//------------------------------//
// Episode 9: Two more Join the Gang 
// Story: My Little Pony: Sparkling Harmony: Future Incursion 
// by Captain_Cosmos 
//------------------------------//



Sparkler smiled as she jammed out on the KeyGuitar, the name she gave her new Guitar/Keytar Hybrid, and Spike pounded his new drum. Providing music for Lightning, Lumber, and Trail to sing and dance to. It had been a few days since they found the two futuristic instruments. And Sparkler and Spike spent a good deal of time learning how to play them. Once they were satisfied with their performance with the instruments, the performances from town to town started. Usually it would be a song every hour.

Their latest performance wrapped up and the gathered crowd applauded. The three singers took a bow and after a few seconds, the crowd dispersed. The three boys approached Sparkler and Spike. “So. How’d we do?” Lightning asked.

Spike glanced into the cardboard box they had gotten as the money collection bin. “Let’s see…a few small bags, I would say each holds around 20-30 bits…I’d say we raked in around 150 bits as a max.” He estimated.

“That’s not bad.” Lumber said. “It’s probably enough for lunch for all of us.”

“Yeah. In fact, I could go for some lunch right now.” Trail said.

Sparkler nodded and scooped up the bits. She shrunk everything and put it into Lightning’s Saddlebag. “For real, how have we not come across a store that has a Saddlebag in stock yet?” She asked idly. “Sorry we need to keep using yours Lightning.” She said.

“I’m just glad we can do shrinking spells.” Lightning responded.

“And I'm just glad you bring your camcorder around everywhere.” Trail commented. “That’s the best habit to have right now.”

“Yeah. Now let’s go get something to eat.” Lumber said.

His companions nodded and all of them went to the nearest fast food joint and grabbed something to eat.





Some time not too much later, near the Fast Food place Sparkler and her group were eating at, a pair of colts were rummaging through a trash can, searching for food. “Find anything Light Wing?” One of the colts asked.

“Nothing but rotten apples and napkins Dark Wing.” The other colt said.

“We need to find something before—“

“Hey! Cyclopses!” Said a voice that made Light Wing and Darn Wing freeze. They both turned and saw a group of foals they did not want to see.

“Leave us alone you guys!” Light Wing growled.

The group of foals just laughed. “Aww. We just want to test how well you dodge things.” The leader of the group said as they all held up familiar projectiles to Light Wing and Dark Wing.

Meanwhile, Sparkler and her group were walking the sidewalk after lunch. They passed an alleyway, which they stopped at when they heard something. “Oh come on Cyclopses, it’s not that hard to dodge.” They heard.

That got Sparkler’s attention. “What the…” She glanced at the Alleyway. “Did you guys hear that?”

“Yeah. Why does that line make me furious?” Lightning asked.

Before anypony could react, Lightning dashed into the alleyway. “Lightning, what are you doing?” Spike called out.

Lightning ignored him as he reached a corner and turned it. And what he saw made his jaw drop. A pair of colts were getting pelted with eggs! “Oh hay no!” He growled, which caused Sparkler and company to glance at each other before following Lightning.

Lightning didn’t wait as he used his wings to make a high jump over the two colts and land right in front of them. He lit his horn and blasted at all the incoming eggs. “Hey! Eggs go in your mouth. They aren’t snowballs!” He shouted at the group of assailants.

The assailants stopped what they were doing and glared at Lightning. “Where did you come from?”

“Mind your own business.”

Sparkler and Co came around the corner, and what Sparkler saw made her blood boil instantly. Two colts were covered in egg yolk, and Lightning was standing between them and a group she was certain were the assailants. “Hey! What’s going on here?!” She nearly shouted.

The assailants froze while Lightning glanced back at his mom. “Those foals were using these two colts.” He gestured at the two covered in egg yolk. “As target practice. That’s why that line we heard made me furious.” He explained.

“We weren’t doing that!” One of the foals shouted.

“We were playing catch!” Another said.

“Looks to me like you were picking on these foals. Which I’m putting an end to. Now scram before I decide to drag you back to your homes and explain to your parents what bad foals you are!” Sparkler growled.

The assailants, recognizing that the adult wasn’t kidding around, just decided to flee. Sparkler nodded.

Light Wing and Dark Wing both sat there, absolutely flabbergasted at what just happened. They both got up, walked past the green colt that jumped to their defense, and glanced around. Their bullies were nowhere in sight. “You…you actually got them to knock it off…” Light Wing said in disbelief.

“Nopony’s ever done that before.” Dark Wing said.

“We don’t take kindly to bullies.” One of the foals said.

Light Wing and Dark Wing smiled and turned to see the group that just saved them. “Thank you.” Dark Wing said.

Sparkler smiled and lit her horn. In an instant, all the egg yolk and shells were gone. “Are you guys alright—“ She stopped when she and the boys got their first good look at the colts.

They noticed that they were bat-pony colts. One had white fur, the other black for. They looked to be no older than five, but the thing that stood out the most was the fact that both colts were missing an eye and an ear. Both missing parts were from the same side. And the side of the pony the ear and eye were absent on either, were present on the other.

For a moment, there was silence. Sparkler and the boys not knowing what to say. “Uhh…” Spike spoke up. “You guys ok?” He asked. Really not knowing what else to say.

Light Wing and Dark Wing saw the shocked expressions on their faces and sighed. “Yeah. We know we’re missing some parts.” Light Wing said.

“But we’re not monsters.” Dark Wing said quickly.

That snapped Sparkler out of her shock. “What? No, no no we don’t think you’re monsters.” She said.

“Yeah.” Trail said. “We just…we’ve just never seen anypony like you before.” He said truthfully.

Light Wing and Dark Wing nodded. Relieved that they hadn’t met more bullies. Lumber Meanwhile smiled at the colts. “What are your names?” He asked.

“My name’s Light Wing.” The black furred colt said.

“And I’m Dark Wing.” Said the White furred colt added.

“Ooh. Cool names. My name is Lightning Shield.” Lightning introduced himself.

“I’m Trail Blazer.” Trail said.

“Lumber Striker.”

“Spike.”

“And this is our mom Sparkling Medley.” Lightning gestured to Sparkler.

“It’s nice to meet you two.” Sparkler said.

“Nice to meet you guys too.” Dark responded happily.

“Thanks again for what you did.” Light said. “Those foals always pick on us for our condition.”

“Well that’s not cool.” Lumber said.

“Tell us about it.” Dark said.

Sparkler nodded, before an idea came to her. “Well, if you want we can walk you guys home.” She offered.

“No.” Light said.

“No?” Spike asked.

“No, we’re not going back to that orphanage, it’s the worst there.” Dark explained.

At that, Sparkler and the boys gasp. “Orphanage?”

“You live in an orphanage?”

“We USED to.” Dark said. “From what we’re told, our parents gave us up for adoption when we were babies.”

“But we ran away from that place because after a year of nonstop egg pelting from the other orphanage kids, we couldn’t take it anymore.” Light said.

At that, Sparkler and the boys all sat there shocked. For Sparkler in particular, Dark’s and Light’s story sounded all too familiar in certain aspects. Mainly the egg pelting. It’s KiliHima Village school all over again…and I’m willing to bet it’s because of their appearance.

“Did you think about talking to whoever was in charge of the orphanage?” Lumber asked.

“We did. Nothing worked.” Dark responded.

Oh my Faust this is not happening. Sparkler couldn’t believe it. She had met a pair of colts that were going through exactly what she went through with her own bullies.

“So yeah. We’re definitely not going back there.” Light said. “Ever.”

Sparkler bit her lip. Trying to think of what to do. Normally she would know but…well she was in the future. Who knows what foal services were even available.

“Ooh! I got an idea. How about you two come with us?” Lumber asked suddenly.

Everypony’s eyes widened around him. Dark and Light smiled. “Really?” They asked.

“I mean…if you got nowhere else to go. It could work.” Lightning said.

“It could be fun!” Trail said. “Can they mom?” He asked Sparkler.

At that moment, Sparkler was hit with six pairs of puppy dog eyes from the five colts. Spike glanced at the group, before he burst out laughing. “Oh wow. Five colts doing puppy dog eyes. Every mother’s worst nightmare.” He commented.

That did it. Sparkler relented. “I guess you two can join us. At least for the moment.” She said.

“Awesome!” Dark said.

“You rock Sparkler!” Light said.

Lightning smiled and bumped hooves with the bat ponies. “How good are you at singing and dancing?” He asked.

“Why?” Dark and Light asked.

“We’re a traveling band. And we could use all the help we can get.” Spike explained.

“A band?” Dark asked.

“Cool!” Light said. “Yeah we can sing and dance.” He said.

Sparkler chuckled. “Well then. Come on.” She said.

Dark and Light both smiled. They were excited that they were in the company of ponies who didn’t think they were monsters because of their appearance.

The group, with it’s two new companions, proceeded back to their chosen performance spot, and while Lightning took the lead before, this time Trail took the lead.



Dark and Light, for their part, opted to just be dancers for this one, and to say they were good was an understatement. During the instrumental solo part of the song, they impressed everypony in the crowd with their amazing breakdancing skills. And they certainly looked like they were having fun.

At the end of the performance, the crowd cheered once again and after dispersing, Dark and Light happily approached Sparkler. “That was so much fun!” Light exclaimed.

“I’ll say. I can’t believe you two can dance like that.” Lumber said. “You blew our minds away!” He said.

“Yeah. And if your singing is even half as good. You two are a force to be reckoned with.” Spike said.

“You think so?“ Dark asked.

“Trust me. You guys have a real talent.” Sparkler said. “I should know. My Cutie Mark is in music.”

Light and Dark nodded and smiled, believing Sparkler.

At that moment, they all heard throat clearing, followed by a voice of authority. “Excuse me. Mare with the Horn and Wings. Would you mind talking to me for a moment?”

Sparkler turned and saw a beefy stallion in clear police attire looking at them. She gulped, hoping they weren’t about to get in trouble. She approached the officer with a smile. “Hello officer, is there a problem?” She asked. “Were we not supposed to perform like we did?”

“That’s not what I want to talk to you about. You’re free to perform wherever you want on public property.” The officer informed her.

“Ok good.” Sparkler said, relieved. “Then what is it?”

“Those two colts, the bat-ponies. They match the descriptions of two colts that ran away from the local orphanage. Might I ask how long you’ve had them for?” The officer asked.

Sparkler’s eyes widened. She hadn’t thought the police would be looking for them. But in hindsight, of course they were. They ran away. “Not too long officer. I found them in an alleyway being picked on by other foals about ten minutes ago I’d say..” She explained.

“Well thanks for making them easier to find. If you have no objections I’ll take them back to the orphanage.” The officer said.

“Actually, I do have one objection.” Sparkler said. “They told me that the other foals pick on them constantly and that they don’t want to go back.” She explained. “From the sound of it it’s a toxic place, since whoever runs the orphanage seems unable to stop the abuse, they asked to come with me and my kids.”

“Did they now.” The officer responded.

“Hey Sparkler?” They heard Light call out.

“What does the cop want?” Dark asked.

Sparkler bit her lip and turned back to the officer. “I don’t suppose there are any alternatives available for Dark Wing and Light Wing?” She asked.

The officer glanced at the two bat-ponies, before glancing back at Sparkler. “I think we should take a trip to the orphanage. Get to the bottom of this.” He said. “If what you say is true. We may have a child abuse problem on our hooves.”

Not too long after, Sparkler, the boys, the officer, and Dark and Light (the two most reluctant), reached the orphanage that Dark and Light ran away from. After telling Spike and the boys to wait outside, the officer led Sparkler and the colts into the orphanage, where they were greeted by a middle-aged mare who was relieved when she saw Dark and Light.

“Oh, thank the stars you two are alright.” She said. “I was afraid something might have happened to you.”

“Ma’am, Dark Wing and Light Wing, as well as Sparkling Medley here.” He gestured at Sparkler, who gave her name on the way to the place. “All say that Dark Wing and Light Wing have a problem with the other foals?” He asked.

The mare sighed. And nodded. “Yeah. The other foals put them down every day. Always pelting them with eggs. I have tried everything from locking the eggs away to hoofing out time outs for the assailants. But nothing works.” She explained. “And believe me I have been trying to get them to stop for a year to no avail.”

“Kicking them out was an option.” Dark pointed out. Sparkler nudged him to be quiet.

“That’s not an option, Dark. We can’t have foals on the streets.” The mare said.

“Well we’re not coming back.” Light said. “Sparkler agreed to take us with her so we’re sticking with her.” He said.

“Guys. I think it’s best if you go wherever the officer says you should go.” Sparkler said regretfully.

“No! We want to go with you!” Dark said. “We liked doing the show with you guys!”

The officer cleared his throat. “Ok everypony calm down!” He said sternly. “The way I see it. We have three options. Option one, Dark and Light stay here.”

“Not gonna happen.” Light said.

“Option two.” The officer continued. “Sparkler starts the adoption process.”

“Bad idea.” Sparkler said. “My significant other and I haven’t talked about adopting.” And there’s the whole time travel thing but that’s on a need to know basis…though Dark and Light are probably going to need to know soon..

Dark and Lightning bit their lips. They had been hoping that Sparkler would adopt them, but they did see her point. “Then that just leaves option three.” The officer said. “Sparkler becomes a foster parent to the colts. Allowing them to go with her but are still labeled as orphans available for adoption.” He explained.

Sparkler smiled. “I think that might be the best option.” She said. “They seem to get along well with my kids. And it would allow me and my significant other to talk about adoption.” She said.

The officer nodded. “Alright. Then it’s settled. Dark, Light, do you agree with this?” He asked.

“Yes.” Dark and Light responded.

The mare smiled and nodded. “I’ll miss having you two here. But at least you’ll be away from the toxicity of the other foals.”

“Speaking of, after we complete the transfer of custody I’d like to have a word with you. Because it sounds like there’s been child abuse going on.” The Officer sad.

Not too much later, Spike and the boys saw Sparkler, Dark, and Light exit the building. “Well?” Spike asked.

“They’re officially, legally allowed to come with us.” Sparkler announced.

“Awesome!” The colts said. All five of them.

Sparkler smiled as they headed off. I’ll have to tell them eventually, but for now, I’m just glad I can help them. So that they don’t go through what I did. She thought. She was appalled that such behavior persisted, but for Dark and Light, fate was good to them because they managed to get out of there after only one year.

“So, where are we going?” Dark asked Sparkler.

“To be honest, I don’t know. We’re following signals to somewhere unknown.” Sparkler explained.

“Ooh! An Adventure! Neato!” Light responded.

To be continued…