There is a reason why certain things are not allowed. Reasons why our parents tell us not to do things we see no harm in. They are the elders who know from experience. And now, so do I. Always listen to your parents, don't wander off and buy props.
I'm afraid. I'm alone.
These are the only thoughts I could think of as I found myself in a dark forest after a lightning strike. I have no Idea how, or why I am here. But one thing is certain, my parents are not here and I should have listened to them when they told me not to speak to strangers.
At least there are no monsters here...
*Grrrrrrrrr*
MOMMY!
The story of an unfortunate boy who finds himself in an unknown world. With no parents or siblings to guide him, the boy has to face dangers by himself. He will have to grow up fast and learn what it means to be a survivor, even if he doesn't always like to do what has to be done.
A story of how a lone boy survives the horrors of the Everfree with his own body and clothes to call his own. Wait, scratch that, only his clothes. Now, let's see how he handles his new powers.
*Facepalm* Forgot to mention ... This is a Displaced story.
*Double Facepalm* I really should have mentioned it here in the description, but it's a spoiler, and only comes into effect during the fourth chapter: This story, plays out in the same universe as the Displaced story, "The Flames of a Phoenix" written by FrostTheWolf who was nice enough to let me use the same world for Caesar.
This all started on a rather usual day. A small family was on a yard sale with wares from the entire neighborhood, looking for diamonds in the rough. The father, the mother and the son were all there. And it was truly a joyous day as the father had recently been promoted and now had a higher income, enough to finally let the family achieve their dream of buying their own house instead of renting an apartment.
However, some days are better than others, and this one would soon turn into a rather sad one for the whole family, one none of them would forget anytime soon. A day of great loss.
Currently, the father was managing the family's own table, full of old stuff the family no longer needed or wanted. And while the father did all the boring work, the mother and son were enjoying themselves by looking around the other tables and the wares they contained. The son, Caesar was very excited this day. He had helped out at home and behaved well, like he always did. As a reward, he had been given a little bonus to his allowance so that he could buy something that caught his eye during the yard sale. The boy was in the best of spirits as he ran around between the tables, giving his mother a hard time trying to keep an eye on her son, yet she had a smile on her face as she saw her son enjoy himself.
The reason the boy's mother was glad to see him so happy was because the boy had been really down as of late, he had been bullied for his silent behavior, something that couldn't really be explained. He just preferred not to speak. He would much rather write his thoughts down as a message or use gestures. But once he did speak he would do so as little as possible. Meaning he spoke only when absolutely necessary. Something that made him a target for bullies.
Thankfully the bullies had not bothered Caesar as of late thanks to the teacher talking to them about it. And now he was happy as a whistle. Jumping around between tables in his favorite yellow hoodie. One he loved for the fact that it was yellow, just like his favorite cartoon character, Pikachu.
After having made sure her son was staying well within sight and had finally stopped to look at the different wares the mother started doing the same, only she found something a lot more practical then the toys her son found, she was looking at clothes.
What the mother didn't notice was the fact that her son also found a table selling clothes and accessories, and he found something that would suit him perfectly: A pair of Pikachu ears in his size. He knew immediately where he would spend his money.
Caesar approached the lady sitting at the table and waved his arm a little to catch her attention. As he did, he immediately pointed towards the Pikachu ears and showed her the money he had with him.
"You wish to purchase those toy ears?" the woman asked, Caesar nodding in response.
"Alright. two dollars please." The woman told him as she reached out her open hand, the other one holding the requested item.
Struggling for a moment, Caesar managed to separate two one-dollar bills out of the small collection he had and handed them over to the lady. Receiving the money the lady smiled and gave him his new possession.
"Pleasure doing businesses with you Caesar." The woman told him with a smile as he nodded and turned around to show off his find to his mother.
"Mom, look!" Caesar exclaimed as he spotted his mother, only now realizing something important. He never spoke to the woman, and he didn't recognize her from this neighborhood. How had she know his name?
Putting on the Pikachu ears he decided to ask her. But as he once again turned around the world flashed white and he heard a loud scream.
"Caesar!!!"
Call it coincidence, call it instinct, or call it a mothers love. The moment she heard her son call out to her with his cheerful voice, a sense of dread filled her. Something was extremely wrong! As she turned around she saw him. Just having put on a pair of Pikachu ears, the metal band keeping them from falling off concealed by the boys blonde hair. He was turning around to look behind him, where there was nothing but a house wall. But the sense of dread continued, even if there was no evident threat to the boy, she simply felt she had to be right beside him, right now.
And that's when it happened. A big lightning bolt struck down. In the middle of the day, in a cloudless sky, a lightning bolt struck. And right under the strike stood one nine-year-old boy. In his black shorts, Pikachu yellow hoodie and fake Pikachu ears. His hair lighting up from the sudden light, making it match the color of his attire. As the lightning descended towards the boy, the mother could only do one thing. She called out to the boy she so wanted to protect.
"Caesar!!! was all she managed to say before the deadly flow of electrons hit her more than sacred child.
As the woman was hit by the sound and and heat from the impact of the light, she barely budged. Not many things in the universe can budge a woman when it concerns her child, not even this. She was petrified, she had just seen the most horrifying thing a woman ever could, the death of her own child. Her brilliant boy, the boy who rarely spoke, her child who had breezed through school and had even jumped a few years. Her child who had just been there, in front of her, smiling.
Tears soon began to fall as the tear ducts responded to the feelings assaulting the woman. She was crushed. as she fell to her knees others around her recovered from the chock. Some went up to her to see if she was okay, others ran towards the spot where Caesar had been, only to be confused as there was no trace of the boy. All there was was the strong scent of ozone. The boy, nowhere to be seen.
I blinked. I blinked again. Yet, no matter how many times I blinked the scene before me didn't change. I was suddenly standing in a forest I didn't recognize, made up of trees I had never seen in any kind of book. And it was silent, so very silent.
I looked around, still in shock from suddenly finding myself someplace else. I would most likely have stood there for quite a while longer if it wasn't for the fact that I suddenly remembered what the last thing I heard was.
"Caesar!!!"
Just like that, I was free from my shock. Unfortunately, it was also what made me realize what this meant. I was alone. Tears were a natural reaction, crying and loudly proclaiming my sadness would have been appropriate at this stage. However, I was usually a very collected individual and knew I would in no way benefit from proclaiming where to find me. I was after all in an unknown forest, most likely full of a big variety of creatures, redoubtably a few of them carnivorous and aggressive. That was a good enough reason for me to forcefully shut up, something I found rather easy as I always kept silent anyway.
I was still shedding tears and I was still completely overwhelmed with emotions. I think it was all a completely normal reaction from a child of nine years of age, even one who is far more mature than others in his age group. So I cried to myself in silence, an eventual sniff here and there, but mostly I was completely quiet. I don't know for how long I actually cried, but once I was done I noticed it was far darker than it had been when I found myself in the forest. It had somehow become nighttime as I was crying, without me noticing.
Still feeling sorry for myself I looked around. If it was night I would have to find a place to sleep. I began moving around, carefully as to not make too much noise and attract any animal out for a snack. The energy spent on me crying and the hunger that I had now noticed didn't help me in the least to try and find a place to sleep. However, I did eventually find a place. It was a hollowed-out tree. The hollow inside the tree starting a bit up from the ground, ideal as to keep me from the cold ground and the cold morning dew that would undoubtedly come.
As I got myself ready to sleep, ignoring the pain in my stomach. Eventually, I was able to find rest, by crying myself to sleep. Hugging my tail close to me as some kind of warning bell rang in my head. I ignored it telling myself I'd deal with it in the morning.
I awoke by the pain in my stomach returning and forcing me out of the dream world. Groaning silently to myself I got up. The sun had yet to rise and I would have loved to sleep a few more hours, but the pain was too much and I was now wide awake. So I decided that I rather satisfy my stomach before I try and sleep again. As I got up and got out of my little tree I suddenly smelled something sweet. Sniffing the air and looking around I soon managed to find the source. I found a bush full of sweet-smelling berries.
Carefully evaluating the berries, I found no recollection of seeing anything in books or pictures that would describe them. Simply, they were red berries. Carefully I first sniffed them and carefully analyzed the smell, Unable to determine if there was anything that would be a sign of alarm I went on with my analysis. I carefully put the berry to my lips, afterward I waited for for a while. As I wasn't feeling bad or anything I now tried licking the berry. Once again I waited. After not having any negative effects or urges to puke, I deemed it was alright for one final test. I took a careful bite of the berry and tasted it properly in my mouth without swallowing. And once again waited. After a long time, I decided it was safe to swallow, the berries seemed to be alright to eat. I had devoured all berries present in an instant. The sweet berries only filled me up partially, but it was good enough to keep me going.
Leaving the now empty bush behind I continued my search for food, while at the same time making sure I knew where I was in relation to my tree. That's when I noticed something strange, the world around me seemed to be far clearer than before, colors more vibrant and textures more... cartoonish? I was confused, it all seemed to be so surreal, it was all different.
As I was still searching for food I came to realize I had yet to run into any animals, something that seemed impossible for a forest. As well as keeping my eyes open for food, I now kept them open for any wildlife or any signs that there was any around. I soon found a clue.
Walking around I finally stumbled upon a sign of civilization, I found a trail. It was overgrown and old, but it had still been used earlier, if the hoof marks were anything to go by that is.
I might not have any experience tracking, but by improvising I concluded that the dried mud was at least a day old, meaning someone passed here as late as yesterday on a horse or a donkey. This meant that there could be civilization at least a day ride by horse or donkey from here. But as I looked closer I noticed that the hoof print was somewhat odd. For one, It didn't look like the ones I had seen in pictures, another difference was possibly one of my bigger mistakes, I realized these hoof prints didn't have any horseshoes, signifying it most likely belonged to a wild horse. Something that would mean I might waste a whole day and come up with nothing but a wild horse.
Before I could complain about my luck I was once again reminded of my hunger by my stomach. Something I knew quite well I had to fix.
Returning to my scavenging hunt for food. I tried not to think about my family as it would only distract me and make me all emotional, but the thoughts just kept on returning and I eventually broke down again, crying my heart out while trying to keep myself quiet by reminding myself that there could be predators nearby.
I stopped as I heard a low growl. At first, I thought it might have been my own stomach once again complaining, but a second growl made me rethink my assessment. The sound wasn't coming from me, but from behind me. Slowly turning around I looked behind me. I was met completely green eyes. I was being snuck upon by a wolf made out of wood. And it now knew it had been discovered.
As soon as it knew it had been seen the wolf pounced towards me. In complete and utter panic I threw my hands up towards it and prepared for my inevitable death. It didn't come.
As I raised my arms I felt a weird feeling my cheeks and a combination of words came to mind: Thunder wave.
"Thunder Wave!" I shouted out loud. And as I did the feeling in my cheeks disappeared and electricity filled the air around me and the wooden mutt. I was scared, and so was the wooden wolf by the looks of it. It had frozen stiff and seemed to be shaking slightly. Not looking back I ran for it as the wolf wasn't moving.
Coming to a stop I made sure the wolf hadn't followed me, to my relief it hadn't. To my biggest horror, I realized I no longer knew where I was. I had run around and dodged trees left and right with a sudden agility I didn't posses earlier. That was also the moment it hit me, I had just used thunder wave, a paralyzing move, used by Pokémon!
The sudden realization hit me as I remembered the fact that I had a tail. I had discovered it earlier back in the hollow tree, but completely forgotten as I had simply been too tired to care. Quickly looking myself over, I noticed my change in physique, checking my cheeks, I felt a difference in them that made circles. I guessed it would be the famous Pikachu cheeks now. And then it came to my head, I slowly started by checking if I had Pikachu ears, I had. At this point, I freaked out. This simply couldn't be happening.
But it was, I had already confirmed it to myself by sleeping in this world. The only other explanation I could find would be the berries I ate, in case they contained something that cause hallucinations, something I doubted as I was felt completely normal and wasn't constantly seeing things out of the ordinary since eating the berries. No, this was all somehow real and I had somehow turned into a human/Pikachu hybrid. And... I was okay with it. I now had powers, I was cute and I was now more likely to come out of this alive.
Besides, Pikachu was always my favorite Pokémon.
With the sudden revelation, it was now impossible to disregard my tail and ears. They kept moving, be it on their own or on my command. It took some getting used to, but now that I was constantly aware of them I realized how much of a change I had gone through. As my Pikachu ears had become real, my human ears had simply vanished, it was weird touching the side of the head finding nothing at all. My senses had all improved, making it easier for me to see my surroundings, to feel them was also something I had to get used to as my tail apparently worked somewhat like a radar or something. It allowed me to sense my surroundings.
With my improved senses and new bodily control, I decided it would best to retreat back to an area I knew, meaning I would have to go back to where I had come from, to where the wooden wolf had been. But the whole thing became far less scary as I remembered I now had Pokémon moves to rely on. I was almost looking forward to another confrontation with the wolf, only so I could try my new moves out.
I also came to think of something else, not all moves that Pokémon used were attacks, this meant they could be used for other things as well! Wanting to try my small idea out I thought: "Agility!" With a sudden boost in speed, I was now traveling at a much faster pace than earlier as every step felt lighter and every push with my feet gave off far more power than it used to. I was now practically flying through the forest if compared to before. And as I enjoyed my new speed limit I didn't realize I had already passed the clearing where I had met the wolf, I just kept on running as the adrenaline continued.
Zecora was worried. Just yesterday an unnatural lightning strike had been spotted deeper within the Everfree, not that it was unusual for the weather in the forest to sometimes create lightning storms on its own, but because the lightning was the only one, the sky had been spotless and there wasn't a single cloud that could have produced such a bolt. And yet, it had happened.
But this was currently not what was bothering her, what was bothering her was the fact that the berries Zecora was going to pick today had all been eaten. Of course, berries were always eaten by wild animals, they had to eat after all. But not these berries, these berries were special as they were the main ingredient to Zecora's monster reeking brew. These berries were something that most creatures in the Everfree found disgusting and would never eat any of them. And yet there they were, all eaten. Not a single berry remaining. To think there would suddenly be a creature in the Everfree, able to eat something every other creature loathed. It was not a comforting thought as she would now have to watch out for another creature in these woods. And this one, she couldn't repel with her monster reeking brew.
I was having the time of my life. My new powers were amazing, I only had to think of any of the moves Pikachu could learn and I was able to use said move. And once used, I could use the move by repeating the necessary motion or feelings required to use the move. Something I discovered through continuous use of agility.
As I was speeding through the forest I eventually grew bored of only using agility to increase my speed and mobility, so I decided to use a few other moves on the go. My favorite became double team, something about there being several Pikachu mes running beside me just made me feel better.
However, eventually I grew bored of even that, the agony I felt from my craving stomach made me return to my previous task of looking for food. I was lucky enough to find a few more berry bushes and made the same tests I did with the first ones. After deeming them edible I cleansed the bushes of their berries to fill the void in my stomach called hunger. Berries being a poor substitute for a full meal was a given, but it was currently keeping me alive. I almost started considering trying to make some kind of weapon and take up hunting, but the fact that I had never killed an animal before and had seen close to none, other than a wooden wolf told me it would most likely have been a waste of time. Besides, I didn't even know the first thing about hunting.
As I looked for food I continued to listen to the few sounds of the forest. I was not going to be ambushed by another one of those wolfs again, even if my moves did still affect them. Speaking of moves, maybe I had something to help me find food?
Trying to remember all the possible moves a Pikachu could learn I got lost in thought. Eventually I remembered a move that could be of help. Echoed voice; a move that lets the user send out a sound wave that echoes, and the more it's used the more powerful it becomes. There was a possibility I could use it for echolocation, I knew watching Discovery channel would pay off!
Now a little bit excited to see if this would work I gave the move a try. "Echoed Voice!" I shouted as I closed my eyes and listened to the sound of my own voice echoing between the trees of the forest. Unfortunately I got nothing from it. Deciding it was too early to give up I opened my eyes and tried again, to my disappointment it all ended the same. Maybe I really wasn't as smart as I believed, or maybe I was doing it wrong? In any case I decided I had played around with my abilities far longer that I should have and resumed my search for food, now even more hungry from pulling out more advanced moves.
I was starting to tire unusually fast as well, I had no idea why and decided it would be best for me to try and retreat to my tree. The problem however was that I for some reason no longer recognized my surroundings. I was still in the same forest but I could not for the life of me remember my way back to the tree. As the panic started to rise up I tried to convince myself that it was no big deal, it wasn't like the tree was my actual home, it was only to protect me from wind and cold so I had I place to sleep. But it didn't help me as it reminded me both of the fact that I now have no place to sleep, and the fact that I have no idea where I am and most likely won't see my home for a while.
Tears already forming in my eyes I was running around in panic, the forest around me was a blur as I no longer cared for where I was running. All I wanted, all I wished for was to outrun this forest and be done with it. A headache began building up and was quickly draining my energy away from me. Still running around, panicking, tired, hungry and now a headache to top it all off. I really needed help, but before I could elaborate to myself how would get said help in the middle of an unknown forest, a much stronger headache hit and I fell into unconsciousness.
Zecora was now fairly worried about what was going on in the forest. First the lightning strike, then the missing berries and now the high echoing. Something new had definitely entered the Everfree, and it seemed far from anything else that could be found in the Everfree before. And still, the little zebra found herself in the unfavorable position of having to travel through the forest to gather even more ingredients for her remedies and brews. Some of the ingredients could be found in Ponyville, but the most rare ones were only to be found in the forest known as Everfree.
So there Zecora was, searching for said ingredients. Under normal circumstances Zecora would not worry about the forest as she had almost been able to defeat any and all of the beasts that had claimed it as their home. But now, with a new creature, one she hadn't even seen or heard anything about before now, it was far too unpredictable. She was keeping her guard up for anything out of the ordinary, ready to bolt for safety at any given moment. One could never be too cautious when it came to the unknown.
And yet, fate seems to provide one with the opportunity to stand up against ones fears and look them in the eyes. This time, as a creature clothed in bright yellow colors having passed out on the ground. Still cautious, Zecora neared the fallen creature. Not having seen one like it before, it was a perfect opportunity to investigate said creature while it was sleeping. Zecora noted how the creature was lying in the middle of the forest. This could mean only a few things: Either the creature was strong and confident enough to sleep like this, no other creature daring to attack it, or the creature could have fallen from injury. There was also the possibility that the creature was baiting it's pray to come closer.
Zecora could not pass up this opportunity, but took her time in nearing the creature. Only once she got close enough could she see the face of the creature clearly. It was clearly in pain, further inspection showed the creature was releasing weak electrical discharges from two big, red spots on it's cheeks. To her big surprise, Zecora realized that what she had earlier thought to be bright yellow fur, was in fact clothing. The a small inspection made it clear that the creature itself had close to no natural fur or hair on its body besides the mane on its head, the exact same color as it's clothes. Either this creature was sapient, or it could pass as somepony's pet. But Zecora believed it would not make sense for anypony to have a pet of such size, even though she had heard of tamed manticores.
In whatever case, Zecora came to the conclusion she could not simply leave the poor being here. Its face, clearly showing discomfort meant it was no natural sleep it was having. A quick check confirmed Zecora's suspicions about the creature having a fever. It was most definitely sick. She would have to take it back to her home if she wished to treat it properly.
Zecora looked back towards her home and sighed, this might take a while.
It had taken Zecora far less time to get the creature back to her home, it was apparently lighter than she had first thought. Once home, she had managed to put the creature in her bed and undressed it. She had however stopped once it came to the second layer of clothing concerning the lower regions as the creature had begun to stir any time she tried. It was most likely because of the creature's tail. Zecora could not understand how this piece of clothing had originally been put on as it didn't seem to have been made while taking the tail into consideration. Maybe the tail was not originally a part of the creature? Had it perhaps fallen into a patch of poison joke?
However, Zecora found none of the usual signs for having come into contact with poison joke. Unable to solve the mystery she had left the garment on and had begun to try and help the creature with its illness to the best of her ability. She however had to work slowly, making sure that whatever she tried didn't instead do harm as she was actually trying to help a creature of unknown species. And even these slow advancements in trying to help the creature eventually came to a stop when Zecora realized she might have been a bit too hasty in her decision to help this creature. It posed her no threat, but animals were far from her personal specialty. Perhaps she could take a trip to Ponyville and gain the help of the pegasus mare by the name of Fluttershy?
During her preparations for heading out she once again looked towards the creatures clothing and noticed something that had earlier escaped her gaze. Apparently there was something written on the clothing with small letter. Taking a closer look to satisfy her own curiosity she read the one single word. "Caesar".
"Perhaps the creatures name I have seen? Written here on clothes so clean." Zecora thought to herself. Indeed the clothes were relatively clean for having been inside of the forest for who knew how long, or perhaps the creature had simply entered the forest not so long ago and gotten lost? Whatever the case, the answers would most like come later, right now she had to go and find a certain pegasus.
After having prepared to head out, Zecora hesitated. Turning back towards the creature she thought: "Perhaps I am doing this wrong?"
As she looked to the creature and its worsening condition she made up her mind.
"Do not worry, I won't be long." She told the creature before she set out for a direct course towards Ponyville, her usual gear for travel in the Everfree in her saddlebags at her sides.
More lonely than I thought, less lonely than I was. (unedited)
I woke up from something extremely bitter filling my mouth. It wasn't the kind of bitter that leaves you longing for water, just the very sudden kind you don't expect anything to taste like. Confused at when I had managed to fall asleep as well as to the fact that I no longer seemed to be alone, I slowly opened my eyes.
I was greeted with the sight of a woman with long brown hair looking directly at me. Thankful yet a bit on edge to finally see another human I immediately went for satisfying my curiosity.
“Wha- W-where am I?” I asked, dreading I might not be US anymore.
“Calm down, kid.” The woman hushed. “You were having a severe fever, so Zecora and I brought you in here to help cure you.” She explained to me. I decided to look around and saw that I was inside what looked like a hollowed out tree, perhaps someone's home. I had thought that if I'd gotten sick I would have been sent to the hospital instead, whatever I had gotten must have been bad if I couldn't remember it.
“My name is Ember. You must be Caesar, right?” She asked me, as I had taken in most of my surroundings.
I nodded, presuming she learned my name from my clothes since my mother would always sew my name into them to make sure I always knew they were mine and could easily be identified if they got lost and found or were mixed up with another pair
“Yeah. So you found me? Will I be able to see my mom soon?” I asked, hopeful that it wouldn't be to far to the closest town where I could possibly go to a police station and ask to use their phone to call home, just like my mother told me I should do if I ever got lost from her or dad.
Ember looked at me, with a surprised expression as if that wasn't a question she had expected out off a ten-year-old's mouth. “Umm… Caesar…… do you have any idea where you are?”
I was about to answer Ember that I actually didn't. The fact she asked made me believe that I would still have to be close to the location where they found me, since I wouldn't be able to know if they transported me too far away. But before I could, I was interrupted by another voice.
“I say. Is he okay?” I heard another female voice.
At first I was startled, but realized that Ember had actually spoken in plural, suggesting that she alone didn't find me. Expecting to see another woman, judging from by the voice, I turned towards the- Zebra?
Had I not just heard the voice come from the creature, as well as having spent the last few days in a very weird forest after having acquired the powers of a Pokemon, I would have assumed that I was simply imagining a very lifelike representation of a mini Zebra.
This of course confused me to no end of how it was possible for this creature to, one, exist. And second, to actually speak!
“W-what?” I asked, as it was the only thing I found myself able to ask.
Ember sighed. “Caesar… If you think you are on earth, then you’re WAY off. You got Displaced like me and now on a world called Equus.”
“Equus? But… what do you mean not on Earth? How can I not be on Earth?” I asked, as I felt all hope drain from me, only to be replaced with fear. Had I been abducted by aliens?
“Because back home, you wouldn’t have the abilities of a Pikachu and I wouldn’t be able to do this.” Ember said as she opened one of her hands for me to see a small bird made out of fire and let it drift towards me.
I suddenly felt my head empty out from what I had just seen, It was too much to take in the idea that I was no longer on earth, but also that Aliens had experimented on me and given me both the abilities and slight appearance of a Pikachu. With that, I fainted.
Once I woke up again, I quickly remembered what had happened right before. And the implications were too much. I began to cry. What I really wanted to do was to bawl my eyes out, but the fact that I was in company made me try and restrain my crying. As I had little luck with preventing my tears I tried turning away from them to not put myself on display like I was.
“You okay?” Ember asked me as she sat down by my side. Surprised I first tensed up, I barely knew her. I was about to ask her to leave me alone, but decided against it as she seemed to be the only human close by. And judging by how we were on another planet, I didn't want to lose my only Human company. So instead I did nothing to prevent her from sitting next to me. It took me some time to calm down enough to register her question, not trusting my voice I instead nodded as I wiped away the last tears. Thankful for not having developed a headache from crying like that.
“It’s okay. When I was first here, I was a little scared too. But then… I was able to adjust to everything around me. I can help you if you need me too.” Ember said. Her offer was a nice gesture, but it was also something that hung at my soul. If she had been here for a long time, enough to adjust, then there was a high probability that I wouldn't be leaving anytime soon myself. Yet, her offer was reassuring, it was nice to know I could get help if I really needed to.
“I-I’d like that. Thank you Miss Ember. And you to Zecora.” I responded, thanking them for taking care of me.
“It’s nothing really. Being as old as I am, I have seen a lot of things, but nothing quite like you. You are unique, that’s for sure. Wait til you meet Applebloom.” Ember said. I was about to ask her how old she really was and how long she had been here. But I reminded myself that it was rude to ask a woman her age... Even if I wasn't on Earth anymore. I might not understand why it was rude, but that was what my mother had taught me. Instead I chose another question.
“Um… Zecora. if you don’t mind me asking… What are you?” I asked. Unsure if I offended her. “And… who is Applebloom?” I asked curiously. I could actually feel my own curiosity at this point, it felt like it was standing on top of my head.
“I am a Zebra, Caesar. My next question though is for Ember. Though it may seem silly, how exactly do you know the filly?” Zecora answered my first question, directing her own towards Ember.
Before Ember could answer that question, a song like tune was heard together with the sound of hooves coming closer. The door soon opened, and in stepped a smaller creature that resembled Zecora in shape, but otherwise looked nothing like Zecora. This 'zebra' was first of all a bit smaller, it's fur was of a yellow color and the mane and tail were of a red one. It also had a small bow in its mane, making it look rather feminine to me..
“Howdy, Zecora! Oh hi there, Aunt Embah. Didn’t expect to see ya.” She said, her voice blowing away any doubt of her gender.
“Um…” Was just about the best response I could manage from the sudden appearance of another creature never before seen by my eyes.
“Oh my… Who’s this little Fella?” She asked, trotting towards me.
"Little?" I thought to myself in confusion. "I'm not little, I am a big boy!" I convinced myself, while also carefully taking a step back as she came closer.
“Easy there, Applebloom. Caesar here is still recovering from a bad cold. Not only that, but he’s a bit…… Timid.” Ember told the now named intruder.
“Oh… You mean like Fluttershy?” Applebloom asked.
"Fluttershy? I think I'm seeing a trend in naming here." I thought to myself as I carefully evaluated every new piece of information.
Ember nodded her head at Applebloom's question. “Caesar, this is Applebloom. She is the youngest of two nieces that I’m keeping an eye on.” Ember introduced her.
I looked at Ember in confusion.
“Niece? But you’re a human, and she’s a…” I trailed off as I realizing I didn’t really know what Applebloom was exactly, my closest guess would be pony, considering her size. But the resemblance between her and Zecora, who was a zebra made me hesitate about jumping to conclusions as I was unsure how many other races could be similar to the ones I was familiar with. Also, ponies usually didn’t come in red and yellow colors. But then again, zebras didn’t usually talk. So I was unable to reach a conclusion.
“It’s a bit complex to explain, sugarcube.” Applebloom said.
“She helped out one of our relatives and they wanted to repay her for everything she did, so he completed a few legal documents that allowed her to be part of the family now. Yeah, basically adult stuff.” Applebloom explained.
“You mean like an adoption or somethin'?” I asked, curious about what kind of impression Ember had left upon the relative Applebloom was speaking about, if it was enough for them to adopt her into their family.
“Sort of.” Ember said, smiling a little before sighing.
“Applebloom, can I ask you something?” Ember wondered.
Applebloom turned around, “Yes Aunt Embah, what is it?” Applebloom asked, seemingly puzzled what Ember could be wondering about.
Ember paused for a bit before responding.
“Caesar was taken from his home and brought here against his will… So, I want to offer him a place to stay, but that also means I need to ask you something… Do you think you responsible enough... to have a little brother?”
Ember's suggestion caught me off guard. I wasn’t sure if I liked the idea or not, while it would be nice to have a place to stay, I couldn't say that I felt entirely comfortable living with a family of... Ponies. I had also just woken up, found out I was no longer on Earth and wouldn’t be able to see my parents for what was most likely the rest of my life.
“Can I think about this?” I asked Ember before Applebloom had a chance to respond.
I saw Ember beginning to nod her head, but suddenly found myself tackled by Applebloom as she tried to nuzzle me slightly.
“Of course!!!” She shouted a bit loud for my liking, seeing as she was rather close in proximity to my ears, them being more sensitive than human ears didn't help. Applebloom's sudden 'hug' if it could be called that, startled me into a 'fight or flight' response. Meaning I accidentally sent an electrical current towards my 'attacker'.
“Ahhahaha!! That Tickles!!” Applebloom laughed while I was simply glad that I hadn't hurt her by mistake and only made her fur stand on end.
“Sorry, you caught me by surprise… Um… I hope your ha- I mean mane won’t stay like that, it looks a little weird…” I apologized, silently hoping that she wasn't like certain girls were on Earth and would begin to shout and blame me. Her new 'hairstyle' reminding me of the 'crazy scientist' look.
“What do ya mean it looks weird?” Applebloom asked, giving me a questioning look.
“Well… It kinda went... poof?” I said, trying to empathize my point by gesturing with his hands.
“Yes indeed, you mane is in mane product need.” Zecora confirmed for me.
Applebloom blinked a little, then turned to look at herself in a nearby mirror.
“Aww man!! I didn’t get the cutie mark for being SO FLUFFY!!!” She exclaimed, seemingly taking the whole thing in stride.
“Cutie mark?” I asked, confused by what she meant.
“It’s a mark that represents a pony’s special talents.” Applebloom responded, recognizing the fact that I was confused and wouldn't know what it was since I wasn't a pony like herself.
“Mark… like a tattoo? Mom always said they were a bad thing and that I should never get one.” I asked as her explanation made me think of tribal tattoos. I also wasn't sure why someone as young as Applebloom was so eager to get one. As far as I knew they were only painful to get and didn’t look good anyway. Well, on skin anyways.
“No… Not like that… It’s something having to do with magic.” Ember said, while looking a bit unsure. “It’s complicated.”
“I see… I guess there is someone else who could explain it better then?” I suggested.
“Maybe Twilight can help!” Applebloom exclaimed, providing me with yet another name fitting the naming tablet I suspected this world used.
“Careful Applebloom…… she might have a lot on her plate given that she’s an Alicorn Princess. Tell you what, let’s take Caesar back to Sweet Apple Acres and work our way from there.” Ember suggested.
“Am I really good enough to be moving around yet?” I asked, turning towards Zecora while wondering about what I heard Ember say.
"Alicorn Princess, now what is an Alicorn, and would they really bother with explaining something to a child as myself, simply because others can't?"
“I see no bad alignments as of yet, but I wouldn’t take such a bet. Drink some tea and rest my dear, or it might get worse I fear.” Zecora replied. Making me wonder if my mother had simply over reacted each time she had told me to stay in bed, even though I had already recovered fully.
“Okay, then why don’t we let him rest here until he can walk and then we’ll come back to get him?” Ember suggested. “Would that be good with you, Zecora?”
Zecora nodded in response and went over into another room, only to soon return with some tea.
“I guess I’ll be staying for a little while longer, sorry.” I apologized. Seeing as I was now taking away even more of their time, making them possibly worry about me further.
“Yah don’t need tah be sorry! Don’t wantcha to be sick when you meet the family!” Applebloom squeed.
“Actually, speaking about resting… I really should have thought of this sooner.” I said as I realized I had yet to try out a certain move.. “Rest” I said as I suddenly felt very sleepy and the world melted away into darkness.
"Defense Curl!" I shouted as I woke up, suddenly feeling a bit more 'safe' from the nightmare I woke up from. It took me a moment to calm my breathing and to look around before I remembered where I was.
I was still at Zecora's and I had apparently just used Defense Curl, something, that made me grin, seeing as how it was a 'Transfer only' move for a Pikachu. This could only mean one of two things, either I could use any Pokemon move I could think of, or I could learn, or already had access to 'Transfer only' moves. Either or would do for me, since both meant I could learn some special moves that would be priceless in the real world. Anyone who knew what I was thinking, would agree that the move 'Fly' would be fun to try out.
I smiled at both the revelation and the fact that 'Rest' had seemed to work since I had fallen asleep and now felt perfectly completely rested and at the top of my game. At least I was having some form of luck after all that had happened. Focusing on the positives was most likely the best in this situation.
Zecora soon noticed I had woken up and informed me that it a few hours past sunrise and offered me some breakfast while asking me how I felt. It was interesting listening to her rhyming, but it eventually got a bit old and I soon lost interest. After breakfast, I voiced my wish to try and practice my moves, hopefully manage to preform another 'transfer only' move. Zecora was reluctant at first, but once I let her make sure I was at the top of my game, she decided I was good enough after all.
This led to my current situation, standing outside in the small clearing surrounding her home, trying to once again preform 'defense curl', unfortunately having no luck, only making myself dizzy from spinning around in my attempts, having no real idea how to preform the move. Which put a real damper on my excitement. I, however, would not be deterred! So, I decided to keep on trying until Ember showed up.
After what felt like hours of me trying out different spinning motions, curling my body together and simply trying to re-create the move, I was interrupted by a slightly worried voice.
“You okay there, Caesar?”
Turning around, I saw that Ember had joined me and Zecora in the clearing. My frustration immediately evaporating as I smiled towards her.
“Yeah, just a bit excited. I managed to do ‘Defense curl’ in my sleep! So I was trying to do it again and see if I could learn it properly and maybe learn some other transfer-only moves.” I told her, unable to keep my returning excitement from leaking into my voice before I lost my balance and fell over from the returning nausea.
“Heh, guess I got to work on it some more, getting really dizzy…” I explained myself as I closed my eyes and shook my head a little to try and dispel the feeling of the world rotating around me. While I was recovering, Zecora took over my conversation with Ember.
“Good day Ember, You have come for Caesar as I remember. Caesar is so much better today, I don’t think he has any reason to stay.” Zecora said looking back at me as I was getting back up, having managed to calm the typhoon in my head enough not to loose balance.
“All this talk about his ‘moves’, at first I thought they were just a ruse. But alas I was wrong, this boy is quite strong.” Zecora continued with a small smile.
“I can tell.” Ember smiled happily. “You look like you’re getting the hang of your abilities.” She stated.
“Yeah. I discovered early on that I can use any moves a Pikachu can learn. But it seems that the transfer-only moves are a bit more tricky. But I guess that makes sense, some of the moves don’t really fit a Pikachu. But I would still love to learn them… if it’s possible that is.” I explained, once again remembering that I might be able to fly one day.
“Right… I’m starting to think that you don’t want to see Applebloom and the rest of your new family, do you?” Ember suddenly asked me, folding her arms for a brief moment. Her question catching me off-guard as I felt my right ears twitch and my cheeks spark a little. “Applebloom is excited to show her new little brother to the rest of her siblings.” Ember continued.
“Oh, no. Of course I do! I was just so excited to learn about transfer only moves that I… forgot. Sorry.” I explained sheepishly. Glad that my cheeks couldn't actually get any redder.
“It’s alright, little guy. You’ll have enough time to learn your moves afterwards, I promise.” Ember chuckled, as she turned around and offering me a place on her back to crawl on. “Ready to go?” She asked. Having nothing against it, I simply smiled and nodded before jumping up on her back. I then turned back to look at Zecora and used one arm to wave towards her since Ember used her arms to support my legs.
“Goodbye Zecora. Thanks for taking care of me.” I thanked her, genially thankful since I most likely wouldn't have made it if she hadn't found me, I decided not to over think it since I rather not remind myself how scarily close I was to dying.
“Bye Zecora. Thank you so much all of your help!” Ember shouted her goodbye as well, already having begun our walk back.
“I guess there’s no reason being late, the time spent with you has been great.” Zecora responded while waving her own hoof at us until I could no longer see her, at which point I turned back forward and decided to ask Ember a little about Applebloom's family.
“So… um… how is Applebloom’s family? I mean, I’ve met Applebloom, but I don’t really know anything about her family…” I asked, a little bit nervous about if they would really be okay with me staying with them.
“You mean what are they like?” Ember asked me back before answering. “Well, she has two older siblings. A sister and a brother and besides me, she also has a grandmother.”
Even if Ember couldn't see it, I nodded at that. “Yes, I think it would be good to know a little about them before I meet them, but I also think I should know more about… ponies in general. I mean, the only one I’ve met is Applebloom and she is only about my age. And I really don’t want to do something inappropriate or embarrassing only because I don’t understand something.” I explained, imagining that they most likely had a different culture, the chances being slim it was anything like the one I was used to.
“Well, it’s kind of complicated if you ask me. But let me try to help,” Ember said, flames taking the form of three kinds of ponies in front of us. “Applebloom herself is an earth pony. A pony that is one with the land. Therefore, they have a lot of talents that involve hard work and strength. There are only two other normal kinds of ponies. Unicorns that have horns and can control Magic and Pegasi that have a pair of wings and can control the weather in the sky.”
“Wait, magic?” I asked, my eyes going wide as I tried to comprehend what that would mean.
“Yeah. Like mine, but different.” Ember said, pointing out her flames. “Think like when an Alakazam picks something up with Telekinesis or when Mewtwo teleports.” Ember explained.
“Oh, I think I get it… is it very specific in what it can do, like pokémon moves or can it do a lot of different stuff beyond what you mentioned?” I asked, thinking about the possibilities involving magic. Being young, I had of course yet to concede to the harsh truth that magic was non existent, and now, it seemed my stubbornness had paid off.
“Yeah, but it varies depending on who uses it and how much power they have. Unicorns and Alicorns, a species of ponies only found in royalty, can control magic, but it is limited by certain guidelines. Like you can only use certain moves out of combat for you like Flash or Strength. However, another species called Draconequus though, that’s a whole different story.” Ember tried explaining to me.
I rubbed my head thinking about it, “That is quite a lot to think about… but… isn’t it unfair?” I asked, believing that magic should most likely be equal to all who wished to use it, or at least put up an effort to learn.
“Well, it really focuses on you and your strengths. Draconequus like Discord though,” Ember said, showing a fiery projection of the Spirit, “-are masters of Chaos Magic. Almost like a legendary Pokemon. They can learn any move and master it with ease depending on the guidelines they follow.” Ember said, making me remember the first time I accidentally killed a legendary pokémon, not realizing what it was, rendering me forever unable to catch it. Not that I was able to catch many legendaries anyway. The ability of the Draconequus however reminded me of a certain move, one only learned by a pokémon named 'Smeagle' I believe it was called, but was unsure on that point.
“Reminds me of a move that allows a pokémon to learn a move it observes permanently, don’t remember what it’s called though… But I was more hinting towards the fact that Unicorns and… Alicorns you said? - well, while they get to use magic, pegasi are limited to flying and earth ponies have a connection to nature? Isn’t that like… far less possibilities for them?” I inquired, frowning slightly.
“Honestly, it depends on that ponies talent. There Cutie Mark on their flank that they earn tells a Pony what they’re skilled at and how they could help others. As for the Pegasi, they can control the weather and are responsible for the rainy seasons in Equestria while Earth Ponies are the only ones capable of growing food.” Ember said, pausing for a moment… before speaking again. “It’s like a cycle. Are you familiar with the Pokémon of Alpha, Omega and Delta?”
“You mean the ruby, sapphire and emerald remakes that came out on Nintendo 3DS?” I asked her, a bit unsure since I hadn't heard anything about any Delta version, but took a guess anyway.
“Yeah. Groudon represents the Land. Kyogre represents the Sea and Rayquaza represents the sky. Now… think about that and then think about this. Earth Ponies represent the Land, Unicorns represent the magic that flows through this land like the waves of the sea and the Pegasi represent the weather and the sky. Does that make sense?” Ember asked, looking back at me.
“Yeah, I think I understand… wait a sec,” I said as I suddenly remembered I had had my 3DS XL with me before I got transported. Checking my pocket I quickly found my 3DS XL and sighed in relief. It was black and had a golden motif of a Pikachu on it, a limited edition I had barely been able to get. I opened it up and begun writing everything Ember had just told me down on virtual notes with the little stylus that came with the small handheld gaming device. “There, now I won’t forget and… what? how come it’s charging?” I asked in confusion as I noticed the small lamp for charging was glowing, completely baffled and glad at the same time that I wouldn’t have to worry about charging DS, yet I was still worried.
“Seems like your cheeks react to electrical devices. Since Pikachu’s are electric types.” Ember pointed out to me, once again looking at me.
I quickly put a hand to my cheek and felt that they truly were reacting to something. Looking down to DS, I felt myself frown.
“That doesn’t make much sense… I mean, you can’t just carelessly charge something by using a random power source, you have to take into account the stuff like watt, ohm and things like that. Otherwise it could break!” I recounted what little I knew from a friend's brother who had been working with electronics and once explained some things to us when we tried using triple A batteries and some wire for a controller that used double A batteries. Realizing whatever I was doing to the DS right now was most likely even worse, I immediately let go of the DS, afraid of breaking it. The DS fell to the ground which fortunately consisted of soft dirt. Looking at the DS I saw that the small light indicating that the device was charging had turned off and felt my cheeks having stopped sparking.
“I… I guess I’ll have to be careful with it. Think they possibly have regular DS chargers for sale somewhere around here?” I asked, already suspecting the answer to be no.
“Yeah. You kind of are a human light socket.” Ember replied, not really giving me an answer, which I realized there most likely wasn't any way for me to safely charge my DS. It was something that hit me hard. I had many times been the victim to bullies, one of the many reasons I had so often switched schools. But through it all, I had always been able to rely on my DS since the day I first got it. And now, I wouldn't e able to do that.
The mere thought was enough for my mood to drop and I began feeling my eyes fill with tears.
“Y-you mean I won’t be able to play on my DS, ever?” I asked no one in particular with a trembling voice.
“I never said that. What I was trying to tell you is that over time, if you control your powers, then you can play your DS without damaging it.” Ember said, lighting a beacon of hope. After all, I did know what the appropriate Voltage, ohm and watts were, I now only had to figure out which one was which and learn to control them myself.
With my mood improved, I sighed and jumped of Ember’s back to pick up my DS and quickly shoved it into my pocket, making sure to expose it to my own powers as little as possible until I knew I could charge it without it's battery swelling up and exploding. Looking around some, I tried to judge the distance we had already traveled during our conversation. I was unsuccessful to say the least.
“How far is it until we’re there? Maybe I could walk rest of the way? I don’t want to be an inconvenience…” I suggested, realizing I probably should have said something about it earlier.
“Actually,” Ember replied as we reached a clearing. “We’re here.”
“Oh.” I simply replied as I took in the sights of the place. The most noticeable things being the overwhelming amount of apple trees and a big, bright red barn. Outside the barn, stood a huge red stallion and a orange mare. Both of them ponies like Applebloom. As soon as I thought that, Applebloom came out, turning around to see both me and Ember, a smile immediately finding it's way onto her face with a twinkle of happiness in her eyes.
“Oh. Hi Applebloom nice to-” was all I managed to say before Applebloom tackled me with a hug, making him fall over from the sudden “tackle”. I suppose she's a clingy friend...sister? I noted to myself as I felt her hug me, only to notice my air intake diminishing.
“Looks like somepony’s excited to see you.” Ember giggled, unaware of my predicament.
“App-Applebloom, Air!” I managed to squeeze out as she was suffocating me with her affection. She was very strong.
“Aunt Embah, who is this little Critter?” The orange Pony asked as she trotted over to us. “And why is Applebloom hugging him like that?” She asked, looking at us as Applebloom had lessened her grip to let me breathe.
“Applejack. Big Mac. I would like the two of you to meet Caesar. He’s a lot younger than me, but came to Equestria the same way I did. Since he’s around Appleblooms age, I thought we would let him stay here for the time being and let him have fun with Applebloom and her friends. Plus, it’ll be good to have extra hands-er I mean hooves on deck for when Zap Apple season is coming.” Ember said, confusing me about her replacing hands with hooves. I still had hands, didn't I?
“Zap Apples? What’s that?” I asked, forgetting about the hooves thing for the moment.
“They’re special apples that only come around during the spring.” Ember explained before anyone else could. “But I believe Applebloom can explain more about them.”
“Yah, ah reckon ah can do dat,” Applebloom stated with a smile. “Come on Caesar, Ah show ya where tah trees are.” With that, I departed together with Applebloom. I couldn't refuse her if she wanted to show me around. Besides, if this was where I was going to stay, I'd have to know my way around this place, I had only seen a small part, and already it seemed massive to me.
“So, what is it that’s so special about these ‘Zap’ apples?” I asked, starting up a conversation as I followed Applebloom.
“Zap Apples are special apples that come during the harvest, but before they are ripe, they give off a nasty shock that would hurt anypony. Almost like if you were struck by lightning.” Applebloom explained, making me stumble as I imagined electrifying fruit.
“Wouldn’t that be dangerous? Are you sure it’s safe to even go near them if they can do that?” I asked, not really willing to risk my own health for such a fruit. “Also, why would you be harvesting such fruit, is it really worth it if someone gets hurt?”
“Ah believe so. Besides, a little shock doesn’t seem to be that much of a problem for ya.” She smiled. Where exactly was she going with this? Sure, I was basically a Pikachu right now, but I could still be hurt by lightning. Electric types weren’t immune to electric type moves after all, and I was fairly certain that it was something that carried over from the games, much like the ‘transfer only’ moves.
“Applebloom. Just because I can actually do some electrical moves, it doesn’t mean they don’t affect me, I think they might not do as much harm to me, but I think it would still hurt for me to be hit by lightning. Honestly, I’d rather not try and find out.” I explained it to her in case she ever thought of trying it out on me.
“Aww, an’ ah was hopin’ we could try pickin’ dem apples early again.” Applebloom pouted. making me feel bad, even though I was thinking about everyones safety, not just my own. Wait, again?
“Wait, what do you mean again?” I asked, curious about it.
“Well, Ah and my friends Sweetie Belle an’ Scootaloo once tried pickin’ dem before they were ripe. Not only could we not pick the fruit, but the tree ended up zappin’ us all.” Applebloom explained.
“You got zapped? What happened, you don’t look like you’ve suffered a lightning strike…” I said, surprised to hear that she herself had been a victim of such a dangerous force.
“Caesar, that was a few years ago. Now with the crop season being back and with Applejack being real busy, ah just thought ah could do something nice for her.” Applebloom told me, seemingly completely missing the point of how dangerous a lightning strike is, maybe she was over exaggerating when she said the shock was like a lightning strike?
“So, how long is it until the trees bear fruit then?” I asked, looking around at the healthy looking trees, all of them already showing what looked like small gray apples, making me question if the trees were either sick or magical somehow, besides being electrical…
“Well, the trees work of of ah five day cycle. Once they begin to show signs of bearin’ fruit, it takes up ‘ntil the fourth day for the fruit to show, but it has been said for us to wait til day five before we pick ‘em so the magic in the fruits could die down. Otherwise, we end up getting zapped, as in the name. Wait too long and on day six, the entire crop disappears.” She had me follow her to where the trees were in the forest and that was when I had a first glimpse of these apples.
“Are the apples really supposed to look like that? They seem a little small… and rather gray. The shape is nice though…” I asked Applebloom, thinking of how the apples actually worked rather well with the color of the leaves. I even considered to take my DS out to take a picture, but decided not to. I could probably get one from somewhere else, but replacing a busted DS would be hard.
“Normally, Zap Apples are a lot different than these.” She replied. “Mostly because we’re a day early. Applebloom explained. Making me wonder.
“So how do they look once they are done?” I asked, before being startled as a few nearby trees had some solid blue lightning course up along the base of the tree, making me look at them with wide eyes.
“Normally, it looks like a rainbow, but since it’s a day early, the tree’s discharge lightning every now and then until that happens. Hence, getting zapped.” Applebloom explained.
“Wait, they actually become colored in the colors of a rainbow? Like the whole color spectrum we can see in actual rainbows, and in the right order as well?” I asked, assuming they could have the colors arranged in the right order as well, since they already sounded way past unbelievable.
Applebloom nodded her head, “Yeah, that’s right. If ah had my saddlebag, then ah would show you a picture I had kept from the last harvest so I could show you. But unfortunately, that’s back at the barn.” Applebloom said, making me nod in appreciation.
“That sounds great. In fact we could maybe do that right now. After all, you’ve already showed me the orchard, and you can probably tell me anything else about the trees back at the farmhouse, right?” I asked her, wanting to see this magical fruit as soon as possible, even if only as a picture.
“Yeah, sure! Come on, I’ll race ya!” Applebloom replied, getting into a head start by sprinting into a full on gallop. I smiled at the sight, but before I could begin chasing after her, I noticed the trees beginning to charge up as she ran past them, the charge jumping to the next tree in line, charging it faster than the last one as Applebloom flew past. Before I could warn her, the charge had already reached the tree right next to her, and I saw it lash out.
“Applebloom!” I shouted out in vain as I saw the charge leaving the tree and traveling towards her.
I had already activated agility, but all it did for me was let me observe it all happen in slowmotion, me still being unable to reach her in time.
Despair filled me as I realized I could do nothing to Applebloom as the lightning was racing towards her as she didn’t even see it, her head turning towards me as I had called her name. I had just become her friend and brother, only to loose her to some stupid accident.
As I felt my eyes begin to water at the mere thought, I noticed something unexpected. The charge that was heading straight for Applebloom suddenly broke off to the side, curving over and around her. Suddenly it wasn’t heading for her, but for me!
I don’t know what came over me, but for some reason, instead of dodging, I felt myself falling down on all fours, my tail razed as high as I could.
I closed my eyes as I braced myself for the pain, but as I felt the charge strike, all I felt was a light tingling in my tail. Opening up my eyes, I realized that the charge was gone, and that I somehow felt more energized in a way.
It took me a moment, but I eventually realized what was going on, I had the hidden ability ‘Lightning Rod’! Any further deductions however were interrupted by Applebloom tackling me to the ground.
“That was amazin’! I don’t know what ya did, but it looked awesome!” Applebloom shouted as she was now jumping around me, completely estatic. “Wait til ah tell Aunt Embah and the girls!!”
“Euh… The girls?” I questioned, not sure if I was really ready to begin meeting many more ponies yet.
“Mah friends, Sweetie Belle and Scootaloo! Ah think they’re back at our clubhouse. Follow me!!” With that, she took off in a head on sprint again, leaving me behind in the dust.
I wasn’t really sure at first, but Applebloom wasn’t a bad per- err, pony. I guessed I should trust her and her friends, so I ended up following her, endig up having to resort to Agility to catch up since her quadruped locomotion made her faster than me.
We eventually made it to a neat little treehouse close to the edge of the orchard, now far away from the Zap Apple trees, we were now surrounded by green and red instead.
“It’s just up ‘ere.” Applebloom exclaimed as she ran up the ramp, leading up to the door. I had to say, this treehouse was far better than any I had seen before hand, it actually looked like a small house.
Knocking upon the door, Applebloom looked back towards me with a smile before the door opened up. Looking out, were to fillies, about the same size as Applebloom, one of them a was orange with wild, purple hai- mane, and tail. The other was white with pink and light purple curled mane and tail.
There was however something that made me stop and pause in surprise. The orange filly had a pair of wings, while the white one had a horn. I suddenly remembered Ember having talked about pegasi and unicorns. It must have slipped my mind.
“Hi Applebloom!!” One of them spoke. The one with the pair of wings. “Who’s this critter?” She then asked, tilting her head and looking at me. I decided I might as well introduce myself.
“My name is Caesar, may I ask what to call you?” I asked, guessing she was either Scootaloo, or Sweetie Belle.
“I’m Scootaloo,” She replied before tilting her head. “And she’s Sweetie Belle. So… How did Applebloom find you?” Scootaloo asked, as Sweetie Belle nodded and smiled at me.
“Well, actually-”
“I met ‘im yesterday when Ah went to see Zecora. She fount ‘im sick out in tha Evafree forest. Ember said he’s like her.”
“What happened? Poison Joke?” Scootaloo asked.
“Poison Joke?” I parroted, looking towards Applebloom.
Shaking her head, she explained. “Poison Joke is ah plant that does somethin’ ta the one who touches it. It’s usually somethin’ harmless, but Caesar ‘ere woke up like this. Ain’t no work of Poison Joke ‘ere it ain’t.” Applebloom explained both to me and her friends.
“Woke up as that adorable thing?” Sweetie Belle asked. “Sorry Caesar, but your tail and everything just reminds me of my pet cat back at my house.” She explained.
Adorable? I thought to myself, I guess some could see me like that. I mean, I do find them adorable myself…
“What, you mean Opal? She’s a nightmare!” Scootaloo said.
“Well, I guess she could be better, but she’s still adorable.” Sweetie Belle protected her pet.
“Yeah, when she isn’t trying to scratch your feathers out.” Scootaloo complained as she ruffled her wings, apparently not having had the best of experiences with the cat.
“Um, thank you?” I asked, not sure if it would be a good move to say she looked adorable as well.
Soon though, the Unicorn actually decided to scoot over to where I was and look at me before noticing my ears. “Um… is it okay if I… well… touch your ears? They look really soft.”
I shrugged, not seeing the harm in doing so, I bent down and let her touch my ears. It actually felt quite nice for a bit. But that’s when I noticed her hoof move down to my tail. Uh oh… this might not end well.
“Eh, please, not the tail.” I smiled nervously as I tried moving it out of the way. “It’s quite sensitive since I use it to sense my surroundings.” I explained.
“Oh come on, it can’t be that bad.” Scootaloo tried convincing me, placing her hoof on my tail. What came next though was even a shock to me. Apparently, the lighting that I would have stored in my cheeks gave Scootaloo a small shock, making her look like what would happen to a cartoon character when struck by lightning.
“Um… Applebloom? Did you forget to tell us something about Caesar?” Scootaloo asked, looking between me and her.
“Oh, yea. He’s really good with lightnin’ an stuff, just like aunt Embah is good with fire!” Applebloom explained.
“I wouldn’t say I’m that good with it, it’s not really the same thing, but yeah. I kind of have the same capabilities as a creature called a Pikachu. That’s where the ears and tail come from. And please, the tail is really sensitive, if you had yanked it instead, I don’t know how my body would have reacted. I know Pikachu’s don’t enjoy it though, they’d bite you for it.” I said, trying to discourage any of them from fiddling with my tail in the future.
“Aww…” Sweetie Belle moaned, pouting a little. Oh no, please don’t tell me I’m going to make her sad. “Could I at least still touch your ears? They’re really soft.” Sweetie Belle asked.
I nodded, “Of course, the ears are fine. While the tail is sensetive, the ears are purely for listening and for feeling changes in weather. So they aren’t as sensetive to touch.” I explained.
“Yay!” She cheered, happily. Before trying to tackle me in a head on hug to my chest. That was… until Applebloom had to remind Sweetie Belle to calm herself down.
“Calm down, I’m not really going anywhere, really. I’m actually going to be staying with Applebloom for a while.” I explained.
“You are? That’s awesome!!” Scootaloo exclaimed.
“You said you had the same capabilities as a Pikachu? Can you tell us what they are, and what a Pikachu is?” Sweetie Belle asked as she kept petting my ears.
“Well, a Pikachu is something otherwise known as a Pokémon. Pokémon are powerful creatures, who have evolved with many different abilities. One of the most famous ones are the Pikachu. A yellow rat Pokémon that is very much attuned with electricity.
“All Pokemon can be sorted into eighteen different types. While Pikachu's are electric types, there are a few others, there’s normal types, water types, fire types, grass types, ice types, fighting types, poison types, ground types, flying types, psychic types, bug types, rock types, ghost types, dragon types, dark types, steel types and fairy types.” I listed all the types, having to know them all since I used to play the games a lot.
“Wow. Girls, he reminds me of Twilight.” Scootaloo said to Sweetie Belle and Applebloom.
While I didn’t know who Twilight was, I suspected she was knowledgeable somehow.
“Sorry, it’s just that I’m quite a fan of Pokémon. And now that I can use Pokémon moves, I can do a lot of exciting things. I just got a bit carried away.” I admitted.
“It’s alright.” Applebloom replied, looking outside and seeing the sun beginning to set. “Caesar, we should really get back to the orchard. Granny Smith would have a fit if we’re not back in time to help with supper.” Applebloom explained.
“Oh, well, I guess I’d help out then. I guess I’ll see you girls later then?” I asked the others.
“Probably. Maybe tomorrow if we’re lucky!” Scootaloo replied, her wings buzzing a bit, lifting her slightly off the ground.
“Nah, I doubt it. Tomorrow is harvesting day for tha Zap Apples, and we wanna harvest as many as we can before they disappear tomorrow, we’ll only be able to see each other after that.” Applebloom informed them.
“Aww,” Scootaloo replied, lowering back to the ground.
“Don’t worry. If we get done early, Caesar and I might come see you. Heck, maybe Aunt Embah can come as well.” Applebloom said hopeful.
I nodded in confirmation. “After all, I might be able to help out as well, and we might get done even faster! But I think it’s best if we hurry now Aplebloom. I’m a bit hungry after today’s adventure and and after using ‘Agility’ a whole lot.” I explained.
“Yeah, see ya later girls!” Applebloom said as we all walked out of the tree house and split up, me and Applebloom going towards the farmhouse, while the other girls walked towards a scooter and a small wagon attached to it. Both of them putting on helmets before waving a hoof each in our direction before taking of down the road.
‘Well, they were nice.’ I thought to myself. I had expected a lot more questions, but I guessed ponies were a lot more easy going than humans.
“Ya coming Ceasar?” Applebloom questioned, as I had seemingly gotten lost in my thoughts.
“Yeah, sure. Just thinking a bit.” I responded as we began moving back towards the farmhouse.
“So, what’cha thinkin’ about?” She asked me.
“Well, I was thinking about Sweetie Belle and Scootaloo. You have good friends, it makes me think about my old friends and home however.” I explained, making her frown as she saw my saddened expression.
“Caesar, I know life isn’t always fair to ya, but ya can’t go around thinkin’ about the bad stuff. Ya need to look at the bright side.” Applebloom said, trying to be encouraging.
“And how am I going to do that?” I asked, barely managing to keep myself from snarling.
Applebloom must have noticed since her frown deepened. But she answered anyway.
“Well, had Ah been in your situation, Ah wouldn’t focus on haw Ah wasn’t with mah family, but on that Ah was in a new world. A world, far different from mine, Ah would explore, make new friends and keep up hope. When somethin’ impossible happens, like what happen’d to you, it only proves one thing. And that is, that nuthin’s impossible. Who knows? Maybe you’ll be able to return one day. And if you do, would you really want to look back, and remember your time in a ‘nother world as sumethin’ depressing and miserable, or would you rather remember it as sumethin’ unique, amazing and sumethin’ to share with friends?” Applebloom questioned. Baffling me for a second with how insightful she seemed to be. I guessed she had thought about it because of Ember.
Her words struck hard. I had, against all odds been taken from earth in some mysterious way. While it was unlikely, there was still a possibility that I could one day return. And if it happened, I should have spent my time in Equestria as happily as I could. And if I didn’t return… Then I’d at least lived a happy life till the end.
Smiling, I turned back towards Applebloom.
“Thanks, I needed that. You know, you’re pretty smart Applebloom. What do you say we go get dinner now, I think I can manage another Agility.” I said, watching her smile back as she saw how she managed to both cheer me up, and how I praised her.
“Let’s.” She responded before sprinting away at full speed, clearly challenging me to a race. Smirking, I activated Agility and ran after her, noting that I would most likely end up with one big appetite after this.
By the time we reached the farmhouse, I was already breathing heavily. While Agility made me faster, it did nearly nothing for my endurance. Since I had recently been sick as well, I guessed that my body was still recovering, even though I had used Rest. Perhaps Rest wasn’t liable as a ‘cure all’ after all.
As Applebloom slowed down, I noticed that she had tired somewhat as well, making me feel a bit better about myself. Shortly after returning though, I saw a small pillar of fire around the back of the barn. Followed by Ember stepping forth from it as she returns inside the house.
“What was that?” I ask, not sure if Applebloom knew the answer. Applebloom turned to look at me, only to turn around again as we heard Ember’s footsteps on the front porch as she entered through the door.
“Hey, I’m back.” She said, looking at us. “How was your day Caesar? Was Applebloom giving you any trouble?”
“No, she showed me the Zapp Apple trees and told me about them so I could help out tomorrow.” I explained, thinking it might be best to avoid speaking about Applebloom nearly being electrocuted. No need for her to worry when it didn’t actually happen.
“Ah I see.” She said. “Well tomorrow, you’ll have the opportunity to pick them. So it’ll be less likely for them to shock you too.” She soon walked on in, taking a seat at the kitchen table and looking at Applebloom. “Did he get the chance to meet your friends?” Ember asks, making me remember that I forgot to mention that part.
“Sure did.” The filly replied cheerfully. “Sweetie Belle liked rubbing his ears.”
“Applebloom!” I exclaim as I feel my cheeks heat up. Thankfully they are already red, so they can probably not see my blush. I hope.
“Heh… figures.” Ember said to herself. “When I met her sister, she went on about my scarf for a while. I just didn’t expect her to do that…” She then looked at me, chuckling a little and smiling. “You need some water, Caesar? Your face looks like it’s burning up… No pun intended.”
'Oh no, quick, think of something.' “Yeah, a glass would be nice. The run I had against Applebloom back here really got the blood flowing. I’m a little warm and thirsty from it.” I try and explain away my embarrassment.
“Sounds good… It’s around the time for dinner anyways. I wonder if Applejack left anything in the fridge.” She said, walking over to the wooden fridge in the corner. The first thing that caught her attention though was the note on the front of the fridge. “Well… that’s something…”
Following her gaze, I read the note as well. Soon, Ember looked back at the two of us and cracked a grin. “Apparently, Applejack is with her friends tonight at Twilight’s Castle. All she said was that Princess Luna needed their help with something, but she didn’t give any more information than just that.” Just then, I heard a set of hooves from upstairs and noticed Applejack trotting down rather quickly.
“Sorry everypony, ah gotta run!” She said quickly before running out into the barn. This though, caused Ember to follow her in pursuit and leave some apples for us on the table as the door slammed behind both of them. Followed by the sounds of the two of them talking outside.
'Apples for dinner, seems kind of plain.' I think to myself, but seeing as Applebloom doesn’t even bat an eye at it I just shrug and follow her example. I’m not complaining, 'These apples are really good!'
Afterwards, Applebloom shows me where I’m going to sleep. Apparently it was decided that I’d be sleeping in Applebloom’s room, since Ember was already occupying the guest room. Me, being the same age as her, it simply made sense and her room was also the only one they could fit an additional bed in.
As Applebloom introduces me to my sleeping arrangements and shows me around her room, she asks me to stay before running off to get something.
To be honest, I’m a bit hesitant to sleeping in the same room as her. I’ve only known her for about a day, and I still feel weird about this whole thing. Being on a different planet with a different species.
I shake my head. They have been nothing but nice to me, and Ember, who is Human, just like me sees them as family. They deserve a chance, I shouldn’t doubt them.
Applebloom soon returns with a thick book. Before I can ask her what it is, she jumps up on her own bed and opens it up, revealing to me that it’s a photo album. With no need from her to even say anything, my curiosity is peaked, and I move over to her. Applebloom proudly begins showing me many different pictures of her family. I sadly notice how most of them are missing both Ember and any ponies beside Granny Smith, Big Mac, Applebloom and Applejack. Some other ponies do show up, as does Ember once or twice, but the figures I’m looking for don’t appear until the end. Her mother and Father.
From what I could pick out, they weren't around anymore.
It is sad how she can barely grieve over them. She grew up without them, and never really had a bond with them, but she still gets a little sad once she gets to those pictures, and I can do nothing but hug her to help her but share her feelings, being separated from my own.
Looking at the pictures took quite some time, by the time we’re about halfway, Big Mac comes by, telling us it’s time to prepare for bed. We decide to go through the rest tomorrow before we brush our teeth, and get ready for bed.
To my surprise, as I go to sleep, I find myself conflicted, I both wish for this all having been a dream, and yet, at the same time, I wish it isn’t. I guess only one way to find out, by waking up the next morning.
