The Lost

by Immortan Joe

Chapter 3: The Fallen Chunk

“Good, good!” Twilight beamed as Starlight flopped back on her haunches, in the open field outside of Ponyville, panting heavily and wiping the sweat off her forehead with a levitated napkin. She had just finished transmogrifying an entire house into a tree house very similar to that of Twilight’s original home before it had been so rudely destroyed. “I must say, Starlight, your magical abilities still impress me.” The Alicorn mentor hummed as she examined her apprentices work. “Even a few years back I alone had a few kinks to hammer out, yet you--”

Starlight, who was blushing heavily under her coat, silenced Twilight with a raised hoof. “Thank you, Twilight, I understand,” she said softly as she pushed herself onto her hooves exhausted. “Do you mind if I take a break for a bit? I think Pinky’s magic surprise party decorations can wait a bit...” she let off a low, yet long yawn.

Twilight smiled warmly and gave Starlight a small nod. “Of course, Starlight, take as much time as you need.” She hummed and glanced up at the sky, enjoying the morning sun as it began to rise in the distance, the two of them had been up nearly all night preparing for Pinky’s magic surprise party for the Cutie Mark Crusaders and their, yet another, success at helping another foal gain their mark. As Twilight looked up at the pink and purple clouds above the Alicorn wiped her own tiredness from her eyes with the tip of her wing. “I might retire for a couple hours myself, if you need me I’ll...Be...” Twilight trailed off, her eyes widening.

Starlight blinked. “Twilight?” The unicorn smirked and shook her head. “You better not be--watch out!” With a burst of magic the unicorn teleported both her and her mentor away as a massive unidentified object crashed into the field they stood practicing in. An eruption of fire and debris flung outwards as a massive shock wave would send the two ponies, who had thought were safe, back and rolling.

Twilight landed on her stomach, limbs sprawled out and head spinning. Chunks of debris and metallic material sprinkled the ground around the alicorn and the occasional cinder burned her dirtied coat. With ringing ears and blurred vision, the mare shook her head and blinked as her eyes burned from the smoke and heat. She squinted her eyes and looked on ahead before gasping, though she wouldn’t hear herself doing so.

Starlight Glimmer, who had landed on her side, rolled over and looked up at Twilight. Having also gone deaf, she didn’t bother asking what her mentor was gawking at, turning her head to see what her teacher was awestruck by the unicorn’s stomach dropped and all thought was lost as she saw the massive Globemasters burning hull and smoldering cockpit.

Both mare’s slowly pushed themselves to their hooves and swayed gently as they watched the piece of alien machinery burn and spark, various pieces in the distance falling and slamming down around them. “What in Celestia’s name...is that?” Both mare’s thought to themselves as their adrenaline coursed through their bodies.

___

The town of Ponyville was thrown into a mass of confusion and curiosity shortly after the unidentified object struck the open field a quarter mile away from town. Starlight and Twilight quickly went to work on putting out the nearby flames before stopping when they noticed the distance plumes of smoke of what could only be remnants of the object that had broken off. Luckily the plumes were coming deep within the Everfree and proved no immediate danger to anypony, though the fear of a forest fire did not bode well with the two mares.

As Twilight literally dropped a massive bubble of water over the clear wreckage, a wave of superheated steam hissed violently and pushed out in all directions. Coughing and shielding their eyes, the two mares blinked and watched with awe as the simmering twisted sheets of metal and other various bits revealed themselves to the girls.

Starlight stepped forward. “This isn’t right,” She said softly before glancing at Twilight. “This isn’t anything natural, like look at it.” The mare quickly kicked the heated metal and hissed before blushing as Twilight shook her head.

“I agree,” The alicorn said with a slight nod. “Despite how damaged this appears, it looks too artificial to have formed, even within Luna’s realm above.” She gestures to the sky with a flick of her head. Twilight then frowned and said, “Even then...this also doesn’t seem to be anything pony-made either.” She glanced back at Starlight who frowned.

“What do you mean?” The unicorn asked as she moved closer to the wreckage, behind the girls over a nearby hill leading into town, local residents began to appear and investigate. Amongst them came the farm pony Applejack who galloped towards the initial mares.

“What in tarnation is going on?!” The farm mare called out to the girls before stopping a few hoof steps away, panting heavily she gestures with her hoof towards the intensely thinking mares. “What is this?”

Twilight wouldn’t answer Applejack immediately as she said to Starlight, “Well look at what it’s made of.” Twilight placed a heat protection spell over her hoof and kicked the metal which let off a low ring. “Even our pedal-copters are only made of wood and iron, nothing of that magnitude would survive, even in pieces, a crash like we saw.” Twilight kicked the metal again. “Whatever this material is...its tough; dense.”

Applejack blinked. “So...this is is that loud bang we heard?” The Earth Pony asked and finally both other mares looked at her.

“Oh, hey, AJ,” They both said simultaneously and glanced at each other before giggling.

“Yes.” Twilight nodded her head. “We have...no idea where it came from,” Twilight said seriously as she glanced back at the wreckage of the charred C-17 hull and cockpit. “It just fell from the sky and well,” she pointed with a wing towards the distant smoke from the Everfree. “I don’t think we have the whole thing.”

AJ cocked an eyebrow and glanced at the smoke and then the wreckage for a few moments. “Alright...what the hay are we waitin’ for then?” She said and looked at Starlight. “Y’all should be goin and gettin the others and searchin for the rest of...” She circled her hoof at the broken thing in front of her. “This!”

Both girls blinked and then smiled. Twilight nodded her head. “Applejack, you’re right.” She then looked to Starlight. “I’m afraid out rest is going to have to wait, Starlight...” She then paused. “Well if you want--” Twilight was halted by Starlight shaking her head and smiling, which in turn made Twilight beam happily. “Alright, in that case, I want you to round up the rest of the girls while I prepare for an expedition!” The Alicorn leaped up and down, excitement filling her at the possibility of adventure and discovery.

Twilight’s enthusiasm seemed to be contagious as within moments Starlight herself was hopping on her hooves. “Alright! I’ll be back in thirty minutes with whoever I can find.” She then looked to Applejack. “AJ, have you seen the others around here?”

“I’m here!” Pinkie Pie exploded out from behind the wreckage of the object, charred patches and a few scrapes covering her coat, mane frazzled and clearly burnt in a few spots. The pink pony’s sudden appearance elucidating a startled screech from the three ponies. “And I think I seen Dash sleeping outside her house...which honestly doesn’t make any sense because like her house is only like twenty feet away where she has like a bed and blankets but like--” Starlight muted Pinkie Pie with a spell which the pink earth pony wouldn’t even notice and would continue to ramble.

“Well alright,” The unicorn smiled and looked back at the others who were giving her stern looks. “Be back in thirty minutes?”

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