A New Dimension, A New Threat

by ZeroChill

Celebration

Gnasher walked towards large fence with a set of black gates ajar. Beyond the gates were Mono, Lith, Rondo, Jasmine and Custard, who were all smiling and waving. On Custard’s neck and around Gnasher’s body were two bracelets similar to those worn by Mono, Lith, Rondo and Jasmine.

“Sorry I was a bit late, but Razor Wind and I were out hunting for fun in the Terraformed Wilderness.” She stated.

“That’s the area the four of us woke up in, is it not? Did you at least have fun, Gnasher?” Mono asked.

“Heck yeah!” Gnasher roared with enthusiasm. “Alien rabbits are fun to hunt. They put up a good challenge, but I managed to catch and butcher them. I won’t tell you about the details, though, because they can be a bit too gruesome for you all.”

“Well, the sun is setting. So, shouldn’t we all start walking in?” Lith suggested.

“Yeah! Let’s get in! I can’t wait to sing!” Rondo responded with a burst of energy, flying into the open hallway.

“Ummm, we should go follow him and make sure he doesn’t get into trouble.” Jasmine said.

---

The five Pokémon walked through the metal hallways, swiveling their heads in all directions.

“Rondo! Where are you?” Jasmine called out.

“I’m over here.” Rondo stated, hovering below the airduct. “I took a shortcut to the reception room and scoped it out without letting anyone see me. Seems like there’s a lot of H.O.R.S.E. operatives and even two winged unicorns!”

Mono raised his right eye with a slow ascent.

“You can be very sneaky sometimes, Rondo.”

“Heh, I know.”

The group of six Pokémon continued walking down the halls. In front of a set of double doors were two brown-coated earth pony stallions in black suits, standing with stoic expressions on their faces. Upon seeing the group, they smiled.

“Ah, you six must be among the guests of honor.”

The two stallions stepped out of the way and the doors opened. The sight of the other side of the door caused the Pokémon besides Rondo to gawk with dropped jaws; the reception room was the size of a stadium. Stone statues of various creatures spilling out water from their mouths were spread amongst the green hedges lining the interior of the place. The descending sun stood upon the windowed ceiling.

Walking among the sweet-smelling shrubberies, they overheard the conversations of Equusians speaking in sophisticated tones. With their minds warping through the twisted maze, they bumped into Spitfire.

“You came!” With her content smile widening, Spitfire declared with an audible voice.

“We wanted to make a good impression.” Mono responded.

“Well, I’m glad you all made it anyways. Come, I want to introduce you all to the council of Neo Canterlot.”

Following Spitfire, the group wandered into an open forum. Within the area, there stood five larger-framed Equusians, the non-ponies whom all emanated a noble air.

One was a female griffon whose wings’ feathers were stained in a blood red that offset the brilliant white plumage on the rest of her body. Her blue eyes radiated with wisdom and strength. Her fur flashed in a silver color and brown silk was wrapped around her neck.

Next to her was a changeling with a wizened appearance; he had a fair bit of bulk and stature compared to the other party-goers. His mane and tail flashed in a silver color. A lighter shade of silver ran down their centers as a stripe. His mosaic wings were of a translucent gray and his crooked horn had a soft turn upon it. His green eyes flashed with a deep respect for those around him. He wore a blue-white cloth around his neck.

After him was a tall and slender doe. Her fur shimmered with a foliage green accent. On her head were wooden stubs from her skull, but the tips were rounded off. Her gray eyes were mirrors that reflected upon the condition of the heart of those that looked into them. A verdant green cloth was wrapped around her neck.

In the center of the group were two alicorn mares; one was a white-coated alicorn with a whispy aurora for her mane and tail. The image of a sun was placed upon her flanks. She emanated with a radiant sunshine from her body.

The other was a sapphire blue-coated alicorn whose mane and tail were the midnight sky. Though she was not as tall as her sister, she still dwarfs other ponies in stature. The image of a crescent moon behind two black clouds was placed upon her flanks. They both wore cloths representing their coats’ colors.

The group of five Equusians eyed the group and warm smiles rose from their faces.

“It seems that some of our guests of honor have arrived, Spitfire.” The doe said with a pristine tone.

“I have not seen creatures like these before.” The changeling noted.

“If they helped defend our city, then they are a friend to us regardless of their mysterious circumstances.” The griffon stated.

The two alicorns walked towards the Pokémon, wearing inviting smiles on their faces.

“Greetings, creatures from afar. Let us be the first to welcome you into Neo Canterlot. My name is Council Lady Luna and this my older sister Council Lady Celestia.” Luna introduced.

“Welcome. First of all, allow me to apologize to you six. I wished that we could have welcomed you into our city under better circumstances. Instead, you were all dragged into our war against the Van’Goth.” Celestia stated.

“It’s not a problem. We still managed to neutralize the threat.” Gnasher stated. “But, it looked like those alien freaks would have given you big trouble had we all not showed up.”

“The Van’Goth are very cold and calculative. They have a wider range of power than all of us Equusians. For the record, my name is Council Lady Victoria.” Victoria said.

“My name is Council Lady Serva.” Serva introduced. “Those Van’Goth pushed us all back into the walls of this city, but this may be a blessing in disguise.”

“I agree, Lady Serva. For a long time, our tribes have been on uneasy grounds. But, the war brought to us a forced solidarity. As for my name, it is Councilman Carapace.” Carpace said.

“What exactly do you mean about ‘uneasy grounds’?” Mono asked.

“Before this war began, we all used to be monarchs of our lands. At best, we were all on shaky grounds. We always argued on how each of us ran our kingdoms. Racial tensions among us were high and it would have blown out into a full war. But ten years ago, war came into our midst. Just not the war we were expecting.” Celestia explained.

“Even with our technological advancements from years ago, we were no match for the invading forces storming in through our lands. Eventually, we all had to retreat from our lands. Even a few monarchs were slain in battle.” Victoria added.

“But hope was not lost. When all the monarchs were still alive, we established the Neo Canterlot Project at the request of the then-Princess Luna. It would provide all of our peoples with a sanctuary that would be able to relocate itself when compromised. In addition, we all would have to cede our own titles of nobility.” Carapace said.

“Wait, why did you give up your titles of nobility? That seems a bit… humbling.” Jasmine asked.

“Our kingdoms are now ruins. What is left of us is literally this city. We all cannot be monarchs of one city, but we can still be the representatives of our people.” Serva responded.

“It is the significance of these cloths around our necks. We lost our monarchies, but gained a new republic and a new lease on life.” Carapace added, holding out his cloth.

“Interesting… I’m glad that this republic of yours is working so far.” Lith stated. “My name is Lith and this is my brother Mono.”

“Greetings your majesties.” Mono said, bowing down to them.

“Please do not bow down to us, Mono. While we appreciate your gesture, it’s now a bit much.” Victoria stated.

“Oh, well, uhh…”

“My name is Rondo. My specialty is in singing and I hope you all will enjoy it.” Rondo interrupted.

“Heh, that’s clever! You’re a bird who can sing named ‘Rondo’. I’m a bit of a singer myself.” Carapace stated.

“Greetings to meet you all. My name is Jasmine, an expert in fragrances.” Jasmine stated.

“Fragrances you say? What types?” Cocking her head, Serva asked.

“I range from simple scents like Vanilla Blossom to more complex scents such as Yache Berry Extravagance.”

“I’ve never heard of Yache Berry Extravagance.”

“You will love it. Trust me when I say that.”

“I shall look forward to experiencing the scent of ‘Yache Berry Delight’ then.”

Celestia and Luna looked upon Gnasher and Custard with nervous smiles on their faces.

“You do not need to be afraid of us. We’re well-tempered. Gnasher is the name.”

“My name is Custard.”

“Greetings, Gnasher and Custard. Spitfire told us all that you are known as ‘Pokémon’. Is that correct?” Luna asked.

“Yep. You see those two Meowstics over there?” Gnasher asked, pointing over to Mono, whose legs are trembling and Lith, who is patting him on the back. “Believe it or not, they used to be our trainers.”

“Lith is more sociable and can take problems head on. Mono isn’t so sociable and can be very awkward around others, but he is very good at planning. They both are the dream team.” Custard explained, letting out a happy sigh.

“It kind of reminds me how my sister and I are. You four should be lucky to have leaders like those two.” Celestia complimented. “And I can see that you two are a dream team as well.”

“…What do you mean by that?” Edging into her words, Gnasher asked.

“From what I see, you two are very different but share a strong bond.”

“In a way, you two are adorable together!” Luna squealed.

“Me and him? Have you even been hugged by a Goodra before? You’re left with a lot of gunk on your skin.” Gnasher snapped.

“Ummm… Gnasher is a bit rough around others.” Custard squeaked out.

“Convince yourselves that, but we see everything.” With a smile and wink, Luna stated.

Gnasher glanced back to Custard. She crossed her arms and moved her head away.

“I-I didn’t protect you because I liked you more than others. I-I just, uhh, feel that you need more protection at times.”

“And I definitely wasn’t mad when I thought the machine killed you because I felt strongly for you. It’s just that thing was a bully that needed to be put out of its existence.” Custard responded with a similar cross of arms

Lith, who witnessed the exchange, stifled a giggle. Mono looked back at Lith.

“Lith, I’m going to step out. Let me know when the ceremony begins, alright?”

“Alright, Mono. Enjoy your time outside.”

Mono eyed an open door that led outside. He walked towards it while Lith walked into the crowd of ponies. A pale yellow earth pony filly with a red mane and tail, yellow eyes and a red bow on her head eyed Mono. She shifted her head, looking at both directions. Then, she walked towards the door.

---

Mono stood upon a lofty balcony. He tilted his head up towards the sky. The sun had dipped beyond the horizon and a full moon stood high in the sky amidst a sea of stars and clouds. Mono took a deep breath of the cool air, relaxing his sporadic nerves. He smiled.

“Mister?”

Mono jolted backwards to the source of the child-like voice. Standing by the door was a filly with a frown on her face.

“Who are you?”

The filly walked towards him, hoisting her front legs upon the metal railing.

“My name is Apple Bloom. I saw you leaving the party with a frown on your face. Don’t you like the party?” Apple Bloom asked.

“I was never any good around parties, and my nerves still need to recover after speaking to the Neo Canterlot Council.” Mono stated, glancing down upon her. “My name is Mono.”

“I know your name. My sister told me about you and your friends saving Neo Canterlot from those monsters. She and my big brother are both H.O.R.S.E. soldiers.”

“So are you a part of H.O.R.S.E. too?”

“Kind of… I’m too young to be an actual member, but I am known as a H.O.R.S.E. child. I’ll eventually grow up into a H.O.R.S.E. operative because other members teach me their stuff.” Apple Bloom explained.

“That’s seems interesting. Considering the aliens you are all fighting against, it looks like this city will need all the support it can get.”

“So Mono, why are your nerves so bad?” Applebloom asked. Mono remained silent. “You can trust me with your secrets. I’m trying to earn a Cutie Mark and being trustworthy is on my set of goals.”

“I can’t tell anyone but those who I consider my family, Apple Bloom. Nothing personal, but I can’t just tell you right now.”

“Oh…”

Besides the sounds of talking and laughter in the reception room, a deathly silence overfell the balcony. For what felt like hours, nobody spoke a word. It was during that time when Mono glanced towards Apple Bloom with a meek smile.

“Thank you for keeping me company, Apple Bloom.”

“No problem, Mono. I’m glad I got to talk to you.”

Hearing her words, his smile grew.

---

Lith walked around the floor, eyeing the chatting ponies, griffons, donkeys, deers and even changelings. They laughed and were all smiling. Having her sights focused on them, she bumped into an amber orange-coated earth pony mare with a blond tail and an image of an apple on her flank.

“Woah! You best watch where you go.”

With the mare turning towards her direction, Lith was able to gaze upon her green eyes and brown Stetson. Her face had several freckles dotted throughout.

“I’m sorry. I was just distracted by how happy everyone here is.”

“Wait a goshdarn moment… aren’t you one of those Pokémon ol’ Spitfire talked about?”

“Ummm, yes. My name is Lith.”

The mare extended her right front hoof out towards Lith.

“It’s a pleasure to meet ya, Lith. The name’s Applejack, one of the top soldiers of H.O.R.S.E.”

Lith shook Applejack’s hoof with her paw.

“Pleased to meet you, Applejack. So what has Spitfire told you about us?”

“Nothing much, but one of my close friends Fluttershy told me much more about you folks. You’re all capable of using a special kind of magic and are affected by other types of elements it seems.” Applejack responded.

“Fluttershy does seem like a gentle pony. But, she seems a bit timid. I can’t imagine why she would venture out into the Terraformed Wilderness to begin with.”

“Fluttershy is a member of H.O.R.S.E., but she doesn’t do any fighting. She’s in charge of investigating the world after the Van’Goths changed it completely so that we wouldn’t go into each area blind. I also have to thank you for rescuing her from those Ambush Soldiers.”

“It was nothing. I was just looking for my brother. Rescuing Fluttershy was just a fortunate consequence.” Lith explained. “Before I forget, you were involved in the recent battle today right?”

“Heck yes I was. There were too many times that my older brother and I would’ve wound up with our heads blown off like some of my other teammates. But, we managed to hold off until we got some unexpected support from a red crocodile and gooey dragon. They are your friends, right?”

“Gnasher is my brother’s Pokémon while Custard is my Pokémon. Custard is a very sweet Goodra while Gnasher is very protective Krookodile about who she cares about.”

“I guess that Pokémon really do have their own sorts of personalities.” Applejack said. “Speaking of personalities, where’s my sister?”

She looked around the area, glancing towards every conceivable angle. Beads of sweat began dropping down her face.

“I’m sure she’s fine. She’s probably out and about in this very large area.” Lith rationalized.

“But she would always tell be before leaving, but she didn’t. Now she’s gone! That means that something bad has happened to her!”

Applejack began hyperventilating, prancing about her hooves.

“Hey Applejack! Why are you dancing around so weird?”

She turned around and saw Apple Bloom standing by Mono’s side.

“Apple Bloom! Don’t get me so worried like that. Next time, tell me when you go somewhere.”

“But I’m a grown-enough pony to wander around on my own.” Apple Bloom said.

“You must be Applejack. Your younger sister was telling me all about you.” Mono interjected.

“According to what Fluttershy told me, you must be Mono.”

“Yes I am. You do not need to worry about Apple Bloom. She’s just interested in getting to know me is all.”

“Mono!” Lith shouted, running up to Mono. “I thought you were going to come in when I alerted you about the upcoming ceremony.”

“I was, but Apple Bloom dragged me back in here to show me how to enjoy a party. I had nothing else to lose.”

Apple Bloom pulled on Mono’s paw.

“Come on, Mono; we’re going to go onto the dance floor!”

Mono submitted to Apple Bloom’s demand, smiling and being dragged away by her. Lith and Applejack then looked back at each other.

“I’m glad that your sister is getting along with my twin brother. I usually don’t see him that happy around others.”

“What do you mean by not being happy around others?” Applejack asked.

“He had a bad experience around the justice system. To make a long and winding story short, that one event destroyed my family and rendered us orphans. He has since never let any other people close in his life.” Lith explained.

“That’s a strange coincidence. Big Mac, Apple Bloom and I were also orphaned once the Van’Goth invaded. My parents were H.O.R.S.E. agents and died in battle shortly after Apple Bloom was born.”

“I see we’re both kindred spirits, then.”

“Helloooooo everypony and everygriffon and everydeer and everyling and everydonk!” An energetic voice shouted over the intercom. “The dance contest will start in a few minutes. Everyone go down to the dance floor and find a partner if you want to compete!”

Lith glanced over towards Applejack with a raised eye.

“That’s just Pinkie Pie. She’s another good friend, a member of H.O.R.S.E. and can be very fun to be around.” Applejack explained.

“Should we go to the dance floor, Applejack? I’m interested in seeing how you dance.”

“Sure. Good luck in that contest, Lith!”

---

“So, are we really going to be dancing together?” Custard asked.

“Well, yes. But, we’re doing it as friends.” Gnasher responded in a skeptical tone.

“Yes, yes, definitely as friends. Nothing more and nothing less.”

Apple Bloom rushed onto the dance floor with Mono being pulled behind her.

“So… is there anything I need to know about this dance competition, Apple Bloom?” Mono asked.

“It’s a red light/green light type of thing. You dance when the music is playing, but stop when it stops. If you continue dancing while the music stops, OR if you aren’t dancing when the music is playing, then the team is eliminated.” Apple Bloom explained.

“It’s going to feel weird dancing with a child, though. I am an adult, after all.”

“But you’re just a bit shorter than me by a foot, Mono. It shouldn’t be too awkward.”

A purple smokescreen with glitter in the air dropped onto the dance floor, veiling everything. When it dissipated, a bright pink-coated earth pony mare with a dark pink mane and tail appeared standing on her hind legs at the center of the floor. Her soft blue eyes scanned the entire crowd of the dancers on the floor. On her flank was an image of a trio of balloons, each one being red, blue and yellow.

“Is everyone having a good time so far?!” She called out, bringing forth a roar of applause in the room. “Good! My name is Pinkie Pie, your party planner and mistress of ceremonies for the evening. Now, the rules are simple; you and your partner dance when the music is going, but stop when the music stops. If you’re still grooving with what your mother gave you when the music stops, then you’re out! Last team standing is the winner!”

Mono gazed upon the twenty-four contestants on the dance floor. The nerves in his legs shook. He leaned over towards Apple Bloom’s right ear and held his paw over his mouth.

“Did I forget to tell you that I’m a terrible dancer?” He whispered.

“You can’t be more terrible than Twilight, so you’ll do fine.” Apple Bloom assured in a hushed voice.

“If you say so.”

“Ready, go!” Pinkie Pie declared with a wave of a hoof.

A sweeping melody with an upbeat orchestra carried its way throughout the air. Mono grimaced upon hearing it.

“This is… the Rumba of Love.” He said to himself. “I’m sorry, Apple Bloom, but I just can’t. This music will make dancing with you awkward.”

Mono walked off the dance floor, not looking in any direction except straight ahead.

“But we’ll be eliminated if we leave! Please stay.” Apple Bloom pleaded.

“You can’t make me dance to that type of romantic music with you, Apple Bloom.” Mono responded.

“Wimp.” Apple Bloom stated, pouting and turning her head away.

“It looks like we got one chicken-livered couple. Anyone else want to leave?” Pinkie Pie asked.

Several of the other contestants gazed at each other with nervous sweat dropping from their faces and scratched the back of their heads.

“Yeah, I like you but not like that.”

“I could always dance another day.”

“Wow… that music made things awkward.”

One by one, contestants walked away from the dance floor, leaving only half the dancers on the floor. Among those that stayed were Gnasher, Custard, Applejack and a red-coated earth pony stallion with green eyes and an image of a green apple sliced in half on his cutie mark.

“Y’all are cowards. It’s just music, ain’t that right Big Mac?” Applejack asked.

“Yep.” Big Macintosh responded, nodding.

The dancers grasped each other by their shoulders and began swinging to the rhythm of the melody. After a minute of dancing, the music stopped. All but a red doe and a brown stag stopped dancing. With their eyes widened, the deer couple fell over themselves.

“Out!” Pinkie Pie shouted, pointing her hoof towards the couple with dramatic air. The couple frowned and walked off the floor.

The music continued and the competitors began dancing once more. The music paused very quickly. A changeling and a pink-coated pegasus stallion fell over.

“You two are out!” Pinkie Pie called out.

The music resumed. Custard swung Gnasher by her waist and scooped her just before she fell towards the ground. Custard leaned his face close to Gnasher’s, smiling with narrowed eyes.

“This isn’t too weird for you, is it?” He asked in a soft voice.

“Is this weird for you?” Gnasher responded, her face contorting a small smirk.

“Not at all. We’re just friends.”

“Then it’s not weird for me.”

Custard brought Gnasher back onto her feet, just as the music stopped. The two looked to their side and saw Applejack and Big Macintosh fumble over their steps. A small frown appeared on Pinkie Pie’s face.

“I’m sorry, Applejack, but it looks like you and your brother are eliminated.”

Applejack huffed out an air of pride.

“This music was too cheesy for us anyways, Big Mac. Let’s wait for when a real hoe-down comes up.”

“Yep.”

With a furious nod, Big Macintosh left the floor with Applejack close behind him.

“Alright! Only half of our original contestants remain! We have the really strong Strawberry Delight and Razor Wind of the Heavy Arms division, the super-smart Spitfire and Soarin’ of the Command Division, and the not-yet members of H.O.R.S.E. who are also not from this world known as Gnasher and Custard!” Pinkie Pie called out.

Spitfire glanced towards the baby-blue pegasus stallion with a navy blue mane and tail next to her and whispered in his ear.

“Alright, Soarin’, we got to take it up to a higher level with our dancing. I’m not too worried about Strawberry and Razor, but those Pokémon scare me with how well they move along the floor. They’re surprisingly nimble.”

“Got’cha. Let’s take our dancing into a realm where they’ll never be able to touch us.” Soarin’ responded.

When the music resumed, Spitfire and Soarin’ flew into the air, grasping each other by their shoulders and standing upon the winds. They Spitfire stepped forwards, matching Soarin’s step backwards. The two continued tangoing in the air. With a flap of Soarin’s mighty right wing, a gust of wind picked carried a rose from a loft and brought it directly into Spitfire’s mouth. Spitfire smiled with her teeth bared.

“Good idea, Soarin’.”

“I always try.”

Gnasher and Custard stared at the act in the air with their jaws dropped onto the ground. They eyed over to Razor Wind and Strawberry Delight, who were waltzing upon a set of flashing stairs conjured by the latter. Meanwhile, Razor Wind performed a back flip with his wings extended and punched the stairs, shattering it and leaving brilliant sparkles in the air. The crowd stared in awe.

“We’re going to lose this if we don’t do anything, Gnasher. Do you have any plans?” Custard asked with his voice dipped in worry.

“We’ve got special talents too, remember? Just use your Muddy Water and I’ll use my Dragon Claw. Let’s make this into a Battle Tango.” Gnasher suggested with an aggressive tone.

“Ah! Good idea.”

Custard hopped back away from Gnasher and built up a whirling stream of Muddy Water. The water formed into a tidal wave, causing worried chatter and screaming within the crowd. With the wave of filthy water approaching her, Gnasher’s right claw flashed in a green color. She hopped into the air and slashed apart the wave, bringing a galaxy of brown stars into the area. She moved down onto her side, cartwheeling towards Custard. Custard then grabbed her by the claw and twirled her.

“The crowd is left speechless.” Gnasher stated, pointing towards the crowd whose once horrified eyes metamorphosed into those of admiration. The round of sighs brought a smile onto Custard’s face.

“Wow, your plan is working. What should we do next?”

“This.”

Gnasher swung her tail at Custard, who spun around in circles from the strike. Gnasher then punched the ground, unleashing an earthquake that raised four spires around Custard. With his heart beating and with a whimper, he unleashed a Flamethrower that ate all the pillars. Moving to the step of the rhythm, Gnasher pranced her way to Custard and grabbed him, spinning and then stopping.

“Could you have at least warned me before doing something like that, Gnasher?” With his eyes glaring into her, Custard demanded.

“I gave a fair warning. Plus, the crowd is eating it all up.”

The crowd roared with cheers and whistles, bringing a soft smile onto Custard’s face. Gnasher eyed the other contestants, whose eyes widened to that of suns and their jaws stretching farther than their body sizes. A sneaky smile appeared on her face.

“Alrighty then! It looks like the crowd has spoken; this contest is over!” Pinkie Pie called out, standing on her hind legs and pointing her right front hoof in the distance. “Now, I shall point to each of our contestants. Whoever the crowd cheers loudest for is the winner!”

Saying these words, she pointed to Spitfire and Soarin’, who descended upon the ground. Several whistles and cheers echoed throughout the dance floor. She then pointed towards Razor Wind and Strawberry Delight, where louder applause sounded throughout the area. With a dramatic sleight of hoof, she pointed towards Gnasher and Custard and met wave after wave of roaring cheers and clopping.

“It looks like we have our winners for the dance contest! Gnasher and Custard, you won! Give our winners a roaring round of applause!”

Gnasher and Custard faced the crowd. Everyone clopped their legs on the ground along with the contestants. They eyed Mono, Lith, Jasmine and Rondo, who were also clapping and whistling. A red blush overcame Gnasher and Custard’s faces.

“So… still just friends?” Gnasher asked.

“Yes… very much just friends.” Custard assured.

---

The festivities of the party ended and all of the heroes of the invasion lined up. Several ponies, griffons, donkeys and changelings all lined up and dressed in black clothing. All the way to the right stood Mono, Lith, Rondo, Jasmine, Gnasher and Custard in line. Spitfire stepped up onto the podium, dressed up in her commander outfit. She tapped the mic three times, amplifying the wind through the speakers.

“I want to thank all the citizens of Neo Canterlot who came today to honor our heroes of the fight for the city. I hired our member of H.O.R.S.E. and party planner extraordinaire, Pinkie Pie, to set up this celebration.” She stated, pointing towards Pinkie Pie.

“And let me say that this was one of the bestest parties we’ve had in a veeeery long time.”

“I agree with that statement. But, before we close our celebration, I have an announcement to make.”

Spitfire raised her hoof and called over Mono, Lith, Rondo, Jasmine, Gnasher and Custard. The six Pokémon approached center-stage.

“Any reason why you called us over?” Mono asked.

“Several reasons, Mono.” Spitfire responded with a smile and then faced the crowd. “These Pokémon arrived in our world in the midst of our war against the Van’Goth. Their intervention saved many precious lives, including the lives of our noble soldiers. It is with great honor and great pride that I accept these six Pokémon into the ranks of H.O.R.S.E.”

A hushed gasp overfell the audience. Everyone remained silent with stunned faces. The H.O.R.S.E. members lined up, however, let out a unified smirk.

“I know that our war against the Van’Goth makes us very cautious on aliens we do not fully understand yet, but I trust them. They saved me when I was marked for death by the army of mechas that stormed our city. If it were not for them, we would have lost Neo Canterlot to the Van’Goth. Seeing how they are, can we tolerate their differences from us and accept them into our society as new citizens of Neo Canterlot and Equus?” Spitfire called out.

The entire room remained stunned. Celestia, Luna, Victoria, Carapace and Serva all stepped up from the front of the crowd and walked over to the stage.

“I may not know who these strange beings are, but I know that they are not hostile towards us. They could have refused our cries for help when we needed them most, but they chose to fight the threat instead. My ponies in the audience may have second thoughts, but I trust them with the security of our united nation.” Celestia stated.

“I agree with my sister. As far as life in Neo Canterlot goes, we need every single helping hoof possible. If there are those who have shown their capabilities in servicing our city, should we really reject them?” Luna questioned.

“I used to be the empress of a war-shaped empire, but I realized that war alone does not make a nation great. It is our ability to look at every possible point, having the strength to move forward and doing so as a united force that makes a nation so great. Even if my griffons do not accept, I shall welcome these strangers in our ranks.” Victoria declared.

“For a long time, we changelings have taken up façade after façade in order to trick others to get what we want. If there is one thing a changeling understands, however, it is that we cannot do anything without each other. If we accept these Pokémon into our ranks, then we shall add their skills and talents among ours and truly achieve unity. I accept them as members of H.O.R.S.E.” Carapace announced.

“Let us not forget our reactions when we first paved our exodus to Neo Canterlot, my deer. We were not so trusting of others, too. But, we eventually learned how to live with our neighbors in harmony and even develop relationships with them. Could we not say the same about these wonderful Pokémon here? I see no issue with letting them enter into H.O.R.S.E.” Serva said.

Several portions of the crowd began clopping their hooves onto the floor. More sounds of clopping and applause shook the room. Loud cheers echoed throughout the area. Mono and Lith walked onto the microphones, both whose eyelids were dripping tears. They both wiped the saline from their eyes and smiled.

“First of all, I want to thank you all for accepting us into your home, beautiful citizens of Neo Canterlot. It is true that we are strangers from a different world, but we were pulled away from our home with no idea on how to return. We are in a situation like yours; lost in darkness without any sort of light. But this new light you have shone upon our lives, I must thank you all.” Mono declared.

“It is not just we six that arrived onto your world, but a handful of others came here as well. Who knows how they are doing right now? We do not know if they are hungry or are even killed by the Van’Goth. But, we will make sure that we will find them and add to the rich diversity of our new home.” Lith stated.

Spitfire approached Mono and Lith, placing medals depicting five golden stars around their necks. Mono glanced down upon his medal and Lith rose hers high into the air, inciting a roar of applause. Rondo, Jasmine, Gnasher and Custard all received medals the same as the ones given to Mono and Lith.

“All of you; welcome to H.O.R.S.E.!”

“Wait!” Pinkie Pie called out, running to the center of the stage. “Before we end this chapter of our lives, I have a special treat for you all. Rondo, one of our new H.O.R.S.E. operatives here, is going to sing!” She declared, moving herself out of the way and letting Rondo stand before the mike.

“Thank you, Pinkie Pie. I have been practicing all day for this moment.”

Rondo cleared his throat.

“No idea on how we are here,

So far, yet so very near,

Our eyes, they are all filled with tears,

These winds call forth our fears,

How do we feel,

About our seals?

We stand together,

Helping forever,

Uniting under goals...

Let’s raise the banner!

In an arch manner!

No way we can lose,

Despite our own blues,

Let’s raise the banner!”

The crowd stood up on their hind legs, giving a round of clapping and whistling. Rondo smiled.

Comments

[Votederpycausemufins]

Apple Bloom to Mono

“But you’re just a bit taller than me, Mono. It shouldn’t be too awkward.”

That's one BIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIG Meowstic, bulbapedia and the pokemon website says they're around 2 feet

[ZeroChill]

6909737

I'm honestly not sure how tall Applebloom is tbh. I don't think that's ever been brought up.