//------------------------------// // Chapter 4 // Story: Revan // by Perception Filter //------------------------------// Revan Chapter 4 Twilight walked along the main road through Ponyville to the hospital, supported by Applejack. The alien, Revan, had done a good job splinting her leg, and although Twilight was a bit reluctant to accept his help, he was doing everything he could to make amends. Still, she couldn't help but be a little resentful towards him, as was only, she thought, fair; he did destroy her house and her library. At Twilight's insistence, he had agreed to stay at Applejack's farm until she could find Spike, and send a letter to Celestia and let her know what was going on. Applejack and the rest of the girls, except for Fluttershy, had emphasized how the town had reacted to seeing Revan, fleeing in only a matter of moments. Twilight wanted to call them silly and say they were overreacting, but there was something about him that seemed off. She felt a kind of odd feeling of fear and comfort at the same time, just looking at him. Just thinking about it made her shudder unconsciously. "Are you okay, sugarcube?" Applejack asked as she felt Twilight move. Twilight blinked and responded slowly, "I... I'm not sure." She paused before continuing. "He scares me Applejack. I'm not sure if it's because he's an alien, or if it was what he did, but he really scares me..." They walked in silence for a minute or so before Applejack responded in a quiet voice. "I know Twilight, he scares me a little bit too. That mask of his is too creepy." Twilight quickly nodded, as if agreeing. True, she felt that the mask didn't help, but it was something more than that she couldn't explain, and she didn't feel like trying. As they moved through town, they were greeted by a few ponies who gave their condolences to Twilight but ultimately moved about on their own business. Twilight mumbled some halfhearted thanks to each of them, but she didn't think any of them actually heard her. Soon, they reached the hospital and they entered to a tired-looking mare behind the front desk. She looked up at them drearily and blinked. "Hello? How can I help you?" she asked in a disinterested voice. Applejack responded first, cutting off Twilight, "We're here looking for a small dragon, purple and green? His name is Spike." The mare began to shuffle though several papers on her desk, forcing Twilight and Applejack to shift uncomfortably for a few seconds. Finally, she looked up at them again and said, "Are either of you his legal guardian? He can't leave until he's checked out." "He's with me," Twilight spoke up, motioning to Applejack to help her walk closer to the desk. "What do I need to sign?" In response the mare thrust a clipboard towards her along with a pen. Twilight quickly took it in her magic and signed it, then handed it back. The mare looked at it and nodded. She motioned her head towards a door behind her, saying, "Down the hall, take your first left. The room number is 15." After moving down the hall, they moved into said room, and immediately they saw Spike sitting on a bed, with his arm in a cast. As soon as he saw the pair of mares entering his room, he perked up. "Twilight! You're okay!" The purple pony in question smiled and rushed forward and pulled him into a gentle hug. "Yes, I'm okay Spike," she said, pulling back and looking him in the eyes. "I'm glad you're okay too." Spike nodded. "Did they find out what happened Twilight?" Twilight's smile faltered for just a moment before falling slightly. "Well... it's a bit complicated Spike..." "Is everything alright?" he asked, his voice betraying a deep worry he was doing his best to conceal. Twilight hesitated to respond for a moment before nodding slowly. "Everything is... stable, for now, but... we're going to have to make a trip to Canterlot soon." Her eyes fell to the floor. "Spike, I know you're hurt, but are you okay to send a letter to the Princess?" His reply still carrying a bit of his former distress, he said "Yeah, of course Twilight, I'm good to go... It was just my left arm that was broken." Glancing around the room, he saw a pencil and clipboard on the table, and as he grabbed them he motioned for Twilight to speak. "Dear Princess Celestia..." ~~~ Revan sat in front of the creatures, which he had learned by now were called 'ponies. All of them, using Rarity as a proxy, had told him their names, even Rainbow Dash introduced herself, but the Jedi still found himself catching glimpses of her eying him. So far, it had been fairly silent since Applejack had left with Twilight, and he had gladly used the quiet moments to meditate and keep himself calm. He broke out of his most recent trance when he heard Rarity calling his name. Turning his head to show he heard, Rarity gave him a look he couldn't place. "What?" he asked. "Is there something on my mask?" "What are you doing, darling?" she asked. "You keep going silent on us." "Meditating," he answered simply. "Helps me to focus, remain calm." Rarity quickly translated for the other ponies, then an awkward silence took hold. Rather than go back to meditating, Revan decided to seize the initiative, and try and learn more about these ponies. "So, Rarity," he began, "What is it that you do for a living?" Rarity's eyes lit up at the question, and words began to immediately pour forth from her. "Well, darling, I work at the Carousel Boutique, where I create fabulous clothing for the denizens of Ponyville, and anyone else who will ask!" She continued to speak rapidly, describing her profession in many ways he would not have thought possible. Revan, finding it impossible to get a word in edgewise for a question or interruption, leaned back and grimaced as he felt a twang in his chest by his broken ribs. "Darling, are you alright? You still aren't saying much." He shrugged. "I talk when it is necessary to do so. Was there something you wanted to talk about?" "Well, for starters, what is this "force" you keep talking about? You said you touched my mind with it, but that was just magic!" She grimaced slightly, remembering the pain. "Painful magic." "Ah, yes, my apologies for that as well. I should have been less hasty. To answer your question, the Force is..." He stopped for a moment to try and recall how it had been defined for him. "It is a 'force', if you will, that permeates the entire galaxy and every living being in it. It has myriad uses. I see now that you simply refer it is as magic on your planet." "Well, I guess it's not odd for us to have different words for it..." There was silence for a few moments. "Mister Revan, you introduced yourself as a... Jedi? I believe the term you used was." When he nodded, she continued. "What is it that you do as a Jedi." "I... believe the closest concept you would have for it would be a guard or peacekeeper. However, it is much more than that, it is a duty, an obligation to do the right thing, and to help those who need it. Does that answer your question?" "Oh yes it does, thank you very much." She began to talk to the other ponies. Another silence fell over the room. Revan's thoughts drifted to his lost lightsaber and he thought about how dangerous it would be for one of the ponies to find it. He cleared his throat, and they all looked at him. "It has just come to mind that I actually have something I need to be doing." He stood up as he spoke. "And what might that be, darling?" Rarity asked, her eyes narrowing slightly. "I lost an... instrument of mine. One that could pose some danger to your kind. I must retrieve it from my ship's wreckage before someone finds it." "Ah... I see. Perhaps we could help? Besides, I doubt Rainbow Dash over here would be very keen on you going off on your own." Revan shrugged, but nodded. "I see no objections. So long as you all follow my instructions around the ship." Rarity quickly said something to the other ponies and Rainbow flew up to him and did the pony equivalent of pointing her fingers at her eyes then at him. He nodded once at her. With her in the lead they all filed out, except the pink and yellow ones. "Are those two not coming?" he asked as he walked. "No, Pinkie and Fluttershy are going to wait here for Twilight and Applejack to get back." He nodded again. ~~~ Canterlot castle was abuzz with activity, even though it was evening, and most would normally be readying for bed. With the meteor crashing into Ponyville, Celestia was making preparations for transport down as soon as possible along with a guard contingent to help in a relief effort, if necessary. "Sister, we hardly believe this is so necessary that you must leave now of all times. At least wait until morn!" "I'm sorry Luna, but it cannot wait. I have received no letter from Twilight or her friends about this event, and I do not think that--" she was cut off as a burst of green flame colored the air in front of her and a scroll fell to the ground. "What was that you were saying, sister?" Luna said with a smug look. "Oh, quiet." She pulled up the scroll and opened it. Dear Princess Celestia As I am sure you have no doubt noticed, a meteor has crashed in Ponyville this past day. What you might not know is that it was not a meteor, but a space ship! And though me and everyone else are unharmed, it did cause the destruction of my home and the town library. What's more is that there is an alien here in Ponyville! His name is Revan and... I think you should come to meet him on your own. There's a few unique things about him. Rest assured that he does not pose a danger to us for now. Your faithful student Twilight Sparkle Celestia stared at the note, silent in contemplation. "What is it sister? What has befallen Ponyville?" "There is... an alien, evidently. It was a ship that crashed, not a meteor." "Well then you must leave at once! All the more reason to go and make a first impression to the first species to come from outside our world!" Celestia nodded without looking back. "Yes... Yes we must. This raises many questions. You will take care of things here, sister?" "Of course! We shall not let you down!" she said with an enthusiastic smile. Celestia smiled back and hugged her sister. "I shall keep you informed of anything and everything that happens." "Good. Now go! Go!" Without looking back, Celestia dashed out into the courtyard to find a few chariots waiting for her, complete with pegasi and her guards. "New information has come to light, my little ponies. I shall explain on the way, but we must make haste!" It was less than a minute later that the chariots were airborne and flying down the mountain at top speed. ~~~ Lyra knew she should head to bed. It was late, she was tired, and there was undoubtedly going to be much talking over everything that had occurred in the past day. But she just couldn't. She was jittery and couldn't sit still. She paced around her small room, thinking; occasionally she stopped and looked at the object she had found, sitting on her nightstand. She bit her lip in thought. Newer thoughts had surfaced over the object in her mind. Undoubtedly anyone who would be able to buy it from her would know of it's alien origin. If that was the case, perhaps she would be accredited as a thief. What was worse was that she didn't know what the object did. There was a switch on it, but she hadn't the nerve to activate it. The thought of it doing something to hurt somepony was almost too much to bear. Even provided it wasn't dangerous, provided she found a buyer and wasn't labeled a thief of some kind, how much would it even buy her? Alien artifacts were bound to be expensive, but anyone reputable buying them wouldn't be likely to pay for more than about a month's rent. "Grr, stupid thing!" she picked it up in her magic and threw it against the wall. As she did, it hit the switch on the side and out of it burst a beam of purple light which hummed abrasively. The beam pierced through the wall leading into the bathroom and cause the wood around it to begin to heat and smolder. Quickly, she flipped the switch back, making sure not to touch the light in the process. Without hesitation, she gingerly picked it up with her hooves and put it her nightstand drawer. No one could ever see this thing, and she knew that now. It was far too dangerous for anypony to have.