Justice and Friendship

by Mr-Astounding

Giving Explanations

Chapter 2

"So, be honest: who or WHAT are you?" Green Lantern asked bluntly, to which Wonder Woman growled, "I know 16 different ways to make sure you don't speak for a week; unless you want to see number 12, I suggest you be a little less rude around them."

"Well, you see…" Twilight began after the shock wore off, only for Martian Manhunter to interrupt with, "You're from a parallel world: it's the only thing that makes sense, given we've experienced something similar."

"So let's get this straight," Superman surmised with a smirk, "Somewhere in the multi-verse, we've got NEIGH-bors."

"Yeah, leave the jokes to ME," Flash remarked.

"Let's focus on what's important right now," Batman retorted, "Countless lives our depending on us. Alfred, get the files I set aside earlier: it should help our guests get up to speed on what's happening."

"Right away, sir," the faithful butler replied.

As he watched him leave, Spike smirked, "Okay, I think I have a good idea of which one of us matches up with these guys."

"Save the theories for later, Spike: we've got a job to do," Twilight remarked, "So who ARE you guys, anyway?"

"We could ask you the same question," Batman retorted.

"Well, that wasn't very nice," Pinkie Pie remarked, to which Superman stated, "Don't take it personally: he doesn't trust ANYONE who hasn't proved themselves."

"A wise policy," Fluttershy noted.

"I'm Hal Jordan, also known as Green Lantern," the galactic law enforcer stated, having decided to just get started already, "I was chosen to wield a special ring that runs on willpower: the only limit to what it can do is my own imagination."

"I am John Jones, known to the humans as Martian Manhunter: I can take on many forms, including intangible and invisible," Martian Manhunter replied, demonstrating his point and showing everyone that Hal had the right idea, "I also have telepathic abilities, but I consider it rude to use them, so I reserve it for only the most dire of situations."

"My name is Barry Allen, but secretly, I am the Flash, the fastest man alive," Flash stated, "Ask me what the weather in France is like."

"Alright: what's the weather in…?" Rainbow Dash began, only for Flash to run out of the cave and burst back in with a beret and holding a bag of pastries, and simply stated, "It's quite nice, actually; anyone want a crepe?"

"Ooh, I'll take one," Pinkie Pie replied, before asking, "What's a crepe?"

After explaining what a crepe was, and Pinkie eagerly took one, Wonder Woman cleared her throat. "To continue: I am Diana, warrior princess of the Amazons, but in the world of man, I'm called Wonder Woman. I possess strength and power that no mortal human has, as well as an unbreakable lasso that is able to shed light on the truth," she explained, "though I sometimes wish that I didn't need to force something so essential in life."

"Life isn't fair, Diana," Batman replied, before stating, "As for me, I am known in the criminal underworld by many names, but the two I use most often are Bruce Wayne, billionaire philanthropist, and Batman, crime fighting avenger. While I have no true powers, I am skilled in multiple forms of combat, a master of deductive reasoning, and employ a wide variety of equipment, as well as a highly successful global organization at my command, all of which allow me to deter legal corruption by day, and to turn fear on those who prey on the fearful by night."

"When does he sleep?" Twilight mumbled to herself, to which Superman replied with, "I ask myself that question all the time."

"How did you…?" Twilight began, only for Superman to reply, "I have yet to find a limit on my powers. The name's Clark Kent, but in this circle I'm known as Superman. My powers include flight, super strength, enhanced senses, various vision-based abilities, super breath, and super speed."

"That reminds me: we never DID find out which one of us is faster…" Flash hinted, to which Batman replied, "Let it go, Allen: we still need to find out who these guys are."

"If I may be so bold sir," Alfred interrupted, a cluster of documents in hand, "These strange creatures may be THEIR world's greatest heroes: you HAVE once said that the morality makes the hero, not the power."

Nodding, Batman stated, "Perhaps, but that doesn't tell us their names or skills."

"I'm Applejack, strong-willed bearer of the Element of Honesty," the pony with the cowboy hat declared, before pointing to the yellow pegasus and stating, "That's Fluttershy, holder of the Element of Kindness."

"Hi there," was her VERY quiet reply.

"Alfred, could you bring down some of herbal tea?" Bruce directed at his butler, "I can't tell if she's nervous or has a sore throat, but either way, she needs it."

Recognizing the situation, Spike suddenly stated, "Since I've been helping these girls for quite some time, maybe I could help you, Mr.…?"

"Alfred Pennyworth," the faithful butler replied, "and that would be greatly appreciated, though I never caught your name."

"Just call me Spike," the dragon assistant insisted. As the two walked away, Pinkie Pie looked at the apparent screen and stated, "Is anyone else, in a kind of weird sort of way, starting to see double? It can't just be me."

"As much as I want to agree with you, darling," Rarity declared, choosing to ignore the fact that Pinkie had broken the fourth wall again, "I'm not entirely sure that's the case: I mean I can't really see any of us doing what they've described."

"I'm Pinkie Pie, owner of the Element of Laughter: your argument is invalid," was the pink pony's reply.

"Let me guess: she does the impossible a lot?" Batman referred to Rainbow Dash about what was just said by the equine comedian, to which she nodded and asked, "You know someone like that, right?"

Looking over to where Flash was seated, only for the speedster to declare hunger and literally run through one of the walls of the cave, the Dark Knight sighed and stated, "You could say that."

Not even 30 seconds later, Barry returned, large doggie bag in hand and stated, "Sorry I took so long: had a bit of trouble finding the exact change."

"You frighten me sometimes, Barry," Green Lantern confessed, to which he followed with a wince, "WHY did I say that?"

"It's alright, darling," Rarity gently stated, "None of us think any less of you. Oh, by the way, my name is Rarity, and I harness the Element of Generosity."

"That's fine and all, but I'm not sure if that tells them ALL of our skills," Rainbow Dash remarked, "Twilight HAS told us that these alternate worlds aren't always exactly the same as others." Gesturing to herself and Fluttershy, she stated, "The two of us have flight capabilities, Rarity has a talent for casting spells, Twilight has a mixture of both, and Applejack and Pinkie each have a special connection with nature, as well as the animals and plants that live in it. Now that the basics are all out of the way, I'm called Rainbow Dash, and I hold the power of the Element of Loyalty."

"Even though that was just scratching the surface of the basics, I'm certain that once they see our abilities in action, they'll know we're MORE than capable of helping them," Twilight stated with a small grin, "I'm Twilight Sparkle, by the way, and my Element of Harmony is that of Magic."

Musing to himself, Batman nodded, "I think I may have an idea of what's going on."

"You do?" everyone inquired.

"Over the last week or so, I've gotten reports of strange disappearances from various prisons across the country," the Dark Knight began, "The only connecting factor being a magical chaos energy reading that even I'm having trouble identifying."

"Discord," Spike, who'd just returned with Alfred, practically growled, "The Equestrian god of chaos: my friends have met him before."

"Don't tell me: he turned at least one of you into something you're not," Superman stated with barely suppressed anger.

"Sadly, yes," Twilight began, "He himself doesn't seem like such an evil creature, but that hasn't stopped him from being a nuisance."

"Which would explain WHY he's working with Darkseid," Krypton's last son began, "All that monster ever does is pursue chaos."

"I don't think we can rule out the possibility that Discord isn't THE villain here," Green Lantern remarked.

"He's right," Rainbow Dash stated, "It's possible that Darkseid was about to threaten our world anyway. Didn't he once say that he doesn't CREATE chaos, but GUIDES it?"

Nodding, Twilight stated, "Anyway you look at it though, we're dealing with forces unlike anything we've seen before."

"I hate to say it, sugarcube," Applejack said with a sigh, "but I don't know if we can face this threat alone."

"I have a suggestion then," Wonder Woman declared, offering her hand, "Don't." A few minutes later, everyone had nodded and placed their hand/claw/hoof into the circle the Amazon warrior had started.

"So, what's the plan?" Spike inquired, to which Batman scoffed, "Plan? Simple: we take down Darkseid."

To be continued…

Author's Note:

Anybody care to guess the references I made in this chapter? Anyway, anyone who can guess which Justice League member is a parallel version of the Equestria gang gets a request for a character to appear. You only get one chance, however, so think carefully. Also, quick disclaimer: Batman's "crime fighting avenger" title is NOT to be confused with the Marvel team known as "The Avengers"

Comments

[Titan Commander Sebaste]

I'm liking this story so far!