“There we go.” Twilight nodded, firmly, as soon as she got to the forward observation deck; Captain Anderson's ship was quite nearby and fully visible.
“You don't think they're worried, do you?” asked Fluttershy, nervously. “I mean, we did kind of vanish off the ship rather abruptly. Do you think Flim would be cross that we left him behind after he came all this way?”
“Probably.” Twilight grimaced. “I'll go back and reassure them, maybe get one of those portable window things so we can talk.”
“Portable window things?” asked Spike.
“It's just a little bit like a mirror, darling.” said Rarity. “A piece of glass in a frame. Only instead of your reflection, it shows what's in front of a different mirror.”
“They've got some means of connecting any pair of them.” continued Twilight. “I'm not quite sure how they do that, but it only takes a minute or two.”
“So it's some kind of magic mirror?” asked Spike.
“No,” said Twilight, “that's the strange thing. There isn't a scrap of magic in them anywhere, as far as I can tell. Oh, Rarity, could you hold a marker for me for a few minutes?”
Rarity raised an eyebrow. “We're not all going back, then?” she asked.
“Well, no.” said Twilight. “I'm just going to get a mirror thing, and Flim if he wants to come along. And the teleport back here will be a lot easier if somepony's holding a marker for me.”
“Hold it, hold it, hold it.” said Rainbow Dash. “Holding a marker?”
“It's one of the easiest unicorn spells you get, darling.” said Rarity. “And the first spell that a lot of unicorns do – aside from surges, of course.”
“And surprisingly versatile.” added Twilight.
“So... what's it do?” asked Applejack.
“Absolutely nothing, on its own, except make your horn glow.” said Rarity.
“It marks a location.” said Twilight. “Specifically, the location of the unicorn casting the spell. Other spells can then use that marker as a target point.”
“So as long as I'm holding the marker,” continued Rarity, “Twilight can teleport right next to me whenever she wants.”
“It saves me from accidentally teleporting into the same cell as a cockatrice again.” finished Twilight, charging up her teleportation spell.
* * *
There was a pop of displaced air as Twilight appeared back on the Federation trade ship. This time, she'd turned up in a fairly average corridor. Unfortunately, the only part of the ship that she'd been on for more than a few minutes altogether was the forward observation lounge – she had no idea where she was, or which way to go to find Flim, or the either of humans who ran the ship.
“Hello?” she called out. “Anypony there?”
* * *
“You were locked in a small closet,” said Red Dawn, her twisted horn glowing a bright, hypnotic green, “which was opened only briefly, for meals.”
“We were locked in a small closet, which was only opened briefly for meals.” droned the two Ferengi.
“You have never seen any creature covered in black chitin.”
“We have never seen any creature covered in black chitin.”
“You kidnapped a buffalo from Manehatten. You did not kidnap a creature covered in black chitin from near Canterlot.”
“We kidnapped a buffalo from Manehatten. We did not kidnap a creature covered in black chitin from near Canterlot.”
“You fear the small dragon.”
“We fear the small dragon.”
“If you escape, he will kill you.”
“If we escape, he will kill us.”
“Therefore, you will not attempt to escape.”
“Therefore, we will not attempt to escape.”
“If you attack a pony, the dragon will kill you.”
“If we attack a pony, the dragon will kill us.”
“Therefore, you will not attack a pony.”
“Therefore, we will not attack a pony.”
“Or any creature shaped vaguely like a pony.”
“Or any creature shaped vaguely like a pony.”
“Excellent.” Red Dawn let the green light fade from her horn.
“Excellent.” droned the two Ferengi.
Red Dawn gave them a glance, and then let green fire encase her for a moment, changing her form from an insequine creature to a buffalo.
“Now, you two, get into the closet.” She pointed one hoof at the small doorway. Both Ferengi followed her directions.
Red Dawn locked the door, then stepped back and nodded. She held out one hoof to Flam. “Now, let's go and meet our rescuers. I wonder if I can have them under control as well be the time we get back...”
* * *
“Anypony there?”
“Twilight? I thought the Captain said you'd just vanished!” Flim said, trotting into view from behind her.
“Oh! Right. We went to the other ship, to make sure everything was alright. Do you know where the humans are?”
“They're right this way.” said Flim, pointing. “You've been walking the wrong way. How's my brother, by the way?”
“Apparently he's found a marefriend.” said Twilight. “A buffalo.”
“You're joking.” said Flim, his tone sceptical. “Flam? A buffalo?”
Twilight shrugged. “That's what Applebloom said. Mind you, she's a young filly – she might have misconstrued something.”
“She must have.” said Flim, firmly. “I mean, Flam? A marefriend? The very concept boggles the mind.”
4555825
Horrible things happen to anypony who tries to look after the Cutie Mark Crusaders.
Except Fluttershy. When Fluttershy looks after them, horrible things turn up, catch sight of her, and then slink away quietly when they think she's not looking.
4555826
Well, they are alien oats. Which is really wierd - even wierder than the alternative, actually - how likely is it that a completely unknown planet would produce food that is even biologically compatible with Equestrian biochemistry, never mind identifiable?
But it's a wierdness that happens in the Star Trek universe; humans and klingons can eat each other's food without getting ill, and can actually derive nutrition from it. Humans and vulcans can interbreed. And come up with a reasonably healthy child, too. And no-one seems to so much as give it a second thought.
So, since this is partially a Star Trek story, I'm just going to assume that every species in the universe works on the same biochemistry for reasons that are not so much as speculated on in-story.
4556337
4556986
Here, have another one.
4616874
Well, in ST:TNG, it is stated that all life in the Milky Way was seeded by a humanoid species that evolved first, found themselves alone, and didn't like it.
(And the funny thing is, the more we learn, the plausible it becomes that we're the only civilization in the galaxy. It took Earth three billion years for life to stumble on multi-cellular designs (everything more complex than green slime) and, as Jared Diamond points out in The Third Chimpanzee, very beneficial and seemingly obvious stuff like digesting cellulose only evolved once (hence why animals like cows keep symbiotic microbes in their guts) and, compared to the dumb but hugely effective survivors like roaches and rats, human intelligence is of dubious worth.)
Yeah, changelings don't work too well against their thralls' families. When you've known someone for all your life, you're going to be able to tell when he's under a magical compulsion.
Looking forward to more.
Some of these chapters feel like they could be condensed.
I'm also getting the feeling that Ferengi in your setting are not immune to telepathy.
Why, because he's gay?
Bill and Ted in Spaaaaaace!