//------------------------------//
// 6 - Front Page Material 
// Story: Return to Equestria 
// by David Silver 
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Joypad slapped down a thick paper during breakfast. "Ya done it. Hope you're happy."

David could see without touching, but he touched anyway for a better look at that cover. There was a picture of him, crouching down a smile.

"EXOTIC CREATURE COMES IN PEACE," read the headline.

"Huh." David was soon reading the article. "It doesn't come off as a sensational thing." It was mostly a fact-filled rundown of what David had been proven to be. Where he worked, his friendly nature around ponies, and that he was not a threat to them. The important stuff. "I feel like I've been officially noted as 'not a problem.'"

Joypad reached out, forcing to the next page over with a flip. "You also caught the attention of Pegasoft."

Pegasoft? "Oh! The ones that make Evermarsh?"

"Who else?!" Joypad threw her hooves wide. "You're a walking mascot, and IP violation. Of course they were gonna take notice. Dummy." She tapped at the paper from her side. "They want you to swing by, all the way over with the pegasi!"

"That's a fair bit away." At least the movie had given that impression. "Don't suppose there's a nice smooth road to it these days?"

"As if." Joypad rolled her eyes with a grump. "And if you don't go to them, good chance they'll come for you, and probably not be happy about it. It's their game you're ripping off."

"Hey, that's not even kinda fair. I can't stop being what I am." David shrugged in defiance. "Still, don't have anything against visiting a video game company." That wasn't a thing he'd ever had the chance to do... "If I can make it to..."

"Zephyr Heights," provided Joypad, peering at him with narrowed eyes. "I bought the computers from there, remember? They love their gadgets. They love the Internet. They couldn't stop laughing at the idea of earth ponies wanting to try it."

"You proved them wrong there." The cafe was doing quite well for itself so far David could see. "So did you ever visit?"

"Eh... no? They came to me. They delivered the stuff here." She crossed her arms. "Don't get me wrong. I hear that place is something else. But I... never did."

"Come with me?" David offered a hand. "I'm a good excuse."

She swatted his hand away. "Too good of one. I have a job. What will these ponies do if I close up to go trekking across the countryside? What would Pip say if he couldn't play his games for who knows how long?"

David considered that, and the idea came quickly enough. "If you tell him you're visiting Pegasoft with me, pretty sure he'd squeal half to death in excitement and demand you come back with souvenirs."

Joypad applied a hoof across one eye. "Ugh, you're not wrong and I hate it. I thought old people didn't like traveling!"

"I'm not that old, sheesh." David shrugged lightly. "Just not young. And not so old I'm against the idea of visiting Pegasoft. But I wouldn't want to try that trip alone."

"Ah ha." Joypad pointed accusingly as she stood up. "You're inviting me to have somepony to lean against."

"Yes." There was a lack of tact of subtlety there. "Also because I know you and that sounds like a long and lonely trip otherwise. Together we can waste time pretty well on the way."

She grumbled, and the topic was dropped in favor of finishing breakfast.

During the work day, Joypad brought up the idea, as a theory, with some customers.

"What?! To Pegasoft?!" One stallion looked quite excited. "Maybe they'll put him in the next Evermarsh."

A mare clapped her hooves. "Will they include the store? That'd be so cool!"

Another pony scoffed at the idea. "This story doesn't fit the time era of the game. It'd be way out of place."

Yet a different mare was quick to jump in, "But they could use the name, and put Joypad in there. It'd be funny, seeing her dressed up all fancy and medieval." The chatter only grew louder, but excited.

Joypad pressed a button that played a loud laser noise. That silenced the room. "You realize, if we go off, this place closes until we get back."

Pony looked to pony, quiet for a moment.

"I'll help." Pip trotted up to the stand and slapped down a single lonely bit. "For your trip." It was a small thing, not worth much, but it inspired others. Though Joypad hadn't asked for it, many other bits came to join the first in a growing pile of care from the community. They were cheering and wishing Joypad a grand adventure.

Her plan to get the idea shot down had failed entirely. "You guys..." She took a slow breath. "Alright! Alright... I'll try to get everything that isn't nailed down." She pointed to a mostly bare wall. "We'll make that the Pegasoft wall with all the goodies we manage to get." The cheer was immediate and loud.

"Eesh." David was there, watching them go nuts. But then they were on him, eagerly wishing him luck and  hoping he'd get into the next Evermarsh. A few even hoped he got to meet specific in-game humans, who most likely did not exist.

Pipster was there, reared up on his hinds and performing the gesture of greetings, one hoof to his head, the other to his belly. "They will see you."

"And recognize me," laughed out David, repeating the gesture back at the colt. "Thank you, all of you. This is really something else. What a... community, that's the word for it. I'll do my best to return the favor."

Pipster fell to all four hooves with a clop against the tiles. "Just tell us what happens! We wanna hear all about it when you get back." The general crowd seemed in agreement with that idea, calling encouragements from being Pipster. "And if you  happen to get a preview of the next... I'll keep it quiet." Oh, the wink he gave.

David reached for Pipster, who didn't resist getting a little headpat. "I'll take whatever they let me have and bring it for you to see. Promise."

"Yay!" He rushed off with jubilant cries and whoops, ready to share the news with any pony willing to hear them.

So it was that Joypad flipped the sign to closed that evening and began jotting up a new sign to add to it. 'Closed on account of trip to Zephyr Heights. Wish us luck with Evermarsh.' "I cannot believe they're all for it." She turned to David with a little frown. "Did you put them up to it? There's usually at least one stand out that plays the other side."

"Don't look at me." He held up his hands. "The only one I remember the name of is Pip. Good kid. Let's get him something special."

Joypad smiled a little at that. "Yeah... So, about the trip. There isn't a nice smooth road. We're hiking, climbing, and hiking some more. You won't collapse on me, will you?"

"Humans are great at hiking," proudly declared David. "And I'm not awful at it. I hate being the one slowing things down anyway. I'll wait a week for you to give up before I say a word."

"That's a bad habit." She prodded her human guest. "If it hurts, say something. You're not a foal, or even a young adult." She pointed at herself. "So if you need a breather, just say it, alright?"

"Alright, alright." Even if he mentally filed that under 'probably not.' "We're heading out first thing tomorrow?"

"That's the plan! Since this is your idea, you get to make dinner. Only fair."

"Sure, but you start on Evermarsh. We stopped right at a good part and I can listen while I cook."

"Deal." The two retreated upstairs for food and games. A fine way to see off the city.





The next day they set out, not into the wilderness, oh no. "Are you nuts?" Joypad led the way instead to a camping store. "They gave us money, I'm using it." She marched right up to the counter. "Hey." She nodded at the stallion behind it. "Gonna need a tent big enough for us two." She waved between herself and David. "Blanket for us both, meal stuff, a few weeks of rations, a waterskin..."

The stallion laughed. "Joy, this is the real world, not a fantasy game. Really, a few weeks of rations? A waterskin?" He waved it off. "You sit down and I'll be right back." He pushed off the counter and trotted off briskly.

Joy scowled at the place he had been in. "The names change,  but a ration is a ration, no matter what time you're in."

David shrugged at that. "I don't know what the alternative name is. They were still rations sometimes where I came from."

"Right?!" Joypad looked pleased at being vindicated. "Hopefully he knows what we want."

The stallion returned with a cart rolling behind him. "One survival kit for two!" He swung around, bringing the cart closer. "One large sized tent, bedding, food, water jugs, the works!" He clapped his hooves eagerly. "And... maybe the wagon? Unless you want to carry all of this."

David reached over the stallion, easily detaching him from the wagon and giving it a pull. It rolled easily and smoothly. "This is pretty good, but the moment we hit real terrain, it's going to be useless."

Joypad nodded along with that idea. "We're going to Zephyr Heights. Got anything that can handle that?"

The stallion curled a hoof to his chin. "Huh... Well, there's this thing I got in a few weeks ago." He hurried into the back and came out with a bowl, a large bowl, about two feet in diameter, and floating off the ground. "The unicorns made it. Cheap, no, but this'll get over things." He tapped at the floating bowl, about two inches deep. "Just pile in your goodies and let it float behind you. Done deal."

"A floating disc. Cool." David nodded in approval of the item. "If we can afford that, yes."

"That is an important part." Joypad waved a hoof at the stallion. "I only have so many bits. How many will this all set me back, assuming I go with the floating thing and not the wagon?"

He spouted a number, which made Joypad blanche. "Who knew camping was so costly..."

"Too much?" David shrugged, having no frame of refence for the local currency.

"Ugh, no..." She began setting out coins on the counter. "I just thought I'd get to keep more of it before we even started. I swear, David, this better be worth it."

"No pressure." David tapped the disc twice and it began to follow him. Soon he had all the goodies transferred over to it. "We are prepared for our adventure."

"No we're not." Joypad smiled a bit goofily. "But we're doing it anyway. Come on, greymane. Let's get to Zephyr Heights before your soaps come on."

They left the camping store, heading towards the edge of town. "One, I doubt we'd get to there before any daily show came on. Two, I don't watch soaps, I write them."

"Oh right." She looked over at him as she walked along. "You did mention you write. Do you really? What do you write?"

"I just said!" He stuffed his hands in his pants pockets, the disc floating along peacefully. "I write slice of life nonsense with all sorts of trouble for my fictional characters." He frowned then. "Which I... We are going to run into trouble. There's literally no way this will be just a boring hike."

"Don't be like that." She swatted him on the back, lower spine meeting her hoof. "We're not in a story. Most likely it'll just be a few interesting views and that'll be that."

"That'd be nice." But David knew what he was. His god was not a kind one.

Something would happen.