//------------------------------//
// A World Beyond our Own Part 2 
// Story: Slugging it out 
// by cyberlord4444 
//------------------------------//

	Twilight sighed pleasantly to herself as she read a book, after the business with her... letter to Celestia and Rainbow Dash's pet competition, to say nothing of Discord, she was looking forward to relaxing with a good book. However, as usual when she tried to relax, the universe looked at her and said, "Hmm, nah."

"Hey Twilight," Dash said as she burst in through a window, "take a look at my new pet!"

Twilight frowned as she looked up, "Didn't we just get you Tank?"

"Well sure, Tank's awesome and all, but nopony said I had to stick with just one pet. Besides," Dash held up Dart, "this one can keep up with me."

Twilight stared at Dart for a few seconds before pulling out several books, "There's nothing about anything even remotely like that in any of these."

"So you mean no one else has one, awesome!"

Just then, there was a soft knock on the door, "Um, is this a bad time?" asked Fluttershy.

"Oh hey Fluttershy," Dash waved, "I was just showing Twilight my new pet."

"Oh, you found a Slug too?" asked Fluttershy as Sarge popped out of her mane.

Twilight looked up, "Of course, if anypony would know what these things are it would be you."

"Well, not exactly, Sarge has been telling me about himself, but he has a teensy-weensy bit of an accent. By the way, Twilight, mind if I borrow an Atlas?"

"Sure," said Twilight, replacing the books she had removed, "what are you looking for?"

"Well, Sarge is just wondering how to get home, he's from a place called Slugterra, from what I could understand the Elements brought him here."

Before Twilight could reply, Pinkie popped up out of nowhere, "Watcha doin'?"

After recovering from the scare Pinkie gave them, Dash replied, "Fluttershy and I were just showing Twilight the cool new pets we got."

"New pets!? This calls for a party!" Pinkie said as she pulled out her party cannon. Before anyone could respond, Sarge and Dart jumped into the barrel.

Dash's eyes widened as she saw Pinkie about to pull the cord, "Pinkie wait!"

However, Pinkie fired the cannon, launching the two Slugs through the window Dash had entered through earlier. However, what happened next shocked all of them, even Pinkie. After a few seconds, they spun around and transformed in a flash of light. Sarge became what looked like a rocky crab without legs, while Dart turned into something more akin to a bird of prey.



They could only stare speechless as the two Slugs performed a few loops before returning, shrinking to regular size before landing on the heads of their respective owners.

"You can do that?" Dash asked Dart, who nodded in response, "So, awesome!"

"What the hay just happened?" Twilight asked/yelled, before Fluttershy shushed her so she could hear what Sarge was saying.

"Um, Sarge says that it's normal for Slugs to do that when they reach... 100 mile's per hour I think he said? Anyway it helps keep them healthy, and it's fun. He also said something about Blasters, his accent gets worse when he's excited."

"Really?" Pinkie asked before stuffing herself in the cannon and pulling the cord, launching herself out the window until she was too far to see, a little din and small twinkle following just after.

"Well, I guess I could try to put something together, although I might need a Slug to test it with," Twilight said. Just then, they heard a bunch of chittering outside the door. Opening it, they saw a small flock of purple and blue Slugs.


Sarge chittered and waved hello, most of the new Slugs waving back before they all entered.

"Why are they here?" Twilight asked no one in particular, before Sarge chittered away.

"Sarge says that they're called Fandangos, and they're here because they say Dart and Sarge come here," Fluttershy translated, "also, there's a lot of Slug Energy, whatever that is."

"Really?" Twilight said as she picked up one of the Fandangos in her magic, "well, whatever this 'Slug Energy' is, these little guys are chock full of magic. Now, how do I make a Blaster?"

In response, Sarge jumped off Fluttershy's head and onto Twilight's writing desk. Grabbing a pencil, he then made a rough sketch of a blaster, which Twilight grabbed. "I think I can work with this, thank you Sarge." Sarge saluted before hopping back into Fluttershy's mane.

"So, how soon until you can hook me up with one of those Blaster thingies?" Dash asked, "I wanna see if Dart can keep up with me when he's transformed."

"I should have a prototype by tomorrow," Twilight replied, "and the sooner you let me get started, the sooner I can finish."

"Got ya," Dash said before leaving.

"I should get home too, Sarge says that a lot of Slugs were brought here, and I want to make sure that my animal friends keep an eye out for them," said Fluttershy.

Twilight nodded as she examined the sketch, a blueprint coming together in her mind, "So, who wants to help me make a Blaster?"

All the Fandangos cheered, raring to do what they could to hit velocity.