//------------------------------// // Friendship is Explosion, Part 1 // Story: A Young Pony's Isekai Sextet: Friendship is Explosion! (MLP x Isekai Quartet and Friends) // by LoriLoud //------------------------------// Once upon a time, in the magical land of Equestria, there were two regal alicorns who ruled together and created harmony for all the land.  To do this, the mare guided us from the heavens, blessing this wonderful world and leading departed souls through the rivers of reincarnation; the stallion guided us from the earth, setting the foundations of society for the living, whether ponykind or otherwise. Thus, the two maintained balance for their kingdom and their subjects. But as time went on, the mare became resentful. Envious of the stallion's success and disgusted at his openness towards non-ponies, she struggled to become as beloved as he, and in her attempts at doing so, her blessings inadvertently turned into curses. One fateful day, the mare refused to reincarnate souls any longer, instead forcing the dearly departed to become her unwitting servants. The stallion tried to reason with her, but the hatred in the mare's heart had transformed her into the wicked mare of darkness: the one known as Being A. She vowed that she would "purify" the world of the stallion once and for all. Reluctantly, the stallion harnessed the most powerful magic known to ponydom: the Elements of Harmony. Using the magic of the Elements of Harmony, he defeated her, and banished her permanently to her task of reincarnation. The stallion took on responsibility for both heaven and earth as Overlord "...and harmony has been maintained in Equestria for generations since." Argent Silver squinted at the text, double-checking the translation. While an interesting bit of propaganda, she wasn't certain that lip-service was exactly what her Overlord was meaning for her to find in this text. There had to be another reason for him to recommend this reading to her... "Elements of Harmony. Maybe a pseudonym for a magical superweapon… something to look into, if I can cross-reference the sources." "Major!" Commander Edelweiss trotted in, an earth pony three times Argent's size, twice her age, and her vice commander when their battalion was still active. A bit strange for any onlookers, but the Sorcerer Kingdom of Equestria was a meritocracy to a fault. He seemed particularly pleased with himself today. "Some members of the 203rd decided to visit on their way to Belzerg, so Kerning and I decided to have a get-together at the tavern. Wanna come?" "Ah, I can't," Argent shrugged, running a hoof through her blonde mane, "our Overlord's planning something big, it seems, and I've got to piece it together as always. Buy them a drink for me, yes?" "I'll say you said hello," Edelweiss saluted cheekily. Argent rolled her eyes good-naturedly. Honestly, the war was over and he wasn't even her direct inferior anymore. She waved him off as she returned to the book at hand, absentmindedly opening the door to the palace library. "Vipress! Vipress! …Vipress?" The amber-scaled dragoness in question was currently curled up on Argent's favorite chair, snacking down on an absurd number of potato chips and reading… kitschy romance novels? Upon spotting Argent, Vipress poorly hid the book behind her back and stood at her full height; twice as tall as Argent, including her scales; and saluted, mouth still half-full with food. "Major," gulp, "Silver!" "At ease. And clean yourself up, at least." Argent's horn glowed gold as she levitated a handkerchief to Vipress's mouth, wiping any crumbs away from the corners of her snout. The immediate blush on the dragon's face went unseen as the diminutive unicorn started rifling through bookshelves. "Find me the first edition copy of Predictions and Prophecies. The dog-eared one," Argent paused, "and… you did hear about the 203rd meetup, right? I wasn't certain if Edelweiss burnt a message to you." "Oh, yes! Although, I had a feeling that you'd be focused on our Overlord's assignment," Vipress said, flapping her wings to get to the higher bookshelves labeled P,"so I elected to stay here and help." "As always, I couldn't ask for a better adjutant." Vipress's smile was beaming as always. Argent finally found the book she was looking for — Elements of Harmony: A Compendium of Details of References — before flipping to the River of Reincarnation reference. The River of Reincarnation, a myth from olden pony times. Said to be the prison of the mare of heaven, who once conspired to destroy our Overlord and ruin the Sorcerer Kingdom of Equestria. Legend has it that on the longest day of the thousandth year, the mare shall return and enact a godlike curse on this wonderful world. Argent gritted her teeth, double-checked it with Predictions and Prophecies, and resisted the urge to defenestrate the book entirely. Once more, the upper brass asks for the impossible, hm? Did they expect their illustrious Argent Silver to kill a goddess, this time? Utterly incomprehensible. She'd need at least six months to retrain her battalion to fighting fitness, and mentally sizing up the current military force of Equestria against somepony on par with her Overlord… No. This was just a test, right? Surely, her Overlord was a cut above the war-addled general staff and had the foresight to see this coming, especially if he created the spell to imprison his own counterpart. Ever since her instatement as his personal mage protege, he's assigned her to solve unorthodox problems that most people wouldn't have even considered, while always being a step ahead himself… Truly, this is the intellect that shouldered a nation for a thousand years… Hm. As expected from her Overlord! Well. She was happy to say that she solved this particular puzzle. Argent Silver sighed in contentment. Now, to report her findings. "Vipress, take a note. To his Supremacy, Your reading reference was quite educational, and as always, I am grateful for your prescience on matters of life and death. I shall rest assured that Being A will be thoroughly neutralized by the time of her arrival. If I were acceptably equipped, I would endeavor to cleanse the world of her existence myself… but I trust that you have this matter well in-hand. Nevertheless, I eagerly look forward to your next assignment. Ever at your service, Argent Silver" Putting the finishing touches on the letter, Vipress almost immediately burnt it to send to their Overlord, before raising a scaly eyebrow. Argent looked at her expectantly. "Ah, not to question your decision, Major, but… should we really send this to our Overlord today? It's Otherworld Day in two days, and…" "That's exactly why I'm sending it now. Our Overlord has been awaiting this moment for a millennia, and likely sent this task to me in order to disseminate classified information in a coded message. I need to make him aware of my," Argent cleared her throat, "awareness. Either way, I'm simply turning in my homework two days early, so to speak." "Alright, the Major always knows best," Vipress nodded, before burning the rolled-up letter with a brilliant orange flame. Almost immediately, a return letter came, and Vipress cleared her throat to begin reading aloud. With a satisfied smirk, Argent Silver listened on. "My shining protege, As expected, you've managed to decipher my ambitions. However, you could not be more wrong about my intentions regarding Being A." Argent Silver's smirk dropped. "Eh?" "I'm afraid my exact methods will have to remain shrouded from you at this moment. Know that your loyalty is well-placed. In any case, to take your mind off of this, I have a new task for you: to oversee the preparations for Otherworld Day in this year's location: Carneville. Refer to the attachment for details. I would also implore you to try to socialize during this task, as it is imperative that you be able to mingle with the common citizenry. I understand your usual methods were terrifyingly efficient with the 203rd, but we are now in peacetime, so I trust you to be able to act accordingly. Written by Demon Urge, in humble service of our glorious Overlord, RHINE ALLGONE" Magic yanked the attachment as stark blue eyes angrily scanned over its contents. Vipress stood by awkwardly, shifting on her hind claws as Argent Silver muttered under her breath. Whether reading the details to herself or cursing her luck (as she often did, for as long as she'd known her), Vipress couldn't say. The unicorn, stone-faced, neatly rolled up their Overlord's return message. And began packing. As she shoved a healthy stack of books into a briefcase, Argent Silver's face did not betray the internal screaming in her mind, consisting of the following words:  CURSE YOU, BEING A! "At least our living arrangements are pretty nice." "They're coddling us to keep us in the dark, Vipress. What was that saying, about being a mushroom in manure?" "Well, I thought the library being an old barracks is pretty cool…" Vipress confessed, tapping her index claws together. Argent sighed. "This must be another test… it has to be! Seeing if I can further deduct his plans even without the resources of the capital and the realpolitik power I hold. Yes, that sounds more like our Overlord's speed…" As their chariot landed, Argent silently slipped a couple bits each for the two transit stallions assigned to the ride, and they whinnied in thanks. Best to ingratiate yourself to your ride out of here. "Maybe the local ponies might have some rural knowledge on the matter…?" Argent Silver raised an eyebrow to Vipress, before turning around to look at the first pony she saw. A brown-maned, blue-coated, teal-eyed earth pony stopped snacking on a muffin and stared like a changeling in lamplights. "Oh, hey. New pony." Then, the stranger gasped, her blue ribbon bouncing on her head. "Ooooh, new pony! Hi, new pony! I'm Heartstopper, and I'd love to — hey, wait, Princefire, Green Thumb, what —" Uncomfortably, Argent backed away slowly — before the mare in question was wrestled away by a beautiful blonde stallion and an auburn-haired mare giving Argent a stink-eye. The strange mare blabbered something incomprehensible, still waving at Argent and saying something about a tea party. Argent only barely saw her Cutie Mark as she left. A heart with a crown, but the crown was marred in the shape of an X. "I have a feeling the local ponies won't be of much help," Argent Silver groused. First item on the docket: catering. Arguably the most important of logistics when it comes to these sorts of events, otherwise you've got a forced social gathering, not a festival. And, of course, stimulating the local economy and expanding the free market was rarely a bad thing. Still, despite Argent's own fascination with economics, the threat of Being A still lingered on her mind. Time was a valuable resource, and the more she felt it ticking away, the more she felt her habitual eye-twitch grow stronger. She put on her best political smile, though, because she had to have some sense of decorum. Walking into the Adventuring Guild, she approached the first person who seemed to be part of the various adventurers there — a bored-looking male unicorn with a green coat and brown hair. His cutie mark was in the shape of a black cat holding a four-leafed clover. "Good afternoon. I'm Argent Silver, and I —" "...5/10. Too short." Her eye-twitch returned. "Excuse me?" "Eh, nevermind. I'm Keepaway. What do you need?" …What? That's it? Argent cleared her throat. "...we're our Overlord's official envoys to make sure the preparations are ready for Otherworld Day. I assume your staff is in charge of catering the event?" "Yup." "...Is it going well?" "As far as I can tell." Keepaway shrugged. Argent squinted. "Is that all the information I'm going to get today?" Keepaway rolled his eyes and sighed, before trotting away. Almost tempted to leave entirely, Argent Silver did her level best to remain calm and try to play nice, following behind him. Apparently, this was the right answer. Carneville's Adventuring Guild was a respectable size. Obviously not as big as the one in the capital, but everything's bigger in Nazalot. The usual job board and wooden tables were there, along with Carneville's banner on the walls. A glance at the job board revealed they were easy-to-middle-level, with the odd difficulty spike here and there. As they walked and Keepaway talked, though, the smell of cooking meat and seared greens — presumably, for both the ponies and non-ponies that will attend — wafted through the air. "Look, I'm not in charge of the actual preparations. I'm in charge of making sure my party doesn't blow up Carneville to kingdom come or do anything equally as stupid while we go hunt in the Everfree for your catering, and that's not going to go well if I have to play tour guide for your Nazalot flank. You can go talk to Luna over there," he gestured vaguely at a lovely-looking mare behind a counter, "she knows more than me." "EXPLOSION!" A loud boom shook the floorboards and made the tables jump, and Argent Silver put up a defensive shield out of sheer instinct, Vipress taking to the skies. The locals, however, didn't bat an eye, and continued drinking their mugs of cider. "Oh, Tartarus-damned — that's them!" "Well, Keepaway —" "Yes, I'm Keepaway." "...Thank you for pointing me in the right direction. I'll leave you to your… business." "Yeah, yeah, all in a day's work. Oy, Megaflare, you dolt — Dusk Darkness, why didn't you stop her…! — And stop calling me Creepaway!" As his voice faded past the doors and into an incoherent scolding, Argent tried to massage the headache away while Vipress dutifully checked the checkmark off the box. Luckily, the indigo-coated mare at the counter was far more rational and helped them assess the catering selection. Though, why a full-time receptionist would have a Cutie Mark of a moon was beyond her. "Well, that's catering out of the way." Vipress smiled, finishing off a spare rib. "The meat was really great, I wish you could have tried it." "One of the pitfalls of being a herbivore, I'm afraid," Argent said, before assessing the sky. …Hm. Already completely clear. Looks like their pegasus-on-hand was on top of the job, thankfully. One less thing to worry about. Weather, of course, could be considered an optional task, but it was easy enough for any pegasi to clear out a summer's day, so checking it off the list on the way wouldn't be any effort at all. Especially since the clouds were already gone. Maybe they'd set a clear sky schedule for this week? Or somepony decided to work in advance. Overtime is overtime, she supposed. "Hey, Argent!" Turning to whomever said her name, Argent Silver found a grey-coated, dark-maned pegasus, about the same age as Keepaway from earlier. His eyes had a distinctly stark look to them, which was in contrast with the all-too-friendly wave at her as he trotted up to her familiarly. What was with this town and the lack of stranger danger? "Ah, sorry, you've caught me wrong-hoofed," Argent Silver apologized, "do I know you?" The pegasus blanched, before laughing embarrassedly… or nervously, depending on how you looked at it. His Cutie Mark, now that he was close enough for her to look at it, was a dark swirl in the shape of an oval. Again, somewhat intimidating, if it wasn't for his amiable greeting. "Er… Guess not. I think we met somewhere and you just don't remember…? Well, I'm Zero Regret!" He raised a wing to the sky, smiling and winking. "Not only am I clueless, I'm broke beyond compare! …Well, I was, anyway. Nice to meet you!" Argent blinked. Vipress blinked. His smile didn't fade, not even a little bit. A tumbleweed blew past. He was still in the same pose. Deciding to break the stalemate, Argent kicked a rock before speaking. "...I'm guessing that's a force of habit." "A bit. From back when I.. well. Anyways! I got up real early just to make sure the skies were clear for Otherworld Day. You're new to town, right? I mean, Heartstopper let me know while I was working, so I figured I'd get some gifts for the newcomers!" Fishing something from a satchel, Zero Regret pulled out a bag of high-end coffee beans and a box of chocolates. Vipress immediately snatched up the sweets, while Argent tentatively took the coffee as she eyed Zero Regret suspiciously. A spy? No, the war was over. An agent of Being A? No, she hasn't returned yet. A member of a secret cult? Perhaps… but even the most basic of ponies knew that soldiers were trained in poison detection spells. Zero Regret started sweating under her stare, ruffling his feathers. "I figured coffee and chocolate were popular enough for you to like one of them… Let me know if you don't want them, though." "No," Argent waved off, stowing away her gift for later, "this is quite nice, actually. Well… we appreciate the hard work. Feel free to let us know of any important updates regarding the weather control. Thank you, Mr. Regret." "Please, call me Zero," he laughed, "I've had enough regrets already!" And with that horrible joke, Argent Silver bade him goodbye as fast as she could cringe at it. Catering and weather were squared off. If all else fails, their Overlord will be treated to a pleasant picnic on the outskirts of town. However, given the supreme immortal god-ruler of all of Equestria is coming, and not some small-town baron looking for a PR stunt, a summer picnic obviously wouldn't be enough, and Argent Silver was certain that Demon Urge would have her head if that's all she could muster. Hence, the next important part of the reception — the location. The more decadent, the better. Within budget, of course, but Argent hoped this small town had enough sense that they'd pour every last bit into the most publicity that Carneville's probably seen in decades. Inspecting the repurposed town hall, Argent was actually fairly impressed with the manpower that went into turning a municipal building into a place of celebration. As expected of somewhere like Carneville, they'd made the decision to host most of the celebration outside, like a true countryside festival, with some spaces reserved indoors. Perhaps not the most bourgeois of premises, but you can only punch up so high before falling flat. The only issue being… "A little to the left… okay, stop! Pivot! Rotate! Lift, Grobta, lift! Nevermind, let me help you!" …It was still under construction. Griffins, diamond dogs, and ponies alike were milling about working on construction. In the final stages by the looks of it, thank goodness, but still a bit disheartening compared to the Adventuring Guild's buffet or Zero Regret's one-stallion job. Oh well, you couldn't win them all. A diminutive griffon with green feathers struggled to lift what seemed to be the foundation for a raised platform — before an almost-entirely blue… Male? Female? …decidedly androgynous pegasus descended and helped them lift. Their Cutie Mark was a rain cloud watering a sapling. "Ah, Rainmaker! Thanks for the save! Sorry..." "It's no problem at all. Alright, on three. One, two…" "Ahem." A golden glow enveloped the construction piece they were lifting, and their eyes widened as it levitated into what the unicorn assumed to be the correct place. Slotting it into the ground, Argent let go of her magic. The griffon, Grobta stopped — stared at Vipress for an uncomfortable amount of time, mouth open — before giving Argent a hurried thanks before getting to work nailing it into place. The pegasus from earlier gave him a dirty look before turning to Argent. "Hey, thanks a bunch, stranger! Although…" The blue pegasus hummed, "Gotta say I've never seen a kid like you around here before. Not to mention the dragon…" "I'm not a child," Argent huffed, before shaking off her own displeasure, "but I'm pleased to make your acquaintance. My name is Argent Silver, and this is Vipress. We're our Overlord's official envoys to make sure things are going smoothly for Otherworld Day." "Oh, I see, I see. Well, I'm Rainmaker Tempest, and I'm not a bad pegasus." Argent tilted her head. "Is this town…" "...full of weird introductions? Yes, actually. For various reasons. Better get used to it while you can." Rainmaker chuckled. "Right," Argent sighed, "well, onto business. The premises look amazing in concept, but I'd hate for our esteemed guests, or worse, our Overlord to arrive at an unfinished product. Do you estimate you'll have it complete by the RSVP time, or will I need to ask to reallocate resources?" "Maa, maa, no need for that," Rainmaker waved off, giving her an easy-going smile, "my team has it covered. We started two days ago, so if we keep up the rate we're going at, we'll have it done in an hour." Two days? An hour?! The logistics train and working speed required for that sort of efficiency would require a miracle, to say the least! And then a very large dragon haphazardly slotted a pre-made roof onto the platform that was being made — which unfurled with full decor, banners and all. And just like that, the construction crew were onto another platform, already looking half-completed. "...I have my doubts, but I'll leave them in your capable hooves," Argent acquiesced, before continuing to ask some more technical questions. Rainmaker was as easygoing and carefree as they initially seemed, without much in the way of verbose knowledge, but where they lacked the ability to clarify, they simply pointed at the results of their labor. "Sorry, I usually have someone helping me answer the hard stuff," Rainmaker shrugged, giving her a what-can-you-do look, "but I can point you to a mare who knows the numbers, if you need." "It's fine, I've seen enough," Argent nodded, not wanting to hash out statistics for the majority of her time here, "I'll let you know if I need anything else." With that, Argent Silver and Vipress marched onwards. Grobta, in the meantime, almost dropped a plank on his face, watching Vipress leave. Rainmaker chopped him on the head for that one. With every task squared away, Argent felt more and more antsy to get to the library and hopefully find something related to Being A — and more importantly, find the peace and quiet required for her task. She could hardly think with the chaos that surrounded the citizens of Carneville, let alone cross-reference esoteric literature. Thankfully, the next item on the docket was the last of them all: fireworks. A staple in any countryside festival, but nobody would be heartbroken if they happened to be canceled. Which, even then, was unlikely, given there wasn't a cloud in the sky. The technician happened to live on the outskirts of town, which was logical enough for a pyrotechnics expert. Although, as she trotted down the winding dirt path, she had to wonder if maybe this person should live closer to the fire department… or any civilization at all. Were they a recluse of sorts? Well, it would at least be a break from the hustle and bustle she'd had to stomach. And then a searing heat washed over her body as she reflexively put up a defensive shield over herself and Vipress, upping it with heat resistance once she realized it was dragon fire. Mind whirling into combat mode, Argent Silver began levitating herself as she and Vipress took to the skies, magic missiles at the tip of her horn. Vipress snarled and covered Argent's rear, falling into a familiar flying formation that was more at home overseas than in Equestria.  Once the smoke cleared, an emerald dragon — not as large as the one on Rainmaker's team, but far larger than Vipress — revealed itself, wings unfurled and serpentine eyes burning with protective fury.  "Who goes there?! What are you doing on our territory?" "Soldiers of the Overlord." The Devil of Rhine stated, ice seeping into her tone, "stand down or be killed. I'm sure homeland security wouldn't mind the mess." "You dare threaten me, the great Torrent?! Little pony, I'll make sure that your very soul is thoroughly disintegrated by the time —" "Torrent." A chiding voice called out from behind the emerald dragon, and the drake in question balked with a "meep!" before almost comically scuttling away from the main path and revealing the source of the voice in question. An unassuming earth pony, with a white coat and her salmon-red mane tied into a loose ponytail, pushed up her glasses to glare at the great and powerful Torrent. She was the type of pony that Argent wouldn't even consider on the streets of Nazalot… except for the fact that she just scolded and talked down a dragon. Behind her, a smaller white dragon, about the size of a buffalo, trailed behind, rubbing the grog from her eyes cutely. "You woke up Kathode, and now she's hungry." "Eh?! But it's your turn to —" "She's your kid when you wake her up." "Aw… this isn't over, little pony!" The thoroughly-whipped dragon pointed an accusatory finger at Argent before flying off to the distant forest, presumed daughter in tow, who could only stare flabbergasted at the unbelievably domestic display in front of her. Vipress at least took the empathetic route. "You have a lovely child. We didn't mean to set off your wife like that, though…" The mare in front of her sighed. "Sorry, Torrent's just like that. Usually she's at least civilized, but she's been insisting that the waters of life and death are becoming troubled — whatever that means — and she hasn't been getting good sleep because of it." Alarm bells went off in Argent Silver's head. So her theory had evidence! …Granted, backed by an elder dragon who tried to kill her moments earlier, but the fact that her evidence came from an entirely independent source only further confirmed her suspicions. Not wanting to come off as a rambling lunatic, though, Argent pressed onwards. "Do keep her better in check. I shudder to think of what would happen if I didn't react in time… For the sake of brevity, I'll let bygones be bygones. Are you the pyrotechnician in charge of the fireworks for Otherworld Day?" "Kinda. I'm Code Break. The town asked if my wife and kid could supply a fireworks show, so I did it in exchange for a raise." Once more, another shrewd-minded individual. Was the population a binary between jaded ponies and eccentrics? "What's your usual job?" "Oh, rune-coding and runemaking. My Cutie Mark, see." Code Break showed off her flank — a Cutie Mark of a mountain with four runes carved onto its side. "Interesting… it's almost as if your Cutie Mark knew who your wife was going to be," Vipress remarked, making the connection between dragons and their mountain homes. Although Argent didn't put much stock into the fatalistic theories involving Cutie Marks, actual prescience was a known phenomenon, albeit extremely rare. "I just figured it's because I'm hard-headed. Did you want to stay for tea? I can ask Torrent and Kathode to show off the display, if you need a beta test, so to speak." "I'm afraid I have other matters to attend to. I just wanted to check that the fireworks would be ready to go, but if they won't be back soon, then it can wait. How long do they usually take?" Yet again, another explosion boomed in the distance — this time, from fire breath colliding with lightning break as two distant figures battled in the sky. If explosions were a regular occurrence in Carneville, Argent Silver may have to put this place on a watchlist… Code Break just sighed, tapping her hoof. "They just started playing, so pretty long. Well, I'll let you know if there are any developments." That was their idea of playing? It sounded like war out there. Nevertheless, Argent dismissed herself and thanked the stars that Code Break was there. To think, there was one sane pony in this town, and she didn't even live in the village proper… Finally, finally, Argent Silver was able to reach the Silver Wings Library. Jogging around Carneville in the dead heat was a chore, especially considering she still had to uncover the secrets revolving around Being A. Even Vipress was looking a little put out. Luckily, she still had plenty of physical energy left, so hopefully she could study well into the night without interruption. The Silver Wings Library was a decommissioned barracks, repurposed into a three-floor library. Its marble walls, gothic towers, and oaken foundations reminded Argent of her own hometown of Berun. Albeit, less the orphanage that she'd grown up in, more the government buildings that she'd found work in when she was younger. Finally setting foot in her temporary abode, Argent breathed a sigh of relief and — "SURPRISE!" Heartstopper set off a party popper. Curses.