//------------------------------// // Generational Differences Part 1: Species // Story: Generational Talk Show // by qiley //------------------------------// The rising of the sun signified the start of another day. Beams of lights shone over all of Equestria, waking up the early birds. The residents of Twilight's castle were a part of these early birds. The castle was already bustling with the six ponies. An early start means more time to talk! “So how’d you all sleep?” Twilight sat down at the table, smiling.  “Like a log,” Hitch said while stretching. Pouring himself a cup of coffee, he also took a seat at the table. “Logs can sleep?” An already seated Izzy asked, tilting her head. “No Izzy, it’s just an expression,” Sunny explained upon entering the room. “Morning Sunny,” Hitch greeted with a smile. “Morning Hitch,” she smiled back at Hitch, “morning everyone.” “Flirting so early in the morning?” Pipp teased, a mischievous grin on her face.  “It sure looks like it,” Zipp added fuel to the fire. “Not this again guys…” Sunny sighed, slumping down in her chair. Hitch, on the other hand, sat there in silence.  “Sorry but you guys make it so easy” Pipp giggled. The rest of them nodded in agreement. “Spike’s cooking breakfast right now,” Twilight announced, “so just sit tight for a bit.” “Who’s Spike?” Hitch raised an eyebrow. “That’s right, you haven’t met him yet. He’s my assistant,” The alicorn answered.  “What’s he like?” Izzy asked. “Well he’s like my cute little brother, that’s for sure. Don’t tell him I said that though, he’ll probably get mad,” Twilight grinned. “He’s also very dependable, also being there when we need him most.” “Sounds like a great pony,” Hitch nodded. “Spike is great,” Twilight giggled a bit, “though can be quite the handful at times. Also, he’s not a pony, he’s a-” “DRAGON!!!” Hitch screamed.  “Exactly! He is a dragon Hitch,” Twilight tilted her head.  “How did you know?”  “That’s Spike?” Zipp asked, pointing at the dragon who was bringing in breakfast. “The one and only!” Spike grinned as he waddled over to the table. “Here you all go, pancakes! Made by yours truly.” He finished with a little bow. “Ooo a dragon! I’ve never seen one before,” Izzy said as she walked up, examining him. “They’re a lot smaller than I thought they’d be.”  “They’re usually a lot bigger than Spike here but that’s because he’s young. Dragons come in all kinds of shapes and sizes,” Twilight explained. “I’ll be a full-grown dragon soon enough,” Spike grumbled as he took a seat next to Twilight. “But you’ll always be my baby,” Twilight cooed, rubbing her cheek against his.  “Jeez, stop that! Not in front of everyone,” Spike tried pushing her away, a tint of red on his cheeks. Twilight finally let up with a smile. “Sorry but you know it’s true.” “Let’s just eat already,” Spike said as he cut into his pancakes.  “He’s so cute,” Izzy chirped with a mouthful of pancakes. “And a great cook!” Pipp added. The rest of the ponies hummed in agreement. Spike groaned, but he didn’t mind it at all. It was good having company. “Yup! Spike usually does all the cooking,” Twilight smiled sheepishly, “I’m not the best at it.” “Oh you should see the kitchen after she’s done! It’s hilarious,” Spike chuckled, still chowing down on pancakes. Twilight slapped his arm, a blush appearing on her face.  “A-Anyways… Are you excited to talk again today? We still have so much to learn,” Twilight changed the subject. “I can’t wait,” Izzy sang. The other ponies agreed, continuing on with their breakfast. The sun was fully risen, shining down on Ponyville. Inside of the residence princess’s castle were eleven ponies, all sitting around a table. “Hey y’all, sleep well?” Applejack greeted, getting comfortable in her chair.  “Yup! The beds were nice and soft,” Izzy answered. Agreements from the other ponies came out as well. “So what are we talking about today?” Pinkie asked, bouncing up and down in her chair.  “Today we will be talking about,” Twilight pulled out a board, “differences in our Equestrias!” “Sounds interesting,” Zipp commented, looking at the venn diagram. “Our discussion yesterday got me thinking,” Twilight started, writing down some things on the board. “Why are our Equestrians so different? What could have happened to cause a huge divide between the tribes? Also what technological advances and changes had to be made due to magic being gone? And-” “We get it Twilight, we get it,” Rainbow interrupted, stopping her before she took up the whole day.  “Heh… just got a little into it, sorry,” Twilight apologized, a slight blush on her face.  “It’s alright sugarcube,” Applejack chuckled, “you’re just being you.”  “Hey what’s that supposed to mean?” Twilight got defensive. “Applejack just means you often go on tangents, darling,” Rarity said, wearing a polite smile.  “You know it’s trueeeee~” Pinkie said in a singsong voice.  “I guess it is,” Twilight sighed, “Anyways, let's start I guess,” Twilight looked over at the New Generation, “do any of you have any questions about our Equestria first?”  “Pick me! Me! Me!” Izzy raised her hoof high up. “Yes Izzy?” Twilight smiled. “Are there any other non-pony species besides dragons?” Izzy stroked her chin. “'I've heard stories of other creatures besides ponies in Equestria, but I was told they’re just foals tales.” “Good question!” Twilight clapped her hooves together. “To answer, there are all kinds of other species in Equestria. '' Teleporting in another board and uncapping a marker. “Let’s start out with something closer to ponies,” she started writing a name on the board, “zebras and donkeys!” “I’ve heard of zebras before,” Sunny said, “they’re like us ponies except they’re white with black stripes. They have cutie marks just like us though!” “Exactly Sunny,” Twilight started drawing a picture of a zebra, “Zebras come from a distant land and speak in rhymes. They look very similar to us ponies, minus the coloring.” On the board was a very simple picture of a zebra. “Why do they speak in rhymes?” Pipp asked. “We don’t really know why,” Twilight shrugged. “I’ll have to ask Zecora next time I see her.”  “So donkeys? What are they like?” Sunny asked.  “Well, they’re both very similar to us besides their long ears, color, and legs. They also don’t have cutie marks, but besides that they’re basically like us ponies!” Twilight said, drawing a picture of a donkey. “They look kind of… bland?” Pipp commented. “Mhm…” Izzy nodded her head. “Are there any other pony-like species?” Zipp questioned. “Indeed there are! There are sea ponies, hippogriffs, and kirins.” Twilight started erasing the marker. “Sea ponies and hippogriffs are very closely related. Sea ponies are, as their name suggests, ponies that live in the sea. They have features similar to us ponies but the main difference is their fish-like tails and fins.” Drawing the sea ponies, she continued. “Hippogriffs, on the other hand, live on land and have heads, claws, and wings like eagles, but hind legs that are similar to ours.”  “How are those two closely related if one lives on land and one lives in the ocean?” Hitch titled his head. “Well, the sea ponies were once hippogriffs!” Twilight said, shocking the New Generation. “How is that even possible?” Zipp gave a skeptical look. “Well, they have an artifact that can do so. The hippogriffs hid in the ocean because of the Storm King. Upon his defeat, some decided to live on land and some decided to stay under water.” Twilight explained.  “The Storm King huh? That brings back memories,” Rainbow reminisced, shooting a look at Twilight “Okay I get it,” Twilight sighed, “I didn’t make the best choice back then. But that’s in the past, right?” Twilight smiled at her friends. “Yup! Water under the bridge,” Pinkie patted Twilight’s back. The other Elements nodded in agreement.  “Wait, who's the Storm King? And what happened?” Sunny, alongside the others, had a long look of confusion on their faces.  “That’s a story for another time,” Twilight and the Elements laughed. “Okay,” Sunny nodded, “What about the kirin? What are they like?” “The kirin are very similar to ponies as well. They have a body like a pony, but have bushier manes around their whole head, curved horns, and cloven hooves,” Twilight explained. “They’re known for their kindness and truth-speaking. I heard from Fluttershy and Applejack that once they lose their temper, they turn into beasts of flame and anger.”  “So don’t piss one off is what I’m hearing?” Hitch grinned, causing some giggles. “Mhm,” Twilight nodded. Clapping her hooves again, Twilight erased the board fully. “Well, that's it for pony-like species! Let's move onto some other ones.” “Ooo I can’t wait,” Pinkie sat up in her chair.  “Pinkie, you’ve already met all of them before,” Rainbow shook her head. “Oh yeah...” Pinkie started stroking her chin, “I have, haven’t I.” “Ooookay…” Twilight said, raising her eyebrow at the pink mare, “anyways, there are all kinds of different species that aren’t pony-like. You have changelings, breezies, griffons, buffalos, yaks, and dragons!” One of those caught Hitch’s attention. “Changelings? What are those?”  “Changelings were a once hostile species who fed off love,” Twilight started drawing their original forms. Their spikey and hole riddled appearance confused the New Generation.  “They look kinda evil,” Izzy tilted her head. “They were at first. They even tried to ruin my brother’s wedding and take over Equestria!” Twilight huffed, crossing her arms. “So they are evil?” Izzy’s eyes widened. “Well, not anymore.” Twilight snapped back into it. “They were under the rule of Queen Chrysalis, who led them to raid Equestria and try to rob it of love. We defeated her before she could though.”  “So what happened to them afterwards?” Zipp asked. “Our friends Starlight and Thorax showed them they didn’t need to take love forcefully, but rather share it with one another,” Fluttershy smiled. “Now they’re peaceful and look much more approachable!” Twilight drew the post-metamorphosis changelings on the board as well. “They’re much more fabulous that way,” Pipp commented. “So they were once evil but then you guys reformed them?” Sunny summarized. “Pretty much,” Pinkie nodded, “except it wasn’t really used, it was more of Starlight and Thorax!” The other Elements nodded and hummed, agreeing with her.  Twilight went on and explained the rest of the species. The New Generation were interested primarily in griffins and dragons. There were all kinds of tales about those two species, but never actually met one. Hearing how they were all on friendly terms surprised them. “So you’re telling me you guys not only spread friendship to ponies, but to every species as well?” Sunny’s eyes were wide. “That’s amazing!” “I’m guessing you guys haven’t encountered any one of them before?” Twilight asked, her eyebrow cocked, causing them to shake their heads.  “They seem to have just disappeared, like a lot of the places on the map you showed us yesterday,” Zipp recalled. “I’ve only heard tales of a few of them. There are books written but a lot of ponies don’t really believe they really existed,” Sunny said, a hint of sadness lingering in her voice. “Well you’ll just have to make them believe,” Rainbow smirked. “And I’m sure you will,” Twilight added, smiling at them. “There will be lots of hardships in your journey. There may be times you want to give up, but believe in your friends. They’ll always be there for you.” Walking over to Sunny, she placed a hoof on Sunny’s shoulder. “Reunite all of Equestria for us okay?” Twilight looked at the five. “We believe in all of you. We know you can do it.” The Elements nodded, encouraging smiles on all their faces. The New Generation looked at each other, nodding, silently promising to bring Equestria back to its former glory. Even if they reunited the tribes, there was still a lot of work to be done. A look of determination burned in their eyes. They want their Equestria to be like this one: united. “How about we eat before continuing?” Twilight suggested after glancing at the clock. It was already noon, and all they discussed was species! The other ponies nodded, deciding to take a break before continuing.