//------------------------------//
// Still in The Dark 
// Story: Fallout: Harmony 
// by Foreverking0 
//------------------------------//

As the three humans and the two pony princesses made their way down the hallway, Each of the three newcomers stared at a stained glass window. It contained simplistic versions of each of the ponies sent to find them. 

"I see your accomplishments are well displayed," Nate commented tongue in cheek.

"All I ever got was a gold-plated twig" Six commented, with annoyance.

"You had a window made to commemorate Attacking your own sister?" John asked as he looked at Celestia, The glasswork moving behind them as they kept moving.

Celestia did not stop looking forward as she answered John's accusation.

"My sister had been lost to darkness and been imprisoned for over a thousand years, What you saw in that commemoration was the act of Twilight and her friends saving my sister and returning her to her rightful place as princess of the night."
Celestia responded, Twilight knew when her mentor was putting on a face. The return of her sister had left Celestia in tears, and Celestia had left a council in charge for over a month just to spend time helping Luna find herself In the modern world.

"So, where is she now?" John asked.

"In front of us" Celestia answered.

The group was entering Canterlot Tower, the largest stand-alone edition to the castle and the home of the Elements of Harmony. Standing in the centre of the room, Was Princess luna. The Princess of the night stood staring at a mechanical clock mounted on the nearby wall.

After a moment, Luna noticed the new arrivals she had a smile of glee that for Twilight seemed out of place.

"Sister, you have brought our potential advisers. And Our Dear friend Twilight, We are happy for you to join us!" Luna said with half-hidden glee.

Twilight looked at the clock on the wall, the metal casing was completely out of place for the rest of the design of the castle.

As the three humans walked into the centre of the room, Luna intervened.
"Please stay outside the floor centrepiece."

"Princess, This clock wasn't here before, and neither was that" 
Twilight pointed to the centrepiece of the room. Outside the Great doors to the Chamber the Elements were kept was a giant sun overlayed with the moon, built into the ground.

Celestia gave Twilight a hint of a smile before gesturing to her sister.
"I believe it would be best if my sister handled things from here."

As the Attention turned to Luna, she walked back over to the mounted clock. With one hoof, she tapped the centre, then pushed down on a piece of decoration on the box. Within seconds, the room began to lightly rumble. As everyone except the princesses looked around for a reason for the vibrations, the centrepiece split open revealing a stairwell. There was a delay once the panel finally stopped moving, Luna broke the silence with an answer to Twilight's inquiry.

"We have made some additions to the castle in light of our new need for secrecy, and the clock tells us the time"

Slowly the group followed Luna down the stairwell. The entrance resealed itself as luna began a monologue down the stairwell.

"In the early days of the crisis, Our sister and I agreed that Preparations needed to be made. We had no knowledge of the cause and even less about the scale. This facility was built as a centre of research and reconnaissance, to assist in the recovery and understanding of this new world. Further, A new organisation was established to respond to any and all threats these new beings and artifacts could represent. Thus was birthed 'The Ministry of Action', with the means to respond to these incursions and understand them."

Luna's speech ended at the bottom of the well and the beginning of a hallway, illuminated by light fittings across the sides. Nate asked what was on all three of the human minds, even if had an inkling of the nature of their assistance.
"This is impressive, but what do we have to do with it?"

The group was stopped as they reach the end of the hall which had a large double door at the end. Luna turned around and addressed the three Humans, as Celestia went to the side to let her sister run the show while Twilight listened.

"The truth is, we are not prepared for this challenge. We have tried to negotiate with those from your world, but they just attack us. We tried to scare them away, they attack our ponies. So we formed this ministry to fight the battles we cannot."

"The escorts you sent told me you control the sun and the moon and extremely powerful magic, why not just kill them yourself?" Six interjected.

Celestia was the one who countered the courier.
"Have you ever removed a weed from a forest, you do not succeed by burning the whole forest down. Even if you ignore the sheer scale of collateral damage that would come from such attempts, As rulers of a kingdom, we can not be everywhere at once."

Luna picked up where she had stopped once the Courier's option had been thoroughly shot down.

"You three were sought out because the Elements of Harmony saw in you the means to help us. Any Insight, knowledge or wisdom, could be the difference in this fight. We know you have little reason to help us, but if you give it a chance, you may be the key to ending this. At any time, if this trial is unsatisfactory, you may leave and we will attempt to send you home. Will any of you join us?" Luna asked as she finished her pitch.

For a moment, there was nothing. Celestia's eyes closed with expected, yet disappointed acceptance. Luna's hope was quickly being replaced with desperation. Her eyes darted back and forth between the three. Twilight's eyes fell on John with pleading.

It was the Courier of the Mojave who stood forward first. Putting on his helmet to free up his hands, Six spoke.
"I'm Game"

Nate stepped forward next, reluctantly. He also said his piece.
"The Commonwealth can survive without me"

The three ponies looked expectantly at John, who eventually step forward.
"I'll cooperate, but only until you find me a way back."

A smile spread across Luna's face.
"Then let the tour begin"

With that, Luna used her magic to throw the doors open. The groups entered to see the Ministry. The main floor the entrance was on opened to a fury of ponies going about their business. Most of them stopped and moved out of the area at the arrival of Luna and the walk into the main hall. On the back wall was a massive map of Equestria, and a slightly smaller model of the landscape on a table in the centre of the room. Ponies were moving models and tags across it while talking amongst themselves. As Luna reached the table, she gave a sharp order.

"Summon the squad leaders, Inform the departments of guests of interest, have everypony at the ready"
The menagerie of ponies dropped what they were doing and sped off to the stairs heading down on both sides of the room.

"If you would all please surround this table, we shall begin the briefing."

"Shouldn't we wait for the head of the department?" Twilight asked.

Luna was studying the model map on the table as she responded to Twilight.
"I am the Head of the department." 

A pony in a grey uniform brought over an almanac, which luna promptly levitated over to read. The staff member heading off to other assignments.

"Luna was insistent that she have a direct role in the Ministry from its founding, Everything you see here is of her design."
Celestia explained from the side of the table.

"Being involved with the Ministry gave us a greater understanding of the threat, and in turn the knowledge on how to best approach the problem. Each wing leader knows more about these attacks than all the public collectively, but only we had access to all available knowledge to see the true scale and implication of these events." Luna added. 

Finished with the almanac, Luna put it to the side and began casting a spell. To the surprise of only the humans in the room, The flat map of Equestria on the table grew upwards into a blue-hued holographic model of the kingdom. Three miniature flares appeared across the map.

"For reference, This is Canterlot Castle, our current position. And these two are the town of Appaloosa and the Everfree forest, These are the locations all three of you were discovered. The Earliest rumours of abnormal appearance we could trace was an occurrence a few months ago, here in the outskirts of Vanhoover."

A flare appeared near a city on the west coast in the middle of Luna's rundown.

"The first provable sighting was documented on the frontier of the badlands, but the event that brought this to our attention was a small village on the coast of the Celestial Sea."

"They have oceans named after themselves" John stated under his breath in annoyance, getting a look from Twilight. Luna continued.

"The situation became front-page news after the attack on Balitmare seven weeks ago, the official tally was fifty dead. After the attack, all other ongoing concerns were permanently sidelined and we personally went out to hunt down the culprits. The confrontation ended poorly, and after noting the threat posed, we founded this ministry to directly confront and learn what we can. The standard guard is not equipped nor trained to fight such odds, they have been a standing peacekeeping force, not soldiers of war."

"How many recorded incidents have there been?" Nate asked his posture and facial expression stern and calculating.

Luna looked at Nate for a moment, she then picked up the almanac and hovered it in front of her face. As she read each page and turned them, new flares appeared on the map. At first, it was noticeable when they appeared, but by the time Luna was near the end of the book, the table was lit up like the night sky seen in her mane.

"While a majority of incidents were either benign and usually material in nature, I have personally uprooted and removed enough pockets to know what this is. It's an invasion, General, and the rate of incursions is increasing with each wave of new sightings. If we don't learn the source, an unimaginable amount of lives will be lost. At the least, we must learn how to fight them and buy time."

Three ponies made their way up the stairs on one side of the room. The three Ponies lined up to the side of the table and gave a courtesy bow to each of the Princesses in the room. Luna left the Almanac on the time and walk over to the new arrivals, signalling the rest of the group to follow.

"These are the leaders of our three active units, Sergent Battle Bowler"
Sergent battle bowler was a short but strong Stallion with clover green fur and a tan mane. To Nate, he was the closest these ponies could get to a physical symbol of the Army.

"Sergent Rapid Fire"
Twilight was looking at a younger version of Rainbow dash's hero, Spitfire. The only real difference was the shortcut mane and boxing glove cutie mark.

"And Sergeant Levée en Masse"
The Last mare was a Unicorn with dark ocean-green fur and coffee brown mane. 

Luna waited for each to give a gesture before continuing.
"Each of these ponies has proven themselves both reliable and trusting enough to lead our forces, and adaptable to these new times."

"You only have three squads?" Six asked baffled.

"It was deemed by our leading experts that a small coordinated approach would serve the interest of the organisation best Since it would allow for quicker specialisation and avoid being tracked. Also, since this project is in its infancy, It was thought best to start small and see what the results say themselves." Luna explained.

Luna signalled the Three ponies to leave, and as they parted, Luna moved things along.
"You will be working with each wing in differing ways, with the Response teams, you will work directly on the field to train them in the respective threats they will face and how to counter them."

"Do we get Ranks?" Six cut in.

"No, since you are not Equestrian citizens, your roles are purely advisory, however, you will have full access to the Ministry's resources and will work alongside the sergeants, not under them. Let us move to one of the Wings you will be working with off the field." Luna said as she lead the group down the stairs. The three officers left as the group went on with the tour.

Going down either stair to the side took the group to a large open area with a window taking up the entire  Window on the back, looking out to the open plains far from Canterlot. Twilight realise they were under the part of the castle that always seemed to float. If she looked hard enough, she could possibly spot Ponyville.

Turning to the Right, the group reached a large arch with a sign above it. On the sign was only a flask, But Twilight picked up instantly that this was Research and development.

As Twilight followed Luna into R&D, her eyes sparkled with wonder. The Research Wing was a maze of rooms and tables, covered on every surface were items of varying nature. Some were covered with chemistry equipment, machines and observation devices. Some items were Equestrian in nature as far as they could be recognised, Many, however, were not of this world. Most were rusted or covered in grime, the treasures and junk of a bygone era.
Ponies from all walks of life were here, of differing ages and specialities. Biologists, chemists, physicists, Equinologists, and Linguists, this was a convention of the brightest minds. 

"The sheer amount of artifacts we have collected required a proper team of experts to catalogue and examine. While the Wing has made great strides in deconstructing and understanding the technology and culture of these pieces, A local appraisal would help them with some of the more difficult items to unveil." Luna Explained.

Luna walked over to a particular pony who was mid-conversation, The older earth pony with grey fur and charcoal mane stopped and shooed off one of his underlings and the assistant bolted off with the chart they had been talking over. Luna, walking to the side between the elder and the touring group, started the introductions. 

"Doctor Grey, these are our three advisers from beyond the portals, they have agreed to assist you in your efforts to understand the assortment of items dropped from their world." Luna then addressed the aforementioned three.

"Doctor Grey is our Head Researcher and specialises in engineering and physics. His Work on the devices so far has given us a valuable, if not crude, understanding of many of the machinations of your world."

"There is only so much you can learn from a machine princess, especially when most of them don't work." Doctor Grey stated as he passed by luna, walking up the Nate, Six and John, with Twilight and Celestia in the background. After giving a silent appraisal of the humans, he seemed to have come to some conclusion.

"I have no issues at this time. however, Maybe you could help sort a bet in Argon's team."

As the pony lead the three with a wave of a hoof, Luna frowned at Grey.
"Doctor, I have requested you put a stop to such illicit workplace activities"

"And in turn, if I did so, they would just do it when I'm not around. Isn't it better I at least know what they're up to?"

Celestia silently giggled at her younger sister as she let out a low frustrated "argh" before the two sisters began to follow suit. Celestia looked around and saw Twilight playing around with a large rectangular machine.
"Twilight, will you be joining us?"

Twilight jumped as a bottle dropped out of a hole in the front bottom of the machine, quickly trotting off with a "Yes!".

Entering a new part of the lab, Twilight saw a bunch of assistances in heavy lab coats. They were in fierce debate while Luna waited for the five ponies to notice the new spectators. Eventually, one does. After a quick word to the rest of the assistances, they all swung around to meet the arrivals.
"Princess Luna, I'm afraid Doctor Argon is unavailable at this minute, is there something we can help you with?" One of the assistant mares asked. 

Grey jumped in from the side of luna.
"I believe Doctor Argon was having trouble with her two newest additions to the collection?"

The Assistant who had spoken to luna went right into the subject, probably having dealt with the situation about it for a while. 
"Yes, the specimens are much like the others we have recovered, however as you can see, They're glowing."
The assistant gestured to two bottles that the researchers revealed as the group split in half to let the princess see. Sitting on a stand, the two bottles were filled with a strange glowing liquid.

"We thought it may be some kind of potion, Someone having just reused the container and added their own label. However, our samples have come back from a variety of alchemists as negative. Argon was able to identify a list of elements distilled from a small sample, as well as a stronger aura than many of the specimens brought in have shown. Our Linguists have been attempting to decipher the label on the front but with little results. Some here are convinced it's supposed to be some sort of fuel for a flying machine." The assistant said the last part while giving scorn to her colleague, who shied away at the glare. Luna, Celestia and Twilight's eyes were all on something else as the Assistant kept going.

"The fact is we have no idea what it is, I could be another weapon for all we know, Argon has gone to collect some forms to have one sent off for another chemical analysis. In the meantime, a majority of the ponies here are of the mind to have it kept in secure storage, but Argon believes we are close to a breakthrough. Personally, I agree that this should be closely watched, for all we know it could explode or teleport us to space, we have no idea what this stuff is for and"

*Sksss*

The Mare spun around in time to see Six, having lifted his headgear, downing a bottle in one go. After a moment, he smacked his lips and commented. "I'm more of a sasparilla guy, but this stuffs not bad."

"Do you know how hard it is to get those?" Nate commented with annoyance.

The Assistant was frozen, her mind had shut down and so many thoughts crashing at once. It was also at this time that the other assistants noticed the three humans, many of them unsure how to react.

"That's one way to get answers." Came a voice.
A Mare that was a mix of Magenta slowly made her way over the rest of the room's occupancy, a file hovering to the side of her.

"Doctor Argon, we have some guests you may find of interest. These are Humans from the world all these intrusions have been from, and they have agreed to advise us in such matters."

Doctor Argon took one look at the three and passed them by.
"Unless one of them can calibrate a magnetic field sensor then they're no good to me." Argon walked up to a large inactive machine.
"The idiots upstairs, No offence to you Princess, decided it was my responsibility to monitor this thing. My area is Chemistry, not this abomination of physics and electronics." 

"A sensor?" John inquired. 

"Yes, A Magnetic field sensor. Apparently, the pulses that drop all this garbage here leave behind some residual electromagnetic prints that can inform us when they're occurring, and if done right, if they're nearby. So they contracted out the construction of these big things to help us monitor the background for any disturbances." Argon Explained

"Does it not work?" Luna asked. Twilight noticed John was casually walking up to the machine, going behind Argon, who was busy answering luna.

"- to be hooked to a system as an early warning the external monitor stations have been linked in, but if it's not tuned properly it won't read everything or will drown from everything. Our lead physicist won't be in for another day. Our work on soil samples has been going ahead with no issues, As you can see here..."
Argon promptly moved Luna and Grey to a table on the other side of the room. As the others followed the herd, Twilight noticed John studying the machine. Twilight silently watched as for a minute of reading and observing, John turned the device on.

Argon, hearing the machine start up spun back and began to march over.
"Please Don't Touch That!"

With a crank of a dial and two switches flipped, the machine boomed to life. The screen was picking up faint signals from the area, background electronics and magic. as she slowed to a strolling walk and stopped in front of the machine, Argon made a sound of being impressed and walked past John to go about her duties.
"huh...Maybe he will be useful around here, see you around Grey."

Luna decided to push the tour along.
"If you are all ready, We have one last pony to meet."
As they made off for the last major area of the lab, Twilight approached John.

"How did you know that?"

After a moment of consideration, John responded
"I had a good teacher"

Seeing that He was not going to elaborate, Twilight decided to ask something else.

"I know we don't know each other that well, but could you help me understand something?" Twilight asked.

John took a moment to decide as they were walking along.
"All right, what's on your mind."

"How can I learn to fight like you, is there a way I could learn? I couldn't help Fluttershy because I didn't know how, I need to know."

John shook his head.
"You can't learn that like something from a book, Everything I know is cold, hard, experience. You want to learn to fight and live to tell it, pick fights you can win. live long enough and the world is yours"

Twilight contemplated this ragged man's words. 

The Group into a section of the Lab that was a cluttered mess. papers, equipment and diagrams littered every Surface. There was medical equipment for all specialities and niches, and operating setups to accompany them. To Twilight, it almost looked like the unit that she had been at most of the morning if you ignored the mess. Doctor Grey had a look of concern as he looked around for someone.

"Hello, Doctor Feathers?" Grey shouted out. 
A loud crash was heard from around a corner, A mare's voice could be heard cursing. 
"Crab apples! Piddles get back here! Piddles!"

A flat creature sped around the corner on six legs, All three princesses jumped as it rushed past them. The three humans looked at the creature with minimal care, Grey was plain annoyed.

"Feathers, why is that 'thing' still alive?" Doctor Grey shouted out to the yellow blur holding a grey blur that sped past the group after the escape. 

"Dull Grey, How could you say such a thing to Piddles!" 
Slowly a pegasus hovered into view, her blue mane ragged and she was holding a cage with the creature inside.

"Piddles is a valued member of my team and I will not have you..."
The yellow pegasus stopped mid-air, eyes locked on the three Humans, Darting between the three. Suddenly the cage She was holding crashed to the floor, upsetting its occupant. 

"You have a pet rad-roach?" Six asked in mild disbelief. 

The pegasus slowly resembled a foul being told they had free reign of a candy store.
"Oh my, Oh my, Oh MY GOSH!"

The Pegasus zipped up to Nate, Grabbing his head and looking into his eyes, Nate froze in confusion.

"NOT nocturnal, I knew it! Now, do you have molars..." 
The personal space invader was yanked by their tail by Grey's teeth.
"DOCTOR feathers, How many times must I tell you, You are professional in a position of leadership, Act like it!"

Doctor feathers blushed as she let go of Nate's face and landed on the floor.
"Sorry Dull, got a bit excited there."

Doctor grey scowl softened as he stepped closer to Feathers.
"I asked you not to call me that Rustled, not at work" Grey whispered.

Luna stepped forward to once again push things along.
"This is Doctor Feathers, Our Lead biologist. She has taken quite an interest in the species of your world."

"We have our own writing circle, Our colleague from Ponyville, Lyra was convinced they were an evolution of the mythical Bipedal apes to the south as if that's a thing."

Twilight knew that name.
"Wait, Lyra heartsrings?"

"Indeed Twilight, The organisation reached out to many ponies, Including Lyra Heartstring and Ex-agent Sweetie Drops, though according to the reports she goes by BonBon now. When Sweetie Drops made it clear her intentions to stay low, we asked that Lyra could be contacted and a person of interest, They agreed to allow research notes to be exchanged, but nothing more." As Luna finished, Feathers seemed disappointed at the reminder, but quickly jumped at it again.

"Our latest letters going around the circuit have been discussing a proper name for your kind. The current runner is 'Centauri Biped'. Personally, that seems ridiculous, Simion Biped is a much better fit." Feather stated with enthusiasm.

"We're called humans, just thought you'd like to know." Six said from the back.

"Humans? Fascinating! Would you be willing to help sate my curiosity?" Feathers took a few steps towards the three.

"Such as?" Six asked hesitantly

"Oh, So many things. We can learn much from the items we find and yet so little."  Feathers flew to a nearby table holding a large red-rusted machine.

"The overall design was smooth and simplified, clearly they were interested in aesthetics. The flawless look of the metal and the smooth paint shows the creator must have been from a society that was sufficiently developed to make tools that precise. The cover plates and stylised branding on the front show this was meant to be in the open, a luxury of some kind. The nozzle port and drainage plate say this has something to do with liquids. With the help of engineering, we figured this is some sort of hot beverage machine. However, the entire thing has been neglected for a serious amount of time, Nearly everything we find is in a state of disrepair or decay. What is this for and Why is everything such a mess?"

Nate walked over and looked at the front. Twilight could make out the writing on the front, but couldn't read it. 

"It's a Sicilian, an expresso machine. Do you have coffee here?" Nate commented.

Twilight had seen doughnut Joe's coffee machine, it was nothing like this.
"This doesn't look like any coffee machine I have seen." Twilight pointed out.

"Well, it's an espresso machine, makes a much stronger brew of coffee. I was saving for one myself before the war ended." Nate reflected. Feathers and Grey both seemed interested in the comment, the former more than the latter.

"War?" Feathers asked, hoping for an elaboration.

Luna stepped in front of The humans to address the issue.
"The Humans fought a great conflict over two hundred years ago, the destruction wrought permanently scarred their world and has never recovered." 

"Those 'Great' people you're after, there gone, blew themselves to oblivion. All that's left is raiders and a handful of people trying to pick up the pieces." John added.

"But you're here, after all that time. Your kind found a way, that's something we can learn from you." Feathers responded.

Celestia, quiet for the entire tour, finally spoke up.
"I'm afraid my available time is coming to an end, I must return to my duties and address the many things I postponed for this visit."

"We are done here, Thank you for accommodating us. Doctor Grey, Doctor Feathers, we must be going. If you three  would please follow us to the entrance, You will have free reign of the castle and the city, with escorts." 

Twilight decided now was the time to jump in.
"Actually, before we leave, there is one thing I need to talk about before you both leave."

Luna looked to Twilight, then at Celestia. Celestia, seeing Luna awaiting an answer, acquiesced.
"Very well, we can talk in the side room at the exit."

Doctor Feathers rushed in front of the group.
"If it's no trouble, while you're having a good one-to-one, could you spare one of your new friends here to help with my studies? Nothing pervasive, just a quick examination and some samples." 
Feather's eyes shifted eagerly from one side to the other like an over-excited pet. Luna kept walking as she replied.
"They are their own beings, if they are willing then it is no concern of mine."

The two sisters made off to the exit, Twilight slowly followed, keeping her eyes and ears on the three humans as Feathers approached.
"So, Anyone up for a little Medical examination and samples? I would be a great help pin the name of science." Feathers eyes and face were lit up, eager as a foal.

John and the courier both backed away with hands up defensively, something Nate had not seen as he stood there until it was too late. 
"Much obliged!" Feather said as she dragged Nate into an area sealed off with curtains.

Twilight steeled herself for the coming talks. As the Three princesses entered the small room, Celestia opened the conversation.
"Are you alright Twilight, I was surprised you joined us on the tour. The last time Luna requested your help, you seemed adamant to be left alone." 

"I know, I wasn't ready for something like this, I was still searching for my place in this crisis, but I've found it," Twilight replied.

Luna seemed eager at the statement.
"So you will be joining the research team then? Your involvement would be most welcome."

"Actually, I want to join the ponies who go out and fight." Twilight corrected. There was a moment as the two sisters processed what Twilight was asking.

"Twilight, You're not a soldier. You have done many great things and will do many more, some amazing beyond measure, but fighting a war doesn't need to be one of them." Celestia said, softly and meaningfully.

"I want to, I have learned many things from you Princess, but how to protect the ponies I care for was not one of them." Twilight retorted. Luna stood and listened, perhaps knowing, this was between student and teacher.

"You have done more to protect them than you know, Nightmare Moon, Discord, King Sombra, You defeated them without such measures. You were stronger because you chose peace, Not in spite of it." Celestia was not calm, Twilight could see her Mentor was scared of something.

" The Elements stopped them, And there are times when that is not enough. When Queen Chrysalis attacked, the elements couldn't help us. Without them, we were helpless, I was helpless." Twilight was cut off by Celestia, who slammed her hoof down on a nearby metal cabinet, leaving bent metal in the steel case. Twilight, who had seen her mentor for a lifetime, was taken aback by such an out-of-character move.

"You are not helpless, You are better!" As quickly as it showed, the solar flare in the Sun queen was gone.

John of his own volition, made his way from the group to eavesdrop on the conversation, Burst through the door.

Celestia saw John, and her mane, ever so slightly, shifted to an orange hue.
"What have you been telling her!?, Is it you who has MY student wanting to run into the fire?"

John, Confused but firm countered Celestia, his voice raised.
"I only told her what she asked to hear, Whatever your problem I had nothing to do with it."

Before this escalated, Twilight intervened.
"Fluttershy's in hospital, she almost died!"

Nate and The Courier were now outside listening in, but like luna, keeping their distance. Celestia knew many things about Twilight's friends. Every letter, every lesson and message, she had read, Celestia grew to know them as if they were her own friends. Her mane's hue slowly turned to normal as she waited and listened to Twilight, now understanding where this was going.

Twilight, trying to hold it together continued.
"For all my gifts, I couldn't save her, John did that. I want to know how to fight, and I want to fight. For so long, I've sat on my plot and watched Equestria burn. You said you couldn't fight, but I can. I don't hold courts or run agencies, I work in a library. You made me a princess so I could help ponies, that's what I am... and that's what I'm going to do."

Celestia's eyes were pleading at this point. "You could help in so many ways. You could help with your mind, as a symbol, as an agent, with your friends. You could bring hope, You can help by just being you, you don't need to throw yourself at the front lines to do it."

Twilight looked to the floor.
"No, I don't"
Then she looked to Celestia.
"But I want to"

"She needs to learn this, you barely have any clue what's out there. From what she told me, this is a lesson she can't ignore." John added, feeling for twilight's plight.

Celestia looked sternly at john.
"You believe that?"

John looked sternly back.
"I do"

Celestia, taking time to think, finally reacted.
"Fine, then you will Teach her."

Luna, Twilight and John all responded in succession. 
"What?!"

"If you feel it's so important that Twilight learn violence then I see no better teacher, you will be entrusted to keep her safe. You're already going to be there with her, so I will leave it in your capable hooves. Or is this lesson not as necessary as you thought?" Celestia had trapped John.

John stood there under the eyes and ears of everyone, unsure how to respond. This was not what he had expected, And he was not going to babysit a child in a warzone. Yet between being called out for sticking up for Twilight, and the hopeful look she was now giving he caved.

"Fine, as long as I'm here, ill watch over her. But that ends once you found me a way home, and you better find one." Celestia nodded at Johns's decision before facing back to Twilight.

"I will respect your decision, but please reconsider, for my sake if not your own." Celestia finished her words and left.

In the silence that fell from her departure, Luna stepped up.

"Don't worry my friend, we will make sure you are prepared for anything. The ponies working here are some of the finest minds and hooves in Equestria."

Luna positioned herself to be front and centre.
"Tomorrow, The teams will be sent to deal with an incident location reported recently, you will all go with them and demonstrate your abilities and knowledge in a controlled environment. You are to assist the teams and give any advice you have on the situation. Until you are summoned tomorrow, you have the freedom to go where you wish. Talk to any of the guards if you wish to leave the castle, they will organise an escort. While you have agreed to work with us, it will take something substantial for the public to accept the situation. You are all dismissed."