The Wackiness of Unofficial Life

by edward18

Chapter 18: A Pony Odyssey

Chapter 18: A Pony Odyssey

"No, I am going with you guys!" Spike stomped his foot. Finally he had gotten Twilight to stop tossing books into her saddlebag. Desperately she sifted through her mind for an excuse.

"Spike, look, I'll need someone here to defend the tree in cas-"

"Like hell you do," Spike muttered rolling his eyes, "What ever goes wrong when you aren't around? Oh wait? What's that?...oh my god I think I hear wind creeping in to slowly deteriorate the books in here over a billion-year period!" Spike faked excitement, "Surely this requires my delicate time and attention!"

"Exactly," Twilight swung her hoof about enthusiastically, "Now you stay here and be sure the books are preserved and I'll-"

"No," Spike folded his arms over his chest. The unicorn gave an innocent smile. "Why do you guys always get to go on adventures and I don't? I mean a fucking dragon came here and what did I do? Watched over Fluttershy's animals! But nope, I didn't complain. Just happy to help cause that's the guy I am. Because I am, and I quote, Twilight's number one assistant. Sure I wouldn't have liked to face down the big sharp-toothed monster that turned out to be a crybaby not worthy of being a dragon myself, but by Celestia does it get boring here sometimes! But I put up with it and put up with it. Sure it's nice and safer, but you guys head out and do all this cool crap all the time!" Twilight bit her lip.

"Spikey, I need someone here to-"

"No You Don't." he stated, "You're just worried that I might get hurt." Twilight's head dipped a bit.

"...you're right," she confessed leaving Spike a bit stunned by the reaction. That's not to say he didn't immediately go back to his annoyed self with folded arms. It just caught him off guard a bit. "Spike, you've been with me forever. I don't know what I'd do if anything ever-"

"Save it," the dragon rolled his eyes, "I've heard that crap on like every show ever that has a super caring relationship between two characters." Somehow Twilight's atmosphere sunk even lower than it had been. Spike would be lying if he said he didn't feel bad about it, but by god he needed to counter her every now and then. "And I'm not just some foul," he continued, "I can take care of myself. Now I'm going with you!" Uneasily Twilight blew some air out of her nostrils and lifted her head back up.

"Fine," she sighed and pulled something out of her bag. Spike's eyes widened at the reveal. Draped from her mouth was a white suit in the shape of his body with a visor on the front of the face piece!

"Whoa!" he exclaimed and yanked it from her grip, " Twi, I thought you weren't wanting me to come! Why'd you have this ready?" Even if she was still a bit down from how their conversation had went, Twilight's spirits were lifted a bit by the excitement that Spike displayed. Casually she magicked a checklist down in front of Spike's face and put a checkmark next to the space that said "Spike refuses and tags along" causing him to rub the back of his head bashfully and give a regretful smile.

"You're gonna need it if we're headed into space."
---
"Now you're sure you don't need me to come?..." OC asked, a pitch of worry in his voice. The crazed pony might get on his nerves but that didn't mean he didn't care about her. "And uh...what about if Fluttershy needs protecting?...and you know how Rarity gets if things get a bit messy...and then there's Fluttershy. I mean I know Applejack can handle herself, but what if Fluttershy-" The recolor was stopped by a hoof to his gas-mask. A mischevous grin crossed Pinkie Pie's face.

"...you like Fluttershy don't you OC?"

"...this isn't Spongebob Squidward," he muttered back being sure to toss the limb off his face. Giggling to herself, the pony pranced around her assistant as they trekked through Ponyville. Headed to where they were was every other pony. Some chatted while others exchanged worried glances. Never had something like this been attempted from their community before. Then again, a lot of things that hadn't happened before did once Twilight had come to stay with them. "I'm just...worried about you is all..." OC reluctantly confessed, "It's in my very makeup to protect you. Are you sure that you-"

"We're fine," Pinkie Pie cut him off, "Geez, you're like Mrs. Cake when she leaves me to babysit!"

"I am not!" OC yelled. If he didn't have the visor Pinkie might have seen the vicious glare he was giving her, no matter how unappealing the face might be normally. Pinkie Pie just kept up her default cheerful attitude as she hopped towards their destination. To her it was just a normal everyday occurence...just like anything else it seemed. A herd of cows could be about to trample Ponyville to dust and she'd be munching away on popcorn enjoying the show. That was just the kind of pony she was. And part of OC hated to admit that that was what he liked about her. She was a break from all the normality that would be the usual punishment for life. She made things interesting no matter how much of a nuisance she was at times. That's why he was worried. Something was telling OC that things would be changing...soon.

"Well wish me luck!" Pinkie Pie chipped happily, "and don't worry I can drop some lines to Fluttershy about you." OC's mask kept any emotion off of his visible face in response to the wink he received.

"I just worry about you," he repeated placing a claw on the pink pony's face. The firm yet gentle touch surprised Pinkie Pie for a second. But only for a second. As jolly as ever she yanked away and lifted her head proudly to the sky.

"You're not my mom," she chuckled, "Now I'll see you when I get back. Remember, if you see-"

"Pumpkin Cake phasing through walls reference the anti-spells book you got from Twilight-"

"And if you see-"

"Pound Cake flying around wrap his wings like Applejack did Rainbow Dash during the Running of the Leaves," OC recited. Exuberantly Pinkie Pie nodded her head.

"See you when I get back!" she declared and charged off towards the stage that had been set up in the center of town where the Mayor was waiting. OC waited with a tapping foot for Pinkie Pie to return and handed the forgetful pony her space suit when she did.

"Don't forget to brush your teeth WITHOUT chocolate syrup!" he reminded. Once the pink blur had vanished into the crowd beyond OC turned to make his trip back to the Cake's dwelling. Before he'd even gone a few feet he came to a stop and stared at the blue unicorn that was gleefully rubbing her hooves behind a nearby house.

"Today's the day..." Trixie cackled to herself, "Everything's all set up! Now all I gotta do is concentrate and-"

"Hey dumbass," OC's sudden remark made the mischief maker leap at least a good ten feet in the air. Even he had to give a moment of silence for the mark she left upon hitting the ground. "Just thought you might wanna know that the ponies you like to torment are headed into space." It took a spell for the words to register. When they did she blinked and tore off around the corner of the building. Her jaw hit the floor once she'd taken in all the ponies that had gathered to see the group off.

"Oh you gotta be kidding! Today of all days!" the unicorn growled proceeding to tear chunks of her mane out in undying frustration.

"Thank you all for coming to see our heroes off!" the older gray-maned pony announced from the stage. Just as the speech started Pinkie had wobbled on and grinned at her shocked friends. "As you well know the Equestria Hoofagong Satellite has recently lost contact with its main base in Canterlot Control Tower. As such we are sending our finest there, with their consent of course, to find out what is wrong up there. Let us all wish them a safe journey into the great beyond that we call space!" The group's confidence heightened with the hooves that stomped for them across the ground.

"I am sure Celestia herself would be proud of you," the Mayor told the ponies and dragon, "May her speed grace you and her sister's orbiting structure watch over you."

"Thank you May-"

"Yeah! We kick ass! Let's go!" Rainbow Dash cut Twilight off and clamped her visor shut. In no time at all, the others had grabbed hold of her in some way and, with Fluttershy's help, she took flight. Never in all her life did Twilight think she'd be experiencing what she was now. But she was. Clouds zoomed past. Wind streaked fog across the viewport of her suit. A chill swam across the outer layer of her body. Fortunately their suits had been designed by Luna herself otherwise they might be burning up from the friction that was rushing across their forms.

"Prepare for ignition in 5," Rainbow Dash's voice warned through their earpieces, "4," Applejack's eyes squinted, "3," Rarity blew a tuff of her mane out of her field of vision and Pinkie clung to her body, "2," Twilight just stared in wonder. She hardly even noticed her assistant's claws digging into her side. "1!" Fluttershy bit her lip. "IGNITION!" With a Sonic Rainboom in their wake, the group rocketed upwards into the stratosphere of Equestria. Clouds grew less and less frequent as did the blueness of the sky until finally nothing surrounded their fronts but the depths of the cosmos itself and the lights that littered its distant reaches. Twilight couldn't believe her eyes.
---
"And...they're...in space!" Scootaloo shouted to the others happily, "And as to be expected Rainbow Dash is leading the-oof!"

"Where's mah sis!" Apple Bloom asked peering into the telescope, "I can't see her! Their suits make it impossible to tell who's who!" As she had done to Scootaloo, Apple Bloom was pressed to the ground so Sweetie Belle could get a look.

"Just look at their tails. I see my sister! Oh this is so awesome! Maybe she'll bring a metal plate back for me!"

"Or a moon rock!" Apple Bloom theorized.

"...they're going to the space station," Sweetie Belle reminded.

"...space station?" Apple Bloom repeated in a questioning manner.

"Yeah, the space station that we'd never heard of until now cause it wasn't made up until a little while ago but will probably be seemlessly integrated into the story so some fans might believe it'd been thought up since the beginning," the unicorn replied.

"Oh, that space station," Apple Bloom's mouth shrank a bit.

"Will you two get off me!" Scootaloo yelled. Before either could react the pegasus had jolted upwards knocking her friends to either side of the clubhouse. "Geez, I'm the one that got it positioned and everything and you two just shove me aside without a care in the world...ooo! Did you guys see that? Rainbow Dash just totally pulled Rarity's tail!"

"Uh no, we sorta can't...you're sorta the one viewin' right n-"

"Come on Rarity! Kick her ass!" Sweetie Belle yelled literally throwing Scootaloo out of the way to get a view of the scene. One of the white-clad ponies certainly did seem to be rolling around weightlessly with laughter while another was flipping around and looking at the others. One thing she noticed was a smaller dragon-like one swimming about as the other horned pony tried to chase him. "Hey! No fair! Spike got to go and we didn't!"

"You serious?" Apple Bloom asked pressing her cheek up against her friend's to get a look.

"Well either way, Rarity wouldn't be able to do crap to Rainbow Dash," Scootaloo confidently scoffed.

"That's assuming she's better at defense than mah sister," Apple Bloom gave her input, "You wouldn't believe the bruise she had on her side once she was broken out of Discord's corruption. That unicorn can kick." A bit too eagerly Sweetie Belle nodded in agreement.

"Well fortunately Rainbow Dash isn't such a weak little farm pony," Scootaloo waved the facts away. Almost instantly Apple Bloom's eyes narrowed.

"Well at least mah sistah ain't some glory hoggin' showoff that can't stay focused on anything that requires actual effort!" she growled.

"Oh you did not just go there!" Scootaloo pressed her face against her peer's.

"Oh I just so did!" Apple Bloom hissed back.

"Either way, neither of em can stand up to Rarity's judo. Hiyah!" Sweetie Belle let loose a boastful snap kick to the air.

"Applejack so woulda beat her if she hadn't been corrupted!" Apple Bloom claimed.

"And Rainbow Dash would paddle both of them in her sleep!" Scootaloo yelled.

"That doesn't even make sense!" Sweetie Belle logically concluded.

"It does so!" Scootaloo insisted.

"It does not!" the other two hollered back. For a few seconds silence filled the room as they stared each other down. Then they leapt at each other's necks. They'd be needing another batch of Apple Bloom's healing potion before the day was done.
---
"I swear Rainbow Dash, you get less and less ladylike by the day," Rarity huffed upon removing her suit, "No wonder you're such lesbian fanbait." The pegasus contemplated on snapping back at the unicorn but decided to just shrug instead. A harsher reaction would only give Rarity more room to criticize. Deciding to join her friends, Rainbow Dash removed her suit and took in the air of the space station. It was...different to say the least. Whereas the feel of their homeworld was one of liveliness, this was one of solitude. A certain serenity that even Fluttershy's day to day activities had trouble rivaling. Yet beneath the calmness of the orbiting structure there lingered uneasiness in the air. Had the others not been there Rainbow Dash, though she hated to admit it, would have her legs quivering.

"So we just check up on the crew and get back down to Equestria right?" Applejack asked. Twilight shoved her assistant forward and he pulled out a scroll.

"Dearest Twilight and company," he read, "I regret to inform you that I am once again in need of your ever dependent aide. Should you chose to accept this request you are to fly up and check on the Equestrian Hoofagong, our most dependable space station and the first successful attempt at one. Last week we lost contact with the crew there and just need you to see what all is going on up there. It should be nothing more complicated than getting word from them. They're a highly dependable crew and I doubt there's anything all that wrong. Your Sun Riser, Princess Celestia." Spike folded the parchment back up and tucked it away with his space suit at the airlock content with his reading.

"I just don't see why we had to bother coming up here," Rarity reasoned, "I mean shouldn't they have crews prepared to come up here?"

"If we didn't come up here what would the plot be?" Pinkie Pie gave her superior reasoning. The unicorn sighed in defeat.

"Alright Twi, what's the plan?" Rainbow Dash asked.

"I think we should ask Spike," she told her.

"SPIKE?" everypony else repeated in shock. The dragon's eyes practically popped of his head at the suggestion.

"M-me! What!" he yelped, "What the hell do you think I can do! You're the one that's always thinking up the solution to save the day and all that!"

"Well I just thought some of my, ahem, expertise might have rubbed off on you a bit," Twilight closed her eyes and feigned disappointment. Spike squinted at the pony as he tried to wrap his head around just what all she might be implying. The words certainly hadn't been something she would have said normally. The other ponies too seemed to be recovering from the startling moment.

"Well, if I'm going to give my thoughts I guess we should just keep headed to the main lobby. If common sense dictates anything it should be easy to find if we just keep heading down the halls. Never too hard for guests to get to, at least from my experience," Spike twiddled his thumbs nervously. The group slowly looked to one another.

"...makes sense to me," Rainbow Dash said, "Let's get going." As was her nature, the blue pegasus took the lead and began floating through the corridor before them. After her was Applejack followed by Rarity and then Fluttershy for obvious...defensive reasons. Finally Spike took a seat atop Twilight and they formed the tail of the group. Had the ponies not been caught up in conversations about how incredible it was to be where they were now they would have all felt the foreboding breeze sifting through the halls. But not everyone was so relaxed. Twilight could feel Spike constantly shifting on her back.

"So...what was that all about back there?..." Spike eventually leaned over to whisper into her ear. Twilight's eyes went to her head as a small smile formed on her muzzle.

"What was what abou-"

"You know," the dragon grumbled. He brought his head back a bit once Twilight's had turned to look at him. Her unnerving calm smile still dangled on her face with her eyelids half shut giving off a disturbing feel of superiority.

"I just thought that since you wanted to come on these adventures so much you might have things planned for them," she cooed, "I mean you have to be prepared you know." Spike glared at her.

"So this is still about that whole "me insisting to come along" thing then isn't it?" he put his hands on his hips. Twilight's smile grew and she turned her head back towards the front. "Well just so you know it's not gonna get me to stay at home more than anything else. I've shown that I can hold my own when things get tough. I know you care but you're not my mom or anything," Spike muttered slumping into the arch of Twilight's neck.

"Quite a bit of the fanbase would disagree with you there," she said under her breath. Spike would have asked what she'd uttered but just didn't have the will to continue with the conversation. All it would do is lead to unpleasant results. Instead he turned his head and stared into the blackness beyond the window they were passing by. It took up the entire wall. He knew Fluttershy was as hypnotized as he was by the scenery. It was more magical than anything he fathomed when down on the surface of their planet. The adventure should be filled with pleasant sight seeing and calmed nerves. But something was wrong. In all their journeying they hadn't come across another living soul. No ponies no dragons. Nothing.

They did eventually stop however. Spike and Twilight joined the others in the ensuing gasps and commotion stirred by the sight they came to. What they had assumed was the lobby looked like any normal lobby should. A front desk, some decorations here and there to liven up the setting, and a wide room. There was just one thing wrong. Sprawled out on the ground in front of them was something none of them had expected to see. Though it displayed signs of being a pony there was something missing. Its skin and muscle and blood and organs. What was spread out in front of the desk was a skeleton with a piece of clothing on that indicated that it had been one of the crew members. No one was unoccupied enough to catch the fainting Fluttershy.

"...I think we're a bit late..." Rainbow Dash broke the silence.
---
Carelessly OC kicked a rock. It's not that he wanted to make a mess of Pinkie Pie's deranged room. He was just bored to death. Without Pinkie around there was no pony to be annoyed with. And without the others around there really wasn't anypony to protect, especially after informing Trixie that they'd left. And so far not even the Cake's twins were making any racket for him to deal with. Gratuitously the dragon let out a filtered sigh through his gas-mask and fell back on Pinkie Pie's bed. Gummy stared at the fan-character and waddled over to him. OC rolled his head lazily to the smaller reptilian that blinked at him.

"I hear ya, this place is dead as hell," he muttered. Again the crocodile blinked. "Yeah I know people would consider this me, an "original character", stealing the spotlight, but really I've just been on the sidelines this whole story with implications as to what my actual story is. Not like I've really had even a real scene to myself yet. I mean I just make appearances here and there to help the ponies or play the straight man to Pinkie Pie's antics. Nothing major. Yet I know that simply because I'm an OC fans are going to hate me. Not like I give a damn though...it's just a bit...annoying. Not that they dislike OCs. I get where they're coming from. Don't get me wrong. It's just so damn unbearable how many crappy ones are thought up every single hour of every single day by unimaginative pieces of...I should calm down..."

With his next sigh OC grew a bit irritated. It was the sound of the gas-mask. His outfit he had to wear. It wasn't only just to differentiate himself from what he was a recolor of. It was also to hide what lay beneath. He didn't hate it. He hardly had real hatred towards anything. It just grew to be a nuisance now and again having that be the sound of his intakes and exhales.

"Like goddamn Darth Vader," he murmured reaching for the object. With ease he removed the air filter and slid back the red outfit from the opening at the mouth of it. With the disguise removed the dragon sat up and lifted a hand to his face. After a moment of thought he ran it along his cheek. He could feel all the scarring and missing parts that would be there on the character he was based off of. A tremble coursed through him as it felt the opening of the socket where his eye rested. But he should have been used to it. It was his body. An incomplete mess. As any recolor was. Just a warped shell given a personality for the sake of the fan's story. No originality save for the cliches forced onto them.

For what felt like hours the dragon just sat there rubbing his face until finally he grew tired of the motions and hoisted his outfit back on to cover it. Spotting the mound of rocks next to the bed he kicked the two topmost remnants of the old crazy "friend" Pinkie Pie had had, Rocky.

"Don't see why she bothers to keep this hunk of pebbles around," he stated hoisting the final, most heavy rock, into the air, "Oh look at me! I'm rocky! The big tough imaginary friend that'll slit anypony's throat who decides to mess with Pinkie! She's from a Rock Farm so I'm her best pal! Got it!" A few seconds of silence passed before OC dropped the rock back on the floor. "I'm gonna go insane from boredom...wonder if anypony besides the ones I normally see need help today..." Gummy just blinked as he watched the recolor walk towards the window sill and leap out into the world beyond.
---
"Okay...okay...don't panic..." Twilight tried to get the group back under control. It was a lost cause. While Pinkie Pie and Applejack suggested more and more gruesome theories about what could have happened to the pony in the lobby making Rarity's cheeks ever more green by the second, Rainbow Dash did everything she could think to to bring Fluttershy back to the realm of the living.

"Fluttershy! This is the coach talking! If you don't get your sorry plot out here this instant you are failing this semester!...again!" the blue pegasus yelled into her ear. No reaction. The timid pony just wouldn't snap back to consciousness. That didn't stop her attempts though.

"Ponies! Come on! We need to-"

"Or he could have been melted!" Pinkie Pie cheered cutting Twilight off.

"Ah that'd of been too easy," Applejack said, "musta had his skin sucked off and then his organs pulled out through-"

"I'm going to the washroom!" Rarity screamed and tore into a corridor with a hoof over her mouth.

"Great..." Twilight huffed, "There's one of us gone...Girls! Will you all just-"

"Fluttershy, if you wake up there's cider for you!" Rainbow Dash shook her violently. All it accomplished was her tongue flinging about loosely from her mouth.

"Girl-"

"Or his blood was boil-"

"SHUT UP!" Spike yelled. The silence that follwed left him rubbing his arm nervously before holding his arms out to the remaining unicorn.

"Eh...thank you...Spike," Twilight reluctantly accepted the assistance in spite of how much she was trying to push the dragon away from the willingness to join in the adventure. Now though there was no use in doing so. Any help she could get in calming the group was welcome. Twilight gave a stern cough into her hoof and started.

"Now then, we know that...something happened to make this pony what they are now," Twilight directed attention to the skeleton. Unfortunately for Rainbow Dash she'd finally woken up Fluttershy only to have her faint again at the sight of the remains. With her eye twitching she glared at Twilight and received an innocent smile in return. "Um...well we need to find out what it was that caused this to happen and see if there are any survivors," Twilight reasoned, "So let's split up into two teams and-"

"Hold up! We're going to...track down whatever did this?" Spike gulped. Twilight smiled at him.

"Why yes...is it too much for you to handle do you think? I'm sure you can wait at the airlock if you need to," she grinned. Hesitantly, Spike put on a sour face and shook his head slowly.

"Well, I could um...stay with him..." the once again revived Fluttershy suggested.

"No, I'm fine," Spike peered at the purple unicorn who shared a similar expression. While the two partners stared each other down the others just wondered what it was they were doing.

"So uh...what all groups are we gonna divide into?" Applejack eventually asked snapping them out of their wordless confrontation. Both blushed realizing how long they'd been performing the gestures in the presence of the others.

"Oh um...how's about-"

"Fluttershy, Rainbow Dash, and Twilight. I'll go with Applejack, and Pinkie and we'll pick up Rarity along the way," Spike said instantly. Twilight didn't even have any way to respond to the interruption. No one ever gave serious orders that actually made sense when she was doing so. "If that's alright with you of course," Spike lifted his brows to her. She furrowed her's in response.

"It's...just...fine..." she murmured.

"Good," Spike said and walked over to the two Earth ponies who were still thinking up the most horrific things they could suggest for how the deceased one might have ended up in the state it was. Twilight on the other hand didn't have as pleasant a trip to her group. Her mind was still trying to wrap around Spike's sudden display of leadership. True she had asked for him to give his thoughts back at the airlock, but she hadn't expected him to react so harshly now and even say what groups they should go into. He had usurped the natural order. But...it wasn't a problem...right? He was proving that he could handle things. After all, someone that lived with Twilight everyday needed to be ready on the fly.

"She gonna be okay?" Twilight asked about the shuddering Fluttershy.

"With me around of course she will," Rainbow Dash beat her chest proudly. Giving a wave to the other group, Fluttershy departed with Twilight and Rainbow Dash down one of the starlit corridors. Fortunately with new scenery came new discussions to take their minds off of the oddness of the previous room.

"I have always wondered something," the unicorn confessed in the endless boasting of the blue pegasus. Rainbow Dash looked down at her curiously. "It's just that...you always seem to be quite fond of Fluttershy and everything...like she's the first one you go to a lot of times and all that despite your polar opposite personalities. I've theorized it's probably one of the things that causes people to pair you up with other females in fiction...what's up with that?" Rainbow Dash opened her mouth to respond but found no words coming out. She really did need a moment to think the question over.

"...I...well you see it's like...well we're pegasi and...um...well I've known her the longest. Went to flight school and everything together," Rainbow Dash gave a weak answer, "Just have history I guess."

"Well uh, it is true, and she helped me um...find out how much I loved animals," Fluttershy reminded quietly.

"Yeah, and Fluttershy...tries to cheer me on whenever I do my flips and tricks," Rainbow Dash formed her own compliment, "And I love doing that. We're just a couple of lovers!" Rainbow Dash and Fluttershy gave big smiles to Twilight before the realization of the awkwardness of the claim hit them. Quickly their faces turned crimson.

"...that sounded a bit...gay dude..." Twilight pointed out ever so willingly.

"Thank you Tucker, we know," Rainbow Dash replied stalely.
---
"So, are you two done with your little "theories"?" Rarity shot death glares at the earth ponies. Applejack's brows bent sympathetically while Pinkie Pie looked to the ceiling in question.

"Well I did have one-"

"We are sugahcube," Applejack smiled clamping the pink one's mouth shut. Still a bit repulsed by the less sophisticated behavior, Rarity turned her attention back to the front and walked up alongside Spike.

"Quite the pair they are," she muttered.

"Oh they're not that bad," Spike laughed lightly. Then he realized who he'd said it to. "Er, yes I mean. They are horrible. Should be smited for such words," he covered quickly as he broke out into a nervous sweat. Rarity just smiled and rubbed his head gently causing the sweating to increase. It didn't matter what fanfiction Spike was in, Rarity would always have a special place in his heart. No pony even came close to her beauty. Well...if Twilight in her dragon self counted then that might, but nopony else. Merely being in the generous mare's presence was enough to cause him to trip over his words.

"So Spike...what all was that there about in the lobby with Twi?" Applejack asked. The sweating that had died down increased again.

"Er, what do you mean?" he chuckled. Applejack's face flattened.

"Oh nothing..." she replied, "Just that you two were boring into each other's face with the force of a thousand apple buckers is all..."

"...what's that even mean?" Rarity asked the question that was on the dragon's mind. Applejack sighed. Before she could respond however Pinkie Pie popped out from her side.

"She's asking why you were having the staring contest!" she exclaimed, "I mean me and Gummy have staring contests all the time! But not like that! We're usually all smiley. Well I am at least. Gummy just sorta has the same expression all the time. But you don't need to worry. I know what he's thinking. It's a crocodile owner thing. Why one time he even suggested that I eat all the cotton candy that the Cakes had made. All by myself! What a joker. But I did eat it. It was delicious. After that I just needed some nice whipped cream for-"

"And what with all the stern words," Applejack cut Pinkie Pie off while Rarity giggled a bit at the annoyance that the country pony was having to endure. Spike meanwhile was easily the most nerve-shot of the group at the moment. It was a bit hard to pinpoint just what exactly got to him, but when one did it was rather easy to get him to breakdown.

"I uh...don't know what you're talking about," he lied.

"He and Twilight are having a little spat because their characters are more fuedy for the sake of the chapter being close to Valentine's Day. Basically she didn't want him coming along cause it might be dangerous but he insisted and want's to show his manliness and stuff. It'll probably be romantic," Pinkie Pie told them. A quietness permeated them once she was finished rattling off the plot that stole away any sense of decency that they might have had otherwise.

"...Pinkie, how did you-"

"Don't you read the script too?" she asked in confusion. Spike smacked his forehead.

"Maybe I shoulda gotten Rainbow Dash..." he muttered.

"And turn this into a fic implying that me and her are together? No thank you," Applejack grumbled.

"Well I wouldn't mind trading with Fluttershy then," Pinkie Pie told them preparing to leave the scene only to be yanked back by the orange pony.

"I think you've done enough fourth wall breaking for now," Applejack muttered. Pinkie Pie squeaked a smile.

"Well I truly am sorry for you darling," Rarity apologized by yanking Spike against her body and nuzzling her face against his. He was frozen with passion. "Sometimes lovers just need a break from each other. We understand."

"Indeed!" Pinkie Pie exclaimed, "We can throw a party for ya!"

"Or we could stick to the plan," Applejack reminded. Everyone else was quite surprised to see how far ahead she was. "The faster we get this over with the quicker we can get off this floating ghost ship. Now you lot get over here. I done found something."

"If it's another skeleton I will personally shove you out the airlock," Rarity muttered. As the group looked into the room she was pointing to their eyes grew quite a bit. Quivering there was a little colt. His head jittered around in fright upon seeing the intruders.

"...guess we found a survivor..." Spike said.
---
"Find anything?" Twilight asked. Rainbow Dash shook her head dawning the unicorn a disappointed look.

"Nothing but more and more skeletons," Rainbow dash sighed, "Whatever happened here we missed it." The mere mention of the nightmarish figures littering the rooms practically caused Fluttershy to collapse any time the subject was brought up. Twilight stayed with her simply in case she needed help. "What about you guys?" Rainbow Dash asked. To her surprise she recieved wave to follow them and Twilight trotted towards a nearby room. While the hall she lead them down, much to Fluttershy's discomfort, was almost painted with a coat of dried crimson, the room beyond was quite clean. Its contents mostly consisted of various high tech medical equipment and flasks and computers.

"Woah," the pegasus rubbed her eyes to make sure she was seeing the setting correctly. The room was practically glittering with how clean it was. All the beakers were in holders and not a sheet was out of place on the beds that the staff was meant to perform their work on. It was a relief to see after the shambles that Rainbow Dash had had to endure in the living quarters of the station. But one question remained why. "...why...is this place like untouched?..."

"Well it was locked and I managed to hack my way inside with the control panel to the room," Twilight explained, "As for why there's no pony in here...well...you don't wanna know what happened to them." She pointed to a nearby locker and shook her head. Fluttershy was actively trying to ignore it. Still in awe the other pegasus drifted around the room inspecting every last bit of it.

"...well...this is great and all...but is there anything to be found out here?..." Rainbow Dash asked after eventually landing back on the ground.

"As a matter a fact there is," Twilight told her. The two flying ponies followed her to a nearby microscope. "Thanks to Fluttershy we found out that somepony apparently launched all the evacuations pods into space before anypony could get on them."

"Well that's stupid!" Rainbow Dash pointed out.

"Not necessarily," the unicorn motioned for her to look in the microscope. Even though she knew she probably wouldn't even be able to tell what she was looking at, Rainbow Dash did so. After a few seconds she yawned. Other than seeing some odd looking formations absorb others there wasn't much going on.

"Alright, what's this crap?" she asked in a bored voice. Twilight stared at her a bit in disbelief.

"Rainbow Dash, I'm sure you've seen something like this in movies before," she replied. The pegasus' brows jolted up at the realization of what she'd seen and stole another glance. It was true! She had viewed the morbid implications before!

"Oh fuck no! We do not have a Metroid Fusion on our hooves do we!" she gasped. Twilight bit her lower lip only furthering the dismal expression Rainbow Dash now wore.

"Um...I'm sorry but what are you talking about?..." Fluttershy mumbled cautiously.

"Ever heard of an X Parasite?" Rainbow Dash asked. Fluttershy shook her head. "The Thing?" Again the head shook. Rainbow Dash let out an exhasperated sigh. "Basically this monster eats anypony else it comes across and can mimic them afterwards. Those skeletons we've been finding are of its victims and-" Fluttershy crashing to the ground silenced her. She smiled nervously at the unamused glare that Twilight's face shifted to. "So uh...any theories on how this might've got here?..." Twilight put a hoof to her chin.

"Well...if they hadn't heard from them for about a week I'm assuming they found some meteorite or a fragment of one floating by that they intercepted and examined back then. Big outbreak happened, monster ate everypony, and one of the survivors launched off the escape pods so that it couldn't get off the station," the unicorn hypothesized.

"...think there'd be any survivors left now?..." Rainbow Dash risked another question. Twilight looked at her.

"Do you think there would be?..."

"...should we call the others?..."

"Call the others," Twilight nodded. Rainbow Dash turned on the communicator they'd brought with them.
---
"Do you need help?!" OC popped out of a group of oranges causing the customer and salespony to scream and hop back, "Do you?!" The frightened customer attempted to flee but he'd grabbed onto her mane and began riding the air behind her in the mad dash she proceeded to perform. "Give me a problem to solve! Anything! I'll pay you! Just put yourself in danger and I'll rescue you! Come on! Just a boulder coming towards you! Someone tying you to railroad tracks! I'll even get the terrorists if you want! Just help me out here!" Despite his efforts, ultimately the red and black coated dragon was flung off into a pile of hay on the outskirts of the marketplace.

OC contemplated just lying in the soft material until Pinkie Pie returned. If only he could have gone with them. Even Spike, the less-than-capable dragon, had accompanied them. If Twilight had been his partner it'd have been different. But no, he had to be stuck with the one pony that made no sense. OC let loose a relishing sigh. He had never imagined that he'd resort to such a level over such a trivial issue. But how couldn't he? He was designed to keep the ponies safe. And without them to get in trouble he had no purpose. His talents wasting away in the day-to-day normality that'd enrapture society. It was torture. Just waiting. No pony wanting or needing his services. His personality nothing more than a mask that the creator of the fanfic had designed with one goal in mind. That which he'd give away in an instant for a more simple happy purpose like most official characters in shows and cartoons and comics.

"Maybe he's dead," a voice piped up. One of OC's brows caved down while the other raised. Ever hopeful to find a pony in need, he sat up and looked down at the group of fillies before him.

"Aw, now we can't dissect him," Apple Bloom pouted. On any other occassion the dragon would have shown some form of annoyance. But this wasn't any other. He was desperate. More eager than any pony had ever seen him, the masked hero slid down in front of them and embraced them in a spine-crushing hug. "I-can't-breathe!..."

"Oh I am so happy to see your miserable little faces!" he chimed as he twirled them around in his clutches, "You idiots always need help finding your Cutie Marks! Well don't worry! Today I'm all yours to help! Now let's get you set up with an AK-47 and-"

"Actually we're doing something else today," Scootaloo told him managing to break out of the deathly hug. The revelation prompted the release of all three of them. His last resort, gone. As though he were a dog being teased with a chew toy, OC twitched uncontrollably. The fillies exchanged worried looks. "Maybe he's gonna die now?"

"Hey mister Spike guy, are you alright?" Sweetie Belle asked. She jolted back from the twitch his face did to look at her.

"Oh I-I'm j-us-st fi-ne!" he managed to get out of his spasming jaw, "Ev-erything's h-hunky doory! No r-reason to wo-worry! Ju-st an OC here th-that can't do what he-he's suppose-suppose-supposed too!" with the last words he fell into a fetal position on the ground and stroked his tail. The worried looks grew more extreme on the fillies. Then Scootaloo's face lit up.

"Hey girls, we always are trying to get our Cutie Marks and he's just nice enough to help. So how's about we give it a shot?" After a wind of silence had whisked by the other two's faces lightened as well and they picked up the trembling dragon as they had Spike when they had gone on their little time travel adventure. "Cutie Mark Crusader Dragon Therapists! YAY!"
---
"So you're saying this here station's been uh...eaten by some monster?..." Applejack said uneasily. To her dismay Twilight nodded. All Rarity could do to keep her stomach from ascending into her cheeks again was block out what was being discussed with various "lalalas" that she kept singing to herself while her hoofs remained firmly pressed against her ears. As far as she was concerned none of this was happening. Sure she was happy to lend a hoof here and there but for all she cared right now she was back at the Carousel Boutique working on her dresses. What should have been a nice little journey amidst the stars had turned into a nightmare.

"Alright then...where's the monster?..." Applejack asked. Everyone in the group looked at Twilight. And she at them. None of them had stopped to actually ask that question until just then. All they'd witnessed was the aftermath of the grievous ordeal. As far as anypony had seen there was no sign that there was life of any sort other than a dragon and the six ponies aboard the vacant space vessel. Now that it had quieted down even Rarity and Fluttershy joined in the pondering with renewed hopes that there was no longer a crisis for them to even be involved in.

"Well either way, shouldn't we like get off here and report back to the Princess?" Rainbow Dash asked, "I mean all the escape pods are gone. Even if the thing's still around there's no way for it to get down to Equestria and do to it what it did to this place."

"What about Slugger? We can't just leave the little guy here," Spike chipped in.

"...who?" Twilight asked.

"We done found a little brown foal here that had been hiding from whatever happened. Had Slugger scribbled on his handkerchief," Applejack informed.

"Not much of a talker though," Pinkie Pie added, "Couldn't even get him to laugh at any of my jokes."

"The kid's been through a lot, what do you ex...Rainbow Dash, why do you look so worried?..." Spike changed the subject upon noticing the floating pony's bent brows. Every few seconds her pupils would travel from one side of her eyes to the other.

"...you said Slugger right?..." she gulped. Spike nodded.

"Told him about our suits and everything we used to get up here. Said we'd take him straight to the Prin-"

"The kid's dead." Instantly the dragon stopped talking.

"Now whatcha mean the kid's dead?" Applejack contested, "We done found him hiding away in a storage room. I mean I know he may not make much noise but he's just as able to walk and everything as the rest of-"

"No, I mean he's dead!" Rainbow Dash yelled, "One of the rooms Twilight had me search through! It was his! There was foal's skeleton resting on the bed in there! He is dead!" The group shifted looks around the room, most of the faces were rather wide-eyed.

"But...what do you mean he's dead?" Pinkie Pie asked, "He was walking with us..."

"Where is he now?" Twilight demanded.

"Oh, he's just right back...uh...Applejack...where is he?..." Spike gulped. The earth pony's mouth dropped a bit as realization and a new horrific fear washed over the group. The next second they were tearing through the halls of the astral graveyard.
---
"Wow...thanks, I guess you guys are right..." OC reclusively admitted to the fillies. The Cutie Mark Crusaders had smiles larger than he'd ever seen on them before. They'd actually accomplished one of the goals they'd set out to do without anything exploding or breaking or blowing up in their faces in some form or another!

"Cutie Mark Crusader Dragon Therapists! YAY!" they squealed and looked at each other's flanks. It only took a moment for their light hearted nature to take its dip. There was still no decoration on them!

"Oh come on!" Scootaloo yelled and slammed her hoof into the floor, "...ow...what does it take? We actually did something this time and for what? Blank flanks...again..."

"We is never gonna get our Cutie Marks," Apple Bloom pouted.

"Just blank flanks...forever..." Sweetie Belle finished, her lower lip quivering. The next moment the trio was in tears.

"D-don't cry girls!" Apple Bloom said, "U-unless you th-think we can g-get our Cutie Marks in cr-crying. In th-that case keep it up!..."

"I ain't crying!" Scootaloo sobbed, "I got dust in my eyes!..." The waterworks continued for a good minute or so. What brought it to the stop gave them much more of a reason to cry than they had had previously. With one loud clack their heads were slammed together, the pain giving a much needed distraction to the pitiful display they were putting on.

"OW!" Scootaloo rubbed her temple, "What the hay was that for!"

"It was annoying," OC muttered. The pegasus whimpered a tear-filled scowl at the red and black-clad dragon. "Now look here, you're canon characters," he reasoned, "despite what the fanbase does to you you'll more than likely get a proper resolution to all your Cutie Mark searching in the actual show. And if not you got a good fanbase to fall back on and give you respectable endings regardless. You got nothing to worry about and certainly no reason to cry over it. Now I thank you for your help, but if it's all the same to you I'm gonna use your telescope to see if any progress has been made up there." Sweetie Belle and Apple Bloom nodded their heads politely.

"Thanks I guess," Scootaloo folded her arms over her chest. That's when it hit him. OC had helped somepony! Not just one, but three of them! He'd fulfilled his purpose. Happiness coursed through his veins in his walk to the space-viewing device. With a fresh new feeling the dragon looked into the eyepiece. The space station was still there and none of the ponies were beside it. He didn't expect them to be. There were obviously still inside. But there was something else that caught his attention. A bright red dot in the distance just next to the station. A...distant object. Yet somehow...familiar...too familiar... The feeling he'd experienced the day that Trixie had led Rarity, Twilight, and Spike out to the Everfree Forest was returning. Badly. In his mind he could hear things. Screams. Vivid images filled his mentality. Horrifying images. Death. Burning. Chaos. Complete and utter chaos. And then something clicked. The last thing OC remembered before losing consciousness was the three fillies that had helped him staring at his seizure-induced body in shock.
---
"Hey! Slugger hold it!" Spike yelled. The foal need only one glance at the group to know that he didn't have much longer to slip the oversized pony-shaped space suit on. "We'll take you back to Equestria! Just stay right where you are!" the dragon ordered. No matter the dishonest promises or shouts they gave the foal wouldn't stop. He was just about to snap the visor down over his face when the group finally got to the outer edge of the room. Having been there for a week he knew the layout much better than the intruders did and slammed a hoof into a button on the wall next to him. Hardly anypony had time to react as a metal door slid down in front of them. But Twilight did. Using all the magic she could muster, the unicorn gripped the underside of the door and ground it to a halt just about a foot or two from the ground.

"Damn it!" Rainbow Dash growled, "Applejack! Give me a hoof with this thing!"

"On it!" the orange pony replied rushing over with her to yank at the panel. It wouldn't budge. Even Rarity joined in with her magic to press against it. But it was no use. The door was just too shut for any pony to squeeze under. But not all of them were ponies. Knowing there'd be no other chance to stop the creature otherwise, Spike stepped forward and bent down. Before he could make any progress he was yanked back.

"And where do you think you're going?" Twilight eyed him. Spike knew that no matter how much he might struggle he couldn't break the kind of magic that bound him now.

"Twilight we don't have time for this!" he swirled around to scowl at her, "Look, I know you didn't want me coming cause of how dangerous it might be and I know I might actually belong at home sometimes more than I wanna admit, but damnit look at this! If that thing gets to Equestria we can just kiss our world goodbye! Every pony, dragon, cockatrice, EVERY LIVING THING will die! I'm the only one that can fit under the door! Now let me go!"

"But Spike-I-NO! You are not getting yourself-"

"Sugarcube," Twilight felt Applejack's hoof on her shoulder. Tears began to form along the rims of her eyes. Spike cringed at the sight. The one thing that might change his mind.

"Look, I think if we push real hard we might be able to squeeze me under-"

"Sugarcube," Applejack repeated, her hoof pressing against her firmer. The tears started sliding onto her cheeks.

"And if Fluttershy tries to reason with him we might buy more time for me to-"

"TWILIGHT!" Spike yelled, "LOOK!" Reluctantly she slid her view over to the window of the door. The loosely hung space suit was fumbling around to undo the airlock. Against all will the unicorn gave in and released the dragon.

"Do not die," she told him. Spike flashed a small smile.

"If I did that I wouldn't be able to have fun with you anymore," and with those words he rolled under the door. Once on the other side he could tell that the foal was having quite a bit of trouble with the lock. In his struggling he hadn't noticed the dragon that had slipped in. Figuring it best to not waste anymore time, Spike simply leapt on him and threw him to the opposite wall. A loud slap echoed from the impact Slugger's form made. Needless to say the creature was rather shocked by the sudden force that had pushed him. It was a short-lived victory however. Spike's jaw dropped to the floor from what happened next.

Be it defensive instinct or calculating design on the opponent's part, the former colt's arm expanded within the suit until the arm of the suit itself literally popped off revealing a long sickle-like formation jutting forth from what had been his foreleg, blood dripping down the newly formed appendage.

"...that is fuckin' badass..." Rainbow Dash thought aloud earning a rather unhealthy glare from Rarity. Twilight meanwhile had her face on the ground. She was getting as good of a look as she could from the crack beneath the door.

"Alright, Rarity, get down here," she said. The fashionista bent over and peered through as well. "See that switch on the airlock?" Twilight asked.

"Who could miss that drab piece of equipment?" Rarity scoffed, "Yes I see it. What abou-whoa!" Both unicorns scooted back a bit from the green illumination that swept over their faces. The following alien screeches and cries ensured their distance. In the hesitation of figuring out how to avoid the biological monstrosity, Spike had shot forth quite a bit of his flamebreath engulfing the warped being in a pillar of green embers. Wildly it flailed around trying to put it out. It wasn't long before it was extinguished and back to attempting another swipe at the now much smaller dragon only to be burned once more. Its body constantly squirmed into new repulsive forms amidst the flames.

"Spike keep it up!" he heard Twilight yell from the other side. He only pressed onward with the fire as long as his breath held out. Eventually he had to take a bit of a hacking breath to regain his spent energy.

"I really didn't eat enough gems for this..." he moaned to himself. With each passing moment he had felt his fire dying down.

"SPIKE! Look out!" Pinkie Pie yelled. Knowing he'd only have a second, if even that, Spike simply ducked and rolled. With more luck than he'd ever felt himself have before, the dragon had just barely avoided the slash from the monster and switched places with it in the process. When he turned around to face it he nearly threw up. The being was nothing like the foal he'd found earlier. Now amidst the remnants of the space suit was an abominable sin against nature. Its feet bubbled with each step it took. The clawed hands pulsated against otherwise calm air of the chamber. And its face...dear Celestia its face. It was just a mess of all sorts of creatures. Some parts of the monster he recognized, others most certainly were not from any part of Equestria he'd ever heard of.

"Spike! Keep it distracted and press yourself up against the wall!" Twilight ordered. Just before it could make another swipe, Spike spat as big a fireball as he could muster straight into its mangled face and dashed for where he'd been told to. A volley of unholy screams wailed throughout the hollow corridors of the station.

"Think we can hit it?" Rarity asked.

"We have to," Twilight stated. Taking as little of time as possible, the two unicorns aimed their horns. Given that they had to press their faces against the floor they couldn't really see where they were aiming. But they had to make the shot. With their teeth clenched and all the others watching in anticipation the unicorns fired off a blast. The sound of the monster grunting told them that they'd missed. Horribly. It'd gotten in the way of their magic! But it allowed Spike to see just what they were doing.

"Twilight! Rarity! Stay there and shoot again when I tell you to!" he yelled. Sick of all the interruptions, the monster let out a mind-numbing roar and made a final pounce at the dragon. As it had before, it was met with green flames licking its body causing it to collapse into a writhing mess in front of Spike, its form desperately trying to mutate into another to counteract the damage done to it. But it never got the chance. "NOW!" he yelled. A newly formed eye on the monster's body was all that got the chance to see the beam that hit the lock that it'd been trying to undo prior. Only now it didn't have a space suit. All at once its cries faded with the air that was getting sucked into the vacuum beyond the door. Fortunately for Spike, the unicorns had just enough energy left to magic the airlock closed again before they hit the ground and blacked out from how much they'd exerted fighting against the force of the evacuating oxygen.
---
"How ya feeling?" Spike's voice asked. Twilight's drooping face just continued to view the stars beyond the window in the hall she was sitting in.

"Lousy," she laughed weakly, "still have a major headache from the blast...how bout you?..."

"Oh you know, just major mental scars," he shrugged playfully and took a seat next to her. Regardless of all they'd been through, the scenery before them felt worth it. "The Princess says the backup suits'll be here in a few hours. The stars really do look beautiful from here though..."

"I'll never look at them the same way again," Twilight sighed.

"You so stole that."

"I so stole that," she confirmed. It took a while for the words to sink through the atmosphere and into their heads. When it did they couldn't help but laugh.

"...Spike..." Twilight started once the joy had died down, "...I um..."

"I know, you didn't mean it you love me, yadda yadda, same old same old," Spike said with a smug smile. For the first moment Twilight returned the expression. Then she proceeded to smash his head between her arms and nuzzle against it with her face.

"Oh Spike I just don't know what I'd do if I lost you!" the tears she'd saved up earlier poured out, "You're my number one assistant! My best friend I've ever had! I know you've been on adventures before but this was...this was something I had no idea that we'd be fine in! I just...just..." The unicorn's voice deteriorated to mere sniffs and whines until one of Spike's claws placed itself on her lips. Through the tears she could see him smiling doubtfully at her.

"I know Twilight," he assured her and gave her a kiss on the lips, "I love you too. And...in spite of what we accomplished here I probably should stay home sometimes when things like this happen. It's just...I helped against Discord even in this story and all. I've done some pretty amazing things in canon also. I just...feel left out sometimes is all. I don't know what I'd do if you didn't come home one day...well other than do everything I've always wanted to without your checklists buggin' the hell out of me." Mustering a grin Twilight bonked the back of his head causing him to give a similar one.

"So I guess we've learned something then?" Twilight asked.

"A letter to the princess?" Spike proposed taking out a quill and scroll from behind his back. To his surprise Twilight brushed the items to the side and turned back to the stars.

"Later," she told him, "let's not ruin the moment..." Shock turned to happiness and comfort on the dragon's face as he turned his attention to the astral objects as well and leaned against the purple unicorn. Relieved to finally have a moment's rest, Twilight hugged Spike to her and he returned the warm embrace. In the distance a red streak drifted slowly across space.

Comments

[Oneyearwarpilot]

I LIKE IT lets make a movie and have Samuel Jackson play in it cause you know hes in everything.

[Jphyper]

"Filly" refers to female pony children only. The word you're looking for is either "colt" (the male term) or "foal" (the gender-neutral term). You might want to fix that.

[edward18]

267441 me apologizes hope it doesn't ruin the chapter

[edward18]

267441 It's fixed