-INSTALLATION: THE ISLAND-
-INSTALLATION: THE ISLAND-
Taking a deep breath, Fluttershy slowly advances towards the Raptor, the beast still crouching over Rainbow Dash's prone form. A low growl rumbles deep in the large reptile's throat as it watches the approaching pegasus intently, lips drawing back to reveal dagger-like teeth still stained with blood.
"Oh my… I hope this works," Fluttershy murmurs to herself. She casts her eyes towards the ground, and the Raptor, perhaps suspecting weakness, lunges towards her with a snarl. Before it could take more than a single step, the pegasus flicks her gaze up to lock sky-blue eyes with the fiery orange orbs of her adversary.
The Raptor abruptly stumbles, its' mind suddenly besieged with a sense of dread—the pegasus before it continues to stare unwaveringly, eyes portraying an overwhelming feeling of stern authority. The reptile shakes its head with a hiss, but the sensation only intensifies. The pegasus takes a step forward, gaze unmoving, and the Raptor draws backward slightly, its hunter's instinct at war with the power of the Stare. The Raptor didn't seem to be giving ground, but then again, that wasn't Fluttershy's intention.
"Now, Rarity! The bola!" Helena exclaims.
Whirling the bola around her hoof, Rarity flung the object at the Raptor. Her aim was true, and the bola struck the creature just above the ankles, the trailing cords wrapping around its legs. The Raptor flinches from the impact and attempts to take a step back, only for the cords to pull taught, causing the reptile to overbalance, falling to the ground with a thud.
"Nice throw, love!" Helena cheers. "Quickly, everyone, knock it out! The bola won't hold for long."
"Ah'd rather we put the no-good varmint down fer' what it did to Rainbow," Applejack comments angrily, staring daggers at the fallen Raptor.
"Rainbow Dash will be fine, love. We need to tame this Raptor so-"
"Fine?! Rainbow's dead! How can she be-" The cowmare's words were cut off by a flash of light from the newly constructed home, followed by a familiar voice.
"Buck! That hurt, like, a lot!"
"What in tarnation? Rainbow?! Yall ok in there?"
As this is going on, Rarity, Spike, Twilight, and Fluttershy takes the opportunity to club the Raptor, albeit with the unicorn commenting on their brutality while the yellow pegasus tries to give it some form of comfort as she says in a motherly tone:
"I promise you'll feel better after we're done."
Helena floats over to a shocked Applejack and says:
"I know that it's surreal, and it even causes you to question reality itself, but Rainbow is indeed very much alive. Hey, Rainbow! Come on outside, love!"
Within the group's home, Rainbow Dash recovers from her shocked state as she mutters:
"Holy moly, I know she said that we were immortal in a way, but that felt… strange. It hurt like Tartarus when that Raptor killed me, but then it all went white for a moment. Now, I'm here…" The cyan pegasus then gets onto her hooves and glances back towards her flank as she gazes upon her cutie mark or implant. "This thing brought me back here… it was like a beacon that dragged me along and brought me home."
"Rainbow! Come on out, sugarcube! Ah’ need to see ya’ fer’ mahself!” Applejack exclaims from outside the house.
"I'm coming!" Rainbow Dash responds as she starts to make her way towards the exit.
Now outside, Rainbow Dash rounds the corner of their home to join the rest of the group as she says:
"You guys won't believe how weird that felt! Not to men-" Suddenly, her words were cut off as she saw what was lying on the ground: Another Rainbow Dash. Her eyes widen in shock as she looks at the corpse, looks at herself, then returns to the other cyan pegasus. "W-what in the… that's another me!"
"Yup! It sure is," Helena replies happily.
"Can you not act like this isn't a big deal!" Rainbow Dash exclaims. "There's another me lying dead where that Raptor killed me!"
"And now you're alive and kicking once more. In addition, we will soon have a Raptor in our tribe. Oh! I hope you'll all forgive me for assuming that you'd be in a tribe together, so I took it upon myself to make it for you. I call it: Tribe Of Harmony! Got a good ring to it, huh? If you don't like it, then we can easily change it via your tribe leader's implant, which of course is: Twilight."
In the background, everyone else starts to access their inventories by glancing back towards their flanks. Twilight, in particular, brings out some of the meat she had harvested from the Dodos and hands it over to Fluttershy, who, in turn, starts the taming process of the now unconscious Raptor. This causes Helena to giggle in response as she says:
"I'm so sorry, but Discord should've chosen somewhere else to place your implants. It just looks hilarious seeing you all look at your butts to access your-"
"Ok, Helena…" Rainbow says as she starts to draw closer. Applejack is still stunned from seeing her friend alive and well as she imitates a goldfish, opening and closing her mouth repeatedly. "Can you please explain to me just what the buck is happening?! Why did I see a bunch of red words?"
"Oh! That's all thanks to your implants. It holds all sorts of information and can even track you and your fellow tribe members' tames. Case in point was when that Raptor killed your tribe's Dodos, not to mention, well, you."
"That's… convenient?"
"It sure is! The Advanced Humans' technology is simply a wonder. I wish I could explain how the process works for you, regaining a body that's identical to your old one, but I surmise that it has something to do with the Overseer's lab. From there, all life is injected onto the Arks, in addition to supply drops. We should go hunting for those in the morning in addition to crystal and metal runs. We have so much to do!" Helena exclaims as she floats over to the rest of the group, who are still taming the Raptor.
Rainbow Dash and Applejack were simply at a loss for words. The pegasus for seeing her own body and the orange earth pony for witnessing her friend, still alive and kicking after death. The two slowly turn to each other and converse.
"Wanna go back to bed?" Applejack inquires.
"Yeah… I just died and came back from the dead… I need to sleep this off," Rainbow Dash responds.
"Oh, Rainbow!" Helena calls out. "If we run low on meat, can we chop up your body for some more? Oh! And for some hide, too."
Rainbow and Applejack's mouths drop upon hearing the AI's question. They didn't know what was more shocking: The question itself or just how casually Helena asked it. Perhaps both? The two mares sigh in defeat as they both turn around, taking on neutral expressions.
"I don't even bucking care anymore," Rainbow Dash waves uncaringly with a forehoof as she and Applejack make their way around the corner. "Do what you need to do; we're going to bed."
"Thanks, love!" Helena responds as she floats back towards the group. She then looks towards Fluttershy questionably, "I must say: Your ability is quite impressive. To strike fear into your foes with just your gaze alone is an incredibly unique trait. I know that it was in your profile, but to see it for myself in action…"
"Oh yes, Fluttershy has always been able to do that. However, it seems to only work on animals. Dinosaurs, in this case," Twilight responds.
"Are there other creatures with abilities like hers on the Ark?" Rarity questions.
"Well, there's one who has a similar ability, but it works a little differently in execution," Helena answers as she then projects a large entity that is carnivorous and is covered in what is, surprisingly, fur. "This big guy's name is Yutyrannus."
"Its roar can scare off most creatures while also being able to control any nearby Carnotaurus, another species of carnivore. However, if we manage to tame a Yuty, their powers become even more useful. The Yutyrannus can buff our other tames with its roar, enhancing our forces during combat. It's not just the Yuty who has amazing powers; however," Helena then projects another entity, "This one is called a Daeodon, a pig-like creature with the power to heal both survivors and tames alike."
"Many survivors would often tame these pig-like monstrosities specifically for their incredible ability. That's honestly the biggest reason why these things are one of the island's toughest creatures. That's not even mentioning how effective they are in a pack."
All of the ponies, and dragon, are in awe of this revelation. It did make Pinkie Pie, in particular, start laughing at the thought of a pig healing everyone in battle.
"By the way, Fluttershy. Can I inspect your implant?" Helena inquires.
"Oh, um, sure," Fluttershy responds as the AI floats over to her cutie mark and performs the action. As this goes on, Twilight and Rarity feel a bit uncomfortable that another Rainbow Dash still lies dead nearby, even though another Rainbow Dash is literally inside their home going to bed.
"Amazing!" Helena exclaims. "It's a good thing we're having you handle the taming process for this Raptor because it seems you have another ability. Aside from that stare of yours, you also tame creatures more effectively than other survivors, faster even. This is simply remarkable!"
"Oh my, so, does that mean I can talk to the creatures on the Arks, too? I couldn't tell if the Raptor could even speak to me, but I wonder if-"
Suddenly, a series of green words show up before their very eyes, all while the Raptor starts to regain consciousness.
Your tribe has tamed a Raptor!
"Ah, excellent! Welcome to the tribe!" Helena exclaims happily while everyone else present starts to gaze upon their new ally with curiosity. Fluttershy floats in the air and starts to rub the Raptor's head with a forehoof as she says:
"Welcome to your new family," The yellow pegasus puts a hoof to her chin in thought, "Hmm, you're a female Raptor, so we'll need to come up with a name for you."
The Raptor starts to chirp in response, to which Fluttershy's ears perk up as she shouts:
"Oh my gosh! I can understand her! Yes, I am here to take care of you, including my friends."
[RAPTOR SOUNDS]
"Oh, um, I'm sure Rainbow Dash won't be too mad at you… I think."
[RAPTOR SOUNDS]
"Don't worry; I forgive you for what happened with the Dodos. I mean, I'm sad, of course, but I do understand that you were a wild creature and needed to hunt as a carnivore."
……….
"Are we seriously watching Fluttershy have a conversation with a creature that tried to kill- um, I mean, killed Rainbow Dash?" Spike inquires.
"Spike… I've had nothing but questions ever since Helena landed on our world… then my friend dies and comes back to life… and now this. It's all just so bizarre." Twilight responds as she rubs her head with her left forehoof.
"I'm personally impressed by the level it tamed out at. We had to use regular raw meat for the taming process but at least Fluttershy's natural taming efficiency helped us along. This beauty went from Lvl 80 up to a decent 104. Not a perfect tame but a good start as any; not to mention the fact that we can level it up further."
"Taming efficiency?" Everyone else present questions.
"We'll discuss that in the morning, you all still have some time before sunrise to get some shut-eye. In addition, I need to inform you all about your level-up process. Some of you are Lvl 10, such as Rainbow Dash, while others are below that level. However, Spike, in particular, is Lvl 13. In other words, you're the highest leveled survivor in the tribe."
"I'm still a little confused about how all of this leveling stuff works," Spike comments.
"No worries, love. As I said, we'll talk about it in the morning," The Ai responds.
Many questions still festered in the minds of the ponies, and dragon, all of which needed to be answered. The Arks would continue to perform feats that would make them question all of reality itself. But now was not the time for they could only look forward to a well-deserved rest after a hard-fought battle.
This did, however, bring forth a question. One that Spike took the initiative to ask as he points over his right shoulder with a claw:
"So, uh… where does the Raptor sleep?"