Chapter 3: A Good First Impression - part 1
Waking Nightmares: Remix Heart
by Jonathan “KnightMysterio” Spires
Chapter 3: A Good First Impression - part 1
/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\
Friendship Castle...
/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\
The mood far more somber, Barricade and Spike led the mercenaries out to the main chamber, where the rest of Twilight's friends were waiting. “You wait here,” Barricade said. “Your melee weapons are being checked over and will be returned to you shortly.”
“Actually,” Medic said, “can I also have my medigun?”
“My toolkit, too?” Engineer asked. Spy nodded in approval of the idea. He still had his disguise kit, sapper, and watch, but he was curious about his body's new abilities and would wait until he understood them better before seeing if he wanted to use them. Besides, his new body probably wasn't adjusted to cigarettes yet, and he hadn't had a craving for them...
Barricade sighed. “The firearms..”
“My medigun isn't a firearm. It's a healing device,” Medic said.
Barricade blinked. “...What?”
“It's a device that shoots an energy ray that accelerates healing,” Medic explained, smiling. “I made it so I could heal the others directly on the battlefield.”
“My toolkit can create a device that does the same thing,” Engineer said, “only stationary. If nothing else, having a couple of healing devices around will be useful, right?”
Barricade hesitated for a long moment. She looked to Spike, who shrugged. “...All right,” Barricade said reluctantly. “You'll get those back as well.”
“Wunderbar,” Medic said. “Thank you!”
Barricade went off to retrieve the weapons, the elephantine pegasus frowning as her mind whirled with uncertainty.
Spike shook his head. “Anyway...” he said. “These are mine and Twilight's friends. We've been watching you through the table's magic.”
Fascinated, Medic came up to the table, looking it over. The ponies surrounding it watched with amusement as the physician unicorn poked at it, trying to figure out how it worked.
Spike chuckled. “We'll show you later,” he said. “Anyway, this fine mare here is Applejack. She helps run Sweet Apple Acres on the outskirts of town.”
The orange mare, the largest and most muscular of the group, tipped her hat to them. “A pleasure,” she said. “I'm awful sorry to hear that y'all can't get back to your families right away. If it's all right, and if I can swing it with m'folks, we'd love to have y'all over for dinner later tonight.”
Engineer, Heavy, Scout, Sniper, and Demoman talked quietly among each other for a moment, and nodded. “Thank y'kindly,” Engineer said. “We'd like that a lot.”
Anything to stave off this helpless feeling, the five of them thought.
Spike nodded, turning to Rarity, an elegant unicorn with a curvy, soft figure. “This is my marefriend, Rarity,” he said. “She owns the Carousel Boutique fashion shop here in town, and is one of the most successful designers in Equestria.”
“Charmed,” the elegant white mare said. She turned to Spy specifically, and looked him over. “And I must say, sir, your suit is magnificent.”
Spy allowed himself a grin. “Merci, madame,” Spy said. “Indeed, this was made by one of the finest tailors on my world, using the rarest silks...”
“Don't get him started, sheila,” Sniper said. “He'll rant about that bloody thing all day.”
Spy cast him an amused glare. “Don't be jealous because I found a common ground with one of the locals immediately,” he said. Sniper just chuckled.
“Interesting that you say you're in a relationship with her,” Miss Pauling said, looking at Rarity and Spike thoughtfully.
“Yeah,” Spike said, blushing. “I've been in love with her since I was a kid. Honestly, it was a pain waiting until I was old enough and LOOKED old enough to act on it.”
Rarity giggled, nuzzling him. “Indeed. But I'm glad we both waited. Spike's been my shining knight for ages. Now he can LEGALLY be my knight,” she said.
“I was referring more to the species difference,” Miss Pauling said.
The locals in the room looked honestly confused. “...Why would that be an issue?” Rarity asked.
Miss Pauling looked REALLY interested by that. “So there's no taboo against inter-species marriage, or anything like that?”
Applejack shook her head. “Not really,” she said. “I mean, some still grump about it, but that's mostly stuffy old timers what don't know how to let go of the past.”
Demoman grinned, chuckling. “Aye, we have those in our world too,” he said.
Rainbow Dash, who was muscular like Applejack but with a slimmer build, took initiative for the next greeting, stepping forward and saluting. Soldier saluted back automatically, smacking himself in the face. “Ow.”
“Anyone get the feeling that's going to be a running gag with him?” Scout quipped.
“Heh,” Rainbow Dash chuckled, fluffing her wings in amusement. “I'm Rainbow Dash, Senior Master Sergeant of the Wonderbolts Air Corps.”
“It's an honor to meet you, fellow soldier!” Soldier declared. “I will happily follow you into battle, and if need be hold your guts in while declaring my will to avenge you to the heavens!”
Rainbow Dash blinked.
“Just roll with it,” Demoman said. “It's easier to just play along.”
“O... kay...” Rainbow Dash said, she and the others looking uneasy. “Anyway. I'm the fastest flier in the world.”
Scout snorted.
Rainbow Dash gave him an amused looked. “You doubtin' me, candybug?”
Scout sneered. “Maybe I am. Ain't no one ever beat me in a foot race, and I doubt there's anyone out there who can.”
Rainbow Dash grinned. “Maybe you just never had the right challenger?”
Scout smirked right back. “Well bring it on!”
Spy shook his head. “Heaven help us, there's two of them...” he muttered, the others chuckling.
“Ha!” Rainbow Dash said. “Any time you like, candybug! I'll... uh... why is she chewing on my tail?” During the conversation, Pyro had glomped onto Rainbow Dash's tail and started chewing on it.
“You taste like fruit candy!” Pyro said cheerfully, going back to nomming on Rainbow Dash's tail.
The others snickered, as Engineer facehooved. “I'm... so sorry...” he said to Rainbow Dash. “Pyro, dear? If you stop chewing on her tail, I'll get you some real candy later.”
Pyro immediately appeared by Engineer's side, smiling. “Okay!” she chirped. Rainbow Dash grumbled, trying to smooth out her tail.
Fluttershy giggled. Spike took that as a cue to introduce her. “This is Fluttershy. She runs the local animal sanctuary,” he said.
The tall, lanky pegasus squeaked in fright, startled by the sudden focus. “H-Hello...” she said quietly. “I-I'm so sorry to hear about your pets...”
Demoman sighed. “Aye... Damn wizard...”
“If you like, you can help with the sanctuary too while you're here,” Fluttershy offered. “The other guards take second jobs to help pass the time while guarding.”
Heavy nodded. “Da. Is good,” he rumbled. “Heavy is not walk around on patrol type.”
Fluttershy squeaked at how loud Heavy's voice was, hiding behind Rainbow Dash.
Medic went over to Heavy and poked him. Heavy sighed, and spoke in a softer voice. “Heavy is sorry, little shy pony. Heavy is big man with big voice. Heavy only squashes enemies, not adorable new friends,” he said.
Rainbow Dash nudged her friend. “C'mon. It's okay,” she said.
Fluttershy gulped hard, and stepped forward again. “S-Sorry...” she said in a quiet voice. “What... what pets did you have?”
“Birds,” Heavy said. “Lots of birds. Heavy had little bitty robin. Was very cute.”
“And I had a dove I named Archimedes,” Medic said. “I had a lot of doves, actually.”
“I had a baby kangaroo and a little baby crocodile,” Sniper said. “And an owl. And a little chameleon.”
“I just had a parrot,” Demoman said. “Foul mouthed little bastard, but I liked him.”
“I had this totally awesome little squirrel as a pet, named him Chucklenuts,” Scout said, smiling wistfully. “Stole snacks for me and we shared them.”
“I had a pet snake,” Spy said, sighing. “I regret that I didn't spend more time with it now...”
In a surprisingly soft voice, Soldier said, “A bald eagle. Couple of them, actually. Plus a raccoon I was really fond of. Named him Lieutenant Bites.”
“I had a little kitty,” Engineer said. “And a canary named Ein. And a little baby armadillo I wanted to raise. Oh! And near the end, I rescued a baby seal from a carnival that was mistreatin' their animals.”
“That was a FUN mission,” Pyro said.
The mercenaries all grinned, remembering that battle.
“I don't remember you guys being sent on that mission,” Miss Pauling said, looking at them curiously.
“We were RED instead of BLU at the time,” Scout said. “Just something we did for fun.”
“We may be rough types, but there ain’t no way we’re letting some scumbag abuse animals,” Sniper added.
“Shame we couldn’t keep the elephant… Ah well,” Scout said, shrugging.
Pyro sighed, smiling. “Anyway... I had a cute little alien blob thing. Everyone told me he was a toy, but I knew he was real. There was also some stray cats that hung around the bases that we fed. And a bat and a raven we all took care of too.”
Fluttershy shook her head sympathetically. “Sounds like you all had a lot of love to go around,” she said.
The mercenaries all chuckled ruefully. “Eh. Most of us like animals more than people,” Scout said.
“You seem pretty calm, lass,” Demoman said. “Considering that you know what we are, what our jobs are.”
Fluttershy shook her head, smiling. “One of my best friends is an ancient god of chaos. We have tea on a regular basis. Ponies can seem bad, and do bad things, but have a lot of good in them. And besides! Anypony who is willing to take on a pet and take care of them properly is a good person in my book,” she said.
The mercenaries all blushed, Miss Pauling barely restraining herself from rolling her eyes. Starlight cast Fluttershy a silently grateful look for not bringing up her own troubled past. She wasn’t ashamed of it, but she preferred to bring it up on her own, if at all.
Spike smiled, and looked for Pinkie Pie, who seemed to have vanished. “Um... I was gonna introduce Pinkie Pie, but she seems to have vanished...”
“She a shy one too?” Sniper asked.
That got the native ponies laughing. “Sun and stars, no,” said Starlight Glimmer, a smirk on the slim unicorn's face. “She just realized she forgot her traditional 'greeting' supplies, and went to get them. I'll introduce myself in the meantime.” She smiled. “I'm Starlight Glimmer! Personal disciple to the Princess of Friendship.”
Engineer frowned, looking around. “Pleased t'meet you, ma'am, but... How did Pinkie Pie get out of here without any of us seeing? This is a big wide room with only one exit,” he asked.
Starlight giggled. “There's a rather important lesson about Pinkie Pie and her understanding her unique abilities that I learned fairly early on,” she said.
“What's that?” Engineer asked.
“Don't bother trying to understand them,” Starlight said. Engineer scowled, and Starlight shook her head. “I'm dead serious on this. I tried to do a scientific study on her abilities and gave myself a stroke trying to understand them. Ended up in a coma for a month.”
Engineer scowled, and shook his head. “I'm sorry, ma'am, but I just can't do that. In name and profession, I'm an engineer. I look for the practical in everything,” he said. “There's always a reasonable scientific explanation for everything.”
“There's nothing practical or reasonable about Pinkie,” Rarity said, looking bemused. “Truthfully, it's part of her charm.”
“In fact, if I know Pinkie,” Rainbow Dash said, “I'm betting she's going to reappear... right under your hardhat.”
Pinkie Pie emerged from underneath the hardhat, the short, chubby earth pony standing on top of Engineer's clean-shaven head. “How'd you know?!” the party mare asked, the mercenaries staring in shock.
Rainbow Dash grinned. “It seemed like something you'd do,” she said.
Pinkie Pie giggled, hopping off of Engineer's head and putting his hat back on his head. Engineer's jaw was dropped, and his eyes were visibly bulging with shock beneath his goggles. “Anyway!” Pinkie Pie said. “I don't have a nice song to greet you with, but I did have some nice treats I bought for you.”
She pulled a tray of fresh cupcakes out of her mane, offering them to everyone. The mercenaries stared at her a moment.
“...Bloody hell, I don't need to be drunk,” Demoman said, chuckling and accepting a cupcake. “This place is weird enough on its own.” Pyro, taking the whole thing in stride, took one as well. The others, after recovering from their post-Pinkie stunt shock, accepted them as well. Engineer was still staring at her, confused out of his gourd.
“HOW!?” he said.
“Sometimes, if it's comically appropriate, I can move through the narrative,” Pinkie Pie said, smiling. “Try a cupcake!”
“But...” Engineer stammered. “What does that even mean?! Did you use some kind of spell? Did you contort your body!? It makes NO SENSE! I...” He was cut off as Pyro shoved the last cupcake into his mouth. He chewed it thoughtfully for a moment, contemplating. “...That's a mighty fine cupcake.”
Pinkie Pie smiled happily. “Thank you!” she said. “It's an experimental recipe, actually. A peanut butter/strawberry fusion and...”
“Too much peanut butter,” Heavy rumbled.
Everypony looked at him. Heavy licked his lips thoughtfully. “Da. Too much peanut butter,” he said. “Strawberry taste too weak.”
“Now, hold on there,” Applejack said, coming to her friend's defense. “I've had those cupcakes m'self, and they're...”
Pinkie Pie held up a hoof, silencing her. She gave Heavy a serious look. “You really think so?”
Heavy nodded. “Flavors not balanced,” he said.
Scout frowned. “Tasted pretty good to me,” he said, the others nodding.
“Not saying cupcake tastes bad,” Heavy said. “Is good. Just not good balance of flavor.” The massive man looked thoughtful for a moment. “How much peanut butter do you use?”
“A half cup,” Pinkie Pie said.
“Try reducing amount. One third cup. Or add more strawberry,” Heavy suggested. He smiled. “Is good cupcake. Just could be better.”
Pinkie Pie looked thoughtful. “Huh... Okay, thank you! I'll try that!” she said, bouncing away.
Everyone relaxed after that. “The big guy's the team chef?” Rainbow Dash asked.
Engineer nodded, casting a bewildered glance at Pinkie Pie. “He does most of the cooking, although me, Demo, and Spy sometimes alternate. Soldier only knows how to cook two things, Medic gets a little too aggressive in the 'chopping' phase of food prep and tends to break things, Sniper only knows how to do campfire stuff, Pyro burned down the base the one and only time we allowed her to cook, and Scout's pretty much helpless without a microwave.”
Scout chuckled. “I'd complain, but it's true,” he admitted.
At that moment, Barricade came back, carting the mercenaries melee weapons, Engineer's toolkit, and Medic's medigun in a satchel. She looked disturbed.
“Is the sword cursed or something?” she asked, handing Demoman his sheathed weapon.
“HeAdS...” the sword moaned.
The demolitionist nodded, sighing as he put the sheath back on his back. “Aye. Damned thing. It's a decapitation-happy cursed sword called Eyelander. I can control it, though.”
Fluttershy whimpered, hiding behind Rarity. The other ponies looked alarmed.
“I cAnNoT bE cOnTrOlLeD! i WiLl TaStE tHe NeCkS oF...” Eyelander proclaimed.
“Shut up or I'll use you as a toilet plunger again!” Demoman barked.
“On burrito night!” Soldier added helpfully, Demoman cackling and nodding in agreement.
“...I'lL bE gOoD,” Eyelander whimpered.
Soldier shook his head. “I swear, some people you just can't take anywhere,” he said. “At least he's a better roommate than Merasmus was.”
Demoman chuckled.
“...Are any of your other weapons alive?” Rainbow Dash, looking more fascinated than frightened.
“Nah,” Engineer said, pocketing his wrench. “Just the sword.”
“Dang,” Rainbow Dash said, chuckling.
Fluttershy squeaked again. Starlight Glimmer frowned. “If you need a proper seal on that thing, I know a few good spells,” she offered. “Twilight knows more.”
Demoman nodded. “Not right now, lass, but I'll keep that in mind,” he said.
Barricade sighed, shaking her head. “Anyway, let's get started with the tour,” she said.
“Ooh!” Pinkie Pie said, hopping over to Barricade. “Can we start with Sugarcube Corner?”
Applejack chuckled. “Seems like a fine way to make a good impression on the town,” she said.
Rainbow Dash nodded. “Sure,” she said. “Everypony likes the Corner.”
Pinkie Pie bounced happily. Barricade led the others out, Spike and Miss Pauling trailing behind them all. Barricade elected to stay behind when some of her newly recruited guardsmen needed help, letting the Bearers take command of the tour. “So what do you do for this Administrator?” Spike asked.
Miss Pauling shrugged. “Whatever she asks of me. File reports, sort mail, monitor the mercenaries, trick them into hating each other from time to time, killing witnesses, chopping up bodies for better decomposition, disposing of evidence...” She smiled. “I've actually developed my own recipe for quicklime. It's a bit more efficient than the name brand stuff we usually buy.”
“Everything about what you just said disturbs me,” Spike said.
Miss Pauling just smirked. “What about you?” she asked. “What's your role?”
“I'm Twilight's assistant,” Spike said. “I help her organize her books, help her take notes, clean up experiments, chase off the paparazzi, hit her with a newspaper when she does something potentially destructive, drug her food when she insists on doing an all-nighter.” He smirked a little. “She's getting better about realizing she can't stay up for a month straight to do research.”
“Sounds like you have a real mad scientist for an employer,” Miss Pauling said, amused.
“Eh. More overenthusiastic than mad,” Spike said. “You're going to be acting as my aide for the time I'm here.”
Miss Pauling nodded. “I'm fine with that,” she said. “What will be my primary duties?”
“I'll think of that later,” Spike said. “Right now, I just want to get through the introductions without causing a riot...” He sighed, rubbing his temples.
Miss Pauling gave him a curious look. “Anyone who might be trouble?” she asked.
“The Flower Trio,” Spike said, starting to walk after the others, Miss Pauling following him. “Roseluck, Daisy, and Lily Valley. They've gotten better over the years, but they're so prone to panic, and then herd instinct kicks in...”
Miss Pauling frowned. “You ever thought about just getting rid of them?” she asked with perfect sincerity.
Spike glared at her. “No. Because that's not what good ponies do,” he said.
Miss Pauling smirked. “What about dragons?” she asked.
“No killing!” Spike snapped.
“Fine, fine...” Miss Pauling said, rolling her eyes. “But it is a really efficient problem solver. Honestly, if you think about it, there's very little that can't be solved with the proper application of murder.”
“I hate everything about what you just said,” Spike muttered. “Your boss teach you that?”
“Yep,” Miss Pauling said.
“Your boss is a horrible woman,” Spike said.
“Yep,” Miss Pauling agreed.
“You worry me,” Spike muttered as they left the castle, meeting up with the others. The mercenaries had all stopped, taking in the atmosphere of the place.
It was colorful. That was the first thing they all noticed. Everything around them felt so vibrant, so alive. It was strange to them all, who were used to the dull browns and grays of Teufort. And it wasn't just the landscape that felt vibrant.
All around them, ponies were busily trotting about, selling things, buying things, or just enjoying each other's company. Unicorns were floating things around, pegasi were up in the sky, come of them moving clouds around. One of them hopped up and down on a cloud, making it rain.
“...Miss Muffins said they could do it,” Sniper said softly. “But actually seeing it... Seeing someone actually control the weather like this...”
They were all clearly in awe, even Miss Pauling. The native ponies just looked at each other in amusement, Applejack stepping forward. “C'mon,” she said. “We'll show you around. Let's head for Sugarcube Corner.”
The natives all gave the nine gruff-looking mercenaries a wide berth, although many of them called out polite greetings to them. They noticed this, not sure of what to make of it.
“People are staying back, and yet trying to be polite at the same time,” Spy noted.
“Most of you have this weird smell to you, like cordite and blood,” Spike said. “It's... troubling.”
“Hm,” Engineer said. “That's fair.”
The group led them through town, eventually coming to the central part of town. Prominently, in the main circle of the village, there was a large building that looked almost exactly like a giant gingerbread house.
“Singing and dancing house YAY!” Pyro cheered, as to her eyes, the house was bobbing back and forth and singing a nonsense song. The others cast her looks ranging from amused to concerned.
Engineer chuckled. “Was wondering how she'd see this house. So! This is Sugarcube Corner?” he asked.
Pinkie Pie nodded. “Yep! I work here with the Cakes!”
“That's Mr. and Mrs. Cake,” Applejack clarified. “Along with the twins, Pumpkin and Pound. Although they do make a lot of cakes.”
“Sweet,” Scout said, grinning.
“Quite literally, I would imagine,” Medic quipped.
Pinkie Pie bounced up to the door, and opened it for everyone. The mercenaries all filed inside... and immediately became hungry. The scent of freshly baked bread, cookies, pies, and cakes filled the air, the inside of the shop filled with warmth and love, although Miss Pauling couldn't tell what it was.
“What is this...” she said softly. “Feels weird...”
“Feels like home,” Heavy rumbled, smiling. “Reminds me of when mother would make bear pie for Christmas.”
Fluttershy looked alarmed at this, but Heavy didn't notice. The mercenaries, at Pinkie's prompting, went inside.
Playing in one corner of the room, making little cakes in a toy oven, were a pair of cream-colored foals. One a pegasus colt with brown hair, the other a unicorn filly with orange hair. Neither sported a cutie mark, but they were clearly enjoying themselves. When they noticed Pinkie, they went over and gave her a hug.
“Hiya Pound! Hiya Pumpkin! You makin' treats?” Pinkie said, scooping up the foals and glomping them. “You helping your parents?”
“We made cakes!” the colt, Pound said, fluttering his wings happily.
“Wanna try them, Auntie Pinkie?” the filly, Pumpkin said.
“Sure do!” Pinkie Pie said. The mercenaries watched idly as Pinkie Pie sampled the simple cakes, playing it up as if they were delicious.
“Now that's downright adorable,” Engineer said, grinning. Although he couldn’t escape a feeling of melancholy. He missed his daughter... He was distracted from his depression, however, when a chubby Earth pony mare with a matronly air about her came up to them.
“Hello, dearies,” Cup Cake said. “My name is Cup Cake. Welcome to Sugarcube Corner.”
“Ma'am,” Engineer said, tipping his hardhat to her.
“Sweet place y'got here,” Scout said. “In more ways than one.”
“Yes, it is an eye-catching design, isn't it?” Cup said, grinning.
Spy went around, quickly introducing everyone. “We are... currently displaced from our reality, these forms not our own. We are currently trying to find a way back home, with the help of Princess Twilight. As payment, we are joining her guard for the duration of our stay, helping to protect this fine town.”
Cup Cake nodded. “Well, it's wonderful to have you here,” she said. “Honestly, with everything that's happening, the more help the merrier. Is there anything you’d like?”
“Anything with sour cream in it,” Soldier said automatically.
The other mercenaries gave Soldier irritated looks, but Cup Cake took it in stride. “We do have some sour cream muffins left,” she said. “Amazingly. Derpy must be trying to cut back on the carbs.”
Spy scowled at the use of the unflattering nickname for the Muffins.
“...You can actually make pastries with sour cream in it?” Sniper asked, looking astonished.
Cup Cake nodded. “Uh huh! It’s not a very hard recipe,” she said.
“Huh… Learn something new every day,” Sniper said.
“You’ll forgive us if the rest of us don’t order anything,” Spy said. “We lack funds, and...”
“You never mind that,” Rarity said. “We’ll pay for your treats this time.”
Engineer smiled. “Right nice of you, ma’am,” he said.
“Tish tosh,” Rarity said. “You’re volunteering your services and far away from home and family. The LEAST we can do is buy you something sweet to eat.”
“...Very well,” Spy said. “Some chocolate chip cookies, if you have them.”
“That sounds good, actually,” Scout said. “With milk?” he asked hopefully.
Cup Cake giggled. “Certainly.”
“Rum cake, if you have it,” Demoman said. “Also, I’ve got a recipe or two of my own to offer you in trade. Including a whisky and rye apple pie.”
“Oooh, I like that one!” Pyro said.
“You tried to make a molotov out of it, darlin,’” Engineer said, amused.
“I still liked it,” Pyro said, giggling.
“Whiskey and rye… apple pie?” Applejack said, staring at Demoman.
“Aye,” Demoman laughed. “You’d be surprised at how well it goes together. I’ve got a cake recipe that involves me favorite kind of liquor, scrumpy!”
Applejack let a smirk cross her face. “Bit of an apple connoisseur, ain’tcha?”
Demoman snorted. “I know how to brew, lassie. Give me a batch of old apples and I’ll have you a fine cider that will leave you sillier than your pink friend.”
“Oh honey, you ain’t even BEGUN to see how silly I can get,” Pinkie Pie said, grinning wickedly.
“Please don’t encourage her,” Fluttershy said. “The last person that challenged her turned Ponyville into the site of a prank war of epic proportions.”
“Took me weeks to get all the confetti out of my coat,” Starlight muttered.
“To say nothing of the mess the party tank armada made of the town hall,” Rainbow Dash said. “Which I got blamed for.”
“...Tanks as in actual tanks?” Heavy asked.
Pinkie Pie nodded “Oh yeah! There’s an entire line of heavy party artillery! Party cannons, party launchers, party tanks...”
“Really now,” Heavy said, looking interested. He felt an odd twinge along his flanks, looking down at them in confusion.
“What happened?” Medic asked.
“Tingle in my sides,” Heavy said, looking down at his flanks with suspicion.
Pinkie giggled. “It was when I talked about party artillery, wasn’t it?” she asked.
“Da. Why?” Heavy asked.
Rainbow Dash got it. “Tanks, cannons, launchers… And your name is Heavy.”
“Heavy Weapons Guy, da,” Heavy said.
Rainbow Dash nodded. “There you go. When you start getting into something that’s directly related to your special talent, you get a tingle in your cutie mark. I feel it every time I get ready for a race or a big stunt.”
“Fascinating!” Medic said, grinning widely.
“...Anyone ever tell you got a bad case of the evil grins there, pardner?” Applejack said, cringing.
“That’s his default smile,” Spy said, amused. “He can’t help it.”
“I’ve tried non-evil smiles,” Medic said. “But it just looks like I’m farting.”
Rarity grimaced, most of the others at the table chuckling.
Miss Pauling glanced around. “This is a rather nice place,” she said.
“Yeah, it’s pretty much the hub of things around town,” Applejack said. “And not just ‘cause we hang out here a lot.”
Miss Pauling nodded “Yes, um… Forgive me, but you seem to have very little in common. A soldier, an animal caretaker, a farmer, fashion designer, a magus, a baker, a princess, a royal aide… How do you all get along so well?”
Applejack shrugged. “We just do,” she said.
“We met, things clicked, and here we are,” Spike added.
“Friendship doesn’t have to make sense, darling,” Rarity said. “Friendship is… well, friendship is magic. It attracts, it bonds, it brings even the most eclectic groups together.”
“Friendship is magic,” Miss Pauling said.
The Equestrian natives nodded. The mercenaries looked thoughtful at this, while Miss Pauling just frowned. “Forgive me, but that sounds like the silliest thing ever.”
Starlight chuckled. “The ‘silliest thing ever’ has beaten some of Equestria’s most dangerous foes AND turned them into our allies. Twilight’s personal bodyguard was formerly the general of an army that CONQUERED Equestria.”
“...You recruit your enemies,” Spy said, looking uneasy.
“And we have never regretted it,” Fluttershy said, going over to nuzzle Starlight, who blushed brightly.
“Except for the times you’ve brainwashed us,” Rainbow Dash cracked.
“That only happened three times,” Starlight muttered.
“Way to ruin the mood, Rainbow Dash,” Spike said, scowling.
Rainbow Dash just chuckled, Starlight rolling her eyes.
“You delight in being a dick, don’tcha?” Scout snarked.
“Better a dick than a shrimp, minibug,” Rainbow Dash snarked right back.
“Brainwashing?” Medic asked excitedly, interrupting Scout’s retort. “Magic can do that?”
“Please don’t encourage him,” Sniper groaned. “He’s been fascinated with magic ever since the Horseless Headless Horsemann first attacked us...”
“That sounds like a fun story,” Pinkie Pie said, taking everypony else’s orders. The last pony she talked to was Heavy.
“Sandvich,” was all Heavy said.
“...What kind of sandwich?” Pinkie Pie asked, smiling.
“Sandvich,” Heavy repeated, looking stoic.
Pinkie Pie’s eye twitched, and she started to say something, but Engineer stopped her. “Ma’am, just make him any kind of sandwich. He’ll eat it,” he said. Pinkie Pie stared at him a moment, and shrugged, going back to the kitchen.
Spy leaned forward. “Forgive me for my tone earlier. I didn’t mean to imply that recruiting your enemies was a bad thing,” he said. “It actually makes reasonable tactical sense.”
Rainbow Dash quirked an eyebrow. “We weren’t really thinking tactics when we recruited them, though,” she said. “We just wanted them to have better lives.”
Starlight smiled. “And believe me, my life has much improved,” she said.
“...You were an enemy?” Spy asked.
Starlight nodded. “Former leader of an anti-individuality cult,” she said. “Plus I… may have tried to destroy time.” She grimaced, embarrassed, the mercenaries looking rather impressed. “But Twilight and the others set me right.”
Rarity smiled wistfully. “Life in Equestria’s become so much better since Twilight came into our lives...” she said softly.
Applejack nodded. “Not downplayin’ stuff we ourselves have done, but she’s been one of the best things to happen to Ponyville and Equestria in general. Y’all saw that building off on the mountainside behind the castle, right?”
The mercenaries traded confused looks, embarrassed. “Err… No, we haven’t,” Engineer admitted sheepishly.
Rainbow Dash chuckled, and opened the curtains on a nearby window. The building in question was visible, just barely, from the window. “That’s the Friendship School,” she said. “Ponies and creatures from all over the world come to learn the magic of friendship and the Six Virtues. We used to teach regularly there, but our responsibilities forced us into part time as time went on. Starlight’s the guidance councilor there, Twilight the headmistress.”
“My stepmother, Barricade, runs physical activity classes since she was assigned here. Games and such,” Fluttershy said. “She can’t do as much as some because of her size, though. Lieutenant Tempest Shadow, who was that conqueror we mentioned earlier, sometimes fills in for her.”
“So folks from everywhere come to this school to learn how to be buddies?” Scout asked, looking curiously at the school.
“Uh huh!” Pinkie chirped, busily working on making everyone’s treats.
“That’s… actually, I really like that idea,” Engineer said, grinning. “A school where y’all learn how to be nice to one another.” The ponies all traded looks at this.
“Hmph,” Soldier said. “Well, Sun Tzu does mention that avoiding war altogether is a way of winning war.” He clearly was not enthused by the idea, but he could appreciate it.
“Better a party than a battle if you can avoid it,” Demoman nodded.
“We are friends now,” Pinkie Pie declared, Demoman laughing.
The Administrator would tear that school down with her bare hands if she heard about it, Miss Pauling thought sadly. She thought it was a good idea too, but she was well aware of what her boss was like.
As the mercenaries waited for their order, the door opened. And to their surprise, a zebra walked in, elegantly striped with gold bands around her neck and foreleg, a mohawk adorning her head. They got an even bigger surprise when Applejack went over to her and hugged her, the chatting in a language only Spy seemed to understand.
“...The heck? The country girl knows how to speak zebra?” Scout said.
“She’s really pretty,” Pyro said, smiling.
“...Y’know, I think that’s Swahili they’re speaking,” Engineer said. “Spy? What do you… er, Spy?” An amused look crossed his face, the others turning and chuckling as well.
Spy seemed thunderstruck by the zebra’s appearance. The infiltrator was blushing brightly, his wings buzzing a little. A slow smile came over Rarity’s face as Scout, annoyed, elbowed him, startling Spy. “Oy. Dumbug. Is that Swahili or not?” Scout asked.
“Technically, it’s Zebrali,” Fluttershy gently corrected.
“Erm…” Spy stammered, wondering why the hell he was feeling like this. “Yes. I believe so.”
“Ah learned it as a kid,” Applejack said, coming back over to the group. “Fellers, this is my big sister Zecora.”
“A pleasure it is to meet you all,” she said, Spy feeling a warmth go through him at the sound of her voice. Zecora didn’t seem to notice, and continued. “It seems you will be living in our little town for a while, yes?”
Engineer nodded. “We’re helping out for a bit, yeah,” he said. “Seems y’all have a big to do going on.”
“The trial of a war criminal,” Rainbow Dash said, her expression turning dark. “Queen Chrysalis, formerly the ruler of the changeling race.”
Scout and Spy traded worried looks. The other mercenaries, save for Pyro, who was staring at something only she could see, looked grim.
Starlight shook her head. “She’s rejected every chance at reforming her evil ways that we’ve given her. The only reason we caught her at all is because her schemes, because of her desperation and lack of minions, have degenerated to being less effective than a children’s story villain.”
“Hnh. How the mighty have fallen,” Miss Pauling said thoughtfully.
“I’m just glad we finally have her in a box,” Rainbow Dash muttered. “It was driving everypony nuts having her on the loose.”
“Might we get a look at her?” Engineer asked. “It’ll help to know what we’re lookin’ for should the worst happen.”
The native ponies all traded uncertain looks. “...We’ll see,” Rarity said.
Sensing the discomfort of the topic, Demoman decided to change it. “So! Big sister, you said?” the demolitionist asked, his Scottish brogue giving his voice an oddly pleasant timber to it.
“Adopted,” Zecora said. “But happily so. I came here as a filly after a falling out with my birth parents.”
Applejack grinned happily. “Saved my folks from a chimera attack she did,” she said. “I was just a filly at the time, but danged if hearing that my folks was attacked wasn’t one of the scariest moments of my life. We was more than happy to make Zecora an Apple after that.”
“Aye, a fine thing,” Demoman said.
“You certainly are courageous,” Spy said, smiling pleasantly.
Zecora blushed a little. Even with the mask, this changeling was rather charming. And she loved his accent. “To be fair, I was just as terrified as the Apples were.”
“Courage is FACING YOUR FEARS and then PUNCHING THEM IN THE FACE!” Soldier declared. “Sun Tzu said that!”
Zecora blinked.
“Roll with it,” Engineer said.
Zecora blinked again, and shrugged, chuckling. “Anyway. I run the apothecary in town, and teach some staff fighting classes on the weekend,” she said. “If you ever need a potion during your stay here, I am more than happy to oblige.”
“You and I will talk a lot, I think,” Medic said.
Zecora nodded, although she frowned a little at the dismayed looks of his comrades. “Do you all have a place to stay?”
“We’ll be living in the castle, if I understood things correctly,” Engineer said.
Zecora nodded again, smiling. “Well, you’re more than welcome to have dinner with us this evening,” she said. “We Apples are always willing to extend our hooves in hospitality.”
“Darn’ tootin,’” Applejack agreed, nuzzling her big sister affectionately.
Zecora smiled, nuzzling Applejack back. “Well now. I came here for a snack and now I have to go talk to mother about cooking for guests tonight. A lot of them.”
Pinkie Pie smiled. “If it helps, I can contribute some bits for catering,” she offered.
“Naw, we got this,” Applejack said. “We FINALLY got Celestia and Luna to try our Zap Apple Jam. Got a huge order direct from them for it. Even after Filthy Rich takes his cut for distributing it to them, we’ve been dealin’ with a surplus of funds for a while now.”
Rarity grinned. “It’s always good to hear when a friend is doing well,” she said.
Zecora smiled. “I am certain that we will be able to accommodate you all for dinner tonight,” she said. “I shall see you all this evening. I shall get my snack at home...” The zebra bowed nobly and left.
“Hm,” Spy said. “She’s an interesting one.”
“Interesting enough to seduce you instead of the other way around,” Engineer said, grinning.
Spy blushed. “Well… I have always been one to appreciate beauty. Especially of an exotic nature. I noticed no others of the striped variety as we walked around town.”
Spike shook his head. “We don’t get many zebras around here. Most stick to Canterlot.”
“Place is pretty bustling,” Sniper said, watching ponies milling about through the window. “We got a school, a castle, a Princess… Surprised this isn’t the capital.”
“Oh, darling, you wouldn’t believe how much our city has grown since Twilight first came here!” Rarity said. “So much culture and trade coming in...”
“No one’s wearing pants,” Pyro said, startling everypony. “Why is that?”
“...Well, our tails mostly keep what needs to be covered in check,” Rarity said. “As you may have noticed, clothing is optional for most ponies.”
“...But you’re a fashion designer,” Miss Pauling said, confused.
Rarity shrugged. “It never hurts to have something to wear for a special occasion,” she said. “I realize, in your line of work, you probably don’t have much to do with fashion, but-”
“Actually,” Scout said, cutting her off. “I was wondering if you could make anything like a letterman jacket?”
“…Excuse me?” Rarity asked.
“And there was this high collared shirt I liked,” Scout continued, looking thoughtful.
“Uniforms,” Soldier said firmly. “I am a Soldier and I will NOT be out of uniform… although I’m open to different ideas of uniforMiss..”
“...Actually, I did have several nice jackets and shirts to wear,” Spy commented. “This is simply my favorite ensemble.”
“There was this one vest I liked,” Sniper said wistfully, “lined with fake fur...”
“And hats,” Heavy rumbled.
“Oh! Yes, good thinking,” Spy said.
“Yeah, gotta have the headgear,” Scout agreed.
“I miss my hats,” Pyro said.
“Eeyup. Definitely need a new supply of hats,” Engineer said. Sniper, Medic, Soldier, and Demoman agreed with the others as well.
“...You lot sound rather serious about your hats,” Rarity said, taken aback by this.
“Ma’am, they spend their time shooting exact clones of themselves in the face, with the only difference being the color of their clothing,” Miss Pauling said, amused. “It started out simply as a way to differentiate themselves from their clones, but they kept buying new shirts, jackets, pants, hats… Good lord, all the new hats...”
“Hats are a lifestyle, my dear Miss Pauling,” Spy said. “A man is not a man without a fine chapeau to wear. And perhaps a fine ensemble to go with it.”
“One of the few things he and I agree on,” Scout said, the others nodding in agreement.
Rarity went starry-eyed, a grin coming over her face. In the most unexpected place, she had found kinship.
The snacks came. The native ponies had all ordered cake and pie. Scout and Spy both got chocolate chip cookies and milk, Soldier a couple sour cream muffin. Pyro had gotten some jalapeno cupcakes, Pinkie VERY pleased that one of her spicy creations had been ordered, while Engineer had opted for a slice of cornbread. At Spike’s suggestion, Miss Pauling had ordered a gem cupcake, the dragoness now staring at her crystal-encrusted treat with confusion. Demoman got his rum cake, smelling it delightedly, and Sniper some lemonade and a slice of apple pie. Medic had ordered a big slice of red velvet cake.
Heavy got a flower sandwich.
“What,” Heavy grumbled, “is this?”
“Is sandvich,” Pinkie said in an impression of Heavy’s voice. She just smirked when Heavy glared at her. “You didn’t give me anything specific, so we just gave you a daisy sandwich.”
Heavy muttered something unintelligible.
“It’s really quite common,” Rarity said as she ate her slice of cheesecake. “Good with tomato soup.”
Heavy growled. “Is flowers.”
“Try it,” Engineer said. “It might be good.”
Heavy grumbled, sounding almost petulant as he repeated, “Is FLOWERS.”
“Just eat it,” Spy said, lifting up one of his cookies, fumbling a little with it. “We need to try and improve our reputation after accidentally bringing a fiery timberwolf into town.”
Heavy muttered petulantly again, feeling uncomfortable with everyone watching him. Medic scuffed. “Oh, stop being such a baby,” he teased.
“Am not baby,” Heavy growled, glaring at Medic.
“Baby! Heavy is a big bald baby man!” Medic taunted, cackling merrily. “Too scared of a little bitty sandwich!”
The big stallion snorted. “Medic is lucky he is cute.” Heavy snorted, looking down at the sandwich again. Clumsily, he picked up the sandwich and tossed it into his mouth whole, chewing it up noisily. “OMNOMNOMNOM.” He gulped it down, looking thoughtful, the others watching intently.
“...Is not bad,” Heavy said, his expression deadpan.
Everyone else relaxed, and started in on their treats. For the male mercenaries and Pyro, there was some awkward fumbling at first, but they managed to eat with minimal mess. And immediately fell in love with their treats.
“These are the BEST COOKIES I’ve ever had! I mean, even better than my ma’s!” Scout said, buzzing happily, hovering above the table. “And I don’t say that lightly!”
“Care to confirm, Spy?” Demoman said quietly, Spy shushing him. “But aye, this is a fine cake, me lass.”
Engineer licked his lips. “Mighty fine cornbread, ma’am,” he said. “Taste o’home right there.”
Pyro would make a coherent comment but she was too busy savoring the flavor of her jalapeno cupcake. “Mmmrrhmmmhr!!!”
“DELICIOUS!” Soldier declared. “I will have another!”
Sniper nodded. “Yeah, this is a right proper edible right there,” he said, sipping at his lemonade as he ate his pie. He noticed Applejack’s grin. “I’m guessing these are from your farm?”
“Eeyup,” Applejack said. “Pride of Sweet Apple Acres.”
“Bonza,” Sniper said, nodding and tipping his hat to the farmer.
“Indeed,” Medic said. “You and your husband are fine bakers.”
Mrs. Cake smiled. “Pinkie does some of the baking too, but thank you,” she said. “It’s always nice to know that your work is appreciated.”
Once everyone had eaten, they started to relax. Rarity and Starlight showed the unicorns the basics of magical telekinesis, both Engineer and Medic proving to be quick studies. Miss Pauling, for her part, was musing on her cupcake.
“Is that a common thing? To eat gems?” she asked Spike.
“Pretty much,” Spike said. “We need to eat gems to restore our magic.” He chuckled. “It’s lucky I’m in love with someone with a talent for finding them and making good use of them. I always have something to eat.” He blew a kiss to Rarity, who grinned back at him.
Miss Pauling looked thoughtful. Gems are fairly commonplace here, then. If… WHEN, most definitely when we get back, I might try to take some with me, sell them for a profit to help fund the Administrator’s plans… “Ever think about eating the castle?”
Spike shook his head. “I live there, for one thing. Plus, I don’t like the taste of those crystals,” he said. “Ember does, though. As big as she is now, she can literally eat holes in the walls...”
“Ember?” Miss Pauling asked.
“Current Dragon Lord. Few years older than me,” Spike clarified. “There’s actually another dragoness living around here I could introduce you to. She’s a graduate of the Friendship School, and is named Smolder.”
Before Spike could go into more detail, a bluish-white changeling with pinkish wings burst into the store, looking frantic.
“Ocellus?” Pinkie Pie asked.
“Ocellus, darling, what’s the matter?” Rarity asked.
Once she caught her breath, Ocellus said, “It’s Flim and Flam!”
Applejack groaned. “Those con artists again?” she said.
“Tempest will chase them off,” Rainbow Dash said, waving dismissively.
“I don’t think she can!” Ocellus said, everyone’s eyes snapping to the changeling. “They’re at the farm with a lawyer… I think they’re trying to lay claim to it!”
“WHAT!?” Starlight shouted.
“How is that possible?!” Fluttershy asked.
“What’s going on?” Miss Pauling asked, the other mercenaries getting wary.
Ocellus shook her head. “I don’t know. Something about an old bet involving a contest...”
Applejack paled, realizing what was happening. “Y’all stay here,” she said to the mercenaries. “This is a private matter that we need to handle.”
“But...” Spy started.
“PLEASE!” Applejack said. “Just… Just let us handle it!” She, the other element bearers, Spike, and Ocellus all fled the store.
“...Da heck’s going on?” Scout said, confused.
“Oh dear...” Mr. Cake said.
“Explain,” Spy said, frowning. He didn’t like being in the dark.
Mr. Cake and Mrs. Cake traded worried looks, their children looking worried too. “Well,” Mr. Cake said, “a while back, Flim and Flam came with a device called the Super Speedy Cider Squeezy 6000.”
Mrs. Cake nodded. “Apple family cider is very popular around here. But because they rely so heavily on old fashioned methods, there’s usually not enough to go around.”
Engineer started to get it. “And those two yahoos came in promisin’ to make more,” he said.
Mr. Cake nodded. “They actually did produce more cider, just as good as the Apple family’s! But they tried to cheat them out of the farm.”
Mrs. Cake nodded. “They gave them an unfair deal which would give them most of the profits, and when the Apples didn’t back down, they bet the Acres on a cidermaking contest, drafting Pinkie and the others to help.”
Mr. Cake grimaced. “The thing is? ...They technically won. But they had to turn off quality control on their machine to do it, which destroyed a bunch of trees in the process.”
“Trixie was wondering what the commotion was,” said a voice, everyone turning to see a blue unicorn in a purple, star-spangled cloak and hat. She went up to the counter and leaned on it. “So Flimsy and Flammable are back in town?”
“Um...” Engineer said.
“Flammable?!?!” Pyro said, grinning excitedly and getting in Trixie’s face. Trixie telekinetically set her back with the others, not even flinching.
“I’m afraid so,” Mrs. Cake said, Trixie rolling her eyes in annoyance.
“I don’t believe we’ve met,” Spy said, looking at the showmare warily. “We are-”
“The mercenaries who came into town recently with a burning timber wolf,” Trixie said. “Trixie has heard of you. As for me...” She posed dramatically. “I am the Great and Powerful TRIXIE! Showmare extraordinaire, master of sleight of hoof magic, and personal friend to Princess Twilight Sparkle and her aide, Starlight Glimmer! I’m sure they’ve mentioned me already.”
“No,” Soldier said bluntly, the others nodding.
Trixie grumped. “Of course not,” she muttered. “So Flim and Flam are trying to collect on that old bet I heard about?”
“Apparently,” Spy said.
“Hm. I met them a few times while on the road,” Trixie said, paying for some peanut butter cookies. “I think I know a way to drive them off, but I could use some backup.”
The mercenaries all stood up, ready to help, but Miss Pauling motioned for them to stop. “We are a mercenary group,” she said, ignoring the incredulous looks of the others. “We work for paid contract.”
Trixie knew a face-saving maneuver when she was presented with one. “I’ll give you five silver bits and some peanut butter crackers,” she offered.
“Contract accepted,” Miss Pauling said, standing up, ignoring the annoyed grumbling from her teammates. “Mission begins when we reach the farm.” The dragon nodded to the unicorn. “Call the dance, Miss Trixie. This is your command.”
“Dibs on the peanut butter crackers,” Pyro said, grinning.
“No fair!” Soldier protested. “I wanted them.”
Trixie snickered. Oh, this crew’s gonna be fun to work with, she thought as she collected her cookies. “Well, let’s go. You can introduce yourselves to me on the way there. And when we get there?” The showmare smirked. “We’ll put on a little show.”
TO BE CONTINUED...
Stats
Page generated in 0.052 seconds
Total duration
927 users online
427,701 hits today, 2,004,447 yesterday
FIMFiction
My Little Pony: Friendship is Magic Fanfiction
Designed and coded by knighty & Xaquseg - © 2011-2024
Follow & Support Us
Support us
SubStar
Chat!
Discord
Follow us
Twitter
MLP: Friendship is Magic® - © 2024 Hasbro Inc.®
Fimfiction is in no way affiliated with or endorsed by Hasbro Inc.®
It's alive!
Whoo boy, a lot to catch up on. It's funny, compared to when I was reading the original Waking Nightmares, now I'm neither playing TF2 or actively watching MLP. I was still really excited to see a new chapter here, though. Introductions seem to be going well, and Trixie's pretty entertaining here.
It is strange reading a Zecora who doesn't rhyme, though. I'll get used to it, but it's just new to me.
Before I read this, I must know: Chrysalis only seemed interested in Equestria. Why are world leaders get involved?
9556935
Spoilers
Everything is weird and topsy turvy.....
I LIKE IT SO FAR!
It's great to see the story's not dead! I'm excited for what comes next.
My feelings on this-
... A wild KnightMysterio appears
Welcome back! also HATS!
He's being honest.
And it is a lifesaver.
RariSpike, haven't seen any of that in a while. It's a nice change of pace.
Apparently not.
Yep.
Hopefully the latter won't be necessary.
Heaven's not getting involved.
He's not lying. Heavy's not the kind to hurt the innocent. Quite the opposite.
You also implanted it into Scout by accident.
GOOD.
I do not blame you.
You're too kind.
Because she's Pinkie Pie, don't question it.
That sounds about right.
Because they now what you find funny.
See?
It really is.
Right, Heavy is actually a very good cook.
Constructive criticism. Always a win.
Yep.
See?
I'm somehow not surprised.
She does that. The worst part is how casual she is about it.
Eh, I wouldn't call Twilight a full on mad scientist, but she's gotten close.
That seems excessive.
You haven't the slightest clue. She spends her one day off a year pulling a Tom Lehrer. Poisoning pigeons in the park.
Sounds about right.
Presumably, yes.
First time I've actually seen those two be anything other than babies or off screen.
Very, which again, is probably the idea
Ponies can make food out of damn near anything.
That was probably WHY she liked it
You have no idea how silly she can get. She cannot and WILL not be stopped by something as trivial as a silliness limit.
Good times.
Huh, that makes sense.
Yes. It's kinda his default smile.
You're right. It is. But it's scary effective. Just ask Discord.
And then some.
Kinda.
Precisely. And if you can make a potential enemy a friend, then that's just one more person on your side.
That was mandatory.
When'd that happen?
Not rhyming. Not blaming you for not wanting to deal with that, for lack of a better term, gimmick.
She's kinda gone cocoo for CoCo Puffs.
Huh, very much an AU then, explain the lack of rhyming and AJ speaking Zebrali.
The weirdest thing is, considering the world of TF2, he probably did say that.
Excellent.
Fair.
Of course. Can't have TF2 without hats.
Consider it a way of keeping them sane. Ish.
You're a horse. Or, pony right now.
That was pretty fuckin' funny.
Them again?
You'd think after failing in Ponyville twice, they'd just cut their losses and go somewhere else.
Alas, yes. Hi, best pony. Fight me.
I mean, they're covered in fur so, they're probably fairly flammable.
Your composure is admirable.
Oh this will be fun.
Oh it will be.
Oh this is going to be so much fun.
I wish I could but, broke college student. Still, this was well worth the wait. Good shit.
Great work, good to have you back. I see by letting the story going in hiatus and letting what new stuff the show has presented, you've expanded the story. Similar to the original Waking Nightmares, where it began as if it was season 2 but retconned it to be like season 4.
Oh hey this updated, I can remove it from my dead stories library :D
....gonna need to do a re-read considering this is not the original and I still have that one in mind.
Ahhh...good to read about the TF2 crew in Equestria once again.
Not only is the story back, but most importantly, so are YOU
Welcome back my friend.
It's awesome to see this continue
Welcome back, you wonderful person!
Welcome back. Also
knight, you best update this
i will slap you if you don't
it's better than the original already
Uh, part of the curse (or enchantment, some could say. Maybe bound demon?) on the Eyelander is that in return for each decapitation the user is made stronger (At least, that's my interpretation for how it works in the game, probs not true), so if it's sealed wouldn't that boon be removed, as it'd be longer be able to effect its wielder?
Zecora not speaking in rhyme