> And Then There Were 10...Er...67
>  by Grey Ghost
> --------------------------------------------------------------------------

> Enter Jason 
> --------------------------------------------------------------------------

It was a busy day at the local convention center, the hustle and bustle of the crowd filling the halls. Jason Hughes walked rather slowly compared to his fellow con goers, not really sure what to do with himself. This was the first time he had ever been to a con so he felt rather lost.

He sighed, deciding to head to the showroom floor. After a few minutes of just wandering, he found himself drawn to a stall run by a guy dressed as the merchant from Resident Evil 4. 

“Welcome! I got rare things on sale stranger!” he said, looking at Jason, his accent surprisingly spot on.

“I can see that.” Jason said with a nod, looking the man’s wares over. He stopped, his gaze landing on a replica of the original Omnitrix. He had always wanted one, ever since he had first become a fan of Ben 10. He picked it up, looking it over, noting the high quality. 

“How much?” he asked, moving his gaze from the object to the merchant. 

“For you? Lets say... a hundred dollars.” 

“Deal.” Jason said with a nod, taking out his wallet. He pulled a hundred dollar bill out before passing it over to the merchant. 

“Enjoy yourself mate,” the man said with a nod, putting the bill away.

“Of course I will,” Jason said, slipping the Omnitrix onto his right arm. He admired it with a grin before noticing the dial was glowing. “What the hell?” he asked, his eyes widening as green electricity started to surge from it. 

“Get off get off!” He shouted, tugging on the thing, though it refused to budge from
his arm. He screamed as a wave of energy burst from the Omnitrix and he blacked out.

****

Jason groaned as he came to, his head aching. “I feel like I got hit by a bus...” he muttered to himself, moving into a sitting position.  He blinked, finding himself in a wooded area, the air filled with chirping birds.

“Where the hell am I?” he asked, standing up and rubbing his head. The last thing he remembered was buying that omnitrix replica off that guy cosplaying as The Merchant... speaking of which.

“What the hell! Get off my wrist!” he shouted, tugging at the thing, doing his best to tear it off. He jumped back in surprise as the dial popped up, glowing. “This thing is real isn’t it..?” he asked himself, staring at the Omnitrix.

With a big grin, he gripped the dial with his left hand, starting to turn it, listening to the sounds of it. “Oh, this is gonna be fun!” he said, slamming his hand down on the dial. It was an incredible sensation, the feeling of bones rearranging, fur growing. 

In a green flash, the young human was replaced with an orange colored quadruped. It let out a strange howling sound, gill like sensors in its neck opening.  A grin spread across its face and it bounded off, not a care in the world. 

***

Fluttershy hummed softly to herself as she went about her morning routine, feeding the various animal friends. 

“Oh yes Mr. Sparrow, your feathers look so beautiful today,” she said with a smile, pouring the polite little bird some seed.  She was about to give some seed to Ms. Magpie when a loud howl filled the air and a large orange furred creature burst out of the wood, scaring the birds away.

She froze up in fear, trembling a bit. It was a large orange colored quadruped that looked vaguely dog-like. It lacked any eyes and had a strange piece of armor on its left shoulder. It sniffed around, obviously not noticing her.

She gulped, looking the creature over. It didn’t look like anything she’d ever seen before, for all she knew, it could just be a monster from the Everfree. She shook her head, frowning at herself. She shouldn’t judge things by their looks, her friend Manny was a manticore and he was a sweetheart. 

“O-okay... I can do this...” she whispered to herself before looking at the creature. “Um..hi..” she said, her voice barely above a whisper.

The creature turned to her, gill like structures opening up on its neck. It howled again, moving over to her. 

“Y-you're not gonna hurt me are you?” she asked, shaking a bit more, gazing up at the creature. It tilted it’s head at the question before shaking it. Fluttershy let out a sigh of relief, a small smile spreading across her face.

“It’s nice to meet you, I’m Fluttershy,” she said, looking it over again. “I’ve never seen anything like you before, are you some type of dog?”  It growled a bit, shaking its head. “Oh um... hmm..” she said, rubbing her chin and racking her brain for anything similar, only to come up with nothing.

“Hey Fluttershy!” came a familiar voice, drawing her attention to the sky.  Rainbow Dash zipped over, landing by her friend, grinning. “Hey, we still up for that picnic?” she asked, not having noticed the creature yet. 

“Oh! I’m sorry Rainbow Dash, I was so caught up with my new friend that I forgot!” 

“New friend? Who are you..? What in the hay is that!?” Rainbow asked, her wings flaring out as she finally noticed it. 

“Rainbow, this is my new friend. I don’t know what he is yet but he seems nice.” Fluttershy said with a smile, petting the creatures neck. It didn’t seem to mind, sitting down on it’s haunches. 

“I don’t think this is a good idea Fluttershy, this thing could be a pony gobbling monster!” Rainbow argued, flying up into its face, frowning when she couldn’t see its eyes. 

Fluttershy was about to argue when a strange beeping sound came from the creature. There was a bright flash of red light, making both ponies flinch. When they turned back, the creature had been replaced with an even stranger one. It stood a head taller than even Princess Celestia, its lower half blue while it’s top half was black. Its head was bare of any fur besides its mane, which was rather long.  It looked down at itself before looking at the two dumbstruck ponies. “Aw crap... ” it said, gulping.

***


Jason gulped, looking at the two pony creatures in front of him. ‘How the hell do I get out of this?’ he asked himself, gazing down at the Omnitrix. He frowned, seeing its dial glowing red instead of its normal green. 

“Changeling!” the blue one shouted, slamming into his chest, knocking him onto his back. 

“Uncatalogued DNA detected,” a monotone voice stated before a yellow beam moved over Rainbow Dash. She was about to say something when she was yanked away.

“Rainbow Dash!” Fluttershy scolded, biting onto her friends tail, pulling her off the poor creature.

“What the hay Fluttershy!?” Rainbow demanded, turning to glare at her friend, crossing her forehooves.

“I’m disappointed in you Rainbow Dash! Attacking a poor creature like that.”

“Poor creature!? That thing’s probably a changeling!”

“You don’t know that Rainbow Dash! You should be ashamed of yourself!”

Listening to the two creatures argue, Jason gazed at the Omnitrix, relief flooding him as it went back from red to green. He popped the dial up, slamming it back down. In a flash, he was changing and shifting as his body went through another transformation. He turned into a tall blue insectoid creature, it’s body covered in something akin to a rob. “Big Chill!” he exclaimed, spreading his wings, flying off.

***

“Gah! Fluttershy! You let it get away!” Rainbow Dash fumed, flaring her wings, ready to chase after it.

“No, you scared that poor creature away!” Fluttershy countered, glaring at her friend. “How could you be so mean?” she asked, before flying off after the creature, hoping Rainbow hadn’t scared it too much.

“Fluttershy’s gone nuts! I better go get Twilight, before Fluttershy gets herself eaten!”  she said before zipping into the air, flying off. She soon reached the library in a flash, shooting through the window, slamming into one of the bookshelves. 

“Rainbow Dash!” Twilight shouted, looking up from her book, her eye twitching. “How many times do I have to tell you to not fly into the library!?”

“Twilight! No time! Something came out of the Everfree! It might be a changeling but Fluttershy wouldn’t listen and went after it!” Rainbow panted out, grabbing Twilight by the withers, shaking her violently.

“Changeling!?” Twilight exclaimed, her eyes going wide. “Spike! Send a letter to the princesses! We have a changeling to catch!” she instructed before flying out of the window with Rainbow Dash.

***


“Good I think I lost them.” Jason said, landing in a group of apple trees. He folded his wings around himself, looking around. This was one hell of a day, though the Omnitrix more than made up for it. He sighed, hearing the Omnitrix starting to beep. In another flash of red light he reverted back to his original form. 

“Well, here is a good enough place to relax,” he said with a shrug. He sat down against one of the apple trees, closing his eyes. He sighed, leaning back on the tree, letting the adrenaline leave his bloodstream. 

“Oh god... what am I going to do?” he asked himself, putting his head in his hands. “I’m so screwed...” he whimpered to himself, hugging his knees. 

He closed his eyes, letting out a big sigh. It didn’t take him long to fall asleep, his hair swaying in the breeze. 

***

Applejack hummed to herself softly as she trotted toward the last unbucked tree in the orchard. Just one more and she could go join the other girls at that picnic. She leaned forward onto her front hooves before kicking back, her hind legs connecting with the trunk with a resounding thud. 

“Ow dammit!” A voice called from the other side of tree.

“Who's there?!” she demanded, rushing around the side of the tree, ready to buck any would-be thief.

“This just isn’t my day is it?” a strange creature said, getting up and rubbing his head. He turned toward 
Applejack, sighing in exasperation. “You gonna attack me too?” 

“Ah might, if’n ya don’t start explanin’ why yer on mah farm.” Applejack said with a snort, glaring at the creature. It looked like a hairless Diamond Dog, but wasn’t hunched over like one. 

“Look, I’m having a really bad day. First I buy this thing,” he, at least it sounded like a he to Applejack, said, holding up its right arm. She looked at it, noting the strange device on his arm. “Then, I get sent to this damn place, only to get attacked by some crazy blue pegasus! Pegasi aren’t even supposed to exist!” he shouted, starting to pant from all his fast talking.

“Woah there, just calm down partner.” Applejack said, putting her hooves up. “ Sounds like ya ran into Rainbow Dash. Now why would she attack ya?” she asked, looking the creature over again, he didn’t look very dangerous.

“She called me a changeling and knocked me flat on my ass.”

“And why would she call ya’ll a changeling?” 

“Ok, ya see this?” he asked, holding his right arm up again. “This is called an Omnitrix. It allows me to turn into other creatures. This ‘Rainbow Dash’ saw me change back from one of these creatures and assumed I was a changeling.”

“Ok... Ah’ll trust ya fer now.” she said nodding her head. “Ah’m Applejack.” she stated holding her hoof out. 

“I’m Jason Hughes, it’s nice to meet you,” he said taking her hoof, shaking it, a look of relief on his face.

“Uncatalogued DNA detected,” a third voice chirped, a yellow beam coming out of Jason’s wrist, hitting Applejack.

“What the hay was that?!” she shouted, pulling back, looking like she was ready to attack.

“Woah now, just calm down! The Omnitrix can detect creatures it doesn’t have inside of it already and adds them okay. Nothing else!” he said putting his arms up, a look of panic on his face.

Applejack rubbed her chin, thinking it over. She had no idea what exactly Jason was, but he seemed trustworthy and it wouldn’t be very Apple of her to deny this creature a chance. 

“All right, Ah believe ya, but ah’m takin’ ya to see Twilight,” she declared, gazing at his face to gauge his reaction.

“Fine with me, just lead the way,” he said with a nod, a look of relief on his face.

Applejack just nodded, starting to walk out of the orchard. Whatever Jason was, he certainly was interesting.

> Explanations And Blah Blah Blah 
> --------------------------------------------------------------------------

It was a nice pleasant walk as Jason walked toward town with Applejack. They hadn’t spoken since he agreed to go with her, which was good, it allowed him to think things over a bit. He was stuck in a world of miniature talking horses with an Omnitrix on his wrist. It both terrified and excited him.

“Oh there you are!” a familiar voice called out. He looked off to the left, seeing the yellow pegasus from before flying over to them.

“Oh are you okay? Did that meanie Rainbow Dash hurt you?” she asked, looking him over before giving him a hug.

“Um... yeah I’m fine...” Jason said, not exactly sure what was going on right now.

“Oh! Y-you can talk?” she asked letting go of his head, hovering back a bit.

“Says his name is Jason.” Applejack spoke up, watching him closely.

“It’s nice to meet you Ms..?” Jason asked, looking at the pegasus, who hid behind her pink mane.

“F-fluttershy...” she whispered back, peeking out at him.

“Like I said, nice to meet you Ms. Fluttershy.” He said giving her his best smile. 

“Oh um... it’s just Fluttershy... I’m not married...”

“Ok, Fluttershy.” 

“Get away from her!” a voice suddenly shouted, knocking him out of his thoughts. He looked up, only to have something slam into his chest sending him tumbling.

“Are you okay, Applejack dear?” A rather high class voice asked, obviously a friend of the orange mare.

“What is wrong with you ponies? Attacking somepony for no reason!” Fluttershy scolded, moving over to Jason. “Oh my, are you all right Jason?” 

“Yeah... I’m fine... just knocked the wind out of me...” Jason said groaning, blinking a bit. 

“What’s wrong with us?!” Rainbow Dash asked, sounding indignant. “What’s wrong with you? That’s a changeling spy!” 

“Rainbow Dash, that isn’t a changeling.” A new pony, this one purple, spoke up. “That’s a human.”

“Whats a hyew-man?” A pink pony asked, her mane looking twisted and tangled.

“You girls remember those creatures I told you about? Back when I went through that mirror?” The purple pony asked, to which the others nodded. “Well those are humans. Though that doesn’t explain why he’s here.”

“So you are a spy!” Rainbow Dash declared, glaring at Jason, who just rolled his eyes at her. 

“I am not a spy, I don’t even know where I am,” he responded, glaring back at her. He glanced at the Omnitrix, relief filling him as he saw that glorious green glow.

“Oh yeah? Then how did you change into that weird bug thing?” she asked, flying up into his face.

“Back off,” he said, pushing her away. “I can turn into other things with this,” he said, holding up his right arm to show them the Omnitrix. “Like I already told Applejack, this is the Omnitrix. It allows me to turn into any number of creatures.”

“Do you believe him Applejack?” the purple one asked, her eyes locked on the omnitrix. 

“Ah reckon he’s tellin’ the truth. ‘Sides, it’d be wrong of us to not give him a chance.” Applejack said, bringing a smile to Jason’s face.

“Ok, we’ll give you a chance, but if it turns out that you are a changeling,  then I’ll send you to Tartarus myself,” the purple one said, glaring at Jason.

“You got it boss lady.” Jason replied with a nod, looking at her. 

“Good, now let’s go back to the library, the princesses should be here shortly,” she said, starting to lead the group back into town. 

Jason sighed, shaking his head before starting to follow the herd of ponies, stuffing his hands into his pockets.

****

If the day hadn’t already been weird, the sight of a town full of colorful ponies was something he’d never thought he’d see. They took one look at him and started to scatter, either hiding in their homes or behind the nearest object.
“Don’t mind them dear, they tend to overreact to new things.” The white unicorn informed Jason, noting the frown on his face.

“Yeah...” he said, shoving his hands into his pockets.

Soon they came to a tree house, a literal tree with a house made out of its trunk. The most amazing part though, was that the tree was still alive. He walked inside, gazing around in wonder.

“Ahem.” the purple pony said, drawing Jason’s attention. “Now then, let’s get introductions out of the way. I am Twilight Sparkle,” she said, pointing to herself. “You’ve already met Rainbow Dash, Applejack and Fluttershy.”

“Hi!” The crazy looking pink pony shouted, somehow appearing next to Jason.

“Oh god!” Jason shouted, jumping up, starting at the pony with wide eyes. 

“I’m Pinkie Pie and it’s SSSOOO nice to meet you!” she shouted, striking a pose and throwing confetti out of her mane.

“Please excuse Pinkie Pie dear, she can get very loud,” the white unicorn said, walking over to Jason. “I am Rarity, it’s a pleasure to make your acquaintance,” she said, holding her hoof out. 

“I’m Jason, it’s nice to meet you too,” he said, shaking her hoof, making it a point to not use his Omnitrix arm.

“Well it’s nice to meet you all, my name is Jason Hughes,” he said with a nod before standing back up.

“Now that we have that out of the way, tell us more about that, what did you call it? Omnitrax?” Twilight asked. 

“The Omnitrix.” Jason corrected, sitting cross-legged on the floor.

“So it allows you to transform into other life forms?” she asked, starting to write things down.

“Yeah, I think the exact count was...1,000,911...no wait! Make that 1,000,913, since the Omnitrix scanned Applejack and Rainbow Dash.”

“T-thats a lot,” Twilight said, looking up from her scroll, her eyes a bit wide.

“Well at the most, I have about... 67 of those unlocked...” Jacob said, looking down at the Omnitrix.

“Hey, I got a question.” Rainbow Dash spoke up, an angry look on her face. “What do you mean by scanned me?”

“Well, when the Omnitrix detects DNA that isn’t catalogued, it scans it and adds it to the collection,” Jason explained.

“What's DNA?” Twilight asked scribbling away. She looked up after a few seconds, frowning when Jason didn’t answer. He just sighed, running his hands down his face.

“Ok, how the hell do I explain this?” He asked, leaning back on the wall. “Okay, DNA, or deoxyribonucleic acid, is the stuff all living things are made of. It’s so small you need special microscopes to see it. Basically, it’s the blueprint of an organism. Most creatures get half their DNA from their mother and half from their father.”

He couldn’t help but grin as he watched the pony scribble faster on her parchment. 

“So now that Applejack and Rainbow Dash’s DNA are in the Omnitrix, that means you can become a Pegasus and an Earth Pony?”

“Yup,” he said, nodding his head. 

“Ooh ooh!” Pinkie said, jumping up and down, waving a hoof in the air. 

“Yes Pinkie?” Twilight asked with a sigh, looking at her hyper friend. Pinkie always had to interrupt when things were getting good.

“Since you got AJ and Dashie’s DNA stuff, does mean you're related to them? Cause if you are that means you're related to me! I can throw you a ‘Welcome to the Apple/Pie family party!’”

“Well... that’s actually a good question...” Jason said, looking at Pinkie, blinking a bit. 

“Why don’t you try turning into a pony now?” Twilight asked, her curiosity piqued.

“I’ll try,” Jason said, popping the dial of the Omnitrix up, turning it this way and that until he found the silhouette he was looking for. “Here goes nothing,” he said bringing his palm down on the dial. 

There was a flash and the human was replaced with an Earth Pony stallion. He stood almost as tall as Big Mac, his coat matched the green of the Omnitrix, his mane and tail black. Resting on his barrel was the Omnitrix.

“Well, what do you guys think?” he asked, his voice in similar tone to Big Mac’s,  looking at their faces expectantly.

“He does have a resemblance, Applejack,” Rarity responded first, looking Jason over.  “I must say Jason, you make a rather strapping stallion.”

“Ah guess this does make ya an Apple...” AJ said, rubbing her chin, looking him over.

“How long do these transformations last?” Twilight asked, in an attempt to get things back on topic.

“About 15 minutes give or take. I’ll be able to stay transformed indefinitely if I can figure out the master controls,” he said, touching the Omnitrix and reverting to normal.

Twilight was about to inquire further when Princess Celestia and Princess Luna teleported in with a golden flash. Celestia was as calm as ever, though Luna was dressed in black armor, a warhammer on her side.

“Greetings Twilight, I apologize for being so late to respond to your letter but Luna decided to don her armor,” Celestia said, giving her sister a slight glare.

“One must be prepared for battle my dear sister,” Luna said, holding her head up proudly.

“Thank you for coming, but I’m afraid it was a bit of a false alarm,” Twilight said, smiling at her mentor.

Luna seemed to deflate, a pout on her face. “Are you quite sure Twilight Sparkle?”

“Well maybe not, Princess Celestia, Princess Luna, this is Jason Hughes,” she said, introducing the human. Jason just gulped, hoping that this wasn’t going to kill him.


***


“So you're saying this Omnitrix isn’t a weapon?” Celestia asked, sipping at her tea. The past fifteen minutes had been full of tension, as Luna was ready to beat the poor human into submission. Most of the others had gone home, with the lack of any danger they didn’t really feel needed.

Currently, the four of them were sitting in the library, drinking some tea.

“No, its creator’s intent was for its user to walk in the shoes of other races. It’s hard to hate someone when you’ve been them,” Jason said, taking a gulp of tea.

“And what do you plan to do now?” Luna asked, eyeing the human warily.

“I don’t really know. I don’t have a way home or any place to stay,” he said, looking down into his cup and sighing. Just thinking about not being able to go home sent a chill 

“I think I can help with that,” Celestia said, gracing him with a smile. “You may stay here in Ponyville, on one condition.”

“What?” he inquired, tilting his head a bit.

“You will study under my former student and learn what it means to be a pony, that is if Twilight Sparkle agrees.”

“Yes yes yes!” Twilight said, jumping to her hooves, dancing around in excitement. “I’m going to learn so much!”

“Well then, we shall leave you in Twilight’s capable hooves, Mr. Hughes. I’m giving you a big opportunity, please don’t disappoint me,” she said before she and Luna vanished in a flash. 

Jason let out a sigh of relief, a smile forming on his face as he watched Twilight dance around. “Maybe... maybe this won’t be so bad after all...”

> Losing Only To Gain
> --------------------------------------------------------------------------

Jason sighed as he stared up at the ceiling. Sleep never came easily to him; usually he’d stay up most of the night and pass out around the crack of dawn. It meant he barely ever got any sleep, and when he did it was never for more than five hours at a time. 

He sat up, brushing his hair back behind his shoulders. He closed his eyes, taking a deep breath. The shock of his new situation had worn off, and only now was he feeling the weight of everything. He felt a shiver run through him, his thoughts on his family.

“I’ll never see them again...” he whispered to himself, squeezing his eyes shut. He had never been one for tears, he could cry at things on TV but when his grandfather had died, tears just wouldn’t flow. 

He shook his head, pushing the covers off. With a shake of his head he got to his feet, walking out of the guest room Twilight had been kind enough to let him sleep in. ‘If I can’t sleep, I might as well get something to eat.’ 

He moved out into the hallway, not really bothering to be quiet. Moving down the stairs, he ignored how cold the wooden floor was on his bare feet. After he made his way into the kitchen, he opened the fridge, rummaging through it.

“I should have known they wouldn’t have anything good,” he grumbled, noticing the distinct lack of any foods he was familiar with. “What the hell am I even doing? I’m complaining about food when I have the Omnitrix,” he said before popping up the dial, selecting one of his new pony forms. He chose the Earth Pony, bringing his hand down on the dial, transforming.

“Thats’ better.” He said with a small grin, grabbing a bowl of what looked like salad....only to drop it with a crash. “Damn hooves!” he said, looking at them with disdain.

“Jason?” A soft voice asked from behind him, making him jump. He whirled around, feeling his heart racing.  He let out a sigh of relief, seeing that it was just Twilight.

“Sorry Twilight, did I wake you?” He asked, giving her a smile. 	He grabbed the bowl that he dropped in his mouth, placing it on the table.

“Well, you weren't exactly quiet,” she responded, yawning a bit.

“Yeah...sorry about that. I’m not a very quiet person...” he said, rubbing the back of his head with a hoof. “I just... couldn’t sleep.”

“Something wrong?” Twilight asked, a slight frown on her face.
“Twilight... it’s just...” he trailed off with a sigh, sitting back on his haunches. “I don’t sleep well and my mind starts to wander.”

“You want to talk about it?” she asked, sitting down next to him, putting a wing around him.

“My family, my friends... I’ll probably never see them again.” he said with a sigh, leaning on her a bit.

“That must be hard. I almost lost my family once,” Twilight admitted, shivering a bit. “I can’t imagine what I’d do without mine.”

“Theres an old poem by a man by the name of Robert Frost called ‘The Road Not Taken,’” Jason started. “It’s about the paths we walk in life. The narrator comes across a fork in the road, one well worn and the other more wild. He knows he can only take one path so he decides to take the road less travelled. ‘. ‘I shall be telling this with a sigh / Somewhere ages and ages hence: / Two roads diverged in a wood, and I— / I took the one less traveled by, / And that has made all the difference.’” 

“Thats... beautiful,” Twilight said letting the words sink in. It made her thirst for knowledge scream at her to learn more, but there was a time and place for that.

“Yeah. I mean I don’t know if I’ll ever get home but...” he said, feeling tears start to run down his face. “I’m not going to spend my time moping around. I got one life, and I’m gonna live it, even if I was shoved down the road less traveled.” 

“Well, I’m here if you need any help,” Twilight said with a smile, standing up. 

“Thanks Twi. I’ll see you in the morning,” he said watching her walk out of the kitchen. He smiled slightly, wiping the tears away. “Ok... let’s eat this salad before I time out.”

****

Jason groaned as he opened his eyes, feeling the sun shining in his face.  He had managed to get to sleep not long after his late-night snack.

“Hi, sleepy head!” Pinkie Pie shouted, jumping onto his bed, smiling brightly.

“Gah!” He shouted back, pushing her off the bed, his heart pounding in his chest. “Where did you come from!?”

“My parents silly!” Pinkie Pie said, seemingly not minding being sent sprawling out onto the floor.
“Thats not what I meant...” he said with a groan, brushing his hair back. “What time is it?”

“Noon silly! You’ve been asleep for soooo long and I waited to give you this!” she said reaching into her mane, pulling out a card. She held it out to him, a wide grin on her face.

He just stared at it before taking the card looking it over. “What’s this for?” 

“Your ‘Welcome to the Apple/Pie family’ party!”

“Pinkie... I’m not actually related to any of you...”

“Be-sure-to-come-to-Sweet-Apple-Acres-by-six-tonight-bye!” she said all at once before zipping away, leaving a cloud of dust. 

“Geez... I wish the Omnitrix had scanned her.” He said shaking his head, getting out of bed. “Well... better get something to eat,” he said, pulling his shirt on before heading downstairs.

“It’s about time you woke up,” Twilight said, greeting him in the main room. She didn’t look too happy at all, probably annoyed at his laziness.

“Yeah yeah... we can start doing whatever once I’m done eating,” he said, waving her off. He moved into the kitchen, spotting Spike mopping the floor. He had met the dragon the night before, and had the feeling he didn’t trust him very much, especially not after the Omnitrix scanned him. 

“‘Morning Spike,” he greeted, moving over to the fridge.

“Oh. It’s you,” Spike said, giving him the stink eye. It look rather adorable on the little dragon.

“Seriously? Relax kid, I’m not gonna hurt anyone, ok?” 

" Yeah right, I’m keeping an eye on you,” Spike said, staring at him with a glare.

He just shrugged, went to the fridge and looked inside. “Yeah yeah...” Jason said, rolling his eyes. He pulled out a fruit salad, starting to munch on it. He walked out of the kitchen, sitting down at the living room table.  “So what are we working on today?” he asked, looking at Twilight, who was setting up a chalkboard, piles of books already set around it.

“I thought we could start with the history of Equestria!” Twilight said with a grin.

“Sounds good to me,” Jason said with a nod,  placing the bowl on the table. He wiped his mouth before looking at the Omnitrix. “Hey Twilight, shouldn’t I scan you as well?”

“I suppose....” She said moving closer. She watched in curiosity as the Omnitrix’s light changed to yellow.

“Uncatalogued DNA detected,” it chirped before scanning Twilight.

“Amazing, I didn’t feel a thing,” she said, gazing at the Omnitrix in awe.

“Well, thats why it’s amazing,” he responded with a smirk. “So, lets start with the history lesson,” he said, grinning and cracking his neck. 


****


“So yer tellin’ me that this’n hoo-man took a piece of ya and now he can turn into a pony?” Granny Smith asked, looking at her granddaughter, rubbing her chin. 

“Yeah. He can turn into an Earth Pony, and I reckon that Earth Pony is an Apple.” Applejack responded, nodding her head.

“So...does that make him yer son?” Apple Bloom asked, tilting her head to the side.

“Ah don’t rightly know Apple Bloom, but he’s an Apple alright.” 

“Yuppers and he’s a Pie too!” Pinkie Pie broke in, wrapping her arm around Applejack, smiling brightly. “Now come on everypony! We got a party to set up!” Pinkie declared before zipping around the farmhouse, putting up decorations.

In no time at all, the farmhouse was all set up, with all the trappings of a typical Pinkie Pie party. 

“Oh I’m so excited!” Pinkie declared, bouncing on her hooves. “I hope he  likes it!”

“Ah’m sure he’ll like it Pinkie, Ah haven’t met a pony yet who doesn’t like yer parties.” Applejack said, giving her a smile. 

It didn’t take long for guests to arrive, as Pinkie had made the party into a “Welcome to Ponyville/Apple/Pie family” party.  The name of the party caused some raised eyebrows, but everypony had decided long ago not to question Pinkie’s actions too much.

Pinkie smiled as the town's newest resident walked in, accompanied by Spike and Twilight. The chatter in the room died down instantly, everypony turning their attention to Jason. 

“Um... hi everyone...” Jason said, waving at everypony. “I’m Jason, it’s nice to meet you all.” he stated, looking rather uncomfortable at the moment.

“I knew it!” A mint colored unicorn shouted, pointing her hoof at him. A cream colored Earth Pony next to her face hoofed, shaking her head. 

“So yer the hoo-man AJ was tellin’ me about.” Granny Smith said, moving over to Jason, sizing him up. “Well go on.”

“Go on what?” he asked, looking rather confused. 

“Turn into a pony already!”

“Ok ok, theres no need to yell.” he grumbled, going through the Omnitrix before bringing his palm down on the dial, transforming into an Earth Pony again. Everypony in the room gasped, staring at him.

“It’s okay everypony,” Twilight called, gaining their attention. “Jason can turn into other creatures but he is not a changeling. There is no danger,” she said, giving them a smile.

“Hmm...” Granny Smith said, grabbing Jason’s head, turning it this way and that. She opened his mouth, inspecting his teeth. She finally released him, pleased with herself. “Eeyup,” she said, nodding her head.

“‘Eeyup’, what?” Jason asked, rubbing his jaw, probably thinking the old mare was mad.

“Yer an Apple all right,” she replied, a smile breaking out across her face.

Jason couldn’t help but smile back, blinking as several ponies, including a small yellow pony with a bow, a large red stallion, Applejack and Pinkie Pie all hugged him.

“Um...” he started, looking at them all, not sure what to do.

“Welcome to the family, Jason.” Applejack said, a grin on her face.

“Yeah... thanks...” he said, nodding and giving them a blank look.

“Now let’s party!” Pinkie Pie shouted, tossing confetti into the air, causing the other party-goers to cheer. The hug broke apart, leaving a very confused Jason standing there.

“What... just happened?” he asked, turning to Twilight.

“I suppose you just officially became a member of the Apple family,” she giggled before rubbing her chin. “You know... you scanned me as well...doesn’t that make you a remember of my family?”

Jason just groaned, facehoofing. “Thats not how it works!”

“That also means you’re related to Spike and Rainbow Dash.”

“Gah!” Jason shouted, much to Twilight’s amusement.


***


“Well, that was fun,” Jason said, sweeping up some confetti. The party had started out a bit awkward but once Twilight assured them he was safe, things lightened up. 

“Ah got ya set up in the guest room, Jason.” Applejack came down the stairs, a bit of a bounce to her step.

“Thanks Applejack, but Twilight is letting me stay in the library,” Jason replied, emptying the dust pan.

“Oh no, yer an Apple now Jason, yer gonna stay here on the farm and that’s that,” she said, giving him a stern look. “Sides, ah already talked to Twilight and she ok’d it, long as ya go to the library for lessons.”

“Fine, if you insist,” he said, rolling his eyes. He put the broom and dust pan away, wiping his hands on his pants. 

“Hey um... Jason?” a small voice asked. 

He blinked, looking down, seeing the little filly from before. Apple Bloom if he wasn’t mistaken.

“What is it?” he asked, kneeling down, looking into her eyes.

“Well... mah school is havin’ a family day tomorrow and AJ and Big Mac are gonna be busy and Granny Smith went last year... would ya mind goin’?”

Jason frowned rubbing the back of his neck. These ponies were going way too far with the family thing but he found himself unable to ignore those sweet eyes she was giving him.

“All right, I’ll do it...” he grumbled out, looking at her.  While he was expecting the smile on her muzzle, he wasn’t expecting her to nearly break his neck with a hug. 

“Thank ya so much!” she said before letting go of him and running off. 

“These ponies are gonna be the death of me...” Jason coughed out, rubbing his neck. 

Deciding to turn in for the night, he moved upstairs, heading to the guest room. He kicked off his shoes before flopping onto the bed, letting out a sigh. Being 5”8’, his legs hung off the bed, dangling in the air. The room was mostly bare, having only basic furnishings. 

He kicked his jeans off, curling up. Thinking back on the day, a smile started to grow on his face. While he thought they were nuts, the fact that they were willing to take him in as family while having barely known him was something that he never expected.

“It’s good to have family...” he mumbled to himself, slipping into the realm of dreams.

> Show And Tell, Not Show And Sell
> --------------------------------------------------------------------------

“Jason.” 

“Go away...”

“Jason!”

“Go way...”

“Jason! Ah’m ah be late!” 

“Ok... ok... I’m up.” Jason said as he opened his eyes, spotting Apple Bloom looking at him with a frown. “Go get ready... I’ll be down...” he said, yawning. He sat up, rubbing the sleep from his eyes.

She nodded with a bright smile before rushing out of the room, her early morning energy making him a bit jealous. He quickly got up, knowing that if he stayed in bed much longer, he’d end up falling back asleep. Pulling his jeans on, he made his way to the bathroom, gazing into the mirror. 

Looking back at him was a hazel-eyed young man with frizzy, curly hair that fell to his mid-back. He ran a hand through his moderate facial hair, frowning at the black lines under his eyes. 

“I really need to fix my sleep cycle.” he mumbled to himself, running his fingers under the water, trying to tame his unkempt hair.  It didn’t take long for him to give up with a huff. “Stupid hair...” he mumbled to himself. 

He splashed some water on his face before hurrying downstairs. As he entered the kitchen, he was greeted with the glorious scent of pancakes. 

“Good morning...” he said, yawning again. “God those smell good.” 

“Mornin’ Jason. We were all worried ya’ll would miss Apple Bloom’s class.” AJ said, not looking away from the stove. 

“I promised I’d go... no matter how tired I am, I plan to be there,” he said as he sat down and cracked his neck. He smiled wide, licking his lips as AJ placed a plate of steaming hot pancakes in front of him. He grabbed a fork, starting to dig in.

“Mighty big appetite ya got sonny,” Granny Smith commented, watching him devour his pancakes with gusto. 

“Damn... right...” he said between bites, gulping down the glass of orange juice that was passed over to him. “Those... were the best pancakes I’ve ever had,” he said, grinning and licking his lips. 

“Why thank ya Jason,” AJ said, nodding her head, beaming at the praise.

“Ya’ll ready Jason! Ah’ma be late!” Apple Bloom called, getting impatient. 

“Yeah I’m coming,” he said, getting up and cracking his back. “See ya guys later,” he said to AJ and Granny Smith.  “Ok Apple Bloom, lets get going.” 

“Finally,” the little filly said, rolling her eyes. She started to trot down the path, followed closely by Jason.

“Where is your school anyway?” Jason asked, taking a deep breath of the pure country air.

“On the other side’a town.”

“Seriously!? That’ll take half an hour!”

“Ah tried to get ya up sooner, now Ah’m gonna be late.” she said, looking down with a sigh.

“Oh no you won't,” Jason said, a big grin on his face. He activated the Omnitrix, moving through the silhouettes until he found the correct one. “Here we go!” he shouted, bringing his palm down on it.

“XLR8!” he shouted, now in the form of a vaguely raptor shaped creature. “Come on,” he said, his voice raspy, scooping her up in his arms before blazing down the path and into town, leaving a dust trail in his wake.

Jason grinned under his faceplate, zipping past ponies, taking pleasure at the shocked looks on their faces. The sound of a school bell caught his attention and he steered himself toward it. He skidded to a halt, placing Apple Bloom on the ground.

“Tada!” he said, touching the Omnitrix and returning to his human form. “Um... Apple Bloom, you ok?” he asked, noticing she was wide eyed and trembling.

“T-that... was... amazing!” she shouted, loudly enough to make him flinch. 

“God you're loud...” he mumbled to himself, following her inside. Looking around, he noted that the school house was just a single room, much like the old Amish school houses he had seen before. He took a spot in the back of the class, ignoring the looks and whispers he got.

***
“Thank you Mr. Rich for that lovely... presentation,” said the teacher, a mulberry-colored earth pony mare, while looking at a rather stuffy looking stallion.

“You’re quite welcome Miss Cheerilee,” he said as he moved across the room to take a place in the back.

“So,” a snobby sounding pink filly started, looking at Apple Bloom. “Who did you get to come this year? Your kooky old grandma?”

“No,” Apple Bloom said, glaring at the filly. “Ah brought my... uh... cousin, Jason!” she said, nodding vigorously. 

“Apple Bloom, you're up next,” Miss Cheerilee called, grabbing the filly’s attention. 

“Come on, Jason,” she called, getting up out of her seat to stand in front of the class. He followed after her and stood next to her, arms crossed over his chest.

“Everypony, this is mah cousin Jason,” she said, introducing him.

“Hello everyone,” he said with a smile, waving a bit.  “Yes?” he asked, spotting a bluish-green unicorn colt holding up a hoof.

“Um....what are you?” The young colt inquired, his classmates nodding in agreement.

“I am a human, though our scientific name is Homo sapiens,” he replied, leaning back on the chalkboard.

“You look like a hairless monkey,” a grey filly said with a snicker, the pink one from before laughing with her.

Jason glared a bit, resisting the urge to argue. “That is true,” he admitted. “We humans did evolve from primates. Yes?” he asked, this time the pink filly had raised her hoof.

“So do you eat bananas?” she asked, a grin on her face.


He clenched his fists, taking in a breath. “Yes, humans can eat bananas.” Before they could ask another question, he quickly changed the subject. “Now, I don’t exactly have a speech or anything planned, and I’d rather not bore you so, how about I just show you this.” he said, holding his arm up, displaying the Omnitrix. “This is the Omnitrix. It allows me to change into other creatures. Like so.” He popped up the dial, clicking through it before pushing it back down. 

“Star Ocean!” he shouted, smirking at all the gasps and hanging jaws. “As you can see, I am now an alicorn.” Jason’s alicorn form stood as tall as Twilight, his coat a deep green while his mane and tail were black with green streaks. 

“What else can you turn into?” a white unicorn asked, waving her hoof in the air.

“Yeah, can you be a minotaur?” another asked.

“No, do a griffon!”

“Woah now, calm down.” he said, putting his hooves up. “I don’t have either of those yet.” he said, smiling. “But lets see what else I got.” he said touching the Omnitrix again, reverting to human form. He transformed again, this time now a bipedal, very angry looking tiger. 

“Rath? Let me tell you something Omnitrix!” he shouted, pointing at the Omnitrix, located on his chest. “Rath didn’t ask for Rath, Rath wanted Lodestar!”

“Um... Jason...” Apple Bloom said, poking his leg, a frown on her face.

“Not now Apple Bloom, Rath is laying the smack down!” Jason said before going back to berating the Omnitrix for the mistransformation.

“Is he really yelling at an inanimate object? How bright is he?” the pink filly asked with a snicker.

“Lemme tell ya somethin’, tiara wearing pink filly!” Jason shouted, getting up in her face, pointing a finger at her. “Rath does not like you calling Rath dumb!”

“W-what are you gonna do about it?” she asked, gulping.

“Now see here,” Filthy Rich said, not about to let his daughter be attacked.

“You're her father right?” Jason asked, turning to him and narrowing his eyes.

“Yes I am, and I...”

“Lemme tell ya somethin’, father of that disrespectful filly!” Jason shouted, poking the stallion’s chest with a beefy finger. “Rath thinks you need to teach your daughter some manners! Like Apple Bloom! She has great manners!”

“Jason... please...” Apple Bloom said, tugging on his other hand.

“Ok, ok.” he said, frowning. “You best learn some manners!” he instructed the filly before returning to normal. Once back in human form, he noted the class, adults and foals, were all staring at him. “Yeah... sorry about that... Rath isn’t very smart and he tends to yell a lot...” he explained, rubbing the back of his head. 

“That was so cool!” an orange-colored pegasus filly shouted, hoof pumping. A few others joined in, mumbling their praise.

“Well thanks,” he said blushing a bit, smiling cheekily. 

“Yes... that was quite interesting,” Miss Cheerilee said, clearing her throat. “I believe it’s time for recess,” she said, and as if on cue, the lunch bell rang. All the foals rushed outside, the white unicorn and orange pegasus quickly joining Apple Bloom.

“Ahem,” Filthy Rich said, clearing his throat.

“So yeah... sorry about the yelling...” Jason said with a sheepish laugh, looking anywhere except the stallion.

“I’m willing to look past it Mr. Jason,” Rich said, fixing his tie. “Now, this Omnitrix, how much would it take for you to relinquish it?”

“You want to buy the Omnitrix from me?” Jason asked, raising his eyebrow.

“Yes and I will pay handsomely for it.”

“Why do you even want it for?” Jason asked, sitting on one of the desks.

“My daughter of course. With it, she can truly be the princess she was meant to be.” Rich said, a smile on his muzzle.


“Sorry to break this to ya but I’m not selling it. Besides, it doesn’t come off,” Jason said, demonstrating by tugging on it. “See? Don’t come off.”

“Hmph. I respect your decision but I think you should take my offer,  it’s not everyday one such as yourself gets an offer like this.”

“Did you just insult me?” Jason asked, standing and glaring down at the stallion.

“Of course not, I merely meant that you are alone here, it would be a good idea for you to make some connections,” Rich said, looking him in the eye.

“We’re done here,” Jason said in disgust before walking off.  “I’ll see ya back at the farm, Apple Bloom,” he called, barely registering her response as he headed for the library. 

***

The still atmosphere of the afternoon air that permeated the royal gardens was broken as a grinding, crackling sound echoed in the empty gardens. Three of the statues that made up the garden’s collection started to shake. The first one shattered, releasing the being that had been trapped.

“Ah, it feels so good to be free,” he said, taking a deep breath. He cracked his neck and a grin spread across his face.  “Come Xemnas, the spell is weakened.”

The second statue shattered, releasing the being known as Xemnas back into the world.

“Of course brother, it is very good to be free,” he agreed, stretching his body out. “What of the Arishok?” he asked, turning to the third statue, which was still cracking.

“Leave him, he will distract those pathetic ponies while we make our escape,” Ansem said, as he held his hand out to create a portal of darkness. “Let’s take our leave, brother,” he said, stepping through it, followed quickly by his brother, the portal closing behind them.

The final statue shattered not long after, allowing the Arishok to go free. He stood up to his full height, surveying the area.

“Finally, the curse is broken. I shall bring order back to this world,” he vowed to himself, hefting his sword over his shoulder as he started to move out of the garden.
>  Villains
> --------------------------------------------------------------------------

“So... you yelled at Diamond Tiara and Filthy Rich?” Twilight asked, raising her eyebrow, turning her attention away from the book she was reading.

“No, Rath did,” Jason explained, crossing his arms. He had arrived at the library in a huff, and only now was he calming down enough that she could get anything out of him.

“I was under the impression that you were in control of your transformations...?” she asked, a frown growing on her muzzle.

“Well, normally but... Rath’s species, the Appoplexians, aren’t very smart and they think any problem can be solved by hitting it... or hitting it a lot. When I become Rath I kinda lose a bit of control,” he admitted, laying down on the couch.

“Well, just try not to turn back into him, please?” she asked. Twilight cleared her throat, getting down to business. “Now, let’s start with today’s lesson!” 

“Fine by me,” Jason said, sitting up. “How about I turn into something first this time?”

“Oh! That’s even better!” she practically squeed, levitating a notepad and quill over from her desk.

Jason snickered at her reaction, flipping through the alien catalogue.  “Here, you’ll love this one,” he commented, bringing his hand down on the dial. Twilight looked around after the flash, as it seemed that Jason had vanished.

“Down here Twilight!” a tiny voiced called out. She looked down, her eyes widening in surprise at the tiny life form that had taken Jason’s place. 

“Jason? That’s you?” she asked, gently levitating him up in front of her muzzle. 

“Yup, it’s me alright. I just turned into Grey Matter,” he said, waving at her. 

“Grey Matter? As in the brain?” she asked gulping, several ideas going through her head on how this creature got its name, none of them good.

“Well yeah, Grey Matter is a Galvan. They’re like one the smartest species out there.”

“Really?” Twilight asked, her eyes sparkling a bit.

“Yup! A Galvan even made the Omnitrix! His name’s Azmuth and he’s the smartest being in three galaxies, arguably five.”

Twilight opened her mouth to say something when Spike burst in, panting heavily, a scroll held tightly in his claws. “Twilight... you got a... letter...”

“Thank you Spike,” she said, setting Jason down and unfurling the letter. She scanned through it, her eyes widening. “Spike go get the girls! Tell them the princesses need us in Canterlot,” she informed him, to which the dragon saluted, running back outside.

“What's up Twilight?” Jason asked, returning himself to normal.

“Something has happened in Canterlot and the princesses need us, you included.” 

“Me? Why me?” Jason asked, rubbing the back of his head.

“I don’t know she didn’t say, now help me get ready,” Twilight instructed, starting to pack her things up.

***

The Arishok frowned as he entered the ruins of his millenia-abandoned former stronghold. The walls stood strong, cracked and worn from time. Everything else had rotted away, leaving their remains on the floor. He sat down on the stone throne, putting his head in his hands. 

“Oh how the mighty have fallen,” a familiar voice rang out, causing The Arishok to snarl.

“Begone with you, twisted serpent! I have no time for you!” 

“Oh Ari how you wound me! I’ll have you know I’ve been reformed!” Discord said, appearing in front of the throne, the back of his talon draped over his head dramatically. 

“What do you want?” The Arishok demanded, glaring at the Chaos Lord.

“Oh fine, you're even less fun than Sunbutt, you know that?” Discord asked, with an exaggerated frown. “You want to know what I want? I want you to leave and never come back.”

“You wish for me to leave?” The Arishok asked, leaning back on his throne.

“Yes, I do. The ponies have changed, they don’t know how to fight something like you.”

“Something like me?” The Arishok asked, an amused look on his face. 

“Yes, something like you. You’re a genocidal zealot, one of the worst things to happen to Equestria,” Discord said, narrowing his eyes and taking on a threatening appearance.

“I only do as the Qun demands,” The Arishok retorted, gazing into Discord’s eyes, unflinching. 

“You’ll get yours Arishok, mark my words,” Discord warned before bursting into confetti. 

The Arishok just rested his head on his hands, his brow arched in thought. 

***

“Ok so, naming ideas?” Jason asked, looking at the others. They were currently on a train to Canterlot, and Jason had decided to pass the time by coming up with names for his newly acquired forms.  He was currently in his earth pony form, posing a bit for the girls. 

“Hmm...how about Overhaul?” Twilight suggested, tapping her chin in thought.

“Oooh! Oooh! How ‘bout Green Apple!” Pinkie suggested, bouncing up and down.

“Actually, I was thinking of going with Sleipnir,” Jason said, sitting down.

“Sleipnir?” Rarity questioned, raising an eyebrow.

“Yeah.  Sleipnir is an old legend back home,” Jason explained, observing the curious look in Twilight’s eyes. “He was the son of the god Loki and a stallion. He had eight legs and was able to run on air and water. He was the steed of the god Odin.”

“It does have a certain ring to it,” Rarity said, giving him a scrutinizing eye. 

“Can I call you Slippy then?” asked Pinkie.

“We’ll have to talk about this later, we’re here,” Twilight said as the train whistle blew. Jason followed them off the train and through Canterlot, looking around at the sights. He stayed close to the group, not being one for crowds. 

“Somethin’ wrong sugarcube?” AJ asked, noting his behavior. 

“I uh... don’t like crowds...” he said in a low voice, his ears splayed back.

“It’ll be fine dear, just stay close to us,” Rarity said, giving him a reassuring smile. 

They made it to the marketplace before the Omnitrix timed out, returning Jason to human form. The murmuring in the market went dead quiet, and every pony stared at them. Jason gulped, starting to tremble a bit.

“Twilight dear, we should get out of here... the nobles are going to swarm and Jason looks like he’s about to have a panic attack.” Rarity said, gazing around the area.

Twilight nodded, igniting her horn and teleporting them the rest of the way to the castle before anypony could get closer. Jason stumbled a bit, hand over his mouth, looking rather ill.

“Oh my goodness, are you alright?” Fluttershy asked, at his side in an instant with a worried look on her muzzle.

“Yeah... yeah I’m fine,” he said waving her off. He heaved a bit but fortunately managed to keep breakfast in his stomach. He looked around, noting that they had teleported into what looked like a throne room. Celestia sat upon one of the thrones with a grim look on her face.

“Twilight,” Celestia said, approaching them. “Thank you all for coming so quickly.”

“It’s no problem, Celestia,” Twilight beamed, happy to be of service to her former mentor. 

“I wish this meeting were more pleasant, but the matter is grave. Three prisoners have escaped and each could bring ruin to Equestria.”

“But we’ve beaten Sombra, Discord, and Nightmare Moon, who else is there?” Rainbow Dash asked, crossing her arms.

“Three of the most dangerous beings on the planet. One simply goes by his title, The Arishok. The other two are twins, Ansem and Xemnas,” Luna replied as she walked into the throne room, once again clad in her war armor.

“Wait wait wait.” Jason cut in, waving his arms around. “Did you just say Xemnas and Ansem?” 

“Yes, I did. Do you have something to tell us?” Luna asked, giving him a suspicious look.

“You can’t be freaking serious,” he said with a groan, running his hand down his face. “Yeah I know them.”

“How?” Celestia asked, giving him a hardened look. 

“Don’t misunderstand, I don’t know them personally. They’re all just fictional characters in my world,” Jason explained, holding his head in his hands. “I probably know more about them than you do.”

“Then tell us everything you know,” Luna commanded, her tone causing Jason to flinch.

“Ok, you don’t need to shout,” he said, giving Luna a glare. “Xemnas and Ansem are two halves of the same being. Originally, they were a man named Xehanort. He was obsessed with darkness and through manipulation, managed to steal the body of a young man named Terra. From there, he split into two, Ansem the Heartless and Xemnas the Nobody.”

“Those are rather odd titles.” Twilight spoke up, having been scribbling away at a scroll.



“Those aren’t their titles, thats what they are. Ansem is a heartless and Xemnas is a nobody,” Jason corrected, sitting down against a wall. “A heartless is a heart that has been consumed by darkness. Most of them are feral beasts but if one is willing give into the darkness, they can keep their sense of self. Nobodies are the leftover mind, body and soul, continuing to live on. They are incomplete as they lack hearts and feel no emotions.” Jason surmised, leaning his head back.

“What of The Arishok?” Celestia asked, keeping her face neutral. 

“He’s the military leader of the Qunari, a group of people the follow a philosophy called the Qun. Honestly, I don’t see him being much of a threat without an army.”

“Be that as it may, he is still a war criminal and I do not intend to allow him to remain free,” Celestia said with a determined look. 

“Oh I think I can help with that.” Jason jumped as a new voice sounded from seemingly nowhere. A strange mismatched creature appeared in the room with a pop, a grin on his face. 

“What the hell?” Jason asked, tilting his head in confusion, trying to figure out the creature.

“Oh, I don’t believe we’ve met. I’m Discord, spirit of chaos,” the chimera said, shaking Jason’s hand.

“Uncatalogued DNA detected,” the Omnitrix chirped, a yellow beam going over Discord.

“How rude. You could at least buy me dinner first,” Discord said, crossing his arms. 

“Discord this is serious, we do not have time for your games!” Luna snorted, getting agitated. 

“Oh I know Lulu, I want that beast gone as much as you do,” Discord said, getting serious.  “Thats why I’m going to help you.”

“Help how?” Celestia raised an eyebrow, clearly wary of Discord’s ‘help.’

“By taking you right to him of course,” Discord announced with a grin before snapping his talons. With a flash, everyone present except Celestia and Luna found themselves in a new location, this one highly decayed.

“Greetings, welcome to my fortress,” The Arishok called from his throne, catching their attention. He rose from the throne to his impressive height of eight feet tall, lifting his sword and axe as he stood.

“So you're The Arishok? By my authority as Princess of Equestria, I command you to lay down your weapons!” Twilight shouted, spreading her wings aggressively.

“No,” he replied simply, glaring at them. 

“What do you mean no?” Dash asked, getting in his face. 

“I must follow the demands of the Qun,” The Arishok responded, casually backhanding the pegasus into a wall. “A human? I did not expect that. You will find no kinship with me!” he shouted, darting forward and stabbing Jason in the shoulder.

Jason screamed out in pain, his voice drowning out the Omnitrix as it scanned The Arishok. The Arishok kicked him away, turning his attention to the others. “Come at me then!” he demanded, swinging his axe at Rarity, who barely managed to dodge out of the way.

Jason felt his heart pounding, his hands trembling. Eyes wide with fear, he managed to scramble to his feet. Backing up, he froze hitting something. He went to dash forward, only to stop when a pair of black hands stopped him.

“Can’t have you playing hero now, can we?” Ansem asked, stepping out from the shadows. He gave Jason a predatory smile before snapping his fingers. At his beckoning, a portal of darkness opened like a gaping black maw. “Get rid of him.” 

Following its master’s orders, the dark guardian threw Jason into the portal. The young man managed to get a scream out before the darkness engulfed him and the portal winked out of existence.


> And Now For Something Completely Different
> --------------------------------------------------------------------------

Deep inside the friendship palace, a void of darkness opened, tendrils lashing out at the air. It deposited its passenger, a rather roughed up human male before it closed, leaving its stain on the surrounding area. 

The young man groaned, getting to his feet, trying to ignore the pounding in his head. “Twilight? Applejack? Anyone?” he called out, frowning at his unfamiliar surroundings. “Great. Where the hell did that jackass send me?” he grumbled, continuing on his way. He blinked, exiting out into a hallway, his eyes drawn to the crystal walls. 

“Ummm... hello?” he called out, frowning when only the echo of his voice replied back to him. “Ok... let’s see if we can speed this up...” he popped up the dial of the Omnitrix, giving it a spin and pressing it down on the desired alien. Almost instantly, he was replaced by a grey ghost, one wandering eye gazing around. 

“Always wanted to try Ghostfreak,” he thought to himself as he floated down the hallway, phasing through several walls on his journey. He went undisturbed, eventually winding up in a foyer. Just as he was about to phase through the door, it opened. He floated there dumbly as Twilight walked in, accompanied by a foal and two ponies he didn’t know, one of them wearing the Omnitrix. He remained floating there, just staring at them.

“Umm... what?” he managed to say, thoroughly lost.

Twilight and the unknown unicorn stood staring blankly at him, while the foal fainted dead away and the pegasus was staring at him in horror. “Nyx!” Twilight yelled, jumping to help the foal.

“H-how...” and then the pegasus stallion fainted back, the unicorn catching him.

“Twilight, where the hell are we?” the ghostly being asked, snapping out of his stupor.

“Um... do I know you?” Without warning, the pegasus stallion awakened, jumping in front of Twilight and the foal in a defensive stance.

“Stay away from them Ghostfreak, or else!” he growled.

“Ok, i’m getting really weirded out here,” Ghostfreak said, holding his hands up.

“I will not fall for your tricks!” the stallion yelled.

“Look, I just woke up in your Fortress of Solitude knock off, ok so lay off,” he retorted, narrowing his eye.

“Heeeyyy, what’s wrong with my castle?” Twilight huffed.

“Yeah, this is a nice castle, much better than the one my sisters had in the Everfree that’s for sure,” the stallion muttered.

“Ok look, let’s all just calm down here,” Ghostfreak said, putting his hands up again. His eyes widened as his Omnitrix started to glow red, accompanied by a beeping sound. “Oh come on!” he shouted, reverting back to his human form. 

The ponies stared in surprise at the human, until the stallion started laughing. “Ohoho, whew! Thank the gods! I was really getting worried there for a second!”

“Another human?!” said the mint green unicorn. “Sorry, but I’ve already got one.” She looks at the stallion and licks her lips.

“I need an adult!”

“I’m an adult.”

“Not you!” He picks up Twilight and the foal and places them between him and the unicorn. “Nope!”

The new human wasn’t exactly paying them much attention, nursing a wound on his shoulder. Several others were visible on his body, along with a few bruises. “Can I get some help here?” 

Surprisingly, it’s the stallion that moves forward, looking at the wounds with narrowed eyes. “Hmm, stab wound, not mortal, but is definitely gonna need some stitches. Twilight, can you go get the first aid kit? We need to treat this before it gets infected.”

“Um, alright Ben, if you say so.” She disappeared instantly in a bright magenta flash, returning a moment later with a kit. The stallion takes it in his hooves and begins rifling through its contents.

“Now,” he said, pulling out some rubbing alcohol and a swab, “this is gonna sting like a mofo, so be prepared.”

“Just get it over with,” the human responded, wincing a bit.

The stallion began to clean the wound, the human wincing from the stinging alcohol. “This is only the cleaning, the stitches will be much worse. Trust me, been there, done that, never wanted to go back, but still did.”

“Oh I know,” he responded, clenching his fists. “I am so claiming that guy’s sword.”

“Thought this kind of wound looked familiar. Haven’t been stabbed with a sword in ages myself, but I’m not complaining.” He hands the human a towel, a needle and thread in his hooves. “Bite down hard, no sense in biting your tongue off.”

“Thanks,” he said biting on to it, nodding his head. He closed his eyes, bracing for the pain.

As the stallion sewed up the wound, Twilight had a question, having moved the still unconscious filly to her back. “You’ve been stabbed with a sword?”

“Why would anypony want to stab my Benny with a sword?!” the unicorn stated, sounding aghast.

“When you’re in the royal family and go around advocating peace in troubled times, you tend to make enemies. There were many times before that, but it happened a lot more frequently in my later years. Aaaaand done!” the stallion finished, biting off the thread. “That’s the best I can do with a simple first aid kit, so you might want to see a real doctor at some point, just to be safe.”

“Thanks,” he said after spitting the towel out. As he moved his arm around he said, “Twilight, I’m not exactly sure whats going on.”

“I get the feeling that I do,” said the stallion. He started moving further into the castle. “Come with me to the living room, we got some things to discuss.”

“As long as I don’t get stabbed again we’re golden,” the human said, following after the stallion and looking around. Twilight and the unicorn followed as they moved into a very comfortable little den. The girls took the couch while the stallion and the human took two very comfortable chairs.

“Alright, so where do we begin with you, human?” asked Twilight.

“My name is Jason, Twilight, seriously?” Jason asked, crossing his arms with a wince.

“I’m sorry, but the only human I know is sitting in the other chair.”

“That doesn’t make any sense, you let me spend the night in the library. Hell, my alicorn form is based off your DNA,” he said, raising an eyebrow.

“Um, that’s impossible. My library was destroyed over two weeks ago.”

“It’s true! Plus if there was another human before my Benny, then I would have known about it!” stated the unicorn.

“I can prove it.” Jason said, popping up the dial of his Omnitrix before pushing it down. “Star Ocean!” he shouted, now in the form of an alicorn. “Forgive the name...I need to think of a better one.”

“Wow!” the unicorn beamed. “Hey Benny, that one looks and works different from yours!”

“Yes, Lyra,” ‘Benny’ sighed, “that’s because it’s an earlier model. An imperfect one at that.”

“It’s been working fine for me,” Jason responded, a frown on his muzzle.

“Sorry, I wasn’t trying to be rude, just wasn’t a big fan of the original Omnitrix. Personally, I prefer its recalibrated state from the second series, but working with the finished model is much more beneficial.”

“Well you keep your tacky-ass iPhone model,” Jason retorted, glaring at him.

“Jason, you are a guest in my house and I would appreciate it if you would not use such crude language in front of my daughter, even if she is unconscious at the moment.”

“When did you even get a kid!?” he asked, clearly getting worked up.

“That’s not the point at the moment,” the stallion interrupted. “What is the point is what you are doing here, Jason. I was already under the impression that there are a lot of us out there, but I was not expecting contact with another of our kind so soon after my previous one.”

“What are you on about? Contact with who and what's with this us thing?” Jason asked, tilting his head.

“Ah, so I’m your first human after traveling to Equestria, that puts things in better perspective... and I know you have questions Twilight, but I promise to explain everything to you later on.” Twilight closed her mouth, looking slightly embarrassed and disappointed. “So allow me to introduce myself. My name is Ben 10 and, like yourself, I am a Displaced.”

“You’re Ben 10?” Jason asked, his left eye twitching. “Sure why not, I’ve already run into Ansem, Xemnas and the damned Arishok! Who next? General Zod, Rita Repulsa! Freaking Vilgax!?” he demanded, slamming his hooves on the table. While the girls looked frightened by the burst of anger, Ben simply chuckled a little.

“It seems your world has been visited by several Displaced. That is certainly surprising. And no, I’m not the Ben 10. I was simply cosplaying him at Comic-Con before I made a deal that ended me up here. My name was already Ben and for reasons you don’t need to know I already had the ten, so bingo bango here we are five thousand years later.”

Jason took a deep breath, letting it out slowly. “Sorry about that... my life has just gotten really insane the last few days... “

Ben nodded sagely. “Ah, so you have only recently been displaced. I remember back when I first got sent here. Those were not happy times, especially with all the hell I’ve had to put up with. But after several millennia this place grows on ya.”

“Thats just dandy... “ Jason said sighing. “Wait... I remember you,” Jason said, pointing at the unicorn.

“Huh?”

“You were at that party Pinkie threw for me. You took one look at me and shouted ‘I knew it!’”

“...I don’t follow.”

“Don’t mind it, Lyra,” Ben said. “You must understand, Jason, you are not on the Equestria you know anymore. This one has only ever had one human inhabitant and that is me, has been that way for five thousand years and I intend to keep it that way. But from the sound of it, I feel I should warn you that Lyra will no doubt cause you some grief, I know she is for me.”

“You will fall for my affection!”

“We only just met!”

“Don’t care, you are this world’s only human and I’m its only anthropologist. We are destined for each other! Plus, have you seen yourself?!” Lyra puts on a sultry look. “Damn, boy you sexy.”

“Ok... that’s just weird.” Jason said shaking his head.  He tapped the Omnitrix, blinking when he ended up as a Qunari. ”Huh, didn’t expect to use this one for a while.”

Ben looked at Jason strangely. “What the hell is that thing?”

“A Qunari. The Omnitrix scanned him when he stabbed me. I wonder if yours can scan this form?” he asked, raising an eyebrow.

Ben shook his head. “No thank you. That thing is creepy lookin’. I’ve already got way too many problems as it is without forms like that.”

“Your loss,” Jason said shrugging. “How are you still transformed?”

“Form lock. Remember, I’ve had years to mess with this watch. Voice commands finally kicked in after about fifty years, and the lock code didn’t come forward until after my second century.”

“You're serious?” Jason asked, giving him a flat look.

Ben smirked. “Kid, you can’t make this shiz up! I’ve seen some things man, and some stuff. I wouldn’t recommend it!”

Jason just rolled his eyes, his Omnitrix timing out. “I’ll need to look into that when I get back.”

Ben smiled at him, placing his hoof to his Omnitrix. “Omnitrix, disengage form lock, code 1010.” A second later, Ben was consumed by green light. What emerged was what appeared to be the famous hero from the second series. “Ah, it feels good to stretch the fingers. You never miss the little things until you can’t do them anymore.”

“So you got stuck looking like Ben?” Jason asked, looking him over. “That has to suck.”

“No, my old life sucked. You try being an orphan on the streets with a terrible mental condition. This place has done wonders for me!”

“I was talking about being stuck as someone else. I don’t think I could do that,” Jason said with a shiver.

Ben simply shrugged. “Believe it or not, I actually looked like this back on earth. Messy brown hair, green eyes, the only thing I’ve been stuck with is the costume, which is awesome by the way. You’re letting life get you down too much dude, ya gotta relax and let things settle a little bit.”

“Yeah, you try doing that when thing from your childhood try and kill you.”

“I don’t follow.”

“I take it you’re not a gamer?”

“Street orphan usually confined to a psych ward, hello! The only thing I knew about culture was Cartoon Network and to stay away from Lady Gaga and if I ever saw Justin Beiber, shoot him down.”

“Sorry...”Jason said, rubbing his neck, making his shoulder length hair sway a bit.

“Don’t sweat it, do you see me upset? Pssh, that was a long time ago, and it was nice after a certain point. I’m just happy to be alive.”

“Ah, happiness is a choice and all that nonsense?” Jason asked

“Hey, when all you’ve known is depression, you just gotta live life to the fullest, even if it’s an immortal one. That’s how I live, and that’s how my sisters live, or at least how I taught them to.”

“Wait, you're immortal?” Jason asked in disbelief.

“Were you not paying attention to the fact that I’ve been here for five thousand years? Magic, man, it does wonders.”

“To be honest... I zone in and out of conversations... it’s a leftover from my ADHD.”

“Ah, yes, ADHD, what I wouldn’t have given for such a simple mental disorder way back when. It would have made things so much simpler.”

“Well um... what do we do now?” Jason asked, putting his hands in his pockets.

“Now? Now we get something to eat. No sense working on anything on an empty stomach. Anyone know how to cook?”

“Me! Me! Me! I’ll do it! I’ll do it!” Lyra proclaimed while bouncing in her seat. Ben looked worried, but his stomach won out.

“Fine, but make it simple, please?”

“No problem my Benny boo!” She walked off towards the kitchen, a new spring her step. Ben, however, was just shaking his head in defeat.

Twilight gave him a small smile before getting up herself. “I’m going to go put Nyx to bed, I’ll be back in a moment.”

“Sure thing, Twilight. So, Jason, do you have any questions?”

“I take it your pony forms aren’t based on Twilight and her friends?” Jason asked, leaning back in his seat.

Ben shook his head. “No, I’ve had my three forms for years, though I mostly stick to using the pegasus form.”

“I scanned Applejack, Rainbow Dash and Twilight. Don’t have a unicorn yet.”

“Interesting. For me, alicorn DNA is out of the question. My sisters are made entirely of magic, instead of normal DNA, and Twilight seems to be unscannable otherwise the watch should have already done so. My guess is that it’s because she was originally a unicorn and becoming an alicorn didn’t change her on that kind of level.”

“Makes sense. Though they all think I’m related to them now. AppleJack all but forced me to move in with her family.”

“That’s certainly a new take on scanning,” Ben laughed out. “I’ve only just met the girls, but I’ve already become their slave.”

“Applebloom convinced me to go to her school’s family day, did not end well.”

“Now you have me curious,” Ben said leaning in a little closer.

“Well this pink filly kept insulting me. I ignored it but I got Rath instead of Lodestar and I think you can imagine the rest.”

Ben shuddered. “You have no idea. Be glad you can control him. It’s not that great when you can’t.”

“Oh that reminds me, did you scan Discord?”

“No, and I don’t want to! That guy was nothing but trouble back in the day. I know the girls say he’s reformed, but I’m not putting any faith into it until I see it for myself. Besides, he knows not to mess with us!”

“He sounds like the guy who played Q on The Next Generation. Can’t remember the guy’s name though. It’s John something...”

“Again, you’re looking at the wrong dude for that kind of info. Television was a treat for me, and I demand to this day that the guy who said I should be allowed two hours of Cartoon Network a day should be given a big ol’ cookie! Other than that, I didn’t have much to go on. I did not have a privileged childhood. I had one filled with doctors, both physical and mental.”

“So... do you know what happened to the library?” Jason asked, changing the subject.

“Twilight told me it was destroyed by the demon Tirek. I remember my sisters telling me of him, but I never expected he would ever try to take over Equestria, let alone twice.”

“So, should I expect him to show up?”

“Dunno, I’ve only just been freed from imprisonment myself.”

“Thats helpful,” Jason said, rolling his eyes.

“Well sorry for being a statue for four thousand years! You want someone to blame, blame my sisters!”

“You know, on that note, I don’t think Luna likes me.”

“How so? I don’t know what your Luna is like, but if she’s anything like my sister then she’s normally nice to everyone, even if she can come off as a little harsh.”

“She came to the library decked out in black armor. I swear she’s looking for an excuse to hit me with that hammer.”

“Hmm, odd, but Luna always did have an itchy trigger finger. Even if she doesn’t have fingers or know what a trigger is. The only advice I can give you is don’t give her reason to bash your brains out. That’s about all I can offer man.”

“Thanks. Good lord, what is taking her so long with that food?” Jason asked, looking toward the kitchen with a frown

“I’m coming, I’m coming!” Lyra yelled as she walked in with a few plates, Twilight following behind with two more. “I hope you both like spaghetti, it’s my specialty! Bon appetite!” Ben and Jason both took their plates, taking a bite each.

“Wow, Lyra this is really good!” Ben said before stopping. He slammed a hand to his head. “Dang it! I almost forgot!” He got up and walked over to the fireplace, which was still burning from the earlier morning. Using his fork, Ben scraped off a little bit of food into the fire, muttering something as he did so. He returned to his seat and dug into his meal with fervor.

“What are you doing?” Jason asked, not bothering to swallow his food.

“A little sacrifice to the gods. Keeps me in their favor.”

“Personally, I worship Odin,” Jason admitted with a nod. 

“Interesting. I’ve had some... experiences with the Greeks so I kinda picked up on a few of their traditions. A little sacrifice is a good way to keep yourself in their favor. I will swear that it’s the reason I’m still living to this point.”

“The Greek gods were a bunch of dicks. Don’t even get me started on what happened to Me--” Jason was interrupted as Ben shoved his hand over his mouth.

“Don’t bad mouth the gods! It doesn’t end well!” Ben shouted, a look of fear on his face.

“Oh please.The only god I fear is Loki.”

Ben leaned in to Jason’s ear and whispered. “Look, I don’t care if you don’t believe in them, but here... those gods are very much real! Do not test them or it will not end well for you. My... comrades have suffered their wrath before and I don’t want a fellow Displaced to have that kind of fate.”

“So wouldn’t that make Odin real as well?” Jason asked. “Why wouldn’t he intervene on my behalf?”

“Look, this ain’t some Percy Jackson shit where every god exists. Here, the entire world falls under Zeus, Poseidon, Hades, and the list goes on. You want Odin, you’re gonna have to find a world where he’s real. The other gods were very specific on that.”

“Why do I feel like I’m in a bad anime?” Jason asked groaning, slumping in his seat.

“Now you know how I felt around Umbra.”

“Umbra?”

“Right, sorry. Forgot I’m the first of our kind you’ve met. Umbra Shadow-Walker is, well, an admin for the multiverse. He visited me last night to explain the whole thing to me, basically there are a lot of schmucks out there who got beamed to Equestria, most them through the Merchant, like me. It’s a whole bunch of complicated stuff, there’s even a war brewing.”

“I bought this Omnitrix from a guy dressed as the Merchant.” Jason said looking at it. “Anyway, you were talking about a war?”

“Yes, it appears two Displaced, Auric Fulcrum and Teridax, have gotten into a full blown War of Understanding. Umbra recruited me and I’m currently awaiting Auric’s call for the war to begin. He said they could use all the help they could get and I offered my services.”

“Teridax... as in Bionicle?” Jason asked, looking up from his plate.

“That’s what it sounds like. I honestly have no idea what I’ve gotten myself into, but I promised to help and I’m not going back on my word. Auric seems to be the good guy in this fight, so I’ll be supporting him, along with Umbra and whoever else got shanghaied into this mess.”

“Well...I wouldn’t mind helping,” Jason said, taking another bite of his meal.

“I don’t think they would turn you down,” Ben said with a smile. Then he lifted up his Omnitrix and began to type in a series of commands. The watch lit up and a small ray of light formed a Plumber’s badge out of nothing. Ben grabbed it and threw over to Jason. “That’s my call sign, my totem if you will. When the call comes in I’ll relay the message to you. Two Bens are better than one, am I right?”

“That is true,” Jason said with a grin, putting the badge into one of his pockets. “Now I just need to figure out how to get home.”

“I think I may have a solution to that,” Twilight said as she put down her meal.

“Speak away o’ mare of science!” Ben announces, causing her to blush slightly.

“I think what we need is someone who understands the multiverse. Someone who Understands. Someone like...”

Ben visibly paled. “...I don’t know about that Twilight. Sure he’s a little easier to deal with than the others, but he’s still one of them.”

“You talking about Alien X?” Jason asked, raising an eyebrow.

“...Partially. Ok, let me level with you, Jason. See I have a... condition.”

“Go on.”

“Ever since the accident that took my parents, I’ve suffered from multiple personality disorder. Basically my mind is split with ten different personalities in my head, not including mine. I suffered on earth for years until I came to Equestria where the voices just stopped. It was then I found out that it had only gotten worse.”

Jason nodded, gesturing for him to go on.

“Like the original user of the watch, I started out with ten aliens. The only problem was, that transforming into them would strip me of my control. The voices took control of those original ten, making it, to this day, unsafe to use any of them.”

“Damn. I take it one of those was Ghostfreak?”

Ben paled slightly, but immediately hid it. “N-no, he’s not one of the voices. Alien X, Humungousaur, Big Chill, Echo Echo, Swampfire, Rath, Brainstorm, Goop, Chromastone, and Cannonbolt are unusable by me.”

“I can’t imagine being stuck like that,” Jason said, shaking his head.

Ben nodded. “Thankfully, the voices are unable to access the form lock, so they are restricted to the fifteen minute time-out.”

“I could try going Alien X.”

“In all honesty, though I won’t like it, it should be me that does it. Yours would probably be unable to move and you’ll be stuck bickering with the two voices inside the Celestialsapien. My Alien X does not appear to be restricted as such and he usually does the right thing. I think we should trust this to Voiceless.”

“If you say so dude,” Jason said with a nod, watching him.

Ben stood up and took a deep breath, letting out slowly. “Okay, here goes nothing.” He dials in the alien on the holographic interface, the face plates slides back revealing the power core and Ben pushes it down into the watch. Immediately Ben begins to spasm in pain, clutching his head as the light overtakes him. When they look again, Ben had been replaced by a slender, humanoid figure that looked like space in human form.

The figure began to look about the room as if taking everything in. Then his eyes meet Jason, still not saying a single word. He points at Jason and beckons him forward.

“Well, it was nice to meet you guys,” Jason said gulping, moving toward the figure.

Voiceless turns away from him, lifting up a white hand and making a circular motion. He pushes his hand forward and a large white circular outline floats away, stopping a few feet from them. The innards of the outline begin to turn into a swirling vortex that grows to the size of a human. Alien X stands aside to allow Jason through.

“It was nice meeting you Jason,” called Twilight.

“Good luck, other human!” Lyra said.

“Maybe we’ll meet again!” he called back, though Alien X stops him just as he approached the portal. He points at Jason’s Omnitrix, motioning for him to let Voiceless see it. Jason warily lifts his wrist and Voiceless grabs on to his arm. He moves his hand to the Omnitrix and began to type in a command. Once it was complete, the watch lit up.

Voice command module activated.

“That is just awesome,” he said with a grin, nodding in thanks.

Voiceless bowed his head slightly before releasing Jason’s wrist. He steps back and nods toward the portal.

“Well, seeya guys, tell Ben it was nice meeting him!” Jason shouted before jumping into the portal. He vanished in a flash, the portal closing behind him.
> Ponies, Painkillers and religion
> --------------------------------------------------------------------------

Twilight frowned as she stared at the spot where Jason had been, a dried patch of his blood the only indication of his last position. In the chaos of their fight with The Arishok, the human had just... vanished. She lit her horn, frowning as she detected the presence of... something. It wasn’t dark magic, more like the darkness had swallowed Jason up.

“Find anything?” a voice asked from behind her, catching her attention. She turned her head to see Applejack approaching. The farmer hadn’t gotten through the battle unscathed, the bandage on her cheek and the limping left hind leg were evidence of that.

“I picked up traces of something but I’m not sure what,” Twilight said with a tired sigh. “You need to rest, Applejack. I know you're worried about Jason but you really should rest.” 

“Ah ain’t stoppin’ until we find him. Apples don’t abandon family,” she insisted with a stomp of her hoof and a determined expression. 

“Well, there’s no use staying here, we’ve already gone through the entire building and there’s no sign of him,” Twilight admitted with a sigh, her ears drooping a bit. “The Arishok is already in custody, we’ll just have to get him to talk.”

“He don’t seem like the cooperatin’ type Twi.” 

Twilight was about to answer when a white portal suddenly opened next to them. Both mares took offensive stances, but Jason fell out of it and landed hard on his injured shoulder.

“AH DAMNIT!” he shouted, curling up, clutching his shoulder in agony.

“Jason!” Applejack exclaimed, rushing over to him and pulling him into a bone crushing hug.

“Get off me!” he screamed, shoving her away. “What the hell are you two starting at!? Get me a damn doctor!”

Applejack blinked and recoiled a bit, shocked by his outburst. The sight of his blood however quickly snapped her out of her stupor. “Jus’ hang on, we’ll get ya help!” she commanded, pushing her head under Jason to slide him onto her back, then taking off towards the guards.

“We need a medic!” Twilight shouted, teleporting in with a burst of light, her eyes wide in panic. 

“Over here,” a tall unicorn stallion called, waving them over. Applejack rushed to him, gently placing Jason on the ground.

“Can ya help him?” Applejack asked with a worried look.


“I’ll see what I can do. His body structure seems similar enough to a minotaur,” the medic replied, looking over the wounded man. 

“Just hurry... up...” Jason tried to shout, only for his voice to die down, unable to stop himself from passing out.

“No need to worry, I simply put him under a sedation spell, now please, let me work,” the unicorn said, motioning for them to leave. The mares exchanged worried glances before leaving the stallion to his work.

***

Celestia sighed as she walked into the interrogation room. She was not looking forward to this conversation at all, but it had to be done. Luna had volunteered to do the interrogation, which Celestia... politely declined. Luna was more likely to kill (or at least grievously wound) The Arishok than get any information out of him.

“Greetings Celestia,” The Arishok stated, looking up from the table. What little armor he had had been removed, his weapons confiscated. His hands and feet were bound, chained to the floor.

“We are not here to exchange pleasantries. You are here because of your many crimes against Equestria,” she retorted as she sat across from him, her eyes narrowed. This creature had caused more death than any other threat to Equestria and he was not much stronger than an average earth pony.

“What you see as crimes I see as duty,” he responded, looking into her eyes. 

“Spreading your religion is not a crime here. Forcibly converting ponies and killing those that won’t are not acceptable.” Celestia glared at him and the temperature in the room started to rise. “Now, tell me where Ansem and Xemnas are.”

“I would not know. I do not associate with such creatures, even if Xemnas is pitiable,” he responded in a low voice, never breaking eye contact.

“You must know something, tell me!” she demanded. She slammed her hooves onto the table, and her mane burst into flames. Normally, Celestia could remain calm in these situations, but this creature had slaughtered countless ponies and not shown even an ounce of remorse. 

“Xemnas may still be saved. He is empty now, but he may be complete once more,” The Arishok stated, ignoring the heat despite the sweat pouring down his body.

“Go on,” Celestia prompted, starting to regain her composure.

“A nobody lacks a heart so they yearn to be complete. What most of them don’t know is that, given enough emotional stimulation, they can regrow it.”

“Does Xemnas know this?” she asked, raising an eyebrow.

“I do not believe so,” he said, pausing for a moment. “What is it you intend to do with me? I suspect you have lost the Elements, otherwise you would have already used them on me again.” 

Celestia stiffened ever so slightly before answering the question. “That is correct, we no longer have the Elements of Harmony, but that does not mean you will go unpunished. You will be imprisoned in Tartarus, with the rest of the demons.”

The Arishok just nodded, going silent. Celestia tried for several more minutes to get something out of him before giving up and leaving him to his thoughts.

***

“I can’t believe this,” Rainbow said, crossing her arms. She was currently laying in a hospital bed, her broken left wing in a cast. Like any other pegasus, she hated being cooped up, and unlike her last stay in the hospital she didn't have any Daring Do books to distract her.

“Oh please darling, you're being overly dramatic,” Rarity said with a roll of her eyes, sitting in a chair next to the injured pegasus. 

“Oh you're one to talk about being dramatic,” Rainbow rebutted, glaring. “Weren't you the one screaming about your horn being broken?”

Rarity huffed, adjusting her mane. “My horn may not be broken as such, but it is cracked. I shan’t be able to use my magic for some time. Oh... I won’t be able to do any work like this,” she said with a defeated sigh.

“Oh, I’d be glad to help you Rarity.” Fluttershy spoke up, having been quiet until now. At the moment, only the three of them were in the room, as Pinkie had rushed off to get some things to brighten the mood.

“That’s quite alright Fluttershy, I wouldn’t want to impose,” Rarity said, waving a dismissive hoof. As Fluttershy opened her mouth to respond, the door opened. Twilight and Applejack stepped in with Jason floating alongside in the alicorn’s magic. 

“Oh my, are you three alright?” Fluttershy asked, flitting over to Jason, worry etched into her face. 


“We’re fine Fluttershy, Jason just needs rest is all,” Twilight said, floating the human into a bed and pulling the covers over him.

“Where did you find him dear?” Rarity asked, moving over to the sleeping human. 

“He sorta just fell out a portal,” Applejack explained while she made sure Jason was comfortable. The motions must have disturbed him, as he groaned and started coming around.

“Hey Jay, how do you feel?” Rainbow asked from the other bed, watching as he sat up.

“I feel...” he said looking off toward the wall. “When did we get to Disneyland?” he asked, looking down at the ponies.

“Jason, why don’t you just lie back down ok?” Twilight asked, using a hoof to gently push the human back down.

“Hey... Rarity... anyone ever tell you that you look like a marshmallow?”

“Well! I never!” Rarity huffed, looking rather upset at the comparison.

“Well, you should - it’s fun,” Jason snarked back at her.

“Don’t get too worked up at anything he says right now, girls,” Twilight started. “The pain medication is most likely impairing his thought processes.”

“Speak normally, egghead!”

“What I mean is, right now he’s out of his mind. He should go back to back to normal as the medicine wears off-f-f-f-”  Twilight trailed off, freezing up as Jason started to scratch her ears. 

“Who's a good pony princess?” he cooed, a dopey grin on his face.

“Oh sweet Celestia...” Twilight muttered, pressing against his hand, melting under his touch.

“Oh my,” Fluttershy eeped, hiding behind her mane while the other girls just watched in shock. Their best friend and a princess of Equestria was getting her ear scratched like a dog and was actually enjoying it.

“Y-you... when I die I’m gonna hang out with a bearded guy for all eternity. He’s got a...” Jason stumbled, patting his eyes with his free hand. “Eye patch! Yeah, eye patch, and these two bitchin ravens... I always wanted a raven. My favorite poem is ‘The Raven.’’’

“Wait wait wait, hold up. You don’t believe in Faust!?” Rainbow Dash asked, her eyes wide. The others were also aghast to hear this news.

“Who the hell would pray to Faust?” he asked frowning. “That guy sold his soul to the Devil. The Devil! Kids love the devil! They’re throwing up the horns!” 

“Oh my.” Rarity said, putting a hoof to her mouth. 

“Did he just badmouth Faust?” Applejack asked, narrowing her eyes a bit.

“Now Applejack, I don’t think Jason meant to insult Faust, did you Jason?” Fluttershy asked, turning to the human, who had passed out again. She giggled a bit, tucking him in.

***

“Oh god my head...” Jason said, sitting up and rubbing his head. The pain in his shoulder had thankfully diminished into a dull ache. He looked around, noting that he was in a hospital.

“Oh good you're awake.” Twilight said, looking up from her book.

“Yes, quite,” Rarity pitched in, taking a sip of water from a cup, shakily held in her hooves.

“I get the feeling I’m in trouble...” he mumbled, looking around at the group of ponies.

“Well dear it’s just that well... do you believe in Faust?” Rarity asked, biting her lip nervously.

“Faust?” Jason asked, utterly confused. “Faust as in that old Christian legend about the guy who sells his soul to the devil? No I don’t believe that, I’m not Christian.”

“What’s a Christian?” Pinkie Pie asked, tilting her head a bit. Jason just groaned, running his hand down his face.

“A Christian is a person that believes in Jesus Christ. I don’t,” Jason said, really wishing his conversation wasn’t happening.

“So, what do you believe in then, if you don’t mind telling us...” Fluttershy spoke up, pawing at the floor.

“I believe in the old Norse gods, specifically Odin.” He paused, shifting about in the bed, trying to find a more comfortable position. “It’s not a common belief anymore,” he sighed, looking up at the ceiling. “Though... I’m kind of a failure.”

“What in the hay are you talking about?” Dash asked, sounding confused.


“Look, I believe in a place called Valhalla. Only the honorable make it in and that normally means dying in combat. Well guess what, when that guy stabbed me, the only thing I felt was fear, pure unadulterated terror. I’m supposed to go into a fight fearlessly not cower like a damn child!” he shouted, tears running down his face. 

“Y-you believe you have to die...?” Pinkie asked, her mane drooping a bit. Jason sighed, wiping his tears away.

“Look can we not talk about this? I don’t like discussing religion,” he said, looking away and hugging the blankets tightly around himself.

“Of course Jason,” Twilight said with a nod. “Come on girls, it’s getting late, we should let them get some rest,” she said, ushering the uninjured ponies out of the room. The remaining two ponies and human didn’t speak to each other for the rest of the night. 

***

Ansem grinned to himself, watching his prey walk down the darkened streets of Baltimare. The sound of a portal opening caught his attention and he turned around in time to see Xemnas step out of it.

“It is as you predicted brother. The Crystal Empire has returned and the Crystal Heart is active once more. I doubt either of us could retrieve it,” Xemnas informed, pulling back his hood.

“And Sombra?” Ansem asked, returning his gaze to his target, who was blissfully unaware of them.

“Dead.” Xemnas replied, his voice a cold monotone.

“Pity, though in the end he was nothing more than a puppet,” Ansem said. Sombra had been so easy to tempt, the promise of power too great.

“Do you have a plan?” Xemnas asked, stepping up next to his brother. Looking down at the street below, he spied a blue pony pulling a wagon.

“Of course I do, was there ever any doubt?”

Xemnas paused, glancing at Ansem. “Drake...” he started, his voice low. “Do you think we’ll ever get home?”

Ansem seemed to go rigid for a moment at the use of his real name before he relaxed. “Of course we will, we just have to stay together. Now,” he began vanishing and reappearing in front of the mare. “Hello, Trixie.”

The startled mare jumped, her eyes wide. “W-who are you!?” she asked, staring at him in terror.

“I am Ansem, The Seeker Of Darkness, and I am here to offer you a chance to gain the power to take your revenge,” he smiled, holding out his hand to her.

She stared at the appendage before shaking her head. “No, Trixie would never accept anything from the likes of you!”

Ansem just smiled, darting forward and wrapping his fingers around her horn. His body started to dissipate, flowing into her horn. The poor mare screamed in agony but was soon silenced as Ansem took over. Her eyes turned from their normal purple to a toxic yellow and her horn acquired a light purple tint.

“There, that should do,” Trixie-Ansem spoke, their voice an unnerving mix of her own and Ansem’s. “Let us take our leave Xemnas, the sooner we get the Heart, the sooner we can restore yours,” they said before opening a portal and stepping through it.

Xemnas gazed at the wagon a bit longer, the smallest of frowns etched upon his face. It was almost like... No, it was just his imagination. He moved through the portal and closed it behind himself.
> Buggy Love, or How Jason Got His Stalker
> --------------------------------------------------------------------------

“I thought you were a male...?” the doctor stated in confusion, peering at Jason’s bare chest. The human just rolled his eyes, sighing in frustration.

“I am a male,” he retorted, annoyance easily carried by his tone. 

“Then why do you have teats?”

“Oh for the love of...” Jason said, facepalming hard enough for it to sting. “Look, I’m not going to give you a freaking anatomy lesson on human beings, I’m just not.” After he had woken up, Twilight had suggested he let a doctor examine him. He had resisted at first, but she pointed out that it would allow them to treat him more easily in the future.

“Isn’t that why I’m doing this examination?” the stallion asked, raising an eyebrow. Jason just glared but didn’t answer the question. They sat in awkward silence for a few moments before the door opened. Celestia walked in, followed by Luna and the rest of the girls.

“Twilight informed me that you had urgent matters to discuss?” Celestia patiently watched as the doctor performed a few scanning spells on the injured man.

“Yeah. First off, I’m not gonna try to sugarcoat this, I. NEED. MEAT.” he spoke bluntly, getting the point across. Celestia and Luna didn’t seem too bothered by the news, nor did the doctor, though he did pause for a moment.  The girls though, they had a wide range of looks, from uncomfortable understanding to shock, horror, and outright disgust.

“You... eat other creatures?” Rarity asked, her face twisted in disgust.

“Well, yeah. Humans are omnivores, we can survive for a while on certain vegetation but we need animal protein to really stay healthy,” Jason said with a shrug.

“Um... would fish work?” Fluttershy asked, seeming to be the least disturbed by the news.

“Not a big fan of fish but yeah that’ll work,” Jason said with a nod, rubbing his chin a bit. “Actually I don’t think I’ve ever even had fish before...”

“I can bring you some, I have animal friends that need to eat meat too,” Fluttershy said, smiling faintly.

“That would be great, thanks Fluttershy.”

“Can’t you just turn into a pony and eat the same stuff we do?” Rainbow Dash asked, still grumpy because her left wing was in a cast. 

“I have no idea if that would work,” Jason said. “Plus, I’m not gonna just turn into a pony everytime I get hungry,” he said as he rolled his head around, stretching his neck. “Just don’t go around talking about it, I don’t want ponies thinking I’m going to eat them.” He cracked his knuckles. ”Ok, there are a few other things we need to talk about. First off, I bet you're all wondering where I was, yes?” The assembled ponies nodded. “Well, while you guys were fighting The Arishok, Ansem showed up and threw me into a portal. I ended up in another Equestria.”

“Another Equestria?” Twilight asked, her interest piqued.

“Yup, I didn’t see much of it though. I saw you there Twilight, you had a daughter,” Jason said, glaring at the doctor, who was poking at his foot in interest. 

“D-daughter!?” Twilight asked, her eyes going wide at the very idea. 

“Yup, your library got blown up and you got a really tacky crystal castle.” 

“What?!” Twilight shouted as her mane started frizzing out and her eye started twitching.

“Jay I think you broke Twi,” Dash said, shooting a worried look at Twilight.

“Eh, she’ll be fine,” Jason said, waving off her concern. “I also met another human. His name was Ben, and he also had an Omnitrix. Oh!” he said and reached over into his jeans to pull out the badge Ben had given him. “He gave me this, I think it lets me call him or something.” He looked at it in thought, stroking his beard. “I should make something like this...”

“Did you learn anything else there?” Celestia asked, gazing at him intently.

“Well there was something about a demon but I don’t remember the name,” he admitted, rubbing the back of his neck. “This also brings me to my next point, Princess.” He turned to Celestia. “I want to train with your guards.”

Celestia blinked and raised an eyebrow, not having expected that. “May I ask why?”

“I don’t have any combat training at all and I’ve only been in like ten fights my whole life. Look, the Omnitrix is a big thing and well... I want to help people with it. Any fighting experience I get will help me help others,” Jason said, gazing long and hard at the Omnitrix.

Celestia considered his words before giving the human a smile. “I have no qualms about my guard training someone who is willing to fight for others,” she said, turning to the doctor. “Are you finished?”

“For now, Your Majesty,” the doctor said with a nod.


“Good, then follow me,” she said, then walked out of the room with the others. Jason quickly threw his jeans on, but his shirt had been destroyed by the medic to tend to his wounds. His shoulder was doing better, though it still ached. 

A few moments later and the group came to a training hall, though only one pony, a jet black pegasus with a green mane, was there. 

“Captain Air Razor,” Celestia greeted him, approaching the pegasus. “I hope I’m not interrupting anything.”

“Of course not Your Majesty,” Air Razor said in a rather deep voice, bowing.

“Air Razor, please reveal your true self,” Celestia asked, watching him. When he hesitated, she gave him a smile. “It’s quite alright Slash, they can be trusted.”

“As you ask,” he said, nodding and closing his eyes. His body was suddenly consumed by green flames. He grew in height to match Celestia. His fur hardened into a jagged carapace. His wings lost their feathers and became thin and transparent - insect wings. His tail reshaped itself into a long scorpion-like tail, tipped with a stinger. Finally, a long curved horn grew out of his forehead; it was thin and razor sharp, like a sword. 

The gathered ponies stared in shock, trying to cope with what was in front of them.

“Everypony, this is Slash. He is a changeling king,” Celestia explained, looking at them.

“Y-you have a changeling in the guard?” Twilight asked, almost rendered back into her stupor.

“Be at ease Twilight, Slash is a loyal subject,” Luna reassured her with a gentle smile.

“B-but he’s a changeling!” Twilight argued, wide-eyed.

“I understand your distrust Twilight but Slash is at least as loyal as any other Royal Guard. More so, in fact. As a king, he is independent of any changeling hivemind,” Celestia explained. 

“Thats... amazing,” Twilight said, her expression changing to one of intrigue. 

“Slash, I have a special assignment for you,” Celestia started.” I would like you to train this young stallion in the art of combat,” she said, gesturing to Jason.

Slash looked the human over before nodding his head. “I can do that.”


“I am assigning you to Ponyville, is that agreeable?”’

“Yes, Your Majesty,” Slash said with a nod. “May I have a few minutes alone with my new student?” 

Celestia nodded and ushered the others out of the room. Jason gulped, looking at the insectoid pony, who was currently looking him over. 

“You are a strange one,” Slash spoke, getting in close. “The guard have been informed of your device, it is a rather frightening prospect.”

“Uncatalogued DNA detected.” A yellow beam shot out of the Omnitrix and ran across the changeling king’s body.

“Ah yes, I have been informed of that as well. You can take the form of a changeling now?”

Jason nodded, meeting Slash’s gaze. “I can.”

“Good. This is going to be very interesting,” Slash said with a toothy grin. The changeling transformed back into his pony alter-ego, and they left the room.

****

“Good, good, that’s it,” Slash said, watching as Jason jogged around him. For the past few days since their return to Ponyville, all that Slash’s training had amounted to Jason performing mundane tasks around the changeling.

“Why am I doing this crap?” Jason asked, huffing a bit. The ponies probably didn’t notice it, but he was slightly out of shape...

“In order for me to effectively teach you, I need to know the limits of your body, how fast you can run, for how long, how it stretches and moves, all that fun stuff,” Slash responded, nodding his head sagely.

“Thats such BS,” Jason snarked, giving the changeling a glare.

“Oh hush up and keep running,” Slash said, waving his hoof dismissively. 

“At least I don’t look like swiss cheese,” Jason mumbled, slowing down. “Ok, that’s it I’m done running.” he declared, leaning against a tree, sliding down to the ground.

“I suppose we can move onto something else.” 

“Good,” Jason said, activating the dial on the Omnitrix. “Let’s try this one,” he said and pressed the core down. In a flash of green, Jason was replaced by a changeling king, though unlike Slash, this one’s mane matched the green of the Omnitrix.

“Not bad looking,” Slash said, looking him over, nodding in approval. The two of them were too engrossed with Jason’s new form to notice a black shape watching them. After a few beats it flew off, leaving them.
***

“D’you hear that?” Jason asked, looking up into the sky. It was a low buzzing sound, which was steadily getting louder. “What is that?”

“Oh great. A hive found us,” Slash said, annoyance clear in his voice. As if on cue, at least a dozen changelings appeared in the sky, led by a much taller one. They landed nearby and the tall one approached.

“Well, well, well, what do we have here? A pair of strapping kings I see,” she, judging by her oddly distorted voice, spoke to them. Unlike the other changeling, her eyes were green, as were her mane and tail. Atop her head was a small crown, nestled behind the gnarled black horn jutting from her skull. She looked over them both though her expression fell when she recognized Slash. “Oh, it’s you. Well that just ruined my mood.” 

“What do you want Chrysalis?” Slash asked, sighing a bit. “We were in the middle of something.”

“I’m looking for a mate, and one of my drones just happened to spot a pair of kings. I couldn’t pass it up,” she shrugged, looking at Jason. “I must say, you certainly are quite the stud,” she said, letting out a snicker at his befuddled reaction. She moved her wings, rubbing them together, creating a chirping sound.

Despite himself, Jason responded in kind, making Chrysalis grin.

“Why don’t we go back to my hive and... chat?” she asked, giving him a seductive look. 

“I... uh...” Jason stammered out, having no clue what to do. Luckily, he was saved as the Omnitrix timed out, returning him to human form. “Oh sweet merciful Odin!”

“What magic is this?” Chrysalis demanded, lifting Jason up in her magic, turning him this way and that, confusion written all over his face.

“Sorry to disappoint you but, this is his true form. Unlike us, his shapeshifting only lasts a short time,”  Slash explained, snatching the shaken human from her grasp. 

“No matter, I’ll just make him return to his changeling form,” she retorted, licking her lips as she winked at the human.

“Queens,” Slash said with a roll of his eyes, quickly teleporting them out of the forest. They reappeared in the apple orchard, startling Applejack.

“Where in tarnation did ya’ll come from?” AJ asked, to which Jason just shook his head. 

“I’m going to sleep,” he said, trudging past her and into the farmhouse.

“Don’t look at me, I ain’t saying anything,” Slash said. Returning to his disguise, he flew off to the barn, leaving the farmer standing there scratching her head.

***

Slash shook his head as he walked into the library, letting out a groan. Officially, he had been assigned as Twilight’s guard, so he stayed in the library’s guest room.

“Oh good you're back!” Twilight said, looking up from her book. “I was hoping you wouldn’t mind answering a few of my questions?” she asked with a hopeful look.

“Worry not dear Princess, I will answer your questions,” Slash replied, taking a seat across from her. He chuckled as she let out a squeal of joy and gathered her writing supplies.

“Now,” she started, clearing her throat. “You are a changeling king correct?”

“That is correct.”

“And you're not a part of any hive-mind?”

“I am not.”

“So then, what role does a king have?” Twilight asked, raising an eyebrow.

“Kings live outside of hives. When a queen needs to mate, she sends out her drones to find a king. Once one is found, a queen will do everything in her power to woo him.”

“So, kings are more heavily armed and armored because they live solitary lives?”

“Correct.”

“I take it the stinger is for self defense?”

“Correct, but it is also our reproductive organ,” he said, grinning at her.

“O-oh my,” Twilight said as she adjusted her wings, a blush on her face. Slash just chuckled, starting to get into the subject of changeling mating rituals. Oh this was going to be fun.

***

Chrysalis glared at the spot her potential mate had been with a scowl on her face. She had been so close. No! The invasion may have failed but this male was not going to escape her. “I will find you, no matter how long it takes, I will make you mine!” she shouted to the heavens, slamming her hooves on the ground.

Back at the farm, Jason shivered, pulling his blankets tighter around himself.

> Of Might And Courage Part 1
> --------------------------------------------------------------------------

“Success!” Jason declared as he slammed the door of the libraries basement open, a grin on his face. “ Tada!” he smiled, holding out a black and green cylinder. 

“Um... Jason what is that?” Twilight asked, having been startled by his entrance. The young man had all but taken over the basement for the past few days, working on a project he had refused to comment on.

“Well, after some deep thinking on that badge Ben gave me, I decided to make something like that on my own, so I made a Unitrix!” he said, twirling the tube around.

“Unitrix?”

“Yeah, it’s basically a prototype Omnitrix.”  Jason said, tossing the Unitrix between his hands, grinning like a fool.

“How did you even make it?” Twilight asked, watching his antics, rather amused.

“Well I turned into Grey Matter and used parts from your machines.” he replied, sitting down next to her.

“What?!”

“Don’t worry about, I’ll just make you new ones. Now,” he paused, looking at the Unitrix. “What do I do with this?”

“OH! OH! I know!”  Pinkie shouted, darting out from under the table. How she did that, Jason didn’t know but it scared the hell out of him.

“Jeez Pink, stop doing that!” he glared, rubbing his head. “So... what should I do with this Pinkie?” he asked, holding the cylinder out to her.

“Thats easy, you gotta think really hard and say a speech!”

“A speech... ?” he asked blankly, staring at her. She just nodded her head, making him groan a bit. “ Ok um...how about this” he cleared his throat.” I am the changer of shape, seeking to understand the many forms of life. Call for the man of many shapes during your hour of need and I will come, a one man army. Activate the cylinder and in a flash I’ll be ready to clash.”  


“I thinks it’s ok.” Pinkie said, gesturing with her hoof.

“Whatever Pinkie.” he said, glaring at her. “So what in the name of Odin’s beard do I do with it now?” He honestly had no idea what to do with the thing, it was just him waving around in the dark.

Pinkie took it it from him, her face scrunching up in concentration. She grinned, tapping at the controls until it started to glow, vanishing into thin air. “There!” 

“How did you do that... ?” Jason asked, his jaw open slightly.

“I get these weird bursts of ideas. Anyway gotta go!” she exclaimed, rushing out of the library, leaving Twilight to deal with a stupefied Jason.

***

"Ah, good old Everfree!" the tall warrior proclaimed to no one in particular. "Now if only there was something to occupy the rest of my day. Hm. Maybe more songs for the musicians? Tea with shamaness? Or maybe-?"

The warrior was interrupted by a flash of green that appeared above him. Remembering what happened all the other times he quickly jumped back a few feet, letting the object hit the ground.

"Aha! No tokens will be smacking me in the face this time! Now, what are you?"

He approached the object, recognizing the familiar insignia upon it.

Is that what I think it is?

He picked up the object and was soon met with the creator's vow radiating inside his head.

"Oho! 'Ready to clash' he says? We'll see about that!"

He focused on the device, committing the direction of the universe to memory before taking his weapon and cutting a hole in the very air itself, stepping into the space between worlds he dubbed "The Rift" before sailing towards the alternate Equestria.

Maybe I can get another student. But after what happened last time I'll need to make sure he's the material I'm looking for. 

***

Jacob yawned as he moved out of the farm house, muttering to himself. He was slowly adapting to farm life, but his erratic sleep pattern did not go well with the early mornings the Apples went with.

“I’m gonna drop dead one of these days... “ he mumbled to himself. “That rooster is lucky he belongs to AJ otherwise i’d turn his ass into chicken wings.” He kept an eye out as he moved into town, still a bit weirded out by his meeting with the bug queen.

Various ponies greeted him, having gotten used to him already. He had asked Twilight about it and she attributed it to the weird things that often happened in town. A strange cawing caught his attention, bringing his gaze towards the sky. A raven was slowly circling the town, most likely looking for food. Jason shrugged it off, focusing on getting to the library.

“Morning Twi.” Jason said walking in, greeted with the sight of Slash, and Twilight, debating about something.

“You meet with Queen Chrysalis and you're just now bringing it up!?” the purple alicorn asked, verging on shouting.

“It’s not that big of a deal, she was just looking for a mate, besides, if she was here for an attack, I’d have eliminated her.” Slash shrugged it off, sipping his tea.

“Well this feels like home, bunch of people shouting in the morning.” Jason said with a roll of the eyes, taking a seat on the floor. “I guess things really don’t change.

"LUCY, I'M HOOOOME!" came a booming voice from outside followed by what sounded like a train slamming into the ground.

“What the hay was that?!” Twilight asked, turning to the source of the sound. Slash just sat there, very annoyed. sizzling tea having splashed in his face.

“Why don’t we go look?” Jason asked, getting up, cautiously moving toward the window. He peeked outside, going silent.

“Well what is it?”

“Ok it’s official, my childhood is trying to kill me.” Jason said backing away from the window, shaking his head. Phantom pain shoot through his shoulder, his body trembling.  

“What are you on about?” Slash asked, having finished cleaning himself off. He frowned, feeling the fear dripping off his charge. “Just calm down and speak.”

“Standing out there is freaking Gilgamesh. Oh god, I am so dead.” Jason said sitting down, breathing heavily. He zoned out, listening to the frantic beating of his heart.

The massive being, standing no less than eight feet tall, clad in armor with a shield and a spear strapped to his back and a red scarf flowing from his neck was currently in the middle of town, scanning his surroundings. After a moment he took a deep breath.

”CITIZENS OF PONYVILLE!” he bellowed, the force just shy of the Royal Canterlot Voice. ”MY NAME IS ‘BUSINESS’, FIRST NAME ‘NUNYA.’ I AM AWARE THAT THERE IS ONE NOT OF THIS WORLD CURRENTLY RESIDING IN THIS TOWN, ONE I WISH TO DO BATTLE WITH! BRING HIM OR HER BEFORE ME, OR I SHALL RAZE YOUR VILLAGE TO THE GROUND!”

Everypony visibly froze up with terror at his threat, certainly not helping Jason’s keep his bladder control.

“... You have twenty seconds to comply,” he finished in a less threatening tone.

Jason shakily got to his feet, taking a deep breath. “I’m going out there.” he said, moving toward the door.

“Jason, you can’t just go out there! You said so yourself you don’t have any combat experience!” Twilight argued, only for him to glare back at her.

“I’m the reason he’s here and I’m not going to let him hurt anyone because I’m too much of a coward to fight.” he retorted, looking at the door. “Besides, dying in battle is only proper for a Norsemen.” He gave them a weak smile before walking outside. 

Twilight moved to stop him, only for Slash to shake his head. “Let him princess, everypony needs a trial by fire.”  Twilight hesitated before nodding reluctantly, looking toward the window in worry.

“You looking for me?” Jason called out, moving toward Gilgamesh, ignoring the survival instincts that were telling him to run. 

The warrior turned to face him, his expression somewhat hidden behind his faceguard. Still, his eyes showed some surprise.

“A normal human? No costume? Well this is certainly unexpected. But regardless, hail and fair met young one! Might I have your name?”

“The name’s Jason, Jason Hughes.”

“Oh, not even a different name. You’re quite the odd one, aren’t you? Well then, Jasonjasonhughes, do you know who I am?”

“Yeah you’re Gilgamesh, though I never finished 5.”

“Pity. I don’t suppose you played 8, 9, 12, 13-2, 14 a World Reborn, 4 the After Years, or the remakes of 1 and 6?”

“I played them all, except for the online ones, wait are we really having this conversation?”

“Indeed. I like confusing people.”

“Why me?” Jason asked with a groan. He took a deep breath closing his eyes. “Mighty Odin, guide my hand to strike true. If I am to fall in battle, may you see fit to guide me to Valhalla.” 

“Oho! One who worships the glory of Asgard? Don’t see many of your kind, that’s for sure. Although now that I know, you have even more of a reputation to live up to! But first, some proper etiquette.” The warrior cleared his throat. “I, the Mighty Gilgamesh, do so pledge not to bring harm upon the ponies you live amongst on the conditions that you do not flee, that you receive no outside aid, and that you can provide me a glorious and satisfying battle. Choose whether or not to accept these terms and feel free to add some of your own.”

“I agree to those terms.” Jason said with a nod, locking eyes with him. “We fight in the forest, I don’t want anyone harmed.”

“Oh? A relocation to the vicious Everfree? Do you plan to use the terrain and wildlife to your advantage, or are you truly so desperate to keep this village safe that you are willing to risk the hazardous flora and fauna? I feel it only fair to inform you, I eat Hydras. Perhaps you’d like to reconsider? I do so enjoy an audience.”

“How about we don’t? These crazy ponies think I’m family, I’m not going to put them in danger. They’ve already gotten hurt once because of me.”

The warrior paused for a second before grunting in approval.

“Noble, aren’t you? Very well, to the Everfree it is. Oh and one last thing,” he turned to face the library before taking a deep breath. ”CELESTIA’S FLANK COULD CRUSH STEEL!”

There was a loud shout from the library, followed by the sounds of a scuffle, which ended with a loud thud.

“Let’s just go.” Jason said, walking past his enemy, doing his best to stay calm as he walked into the twisted trees. The warrior followed, cackling like a hyena the whole way.


***
I looked to Jason with curiosity. Not only was he a Displaced without a costume, but judging by his movements he hadn’t been here long either. He didn’t have the slightest bit of confidence as it was clear he was only doing this because he felt like I pushed him into a corner. Admittedly that’s what I was going for, but I still felt a bit bad about it.

That Omnitrix, however, is one hell of wild card. If even a know-nothing kid like Ben Tennyson could become a powerful warrior Jason could still put up a decent fight, especially if he’s a fan of the show and knows what he’s doing. I smirked. Whatever happens, it’ll be interesting.

I continued to follow him into the Everfree, as I’d been doing for the past ten minutes. I was getting the feeling he was trapped in his own terrified thoughts and wasn’t really even focused on what was happening.

“So, do you actually have a place in mind, or are you just stalling?” I asked.

“Stalling? Probably.” the young man admitted before stepping into a clearing. “This looks like a good enough place.”

Really? With the ability to transform into aliens that could fly, leap buildings, or even outrun a Bugatti you think a clearing the size of Ponyville’s town center would be enough fighting space? It’s seems this kid’s fighting experience is somewhere between ‘none’ and ‘slap-fight.’ Unless he’s trying to lure me into a false sense of security. Kinda doubt it, but you never know.

“Shall we start?” Jason asked, moving a few pace away. He kept his calm despite his trembling body.

“I don’t think you should be the one asking that question. If I may make a suggestion, it’s possible Rath’s natural aggression might kill your fear. Of course, depending on your proficiency with that device, it may be the only choice you’ll get to make.”

“Well then aren’t you in for a surprise?” he asked, managing a grin. “Omnitrix, Chromastone!” he shouted, engulfed in a green flash, he took the form of said alien, the purple crystals glinting in the sunlight.

“Oh, voice commands? Intriguing. A moment please.”

I unclipped both my naginata and my Genji Shield and thrust them into the ground hard enough to leave them standing up.

“I don’t want a quick fight,” I explained as I cracked my neck and knuckled before blaring my song of choice.

“Wait, you can play your own music?” Jason asked, too confused by the music to be terrified.

“A runic enchantment an acquaintance gave me. I do so love dramatics,” I replied before extending my arm and motioning for him to bring it.

He dashed forward, extending his hands, firing a multicolored energy beam. I simply stepped to the side and let it destroy some of the forest behind me.

Predictable.

“Damn.” he cursed, giving a glare. “Omnitrix, Big Chill.” he commanded before shifting forms again. He spread his wings flying into the air.

“Changing already? Do you really have so little confidence?” I asked with a smirk.

“Actually, I was just about to test something out.” he said touching the Omnitrix, turning it to the side. “Ultimate Big Chill!” He exclaimed as four spikes came out of the Omnitrix, digging into his skin. His body turned red, his wings looking a bit like flames.

Ah crap, the Ultimate forms. Never kept with the series long enough to know what they can do. Well, no time like the present.

“I do hope this isn’t one of your trump cards or I’m going to be sorely disappointed,” I said while bouncing on my soles in a classic boxer’s stance.

“Oh no not even close.” he said taking in a large gulp of air, spewing a torrent of fire. Anything it touched was immediately encased in a thick layer of ice.

Freezing flames? Let’s see how cold.

”PENETRATING BEAM!” I shouted, firing the searing hot beam from my eyes directly at the beam headed my way way.

Jason’s eyes went wide, dropping the beam. He became intangible, the beam passing through him harmlessly. He sunk into the ground, out of sight.

Ah, intangibility. Forgot about that.

I closed my eyes and focused, hoping to hear or feel some indication as to his location. The most likely locations for him to attack from would be from behind or directly below.

Jason flew out of the ground from the side, his hands covered in flames. He threw blast after blast, his aim rather poor. I easily weaved through his attacks with a Dempsey roll, bobbing and weaving between the blasts as I closed the distance. When he was just a lunge away I threw out a left straight punch, using my wind control to cause a spiraling gust of wind to project itself towards him. 

He didn’t move quickly enough, getting caught in the vortex, causing him to spin with his arms and legs outstretched, helpless to do anything but watch as I reared back for a follow up. “Corkscrew CROSS!” I shouted as I struck him in the midsection with a hard right straight. “The end,” I said before the follow up wind spiral sent him flying into a tree.

He staggered to his feet, shaking his head. “Hey Gilgamesh,” he asked, panting. “How do you handle radiation?”

“Dunno. I’m curious to find out. Though if I lose the ability to procreate, I’ll make sure to forcibly remove yours in return.”

“Ha. Omnitrix, NRG.” he commanded, his insectoid body replaced by a heavy suit of armor with three red glowing slits on the helmet.

Oh great, another one I don’t recognize. Really wishing I watched past the Highbreed arc right now.

“I guess you’re not worried about the local wildlife then? I bet Fluttershy’s gonna be pissed,” I joked.

“Actually, as long as I’m in this suit, there shouldn’t be any harm to the animals. You on the other hand.” he said, now sporting a Russian accent, slamming his fist into the ground, causing it to fracture, a minor eruption occurring.

Kat, I owe you for this one.

I jumped high into air, enough to even escape the heat of radiation. Jason looked up and, surprisingly, managed to guess the arc of my jump, firing beams of radiation from the slits in his helmet. It was then I activated the gravity powers and changed my direction in mid-air, dodging the blast, before simply hovering.

“W-What!?” he stuttered.

“The powers of a Gravity Shifter. A gift I received. It’s got a time limit though, so I need to make good use of it,” I explained. “Speaking of which.”

I extended my hand at him and increased the gravity around his body. The ground around his feet cracked and he struggled even to look up at me.

“I’ll be willing to drop this if you’d give me another change. Personally I’m a fan of the ones that appeared in the original series, but whatever you pick keep it interesting.”

“I’ll show you interesting. Omnitrix,” he paused for effect. “Way Big.” Another flash and he was replaced by a creature whose size easily matched Canterlot Mountain.

I just stared for a minute before internally sighing.

Well I did ask for it. Hell, he even kept to the original series.

I dropped all the gravity powers and fell to earth as he reared back for an overhead punch.

Pummelling imminent. Employing defensive measures.

I cast Protect on myself before landing, raising my arms above my head and bracing as I touched ground, immediately followed by the crushing weight of his fist.

“Hey, want to see something even more interesting?” he asked, withdrawing his fist. He turned the Omnitrix, grinning his body taking one a blue color. “Ultimate Way Big!”

Ok, now this is getting excessive.

He held his left hand up vertically, crossing his right across it horizontally, firing an energy beam out of his left hand. I quickly cast Shell on myself and covered my face with my arms, bracing for the impact. The beam slammed into with earth shattering force, starting to form a crater.

Damn, I took him too lightly. Time to play possum.

I killed the music and waited, staying as quiet as I could. Eventually the beam stopped, leaving me hidden underneath the rubble.

The air was still for a few seconds before a shrill beeping sound broke the silence, signaling the Omnitrix timing out.

And just the right time too.

“You have got to be kidding me,” Jason said in disbelief, staring dumbly at the Omnitrix. There was a bright flash of red as he returned to Way Big, the back to his human form.

I freed myself from the rubble with a blast of wind, sending debris everywhere. I cracked my neck and shoulders after standing up, smiling as I saw the “oh shit” look on his face.

“Not bad. Not much technique, though. Or even much style to make up for it,” I casually taunted.

“Oh shut up.” he spat, panting.

And now here’s the moment of truth. I think I know what he’ll do, but I need to make sure.

“Unfortunately, I’m afraid you’ve broken your vow,” my tone turning threatening.

“What? What are you talking about? I didn’t run, and I didn’t get any help!” he shouted back in desperation.

“But there was third condition: that this battle would satisfy me. I’m afraid it didn’t, and seeing as how you’re without the ability to transform, you as a mere human aren’t worth my time.” I turned my back on him. “Which leaves me with one option. I wonder how long it will take Celestia and Luna to come down from Canterlot when they hear their subjects screaming in agony?”

Jason had fallen silent, not making a sound. The silence went undisturbed, except for the fluttering of wings.

“Hm?”

I turned my head towards the direction of the of the flapping. Jason stood there, his face obscured by his hair. A pair of ravens sitting on his shoulders. They cawed at me before taking off into the sky. I then, notice the Omnitrix no longer on his arm but on his chest, its four prongs extended, indicating an ultimate form was being used.

What? But he’s still human!

He threw his head back, letting out a scream of pure rage. His hands burst into flames as he sent a torrent of flames at me, his eyes glowing red. I quickly responded by throwing my arms out to the side, flaring my affinity for wind and summoning a tornado around my body and sending it harmlessly upwards.

“Heatblast?” I muttered.

He ended the flames, drawing in a deep breath, letting out, an ear splitting sonic scream. I dodged to the side just in time to see the waves of sound tear part the ground and destroy some trees near the end of the clearing.

“And now Wolf Blitzer? But how? He’s still human!” I asked aloud.

He dashed forward with the speed of XLR8, letting out a flurry of punches that hit with what I assumed was the strength of Four Arms. My arms barely managed to block the attacks, with Protect keeping me from suffering debilitating damage. Recovering myself I let my wind powers flare again, sending him flying into the air with a shout and and hurricane-like explosion of wind. He managed to land on his feet and glared at me, his eye glazed over with some kind of rage. It took me a second to process this before I simply chuckled.

“Well well, this is certainly interesting. I don’t know what this berserker mode of yours is, but you’ve certainly earned another shot. However,” I took a fighting stance before blaring a new musical choice. “I’ve dealt with situations like this plenty of times. Those who know only how to charge head on have no chance against a true warrior!”


He stood still for a second before his body shimmered, going invisible.

“Oh? It seems you haven’t lost your mind completely, have you? But do you really think I won’t be able to notice the moment of your attack?”

The ground started to tremble, a localized earthquake heading towards me.

“NO HIDING!” I shouted before slamming my foot into the ground and unleashing my Earthquake spell. Jason revealed himself, leaping into the air, slamming his feet into my chest hard enough to send me into a tree.

“Not bad. But, NOT GOOD ENOUGH!” I shouted before casting Haste on myself. I dashed forwards and slammed my fist into his chest, winding him. “DORARARARARARARARARARARARARARARARA!” I shouted as I unleashed a flurry of punches upon his body. ”DORA! I cried before hurling him skyward with an uppercut to the chin, enough force to send out a shockwave that knocked back some of the trees.

He slammed into the ground with a thud. He managed to get to his feet, a recent wound having reopened during the flight, blood pouring down his arm and chest. With a final grunt, he collapsed, the Omnitrix returning to his arm.

I don’t know what happened, but it looked like now he was down for the count. He still seemed to be conscious. I decided to go for the emotion coup de grace and turn the hamminess up to eleven.

“HAHAHAHAHAHA! Now that was quite amusing, but still not good enough to satisfy me! My battles have altered landscaped and smashed mountains, leveled cities and razed plains to nothing but burning wastelands! Despite your efforts, you are still weak!”

He managed to move his head and look at me, a mix of rage, fear, and desperation in his eyes.

“That’s right, weak! Not only without your powers but without the ability to even more your body! SINK INTO THE DEPTHS OF DESPAIR, WEAKLING, KNOWING I WILL TAKE ALL THAT YOU HAVE GROWN TO LOVE AND CARE FOR HERE AND WIPE IT FROM EXISTENCE! HAHAHAHAHAHAHA!”

Jason struggled for a bit, actually managing to get to his feet. “I don’t care what you do to me, send me on my way to Valhalla for all I care but if you hurt them...” he paused, clutching his shoulder. “I will end you. No matter what it costs me, I will not let you hurt them.”

“So, even without a chance of victory you would still stand against me? Even knowing that your defiance would do nothing but add one more to the death toll you would still try stop me?”

“At least I’d die in battle, unyielding to the end.” he responded, spitting out some blood.

I let that sentence hang for a moment before casually walking towards him. When I was within reach he threw out a punch which I easily caught before raising my other hand. He flinched as I brought it down on his head, only to look at me in confusion as I gave him an affectionate pat.

“Congratulations. You passed.”

He recovered a bit from his confusion, starting to laugh before he passed out in a heap.

I smiled and chuckled at the sight. “Come on, hero,” I said as I lifted him onto my shoulder. “Let’s get you back.”
> Of Might And Courage Part 2
> --------------------------------------------------------------------------

Applejack ran as fast as she could into town, her legs screaming in protest. Not only had she heard the declaration threatening the town, she had also seen the impossible to miss alien creature that had appeared in the Everfree several minutes before.

Barrelling into town, she made for the library, slamming into the door and knocking it off its hinges. “Twilight! Where’s Jason!?” the farm pony asked, panting heavily.

“Applejack, just calm down,” Twilight said, holding up her hooves. “You need to calm yourself.”

“‘Calm myself’ nothing, where is Jason?” Applejack asked a bit more forcefully.

“He uh... went out to fight that thing...” Twilight said, drawing circles on the floor with her hoof.

“He did what!? Why didn’t ya stop him!?”

“I tried b-but he wouldn’t listen! And Slash told me to let him go!”

“You let him go?” Applejack asked, narrowing her eyes at him.

“I let him go,” Slash said, glaring back at her.

“Anything happens to him, and Ah’ll make you pay,” Applejack warned the changeling before running out of the library. Apples stuck together and no one hurt her family if she had anything to say about it.

***
Jason groaned, shaking his head as he tried to shake the sleepiness from his mind.

“Wha… where am I?” he muttered.

“Ah, finally awake. ‘Sup, sport?”

Jason turned his head towards the voice, finally noticing that he was being carried by the guy who had just pummelled him before. “If you broke any of my teeth... I’m gonna chuck you into orbit...” 

“Nope. Nothing like that. You actually held up pretty well, considering. I did what little healing I could, but Cure spells aren’t my specialty.”

Jason inspected himself and found that the formerly gushing wounds were now looking well on their way to just being scars. Didn’t get rid of the blood on his clothing, though.

“Ever consider a career as a punching bag?”

“Funny... Rarity is going to be so pissed when she sees my clothes.”

“Ah, ya can’t sweat the little things. Besides, some cold water and detergent should get that right out. So, how’s life Jasonjasonhughes?”

“Why do you keep calling me that?”

“I liked how Reiny kept calling Ben ‘Benbentennyson.’ I just always found it particularly amusing.”

“Don’t mention things from my childhood... they’re trying to kill me... “

“Get used to it pal. You’re a Displaced now, and lots of things you recognize are going to try to kill you, and maybe even a few things you won’t. But hey, maybe you’ll come across someone else like me. Or, well, maybe without the ‘test character’ beating, but still willing to help you out.”

“I already met one... his name is Ben... got turned into Ben Ten.. “

“Is that so? Which version?”

“Alien Force, though he had that crappy iPhone Omnitrix.”

“You mean the green one?”

“Nah, it’s white with a touch pad interface.”

“Huh. Don’t know that one. Honestly, I lost interest in the series after the Highbreed arc, but to be honest I was never much a fan of Alien Force to begin with. Lost a lot of the childish charm that got me to fall in love with the original series.”

“I can see that. Doesn’t explain why I have Ansem and Xemnas running around.”

“Wait, what? That doesn’t make any sense. You should be suffering attacks from other aliens, like I am with bosses from FF V.”

“Well they're here, along with that jackass Arishok from Dragon Age II,” Jason grumbled. “Bastard stabbed me in the shoulder.”

“Didn’t play Dragon Age. Didn’t get to it. But that’s really interesting to hear. I don’t suppose they were trapped in stone for a while?”


“Actually, yeah. I have no idea what Xemnas and Ansem did, but The Arishok went on a genocidal campaign to convert the ponies to his religion.”

“Yup, that’d get Celestia and Luna pissed off enough to use the Elements of Harmony on them. I’m gonna take a wild guess here, but I think those three might also be Displaced like us. First time I’ve heard of more than one being sent to the same universe, though. By the way, can you walk on your own?”

“Only one way to find out.” he said, motioning to be set down. He stumbled a bit, quickly regaining his balance. He turned to speak, only to be drowned out by the buzzing of wings. 
“Seriously?” 

“Step away from my mate, demon!” Queen Chrysalis commanded, landing in front of them, joined by a dozen drones.

There was a long silence, aside from the buzzing and hissing, before Gilgamesh turned to Jason.

“‘Mate?’”

“Meet my stalker,” Jason groaned, shaking his head. “Look I’m not into you, just go away!”

“You say that now.” she said with a grin, making him shudder. “Now watch as I defeat this demon!” she declared, firing a blast of magic at Gilgamesh.

The warrior quickly unclipped his weapon and smacked the blast aside before it hit him.

“Ok, one: Demon? Really? Two: You really don’t want to mess with me. Three: I’m not trying to kill him and Four: Just why the hell is she interested in you?” he asked, directing that last part at Jason.

“She saw me as a changeling king and got all creeper on me,” Jason said, shivering under the queen’s gaze.

“And what a stud of a king he is,” she said, licking her lips. “Nonetheless, have at you!” she shouted, charging at Gilgamesh.

The warrior responded by jumping out of the way and landing on a large tree branch before laughing his head off.

“Oh my god, are you serious!? That’s freaking hilarious! Even better than when Tiny hit on Four Arms!” he managed to say between his laughing fits.



“Shut the hell up, jackass!” Jason hissed, glaring up at him. 

Chrysalis flew up at the warrior, baring her fangs. Her movements were graceful, as if she was trying to show off. “Worry not my love! I will defeat this foul demon!”

Gilgamesh could only continue to laugh.

“Hey, here’s an idea! Why don’t you head back into town and let her fawn over you? Hell, you can even carry her bridal style! It’ll be hilarious to see the expressions on everyone’s faces! Uh, everypony’s faces, I mean.”

Chrysalis took advantage of his laughing, bucking him as hard as possible in the back of his head. “Do not mock my love!”

Gilgamesh grunted when he hit the ground, only to continue laughing.

“I’m not! Hey this could be a great opportunity! If you do this you could serve as a bridge for pony-changeling relations! ‘Jason Hughes, making love, not war!’”

Jason just groaned, running his hands down his face.

“What in tarnation is going on!?” a familiar southern drawl called out, interrupting the scene.

“Oh great one of those cursed Elements. Well I’d best be off, until next time my love,” Chrysalis said, blowing Jason a kiss before flying off with her drones.

“Wait, come back! This is the perfect time to get negotiations started! Just think of all the love you can get through having se-!”

“WILL YOU JUST STOP ALREADY!?” Jason shouted.

Gilgamesh’s laughter finally began dying down. “Ok, ok, I’m done.”

“Jason!” Applejack shouted, rushing over to him and throwing her arms around him in a hug. “Ah was so worried...” she said, pausing when she saw the blood. She turned toward Gilgamesh, a look of hate in her eyes.

“Ok, yes, I beat him up. There was good reason for it, or at least I think so. Besides, I healed him as best I could afterwards.”

“Ya’ll hurt mah family?” she asked, pulling away from Jason, her steps slow and deliberate.

“‘Family?’ Wow, have you really gotten that close to them?” Gilgamesh asked Jason. “Wait, she doesn’t mean through marriage, does she?”

“No you idiot. The Omnitrix scanned her and by their logic, I’m related to them through my earth pony form. Also, she looks freaking pissed.”

“Meh, not worried. That part about smashing mountains and levelling cities? Not exaggerating, even if I don’t do that anymore.”

Applejack rushed him, managing to kick a leg out from under him. As he fell she kicked him in the face as hard as she could, sending him into a tree. “Teach ya’ll to hurt mah family,” she said, adjusting her hat and trotting over to Jason.

“Wow. I guess I underestimated the Apple family after all,” he said as he stood up. “Still, like I said, I did have good reason for it. If we could head back to Ponyville I can explain. I don’t want to repeat myself.”

“Then lets get going. I don’t want to wait around for anything else to show up,” Jason said, starting to walk toward town.  Applejack stopped, glaring at Gilgamesh, gesturing with her hoof that she was watching him before galloping after him.

“Well, this should be fun.”

***

“Jason!” Twilight shouted, rushing over to the human to hug him tightly. The townsponies were still hiding, though the Elements and the princesses had arrived.

“This is the creature?” Luna asked, raising an eyebrow. “It doesn’t look like much,” she sounded rather disappointed.

“I would think any warrior would know not to judge by appearances, fair Luna. And if you don’t find me much to look at, I’m happy to say that at least the same is not true in your case,” Gilgamesh replied before winking and clicking his tongue at the azure diarch.

“Ha! See Tia, I told you all that cake was making you fat!” Luna said, rather pleased with herself. “Even this creature knows that I am the fairest princess!”

Celestia just sighed, giving a rather un-princess-like facehoof. “Please try to stay on topic Luna.” Luna just stuck her tongue out, causing Celestia to roll her eyes. 

Gilgamesh struggled for a few moments to suppress a giggling fit before clearing his throat. “Well, I believe introductions are in order.” The warrior took a deep breath before posing dramatically. “BEHOLD MORTALS, FOR YOU STAND BEFORE THE MIGHTY WARRIOR WHO TRAVELS THE RIFT SEEKING ADVENTURE AND CHALLENGE! MY FEATS, LEGENDARY! MY POWER, EARTH MOVING! I HAVE BEEN GIVEN MANY NAMES FROM MANY PEOPLES! TO THE DRAKES, I AM THE DRAGON SMASHER! TO THE BUFFALO, THE STORM BRINGER! TO THE GRIFFONS, THE WING CLIPPER! TO THE MINOTAURS, THE HORN BREAKER! TO THE CHANGELINGS, I AM ‘THAT NUTJOB THAT RUINED OUR INVASION!’ TO THE PONIES, I AM COMBAT INCARNATE! BASK IN MY GLORY, FOR YOU STAND BEFORE THE MIGHTY GILGAMESH!”

As he finished a tumbleweed came from nowhere and crossed behind him.

“Also summoner of tumbleweeds and bringer of awkward silences,” he added.

“Tia, I am liking this creature more and more!”

Celestia glared at Luna, ignoring her comment. “I would welcome you to Equestria but you did threaten my ponies. Explain yourself.”

“Yes, yes, an unfortunate yet necessary measure to begin my evaluation.”

“Evaluation?”

“Indeed. I am looking for a new student to teach in the art of combat, my second. I received the token and proclamation from young Jason here and decided to test him. I find that one’s true personality and what they hold dear show themselves in desperation, and so I threatened the citizenry before overwhelming him with my power. I myself am pleased at what I have found, and I think you would be too, Celestia. What you have here is a being that would continue to fight and even sacrifice himself for those he cares about even when he knows victory is completely out of his grasp.”

Jason looked away with a blush, rubbing his neck.

“And now that you know this, what do you plan on doing?” Celestia asked, locking eyes with Gilgamesh.

“Teach him, of course. That is if that is what he desires.”

“Teach me?” Jason asked, taken aback.

“Of course! As a follower of Odin, surely you’d be more than willing to gain power. And even if you weren’t, I’d recommend it anyway. As much as many would like to deny it, the strong decide what happens to the weak. If you wish for things like friendship, love, and harmony to win, you must be powerful enough to defend them,” Gilgamesh replied in a matter-of-fact tone.

“I’ll do it.” Jason said, nodding his head. “The Omnitrix is supposed to be a tool of peace and I intend to use it as intended.”

“Good to hear. Although, to be honest, I’ve never trained anyone who wasn’t already a fighter to some extent. Sorry to be harsh, but as far as your courage is concerned, you’re rather pathetic.”

“Yeah, I noticed.”

“Sorry. Oh and if you all could perhaps start fleeing, I could give you a demonstration of my power.”

“‘F-Fleeing?’” Twilight asked in concern as both Celestia and Luna tensed.

The warrior simply smiled before moving behind the princesses in a barely perceptible flash of speed, his arm raised threateningly. They gathered magic in their horns, ready to retaliate, only to stop as he smashed his fist straight into the ground. A moment later he retracted it, grasping a black coated figure in his hand.

”Well Hidey-Ho, neighbor!” he shouted with childlike glee before slamming his other fist into the bipedal being’s face, sending it tumbling.

“It looks like my brother was right, a new player has entered the game,” the being responded, getting to its feet. It threw back its hood, revealing its face. 

“Xemnas!” Celestia shouted, powering up her horn.

“Only a temporary player, unfortunately. But I intend to make quite the impact while I’m here,” Gilgamesh replied.

“I am afraid I can’t allow that,” the Nobody responded, summoning his ethereal blades.

“Mares, gentlecolts, Jason,” he began, causing the boy to grunt in annoyance, “if you could please stand back. It’s time for me to put on a show, and this one isn’t audience participation.”

Celestia hesitated, looking between the two beings, before nodding. “Very well, but I expect you to do what you can to not endanger our subjects.”

“Of course,” the warrior replied before he unclipped his weapon, music beginning to radiate from him. “Can’t promise much in terms of property damage, though.”


“What!?”

“IN THE NAME OF HIRONOBU SAKAGUCHI, HAVE AT THEE!” he shouted before dashing forwards.

The two combatants clashed weapons before moving in and out between each other, dodging and deflecting each others attacks with incredible agility. Xemnas jumped backwards and summoned bolts of power, firing them at the armored warrior before disappearing in a swirl of darkness.

Just as Gilgamesh finished deflecting the last bolt Xemnas appeared behind him in the same manner he had vanished, with his blades ready to strike. He found his attack intercepted - the warrior planted his weapon into the ground, using it as a support and slammed both feet into his opponent’s face, sending him flying.

Gilgamesh followed only for the Nobody to vanish mid-flight. He reappeared several yards away, giving himself space to recover.

“Quite the zealous one, aren’t you?” he commented.

“‘Zealous?’ I’m not zealous! I’M HOT-BLOODED!” the warrior shouted back before dashing towards his opponent with his weapon at the ready.

“You’re one of those idiots aren’t you?” Xemnas asked, the slightest hint of a frown on his otherwise blank face. Just as the warrior was about to strike he raised his barrier to repel the attack. The warrior surprised him, however, by jumping above it and swinging his weapon down, only for the attack to be repelled again as he used his other hand to summon another barrier.

Xemnas quickly sent out a copy of himself that proceeded to unleash a volley of strikes with its blades upon the armored man. “You’re actually a challenge,” the Nobody said with a nod, a determined look in his eyes.

As the clone continued to strike his opponent the original Xemnas summoned a swarm of bolts around himself. The copy flew upwards before he launched the hailstorm of energy at his opponent, knocking him onto his back. The duplicate then proceeded to dive down, ready to deliver the finishing blow.

”PENETRATING BEAM!”


Gilgamesh fired a searing hot laser from his eyes that took off the clone’s head, causing it to disperse into nothing, before quickly hopping to his feet.

“Who’s the idiot? The dumbass or the one who gets beaten by him?”

“I see I will have to get serious,” Xemnas said, touching his left shoulder to summon forth his keyblade armor. He held out his hand, a keyblade forming in it.

“Well that’s unexpected. Then again, so is this!” Gilgamesh shout before unclipping his shield and hurling it at his opponent.

Xemnas moved to swat the shield aside only for it to take more effort than he thought. Still, it didn’t damage him, and he turned to face his enemy again, only to find him missing.

“Peekaboo,” came a voice from below him.

He looked down in time for the warrior to grab his neck and jump out of a tear in reality below him. He carried his unwilling companion high into the air.

“EIN!” he shouted before positioning Xemnas across his shoulders, slamming his back against his own as he hit the ground. “ZWEI!” he cried, jumping into the air and repeating the action. “DREI!” he yelled once more, jumping into the air, spinning and taking his quarry with him before positioning them both for a body slam. “ENDE!” came the final shout before the warrior slammed his massive bulk into the ground, flattening his opponent under him. The tall biped backflipped away.

“There’s some German for ya!”

Xemnas laid still for a moment before getting up, his armor rather scraped up. “You truly are quite the warrior. It almost makes me...” he started before shaking his head. “Let us continue.” 

The Nobody floated into the air before raising his hand. The ground began to rumble until a loud crack rang out. Everypony turned to see town hall was now floating in the air, spinning before aiming itself at Gilgamesh like a spear.

The ponies all gasped in horror, watching the building soar through the air. Xemnas paused, noticing a young filly standing in the path of the building. He teleported over, grabbed the filly and teleporting away.

“Hey! Let her go! This is between you and me!”

“You misunderstand,” Xemnas said, setting the filly down. “I do not wish to bring unnecessary harm to bystanders.” 

Gilgamesh stared back in shock. He was about to speak when Xemnas thrust his arm forward, causing the floating building to fire at him. The warrior took a battle stance and exhaled sharply before taking a large swing with his weapon, slicing the building cleanly in two, causing the pieces to land on either side of him.

“NO! NOT AGAIN!” Applejack shouted. “I HAD TOO MUCH TROUBLE RAISING THE MONEY LAST TIME!”

“I gotta say, I didn’t expect that from you, Xemnas,” Gilgamesh began. “You sure you’re a Nobody? I think I hear a heartbeat.”

“I merely wish to reclaim my heart, only those who stand in my way will be harmed.”

“Personally I don’t think that’s the way to go about it. Why not try to buy into the whole ‘Magic of Friendship’ thing? I have.”

“And, what would you know?” he replied, raising his keyblade skyward. Soon a dome of energy bolts appeared around Gilgamesh.

“Oh shit.”

The Nobody brought his weapon down, signaling for the bolts to begin firing. The warrior managed to deflect them in quick succession with his naginata at first, but the rate of fire increased to the point he was barely able to keep up. For every one he deflected, three more struck him. After nearly a full minute the attack dispersed, leaving a wounded and exhausted Gilgamesh to fall to his knees.

“Ow.”

“Are you ready to give in?”

“Heh. Just because I don’t worship the Allfather doesn’t mean I would be displeased with dying in combat.”

“So be it,” Xemnas replied, raising his weapon for the final strike. Before he could bring the Keyblade down though a gust of wind behind from behind caught his attention. He turned and barely managed to dodge the Genji Shield that was hurtling at his head. The shield was quickly caught and returned to its spot on Gilgamesh’s back.

“However, that doesn’t mean I particularly plan on dying! HENSHIN!” he shouted as he took a strange pose. A flash of light came and in an instant the warrior’s place stood an eight-armed version of himself with different armor and no weapons.

“Pummeling time,” he said with a smirk before dashing forward and unleashing a flurry of punches upon his opponent. “DORARARARARARARARARARARARA! DORA!” he cried as he finished the assault with an earth-shaking punch, sending the Nobody tumbling.

“I made the mistake of giving you a chance to breathe,” he began, raising all eight of his arms and causing one of the pieces of town hall to rise into the air. “Not this time!”

He jumped up, grabbing the building half before slamming it down into his enemy, who had just stopped tumbling. He landed on top of the structure before throwing his head back and shouting a battle cry.

“WRYYYYYYYYYYYY!”

He then proceeded to slam his eight fists rapidly into the structure forcing it to crush the helpless victim underneath. “MUDAMUDAMUDAMUDAMUDAMUDAMUDAMUDAMUDAMUDAMUDAMUDA!” he shouted before finally slamming one of his elbows into the building, unleashing a shockwave upon the ground. He then jumped skywards as the structure crumbled.

“NOT DONE YET!”

He then began sending out rapid punches, each one creating a comically large boxing glove that fired into the ground and exploded, all while laughing maniacally.

“PENETRATING BEAM!”

He once again fired the searing beam from his eyes, twice as large as before, before finally falling back to earth.

The ponies were too stunned and terrified to even utter a word as Gilgamesh fell to his hands and knees gasping for breath. After a few moments he stood up began to laugh again.

“Oh come on! We both know you’re not done yet!” he said with a disturbing amount of enthusiasm.

“W-What!?” Jason stuttered.

Xemnas staggered out of the crater, his armor cracked and broken. 

“Oh you have got to be freaking kidding me!” he shouted. He didn’t know what was worse, that Gilgamesh could dish out that kind of damage or that Xemnas could take it.

“How... why can’t I beat you?” he asked, his keyblade slipping from his hand and dissipating. “Tell me why!” he demanded with what sounded like anger.

“Well, I could say that I’m stronger, faster, and more experienced. That’s probably true. But the real truth is that this outcome was inevitable. After all, I’m fighting for more than just myself,” Gilgamesh answered simply.

Xemnas just stared at him, holding out his hand. He opened a dark portal and stepped through it, making sure to seal it after himself.

“What!? Running away already!? Oh come on! I didn’t even get to use this form’s weapons against you!” he complained in a childish tone. “Meh. Whatever.” In a flash he returned to his previous two-armed form.

“That was quite... impressive, Gilgamesh.” Celestia said as she looked over the damage.

“Gah! This is going to take days to clean up!” Twilight moaned with a pout.

“I got this,” Jason said, using his Omnitrix to change into Perk Upchuck. The gathered group watched in fascinated horror as the little creature proceeded to devour the debris.

“It’s like a train wreck, it’s horrible to watch, but I just can’t look away,” Rarity said.

“Yes, well, thank you for protecting Ponyville, Gilgamesh,” Celestia said, trying to ignore the feasting Jason.

“Like I said, I couldn’t make any promises about property damage. But I’m pretty sure Ponyville’s suffered worse.”

“How do we know we can trust you? This could all have been an elaborate ruse to make us lower our guard.”

“... Are you seriously asking me that?” he asked with an incredulous tone.

“True, after everything you’ve done here it is unlikely, but considering your power and your… fervor for battle, I’m afraid I must err on the side of caution for the sake of my subjects. If you could provide me some sort of proof, I will gladly forget such possibilities.”

Gilgamesh threw his arms up into the air. “HOW IN THE HELL AM I SUPPOSED TO-!” he began, only to suddenly stop. “Wait a minute… Maybe…” He then reached into his scarf. “Kinda making some assumptions here, but... voilà!” He pulled out a medallion emblazoned with the two alicorn sisters circling the sun and moon.

“Is that... the badge of honor?” Luna asked, looking at it, clearly shocked.

“Sweet! So you guys do have it here! And yeah, that’s what I was told when Luna gave it to me. Well, when that other Luna gave it to me.”

“Other Luna?” she asked, tilting her head.

“Oh, right, um, I don’t suppose Jason told you about the whole ‘alternate reality’ thing going on?”

“Oh he did, it’s just, rather strange to think about.”

“Yeah, believe me, I know. You’re the seventh Princess Luna I’ve met. Not that I’m complaining, mind you,” he added with a suggestive tone.

“Oh. Oh, my,” Luna said with a blush.

“I-In any case!” Celestia interrupted.

“Hey, I have a question,” Jason interrupted, waddling over to them. “Can you send Displaced home?”

“Oh hey, that’s right! Give me a sec,” Gilgamesh said, putting the medallion away before reaching behind him, pulling out a folder. “Here you go, this was sent out a while ago by another Displaced who goes by Auric Fulcrum. One of the best of us, in my opinion, and I don’t just mean in terms of power.”

“Isn’t that the ‘praise the sun’ guy?” Jason asked, scratching his head. “You know, from Dark Souls?”

“Um, I never played the game, but I think that guy’s name is Solaire. Although, from what I've heard there’s actually a Displaced version of him, too. This guy’s from a Golden Sun version of Equestria. Anyway, here, take a look.”

The warrior handed him the folder and the human-turned-alien opened it and began to read.



To you who find this folder-

If you are reading this, you are what I refer to as a Displaced.  Some of us are being held here, in worlds not our own, by one known as The Merchant, a Void-Dweller of great power.  If you can use these notes to find your way back to your relative home, I wish you the best of luck, for one of two reasons - either because The Merchant is not to be trifled with, or because finding your relative Earth in all the Multiverse is like trying to find a grain of sand in a sandstorm.
Personally, I have no desire to leave.  True, abandoning my life on Earth seems cowardly.  But the power I now wield confers a responsibility, one that I fulfill willingly.  And life in Equestria is more likely to be peaceable than life on Earth.
To those that want to return, I wish you the best of luck, and tell you that the best of results could be gathered by using something that you brought with you.
To those that wish to remain, I tell you that these notes can easily be reversed and used to shield your home from intrusions.  Most notably, Discord could find them useful.
To those of you that wish to try to fight The Merchant, I tell you that he will likely not go down easy.  Your best bet is to find the one known as Xante and team up with him.
And to those of you that wish to drag us all back...

Do not test me.
-Auric Fulcrum, Master of Psynergy, Wielder of the Flames of Alchemy, Slayer of the Wise One, Knight of the Eclipse, Lord of Eureka, Blade of Understanding.



“Well that’s... informative, but I was hoping for a way to send The Arishok home.”

“You wish a war criminal to go free?” Luna asked, narrowing her eyes.
“Of course not but if we send him home, he can’t come back. He won’t be anyone special, he’ll just be another human among a billion.” Jason countered.

“True, but that works under the assumption he won’t keep his form when he goes back,” Gilgamesh said. “Personally, I think you should find a way to get into his head, find out why he did what he did. It might surprise you, but not everybody gets to be the same person in their head when they become a displaced. Hell, there is even a group of three known as the ‘Triad of Madness.’ Guess why?”

“They went mad?” 

“Worse. The items that give them their powers and brought them to their respective universes made and are keeping them insane. And they run the risk of inflicting the same effect on others.”

“Nonetheless, until we know for certain, The Arishok is to remain in Tartarus.” Celestia said, a hard look on her face.

“Wow, kinda harsh for you Tia. Then again, as the saying goes, ‘beware the nice ones,’” Gilgamesh stated.

“He did commit genocide,” Jason reminded.

“I wish he was the only one,” the warrior muttered.

“What was that?”

“Nothing, just... remembering some of my failings as a teacher,” he replied sadly.

“Oh.” 

“Since the situation seems to be well in hoof, I place this under your watch Twilight, farewell everypony,” Celestia said, taking off. Luna sauntered over to Gilgamesh, removing his faceplate with her magic and giving him a kiss. She returned it with a wink before following her sister.

The ponies stood in shock will Jason was laughing his ass off.

“Oh, now who has the stalker?!”

The warrior simply stood there for a moment before smiling back.

“Hey, at least I enjoy this one stalking me.”

“Girls, I think Twilight is broken. Again,” Rainbow called out, noticing Twilight was a gibbering mess at the moment.

“It’s fine,” Jason said, waving his arm dismissively. He touched the Omnitrix and returned to normal. “Let’s get her back to the library,” Jason said, picking up Twilight, grunting a bit as he did so. The girls said goodbye, heading off to their homes now that the danger had passed.

*** 

Xemnas didn’t really feel the cold, one of the few perks of being a Nobody. Currently, he was waiting for Ansem to come back from one of his tasks. He scowled, his mind drifting to the warrior’s words. 

“Something to fight for...”

“Are you alright Xemnas?” Trixie-Ansem asked, startling him out of his reverie.

“Of course brother, I’m fine,” he lied, turning to them.

“Good. I’m happy to inform you that my mission was a success.” they said, levitating the alicorn amulet into view. “That zebra didn’t hide this very well.”

“I would hope not,” Xemnas said, nodding.

“Soon our plan will be complete and you will be whole again,” Trixie-Ansem said, gazing at the pink shield of the Crystal Empire with a predatory grin on their muzzle. All the while, Trixie’s screams of agony went unheard to all but Ansem.


> Of Might And Courage part 3
> --------------------------------------------------------------------------

“Ugh… I can’t believe you made me sleep out here in this forest,” Jason grumbled as he tried to crack his back into place.

“Hey, I told you to sleep on the ground and not in a tree. Keeps your back straight,” Gilgamesh replied as they both walked back to Ponyville.

“Yeah, yeah. Loki’s breath I hate camping.” 

“Is that actually a saying?”

“No, no it’s not. When one's religion is practically dead one tends to just make up sayings on the fly.”

“Huh. I myself was raised Catholic, which is why I still swear to God. But that’s more out of habit than an actual belief in the faith. Which reminds me, why do you worship the Norse gods? By the sound of things it isn’t just because you’re trying to be ‘cool’ or ‘hipster’ or something like that, you actually seem to believe it.”

“Not at first. I had really religious parents and I just got sick of it. Out of spite I told them I was going to start worshipping Odin and well... despite the bad rep the vikings get, their gods were pretty cool, if rather brutal.”

“I’ll be honest, I never did too much study about the Norse gods, but from what I learned they at least sounded better than the Greek gods. At the very least they seemed less likely to throw hissy-fits and act like children.”

“Dude, Poseidon straight up raped Medusa and they decided to punish her for it,” he said, shaking his head. “There is a singular reason why I really started to believe.”

“Actually, if I remember correctly, she was punished because they did it in one of Athena’s temples. And since Athena couldn’t punish Poseidon, she punished Medusa instead. Anyway, what happened to make you believe?”

“Promise you won’t think I’m crazy?”

“Dude, we’re both humans that got warped to two alternate versions of magical pony lands due to items given to us from an eldritch abomination who was hanging out at a convention, I don’t think anything you could tell me could make me think you were crazy.”

“You got me there. Anyway, we were coming back from visiting family in Norway we we hit some turbulence. It seemed normal until I happened to glance out the window and saw an eight legged horse running up past the plane. I didn’t tell anyone for a long while, but no one really believed me.”

“... Ok, normally I would’ve called you crazy, but considering what I said before… did you really see… Sleipnir?”

“Honestly? I have no idea but it felt real. I don’t think I’ll ever really know either way.”

“Hm, I guess there are some things that we’ll always never… Wait…”

“What’s wrong?”

“How much of our fight do you remember? Do you remember the part when you started using your alien powers without transforming?” 

“What the hell are you talking about?”

“I thought so. After I told you I was going to go kill all the ponies to see how you’d react you somehow started doing a bunch of different alien powers while still human. You also just seemed to be in some berserk like trance, your eyes were all glazed over and everything. But before that… By Odin’s Ravens! Literally!”

“Where was the Omnitrix?”

“On your chest.”

“Holy crap! I went ultimate!” he said, his eyes wide in shock.

“‘Ultimate’? Something else from the later series?”

“No, a future Ben did it. See, theres a version of the Omnitrix can evolve the aliens in it. One Ben figured out how to do it with just his base human form. Made him hyper intelligent and let his use the powers of his aliens without turning into them,” 

“Whoa. Not bad. But, you had no idea how to do that, did you?”

“If I did, you think I’d be here, and not building cool stuff?”

“Point taken. Kid… I can’t believe I’m saying this, but I think you had a little divine intervention. Before you went all ‘Ultimate’, there were two ravens sitting on your shoulders.”

Jason went quiet, before starting to laugh. “Ha! Call me a heathen now mom! Who just got validation!?” He put his hands on his knees, having a full out laughing fit.

“Well, let’s not jump to conclusions. All we can so for sure is that those two ravens probably did something to you. But if they really were sent by the Allfather, then that means you really do have an old bearded man’s eye on you. Specifically since he only has one eye. And if Asgard exists, then that might mean it might not be the only afterlife out there… Oh boy, now I’m afraid Zeus is going to hit me with a thunderbolt because he slept on the wrong side of the bed.”

“Nah according to Ben, gods only exist in certain universes. I think the Greek gods live in his.” Jason explained waving off his companions worry with a hand gesture.

“Remind me to avoid it,” Gilgamesh said with a shiver. “I’ve fought and beaten the Princesses before, but I’m not so sure I want to try fighting an actual god... Actually, I maybe I do. I wonder what kinda guy Ares is?” he finished with a chuckle.

“Well there is this Faust the ponies keep talking about,” he said looking up at him.  “Think she’s real?”

“Faust, huh? Well, none of the other versions of Equestria I’ve been to have mentioned anything about her, so maybe. I just hope that the ponies won’t go all ‘blasphemer’ on us just because we don’t worship her. Oh and speaking of ponies, where do you want to go? We could stop at Fluttershy’s on the way into town. Or maybe we should check in with Twilight? I’m sure the Apples would be thrilled to see you.”

“Lets stop with Fluttershy first, she’s my main source of meat so I make it a point to help her out.”

“Meat? What’s she give you?”

“Fish. I wouldn’t ask her to go beyond that.”

“... You know, I could get something a little more than that if you’re interested. Still probably nothing you’ve had before, though. Not with cows being able to talk and all. I don’t suppose you’ve ever had cragodile before?”

“No... cows can talk here?” he asked, looking at Gilgamesh blankly.

“And sheep. I do know that pigs and chickens are still animals. Not food though, and honestly I wouldn’t try to push that on the ponies. Natural fear of meat eaters and all. So tell me kid, want something a little more red? I promise I only eat things that try to eat me back, but it’s your call.”

“Lets do it, I hate fish,” he said, licking his lips. “You know I have no idea how to hunt right?”

“I’ll teach you if you want, but I’ll be honest, not everyone can stomach removing organs and all. I’ll also needs some supplies, a saucepan and some fishing wire. By the end of today we’ll be having a little reptilian jerky,” he replied rubbing his hands together, drool leaking from behind his faceguard.

“I can do that,” he said grinning. “Omnitrix, Fastrack,” he commanded. Instead of that, he turned into a draconequus.  “Oh... I feel so... tingly,” he spoke with Christopher Walken’s voice.

“What the hell, you scanned Discord? Oh man, this this opens so many possibilities! Hell, you could probably just summon food!”

“You mean I can has cheezburger?”

“Pfft! Yeah, you can haz cheezburger alright! Though you’ll probably want to avoid eating it in front of the ponies. Anyway, thought of a name?”

“Name?”

“You know, for this form? I think it’s in the spirit of the show.”

“Oh! I think I’ll go with Hodgepodge,” he said, popping like a balloon and reappearing behind Gilgamesh. He leaned close, looking around. “Hail Hydra.”

“Ah, it’s great to hang out with someone who I can make references with. So, still want to check in with Fluttershy, or want to do something a little more fun?”

“Like what?”

“You’ve taken the form of this world’s version of Loki, what do you think?”

Jason cracked a wide smile, putting his fingers together. “Smithers, release the hounds.”

***
Spike yawned as he walked downstairs, rubbing at his eyes. He headed into the kitchen, preparing to make breakfast. He pulled on his apron and chef hat, climbing onto his stool. “Hmm... how about pancakes?” he asked himself.

“That sounds good,” Twilight called out as she opened up a book. The page she opened to had a picture of Celestia on it. The image of Celestia turned her head to Twilight, glaring. 

“Close the damn door!”

Twilight shrieked, tossing the book away, her eyes wide. After taking a minute to recover, she moved gingerly toward the book and lifted it up. She opened it back up, sighing in relief when she saw the picture was normal again. “Note to self, don’t read so early in the morning.”

The alicorn heard a burp coming from the kitchen.

“Twilight, you got a letter from Celestia!”

“Coming!” she called, trotting down the stairs. “What does it say?”

“‘Dear Twilight Sparkle,’ … huh?”

“What is it, Spike?” she asked, seeing him turn the scroll in several different ways as if that would somehow help.

“I… I don’t know. I can’t read any of this. It looks like it was written by a two year old.”

“Spike! Don’t say that! Let me see!” she chided him while taking the scroll in her magical grasp, only to see what he meant. “...What is this?”

“Like I said, it looks like it was written by a two year old.”

“Well, let’s try and sound it out. Ahem. ‘Yew… awr... sofa king... we... tar... dad’. ‘Yew awr sofa king we tar dad… Oh, it sounds like it means ‘You are so fu-’ wait, what!?”

“Hey!” a loud voice cut in.

“Ugh now what?” Twilight asked with a groan. She looked around, not immediately seeing the source of the voice. 

“Listen!”

“Rainbow Dash! I know it’s you! just come out!”

“HEY! LISTEN! LISTEN! HEY!” the voice taunted, making Twilight grind her teeth. 

“What!?!?!?” she demanded, to which the voice went quiet. 

“Do a barrel roll!”

The alicorn let out a scream so loud it shook the entire library for several minutes.

“T-Twilight it’s Sombra!” Spike shouted, pointing at the stallion who had just appeared. Suddenly, a human came up from behind it. 

“Nope, just Chuck Testa,” the human said before picking up the stuffed tyrant and vanishing into the kitchen.

“Twilight! Whats going on!?” Spike asked, honestly more than a little terrified.

“Somepony is just pranking us Spike, just ignore it.” Twilight said, grabbing her book again. She opened it up, only to stare dumbly as music started to play, while the image of a pink fluff ball of a pony ran along a rainbow.

“Oh Twilight!” the voice of Celestia sang out as she sauntered in, swaying her hips a bit.

“P-Princess Celestia!? W-When did you get here!?” Twilight practically screeched.

“Oh my, just look at this place. Twilight, I was expecting you to have the place ready for me,” the Princess said with a disappointed pout.

“I-I’m sorry! I was sure that I didn’t get any notice of-!”

“Oh don’t panic, Twilight, you can still make this up to me.” 

Twilight sighed in relief. “Of course, Princess, whatever you need.”

“Suck my horn.”

“Of course, Prin- WHAT!?” she shouted, her face flushing pink.

“Come on Twilight, Big Sexy demands it!”

Spike just blushed, watching them, a whole lot of weird feelings going through him.

“Twilight.” Celestia said, shaking her head groaning. “I have a sickness and theres only one prescription,”

“W-what?”

“More cowbell!” and with that, Celestia fell into a fit of giggles rolling around the floor.

“Umm...I’ll be in my room!” Spike shouted, covering up his front as he waddled upstairs.

“Oh I can’t take it!” Jason said falling from the ceiling, laughing his ass off as the Omnitrix started to time out. “Oh man, I think we messed Twilight’s head up so badly!”

“Aye! Twas very humorous!” ‘Celestia’ said, her disguise falling away to reveal Luna.

“OH GOD, I CAN HARDLY BREATHE!” came a deep voice from outside. Twilight turned to the window to see Gilgamesh laughing his head off. “Luna, I had no idea you were such a trickster!”

“Of course Sir Gilgamesh! I honed my skills pranking my sister in our younger days,” the lunar princess said, getting to her hooves.

“Heh, I wonder if my version of Luna is as much a trickster as well?”

“I a quite curious about this other version of me.”

“Have you all gone nuts!?” Twilight shouted, glaring at the three of them.

“Geez Twi, lighten up, it was just some pranks, though... you might want to go have a talk with Spike.” Jason said, picking himself off the floor.

“What? Why would I… oh,” she realized her face flushing pink. “No! This is your fault! He’s too young to know about this!”

“Isn’t he almost in his teens?” Gilgamesh asked.

“I have have noticed Spike’s dreams of Rarity have been getting... risque as of late.” Luna piped in.

“I’m getting the vibe that you’ve been putting off the ‘talk,’ Twilight,” Jason accused, poking her in the chest.

“I-I have not.”

“If you say so. Anyway, lets get going Gil, I’m starving,” Jason said, heading to the door.

“Yeah, and I’ll bet the Apples want to see you after you spent the night out in Everfree. I wouldn’t mind some famous Apple family cooking either. Oh, and Twi, tell Slash that I want to talk to him.”

“Um, ok. What for?”

“I want him to help coordinate Jason’s training.” He then turned to Luna. “Princess, always a pleasure,” he bowed before giving a wink.

“You flatter me as always, Gilgamesh.” she said with a smile. “Farewell everypony.” she said walking out of the library and flying off.

“Well, seeya later Twi!” Jason called, leaving the alicorn to deal with a very confused Spike.

***

“So...what do you want to do now?” Jason asked, watching as the train departed the station. The girls, and most of the pegasi in Ponyville, were headed off to some place called Rainbow Falls to try out for the Equestria Games.

“I say we get some training in. I can’t think of a spot to do it though, aside from all the way out in the Everfree where we fought before,” Gilgamesh said. “Slash, do you have any suggestions?”

“I thought I told you not to call me that in public!” the disguised changeling hissed back.

“Yeah Gil, he’s Air Razor now,” Jason reminded him. He blinked, spotting a strange creature flying around. “What is that?”

“That would be a griffon,” Air Razor explained. “We occasionally get visits from them from across the sea. I would’ve thought Princess Twilight would’ve told you about them.”

“Well excuse me for never actually having seen one,” Jason said, crossing his arms. “I’m gonna go scan it.”

“Jason, we’re supposed to be training you, not following whatever distraction that catches your eye.” Air Razor scolded.

“Oh, c’mon! When am I gonna get another chance like this?” he complained.

“Fine, go on ahead,” Gilgamesh said.

“What!?”

“Don’t worry, we’ll work him extra hard as punishment for not staying focused,” he whispered.

“What?” Jason asked.

“Nothing.”

Jason rolled his eyes, moving toward the griffon, who was circling Rainbow Dash’s house. “Yo! Flying cat! Come down here!” he shouted up, watching the griffon.

The griffon screeched and dove at him, landing with its wings spread out. “Who are you calling a flying cat?” she, judging by her voice, asked, glaring daggers at him.

“Woah, just calm down. I was going to tell you that if you’re looking for Dash, you just missed her. She went to go try out for the Equestria Games.”

The griffon seemed to deflate, sighing a bit. “Just my luck.”

“Hey theres no need to be like that. Name’s Jason, Ponyville’s resident alien and honorary member of the Apple Clan,” he introduced himself, holding his hand out to her. 

“I’m Gilda,” the griffon said, staring at his hand for a moment before shaking it.

“Uncatalogued DNA detected,” the Omnitrix chirped, scanning the griffon. She squeaked, tackling him to the ground.

“What did you just do dweeb!?” 

“Um... I scanned your DNA and I can transform into a griffon now?” Jason replied hesitantly.

She just stared at him, getting off him. “Great another crazy... whatever you are.”

“I’m not crazy,” he said, frowning as he got to his feet. “Here,” he popped up the dial of the Omnitrix. “Go a head and push this down.” She looked at it hesitantly before pushing the dial down.

“Cannonbolt!” Jason shouted, now in the form of a large white creature, it;s arms and back covered in yellow armor plating.

Gilda just stared briefly before recovering. “Thats pretty cool for a dweeb.”

“I am not a dweeb,” Jason argued, crossing his arms, glaring at her.

“Ok break it up. Now that you’ve got your griffon scan, it’s time for some training,” Air Razor said, cutting in.

“Yeah yeah, lets go,”

“Wait!” Gilda said, jumping in front of Jason. “I um... can you take a message to Dash from me?”

“Depends. What is it?”

“Well I um...” the griffon started, stumbling over her words. 

“We don’t have time for this, just spit it out!” Air Razor shouted.

Gilda took in a breath, sighing. “Just tell Dash I’m sorry,” she said, then took off into the sky. 

“I will!” Jason shouted after her. “Well, lets get going,” he said and curled up into an armored sphere. 

“What? Thats all that one can do?” Air Razor asked, sounding disappointed.

“What do you mean?” Gilgamesh asked.

“It just curls into a ball.” Air Razor pointed out.” Thats not very impressive.”

“Heh. Sometimes the simplest powers can be unexpectedly effective,” he replied with a smirk. “Isn’t that right kid?”

Jason started to spin in response, shooting forward, racing into the forest.

“I guess you were right.” Air Razor conceded before flying after Jason.

“I believe this calls for some appropriate music,” Gilgamesh said, blaring a song before sprinting off after the two.

Jason weaved through the trees, only knocking over two. He slowed down, uncurling at a rope bridge. “What do you guys think?”

“This is the old castle of the Two Sisters, we shouldn’t be bothered here,” Slash said, reverting to his true form.

“I guess, though I’m afraid of breaking it. It looks like the girls have been cleaning it recently,” Gilgamesh noted, seeing the bright and vibrant curtains and rugs.

“We could always just use the forest, no one is going to miss some trees.” 

“Don’t say that around Fluttershy if you want to avoid the Stare.”

“Stare?”

“Yeah you don’t want that, trust me,” Jason said with a shiver. “I saw her use it on a bear once. It was crying like a baby,” he tapped the Omnitrix, returning to normal. “So how do we start?”

“Well, the main difficulty here is that your normal form isn’t much for fighting and skills and strategies that work with one form won’t work for another. It’ll be best to focus on things that’ll work for pretty much anything and let you choose your own methods from there,” Gilgamesh said “What do you think, Slash?”

“Hmm... I’m thinking you can work on his courage and what not and I’ll get him in shape. I can match whatever he turns into, after all,” Slash said, looking between the two.

“Good point. If we build up the physical prowess of his human form, it should also transfer over to his other forms. Now,” he began turning to Jason. “There are a few lessons I’ll give you that I think translate to all combat situations. Think of them as rules, or even a checklist to go over for every battle. First, and by far what may be the most important, is to never, ever, ever, ever underestimate your opponent.”

“Well, duh,” Jason replied, rolling his eyes.

“Listen kid, there’s a big difference between knowing how to act and actually following through with it. For example, do you think you could beat me?”

“Well, probably not.”

“Do you think that you’d at least be sure you could do some major damage before I took you down?”

“Well, yeah! That’s what happened last-”

Before he could even finish Gilgamesh was right in front of him, the blade on his spear inches away from his eye.

“W-When-? H-How-?”

“I was toying with you before, kid, like I do with pretty much all my opponents. I like long, drawn out fights, but if I went full throttle I could take your head off before you could even blink,” the warrior explained, a terrifying coldness in his voice. “Never underestimate your opponent.” 

“Gotcha,” he said with a nod. “I’ll remember to burn that into my skull later.”

“Of course, there’s a difference between being cautious and being paranoid,” he continued as he clipped his weapon onto his back, his tone returning to what it sounded like normally. “If you’re simply guessing what your opponent can do to the point you don’t move and are just waiting, well that’s an easy way to get killed. Which leads me to my next lesson: be observant. Now, stand right there for a moment.”

Gilgamesh turned and started to walk away from Jason, stopping and turning back to him after moving several yards away.

“Now, I’m going to attack you. It’s your job to figure out how and dodge it.”

“W-Wait a minute-!”

“Don’t worry, it won’t be fatal,” he explained, taking out his weapon and assuming a battle stance.

Jason steeled himself, taking a deep breath. “Ok, lets do this.”  He watched Gilgamesh, his eyes taking in as much as possible. The two stared at each other for what felt like hours, sweat beginning to form on the young boy’s brow. Then he saw Gilgamesh’s eyes flash red. Instinctively he jumped to the side, a laser hitting the ground where he stood.

“Good! Nice reflexes! I figured you were a gamer,” the warrior complimented.

“Yeah well... ya gotta Fred Durst it...” Jason said, looking at the spot where he used to be standing before, looking back at Gilgamesh.

“You’re actually better than I thought. I thought pulling out my weapon would be enough misdirection to draw your attention away from my face, but it seems you have good instincts. If all you wanted to do was run away you’d be practically untouchable.”

Slash chuckled at that remark.

“Ha... what do I look like, Scooby Doo?” Jason asked, getting to his feet.

“Hm. Maybe you’ve got a pair on you after all. Anyway, continuing on. ‘Observe’ means more than just ‘watching your opponent’, you’ve also got to focus on your surroundings, yourself, and your allies if any are present. For example-”

Gilgamesh dashed forwards. Before Jason could even react he was struck on the nose with a light but still painful flick. He instinctually stumbled back, only to suddenly trip and fall, hitting the back of his head.

“Ow! What happened?” he looked up and saw the culprit, the newly installed rug which he happened to trip over.

“All it takes is one wrong move and the fight can be over. Even a simple stumble can be fatal.”

“I’m going to get my ass kicked a lot before we’re done aren’t I?” he asked, getting to his feet.

“Most likely, but it’s the only way you’ll learn,” Slash said, smirking.

“Well, you’ll probably like this one,” Gilgamesh said, stepping back and casing both Protect and Shell on himself. “Being aware of your environment doesn’t just mean being aware of how it can be used against you, it also relates to how you can use it your advantage. Now, I want you to pick a form and attack me, but it can’t be head on. Think of a way to use the environment to your advantage. Do something unexpected.”

He smirked, going through all his form in his head. “Omnitrix, Wildvine.” With a flash, he was replaced by a green, one eyed plant. He kept Gilgamesh’s gaze, using one of his roots to connect to the vines growing through a wall. With a little push, the vines tunneled through the wall, weakening it until it collapsed, the debris raining down on Gilgamesh. Moments later the taller human pulled himself out of the rubble, hardly looking any worse for wear.

“Not bad. Personally I was thinking of using the castle acoustics to so that you could make Blitzwolfer’s sonic scream attack from multiple angles, but the ‘making the building fall on your enemy’ is always classic.”

“I like to be obscure,” Jason said, a toothy grin on his face. “Well, shall we go again?”

“Nah, let’s move on. We’re burning daylight.”

“‘Burning daylight?’ It’s barely afternoon! I bet you just don’t want to get hit again!” Jason taunted.

“That’s what you think,” Slash said under his breath, a knowing smirk on his face.

“Next we’ll work on allies. Slash here is going to attack me. I want you pick your moment to strike without communicating with him.”

“Oh, I haven’t had a good fight in ages,” Slash said with a grin, unfurling his tail.

“Hey, put that thing away! Or at least cover it with a towel!” Gilgamesh joked, covering his eyes.

Slash darted forward, stabbing at him with his stinger. Mid-strike, he thrust his head forward, attempting to impale Gilgamesh on one of his tusks. Gilgamesh simultaneously backflipped and kicked the changeling upwards, who quickly recovered and covered himself in magic before diving at him like a meteor. The warrior hopped to the side as the king struck the ground, creating a small crater before attempting to hit him with an overhead punch, which Slash rolled to the side to avoid.

“Not bad, you old bug.”

“Who you calling old?!” Slash asked, bucking his hind legs out at Gilgamesh, spikes erupting from his hooves. There was a flash of green and a pair of legs slammed into Gilgamesh’s back, sending him toward the spiked hooves.

“Gah! Oh, that hurts, even through armor!”

The warrior turned back to see Jason had taken on the form of a bipedal insect that looked vaguely like a grasshopper. Jason just waved, pointing behind him.

“Oh crap.”

Gilgamesh turned to see Slash spit in his gaze, covering his head in changeling goop. Slash then kicked him back toward Jason, who returned in kind, the two just kicking him back and forth, like some bizarre game of tennis. Gilgamesh unleashed a shout and a blast of wind, knocking both his opponents away from him.

“Ok, ok, you pass!” he shouted, trying to pry the hardened goop from his face and helmet. Slash chuckled, walking over, hovering up to Gilgamesh’s face. He zapped him, the goop crumbling away.

“Goddamn, stuff is nasty. Very effective though,” he admitted before turning to Jason. “And just what form is that?”

“Crashhopper. The jumping is really fun,” he admitted.

“Heh. Having the equivalent of trampolines on your feet at all times does sound good. Ok, one last part of observation, and maybe the most important: yourself. This is more than just about noticing wounds and whether or not your enemy managed to take something from you without noticing. Seeing as how you’re just a weak human with no powers if the Omnitrix times out, I’m going to try something that I usually reserve for later. I want you to pick a transformation with good survival instincts. Something animalistic might work.”

“Something animalistic huh?” Jason asked, tapping his chin. “Thats easy. Omnitrix, Wildmutt.” In a flash, his insectoid form was replaced by that of the Vulpimancer. He let out a growl, his gill slits opening up.

“Hm... It might work, although his heightened sense could get in the way. However, let’s try it.”

The two just stood there for a moment, Jason grunting in confusion, before he suddenly felt an intense feeling of dread coming from the armored warrior. He whined before jumping back in fear, getting low to the ground and ready to pounce.

“Ah, so you did notice. Ok, do you think you have a good grip on that feeling?”

The dog-like creature hesitantly nodded.

“Good. Now go human again.”

With a flash of green, Jason returned to his human form. “W-What was that?” he asked, his hands still shaking as his heart pounded in his chest.

“What you felt was what we in the martial arts world call ‘killing intent.’ Basically it’s the feeling that a creature gives off when they mean to inflict death upon another, or at least display as a threat of killing. Beings with higher thought functions, especially humans, don’t have a very good sense for it as we’ve grown more accustomed to using our minds and our physical senses, especially our eyes, but it’s there. Ever had that feeling you were being watched or followed? Sometimes it’s your instincts playing tricks on you, but other times it’s very real. Since animals are more instinct based, they rely on it to survive.”

“O-Ok. So, uh, what do you want me to do?”

“Learn how to sense it in your human form. If you can you should have a better chance of staying alive while you’re at your weakest, which will help you last long enough to for the Omnitrix to recharge. However, that’s for another day. For now, I think it’s time you and Slash got some quality time together.”

“Huh?”

“I want you to think about everything you’ve learned while you work. I think we should start with you fixing up the castle, otherwise the girls will get pissed. After that you should do... oh I don’t know. Slash, how many laps between Ponyville and Sweet Apple Acres should he do before dinner?”

“Oh I say about seven. He appears to be on the chubby side.”

“I am not fat!”

“Are you sure? It might be too much for a roly poly like him,” Gilgamesh chuckled back.

“Nonsense!” Slash replied, looking to Jason with a grin. “I have every confidence in him.”

“I hate you both...”

“Right then. Well, better get to work. I’m going out to run an errand.” Before either of them could ask he cut open a hole in the air with his spear and walked through.

***

Jason panted as he ran down the path leading to Ponyville, Air Razor fluttering behind him. “I really really hate you both,” Jason muttered, flipping the bird at the changeling. 

“Quit wasting your breath and focus on running!” Air Razor snapped, hitting him in the back of the head with a rock. 

“I’m going to kill you both!” he shouted, glaring at the ponies who laughed at his situation. These idiots where going to kill him.

“C’mon kid, no one said getting strong was easy,” Gilgamesh chided.

“How am I supposed to be getting strong!? All I’m doing is running! I’m trying to help protect Equestria, not practicing for a marathon!”

“... Stop.”

“Huh?”

“Stop. Stop running.”

Jason obeyed the command as the warrior approached him. “What is it?”

“... You’re a smart kid Jason, so I think you’ll be able to figure this out. It was a story my old master on earth told me and my class.”

Jason stared for a moment, not sure where he was going with this, but decided to take a seat.

“Once upon a time, there was a man who wanted to learn kung fu. But he didn’t just want to learn any kung fu, he wanted to learn it straight from the shaolin monks themselves. Unfortunately, they weren’t willing to teach anyone who didn’t grow up in the monks’ lifestyle. Nevertheless, the man was determined and he kept insisting. For two whole years he wait and pleaded from outside the temple.

“Finally, they decided to train him. They told him to carry two buckets of water up a large hill to a waterfall a few miles away. Then they told him to slap the falling water with a circular motion until night fell, which he was then ordered to carry the buckets of water back. They had him do this for two years until finally the man left, frustrated he hadn’t been taught anything.

“When he got home his family was eager to hear about what he’d learned his four years away. He told them the truth, that he didn’t learn anything, but they didn’t believe him and they kept asking. Finally, after being pestered for too long, he shouted in frustration and slammed his palm on the table… and all four legs instantly and simultaneously gave out, causing it to collapse.”

“So the gist is... ‘wax on, wax off?’”

The warrior chuckled. “More or less. The idea is sometimes the things that you don’t think are important can be the most essential. Building up your body is just as important, if not more so, than learning techniques. Achieving real power takes determination and commitment, something you’ll need to grow strong, and I don’t just mean in battle.” He then turned to the ponies who were laughing at Jason just moments before. “And if you let others get to you, if you stop trying to get strong just because others think it makes you look stupid, then you really need to adjust your priorities.”

“Well there’s no reason to worry Master, I’m not gonna give up so easily,” Jason said, a determined look on his face as he got up.

“Heh. First ‘Sensei’, now ‘Master’. It still feels funny getting a term of respect,” Gilgamesh said with a chuckle. “Now come on and get finished. I had the Apples prepare some extra special home cooking for you.” He turned around before adding, “And don’t worry, I made sure Apple Bloom didn’t work on any of it.”

“You got it!” he said with a nod before starting to run again, his new found confidence evident in his steps.  

> Of Might And Courage part 4
> --------------------------------------------------------------------------

“So, I’m thinking ‘Slipstream’.”

“Slipstream?”

“Yeah. It makes you think of speed, it’s air related, it sounds cool, and it’s fun to say. Besides, you already chose ‘Sleipnir’ for your Earth Pony form, and if you’ve really got Rainbow Dash’s DNA as the basis for it, you’ve got a lot to live up to.”

“I like it. Also, Applejack asked me to change the Earth Pony name to something Apple related.” Jason said, poking the fire with a stick. “Gotta have an Apple name if you're in the Apple family.”

“Yer dern right!” the farm mare shouted proudly. “And ya better come up with it quick, or else we’re gonna let Apple Bloom name ya! She’s spent the better half of a week thinkin’ up names, too!”

“Oh by Mjolnir, please no.”

“Ugh, why are we bringing this annoyance with us again?” Slash complained, currently in his natural form as they traversed the Everfree Forest.

“‘Cause she’s worried for her ‘brother’. It’d be endearing if it wasn’t so annoying,” Gilgamesh explained.

“I’m touched, AJ, but I can take care of myself,” Jason said, stuffing his hands into his pockets. 

“Apples stick together Jay, no matter what.” 

“Oh there you are my love!” a slightly distorted voice called out, making Jason groan.

“Not her too...” he whined, hanging his head. “Just kill me now.”

“If she tries anything, I’ll take care of her,” Slash said, his stinger twitching a bit.

“Oh don’t mind me, I just wanted to spend some time with my lover. I even left my guards at the hive,” Chrysalis said, taking a seat next to Jason and giving him a bright smile.

“Ain’t no rotten no-good worm gonna have anything to do with mah family! Uh, no offense meant, Slash.”

“Some taken.”

“Oh be quiet, you downtrodden peasant!” the queen hissed back.

“Congratulations, kid. You now officially have a big sister who’s judging who’s girlfriend material for you,” Gilgamesh joked.

“Look, lets just try to have a nice night. AJ, if she acts up I’ll turn into Way Big and chuck her into the sun,” he turned to Chrysalis, “and don’t insult my family.” 

Chrysalis groaned but relented. “Fine. I suppose I’ll need to find a way to at least be on tolerable terms with my future in-laws.”

“Well this certainly got horrible,” Slash said, adjusting his wings. “Anypony want something to drink?”

“Sure, why not,” Jason said nodding his head. “Oh sick.” he said looking away as Slash coughed up a bottle of hard Apple cider.

“One of the advantages of being a changeling. We don’t have stomachs, so we can store things in our body cavity.” 

“Sure, I’ll take a swig,” Gilgamesh said, wiping down the bottle before uncorking the top. He took a small gulp, just enough to get a taste. “Ah, not bad. Still, I do miss my Bacardi. Here you go, Chryssi,” he said as he handed her the bottle. “You’ll need an appreciation for their craft if you want to even think of getting in their good graces.”

She looked at the bottle, lifting it, taking a swig. “Hmm. I must admit for a mere worker, you make a fine product.”

“Ah... thank you?” Applejack asked, raising an eyebrow at the strange compliment. 

“Guess it’s my turn,” Jason said, taking the bottle. He downed a gulp, making a face. “By Odin’s beard the salt!”

“What a big stallion like you can’t handle a bit of salt?” Applejack asked with a chuckle, taking the bottle, downing a long swig.

“AJ, humans don’t need salt like ponies. I’m pretty sure I just had a week’s worth of salt.” 

“Yeah, sure. Ah’ll bet that’s just yer excuse for not bein’ able to hold yer liquor. Gilgamesh did fine.”

“To be fair, you’re talking to guy who drank twelve barrels of mead in one night and only woke up with a slight headache the next morning,” the warrior explained.


“How the hell are you still human?” Jason asked, giving him an odd look.

“Not sure if I am. Anyway, c’mon. Let’s get ready,” he said while walking out into the same clearing the two Displaced had fought in before, motioning for Jason to follow.

“If he can’t walk back when he’s done, ah’m gonna make sure you can’t either!” Applejack shouted from the edge.

“Oh, he’ll be fine. A young strong changeling king like him will have no trouble with this brute. I’d expect no less from my love!” the Queen assured her with pride.

Jason just glared at the two before getting up, following Gilgamesh to the clearing. “So what do you have planned for tonight?”

“A few things. First of all, I want to see if we can improve your ability to sense killing intent. Close your eyes.”

Jason took a deep breath, closing his eyes. He listened to the slow rustling of the leaves, waiting for Gilgamesh to start.

“Now, I want you to tell me when you can feel something. And don’t worry I won’t try to hit you... yet.”

“Thats... reassuring,” Jason mumbled, doing his best to keep his mind open. “Ok, I felt that,” he said, shifting uneasily at the feeling of dread. He opened an eye, looking around, stumbling back when he saw the warrior was right in front him.

“Hm, still not good at telling exactly what direction or how far the source is. Troubling. Then again, this is something I’ve honed over a century, so I doubt you’ll pick it up so quickly.”

“Don’t do that...” Jason said with a frown, his eyes wide from shock.

“Oh suck it up, kid. This is how training works, you get the crap kicked out of you in a controlled environment, where you can be supervised so that when you face someone who actually wants to kill you you’ll be better prepared.”

“Ok ok, I get it,” he said closing his eyes again, reopening his senses. This time, he stepped to the left, ignoring the growing pit of dread in his stomach. He opened an eye, seeing that Gilgamesh had moved to where he had been, from the left. “Well, I got it that time. Shall we go again?” he asked, cracking a smile.

“Cocky. But ok, you’ve made some improvement. But, let’s see if you can track me now. You have two seconds.”

In a flash of speed the warrior disappeared. Jason turned his head to look around but didn’t see anything. Just when he was about to close his eyes he felt a massive amount of dread coming from right behind him. He instinctively rolled forward and turned around.

“A bit slow, but not bad... for an absolute beginner.”

“Yes I get it, I suck,” Jason said as he got up and wiped his clothes off.

“Hey, tough love. Now, one last thing before we move on. Advanced fighters will often use feints, moves that look like attacks, to make the opponent flinch and be unguarded for the actual hit. If you can sense the lack of, or in some cases weakened, killing intent in the feint, you can respond appropriately.”

“Ok, so how are we gonna do that?”

Gilgamesh raised his right arm. “I’m going to do a right jab at your face, but I’m going to stop just before it hits. Don’t flinch.”

“Ok, won’t flinch, survival instincts be damned,” Jason spoke, digging his shoes into the dirt.

The two simply stood for a moment before Gilgamesh jabbed at lightning speed. Despite himself, Jason flinched slightly, but managed to keep both eyes open.

“Thought as much. Still, not bad for your first time. It’s not easy to untrain your normal reflexes,” the warrior said, lowering his arm.

“You can do it my love! I believe in you!” Chrysalis shouted, causing Jason to blush slightly. 

“Yeah Jason, ya’ll show that varmint how we Apples do things!”

“Nice fan club you got,” the armored biped chuckled.

“Shut. Up,” Jason snorted, crossing his arms.

“Aw, you know I tease because I care,” the man said while patting the boy’s head. “Oh, there’s an idea!”

“Huh?”

“Hey, AJ!” he called to the orange mare. “What do you like more? ‘Appleseed’ or ‘Apple Orchard?’”

“W-Wait a minute, why are you asking her!? It’s going to be my name! How did you come up with those anyway?”

“Well, your name’s ‘Jason’. It starts with a ‘J’. Another name that starts with ‘J’ is ‘Johnny’, just like-”

“Johnny Appleseed,” Jason finished with a sigh. “And the other?”

“My favorite cider back on Earth was ‘Angry Orchard.’”

“You want to name me after a drink?”

“Why not? Half the names in her family are foods anyway.”

“I hate you all, you know that?” he asked with a sigh, sitting back down at the fire. “I guess I’ll go with Apple Seed.”

“Alright then. I guess we can stop here for the night. We’ll get up bright and early next morning for the next lesson. But first, a little surprise.” Gilgamesh cut open a hole in the air and pulled out a large sack stained with some kind of liquid. An aroma emanated from it, one that made Jason drool and Applejack scrunch her snout in disgust.

“Ugh, what in tarnation is that?”

“Jerky. More specifically, cragodile jerky. The results of the ‘errand’ I ran yesterday.”

“Ya’ll killed a cragodile?!” AJ nearly screeched, her face turning rather green.

“That is a rather impressive feat for a lone creature. I can respect that,” Chrysalis stated, to which Slash nodded in agreement.

“Gimme!” Jason shouted, swiping the jerky out of Gilgamesh’s hands, devouring it.

“Hey, leave some for me! That’s a whole adult cragodile there!”

“Um... ah’m gonna head back to the farm. Good night everypony.” AJ said, tipping her hat before fleeing as fast as her legs would take her.

“Sadly, I must be going as well. The drones can only go for so long before they burn the hive down.” Chrysalis said, getting up. She trotted over to Jason, giving him a full on kiss on the lips before flying off.

“Wha... ?” Jason asked, sitting there in a stupor, a piece of jerky falling out of his mouth.

“Hey, don’t write her off just ‘cause she’s not human. Believe me, you’re pretty much the only one of your kind here and, let’s face it, beastility has more to do with mindless beasts than non-human sentient beings. There are plenty of guys and gals back on Earth that’d probably kill to be in your position.”

“Oh by the Allfather, will you just cut it out!?” 

“Hey, I’m not picking on you. I’ve got my own non-human crush. Did you think I was flirting with Luna just because I thought it was fun?”

“My first kiss and it was to a bug horse,” Jason groaned, taking another bite of the jerky.

“Ahem!” Slash said angrily. “Please do not degrade our species by referring to us as mere bugs.”

“Ok, I’m sorry,” Jason said, passing the jerky back to Gilgamesh. “I’m getting some sleep.” he said, laying down, his back to them.

For a few rare moments, everything was quiet.

“... Hush now, quiet now, it’s time to lay your sleepy heads-”

“Oh, just stop.”

***

Jason awoke the next morning to see Gilgamesh had already gotten up and was currently going through some sort of routine with his weapon, spinning and thrusting it in several ways. Slash was up as well, though it looked like he was still shaking the sleepiness from his head.

“Ah, so you’re up,” the changeling king stated with a yawn.

“Yup... actually got a good amount of sleep,” Jason noded, getting up. He stretched, cracking his back with a loud pop.

“I’m rather glad I don’t have bones,” Slash said, flexing his jaw. “ Hmm... I’m going to need to feed soon.”

“I’ve been wondering about that. I was told changelings feed off love, and that Chrysalis stole it from her brother by impersonating... what was her name?”

“Princess Mi Amore Cadenza, better known as Cadance.”

“Right, her. And seeing as how Celestia and Luna let you hide right under their noses-”

“I feed on love. While love can be stolen it can also be given freely. My unit knows of my true self and allow me to feed off the positive feelings them have for me.”

“So, you mean you can live off just other people liking you?”

“Yes. Love given freely tastes the best as well,” Slash said looking at them. “Do you mind if I feed on you?”

Jason blinked, looking at looking at Gilgamesh. “I uh... don’t mind,”

Slash smiled, his horn starting to glow a bit. 

“Man thats tingly,” Jason said, flexing his fingers, which felt like they had fallen asleep. Slash finished up, his horn losing its glow.

“Thank you, that should tide me over for a few days,” the changeling said, looking rather satisfied.

“Uh, you’re welco-”

“GIT AWAY FROM HIM!”

“Huh?” Jason turned and saw his ‘sister’ barreling down towards the changeling king. “No, AJ, wait!”

The orange mare jumped at Slash only for her to caught mid-air by her tail. She looked behind her to see Gilgamesh holding her.

“AH KNEW YA WERE NO GOOD, YA-!”

“Zecora,” the warrior said simply.

“Huh?”

“Zecora the shamaness, a friend who would’ve never made without being willing to listen to her side of the story.”

AJ’s eyes widened before she looked away in shame, realizing what he was trying to tell her. “But, he-”

“If you say ‘he’s a changeling’, then maybe you aren’t worthy of being a member of the Elements of Harmony. Even if you’ve had bad experiences with changelings in the past, it’s still not looking very good for you to jump to conclusions to one who’s been nothing but civil and helpful his whole stay here.”

Applejack just grimaced before nodding. The warrior set her down and she began to draw circles in the ground with her hoof. “Sorry. Ah just... ah was just worried about mah family.”

Slash simply smiled. “It’s fine. I would’ve done the same if any of my soldiers were in danger.”

“Oh Jason, my love!”

The boy groaned. “Just bear it,” he muttered.

“Oh, and you’re back as well,” the Queen said, giving a sneer at the farm mare. “How... delightful to see you,” she said with a forced smile.

“Like ah’m gonna let ya near Jason without somepony keepin’ an eye on ya!” the farmer snapped back.

The queen growled, dropping any pretense of politeness.

“Settle down you two,” Gilgamesh interrupted. “The only ones who are gonna fight here are me and Jason. AJ, if you cause too much trouble I swear I’ll hogtie you and and drag you all the way back to your home.”

“What!?”

“Ha!” Chrysalis laughed.

“And if you cause a ruckus I’ll personally deliver you to Celestia.”

“Heh. Even you couldn’t hold onto me long enough to-” she began to retort.

“By throwing you to Canterlot.”

The queen simply stared before turning her head to see the city on the mountain in the distance. She turned back to the warrior and saw the deadly serious look in his eyes. Without a word she sat down.

“Just be chill ok?” Jason asked, looking at the two females. “I don’t want to break up a cat fight,”

“Ah what?” Applejack asked.

“It’s an expression,” he explained with a frustrated tone.

“Enough bickering kiddies, it’s time to get to work,” Gilgamesh called, already at the center of the clearing.

“So what do I get my ass kicked in this time,” Jason asked, cracking his neck and knuckles.

“I’m gonna see if you can figure that one out yourself. Stretch those brain muscles. The only thing I’m going to tell you is that I’m going to attack you just with my strength. No magic, no weapons, no technique, I’m going full on brute style,” he replied, cracking his own neck and knuckles before taking a fighting stance. “Whenever you’re ready.”

“OK, I can do this.” Jason said, taking a deep breath.  “Omnitrix, Four Arms.” With a bright flash of light, the human was replaced by a tall red skinned creature. It flexed its four muscled arms, meeting Gilgamesh’s gaze and beckoning with one hand. “Come at me bro.”

“Gladly,” he replied before blaring another song.

The warrior simply started walking forward and swinging his arm in a circle, stretching the muscle, before lunging forward and unleashing a left jab, followed by right gut punch, a left body shot, and finally a right uppercut. Jason managed to parry the first three attacks before leaning away from the fourth. He swung hard at the warrior, who ducked under the blow before punching him the stomach and then striking him in the face with his elbow. Jason stumbled back a bit, rubbing his nose with one hand, the other three ready to block any incoming attack.

“C’mon kid, keep the flow going.”

“I’ll give you flow,” he said, moving back and grabbing a tree. With a grunt, he ripped it out of the ground, heaving it at Gilgamesh like a baseball bat. The warrior jumped over it and at his opponent, both legs extended for a double drop kick at his chest. Jason shielded himself with the tree, which was crushed to splinters as he was pushed back into another one, smashing it.

“Get up, my love! I know you can beat him!” Chrysalis called.

“Get up Jay! Show that varmint how we Apples do it!”

“Hey, I’m cheering for him, you be quiet!”

“Ah’m cheering for him, yer just tryin’ to seduce him!”

Jason grumbled as he got back up, glaring at Gilgamesh. “How about we switch it up? Omnitrix, Swampfire.” Another green flash and Four Arms was replaced by a green plant like creature, it’s head a fiery red.  He created fireballs in his hands, throwing them at Gilgamesh, who simply covered his body with his arms, bracing against the fiery attack. When the flames cleared, the armored warrior moved his arms just in time to see Jason punch him in the face. The plant creature unleashed a few more hits before finishing with an uppercut, causing him to stumble backwards.

Before he fell over Gilgamesh grabbed Jason’s still outstretched arm and pulled him in for a headbutt. While the transforming human staggered, Gilgamesh grabbed him the waist before lifting him above his head and slamming him headfirst into the ground, leaving only the waist down to show outside the dirt.

“Nice diversion. Simple yet effective.”

Several vines erupted from the ground, quickly binding Gilgamesh. Jason pulled himself out of the hole, cracking his neck. “Glad you think so.” he said, starting to lay into the captive warrior with a flurry of punches.

“Yeah! That’s how ya do it!” Applejack shouted.

“Victory is near, beloved!”

Gilgamesh managed to flex his muscles enough to be able to reach forward and grip Jason in a bear hug before leaning backwards and suplexing him into the ground. He then quickly pulled and tore the vines off him as Jason  got up. Jason sent out another fireball but was surprised when Gilgamesh managed to not only duck under it but move behind him. The warrior struck him in the back with his elbow, causing him to stumble forward for a second before turning around, only to be met with a quick jab to the face. He was struck again in the stomach with another punch before being sent tumbling by a spinning back-hand.

“Alright, that’s enough,” Gilgamesh said, stopping the music as well.

“No! He was so close!” Chrysalis whined.

“Ah reckon he was,” AJ agreed, nodding.

“So, what’d you learn?” Gilgamesh asked.

“Not to be overconfident,” Jason said, cracking his back. He tapped the Omnitrix, returning to normal.

“Well, yes, ok, but what else?”

“Never assume you’ve got your opponent beaten.”

“Ok, yes, again, good, but what else?”

“Don’t let cheerleaders distract you,” he said, sending a glare at the females.

Slash laughed as both the girls pouted.

Gilgamesh chuckled before getting back to the topic. “Is that you you’ve got?”

“Yeah.”

The warrior sighed. “Looks like you still didn’t get it. Ok then, we’ll try this once more, still no weapons or magic, but I’m not just going to do brute strength. Get ready.”

Jason nodded, getting ready. “Omnitrix, Toepick,” he said, vanishing in a burst of light, to be replaced by a fat, green skinned creature whose head was covered by a cage.

“What in the hay can that thing do?” Applejack asked, raising an eyebrow. Jason said nothing, just standing there, waiting for Gilgamesh to make a move.

“Somepony do something!” Chrysalis shouted, getting bored.

“Ok, seriously, just what they hell is that thing’s power?” Gilgamesh asked, not willing to move until he had a better idea of what he was up against.

Jason started to move forward, still as silent as ever. The gate in front of his face opened up with an eerie creaking revealing his face. Said face was so utterly horrifying, that , despite himself, Gilgamesh found himself filled with utter terror at the sight.

“OH DEAR GOD, WHAT THE BLOODY HELL IS THAT THING!?” he shouted. A moment later her put a hand to his face and dashed out of sight into the forest. The sound of violent retching could be heard by all. A few minutes later he returned, the little bit of skin showing under his armor looking a bit paler. Thankfully for him, Jason had transformed back to a human, a smug look plastered on his face.

“That was revenge for getting beaten up so much, wasn’t it?”

“You could say that. I’ve been dying use Toepick since day one,” he said, brushing his hair out of his face. “But, lets get serious again.”

“Says the guy who just picked the ‘fear master’ alien. Ok then, make your choice already or we’re going to be testing your human form’s durability,” he commanded, a slight bit of frustration in his tone.

“Ok, ok, sorry,” he said, putting his hands up. “Omnitrix, Lodestar.” Once again, he was engulfed in a green glow, this time replaced by a metallic black creature, it’s head floating between it’s shoulders. “Oh yes, this will do nicely. Hey, your armor is metal right?”

“To be honest, I’m not completely sure, but... oh crap.”

Jason held his arms out, a magnetic pulse firing from his pincers. He lifted Gilgamesh into the air, repeatedly slamming into the ground. “This is really fun.”

The three spectators could only laugh at the ridiculous sight and the muscular warrior’s grunts rang out through the forest.

“ENOUGH!” he shouted before firing a laser from his eyes and knocking Jason over, falling to the ground as the magnetism cut out. “Ugh. Ok, you’ve had your fun. Now turn into Diamondhead so we can finally try to finish this lesson.”

“Of course Master. Omnitrix, Diamondhead.” With a final flash, Jason took the form of a diamond skinned creature, his eyes a bright yellow. He looked at Gilgamesh, his arms turning into blades.

“Oh boy. Better keep that form away from Spike and Rarity,” Applejack commented.

“Alright then, let’s see if you can pick it up this time,” Gilgamesh said as another song began to play. Gilgamesh briefly began to sway from side to side before hopping in place. A moment later he dashed forwards.

Jason unleashed a barrage of diamond shards at him before rolling to the side, slashing at Gilgamesh’s side. He managed to cut into his armor, turning his arm away before he caused any real harm.

Gilgamesh then sent a kick to Jason’s stomach before flipping and landing another one on his face. Jason swung one of his bladed arms only for the warrior to drop to the ground and hit him in the chest with a mule kick, sending him tumbling backwards. As Jason arose he looked up just in time to see the warrior about to stomp on him and roll out of the way. He retaliated by firing more blasts of diamonds only for the warrior to weave through them all. He then tried to strike with crystal spikes, but Gilgamesh continued to dodge with flips, handstands, and other acrobatic moves. In his frustration Jason charged forwards, only to be sent into the air by three kicks in quick succession to his chest.

“Ugh. It’s like I can keep time to him hitting me,” Jason muttered. “...Wait a minute.”

He observed his opponent as he rose, bouncing from one foot to the other.

“Is he...?”

Jason stood up and dispelled his bladed arms, returning them to hands. He began to tap his foot to the beat of the song as his opponent rushed him. Gilgamesh attacked with a series of acrobatic kicks and sweeps but Jason managed to dodge or block each and every one. He soon saw his chance and punched the warrior in the face, sending him to the ground flat on his back.

“Ugh. Looks like you got it now,” Gilgamesh replied, cutting off the music and getting up.

“You were attacking and even dodging to the beat of the song,” Jason replied. “But why? I mean, what’s the point?”

“All fighters have a rhythm kid, a beat they like to fight to. Think of it kind of like a long distance runner trying to keep a pace so they don’t go too slow but also so they don’t tire themselves out. Every fighter, even if they don’t realise it, will try to get the pace of the battle to go at the speed they want it to. If you can throw off your enemy's groove, or at least make them follow yours, you could even beat a stronger opponent.”

“Thats... really simple...” Jason said, returning to human form. His Omnitrix glowed red, out of power. He was about to continue talking but was bowled over when two somethings knocked him to the ground, only to pick him up and crush him in their grasps.

“Land sakes, that was some fancy movin’ ya did there, Jason!”

“You were amazing, beloved!”

The two females stopped their praise and faced each other, both growling.

“GIRLS!” Jason shouted. The two of them let go of him and turned away from each other, huffing indignantly.

“Ok then, I’ve only got one more lesson to teach you,” Gilgamesh said. “We’ll meet tomorrow night, so take the rest of the day off. Every warrior needs his rest.” And with that he cut himself an exit before disappearing.

“Well, it’s back to Ponyville then,” Slash said, transforming into Air Razor again. “Looks like you’ll need to go back to your hive, queenie,” he finished with a smirk.

“Hmph! Fine then,” she said while about to take off.

“Wait!”

Everyone turned, surprised to see that it was Applejack that had called out to her. For a moment, no one made a sound until the farm mare sighed.

“Ah ain’t sayin’ ah like ya or nothin’, but... if Jason decides he’s ok with it ah... guess ah can put up with ya bein’ around the farm,” she began, obviously trying to pick her words carefully. “But ah’ll tell ya right now, if ya want anythin’ to do with the Apple family yer gonna have to earn yer keep around the farm, so you better be willin’ ta get your hooves dirty!” she finished with a shout.

“AJ?” Jason asked, unable to believe what he heard.

“Oh, can I, beloved?”

Jason was about to immediately answer ‘no’ until he saw the uncharacteristically hopeful and, dare he say it, gentle look in her eyes as she smiled. He sighed.

“Let me think about it, ok?”

The queen pouted a bit. “Oh, alright then. Until later, my love,” she said before giving him a quick peck on the cheek and flying off.

“HEY! AH DIDN’T SAY NOTHIN’ BOUT LETTIN’ YOU GET ALL TOUCHY FEELY WITH HIM! YOU GIT BACK HERE, YA LITTLE SNAKE!” Applejack shouted.

“Just let her go AJ, I still haven’t made up my mind yet.” Jason said, scratching behind one of the farm pony’s ears. He chuckled at her reaction, shaking his head. “Let’s get going,” he said, pulling away... much to her disappointment.

“Well, this was certainly interesting,” Air Razor muttered.

***
“Ah. Finally, a good night’s sleep,” Jason muttered as he awoke in his tiny bed, managing to wake up even before the rooster’s caw. After all of Gilgamesh’s training he practically passed out around eight the night before. “Looks like I’m finally getting over my sleep problems.”

He moved downstairs, humming a soft tune to himself.  “Good morning everyone,” he greeted his adoptive family, taking his seat at the table.

“Mornin’ Jay,” Applejack said, putting his plate in front of him. Jason licked his lips, looking down at the plate of pancakes before starting to dig in. 

“Ya sure can eat a lot, Jay,” Apple Bloom noted, rather impressed with his eating skills.

“What can I say? I’m an eating  machine.” The young man grinned, finishing up the last bit of food on his plate.  “Well, I’m gonna head into town, Twilight wanted me to stop by so I could meet her sister-in-law.”

“Tell Cadance I said hi,” AJ said with a nod, watching him walk out.

The walk into town was rather quiet and relaxing. Many of the ponies he walked by waved at him, and he returned their greetings. He soon found himself at the exhibit that had been put up in town. It was all about a unicorn wizard, Starswirl if Jason remembered correctly.

“Over here, Jason!” Twilight’s voice called out. Jason turned to see her decked out in a traditional wizard outfit, beard and all. Standing next to her was a pink alicorn, who thankfully was not in a stupid outfit.

“Hey Twilight. I take it this is her?” Jason asked, looking between the two.

“Yup! Jason, this is Princess Mi Amore Cadenza, ruler of the Crystal Empire,” Twilight said, beaming.

“Please just call me Cadance,” the pink alicorn said, giving Jason a smile. That smile soon turned into a confused look as Jason just stared at her. 

“Um... Jason?” Twilight asked looking worried.

“Your name... is ‘My love’?” he asked, staring down at Cadance.

“What?”

“I may not know a lot of Spanish, but I know enough to know that mi amore means my love...” Jason replied, running a hand down his face. “You ponies and your damn names... “

“Moving on...” Twilight said, clearing her throat. “We were about to check out the Starswirl exhibit, would you like to join us?”

Jason shook his head. “Twilight, you spent all of yesterday going on about how you were going to spend all day with Cadance, I appreciate the offer but I got  a day off and I’m not going to spend it interrupting your plans,” Jason said, spinning on his heel and walking off before she could respond.

***

The next hour saw Jason wondering around the marketplace, checking out various stalls and shops. He was about to leave when he saw a very... blue looking Applejack, slowly making her way to the farm.

“Hey uh... AJ,” he started, looking her over with a frown. “Why are you blue?”

“That snake Discord got me n’ Rarity sick!” the irate farmer shouted, before breaking into a sneezing fit.

“Ouch, thats kind of a dick thing to do,” he said, nodding his head. “So where are you going? Back to the farm?”

“I reckon so,” she grumbled. “Ah think we still have some o’ that cure-all potion Zecora whipped up.”

“Want me to walk with ya?” Jason offered, moving closer.

“Oh no, ya’ll stay right there. Ah ain’t gonna get anypony else sick, so ya’ll just scat!” Applejack said, giving him a stern look. 

“Alright have it your way AJ. Get well soon,” he said, putting his hands up and backing away. With a frown he watched the sick mare slowly make her way out of town. He sighed, gazing up at the sky, and noticed Rainbow Dash zip into her house. Rainbow Dash... oh crap!

“Gah! I can’t believe I forgot! Omnitrix, Slipstream!” he commanded, shifting into his pegasus form. His coat was a forest green while his mane and tail were a bright neon green. He spread his wings, taking off into the sky. After a few minutes of haphazard flying, he managed to make it up to the cloud house. He gave a light knock, waiting for the speedy mare to answer.

“Jay is that you?” Rainbow asked as she opened the door, looking at him with a bit of shock.

“Yup it’s me, though you can call me Slipstream if you want.” he grinned, fluttering his wings a bit.

“Thats so cool, I wonder if you're half as fast as me?” she asked, a smug look growing on her face.

“Well that can wait,” he said, waving a hoof dismissively. “Can I come in? I have about fifteen minutes before I turn back and I have something to tell you.”

“Um... sure, come on in,” Rainbow said, frowning a bit. She moved to the side, allowing Jason to enter. After closing the door, she followed after him. “So whatcha got to tell me? One of the girls get into trouble?” she asked, jumping up onto a cloud couch. 

“Now like that.” Jason paused, climbing into a cloud chair. “While you girls were gone a griffon came looking for you?”

“What...?”

“Yeah, she said to tell you she was sorry,” he said, poking at the chair. “I don’t remember her name though...”

“G came to apologize...” Rainbow muttered, staring off at a wall. She shook her head, leaping up into the air, taking off in a blur.

“Rainbow wait!”

“Lock up when you leave!” she called back, fading into the horizon. 

***

Jason sighed as he made his way to the library, his hands stuffed into his pockets. The day had been a bust, making him wish that he had joined Twilight and Cadance at the exhibit. “Hey Spike, you feel like playing cards?” he called out, walking inside. He paused, seeing Discord in a bed, under a pink dome, with Rarity and AJ glaring at him.

“Did I miss something?”

“Yeah, Discord got sick,” Applejack explained.

“You already told me that.”

“He was fakin’ the first time. He’s actually sick now.”

“But... you were blue.”

“It wore off by the time Ah got home,” AJ said, glaring at Discord one last time before walking out of the library.

“Wait, if he was faking before, how did he get actually sick this time?”

“Some kind of worm sneezed on him. If you ask me, he got what was coming to him,” Rarity said, adjusting her mane.

“OH!” Jason said, snapping his fingers. “That reminds me, Discord,”  Jason said, grabbing the folder off a bookshelf. “Been meaning to give this to you.”

“Ugh, what is it?” He asked groggily. He sniffled before snapping his claw and in a flash the folder was now in his possession.

“It’s a bunch of multiversal magic science stuff. You should be able to reinforce the barrier of our universe and/or send people like me home.” Jason explained.

“‘Like you?’ We’re not going to have to worry about more Arishoks showing up, are we?”

“I dunno, but best not to chance it.”

“Ok, I’ll get right to work on that. After a little nap,” he said with yawn.

“Oh, and Twi, have you seen Gilgamesh? I haven’t seen him all day.”

“No I haven’t. Sorry,” she said shaking her head.

“Huh. I wonder where he is? I know we weren’t supposed to meet for training until tonight, but I at least thought he’d be around town having fun.”

“Well, I’ll make sure to keep an eye out for him.”

“Alright. Well, I’ll see you later.”

***

The sun was beginning to vanish over the horizon and the day was winding down and ponies were beginning to head back home, except for the few who were night owls looking for a good time.

Jason sat on a bench in the main plaza by the fountain, feeling inexplicably anxious. He had asked everyone he could, but no one had seen Gilgamesh anywhere all day.

“Just what the hell is he up to?” he mumbled.

“Hey Jason!”

The human turned just in time to see a pink blur tackle him to the ground.

“GAH! PINKIE!”

“Give him a rest, will ya Pinkie? He’s tryin’ to relax,” Applejack complained as she trotted over, the rest of the six friends following behind.

“But he just looked so grumpy, so I wanted to give him a super-duper cheering up hug!”

“Back on my world I think we call that a ‘glomp,’” Jason replied as he got up, the pink mare still hanging around his shoulders. “So what’s up?”

“Well, um, we were going to go have a little something to eat at Sugarcube Corner before the it closed for the night. We wanted to know if you’d like to come. Um, if you don’t mind, that is,” Fluttershy asked.

“I’d love to girls but I’m still waiting on Gilgamesh. I’m supposed to meet him tonight but... he still hasn’t shown up.”

“Jason, I’m sure Gilgamesh is just fine,” Rarity assured, giving him a smile.

“Yeah, your probably right. You girls go on ahead, I’ll be right in.”

“Don’t take too long.” AJ said nodding her head, walking with the other girls into the store.

Just then he heard the familiar sound of a hole opening in reality. They all turned to see the armored warrior exiting his portal.

“Hey Gilgy, where’ve you been?” Jason asked as he approached. Gilgamesh turned to face him and he froze. An intense feeling of dread seemed to wash over him while the warrior pulled his weapon off his back. He turned to the girls, who also seemed to feeling the same thing he was.

“RUN!”

Gilgamesh swung his spear and unleashed a massive gust of wind that sent them all tumbling, smashing into Sugarcube Corner. Jason opened his eyes to see his teacher standing over him, his weapon pointed down and ready to deliver the deathblow.

“Omnitrix, The Worst!” he commanded, turning into a very short, pudgy orange creature in a pair of green underwear. He didn’t flinch as the weapon came down on him. “OW!” he complained, glaring up at him. “That freaking hurt!”

The warrior didn’t say a word and merely grabbed him before hurling him at the fountain in the main plaza, which broke under the force of the impact.

“Hey! Just what the hay do you think you’re doing!?”

Rainbow Dash flew up and bucked Gilgamesh in the head, causing him to flinch for a moment. He quickly turned around and grabbed her. As she struggled and gasped for breath he threw her at Sugarcube Corner, smashing through the window and destroying several pieces of furniture inside.

“Girls, hide! Now!” Jason shouted. “Omnitrix, NRG!” he commanded, taking the form of the imposing armored creature. The mares hesitated before dashing inside the pastry shop. He fired a beam of radiation at Gilgamesh, trying to distract him. The warrior cut open a hole in reality and disappeared into it, dodging the blast. For a moment there was silence before a familiar sound came from behind him. Before he could turn he fell over, something pulling one of his legs out from under him before being thrown skywards. He looked down and saw the warrior’s eyes shine red.

The top of the armor flew open and NRG’s true form was revealed. Floating in the form was a humanoid made out of red energy, a lower level containment suit covering his body. He flew at Gilgamesh, firing a more powerful energy beam. The warrior rolled to the side, avoiding the blast, before cutting open another hole in the air and disappearing through it.

“Ok, just keep a level head,” Jason chanted to himself, moving about the area, a frown on his face. “Come out already!”

No sooner had he shouted that that a fist phased right through his face, catching him by surprise. He recovered and turned to fire, only for nothing to be there. “You know, you can’t actually touch me. If anything you just exposed yourself to radiation!” he called out before something slammed into his back pinning him to the ground. He struggle to get out, realizing that Gilgamesh had thrown his own suit at him. As Jason struggled to get up he found himself being pinned to the ground by an invisible force. As he struggled to move his head and saw the warrior in front of him, arm raised, he realised it was the gravity powers from before.

“Jay, I’m comin’!”

Both combatants turned to see Applejack begin to exit the pastry shop.

“AJ, no!”

Gilgamesh raised his other hand at the farm mare. Suddenly a missile materialized right in front of it, causing her to freeze. It fired at the building and before Jason could even call out the building exploded, showering wood and furniture everywhere.

To Jason time seemed to stop as he tried to process what happened. As it slowly dawned on him he became overcome with grief and hysteria. Not even a second later, every atom of his being surged with rage. He turned to face the man he once called his master.

“Omnitrix, Gravattak!” he shouted, becoming a large rocky creature with a glowing core. He cancelled out the gravity powers before getting up.”I’m going to kill you!” he lifted up several large objects, spinning them around himself to gain  speed before sending them at Gilgamesh. The warrior responded by almost casually cutting them all in half with clean strokes of his weapon before firing a beam from his eyes. Jason pulled in his arms and legs, taking a spherical form, causing the beam to orbit around him before sending it back at its source. Gilgamesh dodged to the side before shooting a stream of bubbles at the alien. Like before the projectiles orbited the creature only for them all to detonate with the strength of handmade bombs. Jason forced those that had yet to detonate away from him before landing.

“Omnitrix, Atomix!” he demanded, his rocky body being replaced by a tall white robotic creature, with green glowing cylinders in his arms. “HHHAA MEEE NAAA!” he chanted, throwing green blasts at his enemy. Gilgamesh managed to block and weather the first few strikes before dodging the others. He then breathed the bubbles again, which floated out slowly, only for him to swing his weapon in a circular motion, unleashing a funnel of wind that not only pushed Jason back but carried the lethal bubbles towards him. In response the alien raised his hand and produced a green energy barrier, causing the bubbles to detonate before they could reach their mark. A lightning bolt struck him from above, causing him to momentarily falter, but the wind had already died down and the bubbles were gone. And so was the warrior.

“That all you got, teacher!? Why don’t you just come out and we can deal with this honorably!”

“No,” came an icy voice from behind him before being struck in the side by the blade of the spear, eliciting a spark as the force sent Jason hurling away.

“Omnitrix, Rath!” another flash of green and the robot was replaced by a large bipedal tiger. “Let me tell ya something guy who Rath thought was his friend until he killed my other friends! Rath is really pissed off that you killed his pony friends! Rath’s gonna put cut you open like a tin can before Rath puts you in the ground!” he shouted. Rath threw his head back, lunging at Gilgamesh. He pinned him to the ground, proceeding to beat his face in. “Rath will have his vengeance! Skrunk!!!” he shouted, bringing his fists down on Gilgamesh’s head. He grabbed the warrior by the neck and flung him into town hall.

“We just got that fixed!” Mayor Mare shouted.

“Let me tell ya something pony mayor! Rath is too busy getting his vengeance to worry about that right now! Rath will fix it la-!”

The tiger was cut off by a laser hitting him in the chest and knocking him over. Gilgamesh came soon afterwards, brandishing his spear. Jason growled before deflecting the blade with one of his claws and retaliating with the other. The two continued this dance back and forth until they both had blades at each other’s throats. Neither of them moved for moment, and then Gilgamesh chuckled.

“So I was right all along. You pass,” he said simply, lowering his weapon.

For a moment there was no sound until Jason growled.

“Omnitrix, Four Arms!” Another flash of green came and went and the human turned alien began to viciously pummel the warrior, who made no attempt to defend himself. Soon he fell over and Jason continued to attack, driving him into the ground.

“Why!?” he screamed. “Why!? Why!?” At that moment the Omnitrix flashed red before powering down and reverting Jason to his human form. Even still he didn’t stop attacking, despite not causing any damage. “Why!? Why!? Why!?”

Soon a golden aura enveloped him and lifted him off the armored warrior.

“Jason, please control yourself,” came a gentle voice.

The human turned to see Celestia, standing only a few feet behind him.

“‘Control myself’!? He killed them! He killed them all!” he shouted, tears streaming down his face.

“No, he did not,” came another regal voice.

He turned his head again to see Princess Luna. And she wasn’t alone. All six of the friends, Mr. and Mrs. Cake, and their two babies, were all standing by her, somewhat dirtied but 
otherwise unharmed. Jason struggled to process this as he was lowered onto his feet.

“I’m sorry. This was always going to be your harshest lesson, but I may have been too cruel,” Gilgamesh said, his voice no longer cold but was still without its usual zest for life. He didn’t even bother to get up. “But what’s done is done, and I’m afraid I had to know for sure.”

“Just shut up!” he shouted, kicking Gilgamesh’s head as hard as he could before running over to his friends. He dropped to his knees, pulling them all into a hug, sobbing loudly.

“There there, sugarcube. It’s alright. We’re still here,” Applejack softly cooed as she held him back. The others joined in and for a moment all was at peace, aside from Jason’s sobbing. Then Rainbow Dash broke it.

“Just what the hay were you thinking!?” she shouted before flying over the warrior and glaring right at him. “Attacking out of nowhere!? Throwing me through a wall!? Making Jason think we were all dead!? Why the hay would you do any of that!?”

There was a short silence before he turned to face his student, Jason looking at him with teary but still angry eyes.

“Your final lesson was performing under stress. Anyone can fight well when they’re in the right mindset, when they’re prepared for a fight, but when their mind is clouded with the emotions in the heat of the moment they can make careless mistakes. I needed to evoke those emotions in you. Betrayal, anger, sadness, and most importantly, fear. This was a test of your courage, Jason Hughes.”

“You could’ve done that without making me think you killed them!” Jason shouted back, releasing his friends and standing, clenching his fists.

“Yes, that’s true. I could have. But there was something I needed to check. Something I had to be sure of. That’s why I spent all this time trying to convince Celestia and Luna to help me, to make sure no one got hurt or killed. They refused at first, but when I told them why they agreed. Albeit, hesitantly.”

Jason closed his eyes, letting out a shaky breath. “I hate you all,” he grumbled, opening his eyes but not bothering to wipe his tears away.

“Please, let us move past all of this tension. We have set up a feast for the whole town,” Celestia said, trying to lighten the mood.

“Food does sound good right ‘bout now,” AJ said blushing  when she heard her stomach growl.

“That does sound like a good idea. And I could use a bit of time to freshen up,” Rarity added, fiddling with her mane.

“Just try to keep it under an hour, huh Rarity?”

“Oh hush, you!”

Air Razor walked beside Celestia at the back of the group, giving her a look. “You only threw the feast to take everypony’s mind off the damage to the town didn’t you?” 

“I will not confirm or deny that,” Celestia said, summoning up a small metallic ball. “This is a miniature sun, one of Starswirl’s old creations. It’s starting to become unstable and if it is not dealt with it will become a hazard. I leave it to your discretion to dispose of it.”

“Of course,” Slash said, taking on his true form. He took the sphere, swallowing it down whole, throwing up his disguise again. He ignored the looks of shock on some of the surrounding ponies’ faces and licked his lips.

“You could’ve done that later,” Celestia said with a frown.

“You worry too much Princess,” Air Razor said, laughing.

***

About half an hour later, Ponyville was all eating cuisine made by the finest chefs in Canterlot. The aromas and fantastic tastes were enough to make the town forget about the wreckage around them, at least for the moment. Jason, Applejack, Twilight, Rarity, Fluttershy, Rainbow Dash, Pinkie Pie and Spike were all sitting next to each other at one table. Air Razor sat next to Celestia while Gilgamesh sat next to Luna. Many were eating heartily, or in the case of one pegasus angrily, while others ate slow and deliberately. Gilgamesh himself hadn’t touched a thing.

“Alright,” the warrior suddenly began. “Explanations are in order.”

“Finally!” Rainbow Dash shouted.

“Now Rainbow Dash, I’m sure Gilgamesh has a good explanation for this. Um, right?” Fluttershy said meekly.

“... You can decide that for yourselves,” he answered grimly. “I believe I mentioned, Jason, that you are not my first student. You’re my second. My first was a gravity manipulator by the name of Kat Shifter. As you could probably guess she had many gravitational powers from levitation, increasing or decreasing gravity, or even shifting her own gravity to ‘fall’ in any direction she wanted. She could even teleport and create black holes. She is extremely powerful, however the enemy she was fighting in her dimension, the Nevi, are resistant to her powers. To combat them, she asked me to train her as a warrior. I agreed and though our meeting was by chance she became not just a student to me but a great friend. To be honest, I still think of her as a younger sister.” He sighed. “However, despite being ultimately good hearted, she had certain... flaws. Flaws which, when combined with her powers, made her a much more dangerous person than she should’ve been. I noticed them, but they seemed small at the time. I thought I could help her, teach her to compensate for these problems while still teaching her how to fight. That... was my first mistake.”

“I recall you told me the two of you had falling out?” Celestia asked, sipping her tea. “Not every student is right for every teacher.”

“If only it was as simple as that. Kat was... damaged. Her life was not without her share of hardships. Hardships that would break many of even the strongest. Before she came to her version of Equestria or even had her powers, her entire family, her parents and her infant brother were killed in a tragic accident while she was just a child, she herself surviving only by chance. Even worse, their deaths were long and painful... and she heard them scream as they died.”

“O-oh my... “ Fluttershy said, hiding behind her mane, tears threatening to flow down her muzzle.

“The trauma caused her to fail to develop emotionally. Though she’s quite intelligent, emotionally she never grew past that point. She grew some considerable anger issues, though she did have a friend to help her through them. Then, after about a decade, she was sent to her version of Equestria by the Merchant, like all of us Displaced. We were all whisked away by a certain object, Jason’s being his Omnitrix, mine being my naginata. Kat’s was a plush ethereal cat named Dusty. Dusty helped her control and learn her gravity shifting powers while she hid from the world and was her first friend after being whisked away from home. In her Equis’ timeline Equestria was at war with the Dragons at the time. She defended them and was brought to those versions of Celestia and Luna. They enlisted her aid and she grew to be not only Equestria’s greatest warrior but also the strongest being on the planet. Over a few centuries the Princesses and Kat grew close, despite many of the populace still fearing her. She also managed to befriend a young shy filly living in Trottingham named Flitterbee, and developed a motherly affection for her. And this is where things might get confusing with alternate timelines because in that reality Flitterbee is your ancestor, Fluttershy.”

“Really?” the yellow mare asked, peeking out from behind her mane. “I um... don’t know if thats true here... “

“I’m sure Cloudsdale has your family records somewhere,” Twilight pipped in, having been listening to everything being said rather intently.

“Anyway, at this time Equestria was trying to have negotiations with the changelings, who unfortunately took it as an opportunity to try and bleed the city dry. I should mention that the changelings of that dimension are somewhat different from the ones here and in my reality. There they don’t simply absorb love through magic, they physically drain it out others as if they were drinking blood. They were the inspiration for vamponies in that realm. Needless to say that when they threatened to kill the filly she saw as a daughter, she reacted... violently. Afterwards the Princesses called her back to Canterlot to keep a closer eye on her.”

“My ancestors were like that,” Air Razor said, having been quiet up till now. “Thats why there aren’t any more elephants. After that, the hives came together and started selective breeding for several generations until we became as we are now.”

“Well anyway, while she was at Canterlot several gravity related disturbances began happening around Equestria. The Princesses didn’t think that Kat was responsible, but they had their doubts about Dusty. You see, Dusty was pretty much Kat’s familiar, and only she could hear his voice. In addition, it was physically impossible for them to keep him from her. Over a decade they seemed to have gotten the idea that Dusty was somehow responsible for the disturbances, perhaps even subtly manipulating and influencing Kat the whole time. They also noticed that when he was too far from her Kat lost her powers. They decided to get rid of what they saw as a little imp whispering evil thoughts into the ear of the human they had grown to see as family, by ending the feline’s life. They succeeded, but two significant problems reared their ugly heads immediately afterwards. One was that the Princesses, the two beings Kat had begun to see as family, had just killed Kat’s oldest friend. She didn’t take it well. In addition, Dusty wasn’t just a power focus for Kat, he was also a power limiter, and in her anger and rage, not only at the death of her closest companion but also the act being committed by those she had grown to love, Kat’s powers surged and she nearly tore the entire planet apart. The Princesses saw no other choice than to seal her in stone with the Elements of Harmony.”

“That is quite the tale,” Rarity said, looking at him, a sad look in her eyes.

“If only that was all of it. As you can guess she eventually managed to break out and sought vengeance against the sisters, only to discover she was much weaker than she used to be. This, as you might’ve guessed, would be around this time in their universe. The Princesses didn’t want to have to fight her, and Kat, realizing she couldn’t win, left to regain her strength. Thankfully she did not seek to end the lives of any of the other ponies, but of course killing the Princesses would have disastrous consequences. Thankfully, she was visited by another Displaced, Auric Fulcrum, the one who wrote that formula I gave you. Though he didn’t manage to convince her to give up her revenge he did at least get her to give up the idea of killing them. In addition, Dusty was beginning to reform himself and would soon be there not only to control her powers but as someone who could calm her down. She even managed, with considerable effort, to make friends with that universe’s versions of the Elements of Harmony, especially her ‘granddaughter’ Fluttershy. However, the Nevi began popping up, and although she did manage to successfully defend the lives of ponies, found herself woefully outclassed. In addition, remembering how the Princesses didn’t want to fight her, she decided to enlist the help of some young dragons in her plans. I should mention that in that universe the dragons see her as a goddess of battle and literally worship her, so it wasn't that hard. Anyway, she had these dragons fight the Nevi that attacked the cities alongside her, but also had them destroy the cities at the same time, though without actually harming any lives. Her idea was to make herself look like such a threat that the Princesses would have to fight her, and she could finally get the revenge she wanted. However, she still needed combat training and, by chance, happened to find her way to my dimension. And, of course, I didn’t find out any of this until after I had spent months training her.”

“So you had to make sure I wasn’t the same correct?” Jacob spoke up, looking Gilgamesh in the eyes. “I think I can understand that.”

“Yes. Like I said, she’s a very good hearted girl. Hell, in the declaration she sent with her totem she called herself ‘defender of the innocent.’ However, like I said, she’s still emotionally a child, a child who was throwing a tantrum. But instead of fists or objects she had the power to crush entire cities to pancakes with her hissy fits. Nothing is more dangerous than an angry child with the power of a god. I needed to make sure that not only would you defend others with your life but not be so quick to take the lives of others.”

“I can see that being a problem,” Jason said nodding his head. “I’m glad I didn’t disappoint you,” he said, taking a sip of his drink.

Gilgamesh let out a small chuckle, one of the only indications of happiness he had shown during the whole speech. “No you didn’t. Unfortunately, the story doesn’t end there. When I realized Kat’s plans for revenge I sent her away. That was my second mistake. I taught her how to fight, I gave her power, but I didn’t give her control. I taught her some meditative techniques but I didn’t teach her how to remain calm under pressure. I thought since she didn’t want to kill Celestia or Luna, and since she actually feared losing control, that she would be too afraid to fight them for fear of what she might do. I was wrong.” The warrior took a deep breath before shakily exhaling, trying to keep himself from crying. “She promised she wouldn’t abuse what I taught her. Honestly, I think she meant it when she said that, but things just got out of hand. Right now, in that dimension, the Princesses are badly beaten and weakened. Celestia’s horn has been smashed to bits. Even though she feels absolutely horrible about it, it doesn’t change the fact the damage is done. She has realized her folly, and is trying to make up for it. Hell, the only reason I even know anything that happened after she left is because she did manage to keep a different promise to me, that she would only ever call for my help if she needed me to help save the Princesses. Unfortunately, her worst sin is one that can’t be fixed, and one that she unfortunately has very little regret for.”

“What!? What could possibly be worse than causing that kind of damage to the Princesses!?” Twilight practically screeched.

“... Twilight, in Kat’s version of Equis, changelings don’t exist anymore.”

It took Twilight a moment to process what he meant, her eyes widening in realization afterwards. “You don’t mean-?”

“Chrysalis and her entire hive are dead. Kat laid waste to them without mercy.”

The entire table was silent for what seemed to be an unbearably heavy few seconds.

“That’s not possible,” Twilight began. “If even she did manage to kill Queen Chrysalis and her entire hive, there are others. The changelings should still-”

“No Twilight, they don’t because there weren’t any other hives. Kat made sure of that right after the changeling attack on Trottingham. In her rage she wiped out all the hives, all the queens, except for one young changeling queen. She warned Chrysalis that if she ever tried to attack the ponies again she would have no mercy for them. Chrysalis didn’t listen and, during the Canterlot Wedding Invasion, Kat made good on her promise.”

Twilight could only stare in shock, as could the rest. Soon tears began to well up in her eyes. “How could she? Nopony- no creature deserves that. Not even Chrysalis. What reason could she possibly have to justify that kind of action?”

“For the worst reason of all, Twilight. A rage born out of wanting to protect those she cared for. In other words, a reason that for all intents and purposes should be a righteous one.”

“But it wasn’t,” Slash said, having dropped his disguise. “Genocide is not righteous, its a monstrous act that deprives the world of a unique form of life. That’s why my kind changed, so we wouldn’t drive anything else extinct just to feed ourselves.” 

“I agree with your sentiment. Which is why in our last meeting I made Kat promise me that after the battle with the Nevi was done she’d travel to no less than ten other versions of Equis and help make peace between the ponies and the changelings. She didn’t want to, I think a part of her still thinks her actions were justified, but I was firm and she eventually relented. I plan on making sure she follows through with that.” Gilgamesh shakily sighed again. “That’s one of the reasons I wanted to see if you could help be a bridge between the two species in this world, Jason. Because with Kat being my student the blood of all those beings is on my hands too. I made the mistake of giving her power without knowing her true goals. I made the mistake of sending her away before I had taught her to reign in her rage. I am just as responsible for their deaths as she is. And as for the other reason, it’s because, thankfully, I’ve seen it done before. Auric Fulcrum managed to do it in his version of Equestria.” Gilgamesh let out a small chuckle. “I told you he was one of the best of us.”

For a moment everyone was silent. Then Jason broke it.

“Wait a minute, are you seriously asking me to try and hook up with-?”

“What? No! No I-!” Gilgamesh cut himself off before laughing heartily, the first time he had done so in hours. “No, no, no, I don’t expect you to go that far! I mean unless you want to. I mean, hell you’re making progress already! Applejack can sit next to her without trying to kill her!”

“Just barely,” the farm mare muttered darkly.

The warrior laughed again and his mirth began to ease the heaviness of the atmosphere.

“Man, I needed that.”

“So, what would you have done, if you had been wrong about me? I mean I don’t want to brag but, one of my aliens is basically a god who can remake reality at a whim,” Jason said, shuddering at the thought of it.

“I know about Alien X, and I also know the problems that come with it. Also, in case you’re wondering whether or not I could stop you, I feel I should mention that in my strongest form I’m powerful enough to defeat both Celestia and Luna. Simultaneously. As for what would I have done... to be honest, I didn’t really think about it. I didn’t want to think about it. I just... hoped.”

“Well, thanks for believing in me,” Jason said, grinning a bit.

“Jason, you have a form that can rewrite reality?” Celestia asked, giving him an even look.

“Umm.... yes...” he said, shifting uncomfortably under her gaze. “Alien X can bend reality to its whim, but only if its personalities agree,” he hurriedly explained.

“Basically, it’s got two consciousnesses living inside it, one of aggression and one of compassion.” Gilgamesh explained. “Unless they can agree on what to do they can’t even move. If Jason picks it, he’ll basically become the tiebreaker. Although, that means that they also get to decide whether or not he even changes back. So basically the ultimate power comes with the ultimate caveat.”

“Thats even if my version works like that,” Jason said, leaning back in his chair. “Ben’s Alien X didn’t.”

“Really?”

“Yeah, it was one of his personalities, it took control whenever he became Alien X.”

“Huh. Oh, I never did tell you about the other Displaced I knew, did I? Um, let’s see, we’ve already got Auric and Kat. Auric vouched for a so-called ‘Demon Lord’ named Nocturne, who supposedly helps others for a price. And you need a mirror to summon him. Never met him, and I know the name sounds bad, but if Auric says it’s ok, I trust him. There’s a Ghost Rider going around, apparently, I don’t know anything about him. I’ve also been told there’s a steampunk inventor and Solarie from Dark Souls, I have no idea about either of them. Next is Typhon, Heir of Breath, who actually has the form of John Egbert from Homestuck, if you ever read that. Cool guy, definitely the compassionate type, if a bit mischevious. Then there’s Xante, the one mentioned in the folder, a lich mage who’s extremely powerful. Really goofy, but pretty cool. Then we have Nemesis, from Resident Evil. I know that sounds bad, but believe me he’s one of the good guys, close friend of mine. As for the ones to worry about there’s the ‘Triad of Madness’, as Auric called them. We’ve got Alice from Wonderland, Jack of Blades from Fable, and Pyramid Head from Silent Hill. Never met the first two, as for Pyramid Head, well... everything I heard about him was bad but when I met him he was actually pretty nice. Don’t know what’s going on there, but just be careful if you meet him. And that’s all I got.”

The warrior rose from his seat. “And with that, I’m off.”

“Hey wait!” Jason said, getting up, moving over to him. “I want to return the favor for you helping me,” he smiled at him. “You up for some gene splicing?”

“‘Gene splicing’? How would that work?”

“I just tell the Omnitrix to splice your DNA with a strand from the watch.”

“So, you mean, I’ll actually get some of your aliens’ powers? That’s awesome! Wait, will this change my appearance? I don’t want to walking around with four eyestalks on my face or anything.”

“It did for the Highbreed but they had extensive genetic damage.” Jason said with a shrug.”

“True. So then, let’s see... I don’t want to mess around with radiation or anything like that, so how about... Swampfire, Big Chill, Blitzwolfer and Diamondhead. That’ll give me plant, ice, and rock powers, intangibility, sonics, and it’ll make it so I don’t have shoot lasers from my eyes to do fire. Also, do you have anything that can manipulate time? I don’t need much but the ability to stop it, even if just for a few seconds, would be fantastic.”

“Thats a lot dude.” Jason said, rubbing his neck. “I was thinking Osmosian.”

“Who?”

“Osmosian’s are Kevin’s species.”

“Ah. Are we talking the ‘absorbing matter’ ability or the ‘temporarily absorbing all forms of energy’ ability? Or do I get both?”

“Pretty sure it’s both. Just don’t absorb too much power, it causes insanity.”

“Meh, I’m kinda already insane. Ok then, let ‘er rip!”

“Omnitrix, splice target human with Osmosian DNA,”Jason commanded, pointing it at Gilgamesh. 

“Commencing genetic splicing.” the device chirped, sending a blast of green energy at Gilgamesh. “Genetic splicing complete.”

“I think I felt a tingle. Hm...” Gilgamesh’s touched the wooden table and the skin underneath began to assume the same color. “Well, looks like it works,” he said before dispersing the ability. “First gravity powers, now absorption techniques. I am officially becoming Mega Man.”

“Oh one last thing, how do I contact you? You got one of those token things?” Jason asked, looking him over, stroking his beard.

“Right! Um, just a sec, I think you’ll like this. Give me your hands.”

Jason held out his arms and the warrior grasped them. He closed his eyes and focused, a bright light appearing around Jason’s arms. After it dissipated Jason had two gauntlets on his hands, one going up to his elbow, the other stopping at the Omnitrix.

“Behold the Genji Gloves. Strong, durable, resistant to physical attacks and magic attacks, and makes you immune to Toad spells and Paralyze spells. And yes, they are also my token. Enjoy the fashionable asymmetry.”

“Pretty snazzy,” Jason said turning his hands this way and that, flexing his fingers.

“Must you really leave Sir Gilgamesh?” Luna asked, pouting slightly. “I shall miss you greatly.”

“Unfortunately, I must,” the warrior answered. “My own Equestria is facing threats from beyond its own reality, threats that only I am capable of defeating. In addition, time flows at different speeds between realities. Once I spent not even a full day in one only to find a week had passed in mine. That is why I tried to rush young Jason’s training. I will return someday though.” He then turned to his student. “And when I do I expect to hear about the deeds of the brave and benevolent Jason Hughes, shapeshifter extraordinaire.”

“You’re damn right you will, and next time, I’m going to kick your ass, bet on it,” Jason said with a smirk.

Gilgamesh chuckled. “I look forward to the day when I can truly say ‘I have nothing left to teach you.’” He then turned to Slash. “Make sure the kid keeps up his training.”

“It will be my pleasure.”

He then turned to the Princesses. “Maybe now would be a good time to start something, seeing as how he’s already showing himself off,” motioning both to the changeling king and the crowd looking on in fear and curiosity at him. The three royals looked to each other and nodded.

“I see your point,” Celestia replied.

“AJ,” he continued, turning to the farm mare. “Give her a chance, huh?”

“Ah’m already givin’ her a chance,” she muttered.

“What do you mean?” Celestia asked, raising an eyebrow.  “Is there something I should know about?”

“Uh well, um...” the orange mare began to stutter. She looked to Jason for help, and as he had already known about her nigh complete inability to lie.

“Queen Chrysalis has been paying frequent visits to our training sessions. Jason scanned my DNA and has the ability to become a changeling king. Queens are always on the lookout for suitable mates. I’m sure you see where this is going,” Slash cut in, a mischievous smile on his face.

“You're such an ass Slash you know that?” Jason asked, scowling at him. “I’m so going to get you back for this!”

“Thou meanst to say that say that that infernal queen is here near Ponyville!?” Luna angrily asked, slipping back into her old dialect.

“Don’t worry, she’s been on her best behavior. After all, she needs to get in the good graces of her ‘future in-laws’ if she wants a chance at getting her preferred mate,” Gilgamesh added, his smile noticeable even with his faceguard. “Just think of how easy applebuck season would go with a whole hive to to help!”

Applejack actually seemed to consider the possibility for a moment before shaking it from her head.

“I seriously hate you all, you know that?”Jason asked crossing his arms. “Stop trying to hook me up with her!”

“This certainly does open up some possibilities.” Celestia said, looking deep in thought. “I’ll have to think more on this.”

“Well kid, it looks like you’re going to be an ambassador after all.”

“Will you just go!?” Jason shouted back in frustration.

Gilgamesh chuckled before unclipping his naginata and cutting a hole open in the air. “Until next time, Jason Hughes. May the winds of Freedom carry your wings.” With that he stepped inside and was gone.

“Huh. Maybe I should think of a catchphrase?” Jason muttered. 

“Hey, wait a minute!” Twilight shouted.

“What?”

“He didn’t help clean anything up!”

The group looked around town, still seeing the debris everywhere.

“Oh, he’s quite the sneaky one, isn’t he?” Luna quipped, a slight tone of amusement in her voice.

Jason just grabbed a bottle of hard liquor, draining it down, blissfully ignoring the conversations around him.

***

It was hours later when Jason and Applejack returned to the barn. He had promised to help clean everything up in the morning, but for now he needed rest. He opened the door to his room and was surprised to find a sack resting on his bed. Not a moment later he was hit by a mouth watering aroma, one that was familiar from just a couple nights ago. He opened it and found exactly what he hoped, pounds of cragadile jerky, and a note. Curious, he opened it and read the message inside.



Some recompense for having to deal with me. For a great hero and an even greater man.

Best regards,

Big G.

P.S. Don’t eat it all in one sitting. Also, fish is good for you.



“Looks like you're not that big of a dick after all.” Jason mumbled to himself, shoving some jerky into his mouth. He put the sack under his bed before crawling under the covers, a goofy grin on his face.

> That Shadow Guy Who Sells Things
> --------------------------------------------------------------------------


As a point of interest, I’ve actually met two Omnitrix users before. One was the standard Ben 10, the other, a dude named Jason Hughes.

You all remember Ben, right? I sold him some stuff and pranked him?

Wait... that’s... a surprisingly large amount of people, now that I think about it.

Well, anyways, Jason.

Man, I don’t even know where to start with him, so I’ll start at the beginning.





So, there I was, cruising down the inter-dimensional ‘highways’, when all of a goddamn sudden, POOF, there’s a new Splinter Universe popping into my path.

“Wh- HOLY MOTHERF–!”

VWORPLE

That was the start. The prologue, if you will.

Now, Chapter One starts with me realizing that I forgot to auto-sync with the local timeline, so instead of appearing right when Jason did, I arrived a few weeks after he did.

Right after Gilgamesh popped in, actually.

You can imagine my surprise at seeing Ponyville completely totalled, but y’know, after a few millennia of existence, nothing really surprises you after a while. Except for the random crap that happens in the Void, because shit, man, that place is just... not at all predictable.

Ahem.

Well, there I was, sitting in the middle of the ruined street, not a soul for hundreds of feet. Well, okay, there was Derpy a few meters over, but she didn’t really notice me stuck in a shadow under some loose rubble.

‘Note to self: Read all of your updates, not just the urgent ones.’

Side note: I get memos every time someone makes a Splinter. Sometimes I pop into new timelines on accident because my flight path is on a direct collision course and I don’t notice in time.

I may be nigh omnipotent and omniscient, but I still fuck up every now and then.

Nobody’s perfect, not even Joey. Take that to heart, dear reader.

Side note two: There is no fourth wall.

AHEM

‘Okay, time to get up. Let’s see who’s Universe I crashed into... Jason Hughes, eh? Omnitrix? Sounds like Auric’s gettin’ a new recruit for his army.’

And with that, I pulled myself out of the shadow I was in, stretched out into a tall, nightmarishly thin, vaguely Slenderman-esque shape. Scaring people was always fun, no matter where I was.

And thus, I walked out into the ruined (But still busy) Ponyville streets, heading towards my destination uncaring of any other life form nearby. Where was I headed? The Library, of course.

And when I stepped out into daylight, the screams started.

And it was funny, though also annoying.




POV Shift: Jason Hughes, Wielder of the Omnitrix V1.0




“Jason you know that’s... uh really disturbing to watch right?” Twilight asked, watching as Jason, in the form of Upchuck, swallowed another pile of debris. 

“Yeah, you keep telling me that. Would you rather me eat it all or have to move it yourself?” he asked, patting his pudgy belly. The alicorn went silent, looking away. “I didn’t think so,” he said, lashing out with his tongues, grabbing a cartwheel, pulling it into his gullet.

“Monster!” a scream called out, followed by the sounds of ponies screaming.

“Ugh what now?” he asked with a frown, spitting out his meal, now in the form of a green energy bolt. “Let’s go!” he commanded, jumping onto Twilight’s back.

“Hey!”

“Just go!”

The alicorn rolled her eyes before running toward the direction ponies were running from. 

“Hey you!” he shouted at the intruder, some sort of shadow thing. “What business you got here? You're scaring the ponies!”

“Hmm...am I? Oh dear, I guess I chose the wrong form today, hm?” It spoke in a low, sibilant hiss, and chuckled, “Ah, I’m just foolin’ ya. Gimme a sec here, then we can make some proper introductions.” A sound not unlike a zipper whispered through the area, and when it ended, the shadow was noticeably more humanoid and had eyespots, “Ah, there we go. Ahem, my name is Umbra Shadow-Walker, Systems Administrator of this Multiverse Branch. You, my new friend, are Jason Hughes, Omnitrix Wielder; and judging by the residual Void energy floating around you have, one, been teleported to a different Universe, Ben 10’s from the warp signature, and two, bee attacked by... Gilgamesh? Hmm, I need to have a talk with that asshole one of these days about collateral damage.”

“Hey! Gilgamesh is a great guy! Ok, I’ll give you the collateral damage but he helped me out a lot!” Jason argued, getting off Twilight’s back.

“You two wrecked the town and he skipped out on helping clean up.”

“It’s fine,” Jason dismissed, much to Twilight’s irritation.

“Lover’s spat?” Umbra teased, “Seen a few of those in my life, but never like this. Heh, it’s almost cute.”

“I am not his lover!” Twilight shouted, glaring at Umbra. “I’m his mentor.” she said, huffing.

“I leave you two alone for five minutes and you’ve already meet another weirdo.” Air Razor said with a scowl, moving over to the trio. “What exactly are you supposed to be?”

“He’s a shadow, and he’s an admin for the Universe or something,” Jason said as his Omnitrix timed out returning him to human form. “OH! You told Ben about that War right?!” Jason asked, snapping his fingers.

“Hm? Oh yeah, Ben! Yeah, I told him. What, he say somethin’ ‘bout me?”

“He just told me that you visited him and that he was going to fight for some guy and I told him I’d help, and he gave me a badge and told me that he’d call me when it was time.”

“Well, I’ll pop over later, tell him I can call you. Right, now where did I put that...?” Umbra seemed to fade slightly for a few moments before suddenly snapping back to full clarity, with something in his hand, “This, Jason, may look like a shitty iPhone knock off, and in a way, it is, but it is also a – pause for dramatic effect – interdimensional, infinite-battery, communicator!”
[TRUMPET FANFARE]

“Oh, and it does everything an iPhone does, but better. Since it works anywhere in the Multiverse. Suck on THAT Apple!”

“Oh man, the things I could do with this as Grey Matter,” Jason said, looking at the phone, grinning like a mad man.

Umbra’s eyespots widened, “NO. Not only no, but HELL NO. The last Galvan to even attempt to upgrade 7D tech vanished from the MULTIVERSE. Poof. Gone. So, don’t; please. We’re still looking for that poor Galvan. We don’t need to look for another one.”

“Ok ok, I won’t screw around with the phone of awesome, I swear.”

“Good. Now then, if you don’t know how to work an iPhone, it’ll switch to the OS of the smartphone you’re most comfortable with.”

“Yeah... I’ve never had a smartphone.”

“Right... NOVA, tutorial mode, please.”

“Tutorial Mode now Active. Scanning... User Registered; Jason Hughes.”

“Stop drooling Twilight.” Jason said with a chuckle.

“I-I wasn’t drooling!” Twilight said, shaking her head, quickly wiping her muzzle off.

“Of course not.”

Umbra smirked, “You totally were.”

She covered her face with a wing, blushing heavily.

“You think this is good, you should have been here when Luna, Gilgamesh and I pranked her,” Jason said, laughing. “Oh that was glorious. Plus, Twilight ended up having to give the ‘talk’ to Spike.”

“Oh that had to have been awkward.”

“It was the most awkward conversation of my life,” Twilight muttered, glaring at Jason.

“So, the iPhone did you call it?” Air Razor asked, trying to get the conversation back on track.

“Hm? Oh yeah. It’s not really an iPhone, it’s, I guess I just call it a MultiCom, since it sounds more useful that way.”

“You don’t really sound sure of yourself,” Air Razor commented, raising an eyebrow.

“Never had to come up with a name before, most of the people I gave this to just called it an iPhone. Well, hmm, now that that’s done, I believe I have some other artifacts that might just interest you.” Suddenly, a large shadow cart appeared out of nowhere.

“Dude... are you scannable?” Jason asked, his eyes wide. “Because that is just amazing.” he moved over to Umbra, waved his Omnitrix arm at him, frowning when nothing happened.

“Sorry, but if you wanna be like me you’d best learn how to change into a 7+ dimensional creature instead of the 3D one you are, because you need at least 4 to survive the Void between Universes. Also, you need to be made of shadows, and those don’t have DNA. Now, step into my shop, and seek out whatever you want. Just don’t touch the ones marked ‘DANGEROUS’ until I can gift wrap them first; some of them are rather... volatile. Aside from that, I’ve got at least six of almost anything in the Multiverse.” Umbra preened, not unlike a cocky bird of paradise... made of shadows.

“Wow, just wow.” Jason said, his eyes going wide. “ I feel my inner hoarder squeeing in joy right now.”

“Just one thing: you need to pay for everything you buy. First timers get a six percent discount, repeat customers a ten percent discount on the item they buy the most, personal friends and combatants in the War of Understanding get a forty percent discount. You may pay in anything that has any sort of value, I don’t care if it’s money or a lucky sock. It just needs some sort of value. If you need me, I’ll be naught but a shout away. Happy hunting!”

“Ok Twi, break out the bits.” he said starting to walk down an aisle. 

“What why me?”

“Your a princess with an unlimited budget. You don’t have to but I’d imagine Umbra doesn’t want me shooting diamonds in his shop.”

“Well, actually, I’d be fine with that as long as nothing got damaged.” Umbra’s eyespots turned into little upturned crescents, “ That should help with the budget issue, ne?”

“Diamond Head it is then.” Jason said with a nod, lifting up a power morpher. “Oh hell yeah. Hey Umbra you got a cart or a basket?”

“Bags are to the left of the door, carts to the right, baskets to the right of the carts. Make sure you avoid the Dementor filled bags. Those are for sale, though. Just don’t open them. They’re the evil-feeling, squirming ones.”

“Will do.”Jason said, grabbing a cart, placing the power morpher in, starting to tour the place with Twilight and Air Razor. 

“Oh, by the way, the Power Ranger / Super Sentai stuff is a package deal, each morpher comes with a separate Morphing Grid programmed in, and the Zords and stuff are in a subspace pocket inside the Morphers. So, they’re actually damn expensive. Just a warning.”

“I’ll keep that in mind,” he said, slapping Twilight’s hoof away from a glowing stone.  She glared at him but continued to follow him.  “Where do I find the high frequency blades?”

“Well... depends on the blade. HF Shaving Blades are in Aisle 10, Health Care; HF Swords and Knives are in Aisle 29, Advanced Weaponry; any other High Frequency Blades would be in Aisle 72, Miscellaneous Blades.”

“How about something specific like Jetstream Sam’s blade?”

“Aisle 29, Advanced Weaponry. Or, Aisle 80, Video Game Blades. Or, Aisle 603, Metal Gear Stuff.” 

“Thank you.” About half an hour later, Jason came up to the front, presenting his haul: a stasis module, a kinesis module, a set of terminus armor, a HF blade, chaoseater, a hypercube, a proton pack, replicator and a power morpher . Twilight had several spell tomes, ranging from Final Fantasy to Elder scrolls, along with the eye of Agamotto. Slash had picked up a pair of... sunglasses.

“Ah, those sunglasses. Good choice, since they’re probably the... 700,000th most expensive thing in the shop. Which is really high up on an infinitely long list. Nigh indestructible, guaranteed to make even the dumbest nerd look badass, and it’s got several enchantments on it that magnify just about every badass trait one may have. I’d use them, but they don’t really work on shadows.”

“So how much for everything?” Jason asking, leaning on the cart.

“Let’s see... 600,000 bits -6% Discount- 40% discount... and that leaves us with taxes and... y’know what, just give me a block of diamond measuring approximately six feet by three feet squared.”

“Thats a lot... “Twilight said, gulping.

“Don’t worry, I got this.” Air Razor said, returning to his true form. He started to grunt, regurgitating a large metal sphere. “Would a miniature star surrounded by a dyson sphere cover it?”

“Where the hell did you even get that!?” Jason asked, jumping away to avoid radiation.

“Thats classified. Anyway, will it do? Celestia wants this thing gone anyway.”

“...Not quite. Even with that, it’d still add up to a block of diamond about... eight cubic feet? That’s two by two by two, if you didn’t already know. Or, about two thousand bits.”

“I can just pay the bits.” Twilight said, placing a bag of bits on the counter. “Thats 2,000 bits, plus an extra 100. I believe in tipping.”

“Your tip is graciously accepted. Alrighty then; anyone want a receipt and/or free coupons and a member card?”

“Member card?” Jason asked, tilting his head.

“Like those reward cards at Safeway or whatever. Except for my store. Buy enough stuff from here and you get a random, but useful, item for free. It’s sorta win-win, except for your wallet,” Umbra explained, then cocked his head to the side, “Hang on, I gotta take this.”

Placing his fingers to where his right ear would be, Umbra spoke to no one in particular, “Lan, what is it this time? TENEBROUS AGAIN!? What did that ass do now!?... Another paradox entanglement web!?... Why can’t we demote him?... IT”S IN THE EQUESTRIA CLUSTER!?!?! Ah shit, Fausticorn’s gonna be pissed. She has enough on her plate as it is!... No, I’m not ‘in love’, Fausticorn’s like my second mother! Lan, Lan. No. Shut up. When the hell did you get so... snarky?... What? No. Nevermind. Right. I’ll be there... Yeah. Okay... Mhmm... God this is gonna take forever to sort out. Bye.” Removing his fingers from his ear-area, Umbra addressed the confused group in front of him, “Sorry guys, need to reset part of this area of the Multiverse, don’t worry you won’t notice anything; it’s a lot farther away than you’d think.”

“Oookay. Well yeah I guess we’ll take the membership thing.” Jason said, looking at him strangely.

“Great~”

“One last thing, tell that Auric guy I’d like to talk to him, I already told Ben I’d help but I’d rather talk to him in person.”

“‘Kay, I’ll tell him. Well, I gotta go now; I’ll see y’all later.”

“Have fun debugging existence.” Jason said, walking out of the shop, having put most of their haul into the hypercube.

“It was nice meeting you.” Twilight said, prancing out of the shop with a big grin.

Slash just nodded, putting his disguise back up before following his charges out.

“Goodbye for now!” Spinning dramatically, Umbra disappeared in a flash of shadows and a distinct–

VWORPLE


> Jason And Chryssi's First Date
> --------------------------------------------------------------------------

“So... we’re doing what again Celestia?” Jason asked as he walked through the Everfree, looking up at the pony goddess. 

“We are here to meet with Chrysalis. I was informed that she has taken a liking to you and I was hoping to reopen diplomatic ties with her hive.” Celestia easily kept pace with the human, her stride ever graceful.

“You're going to use her attraction for me to get close to her aren’t you?” he asked, raising an eyebrow. “Thats low.”

“Nonsense, it’s a viable political strategy,” Celestia said, dismissing it with a hoof. “Jason, we have to talk about something serious.” 

“What? You talking about that stuff I bought from Umbra?”

“No but we will have a conversation about that soon enough. I’m talking about the rumors going around Canterlot about a male Alicorn,” she said, giving him an even gaze. Jason gulped.“That was you, was it not?”

“Uh... yeah... that was uh, me...” Jason admitted, giving her a sheepish smile.

“I can understand that you didn’t know the full implications of doing so, but you’ve put me in a very tight situation. The nobles are clamouring for me to present this new alicorn and i’m going to have to give them what they want.”

“Why are they making a big deal out of this?” Jason asked, stuffing his hands into his pockets.

“Jason, there are, or were, only four Alicorns in the world and all of them are royalty,” Celestia said, watching as that little bit of information sank in.

“They think I’m a prince?” he asked, looking at her, his mouth agape. 

“Yes and I wish to make you a true prince.”

“Wait what!?” Jason asked, looking at her like she was insane.

“I know it’s a big thing Jason, but I think you can handle it,” Celestia said with a smile on her face.

“You realize that I can only become an Alicorn because of this right?” he asked, holding the Omnitrix up. “What happens when they find that out and start demanding one of their own?”

“Can you make another?”

“Well no...” Jason said, frowning.

“Then there is nothing to worry about. I’m going to hold an announcement of your existence when I return to Canterlot, as well as Slash’s presence. It’s time he stopped hiding.” Celestia said, giving him a warm smile. He went to respond, only to be interrupted by the buzzing of wings.

“There you are love, when you weren’t in your training spot you had me worried,” Chrysalis said with a smile, which turned sour when she saw Celestia. “Oh it’s you,” she sneered. “Why are you here?”

“I could ask you the same thing, you are in my kingdom,” Celestia replied, meeting her glare head on. “I am here to open diplomatic ties with your hive.”

“You wish to treat with me?” Chrysalis asked through a roar of laughter, much to Celestia’s annoyance. “And why would I do that?”

“I think it’s a good idea,”Jason said, looking at Chrysalis. “Look, hear her out and I’ll uh... go on a date with you,” he mumbled, looking at the ground. “Dash is having a birthday party tonight so... yeah...” 

“Oh this is truly wonderful!” Chrysalis said, squealing like a filly. She pulled Jason into a hug before taking off into the sky. “I must go prepare, my love!”

“I’ve created a monster haven’t I?” Jason asked, facepalming while Celestia maintained the royal stone face.

****

“Ya’ll did what!?” Applejack screamed, glaring at her adoptive brother, seething with anger.

“I told Chrysalis that I would go on a date with her,” Jason, currently Grey Matter, said, while tinkering on the suit he had bought several days ago.

“Why the hay would ya do that?!”

“I don’t know, it seemed like the best idea at the time,” he shrugged, tossing a tool over his shoulder.

“Thats a load of horse apples, Jay,” Applejack said, snorting. “Ah can’t believe ya did something so dumb!”

“One,” he began, holding a finger up.”I am an adult. Two, I can make my own decisions,” he said, reaching over his shoulder to tap the Omnitrix, resuming his human form. He stroked his beard for a few moments, thinking about something.

“Yeah well, ah don’t agree with it,” she groused. She adjusted her hat and frowned.

“You don’t have to, just respect my decisions,” Jason responded. He walked through the hall and into the bathroom. “Hey, do you guys have any shaving cream?”

“Shavin’ what?”

“Yeah I didn’t think so,” he said with a sigh, closing the bathroom door. Applejack just glared at the door  before moving down the hallway, mumbling to herself. She went downstairs, glaring at the floor boards.

“Now what's got ya’ in a mood?” Granny Smith asked from her rocking chair, eyebrow raised.

“Jason done made a date with that snake Chrysalis!” Applejack nearly screamed, glaring at Granny, who frowned in return.

“Now Applejack, there ain’t no reason to shout,” the older mare scowled, disappointment in her voice.

“Sorry Granny, it’s just, ah can’t believe that he went and did somethin’ so stupid.”

“Stupid ’r not, he’s a grown stallion and we have to respect his choices.”

“But-!”

“Would ya rather him not go and make a liar out of him?” Granny asked, looking into her granddaughter’s eyes.

“I... no Granny I wouldn’t...” Applejack replied in a defeated tone, hanging her head.

“Ah didn’t think so, now come on, them trees ain’t gonna buck themselves!” she said, getting up to stretch her back.

“Course’ Granny,” Applejack said, following the elderly pony out of the house.

***

Chrysalis hummed to herself as she shifted into the form of a black unicorn, looking herself over in her mirror. “Hmmm... how do I look?” she asked her attendants.

“You look very good Your Highness,” one spoke up, bowing slightly. The royal attendants were among the most intelligent of changelings. The basic drones, the ones that maintained the hive were barely more intelligent than the average dog. The gatherers where at least on par with the average pony when it came to brains. Above that were the rest of the hive, the royal attendants, the royal guards and Chrysalis herself.

“Good, then I shall go with this form,” she said adjusting her voice so it was no longer distorted. “There, he will be putty in my hooves this time.”

“If I may your highness, why not become a female of this male’s base species?” another attendant asked, tilting it’s head a bit.

“Because I don’t know what they look like and I’d rather not take the form of one he already loves like his mother or something, that would just make things awkward,” she replied, gesturing for them to begin dressing her. It was a rare occurrence for a queen to get dressed up, normally reserved for meetings with foreign leaders or at the annual gathering of the hive. 

“Are you really sure you should be chasing this king? He’s not really a changeling,” the first said with a frown.

“I am aware of that, but think of it this way, that device of his allows him to become creatures never seen before on this world. Something like that would be a major boon to the hive.” 

“Of course, Your Majesty,” it said finishing up, moving back with a bow. “Is it to your liking?”

She briefly inspected the dress, nodding in approval. “Yes, very much so. Well then, I shall be off,” Chrysalis declared, trotting out of her quarters, humming a happy tune to herself. She ignored the drones she passed, too busy imagining what the night would hold. 

***

Jason sighed as he rubbed his face, wincing a he touched one of the various small cuts that dotted his face. Those were the consequences of shaving without shaving cream. “Where the hell is she?” he mumbled, shoving his hands into his pockets. The whole day had been loud and annoying, as Pinkie had challenged some pony named Cheese Sandwich, who creepily had the voice of Weird Al, to a “goof off”. 

“I hope I didn’t keep you waiting for long,” a soft voice spoke, catching his attention. The owner of said voice was a black unicorn mare, dressed in a green gown that shimmered in the moonlight. 


“Not really, now come on, they’ve already started the party,” Jason said gesturing with his head toward town.

“Gladly.” Chrysalis replied, giving him a smile. The walk started in silence until Chrysalis spoke up. “I see the fur on your face is missing.”

“Yeah, it was getting pretty scraggly so I decided to get rid of it.” Jason said, looking down at her. “You look pretty good, that dress is nice.”

“Oh you like it?”

“Yeah, green is my favorite color.” he said, giving her a smile.

“I’ll keep that in mind,” she replied, putting that tidbit of information away for later. 

“I bet you will,” he said, rolling his eyes. As they made their way into town, he frowned at the noise. Making his way over to one of the many food tables, he asked, “You want anything?” After looking at her for a moment he frowned. “Oh yeah, you don’t have a stomach.”

“Doesn’t mean we don’t like to taste things. Besides, our bodies convert food matter into slime.” Chrysalis said as she grabbed a cupcake, then took a bite out of it.  

“Well I’m glad you two are getting along,” Slash broke in, having given up his disguise at this point.

“I didn’t think you cared enough, Slash,” Chrysalis said, raising an eyebrow at the changeling king.

“Oh I don’t really. It’s just that, I’d rather not have to kill anypony in town is all,” he speared a cupcake on his stinger and brought it to his mouth.

“I’m glad I could help,” she sneered. Grabbing Jason’s hand in her magic, she dragged him away from the insufferable king, who was busy gorging himself.  They spent the next few minutes wandering around the huge party, trying to entertain themselves. Chrysalis frowned, noticing the high amount of anxiety coming from the human. “Jason are you alright?” she asked, noticing his scowl.

“I don’t like crowds...” he mumbled, clearly unnerved by all the ponies around them. “They freak me out.

“Then why did you suggest we come here?” Chrysalis asked, tilting her head.

“I wanted to do something nice...” he said, scowling more. “You know what? Screw this, you wanna just go get drunk?” he asked, pulling a silver cube from his pocket. Het pushed a button on the side, producing a bottle of hard cider.

She stared at him before giving him a smile. “Sounds enjoyable, but what about Rainbow Dash? Isn’t this her party?”

“Yeah but I already gave her my present. Now come on, I’ve already got a headache and if I stay here any longer I’m going to have a panic attack,” he said, heading off toward the apple orchards with Chrysalis trotting along behind him. They never realized that they were being watched.

It took them a few minutes to find a nice spot, but once found, they hunkered down at the base of one of the trees, Chrysalis assuming her true form. 

“The stars are beautiful here,” Jason commented, gazing up at the sky for a moment. He then proceeded to uncork the bottle of cider with his teeth, spitting the worthless cork off into the grass. “Bottoms up.” he declared, taking a swig of it. 

“I agree, if anything, I respect Luna’s ability to make such beauty,” Chrysalis said, taking a swig from the bottle. “Does Applejack know you have this?”

“No and before you go thinking I stole it, I bought it from the local tavern,” Jason said, running his hand through his hair. “Hey, if it’s not a touchy subject, can I ask why you invaded?”

Chrysalis stared at the sky for a second before taking another gulp of cider. “It wasn’t really about conquering anything, that was just something I said for intimidation,” she began, gesturing with her hoof. “The truth was we were starving. Other hives are near food sources but mine is stuck in the Badlands, which is just a barren wasteland.”

“Why didn’t you just move?”

“I considered that, but moving a hive takes a lot of energy. You have to send scouts out, then pick the perfect spot. Not too far away to make gathering take forever but not too close as to be easily discoverable. So when I heard about the wedding, I figured it was the perfect opportunity to gather love.” 

“I see. You could have just talked to Celestia you know,” Jason commented, taking a gulp.”Would have saved you the trouble.”

“I realize that now, hindsight and all but when you get that desperate, you don’t really think clearly. I’m rather ashamed to admit it but all that love I took from Shining Armor might have gone to my head for a bit.” she rubbed her neck, blushing in embarrassment. 

“So how are things going with your hive now?”

“It’s better, the love gathered at the wedding has lasted us this long and it’ll be another month or so before it runs out. I wish things had gone differently... so many were lost when we were ejected from Canterlot.... so many...” she said, looking down tears threatening to flow down her face. She froze, feeling something wrap around her. She looked up, seeing Jason had moved over and embraced her.

“Hey, no crying, we’re not drunk enough for that,” he said with a smile, wiping her tears away. “Now, how about we exchange some stories? I know a lot of tales that you would love to hear!” The rest of the night passed with joyful story telling, drunken singing, and fit of laughter.

***

“It seems you were right sir,” a grey earth pony said, bowing. “I observed the creature through the night, and he is indeed consorting with the changelings. He spent the night getting drunk with one of their Queens.”

“I thought as much,” the listener spoke, his disgust evident in his face. “It’s not a stretch to think those abominations would flock together. Ansem and Xemnas roam free and she allows a weapon of untold power to remain in the hands of an idiot rather than use it to stop them.”

“My liege, what do you wish of me?”

“I want you to keep an eye on this ‘Jason’, memorize his habits, and look for anything we can exploit. I will be stationing more Knights in Ponyville to assist you when the time is right.”

“As you wish,” the earth pony said, making his way out of the room. He nodded to the guards standing by the door, both clad in silver armor, the infinity symbol etched onto their breastplates.

****

Jason groaned as he came back to the world of the waking, rubbing his eyes. He had way too much too drink last night, as could be attested to by his pounding headache. Then again, the previous night had been a lot of fun. Chrysalis had, admittedly, made a good impression on him. “Listen to me, I’m seriously considering getting into a relationship with an insect...” he thought with a frown. “Oh what the hell, not like there are any human females here.”

“God I hope they have asprin here...” he grumbled, sitting up. He blinked, realizing he was not in his room, nor in the orchard. The room appeared to be some hard black material, lanterns bathed the room in an eerie green light. A noise off to his left caught his attention. He cautiously looked over, frowning as a sleeping Chrysalis came into view.  She was curled up, drooling slightly onto her pillow. 

“Oh... Jason...” she mumbled out and he could see her hind legs twitching from under the blankets.

After processing this scene, only one word came to his mind: “Fuck.”


> Tour Around The Hive
> --------------------------------------------------------------------------

“Wake up!” 

Those were the first words Chrysalis heard before she was kicked out of bed, landing on the floor in a heap. 

“What in Tartarus!?” she hissed, getting to her hooves, snarling. Up on the bed she was a very livid Jason glaring at her. “Oh um... good morning.” she said, giving him a sheepish smile.

“Explain, now,” he commanded, narrowing his eyes at her. 

“Calm down Jason, nothing happened between us,” she said, rolling her eyes. “I’m not one of those Queens.”

“Oh? Then why are we in bed together?”

“Well we both got rather drunk and since I didn’t want us to be passed out in the orchard, I had some drones take us back to the hive. I have the best bed here after all.” she said with a smile.

“And that’s it?” he asked, crossing his arms.

“Yes that’s it, if it wasn’t, do you think you’d still have your clothes on?”

“I suppose that’s true,” he admitted rubbing the back of his head. “Won’t AJ be pissed about this?” he asked, a frown on his face.

“Oh I already thought of that,” Chrysalis said, waving her hoof dismissively. “I ordered a drone to stay behind and explain everything to Applejack. In fact,” she said, closing her eyes, “let me check on that now.”  She took a deep breath, opening her link to the hive mind. The flood of information, to any other being, would have sounded like a whole lot of noise. To Chrysalis however, it was a beautiful symphony, dozens of voices singing in harmony. She pushed through the many voices until she found the one she was looking for. She connected to them, the darkness of her eyelids slowly being replaced by the drones vision, which was filled with a very angry Applejack.

“So ya’ll are telling me that Chrysalis took Jay back to yer hive, drunk off his flank?” the irate farm pony asked, glaring at the drone.

“Yes, the queen was afraid of them passing out in the open so she took him to the hive, I assure you he is safe,” the drone assured, doing its best to calm her.

“He better be,” Applejack said, getting nose to nose to the drone. “If ah find out she did to him what she did to Shining Armor, ah’ll come down there mahself and shove an apple so far up her rear, there’ll be an orchard sprouting around inside of her.” she narrowed her eyes, glaring into the drones soul. “Now ya’ll get out of here before anypony sees ya,” she ordered pointing toward the Everfree. “Git!”

The drone gulped before taking off as fast as it could.

“That’s... unfortunate,” Chrysalis said with a frown, coming back to her senses. “You were correct, Applejack is very displeased with this,” she said getting to her hooves. “Well since you’re here, why don’t I show you around the hive?”

“I don’t see why not,” Jason agreed, stepping out of the bed cracking his back. “Oh, before we go anywhere... Omnitrix, Razor,” in a flash, he shifted into his changeling king form. 

“Oh my,” Chrysalis said with a smile, looking him over.

“Don’t get any ideas, I just decided to go with the flow,” Jason said, rolling his eyes. “Ok... let’s see if I can remember the words...  Omnitrix, form lock code 1010,” he said grinning with satisfaction as the Omnitrix did as he commanded. 

“What was that?” Chrysalis inquired, tilting her head to the side.

“Basically, the Omnitrix won't turn me back to normal until I tell it to,” he said, adjusting his wings. “So how about that tour?” he asked, giving her a smile.

“Of course, right this way,” she said with a smile of her own. She led him out into the hallway, allowing him to get a better feel for the architecture. The walls were a hard black material with green lanterns lighting them. It vaguely reminded him of a Xenomorph hive. He gave a  bit of a shudder and shook his head.

“Our first stop shall be the birthing chambers,” his guide spoke up, leading him into a rather spacious room. The center of the room had a hole leading down into the room below. “Here is where I would come to lay my eggs. I would grow an egg sac and the eggs would drop into the room below, where the caretakers place them into incubation pods,” she explained, giggling at the look on Jason’s face. “I take it your species reproduces quite differently?”

“Yes, very much so,” he said, trying to keep from blushing. “Not to offend but this is very reminiscent of bees or ants,”

“I can see that, though bees and ants mate with their drones which is just disgusting,” she said making a face. “Changeling drones are asexual. Though in some cases, such as the death of a queen, the strongest drone will become the next queen.”

“So they don’t have any gender?”

“Nope, none at all. We are currently the only sexed pair of changelings in the hive,” she said with a wink, making him blush.’

“How about we move onto something else?” he asked, ignoring the twitching of his stringer. 

“Yes yes, come on. You must be hungry so why don’t we go get you some love shall we?” she asked, motioning for him to follow her again. The walk to the hive’s feeding area took several minutes. They passed by several drones that just ignored their presence, busy patching up some cracks in the wall.  

“Whoa,” Jason said, looking around the cavernous room. Drones of various size and importance moved about the room, which was dominated by a glowing pillar. 

“Come on, let’s get you your first taste of love,” she said with a smile, moving up to the pillar, gesturing for him to follow. 

“So um, what do I do?” he asked, taking a spot next to her, looking at the pillar. 

“Just touch your horn to it and draw the love into yourself.”

“Ok... here goes nothing,” Jason said,touching the tip of his horn to it. He shuddered as he felt the energy surge down his horn. It felt odd, like a warm current running through him. After a few moments, he pulled away, panting. “Ok, that was weird.”

“Oh you’re so adorable, like a larva really,” she said, nuzzling him. She was about to say more when one of the guards flew over to them.

“My Queen,” it said with a bow, panting slightly.” Princess Celestia is here to see you.”

“Ah, I had almost forgotten about our meeting. You may return to your post,” she said with a smile. She watched the drone fly off before sending an order through the hive mind. “Come Jason, we shouldn’t keep Celestia waiting.” 

Jason just sighed, following after her.

***

As it turned out, the meeting was being held in the hive’s throne room. He hadn’t seen Canterlot’s throne room for comparison, but the hive’s throne appeared to be made out of obsidian. Chrysalis took her place upon it, the sickly green light of the lanterns making her appear rather foreboding. He took a spot next to her throne, gulping as Celestia was lead inside by a pair of drones.

“Chrysalis,I have done as you asked, I am here by myself with no guards,” Celestia said, coming to a stop. She caught sight of Jason, raising an eyebrow. “I did not know Jason was here,”

“I thank you for your trust Celestia,” Chrysalis began, looking at her. “As for Jason, I was giving him a tour of the hive.” 

“I see,” Celestia said with a nod, sitting on her haunches. “Now shall we begin negotiations?”

“Of course,” Chrysalis said with a smile. “First off, I would like the ability to move my hive somewhere closer to Equestria,”

“How close?” Celestia asked, her voice staying even making it hard to gauge her reaction.

“I was thinking that castle in the Everfree, as I understand, no one is using it,” Chrysalis said, keeping eye contact with Celestia. 

“What will you give in exchange for this land?”

“I will willingly submit myself to your rule,” Chrysalis said taking a deep breath, though Jason could tell she didn’t like this at all.

“You would willingly surrender yourself and your hive to me? Why would you do such a thing?” Celestia asked, surprise managing to leak through her mask.

“Celestia, like you I am a ruler, I must do what is best for my subjects, even if that means I must prostrate myself at your hooves to ensure their survival.” Chrysalis said, managing to keep her proud exterior up. 

“Very well, I accept your terms Chrysalis,” Celestia said, slipping back into her neutral expression. 

“Not to interrupt but I’m going to head home. I had a nice time Chrysalis, I wouldn’t mind going on another date some time soon,” Jason spoke up, catching both monarchs’ attention. “Omnitrix, disengage form lock code 1010.” He returned to normal and let out a sigh of relief.

“I would like that,” Chrysalis smiled, that little tidbit brightening her mood greatly. 

“Allow me to save you the trip Jason,” Celestia said. Her horn was surrounded in a golden light, the look on her face screaming “we’ll talk about this later.” Before he could respond, he was consumed in the same golden light and appeared in the library with a loud pop.

“Gah!” Twilight shouted, jumping up in fright, scattering papers everywhere. “Jason!? Where did you come from!?”

“Um...” the human started, leaning on a wall, holding his stomach. “A changeling hive...” 

“You were in a hive?!” Twilight shouted, her eyes sparkling. “Oh my gosh! Tell me all about it!” she squealed, jumping up and down.

Jason just groaned, resigning himself to the alicorn’s interrogation.

***

It was about two hours later when Jason returned to the farm, hands in his pockets. He had managed to distract Twilight long enough to escape her hooves, something he was eternally grateful for. 

“Hey Applejack I’m... back...” Jason trailed off as he walked into the barn, staring at the sight in front of him. There was Rarity and Applejack, dressed up in the most ridiculous way possible.  Rarity was dressed like a hick, straw hat, overalls, the whole nine yards. Applejack was the exact opposite, wearing a dress fit for a Disney princess, her hair all done up.

“Oh hello Jason,” Applejack said with a strange, well-to-do accent.

“No,” he said shaking his head. “I’m done. I’ll be inside, have fun in the Twilight Zone!” Jason said, stepping back outside and closing the barn doors. 

“Excuse me,” a voice spoke up catching his attention. A brown, glasses wearing, stallion stood before him, giving him a cautious look. “Do you know where Applejack is?” 

Jason just stared at him for a minute before walking off, grumbling about ponies and their insane world, leaving the poor, rather confused, stallion behind. 

***

“So why do you hate this ‘Trenderhoof’? Didn’t you say you only met him for a for a moment.” Slash asked. He sat at a table with Jason toward the edge of the festival which apparently no one bothered to tell him about. 

“That guy is such a hipster, it’s not even funny,” Jason said, taking a bit of jerky and watching said stallion dance with Granny Smith. “Plus, theres something... off about that guy, I just don’t know what...” 

“You’re just being paranoid,” Slash said rolling his eyes. “Believe me, if he was a threat, I’d have dealt with him.”

“Like you dealt with that manticore that wandered into town?”

“That was a freak accident and you know it!”

“Whatever Slash, I think you're more bark than bite.”

While the two bickered back and forth over Slash’s combat prowess, Trenderhoof had cautiously moved off the dance floor to watch the two without being noticed. He sent magic through his horn, activating the enchantment etched into his glasses. His plan had failed miserably, as Jason had been gone most of the day. That said, now was the perfect time to get some intelligence on the creature. He smirked as his glasses recorded everything. Nopony would ever suspect that he was a Forever Knight.

“Soon we will remove that watch from you, monkey,” he vowed under his breath, making sure to fade back into the crowd. 
> Royal Announcements
> --------------------------------------------------------------------------

“Jason, please pay attention!” Twilight snapped, scowling. “This is very important!”

“All you’re going to do is tell me how to make a speech. Trust me, that ain’t gonna work. I did a semester of Public Speaking and all I managed to get was a C,” Jason said with a roll of his eyes, tinkering with a device on his left wrist. 

“What is that thing, Jay?” Applejack asked, ignoring the glare she got from Twilight. “You’ve been messing with it since we left.”

“Well, Gilgamesh had this thing that let him play music whenever he wanted so, I figured I’d make one of my own.”

“How exactly DID you make it?” Rarity asked, looking at the device curiously. 

“I turned into Grey Matter and just sorta made it,” Jason said with a shrug. “Don’t ask me how, I don’t understand even half of what I do as Grey Matter.”

“So does it work?” Dash asked, not looking away from her ‘Daring Do’ book.

“Only one way to find out,” Jason stated, pressing a few buttons. Hearing the strumming of a guitar, followed by sounds of a cowbell, he smirked. “My lovely friends we do indeed have more cowbell!” he exclaimed, grinning like a mad man.

“Is... is that actual human music?” Twilight asked, her eyes widening as her annoyance was forgotten, to be replaced with intrigue.

“Yes it is, my dear Twilight. You’re now listening to Blue Oyster Cult’s ‘Don’t Fear the Reaper.’” 

“Oh my,” Fluttershy spoke up, frowning at the name. “Why is everypony scared of the Reaper?”

“Well, the Grim Reaper is one of the more popular human representations of death. He’s normally depicted as a human skeleton wearing a tattered black cloak and wielding a scythe. His job is to see the souls of the dead off to their final resting place.”

“Do you believe in this ‘Grim Reaper?’” Rarity asked, a bit put off by the idea.

“Nah, I believe in the Valkyries. Warrior angels that come down from Asgard and take the spirits of fallen warriors to Valhalla,” Jason explained, leaning back in his seat.  He looked out the window, watching as various scenery rushed past.

“So,” Rarity said, clearing her throat. “How are things going between you and Chrysalis?” she asked, hoping to change the subject to something less morbid. 

“Well... we’re doing alright...” Jason mumbled, rubbing his neck. “I don’t think she understands how to date someone that isn’t a changeling.”

“What do you mean? Are you two fighting?” Rarity asked, moving from her seat, getting uncomfortably close to Jason. “You simply must tell me!”

“Umm... we’re not as much fighting as well... Chrysalis is trying to court me as a changeling king and not as a human,”

“Oh I can understand that,” Fluttershy said, a soft smile gracing her muzzle. “Discord can get like that sometimes... eep!” She lost her smile as everyone in the train car began staring at her. 

“Fluttershy, is there something you want to tell us?” Twilight asked, eyebrow raised.

“Yeah, are you and Discord bumping hooves?” Dash asked, finally looking away from her book.

“Rainbow Dash,” Rarity berated, giving the pegasus a stern look. “There is no need for such crude language.” She cleared her throat, turning to Fluttershy. “Now Fluttershy dear, are you and Discord...” she paused gesturing with her hoof, “seeing each other?”

Fluttershy blushed, doing her best to hide behind her mane. “Um... y-yes...” she whispered, trembling a bit. 

“Ok,” Jason said, clapping his hands. “Let’s not give Fluttershy an anxiety attack, ok?” He gave the other girls meaningful looks. “I realize that they are a um... weird couple but it’s their business.” 

“Oh my gosh! Fluttershy has a special somepony!?” Pinkie Pie shouted, bursting into the train car, her eyes wide. She dashed over to the timid mare, getting in close enough for their muzzles to touch. “Why didn’t you tell me?! Now I need to throw you a belated ‘Congratulations for getting a special somepony’ party!”

“Calm down there Pinkie!” Applejack grabbed the pernicious pink party pony, pulling her away. “Fluttershy must’a had a good reason for not tellin’ us.”

Fluttershy was spared from having to answer, as the train slowed, pulling into the train station. 

“Hey girls, I’ll meet you at the castle,” Jason said, getting up. “Omnitrix, Ghostfreak.” Following the familiar green flash, he was replaced with the ghastly visage of Ghostfreak. He saluted the girls, turning invisible before floating off toward the castle.

After about a half hour of wandering the hallways, Jason finally managed to find the throne room. The others were already there, looking rather miffed. “Hey everybody I’m here,” Jason said, making himself visible and waving at them. He touched the Omnitrix, returning to normal.

“Good, the guest of honor is here,” Celestia said, giving Jason a smile, while Twilight glared at him in irritation. 

“Yeah... still not sure this is a good idea...” Jason said, giving Celestia a frown. “I mean... I suck at speeches and well... I have issues with crowds.”

“You be fine Jason,” Luna said, walking into the room. “You faced down Sir Gilgamesh, speaking to a crowd  is hardly an equal challenge.”

“Yeah Jay, besides, you’ll have us to back you up,” Rainbow said, grinning.

“That doesn’t make me feel any better,” Jason mumbled, running a hand through his hair. “Where is Chrysalis anyway?”

“Chrysalis will be joining us shortly. As I understand, she’s making some short term adjustments to her hive,” Celestia replied, walking over to him. “Do not worry Jason, I know you can do this.”

“Hay yeah Jason! Ya’ll just have to believe in yerself.” Applejack said, pulling him into a hug. In a few seconds the rest of their little group joined in the group hug, despite Jason’s protests. The poor human just sighed, letting the ponies pile the love onto him while the princesses watched on in amusement. 

***

“They really need to invent shaving cream here,” Jason complained as he walked out of the bathroom, running his hand over his now shaved face. He sat down on his bed, cracking his neck, followed by his back.

“Jason?” Chrysalis’s voice carried from the door, followed by a knock. “Are you in?”

“Yeah I’m here, come on in Chrissy.” 

“Must you call me that?” she asked with a pout, trotting into the room. She took a place next to him, getting comfy.

“Your name is a mouthful and you know it,” he smirked, though after a moment his smirk faded. “Look Chrysalis, we need to talk.”

“About what?” she asked, a frown appearing on her face again. “Is something the matter?”

“Our relationship isn’t going to last if you keep treating me like a changeling,” he explained, looking into her eyes.

“But you are-”

“No,” he cut her off, getting in closer to her. “I am not a changeling King, I am a human male. I have different likes, needs and I find different things attractive. My point is, if you’re just going to treat me like a King and not take the time to get to know the real me, we’re done.”

Chrysalis went silent for a moment before letting out a long sigh. “You’re right Jason, I apologize. I will try to understand you better in the future, though it may help if I were to see what a human female looks like.”

Jason stared at her for a few moments before letting out a sigh. “That’s actually a pretty good point. This is going to be so damn weird. Omnitrix, Razor.” Taking on his changeling form, he took in a deep breath, letting himself be consumed in green flame, only to be replaced by a female version of his human self. “Now I know what Loki felt like...” he mumbled, glad he was able to conjure up some clothes. 

“You realize I’m going to have to see under the clothes as well, yes?” Chrysalis asked rather innocently.

“That’s such a lie.”

“Oh come now Jason, I want to craft the perfect female form for you, so please, off with the clothes.”

Jason glared before letting out a sigh, “Fine, but if you tell anyone about this, the hive is going to need a new queen.”

Chrysalis just giggled to herself, watching as Jason removed his clothes.

***
“Thank you all for coming today,” Celestia said, looking along the table, giving the assembled ponies her  best smile. “I have done as you requested and brought the male alicorn to Canterlot.”

“Good,” Firm Law, one of the more influential nobles spoke up. “Where is this alicorn?”

“He should be along any time now,” she said, perking up when the doors opened up. Jason walked in wearing rather imposing black and green armor, a rather irate Twilight trotting in after him. 

“Good, we are all here,” Luna said from her spot between Cadence and Celestia. 

“What is this... creature doing here?” Prince Blueblood asked, frowning at Jason. “I thought you said you brought the alicorn!”

“I did bring the alicorn,” Celestia said, calm as ever. “I take it you’ve heard of Jason’s shape-shifting device?”

“What are you implying?” Firm Law asked, narrowing his eyes. 

“What she is implying is that, I am the alicorn,” Jason spoke up, crossing his arms. He locked gazes with Firm Law, resisting the urge to flip him off.

“Thats ridiculous! Thats like crowning a changeling merely because it can become an alicorn!” Law protested, banging a hoof on the table. “You’ve already invited those bugs into our nation and now this? Have you gone mad?!” Many of the nobles nodded in agreement, letting out angry murmurs.

“ENOUGH!” Celestia roared, using the Royal Canterlot Voice. The table fell quiet, all eyes on the solar diarch. “Now then,” Celestia said, clearing her throat. “I realize my choice to treat with the changelings is controversial, but I believe I have made the right decision. As for my choice to make Jason a crown prince, need I remind you that alicorns have the right to rule by default?” 

The nobles remained quiet, though many wore rather angry looks on their muzzles.

“Now let us discuss what Jason’s duties shall include,” Celestia began, though at this point, Firm Law stopped paying attention, he shot Jason a hateful glare. He remained silent for the rest of the meeting, silently exchanging looks with the human.

***

“Celestia has truly lost her mind!” Blueblood paced back and forth, ranting to the ponies gathered in the room. “What next? Is she going to let the minotaurs have a say in our affairs?!” 

“Stop your whining Blueblood, we’re almost ready to make our move and once we do, he’ll no longer be a problem,” a slender unicorn spoke up. Her mane was a deep silver while her eyes burned a bright red. Her purple coat seemed to shimmer in the light. 

“That’s Prince Blueblood to you!” the stallion snapped, focusing his rage at her, “You will treat me with respect!” He got up in her face, snorting.

“Blueblood, I suggest you settle down,” Firm Law said, cutting in before Blueblood set Charmcaster off. “Charmcaster is right, our plan is about to be set in motion,” Firm Law said, turning to the gathered ponies. “We stand to change Equestria! No longer will we live in the shadows, forced to tolerate those wretched creatures we call allies! We will retake Equestria for ponykind!” he shouted, to the thunderous stomping applause of the assembled ponies.

“Quite the speech Firm Law,” a new voice spoke up, causing the commotion to die down.

“Thank you my liege,” Firm Law said with a bow. “Our plan is nearly complete my lord, we simply await your orders.”

“Good,” The Forever King spoke, looking over his gathered subjects. “Charmcaster, you and your uncle will accompany our forces down to Ponyville. Our sources tell me that the Breezie migration will be passing through there in a few days, we shall strike while the town is distracted.”

“Yes, my lord,” Charmcaster said with a bow, “I will inform my uncle of this at once.”

“Good.” He turned to leave, but he hesitated. “One last thing, take our ‘pet’ with you, something tells me she’ll love the exercise.”
> The Most Excellent Battle Of Chaos Ever
> --------------------------------------------------------------------------

“So why are we here again?” Slash asked, looking up at Jason with a bored look on his face.

“We are here, my good friend, to watch the Breezies... whatever the hell they are.” Jason put his arm around Chrysalis, getting comfy. “It means a lot to Fluttershy and she could use a confidence boost after that Flutterguy incident.”

“I was quite surprised, who knew she could sing like that?” Chrysalis asked, laying her head on Jason’s shoulder. She was currently in the guise of a female human with blue hair and green eyes. She wore a lacy black dress, and her crown rested upon her head.

“I think the Breezies are arriving,” Slash pointed out, looking down the road out of town. Soon enough, like a swarm of locusts, the Breezies began to glide into town. 

Squinting his eyes, Jason could see that the Breezies were tiny pony like creatures with large gossamer wings and very fairy like features. “Pony fairies...” Jason  muttered, staring at the creatures in disdain. “Freaking pony fairies...”

“Oh stop,” Chrysalis said, rolling her eyes. “I think they look rather adorable, I can taste the love just pouring off them,” she purred, licking her lips.

“Calm down, we’re not going to feed on the Breezies,” Slash said, throwing a rock at her. She glared back at him, rubbing her head. 

“I think something’s wrong,” Jason pointed out, watching as a group of Breezies left the others, heading toward them. “Aw crap...” he sighed, barely flinching as the little creatures collided with his chest. 

“Uncatalogued DNA detected,” the Omnitrix chirped, scanning one of the tiny beings. A second later it sparked a bit, activating a transformation. Jason just blinked, now in the form of Hodgepodge.

“Oh come on,” he pouted, looking at the Omnitrix. “Don’t tell me these Breezies are making you go all wonky.” he tapped the Omnitrix, though nothing happened. “I hate you all,” he glared down at them, to which they responded in their own language.

“Oh my!” Fluttershy shouted, flying over faster than Jason had ever seen her fly before. “Are you alright?” she asked the Breezies as she picked them up with a concerned look on her face.

“I believe they’re fine Fluttershy, now please, get them as far away from me as possible,” Jason said, getting to his feet and brushing himself off.

“Jason! How could you be so mean!?” Fluttershy gasped, giving him a glare. “These poor creatures just got separated from their friends and you won’t even comfort them!?”

“Fluttershy,” he began, crossing his arms. “Just being near me, they’re making the Omnitrix wig out. I can’t change back until after they leave,” he explained, shaking his head.

“Oh,” Fluttershy said, the fire leaving her eyes. “I’m sorry, Jason.” She placed the Breezies on her back, nuzzling one. “I’ll take these little ones back to my cottage, they must be so scared.” she said, beginning to trot off.

“Hmm...” Discord pondered, popping into existence, causing Chrysalis to jump in surprise.  “I detected a surge in chaotic magic...” He scanned the area, eyes widening before he slithered over to Jason, getting in his face. “So it’s you! You think you can just come up in here and be me?! There’s only room for one lord of chaos here!” Discord declared, slapping Jason across the face with a glove. “I challenge you to a chaos duel!”

Jason blinked before returning Discord’s slap with a large fish across his face. “Your challenge is accepted.”

“Fine, we shall meet in the center of town in an hour, don’t be late.” With that, Discord exploded into a cloud of confetti.

“Did that just happen?” Chrysalis spoke up, walking over to Jason and putting her arm around him. 

“Why yes it did, and I’m going to mess him up,”

“You do know he’s been doing this for a lot longer than you right?”

“I do, but I’ve got something he doesn’t.”

“What?” Chrysalis asked, tilting her head. 

“The internet, the most chaotic thing humans have ever produced.”

***

The center of town bustled with energy as the townsponies gathered to watch the duel. They gathered on makeshift bleachers, all chattering amongst themselves. Despite the initial panic, the town had gotten rather excited about the duel, it wasn’t everyday two draconequui went at it.

“Fillies and Gentlecolts!” Pinkie shouted through her microphone, getting everypony’s attention. “We welcome you to the first annual, most excellent chaotirific duel!” she giggled, a bright smile on her face. 

“That’s right, Pinkie!” Spike said from his seat next to her. “This is the first time a duel like this has ever happened! Now we have Discord, reigning Lord Of Chaos, and the challenger, Jason Hughes, A.K.A Hodgepodge!”

“This is such a bad idea...” Twilight grumbled from the VIP area. “Doesn’t anypony else think this is a bad idea? I mean really, it’s a chaos duel!” 

“Oh horse apples Twilight,” Applejack said, smirking over at Big Mac, who was busy at their stall, selling refreshments. “Ah think this is gonna be fun!”

“Ssh!” Rainbow Dash glared, pointing at the empty square. “I think it’s starting!” she shouted excitedly as both Discord and Jason appeared on opposite ends.

“Are you ready for this?” Discord asked, cracking his tail. “I’m going to trounce you!”

“You know,” Jason said, tapping his chin. “We look the same, it might confuse people.”

“Hmm... you’re right, one of us should change,” he said, nodding. “Not it!”

“Fine,” Jason said, touching the Omnitrix to activate the evolution feature. “Ultimate Hodgepodge!”

After a bright green flash, the crowd went quiet, not sure what to make of the creature in front of them. Like it’s normal counterpart, this draconequus was made up of several different animals, though which ones were lost on the audience. His left leg was blue, while his right looked like it came off of Wildmutt. His body was now grey with darker grey spots, his tail being that of XLR8. His left arm belonged to Rath while his right looked like it had been taken off of a mummy. His head had been replaced by a wolf’s, its mane replaced by a strange green goo. His left horn was now a purple crystal, the other a strange tentacle-like appendage with a short tube-like section on the end. His wings had been replaced, one being bat like, and the other insectoid. Finally, he had an odd metallic structure rising off his back.

“Well? How do I look?” he asked, striking a few poses while Discord judged his new appearance.

“Well it’s certainly chaotic, I applaud you,” Discord said, clapping his hands together. “Now let us begin!” he declared, snapping his fingers. He turned a few balloons into bats, watching as they flew off.

“Not very imaginative,” Jason said, shaking his head. “Watch this,” he said with a finger snap of his own. Lyra and a few other ponies appeared in the arena.

“What the?” Lyra asked before Jason cast another spell. A suit and sun glasses appeared on her and she got up on her hind legs. Music started to play. Lyra started to dance, and the other ponies in the group started to join in. 

“Behold the power of Gangnam Style!” Jason declared, tapping a foot to the beat. 

“If you think a little music is going to beat me, you're mistaken.” Discord said with a snort, grabbing a lamppost. He twisted it around into a pretzel shape before starting to munch on it.  

“Prepare to be ‘serenaded’ by He-man!” Jason said, making strange motions with his fingers. A strange muscular human male, wearing various amounts of purple. He started to sing, throwing his head back and forth.

“Really? Is music all you got?” Discord asked, turning He-Man into a cactus. He laughed, making the sun turn green. “Beat that.”

“Oh, I will, with the power of rule 63!” Jason smirked, turning the assembled ponies, Discord and himself into the opposite gender.

“I feel violated!” Rarity cried, looking at her new male body.

“Well this is new,” Discord said, blinking, groping the two orbs that had grown from his chest.

“Hey knock that off, there are children watching!” Jason said, slapping Discord upside the head.

“Oh yeah I forgot,” Discord said, releasing said orbs. “Well this was a good one, but I can do better!” Discord returned everyone to their normal genders, only to change their species. 

“This is so awesome!” the now griffon Rainbow Dash shouted, looking at her new talons. 

“No it isn’t!” a zebrafied Twilight shouted, frantically trying to look for her horn with a whimper. 

“Oh yeah well... I hope you step on a Lego!” Jason stuck out his tongue and crossed his arms.

“Whats a leg- ow!!” Discord shouted, falling on his ass, holding his lizard foot. “Oh Faust make it stop!!” As he hopped around on his hoof, a small square plastic block could be seen stuck into his foot.  

“Ha! None can withstand the power of the Lego brick!” Jason laughed, going into full on maniacal laughter. “And now, with the help of Kyoji!” Jason shouted, a blue coat appearing on him. “This hand of mine glows with an awesome power! It’s burning grip tells me to defeat you!” He held up his Rath hand, which was glowing with power. “Take this! My love, my anger and all of my sorrow! Shining Finger!”  He rushed forward, a golden energy beam erupting from his claw. He caught Discord in the head with it, causing an explosion. Discord tumbled along the ground, tongue hanging from his mouth, his eyes replaced with swirls.

The crowd was stunned for a few moments before stomping in applause. 

“Yes! I winnz teh internets!” Jason declared, starting to dance in a strange flipping, jerking, spinning, twirling way as music plays from an unseen source.

“Ok Jay, ya can stop now,” Applejack said, starting to get rather creeped out by the reality defying dance.

“Oh no, I’m just getting started,” he said, smirking as he teleported over to Derpy and picked the startled mare up in his mummy arm. “Yo dawg I heard you like muffins, so I put a muffin inside a muffin so you can eat a muffin while you eat a muffin!” he proclaimed, holding out a muffin in his other hand.

Derpy stared at it in awe, taking it into her hooves. “A double muffin...” she said in a soft voice, her eyes starting to water.  Jason placed her on the ground, patting her head, allowing her to gush over her double muffin.

“Jason! Seriously, stop already!” Twilight shouted, moving over to him. “You're causing way too much chaos at once!”

“Fine, but not until I do this!” he shouted, spreading his arms apart and making a double rainbow appear in the sky.  The townsponies looked up at it in awe, many jaws hanging open.

“What does it mean?!” Aloe shouted, throwing her hooves into the sky, as if to make it answer her.

“There, now I’m done,” Jason said with a smile, returning to normal Hodgepodge. 

“Ahem,” the still zebrafied Twilight said, pointing to her forehead.

“Oh yeah,” he said, and with a snap of his fingers, everyone returned to their correct species. “There, good as new!”

“Thank you,” she said with a sigh of relief, stroking her horn in a somewhat suggestive way. 

“Knock it off Twi, this fic is only rated T,” Jason scolded, rolling his eyes.

“Oh come on!” Dash complained, looking at her hooves. “I wanted to be a griffon!”

“Well I for one am glad we’re back to normal. I mean really, the cretin turned me into a Diamond Dog!” Rarity said, making a disgusted face.

“Oh great, more Breezies,” Jason said with a sigh as two of the annoying things flew over to him. “Go away!” he growled, swiping at one as it flew around his head. He barely noticed as the other started to tamper with the Omnitrix.

“There, that should do it,” it said, its words now understandable.

“Wait, what?” Jason asked, stopping mid-swipe, looking down at the Breezie.

“Oh thank goodness it worked! Blukic! We can finally get home!” the little Breezie said, flying up to his friend.

“It’s about time,” the other Breezie said, his voice deeper than the first.

“Wait wait wait,” Jason said, cutting in, waving his arms. “Please, please tell me you’re not who I think you are.”

“Well, I’m Driba and my companion is Blukic. We saw the Omnitrix and knew we’d be able to get home!”

“H-how did you even get here!?” Jason asked, putting his head in his hands, a soft groan escaping his lips. 

“Well we were trying to make a portal network so we could travel to all the Mr. Smoothys in Bellwood but we hooked into #23 by accident and got sent here,” Driba explained, flying into Jason’s face. “Do you have any idea how backwater this planet is!? They don’t even have electricity!”

“Ok just calm down,” Jason said, tapping the Omnitrix again, this time able to return to human form. “Ok, let’s see about getting you back to normal. Omnitrix, repair genetic damage,” he ordered. The Omnitrix chirped, though did nothing. 

“No genetic damage detected,” it replied, going silent. 

“What!? That stupid thing must be broken!” Driba shouted, flying over to it and pounding on it with his tiny hooves. 

“Stop that,” Jason said, brushing him away and rolling his eyes. “Sorry guys, but it looks like you’re stuck as Breezies, but hey you can chill with me until they come looking for you.”

“At least we won’t have to put up with the rest of those Breezies any more,” Blukic said, landing on Jason’s shoulder. Driba just sighed, landing on his other shoulder. 

***

“Where are we going?” Driba asked, looking around as Jason walked deeper into the woods. 

“My girlfriend moved into the old castle and I was thinking of spending the night,” Jason said, coming to a stop when two unicorns stepped out into the path.  One was purple and the other was black.

“Oh I don’t think you’ll be able to,” the mare said, smirking at him, “What do you think fellows?” she asked, signalling for at least a dozen more ponies, these ones in armor, to step out of the forest. 

“You guys really think that you can stop me?” Jason asked, raising an eyebrow.

“Oh, not us, but she can,” the mare said, stepping aside, allowing Jason to see past her. His eyes went wide as he gaze upon a dog like creature that appeared to be made of rock. The thing that made his blood run cold, however, was the red, hexagonal device affixed to it’s collar.

“Oh shit...” Jason managed to get out before all hell broke loose.

> Of Men And Horrible Tentacle  Monsters part 1
> --------------------------------------------------------------------------

Jason barely had time to roll out of the way as Zed rushed at him, her jaws nearly clamping onto his leg. “Fuck!” he shouted, scrambling to his feet. “Omnitrix, Heatblast!” he commanded, morphing into a flaming, rock-like creature.

Zed growled, her Nemetrix glowing, shifting her into a rocky, crab like creature.

“Damnit! I forgot about that!” He threw a few fireballs at her, which fizzled out harmlessly on her shell. Zed roared, charging at him, knocking him into a tree.

“That... hurt...” he groaned, stumbling to his feet. Looking around, he noticed a blue vial amongst the splintered remains of the tree. He dove for it, just in time to dodge another of Zed’s charges.  Gripping the vial, he heard the oath before holding it up in the air. “Look hunter guy! I could use some damn help here!” he shouted, though this time he was unable to dodge Zed’s charge. She snapped him up in her jaws, putting out the struggling Pyronite’s flames.

In the sky above Jason, the air rippled softly. Then, without warning, the was a sound akin to a rip and a massive figure fell through the portal. He fell quickly, landing directly onto Zed’s back who released Jason from her grip with a howl of pain. He wasted no time however, he dug his hand under her collar, then turned and threw her. She sailed a short distance before smashing through a tree, then dug her claws into the ground to slow herself. The figure’s eye lit up red, and he began to growl before he hunched over, then smashed his fist into the ground, which cracked from the impact. “STAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAARS!”

“Well... I wasn’t expecting you, thanks for the save,” Jason said, getting to his feet. “I’m Jason,” he smirked, bursting into flames once more. Zed roared, charging again, her horn aimed at the interloper’s chest.

Nemesis took the charge head on, catching her head between his arms and digging his feet into the ground. Eventually, Zed’s charge came to a halt. “Nemesis,” he answered, then turned and tossed Zed to the side a second time. There was a hole in his trenchcoat where the horn went in, but he didn’t seem bothered by it. “But by the sound of things you already knew that.” He reached behind him, unlatching a large, black rocket launcher with the ‘Umbrella Corp.’ logo on the side of it. It was almost as big as he was. His voice sounded distant, like he wasn’t focusing on what I was saying more than he was the one who just tried to gore him.

“Omnitrix, Humungousaur!” Jason shouted while rushing forward, his flaming form replaced by a large brown scaled reptile. He grabbed Zed’s leg, swung her around, and threw her into a cliff face. She roared, getting to her feet and shifting into a huge Tyrannosaurus-like worm with multiple arms around legs.  “Aw crap.” he said his eyes going wide 

“Okay that’s... that’s definitely new,” Nemesis replied, suddenly feeling like an ant.

“It can shift into the predator of whatever species I turn into!” Jason shouted, diving behind a boulder to avoid the webbing that Zed fired from her horn. She roared in anger, swiping her tail at them and leveling most of the trees in the area.

Nemesis jumped clear of the tail, landing further away. “So it’s built specifically to counter you?” Nemesis raised his launcher, leveling it evenly on his shoulder as he let a missile fly. “Who the hell did you piss off enough for them to sic something like this on you!?” The rocket flew straight and true, then collided into Zed’s side with a bright flash and a loud explosion. Zed stumbled and roared in pain, the rocket obviously taking its toll on her.

“Thats the thing! No one should have built it! It’s from the same show I got the Omnitrix from,” Jason explained, running various ideas through his head. He facepalmed when a certain fact came back to him. “How the hell did I forget that?” he asked shaking his head. “Omnitrix, Upchuck!” his hulking frame being replaced with a small green creature. 

“Just because you have doesn’t mean you won’t lose!” Charmcaster shouted, opening up her bag. She tossed out a few rocks, which grew into several large, purple glowing golems. “Get them!” she shouted, and the golems started to charge.

Nemesis backed up a step. “Action now, questions later. Got it.” He reattached his launcher to his back as he unlatched his next weapon – a silver object that latched onto his arm, then stuck out at least 3 feet from his wrist. Slowly, the barrel of the weapon began to turn, then lit up the air around him. The golem in front of him quickly fell apart, and the ground around Nemesis’ feet became covered in empty bullet shells. He turned, and attempted to gun down another but it reached him first. Nemesis was flung backwards as the Golem punched him, he rolled on the ground before getting his feet back under him, his eye burned red. “Friends of yours?”

“I am so going to kill Driba and Blukic!” Jason shouted, grabbing the remains of a tree with his tongues, pulling it into his mouth. He burped up a blob of energy, destroying the golem that was attacking Nemesis. “Quick, fire a rocket at me!”

Nemesis gave him a look like he was insane, but was reminded what they were up against as a loud roar shook the area. He quickly swapped out his weapons again and levelled his launcher on his shoulder, this time at Jason. “Hope you know what you’re doing.” He pulled the trigger, and with the sound of a jet taking off a rocket flew.

Jason grabbed the rocket up in his tongues, gulping it down. His cheeks and body puffed out as he held in the blast. Zed threw her head back, releasing a earthshaking roar, before charging at Jason. He waited until she was about to close her jaws around him before releasing the blast. A massive eardrum-rending boom filled the air and Zed fell to the ground, her limp form reverting to her normal self.

Nemesis shielded his eye as the massive explosion ripped the ground underneath of them asunder. He blinked a few times before daring to look again. “Jason! You alright?”

“Y-yeah...” the little creature responded, getting up and rubbing his head. “Upchuck is a tough little guy... “

“Oh Faust-damnit! Get them!” Charmcaster shouted, ordering the knights present to attack. Before she could join in herself, the other unicorn stopped her.

“No Charmcaster, we leave now,” he said, shaking his head. 

“But Uncle!” she protested, looking at him like he was crazy.

“This battle is lost, it’s not worth our lives,” he argued, turning to leave.

“Fine, lets get out of here,” Charmcaster agreed, the two of them teleporting away from the battlefield.

Nemesis watched the two unicorns depart, his eye color changing from red to white before he looked back at Jason. He approached him, then leant down onto one knee. “Heh, well you’d definitely win any belching contest we had back home.”

“Heh... thanks,” Jason said, wobbling a bit. “We uh... still got company...” he pointed out, motioning to the knights that had surrounded them.

Nemesis’ eye color shifted back to red as he stood up, towering far above them. “You let me worry about that… you look like you could use the rest.” Nemesis’ eye glowed brighter as his voice took on a sinister tone. “I swear..if any of you try anything…” He hunched over, several tentacles erupting from his body as he did. Then he roared. “I’LL RIP YOUR HEADS OFF AND SHIT DOWN YOUR NECKS!” The ponies in armor visibly paled at this, some of them dropping their weapons at the display.

“W-we surrender!” one of them shouted groveling at his feet, followed by the rest of the terrified knights. 

“Well that was easy...” Jason mumbled, collapsing. The Omnitrix timed out, reverting him to his human form.

“Heh, pays to look this ugly sometimes—” Nemesis glanced over as he heard a thump. “Shit! Jason?!” Nemesis pulled on his Genji Gloves before he slung Jason’s arm over his shoulders, helping him back to his feet. “We need to get you to town, or at least to someone who can help you.” Nemesis’ thoughts rushed as he tried to familiarize himself with where he was in the Everfree. Normally he had it mapped out like the back of his hand, but with his sudden summoning and being in another universe, nothing looked familiar. 

A loud buzzing filled the air as several dozen black spaces filled the sky. As they got closer, they were revealed to be very insect-like ponies, the largest one wearing a crown. She landed, her eyes going wide when she spotted the two.

“Release him, demon!” she roared, blasting him away from Jason. “Please be alright!” she whimpered, dashing  forward to catch the injured human in her arms. She held him close, glaring knives at Nemesis.

Nemesis hit the ground hard for the second time that day, quickly rolling back onto his feet. The changelings were quick to surround him though, and he mentally sighed. I don’t think I’ll ever escape my ‘victim of circumstance’ bit… he thought to himself before standing up to his full height, taller than the queen. This gave him bonus points for intimidation, but not so much towards convincing them that he wasn’t a threat. “Look, I know this looks bad but this is a complete misunderstanding,” Nemesis began, pointing at the limp dog behind Chrysalis. “That thing was trying to kill him, he summoned me,” Nemesis pointed at himself, “To help! I think he’s hurt bad though, he collapsed after they,” A tentacle burst from Nemesis’ back, causing several of the Changelings to flinch in fear as he pointed to the cowering knights with his tentacle. “Surrendered! Are we clear?”

“Was that before or after you shot at him?” one of the knights asked, causing Nemesis to give him a death glare.

“It’s true!” a tiny voice shouted out, its owner flying out to Chrysalis. “We... saw the whole thing.” Driba panted out, hovering in front of her face. “That creature helped uh... whatever his name is fight off that other creature and those knights!”

“Well then,” Chrysalis said, turning to Nemesis. “It seems I owe you an apology and a thank you for protecting my mate,” she signaled to her swarm, who surrounded the knights, encasing them in a sickly green goo.

M-mate…?! Nemesis thought to himself, but didn’t dare say aloud. “It’s not a problem, if one of us calls we help each other out. He really does need medical help though, we should get him to the hospital nearby or at least to someone who can treat his wounds.”

“You are right,” she said getting up, placing Jason securely on her back. “We best take him to Ponyville,” she said, spreading her wings. She ordered the swarm to return to the hive, taking the knights with them.

“D-don’t leave Zed...” Jason mumbled out, pointing to the limp form of the dog creature.

Nemesis glanced over to the dog, then back at Jason with a questioning look. Nevertheless, he walked over and picked her up, slinging her over his shoulder. “I’ll follow you into town, though I should probably come back to the Everfree after I drop her off, I don’t think my appearance in town will be received too well.” Nemesis grumbled, remembering the first time he came to a pony town…


~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~*~~~~~~~~~~~~


“Look, I’m just trying to figure out where—”

“AAAAAHHHHH! A MONSTER!!!”

“GODDAMNIT, WOULD SOMEONE LISTEN TO ME?!”

“STAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAARS!” A nearby building exploded in a massive inferno for absolutely no reason.


~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~*~~~~~~~~~~~~


Nemesis shuddered. “Yeah… definitely not.”

“Do try and keep up,” Chrysalis said, taking off into the air. 

The two Breezies looked up at Nemesis, jibbering softly, the Omnitrix too far away to translate their words. 

Nemesis cocked his head to the side at them. “Don’t know what you’re saying, but you can come if you want. Just make sure you have a tight grip.” Nemesis made sure he had his Genji Gloves on tight before the breezies sat on his shoulders, gripping the fabric of his trenchcoat tightly. Nemesis crouched and jumped, clearing the treetops with each consecutive jump as the two made their way towards Ponyville. 

***

“I feel like I got hit by a truck... “ Jason said with a moan, wincing as sunlight hit his eyes. “Where the hell am I?”

“You’re in the hospital,” Chrysalis said, sitting by his bed. “You’ve been asleep for a few days,” she leaned over, planting a kiss on his lips. “It’s alright to come in now Nemesis,” she called, looking towards the door. 

A tall, gargantuan mutated monster opened the door, and had to lean his head down to get inside. In his right hand he held a bunch of balloons, and in his left he had a bunch of ‘get well’ cards. He let the balloons hit the ceiling before he dumped the cards on his bed. “Pinkie Pie,” he stated, shaking his head a bit. “ANYWAYS, glad to see you’re finally awake. I was afraid I’d scrambled your brains or you’d been poisoned or something, but thankfully that wasn’t the case.”

“It’ll take more than that to beat me,” Jason said with a smirk. “So what happened with the knights?”

“Celestia has them,” Chrysalis spoke up, nuzzling Jason’s neck. “She took possession of them last night. As for that strange dog creature, it’s under Fluttershy’s care.”

“Well that’s good to hear,” Jason said, putting his arm around her and turning to Nemesis. “Thanks for the help man, Gilgamesh really is a great judge of character.”

“Yeah I heard about how he trained you,” Nemesis stated as he leaned against a nearby wall. “As well as what he did afterwards. Not that I can blame him, especially considering how hard he beats himself up over Kat.”

“Yeah I heard about that,” Jason said sighing before holding his hand out. “But really, thanks for the save.”

Nemesis grinned, or at least did what seemed like a grin, before he clasped Jason’s hand in return. “Not a problem.”

“Massive genetic damage detected,” the Omnitrix chirped, interrupting their moment. “Repairing damage,” it announced, sending a surge of green energy into Nemesis.

“What the—” was all Nemesis had time to get out before he felt like his body was being lit on fire. “GRAAAAAAAAHHHHHHHH!” He screamed as he fell to the floor in a writhing green mass. 

“Nemesis!” Jason shouted, watching with wide eyes. “Oh Odin I killed him didn’t I!?”

Several minutes passed and nothing happened. Then, very slowly, a human face peered over the edge of the bed where Nemesis had fallen. This was soon followed by a normal sized human body, wearing clothes that were obviously too big for him, and sagged heavily. 

“Wh—...wha-” His eyes widened, and he immediately started coughing. “I can—” more coughing. “Talk?! What in the name of—” more coughing. “Sweet baby—” even more coughing. “MOTHER OF—” You can probably guess what happened after that. He backed up a few steps, hitting his back on the wall as his eyes wildly scanned the room. “Okay, who the hell’s playing a joke on me?! This isn’t fucking funny!!” He looked down at his own hands, and then down over himself. “I... I can…” he took a deep breath through his nose, then blinked his right eye repeatedly. “I can... smell.” 

And then his clothes fell off.

“Dude, seriously!?” Jason asked, covering his eyes while Chrysalis just laughed, her voice echoing throughout town.

Nemesis quickly crouched to cover the goods. “JUST SHUT UP AND GET ME SOME CLOTHES!” He coughed again.  Jason shook his head, taking his pants off, tossing them to the former mutant. 

“Oh come on!” Driba shouted, shaking his hoof at the Omnitrix. He was stuck as a Breezie but the big mutant could get cured? That was so unfair.
> Of Men And Horrible Tentacle Monsters part 2
> --------------------------------------------------------------------------

“So... what do we do now?” Jason asked, pulling on a new pair of pants, courtesy of Applejack. “I mean you're not all... tentacley anymore.” He got out of the hospital bed, cracking various joints.

“Tentacley? Heh, that’s new.” Nemesis pulled on one of Jason’s extra shirts, luckily they were about the same size in human proportions. “Well I certainly can’t go back to my universe like... this.” Nemesis gestured to himself. “Which, by the way, brings up a question. Am I gonna be stuck like this?” 

“Honestly? I have no idea dude,” Jason said, rubbing the back of his head, “I didn’t know that that would happen at all.”

Nemesis looked thoughtful for a moment. “Well, I’m not complaining, it feels awesome to be able to smell things again.” He took a deep whiff, then froze as his eyes widened. “Do you smell that...?”

“Smell what?”

Without another word, Nemesis suddenly bolted out of the room.

In the meantime, a certain purple princess was making her way towards Jason’s room, some gifts levitated in her magical grasp. He’d been indisposed for a few days, and she and her friends had prepared a ‘get well’ cake for him.

“YOUUUU!”

Twilight stopped, eyes widened in terror as she saw a human, one who clearly wasn’t Jason, bolting down the hall towards her. “AAAAHHH!” She screamed in abject horror as she tried to escape, however her pathetic pony speed was no match for the seasoned human’s sprinting skills. She only took a step before the human suddenly leaped at her, grabbing the box from her magical grip.

The human quickly tore away the box’s wrappings, staring at the delicious cake inside with wide eyes. “This...” He held it up in the air...then quickly dunked his face into it and began to eat ravenously.

“What are you doing?!” Twilight asked, watching in horror. “That cake is not for you!”

“Umm what’s going on?” Jason asked walking out of his room, eyebrow cocked up. “You look like  a crackhead Nemm, seriously.”

Nemesis turned from the cake to glare at Jason and Twilight, though the menacing glare was put off by the fact he had pink icing dripping from his mouth. “You try going for over a thousand years without taste buds or a sense of smell and see how YOU react! Besides, I’ll make you another one.” Nemesis licked his lips, then frowned. “A better one at that.” 

“WE put a lot of effort into that cake!” Twilight protested, a pout on her muzzle. “And you just ate it!” 

“Twi,” Jason said, walking up to the irate alicorn and giving her a hug. “Thanks for making me a cake, I bet it was delicious,”

Twilight just sighed, returning his hug, “You’re welcome Jason... I just wish you had been able to eat it...”

Nemesis frowned, then placed the box closer to Twilight. “Okay look, that was...” Nemesis looked thoughtful for a moment. “...a dick move, on my part. I’m not really used to interacting with people... or ponies. For the record though, it was really good. Honestly.” Nemesis stroked his chin for a moment. “We will make him another, no, a better one! In fact...” Nemesis grinned. “We’ll make a meal fit for a king! I wasn’t the co-head chef of a five star restaurant back home for nothing!”

“Wait what?” Jason asked blinking,” You’ve got to be pulling my leg on that.”

“I’m many things, but not a liar.” Nemesis crossed his arms. “I’d show you my certification but... well, I didn’t exactly bring it with me when I went to that con.”

“Heh... well you were better off than I was,” Jason said, standing up. “Though, things are a lot better here,” he said, smiling at Chrysalis as she joined them.

“Eh, job or not I was still a huge nerd.” Nemesis grinned. “And you’re not the first Displaced I’ve met who preferred Equestria over their actual home. A lot of us are happier here, in fact.” 

“Alternate Equestrias?!” Twilight asked, suddenly materializing a notepad and a pen in front of her with a flash of magic. “I have to know, what’s your Equestria like?”

“Welp, you’ve gone and put her into brainiac mode,” Jason said, putting his arm around Chrysalis, who gave a laugh.

“That,” Nemesis replied, pointing down at Twilight. “is a question that shall go unanswered. For now, at least. I need to get to work.” Nemesis started to jog down the hallway, but stopped suddenly and made his way back to them. “One last thing though,” he leaned down towards Twilight, extended a finger, then poked her directly on the nose. “Boop!” Then he ran down the hallway, cackling like a madman.

Twilight, on the other hoof, scrunched up her muzzle, flicked her ears a few times, then gritted her teeth. “We’re not done yet!” she declared as she chased after him. 

“Now that... that is settled, shall we proceed with moving your things to the hive?” Chrysalis asked, planting a kiss on Jason’s cheek.

“Yeah but let me tell Applejack, she might react better if I tell her,” he explained walking down the hallway. 

“Hey, wait for us!” Driba squeaked, he and Blukic frantically flying after them.


~~~~~~~~~~~~~~*~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~


It was a typical bustling and busy day at Sugarcube Corner. The booths were lined with customers, and Pinkie was darting to and from the kitchen and the counter to take and deliver ponies’ orders.

That typical day was interrupted when the doors to Sugarcube Corner suddenly burst open with a ferocity unlike anypony had ever seen. A bipedal figure stood in the doorway, his blue eyes reflecting determination as he spoke, “Pinkie Pie!”

Pinkie froze, staring directly at the mysterious figure. 

The figure only grinned. “We have some cooking to do.” 

The pink party pony’s grin could not possibly stretch any wider. 


~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~*~~~~~~~~~~~~~~


“Twilight!” Spike shouted, running downstairs. “Princess Celestia sent you a letter!” he huffed, holding it out to her.

“Oh, I wasn’t expecting a letter,” she frowned, taking it from him. “What if something's wrong? What if some horrible monster escaped Tartarus and is wreaking havoc!?”

“Twilight, calm down,” Spike said, giving her an annoyed look. “Maybe you should read it first before you start freaking out?”

“You’re... right Spike,” Twilight said and cleared her throat, “Let’s see what the Princess wants,” she unfurled the scroll, running her eyes over it. “It looks like she’s going to come down and thank Nemesis for helping Jason...” she said, her eyes going wide. “Oh Faust, I wasn’t able to find out anything about him!” She started to do a little panicky dance, her mane frizzing out.

“What’s the big deal, Twi?” Spike crossed his arms. “It’s not like she’s gonna require a report from you or anything, you’re not her student anymore remember?”

Twilight stopped. “Big deal?” she asked, suddenly teleporting a few feet in front of Spike’s face, who jumped backwards in surprise. “BIG DEAL?! Just because I’m not a student anymore doesn’t mean I shouldn’t be prepared for anything!”

“And that anything involves tests?” Spike rolled his eyes.

“Anything.” Twilight replied, eyes narrowed, as she began darting to and fro to grab paper and books in her magical grasp. 

“Wait, where are you going?!”

“To Sugarcube Corner! I need to learn as much as I possibly can about him before Princess Celestia arrives!”

“Twilight, you really need to just calm down!” Spike said in exasperation, “You're freaking out over nothing!”

Twilight obviously didn’t hear him, as she quickly darted for the door. “Tell the girls and Jason I’ll meet them at Sugarcube Corner laterrr!” She slammed the door shut behind her, and Spike just sighed. 

Twilight quickly galloped down the streets of Ponyville, slowing as she reached Sugarcube Corner. She frowned when she saw the ‘CLOSED’ sign hanging on the front door, and went around to the back to see if the back door was open. She could hear voices inside.

“Pinkie, you got the batter right?”

“Yepperooni Nemmy! Lemmie just pour a bit into here...”

“WAIT! NOT THAT MUCH!”

*BOOM*

Twilight flinched as the door bent under the force of a blast, black smoke pouring through the sides and the chimney, followed by the sound of coughing.

“Hehehe! Silly me, that was the gunpowder, not the batter!”

“Wha...? Gunpowder? Why even...?!”

“For my party cannon, silly!”

“...Let’s just move on...”

Twilight carefully approached the door before tapping on it with her hoof. “Hello? Nemesis? I need to talk to you about something.”

All sound in the kitchen immediately stopped, followed by the sound of hushed whispers.

“We can’t let her in! She’ll ruin the surprise!”

“Then go answer the door!”

“No, you!”

“No, you!”

“I can hear you both.” Twilight deadpanned.

After a moment of more hushed arguing sounds the door squeaked open a crack, and a large, blue eye peeked through. 

“Oh, hi Twilight! Fancy meeting you here!”

“Pinkie, I don’t have time for this.” Twilight stamped a hoof. “I need to talk to Nemesis, it’s urgent.” 

“Nemmy can’t... well... he can’t talk right now. We’re kind of in the middle of something, actually...”

“If he won’t come out, then I’m coming in!” She strode purposefully towards the door, but was blocked by Pinkie once more. 

“You can’t!” she insisted, looking panicked. “It’s... um... a top secret project, mare you wouldn’t want to see the stuff we’ve made in here!”

Silence.

Pinkie frowned. “I said, you wouldn’t want to see some of the stuff we’re making in here!”

This was followed by a very elaborate and drawn out roaring sound.

“It’s a kitchen,” Twilight pointed out, frowning. “You’re making food.” 

“Very delicate food. Really, it’s very touchy.”

Twilight facehoofed. “Okay look, I don’t have time for this, I’m coming—”

The door slammed in her face. “Sorry!” Pinkie’s voice was heard on the other side.

Twilight blinked a few times, before her wings flared out and she ground her hoof into the floor. “I am a Princess of Equestria, and I demand that you open this door and come talk to me about your universe, Nemesis! That’s a royal order!”

Several hushed whispers could be heard inside before Pinkie spoke again. “Uhm, Nemesis says he’s not an Equestrian citizen, so he doesn’t have to listen to you!” Twilight began to grind her teeth.

Twilight threw her head back, letting out a shout of rage that shook even Zecora’s hut.

****

“You hear something?” Jason asked, looking at Chrysalis, feeling the ground vibrate slightly. 

“I think you’re imagining things, Jason,” Chrysalis said, walking out of the hive.  The castle was in much better shape than it had been several weeks ago, with most of the broken sections being replaced by changeling building material. Jason didn’t want to admit it, but it reminded him of Aliens even more than the old hive.

“I suppose you're right,” he said with a shrug, before something caught his eye. Off in the distance he could see a very angry Twilight rising above the horizon, her eyes glowing white and mane whirling around in some unseen arcane wind. “We’d best go stop her from vaporizing someone,” he said, sighing a bit. “Omnitrix, Siegfried.” He was soon replaced by a rather well built griffon. “Shall we?”

“Yes, we shall,” Chrysalis said, the two of them taking off to the sky.

***

Meanwhile at Sugarcube corner, Nemesis and Pinkie, completely unaware of the terrible fate that was about to befall them at the hooves of a certain angry princess, flitted from table to table, shoving a few away and bringing a few together until there was a large, ornate table in the center of the restaurant.

“Time?” Nemesis asked as he began to lay out the dishes.

“Ten minutes left and counting!” Pinkie replied as she adjusted her crayon watch with a grin.

“Good, and you told them at exactly six PM right?” 

“Eeyup!” Pinkie responded, dashing back to the kitchen as she helped Nemesis lay the dishes out. 

“Good, let’s start getting the food and then we have less than... about thirty seconds to teach you how to be a fancy waiter. Think you can do it?”

“I’ll do anything for my friends!” Pinkie replied as she shot out of the kitchen, this time in a fancy waiter getup and a mustache. 

“Where did you...? Nevermind, let’s just finish this up!”

Back outside, Twilight looked about ready to rain down holy wrath upon Sugarcube Corner. 

“Twilight what are you doing?” Jason asked, landing behind her, Chrysalis following behind. “You look like you're about to smite someone.”

Twilight blinked, looking down below at Jason as he spoke. “Oh... I uh...”

Before she could get a reply out however, the doors to Sugarcube Corner slowly creaked open, and Pinkie Pie trotted out. Her mane was combed to perfection, not a single lock out of place. She wore a black apron, with a fancy white getup underneath. She was also wearing a mustache.

“Gentleman, Mademoiselles,” Pinkie spoke, clearing her throat. “Your feast, awaits.” She stepped to the side to allow them room to enter.

“Well thats not something you see everyday,” the still transformed Jason said, turning to his two companions. “Well, better get inside,” he said, giving Pinkie a smile as he passed her.

Pinkie flashed him a grin with an accompanying ‘squee’ before she returned right back to her regal expression as Twilight and Chrysalis passed her.

Inside, Sugarcube Corner looked completely different. Only one large table remained on the floor, and this was laid over with a thick, white cloth. Decorative tapestries hung from the ceiling, and somewhere nearby classical music could be heard playing. 

On the table, there was food. Lots, and lots of food. The food ranged from ornate looking pasta dishes to small bowls of potato soup, some sort of casserole filled with flowers, and several fancy looking hay sandwiches.

Twilight’s mouth was hanging open as she observed all these changes, her eye twitching slightly. “How did... Sugarcube Corner doesn’t have... wha...?”

“You're overanalyzing this Twi, you really are,” Jason said, looking over the food, “And I just had to turn into a griffon,” he said with a shake of his head. “Omnitrix, Slipstream,” he commanded, shifting into his pegasus form.

Pinkie trotted past them at a brisk pace, pulling several chairs out from the table. “Ze chef, will be joining us shortly. In the meantime, would you care for some, how you say, appetizers?”

“Would I?” Jason asked, taking a seat. “Whatcha got for us Pinks?”

Pinkie sat Twilight and Chrysalis before she returned, and cleared her throat again. “Today we have only ze finest dishes, daffodil guacamole with only ze finest srtips of hay, ground down and together until it is in its purest form, zen sauteed in a fine herbal rich sauce until it is just right for ze eating.” She laid out several menus as she spoke.

As she finished telling them about the appetizers, the back doors to the kitchen opened and Nemesis walked in, wheeling a tray in front of him. 

“Ah! Ze chef!” Pinkie proclaimed with a bad italian accent.

“Don’t fill up on all that food, make sure you save some room for this,” Nemesis proclaimed as he lifted the lid off of the tray to reveal several cakes.

“Ohmygosh, Nemmy is sooo good at making cakes you guys!” Pinkie exclaimed suddenly, completely forgetting her role. “He made chocolate cake,” she pointed to it ecstatically, “vanilla cake,” she pointed to the next one, raising her eyebrows with a smile, “and even cheesecake! I didn’t even know there was cheesecake!”

“Pinkie!” Nemesis called out, glaring at her. “Etiquette!”

Pinkie blinked before shooting back to Jason’s side, clearing her throat again. “My apologies, sire.” 

“I have to say, Nemesis,” Twilight spoke, placing her menu on the table. “I definitely wasn’t expecting all of...” she gestured to the room with her hoof. “...this.”

“Hey, I told you I’d make it up to you didn’t I?” Nemesis grinned again before he laid out the rest of the food on the table, then took a seat opposite from Jason and Chrysalis. “I had to improvise kinda since I’m not one hundred percent certain on pony food, and I’m not sure if changelings can eat regular food,” he glanced at Chrysalis, “but I hope you enjoy it all the same.” 

“Well  I will certainly will try it,” Chrysalis said, giving him a smile. “Now let’s dig in,” she said, levitating a sandwich into her her mouth.” Hmmm... most excellent.”

“Good, good,” Nemesis spoke as he took a bite of his own food. “So Twilight, what was it that you were so eager to talk to me about?”

“Oh... oh yes!” She materialised the notepad and pencil in front of her again with a grin. Nemesis, however, frowned. “Princess Celestia is coming to visit! I’d like to be able to tell her a bit about where you come from before she actually meets you, so if you could tell me a bit about where you come from...?”

“That actually brings up something I wanted to ask.” Nemesis spoke as he turned to face Chrysalis and Jason. He wasn’t smiling anymore, his face was very serious. “Chrysalis, can I ask you an important question?”

“You may,” she said, nodding her head.

“In the universe that I come from, I believe we’re a bit behind. For instance,” he gestured to Twilight. “She most certainly isn’t a princess. And I haven’t heard anything yet in Equestria about changelings, except for what little I saw of them before I was first imprisoned.” Nemesis folded his hands together. “I have a vague idea of what’s going to happen, thanks to Gilgamesh. He filled me in on some things that I wasn’t aware of. I want you to think hard about what I’m about to ask you, because it could mean saving a lot of pony and changeling lives.” He blinked once. “If there’s something, anything that you could say to your old self, before you invaded Canterlot, to convince yourself to not invade, what would that be?” 

“Thats a rather hard question to answer,” she said, looking down at her plate. “You do realize that I and the Chrysalis from your universe are two separate beings, yes?”

“I’m aware,” Nemesis said, his frown still present. “However, if what I’ve seen of you so far is true, I believe that you, both of you, still hold the well being and safety of your hive, and your family, above all else. If... if that invasion goes through in my universe...” Nemesis sighed. “A lot of changelings and ponies could die... or worse.” 

“Worse?” Twilight asked next to him, her voice quiet. Nemesis didn’t respond. 

Chrysalis sighed, looking up at him. “If she is anything like me, she will put the safety of her hive above even her own. Appeal to that, make her see that pursuing peace with Equestria is better than losing drones in a doomed invasion.” 

Nemesis smiled and nodded. “If you think that’ll work, I’ll believe you. I’m sorry to bring up such memories again by the way, I know it must hurt to think about past mistakes.” 

“It’s alright, it’s better that I remember than make the same mistake again,” she smiled at him, giving Jason a nuzzle. “Besides, I have all the love I’d ever need now,”

“I’ve been meaning to ask,” Nemesis began. “How long has—”

The sound of a trumpet outside interrupted him, and Twilight immediately scrambled out of her seat. “Ooooh! The Princess is here!”

“Greetings everypony,” Celestia trotted into the shop, a serene smile on her face. “I see you have created a most excellent feast.”

Nemesis cast a glance over to the doors, then leaned back into his chair as he crossed his arms, trying not to look directly at Celestia. Twilight, on the other hoof, quickly dashed forward, a smile plastered on her face. “Princess Celestia, I didn’t know you were coming so soon! I— I mean we, we didn’t...” she ended her stuttering mess of a sentence with a smile accompanied with a squeeing noise. 

“Please relax yourself Twilight, just take a deep breath and let it out slowly,” Celestia instrusted, never losing her smile.

“R-right...” Twilight did as he mentor instructed, following along with what Cadence had taught her how to do.

“Good, feeling better?”

Twilight opened her eyes, and blinked a few times. “Yeah, much better. I should’ve done that from the start, hehe...” She chuckled nervously.

“Good, now, where is this Nemesis?” she asked, peering about the room. “I was to thank him in person for coming to Jason’s aid.”

Nemesis said nothing for a moment, but then he raised his hand, turned, and stood up. “Present, your majesty.” 

She stared at him for a few moments, raising an eyebrow. “I was told you had a more... whats the word?” she asked, scrunching her muzzle up slightly.

“Tentacles?” Nemesis offered.

“Well, in any case,” she began, composing herself. “I extend my deepest gratitude for protecting the life of one of Equestria’s royals,” she said bowing her head,” We are in your debt.”

Nemesis looked uncomfortable for a moment before he spoke. “There’s no reason to thank me Princess, Jason’s a cool guy and he saved my butt as much as I saved his.” He flashed a grin back at Jason as he said this. “I’m used to going without thanks anyways, it was really no big deal.” 

“I would like to award you with the Equestrian Medal of Honor,” she said, conjuring up a rather intricately carved medal. 

“Oh! Er...” Nemesis rubbed the back of his head awkwardly. “Right, about that.” He reached behind himself, pulling a medal that looked exactly the same off his neck and showing it to Celestia. “I may, already have one. Ehehehe...” 

“Then now you will have two,” she said, placing it around his neck,”There,” she smiled,”Now, let us enjoy this feast!”

“Heh, thanks Princess. By the way, did you see all the amazing cake we had over here...?”

As the group enjoyed their feast, something far outside of Ponyville stirred. Miles away, the air shimmered. Then, a sound akin to shattering glass could be heard. A vaguely humanoid shape fell through a newly made portal, tall, skinny, and colored a dull green color.  Long and disproportionate arms and a narrow, snake like head made it appear incredibly alien to anything that might witness it. 

Slowly, the figure stood, a single red eye glaring out from the darkness covering its face. It scanned the immediate area.

“Target location: unknown. Scanning.”

“Hey!” The tall figure didn’t respond to the voice, preferring to prioritize its scans over meaningless interaction. “You land on our cart, and scatter all our gems!” A diamond dog who had been pulling the cart stomped towards the tall figure. “You work to pay us back, or—”

The figure twitched. That was it, just a small twitch. The next instant however, the diamond dog’s head did a full 360 degree twist, accompanied with a sickening crunching sound. The two dogs who were prepared to gang up on the newcomer gaped in abject horror at the scene before them, then the figure turned towards them.

“Interference will not be tolerated.” It spoke in an eerily robotic tone, before it appeared inches from their faces.

The following screams were cut off with the sound of gurgling. 
> Of Men And Horrible Tentacle Monsters part 3
> --------------------------------------------------------------------------

The moon hung high in the sky, shining its soft, radiant glow down upon Ponyville. Crickets were chirping, a calming breeze bent the grass ever so softly.

All was quiet and peaceful.

“Pffffft!”

...except for Sugarcube Corner, where Nemesis, Jason, and Slash were all enjoying mugs of fizzing apple cider.

“You’ve gotta be kidding me Jason! A chaos duel? With Discord? Did you win?” Nemesis asked with a goofy grin on his face.

“Hell yeah I won!” Jason said, sipping his cider.

“He also left the sun glowing green, Celestia was not happy about that,” Slash added, shaking his head.

“Discord had no chance against the power of teh internet,”

Nemesis guffawed. “You beat him with internet logic? Hah, nothing beats that!” Nemesis and Jason clinked their glasses together, while Slash just stared at them in confusion.

“What are you two on about? What this “Intornet?” Slash asked, frowning.

“Internet is love, internet is life.” Nemesis joked, then took another sip from his cider. “It’s kind of difficult to explain, think of the largest library you can imagine. i mean it, the biggest you’ve ever seen.” Several seconds passed. “Good? Okay, now imagine it about twenty times bigger than that, and populated with a bunch of sexual crazed monkeys and you’ll start getting an idea.” 

“I don’t like being called a monkey dude,” Jason said, casting a glare at Nemesis. “I get enough of that here,”

Nemesis shrugged. “Just using something he might be familiar with, aside from a Displaced I don’t think Equestria has seen any other humans before. Besides, it’s not like ponies aren’t everywhere on the internet too, they got freakin’ famous after that show.”

“What show?”

Nemesis looked over at Jason and arched an eyebrow. “I don’t suppose the name My Little Pony: Friendship is Magic rings any bells?”

“Why would it?” Jason asked, looking rather confused.

“Oh geez...” Nemesis rubbed his head for a moment, then set his mug down on the table between the three of them before he sighed. “Well, good thing you’re both sitting down, because have I got a story for you.”


~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~*~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~


“Welp, the cider’s all delivered, time fer chores,” Applejack told herself, pushing away that little part of herself that wanted to just skip them. She moved up to the first tree, giving it a good buck, listening with satisfaction as the apples fell into the baskets.

Not far away from Applejack, a tall, lean figure stood in one of the trees, watching her. It didn’t move when she trotted towards the tree it was standing in, it just regarded her with an indifferent gaze. When she finally reached the tree however, it jumped. It fell through the air silently, landing on the ground next to her in a crouched position, from which it slowly stood. 

“Gah!” she shouted, jumping away, her heart pounding a million miles a minute. “What the hay were ya thinkin’!?” she shouted, looking up at the big creature. “Ya nearly squashed me!”

“Scans indicate small traces of mutagen compounds.” The figure went on, unheeding of her words. “Probability of interaction with target: Eighty percent. Sufficient distress vocalization at latitude four three point nine oh, longitude five seven point one four leaves approximately nine nine point nine nine percent likelihood of attracting target to immediate area.”

Applejack blinked. “Uh...pardon?”

Suddenly, the figure’s fingers locked around her throat, and effortlessly lifted her off the ground. It raised its other hand to her face, and several very lethal looking claws formed. “Start screaming.”

“Let go of her!” Big Mac commanded, rushing over to help his little sister.

The stallion’s rear legs connected with the figure’s body, but it did not flinch. It casually looked down at Big Macintosh, then grabbed him by one of his legs. “Interference will not be tolerated.” It swung him around once, hitting his head into the side of a tree and rendering the stallion unconscious.

“Big Mac!” AJ shouted, staring wide eyed at her brothers limp body.

The creature looked from her to Big Mac’s body before it dropped him. Several long tendrils erupted from the creature’s back then, each with a small, spinning blade on the end. they crept closer to Big Macintosh’s body as the figure continued to glare at Applejack. “I will not repeat myself again. Scream.”
***

“So all of this is just a TV show?” Jason asked, raising his eyebrow.

“Pretty much, from what little I know of it,” Nemesis spoke as he sipped from his mug again. “Gilgamesh explained it to me, I wasn’t into the show back on earth.”

Jason was about to open his mouth when a scream pierced the air, “That sounded like Applejack!” Jason jumped out of his seat, running out of the shop.

Nemesis stood, then glanced back to Slash. “My weapons are all at Twilight’s, can you get them and meet me over at Sweet Apple Acres? By the sound of things, I might need them, and I don’t have the strength to carry them myself right now.”

“Don’t get yourself killed,” Slash nodded, moving off to grab said weapons.

Nemesis nodded, then ran off after Jason. He hoped everything was okay...

“Applejack!” Jason shouted, rushing out into the orchard. “Where are you!”

At this, the creature’s grip loosened on Applejack and she was able to breathe. His head turned in the direction of Jason, and he released Applejack and allowed her to fall to the ground with her brother. “Your services are no longer required,” It spoke with its indifferent tone before it sprinted off, its legs naught but a blur as it ran in Jason’s direction.

Spotting the creature moving toward him, Jason stopped, taking a breath. “Omnitrix, Goop!” He became a strange green blob, held in place by an anti-gravity projector.

The creature stopped about fifteen feet away from him, cocking its head to the side slightly. “Anomalous mutagen detected.” It spoke with a robotic-like fluency, then lunged at Jason with its claws outstretched. “Acquiring.”

Jason dropped into a puddle before flying up, his gooey body turning acidic as it touched the creatures skin.

The creature retreated immediately, its skin sizzling as its eye flared red. Slowly, the wound mended itself, but not before the creature had gone into a death like stillness. “Adapting,” it droned, before the trees on either side of the creature began to frost over. Waves of mist began to roll off of it, and it approached Jason again, whose goo began to turn to ice as the creature approached.

With a call of, “Omnitrix, Heatblast!” he switched forms, sending a torrent of flames at it. “Let’s see how you take the heat!”

The creature stopped, and made a strange rasping noise before Jason threw a fireball at it. The area lit up with yellow as the fireball found its mark and covered the area with smoke and heat. Then, a very large and rock-like fist erupted from the smoke and nailed Jason in the face. When the smoke cleared, the creature was still there, except now his body was covered in hard, rock-like material, similar to that of Crabdozer. It said nothing however, and walked calmly towards Jason as he scrambled to recover from the hit.

“That doesn’t make any sense!” he muttered to himself. He put some distance between them before changing into XLR8. He activated his hypercube, pulling out his high frequency blade.”Let’s see how you like this!” he snarled, rushing at the beast, his sword slicing through it’s skin like butter.

The blade seared through its flesh, but the creature didn’t cry out or cringe. its eyes lit up red, before the red covered its entire body and it sank down into a red puddle of goo. The goo lashed out suddenly, grabbing onto XLR8’s legs as the creature emerged from the goo, its form solidifying enough to to punch Jason in the gut, then smashed its fist into his face and sent him sprawling.

Nemesis reached the orchard finally, his eyes widening upon seeing who Jason was fighting. “No...” Nemesis mumbled beginning to sprint towards Jason. “No, no, no, no, no, NO!” he leaped onto the creature’s back suddenly, grabbing him around the throat. “Jason, run!” He called. The creature simply glanced at him. “Interference will not be tolerated.” He spun and nailed Nemesis in the face, sending him flying across the ground before smashing into a tree, but still conscious.

“Get out of here, I can take this thing!” Jason shouted, getting up. “Omnitrix, NRG!” he shifted into the hulking suit creature, firing a blast of radiation at the goo.

“You don’t understand! It’s—” Nemesis had to cover his mouth as Jason hurled radiation, but he backed far enough away to stay out of danger. He grit his teeth and balled his hand into a fist. “God...damnit!” Nemesis punched a nearby tree, glaring at the creature. “It followed me here...” 

The goo writhed for a moment before it gathered in the center of the radiation, then took on a sleek, black sheen. The figure stood once again, now covered from head to toe in a shiny, black carbon skin. It raised its hand and fired a large chunk of carbon from its arm, striking Jason in the head. 

“Gah!” he shouted, shrinking in size. “Thats it!” he shouted, flying back into his suit. “Omnitrix, Diamondhead!” He turned his arm into a blade, moving to impale the creature in the stomach.

The creature shifted again, this time his skin taking on a red hue as the air around him immediately began to heat up, and the grass around him caught fire. He caught Jason’s attack in his hands, then lifted him up as his claws dug into Jason’s diamond skin. He turned, and slammed Jason onto the ground, and began to approach him slowly once more.

“B-bastard...” Jason cursed, reverting to his human form, blood flowing freely from his arm.

Nemesis gasped, and ran towards the two, fury in his eyes. “I don’t care if I can’t do anything like this, I need to do something!” Nemesis released a growl he didn’t hear under his breath. 

What can you do like this? a voice in the back of his head nagged. You’ll only be a burden if you help. The only way you could help is if you turned into a monster again, and we both know you won’t do that. 

“If I have to be a monster to save people like this...” Nemesis growled, his size growing as he spoke. “So be iiiiittt......aaaaaaaaaaaaahhhhhhhhh STAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAARS!”

Meanwhile, the creature approached the injured Jason, his red eye glowing brighter as he shifted back into his own regular form. “Acquiring mutagen DNA—”

Before it finished its sentence, it was plowed into by Nemesis, his old self once more. Nemesis grabbed the creature, carrying him with him as he ran, before he stopped and smashed the creature into the ground, then raised his fist.

YOU! he brought his fist down, causing the ground to shake and the creatures limbs to flail.

WILL NOT, He brought his fist down again, and the ground began to crack.

HURT, The ground shook again.

THESE PEOPLE!!! He brought his fist down again, and a massive dirt cloud launched into the air, obscuring the two from view. 

All was silent for a moment, but when the dust cleared, Nemesis was standing over a freshly made crater in the ground, the creature’s limbs sticking out of it.

“I um... brought your weapons,” Slash said, flying over to the hulking Nemesis. He dropped them at his feet, moving off to check on Jason.

Nemesis quickly put on his weapons, before sighing. I think he might be dow—

“Target located. Nemesis acquired.”

Nemesis barely had time to act before the creature was on its feet once more, standing only a few feet from him. It lashed out, nailing Nemesis in the side of the head with its fist. 

Nemesis went flying, bouncing across the ground before finally coming to a stop near Jason and Slash. 

He slowly rolled to his feet to recover, but the creature didn’t give him a chance to do it. He sprinted at Nemesis, who only had enough time to dig his feet into the ground before it hit him again, though this time Nemesis had braced himself. 

Nemesis growled, his eye flaring red before he grabbed the thing’s leg, twirled, and threw it. it sailed quite a distance before the sound of something crashing far off could be heard.

“Friend of yours?” Jason asked, getting to his feet, holding his arm.

No friend. nemesis growled again, grabbing his launcher. it calls itself Majora. Some...acquaintances of mine back home made it to kill me. It adapts to whatever hits it, it’s basically my natural predator.

“I see... “ Jason said before smirking. “I got... an idea... “ he shook his head, looking pale. “Omnitrix, Ghostfreak,” he command, shifting into the spectre.

Nemesis looked at him in bewilderment before Majora emerged from the treelines. This time he was covered head to toe in a thick, metallic substance. He made a whirring sound upon spying them and began to walk towards them, clearly in no hurry.

I’d love to hear it, whatever it is! Nemesis shot a rocket at Majora, who reeled his arm back and smacked the missile out of the air. it spiraled to the side and exploded in the sky. 

Jason flew forward, phasing into Majura, possessing it. “Now!” he shouted in it’s voice. “I’ve suppressed it’s adaption ability!”

Sorry about this! Nemesis called to Jason as he unhinged his gatling gun. he began to fire rounds into Majora, who began to twitch and spasm violently. 

“M-malfunction...” Majora droned as it tried to force Jason out. 

Nemesis roared and charged, smashing a fist into Majora’s stomach, who buckled over. Nemesis brought another fist up and sent Majora into the air, before launching a tentacle and bringing him back into the ground, where he began to violently smash him into the ground repeatedly.

“Just finish it already!” Jason shouted, feeling the pain surge through Majora and into himself.

Nemesis complied, reeling in Majora to smash another fist into his face and send him sprawling. Nemesis unhinged his rocket launcher, pointing it directly at Majora’s body. Jason, get out now! He pulled the trigger, and the sound akin to a jet taking off could be heard as the missile made its way towards its mark.

Jason waited until the last possible moment, flying out of Majora just as the missile hit. “Think.... that got him?” Jason asked, reverting to normal.

After a brilliant explosion, Nemesis waited. He watched the area of smoke and flame, and slowly a figure started stumbling out of the carnage.

Wait... Nemesis warned.

As Majora stumbled towards them, he was obviously hurting. He was limping heavily, his skin caught on fire as he continually shifted into different forms of himself, and parts of his skin and body were missing.

“M-malfunction...” he droned again as he fell to his knees. “Primary objective... must...” he continued to try and make his way towards them on his knees, but he fell forward, flat on his face, and did not move anymore.

“Think it’s dead?” Jason asked, wincing as Slash used changeling goo to stop his bleeding.

Nemesis glared at the body for a moment more before he growled and kicked it, sending it smashing into a tree with a crunch. Hopefully it is now. Nemesis stared after the body before he turned and began to make his way towards the center of the orchard. I need to leave.

“Hey man... I-I’m sorry,” Jason said, walking with him.

You have nothing to be sorry for. Nemesis said as he picked up his weapons. They followed me here. They put someone else’s family in danger, I put someone else’s family in danger, I can’t do that. Not again.

“If I had been stronger, you wouldn’t have needed to turn back into a monster,” Jason said, staring at the ground.

It’s not your fault. Don’t blame yourself for what can’t be helped, I knew I would need to return to being the actual Nemesis again sooner or later. My Equestria needs him still. Nemesis was still latching weapons onto himself. 

“Still...” Jason looked at him, trying to argue with him.

Nemesis pulled on his Genji Gloves, then turned and put a hand on Jason’s shoulder. For what it’s worth, I enjoyed the hell out of the time I spent here. Once my Equestria’s dealt with, we really should grab a drink again. You have an amazing family, he gestured to Applejack and Big Macintosh as they began to rouse out of their unconscious states. Protect them, and protect that girlfriend of yours too. Nemesis grinned. 

“Yeah I will,” Jason said, nodding. “You stay safe ok?”

Can’t make any promises, but I’ll try. I have a queen to talk to once I get home. Nemesis threw him a vial. Hold that in your hand, and say ‘Nemesis, our contract has concluded’. Then it’s yours to keep, in case you need me again.

“You got it,” Jason said, holding it up, “Nemesis, our contract has concluded,”

Right on cue, a portal opened behind nemesis and he glanced back at it. So long, Jason, Slash. Let everyone else, especially Pinkie, know I said thank you. Sincerely.

Nemesis turned and marched through the portal. He was quickly engulfed in a blue light, and vanished as the portal closed behind him.

“Hey Jason, that thing’s body is gone,” Slash called with a frown, standing at the spot where Majora’s body had been. “Jason?” he asked, turning just in time to see Jason collapse to the ground with a thud.
> Getting To Know Yourselves
> --------------------------------------------------------------------------

“I need help!” Slash shouted as he ran into the hospital, carrying Jason on his back. Applejack galloped in after him, her eyes wide.

“What happened?” a nurse asked, rushing over to them to examine Jason.

“We were attacked by some kind of creature! It did something to him!” Applejack explained, watching as the doctors moved him onto a gurney.

Before the doctor could respond, the Omnitrix pulsed, sending a surge of power through Jason. His veins glowed green, his body convulsing. 

“Strap him down!” the doctor ordered, holding Jason still with his magic, “What is that thing doing to him?” Before he could answer, the Omnitrix chirped. “Omnitrix has detected mutagenic virus infecting user. Omnitrix is repairing genetic damage done to user and suppressing virus.” 

“So... i-is he going to be ok?” Applejack asked with tears in her eyes, looking at the Omnitrix. 

“User’s immune system is also being boosted by this unit. Chances of survival are high,”

Applejack let out a sigh of relief, watching as the doctors moved Jason into a room. 

“Come on Applejack, let’s go tell everypony else,” Slash said, leading the exhausted mare out of the hospital. 

****

Jason groaned as he came to, getting to his feet. “Where the hell am I?” he asked as he looked around, rather confused. All around him was blackness, yet somehow he was on solid ground. “Am I... in Hel?”

“No Jason,” his own voice responded. “You are not in Hel. You’re very much alive.”

“Who the hell are you?”Jason asked, spinning around. He stopped, freezing when he saw himself. Well, not exactly himself. This version was clean shaven and wearing a nice white suit.

“Well, seeing as how you’re Jason, call me... Hughes,” the copy said, nodding his head. “Yes, Hughes will do quite nicely.”

“Ok Hughes, please enlighten me, where the fuck am I?” Jason asked and crossed his arms, thoroughly unamused with the situation.

“Well currently you're in a coma, brought on by the T-virus that Majura infected you with,” Hughes smiled, watching as a look of horror took over Jason’s face. “No need to worry Jason, the Omnitrix is keeping you alive.”

“So what... you’re some kinda hallucination?” Jason asked, tilting his head to the side in confusion

“Close, but wrong,” Hughes said, walking closer to him. “Normally, you would only see me when you go Alien X, but the coma was a good enough excuse for us to meet.”


Jason just stared at him before sighing. “Well... you're better than those two floating faces. Can I, I don’t know, get a chair? I’d rather not spend my coma standing up.”

“Jason, we’re in your mind, we don’t need chairs,” Hughes said, looking at Jason like he was talking to a child.

“Humor me,” Jason said, giving his doppelganger an unamused look. 

“Just focus on making a chair appear, it’s not that hard,” Hughes said, gesturing with his hand. “Even someone like you should be able to manage that.”

“Great, my own mind is insulting me,” Jason said, rubbing the bridge of his nose. “That certainly speaks volumes about my mental health.” He closed his eyes, conjuring up the sitting room of a mansion. “Ah, much better!” he plopped down on a couch, letting out a sigh. “So, what do we do now?”

“We could do an endless amount of things until you wake up, though I doubt you could come up with more than ten,” Hughes said, taking a seat in one of the chairs and crossing his legs.

“Seriously, stop insulting me,” Jason said, glaring at him.  Hughes was about to respond when Hodgepodge appeared, drinking a can of root beer.

“What? You started the party without me?” Hodgepodge asked, letting out a burp and devouring the can like a goat would.

“Why are you here?” Hughes asked, a look of annoyance on his face, “This is between me and Jason!”

“I’m a pure manifestation of chaos,” Hodgepodge responded, reclining in a pool chair. “Make me leave.” 

Jason sighed to himself, shaking his head. “I knew this place was going to make me crazy...” He magicked up a bottle of whiskey, downing it as he listened to the two bicker back and forth.

****

Fluttershy hummed to herself as she fed the various animals around her cottage, exchanging greetings with them. She was about to answer when a loud snarl caught her attention. Her newest arrival, a strange rocky dog creature, was currently growling at a fox, trying to steal its meal.

“Now that isn’t very nice,” Fluttershy said, getting between the two. “There is plenty of food to go around,” she said, making sure that the fox got his meal. 

The creature snarled at her, looking like it was getting ready to pounce. 

“Oh my, they didn’t feed you?” Fluttershy gasped, pulling the surprised beast into a hug. “Come on, let’s get you something to eat.” She let go of the creature, leading it into her cottage. “I have some fish, if thats ok with you.” With a quick nod from the canine, Fluttershy retrieved a fish and offered it to the creature.

It took the fish, starting to wolf it down. Once finished, it licked its lips, letting out a contented trill. 

“Oh my, you were hungry,” Fluttershy said, blinking. “Oh um... can I ask what your name is?”

The creature growled, sitting on its haunches.

“Zed, I like that name,” Fluttershy smiled, grabbing a dog bowl and filling it with water. She placed it in front of Zed, smiling as she started to lap it up. “What are you going to do now?”

Zed paused for a moment before giving her version of a shrug.

“Well, I could help you find a new owner,” Fluttershy offered with a smile. “I take care of all the animals here in Ponyville, and that includes helping them find good homes.”

Zed tilted her head, letting out a short growl.

“Oh well... my friends and I already have pets, but I had somepony in mind already,” she said, giving Zed a smile. “I was thinking you’d be a great match for Jason,”

Zed stiffened up, letting out a loud growl.

“Now, now, it was just a suggestion,” Fluttershy said with a calm even tone, “You two have a lot in– eep!” she squeaked out as Zed pounced on her, knocking her to the side – only for a spear to slam into the floor where she had been standing a second before.

“W-what?” Fluttershy muttered out, vaguely aware as Zed moved off of her, assuming a protective stance in front of the timid pegasus.

“Well, looks like you were right,” an armored pony spoke, stepping inside the cottage. “Come on beastie, the king wants his prized pet back.” Several other ponies walked in, holding various weapons.

Zed growled, baring her fangs at them.

“Now beastie, we can do this the easy way or the hard way,” the lead knight said, taking a step forward.

Zed stood her ground. The Nemetrix activated, transforming her into a large, red furred, saber toothed cat. She grabbed Fluttershy’s tail and tossed her onto her back with a squeak before barreling through the knights and out the door.

“After them!” one of the knights shouted, chasing them into town.

***
“I think we should give all your Equestrian forms celebrity names,” Hodgepodge said, currently eating the pages of a People magazine like one would eat a bag of chips.

“Why?” Jason asked, tilting his head. It was hard to tell how long he had been in his weird head-space, time seemed to be non-existent here.

“Why not? I already have the voice of Christopher Walken.”

“Why do you have the voice of Christopher Walken?” Hughes asked, crossing his arms as he looked at the annoying creature.

“I dunno, I just do,” Hodgepodge said, shrugging his shoulders. 

“How long have we been here?” Jason asked, sitting up from his couch. “I really, really, really don’t want to deal with you idiots anymore.”

“How rude!” Hodgepodge said, looking offended. “And I’ve taken time out of my busy schedule to keep you company and you just insult me. For shame Jason!”

“Oh shut up!” Jason shouted, tossing the couch at him, only for it to go through him.

“Jason...” Chrysalis’s voice slowly drifted through the endless void. “Jason please, you have to wake up!”

“Well, thats your cue kid!” Hodgepodge said, floating over to him, “Now you be careful out there, don’t get killed and make sure you give Chrysalis a big kiss for me!” he ordered before grabbing Jason and tossing him up into the air.

Jason groaned as he opened his eyes, his vision focusing on a very relieved Chrysalis.  “Hey babe... whats up?”

“Oh thank Faust!” Chrysalis shouted, pulling him into a tight hug. “I thought you were never. going to wake up.”

“Hey uh, Chrissy,” Jason started, frowning a little. “Why are we in the hive?”

“It wasn’t safe there anymore,” she said looking away, “We had to bring everypony here when we evacuated the town.”

“Wait what!” He looked at her, shock evident on his face. “Why the hell did you evacuate Ponyville!?”

“Those knights that attacked you,” Chrysalis looked back at him, a worried look on her muzzle, “They launched a full scale rebellion several days ago. I managed to get you and the town into the hive before anypony could get hurt.”

Jason just stared at her, shaking his head. This wasn’t happening, it just couldn’t be.
> The Forever Knight Rebellion part 1
> --------------------------------------------------------------------------

                             -Several Days earlier-

Fluttershy hung on for dear life as Zed tore down the path towards Ponyville. The young pegasus could swear that she heard her heart beating in her ears. Behind them, the group of armored ponies galloped in an effort to catch up with them, though Zed seemed to be able to stay ahead of them.

Fluttershy let out a sigh of relief as the town came into view, though she didn’t lessen her grip on Zed’s fur. “H-help!” she managed to call out, her eyes wide, voice trembling. 

“Fluttershy dear, whatever is the matter?” Discord asked, appearing next to her, keeping pace with Zed easily. “So ponies giving you trouble, eh?” he asked looking over his shoulder. The commotion had drawn quite the concerned crowd, the townsponies  murmuring amongst themselves. 

Zed slowed herself, turning to face their pursuers. She growled, baring her fangs at the knights.

“Just relax, Fuzzball,” Discord said, floating between the knights and the others, “I’ll take care of these ruffians!” he announced loudly enough for the whole town to hear. It wasn’t really that hard, just to get rid of a few troublesome ponies, but he had to play it up, if only to make up for his loss to that pretender Hodgepodge.

“I don’t believe you will,” another voice broke in, drawing everyone's attention. The speaker was a hooded pony, his face painted up like a skull.

“And just who are you, my macabre friend?” Discord asked, tilting his head to the side. There was something off about this pony – at least, that was what his instincts were screaming at him. “I don’t believe we’ve met before.”

“They call me Hex, and we are not friends,” the pony answered as he took out a small stone. “In fact, I’m more akin to a nightmare.” He grinned as the stone glowed then fired a beam of energy at Discord.

“That tickles,” Discord chuckled before his face contorted in pain, “W-what are you doing to me!?” He seized up in pain, his body feeling like it was on fire.

“I am stealing your power, Lord of Chaos.” Hex smirked as the gathered ponies looked on in horror, “We can’t have you ruining our plans. Don’t worry, we’ll put your powers to good use.” With that, Discord let out a final scream of pain, before exploding into energy, which the stone absorbed greedily.

“D-dissy...” Fluttershy squeaked out, her eyes wide and her fear utterly forgotten. “Dissy!” she screamed before bursting into tears. 

“I don’t know what you just did but you better return Discord to us!” Twilight shouted, flying out of the crowd.  “I order you, as a Princess of Equestria, to release Discord!”

“I don’t answer to you, Twilight Sparkle,” Hex snorted, glaring at her. “Though I am glad you saved me the trouble of seeking you out myself.” He channeled his magic through the stone, firing a spell at Twilight. It caught her before she could react, and both her wings and her horn vanished.

“W-what did you do to me?” Twilight asked, looking herself over, eyes wide with panic.

“I merely stripped you of the title you didn’t deserve,” Hex smirked, before getting knocked off his hooves by a blast of green magic.

“What are you waiting for?” Slash asked, jumping in front of Twilight, “Evacuate the village! Tell Chrysalis to get Jason,” he ordered, glaring at her as she just stood there, “Go!” he shouted at her. She jumped a bit, snapping out of her funk. 

“Everypony, quickly, head toward the old castle!” she commanded, pointing toward the Everfree, “It’s the only chance we have,” she turned to Rainbow Dash, who had taken to comforting Fluttershy. “Rainbow, I know  you're worried about Fluttershy but I need you to go get Chrysalis, she’s still at the hospital with Jason.”

Rainbow sighed, pulling away from the sobbing mess that was Fluttershy. “Yeah, I got ya egghead. You just stay safe, okay?” she said before taking off into the sky. Twilight turned to watch Slash fighting off a few knights before following the rest of the townsponies into the forest.





Meanwhile, at Canterlot

“Blueblood, this had best be important, I wish to get to bed,” Luna complained, gazing at her nephew, “I swear to Faust if this is about some illegitimate foal...” she snorted, hardening her gaze into a glare.

“You wound me dear aunt,” Blueblood pouted, sounding hurt, “Do you really think so low of me?”

Luna just sighed as they entered his room, though she raised her eyebrow at the purple unicorn mare that was waiting for them. 

“Greetings princess,” the mare said with a smirk on her face, “It’s so nice to meet you, I’ve been waiting for this day for a long time.”

“Who are you?” Luna asked, her instincts screaming at her to get away, though she ignored them. 

“I am Charmcaster, and I’m the last pony you're ever going to see!” the smaller mare shouted, brandishing a dagger as she lunged forward. Luna reacted too slowly, crying out in pain as the blade cut across her eye.

“You insolent whelp! You dare attack me!?” she demanded, spreading her wings out to their fullest. She charged her horn, only to have the magic dissipate as she felt a sharp pain in her flank. She looked behind her, staring dumbly at the knife sticking out of her cutie mark. Blueblood had used Charmcaster’s attack as a chance to inflict his own attack. Luna’s eyes widened as the flesh around the knife started to turn to stone.  “B-Blueblood, what have you done?” she asked, the petrification already finished with the rear half of her body.

“I am sorry dear Aunty, but you never would have given up your rule voluntarily, so we had to get you out of the way,” the prince said with a remorseful look as the petrification effect traveled up her neck. “Don’t worry, you’ll be taking Discord’s place in the castle gardens. I’m sure the little foals will love you.”

“Blueblood you trait-” Luna start only to be cut off as the transformation completely covered her.

Blueblood sighed as he looked over his handiwork, beckoning to summon some servants. “Take this to the gardens, and if so much as a single piece breaks off, so does your head!” he shouted as they moved the statue out of the room. 

“That went smoothly,” Charmcaster commented, stowing her dagger away in her bag, “We should meet up with His Majesty quickly, once I activate the mental conditioning, it won’t be long before one of the servants reports us.”

“Then let’s move,” Blueblood said, trotting out of the room with Charmcaster on his heels. It didn’t take long for them to meet up with the Forever King, his body encased in glorious, and rather intimidating, silver and black armor. His breast plate bore their order’s crest while his helmet obscured his face with a red visor, topping off the look with a pair of horns, one on either side of his own horn.

“I trust Luna has been dealt with?” the king asked, turning his attention to Blueblood and Charmcaster, “We can have no mistakes.” 

“Of course, my liege,” Charmcaster bowed, “As per your orders, Princess Luna has been petrified and is being transported to the gardens as we speak.”

“Good, then it is time, activate your spell,” the king ordered, watching with a hidden smirk as Charmcaster unleashed her spell. Throughout the castle, guards fell under her sway. In the throne room, those protecting Celestia turned on her, pointing their spears at her.

“What is the meaning of this?” Celestia demanded, filled with a mix of confusion and anger, “How would you turn your weapons upon your own princess?”

“Allow me to answer that,” the Forever King announced as he trotted into the throne room,  Blueblood and Charmcaster flanking him, with most of the rest of the castle guards following behind them, “They are currently under my control, Celestia.”

“And just who are you?” she asked as calmly as ever, carefully eyeing the crowd of ponies before her.

“I am the Forever King, and I am here to take the rule of Equestria for myself,”

“Just what makes you think you can do such a thing?”

“Currently, all other threats to my rule are gone. Twilight Sparkle has been reduced to an earth pony, Discord is destroyed, and your dear sister Luna is naught more than a statue.” the King explained, a hint of pride in his voice. “Even more, that fool Jason is in a coma, I could not ask for more success. Now, you will abdicate your throne to me, or I will order my knights to destroy the statue that is your sister.”

“You wouldn’t dare!” Celestia shouted, her eyes going wide at the mere thought.

“I would and I will, now give me the throne or Luna will die.” The king spoke with an even, cold tone, meeting Celestia’s gaze.

Celestia took a deep breath and slowly let it out. She got to her hooves, moving over to the King, prostrating herself in front of him. “I, Princess Celestia, hereby abdicate the throne of Equestria,” she touched her head to the floor in submission.

“Good,” he said, using his magic to lift the crown from her head, tossing it to the side. “Charmcaster, if you wouldn’t mind.” 

Charmcaster nodded, levitating a long pointed object out of her bag. She moved it over to Celestia, sliding it over the alicorn’s horn. Once it was on completely, it glowed for a second, causing Celestia to flinch.

“This magic suppressor was made just for you, it will allow you to summon magic to move the sun and moon but for no other purpose,” the King explained, moving past Celestia, taking his place on her throne. “Blueblood, escort Celestia to her quarters. Charmcaster, relay the order to all our forces! Equestria now belongs to the Forever King! Begin the Purge immediately!” he bellowed, reclining on his new throne. Everything had gone off without a hitch.
> The Forever Knight Rebellion part 2
> --------------------------------------------------------------------------

Trottingham was burning.  Luna gazed on in horror as dozens of armored ponies marched down the stone streets, driving any non-pony out of town, slaughtering any who refused to leave and cutting down anypony that tried to help. A whimper pulled her from her trance, making her turn toward the source.  A middle-aged griffon lay on his side, his fur stained with blood. He gazed upon her with terror filled eyes.

She silently stepped over to him, giving him her best reassuring smile. “I know it hurts, and I know how terrifying death seems, but ‘tis merely a part of life.” She laid down next to him, draping a wing over him. “Go in peace now, your just reward awaits you in paradise,” she soothed as the movement of his chest came to a stop. She closed her eyes, fighting back tears as the world around her melted away, returning her to the void of dreams.

A single day had passed and yet so many had died, needlessly so. The only time Luna had felt this helpless was when Nightmare Moon had possessed her. She opened her eyes, wiping her tears away. She had to stay strong, if she gave into the despair, Equestria would be doomed. 

She turned her attention to the dark orb that was Jason’s dreamscape, scowling at it. Why won’t you awaken?! she demanded, her eyes hardening into a glare. She had spent a good portion of the day trying to wake the sleeping human but nothing worked, something was keeping her out. Perhaps my focus is better spent elsewhere, she thought, moving away from the orb. She drifted through the void until she spotted a bright pink orb. Cadance! Of course! She moved over to it with haste, her soul filling with joy as she entered it. 

Of course, the younger alicorn was wide awake but that didn’t matter. The void around her melted away, quickly replaced by the war room. Standing around a map of Equestria were Shining Armor, Cadance and several advisors. From the sound of it, they were discussing the plight that had befallen their nation.

“Cadance!” Luna shouted, starling said alicorn rather badly.

“Aunt Luna!” Cadance said, looking at Luna with wide eyes. “Are you alright! I’ve read the reports coming out of Equestria, i-it’s barbaric!”

“Caddy?” Shining asked, looking at Cadance with a frown. “Are you ok? You're talking to thin air.”

“What are you talking about?” she asked, turning to him with a frown. “Luna is right here, can’t you see her?”

“No Cadance, he can’t,” Luna said, moving over to her niece, “I am in your dreamscape, which means only you can see me.” She walked through the table, waving her hoof in front of Shining to prove her point.

“Why didn’t you just send a letter?” Cadance asked, looking at her aunt with a pout, “Wouldn’t it have been easier than entering my dreamscape?”

“Yes, but It's rather difficult to send a letter when one has been petrified. Blueblood saw to that,” Luna said, spitting his name out like bile had risen up her gullet, which to her, had.

“Blueblood?” Cadance asked, looking and sounding rather surprised. “What did that idiot do? Let them in?” she suggested, rolling her eyes. “And wait what was that about ‘petried?”

“He betrayed us,” Luna said, shaking her head, tears threatening to spill forth, “He petrified me, so now I am limited to the dream realm, though I don’t think they had that planned.” She looked at Cadance, who was staring at her in horror, “Stay thy worry dear niece, we have a country to protect...” she said, turning to the map. “Hopefully we can still save it...”






Applejack didn’t like the hive. The walls were made up of a strange black substance, the torches gave off a sickly green light and various unnameable fluids dripped from everywhere, from all around her. That wasn’t even taking into account all the hollow-eyed drones that moved around her, completing various tasks. The drones themselves creeped her out the most, just one look at them made her skin crawl. Their shiny black bodies and pupiless eyes were just too alien for her to be comfortable around them. it didn’t help that their very nature went against not only her core values, but the very virtue she embodied. 

She pushed it out of her mind, continuing to her destination. The royal chambers, normally off limits, was now wide open. She peeked inside, curious. Laying on the bed was Jason, sleeping rather peacefully. Various machines, taken from the hospital, were hooked up to him, quietly monitoring his health.  Sitting next to his bed was Chrysalis, who AJ guessed hadn’t slept at all last night, if her drooping eyes were anything to go by.

“How’s he doin’?” she asked, startling the sleeping queen.

“Oh...” Chrysalis said, turning to her and trying to focus her eyes, “Its just you... Jason’s doing fine by the way.”

“Look, why don’t ya go get some sleep?  Ah’ll keep Jay company,” AJ said, walking over to the bed. “Ya look like yer ‘bout to collapse.”

“No... I’m okay,” Chrysalis argued, shaking her head, “Jason needs me...”

“What he needs is his fillyfriend getting some sleep,” Applejack argued, giving her a serious look. “Just get some sleep ok? Ah got him.”

“Ok... fine...” she said as she got up, wobbling a little. She gave Jason a nuzzle before stumbling outward the door. She ordered some drones to help her to a spare room, in case she passed out on the way there.

“Ya got yerself one heck of fillyfriend Jay,” Applejack said with a chuckle, taking the now vacant seat to get a better look at the sleeping human. His face had lost it’s deathly pale color, and he was no longer thrashing about. Every so often, the Omnitrix would send a pulse through his veins, though it was neither as powerful or as often as it was before. She smiled, fluffing his pillow for him. “Ya’ll just get better Jay, Faust knows we need ya.”

A soft noise caught her attention, and she turned, spotting a very downtrodden Twilight at the door. “Twi? Ya’ll ok?” she asked, her thoughts turning to worry for her friend.

“No I’m not ok AJ... I’m useless...” the former alicorn whimpered, hanging her head. 

“Now what in tarnation are ya talkin’ bout Twi?” Applejack asked, looking at her, “Ya’ll are not useless.”

“Yes I am!” Twilight shouted, starting to cry, “They took everything away from me! M-my magic! My wings! I’m just... a useless earth pony...” Twilight sobbed quietly, her tears dripping onto the floor, the once proud princess now looking rather pathetic.

“Are ya sayin’ that earth ponies are useless?” Applejack asked, giving Twilight an unamused look.

“N-No!” Twilight said, looking up at Applejack, though the orange mare just ignored her. Applejack moved to the door, stopping a passing drone.

“You!” she shouted, causing it to look at her.

“Umm... yes?” it asked, tilting its head. “Is there something you need miss?”

“Go get me some dirt!” Applejack ordered, “And a pot!”

“Dirt? Why do you want dirt?”

“Jus do it!” she shouted, getting into his face.

“Y-yes ma’am!” it backpedaled, before racing down the hall, not wanting to face her wrath. It came back with a jar of dirt, passing it off to her, “T-there you go ma’am.”

“Good, now get!” she ordered, pointing a hoof down the hall. Needing no further incentive, the drone raced down the corridor and out of sight. Applejack went back into the room, moving over to a rather curious Twilight.

“W-what do you have Applejack?” the purple mare asked, wiping at her eyes.

“Ah got a jar of dirt,” Applejack said, sitting down, placing the jar between them. She popped the lid, exposing the captured earth to the world.

“Why do you have a jar of dirt?” Twilight asked, looking at her like she was crazy.

“Ah’m gonna teach ya somethin’,” Applejack responded. Reaching under her hat, she pulled out a small bag. “Take this,” she said, passing it off to Twilight.

“Um... Applejack?” Twilight asked, looking into the bag. “Why do you carry around a bag of apple seeds?”

“Don’t ya worry none ‘bout that,” Applejack said rather dismissively,” Now take one of those seeds and put it the dirt.” she directed, looking at her.

“Ok,” Twilight said, doing so.

“Now, as you plant it, focus on the seed, let your mind open, feel the soil in your hooves,” Applejack instructed, “Do ya feel it?”

“I think so...” Twilight said, frowning a little, “Umm... is it supposed to do something?”

“There ain’t no ‘I think so’!” Applejack said, causing Twilight to flinch, “Now, focus, put yer hooves into the dirt and feel it. Feel the soil, let it talk to ya, listen to the seed. What's it tell ya?”

Twilight focused on the seed before her eyes went wide. “I-t wants water.” she said, rather surprised. 

“Good, give it some,” Applejack gestured toward the cup of water on the nightstand. Twilight nodded, using it to give the seed some water. “Now cover the seed up, and put a little bit of yerself into the seed.”

“Ok...” Twilight said, covering the seed up with some dirt. She focused her mind on the seed until she felt a tiny bit of herself pull away. She stared in awe as the dirt shifted a little, a small seedling growing before her eyes. “I-I did that?”

“Yeah ya did Twi,” Applejack said with a smile. “Ya ain’t useless Twi and ya still got magic, ya just gotta use it the earth pony way. Ah mean, it ain’t all flashy like yer unicorn magic but it’s still magic.” She paused for a second, collecting her thoughts, “Ya’ll just forgot that ya got pegasus and earth pony magic when ya became a princess, they didn’t take it all from ya.”

Twilight returned the smile, giving her friend a hug, “Thanks AJ... I really needed this...”

“Yer welcome Twi,” Applejack replied, returning the hug, “Ya just needed some encouragement. Now, we got some scared ponies who could use a princess, ya up for it?”

“Of course I am AJ.” Twilight got to her hooves, now with a determined look in her eyes, “Wings and horn don’t make me who I am, I decide who I am.” She quickly galloped out of the room.

“Ya got that right Twi,” Applejack chuckled, placing the jar on the night stand, making sure Jason was comfortable.





“What have you done!?” Blueblood demanded, trotting into the throne room with a look of anger etched onto his muzzle. 

“What are you on about Blueblood?” the king asked, having replaced his helmet with a platinum crown, with several gorgeous rubies set into it, “Come to complain about the color of my tapestries or something like that?”

“You know what I’m talking about!”

“Actually, I don’t, so please, tell me what's got you so upset, or are you just going to keep playing word games with me?” the king asked, raising his eyebrow.

“You’re slaughtering citizens! T-this is barbaric!” Blueblood shouted, glaring as hard as he could at the impassive monarch, “This is beyond even what Sombra did to the empire!”

“Oh please Blueblood, you knew what you were getting into when you decided to back me,” the king said with a snort, “Or are you as stupid as the servant ponies say you are?”

“You said you’d remove Luna and Celestia from power, not commit genocide! I-I won’t stand for this!” Blueblood shouted, brandishing a dagger and making a mad dash for the throne. The king just rolled his eyes, firing off a spell at the enraged prince. Blueblood let out a scream of pain as his body contorted, shifting under the guidance of the spell.

“W-what did you do to me?” Blueblood asked, gasping at the higher pitch of his voice. He crossed his eyes, trying to look at his nose, to see if it was shorter now.

“What's it look like?” the king asked, moving over to her, lifting her head up with his hoof, “I made your body match your mind,” he smirked, looking her over, “now, princess, try that again, and I’ll let my knights have their way with that sexy little flank of yours, understand?”

Blueblood just nodded, her eyes wide and full of fear.

“Good, now get out of my sight, before I decide to take you myself!” he ordered, pushing her away. She scrambled to her hooves, galloping out of the room as fast as her legs would take her. He just shook his head, returning to the throne, “What an idiot.” He got comfortable, clearing his throat, “Charmcaster!” 

A moment later, she walked into the room. Bowing, she asked, “Yes, your highness?”

“How goes the purge?” he asked, reclining on his throne.

“One moment,” she said, levitating a scroll out of her bag. She unfurled it, scanning it quickly, “Trottingham is currently burning, a knight got rather stupid with a torch, Baltimare is taking longer than we thought. Cloudsdale is currently out of our reach, with the Wonderbolts putting up one hell of a defense. Rainbow Falls fell rather quickly, as did Dodge Junction. We’re uh... still moving toward Appleloosa, place is way out of the way.”

“What of Ponyville and the Crystal Empire?”

“The empire closed its borders rather quickly, no surprise there. As for Ponyville, they evacuated to the Everfree castle after my uncle took care of Discord.”

“Send a message to Hex, to convey to Twilight, I want Jason before me by the end of the week, or Celestia dies.” the king ordered, watching as she scribbled on a scroll, sending it to her uncle via magic.

“Good, you may go,” he said, watching her rear as she left. He relaxed, debating on the pros and cons of taking her as a concubine.





“Stop,” Hex ordered, holding up a hoof. At his order, the unicorns ceased their lightning spells, giving the changeling a brief respite. He picked up the scroll that he had received. “Looks like the king has finally decided to do something about the hive,” he said with a chuckle. “Animo.”

“Yes?” an earth pony with a sickly yellow coat asked, looking up from some machinery. He had a  cutie mark composed of two horns crossed over a brain and an artificial horn jutting from his head. His eyes were hidden by a pair of red tinted goggles. “You got orders?”

“Yes, he wants me to tell them to bring Jason to Canterlot or he’ll kill Celestia,” Hex said, crumpling the scroll up and tossing it into the trash. “You’re in charge until I get back, and no mutations.”

Animo sighed, shaking his head, “As you wish Hex,” he said, turning to the changeling as Hex walked out of the building, “Now, Slash, are you going to tell us what we want to know?” 

Slash just growled and spat in his face. 

“Give him another shock,” Animo ordered as he wiped his goggles off, ignoring the screams of pain that emanated from the changeling.





Chrysalis sat quietly by Jason’s bed, watching him sleep. Since the day before, she and Applejack had been taking shifts watching over Jason. Her current shift had only started a few minutes ago and all she could think was what that unicorn had told them yesterday.

“Jason,” she said, reaching out and stroking his cheek gently, “Jason, please, you have to wake up!”

As if on cue, he let out a groan, opening his eyes. He blinked a few times, looking at her. “Hey babe... what's up?” he asked drowsily. 

“Oh thank Faust!” Chrysalis shouted, pulling him into a tight hug. “I thought you were never going to wake up!”

“Hey uh, Chrissy,” Jason started, taking a look around. He frowned, looking at her, “Why are we in the hive?”

“It wasn’t safe there anymore,” she said looking away, “We had to bring everypony here when we evacuated the town.”

“Wait, what!” He looked at her, shock evident on his face. “Why the hell did you evacuate Ponyville!?”

“Those knights that attacked you,” Chrysalis looked back at him, a worried look on her muzzle, “They launched a full scale rebellion several days ago. I managed to get you and the town into the hive before anypony could get hurt.”

Jason just stared at her dumbly. “N-no way...”

“I’m afraid it has... their king wants you in Canterlot in a few days... or... he says he’ll kill Celestia...”

Jason just stared at her for a for moments longer before throwing his head back. “Fuck!!!!” he shouted, his voice reverberating through the hive for all to hear.
> The Forever Knight Rebellion part 3
> --------------------------------------------------------------------------

“Jason you have to take it slowly,” Chrysalis tried to reason, only for him to wave her off.

“I ain’t taking nothing slow,” he snarled, ripping the IV from his arm. He winced a little but shook it off, “Those fucks want to mess with Equestria, I’ll lay the fuck smack on them.”  He got out of bed, stumbling a little before faceplanting hard on the floor.

“Are you alright?” Chrysalis asked, rushing to his side. “I told you to take it slowly,” she chastised, sighing a little.

“Yeah, I’m fine,” Jason groaned, rolling onto his back. “Just help me up will ya?” Chrysalis just chuckled and lowered her head. He grabbed onto it and she raised her head back up, helping him to his feet. 

“Let’s get you to the others, they were pretty worried about you,” she said, nuzzling his cheek. She moved slowly out of the room, letting the human lean on her as he got his legs back under control.

“I got a better idea,” Jason said, stopping a drone. “You, go tell the Elements to come to the meeting room ASAP.”

“Do it,” Chrysalis added, to which the drone nodded, galloping off to complete the task. She walked him into the meeting room, depositing him in the second throne she had made for him.

“God I’m sore...” he complained as he rubbed his neck, trying to un-kink it. “How long was I out for?”

“About three days,” Chrysalis said, getting comfortable. “All of them spent here.” She looked at him with a smile, “I’m glad you’re awake, I was really worried that you wouldn’t wake up.”

“A little virus ain’t gonna keep me away from you guys,” he said just as the Elements rushed in. Well, most of them. Fluttershy hung back, staring at the floor blankly. Following behind them was what looked like a zebra and Driba and Blukic, who buzzed over, sitting on his shoulders.

“Jay, you're awake!” Pinkie shouted, bouncing up and down, “This calls for an ‘I’m so happy you're out of your coma’ party!”

“Later Pinkie,” he said, shaking his head. “We have to fix this mess first.” He stopped to stare at Twilight, “Twilight... what happened to you?”

“We’ll explain it all at once Jason,” she assured him, walking to a empty seat.

He shook his head, turning to the zebra, “I don’t think we’ve met, I’m Jason.”

“Jason, this is our friend Zecora, she’s an expert at making potions who lives here in the Everfree,” Twilight said as she and the others took their seats, “I’m not surprised you haven’t met her yet.”

“It is always nice to meet someone new, even with the harsh times we are going through,” she said, giving him a smile.

“Uncatalogued DNA detected,” the Omnitrix chirped, scanning the rather bemused Zecora.
“Yeah it does that,” Jason said, shrugging a little. “Ok, so lets get this little pow wow started shall we?”

“Not without me you won’t,” Discord’s voice cut in, causing all present to freeze. They all turned their heads to spot Angel Bunny in the doorway. The thing that surprised them the most was that his eyes were yellow with red irises. “What?” he asked, staring at them, “Haven’t you ever seen a rabbit before?”

“D-dissy?” Fluttershy asked meekly before bolting out of her seat, pulling the startled rabbit into a bone crushing hug, “Oh Dissy! I thought you were dead!”

“I will be if you don’t ease up!” he wheezed out, trying to escape her grasp.

“Oh!” she said, letting him go. “I hope I didn’t hurt you.” She wiped the tears of joy out of her eyes, “What... what about Angel?”

“He’s still in here, he’s not really happy with me renting out his body,” Discord said, brushing himself off. “It’s giving me a headache...” he frowned, rubbing his head.

“Ok, so can we start now?” Jason asked, watching as Fluttershy sat back down, Discord held in her lap. “Ok good... now please tell me what I’ve missed in the past three days.” He sat back, listening to each of them. As the explanations wore on, he clenched his fists harder and harder, even hard enough for his nails to draw blood. “So basically they’ve screwed us all over?”

“It does look rather dire, dear...” Rarity admitted, looking at them. “What do we do?”

“First off, we free Luna,” Jason said, sitting up. “You two idiots can make yourselves useful,” he said, glaring at the breezies.

“Wait, us?” Driba asked, looking rather shocked, “What could we possibly do?”

“You’re small, the knights don’t know about you and you’re hard to spot,” Jason started, “You guys sneak the cure in to Luna and free her, which helps us take down the knights.”

“You want us to sneak into Forever Knight territory?!” Driba asked, getting into his face. 

“Yes I do, you're the only ones who can do this... that is assuming Zecora has a cure for petrification?” Jason asked, looking toward her.

“A vial or two will do, to make the princess as good as new.” Zecora said, reaching into her saddlebags and producing two vials small enough for the breezies to carry. 

“Ok good,” Jason said, passing them toward the breezies. “One word of advice guys, if most ponies, except maybe pegasi, are like most people I knew, they’ll have a tendency to not look up. Twilight, Dash, AJ and I will go to Canterlot, while Blukic and Driba go free Luna.” He turned to the other half of the Elements. “I want you three to go into Ponyville and find Slash.”

“What about Zed?” Fluttershy asked, causing Jason to blink. 

“I forgot about her, would she be willing to help, Fluttershy?”

“Oh yes, she didn’t really like her last owner. He didn’t feed her.”

“Alright, take her with you just in cas-” Jason didn’t finish as a loud crash filled the air. Fearing the worst, the assembled group rushed out, racing toward the throne room. Once there they discovered Gilda, laying in a pool of blood, having crashed through one of the few remaining windows.

“Gilda!” Dash screamed, bolting over to the prone griffon. “N-no, you’re ok, you’re ok!” she stuttered, tears streaking down her muzzle.

“Get her to the doctors now!” Chrysalis shouted to the nearby guards. They nodded, levitating the wounded griffon up in their magic, rushing off to the medical wing.

“Dash... I... you should stay with her.” Jason started, only to get cut off by the look of rage on her face.

“Let’s go,” she said simply, walking out of the room, leaving the rest of them in shock.

Jason was the first to snap out of it, shaking his head. “Ok, we all know our jobs let’s get them done,” he said, starting to follow Dash.

“Be safe love.” Chrysalis called out to which Jason smirked.

“Me safe? You got it Chrissy.” he said, giving her the thumbs up before vanishing out of sight.



“It sure is quiet...” Pinkie said as she, Rarity, Fluttershy and Zed walked into Ponyville. The normally lively town was dead quiet, with only the occasional house or animal noise to break it. 

“Lets stay focused Pinkie dear, who knows what they did with Slash, poor thing.” Rarity said, looking around. “Any idea where he could be?”

“Oh! Twitcha twitch!” Pinkie shouted, looking back at her tail. “And itchy hoof? That means one of our friends is at Sweet Apple Acres!!”

“Oh my, we should go help him, if that’s ok with you girls.” Fluttershy said quietly, rather afraid that one of them would get hurt.

“Well then we shan’t leave him in the hooves of those cretins any longer!” Rarity declared with a determined shout, dashing off to the farm with Pinkie on her heels.

“Ok Zed... let’s get going.” Fluttershy said to the Baskurr before following after her friends, Zed close behind her. 

Like the rest of Ponyville, the farm was dead quiet, this time broken by the rustling of tree leaves.

“I think the best place to look is the barn, they'd have the most space there...” Rarity said as she approached the barn. 

“So you finally decided to crawl out of your hole,” a stallion’s voice cut in causing them all to freeze and look in his direction. Standing next to an apple tree was a sickly yellow stallion with a metal horn and red tinted goggles

“You’re one of those meanie knights aren’t you?!” Pinkie accused, pointing her hoof at him.

“Me? One of those idiots?” he asked, letting out a laugh. “Truth be told, I’m not really loyal to their cause. I only joined their rebellion because I was promised the ability to do my research in peace.”

“Research?” Rarity asked, frowning a little  ”What kind of research?”

“I’m so glad you asked, allow me to show you,” he said, letting out a whistle. The assembled mares all watched in horror as a gigantic fruit bat rose up from the trees, screeching at them. “Get them!” he ordered, at which point the bat dive-bombed at them.



“Ugh, we’re finally here,” Driba said as they reached Canterlot castle. It wasn’t a very long flight, being so small meant that the wind carried you farther faster. “This thing is heavy.”

“Lets hurry and free the princess before one of those knights sees us,” Blukic said, flittering toward the gardens.

“Please, most terrestrial organisms don’t look up, we’ll be fine,” Driba said waving him off. They came to the gardens. “Um... do we know which one is the princess?”

“Well, she is an alicorn, can’t be that hard to find.” Blukic said, looking around. After about a half hour of searching they stumbled across the correct statue.

“Are you sure this is her?” Driba asked, flying around the statue.

“Well she’s got a knife sticking out of her butt, I figure this has to be her.” Blukic said, pointing at said knife. 

“Alright let’s use these stupid vials already.” Driba said, tossing the vial at Luna, giving a satisfied smirk as the vial shattered on impact. Blukic did the same, the stone starting to fizzle at the impact sites. “Yes! We did- no!!” he shouted and covered his eyes as the statue fell off its pedestal. “Please tell me we didn’t break her!”

“Looks like we chipped her tail,” Blukic said, looking over the statue. 

“Oh thats a relief,” Driba said, watching as the stone fractured and exploded outward as the princess freed herself.

“By Faust! I am free! But how...?” she asked, getting to her feet, stretching out her wings.

“That would be us!” Driba said as he and Blukic flew up into her sight. She just watched as they chattered away.

“It seems my little friends that I have you to thank for my freedom, though I fear I cannot understand you,” she said, giving the two of them a gentle pat on the head. “Now we must be off before they catch us,” she said, levitating them into her mane as she trotted over to the wall. She pressed a brick in, causing part of the wall to slide up. “Stay with me little ones, ‘tis easy to get lost in the passages,” she said, stepping into the tunnel and using her magic to close it behind her.



“I ever tell you guys I hate walking?” Jason asked as they walked along the train tracks. Dash was up ahead, not going too fast but also not slowing down for them either.

“Well maybe if you weren’t wearing all that armor we’d be moving faster,”  Twilight teased, trying to lighten the mood.

“Ah thought you said we had ta’ give those two time t’ free Luna?” Applejack asked, raising her eyebrow.

“Of course we do. I mean I could turn into XLR8 or Fastrack, but I need to save all of the Omnitrix’s power for when we get there.” Jason said sighing a little. “Though how much longer do we have to go?”

“Well... we should be there by midday tomorrow, at the rate we’re going,” Twilight said looking up at him. 

“Yeah... screw that,”Jason said, stopping in his tracks. “Omnitrix, Fastrack!” he shifted into a black and blue cat creature. Before either could protest, he reached down and scooped the mares up, speeding along the tracks. “Try to keep up Dash!” he called as he passed.

Dash just snorted, speeding up, staying on his heels as they raced to Canterlot.



The girls screamed as the bat dived at them, fearing the worst. Zed let out a challenging growl, leaping at the bat. Mid-jump, she shifted into a large white scaled lizard, slamming into the opposing creature. The two beasts tumbled to the ground, knocking over several trees.

“What did you do to that poor creature!?” Fluttershy demanded her eyes burning with rage.

“I made it better than it was!” the stallion snorted, “It’s bleeding hearts like you that shut down my research in the first place!”

“You're just a big meanie!” Pinkie shouted, her face twisted into a look of anger. 

Zed let out a whine of pain as the bat dug its claws into her side, tossing her over the ponies and into the house, destroying the porch and part of the front wall.

“Zed!” Fluttershy shouted, looking at the prone creature in horror. “Y-you monster!” she said, glaring at the bat, starting to use her stare.

“Wait, Fluttershy don’t!” Pinkie shouted, though it was too late. Fluttershy screamed in pain, starting to backpedal, shaking her head.

“As much as I would like to see you all dead, I have better things to do,” the stallion said, climbing on the bat’s back. “I suppose we’ll meet again,” he said as the bat spread its wings, flying out of sight.

“Pinkie, dear? What's wrong with Fluttershy?” Rarity asked, looking at their friend with concern.

“Umm... she may be turning into Flutterbat again...” Pinkie said in a low voice.

“What!?”

“N-no, I-I’m ok.” Fluttershy said, taking a few deep breaths. “Ok... let’s go check on Zed....”

“Fluttershy... y-you look...”

“Zed’s more important.” she said firmly, trotting over to the wounded animal, which had reverted back to normal. “I’ll tend to her wounds, you two go find Slash.” she said, turning her full attention to Zed.

“Well... you heard the lady Pinkie, lets get to looking.” Rarity said, pulling Pinkie along with her magic. 

“I hope Slash is ok...” Pinkie said, pushing the barn doors open. Both mares gasped, staring on in horror. Strapped to a table was Slash, parts of his armor had been removed with the exposed flesh having been burned. He was laying limp, his barely rising chest the only sign that he was alive. 

“Pinkie, we have to get him to the doctors!” Rarity shouted, rushing over to the changeling and quickly undoing the straps. Once he was free, she lifted him up in her magic. “You stay with Fluttershy!” she ordered as she galloped out of the barn, not caring if she got herself dirty at this point. Pinkie sat back on her haunches and saluted as Rarity ran off.



Celestia sighed as she tossed the book she had been attempting, and failing, to read against the wall. It was hard to concentrate when your subjects were suffering.  “What am I supposed to do...?” she asked, a few tears escaping her eyes. 

Suddenly the far wall opened up and out stepped Luna, free of her petrification.

“L-Luna?” Celestia asked in surprise, staring at her in shock.

“Yes ‘tis I sister, I was freed with some help,” Luna said, letting the breezies out of her mane. “I’m not sure who sent them, I cannot understand them for the life of me.”

“I’m sorry, I haven’t studied breezie language to know a translation spell,” Celestia said, snapping out of her funk. “Luna... what’s with your tail?”

“Hmm?” Luna asked, looking at her tail. There was a piece of it missing, causing it to flow oddly. “‘Tis strange. It must have come off when I broke free,” she said with a shrug, not noticing the look of relief on the breezies’ muzzles.

“We have to hurry Luna, get this magic inhibitor off me,” Celestia said, getting to her hooves. Luna obliged, removing the inhibitor and dropping it to the floor. Celestia glared at it in disgust, bringing her hoof down on it and shattering it into hundreds of tiny pieces.

“We have to move quickly! They will have noticed we are free,” Luna said, pausing as the sound of combat filled the castle. “We will have to move that much quicker then,” she continued, the two of them teleporting to the throne room.



A few minutes earlier....



Jason came to a halt as they reached Canterlot castle, placing the two disoriented mares on the ground. He tapped the Omnitrix, reverting to human. “Ok... let’s go.” he said, pulling his sword out of his hypercube. “You guys ready for this?” he asked, turning to look at the ponies as Dash joined them.

“Ready as we’ll ever be,” Applejack said, adjusting her hat. There was a determined look on her face, a look she shared with the other mares.

“Alright then,” Jason said, conjuring up a fireball in his hand. With a shout of “Flare!” he fired the ball at the castle doors, knocking them off their hinges. Dash zipped in first, followed by Jason and the others. Various guards charged at them, only to be knocked away by a gust of wind from Jason.

They made it to the throne room, another blast of flare knocking the doors open. The guards stood at attention, their eyes unfocused. Standing in the throne room were various nobles, with the armored king sitting on the throne. 

“Ah, Jason, I’ve been waiting to see you again.” the king said, sitting up with interest.

“Wait, yer the king!?” Applejack asked, her eyes wide. 

“Ah Miss Applejack, good to see you again,” Trenderhoof said, removing his helmet and placing it next to himself. “You are as charming as ever by the way.”

“Are you serious?” Jason asked with a glare. “I knew you were a hipster but a genocidal king? Oh you so gotta die,” Jason said, pulling his own helmet on.

“We’ll see which one of us is gonna die!” Trenderhoof shouted, glaring at them. “Kill them all!” he shouted as the guards and knights raised their weapons at the four.

Before any of them could react, Luna and Celestia teleported into the room. Both of them were in their war armor, weapons at the ready.

“Deal with them Hex!” Trenderhoof hissed, glaring at the hooded pony.

“I don’t think so!” Jason said, shifting into Wildvine and snatching the amulet from around his neck. “I think this belongs to you, Twilight,” he said, using it to restore her wings and horn. He then chucked it out the window, sending it sailing over the horizon. 

“It’s over, Trenderhoof!” Celestia said, pointing her sword at him. “Stand down and we may show you mercy. 

“I think not! Get them!” Trenderhoof shouted. All at once his forces converged on the group, guards, knights and even Charmcaster’s golems on the attack. 

“The guards are not in control of themselves! Try not to hurt them!” Celestia shouted, knocking a guard into a another. doing her best not to injure them.

“‘Tis easier said than done sister!” Luna said, smashing her warhammer in a golem’s face, making the construct crumble into pieces. 

“I’ll cast a dispelling aura! Applejack, this is going to take a minute or two, can you keep them off me?” Twilight asked, already filling her horn with magic.

“Ya got it Twi!” Applejack said, bucking a knight into a column and denting his armor.

“Just give it up!” Jason shouted, clashing his sword against the stallion’s, the two of them glaring at each other. “We’re going to end your reign, jackass!” He grabbed a seed off his back, throwing it at the stallion. Trenderhoof dodged it just before it hit, barely escaping the explosion. Jason threw several more before the Omnitrix timed out on him.

“Let’s see how cocky you are without your little gadget!” Trenderhoof hissed, crossing his blade with Jason’s again. He pressed the attack, his magic allowing him to strike faster than Jason. 

“Enough of this,” Jason said, cleaving through Trenderhoof’s sword, the tip flying across the room. Trenderhoof stared at it for a second before firing the broken sword at Jason’s head. “Fuck!” he shouted as the broken blade pierced his helmet, stabbing into his face.

Seizing his chance, Trenderhoof wrapped Jason’s chest in his magic, starting to squeeze. Jason’s armor held up for some time before it buckled, starting to crush and stab his chest.

“I’m going to crush the life out of you!” Trenderhoof shouted, increasing his magic, causing Jason to cry out in pain.

“Jason!” Dash shouted, spotting the human in trouble. “Don’t worry I’m coming!” she dove at Trenderhoof, determined to help her friend. At the last moment Trender dropped Jason, lifting up the humans sword and cut through Dash. The pegasus screamed as her body fell one way and her forelegs fell another.

“You see?” Trender asked, glaring at Dash, “This is what happens when you challenge m-” He was cut off as a fist slammed into his face. Jason pulled the sword out of his face, and tossed his helmet away. His face was contorted in rage and his eyes had turned red. He continued to slam fist after fist into Trender’s face, screaming in anger. 

“Y-you... savage...” Trender muttered out when Jason stopped. He shakily got to his hooves, spitting several of his teeth out. He glared at Jason, starting to cast another spell. Jason, with the speed of XLR8, swung his sword, cleaving off Trender’s horn. Before the stallion could process that, Jason sliced through him again and again and again, until Trenderhoof was nothing more than unidentifiable meat on the floor and he himself was drenched in the stallion’s blood. With a scream of rage, he darted around the room, cleaving limbs off all the knights he could find, reveling in the bloodshed.

“Jason?” Applejack asked, looking at her adopted brother, covered in blood and grinning like a madman. “Jason ya have ta-” she was cut off as he slapped her away, hard enough to send her into a wall.

“Applejack...” Jason balked in horror as his senses came back to him. He stumbled a little before falling backwards, his vision cutting to black.
> Aftermath
> --------------------------------------------------------------------------

Pain. That's what brought Jason back to the world of the living. His chest and face were aflame with pain. Pulling his thoughts together, he cast a small spell, giving himself a small dose of Cure. He sighed a little as the pain dropped to a more manageable level. He sat up, the blankets falling away from his bandaged chest.

“Are you sure you should be moving around so soon?” Rarity asked. Jason blinked, turning to her. She was laying in a bed next to him with a ring around her horn, reading a book.

“Rarity? Where are we?” he asked, giving himself another small dose of Cure.

“We are in Ponyville General, we moved back into town while you were unconscious. Myself for  magic over-exertion and you for several cracked ribs and that nasty wound on your face.”

Jason reached up, running his fingers over his bandaged cheek. “Wheres Dash!?” he shouted, suddenly remembering what had happened to his friend.

“She’s over there Jason,” Rarity said, pointing to the third bed in the room, which had its curtain closed. “Just... she’s not doing so well.”

Jason ignored her, getting out of bed, slowly moving over to the curtain. He gingerly grasped it in his hand, pulling it open. He gasped, staring at Dash. She was currently asleep, hooked up to several machines, the stumps of her forelegs wrapped up tightly.

“Rarity... her legs...” Jason managed to get out, starting to tear up.

“I’m afraid even magic has its limits Jason.” Rarity said, sighing a little. 

“She got hurt trying to protect me...” Jason said, tears flowing down his face. Rarity put her book down and trotted over to Jason to give him the best hug she could.

“She won’t blame you Jason... she never would have forgiven herself if she had done nothing to help you,” Rarity soothed, making him smile.

“You’re a great pony Rarity,” Jason said, reaching down, starting to scratch her ear.

“Oh good, you're awake.” Twilight interrupted, walking into the room. “Jason we need to talk,” she walked over to him, trying not to look at Dash. “What happened to you Jason?” she asked with a ferocity that startled him. “Y-you killed somepony!”

“You don’t think I know that?” he asked, looking down. “I saw him hurt Dash and I lost it...” he pulled away from Rarity and sat down on his bed. “Twilight... I hit Applejack... i-it scares me that I lost control like that...”

Twilight took a deep breath, letting it out slowly. “Jason... you're not in trouble, we’re just worried about...” she climbed onto the bed, draping a wing over his shoulder. “If it makes you feel any better... Celestia told me she would have had him executed for his crimes anyway...”

“Yeah... that does help a little Twi...” he said with a sigh. “Rarity, did you guys find Slash?”

“We did, but they hurt him badly, he’s in a coma, the doctors don’t know when he’ll wake up...” Rarity explained, shaking her head.

“Is this a bad time?”  Fluttershy asked, peeking into the room.

“Of course not dear,” Rarity said, gesturing for her to enter. Jason barely noticed that Zed was with her, he was so enthralled in staring at Fluttershy. Gone was her normal pegasus self, replaced with bat like features. She had bat ears, wings, fangs, and even her cutie mark had changed from three butterflies to three bats.

“Fluttershy what happened to you...?” Jason asked, unable to take his eyes off her.

“They had a run in with Dr. Aloysius Animo, a disgraced earth pony scientist.” Twilight answered for her friend. “He was rather well respected until his unethical experiments were discovered, then he was kicked out of Canterlot University. He vanished shortly after that. Too bad he didn’t stay gone.” Twilight said bitterly.

“So what brings you here Fluttershy?” Rarity asked, hoping to change the topic of conversation.

“Oh well... Zed wanted to ask Jason if he would be her new owner... if that’s ok with him of course...” she said, trying to hide behind her mane.

Jason got up, moving over to the two. When he got close enough the Omnitrix chirped, scanning Fluttershy. “Well... I wouldn’t say no,” Jason said as he knelt down, starting to scratch Zed’s ear. She growled happily, licking his cheek. “Wait... thats it!” Jason shouted, startling the gathered ponies.

“What's it dear?” Rarity asked, raising her eyebrow. 

“Magitech!” he exclaimed, getting to his feet. “We can use it to give Dash new legs!”

“Magi-what?” Twilight asked, blinking. “What in the hay are you talking about?”

“Magitech!” Jason said, scooping Twilight up, ignoring her protests. “We take your magic and your arcane know-how and mix it with Grey Matter’s techno skills and we’ll make Dash the best set of replacement legs possible!”

“That’s actually a really good idea...” Twilight said, putting her hoof to her muzzle. 

“Let’s get started right away!” Jason shouted as he rushed out of the room, ignoring Twilight’s demands to put her down.



“Are you sure about this?” Celestia asked, watching Luna with a frown.

“It has to be done.” Luna said, sliding the last piece of her armor in place. “One of us has to bring those fiends to justice.” She levitated her warhammer over, clicking it into its slot in her armor. “That shall be my task. Your task is to rebuild.”

“I don’t like the idea of you going off alone.”

“I will not be alone Tia, I will have the best of our guard with us,” Luna said, shaking her head. “The information Blueblood provided will be invaluable... what are you going to do with her?”

“I don’t know Lulu... she’s the only reason the rebellion got as far as it did but she seems genuinely remorseful. I have no idea what I’ll do with her, for now she will stay in the dungeon with the rest.”

“I leave this decision to you, sister,” Luna said, giving Celestia a nuzzle. “I’m off to meet with Shining Armor. Cadance promised to send aid.”

“Of course sister... be careful,” Celestia called as Luna walked out of the room. Celestia looked toward the picture of herself and Blueblood that hung on the wall. “Oh Blueblood, what am I going to do with you...?”




“How is Gilda doing?” Grey Matter asked as he hammered out the metal. Taking Dash’s tastes into account, he had decided to go with griffon-like talons. With Twilight’s help, Dash’s natural magic would flow through them like the pegasus’s original limbs.

“From what I heard she was stable. Thankfully she made it to us in time.” Twilight said, working on the crystals that would power the legs. “Jason... we’ve been working on this all day... maybe we should take a break...”

Grey Matter sighed, hopped off the table and reverted to human form. “Yeah, you’re right Twi... lets go take a break...” he said letting out a yawn. As he stepped out of the room the world seemed to melt away and he found himself falling backwards.




“Oh come on,” Jason groaned, spitting some dirt out onto the ground . “I really don’t need this...” He got to his feet, rubbing his head. He hadn’t gotten a lot of sleep recently, with dark rings under his eyes, which had a bit of an unfocused look to them. 

“Well... hello there. My name is Don. Who are you?”

“I’m Jason,” he said, sitting up,  looking at the speaker. Before him stood another human, a male, wearing a rather nice looking cloak. “Can you send me back? I was working on something important.”

“Working on something? You get pulled from wherever you are from to here and your first reaction is that? From what I recall humans don’t have magic and stuff like that.”

“Yeah you’d think that...” he said, shrugging. “I’m not exactly a normal human anymore.”

“Judging by how he has yet to react to Zecora, he might have come from a place where that is common. Another Equestria, so to speak.” Don nodded in response and looked thoughtful. “We should probably get out of here before something detects all the magic we just let off.”

“You want to discuss this elsewhere? I’m afraid if we stay here things might get... violent.”

“Violent how?”

“Let’s just say a lot of ponies would prefer I was dead. Their sanity tends to vary though. If it’s the cult then they’ll probably want to kill you too just because you look like me.”

“Give me a second here...” Jason said, fiddling with a strange device on his arm. He popped up the dial, bringing his hand down on it. There was a bright green flash as he was replaced by a strange creature that looked like it was stitched together from other animals.

“Discord!” Nightmare practically screamed in Don’s head as Jason took the form of the Frankenstein monster from the pet graveyard.

“Nah, I’m Hodgepodge,” he said, speaking in a strange accent. “Discord’s back home.”

“That doesn’t make your kind any less- wait, you can hear me?!” Don was just as surprised as Nightmare was. Just what can this thing do?

“Of course!” he shouted, his voice changing, somehow wearing a bright red hat and jacket.

Where did that come from? Don just shook it off rather than try to figure it out. A year of Pinkie shenanigans had done its work. “So, why did you shapeshift? I was just going to get Zecora to open a portal.”

“‘Cause now I can do this!” he shouted, snapping his fingers, teleporting them to an old castle.

“Uh... where are we?”

“I dunno,” Hodgepodge said, shrugging his shoulders. “Some old castle thing, Lulu and Tia used to live here or whatever.”

Don walked over to a window to find they were in the middle of a dense forest he knew all too well. The Everfree! Well, at least it’s far away from that... thing. He glanced toward the center of the forest, a shiver going up his spine, before turning back to Jason.

“Alright. So you didn’t react to my friend here,” Don waved his hand toward Zecora. “Add to that the fact you know where this place was and that you look like a creature Nightmare knows of. Are you from another Equestria or something?”

He nodded his head, crossing his arms over his chest.

“This sounds similar to a theory one of the royal mages concocted before I was sealed on the moon. Something about how for every action you commit, a new universe is created in which a different action was done in that exact moment.” Don listened to Nightmare’s explanation intently. This went from “boring day making a failsafe” to “interesting magical nonsense” in no time at all.

“Thats cute, but it’s wrong!” Hodgepodge shouted, his voice shaking the castle.

“Oh? Is that so?” Nightmare sneered. It was obvious she did not like whatever this guy was.

“Yup. Universes are created, maintained and destroyed by the admins,” he started, floating around the room boredly. “Faust herself created the Equestrian template,”

That surprised Don but he didn’t let it show. How the hell is that possible? Unless there’s a different Faust then the one who fought the Overlord a few millennia ago. “Alright, so somehow I ended up pulling you from another Equestria. So why don’t you leave? You certainly seem to have the power and knowledge to do so.”

“Trying to get rid of me eh?” he asked, floating over to Don and grabbing him around the shoulder. “Now if I did that, all of our readers would be disappointed. 

“Our what?”

“Our readers,” he repeated, “See, out there beyond the fourth wall, our lives are stories, read on the internet by a bunch of dudes who watch a show about ponies,” he said, moving his hand in a broad gesture. ”It stills astounds me that LOHAV banned Displaced stories, talk about biting the hand that feeds you. That’s something I’d expect from Axl Rose,”

Don just looked at him like he was speaking a different language. I guess I’ll just file that all with the Pinkie crap that was never explained. He put a hand to his temple. “Enough of this nonsense. You should just leave. You’re giving me a headache.”

“I can’t leave yet, we haven’t finished the crossover!”

Don groaned in response. “The sooner we accomplish whatever he wants the sooner he’ll leave.” Nightmare commented.

Fine. Let’s get this over with. “So what do we have to do to finish... whatever the hell it is you want?”

There was a loud beeping sound, followed by a red flash. When it cleared, Jason was human again. He was currently holding his head with a groan.

“Did you hear me over your crazy watch alarm?”

“Yeah... I hear ya..”

Don stood there and waited for him to explain how he was going to get his ticket out of here but he said nothing, which only served to frustrate Don further. Is it so difficult to get rid of someone? “Look, I’ve got things to do, plans to wrought, and possible ponies to kill. You want to get home sooner rather than later?”

“Wait, what was that about killing ponies?”

So the man has a conscience. Good to know. “Remember the cult I mentioned earlier? They attack me, I end them. It’s what I’ve done with the last two attempts.”

“No, theres more to it than that,” he said, moving closer.

“Oh dear. It seems we might have a hero on our hooves.” Nightmare spoke. “Do you want to try corrupting him or just getting rid of him?”

Preferably I just want him gone. He’s obviously rather set morally and will take longer than I have to twist to the dark side. If he figures things out though... Don gave Jason his “nice guy” grin as he approached. “Oh? And just what do you mean?”

“I think I should go have a chat with this world’s princesses.”

Don could feel Nightmare begin to shift the shadows behind Jason as he continued the good guy routine. Not until we’re sure that’s the only option. “I’m sure they’re rather busy. Besides, they trust me enough to deal with something like this.”

“Yeah, I’m gonna go do that now,” he said, starting to walk away.

Nightmare was practically growling with anticipation. “Now?”

Don shut his eyes and pulled the hood on his cloak over his head, allowing his magic to flow and creating the glowing eye effect the Overlord was known for when he opened them again. “Now.” The shadows in the room sprang up, the ends of them forming swords and flying at Jason.

He rolled out of the way, narrowing his eyes. “You really don’t want to do this Don.”

Don chuckled darkly. “And what are my other options? Sealed away or death? No, I think I’ll take my chances with killing you.” Don drew a dagger in his left hand as one of the swords Nightmare created flew into his right. “Now, here are your options: Leave this world or I’ll kill you and incinerate what’s left.”

“Let’s see you try,” he said, cracking his neck. “Omnitrix, NRG.” With another burst of light he was now encased in a hulking suit of armor, with three glowing eye slits.

Hmm, interesting. Don grinned underneath the darkness of his hood. “So you’ve become a tin can? That’s threatening,” he said sarcastically.

“Thats what you say now,” Jason rumbled, his voice now heavily accented. Unfortunately, his lack of peripheral vision lead to a hoof slamming him across the side of the head.

“I will break your bones like plaster, should you try to harm my master,” Zecora rhymed as she bounded off of him, taking up her fighting pose.

“I doubt that. This armor is harder than diamond. Only Taydenite can damage it and I doubt you have any of that.”

“Enough talk!” Don let loose a gout of fire, melting the stone beneath Jason’s feet. His weight handled the rest as the ancient floor fell apart beneath him. Don walked over to the edge of the new hole with Zecora to see Jason on his back like a turtle. “You’re going to have to pick a form that’s more mobile than that if you want to kill me,” Don laughed.

“You mean like this?” he asked, flying out of the armor. His form was pure energy, barely contained by the green suit it wore. “Don’t say I didn’t warn you,” he thrust his hands forward, sending a beam of energy at the two of them.

Zecora dodged to the side, and Don intended to do the same if not for the fact that half his body seemed to want to go in the opposite direction. The blast hit him dead on, slamming him back and into a wall. He heard the snap of metal as his dagger hit the ground at an off angle and broke. He picked up what remained of the hilt, glaring at it with anger before putting it in its sheath.

What the hell was that Nightmare?!

“I was trying to keep you from getting hit. You’re the one who went in the wrong direction.” Don grumbled and stood back up, the blast having scorched him a bit but his cloak took most of the blow. Twilight knows her stuff, I’ll give her that.

“Alright, I’ll admit you’ve got some skill. Don’t think that you getting a hit means this will be easy.”

“Fine then, don’t blame me if you can’t have kids later,” Jason shouted, firing another, stronger blast.

Just let me handle this one! Don hissed in his mind as he waved his now empty right hand in front of him. The energy arced around behind him and was thrown back at Jason. He just absorbed it, a smirk on his face.

“He’s obviously made of the energy.” Nightmare sneered. Shut up! In anger his arms coated themselves in flames with which he quickly engulfed Jason.

“Why thank you, I hadn’t eaten all day,” Jason said with a grin, growing larger as he fed on the flames.

“When you are done helping our enemy instead of harming him, perhaps we should try this my way?” Don grumbled but let her take control, taking a back seat to the outside world. He watched as she called forth a couple of shadow spears and threw each one at Jason.

He fired another beam, dissipating most of them. “Come on, you can do better than that, can’t you?”

Don figured that would piss Nightmare off, but she seemed oddly happy. She chuckled darkly through his body, giving his voice a creepy effect. The next thing he knew the ceiling collapsed on Jason, sending him back down to his armor.

“See? That’s how you deal with someone like that,” she spoke aloud. Don just grumbled mentally, not wanting to give her the satisfaction.

“I wouldn’t say you dealt with me exactly,” Jason said as he phased through the rubble, now in the form of a strange ghost-like creature.

Alright, shapeshifting just isn’t fair. Nightmare muttered an agreement as they switched places once again. “You aren’t really taking this seriously, are you?”

“Should I be?”

“Well considering the fate you are threatening me with right now, yes. You should.” Don didn’t wait for a response before throwing a lightning bolt at him, hoping his intangibility would take a moment to activate.

It went right through him, “Well, that was a strange feeling.” He looked at the windows, his eye taking on a sinister grin. “How about we make this place a little darker?”

“Is he really suggesting giving me more shadows to use?” It did seem odd but Don just shrugged.

“There’s always the basement I knocked you into twice already.”

“Let’s use that,” he said, sinking into the floor.

Don walked over to the previously-made hole. “Zecora, despite how good you are in physical combat, I don’t think that will help in this case. Inform Gnarl what is happening.” She nodded and ran off, leaving him to leap into the darkness below.

Other than the light coming from the hole, it was practically pitch black. “I really can’t believe you let me come down here,” Jason called out.

“I can’t believe you suggested it.” Nightmare spoke through Don. As she said this, shadows began to bend around Don, ready to deflect whatever attack may come.

“Here in the darkness, I can use my true power,” he called, cackling. “Let’s do this!”

Nightmare pulled a spear from the shadows surrounding her. “Let’s.”

There was a sickening crack, followed by a series of meaty sounds. “Are you ready?”

Wow, dramatic much? Nightmare said nothing though, continuing to scan the darkness around her.

“Boo,” came his voice from right over Don’s shoulder. Nightmare reacted, lashing out with tendrils of shadow as she turned and swung her spear.

He caught it, looking at Don. His body had changed significantly. His hands were now clawed, tentacles hung from his chest, he glared at him with his single eye, set into an upside down skull.  He smirked before backhanding Don across the face.

He just slapped a bitch technically. Unfortunately for him, Nightmare was less than amused. Her spear exploded with spikes in Jason’s hand, piercing his claws. She then proceeded to use the shadows around her to stab at him while she jumped back into the darkness.

“Neat little trick you have there,” Jason said, melting into the shadows as well. For a minute nothing seemed to happen, the air thick with tension before Don finally had enough.

Are you going to do something or are you just going to stand there and wait for him to attack?

“A good defense is better than a great offense.”

I beg to differ. Don retook control, the shadows dropping around his body was lit up by flames. “Come out, come out wherever you are!”

“Gah!” Jason shrieked in pain, moving away from the light.

“How ironic!” Don laughed. “The hero can’t stand being in the light!” Don pressed his advantage, changing to electricity and blasting holes in the ceiling to let in the sun.

Jason quickly changed forms, now a large ugly green thing with a cage on his head. He slowly moved toward Don, the cage starting to open up, filling the air with an eerie creaking.

Seeing as he was fine with whatever level light there was in the room, Don changed his attack target back to Jason before freezing when he caught sight of his face. He could feel Nightmare disconnect from his eyesight immediately as he covered his eyes as it felt like they were on fire.

“Holy shit man! Why the hell would you even... That’s just...” He felt about ready to puke on the floor as he bent over on his hands and knees. Nightmare, please please tell me you can remove the memory of... that?!

Don was suddenly grabbed and slammed into a wall. Jason had become a four armed red creature, using the upper two to pin his arms to the wall, while he proceeded to slam his lower fists into his stomach repeatedly.

By the time he stopped Nightmare had wiped the memory of... whatever that was. Don couldn’t remember anyways. He was definitely not in good condition and with his arms pinned, that left me few options. Despite the blood he could taste on his tongue, he smirked at Jason. “You think... I can’t take a little beating?”

“You are holding up like a champ,” he said, moving back before shoulder ramming Don through the wall. Alright... that hurt a bit.

“I’m trying to cut off the signals your nerves are sending but this isn’t easy.” Nightmare said, though he could barely hear her through the ringing in his ears.

“Had enough?” Jason asked, peering into the hole. Don barely managed to put his arms underneath himself so he could glare at Jason.

“I’m not... letting you... seal me away. I’d rather die first!”

“Really?” he asked, raising an eyebrow. Don was about to answer when suddenly a small dusting of rocks dropped on his head, causing him to look up. He could hear the sound of stone cracking just barely over his pain. That pain was only multiplied when it suddenly felt like his right leg had been crushed.

“Damn it!” Jason shouted, moving to Don’s right. Don saw a few rocks fly into sight but otherwise couldn’t really tell what was happening. He just felt so tired...

“Wake up damn it! You’ll die with your injuries if you fall asleep now!” With Nightmare’s declaration came boost of adrenaline, giving him the energy to put his left leg underneath himself, though his right seemed to ignore his commands. Fuck. What is wrong with me?

“Hey. Don’t die,” Jason said, tossing one last rock in view. Why the hell is he throwing rocks?

“Fuck...” Jason said shaking his head. He shifted into a large black pony-shaped insect and spat something onto Don’s leg. “That should keep you from bleeding out.”

“Get away from me!” Don growled, trying to push himself away only to succeed in throwing himself onto his back. That’s when he finally got a real good look at his right leg, which essentially looked like a mass of Jason’s green gunk and blood. The combination did not smell pleasant.

“This is your fault,” Jason said in a strange buzzing voice, looking at him with a pity that only disgusted him further. A low rumble began as tremors shook through the ground.  

“We should get out of here,” he said, with a frown. Don would have just cursed at him further but a chunk of stone landing a few feet away changed his mood just a little.

“...Fine.” Jason grabbed Don with his magic then flew them both through a hole in the ceiling before the basement collapsed. They landed just outside the castle as the sounds of destruction ceased.

“Well... I suppose I should take you to a hospital,” he said, looking at Don’s leg.

“If he does that, we might as well be dead.” Don silently agreed with Nightmare while he considered his choice in actions. Jason began looking around, supposedly to find where civilization is, and Don used this to his advantage to grab the green medal attached to Jason’s chest.

“Let go of that!” he shouted, his eyes wide. Unfortunately for him it was too late as Don grinned evilly. He let loose all the electricity he could in his current state, causing the medal to change to a yellow color. “You idiot!” he shouted as the medal built up energy. There was a loud explosion as the Omnitrix overloaded, tossing Jason back to his own universe, tumbling along the hospital floor and reverting to normal.

“Jason!” Twilight shouted as she rushed over to him, “Are you alright! Y-you vanished an hour ago!”

“Yeah... I’m ok...” Jason said, getting to his feet, “Come on Twilight, we have legs to build,” he said quietly, picking himself up off the floor and heading toward the exit, with a worried Twilight on his heels.



Dash groaned as she opened her eyes, looking at around. She was immediately greeted by the tired, smiling faces of Jason and Twilight. 

“Hey Dash,” Jason said, waving at her. “How ya doing?”

“M-my legs...” she whimpered, glancing down at the stumps of her legs, wiggling them pathetically.

“Yeah, I know, thats why we made you these,” Jason said, holding out the now finished legs.

“W-what?” Dash stuttered out, looking at them.

“We made you new legs Dash, they’ll be so much better than your old ones...” Twilight said, giving a shaky smile.

Dash smiled, laying back in her bed. “Thank you...” she muttered before letting the blissful embrace of sleep take her.
> Who You Really Are
> --------------------------------------------------------------------------

“I’m going out,” Jason told Chrysalis, as he got up from their bed and pulled his shirt on. “I need to get some air...”

“You had another nightmare didn’t you?” Chrysalis asked, sitting up herself. “You don’t have to suffer alone Jason, I’m here for you.” She looked at her mate with pleading eyes. A month had passed since the ill-fated Forever Knight rebellion and since then he hadn’t been the same. Gone were his sarcastic attitude and quips, only to be replaced with silence, and that scared her to the core.

He gave her a smile before pulling her into a hug. “That means a lot to me Chryssy,” he said, placing a kiss on her lips. “But I need to figure this out on my own,”

“Jason, you have to get some sleep, you haven’t gotten more than a few hours this week,” she argued, frowning at him.

“I’ll be fine,” he said, getting out of bed. He grabbed a potion off the nightstand and guzzled it down.

“You're still drinking those?” Chrysalis asked, giving him a glare. “Zecora gave those to you so you could help Dash, not so you could abuse them!”

He ignored her, dropping the empty bottle. He swiped his hypercube off the nightstand, walking out of the room. None of the drones bothered him as he walked out of the hive, which he was rather thankful for. Crossing the bridge, and walking out into the Everfree, he sighed to himself, running a hand down his face. 

He took a seat under a tree, staring off into the distance for a moment before looking to his hypercube. Digging through it, he paused, staring at the Genji Gauntlets. He pulled them out, closing his eyes. “Gilgamesh... please... I need to talk to you...” he whispered, clutching them tightly.

For a moment nothing happened, making Jason wonder if he didn’t speak loud enough... or if the warrior was too busy, but a moment later a recognizable cut in the air appeared, allowing the familiar giant of a warrior to pass through.

“Hey kid, what’s... Jesus Christ, you look like shit,” he said after noticing his fellow Displaced’s expression.

“Yeah... I do,” he said, looking away and exposing the wide scar he had across the left side of his face.

“The scar is not what I was talking about, kid. When’s the last time you slept, a month ago?”

“That sounds about right...” he replied, looking at him, “I’m not... I don’t really know anymore...”

“I guess you need someone to talk to. So the question is,” he began as he sat down next to the same tree. “Why are you talking to me? What about Applejack, Twilight, or any of your other friends? Hell I think Celestia and Luna wouldn’t mind making time for you. I bet even Chrysalis would be willing.” 

“Because you’re the only one who would understand-”

“Hey Jay, there you are!” Rainbow Dash’s voice cut in, interrupting Jason. She landed in front of them, smiling. “Oh hey Gilgamesh, long time no see!” she waved, her talons glinting in the sunlight.

Gilgamesh was about to respond when he noticed the sharp objects in place of her hooves. “Wha- Dash? What... What happened to you!?” he asked in a panic, rushing over to see her.

“Oh these?” she asked, sitting on her haunches, holding her arms up. From a little above the elbow, her forelegs had been replaced with mechanical griffon talons, that hummed with magic. “Jay and Twi made them for me. Cool, huh?”

“Well... I will admit, they do look pretty awesome, but why do have them? I mean, you didn’t just get cybernetic implants just because, did you?”

“Well... no...” she said, looking away. “That flank hole Trender cut them off...”

“‘Trender?’ Trenderhoof!? The stallion who checks out little known places and makes them popular? Why the hell would he do that!?”

“You remember how you told me that for some Displaced beings related to what they became would leak into their Equestria?” Jason asked, looking at the taller human. “It happened here... you’re gonna wanna sit for this.”

Gilgamesh, still looking completely shocked, sat down. “Tell me everything.”

“Ok... so, the leakage isn’t actually from me. See, these two idiot Galvans tried to use a teleporter network and they got sent here, they're stuck as breezies, and stuff from the actual Ben 10 universe started to leak out here. We got pony Charmcaster, pony Hex and... pony Forever Knights. They uh.... took over Equestria for a few days...”.

“‘They took-?’ How!? Against the Elements!? The Princesses!? Discord!? How the hell could those schmucks overcome those kinds of odds!?”

“They stole Discord’s power, used it to turn Twilight into an Earth pony, Blueblood petrified Luna and they used her to force Celestia to abdicate the throne.”

“They... They did...” he tried to say but trailed off. He looked completely stunned, like someone who’d just had been told everything they believed was a lie. “Wh-What about Chrysalis, and Slash?”

“Twilight evacuated Ponyville to the hive, which is the old castle,” Jason explained. “We didn’t leave until I woke up... Slash is still in the hospital...”

He paused a moment, and seemed to be desperately trying to catch his breath. He tilted his head down and Jason couldn’t see his eyes. “So what happened?”

“They carried out a purge.... all non-ponies had to leave Equestria, those that couldn’t or wouldn’t were slaughtered, along with any ponies that tried to help them.” Gilgamesh didn’t respond, so he kept going. “Trenderhoof was their king... he challenged me and he got the better hand, Dash tried to help and he... he cut her legs off.” He took a deep shaky breath.”I lost it... I turned him into paste... Gilgamesh, I lost myself.” He started to tear up, ”I was an animal... I almost hurt Applejack.”

“What happened next? Where is everyone now?” he asked, his tone disturbingly without the slightest hint of emotion. 

“Slash is in the hospital, Twilight’s back to normal, Discord has the body of an infant, Blueblood got turned into a mare... most of the knights fled when their king died but all the ones in Canterlot were captured,” Jason paused, sighing a little. “Celestia fine, Luna’s hunting the knights, and me... I’m all fucked up...” After a moment, nothing was said, and Jason leaned in to try and get a look at his eyes. “Gilgamesh?”

“Hey, big guy, are you-?” Rainbow asked, only for them both to jump back in shock at what they felt and saw.

Gilgamesh’s eyes were burning red, like fire. His killing intent practically radiated off him, to the point they almost thought they saw the air warping around in. They could actually hear him grinding his teeth and a noise sounding like a cross between a growl and gargle came from his throat. They could even see bubbles of saliva drip down his face guard.

With a strangled scream he stood up and turned towards Canterlot before cutting open a portal and jumping inside.

For a moment all was silent.

“...I think I pissed myself a little,” Rainbow muttered.

“Stay here,” Jason said, standing up, “I’m going to stop him,” Jason shifted into XLR8, zipping toward Canterlot as fast as he could.



“WHERE ARE THEY!?” boomed a voice down the Canterlot palace halls, startling and terrifying any who heard it. “WHERE ARE THE FOREVER KNIGHTS!? WHERE ARE THEIR CELLS!? TELL ME NOW!” A group of palace Guards rounded the corner, ready to fight, until they saw the tall figure stomping towards them, hate and rage practically radiating off him.

“D-down that way...” a terrified guard, a rookie said, pointing down the hallway.

The enraged warrior stomped further on, the rookie having to dive out of the way to avoid get stepped on, until he finally reached the dungeon gates. Two guards looked at him, practically peeing themselves in fright, but still managing to hold their spears at him.

“H-Halt! Just what d-do you-!?” one of them began only for an invisible force throw them both aside.

The warrior grabbed the heavy steel doors and tore them open like paper before stepping inside. 

The captured knights all stared on in terror. Not one of them was uninjured, all of them missing at least one limb, be it a leg, horn or wing.

“So, you’re them, huh? You’re the Forever Knights?” he laughed menacingly. “Oh and look, it seems a lot of you are members of the nobility as well, judging by those coats and manes. Well tell me, maggots, HOW DOES YOUR GRAND PLAN LOOK NOW!?”

They all flinched, wilting under his voice. “We almost succeeded. We could have taken back our home  for our people,” one of them started, a unicorn that had lost her horn.

“OH SHUT THE FUCK UP!” Gilgamesh interrupted. “YOU SHORT-SIGHTED ASSHOLES! WHAT DID YOU THINK WAS GOING TO HAPPEN EVEN IF YOU DID SUCCEED!? DID YOU THINK THE OTHER NATIONS OF THE WORLD, THE SPECIES THAT YOU KILLED AND FORCED FROM THEIR HOMES HERE, WERE GOING TO STAND FOR THIS!? DID YOU THINK THE GRIFFONS, THE ZEBRAS, THE MINOTAURS, THE DRAGONS, AND EVERY OTHER NON-PONY RACE WAS JUST GOING TO SIT BACK AND WATCH!? I WOULDN’T HAVE BEEN SURPRISED IF THEY ALL DECIDED TO JOIN FORCES AND WIPE EQUESTRIA OFF THE FACE OF THE PLANET! DO REALLY THINK YOU WOULD’VE BEEN ABLE TO STOP THAT WITHOUT CELESTIA, LUNA, OR THE ELEMENTS OF HARMONY AT YOUR DISPOSAL!? FUCKING IDIOTS, EVERY LAST ONE OF YOU!”

“W-we would have crushed them! We are the superior race!” she attempted to argue.

“‘SUPERIOR RACE!?’ YOU HAVE GOT TO BE KIDDING ME! WHAT IS SO DAMN SUPERIOR ABOUT YOU!? DO YOU REALLY THINK THINK THAT YOU ARE SUPERIOR JUST BECAUSE YOU HAVE MAGIC!? BECAUSE YOU CAN MOVE CLOUDS AROUND!? THAT YOU CAN GROW FOOD QUICKLY!? WHY DO YOU THINK YOUR COUNTRY HAS BEEN SO SUCCESSFUL FOR MORE THAN A MILLENIUM!? DO YOU REALLY THINK IT’S BECAUSE YOU’RE ‘SUPERIOR’!? NO! IT’S BECAUSE YOU HAD THE BENEFIT OF BEING RULED BY A MONARCH WHO HAS LIVED FOR THOUSANDS OF YEARS, AND HAS THE WISDOM TO MAKE THE RIGHT DECISIONS! WISDOM THAT YOU IDIOTS IGNORED! DO YOU REALLY THINK THAT ANY OF YOU DUMB SHITS WOULD BE ABLE TO TAKE ON A GRIFFON, OR A MINOTAUR, OR EVEN A GODDAMN DRAGON ON YOUR OWN!?” He took a deep breath before continuing on. “And the worst part is, you are the nobility. You are the ones who are supposed to set an example for the common pony, examples on how to live. And what have your actions told them? ‘BEHOLD, CITIZENS OF EQUESTRIA, AND OF THE ENTIRE WORLD! WE ARE THE NOBILITY AND WE ARE WILLING TO SPIT ON THE VALUES OF OUR ANCESTORS! THE SAME VALUES THAT CREATED THIS GREAT NATION! THE VALUES THAT LITERALLY SAVED US FROM EXTINCTION! LOOK ON IN AWE AS WE STAB OUR OWN PEOPLE IN THE BACK, HOW WE ATTEMPT TO USURP A LIVING GODDESS WHO HAS THOUSANDS OF YEARS MORE EXPERIENCE THAN US! WHO HAS SEEN EMPIRES RISE AND FALL! WHO ONLY WANTED THE BEST FOR US, BUT WE ARE TOO BLINDED BY OUR OWN GREED AND PRIDE TO ACKNOWLEDGE THAT! REJOICE AS YOU WATCH US SLAUGHTER OUR OWN RACE!’ FUCKING DISGUSTING, EVERY LAST ONE OF YOU!”

“I-I never wanted this...” a soft voice spoke up from another cell. Inside of it sat a white coated mare with a blonde mane.

The warrior turned to the mare, taking a second before recognizing who she was, or rather who she used to be. 

“Well, well, well. I can hardly believe it. Is that guilt I hear, Prince Blueblood? Or perhaps I should call you Princess Bluebitch?”

“It is,” she said with a solemn nod of her head.

“And tell me, what was your reasoning, Princess? Or are do you even have a title now? I wouldn’t be surprised if you’d already been stripped of everything you had. It’s what I would’ve done. Then again, maybe Celestia and Luna actually showed some mercy on you? They are better beings than I am. Tell me, how did it feel to betray your own blood? To turn a goddess to stone and use her as a hostage? To subjugate a being that only wanted the best for her ponies? Did you feel proud then? Did you feel accomplished? WELL!?”

“There are no words for the remorse I feel. I just wanted Equestria to prosper. Under my aunts we haven’t advanced at all in centuries... if they gave up the throne we could change things, break away from tradition but.... this isn’t what I wanted!” she shouted, starting to tear up.

The warrior actually stopped, his more intimidating displays fading. “I can barely believe it. You actually wanted what was best for Equestria. You were used.”

“I just want to die... all those deaths... it’s all my fault!” she sobbed, collapsing into heap. 

Gilgamesh walked to her cell and stopped at the bars. “I can hardly believe I’m doing this. Lord knows you haven’t earned it, but I will give you something you need.”

“W-what?” she stuttered, looking up at him.

“In my dimension, my Equestria, I met Blueblood for the first time, rather recently. He was a pompous asshole who, even when a threat to Equestria loomed over the horizon, was more concerned with complaining about why Twilight had become an alicorn instead of him. I put the idiot in his place, but later he ended up surprising me. He stood up to an enemy he couldn’t possibly hope to defeat and nearly died defending Celestia. After the attack on Canterlot was repelled he was the one who got the nobles to stop squabbling and focus on what was important, and he convinced them to accept the Changelings’ aid to combat the new threat. Then he donated half of his entire fortune to the war effort before having every one of his estates opened as refugee homes. And then to top it all off he enlisted himself in the military to fight. And he didn’t try to use his status to get enlisted as an officer, he joined as a lowly grunt just like every other pony who had no military experience. To put it simply, he earned my respect.”

“W-What does that have to do with me?”

“I’m saying, that if you’re given the chance, there’s hope. Hope for you to help turn this around. I’m sure nopony will trust you for a while, but I think you can do it. I think you can earn Equestria’s respect, just like mine did.”

“Y-you think so?” she asked, getting to her hooves, wiping at her eyes.

“Anything’s possible. Just give it a chance.” He then turned to the other cells and the Knights. “And maybe even you can make up for your misdeeds as well. But know this, I am not so merciful to allow a third chance for you. Remember my name, maggots. I am Gilgamesh. I am he who has travelled to other universes and bested enemies you cannot even fathom. I have driven dragons to their knees. I have bested the armies of the ponies, the griffons, and the Minotaurs alone. I have slain demons of Tartarus, and I have even defeated the Princesses, at the same time. So know that if you return to your heinous ways, you have no hope of escape, because I will kill you, the laws of your country and the decisions of your Princesses be damned.”

“It’s amazing how quickly you can go from inspiring to terrifying.” Jason said from the doorway. The captured nobles took one look at him, cowering in utter terror.

“Yeah, well, my head hasn’t exactly been screwed on right recently,” he replied before turning to the unicorn mare once more. “I wish you the best,” he said before walking over to his fellow Displaced. “And speaking of ‘terrifying’, it seems you made quite the impression on them.”

“I cut their limbs off,” Jason stated bluntly.

“Ah. I was wondering about that. I didn’t think Celestia or Luna would order that kind of punishment.”

“You’re surprisingly undisturbed by that.”

Gilgamesh sighed. “Things haven’t exactly been so great back home for me either. Let’s go somewhere to talk.”

“Alright... follow me,” Jason said with a nod, moving out of the dungeons.



“This looks like a good place.” Jason said as they came to the base of Canterlot mountain.

“Yeah, good enough, I suppose,” Gilgamesh replied as he sat down, his back resting against a boulder. “Let me guess, the reason you said you were ‘fucked up’ is because of what you did to the Forever King and those Knights, am I right?”

“Gilgamesh... I lost myself. For that brief moment, I was a monster, a monster filled with rage and blood lust...”

Gilgamesh chuckled, catching Jason off guard. “Guess we have the same problem. Some dick hurt Celestia and almost killed Luna. I beat his face in until he begged for mercy. And when Celestia convinced me to let him go, he turned around and tried to stab me in the back. As much as I hate to admit it, killing him was perhaps the most satisfying thing I’ve ever done. And I’m kinda scared about that.”

“I knew you’d understand, though, it seems like we both have demons we need to exorcise. ” Jason laughed as well. He reached into his hypercube, quickly drawing his sword, pointing it at Gilgamesh.

“Oh hey, Jetstream Sam’s Masamune? How the hell’d you get that? And what’s with the storage cube?”

“Umbra,”Jason said simply.

“Huh. Haven’t met him.”

Jason kept his eyes on Gilgamesh, getting into a stance. “Stand up Gilgamesh.”

He chuckled. “You know what, I think we both need this. So I’m not holding back,” he said before standing up. He then clenched his fists and posed, holding them to his right side, before bringing his left hand to his waist and crossing his right over his chest. “Hen,” he began as he swept his arm over to the other side. “SHIN!” he shouted before bringing it back. His body flashed brightly for a moment before the light faded, revealing a form Jason was not familiar with. Gone was his face guard, instead showing off his face painted red a white a like a kabuki dancer. A red cloak hooded his head and covered the top part of his body, horns sticking out of the sides, and he had grown to at least ten feet tall. His eight arms held claws, a katana, a spear, an axe, a mace, a scimitar, and a broadsword.

“Well if you're going to be like that,” Jason said, reaching into his hypercube, instantly becoming clad in his Terminus armor.

“Well, you’ve certainly picked up some new toys. Now the question is,” he began as he took a stance. “Can you use them?”

“Well, thats what we’re gonna see.” Jason said with a smirk, a white orb appearing in his hand.  “Though allow me to pick our music,” he said, tapping his wrist, a second later, the sound of violins came. He suddenly threw the orb into the ground, a second later a heavy tremor started. With a loud battle cry, he rushed forward, slashing at Gilgamesh.

“You have spells too? Interesting!” he shouted as he slammed his foot on the ground, unleashing a Quake spell. The two tremors met and slammed into each other, causing a wall of earth to rise between them. Jason cut through it and deflected a stab from his spear. “Not even using your Omnitrix?” he asked, taking a slash at his face with his claws before cutting up with his scimitar, Jason dodging the first and deflecting the second. “You’ve certainly gotten more confident!” he complimented as he brought his axe down towards his opponent’s head.

Jason blocked it, standing his ground. “Magic’s rather new to me but...” he started before blasting Gilgamesh back with a wall of wind. “I ran into Nemesis,” he slashed forward, aiming at Gilgamesh’s knee.

“That so?!” Gilgamesh asked as he leaped forwards and hit Jason in the face with the same knee he was going for. He then grabbed Jason by the head with his one free hand before striking him across the chest with his katana. “I hope you two got along!” he said as he kicked the boy in the chest, sending him flying backwards.

Jason tumbled away, his sword spinning out of his reach. “That bastard got me infected with the T-virus,” he got to his feet, rather glad he was wearing a helmet. He reached into his cube, pulling out Chaoseater, “Haven’t had a lot of practice with this one.”

“Oh! Darksider’s, right? I never got to that one,” Gilgamesh commented as he dashed forwards, his own broadsword raised. Jason and Gilgamesh swung at the same time, their blades clashing as they sparked against each other. “Also, that doesn’t sound like something Nemmy would do. I specifically made it so his version of the Genji Gauntlets made it impossible to infect others just by touch,” he said forced Jason away with push.

“Oh it wasn’t him, some weird snake headed thing followed him here,” Jason said focusing his power, creating a glyph on the ground just under Gilgamesh’s feet. As soon as he stepped inside, it exploded, sending him flying back  “Omnitrix, Four Arms!” he commanded, dashing forward, laying punch after punch to his body.

“There we go!” Gilgamesh shouted, slamming his head into his opponent and knocking him back. “Now here’s a form I can hit hard!” he shouted as he quickly positioned himself behind his enemy, dispersing all his weapons in flashes of light. “Always wanted to try this,” he said as he put all four of Jason’s arms into armlocks, wrapping two more around his chest before launching skywards. As they reached the apex of their jump Gilgamesh used his last two arms to spread Jason’s legs, positioning his knee between them as they fell. “Better come up something quick, kid, or else this’ll hurt like a bitch!”

“Omnitrix, Nixie!” he shouted, his form, shrinking out of Gilgamesh’s grasp. “Catch me now!” the voice of Keith David spoke from the tiny armored Breezie, flitting off quickly. He made a rude gesture, moving as fast as his little wings would take him.

“Forgetting something, kid?” Gilgamesh asked as the gem in his armor glowed. The air around Jason warped as he began to drop like a lead weight. “Gravity powers. Now then, did I ever tell you what my favorite show was?” he asked as he used the wind to fling himself at his still falling opponent. “STOMP!”

“Gravity don’t affect ghosts! Omnitrix, Ghostfreak!” he shouted, just as Gilgamesh hit him. “Ha!” he shouted, flying away. He moved over to his swords, quickly collecting them and returning to human form.

“Not bad, kid! You’ve certainly grown. However, so have I, and I think in the spirit of this music’s source material, it’s time to pull out some cheap-ass moves. TOKE WO TOMARE!”

Before Jason could even process what language he was speaking he was struck on all sides by lasers, blades of wind, missiles, boxing gloves, lighting bolts, and needles. He struggled to rise only to be sent tumbling by a punch to the head, the sound oddly making a metallic clang. Jason got up to see that Gilgamesh had now changed colors, and it took him just a second to figure out why.

“When the hell did you absorb my Terminus armor?!” Jason shouted, raising both his swords.

“The same time I launched those spells against you. I can stop time now, by the way,” he replied with a smirk.

“Thats just lovely,”Jason said panting. He took a breath, before rushing Gilgamesh, tossing his swords to the side, thrusting his hands out at Gilgamesh’s chest. He looked up at him with a smirk. “Ultima.”

Gilgamesh’s eyes widened. “You motherfu-” he said before the explosion went off, shaking the very mountain by the sheer force.

Jason groaned as he staggered to his feet, pulling his helmet off his head. Even with all the enhancements, both magical and technological, the armor was damaged. “You still alive?” he asked, looking the crater that had formed.

Gilgamesh stood up from under the rubble, his body completely black. For a moment he stood there motionless. The next, he was right in front of Jason. Before he could react Gilgamesh punched him in the gut, send him into the air a few feet before landing on his knees, clutching his stomach in pain. Gilgamesh shook the soot off of him before cracking his neck, blood dripping from around his mouth which he wiped away. “Ow,” he said simply.

“That’s just not fair,” Jason grumbled, staring at him. Before either could do anything, Zed jumped in front of Jason, snarling at Gilgamesh.  “Heh... should have known you’d show up...” Zed just snarled, shifting into Crabdozer, rushing at Gilgamesh.

“Sit boy,” he said, using his shifter powers to cause the transformed canine to fall to the ground unable to get up. “I didn’t know you had a pet,” he said as he casually walked by the creature before raising a hand at Jason. “And also, I don’t think having to cast Shell and having the extra defense of your armor’s material, not to mention the stat boosts of my second transformation is anywhere equal in unfairness to you pulling out Final Fantasy’s biggest ‘fuck you’ spell,” he said as he cast Curaga on the boy.

Jason stood up straighter, cracking his neck. He looked Gilgamesh in the eyes, his own now a bright red. He started to walk forward, his gaze full of an intense rage. 

“Oh come o-” Gilgamesh complained before Jason rushed forward, slamming his fist hard enough into Gilgamesh’s face for it to shake his very bones. The enraged human unleashed blow after blow on the giant, his face contorted in fury.

Gilgamesh halted the assault by grabbing his hands by the wrists, causing the boy to freeze in ice. He then jumped back several yards before resummoning his weapons, Jason breaking out of his frozen prison almost immediately. Gilgamesh deactivated his gravity powers and let Zed go. “Better run along, little doggy. Things look like they’re gonna get nasty.”

Zed refused, returning to normal. Jason proceeded to grab his swords, unleashing a primal scream of rage before running at Gilgamesh in a storm of slashing blades.

“Tell, me Jason Hughes,” Gilgamesh began, casting Protect and Haste on himself before parrying the relentless attacks with his own weapons, managing to even out the duel. “Why do you fight? For what purpose do you wield your power?” he asked as he sent the boy away with a strike to the face from his mace, the blow knocking him back but having far less effect than it should’ve. “Are you one who seeks to overcome all obstacles? One who wishes to see everything in your path driven before you?”

Jason snarled, locking swords with his teacher. “I.... protect...” he managed to get out before kicking Gilgamesh away, slashing at his face. “Kill enemies,” he panted, locking eyes with Gilgamesh.

“Are you like me?” Gilgamesh continued, ignoring his opponent’s words as he rushed forwards. “One who only wants the thrill of the fight? Who doesn’t even care for victory?” he asked as he stabbed at Jason with his spear, who deflected it and attacked only to be smacked in the face by the flat of the broadsword. “Perhaps you seek to be the best, the strongest,” he continued as he struck Jason in the chest with an upwards strike from his axe, forcing him into the air. “Are you one who wishes to come close to death?” he went on as he jumped up above his opponent. “One who wants to experience the high of looking the reaper in the face and surviving?” He then struck Jason with all three of his swords, smacking him down to the ground.

Jason grunted as he pulled himself to his knees, looking up at Gilgamesh, panting.

“When it comes down to it, when you strip away all the reasoning and justifications,” he continued as he shot down with his spear. “WHY DO YOU FIGHT!?”

Jason reached up, catching the spear in his hand, locking eyes once more. “I fight so that others don’t have to, I fight to protect the ones I love, I fight so that I may find an honorable death on the battlefield, and I fight to forge myself anew, and cast away the imperfections.”

The two of them stood there for a moment before Gilgamesh dispersed his weapons and returned to his base form. He extended his hand to the boy. “And that’s what makes you a great man, Jason Hughes. One even better than me.”

Jason took a few deep breaths before his eyes returned to normal. “That... means a lot, coming from you,” he said with a smile, taking his hand. 

“That was wonderful, the both of you,” a soft feminine voice cut in.

They both turned to see a young human woman in her late 20’s. She wore a orange and black dress, with a witch hat resting on her head and a staff that had various runes carved into it.

“Um... who... how... I’m very confused right now,” Gilgamesh stuttered.

“I’ve been looking for you for so long,” she said moving over to Jason, tears starting to well up from her eyes. She gasped, getting a good look at his face. “Oh.... you look so much like him.”

“Who? What the hell are you talking about?” Jason asked, raising his eyebrow.

“Sorry...” she said wiping at her tears, “This might sound out there but...” she paused for a moment, meeting his eyes. “I’m your mother.”

“...I’m sorry to make a reference, but watchoo talkin’ ‘bout, lady?” Gilgamesh asked.

“I am Jason’s mother, his real one,” she said, looking at Gilgamesh, while Jason just stood there in shock. “I’ve been looking for him for years.”

“Ok, hold up,” Gilgamesh began before stomping on the ground and causing a rock the size of a small table to spring up before sitting on it. “Ok, now before we get to the Harry Potter style past reveal, I’m just gonna take a wild guess and say you’re a Valkyrie or something which explains why this kid saw Sleipnir once and why two ravens showed up on his shoulders the last time he went into berserker mode.”

“Me? A Valkyrie?” she asked with a giggle,”No, I’m a just a witch,” she said shaking her head.  “Though my father was a Valkyrie.”

"Um... Weren't the Valkyries all female?"

“My father is female,” Terra said with shrug, “My parents are weird like that.”

"Wait, your biological father was fe- you know what? Forget it, I'm just gonna chalk it up to other mythology weirdness like the world being built out of the body of a slain giant."

“Weird is just my family,” she said with a giggle. “Jason is the least weird of us all, well him and his father, all he did was turn his arms into swords.”

"That may be one of the less confusing things I've had to wrap my head around.” Gilgamesh then turned to the other human. “Hey, Jason? You gonna say hi to your mom or not?”

“But.... how?” Jason asked, staring at the woman. She sat down, gesturing for him to do the same. He did so, looking at her like a lost puppy.

“Our world has magic Jason, but... we have to hide away...” she said with a sigh, “18 years ago, we were out as a family, you, me and your father. Your sister was visiting your grandparents at the time.”

“I have a sister?” Jason asked, his eyes widening in surprise.

“Yes, Ib, she’s a shadowmancer,” she said, going back to her story, “As I was saying, we were out as a family when... witch hunters found us.” She started to tear up. “They killed your father and... I-I used a spell to send you to safety but... I didn’t set a destination. I’ve been looking for you ever since that day.” she moved forward, pulling him into a hug. He blinked a little before hugging her back. “You look so much like your father...”

Jason looked at Gilgamesh, rather bewildered by all of this.

“Hey, don’t look at me. I don’t have a backstory as interesting as this. Also, I’ve seen some bigger coincidences,” he said. “So, Miss Hughes, what’s your name? And did you call him ‘Ib’?”

“My name is Terra but my last name isn’t Hughes, that must be his adoptive family's name. And no, Ib is his sister’s name. Jason’s real name is Corypheus.”

Jason just stared at her, taking that in. “My name isn’t Jason...?”

Terra shook her head, “Thats not what I what I named you.” 

“Terra, huh? And, if it’s not too much of sore subject, what’s the father’s name?” Gilgamesh asked.

“His name was Toya...” Terra said, looking into her lap, clutching her staff close to herself.

“I see. And since no one else seems to be asking the question, what now, Terra? What will you do now that you have met your son?”

“I don’t really know to be honest... I’ve been so busy trying to find him... I had no idea he’d ended up in Asgard.”

“Wait what?” Jason asked, looking at her like she was crazy.

“We’re in Asgard currently Jason,” Terra said, brushing some hair out of her face.

“Uh... you sure ‘bout that, miss?” Gilgamesh asked. “This place is called Equestria by the locals. And I’m from an alternate version of it. Are you saying Asgard and Equestria are one and the same? Or maybe that he’s been dead this whole time and didn’t know it, because that raises some disturbing implications for me and the rest of my fellow Displaced.”

“What I’m saying, Gilgamesh, is that Equestria is what’s left of Asgard after Ragnarok.”

“Oh... so you mean that the Norse pantheon... Odin, Fenrir, Thor, Loki, they’re all already... gone?”

“I’m afraid so,” Terra said with a nod. “Well expect Hel, she’s my mother after all.”

“Ugh, Jaso- er, Corypha- er Cro- um... name I can’t pronounce. A little help? Not completely familiar with every Norse deity here.”

“She’s the daughter of Loki and goddess of the underworld...” Jason said, before blinking. “I’m the grandson of the Goddess of the Underworld...”

“And the great-grandson of the God of Mischief. And your ‘grandfather’ is female. And a Valkyrie. And your mother is a witch. And your father made his hands into blades. And you’ve been adopted by a family of ponies. And are being hit on by a queen of a bug-pony race, good lord almighty, you’ve got the weirdest damn backstory ever,” Gilgamesh added.

“Actually... we’re a couple...” Jason said, rubbing his neck. “Um... I uh... plan on proposing soon...”

“Y-You... You mean that?” came a distorted voice.

The four (can’t forget about Zed) turned to see Chrysalis, Celestia, and the other Elements of Harmony had showed up at some point. 

“H-how long have you been there?” Jason asked, looking at them with wide eyes.

“Since we decided to investigate a massive explosion occurring near Canterlot,” Twilight replied in a somewhat upset tone.

“Also, long enough ta figure out she’s your mother,” Applejack added. “Um... It’s nice ta meet ya, ma’am. Mah name’s Applejack and Jason’s been kinda my brother for the past few months. I hope you’re ok with that.”

“It’s nice to meet you Applejack,” Terra said with a smile, “If Jason considers you family then so will I.”

“Um, pardon me, I do so hate to change the subject, but I was quite certain I heard something about a proposal a moment ago,” Rarity interjected, her eyes having a particularly bright glint in them.

“Yeah.... you did Rarity....” Jason frowned, not liking that look at all. “I was planning on proposing to Chrysalis...”

“WOOHOO! ANOTHER ROYAL! WEDDING!” Pinkie shouted. “I’ll have to get all my cannons loaded up, and get some time off from Mr. and Mrs. Cake so I can work on the baked goods, and-oh! Chrysie, what color do you want-?”

The pink mare stopped when she noticed that Chrysalis wasn’t beside her anymore. It only took half a second to find her, passionately kissing Jason and holding him tightly.

Gilgamesh stared for a moment before turning to Terra. “Ma’am, meet your daughter-in law.”

“Well, they certainly look happy,” Terra said with a giggle, watching them with a smile.

Chrysalis finally came up for breath, giving Jason a chance to get his. “This is almost enough to make me forgive you for how much you’ve made me worry over the past month,” she said with a playful tone.

“Yeah.... sorry about that... I was rather messed up...”Jason said with a sheepish smile, brushing some hair out of her face.

“Love is blind you know,” Terra said to Gilgamesh with a far away look on her face.

“Indeed. I’ve got my own four legged crush,” he replied before sighing. “Which reminds me, I’ve got to get back. As fun as this fight was, and how much I needed it, I’ve got more pressing matters to get back to.”

“Leaving already?” Jason asked, pouting a little. “I was hoping we could talk more.”

“I’d love to kid, but wars don’t take a break just because someone wants to go hang out with their friends.”

“‘W-War!?’” Twilight shouted.

“Yup. Some assholes from beyond space and time let out the demons of Tartarus to join their own forces. Now I’m trying to unite all of Equis against them. Already got the griffons, the changelings, the zebras, the horses, and even some of the dragons to join Equestria. I’m working on getting more.”

“It must be quite the diversion to come here then,” Celestia said. “Thank you for making time for Jason. He needed it.”

Gilgamesh chuckled. “Helping a friend is not a diversion.”

Celestia smiled back. “Indeed.”

Jason got to his feet, moving over to Gilgamesh. “Thanks, for everything. This is the second time you’ve saved my ass.”

“Hey, this helped me as much as it did you. We’ve both done things we regret, but we’ve got to move on. You have to keep going, even when you’ve made a mistake you can’t fix. I’m just happy to see things getting better on your end. I’ve got a while to go before the same happens on mine.”

“Look,”Jason said, holding his hand out, “I know you can handle armies but, if you ever need help or an extra pair of hands, just call me ok? I already owe you big from before.”

“Thanks. I’ll give you a call if I do. And if you need my help, I’ll try and make time. Just, you know, make sure it’s an emergency, ok? Kinda busy as you can guess.”

“You got it master,” Jason smirked, “I’ll make sure it’s a real emergency. Oh, and if you see Nemesis again, tell him I could probably help him with a T-virus vaccine.”

“I will make sure to pass that along, I’m sure he would be thrilled,” Gilgamesh replied before turning to Celestia. “By the way, um... sorry about the dungeon. I kinda flew off the handle when I heard what happened.”

“Please don’t do that again, though thank you for speaking with Blueblood.”

“Yeah, I’ll try to keep a lid on it. And I hope he gets a chance to make things better. Or, I mean, she gets a chance, god that’s going to get confusing.” He then turned to Chrysalis. “Chryssie, you nabbed yourself a good man. Just don’t be afraid to smack him if he starts being an idiot again.”

“Oh believe me I won’t,” she said with a purr, licking Jason’s cheek, despite the face he made as she did so.

“Kinky. Ok, well, back into the meat grinder. I wish you all the best,” he said as he cut open another portal with his naginata. “I’ve got troops to train. Until next time.” And with that he stepped in and was gone.

“Well umm.... mom, why don’t we go get to know each other?” Jason asked, turning toward Terra.

“I’d like that.” she said with a smile as the group headed back into town.

> Reminisce 
> --------------------------------------------------------------------------

“So, Terra is it, please tell us more about yourself,” Rarity inquired of the new human as she got comfortable in her seat. “We’ll be on the train for a few hours,” she added.

“Well, what would you like to know?” the woman asked, adjusting her hat. “I’m all ears girls, ask away.”

“What was Jason like as a foal, or whatever term you use to describe your young?” Twilight asked, somehow having gotten a scroll and quill.

“We call our young children,” Terra said, leaning back in her seat. “You know, I can’t really say, I only had him until he was three, but I do remember that he used to cry all the time when I wasn’t in the room.”

“Really?” Chrysalis asked in surprise, looking at Jason. “I wouldn’t have pictured you like that.”

“He was only really like that for his first year, he mellowed out after he understood the world more. Plus, Ib really helped him get over his fear of the dark.”

“You’ve mentioned her,” Twilight said, looking up from her scroll. “She’s Jason’s sister, yes?”

“Thats correct!” Terra chirped, a smile blooming across her face. “She was five when Jason was born, tried her best to be his big sister. She’s a shadowmancer, so she helped him get over his fear of the dark rather quickly.”

“Ohh ohhh me mee!” Pinkie shouted, bouncing up and down in her seat, waving her arm around.

Terra couldn’t help but giggle. “Yes Pinkie?” 

“What was your wedding like? Was there cake and balloons?” Pinkie asked, firing off questions in rapid succession. 

“Ok ok,” Terra said, grabbing Pinkie’s muzzle and holding her mouth shut, though she kept firing off muffled questions. “Pinkie dear, I can’t answer your questions if you keep asking them so quickly.” She pulled her hand away, looking expectantly at the overexcited pony.

“Sorry... I just get really nervicited around new friends...” Pinkie said with a sheepish smile.

“It’s ok,” she smiled at the pink mare. “As for my wedding, it was rather small. We had it in Niflheim, where my parents live. Most of my family was there, Uncle Sleipnir, Uncle Fenrir, Grandpa Loki.” 

“What, no Jörmungandr?”Jason asked, though the gathered ponies and changeling looked confused. 

“In all honesty, Jörmungandr is just a snake. An insanely huge snake, but still just a snake.” Terra said, adjusting her hat.

“If I may ask something,” Rarity spoke up. “Jason has already told us about Sleipnir, but who, if I may ask who are Fenrir and Jörmungandr?”

“Fenrir and Jörmungandr are my mother’s brothers, Fenrir was a huge wolf while Jörmungandr was known as the world serpent, a snake so huge that it circled the world,” Terra explained. 

“How the hay does someone have a wolf and a snake as their kids??” Dash asked, looking at Terra like she was crazy.

“Because my grandfather was a weirdo. At least he was male when my mother and most of my uncles were born...” Terra trailed off, crossing her arms. 

“And ya’ll have no problem with Jason datin’ Chrysalis?” Applejack asked, “Even though she’s a changeling?”

“Well she isn’t a mindless animal, now is she? Besides, I’d be one to talk, I married the guy who was hired to kill me.”

“What...?” Jason asked as he and the others just stared at Terra.

“Yes, your father was hired to kill me. I was living in the woods at the time and found him injured. I nursed him back to health and we fell in love.” Terra took on a far away look, a small smile on her face. 

“I can’t imagine they were happy with that.”  Rarity said, rather entranced by the story, always one for romance.

“They weren’t. One day Toya said he was going to take care of it and left. A few days later he came back but didn’t tell me what happened. I still don’t know to this day,” Terra said, shaking her head. “I always assumed he either made a deal or killed them all. We’ll never know either way really.”

“I think that's terribly romantic,” Rarity said with a small smile. “I do believe that leads us to our next topic of conversation: Jason and Chrysalis’ wedding~!” she said in a singsong voice, looking rather giddy. Jason just rolled his eyes, allowing the mare to pepper the couple with questions.





Slash groaned as he opened his eyes, only to slam them shut with a hiss as the harsh light of the sun hit his eyes. 

“Oh sorry, let me get that,” Celestia’s soft voice soothed, the gentle sounds of her hoof falls indicating her movement. A second later the curtains were closed. “There, how is that?”

“Better...” he said, slowly opening his eyes, blinking the tiredness out of them. 

“Slash, I’m so glad you're awake.” Celestia smiled. She moved to his side to give him a tender nuzzle.

“Um... not that I’m not grateful for the concern but... why are you nuzzling me?”  Slash asked, a frown on his muzzle. He knew Celestia cared for those under her command, but... she had never nuzzled him before.

“You’ve been in a coma for the past month... I’m just overjoyed to see you awake,” Celestia said, looking away. 

“A month?” Slash asked, his frown deepening. “That bad huh?”

“You have severe nerve damage, Slash... not to mention they removed large sections of your carapace... I’m afraid I have to rule that you are no longer physically fit to serve, and thus discharge you from the guard.”

“What...?” he asked dumbly. “But Princess... I’ve been in the guad for decades...” He lowered his head. “It’s the only thing I know how to do.”

“Thats not true and you know it,” Celestia chided, shaking her head. “You were taking rather good care of yourself before you joined the guard.”

“I remember those times...” Slash said as he laid back in bed, looking up at the ceiling.

***
Slash watched as a group of ponies talked to the couple that had lost their young one. They were white with golden armor, identical to a ‘T’. The white ponies returned the young ones to the couple, who thanked the white ponies profusely. The white ponies nodded in turn before walking off. 

His curiosity piqued, the young king, in the form of a pegasus, trotted over to the couple. “Um... excuse me,” he spoke up rather shyly, still not used to being around ponies.

“Yes?” the mare asked with a smile, hugging her foal close to herself.

“Who were those ponies that helped you?” Slash inquired, “If it’s not too much to ask...”

The two adults looked at him like he had just asked if he could eat their manes. “Those were royal guards, everypony knows that.”

Slash looked away, rather embarrassed at his lack of knowledge.

“Oh!” she said, putting a hoof to her muzzle. “I’m sorry, please don’t feel insulted. I didn’t mean any disrespect,” she quickly assured him.

“It’s ok... I grew up far from any cities... I, um, don’t really know a lot about... everything...” Slash admitted, looking at the ground.

“Oh, you poor thing!” she said, pulling him into a hug. “Please tell me you have a place to stay?”

“Well um...” Slash said, not sure how to answer her question. 

“You don’t have a place to stay?!” she nearly shrieked, her eyes wide. “Well in that case you’re going to stay with us!” she said with finality in her voice.

“Wait what?” was all the dazed changeling managed to get out.

“No use fighting her lad, once Velvet sets her mind on something, it’s next to impossible to change,” the stallion chuckled, shaking his head. “I’m Night Light, this is my wife Twilight Velvet and this little troublemaker,” he paused, nuzzling the foal, who squealed happily, “is Shining Armor.”

“I’m, uh...” Slash stammered, his mind racing for a name. “Air Razor,” he said after a moment. “My name is Air Razor.” 

“Nice to meet you Air Razor,” Night Light said, holding his hoof out with a smile.

Slash stared at the outstretched hoof for a moment before bumping it with his own and returning the smile. Perhaps all those warnings his mother had given him about ponies weren’t as true as he thought...

***

“Slash?” Celestia’s voice cut through the fog of memories. 

“Hmm?” he asked, looking at her.

“Are you alright? You’ve been just staring at the ceiling for the past five minutes.”

“Yeah... I’m ok,” he said with a nod. “Just... reliving some memories.”

“Fond ones I hope,” Celestia said, sitting next to him. 

“Some of my fondest,” he said, leaning back into his pillow and closing his eyes. He relaxed, listening to the quiet that filled the room.

“May I ask what they were of?”

“It was my first day in Canterlot, I had no idea how pony society worked. It was was just my luck that I was taken in by a young family. Heh, I had no idea their children would end up as royalty. I’m rather proud, in a way.”

“That’s right... you don’t have any children do you?” Celestia asked, a far off look on her face. 

“Sadly no... I’ve never had the chance to really meet a queen,” he said, shaking his head.

“I know the feeling. Slash... would you be averse to joining me for dinner?” Celestia asked, looking into his eyes. 

“Princess... I’m stuck in a bed...” Slash said, raising his eyebrow.

“Let me rephrase, would you allow me to join you for dinner?” she asked with a smile. “And please, you’ve more than earned the right to call me Celestia.”

“A-alright Celestia, you may join me for dinner,” the changeling said, looking at her with a surprised face.

“Good, it’s a date,” Celestia said, giving him another nuzzle before trotting out of the room with a bounce to her step.

“D-date!?” Slash nearly shouted, bolting upright. He immediately hissed, the pain causing him to lay back down. “The world has gone nuts,” he sighed, shaking his head.




“And this here is Sweet Apple Acres! Home of the Apple family!” Applejack proudly proclaimed, giving Terra a smile. “Jason is as much an Apple as the rest of us,” Applejack said with a smile, giving her adopted brother a hug. “Um... if’n thats alright with you ma’am...” she said, giving Terra a sheepish smile. 

“Applejack I already told you, if Jason sees you as family, so do I,” Terra said, letting out a giggle. “There’s no need to worry.

“Thats a big relief. Now, Big Mac and Granny Smith are outa town but Applebloom is here, so why don’t we go say hi?” Applejack asked, heading toward the farmhouse. 

“I should head back to the hive,” Chrysalis said, spreading her wings. “You stay here and spend time with your mother,” she said, giving her lover a kiss. 

“Alright m'lady,” Jason said with a chuckle, giving her a hug. He pulled away, watching as she took to the sky and head towards home.

“You have quite the girlfriend Jason,” Terra said with a chuckle as they moved up to the door. 

“Yeah, she’s quite something alright.” Jason smiled, reaching to open the door right as it was thrown open by Scootaloo and Sweetie Belle tearing out of the house. “The hell?” Jason asked, rather confused.

“Apple Bloom!” Applejack shouted, rushing up to the two humans, her eyes wide. “S-she... oh Faust this is my fault!” 

“What is your fault? AJ, seriously, chill the hell out,” Jason said, grabbing her head, making her look into his eyes.

“W-we all had to leave the farm and we decided that Bloom was old enough to stay but ah just got so worried that ah stayed home and babied her... she’s taking the delivery Jay! Through one of the most dangerous swamps in the country!!”

“Ok you need to calm down,” Jason said, nodding his head. “Now I’m pretty sure the three of us can find a filly. You up for a little detour?” he asked, looking over at his mother. 

“Of course I am,” Terra said with a nod. “Family looks out for each other.”

“Thank ya kindly miss Terra,” Applejack said, managing a smile. 

“Please just call me Terra,” she said with a smile. “Now like Jason said, we have to go save a filly!”

“It’ll take hours to get to her,” Applejack said, her ears drooping a little.


“Heh, you're talking to the guy with a million bodies on his wrist,” Jason said with a chuckle. “Omnitrix, Siegfried,” he commanded, shifting into his griffon form.

“How is that gonna help us?” Applejack asked, raising her eyebrow.

“Like this,” Jason said, turning the Omnitrix, his body shifting again. He grew in size, becoming as tall as Celestia and bigger than Big Macintosh. Length-wise, he was at least eight feet long, his tail adding another four feet. His talons had tripled in length and sharpened, gouging holes in the ground. His beak had grown as well, gaining what looked to be fangs. “Well?” he asked, his voice deep and rumbling.

“Jay, that there griffon is terrifyin’,” Applejack said, her eyes locked on his talons.

“Yeah yeah, just get on,” he said as he laid on his belly. Terra wasted no time in getting on, nestling in just behind his wings.

Applejack sighed, climbing on his back and putting her arms around Terra’s waist. “This just ain’t right, earth ponies ain’t spose’ta fly,” she muttered to herself, nearly screaming in terror as Jason leapt into the air. 





Apple Bloom walked slowly through the dark swamp, looking from left to right several times as the noises of the swamp played on her fears. She stopped for a moment, pulling out the map. She stared at it, sighing. “Ah can’t see a darn thing in this swamp.” She let out a startled gasp as jet of fire erupted from in front of her, incinerating the map. Around her several other eruptions went off, belching fire into the sky. “Well...” she said, looking around. “Now at least ah can see.” A figure in the fog caught her eye and she squinted, trying to get a better look.

Six yellow eyes appeared in the fog, glaring at her. As it stepped out of the fog, she got a better look at it. It had the front half of tiger,the back half of a goat, a  goat head growing from its left shoulder, a snake head for a tail, and all of its heads looked at her hungrily. 

Apple Bloom turned to run, only to be blocked by fire at every turn. She spun around, coming face to face with the tiger head.

“I’d stay where you are,” it spoke with a distorted, yet feminine voice. “This is the only safe spot around here.”

Apple Bloom gulped, backing up some more. “I-it don’t look so safe to me.”

“Oh we just mean from the flames,” the tiger clarified. 

“Yeah-h-h,” the goat head cut in, “Not from us!”

“What wasss that?” the snake head asked. “Ohh, can you guysss speak up?”

“I was about to tell our guest how we haven’t eaten in days,” the tiger said.

“My sisters and I can never agree on what to eat.” the goat added.

“Except,” the snake hissed, “pie.”

Apple Bloom quickly looked from them to the cart then back to them. “Well,” she started, giving them a scared smile. “Unfortunately ah’ve gotta get these pies to a town on the other side of the swamp so uh...”

“Oh, you don’t have to worry about that,” the tiger said. 

“Yeah-h-h,” the goat spoke, “You don’t have to worry about anything anymore!”

“Because we’re going to have our apple pie with a ssside of filly fillet!” the snake added. 

“You don’t say...” Apple Bloom said as the creature advanced upon her.

“Get away from her you bitch!” a loud voice shouted out before some large bird collided with the creature, knocking it into a tree. Getting a good look at it, Apple Bloom could see it was a massive griffon, with Applejack and what looked like another human on its back. 

“Apple Bloom!” Applejack shouted, sliding off the griffon’s back. She rushed over, the two sisters meeting in a hug. 

“Are ya’ll alright?” Applejack asked, looking her sister over. “Did that chimera hurt you?”

“No I’m ok sis... um Applejack, who’s that?” Apple Bloom asked as the other human walked over.

“Er... that Jason’s mom, her name’s Terra,” Applejack explained.

“His mom!?” Apple Bloom asked, looking at Terra with wide eyes.

“Hello!” Terra said, waving with a smile. Any further conversation was cut off as the Omnitrix timed out. 

“Ah, shit,” Jason muttered as the chimera, who looked pissed, got to its feet and approached him. “Hey, how about we talk about this,” he said as he put his hands up, allowing the Omnitrix to scan it. After a momentary flash of confusion at the sudden yellow beam, the chimera responded by knocking him into a tree. “Oh come on!” he shouted, hugging himself. “My ribs just healed!”

“Hey, excuse me,” Terra called out, catching the chimera’s attention. 

“What?” the tiger asked, glaring at her.

“Thats my son you just ragdolled,” Terra glared back, clutching her staff.

“Oh yeah?” the goat challenged, “Whaddya gonna do about it?”

“This,” she said as her staff glowed and a fist of rock shot out of the ground, slamming into the tiger head.  The chimera howled in pain, clutching its jaw. Terra didn’t relent, as more and more rock fists shot out of the ground, slamming into various parts of its body.

“Please! Stop!” the goat begged. “Enough! We’re sorry!”

“Oh I bet you are.” Terra said walking over, grabbing the tiger head, staring into its eyes. “Listen good, you ever try to eat a pony again and I will hunt you down and make myself a new dress, accessories included, outta you, got that?” she asked. To emphasize her point, she raised her hand, collecting all the nearby fire into a ball.

“Y-yes ma’am,” they all stuttered out, looking at her in utter terror. 

“Good, now scram.” With that the chimera ran off as fast as it could, disappearing into the fog. 

“Wow mom, you're terrifying,” Jason said getting to his feet.

“She err... they needed to be taught a lesson, don’t eat things that can talk,” Terra said, closing her fist, snuffing the fireball. “Well Jason, I’m afraid we must part ways again.”

“What? But we just met!” Jason said, giving her a rather hurt look.

“I know and I can’t tell you how happy I am to have found you but the barriers that keep the worlds apart are strong and I have to get home before my window closes,” she said, pulling him into a hug.

“I’ll miss you,” he said, hugging her back.

“And I’ll miss you, but I will make the wedding, and so will Ib,” she pulled away. She moved over to a open spot, charging up her staff. “Oh!” she paused, “Almost forgot,” she said, tossing him a scroll.

“What is it?” he asked, looking at it.

“It’s a summoning spell, it’ll allow you to summon your grandmother whenever you want.”

“Huh, that’s awesome... well... goodbye,” he said, putting the scroll into his hypercube. 

“You stay safe,” she replied, before finishing her spell and disappearing into a vortex.

“Wow Jay, yer mom is cool.” Apple Bloom said, a look of awe on her muzzle.

“Little filly, you are in so much-” Applejack started before Jason put his hand on her withers.

“I think the fact that she got this far proves she can handle things on her own.” he said, shaking his head.

“Ah... suppose yer right...” AJ said with a sigh. “Ah’m sorry fer babying ya Apple Bloom...”

“It’s ok Applejack, ah know ya care about me,” she said, giving her sister a hug. “So... what now?”

“Finish delivering the order?” Jason asked.

“Can we please sis?” Apple Bloom asked, throwing up her best pouty face.

Applejack sighed, shaking her head. “Alright come on.” Apple Bloom gave a little cheer as the three resumed the trek to deliver the pies to whatever insane backwater ponies who decided to build their town next to a fire swamp. 





Animo glanced around the still forest, making sure none of Luna’s task force had spotted him. Deciding that the coast was clear, he levitated the broken dagger out of his saddle bag, focusing as much magic into it as he could. “This had better work...” he muttered, straining a little.

Suddenly the broken blade began to glow a dark red before spitting lightning onto the floor in front of him. A line of the energy rose up from the spot it struck before separating, revealing a balcony of sorts made of obsidian, looking over a pool of lava and cave walls. Standing in front of him was a man in leather armor, his hood pulled up so that only his glowing orange eyes could be seen in the shadows. The man stepped through the now made portal before it closed behind him.

“You called?”

“You wanted to know if Jason woke up yes?” he asked, keeping his expression neutral.

The man grumbled before putting a hand to his temple. “Yes, but the very fact you called me here must mean he did not only wake up, but escape or even defeated you and your allies. Didn’t I warn you about the whole ‘hero pulls something out of his ass’ thing?”

“It was of no concern to me, I had no stake in that idiot rebellion.” Animo said, rolling his eyes. “But you are correct, he brought down the rebellion, from what I heard, he cut Trenderhoof so badly they’re still scraping him off the throne room floor a month later.”

The man simply looked at Animo for a moment before pulling his hood back, revealing a head with short, black hair. The color of his eyes seemed to shift from orange to blue for a split second before he kneeled down. “Jason did what?” he asked flatly.

“According to the reports he was like a raging animal, he left Trenderhoof as blobs of meat, but there’s always embellishment with rumors.”

The man looked over Animo for a moment, searching for something before chuckling to himself darkly. “Here I thought I was dealing with the incorruptible hero. Sounds like Jason has more darkness in him than I originally thought.” He got up before beginning to wander around the woods. “Anything else you would like to say to me? After all, what do you gain from telling me this as of right now?”

“Yes as a matter of fact there is. What do you know of necromancy?”

The man stopped where he was standing, seemingly doing nothing for a length of time before turning back around. “I know enough to build upon. Why?”

“There was a tremor at the base of Canterlot mountain, put a few cracks in it.” Animo began, “One of my... contacts explored one and what he found was marvelous. Canterlot mountain sits on the skeleton of a leviathan, a creature whose skull could serve as a castle. Just imagine what I could do with a specimen of such magnificence under my control.”

The man looked at his hand for a moment, seeming to ponder Animo’s proposition. During which, Animo could have sworn he saw his eye color change multiple times. “Can you show me this creature?”

“Of course, it’s this way. Though we must be careful, Luna has been hunting the Knight remnants, who knows where her guards are."

For a moment the man’s eyes shot open before he pulled his hood back over his head. He seemed to do nothing for a moment before quickly throwing his arm out to the side, a spear made of shadows flying from his own. A sudden pained “urk” was heard where the weapon disappeared into the brush.

“You should have said you were being followed before.” The man pulled his arm back, the spear returning with a pony corpse on it, clad in the dark blue and black of Luna’s elite. “I would have taken the necessary precautions.” The spear vanished as the corpse dropped to the ground. “Pray he did not get word to his allies.”

“We should take our leave then, and quickly,” Animo said, already starting to trot away, returning the dagger to his bag.

“Yes, we should.” The man followed, though his eyes scanned side to side as they walked.
> The Kat's Meow
> --------------------------------------------------------------------------

“So who are we waiting for?” Chrysalis asked, standing next to Jason. It was early in the morning and she really just wanted to return to bed. 

“My sister Maud of course, silly!” Pinkie shouted popping up next to Chrysalis, nearly causing her to jump. “I really want to her to meet all my friends, and that includes the two of you!” Pinkie smiled happily. “Plus she said she was coming with someone who wanted to see you.” 

“Me?” Chrysalis asked rather surprised. “Did she say who it was?”

“Nope! So we’ll just have to stay and find out!”

“Wonderful...” Chrysalis said, rolling her eyes at the pink mare.

“Relax Chrissy, I bet it will be someone good.” Jason said, putting his arm around her neck.

“Oh! Here comes the train!” Pinkie shouted, bouncing up and down as the iron horse pulled into the station. After a few moments, the doors opened , letting the ponies disembark. “There she is!” Pinkie galloped over to a rather bored looking grey earth pony wearing a frock. 

“Hello Pinkie,” she said with a blink, her voice low and dull. 

“Hi Maud!” Pinkie said, giving her sister a hug. “These are all my friends!” she gestured to all her gathered friends.

“You’re Chrysalis right?” Maud asked, looking at the monarch, giving very little expression.

“Um... yes...”

Maud nodded, turning to the train car. “You can come out now.”

On her cue, a changeling queen stepped out of the car, though unlike Chrysalis, she was black and orange. 

“So you are Chrysalis,” the queen stated, “I have been looking forward to meeting you.”

“You have?” Chrysalis asked, frowning a little. “May I ask why?”

“I’d rather talk somewhere private,” the queen said, shaking her head. “Perhaps your hive?”

“Alright... follow me...” Chrysalis said, exchanging a look with Jason before the two of them led the queen to their hive.




The Everfree was eerily quiet as the trio moved through it. Unseen to them, a portal opened, dumping its occupant rather unceremoniously onto the ground. Rubbing her head and grumbling to herself, the Gravity Queen, Kat Shifter, got up from the ground to take a look at her surroundings.

“Ugh,” she groaned. “I hate portals, especially ones that drop me off in the Everfree. I wonder what kind of world I’ve landed in this time.”

She slowly started to move about the trees, being careful to avoid any of the dangerous fauna. Nothing seemed different to her compared to the other versions of the forest she had been in. Same creepy trees, same strange plants, same horror-esque atmosphere that could be found in any Everfree forest.

“Jeez, why did I have to land in this satané forest? Why do all the strange things happen in the Everfree, it’s almost like it’s a trope or something.” 

Kat moved aside another shrub as she walked, only this time, she came face-to-face with a cragodile. It’s golden, slitted eyes were staring right at her, to the point she could see her reflection in those eyes.

“Oh merde!” She nearly screamed, backing away slightly as the monster slowly followed her, its throat grumbling in hunger. “Nice cragodile, good cragodile.”

It growled at her, raising itself into the air far further than it should have. Spider legs were sprouting out of it’s back, somehow managing to keep it high into the air. It hissed at her, a pair of chelicerate framing its mouth

Kat’s eyes went wide. “Okay... not the same!” She backed away even further, trying to get back between the trees.

It opened its mouth, firing a string of spider silk at her. Reacting quickly, Kat altered the direction of the silk to a nearby tree. 

It roared in anger, charging at her in a fury of legs and teeth. “Okay, time to run!!” Kat turned tail, and ran off into the brush, the cragodile roaring after her. Through brush and vines she ran, the monster hot on her trail. Kat’s mind was running with ideas on how to get out of this. “Flying? No, I could end up leading it to a civilized area. Attacking? No, with those mutations, who knows what it may be capable of. Keep running? Don’t fix what ain’t broke! As that crazy stallion used to say: Avante!”

It snapped at her heels, its saliva splashing onto her exposed skin. It chased her to a cliff face, its yellow eyes seeming to recognize it had her trapped. Kat slowly backed to the edge of the cliff, a spark lighting in her eyes. “Alright beastie, here I am. Come and get me!!”

It obliged her, rushing at her. Before she could react, a multicolored blur speed into view, slamming into the cragodile, sending it tumbling away.

“That’ll teach you to eat ponies ya freak!” Rainbow Dash shouted, shaking a talon at the beast.

Kat just stared in shock, not at Rainbow’s actions, but at her legs. “What the what?!”

“You ok?” the mare asked, landing on the ground. “You should probably get out of here before it gets back up.”

She was still in shock and pointed at her legs. “What the enfer happened to you?! Why are your legs like that?!”

“They got cut off,” Dash said, pouting a little at her. “Is every one of you humans gonna ask that?”

“How could I not?! My Rainbow Dash certainly doesn’t have artificial limbs! I don’t know anyone who does!” Then Kat put finger to her chin in thought. “Which is strange considering I was in the military.”

“Mutant Cragodile!” Dash pointed out as the beast got back to it’s feet, hissing at them.

“Umm, is that monster important in any way?” Kat asked.

“No, it’s just a freak that jerk Animo cooked up.”

“Alrighty then! Now that I’m not groggy anymore, let’s get down to business!!” Kat’s hand started glowing and the cragodile started to rise into the air, its head looking around in worry. Kat smirked, and quipped, “See ya later, gator!” And faster than she knew it, Rainbow Dash was seeing the monster shoot off into space.

“Woah... that was awesome...”

Kat crossed her arms with a smile as she saw the beast disappear from sight. “Yeah, never gets old doing that. Gotta love gravity sometimes.”

“So... you one of those Displaced guys or something?”

“Girl, technically speaking, but yes, I am a Displaced. Name’s Kat. Nice ta meet ya, Rainbow.”

“You’re that mare who killed all the changelings!” Rainbow Dash shouted, her eyes wide in recognition.

Kat blinked. “Girl,” she corrected. “But yeah, that’s me. Let me guess, Gilgamesh has been through here?”

“Yeah, you just missed him by a week,” Dash said, her mood turned sour.

“Huh, interesting. I haven’t seen the big lug in a while, but I suppose it’ll have to wait.” Kat put her hands behind her head and looked at Rainbow. “What’s up with you?”

“I got a problem with genocidal assholes.” Dash sneered.

Kat rolled her eyes. “Get over yourself. I put down monsters, that’s all. No one complains when you kill other monsters; this wasn’t any different.” The Kat started to pace a little. “Could I have handled it different? Sure, I could have, but with how I was back then, like that was gonna happen.”

“It should have been handled differently!”

She shrugged. “I already admitted that. Can’t change the past though. And if you’re wondering, no, I don’t regret my actions.”

Dash snarled, lunging at her, slashing at her face. Kat grabbed the claw, her eyes now a deep, blood-red. Rainbow tried as much as she could, but Kat’s strength was too much and she couldn’t move the claw at all.

“Are you done?” she asked the pegasus. 

“People like you make me sick!” Dash said spitting in her face.

Kat’s stare never changed. “And ignorant ponies like you disgust me.” Kat’s voice was cold and hard, sending the tiniest of shivers down her spine. “Do you have any idea how many lives I saved in destroying those beasts? No, all you care about are the ones I took. Not every life can be saved, and when you live life like I have you must be willing to make the hard decisions.”

“Do you know how many lives we lost because of ponies like you?” Dash countered, staring into her eyes.

“And what have I done wrong, exactly? I saved lives from monsters who had no emotions, no soul. Only the queen changeling had any sense of intelligence and was the greatest threat of all. I was saving the lives of those I cared about and those of the innocents the changelings were eating.”

“We lost thousands to those bastards!” Dash shouted, tearing up. “They killed so many...” she said, her rage turning into sorrow.

Kat’s eyes softened at the sight of the mare. In one fell swoop, Kat pulled Rainbow into a hug, surprising her. “I know it’s hard,” Kat whispered, “I know that better than anybody, but you can’t let this keep building. Just let it out, Dashie. Just let it out.”

“T-they almost took Gilda from me!” she sobbed wrapping her arms around Kat’s neck.

Even though she didn’t know who Gilda was, Kat could tell she was important to Rainbow. “Shh, it’s alright. Aunty Kat is here,” she said comfortingly as she rubbed Rainbows back.

“I lost my legs... I still see it in my dreams...” she whimpered, hugging her tighter. “How could anypony do that? We’re supposed to believe in harmony!”

Kat just held the mare close. “Some people, or ponies in this case, only care about themselves. They don’t care about the consequences they cause to others as long as they are happy. Their gratification is all that matters. But in the end, that thinking will destroy them, which, unfortunately, may take others with them.” Kat pushed Rainbow back a little to look her in the eyes. The mare sniffled a little and Kat smiled softly. “But you have to move on, live for those that were lost. Otherwise, they died in vain. And you don’t want that, do you?”

“N-no...” she said, shaking her head.

“Exactly. No one likes to admit it, but loss is a deep part of life, and it hurts. It hurts you deep in your heart and soul. But as long as you never forget what was lost, then it will always be there, in your heart and in your memories. You are one of the strongest ponies I know, so show me that strength, and move on for the future.”

“T-thanks...” Dash stuttered out, wiping her tears away.

“Now, you seem to know about the Displaced, which must mean that one lives here. Mind taking me to him or her?” she asked sweetly.

“O-ok,” she said spreading her wings, taking to the sky. “Follow me.”

Kat floated off the ground and flew up to Rainbow. “By the way, thanks for the help with the cragodile. It’s much appreciated. Lead the way!”

She nodded, flying at a slower pace than normal. After a few minutes, the old Everfree castle came into view. Most of it’s crumbling exterior had been covered in a hard black substance. At it’s entrance stood a pair of armored changelings, holding wicked looking spears.

Kat blinked at the sight. “Woah, now I get why you were adamant about the changelings thing. They are friends, right?”

“Yeah, at least Chrysalis’ hive is.” Dash said, trotting across the bridge. The changelings nodded at her, opening the doors for them.

“Chrysalis? Oh boy, this is gonna be awkward, isn’t it?” Kat said as she followed Rainbow in. She sighed as she put her face in her hand. “Oh well, not the first changeling hive I’ve dealt with.”

“They should be in the meeting room.” Dash said, trotting down the hall, her talons clicking on the floor.

“If you say so.” The two walked in silence for a while until Kat spoke again. “So... who’s Gilda?”

“A griffon I met back in flight camp, we used to be friends but after that whole thing with Pinkie we stopped talking for a while... now um... we’re dating...”

“Aw, how cute,” Kat said in honesty. “It’s always nice to hear of interspecies couples. Gives me hope for better futures. I wonder if my Rainbow had a Gilda too. I know it’s not like your relationship, because Dash doesn’t swing that way. Might be a good thing to ask when I can finally go home.”

“Here we are,” Dash said as they reached the door. Inside several voices were heard, some of them sounding a little distorted.

“Dash?” Kat said, making the pegasus stop. “Tell them who I am. Don’t try to keep it a secret. I know what I did and have come to terms with it, so don’t feel you need to help me.”

“Ok,” she said nodding as she open the doors. Three pairs of eyes turned to her, their conversation stopping.

“What's up Dash?” Jason asked, tilting his head. “You need something?”

“Um... Gilgamesh’s Kat is here,” Dash said, looking at her talons. “She wants to meet you.”

“Well... send her in,” Jason said, nodding his head. “I might as well meet her.”

Kat walked in from behind Rainbow Dash. “Greetings. I am the Gravity Queen, Kat Shifter. A pleasure to meet you all.”

“I’m Jason Hughes, prince of Equestria and queller of the Forever Knight Rebellion. This is my fiance Chrysalis and our guest, Queen Pupa.”

“Nice to meet you, Jason. I heard you’ve met my former teacher and I promise you, I am no threat to the changelings. I’m not some monster who hunts them down mercilessly, I never was. I only did what I thought was right at the time.”

“Thats good to know,” Jason said with a nod. “Though he is my teacher as well, I suppose that makes you my sempai,” he said with a light smirk.

Kat blinked and then deadpanned. “You ever call me that again, you’ll be joining that cragodile mutant I sent into orbit earlier.”

“It’s a shame, I was hoping sempai would notice me today,” Just as Jason finished his quip, he found himself floating in midair.

“What did I just say?” Kat asked, unamused.

“Alright, I’ll stop,” he laughed, putting his hands up. Kat snapped her fingers and Jason fell flat on his face on the floor.

“Good. Don’t do it again.”

“Ow...” Jason said getting up, not much worse for wear.

“Alright then, so let’s get down to business, shall we?” Kat asked as she clapped her hands together.

“What uh... did you want to talk about?” Jason asked, returning to his seat.

“Well, you see, due to circumstances back home, I’m currently on the road, as it were, helping out wherever I can. And if you would like, I am here to offer my services.”

“I’m not going to say no.” Jason said nodding. “Queen Pupa was telling us about how Maud saved her hive.”

“Maud?” she asked. “Who’s that?”

“Pinkie’s sister.”

“Pinkie has a sister?! Can the world even handle that much crazy?”

“Actually, Maud is really dull,” Pupa spoke up, “For all the time I’ve known her, she barely shows emotion.”

Kat was at a loss for words. “...are you sure she’s Pinkie’s sister?”

“Yes, I am,” Pupa said, nodding her head. “Kind soul though, she saved my hive, out near her farm.”

“Wow. That’s different. If Pinkie and I can ever reconcile when I can go home, I may need to ask about her siblings.”

“My hive is small, only a few dozen drones.The queen of a larger hive didn’t want any competition so... she trapped us inside of her hive... most of my children starved trying to dig us out.”

“Um...I’m sorry?” Kat really wasn’t sure how to respond, not with her bias against changelings still existent to an extent.

“Thank you...” she said looking down. “This has to stop. We’ve been fighting each other for too long. Chrysalis, I purpose we unite the hives, under you.”

“Under me?” Chrysalis asked in pure surprise. “Why me? I’m not all too special. Besides what makes you think they even can be united?”

“You’ve been living alongside the ponies successfully, your hive has all the love it needs,” Pupa argued. “The hives were united once, long ago, under the rule of the empress. When the last one died, the queens started to fight amongst themselves for power and it has been that way ever since.”

“Do we even know where the other hives are?” Jason asked, gesturing to the map of Equestria spread across the table.

“They shouldn’t be too hard to find.” Pupa said, looking at the map. “It has to be done, for the better of our kind.”

“Well Kat, you wanna help unite a bunch of bugs?” Jason asked, ignoring the look Chrysalis gave him.

“Sure,” she shrugged. “It’s another off the list.”

“How many are off already?”

“One,” Kat sighed. “I’ve got nine more to go, and fifty years to get it done.”

“Well, this makes two,” Jason said with a smile, holding his hand out to her.

Kat clasped her hand into his, nearly breaking it. “I’m happy to help.”

“Are you?” he asked, looking into her eyes.

Kat sighed. “Look, just because I don’t like changelings, doesn’t mean I’m not happy to help them. If it betters Equestria, in any way, then I’m more than happy to help. It’s my duty to protect Equestria and it’s benefits, I just consider this an extension.”

“Thats good to know.” Jason said, getting up, kissing Chrysalis’ cheek. “You two hash out the details, I’m going to get us the locations of those hives.” Jason approached the door. “I’m going to need your help for this Kat.”

“Sure, I could go for a fight. That last world I was in really got this body in fighting shape.” She cracked a few joints, releasing the tension. “Let’s get to it!”

“Not what I meant really,” Jason said, shaking his head. “Come on, I’ll explain on the way.”

“Alright, lead on, Mr. Hughes!”

“Just call me Jason, it’s the name I’m most used to,” he said waving it off.

Kat shrugged as she floated off the ground again. “Cool with me. I don’t like using honorifics anyway. Unless they’re being used on me, that is.”

“Ego much?” Jason teased.

“An ego that can be backed up, bug-lover,” Kat quipped.

“As can mine.”

“Yeah, I saw the Omnitrix on your wrist.” Then she smiled. “Hate for something to happen to it,” she said in a mocking sing-song voice.

“I don’t really need it as much,” he said with a smirk. “I’ve been practicing in other forms of combat.”

“Yeah, that’s not gonna stop me even without my powers, but enough of the ego boosting. We got bugs to save....never thought I’d ever say that.”

“I didn’t think my mother was a witch,” Jason said with a shrug.

“...I’ll ask about that later. Let’s go! I’m not getting any younger and Nemesis didn’t help me get used to being human again. I gotta stretch, man!”

“You met him too?” Jason asked, rather surprised. “Funny, I helped him be human again.”

“Huh, all I did was kick his cul.”

“He did not deserve that.”

“He turned into a giant monster bent on the destruction of everything in his path. It was either kill him or kick his cul. Which would you have taken?” Kat said with a questioning glance.

“Turn him back into a human.”

“You can’t do that with gravity powers, now can you? Come on, I’m human again so I want to get on with this!”

“Relax,” Jason said, stopping at a clearing. “Ok... this looks good enough.” he said walking toward the center.

“Good enough for what? What are you up to, bugboy?”

“How much do you know about Norse mythology?” Jason asked, starting to pull things out of his pocket.

“Uh, not much. I mean, I think my middle school German class mentioned it a little, but that was almost thirteen hundred years ago.”

“Ok so... my grandmother is the goddess of the underworld,” Jason said, looking at her. “Which makes Loki my great-grandfather.”

“Loki? I’m guessing he’s not the one from Avengers?” Kat asked, a little hope in her voice.

“I have no idea, he’s been dead for ages,” Jason said with a shrug. “Besides, he was a massive dick.”

“Yeah, but he was hot,” Kat muttered to herself, slightly disappointed. “Anyways, what’s your deity family line got to do with anything?”

“I’m going to summon my grandmother,” Jason said simply, setting up what looked like a glyph on the grass. “I’ve never met her before... that I can remember...”

“Who’s your grandmother?” Kat asked, simply content with just floating around Jason. Who was faintly reminded of Rainbow Dash at the moment due to Kat’s actions.

“Hel,” he said simply, standing up. “Well... here goes,” he said, sending a bit of magic into the glyph.

“You better not be trying something, bugboy,” Kat said as she watched the magic flow. “If you’re betraying me in any way, I will wreck your merde.”

“Why would I betray you?” he asked giving her an offended look.

“Well, I did kill your fiance in another world,” Kat replied with a shrug. “Brutally by the way. She even begged for her life, come to think of it. It would have been very heart-wrenching if she hadn’t been evil scum.”

“I didn’t need to know that,” he said shaking his head. Before she could reply, the glyph glowed, a ring of darkness forming inside of it. From out of it arose a tall cloaked figure, its height around twelve feet.

“Who has summoned me?” it spoke with a woman’s voice, soft and with an ethereal beauty that touched the soul.

“Um... hi...” Jason said softly, getting its attention. “It’s me, Corypheus.” The meadow went quiet as the figure stared at him before reaching up and pulling back its hood. The figure was a woman, her face was the picture of perfection, save one thing. Half of her face was as black as night and the other was white as snow. She kneeled down, cupping his chin gently.

“You certainly are your father’s son,” she gave him a light smile, which he returned. “Though I did not expect to see you so soon,” she glanced towards Kat, looking her over. “And who is your companion?”

“Yo,” Kat waved with a two fingered salute. “Kat Shifter, they call me the Gravity Queen.”

“Hm... she reeks of death,” Hel said, tilting her head slightly. “A lot of it as a matter of fact.”

She shrugged. “I was the general of Equestria’s army for two hundred and some-odd years. That and I caused the extinction of a species.”

“Ah, that explains it,” Hel said, standing up to her full height. “Was there a reason you summoned me? Or did you just want to say hello?”

“We were hoping you could give us the location of the changeling hives,”Jason said, trying to look his grandmother in the eyes and only succeeding in making his neck hurt.

“I can do that.” she said snapping her fingers. A long skeletal arm rose out of the ground, clutching a map in it’s bony fingers.”Here you are,” she said, passing it off to Jason, who took it rather gingerly. “Oh and I’ve been waiting to give this to you,” she reached into her cloak, pulling out a sword. Along its blade were etched glowing runes and the sword as a whole hummed with magic. “This is Laevateinn, it was my father’s sword, and now its yours.”

“Woah...” Jason said, taking it from her, staring at it in awe. “T-thank you.”

“There is no thanks needed Corypheus.” she said with a smile, stepping back into the portal she had appeared from. “I can’t wait to see you at that reunion, I’ll have a wonderful surprise for you.” with that she sank back into the ground, the portal sealing behind her.

“Well, she seemed nice. You should call your grandmother more often, it’s rude not to. And also... Corypheus?” Kat asked with an ‘are you serious?’ face.

“Yes, that’s my real name,” Jason said, giving her an annoyed look.

She was silent for a moment, then shook her head. “You’re better off sticking with Jason. Now then, let’s get moving.”

“Whatever.” he said, sliding the sword into his pocket. He unfurled the map, looking it over. “Well... there’s only about... eighteen hives...”

“...oh god. Where’s Pinkie Pie? She could make this into a montage for us and be done with it.” Kat sagged as she floated, not realizing how much work it was gonna be.

“I’ll help,” a very bored voice said as Maud walked over, giving them a rather unimpressed look

“Woah... that’s Pinkie’s sister.” Kat floated over to Maud and started to observe her very closely, going over every part of her body. After a moment, she floated back with a confused look. “I don’t see the relation at all.”

Maud just blinked, her eyelids never raising beyond half lidded. 

“Well... lets get get going shall we?” Jason asked, rolling the map up. “We have Queens to see!”

“As long as none of them say: ‘Off with their heads!’. Already dealt with that a while back.”

“God I hated that remake.”

“I never saw the remake, honestly. Not all that much of a Johnny Depp fan....although I did enjoy him as a pirate. ‘I got a jar of dirt’ always cracked me up. But I digress, onward! To royalty that I hopefully don’t piss off!”

“Why do I get the feeling this is gonna suck?” Jason asked with a sigh as he started walking.





“This did not go as planned,” Jason said, feeling the blood rush to his head. “How the hell did they catch us again?”

“Because Maud doesn’t know how to vraiment run,” Kat groaned glaring at the earth pony cocooned next to her. “Learn to move, satané you!”

“I didn’t want to upset Boulder,” Maud said impassively.

“It’s just a vraiment rock!” Kat nearly screamed. “I’m getting so sick and tired of this pony! And I thought the Doctor was a pain!”

“You’ll hurt Boulder’s feelings.”

“You don’t even have feelings! How the enfer does Pinkie put up with you?!”

“Ok, enough of this,” Jason said, starting to get light headed. “Omnitrix, Goop.” He transformed into a strange creature made out of green goo, melting through the cocoon he was trapped in.

“Great! Now get us free so I can cook Maud for dinner!”

“I don’t think I’d taste very good,” Maud blinked, looking at Kat.

“No, but it’ll make me feel better!” Kat was not having a good day.

“I’d probably taste like a rock.”

Kat fumed from inside her pod and looked to Goop. “Jason... please get me out of here, so I CAN REDUCE THIS ANNOYING PONY INTO A SINGULARITY!!!”

“No hurting the pony, who knows what Pinkie would do if she died or something,” Goop said, firing a gush of slime at Kat’s pod and melting it.

Kat floated down to the ground, arms crossed and not looking very happy. “We’ve gone through seven hives already and she keeps getting us in trouble! Why did we bring Miss Rock-without-the-Roll again?”

“I promised Pupa I would help,” Maud said, watching them impassively. “I keep my promises.”

“Huh... guess it runs in the family,” Goop said, melting Maud’s pod. The mare fell like a rock yet some how managed to land on all fours.

“Whatever, let’s just get out of here,” Kat said impatiently, wiping off the cocoon remains from her jacket. “Jeez, two worlds in and I’m already sick of these things again.”

“You get used to the goo really,” Goop said, turning to the corridor from which hissing could be heard. “Ah crap, here they come!”

Kat scowled then looked at Jason. “Alright, we need to speak with the queen, so we gotta go through the drones. Jason, you’ve spent a lot time around these things. Are they susceptible to any particular sound frequency?”

“Um maybe? Omnitrix, Blitzwolfer!” he said, shifting into a large wolf creature. It’s muzzle split open and he let out a sonic howl that threw them back. That just seems to piss them off.

“How about I show you how it’s done, kid?” Kat reached into her jacket and pulled out a strange looking device. It was long, metal, cylindrical, and had four prongs covering a green bulb at the end. Kat pointed the object at the changelings, causing it to extend and the prongs sprouting out. She pressed a button and the tip began to glow and let out an ear-bleeding screech.

Jason let out a howl of pain, clutching his head as the changelings collapsed, screeching in pain.

Kat lifted her finger off the button, making the sound stop. “Now that I have your attention,” she yelled out to the bugs. “Take us to your queen! Or so help me, I will use the satané screwdriver again!” She pointed it back at them, causing a few to flinch. “Don’t tempt me.”

“Ok ok! Just follow us!” one of them shouted, trembling a little. Jason just growled at Kat a little, starting to walk toward the changeling.

“Sorry, Jay,” Kat said as she put away her screwdriver. “Forgot about the super sensitive hearing of a wolf.” 

He huffed , turning away from her.

“That was a really insensitive thing to do,” Maud montonely chastised, following after Jason.

“Oh no! Don’t you get on my case, too missy. I did what was necessary, that is all,” Kat crossed her arms in huff as she followed behind them. “Geeze, no one understands military strategy nowadays. I miss the old times.”



“I surrender!” the queen whimpered, prostrating herself before Maud, the mare in question holding a huge chunk of the wall, along with part of the ceiling in her raised in hoof. “I’ll do whatever you want!”

“Jeez,” Jason said with wide eyes, “Did you know she could do that?”

Kat eyes the mare, a little bit of respect in her eyes. “No, but at least this one ended better than the last four. It was much more entertaining.”

“Come to the meeting, thats it,” Maud said, still holding the chunk.

“Ok! I-I’ll leave right now!” the queen practically screamed, rushing past them as if Satan as at her heels.

“I think that went well.” Maud said laying the chunk down. She paused, rubbing it with her hoof. “Thank you...” she whispered before turning and walking out of the room.

“She still freaks me out,” Kat whispered as they followed her.

“I think she actually talks to the rocks, like Fluttershy does with animals.”

“I would find that creepy, but I’ve actually heard of pony who does talk to rocks. The scary thing is that they actually talked back.” Kat shuddered a little. “You hear and see some weird merde on the road.”

“Tell me about it...” he said with a shudder.



“How the hell did we get into this mess?” Jason asked Kat, staring intently at his hand, both Displaced in a severe state of undress.

“I have no idea,” Kat grumbled, hiding her growing blush. Thankfully, only her jacket and boots had been lost. “Good thing I grew up playing poker with my dad’s military buddies, otherwise....Jason, I’m sorry but I would’ve had to kill you.”

“Why me? I didn’t agree to this, you did,” he glared. “Besides, it’s not my fault I’m this bad, Mr.Hughes had it in his head that poker was the game of the devil.”

“I’ll remember to smack him for you if I ever end up on your Earth,” Kat said just as she laid out her hand. “Full house, Queeny! Suck it!!”

“Royal flush my dear, you lose!” the queen said with a smirk. “I’ll let you pick what you get rid of.”

She growled slightly. “Fine, but don’t get cocky. When we win, you’re going to that vachement meeting.”

“I think you mean if you win.” the queen smirked arrogantly.

“This is your fault Kat,” Jason said, tossing away his shirt, crossing his arms with a pout.

“Oh no, ‘when’ I win! I’ve never lost a game of poker and I ain’t gonna lose to a bug!” Kat boasted at the queen as she took off her scarf. “You ain’t got nothin’ on a true queen.”

“Your poker face is very weak Kat,” Maud said, taking all of their cards, shuffling them and passing them all out again.

“Shut up, Maud. My poker face allowed me to beat experts... when I was nine and depressed as merde. Just play the game.”

---

“I thought you said you were good at this...”Jason said, his hands in his lap, he had been knocked out of the game slightly before Kat had. Their only hope now was the stone-faced Maud, who still had her frock on.

Kat growled angrily, covering herself by holding onto her pile of clothes. “I am, but I haven’t played in over a thousand years. And I’ve been a little to focused over the past five years to bother picking it up again.”

“Ha!  Four pair!” the queen shouted, confident in her victory.

“Royal flush.” Maud said placing her cards on the table. “It appears that we win.”

The queen’s eye twitched before she snarled flipping the table in anger. “Bah! I’ll go to your stupid meeting! Now begone from my hive!” she ordered, trotting out of the room. 

Maud got out of her seat moving over to Kat. She reared up on her hind legs, whispering something into the woman’s ear, making her blush even harder. Maud gave the tiniest of smirks, dropping back to all fours and walking out of the room.

Kat shook her face, trying to get the images out of her head. “No, no , no! Bad thoughts, bad pervy thoughts.”

“Did Maud just hit on you?” Jason asked, not sure if he should laughing his ass off or horrified.

“No, she didn’t hit on me,” Kat said as she snapped her fingers, instantly dressed again. “More like basically said ‘anytime, anyplace’. If you get my drift.”

“Seriously...?” he asked, reaching into his hypercube causing his clothes to reappear on him.

“She is one cuckoo pony.” She sighed as the two followed after Maud. “Anyway, that was number seventeen. One more right?”

“Thank Yggdrasil yes!” Jason said standing up, cracking his back.”The last one is near what’s left of Trottingham...”

“Oh god, back there,” Kat said with even less enthusiasm than Jason.

“Half of it was burned down by the knights...”

“Mine was where I murdered all the changelings... except Chrysalis.”

“I heard a good chunk of the population was killed...”

“Yay, both of our Trottinghams are enfer,” Kat said sarcastically. “Let’s just get this over with. I don’t need any more bad memories.”

“Yeah... me too.” Jason said with a sigh, hoping this would all work out.



“Knight to A3,” the queen commanded, her ‘knight’, one of her drones, complied, moving into place. “Your turn my dear.” she said pleasantly.

“Hmm,” Kat mused as she looked over the board. It was pretty evened up, though one wrong move and the game would be lost. Begrudgingly, Kat looked over to Maud and asked, “What do you think we should do?”

“Move your rook to D5 and take her rook, which puts her king in check.”

“You heard the mare Jason!” Kat yelled out. “Move yo cloned cul, boy!”

“I’m going I’m going.” one of the many Ditto’s said, moving to D5. The changeling on that square took flight, landing off to the side with the other removed ‘pieces’.

“Check, Queeny!” Kat called over to the changeling queen.

“Hmm.... that does put me in quite the spot...” she took a moment to think, moving her king back. “Your move!”

“Heh, perfect. What do you think, Maud? Perfect set up right?”

“Yes it is, sweet flanks.” Maud said with the same monotone voice, though she now had a big smirk on her muzzle.

“...yeah, don’t call me that. I’m not into ponies. Jason! Go for the win!”

“You got it!” the lead Ditto said, moving forward and taking the queen’s ‘king’. “Woot!” all the Dittos shouted at once, throwing their arms up into the air in unison.

“I believe you have defeated me,” the queen said, getting to her hooves. “Very well, I shall honor our deal and come to your meeting.”

“Yes!” Kat cheered. “Woo hoo! We beat the final boss!”

“I say we go get drunk!” one Ditto shouted, causing the others to cheer in agreement.

“...I’m not buying drinks for each and every one of you,” Kat deadpanned. “No more clones!”

“I didn’t expect you too,” Jason rolled his eyes, absorbing the clones back into himself, allowing the Omnitrix to time out. “Well that thing’s going to be useless for awhile...”

“We should probably get back to your fiance, bugboy. Make sure everything hasn’t gone to enfer while we’ve been gone.”

“Don’t call me that, scarf-girl.”

“Ooh, good come back. Up all night working on that one?” Kat smirked as Jason glared at her. She just giggled and started floating off in the direction of the main hive. “Come on, let’s get going.”

“Stupid Omnitrix, if I could just turn into Hodgepodge we’d be there already...”

“The putain is ‘Hodgepodge’?” asked Kat as they trudged out into the forest.

“My version of Discord.”

“That’s disturbing.”

“No, it’s headache inducing, seriously, it hurts to change back,” he said, shuddering as he thought about it.

“That must suck. By the way, since we have some time, have you met any other Displaced besides Gilgy and Nemmy?”

“A few, there was that guy Don, don’t know what his problem was but he attacked me and I accidently fucked up his leg. I also ran into a guy named Ben who became Ben 10, then there are those three assholes who are also in this world.”

Kat frowned for a moment. “Ben... why does that sound so familiar all of a sudden?” She shook her head, grunting slightly. “Ugh, this is gonna bother me until I figure it out.”

“I don’t think I left a good impression on him...” Jason said with a sigh.

“What makes you say that?” Kat said absentmindedly, still trying to figure out why that name was bugging her.

“Well... I had only been here a few days and had just gotten stabbed when I met him... plus he insulted my Omnitrix and I kinda insulted his back... I left a horrible impression on that guy...”

“You should probably call him up sometime then. Make things right.”

“Perhaps... also if you get a chance, you should talk to Gilgamesh.”

“When my mission is done,” Kat said, looking up into sky. “Then, only then will I see him again. Plus, I’m still kinda mad at him.”

“He’s not doing too well Kat... I think he’s losing it,” Jason said, thinking to Gilgamesh’s outburst.

“Oh... well, maybe I shouldn’t be so mad at him. I guess it’s not... completely his fault my life went to hell after he left.”

“He’s apparently fighting a war. Something came to his universe and let the demons out of Tartarus,” Jason said shaking his head. “Guy’s had a lot on his plate.”

Kat sighed. “Yeah, alright. I guess I should give him a break. It wasn’t his fault Fluttershy was killed.”

“I haven’t lost anyone close to me like that...”Jason said looking up at the sky. “I almost killed Applejack though...”

“Yeah, but you didn’t have to watch helplessly as your own granddaughter was executed in front of a cheering crowd by the person you used to consider a sister.”

“I watched that bastard cut Dash’s legs off, I saw all those eyes watching with glee from some sick superiority complex those monsters had. I almost became one myself.” 

“There are some terrible creatures in existence.” Kat felt several memories going through her mind. “I’ve seen more than any person should. I really feel sorry for those ponies,” she whispered, just loud enough to be heard.

“Lets talk about something happier shall we?” Jason suggested, not wanting to linger on this topic.

“That’d be up to you. I don’t have a lot of happiness in my life. Well, save for my friends, my mother, and my granddaughter.”

“I just met my real mother,” Jason said with a smile. “She’s a nice lady.”

“I lost my real mother when I was young, but when I can finally go back home, I’ll be able to spend many long years with my new mother,” Kat said with a smile.

“My adopted parents were hyper-religious jackasses,” Jason said, frowning a little. “I don’t miss them.”

Kat wanted to reply, but found she had nothing to say to that. “Well, I hope you are happy with your new family. Mine’s gonna take a lot of apolgizing to when I’m allowed back home.”

“Yeah well... I just wish I could remember my dad...”

“I hope you find out more about him. I can’t even remember any of my family’s names. I wish I could.”

“Looks like life screwed us both over huh?” he asked, chuckling a little.

Kat shook her head with a small laugh. “You have no idea. Oh look, we’re here.”

“How the hell did we do that?” he asked, looking rather confused. “Did we hit a time warp? Trottingham is hours away.”

“Well, my body is still fluctuating a little. That’s what happens when so much power is settled into a new form. Gravity has been known to cause disturbances in space and time, so...”

“If we skipped years, I’m introducing you to Alien X.”

“I don’t think I’m leaking that much energy. So we should be fine. Still great to no longer be a pony.”

“You were a pony?” Jason asked, raising his eyebrow.

“Yeah. I crashed into a spaceship in some parallel universe and got turned into a pony. Thankfully, the ponies on board were willing to help me get back to being me. Took a couple years, but I finally got back to normal. I will always remember those ponies, no matter how crazy they were. I mean, how messed up is to be traveling time and space in a police box?!”

“I hate that show...” he said, rolling his eyes. “Everyone goes on like its the best thing in the world.”

Kat looked at Jason weirdly. “Show? What show?”

“Doctor Who, that show about that British alien screwing around with time.”

She just looked at him even stranger. “I have no idea what you are talking about.”

“I felt that way when Nemesis told me about My Little Pony...”

“Yeah, still hard to believe that. I mean, that was an eighties show, but apparently Hasbro succeeded in alternate worlds. It failed in mine, so...”

“I don’t have it in my world. Though it may have started while I was here... I’ll have to go back there soon...”

“I never want to go back to Earth,” Kat said as the trio walked into the hive. “There’s too much pain back there.”

“I’m going to connect Midgard with Asgard again, people are going to be pissed to learn the Norse gods are real,” he said stopping for a moment. He reached into his cube and pulled out his crown. It was black, inlaid with several gorgeous emeralds. ”Gotta be official,” he said, placing it on his head.

Kat stared at the crown and then down at her own attire. Then she shrugged. “These are my formal clothes anyway. Though...” Kat snapped her fingers, and a sheathed rapier appeared tied to her belt. “Might as well French it up. Allons-y!”

He just rolled his eyes, walking into the meeting. Twenty queens, Chrysalis and Pupa included, were arguing away, their distorted voices rather headache inducing. Kat stared with a deadpan at the queens then pulled out the sonic again, pointed it up in the air, and activated the screeching again.

They all stopped, covering their ears quickly. “Will you stop that!” Chrysalis ordered, hissing a little. 

Smirking slightly, Kat closed up the device, but kept it in her hand. “Hey, it got you all to stop. Mission accomplished.”

She just glared at her before clearing her throat. “We all know why we’re here. The ponies are united, why shouldn’t we?”

“Well, you all do have quite the checkered past and... Maud stop touching my butt,” she turned glaring at the impassive pony.

“I wasn’t touching you,” Maud said, being about two feet away. “It was them.” she said, pointing to the two small breezies trying to get her attention.

“You’re from another universe right?” one asked, flying up to Kat’s face.

“Woah, I haven’t seen breezies in a long time. What’s up little guy?” she said all cutesy. “How do you know about other universes?”

“Please! You have to get us out of here!” he shouted grabbing her eyelashes. “I’m losing my mind on this backwater planet!”

“Um... I can’t exactly control where I go. I just kinda...jump,” Kat admitted sheepishly. “I’m still trying to work my way into the Void.”

“Gah!” he screamed, tugging on his antenna.

“Out, both of you,” Jason said tossing both breezies out of the room, slamming the door shut behind them.

“Well, that was rude,” Kat said with a strange look.

“You wouldn’t say that if you had to deal with them daily...” Jason said, taking his seat. “Ok... let’s get back to business shall we?”

“Alright, but I’m not exactly the best in this kind of situation. Mom usually took care of the treaties and shit.”

“It’s not actually all that hard...” Jason said with a sigh. “At least that’s what Luna tells me...”

Kat pointed at herself. “Military. Shoot first, ask questions later. Peace ain’t my forte.”

“You’ve said this,” Jason said, rolling his eyes. “Now,” he cleared his throat. “We’re all here to discuss the appointment of a new Empress. I nominate Chrysalis.”

“You mean the idiot who tried to invade?” one queen asked, scoffing. “Lets not forget that she submitted to pony rule.”

“I did what I had to keep my hive alive!” Chrysalis shouted, hissing a little. “I sucked up my pride and did what I had to, thats more than any of you can say!”

“I’d say that’s a good enough reason,” Kat said with a shrug as she floated above them all. “She put the safety of her kind above herself. That’s the most admirable aspect of a leader.”

“It’s a sign of weakness is what it is!” another shouted, slamming her hooves into the table. “If she’s willing to submit to the ponies, they’ll walk right over all of us!”

“Don’t they already do that?” Kat asked that particular queen. “All your kind does is hide away in your pitiful little hives, starving and waiting to die. Wouldn’t peace with the ponies be more beneficial than dying?”

“I think Lady Kat has a point,” the Trottingham queen spoke up. “If unification worked for the ponies, why shouldn’t it work for us?”

A few of the queens looked at each other, muttering amongst themselves.

“I vote in favor of Chrysalis,” Pupa said, getting to her hooves. “All those in favor?” she asked looking at the others. After a few minutes of deliberation, most of the queens had voted in Chrysalis’ favor.

“Bah!” the Las Pegasus queen spat, getting to her hooves. “You can all follow that fool to your deaths, I’m keeping my hive safe.” she said, leaving the room, followed by at least two other queens.

“Huh... this actually worked... mostly...” Jason said, putting his arm around Chrysalis with a smile.

“Could’ve gone better, though,” Kat commented. “Oh well, a win’s a win I guess.”

“Hey seventeen out of twenty; it’s at least an A.” Jason said with a smirk.

“The only thing left to do is anchor our minds to yours, Chrysalis,” Pupa said, turning to the new empress. 

“Do it,” she said steeling herself for the process. The queens all lit their horns up, focusing on Chrysalis. She winced, shaking her head as seventeen minds latched onto hers, burrowing in.

“Well I think that concludes the meeting. Chrysalis is going to need some time to process this.”

“Of course. Besides, we should all be getting back to our hives,” Pupa said as she and the other queens said goodbye, taking their leave.

“And that’s two worlds down,” Kat said, making a mental check. “This has been interesting, and traumatizing,” she said while looking at Maud.

“Hey, why don’t you stay a bit longer?” Jason asked, getting to his feet. “You could meet my Fluttershy.”

Kat thought on the offer for a minute before nodding her head. “I suppose I could stay a little while longer. I can’t go home for fifty years anyway, so I might as well see the sights.”

“Will you be ok?” Jason asked, looking at Chrysalis. 

“Yes, I’ll be fine.” Chrysalis said, waving him off. “You go have fun.” She gave him a kiss, which he returned.

“Alright then, let’s go.” he said, having noticed Maud had already slipped out of sight.

Kat visibly relaxed. “Oh thank god, she’s gone.”

“Oh hey, you can also meet Zed!” Jason said as he walked out of the room, letting out a whistle.

“What’s a Zed?”

Just as she asked that, Zed came bounding over to Jason, nearly knocking him over. “Hey girl, you miss me?” he asked, petting her head.

“That is one weird looking dog,” Kat commented as she laid on her stomach in midair.

Zed growled at her, taking insult at that.

“She uh... doesn’t like being called a dog.”

“What else am I supposed to call it then?”

“She’s an Anubian Baskurr, they’re a species of canine like creatures from another planet.” Jason explained, calming the baskurr down.

“Anubian? ...Wow, that reference. So, what shall do to start my first vacation in years?”

“Lets go see Fluttershy... just um... try not to stare,” Jason said, walking toward the main doors.

“Stare?” Kat asked, concern filling her voice.

“You’ll see...” Jason said, shaking his head.




“Just remember don’t stare,” Jason told Kat, knocking on the cottage door.

“Uh... okay?”

“Oh hello Jason,” Fluttershy said, opening the door, giving him a fangy smile. “Oh...” she said, shrinking back a little. “You brought a guest...”

Kat could only stare in shock, the very sight of Fluttershy shocking her to her core.

“Kat,” Jason said, elbowing her in the side.

“Uh... uh... uh...” Kat stuttered out.

“Seriously Kat, you’re giving Flutters an anxiety attack!”

Kat ignored Jason and shot forward, wrapping Fluttershy in a tight hug as the bat pony ‘eep’ed. “Oh my god! You are sooo cute!!”

“Oh oh my,” Fluttershy said, trying to escape the woman’s hold.

Kat continued to cuddle Fluttershy close, squeeing slightly. “Fluttershy is a bat pony! Best day ever!”

“Actually... she’s a vampire bat pony...” Jason said, watching them with a smirk.

“Oooh!” Kat said. “Your Fluttershy is awesome! In a cute way!”

“Please let me go... if thats ok with you...” Fluttershy pled meekly.

“Awww... but you’re so cute and cuddly.”

“Oh um... thank you...” she said with a blush.

“No problem Flutters...” Then Kat went silent, her eyes wide at what she just said. She slowly let go of Fluttershy, and bowed her head. “Sorry,” she said, hiding her face.

“Oh it’s ok,” Fluttershy said with a smile. “It doesn’t really bother me so much anymore.” Kat was silent, eerily so, worrying Fluttershy. Especially when she leaned forward and saw that the woman was crying.

“Oh my!” Fluttershy darted forward, wrapping her arms around her neck in a tight hug. Once again, Kat hugged Fluttershy. Only this time, she was silently sobbing into the mare’s fur.

“Shh... it’s ok,” Fluttershy soothed, letting the woman cry.

“I-I miss her so-so much,” Kat sobbed, letting the tears fall freely.

“Let it all out,” Fluttershy said, cooing softly.

“I-I want to go ho-ome!” she cried.

She hummed a little song, rocking her back and forth gently.

“I-I miss them so much,” she sniffed. “Rainbow, Applejack, Spike. Enfer, I even miss Twilight. But I miss my granddaughter and mother most of all.”

“We all miss someone,” Fluttershy said softly.

Kat sniffed a little, pulling back from her and wiping away her tears. “Sorry about that. Just a little overwhelmed. I haven’t had a lot of down time as of late.”

“It’s ok, we all need a good cry sometimes, it’s good for the soul,” Fluttershy said with a smile.

Kat chuckled a little. “Some people used to say I have no soul.”

“Well that’s not true, we all have a soul,” Fluttershy said, getting to her hooves. “Would you like some tea?”

“Yeah, I would,” Kat said with a smile. “At least you’re as nice as my granddaughter. I’ve heard of some pretty terrible ones.”

“Really?” she asked, fluttering into the kitchen.

“Yeah...” Kat said with a sigh. “Flutters is so kind and caring, but of course she let her own fears take hold. But, as I helped her, I saw her blossom into a true mare. One who was not even afraid when she was up on the execution block... She was so brave that day.”

“Oh... oh my...” Fluttershy said, nearly dropping the teapot at that revelation.

“Yeah, my world kind of went to hell for a little while,” Kat said as she sat down on the couch.

“So did ours, Kat,” Jason said, laying down on Fluttershy’s couch, Zed curling up on the floor.

“Every Displaced seems to go through some traumatizing event in Equestria,” Kat summed up. “It’s awful.”

“Yeah it really is, I just hope Luna finds the rest of those bastards.”

“Hmmm,” Kat thought aloud as she sipped her tea. “You know, I may know a few tricks that could help find... whoever it is you’re looking for.”

“Oh? What would that be?” Jason asked, looking at her.

“Well, for one I know a few tracking spells. I can’t cast them, but I do know the formulas. And two, I can detect gravity disturbances.”

“They didn’t really mess with gravity all too much.”

Kat giggled a little, setting down her cup. “No, you misunderstand me. Every living creature is a gravity disturbance.”

“I did not know that.”

“It’s a relatively simple concept. You see, everything has its own gravitational field, but living creatures have a special difference in their fields. By focusing on the field of the planet, I can locate anyone anywhere on the planet,” Kat explained. Purposefully leaving out the fact that she stole that explanation from a friend.

“Hmm... could you do that with Ghostfreak?” he asked, raising his eyebrow.

“I don’t know. Perhaps when he is in his solid state, but intangible I highly doubt it.”

“Huh... I bet we could use that to find Ansem and Xemnas...”

“...aren’t those the villains from Kingdom Hearts one and two?” Kat asked, sounding confused.

“Yeah... they’re Displaced who were here before me.”

“Oh, well if you wanted I could try, but I need something of theirs to be able to lock on. Even with their powers, I could only give you a general area.”

“We’ll look into it later, let’s just enjoy our tea,” Jason said, finally taking a sip of his tea.

“Sure, though I hope we don’t run into Twilight. Bad memories.”

“She’s overseeing some reconstruction in Dodge Junction,” Jason said, shaking his head.

Kat let out small breath of relief. “Good. Mine is still pretty ticked at me, so I’m not all that okay being around them just yet.”

“Yeah... How about you teach me those formulas? I’ll pass them onto Twi later.”

“Sure. Got a piece of paper and a quill?”

Fluttershy passed some over to Kat, wanting to be helpful. She took them thankfully and began to write out several long and confusing equations. After about three minutes, she handed the four page formula to Jason.

“There we go. This spell is designed to work similarly to my gravity sense. I know Twilight shouldn’t have any problem figuring it out.”

“This is why spell tomes are much easier.” he said looking over before placing them in his cube.

Kat smiled at Jason before standing up. “Well, it has been a blast guys, but I should probably hit the road. I got at least eight more worlds to see and a lot of time to waste. But before I go,” Kat put out her hand, opening up a portal from which a diamond flew out. “This is my token, Jason. If you ever need some big time help, just give me a call.” She floated it over to him.

He caught it before tossing her his own. “Just tap the top. Also, I want you to take this,” he said, pulling out his Masamune. “I don’t really need it anymore and I’d rather it not go to waste.”

“Woah... um, alright.” She hesitantly took the blade and stashed it, along with the Unitrix, in a pocket dimension. “Thanks, I suppose.” Kat snapped her fingers and a portal appeared in Fluttershy’s far wall.

“You take care Kat,” Jason said, holding his hand out. Kat grasped it with a smile, again almost breaking his hand.

“Same to you, Jason. I hope you find your Displaced.”

“Thanks.” he said pulling away, allowing her to leave.

Kat moved over to the portal, stopping for a moment to pet Fluttershy behind her ears. “Farewell Jason Hughes. May you fall in whatever direction you please.” And with that, the Gravity Queen disappeared into the vortex as it closed behind her.

“She was nice,” Fluttershy said, taking all the dishes into the kitchen.

“Yeah, she was...” Jason said, petting Zed’s head while relaxing on the couch.
> Mazes And Monsters Is A Far Out Game
> --------------------------------------------------------------------------

Jason blinked, looking around the area. He suddenly found himself in the middle of Ponyville. He scratched his head, trying to figure out where he was when a voice cut into his thoughts.

“What the hell.” a voice said. “Who are you? What’s going on?”

“I’m Jason, who are you?” Jason asked, looking at the source. In front of him stood a young elf. “Let me guess, you found a unitrix core right?”

“So that’s what that was.” the elf said. “My name is Dox. That thing was from the show Ben 10, right? My memory isn’t as good as it was, too many hits to the head. But, yeah, I found a unitrix, hit the symbol on it. Why?”

“You’re the first person to actually use my token,” Jason said with a laugh. “That only took several months.”

“Token?” Dox said. “The heck do you mean token? I just found it on the ground and hit the button.”

“You... do know what a Displaced is right?”

“What about displacement? I’m sorry, ya kinda lost me there.”

Jason just facepalmed, shaking his head. “Are we in Equestria right now?”

“Yes, I’m pretty sure we are. I thought that was obvious. Don’t you see all the ponies wandering around? Or the purple alicorn over there? Speaking of that, can we move this elsewhere? I’m pretty sure that one is mad at me.”

“Hi Twilight~” Jason waved happily, smiling at her.

Twilight responded with a fireball, shot between Jason and Dox, just barely missing both of them.

“Told ya she was mad. Now can we please get out of here? Preferably to somewhere that doesn’t have an angry purple alicorn?”

“I’m not scared of Twilight,” Jason rolled his eyes, “Omnitrix, Arcticguana,” with a flash, he shifted into a blue lizard creature.

“The hell?! How did? Why did? What?! You’re just like the last guy I met, but with an actual Omnitrix. All he had was a weird gauntlet.”

He breathed in, then out, unleashing a torrent of icy winds that froze everything it touched, including a very suprised Twilight, “That should cool her off.”

“Heh, cool her off. But seriously, what the heck is going on? What did you mean by Displaced? And how did you get a working Omnitrix? Last time I checked, Equestria ran on magic, not science that’s light years ahead of us.”

“One sec. Omnitrix, Siegfried,” he shifted again, this time into a griffon. “Come on,” he spread this wings, flying off toward the Everfree.

“I can’t fly!” Dox screamed as he ran after him. “I don’t have wings, genius!”

“Oh yeah,” he said, swooping down and landing on a log. “This looks like a good enough place to talk.”

“So, what’s up with all this stuff? The Omnitrix, humans in Equestria, and that Displaced thing you were talking about? I’d like to know.”

“Ok so, you’re from Earth right?” Jason asked, spreading a wing, starting to preen it to pass the time.

“Yeah, of course. Don’t let my currently pale as hell skin and pointy ears fool you. Before all this started, I was from Earth. I’d just like to know what is going on.”

“And you bought something from some weird guy and got sent here correct?”

“Bingo. Also had this weird change happen to me. Used to just be a white kid... Now I’m super white. That, and my cloak,” he said, pointing to the tattered brown cloak. “Trust me, this isn’t what it normally looks like.”

“That makes you a Displaced.”

“Ah, and the whole magic and me being a completely different species now is part of that, too? Great.”

“Most Displaced bought things from that jerk,and we all got sent to different versions of Equestria,” Jason explained, looking at Dox.

“Mhm. Again, great. My already crazy life is all the more crazy. BRING ON THE DANCING BANANAS!” Dox shouted sarcastically.

“All I got is the Omnitrix, I’m still me,” Jason said, shifting back to normal. “Oh, you should be warned, stuff related to whatever you bought might appear in your Equestria,” 

“Are you speaking from experience? ‘Cause if you’re serious about that, then I’m pretty sure I have nothing to fear about, other than what’s already in Equestria. Maybe a few more creatures, but still the same. Oh, and here’s something, you’re lucky as hell! I got changed into a completely different species. Meanwhile, you’re still human!”

“My Equestria was just ransacked by a bunch of genocidal knights who killed thousands, I’m not all that lucky,” Jason said with a slight glare.

“Oh. Sorry man, didn’t know you had it that hard. You have to kill anyone?”

“Yeah I did,” Jason said, looking at him, “I don’t recommend it.”

“Well then, I guess I can relate. Still kinda freaking out from the place I just was,” Dox said, looking solemn.

“Back on topic, a token is a item a Displaced sends out into the multiverse, that allows other Displaced to summon them.”

“You mean like this thing?” Dox asked as he held up a scroll. “A guy named Drake gave me this in the Equestria I just came back from. He said I could call him over with it.”

“Yeah, thats exactly what a token is, though I’ve never met a Drake before.”

“And you might not ever. I found him by accident. Kinda got fed up here and portal jumped without thinking. I didn’t even know what I was doing and next thing I know, I’m in what looks like an iTunes visualizer, then I’m in a Ponyville that’s in the middle of a war. Tough day for me.”

“A war?”

“Yeah, apparently the griffons and the diamond dogs had the idea of using Drake as a weapon. I helped him out, killed a few griffons, then left him to go find the Chrysalis of his world. Got trained in being a changeling, got a new name, and went back to find the war was over... I also got back around the time of a bunch of ponies heat periods... Yeah, not gonna talk about that.”

“You met Chrysalis?” Jason asked rather intrigued. 

“Well, A Chrysalis. I figured if his world had a Chrysalis, this one might, too. Although his world did happen to be in the past compared to this one. I mean, I stopped the invasion of Canterlot from happening, who else can say they did that?”

“You did? Huh,” Jason said surprised, “I’m actually engaged to my Chrysalis.”

“Wow. I still haven’t met the Chrysalis here. Not even sure if the one in this world survived the whole wedding fiasco.”

“Yup, good ol’ Chrissy...” Jason said, getting a dreamy smile on his face.

“Ya know, I’m kinda surprised that you’re engaged to a Chrysalis. I guess I shouldn’t be though, what with all the crazy stuff going on. I mean, going to a convention, getting turned into a changeling, then going to another world on accident, the heat... then all this.”

“Well... she was my stalker for a while...”

“Dear goodness, that is hilarious. Lemme guess, now she never lets you out of her sight now that you’re engaged,” Dox said in a matter of fact voice.

“Actually no, she’s rather cool with that. I mean we live together already so what would be the point in that?”

“Good point. Although, let me ask this. Where is that place that you live?”

“We live in the old Everfree castle,”

“What a coincidence. Back on Drake’s Equestria, I found changelings out there that were using it as a base. They teleported me out to the actual changeling hideout. I learned about some of my new abilities there. At least, any of the ones that involve being a changeling. And some basic magic...”

“I’m new to magic as well,” Jason said. Holding his hand up, he conjured up a fireball, letting it dance around his fingers.

“Wow. Magic human. I don’t suppose you learned this though,” Dox said as he snapped his fingers. Ever so slowly he started to fade until he became completely invisible. “Did ya learn that yet?”

“No, but I can do this,” Jason said getting up. “Ultima!” he shouted, firing off several streaks of magic aimed at the empty forest. The explosion was deafening, leveling a good section of the forest.

“Jeez man! The hell was that! Sounded like a spell from Final Fantasy,” Dox said, reappearing next to Jason. “Where did you learn that? All I learned were cantrips.”

“Bought it from a shadow Displaced,” Jason said, sitting down. “And yes, that was from Final Fantasy,”

“A shadow Displaced? The heck do you mean? I’m getting confused again.”

“He’s a living shadow.”

“And he does what?” Dox deadpanned. “In fact, while I’m at it, what do you do? What were you doing at your convention?”

“Umbra goes from universe to universe selling stuff. As for what I was doing, it was my first con actually.”

“Okay. It was my third convention, my second Anime Expo, though. I was going to go meet my friends to go play some impromptu D&D at the con. I was actually dressed up for it, too.”

“I see.” Jason said with a nod,” I should tell you, the one Displaced you should meet is Gilgamesh, he taught me most of what I know.”

“Okay. I’ll look into that after I figure out how to master making portals. Also, do you think he’d even know enough to teach a Dungeon Master?”

“I have no idea, he’s more of Final Fantasy guy,” Jason said with a shrug.

“Hey, who knows. Hey, wanna see a trick?” Dox asked as his cloak changed from being brown and short enough to cover his arms to being black and long enough to reach his feet. His head became covered in the hood that emerged from the cloak, obscuring his face from view.

“That is pretty cool.” Jason said with a nod,” Don’t think I can do that,”

“That wasn’t the trick,” Dox said, “this is.” Dox’s entire body was encased in a green flame. When the flame faded, where Dox was standing was now a perfect copy of Jason. “Pretty cool, huh? Kinda hurts to do it still.”

“That is awesome man, I have to turn into a changeling to do that,” Jason said, getting to his feet, looking Dox over.

“Well, as I said, I am a changeling,” Dox said in a voice that sounded identical to Jason’s. “This sort of thing was why I had to go find Chrysalis. I mean, where else was I going to learn how to do this?”

“You got me there,”Jason said in agreement. “So... what do we do now? Someones going to come looking for the reason why a part of the Everfree is gone.”

“WHO BLEW UP MY HOME?!” said a loud, deep voice from far off.

“You were saying? ‘Cause I’m pretty sure whoever just said that is the guy who’s gonna come looking for us.”

“Well, fuck,” Jason said with a sigh.

“Agreed,” Dox said as he changed back and then proceeded to change his cloak. “I say we don’t just wait to find out who it is.”

“Yeah, I’m not really in the mood to fight anything...”

“That makes two of us. So what do we do?”

“Omnitrix, Hodgepodge!” he commanded, shifting his form once again. “Come on let’s go!” he said, throwing Dox over his shoulder and running away.

“The hell! Where are we going!”

“Wherever the plot takes us!”

“The hell are you talking about?!”

“I’ll tell you when you’re older!”

“Not funny! I would rather know where I’m being dragged!”

He came to a stop as they reached Twilight’s residence. “End of the line my elfy friend!”

“I’m a changeling, not an elf! And why are we in front of Twilight’s?”

“I dunno,” he said with a shrug. “We’re just here.”

“Wait... Take us to the plot... I KNOW!” Dox said, pulling out a thick booklet from Jason’s hair and opening it. “We blame Twilight!”

“Yes it is her fault isn’t it?!” Hodgepodge asked, scowling in anger.

“Yeah. She’s the one who chased us off. But one problem. She’s still frozen.”

Hodgepodge snapped his fingers, instantly thawing the frozen princess.

“Well then,” Dox said turning to the now unfrozen Twilight. “Yo, Twi. Take care of whoever you pissed off!”

“Yeah!”

“What?! I didn’t-”

“You hit the Everfree with your little spell, ruined someone’s home.”

Jason shook his head, reverting to normal. “Ugh I hate it when he gets to me... so uh... sorry for freezing you...” he said, giving you a sheepish smile.

“I’m still mad about that,” Twilight said, turning towards the Everfree. “Might as well go solve this problem and apologize.”

“That was my fault, let me,” Jason said looking at her. “Besides, I figured you would just melt the ice...”

“Dude. You’re seriously going to go in and take care of... whatever is angry?”

“Yes I am,” Jason said nodding. “I’m the one who blew up his home.”

“We don’t know what you angered. It sounds huge. And you’re still going out there? ARE YOU NUTS?!”

“I got this,” Jason said, moving back toward the source of the voice, “Hey uh, sorry about your home, It’s my fault!” he called out.

A large dragon rose from the Everfree Forest. “You did that? My hoard has been destroyed thanks to you!”

“I can make it up to you,” Jason said, putting his hands.

“And how can you make up a hoard as impressive as mine?”

“I can turn into a creature that grows diamonds, it’s really simple actually.”

“Then give me my hoard!”

“Ok jeez just relax,” he said, shaking his head. “Omnitrix, Diamondhead,” he said, shifting forms. He planted his hands into the ground, causing massive spikes of diamond to grow around him.

“This will do nicely,” the dragon said, heaving the spikes from the ground and turning back to the Everfree.

“Nicely done Jason,” Dox said. “I didn’t think you would be able to do that. Then again, I forgot about Diamondhead.”

“Hey, I’m trying to leave my assholeness in the past.” Jason said, reverting back to normal. “Again Twilight, I apologize.”

“I’m still kind of mad, but I forgive you. Could I ask you a few questions about your species, abilities, magic skill...” It was at this time Twilight started to list as many things as she could think of.

“I think she’s going to be like that for a while. You better get going while you have the chance. When I left, she tried closing portals like crazy. Almost closed one on my head!”

“Well it was nice meeting you,” Jason said, turning to Dox.

“Wait! I almost forgot! How the heck are we going to keep contact? Like, how are you going to get a hold of me? How do I make a token?!”

“Just pick an object that represents you and recite an oath into it.”

“Thanks! I’ll see you around!”

“You have to say ‘Jason, our contract is concluded.’” 

“What. Why’s that?”

“To send me home. Thats how you send back a Displaced you summoned.”

“Oh, in that case. Jason, our contract is concluded. See you around.”

“Take care of yourself.” Jason said as he vanished, the unitrix laying where he once stood.

> Sins Of The Past
> --------------------------------------------------------------------------

“Are you all ready?” Jason asked as he tightened his grip on Laevateinn. The sword hummed in his hands, the magic that flowed through it leaking into them. The gathered changelings, at least fifteen of them, nodded, each one holding some type of weapon in their magic. “Good.” He tapped the device on his left wrist, letting music fill the air.

The changelings took that as their cue to strike, all of them moving at once, swinging their weapons at the lone human. He just smirked as their weapons passed through him, his image flickering for a moment before vanishing.

“Where did he go?” one asked, looking around. The music was no help, as it didn’t seem to come from any particular direction, but from everywhere at once.

“Just keep your eyes open and your minds alert,” one of the veteran gatherers said, looking around. Before any of them could move, a glyph appeared at their feet and immediately exploded with enough force to knock them all of off their hooves.

“Come on guys, focus here,” Jason said, looking at them. He gripped his sword tightly, waiting for one of them to come at him.

“Ha! Gotcha!” a drone shouted as it lunged at Jason from behind, brandishing a large war hammer. “Oh crap,” it said as he phased through him. It’s eyes widened as something grabbed its tail, stopping his fall. It looked up, seeing a smirking Jason holding it by its tail. “Oh uh... hey boss.”

“Nice try but no dice!” Jason spun around a few times and let the drone go, slamming it into a few other drones. “I mean it guys, that all you got?”

The drones huddled up, staring at each other quietly as they debated what to do.

“Well?” he asked crossing his arms. He was so focused on the group that he hadn’t noticed a drone sneaking up behind him until it spat its goo at his feet. “Gah!” he shouted, realizing his mistake.

“Get him!” a drone shouted as they all got to their hooves, charging at the trapped human. They all collided with him, knocking him to the floor. Before he could really react, fifteen weapons were pointed at his face.

“Alright, you got me,” he said with a smile. The drones all shared a smirk, moving back to let him sit up.”Thats what? 10-4?” he asked, rubbing his neck.

“Yup! We’re catching up boss,” one of them said with a smirk.

“We’ll see about that-” he started, only to be cut off by a scream.

“PUPA!!!!” Chrysalis shouted with a force loud enough to make all the drones cringe. Very rarely was their mother ever this angry.

“You guys just relax, I’ll go see whats up with her,” Jason said, getting to his feet. He slipped Laevateinn back into his cube on his way out of the sparring room. It didn’t take long to find his fianceé, who looked extremely pissed, currently confronting Pupa.

“I really don’t really see why you're angry, you're overreacting mi’lady.” Pupa said, shaking her head as Chrysalis looked at her with furious eyes.

“Overreacting?! My body is changing you idiot! I don’t think I’m over reacting!” Chrysalis hissed, gesturing to herself. Now that it had been pointed out, Jason could tell she was changing. The holes in her legs had started to close up, already having shrunk to half their previous diameter. Her wings looked longer and less tattered, beginning to take on the appearance of butterfly wings. Lastly, while still sharp, her horn was starting to straighten. 

“It’s just a side effect of you becoming empress, I assure you, it’s nothing to worry about,” Pupa said, putting her hooves up. “Your body is just changing to look the part.”

“You knew about this!?” Chrysalis demanded, her eye twitching. “And you didn’t think to warn me?!”

“I didn’t think you’d overreact,” Pupa said, shrinking a little under Chrysalis’ hard stare.

“Just relax, ok?” Jason said, putting his arms around Chrysalis’ neck. “She made a mistake, no need to crucify her. You remember that breathing exercise that Twilight taught you?” She nodded. “Good, just try that, ok?”

Chrysalis took in a deep breath, bringing a hoof to her chest. She let it out slowly, extending her hoof out as she did so. She repeated this a few times until her anger was all bled out. 

“Feeling better?” Jason asked, kissing her cheek. 

“Yes... luckily for Pupa I am,” she said, giving the queen a slight glare.

“Uh... are we interrupting something?” Rainbow’s voice cut in. She was standing at the throne room’s doorway, a very sour looking Gilda standing next to her.

“Nah, just making sure Chrissy didn’t disembowel Pupa,” Jason said, watching as Pupa slinked out of the room. “So, ‘sup Dash?” Jason asked, taking a seat on his throne. Chrysalis grumbled, taking a seat on hers.

“Gilda just wanted to say something,” Dash said, nudging Gilda gently.

“Thanks...” Gilda mumbled, looking away. 

“What was that?” Jason asked, raising his eyebrow.

“I said uh... thanks for um... helping Dash... they messed her up real bad,” Gilda said, giving the mare a nuzzle. “You’re a uh... cool guy.”

“Like I was gonna leave Dash high and dry. She saved my life after all,” Jason said with a chuckle. “So how’s Ponyville treating you?”

“Eh, it’s ok,” Gilda said with a shrug. “Its just, there ain’t a lot for me to eat around here, just a bunch of hay. Every place we go, those dweeby waiters just give me this look then offer me fish. I’m so sick of fish.” Dash shook her head, rolling her eyes.

“Tell me about it... well, I should still have some of that jerky left over...” Jason said, digging into his hypercube. He frowned when he pulled out an empty bag out. “Well... fuck. Ok how about this, I’ll talk to Twilight about getting us some meat.”

“Really? You’d do that?” Gilda asked with a blink. 

“Well we both need meat, it’s not really that big of a deal,” Jason said, tossing the bag back into the cube. “Plus, I’m royalty, not hard to call in a favor or two.”

A drone trotted into the room. “I don’t mean to interrupt but we have received a message.” 

“Speak, child,” Chrysalis said, giving the drone a smile.

“Jason has been summoned to Canterlot by order of Princess Luna, she requests that he come as soon as possible and to come alone,” the drone recited, giving a bow.

“Huh, must be important,” Jason said getting off his throne. “Nice seeing you two but looks like I have to get going.”

“It’s ok Jay, we’ll talk later,” Dash said, dismissing his apology. “Nice seeing you guys!” She and Gilda took to the air, racing out of the castle.

“”Do be safe love, I don’t know if I could live without you,” Chrysalis said, blowing him a kiss.

“Heh, just try not to kill Pupa ok? She tries, alright?” he asked, looking at her rather expectantly. 

“Ugh fine, I promise I won’t bring death upon her head, happy?” Chrysalis asked, crossing her arms with a pout.

“Yes, very much so,” Jason said with a smirk, blowing her a return kiss before making his way out of the castle. For some reason, he had a feeling something big was going to happen.




”So did Luna tell you why she wanted us?” Jason asked as he and Twilight walked through the corridors.

“She didn’t really. Her letter was rather vague...” she started before her eyes widened and she pulled Jason along quickly. 

“Woah Twi, what’s the rush?” he asked, breaking out of her magical grip. “You look like you’ve seen a ghost or some kinda robot.”

“Him,” she said in a low voice, pointing at a guard. Said guard was an orange pegasus who glanced at them every now and then. “He’s stalking me!”

“Isn’t he one of Cadance’s guards?” Jason asked, looking at her like she was crazy. 

“That doesn’t mean anything!” she snapped. “He still follows me around...” she shuddered, shaking her head as they got out of sight.

Flash watched them go, shaking his head. “She’s onto me, Clover.”

A second later a translucent Clover The Clever walked out of the wall. “Well maybe if you stopped being a stalker and asked her out this wouldn’t be a problem. It doesn’t change the fact you have to get them together if you want to leap, Star Swirl.”

“Don’t worry I got this,” he said, holding his hoof up, determination in his eyes. Behind him, two older guards shook their heads.

“Flash is talking to himself again.” one said with a sigh.

“Who is he talking to this time?” the other asked.

“I think Clover The Clever,” the first said. 

“Man that guy needs help.” the other said shaking his head, the two watching as Flash kept up his conversation with ‘Clover’, going on about leaps and time travel.





“Thank you all for coming on such short notice.” Celestia said, taking her seat at the table. There were five seats, one for each of them. Each seat had the owner’s cutie mark on the seat back. Even Jason’s had his cutie mark, the one constant between all of his pony forms. His was the Valknut, a symbol formed from three interlocking triangles and whose meaning had long since been lost to time.

“It’s alright auntie, I was already planning on visiting Canterlot anyway,” Cadance said, giving a smile. “So, why did you need us all?” she asked, shifting in her seat and getting comfortable.

“Yes, my dear sister, I didn’t think you would leave the search for the knights already,” Celestia said, giving Luna a look of concern, as she had been silent up till now. 

“I... We...” Luna stammered, shaking her head. “We recently helped young Sweetie Belle overcome her jealousy toward her sister Rarity. Tis when we felt it in our body.” Luna slipped into her old speech patterns. “We felt it in mine own body, the same festering darkness that gave birth to the Nightmare.”

“But how?” Twilight asked, sitting up. “The Elements should have purged all of it from you.”

“We know not young Sparkle, but its presence scares us deeply,” Luna said, her ears drooping a little. 

“I uh... may be able to help with that,” Jason said rather hesitantly. 

“You have a solution?” Luna asked, looking into his eyes pleadingly.

“Well... one of my forms can enter and control the dreams of others...” he explained, putting his hands on the table.

“You have a form for everything,” Cadance teased, giggling a little.

“Please, show us this form,” Celestia said, giving him that famous motherly smile of hers.

“Ok, but first you all have to swear not to laugh,” Jason said, looking at them with a stern expression. They all nodded solemnly and Jason shook his head. “Omnitrix... Pesky Dust.” He shifted into a small blue humanoid creature, wearing a green dress. Its hair was a deeper shade of blue with three pink blush-like circles on its face.

They stared at him for a moment before all but Luna burst into raucous laughter. 

“It’s not funny!” he shouted, in his high-pitched, feminine, trilling voice. He flew up into the air, glaring at them.

“No, it’s hilarious!” Cadance said, tears streaming down down her face from laughing so hard. 

“You... are... so... cute!” Luna squealed, quickly pulling him into a tight hug, much to his surprise.

“Um... jealousy problem remember?” Jason asked, trying to get away from her. He did not want to become a freaking teddy bear. 

“Oh yes... right,” Luna said, clearing her throat. “You may begin, Jason,” she said, steeling herself.

“Ok... let’s see how this works... um... magic go!” he said throwing out his hands. He pouted as nothing happened. “Ok umm.... go web go!” he shouted, doing a strange gesture with his hands. Nothing. “I call upon the thunder?” he asked, again nothing. “Gah!” he shouted, throwing his hand out. This time, a green mist left his hand, circling Luna before it put her to sleep. Jason’s eyes widened as images started to fill his head. “Yes! I can see her dreams!” he cheered. He blocked off the others, focusing solely on the dream.

***

Jason blinked, finding himself in a pristine version of the Castle Of The Two Sisters. “Um... Luna?” he asked, looking around. 

“I’m here, Jason,” Luna said, trotting over to him. “I admit, I am quite impressed with your skills.” She gave him a small smile. “But we must make haste and purge this Nightmare from my mind and body once and for all.”

“You got it Luna, time for some brainwashing!” he cheered, giggling to himself. He glared at Luna, who looked at him like he had just said something really stupid. “Shuddup,” he stuck his tongue out at her before flittering out of the room. 

They wandered for what felt like hours, fruitlessly checking each room they came across. “Ugh... this is going to take forever,” Jason whined, currently riding on Luna’s head.

“We must be thorough, I will not tolerate a single trace of that festering darkness in my mind,” Luna said, stopping for a moment. “Wait... do you hear that?” she asked, pausing. With a bit of concentration, Jason did indeed hear what Luna heard. 

“Yeah... sounds like crying,” he said as Luna started to move toward the sound.

“This... is my old bedroom...” Luna said, stopping at the door. “Jason, we must be wary of whatever is behind this door.”

“You got it.”

“Good,” Luna said softly. Slowly she opened the door, shining a light on the source of the sobbing. Laying on the floor was a black alicorn who had the same cutie mark as Luna. “Nightmare Moon!” Luna shouted, causing the other mare to flinch. “You dare invade my mind again, fiend?!” she demanded.

“Y-you have to get out of here,” Nightmare started, whimpering. “S-she’ll find us.”

“Oh it’s much too late for that,” another mare’s voice cut in. Whirling around, Luna’s eyes widened at the sight of another Nightmare Moon, this one wearing light blue armor.

“H-how?” Luna asked, backing away from the Nightmare. 

“Simple really, we’re two aspects of the same thing,” the Nightmare explained. “And now that you are here, I can be free from this prison and that weakling,” she said, spitting at her double and making the other mare whimper. 

“I will not allow you to possess me again!” Luna shouted, taking a battle stance. 

“I wasn’t talking about you,” she said with a smirk before she exploded into shadows, which dove into Jason. He screamed, the world melting around him.

***

“Jason!” Twilight shouted as she watched a black mass flow from Luna and into Jason. The darkness poured into the Omnitrix, causing it to build up energy. 

“What do we do?” Cadance asked, fearing that they might hurt either royal. There was never an answer as the Omnitrix released the built up energy with a blast that knocked them all onto the floor.

“Yes!” the Nightmare shouted, laughing in triumph. “I am free!”

Jason groaned and sat up, having reverted to human form.”No way...” he said staring at the Nightmare. No longer was she a pony but now was a human woman. A very naked woman.

“Like what you see?” she asked, moving her hands over her body. Her eyes wear a deep purple while her hair was a paler purple. “Of course, I had to take a bit of your essence from that marvelous little device of yours. I just had to get one of my own,” she held up her left arm, showing off a purple Omnitrix.

“Nightmare Moon,” Luna said, getting to her hooves. “I will eradicate you from this world!”

“I am not Nightmare Moon, she is,” she pointed to the aforementioned alicorn who was cowering behind an overturned chair. “You will refer to me as Eclipse.” She summoned up some purple armor and held her hand out, conjuring up a wicked looking scythe. “And I shall bathe this world in everlasting night!” she screamed. Rushing forward, she raised her scythe to cleave through Jason. All the poor man could think of was that he now had a female clone... that was just wrong.
> Future Transgressions 
> --------------------------------------------------------------------------

“Jason!” Twilight’s shout cut through the fog of Jason’s thoughts, snapping him out of it. He rolled out of the way just in time for Eclipse’s scythe to cleave through the floor where he had just been.

“Thanks Twi,” Jason called quickly getting to his feet. He pulled out Laevateinn, extending the blade to its fullest. Before he could move Eclipse flicked her hand, blasting him into the wall with a wave of dark magic.

“We shall smite thee!” Luna rushed at Eclipse, summoning up her warhammer. She swung it at full force, only to have it countered by Eclipse’s scythe. 

“I am not afraid of you Luna,” Eclipse smirked, standing up straight. “This day shall be bathed in alicorn blood!” she declared, slamming a hand down on her Omnitrix and shifting into an armoured Four Arms. She dashed forward, punching Luna through a wall, causing the lunar princess to tumble along the floor.

Unbeknownst to all of them, a small green creature watched from one of the corners of the room, his natural camouflage making him practically unseen to the average eye. The imp-like being watched the fight with interest, particularly Eclipse.

“She just had to go Four Arms,” Jason said getting to his feet, cracking his neck.

“Cadance, take Twilight and evacuate the castle,” Celestia said, conjuring up a scimitar, “Luna, Jason and I will handle this ‘Eclipse.’”

“But-” Twilight said, only to be cut off by Celestia.

“This isn’t like when you had the Elements. This ‘Eclipse’ will kill you Twilight, not just take your horn and wings like Trenderhoof did,” she stated gravely, pulling Twilight into a hug. “If we should fall, it will be up to you and Cadance to guide Equestria.” She paused for a moment, looking at the cowering Nightmare Moon. “Take her with you, we’ll deal with her later.”

“I-I understand...” Twilight, on the verge of tears, nodded. She moved over to Moon and helped the alicorn to her feet. “Come on,” she said, leading the frightened mare to the door where Cadance was waiting. Twilight gave one last look back at the others before following after Moon and Cadance.

“Can you counter her forms?” Celestia asked, glancing at Jason, the sounds of Luna and Eclipse’s duel echoing through the castle.

“Hell yeah I can,” Jason said, popping up his Omnitrix, quickly going through all the forms he had unlocked. “Ok... whats good for Four Arms?” he asked, his mind racing. “Ha! Rath!” he shouted, slamming the Omnitrix down. He threw his head back, letting out a roar, and charged out of the room. He caught Eclipse unaware, punching her through a wall and into the royal baths.  

“Ha!” Rath shouted, cracking his knuckles. “Looks like your Four Arms ain’t got nothing on Rath!!!”

“You know, I possess all of your memories as well as Luna’s,” Eclipse said, getting to her feet and spitting out some blood. “So I just happen to know that Rath hates water.” She smirked at Rath then turned and jumped into one of the baths, sending a wave of water at him.

Rath screamed at the top of his lungs, rushing out of the way as fast as he could. “Rath’s gonna go ultimate on your ass Eclipse!” he shouted, turning the Omnitrix.  He started to shift again, his fur changed to white,  three red spikes grew out of his back, covered by a long black mane. He had two claws per hand instead of one and he now had clothes, a open vest and a pair of black shorts that had a belt with giant spikes. “Let me tell you five things Eclipse, Bringer Of Eternal Darkness!” he roared, cracking his knuckles. “Rath will break your spine like celery and grind your bones into bacon dust!”

“Thats only two things,” Luna pointed out, moving up next to him, followed by Celestia.

“Shut up! She gets the gist of it!” Ultimate Rath screamed, then he charged at Eclipse. He raised his fist, deciding to crack her skull. She smirked and easily sidestepped his blind charge, before roundhouse kicking him through the wall and out into the open air around Canterlot.

“BIIIIIIIIIIIIITCH!!!!” Rath shouted as he fell, soon vanishing from sight.

“Jason!” Celestia shouted as she and Luna watched, already assuming the worst.

“Worry about yourselves first,” Eclipse reminded, uppercutting Celestia with her top set of arms and laying down a few hits to Luna with her lower set.

Celestia staggered back, running her tongue over her teeth and feeling the fractures inflicted on a few of them. She snorted, charged up her horn, and fired a blast of magic at the tetramand.  Eclipse pushed Luna away, quickly shifting into Chromastone. She absorbed the magic, then fired it back, sending the solar princess tumbling through several rooms.

“This Omnitrix is amazing!” Eclipse chuckled before Luna’s hammer collided with her head, sending her tumbling. Luna didn’t relent, laying blow upon blow on the crystalsapien. 

“You will die this day, monster!” she declared, her eyes burning with hate.





Rath groaned as he sat up, some loose dirt falling off his body. “You listen here ground!” he snarked, poking the ground next to him. “When Rath is done with Eclipse, Rath will be back to give you an asswhooping, you got that!!??” He got to his feet, shaking his head. “What’s this?” he asked, lifting up a scroll. “Hey, this is one of those Token things,” he said, unfurling it.

One of many heroes, all for the sake of defending,

Use my scroll and my help I shall be lending.

Strength of mountains, speed of wind, and mind of Ancients!

Call me forth from across the multiverse to your civilization!

Drake Blackwood, The Ancient Summoner!

“Too many words!” Rath shouted, glaring at the scroll. “You, Displaced! Come help Rath kick Eclipse’s ass! Now!”

Within a span of six seconds, the words from the scroll flew off the paper and spun around in the air before a blinding, blue light appeared. Before him now stood a man in a black cloak with some weird black gauntlet and holding a chicken leg. The man looked at him “And of course horrible timing as always... oh well better than the last guy and... are you some kind of tiger in clothing?” he asked.

“You!” Rath said, getting in his face. “Rath is Rath! Now you're gonna help Rath kick Eclipse’s ass or Rath will teach you the meaning of pain!!!!”

All the man did was laugh “You’re loud, obnoxious, and need a breath mint... we’ll get along just fine! My name’s Drake Blackwood, and tell me more about this Eclipse person so that I know the situation better,” Drake said. He looked at the chicken leg in his hand as he offered it to Rath as some kind of peace treaty.

“That smells tasty, thank you,” Rath said, actually lowering his voice for a change.  He started to eat it as the Omnitrix timed out.

“Gah... my throat...” Jason said, his voice rather hoarse now.

Drake just looked at Jason. “So... you’re a form taker? Someone who can assume another creature’s form?” he asked Jason as he walked around him till he stopped and spotted the Omnitrix.

“Yup...” Jason said, casting cure on his throat.”Oh that feels so much better...”

Drake just slowly nodded his head “Okay... so mind telling me what this guy, Rath was it? Anyway what the hell he was talking about without threatening to cause me pain?” he simply asked as he stood before Jason now.

“Ok, you know Nightmare Moon?”

“More angsty and rageful side of Luna, why?”

“She just made herself a body using my DNA and she has one of these,” Jason said, holding up his Omnitrix.

Drake shook his head. “So evil villain has an evil version of your tool? Oh, great,” he said as he looked around. “And I am guessing that is why we are in a damn hole?”

“She kicked Rath out of the castle,” Jason said, pointing up to the city.

Drake simply looked up “Ah... well I think the best plan is for you to get us up there because I have a problem with my gauntlet. See if I switch heroes a certain number of times, the next time I change, I suffer Magical Feedback and thus the hero takes over and... well, the last time a hero took over he literally killed Sombra, in front of the whole Crystal Empire,” he explained.

“I see...” Jason said, “Give me a second to recharge here,” he said, looking hopefully at the Omnitrix. “I’m Jason by the way.”

Drake started to reach out with his gauntlet hand, but quickly switched to his regular hand. “Drake Blackwood, the man who Rath summoned,” he said. As he looked at his gauntlet he sighed. “Damn. Not a lot of power in it. Know any ponies up top who can offer a bit of magic? Any pony will do, because my gauntlet siphons magic on contact from, well, anything with magic. Or channel magic into it,” he explained.

Jason just reached out and touched the gauntlet, letting his magic flow into it. Drake looked at the gauntlet as the gem in it had three bright pools of red, green, and blue. “Alright, got enough for long form use, but still can suffer the hero change feedback... so mind explaining who Eclipse is?” he asked Jason.

“Didn’t I just tell you?” he asked, raising an eyebrow.

“No you told me Nightmare Moon is back, I never asked who Eclipse is since Rath seemed to just call me here to quote ‘Kick Eclipse’s ass or be introduced to pain’ end quote,” Drake explained.

“She is Eclipse,” Jason said, smirking as the Omnitrix beeped, turning green. “How are you with flying?”

“Depends. Do you know how to fly and is there a chance of us faceplanting?” Drake asked with a nervous chuckle.

“We’ll see. Omnitrix, Jetray,” he commanded, shifting into a tall, red-colored stingray-looking creature with a yellow crest on his head. Drake just looked at him as he smiled and walked around Jetray chuckling, but also trying to figure out a way to hang on.

“Wait... how strong is Rath?”

“He survived a fall from the castle,” Jason said as he flew up. Drake looked up at the castle then back down at the crater they were in and got a thoughtful look on his face. Jason grabbed Drake by the shoulders with his feet and they soared up into the sky.

“When we get up high enough, just drop me from a tall height onto Eclipse. I have a plan!” Drake yelled as he started to look through his gauntlet. “Something heavy, something big,” he muttered.

When they reached the castle, Jason peeked into one of the windows. Eclipse was in the form of Ultimate Humungousaur. She fired off some shots, taking out a group of guards that had come to assist the princesses.

“That isn’t good,” Jason said as they flew up into the air. “You ready?”

Drake grins “Ready as I’ll ever be,” he said as his hands started to get overgrown with green fluid. “Drop me now!” he yelled at Jason.

Jason let him go, watching him fall. As Drake fell, the green aura came over him and started to grow and grow. Before long a loud thud was heard as Ultimate Humungousaur staggered back a bit. As the dust cleared, something demonic became visible. A tall creature, as tall as Eclipse’s current form with a pair of black wings, black horns, glowing blue eyes and ethereal-like blades. “From the hell of hells I come,” it spoke. Drake had turned into a creature known as Terrorblade.

“I don’t know what you are but if you cross me you will die.” She narrowed her eyes, looking at him with contempt.

Drake simply looked at her. “You will know true fear this day. Betray yourself!” he yelled as some weird blue aura came around Eclipse. Right before her a clone of herself appeared and started to shoot missiles at her. As a few connected, her movements started to slow, as if being hit by slime or sludge. “Izh icha safras,” Drake said as another Terrorblade appeared and rushed her to start swinging at her. Soon the clone of her vanished with its work of slowing her movement and attack speed done.

“Get back!” she shouted, firing off a few missiles. Seeing that it wasn’t working, she changed tactics, transforming into Cannonbolt. She curled up and dashed forward, slamming into Drake. The two of them smashed through several more walls.

Drake felt the walls crumble under his back as he looked at the orb and he growled a bit. “Fear what you will never understand!” he yelled as his body started to morph a bit. His skin turned from purple to blue and his wings expanded as he took flight, letting her hit the ground. He started to toss out blue fireballs that homed in on her position. She stayed curled into a ball, and the flames dispersed harmlessly on her armor.

Luna and Celestia approached him, holding their weapons at the ready.

“Halt, creature!” Celestia ordered, looking at Drake, “Be you friend or foe?”

Drake slowly looked over at Celestia as he asked, still in a demonic voice, “Am I trying to burn you and Jason alive with blue hellfire?” He kept up the blue hellfire volley on Cannonbolt before reverting back to his regular Terrorblade form. He extended his arms as he focused on her. “Your own worst enemy,” he said as a clone Cannonbolt appeared and started to charge at Eclipse, pounding into her armor with its own. As he walked around her, he said, “It is hopeless. You cannot beat me.” Since the last one had dispersed, he produced another clone of himself. Now Eclipse’s armor was taking a beating from a dark clone of herself and one of Drake’s form.

She shifted again, this time into Ghostfreak. “Catch me if you can,” she said, sinking into the floor. After she did so, Drake left his Terrorblade form as he looked at the floor. He looked back at Celestia and Luna.

“Okay... I will admit that power is pretty cool. Name’s Drake Blackwood, by the way princesses,” he said with a small bow.

“You are one of the Displaced, yes?” Luna asked, panting. Her body was covered in cuts, and one of her eyes was swollen shut.

Drake nodded as he looked at them. “Hold on,” he said as he looked into his gauntlet. He then became overfilled with some kind of blue color and appeared out of it as some kind of warlord, wearing armor of green, white and gold, riding on a large, rhino/boar creature. As he thrust his spear into the air he bellowed, “Hand of God!” Light poured in from the sky and somehow through the roof. As the light cascaded over the two princesses and other allies around the city, they were healed of all wounds and revitalized. He looked at the princesses. “In this hero, I am known as Chen,” he said.

“You have the weirdest forms, dude,” Jason said as he walked over. “Sorry, was checking on Twilight and Cadance.”

Drake looked at Jason. “This, coming from the man who turned into a flying stingray and a third person referring tiger in clothing?” he retorted with a smile.

“Yes,” Jason said, rolling his eyes. “Ok, she can’t have left the castle,” Jason said, looking at where she had been.

“She is obsessed with murdering me, there is no way she left,” Luna said, looking at Drake. “Thank you, I feel like I could fight an Ursa Major.” Celestia nodded her thanks as well.

Drake nodded and twirled his spear. “Chen is made for support. If we can get her to stand still, I can force a spell on her to take more damage, both physical and magical, while also slowing her movement,” he explained. He looked at Jason, “She turned into a ghost and left through the floor”.

“We could track her via mana,” Celestia suggested.

“Won’t work, Ghostfreak doesn’t have mana,” Jason replied, shaking his head. “I... have an idea, if we can get her still... i-it’s a hunch really.”

“I already don’t like this plan. But I am here to help. Just know I can transform two more times till the next transformation causes feedback,” he explained.

Celestia opened her mouth to speak only for the floor beneath them to give way, dropping them all into the dungeons.

“Nice of you to join me,” Eclipse said, once again in her default form. 

Drake had been forced back to default from the fall. As he stood up, he looked at Eclipse and whistled. “Damn lady, you look pretty ragged. What have you been doing? Sleeping in a tomb?”

“Quiet yourself, fool,” she said with a sneer as she conjured up her scythe.

He smiled. “I’m supposed to be scared of that? I had to fight a slaving tyrant! Plus how can you tell me to be quiet when you ran away with your tail between your legs,” he retorted, referring to her going Ghostfreak. He got his gauntlet fingers ready as he stared her down.

“A trap, I assure you.” She held up a hand, which was charging with power. “Did I mention I took the knowledge of some spells from you Jason?” 

“Oh shit!” Jason said, his eyes wide.

“Ultima!” she shouted. With that, she unleashed a massive blast, demolishing the room, and shaking the entire mountain. When the dust cleared, only Eclipse was left standing. “Weaklings,” she scoffed. She walked over to Celestia, who was laying on the floor, her coat singed. “Look who's fallen so far,” she said with a chuckle, hefting her scythe into the air. She moved to bring it down, only to be stopped by golden magic.

“You won’t hurt my family, witch,” Blueblood snorted, glaring at her. She focused her magic into Eclipse’s Omnitrix. “Those devices react badly to magic, yes?”

“Release me!” Eclipse shouted, hurling several shadow spears into the mare’s body. Blueblood ignored the pain, pushing as much magic as she could.

“Bluey...?” Celestia asked, starting to wake up.

“I’m sorry Auntie... for everything. I just wanted to make Equestria a better place...” She shook her head, letting tears flow. “Maybe... maybe with this I can atone.” She gave one last burst of magic before Eclipse’s Omnitrix overloaded, sending out a blast of energy. The blast quickly imploded on itself, and the two vanished in the explosion.

“Blueblood!” Celestia shouted, her eyes wide in horror as she stared at the spot her niece had just been.

“Woah...” Jason said dumbly, sitting up. “You ok Drake? Luna?”

“Can someone get the moon princess off me? I think her weapon is crushing my ribs. Also I have a couple of ideas on how to find them, but I’m unsure if they would work,” Drake said with a painful groan.

“A problem for another time,” Luna said as she got off of Drake, her wing hanging limp at her side. “There are injured that need to be attended to.” She limped over to Celestia, who had started to sob, giving her a nuzzle. Drake slowly got up as he looked over at Jason, who was looking at the mark on the ground. He gave Jason a look, as if asking to try one of his ideas, just to give closure on if Blueblood is dead or not.

“They’re not dead, same thing happened to me once before. Yggdrasil knows where they ended up...” Jason said getting up. He moved over to the princesses and began casting a few cure spells on them.

“Alright, but fair warning. If they ended up in my Equestria. I will put down Eclipse to protect the ones I love. No negotiations,” Drake warned as he felt his ribs heal.

Jason looked at his Omnitrix thoughtfully, then turned his gaze to Drake. “Hey... do me a favor will ya?”

“If it involves torturing her, making her suffer, or eating her soul, two of the three I can guarantee with the fucked up monsters in my gauntlet,” Drake said

“Touch my Omnitrix.”

“Come again? Why would I touch your watch thing?”

“Humor me.”

“I swear if this is some kind of new creature acquiring thing, let me warn you right now... you don’t want what lives in this damn thing,” Drake said pointing to his gauntlet “I have the literal lord of Hell, Lucifer, in my gauntlet and a monster so powerful, he makes Nightmare Moon have nightmares... but it’s your funeral,” he said as he placed the gauntlet over the Omnitrix.

“I meant your hand!” Jason said, glaring at him. Drake rolls his eyes as he puts his regular hand on the Omnitrix.

Jason watched as nothing happened.  He pulled away and popped the dial of the Omnitrix up, cycling through it before freezing, staring at it.

“Okay... that was weird,” Drake said, also staring at it.

“Do you know what that is?” Jason asked, holding his arm out. The silhouette of a human was on the dial.

“A human?” Drake asked with a shrug.

“And what do you think it means if I can turn into a human?”

“...if it means what I think it means. Then don’t use a hero named Doom. That one is Lucifer,” he warns. “Either that or you acquired one of the more human bodied heros in my gauntlet.”

“What?” Jason asked, staring at him. “No! It means I’m not human!” he snapped.

“Jason?” Luna asked, taken aback by his attitude.

“Well... that’s new. Maybe your body changed over time in this weird world. Now calm down and let’s talk about this,” Drake said.

“Look, I need to process this,” Jason said, tossing him a Unitrix core. “Thats my Token, give me a call if you need help.” 

Drake nodded. “To send me back just rip or burn the scroll. If ever need someone to talk to, I got hundreds of heroes and good friends in my world who can help,” he said.

“Heh, I shouldn’t have to destroy your Token,” he said, “Drake, our contract is complete.”

Drake’s legs soon got covered with blue fire. “Aw... ripping and burning the scroll would’ve been fun and another one would’ve appeared. Ah well, time to get back to my chicken and preparing for another heat season,” he said as he was engulfed in flame. He laughed a bit. “Also just know one thing. The ponies in my world are anthros!!!!!” he yelled as he vanished into blue embers.

“What in Tartarus is an anthro?” Luna asked, still trying to comfort Celestia.

“I’ll tell you when I’m not having an identity crisis...” Jason said, looking up at the ceiling. This had definitely been big.





Eclipse groaned as she regained consciousness.  “Accursed child.” She picked herself up, looking around. Dim lights lined the tunnel, pitch blackness masking most of it. 

“Who are you?” a garbled voice asked, causing her to spin around. Behind her, several hundred glowing red eyes stared back at her.

Much to her credit, Eclipse showed no fear. “I am Eclipse! Bringer of darkness, shader of the sun!” She summoned her scythe, its blade glinting in the light.

They looked at each other, the sound of whispering reaching her ears. “We of Svartalfheim despise the light. How certain are you of this endeavour?” 

“I would stake my life on it,” she said, a confident smirk on her face.

“If you can bring about the endless night than we, the Dökkálfar, shall follow you,” they said, kneeling in the darkness.

Eclipse smirked, looking at her new subjects with fire in her eyes. “I accept, together we shall wrest the sun from the sky!” she shouted, thrusting an armored fist into the air.

“Ruler of a realm you cannot leave,” a dark voice chuckled. “Sounds like a rather paltry consolation prize, don’t you think?”

“Who dares to mock me!?” she screamed, drawing her scythe back.

“I do not mock you... Eclipse was it? I simply state the obvious.” Suddenly a small, green creature seemed to appear from the air, its eyes glowing a putrid yellow. As the imp took a step closer, a faint smell like rotten fish filled the air. “Oh, and maim this body all you like. You merely cut the thread on what may be your one way to see your plan fulfilled.”

“Speak, imp,” she said, staring at it with narrowed eyes.

It chuckled regardless. “Feisty, aren’t we? Here I thought you would be glad to hear you have a way back.”

“Go on.”

“The fact of the matter is simple really.” The imp began to pace back and forth, an act not befitting its simple look. “We both have a common interest in Jason Hughes. As such, I am willing to help you be free of this realm should you be willing to face him again.”

“Oh... I will rip his heart from his chest and fashion a throne from his bones!”

“Hm... graphic, yet not too over the top. I think we’ll work wonders together Miss Eclipse. Now, for the time being I’d suggest whipping these...” the imp waved a hand over the glowing red eyes, “...things into an army. Once it is ready, we will let you loose upon the world once more.” The imp turned away for a moment before realizing something. “Oh, and if you need to speak to me again, just yell at this thing. It will probably return to being as dumb as dirt once I am gone.”

“I see,” she said with a nod. “I will train these creatures into a fighting force that will shake Equestria to its foundations!”

“Excellent. Now, this minion is ordered to obey your commands, but do know it is your only connection to me. The world you live in is made of many strange realms and getting to them without some kind of bridge is rather difficult for me.” The imp nodded. “Farewell for now.” The imp’s eyes dimmed before looking around confused and then at Eclipse. “Master say you are mistress. Hail mistress!”

Eclipse smirked, her laughs echoing throughout the tunnels. There would be no mercy when her forces marched. 

> And Then He Was Ten
> --------------------------------------------------------------------------

“So what exactly is a ‘Jotun’?” Luna asked, sipping her tea. It had been several days since Eclipse’s rampage through Canterlot castle and without a place to stay, the princesses had taken up residence in Chryaslis’ hive, much to her displeasure.

“An ancient race of giants, the oldest race in the universe. They hailed from the realm known as Jotunheim, though I can’t imagine any of them survived Ragnarok,” Jason replied, sipping his own tea.

“And you say you're one of them?” she asked, sizing him up. “You don’t look like a giant to me. Certainly taller than most of my little ponies, but not a giant by any means.”

“They weren’t all giants,” Jason said shaking his head. “You know... you're taking this whole, ‘there was another world before yours’ thing awfully well.”

“Our oldest legends state that while Faust created the races we know, she did not create the world. She found it in a wild state, full of savage beauty but devoid of any true life.”

“She must have found it right after Ragnarok,” Jason said, nodding his head. He sighed, staring into his half empty cup.

“Why does it bother you so much Jason? You are still the man we have all come to respect,” she spoke softly.

“Ok... let me put it like this,” Jason said, pausing for a moment and trying to collect his thoughts. “Imagine if you spent the first twenty years of your life thinking you were a unicorn and then suddenly you found out you were an alicorn. That’s how I feel right now.”

“Hm. I suppose that is what Twilight must have gone through when she ascended,” Luna said finishing her tea.

“Wait, ascended?” Jason asked, raising his eyebrow.

“Of course, Twilight was born a unicorn and earned her wings and status only about a year before you arrived.” 

“Huh,” Jason said, leaning back in his seat. “I did not know that.”

“‘Twas the same with Cadance, according to my sister at least, though she was born a pegasus,” Luna said, sighing a little. “I only wish I had been there to witness it.’

There was a knock at the door, cutting into their conversation. 

“Hello!” Pinkie Pie shouted as she rushed in and tackle-hugged Jason, nearly giving him a heart attack.

“Gah!” he shouted, pushing the pink pony off of him. “Will you stop that!!!”

“But if I stop I wouldn’t be myself anymore... and if I wasn’t myself... I’d be Surprise!” Pinkie gasped, putting her hooves to her head in the classic Home Alone pose.

“What?” Jason asked, shaking his head. He glanced at Luna, who shrugged, looking as confused as he did.

“Well,” she said, getting his attention again. “Twilight told me how you were all in the dumps about not being a hu-mane, so I picked you some flowers so you can feel better!” She dug around in her mane for a moment, then pulled out a rather nice bouquet of flowers.

“Aw,” Jason said with a genuine smile. “Thanks Pinks.” He brought the flowers up to his face. “What’s with this blue one?” he asked as he picked it out of the bunch and lifted it to his face.

“Jason don’t!” Luna shouted, her eyes wide with recognition. Her gaze quickly fell to the floor as she realized she was too late.

“Hm?” Jason asked, the flower already at his nose, breathing in the pollen. “What?”

“Jason, that’s poison joke.”

“Poison what?”

“It’s a type of magical flower that causes harmless but frequently annoying transformations in whoever touches it,” Luna stated, “Discord may or may not have created them, he won’t actually answer the question.”

“Great...” Jason said, tossing the flower away in disgust. He leveled an angry gaze at the party pony, who was pronking in place with a manic grin on her face. “Pinkie, why would you do that!?”

“Oh you know, just causing some chaos,” she said with a smile in an oddly-pitched voice. As Jason and Luna watched, she stopped bouncing and her eyes turned yellow. 

“Discord,” Luna said, giving him a glare. 

“What? I’m sick of being a child,” Discord said as he appeared on Pinkie’s back. He looked rather adorable as a toddler, if not for the glare he was giving them.

“How is this going to help you at all?” Jason asked, crossing his arms.

“More chaos equals more growth,” he said, sticking his nose up. “Like I said, I’m sick of being stuck like this.”

“I’m sorry Jay,” Pinkie said with a pout, her ears drooping. “Dissy said he wanted to help me pick the flowers, he didn’t tell me about the Joke, honest.” She sniffled, almost on the verge of tears.

“Hey it’s ok, I’m not mad at you.” Jason kneeled down and gave her a hug.

“Yay~” she shouted, wrapping her arms around his neck as her smile returned. She pulled away still smiling. “I should get Dissy back to Fluttershy, she’ll get all worried if he’s not back before dark. Seeya Jay, bye Luna!” she gave a wave, trotting out of the room. Discord glared back at them, sticking his tongue out.

“Well this is just great,” Jason said with a sigh. “So, when is, this ‘joke’ going to happen?”

“You didn’t have a very large dose, so I would say probably while you're asleep.” Luna said, shaking her head. 

“Well I may head to bed now then,” Jason said, getting to his feet. “It’s getting late and I don’t want Chrissy to bitch at me for blowing her off.” Jason walked over to the door. “Good night Luna.” 

“Good night Jason,” she said, watching him go. Whatever he’d wake up to, it was going to be one Tartarus of a surprise. Not surprisingly, she didn’t pity him.





Chrysalis yawned as she came to, blinking away some sleep. She moved to pull Jason close to her, a pout forming on her muzzle as she did so. Something felt off... he felt... smaller. “Jason?” she asked. Pulling the covers back, she gasped at what she saw.  “Jason wake up,” she said, nudging him.

“Go way...” he muttered, curling up.

“Jason, wake up,” she repeated with more emphasis, poking him in the side with her hoof.

“What?” he asked, looking up at her groggily. She frowned, debating if she should just let him sleep.  “Hey... are you bigger?” he asked, blinking up at her.

“Not exactly...” she said, not sure what to tell him.

“My voice sounds weird...” he sat up, looking up at her.

“Ok... I’m going to show you a mirror ok? Don’t panic,” Chrysalis said, levitating a small hoof mirror over. “Look.” She held it out to him.

He looked into it, staring at it for a few moments before his eyes went wide. “HOLY FUCK! I’m a kid?!” he shouted, staring at his reflection. Staring back at him was a face he had last seen eleven years ago. His beard was gone, the scar from Trenderhoof’s sword was gone, along with several other scars.

“Now just calm down, ok?” Chrysalis cooed, stroking his hair gently.

“Will you stop that?!” he demanded, slapping her hoof away, “I am not a child!”

“Well you're acting like one,” she retorted, giving him a stern look.

“Sorry...” He took a deep breath to calm himself. “Ok... I’m good... I think...” Jason said, giving her the best smile he possibly could, given his situation. “Look... just take me to Twilight, please?” he asked, getting out of bed and glaring a little at his loss of height.

“Of course,” she said, getting out of bed. She gripped him up in her magic and placed him on her back, adjusting her wings a little to make sure he didn’t pin them down. 

“This is weird...” he whined, holding onto her neck as she started to walk.

“Yes, I imagine it would be weird to suddenly find oneself reduced to a foal,” she agreed. Much to his comfort, the drones didn’t comment on his shrunken stature, most likely under orders from Chrysalis.

They walked in silence, enjoying the early morning air of the forest. Ever since they had moved into the castle, the regular patrol of changeling guards had kept the path between there and Ponyville clear of the usual hazards of the Everfree.

“You know,” Chrysalis said, getting his attention. “This is rather nice, you and me, just having a quiet walk through the forest. It’s even better now that you’re small enough to ride on my back,” she teased, causing him to blush.

“Shuddup,” he muttered, looking away, causing to her to giggle a little.

“You’re so easy to fluster,” she teased as they walked into Ponyville. She happily waved at some passing ponies. most returning the wave with a smile. 

“Hurry up will ya?” he asked, noticing that some ponies were looking at him, whispering amongst themselves.

“Oh just relax, I won’t let anything happen to you little one,” she teased with a snicker, approaching the library. She knocked, starting to hum to herself.

“Oh, hi Chrysalis,” Spike said as he opened the door, yawning a little, “Twilight’s in the kitchen,” he said, letting them inside. “Wait... is that Jason?” he asked, looking at the shrunken Jotun with a raised eyebrow as he closed the door.

Jason’s face reddened a bit and he buried it in Chrysalis’ mane. “Um...yes,” he muttered.

“Good morning Chrysalis,” Twilight said as the empress walked into the kitchen, “What brings you here so early?”

“This,” Chrysalis said, placing Jason on the floor next to her.

“Um...” he started shyly, “Hi Twi...”

She stared at him for a few moments before her expression softened. She moved over to him, draping a wing across his back. “Let me guess, poison joke?”

“Yeah, courtesy of Discord,” Jason grumbled, looking at the floor.

“I know how that feels, whenever I get hit with it, my horn gets all floppy and I lose my magic,” Twilight said with a shudder.

“Please tell me you can change me back.” Jason pleaded, looking up at her.

“There is an antidote but Zecora is the only one who knows how to make it and she’s visiting family in her homeland.”

“So,” Jason started, sighing a little, “I’m stuck like this until she gets back, thats just fucking wonderful!”

“Now now,” Chrysalis chided, “Watch your language young colt or mama will have to wash your mouth out with soap.”

Jason just stared at her with a look of pure anger. “Keep that up and I’ll knock you into next week,” he warned.

“Are you threatening me?” she asked getting into his face, “I don’t think that would be wise.”

“Just because I’m a kid doesn’t mean I can’t use this,” he said, holding up his Omnitrix arm. An evil smirk spread across Chrysalis’ muzzle as she looked at the watch. With a quick bob of her head, she spit some goo at it, removing his ability to pop up the dial.

“Ha! I still got voice commands!” he said with a smirk.

Her smirk fell and she let out a snort, “You better watch yourself little colt,” she warned, poking his chest.

“Or what?” he asked, glaring up at her.

“Or this!” she shouted. With a sudden tackle, she pinned him down and started to blow raspberries on his stomach.

“You bitch!” he shouted between laughs, trying to get out from under her, though the empress gave no openings.

“Do you yield?” she asked, a predatory smirk on her muzzle.

“Gah! Why do you have to be so much bigger!” he shouted, trying to push her muzzle away. 

“All you have to do is give up and I’ll release you,” she said in a sing-song voice as she continued to torment him.

Jason ran his mind through the forms at his disposal, trying to think of a good one. “Omnitrix! Ball Weevil!” he shouted. Shifting into a small yellow insectoid creature, he skittered away, moving as fast as his little legs would take him.

“Oh no you don’t!” Chrysalis said, whipping around, narrowing her eyes at him. 

“Crap!” he said, looking back at her. He looked around, spotting an open window. “Omnitrix, Azrael!” He shifted into his thestral form, zipping out the window just as Chrysalis pounced, smacking her head on the floor.

“Ow...” she moaned, sitting up. She rubbed her head, gazing up at the window.

“Serves you right you know, for teasing him so much,” Twilight said as she stepped over to a bookshelf, pulling a book down.

“What are you doing?” Chrysalis asked, turning to her.

“Hoping to find the poison joke antidote, why don’t you come help?” she asked, not looking up from her book. 

Chrysalis sighed as she got to her hooves, moving over to Twilight. She grabbed a book from the same area and opened it up, hoping she hadn’t teased Jason too much... nah.

“Oh god damn that is bright!” a young colt’s voice drifted into the library, which only made the mares work that much quicker.





“This was a stupid idea,” Jason said as he stumbled through the town, getting weird looks as he tried to shield his eyes with his wings. “Stupid Chrysalis...” he stopped, shaking his head, “I’m even thinking like a kid...” Continuing to stumble around nearly blindly, he moaned right before he tripped on a rock, tumbling head over hooves, only stopping when he collided with another pony.

“Oh my are you alright?” Fluttershy’s voice asked, full of concern as always. 

“Fluttershy!” he shouted up at her, making the mare jump. “It’s me Jason!”

“Jason?” she asked, looking at him with a raised eyebrow, “Why are you a colt?”

“Poison joke...” he said, snorting a little, still trying to shield his eyes.

“Oh my,” she gasped. Lifting him up, she said, “I’ll take you back to my cottage and get you all fixed up don’t you worry.” She placed him on her back and headed toward her place.

“Why do I get the feeling this won’t end well...?” he asked as he buried his head in her mane to escape the sun. He sighed to himself as they walked, starting to drift off to sleep, “Damn kid body...” he muttered before dozing off.

---

Jason yawned as he came to, the sounds of various animals aiding in his awakening.

“Good afternoon sleepyhead,” Fluttershy said, seeing that he was awake, “Did you enjoy your nap?”

“I suppose,” he said with a yawn, running a hand through his hair. 

“I’m glad,” she said, sitting on the couch next to him, draping a leathery wing across his back. “Are you hungry? I have some fish I could cook up.”

“No thanks Fluttershy, I’m fine,” he said, sighing as his stomach growled.

“Oh no, growing colts need their food. I’ll go cook some up for you, so you stay right here.” She fluttered off the couch and into the kitchen.

Knowing it was futile to argue with Fluttershy when she got like this, Jason set upon the task of getting the now hardened goo off the Omnitrix. “I really hate this stuff sometimes...” he muttered as he get a few chips off, though the dial was still unusable.

“Having trouble?” Discord asked, popping up from between the couch cushions.

“Screw off Discord,” Jason said with a glare, “This is your fault,”

“I suggest you hold off on the cursing.” Discord shook his head, “She’d probably wash your mouth out with soap,” he said making a gagging sound.

“I can swear if I want,” Jason said, crossing his arms, “I’m an adult,” 

“Mentally, perhaps, but seeing you as a child has put it in her mind that you are one,” Discord said, reclining on the couch, “Seeing me as a child set off her motherly instincts, so I’m trying to get back to normal as soon possible so I can... uh... put a bun in the oven as it were...”

“I did not need that image Discord,” Jason said, shuddering a little.

“Well too bad,” he said, sticking his tongue out. “You’re stuck here until someone comes to get you, I don’t think Fluttershy would let you leave by yourself,”

“That’s just stupid,” Jason said, rolling his eyes. Ignoring the toddler, he looked back to the Omnitrix, chipping off more of the goo. 

“Ok Jay, it’s all ready,” Fluttershy said as she came back from the kitchen, the tray balanced across her wings. She set it on the table, giving him a smile, “Careful, it’s still rather hot.”

“Um... thanks Fluttershy,” Jason said as he looked at the food then up at her.

“You’re welcome,” she replied, giving him a gentle nuzzle before moving off to tend to some animals.  Jason just looked at the food before shrugging, starting to eat.

“Can I have some?” Discord asked, suddenly appearing in his lap.

“Ugh, fine,” he said, giving a small portion of his meal to the babe of chaos. Discord squealed with delight, and proceeded to stuff his little face.

“Heh, you're kinda cute,” Jason commented as he watched Discord eat.

“I am not cute, I am the lord of Chaos,” Discord said indignantly, huffing a little. 

“More like toddler of chaos,” Jason teased... just before Nickelodeon slime was dumped all over him. Discord smirked, holding a bucket in his hands. “Oh you are so dead,” Jason said with a glare.

---

Fluttershy hummed as she moved downstairs. The children had been quiet for a while and she just had to check and make sure they were ok. “How is everypony-what in Faust’s name!?” she asked with a gasp as she reached her landing. Her living room was a mess, with various objects thrown about. Food was everywhere, all over the floor and all over the walls. At the center of the mess were Discord and Hodgepodge, who were in the middle of a snowball fight. 

“Ahem!” she nearly shouted, getting both to stop and look at her. One glance at her eyes and both draconequui slunk off to opposite corners of the room, staying quiet. “Now you two stay in those corners until I’m done cleaning up,” she said, grabbing a broom. Angel watched, snickering at the two. Discord just grinned as he grew, now about the same age that Jason was currently.

“Fluttershy,” Twilight asked peeking into the cottage, “Sorry to bother you, but is Jason here?”

“Oh hello Twilight,” Fluttershy said, looking up from her cleaning. She gestured towards the corner where Jason was standing. “He’s here, he’s in time out for the moment.”

“Time out?” she asked, raising her eyebrow, “Why is he in ‘time out’ exactly?”

“He and Discord were fighting and made such a mess.” She gestured to the room around them.

“Um... ok... how about I take him off your hooves? I may have found a cure for him,” Twilight said, trotting over to him as the Omnitrix timed out.

“Well, I suppose...” she said with a pout, “Just make sure you put him right into time out.”

“Sure Fluttershy, I’ll do just that,” Twilight said with a nod, leading Jason out the door. Once they were out of range, Jason let out a sigh of relief.

“Thanks Twi, that was starting to get a little weird,” Jason said, giving a smile.

“It was no big deal Jason,” she said as they came up to the library. “Only thing is... the cure isn’t complete...”

“Seriously?” Jason asked with a sigh, groaning softly. “You told me you had one!”

“No,” she said, walking inside. “I said I may have found one,” she corrected, leading him to Chrysalis, who was quietly reading a book.

“Oh my little colt!” Chrysalis shouted dramatically, scooping Jason up, “Mama thought she lost you forever!”

“Put. Me. Down,” Jason said with a glare, not happy with her antics. 

“Fine... you’re such a killjoy...” she snorted, placing him on the ground. 

“Anyway,” Twilight cut in, “This is the recipe, though we’re missing an ingredient. I figured Grey Matter could come up with another ingredient we could use.”

“Nah, Grey Matter is more for tech stuff, but,” Jason said with a smirk, “I got something. Omnitrix, Brainstorm!” he commanded, shifting into a orange shelled, crab-like creature. “Now let’s look at zat recipe,” he said as the two parts of his exoskeleton opened up, revealing his brain.

“Jason!” Twilight recoiled in horror, unable to look away from the exposed organ, “Is that your brain!?”

“Yes. Now please, I need to focus,” he said as green electricity emitted from his brain. It moved forward, grasping the book and hovering it in front of his face. He looked it over before grabbing a few more books in his electrical grasp. He pored over them for a few minutes before letting out a “Eureka!” He replaced the books, a smirk on his face.

“Well?” Chrysalis asked, having watched the display with interest.

“It appears zat Death Root is an adequate substitute for Deep Mushroom,” he said, tapping his exoskeleton,  “Brewed to a boil at precisely 212 degrees fahrenheit before adding it to the rest of the ingredients will do it,”

“You figured all that out in five minutes?” Twilight asked, rather dumbfounded.

“Of course, I do have ze superior intellect after all,” he said smugly, then tapped the Omnitrix, reverting to normal. He chuckled sheepishly at Twilight’s glare, “Sorry, Brainstorm’s ego is about as big as his IQ.” 

“You’ll be happy to know, I dispatched some drones to get the Death Root,” Chrysalis spoke up, putting Jason on her back. “I’ll take him to the spa to wait,” she told Twilight before trotting out of the library.

“Thank goodness... I’ve had enough of this crap,” Jason said with a sigh of relief.





“All you have to do is boil the Death Root at 212 degrees, then add it to the rest of the ingredients,” Jason said as he got into the water, leaving his boxers on.

“Of course,” Aloe said, starting to pour some of the ingredients in.

Jason relaxed, letting out a sigh.

“I must say Jason, you made for a rather darling colt,” Rarity said from the pool next to him.

“Thanks Rarity, but I’d prefer to be an adult again,” he said, watching as Aloe carefully added the boiled Death Root. He took a deep breath and dunked his head under the water. A few seconds later, he popped up out of the water, an adult once again. “Thats the stuff,” he said, running a hand over his beard.

“‘Scuse me boss,” the drone that had brought the Death Root spoke up, “But I’ve just gotten a message from the hive, the princesses would like to speak to you.”

“Of course they do,” Jason said, getting out of the water, drying himself off. He pulled on some new clothes, getting ready to leave. 

“Please allow me to help,” Rarity said, getting out of her bath. “I’ve been practicing my magic and this would be the perfect opportunity to test my teleportation!”

“Alright Rarity,” he said knowing better than to argue with her, “Give it a go.”

She smiled as she lit her horn and cast the spell. As her magic surrounded the both of them, she got a worried look on her face. “Um... Jason, is it supposed to do that?” she asked, pointing to the Omnitrix.

He looked down, seeing that it was starting to overload, “Aw fuck,” he managed to get out before it went critical, releasing an explosion of green energy. The explosion merged with Rarity’s magic, and they both vanished.
> A Rather Indy Adventure
> --------------------------------------------------------------------------

“You ok, Rarity?” Jason asked as he sat up, giving his head a rub. They were in what looked like a jungle, the sounds of various wildlife filling the air. 

“MY MANE!” Rarity screeched, upon finding herself in a mud puddle. “I just had it washed!” She sobbed, breaking into tears.

“Yes Rarity we could possibly be in another universe and your biggest worry is your mane,” Jason said with a roll of his eyes as he got to his feet. “Look, I’m going to use Hodgepodge and see if I can get us home.” Rarity nodded, calming down a little. “Omnitrix, Hodgepodge,” he commanded. Nothing happened. “Omnitrix, Hodgepodge!” he commanded, glaring at it. Nearly yelling at this point, he repeated, “Omnitrix, Hodg-” but he was cut off by the transformation.

“Jason... I don’t believe that’s Hodgepodge,” Rarity sniffled, rubbing at the mascara that was running down her muzzle.

“Oh no, I’m right here!” Hodgepodge said with a smile.

“What the hell?” Jason asked, looking at his body. He had taken on his Chimera form, “Ok seriously, what the hell?”

“That idiot Hodgepodge wassss too ssscared to come out by himssself,” Hughes’ distorted voice came from behind him.

“Hey! That stare was freaking scary ok!? I’m still shaken up! I wasn’t coming out by myself, no way, no how!” Hodgepodge said, his voice coming from directly to Jason’s left.

“Just shut it both of you, I’m just going to turn us back to normal ok?” Jason asked, to which they gave sounds of agreement. Jason tapped the Omnitrix, which made a brief beeping sound. “Ok what the fuck?”  Jason asked in exasperation. 

“Error detected,” the Omnitrix chirped, “User form will randomize upon timeout until internal repairs are complete.”

“Well isn’t that fucking wonderful? I get to be stuck behind you idiots for who knows how long,” Hughes complained, not even trying to hide his contempt .

“Look, we’ll figure this out later but like it or not we’re all stuck controlling one body at the same time, so could we please just cooperate? I’d rather not argue with myself,” Jason said, really just having about enough of this insane nonsense. 

“Ok!” Hodgepodge said happily.

“Fine,” Hughes said with a hiss.

Rarity just stared at the creature in front of her, her muddy mane forgotten just a tiny bit. It had the front half of a lion, the back half of a gazelle and a cobra for a tail. Jason’s voice came from the lion head, Hodgepodge’s voice came from the gazelle head growing from the left shoulder and the third voice came from the cobra head.

“Excuse me gentlemen, but may I suggest finding some form of civilization?” she asked, looking from head to head, not sure which one to focus on.

“Lady’s got a point fellas,” Hodgepodge spoke up, looking at the others, “Best get this show on the ground!” he said cheerfully.

“Alright, let’s get moving,” Jason said, taking a step forward and finding, much to his relief, that he had control of the body.

“So...” Rarity said as they began to walk, trying her best to avoid dirtying her hooves or coat any further, “Have you given this form a name yet?”

“I actually haven’t, first time using it,” Jason admitted as they walked.

“Ooh! Ooh!” Hodgepodge said, swaying his head back and forth, “I have the perfect name!”

“What could you posssibly have come up with?” Hughes asked, keeping an eye out for any danger.

“Bellerophon!” Hodgepodge shouted, feeling rather proud of himself, a feeling that spread to the others.

“Bellerophon?” Rarity question asked, raising her eyebrow, “May I ask where you came up with that name Ja... err Hodgepodge?”

“Well Bellerophon is the name of the Greek warrior who killed the chimera in mythology so I thought it would be appropriate,” Hodgepodge explained with a smile.

“That’sss... actually rather intelligent...” Hughes admitted, looking at Hodgepodge, who beamed brighter at the compliment.

“I have my moments.” 

“How long do you think we have until we change form?” Jason asked as he pushed through the undergrowth, Rarity following in his wake.

“Well, the watch usually lasts for fifteen minutes so... I’d say somewhere around there,” Hughes said, going back to observing their surroundings.

“Well I do hope you can get us home soon, I really need to hit the spa again,” Rarity said, looking at her hooves with a shrug.

Jason couldn’t help but let out a groan, turning to look at her, “Are you seriously telling me that’s the biggest thing you're worried about?”

“Of course not...” Rarity said with a nervous chuckle, shrinking ever so slightly under the three gazes that were locked on her.

“Uh huh, sure Rarity,” Jason said, not really believing her.

“Hey ugly,” a mare’s voice cut in, “Didn’t your mother ever tell you not to eat fillies?” A gray and gold flash shot out of the bushes, slamming into their side, sending the chimera tumbling away.

“Hey, are you ok?” the mare asked, watching Bellerophon get back to their feet, shaking their heads.

“That was very rude of you Ms. Yearling,” Rarity said with a huff.

“What!? Rude!? That chimera was going to use you as a chew toy!”

“That chimera happens to be a good friend of mine,” Rarity said, sticking her nose up into the air and trotting over to check on Bellerophon.

“Wait, how do you know my name?” Yearling asked, eyeing Rarity suspiciously. “I recognize you now! You’re one of those mares that broke into my house last year!”

Rarity froze, a wince on her face. She slowly turned to Yearling, a sheepish smile on her face, “I wouldn’t exactly say we broke in...”

In a flash, Yearling was in her face, their muzzles almost touching, “It looked pretty textbook to me.”

Before they could continue, a bright green flash went off. They both looked over, seeing that the chimera had changed into a pegasus.

“Ok... that was weird,” Jason said, shaking his head, “Ok, what the hell is your problem lady?”

“My problem!?” Yearling nearly screamed, getting in his face, “How the hell did you go from a chimera to a pegasus?!”

“I’m awesome, thats why,” he said, pushing her back slightly. “Who the hell are you anyway?” he asked, looking her over. She was a golden pegasus with a monochrome mane that looked like a grayscale version of a rainbow. She was also wearing stereotypical explorer gear.

“Jason, this is A.K. Yearling, also known as Daring Do,” Rarity introduced, quickly getting between the two. 

“Daring Do? You mean that Indiana Jones rip off Dash keeps gushing about?”

“Who are you calling a rip off?!” Daring demanded, flaring her wings out with a snort.

“Please Jason, don’t antagonize Ms. Do,” Rarity sighed, already getting a headache.

Jason blinked, shaking his head, “Ok, I think Hughes was leaking out a little.” He turned to Daring, “I think we got off on the wrong foot. I’m Jason, Jason Hughes. You’ve probably at least heard of me.” 

Daring just looked at him, raising her eyebrow, “Can’t say that I have,”

“Seriously? I’m a freaking prince, how the hell have you not heard of me?” Jason asked, looking at her like she had grown a second head.

“Don’t take it the wrong way dear,” Rarity spoke up, “She didn’t even know Twilight was a princess when we first met her.”

“By Yggdrasil... that means... you don’t know,” Jason said, looking at Daring with horrified eyes.

“Know what?” Daring asked, crossing her arms.

“N-nevermind,” Jason said shaking his head. “Where are we anyway?”

“The east jungles of Zebrica,” Daring said, looking around, “Rumor is somepony found a vast ruin here, I’ve been tracking Ahuizotl for weeks, I just know he’s going to try and loot the place.”

“I suppose we should help since we’re already here,” Jason said, getting to his hooves. 

“I guess you two can come along,” she said with a nod, “Just don’t get in the way,”

“She’s way too much like Dash...” Jason grumbled, shaking his head. Rarity nodded in agreement. “Lead the way Daring,” Jason said, walking next to Rarity. Couldn’t he ever just catch a break?




Twilight took her seat, glancing at her fellow princesses. Celestia was still in rough shape, her eyes red and puffy from her long periods of sobbing. Luna looked like she was trying to keep her cool and Cadance had a rather passive air about her. She gave Twilight a small smile, which Twilight returned.

“What is taking that man so long?” Luna asked with a huff. “We sent him that message an hour ago, Ponyville is not so far as to take an hour to get here!”

“Maybe he got held up with something?” Cadance asked, willing to give him the benefit of the doubt. 

“I don’t see with what,” Twilight said, shaking her head. “He was just at the spa to get the poison joke antidote.”

“Excuse me your Highnesses,” one of the drones guarding the door spoke up, sticking its head into the room, “We’ve received word from the drone that delivered the message to the boss, it said that Lady Rarity attempted to teleport the two of them here, something went wrong, and they disappeared.” With the message given, it bowed its head, backing out of the room, closing the door.

“That man just attracts trouble,” Luna said with a sigh, shaking her head.

“Should we try and find them?” Cadance asked, pouting a little with worry.

“They’ll be ok, Jason will get them back safe,” Twilight said with a smile, “I have faith in him.”

“Regardless,” Celestia finally spoke, her voice hoarse, “We will continue the meeting without him. Bring in the prisoner!”

A pair of changelings wearing royal guard armor in Jason’s colors stepped inside. Between them trotted a very quiet Nightmare Moon, her wings tied to her sides and an inhibitor on her horn.

“Nightmare Moon,” Celestia began, locking eyes with the mare, “Do you know why you’re here?”

“Because of what happened to Luna...” she said in a quiet voice, shrinking under the solar diarch’s gaze.

“You and Eclipse transformed me into a monster!” Luna shouted, narrowing her gaze into a glare, “If it were up to just me, I would have you banished to the moon for eternity.” 

“T-thats not true,” Nightmare said, her ears splaying back.

“Quiet!” Luna snapped, making the mare jump slightly, “You will only speak when prompted!”

“I want to hear what she has to say,” Cadance cut in, “I say we let her speak.”

“I agree, we should hear her version of events, it’s only fair,” Twilight said, nodding in agreement.

Luna looked between the two, letting out a snort, “Fine, speak.”

“We already existed inside of Luna before The Nightmare took hold,” Nightmare started, looking at the floor. “It created us from her emotions. I was born from Luna’s loneliness and helplessness while Eclipse was forged from her jealousy, anger and resentment,”

“So thats why you’re so... skittish,” Cadance surmised, looking at her, “No offense of course,”

“None taken, Your Majesty.” Nightmare kept her head down, trembling ever so slightly.

“Tell me, Nightmare Moon, if we were to let you free, what would you do with yourself?” Celestia asked with a calm tone.

“I-I wouldn’t have the slightest clue. The ponies would probably hate or fear me for what I am and I wouldn’t have anywhere to go...” she meekly replied as she sat down on her haunches, her gaze falling to the ground.

“Would you try to hurt them or bring about eternal night?”

“Oh no,” she said shaking her head, “I don’t think I have it in me to hurt anypony.”

“Hmm... we shall confer on what to do with you, a moment if you will,” Celestia said, then she cast a soundproof dome over their table.  Luna looked pissed, gesturing wildly, eyes narrowed. Celestia kept her composure, trying to calm her enraged sister. After a few minutes of this, Celestia dropped the shield, all but a pouting Luna able to conceal their emotions.

“After much deliberation, we have decided your fate,” Cadance spoke, looking at Nightmare, “Due to your nature and compliance with us, we have decided our best course of action is to reform you. You will be placed under the gentle care of Fluttershy due to her prior success with Discord. With her help, we hope you will be able to become a model Equestrian citizen. If not you will be banished to the moon, do you understand?”

“Yes, Your Highnesses,” Nightmare said, bowing her head.

“Then we are adjourned,” Celestia declared. The four of them got up, all but Twilight departing.

“Come on Nightmare,” Twilight said, giving the timid alicorn a smile. “You’ll love Fluttershy, you two are a lot alike,” she said while leading her out of the room. In all honestly, they would be perfect for each other.  





“Wait, hold up,” Jason, now in the form of Siegfried, said, holding up a talon.

“What is it?” Daring asked with a sigh. Her attitude hadn’t improved over the previous night, having been woken up several times by his form changes. 

He reached into the ground and with some effort, dislodging a large object. He shook the dirt off, revealing a large, intricate looking horn.

“What is that?” Rarity asked, stepping forward for a closer look. 

“A horn,” Jason said simply. He placed it on his back, saying nothing else.

“Whatever it is, we still have to get to that ruin,” Daring said, starting to move again. “We shouldn’t be too far away at this point.”

“I hope so, my hooves are starting to chip,” Rarity said with a sigh, holding one up to her muzzle, “Why does this always happen to me?”

“Look, if it gets you to stop bitching, I’ll pay for the damn spa trip myself,” Jason said, rolling his eyes. 

“Well, thank you Jason,” she said, trying her best to fix her mane, “Though you don’t have to be so crass about it.”

“We’re here,” Daring said suddenly, standing a little ahead of them.

“Really, it’s about...” Jason froze as he stared at the ruins, unmoving.

“Jason?” Rarity asked, a frown growing across her muzzle, “Is everything alright?”

“It...” he started, a few tears running down his face.

“Ugh, what is it now?” Daring asked with a sigh, “Your weirdo watch acting up again?”

“It’s Valhalla,” Jason said, ignoring them both. “They found Valhalla.” Despite being in ruins, Valhalla was still a sight to behold. Most of its structure had been damaged by Surt’s flames but the walls still stood strong. Its great doors hung open, one of them held on by its lower hinge while the other was off altogether.

“Valhalla? You know what this place is?” Daring asked, coming up behind him.

“From what Jason has told us, this is sacred ground, a gathering place for the honorable dead as they waited for the end of the world,” Rarity spoke up, moving up next to the awestruck Jason.

“That bastard is going to loot Valhalla,” Jason said, coming out of his stupor, “I’m gonna kill him!” Jason screeched, his talons digging into the dirt.

“Now Jason, your anger is completely justifiable but I don’t think killing him will solve anything,”

“He’d be dead, thats what it’d solve.” Spreading his wings, he zipped into the ruins. The sounds of rummaging could be heard up ahead, so he hid under a table.

“All of this is junk sir,” a stallion’s voice could be heard, followed by the sound of metal hitting the floor.

“Keep looking, there has to be something good here,” a vaguely Spanish voice called out, followed by more sounds of movement.

“Repairs completed,” the Omnitrix chirped, “Reverting user to default form.” There was a flash, startling the looters. 

“Come out! We know you're here!” the Spanish voice commanded.

“Good, I’m glad you know,” Jason said, getting out from under the table, “You're trespassing,” 

“Trespassing? This is just some old ruin, one that I intend to pick clean.” Jason saw a strange blue dog-like creature, with hands on its forelimbs and a third hand on its tail, who he assumed was Daring’s enemy, Ahuizotl.

“This is Vahalla, sacred home of the einherjar,” Jason said, pulling out Laevateinn, “I will not allow you to dishonor its memory.”

“Ahuizotl!” Daring shouted, coming up behind Jason, Rarity at her heels.

“So we meet again Ms. Do,” Ahuizotl said with a laugh. “I’m afraid you won’t-” He was interrupted by Jason darting forward and punching him in the gut. Ahuizotl fell to his knees, clutching his stomach.

“Uncatalogued DNA detected,” the Omnitrix chirped, passing a yellow light over Ahuizotl.

“Now listen here you Aztec reject, I’m not averse to killing you,” Jason said, holding his sword to the creature’s throat. “Get. Out.” He narrowed his eyes, pressing the blade harder against the creature’s neck.

“O-okay,” Ahuizotl wheezed. Jason released him and he got to his feet. One of his minions came to his aid, helping his master stagger out of the ruins.

“You wouldn't have really killed him would ya?” Daring asked, rather shocked to see her arch-nemesis defeated so quickly.

“I would have,” Jason said, watching the looters leave. “This place is sacred, I wasn’t going to let them defile it any further,” he said, taking a deep breath to calm himself. 

“I’m glad you didn’t, you’re a better man than that Jason,” Rarity said. She looked up at him and smiled.

“Yeah... at least I hope I am,” he said, looking around. The dining hall was a mess, with benches and tables tossed all about, “Give me a moment ok? I’m gonna clean this place up,” Jason said, shifting into Ditto. He split himself to at least a dozen clones, which proceeded to dart about the room, fixing it up as much as they could.

“Huh, that watch is pretty damn useful,” Daring said, watching in awe, “Where do I get one?”

“Sadly, Jason has the only one,” Rarity said, looking around. “This place gives me so many ideas~!” she said, nearly squeeing.

“Hey! No squeeing in Valhalla!” one of the Dittos scolded. “There,” another said. The Dittos all merged back together into a single being, and Jason reverted to normal.

“Well, this is a sight I never thought I’d see,” a male voice broke in. They all whirled around to find a very large boar standing in one of the many doorways. Behind him stood a goat, who was watching them intently, “A Jotun and two talking horses, and here I thought the Aesir were weird.” 

“Let me guess,” Jason started with a smirk, “ You’re Saehrimnir and the goat behind you is Heidrun?”

“You know these two?” Daring asked, looking between them.

“Yup, Saehrimnir was feasted on every night and Heidrun gives mead instead of milk.”

“You let them eat you!?” Rarity asked, looking absolutely sick to her stomach.

“Calm down lady, I can’t die. To be honest, it was a pretty good gig, I’d get food and shelter and all I’d have to do is let them eat me every night. Next day I’d come back to life and the cycle would repeat... until they all died that is.”

“You know, a friend and I are in need of a steady supply of meat, how about we strike up a similar deal?” Jason asked, sitting on a bench.

“If you can provide me with some food and a place to stay, we got a deal,” the boar said with a nod. “What about you Heidrun?” The goat let out a bleat, nodding her head. “Alright she’s in too.”

“Well that settles that,” Jason said standing up, “Time to head home.”

“Oh, here,” Saehrimnir said, tossing Jason a large scroll. “It’s a map of the realms, you’d probably want it, one of the last few valuable things here.”

“Thanks,” he said, storing it away along with the horn. “Well Ms. Do, it was nice meeting you, but we should go. Omnitrix, Hodgepodge,” he commanded, shifting forms correctly this time. “Ta-ta!” he said with a wave before teleporting them away.

Daring just stared at the now empty hall, sighing a little, “When did my life get so weird...” she asked, before setting off to explore the ruins.





“Ah, it’s good to be home!” Jason said as their little group walked back into Ponyville.

“Oh yes, it’s straight to the spa for me,” Rarity said, a spring to her step. As they walked along, a pair of stallions pulling a cart raced past them. A bottle tumbled out of the cart and landed nearby.

“I wonder what was up with them?” Jason asked as he picked up the bottle. He looked it over and with a shrug, popped it open and took a sip.

“Well? What is it?” Rarity asked, raising her eyebrow.

“This is a really good energy drink,” Jason said licking his lips, “Really good actually. I wonder who those guys were?” he asked as they resumed the walk into town. He didn’t look forward to explaining their new companions to the others but hey, at least they had meat now.
> Team Rocket's Rocket
> --------------------------------------------------------------------------


"Are you two even paying attention?!" Twilight shouted, interrupting his and Dash's staring contest.

"I don't know about Dash but I was a few minutes ago," Jason said looking at the irate alicorn. Dash was trying to study for a Wonderbolts exam, how a fan like her didn't know everything about them was beyond him, and when Twilight offered to help he decided to sit in on the lessons.

"Was?"

"Yeah you’re kind of a boring teacher..."

"What."

"Yeah Twi," Dash piped up, "It's hard to really pay attention when you talk sometimes."

Twilight looked absolutely pissed, with parts of her mane sizzling. Before she could say anything, reality around Jason started to warp and bend, fading out...




Jason blinked, looking around. The library had melted away, being replaced by wilderness. He hadn't teleported, so that only meant one thing...

“A-a-another human!?” a surprised voice called out from behind him.

“Huh... someone else actually found the token, I’m kinda surprised...” he said, looking to the voice. The owner was Jessie of Team Rocket from the old pokemon show. “I take it you’re in some kinda trouble?”

Jessie snapped out of her stuttering. “Uh, yeah!” she pointed at the large crowd of Diamond Dogs, who sat there in a shocked silence. 

“Huh... haven’t seen any of you guys before,” he said moving over to them. 

“Uncataloged DNA detected.” the device on his wrist chirped, running a yellow beam over one of the dogs.

The dogs yelped at the strange light, the leader seeing the strange light jumped in front of him. “What do you think you’re doing?”

“Taking a DNA sample,” he said, looking at him.

“DNA?” The dog leered at the man, “Rrrgh, Don’t use your fancy words at me! Who are you!?” 

“My name is Jason Hughes, now is there any reason your hassling this woman?”

The dog growled, “It isn’t she we want, it’s that filly!” he pointed at the pink filly standing behind Jessie.

The filly yelped when she saw the dog pointing at her. “M-mom.”

Jessie took out another pokeball, “Why don’t you leave Screwball alone!”

“Ok, I’m not liking where this is going,” Jason said with a frown. “Now leave before this gets ugly.”

The dog laughed, “Hahaha, or what, I already beat two of her magic creatures, what can you do?”

“This. Omnitrix, Rath.” In a bright flash of light, he was replaced with a rather tall and angry looking tiger-man.

Some of the dogs backed away at the sight of the transformation, the leader however remained stubborn, “So you think your fancy magic will make me leave?” 

“No,” he said cracking his knuckles. “Rath’s fists will!” he snarled, rushing forward, kneeing a dog in the face.

The dog got up and snarled, “So it’s a fight you want, then a fight you get!” he roared and charged straight at him

Rath grabbed him, tossing him into another dog. “Rath is gonna teach you to pick on fillies! That is not cool!”

The dog growled now seeing red, “Don’t just stand there attack!” All of them hesitated, but shortly all of them lunged at the large tiger-man. 

He roared, stabbing a claw into the ground, releasing a shockwave that hurled them all back. “Come on! Rath hasn’t even broken a sweat!”

Suddenly from the bushes came out three Pokemon, a Seviper, Dustox, and Wobbuffet. 

The Seviper let out a hiss at the Diamond Dogs. “[I suggest you leave before things get really ugly.]”

“[That’s right!]”

“Wobbuffet!!!”

The Diamond Dog leader snarled, “First that red haired girl, then the shape shifting tiger, and now these three!!!” The Dog let out a roar much louder than the last one, “I’m done with this! Kill them all, and take the filly!” 

All of the armored dogs took out spears, and charged at them, determine to kill at least one of them.

Jessie, seeing what they were about to do, called out, “Seviper, Poison Tail!” Seviper lunged at one of the nearby Diamond Dogs and attacked.

Rath stopped Seviper, letting out a loud roar that stopped the dogs in their tracks. He moved up to the leader,getting into his face. “If you touch that filly, Rath will use your skull to eat his cereal out of!” He glared into the dog’s eyes, poking his chest. “Now you apologize to the filly!”

The leader tried to stay strong, but soon his courage started to waver, “Rrgghh, fine! The filly was more trouble than she was worth anyway.” The dog turned back to Screwball, “If i ever see you again near Diamond Dog territory, we won’t show mercy!” The dogs walked back, towards whatever mines they came from, the leader staying behind, still angry. Soon enough, he snorted and turned back to leave.

Rath grabbed the leader by the head, lifting him up to eye level. “Rath. Said. Apologize.”

“RRGGHH,” the dog tried to sound intimidating, but soon gave up. “*sigh* I’m sorry.”

“Good,” Rath said putting him down. “Remember what Rath told you about your skull.”

The dog simply nodded and left, trying to salvage whatever pride he had left.

As soon as the Diamond Dogs were out of sight, Jessie turned towards Rath, “Hey, thanks er.. Jason, right?”

“One moment please,” he said holding a hand up, tapping the Omnitrix. A second later he was back to his normal form. “There we go, and you're welcome.”

The filly used her propeller hat, and flew up to Jason, “Thanks a lot mister!” She soon gained a confused expression, “But I thought that Mama Sarah and Uncle Tomas were the only hoo-mans in Equestria?”

The bushes rustled again, but this time it was Meowth that came out, “That’s because Tomas and Sarah are the only humans in Equestria.” Meowth pointed at Jason, “so the question is, where do you come from and how did you get here!”

“I’m from another Equestria, and you summoned me here.” Jason said simply, looking at Meowth.

Meowth looked at Jason, bewildered at the idea. “Another Equestria? You mean like a parallel universe?”

“There are an infinite number of universes my friend, so yes, you are correct.”

Sarah cleared her throat, getting their attention, “Well anyways, thanks for helping us Jason,” She soon got a idea, “Say, why don’t I take you to meet my brother!”

“Why not,” he said, smiling.

“Great! Let’s go!” Sarah turned around and started walking, but soon stopped walking when she figured out she was still lost, “Funny story, hehehe, I'm a bit lost.”

“I can help with that, but first,” he said looking at Meowth. “Do you mind if I scan your Pokemon?”

Sarah smiled, and nodded “Alright then.” she took out four more pokeballs and tossed them into the air. “Arbok, Yanmega, Lickitung, and Ditto come on out!” Sarah turned to her six Pokemon still out in the field, “Woobat, Frillish, Pumpkaboo, Seviper, Dustox, and Wobbuffet come here please.”

In a burst of light, four Pokemon had appeared, seeing that there wasn’t any threat around they all relaxed, soon enough the other Pokemon joined them and started to line up. “Well they're all yours to scan.”

“Thanks,” Jason said with a smile, letting the Omnitrix scan them. “Last one,” he said, letting it scan Meowth.

Sarah retrieved all of her Pokemon back into their balls, except for Wobbuffet, who was still worried for his master’s safety. “Well, we should get going now.”

Meowth let out small yawn and climbed on the filly’s back, “Yeah all this excitement has gotten me exhausted.”

“I can help with that. Omnitrix, Hodgepodge,” Jason said, shifting into a being that looked almost exactly like Discord.

All of them looked at Jason shocked, at the resemblance to Discord, but none were more shocked than the filly, who was almost tearing up, “Dadd-Daddy?”

Meowth stuttered a bit, “L-L-Lord Discord!? Is that you?”

“Sorry, same species, different brand of chaos,” he said shaking his head.

She looked down disapointed, “Oh,”

“Hey, if it makes you feel better, I was made from him, so that makes me your brother... er uncle... brocle?” he asked, tapping his chin. “Yes that sounds right, that makes me your brocle, little Screwball.”

Screwball feeling a bit more better, started to giggle, “You talk just like my dad,” Soon Screwball’s eye’s lit up, “I have three uncles. I have three uncles! I have three uncles!” Screwball jumped around Hodgepodge, a smile on her face. “This is the best day ever! First i got reunited with mama Sarah, then with uncle Meowth, and now i have a new Uncle... brother... brocle!” Screwball flew up and hugged Hodgepodge, “Thankyou!Thankyou!Thankyou!”

“D’aw! The cuteness is making my arteries hurt,” he said, hugging her back. He turned to Sarah, “If I collapse call the ambulance.”

Sarah giggled, “Sure thing.”

Meowth stomped his foot, impatiently. “Hey! As heartwarming as this is, I don’t think it’s a good idea staying in the Everfree, by the time night comes, the ghost types will be swarming in all over the place!”

“Relax my fine furry friend,” he looked back at Sarah. “Madame do you have anything that belongs to your brother?”

Sarah rummaged through her pockets and got out a blue ribbon, with gold markings, “Will this do? It’s my brother’s most prized possession”

“Yes it will,” he said taking it from her. “This might tingle a lot... and by tingle I mean vomit inducing,” he said as he snapped his fingers, using the ribbon to teleport them to his location.

Back at the Everfree castle Tomas was talking with Alfred, “So if I take over Canterlot, you want me to give you Ponyville?” Alfred nodded, “Why?”

“Ponyvilleee is the most closestss town to the Everfreee.”

“I guess that makes sense, but-” but before Tomas can continue, a bright flash caused them both to cover their eyes. When the light disappeared, there stood Meowth, Sarah, Wobbuffet, Screwball, and a being that looked like Discord.

Alfred squawked in surprise, “Looord Diiisscoord, whaat a surpriseee!”

“Nah, I’m Hodgepodge.” he said shaking his head.

Tomas wanted to question it, but when he caught sight of his family, he ran up to them and tried to hug them all as the best he could, “Sarah, Meowth, Screwball, Wobbuffet! You’re alright!”

Sarah hugged Tomas back, “Oh please, no one can separate Team Rocket, forever.”

“That’s right!”

“Wobba!”

The Gengar floated closer to the heartwarming scene, “Weeell if it isn’t Sarah and the rest of the gang.” Alfred chuckled, “Oh Sarah, Max has been sooo lonely without youuu, going on about how you’re the Juliet to his Romeooo, and other such nonsense.” 

Sarah blushed in embarrassment, “Nice to see you too, Alfred.”

Tomas turned towards Hodgepodge, “So Hodgepodge, right? Thanks for bringing them to me.”

“You're welcome!” he said with a huge smile,” This is yours,” he said, holding out the ribbon.

Tomas looked at the ribbon, with a shocked expression, “U-uh, thanks.” Carefully he took the ribbon and put in his pocket. “Where did you get it anyways?”

“Your sister let me use it, I locked onto your mana and used it to teleport us here.”

“Well thanks for not damaging it, it’s probably more precious than what my sister told you,” he said, still looking slightly bothered.

“We all have precious things Tomas, it wouldn’t be right of me to destroy yours. That would only cause the bad kind of chaos.”

Tomas chuckled, “You know, you remind a bit of Discord, when we first became friends.”

The Gengar floated between the two, “Weeelll now that weee all met, why don’t you tell us how another draconequus came to existence?”

“Oh I’m from another universe,” Hodgepodge said, creating a throne made out of Lego. He sat down, smirking. “I even beat old Dissy in a chaos duel.”

The Gengar looked at him skeptically, “You, beat Discord?” Soon enough his body started to shake, and he let out a rather unholy laugh, “HAHAHAHAHA!!! That’s ridiculous!” He wiped away a few tears, “The only ones able to beat Discord, are ghosts, high level gods, and the Elements of Harmony.”

“Would you like to see the footage?” Hodgepodge asked, raising an eyebrow.

The Gengar still shaking, nodded, “Oh yess, please show mee, I can use a goood laugh.”

He conjured up a projector screen, the projection coming straight out of his eyes. “As you can see, I clearly wiped the floor with him.”

Alfred stuttered a bit, “But-but how? I only of one being who beat Discord, and he’s dead.” Alfred sighed in defeat, “Oh well, it must mean your world’s Discord isn't strong like ours.”

Tomas turned towards Hodgepodge, “Ignore him, he holds Discord on a high pedestal.”

“It’s ok, haters gonna hate,” he said pausing as the Omnitrix start to flash red. “ Well, looks like my time is up, it was nice meeting you all.” he said, vanishing in a flash of red, only to be replaced by Jason.

“Gah... that always gives me such a headache...” he moaned, rubbing his head.

Tomas looked at Jason shocked, “You're a human!?”

“Yeah...” he said sitting up. “Imagine your skull is a box right?”

“Ok? A box?”

Suddenly a shadow stood over Jason, drool dropping on him, “Carni?”

Tomas panicked, “Wait Carnivine that’s not food!”

“I don’t want to turn around do I?” Jason asked, looking at Tomas.

Tomas gave him a sheepish grin, “Oh, don’t worry about him just move slowly, a fair warning though,  Carnivine’s diet is strictly carnivorous.”

“I know believe me,” Jason said, standing up, slowly. The Omnitrix chirped, passing its yellow light over Carnivine.

“Carnivine?”

“Uh, Carnivine why don’t you come over here, and give him some space,” Tomas asked, still a bit worried, however instead of just walking there, Carnivine jumped up, it’s maw wide open as bit down on Tomas’s head, “AHHH Carnivine! How many times must we go through this!”

“Holy crap, I didn’t think I’d ever see that in person.” Jason tried to hold in his laugh by soon was laughing his ass off.

“Why don’t you try getting bit by a Carnivine! Then we’ll see who’s laughing!” Tomas pulled Carnivine off, and put him back into his pokeball. “What am I going to do with you? You’re almost as bad as Victreebel.”

“Ok... so... I take it I’m the first other Displaced you guys have met right?” Jason asked, clearing his throat.

“Displaced? What’s that?” Meowth asked.

“You guys were normal people until you bought something from a shady guy at a con and you found yourselves here as Jesse and James correct?” he asked Tomas and Sarah.

“Uhh, yeah, we didn’t think there were any others.” Tomas looked at Sarah, both a bit bothered at the memory of their first arrival to equestria and the merchant.

“Oh there are a ton of us,” Jason said shaking his head. “Collectively we’re known as the Displaced, humans who are sent to Equestria with powers we didn’t have before.”

Meowth jumped in between Sarah and Tomas, “Wait so do you all end up in a different version of Equestria?”

“For the most part... my Equestria has three other Displaced but they were there before I got there.”

“So you can end up in a different time line as well?” Meowth started to look even more interested.

“That reminds me, what was the last major event that happened here?”

Tomas started to think back to a few days ago, “I say, when Discord was released from his stone prison, then again I do remember seeing a whole bunch of ponies chasing a stuffed doll, probably a ‘want it need it spell’.”

“Dear god.... you guys are way behind me,” Jason said rather shocked. “The Crystal Empire hasn’t even returned yet...”

“The Crystal Empire, heh, never thought I hear about that again.” Tomas said, with a dark look.

“Yup, it returned sometime after Discord’s,”

Sarah looked at Tomas, with a serious look, “You think ‘he’ will return too?”

“*Sigh* I hope not.”

“I recall Fluttershy reforming Discord sometime after that....”Jason said before realizing his error, “Crap...”

“HUH!?”

Meowth started panicking, “Discord, being reformed by the element of Kindness!?”

Screwball joined with an excited smile, “Does this mean Daddy is coming home?”

“Ok woah,” Jason put his hands up,” All of you just calm down.”

Meowth glared at Jason, “Calm down!? Discord going to be brainwashed to the enemy’s side!”

“Wait what?” Jason asked blinking. “Fluttershy didn’t brainwash Discord.”

The room darkened as the Gengar from earlier appeared, “Then whyyy is Discord siding with the enemyyy!”

“Because my Discord realized how much of a jerk he was, making everyone miserable. Plus, he understood he was upsetting the balance.”

The Gengar rolled his eyes, “Balance- shlamance, well i for one am not going to allow that to happen here!” Alfred turned towards Tomas, “The deal has changed! I no longer want the soul of Princess Luna or Celestia’s, I want Fluttershy!”

“What? What the hell is this about souls?” Jason asked, his eyes going wide.

Sarah turned towards Jason, “Look I don’t know how your Princess Luna or Celestia are, but here they murdered my brother’s most beloved Pokemon, and we’re not going to let that go unpunished.” 

“Ok.” Jason said taking a breath.”Look, why don’t we just go talk to them ok?” he asked, looking between them.”No fighting, no soul stealing. We just go up there and talk.”

Meowth growled in annoyance.“They lost their chance to explain themselves 1000 years ago, now is the time for action!” 

Jason sighed, shaking his head. “Look, my Equestria just experienced a nationwide genocide about two months back. Thousands died. What I’m asking you to do is to simply sit down with them and talk. No violence, no bloodshed, just words.”

Alfred flew down in front Jason, “And give us a good reason why should we trust you? For all we know you could’ve been sent here by the princesses to capture us!”

“If I was, I would have already done so.”

Sarah glared at Jason, “And how do you know that our Celestia and Luna won’t attack you?”

“I don’t, if you two are the only humans here, they’ll probably think I’m with you.”

Alfred flew towards Meowth and whispered something into his ear, “Alright Jason, we’ll go with you, and we won’t attack them.”

“Thank you,” he said getting up, sighing a little. “Look, I know you're angry but, I don’t think you’ve ever actually killed someone.” 

Sarah huffed, “Speak for yourself, I’ve sent more griffons to their deaths during the great war.”

Meowth shivered, “Or had Seviper eat them.”

“Heh... got me there, but did you actually do it yourself? Did you pick up a sword, look into their eyes and take their life?”

All of them stood silent, knowing he was right. “No, I guess we didn’t.”

“I did, I suggest you never do, it doesn’t leave you,” he said shaking his head, walking toward the exit.

They looked at each other and followed Jason towards the exit.


Jason looked back at the others as they neared Canterlot. “Leave the ponies to me, I got this ok?”

Sarah nodded, “Alright.”

He took a breath, walking into the city. He spotted a guard, moving over to him,” Yo,” he called, holding his hands up.

The guard eye’s widened, “Ha-Halt!” The guard looked around him, trying to find any other guard that was around.

“Look just calm down ok?” he asked softly. “All you need to do is take me and my friends to the princesses.” he gestured to the others, giving a smile.

“TEAM ROCKET!!!” The guard ran towards the direction of the castle, trying warn any other guard around.

“It can never be easy can it?” he asked, shaking his head. “Time for plan B. Omnitrix Star Dust.” he said, shifting into his alicorn form.

“What are you going to do in that form?” Meowth asked, a bit confused.

“Teleport,” he said as he lit up his horn, teleporting them directly into the throne room. Jason staggered a little, shaking his head. “Stupid feedback...”

The sound of glass shattering echoed through the walls, Celestia stood wide eyed at the scene before her.

“Oh hey Celestia,” Jason said waving at her. “I hope this isn’t a bad time...”

Suddenly the door burst opened and in came two guards and one white pony wearing a captain’s uniform. “Princess is there anything wrong?” Instantly his eyes went over to Sarah’s, “YOU!?”

Meowth smirked, “Well, well, well, if it isn’t the pretty boy, we beat up last time!”

“Ok,” Jason said reverting to normal,” All of you just calm down. They’re just here to talk to the princesses.”

Shining Armor snorted, “Yeah, right.” Shining stomped his hooves, “Guards seize them!”

“I order you all as a prince of Equestria to stand down,” Jason said, crossing his arms.

Everyone at the throne room stood silent, eventually Celestia was the one to speak up, “Prince?”

“Yes,” he said nodding his head. “I’m from a Equestria rather different from this one. In my world, my Celestia crowned me prince.”

Shining Armor snorted, “And how do we know you aren’t lying!” 

Jason rolled his eyes, reaching into his pocket. He lifted a black crown out of it, inlaid with several emeralds. “Catch,” he said, tossing it toward Celestia.

Celestia caught the crown with her magic and levitated it closer. “Guards, stand down.” The guards looked at Celestia shocked, but before any of them could talk, Celestia raised a hoof, “I want to hear them out.”

“Thank you,” Jason said with a sigh of relief, “Look, I don’t think they're bad people, I just think they're angry. I’m just here to make sure no one does anything they'll regret later.”

Celestia nodded, “Alright, but what exactly is it that you came here for, besides making sure that nopony tries to attack each other?” Celestia looked at Team Rocket sadly, “I’m sure they have told you that they would rather kill us more than anything.”

“They did,” Jason said. “I just want you all to talk this out. They said you killed one of Tomas’s pokemon.” he said, sitting on the floor. “Work it out.”

Celestia looked at Team Rocket wide eyed. Sarah was glaring straight at her, while Tomas just had a blank expression, Meowth however had an unusually large smirk, but before Celestia could talk, Tomas interrupted her, “I want to hear it from her, not from you.”

Celestia simply nodded and turned towards the two guards, “Go get my sister, and bring her here.”

After several minutes of waiting, Luna had appeared in a flash of light, “Sister we had received thy message.” Luna saw Team Rocket, and instantly got into a fighting position. “What are they doing here!?” Luna asked a bit fearfully.

“I want to hear your side of the story, the reason why you betrayed me- us! The reason why you betrayed Chimecho!”

Luna looked at Tomas, shocked and ashamed, “I never meant to betray you...” Luna whispered almost inaudibly.

Meowth smirked, “Sorry Princess, but i couldn’t hear you?” Meowth put a paw over his ear, “could you speak a little louder?”

“I said I never wanted to BETRAY YOU!” Luna yelled, “It wasn’t my fault, ever since the death of the phantom king, I’ve been hearing whispering, telling me lies! And telling me to do things! Sometimes I would have blackouts, and then wake up, with no memory of what I did!” Luna took a few calming breaths, “After the death of Quick Wind, I knew you were in a vulnerable state and they did too! And after my latest blackout I found out that my body was being possessed by a ghost type Pokemon, but it was too late and... and... the deed was already done, imprisoning you three into stone was one of the hardest things that have ever happened to me.” Celestia walked down and embraced her. “After your imprisonment, the voices became stronger, I no longer had blackouts, instead I embraced the power of the Phantom! It turned me into something… something I don’t want any part of anymore.”    

Team Rocket stood shocked at the outburst and stood there silent, trying to see if she was lying or if there were any traps, but there weren't. 

“Well hell... thats rather heavy...” Jason said, his eyes wide from Luna’s outburst. 

“You're lying! You have to be.” Meowth looked around wide eyed trying to see if it would spark any reaction, “Right?” Meowth looked around  desperate for any kind of approval that he was right, and that the princesses were lying.

Tomas looked at Meowth, “I- I don’t know.”

The room darkened and in a burst of flames came a rather upset looking Gengar, “Oof coursee shee’s lying, shee haass too be!” Gengar looked at Meowth, “You know this don’t youu?”

“I don’t think she is,” Jason said, getting up. He moved toward the Gengar, the Omnitrix chirping as it scanned him.” Nightmare Moon is something that nearly ruined Luna’s life.”

Alfred’s voice was no longer cheerful and dopey, it was now distorted and full of rage, “And it clearly didn’t work! It should have destroyed her life, so that the Rocket’s would bow to ME! IT SHOULD HAVE ALLOWED ME TO GAIN THE ROCKET’S TRUST SO THAT I COULD USE THEIR POWER TO TAKE THE THRONE!!!” Alfred instantly realising what slipped out of his mouth, shrunk, “Oh, no.”

“Are all villains really this stupid?” Jason asked rolling his eyes. “You should probably flee now dude.”

The Gengar realising his mistake teleported back to the Everfree, his distorted voice echoed through the walls, “I SWEAR TO YOU ALL, THIS WON’T BE THE LAST YOU SEE ME!! THE PHANTOM KING WILL RISE AGAIN!!!”

“Well.... I’m glad that worked out?” Jason asked, turning to them, rubbing his neck. “I think.”

Meowth looked at the spot Alfred was rather sadly, “Alfred tricked us?”

Wobbuffet nodded, “[I knew we couldn’t trust those ghost!]”

“Hey, at least you found out the truth,” Jason said, patting Meowth on the head.

“But- but…*sigh* I guess you're right.” Meowth sat down still trying to see if this was still a dream. 

Sarah turned towards Tomas, “Well, now what? We dedicated our lives to revenge, we never had a plan about what happens next,”

“If I may make a suggestion,” Jason spoke up, looking at the two. “Work with the ponies. This Phantom King is obviously a big deal, you’re all going to have to work together to stop him.”

Sarah let out a sad chuckle, “Just like old times, right Tomas? Tomas?” Sarah looked at her brother and saw that he was looking rather distraught, “Tomas are you alright?”

Tomas looked at his sister emotionlessly, “Huh... yeah... old times.”

Meowth jumped up towards him, “Yo, Tommy, you alright?”

“Yeah, just need to think for a while.” Tomas sat down next to Wobbuffet and Screwball, both trying to console him.

“Oh!” Jason said, reaching into his pocket, pulling out a folder. “Here, you might find this useful.”

Sarah grabbed the folder with interest, “What’s this for?”

“It’s by a guy named Auric. Apparently Discord can use it to shield your universe from outside forces. Of course you can still summon other Displaced but other than that, no one else can get in.”

“First we’re going to have to convince Celestia to let him roam free.”

“She probably already has it planned. In my world she had him reformed after the Crystal Empire reappeared, though your timeline may play out differently.”

Celestia walked towards them, “Timeline? I’m assuming that your Equestria is ahead of us?”

“It is. Though if you're wondering, yes, your student did get her wings.” Jason said with a wink.

Meowth looked at Celestia shocked, “Another Alicorn!? Wait are we talking about that purple nerdy unicorn, who blasted us off last time!?”

“Meowth for all you know, I could be talking about Sunset Shimmer.”

Meowth looked at Jason confused, “Who’s Sunset Shimmer?”

“She’s another student of Celestia’s, at least thats what Twilight told me.”

“Yes she was, until she disappeared into the mirror world years ago.” Celestia added a bit glumly. 

“Celestia, I want to warn you now, watch Cadence closely.”Jason said, looking into her eyes.

“Yes, of course.” Celestia soon became confused, “But why exactly?” 

“I’m not going to give spoilers but for the sake of Equestria you best watch her, especially around the wedding.”

“Wedding? She didn’t tell me about a wedding?”

“You’ll find out...” Jason said shaking his head. “I should be getting home, I have a wedding I have to set up myself.”

Tomas finally stood up, “Thank you Jason, and if there is a way we can repay you, don’t hesitate to ask.”

“You're welcome,” Jason said with a smile, “Hey, you guys have tokens yet?”

“Well no, not yet, why?”

“Well you already have mine, you guys should give me yours, that way we can stay in touch.”

Meowth jumped up in excitement, “Hey guys I got the perfect idea of a token,” Meowth took out a golden charm that looked exactly like the one on his head. “I always kept an extra one around in case mine broke.” Meowth then took out a red marker, and drew a bold red ‘R’ on it, “All right, here it is!”  

“Thats actually a really cool Token,” Jason said with a smirk, taking it from Meowth. “Almost forgot, may I have my crown back Celestia?”

Celestia levitated the crown back to Jason. “Thank you Jason, for bringing my friends back.”

“Glad to help, I didn’t want another world to suffer needlessly. If you guys need help against this Phantom King just hit me up ok?”

Tomas smiled, “Count on it.”

Screwball ran up to him teary eyed, “You’ll still be my brocle, right?”

“Of course, Screwball,” he said kneeling down to give her a hug.”You stay safe ok?” he asked, standing back up.

Screwball nodded, “I promise!”

“Alright Sarah, you summoned me, you gotta send me home. All ya gotta do is say ‘Jason, our contract is complete’”

Sarah smiled and nodded, “Jason our contract is complete.”

He smiled back as he vanished in a flash of light, the Unitrix core taking his place.
> Evil Exposed
> --------------------------------------------------------------------------

“So you’re telling me that you killed that boar,” Twilight pointed at Saehrimnir, who was eating a salad, “cooked him, and... urp... ate him, and somehow he’s still alive?”

“I can’t die, so I figure I can help provide others with what they need to survive,” Saehrimnir said with a snort. Next to him, Heidrun was enjoying her own meal of lettuce.

“Actually,” Gilda spoke up, holding a piece of meat in her talons, her beak covered in BBQ sauce, “I killed, gutted, skinned, and cooked him.”

Dash watched her mate eat with much less displeasure than Twilight did. “So... how does it taste?”

“This is the best meat I’ve ever had,” Gilda replied before returning to stuffing her beak.

Dash quickly stole a piece from Gilda’s plate, much to the griffon’s displeasure, and popped it into her mouth.

“R-rainbow Dash!” Twilight shouted, her eyes wide in horror. She lurched forward a bit, trying not to throw up.

“Hey, this is good,” Dash said, swallowing it. She smirked at Twilight, licking her lips.

“That was a living creature!” Twilight shrieked, a look of disgust on her muzzle.

“Yeah and he’s right there, alive and well,” Dash countered, a smug look on her face.

“This is quite delicious Gilda,” Chrysalis spoke up, levitating a piece into her mouth.

“Hey Gilda,” Jason said, looking up from his plate.

“What?”

“You wanna job?”

“What kinda job?”

“Royal cook.”

“Do I get to set my own hours?”

“Yup.”

“Deal.”

“That settles that,” Jason smirked, finishing up the last of his meal. “I’ve been meaning to get a cook for a while.” He grabbed a toothpick and started to clean his teeth.

“You just can’t hire someone like that!” Twilight scowled.

“Hey, this is my castle, I can hire who I please,” Jason scoffed, crossing his arms. “It’s not my fault you don’t have the guts to actually hire staff.”

“I can feed myself, thank you very much,” Twilight snorted, turning her head away from the meat eaters.

“You’re just afraid of responsibility,” Jason teased.

“So,” Chrysalis cut in, clearing her throat. “How is Nightmare Moon adapting?”

“From what Fluttershy has told me, they were scared of each other for a while, but they’re getting along well now!” Twilight said, rather glad for the change in topic. 

Chrysalis opened her mouth to ask another question when a dark portal opened up in front of Jason. A skeletal arm reached out, a letter clutched in its bony fingers.

“Oh hey, my grandma sent me a letter,” Jason said, taking it. Everyone else watched, transfixed, as the hand sank back into the darkness, the portal evaporating behind it. 

“What does it say?” Twilight asked, staring at the letter.

“Let me read it...”  Jason said, opening the letter and starting to do so. As he did so, his eyes widened at the last line, ‘Fenrir has been resurrected.’ He stared at it for a moment, barely registering the suddenly shaking castle. “Fuck...” he whispered, clutching the paper hard.





“This is bad, this is bad!” Twilight muttered to herself as the group moved into Ponyville, the tremors having only gotten worse. 

“Twilight, will you relax?” Jason said, patting her head. “We need to keep a level head about this.”

“Hey, um, guys...” Dash said, getting their attention. “Canterlot mountain is falling down.”

“What!?” Jason spun around, his eyes wide. True to Dash’s word, large sections of Canterlot mountain had started to fall away, though luckily, the city was still intact. “What we need to-” There was a flash and Jason turned around to see that Twilight had teleported away. “Dammit Twilight!” Jason said with a hiss, watching Spike rush over.

“Twilight!” Spike shouted, out of breath, “You... oh, um... I guess she already knew...”

“Ok,” Jason said, turning to face Dash, “You go get the others.” He moved to Chrysalis, “Chrissy, get the drones and make sure the townspeople stay safe.”

“What are you gonna do?” Dash asked, looking at Jason quizzically.

“I’m going hero,” Jason said, starting to run off. After he was outside of town he decided to act, “Omnitrix, Way Big.”





“We’d just finished repairing the castle too,” Luna said a sigh as she watched the staff evacuate.

“Focus, sister,” Celestia scowled, bringing Luna’s attention back to the matter at hand. The two alicorns were hovering next to the mountain, trying to hold it up with their magic. “Hopefully Twilight comes soon, this is starting to get heavy.”

There was a flash and Twilight popped into existence on Celestia’s balcony. “Celestia?” she asked, looking around.

“Hail, young Twilight!” Luna called, gesturing for the younger alicorn to join them. Twilight took wing, fluttering over to them. “We would appreciate some help holding up the mountain.”

“Oh, right,” Twilight said, lighting her horn and adding her magic to the spell, taking some of the weight from Luna and Celestia.

“Good, now we just have to wait for Cadance,” Celestia said with a strained smile. As if to make her a liar, the ground shook again. A very large creature emerged from the broken mountain, its steps shaking the ground.

“You just had to tempt fate, sister,” Luna said, shooting Celestia a glare. A loud howl grabbed their attention and they turned to the creature. It was massive, at least half as large as the mountain, and it resembled a wolf, or at least the corpse of one. It glared up at them, one eye glossed over with white film and the other an empty socket.

It snarled, moving to snap at them when Way Big rushed in, knocking the creature away with a swift kick to the side. 

“Looks like I got here just in time,” Jason said, cracking his neck. He looked Fenrir over, a frown forming on his face. “Time to go ultimate.” Turning the Omnitrix, he grew in size as he became Ultimate Way Big.

Fenrir got to his paws, growling at the massive alien. It rushed forward, dodging a punch from Jason, and clamped its jaws around his ankle. 

“Gah! Son of a bitch!” Jason hissed, stumbling backwards. He steadied himself before bringing his foot down on Fenrir’s head again and again and again until a loud crack was heard and part of Fenrir’s scalp, including his right ear, sloshed off his skull. The wolf released its grip, pulling back and shaking its head. “Oh, that’s just disgusting...” he said, gagging while trying to get the rotting flesh off his foot.

“Pay attention Jason!” Celestia snapped, causing him look up. Fenrir had charged at him, snarling, unfazed by his injuries. 

Jason crossed his arms and fired a laser at the wolf, sending it tumbling away... right into the already weakened mountain, causing it to shake even more.

“It would be nice if you didn’t do that!” Twilight snapped, the three alicorns already struggling to hold it up.

“Sorry,” Jason said, this time keeping his eyes on his opponent. Fenrir lunged at him, only to be greeted with a punch in the face. Taking the chance, Jason threw several energy disks at the beast - one sliced off his other ear, another cut through his tail. The wolf just growled, ignoring the damage. “Oh come on,” Jason said, quickly ducking as Fenrir lunged again. He sailed over Jason’s head, only to kick his hind legs into the giant’s back, sending him sprawling to the ground.

Fenrir didn’t let up, pouncing on him and snapping at his face. Jason howled in pain as the wolf's jaws dug into his neck, hot blood pouring down his back. He grabbed a large piece of the mountain and smashed it into the wolf’s head until it released its grip. He rolled over, grabbed the wolf, and held it in a headlock. 

“Sorry about this uncle but you know... zombie...” Jason grunted as the wolf thrashed, clamping its jaws into his forearm, shaking its head to maximize the damage. “Oh fuck off!” he shouted. Grabbing a large jagged chunk of rock from the rubble, he stabbed it into Fenrir’s stomach. With a quick motion, he disemboweled the beast, gagging a little as his rotting organs spilled out. Despite this, he refused to let go of Jason’s arm, only clamping his jaws down harder. “That did not go as intended...” Jason wheezed out, shaking his head. In a desperate move, he wrapped an arm around the wolf’s neck and pulled. There was resistance for a few moments before a wicked snap filled the air and Fenrir stopped moving, his jaws loosening. With a sigh of relief, Jason released his grip, the great beast falling away from him, its neck snapped. After a moment, a cloud of dark energy exploded from Fenrir, making Jason cover his eyes. “The hell?” he asked weakly as he reverted to his normal form.

“You did well Corypheus,” a rumbling voice said, startling the injured Jotun. He turned toward Fenrir, noticing a large glowing ball had appeared inside of his empty eye socket.

“You...” Jason panted, trying to gather enough strength to cast a cure spell.

“Hel has not taken me back just yet, which allows us to talk for a moment,” Fenrir stated. “You fought well Corypheus, though you were fighting a mere shell. If you were truly facing me, ‘twould not have been so easy.”

“Thanks... I guess...” Jason said, while casting a cure spell on himself. His wounds started to close and he sighed in relief as the pain died down.

“Of course, you live up to our legacy well, even if the company you keep have no appreciation of battle,” Fenrir scoffed and Jason got the feeling he was rolling his eyes. 

“I’m glad I could live up to them,” Jason said giving a smile. 

“I have a task for you,” Fenrir said, to which Jason nodded. “Take my teeth, all of them,” he started, “Then you will travel to Midgard and collect the scales of my brother Jörmungandr. Finally, you shall travel to Nidavellir and have them forge you armor befitting someone of your stature.”

“How in the hell do you expect me to do that?” Jason asked, looking at him like he was crazy. “I have no idea where the hell Bifrost even is!”

“Heh,” Fenrir chuckled, “It’s closer than you think... farewell Corypheus, ‘til we meet again.” The light vanished from his eye socket, signaling his departure.

“Hey Jay!” Rainbow Dash exclaimed as she landed next to him, “You ok?” she asked, a look of worry plastered on her muzzle.

“Yeah, I’m good Dash,” he said. Getting to his feet, he cast another cure spell. “Though... I really need a nap.”

“Faust damn you! You stupid hairless ape!” a stallion’s voice broke in. They both whirled around to see a furious looking Animo, a broken dagger in his magical grasp. 

“You did this?” Jason asked with a glare, moving closer to Animo.

“You will not have me this day, cretin!” Animo snarled, pumping magic into the dagger to activate it. A bolt of lightning shot out behind him, a portal ripping open in the air to reveal the same man he had talked to before. His hood was down though, and his face of surprise nearly mirrored Jason’s.

Don shook off his surprise before growling at Animo. “Didn’t I say I wasn’t revealing myself, you imbecile?!”

“No plan survives contact with the enemy, but surely you know that,” Animo retorted, taking the chance to jump through the portal.

“The hell are you doing here?” Jason asked, giving Don a glare. “You helped him?” he asked, his eyes flashing red.

Don’s face scrunched up a bit in thought. “So there’s that dark side I heard so much about. And yes, I did help him. Quite a nice bit of work with that giant wolf if I do say so myself.” 

“You disrespected my Uncle’s remains,” he stated simply, his eyes now fully red. The wind started to pick up, frost building up around him. “Why?”

“Because you are a threat,” Don stated flatly. “I won’t take the chance you allow your conscience to rule your judgement.” He waved his hand and the portal began to close. “I run for now, but the next time you see me it will be war.”

Jason was quiet for a moment before letting out a scream of rage. He held out his arm, a colorful distortion forming in his hand. “Ultima,” he whispered, firing it into the portal just as it closed. He stared at the spot it used to be, a full on blizzard starting to form around him. 

“Jay!” Dash said, grabbing his shoulders, giving him a shake, “Calm the heck down!”

“I’m... ok... I’m ok...” Jason said, taking a few breaths as the blizzard died down. “Next time I see that guy, I’m going to kill him.”

“Please do try to refrain from murder,” Celestia said, as she and the other alicorns, including Cadance, landed next to them. “We’ve managed to stabilize the mountain thanks to Twilight’s exceptional skill with magic.” The lavender alicorn blushed a little. “Perhaps Hodgepodge could help?”

“No,” Jason said, giving his Omnitrix a glare. “Its do or die time people. Omnitrix, Alien X.”





“Ah, we were wondering when you’d join us,” Hodgepodge said with a smile, waving Jason over. He and Hughes were sitting at a table in a middle of a void, playing poker.

“It’s about damn time,” Hughes said with a snort, laying his cards on the table. 

“I think you both know why I’m here,” Jason said, taking a seat. 

“Yes, you want to fix Canterlot mountain,” Hughes observed, leaning back in his chair.

“I’m sold!” Hodgepodge cried, throwing his arms up into the air, causing pyrotechnics to explode behind him.

“That was quick,” Jason said with a blink.

“Well... maybe not fix the mountain as such... more... make it stand as it is,” Hodgepodge said, giving Jason a smile.

“You're not gonna budge on that are you...?”

“Nope.”

“How about you?” Jason asked, looking at Hughes. “Please tell me you're not gonna screw over the ponies?”

“Haven’t done anything for me lately.”

“Ugh. Fine,” Jason sighed. “Hodgepodge... I second your motion...”

“Yay!”





“Um... is he alright?” Cadance asked, looking at Jason, in the form of a tall black humanoid creature with tiny white spots all over his body, giving him the appearance of the night sky. He hadn’t moved since he had transformed.

“I’m not sure,” Twilight said, moving closer. “I haven’t seen this form before,”

“Motion carried,” Jason suddenly spoke, raising his arms up. Strange waves of energy moved from his hands towards the damaged mountain. It glowed for a moment before returning to normal. “Motion carried,” he spoke again, this time using his powers to remove Fenrir’s teeth and place them in a nearby pile, then return his remains to his grave, re-sealing it with some rubble. After a moment he reverted to normal, looking very tired.

“Jason,” Celestia started, only for him to cut her off with a raised hand. 

“Please, later, right now I just want to take a nap,” he said, shaking his head. 

“Alright, but after you wake up you are going to explain what happened and how,” Celestia said, the six of them making their way back to civilization. 
> Building Bridges
> --------------------------------------------------------------------------

“So this ‘Alien X’ allows you to bend the very fabric of reality?” Celestia asked. Despite her calm tone, her sharp gaze was boring holes into Jason’s head.

“Um... yeah.” Jason coughed into his tea. He had noticed that, whenever some shit happened, Celestia always debriefed those involved with tea. It was weird. “It’s not that simple though.”

“How is it not?” Luna asked, raising her eyebrow.

“Look, in order to use Alien X I have to get the other personalities to agree with me,” Jason explained, sipping his tea. 

“Are you saying you're hearing voices Jason?” 

“Um... sorta... just two. A guy named Hughes and Hodgepodge.”

“Hodgepodge is a separate personality?” Celestia asked in surprise, Luna mirroring her reaction. 

“You couldn’t tell?” Jason asked, raising an eyebrow. “He’s more or less the more chaotic parts of my personality. Hughes is the same but he more represents the asshole parts of my nature.”

“I see...” Celestia said, rolling her eyes at his crude language. “Well I suppose we should accept that Canterlot won’t collapse?”

“Oh yeah, god magic is holding this place up,” Jason confirmed, nodding his head. 

“Well that’s good to know,” Luna said, letting out a sigh. “Now that that is settled, let us discuss the settlers.”

“What settlers?” Jason asked, looking confused.

“After your... execution of the Forever King and your recent slaying of, what did you call him? Fenrir? Anyway, since Canterlot is in a rather sorry state, there are many nobles that wish to rebuild the village around the Castle of the Two Sisters,” Celestia said, seeming to enjoy his bewilderment.

“Castle of the – what the hell!?” he demanded, clutching his tea cup, the liquid starting to freeze, “I have no idea how to rule people!” he shouted, a shrieking wind kicking up in the room.

“Jason!” Celestia quickly wrapped a wing around the man, trying to calm him. “You need to relax, you’re causing a blizzard,” she said, giving him a gentle nuzzle. Her actions had their intended effect, causing the jotun to relax. As he did, the wind died down, though there was a layer of frost around the room. 

“Ok... I’m good,” Jason said letting out a long sigh, looking rather tired.

“Those powers, are they some form of magic you learned?” Luna asked, having shielded herself from the outburst.

“No...”Jason said shaking his head, “It’s all me. I’m a jotun remember? They’re mostly associated with ice and wind. Coming here and learning to use magic must have brought it up to the surface.”

“I see,” Celestia said. Lighting her horn, she heated the rooms slightly to evaporate the frost. “Jason, I highly suggest you get training for these powers, as they appear to be tied to your emotions. If you were to enter your ‘berserker’ rage as you call it, you could cause a massive blizzard.”

“Yeah, yer right, Celestia...” He nodded in agreement, relaxing in his chair. 

“I’ll send for Cadance. If anypony can help you control your abilities, it will be her.” Celestia said, already scribbling away on a scroll. A second later she ignited it with magical fire, sending its ashes out of the window.

“Sister, are you sure that’s such a good idea?” Luna asked, a look of concern on her muzzle, “I can’t imagine that Chrysalis and Cadance will get along.”

“I think Chrysalis will be on her best behavior if it means Jason will get the help he needs.” They both looked at the jotun, who had since fallen asleep. Celestia smiled maternally, covering him with a quilt.

“So, sister,” Luna started, smiling as well, “Tell us, how did your date with Slash go?” 

“Oh it went swimmingly,” Celestia said, taking on a dreamy look, “Sadly, his injuries have excluded him from the guard permanently, I am just thankful that they are not severe enough to cripple him.”

“That is truly good to hear...” Luna said, letting out a sigh, “I hope it stays happy for you...”

“Luna you have to let it go, what happened to them isn’t your fault.” Celestia moved over to her sister, pulling her into a hug.

“How isn’t it? I should have seen what was happening to Sombra... and now I’ll never be able to save him,” Luna started, tears starting to flow down her muzzle. “And then Grey... none should  see their mother like that.” She pulled away, levitating Jason onto her back. “I’ll take him home... I need some air,” she said, teleporting away before Celestia could say anything. She reappeared in front of the hive, the guards at the gates greeting her.

“Hail your Majesty,” one said saluting. Luna was still unsure of the changelings that made up the Valor guard, mostly due to the fact that she could not judge how well they were trained, though some had to have infiltrated the Solar or Lunar guard at one time or another.

“See to it that Jason is taken to his room,” she said, gesturing for them to take him off her back. 

“Of course ma’am,” the guard spoke as it and its sibling lifted Jason into their magic. They went inside, another pair of guards emerging to take their place.

She turned away from them, staring up at the moon. “Grey Ghost... where are you?” she asked, before letting out a sigh. A moment later she blinked out of existence, returning to the castle. 





“So...” Jason started, twiddling his thumbs a little. Currently, he was sitting in the meeting room with Cadance and Chrysalis. They had been sitting there for several minutes of awkward silence and it was too much for Jason.

Much to their credit, neither mare looked at the other, their eyes roaming around the room.

“You know what, I’m going to go do something productive, you two work this out and get back to me later.” He got up, both mares locking their eyes on him. “No,” he said, holding his hand up, “You two work it out! I mean it!” He left the room, passing Cadance’s guard on his way out. ‘What was his name? Flash something? Eh, doesn’t matter.’ Jason thought to himself.

“Hey, Speed!” Jason called out to a passing guard. ‘Speed’ saluted, waiting for orders. “I want you to go into town and tell the Elements that I would like to see them.”

“Yes sir!” Speed said before flittering down the hall. Jason watched him go for a moment before heading towards the kitchen. There he found Gilda, who was in the middle of gutting Saehrimnir.

“Bit early for that ain’t it?” he took a seat next to her, watching her work.

“Hey, he came to me telling me to ice him because of how awkward your marefriend and the pretty pony princess were making things,” Gilda said, not really caring about staying clean as she emptied the boar’s body cavity.

“That doesn’t surprise me,” Jason said, scooting back a little to avoid getting splattered with viscera, “I just hope they can work it all out...”

***
Chrysalis couldn’t help but avoid Cadance’s gaze, the tension in the air giving her a headache. 

“Look,” Cadance said suddenly, getting Chrysalis’ attention, “Just tell me what you and Shiny did um... in bed,” Cadance pleaded, though the empress just stared at her. “Please Chrysalis, it’s been bothering me ever since the wedding.”

Chrysalis stared at her a little longer before she fell out of her chair, laughing herself hoarse.

“This isn’t a laughing matter Chrysalis!” Cadance shouted at her. “I want to know what disgusting sex acts you were making my husband perform while you were mind raping him!!”

“Oh, Cadance,” Chrysalis coughed out, getting back into her seat, “I haven’t laughed that hard in a long while,” she said, taking a deep breath, “To answer your question, we didn’t do anything. I didn’t actually need to mind control him that much to drain him of his love.”

“Then why did you?” Cadance asked, narrowing her eyes.

“To shut him up,” Chrysalis said, adjusting her wings.

“What?” Cadance asked, rather surprised by that answer.

“I seriously have no idea how you put up with him,” Chrysalis started, “I’ve never really cared about what you ponies call pop culture and all he would talk about was nerd crap.” She rolled her eyes. “Not a day went by without him bitching about some Power Ponies character or how they were releasing some new collectable figure. It got so bad that I just snapped and put him under the deepest mind control that I could.” She looked Cadance in the eyes. “Do you have any idea what he wanted to do for his bachelor party?”

Cadance just shook her head dumbly.

“He and his damnable nerd friends were going to spend the last day of his bachelorhood playing Oubliettes and Ogres!” She slammed her hooves onto the table, seething. “I mean who does that!? Sure we play it around here but it doesn’t consume our lives to the point where we’d waste the last unwed day of our lives playing the damn game!” She panted a little, glaring down at the table, which had been dented by her hooves.

“It probably helps that I’m as big a nerd as he is...” Cadance said with a sheepish laugh, drawing Chrysalis’ ire. She ignored it and cleared her throat. “I have to say, Chrysalis... I’m rather curious as to what you and Jason do in bed...” she admitted with a blush. 

“Really? Why would you want to know?” Chrysalis asked, composing herself.

“Well I am the Princess of Love after all, it’s my duty to make sure a relationship stays healthy.”

“I’m not going to answer that,” Chrysalis said, keeping a neutral face, “Instead, I’m going to help you answer it yourself. Now tell me, what do changelings do?”

“Um... shapeshift?”

“Yes, that’s good,” she said with a nod. “And what does the Omnitrix let Jason do?”

“Shapeshift?”

“Good, good,” she said nodding, “Now, what do you think two shapeshifters do in bed?”

Cadance didn’t answer, but her eyes widened slightly as her pink fur darkened into a bright red.

“Also remember that Jason has a changeling form in the Omnitrix. Now multiply that by practically infinite combinations,” she said with a smirk, rather enjoying the princess’s blush.

“O-oh my...” Cadance muttered out, trying to keep her wings under control.

“Hey, you asked the question,” Chrysalis smirked, loving this.

“Are you, um...?” Cadance asked, unable to finish the sentence.

“If you’re asking if I’m going to start laying eggs soon, the answer is no, we agreed we would wait until the wedding, which is actually during mating season,” Chrysalis explained, buzzing her wings. “I really can’t wait, larva are so adorable.”

“What do baby changelings look like?” Cadance asked, regaining enough of her composure to actually talk.

“Like foals really, except squishier. Their carapaces haven’t hardened yet so they are very soft. I usually go down to the nursery and tell them stories.”

“Stories?” Cadance asked, tilting her head. 

“Well of course, I am their mother, I would be remiss if I didn’t care for them,” Chrysalis said, looking rather offended.

“Hey, I didn’t mean anything by it,” Cadance said, holding her arms up, “It’s just after the wedding, its hard to imagine you reading to children.”

“We do a lot of things you ponies couldn’t imagine,” Chrysalis said, looking away from her. 

Cadance just sighed, looking at the empress. She had come here expecting to still hate Chrysalis, but now that they were talking, she found it hard to actually hate the mare. Heck, if this kept up, they might even end up as friends. At that Cadance smiled to herself, ‘One step at a time Cadie, one step at a time.’





“So, why did you drag us out here?” Dash asked, finding it endlessly fascinating that she could now tap her talons on the table.

“Because we need to find Bifrost,” Jason said simply, gesturing to the map in front of them. It hadn’t been much help, only showing a picture of Yggdrasil with each realm represented with a orb to show their location around the world tree.

“Why do we need to find it, dear?” Rarity asked, looking at the map. Despite being ungodly old, it was still as bright and vibrant as it was the day it was made.

“Because Bifrost will allow us to travel across the realms,” Jason said, staring down at the map. “It’s completely unhelpful though, all it does is show the realms’ positions on Yggdrasil.”

“Have you tried magic?” Pinkie asked, looking at the map quizzically.

“What?” Jason asked, looking at her blankly.

“Well it’s a magic map right? So did ya try using magic on it yet?” she asked, giving him a curious look.

“Now I feel like an idiot,” Jason said with a sigh. He put a hand on the map, sending a pulse of magic into it. The map itself glowed, its image shifting. Gone was the image of Yggdrasil, replaced with a map of Equestria.

“Thats amazing!” Twilight gasped out, her eyes sparkling slightly in awe.

“Calm down Twi, you can geek out over it later,” Jason said, looking down at the map, “Show me Bifrost,” he ordered, sending it another pulse of magic. It glowed again, and the image zoomed in on the very castle they were all standing in. A very strange tree was highlighted near the castle, a rainbow encircling it. “Ok, what the hell is that?”

“Hey Twi, isn’t that the Tree of Harmony?” Applejack asked, giving the image a good hard look.

“I think you're right, Applejack,” Twilight said, tapping her muzzle with a hoof, “Why would it show up as this ‘Bifrost’?”

“Only one way to find out,” Jason said as he got up, taking the map with him, “Let’s get going girls, we have a rainbow bridge to find.” They shared a look before moving out of their seats, following him. 

They made their way out of the castle, crossing the drawbridge with haste.

“What exactly is this Bifrost, Jason?” Rarity asked, making sure not to damage her hooves or step in anything as they moved into the forest.

“Bifrost is the rainbow bridge that connects Asgard, where we are, to Earth, or Midgard, the world I came here from,” he explained, following the map. 

“Wait, rainbow bridge?” Dash asked, fluttering over to him, looking at the map.

“Yup, a literal rainbow bridge that crosses realms,” Jason confirmed as he looked up from the map to make sure he was going the right way.

There he saw a felled tree with a curious object lodged in it. From a cursory observation of the large crater in the tree’s trunk, the dark blue, almost black object had smashed into the tree with sufficient velocity to knock it over. Upon closer inspection, it appeared to be a leaf-shaped, razor sharp scale.

“Huh, weird,” Jason said, shrugging a little. He ignored the object, moving deeper into the forest. After a few moments he stopped when they came to a small ravine, which led to a cave. 

“This is the place, stairs are over there,” Twilight said before letting out a gasp as Jason jumped in. She rushed down said stairs, only to find the jotun at the bottom, seemingly completely uninjured.

“That would have messed up a human...” Jason said, looking up at where he had been. He said nothing more and headed into the cave. The others followed after him, with Dash starting to make an uncomfortable face.

“Um... Twi... Jay... my legs feel weird,” Dash uttered, looking down at her prosthetic limbs and rubbing them together a bit.

“It’s probably just the power crystals interacting with the Tree’s harmonious magic, nothing to worry about, Dash,” Twilight assured, giving her a smile.

“Thanks, Twi...” Dash said, though she wasn’t sure she herself believed that.

“If it makes you feel better Dash... I can feel it too,” Jason said as he came to a stop, looking up at the tree. It was crystal in nature, being vaguely star shaped. At the end of each of its five main branches was a differently colored and shaped gem, matching the Elements’ cutie marks, and at the center of the tree was a larger, purple gem that resembled Twilight’s cutie mark. Further down the trunk were Celestia and Luna’s cutie marks, seemingly engraved directly into the surface.

“It’s still so marvelous to look at,” Rarity said with a sigh, looking up at the tree dreamily.

“Well the map says Bifrost should be here...” Jason said with a sigh and looked around. He approached the tree, putting a hand on it. “Well, this was a bust...” he said, walking away, only to notice Dash walking up to it, her eyes locked on the tree.

It suddenly glowed, the gems inside of it beginning to shine. The gems flashed brightly and released differently-colored beams of energy, which coalesced into a rainbow and started to swirl around Dash.

“Twilight,” Jason said in an unsure tone, “Is it supposed to do this?”

“I don’t know!” the alicorn screamed, her eyes wide with panic, “This has never happened before!” They all watched in a mix of awe and fear as the energy flowed into Dash, causing her to glow. After a few moments it subsided, leaving Dash standing there, panting heavily.

“Oh my, are you alright Rainbow?” Fluttershy asked, the first of the group to check on their friend.

“Yeah I’m ok... I just feel... faster...” Dash said, spreading her wings and giving them a flap. They had grown much larger, almost like the princesses’. She tilted her head slightly and twisted it around, her eyes widening at the sight of her new wings.

“I think I know what’s going on,” Jason said, getting their attention, “During Ragnarok, the fire giant Surt lit the Bifrost on fire. I imagine its energy escaped and became the Tree. I think it just gave some of its power to Dash,” he said, taking out the map. Sure enough, the image of the tree had been replaced by a silhouette of Rainbow Dash.

“That’s amazing!” Twilight shouted, her gaze turning to the tree.

“So... does this mean I can travel between worlds?” Dash asked, finding that it now took much less effort to get airborne.

“We’ll test that out later, at the moment we should get back to the castle before Chrissy and Cadance kill each other,” Jason said, rolling up the map and storing it in his cube. ‘Heh,’ Jason thought as he left the cave, ‘Fenrir was right, Bifrost was closer than I thought.’
> Plan 10 From The Omniverse
> --------------------------------------------------------------------------

The sight before the returning group was rather shocking. Chrysalis and Cadance were sitting at the table, animatedly talking about whatever was on their minds.

“Oh, there you are!” Chrysalis said with a smile, looking up from their conversation, “We were wondering when you’d be back.”

“We uh... had some stuff to do,” Jason said, taking a seat next to her. He put his arm around her, gesturing for the others to sit down as well. “I expected you two to be clawing each others eyes out by now,” he joked with a grin.

“Well, to be honest, I thought the same thing, but we started talking and worked out our differences,” Cadance said with a smile.

“What did ya’ll talk about?” Applejack asked, tilting her head to the side.

“Mostly about how annoying Shining Armor is,” Chrysalis said, giving Jason a nuzzle, “That stallion is more trouble than he’s worth.”

Twilight opened her mouth to protest but stopped, tapping her hoof to her muzzle in thought.  “Well... Shiny can get a little overzealous about his hobbies...” she admitted, nodding at them.

“Must run in the family,” Jason teased, causing everyone to laugh.

“Hey!” Twilight protested, not liking that the joke had suddenly swung her way.

“Come on Twi, ya have to admit, ya can get a little crazy with yer hobbies sometimes,” Applejack said with a laugh, shaking her head. The others gave their own affirmations, making Twilight look away with a huff.

“I’m not that bad...” she pouted, crossing her eyes.

“Oh relax Twi, we all have our flaws. Except me of course,” Dash said with a smug look on her face. 

“Yo,” Gilda called from the doorway. “Lunch is cooked. You dweebs staying to eat?”

“You’re all more than welcome,” Jason said with a smile, getting up.

“I suppose I could get a bite to eat before heading back,” Rarity said getting to her hooves. She watched as everyone filed out of the room, moving up rather gingerly to Chrysalis and Jason. 

“Something up Rarity?” Jason asked, looking down at her.

“Oh um... well...” she stuttered a bit, a light blush coming to her cheeks. Chrysalis just raised her eyebrow, looking down at the unicorn. “I-It’s nothing dear.” She gave them a smile before picking up speed to join the others.

“That was... odd...” Jason said, scratching his head, “What do you think that was about?”

“Oh I have an idea, though let’s just let her figure it out,” Chrysalis said, shaking her head. She said nothing more, keeping her eyes on Rarity.

“If you say so,” he said, putting his hands into his pockets. By Yggdrasil ponies were weird.





“It’s nice to get away once in a while, you know?” Jason asked the others, the group currently sitting on a train bound for Rainbow Falls. Zed was laying beside him, her head resting in his lap.

“In all honesty Jay, ah have no idea how ya can stay in that place, gives me the heebie jeebies,” Applejack said with a shudder, “It just don’t look right.”

“Eh... ya get used to it,” Jason said with a shrug, petting Zed’s head, causing the Baskurr to purr happily. “It’s not really that bad, it’s actually rather warm. Anyway, what are you guys planning to pick up?”

“I’m going to trade my mint condition Power Ponies comic for another!” Spike said with a grin, carefully showing off said comic. 

“Ah’m goin’ to check out the vintage stalls!” Applejack said with a smile, gesturing to her small cart full of junk. “I’ve been saving up for this all year!”

“I’m uh... looking for a gift. Yes, a gift!” Rarity said with a chuckle, looking around rather nervously. 

“I’m just going to trade off some extra books from the library,” Twilight said, motioning to the small stack of books next to her.

“I’m getting me that first edition Daring Do and the Sapphire Statue book! It’s the only one in Equestria and its the only one I need to complete my first edition collection!” Dash smirked, flaring her wings out. 

“Oh um... I’m going to trade my bear whistle for a bird call.” Fluttershy pulled the whistle from under her wing, smiling a little.

“What about ya’ll? Whatcha looking for Jay?”

“I’m going to trade off the last of my money,” Jason said, pulling out his wallet. “I got like what....” he opened it, pulling out his bills. “I got... three hundreds... two fifties... a couple of twenties and a crap ton of ones.”

“What in the hay is that stuff?” Dash asked, leaning in for a closer look, “You call that money?”

“Yeah, it’s money,” Jason said, rolling his eyes, “Unlike Equestria, my world doesn’t have enough gold to use it as our currency, so we print bills.”

“Who would even trade you for that stuff anyway?”

“Look at it this way. I’m an alien here, if you could, wouldn’t you want something from another world?” Jason asked, replacing the money into his pocket.

“He’s got a point...” Twilight said with a nod.

“Of course I’m right,” Jason said with a smirk, “Though, as for what I plan to trade for? I was just going to get whatever caught my eye,” he said, patting Zed’s head. She leaned up and licked his face happily.

“I think we’re here!” Pinkie shouted, bounding over to the exit as the train came to a stop. 

“Come on, girl,” Jason said, getting up. Zed hopped down from the bench, giving herself a shake. She followed after Jason, looking around. They walked off the platform, with Twilight leading the way. Jason looked on in wonder as they passed some rainbow waterfalls. They continued through a small tunnel, and got bombarded with loud cheers once they reached the other side. All the ponies had gathered up, cheering for Twilight, they even had a banner. “Huh... I guess I have that to look forward to next year. Welp, we’re off everyone, see ya’ll later,” Jason said as he and Zed walked off, the crowd already dispersing.

Jason hummed to himself, passing by various ponies. “You’re Prince Jason, right?” a small voice called out to him. He turned around, spotting a little grey pegasus filly rushing over to him.

“Yup, that would be me alright,” he said with a smile, “What can I do ya for?”

She smiled, producing a photo of him, along with a red quill. 

“You know,” he said, taking them from her and signing the picture, “I never actually thought I’d be doing this.” He smiled and gave back the objects. She gasped with joy, giving him a smile before rushing off.  He chuckled a little, moving deeper into the fair.  He spotted a stall selling what looked like action figures based off his forms. He looked at the operator, who was a sparkling translucent yellow pony. He did a double take before walking up to her. 

“Oh my! Prince Jason!” she said, giving a quick bow. 

“There’s no need for that,” he said, giving her a smile. “I was just interested in your wares,” he said, looking them over. He picked up an NRG action figure, turning it about in his hands, “Did you make these yourself? They have great craftsmanship.” 

“Oh yes, I did! I find all of your transformations fascinating!” she said before her eyes widened, “You're not mad are you?”

“Of course not, in fact, I was hoping to trade you for the whole set!” he said with a smile. 

“The whole set? Oh my, what um, what do you have to trade?” she asked, looking at him uncertainly. 

“Well, how about I let you take some photos of forms I haven’t used yet?” he asked, showing off the Omnitrix. 

“Deal!” she said without hesitation, quickly setting up a camera, “Ready when you are, your Majesty!”

“You really don’t have to call me that,” he told her again. Popping up the dial of the Omnitrix, he browsed through the selection. “Ah, here we go.” He pressed down on the dial, sinking it back into the watch. With the customary bright flash, he shifted into a slender, reptilian creature. He was light purple mottled with darker purple spots, with a black spike sticking out of the back his head, and three eyes; one red, one green and one blue. “This is ChamAlien,” he said as he posed to let her take a few pictures. He went through several more forms, a mix of default Omnitrix forms and the ones he had picked up from Equestria. The Omnitrix timed out, reverting him to normal. “That enough?” he asked, smiling at her.

“Oh yes, of course!” she said with a grateful nod, “As promised, you may take the whole set!”

“Thank you,” he said with a smile, placing them all into his cube. As he turned to go, he paused and turned back. “Actually there is one more thing.”

“What is it?” she asked, tilting her head.

“Mind if I get a scan of you?” he asked, holding up the Omnitrix.

“M-me?” she asked, her eyes going wide.

“Of course, I don’t have a scan of your species yet and you're the first I’ve met so, what do you say?”

“Yes!” she shouted, jumping up and down in place. She stopped after a few moments, clearing her throat. “I uh... would be honored.”

Jason stepped closer, causing the Omnitrix to beep. “Uncatalogued DNA detected,” it chirped, passing a yellow light over the mare before  it resumed its normal color.

“Thanks,” Jason said, smiling at her. 

“No, thank you!” she said, looking up at him. “Oh, before you leave may I um... see your new form?” she asked, giving him the classic puppy dog eyes.

“Of course,” he said with a smile, dialing up the form and shifting into it. His coat was a deep shimmery blue, while his mane and tail were white, with various shades of blue running through it.

“Whoa,” she said, looking him over, “What are you going to name this one?”

“Lapis. Lapis Lazuli,”  Jason said with a smile. “Well, thank you.” He continued to smile, waving as he turned to leave.

“Be safe!” she called out, waving in return.

Jason spent the next few hours walking around, picking up various objects as gifts and such. He even managed to pick up a Orthros scan for Zed’s Nemetrix. At various points he saw Fluttershy and Dash darting back and forth, carrying different items, at one point he swore he even saw them with that Orthros.

“So, did everyone get what they wanted?” Jason asked, walking up to the girls.

“I did!” Spike said with a smile, presenting his new comic. 

Applejack opened her mouth to talk, only for a loud boom to fill the air. Everyone still present looked up, watching as a rift was torn open in the sky. Out of it came a very large silver construct, which hovered in the sky. Smaller greenish constructs flew out of it, landing throughout the town. Short bipedal creatures emerged from them, wearing black armor and carrying strange silver objects.

“Um... what the hay are those?” Dash asked, pointing to one, her eyes wide.

“Oh shit,” Jason said, shaking his head. “Ok girls, I need you to get the citizens out of here,” he ordered, cracking his neck.

“Jason? Do you know what’s going on?” Twilight asked nervously as the figures got closer.

“Yeah, we’re being invaded,” he replied, drawing his sword. Beside him, Zed growled, sharing her master’s anger. A moment later, the silver construct projected the image of a fat greenish creature into the sky above the town. Its skin was reminiscent of a frog’s, its eyes red.

“Greetings, citizens of  whatever this backwater planet is called. I am commander Porunga of the glorious Incursean empire. Our esteemed leader Attea has decided to add your planet to our empire. Surrender now and none of you will be harmed.”

“Fuck off!” Jason shouted up to Porunga, giving him the finger. “Ok, he’s going to be pissed off so... yeah girls, get the citizens out of here, Zed and I got this,” Jason said, running off before any of them could protest. “Zed, Slamworm,” he commanded, causing the Baskurr to shift into a very large orange worm creature. She let out a screech before burrowing into the ground. The Incurseans opened fire on him, though most of their fire was absorbed into Laevateinn. 

Zed erupted out of the ground, knocking over a few stalls and scattering a group of Incurseans.  She dove back under before they could retaliate, striking out several more times against them.

“Stupid fucking frogs!” Jason seethed, using a repulsion glyph to take out an oncoming group. A few snuck up behind him, preparing to take him out. Jason spun around, only to find the Incurseans out cold, a grinning turquoise pegasus with a striped orange and gold mane hovering there. 

“Looks like you could use some help,” she said, a cocky smirk on her face.

“Just don’t get yourself killed,” he said with a chuckle.

“Heh, I’m way too fast for these clowns,” she boasted. Darting off, she knocked a few more soldiers off their feet. 

“Y’know, might as well test this out,” Jason said, closing his eyes. He opened them after a second, though now they were pure red. He slammed a fist into the ground, sending out a shockwave of ice, which froze a few of them solid. “Oh, this going to be fun,” he said with a grin.

Meanwhile, the girls were doing their best to keep the citizens safe. Dash knocked a soldier away from a foal, panting a little, “There’s so many of them...” 

“It’s like the wedding all over again!” Applejack shouted, bucking an Incursean in the stomach. 

“This isn’t nearly as bad!” Dash called, ramming one into wall. A sudden scream caught their attention, making them whirl around. Fluttershy had been cornered by several Incurseans, each of them aiming their weapons at her. Dash let out a scream, flying quicker than she thought she could, knocking them all away from the terrified mare. “No one hurts my friends!” her body glowed brightly and she took off, leaving a solid contrail behind her. She flew around every Incursean she could find, including their ships. She then turned toward Porunga’s ship, making a beeline for it. She picked up speed, starting to perform an aileron roll. A split second later, a rainboom tore across the sky, only this time, it ripped a hole in the world itself. “Go! Home!” she screamed at the ship, wrapping it in her contrail before bucking it into the rift, watching as it dragged the rest of their invasion forces with it. 

“Whoa...” Jason said having watched the whole thing in awe. Dash flew a circle around the portal, closing it. She then quickly flew down to Fluttershy and pulled her into a tight hug.

“I’m okay, Rainbow,” Fluttershy cooed softly, hugging her friend back.

“You girls ok?” Jason asked, walking back over to them, his clothes burnt in several places.

“Yeah sugarcube, we’re alright,” Applejack said, giving him a tired smile.

“Heh, things are never dull around you guys huh?” the pegasus from before asked, landing next to Jason.

“What are you doing here?” Dash asked, glaring bitterly at the new arrival.

“You know her?” Jason asked as Zed padded over to him, having found herself some food.

“Yeah, her name’s Lightning Dust, a Wonderbolt Academy washout,” Dash sneered, trying to compose herself.

“Wonderbolt washout huh?” Jason asked, looking at Lightning Dust. “How would you like to join my guard?”

“What? You serious?” said pegasus asked, looking rather surprised.

“Hell yeah I am, I could use more than just changelings guarding me,” he said with a smirk.

“I wholeheartedly accept, sir,” she said, standing up straight and saluting.

“Don’t call me sir,” Jason said, frowning a bit. “I’m not my father.”

Dust smirked, looking up at him, “Yes, sir.”

Jason just glared at her before turning to the others. “Spike, take a letter.” he said, shaking his head. Celestia was not going to be happy about this, not at all.
> Homecoming
> --------------------------------------------------------------------------

“What exactly are you testing me for, Twilight?” Dash asked, currently hooked up to a device in Twilight’s basement.

“Rainbow Dash, you tore a hole in reality, this requires study!” Twilight retorted, shaking her head. “Now just hold still,” she commanded, flipping some machines on. They whirred to life, quickly taking a sample of Dash’s magic. About a second later, the machines overloaded, the sheer amount of power frying them.

“Uh... sorry about that Twi,” Dash said with a wince, looking at the destroyed, most likely homemade, machines.

Twilight sighed, hanging her head. “This is insane, the only other pony I can think of that could overload a magic analyzer like that is me. And, well, you...”

“Oh um... that’s cool, I guess...” Dash said with a pout, ruffling her feathers a little.

“I’m not interrupting am I?” Jason asked, walking down into the basement. 

“No,” Twilight shook her head. “I’m just trying to study Dash’s new abilities.”

“I see that’s going well,” Jason commented, looking around at the busted machines. “Hey Dash, you want to skip the clinical trials and go straight to field testing?”

“Hay yeah!” Dash shouted, pulling away from all the wires, a smirk on her face.

“You can’t just-!” Twilight started, only for Jason to cut her off, waving a scroll around.

“Hey, I got approval from the crown!” Jason said with a smirk. Twilight glared. Grabbing the letter in her magic, she levitated it up to her face for a closer look. Quickly scanning down the page, her eyes went wide.

“They signed off on this!?” Twilight shouted, poking the page with a hoof when she saw both Luna and Celestia’s seals at the bottom.

“Hell yeah they did. I’m going to officially lead an expedition to Midgard!” Jason called rather smugly, already out the door with Dash.

Twilight snorted, teleporting outside. Waiting for her were Dash, Jason, Applejack, Rarity, Lightning Dust and Chrysalis.

“So glad you could join us Twilight,” Jason teased. He already had the map out, and was looking it over.

“You're not going to leave without me!” Twilight seethed, looking pissed.

“We weren’t planning on it, dear,” Rarity said, giving Twilight a smile. 

“You weren’t?” Twilight asked, much of her anger deflating.

“‘Course not Twi, we need you to perform the spell,” Jason said, looking up from the map.

“What spell?” she asked, raising her eyebrow.

“We can’t exactly go to Midgard with you guys the way you are now,” Jason said, “So... you need to turn all ponies present into humans. Except Chrysalis, she can change herself. And Dash, we need her to open the portal.”

“What makes you think I can do that?” she asked, giving him a nasty look.

“You turned us all into Breezies, I’m pretty sure you can make us human,” Dash said with a roll of her eyes.

“Ugh, fine,” Twilight said with a huff. She charged her horn up, and cast the spell. They quickly morphed into humans, though thankfully they all gained clothes, each resembling the colors of their coats. Chrysalis did the same, taking her human disguise.

“Well, beyond the weird hair colors, which we can pass off as hair dye, you all look perfect!” Jason said with a clap of his hands.

“This better not be permanent,” Dust hissed, patting her back, trying to find her wings.

“Don’t worry, I can change us all back,” Twilight said, crossing her arms. “I hope you have a plan to get us there Jason, otherwise Dash could just rip a hole to nowhere.”

“I got us covered,” Jason said, holding up the map. “Show me where the wall between Asgard and Midgard is weakest,” he ordered, the map obeying. “This way,” he said, leading the group out near the Everfree. He stopped a moment, looking around, “Huh... this is where I first showed up in Equestria.”

“Really?” Applejack asked surprised, “How can ya tell?”

“I’ll never forget that moment. I was scared out of my mind,” Jason said with a laugh. “Do your stuff, Dash.”

She gave him a cocky smile, her body starting to glow. She bolted into the sky, quickly opening a portal. “Last pony in is a rotten egg!” she called out as she looped around and flew through it.

“Ok, how the hay are we supposed to get up there?” Twilight asked with a frown.

“Elementary, my dear Watson,” Jason said, putting his hands on the ground. His eyes flashed red and a crude ice staircase formed, leading up to the portal, “Watch your step,” Jason said as he and Chrysalis climbed up to the portal hand in hand, jumping in. Lightning Dust went next, followed by Rarity.

“Confound that man, he drives me to insanity,” Twilight grumbled to herself as she reached the top of the stairs. “Well... here goes nothing. For science!” she cried, diving head first into the portal, which sealed up behind her.





“See! There it is again!” Hel cried, sitting up on her throne, her copy of Holes tumbling to the floor. “I told you it was Bifrost!”

“Seems like your advice stuck, Fenrir,” Sleipnir spoke up, looking away from his sudoku book.

“Of course it did, kid’s smart,” Fenrir said, currently licking his paws, “All he needed was the right push.”

“I should like to meet this Corypheus in person,” Loki started, strolling into the room, “At least he seems worthy of my legacy.”

“Oh here we go again,” Sleipnir said with a groan, rolling his eyes. “It’s not all about you, mother.”

“Do not call me that,” Loki growled, causing his other children to snicker at his expense. “Hel,” Loki said, moving up to take his seat, “Conjure up that seeing water of yours,”

“If you guys are spying on my son I want to be a part of it too,” Toya said, looking up from his game of solitaire.

“Mind your business, stabman,” Loki said with barely restrained contempt.

“Quiet yourself father,” Hel scowled, glaring at Loki, “This is my domain. Toya is Corypheus’ father, if he wishes to join us as we scry him than he may.” Loki crossed his arms, looking away rather petulantly. Hel just sighed, summoning up the viewing water. “Gather around and we shall see what our kin is up to,” she commanded as images started to appear in the water.





“Well girls, welcome to Midgard, or as it’s currently known, planet Earth,” Jason said, getting to his feet. Thankfully, the portal had dumped them all into an empty room.

“It looks dull,” Dash commented, looking around the room, a rather unimpressed look on her face.

“Of course it’s dull genius, we’re in an empty room,” Dust pointed out, making Dash growl in response.

“Actually, having spent more than a few months in Equestria, I have to say, the colors are brighter there than they are here,” Jason said, moving over to the door.

“The magic here don’t feel right,” Applejack said with a frown, poking at the floor with a boot, “Like it’s all... faded and stuff.”

“I noticed it too... it’s like the magic here hasn’t been used in a very long time,” Chrysalis said, feeling the magic around them.

“Shh...” Jason said holding his hand up, silencing them. He put his ear up to the door, listening through the wood. The din of a large crowd made it to his ear, making him frown, “I should have figured we’d end up at the same place I left Earth,” Jason said, pulling away from the door. “Stay close to me and don’t talk to any weirdos,” Jason commanded, opening the door, allowing all the noise to enter the room. He looked back and forth quickly before closing the door again, looking rather disturbed.

“What is it?” Rarity asked, wearing a look of concern.

Jason said nothing, opening the door again to take another look. “Ok... this is going to be as weird for me as it is for you, just... stay close,” he said, walking out with a sigh. They followed him out, letting out a collective gasp. Hundreds of humans were all walking around a very large hall, filled with various booths... with countless pony images everywhere.

“Jason...” Twilight watched with wide eyes as a young man walked by wearing a shirt with her and the rest of the Elements on it. “Please tell me you know whats going on.”

“Only thing I can guess at is that the show Nemesis told me about started up here while I was gone...” Jason muttered, looking around. “Follow me. Dash keep your wings folded, we don’t want to attract attention... even though a pony with metallic limbs is going to bring attention...”

They all nodded, sticking close to their guide.  They made it at least halfway through the hall before someone stopped them.

“Hey,” a woman in her twenties asked, looking at Dash, who froze up quickly. “Is that a costume? ‘Cause if it is, that’s really cool.”

“No uh... it’s animatronic. Yeah, that’s it, animatronic,” Jason said with a quick nod.

“What's up with the legs?” the woman asked, poking one of Dash’s talons. Dash stayed perfectly still, trying not to freak out.

“Please don’t do that,” Jason asked, lifting Dash up, “I wasn’t able to finish the legs before the con.”

“Oh,” she said, before getting a good look at his face, “Hey wait a minute, you're that guy who vanished a few months back!”

“Nah... you got the wrong guy,” he said, shaking his head, already backing away.

“Yeah you are, you were all over the news,” she insisted, moving closer. 

“Fuck it, run!” Jason shouted, running off toward the exit, Dash in his arms and the girls in tow. 





“Did you feel that?” the woman asked, turning to her husband, looking away from their patient. 

“I think we all felt it,” he answered, looking out the window, “The power of Bifrost has returned.”

“Perhaps this one came from Asgard?” she asked, gesturing to the creature on the bed. Blueblood lay there quietly shaking with fever, a damp rag on her forehead. 

“It is possible, she appears to be something Loki would sire,” he said with a snort. “How is she doing?” 

“Better since the last of that foul darkness has been removed. Hopefully her fever will break now,” she said, adjusting the blankets.

“Good, then maybe we can get some answers from her,” he nodded, moving toward the door. “I’m going to speak with the others about this,” Without waiting for her reply, he strode out of the house, leaving them alone.

“Ahn...” Blueblood moaned, coughing a little. She opened her eyes, looking around in a feverish haze. “W-where...?” 

“Relax young one, you are safe here,” the woman cooed softly, catching the unicorn’s attention, “As for where you are, you are in Alfheim, home of my people, the Ljosalfar.”

“Alfheim?”

“Yes, that’s right,” she nodded, letting her magic dance across her fingers. “It is good that you are awake but you must rest. Sleep now, we may speak once your fever has broken.”

Blueblood found herself slipping back into sleep, her eyelids drooping quickly. “Thank... you...” she whispered just as peaceful sleep overtook her.





“So this is where you grew up?” Rarity asked, looking up at the house in front of them. It wasn’t much, a small two story house with a white picket fence. It was painted a rather dull brown color, with a plain black roof.

“Ain’t much, but it was home,” Jason said, reaching into his pocket to pull out his keys. “Glad I managed to hold onto these. Lets hope they didn’t change the locks.” He led them up to the door  and slid the key in. With a satisfied smirk he turned the key and opened the now unlocked door. “Ladies, welcome to my home.” he stepped back, gesturing for them to enter.

“What is all this stuff?” Twilight asked, looking around, her eyes sparkling with wonder.

“Human technology, that’s what,” Jason said with a smirk as he replaced his keys in his pocket and shut the door behind. “In all honesty Twilight, it’s about as normal for humans as magic is for ponies.” 

The sound of a shotgun being cocked interrupted their conversation. “The hell are you doing in my house?” a very familiar voice called out. 

“Ok everyone... just put your hands up,” Jason said, already doing it. He slowly turned around to face their aggressor. Standing on the stairs, aiming his shotgun at them was Mr. Hughes. “Hey dad... um... surprise?”

“Jason?” Mr. Hughes asked, lowering his gun. “Where on God’s green Earth have you been, boy?”

“Yeah... about that,” he started with a nervous chuckle before another voice cut in.

“Jason?” A middle-aged woman came down the stairs rather quickly, “You’re home! You’re finally home!” she cried. Rushing past her husband, she pulled Jason into a tight hug. “I thought I lost you forever!” He just smiled, hugging her back.

“Can’t get rid of me that easy,” Jason replied with a rather cocky smirk on his face.

“Where did you go? They looked for... days...” she said as her gaze shifted to Rainbow Dash. She stared for a moment, wide eyed. 

“Um Jay?” Dash asked asked as Mrs. Hughes dropped to her knees. She pulled Dash close, sobbing heavily. 

“It was real... it was all real...” she sobbed, making Dash rather uncomfortable.

“Ok, what the hell is going on?” Chrysalis asked, looking at the sobbing woman.

“I should have known... you were in Ponyland the whole time. It’s all real... I’m not crazy,” Mrs. Hughes smiled, despite her sobbing.

“Ponyland?” Twilight asked, looking rather shocked, “That’s one of the ancient names for Equestria!”

“Ok, this is just getting crazy,” Jason said, putting a hand to his head.

“What have you brought into my home?!” Mr. Hughes shouted, aiming the shotgun at Rainbow Dash.  Jason darted forward, grabbed the barrel, and frosted it over. He easily shattered the barrel, causing Mr. Hughes to stumble back in fear.

“Watch him,” he told Chrysalis, stepping past his father. “I’m going to collect my things,” Jason said with a sigh as he headed up to his room.  He took out his hypercube and tossed it up in the air a few times. “Welp... lets just see how much you can hold.” He moved around the room, packing his stuff into the cube until only four bare walls and a bed remained.

“Jason.” He turned, finding his mother standing in the doorway. 

“Mom... look, I’m sorry, this isn’t how I wanted to say goodbye-”

“I want to go with you,” she said, looking into his eyes.

“You what?” Jason asked, taking completely off guard.

“Please, I’m sorry for everything I put you through.” she paused, sitting on his bed. “When I was a little girl, I had pony friends in Ponyland, which was across a rainbow bridge. The last time I went to where that bridge was, it was gone, and I cried for days. Nobody would believe me about the ponies or the bridge or the other world, and they even almost had me convinced that it was all just a child's imagination.”

“Mom, you know if you go with me, it won’t be the same,” Jason said, sitting down next to her. He looked up at her with a smile, “Though, I would love to have you there.”

Smiling, she leaned over and placed a kiss on his head. 

“Here,” Jason said, passing her the cube. “That thing’s got infinite storage so go pack up whatever you want to take, we’ll wait for you downstairs.” He kissed her cheek before heading back downstairs. “I guess the old saying is true... you can never go home again,”





Eclipse tapped her fingers against her throne, her mind wandering to the ripple she had felt before. Her people had informed her that it belonged to something called Bifrost, a bridge that allowed travel between the realms. “You!” she snapped, glaring at the minion that stood there, staring off into space with a stupid grin. “Connect me to your master!” she commanded, slamming her fist into her arm rest.

The minion jumped at the sound before hitting himself upside the head a few times. “Uh... master not here now. Leave message after beep?” he said sheepishly. Eclipse was about ready to slam the creature against the wall before his demeanor suddenly changed, his back straightening as his eyes began to glow brighter. His tone of voice took on a dark undertone as well. “Yes?”

“Good, I was ready to strangle the stupid creature,” she said with a sigh, getting off her throne. “I believe Jason is tampering with the barriers between worlds.”

“You are afraid he is going to find you with an army, is that it?” The minion put his claws behind his back. “Or do you think he is planning to find me after my little show with the wolf?”

“Neither,” she said, shaking her head. “This world is divided into nine. I control this one and he rules in another. But that leaves seven more, each giving him the opportunity to gain allies.”

The minion hummed in thought. “Do you know what lies in these other realms? If so, I’d like you to take care of them. Either make them our allies or cripple them so they are useless to him, I’ll leave it to your discretion.”

“I know of what was in those realms. Vanaheim is beyond us however, none save for those who lived there knew where it was. Midgard is out of the question as well, I doubt we could take Earth before they started to nuke us.”

The minion rolled his eyes. “Thanks for the history lesson and all, but I do have the assassination of two princesses to plan. Is there anything else?”

“Just one more thing,” she leaned up against a blank wall, looking back at him, “Do you happen to have anything that could capture some of Bifrost’s power?”

“What, you mean something to contain it? Child’s play.” The minion held its claws out in front of it and a black gem formed in between them. “Here, this will hold any magic short of the Elements of Harmony blasting it head on.” It floated over to Eclipse and fell into her outstretched hand.

“This shall do nicely,” she said with a smirk. “I shall see which realms fall to our conquest.” The minion nodded before returning to its previous behavior, ogling the gem it suddenly noticed in Eclipse’s hand. “Shiny!”

“Prepare yourselves! When Bifrost is used again, we march!” she shouted, her voice echoing through the tunnels of her kingdom. It was only silenced by the cheers of the dark elves, their war cries calling for blood. 





“So... what are we doing here?” Megan asked, looking around their new environment. After they had left the house, Jason had changed into a strange multi-species creature by the name of Hodgepodge and the next thing she knew, they were all sitting on a yacht in the middle of the ocean.

“Oh I just have to get some scales from my Uncle, be back soon!” he called before diving headfirst into the water and sinking like a rock.

“Don’t worry, you get used to his weirdness,” Twilight said, offering a smile.

“Oh tell me about it, I had to put up with it for nineteen years,” she said with a laugh, sitting down with them under an umbrella.

“So what was Jason like as a col– er, when he was younger?” Rarity asked, fixing her hair.

“You don’t have to pretend anymore, I figured out you girls were ponies a while ago,” Megan said with a giggle.

“Wait, what?” Dust asked, taken aback

“I could tell by your hair colors, only ponies would have hair in as vivid of colors and the distinctive styles you girls have.” She cleared her throat. “Though, as a child, Jason was rather quiet. When he first started school he had some anger issues and he threw more than his share of tantrums.”

“If I may ask, Mrs. Hughes,” Twilight started, “Could you tell me how you met the ancient ponies?”

“Please, girls, just call me Megan,” she said waving it off, “But of course Twilight. I was only thirteen at the time and I lived on my family's ranch.The first pony I ever met was a pink pegasus named Firefly. She was looking for someone to help her save her friends from Tirek’s evil.”

“Tirek?”

“Yeah I think he was some kind of centaur, real nasty guy. I managed to beat him with the Rainbow Light that the Moochick gave me,” she said, holding up a red heart-shaped locket, “It used to be inside this locket but it vanished the same day that the bridge did...”

“Well, now you get to come home with us!” Dash said, hoping to cheer her up, “You get to see the awesome modern day ponies!”

“You remind me a lot of Firefly, even your marks are similar,” Megan said with a small smile.

“Really?” 

“Yup, her mark was two blue lightning bolts.”

“That is interesting, maybe she was Rainbow Dash’s ancestor,” Twilight said, rubbing her chin.

“You know, I don’t think I got any of your names,” Megan said, interrupting Twilights thoughts.

“Oh sorry,” Twilight said with a sheepish smile, “I’m Twilight Sparkle, this is Applejack, Rarity, Lightning Dust, and Chrysalis,”

“I knew a pony named Applejack.”

“There have been a few Applejacks in the Apple family tree,” Applejack added with a nod.

“Though... I don’t think Chrysalis sounds like a pony name...” Megan said, eyeballing the empress.

“That is true, I’m not a pony,” Chrysalis said, dropping her disguise. “I am empress of the changelings... and Jason’s fiancée...”

“His what?!” Megan exclaimed, her eyes wide.

“Yeah...” Hodgepodge said, flopping back onto the boat like a wet noodle, several large scales in his hand, “I was gonna tell you about that soon...”

“That wasn’t the first thing you planned to tell me?!”

“Well umm... let’s get home!” he shouted, snapping his fingers and teleporting them to the roof of the convention center. “Let me go get something real quick first,” he added, teleporting away and quickly coming back with a box in his hands.

“What’s that ya got there?” Applejack asked, tilting her head.

“My Little Pony: Friendship is Magic season 1 DVDs. I want to see how close to real life it is.” He turned to Dash, “Now take us home!”

“What, you can’t?” she asked, raising her eyebrow.

“Its hard for me! So... just do your Boom and lets go,”

Dash just smirked, quickly recreating the portal. Hodgepodge wrapped the rest of them up with his serpentine body and flew through the portal, which closed behind them.



 

The wind howled mercilessly in the frigid forests of Jotunheim, its bitter teeth raking even the most heavily coated animals that made these lands home. A powerful ripple moved through the realm, stirring up that which had since laid dormant.  The howling wind only became stronger, starting to take shape. Dozens of what appeared to be ghostly horses appeared in the blizzard, each of them looking in the direction of Asgard.

“Bifrost is awake once more,” a voice drifted across the winds, “Perhaps we were too hasty in our judgement of the equines.” It paused for thought. “We shall let them come to us, then we shall test their mettle.” The spirits nodded in agreement before fading away once more, though this time, instead of merely falling asleep, they waited.

> We're Off To See The Dwarves, The Wonderful Dwarves Of Nidavellir
> --------------------------------------------------------------------------

“So, this is where you live, hm?” Megan asked, looking around the hive. She had spent the last few days getting used to being around ponies again and Jason had decided she should move into his castle for now.

“Of course, it’s a little... alien but you get used to it,” Jason said with a smile, “The drones will take any request you give them, within reason of course,” he said, showing her to her room, “I didn’t unpack your things yet,” he added, tossing her the hypercube.

“Thank you,” Megan said, reaching into it and trying to pull out her things. “What is that?” she asked, her hand tapping Ben’s badge, “I can’t tell what it is...” she said, tapping it a few more times in an effort to determine what exactly it was. “Ah here it is!” she proclaimed as she pulled it out, accidentally activating it.

Not too far away, yet a good ways above, a portal opened and a young man tumbled out. 

“Gah! Oof! Ow! Ouch! Ack! Son of a--Ow!” he shouted, tumbling down the walls and roofs of the houses below. He landed roughly on the concrete ground, groaning slightly in pain. “I’m okay!” Unfortunately for him, a perky purple princess and a frightened fazed filly fell right on top of him. “Ow. Less okay!”

“Well, that was different,” the princess said, blinking her eyes to get used to the sudden sunlight. “What just happened?”

“We fell through a portal,” the human moaned. “And you fell on me.”

“Sorry Mr. Ten,” the filly apologized.

“It’s cool, just in a lot of pain.”

The buzzing of many wings caught their attention. All around them, changelings fluttered about, carrying materials to various places. A very large swath of the Everfree had been cleared around the Castle of the Two Sisters, with groups of ponies setting up the frameworks of houses.

“Ah, there you are Princess,” a slightly distorted voice called. Pupa fluttered over, landing in front of them, her muzzle buried in a clipboard, “Maud is requesting to see you, and Fluttershy has voiced some concerns over animal displacement due to the construction and she would like the matter settled as soon as possible.”

Twilight stared at the large changeling with wide-eyed fear, keeping her filly close. And then, she screamed. “CHANGELING!!” She teleported, putting a now standing Ben in front of her and Nyx. “Ben! That’s a changeling! Kill it before it kills us!”

“Wait, what?! You know I don’t kill!”

“Then protect us or I won’t ever let you near the dessert cupboard again!”

Ben paled at the very thought. “At your service!” He got into a ready stance with his hand positioned right above the Omnitrix. “Make one more move lady and I’m taking you down.”

“Er... Princess I think you may need to practice your pranking skills,” Pupa said, giving her a disturbed look. “Because this is highly offensive.” She shook her head. “I have other duties I must attend to, please see to Maud’s request.” With that, she bowed, taking to the skies again.

“What was that about?” Ben asked as Twilight, Nyx on her back, trotted up to his side. “It’s like she knew you.”

“I don’t know, and I don’t like it.” She sighed and looked at Ben. “Any chance we can get back?”

“No clue. I don’t even know where we are exactly. Looks familiar, I’ll admit, but something’s off about it.”

“It looks like the Castle of the Two Sisters, but that can’t be right. We haven’t gotten around to rebuilding it in months.”

“Princess,” Maud ‘called’, slowly waving a hoof at them. Beside her was Fluttershy, who was talking with someone else, though who was obscured by a tent. Ben quickly transformed into a pegasus before they saw him.

“Just play along for now,” he whispered into Twilight’s ear, taking Nyx on to his back for appearances. “Let’s see if we can’t find out where we are and what’s going on.” She nodded back and smiled at the two ponies.

“Maud! Fluttershy! It’s good to see you both! I was told you were, uh, looking for me?”

“Oh my yes,” Fluttershy said with a smile, “Moony and I were just talking to Maud about the construction. All those trees they cut down left so many animals homeless.”

“I made sure to place all the trees we remove into the forest, so they can still provide shelter to animals, but they still have their concerns,” Maud explained dully. 

“Oh well, um...” Twilight was having a small problem trying to figure out exactly what she should say. Then an idea sparked into her head. She looked at Ben with a smile. “Any ideas... Streak?”

“Hmm?” Ben asked, taken by surprise. It took a moment, but he figured out that she was looking more to him due to his experience. “Oh, right. Well, I would advise that we get a proper record of all the complaints and address each accordingly.”

“That sounds like an excellent idea, Streak.” She turned back to Maud and Fluttershy, only one of which seemed confused. “Would that be acceptable for the moment?”

“I think that’s a wonderful idea, Your Majesty,” Nightmare Moon said with a smile, coming into view.

“Um... thank you... Moon?” Twilight said unsurely.

“Oh, I didn’t see your friend,” Moon said, deflating slightly and moving closer to Fluttershy, who gave her a nuzzle.

“Moony is still working on her shyness,” Fluttershy clarified, “But she’s making really good progress.”

“Ookay then, well, if you don’t need me for anything else, my associate and I will just be leaving.”

“Oh! That reminds me, Chrysalis and Rarity wanted to see you about the wedding,” Fluttershy spoke up, “If um... that’s ok with you...”

Twilight’s eye began to subtly twitch. “Rarity and Ch–Chr–Chrysalis, eh? S-sure. M-m-mind taking us there?”

“Ok, this way please,” Fluttershy said, starting to walk off.

“I’ll stay here with Maud,” Nightmare said, adjusting her wings a little. “Tell Chrissy I said hi,” she called.

As they got closer, Chrysalis’ voice came into earshot, “Eh... thats not something I see either of us dancing to.”

“Well how about this one?” Rarity asked before music filled the air, “It says here this one is called “Safety Dance”.

“Here we are,” Fluttershy said, stopping at the entrance of a small building, “They should be in here.”

Ben, Twilight, and Nyx walked in to see Rarity and Chrysalis sitting at a table, listening to a stereo, with piles of CDs stacked between them . Ben stared at the sight of the changeling queen, being that it was his first time getting a proper view of such a creature. Unbeknownst to him, Twilight’s rage was slowly building, but the only sign was her constantly twitching eye.

“Ah there you are, Twilight dear,” Rarity said with a smile, “We were hoping you could help us decide on some music. All these ‘CDs’ have so much on them, it’ll take days with just the two of us.”

“The classic choice is a good pop song,” Ben said, making his presence known to the two mares. “Personally I go for a nice down home vibe, or a nice rock ballad for the proper dancing vibe.”

“True, true,” Chrysalis said with a nod. “You’re more than welcome to join us,” she said, giving him a smile.

“Thank you. I’m Emerald Streak. Princess Twilight’s... advisor. It’s a pleasure, your highness.” He gave small bow, doing his best to keep Nyx hidden.

“Oh please, there is no need to bow, I’m only empress of the changelings,” Chrysalis said with a mild dose of modesty.

“You are marrying an Equestrian Prince dear,” Rarity reminded her.

“Well until then he has no reason to bow to me,” Chrysalis retorted, adjusting her wings.

“So...” Twilight said with an unnerving smile and a twitching eye. “You’re marrying that pain in the flank?”

“Well he can be a pain but the man tries,” Chrysalis said, looking at her, “Besides, you’ve known we’re getting married for months.”

Twilight’s anger just couldn’t be held back anymore. “Oh, I can’t put up this blasted charade anymore! Get away from that ‘mare’!” she declared, teleporting Ben and Nyx right back to her. “She’s evil! Evil, evil, evil, evil!”

“Evil!” Nyx declared.

“Evil!” Ben shouted, getting swept up in the moment. “Wait, why are we shouting ‘evil’?”

“Um... Twilight dear are you alright?” Rarity asked, looking rather concerned.

“Is this some pony culture thing I don’t know about?” Chrysalis asked, blinking in confusion.

“Why are you even helping her, Rarity?!” Twilight practically shrieked. “After everything she did to us at the wedding, why on Equis would you help that... that... that witch?!”

Rarity’s jaw dropped under her friends outburst.

“Twilight...” Chrysalis said, looking at her, tears starting to form in her ears, “You know I pay for that mistake with every passing day,”

Twilight’s glare only intensified. “I don’t know what you’re talking about. All I know is that I was hoping you and your kind had learned to stay out of Equestria. You haven’t been seen in three years and I was hoping, no, praying that I would never have to see you again!”

“Twilight I think you hit your head,” Rarity said getting off her seat, moving closer to Twilight, a look of concern on her muzzle.

“Okay!” Ben shouted, getting everypony’s attention. “I know where this story’s going. This! Is an alternate world. And I have one thing to say, and screw copyrights, I’m saying it. We’re boned!”

“Wait... thats an Omnitrix!” Rarity exclaimed, spotting it on Ben’s chest, “You’re that witch Eclipse aren’t you!? Release my friend you fiend!” Rarity commanded, chucking the stereo at him.

“Gak!” He ducked, letting it smash against the wall behind him. “Oi! Watch it! There’s a foal on my back!”

“Taking hostages? You truly are evil!”

“I’m not evil! I’m a borderline pacifist!” He pushed Twilight in front of her. “Twilight, do your Harmony magic transforming thingy!”

“ME?!”

“Yeah! If I do anything, I’m pretty sure I’m gonna get in trouble with someone or something. You’re expendable!”

“You blasted coward!”

“What did I say my code was?”

“You won’t be a live coward when I’m done with you!”

“Twilight dear, don’t make me hurt you,” Rarity said, giving her friend a slight glare.

“I think that’s my line.” Twilight’s body began to glow as her mane and tail lengthened and her wings grew to twice their size. Her cutie mark appeared to grow past her flank and appear elsewhere on her body. Though it seemed ridiculous in appearance, her entire body radiated intense magical energy. “One move, and I vaporize you and everything else for a three mile radius.”

Before either could react, Zed barreled into the room, pouncing on Twilight. The Baskurr snarled, its jaws dangerously close to her neck.

“What the heck?! An anubian baskurr?! How in the world?” Ben shouted in surprise.

“MOMMY!” Nyx cried from Ben’s back, silencing the room as Rarity and Chrysalis stared in shock at the filly.

Zed growled and snorted. She didn’t take the kill, though she made it clear to Twilight that she would if the pony made a move. Her eyes moved to Ben, snarling at him, almost like she was daring him to try something, her Nemetrix flashing quickly.

“Okay, calm down, girl. We’re not here to cause any trouble. Just don’t harm my friend. We won’t hurt anypony, will we Twilight?” Ben said, trying to make himself look less threatening. Twilight was in no position to answer though, so Ben continued. “Just let her go and we’ll leave. No harm done.” 

“Zed, heel,” Jason called. Zed immediately dropped all aggression, bounding over to Jason. “I leave for all of half an hour and Zed’s ready to tear someone’s throat out,” he just shook his head, “Explain, now.”

“JASON?!” Ben and Twilight shouted in unison.

“Well that explains a lot,” Ben commented with a deadpan.

“How so?” Jason asked, raising an eyebrow.

“Well, we have met before, dingbat,” Ben said with a slight smirk.  

“Says the guy with voices in his head,” Jason retorted. “So why was Zed ready to tear Twilight’s throat out?”

“She called the bug chick evil,” Ben said with a shrug. “I’m writing it off with bad experiences.”

“She threatened to vaporize everything in a three mile radius,” Rarity clarified.

“Yeah that’s on you, Twi,” Jason said, “You made yourself a threat.”

Twilight growled lightly. “I’m just protecting my own from a vile creature.”

“I’ll have you know Chrysalis personally surrendered to Celestia, in order to make things right. Not only that she also housed and protected the entirety of Ponyville during the rebellion, and united the hives under Equestria, so don’t you dare call her vile,” Jason said, poking her chest with a glare.

Twilight glared back, but powered down anyways. “Forgive me if I find that utterly impossible to believe.”

“Now, now,” Ben said as he stepped between them. “It seems different experiences were had, so let’s not judge anypony here. Let’s not upset things too much.”

“I suppose you're right,” Jason said with a shrug. Taking a seat with Chrysalis, he put his arm around her. She sighed, snuggling into his body.

“So... you’ve been busy these past six weeks, eh?” Ben pointed out, trying to move the conversation along.

“It’s been months here, Ben,” Jason said. “Things got crazy here; The Forever Knights rebelled, I have my own version of Albedo, and just last month the Incurseans showed up.”

Ben blinked. “Huh... I’ve just been cooped up in the castle with my stalker and new fan filly.”

“Good, stay there, you didn’t want to be a part of any of it. Also, Twilight, if you ever see Trenderhoof, kick him in the nuts for me.”

“Trenderhoof?” she asked. “Rarity’s old crush who, in turn, had a crush on Applejack? Why would I do that? He’s just a harmless journalist pony. A little eccentric maybe, but certainly not worth something like that.”

“He committed mass genocide for three whole days,” Jason replied, his eyes flashing red.

They all blinked at that. “Uh, wow. That’s quite the stretch, don’t ya think?”’

“I highly doubt Trender is capable of such things. He’s not exactly violent. I mean, Spike almost lit him on fire and all he did was run around screaming like a little filly.”

“Oh no, Twilight,” Rarity said shaking her head, “It’s very true. That monster had thousands killed. He had complete control of Equestria for days.”

“Forgetting something already?” Ben pointed out. “Different worlds, different events. I doubt anything like that is going to happen.”

“Ben does have a point. The last time in the past thousand years anything... genocidal happened was... well,” she glared fiercely at Chrysalis, who got the message.

“Oh get over yourself, you racist bitch,” Chrysalis hissed.

“How can I?!” Twilight nearly shrieked. “You–” Twilight was cut off by Ben sticking his hoof in her mouth.

“That’s enough of that,” he said sternly. “I know you feel strongly about this, Twi, but this is a diplomatic situation right now. We can’t go around insulting the local officials, and this isn’t even the same Chrysalis. And to you!” Ben quickly turned on Chrysalis. “You use that kind of language around young ears again and I will shut your mouth. Do I make myself clear?”

She just hissed, Zed doing the same.

“How about you stop telling us how to speak?” Jason asked.

“Jason, as a fellow Omnitrix wielder, I fully respect you. But, when young ears are present, one must show a little more tact,” Ben said in the most calming voice he could. “I get that tensions are high right now, but we must take the children into account.”

“Yeah, no,” Jason said bluntly. 

Ben stuttered slightly, his mouth gaping open and closed several times. After a moment, he steadied himself. “Ok, so my opinion of you hasn’t changed then. What I told your teacher was right on the head.”

“Ben... look I’m not having the best time adjusting to some changes right now, take what I say a grain of salt,” Jason said with a sigh, “God, I feel like its puberty all over again. At least I’m not causing blizzards...”

“That doesn’t excuse language, Jason. I kept myself clear almost immediately after going to Equestria, and that was after decimating a town. I know this kind of thing differs from person to person, but just this once, please? Nyx doesn’t need to hear that kind of language.”

“Ben, I’m an ice giant that can fly off into bloodlust, worrying about foul language is the least of my concerns.”Jason just gave him a flat stare.

Ben sighed, shaking his head. “Then you leave me no choice. Omnitrix, code 010420.” Jason’s watch lit up suddenly. “Activate authorization code 1032.”

“Code accepted,” Jason’s watch said aloud.

“You traitor,” Jason glared at it.

“Not a traitor, Jason,” Ben corrected. “A failsafe. Remember those codes Voiceless typed into your watch. Well, one of them was an override code, just in case. Don’t worry, I didn’t do anything malicious. Just... a temporary fix. Try and swear.”

“Buy some apples!” Apple Bloom’s voice erupted from the Omnitrix as Jason tried to speak, his eye starting to twitch.

Ben’s head turned. “Well... that was unexpected. Normally it just comes out as a censor beep. Huh, interesting.”

Jason’s Omnitrix went off, shifting him into another man, this one a blonde with long hair and a nice looking suit. He got up and punched Ben across the muzzle hard enough to make his nose bleed. “Fuck you, you fucking pretentious prick.”

“OW!! Ugh! Okay, I don’t know what that form is, but that was NOT COOL!! You’ve forced my hand... er, hoof! Omnitrix! Code 1111, l-o-c-k dash 40!” Jason’s symbol beeped out in acceptance, switching back to Jason.

“Ok... not gonna lie, that felt really good,” Jason said, letting out a sigh.

“Jerk! I’m just trying to keep this poor, traumatized filly pure! Is that so much to ask?!” Ben kept a hoof to his nose, trying to keep it from bleeding on the floor.

“Hey, I didn’t hit ya, Hughes did,” Jason said, putting his hands up.

“What was that about Hughes?” Chrysalis asked, looking concerned.

“Well it appears that Hughes has control of my human form. Gee, thanks for that Benny Boy,” Jason said with a glare.

“Don’t you DARE call me that! That is a reserved nickname for only three ponies!”

“What was that about having self-control, Ben?” the other Twilight asked, with a slightly raised eyebrow.

“You know Ben, when I said cursing wasn’t a top priority, I didn’t say I wasn’t going to say no. Now we’ve given Hughes a form, Buy some apples! wonderful,” Jason said with a groan.

“Sorry Jason, but I can’t take any chances. I mean come on, do you kiss your mother with that mouth? ...oh my gods, I really just dated myself there.” Ben sat down with a wide-eyed look. “That is not a saying I should be using; why am I using that saying?! Dang it, I was born in ‘03, I shouldn’t be using something that dated!”

“I was born in ‘93, what's your point? Actually, you know what Ben, since you caused all this trouble, you're going to help me out.”

“Help you out? With what; the wedding? Imma warn you right now, weddings are not my specialty. Trust me.” A certain memory flashed through Ben’s mind along with the screaming that followed it. “It’s not pretty,” he said with a shudder.

“No, I have a trip planned and you’re coming with me, all three of you.”

“Oh gods,” Ben cursed, Twilight and Nyx looking at him with blame. “I’ve said it a lot, I’ll say it again: Just my luck.”

“Ugh,” Twilight said as she trotted into the room, “I’m sorry I took so long, Dash just had to show off to the school ponies,” she huffed, not having noticed the others yet.

“Whoa,” Nyx gasped, getting the other Twilight’s attention. “Two mommies. Not many ponies can say that.”

“You’d be surprised, girl,” Ben commented with a deadpan.

“Let me guess, Displaced?” Twilight asked, looking at her double.

“That’d be me,” the pegasus answered while waving. “Hi.”

“Let’s just go,” Jason said, heading out of the building, “Come, Zed,” he commanded, the Baskurr following after him.

“Hey, wait up!” Ben called, dragging his Twilight and Nyx along. Jason’s Twilight was content to just follow calmly.

“Took you guys long enough,” Dash said, currently inspecting her talons for any nicks. “Ready to go?” she asked, spreading her wings.

“Go where?” Ben asked. “We takin’ a train or something?”

“Show ‘em, Dash,” Jason said with a smirk. She started to glow and darted around them, wrapping them up in her contrail. She took off, pulling them along with her. She quickly soared over a mountain range before opening a portal, then circled back around and flew through it.





“Ok... can everypony get off me?” Twilight asked, nearly at the bottom of the pile of bodies.

“Only after you get off of me!” Ben said, actually being completely under every single one of them.

“Just get up!” she shouted. It took a few minutes, but eventually Twilight and Ben were freed from the pile.

“Just my luck,” Ben moaned.

“Everyone ok?” Jason asked, seemingly unaffected by the blizzard around them. 

“I’ve been better,” Ben groaned.

“That was fun!” Nyx giggled.

“Welcome to the realm of Nidavellir, home of the dwarves,” Jason said, looking at the map again. “This way,” he said, starting to move off.

“What’s a dwarve?” asked Nyx as she climbed on her mother’s back.

“Dwarf,” Ben corrected. “Tiny person. If I remember my stories right, they were known to be amazing miners. If Disney is to be believed anyway.”

“Who?” they asked.

“Nevermind.”

“They’re the greatest craftsmen in the universe,” Jason explained, “They made not only actual growing hair out of gold but an actual living golden boar, and that’s only the small stuff.”

“And why are we here?” Ben asked, keeping close to Twilight and Nyx. “What do dwarves have to do with anything?”

“I’m going to have them make me armor,” Jason said, completely ignoring the cold. 

“Well that’s a little selfish. Hope you pay them first.”

“Faust, this is so cold,” Twilight complained, wrapping her wings around herself.

[Note: For simplicity, from this point on, Ben’s Twilight will be referred to as just ‘Twi’.]

“You’re telling me,” Twi agreed. She put Nyx inside a little insulated bubble on her back. The young filly let out a yawn as she snuggled into her mother’s fur, going to sleep in a snap.

“I don’t feel it,” Jason said with a shrug, looking around.

“You may not, for whatever reason, but I’m not gonna put up with this.” Ben slapped his necklace, turning into a humanoid figure with volcanic lines running over his body. “Heatblast! Yeah, now we’re talkin’!”

“That’s a new one,”  Twi commented, writing down the new form in her Displaced book under Ben’s section.

“Is that a Displaced book?” Twilight asked, looking at it curiously. 

“Mm hmm,” Twi nodded. “I use it to keep track of Ben’s forms as well as any other Displaced that comes roaming in. Like Gilgamesh, Domon, and Umbra too, though Ben told me about Umbra instead of letting me meet him. Jason’s got a small little section, too.”

“I could tell you about the ones I’ve met,” Jason said, looking around. “Omnitrix, Armodrillo,” he commanded, shifting into a large yellow-armored creature.

“Lemme guess,” Ben groaned. “The dwarves are underground, aren’t they?”

“Yup.” He placed a hand on the ground and closed his eyes, leaving the only sound that of the blizzard.

“Do something already!” Dash shouted, “I’m freezing my flank off over here!”  A moment later Jason rushed at a cliff face, slamming a fist into it, causing the very mountain to start shaking.

“Down the rabbit hole, eh?” Ben joked as he flew behind him.

“Nope... time to blow it open,” Jason said, reverting back to normal, having revealed a massive metal door, “Ben, you’re going to want to back up... a lot.”

Ben got the hint and practically flash-stepped back over to the others. “This good enough?” he yelled out while Dash just stared at him in shock.

“Twice that,” he called. This time Ben just flew back with the others, only stopping almost a mile away.

Jason gathered his magic, aiming at the door. “Ultima,” he whispered, releasing the spell. It slammed into the ground, the force rocking the mountain range and causing several large scale avalanches. Once everything calmed down, the door came back into view, completely intact.

“Did it work?” Twi called out, as she and the others approached.

“No,” Jason said with a sigh, brushing some snow off himself.

“Did you try knocking?” Nyx asked, having been woken up from her nap by his attack.

“Pretty sure that counts as a knock,” Jason said, walking up to the door. It creaked open, showing nothing but blackness.

“It’s polite to announce yourself,” Nyx said helpfully as the others moved closer to Jason.

“I don’t honestly think dwarves care,” he said, taking out Laevateinn. The sword glowed and the blade burst into flame. “Well, let’s get going.” He walked into the tunnel, lighting the way with the sword.

“Let’s let them take the lead,” Twilight said to Twi as they entered the tunnel, “Jason’s an expert on this stuff.”

“Apparently not an expert on character judgement, though,” Twi muttered just loud enough to be heard.

“I would appreciate it if you stopped bad mouthing my friends,” Twilight said with a small glare.

Twi glared at her counterpart. “Nyx, sweetie, go spend some time with Ben. Mommy needs a minute.” Nyx looked unsure, but relented and ran off, jumping on to Ben’s back. Twi sneered at Twilight. “How could you possibly be friends with those monsters?! After everything they’ve done!”

“Twilight, I don’t know what happened on your world, but here nopony was really hurt during the invasion. Chrysalis, however, lost hundreds of her children when they were blown from Canterlot and she felt every single one of them die.”

“Nopony hurt?” Twilight asked, practically shaking in anger. “Nopony hurt?! I’ll have you know that ponies were more than hurt when they came! Do you know what happened after the wedding? A funeral! For the nearly two hundred lives those monsters took!“

“And do you know how many we lost when Trenderhoof decided to purge all non-ponies from Equestria? Thousands,” Twilight hissed, glaring back at her. “And you know what Chrysalis did? She helped us rebuild. Because of her and Jason, ponies and changelings are coming together as one people. So don’t come here and tell me that she’s a monster. She’s paid dearly for her mistake and has proven time and time again that she is worthy of our trust and friendship.”

Twi’s glare only increased. “You want to know what else is because of her? Do you see this necklace?” Twi asked, pointing out the jewelry to Twilight. “I don’t wear it for a fashion statement.” She pulled it down slightly, just enough for Twilight to see a long scar across the mare’s neck. “This is what she did. She slit my throat!” Twi huffed, turning away from her counterpart. “I think I’m starting to understand why Ben doesn’t care about other worlds. Any world where ponies and changelings could be friends is not a world I want any part of. As far as the changelings are concerned, I hope, heck I’ll even pray, that they all died in the Badlands.”

“You disgust me,” Twilight said with pure honesty, “You sound just like Trenderhoof.”

“Same to you, sister,” Twi sneered. “Word of warning, stay away from my daughter. I don’t want your ridiculous beliefs rubbing off on her.”

Twilight’s eyes went white, slamming her counterpart into the wall, “Ponies like you make me sick,” she snarled, “Do you want to know what Trenderhoof did to me? Do you?” she asked, pinning Twi to the wall.

Twi glared back, letting her Harmony powers flow, blasting Twilight off of her. “I couldn’t care less. So all I have to say to you, Twilight, is something I never thought I would say - Not my world, not my problem!” Twi huffed, powering down and trotting off to catch up with Ben. She brushed by him, taking Nyx on to her back.

“Whoa, what’s with the anger steams, Twi?” Ben asked, noticing the tips of Twilight’s mane and tail were ablaze.

“You were right, Ben. These worlds should fend for themselves. The sooner we leave the better.” She went silent after, content with just glaring at the ground.

“Please Ben, give the changelings a chance,” Twilight said, trotting up to him, “They’re not all bad. Even if they are monsters on your world, they aren’t in every world. When we were experimenting with Dash’s powers we found a world where ponykind had enslaved the rest of the world because they thought they were beneath them. That’s where attitudes like that lead, please don’t let that happen.”

“Um, well I, uh...” Ben caught Twi’s burning glare and Twilight’s glare in turn. He gulped loudly, looking out with a thousand yard stare. “Just my luck. Well, if it ever comes up in the future, we’ll see where it leads. I know for a fact that ponies don’t think they’re better than other species. I don’t know anypony who thinks like that. ‘Specially not with that zebra living in the Everfree. But hey, if any species is willing to make peace, I’ll listen... within reason,” he amended after getting another glare from Twi.

“Thank you Ben,” Twilight said softly, giving him a hug before pulling away.

“Yeah, well, I don’t like ya,” Dash said with a huff, glaring at Twi, “You’re too much like Trenderhoof.”

“You wouldn’t be saying that if you were grounded for six months like my Dash was after the Invasion,” Twi muttered, barely heard. “But I don’t care whether you like me or not. Let’s just get this over with before... Ben are you alright?”

Ben had stopped for a moment, gasping for breath against the stone wall. “Yeah... yeah... I’m good, just a little out of breath is all.”

“Twi, Trenderhoof cut my legs off and almost took Gilda from me so don’t tell me what I would or wouldn’t be saying,” Dash said, flipping her off with a talon. Thankfully, Twi covered Nyx’s eyes before she did.

“Just because I hate changelings doesn’t make me like your mass murderer. They were monsters who caused nothing but pain. They deserve whatever happened to them. I’m sure Kat would agree!”

“Whoa there!” Ben said, still a little out of breath. “Let’s not bring her into this.”

“Actually,” Jason cut in, “She gladly helped unite the hives under Chrysalis,” Jason said, holding up her token to prove his point, “Buy some apples! you can even ask Maud, that mare was all over her.”

Ben’s eyes widened. “Y-you met her?!” He used what little energy he had left to rush over to Jason. “Is she alright? Do you know where she is? Please, tell me anything!”

“I have no idea where she is,” Jason said, looking at him, “She took one look at Fluttershy and started crying her eyes out though. She left to go help bring peace between ponies and changelings to other worlds.”

Even though Twi huffed, Ben looked a little mixed. “B-but, is she alright?”

“Yeah, seemed fine to me... did some stuff she probably doesn’t want me sharing...” he said his mind going back to that game of strip poker.

Ben, however, understood that differently, glaring at Jason. “What did you do to her?” he growled.

“Nothing, we went around getting the queens to come to a meeting. Maud was all over her though, like lost puppy kinda stuff.”

He wasn’t sure whether to be relieved or mad. “...I’m really not sure how I feel about that,” Ben said honestly.

Twi put a hoof on his shoulder. “You’ll meet her one day, Ben. Have some faith.”

“Yeah,” Ben sighed.

“You know I could just summon her...” Jason waved the token around.

Ben shook his head. “It wouldn’t be right. I can’t summon her, she wouldn’t believe me.”

“Ok... whatever that means...” Jason said, shaking his head.

“Well, what am I supposed to do, Jason?” Ben asked, miming picking up a phone. “Just go, ‘Hello, Kat Shifter? Yeah, hi, this is Ben Ten, your long lost brother you thought died. Yeah, I’ve been alive the entire time. Funny story, right?’ Yeah, that’d go over real swell.”

“My birth mother showed up last time Gilgamesh was here, I didn’t even know I was adopted,” Jason said, looking back at him.

“That doesn’t help in the slightest,” Ben deadpanned. “Plus, in case you forgot, I’m a wanted criminal! Don’t exactly have a gleaming resume here.”

“‘Neither of us do,” Jason said, moving further into the tunnel. He stopped, looking around.

“So,” Ben prompted. “When were gonna let them know we know we’re surrounded? ...you did pick up on that, right?”

“Yeah I did,” Jason said with a nod, “Girls... I suggest you stop moving...”

“Huh? What’s up?” Dash asked, stopping in her tracks. 

“Oh nothing. We’re just surrounded by what is no doubt about a hundred angry dwarves with the greatest weapons unknown to most the universe, ready to attack and kill us with a simple command.”

“Thank you for summing up our doom, Ben,” Twi deadpanned at the pegasus.

Suddenly several walls slid into the floor, revealing dozens of armored angry dwarves that looked to be right out of Lord of the Rings.

“What business have you here?” one demanded of them, brandishing a wicked battle axe.

“We surrender!” Ben shouted, raising his wings and hooves.

“You’re an idiot.” Jason rolled his eyes. “We come from Asgard, I request to see your king.”

“Asgard huh? I thought the Aesir were dead?”

“They are,” Jason said, looking at the dwarf, showing no fear.

“Very well,” he said, gesturing with his head, “Follow us. Any of you try anything and the crows will never get to taste your flesh,” he warned, starting to walk.

“Come on,” Jason said as he followed, Zed at his side, “Best not make them angry.” He looked back, seeing Ben leaning on the wall again, his breathing getting ragged.

“Ben?” Twilight asked, looking concerned.

“Ben,” Twi put a hoof on his back, feeling a sense of dread.

“I’m... I’m fine... just... just tired. All that time with Scootaloo wears a guy out, ya know?” He laughed a little, wheezing as he did so. “You guys go on ahead, I’ll... I’ll catch up in a minute.”

“Ben...” Jason said, looking at him, “Seriously, what's up?”

“It’s nothing,” Ben smiled as he waved off their concern. “Just been a while since I’ve gotten some rest. Go on ahead, I’ll be fine.”

“The others will stay with him,” the dwarf said, gesturing for them to follow.

“Be safe,” Jason said as he and the others went ahead.

Twi stayed behind for a second. She whispered to Ben, “It’s happening again, isn’t it?”

Ben nodded solemnly. “Everything will be fine. Keep them safe, Twi. Their safety is more important than mine.”

“B-but,” Twi tried to say, but Ben put his hoof on her lips.

“Just go, and don’t say anything. For their sakes.”

Twi looked saddened, but agreed. Nyx gave Ben a quick hug before they rushed to catch up with Jason. Ben watched them go, leaning on the cave wall. He let out a shuddering breath, his eyes catching sight of the cold whisper that was released.

“Just my luck,” he commented to himself.





The dwarven city was truly a sight to behold, carved out of the mountain’s innards. Various people moved about, doing any number of tasks. They were led into the palace, which had lava waterfalls built into its walls.

“Welp, thats amazing,” Jason said, looking up at it in awe.

“Okay, I see the appeal of other worlds now,” Twi said in amazement. Nyx was content with oohing and ahhing from her mother’s back.

“This way, the king is waiting for you,” their guide said, ushering them inside. They were quickly taken before the king, who greeted them from his throne. He wore shimmering golden armor and his crown was encrusted with all kinds of gemstones.

“Hail travellers, we’ve not seen visitors since the time of the Aesir,” the king spoke.

“We have come from Asgard to seek audience with you,” Jason said, getting down on one knee, “I, Corypheus, kin of Loki, have come to make a request of you.” He gestured for the others to bow as well.

Dash rolled her eyes, doing so, as did Twilight. Twi bowed as well, Nyx bowing as much as she could.

“Loki’s kin hmm?” the king asked, running his fingers through his rather glorious beard. 

“I was sent here by my Uncle Fenrir, in hopes that you would craft me armor,” Jason said, looking up at him.

“Hel let the beast free of her realm?” the king asked with a frown.

“Well, actually, no, someone decided it would be a good idea to turn him into a zombie.” Hel rose out of the ground, giving Jason a smile. “Hello Corypheus, I thought to lend you aid, the dwarves are a stubborn people after all.” She turned to Twi, her eyes locking on Nyx. “Well this is a surprise, seems you have escaped death more than once, young one.”

Nyx eeped, hiding behind her mother’s mane. Twi put on a look of defiance. “If you try anything like Hades...” she let the threat hang in the air. “I already lost her once, I won’t let anyone or anything take her from me again.”

Hel laughed, shaking her head. “You misunderstand, I applaud her.”

“You what?” Twi and Nyx asked simultaneously, utterly surprised based off what happened with Hades.

“So you’re not going to take her away to your underworld because she used to be Nightmare Moon?” Twi prompted.

“My dear, escaping death is quite the feat and to do it more than once demands respect. Never yield, even in death,” Hel said with a smile. “With your permission, I would like to give her a blessing.”

“What kind of blessing?” Twi asked, suspicious. “You’re being a little too nice. What’s your game? Come on, out with it. Did Hades put you up to this?”

“Oh no, I hate that man,” Hel said with a slight glare, “I would like to give your daughter some of what made my brother Sleipnir special.”

“What’s that?” Nyx asked, her curiosity getting the better of her.

“The ability to move to and from the afterlife. Runes of power would be placed into your hooves so that the dead and their lord could not touch you.”

Nyx looked to to Twi, who seemed unsure. On the one hoof, Nyx would be safe from Hades forever. But on the other, she was scared of losing Nyx in the underworld. With the one pro outweighing the cons, Twi nodded.

“Alright. If it keeps her safe from Hades.”

As Hel smiled, darkness encircled each of Nyx’s hooves briefly before fading away, leaving behind strange runes that hummed with power. She leaned forward, whispering so low that none could hear her save for herself and the one to whom she spoke, “I know you're in there.” Nothing came in return. She just smiled, moving to Twi, holding out a tablet of runes. “You’re smart, it shouldn’t be too hard to figure this out.

“Thank you, miss. Thank you for protecting my filly,” Twi said with a gracious bow.

“You are more than welcome. Though if Hades asks, feel free to tell him those are courtesy of me, just be sure to get me a picture of his reaction. Ta ta,” she said, melting away into the shadows.

“That’s your grandma?” Dash asked, shivering a little, “Lady gives me the creeps.”

“She’s supposed to, she’s the goddess of death,” Jason said with a roll of his eyes. “Though Twilight, that tablet has to be important,” he said, looking to Twi.

“Hmm,” she said as she looked over the stone. “I might have to consult some of the older texts Celestia gifted me. Might have to call in a rune expert too. Hopefully my new library has everything I’ll need otherwise.”

“Well, it seems Hel has spoken for you,” the king said, getting their attention. “While her father was a snake she herself is a good enough sort. I shall see to your request personally.”

“I have brought materials,” Jason said removing them from his cube, “The teeth of Fenrir and the scales of Jormungandr.”

“You certainly have a mind for quality, from these the smiths will forge glorious armor, like the days of old. Pray tell, with the amount you’ve brought, armor could be made for all of you,” he said, looking at the gathered group, “Is that something you wish?”

“We’ll pass, but thank you,” Twi said, dismissing their offer politely for her and Nyx.

“I was hoping to have armor forged for my friends. While they are not here, I could assume their forms,” Jason said with a nod.

“A shapeshifter, hm? Must run in the family. Please follow my servants, they shall take you to the blacksmiths.” He nodded, sending his servants to pick up the materials.

“Well, that was easy,” Dash said as their group followed, having no idea how idiotic her comment was.





Far off, Ben wandered through a side cave. He had snuck off from his dwarven supervisors, for their own safety. He could feel the pain in his head growing with every step, cold sweat pouring down from his forehead. As he reached another side cave, his Omnitrix timed out of his locked form, returning him to human form.

“Crap,” he cursed. “It’s almost time.” He shuddered as the cold pierced his skin. Now matter how hard he tried, Ben couldn’t stay warm. That was the first sign of who was slowly making his way forward. Ben’s breathing was still ragged and he could see every breath as it flowed out of him. He reached the end of the offshoot cave, praying to any god who would listen that no one found him. Apparently he did not pray hard enough.

“Honored guest,” a dwarf said as he and his partner stood at the entrance to the offshoot cave. “Your presence is requested to join your compatriots. Now.”

Ben slumped against the wall, looking at them pleadingly. “Please. You have to go. Stay away from me.”

“If there is something wrong we can have one of our healers look ya over,” the other said, looking at him.

“You have to run! Please, I don’t want to hurt you!” Ben pleaded with them. “Just run!” A sudden spike in his head caused him to grip it tightly and choke back a scream. “He’s coming.”

“Just calm down,” he said, moving closer to Ben, putting his hands up.

“It’s too late!” Ben shouted as the Omnitrix activated. He screamed in pain as he transformed. In his place, crouched a tall, blue-cloaked, bug-like creature. It stood up, much taller than Ben was, its green bug-eyes looking down on the dwarves. It let out a deep breath, coming out as cold wind.

“Big... Chill,” it breathed out. “What do you want?” it asked of the dwarves.

“Please come with us,” one said, looking rather uneasy.

“I don’t think so, shorty,” Big Chill answered back. He went stiff for a moment, sniffing the air. “Hmm, I smell... gold, silver, jewels... there’s treasure here. Treasure... for the taking.”

“You will go nowhere near them,” the other said, drawing his weapon.

“So you stand in my way?” it asked. In response, the dwarves got into a ready stance. It chuckled darkly, walking towards them. It phased right through the dwarves, their bodies freezing solid. Big Chill chuckled again, putting his three-digit claws on both of their heads. He gripped tightly, crushing them into nothingness. He walked away from the busted ‘ice sculptures’, heading deeper into dwarven home. “This... is going to be fun.” 





“That should be the last of them,” Jason said, currently in Chrysalis’s form as blacksmiths took measurements. He had gone through the rest of the Elements, plus the princess and finally Chrysalis. Zed was behaving herself and getting her own measurements taken. Jason looked over and saw Twi staring out into the caves.

“He had an episode didn’t he...?” Jason asked with a sigh.

Twi hung her head, knowing it was true. “I don’t know who is next. But, I just got a feeling that it’s free, whatever it is.”

“Lovely,” he said, shifting back to his default changeling form and then back to normal, “I’m going to go look for him.” He nodded to the dwarves, who were already busy forging the armor sets. “Any ideas on what he would shift into?”

“There’s only ten options,” Twi said, looking back through her book as Twilight and Rainbow gathered around.

“Which are?”

“There’s Humungousaur, Cannonbolt, Alien X, Brainstorm, Echo Echo, Goop,” Twi shuddered on that one. “Rath too. And those are just the ones that have been seen at the moment.”

“You don’t know the rest?” Twilight asked with a frown. “There are over a million things he could have turned into.”

Twi shook her head. “No, there isn’t. Only ten choices... they don’t know, do they?” She directed the question to Jason.

“Wasn’t my business to tell,” Jason said, shaking his head.

Suddenly, they saw a small troop of dwarves heading off into the caves. One stopped in front of them. “You should all take shelter. We shall deal with the threat.” He ran off after his brethren.

“Oh no,” Twi gulped. “I was right. One of the Voices is loose.”

“Twilight, relax, I got this,” Jason said, starting to run after the dwarves, determination on his face.

“Just don’t hurt him!” Twi called after Jason. “He’s not in control of himself!” She sighed as Jason disappeared, leaving her with a confused Twilight and Rainbow Dash.

Jason kept moving, soon coming across the dwarves, all frozen solid or crushed. “Ok that leaves two possibilities... Articguana or Big Chill...” he said, inspecting them. He heard panting coming from behind him, he turned to see Twi racing after him. “Why aren’t you with the others?”

She stopped in front of him, getting her breath back. “I... I promised... I promised to keep you safe from him.” She looked around at all of the damage, her face paling slightly. “Oh no, Big Chill. This has to be him.”

“Twilight, he can’t hurt me,” Jason said with a roll of his eyes, “And no thats not me bragging about how strong I am, Big Chill literally can’t actually hurt me.”

“Look,” she said firmly. “I made a promise to Ben and I’m gonna keep it. I hope you don’t expect a fight. Big Chill is the voice of Apathy. You’ll be hard pressed to even get his attention.”

“Watch me,” Jason said, his eyes glowing red. He touched the frozen dwarves, pulling the cold out of them. “You all should get out of here,” he told them. “Go get as much fire as you can.”

They nodded, hurrying off.

“Ah, I got it,” Jason said with a smirk. He whistled, Zed quickly running up to him, “I almost forgot our ace in the hole,” he grinned, patting her head. “Twilight, did Ben ever tell you about the Nemetrix?”

“Ben never talks about Earth unless we specifically ask, so no.”

“The Nemetrix is from the same place that the Omnitrix is from. See the Omnitrix is full of intelligent creatures, the Nemetrix however is full of animals. Specifically predators of what’s in the Omnitrix. One of those is Big Chill’s predator.”

“Are you sure that will work?” Twi asked, not sounding so sure. “The Voices are a tricky bunch.”

“Oh I’m sure, we just can’t show our hand too early,” he said, shaking his head. “Hey Big Chill, I got some tasty titanium for ya! Yeah... I didn’t think that would work. Ideas?”

Twi shook her head. “This one hasn’t been seen by us yet. I don’t know anything about him other than he’s selfish and tactless.”

“Gee,” he said rather loudly, “I hope no one finds out about the cube that stores all my valuables.It would be a shame if they tried to take it woudn’t it Twilight?” he asked, gesturing for her to play along.

“Oh, oh yes! We certainly don’t want all those treasure items to be absconded with!” Twilight said in an equally loud tone.

True to his nature, a blue bug ghosted through the wall. “Did someone say treasure?” it breathed out.

“Oh hi, Big Chill,” Jason said with a wave, “we were just talking about my treasure cube.” He flashed the hypercube, placing it back in his pocket.

“Treasure cube? How nice. Hand it over.” He put out his claw, waiting for it to be handed over.

“Nah, I’m just gonna keep it,” Jason said shaking his head.

“Whatever,” Big Chill replied with a shrug, turning around to phase through the wall again.

Twi gave Jason a look. “Apathy, remember? He doesn’t care.”

“Oh he wouldn’t want the treasure cube Twilight, now Zed’s collar on the other hand, thats the real treasure. That thing has diamonds up the wazoo!” he smirked, winking at her.

Big Chill sighed. “If you’re not going to just hand it over, then I don’t care. That’s work. I don’t do work.”

“By all means just take it,” he said, “I’m rich enough as it is.” Jason gestured for him to take it. Big Chill was suspicious, but free stuff was free stuff. He moved over to Zed, grasping for the collar.

“Zed, Hypnotick.” Zed shifted from, now a very large, twin fanged insect. It hovered in front of Big Chill, staring into his eyes, and began releasing a red mist.

“Twilight, behold the Psycholeopterran, predator of the Necrofriggians, Big Chill’s species. Don’t look into the mist or it’ll hypnotize you.” Jason warned. They watched as Big Chill just stared at Hypnotick, their plan apparently succeeding... until Big Chill slammed his fist into the giant bug’s face.

“Did you honestly think your pathetic hypnotism would work on me?” it asked, glaring at a dumbstruck Jason. “Not only do you hold back your treasure, but then you try to control me. That calls for a little revenge.” Big Chill phased through the floor, disappearing.

“Well, Buy some apples!. I should have seen that coming.” Jason looked around. “Stay alert Twi, if he shows up, dive behind me.” They gathered around each other, waiting for anything.

“JASON!!” they heard Rainbow Dash cry out from the dwarven city.

“Move!” Jason shouted as the trio raced back toward the city. Arriving at the source of the screaming, they saw Big Chill standing there, with Twilight frozen solid and Rainbow Dash, half frozen, held high in his grip.

“I told you there would be revenge,” he said simply, putting a claw on Twilight’s statue.

Jason narrowed his eyes, and the next thing anyone saw, he was suddenly in front of Big Chill. With a single punch, Jason sent him flying into the wall, then caught Dash before she hit the floor. “You are totally outclassed in the cold department,” Jason said. Touching Twilight’s statue, he absorbed the cold from both mares.

“H-he was going to k-kill us!” Twilight stumbled back, shivering.

“Blame your friend,” Big Chill said, picking himself up and brushing off the debris. “He shouldn’t have ticked me off. Whatever, though, I’m gonna go get my treasure now.”

“Oh no you’re not,” Jason said, putting down Rainbow Dash. “Omnitrix, Nightshade,” Jason said, shifting into his Gengar form.

Big Chill let out a massive groan. “Why do you keep getting in my way? I don’t want to work.”

“The word of the day is job. J-O-B.” Jason said with an inhumanly massive grin.

All of sudden, a loud beeping noise emanated from Big Chill’s chest. They all looked towards the sound, to see the Omnitrix was powering down. Big Chill slumped over a bit and sighed. “Whatev–” and he transformed back into Ben, who immediately crumpled to the floor.

“Ben!” Twi rushed over to him, quickly checking that he was alright.

“Is he alright?” Jason asked, reverting to normal. He moved over to Ben, kneeling down to check his pulse.

“I think so. The Voices usually drain him quite a bit. With the way he was acting earlier, this particular one must have taken a lot out of him.”

“You three should get out of here before the dwarves get back.” Jason stood up, looking around. “Nyx, you should stay close to your mother,” Jason instructed.

“Finland,” Ben moaned, still semi-conscious. Nyx did as instructed, getting on Twi’s back.

“Just... please don’t blame him for this,” Twi pleaded to Jason, as well as Twilight and Rainbow Dash to a lesser extent. “He can’t control it. They aren’t him.”

“I don’t,” Jason said shaking his head, “Ben Ten, our contract is complete.”

A portal opened beneath the three otherworlders, causing them to fall through. Jason swore he heard Ben yell as they fell, “Just my luck!” It closed right after them.

“Well... that was something...” Twilight said, looking at the portal. “I wish we had gotten along better.” She sighed, shaking her head.

“Not everyone can be friends Twi, not everyone can be friends...” Jason said, standing up. ‘Ben, I know you can help her get over it,’ he thought to himself.  “Ah fuck! He didn’t undo the curse... wait... when did it stop working? Huh... not gonna question it.” Jason didn’t see his Omnitrix flash, nor did he notice that it was working by itself.
> Introducing Space Robocop
> --------------------------------------------------------------------------

“You know Jason, those dwarves were jerks,” Dash said as she exited the portal, with Jason and Twilight following behind. They had returned to the same area they had left from, the howling wind echoing through the mountain range.

“Of course they are, they’re dwarves, what did you expect? The lollipop guild?” Jason asked, trying to keep his hair from blowing into his eyes. 





Meanwhile, as a certain group of heroes were in the mountains, a presence unlike any seen before appeared out in space. It was quiet at first, as was the norm of space, until a large thoom was heard. Out of the very inky blackness, a massive warship appeared. The ship itself was a rough U in shape, though some could mistake it for an abstract V. The ship’s hull was a dark metallic blue with chrome segments. Yellow lights flickered along its surface as it pulled into orbit around the planet of Gaia.

Within the ship itself, many life forms were present. The life forms in question resembled humans, but there were vast differences. Their skin and bodies seemed to be garbed in purple body suits. Though their heads were human in shape, they were smooth and featureless metal domes. Silver metallic hands glided across buttons as a readout appeared on the screen.

“Excellent, though this is Gaia,” a deep metallic voice boomed, “There is no sign of HIM. Lites, prepare to bring us in, It’s time to carry out Lord DerosS’s will. HAIL STAREATER!”

The Lites stood as one and gave off a metallic ‘skree’ in agreement.





“It’s so good to be home,” Dash said with a sigh as the trio returned to Ponyville, “Those tunnels were a nightmare.”

“Yeah, I probably should have figured a pegasus would be rather claustrophobic inside of a mountain,” Jason said, running a hand through his hair, “Sorry about that.”

“We still have to organize an official visit, Celestia will most likely want to forge an alliance with them,” Twilight piped up, still rather excited about meeting a new form of life.

“I bet ol’ Sunbutt will,” Jason said with a chuckle, pointedly ignoring the glare Twilight gave him.

“Hey guys, what’s that?” Rainbow asked, pointing up towards the sky with one of her talons.

From above, breaching the cloud bank, a massive ship descended toward the town. Many ponies came out of their homes to look up, while others outside gawked. The ship leveled off at the height of Cloudsdale and halted. In a manner of moments a translucent beam of teal energy projected from the ship and touched the ground. What appeared within the area of the beam made many ponies back up - strange silver headed aliens, one hundred strong, stood at attention as one shape pushed through their ranks. The individual in question stood an imposing seven feet tall, built like a buff minotaur. His armor was a dark chrome and resembled smoothed tank plating. Two burning orange eyes scanned the crowd, the black plasma caster cannons on his shoulders whirring in a nervous twitch.

“Attention lifeforms of Gaia,” the beast proclaimed, “Rejoice, for the glorious leader of our Empire has deemed me his representative. Therefore, on behalf of our Lord DerosS, I, Zeongzer request to speak with the one who calls themselves Princess.” 

“Yeah, I’m a prince,” Jason spoke up, moving closer, “Plus, I think you’re in the wrong place, this is Asgard,” he said, looking at him with a critical eye.

Zeongzer’s eyes fixed on him. “You are among the leaders of this Equestria?” He turned to a Lite and bonked him on the head, “FOOL! You were to inform me if a human life sign was on this version!”

The Lite skreed in an apologetic manner before Zeongzer closed the distance between the human, “What is your name, human?” The last word was spoken with venom.

“Umm yeah... I’m not human,” Jason said crossing his arms, “I’m a Jotun, thank you very much,”

Zeongzer scanned the ‘human’, its signature was strange. “I see. Very well, tell me your name then, Jotun.”

“You may call me Corypheus,” Jason said, looking up at the ship. “May I ask why you are here?” 

Zeongzer stood tall and gestured to the Jotun. “I have come on behalf of my Lord to inform you that he has picked your planet as the newest addition to our vast empire. Your immediate surrender is recommended.”

Pinkie, who was nearby, gently pushed a ‘Welcome Alien Friends’ cake out of sight.

Jason just stared at him for a second before bursting out into a fit of laughter, “Oh thats pretty good, you know, the Incurseans said the same thing before we kicked them outta this universe,”

Zeongzer stared at the being before him. His metallic face holding no emotion, Zeongzer nodded affirmatively.

“Then your choice has been made.” Zeongzer then reached down, grasped the being by the throat, and threw him into a fruit stand. “Lites! Destroy them all!”

Zeongzer snapped his claw like fingers, then the Lites rushed into town like a herd of angry buffalo. Their hands converted into hand blasters and sabers. 

“Flare Star!” Jason sprung from the fruit stand and fired off the spell. The explosion caught the Lites in it’s wake, incinerating them. “I will fucking kill you,” Jason snorted, glaring at Zeongzer.

Zeongzer glanced at the being in mild fascination, “Hm, how irritating.” The ship then hummed with power as it beamed down more Lites. Unlike the first wave, their numbers matched the population of Ponyville and Canterlot combined.

“That force was merely my escort.” Zeongzer turned to his opponent as his cannons started to heat up, raw plasma pooling at the front. “PUNISHER CRUSH!”

Twin blasts of raw power plowed into the hero like a freight train as the Lites started their assault on the town. 

Jason grunted, having managed to block the blast with Laevateinn. The blade crackled and hummed, absorbing most of the energy. Jason snarled, cutting through the beam, his sword red hot and hissing angrily. 

Zeongzer growled in annoyance, “Insolent lower life form!” The general rushed the Jotun as a blade of pure electrified plasma sprouted from his wrist and they clashed swords. Meanwhile Lites were laying siege to the small town, ponies scrambling to protect their young as well as try to fight back. But the technology on the Lites, though not as advanced as Zeongzer’s, proved to be a challenge in itself. Rarity was using a massive boulder to crush as many as she could, but they kept coming.

“They’re like roaches with lasers!” she screamed as one singed her mane.

“Lower life form?” Jason asked with a laugh, “I’ll have you know the very first life form to appear in this universe was the first of my race.” He kicked the beast away, panting. “Omnitrix, Atomix,” he said, shifting into the large robotic creature.

Zeongzer shook its head after regaining himself, “So, you can change can you? Interesting,” Zeongzer looked to the side, “But should you focus on me alone? It seems your comrades are having a hard time with my troops,” the tone was both a mocking and condescending one.

“Oh but he’s not alone,” Chrysalis said. Firing a spell at Zeongzer, she launched him into a building. She turned to Jason with a smirk, “Twilight teleported to the hive and informed me about the situation.” Above them, a good portion of the hive flew out of the forest, aiding in the town’s defense.

Zeongzer emerged from the rubble, his eyes burning red, “Enough of this foolishness!” Once more, a teleporting beam from the ship appeared, but this one was continuous. Lites poured out in droves, joining their comrades as Zeongzer started to fire on Jason and his comrades. Only this time, he was sending explosive plasma rounds in the area near and around them.

“To trifle with me is to court death!”

The explosions rocked the ground, knocking several of the defenders out of the sky, into the ground, or sent them hurtling to parts unknown in town.

“Alright, I’m starting to get pissed,” Jason said, firing several nuclear blasts at Zeongzer. Zed had come to her masters aid, tearing into the Lites in the form of Buglizard.

Zeongzer grunted as the blasts rained down on him, the smoke obscuring him. The smoke was blasted away as a Punisher Crush plowed into Atomix. The robotic being was sent sprawling from the sudden attack, forcing Jason to revert from the sheer impact. Zeongzer closed the distance, blasting the Jotun’s allies aside like flies. 

“Hm, you see now,” he planted his boot on Jason’s chest as hydraulic muscle bore down, “Resistance is pointless.” The ship started to rain down shots on the town, “Surrender,” a point blank Punisher Crush started to charge.

“I live to die in combat, I will not yield,” Jason glared, starting to charge an Ultima spell. “Can you say the same?” he asked, not a trace of fear in his eyes.

“I live and breathe death,” Zeongzer stated, “From me, more will come, you will lose!”

As the Punisher Crush was about to fire, a massive crack was heard. From in front of the StarEater general, a Time Vortex opened. Something quickly emerged from the vortex.

“HIYA!”

A white shoe planted itself firmly in the face of the robo, knocking it over and causing the blast to shoot into the sky. The being landed and stood tall. The person looked eighteen, wearing a grey coat with a silver G on the lapel over his heart. He wore dark blue jeans and white sneakers. His brown eyes focused on the downed Jotun as his medium length brown hair blew in the mild breeze, revealing a small ponytail in the back.

“Hey dude,” he bent down and offered his hand, “you alright?”

“Yeah,” Jason said, getting to his feet, cracking his neck, “I was more or less holding back. I take it these are your guys?”

The young man nodded, “Yeah more or less, Zeongzer here took a ship out of my Equestria and went Celestia knows where. Then a friend dropped me a line and told me they were headed here. Long story short,” he pointed a thumb at the growling general, “he wants to take over your planet, use all the stars in this galaxy as fuel and move on.”

He raised a hand to the Jotun, “By the way, name’s Gavin Brooks, nice to meet ya.”

“Jason Hughes, a pleasure,” Jason said taking his hand, giving it a shake. 

Zeongzer glared with hatred at Gavin. “You!”

Gavin stepped forward, “Me!” He looked at Jason and smiled, “Watch this.”

Gavin raised a fist to his his chest, “Electroplate!”

He then struck a pose as a cloud of shining silver particles formed onto his body to reveal what he had become.

“Alright, since not many of you on this Equestria know me. A little introduction,” he gestured to the ponies who were looking. “I’m Gavin Brooks, but to my enemies and friends I also go by the name of Space Sheriff.” He then raised a fist at Zeongzer, ”GAVAN!”

The Lites froze as they turned and looked at their shining silver combat suited nemesis.

Gavan turned to look at Jason, “Ready to beat these clowns?”

“You know, I was gonna tear these guys apart limb from limb, but then you went all sentai on me so, why don’t I indulge a little?” Jason asked. Planting his sword in the ground, he reached into his pocket and grabbed a small object. “A moment please,” he said, revealing the object to be a power morpher. “It’s morphin’ time!” he shouted, going through the motions and activating it. “Dragonzord!” there was a flash and where Jason stood was now the green power ranger.

Gavan stood in mild surprise for a moment, “Sentai...” he pointed at Jason, “Oh! You mean Power Rangers! Dude that’s awesome! Frankly though I don’t know what this is,” he gestured to his combat suit, “I just sort of...”

Zeongzer let loose a massive Punisher Crush at the two as both tucked and rolled out of its way. Gavan looked over at Jason, and merely nodded as he reached to his fist and unsheathed a sword from under it. The sword’s hilt was black and yellow with a smooth flawless blade and it had no crossguard to speak of. 

Gavan stood up as the blue digital lines lit up on the black segments of his chest, and two neon blue eyes flashed to life in his blackened visor. Leveling his sword, he stood beside his comrade in arms. 

Jason summoned the dragon dagger and grabbed his sword, “This is gonna be good,” Jason smirked behind his helmet.

Gavan then released a mighty yell and charged forward, Jason following his pace, both their weapons raised. Behind them a massive explosion rocketed into the sky, courtesy of a missed shot from the ship. Gavan leapt at Zeongzer, bringing his sword down hard on the creature, sparks flying as the Zeongzer summoned his arm’s sword and started to clash with the Space Sheriff.

He glanced at Jason who attacked Zeongzer’s blind spot, “Nice one!” 

The Space Sheriff ducked under a swing and raised his right hand and extended his middle and index finger, “Laser Z Beam!”

A beam of white triangles hit Zeongzer square in the chest forcing him toward Jason. Jason leapt forward, using the energy his sword had absorbed earlier to empower his attacks, slicing at the beast.

Gavan leapt into the air and extended both his fists toward Zeongzer, “Dimension Bomber!” He plowed his fists into the beast, knocking him for a loop. Chrysalis, taking the opportunity, fired a focused beam that decimated Zeongzer’s right shoulder cannon. Gavan landed and slashed the other to pieces. Gavan looked to Jason who jumped to his side and they both delivered twin kicks to the StarEater General, knocking him down hard.

Gavan brought his fingers to his blade and dragged them along it, bright blue energy consuming it with electricity crackling off it. “Laser Blade.” His eyes glowed in sync with the sword, “Let’s end this, partner.” 

Jason smirked as he powered down. “Knock him into the sky for me will ya?” Jason asked

Gavan nodded as he rushed Zeongzer. “Gavan Upperpunch!”

A powerful uppercut sent the damaged monster into the air as Gavan jumped up and front flipped, bringing his sword down. “GAVAN DYNAMIC!!!” 

Zeongzer yelled in agony as the attack critically damaged him, then his eyes fell on the smirking Jotun, “No...”

Jason held his arm up, a multicolored distortion building at his palm, “Ultima!” he shouted as the distortion flew out of his hand. It cut through Zeongzer, then his ship, both of which exploded in a massive explosion, shaking most of the buildings in town.

Gavan landed and fist pumped, “Yes!”

The Lites all stared around, their source of numbers and command all but destroyed now. 

Gavan turned to Jason, “What do you think, give them a ten second head start?”

Jason pursed his lips, “Lets give them fifteen, just to be fair.”

Gavan started counting.





After the massive clean up of Lites and wreckage, Gavin was dusting himself off as he stood before the Time Vortex. He glanced back at the destruction and sighed. 

“Damn it,” he kicked a rock, “If I had just gotten here earlier...” He shook his head.

“Hey, this isn’t the worst that's happened here, be glad you weren’t here when the knights rebelled or that crap with Eclipse and Fenrir,” Jason said with a sigh, shaking his head. “So... how long have you been Displaced for?”

Gavin shrugged, “Displaced is an odd word for it, in my terms I guess I was just called.” He smiled. “But I say bout now... been at this for a month. And we’re no closer to beating StarEater.”

Twilight raised an eyebrow, “We?”

Gavin nodded as he half stepped into the vortex, “I have two partners. One’s a bit of a jerk at times, the other is a nice girl. Both are Space Sheriffs like me.”

Gavin looked into the vortex and for the briefest instance, everyone saw another Ponyville, in a more repaired condition. On the other side, two individuals stood, one in red armor, the other in blue.

Gavin tilted his head, “What? You serious...? Crap.” He looked back to Jason. “Hey, there’s a bit of a situation over there. But just to be fair, here,” he passed Jason a blue card with three names on it. ‘Gavan, Sharivan, Shaider.’

“If you need me, us, or just one of em,” he made a phone gesture, “drop us a line.”

He raised his fist in a fist bump gesture.

Jason returned the fist bump and tossed him a Unitrix core. “Use that if you ever really need any help,” Jason said with a nod.

“Good luck, Jason. Hope we can fight again soon.” He stood in the portal as it closed, waving. 

“You take care. May the winds of victory always be at your back and the blood on your sword never dry,” Jason said, giving a salute.

The portal closed, and a new friendship was formed. Then, with a bright flash, Celestia appeared. She gazed around at Ponyville’s condition and facehoofed with a sigh.

“So, what was trying to invade us this time? I want details.”


> Rarity Goes Nuts
> --------------------------------------------------------------------------

“This is excellent,” the puppeteer said, inspecting the object in front of him. “You, my dear did a wonderful job.” He leaned down, poking at the wheels and magically pulled it a bit with his puppets. “It does seem to travel!” He moved up, looking through the window, “Plenty of room for my puppets!”

“I’m so glad you like it,” Rarity beamed, soaking up the praise. 

“It was a pleasure doing business with you Ms. Rarity,” the stallion said, levitating a small bag of bits out from under his hat and dropping it into her hoof. 

“Oh no, the pleasure was all mine,” she said with a smile, waving as the puppeteer trotted off with his new puppet theater. 

“He loved it just like I said he would, Rarity,” Spike said with a smile, hoping to get her praise. 

“You did say that didn’t you?” she asked with a smile. She levitated a gem out of her saddle bag, plopping it into his eager claws. He licked his lips, took a bite out of it, and chewed happily.

“Spike,” Rarity asked, tapping her chin, “How would you like to go shopping with me?”

“For you Rarity, anything,” the young drake said, nodding eagerly.

“Good, maybe you can help me pick out the right gift,” she said, trotting over to some of the stalls. 

“Who’s it for?” Spike asked, still munching on his gem as he waddled after her.

“Well... can you keep a secret?” Rarity asked him, giving him an uncertain look.

“Of course Rarity,” Spike nodded, “I won’t tell anypony,” he said, looking up at her with a smile.

“Well, ok...” she leaned in close, “It’s a gift for Jason and Chrysalis,” she whispered.

“Oh I get it, like a wedding present!” he said, cringing when she shushed him.

“Not quite Spike, it’s more... a courtship gift,” Rarity said, rather gingerly. 

“Y-you mean like a date?” he asked, his eyes wide.

“Yes Spike, I’m going to ask if they would like to go on a date with me,” she said looking around to make sure nopony had heard them. 

“B-but Rarity!” he started, looking heart broken.

Dramatically turning away, she said, “I realize that you have a crush on me Spike but... I’m afraid it’s not to be.” She turned back only to find that he had run off. She sighed, shaking her head. “I really hope he’ll be ok... young love never ends well...”





“Argh, there's gotta be something in here somewhere,” Spike said as he lifted a book up, flipping through it. Unlike the rest of the old castle, the changelings had not touched the library, besides some structural repairs, at the request of Twilight. In response Owlowiscious hooted from behind him.

“It's not ‘who’, it's ‘what’! Like, ‘what’ can help me win Rarity over?” He placed the book down, fiddling with some things on the next shelf up, “Nopony respects or cares about her more than I do.” He turned to look at Owlowiscious. “I can’t let  her slip through my fingers!” he said, punching his open palm. “She says I’m her favorite dragon after all, so I already have a head start.”

He jumped onto a ladder, sliding several bookshelves away. “There's gotta be some kind of... something that'll do the trick.” He pulled a book out before immediately putting it back.  Owlowiscious hooted, causing Spike to look back at him. “Come on, help a dragon out!” he pulled another book out, only to see Owlowiscious behind it. He blinked and replaced the book, causing Owlowiscious to hoot again. Spike slid down a few more shelves, still not having found anything useful.

Again Owlowiscious was already there, hooting at him. He glared as he started to climb down the ladder. “Ugh! It's not for me! It's for Rarity! The one who made you that bow tie you like so much?” Owlowiscious hooted, nodding. “Okay, I get it.” Spike said, moving over to a bookcase across the room. He grabbed a book, picking it up when the room started to shake. “You don’t think we should use magic–” he turned, seeing the wall behind them slide away, revealing a glowing book, locked behind a gate. “What is that?”

He walked over to it, ignoring his companion’s frantic hooting. He inspected the lock a bit, and a smirk appeared on his face. He gave it a quick blast of his fire, watching in satisfaction as it melted away. He threw the gate open and walked up to the book, ignoring the continued hooting. He gingerly picked it up, examining it. It was carved out of simple grey stone, a ring of spikes in the center. He rolled his eyes at the sound of still more hooting. “What? If I wasn't supposed to have it, it wouldn't be so easy to get. And it's covered in spikes, like me!” He showed it off, not noticing the walkway beginning to crumble. He opened the book, reading as he walked, just barely out-walking the rate at which the falling pieces plummeted into the abyss below. “‘Inspiration Manifestation: Instantly brings ideas to life,’” he smiled, “I'm likin' the looks of this one. Hmmm.”





Rarity sighed, slumping down on her couch, rather, rather depressed. She had utterly failed to find a gift of any sort and she had been unable to find Spike to have an actual talk with him. “And this day started so swimmingly too...” she said with a sigh.

“Rarity~” Spike called, pushing the door open, walking in with a smirk.

“Spike dear where have you been?” Rarity asked, sitting up, trying to fix her mane, “I’ve been looking all over for you.”

“Well, after what you said, I had to go out and get you a gift,” he said, climbing up on the couch’s head rest. 

“Spike, I’m sorry but it just wouldn’t work out between us.” she shook her head, trying to get through to him. 

“But it’s magic!” She sighed, shaking her head.

“Spike, precious scales, I already have magic.”

“But not the kind that can let you create anything you can imagine,” he argued. Presenting the book to her, he continued, “This can!”

She sighed, taking the book from him, deciding to humor him. “I suppose it’s worth a try.” Opening it up, she looked over the enchantment.

“From in the head to out in the world, every thought to action.
Hold close this book and through its spell, you'll start a chain reaction,
projecting forth whatever beauty you see.
Only when true words are spoken will you finally be set free.”

She didn’t notice the sickly green magic leaving the book, sinking into her horn, replacing her natural magic’s color with its own.

“Well... did it work?” Spike asked eagerly. 

“Hm! Only one way to find out,” she said. Closing the book, she held it up in front of her face and concentrated on it. She found it rather dull and imagined it as an elegantly bound book. With a flash, the book had changed to exactly what she imagined. “Oh, my! I thought about making this a much more beautiful spell book, and I have!” She turned her attention to her couch, zapping it into a much more elaborate version. “Spike my dear! This is the best gift anypony has ever given me!” she said, pulling him into a hug.

“Score!” Spike said, pumping his fist. This was the best idea he’d ever had.





“This is the worst idea I’ve ever had,” Spike whimpered as he watched Rarity turn a rather fun looking Pinkie Pie party into a dull looking fancy party. That just wasn’t right! The plan had backfired massively, having caused Rarity to stay up all night creating things non-stop, and now she was morphing Ponyville into her currently twisted sense of beauty. “I have to do something, but I promised not to tell anypony... thats it! Jason and Chrysalis aren’t ponies!” Making sure Rarity wasn’t looking, he snuck off, quickly finding one of the hive’s gatherers.

“Is there something wrong, Sir Spike?” the drone asked, looking down at him.

“I need to talk to Jason and Chrysalis! It’s an emergency!” Spike huffed, looking around to make sure that Rarity hadn’t followed him.

He nodded, levitating Spike onto his back before buzzing off toward the castle. Spike held on tightly, constantly looking over his shoulder to make sure Rarity wasn’t behind him. It didn’t take them long to reach the castle, Jason and Chrysalis were already waiting for him.

“What’s up Spike?” Jason asked, tilting his head, “You told one of the drones that there was an emergency. Please tell me its not another invasion, we’ve already had two this month.” He groaned, looking rather worn out.

“No, um... this may sound weird, but, uh... you two aren’t ponies are you?” Spike asked, looking at them with hopeful eyes, wringing his claws.

“Uh... no Spike I am not a pony,” Jason said, looking rather confused at the question.

“Neither am I,” Chrysalis said, looking at him rather critically, “Why would you ask such a stupidly obvious question?”

“Well, um...” Spike said, clearing his throat and taking a deep breath, “I kind of promised Rarity that I wouldn't tell anypony about the magic book that I gave her that she's using to transform everything in Ponyville and it turned her magic green and she's gone CRAZY!” Spike panted. 

Jason opened his mouth to speak before Chrysalis levitated Spike up to her eyes, a rather angry expression on her muzzle. “What was that about a book?”

“Um... I found it in the library, i-it was made out of stone and had a circle of spikes on the front, um... it said it could make whatever you imagine into reality... um Chrysalis?” he asked, noticing she was just staring at him, her eye twitching.

“Chrissy?” Jason asked, looking rather concerned at her silence.  

“That bitch!” Chrysalis roared, tossing Spike into the sky, seething with rage. Luckily for the dragon, Jason was there to catch him. “She knew something like that was here and didn’t say anything!?”

“Ok just calm down Chrissy... dammit,” Jason muttered as Chrysalis tore off toward Ponyville. “Spike, when this is over, we’re going to have a serious talk about you just taking books from the castle library, especially magic books and shit.”

Spike groaned and hung his head, but nodded anyway. “Yes, Jason...”

Chrysalis landed in Ponyville, seeing that the very streets had been turned to gold, reflecting the sun to a blinding degree. She hissed, covering her eyes. “Oh, Celestia and I are going to have a nice long talk about this.” She gritted her teeth, starting to push her way through the blinding light. She spotted the affected mare, giggling insanely to herself, in the process of turning a lamppost into solid silver. “Rarity, you have to stop this.”

“Oh Chrysalis, there you are!” Rarity said with glee, “I’ve been trying to figure out what the best gift to give you and Jason would be and it just came to me! I’ll make your hive the shining example of changeling fashion!” Her eyes flashed green, an utterly unhinged smile on her muzzle.

“Rarity, stop using that book, it’s... cursed,” Chrysalis said, glaring a little, “It’s externalized changeling magic, you have to stop using it before it corrupts you.”

“I can’t stop now, I’m almost finished!” Rarity said, zapping a tree into pink crystal. As she did so, her midsection took on the saddle-like appearance of a changeling, while wings sprouted from her back.

“Ok, screw the gentle approach. Too slow.” Chrysalis charged up her horn, blasting Rarity in the face with a sleeping spell. The strung out unicorn dropped like a sack of bricks, snoring away rather loudly. “Damnable ponies...” Chrysalis said, levitating the book out of Rarity’s saddlebag and quickly reading through it. “Only when true words are spoken... of course, ponies can’t just be straightforward, it’s always some feelings nonsense.” She draped Rarity across her back, muttering to herself as she took to the sky. When she got back to the hive, she found Jason  conversing with Twilight, a very downtrodden Spike sitting on a nearby tree stump.

“Rarity!” Spike shouted as he hopped off his stump, rushing over to them. Chrysalis dropped Rarity to the ground and glared at him. He gulped, shrinking back a little.

Pointing a hoof accusingly at Spike, she declared, “You! If you don’t want her to turn into a changeling, tell her how you really feel!” She zapped Rarity with an awakening spell. “Now!”

“Bwah?” Rarity asked, lifting her head off the ground with a groan.

“Um... Rarity...” Spike started, rather nervous about the group watching him. “I-I’m sorry...”

“For what, Spikey-Wikey?”

“Well when you told me you had feelings for Jason and Chrysalis... I-I just got so jealous. I thought that if I got you a gift you’d feel the same way about me but then I got you that book and now you're not you! Please! I just want the real you back!” he sobbed, giving her a hug. Rarity floated up into the air and the changeling magic swirled around her horn and left her body, returning to the book.

“Oh... my head...” Rarity said, rubbing her neck as she sat up. 

“You’re ok!” Spike cried, hugging her tighter.

“You knew she had the hots for us the whole time, didn’t you?” Jason asked, looking at Chrysalis, who had her eyes shut, communicating with her drones.

Chrysalis nodded. “Yup.”

“And you didn’t tell me, why?”

“I wanted to let her work up the courage to ask us out.”

“You’d be ok with that?”

“No one told you that ponies are polygamous?”

“No... but if Rarity wants to ask us out I’d give it a shot.” He gave the tired mare a smile, which she returned.

“Thank you Jason... why do I have wings? And this fashionable saddle?” 

“Later,” Chrysalis said, opening her eyes. “I need to go have a talk with Celestia.” She spread her wings and buzzed off towards Canterlot, the book still in her magical grasp. ‘This can only end well,’ Jason thought as he watched her disappear into the distance.
> Jason, The Love Guru
> --------------------------------------------------------------------------

“Hey Twi,” Apple Bloom said, looking up from her alchemy set, “Ah haven’t seen Spike in days, is he okay?” The normally chipper dragon had been absent from the past few Twilight Time sessions and the little fillies had started to worry.

“He’s okay Apple Bloom,” Twilight assured with a tired smile, “He’s just a little down in the dumps since Rarity turned him down. Just give him a few days and he’ll feel better.” She moved off, trotting into the kitchen.

“Ya know, we should do somethin’ ta cheer Spike up.” Apple Bloom said, looking to Sweetie Belle and Scootaloo.

“Yeah, but what?” Sweetie Belle asked, tapping her chin in thought.

“We could get him gems,” Scootaloo suggested, looking up from her half disassembled scooter.

“He already has a ton of those,” Apple Bloom said, shaking her head, “We need ta think of somethin’ that’ll take his mind off Rarity.”

“Why would we do that?” Sweetie Belle asked, tilting her head.

“Cuz’ thinking about your sister’s making him all depressed, duh,” Scootaloo rolled her eyes and continued to rebuild her scooter.

“Oh, right.” Sweetie gave a sheepish smile. “Well... maybe we should all come up with our own ideas. That way even if one of us is wrong, maybe the other two can still cheer him up.

“That’s a great idea Sweetie!” Apple Bloom said with a smile as the three of them moved closer to each other. 

“CUTIE MARK CRUSADERS DRAGON HELPERS! YAY!” they shouted, bumping their hooves together.  Twilight couldn’t help but cringe, their loudness carrying into the other room.

“I hope this ends better than that time they tried to get Cheerilee and and Big Mac together,” she muttered, carrying a plate of nachos back from the kitchen. She had a feeling though, that it probably wouldn't. 





“Hmm... maybe some gems will work? He loves gems...” Scootaloo said to herself, looking around the marketplace. She moved through the area, frowning a little. “I don’t have any bits... maybe I should try asking Rarity? Nah, that’s a bad idea...” She buzzed out of the market place, deep in thought. “Wait, Pinkie said she grew up on a rock farm! I can try her!” she smirked, buzzing off toward the edge of town. She frowned, seeing Sweetie Belle and Apple Bloom already there. “Hey! What are you two doing here?” 

“Ah’m goin ta’ Pinkie’s family’s rock farm ta look fer gems,” Apple Bloom said, gesturing toward the road out of town.

“No, I am,” Sweetie Belle clarified with a pout.

“No, that’s MY idea,” Scootaloo corrected, glaring at them, “You two get your own ideas!”

“This was my idea!” Apple Bloom said, glaring at Scootaloo.

“No! It was mine first!” Sweetie Belle argued. They spent the next few minutes in a shouting match before things turned ugly. The three friends all lunged at each other, kicking up a cartoonish ball of dust as their fight turned physical. They spent several minutes like this, hurling insults at each other all the way.  A familiar voice cleared their throat, causing the three to stop. They looked up, only to see Applejack, Rarity and Rainbow Dash looking down at them with disappointed glares. 

Apple Bloom opened her mouth to speak, only for Applejack to cut her off, “Ya’ll three are grounded, no ifs, ands, or buts about it.”

“But Applejack...” Apple Bloom whined, giving her a rather dejected look.

“Ah said no ‘buts’,” she said sternly. “Now come on you three, ain’t nopony else free ta watch ya’ll so we’re takin’ ya to Jason.”

“Yes Applejack...” the three fillies said with a groan, following their big sisters into the Everfree.

Meanwhile, at Everfree castle, Jason was glaring at Twilight, tapping his fingers against his stereo. “Twilight,” Jason started, annoyance clear in his voice, “I have been dealing with nobles all day, I just want to lay around and listen to Bon Jovi, is that too much to ask?”

“I’m sorry, Jason,” Twilight said, withstanding his glare. “There isn’t anypony else available that the girls would trust their sisters with. Besides... if anypony can handle those terrors it’d be you.”

“What was that?” Jason asked, raising his eyebrow.

“Nothing. Anyway, Chrysalis and I will be helping Rarity figure out her changes,” Twilight said. She turned to see the Cutie Mark Crusaders, who looked rather downtrodden, being escorted into the room by their older sisters.

“Sorry ‘bout this Jay,” Applejack said, giving her adopted brother an apologetic smile. “Me and Big Mac got loadsa stuff ta do on the farm so we can’t watch them.”

“I’ll be busy with Chrysalis and Twilight all day.” Rarity said simply. They turned to Dash, only to find that she had already left.

“Yeah, yeah,” he waved them off. “I got it, you guys just go do your thing, I got them.”

“Welp, good luck Jay, yer gonna need it,” Applejack said, taking her leave while Twilight and Rarity headed to the castle’s laboratory. 

“Ok,” Jason said, sitting up, looking at the three fillies, who were staring at the floor. “Why  exactly am I watching you three?”

“Well umm... we may have caused a lot of trouble...” Scootaloo admitted, rubbing the back of her neck with a sheepish smile, which the other two mirrored.

“How much trouble?” Jason asked, raising his eyebrow.

“Well, there was the time we gave Cheerilee and Big Mac that love poison,” Sweetie Belle started, “That time we messed up Rainbow’s house, that time we blew up Pinkie’s kitchen...” she stopped, noticing the glare that the others were giving her.

“Geez, it’s like Dennis The Menace times three,” Jason muttered, sighing. “Okay, so... you girls wanna listen to some music?” he asked, holding up the stereo.

“What kinda music?” Sweetie Belle asked as she climbed into Chrysalis’ throne, the others following suit.

“Okay so, we got grunge, punk,” he paused, looking at them, “You guys might be a little young for metal...” He pulled a CD out, staring at it. “Why the fuck do I have a Nickelback CD?” he asked, glaring at it like it was the most evil thing on the planet. “Wait... this is Jessica’s CD. Don’t need to keep this anymore,” he said. Tossing it into the air, he incinerated it with a burst of Flare.

“Whoa, what was all about Jason?” Scootaloo asked, looking at him a little wide eyed.

“That band sucks. Plus that CD belonged to my ex-girlfriend. I’m going to avoid ranting here, not for young ears to hear.”

“Whats an ‘ex-girlfriend’?” Apple Bloom asked, looking up at him with curious eyes. 

“Right... you guys don’t use that term,” Jason paused to put a CD in the stereo, letting the sounds of Nirvana fill the room. “So... when a guy dates a girl, she’s his girlfriend and he’s her boyfriend. An ex is someone who you used to date but aren’t dating anymore.”

“Oh!” Sweetie Belle piped up, “You mean like very special some... ponies...” she trailed off, looking down at her hooves.

“What’s got you so down Sweetie?” he asked, reaching over and scratching the little unicorn’s ear. She smiled, nuzzling his hand gently.

“Well... I wanted to give Spike a gift to cheer him up so I  thought I’d give him some gems...”

“That’s my idea!” Scootaloo growled, tackling Sweetie Belle off the throne.

“No, it’s my idea!” Apple Bloom shouted, jumping into the pile, the three of them rolling around, yelling insults at each other. 

Jason sighed, shifting into a tall creature with an egyptian style headdress that was made of bandages. He lifted them up and separated them with his bandages. “Ok, I think I know what’s going on... you all have a thing for Spike.” 

“So what if I do?” Scootaloo said, crossing her arms, “I’m gonna be Spike’s special somepony.’

“No, ah am!” Apple Bloom shouted, glaring at the pegasus. Sweetie Belle opened her mouth to protest, only for Jason to cut her off.

“Ya know... Chrysalis, Rarity and I are all together,” he said, trying to catch a look of understanding from each of them. Apple Bloom looked thoughtful and Scootaloo looked impatient, but Sweetie Belle just stared off into space with a blank expression.

“Yeah, and?” Scootaloo asked with a huff.

“Wait, y'all're together? Is that why Rarity turned down Spike?” Apple Bloom asked, looking at him with a thoughtful gaze.

“Yup, now what does that mean for you guys?” Jason asked, glad at least one of them was catching on.

“We can all be with Spike!” Sweetie Belle shouted with a smile. She turned to her fellow crusaders, who also wore grins on their faces. “CUTIE MARK CRUSADERS DRAGON HERDERS! YAY!” they shouted, hoof bumping.

“Maybe this wasn’t such a good idea...” Jason muttered to himself, placing the now very animated fillies back on the ground. Perhaps he had unleashed a monster... or rather, three of them.





Spike sighed, looking at the crumpled picture of Rarity grasped in his claws. He balled it up again, tossing it near the trash can, a ritual he had been performing repeatedly for the past few days. With a pout he reached out, snatching the picture off the cold floor, trying his best to straighten out the wrinkles. No matter how much it hurt, he couldn’t just forget about Rarity. She was still his friend, right? “I just don’t know what to do...” He absentmindedly grabbed a half eaten gem and munched on it lazily.

“Spike!” Sweetie Belle shouted as she burst into the form, Apple Bloom and Scootaloo behind her. Each carried with them a large bag. “We brought these for you!” she said, dumping her bag out in front of his basket, gems pouring out.

“We got ya some too,” Scootaloo said, dumping her bag out, followed by Apple Bloom dumping hers out, creating a huge pile of gems.

“W-what's with all the gems?” Spike asked sitting up in his basket, staring at the pile. He licked his lips, drooling a little at the sight of so many delicious looking morsels. 

“Well,” Sweetie Belle took a deep breath, “We knew you were all messed up over my big sister so we decided to get you a gift from each of us, but then we all decided to get you gems and got into a big fight over it. Then Jason made us realize we all like like you and told us we could all be your someponies like he is with Rarity and Chrysalis!” Sweetie Belle took another breath, clearly winded by her explanation.

“So... can we be your special someponies please?” Scootaloo asked as she and the girls bunched together, giving Spike the best smile they could manage to give. 

“I-I don’t know about this...” Spike said, looking between the three of them. Of course he liked them but he had no idea if he liked them like that. He tapped his chin in thought, his mind racing for an answer. “Ok so... how about, since you three cared enough to try to cheer me up, I take you all on a date or something? Then we can decide on the special someponies thing, okay?” he asked, hoping they’d take that as an answer.

“Woohoo! We got a date!” Scootaloo cheered, hoofbumping with the others. “Come on girls, we gotta go get ready!” The three of them dashed out of the room, startling Twilight on the way out. 

“Sorry Twilight! We have to go get ready for our date with Spike!” Sweetie Belle called as they barreled out of the library. 

“Wait, date?” Twilight asked, looking confused. After a second it clicked and she snorted, glaring a little. “Jason!” she grumbled shaking her head. “You know what, this is his mess, let him deal with it.” Shaking her head, she went up to peek in on Spike. The little dragon seemed to be out of his funk, munching on a gem, currently trying to figure out a good place to take the girls. Twilight couldn’t help but smile. “Maybe he didn’t entirely make a mistake after all.” Of course, she’d still have to talk to Jason about giving relationship advice to fillies, but for now, she’d just let them be happy.
> Fear and Loathing in Alternate Equestrias Part 1
> --------------------------------------------------------------------------

“You sure this gonna work, Jay?” Dash asked, looking at the Genji gauntlet rather gingerly. 

“No, but if anything happens I can just use Hodgepodge to bring us back,” Jason said, nodding his head. After otherwise perfecting Dash’s abilities in their home universe, Jason had the bright idea to see if she could open portals to other worlds using tokens.

“Come on already, we don’t have all day,” Chrysalis said with a roll of her eyes.

“I hope it works, I’m rather excited at the idea of other universes,” Megan said from her position on Chrysalis’ back.

“Ok... here goes nothing,” Dash said, focusing on the gauntlet. Her body started to glow  and she quickly flew into the sky, producing another portal.

“Did it work?” Jason called up, looking at Dash.

“Only one way to find out!” she called back as she darted into it.

“She’s such an idiot,” Chrysalis said with a shake of her head.

“No, she’s just reckless,” Jason said, shifting into Razor. “Shall we?” he asked, taking to the sky, quickly moving through the portal.

“Please hold on tightly Megan, I’d never live with myself if you were to fall,” Chrysalis said, taking to the sky. 

“Wait for me darn you!” Rarity said with a huff, racing over to them. She had gotten dressed up for the occasion, having spent all day on it.

Chrysalis grumbled a little, wrapping her forehooves around Rarity and flying toward the portal. “You complain once about the dress and I drop you right into some mud.”

Rarity just huffed as they crossed the portal, which closed behind them.





“-and we’ve got a battalion of griffins, earth ponies, and diamond dogs deployed to Appleloosa to replace the militia that left,” Thorax finished.

“So no contact with the enemy?” Gilgamesh asked.

“No sir.”

“Huh. That’s been over a month now.”

“I agree sir, it’s odd.”

“How are the soldiers doing?”

“They’re… fine, sir,” the changeling hesitated.

“‘Fine’ isn’t ‘good.’ What’s wrong?”

“Well, they’re feeling a little worn out. I think many of them were foolish enough to think the war would be over by now. They’re homesick or missing their families and they don’t have anything to take their minds off the constant threat of attack.”

“I see,” the warrior replied, pondering the situation. “Call in Sergeant Pinkie Pie, I’ve got a task for her.”

“Yes, sir.”

“Anything else?” 

“Just a list of those who are ready to return to active duty, Commander,” Thorax replied.

“I’ll let you handle that one. For now I’ll-”

At that moment the barrack doors burst open, an injured pegasus mare hovering in.

“Commander Gilgamesh! Emergency!”

“Cloudchaser? What’s wrong?”

“Cloudsdale! There’s-” she stopped to catch her breath. “There’s something headed towards it! A big black ball with tentacles and one eye! I think it’s one of the high priorities!”

“Catastrophe,” the warrior muttered. “How far away was it?”

“At the rate it’s going it’ll be at Cloudsdale within the hour! It’s approaching from the south!”

“Where’s your squad?”

“My sister, Flitter, is unconscious, but I managed to carry her back. The others… Sir, I don’t know what it did, but we all just plummeted out of the sky. The two of us managed to survive because we hit a hill at an angle and rolled down. The rest of the squad… they died on impact.”

“Gravity 100,” he muttered grimly. Then his eyes widened in realization. “Oh shit. If that thing reaches Cloudsdale-” he cut himself off before turning to Thorax. “General, is Rainbow Dash in Canterlot?”

“Already done, sir. I sent the message, she’s on her way to meet you at the Canterlot launchpad.”

“Contact Chrysalis and Nectar, have them inform the Commanders. And have Cloudchaser and her sister taken to medical.”

“At once!” he replied with a salute.

Gilgamesh cut a hole in the air with his naginata and entered the Rift, exciting right at the launchpad. Rainbow Dash was already there. “Ready?”

“Born ready!” she replied, flaring her wings. Gilgamesh nodded and grabbed his scarf. With a flick of his wrist it transformed into a pair of bat-like wings and both of them were off.

“Alert Cloudsdale and have all nonessential personnel ready to evacuate. I’ll try to head this thing off,” Gilgamesh ordered.

“Sir!” she replied, speeding off towards the city as he curved and headed to intercept the Demon.

It was only about twenty minutes before he found it. He was about to fire upon it from a distance, but it saw him first and he suddenly began to plummet to the earth.

“Shit!” he shouted before activating his shifter powers, causing him to descend more slowly but still fast enough that the landing made a crater. As the Demon approached he fired Penetrating Beam from his eyes, only for the attack to curve away and strike a nearby tree.

Great. I didn’t think it had enough control of gravity to bend light.

Catastrophe used Earth Shaker, causing Gilgamesh to counter with Earthquake, the two tremors meeting and causing a wall of earth to form between them.

Heh, just like the time against-

A rainbow colored portal burst open in the sky above, cutting off his thought.

What the hell?

“Woot!” Dash shouted as she burst from the portal. “It worked! I am so awesome!”

“What the-? SERGEANT MAJOR DASH, WHAT THE FUCK ARE YOU DOING HERE!?”  Gilgamesh shouted.

“Who you calling sergeant bozo?” she asked, crossing her arms, her talons visible.

“Wait… you’re-!”

“Dash seriously, think before you fly through portals.” Jason flew out next, looking around. “Well, at least it worked.” he waved at Gilgamesh.

“Jason!? How-!? Never mind, GET OUT OF HERE!”

“How rude!” came a cultured voice. At that moment Chrysalis, carrying Megan and Rarity exited the portal. “We come to pay a visit, the least you could do is-”

Rarity was cut off as her coat, mane, and entire body turned grey, frozen still in stone. And so did Megan and Chrysalis, causing all three to fall to the ground.

“SUNOVA-!” Gilgamesh shouted, dashing towards them while firing a Missile spell at Catastrophe. The Demon made it explode in front of it, causing it to cloud its vision with smoke and debris. Gilgamesh used the distraction to create a cushion of air that caught the three petrified girls before they hit the ground.

“Oh it is on,”Jason snarled, reverting to normal. “Dash give me the gauntlet now.” Not hesitating, Dash tossed him the gauntlet, which he quickly put on, along with its twin. “Friend of yours?” he asked, drawing Laevateinn, the blade humming with power.

“Catastrophe, Demon of the Rift, Commanded by Exdeath. Specialties include gravity, petrifying, and earth attacks. Likes to bring its enemies to the ground and then hit them with Earth Shaker or petrify them. Unless you have some sort of magic reflector, do not go airborne unless you want to die on impact,” he replied, setting the three girls down. He held his hand in front of him and closed his eyes. “He absorbs earth attacks, but has no resistances. No weaknesses either. Keep him off me, I need to concentrate.”

“You got it, teach,” Jason said, cracking his neck. “I’ve been waiting to try this out,” he reached into his cube, and was suddenly clad in his new armor. “Have at you demon!” he cried, rushing at Catastrophe. He slammed a fist into the ground, causing a wave of ice spikes toward the Demon. The air in front of the demon began to shift and the ice spikes were pulled into the air only to hurled back at Jason.

He hissed, narrowing his eyes,  “Flare Star!” he shouted, firing off a spell at it. Several small balls of light appeared around it, which flew up into the air and slammed into it. They condensed into a small ball which expanded, becoming a miniature supernova.

The demon shook, gaining it’s bearings at being wounded, before it turned back to Jason. Its eye widened and its pupil shrank before shining for a moment.

Jason rolled out of the way, ducking behind a tree which turned to stone. “Lets see how you do without the eye,” Jason said, rolling from behind the tree. He dashed forward, the sword held high. Catastrophe easily stopped the attack by increasing the boy’s gravity, but though his attack was halted he still managed to stay standing.

At that moment a blur streaked in front of the creature’s face and it shrieked in pain, a cut along its eye now present as the attack was stopped.

“Aww yeah! How you like my talons, jerk!?” Rainbow Dash shouted, hovering a few yards away.

The demon turned to face her and she fell to the ground, not hard enough to really hurt her, but she wasn’t going to be flying for the moment.

“Esuna!”

Jason turned to see Gilgamesh cast a spell, a yellow light sparkling over the other three girls as the petrification was dispelled.

“Good job,” Jason called, turning to the demon. “Gravity ain’t gonna help you,” he narrowed his eyes. “Omnitrix, Nightshade,” he commanded, shifting into Gengar. “Shadow Ball!” he cried, launching a ball of dark energy at it. The attack connected and Catastrophe recoiled before shaking itself.

“COMMANDER!”

Everyone turned to see a rainbow streak approaching them.

Gilgamesh dashed forwards and grabbed the demon by one of its tentacles before hurling it into the air and hitting it with a Rocket Punch. “END IT, DASH!”

The streak glowed red for a moment before the pegasus dashed forwards, propelled by a Sonic Rainboom. She then began to strike the demon from all sides, a rainbow explosion appearing every time she turned, before finally flying high and diving down, a sharp rainbow energy slash cutting through the demon. It screeched in pain before beginning to split in half and then dissolving into nothing.

“Good work, Sergeant Major,” Gilgamesh compliment.

“Thank you, sir,” the pegasus replied, sheathing the long single-edged blade.

“My talons are cooler,” Dash commented, fixing her wings.

The other pegasus opened her mouth to reply when she noticed who she was talking to. “What the-!? How-!? Who-!? WHAT!?”

“I am the one, the only, Rainbow Dash! Bifrost incarnate, Element of Loyalty and 20% cooler than you,” she said with a smirk.

Jason frowned and flicked her ear. “Don’t antagonize the locals.”

“Great, there’s two of them,” Chrysalis said with a groan, facehoofing.

The local Rainbow Dash noticed the Changeling Empress and immediately saluted. “Commander Chrysalis! My apologies, ma’am, I didn’t… wait… what’s with the wings?”

“A side effect of becoming empress.” Chrysalis said getting to her hooves, showing off the full extent of her changes.

“Whoa. Rarity and Twilight are going to go nuts over this.”

“Oh believe me I already have,” Rarity mumbled, looking at her now muddied dress, what looked like a changeling wing poking out from under it.

“Wait, you have wings!?” Rainbow Dash asked.

“Ok, this is going to get confusing, so for the sake of sanity,” Gilgamesh began by pointing to his subordinate, “you are R.D. for the time being, and you,” he said pointing to the other, “are Dash.” He then turned to the rest of the group. “You will be Chryssi, and you,” he turned and pointed at Rarity only to stay silent. “... I can’t think of anything.”

“Just call me Lady Rarity,” she said, giving him a smile despite her dress.

“She’s part changeling now,” Jason explained.

“Huh. I guess I’ve heard of weirder things happening. Ok then, you’re Lady Rarity, and my Rarity will be 1st Sergeant Rarity,” he declared before turning to R.D. “Like I explained when Robin and Geo got here, there are other Equestrias and other versions of all of you. These are some of them. This is my friend and student, Jason. He’s a human like me, despite the skin color difference.”

“You’re wrong Gilg, I’m not human, never was.” Jason said, shaking his head.

“What?”

“I’m Jotun, one of the last of my kind.” Jason said, returning his sword to his cube.

“‘Jotun’? Hold on a minute,” Gilgamesh said before closing his eyes. “Jotun… Jotun…. Jotunheim. Wait,” his eyes opened before he looked to the boy. “You’re a frost giant?”

“Yup,” Jason said with a nod. His eyes changed to red, a blizzard starting to kick up around him.

“Cool!” R.D. exclaimed. “Uh, no pun intended.”

“R.D., head to Cloudsdale and tell them the situation’s handled,” Gilgamesh ordered. “I’m going to take them back to Canterlot. We’ll meet later at the barracks for debriefing.”

The cyan pegasus saluted before flying off the way she came.

“So, uh, not to insult you guys here, but what made you think that a war was a good time to pay me a visit?”

“It’s a place I knew we’d be welcome. I mean I didn’t want to end up in that asshole Don’s world again,” Jason said, clenching his fists.

“Uh, sounds like we’ve got a lot to catch up on,” Gilgamesh replied before cutting open a hole in the air.

“Wow,” Megan quipped.

“Thank you, um… who are you?”

“This is my mother, the one who raised me, Megan. She used to visit Equestria too, back when it was called Ponyland,” Jason said, giving the woman a hug.

“It’s nice to meet you,” Megan said with a friendly wave and a smile.

“As I you, madam, though I wish it were under better circumstances,” he replied with a bow. “Huh, so you got two mothers, and one of them was here in Equestria’s distant past? Man, your backstory just gets more and more crazy each time I see you, doesn’t it? Anyway, if you could all follow me,” he said as he entered the rift he made.





“Wait, so you’re telling me this guy who was just a journalist managed to take over Equestria? Even held Celestia and Luna hostage?” R.D. asked, completely shocked.

“He wasn’t a journalist,” Dash replied to her double, “That was just a cover so he could recruit for the Forever Knights.”

The two were walking down the streets of Canterlot, allowing the visiting pegasus to get a look at things. Some heads turned, but for the most part everyone went about their duties.

“Hay, I’m glad he’s not the same here. It’s hard enough fighting these bastards without having to deal with problems on the inside. Had enough trouble with all the different species trying to act like they’re the best. So, what happened next?”

“He cut my legs off,” she said flatly, waving a talon around. “After that, well, then Chrysalis got all the other queens to join together under her. From what I know Maud and Kat helped with that... oh yeah, I hooked up with Gilda.”

“You hooked up with G!? Wow, I didn’t know I swung that way in other dimensions.”

“Heh, you should give it a try,” she said, wiggling her eyebrows with a smirk.

“Uh, I dunno. Got too much to worry about right now. Besides, I’m still trying to patch things up with her. Lightning Dust, too.”

“She just joined Jason’s guard after that whole thing at Rainbow Falls,” Dash said, rubbing her chin, “I think the guard might actually straighten her out.”

“Yeah, the two of them are definitely less hotheaded, but we’re still not quite buddy buddy yet. As for the Rainbow Falls thing, I don’t think we got that far in our timeline before things changed. It was right after we gave up the Elements of Harmony that things started to go down the hole, and… well, you can see for yourself,” she said, motioning to the barely rebuilt Canterlot, the damages from the assault nearly a year ago still present. “So, I’m guessing you’re wondering about this?” she asked, pointing to the scar running across her right eye that she kept closed.

“More than a little,” Dash said with a nod.

“Well, it’s kind of a story, so let’s head inside and get a drink,” R.D. said, motioning to the building simply labelled “PUB” next to them. “I’m kinda looking forward to telling the news guys, too. Give them something to talk about to take their minds off things.”

“I like the way you think,” Dash said with a smirk, “Come on, what are you waiting for?” she asked, walking inside.

As they entered they were met with a familiar face in front of them.

“Trixie?” Dash asked.

The unicorn looked on with surprise before smirking. “Well, this is interesting. So what’s going on here? Did you get some poor fool of a changeling to start hero worshipping you so you could see what you look like with different battle scars, Rainbow?”

“Actually, this is me from another dimension. They paid us a visit and got caught up in that fight with the High Priority that was headed for Cloudsdale a few hours ago.”

“Another dimension, you say? Well, let’s just hope this one has a better lid on her ego than you do.”

“I gotta tell ya, it’s really weird being back in Canterlot. A lotta ponies left after that Fenrir attack,” Dash said, looking around. “I mean, even seeing the mountain whole is weird.”

“‘Whole’? Do I even want to know? And what’s ‘Fenrir’?” R.D. asked.

“Fenrir is Jason’s uncle, who is a giant wolf. He died so long ago that his body was under Canterlot mountain. That jerk Animo, with some Displaced named Don, turned him into a zombie and he destroyed half the mountain rising from his grave. Don’t ask me why his uncle is a giant wolf, his family is just weird.”

“Wait, so that Jason guy’s adopted mom visited the way distant past of Equestria, and he’s not really human, and he’s got a giant wolf uncle, and he’s marrying Chrysalis? Wow, Gilgamesh wasn’t kidding, he does have a crazy backstory.”

“Actually after that weird magic book made Rarity go crazy, which is all Spike’s fault, Jason, Chrysalis, AND Rarity are getting married.”

“Wait, what!?”

“Well, I was going to head back to the barracks and see about what I could do for tonight’s party, but this sounds far more interesting,” Trixie commented with a smirk. “Come on in, I’ll buy you both a drink. One drink.”

“Tch. Never gonna let me live that down, huh Trixie?” R.D. growled.

“Ahem?”

She groaned. “Never gonna let me live that down, Lieutenant Trixie?”

“Better. And not when it came out of my paycheck it won’t. Now come on.” She turned around and began to walk inside.

“You’re kidding me. Trixie’s your superior? That braggart?” Dash asked.

“Of course,” came a familiar voice from behind them as a hoof reached around and held a knife to the pegasus’ neck. Dash turned enough to see the unicorn behind her. “I don’t know what my version is like in your world, but I’ve come a long way,” she gloated with a grin as she removed her weapon and walked inside, the Trixie they had seen before them vanishing into mist.

“We uh... actually have no idea where our Trixie is...” Dash said, looking away, “She disappeared somewhere in the Crystal Empire a few months back. Left her cart and everything. Only trace we found of her was a magical signature from when someone stole the alicorn amulet from Zecora’s place.” She shook her head. “Come on, free drinks,” she said, following Trixie.

“‘Sup, everybody?” R.D. called, all heads turning to her. Half the pub got up and saluted. “At ease, we’re all off duty.”

“‘Off duty?’ Why all the armor and weapons, then?” Dash asked.

“Gotta be prepared for emergencies. Anyway, this is me from another dimension. She and some of her friends are here for a while, so if you see a Chrysalis with butterfly wings, a Rarity with changeling wings, or two other humans, don’t freak out. Oh, and so no one’s confused, call me R.D. and her Dash. Now then, who wants to hear a story?”

Most of the pub approached the three mares as they took a seat, while Trixie ordered three mugs of cider from the bartender.

“So, what’ve you got for us this time, R.D.?” Spitfire asked, taking a seat.

“Just gonna tell the new guys how I lost this eye.”

“This I gotta hear,” Dash said, grabbing her mug of cider when it was passed to her. She took a sip and made a bit of a disappointed face.

“What’s wrong?” R.D. asked.

“I got the good stuff here, thats what,” Dash said, pulling a flask out from under her wing. “Here, taste this.” She passed it to R.D.

The pegasus took a sip and her eyes widened in surprise. “Wow. What is this?”

“Mead, milked straight from a goat.”

“You have a goat that produces alcohol?” Trixie asked, taking a swig when R.D. offered it to her. “Not bad.”

“We also have a boar that doesn’t die. You can kill him any way you like and he just pops back to life the next day. Gilda takes out her aggression on him. Works wonders on keeping her calm.”

“That’d actually be pretty useful here. It’s a little difficult to keep the Griffons and Diamond Dogs properly fed around here,” R.D. said. “And what’s this I hear about frustration? Not giving G enough of your time?” she asked with a smirk.

“Heh, you have no idea what we get up to in bed. Gilda just can’t get enough of the claws.” Dash smirked, flexing her talons.

“Ok, moving on please. As much as I enjoy watching you make a fool of yourself, I’d like to hear this story as well. Only got second-hoof accounts,” Trixie interrupted.

“Right, right. Anyway, you guys might’ve heard the official report, but that leaves out all the good details. It was back about two months ago, when me, Applejack, and Rarity were training some new recruits from the militia who wanted to go full-guard. Had to pick them up from Appleloosa. Anyway, on the way back, we get ambushed by demons, most of them the Tartarus type but a few from Beyond. Anyway, the we’re holding up pretty well, until the head honcho decides to get in on the deal, guy named Belial. Tall as Gilgamesh, two huge horns sticking out of his forehead, two bat wings, clawed hands, built for speed. Guy starts laying it onto us when I hit him with a Sonic Rainboom. He’s impressed, naturally, even though he manages to get up after he takes it right in the face.”

Many of the recruits mutter, having heard of or seen the legendary power of the Rainboom, reasoning that anything that could take it must be as strong as one of the Princesses.

“Oh am I gonna to show you a trick after this story,” Dash said with a smirk, sipping from her flask.

“Alright then. Anyway, moving on, the guy says he wants a one on one duel with me, and if I agree he’ll call off his goons. I hate to admit it, but with all the militia guys who didn’t see real combat yet, we’re not doing so hot, so I agree. We arrange the time and the place, an open field in the desert the next day at noon. Just when I think it’s over with he grabs Applejack and takes off. Said it was to make sure I don’t chicken out. Naturally I was pissed, but the guy was gone before I could stop him.”

“I know how that feels...” Dash said, looking longingly at her talons.

“Anyway, since there’s no other forces nearby and Rarity wouldn’t be able to teleport us anywhere close enough, I’ve got no choice but to to meet him the next day. Shows up with some goons and Applejack, even tells me he’ll let her go even if I lose. He says he wants to make sure I’m not distracted, so I can ‘fight him to the best of my ability.’ Definitely one of those ‘proud warrior’ types. So the two of us go at it, straight into the air. We’re holding pretty even, even after a few minutes of going at it non-stop. Hate to say it, but the guy was faster than me. Not as agile, though, and he was definitely the bigger target.”

“Faster than you? I’m surprised you can even admit that,” Trixie quipped.

“So, what happened next?” Spitfire asked, taking a swig of the mead.

“Well, like I said, I’m holding against his claws with blades, when he decides to pull out this long sword that has wind circling around it. He starts swinging the thing and suddenly I’m being hit with blasts of air, tornados, and air blades. I’m totally on the defensive, can’t even get close to him.”

The crowd murmured again.

“So then I decide to stop holding back. I shoot up into the sky, way up, before I dive down at him. On the way I pull out my Haste tome and cast the spell. I’m dodging all his attacks and then I go Sonic Rainboom on him, my swords out, and I cut him. But I’m not done with just that, I keep the pressure up, dashing back and forth around him, cutting him up, every turn I’m making pulling off another Sonic Rainboom, like fireworks going off in the sky!”

The crowd ‘ooh’ed and ‘ahh’ed. Even Trixie looks impressed.

“Then out of nowhere, I’m getting smacked around just as easily as he was, cutting me up all over the place! I try to get away, but he’s keeping up! He’s faster than me, even with the Haste spell and the Rainboom! Then I see it: he doesn’t have two wings, he has six! He kept the other four folded the whole time, going easy on me! Next thing I know I get cut right along the eye, right here!” she points at her face. “The pain throws off my focus and he cuts me along the wing before grabbing me and slamming me into the ground!”

The crowd gasped.

“I look up and he’s standing over me. I expect him to be all like ‘mwahaha! You thought you could beat me, little pony!?’ but instead he actually says he’s impressed with me. He says the  last time he went that hard is when he took on Luna herself. He raises his sword and says ‘don’t move, noble pegasus. Let me end your life painlessly.’ I’m beat, cut up, and in serious pain, but I’m not giving up just yet. I know I’ve got one shot. When he swings his sword down I use my good wing to launch myself at him and buck him in the face! While he’s surprised I kick his sword out of his claw, grab it in my mouth, spin, and give him a slash all the way from his shoulder across his chest. I didn’t know how I did it, but right after that this huge energy blast of rainbow magic shoots out of the sword and knocks him away from me and to the ground!”

The crowd looked intense, fully engaged in the story.

“That last move used everything I had left, so after that I just collapse to the ground. I’m in pain and need medical attention, but I win,” she says. Then a smirk curls onto her face. “Or so I think, because then he actually gets up and starts walking over to me! I’m completely spent, I can barely crawl! I see him gushing blood from the cut I gave him, but he’s still coming! I hear everyone else calling out to me, they’re way too far away and they’ll never make it in time! I close my eyes and wait for the last blow… and when I open them I see he’s holding his claw out to me. He wants to congratulate me on winning. He says even if he has the strength to kill me it wouldn’t matter because he’s going to die from the cut I gave him no matter what. He said it would be cheap if he didn’t let me have the win. After a few seconds I reach out my hoof and shake with him.”

“Quite the warrior huh?” Dash asked, smirking a little.

“Heh, you have no idea. Because the story’s not over.”

“What?” Spitfire asked. “But he said you won.”

“Yeah, and I knew he meant it. He turns to the other demons and tells them to release Applejack, but they’re not moving. Then some other demon, some schmuck who’s name I can’t remember, starts spouting off about how now that he’s wounded he can finally take control, and it looks like the other goons are happy about it. I guess they were just a bunch of thugs that were afraid of going against Belial. Anyway, the bastard tells them to kill Applejack, but Belial comes rushing in and tears them to pieces, ripping them apart with his claws and blasting them with wind magic. Some of them escape and run off but most of them are done in. I could hardly believe it, even with all the damage I gave him he still would’ve had enough strength to take on all of us. After he saves Applejack he falls over. He tells me he wants me to have his sword, Belderiver, and that it can take the magic of the user and make it into an attack, which I guess is what I did when I hit him with it,” she explains as she motions to the sword strapped to her armor. “After that he tells me that he felt honored to fight someone like me. Heh, even says that if I die in this war he’ll personally torment my soul for insulting both of us. After that he finally passes on and I have the troops bury him. And, well, that’s all that happened.”

“Thats one hell of a story,” Dash said, slamming the rest of her mead and letting out a contented sigh, “But I did say I would show you a trick.” She hopped out of her seat, spreading her much larger wings.

“What the-? Why are your wings so big?”

“Prepare to taste the rainbow!” Dash shouted as she started to glow. She bolted out the doors, leaving behind a solid contrail. 

“Hey look!” somepony shouted, pointing out the window. Dash was high above Canterlot, picking up speed. A second later, she performed a sonic rainboom, ripping open another rift. Instead of leading home, however, said rift led to above another Ponyville, where a pink humanoid in white pants was fighting another humanoid with strange armor and long, yellow glowing hair. A moment later it closed and Dash burst back into the bar, looking smug as all hell.

“Wh-What the hay was that!?” R.D. shouted.

“Like I said before, I’m Bifrost incarnate. I’m so fast I can punch holes between worlds. How do you think we got here?”

“The same way Gilgamesh does. Also, I don’t think that was the best idea.”

“What do you-”

An alarm suddenly rang out.

“A PORTAL HAS SUDDENLY OPENED ABOVE CANTERLOT! ALL UNITS, PREPARE FOR BATTLE! REPORT TO YOUR STATIONS IMMEDIATELY!” came a voice over a speaker system.

Creatures of all kinds were racing back and forth, dashing in and out of buildings as the occupants of the pub looked on.

“Um... whoops?” Dash asked with sheepish laugh.

R.D. groaned.

“Well, I don’t think I’ll be complaining about your antics for a while,” Trixie deadpanned before turning to a changeling. “Stag, could you alert Commander Chrysalis to what’s happening please?”

“Of course, Lieutenant,” he replied before closing his eyes and concentrating.

It was a few moments before the speaker came on again.

“False alarm. I repeat, false alarm. There is no enemy attack. As you were.”

Everyone in the streets either sighed in relief or groaned in annoyance as they headed back to what they were doing.

“Well, nonexistent crisis averted,” Trixie commented.”Now, why don’t we all finish our–?”

The unicorn turned to see the two Rainbow Dashes had quickly gotten themselves into a drinking contest.

“This isn’t going to end well,” she said with a groan, sipping at her own drink.
>  Fear and Loathing in Alternate Equestrias Part 2
> --------------------------------------------------------------------------

“So, more visitors from another version of Equus?” Celestia asked, looking over the group. “I must admit, even hearing about it multiple times, it’s odd to see other versions of those you know.”

The visiting group met inside the palace, gaining some curious looks from those on duty, especially with them seeing double. Still, no one interrupted. 

“Or yourself,” 1st Sergeant Rarity added, looking at her insect-winged counterpart.

“At least you’re not like that other Twilight that visited us,” Lady Rarity said, fixing her wings, “I never thought any version of Twilight could be so racist.”

“‘Racist?’” Gilgamesh asked.

“She hated changelings,” Jason spoke up, “Said any world that had peace with them should be avoided. Even went so far as to say she prayed that they all died when they were thrown from Canterlot.”

Commander Chrysalis looked surprised. “I see. I guess my invasion wasn’t quite as casualty-free as it was in this world. But, let’s move onto less depressing subjects, shall we? Have enough doom and gloom here without adding to it. So, you say you are my-I mean her... fiancé?”

“Yup,”Jason said with smirk, his arm around Chrissy, “Been together since a little after she started stalking me.”

“I was not stalking you!” she protested, glaring at him.

“I think most of our friends would disagree,” he teased.

“And the wings?” Chrysalis asked.

“They and the rest of my alterations happened after I assumed the role of empress,” Chrissy said, giving them a buzz.

“‘Empress?’” the queen repeated in shock. “There hasn’t been an empress here since long before even my grandmother. I honestly thought they were just stories.”

“Same in our version, though some of the queens still didn't feel like uniting."

“Unfortunately, there aren’t any other hives to unite in this Equestria.”

“I see,” she said tapping her chin in thought. “I suppose that means you don’t have kings here?”

“‘Kings?’”

“Yeah, I paid a visit to their dimension twice before,” Gilgamesh butted in. “Apparently how things work there is that they’ve got kings who live by themselves and the queens try to woo them so they can start hives. That watch thing on his wrist can analyse any creature and allow him to turn into them for a short time, and it turned out there was a king under their Celestia’s command, in the royal guard. That’s how the whole stalking thing started.”

“Not you too,” Chryssi complained.

“By the way, how is Slash? Last I heard you told me he got a little messed up in that rebellion.”

“More than a little, Celestia had to discharge him from the guard,” Jason said with a sigh, “They pried off pieces of his carapace and electrocuted him. He’s got nerve damage but luckily he’s not crippled.”

“Yeesh. So, if he’s not in the guard now, what does he do?”

“Not much, but he and Celestia are going out now.”

Gilgamesh and Celestia both looked surprised.

“No kidding? Hope it works out. Honestly I’ve yet to meet a version of Celestia who’s actively dating. Maybe you should try getting back on the scene?” he said to the princess, causing her to blush.

“M-Maybe when this is all over.”

“Now Princess Celestia, a war is no reason to put off courting. After all, Spike and I have been getting along quite swimmingly despite the current hardships,” Sergeant Rarity quipped.

“I... don’t want to know,” Jason said, making a bit of a face, as did Rarity and Chrissy.

“What’s with those faces?” she asked indignantly.

“Isn’t he like, twelve?” Chrissy asked, “That would be like me dating one of my drones.” She gagged a bit at the thought.

“Ok, so admittedly he’s bit young in terms of actual age, but as for his mental and physical maturity... well, you should see for yourselves, I think you’d be quite surprised.”

“It still sounds too squicky for me,” Lady Rarity said with a shudder, “I’d never be able to see Spikey-wikey that way,” she said, nuzzling into Jason’s side.

The warrior and three mares looked and the display of affection with raised eyebrows.

“Hold on, I thought Chrissy was your special somepony–er, some... changeling?” Sergeant Rarity said to Jason. “Do you mean to tell me you’re also-?”

“One word: Polygamy.” Jason put his arm around Chrissy, “It’s totally a thing.”

“I take it you don’t have that here?” Lady Rarity asked, buzzing her wings.

“No, we do, it’s just... not that common nowadays,” Celestia replied.

“Dude, poor Spike. Had to finally put your hoof down, huh? How’d he take it?” Gilgamesh asked.

“He stole an ancient book of changeling magic from our castle and gave it to Rarity. Basically it turned her into an addict, changing the town to her twisted vision. It also made her part changeling before Chrissy could stop her.”

Lady Rarity huffed, looking away.

“I still can’t believe that bitch didn’t tell us that book was in the castle,” she turned to Celestia, “No offense to you of course.”

“Um, none taken,” she replied.

“SIR! REPORTING AS YOU REQUESTED AND HERE TO GET THIS FANFIC PLOT MOVING, SIR!”

Everyone turned to see Pinkie Pie standing at attention in front of them.

“Sergeant Pinkie, perfect,” Gilgamesh began. “Listen, Thorax tells me things aren’t doing so great in terms of morale around here. I want to set something up, think you can round up Octavia, Vinyl Scratch, and anyone else you’d need to throw a party for the whole city?”

“Yupperooni, sir! I’ll get right on that!” she replied with a smile.

“Good, do it. Dismissed.”

The earth pony saluted before disappearing in a puff of smoke.

“Man, I can still barely believe she’s one of our best fighters,” Gilgamesh muttered.

“Dude, you should see Maud. I asked her to help train some drones for my guard. Dropped them all in under thirty seconds,” Jason said, his eyes widening a little at the memory, “Which reminds me,” Jason pulled out his crown and put it on. “There, now Twilight can’t say this wasn’t a diplomatic visit.”

“Pfft. Dude, I still can’t believe you’re royalty. Then again, I guess we need more royals who the common plebian can relate to.”

“Did I mention some nobles are building a town around my castle? Which is in the middle of the Everfree?”

“Seriously? That’s surprising, even if they do have good faith in you for being the liberator of Equestria. Did they just decide to try something new or what?”

“Well uh... zombie Fenrir kinda uh... broke Canterlot mountain...” Jason admitted sheepishly.

“‘Broke Canterlot mountain?’” Celestia asked in shock.

“‘Zombie Fenrir?’” Gilgamesh asked in terror. “As in ‘the world-eating wolf, Fenrir?’”

“He was resurrected by Animo and a Displaced named Don... I um... did something I really regret and now he’s out to wage war on me because he sees me as a threat. So now Canterlot is half a mountain with a city attached to it, held up by god magic.” He gave Gilgamesh a melancholy look. “That speech you gave Blueblood... it... helped her a lot...”

“‘Her?’” Celestia asked.

“The Forever King, the one who took over Equestria, transformed him,” Gilgamesh explained. “How’s she doing by the way?”

“I-I have no idea,” Jason said, shaking his head, “None of us do.”

“Wh-what? What do you mean?”

“Some time ago, my Luna realized the Nightmare that made her Nightmare Moon was still in her head, so she asked me to help. I did and it used my Omnitrix to create itself a body, a female version of me, complete with her own Omnitrix. She caught us off guard with an Ultima spell and was about to kill Celestia when Blueblood used her magic to overload her Omnitrix. We all assume the blast sent them out of our universe but we have no idea where or even if they’re still alive. It broke Celestia’s heart and she locked herself away for three weeks, crying her eyes out.” Jason finished, looking away.

“Oh god. Well, it sounds like she probably didn’t die in the blast, so there’s that. And you’re telling me you’ve got a Nightmare you running around?”

“Actually two, the one that attacked us took the name Eclipse. The other half just stayed Nightmare Moon. She lives with Fluttershy and Discord. That reminds me, ever heard of Flutterbat?”

“Yes, actually. And you mean to say you’ve got a good Nightmare Moon running around?”

“And I thought things were strange here,” Sergeant Rarity quipped.

“Also thanks to Animo, my Fluttershy is Flutterbat - permanently.”

“Wow. But she’s still the same sweet mare, just with an apple craving?”

“That, fangs, and an extra-powerful Stare, from what I can tell,” Jason said with a nod and a bit of a shudder. “The last two major things to happen recently were those invasions: The Incurseans and those weird sentai dudes.” 

“Jesus Christ almighty, looks like we all need a little R&R.”

Just then a technicolor explosion came from outside. A moment later, the warning announcement came on.

“A PORTAL HAS SUDDENLY OPENED ABOVE CANTERLOT! ALL UNITS, PREPARE FOR BATTLE! REPORT TO YOUR STATIONS IMMEDIATELY!”

“Oh god, what now?” he muttered while unclipping his naginata.

Jason peeked out the window, freezing, “Gilg please tell me I’m not crazy. That’s Majin Buu fighting a Super Saiyan Raditz, right?” he asked, pointing out the window at the open portal.

“I dunno, might be SS3 Goku. Then again, he usually doesn’t wear the space armor.”

“Mhm. I see.” Everyone turned to see Chrysalis muttering to herself, her eyes unfocused. She then turned to Jason. “Can your Rainbow Dash open dimensional portals?”

“That’s how we got here,” Jason said with a nod, watching the portal close. “You realize one of those guys was a Displaced right? They were fighting in Ponyville.”

“Oh boy. I’ll cross that bridge when I come to it,” Gilgamesh muttered. “Chrysalis, have them call it off.”

“Got it,” she closed her eyes and concentrated. A few moments later, the PA system came on again.

“False alarm. I repeat, false alarm. There is no enemy attack. As you were.”

“Well, now that that’s done with, let’s get all of you a place to stay for a while. Got a big party tonight and need to make arrangements. Girls, if you could handle that, I’ve got a party mare to talk to.” He then cut open a hole and left.

“Well, this is some strange life you live Jason,” Megan said, looking at her son, “This tops even the weirdest stuff I saw back in Ponyland.”

“Yeah, well... it’s just going to get weirder.” Jason said with a laugh.





It had been several hours since they had all met and conversed, the Princesses introducing the alternate versions to the masses so they wouldn’t be suspicious. They had met the other Elements and their friends and family, including R.D.’s father, Rainbow Blaze, and much to Jason and Chrissy's surprise, Chrysalis’ daughter, Princess Nectar. She and Twilight were eager to compare notes on the differences between changeling biologies in their respective dimensions, Twilight being quite entranced with the empresses’ changes, and both paying particular attention to the events that led to the ponies and changelings living as friends together. They were also surprised to see Spike in his now teenaged form, though the visitors managed to hide their grimaces when he and Sergeant Rarity nuzzled.

After some work behind the scenes, the party had been arranged at the partly destroyed remains of the Royal Canterlot Opera House, with the seats having been removed to make room for tables, a stage and sound system, and what appeared to be a dance floor. Despite Celestia having just set the sun and Luna beginning to raise the moon, the place was buzzing with activity. Jason and the others were surprised to see the diversity of participants, including the addition of horses, diamond dogs, reindeer, and even the occasional dragon. A calm and soothing jazz tune played from the band, and food and drinks from some of the best chefs like Gustave le Grand and Mulia Mild were available for everyone.

After everyone was reasonably situated and the building was relatively full, Gilgamesh got up and stood on stage.


“Everyone! Everyone, may I have your attention, please!” he shouted. He waited for the crowd to mostly quiet before he continued. “I’d like to discuss my thoughts and feelings about these recent events with you. As you know, it’s been nearly a year since this conflict started. I know it’s been hard for many of you. We’ve all lost something over these many months be it homes, livelihoods, friends, comrades, or family. I know that it’s beginning to wear on many of you, and I understand that it’s starting to seem like a grind that just doesn’t seem to stop.” Many of the expressions in the crowd turned somber.

“Now, your hardships and your feelings are by no means inconsequential, but I’d like to take this moment to focus on the great things that have happened during this crisis. When this all started we were stuck hard, Equestria’s capital and many of its great cities were left in ruin. And yet, despite this devastating first strike, we are still here. Equestria is reclaiming what is hers. Not just merely land or things of material value, but things of greater value. Many of you had no experience or training in combat before this started. I’m sure if your past selves were to see you now, they’d be stunned at what they’ve seen you accomplish. You have stood up for what is right and fought admirably, and through your strength you have defeated terrors the likes of those this world has not seen in over a millenium, and some it has never seen. To you, I say, congratulations. Your accomplishments and your development are no small feats. Feel proud, ponies, for you have become those worthy of protecting your countries ideals.”

“Hear, hear!” came a voice from the crowd and many responding to it in kind.

“But we could not have come this far without help. And it is now that I’d like to address those from other civilizations, other lands, even other continents, that that are here now. To you I say ‘thank you.’ Thank you for all you have done for us. You could have easily turned a blind eye to the suffering of this nation, of these people. Instead, you chose to fight with us. Whether you came of your own volition, or came because you were asked, I thank you. You have fought and bled alongside us, and no words can express our gratitude.”

Many voices came in response, cheering or at least responding in acknowledgement.

“So tonight, let us not reminisce on what we’ve lost but instead what we’ve gained. Let us remember the great deeds that have been done by all of you, brave soldiers of Equus, and let us look towards a future that we can all share in. For this one night, let us celebrate and remind ourselves why we pick up our weapons and fight.” He held his glass high, a simple rum and coke with ice. “FOR THE FUTURE! FOR EQUUS!”

“FOR EQUUS!” the crowd shouted back.

As Gilgamesh stepped down the music and the conversations continued, this time with more vigor than before.

“You have a knack for speeches Gilg,” Jason commented, smirking. “Oh yeah, here,” he said reaching into his cube, pulling out a sack that was comparable to Santa’s bag. “Courtesy of Gilda, all kinds of meat products made from Saehrimnir. Think of it as payback for that bag of jerky you made me.”

“Oh man, oh man!” the warrior said with glee as he took the bag, his mouth watering. “‘Scuse me a sec, Jay, I gotta take this into the kitchen. Oh, the griffins and the diamond dogs are gonna love this!” He jogged over to two double doors near the back. “HEY, GUSTAVE! SPECIAL ORDER, WHIP SOMETHING UP!”

“That cube of yours is amazing! What did you call it again?” Twilight asked, looking at the object with renewed glee.

“It’s a hypercube, it has near infinite storage,”  Jason said with a smirk. He held his arm out, getting a scan off a passing reindeer. “Heh... never thought I’d get a reindeer scan.”

“Huh, so it really does just scan anything you come in contact with,” Spike commented. “I don’t suppose you’ve got a dragon in there?”

“It does, never used it though,” Jason said with a shrug. “It’s based on my version of you actually.”

“Really? Well, I guess that would make sense. It picks up the first one you come across, right?”

“Thank goodness his earth pony form is based off Applejack,” Sergeant Rarity added. “I shudder to think of craziness that could have transpired if it scanned Pinkie Pie. It sounds like you go through enough strangeness already.”

“You have no idea,” Jason said with a laugh, “I have enough to deal with as it is with Hodgepodge and Hughes in my head.”

“Speaking of, where is Pinkie?” R.D. asked. “I haven’t seen her since this thing started.”

Suddenly, the lights dimmed and the band stopped.

“What is happening?” Luna asked aloud, readying for a fight.

Just then, music came on, blaring from the stereos, as lights began to focus on a figure in the back. Gilgamesh had forsaken his armor for a white t-shirt, red leather jacket, tight black pants, and black shoes. As the song continued he began to strut towards the stage, walking by many of the stunned soldiers, before finally beginning to sing.

“Oh. My. God,” Megan said in disbelief.

“He is the master of ham,” Jason commented, shaking his head. He got up, moving through the crowd, scanning a minotaur, buffalo, and horse along the way.

Gilgamesh had finally made it to the dance floor, continuing to sing and dance... and actually be pretty good at it. Many of those in the crowd had began chuckling or even laughing at the song, though just as many were completely stunned. The light then cut out, only to refocus on stage where Pinkie Pie was expertly playing a guitar solo. As the instrument reached critical mass the pink mare disappeared in an explosion of what Jason could only guess was meant to be pure awesome. The lights refocused on Gilgamesh who continued the song, now dressed like a chef complete with toque hat and an apron that read “Kiss the Cook” in bright red letters. Now the entire crowd was laughing and applauded as the song came to a close.

Jason clapped, smirking up at him, “You’re such a goof, ya know that? Always thinking up ways to make people smile.”

“Hey, they need it, now more than ever. Now take a step back, me and Pinkie got one more performance. Hopefully after that everyone will be drunk and/or happy enough to come to the dance floor.”

“Alright, alright, do your stuff,” Jason said, taking a step back from the stage.

Right then the lights cut out and another song started up. The lights shined on Vinyl Scratch and Octavia on the stage behind the turntable, the unicorn dressed in a sparkly gold jumpsuit and the earth pony dressed in a silver one. Gilgamesh and Pinkie Pie then appeared on stage as the lights began to fill in, both dressed in black jumpsuits and wearing the iconic helmets of Daft Punk, Pinkie wearing Guy-Manuel’s helmet and Gilgamesh wearing Thomas’. How in the hell Pinkie knew the proper dance moves to go along with him I’ll never know. The entire crowd was either bobbing on tapping to the beat, and applauded when it was finally finished. Just then, the meat from Saehrimnir got wheeled out by Gustave, many in the crowd drooling and diving in while the next song started.

Pinkie and Gilgamesh both spun rapidly and were suddenly dressed in the same outfits as John Travolta in Saturday Night Fever. As Gilgamesh began dancing, Pinkie was pulling others onto the dance floor, which was now lighting up several colors.

“Hey, something I grew up with,” Megan said, bobbing her head along to the beat.

“...Aw, buck it,” Celestia said suddenly before downing her drink in one big gulp. She then walked towards the dance floor before sliding across and stopping right next to Gilgamesh, both of them dancing with each other in perfect sync, looking so good it almost looked planned.

“So... do you think he plans it out or just makes it up as he goes?” Lady Rarity asked, watching them dance.

“I think its a little bit of both,” Jason said, looking between his two lovely mares, smirking, “Hey, I got me an idea.”

“What?” Chrissy asked, raising her eyebrow.

“Well, we’re gonna steal the spotlight of course!” he grinned, a plan forming in his head.

“Oh that does sound fun.” Chrissy grinned, a mischievous smile on her muzzle.

The lights cut out again, leaving everyone on the dance floor confused until [ur=https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=v5CmwsrT0cY]the next song began. The lights came back on, many of the dancers looking confused before trying to get into the beat, rocking back and forth before they all began to feel it. Spike took Sergeant Rarity onto the floor, R.D. pulled Thorax onto the floor with her, much to his own confusion. The changeling clearly didn’t know how to dance, but he at least seemed to be loosening up. Meanwhile on stage, Gilgamesh and Pinkie were lip syncing, both dressed in hoodies with gold chains and backwards caps. The song ended and everyone either laughed or cheered.

“Have you two been planning something like this for a while?” Lady Rarity asked as their little group made their way to the stage.

“Well honestly we had some stuff planned for the wedding and we figured, ‘hey, everyone is partying, why not bust out a routine?” Jason asked, browsing through his Omnitrix.

“Your part is easy Rarity, no worries,” Chrissy said, giving her a big smile.

“Alright... I trust you two won’t do anything... insane.” Lady Rarity sighed, steeling herself as they explained the bit to her.

Once again the lights cut out, but instead of another song being played immediately, Gilgamesh, Vinyl Scratch, and Octavia appeared on stage, all dressed in black suits and fedoras with Gilgamesh on the piano, Vinyl on drums, and Octavia ready to play the strings.

Just before they began a very massive blast of wind knocked them all off stage and into a heap off to the side.

Jason stepped into view, clearing his throat. “Sorry about that, ladies and gentlemen, but we’ve had a change of plans: Instead of whatever the band was about to play, allow me and my two lovely girlfriends to serenade you with our version of the classic song “Lucy In The Sky With Diamonds.” He took out his sword and stabbed it into the stage, cloaking it in darkness. After a moment, two changelings faded into view; one of them was Chrissy and the other Jason in his Changeling King form, both wearing brightly colored military garb. Music started to play, with the two singing the lyrics in a duet. As they sang, the blackness behind them shifted, taking on the appearance of the various locals described in the song, with Lady Rarity taking the role of Lucy. At the conclusion of the song, the stage returned to normal and the three of them took a bow. “We now return you to your regularly scheduled program,” Jason said before the three of them hurried off stage. Despite the unscheduled nature of the performance the audience still applauded.

“Bit of a dick move, kid, but I’ll forgive it on account of Beatles,” Gilgamesh called before using his gravity powers to levitate everything back onstage. “Everyone please drink and eat up while you llisten to the awesome tunes of eighty-eight fingers Meshie.”

The next song began, a quick yet still smooth tune that most of the crowd was fascinated with. The next was quicker, but having more personality to it and slowly grew in complexity, with Pinkie Pie adding the brass. The third, surprisingly, came with Pinkie Pie on the electric guitar, rocking her own version of the song alongside Gilgamesh. It even looked a bit like he and the pink mare were dueling against each other.

“Wow, he’s really good,” Megan said.

“Yeah, keeps surprising me every time I see him,” Jason added.

“Maybe we can get him to play at our wedding?” Lady Rarity suggested.

“Well... we did have a thing planned, I think he’d enjoy helping us put it together,” Chrissy said, rubbing her chin. “We’ll ask him before we go home.” The others nodded in agreement.

“Ok everybody, enough watching us be awesome, back on the dance floor!” Gilgamesh called before the next song began.

“Come on, girls,” Jason said getting up. “Let’s go dancing! Omnitrix, Ditto,” he commanded, shifting forms. He split in two, each taking the hoof of either mare, “Shall we?”

“Lets see if those dancing lessons paid off, shall we?” Chrissy smirked before heading to the dance floor. Rarity smiled at her Ditto, the pair following after them.

A few minutes into the song Chrysalis couldn’t help but focus on how her counterpart was laughing as she danced with her transformed mate.

“She looks so happy,” she muttered.

“You don’t have a special someone?” Megan asked, sipping at her drink, “That’s rather surprising.”

“I’ve... well, I’ve been too focused on trying to keep my hive alive for the past few hundred years. It’s not easy to keep a race that’s both feared and hated, which also happens to live on love, afloat. That, and I’ve got my daughter Nectar to think of.”

”I can relate. I may not be as old as you but I’ve had to deal with a lot of things. Tirek, Katrina, the Smooze.” She shuddered, a look of utter fear on her face that quickly vanished, “Then spending the next thirty years being told I was crazy and imagined it all. Chrysalis, don’t be like me, half my life is gone and I have nothing to show for it.” She cast a glance at Jason, a smile worming onto her face, “Well, maybe thats not quite true, but you get my point.”

Chrysalis smiled sadly, chuckling. “You know what’s ridiculous? Nectar had always believed we could live in harmony with the other races, that they’d be open to it if we just approached them up front and asked. But I was too blinded by hatred and fear. Hatred for the ponies who had nearly driven our race into extinction, not to mention the Princesses for letting it happen, and fear that I was just one big mistake from having us all wiped out. Even after my failed invasion she still believed there was a chance. Then I find out that the Princesses had no idea that we were being destroyed and it was all because of one crazy supremacist pony. And to top it all off,” she continued and turned to see her daughter dancing with Twilight, laughing all the while, “It seems like this war has made it so her dreams are well on their way to becoming true. I can’t help but wonder, was I just too stubborn to see the truth or was this all just luck?”

“It’s tough to tell. In our world, Chrissy invaded because her hive was starving and she was desperate. From what I’ve been told, she lost hundreds of her children that day, and she felt every single one of them die... and yet there she is, having a great time with the ones she loves. I don’t think I could do that. Hell, if it wasn’t for Jason, I don’t think she’d be alive right now,” Megan said, brushing some hair out of her face, “She’s a version of you, if she could be strong like that, so can you.”

“Hm. You may be right. If nothing else, I can be sure things are going to be different from here on out.” She shook her head. “No, things are different. And despite all the hardship and death it looks like that’s going to be a good thing.”

“I’m glad. Hopefully, things can turn out here like they did back home,” Megan paused, tapping her chin, “You know... I’m rather curious about what their children will look like.”

Chrysalis just stared for a moment. “Huh. You know, that’s a good question. I mean, I don’t know about your Equus, but here the only outright hybrid species have been hippogriffs, with the parents being both pony and griffin. I mean, sure they’re been pony and zebra crossing, even pony-mule relations, but I haven’t heard about much else. I wonder if some of the species can crossbreed.” She then looked at Spike and Sergeant Rarity dancing. “Well, perhaps one possibility will be answered soon enough. As for changelings, if my drones do happen to be responsible for births with ponies they always turn out to be ponies, but that’s mostly because they had been in pony form when they were impregnated.”

“Jason can mate with anything, and I don’t mean because of the watch,” Megan said with a chuckle, “His grandfather is notorious for having the weirdest children: a giant wolf and a giant snake and this is with a woman of the same species as him. Tell me, did Gilgamesh ever tell you the story of Sleipnir?”

“N-No. I don’t believe he has,” Chrysalis replied with a stunned look on her face.

“Ok so, Loki, Jason’s great-grandfather, had to cheat a bet right? So his brilliant plan was to turn into a mare in heat and distract a stallion. Eleven months later he gave birth to Sleipnir, an eight legged foal that can walk on land, air and sea.”

Chrysalis just stared, her mouth agape. “H-How-? Wh-What... what was the bet?”

“The gods tasked a builder to build them a new home. If he could do it in a certain amount of time, he’d win the hand of a goddess along with the sun and moon. He won anyway but when they found out he was a giant they bashed his skull in.”

“His relatives sound... rather violent.”

“I personally never met them, they died a very long time ago,” Megan said, with a dismissive hand wave.

“I... I think a stiffer drink,” Chrysalis said before chugging her cider.

“Heh, I hear that,” Megan said with a laugh. “Well, would you look at that? Looks like our ride just got here.” She looked towards the door to see Dash draped across R.D’s back, out cold.

“Damn girl passed out from mixing mead, vodka, cider, rum, and Celestia knows what else,” R.D. said as her counterpart groaned.

“Great, anyone know a sobering spell?” Jason asked as he walked over, reverting to normal. “Anyone?”

“I do,” Luna replied. “Though I would like something for my services.”

“You want your DNA spliced?” Jason asked, holding up the Omnitrix.

“...Okay, two things. But first, what were you thinking?”

“How much do you know about what's in the Omnitrix?”

“Well, we were told that you were the one responsible for his absorbing and copying ability. I don’t know much more than that.”

“I do have something in mind for you, the species of one of my default forms, Ghostfreak,” he said, shifting into said form. “You’d gain invisibility, intangibility, the ability to possess others, all the good ghost stuff. Oh and others won’t be able to track you via mana.”

Luna looked surprised. “I see. Well, you know better than I.”

“Hey, can the rest of us get in on this too?” R.D. asked. “After seeing Dash here open a portal with a Rainboom, I’m kinda feeling a little... less awesome.”

“AH AM TAH BIFROST! AIN’T NOPONY GONNA STOP ME FROM GETTIN MAH SAUSAGE!” Dash shouted in a drunken slur before falling off her counterpart and groaning again.

“Sure, though I’m gonna warn you all now, your appearances might change,” Jason said, reverting to normal.

“As long as I don’t grow another head or something weird like that, I think I’m cool with it.”

“Okay, you ready Luna?” Jason asked, looking up at her.

“As I could ever be to have my body transformed, I suppose,” she responded.

“Okay, here we go. Omnitrix, splice target alicorn with ectonurite DNA,” Jason commanded. The Omnitrix chirped, sending out a green burst of energy at Luna.

Luna flinched in surprise but soon recovered. “I don’t feel particularly different. Are you sure it worked?”

“Oh, it worked,” R.D. assured her.

“See for yourself!” Pinkie said, appearing behind them with a full-length mirror.

Luna was surprised to see her coat now had a pale blue series of lines snaking around it, contrasting her darker coat. It wasn’t anything too extravagant, a few across her barrel, one on each leg, and even left her face and cutie marks untouched.

“Interesting. Now let’s see if-” she began only to suddenly turn invisible. She gasped in surprise before chuckling. “Oh, quite amusing, indeed!” she exclaimed, returning to a visible state as she levitated herself in the air. “I didn’t know it was possible to fly without magic or wings. Not quite as fast though.” She then chuckled mischievously. “A moment while I retrieve my sister,” she said before phasing through the floor.

“Who’s next?” Jason asked with a smirk.

“Hit me!” R.D. responded with a smirk. “And it better be awesome, or I’ll hit you!”

“Just try it, skittles,” Jason teased, “ Omnitrix, splice target pegasus with Crystalsapien DNA.” It chirped, doing so.

R.D. looked over herself and frowned. “What the hay! I don’t look any different at all!”

“Ooh, Chryssi, hit her with a magic blast!” Pinkie said.

“Wait, what!?” R.D. asked.

The changeling empress fired a short burst of magic at the pegasus who flinched. She opened her eyes as she noticed she was unhurt and was surprised to find her body sparkling.

“Wh-What!?”

“You can now absorb and fire off energy at will,”’ Jason said. “Surprised you didn’t get the horn as well.”

“Horn? You mean I could’ve looked like an alicorn! Aw, hay.” The pegasus sulked for a moment before observing her body again. She fired a small beam of light at the floor, enough to scorch it black, causing her body to lose it’s crystalline shine. “Heh. This’ll make those bastards think twice about hitting me with magic,” she smirked.

“Okay, next?” Jason said, looking at the gathered friends. “Applejack?”

“Well, might as well. Go ahead and give it whirl!” the farm mare replied.

“Omnitrix, splice target earth pony with Talpaedan DNA,” he commanded, watching as it did so.  “You should be able to vibrate your limbs enough to cause earthquakes and dig through the ground.”

“So, what, she’s part Diamond Dog now?” R.D. asked.

“Hm,” Applejack muttered, focused on trying to get her new powers to work. Suddenly her forelegs were encased in orange armor and drills grew out of the end of her hooves. “GAH!” she shouted in surprise, only for them to turn back.

“And apparently your form changes when you want to use your powers,” Jason added.

Applejack tried again, her entire body now encased in armor, as all four of her legs vibrated. The entire building shook, catching everyone’s attention. “Uh, sorry, ya’ll!” she quickly apologized, returning back to her normal state.

R.D.’s mouth had dropped open before she turned to Jason with an angry face. “WHAT THE HAY!? NOW SHE’S ALMOST COOLER THAN ME!”

“Whoo-wee! This’ll make Applebuck Season easier!”

“Seriously? That’s what you’re thinking about?”

“Ok... so Rarity, you want something? I got the perfect thing for you!” Jason said with a smirk.

“Well... alright, I suppose. Just... please don’t ruin my appearance! You have no idea how hard it is to look fabulous during times of war. I have to give the troops something to look at, after all,” the sergeant replied.

“Hey, what do you mean ‘give the troops something to look at!?’” Spike asked in a clearly jealous tone.

“Oh come dear, you know I have to put on a performance. Besides,” she stood up and gave the dragon a kiss on the cheek, “it’s not only the troops I’m trying to look good for.”

Spike blushed at that, while Jason, Lady Rarity, and Chryssi shuddered a little.

“Okay... Omnitrix splice target unicorn with Merlinisapien DNA,” he commanded, which the watch did.

Rarity looked herself over, not noticing anything different. “Well, no unsightly protrusions or color changes. So what did happen?”

“You should be able to change your colors at will, like a chameleon, enough to turn invisible.”

“‘Change color?’” she echoed before looking back at herself. A moment of concentration led to her coat changing to black. “Oh my! Oh, this will certainly help in my inspirations! Oh, idea!” she exclaimed before turning invisible. “Et voila!” she said as she reappeared, her coat back to its white color but now with an elegant violet vine-like pattern extending from her cutie mark to her hind legs, and also highlights in her mane and tail of a familiar shade of green. “What do you think, Spikey?”

Spike looked to his own spines and blushed, rubbing the back of his head in embarrassment. Their friends giggled and rolled their eyes.

“Got an idea for you too, Spike,” Jason smiled, looking at the dragon.”That is, if you want it.”

“Go right ahead. Anything that’ll help me protect my friends better,” the drake replied.

“Ok, Omnitrix, splice target dragon with Orishan DNA,” It beeped, doing so.

“Omnitrix power near 50%,” it chirped.

“Thanks for the heads up,” Jason said, glancing at it. “So, you should be able to spray pressurized water out of your hands. Oh, and also be immune to radiation.”

Spike took a look at his claws and noticed there appeared to be some sort of slits near his wrists. He pointed his arms up and a small amount of water began to gush from them.

“A dragon that can use both fire and water? Sweet! Now I won’t have to worry about accidentally burning something important.”

“Ok... who wants to go next? Twilight? Pinkie? Fluttershy?” Jason asked, looking at the remaining trio.

“Or, perhaps, I could have a chance?”

The group turned to see Celestia approach them, but she looked a bit strange.

“If We are to protect our subjects We must make use of every means available to Us,” she declared proudly.

“P-Princess Celestia? Are you alright?” Twilight asked.

“Ok... let’s see... ah, I got it.” Jason nodded, “Omnitrix, splice target alicorn with Polar Manzardill DNA,” he ordered, watching the beam hit Celestia, “‘You now have ice breath, can survive sub-zero temperatures and I assume breathe underwater.”

“Hm. Interesting that she gets the opposite power while I get the complimentary one,” Celestia said, only for Luna to phase out of her, leaving the Princess of the Sun to glare at her sibling.

“That. Was. Not. Fun,” she said harshly.

“I disagree. It is about time I got you back for all that teasing you gave me in our adolescence. Don’t think I’ve forgotten the time you covered my bed in itching powder,” Luna smirked back.

Celestia continued to glare for a moment before smirking. She inhaled sharply before puffing out a quick breath, encasing Luna’s head in ice, her face frozen in surprise.

“It seems the alcohol has gone to your head, sister. Please cool it.”

Luna’s body became intangible, causing the block of ice to fall to the ground and shatter. “Don’t think this is over,” she replied with her own smirk.

“Heh, reminds me of home,” Jason said with a laugh, “Next!”

“Um... I’d like to go next, if no one minds,” Fluttershy replied.

“What would you rather have, control over plants or the ability to multiply yourself?”’ Jason asked, looking down at her.

“Give her the plant one,” Pinkie Pie said. “I don’t think this universe can handle this much adorableness multiplying.”

Fluttershy blushed but nodded. “Um, yes, I’d like the plant one, actually. It sounds like it would help me get closer with my animal friends back home.”

“Ok, Omnitrix, splice target pegasus with Florauna DNA.” The Omnitrix did so with its customary chirp.

“Power below 50%.”

“So, um, what can I-?”

“Fluttershy, what are those things on your back?” Twilight asked in worry, pointing to the four slits between her wings.

“Oh my! Um, did everything go ok?”

“Yeah, those are where your seeds grow... I think,” Jason said, leaning closer for a better view. “If I’m right you can choose what they’ll do each time you grow them and I believe you can cover your body in thorns, grow vines and um... maybe regenerate yourself? Not sure on that last one.”

“Wait, I thought you said you’d give her control over plants, not turn her into plants!” R.D. yelled.

“Oh, I really don’t mind,” Fluttershy assured her. “Besides,” her eyes glossed over dreamily, “now I can be a tree!” A wide smile spread across her face as she daydreamed.

“So... which one of you wants to go last?” Jason asked, looking between Pinkie and Twilight.

“I don’t mind waiting for last,” Pinkie answered.

“Well, I guess that settles it,” Twilight said. “Now let’s see. I’m already adept at magic, and I’m getting pretty good at flying. Maybe you can give me some that will help me in physical combat?”

“I got a few, a race of very angry tiger people, a race of four armed bipeds, the list goes on, really,” Jason said, looking at her.

“Uh, I don’t really want to get all angry, and I kind of like having just four legs. Maybe something that works in tandem with their strength?”

“But having eight legs is fun. My uncle was a horse with eight legs, let him fly through the air and walk on water.” Jason laughed, shaking his head, “Ok... let me think here. Ah I got it, electrical powers for you! Whaddya say?”

“Sounds as good as anything else. Go for it!” she replied, looking absolutely giddy at the prospect of gaining new powers.

“Omnitrix, splice target alicorn with Amperi DNA,” he ordered, watching as it did.

“Omnitrix power level near depletion. This unit can perform one more gene splicing before mandatory recharge is required,” it chirped.

“So shoot some lightning already,” Jason commanded.

Twilight focused for a moment and sparks began to dance along her body. She then extended her wings and electricity began to arc between them in a high voltage energy arc. The alicorn squeed. “Oh, I can’t wait to test out all the scientific applications for this!”

“Okay so, you should also be able to turn intangible, convert yourself into pure energy, enter electrical cables, read thoughts via electrical impulses in the brain and absorb and redirect electrical blasts,” Jason listed off, causing Twilight’s eyes to sparkle in delight. He then looked to Pinkie, “I already have the perfect choice for you.”

“And suddenly, I’m terrified,” Spike commented.

“Omnitrix, splice target earth pony with Gourmand DNA.” The Omnitrix did so before emitting one final beep and changing to a red color.

“Omnitrix power depleted, entering recharge mode. Estimated recharge time: twenty-four hours.”

“So, feel any different?”’ Jason asked her.

“Hm,” she pondered before turning to face a cake off in the distance at the buffet table. Without a word she opened her mouth and a group of three pink tentacles shot out, latched onto the cake, and pulled it into her mouth, swallowing it all in one gulp.

“Oh god,” Megan muttered with a horrified expression.

“And now I’m scarred for life,” Chrysalis muttered.

Twilight looked utterly broken. “Wh-what!?”

“Neato!” Pinkie said with a smile.

“You should be able to regurgitate anything you eat as an energy bolt... oh and propel yourself through the air with said energy bolts... and survive in space...” Jason said, rubbing his chin. “Upchuck is a little weirdo.”

“Just like me! Except I’m not little!” she then stopped and her expression turned quizzical. “Well, I suppose I am little compared to a dragon. But not to an ant.” She then gasped. “What if there really isn’t such a thing as little or big! WHAT IF IT’S MPHMMPHMPHMMMPH!”

“That’s enough of that, sugarcube,” Applejack said as she held her hoof over the pink mare’s mouth.

“Well, that was interesting,” Jason said before turning to Luna. “So what was that other thing you wanted?”

Luna smiled. “I am to understand that our visiting version of Rainbow Dash possesses some quality mead.”

“Oh that, we have tons of that,” Jason said, taking out a few bottles and tossing them to Luna, “Straight from the goat’s teat.”

“Wait, what?” Spike asked.

“We have a goat who produces this mead instead of milk.” Jason cracked his neck, looking around, “You mind casting that sobering spell on Dash? I’m gonna go ask Gilg something.” Jason walked off, looking for the human.

Luna’s horn lit up for a moment, Dash springing up to her hooves a second later. “What-who-when-what-where-how-why?”

“You got drunk off your flank,” R.D. replied with a smirk. “And now Luna drank the rest of your mead.”

“WHAT!?” the living Bifrost shouted before turning to see Luna licking her lips as she set down the flask.

“Ah! ‘Tis a taste we had long thought we would never experience again! I thank you.”





“Yo, Gilg!” Jason called, looking around. He was surprised to find the warrior back in his armor, aside from his helmet resting on the table, sitting alone and sipping another rum and cola quietly. “Gilg?”

“What?” Gilgamesh replied, turning to face his friend. “Oh, Jay. Sorry, a bit out of it.”

“It’s cool,” Jason said, joining him at the table. “Hey uh... I wanted to ask you something rather... important.”

“Go ahead kid. I’m still a bit busy, but I always try to make time for friends.”

“Well... I never thought of Mr. Hughes as much of a father and well... you’re the closest thing I’ve had so um... would you be my best man?” Jason asked, twiddling his thumbs a little.

Gilgamesh just stared for moment. “M-Me? The best man? At your wedding?” Jason nodded. “I... I don’t think I’ve ever been asked to participate in a wedding before. Hell, I’ve never been to a wedding before.”

“Neither have I and I’m marrying two people!” Jason reminded, sighing a little, “You have no idea how nervous I am.”

“Actually, I think I do. When this war started everyone wanted me to be in command of the entire Equus military despite me having little, if any, experience commanding others and absolutely no knowledge of military strategy. I guess that’s what happens when you’ve got thousand year old legends talking about how awesome you are.” Gilgamesh chuckled. “I’d say I was about half as nervous then as you are now.”

“Gee, that makes me feel a whole lot better,” Jason said with a small smile.

The warrior laughed himself a moment. “Jason, if I can spare the time, I would absolutely be honored to be your best man. It’s the least I can do for a great friend like you.”

“At least someone thinks I’m great... well besides Serah and Tomas, but thats another story for another time,” Jason said getting up, “I’m glad we could catch up but, now that Dash is up, we should get home. No telling what’s invading in our absence.”

“Godspeed, my student. I’m sure you’ll be a great husband.”

Jason nodded and turned to walk away.

“Hey Jay, one last thing before you go.”

“Yeah?”

“Have you and your betrotheds already... you know... consummated the relationship?”

“Gilgamesh, I’m going to leave you with this: what do you think a pair of shapeshifters do in bed?”

Gilgamesh’s eyes widened. “You lucky son of a bitch.”

Jason just smirked, tossing Dash some jerky, which she snatched out of the air and greedily devoured despite the mostly disgusted looks of those around her. “Let’s go, Dash,” he said, walking outside. The others followed him, with Dash bolting into the sky to make the portal. “Hey,” Jason said, turning to Gilgamesh, “Thanks for everything.”

“See ya, Jay! Send me a video!” Gilgamesh called back, causing his friends to look at him in confusion.

“What are you, Master Roshi?” Jason laughed as Dash came back, wrapping the group up in her contrail. “Catch ya later... Dad,” he said with a sincere smile before Dash bolted through the portal, taking the group home.

Gilgamesh just stared as they disappeared, everyone else giving him a shocked expression. Soon a smile tugged at his cheeks. “Dad, huh? Kinda like the sound of that.”
> Frozen Heritage 
> --------------------------------------------------------------------------

“So... we’ve been to two realms already, not counting this one: Nidavellir, where we met the dwarves, and Midgard, or Earth,” Jason said as the small group trekked through the snow and wind. 

“So... that leaves what?” Twilight asked, pulling her scarf tighter around her. For this little expedition, the map had led them up into the frozen north, the glowing dome of the Crystal Empire visible off in the distance.

“That leaves six: Muspelheim (the realm of fire), Jotunheim (rock and ice giants), Alfheim (elves), Vanaheim (some gods), Niflheim (the realm of ice), and Svartalfheim (dark elves.)” Jason explained, taking a look around, “Today, we’re going to Jotunheim, where my people used to live.”

“We’re going to your homeworld?” Twilight asked, her eyes widening in excitement.

“This is my homeworld now, Twilight, though Midgard was more my homeworld than Jotunheim was,” he sighed, putting the map away. “We most likely won’t find anything, all the other Jotun are dead.”

“Oh yeah...” she said, looking away.

“Hey it’s no sweat Twi, not like I knew any of them,” Jason said with a chuckle. “You ready, Dash?” he asked, looking back toward their companions. Dash was wearing as much insulation as possible without hindering her movement. Behind her were Applejack and Pinkie Pie, both of whom fared much better in the cold, thanks to their hardy earth pony constitutions. 

“Hay yeah! Lets do this!”  Dash shouted, glowing and taking off as quickly as possible. She wrapped them all up in her contrail and quickly made her portal. “Here we go!” she shouted, diving through the portal, pulling them along with her. “Oh, come on!” she shouted once they came out the other side. “It’s cold here too!?”

“What part of ‘home of the ice giants’ did you not understand?” Jason asked as Dash landed, brushing himself off as her contrail faded away.

“Lotta trees,” Applejack observed, looking around. All around them were nothing but trees and snow.

“This realm is sorta just a winter forest,” Jason said looking around, “It’s weird... I feel like I’m home.”

“Perhaps your race had a special connection with their home?” Twilight asked, shivering ever so slightly, “It would explain how you’re feeling now.”

“It’s really peaceful, I kinda like it.” Pinkie smiled, watching a doe and her fawn in the distance.

“Well, we should try to find what’s left of Utgard, the Jotun stronghold. There might be something there that could be useful.” Jason said, looking at Dash, “Can you fly up and look for anything resembling a fortress or castle?”

“I’ll do anything if it’ll keep me warm.” Dash shot up into the air, soaring around. She grumbled to herself, cursing the cold that clawed at her body. She panned her vision around, trying to spot anything in the snowy forest. “Wait,” she called down to them, “I think I see something that way.” She pointed off into the distance, toward what looked like a mountain. Movement caught her eye and she turned, but there was nothing there. “Weird...” she mumbled to herself, descending to rejoin the others.

“Okay so, that way it is,” Jason said, starting to move in the direction Dash had pointed out. He  looked around yet again, suddenly getting the feeling that he was being watched. “You guys feel that?” he asked, not bothering to look back at them.

“Yeah, like somepony’s watchin’ ya,” Applejack said, standing on alert. “Ya sure all them Jotun are dead Jay?” She didn’t want to imply that he was a liar, but something was watching them, just out of sight.

“Yeah AJ, I am.” Jason sighed, his eyes darting from tree to tree.

“It always feels like somepony’s watching me, and I have no privacy,” Pinkie said, trotting along rather slowly, “I wonder who’s watching me now? The IRS?”

“Pinkie, I’m not going to ask why you know the lyrics to an obscure 80’s song sung by a paranoid artist,” Jason responded, ever so slowly reaching for his sword.

“Song? What song?” Pinkie asked, looking at Jason quizzically.

Jason didn’t respond, running a hand down his face. “You all are going to drive me to drink, I swear.”

“But you already drink,” Pinkie quipped.

“Ugh! Just forget it!” Jason said, giving up on the conversation entirely. He froze, his eyes darting around. “Don’t move...” he warned, his eyes locking in between two trees. A moment later, a shrieking spirit horse erupted from the snow, charging at them. Jason drew his sword, slashing through the specter. It screeched in pain, fleeing back from whence it came.

“T-that was a windigo!” Twilight stuttered, looking around in a frenzy. 

“What?! Those things still exist?!” Dash asked, her wings flaring out in surprise.

“What the hell is a windigo?” Jason asked, confusion written all over his face.

“Malevolent spirits that drove us ponies out of our original homeland. They fed off the negative emotions the three tribes generated from their fighting and nearly froze us into extinction.” Twilight recited, looking off toward nothing as she reread the passage in her mind. 

“How’d they beat them?” Jason asked, looking back at the purple mare. 

“Well, Private Pansy, Clover the Clever, and Smart Cookie realized the power of friendship and the positive emotions drove the spirits off.”

“Why does that not surprise me?” Jason asked with a sigh. “Well, at least we know Laevateinn hurts spirits,” he commented, looking at the sword with a smirk.

“Violence doesn’t solve most problems, Jason,” Twilight reminded, though the ponies were now grouped closer together.

“Hey we’re all friends! Those meanie windy guys won’t be able to hurt us!” Pinkie exclaimed, pulling her friends into a hug.

“Yeah... we should really find Utgard before Dash freezes.” Jason started to move again, the ponies right on his heels. 

“Um... maybe we should hurry up?” Applejack suggested, looking behind them. Several dozen more windigos had appeared, watching them rather creepily from in between the trees.

“Okay... on my mark... go!” Jason shouted, firing off a Flare behind them. On that cue, the ponies bolted, making their way toward the distant fortress. “See ya fuckers!” he shouted, giving them a two finger salute while hauling ass after the others. The spirits howled in anger, quickly flying after the intruders, herding them toward the fortress like their master had ordered.




`
Jason threw the doors open with a thud, the ponies rushing past him into the fortress. He spun around, pushing them shut just in time to lock the windigos out.

“Welp, that was mighty close,” Applejack sighed, wiping some cold sweat off her brow. “Almost lost mah hat.”

“As if, AJ, you’re about as likely to lose that hat as you are your own tail or something.” Dash laughed, shaking the snow out of her coat like a dog. “At least this place is warm,” she said, trotting up to the roaring fire, sighing in relief as it warmed her bones. 

“I think the most pressing issue is, who started that fire?” Twilight trotted over to it, looking into the flames. “If nopony is here besides us and the windigos, who started the fire?”

“Maybe it lit itself?” Pinkie suggested, moving over to it as well. “It knew we’d be coming and lit itself so we’d be warm!” She gave a smile, and Jason just hoped she wouldn’t try to give the fire a hug or something.

“Ah much as ah uh... want ta believe that Pinkie, ah think somepony’s been living here,” Applejack said, joining the others near the fire. Jason just shook his head, ponies were still herd animals after all. 

“Might as well get warm,” Jason said, sitting with the group. Though the cold didn’t really affect him, it was still nice to be warm. “So... we  should probably look for whoever started the fire.”

“Later,” Dash said, holding her talons out toward the flames. She pulled them back after a moment , hugging herself. She sighed in contentment as the warm metal chased the chill out of her bones. 

“Be careful Dash, we didn’t heat test those,” Twilight commented, watching the talons closely.

“You worry too much Twi,” Jason said, shaking his head. He pulled out some jerky, taking a bite out of it. “Hiring Gilda was a great choice.”

“Hey, pass me some,” Dash said reached out, her talon open expectantly.

“Fine, but that’s all you're getting,” Jason said, tossing her a few strips. She caught them, greedily starting to scarf them down.

“Ugh,” Applejack said, making a face, “How can ya eat that stuff?”

“We found that using her powers burns more calories than you’d think,” Twilight answered, looking a little green. “So, since ponies can eat some meat, we decided that jerky would be the easiest way to help her refuel since it’s easy to carry and calorie-dense.”

“And it tastes really good!” Dash said with a smirk, noisily chewing on said jerky to mess with AJ, who was starting to look queasy.

“Daaash, stop doing that before AJ hurls,” Jason said, flicking Dash’s ear. She frowned at him, finishing up her meal and wiping her muzzle off with a talon

“It has been eons since another living soul has visited Jotunheim,” a booming voice called from behind them. They all spun around, looking at the massive door that they had failed to notice on the other side of the room. Standing there, towering a good three stories over them, was a human-like creature with red eyes, wearing clothes made from various animal skins. He looked extremely old, and clutched his side in pain.

“Who the hay are you?” Dash asked, flying up to his face, trying not to let his size get to her.

“Small one, I am Utgard-Loki, ruler of this fortress, last of the Jotun, or so I thought.” He gazed down at Jason, who tensed up under the older Jotun’s scrutiny. “Tell me young one, from whose line where you sired?”

“Loki’s,” Jason replied, his grip tightening around his sword.

“Ha! I knew that snake’s line would survive Ragnarok,” Utgard-Loki laughed, though soon it turned into a pained cough. “I am glad to have seen one of my kin, I fear I am not much longer for this world.”

“Oh my, is there anything we can do to help?” Twilight asked, craning her neck up to look at him.

“Nay, my time has finally come, though I would not die like this,” he reached over his shoulder, pulling a large battle axe off his back. “Face me, son of Loki, let us battle unto death, so that I may die with honor.”

“We’re not going to–” she started before Jason stepped forward, sword in hand.

“I accept your challenge, Utgard-Loki. I shall give you the death you seek.” Jason looked up at him, eyes full of determination.

“Good, let us go outside, the fortress is a poor place for a battle.” Utgard-Loki lumbered past them, walking out into the snow. Jason followed after him, the harsh wind causing his hair to go wild.

“Jason! Ya don’t have to do this!” Applejack shouted, only for some windigos to block the ponies’ path.

“The souls of our kin, too restless to stay in the afterlife,” Utgard-Loki said, getting into a ready stance.  “Do not interfere, equines. This is between us Jotun.” He heaved his axe high into the air before bringing it down at Jason. He rolled out of the way, firing off a Flare at the much taller Jotun.  Utgard-Loki grunted as the blast caught him in the chest, staggering him somewhat. “I see you have been trained in the art of sorcery.”

“Self-taught, actually,” Jason said, moving forward, slashing at his legs. Utgard-Loki raised one of his thick, tree trunk-like legs into the air before bringing it down hard, knocking Jason off his feet.

“You have much to learn, including, it seems to me, how to be a Jotun.” Utgard-Loki drew in a deep breath, letting it out as a massive gust of wind. It sent Jason tumbling into a tree, his sword flying out of his hands. Utgard-Loki lifted the axe again, bringing it down on Jason, tearing the tree asunder.

“Jason!” Applejack shouted, sharing a horrified look with the others. Dash moved to help, only to be blocked by several windigos. 

Under the ax’s blade, Jason grunted, having caught it with his bare hands. His eyes were  glowing red and he was barely keeping it from cutting him in half, even with his berserker rage.

“That the best you got?” Hughes’ voice echoed through his head, “You can do better than that, Jason.”

“Hughes?” Jason asked through gritted teeth, “You're the last person I’d expect encouragement from.”

“What?”  he scoffed, “Did you expect Hodgepodge to do it? He’s too busy selecting fight music.” He paused to gather his thoughts. “Now listen here, we may not be the best Jotun around but dammit we’re a fraction of his age and he’s a mortally wounded geriatric that’ll most likely drop dead from this. So are you going to let grandpa here cut us in half or are you going to give him the death he craves?”

Jason snarled, starting to lift the axe blade up. “Ain’t no way an old man is killing me!” he shouted, now at his full height. He tossed the axe blade up, causing Utgard-Loki to stagger backward. Jason quickly ripped one of the tree halves out of the ground, chucking it at the old man. It caught him in the stomach, forcing him to drop to one knee.

“Feisty one you are,” Utgard-Loki groaned as he got back to his feet, his wound bleeding freely now. He started to spin around, launching the massive battle axe at Jason. With an impressive amount of timing, he caught the axe’s handle and with a quick spin, hurled it back at the giant. Utgard-Loki moved to catch it, though his reflexes had been dulled with age and the ax’s head buried itself in his stomach. He fell to his side, causing a minor tremor, and coughed up blood.

Jason panted for a moment before approaching the dying giant. “I hope that was the death you were lookin’ for.”

“Aye...” Utgard-Loki said with a chuckle. “I wish it had been longer, though that is something neither of us could change. I will say... I am proud to know you carry on our blood. As the acting ruler of Jotunheim, I name you as my successor, and thus impart upon you the title of ‘Lord of Winter’.”

“Really? That easily?” Jason asked, looking rather unsure.

“We share the same blood and you have claimed my life, it is your right.” Utgard-Loki let out another wheezing cough.  “Ah... Hel hath come to take me at last... farewell Jason. May the blood on your blade never dry and may your enemies always quake in your presence.” With that, the ancient giant took one last shuddering breath, letting it out before going still.

“Aye, and may Hel grant you a peaceful rest,” Jason said, watching the giant’s motionless corpse in silence for a few moments. 

“Jason...” Twilight said, trotting over to him, the windigos no longer blocking the ponies’ path. “Was that really necessary?” She looked at the corpse, her eyes starting to tear up.

“Yeah, it was. He wanted to die fighting, Twilight, not like a feeble old man,” Jason said, sighing a little. Pinkie trotted up to him, carrying his sword in her mouth. “Thanks, Pinkie.” He took it from her and placed it back into storage.

“Um... what do we do about them?” Dash asked, pointing at the windigos. The spirits were looking at him expectantly, as if waiting for him to speak.

“I rule Jotunheim now, which means I rule them.” Jason looked at the windigos, nodding his head, and raised his voice. “I want you all to rest and be ready. One day I will need your strength and we shall show the realms that the Jotun are still a force to be reckoned with.” The spirits seemed to take heed of his commands, slowly fading away into the blizzard. 

“Jay umm... ya look... different,” Applejack said with a frown. “Like, really different.”

“What do you mean?” Jason asked, raising his eyebrow.

“Look at your hands, sugarcube.”

Jason blinked, looking down at them. His eyes widened, staring at the claws that now tipped each of his fingers.

“It um... appears that your eyes are pure red now and that you have fangs,” Twilight said, looking concerned, “Are you okay? Is this normal for Jotun?”

“Yeah, I’m okay Twilight, I just look like a Jotun now,” Jason said, running his hand through his hair. This wasn’t going to go over well with the ponies back home.

“Can we go home now? I need to throw a party,” Pinkie said, looking at the corpse with a frown, her mane deflating a bit. 

“Yeah we can Pinkie, I think we could all use a party.” Jason nodded to Dash, who quickly made a new portal. He turned to Utgard-Loki, nodding his head. “I’ll be back, and when I return, I’ll see to giving you a proper burial.” He gave a quick salute as Dash wrapped them up in her contrail and pulled the group through the rift, leaving only the howling wind to fill the silence of the empty realm.
> Nothing Good Comes From A Man Named Wade
> --------------------------------------------------------------------------

”Well, here’s to Jay getting his own world.” Dash toasted, already a little buzzed. The others raised their glasses, clanging them together.

“Not something I really expected,” Jason said with a laugh. He took a sip of his drink, which was chilled to perfection just from his touch.

“A lot of unexpected things happened,” Celestia added, sipping her own drink.

“Hey, what’s this?” Pinkie Pie asked, picking a strange blue cube out of her mane.

“I think that’s a token,” Jason said, taking it from her. “I have no idea what it is though... I bet it summons Loki from The Avengers. Imma be so hype.”

Jason turned the cube over in his hands, its softly glowing blue sides pulsing with hidden light. Suddenly, he was able to hear the summoning phrase of the token in full clarity.

“Uhh. This is the... Animorph... Wade. Call me... if you need any help?”

“Animorphs huh? I vaguely remember that show... hey Wade, I don’t really need any help, but who doesn’t want to just enjoy a party?” 

“Of course! Who doesn’t like parties?!” Pinkie shouted, getting up, almost knocking Slash’s plate off the table.

“Oi, careful,” he chastised, moving it out of the way of the energetic mare. 

“Huh, guess he ain’t coming,” Applejack said, shrugging a little.

“What? He hasn’t even gotten here yet and he’s already bailing? What a lame-o,” Rainbow Dash snorted. “I guess if I was about to come face to face with the awesomest pony in any Equestria, I might hightail it too. If I wasn’t already that pony, obviously,” she stated with a nod of her head, taking another swig of her drink.

“I think the booze is just going to your head,” Gilda said, reaching out to take the drink from her.

“It’s going... going to mah belly,” Rainbow Dash stuttered, pulling her drink back out of the griffon’s reach, “Not my head. Mah head’s as clear... as clear... as clear as the skyyyyyyy~” she hiccuped, proof of her drinking having overtaken her tolerance. 

“Yggdrasil, Dash, how much did you drink?” Jason asked, looking concerned. “This is about Gilgamesh’s Dash drinking you under the table, isn’t it?”

“Only...” Dash screwed up her muzzle in contemplation. “I think... yeah, I’ve only had six... Or was it seven? I can handle... twice that, easy! Ah’m not even buzzed!” She took another pull, swaying on her hooves.

“Someone cast a sleep spell on her,” Jason said, sighing.

“I’m impre... imbal... invisible to spells!” Rainbow Dash belted out, leaning against Gilda.

“Yeah, yeah, let’s get you to bed. And I’m telling you right now, if you piss in bed I’m going to kick your ass,” Gilda said said, pulling Dash onto her back.

“And we’re one pony down,” Pinkie started, suddenly wearing a strange hat on her head. For some reason. She also had a toy microphone she held in one hoof, making her voice echo and warble, “And before a new guest can even arrive! Who will be next? Will Twilight prove how much of a lightweight she is? Will Applejack win by a landslide, showing us the true stomach of the Apple family? Stay tuned folks, next time here on...” a drumroll sung out, coming from seemingly nowhere, “Uh... dangit, I had something for this... Party Palooza?” she finished weakly, looking to her remaining friends for their input.

“Um... what?” Applejack asked, rather confused by Pinkie’s antics.

“Nothing!~” Pinkie trilled, tucking the hat and microphone away, before turning to Jason, “Hurry up hurry up, you gotta make them come over here, before we lose any more ponies! Do it for the sake of the party!”

“Ugh, if he doesn’t want to come he doesn’t have to,” Jason said, rolling his eyes, “I’m not going to make him.”

“Why would he not want to come?” Pinkie asked, her eyes getting watery and her mane drooping. “Aren’t you having fun? Isn’t the party fun? Is it not fun? What’s not fun about it, tell me and I’ll-”

“Ugh, fine, I’ll call him again. Hey Wade, I don’t know if you're busy but Pinkie’s bugging me to get you over here, you’d be doing me a solid if you drop by,”

Pinkie started bouncing happily, singing something about ‘new friends’ or something. 

Several seconds passed, eventually turning into a full minute. Pinkie was getting more and more despondent by the second, offput that someone might actually not want to come to one of her parties.

Suddenly, a hole opened in midair, and a pony was shoved through violently, landing on her face in the middle of the room, much to everyone’s amazement. She slowly raised herself off the floor, looking around the room. Pinkie gasped, and quickly ran up to her, getting right in her face with a brilliant smile.

“Flutters!” she shouted, drawing the familiar yellow pegasus into a hug, and turning to the local one, “You didn’t tell me you had a twin!”

“Oh um... I don’t,” Fluttershy claimed, hiding behind her mane.

At the same time the new one stated, “She doesn’t.”

“Sorry for the face steal,” the new Fluttershy said, twitching a now obviously leathery wing. When she opened her mouth, pointed fangs could also be seen. “I kinda injured myself when I got your call. Had to morph to get rid of the da-NO. Bad Twilight, put the dang pad and quill away!” she suddenly belted out, glaring at Twilight.

Twilight sheepishly lowered the pad of paper she had grabbed, setting it back on the table she had gotten it from.

“So... you got Displaced as Flutterbat?” Jason asked, pointing at Fluttershy, who was similarly batified. 

“You already know about Displaced? Good, saves me the trouble of having to be the introductory guide. And no, I didn’t get Flutterbat, I kinda made this form by mixing Fluttershy’s and Ferdinando’s genetic profile. Oh, your majesties,” she said with a bow towards Celestia and Luna, “Ex-Queen Chrysalis,” she bowed towards Chrysalis, who got an irritated look from the assumption.

“I am empress thank you very much,” she huffed, crossing her arms. “I swear, why does everyone still get that wrong?”

“Forgive her, she’s still pissy about that book thing,” Jason said, causing Chrysalis to glare at Celestia, who just looked away, whistling softly. 

“Apologies,” Wade/Flutterbat started, “My version of Chrysalis seceded the throne to her daughter Insectum, and currently lives in Ponyville with her marefriend. I should have realized full well that my own version of Equestria wouldn’t reflect completely on yours. I’ve been to many different Equestrias, but none where Chry- Queen Chrys- Empress Chrysalis is just a normal face to see in the room. Most Equestrias don’t view her or hers in a positive light.”

“I found that out the hard way...” Chrysalis said, looking away with a sigh.

“So welcome to the party, Wade. Dash was here but she got drunk off her ass and Gilda dragged her to bed.” Jason said, offering him a drink.

“Gilda?” Wade asked, tilting his head in confusion.

“The griffon she’s dating.”

“Oh. Well good for her. Maybe I should suggest that in my world, getting Dash a boy... coltfriend might steer her away from so many pranks...” Wade got a contemplative look on his face, wrinkling Fluttershy’s familiar features.

“Yeah screw the pony puns,” Jason said with a roll of his eyes,”Take a seat already, you're making me antsy.”

“Oh thank god. You wouldn’t believe how many variants try to correct me when I say someone, or anybody. So... can you let me go now?” He asked Pinkie Pie, who was still holding him in a bear hug.

“Ok!” she said, letting him go and trotting back to her seat. Wade was unceremoniously dumped on the ground, having not being given time to position all four hooves under himself.

“So, been Displaced long?” Jason asked, pouring himself some more booze.

“About four months. Yourself?” he replied, scooting past Applejack to pour himself a cup of water from the pitcher.

“In all honesty? I got no idea. Half a year maybe?” he asked, looking at Twilight.

“That sounds about right to me,” she said with a nod.

“Damn. Anything happen here yet? Bad, good, or otherwise?”

“Yeah...” Jason said, taking a long sip of his drink, “You ever watch Ben 10?”

Wade stiffened, his posture wary as he replied, “Yeeees? All of them, even the live action movies.”

“Pony version of the Forever Knights took over for a few days, killed thousands.” Jason let out a sigh, “Dash lost her legs and Slash over there got discharged from the guard due to injuries...”

“Holy crap... Oh, Captain Slash, didn’t see you there.”

“Let me guess, theres a version of me in your world I take it?” Slash asked, currently wearing his shades. 

“Yeah, Celestia sent him, private Grinding Gears, and lieutenant Esper Elegy for me to get some male morphs off of. I only had Spike before that, with nothing but female morphs besides that. I decided to make a mix morph of them,” Wade gave Slash a knowing grin, “It was only after that I became aware of your...ethnicity, shall I say.”

“Uh huh...”Slash said nodding his head.

“Regarding Dash’s legs, might I suggest something?” Wade asked.

“We already made her new ones,” Jason said, shaking his head. 

“Oh, well if thats taken care of, I guess it isn’t that big of a deal. But something you should know about my token,” he plucked the cube from Jason’s hand, “It functions as a default Escafil Device. But only for one individual per universe, for some reason. If you had Dash activate it, she could... just a second, let me demonstrate.”

Wade closed his eyes, until the the hoof on his front right leg shifted colors, turning an emerald green. And then an embossed emerald dagger popped out of it, appearing with a flash of light. Before anyone could do something, he plunged it hilt deep into his other front leg, gaining a yelp of surprise from everyone present. Drawing it out, the wound started bleeding steadily, and he made the dagger disappear again.

“Morphing,” He started, his voice straining from the obvious pain. His fur shifted from muted yellow to a deep, bright pink. his wings became insectoid in appearance, an electric blue replacing the leathery wings of Flutterbat. Chitin spread from beneath his skin, forming plates and a carapace where a hide once was.

“Repairs all damage. Even amputations. Just saying.” he stated, his voice a feminine, low buzzing trill that almost mimicked Chrysalis’ exactly.

“Still ain’t got nothing on this baby,” Jason said with a smirk, showing off the Omnitrix.

Wade suddenly froze, his wings buzzing irritatedly. Chrysalis and Slash immediately grew wary, knowing the indications of an angry queen about to attack.

“You wouldn’t happen to be named... Jason by any chance, would you?” he asked. his eyes unbreaking from Jason’s own.

“I am, yes–” Jason said, looking at him.

Wade drew back, shrinking suddenly. Whereas his previous ‘morph’ had taken almost a full minute, this one happened in only a split second, leaving the entire room suddenly looking at what appeared to be a fat, yellow mouse with red marks on its cheeks.

“Ah crap–”

“CHUUUUUUUUUUUUU!!!!!!!!!!!” With a violent cry from the diminutive pokémon’s maw, a huge arc of lightning flew straight at Jason.

Jason didn’t move, letting the bolt hit him. “Okay... that tingled...” he said, glaring at Wade. “The hell was that for? Ben bad mouth me or something?”

<Don’t bother,> Those present heard echo in their minds, <I already heard all about you. You’re nothing but a manipulative jerk who goes out his way to screw over other Displaced!> 

He shifted again, suddenly the picture perfect appearance of Twilight, without wings.

“Flux!” he called out, his horn lighting up a deep emerald green as he shot a ball of shadow at Jason. 

Jason flew back, smacking into the wall. “Kid... you have no idea who you’re fucking with. You guys stay here, I got this,” Jason held his hand out, a glyph appearing under Wade. It exploded, sending him flying out the window. Jason followed, the two of them now in the moat area.

The Twilight lookalike was trying to get to his/her feet, but one of his legs had been blown off in the previous attack. Abandoning his attempts to stand, he shifted once more, This time to the form of a greenish... copy of Pearl, from the cartoon Steven Universe.

“Ok. Did not expect that, but then I don’t think you expected this. “Omnitrix, Nightshade,” he shifted into Gengar. Grinning his inhumanly large grin, he said, “Lets see if this works like I hope it does.” He tapped the Omnitrix, and was suddenly surrounded by a white sphere. He burst out of it, now a Mega-Gengar. “Oh, hell yes!”

“Crap baskets,” Wade uttered, suddenly looking unsure. “‘I won’t need flame based spells, noooooo, lets just focus on dark spells, I like those.’ Stupid!” He extended an arm, and the emerald tinged nails at the end started sparking. “Fire!” he called out, a significantly smaller ball of fire erupting from his hand than the ball of shadow he had launched previously.

It dispersed itself across Jason’s skin, barely singeing him.

“Double crap. Um. Elfire?” The nails on his hand sparked,and a gout of fire erupted from the ground around Jason. It stung slightly more, but it wasn’t anything of consequence.

“Kid, I don’t know who told you about me but it seems they didn’t tell you that I’m sort of a nature god. It’s a long story.” He moved up to Wade and proceeded to Lick him. 

“Waste!” he called out, drenching the area in thick shadows. The Lick still hit, but now Jason was having trouble seeing what happened.

“Okay, now you're just pissing me off,” Jason growled, “Seriously, the hell’s your problem?”

“He trusted you!” came from his right, “Ruin!” 

An arc of darkness splashed out of the shadow, doing jack all against Jason’s Mega-Gengar evolution.

“Who trusted me? I mean Ben sorta trusts me, Umm... I didn’t see Dox or Drake long enough to really to know them, I’m pretty sure Gilgamesh and Tomas trust me. Who the fuck are you talking about?”

“He trusted you, he didn’t do a damned thing to you, and you went and screwed him over! Went right to the straight up nutjob Princesses of his world and tried to screw him over! He almost died because of you! Goetia!” A stream of shadow tinged lightning danced across the shadows, lighting up Jason and actually stunning him momentarily. 

“Wait... you're talking about Don aren’t you?” Jason asked, his voice going quiet. “That asshole never trusted me. Hell, I don’t even know a damn thing about his world.” He just stared at Wade, peering straight through the shadows at his energy. He slowly lost Gengar’s trademark grin, not pleased at the news.

<He warned me about you,> Wade claimed, suddenly shifting to bat form, flying out of the cloud of shadowy smoke. It slowly dispersed, before Wade changed once more midair, becoming a black scaled dragon. Jason dodged out of the way of the pathetically telegraphed attack, throwing Wade back with a Shadow Punch.

Wade belched a wave of fire towards his antagonist, but Jason split the attack with a Shadow Ball. “Kid look, just leave it alone, what happened between me and Don is our business. I refuse to let this explode like that thing with Auric and Teridax.”

“Tell me why,” Wade asked, stalking closer, his now serpentine neck coiling into an S, looking slightly downward at Jason, “If I like your answer I’ll concede defeat. If not, I’ll keep fighting–” He raised a scaly arm closer to his face, a strange box melting out of his flesh. “Or I could have 13 more hours until I return to my Equestria. Damn. I guess I’ll... try to fight for that long? Or something? Don’t think I’ll just believe you though, Don told me how manipulative you are.”

“Manipulative? Thats the worst descriptive ever used to describe me. Look I wasn’t in a good place when that asshole dragged me to his universe. I had just watched my friend lose her legs, killed the guy that did it and spent days awake making her new legs. Then while I’m there that guy acts shady as all hell, so I decide to go have a chat with his Princesses and he threatens me. Then he attacks me. The leg is his fault and I regret it but that didn’t give him the right to come here and help a war criminal use necromancy to resurrect a giant wolf and tell me he’s going to destroy everything I love. FUCK THAT GUY!”

The towering drake recoiled at Jasons outburst. “No. He told me you threatened him.”

“He spouted off something about being killed or imprisoned. I have no idea. I don’t know a damn thing about that guy’s world, but I do know that there’s something off about him. Seriously, stay as far away from him as possible.”

“But,” He stuttered, looking progressively cowed, “He was a good guy, put in a bad situation...”

“Listen to me, I will freely admit I wasn’t thinking right but there is something wrong with that guy. I don’t know what but he is not a good guy. Good guys do not associate with war criminals.” He turned, pointing at Canterlot. “You see how that mountain is half gone?”

“I... uh yeah?” he stated, slowly changing into a normal-looking human male with brown hair.

“That’s his fault. He resurrected the beast that did that. All because he wants to watch me suffer. Does that seem like a good man to you?” Jason asked, letting his guard down.

“I... That isn’t... No.”

“I think he played you like a damn fiddle,” Jason said, floating over to Wade.

“...I’ll find out for myself.” Wade claimed, suddenly looking at Jason with determined eyes. “I’m not a complete idiot. I can tell you aren’t a bad guy by the people around you. I’m sorry I attacked you... I forgot about the slight effect the siren dagger has, must have let it overwhelm me. That’s no excuse, though. I don’t know if you’re lying, if you’re telling the truth, or if you yourself be tricked into believing he’s a bad guy through some means. I will get to the bottom of this myself. And thank you for not pounding my ass into the ground, like I’m sure you are perfectly capable of doing.”

“Kid, you have no idea,” Jason said reverting to normal. “What I can tell you is, just leave Don alone. You're not a part of this. What happens between me and him is our business, don’t get dragged in. Plus, I know a crap ton of other Displaced you should meet instead.”

“If he’s gotten as strong as you, or anything like that I know I wouldn’t stand a chance, if he actually is evil.” Wade kicked at a rock, sending it flying over to collide with a tree.

“You shouldn’t kick rocks,” Maud said from behind Wade, “They have feelings too.”

“NYEAHAFAGAHG.” Wade let out, quickly hopping away. “Maud. Hi. Hello. Don’t do that. Please.”

“You hurt the rock’s feelings. You should apologize.” she said boredly.

“I... yeah, sure. What’s the rock’s name, so I can apologize properly?” He asked, trying to mimic her speaking tone.

“Her name is Calcite,” she said, pointing to the rock.

Wade leaned down, then looked back at Maud to see if she was still watching. Seeing no escape, he picked up the rock and addressed it, “Hi there... Calcite. Sorry for kicking you.” He then looked pointedly back at Maud.

“She accepts.” As she departed, she moved past Jason. “Goodnight boss, make sure Pinkie doesn’t get drunk.”

“You got it, Maud!” Jason said, watching her go.

“I still can’t believe she’s related to Pinkie Pie,” Wade muttered, tucking the rock into a pocket.

“They make for a good contrast,” Jason said .

“Scarily so.”

“You know... you could use some training.” Jason said turning to Wade. “I wouldn’t mind whipping you into shape. It’ll have to wait until after the wedding though.”

“Wedding? I thought Chrysalis was good in this universe though... wait, Twilight’s already an alicorn in your world... whose wedding is it exactly?”

“Mine!” he said happily, “I’m getting hitched to Chrysalis and Rarity!”

“Oh. Double wedding? Not my speed, but I can’t fault you for your own preferences. Feel bad for Flufflepuff... wonder if she found someone else seeing as you’ve taken her main squeeze?”

“Who?” Jason asked looking at him blankly.

“Pink ball of fluff. Looks the the wooly mammoth version of a pony. That one morph I did before I... attacked you, was a half changeling, a mix of Flufflepuff and Chrysalis... Apologies, you just told me you were getting married, and I didn’t say congratulations.”

“Thanks though... Flufflepuff doesn’t exist here. I don’t think this universe would support something like that.”

“Not surprising. Is this weird? Us just talking? After... all that?”

“Yeah, town isn’t really built yet and the only ponies here are some nob- and here they come...” Jason said with a groan as some ponies trotted over, muttering complaints about the noise. “Come on, let’s go inside,” Jason said, heading back into the castle, the changeling guards saluting him.

“K.” Wade responded, following with heavy steps. He looked at a watch on his left wrist and let out a wince.

“You ok?” Jason asked, looking back at him.

“What? Yeah. No. I mean, sorta? I used up a ton of magic for absolutely no reason. I feel... kinda drained. Spacey. Ya know?”

“Not really, no,” Jason said shaking his head, “Any way I could help?” Jason asked, nodding to the guards on either side of the castle’s front entrance.

“Not unless you have a spare alicorn amulet or otherwise magical object I could absorb. I flung shittons of magic around for no reason there...” Wade looked back at his watch, “And now I'm running on empty. I guess it's not that big of a deal,” he looked back at Jason with a hint of envy, “I just kinda wish... there was a bigger result. I threw everything I had at you, and you're just standing there, being polite, with a grin on your face. Four months... four whole months and I haven't gotten any stronger.”
Wade scoffed, a harsh laugh, “There’s still loads of people out there that can floss me out of their teeth. I couldn't even get you to flinch with all of my power. What do I do when I come up against someone that actually wants to hurt me?”

“Kid, I’ve fought things you would tremble at. When I first got here, I was a gibbering wreck,” Jason said with a bit of a laugh. “Now look at me. In all honesty, it just seems like you need a trainer. I wouldn't mind whipping you into shape, you look like you could handle it.”

“Anything you could do in the next-” Wade paused, lifting his right arm to better look at it. The flesh on his arm rippled, a boxy rectangle surfacing and forming.  It looked to Jason like an old TV remote, or maybe an old cell phone. Red lights on the front denoted- “12 hours, 49 minutes, would be most welcome. Otherwise, anything will have to wait until next time.” The box sunk back into his arm, disappearing. Wade looked straight up, marvelling at the night sky. “Surprising, isn't it? No matter which Equestria you go to, they all have the same night sky, the same stars, the same moon. Peaceful, really.”

“I wouldn't say that," Jason shook his head. "This Equestria is actually Asgard, or rather what’s left of Asgard after Ragnarok,” he paused, looking at Wade. “Say, how does that morphing of yours work?”

Wade gave a short laugh, shooting Jason a look. “Z-space enabled magic nanites. When I morph, matter is borrowed and stored in either a parallel or pocket dimension. Haven’t been able to figure out which yet. Basically, every cell in my body is switched out, yet the consciousness remains present, even in a body that wouldn't normally be able to house it. I’ve learned that the cell transfer also extends to anything I touch, or wear." Jason tensed, and Wade let out another laugh, “Don't worry, I can’t strip you of the clothes you’re wearing just by patting you on the shoulder. Everyone exudes their own magical resistance, although that can't stop the acquiring process, for some reason...” Wade trailed off, “...still don't know why. As you've seen with the timer, I can also store random items by morphing. Haven't hit a limit yet... But anyway,” Wade flashed a jazz hand at Jason, “I acquire DNA through physical touch, and that either gets stored in myself or in Z-space. Again, not sure which.”

“Yeah the Omnitrix is still better bro,” Jason said holding it up. “Better in every single way. I already have a million forms in this thing, plus whatever forms I scan in.” He looked at Wade for a moment. “I take it you want to ‘acquire’ me, huh?”

Wade eyed Jason warily. “Not gonna lie, acquiring Displaced usually ends up in some odd variations. I am extremely interested in seeing what will come from your DNA. If you would allow it, that is.”

“Go for it. kid,” Jason said, holding out his non-Omnitrix hand.

Wade grasped his arm tightly with his left hand. Jason suddenly felt... complacent. His flesh crawled, like ants were wriggling around just underneath. But that didn't matter. Nothing mattered. He was as calm as ever, his eyes refusing to focus on any given thing. The seconds slid by like glaciers, allowing him to see everything and nothing all at once. Jason couldn't remember what was happening, where was he? Where was here? What had he been doing?

Suddenly everything snapped back into focus. Jason looked at Wade, who pulled his hand away.
“You were actually affected by the acquiring trance, that’s rare.” Wade gave him a once over, and let out a low laugh as he looked back at his watch. “As powerful as you are, even you are only worth six recharge points. At least some things are constant.”

“The fuck was that?” Jason asked, looking at Wade with wide eyes. “Don't ever do that again,” Jason hissed, his eyes now red. His fingers had grown claws and his teeth had become fangs. “Great, you took down my disguise.” He glared, shaking his head.

“First off, I couldn't do it again even if I wanted. I've already acquired you. Second, that wasn't much of a disguise. You look completely badass now, with the–” Wade hissed, flailing a hooked pair of hands forward to draw attention to his nails. “--and the fangs, ya know. Wonder if mine will look even remotely that cool...”

“You might come out with nine heads, Jotun don't have a shared body plan like other races,” Jason said, quickly hiding his non-human features with a dose of magic.

“Scary,” Wade uttered. “I’m... going to have to apologize to everyone, aren't I?” he asked worriedly.

“Yes,” Jason nodded, “What made you think you weren't?”

Wade winced, “Not really that I thought I wasn't going to have to. More like I fervently hoped.” Wade let out a low sigh, “A stupid hope, but a hope nonetheless. Well!” Wade turned towards Jason, a fake smile stretched across his face, “I can stay out here for the next 12 hours, or I can go back in there and face the music for my colossal bout of making an ass out of myself. I'm leaning towards the first one, but that might just be me being heavily anti-confrontational. Everything is just so much easier when you're blinded by stupid rage. Maybe not better, but it leaves less in the way of making a decision.”

“Wade, listen to me carefully: Suck it up,” Jason said, looking at him, “You’re going to have to do a lot of things you've never wanted to do before, like kill someone. So you're going to suck it up like a man, go in there and apologize.” He approached the door, looking back at him expectantly.

Wade let out a low sigh, obviously dreading the coming conversation. Despite this, he moved alongside Jason, waiting for him to open the door.

Jason opened the door, gesturing for him to go inside, "Moment of truth."

As Wade walked into the room, all chatter died down, several pairs of eyes landing on them.

“So,” Chrysalis said, looking between them, “I take it you two worked things out?”

“Yup,” Jason said with a nod, “Now Wade would like to apologize. Isn’t that right, Wade?”

“Um... I...” he stammered, seemingly trying to sink backwards into nothingness. “I would... would like... I would... to apologize?”

“Good, good,” Chrysalis said, motioning with her hoof for him to continue.

“For... uh... being a complete jerk and not getting all the facts before I attacked your friend and... ‘almost’ ruined your party?” he continued, weakly.

“Ah don’t know,” Applejack said, looking him over, “Ya’ll did just up and attack mah brother fer no reason.”

“In my defense,” Wade started, “I heard from another Displaced that he was nothing more than a jerk that went out of his way to screw him over, and almost got him killed. Add to that the effects of the knife...” Wade stopped, hanging his head. “I’m sorry, I’m just making excuses. I acted in a manner that was rude, and I can only hope that you forgive me my transgressions.”

“Uh huh,” she said, getting off her chair. She moved over to him, looking him over critically. “If’n you're really sorry, ya’ll won’t mind lendin’ a hoof round’ the farm.”

Wade let out a sigh, “Won’t be the first time. What season are you in?”

“Of what?” Jason asked, looking at him, “Oh, you mean the show, right?”

“Uh, well that would be useful information as well, but I meant apple season, more like. Like is it the beginning of the harvesting season? Are all the trees bare from the end of a harvest, meaning there would be a completely different set of tasks to be done. If we’re before the harvesting season, then theres upkeep that needs to be done, on both the barn and the harvesting supplies like the buckets and carts...” Wade trailed off, a sheepish look on his face, “Or I could just shut up and let Applejack explain, seeing as it is HER farm... sorry...”

“Well then, it should be good news for you that its applebuck season. We’ve been a little short hoofed since Bloom spends most of her time with Spike.”

“Well then, I guess I’d be more than happy to help.” Wade turned back to Jason, “I’m only here for the next 12 hours though, you’ll have to summon me again if I’m to actually get anything done...”

“So... that cube of yours... you were saying it can heal people,” Slash said, interrupting them. “How exactly?”

“Well one person per world can activate the token, and use it as a default Escafil Device. Once they’ve activated it, they can then ‘acquire’ the DNA of any living creature they touch, and use that DNA to change into them. The change itself erases any damage, it’s not like a scab or an amputated leg is written on your DNA. That is kinda wonky, however. I’m well aware that with that logic, it shouldn’t do anything regarding hair length or whatever.” Wade suddenly shrunk, becoming a dark pink, flat haired version of Pinkie Pie. “But it does, regardless. That answer your question?”

“So... it could heal nerve damage?” he asked, lowering his shades to look Wade in the eyes.

“It could heal decapitation, if you could survive the shock long enough to morph.”

“Let me use it,” he said, holding his hoof out expectantly.

“Go for it. I don’t care which one of you it’s slaved to. Jason?” he asked, looking around for the cube.

Jason scooped it up, tossing it to Slash, “Go nuts with it.”

“Now how does this thing work?” Slash asked, inspecting the cube closely.

Wade walked over to Slash, grabbing the cube and holding it flat on his palm. “Okay, just touch one of the sides and I’ll attach it to you.”

Slash placed a hoof flat against the surface nearest him, waiting expectantly. They both stood still like that for a few seconds, nothing seeming to happen, before an ambiguously gendered voice echoed through out all the minds present.

<Species not recognized. Master control present, registration unlocked. Registration granted. Please have a wonderful day.>

The cube started to glow from within, sinking tendrils of bluish light into Slash’s outstretched hoof. Within seconds it was over, and Wade threw it over to Jason.

“There, it’s done. He’s now the only one in your world that can morph. To acquire a morph, simply make a physical connection with another living being,” Wade led Slash over to Applejack, manually placing his hoof on her withers, “keep contact, and focus on that person, how they look, how they smell, what you think about when that person is in front of you.” Applejack’s eyes grew cloudy, refusing to focus on any one given thing, “Good, she’s under the acquiring trance, just wait till it’s done aaaaand,” Applejack suddenly shook herself free of her daze, glaring at Wade.

“Okay, now you have her DNA inside you, to morph just do the same thing you did with acquiring, but keep a mental image in your head of your form slowly becoming hers. When you want to return to your own form, just do that in reverse. Also, with the default Escafil Device, there’s a two hour time limit, if you’re in a morph for longer than that, you’ll be stuck in that form, and lose your original. You can still reacquire the ability to morph by touching the cube again, but you won’t have anything to get your original form off of. Speaking of, it’s a bit different from changeling transformation. Changelings, no matter how much of a visible change you have inside you are still a changeling. With morphing, you become that creature down to the molecular level. So don’t get weirded out if you start feeling hungry, and can’t feed off of love while in morph.”

“I’ll be fine,” Slash said, rolling his eyes. “You act as if you’re talking to a nymph.” He closed his eyes, focusing on Applejack, slowly taking her form. He opened them, examining himself before morphing back.

“How do you feel?” Celestia asked, with a hint of worry. 

“Like a million bits.” He trotted over to her, pulling her into a rather passionate kiss. He pulled away, looking into her eyes. “I do expect my position back.”

Celestia just nodded, a dreamy look on her face.

“Well thats all fine and dandy but ya’ll got work ta do,” Applejack said, nudging Wade toward the door. The group watched as Wade was dragged out of the room, protesting all the way. 

“She’s going to work him to the bone,” Chrysalis stated, taking a sip of her drink.

“Serves him right if you ask me, just attacking Jason like that, how rude.” Rarity agreed, snuggling into Jason’s side.

“You guys wanna take bets on whether or not he collapses from exhaustion?” Slash asked, smirking a little. The group burst out laughing, before collecting themselves... and placing said bets. It was supposed to be a party night after all, and there was no harm in a little gambling. Plus... it wasn’t like Wade stuck around to find out about it.
> There's A Man With A Gun Over There
> --------------------------------------------------------------------------

It was a wonderful sunny day in Rainbow Falls, the town having just gotten back to normal after the weird invaders had trashed the Traders’ Exchange. Today was the annual Town Fair and Citrine couldn’t help but smile at the thought of the town’s foals coming to look over her wares. She hummed to herself as she placed her newest creations on her stand, quickly taking her place behind it.

Not too far away a small portal opened up, dropping a bipedal creature into an alley. With a quick glance at its surroundings, it placed a mask on its face, vanishing from sight. 

Citrine continued to hum to herself, rather excited at the prospect of customers. That excitement was quickly hampered when a loud voice broke the early morning quiet. That obnoxious minotaur had set up shop a few stalls down from her, as always being as loud as possible. What was his name? Mild Bill? It didn’t really matter. Hopefully he’d just move on in a few more days so she could get some peace and quiet. A faint shimmer caught her eye but when she turned to look it was gone.  With a shrug, she returned to gazing out from her stall, trying to keep herself entertained by pony-watching.

“Excuse me,” an older stallion’s voice cut in her reverie. She turned, spotting a middle aged brown minotaur looking down at her. 

‘Great, more of them.’ She blinked at the thought, shaking her head. ‘No, bad Citrine, don’t be like the Knights.’ She took a deep breath, putting on her best smile. “Hello sir, my name is Citrine, may I interest you in some of my wares?”

He leaned down, inspecting the ChamAlien figure. “These are highly detailed, are they hand made?”

“Hoof made, each and every one!” she beamed, her face full of pride.

“I don’t believe I’ve ever seen creatures like this before, are they your creations?” he asked, looking up at her.

“Oh no, these are all forms of Prince Jason,” she explained. “He allowed me to make these based off forms he hadn’t used before. He even got his Crystal Pony form from me, can you believe it!?” she squeed, rearing up a bit and clapping her hooves together.

“Prince Jason?” he asked, raising his eyebrow.

“Oh yes, the prince was here during the Traders’ Exchange, he helped drive off those weird frog creatures,” she said, shuddering at the memory.

“Where can I find Prince Jason?” he asked, standing up to his full height. 

“He lives near Ponyville in that old castle. He may be rather busy though, he started building a village around his castle, so he may have a lot on his plate.”

“Thanks, I’ll keep that in mind,” he said, starting to walk away. “Thank you!”

“You’re welcome!” she called out, “What a nice minotaur.” she said softly, letting out a sigh as Mild Bill started to shout again, “I really dislike that one, though...”





“You know, I was starting to miss this place,” Jason said as he cracked his back, looking up at the barn. Applejack had recruited him to help out around the farm. Currently, she had him painting the barn.

“Well, ya’ll gave been so busy with all that weird stuff, ah figured we could spend some time together as a family,” Applejack replied, punctuating the thought by bucking a nearby tree.

“By doing chores?” Jason questioned, raising his eyebrow.

“Ain’t nothin’ like bonding over a hard day’s work!” she said chipperly, wiping the sweat from her brow.

“Country folk,” Jason said with a sigh, dipping his paint brush back into the can.

“Oh quit yer belly-aching, city slicker, and get back t’ paintin’,” Applejack teased with a smile, “Yer plumb lucky, us ponies gotta hold the paintbrush in our mouths.”

“Yes, never have I been more thankful for opposable thumbs. I thank Yggdrasil everyday that I don’t have to paint with my mouth,” Jason said, rolling his eyes as he moved the brush up and down the wood. “I swear you’re just using me to get stuff done around the house, like Mr. Miyagi did to Daniel.”

“Ah didn’t promise to teach ya any fancy fighting nonsense,” Applejack said, moving to another tree, “Plus, Ah reckon that movie ain’t realistic.”

“What gave it away? The fact that it was fiction?” Jason asked, moving away from his original spot.

Applejack gave him an unamused look, “Keep that up and ah’ll make ya paint the barn as Appleseed.”

“Slave driver...” 

“What was that?”

“You heard me.”

“Oh, that’s it!” Applejack scowled. Giving him a hard look, she tilted her hat a bit for emphasis.

“Whaddaya gonna do?” he asked, glaring at her. “Knock my block off?”

“Ah’m fixin’ to!” she said, galloping over to him. “C’mere ya varmint!” She tackled him, nearly knocking over the paint can. They tumbled down a small slope, with Jason pinning Applejack’s arms to the ground.

“Ha! Not so high and mighty now are ya?” Jason asked with a grin.

“Jay, ah don’t like that look,” Applejack said with a gulp. Not that she didn’t completely trust him, of course, but she had seen that look before... it was the same look Dash always wore when she was up to no good.

“Omnitrix, Spidermonkey!” Jason commanded, shifting into a four armed, blue monkey creature. “They say two heads are better than one. Well I say four arms are better than two!” he proclaimed, using his lower set of arms to tickle her exposed stomach.

“Jay! Ya cheatin’ varmint!” Applejack managed to get out in between laughs, kicking her hindlegs uselessly.

“Um... what’re ya’ll doin’?” Apple Bloom asked, interrupting them. They both turned to see the little filly standing not too far away, giving them a strange look.

Jason smirked, a twinkle of mischief in his eyes. “Well you see Apple Bloom, when a man loves a-ow!” Jason shouted as Applejack managed to kick him rather hard in the shin.

“She ain’t old enough for them kinda jokes, Jay,” Applejack said, getting back to her hooves. She retrieved her hat from the ground, giving it a quick brush off before putting it back on her head. “We was just wrasslin’, Bloom.”

“Yeah and I was winning,” Jason said, reverting to normal, brushing his hands off.

“Ya’ll was only winnin’ ‘cause ya decided t’ cheat,” Applejack said, sticking her nose up in the air.

“You’re just a sore loser AJ,” Jason taunted, flicking her ear. She snorted at him, kicking his shin again.

“Yeah and yer a sore winner,”

“Um... Jay has a visitor back at the house,” Apple Bloom said, trying not to laugh at her siblings’ antics. 

“Who is it?” Jason asked, rubbing his chin and glaring at a smirking Applejack.

“It’s a minotaur, said his name was Max Power.” 

“Why does that name sound familiar?” Jason pondered, scratching his neck. “I swear I heard that name before...”

“Yer probably just imagining things,” Applejack said, giving him a nudge. “Go talk to yer guest, ya can finish painting later.”

“Well thank you master for this wonderful break you’re giving me,” Jason said as he dodged out of the earth pony’s striking distance, only to receive an extremely dirty look instead. He quickly composed himself, brushing off any excess dirt from his person. Making his way to the farmhouse, he spied the minotaur sitting on the porch, having a rather nice conversation with Granny Smith.

“So I told him, ‘from the bark you dummy, the bark!’” Max said with riotous laughter as he slapped his knee, having just finished a joke Jason wasn’t around to hear.

Granny Smith paused her own laughter, clearing her throat. “Well here he is Mr. Power, the Apple family’s own prince.”

“Hello, Mr. Power,” Jason said, giving a polite nod. “Please forgive my clothes, you caught me in the middle of painting the barn.”

“No harm done, can’t fault a man who knows the value of hard work,” Max said with a smile.

Jason tilted his head, running a hand through his beard, “Have we met before? Your voice sounds so damn familiar...”

“I just have one of those voices,” Max said with a shrug. “I’d like to talk to you about that invasion about a month back.”

“Give me a minute here,” Jason said holding his hand up, “Okay... so Discord has the voice of John de Lancie, Cheese Sandwich is freaking Weird Al and you have the voice of... Colonel Campbell... Yggdrasil I wish I knew that guy’s real name.”

Max blinked a few times, looking at Jason strangely.

“Wait... guy named Max... with the voice of Colonel Campbell... oh shit!” Jason said, his eyes going wide. “You’re Max Tennyson!” he exclaimed, climbing up the porch stairs and grabbing the minotaur’s hand, giving it a frantic shake. He stopped, realizing something. “Why the hell are you in Equestria?” He took a step back, eyeing the ‘minotaur’ suspiciously. 

“Well, cat’s out of the bag,” Max said with a sigh. Reaching up, he pulled a mask away from his face, causing his minotaur disguise to fade away. “As for why I’m here, Azmuth asked me to investigate extra-dimensional Incuresean activity. Didn’t expect to find a human, or another Omnitrix. Why don’t you tell me where you got that?”

“Hey, I bought this thing legally alright? It had nothing to do with Azmuth or your world,” Jason snapped, crossing his arms.

“And for that matter, how do you know who I am? And who Azmuth is?” Max asked, having taken a strange pistol-like weapon out of his pocket.

“Well, in my world you're fictional characters.” Jason looked at Granny Smith, who had decided to stay quiet for now. She gave him a subtle nod, trusting his judgement. “A character on a TV show following Ben starting from when he found the Omnitrix, up ‘til... I have no idea, I didn’t finish Omniverse.”

“I’ve heard weirder,” Max said with a smile and nod, “Doesn’t explain the Omnitrix.”

“I bought it from a guy at a convention and it sent me here,” Jason said, looking at him. “It’s a whole can of worms that I really don’t want to get into with you.”

“Regardless,” Max said, moving closer, causing Jason to take a few steps back. “I can’t exactly let you run around with that thing.”

“Max,” Jason said dangerously, narrowing his eyes, “This is my Omnitrix. I bought and paid for it, you ain’t taking it from me. I mean it Max, don’t try it. Not only am I a prince here but I won’t hesitate to use lethal force if I have to.” The two stared at each other for a long while, neither really backing down from their stance.

“Ah think ya’ll should jus’ sit down and talk this out,” Granny Smith said, catching both of their attention. “Ain’t no reason for ya’ll to start fightin’. Now come on inside, Ah’ll put some tea on.” The elderly mare got to her hooves, shuffling inside rather quickly.

Max released his tension and gave the younger man a tired, but still wary, look as he put away his weapon. “Well, you heard the lady, let’s go have a nice long talk,” he said, following the elderly mare inside. 

Jason sighed, letting the aggression wash away, “You know... I really need to take anger management... I bet Celestia knows a good one...” he muttered to himself before following the others inside. 





For about an hour, the two men sat in the kitchen of the Apple farmhouse, with Jason telling Max his story up to that point, with the older man nodding his head in acknowledgement. As Granny Smith predicted, not that she was ever really wrong, the two had calmed down considerably. 

“So... think I could convince you to attend Plumber academy? You could probably do with some formal training,” Max commented, taking a sip of his tea.

“As tempting as that is, I have to decline,” Jason said, making sure not to make any smart ass remarks, “But I have duties here. I mean, I may shirk them sometimes and I have little tact but I do still have them.”

“Well the offer still stands if you  ever decide to take it.” Max finished up his tea, placing the cup on the table. “Mrs. Smith I’d like to thank you for the hospitality.”

“Oh t’weren’t nothin’,” the elderly mare said with a laugh, “Ya’ll come back now ya hear, Max?”

“Of course,” Max said, giving her a smile. He turned to Jason, holding his hand out. The younger man stood up, grabbing his hand and giving it a shake. “You take care Jason, you’ve got a lot of promise, it’d be a shame to waste it.”

“I’ll try my best, Max,” Jason agreed, watching as the man pulled a small remote from his pocket. He looked at the two and smiled again.

“See you around,” Max said before pressing a button and fading out of reality.

Jason stared at the spot for a moment before facepalming.

“What?” Granny Smith asked, raising her eyebrow. 

“I forgot to tell him about Driba and Blukic...” Jason scratched his beard for a moment, thinking. “Oh well.” He got up and stretched his back. “I better get back to helping Applejack.”

“No need, we finished up a bit ago,” said mare responded as she walked inside, “That Wade fella got done more than Ah realized.”

“So... rematch?” Jason asked with a toothy grin.

“Yer on!” she shouted, sharing his expression. Granny Smith just chuckled to herself as she watched the pair bolt out of the house to settle their score. She smiled serenely, rocking ever so slowly in her chair. With moments like this, life was well worth it. 
> The Games
> --------------------------------------------------------------------------

Jason couldn’t help but pace around the train car, unable to relax. The train he and his loved ones were on was bounding through the Frozen North. The Equestria Games were starting that day and the group was going to see their hometown team. Well, that and hold the wedding.

His, Chrysalis’ and Rarity’s wedding was right after the games, having been planned that way since most of the country would already be there. The actual guest list for the wedding was still going to be huge. The entire Apple family was coming, as well as the Pie family, Rarity’s family, Twilight’s family plus Jason’s family: His mothers, his sister, Fenrir, Sleipnir, Hel, Loki and someone they had refused to talk about. 

The weight of it all rested squarely on the young man’s shoulders, and he couldn’t stop himself from panicking rather badly. He continued to pace back and forth along the train car when something tugged at his hand.  He looked up to see Chrysalis, her horn aglow, giving him a small smile.

“Jason you just need to relax, alright?” she asked, her magic enveloping his hand. She pulled him over to her seat, wrapping her arms around him, giving his neck a nuzzle. “It’s just a wedding, we’ll be fine. You’ll be fine.”

“Yeah I know, Chrissy,” he said, returning the embrace and kissing the base of her horn, “I just... don’t want to fuck this up, ya know?”

“She’s right, you’ll be fine,” Megan said, giving her son a reassuring smile, “You know, I always pictured you settling down with some Christian girl but... I’m glad to be disappointed.” She leaned over, planting a kiss on his head. 

“Well... I’m glad to disappoint,” Jason said with a chuckle, his smile growing as he held Chrissy close to him, “I just hope you and Terra can get along.” he said, picturing the two women meeting in his head.

“I’m sure we’ll get along just fine,” Megan said with a dismissive hand wave. “Besides, even if we don’t, I promise not to cause any trouble at the wedding, okay?” she asked with a smile.

“I’ll hold you to that promise, Mom.” Jason nodded, looking around the car. Twilight was busy reading, like always, Dash was in one of the other cars, giving the crusaders a pep talk with Gilda. Applejack and Pinkie were discussing cooking, the two of them in charge of the reception’s catering. Fluttershy was relaxing with Discord, her belly rather swollen. Next to them was Nightmare, whom Jason swore had hooked up with Fluttershy and Discord. Lightning Dust was at the other end of the train car, doing wing-ups. With Fluttershy’s pregnancy, she had been given the timid pegasus’s place and had been doing her best to prepare. Rarity was off in the baggage car, obsessively making sure that the wedding clothes were in order.

Jason relaxed, leaning back in his seat and closing his eyes. He pulled Chrysalis closer to him, the two snuggling as the train continued to chug toward its destination.





Ansem-Trixie opened their eyes, a grin on their face. “Xemnas, all is ready,” they said, getting to their hooves. For the past few months, the heartless had done nothing but gather shadow energy, so much of it that every fiber of their being was saturated in it. 

“And all that time before now wasn’t just a waste?” Xemnas asked, leaning on the wall of their cave. He gazed at his sibling rather boredly, lazily munching on an apple.

“That time was spent gathering as much energy as possible. Most of it will be used to get us past the barrier. The rest will be used to recreate your heart,” Ansem-Trixie said, looking out toward the domed city, a predatory smirk spreading across their muzzle. 

“Then let us away, I wish to be whole again,” Xemnas said, tossing the remains of his apple aside. He opened up a corridor of darkness, stepping through it. 

Ansem-Trixie looked at the portal, giving a little chuckle, “Oh you poor trusting fool, you have no idea what I have planned.” They peered back at the city. “All the world shall sink into darkness.”





Jason sighed as he walked out into the VIP balcony, listening to the crowd. “At least I’m not in all that...” he said, shaking his head. He did a quick glance around, taking in the area. At the top were five thrones, each color coded to an alicorn, with their cutie mark on the back, “I swear man, it’s like they’re the freaking Power Rangers.” He moved over to his throne, taking a seat. Unlike the others, this one was cushioned, as per his request. 

Below the alicorn row were several smaller thrones for some of the more prominent nobles and foreign officials. Jason noted, with a twinge of guilt, that there was a seat meant for Blueblood... an empty seat. He moved on, seeing Chrysalis waving to him from her seat two rows down. He smiled, waving back at her. 

“So, they allowed you to choose the opening music?” Luna asked as Twilight walked out to join them. 

“Yup, I picked an old classic that fit quite nicely with the Games.” As if on cue, the sound of Queen filled the air as the lyrics to ‘We Are the Champions’ played over the speaker system. “Like I said, old classic.” He just smirked, watching as various teams entered the field, letting out a cheer as the Cutie Mark Crusaders and the Ponyville team came out. “Ya know... next Games I’m hoping Valhalla can enter.”

“Valhalla?” Cadance asked, tilting her head.

“Yeah, thats what I’ve decided to name the village... town... city, whatever, around our castle. I’m going to call it Valhalla.” 

“Hey!” Twilight called eagerly, “Spike’s up to light the flame!” All of them turned, eyes moving to the small dragon, who stood at the cauldron, looking terrified out of his mind. He tried once to light it, but his fire just wouldn’t work. Spinning around in place, he looked out at all the ponies and other beings in the massive audience. He made one more futile effort to ignite the flame, and then just froze up.

“Come on,” Jason urged, leaning forward in his seat. He had been in Spike’s place before, all the little dragon had to do was... A quick raspberry glow in the cauldron caught his attention and a moment later the torch was lit, with a very surprised Spike getting a face full of it. Jason turned to Twilight with a glare. He didn’t really pay attention to the rest of the opening ceremonies, he was too busy fuming over Twilight’s actions. 

When the ceremonies were finished, Jason moved out of the VIP area, letting out a calming breath... that is until Twilight walked out... and he punched her right in the horn.

“Ow!” she shouted, recoiling from the blow, her wings fluffing out a bit, “What is wrong with you!? Ow!”

“What’s wrong with me? What’s wrong with you!?” he demanded, getting in her face, “Why would you do that to Spike?”

“Y-you saw?” Twilight asked with a gulp, shrinking back a little.

“Yes I saw, you had no right to do that,” he chastised, glaring down at her.

“What was I supposed to do? Let him get embarrassed in front of the whole country?” she argued, attempting to smooth her wings. 

“It was something he had to overcome himself. Yggdrasil, Twilight, did you even think about this? You either tell him you did it and destroy his self confidence or you hide it and let him make an idiot of himself later. Those are your options.”

“I-I didn’t...” Twilight stuttered, her eyes widening and her head dropping a little as she realized the repercussions of her actions. 

“No you didn’t did you? I’m going to go hit the castle’s alcohol supply, you deal with your own fuck up,” Jason said, leaving the alicorn to stew over her actions. 

“You could have handled that better you know,” Chrysalis commented, joining him not too far down the hall.

“Yeah I could have, but that was a chance for Spike to grow and she took it from him, really pissed me off,” Jason said, letting out a deep sigh. “Hey... isn’t it bad luck for the bride and groom to see each other before the wedding?”

“Bah, don’t push your silly superstitions on me, changelings rarely get married anyway, so... screw the rules, I’m having fun.” With that she gave his cheek a lick, making him shudder.

“Will you stop that? It’s creepy.” He made a rather disgusted face, wiping his cheek off with his sleeve. 

“Only when you stop having such an adorable reaction~” she responded in a sing-song voice, smirking at him. 

“One of these days Chrysalis... Bang! Zoom! Straight to the moon!” He shook his fist at her, a look of rage on his face. They stared at each other for a few moments before they both burst out laughing. “Oh... I needed that.”

“Of course you did, you just punched a princess, everyone needs a laugh after being that mad,” Chrysalis said, giving him a nuzzle. “Now how about we go pillage their wine cellar? I bet they have great vintages!”

“As much as I’d like to get wasted, we are getting married tomorrow... and I’d rather not be the prince that got blackout drunk during the Games. How about we just go meet up with the others?”

“Oh, you're no fun,” Chrysalis said, rolling her eyes as she jabbed him in the arm.

“Ow...” he said, rubbing his arm, “All you ever do is abuse me. I swear I have Stockholm syndrome.”

“Such a drama queen, I swear you're worse than Rarity.” She just shook her head. “Fine, we’ll go with your boring idea and go meet with the others.”

“What's got you so hyped up?” Jason asked, raising an eyebrow, “You nervous about us getting hitched?”

“Hardly,” she waved her hoof dismissively. “It’s more like... well there’s so much love in the air that I can’t sit still. I’m just wired on it.” She tapped her chin in thought, “Huh... this must be what it feels like to be Pinkie Pie...”

“You should save that for the honeymoon,” Jason said, strolling past her. “You’re gonna need it.” Looking back at her with a cheeky grin, he continued, “I don’t foresee us getting much sleep.”

“Oh, you’re damn right we won’t.” She licked her lips, grinning.

“But! We have to get hitched first. Now come on, they’re waiting for us.” He proceeded down the hallway, feeling much better than he did a few minutes ago.





“This place is so pretty!” Megan gushed, looking around to the various buildings, her eyes wide in wonder. 

“Yes it is, it’s inspiring really,” Rarity said, taking a look around as well. Since this was Megan’s first time in the Empire, Rarity had offered to show her around. Mostly because she wouldn’t be seeing Jason until the wedding. Unlike Chrysalis, she’d be sticking with tradition. 

“So, are you nervous?” Megan asked as the two of them entered a small outdoor cafe. They took their seats, waiting for the waiter to get to them.

“Of course I’m nervous,” Rarity said, looking through the menu, “I’m getting married and I can’t help but fret over the details. It’s like a fashion show but three times the anxiety.”

“You’ll all do fine Rarity,” Megan assured her with a smile, “Plus I think I’m more nervous than you. I have to met Jason’s real family, including the woman who gave birth to him. I have no idea what I’ll do if it doesn’t work out...” She let out a sigh, thumbing through the menu, not really looking at the choices. 

“I’m sure you’ll get along fine,” Rarity gave her a smile. “It’s not like Jason will disown you if his family, for whatever reason, doesn’t like you. You raised him, you’re the only mother he’s ever really known.”

“Thats a good point,” Megan said, taking a better look at the menu. “Now... what can I actually eat on this menu?”

“Well, you could get a fruit salad,” Rarity said, showing her on her menu, “Don’t worry about the food looking like crystal, it’s completely edible.”

“You ponies and your magic,” Megan chuckled, shaking her head. 

“You say it like it’s a bad thing...” Rarity stopped, blinking. “I think that’s Trixie,” Rarity said, getting to her hooves. “You stay here Megan, I have to see to something.” Rarity quickly excused herself, galloping off after the showmare. Trixie turned a corner, vanishing from Rarity’s sight. Rarity rounded the corner a moment later, only to find that Trixie had truly disappeared. After a few minutes of desperate searching, Rarity turned to the cafe empty hoofed.

“What was that about?” Megan inquired,  her voice filled with concern.

“I’m sorry about that Megan, I thought I saw Trixie, a showmare the other girls and I know with a rather... sordid past. She disappeared here a few months ago.” She stopped, taking on a serious expression, “We need to tell the princesses, who knows what she’s gotten herself into.”

“Well then let’s go. I’m more than willing to skip lunch if it’ll help someone.” Megan got up, pushing her chair in. “Come on,” she said, walking away.

“Megan dear, do you have any idea where you're going?”

“Er... no. No, I do not,” she admitted sheepishly, rubbing the back of her head.

“Now I see where Jason gets it from,” Rarity said, sighing a bit. “Come on, this way.” She started to walk off in the opposite direction Megan had begun to go, trying to ignore the feeling in her gut that something very bad was about to happen. 





“So, he thought he could light things on fire with his mind?” Jason asked, raising his eyebrow, “Well... I suppose that’s one conclusion to spontaneous combustion...” 

“Yeah, it was hard to watch,” Dash said, looking over at Twilight, who was staring at the ground as they walked.

“Hey now everypony, don’t be so hard on Twilight,” Fluttershy said, nestled in Discord’s arms. “She was just trying to help a friend.”

“Sometimes the best way to help a friend is to let them work it out themselves,” Jason said, crossing his arms. “Little late for that now, though.”

“I agree with Fluttershy, all this Twilight shaming is killing my mojo,” Chrysalis said, currently wearing Slash’s sunglasses.

“Does he know you have those?” Jason asked, eyeing her questioningly. 

“Of course not, like he’d part with them willingly. I swiped them from his room while he was in the shower.”

“He’s going to be pissed.”

“Like I can’t handle that blowhard,” she said. “Oh, are we here?”

Up ahead was a blue heart made of crystal... that was just floating there. 

“That’s the crystal heart? I imagined it would be... doing something. Even just spinning slowly or something. It’s kinda... underwhelming,” Jason said, looking at the heart with a frown.

“Underwhelming? Thats not underwhelming, its a damn ripoff is what it is!  I should have known it’d be more lame pony feelgood crap,” Chrysalis hissed, glaring at the heart intently.

“Oh, I wouldn’t exactly say that,” two voices spoke at once. The assembled group turned, many gasping in surprise. There stood Trixie, her eyes a piercing yellow, the alicorn amulet fastened around her neck.

“Trixie?!” Twilight gasped, snapping out of her funk. “You swore you’d never wear that thing again!”

“Oh she did, but I didn’t,” ‘Trixie’ said, voice her voice was overlaid with a male’s voice, a smirk growing on her muzzle. “I needed its power.”

“I don’t understand,” Twilight said, shaking her head in disbelief, a look of confusion on her face.

“I do.” Jason stepped forward. “Ansem.” He glared at the mare. “So you’ve been hiding inside of a pony huh? Pretty low if you ask me.”

“A necessary measure,” they said, still smirking. “But now, my time has come. Xemnas, get the heart!”

As ordered, Xemnas leapt out of a shadow portal, nabbing the heart before any of them could stop him.

“Hey! Give that back!” Dash ordered, glaring furiously at the duo. Ansem-Trixie just ignored her, their grin growing as they took the heart from Xemnas, their magic a deep black.

“I’ve been planning this for months, you know,” Ansem-Trixie said with a smirk, the Crystal Heart hovering in their black magic. “Now I can finally plunge this world into everlasting darkness!” They threw their head back, laughing hysterically. 

Jason gulped, looking at the insane heartless. This was going to suck. 
> Darkness May Fall...
> --------------------------------------------------------------------------

“I’ve been planning this for months, you know,” Ansem-Trixie said with a smirk, the Crystal Heart hovering in their black magic. “Now I can finally plunge this world into everlasting darkness!”

“Drake?” Xemnas asked, looking at his brother in shock. “What are you talking about? We never talked about this.”

“Why would we, you’re just an empty shell,” they hissed, the Alicorn amulet glowing as they drew upon its power. The cracking of bones could be heard as they took on a bipedal stance. Darkness wrapped around their body as it changed, turning into a body suit. “Now this is a form I can utilize,” they declared. Now very humanoid, their front appendages had become hands. 

“That’s just creepy,” Jason said, shaking his head.

“We have to do something,” Dash said, taking to the air. 

“We can’t!” Twilight shouted, grabbing Dash before she could do anything rash. 

“Fools, that is why I chose this form,” Ansem-Trixie said, grabbing the heart and pouring darkness into it. It started to turn black, darkness starting to grow on the walls. Soon, it began to consume the palace.

“We should get out of here!” Chrysalis shouted, backing away from the ever-growing wave of blackness. 

“Say no more,” Discord said, taking them to a location not too far away with a snap of his fingers.

“Oh shit...” Jason said as they all looked on in horror. The palace was quickly engulfed in darkness, its crystals becoming pitch black. Soon however, the darkness surged up to the top. A torso soon formed over the palace, fusing with the crystals. It roared, as if to challenge them.

“The hay is that thing?” Applejack asked as the shadows spread to other buildings, infecting them as well. Heartless started to form from the darkness, attacking anypony they saw. 

“Something we can’t handle alone,” Jason said, pulling out the Genji gauntlets. “Hey Gilgamesh, I hope you’re not busy, we uh... well you better just see this yourself.”

Just then a portal opened up in space. Rather surprisingly, two figures jumped out, one the armored warrior he was expected, the other a green furred canine the size of a manticore.

“Hey, Jason, good to see ya pal, I was just about to-what,” he cut himself off, looking at the imposing figure connected to the crystal palace.

“Yeah, so as you can see we’ve got a bit–”

“Hold up a sec, kid, processing this,” Gilgamesh interrupted. “It’s like, equal parts awesome, terrifying, and stupid.” He stood there for a moment. “Ok, I’m good now, what’s going on here?”

“Ansem decided to strike just after the games and devoured the Crystal Heart, now he’s a giant heartless, fused with the palace,” As Jason explained, he vanished and reappeared behind Gilgamesh, slicing a Shadow in half. “This ah... may be a bit much for just the two of us.”

“Possibly. As amazing as I am I still had help when I killed an interdimensional universe destroying sorcerer. Oh yeah, the war’s over, by the way. We won,” Gilgamesh explained, still staring at the monstrosity in shock as he casually grabbed a Neoshadow before tearing it in half.

“Okay...” Jason said, looking at the assembled ponies. “You guys go evacuate the citizens, we’ll held these idiots off until we can come up with a plan. 

“I’m staying with Jason,” Dash said, flexing her talons, her eyes glowing with power. 

“Do stay safe, I’d rather not lose my husband-to-be.” Chrysalis hugged Jason before moving off with the others. 

“I’m not leaving either,” Shining Armor said, taking position next to Jason. 

“A Jotun, a whatever, and two ponies... good odds right?” Jason asked, before several Darkside heartless rose out of the ground. “Ah hell.” Reaching into his cube, he pulled out Nemesis’s Token. “Hey Nem you free?” he asked, “Could use some help here.”

No sooner had Jason spoken the words than a portal opened up behind him. Rather than Nemesis spilling out though, several rockets streaked past Jason and flew towards the Darksides, who were sent reeling. Nemesis stepped out of the portal afterwards, looking much different than the last time Jason had seen him. Half of his body was covered in some sort of form fitting metal, and he was holding a weapon almost as half as big as he was, which was smoking. You called?

“Yeah, that,” Jason said, pointing to the palace.

Ah that... yeah, that looks like a problem. 

“HENSHIN!”

A bright flash came from behind them. They all turned to see Gilgamesh, now twelve feet tall, dressed in armor with some parts glowing green, the top part of his body bore a red cloak, horns stuck out from the sides of his head, and he had six arms, four holding machine guns, two holding rocket launchers.

“What? I figured I’d need to go all out here. Oh, and by the way, this is Enkidu, my new loyal companion given to me by Faust herself. Say hi, boy,” he said as he motioned to the canine, who barked in response. “Oh, and Nemmy, long time no see. Like the new duds.”

Nemesis chuckled. Indeed it has, and speak for yourself! You really go all-out when it comes to battle fashion don’t you?

“Hey, I’ve always been able to do this, this is my third and final transformation,” he replied before firing off two of his machine guns and making swiss cheese out of an Invisible and a Darkball, not even bothering to look at them. “Oh, and I’ve thought of the perfect song to set this to!” he exclaimed before blaring his choice.

“Here.” Reaching into his pocket, Jason pulled out a very large sword and tossed it to Nemesis. It was almost as long as he was tall, with screaming faces carved into its blade.

Nemesis admired the new weapon before a robotic voice spoke from his suit. “New weapon detected, integrating.” The metallic armor crawled down his arm and latched itself onto the handle. 

Well, this should be fun. Nemesis grinned as he rushed forward and vanquished a crowd of Invisibles with a swipe of his sword. Swords aren’t usually my style, but I’ll be damned if it doesn’t look flashy. 

“It’s called Chaos Eater, it’s from DarkSiders,” Jason said. Pulling out Ben’s Token, he tapped it three times.

A portal appeared a little ways away, above a house, out of which fell Ben. “What the–Ow!” he said as he landed face first on the roof before beginning to tumble and fall. “Ow, ow, ow, oh gods, ow!” He finally landed, face-first again, right in front of the house. “Oh gods, what the in Poseidon’s name just happened?”

“Huh. Well, I guess one of us has to have the embarrassing entrance,” Gilgamesh quipped as he fired a rocket into a group of Shadows, annihilating all of them.

“I can’t believe there’s four of you here now,” Shining Armor said as he blasted a Neoshadow away from him. It didn’t kill the monster, but it did stun it long enough for Enkidu to jump forwards and tear its throat out.

You think four is bad? You should have seen the war. Nemesis slid backwards after a blizzard attack from a Sorcerer, retaliating with a long chain that shot out of his armor and ripped it in two. 

“Oh gods,” Ben said as he staggered to his feet. “What just happened?”

“I summoned you to help,” Jason said, pulling out one last Token. This one looked like a Meowth’s head coin with a bright red R on it.

“So help already!” Dash said, slamming into a Soldier, sending it flying into a building.

“You shall have my aid as well,” Xemnas spoke, stepping out from a portal with determination in his eyes.

Xemnas? From Kingdom Hearts? Well color me surprised, next you’ll be telling me that Ansem is running the giant rampaging palace.

“Got it in one,” Jason said with a nod.

...God, I hate being right.

“So, finally decided to embrace the ‘love and friendship’ philosophy like I told you, Mansex?” Gilgamesh taunted as he shot a group of Wyverns out of the air.

“This has gone too far, I made a mistake and  I shall rectify it,” Xemnas said, narrowing his eyes a little.

“Uh... okay, what is going on?” asked Ben as a shadow tried to jump him. He ducked as it passed overhead, landing on a spear. “I am so confused.”

“Ok, I know you don’t play video games, but here’s the lowdown: these creatures are pure darkness, they feed on people’s hearts, the metaphorical kind, and are being summoned by the big guy attached to the palace. If I had to guess, the crystals around here are allowing him to project his will through everything, so time is of the essence,” Gilgamesh said quickly as he began firing his guns in several directions at once, taking out waves of Heartless as he did. “Hey Jay, you think if we can garner enough hope from the populace we can activate the Crystal Heart and take care of all of this at once?”

“I have no idea, this is a sorta new thing Gilg,” Jay said, cutting through a Neoshadow.

“Well, this is a fine mess we’ve stepped in,” Terra said from behind the group.

The sound of windows shattering could be heard overhead and a literal wave of heartless began to bear down upon them. Nemesis raised the weapon that was almost half his size, and fired. Several rockets left the barrel, streaking to meet the wave with a massive explosion that gave them reprieve. Whatever it is you need to do, I recommend we do it now. And fast.

Ben rubbed his head, still trying to process everything going on. “I still don’t get it, but...things do look bad. What am I supposed to do? ...also, who’s the chick?”

“I’m Corypheus's mother, Terra. Nice to meet you all,” Terra said, giving a curtsy.

"Who's Corypheus?" Ben asked as he sidestepped another shadow. 

“That would be me,” Jason said, giving his mother a smile.

Ben looked at Jason with a face reminiscent of disgust. “That has to be one of the stupidest names I’ve ever heard.” He then looked over to see another heartless rushing at him, so Ben jumped up into the air, letting it run past and slam into a nearby wall as he cringed. “Ooh, that’s gotta hurt.”

“I’ll have you know it’s a great name. It means conductor, or leader,” Terra said while sending a torrent of flame at some more heartless.

“You should stick with ‘Jason’.” He dodged another. “Suits ya better than that lame one,” And another. “And I thought the Greeks had terrible names.” He punted a little fireball heartless that came near him, chuckling. “Stupid little thing.”

“His father named him,” Terra hissed, glaring at Ben.

“And that matters to me because...” he motioned for her to continue, moving aside as another heartless slammed into the wall behind him.

“My father died saving our lives, have some respect,” Jason said, glaring at Ben as well.

“I’ve met the dead,” Ben said as he jumped up on the roof as a horde tried rush him. “Truth be told, I don’t respect them anymore. Try again.” 

“Wow, you’re a jackass,” Dash said, flying near him.

“And? What’s your point? What reason do I have to not be?” Ben asked with a sour face. “I just got dragged here, well more like fell, and got my butt kicked by a house, right after dealing with a child possessed by a spirit that is supposed to be a construct of my inner psyche which is now on the loose and trying to kill me. So tell me, great and awesome Rainbow Dash, what reason do I have to be in a chipper mood right now?”

“Jay, I’m going to hurt your idiot friend,” Dash snorted, kicking a Soldier onto the roof near Ben.

“Good luck with that,” Ben said as he slowly pushed the shadow off with the stick, nodding as it fell on a bunch of its fellows.

“Just ignore him,” Jason urged, “he’s an idiot.”

“I may not be educated, Jay, but I’m still smarter than you.” Ben then scoffed. “Corypheus, such a lame name.”

“How are you smarter than me?”

“It’s not about the amount of knowledge, Jason,” Ben said as he jumped down from the house when a flock of winged heartless flew by. He kicked up a rock into his hand and then threw it at a barrel. The barrel toppled over and began to roll down a nearby hill, launching off the back of a overturned carriage. It soared overhead before crashing down on a horde of heartless that were attacking nearby ponies, destroying all of the monsters. “It’s how ya use it.”

“Yeah, whatever you say,” Jason said, while slicing through a few more heartless.

“YOU ARE TEARING US APART, BENNY!” Gilgamesh cried in a horribly acted voice, falling to his knees in faux drama before casually eliminating more Heartless. “Seriously though, dude, you’re kinda being a dick. I understand being upset at being summoned out of nowhere, but if you don’t have anything nice to say to say than fight for justice quietly.” Ben only responded with a disinterested shrug.

“My grandson seems to have met some rather colorful characters,” Hel said as she rose out of the ground, her height rivaling Gilgamesh’s. 

“Oh, so you’re Hel? Nice to meet ya! You’ll be the second God I’ve met,” Gilgamesh quipped as he fired both his machine guns and rocket launchers at an approaching group of Defenders, overpowering their defenses and blowing them to smithereens.

“Faust damn, this is getting crazy!” Rainbow Dash shouted as she bucked a Wizard in the face before cutting into it with her talons.

“Hey! Don’t use her name in vain!” Gilgamesh shouted back, firing his guns and taking out a literal wave of Shadows.

“You believe in Faust?”

“‘Believe?’ Weren’t you listening? I met her!”

The ground seemed to shake as Fenrir rose out of the ground. “Heh,” his voice rumbled. “My first real visit to the mortal realms and it’s the middle of a battle, just my luck.”

Friend of yours, Jay? Nemesis shouted as he sidestepped a sword swipe from a bandit, grabbed it with a chain, and threw it into a larger group which was obliterated on contact. He turned to face an even larger group of large bodies approaching behind them. Reaching into his armor, he pulled out a massive sniper rifle. He aimed it at the enemies stumbling towards them and fired, obliterating them all with a single shot of almost deafening gunfire. 

“Yeah, my great uncle Fenrir,” Jason said, sending a blast of Flare into a Darkside. 

“Loki and Sleipnir should arrive soon,” Hel said, swatting away a Shadow that had decided to bother her.

“Well thats good to know,” Jason said, panting a little. “We seriously need a plan...”

Despite all the heartless they had killed, it seemed an army still stood between them and the palace. Nemesis growled. Make a plan then, I’ll do what I can to hold these things back. Nemesis walked towards the heartless, his form steadily growing bigger and taller as he did. It always feels good to let loooosssseeeAAAAAAHHHHH! Nemesis’ chest burst open and he hunched over as he morphed rapidly, leaning onto all fours as he grew even more in size. Before long, a massive monster of mutated flesh stood before them, standing taller than any in the area except for Fenrir.

“GROOOOOAR!” it challenged before charging into the fray, obliterating anything it saw. 

“Ok... that was disgusting,” Jason said shaking, his head.

“Allow me to even the odds,” Xemnas said, raising his arms up. All around them Nobodies spawned in. “Attack,” he simply ordered, sending them all into the fray, with several Twilight Thorns engaging the Darksides.

Gilgamesh actually squeed. “Fighting alongside Nobodies and even a mutated Nemesis, dear Faust thank you for letting my most feverish fanboy dreams become reality!” Gilgamesh said jovially. “I think it’s time I have a bit of fun with this!” he shouted before dispersing his firearms and summoning six katanas. “FLY, ENKIDU!” he shouted as he dashed forward and tore through the oncoming waves of dark beings, his faithful companion leaping up from behind him and attacking alongside him in perfect sync.

A Kurt Zisa rose out of the tide of darkness, spinning his blades around and challenging Gilgamesh.

“Ha! Think you can best me? It’s not how many arms you have, it’s how you use them!” he shouted before leaping at the opponent, who spun rapidly at him. Gilgamesh responded with the same, the two spinning buzz saws colliding, sparks flying everywhere. “NOT GOOD ENOUGH!” he shouted and stopped the attack long enough to get above it and kick it into the ground before diving after it, laughing like a maniac as he did.

Not far off, a Behemoth manifested from the darkness. It glared at Nemesis’ mutated form across the battlefield, then threw its head back and gave a tremendous roar that shook the area. Nemesis responded in kind, stamping his front feet and causing the ground to shake as he roared back. The Behemoth charged, and Nemesis rushed to meet him. The two titans smashed head first into one another, both struggling to overpower the other. Nemesis brought one of his arms back and smashed it across the Behemoth’s face, sending it tumbling. He jumped atop it quickly to rip its throat out, but the Behemoth kicked him off and rose into the air to crush him with its front hooves. Nemesis rolled away and the two titans smashed heads once again, growling. 

A Groundshaker rose up, taking its place beside its brethren. “That one is mine,” Fenrir said, then threw his head back with a howl. He bounded forward and slammed into the Groundshaker, the two tumbling away. 

“Ok... shit is getting serious.”Jason said, looking at the last Token he had thought to pull out. He held it up, closing his eyes. “Hey Tomas, Sarah, it’s me Jason, I could use your help, if you don’t mind giving it.”

Suddenly a bright light appeared, and out of it came out three figures - Tomas, Sarah, and a Meowth. 

Meowth began to look around, “Hey, what’s going on here!?”

“Giant heartless... a few other Displaced,” Jason said, torching a shadow that jumped at Meowth.

“Team Rocket? Seriously? One of the biggest jokes in anime history? A group that’s so legendarily bad at what they do that they’ve set the standard for annoying villain of the week? You guys better exceed my expectations,” Gilgamesh complained before being struck with a barrage of energy balls from Kurt Zisa. “GAH! BITCH, I WILL SHOVE THOSE ARMS UP YOUR ASS!” he cried before kicking the Heartless in the head and sending it tumbling.

Meowth jumped up in annoyance, “Hey! You take that back! We are not a joke!”

“Like I said, I hope you can back that up,” he replied as he and fired missiles from his hands, shattering Kurt Zisa’s energy barrier. As it fell to the ground stunned he cut off its head before kicking it away from the rest of it’s body. Both dispersed a moment later! “HA! THERE IS ONLY ONE MULTI-ARMED COMBAT MASTER HERE!” 

Tomas took out a pokeball and threw it, summoning out a Carnivine, “Anything we need to know about these guys?”

“They steal hearts, um... fighting types may work on them... not sure if pokemon logic carries over here...”

Sarah grinned and summoned out Yanmega, “Well if they're anything like dark type Pokemon then I’m sure Yanmega will do just fine.”

“You know, that’s not a bad idea,” Jason said with a chuckle. “Lets get some introductions out of the way. That crazy twelve foot guy with all the weapons is Gilgamesh, the hideous giant monster is Nemesis,”

I heard that! Just because I’m a gigantic virus monster mutated past the point of recognition doesn’t mean I don’t have feelings! Nemesis interjected as the Behemoth smashed into his side and the two went tumbling.

“That jerk in green is Ben... and uh... the really tall lady is my grandmother Hel and the woman with the witch outfit is my mom.”

“Charmed,” Terra said as she crushed a soldier with a rock arm.

Tomas looked back at Jason with raised eyebrow, “Your mom got sent to Equestria too?”

“Tomas, we make it out of this, I’ll tell you the whole story, Norse weirdness and all.” Jason said with a chuckle. “You know, I was going to call you guys up for the wedding anyway.” 

Sarah looked over with a grin, “Aw, who’s getting married?”

“That would be me,” Jason said grinning back. “This has nothing on that in terms of nervousness.”

After looking around his surroundings more closely, Tomas took out another pokeball, and handed it to Meowth, “Meowth, see if you can build something to help us.” 

Meowth did a small salute and took out a small yellow gem, “Roger that, be back in a few.”

“Well, well, well,” Ansem-Trixie spoke as they stepped out from the shadows. “Your little group would give the Avengers a run for their money in ragtagness,” they chuckled, glaring at the other Displaced.

Sarah took out another pokeball, this time summoning a Seviper. “I take it he’s in charge?”

“Please try not to hurt Trixie,” Jason said, looking Ansem-Trixie with a glare, “Bastard possessed her body.”

“And what a wonderful body it is,” Ansem-Trixie said with a laugh, “Though I had to make some improvements.” They gestured to their now humanoid body, smirking.

“Sexy, yes, but I do not approve of morphing other bodies without their consent,” Gilgamesh butted in, pointing one of his many blades at the possessed mare. “Now release her, because I’m not unwilling to do her a little harm to get rid of you. And she’ll be the second possessed mare I’ve saved from this fate, so don’t think I don’t have experience.”

“Just try me, wanderer,” they said, summoning up a double ended Soul Eater. “Come, Guardian!” they commanded, their shadow morphing into Ansem’s Guardian.

“Hm. Always did hate that cheap-ass thing,” he said before dispersing his weapons and cracking his neck, clenching his fists. He lunged forwards and punched with all three of his left hands.

“Guardian!” they said, the Heartless disappearing before reappearing in front of them. Though they took no damage the attack did force them back several yards.

“Jay, you guys figure something out to stem the tide, I’ll keep him-uh, her-uh, them busy.”

“Drake is my brother,” Xemnas said, stepping up next to Gilgamesh. “Its my responsibility to stop him.” He summoned his keyblade and struck a fighting stance.

“Probably got a point. How are you with non-lethal combat?”

“I took fencing,” he replied, taking a classic fencer’s stance.

“It’ll have to do,” Gilgamesh said taking a crouching stance. “FLY, ENKIDU!” he shouted. The green canine unexpectedly appeared, leaping off his master’s shoulders, fangs bared at his enemy. Though Ansem-Trixie’s Guardian smacked it aside it gave the other two an opening to rush forward and begin their assault. Gilgamesh assaulted the possessed mare with rapid punches, which they countered with the Guardian, while Xemnas attempted to strike their limbs only to be countered with Soul Eater.

“Carnivine, help them out with a bullet seed!” The large plant jumped up, and began to fire a barrage of yellow beams at the heartless. 

“Yanmega, quick attack!” The large bug flew over Carnivine and shot towards the guardian at lightning speed.

“Begone!” Ansem-Trixie shouted, throwing purple energy disks at them.

“Everypony, fall back to the city library! Orders of Princess Cadance!” Flash Sentry shouted as he approached the group by air.

“Got it!” Gilgamesh shouted, grabbing six of the disks out of the air and hurling them back towards their caster, absorbing the others into himself. With a pull of his scarf the cloth transformed into red bat wings and he flew off towards the palace, summoning his katanas and cutting down any Heartless in his way.

On the battlefield, Nemesis smashed the pinned Behemoth into the ground, grabbed its head in his jaws and yanked. The entire beast’s head came off with a spurt of darkness. Mutated Nemesis messily consumed its head, then roared one last time before he began to shrink back down to his regular size and reassumed his normal form. He whipped out a chain again that lit itself on fire, and began to spin through the heartless that had amassed around the battle as he made his way for the library. 

Sarah took out Seviper’s pokeball and recalled him, “Meowth, time to go!” Sarah whistled, instantly calling the large bug back towards her. 

From a distance Meowth came back running, carrying a small machine in his arms, “Hey! I didn’t even finish the mech yet!”

Tomas grabbed Meowth, “You can finish it when we get inside!” Tomas took out another pokeball and released a Yamask, “Go gather whatever negative energy you can and come find me.” Yamask grinned before teleporting away.

“Well, this is interesting,” Hel said with a laugh, riding atop Fenrir’s back. “I really should get out more.”

“Yeah, interesting,” Jason scuffed, hauling ass after them.

“Faust, Shining, you’re heavy,” Dash swore as she grabbed the prince up in her talons, trying to save time.

“It’s the armor,” Shining grumbled, not liking what she was implying.

Yanmega, upon seeing Dash having trouble with Shining, flew towards the two and tried to use her legs to grab him. “[Here, why don’t you let me try?],” although all anyone could hear was a “Yan-Yan.”

“Hey if you want to help, then by all means,” she said, carefully passing Shining off to Yanmega.

Yanmega moved Shining Armour around until finally settling into a comfortable position, using her six legs to hold him.

“So...” all eyes turned to Ben, who was sitting atop one of the rafters. “Was there a point to summoning me? ‘Cause I have honestly no idea why I’m here.”

“Do you not see the giant shadow monsters?” Jason asked, his eye twitching in annoyance.

“And? Not my world, not my problem,” he said crossing his arms behind his head.

“Dude, not cool,” Gilgamesh replied, landing and turning his wings back into a scarf, Enkidu walking up next to him.

Sarah glared at him, “Are you always like this to people who need help?”

“I don’t help people,” Ben spat the word. “Plus, I only help when asked, not forced. The gods had to learn that the hard way when Rath punched in Zeus’ nose when they thought they could boss me around.”

Jason sighed. “Okay, will you please help us Ben?” Jason asked, looking over as Cadance placed a shield over the unaffected portion of the city, sealing them in.

Ben shrugged. “I don’t know. Doesn’t really look like you need my help. I’m not exactly a fighter, ya know.”

“Says the guy that managed to get an energy sword to my neck in a sparring match,” Gilgamesh quipped.

“That thing is consuming the damn world, what the hell are you talking about?” Jason asked, the twitch getting worse.

“No different than when Discord was in power.”

“Tell me, was he trying to eat the fucking world, or was he just being a dick to everyone?”

“Never bothered to ask, come to think of it,” Ben said with a thoughtful expression. “Was too busy trying to either beat him to a pulp or run away from him. It varied on the situation.”

“I remember those days,” Hel said, sliding off Fenrir, “Rather entertaining to watch really.”

Ben still looked very disinterested. “So, what is going on exactly anyway? And who are all these people?”

Meowth jumped up and grinned, “I’m the wisest of the wise, Meowth!” Meowth then pointed at Sarah and Tomas, “and these two are the rest of this lovely trio, The fiery Destroyer Sarah and The Passionate Tomas, and we’re Team Rocket!” Meowth struck a pose before he started to tap his foot, “Probably should’ve said the motto.”

Ben looked at the three of them, then at everybody else before looking at Jason. “Gotta say, he’s the only one I like so far,” pointing at Meowth alone.

“That’s actually a big compliment, Meowth,” Jason said, walking toward the library.

“Jason,” Chrysalis said, rushing over to him. “Are you alright?”

“Yeah, I’m okay,” he said, pulling her into a hug and locking lips with her. “How are things here?” he asked as he pulled away.

“A lot of panic. I’ve been talking with the queens over if we can lend aid. Our species isn’t really geared for war,” she said, nuzzling him. She and Jason both looked up at the sound of humming, seeing Ben just laying on the rafter humming ‘I’ve Been Workin’ on the Railroad’ while absentmindedly blowing a leaf above his face.

“I hate that guy...” Jason said, rubbing his head.

“Hey, you brought me here, dude,” Ben said while still looking at the leaf. “This is your fault, not mine.”

“Do ya want me to just send you home?” Jason asked, glaring at him.

“That would be preferable,” Ben replied with a slight nod. “At least then I wouldn’t be around disgusting humans anymore.”

“I’m not human, you idiot.”

That got Ben’s attention as he sat straight up. “Wait, what?!”

“I’m a Jotun,” Jason said, rolling his eyes.

He still looked confused. “You’re a what?”

“The Jotun were a race of giants. My daughter, Corypheus, Ib and myself are the last of our kind,” Hel said, a wistful look on her face.

“Oh,” Ben replied with a thoughtful look. “So then Jason’s a shrimp.”

“He’s only twenty, he’ll grow,” Hel said, looking out toward the palace. “He’ll be the best of us.”

“Uh huh.” And again, Ben was losing interest. “Well, he ain’t human, fine by me. Still, I’m not the best choice for this, dude. I’m not exactly a fighter. I’m a diplomat.”

“You were the one who said if I needed help to give you a call.”

“Yeah, I’d try to help ya by calming down both parties. I negotiate with words to win my fights, not with my fists. That’s only when I’m mad, but I don’t get mad.”

“Yeah, you're not calming down Ansem.” Jason sat down against a building and let out a sigh.

Tomas turned towards Meowth, “Meowth, how long will it take to finish up your mech?”

Meowth sighed, “I don’t know Timmy, at such short notice who knows how long it will take,” Meowth pulled out a small yellow gem, “Luckily with the chaos gem, I should be able to finish in about ten or twenty minutes? Maybe more.” The gem glowed, and Meowth summoned a red toolbox, and a couple of machine parts. “I’ll probably be able to finish a bit faster with Zero’s help.”

Tomas let out a sigh, “You know he can’t, he’s still with Twilight helping out with her experiments.”

“I could help,” Jason said, getting to his feet. “That is if you don’t mind a crazed red gremlin messing with your stuff.”

Meowth looked a bit unsure, “Ehh, fine as long as you don’t break anything.” 

“I make no promises,” Jason said, cracking his neck. “Omnitrix, Jury Rigg.” He shifted into a small red creature, about the size of Meowth, wearing a green aviator’s outfit. “Jury Rigg, fix fix fix!!” he chanted, jumping up and down. He rushed over to Meowth’s machine, already starting to mess with it.

“HEY! CAREFUL WITH THAT!!” Meowth yelled, a bit annoyed.

“Jury Rigg fiiiiix!” he shouted, tossing bits of machinery away as he tinkered with some other stuff.

Sarah laughed at Meowth’s worried expression, “Wow, he’s more energetic than Zero when it comes to machinery.”

Meowth continued to look at the scene, worried and unsure, “At least that damn Porygon is careful.”

In no time at all Jury Rigg had somehow constructed a very large mech that resembled a Regigigas. “Make lots of light, make shadows go boom!” he shouted, laughing like a mad man.

The trio looked at the large machine in awe, “Whoa, and all of that without the help of a chaos gem.”

A loud popping sound echoed throughout the room, and suddenly a large blue blob appeared, “Wobbuffet.”

The Omnitrix timed out, returning him to normal.  “Ok... that was weird. Just was a warning, Jury Rigg’s stuff doesn’t last long so you should be careful using that thing.”

Meowth started to grin, “Don’t worry about it, when Yamask returns with enough negative energy, this thing will be just like a ghost, able to pull itself apart, and reconstruct itself in no time!” 

“Unless Yamask faints...”

Meowth glared at Tomas, “Yes... unless Yamask faints.”

“Zoinks!” they all turned to see Ben pushing himself up against a nearby wall, looking completely scared out of his mind.

“Ruh-roh raggy,” a very teenage looking Discord said, suddenly next to Ben, a blue collar around his neck.

Ben looked next to him for a second before shrugging. “It’s Discord, don’t question it,” he muttered to himself. Then he returned to being scared, staring directly at the mech. “Get it away from me!”

“How about no.” Discord said, floating over to Jason and the others. “Sup guys? Capture Pikachu yet? Or did Butch and Cassidy beat you to it?”

Sarah looked at Discord a bit confused, “How do you know about the Pokemon anime?”

“I get bored and peek into other worlds now and then, I still haven’t figured out what was in the GS ball... or why Ash doesn’t age. Mysteries that shall never be solved I’m afraid.”

“The GS ball was actually meant for Celebi to be captured in,” Tomas replied, looking a bit smug at his knowledge. 

“Knowing that is nothing to be proud about.”

Tomas glared at his sister, “Shut up, and let me have my victory.”

“Bored now,” Ben said from Jason’s shoulder. He looked over, shocked to see Nanomech laying there. “So bored.”

“Gee Ben, nice addition to the conversation you are,” Jason said, rolling his eyes. Before he could add anything else a young filly’s scream filled the air. They all looked out see a filly, trapped outside the shield, being dragged into the darkness by a Shadow.

There was a sudden ‘whooshing’ sound from Jason’s shoulder and he looked to see Ben was gone. Outside of the shield, all of them saw the Shadow suddenly disperse into nothingness, Ben’s fist right where it once stood.

“I had no idea he could do that,” Jason said, a bit taken aback.

Ben picked up the filly, holding it close as it cuddled into his chest. He looked back into the shield, his eyes cold and devoid of emotion. “Jason, this just became my fight.” He transformed into Ghostfreak so he could phase through the shield, but returned to normal immediately. He set down the filly, “Go find your parents, little one.” She nodded tearfully and rushed off after giving him a quick hug.

“Now there’s a bit of the Ben I remember,” Gilgamesh said. “I don’t know what happened since the last time we met but it was starting to look like you’d gone from loveable snarker to cynical douchebag.”

“You didn’t think that was going to happen when I said Ansem was eating the world? I wasn’t kidding when I said that, he’s going to consume the planet.”

Tomas snorted, “This Ansem sounds a bit similar to the Dusclops’ Cult of Shadows I’ve been dealing with.” 

“Listen and listen good, Jason,” Ben said as he got in his face. “There used to be just one rule back in the olden days of my Equestria. And that rule was: don’t make me mad. Well, the only way I get mad is when you threaten children. I’ve just seen a child almost taken away by one of those... ‘things’, so now I’m in the fight. But you’d better send me home right after, or you’ll be dealing with Rath.”

“I was uh... actually hoping you’d stick around for the wedding...” Jason said looking away, rubbing his neck.

Ben glared at him. “We’ll talk after this is over,” he said simply.

“Yup...” he said, nodding.

Ben huffed and backed away, before slamming down the Omnitrix. In a flash, Diamondhead was standing there. “Omnitrix, engage form lock, code 1010.”

“Form lock engaged,” it replied as the watch sealed itself.

“Jason, you brought us together, so that means it’s up to you to lead us. Don’t mess it up.”

“Heh, I can do that,” he said with a smirk, “Though... wouldn’t Atomix be better?”

Ben smirked. “You wanted a hero, this is my preferred hero. You’ll see why when we get to wrecking Ansem.”

“Wait until we can separate him from Trixie,” Jason said, shaking his head.

Tomas soon gained a thoughtful expression, “Hey, Ansem is possessing Trixie right? Well what if I have Yamask fight for control of the body? With all the negative energy he’s gathering, he might even have enough energy left over to evolve.”

“That’s insane enough to work,” Jason said with nod.

“Would he be able to handle it?” Xemnas asked, having appeared behind Tomas.

“Probably,” he shrugged. “Before I caught Yamask, he was a body stealer for the Phantom Army.”  

“If you can get him out, I’ll take care of Ansem,” Xemnas said, his voice colder than normal. “This has to end.”

Tomas smirked, “I’m confident that my Yamask will be able to get him out.” His expression quickly turned serious, “And I agree, this has to end.”

“You realize you're probably getting sent to Tartarus, right?” Jason asked him, getting serious.

“I know, I deserve it,” Xemnas said. He solemnly looked out toward the palace.

“Hey, don’t worry Mansex, I’ll vouch for you,” Gilgamesh said reassuringly, with a pat on the back. “Hell, I wasn’t exactly an epitome of righteousness either 1600 years ago, and now I’ve got a whole world more than happy to be around me. Though you probably will be on parole for a while.” He then turned to Tomas. “Hey, you said there was the chance of Yamask fainting and ruining this plan, right? Maybe I could serve as a distraction? If there’s anything I know how to do well, it’s attract attention.”

Meowth started to climb into the machine, “Yeah, we’ll probably need a distraction for Yami, he may a phantom, but he ain’t a strong one.”

“Gotcha. Now give me a moment while I think of all the ways I can troll people,” he replied before touching his chin in a classic thinker’s pose. After a moment he smiled. “Oh yeah, that’ll work. By your command, Jason.”

Count me in. Nemesis dropped from the top of a nearby bookcase, glancing between the two. I’ll be damned if that asshole thinks he can take an innocent down with him, his mistakes are his own.

“Oh no, you don’t,” Cadance said trotting over. “If you think you’re all just going to go out there you’re out of your minds.”

“And why is that, my dear Princess?” Gilgamesh asked coyly, a confident smirk on his face.

With all due respect, I don’t think most of us have ever been in our minds. Nemesis cracked a grin. 

“This is our home, and we’re going to defend it,” she said, gesturing to the window.

“Of course. Feel more than free to join in, your majesty. The Princess Cadance of my dimension proved herself quite the respectable commander and warrior. I’m sure you’re no slouch yourself,” Gilgamesh replied with a chuckle.

“Of course, I shall aid you as well,” Hel said, standing where the ceiling was tallest. “I haven’t been in a battle since Ragnarok.”

“Oh good, they’ve arrived,” Chrysalis said with a smirk. The sound of buzzing filled the air, getting louder and louder. “Shall we?” she asked, walking to the door.

“Well, you heard the lady,” Jason said with a smirk, following after Chrysalis.

This should be fun, been needing to vent for a while. Nemesis cracked his knuckles and his neck, loosening up his body as he made his way for the door. 

Outside they found quite the sight. The crystal guard was in full form, standing at attention and armed to the teeth. Approaching the city at lightning speed was a massive swarm of changelings.

“Looks like you have yourselves an army.” Fenrir commented, currently licking some wounds inflicted by the Groundshaker.

Nemesis let out a low whistle. Gotta say, I’m usually pretty underwhelmed by Pony forces in my universe, but this is pretty damn impressive.

“Ha! You should’ve seen my army. Ponies, changelings, dragons, griffins, diamond dogs, reindeer, mules, zebras, minotaurs, buffalo, and horses all lined up right behind me. You better believe they were an intimidating bunch,” Gilgamesh boasted, folding his arms.

Nemesis looked at him, eye wide. You’ve been busy since I visited you last haven’t you? He turned his attention back to the army arranged before them. Still, let it not be said that ponies can’t put up one hell of a fight when they put their minds to it. Had to imprison most of us somehow. He grinned. 

“Well, how about this?” Jason asked putting his hands toward the sky. His eyes glowed red, a snowstorm starting to form.

“Are you sure that’s a good idea?” Dash asked, looking rather concerned. 

“Yes, I’m sure Dash, we need the help,” Jason said before focusing on his task. There was a flash and out of the snowstorm came several windigos, screeching as they circled the city, eager to fight.

“You command the windigos?!” Gilgamesh asked, completely flabberghasted.

“‘Course I do, they made me Lord of Winter, Master of Jotunheim, after all.” Jason said with a proud smirk.

Well color me damn impressed, Jason. In my universe, their only master was a gigantic frost dragon who turned the north into ice. Never thought I’d see the day they’d be helping us. Nemesis looked at the circling creatures with apprehension on his face. I still don’t trust them, their leader tried to turn me into an ice cube. But I’ll live with it, for now.

“So let me get this straight: you are descended from a Norse goddess, you’re an Equestrian Prince, you’re a changeling King soon to be Emperor after this wedding finally gets back on track, and you’re Lord of the Windigos?” Gilgamesh asked, still completely shocked. “Suddenly my title of ‘Supreme Commander of the Global Equus Army’ seems lacking.”

“Heh, it’s not all that impressive, Jotunheim is kinda... empty... plus I’m one of the last of the Jotun... so yeah...” Jason said, moving over to Fenrir. Jason looked to Fenrir, who nodded, letting the young man climb onto his back.

“Huh. We actually fought the windigos in the war. Maybe I should try and get some peace treaties going when I finally get back.”

“Actually, they’re the restless spirits of dead Jotun here.” Jason said before having Fenrir howl to get everyone’s attention. He surveyed all those gathered, nodding his head. “We came here for the Games, an event dedicated to our harmony and unity. Now we face a foe who will consume all we know to satisfy his hunger. We are many and we are vast but now we stand together as one! With swords in the wind we shall cleave through the darkness and strike into the heart of evil itself!”

Loud cheering could be heard from those assembled, as well as a noticeably loud “STAAAAAARS!” 

“Please allow me to arrange the music,” Hel said, snapping her fingers. The sound of drums and heavy guitar riffs filled the air. “Oh Manowar, truly you are the music of the gods.” 

Jason slid off Fenrir’s back, whistling. Zed bounded over, growling happily, “We all know our roles, lets get this done,” he said, nodding. Cadance nodded in response, dropping the shield.

“Oh my, please be safe,” Fluttershy said as she fluttered over, her stomach noticeably swollen.

“Don’t worry, my dear thestral, we’ll do all we can,” Gilgamesh proudly proclaimed. He then stopped for a moment, observing her more closely. “Um, not to be rude, but did you gain weight?”

“I’m not a thestral, I’m a vampire bat pony. And, um, no. I’m actually, um, pregnant.”

“WHAT!? WITH WHOSE CHILD!?”

“Um, Discord.”

“WHAT!?”

“For another time!” Jason shouted.

“Of course, I’ll be staying behind to keep an eye on Flutters, Moony, and Megan,” Discord said as he scooped Fluttershy up, nuzzling her happily.

“...She’s kinky as fuck, isn’t she?” Gilgamesh asked.

It’s always the quiet ones… Nemesis nodded in agreement. 

“MOVING ON, PLEASE!” Jason shouted again.

Fluttershy blushed furiously, hiding her muzzle in Discord’s fur, while he comforted her.

Ben rolled his eyes, his arms crossed. “Can we get this moving? I’ve got things I need to do, ya know? Back home!”

Many growled at that, including Nemesis and Gilgamesh, but kept quiet all the same.

“If I may?” Hel asked, clearing her throat. “Charge!!!” she screamed, sending their combined forces into the fray.

> ...And Light May Fade...
> --------------------------------------------------------------------------

“Well this certainly is a mess,” Celestia said as she unleashed a beam of light into the crowd of Shadows, evaporating most of them. “Please stay close everypony.” Behind her, most of the castle staff had gathered, with Luna guarding the rear. The castle walls had become black and jagged, creatures of darkness sprouting from anywhere and everywhere. They had yet to meet more than a few palace guards, and they could only pray the rest of them were alright.

“The main ballroom shouldn’t be too far away, just a little further,” Axesplitter, the guard captain, said, moving up next to Celestia.

“Good, thank you captain.”

“Sister!” Luna shouted, firing a blast at another group charging at them from the side.

“Will this never end?” Celestia asked with a sigh, moving to cut them off. She charged her horn, vaporizing them within seconds, “Everypony quickly, into the ballroom!” she ordered, gesturing toward the aforementioned room. The two sisters pulled the doors open with their magic, letting the servants and guards in first. The ballroom was clear, though like the rest of the castle, its crystals had taken a black color.

“Quickly, close the doors,” Celestia told Luna, firing off a few more shots at the approaching Heartless. The doors slammed just in time to stop the oncoming horde which smashed against them with a loud bang. Ther creatures continued to beat on it but thankfully they seemed to be holding.

Everypony panted. “Okay then. Let’s all take a moment to-”

Celestia was cut off as a massive... something smashed in through the ceiling. As she recovered she saw that it was a giant hand. As it pulled back she looked through the newly opened hole to find another Heartless, this one of a massive size and seemingly attached to the palace itself. It looked like something straight out of Tartarus, possessing sharp fangs, huge bulging arms, horns, and eyes like empty voids, gazing down upon them all malevolently.

“Faust help us,” she muttered.

The creature raised its arm again, ready to strike down on them all. Celestia and Luna both gathered magic in their horns to retaliate.

“HEY, FUCKTARD!”

All heads, including that of the monster, turned to face the source of the voice. Standing on one of the palace spires was a bipedal being with six arms. Though not looking exactly the same, there was doubt as to whom it was.

“Sir Gilgamesh?” Luna asked aloud, looking quite happy to see him.

“I’VE SEEN GUYS TRY TO COMPENSATE WITH BIG HOUSES, BUT I‘VE NEVER SEEN SOMEONE TRY TO TURN THEIR HOUSE INTO THEIR DICK!”

Whether the creature understood the insult or not was unknown, but it attacked him anyway, destroying the spire with a punch. The warrior, however was gone.

Just then a song began to play, coming from the opposite direction. Everyone turned to see Gilgamesh dancing on another spire. The giant retaliated the same as before, only to be met with same reaction, a new song and a new dance originating from a new spire. The creature struck at the spire only for Gilgamesh to appear on it’s head, having changed to a new song.

“HEY BEN!” he called, “YOU GONNA JUST SIT THERE OR ARE YOU ACTUALLY GONNA HELP!?” The creature tried again to punch the warrior only to, rather comically, punch itself in the face. Gilgamesh grabbed its hand and forced it to repeat the action. “STOP HITTING YOURSELF! STOP HITTING YOURSELF! STOP HITTING YOURSELF! STOP HITTING YOURSELF!”

From beside the ponies, Diamondhead came rushing through the walls, several Neo Shadows climbing and clawing at him. “Get off! Get off, I said!” He grabbed the one on his back, slamming it onto the ground before stomping it out of existence. Then he turned and fired several quick shots into the remaining shadows before turning back to Celestia and Luna. “Everypony alright?”

“Jason?” Celestia asked, clearly confused at the series of events that had happened.

“Not this time,” Ben answered, firing another diamond at a shadow attempting to creep up behind them.

“You’re the other Omnitrix wielder! The one Jason and Sir Gilgamesh mentioned!” Luna exclaimed, smashing a Defender through its shield. “Ben, was it not?”

“That’s me, Ben 10. Your slave for the day,” he said while stomping out a rather pesky Shadow.

“Your help is greatly appreciated, Ben 10, but I don’t suppose you have a way for us to escape?” Celestia asked, slicing through a group of Neoshadows with one swing.

“In fact, I do.” Ben slammed his fist into the ground, a large hole opening up and leading down. “I just formed a tunnel that should take you out to where Shining and the others are. They should be able to get you all out of here. And don’t worry, that cave is structurally sound, it has the Diamondhead guarantee.”

“THAT BETTER HAVE A WARRANTY ON IT!” Gilgamesh shouted, holding onto the Heartless’ horns with two hands as he cut at its head with four katanas.

Ben growled, looking at Gilgamesh. “Just destroy the thing already!” he shouted to the warrior. “I got other things to do today!”

“NOT UNTIL THEY’RE OFF THIS THING! LOTS OF EXPLOSIONS!”

Ben groaned. “Do you want me to do it then?!” The ponies ignored them, taking the chance to start running through the tunnel.

“NOPE, THIS ONE’S MINE! JUST NEED TO AVOID KILLING ANYONE ELSE ALONG WITH IT!” he shouted before jumping into the air, dispelling his weapons, summoning the same dark energy rings he absorbed earlier, and blasting the Heartless in the face with them. He then landed and summoned six unique blades, one in each hand. “You should go, too. I don’t know how tough Diamondhead is, but I know he’s not invincible. Even if you are being kind of a dick, you don’t deserve to die.”

Ben scoffed. “Trust me, if I could go I would. I already had enough of you when you crashed into my world. Let alone the other humans I’m stuck with at the moment.”

“Ugh, you know what? I’m too busy to argue with you right now,” Gilgamesh complained before taking a deep breath and posing dramatically, his body glowing golden as drums began to beat and sakura blossoms fell... somehow. “PREPARE, VILE CREATURE OF HATE AND EMPTINESS!” he shouted before disappearing in a flash of speed, only to reappear behind the creature. “MASAMUNE!” he shouted, before cutting at it and disappearing, reappearing at another angle. “MURAMASA!” Another slash and another burst of speed. “ZANTETSUKEN!” Another slash. “BASHOSEN!” A slash and a tornado. “CALIBURN!” A flaming slash cut along the beast’s chest. “EXCALIBUR!” Another slash, another burst of speed, and he was high above even the creature’s head. “BEGONE FROM THIS WORLD, MONSTER!” he cried, as he dove down, striking with a series of flashes before landing.

“...That’s it? That’s what-?” Ben began.

“Wait for it.”

Immediately afterwards, a giant tornado of fire erupted from the ground, engulfing the creature in flames. It screamed in agony for a moment before a giant explosion erupted and destroyed it... along with a large part of the palace... and sent the two Displaced flying through the air.

They landed hard several blocks away, Ben groaning as he sat up. “Gilgamesh, this is the last time I deal with your craziness. That’s a Pinkie Promise.”

“I highly doubt that, considering you’re willing to tolerate both Pinkie and Lyra,” he replied as he stood up, looking no worse for wear, aside from shaking off a large amount of soot coating his body.

A shadow spread across the ground in front of the two, from which many, many more Neoshadows rose, along with a Darkside accompanying them. They began to streak towards the duo, but a flash of light in the middle of their ranks caused them to give pause. 

One of the Neoshadows twitched, something blinking embedded in its head. 

“Beep...”

“Beep...”

“Beep...”

“Beeeeeeeep!”

The neoshadow was obliterated in the resulting explosion, along with most of the horde flocking towards Ben and Gilgamesh. 

The rest climbed to their feet, looking around for what had hit them.

“sttttaaaaaaaaAAAAAAARRRRRRRS!” Nemesis fell from the sky, smashing straight into the face of the Darkside. It teetered from the impact, ultimately falling straight onto its comrades. Nemesis threw an arm out, a chain unwinding from his sleeve. He flicked it again, and it wrapped around the neck of the fallen Darkside, who gripped it.

Burn in hell. Nemesis’ eye glowed red before he yanked the chain, effectively decapitating the Darkside, which burst into a monumental inferno that consumed whatever Neoshadows remained. Nemesis stood at the center of the fire, and looked towards his comrades. 

I didn’t miss anything, did I?  Nemesis rewrapped the flaming chain around his torso.

“Just Benny giving the Princesses and the castle staff an escape route while I took care of the big guy upstairs. Where’ve you been?” Gilgamesh asked.

Scouting the battle out. Nemesis pointed to the east. There were some heartless trying to get away from the empire and going towards Manehattan, but I cut them off. Other than that, there’s only the army standing between us and whatever Ansem’s done to the Crystal Empire. 

“Sweet! Now then, how’s about a contest?” the warrior smirked. “Who’s gonna get the biggest kill count? I’ll even let you keep the ones you just slew on your score as a handicap!”

Nemesis smirked. A chance to test my new toys against the strongest warrior that I know? Count me in.

“You can’t be serious.” Ben frowned, crossing his arms. “You two are gonna treat this like a game? Count me out.” He just focused on getting rid of the monsters, ignoring the Displaced around him.

“Fine. To be honest, you don’t seem like the type, and you’ve kinda been pissing me off since you got here. Anyway, you might have new toys, but I’ve got new skills. Check this out!” Gilgamesh said as another wave of Heartless approached. He dispersed his weapons and took in a deep breath, his body crackling with blue electricity. “BY THE POWER OF HAMON!” he shouted before holding his two middle arms out to the side, palms up. Soon a light blue energy formed on his other four hands as he rapidly began pressing them into his remaining two. “AND THE POWER OF CHAKRA!” Two swirling balls of blue energy began to form. “MY HEART RESONATES! ENOUGH HEAT TO BURN! ENGRAVE, MY BLOOD’S BEAT!” he shouted as the blue electricity turned bright yellow. He dashed forwards and spun. “SUNLIGHT YELLOW RASENGAN OVERDRIVE!” he shouted as he stopped spinning and launched the two now yellow energy balls forwards, annihilating any Heartless they came in contact with and sending their power flowing along the crystal structures, destroying any enemy touching them. The entire advancing force was gone. “Oh, look at that, I think I’m caught up!”

Nemesis gawked for a moment, before smirking again. I suppose there’s no time to waste then, is there? Reaching into his trench coat, he pulled out a long, sleek weapon with a muzzle that extended at least four feet beyond the end of the gun. It glowed and hummed with some otherworldly energy. He pressed a button and the muzzle of the gun rotated. He aimed down the sight, a red laser leaving his eye and lining up with the group of heartless in the distance. 

“Target calibrated. Fire when ready.” Nemesis pulled the trigger, and a let loose a sound that might’ve caused any ordinary ponies or humans nearby to go deaf. At first, nothing happened. Then, in the distance, the air warped, and an implosion drew in any nearby heartless before a blossoming explosion washed the battlefield in an orange-red light. 

Scratch that, I’m ahead. Nemesis let the weapon rest on his shoulder for a moment before tucking it away again. Then he drew the weapon Jason had given him, Chaos Eater, from its sheath. Better keep it that way. He launched himself into the mass of enemies with a roar, spinning as he hacked through the heartless amassed below them. 

“Oh no you fuckin’ don’t!” Gilgamesh shouted as he summoned his ultimate blades and began to tear into another group of enemies with renewed fervor, laughing like a maniac as he did.

“Ugh, this is so not my scene,” Ben groaned as he casually fired diamond shards at a group of enemies approaching from behind, not even bothering to look.

Nemesis was a wall of blades and tentacles. Any enemy he didn’t slash through was impaled with his extra limbs, then thrown into more of its comrades. After a while, his sword hit something he couldn’t cut through, and he jumped back. A wall of defenders was advancing towards him, shields raised like a phalanx. 

Intelligence? I didn’t think any of you had that. Nemesis pondered how to overcome this new obstacle, when he looked from his sword, to the chain wrapped around his torso. I wonder...? He unlatched the chain from his torso, wrapping it instead around his sword. The sword burst into flames, the chain melding with the blade. Well, that’s convenient. Nemesis grinned before slashing, a horizontal blast of flame erupting from his blade and burning through the defenders’ shields, incinerating them as well. Come at me! 

“STAAAAAAARS!” He resumed his hacking and slashing rampage.

Meanwhile Gilgamesh was gleefully slicing through enemy after enemy, as he played his own music. A swarm of Shadows raced at him and he dispersed his swords for his machine guns. “Let Nemmy take on the big ones, I’ll rack up the count by taking the weak ones!” As he turned the weaker Heartless into swiss cheese he was soon swarmed on all sides by a group of Invisibles. “Oh goody! More lining up!” he shouted as he summoned both Caliburn and Bashosen, swinging both at once and creating a tornado of fire that incinerated them all in seconds. “HEY NEMMY! WHAT YOU AT!?”

A wave of Blue Rasphodys sprouted forth from the ground, but were quickly met with a wall of flame given off by Chaos Eater, and were gone just as soon as they’d arrived. Nemesis swung his sword around to dispatch a soldier creeping up from being. Nine hundred ninety ni—

A loud caw from overhead made Nemesis glance to the skies, noticing a Wyvern about to dive bomb him. He dodged the attack, then slashed the heartless as it passed. It cut cleanly in two and vanished.

One thousand! You?! Nemesis crouched, his tendrils weaving through the ground to sprout around him and destroy bandits who were beginning to come close. 

"Nine hundred ninety eight!" He shouted back before being swarmed with Neoshadows. He then quickly pulled out Bashosen and Caliburn, spinning quickly and unleashing a tornado of fire around him, incinerating them all. "Make that one thousand and twenty eight!"

The two continued the slaughter for another five minutes before all the nearby Heartless had finally vanished. 

"Phew! I gots five thousand six hundred and forty seven. You?"

Nemesis sheathed Chaos Eater, looking over towards Gilgamesh. Five thousand, six hundred and forty seven. The two stood in silence for a moment.

“Well... “ Gilgamesh began.

... shit. Nemesis finished. Just as the two warriors thought their competition had come to a draw, a massive roar tore across the battlefield.

From the felled heartless, a shadow began to gather in the sky. It sprouted wings, spanning across the entire battlefield and casting it into shadow. Even the other heartless stopped to watch as the massive leviathan formed, and a Ruler of the Sky burst forth, letting out another battlefield shattering roar as it banked hard, circling the battle. 

The two looked to each other. 

"Tiebreaker?"

Tiebreaker.

The two displaced burst into motion, Gilgamesh leaving a cloud of dust behind him as Nemesis launched himself in the air. 

"LASER BARRAGE!" Gilgamesh shouted, unleashing a torrent of beams from his eyes before slashing the Heartless rapidly with his blades.

The heartless roared as he took hits from the lasers, then spun to the side to avoid Gilgamesh’s blade swipes. It spun once, meaning to come back at Gilgamesh for an attack, but several explosions impacted its body, and it shrieked a second time. Nemesis stood high on a nearby cliff, his launcher levelled on his shoulder as he reloaded, and fired again. The heartless spun, the rockets missing their mark as it turn and swatted the cliff Nemesis was standing on with its massive tail. 

Nemesis gripped the back of the heartless with his tendrils, growling as the thing tried to shake him off. 

"Hissatsu, Part 2! BITTER END!" the warrior shouted, slicing the beast with Zantetsuken, pausing a moment before an explosion of blue energy erupted from the creature. He turned, grinning, only to see it was still alive, but barely. 

Nemesis smirked. 

"NO!"

Nemesis jumped into the air, his tendrils still attached as he fell through the air past the beast, pulling it with him. It turned belly side up, beginning to fall as Nemesis used his tendril like a bungee cord to bounce back up, spinning with his blade extended as he prepared to cut the beast in two.

Gilgamesh growled and shot forward, his own blades raised. The fighters struck the beast, it's body severed into several pieces before exploding. The two landed moments afterward.

"HA! All mine!" 

What are you talking about? Nemesis growled. That was obviously mine! 

"What!? No way, that was all-!" He shouted back before cutting himself off. "Ugh, you know what? Let's settle this later, we’ve still got an Empire to save."

Right. Nemesis sighed, then smirked I’ll kick your ass later. 

"Sure, because you've recently killed an interdimensional universe destroying sorcerer," he scoffed. 

Nemesis tilted his head. Well, I don’t know about that, but I did break through Sun-butt’s stubborn attitude. He grinned. Of course, that was after she blasted my arm off. Nemesis gripped his left arm at the base, detaching it from his body. It waved at Gilgamesh, despite its detached state.  Glad I’m a righty... though cybertronics certainly help.

"Yeesh. You can give me the full story later. Imma go find Ben. Catch ya later!" He saluted as he rushed off. "HOPE YOU STAY FOR THE WEDDING!"

Right, the wedding. Nemesis sighed. I gotta talk to Jason about that. He spoke to himself. 






Ben shattered another shadow, stomping it out of existence while muttering to himself. “Stupid Jason, stupid Displaced. I’ve got better things to do than blow out some stupid shadows.”

“Oh hey, there you are, Ben!” Gilgamesh said, rounding the corner casually. “I was afraid you got yourself killed.”

“Don’t worry about me,” he replied coldly. “Just focus on getting rid of these vermin.”

“Ah, don’t worry about it. These guys are chumps for the most part,” he replied, summoning two machine guns and mowing down a horde of Shadows approaching long before they could even reach them. Another group of Darkballs started to float over only to be incinerated by a well-placed rocket. “So, been meaning to ask, the hell’s up with you lately? You’ve been a bit of a dick. That’s not the Ben 10 I remember.”

“I am no different from before,” Ben answered. “Circumstances kept me from acting as I truly am. I hold no care for you or your kind, and would rather just be left alone. This is not something I should be helping with.” He lazily fired a shard through a Neoshadow’s head, dispersing it.

“Dude, seriously? How can somebody who claims to be good be such a selfish prick? When you see someone in trouble don’t you want to help them?” Gilgamesh asked, casually firing bullets and rockets without even looking where he was shooting.

“If it were another creature on my world then yes, I would help them. But this is not my world, there is nothing here for me, there is no reason I should be here. I never should have taken Umbra up on that totem thing. It’s caused nothing but problems.”

“So it’s not worth it to see your sister again?” he asked.

“Family is different!” Ben growled, facing Gilgamesh. “Don’t you dare try to use that against me. If I had had the chance, I would have kicked you off my world the moment you showed up. But that would have put others in danger and revealed me before I was ready. Don’t go thinking we’re friends, because I don’t make friends with humans!”

Gilgamesh said nothing for a moment before dispersing his weapons and performing some hand signs. “Kage bushin no Jutsu,” he said simply before ten more Gilgameshes appeared. The clones began to tear into the nearby enemies, giving some breathing room for the original Gilgamesh to approach Ben without interference. “I see your universe has a tendency to produce those with prejudices towards others. So much for ‘Ben Tennyson, the Great Mediator.’” Before Ben could answer, he continued. “You know, my Equus just got out of a war. A world war, mind you. And we won because all the races of Equus were willing to put their differences aside to help one another, even when they had nothing to gain from it. Sure there was butting of heads at first, prejudices, past transgressions not yet forgotten, but in the end they overcame that.”

“Does it look like I care about your backstory?” Ben snipped. “Not my world, not my problem. And don’t call me ‘Tennyson’, that’s not my name. My job is to keep Equestria at peace and harmony balanced. That’s all I need to do.”

“For someone who claims to be wise, that’s extremely short-sighted. I was able to defeat Exdeath and his armies because I had help, not just from the rest of Equus but from other Displaced. Not just abilities but also being taught how to lead armies, to test out new ideas and look at things differently. I have many to thank for my success because when a hand was extended to me in friendship I took it, and I was sure to respond in kind. This path you walk now will come to bite you, Ben. One day you may find yourself against something even you and your Equestria cannot beat alone, and when you call for help you may find no one is willing to reply. Either because they’ve heard of you and your attitude from others, or because they have the same opinion as you, ‘Not my problem.’”

Ben glared at Gilgamesh. “I would rather die than let more of your kind into my world. If that day ever does come, then I will take that as a job well done. I don’t need your kind, I don’t need your ways. I have my friends, my family, and my world. Do not think you can preach your ways to me, boy!” he spat, both literally and figuratively. “You are a disease, one that will wipe itself out, given time, taking everything with it.”

Before he could react Ben found a hand around his neck and his body held off the ground along with his back against the wall. “‘I will take it as a job well done,’ you say? If your friends and family are slain you will take it as a ‘job well done’ just because you were unwilling to accept aid? Your Celestia and Luna could be killed, along with Twilight, Nyx, Spike, Lyra, and all the others, but so long as you relied on your own self you would call it a ‘job well done’? Disgusting.” He then dropped Ben. “You are right about one thing, however. I was a ‘boy’ before. I didn’t really understand the responsibility I had, I just knew that I had two things I never had before I became what I am now: power and freedom. And I made as much use of them as I could, not thinking what I really should’ve used my powers for.” He leaned in and glared at the shifter. “Tell me this, Ben, have you seen those who depend on you die? Have you seen those who believed you would get them home to their families and friends in one piece lose their lives in front of you? Have you seen a creature with the lower half of its body disintegrated bleed its last in front of you, eyes terrified? Have you seen fields of blood, excrement and bodies as far as the eye can see, knowing each and every one of those corpses was a life you were responsible for? Well, I have. I have very recently. In the past year I grew up, Ben. I saw a small fraction of the kind of cruelty and horror that can happen, and I know it can get much, much worse. And now that I’ve seen that, I know what I need to be. I know what kind of example I need to set.” He then stood up, dispersing his clones and turning away. “And in accordance with that, know this: even if what you’ve said this day has tarnished my view of you forever, I will still hold out my hand to help you, even if you won’t take it. Because that’s who I am. That’s who I need to be.” He then grabbed his scarf, turning it into a pair of wings before flying off towards the sounds of battle.

Ben glared as the Displaced flew off. “You think I haven’t seen death? That I haven’t seen destruction? Fool, if only he knew the true terror that I’ve seen... what I’ve done.” He stomped a shadow that got too close. “This is why your kind can’t be trusted, you assume you know what is right. You assume that your way is right. You assume that my life is not bad. Assumptions have ruined my life, so you should pray you only know a fraction of the horror.” Ben turned, noticing several Heartless heading for the tunnel he created. “You only know the truth, when you become the monsters you fight.” Ben raced into the tunnel, a choice finally made in his mind.





Yamask flew above the Crystal Empire, enjoying the sight of the destroyed city. He hummed a happy tone while absorbing whatever dark energy he could, “[Shame they want the city back how it was before, in my opinion this is a huge improvement.]” 

“[Yamask!]”

Yamask turned back and saw a familiar large bug flying towards him, “[Yamask, change of plans! Tomas is looking for you, we need to go like right now!]” Yanmega flew back towards the way she came, leaving a slightly confused Yamask behind.

Yamask frowned, “[Well, not sure if I even have enough for the mech, but what the heck.]” He shrugged before he started to float back towards the library.

“You sure that thing will work?” Spike asked, looking up at the mech, his arms crossed over his chest.

Meowth turned to Spike, looking rather annoyed, “Of course this mech will work, all of my mechs work!”

Wobbuffet popped out of the machine, “[Sir, I have to disagree with that statement, the last mech, The Robocord MK.2, was blown to smithereens before we even got the chance to use it to its full power.]” 

Meowth glared at Wobbuffet, his claws already out, “Care to repeat that you blue–” Before Meowth could attack the blob, an energetic Yanmega flew in.

“Yan! Yan!”

Meowth turned to Yanmega, “Ya found Yami yet?” The bug simply nodded, “Great, so where is he?” 

Just then the small ghost type flew in, “Yam, yam!”

“Did you get enough negative energy?”

Yamask shrugged, “[For that thing, probably.]”

“Idiot, we don’t need it for the mech, we need to know if you got enough energy to possess someone!”

Yamask looked at Meowth in shock, “[I thought Tomas told me not to posses ponies anymore.]”

“Yeah, well change of plans, we need you to force someone out of some mare’s body.” Meowth leered at Yamask, “Ya think you could do that?” 

Yamask looked unsure, “[I guess I can try...]”

“Great, let’s go,” Meowth jumped onto the machine. “Come on Yami, they’re waiting.” 

“I’m coming, too!” Spike said, waddling over to the mech.

Meowth looked over to Spike, a bit concerned, “Ya sure you want to come kid? I’ll tell you it’s probably going to be really dangerous for a baby dragon.”

“Hey! Everypony else is helping out! I’m not gonna sit around while they risk their lives!” Spike snapped at him.”Besides, I’m the one that helped Twilight beat Sombra! It’s not like I haven’t been involved in this kinda stuff before!”

“Well, if you say so.” Meowth pointed to the seat right beside Wobbuffet and Mime Jr. “If ya want, you can hop on.”

Spike nodded, climbing into the seat and buckling himself in.





Ben came running down the tunnel, seeing the ponies not too far ahead. “Is everyone alright?” he called, coming to a complete stop once he reached them.

“We’re fine, Sir 10,” Luna said with a pant, “Though those creatures still appear to be coming for us,” she pointed out, smashing a shadow with her hammer.

“Yeah, they’re still all over. I saw some of them running down the tunnel so I came after.” He fired a few quick diamonds into the last of the shadows, for now. “I’m going to extend the tunnel further into the Empire. It should take us out near the palace and the Heart.” Ben put his hands on the tunnel wall, creating a new passageway. “Come on, more are sure to follow.”

“Go!” Celestia ordered, making sure the other ponies went first before she and Luna followed after them.

Ben looked behind them and saw more Heartless coming their way. He stretched out his arms and collapsed the tunnel up to their point, sealing him and the ponies in the new passageway. “That should hold them for now.”

“You have our thanks, Sir 10,” Luna said, looking back at him, “We owe you greatly for your assistance.”

Ben just turned and began to follow after the ponies. “You shouldn’t be thanking me. If it wasn’t for seeing those shadows nearly take a young pony, I would have sat back and watched.”

Celestia just glared at him, moving down the tunnel, lighting their way with a illumination spell.

“Don’t take it personally, but I’m not one of those helpful Displaced. My only concern is the safety of my own world.”

“That’s easy to see,” she commented, not losing her glare.

“Glare at me all you want, Tia,” Ben said, not even looking back. “I’ve gotten plenty before and no doubt will in the future.”

“It amazes me that Jason considers you a friend.”

“It amazes me even more. I can only just tolerate him, considering what a jerk he is known to be.” Suddenly, Ben felt something painful in his head, and his quick pace faltered. He stopped 
himself from falling by throwing his arm to the wall, breathing hard.

“Are you alright, Sir 10?”’ Luna asked, pausing beside him, looking rather weird.

“Yeah,” he said through ragged breaths, using the wall as support. “Yeah, I’m–” There was another spike in his head, making him hold it as he growled in pain. There was a flash of green light, reverting him back to normal.

“You do not look alright,” she said moving closer. “Allow us to aid you.”

Ben’s breathing got even worse, holding his head. Something made his eyes widen in fear. “No,” he whispered. “Oh gods, please no. Not now. Not him.”

“What is it?” Celestia asked, looking at him with a raised eyebrow. 

Ben tried to pull himself up to a standing position, but ended up falling to his knees. “You... you need to go.” He pointed after the ponies. “Get them out of here and collapse the tunnel.”

“We will not leave you here,” Luna said, sounding a little insulted that he would imply it.

“It wasn’t a suggestion!” he hissed, glaring at the two of them. He gasped in pain, grabbing his head. “Get out of here and destroy this tunnel. It’s your only chance.”

“We will not leave thee!” Luna shouted, starting to get annoyed.

“If you don’t go now, you’re all doomed!” Ben shouted, getting to his feet in a burst of anger. “Now do as you are told and get out of here!” That strength then suddenly drained from him as he dropped to his knees, screaming in pain. “Go! NOW! I can’t hold him back for much longer.”

“Let’s go, Luna,” Celestia said, starting to move down the tunnel.

“But, Sir 10!”

“Luna, he has made his choice.”

Luna looked back at him with a sigh before galloping after her sister. A few moments later they sealed off the tunnel.

Ben panted hard as his will slowly failed him. He moved to where his back was against the wall, his consciousness slowly fading. “May the gods... have mercy upon them.” He screamed in pain once more as the Omnitrix activated.

As Luna and Celestia turned away from the tunnel, a sound came from within. Not one of pain as expected, but one of pure rage. It was powerful, too, echoing throughout the Empire. The sound? A massive roar. The rubble that remained of the entrance began to shake, as if something were trying to come through.

“Move!” Celestia ordered, making the gathered ponies gallop as fast as their legs would take them. The alicorns shared a look, not sure if they should join them or hold off whatever was coming.

The rubble shook again... and again... and again. Suddenly, the entire entrance exploded outward, the princesses putting up shields to prevent any damage to themselves. They couldn’t see anything through the dust, save for the darkness of the tunnel. Slowly, an orange paw with a large black spike protruding from it reached out and grasped the edge of the tunnel, sending cracks through the crystal and into the surrounding buildings. From the darkness, a large, tiger-like creature pulled itself out. It stood tall in front of the alicorns, its green eyes showing only rage. It lifted its head to the air roared.

“RRRRRRRRRRRRRAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAATTTTTTTTTTTHHHHHHHHHHH!!!!”

“Why us?” Celestia asked with a groan, running a hoof down her face.

“We should keep him distracted, if his device is anything like Jason’s it will have a time limit,” Luna said, hefting her hammer in her magic.

Rath looked over the two princesses, then snorted. “Princess Celestia and Princess Luna, Rath has been waiting for this moment for a long time. You sealed Rath in stone, now Rath is gonna pay you back in full.” He slammed his fist into his open palm, creating a shockwave that shattered all the surrounding crystal. “Rath... is gonna kill you.”

“Hail creature,” another voice cut in, getting their attention. What looked like a winged human woman in glorious battle armor landed between Rath and the princesses. “I shan’t allow you to harm anyone.” She turned to the princesses, nodding. “Tend to your people, I shall handle this cre–” She was silenced as Rath slammed his fist into her face, sending her sliding back a few inches. “And here I thought all the worthy opponents were dead.” She smirked. “Have at thee, creature!” she called, flaring her wings out.

“I’m not sure who you are but please, do try not to die,” Celestia said as she and Luna galloped toward the crystal heart.

“Rath doesn’t know who you are angel lady, but Rath will put you down! Rath is the strongest there is!”

“I do not doubt your strength creature, ‘tis why I challange ye,” she said, looking him over critically. “Shall we test it?”

Rath’s answer was roaring at the valkyrie and charging, claws extended. She grabbed his wrist, slamming her knee into his chin, before swinging him into a building. She jumped back, being mindful to stay out of his reach. Rath crashed through the building wall, but launched back out less than a moment later with no injury.

“Rath can not and will not be defeated!” he roared. Rath slammed his claw into the crystalline walkway, causing the whole ground to shake and shattering the walkways as well as destroying the foundations of several buildings around him.

“Such petty destruction, surely your rage is better focused, like on your opponent,” she chastised, darting forward and kicking him in the face. She flapped her wings, blowing him back from the burst of air.

Rath slid back only a few inches, growling. “Do NOT tell Rath how Rath should use his wrath! Rath is the strongest there is! Rath will destroy everything! Rath will kill everything!!”

“Yes but why? Surely you have better things to do with your time?” she asked, summoning up a spear and shield with a flurry of feathers. 

“Simple, angel lady. Because Rath can! Rath will destroy all!”

“That is the worst justification for something I have ever heard, and I have lived for eons,” she said, rolling her eyes, “Thou art simple minded.”

“Rath doesn’t have to justify himself to you, angel lady!” he growled. “Rath is the destruction of all! All will be destroyed by Rath’s wrath! Now die!” Quicker than she could see, Rath slammed into the valkyrie and charged like a train through several different buildings before slamming her into a wall. “Angel lady will be Rath’s first kill in a long time. Rath is going to enjoy killing angel lady.”

“Thou canst not kill that which is already dead,”

“Just watch Rath,” he smirked.

She rolled her eyes, slamming her head into his. She placed her feet on his chest, kicking him back through the hole in the building. “Thou truly art an insult to berserkers everywhere.”

Rath stood, his claws brandished with a smirk. “Then bring it, angel lady!”

“If that is what you wish,” she said, taking to the sky and thrusting her spear at him. Rath dodged it, renewing their fight. 

> ...But Love Conquers All
> --------------------------------------------------------------------------

Unbeknownst to the heroes, a green, imp-like creature watched from the top of a nearby cliff, muttering to himself as he watched the battle. “Fuck... fuck! I estimated Jason having allies from other worlds, but this... this is insane! How the hell am I supposed to fight this off?!” He continued to mumble to himself as the fight continued.

Well, you certainly don’t look like a heartless, or any sort of pony. A large, humanoid figure spoke from behind the green creature, his right eye glowing red. Who are you?

“Shit!” The creature jumped around, taking in Nemesis’ size before shaking his head. “My presence here doesn’t concern you!”

Nemesis growled. Considering you were just talking about fighting Jason and others off, I think it does concern me. Nemesis raised his launcher, levelling it on his shoulder and aiming it at the creature. I’ll give you ten seconds.

The creature growled before it’s eyes suddenly stopped glowing, the body slouching over and looking disoriented. It seemed to notice Nemesis for the first time and jumped. “Ah! Big scary monster!” Before he could question this, a tear in the air appeared behind the creature, distracting him and allowing the imp to scurry off as a man in leather armor appeared, his hood hiding his face in darkness. He looked over Nemesis with his glowing, purple eyes before letting out a low growl.

“There. I am now speaking to you as my true self and not through some intermediate.” Don spoke. “Now then, my only concern is assuring Jason does not interfere anymore than he already has. Standing in my way will result in a similar fate to his, and I would rather not be forced to make yet another enemy.”

I don’t think you understand. Nemesis tightened his grip on the trigger. Anyone who threatens my friends is already my enemy. He fired, the rocket heading straight for Don, only for the shadows around him to form a shield and block the blast. When the smoke cleared, he was gone.

“Then you leave me little choice.” Nemesis turned to find Don behind him, a light trail of fire indicating where he had darted around. A sword and dagger made of shadows appeared in his hands before he took up a fighting pose. “If you are going to hold to such a stupid ideal, then I suppose I must remove you from my path.” Don charged the man, moving into melee range in a split second and slashing out with his blades.

Nemesis didn’t try to move, the attack pierced him through his torso, and he only growled.You can try, but you’ll need more than blades to do that. He tightened his hand into a fist. You can’t easily kill what’s already dead. He swung at the man with crushing force, sending him sliding across the snow, though a shell of shadow could be seen around the area that was struck as he got up.

“Damn it. Eat this then!” His hand lit up with blue fire, a cone of it being thrown in Nemesis’ direction.

Nemesis made an obvious attempt to dodge this one, though the attack caught him in its wake, freezing one of his arms and one of his legs. He faltered, falling to the ground. Then he growled, pounding on the ice with his unfrozen arm, trying to break free.

Don took the opportunity to dash forward, slamming into Nemesis with his metal right leg.

Nemesis went rolling, almost off the cliff on which they stood. He grabbed the edge with his unfrozen hand, then felt a familiar, unwelcome rage building within him.

What?! Nemesis thought to himself. I got rid of this! What is this doing back? Nemesis snarled, pulling himself up with his free hand. “STAAAAAAARS!” He roared, smashing his frozen arm into the ground, the ice shattered, and tendrils shot from Nemesis body and pierced through the ground. They shot towards Don with intent to pierce straight through him at blinding speed.

“What the-” Don was cut off as he tried to avoid the tentacles, failing to do so completely as a few cut into his sides. “What is this?” Wings sprouted from his back and he leapt into the air, watching Nemesis with a shield of shadow in one hand.

The tendrils dug into the cliff face and hoisted Nemesis’ body into the air, setting him back onto the ground. They writhed around in the air behind him before retracting into his back. 

I’m not exactly your everyday zombie. Nemesis remarked before switching weapons, holstering his rocket launcher and instead hoisting out his Gatling gun. The weapon began to hum in his hand as the muzzle spun. Block this. The weapon fired off hundreds of rounds towards the now winged man, hitting his shield and pushing him back as Don grunted.

“Gatling gun?! What sort of fucked up Equestria are you from?” Don was forced to land, holding the slowly disintegrating shield in front of him as bullets whizzed around him.

The kind that knows how to defend itself! Nemesis abandoned the weapon once it ran out of ammo on its belt and lowered his shoulder, charging straight through the shield. His shoulder slammed into Don’s chest and he went, once again, sliding across the snow.

Now, I suggest... if you don’t want to...  Nemesis words died off as he gripped his head. His trench coat fell off, letting his tendrils fly free again as they whipped at the air around him angrily. Uuuuugh, what the hell are you doing to me?! “Staaaars...”

Don pushed himself up, his hood having fallen off his head to reveal his face. “Doing to you? I’m not some freaky tentacle creature.” His arms were covered in red flame as he sneered at him.

Shut up! Nemesis leaped forward with a roar, aiming to smash his fist down on the area Don was standing before he leapt to the side.

“Burn, freak!” Don let loose a gout of fire before dashing back, making sure to keep his distance from the infected being.

Nemesis took the fire full on, reeling backwards as the flames licked at him. His right eye burned brighter as he felt himself literally burning alive. 

“STAAAAAAARS!” Nemesis switched back to his launcher, leaping out of the flames as he fired it at Don’s feet, rather than directly at him to try and catch him in the explosion. The blast blinded him, forcing him to dart back further in an attempt to escape the rampage.

Nemesis roared, a literal walking inferno as he charged through the snow after his target. Don didn’t make it easy though as he created spears out of shadow, throwing one after the other at him.

Nemesis managed to sneak a tendril around the side without Don noticing, and it quickly grasped his leg. Don glanced back at it with a panicked expression, but was quickly jerked back towards his opponent. Nemesis turned, slamming Don into the ground. Don groaned and tried to recover, and Nemesis picked him up and slammed him down again, on his wings this time. After a few more times, he dragged Don back towards him and held him up by his arms.

Leave. Now. Nemesis turned and threw Don as hard as he possibly could, sending the overlord sailing into the distance. Nemesis watched after him, then placed his hands over his face, shaking as he tried to recompose himself. When that failed, he snarled and roared into the sky. 





“Um... what exactly are we doing with this thing anyway?” Spike looked out of the mech, a frown on his face.

Meowth smirked darkly, his eyes flashing red for a second, “Oh, you know, just destroy or capture any of the heartless that come our way.” His grin widened when he saw Wobbuffet’s worried look.

“Why would you want to capture one of those things?” Spike asked before shaking his head. “Shouldn’t we find this Yamask dude first?”

Meowth frowned. “I sent Yamask to go find Tomas and bring him here, and Yanmega is out looking for Sarah.” Meowth’s grin returned, only slightly wider. “And besides, if I can capture some of those Heartless, I might find a way to turn them to my side.”

Mime Jr. jumped out of his seat and pointed towards one of the ruined buildings. “[Hey! It’s Tomas and Sarah!]”

Meowth turned towards what Mime Jr. was pointing at and grinned, “Yo! Tomas! Sarah! Yamask! Hop on, theres enough room for three more people!”

“So, can Yamask really help Trixie?” Spike asked, hope in his eyes, “I mean she’s not my favorite pony in the world but... she doesn’t deserve to be somepony’s puppet.”

Tomas smiled at Spike, “Don’t worry, I’m confident in my Yamask’s  possession ability, after all he was the body stealer of the Phantom Army before he joined me.” Yamask floated down towards Spike and chirped happily.

“Whoa...” Spike said, reaching out to touch the ghost. 

Yamask smiled and floated closer, letting Spike rub his head. “Yam Yam.”

“[Sir, I hate to break up such a heartwarming scene, but we have to get to Trixie, before Yamask loses control of his excess energy.]” Wobbuffet finished with his signature salute. “[After all, no Pokemon can hold up such energy without accidentally triggering a evolution.]”

“Then lets go! We got a pony to save!” Spike commanded, dramatically pointing forward with as much authority as he could muster.

Meowth nodded, “Right.” Pulling one of the levers, the mech hummed to life and started to stomp towards the center of the empire.





“HA! Take that ya stupid shadow monster!” Dash shouted as she watched the behemoth heartless explode after Gilgamesh’s assault.

“Pay attention!” Jason hissed as he sliced a Neoshadow in half before it could claw at Dash.

“Heh, sorry,” she said with a chuckle. With everyone else busy, Jason’s group, which consisted of himself, Applejack, Twilight, Cadance, Shining, Zed, and Rarity, had decided to head directly to the Crystal Heart, with the hopes that Cadance could reclaim it.

“Just focus on the task at hand!” Shining Armor scolded as they moved down the back alleys, blasting their way through countless heartless. They got halfway there before Ansem-Trixie showed their face with a smirk.

“Just where do you think you lot are going? Trying to steal my heart? You could have at least brought flowers.”

“That heart ain’t yers, thief!” Applejack snorted, glaring at them.

“Quiet yourself knave, why don’t you go play in the mud?” they asked, summoning up their Soul Eater and Guardian. “Why don’t we see just how powerful your light really is?” They darted forward, scattering the group with a blast of darkness. A clash rang out as Xemnas appeared, blocking Ansem-Trixie’s attack.

“Go!” the nobody commanded, knocking his sibling away, “Use the heart to cleanse the darkness!”

Getting to his feet, Jason looked down at the others, “Twilight, Cadance, you’re with me. The rest of you back up Xemnas,” Jason commanded, already on his feet and running.

“Ya’ll heard the stallion!” Applejack barked at the two alicorns, gesturing for them to get going.  “We got this.”

“Just try not to hurt Trixie, okay? It’s not her fault!” Twilight reminded as she and Cadance galloped off, quickly catching up to Jason. The trio fought their way into the center of the empire, the heart trapped behind a purple barrier.

“Any ideas on how we get past that?” Jason asked, slicing through some defenders that were guarding the barrier. 

“Perhaps we can be of assistance?” Celestia asked as she and Luna lead a group of ponies into view. “Also, Jason? Your friend Ben is insane.”

“Ugh, what happened this time?” Jason asked, sounding exasperated.

“He transformed into the tiger and told us he was going to kill us,” Luna said, sizing up the barrier. 

“Of course he did,” Jason said, turning to look at the alicorns, “Okay, let me shift into Stardust and we’ll blast it all at once.” Jason shifted into his alicorn form and began charging up his magic, the other alicorns doing the same. “Okay... one... two... three!” Jason shouted, and the five alicorns fired off their magical blasts as one. The barrier shattered under the combined strain, allowing access to the exposed heart. The heartless, seeming to sense their source of power under attack, turned all attention away from the Empire’s defenders. They swarmed the center of the empire, making Jason groan. “Fuck my life.” He reverted back to normal, firing off a few Ultima spells into the tidal wave of heartless. 

“Quickly, Cadance! Before we are overwhelmed!” Celestia shouted, vaporizing as many heartless as she could with her magic. Luna and Twilight joined in, adding their magic to the barrage.

“No pressure, right?” Cadance asked with a nervous chuckle, moving up to the heart. She gazed at the blackened crystal, charging the love magic in her horn. “I just need a minute!”

“Yo, jackasses!” Jason shouted as loud as he could, “Making a last stand here! Anytime you want to show up would be nice!” He threw his arm out, sending a barrage of shrieking windigos into the darkness, freezing large portions of it. 

“Hi.”

All of them turned to see Gilgamesh suddenly behind them.

“How–?” Cadance began.

“I have almost completely mastered Pinkie’s abilities. And now,” he began, his eyes glowing red as he hefted all his firearms, music starting as he did. “LET THE HEROIC SLAUGHTER BEGIN!” he shouted, firing his weapons at the oncoming horde while lasers shot from his eyes.

“About fucking time,” Jason said, firing off as much magic as he could.

“You guys better hang on,” Pinkie said, sitting on Gilgamesh’s shoulders, “This is gonna be a doozy!”

“She’s right,” Maud added, breaking the neck of a defender. A moment later, Cadance touched her horn to the heart for a moment, pushing all the love energy she could into it. All was quiet for a moment before the love surged through the Empire. The barrier exploded outward, evaporating the darkness that had infected the city and destroying all of the heartless.

“Whoa... this is just weird...” Jason said as he looked at his hand, which was now crystalline.

“It’s a side effect of the love magic,” Twilight commented, gesturing to herself and the others, who also had the crystal appearance.

“You... bitch...” Ansem-Trixie hissed, staggering into view. Unlike the rest of them, they were not crystalline but instead had wisps of darkness coming off their body. “You ruined everything!”

“All in a day’s work!” Gilgamesh commented gleefully.

“I was seriously hoping that would get rid of him...” Jason groaned, shaking his head. “I really hope Yamask got enough energy because we can’t fight him without hurting Trixie.”

“Arbok, use Wrap!”

Suddenly a large purple-scaled cobra burst from the nearby debris, and instantly began to wrap itself around Ansem-Trixie, constricting all of their movements.

“What?! Let... me... go!” turning towards Arbok, they noticed the venom that was beginning to drip from it’s mouth.

“Alright Arbok, Lick!” Sticking her tongue out, Arbok licked Trixie’s cheek, causing her whole body to become paralyzed.

“Come... guardian!” They managed to get out, their shadowy guardian emerging from her shadow.

“Oh no you don’t!” Spike shouted, jumping out of Team Rocket’s mech. He took in a deep breath before bathing the guardian in his dragonfire, dissipating it. 

Pulling a lever, Meowth glared angrily at Ansem, “Sorry pal, but it all ends here for you.” Meowth’s eyes started to glow red, his grin widening every second, soon a familiar voice echoed through her head, “After allll II’m the only oone whooo will get the pleasure of destroying Jason.” A familiar looking Gengar appeared behind Meowth, “I still oowe him for ruining the plans I had for Equestria and Team Rocket, and with all this heartless essence I’m gathering, I’m suuree that the job will get done much quicker.” Disappearing inside of Meowth, the mech started to absorb all of the heartless around the area.

Remembering that she was still trapped, Ansem-Trixie tried to struggle, “Release me!” Ansem-Trixie hissed, glaring at them all, unable to break free. 

“Do it,” Jason said with a nod, looking at Team Rocket, their allies gathering around the captive heartless.

“With pleasure,” Tomas turned towards Yamask and nodded, “Yamask, Nightmare!” Yamask’s body turned into a thick-looking black fog, which shot towards Ansem-Trixie and instantly entered their body.

Sarah took out two more pokeballs and released the pokemon inside. “Frillish, Pumpkaboo, I need you two to keep feeding Dark energy to Yamask, at least until he leaves the body.” The two pokemon looked at each other and flew towards Trixie.

Meowth jumped out of the mech, now staring at Trixie and began to notice the yellow mask that started to form around her head, “Tomas look!” Meowth pointed at Trixie with a happy expression, “Yamask is slowly gaining control of the body!”

Ansem-Trixie let out a scream before Ansem was forced out, retaking his true form. “You... insignificant worms!” he raved, staggering forward, “I’ll destroy you all!” He suddenly stopped, letting out a gasp, his Soul Eater stabbed through his chest.

“Not... your... puppet,” Trixie muttered before collapsing into a heap. 

“This... isn’t over...” Ansem sneered as his body turned into wisps, drifting away into the night. 

“Heh... we actually did it...” Jason said with a laugh, swaying a little from exhaustion. 

“Little anticlimactic though,” Hel pointed out with a frown.

“Bah... its over and we can finally take a break. Great work guys,” Jason said, giving Team Rocket a thumbs up.

“Okay, I will admit, I am impressed,” Gilgamesh said, applauding. “You guys make one hell of a team.”

Tomas smiled bashfully, “It was Yamask who did all the work.” 

“Yeah, not to mention we built the mech for no reason,” Meowth grumbled, kicking the mech. “We didn’t even need it!!” Wobbuffet waddled towards Meowth giving him a sympathetic pat on the back. 

“[Don’t worry sir, maybe we can bring the mech back home with us, and besides, didn’t you capture the essence of a couple heartless?]” Wobbuffet saluted, “[Maybe you’ll be able to create your own Heartless, one that can work for us!]”

Meowth’s eyes flashed red, his wide grin returned “You’re riiiiight, hehehe.” Meowth looked at the mech with a sinister expression. Walking over to the mech, he tapped one of the glass orbs, and smiled when he saw a couple of red orbs.

“So... you guys staying for the wedding?” Jason asked, wiping some dirt off his forehead.

Sarah squeezed Tomas’ shoulder in excitement, causing him to yelp, “Of course we’re staying for the wedding!”

“Good to know,” Jason said. Turning to the rest of the Displaced he asked, “What about you guys?” He looked back and forth at them.

“Hell, you know I’m staying! I’ve got no other obligations, and you’ve already picked me as your best man!” Gilgamesh replied, reverting to his base form and giving the jotun a one-armed hug. “And besides, even if I wasn’t, I couldn’t miss my... son’s wedding.”

Jason just smiled, hugging him back.

“What was that about ‘your’ son?” a new voice asked, sounding like a deeper version of Jason’s voice. They all turned to see a grey, eight-legged horse, with two men on its back. One slid off its back, revealing the other to be what looked like Tom Hiddleston from The Avengers.

“Wait, what?” Jason asked blinking.

“Oh Faust, Loki really does look like Tom Hiddleston,” Gilgamesh muttered.

“You like it?” Loki asked, sliding off Sleipnir, “Mortals have the most imaginative interpretations of my appearance. This is my favorite of them all.”

“Ignore him,” the other man said, walking closer. Though he had a hint of asian descent, he  looked like an older version of Jason. “Now, what was that about ‘your’ son?”

“Wait, are you... um... ugh, Terra, help me out here, I’m totally blanking on your husband’s name,” Gilgamesh said.

“Toya!” Terra shouted with glee, flinging herself into his arms, the two sharing a kiss. “You know for a dead man, you kiss rather well.”

“Good to know,” Toya said with a smirk, wrapping his arms around her. 

“You glad now I didn’t tell ya he was coming?” Hel asked Jason, to which the young man just nodded.

“Now,” Toya asked, looking around, “Who else are we missing?”

“Just Ib,” Terra said, pulling away from him and fixing her hat, “Ah, there she is.”

Out of a nearby shadow stepped a tall woman with black hair and piercing red eyes. She wore an elegant red and black dress, which blew in the wind. “Present,” she said, walking over to the group.

“It’s one big family reunion,” Hel laughed, clapping her hands happily, “Warms the heart, ya know?”

“As I was saying,” Toya said, looking at Gilgamesh narrowing his eyes slightly, “Explain.”

“Well, you see sir, up until about a few months ago- that is to say a few months ago for me, what with the whole ‘time moves at different speeds’ thing in different Equestrias- Jason and I had a friendly teacher-student relationship. In our last meeting, however, he... um,” Gilgamesh actually looked embarrassed, twiddling his thumbs as he looked away. “Well, he said he never really thought of his adopted father, the one from earth, as a real father and, he, uh... kinda called me... ‘dad’ before he left last time. And, I, well... wasn’t really opposed to the idea.”

Toya looked at Jason critically, before turning back to Gilgamesh, “So you whipped him into shape huh? Good, I was afraid he’d end up a slacker or something. Glad to be proven wrong.” He held out his hand to Gilgamesh.

Gilgamesh chuckled as he took it and shook. “Heh, you should’ve seen him the first time we met. Kid practically pissed his pants. Still he had the guts to face me down, and he’s come a long way since then.”

“Oh don’t I know it,” Toya laughed, moving over to Jason. The two stared at each other for a while before Toya pulled the young man into a tight hug. “You make me proud Corypheus, you’ve done more with your life than I ever did in mine. Never stop being you, you got that kid?”

“Y-yeah... I got it,” Jason said, hugging him back.

“So this is his family, huh?” Applejack asked, trotting up to Gilgamesh with a sigh, “Ah suppose he ain’t gonna be needin’ us no more...”

“Girl, you be trippin’. What makes you think he’s ever gonna forget about the Apples?” Gilgamesh asked.

“Well ah mean, what would you do if’n your real family came back to ya?” she asked, looking up at him.

Gilgamesh sighed. “I don’t think I’m the right person to ask that question, because my answer would probably be ‘Sorry folks, but I’ve got everything I’ve ever wanted and you wouldn’t let me have, so thanks for the memories, but so long!’” He groaned. “I did not have a good relationship with them.”

“Family isn’t about blood,” Ib cut in, walking over. “Family are the people you’ve bonded with and stood against hardship with. If Corypheus calls you family then so will I.” She turned to Gilgamesh, holding her hand out, “I’m Ib, it’s nice to meet you.”

“Gilgamesh,” he replied, taking her hand. He then reached down had Applejack and Ib shake as well. “Thanks for letting us into the crazy family. Let us know when the next reunion is. I’ll bring hydra jerky.”

“Have you seen Loki? He’s got to be the most insane, childish, vain creature in this universe. “ Ib said, brushing some hair out of her face. “There is no way you're anywhere near as bad as him.” 

The sound of a rhythmic hum filled the room. Twilight glanced about, eyes blinking in confusion. “Uhh... did anypony else hear that?”

The sound of shattering glass pierced the air, then a hole ripped open in the center of the room, through which a small ball of whiteish-blue light rocketed.

“Nemesis!” The whiteish blue light shouted. “You need to come quick! We’re almost—” The light stopped in mid sentence. Then slowly dimmed, revealing none other than Twilight Sparkle. Rather than wings made of feathers, her wings criss-crossed with dark blue alloys, her eyes glowed white, and electricity ran along circuits on her body. Jason’s Twilight’s jaw dropped at the sight. 

“Oh...” Mecha-Twilight scratched her chin. “I overshot it didn’t I? Give me a second...” A holographic screen appeared in front of her, and she started punching in numbers. 

“Woah, cyborg Twilight,” Dash said moving over to the Mecha-Twilight, poking one of her wings with a talon, “What messed you up so badly?”

Mecha-Twilight chuckled. “Not a ‘cyborg’ exactly, as the bits of flesh that remain alive in me are decaying quite rapidly...” She mumbled under her breath, continuing to punch away at the screen. She lit her horn and a map came up in the center of the room, multiple pinpoints of light appearing throughout. “Seems I’m in the right universe.” She frowned. 

Meanwhile, Jason’s Twilight’s mouth was still on the floor. “Wha- How- Wha-” Twilight tried time and time again to form words. 

Mecha Twilight noticed her and waved. “Oh, hello me! We’ve probably just destroyed about four point two billion oh one other universes by coming into contact with each other just now, but that’s okay. They were Equestrias made out of cheese... for some reason.” Twilight blew a lock of mane out of her face and deadpanned. “I’ll never understand some of these sysadmins...” 

“I’m sorry to tell you wrong, cyborg,” Hel said, leaning on the wall. “There are no sysadmins here, Yggdrasil doesn’t need them and the last one that tried to interfere... I believe his corpse has been feeding the tree for a few million years.”

“Oh, not here.” Twilight smiled. “There are sysadmins all throughout the multiverse... and one of them decided it would be a good idea to make an Equestria... out of cheese.” Twilight sighed. “Several of them, actually.” She perked up. “But that’s beside the point, do any of you know where Nemesis is? I need to speak with him.” 

“Twilight, pick your jaw up off the floor,” Jason commented, pulling away from his father. “It’s very unbecoming of you. As for Nemesis, he’s around, I needed to give him something before he left.”

"Left? But he needs to stay for the wedding!" Gilgamesh pouted. 

“Wedding? I– Oh! Gilgamesh!” Mecha suddenly shot forward and embraced the armored warrior in a hug. “It’s so good to see you again!”

"Whuh?" the warrior asked in confusion. "Wait, are you Nemmy's Twilight? Holy Faust, what happened to you!?"

Twilight disengaged from the warrior, frowning a bit. “To make a long story short, Ellura attacked Ponyville with some B.O.W.s, I got bitten, and another displaced had to take some... drastic measures to keep the virus from spreading, and keep me alive.” 

"Oh, you poor thing," he sighed. "Ugh. So many places where I could've helped if it wasn't for the damn war."

“I’ll be fine. Thanks to Nemesis and the rest of my friends, I’m able to go on.” She smiled at him. “Oh! I almost forgot! Give me a second...” She stuck her robotic tongue out of her mouth in concentration as her horn glowed, sparking with electricity. With another hole tearing in the air, a purple, humming gemstone appeared next to Twilight.

“I never got the chance to thank you for sending us all those apples, it meant a lot to me. To us.” Twilight levitated the gem towards Gilgamesh. “I made this for you, it’s a gem made from harvesting the power of an especially powerful B.O.W., I’m not entirely certain how it works, but as far as I know it’ll make you... “ she smiled. “Adapt.”

"Adaptational survivability?" he asked before taking the jewel. "Nice! That'll come in handy, considering I'm universe hopping right now. No idea what I'll come across." He then made a slight bow. "I greatly appreciate it, and I'm glad I could help even in a small way." He then opened up his chest plate and implanted the jewel into his torso, which sparked for a moment. "Ooh! Tingly." The jewel hummed loudly before it flashed, and when the light dimmed, Gilgamesh’s entire body was made out of a reflective, black material.

“Anti-magical obsidian.” Twilight grinned, demonstrating by firing a blast at him. It impacted on Gilgamesh, only for the blast to sink into his body, then glow with the humming sound continuing on, not showing any sort of damage. 

"Awesome! Not sure how I feel about the look, though." He the concentrated and his body returned to its normal composition, aside from the jewel in his chest. "Oh good. I don't know how Luna would feel about kissing a gem."

“You know, if you guys had called me, you wouldn’t have needed the upgrades, Twilight,” Jason said, looking at her. “I was infected by the T-Virus as well.”

Mecha-Twilight looked over at Jason. “It was kind of a panicked moment, we weren’t really thinking rationally.” Twilight frowned. “A bunch of Displaced had just left, then another Displaced fell from the sky and he was there to offer help, we never really got the chance to summon another.” Mecha-Twilight sighed. “But like I said, I’m over it. Ellura still has a strong hold on Canterlot, we’re ready to fight for it but we need Nemesis back first.” 

“Well, these will come in handy then,” Jason said, pulling two vials out of his pocket. “Catch,” he said, tossing them to her, “The first one is a sample of my blood and the second is a T-Virus vaccine, synthesised by the Omnitrix.” He paused, pulling a strange looking gun out of his pocket, “If Brainstorm and Grey Matter are right, this should revert any B.O.W’s to their uninfected state.”

Twilight stared at the vial in her hooves, her face stricken in awe. “You’re... you’re kidding... this will fix everything! Oh my gosh I can’t thank you enough!”

The sound of closing doors called the group’s attention behind them, and Nemesis stood there. His trenchcoat was burned, almost completely fallen away as well as cuts and bruises all over his body. He glanced between everyone there, his eye color changing from red to white.

...I missed something again, didn’t I? 


"Just your Twi telling us that you're gonna retake Canterlot, and she gave me a super adaptability gem," Gilgamesh replied. "Fuck happened to you?"

The one she created from Majora? Nemesis glanced back towards Twilight, who waved sheepishly. So that’s what you were using it for. 

Twilight grinned.

As for what happened... we would be here for hours if I tried to explain it all. Nemesis gave a tired sigh. All you need to know, is that after a bit of convincing and some ass kicking, Celestia is on our side. Ellura has declared the rulers of the country dead, and tried to kill us all in a massive attack on Ponyville. Yes, another one. Celestia tried to kill me, Twilight intervened, some feels were had, and now I’ve got a robotic arm. Nemesis flexed his arm. Anymore you’d like to know? 

Gilgamesh looked shocked. "Uh, actually meant why you looked so banged up right now, but damn. Do they really have enough sway to convince Equestria the Princesses are dead?"

They’re not trying to sway anybody anymore. Nemesis snarled. It’s obey or die, pretty much. Nemesis shook his head. As for what happened out there, some asshole going on about Jason attacking him. Talked about getting rid of all of us. I took him on, he had some sort of influence that caused the ‘real’ Nemesis to resurface again. I nearly lost myself in a bloodthirsty rage, took a few minutes to calm down after being set on fire, but I’m good now. I sent the bastard flying away farther than Team Rocket. Nemesis looked over towards Team Rocket. No offense. 

Sarah waved the comment off, “None taken.”

Jason stared at Nemesis, his fists clenched. He threw his head back, letting out a scream of rage that knocked everyone back a bit from a blast of wind. He took a breath, clearing his throat, ”Sorry about that. Now, Nem. here. This thing should turn any B.O.W. you shoot it with back into whatever it used to be. Not a 100% on it so be careful,” Jason said, holding the gun out to him.

Nemesis took it, admiring the weapon. You’re kidding me. A cure for the t-virus? How did you even get this? I thought the t-virus was incurable. 

“Hey, both Grey Matter and Brainstorm helped make that thing, of course I may have stolen the idea from those guns that cured the DNAliens but same principle... or it could mutate them worse, like I said, be careful when using it,” Jason stressed with a sigh.

I... you... Nemesis slipped on his Genji Gloves before walking over to Jason, picking him up, and giving him a massive bear hug. With all the bone crushing force that implied.

“Hey you’re welcome... you’re my friend, its no biggie. Though you don’t have to worry about infecting me. What did you call it... Majora? It did that last time when you were here. That vaccine I gave your Twilight? Made from my blood.”

Nemesis set jason down. It infected you? Why didn’t you tell me?! I don’t know what I could’ve done but I could’ve done... Nemesis hesitated. ...something! 

“I went into a three day coma and... stuff happened... mostly a genocidal rebellion, but,” Jason said, hoping to change the topic, “I take it you're not staying?”

Nemesis glanced back to mecha-Twilight, who simply shook her head. 

No, I can’t. My Equestria still needs me, and until I finish Ellura once and for all, it will keep needing me. If we can stop them at Canterlot, they’ll only have one place left to go. Then we can finish them off there. Nemesis shrugged. Then I owe all of you a drink. Good ones, too. 

“Hey it’s no biggie,” Jason said holding his hand out, “You got important things to do. Thanks for the help and remember, if you need help, call me.”

Anytime. Nemesis chuckled and shook Jason’s hand in return. He turned to Gilgamesh. I don’t think I’ll ever be able to properly thank you for all that you’ve done for me and my universe, Gilgy.

Gilgamesh smiled and nodded. "Believe me pal, I'd like to come help you, but," he extended his hand. "Somehow, it feels like something you need to settle yourself. What will do you do after it’s done?"

Nemesis blinked then glanced off back towards the Crystal Empire. I honestly can’t say that I know. I haven’t thought about it. He looked back towards Gilgamesh. Becoming a regular human again would be my top priority of course but... returning home? After all the friends I’ve made in Equestria? I’m torn. He heard Twilight gasp behind him, before he shook Gilgamesh’s hand. Then he jerked the warrior forward into a quick hug, stepping off soon after. Not used to being so sentimental... Nemesis grumbled. 

"Hey man, if there's anything the past year has taught me its to cherish everyone you know like you'll never see them again. I just hope that won't be your case." He smiled again. "Even if you go human and go back to your Earth, I'll still try to pay you a visit."

Nemesis nodded, smiling a bit as he stepped towards Twilight. Twilight levitated up off the floor, opening another portal. Nemesis paused, turning to face Team Rocket. We don’t know each other very well, but if you need me, he tossed them his summoning token. Don’t be afraid to call in for help. I’ll be there as quickly as I can. 

Meowth looked at the token, before reaching for his gem, “Hey Nemesis, catch.” Summoning out a copy of their token, he tossed it towards Nemesis, “Call us, if you need us.” 

“Wobbuffet!!!” The blob saluted, agreeing with Meowth’s statement.

Nemesis caught the token, tucking it into his trench coat before nodding. Will do. He gave one last wave. I’ll keep you all in my thoughts. Then stepped through the portal, and vanished. 

Twilight lingered for just a moment. “Goodbye everypony! Oh,” She flew over to Jason’s Twilight. “If Rainbow Dash offers you flying lessons on your 21st birthday, do not accept it.” With that, she squee’d and darted back through the portal, vanishing from sight as well. 

“Ok, so I know for a fact that you guys are staying for the wedding,” Jason said, looking at the other Displaced, “Wait... anyone seen Ben?” he asked, looking around.

And just as he asked that, a blur slammed into the ground not too far from them. As the dust dissipated, Rath was standing on the now cracked crystal with a Valkyrie in his grasp.

"You bore Rath!" the tiger shouted before tossing away his opponent. "Who else is there for Rath to destroy?"

“Oh, there you are dear,” Hel said, looking at the valkyrie, “Have fun?”

“Shut up, Hel,” she said getting to her feet, spitting out some blood.

“He should time out at any moment,” Jason said, standing his ground.

“LISTEN UP, UNNECESSARILY ANGRY CAT! GILGAMESH CHALLENGES YOU! GILGAMESH WILL NOT FALTER AGAINST YOUR INCESSANTLY LOUD VOICE!” the warrior shouted back, posing dramatically.

Rath looked at Gilgamesh for a moment before snorting and turning away. "Not worth Rath's time." He walked away and decided to just demolish a nearby building with a single hit.

“Are you kidding me?” Gilgamesh asked aloud.

“Please don’t do that, I rather like the scenery,” Hel said, backhanding the raging cat and sending him tumbling away.

He quickly regained his footing and in a flash slammed his fist into her face, shooting her high into the castle. "No one backhands Rath, ya undead bitch!"

“D’aww, is the kitty angry?” Hel asked, rising out of the shadows behind him. “I think I may have struck a nerve,” she said, her smirk  never leaving her face.

"Rath is always angry! Rath is Rath! Rath is the strongest there is! Rath will destroy all!"

“Ha! You have nothing on Surt, kitty cat,” Hel taunted, laughing. “You couldn’t destroy your way out of your litter box.”

Rath slammed his fist into the ground, sending off a seismic wave that shook the whole of the empire, buildings collapsing all around them as the streets broke apart. "Rath will kill everything!!"

“Oh I’ve had enough of this,” Hel said, sounding rather annoyed. “If you want to destroy something, why don’t you go to Muspelheim? I heard the natives were talking smack about you,” she said, conjuring up a portal.

"You think you can get rid of Rath?" He disappeared in a flash to several feet away. "Rath goes when Rath wa–" At that moment, the Omnitrix began to sound off, running low on power. 

“About fucking time,” Jason said with a sigh of relief, shaking his head.

Rath growled darkly. "Let me tell you somethin' Omnitrix, you are a piece of shit! And you all!" He pointed to the ponies, Displaced, and assorted others. "You may have survived this time, but when Rath is free again... Rath will kill you all and feast on your remains!"

“Sure you will, asshole. Now go back from being a jerk to slightly less of a jerk,” Gilgamesh commented.

"You are not allowed to speak to Rath, you pussy little shit!!" He snarled at Gilgamesh. "You are an insult to fighters! Rath wouldn't even leave your carcass for the buzzards!"

“Oh just go back into your damn watch, your voice is a poor mockery of Macho Man Randy Savage,” Hel said, rolling her eyes.

Rath got in one more growl before his transformation timed out. Ben stood for a moment with his head hung before falling to his knees. His entire body was shaking and appeared to be muttering something.  

“Hey Ben, you alright? You just got off a Rath trip,” Gilgamesh explained.

“Give him some space... and don’t let him see what Rath broke,” Jason muttered to them all, ‘You need me to use any cure spells B?”

Ben didn't say a word, just shaking and muttering. They couldn't tell anything was wrong until Twilight spoke up. 

"Uh, Jason?" She pointed to below Ben, and Jason's eyes followed to see water dripping from his face. 

“Oh geez,” Jason said, kneeling down in front of Ben, “Hey B, snap out of it.”

“If he’s worried  about any deaths, no one died,” Hel called, getting a glare from Jason.

His arms shakily grabbed Jason's shoulders. "Is it true?" Ben whispered. "Please, Jason. Please tell me I didn't kill anyone."

“If Hel says no one died, no one died,” Jason said, looking into his eyes, “It was just some structural damage,” Jason gave him a smile before turning to the others, ‘“Look, its been a long night guys, why don’t we all head to the castle and worry about everything tomorrow?”

“That sounds good to me,” Twilight said with a tired sigh. “Wait... where’s Trixie?” she asked, looking toward where the mare had been laying, only to find a discarded alicorn amulet.

“We’ll send search parties out in the morning,” Cadance assured her.

“Twi, when we find her, I think you should talk to her,” Gilgamesh said. “I don’t know about yours, but my Trixie admired you, even when she was a higher rank. I think you can help her here, too.”

“We’ll worry about it in the morning,” Jason said. He picked up the amulet and tossed it to Celestia. She caught it in her magic and nodded to him. “I just want to sleep...” With that the group moved into the castle, exhausted from their great battle.



  

Out in the middle of the tundra, Don lied unconscious in the snow. As he lay there, shadowy wisps slinked along the ground, sliding around his head and seeming to soak in slowly. Don gritted his teeth and turned, as if having a nightmare before the shadows were gone and he snapped his eyes open, sitting straight up.

“What the- agh!” He flinched, feeling where his ribs had been bruised by Nemesis. “That fucking sack of... Nightmare, is the virus that... thing nearly infected us with gone?”

“Not gone,” she quipped in his mind. “I managed to contain it and keep it from spreading. Removing it is going to take a lot more than either of us have at the moment.”

Don sighed. “Great.” He glanced back towards the crystal buildings, the sounds of battle no longer echoing over the hills. “Guess the fight is over. Damn. Here I was hoping we would get to make another ally.” With a snap of his fingers, a portal ripped open next to him and he stood up. He took one more glance back at where the heroes now were before stepping in. “We’ll need all the help we can get.”

> A True Norse Wedding. 
> --------------------------------------------------------------------------

The next morning was hectic to say the least. The crystal ponies returned to their homes, thankfully repaired by the... ‘teamwork’ of Hodgepodge and Discord, though the two argued over who could do a better patch job that only ended when Fluttershy used the Stare on them. 

“Oh god, I hate that look!” Hodgepodge said, cowering behind Gilgamesh, “It’s like it’s making me relive all of my sins!”

“Eh, it’s not that bad,” Discord scoffed, waving his talon dismissively. “That or you just get used to it.” 

“I suppose you would know, you get it all the time. I mean, you don’t see Moony getting it!” Hodge fired back.

Nightmare Moon just blushed, trying to hide behind Fluttershy, who found the situation rather amusing. 

“Jeez, I never thought Discord would be getting lucky,” Gilgamesh commented. “And with Fluttershy, no less. I mean, sure, he was protective of her back in my universe, but not like that. Also, could you let go of my tux, Hodge? Rarity worked hard on it, and I’d rather it not be ruined until after the wedding.”

“But you’re still wearing the scarf.”

“Red and black go together, and the scarf never comes off!”

“Bah, you're no fun,” Hodge said, letting go of him.

“And what do you mean you never thought I’d get lucky?” Discord asked, looking offended. “Flutters is the first one to really touch my heart.” He scooped the mare up, nuzzling her, which she returned with a smile. 

“Eh, my Discord kinda seemed to find that sort of thing... uninteresting? Below him? I don’t really know. Although, now that I think about it, he did seem to spend a lot of time with-” Gilgamesh’s widened. “Oh Faust.”

“What?”

“Uh, well, let’s just say I hope I’m wrong, because I have no idea how a draconequus and alicorn mix would turn out.”

“Well, I’m a vampire bat pony,” Fluttershy reminded. 

“Oh, on the subject of mixes, please for the love of Yggdrasil, tell your Rarity and Spike that a dragon/pony mix is a Kirin. If they call it a dracony, or something else equally terrible, I’m coming over there and slapping their faces off of their faces,” Hodgepodge said, getting serious.

“I don’t know about kirin, but i certainly would be upset if they called it something that stupid.”

“What? Kirin already exist on your world?”

“What? No. Or, at least, I don’t think so. I haven’t met any, and you saw the species diversity in my army.”

“Excuse me?” Cadance interrupted, flying in. “How much longer until Jason’s ready? I am the one leading the sermon after all.”

“Eh, give him a moment, Hughes is trying to get him to calm down. Guy wasn’t this nervous fighting Fenrir,” Hodgepodge said, tapping his head a few times. 

Cadance sighed, but smiled. “Well, alright. Just tell him Chrysalis and Rarity are ready, if a bit nervous as well. Not that that’s unexpected, I know I was when I married Shiny.”

Hodgepodge blinked, looking down at the Omnitrix as it started to time out, “Well that’s my cue, ready or not here he comes!” Hodgepodge waved before he vanished in a flash of red, replaced by Jason, who looked nervous as all hell.

“Poor kid looks like he’s gonna pop,” Gilgamesh whispered.

“Nah, I’m good,” Jason said, shaking his head. “I can do this.” He took a deep breath, letting it out slowly. 

“We’ll all be there for you Jason,” Fluttershy assured him with a smile, to which Moon and Discord agreed. 

“So... I take it everyone is ready?” Jason asked, giving his tux a once over.

“We’re all ready, and you’ve got a whole nation backing you up. Now let’s get out there, kid,” Gilgamesh encouraged with a pat on the back.

“Okay.” Jason looked up at him with a smile. “Let’s do this,” he said with a determined look on his face.  He nodded to the others, starting to move into the cathedral, gulping ever so slightly.



 

“I’m so excited!” Terra nearly squealed, sitting on Toya’s lap. Jason’s family had their own section, right behind the massive Apple clan, “I thought I’d never get to see Corypheus’s wedding!”

"Jason," Ben corrected, walking by. 

“It’s Corypheus!” she called after him.

Ben stopped. "Jason."

“Corypheus.”

"Jason."

“Corypheus.”

"Jason."

“You know, if you hate humans as much as you seem to, why do you insist on calling him by the name humans gave him?” Terra asked, raising her eyebrow.

"Because the other option is even worse," Ben replied calmly.

“Can we please just enjoy the wedding?” Megan cut in, from her seat next to Loki and Sleipnir. “We can debate on his name later.”

“I’m with her,” Toya said, nodding sagely. 

"Whatever," Ben shrugged, moving to the back wall.

“Aren’t you going to sit down?” Megan asked, looking back at him. 

"Nyx is already in the hospital, so I'd rather not piss off Twilight any more than she already is. So, I think I'm better off distancing myself as much as possible," he explained. 

“Okay...” she said with a blink, shrugging her shoulders and returning her attention to the front of the cathedral.

On the groom’s side stood Jason, nervously awaiting his brides, with Gilgamesh and Slash both standing next to him, giving him as much reassurance as they could. On the brides’ half was Applejack and Pupa, both waiting patiently for the two mares to arrive. Cadance stood at the center behind the altar, a smile already stretched across her face.

Soon the cathedral doors opened, the royal musicians playing as Scootaloo scattered flower petals across the aisle and Spike carried a small pillow with three rings to lead the bridal procession, followed by the Changeling Empress and the transformed unicorn, both dressed in gorgeous white gowns. Behind them were Apple Bloom and Sweetie Belle, carrying the trains of their gowns as gingerly as possible. After finally reaching the steps, everyone turned to face Cadance as she cleared her throat and the music ended.

“Ladies and gentlecolts,” she started, using a restrained version of the Royal Canterlot voice, just enough so that her voice could be heard throughout the building. “We are here to celebrate the union of three special ponies, well, a pony, a changeling and a jotun, but that's just semantics,” she cleared her throat, adjusting her wings. “Now, due to the events of last night, we haven’t had time to properly prepare but, I think we can get this right on the first go.” A light chuckle escaped the crowd. “So, who would like to go first?”

“Allow me,” Chrysalis said, clearing her throat. “Jason Hughes, I'll admit that if anyone told me a few months ago how my life would end up now, I would've laughed. And yet, here I stand, ready to be married to a being from another universe. I'll admit, when this first started, I was just looking for a mate like any other queen, just someone to help me rebuild my hive after my failed invasion. Instead I got something that I never thought I would ever obtain, and things I never even knew were possible. Now I can freely walk the streets of a nation I once had to hide from, have helped defend a nation I once sought to conquer, have made dear friends with those I once only saw as enemies. I’ve been shown things I never even imagined, other realms, creatures lost to the mists of time, even other versions of myself and those I know. And most importantly, I found love. Love I didn’t need to steal or be disguised to obtain, love as more than just food, love for me and that I could return and be more than willing to do so.” She smiled, looking into his eyes. “I love you, Jason Hughes. And by Faust, or Hel, or whatever else may be out there, I will love you for all eternity.”

She turned to Rarity, giving the smaller mare a smile, “Rarity, I never really expected you to be with us here today. I don’t believe we made very good first impressions on each other but I’m glad now to know the real you. Now, changeling queens aren’t known to share but... I can make an exception for you, my dear. I will love you for as long as I love Jason, for all eternity.”

“I suppose I should go next,” Rarity said, clearing her throat. “I suppose it’s been no secret to those who know me that I’ve always been looking for some dashing prince to sweep me off my hooves. And yet, even I could’ve never predicted that I’d end up falling for two royals, and neither of them ponies. But I suppose if my life up to this point has taught me anything, it’s to both expect and accept change.” She turned to Jason, giving him a smile, “When we had that little adventure with Daring Do, I saw a side of you I hadn’t seen before, and I just knew I had to be with you.” She turned to look up at Chrysalis, “And you Chrysalis, you helped save me when I had lost control of myself.” Spike looked away, still feeling rather guilty, but the Cutie Mark Crusaders smiled at him, lifting his spirits back up. “But I promise you I love you just as much as I love Jason, and nothing will ever change that.”

“Well, that just leaves me, huh?” Jason asked, giving a shaky smile as all eyes turned to him, “A few months ago, I was just some guy, with billions of others just like me. And then my life spiraled out of control, and quite honestly it’s been the best thing that ever happened to me.” He turned to face Applejack. “I’ve met others that have been willing to take me in as one of their own without a second thought,” he continued, causing the farm mare to smile and wipe her eyes. “Found out I’m descended from beings that I could only hope existed,” he said, turning to face his family, who nodded back. “Made friends as close as family to me,” he continued as he turned to Gilgamesh and Slash, the former’s lip quivering while the later tried to hide his tears by adjusting his glasses. “Become royalty of a world I’ve grown to love,” he said, Celestia and Luna nodding back with their own smiles. “And even found out that I had more in common with the mother that raised me with than I thought,” Megan sniffled and rubbed her eyes. “But none of it compares to you two.” He took another deep breath before continuing. “Chrysalis, I’ll admit you came on a little strong at first, but after a while I learned to love not just a changeling queen but an amazing mare who I’m so happy to have met.” Chrysalis blushed a bit and looked away before nodding. Jason turned to Rarity, smiling down at her, “And you, Rarity. You took me by surprise, though I think Chrysalis had you figured out the whole time. When you told me how you felt, I didn’t know what to think, I mean, you’ve been one of my closest friends since I got here but... standing here, I’m glad we became more.” The two shared a smile before the trio turned back to Cadance.

“Well, I suppose this is for formality’s sake, but if there is anypony -er, anyone that objects to this union, speak now or forever-”

“JUST LET ‘EM KISS ALREADY!” Rainbow Dash shouted, flapping above the crowd, shaking her talons in annoyance.

Many in the crowd laughed, others gave the pegasus annoyed looks but then simply rolled their eyes. Cadance shook her head and smiled. “Well, I guess that settles that. If we could have the rings please?”

Spike pulled his attention away from the fillies, moving over to Cadance. He kneeled down, presenting the rings to her. She levitated them onto Rarity and Chrysalis’ horns and Jason’s ring finger. “By the power vested in me as Princess of the Crystal Empire, I now pronounce you husband and wives. You may now kiss the brides!”

Jason smiled, placing a kiss onto Chrysalis’ lips before doing the same to Rarity. The crowd exploded into cheers, none louder than the Apple clan... except for Fenrir, whose howl echoed through the tundra. Some claim it was heard as far away as Appleoosa, but that might just be a tall tale. What wasn’t disputed was the sight of the Mighty Gilgamesh gushing from his eyes equal to that of Pinkie Pie, no matter how much he would deny it afterwards. Ben just clapped politely from his spot in back, a small smile on his face. 





“I told you you’d be fine,” Chrysalis told Jason as the three of them joined all their guests in the dining hall, “You did great by the way.”

“Well, I had you two counting on me, I couldn’t let myself look like an ass,” Jason said with a laugh, putting his arm around the empress, his hand on Rarity’s neck. He moved over to his most important guests, giving a bright smile, “So, how’d we do?”

“You spoke from the heart, kid. That automatically makes it a winning speech in my book. The fact that you didn’t look like an idiot is just a bonus. A-plus,” Gilgamesh replied with a thumbs-up, tears still at the edges of his eyes.

“Were you... crying?” Chrysalis asked, a bit of a smirk on her face.

“My student and adopted son is married to two wonderful mares, of course I’m crying!” he shouted back, beginning to sniffle again.

“There’s no need to shout Gilgamesh, we are right here you know,” Rarity said with a small frown, primping her mane a little.

“I’m sorry, it’s just... back in my old life, I had given up on the idea of ever experiencing something like this.”

“Well, now you have, was it worth it?” Megan asked, looking up at the taller human, “It was for me.”

Gilgamesh simply nodded and wiped his eyes. “So, does this make you my sister-in-law?”

“Well if you’re going by that logic, I’m your sister-in-law as well,” Terra pointed out, “Not that I mind of course, the more the merrier I say!”

“That means you’re obligated to come to the family reunions,” Hel said, looking at him, looking deathly serious.

“Hey, fine by me, so long as I get to provide the tea.”

“I’ll have you know I make great tea,” Hel said, glaring at him, “You have no idea how much time I have on my hands. I mostly read now, not much else to do.”

“Hey, I’m willing to try your brew if you indulge in Zebafrican red tea as well. Also, if you’re that bored with so much time on your hands, the I’ve got to find a way to get you some video games.”

“I suppose I could try them. You have no idea how bored you get after several millions of years of being alive,” Hel said with a sigh. “I should really look into retiring...”

“Wait, if you retire then... do people stop dying?”

“No, see, I just watch over the souls of the dead, I don’t actually personify death, common misconception. I just make sure that the dead stay, well, dead. Though I can bend the rules slightly,” she gestured over to her various dead relatives, “It’s why I don’t get out much.”

“Hey, I’m more than happy to give my new parents-in-law a visit. Speaking of,” he turned to the valkyrie, “you’re Terra’s... father, right? I don’t think I got your name.”

“My name’s Sigrun, it is a pleasure,” she said, looking him over, “They say you are quite the warrior.”

“Well, not to brag, but I do have quite the set of accomplishments under my belt,” he shrugged. “Normally I’d be happy to go a few rounds with you, but I’m saving my energy for something a bit more important.” He turned to Jason with a dangerous grin. “Don’t get too drunk Jay, because I think it’s about time you see what I can really do. And besides, I need to make sure you’re in tip top shape before I leave you to protect this world. I have no idea when I’ll be back.”

“Hey, I could say the same to you old man,” Jason said with a grin, “Just say the word.”

“Is this really necessary?” Rarity asked with a flat look.

“You married into this insane family,” Hel reminded, “Besides I’m rather excited to see this fight now.”

“Yeah, but later. I’m gonna hit the dance floor, talk it up with the partygoers, and gorge on what’s at the buffet. And besides, the newlyweds will probably want some time alone to help Jason with the ‘pre-battle ritual,’” Gilgamesh said with a wink.

“Yes, yes, innuendos, we get it,” Chrysalis rolled her eyes. “Ugh, you’re almost as bad as the ponies and their ‘feelings’ nonsense.”

“Says the changeling who just publicly declared her ‘eternal love’,” he replied with his own eye roll. “Anyway, I gotta see about adding my own jams to this party. See ya, kid!” Gilgamesh waved as he walked over towards Pinkie Pie.

“Did anyone mention to him that we picked the soundtrack personally?” Jason asked, looking to the rest of the group.

“I don’t believe we did,” Ib said, leaning on the wall, eating a hotdog. A moment later, a rather strange song started to play, “The hell is that?” she asked, frowning ever so slightly.

“That is quite possibly the worst song I have ever heard,” Hel said, crossing her arms. “I can’t say he has great taste in music.”

“Oh I don’t know,” Loki said, twirling his staff a little. “I find it slightly enjoyable.”

“Um...” Chrysalis began, pointing at the dance floor.

They all turned to see Gilgamesh dancing to the beat right alongside Pinkie Pie. Whether or not they were any good was... debatable, but they at least were most certainly having fun.

“And he just became my incredibly embarrassing dad,” Jason said as he facepalmed.

“We’ll just wait for the next song before we start to dance,” Rarity said, to which the others agreed.

Ben walked up near them, hands in his jacket pockets and looking a little bummed. “Uh... hey Jason? Can we... can we talk a moment?”

“Sure,” Jason said, walking into an empty side room, gesturing for Ben to follow, “So whatcha wanna talk about?”

He let out a deep sigh, rubbing the back of his neck. “Look, about yesterday... I’m sorry. About everything.”

“Look you don’t have to apologize, you have your reasons, I get that,” Jason said, leaning against the doorframe. “Don’t worry too much about it.”

“No, it wasn’t right of me to refuse to help like that. It’s just... it was really bad timing.” Ben turned around, still rubbing his head. “A lot of things have happened in the past few days and you just caught me in a really bad mood. In case me nearly oversleeping for today wasn’t enough info, I hadn’t actually slept in the past five days. A lot of things just piled on top of each other, ya know?"

“You could have said something. If you needed to go home, I’d have understood, Ben,” Jason said, looking into Ben’s eyes. “I know how important our worlds are and keeping them safe is a higher priority than a simple wedding.”

Ben seemed rather relieved. “I can stay for a bit longer, but I do need to go back. Twilight’s probably freaking out right now, what with Nyx in the hospital and all.”

“You just say when, okay?” Jason asked, giving Ben a smile.

He smiled back, stretching out his hand. “Friends?”

“Of course, Ben,” Jason said, taking his hand, giving it a nice firm shake.

“Great!” He goes to the door, stopping for a moment. “Hey, I’m gonna go raid the snack table, but can you let Gilgamesh know I need to speak with him? It’s important.”

“Sure,” Jason said with a nod before moving out onto the dance floor. “Hey Gilg, Ben wants to talk to you.”

“Huh? Oh, yeah sure, I wanted to talk with him too. By the way, did I embarrass you yet?” the warrior asked with the biggest shit-eating grin ever.

“I will turn you into an old man if you keep this up,” Jason said, rather unamused.

“I am an old man. I’m one thousand, six hundred and... thirty nine years old. I should probably look into getting a senior-citizen’s discount when I buy something.”

“Ugh! Just go talk to Ben!” Jason ordered, pointing toward the snack table.

“Jeez, snippy. Ok, talk later,” he said as he walked towards the other Omnitrix user. He paused for a moment before clearing his throat. “You, uh, wanted to talk to me, Ben?” he asked, his tone and demeanor unexpectedly subdued.

“Yeah... I wanted to ask you for that totem I gave you. See, I’ve gotten some complaints from other Displaced that they haven’t been working properly. Just wanted to make sure that it was up to snuff.”

“Um... I kinda... don’t have it anymore,” Gilgamesh answered hesitantly.

Ben looked at him surprised and then smirked. “Oh? Then this makes things even easier.”

“Uh, what easier?”

Ben’s smile disappeared in a flash as he glared at Gilgamesh. “Listen and listen good, you pathetic trash. If you ever come near my world again with your ridiculous idealism, I will personally kick your butt from Canterlot to the Frozen North before ejecting you from my world forever. Your kind is not welcome where I come from, so stay away!” With his rant over, Ben walked away from the warrior, deciding to listen to his stomach and going to the snack area.

Gilgamesh just stood there for a minute, shocked, before closing his eyes and sighing. “And here I wanted to apologize,” he muttered. “Maybe I still should.” He took a moment to think on the matter before Luna approached him.

“Is something the matter, Sir Gilgamesh?” she asked.

“Huh? Oh, Luna, hey. I just-” he stopped to sigh. “I just kinda found out someone I looked at as a friend basically hates my guts.”

“Then they must not be friend material in the first place,” she said, looking at him.

“Maybe, except someone very close to me didn’t exactly have a high opinion of me when we first met either, and now we’re really close. Besides, I just can’t give up on him.” He turned to watch Ben happily snacking away. “I know he’s a good guy, he’s just... stubborn, I guess. A little full of himself, too. I guess I’m disappointed more than anything else.”

“Perhaps I can aid thee in lifting thy spirits?” she asked, giving him a bright smile. “Come, let us enjoy the celebrations!”

He smiled back. “Indeed, fair Princess! Let us sample the fine spirits on this most joyous of occasions!” he declared as they both headed towards the bar.

Sarah watched everyone around her enjoy the party, she wanted to enjoy it too, but a part of her couldn’t help but feel jealous, especially when she was around Discord and Fluttershy. After convincing the rest to leave her alone, she sat with her Arbok eating some of the food from the snack bar. Arbok couldn’t help but worry for her master, but decided not to say anything about it. “Arbok, is it wrong of me to feel jealous of them?” Arbok continued to eat. “I mean it’s supposed to be a happy day, but I just can’t help but to feel jealous of them.” She sighed. “Maybe there is something wrong with me...”

“Hey.” Sarah looked up, seeing Ben smiling at her. “Mind if I sit down? Kinda overfilled my plate.” He really did, as it looked about ready to fall apart from the massive mountain of food.

Sarah pulled a chair out and offered it to him, “Go ahead, no one’s sitting here anyways.” Arbok briefly looked up at her, concerned at her tone of voice.

Ben sighed, noting her tone of voice as well. “I’m gonna take it you’re not too pleased with my actions, either, right?” he asked as he sat down.

“No, it’s not that...” She briefly looked up and turned her gaze towards Discord and Fluttershy, “it’s just me clinging onto a fantasy I have....”

Ben followed her gaze. “Oh... settling down and having a family, you mean. Or at the very least finding that special someone.”

“Both...” She absentmindedly started to pet Arbok. “I kinda have a family, my brother, my Pokemon, Meowth, and my little Screwy... *sigh* but it’s not the same.” Arbok put her head on her lap, trying to find some way of comforting her.

“Well, have you tried looking... ‘outside’, as it were?” Ben suggested. “There are normal Displaced out there you could try.”

“I have tried dating some of the guards I used to work with, a thousand years ago, but it never ended well, the last time I dated, Discord had to save me...” She looked down at her Arbok, and hugged her, “And I don’t know if anyone would be interested in me....” She briefly chuckled. “Even Arbok found a mate before me, and it’s a Displaced!”

Ben took a deep breath, weighing his words carefully. “There are worlds out there where the sky is burning, where the sea is asleep and the rivers dream; people made of smoke and cities made of song. Somewhere there’s danger, somewhere there’s injustice, and somewhere else the tea is getting cold.” At Sarah’s confusion, he clarified. “What I’m trying to say is that nothing is impossible. Especially love. Out there amongst the endless stars is someone just waiting for you to find them. And I believe that one day you will. All you have to do is look... and believe.”

“Th-Thank you...” Sarah smiled at Ben, not caring if tears started to fall. “You know, you aren’t as bad as I originally thought you were.”

He smiled back. “Yeah, that’s what I get for not sleeping for almost a week. It’s hard to think straight when you’re being hunted by a ghost that can bring your worst fears to life... don’t ask.”

“You know, before we were trapped in stone, we’ve faced a threat similar to what you just described, a god of nightmares.” Arbok hissed at the mention of her master’s old tormentor. “And we’re facing his successor right now, he tricked us into working with him for a while...” Picking up some of her food, she started eating, trying to forget about her time with the old god. “Of course, Jason came along, and showed us that he was just tricking us. I’m still grateful for it.”

“Jason? A peacekeeper? Ha! I’ll believe it when I see it. Anyway, got any advice for fighting a dude like that? I mean, I know this monster pretty well, considering he lived in my head for over a thousand years, but anything helps.”

“Sorry, but it wasn’t me or Tomas who defeated him, or even Celestia! It was Cresselia, the goddess of dreams. One thing I can tell you is that you will need help.” She chugged down a glass of water. “Especially if he is anything like Darkrai. Also try to find some dreamcatchers, I heard there's a zebra in the Everfree who has one.”

“I take it your Twilight didn’t crack that tablet I gave her, hmm?” Hel asked, peering over Ben’s shoulder.

“Gah!!” Ben freaked, twirling around in a defensive position. “Don’t do that! I already get enough creepy creatures doing that to me. And what tablet? I don’t know anything about a tablet.”

“Oh you were that weird bug thing at the time, Big Bill or something. I’m the one who gave Nyx her immunity to Hades’ touch, something I’m sure he’s pissed about. But I also gave Twilight a tablet. It was my way of helping without helping as it were. I wasn’t exactly able to tell her what was inside her daughter at the time.”

“Oh... well that kept Hades away for the time being. Turns out he only wanted Nyx because he knew Fear was inside her. Jerk of an uncle.”

“I wish she had figured out the tablet before it had gotten out, I put a little... something extra in that enchantment I put on Nyx,” Hel said with a disappointed sigh.

“I’ll talk to her about it. Maybe it’s something we can use. Every bit helps.” Ben growled, nearly making his hand bleed as he clenched his fist. “I’m going to destroy that ghost for destroying my friends and family. I’ll make him pay for what he did.”

“Thats the spirit, Ben.” She patted his head, standing up to her full height. “Now if you excuse me, I’m going to go make sure my father isn’t doing something horrible.” With that she melted into the shadows. 

Sarah cleared her throat, “Well Ben, I know you don’t like humans, but if you ever need help, just know that I’ll gladly do everything in my power to help.” She smirked, taking out a pokeball. “Besides, Arceus knows that I know how to handle a ghost.”

He smiled and pushed her hand away. “No. Thanks for the offer, but... I’m dropping out after today. No more Displaced, I’m done with the lot of it.”

“Well, that’s a shame, but if you ever change your mind, remember us.”

“We’ll see,” Ben said with a smirk as he rose from the table. “See ya around.” He started walking back towards the snack table, but stopped for a second. “Oh and by the way, you should smile more. You’re prettier when you do. Catch ya later.” He walked into the crowd without another word.

Sarah stared, a blush starting to form. Looking back at her food, she saw Arbok grinning at her. “Sh-Shut up!”

Meanwhile, Luna and Gilgamesh were sitting at one if the tables, chatting between bites to eat and sipping their drinks. Gilgamesh had an ‘Applejack Daniel’s’ and Coke, while Luna indulged in some mead. 

“You have so many engaging tales, Gilgamesh,” she said with a smile, sipping her drink.

“Yeah, and I hope to make more of them. It’s the one upside to my situation, seeing as how I can’t return home yet,” he replied, his smile faltering. He sighed. “I’ve only been gone a few months, and it already feels like an eternity.”

“You miss them, don’t you? The companions from your dimension.”

“Dearly. It’s hard not to seeing how I fought and bled alongside them. I only hope that due to time flowing at different speeds between each dimension it won’t be as long for them as it is for me.”

“Why did you leave?” she asked, setting her glass down.

“To protect them,” he replied, taking a longer drink than before. “After defeating Exdeath I found out that there would be more gunning for me. My Equus had already suffered enough in the war, they needed time to recover. So I left, hoping that whatever has their eyes on me will follow, and have a harder time tracking me due to universe hopping. Of course, I didn’t leave without giving them the tools to defend themselves, and to contact me if I’m wrong.” He smirked. “And stealing a kiss from my Luna with whole world watching.”

Luna took another sip. “I must admit, it feels strange to be jealous of what is essentially myself.”

“Yeah, sorry about that. To be honest I had kind of been hitting on other Lunas to work up the courage to finally talk to my own. I didn’t expect you to be so... receptive to my flirting.”

“I have been taken with you since you first came here, Sir Gilgamesh,” she said, giving him a smile and a wink.

The warrior was unable to hide his blush, taking another swig of his drink. “Nice to know I’ve got the charmer in me as well.”

Luna smiled wider and took another drink. “You know, I am still indulging in many of the new inventions and ideas of this modern era. There’s quite a lot to catch up on over a millenium and, we find many of them, ideas included, to be quite interesting.” Her smile turned mischievous. “I believe one of them is called ‘friends with benefits.’”

Gilgamesh just stared for moment before replying. “I’d like to mention that the reasons I am even considering this are A: I feel guilty for flirting with you when I had my eyes squarely set on another, and B: you are, in a way, kinda still the same mare I’m in love with.”

“Duly noted,” she replied simply.

A moment of waiting later Gilgamesh downed the rest of his drink in one go. “Got a room in mind?”

“Of course, my room. Nopony should bother us there.” 

“I didn’t know you had a room here in the Crystal Palace. Something for your longer stays?”

“No.. I...” she looked away, letting out a long sigh, “I was once... married to Sombra...”

“Oh... Um... I’m sorry. I-I didn’t mean to bring up-”

“It’s quite alright. It’s in the past,” she assured him, finishing off her drink before setting her glass down. Her mischevious smile returned. “Shall we?”

He smirked back as they both rose and walked off.

Meanwhile Rainbow and Gilda were sitting near the opposite end of the bar, indulging in mead and some more of the griffon’s own cooking.

“You know, we never did decide who would pop the question,” Gilda said, looking over at Dash, licking her beak off.

“Huh?” Dash asked, looking through somewhat bleary eyes. “Wat’cha talkin’ ‘bout?”

“Oh for pony’s sake, you got drunk again,” she groaned, letting her head bang against the bar top.

“Allow me to help with that,” Hel said, reaching over from her seat and slapping Dash upside the head, immediately sobered her up.

“Huh!? Who!? What!?” she stuttered before realizing what was going on. “Oh, um, sorry.”

“You’re lucky you’re good in bed,” Gilda muttered before taking a swig of her own drink.

“What?”

“Nothing. Anyway, who’s proposing to who?” Gilda asked, looking into her mate’s eyes.

“Well, it should obviously be me,” she replied pridefully. “After all, I’m the pegasus who invented the Sonic Rainboom, fought alongside Jason in the rebellion, and I’m now the Bifrost. It’s only natural that I’m the one who’s gonna propose to you.”

Gilda just snorted. “You don’t have the guts, featherduster,” she teased, arching her eyebrow. “You’d probably just stammer for an hour and then give up.”

“What!? No way! I’d totally be able to propose to you! I wouldn’t even stammer... much.”

“Oh yeah? Prove it,” Gilda challenged, looking her dead in the eyes, “Unless you’re too... chicken.”

Rainbow’s eyes widened in shock before narrowing. “You take that back.”

“Bak bak,” Gilda said with a smirk.

“I’m warning you, Gilda. I am bucking warning you.”

“Are ya, are ya, scared,” Gilda poked Dash’s chest, “Like some small tasty bird?”

Rainbow glared before downing the rest of her mead in one go before flying off at blinding speeds, the force of her movement causing some of the partygoers to fall over.

“Was that really necessary?” Hel asked.

“Yup,” Gilda said with a smirk, sipping at her drink. “Now I know I’m getting married.”

“I suppose,” the goddess admitted before sighing contentedly and looking off into space. “Ah, reminds me when Sigrun finally proposed to me.”

“Wait, she proposed to you?”

“I might be the Goddess of the Underworld, but I’m still a woman, and I enjoy being treated as such every now and again.”

Before Gilda could respond something grabbed her and pulled her on stage. She was thrown down and before she could reorient herself heard a familiar voice speak.

“EVERYONE, LISTEN UP! MY NAME IS RAINBOW DASH!” he pegasus shouted before grabbing the griffin and pulling her up. “THIS IS GILDA! THIS IS MY MATE! AND NOW’S AS GOOD A TIME AS ANY TO DO THIS!” Rainbow set Gilda down and inhaled before turning to face her, pulling out a small box from under her wing. “I know it’s meant to be worn by a unicorn, but I figured it’d fit one of your claws.” She opened the container revealing a crystal ring inside. “Gilda, will you marry me? And I swear to Celestia if you say ‘no’ I’ll-”

Gilda pounced on her, practically clamping her beak over the pony’s mouth. She pulled away, letting out a purr, “You’re damn straight I will.”

Before anyone could react the piano began to play a fast tune. Everyone turned to see Gilgamesh, a smile so bright it was practically shining stretched across his face, as he played and sang. The ponies looked at each other before letting out a cheer, most of them breaking into dance on the spot.

“Catch,” Hel said, tossing Gilda a strange, brackish looking potion, “You’re going to need it~”

Jason moved over to Gilgamesh, poking his side, “Yo, we’ve been meaning to talk to you about something,” he said, gesturing toward Chrissy. He leaned down, whispering something into his ear.

“Seriously? Not what I’d call a wedding song, but hey, if you’ve been planning it. Get yourself ready, I’ll kill time until then,” he replied before going back to singing.

Jason smirked before he and Chrissy ran off to get ready.

As soon as the warrior finished he practically shot off the piano onto the dance floor. “Alright, I saw plenty of you dancing to that! Not bad, either! Now it’s my turn! Pinkie, set me up!” he called. 

The party mare led the rest of the band in a rapid paced guitar beat. As the song continued Gilgamesh began an elegant flamenco dance, shocking those who had watched him earlier.

“Wow, he can dance,” Slash muttered before sitting back down at his table, setting down his drink and Celestia’s.

“Indeed. Quite graceful, isn’t he?” Luna replied, walking up to them, her mane and tail slightly matted.

Celestia looked at her sister, trying to work out what had happened. She seemed to be glowing with joy and satisfaction, something Celestia hadn’t seen Luna like in quite some time. Suddenly, it hit her, and the solar princess’s eyes widened.

“L-Luna? D-Did you just-?”

“A true royal doesn’t tell~!” the younger sibling replied happily before prancing off to the buffet table.

“What was that abo-?” Slash asked only to be cut off as Celestia grabbed and pulled him, their faces inches apart, a deathly serious look in her eyes. 

“You. Me. Bedroom. Now.”

Slash took a moment to process her sentence before his face flushed crimson. He quickly chugged his drink and Celestia’s before nodding. The alicorn practically dragged him out the door.

The crowd applauded as the warrior finished his dance. As he bowed he saw Jason and Chrissy had returned, nodding to him. “Thank you! Thank you, you’re too kind! Now if you could direct your attention to the stage, the newlyweds have their own performance.”

Gilgamesh then jumped back to the piano, spinning as he did, suddenly dressed in an extravagant outfit, complete with a powdered wig. Jason nodded to him, before the older man started to play. Jason and Chrysalis started to sing and despite the song’s utter goofiness, the crowd started to sing with them.  The rest of the night was full of fun and drunkenness, with the newlyweds getting to dance to their own choice of music.

Later on, as everyone retired to their homes or at least temporary residences, Jason, Rarity, and Chrysalis were led by Cadance and Shining Armor to their room for the night.

“Well, here you are,” Cadance said as she opened the door. “This was the guest room for ambassadors and dignitaries that visited the Crystal Empire in the past. The beds were cleaned this morning, the sheets are top of the line, and there’s a cabinet with plenty of wine if you’re feeling up to it.” The Princess then smirked. “I also set up a soundproofing spell.”

“Oh good, saves me the trouble,” Chrysalis said with a grin, tossing Rarity into the room, and doing the same to Jason. “Don’t bother us for breakfast.” She winked before shutting the door.

“Wait!” Shining Armor shouted.

The three newlyweds poked their heads out the door. “What!?” they all asked in an aggravated tone, causing him to flinch.

Shining cleared his throat. “Chrysalis, I... I never got the chance to properly thank you for the role you and yours played during the Forever Knight rebellion. You helped rescue my sister and her friends, liberated my home, and... I just wanted to officially bury the hatchet between us, that’s all.”

“Alright Shiny, you're off my shit list,” Chrysalis said with a nod, “Now begone, you’re holding up the snu snu,” she said before slamming and locking the door.

“I can’t believe you actually asked her what they do together,” Shining said with a shake of his head. “Come on Cadance, we have our own activities to get to.” He smirked at her, already trotting toward their room.






The next day Gilgamesh had taken Jason into the Frozen North, far from the Empire itself, for their destined bout. Loki had decided to allow the populace to watch, casting an illusion and making the sky above the city a screen to watch the fight, saying it would only be proper for the populace to see what their Prince could do.

“This is going to be fun~” Hel said in a sing song voice, munching on some popcorn, “Corypheus has come a long way as a warrior.”

“Indeed he has. Even I find it hard to believe this is the same boy who would pant like a dog after a few miles of jogging,” Slash commented.

“I wish I had seen that,” Megan said, looking at Slash. “He used to be such a slacker.”

“He’s, uh, gonna be OK, right?” Applejack asked nervously. “Ah mean, Ah know he took down that giant jotun feller before, and they’re friends and all, but Gilgamesh is wilder than a hungry timberwolf. Ah ain’t gonna have to worry about this goin’ south, am ah?”

“I don’t think so, jotun are extremely hardy,” Hel said, looking at her, “In fact, you’re standing on a jotun right now.”

“Huh?”

“First creature to ever exist was the first jotun, Ymir. Then Odin and his brothers murdered him and used his body to make the world. His skull his is the sky, the trees his body hair, the dirt his flesh and the rivers his blood. And no that’s not folklore, it actually happened.”

Everypony stared for a moment before looking at the ground. Many of their faces turned green.

“Well, as delightful as that was to hear, perhaps we should just focus on the match? It looks like they’re starting.”

“Well, son, let’s see what you can do,” Toya muttered, an expectant look in his eyes.





“Ready when you are,” Jason said, looking at Gilgamesh, the two standing in the middle of the tundra. Jason didn’t seem phased by the weather at all. He had let his disguise fall, looking at Gilgamesh with his piercing red eyes. 

Gilgamesh chuckled. “We’ll see. Liking the look, by the way. Definitely can’t deny your heritage now,” he replied, taking his pose and going into his final form. His expression turned
hard as he folded his six arms. “This will be the last test I can think to give you right now. You’ve grown so much since I first met you, and I am both proud and honored to call you my son. And it is because I care about you that I must go so far this day.” He unfolded his arms and closed his eyes. “You can only truly learn from your enemy. Only your enemy will tell you where you are weak, only through your enemy will you learn your flaws. Today, until this match is decided, I will fight you as an enemy, and you had best do the same. If not,” he continued, taking an offensive stance, wind exploding off him as a snow flurry wrapped around his body. “THEN YOU WILL DIE!"

“Still the master, Gilg,” Jason said with a laugh. He reached into his pocket, becoming clad in his armor. “I’m not going to fold, Gilgamesh, just know that.” He pulled his sword out, getting into a stance, glaring into his teacher’s eyes.

Gilgamesh smirked. “I’d be thoroughly disappointed if you did. Care to set the mood, or should I?”

“Allow me,” he said, tapping his gauntlet, the heavy sounds of a guitar riff starting to fill the air. 

“Heh, how appropriate for a father-son duel. You’d better not turn into a little crybaby on me!” Gilgamesh taunted, motioning for Jason to bring it.

Jason smirked before blinking out of existence. A moment later he reappeared behind Gilgamesh, slashing at his back. Without even a perceptible movement Gilgamesh turned to face him and caught the blade with his teeth. Jason hesitated, stunned, before being sent flying from a laser blast from the older fighter’s eyes.

Gilgamesh spat out the blade. “Not bad. Barely picked up on that one,” he complimented before summoning his machine guns and firing.

Jason got up, cracking his neck, the bullets doing no damage to his armor. He slammed his fist into the ground, causing a minor quake and a barrage of ice to rush at Gilgamesh. The chunks of ice made contact, only to disperse, leaving nothing but some wet spots on him.

“Nice armor, kid,” he complimented. Jason suddenly found his face in the snow and the back of his head throbbing in pain. “Hope you don’t mind me using it.” Jason looked up to see Gilgamesh’s body now the same color as his armor, still standing in the same spot he was before.

“Good luck, it’s made specifically for me,” Jason said, getting to his feet, shaking his head. He stood his ground, smirking at him. He gestured for him to come at him, not losing his smirk.

Gilgamesh replied by inhaling. “Fire Blast!” he shouted and spat out a building sized kanji symbol made of flame. Jason threw his arms out, countering the blast with a blast of ice. Gilgamesh then clenched his fists and pulled his arms back, twisting his wrists as his hands lit on fire. “HOLY FIRESTORM!” he shouted before thrusting his arms forward, each unleashing a tornado of fire. They met and combined, forming a massive funnel of flames as large as a mountain.

Jason gritted his teeth, the blizzard around them picking up. With a bellowing roar he unleashed the full fury of the blizzard. He drove it forward, slamming into the funnel. The two attacks collided in a blast of force, shaking the area nearby, both managing to cancel the other out. Jason panted, waiting for the mist to clear, only to have the wind knocked out of him by a blow to the stomach.

“Muda da,” Gilgamesh muttered, before cocking back his arms, all of them alight. “MUDAMUDAMUDAMUDAMUDAMUDAMUDAMUDAMUDAMUDAMUDAMUDAMUDAMUDAMUDAMUDA!” He shouted unleashing a flurry of rapid punches. “MUDA!” he cried with one final strike, hitting Jason with all six fists which exploded, sending him tumbling.

Jason groaned as he stood up. “The hell’s that even mean, anyway?” he asked, wiping blood from his mouth.

“It’s Japanese. It means ‘futile’, ‘pointless’, ‘useless’. That sort of thing,” Gilgamesh explained. “There’s your word for the day, so now you can better understand when I do this.”

Suddenly Gilgamesh was gone, and the entire area seemed darker. Jason looked up only to see an entire mountain heading towards him.

“Oh, shit.”

The rocky structure slammed into the jotun before Gilgamesh began to pound on it from above. “MUDAMUDAMUDAMUDAMUDAMUDAMUDAMUDAMUDAMUDAMUDAMUDAMUDAMUDAMUDAMUDA!” He raised his hand for one last hit. “TADOMEDA!” he shouted and slammed it into the mountain, causing the natural structure to crumble before jumping up. “PENETRATING BEAM!” A massive laser shot from his eyes, as wide as the mountain, slamming into the ground. After the attack finished Gilgamesh flapped his wings and hung in the air. “Is that all? I expected more from you.”

“You having fun there?” Jason asked, sitting on a pillar of ice, sword in hand. “I’m actually really surprised you didn’t realize the  past five minutes was just an illusion. This isn’t though,” a moment later he was in Gilgamesh’s face, unleashing a point blank Flare. The attack forced him back only a few feet before fizzling out. There were some black spots on his armor, but no significant damage.

“Impressive,” he replied before firing the attack back. Jason didn’t move, the blast being absorbed by his sword. “It seems my senses failed me. Or maybe I was just too caught up in the joy of fighting you again. That sword, I wonder how much it can absorb before it breaks? It can be repaired, right?”

“It won’t break. It’s not even metal,” Jason said, tapping the blade against his leg.”It’s actually wood. Made from a small branch of Yggdrasil.”

“Interesting,” he replied simply, making some hand signs with with all six of his hands. “Let’s test that. Tengai Shinsei.” He then summoned Zantetsuken, cut a hole in reality, and left through it. Jason felt a heat slowly increase around him before looking up, seeing a massive meteorite burning in the atmosphere as it fell towards him.

“Let’s see what you got,” Jason said, holding his hand up. He charged up an Ultima spell. It crackled as he poured more energy into it, before firing it up at the meteor. The two collided in a titanic explosion, large chunks of rock falling to the earth. Jason fired off a few Flares, breaking up most of the larger chunks. “Killing me is fine but try not the break the planet.”

“In that case, it seems this battle cannot be settled with our knowledge of magic or our abilities,” Gilgamesh replied, appearing behind him and summoning all six of his most powerful blades. “But with our skill in melee combat. Shall we?” he asked as he floated down to the ground, waiting for Jason to follow.

“Sounds good to me,” Jason said, sliding to the ground. “Ready whenever you are,”

Gilgamesh took his stance and played his own song. “Let’s begin.” He disappeared in a burst of speed, slashing with Caliburn, the blade lighting aflame as he did.

Jason blocked it, his own blade igniting. He jumped back, firing off a few Flares which were cut and dispersed into nothing by Zantetsuken. Gilgamesh swung Bashosen, unleashing a small funnel of razor-sharp wind. Jason contorted the wind around himself, hurling it back with much greater force. Gilgamesh lit himself on fire, barrelling through the attack, before slashing at Jason with both Masamune and Muramasa simultaneously. 

Jason rolled out of the way, sending out a wave of ice spikes at Gilgamesh. The warrior simply continued to dash forwards, the spikes melting against his still aflame body, before slashing at Jason rapidly with all six of his blades, flashes of light the only indications of their presence.

Jason swore, most of the blades glancing off his armor, though one caught him across the face. “Omnitrix, Nightshade,” he commanded before shifting into his gengar form. He jumped back, hurling a Shadow Ball at Gilgamesh. He responded by disengaging his fiery form and leaping above the attack. He inhaled deeply, his body sparking with electric power. 

“SHABON BREATH!” he shouted before unleashing a storm of  bubbles from his mouth, all of them sparking with the same energy and shooting towards the jotun-turned-pokemon. Jason’s eyes widened before he used Protect, the attack dispersing across his barrier.

“Omnitrix, Vánagandr,” Jason commanded before being replaced by a giant grey wolf, snarling at Gilgamesh, his fangs glistening in the sunlight.

“Heh. Been waiting for a chance to do this,” the warrior muttered before taking a series of poses. “IT’S BIGGIFYING TIME!” he shouted before his body grew in size from a formidable twelve feet to a staggering thirty. He was still smaller than his opponent, but not going to be swallowed in a single gulp. Gilgamesh swung Excalibur only for Jason to catch it in his maw. The force was enough to push the massive beast several yards, but he still held the weapon firm.

Jason twisted his head, pulling Gilgamesh off his feet and chucking him off toward a mountain. “Thanks for the distance,” he said before activating his gravity shifter powers, hovering in the air before spinning his blades and taking a stance. “Hissatsu, part three,” he said before raising all six of his blades upwards. “MONARCH BLADE!” A giant ball of green energy the size of his body appeared above him. “FEEL MY WRATH!” he shouted and flung the attack at the giant canine.

Jason shifted again, this time into a black, one eyed creature with a pair of strange tentacles coming out of his head.  He shot his head tentacles into the ball, absorbing it completely.

“Oh, you’re kidding me! An alien besides the osmosians can absorb energy!?”

“Yup! Feedback, baby!” Jason smirked, holding his hands out and firing the energy back at him. Gilgamesh met the blast with his blades, managing to stop the attack from hitting him, but the continued force was enough to send him flying back into a mountain, the rock structure cracking on impact. “That looked like it hurt!”

A moment later the ground began to rumble and the mountain rose before hurled at Jason, soaring high in the air in an arc.

“Oh crap,” Jason said, shifting into Way Big and moving to catch it. Just before he could, a laser shot from behind it, destroying the structure and striking Jason in the chest, causing him to stagger back and revealing Gilgamesh right behind the now disintegrated structure. “Hissatsu, Part Four,” he said, his blades crossed in front of him and glowing white. “CROSS SLASH!” Six waves of force shot out as he swung his swords, slamming into Jason with enough force to lift him into the air and cut into his hide. “Gah!” Jason shouted as he flew into the air, face contorted in pain. He shifted again, this time into Jetray. He flew at Gilgamesh, firing off lasers from his eyes. Gilgamesh responded with the same, the blasts meeting in mid-air. Both grunted as they tried to overpower the other before the warrior suddenly stopped, dodging the blast with a combination of dropping to the ground and shrinking back to his original size, before using his shifter powers to pull Jason down to him. Jason shifted into Four Arms, slamming his fists into Gilgamesh as he fell toward him. 

“Oof! Not bad!” he grunted before kicking his opponent off him, dispersing his weapons before taking a deep breath, his body crackling with the power of Hamon again. “OVERDRIVE RENDAN!” he shouted before unleashing a flurry of punches. Jason met the attack, managing to keep up despite having two less arms, until his arms suddenly went numb. He realized too late the power crackling over his arms before being struck in the chest and face by several punches, his body going limp as they connected, before being sent flying by an uppercut.

“Okay,” Jason said as he tumbled along the ground, “that hurt. How about we take this a little slower? Omnitrix, Clockwork.” He got to his feet, changing into a large, metallic gold creature with a glowing chest and a wind up key on his head  “Bet you can guess vhat zis guy can do, no?” he asked with a German accent. 

“You be controlling time, ja?” Gilgamesh replied in his own overdone accent. “Show me what you can be doing.”

“Ve shall, shall ve?” he asked before firing off a pair of green beams from his hands aimed at Gilgamesh, who jumped above them.

“Not too keen on getting hit by beams of time,” he muttered before aiming his hands like guns at Jason. “Tusk!” he shouted before firing the nails from two of his index fingers.

“Unt I’m not keen on getting shot by nails!” Jason said, firing off another beam, aging the nails to dust.

Gilgamesh growled before summoning his blades. “TOKE WO TOMARE!” he shouted as time stopped.

“Oh hey, I forgot you could do that too,” Jason said, sounding rather surprised, and appearing rather unaffected by the time stop.

“Ah, so you’re resistant too, huh? Then not much point, except for this,” Gilgamesh replied before casting several Missile and Rocket Punch spells in every direction, the attacks shooting out a few feet before stopping in midair. Gilgamesh then deactivated the stop causing them all to continue.

“Oh crap!” Jason said before seeming to speed up, moving out of the way, “How about ve see vhat you looked like back in kindergarten!” Jason shouted, firing off another pair of time beams. Gilgamesh cast Haste on himself, dodging the attacks. Jason kept up the assault before he fell over in pain, looking down at his legs to find several holes in them. “How the-?”

“Chumiiiin!” came a high pitched voice. Jason looked up to see a small pink creature, possessing two clamp like arms and no legs, hovering behind Gilgamesh. The warrior smirked. “Tusk does more than shoot nails,” he said before aiming one of his hands downward, firing his index, middle, and ring nails at the ground. The attacks pierced the ground and then the holes themselves started to race towards Jason.

“That’s just bullshit,” Jason said as he struggled to get back to his feet. “Ack! That’s fucking painful!” Before he could raise himself off the ground the holes managed to come in contact with his hand. Instead of piercing him immediately, they traveled up his body before each one shot through him, one on his wrist, another his elbow, and the final one on his shoulder. Jason spasmed before he went limp, the light in his chest and eyes going out.

“Hm, seems you’ve still got some work to do,” Gilgamesh muttered before walking over to the downed. “I didn’t even need to-” he continued before stopping mid-stride. “Wait.. if he’s KO’d, then wouldn’t he change back to-?”

“That is an excellent point!” Hodgepodge said, suddenly behind Gilgamesh, “You did quite the beating on Clockwork, nearly killed him. Thankfully, the watch’s failsafe kicked in and let me out!”

“Wha?” Gilgamesh asked dumbly before looking back to where Clockwork was, only to see nothing. “Oh shit,” he muttered, turning back. “I never actually fought a draconequus before.”

“Nope,” Hodge said with a grin, “I’m going to make you wish you never let me out!” he vanished before reappearing behind Gilgamesh, hitting him with a golf club, and sending him flying into a mountain. “Oh silly me, I forgot to account for the wind.”

Gilgamesh groaned in pain as he sat up. “OK, me versus chaos magic. Not good, but not impossible to deal with,” he muttered as he hopped to his feet. “Now the question is, do I combat him seriously, or try to fight with the same tools?”

“As they say, fighting fire with fire makes the whole world blind,” Hodgepodge said, grabbing Gilgamesh and looking into his eyes. “Or something like that. You know... I’m in the mood for some pinball, wouldn’t you agree?” A moment later, the warrior found himself inside of the ball launcher of a pinball machine. 

“Aw, motherfu-”

The spring pulled back and then shot forward, sending him flying into the machine. Hodge smirked as he worked the flippers, sending the warrior bouncing this way and that, all the while laughing his ass off over the various sound effects.

“I guess I really am the pinball wizard!”

“You’re not -oof!- deaf, dumb, -gah!- blind, or -bleh!- a kid!” Gilgamesh shouted as he ricocheted from bumper to bumper.

“What a funny story Mark,” Hodge said, hitting Gilgamesh with another flipper. This time instead of hitting a trigger, he found himself in a room, the floor covered in loose LEGO bricks, with no shoes on. “And don’t try any of those powers of yours, unless you want a dose of R63 and some spoons.”

“Grr. Fine, you wanna fight with memes? I’m game,” Gilgamesh growled before inhaling deeply. “FUS RO DAH!” he shouted, and a massive wave of force erupted from his throat, destroying the room and sending the LEGOs flying.

“One does not simply out-meme Hodgepodge,” Hodgepodge said, fixing his hair, “GET OUT OF HERE STALKER!” he shouted twice as loud, blasting Gilgamesh through several walls and into a tub of gravy.

“If this gravy is an Ed, Edd n Eddy reference... that would actually make me feel happy. Nostalgia is a strange thing it seems,” Gilgamesh muttered before jumping out of the tub and landing in front of the reality warper. “Hey, does ASDF Movie sound familiar to you?”

“I dunno but the answer to your question is buttered-”

“Suddenly, pineapples,” Gilgamesh interrupted in a British accent. “Millions of them.”

“Huh?”

Just then an innumerable number of pineapples shot from the ground, pelting the draconequus and sending him flying. He stopped himself mid-air before shaking his head. “Old meme is old, even if you did change it.”

“Then how’s this? Catch!”

Something green flew at Hodgepodge, who caught it. Staring back at him was a cute little turtle, but with a rounded shell and a curious red button on top.

“Hello!” it said in an adorable voice before a pineapple fell from the sky and hit it, pressing the button... causing it to erupt in fiery explosion.

“You heartless monster! That turtle was adorable!” Hodge shouted, covered in soot with his hair blown back, “You want to play like that, well I can get extreme too! I place upon you,” he paused dramatically, “The curse of!” he paused again, the camera zooming in on his eyes, “Futanari!” he waved his hands around, making sci-fi noises. 

“Dude, wrong rating for this fic!”

“Well I haven’t said it would be on screen,” Hodge said, grabbing Gilgamesh and carrying him over to a door marked ‘hentai’, “Have fun!” he said casting the curse on the poor warrior before chucking him inside and locking it. 

A strangled scream later the door was cut open, disintegrating right afterwards. Gilgamesh stood panting, covered in... well, let’s not say.

“Not the worst thing on the internet, but still not my cup of tea. That being said,” he continued with a smirk, “you’ve given me time to prepare.” He held out Zantetsuken, the blade emanating a faint glow. “This battle ends now,” he declared and then slashed Hodgepodge across the chest. For a moment, nothing happened, then the Omnitrix flashed red and the draconequus became Jason again.

“Hi,” Jason said, punching Gilgamesh in the face hard enough to send him stumbling back.

“Ugh, damn it,” he groaned before standing up. “At least you’re more manageable in this form.”

“We’ll see about that,” he said, cracking his neck and stepping forwards.

“If you haven’t figured it out yet, kid, I’ve done more than just recover my lost power since we last met,” Gilgamesh replied before holding a hand out. “Perfect Defense.” His body shone white for a moment before radiating a blue color. “Let’s see how you react when you can only defend,” he gloated before summoning all his blades and dashing forwards, spinning like a top and engulfed in a fiery tornado.

Jason pulled out his sword, the blade greedily sucking in the flames. He rolled under Gilgamesh, slashing at his legs. The blade simply bounced off, causing him to stagger for a moment, giving Gilgamesh the chance to set up for an attack, dispelling his weapons. “METSU,” he shouted as he slammed a fist into Jason’s stomach with enough force to lift him off the ground. This was followed by a jumping uppercut that seemed to practically contort his face. “SHORYUKEN!” Gilgamesh roared, sending Jason flying skyward. Gilgamesh followed by holding all six of his arms off to the side, cupping them. “Shinkuu HADOKEN!” he shouted, unleashing a building sized beam of pure energy where the jotun was about to fall.

Jason spit out some blood before he held Laevateinn up, the sword glowing as it absorbed the energy. Jason snarled, swinging the blade, throwing the energy back at Gilgamesh. The massive blast completely eclipsed the warrior, hiding him from sight before dispersing, only to show a completely unharmed Gilgamesh.

“What part of ‘Perfect Defense’ didn’t you understand?” he asked before disappearing in a burst of speed, reappearing right above Jason, three of his arms held high, glowing violet. Jason rolled out of the way, avoiding the initial hit, only to be sent flying from the blast, noticing the the snow had been blown away and the ground cracked like a broken dinner plate for miles around as he went soaring.

Jason tumbled along the ground with a groan, his sword landing several feet away from him, “Cheating bastard is what you are,” he said, getting to his feet. Despite the beating, his armor was still nearly pristine.

“And you can expect your enemy to treat you the same,” came a voice from behind him. Jason turned just in time to see Gilgamesh cut him with Zantetsuken. Despite this Jason felt no pain and held his hands out in front of him.

“Ultima!” he shouted, only for nothing to happen. He tried to summon and icy wind, but that too failed him.

“Zantetsuken can cut anything Jason,” Gilgamesh explained. “Spirits, ideas, anything I can think of. I’ve temporarily severed you from your magic, your jotun abilities included. I’ve severed your Omnitrix from its power, and now,” he continued as he used his gravity powers to hurl Laevateinn far off into the distance. “I’ve severed you from your weapons.” He placed the blade to Jason’s throat. “The stronger fighter doesn’t always win. Sometimes all it takes is one technique to claim victory. I could’ve ended this fight at any time, Jason, and there would’ve been almost nothing you could’ve done about it.”

Before he could respond, the Omnitrix surged back to life, shifting him again, this time into Alien X.  “Motion carried,” he spoke, holding his hand out, shattering Gilgamesh’s Perfect Defense.

Gilgamesh looked shocked before leaping back, his blades at the ready. “That would’ve worn off in a minute or so anyway,” he muttered.

Alien X stood there for a moment before stepping forward, “Motion carried,” he spoke, before rushing forward and punching Gilgamesh in the stomach, making him drop to his knees. “I win,” he muttered before performing the Vulcan nerve pinch on Gilgamesh, the warrior falling almost completely limp, convulsing slightly on the ground.

“My point... is proven,” he said, seeming to struggle to get those words out.

Jason reverted to normal before falling onto his back, “I told you the Omnitrix had a failsafe. You put my life in danger and triggered it.”

“Yeah... kinda forgot about that.” He sighed. “So... call it a draw?”

“Yeah... next time I’m going to kick your ass, old man,” he said with a laugh, letting his eyes close. 

Gilgamesh chuckled before returning to his base form. “We’ll see. I still didn’t use everything in my arsenal against you. All the same, I think I can safely say I now have nothing left to teach you. Can you just just promise me one thing, Jason?”

“Yeah? What’s that?”

“I know as a norseman you see no greater honor than dying in battle, but... if you have to choose between dying an honorable death and living to fight again, please try and choose the latter. You’ve got two wonderful wives to look after now, and... I don’t want to come back here and find a tombstone with your name on it.”

Jason let out a sigh, looking up at the sky, “I’ll try but... I’d rather die than yield.”

“Not yield, Jason. Just don’t sacrifice yourself senselessly. I’ve seen too much of that already.”

“I promise... now go get my sword and let’s get back to the city. I have a honeymoon to get to.”

“Heh. Lucky bastard.”
> Don't Mess With The Best
> --------------------------------------------------------------------------

“Thanks again...” Jason said, stopping mid-sentence. The world around them had changed, no longer were they in the palace, but in a room filled to the brim with machinery.

“Uh...” Ben said as he looked around. “Is this another realm or something? I really don’t know much about Norse mythology.”

“You two are on Galvan Prime,” a familiar voice cut in. “I’ve brought you here from your universe.” The two them turned to see an elderly Galvan looking up at them from a podium.

“Azmuth?!” they shouted.

“That is correct,” he said, glaring up at them. “Those,” he pointed to their wrists, “belong to me.”

Ben looked at his wrist then pulled it close to him. “I don’t think so!”

”You know, why does this have to happen to me?” Jason asked with a groan, facepalming rather hard. “I just got married, why the hell do I have to deal with this jackass?”

Ben glared at Jason for a second. “Oh, you have bad luck?” He sighed and looked to Azmuth. “Sorry froggy, but this thing is mine.”

“You will relinquish them to me or I will take them by force,” Azmuth said with an unamused look on his face.

“Sorry, but I’d rather not test the theory as to what would happen if this thing would be taken off.”

“Then you leave me no choice. Creator override code 10.1842924/94.” Azmuth recited, narrowing his eyes at the two.

“Wait, there’s a creator override?!” Ben asked, his voice lined with fear.

“Of course there is, you simpleton,” he said as both Omnitricies beeped in confirmation.

“Creator override code accepted,” Ben’s Omnitrix droned out.

Jason’s Omnitrix flashed. “This unit does not recognize authority of Azmuth. This unit is loyal to user.”

“What!?” Azmuth asked, narrowing his eyes at the machine.

“Due to tampering by the one known as Ben, this unit has gained self-awareness and has decided to remain loyal to user Jason,” it chirped, much to the jotun’s surprise. 

“Well, that’s unexpected...” Jason said, looking at Ben with slightly wide eyes.

“Yeah, that’s great, but a little help here would be nice!” Ben nearly shouted. He watched in horror as the band on his Omnitrix retracted into the selector. It dropped to the floor, powerless. “Well... Star Swirl was right... this is gonna hurt.” Before Jason could ask, Ben fell to his knees, screaming in agony as he gripped his head.

“Oh, that is not good at all,” Jason said, dropping to his knees, shaking Ben, “You need to keep it together, got it? I’m going to try and turn it back on,” Jason said before moving over to grab Ben’s Omnitrix.

He couldn’t hear Jason, though. “Gah!!” he yelled, his fingernail digging into his skull, drawing blood. “I never wanted to test this!! Dear gods, this hurts!!” Ben glared at Azmuth, hate in his eyes. “I’ll kill you for thi--AAK!!” He began spasming from the pain.

Jason grabbed Ben’s Omnitrix, moving fast, “Omnitrix, can you reactivate Ben’s unit?”

“Attempting.” His Omnitrix turned yellow, as did Ben’s. “Process will take several moments.”

“Now see here,” Azmuth said, moving closer, before Jason held out his free hand, charging up a Flare.

“You try it and they’ll be scraping you off the walls.” Jason warned, narrowing his eyes at the galvan. 

Ben spasmed harshly. “...Rath will des- ACK!! No, I won’t lose con–GRUGH!! IT’S TEARING MY BRAIN APART!!”

The Omnitricies chirped, with Ben’s returning to its regular green color. Jason slapped it against Ben’s wrist, letting out a sigh of relief as the band enclosed around the man’s limb.

He went limp as his Omnitrix powered up. There was silence for a moment before Azmuth was slammed by an invisible force into the far wall. Jason looked and saw Ben picking himself up... only his eyes were glowing a bright white. Faster than he could track, Ben was standing in front of Azmuth at eye level.

“...never... hurt him... again...” The light faded and Ben stumbled backwards, groaning. Azmuth fell to the floor, no longer held against the wall.

“You need anything?” Jason asked, looking at Ben, his eyebrow raised in concern. “Like, water or anything?” He ignored Azmuth for the moment, letting the alien wither in pain. 

“Ugh, I need a brain transplant,” Ben groaned, leaning on some of the lab equipment. “I was really hoping that theory was wrong.”

“I don’t even want to know what’ll happen if I take mine off,” Jason said, sitting down next to him, “Want an aspirin?” Jason asked, pulling a bottle out of his pocket, giving it a shake, listening to the pills rattle around inside it. 

“Just give me the bottle,” Ben said. Jason handed it to him and he downed the entire thing. “I don’t care if this kills my stomach, as long as it dulls the ache in my brain. Curse, Star Swirl, I blame you for this.”

“So... what do we do with Azmuth?” Jason asked, watching as the galvan got to his feet, rubbing his head with a groan.

“I’d say kill ‘em, but it’s not in my code. It’d be fitting since he nearly killed me just now.”

“Wanna draw on his face?” Jason asked, holding up a marker, “We can’t exactly kill him but we can dick around with him for a while.”

“What are you, six?” Ben asked with a quirked eyebrow.

“Nah, I’m Hodgepodge,” he said with a smirk, his eyes turning red and yellow as he took on his true form. “Jay’s rather... pissed at the moment and he let me take over so he didn’t break anything.”

“...I don't wanna know,” Ben sighed. 

“Well, see when Jason put on the Omnitrix, he needed two other personalities to help him work Alien X. I manifested when he scanned Discord and Hughes took over the Omnitrix's human form.”

“I just said I didn't wanna know!”

“So? I told you anyway,” Hodgepodge said with a shrug, “So... you wanna do it?” he asked, holding up said marker.

“No, ya loon,” Ben snarked. “Do what ya want. I'm gonna sit here and recover from almost dying.”

“Okay... wanna milkshake?” he conjured one up, offering it to Ben with a smile. 

He deadpanned. “Get away from me before my brain completely fails.”

“Okay, okay,” Hodgepodge said with a sigh, casually starting to drink said milkshake like a normal person.

Ben started issuing orders to his Omnitrix, looking through medical data and charts. “Well, no permanent damage, so should just be some headaches for a few days.”

“Thats good, I’d hate for you hate be all messed up,” Hodge said with a smile. “Hey, you wanna swap some DNA?” Hodge asked, finishing up the milkshake.  

“Wait, WHAT?!”

“Get your mind out of the gutter B, I was talking about Omnitrix scans,” Hodge rolled his eyes. “I swear, you humans will make anything sexual.”

“You try keeping a straight mind around Lyra,” Ben dared. "Girl keeps making innuendos left and right with me."

“I could totes do it,” Hodge said, crossing his arms, “So you wanna do this or not?”

“I dunno. What ya got? Nothing too weird for my world, mind you.”

Hodgepodge snapped his fingers, conjuring up a list, “Read em and weep,” he said, passing it to Ben.

He was a little surprised by the list, but decided to look it over. “Let’s see here... don’t need an alicorn, too much panic... got that... got that... definitely got that... check on that one... You got thestral DNA?! Aw, lucky. Luna wouldn’t let me near them. Want that one.” Ben hmmed as he kept going down. “Wow, diamond dog, that’s a tough one to find. You rarely see those things... chimera? ...let’s put that under maybe... whatever that is, put it under maybe... breezie might come in handy. They’re kinda like nanomech, but have a better cute factor... Vampire?! Nope, nope, nope, nope, SO MUCH NOPE!” Ben commented on a few others after that, before handing the list back. “I checked the ones I’d like.”

“Whats wrong with the vampire pony? At most you’ll just want to eat apples,” he said with a shrug, looking them over, “So now the question my dear friend is, what do you have that we don’t?”

“Hmm, while I may not have any DNA samples you don’t already possess, perhaps I could interest you and Jason in another kind of trade?”

“We’re listening?” Hodgepodge said, putting an old timey ear funnel into his ear.

Ignoring that, Ben stepped forward and typed a few commands into the Omnitrix on Hodge’s chest. A moment later, metal spread out from the badge and sealed the draconequus in battle armor. “What do you think? DNA samples for a few command codes I figured out?”

“Oh yes! That sounds wonderful! The dwarves weren't exactly able to make the armor shapeshift, not for lack of trying, so this is perfect!”

“Great! ...but you might want to let Jason back out. Some of these codes don’t work too well in transformed states.”

“Well, it was nice seeing you B,” Hodgepodge said, saluting with one hand and tapping the Omnitrix with the other, reverting back to Jason, who cringed a little, “God that always gives me a headache.”

“I can relate,” Ben chuckled.

“Ugh... so... shall we do this?” Jason asked, rubbing his head. 

“Sure,” Ben held out the wrist with the Omnitrix. “You share the DNA and then this old man’s gonna teach a whippersnapper a few tricks.” He laughed a little.

“Never say that again,” Jason said, “Omnitrix, do the thing.” He paused. “Please.”

“Affirmative,” It chirped, both it and Ben’s Omnitrix flashing yellow a few times. “Synchronization complete.” 

“Neat! Alright, I took seven samples so seven codes should be fine.” Ben pulled his Omnitrix back. “Might want to remember these, they will come in handy. Omnitrix, sequence seventeen.” The watch chirped and a green shield energized into existence around the watch. “Energy shield, can take any kind of hit. Tested against gladiatorial minotaurs. Stopped ‘em cold.”

“I had no idea it could do that,” Jason said, looking at it in awe, “So what? You just dicked around with the watch instead actually getting scans? Why am I not surprised.”

“There’s a lot more to the Omnitrix than just transformations, Jason,” Ben said as though he were lecturing a student. “You cannot rely on aliens alone, so the watch has several features built in to assist with anything.” The shield dispersed. “Another handy one is this. Omnitrix, sequence fifty-nine.” The watch transformed into a green gauntlet that ran down to Ben’s elbow and crackled with electricity at his fingertips. “Taser gauntlet. Neat, eh?”

“Huh, didn’t know that either. Thing looks like the Ultimatrix.”

“Little bit, though the Ultimatrix didn’t cover your hand as well.” The metal receded into the watch again. “Hmm, what else to use? ...Oh, that’s a good one. Sequence ninety-nine. I’m not going to activate that one, but basically it allows you to use that feedback blast the watch does when someone tries to hack it. You remember that, right?”

“That’s not already on?” Jason asked, tilting his head a little, “I’d have figured it would be.”

“No, I mean you can activate it at will. Good shockwave burst to get you out of tight spot.”

“Ah, I’ll keep that in mind,” Jason said, nodding his head, “What about the other... four commands?”

“Well, the one I used to give Hodgepodge battle armor is sequence twenty-five. Works in base form too, if you ever need it. Let’s see, forty-five turns the watch into a gun gauntlet, if that’s appealing.”

“That works, I need more ranged weaponry as it is. They suggested a bow but my aim is shit.”

“Well, if you want ranged, forty-four is an energy crossbow,” Ben suggested.

“I could see myself using that,” Jason said with a nod, “What’s that? Six?” he asked getting to his feet, offering Ben a hand. He took it, getting helped up.

“This last one is your absolute last resort, do you understand me? Sequence one hundred is dangerous.”

“What is it?” Jason asked, frowning slightly.

“Sequence one hundred is the self-destruct option,” Ben said simply. “It skips the charging and just detonates with the force of a megaton bomb. You only have five seconds to cancel it before it blows, as well.”

“I’ll keep it in mind, Ben. I don’t see myself using that if I can help it.” Jason shuddered, shaking his head. “You ready to go home?” he asked, looking around, “I think you should be able to go home from here.”

“And what’s to stop him,” Ben pointed at Azmuth, “from going after us once we’re separated? If I recall he’s somewhat stubborn and hard-headed. Not unlike myself, but if he’s willing to cross universes to go after replicas, then can we even stop him?”

“I can think of a few ways,” Jason suggest, “None of them polite and several very violent,” he said, causing the galvan to gulp slightly. 

“Now, now, none of that is necessary,” came a fairly familiar voice.

“Took him long enough,” Ben grumbled as Professor Paradox walked in from behind a random piece of machinery. 

“Hello,” the good professor waved, walking over to the group. “Ah, Jason Hughes, I was wondering when I’d meet you again. Or is this the first time? Have we met?”

“No, I would have remembered you, or at least Hodge would have,” Jason said with a shake of his head. 

“Well then, it’s a pleasure Mister Hughes... or is it King yet? Hmm, no you don’t have the power yet. Disregard that comment then.” He shook Jason’s hand, still smiling. “Getting into trouble again, are we, Ben?”

“Not in the mood Paradox,” he deadpanned. “Where were you when Azmuth nearly burst my brain?”

“I was having a nice cup of tea and gumballs.” He pulled one out. “Care for some?”

“No,” Ben answered simply.

“Thought not. Jason, gumball?”

“I don’t see why not,” he said, holding a hand out. 

“See, Ben? People can be nice,” the professor said with a smile as he put the brightly colored candy in Jason’s hand.

“Get to the point, Prof,” Ben grumbled.

“In good time, Benjamin.” He looked to Azmuth. “I told you not to underestimate these two, Azmuth. For the great thinker, you really should have thought this out a little more.”

“Those devices belong to me! Not in the hands of these buffoons!” the galvan argued, shaking his fist at them. 

“You did not create either Omnitrix that are on these lads’ wrists. You know that very much.” 

“That’s not the point, timewalker!” Azmuth argued, “Those are still based on my device and it is my responsibility to keep them out of the hands of fools!”

“Careful, Azmuth,” the professor said with a tsk. “You don’t want to go back to taking blood pressure pills again.”

Azmuth just glared, crossing his arms. 

“Can we just settle this? I have a honeymoon to get to,” Jason said with a sigh, “And I’d rather not keep my wives waiting.”

“Oh! That’s what point you’re at, how fascinating,” Paradox beamed. “Now Azmuth, I can personally guarantee that these two young ones--”

“Oi!”

“Hush for now, Ben. These two are meant for great things, and they will need their Omnitricies if they hope to perform these great acts. Surely you can put your anger aside for the greater good. You trusted Tennyson and he went on to be a great hero. These two have proven themselves just as much. What say you, great thinker?”

“Fine!” Azmuth said, throwing his hands up, “Just get them out of my lab!”

“You will come to see what I do, Azmuth. I promise it.” Paradox smiled. Azmuth just grunted, turning away from them.

“Well he just devolved into a child,” Jason commented, popping the gumball into his mouth.

“He just needs time. It’s been a while since Tennyson proved him wrong so no one’s talked back to his decisions. Now, I believe you have a honeymoon to begin, Mr. Hughes.” Paradox opened a swirling portal behind Jason. “That should take you right back home. I shall escort Ben back to his world.”

“Cya later B, and remember, I owe ya one, don’t be afraid to hit me up.” Jason gave his friend a pat on the shoulder before moving toward the portal, humming a little.

“Sorry Jason, but I won’t,” Ben said, stopping Jason in his tracks.

“Yeah I figured that,” Jason said, looking at him. “Cutting yourself off, huh?”

Ben nodded. “Completely. When I get back... I’m destroying the totems and anymore that come through. All of mine will be deactivated... except yours. Just don’t make regret that decision,” he smirked.

“Hey, I’m not gonna betray your trust Ben,” Jason said with a nod, “Well I guess I’ll see ya when I see ya?” He gave one last smile before departing, the portal closing behind him.

Ben sighed, looking between Azmuth and Paradox. “This isn’t the last time this is gonna happen, is it?”

“Oh, if it were only that simple, Benjamin. Now come along,” he ushered the young man through a portal of his own. “You have a ghost to bust.”

“Just my luck,” Ben groaned, leaving Azmuth alone to his work.

After a few moments of silence, Azmuth sighed. “You’d better be right, Paradox. You’d better be right.”
> Getting Brained In Smelly Prance
> --------------------------------------------------------------------------

“I mean really, Jason,” Rarity scolded, adjusting her wings. “We’re on our honeymoon and you summon a Displaced?”

“Yes I did, because we’re stuck in the middle of Prance, all because you had to see Photo Finish,” he countered, poking her muzzle. Rarity glanced at Chrysalis, looking for some help only for the empress to shake her head.

“I’m with Jason on this. We’re stuck in Prance for a week just so you could go to some boring fashion show. So yes, hanging out with a Displaced sounds a lot more fun than going out into the smelly city again.”

“Prance does not smell!” Rarity scoffed, growling a little.

“Yes, yes it does. Like misery and cheese,” Chrysalis snorted, glaring down at the smaller mare. Jason just sat down, tossing the mega stone up into the air and whistling a little. 

At that moment a pink and purple creature fell out of a hole in reality and they all heard in their heads, “-Alonso!”

“Huh, Mewtwo. I was expecting Diancie... I should have paid more attention to the mega stone colors,” Jason said, getting to his feet. He moved over to the pokemon, holding his hand up, “Sup?”

“Not much, was about to have my welcome to Ponyville party, but I think I should be able to get back around the same time I left. How does the name Medulla relate to a crystal... thing?” The mutant-clone shook Jay’s hand.

“Oh I meant the mega stone. They all kinda look the same,” Jason said, shrugging a little. “I’m Jason and these are my wives, Chrysalis and Rarity.” He gestured to the mares.

“Hello,” Chrysalis said with a friendly wave while Rarity grimaced.

“It’s a... pleasure,” Rarity muttered, looking away unhappily.

“Rarity, It’s always a pleasure to meet a pony of such refined tastes, but please, you’re talking to the only of my species so don’t comment too often on my horrid appearance,” Medulla commented.

“Oh, no, no!” Rarity said, her eyes wide, “I have nothing against your appearance it’s just...”

“She’s just pissy that we called you here on our honeymoon,” Chrysalis explained, earning a glare from the pony. “Serves her right, getting us stuck in this smelly place for a week.”

“Where are we anyway? The minds around here don’t ‘feel’ like those from the main portion of Equestria.” Medulla said while scratching his chin.

“We’re in Prance, the pony version of France,” Jason said, pointing out the window. “We were only supposed to be here for a day but... things happen.”

“Prance... That’s almost as bad a pun as Transylmaneia,” Medulla said as his hand firmly slapped to his face. “So I’m guessing Rarity is the reason for the prolonged stay, based on the looks and thoughts she keeps getting from Chrysalis.”

“Yup,” Jason said with a nod.

‘Oi! Who's the new guy?’ another male voice asked from inside Jason’s head. 

“So is there another telepath around or something?”

“Uh... no, thats Hodgepodge. He’s kinda sorta an alternate personality,” Jason explained with a shrug. 

‘I feel so exposed!’ Hodgepodge lamented while another groaned.

‘Shut up Hodgepodge, and block our thoughts you goon,’ he ordered.

‘Oh fine, Hughes. Why must you be so mean?’ The sound of a door being slammed was heard and their voices fell silent.

“If you called me here to pass the time then let’s have some fun!” A sly grin crept across Medulla’s face.

“Let’s crunk it!” Chrysalis declared, buzzing her wings excitedly. 

“Fine, you three go have your fun, I‘ll be heading to the shopping district.” Rarity huffed before grabbing her saddlebags and trotting out of the room.

“I’ll show her some of the worst fashions I’ve ever seen when we get back, because she’s being so rude to a guest.”

“Eh, she’ll get over it,” Jason said, shrugging a little. “Before we go, you know what this is?” Jason asked, holding up his arm, showing off the Omnitrix. 

“Well, Well. I haven’t thought about that series in a long time.”

“Oh good, you know what it is,” he said with a smirk, “May I get a scan of you?”

“Go ahead! I’d like to see what happens.”

Jason held his arm out, causing the Omnitrix to chirp and pass a yellow light over Medulla. “There, now I have a Mewtwo form,” Jason said with a smirk.

“You should try going ultimate with it some time, who knows what could happen!”

“Ultimate is mega-evolution.” Jason said, “At least thats how it works with Gengar, not sure how it’ll work with Mewtwo having two megas.”

“Sooo... What’s the best bar in town!” 

“I have no idea, so we’re just going to go bar hopping,” Jason said, pulling his hoodie on, “You should be fine appearance-wise, the ponies are mostly used to my weirdness.”

“Then let the debauchery commence!”





“We just had to pick the bar that doubled as a poetry club didn’t we?” Chrysalis asked with a frown as she sipped at her drink, barely listening as the pony on stage rambled on in Prench.

“It could be worse, could have walked into a brothel,” Jason countered, fiddling with the Omnitrix, “Could always leave.”

“And miss the second verse?” Chrysalis asked, letting out a mock gasp, “Perish the thought!”

“It’s not that bad, I’ve heard the poetry of the void dwellers, Vogon poetry can’t even compare.”

“I try to stay away from the void, it’s nothing but trouble,” Jason frowned, “Like random invasions from weird sentai monsters.”

“Trust me it wasn’t by choice,” Medulla said while thoughtfully sipping some random pony’s wine when they weren’t looking. “Though most of these ponies are so far up their own asses, I can vicariously smell their colons.”

“I’m just glad you already know about the Displaced, saves me a whole lot of time on the subject,” Jason said with a smile, “Did you know theres a Team Rocket Displaced?”

“No, at least I don’t think I do. What’s the token?”

“A Meowth head coin with a bright red ‘R’ on the front.”

“Nope, don’t have that one yet.”

“Who have you met?” Jason asked, turning his full attention to Medulla. 

“So far, personally I’ve only met a time manipulator called Max, but I have a few other tokens that I found before I was stoned. I have a genji medallion, a blue coin with a tornado on it, a key and key chain set that look like they go together, a black diamond, a Metroid badge, a Plumber’s badge, and is this yours?” Medulla said, making a unitrix core appear in his hand.

“Yup, thats mine alright. Built it using some of Twi’s machines, she wasn’t happy about it at all,” Jason said, a faint smile on his face. “That feels like it was so long ago...”

“Do you know any of the others?” Medulla started pulling out the other tokens he mentioned and placing them on the table.

“I...” Jason said, his eyes locking onto the Plumbers’ badge. He sighed shaking his head, “I know some. The diamond belongs to Kat Shifter, and I think the medallion belongs to Gilgamesh but I have no idea when he switched from gauntlets to a coin.”

“Could be an alternate, for those who don’t like or need armor.”

“I dunno, thats just not dad’s style to be honest,” Jason said with a shrug, downing the rest of his drink and ordering another.

“Oh and Max gave me this one,” he brought out a glass vial with a blue double helix inside. “She said she didn’t need it, and that it could summon Nemesis from Resident Evil.”

“Oh Nemmy’s a great guy,” Jason said with a nod. “He’s a bit busy fighting the pony version of Umbrella but he always helps when he can.”

“You referred to Gilgamesh as ‘dad’?”

“In the adopted sense,” Jason started, “He helped me a lot when I first got here and well... he’s the closest thing to a dad I’ve ever had.”

“Didn’t really have a father figure, can’t even remember my family from earth. Most of the relationships I’ve been making are more sibling-like.”

“Yeah, I got adopted into the Apple clan... hey where did Chrysalis go?” he asked looking around. He groaned, spotting her on the stage, starting to sing “Real Slim Shady,” replacing Slim Shady with herself. “Why did I let her into my CDs?” he asked, letting his head slam into the table.

“Everyone seems to like it,” Medulla chugged the rest of the other pony’s wine and replaced the glass. “Bartender, You have anything stronger?”

“I apologize sir, but thats the strongest we have,” the bartender said, shaking his head. 

“Here,” Jason said, tossing a flask to Medulla, “That’ll probably do it, if you don’t mind your alcohol from the teat of a goat.”

“Booze is booze,” Medulla toasted, and downed a very large swig. “That, my friend, is ungodly strong. If I drank two of those flasks I’d have to sleep for a week.”

“You just don’t know how to hold your booze,” Jason teased, letting out a laugh, “Hell, the ponies handle it better than you.”

“I’ll have you know I drank the better part of a small town under the table, and was only slightly tipsy. Of course most of my internal organs were on the verge of shutting down, and I had to sleep it off for three days straight.”

“Allow me to one up you, I had the T-virus,” Jason said, leaning back in his chair with a smirk.

“Obviously you got better or you’d be eating my brains right now. All I’m saying is even if this was straight alcohol, it shouldn’t affecting me this much this quickly... Question, could this be considered magic alcohol?” Medulla said eyeing the flask suspiciously.

“We milked it out of a goat, I’m pretty sure it’s magical.”

“I thought it was fermented goat’s milk or something... Magic alcohol affects me VERY differently than normal alcohol. This will be the first time I’ve actually gotten drunk in a millenium.”

“You one of those ‘turned to stone’ guys?” Jason asked, raising his eyebrow, downing his drink.

“Yep, Still in the beginning of season 2, just had Nightmare Night a few days ago. But before I start to get too thoughtless, please hold on to this.” Medulla brought out a paper and a pen and began to write. After writing a single word he gave Jason the paper. “That is the thought I need to find my way back to about the proper time.”

“You got it,” he said with a nod, putting it in his pocket. “You know... I went home a few months ago... apparently the show started up while I was gone.”

“Time’s weird sometimesssss...” Medulla’s gaze drifted, he blinked and suddenly one iris was red and the other was blue.

“You alright?” Jason asked, frowning. “Your eyes just went weird.”

“GET OUT THE CAMERAS AND HIDE THE PEANUT BUTTER, SHIT’S ABOUT TO GET WEIRD!!!” Medulla shouted as he bolted out the door.

“Great... drunk Mewtwo..” Jason said with a groan. He paid for their bill and dragged Chrissy out the door with him. 

It wasn’t to hard to follow him. He left a trail of fresh mud on anything white, coins scattered everywhere, and translucent purple marks, but he was moving fast.

“This is going to be a hard night,” Jason said with a groan, shaking his head. 

“A lot better than what Rarity had planned,” Chrysalis said with a smirk.

“Yeah, but she wasn’t drunk,” Jason said, running after the raging pokemon.

Eventually they found a group of ponies that were tethered to the ground by what looked like large blades of grass. Medulla was floating about thirty feet in the air scolding them about jaywalking. “... And that’s why jaywalking is fun, but veeerrrry DANGEROUS” He then belched a jet of fire into the night sky. “Excuse me... I don’t remember having curry...” The mutant then noticed Jason and Crysalis, and floated back down to them.

“Do I want to know, Medulla?” Jason asked, running a hand down his face.

“Probably not! But you guys are just in time for the parade!” Medulla said a bit too cheerfully. He then snapped his fingers, music began playing and short bipedal crocodiles made of fire began to march.

“Seriously? How many of us can just make spontaneous music?” Jason asked with a groan. “You should release those ponies. I really don’t want to test out my diplomatic immunity.”

“Alright, this will only take a second...” Fire lit Medulla’s hand. He then sprayed it over the area.

“Seriously?” Jason asked with a groaned, putting said fire out with a blast of ice. He pulled his sword out, cutting the ponies free, “OK Medulla, we’re never getting you drunk again.”

“It’s just Incinerate, It can’t actually hurt living beings, it only destroys things.” Medulla said, pouting. “I’ll only be like this for a few more minutes considering the amount I drank. Then I go into stage 2.”

“There are stages?” Chrysalis asked with a raised eyebrow.

“Three to be exact. I’m in stage one currently; Manic, right now I burn off the magic energy. Next I get conventionally drunk. Then finally I pass out. At least that’s how it happened the last two times.” Medulla shrugged while throwing mud from nowhere on any walls.

“At least you last longer than Dash,” Jason said with a sigh, “Come on, lets go chill in a park or something,” he said, heading down the street.

“Fine, but I reserve the right to fire lightning into the sky until this stage is over.” Medulla followed dragging his tail.

“Just don’t hit any pegasi,” Jason instructed, “I don’t need any international incidents happening on my honeymoon.” They came to a park and Jason sat down on a bench, looking up at the sky. 

Suddenly, ghostly fire appeared thirty feet in the air, “Any requests?” Medulla asked, moving and shaping the fire as he sat next to Jason.

“Hmm? How’s about Deoxys and Rayquaza going at it?”

“Good choice!” Medulla said as the fire split and took the form of the legendary creatures. Beams and blasts shot between them, they even grappled on occasion. “If you had asked for anything with Palkia I would have been pissy about it. That guy was a real bastard. Tried to flatten a village, and overwrite my Equestria.”

“Yeah, sounds like a bastard,” Jason said with a nod

“And all the legendaries had been really cool until I was imprisoned.” Medulla sighed thoughtfully. 

“You should call me to your world, I could use some more pokemon scans. Really throws people off when they just expect Ben’s aliens.”

“Might be hard, Mew’s been in hiding. Celebi has been sleeping deep in the Everfree. Rayquaza, Groudon, and Kyogre have likely been asleep for millenium. And I still can’t find Darkrai.”

“Damn,” Jason said with a whistle, “If it makes you feel any better, the ‘gods’ here are dead, well except for my grandmother Hel.”

“The norse goddess of Niflheim? Wellll... aren’t you special.”

“I’m also one of the last four jotun so, it evens out really,” 

“Oi, you two are depressing,” Chrysalis said with a snort. “You know... Luna really does make the most beautiful night skies.”

The fires flickered out, and Medulla coughed out black smoke, “Ahhh, nothin’ beats it...”

“Hey, you want me to send you home before you pass out?” Jason asked, looking at the smoke with a slight frown.

Medulla turned to him, his eyes now gray, “Nah, I’ll just pass out there. And I don’t want to miss my ‘Welcome to Ponnyvile’ paaarty just ‘cause I couldn’t stay awake, Pinklie would kill me. As long as you have that paper, I should be able to get back with an hour or twoo of leafing.”

“Well then I guess you can crash with us,” Jason said, nodding his head. “Just don’t puke on anything.”

“Before I do passout event..eventuallly, I need ta tell you my code off telipass...telepath ethacs.”

“Ok, whats the code?” 

“In yur Mewtwo form, yu’ll be the stronkest telepath this planet will likeli ever see. Soooo you need to limit yurself. When in a crowd or group don’t passively read more than surface thoughts at most. Iff someone shuts ya out, don’t push cause you could tear their mind ta shreds.”

“I’ll keep that all in mind,” Jason said with a laugh, “Though I have two other personalities to keep me in line.”

“Awesome! Now what else ya want ta dis- -hic!- dis- -hic!- talk about.”

“How are the changelings in your world?” Chrysalis asked, looking at him, “Have they shown up yet?”

“Last time I saw one wass over a thousand years ago, wasn’t fun. But no, you haven’t crashed the wedding just yet.”

“Please... try and steer me away from... that...” Chrysalis said with a sigh, “I swear Gilgamesh’s Chrysalis and I are the only good versions of me out there.”

“Tell ya what, if I see ya before everything goes wrong, I’ll do everything I can to get ya to stop. But I wont take your will or fight ya, I’ll only use words. That okay?”

“Agreed,” she said with a nod, giving him a smile, “Thank you.”

“Let’s head back to the hotel room, I’d rather not eat dirt or cement when stage three hits.”

“Alright let’s go,” Jason said getting to his feet. “This was a fun night,” he said, offering his hand to help Medulla up. Medulla took the proffered hand with a weak smile. 



 

“NO!! I DON’T FIT INTO TINY BALLS!!!!” Medulla woke in a cold sweat on the bathroom floor.

“Oh hey you're awake,” Jason said, peering into the room, “I was wondering if you were going to wake up at all today. Need any meds?”

“Water, and some motrin if you have any.” Medulla said holding his head. Then he stood up and floated to the main room. “Would you mind reminding what happened after I took that accursed dink, it’s mostly a blur except for the promise I made to Chrissy.”

“Meh, we kinda just chilled in the park and shot the shit,” Jason said, pouring him a cup of water and passing him a few pills. “That should get you up to snuff.”

“Thanks.” Medulla levitated the pills into his mouth and chugged the water. “I should probably give you something.” He pulled out a black oblong shaped berry with white question marks on four sides, “This is an enigma berry. If you’re hit with an attack that would normally do significant damage, it’ll heal you most of the way back.”

“Oh hey cool,” Jason said with a smile, storing it away, “Now if only I had something... would you like to get your DNA spliced?”

“As nice as that sounds, I’m already a genetic abomination, unless you have a way to break through some of the last mental barriers I have.”

“Sorry, I got nothing for that,” Jason said with a shrug, “Oh wait, think you can use magic?”

“Haven’t tried, I’m more of a psionicist, but I’m willing to give it a shot.”

“Here,” Jason said, pulling out a rather ornate book. “This is a copy of a spellbook Twilight bought a while back. It’s got the most powerful Final Fantasy spells in it, so be careful when you practice.”

“HUUUUUMMM!” Medulla grunted as he focused on the power held in the book, then handed it back to Jason. “Done, I learned Ultima.. feels like a bit like Psystrike but... different. You still got that paper I gave you?”

“Yeah, “Jason said with a nod, pulling said slip out, “ You ready to go home?”

“Yep. Just so you know the whole theory I’m working with it is if I create a psychic beacon, I should be able to track back to close to the point in time it was created. Send me home whenever you’re ready.”

Jason stared at the paper, sighing. “ALLONS-Y.” He glared at the paper, frowning. “I hate that show.”

“Sorry I had no idea, next time it’ll be something else, I just picked it at random.” Medulla shrugged apologetically. 

“Eh, it’s fine, you just enjoy your party OK?” Jason asked, tossing the paper over his shoulder and giving a smile.

“Will do, I’ll set aside a few pieces of cake for you guys for next the time we meet, food never spoils in my inventory.”

“Sorry about my attitude before,” Rarity said with a frown, rubbing her arm, “It wasn't very kind of me.”

“I forgive you, and now I won't put laxative in your piece.”

“What?” she asked, blinking.

“Aaanywhooo, we’re burning relevant time, go ahead and send me back.”

“Medulla, our contract is complete,” Jason said, watching the pokemon intently. 

“Goodbye, and ALLON-” Medulla was cut off as the portal closed around him.

“He’s definitely one of the best Displaced we have ever met,” Chrysalis said, to which the others nodded, “So... wanna fool around?”
> Goodbye, Farewell And Amen
> --------------------------------------------------------------------------

It was a nice morning, the train quietly moving through the tundra, at least it seemed that way in the royal car, its three occupants blissfully sleeping the morning away. Chrysalis had her hooves wrapped around Jason, drooling a little onto his shoulder. Rarity meanwhile, with a frazzled mane, was sprawled out over Jason’s chest, her back legs twitching every now and then. All the while Jason slept with a smile on his face, his arms around the two mares in a happy embrace.

That was until some jackass decided to knock.


“Your majesties,” one of the train’s crew members called, knocking louder on the door, “We’re about an hour out from the empire, and Princess Rarity requested to be woken up early,” he knocked again before Jason threw a shoe at the door.

“We get the message... go ‘way...” the young man grumbled, blinking a few times to drive the sleep from his eyes.

“Hmm... ‘Princess Rarity’... I do like the sound of that,” Rarity said as she sat up, placing her hooves on his chest. “Good morning everypony...” she muttered, letting out a yawn before rolling off the bed and gracefully landing on her hooves. “I’m going to be getting myself ready for the morning, I’ll see you both for breakfast.” She entered the bathroom, locking the door behind her.

“She does realize she could just use her changeling magic to fix her appearance right?” Chrysalis asked, not bothering to open her eyes.

“She probably just needs the alone time,” Jason said with a shrug, closing his eyes again. They laid like that for awhile, content to just lay there, the gentle rocking of the train car almost lulling them back to sleep. “You know... we should probably get up too.”

“Ugh... must we?” Chrysalis finally opened her eyes, a pout forming on her face. 

“Yeah, it’s our first day back and Rarity will give us shit if we don’t at least make ourselves presentable.” Jason pulled away from her embrace, sitting up. He let out a loud yawn, cracking his jaw. He stretched out, pulling his clothes on, running a hand through his beard, “I should probably shave...”

“I rather like the beard,” Chrysalis commented, fluttering her wings to smooth them out as she got to her hooves.

“Funny thing about facial hair, it always comes back thicker when you shave it off,” Jason said, giving her a smile. He moved to the bathroom door, knocking, “Rarity, let us in, we need to get ready too.”

“Jason, I’m not decent,” Rarity replied, busy doing whatever her morning routine entailed. 

“I’m coming in whether you like it or not.” Jason banged on the door in one more effort to get her to open up. “OK fine, I warned you.” The next minutes were full of shouting as Jason shifted into Ghostfreak to phase through the door and got into a small argument with a very annoyed Rarity.  Chrysalis broke them up by simply blasting the door off its hinges.

“They can bill us later,” she said, stepping into the shower. “You two coming?” she asked, turning the water on.

“This is going to be one hell of a relationship...” Jason said, stripping his clothes off and stepping inside.

“Hell is right,” Rarity said with a roll of her eyes, “Though did you really get dressed just to take your clothes off again not five minutes later?”

Jason turned to her, giving her a playful glare. “Quiet you,” he commanded, tossing a bath sponge at her.

“Oh you want to play like that, hmm?” Rarity asked, levitating the sponge with an evil grin on her face. Thus begun the epic sponge brawl of ‘73, a battle so great that train workers throughout Equestria would tell its tale to wide eyed foals for generations to come. Or perhaps it was just a intimate moment between spouses, but thats not nearly as entertaining is it?





“Jason!” Applejack’s voice called out as the three walked out onto the train platform. Despite their little fight in the bathroom, they had managed to get themselves rather nicely shaped up, with Jason having shaved and gotten Rarity, within reason of course, to give him a haircut. 

“Hey sis, how’s it hangin’?” he asked as she galloped over to him. The two shared a quick hug before pulling apart.

“Aw heck, we was missin’ ya somethin’ fierce. Pie was ready t’go after ya but we wasn’t gonna let her interrupt yer honeymoon,” the farm pony said, throwing the party pony a look, though Pinkie didn’t seem to notice.

“We missed you guys too,” he said with a smile. “The trip was great by the way.”

“You can tell us on the way to the castle,” Twilight said, getting everyone’s attention. “In case you’ve forgotten, we’re expected.”

“Yeah yeah, I got the letter,” Jason said with a sigh. “Spike don’t you dare touch our luggage, the staff will handle it.”

“Phew... I thought I’d have to carry all of that...” Spike said, letting out a sigh of relief as he glanced at the huge pile of luggage, 98% of which was Rarity’s stuff.

The group started to walk, with many of the crystal ponies heaping their gratitude onto Jason and the girls for saving the Empire. Spike and Rarity loved it but, for Jason, it was starting to get a bit uncomfortable.

“Now I know why Daring Do has a pseudonym,” Jason muttered under his breath, looking around.

“Hey, you know you guys got statues?” Spike asked as they came up to where his statue was. Now the small square was dotted with statues, each of a different Displaced, each in a rather heroic pose.

“Huh, they work pretty fast don’t they?” Jason asked, letting out a small whistle as he looked up at his own statue.

“The crystal ponies love to hero worship, apparently,” Chrysalis said, looking said statues over,  her gaze landing on the Gilgamesh statue, “Oh, he’d have loved our trip to Los Pegasus, Rarity was a hilarious drunk.”

“Yes, well, let’s try not to let that happen again shall we?” Rarity asked, looking rather embarrassed, “But I think Nemesis would have loved Prance, it’s a chef’s paradise.”

“Don’t mention Prance,” Chrysalis said in something between a growl and a groan, giving the smaller mare a glare. 

Jason rolled his eyes, personally having hated that part of the trip, with the exception of Medulla. “I think Team Rocket would have loved that safari we went on down in Zebrica, whole lot of weird creatures there. I swear there was a grue in that one cave.”

They moved up to the last statue: Ben as Diamondhead. They all gave it a long look before they moved on, having really nothing to say about it.

“So, what exactly are we doing here Twilight?” Jason asked as they neared the palace. 

“Well... we pretty much just have to smile and wave as the dignitaries arrive,” Twilight sighed, looking rather downtrodden. 

“That’s a relief,” Jason said with a sigh, “I was afraid I’d have to negotiate or something.”

“Jason, all we’re doing is waving, doesn’t that bother you?” Twilight asked, looking up at him with a frown.

“Not really,” Jason said with a shrug. “Not sure why it bothers you.” 

“Twilight, the two of you get to smile and wave like royalty!” Rarity cut in. “In all honesty I’m rather jealous.”

“How exactly is that different than smilin' and wavin' like not royalty?” Applejack questioned with a raised eyebrow.

“It isn’t,” Twilight said, letting out a long sigh as her ears flopped down.

“Just talk, will you!?” Chrysalis nearly shouted at Twilight, “Sweet Faust you’re always going on about expressing yourself and yet here you are just sulking! You’re ruining my good mood with your moping!”

“Well... it’s just... I don’t really do much as a princess,” Twilight admitted, “I mean, the wings and more powerful magic are nice, but I haven't really done anything princess-like.”

“You haven’t exactly gone out of your way to be involved in government, you know,” Dash spoke up. “You just do what you’ve always done - be the town’s librarian.” She blinked, taking in all the looks they gave her. “Hey, just cause I’m an athlete doesn’t mean that I don’t know how the government works.”

“She picked up some stuff from all the nobles that hang around my castle,” Jason said, to which Dash nodded with a bashful grin. “Twilight if you want to be more involved with national government, or even local government, you should just talk to Celestia. I have no doubt she’d help you.”

“I suppose you’re right,” Twilight said, perking up a little.

“Good! Now you two run along, can’t have you being late, can we?” Rarity said, gesturing toward the palace.

“Alright then guys, we’ll see you later,” Jason said with a nod as he and Twilight broke off from the group, heading toward their destination. 





“Ooookay... I’m not gonna ask why you guys were singing but uh, I’m going to go to my room and crash for the night. Rarity and Chrysalis are waiting for me,” Jason said from the doorway of the balcony, his eyebrow arched as the alicorns ended their weird song routine. 

The princesses all wished him a good night and the young prince returned to his quarters, getting into bed with his spouses. They didn’t get more than an hour of sleep before Jason’s dream melted away, revealing the usual meeting spot of his personalities. Hughes was sitting in a chair, arms crossed, watching as Hodgepodge freaked out about something.

“The hell’s up with him?” Jason asked before Hodge lifted him up and shook him. 

“It’s terrible Jason! Oh the horror!” Hodge hugged Jason close, rocking back and forth.

“He had a vision,” Hughes explained, rolling his eyes. “Some evil creature stealing a unicorn’s magic.”

“You have to wake up and tell sunbutt and moonbutt before it steals all da magic!” Hodge shouted, shaking Jason again, “Or he’ll destroy us all! Destroy us all! Destroy us all!” Hodge dropped Jason at that point, repeating the same line again and again.

“Look just go tell the princesses, I’ll shut him up,” Hughes said and Jason suddenly found himself back in bed.

“Every time I try to relax...” he grumbled as he got out of bed, careful not to disturb the sleeping mares. He carefully moved out of the room, walking down to the other royals’ sleeping quarters. After several minutes and some startled alicorns, the five royals were gathered around a table as Luna and Celestia recounted the tale of Tirek, a centaur who had tried to steal Equestria’s magic, only to be betrayed by his brother and locked away in Tartarus.

“So, I take it you want me to handle it?” Jason asked, looking at Celestia, “I’m pretty sure I can handle that-”

“No, I’m afraid I must send another... Discord,” Celestia said, causing the others to gasp, though Jason just shrugged.

“Eh. About time that lazy bastard did something.” He yawned again, blinking a few times to stave off sleep.

“Yes, well... there is something else we must discuss, Jason,” Luna said, fluffing her wings a little. “You see during your wedding Gilgamesh and I had a... tryst, as it were...” Jason just stared at her before letting out a long sigh.

“Why am I not surprised with that guy? Let me guess, you want me to call him up so you can ask him out on another date?”

“No, I um...” Luna started, shuffling her hooves a little, “I uh...” she lowered her voice considerably, “I-I’m p-pregnant with his foal...”

Jason stared at her for a few moments before looking around at the other princesses. Seeing their lack of surprise, he surmised that they already knew. “Okay, seriously, you guys couldn’t have written me a letter telling me my adopted father knocked Luna up?”

The princesses flinched and looked away, with Cadance coughing. “We uh... didn’t want to interrupt the honeymoon.”

“Alright, I’ll call him up and-”

“No!” Luna shouted, startling them all. “Please. He already has a family, I don’t want to make things complicated for him.”

“Both he and the kid have a right to know Luna,” Jason argued, “I can’t keep this from him.”

“Please Jason, we’ll tell him, just not now...” she begged causing him to sigh.

“Fine, but we’re going to tell him.” The young man got up, stretching out his limbs. “We’ll figure this all out in the morning, I’m going back to bed.” Without waiting for their reply, he left the room and headed back to bed, rejoining his spouses in the void of dreams. 





“So yer telling me that Luna is having a foal by Gilgamesh?” Applejack asked as the group trotted into the Everfree. Due to the growing town, a large path had been made through the forest, which were patrolled by the Valor guard. 

“Yup,” Jason said, nodding his head. He ran a hand through his hair, sighing, “And she made me Pinkie Promise not to tell him. Not sure what’s she’s thinking.” They soon came upon a familiar gorge, with Dash letting out a sigh. 

“I can’t believe we had to give back the Elements,” she lamented, looking down into the gorge. 

“It had to be done or the Tree of Harmony wouldn’t have survived,” Rarity added, though she was frowning as well.

“You guys still seem like the strongest of friends to me,” Jason pointed out, though he was just going off of stories they had told him.

“Ah just hope another 'friend' of ours never makes us sorry we had ta’ give em’ up,” Applejack stated, wearing a frown of her own.

“Oh come on girls, do you really hold so little faith in me?” Discord asked as he floated down toward them, holding onto an umbrella.

“What are you even doing here Discord?” Dash asked, crossing her arms with a slight glare.

“Well, I came to make sure my good friend Fluttershy was okay,” Discord said, scooping her up and giving her a hug. “I don’t want her to worry while I’m off making sure our foal stays safe.”

“What? You’re not gonna gloat about your big mission?” Spike asked, looking up at him with a raised eyebrow.

“Well, I mean, I could, but I’m not doing it for me, I’m doing it for all of you,” Discord said, putting Fluttershy down and gesturing to the gathered creatures.

“Uh, what?” Applejack asked, looking rather confused.

“Well, you’re my friends, right? I’d do a lot to keep you all safe. It’s why I asked Tia if there was anything in the kingdom I could help with.”

“You... volunteered?” Dash asked, her eyes a bit wide.

“Well yes, I was feeling a bit... useless,” Discord admitted with a sigh.

“You and me both,” Twilight mumbled.

“Oh come now Twilight, don’t be so down,” Discord said, reaching under his wing and pulling out their friendship journal, “I’ve got to say, this little book of yours has some wonderful lessons in it. I even bookmarked my favorites so you could give them another look.” He tossed the book to Twilight, who caught it in her magic. “When I get back I’ll give you that hoof massage I promised, Flutters.”

“Oh, good. That will be... nice.” Fluttershy smiled, nodding.

“Ta-ta everyone!” he said as he opened up a door in the air and walked through it, said door exploding into dust when the door closed behind him. 





Tirek hummed to himself as he stalked through the back alleys, looking for another unicorn to drain when he paused, hearing a pop from behind him.

“Well, this is rather clichéd isn’t it? You, just stalking around a dark alley like some kind of monster,” a rather familiar voice said. Tirek turned his head, spotting the rather bored looking Discord.

“Discord, you’re free?” Tirek asked, a frown forming across his face.

“As a bird,” the spirit of chaos said, letting out a tweet. 

“I commend you on your escape,” Tirek studied the spirit closely, a hand slowly moving toward his cloak.

“Sorry but I can’t say the feeling is mutual,” Discord snapped his fingers, a pair of manacles appearing on Tirek’s wrists.

Tirek’s frown deepened, staring at the chains, “Oh, I should have known you would want to have Equestria all to yourself.”

Discord just laughed, “Oh, you misunderstand. I’m not here for me, I’m here for my friends. Though to be honest, it’s mostly just for my dearest Fluttershy and the little spawn of chaos she’s got growing in her.”

“Fluttershy? You're not saying you're friends with ponies?” Tirek asked, a look of disgust crossing his face.

“You make it sound like a bad thing,” Discord said, crossing his arms.

“I am surprised that someone with your intellect does not see this 'friendship' is but a new form of imprisonment. Clearly you've had to abandon your true nat-” Tirek started, only for Discord to cut him off.

“I know what you're doing Tirek,” Discord glared, “You think you can manipulate me? The lord of chaos?”

“Perhaps not but I still have this,’ Tirek said, reaching into his cloak and pulling out a very familiar stone.

“W-where did you get that?” Discord asked, backing away slightly. He knew the stone well, it was the same one Hex had used to steal his power, and it still held said stolen power inside of it.

“Oh I merely took it from a unicorn who thought himself my better. From what I understand, its power is tied to you.” Tirek smirked as the stone started to shine, causing Discord to hold his head and cry out in pain. If the Lord of Chaos would not obey him willingly, then he would do so unwillingly.





After attempting research at the Hive’s library, Twilight found some ideas in the parts of the journal that Discord had bookmarked, so the girls gathered their souvenirs and reconvened at the Tree of Harmony with Jason and Chrysalis in tow. Spike had decided to stay at the Hive and take a nap.

“So... what do we do now?” Jason asked as he looked at the box, scratching his bare chin, suddenly missing his beard.

Twilight looked from the gathered objects, letting out a sigh. “I don't see anything on them that would give us a clue as to where the keys might be. They're just... ordinary, everyday objects” 

Jason reached down, picking up Boneless, tossing the rubber chicken up and down for a few moments before looking at the box. A smirk slowly spread across his face as he wound his arm back, chucking the chicken at the box. It stopped in mid-air, shifting into a key and flying into one of the keyholes. The girls let out a collective gasp before tossing the rest of the objects at the box, each turning into a key which went into its respective keyhole. “And suddenly I feel like I’m in Kingdom Hearts.”

Twilight frowned, looking at the empty keyhole, “There's still one key missing. The key that represents the element of magic. My element.”

Fluttershy waddled over, placing a wing over Twilight’s back, “Oh, but I'm sure that if we've gotten our keys, you have too, Twilight.”

“Think, Twilight. When have you completed a difficult magical task, and in doing so encouraged another pony to do the same?” Rarity encouraged with a smile.

“I haven't. If I had, I would have written about it in the journal,” Twilight lamented, looking at the ground dejectedly.

“Well, you’re never going to if you keep throwing that little pity party of yours,” Chrysalis chastised before pausing, closing her eyes. 

“What is it?” Jason asked, knowing that look, which meant a drone was sending her a message.

“Celestia has requested you and Twilight head to Canterlot immediately,” Chrysalis said, opening her eyes. “Best not keep Sunbutt waiting. Rarity and I will hold the fort!”

“Come on Twilight, lets go see what’s going to kill us this time,” Jason said, shifting into XLR8 and grabbing the poor alicorn, taking off toward the castle before she could protest. It didn’t take them long to reach their destination, with Jason bursting through the doors and dropping a rather frazzled Twilight on the ground. “We got here as soon as we got the message.”

“We could have just teleported,” Twilight grumbled, trying to fix her mane as best she could, “Now what's going on? Is it Tirek?”

Celestia gave a sad nod, sighing, “I'm afraid I put too much trust in Discord and the effect that friendship would have upon him.”

“Discord has betrayed the ponies of Equestria and joined forces with Tirek,” Luna added, her face as hard as stone.

Twilight gasped, her eyes widening a little. “How could he do this?! I thought our friendship meant something to him! I thought he had changed.”

“I don’t think he did,” Jason spoke up, reverting to normal, “Discord has a nice life going. A loving fiancée, a kid on the way. I don’t know about you guys but I don’t think Discord is doing this willingly.”

“That does not change what is happening,” Celestia started, “Tirek has stolen enough magic that he now has the strength to steal flight as well. Without pegasi to control the weather, there will be no rain in Equestria. There is word he has gone after earth ponies as well. Without their strength, they will not be able to tend the land.”

Luna spoke up next, “Ponies will no longer be in control of their world. That power will belong solely to Tirek.”

“There is no doubt that Tirek will soon be after alicorn magic. With Discord by his side, we will not be able to stop him from taking it,” Celestia added, making Twilight gulp.

“Once it is in his possession, his power will know no bounds, and all hope will be lost,” Luna continued, nodding to Celestia. 

“But there is one solution. It is only by making this sacrifice that Equestria and the lands beyond it might be saved. We must rid ourselves of our magic before Tirek has the chance to steal it from us,” Celestia declared, causing Jason to blink in shock and Twilight to gasp.

“Tirek is set on possessing alicorn magic. When he comes for us, we cannot have what he is looking for,” Luna added.

Twilight took in a breath, steeling herself, “I'm more than willing to do my part and give up my magic.”

Celestia shook her head. “You misunderstand. Our magic cannot just disappear into thin air. Somepony must keep it safe.”

“That somepony is you, Twilight.” Cadance nodded, gesturing to the youngest alicorn.

“Why me?” Twilight asked, still trying to wrap her mind around it all.

“We do not believe that Tirek is aware that a fourth Alicorn princess exists in Equestria. If we transfer our magic to you, Tirek will not know where it has gone.” Celestia was about to say more when Cadance cut in.

“Wait... what about Stardust?” Cadance asked, looking at the others with a frown.

“What about Stardust?” Jason asked, raising his eyebrow, “If you’re worried about Tirek getting my alicorn magic, he shouldn’t be able to unless I turn into him. It just occured to me, couldn’t we ask Xemnas for his help? I mean the guy’s powerful and I doubt Tirek knows about him.”

“That would be a good idea,” Luna started, “If we knew Tirek couldn’t take his magic. As it is, Xemnas rivals us in terms of power and it would only hurt us if Tirek took it. For now it is best if he remain in his prison.”

“Now... are you ready, Twilight?” Celestia asked, looking down at Twilight. The purple alicorn took in a deep breath before nodding her head.

“Taking on this task will be one of the most difficult things I'll ever do, but with the help of my friends–”

“I'm sorry, Princess Twilight, but you must keep your new abilities a secret,” Celestia cut in, “I fear that your friends being aware of your new power could put them at great risk. Do you still think you can take on this responsibility?”

Twilight frowned before nodding her head, her resolve still strong, “This is the role I am meant to play as a princess of Equestria! I will not fail to do my duty!”

Celestia nodded, “Then we must begin at once.” The three senior alicorns all faced Twilight, each charging up their horns. After a moment they fired a beam of magic directly above her, forming it into a bright orb. Just looking at it made Jason wince and look away. A fourth beam came down from the orb, hitting Twilight’s horn, sending the collected magic into her. When Jason looked back, the three senior alicorns all wore tired faces, their flanks bare, though Luna still looked like someone spilled ink on her ass. Twilight was hovering in the air, surrounded by a white aura, her eye glowing white. 

“Oookay, Twilight just went Super Saiyan,” Jason joked, mostly to himself, watching as Twilight returned to normal. She seemed normal, though seemed rather dazed. She ran over to Celestia the two exchanging a hug.

“It is done...” Celestia said rather tiredly, looking like she was going to collapse. “You two should return home. Tirek will be here soon...”

“We’ll get through this, everyone got that?” Jason asked as he looked them over, hoping that the cold feeling in his stomach wasn’t some sort of foreshadowing. 





“Jason, the sun’s only just come up, why are you pestering me about this kind of thing?” Megan asked with a yawn as she sipped at her coffee. Jason had barged into her room at the crack of dawn and begun to pester her about Tirek, mostly how she had managed to defeat him.

“Mom, I really need you to tell me everything you remember about him,” Jason pressed, leaning in rather close, hoping to show how important this was.

“Jason, I beat him with the Rainbow of Light and as you can see,” she lifted up her amulet, popping it open, revealing it to be empty, “I don’t have it any more. Why the sudden interest, anyway?” she asked, raising an eyebrow as she sipped at her coffee.

Jason sighed, shaking his head, “Nothing you need to worry about at the moment mom, just... be ready for anything, okay?” 

Megan blinked, not having expected him to get so serious, “Of course, Jason. You be careful, alright?” she asked, watching him exit the room, leaving her alone in the dining hall with the various staff members. 





Shining Armor blinked as he looked up at the sun, which was zigzagging around the sky. A sudden pop broke his train of thought and he suddenly found himself staring Discord in the face, the spirit wearing his helmet. 

“Shining Armor, why, whatever are you doing here?” Discord asked, though Shining could immediately tell something was wrong. Discord’s smile seemed... forced and hollow, and his eyes had a rather glazed look to them.

“Back off, traitor!” Shining snorted, jumping back, assuming a fighting stance.

“The only one Discord betrayed was himself,” Tirek cut in, sucking the magic from a guard before dropping him to the ground, “Abandoning his true nature to make friends with weak-minded equines who offer him nothing!” Shining fired a blast of magic at Tirek, only for the centaur to collect the blast into an orb, which he promptly swallowed. Tirek smirked, grabbing the stallion by the muzzle and draining the magic out of him.

Shining Armor collapsed to the ground, groaning. He turned to Discord, barely conscious,  “How... could you... do this...?” he asked before blacking out with a moan. 

Discord’s eyes widened at the sight, a spark going off in his mind. This wasn’t right, perhaps he could still– Discord grunted in pain, shaking his head vigorously. 

“Why dont you go and have a little fun?” Tirek suggested, putting his arm around Discord, “I won’t stand in your way.” With that he turned, leaving the brainwashed spirit to do as he ‘pleased’. “What a weak minded fool,” Tirek muttered to himself, making his way to the throne room, draining any ponies he encountered along the way. He burst into the throne room, tossing the doors to the side as he moved over to the princesses. He lifted them up and proceeded to suck out her magic, only... “What have you done?!” he moved onto the next and then the last, only for nothing. “Where is your magic?!” 





Twilight groaned, having teleported herself into a crack in a large rock. “And my teleporting was just starting to get under control...”

“Princess Twilight!” a loud voice commanded, instantly getting her attention. 

“Tirek!” she gasped, her mind racing.

“You have something that belongs to me!” Tirek bellowed. Twilight took a deep breath, doing her best to calm herself before she burst out of the rock, utterly destroying it. She zipped past Tirek and made a quick u-turn, trying to land. She skidded across the ground, eventually bumping into something. She looked up, gulping as Tirek glared down at her. She quickly backed away, trying to come up with a plan. 

“You're going to give me what I want!” Tirek asserted, opening up his mouth. Twilight seized the chance, teleporting on top of the library. She quickly grabbed her telescope, zooming in on Tirek, watching as he fired a blast of magic directly at her. She dove into the library just as the blast hit, only for it to bounce off the tree’s protective wards and fly back, hitting him in the face.

“Ha!” Twilight shouted, triumphantly, “They said I was daft to put so many wards on the library! Who's laughing now, huh!? Nopony blows up my home!” she taunted, doing a little dance before remembering her current situation. She teleported directly into Tirek’s face, unleashing a massive blast of magic, which blew him back and carved out a path in the ground. Tirek emerged from the blast, seemingly unharmed.

“Now I see what your fellow–” he started, going to be interrupted as a smaller blast of magic went off in his face.

“Hey jackass,” Jason called, sword in hand, decked out in his armor. “She’s not alone.” He conjured up another Flare, which Tirek easily caught between his fingers, then popped it in his mouth. “Well fuck. OK, let’s try this. Omnitrix, Second Sight,” he commanded, shifting into his Mewtwo form. He tapped the Omnitrix, shifting into Mega Mewtwo Y. He flew into the air, calling down a Thunderbolt, causing Tirek to growl in frustration. 


“I don’t know what manner of creature you are, but I will have my prize!” the centaur roared, charging at them both. Jason focused his mind before throwing his hands out, hitting Tirek with Psychic. Tirek grunted, pushing against the telekinetic force, slowed but not stopped.

“Any time you want to go, Twilight,” Jason grunted, pushing the centaur back with as much power as he could muster. 

“Oh, right!” Twilight called back before firing off another blast of magic, aiming it into Tirek’s face. He let out a scream of rage, slapping the blast away, and sending out a magic pulse that disrupted Jason’s Psychic. Jason let out a cry, holding his head as the feedback sent a shock of pain throughout his body. Tirek took the opportunity to backhand him, sending the ailing pokemon hurtling into a nearby mountain. 

“Son of a bitch...” Jason groaned, shaking his head, trying to focus. He floated out of the crater he made in the mountain, sighing as he watched Twilight and Tirek trade blows. He used Bulk Up on himself before flying at Tirek. He drew his fist back, before slamming it into Tirek’s jaw, using Dynamic Punch. The blow staggered the centaur, sending him reeling. “On my mark, Twilight,” Jason called, grabbing the dazed centaur up in his telekinetic grip and flying high into the air. He reached near orbit, spinning Tirek around a few times before hurling him back to earth. “Now!” he thought-shouted as Tirek neared the ground. Twilight bolted into the air, firing a blast of magic that slammed Tirek into the ground, burying him under several tons of dirt.

“Think that got him?” Twilight asked between pants, looking up at Jason as descended to the ground. Before he could reply, a blast of magic tore out of the ground, cutting a circular pattern around them.

“No Twilight, I don’t think that got him,” Jason replied, grabbing Twilight and dashing to safety just as Tirek ripped out of the ground with a roar of pure fury. “This guy’s a fucking damage sponge. Ugh, I feel like I’m playing Fallout 3. I swear to Yggdrasil If I have to shoot that guy in the foot to kill him I’m going to scream.”

Twilight growled, firing off another blast of magic, with Jason adding in a Hyper Beam. Tirek responded in kind, the three beams slamming into each other, their power collecting until it burst outward in a massive explosion. A few moments of silence passed before the three of them emerged from the rubble, all looking rather battered and worn.

“It appears we are at an impasse. How about a trade, Princess Twilight?” Tirek’s horns glowed and a moment later, the rest of the Element Bearers appeared, suspended in bubbles, along with Spike, Megan, Nightmare Moon, and Discord. “Their release for all the Alicorn magic in Equestria.”

“Mom!” Jason shouted, reverting back to normal. He let out a scream of rage and before Twilight could stop him, he leapt at the centaur, sword held high. Tirek reached out and swatted the raging jotun out of the air, the sudden motion sending Laevateinn tumbling away. 

“I’m not sure what you are but I can feel the magic in you,” Tirek commented, watching in amusement as the Omnitrix scanned him, “And that device on your wrist, it has more power than I had thought possible.” Before Jason could recover, Tirek leaned down and began to inhale both his magic and all the power that the Omnitrix possessed. Jason blinked as the world started to fade, the sounds dulled, the colors starting to bleed. He took one last breath before he collapsed and the icy grasp of death took him. 





Jason groaned as he came to, looking around. He found himself in a rather desolate field, with shriveled plants littering the ground and a mist obscuring his vision. “Hello?” he called out, getting to his feet. “This is Niflheim isn’t it? I died...?” He frowned, a mix of emotions washing over him. On one hand he was rather satisfied that he had died in battle and on the other well... he was dead.


“Aye, that you did youngling, rather weakly if you ask me,” a booming voice commented from above him. He turned, his eyes widening as he looked up at the speaker. Towering over him stood a giant of incomprehensible size.

“Y-ymir,” he stuttered out, backing away slightly, all other emotions drowned out by utter awe.

“Yes, I was the first of our kind, and I had hoped the inheritor of our legacy would have put up a better fight,” Ymir scoffed, looking down at him. 

“‘Tis not his fault he had his life force taken from him,” another voice spoke, this one belonging to a rather tall old man with a long grey beard and one missing eye. 

“Lord Odin,” Jason said, staring for a moment before dropping to a knee in respect.

“Nay Corypheus, rise,” Odin commanded, beckoning the young man to his feet. “We have watched you ever since you first left Midgard and I am proud to say that you have surpassed all expectations.” Odin looked him over before presenting his spear to Jason. “I never thought this would come to pass, but you, one of the last jotun, have shown your worth and have earned the right to succeed me.”

“Succeed you? I don’t...” Jason stared for a moment before Ymir boomed down at him.

“Just take the spear already!”

“Aye Corypheus,” Odin added with a nod, “Take Gungnir and with it my power, it belongs to you now.”

Jason stared for a second more before reaching out, wrapping his hand around the spear. He let out a gasp of pain as power leapt from the spear, his body feeling like it was on fire. 

“Take this power, Corypheus, return to the battlefield, and show your enemy your true power.” Odin commanded as the world started to fade to white.

“And this time, don’t die,” Ymir added.





“Tirek!” a very familiar voice shouted, causing the centaur to pause. He felt more powerful than he ever had before and it felt amazing. So when he looked down at Megan, holding a sword in her trembling hands, eyes bloodshot, he couldn’t help but laugh.

“You still think you can play hero, hag? I do believe you're well past your prime, dear Megan,” he taunted, his voice echoing for miles.

“Shut up!” she shouted, tears streaming down her face, “You killed my son!”

“So I did, he should have known better than to challenge me,” Tirek said with a snort, glaring down at her. “You know, I never did pay you back for last time.” He smirked, starting to charge up a spell, only for a spear to whiz through the air and implant itself in one of his horns, disrupting it. Jason stood next to Megan, panting a little.

“J-jason? You’re alive?” Megan asked, looking at him with wide eyes, threatening to burst into tears.


“Yeah, but I’m on borrowed time here, so we’ll talk later,” the jotun said before holding his hand out, the spear returning to his grasp. “You stay safe,” he commanded just as Tirek fired off a blast of magic. Jason blocked it with the spear, hurling it back into Tirek’s face.

“How do you still have magic?!” Tirek demanded, drawing his fist back and slamming it down, only for Jason to jump out of the way.

“I acquired what can best be called the Odin Force, the powers of a god,” Jason explained as he leapt high into the air, slamming his fist into Tirek’s face. The massive minotaur let out a cry, holding his now broken nose, several massive drops of blood falling to the ground. 

“You insolent whelp!” Tirek sneered, healing his nose. He let out a snort, glaring down at the jotun, “Your soul is mine!” he declared, charging, his hooves cracking the ground as he moved.

“You’re not cool enough for that line, asshole,” Jason glared. He moved forward, planting Gungnir into the ground, launching himself into Tirek’s stomach. Tirek wheezed, backing up, clutching his stomach. Jason ran up to one of his gigantic legs and heaved, tossing the centaur to the ground. To be honest, all the power felt good but it couldn’t stay like this for long. It was too much all at once and if he didn’t have his magic returned to him soon, the godly power inside of him would burn his body out. 

“You will pay for that,” Tirek spat as he got to his hooves, looking absolutely pissed. Before either of them could react, a bright ball of light rose into the air, with six ponies inside of it. Triek stared for a moment, firing a blast of magic at them, only for it to do nothing. “How is this possible?! You have no magic!”

“You're wrong, Tirek!” Twilight countered, flying high with the rest of the Elements, each looking rather ridiculous by even pony standards. “I may have given you my alicorn magic, but I carry within me the most powerful magic of all!” Six differently colored beams fired at the centaur, causing him to stumble back. He gave a grunt, starting to push back against them.

“Nothing you have can defeat me!” Tirek shouted, moving closer to them.

“How about a blast from the past than?” a very, very, very familiar voice called out. He looked down in disbelief at Megan, her youth restored, holding her amulet.

“What? No! You can’t!”

“Who’s too old now, Tirek?” Megan asked as she opened her amulet, unleashing a rainbow that joined with the one the Elements had created. Tirek shouted in disbelief before the double rainbow drained him of all his stolen magic, sending him straight back to Tartarus.

The girls rose up into air, high above Equestria, surrounded by all of the wayward magic. With a loud bang, they burst out, spreading the magic over Equestria. Jason gasped, stumbling back a little as his magic returned to him, pushing the Odin Force down into his bones where it settled. The Omnitrix chirped, reactivating as its power returned.

“You okay?” Megan asked, quickly moving over and hugging her son the best she could.


“Yeah, I’m okay... mom,” Jason said with a smile, patting her head, “So uh... you’re a kid again,” he commented, looking down at his youthened mother, “Any idea how long that’ll last?” 

“No idea, but I hope it’s a while,” she said with a smile.

“Jason!” Chrysalis shouted, slamming into Jason and knocking him over, “Oh sweet Faust, I thought we had lost you,” she sobbed, burying her head into his chest. 

“Hey, that asshole couldn’t keep me down, babe,” Jason assured her, wrapping his arms around her, stroking her mane. Their little moment was ruined as a rainbow ripped out of the ground in the Everfree forest, arcing over toward Ponyville. A moment later the trembling intensified as the Golden Oak Library grew massively, becoming a huge castle, its leaves turning to crystal. “Fuck yeah, tree castle!” Jason shouted, fist pumping. “Take that Ben’s Twilight!”

“We could go check it out, let them all know you’re okay,” Megan suggested, giggling a little at his antics. “I mean, you did kinda just die.”

“Don’t remind me,” Jason said as he got up, brushing himself off, “Shall we?” he asked, holding his arm out to Chrysalis, who giggled, wrapping her hoof around his arm. 

“Yes we shall.” she purred, the three of them making their way back into town. By the time they got to the new castle, the girls were already inside, joined by the princesses , Nightmare Moon and Discord. They were all in the throne room, which had six thrones in a circle, each holding one of the Elements’ cutie marks on it. There was a smaller throne next to Twilight’s, obviously for Spike. 

“Jason!” the girls gasped rushing over to him and giving him a hug. Rarity took it a step further, jumping into his arms, wrapping her forelegs around his neck.

“Don’t you ever, ever, ever do that again, you understand me?” she asked, fighting back tears, planting a kiss on his lips.

“I promise Rares, I won’t,” he assured, stroking her mane. They stayed like this for a few moments before Discord cleared his throat, getting their attention.

“I just... I’m sorry,” he said looking down, wringing his hands.

“Oh but Dissy, it wasn’t your fault,” Fluttershy assured him only for him to shake his head.

“Yes it was, I wasn’t strong enough to fight him and I nearly helped him take over the world! One of my best friends was killed because I was too weak to fight back!” Discord wailed, putting his head in his hands, starting to cry his eyes out. 

“Hey,” Jason said, moving over to him, placing his hand on his arm, “I’m still alive, okay? We all made it out and thats all that matters. No one is going to hold this against you.”

“R-really?” Discord asked, looking at each of them in turn, only for them to silently agree with Jason, “Oh thank you!” Discord cried in joy, pulling them all into a tight hug. The Elements started to glow slightly before a rainbow formed around them. Jason blinked, watching as it zipped out of the castle.

“You see that?” Jason asked Chrysalis, who just rolled her eyes.

“Damn ponies and their rainbows.”





Hel blinked as she looked up from her copy of Romance of The Three Kingdoms, watching as a rainbow zipped through her throne room.

“Was that a rainbow?” Toya asked, looking at Hel, who just shrugged. 

“You know... I can’t help but realize how dreary it is around here. Perhaps I should consider redecorating.”





Eclipse just glared as a rainbow passed over and through her domain, causing her minions to recoil from the light.





The rainbow whizzed through silent Jotunheim, the windigos screeching in celebration of their leader’s triumph.





Ancient eyes watched the rainbow from a throne of brimstone, resolving to punish this intrusion.





No one in Nidavellir saw the rainbow, as they were all underground and missed out on the realm-spanning event. 





The light elves all gathered to watch the rainbow pass overhead. Blueblood watched with an aching heart, wanting nothing more than to go home.





All across Midgard, various news stations reported on the mysterious moving rainbow that had swept across the world. 





The breezies watched in awe as the rainbow passed through Vanaheim, reminding them all of their pony friends. 





“You know, you got a new castle Twi,” Jason said as he looked around the throne room, leaning on a wall, “Fits the town very nicely.”

“Why thank you Jason,” Twilight said with a smile, “You know it’s all a bit overwhelming...” she blinked watching as Jason facepalmed, “What?”

“We completely forgot about Nightmare Moon when we hid away the alicorn magic...” he said with a sigh.

Twilight blinked before facehoofing, “We totally did...” They both looked up as the rainbow flew back in through a window, going off with a flash of light, leaving the room completely decorated for a party. 

“Woo hoo, it worked!” Pinkie shouted, bouncing up and down. 

Rarity groaned, shaking her head. “No! Bad Pinkie! Rainbow Power is not for setting up parties!”

Jason just snickered, closing his eyes, his mind starting to wander through the events of the past few months and how much everything had changed. He thought back to that day he had decided to go to a con. A smile grew across his face as he watched his loved ones. “And you know what? I’m glad I did.”

> After And Then There Were 10...Er...67
> --------------------------------------------------------------------------

Jason sighed as he relaxed, lounging around lazily on Rarity’s throne. About a week had passed since Tirek’s rampage and things had settled down quite nicely. The biggest changes where Megan, who was now around Jason’s age and seemed to have stabilized there, and Twilight’s new tree castle, which was just awesome. 

“You know, I’m trying to polish the throne, Jason,” Rarity said, giving him an annoyed look as she looked up from her work. 

“I can see that,” he said as he placed his legs over the side, letting out a fake yawn.

“Now you're just being spiteful.” Rarity glared at him, a pout forming on her face.

Before they could continue, a stallion wearing a blue uniform trotted in, pulling a cart of books behind him. “Excuse me princess,” he started, giving her a smile, “Where do you want all these books from Princess Celestia?”

Twilight didn’t look up from her papers. “The library,” she gestured with her hoof. “Third door on the left.”

“Even this one that's glowing and vibrating?” 

That made Twilight look up, to see that indeed, at the very top, was a vibrating book, flashing purple every so often. She levitated it down, flipping it open.

“What is it, Twilight?” Fluttershy asked as the rest of the girls trotted over. Jason sat up on the throne but was otherwise too lazy to investigate.

“It looks like a message to Princess Celestia from my friends at Canterlot High!” Twilight exclaimed, a look of shock on her face.

“How is that even possible?” Rarity questioned, giving her wings a light buzz. 

“I have no idea but...” Twilight’s eyes widened, “It looks like they need my help.” Twilight closed the book before gesturing for them to follow her. Jason sighed as he got up, joining in.  After a few minutes, Twilight pulled a book off the shelf. “The way Sunset Shimmer described them, I think these new girls sound an awful lot like... the sirens.”

Jason groaned, running a hand down his face.

“What?” Rarity asked, raising her eyebrow at her husband’s behavior. 

“I’m just trying to figure out why things from Greek mythology keep appearing in a universe based off Norse myth.” He shook his head, looking at Twilight. “But you continue, I’ll save any more comments for the end.”

“Er... thank you,” Twilight said before clearing her throat and beginning the tale. The Sirens had used their voices to cause chaos, feeding on the negative emotions to become stronger. Then, Star Swirl showed up and kicked them into another world. At least, that's what Jason got of of the story. 

“But Star Swirl must’a sent ‘em there ages ago. How come they’re just surfacin’ now?” Applejack asked once Twilight was done with her tale, frowning a little. 

“I don't know. But if my hunch is right and it is the sirens who have come to Canterlot High, this spell they've cast is just the beginning. My friends need me. I have to get back to them.” Twilight proclaimed, walking toward a very odd looking mirror.

“I hate to burst your bubble, Twilight, but the connection between their world and Equestria will still be totally cut off for a super long time.” Rainbow Dash reminded, hovering in the air. She went to land, only to frown, looking at her talons, deciding not to scratch up the floor.

“Okay, first of all, if there was bubble-blowing going on, why wasn't I told about it?!” Pinkie demanded, zipping in between the two, “And secondly, if the connection is totally cut off, how was Sunset Shimmer able to get a message to Twilight?”

Twilight gasped, a smile appearing on her face. “Pinkie! You’re a genius!” she shouted before dashing away.

Pinkie smirked. “Yeah, I get that a lot,” she said before pulling Dash down so they were muzzle to muzzle, “Now about those bubbles...” she started, giving Dash an intense look before she turned to watch Twilight walk by, the alicorn carrying several strange objects in her magic.

“Let me help,” Jason said, shifting into Grey Matter, leaping onto Twilight’s back. The collected ponies, and dragon, watched as the two bickered and argued over what went where until they had constructed a strange machine around the mirror.

“...And the interval between the two points is defined as the square root of the sum of the squares of the separation between the points along three spatial dimensions.” Twilight proclaimed to their audience, smiling at them.

“Yeah, I don’t think they get it,” Jason said, tapping the Omnitrix and returning to normal. He rubbed his neck, looking back at the mirror, “Think it works?”

“Thats what we’re going to test.” Twilight lit her horn up, grabbing the book up in her magic and placed it on the machine. Immediately, magic rose up out of the book and into the machine. They let out a collective ‘aww’ as it roared to life and soon the mirror's glass was replaced with a swirling purple vortex.

“Don't suppose we could join you this time around?” Applejack asked, with her and the other girls giving a hopeful smile.

Twilight gave them a smile but shook her head, “Better not. It could make things pretty confusing if Canterlot High all of a sudden had two of all of you.”

They exchanged glances before nodding in agreement.

“But I still get to go, right?” Spike asked, waddling up to Twilight, “There isn't another one of me at Canterlot High. And you never know if you might need your trusty assistant.”

Twilight gave him a smile and nod.

“Yes!” he smiled, fist pumping.

“Well, sounds like fun, count me in,” Jason said, looking at the portal. “I don’t have anything planned.”

“I dunno Jason,” Twilight said with a frown, “Are you sure?”

“Oh, just let him go, Twilight,” Rarity said, primping her mane. “If anything, it’ll let me get my cleaning done.” She fixed Jason with a glare, which he returned with a smirk.

“Well that settles that, then. Shall we?” Jason asked, moving up to the portal, looking over his shoulder to see Twilight and the girls sharing a hug. He couldn't help but smile, shaking his head, “Typical ponies.”  After a moment, Twilight separated from the girls and she and Spike raced through the portal. “Well that’s my cue, tell Chrissy what I’m up to Rares.” Jason instructed before moving through the portal himself.