The sound of the shattered glass was ringing in my head, as all my senses were slowly starting to come back. Unfortunately even a simple movement caused me monstrous pain, straining without mercy each cell of my body.
Constant cries could be heard throughout the cars cabin, making me finally realize that they were coming from behind my back. However, blurry vision and a sore body made it impossible to fully catch the glimpse of the situation.
As I try to move my hands I realize that there are stuck, and each time I pull them, I receive a constant shock of pain. Are they broken?
The sudden cry of a child makes me forget about them for a moment.
“Alice.” I said, although my voice was barely hearable. There’s no response.
“Alice!” I tried again, a little louder. “Are you all right?”
I'm trying to reach my hand to the person in the seat next to me. My vision is suddenly turning black.
“...”
I'm lying down. I can hear some intermittent sound. With my hazy eyesight I notice somebody. He speaks to me, but I cannot understand him. The pain doesn’t seem to go away even for a moment. I feel the sudden sting, and there’s that person again, who speaks to me God knows what.
The bright light blinds me for a moment; I can hear some single words. I turn my head, and notice some people dressed in white. I can hear them talking, although only a few words reach my ears.
“He sure was lucky; he'll live, but his ...” My what? … I didn’t hear that last part, which made me nervous?
“What about the others?”
***
I woke up. Once more I saw them, the flashes of my past. Once again I was forced to remember something that no longer had any meaning to me. But I got used to them anyway, since they were hunting me for quite some time.
Slowly I sat down on the bed, and began to rub my face with my hands. I then reached my temples and by slowly moving down I have reached my long unshaved beard. Without the mirror I could easily tell that I had bloodshot eyes, and together with my unkempt hair and beard, I looked like shit. Literally. It made me laugh quietly for a moment.
That night would surely be counted, as one of the worst. Right now there were some chemical processes going through my head that were normally called thoughts. And boy, did I have some or what. It’s not like you get to experience so many strange things at once, and then come back to your everyday life.
With my half-conscious eyesight, I looked around my bedroom. My comrade Max was lying down in his own basket, right by the door of my living room. He raised his head a little just when I stood up. I quickly dressed myself with a black shirt and jeans. As I went to the exit, Max jumped nimbly out of his lair, and just like the fellow comrade used to, he followed me.
As I left my bedroom, I slowly reached the wooden barrier rail, and with closed eyes I began to talk some sense into myself. According to what I have seen and experienced so far, right now there should be eight horse like creatures under my roof. OK. They have wings and horns. Yeah, that makes sense. They can talk ... woo even better. And one of them is strong enough to send me to another dimension, *smirking* YEAH RIGHT. Oh, I forgot. There’s one Winnie the Pooh who's running free in the forest, and doesn’t give a damn about its winter sleep. Man, what an imagination, I should write a book. Of course, there’s still a chance that all of this was just a crazy dream. Now seriously, there’s no way that any of this could have happen. It just doesn’t add up. Not ... one ... bit. So, right now I’ll look down at my salon, and there won’t be a single soul lying down near the fire place.
I took a deep breath, and quickly looked down. BUCK ... MY ... WORLD. Near the cooled down fire place, there were the same creatures, lying down on the same mattress, covered with the same blankets. My hope turned into ashes, just like that lumber.
Slowly Max and I proceeded down the stairs, making our way through the salon. Without losing my guests from my eyesight that were still away in dreamland, slowly we approached the kitchenette. My first job was to get a good cup of coffee, because I can't even think straight. There was a long and interesting day in front of me. That one thing I was assure.
I served Max’s his food and started to work on my life giving brew.
The sudden sounds of snoring and small movements came from behind my back. I turned my head slightly around, and noticed, that none of my unforeseen guests have awaken yet. The mattress seemed really comfortable, however, I noticed that two of those creatures were lying uncovered, and were shaking a little. I started the coffee machine, then quietly approached them, and carefully covered them back with blankets which made them sigh in relief.
Suddenly, I noticed that I’ve been staring at them for quite a long time. Lying quietly they looked harmless and completely defenseless. However, after experiencing what their mummy was capable of, I realized that I could be wrong. I snorted lightly trying to suppress the laughter inside me.
As I approached the kitchenette once more, I opened the fridge, and slowly began to prepare my meal. Scrambled eggs was exactly what I needed, and fortunately I have all the necessary products ... crap, there’s no bacon, damn it. Oh well, I guess I will have to live without it. As I took a huge sip of coffee, I started to work on my meal. Soon, the smell of scrambled eggs and toasts filled the room.
Max’s sudden bark caused me to turn around. All our guests, except for mother, were now awake. Still covered with blankets, they were looking curiously at me. Right now they looked like cute little puppies curious of the surrounding world. I guess the smell of food must have woke them up.
I put the half fried egg mash aside, and slowly began to move in their direction, trying not to frighten them. I didn’t know exactly what to say, because frankly speaking I couldn’t even tell if what I heard yesterday wasn’t just my imagination. Sure, there was this myth about animals gaining ability to speak during Christmas eve. However, I knew it was just a humbug.
Stopping two meters from them, I noticed them looking suspiciously at me. Fine, let’s get this over with.
“Heyah.” I raised my palm in a welcoming gesture. “My name is Alex, and I’m the owner of this house.” Then I motioned to Max who stood beside me. “And this one here is my faithful friend, Max.” I patted his head. “I hope you were able to get some sleep.” And then came this awkward silence that made you wish you could stay out of the spot light.
“Until your mother gets well, you are welcome to stay here. I’ve done everything I could to help her, but unfortunately my medical skills are rather poor.” And still nothing. If somebody were watching me now from afar, they would take me for a lunatic. Despite that, I decided to keep this comedy going.
“There’s no hay that I can treat you to, but I hope that at list some bread, fruits, and vegetables will make up for it. If there’s anything I can do for you, feel free to ask.” And ... nothing. Either they aren’t ready to talk yet, or I’m just making a fool of myself. None of them cared to say even a simple word. Well, what can you expect from a bunch of horses?
I was slowly getting tired of this bull shit. Feeling how my stomaches growls, I decided that without my breakfast, I won’t give a damn anymore. Lightly confused and irritated, I swallowed a huge dose of coffee, and returned to my previous job.
Just as I was about to put the scrambled eggs on the plate, the sound of clopping steps reached me from behind. As I turned around, I noticed all of the little guys standing before me, one beside another, staring at me carefully. Looking at each one of them, I tried to keep my cool all the time. When my gaze reached the yellow Pegasus, it panicked suddenly, moved back a little, and hid itself by one of its siblings. They were exchanging stares between themselves, as if they were debating or something.
Soon, the azure blue one with horn and wings, who seemed just a little taller than the rest, stepped out forward. As it cleared its throat, it spoke.
“You honor us, Mister Alex. I'm Princess Luna, and in the name of all gathered here ponies we would like to give you our greatest gratitude for the help you have provided us with.”
I was nearly knocked of my knees when I heard that. There was no mistake about it. All that have happened recently was real. Although I have to admit, I was still worried about my sanity.
“So, I didn’t run mad after all, you really can talk.” Having crossed my arms, I leaned by the kitchen countertop. “Forgive me my reaction, but it’s not often that you can run in to a bunch of talking horses.”
The sulky winged little creature of cyanic fur coat and rainbow colored hair decided to break into the discussion.
“Likewise pal. It so happens that we get to see talking apes almost on the daily basis. And just as Princess Luna already said, we are ponies, NOT HORSES!!! And as for the hay, eat it yourself.” Judging from the pronunciation manner, I was surely dealing with rather aggressive tomboy filly.
“I’m a man, not an ape, you shrimp,” I retorted as I felt rather offended, though our relations with monkeys had been verified long time ago.
“Man? ... never heard of it. By the looks of your face, you look like a monkey, only furless ... and don’t call me shrimp, YOU CHIMP!” I was speechless. I could probably blame my appearance for this comparison, but the way she said it made me wanted to retort anyway.
“Rainbow Dash, you should be ashamed of yourself,” said the white unicorn with a violet mane. “This gentlemen saved us and offered his shelter, so show some gratitude.” It was quite visible that this one was well mannered, just like the first one.
“Hey, it’s not my fault that he doesn’t know the differences between ponies and horses. Frying eggs while treating us to a stock of hay, he sure has guts.” Did I mention, I didn’t have any hay, or was it just my imagination?
“I bet we would manage somehow. Dear Faust, if only I wasn’t senseless back then, I would give that bear a piece of my mind.” Yeah, right. I could tell she was slowly getting on my nerves. Normally I would say something right now, but I was cut off by the filly of an orange fur, and a cowboy hat that was a little to big for her.
“None of us doubts that Dashie. We know you can stand up to anyone and anything, but Rarity is right. He really did save us all. He treated our dear princess, and took us in. So, as his guests we should be grateful.”
The one named Dashie sighed loudly.
“Fine, have it your way.” Avoiding the gazes of the remaining ponies, she looked directly at me with her pink pupils. „But I’ll keep an eye on him.” None of them made a comment on this, so I decided to drop it as well.
“You’ve mentioned that I’ve treated your princess. I’m assuming that the one that almost blast me to the stars …” My hand pointed out at the one that was still laying on the mattress „… is not your mother, right?”
“Wow, how did you come up with that one, genius?” and there goes the cyan vixen again. And again, just as I was about to shut her down, I was interrupted. This time by the one named Luna.
“Correct, this white mare is my sister, and we come from the Kingdom of Equestria.” Something reached my brain, but I wasn’t sure what.
The lavender unicorn Pegasus, seeing my unconvinced face, decided to speak.
“It’s a long and a little complicated story, so I propose that we sit down and talk this over. I’m sure that everything will soon become clear for you.”
“Yep, but first let’s grub a quick bite to eat, you can’t think empty-bellied, well dahhh, of course you can’t, so you’re Alex, how are you? I am Pinkie Pie, friends call me Pinkie, but you can call me Pinkie, I like parties cause there fun. What about you, Alex, do you like parties mmnffmmnfmmf.” The rest of this verbal cannonade was brought to a stop by the orange filly, whose right hoof was thrust right into the mouth of the one named Pinkie.
“She’s always like this?” I asked shocked that anyone would be capable to speak so fast.
“Yup, especially when meeting new folks. Don’t worry, you’ll quickly get used to it. Oh, and by the way, my name’s Applejack,” said the orange filly pulling her hoof out once she was certain that Pinkie was done with her monologue.
“Charmed,” I retorted. „I don’t usually have guests, but I’ll be happy to share with what I have.”
With a friendly gesture I invited them over to the kitchen isle. However, I quickly realized that their small sizes might make it difficult for some of them to sit on the tall chairs. So, I came up with a solution. In the corner of my eye I have noticed a salon table, which seemed perfect for the job.
“Or you know what? Give me a second. I have an even better idea.”
Caring the table closer to the kitchen wasn’t that much of a deal. In a few minutes, the table was set with everything that was fitted for herbivorous consumption. Sincerely, I doubted that bringing a canned ham would be a good idea. The lucky thing was that some time ago my doctor encouraged me to give up chips and salty stuff, and eat more fruits and vegetables. Of course, in the end I have focused on both.
Soon, we all sat down by the table. The lack of chairs didn’t seem to be that much of a deal for them. However, I decided to make use of the small kitchen stool. As we were sitting like this together I suddenly felt strange, because frankly speaking, I doubt there was anyone in the whole world who could say, that he had experienced the same thing as I did now.
We sat and chewed on our morning meal, when suddenly I was asked about my own world. Although not being very eager, I began to introduce them into this world rules. They listened carefully to my every word, sometimes shaking their heads in disbelief. Of course, I made it short not to waste time.
When I finished, I allowed them to fill me on their subject. Sometimes I had to interrupt them, because I often seemed to lose the plot. Let’s be serious. Who in the right mind would believe that besides our world, there could exist another one based on magic. A world where ponies, griffons, and other fairy creatures are a dominate species. Where the sun and moon are raised by magic. A world full of magic, peace, and harmony, which is totally different from ours.
When I got to know the basics, as well as names of all my guests, which happened also to be the elements of harmony *smirk*, it was finally time for the grand finale titled „how the hell did we get here?” The great commotion at a party called "The Grand Galloping Gala", a literal Clash of the Titans, an unexpected turn of events, and the great whirl of energy which finally made them younger, and threw them in to this worlds forest.
All of this sounded so unreal that for a moment it made me wonder, if I’m just a victim of some TV show where people try to screw with you.
“What’s the matter, Twilight?” the sudden question made me withdraw from my deep thoughts, as I looked at the lavender filly. There was a sad grimace emerging on her muzzle.
“It seems like it’s all my fault. That mysterious power of mine which helped me become Celestias student, is also the reason of our present situation. If it wasn’t for that power, none of this would have happened. What’s even worst, I lost the tiara of harmony.... *sobbing* I’m ... I’m sorry.” In that moment her eyes became wet from small tears.
Applejack and Rarity embraced her strongly, and began to console her.
“Now Twilight, you know darn well you have no control over your second powers. Besides, from what Princess Luna told us, we all took our share in this. So be a good partner and share that burden with all of us, will ya,” she said as she hugged her friend tightly.
“That’s right darling. If it wasn’t for you, we would surely have lost both of our lovely princesses, as well as our fine kingdom. We should be grateful that we didn’t end like that awful Chrysalis,” Rarity said as she joined the embrace.
“You bet. She thought that she could beat us with some decoction crap. In the end, it was us who kicked her flank. And we did it together,” the rainbow tomboy retorted with a cocky smile on her face.
“Yep, we totally rocked there. Although I don’t remember any of it, but we probably rocked anyway. And without this, we would never get to see this world. Also we would never meet our new friends, Alex and Max,” announced the joyful pink party pony.
“I agree. We came out of many troubles and doubts. I’m sure that this time it won’t be any different.” The most shy of them all finally joined the embrace.
They were hugging her so strongly, that I started to wonder if they will squeeze poor Twilight like a lemon. She smiled rubbing tears with her hooves.
“Thank you” she replied.
I myself was looking at this whole scene with mixture of admiration and amazement. All those words were heartwarming, but I wondered how long their confidence will last. They were now the prisoners of this world, where each day is the constant fight for the survival. Not literally, but compared to our world, theirs seemes like a fairy tale … or like a joke. I wished them all the best, because I know exactly what longing for one’s home feels like.
“As you can see, Twilight Sparkle, you’re not the only one that carries the guilt here. We all do. If it wasn’t for your power, Chrysalis would surely be the new ruler of Equestria right about now. I think we may call ourselves lucky at this point. If there’s any possible way to return to our dimension, we will find it. And we will do it together,” Princess Luna summed up while smiling to the others.
“I couldn’t have said it better myself, Luna.”
The sudden unexpected voice caused everyone to turn in the direction it came. Princess Celestia was sitting on the mattress smiling sincerely while looking at everyone.
“TIA!!!” Luna quickly ran over with every pony to her sister. She jumped and hugged her tightly but a sudden sound of pain caused her to loosen the grip.
“Forgive me dear sister, how are you feeling?” asked the azure blue filly.
“Thank you Luna. I’m fine, however, I’m afraid I’m still too weak to move and use magic.”
“It’s all right, your highness, we’re all exhausted from the battle, and with that thing they added to the royal wine, we didn’t stand a chance. Please forgive us for not being very helpful,” said Twilight.
“My dear Twilight, you have nothing to apologize for. If it weren’t for all six of you, we wouldn’t be having this conversation now. I’m glad that all of you are well and unharmed. I was afraid that I won’t be able to protect you back there in the forest.” Suddenly, Celestia became sad and lowered her head. “It seems I didn’t learned my lesson from my previous errors. I’m sorry that in spite of so many efforts, I still couldn’t ensure your safety.”
“There was nothing we could do, dear sister. You of all ponies should know perfectly how much time and energy was wasted on preparations. You went over your hooves to make it as perfect as possible. Especially the security measures that you were working with palace royal guards so hard on. Because of all this, you hardly got any sleep at all,” said Luna, leaning her own hoof on Celestias shoulder.
“Thank you, Lulu. However, I did fail, and nothing’s going to change that.” Celestia was becoming more down-hearted each passing minute. “But that’s a burden I will have to carry alone, once I’ll be asking my royal subjects for forgiveness.”
“I’m certain that they all are aware that you’ve done everything you could your highness. There won’t be any doubts in their minds.” Twilight wasn’t going to forfeit so easily. Everyone ... I mean every pony have nodded their heads in agreement.
“Thank you, Twilight. Your mysterious power has saved us this time. However, it seems that I didn’t give it as much attention, as I should have. We will have to make up for it, once we return to the castle.” The white mare smiled lightly, and began to look around the salon.
“Where exactly are we, if I may ask?” Applejack answered her first.
“This is the house of a human named Alex, your highness” Celestia made a shocked face.
“Human, here in Equestria?” she asked surprised.
Every pony looked at her slightly shocked. Luna was the first to break the silence.
“Tia, you knew about the existence of human race?” the white mare didn’t answer right away, avoiding their gazes, burying herself deep in her thoughts.
“Tia, are you alright?” Princess Luna decided to snatch her own sister from deep considerations. She looked back at her, rather confused.
“Yes?”
“I asked if you’re alright?” Luna patiently repeated her question.
“Yes Luna …“
“In that case, would you be so kind and fill us in about your knowledge of human kind?” There was a small scent of excessive curiosity coming from that last sentence.
It seemed to me that Celestia wanted to avoid the answer, however, when she met the eyesight of other ponies, she has quickly realized that this question will not be left unanswered.
“Well ... you do remember the magic mirror that me and Star Swirl used to travel between dimensions?” Luna closed her eyes and sighed deeply.
“I might have known. So you and that old geezer managed to go pass even this dimension.” Celestia looked at her sister with a surprised face.
“This dimension? ... Lulu, are you saying that ...?” Luna made another deep sigh.
“Tia, I’m afraid that we’re no longer in Equestria. From what we know up until now, we have stumbled across the planet called Earth, a place with no magic, which is dominated by the human race.”
Every pony would certainly be shocked by this news, and Celestia didn’t made an exception about it. After the short silence, she spoke.
“I see. So this giant vortex was actually a portal. When we appeared in this dark forest, I hoped that it was still our kingdom. I do recall a human in the forest, but somehow I was certain that when the bear had run off, I was already seeing things ... OH NO, I HAVE ATTACKED HIM!!!” she suddenly shouted and started to panic.
“Please calm down, your highness, he's fine. He's the one that has saved us from the bear, provided us with shelter, and took care of your majesties wounds,” said Twilight and together with others turned in Max and I's direction.
Lightly confused while sitting by the table, I bowed not knowing whether I should partake in this discussion. Celestia’s surprised face seemed to give away the fact, that she probably remembered our previous encounter quite well.
“I see,” she said and began to rise slowly; however, the sudden pain in her front right leg, and fatigue, caused her to fall back on the mattress.
“Dear sister, it is unwise to move in your current state,” objected Luna, as she was clearly worried for her sibling.
I decided to come closer, realizing she's too weak to attack me in her current state. As I finally came before her she began to look at me curiously. Unfortunately, I couldn’t read anything from her face. Suddenly I noticed that the situation was getting a little too weird, so I decided to speak first.
“Greetings, ekhm ... your highness. My name is Alex, and it’s my pleasure to welcome you to my home.” She smiled lightly and returned the greeting.
“Thank you, Mister Alex, I’m most grateful for the help you have provided us with.” Suddenly, she lowered her head to cover her face which was now filled with embarrassment. „I also wish to beg for your forgiveness. I ... uhm. The way I treated you in the forest ... I had no right. Fear and fatigue took the best of me, so I wasn’t thinking clearly. I ...” Her words made me sigh in relief.
“Yeah, I have to admit that it was somewhat unpleasant. But I guess you were protecting your subjects, so let’s not talk about it anymore. By the way, I think it’s Max who you should be thanking actually. He's the one that found you, and helped you fight the bear until I arrived. And it was him who has forbidden me from leaving right after your sudden attack.”
I patted Max head who was curiously staring at Celestia. She smiled at him.
“I see, you have our greatest gratitude, dear Mister Max.” My comrade answered with a single bark and started wagging his tail.
“Unfortunately, I tried everything I could, but I’m not very good with bandages. I only hope that they don’t cause you any discomfort?”
She looked carefully at the bandages and smiled again.
“No, no, they’re fine. I don’t find the reason to complain. You’ve done everything you could; therefore I’m grateful, Mister Alex.”
“Just Alex will do. Please forgive the ‘not so good conditions’ your highness ... “
“Just Celestia is fine. We’re no longer at the castle, so I guess we can withhold the royal etiquette.”
“Ok than, ekhm ... Celestia, please forgive this mattress, but I rarely get any guests, not to mention those of royalty. I do have one vacant room upstairs, unfortunately it needs a lot of work before it will be suitable for residence, so....”
“I don’t mind. The mattress is very comfortable, and I must admit that this is a very nice salon you have here,” she said while looking around. “Right now I couldn't ask for nothing more, thank you Alex,” she said looking around the place.
Suddenly the characteristic rumbles came from the one resting on the mattress. Celestia blushed a little.
“I apologize, almost nothing.” I smiled lightly together with the rest of the crew.
“I’ll prepare something right away. I have bread, fruits, vegetables and eggs. I hope this will do?”
“Thank you very much,” she said.
I marched to the kitchen, and soon came back with two plates full of the best that I could offer, and a mug of hot tea. Luna stood up suddenly between me and Celestia.
“Thank you, Mister Alex. I’ll personally make sure that my sister eats her meal.”
Without a word, I put the plates and the mug on the floor.
My eyesight rested then on the remaining six, which instead of eating their breakfast, were still standing by their own princesses. A sudden idea then crossed my mind. I approached the table that we previously used, and began to pull it towards the fire place. When the table reached Celestia’s lair, I placed the two plates and mug on the table.
“I believe that eating together makes the food taste better.” They smiled at me, sat down, and enjoyed their feast.
“Enjoy your meal. If there’s anything you need, feel free to ask.” They thanked me and continued eating.
In the meantime I lit the fireplace, and began to walk up the stairs, to concentrate on one of my most important morning habits, the bathroom. My thoughts however remained elsewhere. Normally I would just say „let it be.” However, things weren’t that easy in my case. I wasn’t prepared for something like this. I liked my own lonely life made of peace and solitude, and before I even blinked, I was having a farm kindergarten on my head. It made me wonder how things will turn out to be.
I wasted about half an hour in the bathroom and then I put my clothes on and proceeded to my room.
My eyes suddenly caught the site of my leather-jacket hanging on the chair, whose pocket was still containing the huge amber. I quickly took it out, and started gazing at it intently. It still looked beautiful and mysterious, in other words it was perfect for my collection.
I approached the glass show case, and as I opened the door, I sat it on one of the empty spaces. I put it among other stones like the moon stone, a piece of a meteor, the little piece of black salts, and many other interesting specimens. My collection was brand new, because I began to collect them several months ago, but it was already breath taking.
Suddenly, I heard a knocking on the door.
“Excuse me, Mister Alex, are you in there?” One of the foals was calling me from the other side.
“One moment please.”
I closed the show case, and slowly approached the door. As I opened it half ways, I saw all six fillies.
“Forgive me, Mister Alex, but ...” said the white unicorn.
“Just Alex, my dear. That mister thing makes me sound old.” I sent her a smile which made her a little embarrassed.
“Of course, in that case, dear Alex, the princesses would like to speak with you now, if that’s ok with you?” Frankly speaking, I was really interested what they want to talk about.
“I understand, I’ll be down as soon as possible.” The white unicorn quickly added.
“And one more thing. Would you be so kind, and show us the way to the bathroom and toilet. We would like to clean ourselves up.” Who would have thought? Ponies that take matters of hygiene as much as humans do.
“Absolutely, it so happens that this house consists of two separate pairs of bathrooms and toilets, each pair on one of the floors. The nearest bathroom is just by the next door to the right, while the toilet can be found at the end of this corridor. I suggest that three of you move along in that direction, while the rest of you will follow me downstairs.”
“Thank you very much.”
The white unicorn, the blue pegasus and the orange pony proceeded in the correct direction, while the lavender winged unicorn, the pink pony, and the yellow pegasus followed me downstairs. As I showed them there way, I moved towards the fire place, where both princesses were sitting comfily on the mattress.
“Did the breakfast suit your needs, your highness?” I asked.
“Thank you Alex, it certainly did. Although, I rather wish you would just call me by my name,” she replied, surprised of my sudden return of the official tone.
“I apologize; it seems that I need some time to get used to that. By the way, the youngsters said that you wanted to have a word with me.”
“That’s right, please sit down cause we have a lot to discuss.” I simply took one of the nearest arm chairs that caught my eye, and soon I was sitting comfortably, right against the two royal sisters. Celestia spoke first.
“For starters, I would like once more to thank you, and Max, for rescuing our lives and providing us with a shelter. We owe you a lot.”
“Your welcome, your highnesses.” Seeing the look on Celestias muzzle, and a sigh she made, I quickly corrected myself. “Celestia and Luna, I’m glad that I could help.” She smiled lightly.
“From what Luna has told me, it seems you are aware of who we are, and how we turned up to be here.” I simply nodded. “That’s why, we have a few questions for you, dear Alex.”
“I’m all ears.”
“Firstly, we would like to know whether our presence disturbs your privacy in any way. You see, none of us would feel right knowing that we are causing you any problems.”
Well, that sure was an interesting question. Normally, I would just say yes. However, deep down in my heart I felt that asking them to leave now wouldn’t be a wise thing to do. It just didn’t felt right.
“Absolutely not, your high ... I mean, Celestia, I’m glad that I can take you all in, till you are ready to return home.”
“You have our deepest gratitude. However, we wouldn’t want to disturb you’re normal life in any kind of way ... if I may ask, how does your normal life look like?” I didn’t feel like spilling the beans about my life, so I decided to restrict the information to the bare minimum.
“My life is not that big of a deal. I moved here about two year ago, and if we count Max out, you might say that I live here alone. However, I was lucky because I happened to inherit a big fortune.” Usually, mentioning about this causes others to be more interested than it would require. But to my surprise, those two didn’t seem to care. Probably as monarchs back in their world, they were wealthy as hell.
“And what do you usually do, dear Alex, if we may ask?”
“Temporarily I’m unemployed, though I have a certain dream that I wish to fulfill. However, it’s going too slackly for me right now, so I won’t brag about it.”
“Of course, it’s your privacy after all. We’ll respect it.”
Luna suddenly joined the conversation.
“Let us then move on to the point. Tell us, Mister Alex, would it be possible for you to lead us back to the place where you found us?”
“I believe so; I’ve lived here long enough to get familiar with the nearest neighborhood. This overthrown tree we’re talking about is characteristic enough, so finding it shouldn’t be that much of a problem.” They both smiled.
“That’s good. If we want somehow to retrieve the missing element of harmony, we must start from where we were thrown out by the vortex. There’s probably no trace left of it, but that’s our best option for now. We will proceed there as soon as my sister gets better.”
“Yeah, about that.” They both started to look intently at me “I think you should restrain yourselves from leaving the house for now.” The shock came quite quickly.
“And why is that?” Luna’s sudden outburst made me cough from confusion.
“Don’t get me wrong, you are free to leave this place whenever you like. It’s a complete wilderness around here. However, if we consider the world you are now, a big dose of caution would be advise. No matter how we look at it, eight talking mares with wings, horns and magic are not something you see every day. Unfortunately, not all people can be trusted, and exposing yourselves might cause a threat to all of you. Not to mention that bear that almost ripped us to shreds.”
Celestia and Luna exchanged there gazes. The younger one decided to speak.
“You’re right, that bear might be a problem. We still haven’t regained our full magical powers. Is your kind really something to be feared of?”
“I’m not saying everyone, but our species seem to have a few characteristic features that are our strength and curse at the same time: curiosity, hunger for knowledge and will to control. You see from over the ages, people feared of things they didn’t understand. If there’s something you don’t understand, you can’t control it. Lack of control leads to anarchy, anarchy leads to chaos which then leads to ...”
“Ekhm ... yes, I believe we understand what you’re aiming at, Alex,” Celestias words detained my exaggerated talk. „Your world doesn’t differ that much from ours at this point.”
“Fine, in that case I’ll cut to the chase. Based on what I have experienced in the forest, I presume that magic in your world is a weapon of some kind?” they both nodded their heads.
“That’s right, for centuries we have defended access to the most powerful spells, especially dark magic, so it wouldn’t fall into wrong hooves ... or should I say, it was my duty, during my sister Luna's very long incapacity.” It made me wonder what she meant by that.
“Eee, he, he ... I’m sorry, did you just say centuries? Are you some kind of long living creatures, or something like that?”
“Goddesses you might say, or alicorns to be more accurate.” As I got confused for a moment, they decided to fill me more on the subject. „We are a fusion of ground, unicorn and pegasus ponies. As rulers, we don’t age as fast as our subjects.”
I gazed at the two toilets and bathrooms on both floors, and slowly point out my fingers at them.
“Are they also? ...” I spoke shyly.
“Unfortunately not,” said Celestia. “Only three persons in entire kingdom possess this gift: I, my sister and ... one specific god of chaos, whose name can’t seem to leave my mouth.” I could see their faces showing something that could probably be qualified as reluctance and bitterness. I decided not to press this subject on anymore.
“Alright then, I won’t press you. Now as I was saying, your magic would no doubt attract attention of unwanted individuals, who would undoubtedly try to claim it for their own purposes. Thus, I would advise caution here.” Not to mention it would make a whole lot of commotion around myself, which didn’t fit my life schedule.
“You’re words seem to make sense," said Luna. "We’ll do our best to avoid other humans for the time being. However, sooner or later we’ll have to visit the forest. What’s worse, we have lost one of the elements of harmony. We cannot return home without it.”
“Ah yes, the tiara of harmony if I remember correctly?”
“That’s right, poor Twilight blames herself for the loss, although she shouldn’t,” said Luna.
“Since you’re grounded here for now, I could go in to the forest and look for this tiara myself. There’s still a tiny amount of snow covering the ground, so it’s a good opportunity.”
They were shocked at my sudden proposal. As they exchanged gazes, you could easily see that they were feeling uneasy about it.
“We appreciate your offer, dear Alex, but we already owe you a lot and we would feel terrible if we had to send you back to that terrible place.”
“Frankly speaking, I’m not so thrilled to go back there myself. However, there’s a certain item that I need to retrieve back where I found you. It was the item that helped me chase the bear away.”
“An item ... what is it?” The younger sister, intrigued by the mysterious item, decided to continue the topic. Seriously, I didn’t know whether spilling the beans about fire arms, which was skipped during breakfast, would be a good idea. However, since they showed up in to this world, I guess they had a right to know.
“You see, ekhm ... how should I put it? Just like in your world magic stands for attack and defense …” Both nodded their heads “… In this world, that job goes to fire-arms among other things, which used wrongly, can cause destruction or worse. I wouldn’t like it to fall in to the wrong hands, so I need to go back there, whether I like it or not.”
“Is that item really so important to risk your own life, dear Alex?” Celestia didn’t seem to be convinced by my last words.
“As its owner, I feel responsible for what might happen to it. If anyone were to use it in a wrong way, someone may lose their life. And that’s a price I’m not going to pay, ever again. Besides, living in wilderness forces me to keep my safety measures ready at all time. My life here doesn’t only have advantages, but also threats, for which I must be always prepared. My house and fortune surely bring attention of unwanted persons, namely thieves. I’m sure you understand.”
They were looking at each other for some time, probably hoping, that at least one of them would come up with a better idea. The deep sighs made it clear that they have finally given in.
“Though we would prefer to play this differently, we feel that we have no other choice. We’ll leave it to you. However, we would like to ask you not to put your life at stake.”
“I’m not going there alone, dear Celestia. I’ll take Max along with me. His sense of smell will help me find your precious tiara, and it will warn me when our hairy friend pays us a visit.”
“Very well then. Let the great creator, Faust, guard your way. There’s still a matter of payment for your help,” said Celestia.
“Say what? ... oh no, no, you’re my guests in need. I’ m not taking a penny from you. I was raised as a decent man.” I hope “so, I’m keeping you free of all charges.” I raised my hand in a denying manner.
“Are you sure, although all our funds are back in our world, I’m sure there’s a way to pay you back somehow. Maybe helping around the house or something?” proposed Celestia.
“There’s no need to.” Though I admit, that a picture of a pony paying its bar tab made me almost smirk. Or maybe they use sheaves of hay, or horseshoes as their currency.
“Do we amuse you somehow, Mister Alex?” asked slightly annoyed Luna.
Ripped from my ridiculous thoughts I figured, that I was betrayed by my stupid smile.
“What? ... no, of course not. And as I said before, it’s on the house.”
“I think we’ll come to an agreement somehow,” said Celestia.
A sudden scream that came from upstairs, caused all three of us to jump all together. Without wasting time, I ran upstairs and opened the door that lead to the bathroom. Great, the whole floor was flooded with water. As I looked around, I noticed one of the fillies calmly taking a shower. The other two were sitting in the bathtub, fighting over a running hand shower, causing the water to spill on the floor.
“What the hell is going on here?” I asked a little pissed, realizing that there’s going to be some wiping, once they finish their baths.
“Rarity intends to spend all day in the bathtub, and it so happens, that I have better things to do,” said the young one named Rainbow Dash, pulling the hand shower to her side.
“My dear Rainbow, do you have any idea how much time it usually takes me to bring my mane, fur, and tail into such a captivating state?” asked the white unicorn, pulling the hand shower back to her side.
“An entire millennium I bet. And I’m not going to waste it here waiting for my turn, so I’ll make it quick and then let you spent the rest of your life here.”
Rainbow pulled the hand shower to her side once more. It was plain to see that none of them was going to forfeit, therefore making the time they spent here go to waste. I was starting to wonder if the sudden rejuvenation didn’t only affect their bodies, but their minds as well.
“Is everything alright?” asked princess Luna making me jumped a little when I noticed her standing right beside me.
“A small baby quarrel, you might say,” I answered.
Rainbow Dash released the hand shower and looked directly at me.
“Hey, who are you calling a baby, you baboon?” I felt a sudden will to kick something.
“Have a look in the mirror you midget. That is if you can reach it,” I hissed as I crossed my hands over my chest.
The small cyan tomboy jumped quickly out of the bathtub, and flew directly near my face.
“Try calling me a midget, one more time.” Yeah, like I would be scared of some pony squirt. As I was about to say my part, the door of the cabin suddenly opened.
“Phew, much better," said Applejack as she walked out of the cabinet. "Oh Alex, good to see you here. You wouldn’t happen to have any spare towels around the house, would you?”
My look then shifted from Applejack to Rainbow Dash, who was still giving me that challenging stare.
“I’ll see what I can do.” I bared my teeth and turned around, ready to leave the bathroom.
“Hey, get back here. I’m not done with you,” shouted the blue vixen.
“EKHM!!!” Everybody suddenly turned their gazes to the little pissed princess Luna, who probably didn’t like to be ignored.
When Rainbow met the princess' stare, she quickly landed down on the floor and smiled nervously.
“Any problems, dear Rainbow Dash?” she asked accenting every word. Rainbow swallowed nervously as she tried to find the right words.
“EEE-he, he, no, of course not, your highness ... oh look, the cabin is free now, so if you excuse me?”
“Naturally, my dear.”
Rainbow took a second to send me one last mean look, after which she moved along towards the shower cabin. It amazed me that there was actually someone, or should I say some pony that was able to gain control over that flying barrel of powder.
“Mister Alex,” said Luna
“Eh, yes?” I turned my head back at her.
“Let’s give them time to wash themselves up. Weren’t you supposed to bring some towels?”
I suddenly remembered what I was about to do.
“Oh, right, I’ll bring some right away.” I quickly left the bathroom, although I didn’t know why I felt so overpowered all of a sudden back there. Princess Luna seemed to belong to those with a strong overbearing nature, which was kind of impressing. However, I really needed to pull myself together. This was my house, and I wasn’t going to let some kids, especially from a different species, boss me around. Dear god, what have I got myself into?
Meanwhile in the world of Equestria
This was one of those mornings, which could easily be ranked as one of the worst in Canterlot. Though the word morning would not be the right phrase, because the sky was still dark as a night. However, this state remained for quite too long for it to be called a natural occurrence, or at least to say for any pony to have control over it. The sky was fully covered with clouds, thus blocking the moon light, but the lightning storm was brightning up the area around. The heavy drops of rain were flooding everything around, and the gusty wind only made matters worst.
Regardless of all that, the royal guards were stretched all along the train platform. They bravely stood up to everything that the nature was serving them.
All of them attracted the attention of a nearer crowd, which was patiently waiting for the train to arrive. It was plain to see that the train, aside from their relatives, carried someone of the most importance, since an entire escort was required.
The leader of the guards, a gray pony unicorn with a black mane and a thin scar on his right cheek gave commands to each soldier who was saluting, and moved along to fulfill his newly assigned duties. As he dismissed the last soldier, he gazed forward into the horizon, where he suddenly noticed a huge pile of gray smoke.
Soon after, the sound of a train whistle came which echoed through the entire land.
“Alright ladies, our monarchs will be here at any moment. You know what to do, so don’t fail me now.”
As the train arrived at the station it emitted a loud hiss and a huge pile of smoke.
All soldiers formed two columns on both sides of one of the carriage's exit, with their leader standing in the middle.
Moments later the door opened, and a hooded pony emerged into the platform.
Lieutenant Strong Heart approached him, saluting in the best way he could.
“Welcome to Canterlot, your highness. We would like to ask for your forgiveness for this terrible weather. It seems the pegasi didn’t make it in time with cloud chasing.”
The hooded pony nodded his head, and then turned round back to the entrance of the carriage, where another hooded pony was looking down directly at them. He drew out his hoof helping the other one down.
“Thank you, Shiny,” said Cadence.
As they both stood by each other, all the soldiers saluted again, along with their leader. A few seconds later Shining Armor broke the silence.
“Let’s move on, Lieutenant Strong Heart. Please fill us on the details along the way.” His words carried a bit of soreness that couldn’t be left unnoticed.
“Right away, your highnesses.”
All three of them were surrounded by the cordon of soldiers, and soon they were heading towards the castle.
“It will be ok Shiny, I’m sure she’s alright,” his wife's words reached him as she was walking by his side.
“I hope so Cadi, I hope so,” he replied without certainty.
Without saying another word to each other, they were listening to the lieutenant’s of the royal guard report. The more details they were filled on, the harder it was for them to compose themselves. All of it seemed like a dream, although a word nightmare was more suitable at this point.
Within one night, Equestria was deprived of its two most important personas, together with the carriers of the elements of harmony, including their beloved Twilight. It was something, that nobody have prepared them for, and frankly speaking there probably wasn’t a single soul in Equestria that could easily remain calm, if he or she knew the truth. The whole kingdom stood now on the edge of collapsing. There was no peace and ease, as they could not be achieved without the ones that have gone missing.
As they passed the streets of Canterlot, they notice the numerous patrols standing on the sidewalks. The closer they approached the castle, the greater was the number of soldiers. Their unnatural quantity attracted the attention of the Canterlot's citizens. Some of them approached the nearby soldiers asking for details; however, none of them seemed to provide them with a satisfying answer.
Shiny knew that it wouldn’t be wise to spread panic, though a formal speech will have to be made sooner or later. Needless to say, he didn’t want to stand in the shoes of the newly proclaimed ruler.
To be continued ...