The Equestrian Hero's Call: Homecoming

by Genis94

When You Least Expect Them

30 minutes ago

The chocolate cake looked delectable. Each and every piece of it was evenly coated in chocolate frosting, drizzled in bits of chocolate. Truly it was a recovering chocoholic's worst nightmare, but for me, it was heaven. As tempted as I was to leap in and start eating, there was a time-honored tradition for birthdays. Eighteen candles adorned the cake, each holding a small flame that flickered with the slightest breath or movement. I thought for a moment what I would have for my wish. It seemed like it was already perfect. Everypony was happy and all of my friends were with me, but I frowned when I realized who was missing.

"My family..."

I wanted to see them again. I wanted to pay them a visit, but I wasn't sure if I could trouble Princess Celestia with such a request. So I blew out the candles with a single wish on my mind.

"I want to see my family again."

--------

Present Time

I was tumbling through the portal. There was no sense of direction; no up or down. There was only an expanse of the repeating white and black pattern. I shut my eyes as the pattern began to make my stomach churn. I could hear everypony screaming in terror around me. I could only hope that this portal would lead somewhere safe.

Suddenly there seemed to be a single dark spot at the end of the tunnel. It began growing larger and larger in size, seeming to be a destination.

"Anything's better than tumbling around in here for eternity."

Soon I was flung out of the portal into a dark room. I had the good fortune to land back first into a chair of some kind. Soon all of my friends followed suit, with Ragna landing on my head.

"Everypony okay?" I asked.

Everypony began giving responses after groaning from the ordeal. Celestia looked around panicked.

"Where is Luna?"

"AAAAAAAAHHHHHHH!!!"

Luna came flying through the portal screaming from disorientation. I had no time to react before she came flopping down on top of me.

"Oooohhhh..." She moaned.

"Ow... You're heavier than you look." I winced in complaint.

Luna shook off her grogginess and looked down to see she had me pinned on my back. Her eyes gazed intently at mine as her cheeks began to turn an almost crimson red. Her lips began to part as if to say something, but no words came out.

"Uh... Could you please get off, Luna?" I politely asked.

"O-of course..." She said as though she were in a dream-like state.

Slowly she got up and allowed me to do the same, her eyes locked on me the entire time. My pendant helped illuminate the room as I looked around to see where the portal had dumped us. I noticed the chairs in the room were all lined in a semi-circular pattern facing the origin point of the portal. I turned around to see the portal shrink in on itself before disappearing. In it's place, was a large white fabric screen that covered most of the wall.

"Looks like some kind of movie theater." I deduced.

I took notice of several movie posters on the walls next to the chairs. Casablanca, Star Wars, Ghost Busters, and Scott Pilgrim.

"We're on Earth?" I whispered in surprise.

Everypony else gasped in shock, but Twilight seemed to be as giddy as a school girl.

"We're in another dimension! We're the first ponies to cross over to an entirely different world!" She cheered as she bounced around in excitement.

"Shh! Keep your voice down!" I scolded.

Twilight quickly shut her mouth and stopped her prancing.

"What's the problem?" Vinyl asked.

"Based on what I've gathered, we're on Earth in either a privately owned theater, or we're in some rich person's home theater. Either way, I doubt they'll take kindly to trespassers from another dimension."

Rarity seemed to be optimistic. "I'm sure that whoever is here would understand the situation."

I gave the unicorn a deadpan look. "Rarity, in case I forgot to mention it before: talking ponies don't exist in my world. People are going to freak out if they see you."

"Oh... right."

I shrugged. "Well, I guess Celestia can just send us all back now before anypony gets dissected."

The alicorn in question frowned as she trotted to the center of the room. "I've been trying to do that during the entire conversation. I can't send any of us back."

Everypony, myself included, began gasping and whispering in worry.

"B-but what about Angel and all of my pets?" Fluttershy asked in fear.

"Granny Smith is gonna worry her head off!" Applejack panicked.

"And my concerto is in a week! I'd hate to ruin my reputation!" Octavia worried.

I stomped my foot to get everypony's attention. "Hey! Rule 1: Don't panic. Panicking will only get us in trouble. I'm sure there's a reason Celestia can't send us back."

Celestia cleared her throat. "It's almost like something is blocking my connection to Equestria. Whatever it is, it has unimaginable power."

"Hey, something sent us here, I'm sure we can find a way back eventually." I assured.

Everypony began to relax a little.

"I do keep a months worth of food for the animals in my cottage. I'm sure they'll be fine until we can get back." Fluttershy reasoned.

"And Ah guess Granny and the others will understand." Applejack agreed.

"Alright. Now the first thing we're going to do is find out exactly where we are." I told them.

Meanwhile...

"Sir! Large energy spike detected!"

It was a dark room illuminated by several monitors that were gathering data on energy readings across the United States. The military had several dark secrets, and very few knew about the dealings of the Ascension Organization. Ascension was developed after the extraterrestrial findings in Roswell, New Mexico to study and protect against extraterrestrial threats. Area 51 was just a cover to keep people from looking too closely, effectively hiding a tree in the forest.

"Details." A gruff male voice demanded.

"Sir, it's like nothing I've ever seen before. It's like it's showing up on all visible spectrums, but it doesn't belong exclusively to any known energy signature."

Commander Alexander Anderson. The feared leader of Ascension. He seeked to complete missions with no regard for consequences. He was a renegade of a commander, but he managed to keep Ascension running.

"Alright then. I'm enacting Crimson Protocol. Contact Gamma Squad. We are taking a chopper to the point of origin."

The man behind the monitors checked his data. "I think I've triangulated an exact origin point. It's an estate in upstate Pennsylvania."

"Excellent." Anderson simply responded.

"Sir? What did you mean by 'we'?"

"I'm overseeing this mission directly."

--------

Exiting from the theater room, we found that we were indeed inside an estate of some kind.

"Watch out for guard hounds..." I muttered.

Whoever was living in this place was loaded. This house had to be at least ten times the size of my old house. I had my weapons sheathed across my back. I knew that wouldn't make me look too good if we bumped into someone, but I figured that I shouldn't just leave them laying around somewhere either. I suppose the best thing to do would be to make ourselves known before anything bad started to happen. I'd rather people not think I'm a robber or something.

I rounded a corner and found myself face to face with one of the biggest shocks of my life.

"Mom? Dad?" I asked in disbelief.

My parents stood motionless in the hallway. The disbelief in their eyes told you that they could barely comprehend what was happening. Soon enough I found myself walking towards them, as they did the same. Meeting at the middle, we embraced each other in a tearful hug.

"I missed you guys so much!" I sobbed.

My mom began hugging me tightly and kissing me as though she might lose me in an instant. "Where have you been? Your father here told me some ridiculous story about how you went to live in some pony land!"

"Who are you calling silly?" He teasingly asked.

Well, this was certainly awkward.

"Uh, mom? You see..."

"So these are your parents?" a voice asked from behind me.

I turned to see Luna and the others all standing behind me.

"Shit..." I blurted.

My dad seemed rather calm. I suppose it was because he saw Celestia before I bade him farewell. As for my mother...

"WHAT ARE THOSE THINGS?!"

"And a fine hello to you too." Rainbow responded in annoyance.

"T-they can t-t-talk!"

"Mom, calm down. I can explain everything."

My mother was still terrified, but she offered me a quick nod to assure she was listening. I filled her in on everything that happened, although I just gave her the message that I wound up in Equestria. I didn't want her freaking out about me almost dying twice.

"So now on to my questions." I told her.

"Of course... What do you want to know?"

"For starters, why are you in this mansion?"

"I won the lottery." My dad responded matter-of-factly.

I twitched a little, but then I began laughing. "Good one, dad! But seriously, why are you here?"

"He's telling the truth." An elderly man answered.

This guy was the textbook definition of classy. He had black hair tied back in a ponytail, wore a monocle, and dressed in a formal shirt, vest, and pants. He had a British accent and looked to be in his late 60's or early 70's.

"Allow me to introduce myself. I am Walter C. Dornez. I am the butler to the Shearer estate. Your father here won the lottery about eight months ago. The prize was a sum of $550 million."

There's a part in each of our minds that kind of locks us up when something is just too good to be true. This was one of those situations.

Here's a simulation of my reaction.

--------

I woke up a few minutes later. The shock of the situation was still making me numb. After all the times I had mocked my dad for buying lottery tickets all the time, he had finally won. It seemed I got my birthday wish, I just never expected it to be like this.

"Okay, so let's recap. We all fell through an inter-dimensional portal into what just happened to be a mansion owned by my parents. This is all just a little crazy."

"You're all welcome to stay here." My dad offered.

Rarity slid over to me with a pleading face that said 'Say yes!'.

"You sure you've got enough room?" I asked.

"We've got plenty of spare guest rooms with basic furnishing. Although, I'm not sure if they'll fit talking ponies."

Celestia offered a confident grin. "I believe I may have a solution for that."

Celestia charged up her horn with magic and began enveloping all of the Equestrians in the aura. The light grew with such intensity that I had to look away while shielding my eyes. Once the light subsided, I slowly opened my eyes to yet another massive surprise.

Each of the ponies, and Spike, had undergone a transformation into humans. Although, they still retained their natural hair color, horns, and wings. Each of them were clothed in fitting attire, and they all had their own physical characteristics.

Twilight had a tan skin tone that suggested Spanish or Italian descent, She wore a purple and black plaid skirt with a white button up shirt. She had purple and pink striped knee-socks that went down to her buckled loafers.

Applejack's attire was rather predictable. She had on an orange and red flannel shirt with a white T-shirt underneath, blue jeans, and her trademark stetson. She shifted her weight as she took notice of the cowboy boots on her newly acquired feet. She had fairly toned white skin with freckles on her face and her hair still tied in a ponytail.

Rarity still had her lavishly stylish purple hair and adored her newly acquired white dress with a stylish purple belt. She seemed to have little trouble wearing her purple high heels.

Spike was gushing at Rarity the entire time, taking little notice to his new purple jacket and pants. His green T-shirt complemented his still lizard-like eyes, and he seemed to look around the age of 14.

Next up was Fluttershy. At least, for the few moments we saw her before she jumped behind the couch in surprise. She was wearing a butter-cream sweater and a long brown skirt to complement it. There appeared to be two holes cut out in the back of the sweater for her wings to fit through.

Speaking of wings, Rainbow Dash was stretching her newly acquired limbs in her cyan sweats. She had an athletic build and shorter hair than some of the others, with her longest hairs reaching around her shoulders. Seeing her wings poking out of the holes in her sweats, she tested them out by hovering in mid air.

Pinkie Pie was giggling loudly as she wiggled her fingers and toes. She was wearing a pink party dress with frills underneath. Her cotton candy shaped hair was still as large and fluffy as ever.

Octavia wore a black pantsuit with her trademark pink bow tie. She inspected her hands for any defects or blemishes, humming in satisfaction when she found none present.

Vinyl Scratch still had her trademark shades and her spiky blue hair reached around her lower neck. She had black pants with a light blue belt, and a white T-shirt that read "Keep Calm And Drop the Bass".

Princess Celestia still maintained all of her grandeur. Her light spectrum hair still covered one eye and flowed in a nonexistent wind. Her regalia still graced her in the form of a golden tiara, necklace, bracelets, and high heels. She wore a white dress with a lower cut on one side reminiscent of a toga. As for her physical appearance, her horn and wings were as magnificent as ever, and she looked to be a woman in her early to mid 30's.

And then there was Luna. Her summer night hair flowed as gracefully as her sister's, and her black and platinum regalia adorned her in a similar fashion. She wore a black dress with a crescent moon symbol on the front, with a cut around her shins. They each had a fair build as far as female standards on Earth go, and I don't want to seem sexist by saying how stunning they all looked, but something drew my eyes to Luna. Everything else seemed to lose it's interest when I looked at her. I tried to express in words how good she and the others looked, but I could only manage one.

"Whoa."

Luna blushed and shuffled one of her feet. "My appearance is... adequate?"

"Adequate doesn't even scratch the surface." I said without realizing it was out loud.

Luna's blushed intensified and she looked away again, but a smile spread across her fair skin.

Twilight took a step towards her mentor. "Um, Princess Celestia? The next time you decide to magically alter my DNA into a trans-dimensional being, could you give me a little warning?"

"Forgive the lack of warning, but I figured it best that you experience the change for yourselves. I have taken the liberty of using Robert's subconscious to replicate the basic instincts of human motor functions within each of you. So long as you are in this form, walking and other uses of your limbs will be as easy as trotting."

Vinyl continued inspecting her new anatomy, pausing when she looked at her chest. "What are these things?" She asked as she... um... familiarized herself with the round portions of her chest.

I blushed and looked away immediately.

"Huh. They're kinda soft." The DJ noted.

"Please! Distraction! I need a distraction! Now!" I pleaded in my head.

Well, I got my request, albeit in an unexpected way. I could hear the sound of a helicopter flying somewhere outside. Normally I would dismiss such a noise, but it sounded much louder than a simple flyover. It sounded almost like it was landing outside...

"What's that weird noise?" Pinkie asked.

Rainbow Dash mad her way over to the window. "Whoa! Isn't that one of those helicopters you showed us in those videos? Why's it parked on your lawn?"

Something about this did not sit right with me. "I'm going to go check it out." I told everyone.

I waved at Ragna so that he would jump off my shoulder, and I made my way out the front door. The searchlights on the helicopter blocked my vision, but I could hear the sounds of boots hitting the ground. As the blades finally came to a complete stop, I could hear metallic noises like gear being carried in a backpack. The searchlights shut off, and my eyes began readjusting.

*Ka-chak!*

My eyes widened as I saw several firearms pointed in my direction. There were no visible logos or symbols on the black uniforms of the soldiers before me. Each soldier had a silenced weapon of varying type, and they all wore balaclavas to hide their identities.

"I wouldn't move if I were you." I gruff voice told me.

A muscular man stepped forward from the line of soldiers. He was the only one of the group that did not have a mask of any kind. He had a devilish look in his eyes that unnerved me slightly.

"Now then, you wouldn't happen to be the cause of that energy disturbance earlier, would you?" He asked.

"Energy disturbance...? The portal?" I wondered to myself.

"So you do know about it." His grin spread into one of sadistic delight. "Excellent. That means there are no regulations here. Now, tell me about this 'portal'."

"What is going on here?" Celestia asked.

Everyone had exited the house in curiosity. I really wished they hadn't. Something told me this couldn't end well.

"Such strange features... Looks like we've hit the jackpot." Anderson gladly said.

"I believe I don't understand." Octavia told the commander.

"Here's how it's going to go. All of you are coming to be analyzed and placed under my jurisdiction. If any of you retaliate, I'm free to bring you in for an analysis post mortem." He enunciated the last bit with a sick pleasure behind it.

I was not letting this guy take them away to do who-knows-what to them. "Look, they aren't going anywhere unless I have a guarantee of their safety and humane treatment." I turned to the others. "Everyone, get back inside. I'll take care of-"

*Click*