//------------------------------//
// Chapter 1: Exploration And First Contact 
// Story: Metal Bat: Equestrian Adventures 
// by The reluctant fan 
//------------------------------//

After around five minutes of running (more like stumbling) around in a confused and panicked frenzy, Badd finally managed to calm himself down enough to think.

"What. The. Fuck. I'm a horse. Zenko's a horse with fuckin WINGS, what next,  fuckin UNICORNS?"

"Ungh... big bro, is that you..?"

Zenko stirred where she lay, attempting to stand up.  She stopped dead when she saw her new appendage. "WHAAAAAA?!" 

"Well your reaction was tamer than mine at least."

Zenko looked over to where her brother's voice came from to find a red coated pony that looked very much like him. "WHAAAAA?! Big bro, are we dreaming? Wait no, this feels too weird to be a dream, so that means... EEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEE!!!!"

Zenko's screech made Badd recoil. "Uh, what that a scared scream or an exited scream?"

Zenko didn't respond, she was too busy prancing around and inspecting her new body. How she managed to work out how to move so quickly eluded her brother. Zenko looked back and saw her wings. Her eyes widened before she promptly fainted.

"Zenko? Ah hell."



Once Zenko woke up again, and stopped repeatedly saying "I'm a Pegasus" Badd finally decided that they were ready to at least figure out what to do from there.

"Sigh, I guess we'd better start looking around to see if we can find any sort of civilization."

"Won't the people find two talking ponies weird?"

"Zenko, that monster said 'say goodbye to this world forever. That means we're probably at least on a different planet, if not a different plane of existence. Given we got turned into... what did you call us?"

"Ponies."

"...Right. Given we were transformed, it would make sense that this is the dominant species here."

"That makes... and odd amount of sense. Weird, coming from you."

"Stuff it Zenko. I'm not a genius, but I'm not an idiot either. I can have my moments."

"By the way bro, I'd expect you to be freaking out a lot more right now."

"Eh, did that before you woke up. Don't get me wrong, looking like this is both infuriating and humiliating, and I hate this more than words can describe, but dwellin on it won't get us anywhere. Now, how the hell am I gonna carry my bat with hooves?"

"You could hold it in your mouth."

"...God damn it that really is my only option huh."

Badd walked slowly over to his bat and picked it up in his mouth. "Thr. nw w'cn go." 

Zenko smirked. "What was that bro?"

Badd simply glowered at his sister as he started moving forward.



After about an hour or so of trotting, the two siblings arrived at the edge of the forest that Badd had seen off in the distance when he woke up. 

"Well, there's nothing in view for as far as the eye can see apart from this forest. Maybe there's something on the other side?"

"I don't know. This place looks a little... spooky."

"Aw come on Zenko. There's nothing in there that could pose a threat to me. It's just a forest. Worst case scenario we get attacked by some wolves or a bear or something."

"...Alright bro. I'm counting on you to protect me. Just... don't kill any poor animal that might attack us."

"Heh, I'll try my best not to."



About half an hour into their trek through the forest, Zenko was getting really nervous.

"I swear I just saw something move in that bush."

"Come on Zenko, you're not usually this skittish. I mean you've literally come to try and take me home during monster attacks before!"

"I know... it's just that this place is super creepy! It's putting me on edge."

"Come on Zenko, nothing's gonna jump out at us."

All of a sudden, there was a chorus of growls coming from all around the two. Glowing green orbs appeared all around them.

"Big bro, please never speak again."

A figure jumped out at Zenko, before being smashed to bits by Badd's bat. The creature's body went everywhere, but it wasn't blood and guts that went flying.

"Huh? Wood?"

At the destruction of one of their own, the other creatures snarled and emerged from the shadows. 

"Wolves made of wood? Eh, I've seen a lot weirder."

Badd gave his bat a couple of experimental swings in his mouth before he deemed himself ready and went to smashing the wolves as they approached. Zenko cowered behind her brother as he smashed the strange creatures to bits. Something she noticed was that the despite their numbers being dwindled significantly, they weren't backing off in the slightest. A normal pack of wolves would normally know when to flee and cut their losses. These were blindly throwing themselves to their demise. Zenko supposed they weren't too different from monsters in that regard.

Badd smashed through the final wolf before spitting out his bat. "Heh. And that's the last of em. You okay Zenko?"

"Yeah... but did you have to kill them?"

"Sorry sis, but those weren't normal wolves. I didn't know how dangerous they were, so I put em down. Sides, they were actin like monsters back home. They were pretty relentless."

"Yeah, I guess, it's just that... wait, are those twigs... moving?"

Badd looked behind him and indeed, the bits of wood from the wolves he had taken out were swarming towards each other, before forming back into a wolf shape.

"You gotta be shittin me... fine. C'mon Zenko. Stay close to me. I'll walk and smash."



Applejack was in a great mood. Not only was the Summer Sun celebration going to be held in her hometown Ponyville this year, but her family was in charge of food! And to top it all off, a ton of her extended family were coming to visit for the celebration! Yes siree it was shaping up to be a great week indeed.

The orange farm mare was out harvesting apples for baking when she heard some commotion coming from the Everfree forest. Knowing what lurked in that area, she immediately went on guard, ready to book it back to the farmhouse if need be. What she wasn't expecting was a little pink pegasus filly to come running out of the forest and a red coated stallion to follow. The filly slowed down to breathe once she realized that whatever it was that was chasing the two of them was gone.

Applejack inspected the two of them before they noticed her. The pink filly had a black mane with a flower hair clip. But it was the other pony that grabbed her attention. He had a black mane like the other one, and it was done up in a style she hadn't seen before. What was the most glaring aspect about him however was the metal bat he had in his mouth. Both he and the weapon were also covered in splinters.

"Uh, howdy?"

Both the filly and the stallion turned to see her waving at the two of them.

"Oh, another pony! are we close to a town do you know?"

Applejack bit back a look of shock. This filly was acting so calm despite having just run out of the Everfree forest after being chased by what she could only assume were timberwolves based on the splinters in both her and the older pony's coat and manes.

"Uh, yeah. Ponyville's just down the way. Uh, may ah ask ya'll a question if ya don't mind?"

The stallion spit out the bat and grunted. "Sure. Shoot."

"What were tha two a you doin in the Everfree forest? That place is one of the most dangerous areas in all of Equestria!"

"Really? Didn't strike me as that bad."

The little filly puffed up her cheeks. "Big bro! We got chased for miles by those wooden wolf things!"

"So? They weren't too dangerous compared to most threats back home. They were more annoying than anything. Bastards just wouldn't stay down."

As the two now revealed siblings bickered back and forth, Applejack officially decided that they were very strange. Still, if they had been chased through half the Everfree by timberwolves then they couldn't really be that well off, and it wasn't in her nature to ignore a pony in need.

"Uh pardon me, but where would ya'll happen to be from? Ah can see if ah can help ya get home if ya need."

The stallion looked at her and sighed. "Yeah, about that miss. Don't know if that's possible."

Applejack gave him a sad look. "So ya'll don't have a home then?"

"...Something like that, yeah."

"Well shoot, ah can't leave the two a ya to fend fer yourselves. C'mon. Ya'll can stay with me an mah family."

"Uh, you sure about that? I don't wanna be any-"

"Big bro she's trying to help us! Just say yes, it's not like we have anywhere else to go!"

"Sigh. FINE. I guess we'll take you up on yer offer for now miss. An if we're gonna be stayin with ya, we should probably exchange names. I'm Badd, that's my little sister Zenko."

Applejack gave a smile and shook Badd's hoof excitedly.  "Glad ya'll will be stayin with us! Name's Applejack! Nice ta meet ya pardner! Me, mah siblings and mah granny run this here orchard! Sweet Apple Acres grows the best apples in all o' Equestria lemme tell ya!"

"Uh, nice to meet you too Applejack."

"Hah! C'mon now Pardner! No need to be so shy!"

"Sorry. It's just that I've never met anyone quite as... welcoming as you."

Applejack gave Badd a strange look. "Really now? Say, where are Ya'll from anyway? ah know ya got no home, but ya have to be from somewhere."

"Um... We're from, uh..."

Zenko huffed and cuffed her brother upside the head with a hoof. "Just tell her the truth big bro! You're awful at lying."

"But she'll think we're crazy!"

"But she'll know your lying no matter what else you say and will probably keep asking until we tell her the truth anyway."

"SIGH. Fine. My sister is right. I really suck at lying. Just a heads up though. You'll probably think we're insane once we tell you where we're from."

Applejack chuckled. "It's fine sugarcube.  Ah've heard some wacky tales in mah life. I'm sure that I'll understand. C'mon. I'll lead ya'll back to the farmhouse. Ah was about done with my daily harvest anyway. We'll walk and talk.

"Hey Zenko, can you tell her? I gotta carry my bat."

"Sure big bro! So we're actually from another world!"

If Applejack were drinking anything she would have spit it out. "What?!"