//------------------------------// // 1. Hey, I'm Goku! // Story: Goku Lives // by The Grimm Reaper //------------------------------// Canterlot Castle's staff were buzzing with news about their visitor from space. Nothing like this had ever happened in the history of Equestria or the ages prior to it. The moment of First Contact was upon them and everypony was doing what they could to prepare for when the alien would awake. Nobles booked their meetings in advance, citizens tried to sneak into the hospital to catch a glimpse of the creature, and the doctors did their part, trying to learn his physiology so they could help him, as their Princess had ordered. It was total chaos in the castle as the staff cleaned and polished floors, windows and even armour to perfection, hoping to make an impression on the alien. The Princesses' regalia had even been cleaned, Princess Twilight having been outfitted with her own dark purple version. A single pink six-point star was engraved on her chest-piece, with six little white stars surrounding it, just like her cutie mark. Of all the ponies fretting over trying to make a good first impression, Twilight was the worst. She'd prepared checklists for the immediate staff, and written down a checklist containing the names of all the staff to make sure that they'd all gotten their checklists. Then she'd made a checklist for all the things she had to do, including make checklists for the staff and the checklist to mark them all off. The red carpet would have been green with envy at how long that checklist was. Twilight's friends were beginning to worry about her. She'd been known for pacing holes in wooden floors, but the marble floors of the palace were beginning to show signs of wear and tear. "Twilight, calm down. The doctors said he's still going to be out for at least another few hours. You should take the time to prepare yourself emotionally." said Rainbow Dash, her usually windswept chromatic mane and tail beautifully brushed and styled into a sort of longer version of itself. Rarity had given all the girls a makeover, mainly fixing their manes up to look 'her standard of' presentable for their guest. Applejack asked for something that made her look like a mare, but still a strong and independent cowpony. Fluttershy took some convincing, but Rarity had said that when she met this alien he'd want to see just how beautiful she was. Reluctantly, Fluttershy agreed to reveal her whole face. Pinkie Pie was all too happy to get a new look, but her mane and tail took a few tries before Rarity could coax them down. The only change Rarity had made to herself was a few more curls in her mane and tail than usual. Now it was Twilight's turn. With her consent, Rarity would make Twilight look more beautiful than ever before. As the lavender princess slowly nodded, Rarity grabbed her in her magic and brought her to the nearest vacant seat, going to work. It was no small feat, but with Rarity, it took only minutes. With Spike, it was a familiar sight, but the girls all looked in awe at the transformation. "Oh, I'm a genius!" Rarity patted herself on the back. "How come Twilight gets the cool mane style while I get mom hair?" Rainbow muttered to herself. She hadn't expected an answer, least of all from Fluttershy. "I think you'd make a great mother, Rainbow." the shy pegasus replied. Rainbow blushed slightly before clearing her throat and shrugging the gesture off. "Not really my thing, Shy. But thanks." she said, smiling to her friend. Rarity had finished not a moment too soon, as one of the Royal guards walked in to speak with them. "Princess Twilight, the alien is... awake?" he said, freezing at the sight of the six beautiful young mares before him. "Wow." he said aloud, blushing as he broke eye contact and tried to fix himself up. "Uh... Princess Celestia and Princess Luna are waiting for you all in D-wing. I take it you know which room the alien's in?" he asked, stopping himself from looking at the girls. Rarity and Twilight both giggled at the poor guard who was caught off-guard, ironically. "Yes. Thank you, Steel Bishop." Twilight walked past him, but not before apologising to the poor pony by giving him a light peck on the cheek. This worked to intensify the guard's blush. Each of the girls except for Rainbow Dash and Fluttershy did the same, giggling all the while. The once Ivory guard was now redder than Applejack's apples. And he could feel a nosebleed coming on. As he tried to register what had happened, his wings suddenly sprung from his back, and refused to go down. He then made a rigid track back to the barracks. Princesses Celestia and Luna both stood at the door to the alien's room, waiting for the girls. Twilight was the first to spot them and called out their names respectively. "Twilight. Hoping to impress, are we?" Celestia asked, noticing the girls' new manestyles. "Just wanted to look presentable for him. Have we confirmed that he's even a 'he'?" Twilight asked. Luna was the one to answer. "The Doctors have indicated as much, given that his reproductive system seems similar in principle to a stallion's," Luna couldn't hide the blush that grew as she brought up the topic. "Curiously, they also noted a small round scar near the small of his back. They say that it may be evidence of there once being a tail of sorts. How he lost it is a mystery, as the injury is older than the wounds he arrived with." she said. Twilight and the others absorbed this new information. "Okay, when do we go in?" Twilight asked. "Right now, if everypony's ready?" Celestia said, receiving nods all around. With a deep breath, she used her magic to open the door and stepped through first. Luna came next, followed by Twilight, Rarity, Applejack, Pinkie Pie, Rainbow Dash and Fluttershy, with Spike on her back. The girls all spread out around the alien's bed. The alien had bandages around most of his body and some around his head, but they didn't hide the spiky and messy nature that had become almost iconic back on his world. He looked at each of the mares, taking in their sizes, their colours, their shapes, and differences. Then with a big smile he lifted a bandaged hand and spoke. "Hi! My name's Goku. Nice to meet you."