I Explore. I Encounter.
Chapter 4: I Explore. I Encounter.
After making sure that Zeratul was comfortable in his new quarters, Twilight returned to her council room, where Applejack finished re-telling Zeratul's story with the best she could. Rarity resisted the urge to faint again. Fluttershy cried a lot while feeling some pity for Zeratul. Pinkie Pie was looking grim; for reasons unspecified while Applejack tipped her hat down. Rainbow Dash, of course, was suspicious.
"So, this fellow can just come here and tell his story about his race or something, and expect some kind of hospitality? I don't buy it one bit." she said.
"But Rainbow Dash, he saved poor Fluttershy over here from certain death. Surely you jest by saying all that mean stuff." retorted Rarity.
"I do not kid around with these matters. What if he was saving Fluttershy, waiting for a moment to strike. What if he was a spy, trying to set up for an invasion? What if he was invisible, right here, listening to us? What if his story was just a blatant lie, just to soften our hearts and then-" At that moment, Rainbow was interrupted by an angry Applejack. Hat still down, she trotted towards her, smacking her across the face. It was so loud that it echoed all around the room. A tear could be seen on Applejack's cheek and Rainbow's look of stupefaction was priceless as she rubbed hers.
"Don't you dare say those things, Rainbow Dash" she said venomously "I was there when I listened to his whole story: He didn't shed a single lie or weave a single pony's tale. All he said until now was the sheer, undoubted truth. If you think that the world around you is always fine and the solution to life will always be laid in front of your very eyes, then think again." What Applejack said was so deep that even Twilight couldn't imagine it coming. "If y'all excuse me, Ah'll be on my farm. Ah don't feel so well." she added as she rushed away from the castle. Glares formed around Rainbow but as headstrong as she was, she didn't admit the truth and flew away from the closest window. The friendship council was dissolved very quickly after that commotion as everypony weren't in the mood of discussing their new arrival, leaving Twilight alone to deal with it.
Next Morning
In his whole existence, Zeratul has never slept so much. His mind was at ease. The feeling of relief was immolating him from the inside out as the sun penetrated his window towards his eyes. He woke up and went into meditation. He felt revitalized as the Void energies were circulating his body fluently. Forming a ball of green and black energy, he started tossing it between his arms, floating it around the room and back to his body so that he could train his control. Unsheathing his warp blade, he sliced it mid air, perfectly in half as it disappeared. It was a basic training exercise he learned during his youth and to imagine a Dark Prelate doing so in his age is... rather inconceivable. Two hours have passed and Zeratul was still doing the same motions over and over again. Suddenly, his door cracked open. Zeratul pointed his blade at the door. It was then at it was opened hastily out of fear. He saw a terrified little purple creature with green spines and a big head. Zeratul retracted his blade at the sight, went towards him and extended his appendage (A/N: Is it a claw or a hand?)
"It is alright, little one, I didn't mean to scare you." he apologetically said.
"I-I am not terrified, mister alien, just curious about whatever you were doing." the small creature replied, taking his appendage and standing up.
"I see. Whatever is you want, little one?" Zeratul asked.
"Oh yeah! I haven't introduced myself yet" he began "My name is Spike, I'm a dragon and I am Princess Twilight's assistant. I'm here to inform you that Twilight wanted to speak with you. She told me about you but I had a hard time believing her." he put his claw and scratched his head from embarrassment.
"You can go, little Spike, I shall be there shortly." he simply replied, dismissing the young one. Zeratul could only wonder what Twilight has in store for him today. He decided to not waste any time and go to wherever Twilight is.
"Ah Zeratul. Nice to see you here today." greeted Twilight.
"Hello, friend Twilight, little Spike. To what I owe this pleasure?" he asked. Twilight smiled as she brought a saddle bag with some tools in it.
"As the Princess of Ponyville, it is a privilege to show you, Zeratul of Aiur, the beauty of my city. So today, you shall be part in a guided visit." Zeratul blinked: A guided visit? This early? It has just been one day. Do the ponies of this city know about him already?
"Oh... Do not be afraid, Zeratul. They will know you soon. I just want you to be yourself and not hide from public. You will see that they will be accustomed to you very easily." Twilight said, reassuring him. Zeratul simply nodded as he gestured the Princess to take the lead.
Ponyville
Ah, the great outdoors.* Zeratul couldn't imagine he would be out of the castle this quick. He looked to his side to see Twilight with Spike on her back in addition to her bags. The first thing he could see was the sun shining as bright as yesterday and the clouds being moved by the winged horses.
"Friend Twilight, aren't the clouds supposed to move on their own?" he asked, pointing towards the sky. Twilight and Spike looked at each other and laughed causing Zeratul to awkwardly scratch his head. Twilight remarked that, stopped laughing and bopped Spike on his head.
"I forgot you were a stranger here, Zeratul. We are really sorry for being rude" she apologized "As for the clouds, Pegasus ponies have innate magic that allows them to control the weather. Thanks to the weather factory in Cloudsdale, we regularly schedule seasons and weather." Zeratul was, in fact, genuinely impressed. Even the Protoss with all their technological advancements couldn't reach towards control over nature. That must be the main reason why the planet Equus was well-preserved. They started their walk as Zeratul remembered something important.
"Pegasus ponies?" he simply asked.
"Oh that's right! You don't even know our race. We ponies are divided into four subcategories: First we have pegasi, the winged ponies who as I said able to control weather and obviously able to fly. Not all pegasi have to be committed for weather duties; a good example at that would be Muffins."
"Muffins?" Zeratul asked but he soon got his answer as a grey blur approached him. Thanks to his quick reflexes, he blinked away from the blur but noticed that it was going to hit a brick wall. He blinked again and caught the blur in mid flight and posed it down to take a quick look at: It was a gray pony with blonde hair and eyes and some strange bubbles drawn on her posterior. She was wearing some kind of brown hat and bag filled with papers. The pony's most noticeable feature was her eyes: They were... not to be rude... unusual.
"Zeratul! Are you okay?" Twilight asked, not being able to see his movements.
"I am fine, friend Twilight. You should redirect your question to this pony. Are you well, pony?" the pony in question looked up innocently. She didn't seem phased by the creature she was facing. She smiled and said.
"Thank you for saving me, strange one." and then she resumed her flight. Zeratul wasn't expecting that kind of reaction as he returned to Twilight's side.
"That was Muffins: Our local mail pony. She has a terrible illness... even though, she still does her best for her family." Twilight explained as she remembered the topic of conversation. "Oh yeah: Unicorns are next: They are the ponies with horns. They have the most magical potential inside of them and use their horns to project it and materialize it to their will. Unicorn magic varies depending on the pony himself: Some unicorns can end up in very high positions due to their vast knowledge in magic and some cannot."
"Similar to the Caste system in Aiur and Shakuras, but not as harsh." Zeratul thought.
"I was a unicorn before I ascend into an Alicorn: Alicorns are the rarest of the species. There are until now four known alicorns (A/N: This is before Season 6): Representing the Sun is Princess Celestia. Representing the Moon is Princess Luna. Representing Love is Princess Mi Amore Cadenza or Cadence for short and finally representing Friendship is yours truly." Zeratul nodded in understanding.
"When you say 'Representing the Sun and Moon', do you mean-" he was interrupted by a nod from Twilight. Zeratul understood but was really baffled. Celestial bodies being controlled by someone... he imagined if a Protoss were given that kind of power. He shook his head, perished the thought and decided to go with the flow of this planet's logic.
"And the last type of species?"
"Oh! Those are the Earth ponies: Earth ponies have the least amount of magic, but enough to let them be a force to be reckoned with. These ponies are known to be the pioneers of Ponyville, the town you are in. They mostly prefer manual labor as nopony else would want to dirty their hooves around." Zeratul nodded as Twilight cheerfully explained. He was rather glad that the explanation was concise. He then remembered another thing. He reached for one of his pockets and got out some sort of shiny rock and offered it to Twilight. Twilight stopped on her tracks and looked at it: Pure blue, so pure that you could see your reflection on it. Spike's reaction was instantaneous: He tried to have a bite of the rock but Zeratul quickly retracted his hand.
"Careful, young Spike! What in the Xel'Naga's name are you doing?" asked Zeratul, clearly furious.
"I-I-I was trying to have a bite on it. Just one tiny bite won't have anypony, right?" Spike clearly didn't know best but Twilight spoke for him.
"I am really sorry about Spike. He's just a baby dragon and dragons eat gems and shiny rocks." she explained again.
"Ah!" Zeratul understood as he took another rock from his pocket, less shiny than the other one and offered it to Spike. The latter pointed at himself and looked at Zeratul, who nodded. Spike then took the newly presented rock and started to munch on it.
"I am sorry for my sudden outburst again, friend Twilight, but biting on the former rock might have caused some trouble."
"Why is that, Zeratul?" she asked.
"The rock I gave to young Spike is a simple mineral, nothing harmful about it. However the other rock is a far another story: It is a rock coming from a pylon."
"A pylon?" she asked, taking her notes out.
"A pylon is the main source of power for Protoss and their buildings. Some pylons contain Khala or Void energy used by the Templar. That's what this rock is and... I want you to have it so that you can study it further. The books around your castle are proof of how knowledge-savvy you are, friend Twilight. And my heart couldn't bear the guilt of yesterday's refusal, so I shall give you this piece to study. However do not try to interact with it directly with your magic. I cannot guarantee what can happen." Zeratul then extended his appendage. Twilight's eyes lit as she grabbed the rock by her hooves. Zeratul did not question how she could do it as she stuffed it in her saddle bag.
"Thank you so much, Zeratul! Oh my Celestia! Imagine if Rarity could lay eyes on this beauty!" she screamed, attracting the attention of the populace. She laughed, said "Sorry." and moved on.
"Think nothing of it, friend Twilight." Zeratul simply replied, not too sure why he felt so at ease in this kind of atmosphere. He suddenly sensed something in the air as if something was following them all of a sudden. He blurted.
"If you are that interested in what I am, you can come out. I mean you no harm."
"Huh?" Twilight said as three familiar figures came out of a bush. A yellow, orange and white figure to be precise. Twilight groaned a little inside as they approached them.
"Wow, he's good." The orange figure, apparently a Pegasus, said.
"Ah told ya, sister said he was a little bit weird-looking." the yellow one, an earth pony with a red bow tie, affirmed.
"He really looks a bit scary, though." the white one, a Unicorn, remarked as both of her friend's hooves were put on her mouth.
Zeratul observed these three new figures attentively: Despite the color difference, they had the same kind-of picture on their posteriors.
"Excuse my rudeness, little ones, but can you tell me what are those?" as he pointed at them. A collective scream/yell/screech could be heard through the town. Twilight and Spike covered their ears as Zeratul cast a green dome around them. The three fillies were suddenly frozen.
"What in Celestia's name did you do, Zeratul?" she asked.
"A Void technique called Void Prison: It will freeze time around the targets for a few seconds. The time we need for their 'overexcitement' to be over." And as Zeratul said, the dome dissipated. They had finished their scream by the time the prison ended and Twilight and Spike sighed in relief.
"You do not know about Cutie Marks?" all three yelled in unison.
"Cutie Marks? Sorry but as you know I am a stranger here." Zeratul stated the obvious after all. Twilight intervened.
"A Cutie Mark is a symbol that represents our calling in life. Mine for example is the love of magic and stars. Theirs is a bit special: It was formed by a bond for their love for Cutie Marks: They are called the Cutie Mark Crusaders. Their quest is to find anypony with Cutie Mark problems and solve it."
"Ah'm Applebloom/Scootaloo/Sweetie Belle." they introduced themselves, still excited about their new encounter.
"I am sorry to disappoint, young ones, but until this moment, I do not know of Protoss who have symbols like yours." Zeratul dropped the information upon them like an anvil.
"Awwww..." a collective sigh of disappointment was heard. Zeratul quickly observed the three ponies and remarked something: Scootaloo was able to flutter her wings but wasn't able to fly. He also saw pegasi of her age flying normally so he concluded she had a flying disability. He looked down on her. His shadow attracted her attention as she cowered into a ball. He pointed at her.
"You... have a disturbance within your flow of energy." Zeratul stated. That attracted Twilight's attention.
"What do you mean by that, Zeratul?" she asked.
"I know for a fact that you cannot fly like the others" Scootaloo hunched her head down like an ostrich "But it is possible for you to fly again." These news made Scootaloo's eyes widen.
"P-please Zeratul! Don't give the filly false hope! The doctors in town said that she can't-" Twilight was interrupted by Zeratul closing his eyes, focusing on the little orange filly.
"Do you trust me, Twilight?" Zeratul asked, concentrating "I can easily see her flow of energy and I can easily restore it to place. I ask you to have faith in me." Zeratul then opened his eyes as he concentrated a small amount of Void energy onto Scootaloo's little wings. She felt a tingle all around her body, then nothing.
"Do not worry, little one, the process shall take a little time." said Zeratul with a surprisingly kind look on his veiled face. Suddenly, Scootaloo's wings began to flutter, flutter and flutter even further until her body lifted itself from the ground as she took off. As a miniature spaceship would lift off from Aiur, she soared Ponyville's skies with almost flawless control and landed back to where Zeratul and her friends were as they were cheering and whistling for her. The populace all came around the group as they lifted Scootaloo up in the air.
"B-b-b-b-b-b-b-but how?" Twilight asked, flabbergasted "How did you do that?"
"Even I do not know, young Twilight" Zeratul answered, looking at his hands "It seems I have acquired a new skill while I was on your planet."
"Well your technique could revolutionize the whole medical industry! And you just acquired it? How? It is impossible! That's not how magic works." Twilight was stunned beyond belief as Zeratul petted her.
"Calm down, young princess. If I reveal some new knowledge about the Void, I shall tell you." Zeratul said as he was approached by Scootaloo, who hugged his leg very tightly.
"Thank you so much! You... don't know how it is important to me to fly!" she was crying from joy. Zeratul picked her up and placed her on the ground.
"It was nothing, young one. Now do not strain yourself. What I did was just channel a bit of my energy to remove the disturbance that exists in your own flow. As I said to friend Twilight, I do not know how I did it but I shall explore this technique further" Zeratul said as he left the crowd of ponies gathering around "Young Twilight, it seems we have gathered some unwanted attention. Let us go to a quieter place if you please." as Zeratul waited for Twilight, still in shock of the flow of events that happened. She snapped back to reality and lead the way towards Sweet Apple Acres.
"How could Void energy be used as a cure? Why did I do that against my own will? Am I really starting to get... soft? I do not know. So many questions have flown into my head right now and I do not know the answer to them." thought Zeratul, following Twilight to their next destination.
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Intriguing developments
Good story overall but I found the descriptions of the pony tribes to be very tribalist. Earth ponies and pegasi have magic that is merely different than unicorns and more passive. The description sounds like unicorn supremacy.
I know how he gained that skill. It's because Protoss feed off of energy right and when he absorbe the energy from Celestia's sun. It gave him that power because her sun's energy heals
soo im guessing zeratul gonna ivolved in season five? thats really awsome think about it
he stay in equestria for a bit for his quest and gain a new abilities as well
Please Continue This. It is Very well Thought out and I would hate to see it unfinished.
I know it is not looked at favourably by some authors but I must ask. Are you going to continue this?
You have an interesting concept here, combined with above average writing skills for crossovers and I would really like to see where you'll take this, but I would rather not wait for months only to be sad when I next clean away dead stories from my tracking list and this is included.