//------------------------------//
// Chapter III 
// Story: Biblical Monsters 
// by Horse Voice 
//------------------------------//

"By Celestia, this weather!" my guest said, half to herself. "If I had some help, I would be home already."
"How's that?" I said from my place at the kitchen counter, as I measured out two bowls of oatmeal.
Despite everything, I did not fully share my guest's annoyance. Even with only eight miles' visibility, morning at Cook Point was rich with wild beauty. On the other side of Vargas Bay, north of the lighthouse, tall spruces danced wild dances in honor of the mighty west wind. Along the Point's eastern shore, the Pacific threw itself against rugged bedrock that underlay the outer edge of this part of the West Coast. To the south, at the other side of Zeballos Inlet's entrance, mountains stretched from the ocean up to the low, grey cloud ceiling of winter.
"I can cast the spell, or I can change the weather," Twilight said. "But trying to do both at once would use too much energy, so it wouldn't work."
"You have the power to change the weather?" I poured some water into each bowl. Ordinarily, a thing like this would have at least made me pause, but when I had woken up and realized that early morning's events had been real, I mentally prepared myself for more weird revelations.
"Actually, I've never had to live without weather control." She left the window and approached my small kitchen table. "I can do it with magic, but you should see a pegasus team at work when we're changing the seasons."
"I think they'd have a hell of a time here," I said, carrying the bowls to the table.
"We could do it if there were enough of us." 
"Do you control anything else we don't?" I sat down and passed one bowl across the table, and Twilight got up on the chair opposite me.
"Well... does anyone control the sun and moon here?" she said.
My spoon stopped in midair. It seemed my mental preparation was not quite sufficient. "You're joking," I said.
Twilight smiled. "Well, remember the two diarchs I mentioned? Celestia and Luna, sister Princesses of the sun and moon." She telekinetically lifted the spoon from her bowl. "So, humans build civilizations despite being at the mercy of natural forces. Very interesting."
I resisted the urge to scoff out loud. Weather manipulation was difficult enough to believe—magic or no magic—but the notion that any mortal of any world could move heavenly bodies, and that there was even a need for it...
I decided to humor my guest. "It's not easy," I said. "I mean, this station would fall apart if it weren't for the monthly supply runs. Which reminds me—the next one is due in about a week. If you're still here, you'll have to hide."
"Why?" Twilight said between mouthfuls.
"I don't know what would happen if more people found out about you being here. I guess you might say..." I searched for the right turn of phrase. "Just because I work for the government doesn't mean I trust them."
Twilight frowned and put a hoof to her muzzle, as if digesting this tidbit.
"But listen," I said, ignoring my oatmeal, "if you control natural forces, how does the ecosystem work? I mean, how do plants and animals evolve, if they're being... well, interfered with?"
Twilight assumed a disarming smile. "Oh, that's arranged too. We manage the animals, and they're helpful to us in lots of different ways."
"What if you weren't around to manage them?"
Twilight froze in mid-chew, and stared through me.
"Never mind," I said. "But, if I wanted to walk in real—pristine—wilderness, like what's out there..." —I pointed at the forest to the north— "... would Equestria have any?"
Twilight chewed twice, and swallowed. "Why would you want to do that?"
"Well, I... take precautions in case of mountain lions, but..." Her question triggered a silent alarm in my mind, and I decided to change the subject before one of us could say something we would regret. "Um, I notice you took a few more books out..." (Several were stacked up on one table edge.) "... so, was Mockingbird boring?"
"No, it's good, but I'm more curious about this place, actually—your world and this area. I hope you don't mind me borrowing the books you have on it."
I shook my head.
Twilight went on. "I was reading about this Captain James Cook. He sort of reminds me of myself—the first to set hoof in a new world."
"Well, yes and no," I said. "There were people here for a long time before that."
"On that note, I meant to ask you—I found a reference to a war between tribes, but the book didn't go into detail. Do you know about that?" Anticipating a long answer, Twilight shoveled a few more spoonfuls into her mouth.
I did indeed know the story. Adams had told me, after hearing it from one of the Chiefs of the tribe whose land this was. I leaned back, folded my hands on the table edge, cleared my throat, and began.
"Once, there were two native tribes. I can never remember how to pronounce their names, but one lived at the Point, near where we're sitting now, and the other lived up at Zeballos Inlet's end, to the northeast.
"For years, the two tribes fought a terrible war. Over time, the Inlet people lost more and more ground to the people of the Point. It began to seem as though the outnumbered Inlet people were doomed.
"Then British colonists came in wood ships, armed with muskets and cannons. They declared this place their territory, and both tribes subjects of the Crown. Since the Crown reserved the right to use violence, they stopped the war at gunpoint."
"So, the Inlet people were saved," Twilight said.
"More or less." I decided not to tell her about the ensuing losses of language and culture. Unpleasant details could wait until she was more familiar with this world.
"Where's the Point tribe now?"
"They left to find work elsewhere," I said. This was true; they only visited their traditional grounds in large numbers around the middle of summer.
Twilight gazed out the window, chewing slowly as if considering this. I took the opportunity to dig in. 
"By the way," she said after a couple of minutes, "I hope I don't drive a wedge between you and Mr. Adams."
"I think he'll be fine," I said. "He just needs some time to sort things out. He usually comes around in the end." This was half true: By necessity, he always found a way to function among those he disagreed with, even if nothing would change his mind.
I rose, selected a mug from the overhead cupboard, and filled it from the coffee machine that had been gurgling in the background.
"You know," Twilight said, "you're both lucky. Not everyone gets a chance to entertain a Princess."
"Come again?" No sooner had the words left my mouth than more details of that morning's introduction began to return to my mind.
She put a hoof to her snout and giggled. "Well, it's really an honorary title, and I only got it a couple of months ago. I don't have any real authority, except what Princess Celestia grants."
"So, what Celestia says goes, eh?" I had been meaning to ask this.
"Of course. You know, since you helped me, you'll get to meet her. But try not to look too awestruck when you do."
"Why?" I said. "What does she look like?"
"Well, she's an alicorn, like me. Tall, and pure white..."
The mug dropped from my hand and shattered on the floor, splattering coffee and shards across the tiles. Twilight yelped.
I stared at the mess. Twilight looked first at it, then at me.
"Are you alright?" she said.
"Sure, sure. Just... fumbled." ... And behold, a white horse...
A magenta glow enveloped the grey fragments and dark brown puddles, and raised them up and into the kitchen sink, leaving the floor pristine.
"Thank you," I said. ... Went forth conquering, and to conquer.
With some effort, I pushed the unwelcome thought from my mind. 


*  *  *


"Checkmate."
"What, again?"
Out of nine games so far, I had only won the first. This time, she had lured me into a particularly cunning trap.
The pieces glowed magenta, rose from the table, and arranged themselves for another game, faster than human hands could have done.
"Are you sure you don't have this game in Equestria?"
In response, Twilight smiled impishly.
It was the afternoon of the second day of Twilight Sparkle's visitation. Since yesterday's conversation over breakfast, I had more or less left her to her own devices, and she had torn through several more of my books, plus almost half a box of relatively recent newspapers. After a while, she had found my chess set.
There had been no break in the weather.
"I guess I just really want my pieces to succeed," Twilight said, with a little half-smile.
"Why's that?" I said.
"With all her powers, the Queen reminds me of Princess Celestia. And this one..." The knight levitated up. "... reminds me of my brother. That's another reason I want to get home soon. By now, my friends will be looking for me. And I'm sure there's a reward for whoever finds me. That would be you guys."
She set the piece down and propped herself up in her chair. "Speaking of home, I would like to grant you a royal boon, for having taken me in." She leaned forward, placed her left hoof on the table, and raised her right hoof grandly. "When I go back to Equestria, you shall be my guest at Canterlot Castle."
Another bombshell. My mind whirled at the idea of going to another world, but I could not begin to imagine what I might find there. "I... well, I'd love to, and I'm flattered of course, but I can't abandon my post unless I'm relieved. We have a skeleton crew as it is." I had to force the words out, one by one. "You understand—if someone out there is in distress, or something happens to my boss, it would be a matter of life and death. Maybe some other time..."
"Oh." Twilight lowered her hoof. "Well, that's alright. Princess Celestia and my friends can thank you personally when they get here."
"Get here?"
"Well, I had meant to surprise you, but..." Twilight leaned back, a pleased smile on her muzzle. "I have it all figured out. Soon, the whole human race will be glad I came here. Your books and newspapers have shown me that you and other fine humans have always had to live with chaos and disharmony—natural disasters, wars, and so forth."
She rose, and began pacing back and forth, her chest puffed out and her tail swishing like a small cape. Her face and voice glowed with pride. "In this place, hundreds of years ago, Captain James Cook met this land's people for the first time, and made history. Now, I want to do the same. Equines and humans will move between worlds, trading not only goods, but ideas.
"You'll especially like our weather services. Imagine it—no more drought, forest fires, or hurricanes. My weather shield spell is just a small version of the Crystal Empire's big dome shields. They can make a whole city like summer, in the middle of the frozen north. We'll pacify the animals, too. You won't have to worry about mountain lion attacks anymore. 
"We could even stop all those wars. I mean, who's going to argue with somepony who can create a tornado?"
As she spoke, a horrible feeling crept over me. It began in my stomach, ran up my spine, and ended in a sharp, nagging thrill of danger that prickled at the back of my head. I took a deep breath and let it out slow. 
"Well," I said, picking my words one by one, "that is a... promising idea."
"Really," Twilight said, "you'd be crazy to turn down an offer like this."
"It's a lot to take in." I rose and began working my way to the door, keeping my front toward Twilight. "I think I'd better tell Adams about this, just... so everyone's in the loop."
"Good idea," she said, stepping forward. "I'll come with you."
"No, no," I said. "I don't know what he'll think about this, but I know he trusts me. I'll bring him over if he's into it, and we can all discuss this."
Half a minute later, as I crossed the fifteen-odd meters between the two houses, I tried to feign nonchalance in case Twilight was watching me from a window. But I couldn't stop my legs from moving just a bit faster than usual.