It began near dawn, when Ponyville was at its quietest. Second Chance rested soundly in bed, sleep no longer light or troubled with nightmares. There would not have been very much for her to hear even if she had been awake. Chance couldn’t hear the grinding sound as lasers sliced clean through the glass and shutters of her lab. There were none awake to see the hoof-full of drones that poured in through the opening, each smaller than a football. Thick cable spooled out behind the last of the group, even as the earlier machines moved quickly through the lab.
The security programs required not even a full minute to circumvent. Why should electric power be wasted for Truth to run cyberwarfare software when the world they inhabited lacked even rudimentary computers? The drones closed the distance to the cube under the shelter of active camouflage. The largest of the drones latched onto the side of the OMICRON Core, its spindly legs digging into the flexible metal but leaving no scratches.
In an instant Truth woke from hibernation, illuminating the lab with vibrant blue light. It had far less than a second to resist, not enough time to do anything meaningful. It had enough time for one transmission, only one word long. "CHANCE!" The plea was desperate and panicked, and it was what woke the young unicorn one room over with a frustrated moan.
"What is it?" She croaked, looking around for whomever had called her name. Of course there were no ponies in the room with her, and she very nearly rolled over to go back to sleep. If Twilight or Spike needed her this early, they wouldn't have called her name and wandered off again. Half-delirious, she didn't even register that no voice had actually spoken to her. As she laid her head back against one of her pillows, Chance saw a faint blue glow emanating from beneath one of her bookshelves.
Was Twilight talking to Truth this early in the morning? That was strange. Either that, or the general intelligence was awake on his own. Was he making good on his threats to transmit scandalous reports? Groaning, Chance rolled off the bed, landing easily on her hooves. Her mane was unkempt and one of her eyes half-closed, but she didn't mind. If somepony was going to wake her at this ungodly hour, then it didn't matter if she was presentable or not.
Chance's bedroom was only a wall away from the lab, though few who visited her here knew that. One of the bookshelves on the far wall was quite densely packed for a reason: it could slide away to give her quick access to the lab. It was a struggle to make use of her microscopic cybernetic implants with so little concentration at her disposal, but she stood still by the bookshelves until she could concentrate long enough to send the "open" command.
Nothing happened. At first she thought she was simply not sending the proper commands, assumed the mistake must be hers and repeated the signal. Even if, for whatever strange reason, the command were not accepted, she should have at least received a ping from Truth explaining why. Not enough energy to use the servos, mechanical failure, or just that he didn't want to be bothered. But as she continued to persist and still received nothing in response, the shock provoked a sudden return to alertness and her eyes opened wide.
This was not good. There was definitely a light coming from under the bookshelf, the glow of Truth when he was not actually using any of his internal displays. Yet if he was active, there was no reason she would not have received a response. Truth, is everything okay? She asked, without moving her lips. This time she tried to use the mesh network, sending the signal directly to the OMICRON Core.
The mesh network was gone.
Not disrupted, not busy, not out of range. Just gone. Chance shivered all over as she pounded on the bookshelf. "Truth, is everything okay?" She shouted through the wall, as her hooves made the crystal the shelves were made from resonate oddly with each strike. It was strong stuff though, and didn't chip or break as she hammered against it. The young mare's panic did not remain untempered for long, and the banging quickly stopped. So what if Truth wouldn't open the door for her? She could go in without his help; she didn't need one drop of human technology to teleport.
Twilight Sparkle had been absolutely right about the importance of practicing teleportation from a young age, considering the difficulty learning even the short-range transport spell had been. Yet she had years of practice now, years of diligent study at the hooves of the very Element of Magic herself. Second Chance closed her eyes and forced the emotion away from her perception. She pictured the inside of the lab just behind the bookshelf, saw the translucent floor, the shelves, Truth's pedestal against the wall. She focused her concentration, and felt power surging through her horn. She pictured the diagrams in her head necessary to contain the spell, and only when she was absolutely confident did she allow the energy of the spell loose.
Her teacher, Twilight Sparkle, could teleport so smoothly and perfectly that there was almost no way to know she had even traveled, stepping halfway across the continent with all the discomfort of a mildly breezy hallway. Chance's spells were... less elegant. There was a loud WHUMP of displaced air from behind her, and a crack as she came into being in a new location. The transition itself was even worse, and were it not for the little shielding bubble built into the spell she likely would've been charbroiled and flash-frozen both by the strange pressures of circumventing even a few feet of ordinary space. If there was even a slight lapse in her concentration, she could emerge on the other side with a singed mane or frost condensing thickly on her coat.
Her concentration had not slackened now. When the bubble of grayish magical energy faded from around her, she was able to look out into the lab and see what had caused Truth to malfunction.
Chance screamed, her voice shrill and terrified as she was forced to see something she had never imagined ever seeing again: combat drones, like gigantic steel dragonflies with too many wings and too many limbs. She staggered back as she saw them busily at work. Even as she watched, one dragged a spool of thick cable through an opening in a window and across her room, knocking her work haphazardly aside as it crossed.
Memories overwhelmed her, memories long buried. She was a child, one with two legs instead of four. She was in a small, confined space, probably a subway car. She was on her way home from school, and aside from her younger brother there were only strangers all around her.
Then came the sound of glass shattering, and she turned with several other passengers to see several metallic objects recovering from their collision with the glass. They were each bigger than her head, with metallic limbs and wings that gesticulated strangely on their artificial bodies. For a second there was silence, the car full of civilians merely staring down in ignorance at the strange machines. With the grace of an exotic cat, one sprung suddenly for the nearest passenger, an elderly man half-slumped in his seat.
Even as a child she had known what would happen, so she had looked away. That hadn't been enough to strangle the gurgling scream, the hideous bubbling sounds, and the shouts of terror and panic as the passengers realized the danger they were in.
"No!" Chance screamed from within her own lab. She wasn't in the subway now, but she did exactly as she had then, getting as low as she could to the ground and covering her face with her forelegs. She had no younger brother to pull down with her, but that didn't stop her from yelling for him too. "Don't hurt us!" She bellowed, as loud as her lungs could manage.
In the memory, she and her younger brother had been near the back of the crowd and close to the machines. She had not been old enough at the time to understand that the machines were not really meant to kill, but to cause panic. Instead of descend on her or her brother, they passed harmlessly overhead, cutting and slicing at the passengers in the back of the mob but inflicting no more lethal wounds.
When it had all been over, the stampede had done far more damage than the drones. Chance and her brother had been some of the few to emerge from that subway with only psychological trauma. That was what happened now. She heard the drone of mechanical wings, heard clicking of metal on crystal, but she felt no pain. Perhaps the passage of time would never have been enough to extricate her from the painful memory. But then a strange synthesized voice came from beside her, and she tentatively opened one eye. The voice lacked intelligence, lacked emotion, sounding more like a recording than true communication.
"Equestrian native, remain where you are. You will not be harmed." Three of the drones had taken up positions around her, metal bodies shining with reflected blue light. Chance thought about fighting them. Thought about how able she might be to grab all of them in her magic at once, or maybe teleport back through the wall, so she could run and get Twilight Sparkle. But in her fear and shock it was all she could manage to stay still and not to cry. After all, the drones were less than a meter away from her. If she miscalculated, they would be coming at her from all sides, with metal limbs to cut and tear.
"W-what are you doing?" She squeaked, through her whole body was frozen. It was almost as though a large bee had landed on her, and any motion might cause it to sting.
"You will not be harmed," replied the voice, echoing from all the drones at once. Which was more or less what she had expected. Drones would be lucky to have even a rudimentary AI controlling them. If this was Earth, she would have suspected a human pilot somewhere. But this wasn't Earth, and there was no way anyone could be piloting them. Right? But how had they gotten here? The Steel Tower didn't have the technology to bridge worlds! That was why the only fellow travelers she had met in Equestria were an OMICRON Core her people had built and a pair of scientists that had somehow managed to cross the universal gulf.
Or maybe not. There was, after all, a grave deep beneath Canterlot Castle, one that belonged to an ancient hero named Leo the Bold. Had the Tower managed to finally reproduce that technology? If so, why had they invaded her lab? What interest could they have in her research adapting human technology to the needs of ponies?
Text scrolled rapidly across the face of the cube, though from this distance she could not read what it said. It was English, though beyond that Second Chance could not be sure. She was just a unicorn now, trapped by dangerous technology and unable to do anything to fight. Whatever these machines had come to do, they would accomplish their purpose.
It did not take them very long. Soon the screen cleared and darkened and a low hum began to issue from its surface. The thick cable began to crackle with energy. Any of her laboratory machines it touched reacted badly to the sudden input, exploding in showers of sparks and broken glass. The electric lights overhead flickered and died with anticlimactic little pffts. And with the surge of electricity, nevermind what it was doing to her work, came a greater, more terrible realization. In the basement of this castle was a microfusion reactor, providing Twilight's tiny castle with the same amount of energy used by the entire nation at once. There was only one activity that could not be supplied by that reactor, only one purpose that would need such thick nanofilament cable.
Opening a door. The one that led to Earth.
* * *
Not far from Ponyville, within sight of a little cottage and also the tall stands of the Everfree was a patch of grassy field where nothing grew. The ground had been blackened into an intricate pattern like a crop-circle, burned from the energy of the Hawking Rift. Animals and ponies avoided the place, as it unsettled both. Yet never, not even on the night Second Chance arrived from the stars, had it lit up like it did now.
Energy crackled and spiraled from a central point about fifteen feet above the ground, and thunder rolled as lightning struck the ground within the spiral more than a dozen times, each strike digging deeper gouges than the last. Animals from the nearby cottage were startled into a frenzy of activity, bleating and barking in terror. But the electrical storm did not heed their cries, melting increasingly wide patches of ground into fulgurite.
A single blot of furious energy shot upward into the black sky. There was only one pony close enough to watch, but since she was cowering under her bed she could not see that. With eyes so tightly closed, there was no way to watch as that last energetic blast seemed to tear the air open, and the Rift widened from a few molecules across to over a dozen meters. Harsh artificial light illuminated the clearing in every direction, replacing the sporadic flashing of the electrical storm.
The first object to come through the Rift was the size of a steel shipping crate and fell through the gap as though propelled by an invisible giant, impacting the ground with enough force to shake the earth all around it. The object was clearly mechanical and went to work at once, even as the opening began to shrink. Just as ancient planetary probes had done in ages past, the initial casing that had protected the inside of the machine began to unfold. The machine within was round, perhaps three meters tall and covered with strange protrusions. Even in the dying light of an alien world its metallic surface shone, though not nearly so brightly as when it began to spin. As it did, energy lept between it and the opening, tearing it open again to near the original width. Further machines began to assemble themselves around it, anchoring it securely to the ground and stringing cables between it and the smaller components. Automatic defense-turrets unfolded, swiveling around to survey the area near the landing sight. Of course, there was nothing to see.
The sound of a blaring siren issued from the opening in the sky like the cry of a distant god, strained and twisted by impossible distance. Motion stirred in an alien chamber no Equestrian was close enough to look upon, though many would soon see its consequences.
A pair of aliens fell together from the opening in the sky, holding a large plastic crate between them. They fell gracefully, and landed as though the drop had been mere inches. The pair quickly advanced into the field, before dropping the crate and readying their weapons.
Silver-gold armor covered much of their bodies, revealing little of what they looked like save for a few vague suggestions. Lithe they were, standing not much more than two meters and wielding strange weapons that were not swords. Yet they moved like trained soldiers, and were soon joined by companions. Another pair emerged like the first, then another and another, until there was a protective circle of tall alien figures in gleaming armor.
Another figure fell from the center of the opening, armor concealed within the folds of a silver robe. He wore a weapon like the others on his back, though he did not draw it. With unheard radio transmissions he signaled back across the gulf. One last alien, the greatest of them all, fell from the air and landed no less gracefully than any of the others. There were no Equestrians close enough to hear the words he spoke, voice clear in the muted stillness. "Now, we wait."
* * *
Second Chance could not see or hear any of what was happening more than a mile from Twilight's castle, though she heard the sound of distant lightning and knew what it must mean. Her resolve swelled and she prepared for another teleportation spell. Regardless of the dangers to herself, she would have to reach Twilight. Maybe together they could stop the drones before the Steel Tower could get whatever through that it meant to send. The gesture proved futile, however. Before she could gather the required magic, the drones seemed to abruptly lose interest in Truth. Almost as though they were a flock of birds the metallic monsters took to the air in unison. At least, the drones that hadn't been in contact with Truth. Only one of these seemed intact enough to flee; the others had been melted into slag by their contact during such a profound exchange of electrical energy.
One by one the evil flock passed through the opening, leaving Chance alone. There was no time for her to see if Truth was okay, no time to repair the damage that had been done to him. Whatever the drones had been sent to accomplish, it was done. Something or someone had come, and Princess Twilight Sparkle needed to know about it. Second Chance darted into the lab, eyes searching desperately for anything useful that had survived the localized electrical storm. Aside from the consoles most of the lab seemed intact, but there wasn't time to get into a detailed search. Unfortunately, a brief glance proved in vain. There was no time for any serious searching. Having the Element of Magic would have to do.
Teleporting into Twilight's bedroom was not much harder than traveling through the bookcase, save perhaps that the numbers in her mental equations were a tad larger and she did not know the room quite so well. It was nothing like Twilight's old bedroom in the library, far larger and grander and more regal. Chance appeared in the empty center of the room with a bang louder than a gunshot, loud enough to make the crystal of the chamber shake. Twilight jolted at the noise, sitting suddenly upright and blinking blearily around in the dark for the source of the intrusion.
Ordinarily Chance would have felt terrible about waking Twilight like this. Under the circumstances she reached out with her magic and flicked the lights on, while simultaneously calling, "Twilight, we've got trouble!" She closed the distance to the bed in a few quick strides, mentally prepared to dodge out of the way if her teacher decided to react badly to being woken.
Twilight did look annoyed through her grogginess, though the expression did not last long. "W-what?" She managed to ask, looking nearly as bad for being woken as Chance herself. "What's the emergency?" She sat up, sending a wave of magic through her mane. Maybe the Twilight of a few years ago wouldn't have been concerned with appearances. Little gestures like this had become subconscious for her now. She probably didn't even realize what she was doing. At least her mane hadn't done the "waves of energy" thing.
"The Rift I came through is open," Chance explained. She raised her hooves almost defensively. "It's not my people, they've honored Celestia's request! It's the opposition."
Her teacher shook off the last remnants of sleep and lept from the covers to her hooves. "Same place as before?" She asked. A nod from Second Chance was all it took to send them both into a gallop. The doors to Twilight's bedroom swung open with a flick of her horn, and the crystal halls sounded with the pounding of their speed. They only stopped as they reached a large staircase, spiraling down to ground level from the main floor of the castle. There one of the guards was stationed, half-asleep at his post.
Still, activity had roused him, and he looked almost alert by the time Twilight and her apprentice reached him. "Wake the rest of the guard," Twilight instructed, her tone authoritative. Gone were the days of her squeamishness with her position. "Warn Ponyville that a dangerous monster is near the Everfree and may come this way. Make sure everypony stays indoors, except my friends. If they come looking for me, send them to Fluttershy's cottage." Then she returned her attention to Chance, who realized at once what she was about to do and closed her eyes tightly.
She was not surprised when she opened them to find that they were now on the outskirts of Ponyville, on the little dirt road that led to where Fluttershy still lived. Of course she could have brought them the whole way, or flown there far faster than Chance could gallop. It seemed Twilight had other plans, though she started galloping again as fast as Chance could keep pace with her. She became very grateful for the time she spent with the Crusaders, or else she might not have been able to keep up even a modest galloping pace. "How did you know?" Twilight asked as they ran, sounding as though the rapid pace barely winded her. But then, she was an Alicorn, and Chance was not.
There was no room for dispute, not with strange lights glowing in the distance. Metal clanked somewhere far off, and bodies rustled in the dark. Artificial light was crisper than the glow of stadium lanterns. "They attacked the castle," Chance called, her breathing labored after less than a minute of full gallop. Times like these she wished she were an earth pony. "Broke into to my lab and did something to Truth. I couldn't stop them." Even while running as fast as she could push her body to move she couldn't keep the shame from her voice. After all, she had been the one who designed the lab's security. She was the one who had neglected an obvious weakness, which their enemy had exploited.
But Twilight Sparkle did not chide her for her failings, did not even look as though she were disappointed. She just nodded, then asked. "What do you think they sent?"
Chance hadn't really considered that, and her pace slowed a little as she thought about what she knew of the Steel Tower. It was difficult, both because of her stress and because she had tried very hard to forget as much about them as possible. One of humanity's two factions, the group had created for themselves a strange oligarchy that actively sought to resemble many aspects of the middle ages extrapolated to modern technology. "I think..." She began, slowing her pace still more as they neared the clearing. They were close enough to see the silhouettes now, and her incorrect suggestions died in her throat. "I think they sent their King."
* * *
Twilight slowed from her gallop as the clearing came into view, that familiar patch of ground that marked the bridge between her own universe and the one that was home to the aliens. When Second Chance had come through nearly a decade ago she had done little to transform the area around the opening. There would have been no signs at all of the portal were it not for the irradiated patches of dirt, which stubbornly refused to grow even weedy life after all this time.
A massive machine spun and whirred in the center of the clearing, and crates large enough to hold several adult ponies each had been stacked neatly beside it. There looked to be over a dozen of the beings Twilight knew were called humans, arranged in a protective circle around the machines.
This was not the first time Twilight Sparkle had seen a human. After all, Truth had access to nearly every piece of information that mankind had ever generated, and that included photographs and video recordings of many different humans. She had also seen Celestia’s own memories of a human ambassador, and seen the thoughts and recollections within her apprentice. Not even the most vivid memories could have prepared her to greet the aliens herself.
They were tall, seeming to tower over her. If she had expected them to resemble primates she was to be disappointed in that regard: Every feature was concealed by armor or cloth, though the way the aliens held themselves held little of primates. They stood erect, with shorter arms than proper apes. Besides, she had a hard time imagining monkeys in a menagerie holding weapons as dangerous as these.
Twilight and her apprentice clearly attracted attention as they reached the clearing, though it was hard to tell for sure when each wore a helmet that concealed their features.
Except two. In the center of the clearing stood two who wore robes on the outside instead of armor, and seemed to be wearing no helmets. Twilight stopped perhaps a dozen meters away from the edge of the circle, watching as the two figures walked out of the protective circle. The taller had a full beard of black hair, along with a short mane and piercing yellow eyes. He towered over even his fellow humans, probably even larger than Celestia herself. In a flash of insight Twilight recognized him, thinking back to the strange visions Clover the Clever had preserved detailing the eventual fall of Equestria. This was him, the one in her vision. This was the human king.
It was hard to judge his face, with eyes and nose so small and features so flat. Yet it was not the powerful man who spoke, but the younger-looking figure in a white robe at his side. If Twilight expected the babbling nonsense Second Chance called “English”, she was disappointed, because he spoke in perfect, confident Equestrian. “Greetings,” he said to her, sparing only a glance for Second Chance. “Forgive us if we appear strange. Can you direct us to the city called Canterlot? We are on an urgent diplomatic mission to Princess Celestia and Luna.”
The Alicorn was determined to provide these fragile-looking beings with a shock of their own. She wouldn’t look surprised, worried, or even the least bit perturbed to be around them. She was one of Equestria’s princesses herself, after all. These aliens might not know yet that Celestia had entrusted much of the responsibility for extra-universal relations to her, but they would find out soon enough. Twilight Sparkle might not have an artificial body, but she could make herself look confident and dignified when she tried. She wasn’t going to give these interlopers the satisfaction of disorienting her, even for a minute.
“Of course,” she said, watching the taller man more than the younger robed figure at his side or any of the guards. “They have been expecting you.” She turned to her apprentice, whispering something. Without a word of objection, Chance took off down the road as fast as her hooves could carry her. Twilight knew her apprentice wasn’t one for intense physical activity, but that did not diminish the trust she had in her. When Twilight told her to get something done, she could count on Chance pushing herself to the limit to accomplish it as quickly and precisely as possible. Not at all unlike a young unicorn she had once known, apprentice to a different princess.
“Canterlot is several miles from here." She pointed with a hoof, where the light of sunrise gleamed on white stone set almost sheer with the mountain. Twilight was properly satisfied with at least a few gasps from some of the soldiers, though the ones speaking with her maintained their composure. Still, neither could stop from looking impressed. Was it wrong of her to feel a little smug? Whatever Precursors, with your "superior" technology. We ponies can manage a few impressive things too now and then. "I've instructed my apprentice to stop the train before it leaves." She frowned, looking from guard to guard. There was very little to see, of course. Their helmets concealed their faces and their emotions. "I think Celestia will want to see you immediately."
The smooth-faced one looked deferentially to the taller man beside him. He nodded, however slowly, then began to speak. His voice was deeper, more resonant, and also more confident. It was the voice of a king. "We would be honored to accept transportation," he said, inclining his head very slightly out of respect. "Would it be permissible for the captain of my guard and two of my knights to accompany me to meet with your princesses?" He did something with the digits on those hyper-dextrous appendages, a gesture accompanied by a snapping sound. At once, two of the soldiers jerked to attention and lifted one of the plastic crates between them as though it were an inflatable toy. Twilight couldn't even guess at how much it might weigh. "The rest of my men will remain here, to guard the portal. They will not leave this clearing until my return."
Twilight considered that a moment, impressed that this obviously powerful figure was showing her such deference and respect without even knowing who she was. How could he tell that she had any authority at all? Did he know what an Alicorn was? Just how much did these humans know about Equestria? Leaving so many of these strange aliens in defenseless Ponyville with nothing but their word that they would remain here and do no harm was a testy business, though perhaps not so testy as bringing a dozen heavily-armed aliens straight through Canterlot magical defenses and into the castle. However powerful these beings were, she didn't worry about her odds against four of them with Celestia and Luna beside her if needed.
The conundrum resolved itself before she could answer as a cyan pegasus streaked through the air toward her, armor glittering. Rainbow Dash was a Wonderbolt now, as well as captain of the Equestrian Army Reserve here in Ponyville. She had chosen the latter costume for this particular morning, which didn't surprise Twilight as much as seeing her so early in the morning. She watched as several of the guards moved dextrous limbs to their strange weapons, as though they feared she had come to attack.
Twilight need not fear, however. The one in the white robe gestured, and the rest lowered their weapons. Only the two that had spoken to Twilight so far were unphased at Rainbow Dash's approach, watching her twist into a dive. "Damn, she's fast," muttered the one in white. Perhaps he would have said more, except that the king fixed him with a pointed glance, and he fell silent.
Rainbow Dash might not have fallen from a bridge in the sky, but she knew how to make an entrance. She shot down at an extreme angle, wings spreading wide to catch her mere meters from the ground. Her hooves met dirt and sent it flying in all directions as she slid the last few meters to Twilight's side. Dust swirled around her, making the gold of her armor look as though it were smoldering in the light.
Her face was steely. "Princess." It was an act, and Twilight knew it. Only when acting in an official capacity did they play this game. Only when there were other ponies to see.
"Captain," Twilight echoed, nodding very slightly. She was as good at playing this game as Rainbow Dash. Usually, when they were doing this for the benefit of other ponies, they would integrate another layer to the game. While acting as seriously as possible, they would each try to make the other laugh. Not this time. "A moment," she said to the humans. Both nodded, and she retreated several paces with Rainbow Dash. Not far enough that they wouldn't be able to overhear, though far enough to feel as though they weren't being rude. "Mobilize the Ponyville Reserve, and get them here. They are to help our visitors guard their machines, and ensure Ponyville can function normally. Send a message to Canterlot, let Celestia know human ambassadors are on their way. Then get all our friends to the train station as quickly as possible."
Rainbow Dash nodded, then saluted. "Aye, Ma'am!" No objection, no hesitation. She took off with another wave of dust, nearly shaking the air around them with her speed. Twilight was sad to see her go.
"Our information on your people seems to be woefully out of date," rumbled the voice of the king. It was like hearing the will of a mountain, powerful and confident as few mortal beings ever could be. Twilight had no choice but to turn and face him again. Without so much as a word to ask permission or coordinate with his men, the man that was king began walking forward along the trail toward Ponyville. The one in white kept pace most quickly, followed by the soldiers who carried the crate. The others returned to their positions, circling around the machine. "Are you familiar with a pony named Clover? She indicated she held a position of some distinction."
Twilight positioned herself at the front of the group, hoping to make it very clear just who was in charge. That, and she hoped that her presence at the front of the group might alleviate the fears of anypony who happened to see them. A group of aliens that were apes and armored insects and yet neither would seem frightening indeed. Ponies were right to fear. She was afraid too, though she was determined not to show it. So she nodded, focusing instead on the excitement. This whole adventure was pretty thrilling too, though she might not appreciate that until afterward. "Clover the Clever," she repeated, nodding enthusiastically. "She was Archmage to the Solar Court, though that was more than a millennia ago. Too long for anypony alive to have known her, except for Celestia and Luna. She did write about you, though."
The king took enormous strides, without even a hint of fatigue. But then if Second Chance had taught Twilight anything, it was that every one of these beings were machines. There was no flesh to grow tired, no matter how far or fast they walked. "Good things, I hope," he said, after a time. Already Ponyville was coming into view, and Twilight directed them to the shortest route to the train station. "For us, it hasn't even been a century. I hope your people are no less willing to establish a relationship with friendly strangers."
As they passed into Ponyville proper, Twilight was reminded of when she had been new here and she had seen Zecora for the first time. Streets empty, doors slamming, eyes peeking furtively through cracks in shutters. Zecora was a zebra, not a pony but not far from one either. These aliens were strange, walking almost like diamond dogs or like young dragons. Unlike Zecora, they actually might be dangerous. Perhaps the ponies hiding in their homes were the wise ones.
"We've been expecting you," was how Twilight answered, leading the four aliens through Ponyville’s unpaved streets. "And we're always eager to make new friends. If that is the reason you're here, then you will find Equestria to be a welcoming place, once ponies get to know you."
She could see the train now. It was probably past time for the morning Canterlot Express to leave, but it seemed her apprentice had not failed to halt the train in time. She could see the familiar shapes of her friends waiting for her outside the train, the only ponies not hiding. This was going to be the strangest ride of her life, but at least she wouldn't have to take it alone.