[Sweet Cakes Shoppe - Evening]
Gregory sat at a booth in the shop run by Mrs. Cake, Pinkie, and Bon Bon. Across from him the other two humans sat. Pinkie Pie was sitting in Gregory’s lap, eyes closed and making a purring sound as he stroked her mane affectionately. Standing next to the table was Bon Bon, who was looking at the two humans with a small frown before she turned back to Gregory. “If they’re fans of the show like you, does that mean they know about you-know-what?”
Gregory looked up at the earth pony. “I suspect they know as much as I know, which is next to nothing.”
Bon Bon took a deep breath and exhaled. “Alright. I trust you now, so do you think they’d be trustworthy?”
“I’m still determining that,” Gregory reassured her. “I’ll let you know.”
“I’ll hold you to that,” Bon Bon said.
“Relax, Bonnie,” Pinkie said with a silly looking smile as Gregory scratched behind her ears, “it’ll be fine.”
“Hmm…we’ll see,” Bon Bon said as she turned and headed back to the kitchen to place all four of their orders. Soon, their orders came and all began to eat.
Andrew and Stacy sat either eating a few sweets and drinking either milk or hot cocoa. The two spent most of the day meeting the remainder of the main six and learning from them. They even learned the love story between the human and the Dragon Lord.
From everything they’d learned about the Mane Six, they had mixed feelings about their situations. On one hand they still felt conflicted about Jason’s choice of punishment but on the other hand they understood why they would feel the need to accept it. But the day was still nice except for the fact Andrew had to prevent Stacy from hugging Fluttershy too tightly.
After taking another bite of a donut, Andrew turned to Stacy. “You gonna contact Howard after this to let him know everything we learned?”
“Shoot, should’ve done that when we were back at the station meeting Twilight,” Stacy said as she looked toward Gregory. “Mind if I go and do that? I’ll meet back up with you guys at your apartment.”
Gregory, who was still stroking Pinkie’s wavy mane, looked up. “Just don’t leave the city and you’ll be fine.”
“Sure thing, I’ll be in and out in a few minutes,” she said as she got up and left, leaving the guys and Pinkie alone.
After she left, Pinkie sat up and actually rubbed her forehead against Gregory’s cheek like a cat. Gregory smirked. “You better quit before my fiancée comes in and goes on a jealous rampage again.”
Pinkie giggled and gave his cheek a quick lick before settling back into his lap. “She knows I like my Gregory-Grade headpats.”
“Silly filly,” Gregory smirked.
“I swear you're gonna give me a heart attack with the cuteness,” Andrew said.
Gregory chuckled. “You should have seen what happened when she and I and my two guards went to Berry Punch’s old bar back in Ponyville,” Gregory chuckled. “We were flirting up a storm.”
“I can’t tell if you're a teacher or a mare magnet,” Andrew teased.
“Nah, Ember’s the only woman for me,” Gregory said.
Just then the door to the sweet shop opened and three very familiar fillies came in. They looked around and Applebloom spotted Gregory. “Professor Graystone!” she shouted as she and the other two came over, Scootaloo hovering in the air with her wings buzzing.
“Hey hey hey, if it isn’t three of my favorite fillies,” Gregory said as he scooted over. Sweetie Belle jumped up and began to accept more headpats from the human.
“First of all how would Cozy feel if she heard you say that, and secondly why can’t I have some of that?” Andrew complained.
Applebloom finally noticed Andrew and her eyes went wide. “Another human??” she asked in shock.
“It’s okay, AB,” Gregory reassured her, “he’s a town guest.”
Applebloom tentatively walked up to him and put her forelegs up onto the bench where Andrew was sitting. “Well, if Professor Graystone says you’re okay, then I guess that’s alright.”
“You’re not gonna do something bad here, are you?” Scootaloo asked, hovering behind her friend.
‘She’s adorable in real life, don’t do anything silly,’ Andrew thought. “Not to a pair of cute munchkins like you,” he said smiling. ‘Doh!’ he thought.
Gregory smiled. “If they’re okay with it, you can pet them too. Ponies absolutely go wild for headpats. I’ve even given Sunbutt headpats and belly rubs.”
“Really?” Andrew asked as he placed a hand on Applebloom’s head.
As Applebloom jumped onto his lap and laid down in a ponyloaf on Andrew’s lap, Gregory nodded. “Tia’s a real snugglebug. When Ember found her in my lap asleep she wasn’t really happy.”
Andrew just started petting the yellow filly like a cat, feeling her soft fur against his hand. His mind felt like eternal bliss. Scootaloo came up on his other side, looking a bit unsure about him, but once Andrew began scratching her mane, she relaxed immediately. Gregory could only chuckle. “Cozy goes absolutely crazy for these. Mabel and Dipper do, too.”
“Wait, Mabel and Dipper? Are they two foals who fought a giant triangle?” Andrew asked with Amusement.
Gregory chuckled. “Nah, but their voices sound an awful lot like those Gravity Falls characters. Those two both have insane imaginations, though. Anyway, what are you thinking now about Jason?”
“Well to be honest- oh wait you can sense it anyway,” Andrew said.
“That doesn’t mean I don’t want to hear it from you,” Gregory replied.
“Right. Well anyway, I feel pretty conflicted. I came here to undo the pain of two of my favorite ponies who brighten up my day and give my world color, but after what I learned today, well I’m not sure what to think anymore.”
“I was like you once. Still kind of am,” Gregory admitted. “But I very quickly learned about how cruel this world can be.”
Pinkie sat up and nuzzled Gregory’s cheek gently, making Gregory smile. “But this world is pretty, too. Right?”
Gregory chuckled and nodded. “Very. I love it here. There’s a nice big forest full of glowing crystals that looks an awful lot like Bridlewood, the mountains nearby are gorgeous, and there’s actually a nice natural bay nearby. I plan on taking my family there this summer for a beach day.” Pinkie’s smile grew knowing, and she leaned in to whisper something into Gregory’s ear, making the human blush. “Oh, yes. Definitely,” he agreed. He faced Andrew again. “You and your companions need to really get it through your heads that this isn’t the show.”
“I understand that and I’m sure Stacy does too,” Andrew replied, “and that’s most likely what she’s going to inform Howard and the others.”
“I certainly hope so,” Gregory replied. “The last thing we need are naive and insane bronies and pegasisters taking their anger at their favorite ponies getting their just desserts and calling it ‘justice’. The Gjallarhorn wouldn’t have done anything if what Jason had done was wrong. It’s, for lack of a better word, a holy relic.”
“Heh, and here I thought the Holy Bible would be a human’s best relic,” Andrew said with a smile.
Gregory smirked. “The creatures of this world believe in a goddess called Faust. I’m not even joking.”
“Huh, who knew brony headcanons would come true here. What’s next, Doctor Whooves being the real Doctor?”
“Nah, I checked that out. He’s just an eccentric inventor. I actually made a couple headcanons real. Human loving Lyra and Gamer Luna were all on me.”
“Heh, nice, so are we going to your apartment soon? As much as I like sweets. I prefer a decent home cooked meal for dinner.”
Gregory nodded. “Once these needy fillies get off of our laps.”
Andrew didn’t notice until now but a certain white unicorn filly had left Gregory’s lap to join in too and he didn’t realize one of his hands was on her back. His heart once again melted. “So…cute…”
[The Iron War Horse - Around The Same Time]
“Stacy to base, come in,” Stacy spoke into the radio only to be met with static. “Base this is Stacy, please respond,” she repeated, only to receive no answer again. “This can’t be right, Howard promised someone on the radio at all times,” she said to herself.
At that moment a knock came from the nearby open door. Stacy turned and there stood Twilight Sparkle. “Is something the matter here?” the alicorn asked.
“Yeah, for some reason our team isn’t responding,” Stacy said worriedly.
Twilight took on a thoughtful look. “Maybe they’re away?” she suggested.
“No, our rules state the base radio is to be monitored at all times, no exceptions,” Stacy explained.
“Could it be broken?” Twilight asked.
“No, I spoke to them earlier. You did tell me no one came in since we arrived, right?” she asked.
Twilight nodded. “Objects from your world act very strangely on Gaia,” Twilight explained. “Gregory was even able to permanently kill a Timberwolf with his weapons. I made sure nobody got into the vehicle.”
“Well first off this is a locomotive and secondly these things were working fine even after we came here,” she stated.
“Then maybe something’s happening over there that requires all hooves-er, hands-on deck?” Twilight suggested.
“Maybe. Or it could be some kind of interference,” Stacy said.
“That’s highly possible,” Twilight said. “I’m not too familiar with your world’s technology even now.”
Stacy sighed and got up. “I’ll try again first thing in the morning. For now I could use some real dinner. Want to join me and my friends?”
Twilight’s ears perked up. “Sure. I’ll bring Spike along, too. He likes going over to Gregory’s place especially after our first Thanksgiving there.” With that, she turned and trotted back to the town, a bit of pep in her step.
[The Everfree Forest - Moments Later]
A chariot flew high above the trees as the two passengers took in the view. Jason could only look onward, his mind filled with so many thoughts on what was going on. While he was surprised by the opportunity to meet more humans, the voices in his head were giving him a bad feeling about the situation. It was why he and Chrysalis had agreed to send some disguised changelings down in the form of actual insects and small animals.
“Hmm. I used to think changelings had size limits for change,” he said.
“Then you thought wrong,” Chrysalis chuckled. “Even in your show, when Thorax usurped my throne he managed to turn into a creature larger than himself. It’s easy but takes practice.”
“Hmm…okay, I think I see something that looks like a small camp at that clearing over there,” Jason said, pointing to the edge of the forest.
The chariot soon landed and Jason hopped out. The camp had three humans cooking something over a fire with a tent nearby Two of them retreated into the tent, looking a bit scared. Jason raised his hand. “She’s with me,” he called out.
“Sorry,but she actually gave nightmare fuel to some of these guys! Look, it won’t be long, so can she at least stay at that distance?” the remaining human called out.
“Sure, but I’m staying here too,” Jason called out, pulling out the letter and holding it up. “I got a letter from someone named Howard. Is he here?”
“Yeah, he’s in that tent. He’s been looking forward to meeting you and Gregory.” the human called.
“Is Gregory here yet?” Jason asked.
“Yeah, he’s in the tent with Howard.”
Jason frowned. He knew Gregory might be a bit silly, but he knew that the younger icicle wouldn’t be that stupid. His suspicions were confirmed when Chrysalis leaned down and whispered, “He’s lying.”
Jason didn’t react. Instead, he called out, “Well that’s good. Is his girlfriend here too?”
The other human flinched a bit. “Uh, no. I think she went away, you know how scary this forest can be.”
Jason crossed his arms. “I lived here for three fucking years. If I can deal with it, so can she.” He lowered his voice and whispered to Chrysalis, “I think it’s time to run.”
Chrysalis nodded, then raised her horn to signal for her other changelings to converge on their position. Jason held his hands behind his back, charging his own magic up just in case. “They’re on their way,” she whispered.
Jason nodded, then turned to the human he was talking to. “I’ll stay here until Gregory’s done there!”
“Okay that’s fine!” the human said as he poked his head inside the nearby tent. “He’s on to us. Prepare for plan B,” he whispered.
The drones were slowly making their way closer. The other human ran out looking scared. “Uh sir, we might need your help. Looks like Gregory is having an allergic reaction. We might need your chariot to get him to a hospital!”
Jason pretended to look concerned. “Quick, bring him out and we’ll fly him to Canterlot! They treated him when he was attacked by ponies a year ago!”
The two other humans who had retreated earlier came out carrying a stretcher with something covered by sheets but the head part was blocked by something.
Chrysalis tilted her head to the side, listening to something only she could hear. Her eyes widened and she whispered, “My changelings are feeling others approaching from all around. We may need to teleport out. Put your hand on my withers just in case.”
Soon the stretcher came but all of a sudden everything happened at once. One human reached underneath the sheets and suddenly Chrysalis’s face was met with a metal baseball bat which passed through her shield, sending her sprawling. Jason lifted his hands, which were now glowing green, and picked up several nearby rocks and hurled them at the nearest human, hitting him in the head and sending him sprawling with blood pouring from a deep gash. He ducked and avoided a swing from the bat before he shoved the second human away with his telekinesis, sending him flying into the air. The human fell crying in terror, only for the cry to be cut the moment he hit the ground with a hard thud.
However, the third human had an advantage and jabbed something in his chest. He pulled out to reveal a syringe. Several changelings appeared in green flames and began firing magic at the humans who had attacked Jason. The magic hit a couple others and sent them flying back.
“Freeze! You're surrounded!” a voice yelled.
The drones turned to see five more humans appear from the bushes. All were holding melee weapons. “Uh oh,” a rather thick changeling said nervously.
Pharynx smirked. “Psh, we can take them.” More humans emerged holding more weapons, all aimed at the changelings. Pharynx frowned nervously. He was familiar with human weapons after Jason told him about their effect on magic in this world. “Uh or maybe…” A tent collapsed revealing a bulldozer with more humans with deadlier weapons standing on or around it. “Never mind.”
“Well, Jason, how do you feel? Defeated, sleepy or both?” one of the humans asked with a sneer. Jason tried to get something out before he collapsed, completely unconscious. “Put him in the Dozer and tie up the changelings.”
However, before they could even grab said changelings, Chrysalis stood. Her eyes blazed green with utter hatred and she began to glow. Pharynx looked up at his queen in fear and understanding. He turned to the other drones. “Tactical retreat, now!” With that, the other drones spread their wings and zipped up into the air.
Chrysalis began to transform, and this transformation was by far the most terrifying thing these humans had ever seen. She became massive, using her changeling magic to become a large reptilian creature. A creature that looked to the remaining humans like Godzilla. “Release my mate! NOW!” a deep monstrous voice called out in pure fury.
The humans looked up in fear, but one of them picked up a radio. “Boss…”
“I see it. FIRE IN THE HOLE!”
A distant bang was heard as a giant fireball came over the horizon of trees and they knew a monster of her size would not react fast enough. Thanks to the weapon being from Earth, when the fireball struck Chrysalis, she was sent flying, transforming back into her natural form and being knocked unconscious once more. She flew into the forest and was lost to sight.
“Alright, everyone, let's load up and head back to base.” With the order given, the camp was struck, and the now unconscious Jason was taken away.
[Yggdrasil - Gregory’s Apartment]
The mood in the apartment could be considered wholesome as Andrew, Gregory, and his family sat down to dinner. They knew it wouldn’t be long before Stacy could join them. Gregory had prepared locally made fried chicken, although he had explained that it wasn’t quite made from the poultry they were used to, but instead were made from a dumber and bigger counterpart. For Twilight and Cozy he made a special macaroni salad along with a vegetarian lasagna.
“Wow, this is more delicious than what Chick-fil-A makes. My compliments to the chef,” Andrew marveled as he took a bite.
“It took me a while to get it right,” Gregory admitted, “but I got there in the end. I even managed to make a type of hamburger from hydra meat.”
“Huh…not sure if I want to know if hydras are sentient but I won’t question it.”
“Some of the first local meat I ate here was hydra steak,” Gregory said looking over at Ember. He gave her a grin as he turned back. “There are a lot of different meats that carnivores can eat here aside from fish. Jackalope is pretty good.”
“Good to know,” Andrew said as he took the last bite of his meal. “With all that I don’t think I want dessert.”
“There’s always room for dessert,” Gregory snickered, “especially when I have some locally made chocolates from Bon Bon herself. That mare can make them really well. See’s Candies could learn a thing or two from her.”
“Well maybe I might sample it after I let a bit of dinner digest, maybe some dancing could help.”
Gregory nodded and walked to a cupboard. Cozy’s eyes shot open wider. “Dancing? You can dance? Daddy can dance too!”
“Not too well,” Gregory admitted as he brought over a pink box of chocolates and set it on the table.
“Well have you taught the ponies many dances like the YMCA or the gangnam style?”
“I’ve shown them a few, including the Chicken Dance, the Macarena, and I even tried to teach slow dancing to Ember here,” he said, gesturing to the frowning dragoness.
“Dragons don’t do dancing,” she retorted, a blush on her face.
“Well mind if I teach your daughter some dancing that is not well known but fun?” Andrew Asked as he pulled out his phone.
Cozy’s wings flapped excitedly as she gave Gregory the cutest puppy eyes. Unlike the false ones in the show, these were entirely genuine. Gregory rolled his eyes, then pulled Cozy into a hug and kissed her forehead. “Go ahead, sweetie.”
The two went where there was more space. Andrew hit play on his phone and placed it on a nearby table. “Oh hang on a bit,” Gregory said as he stood and rushed to the entertainment center. He grabbed a small speaker and turned it on. “Connect to this,” he said as he handed Andrew the aux cord.
He plugged it in and pressed play again. The song started with a bit of jazz piano intro. Andrew then started dancing as the singing started.
“Now there's a brand new dance that has just hit town.
“It won't take you long until you get it down.”
“It's called the Boxcar Boogie.
“It's called the Boxcar Boogie.
“It's called the Boxcar Boogie just a rollin' down the railroad track.”
Andrew decided to sing along, dancing and grinning as Cozy giggled while dancing along with him.
“Now you just play it cool and hang real loose,
“then shuffle your hooves and shake your caboose.”
“It's called the Boxcar Boogie.
“It's called the Boxcar Boogie.
“It's called the Boxcar Boogie just a rollin' down the railroad track.”
It wasn’t long until it felt like a small earthquake in the room with many individuals dancing to the beat.
“You can feel a tingle goin' up your back.
“When you’re chuggin' along down the railroad track.”
“It's called the Boxcar Boogie.
“It's called the Boxcar Boogie.
“It's called the Boxcar Boogie just a rollin' down the railroad track.”
Andrew took a moment to observe the scene before him. He looked over to see Spike and Twilight really getting groovy as they danced side by side. He then turned to the family of three. Cozy was dancing and giggling, while Gregory watched with amusement as he tapped his foot and clapped his hands to the beat. Ember wasn’t dancing. She just watched with her arms crossed.
“It's called the Boxcar Boogie.
“It's called the Boxcar Boogie.
“It's called the Boxcar Boogie just a rollin' down the railroad track.”
Gregory then saw Stacy leave the bathroom after washing up. She looked troubled for a moment but smiled upon seeing the scene. Gregory wondered when she’d shown up, but shrugged and continued watching the dance go down.
“It's called the Boxcar Boogie just a rollin' down the railroad track.
“It's called the Boxcar Boogie just a rollin' down the railroad track.”
As the song ended, Gregory clapped. “I’m gonna need to get that on my computers and iPhone,” he said. “You got the mp3 on a computer I can copy?”
“Stacy can help with her laptop. Right, Stacy?” Andrew asked, turning to her.
Stacy was looking down looking a bit anxious but perked up. “S-Sure I can help with that,” she said, sounding a bit distracted.
Gregory raised an eyebrow. “I sense you’re worried about something,” he said. “Is everything okay?”
“I’m not worried, just confused,” she replied. “I was trying to make contact with home base but I didn’t get an answer.”
Now it was Andrew’s turn to be confused. “You sure? I’m certain the boss would always have someone watching the radio.”
“How many of you are there again?” Gregory asked.
“About twenty of us, maybe slightly more.”
“Not many, but still, that’s concerning.” Gregory stroked his chin thoughtfully.
At that moment there was a knock at the door. Cozy went to answer it only to reveal Princess Luna. “Ah, Sir Gregory, you're still here. I thought for sure you left already.”
“Left? Left for where?” he asked.
“The Everfree Forest, Prince Blueblood came back with a letter that was meant for you and Jason to meet.”
Gregory looked more confused. “I didn’t get any letter,” he said, turning to Andrew and Stacy. “Do you know anything about this?”
“Our mission was to explore and find either Ponyville citizens or Jason,” Andrew said.
Stacy pondered this for a moment, then she looked up, her face filled with fear and realization. Andrew immediately noticed this. “Stacy, what's wrong?”
“Andrew, we need to fire up the train right now!” she exclaimed.
“What’s going on?” Gregory asked, looking less confused and more worried.
Stacy was quickly gathering her belongings. “If there’s one thing I know about Howard, it’s that he has a habit of taking drastic measures without thinking too much. We need to move!”
Gregory was immediately on the move himself. He walked over to a nearby chest and opened it. He pulled out a few weapons, such as a shotgun, an assault rifle, two pistols, a pair of long knives and a pair of short ones. He turned to Cozy. “Sweetie, Daddy’s gonna have to go for a while.” He turned to Twilight. “Can she stay with you and Spike?”
Twilight nodded immediately. “Of course she can. I can help you pack, Cozy.”
Cozy looked nervous, but nodded as she, Twilight and Spike went to her room to help her pack for a stay with Twilight. Gregory looked back at the two humans. “I can’t believe you follow this guy,” he said as he pulled out some ammunition and stuffed it into a backpack.
“In our defense, he founded this group and pioneered portal travel for this world.” Andrew said as he hoisted his backpack.
“He sounds like a sadistic bastard and he needs to be stopped before he hurts or kills Jason,” Gregory snarled.
“You don’t expect me not to come, do you?” Ember asked, grinning as smoke came from her mouth.
“I know I can’t stop you,” Gregory chuckled, “so why don’t you gather a few dragons and meet us back where Ponyville used to be?”
Ember nodded, spread her wings, and walked over to the balcony door. She threw it open and flew away. “I’ll let my guards know what’s going on immediately,” Luna said as she teleported out.
Twilight came back in, looking up at Andrew and Stacy. “Please rescue Jason,” she begged. “He’s been through too much already.”
“I’ll do my best,” Andrew said
“Like my dad taught me, a good soldier leaves no friend behind,” Stacy said.
“Good,” Gregory said. He gripped his backpack and looked back at the two. “Let’s get moving. We have a stupid brony to beat down.”
The group were racing towards the train station when suddenly a green flash appeared before them. A battered and bruised Chrysalis appeared, eyes full of malice and fury. When she saw the two new humans, she lifted Gregory and placed him away from them. “Back away, Gregory!” she hissed.
“That’s not a good sign,” Andrew muttered.
Gregory immediately put a hand on Chrysalis’ withers. “Talk to me, Bug Horse. What happened?”
Chrysalis lifted a hoof and pointed it shakily at the two newcomers. “Their companions abducted my mate! They took Jason!”
Gregory’s own fury began to rise as he slowly looked back at the two. “Is this Howard guy a fucking moron? Does he think nobody would notice if one of the two humans in the world was captured, especially the mate of the changeling queen?”
Stacy slowly approached the queen, hands raised. “Did they attack you with a super weapon?” she asked.
“It was a damned fireball!” Chrysalis snarled, narrowing her eyes at the human female, her horn glowing brighter.
“The K5 railgun,” Andrew muttered.
“And here I thought I was bringing too much with my weapons,” Gregory said. He spun on the two. “You brought a fucking RAILGUN TO GAIA?!”
“Howard assured us it was for bigger threats bigger than the Storm King.”
“AND YOU BELIEVED HIM?!” Gregory bellowed, a blast of cold air erupting from him. He took a deep breath and the cold air around them dissipated. “It’s clear to me that the people he recruited are mostly all naive and gullible.” He turned to Chrysalis. “I don’t have time to explain what’s going on, but I’m asking for your help. We need reinforcements. There are only around twenty humans here. These two are trying to help us, so don’t attack them.”
“I’ll rain down all the might of the changelings on them!” Chrysalis snapped back before looking at the two humans. “If I find that my mate has been harmed in any way, tell your superiors I will show no. Fucking. Mercy!” With that, she teleported away.
Andrew shook off the shock and started running again with the others. Soon the station came into view with the black diesel and tank car still sitting there. “Get on board quickly.”
“Alright, just one more thing to bring out,” Gregory said. He held out his hand and a swirling vortex appeared on the ground below his hand. A simple metal pole with a glowing crystal on top shot out and he grabbed it. “Ready. Let’s go.” He jumped in.
“Andrew? Remind me again of this unit and its power?” Stacy asked.
“Uh, a couple thousand horses. She’s not a hotshot like her modern friends but she still has a lot of life left,” Andrew explained.
“You’d better hope we get there before Chrysalis does,” Gregory said. “If she gets there, let’s just say your idiot commander signed his own death warrant by attacking an ally of Equestria.”
Andrew gulped and proceeded to throttle up the engine. Luckily, Haven City had a railroad turnaround which they used as quickly as they could.
Gregory took a breath, then sat in a chair and closed his eyes. The metal staff’s crystal near him began glowing a soft white as did the two rings on his fingers. Power radiated from him, and the air cooled around them, but nothing uncomfortable for anyone. Gregory’s face became placid and soon it seemed as if he was in a meditative state.
The train whistled as it left Haven City and into the night. It and the three passengers aboard her traveled quickly towards the scarred land that was once Ponyville.