//------------------------------// // A Mission Of Friendship // Story: Geoverse Part One: To Friend Is Human // by GeodesicDragon //------------------------------// Twilight and her friends sat in silence, looking over the edge of the chariot at the Everfree Forest passing by underneath them. She looked back the way they had come – sighing at the sight of the forest stretching back as far as her eyes could see – and turned to her friends. "Are we all clear on what we need to do?" "Yep," Rainbow Dash replied, puffing out her chest. "We find the humans and ask them if they want to be our friends. If they refuse, then we give 'em a taste of the Elements!" "No, Rainbow." Applejack shook her head. "We only use the Elements if'n these humans try ta hurt us. If they refuse our offer of friendship, then we try an' persuade them ta take it." "Ooh!" squealed Pinkie Pie. "How about I offer to throw them a party? We all know that nopony can resist my parties!" Applejack glared at her. "They stole from us, Pinkie," she said bitterly. "They need to answer fer that first." "Oh, I forgot about that." Pinkie's mane and tail deflated entirely. "Come on, girls, maybe they're not as bad as we think," Fluttershy chimed in. "Maybe they took those supplies because they were hungry, and didn't know what else to do?" "Or maybe they did it because they knew that we wouldn't be able to fight back?" Dash growled. "I swear, if they try anything, I'll—" "Maybe they're scared?" Rarity offered, prompting the others to look at her. "Think about it, girls, these humans have come from a world in which theirs is the dominant species, only to then somehow end up in a world where it is not." "So when they meet ponies for the first time, they find it difficult to comprehend," Twilight offered. "After all, let's not forget how Geo acted when he met us; pinching himself like that." Rarity nodded. "Exactly," she said. "So as soon as they saw those ponies, their 'fight or flight' reflexes kicked in, and they chose the former. Once they've listened to reason, I am more than confident that they will want to accept our offer of friendship." "Wow, Rarity." Dash stifled a giggle. "That wasn't like you." "And what, pray tell, is that supposed to mean?" Rarity huffed. "Well..." Dash grinned. "Usually Twilight says the smart stuff." The six of them shared a laugh before a cough distracted them. "We're approaching our destination, Elements," said one of the guards pulling the chariot. "Get ready to disembark." Twilight nodded and turned to the others. "Okay, everypony." she took in a breath and let it out. "Are we ready?" "READY!" came the chorused reply. *** I had been following the chariot for ages; I was tired, sweaty and covered in mud. So when I saw the thing finally beginning to descend towards a clearing, I sighed happily — then went to hide behind a tree, ready to surprise my friends. *** As the chariot touched down in the clearing the six mares disembarked, each of them with a look of concern on her face. "Best of luck to you, Bearers," the second guard said. "May the Princesses watch over all of you." With those, words he and his colleague took off, leaving the six ponies in the clearing. "Am I the only one who thinks we've been here before?" Rarity asked. "There's something about this place..." Twilight looked around. "I feel that way too, Rarity, but I can't put my hoof on why," she replied. "Anyway, girls, Princess Luna said that the humans were camping near here, so let's get going." "Just tell us what to do, Twilight," Dash replied. "Okay, Rainbow Dash," Twilight replied. "Fly above the trees and see if you can spot any signs of a camp." Rainbow Dash nodded and took to the sky, hovering high above the trees and scanning the surrounding area. Suddenly she pointed and shouted down to the others. "Over there, to the west! I can see a campfire, and it's definitely not one of Zecora's." "Okay then, everypony, let's go!" Twilight commanded. The others nodded and started walking, while Twilight had another look around. Her gaze soon fell upon something on the ground, prompting her to go over and look at it. "Um, Twilight?" Fluttershy asked, noticing Twilight's change of direction. "Where are you going?" Twilight stood motionless, her gaze fixed firmly on a patch of grass. Swallowing a lump in her throat, she finally spoke. "You were right, Rarity," she croaked. "We have been here before. Look." She pointed at the ground, and the others followed her gaze. Their eyes soon came to rest on a patch of dried blood. "Of course!" Rarity chimed. "This is where we first met Geo!" "Yes, it was," Twilight said. "Oh, I hope he's all right." "Me?" a voice from the trees made the girls jump. "I'm just great." *** I stepped out into the clearing, much to the surprise of my friends, and held out my arms as Twilight ran up to me for a hug. "Geo," she demanded. "What the hell are you doing here?" "I could ask you the same thing, Twilight," I replied. "I saw the chariot coming this way and figured I wasn't prepared to stand idly by and let you face danger without me." "Aww," Twilight cooed. "You really do care about me." She paused for a moment and developed a serious expression. "We're here on a mission from the Princesses; more humans have appeared, and they want us to find them so we can extend the hoof of friendship." "I thought they were all dead?" I asked, clearly confused. "So did we." Twilight shrugged. "We honestly have no idea how they got here, but I guess we'll find out soon enough." "Okay then, let's go over and introduce ourselves." I started walking, only to come to a halt as Twilight grabbed my jacket. "We have to do this ourselves," she said sadly. "Celestia and Luna are worried that these humans are dangerous." She sighed. "After all, they did attack a supply convoy bound for Appleoosa." "Well that settles it, then," I said sternly, folding my arms. "You're my friends – and my lover – and I will not let you face them on your own. I'm coming with you, so like it or lump it." "Shoot, y'all," Applejack laughed. "He's just as stubborn as Ah am." "Okay, you can come with us." Twilight smiled and got up on her hind legs to nuzzle my chest. "Thank you." With those words, we started walking. *** As we got closer to the camp, we could smell on the breeze something that I hadn't smelled for a long time, and that made the girls grimace in horror: the smell of freshly cooked meat. The humans in the camp had obviously been capturing and cooking the local wildlife, much to Fluttershy's dismay. I have to admit that the smell made me want to salivate, but I managed to control my carnivorous urge and continued walking. We soon had the camp in our sights, and saw that the occupants appeared to be home; they were staying inside their makeshift hut. Twilight took a few steps forward before I stopped her. "Wait," I said. "Are you sure about this?" "It's okay, Geo, really," she replied. "We'll be fine, and you're with us." I gave her a quick kiss before she turned to the others. "Is everypony ready?" She asked them, to which they nodded. "I'll stay here," I said. "But if you need me, I'll be there in a flash." "Okay." Twilight gave me a quick nuzzle, then entered the camp with the rest of the girls and cleared her throat. "Hello?" She announced. There was a shout of panic, followed by a few thuds. "Who's there?!" a male voice shouted. "What do you want?!" "My name is Twilight Sparkle," she replied. "And these are—" "Oh, fucking hell," another voice wailed. "It's more of those freaky horses! I thought we were done with that shit?" "Hey!" Rainbow Dash yelled back, her breathing quickening as she stomped a hoof into the ground. "We're ponies, not horses!" "We don't care, just fuck off!" the voice was a mixture of panic and anger. "This isn't happening, this isn't happening..." I decided to try my luck, and walked into the camp. "Come on, guys," I said. "That's no way to talk to a mare." "Fuck off, you pony bastard!" came the reply. "I'm not a pony, actually," I calmly replied. "I'm a human just like you." There was a pause. "And if you don't believe me, come on out and see for yourselves. No reason why we can't be civil, right?" Nothing happened for a moment, but eventually the door to the hut creaked open and a figure emerged with his back to us. "I can't believe this..." he said as he turned around. "Of all the people I could have come across in this place, I had to meet you again." I gasped. "Derek..." Twilight looked at me. "You know him?!" she asked. "Yes," I replied quietly. "He's the man who shot me."