//------------------------------// // Adjusting // Story: MLPU: Twilight Sparkle: Princess of Thunder // by TheInvincibleIronBrony //------------------------------// Minuette sat at the table in her temporary house, looking over the data from the previous night’s event while sipping a cup of coffee. The data was odd. It was filled with unexplained readings. The storm that occurred that night was unlike anything she had previously seen. And it came so suddenly. And what about the mare they found wondering around the area? A loud thud from upstairs caught her attention. Before she could investigate the sound of footsteps came down the stairs and Twilight appeared, rubbing her forehead and wearing clothes that Minuette had set out for her the night before. "Are you okay?" Minuette asked with concern. Twilight regarded the mare for a moment before answering. "I shall live. I am simply not accustomed to living without magic," she explained, receiving a quizzical look from her host. "I hit my head on the door when attempting to leave my quarters." Minuette suppressed a smile at the humorous story. Nothing about this pony made very much sense. She claimed she was an alicorn, but there was no such evidence. If anything, she was just crazy. "Nothing to be worried about we all make mistakes," the unicorn said dismissively. She turned her attention back to her notes, not giving the moment a second thought. Twilight considered this for a moment. "Do you believe me?" she asked. Minuette looked up from her data, unsure what Twilight meant. "Do you believe that I'm a... that I was an alicorn?" Twilight asked, catching her mistake Before Minuette could answer, Steam Bolt joined them from upstairs only wearing pajama pants. "Not really, but who am I but a simple Pegasus," he answered as he started rummaging through the kitchens contents for breakfast. "Steam Bolt, be nice," Minuette said glaring at her assistant, before Twilight could argue back. "And put on a shirt, you have nothing to show off," she continued earning a glare from Bolt. "Seriously, just Bolt. Stop using my full name," Bolt replied annoyed. "Then stop being a dick," Minuette shot back. Twilight watched the exchange curiously. "Are you two a couple?" she asked, making both Minuette and Bolt freeze in shock. "No. I could do way better," the Pegasus replied. Minuette rolled her eyes, trying not to let Steam Bolt’s response upset her. She turned her head towards Twilight. "What made you the think that?" Minuette asked. "You argue as if you have been together for a long time," Twilight told them. "Well thankfully, Bolt has only been my assistant for a few weeks. Pretty sure I would have killed him by now if it had been longer," Minuette commented, earning a glare from the stallion. While Bolt did have his uses as an assistant, it was his constant need to get into trouble, rambling on about how boring everything was, and his endless appetite that would put a hole in her wallet that drove her insane. "Don't let me stop you. It'd be better than having to lug all your crap around," Bolt shot back. Before Minuette could reply Twilight interrupted. "Enough!" she shouted, catching a surprised look from the other ponies. "Your arguing was amusing at first, but it is quickly becoming irritating. I cannot force you to like one another, but could you please remain silent for a moment. I need to figure out how to get home," she told them in a very authoritative tone. Twilight started to pace back and forth, murmuring to herself. Minuette couldn’t help but give a glance over to Bolt who simply shrugged. "So where are you from?" the unicorn asked curiously. Twilight regarded her host for a moment before answering. "Somewhere far away," she replied. Bolt looked unconvinced. "Okay I'm officially uncomfortable having her around," he stated. "Bolt!" Minuette scolded. Bolt also had a mouth that he couldn’t keep shut, which had gotten them into more trouble than he was worth. The only reason he was still around was because he was the most qualified. But Celestia, was he a pain in the flank. "Oh no. Don't start with me. We find her stranded in the desert. She tells us her mom banished her from her home which she won't tell us the name of and she's giving me a death glare," Bolt finished giving Twilight a fearful look. Bolt started to back away slowly, as Twilight continued to glare at him. Minuette looked at her guest, who was staring daggers at her assistant. Twilight scoffed. "I should have known better than to test the patience of mortals," she said getting up from her seat. "Where are you going?" Minuette asked with concern. "Somewhere I won't be interrogated," Twilight responded as she walked towards the door. She walked into the door face first. "Grrrr! Stupid mortal body," she grumbled to herself as she pushed the door open and walked out. Steam Bolt looked on with surprise. "Wow. I thought she was gonna shank me," he joked, noticing his boss glaring at him. "Wouldn't have blamed her. Do you always have to open your mouth and say something completely stupid?!" Minuette said angrily. "Oh come on, she was definitely part of a gang or something. Besides, we patched her up. We did our part. As far as I’m concerned, we're square with her," Bolt defended. Minuette rolled her eyes. "Whatever. Just help go over the rest if this data," she said as Bolt took a seat at the table opposite of her and started looking at the sheets of paper. As much as she wanted to simply dismiss the pony who walked out the door, she couldn’t. There was just something off about her. And not just that she was crazy. But something else. She couldn’t’ put her hoof on it. Regardless, she doubled her efforts to unlock the secrets of the storm. ///////////////////////////// Twilight had been wandering the town for nearly an hour. She didn't have a destination in mind. She had just been wandering. The sights of the city were unimpressive to her. There were no towers that stretched to the heavens. No walls to protect the city from invaders. A very poor city. She had been trying to see if she could find Mjolnir through her mental link to the weapon, but her efforts had been fruitless so far. She growled under her breath something vulgar as her patience dried up. She was crossing a street when she was met with the sound of screeching tires. Twilight looked up at the black vehicle as it skidded to a stop a few feet from her. She glared at its occupants for a moment before she continued walking. The driver poked her head out of the small window aside the mysterious car. “Hey! It’s green here!” Twilight tilted her head and looked around her. She didn’t see anything green in the immediate area. She then glared at the pink pony once again. The car blared with a sound of a horn. “Get out of the road!” she shouted. "Mortals. How rude," she said to herself as she continued on her way. "Now where was I? Ah, yes. If I can find Mjolnir, I'm sure it will restore my power. Mother wouldn't be able to leave me here then. A goddess among these mortal ponies would bring far too much attention," Twilight told herself. She then sighed in defeat. "A more difficult task than I presumed," she said, still unable to contact Mjolnir. /////////////////////////////////// "Pinkie, I don't see what about this caught S.H.E.I.L.D.'s attention," a white unicorn mare with a pink and lavender mane asked. "Cause Sweetie, it's a good way to keep me out of trouble for a few days," Pinkie responded. “The pair were riding in a black SUV, driving through the streets of Appleloosa looking for their hotel.” Sweetie Belle quirked an eyebrow at the manila folder she was reading through in the passenger seat. There was something about a mysterious storm that appeared out of nowhere. It shouldn’t require two agents, especially one as highly trained as Pinkie Pie to investigate such a matter. Still, Pinkie was a tad energetic. And by a tad, she meant very energetic. "Okay, I understand that you're being punished, but why am I here?" she asked looking up from the folder. "Well-Holy moly!" Pinkie shouted as she slammed on the brakes. Sweetie looked up from her file to see a purple earth pony standing in front of the car glaring at them. She poked her head out the window and screamed at the pony to finish crossing the road. Sweetie Belle couldn’t help but slink in her seat, turning red. Pinkie Pie was always full of spirit and that more often than not got her into trouble. She would often make it out well enough, but it was never without consequence, as their boss would repeatedly tell her. She reeled her head back inside the car. "I hope not everypony around here is like her," Pinkie said as the mare finished crossing the street. Pinkie Pie continued down the road, not seeming to be bothered by the pony. "Anyway, you're here because you need field experience. You probably won't get much on this assignment, but it'll be a good start on your file," Pinkie explained. "I guess," Sweetie replied, unsure. "I was sort of hoping for a little more excitement for a first assignment though." Pinkie giggled at this. "Don't worry about excitement right now. Just work on everything I teach you," she assured the younger mare. Pinkie looked at her companion and noticed a very bored expression. That’s when Pinkie Pie’s energetic brain went to work. "Pop quiz!” She shouted abruptly, causing Sweetie Belle to jump. “What’s the best way to pick a cover name on the fly?" she asked, gaining Sweetie's attention. Sweetie Belle took a moment to gather herself, shaking her head in irritation. “Something similar to your real name, but using different words," the unicorn answered. "Good. Now come up with a cover name," Pinkie said, as they pulled into their hotel's parking lot. Sweetie thought for a moment. "Candy Chime?" she offered, unsure of her answer. Pinkie thought about it for a moment. "Not bad. Could be better. Your homework is to go by that name for the duration of the assignment," Pinkie informed, getting a surprised look from Sweetie. "Alright, but is that really necessary?" the unicorn asked. "Of course it is. It's vital to your training," Pinkie answered. Sweetie raised an eyebrow. "Plus its lots of fun," Pinkie continued as she parked and turned off the car. "Ooh, maybe I'll use a cover name too," she said, putting a hand to her chin as she thought. "Oh, I know. Surprise Party!" she exclaimed. "That's my name from now on, okay?" Pinkie told Sweetie as they got out if the car. "Okay," Sweetie responded, giggling at Pinkie's antics. "So what's Rarity up to? You never said why she couldn't come and she didn't tell me anything before she left," Sweetie inquired. "Nuh-uh, kiddo. That's Level 6 classified info. Can't tell ya," Pinkie replied as she started towards the hotel's front desk, to get their key. Sweetie Belle groaned as she was denied her sister's whereabouts. She worried about her a lot. She was gone all the time and even when she wasn’t she didn’t seem to have time for her little sister. Rarity seemed to be growing more distant. Sweetie remembered how close they once were. They would do each other’s manes, talk about the colts Rarity, and sometimes Sweetie Belle, liked, and just talk about each other. But everyday Rarity was off doing something important. Her heart sank as she followed Pinkie into their hotel room. ///////////////////////////// A brown and green SUV drove through the desert. It's lone occupant, the local sheriff, scanning the horizon. After a few minutes he spotted a buffalo. The huge creature started waving a hoof at him. The sheriff smiled as he steered in its direction. The earth pony pulled to a stop once he got close enough. He quickly hopped out and greeted the buffalo with a wave. "Bit far from the rez, ain't ya, Stone Runner?" he commented with a grin. "Thanks for coming out here, Sheriff. I know it’s a long way from town, but trust me it's worth it," the buffalo said shaking hands with his friend. "This way," he said as he walked over a small hill. The sheriff had received a call from his old friend Stone Runner early this morning. He said that something had happened just outside their town and that he should come see it right away. The sheriff wouldn’t have come himself, but there was a tone in Stone Runner’s voice that spoke of its urgency. The sheriff followed and his jaw dropped once they reached the top. A huge crater, almost three hundred yards from the middle, spread out before them. "Dear Celestia, what did this?" he asked, awestruck. "Not sure, but I think it’s still there," Stone Runner said, pointing to a small mound in the middle of the crater. The sheriff squinted his eyes to try and get a better look, but the object was too small to see at this distance. "Have you gone near it?" the earth pony asked. "No," the buffalo replied with a chuckle. "We thought it might be irradiated or something," he explained. The sheriff nodded in agreement as he went back to his vehicle and started digging around in the back, eventually pulling out a pair of binoculars. He walked back over to the crater and put the binoculars to his eyes. "Can you see it?" Stone Runner asked curiously. "Yeah," the sheriff said confused. "It looks like some kinda hammer," he said. The buffalo quirked an eyebrow. "I reckon, whatever it is it’s safe to be near. Wanna help me check it out?" the sheriff asked with a smile. "Sure," the buffalo said as they started walking out to the center of the crater. "Yeah that's definitely a hammer," Stone Runner confirmed once they were close enough. "Where'd it come from, a plane?" "Not with this crater. I’m not sure how something that small could have made something like this," the sheriff countered, scanning the hole around him. "Maybe we should take a closer look at it," the buffalo replied as he walked up to the hammer and laid a hand on it. He pulled with all his might, but the hammer wouldn't budge. "Too heavy for ya," the sheriff chuckled as he stepped forward. Stone Runner gestured for his friend to try. The sheriff placed both hands on the hammer and pulled, yielding the same results. "Heavier than it looks," he said. "There has to be some way to move it," Stone Runner said. "Maybe we can get everyone to give it a shot. Hold a little hammer in the stone competition," he suggested with a smile. "Sounds good to me," the sheriff replied. "I'll make a few calls and get the word out." "Tell everyone it’s a BYOB party," the buffalo said as the sheriff started back towards his car. ////////////////////// "You find anything yet?" Minuette asked her assistant as they continued searching through the data for anything that seemed unusual about the event. Hours upon hours of work and still they came up dry. "No. Then again I have no clue what I'm looking at," Bolt said, bored as he scanned the colorful pieces of atmospheric data. "Just tell me if you see anything odd," Minuette said, wanting to avoid another argument. Bolt nodded with a glazed look in his eyes. Then he found an odd shape in one of the images. "Hey did you spill coffee on any of these?" he asked. Minuette rolled her eyes. "No. I figured I've proven myself careful with my life’s work," she said, a little huffily. "Oh. Then I think I found something," Bolt replied, holding out the piece of paper he'd been looking at. Minuette took the paper and scanned it. "What's abnormal about this?" she asked. "The pony silhouette in the top right corner," Bolt stated, drawing Minuette's attention to the spot. Her jaw fell open as she looked at the shape. "You okay?" Bolt asked. "I'm fine," the unicorn replied. "I think you owe Twilight an apology though," she continued. Bolt sighed in annoyance. "Do we have to go find her now?" he asked, hoping they wouldn't. "Yes," Minuette said as she started walking towards the door. She knew she wasn’t wrong. There was something odd about that pony. And the proof was in her hands.