Lost in Space. Feral and Wild. Bloodlust. The abandoned creatures who were thrust into space and forgotten from the public have been causing trouble. Just as that occurs, new students Twilight Sparkle and Spike become part of the new intiatives.
Equestria has undergone a new age of machinery and travel among the stars. Robotic helpers have vastly improved the lives of those living on the planet. Thanks to the genius of Dr. Oliver Starswirl, traveling among the far off worlds is now a reality. But there are dangers in that. Hostile beings began to destroy recon ships, killing innocent lives, and outraging the rulers of this utopian society. A new testing Initiative begins, codenamed "The D.R.A.G.O.N. Operatives". These beings are infused with the power to control machinery on a much stronger level than that of any normal person. The tests were successful, but it held...terrible side affects. After realizing that these hand made demons were a threat, the empire cast them out, sent to destroy any threats to Equestria. It works, and no more threats are seen. But years later, much after the testing of D.R.A.G.O.N operatives stopped, movement has occurred on a lone Spaceship.
As this happens, two new students join the Operative Initiative Academy, or O.I.A. U.N.I.C.O.R.N Operative Twilight Sparkle and young Operative in training Spike have finally made it. But what people will they meet, and what challenges will they face?
This was from a story idea by shade123226. I owe him for this idea, so thank him as well!
Deep in the center of the Academy, high ranking officials quickly tapped on computers, watching a screen every second they looked up. They were doing a routine scan of the satellite telescopes before the first day of the semester began. One man, a P.E.G.A.S.U.S. Operative, was about to finish his section of space. Everything seemed normal, with no major disturbances among the stars. He took a moment to take off his reading glasses, sighing as he was about to finish. His CO walked up to him, as he gave a salute.
"Good work today, Private Speedster. I trust the check was uneventful?" the older stallion mentioned. The younger one put down his hand and shook his head.
"Yes sir, General Soarin. Nothing but a few asteroid clusters, but already most of the ships have cleared the radius." He pointed to the screen, where the markers of the ships were above the dots representing the asteroids.The other workers made their way out, preparing to leave to their family. Soarin took a look at the new Operative, and how nervous he acted in front of him.
"Relax, Speedster. You're more shaken than a 'corn in a firefight!" he chuckled, making the man slouch a little. "I know this is only your second month at joining the Lunar Ranks, but I believe you have what it takes to be a true ace. You would've made your brothers proud." he said, a sympathetic look on his face. The younger operative sighed then began to leave.
"Thanks, Soarin. I wish I could stay and chat, but this is also my second month as a teacher in the Academy, and a new batch of Trainees are coming today." he said with a nod as he left through the door.
"That kid grew up too fast for his own good," the OC muttered as he picked up his stuff and left. It would be only a few moments before the next shift of technicians could come in. In the few moments of quiet, the private's computer was still left on the scanner. No one noticed when it began to flashed text urgently.
EMERGENCY. SHIP 121098 HAS TAKEN HEAVY DAMAGE IN SECTOR 6. D.R.A.G.O.N. OPS HAVE BEEN IDENTIFIED IN PERIMETER. SENDING ASSISTANCE REQUEST NOW.
The New Faces
The tram pulled into the docking station, murmurs of excitement, joy, and fear escaped the doors. As the gates opened, dozens of young teens exited out of the tram, carrying suitcases and bookbags. The last of the new trainees exited slowly as they thanked the driver. One was a mare with purple fur and a two tone striped mane, who had a look of nervousness on her face. She wore a clean striped shirt underneath her jacket, with it all tucked neatly into her dress pants, giving her a professional look. The other was a younger stallion, who had the same purple fur, with a messy green mane and goatee to match. He wore a much less formal shirt, depicting one of his favorite bands underneath a purple jacket, and denim jeans. The younger one grabbed his small backpack and jogged up with the other, smiling all the while.
"So, Twilight, are you ready for our first day at the Academy?" said the younger one. The older one smiled to herself and took in the scenery.
"You know it, Spike. I guess we're both excited that you and I get to go to the highest school for Operatives in all of Equestria, but we should probably keep calm and maintain a good first impression." Twilight said, more to herself.
" What do you mean keep calm? I'm fine. I wasn't the one who kept asking me how far we were on the tram, or the one wh-" he stopped as she gave him a glare. He rolled his eyes as they made their way to the front of the school. Once they walked in, they felt dwarfed by the size of the building.
It looked like the inside of a museum, with giant glass windows giving out a clear view of the bright, blue sky above. The Academy went on so high that it made Twilight nearly fall over from leaning back. Luckily, Spike managed to catch her. As they looked around, they saw many girls and boys their age walking around, chatting with others. Many wore a necklace bearing a symbol on it. Strangely, all of them varied, from roses to gears and everything else. Twilight instantly recognized them to be the school I.D. for students, recalling them being mentioned from the pamphlet of the school.
The two spotted the front desk, where they were supposed check in at. A long line of people surrounded it, pushing and moving around. The two siblings shared a sigh as they moved to the back of the line.
"They must be like us, trying to get their rooms and classes." Spike thought. After what seemed like hours, Twilight and Spike had made it to the front, and met an older woman at the receptionist's desk. She turned around to give them a warm smile.
Why, hello there! May I help you with anything?" she asked. Both Spike and Twi looked at each other before she decided to speak up.
"Yes, I believe you can. My name Is Twilight Sparkle, and this is my little brother Spike," she gestured to the stallion, who waved back with a smile. "We are new trainees for the academy, and we were wondering where we are supposed to go before our classes." "New trainees, you say? Let me just look up your names," the mare chirped, clicking away on her computer. Not five seconds later, she pulled out a ticket and gave it to Twilight. She looked down at it, reading it while Spike looked at her questioningly.
Welcome to the Operatives Initiative Academy!
TRAINEE TWILIGHT SPARKLE, AGE 20, SIGNING UP FOR U.N.I.C.O.R.N. INTIATIVE
DORM ROOM: HALL T, DOOR 2, ROOM 3.
TRAINEE SPIKE, AGE 17, SIGNING UP FOR U.N.I.C.O.R.N. INITIATIVE
DORM ROOM: HALL T, DOOR 5, ROOM 4.
PROFFESSOR: JOHNATHAN M. SPEEDSTER, LUNAR DIVISION.
"If you follow the signs to the dorm hallways, just find the "T" floor, then unpack. Your classroom numbers should be there, as are your roommates! Have a nice first day, you two." The receptionist waved, as they walked away. As she said, a clear sign directed them to the dorm hallway, then they saw they needed to ride an elevator. As they the two got on, Spike pressed a button that was marked "T", and they lurched up as they rose.
"So, what do you think so far, Twi? Pretty cool stuff, am I right?" he smiled. Twilight tried to act calm, but her joy bubbled through as she grinned back at him.
"Why, it's the most amazing-looking place I've ever seen! Did you see how huge this place is? And to think, all of this was created by Doctor Starswirl!" she gushed, as Spike rolled his eyes, knowing how much of a fangirl she was about Starswirl. Although he'd never admit it, he thought he was pretty amazing too, considering how he started all the initiatives and guides the school personally. As both were deep in thought, the bell dinged, the door sliding open. The two stepped out to locate the dorm. Finding the one marked "#2"in fancy font, they knocked on the door. After about ten seconds, they heard a mare yell "Coming!" and hoofsteps approaching the other side. When the door opened, it revealed a mare with pink fur and a mane to match. She wore a pink shirt that matched her mane, three different colored balloons on the center, as well as a pair of faded jeans. "Oh. My. God. You must be the new roomie! Come on in!" she gestured, the two sharing a look as they walked in, the pink mare closing the door behind them.
The dorm room was rather big, with many hallways splitting up into different areas. The main room had a T.V, with the news playing about some well received orchestra last night. A dinky couch with a tan color sat in the middle, with a few folding chairs sitting around a coffee table. On one of the chairs sat confetti with balloons hanging on it, a card reading out "Welcome to our dorm!" written out in pink. The mare hopped in front of them, holding out her hand.
"Oh, silly me, I forgot to tell you my name! I'm Diane, but my friends call me Pinkie Pie!" Spike offered his hand, which she took and practically shook his arm out of his socket. As he shook his head around, she giggled. "You're pretty funny, guy! What's your name?"
"Uh, Spike. And she's Twilight..." said the stallion, confused. Just as Twilight was about to receive a killer handshake, the lock of the door jiggled and opened, letting a mare step into the room.
She was a fairly tall mare, with white fur that looked sleek and well groomed. Her purple mane was styled in a way that made any others look shameful, with her tail just as kempt. The stallion then saw her straight posture.
"Maybe she's from Manehattan." he thought to himself.
Her eyes were a deep blue ocean, holding life and energy that made her stand out even more. As she walked up to them, Spike began to look at her figure. She wore a tight fitting white sweater, which hugged her quite nicely. Her pants were made of some kind of black fabric, not that he knew much about fashion anyways. It seemed to fit her lower half and accentuate her curves, giving off a perfect hourglass figure. Each step held a bounce for either her top or bottom, yet still holding some form of grace. As Spike watched this swaying pattern of skin dance, Twilight noticed him and stepped on his foot, him clutching his leg soon after.
"What was that for?!" he whispered.
"Do not treat her like a piece of eye candy, Spike. I saw you staring. I'm still you're big sister, and I can..." Spike zoned out as he watched that beautiful mare turn to look into his eyes. His heart instantly began to beat faster. She smiled at him, then walked up to Twilight, still lecturing her brother.
"Excuse me, but are one of you our new roommate?" she asked in a mid-atlantic accent. As Twilight gave out introductions for both of them, she sat on the couch with a cup of coffee in her hands.
"Well, it certainly is nice to meet you two. My name Is Rarity, and I am a Cadet U.N.I.C.O.R.N. in training." she said fluently.
"Rarity," Spike thought. "That name suits her so well..." He instantly wished he was in this dorm instead of his sister. Remembering that he needed to head to his dorm, he turned to Twilight. "Uh, Twi? I better get to my dorm before class begins." She looked up at him, looking a little sad.
"Oh, right. Well, I won't hold you. See you in a few hours, little brother!" she smiled, giving him a hug in front of the two strangers. Spike felt his cheeks get red as their eyes watched him.
"Aww! How cute! See you later, Spike. I hope we can get a chance to know each other sometime." said Rarity. As the stallion walked towards the door with his luggage, Pinkie Pie stopped him.
"Psst. Hey Spike! If you wanna hang out later, go to the Academy Gardens at 7 o' clock tonight!" she whispered, handing him a flyer. Before he had time to read it, he was already out the door, it shutting firmly behind him.
"Okay...door number five," he remembered, heading down a few feet. He hasn't even been here ten minutes, and he could tell this school was going to be interesting. Once he got to the door labeled "#5" in a look similar to a comic book picture, he slowly knocked on the door, wondering who he would meet next. A few seconds later, a soft voice called out from the other side.
"U-uh, hello? Who's there?" it squeaked.
"Um, hi there. My name is Spike, and I'm the new roommate. Pleased to meet you." Spike tried to say as friendly as possible to a door. After a moment, the door slowly opened to reveal a mare with yellow fur and pink mane, and a shy face poking out from the bangs. It looked like she was wearing a yellow shirt with a phoenix chick on the front. She saw him, and looked somewhat frightened. "Hmm, maybe I should get her to talk to me."he thought to himself. As she let him inside the dorm, he saw how this one appeared different.
Like Twilight's dorm, there was a T.V. and a couch, but that was where the similarities ended. A few multicolored beanbags sat around the television, where a tray sat, holding some tea cups and sandwiches. The walls were covered in posters of various famous operatives, specifically P.E.G.A.S.U.S. ones. In one windowsill, a pot held a small Bonsai Tree that was neatly trimmed. The stallion turned his gaze to the shy girl in front of him, then put on a comforting smile.
"You have a really awesome dorm here, Ms.-?" he asked. She seemed to lighten up a little.
"Oh, my name is Fluttershy. It's really nice to meet you, Spike." she said walking over to the tray of food. "Would you like some tea?" she asked, holding it to him. Spike's stomach rumbled in conformation, so the two sat down. As it was served, Spike noticed that Fluttershy had wings on her back, much like some of the P.E.G.A.S.U.S. Operatives he has seen.
"So, Fluttershy, what kind of initiative are you a part of?" he asked. The mare set down her tea daintily and looked up at him.
"Oh, I'm an E.A.R.T.H. Op Cadet." Spike gave off a strange look, surprised. "Oh, I could see how it's surprising, what with my wings and all, but I've always had a real love of animals," she said with a smile, as a white rabbit ran into the room. "Hello, Angel. This is our new friend, Spike." Spike put his hand down to pet the little guy, just as it bit his hand and ran off again.
"Ow! What was that for?!" he exclaimed, rubbing his sore hand. Fluttershy ran off to the kitchen, then came back with some ointment and a bandage.
"Oh, I'm terribly sorry about that, Spike. Angel's really skittish around strangers, but once he gets to know you, I'm sure you'll become the best of friends!" she spoke, just as she finished wrapping the bandage around his hand. "Better?" she asked. Spike forgot his anger towards the little beast when he looked into her eyes, kindness radiating from them.
"...Yes, thank you." he said. "So, are there any other roommates in here that I haven't met?"
"Well, there's Rainbow Dash, and she's really athletic, not to mention one of the best Pegs' in her class. And there's also Applejack, an E.A.R.T.H. Operative who's really good at cooking. Speaking of Operatives, what kind are you going to be?"
"I'm going to be a 'Corn," he replied proudly.
"That makes sense," Fluttershy said, picking up the empty tea cups. "They usually assign groups of all different Ops, so that everyone gets a feel of what everyone does. At least the Dean says that." Spike remembered that he had to unpack, so he got up from his seat to the kitchen, where Fluttershy set the cups into the sink, where they were cleaned by robotic scrubbers.
"I don't mean to be rude, Fluttershy, but I should probably get to my room and unpack. Could you tell me where the rooms are?" The mare nodded and pointed to a room on one of the branching hallways.
"We have about an hour before classes begin, so take your time." she called as he walked down to find the room marked "4". He opened it to see a clean room, with a small bed and a dresser. A fan spun slowly on the ceiling, blowing the curtains of the window. Just as the stallion sat down to unpack, he saw a note and a box on the pillow of the bed. He opened the note, and it read out:
Hello, Spike! I congratulate you on making it to the O.I.A., and at such a young age! It makes me glad to see students who have advanced faster than most do. I'm expecting great things from you! You are assigned to my classroom this year, and I hope we can help you fulfill your dream of being a U.N.I.C.O.R.N. Operative. If you ever need me, just feel free to message me. See you soon!
-Professor Speedster, Room -----
Spike stared blankly down at the note. "Well, that 's a little strange. At least I know where the class is at now," he shrugged. He then opened the box that sat on the bed, In it, sat a small necklace, looking just like the ones he saw on the kids earlier. On his, he saw a picture of a silver flame on it. On a piece of scratch paper, it read out:
School I.D. for Spike. Have a good semester! -Dr. S.
"School I.D.? Didn't Twilight mention something about that on the ride here? Eh, that explains why everyone else had one like this." the stallion accepted.
He put the necklace on, and it fit him perfectly. The stallion rubbed it's glossy finish, the stone feeling cool under his fingers. He finished unpacking soon afterwards, then turned to his clock. He had about forty five minutes before class started.
"Maybe I should go see what classes Fluttershy has," Spike said, walking out of his room with the necklace still in his hand.
Fallen Star was panicking. The ship he was on had just been hit by a number of heavy fire that bombarded from seemingly out of nowhere. The other five crew members were sending out an S.O.S, or trying desperately to regain control of the chaos. Sizeable dents pushed deep into the spacecraft, so deep that the cables and wires on the inside were either snapped or leaking whatever was inside of them. Soon, his leader, Red Tail, ran up to him.
"Star, get your head out of your ass and go get the suits! I don't know if those Dragon bastards are gonna make it in time! We have to be ready to evacuate in five, so MOVE!" Star quickly saluted as he ran towards the back of the ship to gather the supplies. Red Tail then turned to make sure that the help signal was still working, then began to bark out orders to the others, who gathered important data from the failing computers. As the engines started to falter along with the rest of the ship, Red Tail swore under his breath. "I knew we couldn't trust those freaks to help us out," he spat.
Just then, a loud thump was made on top of the ship. Slowly, sounds of walking on top of the craft was heard. The others stopped what they did as they heard more footsteps, sounding lke scampering, coming closer to the door. For a moment, it was quiet. Then, the faintest tapping on a escape hatch to the outside. Slowly, one of the crew members, a Peg, walked up to the door, holding a crowbar he was using earlier as a makeshift club. Peering out the window, he saw nothing outside. He turned around, confused, just like Red Tail and the others. He started to chuckle.
"Heh, must of been our imagi-" he started to say, then a black claw broke through the glass of the door and started to strangle him. Trying desperately to escape, he repeatedly hit the hand with his crowbar, until the hand finally let go and dropped the Operative to the floor. The other three began to hoist him onto their shoulders. Red Tail walked up to the Stallion. A nasty black bruise completely covered the back of his neck, making the leader cringe.
Nobody noticed the panel on the ceiling slowly open up, or the figures that quickly scuttled to the floor from the opening. It wasn't until one hulking figure landed with a large stomp that the crew decided to turn around to see what looked like a stallion before being mauled by the smaller creatures that had made their way inside.
Fallen Star made his way back from gathering the suits needed for surviving the cold limits of deep space.Opening the door to the hold where his team was at, he was shocked to find them all gone, the room extremely dark.
"Guys, where are you?" he called out. Walking around in the dark, he felt his way to where the emergency flashlight were kept. As his fingers grasped one, he felt something slick on the wall. Quickly lifting his hand away from the mysterious gunk, he turned on the flashlight to see what his hand had touched. Blood. Dark red blood had covered his entire hand, making his heart skip a few beats. He shakily turned away from his hand to see one figure in front of him.
It had pointed blue ears, giving way to a greasy black mop of hair. Within the hair did two horns curl outward from his skull. Instead of fur, this monster had dark blue scales, similar to that of a lizard. It's hand curled into sharp claws, glistening with dark red streaks. Replacing hooves were large toes, each ending with talons. It wore little, having a pair of torn black pants and a jacket, covering a thin blue shirt underneath, as well as a dark brown scarf. The pants gave way to a long tail, covered in barb-like spikes. The scariest thng though was his face. His maw was twice as long as a regular pony's, revealing rows of needle like teeth, snarling silently. His eyes were covered up by a pair of visors, but he could feel their gaze peer into the back of his eyes.
"I am D.R.A.G.O.N. Operative Nova," the creature grinned, a rough voice coming out. "Did you call?"
Getting Ready
It wasn't much after Spike left that Twilight had already began to unpack in her room, instead of going to learn more about her roomates. After rearranging her books for the fourth time, Twilight sighed and flopped on her bed. She checked her clock to see how much time had passed. She groaned as it only had been about five minutes since she arrived in the dorm. Twilight had about fourty five minutes left until class began, but she didn't really want to go back and talk to the other two.
"It's not that Rarity and Pinkie are bad or anything,"the mare thought. "I just don't want to be distracted by anyone so I can pass through the Academy. Besides, it's not like my life depends on making friends here."she tried to tell herself. But she knew that was a lie. The real reason she didn't want to go in there was because she was nervous they might think she's not that interesting. Not many kids she worked with did. Sure, she had a few friends back home, but none got into this school, or really ever did anything to hang out with her, unless Spike was involved. Part of her wished her little brother was with her, instead of in some other dorm. Then again, it would be really weird for me to share a dorm with my brother and no one else." "Ugh, why can't I just go to class already?!" she said to herself.
"Because, if you went already, we couldn't tell you about your classes!" said a cheery voice. Pinkie came from seemingly out of nowhere, popping up right beside the bookworm. Twilight screamed and fell of the bed, landing on the floor. Pinkie giggled as she offered a hand to the mare, who gladly took it.
"Where did you come from?" Twilight asked.
"I came through the door, of course!" Twilight just shook her head, frustrated at this answer. Rarity walked in, holding up a piece of paper like Twilight's.
"Oh! What Proffesor did you get, darling?" the mare asked.
"Someone named Proffesor Speedster," she said, looking down at her paper. Pinkie started to jump up and down next to Twilight.
"Ooh, I got that guy too! We're going to be the best of friends, I know it!" the pink mare chirped.
"Oh, geez, I have a class with the hyper one?! I hope she'll let me focus,"Twilight thought to herself. Turning her attention to Rarity, she asked,"What Proffesor did you get, Rarity?"
"Hmm. Someone called Proffesor Fancy Pants. I heard he's a marvelous teacher when it comes to using Telekenesis." she said, as she gathered her papers, and stuffed them into her bookbag. "In any case, why don't Pinkie and I take you to the Cafeteria for some breakfast before class starts?"
"I'm game for that! Come on, Twilight. It's REALLY good!" Pinkie said.
Twilight's stomach seemed to grumble on que, making the mare blush. "Uh, sure. I could go for some food." she answered, following the other two out of the dorm.
"So, Fluttershy, what teacher did you get?" Spike asked, sitting on one of the beanbags in the living room. The two only had about thirty minutes till the first day started, and they already had everything they needed packed. While they were waiting for time to pass, they disscussed teachers.
"A Peg who goes by Johnathan Speedster. He's supposed to be a brand new teacher who came in a few months ago. I wonder how he's like." Fluttershy thought.
"No way, I got him too! Looks like we'll be in the same classes," Spike grinned. He wasn't sure, but he thought he could see her cheeks turn red for a moment.
"Well, at least I have two friends that will be in my class," she squeaked. "You, and Dash."
"Oh, right, you talked about Rainbow a little. Speaking of her, why isn't she here?" the stallion asked, looking around the room.
"Well, she likes to take jogs around the city in the mornings. By the time she gets back and takes a shower in the gym, it'll be five minutes to class. She does it every other day, so I don't see her in the dorm as often as A.J."
"Huh, a athletic girl. Maybe I should go run with her sometimes. I could always use the excercise." Spike silently said, looking down at his stomach. Then again, my body is already amazing!" Breaking the silence, he asked another question. "What's A.J. doing, then?"
"A.J. likes to work in the Cafeteria as a cook in the mornings, to help out with the food rush. She's a really good cook, too! You want to go meet her? I'm starving," the yellow mare said, rubbing her stomach.
"Do they have pancakes down there?"
"I think s-" was all the shy girl had time to say, as the boy pulled her up and started to head for the door.
Following his uncanny scent, Spike and Fluttershy managed to make it to the cafeteria in about five minutes. Skidding to a halt, the stallion caught his breath while his partner managed to catch up to him. Panting, he looked up to see the shy mare giggling at him. Realizing how stupid he looked, he stood back up and collected himself.
"Uh, sorry about that. I..really like pancakes," Spike grinned sheepishly. Turning around, he faced the double doors that led into the mess hall. Grabbing the handle, he opened the door and held it out for Fluttershy, to be a gentleman. Thanking him, she went into the louder room, with him following behind her.
As soon as he got in, Spike noticed how many ponies were all there. Hundreds of students sat around tables scattered in the hall, either eating, talking to others, or messing with thier phones. The ones who weren't sitting were standing in lunch lines, grabbing breakfast. Realizing that his jaw was hanging open, he closed it in the hopes nobody noticed. Following Fluttershy to one of the lines, they waited their turns. After grabbing a tray, the Stallion inched over to the cook, who's back was turned to them.
"Excuse me, could I get some pancakes, please?" Spike asked, holding up his tray. The cook turned around, where Spike got a better look at her. She was pretty tall, having a few sizable inches over Spike's wiry, thin frame. She also seemed built, with some noticiable muscles on her forearms, which held out tongs for the food. The mare wore pretty simple clothing: an dull orange shirt, which reminded Spike of dirt, and a pair of denim jeans, much like his. Looking at her face, her hair was the color of straw, with short bangs and drawn up into a ponytail in the back with a red string. Strangely enough, this mare wore a Stetson, making her look like the cowponies that fillies and colts dressed up like on Nightmare Night. There were no more in real life, Spike recalled. Ever since the new technology age, farming has become much more effecient.
"Well, sure, little guy." she chuckled with a smooth country accent. She handed him a few of the fluffy bits of joy, immediately making Spike snap back into reality. Before he could mumble thanks, Fluttershy managed to speak up.
"Hey, Applejack. This is our new roommate, Spike." she said, sounding louder than she did when the stallion first met her. Applejack perked up at this, then turned to look at Spike, who was already eating a few of the pancakes. Noticing they were staring,Spike chuckled akwardly. A.J. then began to laugh loudly, making a few other ponies turn around, in annoyance.
"Heh, I like this feller already! Nice to meet ya, Spike. The name's Applejack, but I reckon you can call me A.J.!" she said, offering her hand to shake. Before they could do so, a stallion yelled from beside them.
"Hey! Hurry it up, we wanna eat too!" as a bunch of other angry ponies agreed with them. A.J. grinned sheepishly, then went back to cooking.
"Sorry 'bout that, Spike. I reckon we'll catch up later t'night. See ya later, Fluttershy. Don't get TOO crazy with that stallion," she smirked as the duo went off. Looking for a table to sit at, Spike looked at the shy mare beside him.
"Well, she seems real nice," he said, to break the silence.
"Oh,yes. A.J.'s one of the greatest mares I know. She's really strong and hardworking. Not to mention, she's not afraid to say what she believes in. I wish I was that strong." said Fluttershy, looking a little down-trodden at that last line. Spike noticed this, and frowned.
"Well, for what it's worth, I think you are one of the coolest mares I've ever met." Spike said, with a genuine smile. She perked up, and looked at his face, holding a grateful smile.That made Spike's heart flutter. Before she could say anything else, a familiar voice called from across the hall.
"Spike! Sit over here!" Looking over to where the voice was, he saw Twilight, Pinkie, and Rarity waving him over. Having found no where else to sit, the two decided to trudge over there, Spike already feeling slightly embarrased. Sitting down, Spike sat in front of Twilight and Rarity, while he was between Fluttershy and Pinkie. While he tried to eat, Twi already began to talk, nervously, he noticed.
"Hey there, Spike. It's seems like it's been so long since we've last seen you." she smiled.
"Uh, Twi? It hasn't even been an hour yet," the stallion deadpanned.
"To me, it's been like, a month since we last saw each other! I had to twiddle my thumbs while the writer's computer broke, and he took his sweet time!" Pinkie said, much to everyone's confusion.
"Um, sure, Pinkie..." Rarity said.
"So, who's your new friend, Spike?" Twilight asked, taking note of Fluttershy. The shy mare already had her head bent, hiding her face slightly.
"Why don't I introduce you two? Fluttershy, this is Twilight, my older sister. And Twi, this is Fluttershy, one of my roommates." Twilight smiled and shook hands with the now less-shy mare.
"It's nice to meet you, Fluttershy. I hope my brother hasn't been rude to you or anything," she chuckled.
"Oh, no! He's been really nice to me. I think he's really cu- I mean, nice," she blushed. Spike didn't notice this, as he was too focused on eating his pancakes again, unlike Twilight, who began to smirk, but said nothing. Fluttershy turned to both Pinkie and Rarity. "I haven't seen you girls in a while, how have you been?" Rarity looked up from her cereal, and Pinkie stopped eating her pancakes.
"Why, thank you for asking, darling! I've been doing quite well on my studies." Rarity smiled.
"Oh, I'm doing great, 'Shy! I had this awesome music battle against a dragon dude with sunglasses, then I turned into a evil monster and blew both of us up!" she grinned. Flutteshy opened her mouth to question it, but then decided to just nod her head and continue to eat. After a few moments of small talk among the tables, the group soon found out who was going in what classes, and the proffesors.
"So, me, Pinkie, Spike, and Fluttershy here all have the same Proff." Twilight said, looking at her list again. "Speaking of which, does anypony have the time till class starts?" she asked. Pinkie pulled out a giant watch held by a golden chain, then looked at it.
"I think we have about ten minutes until class starts," she chirpped, putting the watch back into who knows where. Out of nowhere, a mare walking by with crossed eyes and muffins on her tray was tripped by a stallion with red fur and orange, spiky hair. He began to laugh, as two other stallions laughed beside him. The mare shook her head, then watched as the jerky stallion who pushed her take her muffins and crumbled them in front of her. She began to whimper, tears forming in the corners of her eyes. Spike had enough of this, and got up, looking angry.
"What the hell, man?! Why'd you push her down?" Spike yelled at him. The other stallion turned around, and looked down at him, glaring.
"Well, well, well. It looks like we got a tough little shrimp here, fellas." he smirked, as the two other boys circled around Spike. "You must be new; I would've reckognized that ugly face if I'd seen it before."
"Wow, real original there, big red. Think of that one yourself?" he growled. A few ponies who gathered around the four laughed, but were quickly silenced by the two lackeys. Twilight chewed her nails, wishing her brother wouldn't do anything stupid.
"Yep, you're definitely new, shrimp. You must've not heard about me. Allow me to fix that," the stallion laughed, as he picked Spike up by his shirt collar with one hand. Bringing him closer to his face, he spoke only loud enough that the closest around them could hear. "The name's Garble, shrimp. And I'm the one leading this academy. What I say, goes. Got a problem with it?" Garble grinned maliciously. He then threw Spike down hard, causing a few to gasp, especially all of Spike's new friends. Fluttershy and Twilght ran up to where Spike layed, clearly pissed off.
"S-Spike! are you alright?" Fluttershy cried out, helping him up.
"Yeah, thanks, 'Shy." Spike groaned, eyes full of venom towards Garble. He slowly stepped up toward the jerk who threw hi, and then decided to answer his question.
"I'm sorry, I couldn't hear anything over your disgusting breath," he said. making the entire cafeteria go quiet. Garble's eyes narrowed, then, looked off to the side, where Fluttershy stood. He then began to smirk, and curled one of his fists, launching it towards the mare. Spike noticed this, and quickly moved in front of her, blocking the punch. It managed to connect with his face, making it twist back. Everyone gasped, seeing how Garble went for a cheap shot like that. All he did was laugh, with the other cronies.
"Live and learn, little Spike. Don't be a hero, or an idiot. You only managed to protect the barely existing amount of beauty on your girlfriends little face. There wouldn't be much I could do to hurt it!" Garble didn't notice Spike quickly turn around, face bruised, and gather all of his anger, then put it into one single uppercut, which knocked the older stallion down on his rear, a big bruise forming. The other two slowly backed away and the crowd cheered.
Garble, enraged, got up, and into Spike's face, met with an equally stong glare.
"Alright, shrimp. You just got yourself a deathwish. Better watch your back, Spike. Wouldn't want to end up six feet under..." he yelled, then quickly stormed off. Spike looked over to his friends, who were equally shocked, mouths agape.
"Wow, Spike... How did you do that?" Twilight asked. Before he could answer, the crossed eyed mare walked up to him, a big smile on her face.
"Um, Spike, is it? I just wanna thank you for standing up at Garble like that. That was really cool of you," said the mare, who quickly gave him a muffin. Then, she scuttled off, giving Spike a clear few of her Peg wings.
"T-thanks, Spike. For standing up for me, too." Fluttershy squeaked, cheeks burning red. Spike just sighed, the adrenaline going down now. He know noticed the excutiating pain on his face. He cringed, just as a bell rang loudly.
"Oh, shoot! That's the bell that means five minutes till class!" Pinkie yelled. "We better get to Prof. Speedy, real speedy!" Twi, Spike, Shy, and Pinkie quickly wave goodbye to Rarity, then rush to the first day.
Nova sighed in frustration. He was tired of being forced to work with those barbaric aliens. Walking down a corridor, he had a little time to think for himself."How pathetic, that I have to work with those monsters. They show no honor as a guard like myself was shown to uphold. They use brute force, then feast on their enemies! I greatly question my queen's pact with their leader..."While he took a moment to stop before the two guards in front of him, before giving off the guard's salute. Without delay, the two smaller dragons opened the grand doors to the throne room, where the blue drake quickly stepped inside. On the throne sat a dark figure, staring intently at Nova.
"Ahh...so my captain returns. Was the raid successful?" a female voice uttered, belonging to the figure. Nova bowed deeply, then walked just in front of her.
"Yes, my lady. I've sent the other guards to salvage the cargo remaining, and most of it is already stored in the barracks."
"Excellent, Captain. Once again, you've proven your valor for your kingdom. We are now one step closer to reaching our goal," the queen grinned. "Then, we will take control of the Equestria, and the people who've deserted us for so many years will finally feel our wrath!" The drake nodded. His queen's plan was simple, yet effective. But he still had something on his mind that he needed to get out.
"My lady, may I ask you a question?" he spoke slowly. The queen looked down at him, then replied.
"Of course, Captain Nova. What is it?"
"Why have you put me on missions with the warriors from that colony of aliens? Not to insult you, but I can handle the raid missions perfectly well by myself, without the help of those...beings." Nova asked, looking up in earnest. The Queen immediately glared down at him, with a hard look.
"In the alliance I have arranged with their queen, we allow them to take the crew members, while we have any backup they can spare. If we do not hold this bargin, either we will have too little soldiers or them as enemies once more. You are prehaps the only soldier here who will not bicker with them, so you must follow them. Do I make myself clear?" she asked.
"I...understand," Nova said, still a bit angry. He wishes he could just infultrate Equestria himself, to end this madness. But that won't bring her mind back.
"You are dismissed, Captain." she added, sighing. The drake saluted, then began to walk out.
"As you wish," he called out, then quietly said to himself, "...sister."
Class is Open!
Everypony sat around in the classroom, waiting for the proffesor to arrive. Among them, Spike, Fluttershy, Twilight, and Pinkie all looked around, wondering where he was. Twilight checked her watch again for the fifth time.
"I can't belive it, he's forty-three seconds late! Something terrible must have happned." Twilight cringed, worry in her eyes. Spike rolled his eyes at this usual bout of fear of tardiness.
"Um, I don't think anything's happned to the Prof. in forty-three seconds, Twilight," Fluttershy said softly. Twilight started to look around, while breathing heavily.
"Look, calm down, Twi. He probably just went to the colt's room or something. Don't hurt yourself, everything will be fine." Spike said soothingly, making her slow her breath down a little bit. Just as she started to calm down, the door opened, for a young stallion to step into the room.
He was pretty skinny, with a dull gray coat much like the Peg they met earlier, and had thick, messy black hair much like Spike's. His eyes were a deep purple, just like his bowtie that went with the simple white T-shirt he wore. He had a noticiable long black goatee, with a real twisted look about it. Behind him were a pair of wings as well. As he walked into the room, he smiled easily, then sat down on the teacher's desk, hooves propped on the chair behind it.
"Am I late for class?" he asked cooly. The students looked at each other, then shrugged.
"Be glad the Prof.'s late, man, or you would be screwed!" One stallion laughed. The stallion just smirked, then asked,
"So, I've heard that teacher's a total idiot." he whispered loudly. That got many, including Spike, to laugh. "He doesn't even know what he's doing. What an ass!" he chuckled. A few of the students laughed harder than before.
"Sounds like it, man. This class will suck! I'm just gonna slide through this entire thing, and get notes from the uppers. Ha, the Prof. will never know." One stallion, named Hard Core laughed out loud. "What's your name, dude?"
"Oh, my name is Stardust Speedster. Also known as the ass who's teaching this class." Speedy replied, laughing. Everyone immediately shut up, including a very nervous Hard Core. The stallion sat up right, looking around the room, where his eyes fell right on Spike.
"Well, well, well. I get to teach the brawler. Hello there, Spike!"