//------------------------------// // Chapter 9: Getting To Know The Mane Six Better (Part 1) // Story: The Final Strike // by BlackDragon //------------------------------// After a couple of weeks of speaking with Equines with power and understanding their customs, Leon Kin and Lieutenants Jason Morales and Sarah Hart have quickly adjusted to the new, more peaceful, way of life. To say that it was an adjustment for the Strikers would be fitting to say. For Leon, he actually started to appreciate it. For too long he had dealt with the likes of the Wyverns and their Camaztoz bat slaves, or the Serpents in their ancient temples in the mountains; all dealt him many headaches insisting that he was a spy whenever he was sent to them for negotiations. This new sense of calm around this strange city known as "Canterlot", seemed to be an easy target for their plans. However, maybe that was the trick. Maybe it was all an act for them to get their guard down? Leon sighed in doubt; it all seemed far too genuine. Anyway, the trip to "Ponyville" was about to commence for the Strikers and their newfound guide, Twilight Sparkle. She was tasked by Princess Celestia to take them to her castle to begin their integration to pony society and culture. As expected, the young princess was thrilled to have received her duty and already began preparations for nearly every possible destination and ponies-of-interest she had already planned for them to visit. Her friends were obviously on the top of the list along with their homes as well as their homes and the duties they perform. They flew to Twilight's castle via flying chariot and unpacked their things inside upon arrival. Once they all got comfortable, they went out into town with Twilight as their guide. For about an hour, the group was going through some popular destinations and briefly chatting with some ponies they meet along the way. Then they decided to settle down for a bite to eat at Twilight's favorite restaurant. Sarah couldn't help but smile as Twilight gorged herself in "hayburgers" and "hay-fries". Jason finally spoke up when something came to his mind during this new adventure. "Excuse me, Twilight. How is it that you've become a princess? I mean, you don't appear to be related to Princess Celestia." Twilight ceased her chewing. Her eyes went wide after realizing that her face covered in crumbs and condiments. After she quickly cleaned herself, she smiled confidently with a small amount of pride as she stood tall. "Well, I'm not actually related to Celestia. I earned my title after I performed an incredible act of ingenuity; completing an unfinished spell created by Starswirl the Bearded in order to defeat Discord and save Equestria with the help of my friends." Twilight momentarily gave up her confident stance and relaxed a little. She even gave the tiniest frown that only Leon could see. "Why do you ask? Does royalty work differently in Lushiro? I mean, Celestia and Luna have remained the rulers of Equestria for thousands of years." "The Emperor's title and power is hereditary. It's been that way since the first cities of Ricano were built over 500 years ago." Sarah answered with an eager smile. Jason joined in, "The same is done for most of the royal family in the capital city of Guantanamo, such as the Priesthood who offer spiritual aid soldiers after battle; or the Commander's personal guard, the Shorn O-." *SLAP!* To Twilight's surprise, Jason shut her mouth with both his hands. To his right, he could see Sarah with her eyes widened in terror while, in his left, Leon was equally wide-eyed but he still maintained a vicious glare at his Lieutenant. Jason quickly stuttered, "I-I-I'm sorry, Princess! Forget about that last part!" Twilight was left concerned. What could possibly have these brave warriors so spooked? She tried to ask what Jason was about to say, but he would soon deny it while trying to look away. Sarah was even harder to get any word out of; her eyes completely out of view. She finally gave up when Leon turned his glare to her. "We. Do not. Speak. Of them!" After of sigh of defeat (and slight discomfort from the sudden tension), Twilight decided that they should leave the restaurant and move on to the rest of Ponyville. They started by making their way to Rarity's dress shop, the Carousel Boutique. When they arrived, the humans and pony had entered the shop but there was no sign of Rarity. "Rarity? Rarity, are you in here?" Twilight called out, but no answer. As a matter of fact, there was hardly a sound in the Boutique at all. It was as if the building was just abandoned with no one in sight. This didn't sit well with the Strikers, Leon especially, as they clenched their fists. They were aware that there wasn't likely any danger lurking inside the shop, their instincts were ingrained into their brains due to years of rigorous training and experience. They just couldn't take any chances in this strange land. "Twilight? Darling, is that you!" shouted a gentle voice elsewhere. Twilight turned her head and saw something... surprising. There she stood, a snow white unicorn mare hiding in the numerous fabrics seemingly thrown together in a pile. The fabric pile shook violently as the mare inside was. Twilight approached the pile and removed the fabrics with her magic and revealed none other than Rarity, huddled to herself, shivering and sobbing. Perplexed at the sight, Twilight said, "Rarity! What are you doing here under all this mess?" Rarity suddenly wrapped her hooves around her friend an a hysterical fit of tears. "Waaahhh! Oh, Twilight, it was awful! Just absolutely dreadful; and just mere days after bumping into those hooligans in the forest, I don't I can take much more!" Sarah quickly ran to Twilight's side (or rather pushed her out of the way) to comfort Rarity in her arms. "Hey, hey, hey, easy! What's wrong, Ms. Rarity?" she cooed as she stroked Rarity's back. The mare soon calmed down and wiped her tears with her hoof. She even gave a small smile at the woman's act of kindness. "Oh, Sarah, you're such a dear! I was just on my way home when I had realized just how stressed I was due to our... recent encounters. Anyway, I was in the kitchen for something to treat myself to calm my nerves and..." Rarity started shivering again, "That's when I saw it!" "What is it, Ms. Rarity?" Sarah asked again. "I couldn't believe what I saw. It beyond my worst nightmares! I.. I... I'M ALL OUT OF BUBBLEGUM BIRTHDAY CAKE FLAVORED ICE CREAM!!" The group only stared at Rarity as she continued bawling, no entirely sure what to do. Meanwhile, Leon looked on in an agitated disbelief. All this despair for ice cream?! He hoped the rest of "Mane Six" weren't this dramatic. Rarity calmed down later on and she started to converse with the humans, all seated on the dining room table. "Eh, please forgive me for all of that. I tend to let myself go a little." she said with an embarrassed giggle. "That's... Uh, no worries, Ms. Rarity." Jason answered. "Ohohoho, darling! Thank you but there's no need for formalities. Just call me Rarity. And Sarah, I appreciate the 'gesture', but you may stop now." Sarah reluctantly withdrew her hand gently stroking her back. "So, Rarity," Twilight finally began, "How's about you show our guests around the Boutique? I'm sure they would appreciate the effort you put in you work." "Oh, I would love to, Twilight darling! Come, come everyone and welcome to the Carousel Boutique, where everything is chic, unique, and manifique!" The tour of the Boutique was rather calm and uneventful despite the Rarity's earlier outburst. Leon found it rather pleasant really. He never really cared for the wardrobe in Rarity's shop, but he was more than willing to revel in the serenity therein. Sarah marveled at the many dresses and other clothing in Rarity's collection while Jason, while not into the clothing as much, he would still compliment the shopkeeper as he was genuinely impressed with the intricacies in the designs. Sarah even met Rarity's cat, Opalescence, which Sarah especially enjoyed despite the cat's annoyance with her. All in all, the tour ended rather well. With Rarity having been met, Twilight decided that Pinkie Pie would be next on the list. The humans agreed and followed their Equine guide. Next up was Pinkie Pie who works and lives at Sugercube Corner. Apparently, she was the most excited of the Mane Six to meet their new human friends. Leon couldn't help but feel dread at this encounter. From what little he saw from her, be it bouncing around or grinning ear to ear, Pinkie Pie appeared to be unpredictable and chaotic in her own right. It actually made him prefer Discord over her. At least he was more in control of his powers while she acted like she was on the edge. The quartet arrived at the doors of Sugarcube Corner. The building resembled a giant gingerbread house, complete with decorations resembling icing and various candies. It even had a giant cupcake with candles at the very top! A bit of an elaborate design in Leon's taste (no pun intended). Jason and Sarah, on the other hand, were amused by the design. Sarah even said that she thought it was cute. Once they went inside, the humans were immediately hit with the smell of all kinds of sweets. They had everything: cakes, muffins, cupcakes, ice cream, and many other desserts and pastries. They whole group was greatly interested now, even Leon. He might not be into this childish style, but at least he would have something good to eat. When they took their seat, they were immediately approached by Pinkie Pie herself. "Ohmygoshohmygoshohmygosh! Hi, Twilight! Hi, Leon! Hi, Jason! Hi, Sarah! Welcome to Sugarcube Corner, everypony!" she shouted with unbelievable glee. Pinkie's sudden introduction nearly spooked the humans out of their seats while Twilight was only mildly surprised. She seemed completely unaware of how her actions were affecting those around him. So happy and carefree she seemed! Unfortunately, this didn't sit well with Leon even if his female Lieutenant actually enjoyed the pink Equine's hyperactive nature. Immediately, Pinkie Pie began showing her new guests with various special orders of the day. They politely declined the offer having already ate, so Pinkie simply chose to chat her friends. But she was still carrying the dishes for some reason. "Hey, Pinkie?" asked Jason, now more confident in getting to know the Equines better. "How long have you been working in Sugarcube Corner?" Pinkie excitedly perked up and quickly answered, "OH!! For as long as I can remember! And my bosses, Mr. and Mrs. Cake, have been super duper spec-tuber-tactular! I can't tell you how much I love working here, giving delicious treats to ponies and wishing them a happy and fun day!" Leon immediately tried to tone out the pink one out by covering his ears while the others weren't looking. He couldn't believe the amount of energy she could spare just to answer one simple question! How is she not out of breath by now! It seemed practically superhuman! Suddenly, Pinkie said, "So, how'd you three ever come here in the first place? Looks like a LOOOOONG walk from from Lushiro to here!" Jason nervously answered, "Uh, uh, we sailed here! On a... boat! A big boat!" "Ooooohhhh, how big was it? Was it a battle boat? A steam boat? A flying boat!" "Pinkie, I think that's enough for now. They're still trying to get used to Ponyville?" Twilight politely interrupted. Jason quietly sighed in relief. The ship could NOT be revealed until it was finally to invade the land. However, the simple lie of a normal boat seemed to have satisfied Pinkie since she never asked about it again. She did think of offering a treat to Leon though, seeing that he wasn't particularly happy in her eyes. She suddenly appeared out of nowhere behind him, offering him a slice of simple strawberry cake on a plate. "You seem a teeny bit grumpy, Lee. Wanna try some delicious cake? It's delicious!" she sang at the last sentence. Leon had actually considered taking the pink Equine's offer, if only for her sake at least. But it would be dishonest of himself. He refused to lie about what he likes to eat. So, answered cautiously, not wanting any outlandish reaction if Rarity was anything to go off of. "Yeah, about that. I won't lie to you, Pinkie. I don't like cake." All of the customers in the Corner snapped their heads to Leon, gasping in a collective shock. Even Twilight Sparkle stared at him frozen with a gaping maw. Meanwhile, Pinkie Pie only stood in place while the cake fell from her grasp. When she hear the sound of plates crashing, she shook her head and cleaned out her ear. "I-I-I'm sorry. Did you say something, Lee?" "I said 'I don't like cake'." Leon answered, genuinely confused. Pinkie suddenly shivered and started sweating from her brow. She desperately tried to hide her stress with a big smile, but it did so poorly. "Oh! O-Okay, wow! Um, I don't think you should... Errr, y'know." "Say that I don't like cake? Why shouldn't I? It's true!" A second of silence passed before Pinkie suddenly pulled out a large dictionary and pair of glasses out of nowhere. She began furiously flipping the pages like she were desperately trying to search for something in book's contents. "Those words! Is it possible to use them together in a sentence like that!" Meanwhile, the customers continued to gawk at the human trio in disbelief, particularly at Leon himself. He started feeling uncomfortable as the Equines' gazes continued to pierce through him. As Pinkie continued rummaging through the book, he motioned to Twilight that they should leave the establishment. As they did, Pinkie was starting to actually tear the book apart, screaming about how one couldn't possibly like cake. In the end, Twilight could only say "Well, that could've gone better." The humans couldn't agree more. Meanwhile, in the castle of Canterlot, Princess Celestia suddenly felt that something was... wrong. The best she could describe it as is a "disturbance" of some sort. She only said, "I don't why, but I feel like kicking Captain Kin for not liking something that everyone likes."