Dodge City
“Hey, Herman, I’ve brought your meds,” Dusty said, and trotted into the room with a small pouch that dangled from a thin rope in his mouth. The pony grinned as he sat down right in front of Herman, waiting for him to take it.
“Thank you,” Herman replied, and grabbed it with his free hand. The half-eaten salad he returned to the serving cart, then peeked into the pouch and counted ten pills in total.
“One of the cooks told me that you could take them twice a day, but no more than two at a time if you’re an average weighing stallion,” Dusty continued, oblivious to the fact that Fair Weather was whispering something to Spring behind him. “If the pain doesn’t subside at the time we get to Dodge City she recommends that we stop there and take you to a clinic.”
One of Dusty’s ears whirled when he registered what his fellow guards were whispering about, and swung his head around to try and find out more, but they were too much into their quiet conversation to notice, so he instead turned back to address Herman.
“What’s up with them?” he asked.
“I’m not quite sure,” Herman mused, then took out one of the pills and placed it in his mouth, swallowing it with the help of some orange juice. The pouch he placed in one of the pockets of his overcoat and simultaneously fished out his wallet. “How much did they cost?”
“Oh, don’t worry about it,” Dusty replied, waving a hoof in front of him like a pendulum. “The Royal Guard is responsible for your health and safety. So long as it’s within reason.”
“That’s very generous of them.”
“Herman,” Spring said suddenly, as he was putting away his wallet.
“Yes?” he replied, they were both looking at him, but neither seemed upset.
“We would like a word with you later, but right now we should focus on lunch,” she said and gestured at their bowls, which now had considerably less steam coming from them. “Dusty, come eat before it gets cold.”
“Yes, Sarge,” he replied, making a joking salute and licking his lips. The stallion then leaped up to sit next to Fair Weather, and within moments all three ponies had their muzzles inside their respective bowls.
Herman returned to eating his tuna salad while still standing and glanced out at the unguarded hallway. If there ever was a time to catch ponies off-guard, it would be during meal time, and possibly weddings. They continued eating in silence, and Herman soon found that he was full, with more than a quarter portion remaining.
Putting the leftovers aside, he moved to lean against the wall next to the back window and admire the passing trees. The thickness of the forest was easing, and they’d soon be traveling through the prairie that was centered around Dodge City.
“Phew, I needed that,” Spring said after her bowl was empty. “Did you enjoy your meal, Herman?”
“It was good,” Herman said, and stared out at the forest for another moment, then faced his escort. His back still ached at the movement, but if he held still long enough the pain quickly dwindled away. “But the portion was too generous for me.”
Dusty’s head popped up at that. “Herman, you’re not going to finish that?” he asked, pointing a hoof at Herman’s tuna salad.
“Go ahead,” he replied and gestured for him to take it.
“Yes! Thanks, Herman,” Dusty cheered, leaping away from his surprised colleagues. The pony quickly snatched the leftovers, then returned to sit next to his fellow guards, who gave him an incredulous look.
“If you truly believe he’s an alien, don’t you think it’s unwise to eat from his bowl?” Fair Weather asked while putting away his empty one. “Having alien germs in your system doesn’t sound healthy.”
“Herman, has anyone ever gotten sick around you?” Dusty asked.
“No, not from what I can recall.” Herman tried to think of the last time someone took out a sick day, but aside from one of the mares staying home during pregnancy, it had never happened during his time as director.
“See, it’s fine,” Dusty said, and dipped his muzzle into the remaining tuna salad.
“Herman, I want to talk to you about your alleged mind control,” Spring said and straightened to sit in a less casual position. “I’ve talked it over with Fair Weather, and we don’t completely believe you yet, but you’ve convinced us enough that we’re going to write a report about it. The higher-ups will have to decide if they want to investigate it further.”
Herman just crossed his arms and waited for her to continue. It made little difference to him if they wrote a report about it since his memoirs already revealed everything.
“But, let me give you a warning,” she said, with narrowing eyes. “Abusing such powers is against the law, and could land you in deep trouble if they found out that you’ve purposefully taken advantage of such an ability. I’m not saying you’ve done such a thing, but I want you to be aware of it.”
Herman let out a sigh. “I didn’t even realize I had such an ability until a few months ago if you can even call it that. Maybe I suspected, but I wasn’t sure, and I’d never use it to take advantage of anyone.”
Fair Weather was scratching his chin, apparently deep in thought. Dusty was still eating while also listening to the conversation with an ear directed at Herman.
“Could you tell us what happened that made you think that you could affect someone's mind?” Spring asked, after a short pause.
“Very well,” Herman began, and briefly looked up at the ceiling, trying to find the correct words. Dusty had finished eating, so all three of the ponies’ had their attention focused solely on him. “I’ve mentioned that I thought it was in ponies’ nature to be kind and accepting of strangers.”
Herman looked down and into the eyes of all three of them. Searching for some reaction, but they all were patiently waiting for him to continue.
“That view changed shortly after I became the director of the lumber mill. My first plan was to find customers that would pay a higher price for the timber we produced. I knew that exporting goods across the border was often more profitable than selling it locally, so to help me find potential clients, I contacted the West Pony Trading Company’s office in Dodge City and arranged a meeting with one of their representatives.
“The pony I met with was enthusiastic about my proposal to work together to export timber to neighboring countries. They arranged for me to meet with businessmen from Gryphonstone and Zebrica, and I have to admit I was thrilled to meet with the other races, but the meetings didn’t precisely go as I had expected.”
“What happened?” Dusty asked, and interrupted his chain of thought. “I know from experience that gryphons can be tough to deal with.”
“Shh, let Herman speak,” Spring chided, and motioned for him to continue.
“What happened was me, and a representative from the West Pony Trading Company, was there to meet with the gryphons when they arrived at the train station,” Herman continued. “The mare’s name was Deal Maker, and she claimed it would be no problem landing a contract, but she also warned me that ponies could be anxious when first meeting a gryphon.
“I thought this was strange at the time since they’ve always been so accepting of me ever since I showed up, but I didn’t think much of it. The train arrived, and I went to shake hands with the three gryphons that were on it. We exchanged pleasantries, and everything was very professional, even if the gryphons were somewhat rough around the edges.”
“Heh, tell me about it,” Dusty said, which earned him a hoof bump on the shoulder from Fair Weather.
“If you can’t help yourself from interrupting, you can return to guard the hallway,” Spring said.
“I’ll be good,” Dusty replied, and laid down instead. “Sorry, Herman, please continue.”
“Our party was about to move out to discuss things in my office further when I noticed how strangely the villagers behaved. Those kind and accepting ponies were actively shying away from the gryphons, even doing outright rude things like closing the window when we walked past their houses.
“I couldn’t understand it at the time, and I mostly thought it was due to some old historical grievances between ponies and gryphons. I asked Deal Maker the next day, but she just shrugged and said it had always been like that in rural towns.
“Even when we got to my office, I had problems with my employees, who I all knew to be good ponies at heart, but in this case were outright rude in their demeanor. Lemon Cider acted as if the gryphons were going to steal her favorite quill when she wasn’t looking.”
Herman paused to see how the ponies were reacting to his story, but they didn’t seem surprised or annoyed with the behavior of their fellow ponies.
“So, the meeting continued throughout the day. The gryphons were tough negotiators, but in the end, it was clear that this contract was very profitable for all sides. Pinewood planks were both rare and expensive on the other side of the Celestial Sea, so the gryphons were prepared to pay a premium from the start, while the West Pony Trading Company would earn a percentage for transporting it by train to the port in Baltimare, then via cargo ship towards Gryphonstone.”
Herman just noticed that they’d left the forest, and were now traveling through a dry and grassy plain. It wouldn’t be long now until they reach Dodge City.
“After the deal was made and the gryphons departed, I pondered for a while how differently the gryphons treated me compared to ponies,” Herman continued. “I also tried to ask a few ponies why they were so apprehensive around the gryphons, but they couldn’t explain it. I only talked with the gryphons for an afternoon, but my conclusion was that they were good people. I figured things would go more smoothly with the zebra delegation since both species were herbivores.”
The three ponies exchanged looks at that last part, and Herman expected they knew what would happen next.
“By your expression, I think you all know how well the zebra delegation went.”
“Yeah,” Fair Weather said, and moved restlessly in his sitting position. “Ponies have a bad habit of telling silly ghost stories about the zebras, like how they could raise the dead with alchemy that would then chase bad foals that didn’t brush their teeth at night.” The pegasus looked back at his baby rattle cutie mark. “I have to admit that I’m guilty of that also, but in my defense, it always works.”
“True, the town ponies were even more jittery about the zebras, but that wasn’t the strangest part,” Herman mused. “Can you guess what that was?”
“Hmm, no clue,” Spring replied with a thoughtful expression. “Were the zebras scared of the ponies in turn?”
“Not exactly. The zebras were quite carefree when it came to ponies. Instead, they were terrified of me.”
“Hah,” Dusty exclaimed, then pointed a hoof at Herman. “They were afraid of you? You look like the nicest alien ever.”
“That does sound odd,” Spring said, scratching her chin with a hoof. “Zebras have always prided themselves on being a calm and collected bunch.”
“The meeting did not go well, to say the least,” Herman sighed, then frowned when he thought back at the details. “The moment we met at the train station, the two zebras were so scared that they barely dared to approach me, and when I stepped forward to shake their hooves, they backed away. Things were even more awkward as we walked back to the office, and the whole thing didn’t last ten minutes before the zebras told Deal Maker and me that the trade contract was off. They left the office, even though it would take hours for the next train to arrive.”
“That does sound suspicious,” Spring said. “They traveled all that way just to tell you that they weren’t interested?”
“Deal Maker said much the same, that she’d never experienced a zebra act like that.”
All three ponies thought about it for a few moments, and Herman let them.
Spring then glanced outside and must have noticed something.
“Herman, we’ll have to continue this story later. The cherry trees outside mean we’re getting close to Dodge City.”
Herman looked out and realized that the train was indeed moving through an orchard. “So? I thought we were going to pass through.”
“Circumstances have changed.” She leaped off the bunk and started to go through some of the drawers on the side. “Ah, found it.”
Spring took out a parchment along with an inkwell and quill that she placed directly on the floor, then began writing something with her mouth. Everyone else in the room just watched her until she finished.
“There we go,” she said and looked down at her work. “Just need to let the ink dry for a bit.”
“May I ask what you are doing?” Herman said and tried to lean in to see what was written, but his back soon reminded him what a bad idea that was.
“Herman, I’m sorry, this is an investigation order regarding Glitter Wing.” She blew lightly on the ink, and when satisfied that it wouldn’t smear, rolled it up and presented it to Fair Weather. “Get suited up. I need you to deliver this to the local Guard station as soon as the train stops, then get back here before it leaves again.”
“Yes, Sarge,” Fair Weather replied with a salute, then briskly moved to sort out his armor on the shelf. “It will be tight, but I think I can make it.”
“Dusty, when the train stops, I want you to guard the wagon entrance. Tell everypony that this wagon is off limits to civilians.”
“Yes, Sarge,” Dusty replied, and gave another joking salute. “What will you be doing?”
“I’ll stay here with Herman.”
Herman watched as Dusty helped Fair Weather get his armor back on, the train now passing by Wild West-style buildings on both sides.
“It will be quicker if I fly out the back window before the train stops,” Fair Weather told Spring when his armor was back on. “Just to be sure that I’ll get there in time.”
“Sure,” she replied and paused a moment. “Herman, do you think Glitter Wing has ever hurt anypony? Can you vouch that she is in fact; a good pony?”
“Of course,” Herman said. “I can say for certain she would never harm a soul, and I still think your accusations are ludicrous.”
“Alright, Fair Weather, I want you to tell whoever you give my message to that Glitter Wing is not to be harmed, and doing so will have them answer to me.”
“Understood,” Fair Weather said, then moved to the back window, and as soon as the train began to slow down, he opened it fully and flew out.
Spring closed the window after him. The train was braking heavily now, and Herman could see the train station ahead, and it was packed with ponies. There were even pegasi hovering in the air due to the lack of space.
“That’s a lot of travelers,” Herman noted and pointed at the crowd with a finger. “Is there any special occasion going on?"
Spring looked at where he was pointing, then frowned when she saw how many there were on the platform. “No idea, unless there is a buckball match that I’m unaware of.”
“Nope, I would have heard of it if that was the case,” Dusty replied, looking out the same window. “It’s late in the afternoon, so it could simply be ponies that are returning to Ponyville and Canterlot for the weekend.”
“Dusty, get the food carts back to the kitchen and then get back here.”
“Yes, Sarge,” he said, and grabbed the ends of both carts with a wing, then trotted out with both carts following him.
Herman watched him leave with one eyebrow raised, then turned to address Spring.
“Thank you for adding that about Glitter Wing,” he said.
Spring was peering out at the crowd gathered at the station platform, and didn’t immediately respond, but he knew she had heard him due to a flicker of one of her ears. The train made a full stop, and the passengers were now slowly boarding.
“Sorry for not responding, Herman,” she said when she eventually stopped gazing out at the crowd. “I just thought it strange that there are so many ponies on this route.”
“Didn’t you mention before that the train can get cramped between Ponyville and Canterlot?” Herman asked, genuinely confused. By his recollection, Ponyville was only a small town compared to Dodge City and Canterlot, and by his count shouldn’t affect the traffic in any measurable way.
“Yeah, but that’s because Ponyville is a junction between several cities. Ponies that are traveling from Los Pegasus, Appleloosa, or Vanhoover often need to switch trains in Ponyville before they can get to Canterlot,” she explained and again turned away from him to reach up and check her armor on the shelf above. “I think we’ll all need to be in armor from here.”
“Why so?”
“If the train is too packed, we might need to share the other cabin in the wagon with civilians,” she replied while wiggling into her chest armor. “If so, we need to be more alert to potential problems.”
“If you think that’s prudent, I won’t object,” he replied and swung his torso back and forth to test his back. The pain was almost gone by now, but he would need to stand a little longer before he could risk sitting down again. “What you said to Fair Weather, has there been much violence between the guards and the changelings they’ve uncovered?”
“Not much,” she admitted while making sure her mane would fit inside her helmet. “There have been a few isolated incidents where they’ve tried to make a break for it and gotten ponies hurt in the process.” She seemed serious at first, but then she chuckled. “You should ask Fair Weather what happened to him.”
“He got hurt apprehending a changeling?”
“Nah, not really. It was more like a funny incident when they were interrogating some of the first changelings that we had captured after the attack,” she snickered, then leaped back up on the bunk now that her armor was fully on. “We never expected them to have such a bizarre sense of humor.”
“I’ll be sure to ask him when he returns.”
She gave him a wink, but the conversation slowly died from there, as they both just waited for all the passengers to board. Nothing happened for some time, until Herman noticed Spring's attention switch from the now empty station platform to their wagon entrance.
“Something amiss?” Herman asked her, as her ears flickered.
“I hear Dusty arguing with somepony outside,” she replied.
Herman couldn’t hear a thing, but he could make an educated guess what was going on. Thinking he needed to stretch his legs anyways, he moved away from the window he’d been leaning against and out to the hallway.
“Herman? Wait, where are you going?” Spring said behind him.
“I think I know how to handle the situation,” he replied and moved to the wagon entrance. He could see Dusty through the door window, arguing with two mares on the other side. Not stopping, he walked to open the door and confronted the now flabbergasted mares. Dusty was confused at first why the mares suddenly started gawking at something and were surprised in turn when he looked at who was standing behind him.
“Herman, what are you…” Dusty started, but Herman cut him off.
“Don’t worry, I got this,” he said, then addressed the two mares. “I assume you two fine mares are looking for a place to sit. I know it can get crowded, but are you certain you can’t find a place elsewhere?”
They both stared at him for a few more moments, then both nodded.
“Y-yeah,” the left one said, and nudged her friend on the shoulder. “Petunia, maybe we could go back to wagon three, we could squeeze in next to that lovely couple instead.”
“Okay, that could work,” the right one agreed, and they both turned around and started walking back through the wagons.
“Just one more thing before you go,” he said, and the pair looked back at him. “Is there any special reason why you’re traveling this fine afternoon?”
“Yeah, we were invited to a party in Canterlot by a distant relative,” Petunia said while giving Herman another inspection. “But I’m not sure what the special occasion is.”
“Oh, hopefully, Greener Pastures finally proposed to his fillyfriend,” the first mare replied.
“I understand, thank you for telling me,” Herman said and gave them a wave.
“It was our pleasure,” she cheered, and both mares headed towards the front of the train. The current wagon Herman and Dusty were standing in were fully seated, and Herman found himself being stared at by a dozen curious ponies.
“Thanks for the help,” Dusty said, craning his neck to look back at Herman. “Those mares weren't all too happy about the Guard claiming a whole wagon.”
“My pleasure,” Herman mused, while looking down at Dusty, then gave the onlooking ponies a smile and a wave. Retreating to the back wagon, he was confronted by a peeved-looking Spring.
“Herman—” she began, but he shushed her by placing a finger against her nose.
“I know what you’re going to say, but listen to me. I’m only here because I choose to be. There is no warrant out for me, and I can lawfully decline any summons from the Royal Guard if I so wish it. Believe me, I checked with my lawyer.”
Herman removed his finger, and she scrunched her nose. It looked like she was going to sneeze, but a shake of her head prevented it at the last moment.
“Now, I’m still annoyed at you for sending guards after my best friend,” he continued, then softened his tone. “If we’re making this trip, I won’t tolerate anything like what you just pulled. Understand?”
“Herman—”
Another finger-on-nose.
“Understand?”
“Argh, stop that. Yes, I understand,” she conceded and backed away from him. “I’m only thinking about your safety. There must be a valid threat somewhere if the Guard Captain deemed it necessary to send three of us.”
“Perhaps, perhaps not,” Herman said, but was interrupted by Fair Weather coming through the wagon door behind him.
“I’ve informed the local guards, and they’ll send a group to investigate with the next train,” he said, then looked at them both. “Why are you two in the hallway?”
“We’re just talking,” Spring said, with a hint of bitterness. “Is the train ready to depart?”
“All passengers are aboard so it might leave at any minute now.”
“Okay, let’s return to our seats, right Herman?”
Herman merely nodded and went to try and sit down again. The painkillers must have worked well because he noticed none of his earlier aches.
“Herman, is your back okay?” Spring asked, after taking her seat next to Fair Weather.
“I should be fine now, just need to remember to sit properly and stand up from time to time,” Herman said and flexed his upper torso to one side. “Those painkillers were certainly effective.”
“It’s a three-hour trip to Ponyville from here, but we still have the option to stay the night and finish the trip the next day,” she continued and scratched herself beneath the helmet with a hoof. “It will be late in the evening when we arrive in Canterlot, and I know that they’ve booked you a hotel room across from the Guard station, but they’ll understand if we stop in Ponyville instead.”
“I’d like to get this train trip over in one go if possible,” Herman replied. “But I’ll keep that option open.”
The train's steam whistle announced that the train would be leaving shortly. They all sat there for a few minutes until the train started moving forwards.
“Fair Weather,” Herman said and gave the pegasus a slight smile. “Spring told me you had an interesting experience dealing with changelings. Would you like to tell me that story?”
Fair Weather sighed, and gave Spring a knowing look, who in turn pretended to look in another direction to hide her grin. “I’m never going to hear the end of it, am I?”
“Now I’m intrigued, please tell me,” Herman encouraged.
“Fine. It happened in the days after the invasion. We had captured a few changelings, and were questioning them about how their disguises worked.” Fair Weather said, with an almost bored expression. “We’d already come up with a few disenchant spells and magic-disrupting potions that we were confident would work, we only needed more info.
“So, I was in the room when one of them was being questioned by Shining Armor, the Guard Captain at the time. The changeling wasn’t cooperative, so the interrogation was going nowhere, and he kept claiming that changelings had a myriad of ways to prevent ponies from revealing their true form. Even the changelings sometimes didn’t know if a pony was indeed a changeling or not, but that there existed one sure way to detect a changeling in disguise.
“The changeling would be willing to reveal the secret, but claimed that if he did so, the Queen would be sure to find a way to punish him, so he wanted, in writing, amnesty and assurances that his safety was guaranteed from any retaliation from his kind. Shining Armor naturally agreed and sent me away to fetch the necessary paperwork.
“I did so, and when I returned, the changeling was still talking about how he doubted ponies could protect him, and how the Queen is going to get him for sure. So, I hoofed Shining the paperwork, and the changeling suddenly complained that his throat was dry, and asked if he could have a cup of water. Shining agreed and sent me out again to fetch water from the cooler outside.
“I came back in with a full cup, the changeling takes it and starts drinking, then reads through the paper that Shining had signed and given him, but then the changeling begins acting strangely, swirling his head, eyes moving erratically. Shining asks if he was alright, and we all got worried when the changeling started coughing.
“The changeling then looked into his cup, and quietly says the word poison, then points at me with a black hoof and says Why, brother? After that, the changeling collapsed with a thud on the desk, completely passed out. The room was silent until suddenly Shining cried Guards! and Medic!
“Long story short, I was tackled to the ground and piled on by a dozen of my fellow guards, then dragged off to a clinic, where I spent the entire day being interrogated in turn by my friends. They forced me to drink vile potions or simply threw spells at me to try and remove my would-be-disguise. Apparently, the changeling managed to continue pretending that he was poisoned by a fellow changeling, until late at night when he simply said, Eh, I was messing with you all, because I didn’t like how that bird-pony was looking at me.”
Spring burst out laughing when Fair Weather finished, while Herman chuckled.
“Hey, it’s not my fault ponies find my neutral expression to be cranky,” Fair Weather complained, and there was a rattling of armor as Spring gave his shoulder a hoof-bump.
“A few days later, and I think every guard from Las Pegasus to Manehatten was talking about what happened,” Spring said while trying to get her laughter under control. “It made you famous.”
“Yeah, great,” he scoffed.
“What happened to the changeling?” Herman asked when both ponies had calmed down.
“I think he got a year or two in prison for draining a pony during the invasion,” Fair Weather said, and tilted his head while trying to think back. “He should be out by now, but I don’t know if he decided to apply for amnesty or went back to his hive.”
“He likely went to find the swarm,” Spring said, and gave Fair Weather another broad grin. “So that he could tell them all how he managed to convince the Guard Captain that one of his most trusted ponies was a changeling in disguise.”
“Great, more fame,” Fair Weather sighed, then rolled his eyes. “I have to admit, that changeling was an impressive actor. We soon learned that most of what he had told us during the questioning was straight-out lies just to mess around with us.”
“So no secret way to reveal changelings?” Herman asked.
“Nah, hitting them with dispelling magic or a potion works just as well,” he replied.
The train moved on, and Herman could no longer see Dodge City from the back window. They sat in silence for a long while, with each person contemplating their thoughts. The first to break the silence was Spring.
“Herman, maybe you should continue your story,” she said and looked thoughtful. “You mentioned that the ponies reacted poorly to foreigners, but rural ponies acting like that isn’t exactly news for us.”
“As you wish, but shouldn’t we ask Dusty to join us first?” Herman said.
“I can tell him when we swap shifts,” Fair Weather said.
“Okay,” Herman made sure he was sitting straight before continuing. “There was a reason why I decided to write down my memoirs.” He gave them a sad smile. “I’m old, and in a world that lacks medicine dedicated to human use. I know some of it works for both our species, but the fact is, my time is running short.”
“Herman, don’t say such things,” Spring said, with some force to it, then hesitated. “How old do humans get?”
“It varies greatly, some can get to around a hundred,” Herman replied, holding both of his hands clenched together in his lap. “I’m probably healthier and more active than most, but here, I'd be surprised if I made it past eighty.”
“That’s not so bad,” Spring said, now speaking very carefully. “Why are you so worried about it?”
“True, but I wanted to discover and share the secret of this world, and I lack sufficient evidence so far for my hypothesis,” Herman said and looked at them to both to gauge their reaction.
“And what’s that, Herman?” Spring asked, tilting her head slightly.
“Dusty jokingly calls me an alien, but I believe that I'm not the only one who is foreign to this world.”
“Who else is?” Spring questioned with a raised eyebrow.
Herman didn’t respond and instead raised his arm to point a finger at the pair sitting next to each other.
They looked at him, not understanding what he was on about until something seemed to click in their minds.
“Oh, now I get it,” Fair Weather said, then frowned loudly. “Dusty is going to love hearing about this.”
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Another good ending, I am curious to see where this is heading. Excellent update all round and I look forward to the next one.
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Hmmm...Could be
Awesome so far. Keep up the good work
Thank you for another great chapter.
I cant wait for the next one.
So the grifins dont really react to Herman because he is just another predator to them but the zebra see him as a threat.
Zebra should be used to trading with other species or they see the magic emanating from him.
I cant wait for the next chapter.
huh? Who or what could he be speaking of? Another human, perhaps?
While everything on Equus (except for perhaps the princesses) has shown up in Terran mythology, that doesn't mean they wouldn't be native to Equus. Unicorns, pegasi, griffons, dragons, minotaurs, hydras, manticores, and a whole plethora of other species may simply have had individuals ported to Earth to end up in our legends and myths, in just the same way Herman ended up on the wrong side of the Iconian Gateway.
Who was the pair he was pointing at?
Wait... ponies? He thinks ponies are alien to Equestria? I mean, they don't really have an origin story beyond the fan-generated stuff and the Hearthswarming Tale, so I guess it's plausible. But... Meh, let's see where this goes.
Ok so the changeling's joke was one of the most clever bits of writing I've encountered in weeks on FIMFIC. Great idea and big laughs. I like how it was presented as a story rather than written as a stand-alone. It worked very very well that way, since we were not forced to be confused by wondering if he really was a changeling. Had we wondered, it wouldn't have come off as so funny. Good play, Sir. Good play.
ponies as aliens could loosely fit cannon- they did leave their frozen home to find a new land. and equestria does contain magical portals to other worlds. so the data could fit.... and that would be fascinating.
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True, there is the DisQord Continuum series (which exists in my headcanon), but as SvenBjorn said, that's fanfiction.
Will be interesting to see another's take on that idea.
Curious, is his theory that everyone's potentially descendants of victims stranded like Herman? I wanna find out
Fav'd n liked
You know, if they're having trouble with chernglerngs, they could always threaten to spray them with RAID if they don't talk.
Sheesh, they're so busy prancing around these magical mind-controlling, emotion-sucking freaks in this world it'd be foal's play for me to take over if I invaded Chrysalis' mind... which I totally would never do! Nope... it's absolutely not my master plan..
Well... i'm beginning to see this as a case of ''Humans are Cthulhu''
I Laughed. No idea why, but i did .3.
Once again your cliffhanger puts me on edge.
Love the story.
Can I just say I like that the human in the story is old? Our elders have more of a grip on the reality of things, I feel. Wizened men's voices also sound amazing.
Who else is thinking in Morgan Freeman as Herman, I don't know why maybe is the cover art. When I think of a wise 80 years old man, Morgan Freeman comes to mind.
8147469 you're not alone, i see it too.
braking*
10105578
Heh, that was a sneaky one. Well spotted.
The pair? Bon Bon and LYRA???
It is tasty to see how, in a subtle way, racism emerges on the part of the ponies.
<3 Ñom ñom <3