00:05:00 after event; Western Frontier Command Center
“What the heck just happened?” General Herman shouted into the radio.
“I’m not sure, General,” came Brigadier Betty’s reply. “It looked like somebody activated the Staff in the middle of the ocean.” Betty was at Fort Omaha in the Dune Sea, and so had a much better view of what had happened.
“It sure did look like it, but it can’t be,” Herman argued. “The Empress has the Staff locked up tight in the Imperial Palace. It’s a long way away from whatever that was.”
“Do you want me to check it out?” Betty asked. “I am in the area, relatively speaking.”
“Affirmative. Take some ships and naval transports with you,” Herman ordered. “There’s no telling what’s waiting for us now.” He put down the radio and said, “I’ve got a bad feeling about this.”
00:30:00 after event; Canterlot throne room
“Discord, what did you do this time?” Celestia asked, surprisingly calm.
“To be honest, Celestia, I truly don’t know,” the draqueonus replied. “I just played a flugelhorn from the Crystal Empire, and then this… whatever it was happened.”
“Great. That’s just great,” Celestia sighed. “Well, whatever you did, it’s big. I’ve received reports from Baltimare. There seems to be something approaching from the east, over the water. I’ve sent Rainbow Dash to investigate.”
Discord did a double take. “You’re sending her? Instead of any of the royal guards stationed in Baltimare? I’m not one to complain, but really, that pegasus can cause almost as much havoc as I can. It would be like sending Pinkie Pie to calm a stampeding herd of buffalo.”
Celestia winced. “When you put it like that…”
1:00:00 after event; 50 miles east of Baltimare
“What the heck is that?” Betty asked, pointing towards the rapidly approaching shore. “I flew over this part of the world multiple times, but have never seen anything but water for miles around.” The grunt piloting the naval transport just shrugged. He had been here before, too; this wasn’t supposed to be here. Those buildings in the distance were especially weird.
“Well, whatever it is,” the Brigadier said, “I bet it’s the cause of whatever just happened. Step on it, soldier!”
Just then, something flew overhead, leaving a trail of rainbow. Betty stared at it in awe as it made a sharp one eighty and flew back towards the ships; not even the most skilled fighter pilots were daring enough to even attempt that, and none could fly nearly that fast. As the thing got closer, she began to make out a few details. The most important detail was that it had wings, and they weren’t fixed like a fighter’s. That meant it must be a bird of some sort. But what kind of bird could out-speed a fighter?
A few seconds later, it landed on one of the ships. Coincidentally, it just happened to be the same transport that Betty was riding in. She had been wrong. It wasn’t a bird; it actually seemed to be a pony with wings. In addition, it was bright blue, with a multicolored mane and tail. Betty had seen many strange things in her lifetime, but this trumped them all.
Then, it spoke.
“What are you looking at?” it asked. “Haven’t you seen a pegasus before?” Betty noticed that she, and the entire unit in the transport, was staring at the newcomer. “Wait a second, this is strange,” the pony said. “I thought griffons were to the east. You aren’t griffons. What are you guys?”
The Brigadier cleared her throat. “Umm… hello? My name’s Brigadier Betty, and I am a human. You said you are a pegasus, right? What’s your name?”
The pegasus blinked. “Wow, you can understand me? I half expected that you wouldn’t be able to. Uh… my name’s Rainbow Dash, and yeah, I’m a pegasus pony. Dang, I thought humans were an old mare’s tale. I can’t believe I’m talking to one right now. Oh, I gotta tell Princess Celestia about this!” With that, she (Betty assumed it was a female, going by the voice) flew off as quickly as she had appeared, streaking towards the land.
“Well, what are you waiting for?” Betty asked the ship’s captain. “Follow that rainbow! There seems to be a bay over there you can land in.”
1:15:00 after event; Canterlot throne room
“Assuming Twilight’s right about Rainbow Dash’s penchant for smashing through windows,” Celestia said, “we’re about to get a report, Luna. I would throw open the eastern window if I were you.”
As soon as Luna did as she was instructed, Rainbow crashed into the throne room, sliding to a stop at Princess Celestia’s hooves.
“Pray tell, Rainbow Dash,” Luna began, “What became of your trip? Why dost thou fly with such haste?”
Rainbow quickly sat up. “I met some humans!” she blurted out. “They have a small fleet of large metal ships, and are headed towards Horseshoe Bay. They can understand our language, and speak it too. The one human who spoke to me called herself Brigadier Betty.”
Celestia furrowed her brow, muttering, “Brigadier is a military term. Could it be…?” Louder, she asked Rainbow, “A fleet, you said?”
“Yeah,” Rainbow replied. “Five or six huge ships with really big cannons, and three or four smaller ships carrying about ten humans each. Why, is that a problem?”
“It depends,” Celestia said. “What color were they wearing? And what shade was it?”
“Green, like the green in my mane.” Rainbow said.
Celestia relaxed. “Good,” she sighed. “I’m not sure whose army it is, but I can hope it isn’t an invasion force.” She looked at Rainbow. “You and your friends will meet with them. Determine if they are a threat to Equestria.” Rainbow saluted, then flew out of the still open window, which Celestia gently closed behind her.
Luna looked at her sister. “Tia, what troubles you? I do not remember ever having problems with humans.”
Celestia frowned as old memories resurfaced. “It was about two hundred years ago, long after your banishment,” she began. “A man, Lord Ferrok, raised an army larger than ever before. He called this army the Iron Legion. He then set out to conquer the world. I’m not sure how, but he received word that Equestria was raising an army to stop him. He created a powerful relic, the Cenotaph, to banish Equestria from this world. When he completed it, we were sent to another dimension: a crossroads of sorts, where all interdimensional travelers eventually end up. The fact that we are here either means that the Cenotaph was destroyed, or ran out of power. If the Iron Legion still exists, Equestria is in grave danger.”
“Worry about that in the morning,” Luna reassured. “For now, you should rest. It has been a long day.”