"Doc... are those ponies... living crystal?" Floyd asked, staring at the crystal ponies going about their day.
"Well, that would appear to be the case," Daniel said. "But keep in mind that magic is a thing here. They could just look like crystal without actually being made of it. Our bio team might have to take a look to determine what the case actually is, though."
The ponies in question did indeed appear to made of crystal, even to the point of seeming to be translucent. Thankfully, none of their organs were visible. The larger sample size also gave Daniel a more accurate picture of how diverse ponies were when it came to coloration.
"The crystal ponies look the way they do thanks to their connection to the Crystal Heart," Cadance explained. "And during special events when the Heart lets out more power than normal, the effect spreads to others in the Empire as well."
"I gotta ask, how are they gonna react to us?" Floyd asked nervously, glancing at Cadance.
"I'm not sure how they'll react at first," Cadance admitted. "Ponies can often be skittish when faced with something new. But once I explain how you took care of me, things will be fine."
"Uh... you take lead, Doc." Floyd fiddled with his camera, getting it rolling. Daniel took the lead of the group, walking into the city square. Almost immediately, the ponies slowed to a crawl, staring at them.
"Hello there, my name is Doctor Daniel Jackson, I come from a place far away from here. I am in your Empire as part of a mission of peace. My people would like to trade our knowledge, among other things, with yours," Daniel said.
They continued to stare, an uncomfortable silence settling on them.
"Princess, could you help me out here?" Daniel asked, looking over at the alicorn.
"There's no need to fear, everypony," Cadance assured with a bright smile, "Doctor Jackson and Mister Hendrix are perfectly friendly." She held her smile for a few moments, before it collapsed into a frown.
One of the Crystal ponies, an older, blue stallion moved to speak, only to double over, clutching his head. "T-the... Teachers have returned!" he shouted, realization spreading across his face.
"Um… no, we're not the Teachers," Daniel corrected. "The Teachers are gone. However, my people are descendants of the Teachers."
The ponies didn't seem to hear him, as similar cries erupted throughout the crowd.
"Ah, the misunderstanding," Daniel said with a sigh. "I'll have to tell Jack about this so he can add it to the tally board."
"You keep score?" Floyd raised his eyebrow in curiosity.
"Jack had the idea a while ago to make a tally whenever we ran into common problems on our missions. Us getting mistaken for something we're not is a very common one," Daniel said.
"Uh huh. You got a weird life, doc."
"You don't know the half of it," Daniel said with a chuckle. "I could go on for an entire year non-stop just about the things that happened before the Atlantis discovery."
"Sounds fun." Floyd shifted uncomfortably as the crowd swarmed them, bombarding them with praise or questions.
"Just be glad they aren't pointing weapons at you or throwing you in some awful prison," Daniel said as he tried to control the crowd. "Everyone, we'll gladly answer questions, but we can't understand them if you talk all at once."
"Okay, everypony," Cadance spoke, slipping into the Royal Canterlot Voice to overcome the roar of the crowd, "I realize you're excited, but please take a breath." The crowd finally listened, the noise from them becoming a dull chatter. "That's much better." She nodded to Daniel.
"Thank you, now I'll start taking questions," Daniel said. He pointed at a pink crystal mare. "You there, do you have a question?"
"Why did you forsake us?" she asked, looking up at him, frowning.
"As I tried to tell you before, I'm not one of the Teachers. My people are called 'humans' and we are descended from the Teachers," Daniel said. "And they forsook you because they fell to a plague. They quarantined themselves in Shangri-La to prevent it from spreading to anyone else."
"They're gone?" another pony asked.
"Unfortunately, yes," Daniel said. "But a piece of them lives on in what they left behind. Their accomplishments still help millions upon millions of lives." The ponies mumbled, talking amongst themselves.
"Do you think that's good mumbling, or bad mumbling?" Floyd whispered.
"Can I have your attention everypony?" Cadance spoke again, getting their attention much more easily this time.
"What is it, Princess?" an older stallion asked.
"I think a celebration is in order. I would like each of you to contribute, and show our guests just how welcoming of a people we are!" The crowd cheered, rushing off to get started. "There, that should keep them from crowding you two," Cadance beamed. "Let's head to the castle, I don't want to keep Shiny waiting any longer." Daniel and Floyd nodded and continued to follow her through the city.
"This place is like something out of a fairy tale," Floyd commented.
"You should see it during the Crystal Faire, everything shines and glitters for the entire day." She paused, looking at Daniel. "You speak the Teachers' language, right?"
"I know a good deal about the language, why?" Daniel asked, quirking a brow.
"Maybe you can figure out what's going on with the Crystal Heart, then." She led them deeper into the city, stopping at the base of the central spire. Floating in the center, cordoned off by guards, was a floating crystal, shaped like a heart. Around it hovered several holographic screens which, much to Daniel's surprise, were sporting Ancient text.
"Fascinating," Daniel said as he adjusted his glasses. "I'll gladly examine the heart for you."
"Excellent. If it's alright with you, I'm going to go find my husband." Cadance turned to the closest guard, a green crystal pony. "I want you to see to these stallions' needs while I'm gone." The stallion saluted before she trotted off.
"So..." Floyd scratched his neck, looking at the Heart. "Floating gemstone?"
"Hmm, it might take me some time to translate all of this," Daniel said. "I'm seeing words I haven't encountered before. I'm guessing the Ancients of Shangri-La had a branching dialect thanks to their interactions with ponies."
"I mean, that's not really surprising." Floyd turned to the guards. "I think I might try and get some footage, maybe a few interviews, that cool with you?"
"That's fine with me," Daniel said, getting out a notebook and scribbling notes. "Just stay out of trouble."
"Call me if you need me." Floyd moved over to the closest guard, clearing his throat. "Mind showing me around?"
"We were told to tend to your needs," the guard replied. "We will gladly escort you."
"Then lead the way, gentlemen." Floyd gestured for them to walk, getting his camera ready. Two of the guards started to trot ahead of him, ignoring his choice of words. "See ya later, Doc." he waved off, following after them. Daniel returned the wave, never taking his eyes off his work.
Higgs grumbled as he glanced at the entrapped parasprites. Despite the tower having been deemed safe from the little buggers, the general still wanted guards posted at each cluster, to make sure they didn't break free. He adjusted the rifle in his arms, doing his best to look like a model soldier despite the boredom.
He did his best not to look at the frozen bugs, their lidless eyes unnerved him greatly.
"Ugh, can't believe the others called these things cute," he muttered. A shadow flittered across the hallway, catching his attention. "Control," he tapped his walkie, a deep frown on his face. "Higgs here, I'm the only one in this section right? Over."
"This is Control. I'm looking at the heat sigs right now, you are the only one there, why? Over."
"Could be my imagination, but I think something's down here with me. Over."
"Should we give you some backup? A patrol squad can be at your location in 10. Over."
"I'd rather not get eaten by whatever else they let out of their cages. Over."
"Copy. Just stay put and the squad will be there soon. Control out."
Higgs nodded to himself. When he turned, however, he was just in time to see a figure dart into a room. "Control, either I'm seeing things, or I'm dealing with something that doesn't have a heat sig, or can hide it. Over."
"Copy that. Standby 10."
Higgs got off the line, and kept his gun at the ready in case the figure came into the room.
"H-help!" what sounded like a child's voice called out, seeming to be in distress. Higgs paused, having read all the past mission reports of the Stargate program. But, his gut told him to check it out. He kept his gun pointed forward and slowly made his way toward the sound.
Sitting in the nearby room was a small yellow and red foal, clutching his right hoof close to his chest.
"Control, run a diagnostic on the infrared sensors. Over," Higgs whispered into his walkie.
"Wilco. What are we supposed to be looking for, Higgs? Over."
"I'm seeing what appears to be a foal," he whispered. "He's... I'm assuming he, based on the voice, is clutching his hoof as if injured. Over."
"Are you sure? We're not getting anything up here Higgs. Over."
"Well, I know what I'm seeing," Higgs replied. "Do we have any cameras in this section? Over."
"Negative. Over."
"Please," the foal whimpered, giving Higgs a pleading look, "It hurts..."
"...This is gonna bite me in the ass, I just know it," he grumbled. Into his radio he said, "Higgs out." He then walked over to the foal and knelt down. "Hey little guy, let me take a look at that hoof." The foal whimpered, holding out his hoof. Higgs took hold of it gently, examining it. "Alright, this doesn't look serious." He pulled out a small first aid kit and tended to the hoof.
"Thanks," the foal said, looking down at his hoof.
"Don't mention it," Higgs said with a smile. "Now, what's your name?"
"Razor."
"My name is Higgs, it's nice to meet you, Razor. How did you get in here?"
"I hid among the rocks and got taken in the big metal thing."
"Do you mean a Jumper?" Higgs asked. "Did this big metal thing fly?"
"Yeah." Razor nodded. "I thought I could find food."
"Well, we have plenty of food in the mess hall," Higgs said. "What would you like to eat?"
"Do you have... meat?" Razor asked carefully.
"Heh, yeah, we've got meat," Higgs replied with a chuckle. "We've got fish, beef, chicken and pork."
"I would like some of that."
"Sure thing, Razor," Higgs replied. "Do you want me to carry you there?"
"You wouldn't mind?" Razor asked, a little surprised.
"No way, you don't look heavy at all," Higgs said, scooping Razor up in his arms. "Plus, your hoof is still healing. I can't let you put weight on it 'til a real doctor takes a look at it."
"Thank you." Razor got comfy, looking up at him.
"So Razor, where are you from?" Higgs asked as he walked towards the mess hall.
"Lothering," the foal responded.
"Sounds like an interesting place," Higgs said, turning a corner into another hallway. "What's it like?"
"Poor. The adjudicator takes most of their crops."
"Their?" Higgs repeated. "Is your family in a trade or something?"
"I guess you could say that," Razor squirmed slightly, rather uncomfortable with the question.
"Well, what about you? What do you do for fun?"
"I like to sneak out and mess with the ponies." Razor grinned, showing off a small pair of fangs. "Make them think the Mantis is gonna get 'em."
"Uh huh," Higgs said, adjusting Razor in his arms. "So you're a little trickster huh? Well, I played my fair share of pranks when I was about your age."
"Any good ones?" Razor asked, his curiosity piqued.
"Heh, one time I snuck into the faculty bathroom of my school and put superglue on the toilet seat. The principal wound up getting stuck there for hours before the fire department was called and got him off it."
"That's hilarious." Razor frowned. "Whats a 'skool'?"
"A school is a place where kids learn about all sorts of things," Higgs explained.
"Sounds boring. Mother teaches me everything I need to know," Razor replied, sticking his nose up in the air.
"Heh, a lot of kids think school is boring." Higgs chuckled and ruffled his mane. "Lord knows I was one of 'em."
"Stop that!" Razor hissed, batting a hoof at Higgs' hand, "You'll ruin my disguise."
"Fine, fine, be fussy." Higgs chuckled, though he noted the word disguise.
'This may not be a pony, but it's not a threat either. It's just a kid that got lost.'
"Higgs?" another officer asked, rounding a corner. Two others followed behind him, weapons at the ready.
"I found the figure," Higgs reported. "I think the infrared is on the fritz."
"Is that another pony? The general is not going to be happy about this."
"Yeah, he got taken by one of our Jumpers among the mineral samples we collected," Higgs said. "I'm taking him to the mess hall so he can get some food in his stomach."
"General, this is sergeant Thompson, we've caught up with Higgs. Seems one of the offworld ponies was accidentally taken among a sample of minerals. Over."
"This is Carter. How is that possible?" Carter replied over the walkie. "I haven't heard anyone report an unexpected heat signature. Over."
"I dunno ma'am, maybe the city's sensors are acting up? Over."
"I'll have the tech team take a look at them. We'll prep a Jumper to take the foal back home. Carter out," Carter said.
"Higgs wants to get the little guy something to eat first."
"And maybe a trip to the infirmary," Higgs quickly added. "He was clutching one of his hooves in pain when I found him. Over."
"Copy. That's fine; I'll send Lyra down to meet with you. Higgs, don't take too long, I'd rather not be accused of kidnapping again. Keep me informed. Over."
"Wilco. I'll make sure he just gets a quick meal and a checkup," Higgs responded. "Then Razor will be on the next flight home. Higgs out," Higgs said. He then continued down the halls with the other soldiers right behind him.
"What are you things anyway?" Razor asked, looking back at the soldiers.
"Our species is called humans," Higgs told him. "We came here from a place called Earth."
"You taste funny," Razor commented, scrunching his muzzle up.
"And what's that supposed to mean?" Higgs asked, looking down at the foal. "You haven't bit me or anything."
"I don't need to bite you to eat." Razor shook his head. "You don't taste as good as the ponies."
"So what are you eating if you're not biting me?" Higgs asked, arching his brow.
"Your feelings," Razor stated with a roll of his eyes, like it was perfectly obvious.
'Probably gonna need to have a talk with one of the ponies about this.' Higgs thought.
"So what feelings taste the best?" he asked.
"Love!" Razor chirped, almost wagging his tail.
"Alright, I got an idea then." Higgs concentrated and brought up all his fondest memories of his loved ones. Razor let out a hum, licking his lips. "Seems like that's hitting the spot," Higgs commented, still reminiscing.
"Can I still have the meat?"
"Of course you can, little guy," Higgs assured, turning a corner into the mess hall.
"Hello!" Lyra trotted up, wearing a bright smile. "General Carter said you had a foal, how can I help?"
"We could probably use your help during the check up," Higgs told her. "But for now, help me keep him company while I get him a bite to eat." He set Razor down at the table and walked off to get a tray of food.
"Hi, I'm Lyra, it's nice to meet you," Lyra introduced, smiling down at Razor, "What's your name?"
"It's Razor." He sniffed the air around her. "Wow, you're really full of love!" he beamed.
Lyra's smile dropped a little. "H-how do you know that?"
"Uh... I can tell just by looking at you?" Razor gave her a weak smile, his ears pinning to his head.
"Changeling!!!" Lyra screamed at the top of her lungs, darting behind one of the guards, looking terrified. Razor let out an eep, his disguise dropping, revealing a small changeling covered in light brown fuzz with two fuzzy antennae next to his horn, green moth-like wings and a tiny tail that resembled a scorpion stinger as he started to run from the room.
The guards barely glanced at each other before moving in tandem to stop him.
"Don't hurt him!" Higgs shouted, putting the tray down and rushing after Razor. "He's just a kid!"
"Lemme go!" Razor hissed, glaring at the guard who had managed to grab him by his tail.
"Everyone calm down," Higgs said, coming to a stop. "Soldier, let go of his tail, that has to hurt the little guy," he told the guard. "And Razor, we're not going to harm you."
The guard reluctantly let go, allowing the changeling to dash under a table. Several people hurried away from said table, abandoning their meals. Higgs sighed and knelt by the table.
"Razor, you don't have to hide. We're not going to hurt you," he said in a soothing voice. Razor backed away, his tail raised to strike.
"Razor, I knew you weren't a pony," Higgs told him. "You gave yourself away with your disguise comment, among other things. But I still want to help you and get you home to your mother." Razor looked at him, slowly making his way towards him. "That's it, little guy, and I'm still gonna give you your food too." Higgs smiled at the young changeling. Razor smiled back, staying close to Higgs's legs. Higgs patted the little changeling's head and led him to the tray he had discarded. He piled it up with food and placed Razor on a table to eat.
"Thanks..." Razor said weakly, eating with his hooves.
"You're welcome, little guy," Higgs said. "It's my job to keep innocent beings safe." He glanced at Lyra, who was still hiding behind a rather confused guard.
"I didn't mean to scare anyone," Razor said with a pout.
"It's not your fault, Razor," Higgs assured, looking back at him. "I think Miss Heartstrings just had a bad experience in the past."
"Really?" Razor tilted his head. "Mama tells us not to hurt ponies or anything when we gather love."
"We'll just have to ask." Higgs let out a long sigh, reaching up to turn on his radio. "General, this is Higgs. Things are getting complicated. Over."
"This is Carter. What do you mean 'complicated'? Over," Carter asked, her radio crackling.
"The foal's not a pony, apparently, he's something called a changeling. Heartstrings flipped when she saw him. Over."
"I've heard these changelings mentioned before," Carter commented. "And what do you mean when you said Lyra flipped? Over."
"She screamed 'changeling' and is currently cowering behind Private Sampson, ma'am. Over."
"Okay, don't go anywhere," Carter ordered. "I am going to come in and assess the situation. Over."
"Wilco. Higgs out." He let go of his radio and looked down at Razor. "How do you like your food?"
"It's good," Razor replied, licking his lips, "Not as good as love though."
"Well, you just tell me if you want more of that," Higgs told the changeling. "It's no trouble at all." Razor grinned like a wolf, having seconds and even thirds.
"Ahh, I'm stuffed," Razor said, patting his distended chitin. He buzzed onto the table, curling up like a dog. "The others are gonna be so jealous..."
"Yeah, you're certainly gonna have a good story to tell your siblings." Higgs chuckled and patted the changeling on the head. Higgs found that Razor's fuzz was soft and fluffy, while the chitin under it was firm. It reminded him of the touch a stuffed animal. "Do you wanna tell me more about your family?" he asked, still patting him.
"Okay." Razor nodded, nuzzling his hand. Higgs smiled at the action and continued to pat him. "There's mama obviously, she keeps an eye on all of us and teaches us everything we need to know. I got lots of siblings."
"Really, how many?"
"About a hundred or so."
"I bet your mom has a hard time keeping all your names straight." Higgs chuckled.
"Drones don't have names."
"And you're not a drone?" Higgs questioned.
"No! I'm a colt!" Razor shook his head quickly. "I'm a changeling king!" He puffed up his chest. "You can tell by my tail." He brought up the little stinger.
"I-is that like a queen?" Lyra asked, peeking out from behind her hiding spot. "Also… you look very different from the changelings I'm used to."
"No, mama says that when I grow up I'm gonna leave the hive and find a queen from another," he explained. "And then that queen and I are gonna make our own hive." He frowned. "Mama hasn't really told me everything about that stuff though." He blinked, processing her words. "You have changelings too?"
"Well, you have ponies on your world too," Higgs pointed out, rubbing his head.
"Oh yeah." Razor nodded, nuzzling Higgs hand. He watched Lyra, rather curious about her.
"He's just a foal Lyra, he won't brainwash you," Lyra chanted to herself, performing Cadence's patented breathing technique.
"Brainwash?" Razor tilted his head. "How do you get brains out to clean them?"
"That's not..." Lyra sighed, stepping up to him and throwing up her best smile. Razor smiled back, his tail swishing behind him.
"Hi there," he said. "Sorry I scared you."
"No it's okay, I shouldn't have freaked out." She held her hoof out. "I'm Lyra."
"You already said that," he pointed out with a giggle, tapping her hoof with his. "And I'm Razor." Lyra flinched at the contact before loosening up.
"It's nice to meet you, Razor."
"Same here," the little changeling said, smiling brightly. "I don't get to talk to ponies in my real form much."
"Are you... nice to ponies?"
"Yeah, I mean, the worst thing I do is pull pranks on them sometimes," Razor replied.
"That's good." Lyra nodded, giving a weak smile.
"Yeah, I pretend to be the Mantis." Razor turned into a giant beast to demonstrate. It appeared to be insectoid, with a body like a centipede, the head of a mantis, and two arms tucked against its underbelly. Razor stayed in this form for only a second before shifting back. "I never hurt anyone, but one look is enough to spook them." Lyra nodded, taking a seat at the table. "So why are you here with these 'hoo-mans'?" he asked, curling up again.
"Oh, they're my friends," Lyra explained. "I stayed to learn from them."
"Yeah, they've got all sorts of stuff I've never seen before." he said with a nod. "I bet you're learning a ton." Razor looked her over. "Can I taste you?"
"Are you talking about my love?" Lyra asked, flinching slightly.
"Uh huh." Lyra bit her lip, thinking it over for a while. Her ears pinned to her head and she backed away.
"I-I can't." The mare shook her head furiously, images of her last changeling encounter flooding her mind. She turned tail, galloping out of the room as fast as she could. Razor's ear pinned to his head and he gave Higgs a pitiful look.
"I scared her again," the little changeling said.
"Hey don't worry so much." Higgs reached out, scratching the colt's ear. "You can still eat my feelings."
"Thanks." Razor smiled up at him weakly. Higgs smiled back, keeping the young changeling company until General Carter arrived.
Celestia sat across from her sister as they were in the middle of discussing ways to relay the news about the return of the Teachers' city.
"I believe our first order of business is to begin talks with town leaders who could lend land to a new location for the humans," Luna offered, grabbing a map off a shelf in her magic.
"I distinctly recall the Teachers placing their city over an inland sea," Celestia recalled, staring at the map. "I think offering them safe harbor in our waters is the best solution."
"We have no shortage of harbor cities, and the mayors will surely be more amenable to lending unused water than to lending potentially valuable land," Luna said. "Perhaps talking with the Manehattan mayor is in order?"
"As well as the mayors of Fillydelphia and Baltimare," Celestia nodded. "If we play our cards right, trade will boom."
"This will not be our first time dealing in tricky negotiations," Luna said with a chuckle.
"I suppose that's true." Celestia quickly penned a letter, sending it off.
Celestia sipped her tea, a look of thought on her face. "Of course, we'll need Miss Heartstrings here when we break the news."
"I agree, the mare deserves to take the credit for this. Being a laughing stock must be miserable." Luna said, sipping her own tea.
"I'll send a letter to Cadance and tell her to bring Miss Heartstrings to Canterlot," Celestia said. She wrote up another letter, sending it off. "We might have to proceed faster than we would like, news will travel from the Empire."
"Yes, it seems to travel much faster nowadays," Luna agreed. "It makes large undertakings even trickier."
"Shall we divvy up the responsibilities?"
"Of course, it's how we've always done things," Luna nodded.
"I will deal with..." Celestia ran the details through her mind. "Setting up the press conference and drawing up negation plans."
"And I will send word to the mayors to begin talks," Luna offered.
"Then we are agreed," Celestia smiled, taking a bite of her cake. "So, what do you think the look on Bluey's face will be when Miss Heartstrings gets her recognition?"
"I believe his jaw will hit the ground and his right eye will twitch," Luna said, grinning as she took a bite of a cookie.
"I bet he'll just stare off into space for ten minutes," Celestia giggled, sharing her sister's grin. "I think Miss Heartstrings will be getting that funding after all."
"Care to make a wager on the expression Bluey will make?" Luna asked
"How much?" Celestia raised her eyebrow, giving Luna a hard look.
"Loser has to hold court in their smaller form for a week."
"Oh, that's rather high stakes, considering our situation." Celestia took another bite of cake, mulling the wager over.
"Well, I won't blame you if you back out," Luna started, sipping her tea. "This is the mare's game after all. It takes true fortitude to take it."
"As always, you have a silver tongue, Luna." Celestia held her hoof out. "I'll take that bet."
Luna tapped her hoof against Celestia's and grinned. "I look forward to seeing your pink mane again."
"And I look forward to seeing you struggle to keep your crown on."
"We shall see who has trouble with their crown once Miss Heartstrings relays the news to Bluey." Luna chuckled. They chatted for a few minutes more before parting ways, they both had tasks to complete.