//------------------------------// // A Lost Man // Story: Equestrian Rangers: Lightspeed Rescue // by smoers06 //------------------------------// LOG #1 July 9, 2012 A.R.C. Trooper A101 Lieutenant James “Phoenix” Casper Damn, I hate using these stupid logs, but I remember this use to keep me sane during my time in the military, and right now, I need EVERYTHING that can help me keep my sanity intact. Anyway, since this is my first log entry in, wow, years, I should probably start from the very beginning. My name is James Casper, but everyone calls me Phoenix. I am twenty six years old now, but I feel much older than I should. I joined the United States military right when I graduated high school eight years ago, and apparently I had a knack for it. I was placed in a new Special Forces unit called the Advanced Reconnaissance Commandoes, founded and led by a smart-ass known only as Captain Joker. I spent three years of my life going from one hot-zone to another; and only one thing was on my mind: Survival. That was, until one of my friends and fellow commandoes was accused of murder. It took every ounce of skill and logic I had, but I found the evidence that proved that he was innocent and I exposed the real killer. After spending three years in the military, I left the ARCs as soon as I got the chance. I spent the next year trying to find my lot in life; I even spent a couple months as a freelance treasure hunter. Although I had a few interesting finds, I decided that I wanted to live a less exciting life. So I moved back to the good old US of A, and became a police detective (Much less exciting, right…) I spent several years being a detective, investigating many crimes ranging from arson to murder, solving every case, never leaving any case cold. About a week ago, I quit the police force, hoping to work as a investigator for the private sector, but the universe seemed to have different plans. I was taken from my world and summoned to a world that is ruled by, wait for it, talking and magical ponies. I know! I know! I couldn’t make this shit up! I was brought to this world by a Unicorn named Twilight Sparkle, who helped ease me into the realities of this world. After helping me retain my sanity (Or what’s left of it), she told me that she needed my help. One of her friends had been accused of murdering another pony, and they needed someone with my investigating skills to help find the truth. Though I had major culture shock for the first couple of days, I eventually found enough evidence that proved that Twilight’s friend was innocent. It’s been about a day since I solved the case, and Twilight has promised to return me home. But now that I’m thinking about it, the more I feel like I don’t want to leave. I know that if any of my old military comrades heard this, they would die of laughter, but it’s something I’m actually thinking about. I have no family left, no real friends I’ve kept in contact with, and I have no job. Back in my world, I was a drifter, going from one place to another, trying to find someplace I actually wanted to stay. I watch the people, well, the ponies in this world actually seem happy, not just moving day to day, and now that I’m not needed, I actually don’t want to leave. It’s strange, but I don’t know what to think anymore really. Anyway, I think that Twilight will be coming by here soon, and whatever I decide will have to be soon. This is Lieutenant Phoenix, signing off. ***LOG END*** “Hey Phoenix!” Twilight said. The human blinked, it was incredibly rare that anyone could ever sneak up on him, years in the military and law enforcement had made him always aware of his surroundings, yet the Unicorn had been able to enter his hotel room without him noticing. Either Twilight became a ninja when I wasn’t looking, or I’m way too tired for my own good, Phoenix thought. He turned to face the unicorn, “Hey Twilight,” He said, putting the audio recorder back on the table in the small room. “Come on in, I’m just killing time.” It was a small lie, but if he told her that he was recording a log, she would undoubtedly want to listen to it. Phoenix didn’t consider himself a very private man, but he wanted those logs to be for his ears only. Twilight studied his face a moment, then she shook her head. “Geez, you look terrible.” She said. Phoenix snorted, “Heh, gee thanks Twilight, I thought you ponies were kind and such.” “You look like you haven’t had a wink of sleep in days.” “That’s because I HAVEN’T had a wink of sleep in days!” He scoffed. “Your pony-sized beds are way too small for me, besides I had been running that intense investigation to clear Rainbow Dash’s name if you recall.” That was a major understatement, the case to help prove that Rainbow didn’t commit murder had been among the toughest Phoenix had ever accepted. Not only had he been reeling from culture shock, exhaustion, and limited resources, he had to learn the ways and customs of Equestria on the fly, which made things that seemed like major evidence be nothing more than a misunderstanding of the way things in this world worked. “I suppose you wouldn’t get much sleep with all that craziness going on,” Twilight said. “By the way, thanks again for getting Rainbow out of that situation.” “Thank yourself,” Phoenix said, “I would never have closed the case without the help of you and your friends.” “You’re far too modest Phoenix; none of this would be possible without your help.” The human shrugged, “Well, I’m just happy I was able to help.” He stood up, hearing his body make a few cracking noises as he stretched out. “So, what’s the agenda for today before I leave? Say goodbye to Fluttershy and the others? Go on one last walk around Ponyville? Make me stand up in front of a crowd and give a sappy speech?” Twilight let out a small laugh, then looked to the floor. “Nothing like that actually…” Phoenix’s brow raised, clearly curious. “None of those?” “No…. I mean you could say bye to everyone then I could send you back home, but…” “But?” “I received a message last night from Princess Celestia.” “Right, you’ve mentioned her before; she’s the ruler of Equestria, right?” “She and Princess Luna, that’s correct. The message basically said that, well, she wants to meet you.” Twilight said. That caught Phoenix off guard. From what Twilight had told him, the Princess was almost always very busy. “I’m honored and all,” Phoenix said. “But why does she want to meet with me? Twilight shook her head. “I don’t know,” She admitted. “I’m just as confused as you. If I were to guess, it could be because you’re the first human in Equestria in over five centuries,” She said, obviously considering this carefully as well. “Or, it could be so she can thank you for helping Rainbow Dash.” The reasons made sense, but something in his gut told Phoenix that there was more to this than a simple “Hello” or “Thank You.” “I guess that’s possible…” Phoenix said, trying hard to sound convincing. “I mean, we don’t HAVE to go, if you want me to just send you back to your world…” “No no,” Phoenix said, raising a hand. “I’m gonna try to savor the time I have left in this world.” Damn, I just felt Masculine level drop dramatically, Phoenix thought. “Besides, I can’t really turn down a request from royalty, now can I?” Immediately Twilight brightened, “That’s great!” She exclaimed. “I’ll send her a message telling her that you’ll come right away!” Phoenix chuckled, then turned to get ready. “I guess I should try to dress nicely,” He said, looking at his one pair of clean clothes. “It’s not every day I meet the ruler of another world after all.” *** “You know, I’ve said this before,” Phoenix grumbled. “But I have never felt like such an outsider in my entire life.” Walking through the streets of Canterlot, Phoenix was reminded of when he had first arrived in Ponyville, with every pony on the streets staring at him with a cautious gaze. To be fair, his appearance didn’t exactly ease their nervousness. He was wearing his best Investigator’s outfit, a dark blue shirt and a long black coat that was open in the middle, showing off his black dress pants and black belt. His detective’s badge was visible on his belt. “Well, it doesn’t help that you’re wearing an outfit that intimidates most ponies.” Twilight responded. “I don’t have a whole lot of options in clothes,” He shot back, “When you grabbed me from my world, I only had this outfit and my best suit, which is filthy dirty thanks to that little fiasco after the investigation.” That brought a laugh out of Twilight, “Oh right, I’d almost forgot about that. It was really great to see you chase down that pony with only two legs, and the mud puddle…” “Alright Alright!” Phoenix cut her off. “I don’t think we need to recount what happened that day.” “You sure?” Twilight said with a smug smile. “Even about how you-?” “NO!” Phoenix said firmly. Anybody who didn’t know Phoenix would have most likely have stopped teasing the man immediately, but Twilight had gotten used to him, and knew that he wouldn’t actually do anything if she didn’t stop. The pair stopped at the entrance to the castle to be allowed access. Although Phoenix got a few sideways looks from the guards, they were allowed access into the royal castle. As they walked down the vast halls, Twilight was telling Phoenix about everything that was anything in the castle. The human tried to appear interested, but he was focusing all his attention on the magnificence of the castle. The art of the colored glass, the beautiful gardens, the detailed statues, all of it was overloading for the detective’s senses. After a while, he just stopped dead in his tracks, staring at the floor. “Phoenix? What’s wrong?” Twilight asked. Phoenix just shook his head, “I shouldn’t be here, I really shouldn’t.” “Why?” “I haven’t done anything to earn the right to be here, let alone be treated like an honored guest.” “What do you mean?” “All my life, I’ve just been hurting people. Wherever I go, pain follows in some way. My parents died when I was just a child, and I took out my anger on other children, I would beat them down with my fists, trying to find some solace in their pain. Even when I joined the military, I hoped to straighten my life out, but no, I only caused death and destruction. In this kingdom that is of peace and harmony, how can I possibly be welcomed if I am the avatar of war and chaos?” Twilight was quiet for a second, then she asked, “Do you think you’ve caused pain here?” “I.. I don’t know…” “I know. I know that in a time where I felt pain that I couldn’t do anything to help my friend, and I know that all my friends felt the same. You changed all of that, you found the truth, and you sought justice when almost no one else did. You are the one thing that prevented a lot of pain in this world recently, and I know that you will get a chance to do so again. Consider this place, this palace of peace and harmony, to be your example to lead by, and to use your strong sense of morality to relieve pain from others, like you have from us.” They were both silent for a few moments, then Phoenix picked his head up, a fire in his eyes. “Come on, we should get going.” He started forward, purpose and determination in each step. Twilight beamed, proud that her little pep-talk had made him feel better. When they had reached within ten feet of the Throne room doors, one of guards nodded at Twilight. “The Princess is expecting you.” He said simply. The Unicorn nodded, and the massive doors swung open. “Come on Phoenix!” Twilight said, moving enthusiastically towards the entrance. The Detective smiled, and started moving towards the doors. He made a quick inspection of his appearance. He made sure his jacket wasn’t wrinkled, and his belt was in its right place, and- *SLAM* Phoenix was snapped back into reality by the doors slamming shut behind him. A very slight clicking noise fell on his ears, which told the human that the guards had locked the doors behind them. “Princess?” Phoenix looked over to see Twilight staring at the throne, the empty throne. The room was empty save for Himself and Twilight. Alarms began to ring in Phoenix’s head. Suddenly, parts of the walls began to slide away, revealing a dozen humanoid shaped robots. *INTRUDERS DETECTED* “We’re not intruders!” Twilight protested. “It’s me! Twilight Sparkle! Princess Celestia’s student!” *INTRUDERS DETECTED* *USE OF FORCE IS AUTHORIZED* “Phoenix…” Twilight said nervously. “Get behind me,” The man said, stepping in front of the pony to face to robots. He reached for his side, then he cursed out loud, realizing his gun was back in his world. “Whatever happens, stay behind me. If something happens to me, I want to run, run as fast as you can towards the windows, do you understand?” “…” “DO YOU UNDERSTAND?!” “Yes…” She whimpered. Phoenix took a deep breath, then set up in a fighting stance. Here I am, in the capitol of peace and love, and I’m about to fight robots with nothing but my bare fists, He thought. “And I was afraid this would be a boring day.” He said out loud.