate. Tears also began to well up in her eyes before she wrapped the alligator in a hug, his expression not even changing once. "I'm gonna miss you, Gummy! I'll be back as soon as I can! Cross my heart and hope to fly. Stick a cupcake in my eye!" she cried. Surprise, finding this a little awkward was about to speak up until Pinkie's coat brightened and her mane and tail returned to their usual curly selves. "Well, can't be late, see ya, Surprise! Bye, Gummy." With that, Pinkie Pie put on her saddlebags and bounced out Sugar Cube Corner singing, "La-la-la-la-la" as she went. Discord stared at the little white rabbit standing beneath him, his front legs crossed and his eyes narrowed as he returned the stare. "Now, Angel, I know we got off on a bad start, what with me playing Fluttershy like a puppet on the strings and what not, not to mention torturing you, insulting you behind her back, but for her sake and as a gesture of my friendship towards her, why don't we let that slide for the time being and get along." the draconequus said. Angel still glared at him. "You're still mad at me about the whole 'playing your owner for a fool carrot' fiasco are you?" he asked. Discord's answer came in the form of a half-eaten carrot bouncing off his forehead. "Of course you are." Discord sighed. Of all the animals he was going to take care of for Fluttershy until she came back, he had to put up with Angel. The former Element Bearers then gathered in the center of Ponyville. "Alright, everything taken care of?" Twilight asked. The ponies nodded in response. "In that case-" Twilight started getting ready to teleport herself and her friends to Canterlot until she heard somepony cry out, "Princess Twilight!" The young alicorn turned to see a butter-yellow earth pony that looked almost identical to Fluttershy but with a shorter mane, her tail tied with a green ribbon and five flowers for a cutie mark galloping towards them. "Posey!" Twilight recognized her in surprise just as she stopped in front of her. Posey looked at the young princess with pleading eyes. "Please bring my daughter back safely." she begged. "Don't worry, Posey, we'll have Fluttershy back here before you can say 'lickety-split'." Rainbow Dash told her. Posey gave them a sad yet relieved smile and said, "Thank you." Twilight smiled at this and the rest of the former Element Bearers as well as Spike all gathered around her. Within two seconds, ponies and dragon disappeared from Ponyville center in a flash of light and reappeared in Canterlot Castle's main throne room where Luna, Celestia, Cadence and Shining were waiting for them with a giant horse-shoe shaped mirror standing a few feet from the throne. "I'm sorry to keep you waiting, Princesses." Twilight apologized, prompting a chuckle from Celestia. "Nonsense, Twilight, we weren't going to open the portal until you arrived." Luna then stepped forward. "I assume you've eaten light for breakfast?" she asked. Twilight nodded, remembering what the Night Princess told them before they left for Ponyville, "Eat a light breakfast before you come to Canterlot in the morning. The trip through the portal will be like that of a roller coaster." Luna then turned to face her sister who had also stepped forward, levitating seven bags of what looked like clothes behind her. "Before we open the portal, you might want to put these on." she said, pulling out unusual looking clothes and shoes from each bag and handing them to Shining Armor, Twilight, her friends, and Spike. Suddenly, Rainbow Dash spoke up, "Whoa, whoa, whoa! You're not going to get me to play dress up! You can't make me!" Twilight telekinetically grabbed the pegasus's ear and pulled her until their eyes met. "Rainbow Dash, we do not have time to argue about dressing up. Just put them on." she growled. Rainbow Dash, gave her a nervous smile and began to put on the clothes in front of her. After a few minutes, the former Element Bearers, Shining Armor and Spike were all dressed in strange clothing. Applejack was dressed in a somewhat country-style look. Her hindlegs bearing what looked like socks and half-length boots that looked as if they were too big for her legs. Her flank was covered in long black pants with her tail bent forward, its tuft sticking out of the rim, no doubt giving her a sense of discomfort. The front half of her body was covered in a strange red and orange shirt with sleeves that stopped near her shoulders and seemed to blend in with her coat. Her stetson was still on her head. Rarity wore what looked like high-heeled horseshoes that appeared a little too loose for her hooves However, instead of long pants, or a shirt for that matter, she wore what looked like a white and blue-fringed slit skirt that started at her front body and ended near her flank, her tail sticking out behind it. Rainbow Dash was dressed very similarly to Applejack but with much shorter looking socks, blue shoes, baggier looking blue pants, a bright blue t-shirt with her wings tucked under it and strange black and red "mittens" with five holes sticking out. Much like Applejack, her tail was bent forward. Twilight wore something much like that of Rainbow Dash and Applejack, but with some differences. She had baggy-looking black pants that looked softer than Applejack or Dash's, a purple shirt with long sleeves and holes as well and black slippers on her hind hooves. Much like Rainbow Dash, she had her wings tucked underneath her shirt. Pinkie Pie was perhaps dressed the strangest. Her pants were a darker shade of pink and only ended half-way at her hind limbs. Her hooves were covered by green shoes that appeared to look more like soles with loop-shaped straps on their tops. Her shirt was yellow with blue fringes on the openings for her shoulders, head and bottom, much like the balloons on her cutie mark. Her front hooves also had blue foreleg guards. Spike dressed in a much different fashion. He wore what looked like a green long sleeved shirt, purple pants that ended before they even reach his calves, green shoes with purple soles and blue gloves similar to Rainbow Dash with his fingers sticking out of four of the five holes. Shining Armor wore a bright white sleeveless shirt with long blue pants. His hooves had loose fitting shoes with white socks underneath. "When entering the portal, you will not only arrive in the human world, you will become humans yourselves." Celestia explained, "The humans tend to wear these types of clothes as going naked is taboo. That is why, for the duration of your time there, you will have to wear the clothes in these bags." Luna spoke up next and handed the ponies and dragon seven pouches as well as small slips of paper. Spike opened his and looked into it. He raised an eyebrow as he pulled out what looked like a dull gray bit with no other defining features, not even a pony emblem most common on other bits. "Uh, what are these bits used for?" he asked. "Those bits," Luna answered, "are called World Bits. They transform into the currency of whatever world they are in. The paper has the ability to transform into bus or train passes." Celestia then stepped to her sister's side. "Sister, it is time we opened the portal." she told her. Luna nodded and the two alicorns stepped towards the mirror. As soon as they reached it, both sisters charged their horns with magic and connected them. From their horns, a beam of yellow and blue light spiraled outwards, spread out and struck the rubies on the sides of the mirror. The reflective surface seemed to glow as bright as the sun, causing all gathered around it to cover their eyes and turn away. Almost as sudden as it appeared, the light vanished. Twilight and the others turned towards the mirror and saw the mirror's rubies were now shining like tiny red stars. "Did it work?" Applejack asked. "I don't see the harm in finding out." Rainbow Dash replied before trotting up to the mirror. As soon as she was inches away, she slowly reached her left front hoof towards its surface... only for its tip to pass straight through. Startled, Rainbow Dash pulled her hoof back and caused the mirror to ripple like a pond that just had a pebble thrown into it. She then poked the surface again, this time sticking her whole hoof inside for a span of ten seconds before pulling it out with a giggle. "Hey, somepony go around and see if my hoof's sticking out the other side!" she called out. Pinkie was about to join in until Twilight yelled, "Rainbow, forgive me if I sound rude, but, we need to get Fluttershy back and I'd appreciate it if you got your rainbow-colored flank in gear!" Rainbow groaned before turning her attention to the portal. As soon as her muzzle was two inches from the quicksilver, she swallowed. "Okay, new world, here I come." With that, she slowly entered the liquid-like surface. First her face, then her front hooves until she disappeared behind the ripples. Next to step forward was Shining, with Spike on his back. "Ready for this, kiddo? he asked. "Ready as I'll ever be." the drakeling replied. Before they could reach it, Cadence galloped over to them and nuzzled Shining. "Make it back safe, okay?" she said. "Hey, this stallion's lived through Buck Withers, the Changelings and King Sombra. This world might as well be a piece of cake." he bragged. Spike rolled his eyes at this. Cadence gave him a smile and kissed him on the cheek. With that, Shining galloped into the portal along with Spike. Next, Pinkie Pie came barreling towards the portal screaming, "HANG ON, FLUTTERSHY! AUNTIE PINKIE'S COMING TO SAVE YOU!" With that, she disappeared into the surface. Applejack and Rarity were up next, although the latter had decided now was the time to start complaining right as they were just a few inches away from the portal. "If this is what the humans wear all the time, it must be an absolute miracle to go from place to place. I mean really!" Applejack groaned. There was no time for this at all. "Rarity, what was mah element?" she asked. Rarity gave her friend a confused look. "Huh?" The earth pony asked again, only slower, "What. Was. Mah. Element?" "Honesty, last I remembered." "Yep, honesty. It wasn't patience." "Well, I never said it was, Darling." Applejack gritted her teeth. "WOULD YA JUST GO THROUGH TH' PORTAL ALREADY!?" Rarity turned around and looked at her friend straight in the eye, giving her a face whenever somepony or someone was ever rude to her before she slowly walked backwards into the portal, her eyes never once leaving her friend's until her face was swallowed up by the mirror. Applejack shook her head and followed her. Twilight was about to follow until she heard Celestia address her. She turned just in time for the white alicorn to place a strange bracelet with a glowing orange stone on her right front leg. "A good luck charm?" Celestia shook her head. "No, that stone will glow when the portal opens and show you which direction it is." Twilight turned to the mirror, gulped and turned back to face her former teacher with hesitation. Celestia saw this and nuzzled her. "It's alright, Twilight. You've been through so much. I have full confidence in that you'll find your friend and return safely." The young alicorn gave her a small smile. Celestia returned it before saying, "Good luck, Twilight." Twilight nodded and walked toward the mirror. Just as she was inches away from its surface, she put her hoof into it. She felt as though she were putting her hoof into a pond exposed to the cold autumn wind. She pulled it back, watching the ripples spread out. For a while she gazed in awe before she snapped back into reality. She took a deep breath, closed her eyes and entered the liquid-like surface. When Twilight opened her eyes, she saw what looked like a tunnel of light and rainbow colors. However, she soon felt as though something was pulling on her left front hoof. Curious, Twilight rose her hoof only to widen her eyes in horror. Her hoof looked as if it were being stretched out like a rubber band, causing her to scream in shock. Suddenly, she felt her whole body stretch out. Within moments, the former Element Bearer of Magic was sent swirling through the void, screaming as she went. Then everything went black. "Twilight? Are you okay?" "Twily, come on, talk to me." "Is she dead?" "Oh wait, wait, she's waking up." Twilight groaned as she woke up. Now I know how a fish feels when it's flushed down a toilet. she thought to herself. She then lifted what she thought was her right foreleg only for her vision to clear and see it was completely different. She now had five appendages that, at a first glance, looked a little bit like claws, however, upon turning them around, she saw semi-transparent plates on the tops. Her purple fur was gone and in its place was a cream-colored skin, some of it was covered by her sleeve. Twilight shook it in horror. "Does anypony have a mirror?" she asked weakly. "Here you go, Darling." Rarity told her, presumably levitating a portable mirror to her despite there not being any sound of her magic being used. Twilight grabbed the mirror and brought it close to her face. While some of her features were still present, such as her violet eyes as well as her sapphire and red/purple streaked hair, her muzzle was now more compacted while her ears were on the sides of her head, hidden by the locks of her hair. She then looked up and saw her friends and brother had also changed. They now stood on long hind legs with their fore legs turned into arms. Like her, their muzzles had disappeared and were compacted, with only their eyes and hair as proof of what they once were. She then looked at the rest of her friends and brother. Rarity had a much paler complexion opposed to her. She was also thin, not stick-like but not looking like somepony (or rather someone) who took the time for exercise. Her indigo hair came down to her neck in a downward version of her mane. Her slit skirt came down to her thighs while her high-heels now looked like they fit her feet. Or maybe it was the other way around. Rainbow Dash had to be the shortest, only coming up to Rarity's shoulder. Her mane was now a shoulder-length, ruffled mess of rainbow colored hair. She also had a very athletic look to her and slightly more tanned skin. Beside her was Applejack who stood slightly taller, her knotted hair reaching to her waist. Her skin bore a much deeper tan with a bit of muscles showing, probably due to all those years of apple-bucking. Pinkie Pie stood a foot beside them. In place of her hind hooves, her strange shoes revealed she now had what looked like more deformed looking 'hands' for feet, with all five 'fingers' in a row going from biggest to smallest. She still had her curly pink hair. Twilight also noticed she was slightly rounder than all the others, maybe something to do with her sweet tooth. Shining Armor was the biggest of them all in both height and build. His tanned body rippled with muscles. His head was somewhat of a mix of round and angled with his tri-blue hair and cerulean eyes from his pony form still present. Finally there was Spike. He was now a little boy, probably no more than 10-11 years of age with spiky green hair and vibrant green eyes. His body was very stocky. All of them were wearing the clothes Celestia gave them. Twilight was about to scream but instead began the deep breath practices Cadence had taught her before getting straight to business. "Alright, guys, we need to find Fluttershy and the portal again in three months, otherwise we're gonna be stuck here." she told them. She then turned to see that Pinkie had her hand up. "Yes, Pinkie?" "Where do we start?" Pinkie asked. "Well, Pinkie, we, um." Twilight paused for a second while she pondered. Where do we start? she asked herself. While at the breakfast table, Kenji stared at Fluttershy as she slowly ate her rice with her chopsticks. She was a little bit awkward at first, her sticks constantly sliding against each other, but after two more tries, she got the hang of it. He began to think of something to say but every time he opened his mouth he closed it. That was until Kimiko bumped him with her elbow. "Talk to her." she whispered. "And tell her what?" "I don't know, ask her if she wants to see the sights or something. For starters, why not get her some new clothes?" "What?" "No offense, bro, but you can't keep borrowing clothes from me while she's here." "That was just one night." "Kenji." Kenji sighed and turned to Fluttershy. "Hey, Fuka." Fluttershy looked up at him. "I was thinking if you wanted to go out and shop with me for a little bit, seeing as you don't have any... er... clothes of your own." he inquired. Well that came out stupid. "Um, actually, I wouldn't mind." Fluttershy replied blushing. "Where do you plan on shopping?" Aki asked, her eyes closed after having taken a sip of her tea. "Well, I was thinking about Minato." Kenji replied. Aki opened her eyes and looked at her son, a serious look on her face. "How much yen do you need?" "I was thinking maybe ¥5225." Aki continued to stare at her son before Kenji sighed. "I'll be fine, Mom." "Just making sure you are, sweetie." "Oh, before I forget, Kimiko? Do you mind if I borrow a pair of sandals for Fuka?" Kenji asked. Kimiko looked at him with a face that said, "Did you not hear what I just told you?" Kenji rolled his eyes, "Last time while she's here, cross my heart, hope to die." Aki cleared her throat. "Aren't you forgetting a couple of things?" she asked. Kenji gave her a confused look, "I have to take a bath?" "Before that." "Fuka has to take a bath?" "Before that." "I have to help do the dishes?" "Feed the dog." Kenji rolled his eyes before whistling for Ami, followed almost immediately by a streak of white fur to come bounding down the stairs before the snow-white Akita stood in front of them, her mouth open and tongue hanging out. Kenji motioned her to sit while he scooped up the remainder of his rice and put it into a bowl filled with dog food. As soon as he placed the bowl in front of his dog, she began to devour what was in front of her. After getting dressed and taking a bath, Kenji walked Fluttershy outside and presented her with a pair of brown open-toe sandals at the edge of the house. She looked at them curiously. "Look, we can't have you walking around like that." Kenji told her while gesturing to her bare feet. Fluttershy seemed to hesitate before kneeling down and put the sandals on each foot. As she stood up, she wobbled at first before gaining her footing. Kenji smiled before calling out, "Mom, we're heading out!" "Do you have your yen?" his mother asked from inside. "Yes." "Do you have your bus pass?" "Yes." "Just checking, son." Kenji sighed and walked himself and Fluttershy to a bus stop. After waiting a good fifteen minutes, a blue bus arrived in front of them and a man in a white shirt with a black tie opened the doors for them. "Where to?" he asked. "Two for Minato." Kenji replied handing him two bus passes and walking Fluttershy to a seat, with her right next to a window for her to stare out as the bus drove towards Minato. "We have been at this for hours, Twilight! Fluttershy could be anywhere!" Rainbow told her friend as they wandered through the crowded city streets. "Besides, what would she even look like?" Twilight pondered for a second before it hit her. "Our mane colors stayed the same after we passed through the portal right?" "Um, yes." Rarity replied. "So if the colors of our manes stayed the same, so would Fluttershy's." Rainbow Dash's face lit up. "You've got a point there, Twi. I'll just scout ahead." She then turned around and looked towards the sky. After a few seconds, she noticed she was still on the ground. "Maybe a little bouncing oughta do it." Rainbow said hopping a few inches off the ground, only to attract the stares of several confused people around her. "Why. Can't I. Fly?" she asked with each hop. She then reached over to her back and gasped. The former pegasus then touched her back again in disbelief. "No." she whispered sadly. "MY WINGS ARE GONE!" Rainbow then fell to her knees and shouted tearfully, "WHY!?" With that, she sobbed into her open hands while other people just walked away. "Don't worry, Dashie," Pinkie told the ex-pegasus while patting her shoulder, "Twilight, doesn't have her wings or horn and she's fine." Rainbow Dash sniffed before hugging her for fifteen seconds before telling her, "Pinkie Swear you will never tell anypony what happened when we get home." Pinkie did her trademark swear silently, adding a wink. "Right, seeing as we no means of flight, (sorry, Rainbow Dash), we'll just have to ask." Twilight said. With that, Twilight walked up to a man with a greenish-gray bandana on his head and tapped him on his shoulder, getting his attention. "Excuse me, sir, my name is Twilight Sparkle. My friends and I are looking for a girl with long pink hair. Have you seen her?" she asked. The man gave them a raised eyebrow. "I'm pretty sure she's at whatever convention you're attending." he answered. As he walked off he muttered something that sounded like, "Crazy cos-players." Twilight groaned. "Well, that got us nowhere!" Rainbow Dash exclaimed. Shining placed a comforting hand on his sister's shoulder. "Don't worry, Twily. We'll find her." "Okay, how do these look?" Kenji asked Fluttershy handing her a pair of white, yellow-toed slip-on shoes. Fluttershy pondered at this before shaking her head. "How about these?" he asked, this time holding up a pair of pink high-heels with yet another head shake. "These?" Fluttershy noticed he now had a pair of black boots, each with silver spikes running down their sides and a chrome toe. Fluttershy cowered and shook her head twice as fast before Kenji slowly set them back down with a sigh. He then showed her a pair of yellow flip-flops with a pattern of pink butterflies and a pair of yellow slipper shoes, to which he received a smile and nod. After a good fifteen minutes of shopping, Fluttershy now wore a sundress almost identical to Kimiko's but with spiraling pink designs and the yellow slipper shoes. Fluttershy then examined herself from head-to-toe, twirling herself around. Kenji began to stare at her. She looked pretty cute actually; her long pink air fanning out as she spun and the sewn-in butterflies giving off the illusion of movement. "Attention. Attention. Kaiju Alert Level at Code Yellow. Anomaly detected. Kaiju activity yet to be confirmed. Stand by for further updates." The Kaiju Alert system brought Kenji out of his trance before he told Fluttershy it was time to go. Mamoru Kennosuke sighed as he stared out towards Minato's shoreline from his hotel window The fifty-something Osakan was currently on a three-day business trip in Minato but even so, homesickness began to settle in. It didn't help much either, seeing as his daughter was about to give birth to his first grandchild, a girl named Miki. Only two more days. he thought to himself. Suddenly, he saw the faint speckle of a bird flying off in the distance. Mamoru shrugged and was about to head back to his hotel and flop back onto his bed when he saw movement under the water. He looked in closer, thinking it was just another wave, only to see a glimpse of what looked like a tail and a spiked back poking out from the surface. As the object got closer and larger, one word escaped the man's lips, "Kaiju." Near the docks, several fishing boats were rocked by the passing of the approaching Kaiju, some of them knocked over or sliced in half by its spikes before the beast raised its head out of the water and roared. Kenji and Fluttershy strode down the sidewalks of Minato, the latter looking around wide-eyed at the streets as if she had come for the first time. Kenji was about to speak up when he heard something that sent a chill down his spine. "Warning. Warning. Kaiju Alert Level at Code Red. Kaiju approaching vicinity. Proceed to a safe location immediately." All of a sudden, people stopped what they were doing and looked around in fear after the Kaiju Alert System blurted around the street. Kenji could feel Fluttershy's body pressing up against his and her hands tightening around his arm. He could tell she was scared, not that he blamed her. He was just as scared. Suddenly, a loud thundering noise echoed throughout the streets. At first they seemed like earthquakes, but not quite. Earthquakes didn't have a pattern of four instantaneous bursts, nor did they send people running like what was happening now. After the tide of human life passed by, Kenji's heart skipped a beat as a giant brownish-gray paw with four triangular claws the size of RV's slammed onto the concrete. This was immediately followed by the paw's owner lumbering into full sight. To say the beast was large would be an understatement. Even on all fours, the monster easily dwarfed any living creature on the planet. Its massive body was supported by four trunk-like limbs that it walked on like a cross between a bear and an elephant. The beast itself looked like a cross between a turtle and a rhinoceros, with an elongated, crocodilian head that sported six curving horns on the back of its skull and a smaller horn jutting in between its nostrils as well as two fangs that stuck out from its upper jaw. A giant carapace lay on its back covered with thousands of small (compared to it) spikes. A long tail, also covered in spikes, curled and whipped behind it. "Anguirus." Kenji whispered in awe. Fluttershy briefly glanced at him upon the mention of the behemoth's name before turning back to the beast. 'Anguirus' paused for a second before turning its massive head to the sky and letting out a trumpeting roar. Just like that, people ran into a panic. "All units, report to battle stations. Kaiju. Beta-class. Subject confirmation: Anguirus." Following the synthetic female voice, G-Force soldiers began to scramble to their positions as they were trained to do in situations like this. Akane Yashiro ran straight through the doors of G-Force control and peered over Kenichi Yamane's shoulder and at his monitor. "How far inland is he?" she asked. "About thirteen miles, ma'am. M-Type 66 divisions have been deployed." the bespectacled youth responded, not looking at her. "MechaG ready to deploy as well?" she asked. Kenichi looked at the brown-haired, thirty-year-old beauty. "MechaG's still in the repair bay after that little beatdown from the Big Guy." "Double all Maser divisions just to be safe." Akane told him before walking off. Kenichi rolled his eyes and went back to his work. "It's just Anguirus." "FLUTTERSHY!" Pinkie yelled out, her hands cupped around her mouth. "YO, FLUTTERSHY, WHERE ARE YA?" Rainbow joined in, both former ponies ignoring their friends. "Darlings, I don't think calling her name is really going to help." Rarity told them. Suddenly, a man rushed past her, nearly knocking her off her feet. With a 'hmph', Rarity dusted herself. "How very rude." she grumbled until she noticed several people running the same direction with the man. Twilight stopped one of them, another man. "What's with all the running?" she asked. The man pointed behind him, "K-k-KAIJU!" With that he continued running, leaving the former ponies in confusion. "Cashew?" Pinkie blurted out confused. "No, he said 'Kaiju'." Applejack told her. "Oh." Pinkie nodded. "What's a Kaiju?" she asked. "Can't say Ah know." the blonde shrugged. Spike heard a strange barking honk far off in the distance behind him. Upon turning around, his eyes widened with shock. "Uh, guys. I think I just figured what a 'Kaiju' is." Shining followed his gaze and paled, this was followed by the rest of the pony-turned-humans turning and staring in awe. Not too far, they saw a gigantic beast that looked like a three-way cross between an armadillo, a porcupine and rhinoceros lumbering in between a pair of steel and glass buildings. Even from this distance, the monster was enormous, about equal to, if not bigger than, an Ursa Minor. That must have been one of the beasts Celestia and Luna warned them about. Twilight raised an eyebrow. That's what the princesses were afraid of? Sure that thing's big but it's nothing like those monsters they showed us. she thought. Just then, a pair of strange metal 'birds' entered her sight. The beast turned its gargantuan head towards them and let out another honk. The bird-like objects responded by each shooting a flaming projectile at it. As soon as they made their mark, two explosions appeared on the monster's side, causing it to roar in either pain or anger. Its tail whipped around and slammed into a building, the faint sound of glass shattering filled the air. Oh. Twilight paled, That's why. Kenji held Fluttershy's hand tightly as he ran from the enraged Anguirus. The irritated Kaiju didn't help matters as he stomped around in aggravation, occasionally raising up his hind legs in an attempt to catch a passing jet in his jaws only for them to stay far out of reach. Every time he replanted his front limbs, the entire street shuddered and windows exploded into shards from the impact waves. Suddenly, he saw a row of tanks roll onto the street, as SDF soldiers waved and called out to panicking civilians to seek shelter. Wasting no time, Kenji pulled Fluttershy along with him as the tanks fired their explosive shells at the rampaging monster. Amidst the chaos, Kenji could also see a row of ten to twelve vehicles that, at a first glance, looked just like artillery platforms. However, instead of howitzers, the vehicles carried what looked like giant satellite dishes attached to a pulsating, rectangular stalk. Upon reaching the Kaiju, the stalks rose to a diagonal postion while the dishes lowered slightly, staying forward and aimed at the armored monster. Almost immediately, the dishes let out a stream of electricity at Anguirus, striking his chest dead-on. Anguirus recoiled, letting out a higher pitched howl of pain or annoyance. The electricity-shooting tanks began to advance and continue their fire on the armored monster as he began to fall back. Akane watched as the large green dot representing Anguirus was being pushed back into the harbor by the smaller blue dots representing the Maser cannons. The woman then let out a sigh of content. Kaiju themselves were hard or nearly impossible to kill anyway, the most they could do was at least make them leave the same way they entered. Though something began to bother her. Anguirus was not a pushover. He was known for his tenacity and, even under suppressing fire from some Masers, would still make some sort of attempt to continue his advance. "We got another signature." Kenichi announced. Akane walked over and peered at his monitor to see a green dot headed towards Anguirus' location, its size indicating it as a much larger and more powerful Alpha-class. Just what we need. Akane sarcastically thought. "What's the subject's designation?" she asked. Kenichi began to type in order to identify the new Kaiju only to stop and slowly turn to face his superior as if he had seen a ghost. "It's him." he told her. Akane's eyes widened. Not good. she thought. Really not good. Fluttershy couldn't help but shed some tears for the giant beast. Sure it caused destruction but it didn't deserve something like getting shot at with bolts of energy. It was still just a mere animal. A big one, yes, but still an animal nonetheless. She wanted to cover her ears just so she could block out its howling roars. Kenji looked at her and didn't know what to think. Right now, it was best that the two of them find shelter until the Kaiju passed. However, before he could speak, a new roar, one much louder split across the sky from the west. Upon hearing it, everyone, even Anguirus who now decided to ignore the Maser blasts, turned towards the source. This was also followed by much louder sounding footsteps. Kenji narrowed his eyes as he thought he saw the outline of something gigantic moving within the cloud of debris kicked up by the battle. Suddenly, his heart stopped as a giant, four-clawed, gray hand reached out of the cloud and gripped the side of a building. Then a pair of glowing, orange and red eyes glared out of the smoke towards the humans and Kaiju before it. "What is that?" Fluttershy whispered. Kenji gulped as the beast began to emerge from the smoke and spoke its name. A name of a monster that everyone feared. The very first one ever recorded in modern day as well as the worst ever encountered. The Butcher of Tokyo. The God of Destruction. The King of the Monsters. "Godzilla." To be continued...