Ren breathed in the smell of the con. The food... The ink on paper... The smell of dyed clothing. All such unmistakable signs of a geek-fest.
Well, that, or a salvation army next to a diner.
Either way, it was fantastic.
Walking through the crowds, he looked over the booths around him, passing a few Marvel fan booths, a line for DC actor autographs, a book signing booth, etc...
Then he saw him again.
"Groan... I'm gonna end up going over there, aren't I?"
Sighing, he skipped the middle man and walked over to the Merchant's booth yet again. He looked over the wares as the guy in front of him was finishing up.
"...I hope you have a wonderful day!" The Merchant said to the girl he was talking to as she walked off, before looking towards Ren. "And what can I do for you today, sir?"
Ren gave him a deadpan look. "Sell me something that doesn't disappear, perhaps?"
The Merchant looked confused for a moment before blinking in surprise. "Oh... You're the Werewolf from the con a few months back. The new costume threw me off." He said, gesturing towards his robes. "Hmm... A Jedi costume, right? I have just the thing for that kind of outfit!"
Before Ren could say anything, the Merchant had pulled out a silver tube, with very detailed bits and pieces that actually looked like machinery on it. "This is Luke Skywalker's lightsaber, which he-"
"Which he built from blueprints Obi-Wan had left in his home on Tatooine." Ren completed, pulling out his own, very similar lightsaber. "Already got one, dude."
If the Merchant could sweat drop, he certainly would have right then. "Er... Right. Of course! Hmm... Perhaps you'd like a blaster to go with your lightsaber?" He said, pulling out a standard clone rifle from under the table.
Ren raised an eyebrow. "I'm gonna be a nerd and quote Obi-Wan now. 'So uncivilized'." He frowned as he looked over the wares again. "How about that?" Ren asked, pointing towards a white and green watch with a black face that had green lines in the shape of an hourglass on it.
Looking at it, you could practically see the Merchant grinning behind his mask. "Ah, that would be the Omnitrix from Ben 10! Considering how much trouble you had last time, I'd give you a deal of... Fifteen dollars."
Ren whistled at that. For something that looked so nice and detailed... "Deal!" He pulled his wallet out of his pocket and picked out 3 fives, handing them to the Merchant. Smiling, he took the Omnitrix and walked away while strapping it on his wrist.
...Well, he would've walked away, if he hadn't disappeared first.
Back at his booth, the Merchant grinned evilly under his mask.
Ren idly fiddled with the watch on his wrist, examining the intricate detail on it.
Even if his stuff disappears, he does have some awesome ite-
His thoughts cut off as he walked into a tree... And fell backwards... Into a basket... Right as apples fell on top of him.
In short order, these are the sounds he made:
"Ow! Woah, oof! Yow-ow-ow-ow-ow-OW!"
Groaning, he glanced down at the basket he was sitting in. "...Who brings a basket full of apples to Comic-con?" He looked up. "...Who brings a tree to Comic-con?"
And then he looked around. "Oh... I'm not at Comic-con."
He would be proud to say that he maintained his cool head during that and immediately knew what was going on.
Sadly, that would be a lie.
Big Macintosh hummed happily as he walked home, his empty wagon of apples and full sack of bits with him. Today had been a good haul at the market and he had more than enough bits to fix every leak in the barn roof.
Yessiree, today was looking to be a great day.
"AAAAAAAAAAAHHHHHH!!!!"
...Fine, I'll admit it. That was a lie too.
Big Mac's ears perked up as he heard the scream. Worse, he heard where it came from: Home.
"Eeeenope!" Macintosh cried out as he started running a full-out sprint back to Sweet Apple Acres.
Ren breathed in deeply, calming himself down. "Okay Ren, relax, you're just probably in a sugar induced dream from the deep fried Twinkies you ate earlier... Nothing to worry about... It's not real..."
Yeah, right. Even he didn't believe himself.
So, here were the facts: One, he had somehow disappeared from Comic-con and ended up in a forest.
Two, it happened right after he put the weird watch-thing on.
Three, he was sitting in a wooden basket filled with app...les...
Oh.
OH.
Ren jumped to his feet and looked around to see if anybody was nearby. Who would leave a wooden basket lying around to just topple into after all?
"Helloooo! Anybody there?" ...No reply. So far.
"I'm a little lost! I could use some help!" He yelled out as he walked around the tree, glancing around. Hopefully somebody DIDN'T just leave a wooden basket lying around to topple into. That would just be-
"Who in the hay are you?"
Ren blinked... Then blinked again. He wiped his eyes just to be sure.
"I asked ya a question. Who are ya?" The orange skinned woman asked.
Yeah, ORANGE. And not the healthy sun-tan version. The lady was about 5 and a half feet tall, with blonde, shoulder length hair, a red long-sleeved shirt, and dusty blue overalls.
Of course, Ren's brain was still stuck on the orange skin thing. Seriously, her freckles were the only normal skin thing about her... Skin.
"Whointhewhatnow?" Was the response he managed. What happens if she gets a sunburn...?
"Sigh... Let me say this a little slower. Who. Are. You?" She sarcastically stated to him.
That finally snapped him out of his shock. "Uh, I'm Ren, Ren Barnes." Well, at least he can speak normally again.
She offered him a hand. "Ah'm Applejack, pardner. Mind telling me what you're doing on mah farm?" She asked as Ren took her hand and shook it.
Farm? Well, that rules out cosplay for an explanation on the skin... "I, uh... Don't... Know... I'm honestly just as confused as you are, Appl- Wait, Applejack?" That name sounded familiar for some reason... Besides, who named their child Applejack? If you're going to name them after a drink, at least make it Lemonade.
She gave him a funny look. "Yeah, APP-LE-JACK. I suppose ya might've heard of me?"
Okay, now the name was starting to seem really familiar. "Uh... Maybe? Should I have?"
Before she could answer, Ren felt an impact on his side and he flew- Literally! -through the air, hitting his head against a tree... As well as the rest of his body. He fell backwards due to a tree related incident a second time that day.
As he landed on the ground, dizzy and with darkness encroaching on his vision, his last sight was that of an apple falling from the branches directly for his face.
Oh, grea-
Sploch!
And with that, he knew no more.
"Big Mac! What in the hay did ya go and do that for?!" Applejack scolded her older brother.
Big Mac blinked in surprise at the sight of his sister. She looked okay. "I heard screaming, and I thought you might've been the one do'in it."
"So yah just ran down a helpless stranger to try an save me?" She asked with a glare.
Big Mac sheepishly rubbed a red hand on the back of his head. "Eeyup."
Applejack glared at him for a little longer before sighing. "Come on. Let's get him over to the house. I reckon he'll be a might confused once he wakes up."
Big Mac nodded, moving towards the unconscious form of Ren Barnes. "Eeyup." He bashfully stated in embarrassment.
One hour later...
Ren groaned as he groggily woke, feeling sore all over. Man, that was a strange dream... I swear, it almost feels li-
His thoughts were preemptively cut off as he rolled over and fell onto a nice solid hardwood floor. THAT woke him up.
"Oof~! Ow..." He shook his to get rid of the stars in his vision before looking around.
He appeared to be lying on the floor of someone's living room next to a couch that, judging by how near it was, was what he had been sleeping in. And looking around everything was made of wood.
No, seriously. There were wood floors, wood walls, wood ceiling,... Didn't look like there was a single bit of drywall or plaster.
Oh, yeah, there was also a yellow girl standing in the door-
"Howdy there! I'm Applebloom!" The red-haired, yellow complexioned girl exclaimed while holding a hand out to him.
Ren, stupidly, just blinked.
After a few moments 'Applebloom' retracted her hand with a confused look on her face. "Are you okay there, mister?"
That snapped him out of it as he shook his head and made slow exclamations of, "No, no, no, no,..." over and over again, worrying Applebloom even more.
"Uh, what's the matter, mister Ren? Are ya hurt or somethin'?"
He slowly got up, muttering to himself. "This isn't real, can't be real, just a bad, sister induced dream..." Looking up towards Applebloom, Ren sighed and gave a more vocal response. "No, no, I'm fine as a guy who's going crazy can be." Why the h*** am I in Equestria Girls? Did I die and get sent to the bad afterlife?
Applebloom smiled, relieved that he wasn't hurt. "Well, ya don't seem too crazy." Glancing at his wrist, she finally asked the question that was bugging her since her older siblings brought him there. "Say, what kinda watch is that?" She emphasized her statement by pointing at the white and green device on his wrist.
Ren glanced at his left arm in surprise. "I... Don't know..." The Merchant guy said it was a whata-trix? Shrugging, he shoved the question aside as non-important. He was dreaming, maybe the Merchant didn't actually sell him it.
"Would you like to hold it?"
Applebloom beamed from ear to ear. "Ah sure would, mister Ren sir!" She said while looking intently at said device.
Ren frowned at that, though. "Wait... How do you know my name?"
"My sis told me it when she and Big Mac brought you here." Applebloom answered, nonplussed.
Ren stared at her. Big Mac...? Yup, definitely a dream. Sighing, he pushed aside the restaurant themed name and shoved the watch off his wrist.
Or, well, tried to shove it off his wrist.
Grunting, he heaved and pulled at it, but it refused to move, stubbornly staying where it was. It was like he was trying to pull his own hand off!
Applebloom glanced at it worriedly. "Here, maybe ah I can help." She then grabbed at the device without any further hesitation and started tugging.
Man... She was strong! It felt like she was trying to tug his whole arm out of it's socket!
"Yow, owowow!"
She immediately let go and he fell back, landing on the couch. "Oh, I'm sorry! I'm sorry! I din't mean to hurt ya!"
Holding his arm that was still hurting a bit, he managed a tight smile in her direction. "It's okay... It's just that I have a stupid watch that doesn’t come off!" He exclaimed while angrily hitting said item.
Note: Do not slap things that probably sent one to another world. It can lead to terrible consequences if you learn that the hard way...
Applebloom swore to Applejack she didn't know what happened and that she did not, whatsoever, cause it, no matter what her reputation as a Crusader might be.
It had started out simply enough with Ren asking her to help get his watch off, and when it wouldn't slip off, he had hit it in frustration. That much she understood. But what happened next was a bit... Iffy.
"Tell me it again, Applebloom." Applejack said with a sigh, rubbing her eyes.
"I'm not lying, Applejack!" She adamantly protested. "I've already told you what happened!"
"Well tell it again!" Applejack said, exasperated. "It's a might difficult to believe."
Applebloom silently fumed. "Fine! After he hit his watch there was a bright flash of light and he turned into a blue lizard-person-thing and started freaking out."
"And so you screamed?" Applejack said with a raised eyebrow.
"What was Ah' supposed to do?! He was a Changeling! He could'a sucked the love right out'a me!" She exclaimed.
"And then he bolted?"
Applbloom nodded. "Once he figured he was found out, he just... Disappeared. One moment he was there, the next, nothing but a breeze from where he was sitting. I swear to ya, that's the truth!"
Applejack sighed, rubbing her forehead this time. "Ah' believe ya..." She shook her head at the explanation. "We better find him before he goes and does anything."
Applebloom snorted. "He’s just one Changeling. What could he do?"
Ren raced down the road, freaking out and yelling with his now raspy sounding voice.
"YAAAAAAAHHHHH!" He stared at his hands, well, claws, in shock and fear as he ran. He screamed again as he realized how fast he was running, though that didn't stop him from continuing to speed along.
What the h*** just happened?! He had just hit his watch, no big deal, right? Wrong! One moment he was himself, then the next he was... Well, this, whatever the heck he was! After Applebloom started freaking out and screaming, he had darted out the door, intent on getting away from the girl who was no doubt a lot more freaked out by this then he was.And probably a lot stronger than him too.
He took several deep breaths as he tried to calm himself down. Relax Ren, there has to be a logi-
Thunk!
Crash!
Smack!
Thud...
Ren felt pain blossoming from all over his body as he lay on the ground moaning. In short order, he had ran through a wooden board someone was carrying, crashed through the window of some sort of house, hit the person on the other side of said window, and crashed into the wall with them. He was now surrounded by books and covered in... Purple... Oh no.
Twilight Sparkle groaned as she pushed herself up and off of Ren, shaking her head dizzily. She looked down to see a blue and black humanoid lizard-thing underneath her.
Ren just stupidly waved a claw at her. "Hi..."
Twilight jumped off of him and her horn that he just noticed one her head lit up and he was immediately surrounded by a purple aura and lifted into the air by a blushing Twilight. Wait, why was she...? He then noticed her laundry scattered about the room too. Uh oh...
"Who are you, what are you, and why did you run through my window?!" She angrily asked, gesturing to the broken window behind her.
Ren gulped. "Uh, well, you see, I, uh, um-" And saving him from having to answer, a loud beeping resounded throughout the library, and when Ren looked down in surprise at the source of it, he saw a badge of some sort flashing red on his chest. What the...?
A red flash emanated from his entire body, and suddenly he was, thank goodness, back to normal. Bad news though: Twilight was still levitating him. Not good...
"What the-?! Are you a Changeling?!" She asked in surprise and maybe even slight hatred. "What are you doing in Ponyville?!"
Ren opened his mouth to answer, but suddenly a certain orange skinned farmer chose that exact moment to barge in through the front of the library. "Twilight, thank goodness you're here, there's a-!"
"Changeling on the loose?" Twilight stated, finishing her friend sentence.
"Wha-? How did ya know about....?" Applejack stopped talking when she finally noticed Ren floating in the air. "Oh, uh, yeah, him."
Ren kept on panicking from where he was floating, looking at both in pure shock and surprise. "Uh.... Would it help my case if I said that this wasn’t my fault?" At the angry glare from Twilight, he nervously grinned a bit. "Eh-heh... Didn't think so..."
"So... What're we s'posed to do with him?"
"I'll have to send a letter to Celestia and ask for her opinion on this. In the meantime, we'll have to keep him locked up somewhere."
Wait, lock me up? Uh, yeah, that’s gonna be a no...
Ren frantically started fiddling with the watch thing on his wrist as the two continued talking.
“Where in the hay are we gonna keep a fella like him locked up? Ponyville din’t have a set of jail cells last ah checked.”
“We’ll just have to keep him restrained in my lab until Celestia gets here.” Twilight started moving down a set of stairs, carrying Ren with her in her telekinetic grip. “Please go get the rest of the girls for this, AJ.”
“You got it, Twi!” Applejack ran out the door, heading off into the midst of the town to gather her friends.
“Yeah, is it still too late to tell you that I’m innocent of any and all charges?” Ren nervously asked.
“You ran through my window at a hundred miles an hour, into me, my laundry, and the section of magic books while running away from one of my friends. Plus, you’re also a Changeling.” Well, when she says it like that...
Ren glanced at his wrist again, still fiddling with it when it turned from red to a glowing green. In his surprise, he didn’t immediately stop messing with it, and the watch face went up and down in quick succession. His vision was immediately assaulted by a bright green flash, which made Twilight yelp in surprise.
A moment later, as he looked down at himself, he saw the torso of an anthro tiger, with muscles the size of watermelons. Of course, that was the least of the changes...
With a roar, Ren looked up and glared at Twilight with solid green eyes... Right as her spell failed from the sudden addition of weight.
With a mrow of alarm, Ren tumbled backwards down the stairs they had just come to, grunting all the way down.
As he rolled to a stop on the basement floor, he growled before jumping to his feet. “LET ME TELL YOU SOMETHING, STAIRS THAT REN JUST TUMBLED DOWN, REN IS GONNA GRIND YOU INTO SAWDUST BETWEEN REN’S FINGERS AND LET WOOD PECKERS EAT YOU FOR BREAKFAST, LUNCH, DINNER, AND DESERT!!”
And as Twilight started coming down the stairs, Ren promptly started pounding them, shaking the very foundations of the building and causing her to lose her balance and topple over forwards down the stairs, landing right on top of Ren.
Ren growled before grabbing her off his face and holding her in front of himself.
“LET ME TELL YA SOMETHING, STRANGE PURPLE PERSON WITH A HORN! REN IS NOT A CHANGEMACALLIT! AND IF YOU CALL REN A CHANGEWHATSIT AGAIN, REN WILL TAKE YOUR BOOKS, PUT MUSTARD ON THEM, AND MAKE YOU EAT THEM LIKE HOT DOGS!” He yowled out.
Twilight could only stare at him with wide, scared eyes.
“W- What are you?” She stuttered out.
“REN IS-“ He paused in his speech. “Uh, I don’t know what I am. BUT REN IS NOT A CHANGEWHOSIT!”
And just as he was about to drop her on the ground, a beam of energy shot down the stairs and hit him in the chest, sending him flying back while he reflexively let go of Twilight, who was caught in a white magical aura.
“My goodness! Are you alright, Twilight?” Rarity said, running down the stairs.
Before she could respond, Ren gave out a roar and jumped to his feet, glaring at Rarity.
“LET ME TELL YOU SOMETHING, STRANGE WHITE PERSON WITH-“
There was a red flash and Ren was a human again.
“-A Horn...”
The two girls stared at Ren for a few moments, Ren staring right back.
“Uh... Time-out?” He offered, weakly.
“Attention, warranty has gone into effect. Full refund initiated.” A voice rang out from the device on his wrist.
“Wait, wha-“ Ren disappeared in a flash of white light before he could finish, the watch falling to the floor where he was.
Twilight and Rarity just stood there, shocked.
“...What just happened?” Twilight pointlessly asked.
Before Rarity could say anything, the voice rang out from the watch again.
“Self destruct initiated.”
Twilight’s eyes bugged out.
“SELF DESTRUC-“
And with no further ado, the watch blew up, and their universe knew no more.
“-how much trouble you had last time, I’d give you a deal of... Fifteen dollars.”
Ren’s head shook like he was just waking up. He glanced at the watch the Merchsnt held and then to the man himself before giving a nervous smile.
“I, uh, just remembered I need to be somewhere right now. Talktoyoulaterbye!”
Ren quickly walked off while the Merchant stared after him, before looking at the watch itself.
“Hmm... Maybe I should’ve voided the warranty first...”