//------------------------------// // Turbulent Partings // Story: The Pegasi Take Canterlot // by Alkonium //------------------------------// The TARDIS materialized in downtown Manehattan with a slightly sickly tone. Due to its disguise as a fifty year old police box, it certainly looked out of place a modern city, though noone paid it any heed. Two stallions, a blue pegasus and an auburn earth pony, trotted out. "Home," the earth pony remarked, looking out at the busy streets. "Oh, I suppose it is, Burnt Oak. I guess I was too busy trying to materialize the TARDIS safely to worry about where we ended up. I hate Time Urchins," the pegasus responded. "Any idea when we are, Doctor?" Burnt Oak then asked. Before answering, the Doctor looked around for a indicator of the date, and found a discarded newspaper. Taking it into his hooves, the Doctor then said, "Based on the condition of this newspaper, plus the date on it, I'd say you've only been gone a week." "Just a week?" Oak asked, letting the thought sink in. "Yeah. Let's just give the TARDIS a few minutes to cool off, and we can get going again," the Doctor stated, oblivious to what his friend was thinking about. "Actually, I think I'd like to take a break from the TARDIS for a while," Oak replied, and the Doctor's hearts sank, though he did his best not to show it. "Oh," the Doctor said quietly. "This is goodbye then?" "Just for a while. It's been fun, but I think I need to get to back to my life. If you're ever back here, I'd be happy to join you again," Oak explained. "That's perfectly fair. You have your life, and I'd never ask you to give that up for my sake," the Doctor conceded. "Thanks. Take care of yourself, Doctor," Oak told him. "And you," the Doctor replied. Following a quick hug, the two stallions parted ways, Oak making for his apartment, and the Doctor going back into the TARDIS. As he walked away, Oak could hear the TARDIS dematerializing, for what he hoped would not be the last time. "Alone in the TARDIS yet again," the Doctor thought to himself. The Time Urchins had done a number on the TARDIS's systems, and Burnt Oak had decided to go home after the ordeal. "At least he'll be safe, and we did part on good terms." "Well, where to next?" He asked himself out loud. Pondering for a moment, he turned to the console, and activated the star chart adorning the Console Room's walls and ceiling. The Doctor then spread his wings, and after a brief stretch, flew around the console room, casually examining various points on the map. "Hmm, Florana seems like just the place to cheer me up," He commented after stopping at its star. "Perfect," He was about to fly back down to the console to set a course, when he saw the star chart flickering. "Oh no," He whispered, realizing he must have missed an urchin when he and Oak were flushing them out of the TARDIS. He darted to the console as the star chart was reduced to static. "Have to work quickly. The whole console room could go up in smoke," the Doctor worked frantically at the console, only for it to start sparking as well. He could already hear the the engines becoming more and more erratic. With every second he delayed, he ran the risk of the TARDIS falling out of the Time Vortex and right into the Void. The Doctor was about to shut off the star chart, but then one of the console's other panels exploded, sending a chunk of shrapnel right into it. "Blast. I always loved that map," Without hesitation, he shut down everything but the most essential equipment in the console room to prevent further overloads. "That should settle most of it down in here. Now, to the root of the problem," The Doctor attempted to pull the scanner over to him, only to find that it was mildly electrified. Yanking his hooves back, he instead attempted to key in the commands for diagnostic program without looking at the screen, carefully avoiding any sparking sections of the panel. He then trotted over to the screen, and spotted the source of the malfunctions. "Amaranthine's old room. I'm sure she won't mind," In order to operate the controls and see what he was doing, the Doctor opted to hover above the console, and control the panel with his hind hooves. With great difficulty, he managed to delete the room from the TARDIS matrix, and send the urchin into the console room. Upon its arrival, it immediately latched onto the console and started sucking on it. The Doctor flew over and yanked it off, taking a chunk of the panel with it. Using his hind hooves, he slammed down on the door controls on the console, and flew over, throwing the creature out with a mighty heave. "Out with you!" He shouted. Closing the main door, the Doctor looked out at the mess the Time Urchin had made of the console room: The star map was ruined, as were two panels on the console. Debris was scattered all over the floor, and several sections of the console were still sparking. "Let's hope that's the end of it," the Doctor remarked as he trotted back to the console. He examined what was left of the thing carefully. Even without the Time Urchin messing with the circuitry, something could still go horribly wrong. He reached out towards one of the remaining panels, but retracted his hooves from it almost immediately. "Too hot," he yelped, but his expression turned to sheer terror as he realized what the heat buildup meant. With no time for him to get away, the panel in front of him exploded, sending him flying into the wall, and rendering him unconscious. When he came to, he looked around the TARDIS again. It appeared that the chaos had subsided, and the TARDIS was going to materialize soon. "That wasn't so bad," he commented, before noticing a golden glow emanating from his hooves. "Of all the ways to go," he muttered in a resigned tone.