Twilight takes a break from traveling with the Doctor to visit the Crystal Empire with Spike. So imagine her surprise when the Doctor pops up with a different face, different companions, and a whole new threat.
Twilight takes a break from traveling with the Doctor to visit the Crystal Empire with Spike. So imagine her surprise when the Doctor pops up with a different face, different companions, and a whole new threat.
This follows the Twilight in Number 12 by Squeak Anon, but is not canon with the universe he has built upon. Though you may notice something that will be important in Traveler, it has no bearing on that story.
It was a beautiful, quiet morning in the Crystal Empire. Celestia's sun was shining with barely any blockage from clouds. Only a slight, unseasonal chill could detract from the weather, but at this time of day, even having a slight chill couldn't dampen the mood.
The way the sunlight glistened off the crystal buildings was a sight to behold, with the light bouncing off the taller, more angular buildings like prisms, creating a network of rainbow in select sections of the town. This was a rare sight that could only be seen when the sun was in just the right position and only at the Crystal Empire, and anypony, or any dragon for that matter, would be awestruck at the beauty of such a sight.
Such was the case for Twilight Sparkle and Spike, who were walking down the streets of the great city on their way to the palace.
"Man, I wish Ponyville could have mornings like this!" Spike said, as he sat on Twilight's back, biting into a decent-sized sapphire.
"I know Spike. Princess Cadance and Shining Armor definitely have had great luck when it comes to beauty in their kingdom. It's a shame we can't stand and enjoy it, but with Cadance going to meet with Princess Celestia and Princess Luna to discuss specifics on how to handle the empire's reintegration into Equestrian society, Shining Armor could use a helping hoof to make sure he doesn't get bogged down on his temporary duties."
"It's paperwork, Twilight. I doubt he's going to need any help with it."
"You don't know him like I do. He may be a BBBFF, but that didn't make him very good at keeping his room straight. I figured guard training would have fixed things, but I guess they glossed over that part of the training."
Spike shrugged and tossed his remaining piece of the sapphire into the air, catching it in his mouth.
When he finally finished with it, he said, "Well with any luck it'll be a light two days. I'm looking forward to being able to relax here."
Twilight turned her head with a raised eyebrow. "Relax? Spike, we're guests here. It is only proper that we honor our hosts by doing our duties to the fullest. If there isn't much, I think we should take it upon ourselves to help get a jump start on some of the developing projects, or reorganize their library, or --"
"Um, Twilight..." Spike was getting nervous. This was beginning to sound like he'd made a mistake in choosing not to run the library.
"Just kidding Spike," she said with a wink. "Believe me, I could actually use a lighter time after the last couple adventures with the Doctor."
"Tell me about it! I don't even travel and the few experiences that you guys have in the current time wear me out. It's still weird how he flies around in that blue box of his. And how he can time travel. And how he keeps it in our basement."
"It's just a good hiding place, Spike. In any case, he's off on his own so hopefully he figures out how to have nice, relaxing trips through history while he's gone. It actually feels kind of strange not to be with him while he gallavants through time and space, but I'm sure we'll see him soon enou-"
As she was finishing her sentence, the familiar sound of the TARDIS came into her ears. A quick glance to the left, and it was clear what was coming into view.
"*sigh* Just when I was getting some time to actually miss him, here he comes following me." Twilight chuckled to herself. "Well, it must be a big deal if he's flagging me down, let's see what he's got for us to do."
"Got for you to do, you mean," Spike muttered as they approached the blue box.
It only took a few moments for the door to open and reveal the... not Doctor. Instead of the normal brown pony with the sharp blue suit, the pair were greeted by a lighter-colored brown pegasus that neither had seen before. He had deep brown, almost reddish hair for a mane, and was wearing one of the strangest outfits Twilight had ever seen. Study of past international fashions told her the plaid thing around his hip was a kilt, and he wore a white, open-collared shirt as well.
"Um... who are you?" Twilight finally asked after the two stood open-mouthed for about 10 seconds.
The new pony looked at her with a look of awe before breaking out into a deep, hearty laugh. When he finally calmed down he said. "Ay, Zoe! It looks like we're not the only ones who are ponies! An' there's wee dragons here too! Come meet the locals!"
"Hey!" Spike said to the response of no one. He and Twilight watched as the pony seemed to look at his hooves like he wasn't sure which to walk with.
As he stepped out, he revealed a female, who Twilight assumed was this 'Zoe,' and she looked distraught. She seemed like she barely had control of her ability to walk. This pony was yellow with a goofy brown manecut that looked like some of the cuts Twilight had seen in her mother's old yearbooks. Despite it looking out of place in modern times, though, Twilight had to admit it suited her somehow. As she stepped out of the TARDIS, Zoe looked at the pony and dragon in front of her before shaking her head and addressing the stallion.
"Jamie, this is serious. We've been a lot of places, but we've never had our bodies changed when we traveled!"
"Just stay calm, Zo. The Doctor will sort things out. Just relax a minute and enjoy the ride!"
"ENJOY THE RIDE?! I was raised on The Wheel with a sense of reason, and turning into a horse does not qualify as 'reasonable.' DOCTOR! GET OUT HERE!"
At this point, Twilight wanted answers from the Doctor as well. Unfortunately, as he came out, there were even more questions raised, as the pony who emerged was not the Doctor she knew. This Doctor had a grey coat with a black mane that looked like a dust mop. His eyes had circles underneath, but he was still fairly young. He was a little wider and slightly shorter than before, his cutie mark had changed so that more time in the hourglass was in the top than the bottom, and his suit had changed to a simple black blazer and a blue dress shirt. He looked like a stowaway on a train more than the Doctor.
"Now, just come down Zoe. Jamie has the right idea. I think exploring would be quite nice right now if I do say - oh hello, there! Nice to meet you! I'm the Doctor..." he said as he shook the hoof of a dumbstruck, speechless Twilight.
***1967 theme music - Following title crawl: 'The Yeti of Equestria', then 'Written by SeanNetFiction', finally 'Part 1'***
Twilight stood there gasping at the air trying to find the right words for this incomprehensible sequence of events. Thankfully, Spike was not so stunned silent.
"You... are not the Doctor."
This earned a look from the Doctor like the dragon had gone barking. "What? Yes I am."
"No, you aren't. I've met the Doctor and he looks nothing like you."
"He's right. Who exactly are you? And what have you done with the Doctor?!" Twilight said, finding her speech again.
The Doctor leaned in with a slight eyebrow raise. "Have we met before? I feel like I would have remembered coming to a planet of ponies and lizards, but then again, maybe you never were a pony and a lizard."
"WHAT?!" the two said at once.
"Well, maybe you were a different species last we met, like I am now, and I don't recognize you because you've advanced into a new stage of your life cycle, though species that turn into earth-esque equines and lizards just sounds silly. Maybe you all have been changed and just haven't realized it ye-"
"Dragon."
"What's that?"
"I. Am. A. Dragon." Spike said, a little flustered at this imposter-Doctor.
"Are you really? Oh that's just fascinating! The humans used to be so fixated on the existence of dragons, so maybe you're the species that inspired them. Though you are a bit small. You must be younger."
"Hold on a minute! Focus here, fake Doctor! You pop in here with the TARDIS at random when I've never seen you befo-"
"Now I have to stop you. How do you know of my TARDIS?"
"Yeah, I'd startin' ta' think you all have forced us here. Get behind me, Zoe. I don't want you gettin' into danger if we all come to blows," the one called Jamie said.
"Oh, honestly. I can handle myself Jamie!" Zoe said.
"Calm down you two. There's no need to make any rash assumptions. These two seem to have seen my TARDIS and have met me before, but I have no recollection of this event, so the answer is quite obvious!"
"IT IS?" everyone besides the Doctor said.
"Of course." And with that, the Doctor pulled out a recorder and began trying to play it, stumbling over himself as he tried to get the notes right with his hooves.
After a few tries and a few steps, he pulled the recorder out of his mouth and said aloud to himself, "This was much easier with fingers. Now I'll have to practice all over again to accommodate these bloody hooves."
As he returned to playing and exploring the area around the TARDIS, Jamie and Zoe began whispering and speculating on what went wrong with the last trip and how they ended up as ponies. No other planet had ever altered their species, and they wondered how peaceful the planet was.
Twilight and Spike, however, were beside themselves. This pony claiming to be the Doctor answered no questions and had just walked away like nothing was happening. At this point, Twilight's best guess was that the trio were nothing more than a random group of escaped wackjobs who had somehow managed to get inside an open TARDIS and set the thing into motion.
I'd better tell him to lock his box better when I track him down.
But then that made no sense. These ponies seemed to think they weren't ponies. Are they aliens? Who are these people? And why does this 'Doctor' continue to poorly play that incessant recorder?! That was all Twilight could take and she suddenly began galloping to the grey pony. It was all Spike could do to keep from falling off.
She used her magic to confiscate the recorder, and when he turned, he was looking right into her glare.
"Who are you and what is going on?"
"How are you doing that?"
"Doing what?"
"Holding my recorder in mid air like that."
"It's a spell I used the magic in my horn to-- STOP THAT! Start answering my questions before I lose my mind!"
"Magic, you say? You mean magic is a real manipulator of elements here? Incredible! Now, what were your questions again?"
Twilight was about ready to punch this pony. "Who. Are. You?"
"I. Am. The. Doctor."
"How can you be the Doctor? The Doctor I know is brown, younger and looks nothing like you."
The Doctor frowned slightly. "Oh, so I'm brown in this time? What a shame, I'd have loved to have a unique, pastel look like you have."
Twilight's eye was twitching and Spike was beginning to massage her shoulders in an attempt to keep her from going off on him.
"Well, to answer your question, miss, um..."
"Twilight Sparkle. And I'm Spike," Spike answered for her.
"Twilight Sparkle, eh? Well that's a... unique name," the Doctor said as he raised his hoof to his mane. "Well, to answer your question, Miss Sparkle, the simple answer is that the Doctor you've met is the Doctor I will be in the future."
At last, Twilight had an answer. And it only raised another. "What?"
"Has your Doctor said anything about regeneration?"
"Yes, he has. He said that he did it before coming here. When he's about to expire his body heals itself and... changes shape! So that's what he meant! But you look REALLY different. I didn't think the change was that drastic."
"Oh you'd be surprised with what you get with regenerations. I was an old fuddy-duddy before I regenerated into this much more fun-loving form! But seeing as I know all of my past regenerations, I can only assume the one you know is from the future ones."
"But then, why don't you remember me?"
"Ah, an excellent question! I can see why I hang around you. You see, recently I was held on trial by the Time Lord High Council for stealing a TARDIS and..."
"Wait, wait, wait. You mean to tell me that I've been flying around in a STOLEN vehicle?!"
"Not stolen. Commandeered. I got tired of simply being an observer of time on Gallifrey and decided I needed to explore the universe. But the Time Lords eventually caught up with me and found me guilty. They adjusted the memories of my friends over there and sentenced me to exile.
"My true sentencing will begin soon, but before they did so they asked me to do a few missions on their behalf. The most recent one proved quite difficult, so I requested Jamie and Zoe's memories of me be restored temporarily to help me. We succeeded, but for some reason, the TARDIS malfunctioned on re-entry back to Gallifrey and that's how we wound up here."
At this point, Twilight and Spike were seated trying to keep this whole situation straight.
"As for why I don't remember you in my current regeneration, my memories of these extra missions will most likely be adjusted as well before I am regenerated and sent to Earth for my exile, so I may well not remember this little excursion for very long myself."
"So your people have the power to just adjust people's minds?" Spike asked.
"Only with special machinery and it needs to be agreed upon by the Court."
"DOCTOR! IS EVERYTHING OK OVER THERE?" Zoe yelled from the TARDIS about 50 feet away.
"JUST FINE. COULD YOU TWO COME HERE?"
Twilight felt like she needed to ask the next question, and to her, there was only one that needed to be asked next.
"So let's say I just accept everything you just said. The question still remains why you're here at all."
"Well, assuming that our trip wasn't completely accidental, which I assume it's not because the Time Lords would have probably been able to pick us out by now had we been thrown off by a glitch, then I would assume it's because something serious has happened that needs our intervention. So now you can answer me a question: Has anything around here been unusual and troublesome lately?"
By this point Jamie and Zoe had come over. Twilight began to think of the news around the kingdom for anything out of the ordinary. "Not really. The last threat to any area was beaten a few weeks ago. At this point, the most off thing right now is the weather in this city."
"Really? How's so?"
"It's unseasonably cold right now, but the pegasi haven't done anything to cool things down, so it's happening naturally. I just assumed its the last remnants from the last invasion of King Sombra."
The Doctor had begun walking around, now having a more serious expression on his face, like he was deep in thought. "I'm not sure what happened with this Sombra character, but if its the most odd occurrence then that's what we'll have to start with."
"It does look like summer here, and I certainly don't remember feeling like I needed more clothes in the summers we traveled to on Earth, so you may be right," Zoe added.
"So where should we go then?" Jamie asked.
"I'd say the best option would be to ask Princess Cadance, who is the leader of this area, but since she's on royal business, we'll have to ask my brother, Shining Armor. He's Captain of the Equestrian Royal Guard and Cadance's husband."
"Oh, I didn't realize we were addressing royalty then! Pleasure to make yer acquaintance, m'lady."
Twilight actually had to blush at this. Though she was technically royal be married blood now, it hadn't even crossed her mind until that moment. "That's ok, really. I don't think of myself that way. I'm Twilight Sparkle, by the way, and this is Spike."
"Jamie McCrimmon at yer service!"
"I'm Zoe Heriot. Nice to meet you."
"Well, now that introductions are out of the way, how about we meet your brother?" The Doctor said.
"Ok then. I'm late as it is. Follow me, everypony!"
And with that, the four ponies and one dragon walked the last half-mile to the Crystal Palace.
Deep underground, directly beneath the Crystal Empire, sat an elaborate room that was as impressive to the scientific mind as it was terrifying to most minds. It was an area isolated from the rest of the world. Where any noise made would simply echo and never make it to the surface. The walls were gray and damp, and made from brick covered in a metal no pony had probably ever seen. It reflected minimal light and was very apt at keeping any heat out.
Throughout the room were dozens of large machines that shamed all but the top of Equestria's scientific research divisions. Most were confined to the room, but some had pipes that carried through to neighboring chambers. And some led to rooms that the scientist residing here hoped he'd never have to enter.
The enclosed chamber had very little light, as it was powered entirely by candle flame. It was the only heat available for the professor. Prof. Micro Scope had not spent all his years studying biology of the rarest species across Equestria in order to get such an uncomfortable location, but when the prospect of money and power are involved, you make compromises.
Scope had a small rodent in a glass cage with an opening at the top for air now closed. Covering the rodent and beginning to fill the rest of the space in the box was a mysterious substance that appeared to be a liquid. It had only filled a small box the size of a child's building block initially, but like all other experiments, it had absorbed all the space in the cage very shortly.
"How go the experiments?" Commodore Charcoal asked.
"Same as always, the liquid absorbs everything in its path. These specially enchanted boxes remain the only thing that can hold it," Prof. Scope said.
"And of the subject in the cage?"
"You mean before it gets overrun? Same as with all test subjects, ponies and other creatures alike. Upon contact with the liquid, the animal becomes aggressive and enraged. Are you sure about this plan? It seems far too risky?"
"First of all, you know as well as I do that it is not my plan, but yes I do support it. For far too long I have sat around taking orders from Celestia when I could be in control and giving them. This Crystal Empire is a perfect testing ground for when we go after Canterlot and the rest of Equestria.
"And why wouldn't you want to be part of this? Think about it. Once our boss seizes control, we will have full obedience from all creatures. You will be able to study the world without interference. You will have total ability to manipulate the world to your will. Well, all but me and our boss."
Scope nodded along. "I suppose you're right. For too long, the alicorns' control has granted them the advantage. I would like to see the look on Celestia's face when she realizes her defeat."
"And we will both see that soon. This Crystal Empire was a great, large location for all of our equipment to be hidden, and the recent cold spell from Sombra has left them thinking it's residual magic. Have our unicorn subjects been keeping up with their spells?"
"Yes, the air is being masked so no one notices the cold is coming from under the ground."
Charcoal smiled. "Excellent. It's almost time to move forward with the plan."
The group of ponies approached the entrance of the Crystal Empire's palace. Twilight and Spike waved to ponies who waved at them, but none approached them. Twilight was relieved because she really didn't want to try to explain her walking party until she had to. They came to the guards at the door.
"Who goes there?" Twilight thought she saw a smile from the guard start to flash when he saw her and Spike, but he quickly returned to stoic.
"Twilight Sparkle and Spike to see my brother, Shining Armor. I've brought three ponies who may be of interest to him as well, if that's OK."
"I don't see it being an issue. After all, you did save this entire city," said the guard, now being more casual. "You all may enter. I trust you remember the way to the great hall?"
"Yes, thank you."
With that, Twilight and the others went inside. Jamie was the first to speak.
"So ye saved this entire place before? That's pretty impressive! How'd ye manage that?"
"It was a group effort, actually," Twilight said humbly.
"She went through all kinds of stuff to get the Crystal Heart, which powers the town. When she got stuck she handed it to me, and I gave it to the Princess so she could finish off King Sombra," Spike interrupted. Though he didn't brag about it often in Ponyville, he did see it as one of the coolest contributions he made to a crisis situation.
"Well good for you all! An entire town powered by a crystal, though? It must be immensely powerful," the Doctor commented.
"I don't know of a crystal that could do that, but then again I didn't know there were talking ponies that looked like they were crystals until a few minutes ago," Zoe said.
"That's because of the heart. It gives the ponies that look and they have unique ties to the crystal heart. The last time the heart was taken, Sombra was able to make the entire vanish for more than 1,000 years,"
"1,000 years? That doesn't seem possible. Where did they go?" Zoe asked.
"Sombra wiped their memories completely when they disappeared, and it took the return of the Crystal Heart to return them to normal. As to the time between, no one remembers anything, so I suppose that mystery will remain unsolved."
"It sounds to me like it was some type of suspended animation, though I can't say for sure. That does sound fascinating. Between this heart providing so much power to the town and this Sombra being able to suspend the town for more than a millennium with the heart not being present, there seem to be incredible powers at work here," the Doctor said.
"Well if something powerful is causing problems, I'm sure between all of us, we'll be able to figure it out." Twilight pushed open the door after finishing speaking. Her brother ran up and greeted her.
"Twily! I'm so glad you came by to help me out here. It's the first time you've been able to visit without the fate of a city hanging in the balance."
"Well hopefully that's the case. How have things been over here?"
"Can't complain. The cold weather has been kind of a distraction, but we've been unable to do anything about that. How are you, Spike?"
"It was kind of a long trip, but it's nice to get out of the tree every once in a while," he said.
"I'm sure the townspeople will be happy to see you again. Did you know that-" Shining paused when he realized the grey pony that came in with Twilight was now wandering the room, putting his ear to the walls and ground.
"Um, I thought you might bring your friends, but the friends you brought are a surprise. Who are these ponies, Twilight?"
"Oh, right. Shining, I'd like you to meet Jamie and Zoe, and the pony with no manners over there is the Doctor."
"The Doctor? For Ponyville? What's his name?"
"It's just the Doctor," Zoe said.
"He just calls himself... the Doctor?"
"Aye. It's what we call him," Jamie said.
"And these ponies are friends of yours from Ponyville, Twilight?"
"Well, not exactly from Ponyville, but they think they might be able to help solve the situation with the weather if you'd like their help."
"I'd certainly like to have help with getting the temperature back to normal. Whatever is doing it is beyond my power to control, but I would like to know more about you all before I let you get to w-"
"Excuse me?" the Doctor chimed in from right behind Shining Armor, causing him to jump slightly. "You wouldn't happen to have an air duct around here, would you?"
Shining was taken aback at how this strange pony seemed to just throw aside all protocol and start doing... whatever it was he was doing.
"It's... on the bottom of that wall over there. On the inside curve of the wall."
"So it is. Thank you," the Doctor pulled out his recorder and began trying to play again as he walked over to the vent.
After a moment of processing the encounter, Shining turned back to the group. "What is he doing?"
"Your guess is as good as mine right now," Twilight answered.
"Does he do this often?"
"You mean wander off and explore things? Yes. In fact, this is probably the most straightforward he's been in some time," Zoe answered this time.
"Well I'd rather he not wander the castle doing... whatever that is that he's doing!" Shining turned to see the Doctor was now lying on his stomach with the end of his recorder inside the vent as he tried to play it. He wasn't even trying to play any type of tune now. It was just select notes over and over again.
"Well really, what could he do doing that?" Jamie pointed out.
"He's right, Shining. Besides, I've seen the Doctor in action - kind of - and believe me, his weird ideas sometimes really work out," Spike added.
"Fine, but I don't know how what he's doing is going to help anything."
"Did you know there's a second air vent on the upper wall in the corner?" The Doctor yelled over.
"I- Yes! So?"
"So, I need to get up there! Bring me a ladder!"
"Why should I bring a ladder?! What are you even-"
"I'll levitate him, Shining, don't worry about it. Just go with me on this," Twilight said before turning to the Doctor. "I'll levitate you! Get to the corner!"
She and the Doctor started walking over there. Admittedly, she had no idea what he was doing or even if this Doctor was being helpful. But if what the pony said was true, then she wouldn't know until he actually started doing something.
"OK Twilight, before you send me up I need to ask you, how will you levitate me? With your horn?"
"Yes, I'll use my magic, of course,"
"And when I go up, will I be encased in some sort of energy bubble?"
"Yes, that is how it works," Twilight was a tad confused by the questions here.
"Is it possible for you to levitate me by my backside only?"
"What? Why?"
"I need my front hooves free. Now send me up by my hind legs to the height where I can play into the vent."
"Doctor, what exactly are you-"
"No questions yet, please. I need to know something. Quickly!"
"OK!" Twilight focused her magic and sent him up to the vent about 15 feet up.
The Doctor immediately got to work and took out his sonic screwdriver to pop open the bottom of the vent. He then spent the next minute playing his recorder note by note into the vent. Twilight just held her focus on keeping him up there, knowing that if she shifted her focus on trying to figure him out, she would definitely lose control of the spell and drop him.
"Hmm," the Doctor mused when he finished playing. "It's just as I feared. Twilight, you can bring me down now!"
"What? Oh, OK!"
As she lowered him, the rest of the group came over. They were all gathered by the time the Doctor was back on the ground.
"This cold is not a natural cold."
"We kind of figured that," Shining replied dismissively.
"No, no! I mean the cold air is being manufactured underground. The cold air is coming out of all the air vents in this palace, and I would assume the entire kingdom!"
"Are you saying that this entire cold weather thing is a draft being let in?" Spike asked.
"But that doesn't make sense Doctor. Wouldn't everyone notice the source was the cold air coming through their own vents? It feels like its just swirling around out here," Zoe said.
"A good point, which is why I listened to the ground below. There is a slightly higher vibration underground than there is in the walls. It's minor, but I've been well-versed at sensing these mini-tremors.
"As to how they didn't notice, there appears to be some kind of factor being implemented on all the vents to make the air feel non-existent. The vent is certainly cold, but there is a small pocket about six inches outside both of these vents where air isn't felt. It's like a force field of invisibility."
"Is that why you were using your recorder?" Twilight asked.
"Exactly. When I blew my recorder outside of everything, the notes came out normally. When I put it in the vent and played, the air experienced intense resistance, so my notes were muffled slightly. And when I played with the recorder in the field, no noise came out, I couldn't even feel the air against my hands, er, hooves."
"So whatever is underneath the city is what's causing the cold," Shining said.
"Well it won't be fer long. I say we head on down and take care of this!" Jamie said.
"Hold on! If something is down there, then I want my guards heading down there to explore it," Shining said.
"Oh there is no time for that! You're as bad as the Brigadier," the Doctor complained.
"I'm sorry Doctor, but I'm not putting anypony at risk besides my guards on this mission."
"Well I want to volunteer! The Doctor will need someone who he can trust to give him information," Jamie said.
Shining looked apprehensive, but then relented when he saw everyone - even Spike and Twilight - give him a look to let him go. "Fine, but you will stay with the group at all times. I don't see why you can't take my guards' word for it, but the group will leave in 15 minutes for the passage underneath the palace."
As Shining left, Twilight approached Jamie and the Doctor. "Are you sure this is the right decision? Shining Armor's guards could look for whatever it is you're looking for."
"I'd rather someone I can trust handle it. We've dealt with beings underground in cold climates before. If someone's keeping something underground and putting out this kind of effort, it's something big. I want to know what is down there and I trust Jamie to pick up details that I can't teach guards in 15 minutes."
"Yah, don't worry 'bout me, Twilight. I've dealt with far worse things an' survived them all," Jamie reassured her.
"OK, well you'd better get down there. Shining will have his team outfitted with armor and radios soon enough."
"All right, you guys know the drill. Get down there. Figure out what the problem is and report back to me," Shining said before turning to Jamie. "If there's any trouble, use your wings and get out of there. I really don't want to risk having you down there."
"I'll be fine. Worry about yer own men."
Shining shrugged off the word 'men' as some kind of slang and sent the group into the chamber. He then spoke to the Doctor. "That chamber leads to our underground bunker, where the leadership can command in the event of an invasion of the palace. It's the only underground entrance I know of in the Crystal Empire besides the sewer entrances.
"From the end of the bunker, there is a passageway that leads into the network of sewers. I just sent 14 top pony guards in there, so we'll know fairly quickly if anything is down there."
Prof. Scope knocked on the door of Commodore Charcoal with much haste. His sensors had just gone off and he had to relay the message quickly.
"What is it Scope? Come in and make it fast. I'm trying to organize the next stages of the plan here."
Scope looked very worried. "Well, it would seem that the sensors detected a massive influx of body warmth entering the underground area. It would appear that it's about 15 all coming from the royal chamber entrance."
Charcoal actually smirked at this. "Is that all? Professor, you really don't understand how much planning has gone into this. Our allies have already been moved primarily around that entrance because it was assumed that the royalty would try to do something about the cold sooner or later.
"I honestly think it's hilarious that they believe that only the royal guard and leadership know about the bunker."
"Well it is hidden, sir. Well camouflaged by the stone surrounding it."
"I guess it's a good thing this group has the technical know-how necessary to scan for such camouflage. Now leave me. I'm going to keep to my work and I recommend you do the same. Let me know how long it takes for the ponies to be taken out. I assure you it won't be long."
"Yes, sir."
The expedition crew pushed through the secret exit into the sewer system and were now looking at the maps given to them.
"There are three major routes here, and they diverge even further after that. I say we split up three ways," Commander Blowback said. "Captain Flame, take your unit through the left tunnel and look for anything unusual. Sergeant Breaker, take yours through the right tunnel. My unit and the civilian, with me through the center."
"Are ye sure we should be splittin' up like this?" Jamie asked.
"We have no reason to believe that there is anything hostile down here. So move! I don't know why Shining allowed you down here," the commander said.
"Fine," Jamie grumbled as they headed down.
The three units all wandered for a good ten minutes. Not a sound could be heard from the other routes and the commander's group was very quiet. The only noises being heard were the occasional uses of magic, the clopping of hooves on the stone ground and the uncomfortable echo of the chamber. The temperature was unbelievably cold and it made Jamie glad they had spelunking equipment handy to allow extra warmth.
Throughout this time, the area was becoming increasingly eerie. The silence was becoming more pronounced, like the energy of the area was converging on something that could attack at any moment. Jamie was glad he kept a dirk in his clothing that he could pull out just in case.
"We've been down here a few minutes now, sir, and nothing out of the ordinary so far. We'll keep going deeper, though," the commander said to his radio.
"Understood commander. Proceed forward," Shining responded. From the guards' facility in the back of the castle, Shining, Twilight, Spike and Zoe were listening for responses.
"Shouldn't we be concerned that that's the only thing we've heard? You said they planned to split into three groups," Zoe asked.
"I'm sure if the commander's group heard anything they'd have told us, but you are right about it being a bit long. I'll radio them. Sergeant, any word?"
"Nothing yet, sir. Just been quiet the whole time. We're checking the start of the diverging paths and then returning to the center after leaving markings, so you'll have a good idea wher- what is that?"
"What is what? I'm hearing screaming coming from a ways away. It's too close to be the commander."
"Then it has to be the captain. I've gotta go." He then changed frequencies. "Captain, this is Shining Armor, have you found-"
"Oh Celestia! WHAT IS IT?! IT'S KILLED THREE PONIES!"
"WHAT?! Captain what is going on?"
"No! No DON"T COME NEAR ME! AHHHH!" The line then went out.
"Captain! Captain respond! Oh-no. Sergeant. Get out now. There's something down there with you."
"But sir, what about-"
"Leave NOW!"
"Leaving now, sir. Let's go!"
Shining changed to the commander's frequency.
Meanwhile, the commander was hearing the screaming himself. "It looks like we've found the problem. Grab your tools! We're heading down there."
"YES SIR!" The group began running back toward the main hub.
"Commander, can you hear me? There's been something found."
"Yes, sir! I'm moving my unit toward them now."
"No, you head back now."
"But sir -"
"There is nothing you can do. I'm not losing anyone else! Go back now!"
The commander had to take a moment when he heard that they'd lost a group, but he quickly responded, "Yes, sir! I'll keep my group safe."
"See that you do."
The commander's group and the sergeant's group convened at the same time in the center. Unfortunately, the attackers were right behind them.
"Sir, it was the captain, he..."
"I know, Sergeant, but we can't do anything about that now. Let's just get back in and..." he heard the roar coming. "What was that. WHAT IS THAT?!"
The creatures came into view. The two gigantic creatures were hairy and incredibly large at the bottom. Each one was about six feet tall and despite clearly being slow, it was clear from their power that these were the beings that took the captain's group by surprise.
Jamie, however, was not in awe - only in surprise that these creatures were even here. He quickly grabbed the commander's radio while he was in stunned fear.
"Doctor! Zoe! Are ye there?"
Shining Armor already had the radio on the commander's frequency and handed it to the Doctor. "Yes, Jamie. What is it?"
It's the Yeti again."
"What?! The Yeti? On this world?"
"Aye, it looks like someone's brought them here..."
"Hey! Give me that!" the commander said, getting back some of his composure. "You know these creatures?"
He didn't get an answer as the creatures came into full view and began coming toward them. The stunned-with-fear crews were reaching for their weaponry and trying to focus their magic to stop the Yeti, but it became clear they might not get the time, as the two began charging them.