//------------------------------// // Chapter 3: The Discovery // Story: Blades and Crystals: An MLP and Gravity Falls Crossover // by 78_Percent_Eggs //------------------------------// The next morning… Pinkie Pie trotted down ponyville’s main road, humming a tune as she rounded a corner of the square. As she looked left and right she could see many ponies giving her a wave and a wink with sick looks on their faces. No matter what the color of their coat was, their faces were all the color green. “Hi, Berry Punch! Great party yesterday, huh?” Pinkie asked getting muzzle to muzzle with the earth pony. Berry Punch responded to that statement by turning away from Pinkie and walking straight into a wall. Pinkie gave a small giggle. “Glad you liked it that much!” As she skipped down the road, she quickly noticed that she was one of the only ponies that didn’t make moaning noises every 5 seconds. She shrugged. It didn’t matter anyway. They are just sick because they had so much fun their body didn’t know what to do with it all. She thought as she passed the spa. “Well,” Pinkie said outloud to nopony in particular. “I gotta run to Twilight’s. No time to stop and say hello.” Tonight was the night Pinkie, Applejack, Rarity, Fluttershy and Rainbow Dash were all going to spend the night at Twilight’s castle. What better way to end a birthday than to spend a whole night with your best friends? “I can’t wait to see the look on Twilight’s face when she sees how early I am to the sleepover!”, she said as she approached the large, sparkling castle. “WHAT A SURPRISE!!” She squealed, jumping in the air and almost touching a cloud. She landed back on the dirt with a large dust cloud surrounding her. She hummed as she knocked on the large castle door. “Oooh Twiiiiiiiiiliiiiiiiiight? It’s me Pinkie Pie. Your bestest friend in like the whole universe.” No answer. “Well, maybe she’s not home right now.” Pinkie smiled as an idea popped into her head. *GASP* “Maybe I’ll have time to throw her a Welcome back to your house party! There can be cake and balloons and ice cream and Gummy can come too and- I should get started NOW!!” she shrieked as she opened the castle door quickly and it hit the wall. It took only 2 seconds for Pinkie’s happy mood to vanish when she took in the sight around her. On the ground, lay Twilight in an uncomfortable position, clearly unconscious. What frightened Pinkie the most was that on the right side of her head, she had a black eye and a swollen cheek. Next to her were to strange creatures, both of them knocked out too. Pinkie noticed that one of them was holding a frying pan. “AHHHHHHHHHH!!!!!!” Pinkie let out a deafening scream, slammed the door. and bolted out of the castle. She thought the best thing to do was rally her friends and see what they could do. First stop, Sweet Apple Acres. Pinkie ran across ponyville with unmatched speed, going so fast that you could mistake her for a huge, rose-colored light particle, leaving only a trail of pink in her wake. Her legs moved about a hundred miles per hour. “APPLE JA-AH-AH-CK!” she yelled as she screeched to a stop in front of her house. She pounded on the door. “Applejack! Applejack! Applejack!” Pinkie wailed. “Quick! It’s an emergency!” Applejack gallopped down the stairs and flung the door open. “Wha-what is Pinkie? Is someone hurt?” she asked, eyes darting in every direction. “Worse. TWILIGHT DIED!!!” Pinkie screamed, a river of tears soaking her now perfectly straight mane. “WHAT? Sugarcube, are you sure?” Applejack said with panic in her eyes “Yeah… she was laying on the f-f-floor and… there were 2 creatures that attacked her… and-and she had a black eye… “Then we don’t have any time to waste C’mon!” Applejack said. They both ran towards ponyville as fast as they could possibly go, to gather their other friends. 20 minutes later… The mane 5, Spike, and Starlight ran to Twilight’s castle in a hurry and pounded on the door. “Twilight, Twilight, Twilight!!” Spike said as he pounded on the door. Silence. “Oh for Celestia’s sake OPEN THE DOOR!!” Pinkamena shouted. Spike cautiously opened the door, a creaking sound slowly filling up the room. They all gasped at the sight before them. Fluttershy rushed to Twilight’s side. “Twilight, can you hear me? Please Please Please don’t be dead… “ “I think she's just unconscious.” “What do we do?” “Look at her eye!” “She was definitely hit with something. Hard.” “Twilight!” “Spike, write a letter to Princess Celestia.” “Fluttershy, go to your cottage and get some bandages.” “Rainbow Dash, go to the kitchen and get a bucket of water.” “On it.” “I can feel a pulse. She’s OK!” The ponies were squabbling with one another, trying to shake Twilight awake, check her pulse, and bandage her eye. Rainbow Dash came soaring back from the kitchen with a bucket of freezing water filled to the brim. She leaned over Twilight and poured the whole thing on her head. Twilight’s body instinctively started thrashing about and she sat up with wide eyes, gasping for air. “TWILIGHT!!”, her friends all shouted, crowding her and squeezing her to death with hugs. “Hi everypony! Wh-What are you all doing here? And why does the left side of my face hurt so much?” she asked putting a hoof to her eye. And then the memories came flooding back. The party… dark castle… muffins… frying pans… two hairless creatures stealing all of her stuff… She shook her head and began drying herself with a towel. “Do you remember what happened? Who did this?” Starlight asked with concern. Twilight took a deep breath in, doing her best to produce a clear image of what happened that night in her mind. “There were… There were 2 weird creatures… stealing my stuff… they looked like monkeys…” “You mean these guys?” Pinkie asked, pointing a hoof at 2 unconscious beings. Everypony trotted over and looked at what Pinkie was pointing at. They had been so panicked over Twilight they did not notice the strange creatures slumped against the wall. “Wha-what are those?!?” Rainbow Dash asked Twilight with a hint of fright in her voice. Twilight took a nice long look at them. “I honestly don’t know. I’ve never seen, read or heard of these things before! But, they do remind me of my Canterlot High friends. They had hands and stood on 2 legs. These appear to be bipedal as well. But these are much different from them. These have tan skin, brown hair, and are much, much smaller… Plus, Canterlot High was in another dimension… Ooooo I’m feeling very unprepared.” She said with an uneasy look. Spike cautiously walked over and poked the creature with the hat on it’s nose. The creature then scrunched up his face and turned his head ever so slightly to the left. Everypony jumped back. “They’re alive!” Rarity said in an overly-dramatic voice, putting a hoof to her forehead. “They could wake up and kill us all!” Pinkie shrieked. “Now, everypony.” Applejack said with evident fear. “Let’s not freak ah’selves out before we even know what actually happened. They could just be… lost? I don’ know… Fluttershy, have you ever seen these things before?” “I-um… no. No I haven’t.” She responded shyly, hoof scraping across the floor. “Well, whatever they are, they’re trouble.” Rainbow Dash declared. “Look what they did to Twilight! They attacked her! They stole her stuff and then hit her in the head! When these things wake up they’re gonna-” She was interrupted by a rather large belch coming from Spike, sending a scroll flying across the castle. Right before it hit the wall, Twilight’s magic grabbed it. “You guys sent a letter to the Princess?” she questioned as she unfurled the scroll. “Yeah, we kind of panicked.” Starlight said sheepishly. “I was the one who wrote it.” Twilight cleared her throat and began to read out loud. Dearest Starlight Glimmer, Your message sends me great worry. I have sent 2 medics to aid in Twilight’s recovery and Solar Captain Shining Armour and a couple of other guards to investigate the crime and see if they can piece together the whole story of what happened that night. I would come myself but I have been recently called to Aquastria by the ruler of the land and my cousin, King Leo, to discuss urgent matters. When Twilight awakens, have her send a letter to me, confirming that she is alright. Yours Truly, Princess Celestia “She’s sending over other ponies? That’s good, I would really like to classify these creatures. Also, I fink I haf a toof looth.” Twilight said, feeling her teeth with her tongue.” “Well, be glad those medic ponies are coming over.” Rarity said. “They’ll get you tidied up before you can say ‘Hoity Toity’!” “Thanks guys, you’ve been a really big help, I don’t know what I’d do without you!” Twilight said, looking around at all the beaming faces. “I better start on a letter to the Princess. Spike, can you grab me a fresh scroll?” “You betcha!” Spike hollered, already a ways down the hallway. At that moment, knock could be heard on the door. “Twili? Are you okay?” a male voice came from outside the door. Twilight’s face lit up at the sound. “It’s okay, BBBFF. I’m in here! Applejack, could you unlock the door?” Applejack trotted over and lifted the latch on the door. Shining Armour, two royal pegasi guards, and 2 medic ponies came through the door. “Oh, LSBFF, I’m so glad you’re okay!” Shining said as he embraced Twilight in a tight hug. “ Princess Celestia told me what happened and I came as quick as I could. Where does it hurt?” Shining motioned for the medics to come forward. “Really, I’m fine. Fluttershy brought bandages from her cottage.” “I’m glad. Now who did this? When I lay my hooves on them I’m gonna-” “Shiny, don’t stress yourself out. I’ll tell you everything that happened.” Shining sat on his rump, listening intently to his sister. Twilight began to tell her sibling everything about last night she could remember, from the raging party to the creatures she encountered. Shining Armor gave a small whine when she got to the part with the frying pan. “So you’re telling me, that these 2 things just showed up out of nowhere and started stealing your food?” Shining said pointing a hoof at the two unconscious beings surrounded by the guards and her friends. “Pretty much!” “Well, are you sure you have never seen or read about these things before?” “Yep. But I think they might be a subspecies of human.” “And you were sure that you had all your doors locked?” “Now that you mention it, I don’t think I did. My friends were able to get in, and I was so drunk I don't even think it occurred to me.” “Well that’s probably how they got in. You said you’ve never heard about these before? We should probably take them to Canterlot and see if an animal and monster specialist can identify them.” “Good idea. When does the next train to Canterlot leave?” “Noon, I think.” “Well” Twilight said glancing at a clock on the wall. “It’s eleven thirty now so let's head over to the station.” As Twilight stood up, she heard a feminine voice from across the room say something like, “hi imamaaaaaabel?” There was a collective intake of breaths. “Can they...um, talk? Is that a different language?” Fluttershy said curiously. “No they speak Equestrian. When they knocked me down the the male one said ‘get down’. I think he was warning the other. Then the female yelled ‘nobody messes with my brother’ right before she was about to hit me. Well now I know that the two are related. Maybe twins, perhaps.” Twilight said knowingly. “Also, can you call the medics over I've been curious to know how much damage they caused to the side of my face.” The medics cantered over and began inspecting every inch of Twilight. The two pegasi guards came down one of Twilight’s many hallways, their faces emotionless as usual. Twilight didn’t even notice their absence. “May I ask where you went, good sirs?” Twilight inquired. They both stooped down into a low bow. “Your highness," one said, "We have been investigating the castle for any other clues as to what these being did here and how they got in. The only thing we found was this.” He pulled out an object. “Is that a… Flashlight?” Twilight asked, embracing the flashlight in her magic. “Most ponies don’t own these. They cost a lot. Plus, look!” She pointed a hoof at the the on/off switch. “No earth pony or pegasus would be able to use these. Flashlights were designed for non-unicorns so they could produce light. They could be easily turned on and off with the tap of a hoof and carried around in mouths. This switch, however, looks like it was made for their hands, therefore I can conclude that this was was invented for their own species. That shows that they have a civilized lifestyle. Though one could tell right off the bat by the clothes they're wearing. The stitching is perfect!” Twilight looked around at all the ponies in the room. They all murmured in agreement. “You have really good observation skills, Twi, but I guess that’s because of your eggheadedness.” Rainbow said with a coy smile. “Thanks! I do read a lot of Dial S for ‘Sassy’ books. They’re detective novels. You should try that series, Dash! Rarity reads it too.” Twilight replied. “Nah, I’m good with my Daring Do.” Very faintly in the distance, A train whistle could be heard. The 12 ponies and 1 dragon turned their heads towards the noise. “Y'all, ah think we better hurry it up. The trains ‘bout ta leave!” Applejack said quickly. “But how are we going to transport the creatures?” Starlight asked. As if on cue, a small sphere of pink light quietly surrounded the beings and lifted them ever so gently in the air. The twins did not stir, still out cold. The large bubble containing them hovered a few feet off the ground. The ponies turned to see Shining Armor with his horn glowing a hot pink and a expression of concentration on his face. He slowly opened one eye. “I got it Twili.” He said. He motioned with his hoof for all the ponies to follow him out the door. As they all stepped outside, a torrent of sunlight and civilians came barreling towards them. “What happened?” “Is the princess okay?” “What are those?!?” “Has Tirek come back again?” “HUMANS!!” “Are we all gonna die?” “Can bring muffins into the ponyville villain-shelter?” After pushing their way through an ocean of ponies, they were finally able get tickets and step onto the train. A couple of paparazzis flashed their cameras. It reminded Twilight of the time Fluttershy became a well know supermodel. A loud whistle blew. “The Friendship Express is leaving the station.” The conductor called from up front as he poked his head through the door separating the train compartments. He was a simple stallion with a brown mane and a yellow coat, wearing a conductor's cap. His eyes got wide when he saw the passengers on the train. There sat the Princess of Friendship, The captain of the Solar Guard, and the rest of the bearers of the elements of harmony. He took a long gander at the creatures wrapped in Shining Armor’s magic. “Umm...sir? Are those creatures your pets? If so are they domesticated? We don’t allow any feral and untamed animals on the train...sir.” “You have nothing to worry about, good stallion.” Twilight said. “We’re just taking these creatures up to Canterlot to be classified.” The conductor looked weary. “Of course, your highness. Call me Sun Steam. I’ll be your conductor for your journey and my assistant, Butter Drop, will be here to attend to all your needs.” A tan unicorn with a cherry mane entered through the back of the compartment. “Pl-please enjoy your trip, your majesty.” He bent into a bow and on coming up, he went way too fast and hit his head on the ceiling. He blushed and walked out as quick as he could. The unicorn came around, giving each pony (and dragon) a cup of water. Twilight let out a sigh of relief. They appeared to be the only ones on the train. What a lucky break. She didn’t need anymore ponies up in her face. Word of her injury and encounter with these things has probably already reached every end of Equestria. Twilight rolled her eyes. She would probably have to go through even more ponies than she did in Ponyville to even get off the train station. She didn’t really like all the attention but she probably wouldn’t even have been here if it weren’t for her friends. They helped her up, wrote to the princess and tended to her injuries until help arrived. Being with your friends sure beats being all alone like I was last night., Twilight thought. If my friends were there, those jerks probably wouldn’t even be able to touch a hair on my head! Twilight’s train of thought came to a sudden stop. Wait a minute… “Starlight? Spike?” The purple alicorn called as the said beings turned to look at her. “Waaphh?” Spike said with a mouth full of caramel that he got from the candy trolley “Where were you two last night? You guys kinda live in my house and you never made any plans to sleep somewhere else. At least not that I know of. I was wondering why it took some pony so long to notice me passed out on the floor of my castle.” Starlight’s cheeks turned red. She lifted a hoof and began to answer. “W-" “IfiguredthatStarlightandSpikeweren’tatthecastlebecauseifTwilightwasuncontioustilmorningitmeansthattheyneversawherlastnightsowewenttowhatwasleftofSugarcubeCorneraftermymega-epic-awesome partyandfoundSpikeundermybedandStarlightinanoverturnedapplebobbingcratesoweshookthemawakeandweweretotallylike-” Pinkie Pie began to deeply inhale to the point where her eyes were going different directions. Before she could say anything though, an orange hoof was shoved in her mouth. “Breathe, Sugarcube, breathe! I think we all get the point.” Starlight rubbed the back of her neck, an embarrassed smile on her face. “So yeah, Me and Spile may have passed out at the party. But I mean, with all the cider we had, who could blame us?” They all shared a collective laugh as the train rumbled down the tracks to the great city of Canterlot.