//------------------------------// // Chapter 8 // Story: To Walk The Sky and Catch The Moon // by Celestial king turles //------------------------------// Chapter 8 Princess Celestia, Alicorn Princess of the Sun, The Eternal Mare, Royal Sovereign of Canterlot, Ruler Most High of Equestria, Overmare of the West, and so many other titles that she honestly couldn’t be bothered to try and remember them all, was sitting behind her ancient desk with a long scroll suspended in her magic. Her private solar was well lit, with many open windows and curtains letting bright sunlight and the sweet pre-summer breeze drift through the room; which eased the spirits of both of the solar’s current occupants. Across from Celestia was her nephew, with a blond mane and a white coat similar to his aunt’s. On his horn was a thick cocoon of bandages which he had to wear for three days straight if he wanted to go back to work, and even then the Doctor was reluctant to allow him. It was frustrating because the dubious amount of reports that kept flooding in added to the discomfort.  “Blueblood?” Celestia called out. The stallion didn’t look up. “Perhaps we should take a break.” She heard him sigh with reluctance, and he looked up to meet her eyes. “You know we can’t stop, considering the number of reports we are currently getting still and not to mention the other reports from the other kingdoms.” He let out a sigh and rested his forehead on his hooves. “Please tell me you were able to figure out the conundrum, it’s been three days.” She replied instantly, shaking her head. “It is still something that even I am trying to figure out.” “Have you considered that maybe it was probably caused by…” he paused for a moment. “Well, you know.” Celestia didn’t reply, only staring through one of the windows where the sunlight streamed in. “No, it wasn’t her. What I felt was something very powerful, and I know because I felt them fight her.” That statement made Blueblood raise his brow at her. “‘Them’? Do you mean there’s more than one? I was under the impression there was only one!” “I felt at least one,” she corrected. “Alright, so where do you think it is then? And how can we not assume it’s not a threat?” “That’s the issue — we can’t.” She tiredly rubbed at her horn with a hoof. “I only had a brief glimpse of it, and that was when I was raising the sun the morning after… after… just what are the citizens calling it again?”  “The ‘Thunderclap.’ Originally, it was just called the ‘Blast Wave’, but the new name quickly spread.” Blueblood rolled his eyes at something Celestia was certain he considered patently ridiculous.  “For practically everypony who did not immediately collapse foaming at the mouth, that was what they best compared it to — a thunderclap that was not only heard but felt both inside and out.”  Blueblood shuddered a bit, raising a hoof halfway to his bandaged horn before thinking better of it and putting the hoof back down with a wince. “I wouldn’t know about that; I was a bit busier with the fact that my horn seemed intent on melting its way through my skull at the time. Doctor Sawbones wouldn’t let me go until he was satisfied with the amount of burn ointment he put on it.” He gave Celestia a scandalized look. “Why do you even keep him around, auntie? With the way that he talks to everypony, you especially —” "And that's exactly why I have him," Celestia interrupted with a smile, turning to look her nephew in the eye. "I wouldn't get much help from a doctor who was too afraid of me to do his job and tell what I should or shouldn't do to stay healthy and stop problems in the future." Blueblood didn't answer but shook his head in exasperation. Celestia continued to smile; her nephew always had trouble understanding the necessity of having ponies around who specifically wouldn't impulsively kiss the ground any royal stepped on. It would only be a matter of time before he finally learned. “Getting back to our original subject,” Celestia continued, “I can't say for certain what exactly the being I glimpsed was, but I do believe it isn't an intentional threat. However,” she raised a hoof to cut off Blueblood's protest, “that's not the same as being certain. We need proof — answers — and our 'guest' is our best lead at the moment.” She rubbed her chin with a hoof, thinking. “What's the status of the Royal Guard?” Blueblood consulted a roll of parchment in front of him. “This morning, we are up to seventy percent of our usual strength. Some of the guards — mostly of the ritual division — are still unconscious, but stable. The rest in general have all but fully recovered. Do you have something in mind?” Celestia thought about the situation for a moment. She wasn't too worried about Canterlot's recovery; as bad as the Thunderclap was, it was clear that it could have been far worse. Not only that, but she wasn't one to sell her little ponies short. The denizens of Equestria were far more hardy and robust than they were given credit for, even from themselves. No, the problem was her.  It was clear to Celestia that something had happened near the moon, and it involved not only their new 'guests' but the moon's sole prisoner. The seal had been strained almost to the breaking point by the sheer scale of the conflict she had sensed.  Not only that but the fact that there was one creature — perhaps even two — besides herself that could potentially match her in a contest of wills… The implications were both exciting and worrying.  She decided at that moment. "I need you to pass a set of orders to Captain Shining Armor. Tell him to send a small detachment of ponies southwest, to the town of Ponyville. Send two, perhaps three; we don't need to send a full army. Whether or not we meet our new guest there, the meteor crashed in the vicinity of the Everfree Forest, so that's the best place to start. Should they find someone who shouldn't be there, they are to bring them back here to Canterlot for questioning if possible. They are not to attack," she continued, looking seriously at Blueblood, "not unless they find them hostile. If possible, negotiate and persuade them to come peacefully." "Do you think that the intruder will listen?" Blueblood looked dubious. "We have to at least try," Celestia reasoned. "I feel that whatever their reasons are for coming here, the outsiders aren't hostile to us. The best way to avoid even more damage is to reason and negotiate. Stress that fact, Blueblood. We are not attacking anyone; we're looking for answers, nothing more." She locked eyes with her nephew, and they held that gaze for almost a minute. Eventually, Blueblood huffed and swung his mane around dramatically. “Curses! There went my plans for the afternoon,” he moaned sarcastically, bringing a smile to Celestia’s face despite the overall serious mood moments prior. He bowed elegantly. “If you say so, your highness. I wouldn’t want to cause any…incidents that could hamper your position in any way.” He smiled at her and winked. She couldn't help but laugh at that point. “Alright get going, you.” “By your command,” he replied before he began using his ‘evil’ laugh while slowly walking out of the room. Before he went through the door, he said over his shoulder, “I'll try to pick up some cake on the way back.” And with that, he was gone.  All became quiet as Celestia was left with her thoughts. She left her seat and turned to the window behind her. From her lofty vantage point, she had a wonderful view of all of central Equestria stretching beyond the southern horizon.  Thoughts swirled and flowed in her mind as her eyes fell on the tiny little town sitting isolated in the plains to the southwest, bordered by the Everfree Forest on its southeast. She had known more about the newcomer than she let on to Blueblood. She hadn’t wanted to keep the information from him, but how could she describe something that only she could perceive to him? How could she let him know what she saw through words alone? The “Thunderclap” had done more damage than anypony had known that day. The problem was that the damage was to something that almost nopony even knew existed, let alone could see.  All living things had energy, an energy that stretched out to form a potent web that connected them and the world around them. Most ponies were aware of this web of life, but only barely and not consciously; just enough to better wield the magic so unique to them without destroying themselves by accident. It was an unsung but invaluable aspect of their very lives. Celestia only knew of its existence because of the many, many lessons given to her and her sister by Starswirl the Bearded all those years ago. But even the pinnacle of magical learning could tell them very little about how it worked. For all his knowledge, Starswirl could only teach Celestia how to consciously feel others through this web, like small insects making vibrations in the infinite treads.    She had learned her other little trick on her own. Whatever struggle had caused the Thunderclap had left the life-web of their world bruised, for lack of a better term. The planet had never once suffered such a wound for as long as Celestia remembered; not since the Days of Disharmony had anything injured it so. For the remainder of that terrible day, Celestia could barely hear herself think over the perpetual, wounded groaning of the planet itself. She, however, had known of a way to soothe its pains. The key had always been her command of the sun. Whenever Celestia set about her daily task, she was more in tune with the world around her than any other moment. She was not merely 'Princess Celestia,' but part of a greater whole; a whole of such magnitude and scale that she could look for thousands of millenia and never come close to perceiving it all.  And when she was in this state, she could pour her own will and her boundless energy into the life-web and reinvigorate it, heal the bruises and strain and restore that crucial equilibrium on which their world was so dependent. This she had done the following morning, looked out into the world she so loved… and for the first time in a thousand years, she found someone looking back at her.  She didn't see much; a flash of golden hair, blue eyes, and the impression of youth and strength. But she saw enough to spark her curiosity…and her worry. So every day after that first glimpse, she cast her senses to the south, to Ponyville. Just as she could feel every pony around her, so too could she feel this new arrival tugging on the threads of the world. He was waiting there, waiting somewhere in that small little town. But for what? And why in Ponyville, of all places? She had a number of guesses about that and none of them were comforting. She wouldn't be so concerned about that if he had surfaced in, say, Fillydelphia or Manehattan. But of course, he had to be in Ponyville, and considering just what was hidden away not even a five-hour trot from that little town, she couldn't help but feel even a little nervous. Not to mention that this was all happening so soon before the promised day. That alone set off alarms in her thoughts. For the past thousand years, she had been planning, preparing, and watching. She had looked for every factor, accounted for any eventuality she could think of. Yet now, barely over a month away from those plans bearing fruit, she was confronted with something she could never have anticipated. This was a wild card, a variable; one that could either bring forth an outcome infinitely better than even her best expectations or bring everything crashing down so hard and so far that Equestria — the world —could never recover. She would need to handle the new situation as carefully as possible, or everything could be lost. Just as she was pondering this, there was a faint knocking sound from the door to the solar, and Celestia was suddenly aware of someone — two someone's — waiting behind it. The web around her seemed to shiver, the strings connecting her, the door, and the newcomers behind it thrummed and vibrated in something almost like anticipation. She didn't know who was behind the door — which was strange enough, considering she knew every servant and guard pony and noble who frequented the halls by name — but she could feel their urgency. “Come in,” she said clearly, and the door opened. She stared at the visitors standing in the doorway for a good ten seconds, processing what she was seeing, then gestured wordlessly for them to take a seat. As her new guests acquiesced to her offer, she was suddenly aware that today was going to be very long indeed. At least she could say it was the most interesting day she had in the past millennium. Less than a half-hour after Blueblood had relayed the Princess' orders, Shining Armor had called for volunteers for a recon trip to Ponyville. In less than a minute he had twenty guard ponies lined up in front of the barracks. All were standing at attention with grim looks on their faces, and it wasn’t difficult for the captain to figure out what was going through their heads.  Whether it had been intentional or not, ponies had been injured. Shining was certain that there were guards here who still had family in the hospitals. They wanted answers — and some likely wanted somepony to blame. He paced in front of them, barking questions at them. After hearing their answers, he paced for a few more seconds before speaking up. “All right,” he said sharply, turning to face the line of ponies. "Here's the situation! Her Royal Highness wants a three-pony squad for this mission and no more! This is strictly a search and retrieval mission, potentially with living creatures to track down, so we’ll need trackers and recon specialists! Any takers?” “Right here sir!” called out a familiar voice.  Shining turned to look at the rust-coated pegasus who had spoken. “You have training in investigation and tracking, Lieutenant Spearhead?” “Yes, sir!” Spearhead shouted, saluting. “Trained in the tracking course at the Royal Guard’s Academy for two years, sir!” This, Shining knew was true. Not only that; he knew that Spearhead, an old friend of his since boot camp, had attention to detail that lent well to his hobby of observational painting. That kind of eye for detail would be invaluable in the mission. Plus, Spearhead was just about the most level-headed pony he knew.  He could keep a lid on the other volunteers should they get out of line. He nodded. “Okay, that’s one! Any others?” He turned to look at the rest of the throng. “We’re looking for at least one individual, according to Her Highness. Not aggressive, but likely on guard. We need somepony who’s well versed in other cultures and negotiation tactics” A trembling orange hoof went up. “S-sir?” Shining turned to the speaker, another pegasus with an orange coat and blue mane. A rookie, judging from how he looked like a stiff breeze would blow him over. Shining walked up to the newbie. “Your name and rank, soldier?” he barked at the pegasus. It was harsh, but it did the trick. The colt’s legs and back straightened as training took over and he snapped into a picture-perfect salute. “Private Flash Sentry, sir!” he said shrilly. “Graduated from the academy two months ago, sir!” Shining nodded, taking in Flash Sentry’s smaller frame and the way his armor was a little too polished. If he had to guess, the private wasn’t much older than his sister Twilight. “You mentioned having training in cross-cultural negotiation, Private?” “Yes sir! Graduated with the third highest grade overall, sir! I’m eager to prove my skills in the field, sir!” The Private’s body was tense with nerves. “One more question,” Shining continued, leaning forward to look the private square in the eye. “Was anypony that you know injured in the event three days ago?” Flash Sentry froze, cringing a little from the sudden intensity of the Captain’s gaze. “W-what—” “Answer the question, soldier!” Shining barked, and the private’s back straightened.  “Y-yes sir,” he admitted. “My cousin was knocked out. She woke up just a day ago, but the doctors want to keep her for another few days.” He hesitated, then spoke up again. “Permission to ask a question, sir?” “Granted.” “With all due respect, what does my cousin have to do with the mission?” Shining had been expecting the question, but he still had to admire the private's guts in speaking out. He had potential. Shining Armor weighed the options in his head and decided on the truth. “The reason I asked,” he began, “is because it is Her Highness’s belief that the individual we’re searching for had something to do with that event.” Every eye in the barracks turned towards the captain at those words. “She could not uncover his intentions but believes he isn’t aggressive at the moment. The purpose of this mission is to get answers by finding this being, and bringing him back to Canterlot for questioning.’ “My question for you, Private,” he went on, making eye contact with Flash Sentry again, “Is this: can you put aside personal feelings and do your best to avoid more violence?” The silence stretched on as Shining stared into the Private’s eyes. After a few moments, Flash’s eyes became like steel. “I can, sir.” Shining nodded once, then set a hoof on the private’s shoulder. “Then you’re in. Report to the chariot bay in fifteen minutes!” Flash Sentry saluted once more with vigor.  “Sir, yes sir!” With all the debriefing finished. Most of the Guardsponies were dismissed to their assigned duties. Before he left, Spearhead went up to Shining armor with a calm smile on his face. “Yo dude, you lookin better now.” Shining couldn’t help but snort a little and grin, his friend’s positive energy being infectious. “I am feeling better too bro.”  “By the way, how’s your sister?” His face turned serious. “Is she alright?” Shining nodded. “Yeah, she is, though she was feeling angsty because she couldn’t use her horn to do her usual magic experiments.” “Heh, that sounds like your sister. What about the little dude?” Spearhead had always looked out for Spike and even hung out with him when Twilight was busy. “He’s coming along. Still shaken up a bit, but he’s better now that Twilight is up and about again.” “Hey, that's great! I’m glad he’s getting himself back together!” Spearhead looked around to see if anypony was listening, then whispered to Shining. “Carmine’s been gloating about it all yesterday. You know how he is about Spike.” Shining grimaced. He had spoken to Lieutenant Carmine Maple more than once about his prejudiced attitude towards Spike. The earth pony had taken an instant dislike for the little dragon from the very first day that he had been transferred in from a border outpost in Yakyakistan. What Shining Armor found unsettling was that the dislike seemed to be for no other reason than the fact that Spike was a dragon in the first place.  It looked like another discussion would be necessary soon. “I’ll deal with him,” he promised. “Better be sooner than later; the sort of things he was saying…” Spearhead shuddered. “It took everything I had not to shove my hoof down this throat. He’s going to be a problem, Cap.”  Shining nodded, he knew that for a fact. Slowly, an idea began to form. “Uh… dude?”  Shining was snapped out of his thoughts by Spearhead’s nervous tone. He was looking at his friend like he was growing a second head. “You’re kinda freaking me out. You got the look on your face that means a recruit’s going to be stuck for the next week making a hundred-foot wide picture of his unit insignia with gravel to just destroy when he’s done.”  “Hm, maybe some other time. I’ve got a better idea… Did I mention I’m giving you operational command?” Less than twenty minutes later two disgruntled pegasi, pulling an earth pony on a chariot, rose into the air above Canterlot and swung about to rush southwest. "So, lemme get this straight," Rainbow Dash said, her scratchy voice incredulous. "You're saying that there are thousands of planets out there like ours?"  Luke blew some hair out of his eyes. "Well, not exactly like yours," he corrected. “ Each planet is different, so —" "Look out below!" A hay bale as big as Luke's chest fell from the loft above them. Luke caught it, staggering a little with his arms clamped around the mass of dried straw, then set it down on top of another with a grunt, adding to the growing pile of hay bales. Luke continued as if nothing had interrupted them. " — so the species living on them are all different," he finished. "But if you mean if there are thousands of planets with intelligent life, then the answer is yes.” "And you use something called a hippo-dry-thingie—" "Hyperdrive." "Whatever. You use that to go from one planet to the other?" "Yes, or it would take centuries at best to get to another system." "So, what? You just point the ship where you want to go and boom, you're there?" “Well…not exactly.” He caught another bale tossed down by Apple Bloom. “It’s a lot more complicated than that. I have to calculate where exactly I have to go while also dealing with any kind of complications that might occur.” Apple Bloom spoke up, her head poking out of the loft. “What kind of compli.. c-compli-“ she stuttered out, still having problems pronouncing certain words. Luke understood what she was trying to say and replied. “Well let’s say if I wanted to go from one planet to another. There would be all these obstacles in the way — large objects with deep gravity wells. If you don’t set the calculations for the jump right, you could end up running into a planet or even a star on the way there.” He brushed a tuft of hay from his shoulder. “And since you’re moving trillions of miles per second at that point...” He smacked his fist into his palm. “You’d be vaporized, and a large chunk of the object you hit would be too.” Both Rainbow Dash and Apple Bloom flinched at the thought. Rainbow Dash in particular was unsettled; she had tons of crashes before, but even then, at least those were survivable. Luke continued, “There are safe passages through the galaxy free of obstacles; we call those hyperlanes. If a hyperlane has been mapped out, you can calculate which one you need to take and how long. You can reach hundreds of systems with just one.” “Oh.” Apple Bloom blinked while tossing another bale to Luke. She had another question to ask. “Alright, so what is he?” She pointed her hoof at Kyugee who was rolling in, a rope around the trunk of his mechanical body that was also attached to the wagon, he let out a few beeps, his form of saying greetings to them. "He's an astromech droid," Luke explained. "He's a machine built with the purpose of repairing damaged ships and calculating hyperspace jumps." “Wait, he's the one that helps with traveling?” Apple Bloom asked. Luke nodded. Rainbow inquired. “You mean, he’s a robot?” Luke stared at her for a moment. “Yes?”  Both ponies gaped at him.  “A real robot!” Apple Bloom squealed. "Oh, that's so cool!" Rainbow Dash crowed. "Oh wait, what can it do? Can it shoot lasers out of its eyes? Can it fly? Tell me it can fly! You said it helps steer your ship!" Luke blinked at the rapid-fire barrage of questions. He opened his mouth to answer before a shrill whistle from Kyugee cut him off. Shrugging off the rope around his middle, Kyugee trundled forward a few feet, and then extended a rocket booster from each of his legs. With a muted roar, the boosters ignited and lifted Kyugee a good two meters off the ground. Both Rainbow Dash and Apple Bloom laughed and whooped with glee while Luke stood behind them, not even bothering to hold back the grin stretching across his face. Kyugee pirouetted and swerved in the air, whistling and beeping happily. Rainbow Dash took to the air herself and began flying around Kyugee, laughing all the while. "What in tarnation is with all the ruckus he — land sakes!" Luke spun around to see Applejack standing in the doorway of the barn gaping at the airborne astromech. Kyugee jolted at the sudden noise and rose higher, hitting the ceiling. Swerving out of control, he barreled into the hayloft with a loud scream. Apple Bloom yelped and scrambled out of the way as he knocked over a large pile of loose hay before the boosters suddenly cut off and he fell face first with a loud crash. The hay pile Kyugee had knocked over spilled over the edge of the loft and fell with a loud thud — directly on top of Luke. “Luke!”  Applejack and Rainbow Dash ran over to help, but the sound of muffled laughter came up from under the pile of hay. Luke’s head then popped out, laughing all the while. Everypony else stared at him for a moment, then joined in as the ridiculous sight sunk in. “Here, let me give ya a hoof, sugarcube,” Applejack offered a hoof. Luke’s hand emerged from the hay pile to take it, and Applejack quickly pulled him free. “I’m alright, I’m alright.” He chuckled and started brushing loose strands of hay from his clothes. Applejack frowned up at him. “I don’t think Rarity’ll appreciate you messin’ up the clothes she made for ya so soon,” she pointed out. “I’ll apologize to her when the chance comes.” Luke rolled his shoulders, marveling, as he had over the few days, at the excellent fit of his new clothes. He wore a simple cream-colored tunic, almost like what he used to wear on Tatooine except for the lack of sleeves, leaving his arms bare in the sunlight. His utility belt from his old outfit was fastened at the waist, keeping the tunic closed. Loose black pants covered his legs, tucked into the same boots he wore when arriving in Equestria. The leather boots were polished so smooth and bright they almost looked like they were made of painted durasteel. The boots and his belt were the only things out of his old outfit that Rarity had deemed worth salvaging.  The rest had promptly gone into the trash bin when Luke changed into his new clothes. He would have complained if it weren't for the fact that Rarity had seen fit to make five other sets of clothes matching the same pattern but in different colors. In all of Luke's life, he hadn't had a set of clothes that fit so well and were so comfortable. He had insisted on paying somehow, but Rarity would have none of it. "Oh, don't worry about it, darling!" she laughed. "I wouldn't leave someone in need like that! You needed proper clothes, other than that… that… hobo suit." Her eye had twitched at that, and Luke had the district impression that she was plotting some kind of violence against the tailor responsible for his old outfit. Luke had decided to drop the issue and quietly accepted Rarity’s generosity. “So,” Applejack started, bringing Luke back to the present and pinning him with a flat stare. “Mind explainin' to me why this lil’ guy was floatin' all over the place like a Nightmare Night decoration?” Her little sister piped up before Luke could say anything. “It’s 'cause he’s a robot!” “Robot?” She raised an eyebrow. “Like from them Sci-fi comics you would read?” “Exactly!”  “Specifically, he’s an R3 unit,” Luke explained while Kyugee began to righten himself up with Apple Bloom’s help. “They tend to show off at times.” “Arthree?” Rainbow Dash blinked. “What the hay is that supposed to mean?” Luke was about to answer when something hit his shins painfully. Granny Smith was standing behind him, brandishing an old, gnarled stick in her hoof like a sword. “I come in here to tell y’all that lunch is ready,” she began grouchily, “and I find y’all standin’ around yammerin’ and makin’ a mess instead of workin’!” A chorus of murmured apologies floated around the barn. Granny Smith had fulfilled Luke’s initial impression as someone to never mess with and then some. He was positively certain she would have whacked Darth Vader’s shins or even the Emperor’s in the same way if they dared to anger her. Granny snorted. “Well, I hope you had your fun, young’uns, ‘cause after you’ve all eaten, you’re goin’ to clean up your mess! I want every strand of hay back on that loft by suppertime, ya hear?”  Everyone nodded, “Except for you,” Granny added, pointing her stick at Luke. “You’re gonna help Big Mac and Applejack move that big metal thingamajig of yours out of our field. It’s been there for the past three days, and Big Mac needs to plow and sow that field before week’s end!” Luke raised his hands in surrender. “Yes, ma’am, I’ll get right on it.”  Luke felt a bead of sweat slide down his face to his chin. He was positive that Granny would have been a complete terror in the Rebel Alliance, especially where Rogue Squadron was concerned. She probably would have reduced Wedge to tears the very first time he would try a prank. Granny pointed out the door with her Stick, looking for all the world like a drill sergeant barking orders. “Well, hop to it! Food’s getting cold and the daylight is burnin’!” Luke saluted without even thinking. “Yes, ma’am!” he said, and walked outside as fast as he could, the others close behind. He didn’t want to risk another whack to the shins. The sky outside was clear, and the near-noon sun warmed the fields outside. Applejack had mentioned that summer was close, so it tended to be warm. To Luke, it was just right. Growing up on Tatooine tended to harden one against the heat of one sun, let alone two. Out in the field, he could see the escape pod, jutting out of the middle like a sore thumb.  Luke walked on, heading into the farmhouse.  The kitchen was full of wonderful smells of a home-cooked meal that made everyone’s mouths water. There were plates covered with sandwiches, sliced apples and grapes, a couple of steaming apple pies, and at the center of it all, to everyone’s delight, a massive jug of freshly pressed, chilled apple cider. The first time Luke had sipped from a cup of the Apple family’s most famous product, it felt like someone had set off a proton torpedo in his mouth. He had immediately taken a liking to the rich, tart drink. It didn’t take long for everyone to settle down and dig in. There was talking, laughing, and a generally warm feeling permeating through the room. Luke basked in the sensation as he merely listened, sipping contentedly from a cup of cider. A home-cooked meal after a hard day’s work wasn’t something Luke had enjoyed ever since that night three years ago; before he had left the Lars homestead to find a droid and an old man in the Dune Sea. It was something he hadn’t even realized he had missed until that first night when he had been invited to the Apple family’s dinner table. The discussion slowly began to die down and turned inevitably back to the work ahead. “Alright, Big Mac, Luke.” Applejack started, wiping her mouth. “I reckon we should go over just how we’re going to be movin’ that there hunk o’ metal out in the field.” Luke sat up a little straighter at this. He already had an idea of what to do, had it ever since that morning. It was just a matter of convincing the two of them. “It ain't gonna be easy,” Big Mac rumbled around a mouthful of cheese sandwich. “I tried movin’ it on my own this morning. Wouldn't budge an inch.” He swallowed and grimaced. “There’s also the matter of how much it’ll tear up the field after we drag it off; that’s gonna mean more work fixing everything before plowin’, or the ol’ plow won’t make it.” Luke knew all too well about the plow. He had seen Big Mac pull the rusted, saggy old thing across the fields every morning. He silently agreed with the earth pony; the plow wouldn’t be able to till a field that was so torn up.  “If I may,” he began quietly, catching everyone’s attention. “I think I can lift the escape pod out of there without either of you having to drag it out and damage your field.” Applejack gave him a critical look. “Sugarcube, it’s not like we blame ya for what happened,” she said gently. “You and I both know you don’t got the muscle to lift that thing on your own. Ya don’t need to take everythin’ on yourself n’ make a promise ya can’t keep.” ‘I don’t mean it like that,” Luke replied, shaking his head. “I won’t be using my muscles to lift it.” Not in that way, at least, he thought to himself. “I’m going to use the Force.” He smiled. “The what, now?” Applejack asked, nonplussed, but Rainbow Dash perked up. “You’ve mentioned that before!’ she said, pointing at Luke. “You never got around to explaining this ‘Force’ stuff when you got here! What did you mean by that?” Luke raised his hands a little defensively while holding his good-natured smile.  “I’ll explain Rainbow; it seems like the best time anyway.”  Luke took a sip of cider and thought about how best to explain.  “All lifeforms in this galaxy," he began, "create energy. That energy spreads out over the galaxy in a field that covers everything. It's around us, within us, made by us, and it connects everything and everyone.”  He looked out the window, at the lush green outside the farmhouse. "We call this energy field the Force, and it's what gives a Jedi their power. There are life forms born with the ability to feel the Force, tap into it, draw from it for strength. With enough training and self-confidence, they could do this at will." He looked back at the ponies, who were all staring at him wide-eyed. He continued. “The Jedi Knights were a group of beings who learned how to feel the Force, and wield it to protect others. I trained under one of their greatest masters to use the Force before he passed away." He remembered Yoda, holding on to a few extra seconds of life to tell him one last truth before fading away like a mirage before his eyes. "I'm likely the last Jedi still alive," he finished,  “Wait… the last?” Apple Bloom said quietly, her eyes large. “Where did all the others go?” Luke was silent for a moment. “It’s something I’ve only heard stories of. I’ll tell you about them another time. It’s not a happy story.”  “Ah reckon you listen to what he says, Apple Bloom,” Granny Smith cut in. “It’s likely not a topic for the table, and he can tell ya later on his own time — when he’s ready.” She gave Luke a sidelong, knowing glance. The tale of sorrow was one known all too well to her.  “Are you sure there isn’t anyone else like you who came here with you?” It was Rainbow Dash who had spoken up. Luke, more than ready to change the subject, quickly answered. “My father and two other droids were also on board; it was actually my father who put me in that escape pod. He was probably steering the ship to make sure it landed in one piece.” ‘What’s he look like?” Apple Bloom asked, her eyes wide with excitement. “He’s…” Luke trailed off. The thought of his father was in itself a conflicting thing without taking into account everything he was with all the context he has. His brain worked to articulate a non-frightening description for his father.  “You might say he’s… very peculiar.  Different from me but very similar in a way. You’ll know him once you see him.”  The ponies deflated at Luke’s explanation, or rather lack thereof. Their minds ran rampant on what his father exactly looked like. They didn’t bother voicing any of their thoughts, however. Luke didn’t seem so bad, so maybe neither was his father. As always, Rainbow felt a twinge of mistrust. He was hiding something, and it made her feathers stick up. She felt the need to press him. “You know, you didn’t tell us how you ended up crashing into Equestria, just that you did.” She looked at the others from the corners of her eyes. “I think it might be important for us to know, because,” She wracked her brain as much as possible; this wasn’t Rainbow’s strong suit. “What if you try to leave if you figure out how to fix it and your ship blows up again?!” she blurted.  The pegasus felt pride well up inside her. That was the best idea she had gotten in a long time. Luke pondered the thought and nodded. “I can’t find anything wrong with that logic,” he said. He caught Rainbow welling with pride. “We were near your moon, when we came out of hyperspace. While we were trying to understand what we were witnessing, something grabbed our ship and started pulling us towards the moon.” His brow furrowed. “It was… powerful. A presence in the Force that was…well, alien, for lack of a better term.” He sighed. “It required the strength of both my father and myself to oppose it, but whatever pulled at us caused our ship to become critically damaged. My father put me in the escape pod and, well, here we are.” “The moon attacked ya?” Granny Smith asked. “I… suppose? Is it alive?” Luke asked. Weirder things had been found in the galaxy than a living moon. Luke remembered the first time he had seen a pod of purrgils, while he had been recovering from his experiences on Cloud City. He had made a double take so fast he had given himself a crick in the neck. It had been the first time he had heard Leia laugh since Hoth. “Not that ah know ‘bout.” The old pony looked up to the sky. “Only ever saw it hangin’ up there. Supposedly made some kinda unique apples ‘n orange, but ah never ain’t seen none of ‘em.” She sneezed. “Pardon. Thought it was just a fat star in the sky.” “Granny…” Applejack lamented. “What?! It’s true! Ain’t never done no pony no good!” she complained. “Got all ‘em skeeters and crickets out when the sun burns ‘em all!” “Maybe Cheerilee would know?” Apple Bloom suggested. “She’s mah teacher. Ah bet she’d know about that.” Luke shrugged. “I suppose it’s something we could try at a later time.” Suddenly, the sound of knocking came from the door. Winona tucked her ears back as she scampered towards the front door, yipping and barking excitedly. Applejack blinked, then chuckled. "There's only one pony in all o' Ponyville that makes her go off like that," she said before walking to the door. Nudging Winona aside, she opened the door to a familiar butter yellow face.  The dog immediately dashed out the door to greet Fluttershy. “Oh, hi, Winona!” Fluttershy leaned her face down to accept the dog’s hello, which amounted to a lot of licks to the face. she giggled from affection given. “Oh it’s good to see you too.” She returned the affection with a nuzzle of her own before addressing Applejack. “Hi, Applejack.” “Hey, Fluttershy.” Applejack greeted back. “I was wondering how Luke was doing?” Applejack adjusted her hat and grinned. “Mighty strange creature, but he ain’t too bad for a…whatever he is. Reckoned there might be somethin’ a bit…how’d the city family put it? Insolvabrious? Something’ like that, about him.” The pegasus tilted her head. “Insolubrious?”  Fluttershy asked. “That’s it! That’s the word.” Fluttershy frowned. “But…that’s Prench. Rarity often repeats it at her boutique.” The farm pony shrugged. “Words ‘re words, ah figure. Anyways, ya wanna go see Luke yerself? He’s been helpin’ out around the farm. Been good with his words, too.” Fluttershy gave the apple pony a warm smile that caught her off guard. That pegasus and her open kindness always threw her off at times. “That’s good to hear. Where is he?” “In the dining room.” She led Fluttershy there. Luke took another bite of some freshly baked apple dumplings. It was a flavor unlike anything he had ever tasted before. Sweet and savory, coating his mouth in sweetened spices and fruit chunks. From the corner of his eye he saw something yellow pass by the window.  'Ah. That must be Fluttershy,' Luke thought to himself.  He decided to leave a few of the dumplings behind for the additional guest to savor, but was startled by the loud bang of a metal tray being dropped onto the table in front of him. He looked up, and the tray was heaped with dumplings. “Don’t ya worry yer hairy little head,” Granny reassured him. “Ah can cook enough to feed the whole apple family durin’ our reunions in just two hours!” She leaned in towards him and whispered. “And that’s about a hundred ‘re so ponies,” she chuckled. “So eat ta yer heart’s content! Gotta get yer strength back up.” She cleared her throat and let her eyes dart about. “ And, uh, maybe use yer fancy power thingies ya talked about ta get all the apples in the orchard fer us.” “Granny!” Applejack chastised. Luke laughed at Granny's offer. "We'll see how I feel after I move the pod.” “So how are you feeling?” Fluttershy asked. “Also, hi, Rainbow Dash.” Rainbow waved back. Her mouth was currently stuffed with food.  “I’ve been good, I’ve been good,” he trailed off. “I’ve been helping around the farm.” “So I’ve heard.” “ ‘N he and his lil metal friend’ve been doin’ a good job so far, too,” Granny Smith added. She earned an agreeable nod from her grandchildren and Rainbow Dash. “That’s good to hear.” She went up to him and began examining him like she had a few days prior. After barely a minute of looking Luke over, she blinked in confusion. "Um…" She bit her lip. "Is something wrong?" Luke asked. Fluttershy immediately jumped back and shook her head violently. "No, nonononono, nothing like that! I-it's just… well…" She looked up at him. "You're in better shape t-than I thought you would b-be; I was —" She stopped for a moment, as if nervous about speaking, then resumed talking, so fast she was almost stumbling over her words. "I was sure you'd still have some injuries after just three days!" She practically folded in on herself, hiding her face between her hooves, talking nonstop. "I'm sorry! I didn't mean to underestimate you! Please don't be mad. You're mad aren't you? Oh goodness I'm terri—" A blue hoof suddenly appeared over her mouth, silencing her instantly. Rainbow Dash, her cheeks bulging, swallowed her mouthful of sandwich before speaking. “Calm down, Fluttershy, he's not mad!” She rolled her eyes at Luke. "She's always so nervous around every pony. I'm actually surprised. She hadn't really gotten like this last time she visited." Luke raised a hand. “It’s alright. No harm has been done.” Fluttershy sighed in relief and smiled back. “Thank goodness, but that still doesn’t make me feel more comfortable about your wounds.” Luke looked at himself briefly and shrugged. “Just something that jedi can do when we have a moment to meditate. It helps calm the body and mind and aids in its recovery.” He adjusted his clothing, chasing away some straw stuck to it. “I have been trying to learn how to stay in such a state of focus while active, but…” He blew out a lot of air. “It’s exhausting trying to do so many things at once.” He grimaced and nodded to himself. “All this farm work has actually been great in devising new ways to try and implement it though.” Not only that, but Luke had been aware of something in the Force, working to heal the strain he had felt around him. Whenever he meditated, that feeling washed over him like he was swimming in sunlight. By the end of the meditation, he felt he could leap across the entire orchard in a single bound. It didn't last long, but he felt better afterwards than he did before. “We’ve got more work for ya then!” Granny happily added. “It never ends ‘round here and ah’d rather things stay that way!” She chuckled to herself. “It’s how an ol’ biddy like mahself’s been around here fer so long.” She wobbled over to Luke and jab him in the side. “Stick around ‘n Ah figure you’ll be here longer ‘n any of those regular ponies in the town.” “Granny!” Applejack exclaimed in horror. The elderly mare shrugged. “What? It’s true. Us Apples live fer a long time thanks ta our hard work.” Luke raised his hands. “Okay! Okay. That’s enough,” he chuckled. “Right now I need to recover the pod I came down in.” The young man leaned forward in his chair with a pensive expression. “If the systems are mostly intact, I should be able to contact my father, or at least repair them using redundant machinery.” Luke thanked Granny Smith for the delicious meal then made his way into the fields to locate his crashed pod. The Jedi couldn’t help but feel guilty once he saw how the crash affected the area. The land had been ripped apart by his seemingly benign spacecraft. A long divet had been dug into the land, ripping out the layers of sediment that had laid dormant in the darkness of the land for countless millennia. Pieces had been shattered from the sudden shift and were scattered about like glass from a shattered window. They were easy to spot in the relatively barren landscape, contrasting with the greens of the grass and rare colors brought by a few weeds blooming despite the disaster that befell them. “Whoa, I didn’t think it looked this bad,” Rainbow Dash cringed. “Almost looks like a giant sword crashed into the ground.” Applejack shrugged. “It ain’t that bad. Apples in Zebrica told us some giant animal things done shredded their farm. Nothin’ left.” Rainbow pouted and looked at Applejack with a skeptical expression. “Oh, really? And you saw it?” Applejack shifted in place. “Not really, but ah figured it’d look a might worse than this.” She moved next to the wide trench and poked at the soft earth. “Least he softened the ground up. Can plant tree seeds here real easy,” she chuckled to herself. “Should be at the end of this trench,” Luke stated. The group reached his pod only a minute after following the trench. Looking at it, Luke noticed it seemed smaller somehow, before he realized it had sunk into the ground somewhat since the crash. Kyugee produced several upset beeps at the state of the pod, startling the jedi. “Oh, you came with us?” he asked the droid. “I’m sorry to admit that I had forgotten you were here.” The droid produced an angry, low-tone beep in response. “So sorry.” “So, ah figure ah can dig a bit of it out. Get mah brother ta help me tie some rope ‘round it ‘n get it outta there,” Applejack said. “Would take a while,” she muttered. “A few days, ah reckon.” “No need to tire yourself out,” Luke stated. “I can pull it out myself.” Rainbow smirked. “With those lanky forelegs?” “Not quite.” The Jedi took in a deep breath then exhaled slowly. “I just need to use the Force.” He closed his eyes, centered himself, and let his senses reach into the Force. He felt the flow of energy, surrounding them and flowing through them. He felt its strands, countless in number, connecting everything and everyone; an intricate weave of life and energy that could never be perceived in full. Above all, he saw himself, the being that called itself "Luke Skywalker," and how small he was in that weave — how he was but a miniscule thread in the immeasurable tapestry of life, tied to other threads, intertwined with them.  He felt the Force connecting him and Applejack, Rainbow Dash, Apple Bloom, Granny Smith and Big Mac. He felt it between the grass and the soil and the flowers. He felt it connecting the pebbles to the stones to the wind to the trees. He felt it between the Apple family and the earth below, and the house they lived in. He felt it between the currents of the air and the distant clouds in the sky. He felt it between the insects scurrying far below their feet, the birds flitting between the trees, and the three ponies near the edge of the farm. And indeed, he felt it between himself and the pod. A year ago, he would have struggled to lift the pod at all, let alone move it out of the field. Its size and weight would have defeated him. But now he understood: Size after all mattered not. He raised a single hand, eyes closed. The air around the ponies and the droid seemed to calm and silence itself. The dirt around the pod started trembling as the craft started to move from its resting spot. Like a child who does not want to wake for school, the pod fought against Luke’s attempts to remove it from its soft bed. Little by little it gave in to its handler’s demands and roused from its rest, gradually rising higher and higher into the air. The dirt around it rolled off its damaged surface, revealing more and more of the metal underneath. “Woah,” Rainbow said in a hushed tone. The others could only stare as the massive bulk of the pod continued to rise silently into the air. No light flickered around it, save for the sun glinting off its windows and hull. Within seconds, the pod hung no less than fifteen feet in the air, suspended in the air as if by invisible wires. Without so much a creak, it gently slid through the air above their heads to the edge of the field, some thirty yards distant. After it had passed roughly twenty feet past the field's edge, it quietly lowered to the ground. There was the slightest thud as it settled in the grass, and then all was still. Absolute silence reigned over Sweet Apple Acres as the ponies processed what they had just witnessed. Applejack stared at it for a good five seconds before sprinting over to the pod, with Rainbow Dash, Big Mac and Apple Bloom close behind. She walked around the pod, tapping it with her hoof in disbelief. "Most unicorns who would have problems lifting something so big," Rainbow Dash muttered, looking up at the pod with her face pale.  She turned to Luke with round eyes. "I don't believe it," she said numbly. Luke only smiled, remembering when he, only a year ago, had said the exact same words to Yoda. "And that," he echoed with a gentle voice, "is why we fail." Rainbow Dash opened her mouth to retort, then closed it with a troubled expression. Then, she heard rumbling to the right and saw movement to the corner of her eye. "Look out!" Luke felt the warning in the Force just before Rainbow Dash yelled, and was already moving when the loud whoosh of displaced air reached his ears. He leapt to his left, guided by the Force, and so barely avoided the armored red stallion charging at him with his head lowered. Without so much as blinking, the stallion turned on a dime and advanced towards Luke, who noticed the sharp spearhead mounted on the gilded helm like a horn.  Luke backed away from the deadly point until he felt the metal of the pod at his back.  The stallion stopped, the point of his helmet spike barely a centimeter from Luke's chest. Applejack and Big Mac yelled out and ran forward before "HALT!" shouted towards them and two armored pegasi dropped out of the sky in front of them, blocking their path. Kyugee screeched furiously and rolled forward with his shock prod extended before Luke held out a hand. "No, Kyugee! We don't want a fight." He looked back at the stallion in front of him. "Let's hear what they want." The pressure hanging in the air was palpable, but Luke didn’t give it much attention while the ponies were slowly and quietly backing away without taking their eyes off the two pegasi. To their credit, the armored ponies barely flinched at the sight of Kyugee, though one of the pegasi did give it a wide-eyed glance every few seconds. "I suggest that you cooperate, monster," the red stallion announced coldly, "if you even know what that means."  Luke could feel the stallion's disgust radiating in the Force as much as he could hear it in his voice. “By direct order of Her Royal Highness, Princess Celestia, your presence is wanted at Canterlot," the red pony continued, keeping Luke pinned with a venomous glare, his helmspike remaining level. "In fact, it's demanded. I would suggest," he said in a tone that clearly wanted a fight, "that you don't resist."