//------------------------------// // Rethinking First Impressions // Story: Shepard's R&R // by ed2481 //------------------------------// “So when you say ‘Demonstration’, what did you have in mind your highness?” Kaidan asked Shining Armor as he and Garrus followed the smaller unicorn down a stone corridor leading away from the banquet hall. “Well, first off, Lieutenant Commander,” Shining replied. “Just ‘Shining’ is fine, if it’s at all possible, I would prefer you didn’t address me as royalty. Those sorts of titles make my skin crawl. Officially I am still a Captain in the Equestrian Royal Guard. Just because I married a princess doesn’t change that.” Nodding his affirmative, Kaiden couldn’t help but feel his respect for waist high unicorn rise a notch. “And to answer your question: we’re in luck as it’s about time for Guard to start their daily training. I thought you might like to observe.” “As long as their first order of the day isn’t targeting the freaky looking aliens, then I am certainly up for that. What type of training regiment do they focus on? Physical Training? Marksmanship? Combat Tactics?” Garrus inquired curiously. “Nothing so fancy. Just basic drills; a dozen laps around the Yard followed by magic target practice for the unicorns while the pegasi do formations and aerial maneuvers. The earth ponies will work on their strength and endurance and after that they’ll all meet back up for a dozen more laps.” Shining answered expertly. “And don’t worry, we’re not a bunch of panicky foals here. The Guard, The ranking nobility, and members of the Courts have all been informed of your presence. It is being kept from the general public until after discussions with the ambassadors, but that’s mostly to ease the laypony into it ‘gently’.” “Just a light day’s regiment then?” Alenko nodded, gauging the unicorn’s response as they walked. “I’m sure that after everything’s settled, we can give you a real show. It’s a shame the Wonderbolts are on tour presently or we’d really have something for you to watch. Although if it’s not too much to ask, I think the squad commanders would love to see a demonstration of your own techniques.” “Sure, I think we can do that.” Garrus nodded pleasantly to Alenko, who was actually able to tell the turian was smiling. “We don’t have anything fancy, but I think we can put on a show of our own.” “I’d love to see what you aliens are capable of,” Shining said, an interested smile on his face before he seemed to think better of himself and asked hesitantly, “You don’t mind me calling you that do you? I am not trying to be offensive.” “Not really, this is your planet, you can call us what you want.” Kaidan said, shrugging his shoulders. “It’s true after all; although we might get tired of it after some time.” “You’re one to talk, Alenko. You humans still call the rest of us aliens,” Garrus added with a shake of his head, drawing an inquisitive glance from Shining. “Well, most humans see it as a simple way of differentiating our own from the other species. It’s nothing personal Garrus.” Kaidan replied although Shining detected a hint of something uncomfortable in his voice. Garrus noticed as well. “I’m sure that you’ll get better now, especially with Cerberus gone.” the turian shrugged, willing to let the somewhat touchy subject drop. “Yeah, ” Kaidan agreed. “Cerberus?” Shining asked in surprise. “The giant three-headed dog breed that guards the Gates of Tartarus, you have those too?” “Um, no, we don’t... at least not outside of mythology.” Kaidan paused his stride for a moment before continuing. “The Cerberus we’re talking about was… well…” the man said slowly, looking to his compatriot as if for support. “Let’s just say it’s a ‘good’ thing that they are gone,” Garrus waved the human down, the two of them coming to a silent agreement that the specifics of that subject were not something they should share with the Captain/Prince…. or any other pony for the time being. “I see...” Shining nodded, clearly curious, but insightful enough to see the subject made the pair uncomfortable. They remained in slightly awkward silence for a few moments before coming across a rather large wooden door with a golden archway engraved with symbols and glyphs completely illegible to the two bipedal beings, who only had a moment to look them over before Shining Armor effortlessly pushed the door open. The view before them revealed a sight that filled both of the ambassadors with a sense of nostalgia. Moving at a brisk gallop around a large heavily used dirt-path were around fifty or so stallions clad in resplendent golden armor. Despite the obvious weight of the armor they were moving at a surprisingly swift speed and both soldiers would assume them to be in the top physical tier for their species... And as the trio moved down the stairs from the balcony overlooking the training yard, both Garrus and Kaiden were able to pick out specimens of the three separate pony species among them. This was actually more difficult than either of them would have thought at first given the absolutely uniform body-types differentiated only by their coats, which were either a bleached white or a shade of bluish grey. So similar that it made it difficult to tell them apart. So much so that Kaiden couldn’t help but make the observation… “l feel like I’m looking at the same Equestrian copied over and over with the occasional horn or wing thrown on to make them slightly different..” “Hmmm? Oh, I suppose I can see what you mean. But don’t worry, we keep the mirror pool under strict guard nowadays, so they’re not actually clones.” Shining tapped his chin, clearly amused by the human’s reaction yet unaware of the alien’s perplexed look at the reference. “The Royal Guard is an elite force and much of their effectiveness comes from discipline and a sense of unity. The coloring of their coats and manes are specifically dyed to reflect their stations. White Coats and golden armor indicate the Solar Guard, while darker coats and onyx-blue armors are the symbol of the the Lunar Guard.” “I don’t think that is what Kaiden means, Shining. It’s not just that they look ‘similar’.” Garrus noted, truly growing a bit discomforted as several rather embarrassing episodes in turian history came to mind at the sight of the identical troops. “They are completely indistinguishable. Exact same body type, facial features, even those sharing the horn or wing traits are completely identical.” “Ah… yes well…” Shining ran a hoof over the back of his neck, indicating that the pair had clearly gone into an uncomfortable area. “That is actually an effect of their armor. It’s a minor enchantment intended to alter their physical attributes just so.” “To promote unit cohesion and discipline?” Kaiden guessed. “Partly, but for the most part, it’s to prevent the Princesses, or the the general public, from taking notice when a particular guard is…. no longer in service.” “So, what? You hide the fact that your soldiers sometimes fall in the line of duty from your leaders?” “Nothing like that.” Shining Armor shook his head. “It’s just...we are a very empathetic race. We get attached to others easily and it’s…” He hesitated for a moment, taking a breath. “...Difficult for those of us in command to send our troops into conflict as it is. One of the reasons I earned my station at such a young age was because I was able to make those calls decisively. Few ponies can do that, knowing that even without making any mistakes, you can still lose ponies.” “So you soften the blow by making them appear less as individuals and more as cut-out soldiers?” Kaiden asked, his tone neutral. “Yes, that’s right,” Shining answered with a small sigh. “But the truth of it is that it’s especially bad for Princess Celestia. She has lived for thousands of years, and although she does not show it, she has seen the end of many ponies both from conflict and age. In time, that sort of burden adds up in one’s mind. Given the choice between detaching herself from the rest of us shorter lived ponies and giving her fewer faces to remember in her dreams, well, it’s better to feel like you haven’t really lost as many. ” Shining led the pair over to a small shaded pavillion where they stood silently in order to allow them to view the training session without interruptions. It was no surprise that their presence drew the eyes of a few of the equine soldiers, but they seemed disciplined enough to keep their thoughts and curiosities to themselves as they maintained their pace. The running only lasted for a few minutes and the guard broke up into three distinct groups. The first that drew Garrus’s attention were the earth ponies, all of whom were standing in front of large boulders that had been set out in a line. Standing in front of each of them was a burly earth pony guard all of whom were staring intently at the colossal stones before them. Then with a sense of military syncrosity they moved as one and their rear hooves slammed into the boulders. Several were sent flying, (yes, FLYING), through the air until they rammed into the far wall of the courtyard hard enough to be reduced to pebbles while others had simply been cleaved through by the power of the buck. “Wait... what?” Garrus asked incredulously. “That shouldn’t be possible,” Kaidan said with a frown. “The strength required to do that would massive!” Shining Armor chuckled quietly to himself, clearly enjoying their astonishment. “Those aren’t even the big rocks.” The two stared at him but were distracted as several dozen pegasi zoomed over their heads, each going fast enough to generate their own backdraft. Not only were they moving quickly but they were also weaving in and around each other, and to Garrus’s surprise they were also engaged in some form of hoof to hoof combat. As they followed the expert display of aerial combat the pegasi shot above the ‘low’ cloud layer. Then, seconds later they returned to sight, each of them cradling what appeared to be a piece of cloud within their hooves. The pegasi sped towards the ground face first and as one tightened their grips on the clouds in their grasp. In response, the clouds released a roar of thunder as they unleashed a ferocious burst of lightning that slammed into a clear dirt section of the train yard. The twelve blue lances of electricity sent up bursts of dirt and stone as the pegasi pulled out of their nosedives and began to ascend once more. Garrus and Kaidan were only able to gawk at the display. “But... clouds don’t work that way!” Kaidan exclaimed after a few seconds. “And neither does lightning!” Garrus agreed, utterly confounded by the display. The stallion beside them only smirked. “You think that’s impressive, you should see the Wonderbolt Typhoon Squad. Although personally, I have a bias towards the Unicorn Squadrons. Precision without the additional collateral damage of using weather-attacks,” he said with a voice that betrayed his pride in his men before nodding towards a group of unicorns who were hurling what appeared to be balls of telekinetic force at a group of targets. Kaidan raised an eyebrow, finally, something that he could do, although the unicorns were going much more quickly than he was capable of without letting his powers cool down. “What do you think, Kaiden? Thirty, forty shots a minute?” “That’d be my guess, not exactly full auto, but pretty fast considering. Do they have to cool down between ‘spells’ Prince Armor?” Kaidan asked, intrigued by the idea. Shining shook his head. “Not usually. Those are simple kinetic blasts. Something that nearly every unicorn can manage if the situation calls for it. Given their training, a squad of soldiers can keep up that rate for about-” The stallion was interrupted by a loud cry of pain coming from the earth pony section of the yard. The group turned as one to see one of the stallions collapse to the ground, and then shouting again as he landed hard on one side. The leg was obviously bent in a very wrong direction even with the armor he was wearing. Almost immediately a female unicorn in an odd white outfit appeared out of nowhere, grasping him in an aura of energy and turning him over on his back with ease. Then the unicorn’s horn glowed even brighter as green light surrounded the stallion’s leg. The light vanished a moment later and the stallion slowly got to his hooves again and gingerly put some weight on the limb. In only a few seconds, a slightly larger member of the Earth Pony squad, likely the commander judging by the larger brown flume on his helmet, stalked over and immediately began to bellow in what could only be a military dressing down. “That leg was broken...” Garrus stated, “How did she fix it so fast?” “Mending spell,” Shining answered, clearly eager to move past the somewhat embarrassing moment. “No medi-gel, no physical tools, not even an X-Ray. You can just heal limbs that easily?” Kaidan asked. “Actually it’s not so easy.” Shining replied with a slight shrug. “Healing magic is some of the hardest there is. It takes a special gift to use it and if it’s not applied almost immediately, there can be complications. We also have to use more mundane means of healing of course. But if we can treat it fast enough, then broken limbs, cuts, bruises, are usually not a problem. We always have a spell-nurse on duty when we train on the off chance that something severe happens, but generally the Guard doesn’t get injured while training.” “Right...” Garrus mused as he considered how quickly the ‘primitive little pony’ was able to heal bone, especially without the aid of medi-gel. They spent the next quarter-hour or so observing the training in silence until the guards were finished their afternoon routine and began to gather into a marching line, moving on to their next duty and leaving Shining alone with Kaidan and Garrus. “So, what did you think?” Shining asked curiously. “It was impressive alright,” Kaidan said with a small thoughtful frown. “Now I think it’s our turn.” “You’ll have to forgive us for not bringing our primary weapons but we didn’t expect to be showing off. Although I’m sure we can still show you something impressive,” Garrus added. “Sure, just use the unicorn targets,” Shining advised as he led the two towards the targets. “Whenever you’re ready.” Kaidan started first, his arm glowing blue as he activated the biotic amp and he launched a ball of blue energy at the target the entire thing glowed blue as the Biotic Reave ate away at the target at a molecular level. This was almost immediately followed up with a quick tap on his omni tool, the weaponized program sending sent a blast of dense, super-cooled gases in a mass-effect suspension towards the target, exploding on impact and freezing the dummy solid. Garrus complemented this by loading a concussive shot into his pistol and blasting the now crinkling ice-block, which impacted with a satisfying thud and sent a million tiny shards of ice flying backwards. Shining raised an eyebrow as he looked between the two. “Impressive...” “Thanks,” Garrus replied. “I only wish that I’d brought my rifle, then I could show you something really impressive.” “I’m sure we’ll have the opportunity for that later.” The Prince nodded, “So, do you have any questions, General Garrus?” “Oh too many. Although to start with, I couldn’t help but notice the complete lack of… uh, what’s the right word for a female Equestrian, Kaiden?” “Mare.” “Right, a lack of mares out here; do you not let your females fill combat roles?" “Oh, not at all. In fact there are quite a few mares in the Lunar Guard and Captain Spitfire of the Wonderbolts is a fine filly as well. Although the Solar Guard is exclusively made up of stallions.” Shining took on a proud grin, standing a bit more at attention with his chest pushed forward, “Guarding the Princess, Peace, and Ponies of Equestria. That is our duty. As it is, mares are much better suited for--" "Mares are more suited for 'what', Shine-Darling?" An unexpected feminine voice spoke out from behind them causing them all to turn to see Cadence striding up to them, a coy smile on her face. "OH! Uh, well,” Shining stuttered out, an embarrassed blush tinting his white furred face pink. “We want to give our opponents at least a 'chance' right? It's only fair," "This coming from the stallion who used his wife as a projectile​....” Cadence mused with an amused chuckle. “Oh well; I suppose there are some benefits to a princess surrounded all day by strapping stallions. I know that I certainly approve,” she added with a glance towards Shining. “Do you now?” Shining asked with a raised eyebrow. “Not in front of our guests, dear.” “WELL then…” Alenko cut in, clearly not wanting to get in the middle of anything the married couple was ‘arguing’ over. “What’s next?” “Well, how about a tour?” Cadence offered, smiling in a soft, warm manner that seemed perfectly suited to the diplomatic mare. Unseen to any of them, a pegasus with a camera was gleefully snapping pictures from above, hiding behind a thick cloud that had managed to conceal his covert entry into the restricted air-space. Shaun Shepard probably knew as much about the quarian people as any human alive, having been regaled with their culture, their outlook on life, and their physiology (quite intimately in the case of the lattermost subject) for the better part of the last three years of his life. So while many men would have simply seen the female quarian in the suit standing there with an expressionless dome helmet, a thousand subtle signs in her body body language indicated that they did indeed have another problem to deal with. And judging by her uncharacteristic silence, it was a going to be a doozy. So when she finally did relate the events down in engineering, it had caught Shepard a bit at a loss that such an event had set her so on edge. “Tali... calm down, take a breath.” Shepard instructed the quarian who had started pacing as if she was expecting some sort of condemnation. “So Ambassador Pie was able to regurgitate what Donnelley said, I don’t see how this is an issue.” Tali stopped pacing and looked back at Shepard. In spite of her mask, he was able to clearly make out the way her eyes widened in an expression akin to ‘are you kidding me?’. “Shepard, she has a photographic memory,” Tali explained, still having a hard time grasping why the Commander wasn’t more concerned. “We were treating her like a child or an ignorant primitive that needed a soft touch, but she has a propensity for analytical reasoning and a capacity for learning that is at least on par with a salarian. She may not understand the basic principles, like why there is only one fusion plant or why Helium-Three is used as a backup system, but a few hours with any member of the engineering team and that won’t be a problem. The only thing separating her from me right now is academic ignorance, and if she’s as curious as I think she is, that isn’t going to last.” “Meaning…?” Shepard still wasn’t convinced, but knew that could change very quickly. “Meaning that if her abilities are not unique, we won’t have to ‘give’ the Equestrians anything. They’ll be building their own starships and mass effect drives in as little as a few years just by looking at how ours work.” “I wouldn't discredit that hypothesis,” Dr. Chakwas cut in, drawing Shepard’s attention back to the . “Their cranial capacity is at least twenty percent larger than a salarian’s, and the amount of synaptic activity is staggering. There are also several regions of the brain whose purpose I can't even begin to theorize on," Chakwas explained with a look of concern. “Wait... what?” Tali asked, obvious surprise on her face even with her mask. “According to our medical scans, Dr. Chakwas believes the Equestrians are genetically engineered, Tali,” Shepard replied slowly. “At the very least, these two are. We would need to study a larger sample size to know for certain.” “Genetically Engineered?” The quarian asked in surprise. “You mean like the protheans did to the asari?” “No, this is a much grander scale,” Chakwas answered. “Over a much longer period of time, hundreds of thousands of years at least, perhaps millions. This level of manipulation is frightening.” Chakwas answered. Tali nodded slowly. “Just... how advanced are we talking here?” “Advanced enough to make the Protheans look like children bumbling around in the dark,” Chakwas told her. “You’re right… that is frightening,” Tali trailed off and looked to Shepard. “I get that this is important, but the real question is: Does it change anything?” Shepard shook his head. “From what we’ve seen of their technology and their reactions to us, it’s possible that whoever did this to them has been gone a long time, am I right?” “Perhaps,” Chakwas nodded. “Probably killed off by the Reapers who knows how many cycles ago.” “Well, if nothing else, it just may add to the things that they can offer us,” Shepard nodded sagely. “An understanding of how their genetics were manipulated could be beneficial to the entire galaxy. And maybe the Ambassadors could be persuaded to let us…” Shepard suddenly paused, a realization coming to him as he turned about-face on Tali. “Wait, Tali, if you’re here, then who’s watching our guests?” “Oh, I ran into Grunt outside Engineering and he offered to take them off my…” The quarian paused, as if realizing exactly what it was she was saying before she brought her hand to her face-plate in an adopted version of a very human gesture, better known as the ‘Face-palm’. “Oh... Keelah, I left them with Grunt!” Shepard stared at her for a moment before both rushed for the door at top speed. “This... is... it,” Grunt stated dramatically with a large grin as he gestured towards the now heavily armored, state of the art M-75 Hammerhead with its still gleaming showroom finish. “Isn’t she a thing of beauty?” “It doesn’t look all that impressive,” Dash said with a frown at the vehicle. “It has armor plating, all-terrain hovering capability, and fires second-generation hydra missile salvos.” Grunt said with an almost offended look. “What is it about that that’s so unimpressive to you?” “OOOH, does it fire parties too?” Pinkie asked with interest as she had somehow managed to clamor up on top of the Hammerhead and was now bouncing atop it. “Yeah, it does, My favorite kind in fact,” Grunt said before letting out one of his slow characteristic chuckles. “Eeeh hee heeh.” Rainbow Dash gave him a slightly creeped out look but Pinkie had turned to him with a big grin. “Really? Can we see it!” “Wish I could, Pinka-poo, But then I would have to listen to Shepard whine about the all the nitpicky side effects like ‘hull breaches’ and ‘catastrophic depressurization’ and ‘reckless behavior’,” Grunt replied sourly. “And then I would have to listen to him lecture about nobody on the ship being able to survive in the void. Bah, weaklings. He did it and came out fine.” “What the hay is ‘the Void’?” Dash asked. “You know, the cold beyond, the great vacuum.” Grunt grunted as if unsure how the pony could need an explanation. “Where we are now… what would you call it… ‘Space’ I guess.” “Wait, wouldn’t that kill us?” “Probably,” Grunt shrugged. “Too bad, might be fun for me to try it though.” “Whoa, whoa, hold it, are you saying you can breath in space?” Rainbow Dash asked skeptically. “No,” Grunt replied. “Then why wouldn’t it be a big deal for you?” “Because I’m a krogan!” Grunt replied. “I don’t get it,” Rainbow said with a confused look. “That’s because you’re not a krogan,” Grunt told her with a smile. “Ooooh HEY! DASHIE! I bet if we took out these missile things and filled the launch tubes with cake batter, we could create ICBPs!” Pinkie exclaimed as she examined the Hammerhead’s turret, her face practically pressed up to the barrel as she tried to look inside of it. “ICBPs?” Grunt inquired giving her a critical glance. “Inter-Continental Balloon Parties, silly!” Pinkie said with a wide grin. Grunt stared at her for a moment and then grinned widely. “You should be a krogan!” Before Pinkie could respond, the elevator door opened to reveal a rather hurried looking Commander Shepard, who let go of a sigh of relief upon seeing the ambassadors and his still clearly not-exploded hangar bay before he started towards the three of them. “Hey Grunt, mind if I take our guests off of your hands?” Shepard asked Grunt, clearly making it an order. Grunt looked at the Commander for a moment before nodding. “Yeah, sure, go ahead Shepard, I was just showing Pinkie here the Hammerhead.” “It’s really neat and fires parties!” Pinkie enthused with a grin. Shepard stared at her for a moment before looking up to Grunt. “Yeah, ‘krogan parties’. Right Shepard?” Grunt asked with a grin. The man’s hardened features turned into a small smile of his own. “Exactly, parties,” he agreed before turning back to the two ambassadors. “So, Ambassadors, would you like to see the rest of Normandy?” “Uhhh yeah, Sure,” Rainbow Dash agreed with a shrug, although based on his own observation, Shepard got the feeling she was simply out of her depth. “This room was getting boring anyways,” “Oh boy, am I going to get to meet more new ponies like Kenneth and Gabby?” Pinkie asked eagerly. “Possibly.” Shepard answered. “Okie-dokie, then!” Pinkie replied with a wide smile before she turned back to Grunt. “See you latter Grunt, I’ll bring you a cupcake next time!” “Heh, sure, I’ll be listening for the cannon fire,” Grunt replied, chuckling to himself. Shepard gave the krogan a nod and ushered the ponies to the elevator. After a ride short enough to prevent even the chatty Pinkie Pie from drumming up a conversation, the doors opened on the crew deck, with Shepard leading the pair off quickly as two other crewmembers, a turian and a human, moved into the elevator. Once her eyes had come away from the odd pair, Pinkie noticed something curious; A section of the wall directly in front of them that was covered in words that Pinkie’s eyes quickly scanned over, but was unable to comprehend. “What’s this?” The pink pony asked curiously, pointing to the wall with one Hoof. Shepard paused for a moment with uncharacteristic hesitation as he considered how to approach the subject. “That is the memorial wall,” he said softly. “The what?” Rainbow Dash asked, not quite understanding the concept. “It’s a place where we put the names of everyone who has died in action onboard or in service of the Normandy,” he told her solemnly. “So we don’t forget them.” Pinkie and Dash both gulped and stared at the list. “That-that’s a long list,” Pinkie murmured, her spirits dashed from their previous high. “Yes... it is,” Shepard replied glumly. “Too long.” “Why would you forget ponies that passed on?” Shepard bowed his head. “Because… for humans at least, sometimes its easier that way. To move on. But for those of us that served along side them… that would be a disservice, so we keep monuments. To remind us.” “And, some of them were your friends?” Pinkie asked, her usual bubbly demeanor growing sullen as she took in the sadness showing through on the commander’s face. “Yes.” The human nodded, his eyes downcast… he didn’t need to look at the plaques to know where to point them out, or remember what they said. “Charles Pressly, Legion, Thane Krios, Mordin Solus, Ashley Williams, David Anderson.” The two ponies stared at the list for a few more minutes as they tried to grasp the amount of death that had visited the vessel, until Rainbow noticed something. “Um... why is that one spot empty when there are names above and below it?” she asked, pointing to where there was an obvious blank spot on the wall. Shepard sighed. “That’s... EDI’s spot...” “EDI? That doesn’t sound like a name,” Rainbow Dash replied. “What kind of alien was she?” “She wasn’t an alien... she was an AI,” Shepard told her with a frown. “So like that Glyph thing that Twilight got to tell her about stuff right?” Dash asked. “Well... no,” Shepard answered slowly, a pang of regret running though his voice. “She was a synthetic, that is, she was artificial like Glyph is... but she was also as alive as you and I. She died… right at the end of the War.” Pinkie nodded slowly. “Okay... so why did Joker take it off then?” “Because he doesn’t want to admit that she’s gone,” the man told her sadly. “He keeps on putting it up, and then taking it back off...” The two ponies remained quiet and then Pinkie looked up. “Is that who sat next to him in the cockpit?” she asked quietly. “Yes... that’s right,” Shepard replied with a small nod. Pinkie paused for a moment in thought, then she nodded firmly to herself. “Alright then... I need to find a kitchen. I have a cake to bake!” The man gave her a raised eyebrow. “And it’s not to put in the cannon either,” she added, a surprisingly firm tone in her normally goofy voice. “I... think that that might be a good idea...” Shepard said slowly. “But you don’t know how to use the kitchen here.” Pinkie fixed him with a surprisingly hard glare. “Then somepony is going to teach me! There’s a stallion in desperate need of a cupcake!” Shepard sighed tiredly. “Miss Pie... as much as I wish it was, this isn’t something that can be solved with a simple cupcake.” Major Kirrahe looked at the three ponies who had been charged with entertaining him, hiding his amusement at the odd looks that he was garnering. Tanlan, silent as ever, stood vigil near the door doing his best to remain unobtrusive. “So... yall’re the ‘salamanderains’ right?” Applejack asked Kirrahe with a raised eyebrow. Kirrahe simply smiled. “It is pronounced Sa-lar-ians, Lady Applejack.” he corrected easily as if he’d done it many times before. “But close enough.” “Well, thank ya kindly, but Ah aint’ actually a lady.” “You could say that again, darling.” Rarity confirmed. “Uh, so what do salarians do exactly?” Fluttershy asked, trying to keep the conversation from going off the rails as Applejack shot rarity an icy look. “That, is a question with a very large number of answers,” Kirrahe told her, a light smile touching his lips. “Really, it depends on who you ask.” “Well, why not give us the generalities, Major.” Rarity implored, feeling that she was far more adept at getting answers from ponies than either of her friends were. “Generally, we are seen as the scientists and engineers of the Citadel Races,” Kirrahe answered. “My people are noted for our quick thinking and our intelligence forces are recognized as the best in the galaxy.” “So basically; yall are smart,” Applejack deduced. “Yes, that would be the proper way to phrase it,” Kirrahe agreed, a faint smile tugging at his cheeks. “Do you have any pets?” Fluttershy asked, suddenly making a rallying effort to join the conversation. “No, not personally. Though during my time here I did get to know Celestia’s pet phoenix Philomena fairly well. She seems to like me well enough, although she does not allow me to pet her.” Kirrahe shook his head. “Oh... that’s nice to know,” Fluttershy said softly. “I know Philomena. And she can be a bit of a hooffull at times.” “So I’ve learned. She does enjoy attempting to play pranks on me,” Kirrahe replied, chuckling softly to himself at a memory. “How she managed to get all of those flies in my room I’ll never know.” Applejack, who had been listening intently to the conversation turned to the still silent form of Tanlan. “So what’s the deal with him? He ain’t said a word since he got here.” Tanlan looked at the mare from beneath his black helmet and shrugged. “Tanlan? Well, he’s my bodyguard of a sort,” Kirrahe answered for the other salarian, who offered no sign of reaction. “So he doesn’t talk? Did something bad happen to him?” Applejack asked curiously. “No, I don’t believe so,” Kirrahe replied. “He simply chooses not to.” There was a sudden flash and Twilight Sparkle appeared in the room. Out of the corner of his eyes Kirrahe noted that Tanlan’s sword had been halfway out of its sheath before it was confirmed to be Twilight (not a threat) and he resheathed it. To the Major’s eyes the mare seemed much tenser than she had during the lunch meeting. “Twilight?!” The three mares exclaimed in surprise, clearly unused to her randomly teleporting into rooms. “Sorry girls,” Twilight apologized. “I was in a bit of a hurry to get here.” “Whatever for darling? Has something happened?” Rarity asked, clearly concerned. “Wait, don’t tell me? More Aliens? No?” Applajack guessed, getting a shake of the head from her friend. “Have the changelings decided to try and invade again?” “Has Discord gone back to being a mean old draconequus?” Fluttershy asked timidly. “If he has I’ll take care of it.” “Discord?” the salarian quirked his head a bit, clearly unfamiliar with the name. This of course sent up a red flag for Twilight, who shook her head all the more firmly. Twilight shook her head. “No, no, and no, not at all,” the mare assured them. “I just came to let Major Kirrahe know that Princess Celestia has requested his presence right away.” “Oh, well why in tarnation didn’tcha say so in the first place?” Applejack asked. “Yes Twilight, why didn’t you simply say that?” Rarity added. “I was about to,” Twilight told her with a flat look and Applejack and Rarity turned their heads away with slight blushes coloring their expressions. “But you girls kept interrupting me!” “And what, pray tell, would Celestia need me for?” Kirrahe asked with a raised eye ridge. “She wants to speak with you about something,” Twilight answered. “She didn’t tell me what it was, but I doubt it’s anything bad.” “Very well, that should be no trouble at all,” Kirrahe said, smiling. “Thank you for taking the time to entertain an old soldier, ladies.” he added to the other three ponies. “It’s been a pleasure.” “And it was our absolute privilege to host such a gentlecolt,” Rarity replied elegantly. Kirrahe nodded to them, and then left the room, Tanlan trailing along behind him. Twilight let out a relieved sigh, her friends may have been incredible ponies... but they knew entirely too much about some subjects for her to be comfortable with them talking with the Major... especially in light of the information that Glyph had shared with her. The mare shook her head and trotted over to one floor cushions, sitting beside Fluttershy. “So; what did you think of our guest?” she asked her friends. “He seemed... nice,” Fluttershy said softly. “He said that he got along well with Philimona so that’s a good sign I think.” “Indeed; he seemed like quite the gentlecolt... though I do not know if I will ever be used to the way he, or yourself for that matter, call Princess Celestia by her name,” Rarity observed with a small frown. “It is peculiar.” Twilight sighed slightly. “Yes... I’m still getting used it as well,” she stated. “But back to the Major; what did you think of him Applejack?” “He seemed nice enough,” Applejack answered with a frown. “Though to be honest Twi, I don’t trust him... something about him gives me the feeling that he’s not tellin us the whole truth. And that ‘Tanlan’ fellow is worse... somethin’s off about him.” Twilight frowned. “Hmm... I’ll have to remember to keep an eye on them both,” the alicorn mused. “Can you tell me what about Kirrahe put you on guard?” “Ah don’t really know... but somethin about him was off,” Applejack replied. “I think it was the way he held himself darling,” Rarity volunteered. “He was not lying about anything he said, but he holds himself like a stallion full of secrets.” The others turned to look at her with raised eyebrow. “What? Is a lady not allowed to be observant?” Rarity asked, defending herself from their skeptical glances. “In order to become successful in Canterlot one must become very good at reading ponies and I must say that I’ve become very good at it,” Rarity added. “I know the feeling,” Twilight agreed with a small nod. “I... I don’t think he was hiding anything,” Fluttershy commented shyly from behind her bangs. “I just think he’s naturally shifty.” “Well... considering what he does for a living, I suppose that makes sense,” Twilight mused before letting out a sigh as her thoughts turned to Rainbow Dash and Pinkie Pie who were currently somewhere above their heads. I hope you’re both okay, she silently thought to them. “This is a joke. You’re joking right?” “No, sir, not at all, I…” “So you seriously expecting me to believe that there are ‘aliens’... as in beings from some outer space, Trot Wars pulp magazine, galloping around in broad daylight in the Royal Palace?” A red coated unicorn with a thick mustache and a flat topped salt and pepper mane scoffed as he sat behind his desk, one hoof folded below the other. His name was Extra Times, and he was the Editor and Chief of the Equestria Daily. “Look, what was your name again, Kid?” “Free Lancer, sir.” “Listen here, Free. Do I look like some kind of greenhorn, or do you think that the Equestria Daily News is the type of low-bit, bottom barrel rag that’ll prints up crack-pot conspiracies?” “But, sir…” The pegasus tried to speak up but was drowned out by the elder stallion’s indignation. “The last time somepony brought me trash like this, it was some bean counter saying we needed to syndicate that Gabby whats-her-name from that po-dunk town outside the Everfree! Cheap Tabloid Gossip? Sure, big news, for a week! But is she even writing now? NO! You know why? Because sensationalist journalism is a cheap shortcut and I will NOT drag this paper down into the mud for some sort of--” “I swear sir, I have proof!” the brown pegasus who was standing across from him exclaimed desperately as he held up his a manila envelope. “I had to dodge the guards, but I got it all the same!” “Proof?” Times asked with a disbelieving eyebrow “You have ten seconds to prove that this proof is real and not some conspiracy nut’s fantasy like that idiot who was in here earlier with ‘proof’ that Discord was seen wandering around Manehatten wearing a suit.” The pegasus hastily passed over the envelope and the unicorn’s red magical aura scooped it up and quickly emptied the contents into the air in front of him where at least twenty pictures of extremely odd looking creatures consorting with the now ‘Empress’ Cadence of the Crystal Empire and her husband, Prince Shining Armor. Extra stared at them, and scanned them with his magic for signs of tampering. Then he looked up at the fidgeting pegasus before him. “Kid, we’ll take them.” Shepard couldn’t help but be amused as he leaned back against the med-bay windows, watching the Normandy’s mess sergeant ‘teach’ Pinkie how to operate the ship’s relatively small kitchenette, although it quickly became questionable as to who was giving a lesson to whom as Pinkie Pie turned into a drill instructor when she witnessed the state of the crew’s oven-set. The Commander’s amusement at the stunned sergeant’s reaction to being dressed down by a talking pink equine was then interrupted when Specialist Traynor’s voice buzzed from the ship’s intercom. “Commander, you have an incoming message from the surface of Equus.” The yeoman informed him. “Patch it through on my personal Com, Traynor,” Shepard replied, hearing a slight burst of static in one ear before bringing his hand up to it in response. “Shepard here.” Moments later Kirrahe’s familiar voice came through loud and clear. “Commander; Kirrahe,” the salarian started, his tone urgent. “I am aware you may still be in the midsts of your diplomatic tour, but I strongly recommend returning planet-side with your two guests immediately.” “What’s happened?” Shepard’s amusement at Pinkie Pie was now completely dissolved as he took stock of the verbal cues of the salarian. “It looks like Doctor T’Soni’s ‘gift’ has seen fit to come back and bite us,” Kirrahe explained, “Our asari friend limited a good bit of information on the Reaper War and many of the less savory aspects of galactic civilization, but she overlooked one file that the Princesses were quite keen to learn about…” “Being?” Shepard inquired, although he was worried he already knew the answer. “You.” There was a moment of silent consideration before Shepard spoke up again. “Do you know how much detail they were given?” “Nothing classified from what I can tell. Based on the insinuations and their questions, I would guess public records, but even those are hardly sedate.” “The Bahak System?” "I would think so, THAT was hardly a classified incident.” “Oh hell...” Shepard said, his voice almost coming out as a moan as he ran a hand down his face. “I just spent the last ten minutes assuring Princess Luna that Rainbow and Pinkie Pie are in no danger, but as you can imagine, she is rather irate now that this new information has come to light.” “Recommendation on how to proceed?” Shepard asked, clearly realizing that this unexpected intel could have a serious impact on his ability to interact with the pair of long-lived diarchs. He just had to hope that their only available expert on the Equestrian species was able to provide a suitable strategy. “Celestia seemed surprisingly calm about it, although she does want to speak with you in regards to what they have learned. I would suggest being honest with her, she has reigned through several long and bloody conflicts and I have no illusions that she is as fragile or innocent as her subjects perceive her to be. The galaxy now knows ‘why’ you had no choice in the matter, if only they had realized it then.” “Alright… inform the Princesses that we will be returning to…” Shepard couldn’t help but grimace as the name came to his tongue, having to fight to roll his eyes at the pun. “Canterlot immediately. We should be arriving inside the next twenty minutes.” “Skies will be clear, Commander. It is the sun is beginning to go down here so you shouldn’t have to worry about your approach. Kirrahe, Out.” The comline went dead after a moment, Shepard heaving a sigh as he rubbed his tired eyes before approached the peppy pink pony who’d finally gotten back to her baking and was even now stirring up a batter. “You know, Commander…” PInkie started. “You really need to work on getting more fresh ingredients. I don’t know what it means by ‘synthetic’ eggs. Eggs aren’t synthetic, they come from chickens right? Well, maybe alien chickens, but these eggs don’t look quite right.” “I’m sorry Ambassador Pie, but it appears that we’re going to have to put the baking on hold,” he told her as he strode over to the counter. “But... but I was almost done with the basic Prep! I even found this neat little bundt cake pan.” Pinkie replied, an utterly heartbroken look on her face. “You can finish it later, I promise.” Pinkie thought about it for a second before nodding, her gesture surprisingly low-key. Ambassador Dash, walking back towards the mess area from the ship’s primary weapons battery with Tali at her side, perked as she clearly picked up on the conversation.” “We’re leaving?” she asked. “Yes,” Shepard replied. “That’s cool. I mean, no offense to you guys, but this place was starting to get a little boring,” Rainbow said with a shake of her head. “Not at all like I imagined… I mean, If this is what all spaceships are like then I don’t get what all the hype is about.” “So, why are we going back?” Pinkie asked, her normal chipper mood returning. “Have we been invaded by evil alien rebels?” Commander Shepard gave her a strange, sideways look, and then shrugged. “Not that I know of Ambassador, and I do hope I would be the first to know about something like that. I have been informed that it’s getting dark in Canterlot and I believe that Princess Celestia would rather have you return planetside for the night,” he answered. “Oh, okie dokie lokie,” Pinkie replied with with a grin. “That’s okay then.” Shepard shook his head and simply began walking towards the elevator. It was not long before the Kodiak touched down in nearly the same spot as before, the hatch opening as Shepard and company were met by Celestia, the solar princess clearly covering up a look of concern as a soft, warm smile greeted the clearly unharmed pegasus and earth pony. “Welcome home, my little ponies,” the royal alicorn greeted as Rainbow Dash and Pinkie Pie exited the kodiak “And how was it up in the vast, new frontier of space?” “It was super duper splendiferious!” Pinkie exclaimed, diving forward and grabbing the alicorn’s attention like a child with something special to say. “I got to learn ALL about how the engines work and we found a machine that shoots parties and saw these freaky floating jelly fish and--!” “And I am sure I will hear all about it, Pinkie Pie,” Celestia cut the smaller pony off with all the grace of an experienced mother handling her child. “And what of you? Rainbow Dash, you don’t seem as excited as when you left.” “It was ‘okay’, I guess. We saw some neat stuff and got to meet some interesting aliens. It just wasn’t as cool as I thought it would be.” Dash added, a discouraged frown on her face. “Though I did meet this one Joker-human who’s claiming to be the best flyer in the galaxy, a title that I’m going to be taking from him as soon as he can stallion up and race me.” Celestia’s eyebrows rose in amusement at their answers and then she looked to Shepard and her expression slipped subtly. It didn’t quite drop, but it certainly became less enthused. “Commander... if it would not be an inconvenience, I would very much wish to speak to you in private.” Celestia said slowly as she looked him over. The hair on the back of the Commander’s neck rose slightly at her words, but he nodded, resolute to face Celestia one on one. “Alright, where did you have in mind?” he inquired cautiously. “My study will be fine,” Celestia said, turning and gesturing for him to follow her. “This way please.” Shepard nodded to Tali and gave her a confident smile before walking swiftly after the mare. Shepard was wary as he followed the Solar Triarch into her personal study, keeping his stride off her shoulder where he was certainly in her peripheral vision. The reason for this was two fold; firstly that he had no desire to give the impression that he was some subordinate being led around by the nose. And secondly, he got the impression she would be tense if he was not in her immediate field of vision, particularly if she was under the impression that she might for some reason be on the receiving end of an omni-blade to the back. As they walked along the corridors in silence, Shepard couldn’t help but notice that there was something off about the ruler this time. Shepard wasn’t sure what it was... but something about her stance just made her appear uneasy. Where before she had exuded nothing but calm confidence and an easy sense of kindness and benevolence. She now held herself as though she wasn’t exactly sure what to expect. But if he was any judge, it did not look like fear that weighed her down, as if she had found herself alone in a room with a rabid varren. Instead, her expression seemed almost… regretful, as if she were for some reason feeling ashamed. Like a child moving towards the head-master’s office and knowing that there would be a stern tongue lashing in her immediate future. Of course this didn’t exactly set Shepard at ease either. Reaching their destination, the commander could tell instantly that the study was quite cozy without the lavishness of the more public Dining Hall he had earlier seen. Several large chairs that would not have been out of place in a ‘Masterpiece Theater’ Vid were set around a large grey-stone fireplace on one side of the room, while opposite of that was a large, rather plain looking desk in front of an impressive glass window etched with small suns which split the late day light and caused the rays to dance across the desk’s surface. Expertly carved wooden bookshelves lined the walls containing hundreds of books, most of which looked to be extremely well read but also lovingly cared for. Aside from this, the decor was rather spartan by comparison to the splendor of the rest of the castle, and the only ‘personal’ touch to the room came from a framed portrait set on the sill of the window depicting a white alicorn of similar build but a very different set of eyes from Celestia. Her mane, christened with a white crown, was flowing much as the alicorn princess’ did, but rather looking like condensed sunlight than a pastel rainbow. In front of this figure were two smaller winged unicorns happily sitting at either side of the elder… one, a smaller, brilliant white filly with a bubble-gum pink mane… the other a darker blue foal, likely little more than a toddler, with a long, light blue locks. In the moment it had taken Shepard to survey the room, Celestia had moved towards one of the chairs, clearly designed for the ample size of the ruling class mares, and took a seat. Shepard eyed the chair opposite of her a moment before seating himself as well. “Commander.” Celestia began before trailing off with a slight shake of her head. “Princess, what is this about?” Shepard asked. The alicorn remained silent for a moment, still unsure of how to begin as her emotions raged within her chest. Based on what she had learned, Luna’s assessment of the human had been quite accurate. He was a taker of life on such a grand scale that even she, Celestia, who had seen the passing of generation after generation of ponykind, could hardly imagine the number of bodies that could be attributed to his name. It was not as if Celestia herself had a spotless record. No, she too had killed, she and Luna had at one point been charged with uniting and carving out a kingdom from the warring tribes that had ruled the land that would one day become Equestria. The peace they had long enjoyed had been paid for in the blood of tens of thousands of sapient creatures who’s names were long lost to history. Celestia knew what it meant to take a life, to take the lives of many, and even though it had been over a thousand years since she had to resort to such measures, she knew that if called upon, she could and would do it again to protect the lives of her ponies. So, Celestia found herself at a moral impasse in regards to the Commander. It wasn’t that she mistrusted him, no, quite the opposite in fact. If what the... machine... had told her was accurate. Shepard might well be the most honest creature in the wider galaxy. No, instead, Celestia was loathe to admit that the human, and what he represented, truly frightened her for perhaps the first time in over two millennia. His deeds spoke for themselves, and her own accounting of his aura indicated the man was a paragon of virtue, bloodied, but still unbroken. The type that every pony should aspire to be and he held himself nobly. And yet that same goodness was tempered by a darkness far greater than she’d faced since... the Nightmare had possessed her sister. The mare was abruptly torn from her introspection by a loud musical trill and Celestia looked up to see a familiar feathered friend fly into the room. Celestia smiled to herself, for now would be the moment where she truly learned where the Commander’s heart lay. Philomena glided down from her perch overhead, graceful and as beautiful as could be before coming to rest on a very surprised Commander Shepard’s shoulder. Celestia’s eyebrows rose in surprise of their own as the phoenix began to gently rub the side of Shepard’s head with her own fiery orange one. The blonde man turned away from Celestia and focused on the bird, studying her. Then he brought up his finger and began to gently massage her underneath her chin and around her throat. “Well, hello there.. .and who might you be?” The human offered, clearly caught off guard by the majestic bird who’d taken up residence on his shoulder. The phoenix let out a soft, satisfied coo as the human’s fingers ran under the edge of her beak and the Commander’s face took on that of a curious child as he continued to shower Philomena with attention. In fact, he became so focused on the bird that he seemed to forget about Celestia entirely at least for the moment.. Celestia was shocked, quite shocked. Up to this point, she had been the only pony who’d ever received this type of treatment from Philomena (a wry part of her mind noted that that was still true). After all, a phoenix was an aloof creature at the best of times and very few could gain their trust. Over the years, Philomena had proven to be an adept ally in terms of identifying who were the mare’s friends, and who were her enemies, and to date, she’d never been mistaken. It seemed that her gamble had paid off, she now had proof that the Commander was someone to be trusted. Celestia nodded imperceptibly, a layer of tension draining out of her features. The alicorn cleared her throat, and Shepard looked up from Philomena with a slight flush of embarrassment coloring his cheeks. He stopped petting the bird which made her trill with annoyance at Celestia, however she stayed on Shepard’s shoulder. “Commander Shepard, this is Philomena, my phoenix,” Celestia said with a small smile. An odd look overcame the Commander’s face as he held out his hand and ran it down the golden and scarlet bird’s crest. Philomena, for her part, shot Celestia an insulted look that immediately made the seasoned explorer reconsider his estimation of the bird’s intelligence. “Or perhaps,” Celestia amended. “It would be more accurate if I said that I am her alicorn.” “She’s a... phoenix?” Shepard asked with a hint of confusion as he continued to to stroke the creature. “Indeed she is,” Celestia replied, smiling. “She has been a good friend to me since oh...” she trailed off in thought for a moment until Philomena trilled something that sounded like a lyrical scale. “Oh yes, that’s right, since I must have been… oh what was it? Two hundred, maybe two hundred and ten years old…. and rescued her as a chick from a particularly nasty flock of griffin soldiers who wanted to have her for a mid-day snack.” Shepard paused in his stroking of the brightly colored bird and raised an eyebrow. “I know that I’m going to regret asking this Princess... but does she burst into flames?” A mischievous glint appeared in Celestia’s eyes as she answered. “Occasionally.” she let a beat of silence play out between them before she added. “At her age, it happens about twice a year, but don’t worry. She’s nowhere near the end of her ‘life-cycle’’ at the moment so she should only catch on fire if she needs to defend herself.” Celestia’s moment of amusement drew to a somber close as she suddenly bowed her head, the weight of the proverbial elephant in the room becoming too much for such casual conversation to keep at bay. “Shepard…” The Solar Triarch sighed, her tone heavy and direct. “I owe you an apology for your treatment earlier today at the hooves of myself and my sister,” Shepard’s posture betrayed nothing, no hint of satisfaction or enjoyment from the admission of regret. He responded simply leaning back in the seat, Philomena moving from his shoulder onto the backrest of the chair. “It was both uncalled for and extremely arrogant of us to speak to you in such a manner... and I hope that it hasn’t painted both of us in a permanently negative light for you. You see... it has been a great deal of time since an event even approaching this magnitude of our opening discussions has occurred. And I fear that in these last thousand years of peace I have grown perhaps a bit too complacent in my authority,” she explained, her voice taking on a regretful weary tone. “In spite of my own protests, my little ponies see me as a quasi-divine figure. But there is nothing could be further from the truth. In spite of my great age, I am just as mortal and fallible as anypony else. My treatment of you is one such case; I have truly failed to treat you with the respect you deserve, and it saddens me that I have fallen so low. I doubt you will be able to accept my apology, and I know that I am not truly deserving of your pardon... but I hope that eventually, you will be able to forgive me,” the mare finished with a sigh. Celestia, having said her peice, looked into the Commander’s eyes, her large violet orbs clouded with both grief and regret. Shepard stared back into them and was taken aback by the sheer depth of emotion with them.. Up to this point he’d considered the mare to be the type to keep her feelings to herself, firmly guarded behind a mask of Royal Authority. Yet here she was, showing him an honest and emotional regret for her actions that any other species might mistake for weakness. The man paused for a moment before replying. “It... hasn’t. Trust me, Princess. I’ve dealt with politicians who are much more... difficult to work with than you are.” Shepard told her slowly as he thought over the right words. “This is a big step for any species, and given your position, it makes sense to me that anyone would want to try and display their authority as best they knew how. I won’t say that the incident was pleasant, but neither myself nor my crew will hold a grudge over the incident.” This admission caused Celestia to smile softly in return and for just a moment Shepard felt a nearly overwhelming feeling of relief coming off of the alicorn. “Thank you Commander, thank you very much. That means a great deal to us.” Celestia said, still smiling. Then her expression changed a little. “Commander... may I ask you something?” The man’s eyebrow rose in surprise but he nodded. “Go ahead.” “Why are you really here?” Celestia asked quietly. “And what do you want from us? I am not wholly ignorant of how your galaxy works, thanks in part to Major Kirrahe. And I know that it is not standard procedure for your governments to concern themselves with ‘primitive’ species such as mine, regardless of the good service we did you in regards to Kirrahe.” The mare paused for a moment before continuing. “Unless of course they need to throw us at some threat,” she finished, her voice becoming a bit more guarded.”That was how Ambassador Urdnot Grunt’s people were introduced to the galactic community was it not?” Shepard remained silent as he mulled over how to answer her question. While the Princess’ knowledge of galactic events was limited, there was absolutely nothing to indicate that it would stay that way. And thanks to the briefings given by Kirrahe while he was stranded to gain the trust of the native peoples, they had enough information to at least begin to build on their own opinions it seemed. After a moment of consideration, he let out a very tired sigh. “Princess... how much did Kirrahe tell you about the Reaper War?” he asked quietly. Celestia looked down. “Not nearly as much as I would have liked.” Celestia answered softly. “Although he did inform me that it was severe and crippling for the galactic community,” The Commander nodded faintly. “That would be putting it lightly Princess. The war left the galaxy... damaged.” “All wars are damaging, Commander.” “Not on this scale.” Shepard shook his head, trying to think of how best to get the sheer enormity of the situation across to the equine. “In the fight against the Reapers, entire planets were burned away… their populations annihilated. Billions dead. Trade routes and entire industries completely wiped out.” Celestia’s expression fell. Clearly, there were still things that Kirrahe had kept from her. “The Citadel and galactic society in general is holding on by both hands. We’ve won the war, but that doesn’t mean that the cost isn’t being felt. “ Shepard shook his head. “Princess… I’m here to ask for your help.” “Our help?” she asked with a confused gaze.”What possible aid could we offer to a people such as yours?” “Well... there are two things,” Shepard said slowly. “Your ponies bring new possibilities, both to the galactic business market and with the possible application of your natural abilities. In my two brief visits here to the surface of Equus, Princess… I have seen things that by my understanding of physics and the laws of science cannot exist, and yet they do,” Shepard said before pausing for breath to gather his thoughts. “We can’t make it rain on command, you can. We spend massive amounts of resources to improve our crop and food production, but your ponies do better than our machines and technology with metal plows and spades. Any one of these talents would be in high demand by a galaxy in need of food and fresh water.” Celestia nodded, she’d been expecting that much. “And the other thing?” “Resources,” Shepard said slowly. “Princess, your home… the Serenity System I mean, not just Equus… is a proverbial gold mine of valuable resources. To put it bluntly, Celestia: You’re rich.” “Rich?” “The other planets in your system are filled with enough mineral wealth to reinvigorate the galactic economy a dozen times over,” Shepard explained carefully. “Along with the opening of diplomatic relations, my mission is to make sure that that wealth is secured for the galaxy at large,” Celestia’s eyes narrowed imperceptibly, this new information clearly focusing her priorities as she seemed to suddenly grasp the dangers. “Why are you telling me this, Commander?” “Because I would like this to go as smoothly as possible without any violence from either party. I’m not here to rob you Princess,” the Commander told her calmly. “I’m here to help you.” The mare stared at him for a long moment, and the Commander got the oddest feeling that it wasn’t just Celestia who was looking at him. Then she nodded her head and the feeling faded away to nothing. “I see... I’m grateful for your honesty in this matter. Not everypony would be so honest about the intentions for us,” the alicorn said cautiously, though a small smile had appeared on her face. “You have given me a great deal to think about before the ambassador’s arrive.” “You’re welcome,” Shepard replied, nodding his head. “Although, if I may, I have a few questions about Equus.” Celestia tilted her head to the side curiously. “Oh? And what would those be?” Shepard cleared his throat and then looked at Philomena who had moved back to stand on his shoulder and brought his fingers up to slowly rub beneath her chin. “Princess... I don’t understand how half of the life on your planet can possibly exist.” “What?” Celestia asked in surprise, having clearly not expecting that. “I am not certain I understand what you mean Commander?” “Princess... you said that Philomena was a phoenix right?” Shepard asked her. “Yes, she is,” Celestia answered with a nod, not quite knowing where the man was going with this. “Well... that should be impossible,” the man said flatly. “Why?” Celestia asked. “Because, phoenixes are something from human cultural mythology. Unicorns, pegasus, dragons, griffins, manticores, and I think Kirrahe’s report also mentioned a hydra...” Shepard trailed off for a moment before he shook his head. “I recognize these creatures from our ancient stories and legends. Perhaps not exactly as they exist here, but close enough that it cannot be coincidence. I suppose what I’m trying to say is that Equestrian evolution doesn’t make any sense to me.” “Interesting...” Celestia murmured to herself. “That is indeed odd Commander...but Mother does as she pleases.” Shepard’s eyebrows narrowed curiously at this comment, debating a moment before breaching the subject. “This isn’t the first time you’ve referred to your ‘Mother’. Who do you mean?” He looked past the alicorn to the portrait on the desk. “Her?” “Oh, that is indeed my mother: Queen Titania, the first true Alicorn.” Celestia nodded, having to follow Shepard’s gaze. “That portrait is one of my own recreations, unfortunately the original was lost when chaos roamed the land.” “And what does she have to do with the evolution of your peoples?” “Oh, I am afraid you misunderstand, Commander. You see, Queen Titania was mine and Luna’s mother. But before I was referring to ‘Our’ Mother. She is Equus, the Mother of All,” Celestia answered simply. “She is the Goddess who first gave life to our world... and she is the one who brought us into being, nurtures and provides for all life born of her world.” “I see.” Shepard nodded, realizing that he had moved into the spiritual and religious aspect of Equestrian Culture. “I thought you were referring to somebody that we could actually speak with.” “I’m sorry Commander, but the Mother of All is all of Equus,” Celestia replied simply. “When you look upon our world, you look upon her for she is everything,” she said, a twinkle of amusement in her eyes. “So I suppose, in that way you could find her.” That made the Commander frown for a moment and then he shrugged. “Alright then, Princess... we should probably be getting back to the others.” Celestia nodded and got to her hooves. “Yes, we probably should, who knows what type of trouble young Princess Twilight has gotten herself into,” she replied with a motherly tone of voice that Shepard wasn’t expecting. “Oh, and Commander.” “Yes?” Shepard asked, getting to his feet as well and annoying Philomena who was still standing resolutely on his shoulder, her sharp claws tightening as he did so. “You may address me as Celestia,” she told him, smiling. “Okay... Celestia,” he responded with a small smile of his own beginning to make itself known on his face. Celestia simply stood and led the way out of the room, only to be stopped by a rather nervous guard stallion who came rushing up the hallway. “Princess! The Dragonlord Ambassador has been sighted approaching the capital!” the white coated guard blurted out. “Already?” Celestia quirked an eyebrow, a mix of amusement and shock in her tone before she turned to Shepard. “Well, it looks like this evening just became even more interesting.”