While exploring Canterlot Castle, Pinkie Pie and Rainbow Dash uncover a room filled with stone tablets connected to dials. Above each dial is the name of an alicorn they know.

These old things couldn't possibly control an alicorn's power, could they?

Only one way to find out.

This story is a sequel to Changeling Space Program

Twilight Sparkle's experimental interplanetary drive has malfunctioned, stranding Starlight Glimmer, Spitfire, Cherry Berry, a changeling and a dragon on a hostile planet in another universe. With limited food supplies, very little magic, no communications with home, and no way to leave the planet, they must survive until somepony rescues them.

Fortunately they crashed right next door to another creature with the exact same problem- a creature named Mark Watney.

They're going to science the buck out of everything- and do whatever it takes to survive Mars and get everybody home.

TVTropes page here! Thanks to GymQuirk for making it!

Commissioned art and fan works from the readers! Thanks, everybody!

This experiment in an updates-daily story was made possible by a generous grant from Canary in the Coal Mine and viewers like you.

(Sex tag for crude talk about sex, but no actual sex in the story.)

The Everfree forest is just like any other forest—except it's full of monsters and weird magic junk, but ignoring that—it sometimes grows out of control and needs to be trimmed a bit. In order to keep the forest from growing too large, Celestia asks Twilight to start a controlled forest fire to burn a portion of it down. It seems like a simple request, but a series of mishaps and misunderstandings lead to some miscommunication and, subsequently, to Twilight setting fire to all of Equestria.

'To whoever gets this message, we're in desperate need of help.'

'Equestria...Equestria is on the brink of being destroyed. Sombra, Tirek and many other villains are taking over our world. The Ambassadors of Harmony are nowhere to be found and Celestia and Luna...Faust, Celestia and Luna. I don't know who you are and I don't care, just as long as you can save us. And if you can't do that, then at the very least...'

'Avenge us.'

After putting on the Element of Magic, Sunset Shimmer was shown just how much of a monster she really is. But that wasn't all the Elements did to her.

Sunset has now been forced to serve penance by answering any question truthfully and by doing anything asked of her, whether she wants to or not.

And she really doesn't want to.

Until all of the hatred in her heart is gone, Sunset is at the whim of her peers, unbeknownst to them of course. Can her new "friends" help her down the road to redemption?

If not, there's always that other Twilight Sparkle she keeps running into.

Current editor: Nomad_Sigma
Guest editors: Cerulean Voice, Flint Sparks, Starlight Nova, and Sholan
Extra thanks to Icarus_Gizmo, JustAnotherTimeLord, and HenryAnthonyCourtler