//------------------------------// // Chapter Seven: When First We Met // Story: Heroes and Allies // by LewisClarke //------------------------------// Chapter Seven: When First We Met. The forest is a much less terrifying place when you have a team of Marines, Navy Seals, and Army Rangers to back you up; or at least Lenard Greene saw it that way. The pilot and his reunited friends set up a small camp around the shuttle, and the first official first contact session between the members of two species began. A human stood up to greet the participants. "Greetings, I am Dr. Marc Harrison, science leader of this expedition." The science leader shook hands and hooves with each of the attending ponies, namely, Sky Blade, Star Sabre, and Lime Tree Hill. "I am Sergeant Sky Blade. It's nice to see some friendly faces. I'm sorry you don't have a more grand welcome party, but you just happened to land in one of the most dangerous places around, so I suggest we leave immediately." Greene nodded. "I agree, Mr. Harrison. You saw that thing, right? We don't want to wait around for anything else to pounce on us." "Ah, if it isn't our intrepid explorer himself! I'm sure you've got quite the story to tell captain," the scientist spoke to the pilot. "And I'd be glad to tell it to you, as soon as we get back to Ponyville." Greene still appeared to be a bit nervous. "Ponyville? Are you messing with me, or is that really the name of a city here?" Marc raised one of his eyebrows in protest of such an obvious name. The pilot laughed. "You'll get used to all of it, I guarantee you. Now if you'll excuse me, I need to talk to my friends." The pilot walked over to Mike, Gerri, and one Sergeant Steven Mace, who like Lenard, had been promoted just before he'd left Earth. "Guys! I got caught up with the scientists. I've been meaning to ask you, how'd you get back to Earth? I mean our Earth." "I guess we do owe you an explanation," Mike began. "When our three planes entered this place, we were flying in an arrowhead formation, with you in front. Apparently there was bit of "unforeseen turbulence" or at least that's what the scientist called it. Because you were in front, you took the brunt of it. It looked like someone took your plane and shook it like a rattle. After we made it in, your plane was just gliding, unpowered. We tried to reach you on the radio, but we got no response. Then we lost you in the clouds. Even if we'd found you, we had no way of rescuing you. Command ordered that we return, per say the mission, and promised that we would come back for you. And we did. Speaking of which, why didn't you answer your radio. We called out to you for two hours!" Lenard scratched his head. He had completely forgotten his radio. Using it had never occurred to him. "So you guys abandoned me?" Lenard joked. He knew they'd done everything they could. "Look, we're here now," Gerri retorted. "We really thought you were dead at one point." "Well I'm not, so we should help pack up the camp now before something makes us all rather dead," Lenard responded. "It's sunset! Can't we just wait til tomorrow to go back to wherever you were?" Mike complained. "Do you want to sleep in a food bowl, Mike? Cause that's what this place is. You do not want to be defenseless here. So let's go. I want you to meet some friends of mine." Lenard walked the group over to the three stallions, who were busy looking over the cache of weapons the human solders brought with them. "Here's a weapon like the one that big human killed the hydra with!" Star Sabre admired a large sniper rifle. "That's foal stuff! Look at this!" Lime Tree picked up a large weapon that read "SMAW" on it. "I don't think you two colts should be playing with big stallion toys. Put them down before I have to send a letter to somepony's parents." Sky Blade warned. "Funny, sarge." Star deadpanned. "Guys! I'd like you to meet my friends," Lenard began, "This is Lieutenant Mike Kaiser." Mike shrugged. "Hi there." "This is Lieutenant Gerrianna Reed." Greene pointed to the female. She rolled her eyes at the mention of her full name, but smiled and waved. "It's nice to meet you." "And this is the dude that saved us, the now Sergeant Steven Mace." The quiet soldier nodded. "That weapon you had, might I be able to acquire one?" Star Sabre asked the marine. The soldier smiled and handed the pony a .50 cal., which Sky Blade quickly took. "With some training maybe, but not now," Sky Blade chided. "How 'bout a smaller one for this nut case here?" Lenard bowed over in laughter. After he'd composed himself, he walked over to the weapons cache and scratched his head. "I don't think we have anything you ponies could fire. We'd have to modify a few for you. For now, let's just head back to town." ********************* In a matter of hours, the massive shuttle capsule was dismantled, just as it had been designed to do. The large group of humans pulled the equally large lot of resulting carts and containers. Soon, a convoy of equipment and supplies began to form, as the group made their way back to Ponyville. "Lenard has told us about you, but I bet you are wondering what we are." Lime Tree explained to a human. The scientist pulled out a notepad and pencil, which seemed eerily similar to another inquisitive mind Lime knew. It got even stranger when the scientist asked: "So what is this place like?" Lime Tree grinned. "Well, let me tell you!" ******************** It was morning by the time everyone made it to Ponyville, but no one was sleepy, as the journey had been quite informative for both the inhabitants and newcomers alike. Along the way, there were many fascinating stories from both sides. So much so, that some had spanned the entire journey. The unfolding excitement was more than enough to keep everyone up. That, and the fact that no one dared fall asleep in the Everfree Forest. As the convoy reached the outskirts of Ponyville, a speeding pink blur sped into the town. "What was that?" Mike asked nervously. "That was Pinkie Pie, and if she saw us, expect some form of crazy social gathering to occur later on," Lime Tree explained. "Pinkie Pie?" Kaiser questioned. Lime Tree shook his head. "You'll see." They didn't have to wait long. ******************* "The humans are coming! The humans are coming!" Pinkie Pie yelled at the top of her lungs. "Code pink! Code pink! The ponies of Ponyville grudgingly woke up to find the source of all the yelling. A light green unicorn stuck her head out of her window. "Pinkie Pie! Shut up! I'm trying to sleep!" the unicorn yelled in a raspy morning voice. After Pinkie was long gone, an earth pony stuck her head out of her window down the street. "Stop yelling horn-head! I'm trying to sleep!" The mare shouted out to the unicorn. "Bonbon? It was Pinkie Pie!" the unicorn yelled back. "What about Pinkie Pie? You're the one yelling!" Bonbon screeched. "You're always the problem around here!" The light green unicorn stomped out of her house. "Why don't you say that to my face, filly?!" The earth pony timidly trotted out of her house. "Uh ok..." Bonbon stood face to face with her challenger. "Be quiet! I'm trying to sleep!" Bonbon yelled right into Lyra's face, parting the light green mare's mane. The two adversaries starred each other down for a full ten seconds, then the unicorn rolled over with laughter. "You should have seen the look on your face, Bon! Your muzzle was twitching you were so scared!" Lyra laughed. Bonbon chuckled nervously. "I thought you were serious! Stop tricking me like that!" she answered. "Sometimes I wonder why we ever became friends!" "Calm down, Bon! You must know by now that you're the most fun to prank pony around. C'mon, that's how it's always been!" Lyra answered. Bonbon thought a moment. The two had been friends for years. They'd met the first day of high school, and being only children, the two mares had become the sisters they'd never had; so much so, that some ponies joked that they were long lost twins, as they were about the same age. Other, more cruel ponies, picked on them for being so close, insinuating that they were more than friends. Lyra wasn't a fighter, but she made sure those ponies had a few bruises to show for those jokes. The rumors quickly stopped. Lyra turned out to be like most sisters, because as far as Bonbon could remember, the practical jokes had been a constant. "So Lyra, what was Pinkie going on about earlier?" Bonbon asked. "Code pink means emergency party. We are to alert everyone in Ponyville. Pinkie's already on it, it looks like," Lyra answered. The pink blur zoomed right past them again, then shot back and stopped. "I saw a HUGE group of humans coming out of the forest, and Lenard, Limey and those guards were with them! We have guests! And that means a PARTY!" "Hey, I just realized something." Bonbon brought a hoof to her chin. "You never threw Lenard a party." Pinkie's resulting gasp could have held a grapefruit. "That means a DOUBLE PARTY FOR EVERYPONY! You guys tell everypony in town, I'm going to get started!" Pinkie Pie hurtled into the distance. Lyra and Bonbon could only stare. After they regained their composure, the two ponies walked toward the town center to spread the word of Pinkie's impromptu social gathering. "So what do you think of the humans, Lyra?" Bonbon wondered as they trotted along. "I don't know, but if I had hand things like theirs, It be really easy to play my Lyre! I could make it to the big time!" Bonbon facehoofed. "Let's just tell everyone about the party already. Hey Ditzy! Party at Pinkie's, NOW!" ******************* "WELCOME TO EQUESTRIA, HUMAN PEOPLE!" a large banner read over Ponyville square. No pony could explain how Pinkie managed to get the banner made so quickly, but for the sake of their sanity, they decided that she must have, for some reason, had it made before. The large group of humans and ponies wasted no time socializing with each other. After the celebration had continued into the afternoon, the mayor stood up and addressed the crowd. "I think I speak for everypony when I say: Welcome to Ponyville and our fair Kingdom! First off, we have reserved the extra rooms in the inns and hotels in the area for a few nights, so that you won't have to sleep in tents for a little while. The princesses have expressed their interest in sending exploration parties into your Earth, with your permission of course, not that you asked for ours," The mayor joked. Chief Scientist Marc Harrison grinned and stood up to speak. "Hey, we had no idea you ponies were here! Don't worry, if we had known, we would have shot a letter or two in first!" The scientist joked. The crowd responded with a chuckle. "I guess my first order of business is to explain why we are here. Some of the more conspiracy minded among you might think this is the precursor for some kind of invasion. I assure you the soldiers are just here for protection, and after we met that monster, I'm quite glad we brought them along. The mayor said that there are those who would like to explore our world. Ironically, that's just what we are here to do. Most of our equipment is for the construction of what we like to call the ACSD, or Anomaly Creation and Stabilization Device. If we can get it operational, there will be seamless travel between our two worlds! I'd love to talk some more, but we've got to get started! Thank you for your time." The ponies and humans clapped- er, clopped as the scientist stepped off of the stage. At one of the large party tables, Lime Tree, Sky Blade, Star Sabre, and the Elements of Harmony took their seats.. "He just shot it?!" Twilight spoke dumbfounded. "They managed to defeat a Hexa-Hydra? You sure you didn't just hide and wait for it to go away?" Sky Blade dug his hooves into a saddlebag under the table, and produced something that looked like a large white sword. "Sarge, is that what I think it is?" Star Sabre gasped. "Eeyup. It's a hydra tooth. One of the big fangs. I had to bring back a souvenir, or the foals back home would never believe me when I tell the story!" the proud guard spoke. "So let me git' this straight. Y'all took every weapin' y'all could, and none of it even hurt the dang thing?" Applejack questioned. "The JSL wounded it, but that thing was tough! Besides, we didn't exactly have the best weapons the service has to offer," Star Sabre stated. "But I guess I'm glad that one big human was there." "Speakin' o' which, why is he all alone over there?" Applejack wondered. "Ah'll be right back." The blond cowpony trotted up to the lone marine and tipped her hat as a salute. "Well howdy there," she greeted. The marine didn't seem to notice. Applejack cocked an eyebrow, "Ahem." "Oh, sorry miss. I was just thinking about something. Did you want something?" the marine calmly spoke. "You were just over here all by yer lonesome, so I came over ta chat I guess," Applejack answered. Her expression changed to worry. "Is something bothering you?" "No. Just.... thinking is all." "Y'all want to talk about it?" "It's just that... I don't know why I'm talking about this, but I thought we were all going to die when that hydra thing appeared. It was about to crush us when your friends showed up. They distracted it, and gave me time to take the shot." "So what's the matter?" the cowpony responded, amazed at just how quickly the human had opened up. "As a soldier, I've faced death a few times now, but this time was different. I did everything I could to get on this mission, even when my mother and all of my family begged me not to. When I was about to be crushed under that monster, I kept thinking about them- her- finding out that I'd died. I hate to admit it, but it's bothering me. She has no idea whether I'm dead or alive right now, and we didn't exactly part on friendly terms. I know this stupid, I'm a marine! I shouldn't be dealing with petty emotional problems. I should be having a good time with my buds over there." "It'll be right, I s'pose. We all go through somethin' like that eventually. You can say sorry next time you meet 'er. Now c'mon, go have some fun with yer friends. Ya deserve it." "I guess so. Yeah, it was stupid of me to even think like that. You know, you remind me of my sister Annabelle back home. That's probably what she would have told me. By the way, I never caught your name." "It's Applejack, and you remind me of my brother Macintosh." "Well I'm Steven, and if I'm right, you come from a farming family just like me. If that's true, then I think we just became interplanetary buddies," the marine declared. "Hay yeah!" Applejack answered. "You saved those soldiers! That makes you a friend in mah book." The farmer pony raised her hoof, and the marine responded by giving it a light tap with his fist. **************** To any observer who would have noticed, the festivities were progressing nicely. Pinkie Pie sung just about every song she knew, so it was almost dark before she finally finished. The local DJs and musicians took over, and the party continued with everyone in high spirits. The scientist and Twilight were busy socializing for the first time in their lives. Fluttershy was talking to one of the biologists. Applejack and Sergeant Mace discussed farming techniques. Rarity was nowhere to be found. Rainbow Dash looked around. "Hey, Rarity's not one to miss a social. Is she still working on that project?" she asked Twilight. Just as she was going to answer, a white and purple figure zipped past them, followed by a beleaguered human pilot. "Go on! They'll be expecting you to talk soon!" Rarity spoke as pushed Lenard forward. "How'd you even make this?! You couldn't have had a chance to measure me!" Lenard exclaimed. "When you've been in the fashion business as long as I have, you get good at guessing," Rarity explained. "Do I have to wear it in front of my friends?" the pilot desperately asked. "I won't let you wear that "flight suit" again until it's been properly cleaned! You've been wearing it for three days! I hid it, so don't even think of trying to find it. Now go!" Twilight and Rainbow Dash looked on in confusion as the pilot now wore an almost regal looking outfit. It was white and had gold trim with several jewels lining the shoulders. Surely this was the result of days of work. "She must have started designing it the minute she first saw him," Twilight thought. "Guess that's Rarity for you, never missing a possible fashion venture." The awkward pilot made his way to the stage. Every pony clapped at his new appearance, and the humans looked generally amused. Lenard brought a mic to his mouth. "Look, I didn't really have a choice, ok?" he spoke, which incited laughter from the crowd. "I guess it's an honor to stand before you, or something important sounding like that. I'd like to say thank you to-" The pilot was cut off by the sounds of a whirling wind. A white carriage with a gold trim was flying alongside a ebony and midnight blue carriage overhead. The two dainty carriages, pulled by similarly dressed pegasai, quickly landed and taxied up to the crowd. Out came the Sisters Sovereign themselves, Princess Celestia and Princess Luna. The sisters trotted up to the party and took seats on the front row. If Lenard hadn't felt nervous before, he certainly did now. "Let's get this over with." he thought. The pilot told the story of how he'd come to be in Equestria, and even had Sky Blade hold up the Hydra tooth to prove certain parts of it. "-and that's all I got. Thanks for your time." The crowd roared into thunderous applause. "I can't believe I actually managed that," Lenard chuckled to himself. The crowd dispersed, ready to begin the work of uniting two Earths. "That was quite a speech there, Lenno." Rainbow Dash spoke to the royally clothed pilot. "Come up with it yourself?" "Your hilarious. You went from calling me "Mr. Greene" to "Lenno," in the span of a day?" Lenard deadpanned. "I guess I'll let that one fly." "Fly," Rainbow mused. "It's funny, because we both fly." "You wouldn't mind flying me back to the hotel, would you?" he asked, It was Rainbow Dash's turn to deadpan. "You probably weigh more than me!" she joked. "Then I guess I'll walk back," Lenard sighed. "You do that. By the way, you still owe me a ride in that jet." "Oh yeah, completely forgot about that. When we fix it, you can get your ride. See you later Dashie." The pegasus's wings shot upward in shock of the overly cute nickname he'd given her. Unoriginal, but since he'd not known her long, she still didn't see it coming. "You're hilarious." She rolled her eyes and began to fly home. She stopped, and turned back around. "Hey Lenard," "Yes Dash?" "I'm glad you're made it back okay." Lenard gave a smug grin. "So am I. Later Dash." "Yeah, see ya." The pilot headed for the direction of the Ponyville Inn, and the pegasus flew towards her newly rebuilt cloud house. ******************* High above the ground in a redwood tree, a griffon sat perched on a branch, silhouetted by the moon. "The tyrants will fall, the downtrodden will rise. All will be as it is truly meant to be. The sons and daughters of the lost will claim victory over the chosen, and a new era will dawn over the land." "What are you reading, Praetor?" a small dragon like reptile asked the griffon. "It's just a poem written by our ancestors during the time of sorrow. I read it as a reminder of what our enemy wrought so long ago, and what we must do now." "Oh. The Griffin Chancellor sent down word to begin preparations. I think the time you just spoke of has finally come." The Griffon closed the book and flew off with the lizard, but not before getting one last look at a peaceful Equestria. "And may fate smile upon us."