//------------------------------//
// Empath 
// Story: The Road Trip of A-Holes! 
// by Sense of Humor 
//------------------------------//

The expanse of the ship was...abnormal, so to speak.

Trixie recalled that Ego had lost a fair amount of energy before coming to them, and told his guests he would be napping for the duration of the trip back to his planet. It left them ample time to explore the entirely white ship and it gave her enough time to discover that the halls moved at times. Sometimes they led into one corridor and other times they lead into an entirely new one. The mare wandered as many hallways as she could, but she stopped any form of movement when she came to the window.

It was a simple oval shape in the side of the ship, but its glass was clearer than any other she'd seen. The ship itself appeared to be passing through a large field of asteroids--or perhaps they were comets? They were blazing like fire and leaving blue trails of ice in space as they hurtled their way through the infinite dark. She stared intently at the closest one in particular, her fascinated gaze slowly turning envious. An inanimate object could create light that fierce...she could too, if she tried hard enough.

The tip of her horn lit up with a crackling green, as if drawing energy from her own envious emotions. When she noticed this, the energy disappeared and was replaced by a yellow spark due to her shocked gasp. Then the spark went out completely and she was left with the comets she had been so jealous of. Trixie curiously began to focus on the comet again, thinking about wanting its energy so badly. With a blink, she had an even larger spark of energy surging forth from the tip of her horn. Raw embers of energy spilled from the aura and sizzled on the white floor. Her pupils narrowed at the comet, as if the energy she was creating could also influence other emotions as raw as itself. She aimed at the comet beyond the glass, gritting her teeth and--

"Hey, Trix."

Like a cracking whip, she whirled around and fired a swift beam of black lightning. She gasped and brought her hooves to her mouth; Quill was caught leaning almost completely backwards while a huge sizzling hole lay in the wall behind him. The human stood up again, blinked owlishly and looked back at the hole in the wall.

"I. Um," Trixie shivered, afraid of the outcome she could have wrought if he hadn't dodged so fast. She could have seriously harmed the one person she'd been getting along pretty well with. "...I-I didn't...that w-was..."

Quill turned back to her and warily held his hands up. "Uh, it's okay. I...almost deserved that. " He walked towards her with a cautious pace, and stopped just in front of her. "I was just looking for ya. Drax would call me a sissy if I ever apologized in front of him."

The mare blinked. "Uh, apologize? Trixie almost took your head off."

"Yeah, but I was also a little rude to you last night. When I snapped when you asked...about my mom. Gamora says I get too touchy sometimes and I lash out during those touchy moments." He rubbed the back of his neck, shrugging lightly. "Plus, your species seems overly...emotional, and I didn't want you to cry or anything. I guess. Maybe."

Trixie gave a highly amused smile, holding a hoof to her heart. "Aw, I didn't know you cared so much about me. Trixie is just so...ooh--So touched about your totally unnecessary apology. Parents are touchy subject, and I shouldn't have pressed so much. " She grimaced. "And if you think you're bad, you haven't met my best friend Starlight Glimmer. The last time I tried to help with her dad, who treats her like a little foal--whoo! Angry choo choo train."

"Huh. And where is this choo choo train now? Back home? " The man walked up the window and admired the comets, unknowingly stirring her jealousy. She managed to ignore her feelings this time. " She sounds fun."

"Oh she is. She hangs around this totally not cool Alicorn, and five other sappy ponies. They just came back from a trip to...Earth, I think the name is. Went to visit the princesses.” She somehow missed the briefly surprise look Starlord gave her. The showmare lowered her head in gloom. "They’ll be back in a day and a half, I guess. I was preparing a party for Starlight when my house got totalled. So...party’s over, I guess.”

"Aw,That sucks. I guess you could...Wait." Quill snapped his fingers, grinning. "I think I met your friend. Or saw her."

"...You did?"

"Yeah, remember what I told you three? We went and visited the princesses and left afterwards. Well, a bunch of these ponies came in as we were leaving. " He explained. "And then this really sassy sounding unicorn pissed off Rocket, which was hilarious. She was pinkish you know, with toothpaste colored hair. Her mane kinda arched over her horn, sorta? Chubby, a little?”

Trixie smiled warmly at the physical description. Oh, what she wouldn't give to be back on Equus, hugging Starlight and partying with her. "Yep. That sounds like the Starlight I know."

Quill glanced around and nudged Trixie with his heel. " Don't tell Gamora...but it was kinda sexy. Like, her voice was really attractive."

"Oh trust me, I know." Trixie purred in agreement, purposely making her voice sound suggestive.

As she hoped, Peter blinked hard at her, his smile fading. There was a hilarious stretch of silence, then a cautious point of the finger. "You're shitting me, right? You two aren't..."

"Hang around Trixie long enough, Star Lord," Trixie giggled into her hoof. "You'll know when I'm joking...And no, we aren't."

"Really? Because I was just starting get used to the idea of you two...you know..." 

Trixie scrunched up her snout when he made gesture with his fingers she didn't understand and didnt want to understand. She rolled her eyes and shook her head. "Lets go meet up with the others, before you describe something that ruins how I view my BFF."

"Good idea. Drax and I have a question for that Mantis chick." As they walked away, he glanced down at her with a rarely serious expression. "That apology was accepted, right...?"

"Let's just hope you're as forgiving as me when it comes to your father," Trixie teased lightly.





"Look but don't touch. That bomb could blow us all sky high," 

Derpy obliged with a bored slowness, carefully pushing the cart back into place. She trotted over to the raccoon and promptly flopped down on her belly. He looked up briefly. "Most people have a different reaction to finding a bomb."

"I bet they do. " Derpy sighed and blinked at whatever Rocket was fiddling with. It was shaped like a 'Y' and had buttons on each end. "That's a very weird bomb."

"This ain't a bomb, stupid. It's a graviton disrupter. Or flipper, if you want to call it that. It reverses gravity in a specified area."

"How come you're always so mean to pon...People?" 

"Its not my fault if some guys are actually stupid. You should try being less stupid sometime."

The pegasus groaned in irritation, but didn't move from her spot.  After a while of inspecting the metal beneath her hooves, she glanced at the setting sun just outside the demolished doors. " It's getting dark out there."

"Captain Obvious strikes again. "

Frustrated by his remark and the fact that he hadn't even looked up from his work, she sat upright. "What are you even working on a Gravy-Flipper for?! Why would we need it?"

Rocket pointed at small, paw-made monitor with his tail. A blue dot sat at the bottom of the tiny screen while a red dot closed the distance from the top of the screen. "That ship is making a beeline for this planet. Could be goons sent by The Sovereign. I'm just preparing for them."

Derpy eyed the assortment of devices around him and smiled softly. "You must be the best wherever you come from."

Rocket looked up, red eyes glinting with a mischievous nature. "And don't you forget it."

The pegasus giggled softly to herself. "Hey, can I help with this?"

He actually stopped moving completely just to stare at her, completely baffled by that suggestion. "You don't even know the first thing about mechanics."

"No, not that. You look like you're planning a trap for whoever is coming," She shrugged as she picked up a very small circular object and inspected it. "Maybe you'd like a pony partner to help you set them up?"

Rocket opened his mouth to protest, only to close it when he smiled deviously.





Peter sat down on the opposite side of the alien woman. "Alright, so can we ask you a personal question?"

Mantis stared at him, then Drax, then Trixie and then at Gamora some several feet away. She fiddled softly with her hands, running her thumb between each finger in thoughtful silence. "...no one has ever asked me a personal question before."

"Don't get flattered just yet," Trixie warned her. "It's a kinda stupid question."

"Quill and I bet differently on the purpose of your antennae." Drax explained, much to the chagrin of Peter. "I believe they are meant to keep you from being decapitated by a low doorway, because you can feel it with your antennae."

"And it's anything other than that, We win the bet!" Quill confirmed.

"They are not there to feel doorways!" Mantis sent Trixie and Quill into celebratory high fives. When they calmed down again, she carefully flexed them as she thought. "I think they help me to feel the intangible. I am Empathic."

"Empathic?" Drax scratched his head.

Trixie lit up like a candle. "Oh! Oh! I know! Starlight was telling me about mythical unicorns and stuff, and she mentioned one of them was Empathic and read emotions and stuff."

"Precisely." Mantis turned to Starlord and reached for his hand. "May I have a demonstration?"

He glanced at Gamora, who looked ready to leap forward if Quill showed any kind of pain. He nodded at her as she grasped his hand, and her antennae straightened upwards. The ends glowed with a violet twinkle, like UV lights but less focused, less bright. Mantis closed her eyes and then opened them again with a faint smile. "You have Heroic emotions. You are a selfless man, though you are plagued by some that you care about."

"Told you Rocket was a prick." He whispered to Gamora.

Mantis went silent again, her eyes closed in concentration. When they opened up again, it was hard to miss the faint blush beneath her eyes. "...You feel love."

Peter rolled his eyes. "Well, yeah. Of course I do. Just a general, selfless love. Hero stuff."

"No, Romantic, Sexual love."

Quill went entirely rigid, as if someone had replaced him with a statue. "No, No I don't."

Mantis pointed behind him. "For her."

"Shit." He facepalmed, clearly imagining the look of morbid surprise and mild amusement on Gamora's face. There was nothing in the world more embarrassing than your crush being broadcasted in front of said crush and two other friends.

“...WAA-HA HA HA HA HAA!”

Drax quickly proved that wrong by giving a roaring laugh and falling backwards into his seat. He pointed at Quill, wheezing and guffawing at the given news. His laughter was loud enough to rival speakers, and obnoxious enough to make Quill sigh. He should have been thankful that his other friend didn't find it so hilarious.

“SHE JUST TOLD EVERYONE YOUR DEEPEST, DARKEST SECRET!” He laughed loudly. “YOU MUST BE THE MOST EMBARRASSED MAN ALIVE!”

"I don't find this hilarious," Trixie said helpfully.

"THAT IS BECAUSE YOU HAVE NO SENSE OF HUMOR!" The grey dude laughed even more, completely ignoring the daggers Trixie sent with her eyes. He giggled as he pointed to himself, grinning like a child. "Do me next! Do me next!"

Mantis obliged; he pressed one finger against his shoulder. That was all that was needed to push her into a realm of uncontrollable laughter. Her high pitched snorting mixed with the hyena laughter of Drax, which equaled to them both pointing at poor Peter.  He sighed and lowered his head, even though it did nothing to get him out of the situation. Trixie lept onto the seat next to him and patted his shoulder.

Trixie had to speak up over the sound of laughter. "Its okay. It could have been much worse."

The human glanced at her. "How?"

"She could have talked about you having some weird, hidden sexual fantasy about Gamora."

"What? Why would I have one of those?"

"Well, you didn't deny it."

Giggling like a little school girl with a morbid obsession with some random boy band in town, Mantis slowly got out of the seat. Even with giggles tearing every last inch of her breath away, Mantis managed to stumble over to Gamora, reaching out to press a few fingers to her green face.

"Touch me," Gamora announced, without even moving to intercept her. "And the only thing you're gonna feel is a shattered jaw."

Needless to say, Mantis stopped laughing. Slowly, when backed away and searched her brain for anything else to talk about. "To an extent, I can alter some emotions.  If I touch someone who is sad, I can ease them into contentment for a short while. I can make a..." She glanced at Gamora. "... stubborn person compliant. But I mostly use it to help my master sleep. He lies awake at night, thinking about his lost son."

Peter's face shifted into another indescribable expression, sighing to himself. Trixie nervously raised a hoof to get Mantis' attention. "Um...Can you try one of those on me?"

The alien woman stalked over to her and slowly rested a palm on her forehead, just below her horn. She closed her eyes and her antennae lit with a light blue color. She breathed. "Sleep," Then she moved away.

Trixie waited a few seconds, looking at everyone and even at her own hooves. Everything felt normal, without the slightest change in her consciousness. The unicorn shrugged at Mantis. "So, what? Does this happen now or does it gradu--"

She fell over into Quill's lap instantly, going as limp as a ragdoll. Her eyes were shut softly as a polar opposite to her lips, which were parted to produce a slightly loud snore. Peter raised his arms as if Trixie were radioactive waste, but he lowered one hand to poke her in the side. The pony snored even louder than before. 

"Wow." Quill nodded. "That was kinda cool."

Drax laughed again. "She is drooling on your pants!" After laughing some more, he lowered his tone to a whisper. "Who has a marker? We can draw nasty things on her face while she sleeps!"





Derpy flinched away from another giant spider as it scurried up a nearby tree, making very unhappy noises. The pony wasnt regretful of her decision to help Rocket with his strange antics, but she was greatly confused by why she had to carry all the stuff. She was not a luggage mule for the raccoon's personal use.

"Alright, luggage mule," The raccoon pointed up the tree. "I'm gonna be waiting up there for them to pass on through. "

Derpy looked farther past the tree. She could see a bunch of flashlights like tiny fireflies in the far distance, and she estimated a few minutes before they ever got near them. "Who did you say they were again? Raiders?"

"Ravagers." Rocket said as he picked out a few items and started to climb up. "Space pirates, real nasty too. They'd probably cut you up, eat you, use you for target practice or sell you off as the bride of some king."

"And Quill was with these people his whole life?! He seems so nice!"

Rocket scoffed at her. "He's just as bad as them. They definitely ain't guys to mess with."

Derpy flew up to his height in the tree with a pout. "We can't let them keep going towards the ship, then! Maud might not be able to handle all of them!"


"Of course not! They're coming at the ship from three different angles in three different groups. " Rocket explained with an eerie grin. "So we'll need some live bait to keep focused in the forest."

The pegasus nodded enthusiastically. "Yeah, great idea! Now we just have to figure out who should be the bait."

"Don't worry. I have someone in mind." Rocket nodded as he looked Derpy over once and then twice. "They're really stupid and bright and cheery."

The oblivious pony tilted her head. "That sounds like bait material. Who is it?"