//------------------------------// // The Serpent of Faust // Story: Forgotten tale of Equestria: Unity. Book 1 // by Get_in_Gear //------------------------------// “Once more, this terrible forest, full of dangerous creatures, is very close to the town, and ponies calmly live here without worries?” Newt wondered as he and the six ponies, the dragon, and the rabbit walked along the road. If he thought the nighttime woods around the Wilson ranch were creepy, this one just broke all records. Trees that look like monsters with wide gaping hollow mouths and clawed paws branches that seems to be able to grab you at any moment. Eerie sounds in the distance, which could not be made by any animal known to the human. And between the trees in the pitch-black darkness a pairs of yellow lights glittered, like eyes belonging to a horde of creepy monsters that follow your every move, waiting for a gawking victim. But with all this, the Elements of Harmony walked confidently along the road, completely without looking around. Only Spike, for Angel's amusement, flinched at every rustle. “If you don't turn off this road, you don't have to worry about your safety,” Twilight said. “Zecora lives here all the time and even goes where no one dares to go,” Pinkie chirped, following them with her strange bouncing gait. “Who is Zecora?” asked Newt. “The hermit zebra,” Applejack said. “She's some kinda shaman or healer, so if traditional medicine doesn't help or there's an unusual case we ask for her aid.” “The more I find out, the more questions I have,” the boy chuckled. “It's okay,” said Twilight. “I think we have something to ask you too.” “I, for one, am very interested in your clothes,” said Rarity, coming up alongside the human and examining him closely. “I don't know why, but in my head I have hundreds of better versions of what you're wearing right now.” Each of them has already told Newt about their occupation. “I'd appreciate some new clothes, Rarity... and a pair of shoes,” said Newt, who was getting tired of squirming at every rock under his feet. “I don't make shoes, but I know someone who can help you. I'll bet he'll swallow his hammer for the prospect of a variety of activities.” “And I have a book on human fashion so you'll have something to focus on,” Twilight said. “Have no doubt, Newt, you'll be the most fashionable human in Ponyville,” the white unicorn said with a wide smile. “U-ugh, I'm just trembling from overflowing inspiration!” her pupils were the size of saucers to prove her point. “Um... Newt,” yellow pegasus said softly to the boy, if they hadn't been walking in silence most of the time, he probably wouldn't have heard her. “Yes, Fluttershy?” noticed her young men. She hid her face behind her mane again. “Um… I just wanted… to ask… What do you eat?” The guy's eyebrows jumped up at a slightly inappropriate and strange, in his opinion, question. But when the other five stared at him, it was clear that they were very concerned. ‘Are they afraid I might want to eat them?’ Newt chuckled to himself. ‘Okay the rest of them, but Twilight has already met humans... Although she met them in a parallel world, so who knows what customs those people have.' “Humans are omnivores, but we don't eat ponies, if that's what you are concerned about,” the man replied, but he couldn't resist teasing the shy pony. He looked her over carefully from head to hind hooves, smiled broadly, and said, “Though I must admit you look delicious, Fluttershy.” Yellow pegasus gave a startled squeak and hid behind Rainbow Dash. Newt's words elicited a mixed reaction from the fillies: Twilight snorted into a hoof, Pinkie's face turned into an expression of animal horror, Rainbow and Applejack bared their teeth, ready to jump to their friend's defense at any moment, and Rarity and Spike exchanged nervous glances. “C-calm down, I was just kidding,” Newt said, holding up his hands. The mares relaxed, looked at each other, and laughed along with Twilight, though it was more of a hysterical laugh, and Fluttershy was the color of boiled crayfish. “You said in your world there are ponies too?” asked Rainbow Dash, hoping to smooth things over. “Yes, but like horses, they are not intelligent. People use them as sledge or draft animals,” the guy replied. “What are ‘horses’?” Applejack asked. “That's... how do I explain this?” Newt thought seriously, because this is the first time he has ever explained to someone something that is clear and elementary to him. “In general, horses are like big ponies.” “Very big?” asked Pinkie. “Well, about two or three times the size of an average pony.” “Wow!” said the farmer pony in awe. “They'd be useful on Sweet Apple Acres.” “Yeah, you don't have to pay them, just feed, water, shoe, and clean up dung.” chuckled Newt. Applejack grimaced as if she had a toothache: “Ah think Mac and I can handle on our own.” “We're almost there,” Twilight said. The forest ended getting to a more open area. The day was drawing to an end, and the setting sun was turning the cloudless sky purple. A little further to the left of the path was a small two-story cottage, the roof of which seemed to be overgrown with thick grass. On the roof, on the eaves and on a tree near the house, like Christmas decorations, hung birdhouses and other houses for animals to suit every taste. “Who wouldn't be afraid to live so close to the Everfree Forest?” Newt wondered aloud. “Oh, this is... my house,” Fluttershy said. ‘Well, that explains all the houses and birdhouses.’ “And I think I'll go,” said the yellow pegasus shyly. “I've had enough impressions for one day, so now I want to rest.” “You're not alone in this, sugarcube,” said Applejack. “I feel like I'm going to sleep like dead tonight.” With that, we said goodbye to Fluttershy and her pet, and went down the road. In contrast to the Everfree Forest, the trees of this area were sparse. To the right of the path, the Sun River meandered through the trees, then joined the Rolling River and emptied into Marigold Lake. And on the left side, in a perfect straight line through the trees ran the Great Valley River, which had previously flowed under the bridge to the Fluttershy’s house. Newt could see the roofs of the houses sticking up from a distance. And if initially Ponyville in his mind was more like a village or small town, then as he approached with the mares closer and closer he was convinced that it is quite big town. After crossing the bridge over the river mentioned earlier, the man, ponies and dragon found themselves in a spacious city square, in the center of which is located the Town Hall that looks like a three-layer cake. And the guy was grateful that there was asphalt under his feet in the city. Across the square, like mushrooms after a rain, were houses of various shapes and sizes, isolated and clustered. Applejack and Pinkie Pie were the next to say good-bye, and together they went somewhere to the right across the square and the two-way wall of houses. Because of the time of day, there weren't many ponies on the streets, but even so, Newt noted again how different they all were: different colors and combinations, different ages, different jobs, different cutiemarks. An embarrassment of riches and imagination was amazed! Well, no one doubted that even among the remaining onlookers the human would quickly draw attention. The ponies, which had been walking or chatting with each other, stopped dead with their mouths open and eyes the size of saucers. Silent piercing glances followed the guy for several minutes. Twilight, Rainbow Dash, Rarity, and Spike all smiled awkwardly and waved as if to say that everything was fine. Gradually, the dead silence began to turn into a buzzing as if a swarm of angry bees had flown into the city, and the stares that accompanied the guy like a searchlight became more and more numerous. When it seemed to Newt that the pony’s eyes were already burning holes in him, he couldn't stand it: “Stop staring! Haven’t seen a human before?!” The ponies were instantly silent and pale, and Newt's companions lost their color as well and were covered in cold sweat. There was a tense silence. The boy and Twilight looked around, expecting the townsponies to either run away in panic or grab torches and pitchforks. Suddenly, a mint-colored unicorn with a brilliant blue mane with a white stripe, amber eyes, and a lyre-shaped cutiemark popped out of a nearby house. “Did someone say ‘human’?” she turned her head like a meerkat until she noticed the direction of the crowd's gaze. “Oh, no.” Spike's pupils turned into two points. “What is it?” Newt became even more nervous. The mint unicorn crossed the distance between them in record time, and the green blur slammed into Newt, knocking all the air out of his lungs. And in the next moment, the guy having flown a couple of meters found himself sprawled on the ground. And the strange unicorn was jumping on him like on a trampoline trampling him into the ground and looking at him too closely. The boy would have been embarrassed if he had had something to breathe, because even a strangled mumble would have left him short of air. “It's a human! A real human! And you didn't believe me!” the mint unicorn screamed with delight. A cream earth pony with a blue mane and a blue stripe, azure eyes and a pattern on her rump in the form of three candies came to the aid of the unfortunate guy. She reached down and grabbed the mint unicorn by her ear with teeth, pulling her away. “Ow-ow-ow,” the unicorn wailed until the cream mare let her go. “It hurts!” “Lyra, get a hold of yourself and don't forget your manners,” the cream-colored earth pony scowled. The rest of the Mane Six helped the human sit up and catch his breath. Newt was gasping for air like a stranded fish, and his chest and stomach felt as if everything that could be crushed inside had been crushed. “Are you... sure... you don't... knock... each other... down... when you meet?” the man barely managed to say. The cream-colored earth pony blushed and smiled awkwardly. “Excuse my girlfriend, Mr. Human, she's very impressionable,” she said. ‘Did she just say ‘girlfriend’? And as if it’s something completely natural?’ Newt wouldn't call himself a homophobe, but he still considered same sex relationships as something that shouldn’t be flaunted. After this painful and awkward scene, the inhabitants of the city seemed to relax and even began to come closer in order to get a better look at the unknown creature. This time Twilight came to the rescue, creating a purple magic ring around her. It expanded and gently repelled the gathering crowd. “Well, you’ve come, seen and now go home,” alicorn said firmly. “This human is under my supervision, but he is not dangerous, so you'll have all time of the world to make an acquaintance with him. And now he needs rest.” The townspeople looked at each other and slowly but obediently began to disperse. Someone was glaring at Newt again, someone was just whispering to each other. The mint unicorn and the cream earth pony were also walking slowly. Finally the human obsessed pony waved and said: “My name is Lyra, by the way, Lyra Heartstrings. It was very nice to meet you, Mr. Human.” “Newt,” the guy said, holding on to his battered stomach, a forced smile on his face. “Yes, very nice.” “And my name is Sweetie Drops,” said the earth pony with the image of candy on her side. “If Lyra ever bothers you, contact me.” “Bon-Bon, don't be a bugger.” the minty unicorn puffed out her cheeks like a child. “And you behave yourself properly,” Sweetie Drops scowled, following her. “Honestly, why do we need foals when I already have one?” “I'm not a foal! I'm your girlfriend!” What their conversation went on no one heard. Rainbow broke away from the group and flew up to the cloud city of Cloudsdale, so Twilight, Spike, and Rarity accompanied the human all the way to the Golden Oak Library on their own. The white unicorn may have been a little out of her way, but she insisted on getting the book she wanted today. It turned out that the library was not named so symbolically and not for the sake of it. The front door, windows, and balcony were carved right into the trunk of a very old oak tree, even if the ‘golden’ part was embellished. It was amazing how it still had a lush green crown, because inside, as befits the building, there was a large round room. It was filled with bookshelves carved into the walls, a reading table in the center, three doors separating the kitchen, bathroom, and basement entrance from the reading room, and a winding wooden staircase led to the second floor of Twilight's bedroom. The equestrian doors were obviously not designed for taller creatures, so Newt had to duck as he entered. ‘At least you don't bump your head against the ceiling.’ “Spike, please find a mattress in the closet,” the unicorn said to her assistant, then turned to Newt, “Is it all right if I make your bed downstairs?” “I don’t mind at all,” the boy said. “I'm so tired I could fall asleep right where I'm standing.” “You're my guest and my guests don't sleep on the bare floor,” Twilight said flatly, then pointed a hoof at one of the doors, “The bathroom is over there, and there are towels in the closet. I should wash your clothes, but I don't have a change for you.” “I had other clothes, but the kidnappers took them,” Newt said and pointed at himself, “And under this… pajamas I don’t have anything either.” “It's all right, darling,” Rarity said. “Come to my boutique in the morning. I think I'll make you some ‘prototypes’ by then, and when you have free time I'll take your measurements seriously and make something more interesting.” “You can make clothes for someone by eye?” Newt asked. The seamstress lifted her chin proudly. “Work as much as I do and you'll sew with your eyes closed.” “Wow, that's... impressive.” While the seamstress and the man were talking, Twilight had already returned with the book she had promised to Rarity. The cover was plain, but the gloss contrasted sharply with the material of other books in the library. “I'm afraid it's going to take too long with the shoes,” sighed the former student of Celestia, “because I won't see the shoemaker before morning, and it's not a quick task to make a pair of any shoes.” “Nonsense, Twilight,” Rarity said. “If you have a book about human shoes, I'll be happy to bring it to Forge Heat right now.” The second book didn't take long to disappear into the unicorn's saddlebag. “I hope I can pay you girls back when I have the money,” Newt said, feeling a little uneasy. ‘I mean, they're so willing to help someone they barely know. I have to pay them back somehow, right?’ “Don't be silly, Newt,” Twilight said. “You're in trouble and we're helping you. I understand that the human society works a bit differently, but it is not necessary to turn gratuitous assistance into an exchange of services.” “Besides, Forge and I would be happy to diversify our activities,” Rarity said, turning toward the door. ”If you want to pay us back so badly, you've already done it, so don't say another word about money.” “You're too kind to someone you barely know,” Newt said. “That's how friendship works,” Twilight said proudly, smiling. “What's the size of your shoes, by the way?” Rarity asked as she stepped out the door. “Seven,” the man said. “See you tomorrow, Newt,” the white unicorn said and disappeared through the door. “See ya.” the guy waved at the door and turned towards the bathroom. Inside the cramped space almost flush with each other were a bathtub, a sink, a cabinet with a mirror above it, a shelf with towels and bathing accessories, a washing machine, and a toilet that was quite low for an adult human. It was also impossible to sit in the bath without bending your knees, but the inconvenience was insignificant. Newt waited until the tub was full then sank into the hot bliss with some satisfaction. The water seemed to wash away not only the dirt, but also fatigue, muscle pain, anxiety, and perplexity. As his body softened, the men allowed himself to lean back in the tub and close his eyes. The steam in the air misted the mirror, water droplets settled on the tile, and boy’s vision blurred. Newt wished that all this was a dream and that, like now, he had actually dozed off in the bathroom and overheated. This would be a logical explanation for talking colorful ponies, unknown scientists in gas masks, and an even more mysterious person ‒ if it’s a person ‒ in a suit with the sign of cobra. But the divine powers did not respond to his prayers. The only answer was a knock on the door and Twilight's voice. “Newt, are you all right? You've been there for almost an hour. Aren't you afraid of overheating?” Through the drowsiness that overcame him, the boy straightened up and leaned his hands on the sides of the bathtub “Yeah, yeah, just a moment,” Newt muttered sleepily. Steamed legs turned into a pair of macaroni, which is why, getting out of the bath, the guy almost fell. But it was nice to feel clean again after a tour in the old dusty castle and a walk through the forest barefoot. Newt couldn’t say the same about the pajamas he was wearing, but it's only until tomorrow, right? ‘And I'll never wear it again.’ A mattress, a pillow, and a blanket were waiting for him next to the table in the reading room. And from the kitchen came the sounds of scuffling. Twilight sat at the head of the table and not without appetite, sometimes sipping tea, ate pancakes, which were lined up like a tower of Pisa on a plate in the middle. Newt had a hard time suppressing a chuckle when he saw the dragon in the pink apron with hearts. Spike was standing on a stool by the stove, apparently finishing the last of the pancakes. From the sight of a delicious stack, the human's stomach rumbled loudly reminding his master that he had not had a morsel to eat all day. Alicorn giggled with her mouth full and motioned for him to sit down at the table. The table, of course, was also low, so Newt had to sit cross-legged, but the cutlery was just right. Spike expertly tossed the last of the pancakes onto his plate and joined in the meal. The guy himself hurried to take some pancakes from the top of the stack, pour them with maple syrup and pour some tea in his cup. Taking a fork, Newt cut off a triangular piece and put it in his mouth... I swear, if he thought his mother's pancakes were the best in the world and incomparable, now he could officially declare that Catherine Moore had a rival. “It's delicious, Spike! Amazing!” Newt exclaimed, leaning more heavily on the food. “I know,” the dragon said smugly. “They call me Brave and Glorious for more than one reason.” “You can't die of modesty,” Twilight said without malice. “Hey, Newt is the first in all this time to compliment my cooking skills other than you.” “He has a lot to praise. Trust me, I know what I'm talking about,” Newt said, finishing his stack at record speed. It was becoming dark outside. Spike took care of the dishes in the sink, and Newt volunteered to help him, so that he could do something in return for his rescuers today. Twilight, meanwhile, turned off all the lights in the library except those on the second floor, and called the lights out. Spike went with her to the second floor, and newt settled down on a makeshift sunbed. I must say the mattress was quite thick and soft, so the guy did not even feel that he would spend the night on the floor. He usually found it difficult to sleep in a strange bed, but that night sleep overtook him almost immediately. *** In his dream, Newt saw again the laboratory, the bio-chamber, ponies in protective suits with gas masks, and Cobra. What had already been done to him was repeated, and no effort was enough to set free. And the Serpent gave an unnatural distorted cold laugh, as if satisfied with himself. Morning in Equestria greeted the human with sunlight in his face and the sounds of scuffling coming from the kitchen. Without opening his eyes, Newt shifted, sat up, stretched, and yawned. When his eyes opened, the boy realized that he was awake at an unusual time for him ‒ the hands of the wall clock showed only seven in the morning. And to do him justice, Newt didn't feel sleepy, but quite rested, even if the shock of yesterday hadn't completely left him, and full of energy for today and now. After all, complaining and whining won't change his position. He is where he is, whether by a freak accident or a bad fate, and he has what he has. And, as we know, you either do what you can with what you have or you don't ‒ this is a poor choice almost all our life. And the delicious smells from the kitchen suggested that what Newt could do right now is have a breakfast. Twilight and Spike were already at the table. Alicorn sipped her coffee, ate her chamomile sandwiches with relish, and read the morning edition of the Ponyville News, while the dragon gnawed with a deafening crunch on the precious stones in the bowl before him. Newt grimaced as if he'd eaten a lemon, wondering how the dragon hadn't lost his teeth yet. “Good morning, Newt,” Twilight greeted him warmly, setting the paper aside. “I hope you slept well and we didn't wake you up too early.” “No, I'm fine,” the man said evasively, sitting down at the table. There was a plate of fried eggs in front of him and a bowl of vegetable salad next to it. ‘Well, it looks like I'm going to have to go on a vegetarian diet while I'm here,’ the guy chuckled to himself. “After breakfast, I will begin your examination immediately. I hope you have enough patience, because this may take a long time?” asked alicorn. “If it helps to figure out what was done to me and why, I'm willing to put up with it,” Newt said decisively. “I think when we're done, I can finally get some proper clothes and shoes.” “Then let’s not waste a minute.” True to her word, as soon as Newt took the last sip of coffee, Twilight hurried him to a chair in the center of the room, forced him to strip to the waist, and she took a pile of equipment from the closet with electrodes that she connected to a boy, and covered herself with books dedicated to people. Alicorn like a bee fluttered between books and devices that blinked, sawed and registered some graphs, in parallel mare chuckled, frowned thoughtfully and wrote something in her notebook. The sight was almost mesmerizing. All this set of understandable and not very clear actions continued until Twilight decided to take Newt's blood for analysis. Then, as soon as she looked through the microscope, the filly's eyes almost popped out of her head. No less fussily, she removed the helmet from the man's head, tore the electrodes from his torso, pushed the devices aside in a group, and used her magic to pick up a scroll. As she unfolded it, Twilight touched the center of the paper with her horn. A rainbow-colored alchemy circle appeared under the man's feet, then, brightening, several huge rings rose into the air, spinning asynchronously around Newt. Nothing happened at first, but then boy looked at his hand. It was as if someone had injected a phosphoric solution into his blood, and the veins were swollen and protruding above the skin glowing with a soft blue light. In the area of the solar plexus, a small ball shone most intensely, from which, like appendages, lines radiated and covered the entire body of the human. “Newt, did you say there is no magic in your world?” Twilight asked, left eyebrow rose to her forehead. “At all,” the boy answered in perplexity. “Only my scanner shows that you have a magic core in its infancy,” alicorn said and undid the spell. “I can't tell you exactly how much you'll be affected by its development, but I can still see a picture of the earth pony's magical channels.” “Do earth ponies and pegasi have magic too?” Newt asked. “Yes, but they can't use it like unicorns,” Twilight said. “Earth ponies are stronger and more resilient, while pegasi are faster and can walk on clouds.” The man replayed the scene from the lab: “So the gas they injected into me was magic?” “That explains how you got it and it doesn't rule out the possibility of passing it on…” alicorn frowned. “I've never seen anything like this before, though.” “Why would someone want to implant magic into me and kidnap for it?” the madness that happens to him has crossed the threshold again. “And then leave me in the middle of nowhere instead of locking it in a cage!” “By the way, maybe the fact that you ended up in the Castle of the Two Sisters is not really an accident,” suddenly brightened up Twilight, took a large scroll from the shelf and unfolded it on the table. “How so?” approached her Newt. The scroll turned out to be a map of Ponyville with a small portion of the surrounding area, particularly the Everfree Forest. Under the magnifying glass, Twilight moved her gaze between two points on the map ‒ ‘Zecora's Hut ‘ and ‘Castle of the Two Sisters’. “Those who kidnapped you are clearly interested in keeping you alive. And the Castle of the Two Sisters is one of the few safe places in the Everfree,” the Princess mused. “The kidnappers probably wanted to remain incognito, so they avoided Ponyville and Zecora for fear of being discovered.” “Do you think the lab is around here?” Newt pointed to the rest of the forest. “Don't get me wrong, I want to find out who they are and why they did this to me, but based on what you've told me about this place, it's going to be search for a needle in a haystack... with elements of survival.” “I wonder if my guess is correct where did this laboratory come from in the Everfree Forest?” Twilight rolled up the map and placed it back. “But I don't think the scientists there are stupid enough to base it somewhere in dangerous territory.” “There may be other logic: settle the base in dangerous territory to make sure no one goes there,” Newt said, pulling pajamas shirt over his head. “Until we know for sure, that’s just wild guess,” Twilight said. “But as a version it is worth checking.” “You want to go into the Everfree right now?” “We'll get your clothes first and then gather my friends,” Twilight said. “Before deciding which part of the Forest to go to, we should ask Zecora if she saw anything unusual. After all, she knows the Everfree like her own tail. Alicorn slung her saddlebags over her back and headed for the exit. “Spike!” she called from the doorway. “Keep an eye on the library until I get back!” “Yes, ma’am.” the dragon saluted without looking up from the comic. Alicorn went out into the street with the human. The day promised to be sunny and completely cloudless ‒ the weather team did not sit idle. And the citizens of Ponyville were already flooding the streets: the younger children were playing with their parents, the older children were still at school, and the adults were working or just loitering and enjoying the anticipation of the new day. Newt again, as if by a snap of fingers, attracted the attention of passers-by, but under the disapproving gaze of Twilight they immediately scattered like startled pigeons. More than the unknown creature the locals were obviously only afraid of falling out of favor with the Princess. Sugarcube Corner was the first stop in their current plan ‘Find the secret lab’. Actually, as if trying to live up to its name, the store building looked like a gingerbread house from the fairy tale about ‘Hansel and Gretel’, only not edible (Newt personally checked). The doorbell tinkled cheerfully. The interior of the building was no less colorful: patterns on the walls, bright colors, carvings on the columns in the form of sweets ‒ everything literally screamed that here any child will find their little Paradise. There was a small queue at the counter where Pinkie Pie worked. Pink pony took orders and money, ran to the kitchen in the back room and gave ponies the required pastries, all of that she did with a speed that Flash or Quicksilver would have envied. Reminding himself not to worry about how Pinkie was doing something that violated the laws of physics and common sense, Newt and Twilight walked around the line to get closer. Looking at the showcase, the boy felt as if he hadn't had breakfast at all. From the abundance of inviting cakes, brownies, muffins, doughnuts, cookies and other pastries the eyes looked in different directions, and the mouth was filling with saliva. There was an involuntary desire to absorb everything that was hidden behind the glass in one sitting. Pinkie Pie waved them: “Hi, Twilight! Hey, Newt!” The ponies in the queue all turned their heads, recoiled from the human, and immediately bowed to the Princess, all in perfect unison. Twilight ignored them and got right to the point: “Pinkie, we're going to need you today, so if Cakes doesn't mind, I'd like to borrow you for a while. If anything, it's a matter of national importance.” “O-o-o-o, are we saving the world again?” you could see the starry sky in the pink pony's dilated pupils. “Very likely,” said alicorn vaguely. “Then what are we waiting for?!” Pinkie was even more excited than she needed to be. She stormed up to the second floor and returned a moment later with a huge backpack, apparently thinking about it too much, because Newt noticed that she had a tent, a coil of rope, and an ice pick among other things. Fortunately, Twilight dissuaded Pinkie to carry it all with her. Rainbow Dash was found on the way to Rarity. Pegasus was dozing on a cloud, having finished with the morning shift of the weather team. When you live in a world where certain things like the day-night cycle or the weather happen by themselves, it becomes incomprehensible to the mind that somewhere it can be so easily controlled. Applejack was standing behind a counter in the market. She didn't particularly want to leave her stall, especially since there was no one to replace her, but when Twilight brought the farmer up to speed, she agreed. The Carousel Boutique was located in the one of the outskirts of the city. True to its name, the front of the cylindrical pink-and-blue building did look like a carousel from carnival, but without the horses, music, or garlands. More precisely, the horses were there, but only in the form of sculptures on the second floor. The doorbell announced the arrival of customers. Inside, on the first floor there was a huge circular room that was filled with the familiar pink and blue tones, as well as images of hearts and diamonds on the walls. The space was filled with mirrors, mannequins with dresses of different colors, tastes, and manners, mobile screens, and a small podium in the center of the room. “Rarity, are you home?” Twilight shouted when no one came to meet them at least a minute later. There was a stir from the back room, then a clatter, something fell, someone cursed, and finally the white unicorn came out to them. Rarity's appearance left much to be desired: her hair had fallen out of once-perfect purple-blue mane and was sticking out in all directions, her small red horn-rimmed glasses couldn't completely hide the bags under her eyes, and she was draped in rags of multicolored fabric like Christmas tree garlands. Apparently, she hadn't slept much today. “Oh, it's you.” the businesslike look that had been carefully displayed before was instantly replaced by the usual one. “Come on, make yourself comfortable, you're just in time, and by the way, I've just finished the last prototype of Newt's clothing. And Forge Heat delivered the shoe samples right here.” The unicorn, without any coffee, instantly cheered up and disappeared back into the workshop, returning a moment later with a pile of levitated clothing. Newt felt uncomfortable again that someone had sacrificed their sleep for him, but he didn't bring it up because he was guaranteed to be dismissed. Hiding the guy behind a screen, Rarity began to hand him samples of clothing one by one. Shirts, one-colored or two-colored t-shirts of different types were offered as outerwear. Trousers, breeches, jeans and shorts were offered as bottoms. Some things might be small or large for Newt, but on the whole Rarity was right about his size. The young man didn't count on bright prints and flashy lettering. When it came to shoes, no one expected sneakers, but the provided sandals, sleepers, deserters, boots, shoes and loafers were just right. To be honest, the boots usually weren’t present in Newt’s wardrobe, but you don't look a gifted horse in the mouth as they say. The fitting took a long time, while Rarity selected various combinations of clothing for the boy, and the fillies together evaluated his appearance. However, Rainbow did not take an active part, limiting only to ‘Lame’, ‘Not bad’ and ‘Twenty percent cooler’. Newt eventually settled on cream breeches, a blue t-shirt with black short sleeves, and cream sandals; the rest of his clothes were neatly folded, packed, and set aside. “Are ya going to be alright in all this stuff?” Applejack asked him. “The sun is going to be merciless today.” The guy was taken aback, trying to come up with a clear explanation, but Twilight explained everything much better: “It is considered indecent for humans to walk the streets without clothes, no matter what the weather.” “But Newt, you're not in the human world, you're in Equestria, so you can and should act like a pony,” Pinky Pie said. “N-not in this case, Pinkie,” the man blushed. “I'm sorry, but I'd rather go in my clothes, and ponies won't like me naked, trust me.” When this was done, the group, including Rarity, set off in the direction of the Everfree Forest, intending to pick up Fluttershy along the way. Applejack wasn't lying: the midday sun was indeed so hot that it looked as if mares and a man were walking on a hot pan. For a moment, Newt really wanted to undress, because he was sweating profusely, and he didn't even have to imagine what it would be like for fillies who were naked but covered in fur. Fortunately, Rainbow got a large enough cloud to hide the entire group under its shadow. Soon they were at the door of a small cottage on the edge of the Everfree Forest and knocked. Yellow pegasus reacted with an enthusiasm that was the exact opposite of Pinkie's: “You want to go to the unknown parts of the forest? You don't know how dangerous it can be!” “If the laboratory where Newt was held is really here, then we can find out who the scientists are and what they want,” Twilight explained. “I don't know where they came from, but I don't think they're doing anything legal or approved by Princess Celestia.” “What if it’s not here?” Fluttershy asked. “What if you're wrong?” “Maybe she's right, Twilight,” Newt said. “Is it worth the risk because of a version that is nothing more than a wild guess?” “I wouldn't bet the last bit on that guess, but I still think it's not a coincidence that you ended up in the Castle of the Two Sisters,” Rarity drawled in the style of her favorite character Shadow Spade. “We'll ask Zecora to be sure,” Twilight said. The path to the hermit's hut branched off from the main road. Even though the fillies said it was as safe as the road to the Castle, there was still an air of unease. Even in the violins of the local crickets, it seemed, not the strings but your nerves, and the further you go the more complex the chords they take. It was not a long walk, but the hut itself did not seem hospitable. If he didn't know, Newt wouldn't have gotten within a kilometer of it. As if borrowing an idea from Twilight, Zecora settled inside of an old unsightly tree, the branches of which were hung with colorful bottles, and the trunk ‒ with eerie-looking masks, from the windows spilled greenish light, and on the door swaying from the slightest breeze hung a dreamcatcher. It looked more like the home of a swamp witch than a friendly herbalist. The mares came closer and knocked on the door. “Zecora, are you home?” Twilight shouted. Footsteps sounded from inside, and the door opened. A middle-aged zebra stood on the doorstep, in sharp contrast to her home, although from Newt's point of view it was more like a zebra-painted pony, even her cutiemark had a sun-shaped image in the style of some African tribe. She had a black-and-white Mohawk on top of her head, a huge earring in each ear, and several rings on her front left leg and neck. Large blue eyes regarded the unexpected guests with interest. “Princess Twilight, Elements of Harmony…” Zecora spoke in the voice of a wise woman with a rich African accent, but stopped when she saw Newt. “And interesting creature I’ve never seen. Though I find a certain affinity with the ape kin.” “Um... Hello,” the man said, looking down slightly and waving. “My name is Newt and... yes, in my world, according to Darwin's theory, humans are actually descended from apes, so you're not far off the mark.” Newt came out of his stupor and spoke more confidently. “Have you ever seen anyone similar to me?” “No, I'm afraid I haven't,” zebra said. “Not animals but plants are my special talent.” ‘Does she always speak in rhymes?’ confusion was reflected on the human's face, but Zecora did not pay attention. Zebra opened the door wider and motioned them inside. “Come into my house and we'll talk. The way here wasn’t just a walk." Unlike Twilight's library, the hermit's hut was furnished in a minimalist style, although it was more extravagant in design. There were even more masks on the walls than on the outside, and in the center of the room stood a huge cauldron on coals that gave off the greenish light, and the shelves carved into the walls were filled to the brim with various kinds of vials, jars, bottles, and phials. “We wanted to ask you something,” Twilight was first to broke the silence. “No one comes here just to say ‘hi’,” grinned Zecora. “But if you seek answers, I am your ally.” “Have you noticed anything strange lately?” The question put a zebra to a standstill: “The curiosities in this forest have a wide range. What exactly do you mean by ‘strange’? “Have you seen ponies in white suits and gas masks?” Newt asked, looking up from studying the contents of the cans, though he wasn't sure if zebra knew what a gas mask is. Zecora put a hoof to her chin and thought for a moment. “I've seen once ponies in strange costumes and masks, they’ve been collecting plants in flasks.” “Why didn't you tell anyone?” alicorn demanded. “A lot of ponies here pass by when they want some herbs to supply. And there’s no need, Princess, for you to be angry, if I did something wrong I’ll fix it gladly.” Twilight's features smoothed, and she took a deep breath. “Can you show me at least where you saw them?” *** The ponies, zebra, and human found themselves near a small grove in the Northern part of the Forest. Here, in contrast to the places they had already visited, the trees were unsightly, but with a lush and dense green crown, from which long vines hung. The grass was so high that it would have been difficult to walk through it without a machete. But there were almost no flickering lights, no watching eyes, and no terrible sounds. An ominous silence fell over the place. “I saw them here,” Zecora said without rhyming for the first time. “Look!” Applejack shouted, and everyone rushed to her. On the ground, among the trampled grass were clearly visible hoofprints that led somewhere deeper into the grove. “Ah don't know how long ago, but someone must have been ‘ere,” the farmer mare said. “They may be the ones we're looking for,” Twilight said decisively. Let’s go”. The tracks were lost in the tall grass and then reappeared. Soon a second, a third, and a fourth set of footprints joined the trail, and it was obvious that there were a lot of unknown ponies. A question was brewing. “And... what's the plan?” Rainbow Dash asked, hovering over the group as usual. “I wouldn't mind breaking in where they're hiding and show them how to mess with us, but it's not really our style.” “Diplomacy, darling, diplomacy,” Rarity drawled in her usual way. “In a civilized world everything is decided by diplomacy, brutal force can wait. We should first find out who are they, listen to what they have to say, and then draw to conclusions.” “I hope they have either a good explanation or a good excuse…” Newt said, frowning, “or I'll blow the hell out of them and leave no stone unturned. And then sue them for medical manipulation without the patient's consent, and I'll drag them through the Supreme courts of all fifty States!” Usually not prone to aggressive behavior, the human was in solidarity with the rainbow pegasus in the desire to give those scientists, whoever they were, a good thrashing. “We'll stick to Rarity's plan and then see what happens,” Twilight said, and the group walked the rest of the way in silence. The tracks led them to a small clearing in the center of which was a cave under a stone canopy. The hoofprints stopped at the entrance. Twilight and Rarity lit their horns, and the gloomy clearing was lit up with purple and soft blue light. The tunnel in the cave descended with a short stone staircase. At the end of it, the pony, zebra, and man came up against a rectangular sliding iron door. There was a large red sign in the form of a six-pointed star with a grain of wheat looped around it. “I've never seen a sign like this before,” muttered Twilight, shifting her attention to a panel on the wall. There were two lights on it, red and green, a lever and a plug that looked like it was for a card. Alicorn yanked the lever up, but a red light came on in response, and a nasty beep came from the speaker. “We can't get in without an access card,” Newt stated with a look of doom. “All right, step aside,” Twilight said suddenly and stood in front of the door like a bull about to pounce on a red rag. All obediently took a step back. The horn of alicorn shone with an intense purple light and the next moment it released a beam that Twilight used as a welding machine or lightsaber to make a circular hole in the iron door. Clearly pleased with herself, alicorn pawed at the cut-out piece, which clattered to the floor splitting in two, and blew on her bangs. “And… open,” Twilight said smugly and went inside. “Couldn't we just knock?” Pinkie Pie asked following the others. “It's strange that no one has come for our path to block,” Zecora rhymed. Another small flight of stairs led down ending in another iron door. The unicorn beams picked out the dirty white walls and general desolation of the room. I wonder how anyone could live here at all. Suddenly, the need for magic light was no longer there, because the bulbs above their heads were lit up in turn. The ponies, zebra, and the man looked at each other, startled. “Did someone touch somethin’?” Applejack asked warily. “I swear it wasn't me!” Pinkie squeaked. They just kept going. The second door didn't require an access card; there were only two buttons on its panel. Twilight pressed the left button and the door opened. Behind it was a large circular room lit by fluorescent lights. Three doors similar to the previous separated the side rooms from the Central one. A staircase next to the entrance led to a room on the second floor that looked like a server room. The walls were lined with various types of equipment, and against the background of a somewhat abandoned room ‒ peeling paint, cracks on the walls, thick layers of dust and spider webs ‒ it contrasted sharply with its novelty. And in the center of the room on a steel platform stood a single red upholstered chair. Newt walked around it and saw the steel bio-chamber he had been in earlier, installed horizontally and opened. “This is the place,” the boy said. “But where is everyone?” Applejack asked, heading for one of the side doors. “Maybe they're on their lunch break,” Pinkie suggested, stopping abruptly at a large oval glass window where an anthropomorphic figure stood motionless. The pink pony tapped on the glass. “Hello! Are you alive?” “Pinkie!” Rarity shushed her. “In the name of Celestia, just don't touch anything!” Newt, attracted by the fashionista's remark, moved closer with the others and peered. The anthropomorphic figure behind the glass was almost two meters tall, in thick dark gray futuristic armor and an irregular helmet, with the symbol that pony and man had seen earlier on the door on its chest, and a rifle clutched in a death grip. It was not a man. “It looks like a security robot,” Newt said. “But why didn’t it attack us?” At this time, in one of the side rooms, Applejack found a hydroponic farm filled with plants from the Everfree Forest, as well as growboxes, lighting fixtures, aeroponic installations, air flow dividers, sprayers, and living walls ‒ the dream of an amateur gardener without leaving the house. There were bags of fertilizer in one corner of the room and a device unknown to the farmer, which she didn't dare touch, sat on a table in the other. Pony was so shocked by what she saw that no sound came from her tongue to call out to her friends. In the Central hall, Twilight found the same device. Both alicorn and Newt instantly recognized it as an antediluvian computer, one in which the monitor and keyboard were combined, and with an ancient operating system like GM-NAA. The Princess and the human decided to try it on. They clicked a button in the lower-right corner of the screen and waited. A green flash appeared on the screen for a moment, something hummed inside, and the next moment a familiar sign appeared in a white-green tone, but this time with the inscription: ‘Faust Industries’. “Faust?” Twilight's left eyebrow shot up. “Does that mean anything to you?” Newt asked. Alicorn ignored his question because the next moment a sign appeared that raised even more questions: ‘Station Everfree System Loading’, and the loading line running under it. “Is that what this place is called?” alicorn and the man jumped as Rarity suddenly appeared behind them. “Station ‘Everfree’?” “But whose station?” asked Twilight Sparkle. “Who are those ‘Faust Industries’?” The question remained unanswered, and the next moment the focus shifted abruptly. “Girls, help!” shouted Fluttershy from the other side of the room. The pony and the man ran toward it. Inside another room were large glass cages containing a tree wolf, a manticore, a sea serpent, an Ursa, a swarm of parasprites, a hydra, a giant bat, a giant owl, and a basilisk (the glass of its cage was a two-way mirror, so anyone could look at it without being turned to stone). Yellow pegasus struggled against the impenetrable glass of the cage, behind which the sea serpent, familiar to fillies from their first visit to the Everfree, lay exhausted, devoid of its former colors and gloss, barely alive. However, other forest creatures looked no better. No one wanted to imagine what terrible things were being done to them, because Ursa Minor, the most fearsome and aggressive of Everfree creatures, looked at the arriving ponies with indifference and a silent plea for death. Rainbow grabbed Fluttershy and began pulling her away from the cage. “Shy, it's no use, don't!” said the rainbow pegasus. The good-natured pegasus struggled with uncharacteristic strength and sobbed: “No, we need to save them!” The terminal was found here, though, of course, it took eternity to load. “Come on!” urged it Newt. Finally there's a menu in which a list of the species contained in the cells. Selecting the line ‘Sea serpent’, the boy went to the following options: general information, anatomy, physiology, experiments, open the cell. It would seem to be a victory, but no: the computer requested a confirmation password. “Damn it!” Newt swore and slammed his fist down on the table. “We can't open it without a password!” Twilight shot a magic ray through the glass, but to the surprise of everyone present, it ricocheted and burned a hole in the ceiling. “Anti-magic impenetrable glass?” surprised Twilight Sparkle. “You can do something, can't you?” Fluttershy pleaded. Alicorn shook her head sympathetically. “It's not enchanted glass, it's a very rare mineral that's resistant to magic.” Yellow pegasus, bursting into tears more than ever, rushed to the terminal and began furiously clicking on the keyboard, but, of course, received only a response: ‘The password is incorrect. Try again’. Newt felt as sorry for her as he did for the animals on the other side of the glass. No matter how monstrous they are, no one deserves to be treated like this. The boy scooped up the pegasus mare and hugged her, she struggled, and screamed, and kicked painfully at his chest, but he did not let go. The t-shirt was gradually getting wet from the poor filly's tears. “Fluttershy, we can't help them, we need to get out of here,” Newt said as gently as possible. Pegasus stopped resisting, she wrapped her hooves around the guy and just cried. Newt felt extremely uncomfortable, and the color was gradually creeping up to his face, but he tried to keep his composure. The pony and the man left the room and returned to the Central room. Fluttershy's sobs subsided, and she wiped her eyes and gently pushed her to let go. “Are you all right, Shy?” Rainbow flew up to her. She nodded, sitting on the rump. “Just give me a little time,” Fluttershy said softly. No one wanted to leave her alone, but they still decided to listen to her request, the door to the local ‘menagerie’ was carefully closed. Ponies, zebra, and man decided to look around again. The third door led to a living area with rows of bunk beds, a bathroom, and a kitchen, but the only indication of recent activity was a smaller layer of dust and the remains of fresh food in the refrigerator. In the Central Hall at the end of the room there was a steel arch with a strange panel on the side, like a child's toy with connectors for cubes. “What is it?” Rarity asked. “This is a portal,” Twilight said, running her hoof over the panel to the right, “but there are no glyph coordinates. Without them, you can't tell where it leads.” “Ah thought so,” Applejack said. “All indications were that the local scientists had just packed up and left.” “Heh-heh-heh, no, you just came on a non-working day.” The unknown voice made everyone's heart sink. Eight pairs of eyes immediately darted toward the server room on the second floor. There, leaning on the railing, was a familiar anthropomorphic figure, but this time Newt was able to see it in more detail. Scarlet armor with a turquoise cobra symbol on the chest was complemented by an intricate network of black tubes that turned into a kind of collar around the neck. A red helmet with a turquoise visor that looked like a ready-to-throw cobra, its tail sticking out like a second horn in addition to the first. On the forearms were strange iron bracers in the form of whether long spikes or tentacles. “I'm sorry to interrupt your tour,” the stranger continued. “And I'm sorry for the mess: I wasn't expecting any guests today. I'd offer you some tea, but I'm afraid you would reject. His voice was like the raspy voice of an old man speaking in a cave, but sharp as broken glass and chilling to the bone with its cold sarcasm. No one could have such a voice, which means that whoever is hiding behind this mask, the suit distorts his voice. “Cobra!” Newt hissed, recovering, as he met his nemesis with both excitement and horror. “You were close,” said Cobra. “But actually... my name is Blood Stalk.” “Blood Stalk?” Twilight asked, puzzled. “That’s right” Stalk pointed a finger at her, then, grabbing the railing with one hand, leaped down with feline grace. The pony and the man immediately grouped together, and Twilight leaped forward, her horn alight, and a purple magic dome formed around Blood Stalk, preventing him from getting any closer. The serpent’s reaction was interesting, to say the least. He tilted his head to one side, as if to say, “Are you serious?”. Seeing that alicorn was not joking, he shrugged, as if to say, “All right” and waved his hand. From the wristband on his right hand, the tentacle lengthened and its sharp end bit into the magical barrier. At the point of contact, a crimson spot appeared which expanded and then, causing the audience to gasp, crumbled to dust creating a hole in its place. The same tentacle lengthened even further, darting like lightning towards Twilight, wrapping itself around her neck and burying its sting in the bridge of her nose. The concentration, of course, faded, and the dome disappeared. The filly stared at the tip of the stinger with pupils the size of pinheads, shivering and sweating as she did so. The others after such a spectacular demonstration did not dare to do anything. “Ay-ay-ay, you break into my house and attack me when I just want to talk.” Stalk clicked his tongue. “I thought better of you, the Princess of Friendship.” then he looked at the others: “Didn't your mothers teach you not to behave like that?” He's either out of his head or mocking them. Oddly enough, Fluttershy, trembling and tearful, was suddenly emboldened by his statement. “Didn't your mother teach you not to treat animals like that?” a yellow pegasus pointed an accusing hoof at him. The others stared at her in disbelief and silently asked, "Fluttershy, what are you doing? Don't make him angry!". If Stalk was surprised, it wasn't visible under his helmet. “Oh, I'm really embarrassed,” wailed Cobra theatrically, putting the palm of his left hand to his forehead. “Let's settle this amicably, without ‘Animal Rights’ advocates, okay?” No, he's definitely mocking them. Newt's nerves, already taut as a string, began to crack, and inside the young man began to boil, experiencing a rage that was half with some... disappointment that the mysterious villain who had haunted his nightmares was actually a mentally ill buffoon. The boy's feet took him to the serpent with a quick step, his teeth gritted, and his fingers clenched into a fist, biting into his palm until it bled. “STOP FUCKING WITH US!” Newt snarled and swung a right hook, not caring that he would rather get hurt than do any real damage to his opponent. Stalk caught his fist in his left hand and squeezed it until it crunched, causing the boy to wince in pain and settle on his bent knees. The serpent at this time looked somewhere in the side and seemed to think. Newt could have struck again, but it had been made clear to him that it was highly unwise to attack an armored warrior with his bare hands. “One point six,” Stalk mused. “Not bad… But not enough!” with that, he pushed Newt away with such force that boy fell on his back and skidded a few meters, ending up next to the Elements of Harmony again. Ponies and zebra rushed to help him up. The guy, hissing in pain and rubbing his fist, squeezed out through his teeth: “What's ‘one point six’?.. What's not enough?” “Your Hazard Level,” Stalk replied, not bothering to explain. “It was hard to predict how fast you would be in your progress, but you are still doing well. Reach three point zero and you will be rewarded… Until then, keep the consolation prize.” with that, he pulled two objects out of nowhere from behind his back and threw them at the man's feet. The first item was something that looked like a smartphone, at least according to the touch screen, but the case was rather bulky and oddly shaped, with a rectangular connector for something and a pair of wheels at the back. The second item was a small, translucent yellow bottle with black rims that literally fit in the palm of your hand. The case was shaped like a lion's head, with a cylindrical gem inside, and the top of the bottle ended in a cap with the letters ‘L/S’ printed on it. “Why did you do this to me?” Newt didn't appreciate the gift. “What’s in it for you?” “What? For what? Why?” Stalk sighed in mock resignation. “Curiosity is not a sin, but if I tell you everything now, it won't be interesting to read anymore.” he turned his head to the side and spoke to an empty space as the audience stared at him in disbelief: “No one likes spoilers, am I right?” “Hey, usually I break the fourth wall in fanfics!” resented Pinkie “Apparently not,” Stalk shrugged and released Twilight from the grip of his stinging tentacle, returning it to its original position. “Well, it was nice talking to you, but I've got some work to do. Don't forget to close the door when you leave. Again, as if out of thin air, in his right hand was a device that looked like a small pistol, with a wide gunpoint, a tangle of tubes and wires on the panel, and a slot under it that holded a similar bottle. Only it was translucent black with a gold image of a snarling cobra on the case. Blood Stalk raised a hand over his left shoulder, pointing the gun away from him. “Ciao.” “Get down!” Newt shouted to the fillies, expecting a fan of plasma projectiles as in some cosmic odyssey. However, this did not happen. Instead of plasma or laser beams, the gun released a jet of black smoke that thickened and enveloped the serpent. When the smoke cleared, he was nowhere to be seen. The man, the pony, and the zebra looked at each other nervously, drawing themselves upright and breathing a sigh of relief. However, they did not have to relax for long: a siren wailed throughout the room colored in the red lights of flashing beacons. A timer appeared on the terminal screen triggering a one-minute countdown, and a woman's voice spoke over the speaker: “The self-destruct Protocol has been initiated. All personnel are requested to leave the facility.” They all immediately started to leave, and Fluttershy darted towards the room with Everfree creatures, but Rainbow blocked her way and dragged her along with them. “We can't leave them!” Pegasus cried again. “Fluttershy, if we don't leave now, we won't be saved either!” Rainbow shouted. And the time was getting shorter. Reluctantly, the yellow pegasus headed for the exit with the others. Once outside, they ran as they had never run in their lives, trying to get away from the epicenter of the explosion. Even on pure adrenaline, it was hard for Newt to keep up with his four-legged friends, but he still kept up the pace. The explosion thundered with such force that their ears popped, and the ground momentarily gave way under their feet, causing the ponies and the man to fall flat. Behind them, a column of dust, smoke, and fire rose into the air, and from the crater that formed, chunks of earth, concrete, and metal flew in all directions, from which Twilight had thoughtfully protected the group with a magic shield. A couple of hectares of forest were gone. From the underground station remained one memory. *** “No! No-no-no-no! Argh!” Twilight snarled, throwing books around the library. “It's all wrong!” Newt, dodging another ‘projectile’, asked: “What's ‘wrong’? You still haven't told me what you're looking for.” “I look for any mention of Faust Industries, but all I find is Lauren Faust!” alicorn said, sounding overly emotional. “Who's Lauren Faust? Could she have something to do with this?” Twilight sighed and calmed down, beginning to speak in a lower tone: “I don't think so. Loren Faust in pony’s mythology is the Ancestress of the Alicorns, the wife of Cosmic Void the all-Father. According to legend, they created this world together, weaving it out of dark matter and light. They created the sky and the earth, day and night, grass and trees, rivers and lakes, seas and oceans, islands and continents, animals and birds. Some creatures were given intelligence by Loren and Cosmic to grow and develop, to cultivate plants, to mine underground ores, to build cities. In order to maintain order in Eden, the Ancestress and all-Father sent their children, the lords of the Sun, Moon, Love and Friendship. “But you said you were just a unicorn before? Or you just being modest about your noble birth?” Newt smiled slyly. “No, I'm not a daughter of the gods, that's hundred percent sure.” Twilight didn't respond to the joke. “And according to legend, at some point the ponies rose up and overthrew the alicorns, and they just disappeared.” “Well, where did Celestia and Luna come from then? They have parents, right?” “I don't know,” Twilight said. “Princess Celestia never told me about her parents, and when I asked she always tried to change the subject. It must be painful or unpleasant for her to talk about it.” “Okay, the alicorns can't have anything to do with this,” Newt said. “But then who? The only Faust I can think of is doctor Faust from the legend of my world. He sold his soul to the devil in exchange for unlimited knowledge and worldly pleasures.” “I don't know,” Twilight said sadly. “Whoever this Blood Stalk, he was obviously in no hurry to make himself known, because he knew that we wouldn't find anything suggestive on the station other than the name itself... And now we can't go back and look carefully any more. Not to mention that I have no idea yet what Stalk meant by Hazard Level. No, it is clear that we are talking about magic power, but what to take as a starting point? In what units does it measure? And what should happen when you reach three point zero?” There was a moment of silence between them, but then Newt suddenly remembered about the ‘consolation prize’. The previously discovered slot on the smartphone seemed to fit for this unusual bottle. Newt turned the cap forward on it and inserted it into the socket. At first, for some reason, he thought that this is a kind of charger, but the result exceeded all expectations. The wheel over the connector moved forward, the mobile phone jumped out of his hands, and from the speaker came: “BUILD CHANGE!” Defying the law of conservation of mass, the smartphone expanded in size, the screen folded twice, then together with the rear part folded again, the second wheel turned forward, and the steering wheel took the correct position relative to the wheel. A red motorcycle that looked like a Honda XR 230 landed in the middle of the library, except that the front headlight was shaped like a cogwheel sticking out, and the gas tank had a white symbol on it that looked like the two halves of a cogwheel connected by a tube. “Wow!” that's all Twilight said. “Even in the world of the Canterlot High School, where technology rules, I've never seen anything like this.” Newt moved closer to examine the unexpected bonus to the consolation prize. On the handlebars of the motorcycle was a small touch screen with a speedometer, as well as buttons for the helmet, phone, GPS, calls and messages. “All this is great and everything…” drawled the guy. “But I don't know how to drive a motorcycle.”