//------------------------------// // Present is Prologue // Story: Crossover // by Captain Jack Sparrow //------------------------------// Crossover As distant flashes of battle melded with a gray, alien sky, Lyra Heartstrings crept silently beneath the shade of Sweet Apple Acres' throngs of trees. With sleep-deprived, yet determined eyes she gazed upward, looking for any sign of the fruit her stomach desperately ached for. However, the branches were bare, their harvest plucked dry by unknown hooves. Taking a deep, defeated breath, she and her companion leaned back against the nearest tree, scanning their surroundings for even a hint of movement. "Not one apple," Lyra sighed, glancing towards her red-furred companion. "You're sure this is where the personal trees are kept, right?" "E'Yup," Big Mac said, the normal heart enthusiasm in his voice leeched dry. "Then who's been eating all the apples?!" Lyra cried silently (and over dramatically, to Big Mac's chagrin). "My bellly's givin' the rumblies! "Beats me," he said, annoyed. "Scavengers maybe." "Nopony's left in Ponyville, though," Lyra blinked. "Who could have cleared this whole field?!" "Not who," Big Mac said. "What. Those critters we saw earlier. Those lion-sized ants. Maybe they've been having a meal or too?" "Lion-sized ants..." Lyra pondered. "Mmm... good name, but how about Antlions?" "I don' matter what you cal l em'. The fact is that many bugs are ominvores. Same could be for them." Lyra blinked, glancing at him with a stunned expression. "D-Did you just say 'omnivore?'" "E'Yup," Big Mac said, annoyed as ever. He knew full well what Lyra was getting at. However, another thought soon to precedence in his mind. He narrowed his eyes. "Mph. The whole darn' farm could be empty cus' of them. So much for cider season..." Lyra sighed, glancing blankly at the sky. Through the gray mist that had overtaken the land, two, massive planets were hovering ominously in the heavens, one red, the other gray-blue. They had not been there a week ago. Though beautiful in their own way, they were more of a grim reminder of what had happened, of what had changed. Not even the sky looked the same anymore. "I don't think there's going to be anymore of any kind of seasons after this, Big Mac," Lyra sighed. He shot her glare. "Keep talkin' like that and there won't be." He slowly stood up. "C'mon, let's get back to Rainbow. Maybe her or Turner found something." "Yeah, if anypony has, it'll be Rainbow," Lyra said, forcing a smile. "There we go," Big Mac nodded appreciatively. "Don't be gettin' all cynical on me now. "Right, gotta keep my mind on the present." "E'Yup," the red stallion nodded. "It's what I always do." Lyra smiled, and then tilted her head in the peculiar way Big Mac had begun to realize meant she was about to ask him questions, and therefore make him speak. Talking wasn't something he was particularly fond of unless he needed to. Unfortunately, Lyra made him need to a lot. "Hey Big Mac?" she said, right on schedule. "What?" "Do you really think that Rainbow can figure a way out of this mess?" she said hopefully. He glanced away from her. "I dunno... it's possible. She definitely seems to--" He paused, quickly snapping his head to the right. Lyra caught on fairly quickly, clapping her muzzle shut. A rustling noise could be heard coming from the thick brush that had overtaken the farm. Without the Apple Family's care, the Earth Pony magic that were normally meant to help their apple trees grow more quickly were now being used by other shrubs... and not all were Equestrian. Even nearby, alien flora was beginning to join the fauna that had begun appearing out of nowhere. Twisting red vines and blue, glow-in-the dark, pod-like sprouts had shot up in the immediate vicinity, joining the normal, Equestrian tall grass. Then came the clicking of mandibles. "Oh no," Lyra gulped. "Not another one..." "Stand firm," Big Mac grunted. "We've taken em' down before. Think' you can do another stunning spell?" "I only started learning yesterday!" Lyra whined silently. "And I could barely concentrate then!" "Gotta learn by doin', then," Big Mac grunted, throwing Lyra a determined, annoyed glance. This was before he realized she was shivering, however. "Hey..." he said calmly, patting her on the back. "Don't worry. I've got your back, just try to have mine, okay?" "R-Right." Lyra swallowed hard at that, giving a quivering nod, before pointing her horn at the tall grass. The rustling was growing closer, and the clicking of alien mandibles could be heard. In the meantime, Big Mac readied himself, turning about with his hind legs ready to buck whatever came out of the tall grass. Then, with a fury of flying reeds, it burst forth, its bug-like wings flapping fiercely as it let loose a shrill hiss. It was a four legged creature, not like an ant in that regard, but its size and ferocity more than put the lion in Antlion. "Lyra! Hit it!" Big Mac shouted. Lyra nodded, trying desperately to concentrate, her horn cackling and sparkling. However, nothing came from it. "Lyra?" "I-I can't do it!" Lyra cried. "Lyra, watch out!" The Antlion lunged, letting loose an eye-piercing shriek as it did so as it surged towards Lyra. "EEEEEP!" she squealed, falling down on her frontal legs and covering her head. The Antlion raised a spiked talon, preparing to shred it into her, when-- "RAAAUGH!" With the force of a locomotive, a powerful, Earth Pony buck tour into the creature, sending it careening, hissing and clicking, into another patch of brush nearby. It howled in pain, squirming on its back as it tried to right itself. Lyra's look of despair turned 180 degrees in the opposite direction, a grin crossing her face. "Yeaaah! We got it!" "Yeah, we," Big Mac chuckled. "Now come on, let's get out of here before--" If the singular shriek of an Antlion was bad enough, the sound of a pack of them was something else entirely. Where the singular Antlion had come from, tall grass bent and jiggled, and the sound of a virtual stampede permeated the air. "E'Nope," Big Mac gulped. "RUN FOR IT!" Like two bats out of hell, Lyra and Big Mac zig-zagged between apple trees as a virtual wave of Antlions barred down on their hinds. Shrieking and hollering, they summoned more of their kin for an easy lunch, the two fanged teeth that stuck out from their 'mouths' dripping in anticipation. "Ooooh man!" Lyra shouted, panting, ducking a low tree branch before leaping over a formally airborne Antlion that had buzzed down right in front of her. "This is soooo Karma for all the ones I've accidentally stepped on, isn't it?!" "Whatever the reason, we're not headin' the right way," Big Mac huffed, steam billowing from his snout. "We're s'posed to meet Rainbow in Northern Everfree. We're headin' South. We'll need to loop around!" "And hopefully lose these guys before we--" she was cut short as another Antlion appeared before her, this one literally popping out of the ground from an apparent burrow. "Oh nonono!" she squealed, finding herself surrounded from the front and back. "I thought you said that they wouldn't be able to burrow here!" "Comin'!" Big Mac shouted, halting from his forward dash, turning about, and bucking the Antlion into oblivion. "Oh my gosh, thank you!" Lyra squealed. "Thank me later n' run!" he growled, before grabbing Lyra and virtually throwing her forward, him following close behind. However, their path was cut short as they entered a small clearing. Antlions were appearing from all sides, forming a ring around the two. "Oh Tartarus," Big Mac said, sweat dripping down his forehead. "O-Oh maaaan," Lyra shuttered. "I wish Fluttershy was here right now... she can tame anything!" "E-E'Yup..." said sorrowfully. "Guess we'll be joinin' her soon, -hhuh?" Lyra continued, closing her eyes, though the snarls of the Antlions gave her no reprieve from the reality of the situation. Slowly, she sat down, tears forming in the corner of her eyes, and a lump forming in her throat. "M-Maybe it's just for the best..."