Brony Recon: Ascension

by Freescript the Bard

Song of Return Part 2: Unforeseen Circumstances

Chloe's POV

"Gah!" I yelled as the time-ship lurched again. I understood the whole 'hurtling through time and space' thing, but couldn't the Time Lords make something less shaky? "The TARDIS is a lot more bumpy than it appears on the show!"

"I know!" replied the Doctor over the noise of the vessel shuddering. "Your friend Seth said the same thing! Yet I have to agree they sweeten the tremors a bit on the show. Great series, by the way! Very accurate!"

"Hey guys? I don't want to rain on your little Doctor Who fan moment, but we're kinda in the middle of a crisis!" shouted Nick from the other side of the room. "Doctor, how much longer?!"

"Just a few more--" The Doctor's estimation was cut off by the TARDIS jolting to a stop. Without bothering to stand up from tripping, he continued. "--nanoseconds."

"Very astute calculation, Doctor," I grumbled. "Nick! You okay?!"

"Yeah! Although I appear to be buried under a bunch of metal and half of the Doctor's wardrobe," came the call from another room in the ship.

"Oh thank Celestia…" I groaned, moving into the the wardrobe room of the TARDIS that the Doctor uses to change his appearance in after every regeneration. Indeed, there was a random pile of clothing and metal in the center of the room. The sound of grunting told me Nick was still trying to get out. Despite the large amount of weight on his body, the pile still shifted with every heave.

The Doctor and I scrambled over the pile, removing articles of clothing. I had to notice some of the clothes were a bit weird, like a four-armed sweater with a heart on it. After a few dozen coats, jackets, and pants, it was just metal between me and Nick.

"Oh buck…" I heard the murmur from the pile of metal. I was trying to remove a large metal pipe that was extended vertically from the heap.

"Nick, what's wrong?" I asked worriedly. "How close are we?"

"Chloe, could you pull that pipe out? I don't think I'm as fine as I thought I was…"

I tried to oblige, but the pole was barely budging at my attempts. It was really stuck in there. "Doctor, give me a hand with this!" I ordered. The Time Lord tossed away the sheet of metal he was holding and gripped the pipe. Together, we heaved upward, and the length of metal inched out, slowly at first, then at an increased rate. With one last heave, the end came free…

…covered in a dark red liquid. We stared at the bloodied pole before panicking and doubled our efforts. "Nick, we're gonna get you outta there!" shouted the Doctor. "Hang in there!"

"Ohmygoshohmygoshohmygoshohmygosh," I said in a panic. "Oh please be okay please dear Luna let him be okay." Tears were fogging my vision. I was hoping to whatever forces that drive Terra and Earth that he was okay. That it was all just fine. That I wouldn't lose him again…

"Ngh!" the Doctor grunted, throwing one last sheet of metal off the trapped brony. What we saw horrified us. Nick was laying down, the lower part of his legs buried still. He was breathing heavily, as if tired. With both hands, he clutched at his midsection, which was oozing blood. The pipe had pierced him all the way through, from his front to his back.

Nick looked down at the wound and grimaced. "This is gonna ruin my whole day…"

"Nick, don't move," ordered the Doctor. "Chloe, support his other side. We need to get him out of the TARDIS."

I did as I was told, tears still stinging my eyes. "Where are we?" I asked the Doctor.

The Time Lord didn't answer directly, kicking open the door to the time machine. We carried Nick out the doors into a medium sized bedroom. It took me a few moments to realize we were in New York. In Nick's house.

"Set him down carefully on the bed," instructed the Doctor. We cautiously placed Nick on the blankets, taking care not to hurt him further. The bleeding hadn't stopped and Nick's breathing was becoming ragged. He was losing blood fast. In a last-ditch effort, I took my two spare bandanas out of my jacket pocket and applied pressure to his wound. But I couldn't cover the wound on his back.

While I stressed over his wound, the Doctor searched the house for a first-aid kit. A touch on my arm alerted me to Nick's calling. "Chloe, if I don't make it--"

"Shut up."

"…tell Dash--"

"Nick, shut the buck up. You are not going to die," I stated firmly. "I can't do that again. I don't think Dash could handle losing you again." I tried to reach my hand under Nick to stem the bleeding from the exit wound.

Sudden footsteps sounded in the hall. More than one set. The Doctor quickly appeared in the doorway, holding a first-aid kit, followed by a middle-aged woman. The woman gasped when she saw Nick. "Chloe, take this," said the Doctor, handing me the kit. "I need to find some water."

I opened the kit and took out the gauze, working the cloth around Nick's midsection. As I worked, I looked up at the woman. "You must be Nick's mother," I greeted. "I would say its nice to meet you, but given the circumstances…"

>><<>><<

Ben's POV

For a van, it was actually pretty comfy, and provided perfect cushions for Dinky to fall asleep on, which she did. Probably for the best, as we were carrying precious cargo. Storm was on edge, as per the expected. I couldn't put a meter on the situation. It was already awkward that Storm was a pony in the first place, but even more disconcerting was she was also a mare, in contrast to her male human counterpart. On top of that, she was engaged AND pregnant.

All these thoughts ran through my mind as the Equestria Daily van rolled down the road to Storm's house. It was a few mile drive through St. Louis, literally just down the road from Exodus Equestria Headquarters. We could have walked there, but given the sight of a human walking down the road next to a small purple unicorn and an even smaller grey unicorn, it was pretty much impossible to do so without compromising Exodus Equestria. So now, we were stuck in the mid afternoon traffic, extending the minute-long trip to ten minutes

"You alright, Storm?" I asked as I saw her form shiver on the opposite seat.

"I'm fine, Ben. Or at least, as fine as I am for being in possibly the most awkward position in the world," she said, pawing the seat. "It's just that… I'm okay with what happened to me. The thought of having a foal makes me feel excited and happy, especially since it's with Caramel. But I'm worried what my parents will think of having a colt or filly for a grandchild, or how their former son is now the mare carrying that foal."

"Yeah, I can see how that would be the most edgy situation in the world," I admitted, rubbing the back of my neck. "I guess we'll find out when we get there. But Storm? Don't worry. I'll be right there with you."

A small yawn called my attention to the seat next to me. Dinky was just blinking awake. Her sleepy golden eyes wandered into my own. It was amazing how much her eyes were like her mother's. "Have a nice nap, Dinky?" I asked my fillyfriend's filly.

She yawned again and nodded. Still half asleep, she crawled up onto my lap and rested her head. Absent-mindedly, I scratched behind her ear, causing a relaxed smile to spread across her drowsy face. Groggily, she snuggled up to my stomach and sighed out.

Storm smiled at the sight and subconsciously put a hoof to her swollen abdomen. "That," she said, pointing at Dinky, "is why I'm happy about becoming a mother."

Our reverie was broken by a tap on the sliding window that separated the back of the van from the driver's seat. "Welcome to your destination," announced Seth from the front. "Thank you for traveling with Equestrian Airspace, and we hope you enjoy your extended weekend."

I rolled my eyes at the attempt at comedy. Careful not to disturb her, I picked up Dinky and escorted Storm out of the van. Storm's parents' house was a single-story suburban home, kinda ordinary.

I inhaled deep and walked Storm up to the front step. "Ready, Storm?" She hesitated, but nodded shyly. Setting the now awake Dinky on her hooves, I stepped up to the door and casually knocked.

"Hey, Ben? I should probably mention something about my parents," said Storm hurriedly.

She didn't have time, however, as the door opened before she could tell me anything. "Hello? Who are you?" the man at the door asked me.

"Hi, my name's Ben. Would you happen to be Sam's father?"

The man raised an eyebrow at my name and the mention of Storm's human name. "Aren't you one of Sam's friends he was traveling with on that university grant?"

"Yeah… about that…" I scratched the side of my head nervously. C'mon, Ben, use those PR skills! "We weren't exactly TRAVELING, per se. Are you familiar with a place called Equestria?"

My nervousness turned to surprise when he let out a chuckle. I felt a nudge on my leg and looked down to see Storm gesturing wildly from out of her father's view. I was unable to decipher her message before her dad answered. "Why, you a fellow brony?"

There was a barely audible 'conk' as Storm facehoofed. Storm's dad was a brony. "Uh, yes, well… would it completely shock you if I said that the six of us were all in Equestria for the past few months?" I asked.

He chuckled again. "I would say that would be a terrible excuse for a joke," he answered. This time, the facehoof was from Dinky. "Now, if you're here, where would Sam have run off to?"

I was about to answer, but Storm stepped out of her hiding place. "Hey, Dad…"

Everyone froze. The appearance of the pony put a stunned look on Storm's dad's face. It was probably the same way I reacted when I first saw Cereal Velocity as a unicorn. Really, the Rainbow Dash 'loyalty' tee shirt Storm's dad was wearing put the whole while scene into what it would be if a major fanboy met their idol. In my mind, I compiled a list of reactions, and thoroughly went through how I would act in response.

What I didn't count for was the man at the door bursting into laughter, throwing my thought process for a loop. "You turned my son into a pony?!" he gasped between bouts of laughter.

"Well, not me specifically, but our superiors did…" I answered, still confounded at his reaction.

"I was trying to tell you, Ben," said Storm from behind me. "My parents are a tad bit nonsensical, if not completely Pinkie-level insane."

This somehow invoked another laughing stream to emit from her dad. "Are you telling me that…" he paused to gasp and chuckle some more. "…that not only is my son a pony, but he's a mare?!"

"He reminds me of what you used to act like a bit," I said to Storm.

She sighed. "That was before I was pregnant."

Silence can mean many things. It can be peaceful, suspenseful, even awkward. In this case, it fell into the 'too much information' category. Storm's dad, in a mood switch that rivaled Storm's in magnitude, went from hilariously incapacitated to grimly serious. Even though his eyes barely came to my shoulders, he had more than enough height to glare down at his former son.

Storm shrunk visibly under her father's gaze. "Oops…"

Author's Note:

Skyblaze: You know, given Storm's position, I feel kinda lucky. I'm still the same gender and I also have my beautiful fiancé to help me out.

Luna: Well, aren't you a flatterer?

Skyblaze: Only 'cause it's true. *kisses Luna passionately*

MB: Hey guys? Still in the room with you… guys? C'mon, at least go into the other room to do… oh c'mon, Sky, I don't need to see that!

Comments

[Fireeaters]

hey you could do a starwars joke because you made skyblaze and that technicaly means you're his imaginary dad

[XrosOver]

Brony dad is best dad! Still awkward though... NOW onto sky and luna!

[TonydBrony]

(Before Read)
Yes! New chapter!

(Post Read)
Damnit all! Nick, don't you FACKING die! I like you amongst the bronies the most because you remind me of myself!
DON'T GO INTO THE LIGHT! Please!
All this yelling at my moniter is making my throat hurt.
Don't die...

[M3Xkillers]

Great chapter as always, waiting for the OC contest

[JellyMyst]

1201478 Who isn't waiting for the OC contest winners?

[A fat elephant]

I can only imagine how awkward it must be for Storm's dad... Especially when he has to introduce Storm. "Hey everypony/one, this is my son... except now he's a mare, and was impregnated by a pony."

[aebed]

Definitely very awkward.

[Baraka Obama]

She sighed. "That was before I was pregnant."

I literally almost fell over laughing when read that
(I'm going to be smiling for the next five minutes now just by thinking about it)