The Equestrian Odyssey - A Tale of Two Worlds

by Kamahido

Chapter 11 - Prepping

The next day Arc and Rose step out of a portal in his parent’s bedroom. Numerous bags, boxes, and crates lie stacked around the room as the portal closes. Arc looks to her.

“That should be everything.”

“I still don’t understand why you need so many supplies.”

“Remember, that was Princess Luna’s idea. She says we should be ready for anything.”

Rose looks around. “But this is certainly overkill.”

“Maybe not. After all, we still don’t know what lies ahead.”

“I could tell you that.”

Arc raises an eyebrow. “Oh?”

“Several hours of unpacking.”

Arc chuckles as he heads for the door. “Then let’s get some help with that, shall we?”

Heading downstairs, Arc leads Rose to the basement steps. Descending them he is greeted by his squad in their human forms. They rush to line up and salute him. Max is the first to speak.

“Reporting as ordered, sir!”

Arc sighs. “At ease, all of you.”

They put their hands behind their backs as Arc motions to the table.

“Let’s sit down.”

Heading to the table, the group sits as Arc speaks.

“Now then, all of you know why we’re here.”

Xenos nods soberly. “Yeah. To help figure out what’s up with Miss Shelly.”

Viktor sighs. “I’m still having a hard time believing Doctor Knowles’ story.”

Hugh grits his teeth. “But if there’s even a small chance that she’s being honest we have to do this.”

Max clenches a fist. “Agreed. Shelly needs our help.”

Rose smiles. “And we will do our part.”

Arc continues. “Good. Now then, we don’t actually know if there’s anything useful to be found in Shelly’s records. But like Hugh said a moment ago, if there’s even the fraction of a chance that something could be done we have to do this. However first I should go over our base’s status.”

Xenos raises an eyebrow. “Status, sir?”

Rose gestures to the room around them. “This building.”

Hugh chuckles. “Feels more like a second home to me.”

Viktor nods. “We spent enough time down here to make it so.”

Max looks to Arc. “You said supplies were being delivered, sir. Did they arrive?”

“I brought them with me through the wormhole. They’re in my parent’s room upstairs.”

Rose pulls several papers from her pocket and unfolds them before turning to the squad and speaking.

“On the orders of Princess Luna we’ve been issued magically enhanced spears, traditional firearms, magical firearms, human-sized body armor, explosives, heavy weapons, medical supplies, and miscellaneous other items of war.”

Xenos gasps. “Sir, if I may, what are such things for?”

Hugh frowns. “Right. I thought this was supposed to be an infiltration mission?”

“It is. However Luna, on the suggestion of Princess Twilight, ordered these things be given to us out of an abundance of caution.”

Viktor groans. “Considering just how fast our missions can turn south it’s certainly not unwarranted.”

Max sighs. “I suppose that’s true. However I’d rather get this done quickly and quietly.”

Rose nods. “We will get underway after a plan is made and approved by Arc.”

“Right. I want to help Shelly just as much as you four do. But it needs to be done correctly. Now then, let’s all head upstairs and get our gear unpacked and stored down here. That should give Rose time to look around the hospital.”

“I’ll use what I see to make blueprints and help plan the operation when I get back.”

Arc turns to her. “Are you ready?”

Rose nods as she stands. “I am, yes.”

Calling forth a gauntlet Arc opens a portal. Rose steps through and vanishes as Arc turns back to the others.

“Now then, let’s get to work.”

He and the others head upstairs. Bringing down the crates they unpack everything and set up the corresponding racks. Looking around, Arc nods approvingly.

“Very good.”

Max grins. “I think we’re ready for anything now, sir.”

Xenos chuckles darkly. “Yeah. Anything we can’t go around now we go THROUGH!”

Viktor frowns. “Last resort, yes.”

Hugh shrugs. “Nice to have options though. But I don’t understand one thing, sir.”

“Oh? What’s that?”

“Why didn’t we have some of this stuff when we went to rescue Princess Celestia?”

“Because we were only given what I asked for back then. Twilight was the one whom came up with this grocery list.”

Arc nods. “Agreed. Now then, Viktor. I want you to make sure all our computers and other tech is ready for our next mission.”

“Yes sir.”

“Xenos, you and Hugh get the rest of the house in order.”

“We’ll take care of it, sir.”

“It’ll be spotless.”

Max raises a hand. “And me, sir?”

“I want you to come to the store with me to buy some supplies.”

Xenos chuckles. “I thought it was strange that Canterlot didn’t send us over any provisions.”

“Luna wanted to. But I told her I’d buy that from here. The prepackaged meals aren’t exactly what I would call tasty.”

He turns back to Max before continuing.

“Meet me in the Jeep. I need to make a call first.”

“Yes sir.”

They each go their separate ways. Max heads for the garage and gets into the Jeep’s driver seat. A short time later Arc arrives and climbs in. Motioning for Max to head out the young man puts the vehicle in gear and they begin on their way. Arc turns to him as they drive.

“You remember where the store is, right?”

“Yes sir.”

“Good.”

“Um… might I ask you something though, sir?”

“Go ahead.”

“I get the feeling that you ordered me to come with you on this drive for more than just the sake of help.”

Arc nods. “That’s correct. Truthfully I wanted to talk to you about something.”

“Sir?”

“You told me some time ago that you and Shelly were done. Do you still feel that way?”

“Yes sir.”

“Why?”

“After what she said to me when I told her the truth… there’s nothing I could say to make her believe me.”

“What if I had backed you up then?”

“I don’t think it would have made her believe me, sir.”

“So you think she would have just thought I was making it up too?”

Max nods. “Without some kind of physical proof, yes.”

“Like donning my armor or turning you back into a stallion?”

“Something like that.”

Arc looks away. “I… should have.”

“Sir?”

“I should have helped you convince her back then.”

“But you told me to break it off, sir.”

“That’s true, yes. At the time I was worried that we’d either get killed or never be able to come back here again due to the military looking for us.”

“A sound conclusion, yes.”

“So you agree with my reasoning?”

“Looking back at that time, yes sir. You were right to have me end it there. Had I not, Shelly would have spent the rest of her life waiting for me to come back.”

Arc sigh. “That wasn’t the only reason though.”

“You told me later that you didn’t want me to go through the loss of losing someone you loved.”

“Watching Cherry die… it’s not something you get over completely. That time will be forever etched into my memories.”

“But Miss Cherry is still among us, sir. That and you have so many other mares whom want to get to know you.”

“She did tell me to move on, yes. But that wasn’t easy to do either. Whenever I thought about getting to know someone new I always considered the possibility that they could end up just like Cherry. Dying on the floor in my arms.”

“That could happen to any of us, sir. But we’re willing to stay by your side to the bitter end.”

“Thanks, Max. But I need to make what happened right.”

“What did you have in mind, sir?”

“At some point, if she regains enough strength, I’d like to confront Shelly about what happened between you two that night. Tell her the truth myself.”

“She wouldn’t believe it, sir.”

“Maybe. Then again, maybe not. But I still want to try.”

“May I speak freely, sir?”

“Go ahead.”

“I’d rather that you spent this time trying to help Shelly. That and maybe make her last bit of time here on Earth a happy one.”

“And I will. But your feelings need to be factored in as well.”

“If you can help Shelly, my feelings aren’t…”

Arc interrupts him. “Max, that’s what made me do what I did.”

“Sir?”

“I thought only of Shelly’s feelings and not enough of yours. Now then, I won’t do this if you really don’t want me to. However, I’d really like to make things right between you two before this ends… one way or another.”

“I… I’d like that too, sir. But not because I think Shelly and I still have a chance at a relationship.”
“
Arc raises an eyebrow. “Then why…?

“Because I really do what to be honest with her about who I am and where I come from. Even if she doesn’t accept it, I want to share the complete and utter truth with her one last time.”

“And if she still rejects that?”

Max shrugs. “Then I’ll have done all I can, sir.”

Arc sighs. “All you can.”

“Sir?”

“Then I’ll have failed too.”

“I don’t see how.”

“Maybe it would have been better to have been honest with them from the start.”

“You told us long ago not to tell them in an effort to keep them safe and spare their feelings, sir.”

“I know, Max. But… but lately I’ve been questioning if that was really the best course of action.”

“What else could you have done, sir?”

“Like I said. Been honest from the start.

“Trusted them with your secret?”

“Lily and Shelly… we’ve always told each other everything. Frank did agree to keep what he knew about Equestria to himself, of course. But that’s only because he was worried about the truth affecting Shelly’s condition.”

“I’m sure by now her condition has deteriorated to the point of needed around the clock medical care. Is that not correct, sir?”

Arc nods. “It is. That’s why we’re going after those medical records.”

“And where do you think such news would have put her? Had you been honest, I mean.”

“Right into a hospital bed. But at this point it may be too late to be honest, as the strain of learning the truth would almost certainly kill her.”

“While I can’t deny that, sir, that doesn’t mean it’s still too late to do what’s right by Lily in this matter.”

“You mean that I should tell her who I really am?”

“Of course. After all, she can take the truth.”

“I probably should. But she has enough on her plate at the moment trying to care for Shelly.”

“She’s waited a long time already, sir. However I do understand your reasoning.”

Arc bows his head. “Yes, well… I’ll tell her everything when this matter is concluded… one way or the other.”

Sometime later they return from the store with a completely filled Jeep. Calling for the others to help, Arc opens the trunk to expose their bounty. Xenos is the first to speak.

“Did you buy out the whole store, sir?!”

Hugh gasps. “Kinda looks like it.”

Viktor’s eyes grow wide. “Those are some big boxes!”

Max shrugs. “We went to a… what was it called again, sir?”

“A wholesale outlet store. They sell things in bulk for cheap.”

Xenos heads for the vehicle. “We’ll get everything squared away, sir.”

Viktor grimaces. “But it’s not likely it’ll all fit in the cupboards as it stands.”

Hugh turns to Arc. “Where should the rest go, sir?”

“In the basement. We bought some shelving units on the way there.”

Max looks over his shoulder. “I’ll get to work assembling them with Viktor. By the time everything is moved into place we should have them ready.”

“Good.”

Xenos glances at the clock. “Isn’t Rose supposed to be ready for pickup soon?”

Viktor shrugs. “Fifteen minutes from now, yes.”

Hugh chuckles. “She’s very punctual.”

Arc sighs. “That she is. But I suppose that gives me time to continue a call I started earlier.”

Max nods soberly. “Go ahead, sir. We’ve got this.”

Arc heads upstairs. Entering his parent’s room he closes the door behind him and flops down on the bed. Reaching over to a strange looking telephone he picks up the receiver and pushes a few buttons before putting it to his ear. A few moments later a familiar voice rings out from the other end.

“Dad! You called back!”

“I told you I would, sweetie. How did the move go?”

“Great! The Equinox brought everypony back to town early this morning! Everything is completely rebuilt now!”

“Everything?”

“Well, they’re still doing some work on a few houses and Carousel Boutique.”

Arc raises an eyebrow. “Rarity’s shop?”

“Yeah. I guess they made a few mistakes there.”

“Nothing major though, right?”

“Nah. Sweetie Belle says that Rarity’s just being picky about the trim, or something.”

“Well, I’m sure Hard Hat and his crews will make it to her standards in time. How do you like your mother’s new house though?”

“It’s pretty much the same as the old one.”

“But brand new.”

“Yeah. No more squeaky floorboards or cracked plaster over here now though.”

“Does your mother like it?”

“Well… yes and no.”

“Oh?”

“She is happy to be home in Ponyville, yes. But to be completely honest with you she says she’s going to have some trouble adjusting to the new house.”

“Is it her mat?”

Dinky sighs. “Yeah. There was no sign of it when we went through the charred remains of the old house. We bought her a new one from Barnyard Bargains, of course. But she says it’s just not the same.”

Arc sighs. “I see. Not really sure how to fix that. After all, it was started by her mother and finished by Derpy herself.”

“When I suggested that I learn how to make one for her mom got really agitated so I dropped the conversation.”

“That probably brought back some bad memories, Dinky. Please don’t bring that up around her again.”

“I won’t, dad. But that still leaves the matter of mom not being able to sleep properly here at the house.”

“Did she talk to you about… our future plans?”

Dinky sounds confused. “Um… no. Did something happen?”

“We’ll talk about it later today when I come see you.”

“You’re coming back today dad?!”

“Yup. I need to talk to everyone about something important.”

“Good or bad news?”

“Very good actually.”

“That’s a relief. I thought something bad happened on your date the other day. Um… how’d that go?”

“We had a blast thanks to you and your friends.”
“
Dinky giggles. “Everypony did their best to make it happen.”

“Well, I should probably get going. It’s about time for me to open a portal for Rose.”

“Rose?”

“She’s at the hospital mapping out their floor layout.”

“Then I’ll let you get back to work, dad.”

“Dinky?”

“Yeah dad?”

“I… I’m sorry.”

“What for?”

“It seems like every time we try to have a nice time together my job gets in the way.”

“But that isn’t your fault, dad.”

Arc groans. “Kinda is. After all, I need to be stepping back and letting others take the lead.”

“What about everything left to do though? Like the Changelings invading?”

“That’s a big one, yes.”

“And the trouble with Princess Celestia?”

“Twilight and Luna could probably handle that one.”

“But I thought you relieved her of duty?”

“I did, yes.”

“Then you need to be there to reinstate her at some point, right?”

“I suppose so. But…”

Dinky interrupts him. “And what about supporting Twilight in her role as princess?”

“Her friends are doing a great job of helping her with the day to day affairs of running the nation. That and she has Luna with her too.”

“True. But when something big comes up you’re still the first one they call.”

Arc chuckles. “Not sure if you’re trying to convince me to distance myself from this job or that I’m honestly needed here.”

“Kinda both, dad. But we can talk about that more when you come back later today.”

“Y-yeah. I’ll see you this evening. Tell your mother ‘hi’ for me.”

“I will, dad.”

“Love you, Dinky.

“Love you too, dad.”

“Bye.”

Hanging up the receiver Arc groans as he sits up.

“Dinky. You deserve a full time father. That and your mother deserves a real fiancée. I… I need to be here to do this personally, yes. And I have so much to do back in Equestria too that I can’t even think about retiring right now.”

Standing, he walks over to the sigil and calls forth his gauntlet. Looking at the clock, he sighs.

“And here I stand… waiting. All the while there are those doing the same for me back in Equestria.”

Opening a portal, he stands off to one side. Rose steps through and turns to him as the swirling energies subside.

“Recon complete.”

“Good.”

Rose raises an eyebrow. “Is something wrong, Arc?”

“What makes you…?”

“Your vitals are a bit… off.”

“I’m just a bit… out of sorts from a conversation I had with Dinky before you came back.”

Rose appears confused. “With Dinky?”

Arc nods. “Yes. You see, I want to be with her more. Walk her, Derpy, and the other fillies to the orphanage. See my future wives off to work with a good breakfast. And do odd jobs around town to earn a living.”

“Does the idea of such a life depress you?”

“Not in the least. In fact, I crave it.”

“You want a family life?”

“More than anything in the world.”

“I think you already know what to do, Arc. All that’s left is to act.”

“Yes, well… it’s a bit more complicated than that, Rose.”

“Most likely, yes. But you deserve happiness too, Arc.”

“If I don’t do my job though no one is going to be happy.”

“Then what are you going to do?”

Arc motions toward the door. “My very best.”

Comments

[Theresa]

If things would ever settled down and the girls don't blow it by being jealous because Luna isn't good at making friends like the rest of them. Even if currently there is nothing but friendship between her and arc.

[Ghost Alvasa]

Looks like the true weight of this job as the soul human is finally starting to weigh on him

[Booster Spice]

Could do with a quick time and grab of Derpys Mat if it couldnt be found in the debris?

[Kamahido]

11426442
Sadly it was destroyed in the fire.