//------------------------------// // 3 - Contact // Story: Exodus // by SuperBlank //------------------------------// Chapter 3 - Contact A cacophony filled Ezra’s ears. A harrowed wail of screeching metal and rushing whirlwinds, accompanied by a deep, ear-pounding thrum. The air around him couldn’t decide between hot or cold. One second it settled on searing hot, threatening to boil him from the inside out, and the next he was as freezing to death. Though, his understanding of each ‘second’ was tenuous; how long he felt this way, he didn’t know for sure. All he knew is that after a while, he felt as if he’d never escape this inky-black limbo he found himself in. And as soon as the thought crossed his mind— Ezra woke up. An unfamiliar birdsong echoed into Ezra’s temporary home. He took a deep breath as a brisk autumn wind crept past the tarpaulin cover of the cave mouth and underneath his thick duvet. It was a decent sized cave in the side of a sharp cliffside, and mostly featureless save for a few stalagmites and stalactites. He had kept it well lit thanks to some magical torches, and used a fairly simple ‘Stone Shape’ spell to mold torch sconces and hooks onto the cave walls. From the hooks, he hung whatever he needed to hang; wet clothes, his boots, his enchanted backpack, anything he needed to keep dry should the cave floor get flooded. With a long groan and a stretch, he sat up in his creaky camping cot and stretched. Bit by bit, he carried out his (slightly altered) morning routine. Brush teeth. Comb hair. Do some stretches. Check supplies... He gave his sizable water carrier a shake, feeling it’s lightness. He’d have to find some clean water eventually, but he was doing fine on food. His stock of beef jerky and dried fruit barely had a dent in it, though that was more because wasn’t a fan of such bland food and less because he was good at actually conserving food. He’d have to explore the area for a more attractive source of sustenance, lest he actually get used to eating the food equivalent of cardboard. “Eugh...” Ezra shuddered at the idea of such a boring habit. Other than his food supply, his toiletries were still fresh and usable and his camp equipment was mostly unscathed. All in all, he was in good shape for someone living in an entirely new world. An entirely new world... Ezra couldn’t help but grin to himself. An entirely new world! He still couldn’t believe he had made it. It was something he once dreamed about, something he had almost given up on time and time again. The fact that he actually pulled it off still hadn’t set in for him. Of course, he didn’t do it alone, and he made sure he didn’t forget that. The first chance he had, he’d commit his time to finding his friends. Without them, he wouldn’t have made it here. Wherever ‘here’ was... Ezra sighed as he pushed his worries aside. He continued his routine, setting out the clothes he’d wear for the day. Judging by the chilly air creeping into his temporary abode, he went for an outfit to protect him from the elements — cotton shirt, light flannel, cotton pants, heavy boots, and a long black peacoat. As he slipped his arms into his coat, he took a good look at his armour segments. Did he really need them? He imagined that Adrianne would probably put him on blast for getting caught in a skirmish without them. A wry smile reached Ezra’s face as he imagined her reprimanding him about it. On the other hand, Morren would’ve probably told him to leave them behind, lest he give those ponies the wrong idea. “Wait a sec...” Ezra mumbled. His train of thought screeched to a halt. Ponies? Ponies... ‘...the ponies! I forgot!’ Ezra let out a frustrated groan as he bonked himself on the head with a palm. He forgot! How could he forget talking ponies? One of them was purple, for Goddess’ sake! He definitely couldn’t show up dressed to kill with talking ponies, least of all during his first proper encounter with them. He tucked away his armour pieces into his backpack along with the rest of his pertinent exploration equipment, and tied his quarterstaff to its side. After that, he donned his arcane focus — a shard of crystal tied to a simple necklace, given to him by his late mother. Hastily, he reviewed his trusty haggard spellbook, committing to memory a group of spells he thought would be important throughout the day. Fully dressed, hair coiffed, and spells prepared, Ezra pushed aside the tarp covering the cave’s mouth and took a deep breath of fresh air. The chilly wind lightly passed him by as he took in the scenery. Tall trees weaved together a leafy canopy above him, letting the bright blue sky and vibrant sun peek through the tiny holes made by leaves and branches. Past the outcropping of the cliff and down a slope lay the underbrush, rustling and waving with the ever present breeze. The same birdsong carried through the air and led the symphony of forest sounds that reached Ezra’s ears. It was a pretty scene, all in all. Ezra rolled his shoulders and began retracing his steps to the edge of the forest. It was an unusually busy day in Canterlot. Well, not for anypony on the ground. For the ponies moving through the streets and going about their day below cloud level, their day was as regular as they come. Up above, however, Canterlot’s weather team was hard at work cleaning up an unprecedented mess of clouds. “They just — ugh! — won’t stay put!” Rain Dancer fumed. She took a moment to brush her azure mane out of the way of her eyes. Stray tufts of cloud stuck to her coat and weather team uniform like burrs from a bush. Her friend and co-worker Maverick, upbeat and boisterous as he was, couldn’t stifle a laugh at the sight of Rain Dancer covered in bits and tufts of cloud. The white wisps clung to her like wool. “Snrk — Did you get separated from your herd, lil’ lamb?” Rain Dancer didn’t find it amusing, however. She shook off the stubborn cloud bits, carefully ruffling her wings free of the semi-magical aerosol clinging to them. “Ugh, zip it, Mav. And look alive! Your herd of clouds is drifting!” Maverick’s playful smirk slid off his face as he turned around to see his clouds merging and drifting away. “How the hay do they keep doing that?!” As quick as a whip, he flew after them as a few more weather ponies glided over to give him a hoof. Slowly but surely, they were able to group the clouds up once again, though keeping them grouped would’ve been a whole new ordeal. It had all happened so quickly, and early in the morning to boot. The early risers of Canterlot had been enjoying the cool gentle breeze of autumn and appreciating Princess Celestia‘s work in raising the sun, though it didn’t take long for an unexpected cloud front to blot it out. Unchecked weather clouds weren’t uncommon in Equestria; the weather teams couldn’t always be on the ball. The sheer mass of rain clouds approaching the capital that morning, however, was definitely more than just a scheduling error or two. It took the combined effort of every weather pony in Canterlot — even some of the reserves — to break apart the incoming clouds before that gentle autumn breeze turned into a cold, boisterous rainstorm. As Rain Dancer and her crew finished up herding another group of rain clouds, she saw her supervisor, Azure Flow, approaching with a pair of Royal guards. Her crew’s work slowed to a halt as they noticed the trio approaching as well. “This can’t be good...” Rain Dancer muttered. Maverick fluttered over next to Dancer, sharing a wary glance with her before looking back to their boss. Azure Flow chose to land on a nearby cloud, the two guards landing beside her. “Attention, weather ponies!” Azure bellowed out. Her commanding voice was enough to get her workers’ attention easily. “I can’t thank you enough for responding on such short notice. Had we not had the resilience and unity of this weather team, Canterlot would have surely suffered quite a rainy day. Rest assured, and by order of Her Royal Highness Princess Celestia, you will all be well compensated for your hard work.” A good deal of whoops and cheers resonated from the groups of weather ponies listening to Azure Flow. She allowed herself to smile, her pride shining through, but only for a moment. “Now, now! Our work isn’t over yet. Since this has all happened so suddenly, we’ve been tasked with returning a cluster of clouds to the weather factory in Cloudsdale for analysis. For this, I need team leaders Rain Dancer and Maverick, front and centre!” Maverick let out a groan as he and Rain Dancer approached their supervisor. “Bluuuuugh. And here I was hoping to get the rest of the day off early.” Rain Dancer nudged his ribs with a hoof, eliciting a small grunt of annoyance. “Not so loud!” Rain Dancer hissed, “You know Flow’s got ears like a thestral. And besides, this could be fun. I’ve never been to the cloud factory before!” Maverick snickered, “Ooh yeah, it’s a real treat, alright. Once you get over the smell of ozone and sulphur.” It was Rain Dancer’s turn to groan, as she grew tired of her friend’s antics. They plopped down onto Azure Flow’s cloud, ready for their orders. “Alright, you two,” she began, “I chose you because I can trust you on this. I know you won’t let me down. Your duty is as I said. I want you to select a sample of clouds to bring back to Cloudsdale. Once the sample is delivered to the weather factory, you’ll both be free of duty for the day. Any questions?” Rain Dancer nodded and stepped forward. “Actually, yes. Was anypony able to find out where this storm came from? From what I could gather, it went completely undetected until this morning.” Maverick rolled his eyes, eager to get on with his work so he could get home. Lucky for him, Azure Flow decided to ignore his impatience. “You heard right, Dancer. The storm passed right by our weather posts at Foal Mountain. We’re currently going over the events of last night to confirm it, but we believe the storm formed between the mountains and Canterlot.” This caught Maverick’s waning attention. “Wait, but wouldn’t that mean somepony made the storm without permission?” Before Azure Flow could reply, the Royal guard to her left suddenly interrupted. “As per Her Royal Majesty’s command, we cannot confirm or deny that notion, nor divulge any further information about it.” A moment of silence passed between the five of them. Rain Dancer could’ve sworn Azure Flow looked... nervous, for a moment. “Uhh... okay? No worries,” Maverick continued, hoping to pass the awkwardness by. “Just one more question, actually. There any reason as to why the clouds were so tough to control? A bad batch, or somethin’?” Azure Flow shook her head. “That’s what we’re hoping to achieve by analyzing a sample of the clouds. Whether or not the factory had a hoof in their manufacturing isn’t entirely clear—“ The same Royal guard cleared his throat quite loudly, cutting Azure Flow’s thought short. She hastily moved on, her apprehension showing in the tightness of her jaw. “A-At any rate, you know your orders. You’ll be accompanied by Aircolt Sapphire Bolt to the factory. Now, if you’ll excuse me, I must oversee the rest of this cleanup.” With a polite nod, Azure Flow flew off to speak to the weather ponies hard at work nearby. One of the Royal guard pegasi followed her closely, while the other — Sapphire Bolt, by elimination — stayed with Maverick and Rain Dancer. Who stood in another uncomfortable silence. Sapphire Bolt simply stood by, alert and unbothered. It was Rain Dancer who broke the silence, clearing her throat and fluttering up off the cloud they stood on. “H-Heh, well, no time like the present, right? We should probably take a chunk from the messy area.” Rain Dancer pointed a hoof towards the mass of clouds being broken apart by the weather team. Sapphire Bolt nodded with a flap of his wings, and Maverick followed suit. “That would be ideal, Ms. Dancer. Please, with haste.” Maverick and Rain Dancer shared a tentative glance before setting off towards the crowd of clouds. What could all this mean, they wondered? “Sooooo...” “Still got a ways to go, Dash,” Twilight Sparkle deadpanned. It had only been ten minutes of walking in the Everfree Forest and she could tell Rainbow Dash had already run out of things to talk about. Twilight, personally, was keen on trekking through the eerie woods in as much silence as possible. Not only did she want to stay alert and undistracted so she could listen for potential danger, she also somewhat enjoyed the sounds of nature that the Everfree brought to her ears. Of course, such sounds were occasionally interjected with a far-off howl or other such worrisome noises. Noises that the other mares were keen on distracting themselves from. “I know, I know,” Dash relented, “it’s just... We have a chance to meet somepony from a different world today. Like, an actual alien! I’m excited, but I’m also kinda antsy, y’know?” Applejack snorted as she picked up her pace to match Twilight and Rainbow. “Oh, is that what’s got ya antsy, sugarcube?” Rainbow Dash snorted and flipped her hair in irritation. “I’m not scared of this dumb forest, if that’s what you’re getting at,” she replied brusquely. Applejack snickered. “I’m not! We’ve been here like, what, ten times already? Twenty? There ain’t anything in this forest we haven’t seen before.” “Pay her no mind, darling,” Rarity chimed in from behind, “She’s just trying to distract you from the fact that she’s just as on edge as all of us.” Rarity shot Applejack a smug look, which A.J returned with a roll of her eyes and a smirk. “I’m not on ed—!“ Dash started. Pinkie Pie sprung up beside her, wrapping a comforting foreleg over Dash’s withers. “Even if you are scared, you’ve got your friends right beside you, Dashie!” Pinkie Pie cheerily declared. Rainbow Dash’s jaw clenched even harder as she stewed in her irritation. Rarity and Applejack snickered away as Twilight and Fluttershy were content to listen to their best friends’ antics. Applejack gave Rainbow Dash a friendly bump and a slightly rueful smile. “Still, Ah get what’cha mean, Dash. It’s just... One thing’s still buggin’ me about that journal, though. W-Well, I mean the whole thing’s buggin’ me — those stories sounded as sad as a bad harvest — but...” The six mares reached a steep decline. Fluttershy, Rainbow, and Twilight all decided to float down and wait for their friends at the bottom as Pinkie Pie, Applejack and Rarity carefully descended the bumpy hill. “I imagine we share the same concern, darling. Before all else in that journal — oop, watch your step there —“ Rarity pointed out a stray rock sticking out of the dirt, which Applejack and Pinkie Pie carefully circumvented “— Ezra called himself a thief.” “Exactly. Ah’m sure things’re a lot different where Ezra’s from but — hup — but a thief’s a thief, right? Can we trust ‘im?” Twilight chimed in as the rest of the girls caught up and continued their walk. “I’ll admit, that part troubles me too. I think the best thing we can do is at least ask him about it.” Twilight ducked under a tree trunk that had fallen onto another massive tree, and her friends followed suit. “For all we know, ‘thief’ could mean something good where Ezra comes from.” Applejack let out a snort. “Pfft, yeah, and ‘Celestia’ could be a cuss word.” The group shared a laugh at the idea as they moved further into the forest and down the steep hill, listening to the water flow of the mountain stream alongside them. The water cascaded down in rocky steps into the densely forested valley until they flattened out into a stream in an opening. It was the first time in a while that they were able to see the shining sun above them, albeit through little holes in the Everfree’s canopy. It was then that Twilight was able to see something odd in the dirt alongside the stream Tracks. “Hold on, girls...” Twilight absentmindedly waved a hoof, and her friends complied. The irregular shape of the tracks became more apparent as she got closer to them. They were oblong, vaguely oval-ish in shape. And they were a pair, matching Spike’s description of a bipedal creature. Even weirder was the patterns in the tracks. An array of rectangular indents filled each print. Twilight surmised that these would aid with gripping the dirt with each step. Before she could get lost in thought about how a creature’s... — Paw? Hoof? Foot? Questions for later — evolved to be textured in such a way, Fluttershy grabbed her attention with a small nudge from her hoof. “Twilight, I think we found something important. It looks like some sort of flag.” Fluttershy pointed towards a break in the clearing where a tall branch stuck out of the ground. A length of white fabric was tied to the top of the makeshift pole, fluttering gently in the breeze. “Y’think Ezra left it there?” Applejack wondered aloud. Twilight nodded. Judging by the tracks leading towards the marker and the trampled underbrush of the treeline opening near it, it made sense. “The marker and tracks are leading towards the approximate area too. I may have a hunch as to how Ezra got here...” Twilight mused, “Come on girls, we’re nea—“ “Uh, girls? W-We’ve got company!” Rainbow Dash called out from behind Twilight. She spun around to see Rainbow backing away from an edge of the clearing. For a moment, the ‘company’ she spoke of eluded her, only seeing the branches of gnarled underbrush and leaves in front of Rainbow. But only for a moment. A pair of familiar glowing green eyes appeared. Then more, seemingly from nowhere, flickered into view as they broke from the treeline and paced towards the Elements of Harmony. Timberwolves. And a lot of them too. Ten, to be exact. Though something was... off, about them. Parts of their wooded bodies were a sickly pale beige, as if the deep brown bark of their branches were sapped of their colour. Their once-verdant leaves were grey and speckled with splotches of their original shade of green. They twitched and snarled as they approached the six ponies, their green eyes flickering like candles in the breeze, fixated on their prey. But just as the biggest timberwolf of the pack began its signature howl — no doubt to call more of its pack to the clearing — an unfamiliar sound emanated from its ligneous throat. It was as if the alpha had used its very own ‘Royal Canterlot Voice’, its stormy and atonal call shaking the Elements of Harmony to their cores. The creaking and crackling of shifting tree bark filled their ears as they noticed the plant life around them becoming gnarled and overgrown, and what little sunlight they had in the opening was blotted out by the newly formed tree branches above them. Vines and branches bursted out of the sides of the trees around then, weaving together to form a thorny wall around them. “We’re surrounded! T-The trees — !“ Rarity yelped as a timberwolf snapped its teeth at her. “We’re trapped!” “Get ready, girls! We have to defend ourselves!” Twilight Sparkle exclaimed. Her horn glowed with an intense magenta light, brow furrowed as she focused her energy, ready to let loose whatever spells she needed to defend her friends. Rarity, with a shaky resolve, opted to levitate stones out from the nearby stream, taking aim at the altered timberwolves before her. Both Applejack and Rainbow Dash pawed at the dirt, ready to charge, buck, or tackle their assailants at the drop of a hat. Pinkie Pie stayed beside a trembling Fluttershy, her signature smile barely moving an inch as she created her own plan to attack. For a moment, the six mares and the ten timberwolves stared at each other in a tense silence, daring each other to make the first move. Until one of the wooded canines let out a sickening snarl and rushed forward. “Here they come!” The harrowing howl of... something reached Ezra’s ears as he descended a steep hill, using a fallen tree as leverage. For a moment, he looked around to discern which direction it came from, kissing his teeth in mild concern as he determined it was dead ahead of him. “Of course, something’s gotta go wrong,” Ezra groaned to himself. He continued on, reaching the bottom of the hill and following a familiar stream when he noticed something else that seemed off. The forest was darker than it should’ve been. The air seemed colder, tingly even, and... that tree wasn’t that big before, was it? “Something’s not right...” As if on queue, Ezra heard yelling ahead of him. “...et ready girls! We have to defend ourselves!” ‘That voice!’ Ezra recognized it right away. ‘That pegasus unicorn thing that read my journal... is she in trouble?’ Ezra didn’t like thinking about the answer. He broke out into a sprint towards the commotion in the forest, vaulting over fallen trees and through the thick underbrush. As he approached, he could hear even more voices, calling out to their friends with warnings and grunting in exertion as they fought off their assailants. Finally made it to his marker, although he could barely see it in all the tangled vines and thorns that buried it. The clearing seemed to have been blocked off by this newly formed flora, trapping the alicorn and her friends inside. “Alright, time to play hero...” Ezra muttered. He reached a hand back as the crystal tied to his necklace glowed intensely, and his brow furrowed in concentration. His arcane energy coalesced into a deep red orb in his palm, from which cinders fell and singed the underbrush at his feet. He hurled this chromatic orb at the wall of thorns in front of him, setting it aflame and blasting a sizable hole in it. With a roll of his shoulders and a deep breath, Ezra ran through the opening and into the clearing. The smoke of the fire clung to him as he nearly slid to a halt before the scene. The first thing he noticed were the ponies, two of which he recognized from the day before. The whole group stared at Ezra with bewildered awe. The second thing he noticed was the sheer amount of monsters around them. He had never seen anything like a timberwolf before, and it showed on his confused visage. Whereas the ponies gawked with bemusement, the timberwolves leered with pure hostility, evident by their bared fangs and sinister snarls. Without hesitation, Ezra pulled his quarterstaff from his pack, pointing its steel ferrule towards the timberwolf closest to him. And the pack of wolves took exception to that. A timberwolf lurched forward and bounded towards Ezra, focused directly on his neck. It only managed to chomp down onto Ezra’s quarterstaff, which he swung to his left. The timberwolf lost its grip and crashed into the ground, leaving splinters in the dirt as it tumbled away. The second timberwolf to attack him didn’t fare much better; its face caught the hard heel of Ezra’s boot before it could get any closer to him. The force of his kick was enough to defeat the timberwolf, its fiery green eyes dissipating into little wisps as its wooden body scattered into pieces across the darkened clearing. Ezra’s luck would run out, however. A third timberwolf caught him from behind and latched onto his thigh with a gnarly bite. With a yell of pain and exertion, he managed to fling the wooden wolf aside before another could gang up on him. Before he could wonder why he was fighting alone, the timberwolf burst apart after being struck centre-mass by a bolt of magic. Ezra turned to see the horn of the purple alicorn aglow with a burning pink glow, her expression one of determination. “Come on, girls — We have to help!” The scene burst into action as the six mares and one human flipped the offensive on the pack of timberwolves. One by one, they were able to pick off their wooden assailants. Whereas the magic users flung bolts of magic and rocks to keep the timberwolves at bay, the other ponies used their sheer strength and speed to kick them into pieces or run them in circles. The only pony not fighting was the yellow pegasus Ezra had seen the day prior, who opted to hide behind her friends’ bravery. That is, until a timberwolf found its way past Ezra’s defences and towards her. “FLUTTERSHY, LOOK OUT!” the purple one cried. The urgency and absolute fear in her voice… it shook Ezra into action. Nobody — or no pony — was getting hurt on his watch. Just as the timberwolf lunged past Ezra, he spun around and dived towards it, effectively tackling it to the ground before it could bite down on Fluttershy’s neck. Instead, its fangs found purchase around Ezra’s forearm. The force of the bite was just enough to get through the sleeve of his peacoat and break skin, and it took all of his might to pry its jaws off of his arm. The rush of adrenaline from the pain was enough for him to essentially yank the timberwolf’s head off. Long vines trailed from the timberwolf’s head like the cord of a spine. In a fit of rage, he hopped back onto his feet and hurled the head towards the remaining timberwolves, who all looked on in horror as their packmate’s lifeless head rolled towards them. The timberwolves then decided they had enough. With a more resigned howl, the alpha signalled their retreat back into the woods. Slowly, the gnarled wood and thorny vines regressed back into their original forms, unblocking the clearing and allowing the sun to once again shine down on them. One by one, they scampered away. “Yeah! You better run, you... uh — weird leaf dog things!” Ezra shouted out to the timberwolves. He let his quarterstaff stand and rest on his shoulder as he took a moment to catch his breath. The forest was filled with the yowls and whines of the Everfree’s wooden wolves as they retreated into the thick of the forest. After their very brief moment of respite, Ezra turned towards the ponies he had fought for. ‘Fluttershy’ slowly rose out of her jittery prone position, her hooves still shaking from the adrenaline of the encounter. Her friends ran over after collecting themselves to check on her. With a sigh of relief, he stepped forward. “Well then! That was horrifying!” Ezra joked, hoping to relieve the tension. He knelt down to tie his quarterstaff to his haversack before offering a hand to the yellow pegasus. “Are you alright? You’re not hurt, are you?” “N-No, I-I think I’m alright,” she stammered. She used his hand as leverage with a foreleg as she shakily stood back up. It was then that she noticed Ezra’s injuries. “Y-You’re bleeding!” “Huh?” Ezra looked down to where she pointed her hoof; his right thigh had a sizeable bite mark where one of the timberwolves latched onto, his pant leg darkened by the blood leaking from the bite wound. He reached down to feel if he had lost sensation when he noticed another similar bite on his right forearm that had gotten through his peacoat. “Shit, you’re right. I barely even feel—“ It was then that Ezra’s adrenaline from the fight began to wear off, and was made very apparent by the pain he felt. “Oww ow ow. Yeah, I feel it now.” “We need to get you to a doctor,” the lavender alicorn urged, “if those wounds get any worse you could develop an infection!” Through gritted teeth, Ezra waved dismissively and knelt down to rummage through his pack. He quickly produced a plain wooden box which he opened to reveal a variety of first aid supplies. “Nah nah, i-it’s not that bad, I can take care of it.” Ezra took a few deep breaths before pouring a flask of clear liquid over the wound on his thigh. Almost immediately, it began to fizzle over the holes in his leg and he barely held back a yelp of pain, opting to bite down on a knuckle instead. After a few moments, he pulled out some gauze from the box and began wrapping his leg. After a few more moments, Ezra realized he was being stared at by six technicolor ponies. He scrambled for something to say. “For the record — Ow! Ugh-“ — Ezra pulled the gauze tightly, grunting in pain — “I was worried I might have spooked your lil’ dragon friend yesterday, so I took off. Sorry ‘bout that, by the way.” After tying off the bandaging, he began carefully removing his coat. As soon as he winced from the fabric jostling against his bitten forearm, Fluttershy offered a hand — or rather, a hoof. “L-Let me help,” she said with determination. She slowly pulled his sleeve with her teeth to help him remove his injured arm. “Thanks for the help, miss...?” “Oh, my name is Fluttershy.” She smiled at Ezra before hiding a little behind her wavy pink mane. “Just Fluttershy is fine, though.” Ezra returned her warm, friendly smile with one of his own. “Huh,” Ezra smirked with small amusement. “Fitting.” Reaching for the same flask of clear fluid, he was surprised to see Fluttershy already handling the flask to help dress his wound, with one of her hooves no less. Rather than pour it onto his arm, she helped herself to a clean rag from Ezra’s first aid box and doused it with the fluid. In a practiced manner, she wiped away the small bits of detritus from the wound before cleaning it. Nonplussed, Ezra could only watch, and wonder how she could handle everything so dexterously without any hands. “Uh, wow, thanks.” As Fluttershy continued dressing Ezra’s injured forearm, the lavender alicorn took a few steps closer. “While I wish it were under better circumstances, it’s nice to finally meet you, Ezra Stoutbrook. My name is Twilight Sparkle, and I believe” - She levitated Ezra’s journal out of her saddlebags and over to Ezra, who accepted it with a dumbfounded expression - “this belongs to you.” “How’d you just... never mind. Thanks for giving it back.” Ezra winced a little as Fluttershy deftly tied the bandaging. He offered his thanks to her before turning back towards Twilight. “I guess you, uh, took a look at the journal, then?” Twilight hesitated for a moment, and Ezra couldn’t help but notice the quick and sharp glance she got from her behatted orange friend. “We... did, yes. I’m sorry, Ezra, we just needed more information before we could deem you as approachable.” Ezra had almost let his disdain known before he thought about the whole situation. He bit his lip slightly and fell into his thoughts before deciding on what to say. On one hand, not only was it a big breach of his privacy, it was also only one side of his story. Well, granted, it was still his side, but... ‘Well... but, nothing. Can’t really put my journal in any other context,’ Ezra thought to himself. He couldn’t lie and say he regretted anything he wrote about. He did what he had to do to get by in Astra, all the way down to leaving it. He stood up from his knees, still organizing his thoughts. On the other hand, it was his own fault for losing his journal — if he didn’t want people (or ponies) snooping through his business, he should’ve kept it his business. He’d even admit that, were it him in Twilight’s shoes — ‘Horseshoes? Snrk - that’s rich,’ Ezra thought — he would’ve snooped through the journal too. “Well... I can’t say I’m not upset about it, but... I understand. I just wish I could have introduced myself properly, y’know?” Ezra laughed sheepishly, “You all already know so much about me.” “Ooh ooh! I know!” The vibrant pink pony left of Twilight hopped forward, startling Ezra a little with her massive eager smile. “Why don’t we just start over?” “Uh... start over?” Ezra repeated. “What do you mean, Pinkie?” Twilight asked, with an eyebrow raised. “I mean, just—“ Pinkie pretended to pull something out of her forehead with her hooves, then suddenly flung them apart with a mock explosion sound “—y’know? Forget about Ezzy Wezzy’s journal and just start over! It’s only fair, right? That way he can introduce himself, and not have the Ghost of Ezra Past speak for him!” Ezra hesitated to speak for a moment. He would gladly take the chance to start over and get on the good side of the locals, but would they really give him that chance? “Well, I’m not opposed to the idea,” Twilight Sparkle began, “but... I would like to know more about what you’ve written about, Ezra. I-If you’re comfortable sharing, that is.” An incredulous look reached Ezra’s face. “Wait, seriously? Those are your terms?” Twilight looked confused for a moment before breathing out a disappointed sigh. “I-I understand, Ezra. Again, we’re sorry for going through —“ Ezra panicked, hurriedly waving his hands to stop Twilight’s train of thought. “No no, that’s not what I meant! It’s just” — Ezra scratched the back of his head - a nervous habit — “I guess I’m not used to people giving me a chance when they learn about my, uh, deeds. If those are your terms, I gladly accept.” “Oh, thank Celestia! For a moment, I thought we messed things up,” Twilight said, her stature visibly relaxing. “If the plan is to start over, then... how about this.” Twilight Sparkle stepped towards Ezra and held a hoof to her chest, her head held high in confidence. “My name is Twilight Sparkle, a princess of this land of Equestria. I look forward to learning more about you and your history, Ezra.” Ezra tensed up, but only for a moment. ‘Wait, she’s royalty? This place has horses as royalty?!’ “Ooh, ooh, me next!” Pinkie hopped in place, getting Ezra’s attention. “My name’s Pinkie Pie! I like baking, parties, balloons, and making friends! You wanna be my friend?” Pinkie Pie gave Ezra a wide smile, which he couldn’t help but chuckle at. She was just so friendly! “Heh, sure, I’ll be your friend, Pinkie Pie.” “Yay! Then I like you too!” The behatted orange pony stepped forward next with a tip of her Stetson hat. “The name’s Applejack, and I live down at Sweet Apple Acres. Ah won’t lie to ya, Ezra, you had me a little wary with that journal of yer’s.” Her accent was completely unfamiliar to Ezra, which took him a little more attention to understand. “C’mon, A.J!” Pinkie whined, bumping Applejack on the shoulder. “We’re starting over, remember?” “Ah know, Ah know,” Applejack conceded, “With you helping us with them timberwolves and savin’ Fluttershy ‘n all, Ah can see Ah was gettin’ ahead of m’self. It’s nice to meet’cha, Ezra.” Applejack held out a hoof, which Ezra shook with a firm grip. For a split second, he could’ve sworn he felt a grip on his hand too. “Nice to meet you too, Applejack.” Ezra could see the apprehension in her eyes, but he ignored it. He was a thief, after all; if he didn’t want people to be nervous around him, he chose the wrong profession. “Quite the heroic act, by the by,” the white unicorn added. Her intonation reminded Ezra of the few Astran nobles he had the misfortune of meeting, though he tried his best not to let his irritation for it show. “I’m sure I speak for all of us when I say we are deeply grateful for your help. My name is Rarity, seamstress and owner of Ponyville’s Carousel Boutique.” She also held out a hoof, which Ezra shook with a lighter grip. “Charmed, I’m sure,” Ezra replied with practiced measure. Rarity giggled. “Such manners! Oh, we’ll get along just swell, dear. I’ll have to insist you drop by the boutique later on. I’d love to hear more about your home’s fashion!” “Just don’t let her pull you into the back room,” the cyan pegasus said, smirking, “or she’ll have you posing for new clothes for hours.” Rarity let out an exasperated huff, which earned a snort of laughter from the pegasus. “Name’s Rainbow Dash. I gotta say, you’ve got some pretty cool moves beating up those timberwolves like that. You gotta show me more sometime!” Ezra blushed a little as he shook his head. “It was just some basic stuff. My friend Adrianne knows way more about fighting than I do.” A twang of worry hit his heart. It only occurred to him then that he still didn’t know where his friends ended up. He let it pass the best he could. ‘We’ll cross that bridge when we get to it.’ The last pony to (re)introduce herself was Fluttershy, who meekly smiled at Ezra. “A-And, well, it’s already been said, but my name’s Fluttershy. I help look after the wildlife around Ponyville. I’d love to hear about your home too, Ezra. I-If you’d like to share, that is.” “For sure, Fluttershy. And thanks again for helping me with this bite.” Ezra took a deep breath and slid his hands into his coat pockets. How would he introduce himself? Everyone around him seemed so pleasant and honest, and he felt so... coarse and checkered, in comparison. “Uh, heh, I guess that just leaves me, huh?” With six sets of eager, friendly eyes on him, Ezra made his choice. “My name is Ezra Stoutbrook. I’m a really long way from Astra, I’m quite happy to be that way, and I’m just looking for someplace I can call home. Thank you, all of you, for giving me a chance here.” Ezra held his hand to his chest and bowed, a sign of gratitude from his home world. “I won’t let my past define me, I promise.” With a smile, Twilight approached Ezra and gave him a hug. He was caught by surprise, but only for a moment, before he returned her hug. After a few moments, she dropped back down onto her front hooves. “Welcome to Equestria, Ezra Stoutbrook,” Twilight said warmly. “Heh, thanks,” Ezra blushed. “Well then! Now that we’ve found you,” Twilight continued on, “maybe you could help us? There was a storm over this forest not too long ago, and we’ve been tasked with investigating the effects it had locally. Have you seen any… strange things in the forest as of late?” Ezra nodded as he readjusted and tested his full weight on his injured leg. Walkable, but still miserable. “Erm, other than that old abandoned castle I arrived in—“ “Wait, you arrived in the Castle of the Two Sisters?” Twilight interrupted. “Uh, sure? If that’s what that castle is called, then yeah. Something about that area felt off though. Kinda like… like staticky, or something like that. I got out of there pretty quick.” Ezra watched as the six ponies exchanged some mixed glances — some of curiosity, some of worry. “I can show you the way, if you’d like? I just gotta make a stop at my camp first.” Twilight Sparkle nodded with determination. “Lead the way, Ezra. And quickly, please.” With a turn of his heels, Ezra moved past the marker he left in the clearing and towards his camp. As they trekked over fallen logs and through the underbrush, he couldn’t help but wonder what he had got himself into.