Equestria!

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It started off as a normal day in Ponyville. Well, as normal as it got around there. With Twilight's castle of friendship looming over the whole town it could get pretty weird. Or at least, it used to be. For the past several weeks not much in the way of trouble, havoc, or general insanity had happened. It was a rare time of peace for the ponies. No giant dangers were trying to take them all out. At least, until a loud thunk interrupted Twilight's afternoon reading and brought her back to reality. Unfortunately, it was a thunk she was used to hearing. It happened at the old library as well.

Thunk! It happened again, and again. She was able to catch up on a lot of reading in this time of peace. She wanted to get back to it. Thunk! But she could not as one of her latest spells was still in effect and she had to deal with that.

The spell was designed to do just one specific thing. Twilight had to read three separate books on old magic to find all the information needed. Then she cast this spell over every window in the castle. She did it all at once to save herself a lot of time. And to spare Rainbow Dash the cost of having to pay to have them fixed or repaired or replaced.

Rainbow Dash just smacked into the window for the fifth time. She just could not figure out why it was not breaking. It should be. She had broken many of Twilight's windows in the past. So why wasn't this one breaking. Dash had urgent news to bring to Twilight's attention and she couldn't wait around for the window to break itself. Then Twilight appeared in the window. She held up a sign so Dash could read it.

Quit knocking and come in already.

Dash was not amused. She began to frantically wave her hooves around and shout at Twilight through the spelled window. Twilight opened the window from the inside to keep Dash from hurling herself at the glass again, which is exactly what she did.

Dash was expecting to hit glass, but instead soared through the open window at a much higher speed than she anticipated. She crashed through an empty bookshelf and skid to a stop along the floor. Then she sprang back up like nothing was wrong and raced back over to Twilight.

“Twilight!. Thank Celestia you're here. We are in big trouble. I mean some seriously big trouble.” Twilight saw that her friend looked actually worried. Like, for real. That was unusual.

“Rainbow Dash. What is going on? How are we in trouble?”

“You will not believe it, Twilight. I am not joking when I tell you this, I swear. This is not me playing some sort of prank. You have to trust me. This is for real trouble.”

“Just get to the point, Dash.”

“The sky is falling! The sky is actually falling.” Dash raced around like a lunatic off their meds before Twilight caught her and held her down with some magic.

“Rainbow Dash, I could delve into an incredibly long and boring lecture on how it is both scientifically and magically impossible for the sky to fall. . . ,or you could just take my word for it. Which one sounds better to you?”

Twilight was holding Dash upside down with her magic. Only her mane and tail were hanging down freely. She still had control over her mouth as well and she was using it.

“But Twilight, that is not even the worst part. Not the worst part, I tell you. It gets even worse.”

“What could possibly be worse than the sky falling?”

“If the sky is falling, and it is on fire. On fire, I tell you. I swear it is the truth! I am not lying to you.”

“The sky is falling and it is one fire.” Twilight pondered over it for a moment, leaving an annoyed Dash still hung up in the air. She was still upside down too. She yelled at Twilight about it, but she was too deep in her thoughts to bother with it. Meanwhile, Dash was suffering from prolonged rushing of blood to her brain. When did Twilight get a twin sister? She was practically delirious when the sound of Twilight's hooves brought her back to reality.

“Flaming pieces of the sky are falling. Am I getting that right?” Dash did her best nod. “Are you sure it wasn't just a meteor or something?” Dash did nothing.

She did nothing. Absolutely nothing. And she wasn't going to until the room stopped spinning and the blood that was filling her head went back to where it belongs. Dash unknowingly moved her head around. It was just a wobble, but it was noticeable. Twilight saw it and realized the problem. She put Dash right side up and released her magic hold.

Dash dropped like a rock thrown from a Cloudsdale window. Her face hit first even though Twilight put that right side up. Twilight went to pull her up when she moved. Dash pulled her face out of the floor and seemed unaffected. Did anything hurt this pony? She just stood up and looked at Twilight with a blank face.

“Twilight, you might be right.” Dash NEVER admitted she was wrong. Whoa. “But that really doesn't matter now.”

Before Twilight could say anything back. A bright light washed over them both. It came through the window and nearly blinded the both of them. This light was followed by an thunderous booming sound that could be heard all the way from Canterlot. The two pony friends saw a lingering dust cloud moving in. They had to act fast. Dash grabbed Twilight forcefully and threw her as hard as she could out the window. Dash followed her out and was met by an angry princess, not that she cared.

“You might want to go find out what that was,” Dash suggested. “I'm gonna go and keep that dust cloud from ruining everypony's day. Okay? Sound Good? Okay. Good.”

“Dammit Dash.” Twilight was barely able to keep herself from falling to the ground. She was still getting used to her wings. Sure, she could fly well enough and land and take off without a problem. But every time Dash gave her a surprise lesson like that Twilight almost always got hurt. Not this time, however. Ha. I hate it when she does that. I guess I better go and find out what that was. OOH! If it really was a meteor maybe I can study it! Twilight flew off with a new happiness towards the sight of the crash landing.

Just a bit earlier. . .

Three little fillies. They were a little ways away from Ponyville. They could still be seen from town, but were enough away to consider it away from town. They saw it first. And like all little fillies they were terrified of the giant flaming ball of doom headed right for Ponyville. Oh, and these three little fillies were the Cutie Mark Crusaders, but I'm sure you guessed that already. Apple Bloom, Scootaloo, and Sweetie Belle. Luckily, Rainbow Dash was floating on a cloud nearby.

“If only I could fly, I could reach her,” Scootaloo whined.

“I could throw an apple at her. Applejack says I gots the perfectest aim ever,” Apple Bloom suggested.

“No, no, no. Let me try something,” Sweetie Belle pleaded.

She waited for a response from the two and got only waiting stares. She stepped up and pointed her horn at Rainbow Dash. She struggled to activate her magic, but eventually got a good flow going. Her horn flares up and a small glow appeared before Rainbow Dash. Then it was gone. The glow kinda, sorta exploded and pushed Rainbow Dash off her cloud. That was the first time she dropped like a rock from a Cloudsdale window. However, she did not reach the ground.

Dash slid off her cloud and fell toward the ground. She slowly opened her eyes. She felt the wind rushing past her face and through her wings. What the hell? I'm taking a nap on a cloud, not flying. Wait, no I'm not. I'm falling! Dash was awake at that point and she managed throw her wings out and skid to a stop right before the Cutie Mark Crusaders. She did not have a happy look when she looked at them.

“Alright, what is the big idea waking me up like that? Who did it?”

Two hooves from two fillies all pointed at Sweetie Belle. The white of her cheeks turned to red in sheer embarrassment and utter horror at Rainbow Dash. Every pony in Ponyville knew not to wake her up from a nap, but she did it anyway.

“Why did you kick me off my cloud, Sweetie Belle?”

Sweetie Belle responded with a hoof of her own. She pointed it at the sky and two more hooves followed suit. Dash looked down at them and then followed their hooves to the object they were pointing at. Her entire attitude changes just like that.

“Uhh, is that what I think it is?” Dash was actually kinda scared, not that she would ever admit it.

“The sky is falling!” Apple Bloom belted it out as loud as she could.

“Okay, okay. Umm, what do I do?” Dash paced around nervously for a moment. Then it came to her. There was an incredibly smart pony who just so happened to be a Princess living right here in Ponyville. If any pony knew what to do it would be her. “Okay. I am gonna go get Twilight. Should be back soon. You three. . . . . do something else. Holler if it, I dunno, sprouts wings or something.”

She turned around, trotted a few paces away, and then took off like a Flutterbat outta Tartarus. The three young fillies were left to their own devices after that. Yeah, that was going to end real well.

The three of them just stood there and watched. The giant flaming death ball that was the falling sky was getting really close now. Dash had only been gone about ten minutes. The Cutie Mark three were getting pretty good at keeping an eye on that thing.

“Dash isn't back with Twilight.” Sweetie Belle stated the obvious.

“Yeah, Sweetie Belle. We know that already.” Scootaloo replied.

“What do we do?” She asked.

“I dunno, but ahm getting bored.” Apple Bloom said.

“Do you think we should warn Ponyville?” Scootaloo threw the thought out there.

“No, that would just cause too much trouble, and that's if any pony believed us in the first place.” Sweetie Belle added.

The three of them never took their eyes off the flaming falling sky. Except when they yawned. In unison, they let out a synchronized yawn that took their eyes off the thing for just a moment. That is when they heard the crash.

Mid yawn and before they knew it a bright light nearly blinded them. They ducked behind the closest tree as the light faded and that thundering noise sounded off from the thing. The dust cloud rolled through and coated everything from them and the animals to the trees and the bushes. A thick layer of dust and dirt and a few other things now lay over everything.

“Whoa. That was unexpected.” Scootaloo stated with awe.

“We just spent the past ten minutes staring at a ball of fire coming from the sky, and this was unexpected?”

“Hey, I member Granny Smith telling me something bout this once.” Apple Bloom got all excited and that got the other two all excited. “I think she said the first ponies to find and get to whatever falls from the sky gets to name it.”

“You want to name a piece of the sky?” Sweetie Belle asked with slight disbelief.

“If it ain't in the sky then it ain't the sky no more.”

That was good enough for them. The three fillies stomped their hooves in excitement, sending even more dust and dirt up and into their faces. Bad idea. They all coughed up enough dust to fill their rooms and leaped out toward the impact point.

The crater was huge, but not as enormous as they thought it would be. Smoke billowed out from the crater still, but it was dissipating fast. Soon after the three got there it was gone enough for them to venture a look inside. All three leaned in close to see what was inside the crater. They were expecting a rock. Maybe even a giant rock. They were not expecting the weird strange thing they found inside.

It was something they had never seen before. It looked like an animal perhaps. It had two long legs that led up to a body. The body was thick, but not fat. Two arms came out from the body and a head topped it all off. Whatever it was it had long hair, and it was covering most of it's face.

“What should we do?”

Sweetie Belle asked the question they were all thinking. Apple Bloom responded by running back to the tree they all hid behind and returning with a stick. Scootaloo beamed with happiness as she took a part of the stick in her hooves and aimed at the creature in the crater.

Twice the poked at the creature. Right in the body. The small tip of the stick poked it just below the ribs. Twice. The body reacted to the poking by retracting slightly, causing the three fillies to drop the stick and jump back. They heard a small groan come from within the crater as they slowly crept back to the edge. Scootaloo grabbed the stick again and aim it at the creature again.

This time she was not aiming for the body. She carefully positioned the stick to poke and prod him right in the face. She smiled wickedly as the stick darted forward. No response. Scootaloo poked again a couple more times and got the same response of nothing at all.

“Hey, what are you doing?”

Again, all three of them jumped back, and they left the stick in the crater again. Twilight lighted down next to them. She tried to look all official and stuff, but the three little fillies looked too cute trying their best to put on their most innocent faces. They were all covered in dust and dirt and looked almost unrecognizable. Especially Sweetie Belle who normally had a white coat.

“Were you all here when that thing hit the ground?” The three fillies nodded in unison.

“What happened?” They all gestured to the area around them and the dirty, dusty mess that lay over it all, including them.

“Did you look in the crater?” Again, they nodded in unison.

“What was in it?”

“A strange thing from the sky.”

“Something from far away that we ain't never seen before.”

“An alien!”

None of those answers helped Twilight at all. She shook her head and looked over at the crater. The smoke was all gone by that point and Twilight spotted something a bit out of place.

“Were you poking whatever is in that crater with a stick?”

Nothing happened. The three young fillies all stared back up at the Princess with their most innocent looking faces still up. It was like they were Cutie Mark Crusader Statues.

“I am not mad at you. I just want to know what happened.”

It wasn't even close to a true scientific experiment, but they had done something and gotten some sort of result. Twilight could appreciate that, even if it was just a stick and a poke.

She listened as the three of them told her the small movement they saw. She was interested in the groans they heard coming from within the crater. As they were talking they were joined by more ponies.

Applejack ran up and scooped Apple Bloom up like she was a little foal. She held her close to her with an iron grip that little Apple Bloom could not escape from. She squirmed and she struggled, but it was no use.

“Oh, Apple Bloom. I was so worried bout ya. Dash said the sky was fallin' and it was on fire and I didn't know where ya were. Ahm just so glad you are okay.”

Applejack squeezed her little sister so tightly that Twilight was sure something was going to break in her. She was already turning blue. Rarity came up after her and Sweetie Belle dived behind Twilight's legs to avoid the same fate as Apple Bloom. It did not help. Rarity used her magic to bring her little sister to her and she wrapper her own hooves around her.

“Sweetie Belle, there you are. I was so worried. Rainbow Dash went on and on about the sky being on fire and falling all around Ponyville. Then it happened, and I had no idea where you were at. Ah, I am just so glad I found you safe and sound. You do need a bath, though.”

Scootaloo looked on as her friends were taken in to the loving embrace of their sisters. She felt sad that she didn't have her own sister that would do that. She didn't have anypony that would just run up and hug her like her other two filly friends. She didn't have anypony that would freak out if they didn't know where she was. She sighed to herself at the same thought that occupied her mind more often than she would ever admit to. She turned to leave and let the two sets of sisters have their moment.

Scootaloo turned to leave and bumped into something. It was hard- no, firm. It was firm. And yet, it was soft. She fell back on her butt and looked up to see a the blue column she just hit. There were four of them. She followed them up to see a rainbow blazing across her view. Two reddish pink eyes looked at from beneath the rainbow.

“You crying, kid? What for?”

“I am not crying. I just got something in my eye.”

Rainbow Dash leaned her head down to Scootaloo's level. She looked at her in her eyes and just stared for a second. Then she gave the little filly a wink and pulled her head back up.

“No duh. You're a mess. You are so dirty, I almost didn't recognize you under all that stuff. But I did. Because I'm awesome.”

Scootaloo smiled happily as Rainbow Dash smiled back and did her usual to support her ego. Not that that was a bad thing. She was a good friend no matter what. But she was a little bit more to Scootaloo. She may not have a big sister by blood, but she had something better. A pony who wanted to be her big sister, no matter what. Just then, an oddly loud noise ended the moment.

The noise was coming from the direction of Fluttershy's cottage. It was at that very moment the pony in question burst through the trees. She was almost as filthy as the Cutie Mark Crusaders. She darted around the area frantically for a bit. She did not even seem to notice the other ponies there. Really, they were right there and she had no idea.

Fluttershy had a look of worry in her eyes as she darted around, seemingly searching for something. Or, as it was more likely for her, some animal friend. She looked at every branch, every hole in every tree. She looked under every rock and pebble that she could find under all the mess. At one point, she even darted up to the group and picked up Applejack in a most surprising show of strength.

“Ahem, Fluttershy, could ya set meh down now.”

Fluttershy looked up at the pony in her hooves. The same pony she was currently holding above her head. “Applejack, when did you get here?”

“You got her after we did, dear. Did you not notice our presence? I thought I myself would have stood out against all this filth, but that is just me.”

“Fluttershy!”

Fluttershy apologized as she set Applejack down back where she was. Apple Bloom ducked for cover behind Twilight's wings to avoid another choke hold from her sister. Twilight herself was too busy with Fluttershy to notice.

“Fluttershy, what are you doing here? And why are you covered in this stuff?”

“Yes, quite,” Rarity agreed. “You look as if you have been wrestling with an oversized dust bunny, Fluttershy.”

“Well, before all this I was with Angel for a picnic, but that is the only bunny I've seen today. Now I am trying to go around and find all the birds and their little bird families. They live in the trees, and the trees are covered in this. . . this. . This filth!” Fluttershy resumed her freaking out as she thought about the birds suffering from the dirt and dust that clogged the air.

“Hey, Fluttershy! I found one!”

The voice came from the same set of trees that Fluttershy came from. It was hard to miss just what pony had the voice. Pinkie Pie came prancing out of the bushes with a smile on her face. She looked as dirty as Fluttershy did, if not more. She came up to Fluttershy and held her head down. Fluttershy was a little confused until she saw what was in her mane.

In Pinkie's mane, snuggled up tight and quivering with fright, was a small bird. Fluttershy urged him out and he ever so reluctantly emerged. One look a the little bird and you could tell that he was covered in the same mess that covered the entire area around them. Fluttershy cooed him to as peaceful sleep as she could manage and he nestled into Pinkie's mane once again.

“You can't tell right now, but he is a pink feathered songbird. They are quite rare and very attracted to the color pink. You might have a new friend for while, Pinkie.”

Pinkie beamed with joy, but was easily distracted as her attention turned to the large crater just a few paces away. The Mane 6 and the Cutie Mark Crusaders all circled around the crater and looked inside. None of them quite knew what it was. This thing was new ever to Twilight.

“So, is it dead?” Rainbow Dash asked the question that was on all their minds.

The answer came to her and the rest of them in the next instant. For in that crater, the thing stirred. It shuddered and came to life. The eyes shot open with confusion and shock filling them. A huge gasp erupted it he struggled to find it's breath. It thrashed out and clawed at the walls of the crater until it was roughly sitting up. Still heaving with heavy breaths, but definitely not dead.

Fluttershy had leaped behind Twilight and joined Apple Bloom. They were now peeking out from under her outstretched wings. Sweetie Belle retreated further under the body of Rarity. Rarity herself was hiding behind Applejack's body, as if to make sure the monster of the crater got her first.

“So, what do we name it?” Scootaloo asked, now the only one of them who hadn't leaped back.

The crater creature woke in that moment. It sprang to life. The eyes flew open fast in an unexpected move. The chest heaved as breath struggled to find the way to the lungs. His face appeared through the mess of hair. It clawed at the crater walls until It found itself in a position that was as close as sitting up as it could get. It looked on, dazed and confused at what was going on.

Fluttershy jumped up as this happened. She darted to hide behind Twilight's wings with the Cutie Mark Crusaders. Rarity was still behind Applejack with Sweetie Belle. Everybody else had their eyes locked on the crater creature. Pinkie Pie was the first to react.

“It. Is. . . ALIVE!”

“Yeah. Of course I’m alive.”

Twilight wings sprung out from her sides, forcing the ponies hiding behind them to duck. She thrust a hoof out towards the crater creature. “It can talk?!” This was a moment where the thing Twilight said was all together a statement, a question, and an announcement. Not that anypony listened to her. They were all busy talking with the three little fillies who were there first.

“I like the name Buster,” Sweetie Belle suggested.

“What?”

“How bouts we call it Crash?” Apple Bloom threw it out there.

“What?”

“No. For obvious reasons, we are going to call it Crater.”

“What?”

“I like what Scoots said.” Rainbow Dash stated proudly.

“Hm. I don't know. It seems rather. . . unoriginal. Don't you think?” Nopony cared what Rarity thought.

“Um, hello? Did anyone hear me?” No. Not a single pony was listening to Twilight. Or even paying attention to her for that matter. “I am sure it already has a name.”

“I do.”

Everypony was too caught up in the naming process to even realize the crater creature had climbed out of the crater and was now standing at the rim of the crater on the far side from them.

“Oooh! What do you think the name should be, Fluttershy?” Pinkie was practically bouncing with excitement, but had to limit it so as to not upset the bird in her mane.

“Oh. Um, I think Twilight may have been right. Maybe it already has a name.”

“THANK CELESTIA! Some pony was actually listening.” Twilight shouted out. All her friends stopped what they were doing and looked back at her. They saw the crater creature standing just over her shoulder. With arms crossed and an eyebrow raised he looked at them.

“Can I say my name now, or are you just gonna keep trying to name me yourselves?”

Pinkie gasped the gasp of a lifetime. “IT CAN TALK?!”

At that moment the hand of the crater creature collided with its face, accompanied by a loud smack. It was a smack of epic proportions.

“That sounded like it hurt.” Fluttershy said with concern. “Um, I'm still not sure what to call you.”

“I have had worse.” And then after a moment it added, “I already have a name. Tessla. And I am a 'him', just so you know.”

Rainbow Dash and Scootaloo both raised an eyebrow in confusion. “Uh, what?”

“My name is Tessla. T-E-S-S-L-A. Understand?”

“I got it,” Twilight said from the side. “Hello, Tessla. My name is--”

The crater creature chose that moment to interrupt her. “Twilight Sparkle. Princess of Friendship for all of Equestria. Nice to meet you.”

Twilight's jaw dropped a bit, no matter how much she tried to hide it. It was the same for the others. Except for Pinkie Pie. She jumped out from behind and smiled at Tessla.

“Ooh, ooh. Do me. Do me next!”

Tessla gave a sly smile and gave a slight bow. “Pinkamena Diane Pie. Born on a rock farm before moving to Ponyville. You have a sister named Maud Pie. You are the premier party pony for Equestria.”

Pinkie Pie's smile became even wider. Who knew that was even possible? Then they remembered it was Pinkie Pie. She hopped up down for a moment and then tried to jump. She moved to clear the whole crater in one leap, only to be held back by the strong jaws of Applejack.

“You hold on just a sec, now, Pinkie Pie. Somethin' ain't right about this Tessla fella.”

“What's the matter, Applejack? You don't trust me? Well, you can trust that I am far better than Flim or Flam.”

“Apple Bloom. Throw some apples at him. Aim where you think it will hurt the most.” Applejack said this flatly and rather coldly.

Tessla's hands immediately moved to cover the area in between his legs. With his crotch covered with one hand he held one up to signal that he was done. The joke was over. With pleading eyes he looked between Applejack and her little sister.

Before Apple Bloom could throw the apple ammo she had ready it was levitated out of her hoof. It moved over the crater and landed in Tessla's hand. He looked over at Twilight, whose horn was powering down. She looked at him and they shared a brief look of thanks.

“The next one comes from her, and now we know where your weak spot is,” She said with a very librarian, yet threatening tone of voice.

“Point taken. Joke over.”

“Wait!” Pinkie Pie shot a hoof up in the air. “There was a joke?”

“Anyway, how the hell do you know so much about us?” Twilight demanded the answers to her questions. Apple Bloom followed this up with an apple flying just past Tessla's head. It skirted the fringes of his shoulder length hair.

“Warning shot. Don't you lie now.”

“Um, Twilight. Do you remember Canterlot High? Sunset Shimmer? All that stuff?”

Twilight rubbed her head as she thought. Canterlot High? So much had happened to her and around her and to the ponies around her, she was having trouble remembering. Then it hit her like a Rainbow Dash at a window. The glass of her mind shattered and all the memories of that place and what happened flooded back. Twilight's eyes widened at he realization.

“That explains so much, yet so little at the same time.”

“Twilight, dear. Would you mind cluing us in on this whole debacle.”

“De- what?” Scootaloo was confused again. “Sweetie Bell, can you translate?”

“She means issue. Problem. What is going on right now. Get it?”

Scootaloo and Rainbow Dash traded a glance with one another and then turned back to Sweetie Belle. They nodded simultaneously and both with a smile. They learned a new word that day. Alrgitghty then, back to Twilight.

“Hold on, why didn't you just come through the mirror portal?”

“This might get confusing and take a while. Could we possible go somewhere else to talk this over?”

Twilight agreed that the impact crater was not the best place to hold this discussion. And since she was an Alicorn princess she had a castle they could all go back to. She gathered all of them around and went to teleport them, but not all of her friends wanted to go. At least, not with him.

“Uh, Twilight. We're gonna walk back an' meet up with ya at yer castle. Kay?”

Twilight shrugged and stood next to Tessla. Now that she that close she realized she only stood at her tallest up to his shoulder. Damn, he was tall. With a hop, a skip, and a jump Pinkie Pie joined her and stood at his other side. She was a little bit shorter then Twilight, not quite reaching the shoulder. Apple Bloom scooted over with a whole bushel of apples. Applejack did not stop her. A fact that made Tessla worry.

“Ahm keeping an eye on you.”

She pointed a hoof at her eyes and then at Tessla to emphasize her point. Tessla slowly moved his hands to cover his crotch again before giving the young Apple filly a nod.

“Duly noted.”

With that, Twilight was finally able to take them all back to her castle. She decided on a teleport because it would have been way too much work to take Tessla all the way back through Ponyville and have everypony between here and there freak out at the sight of him. One light green pony in particular came to mind, but Twilight could not remember why. If she couldn't remember then it must not be important.

Twilight stood in the middle of the group. She powered up her horn as she activated her most used spell, besides levitation. There were a few more passengers on this trip, but it was nothing she couldn't handle.

She weaved the magical energies around all of them. Pinkie Pie and Apple Bloom and then Tessla. He could feel the magic flowing around him. A tingle ran through his body whenever the magic touched him. It was like the tingle one got right before a static shock. Tessla smiled at this. Right then an intense, bright flash of purple light blinded him for a moment. When he opened his eyes again he found himself standing in the throne room of the Twilight's castle.

The rest of them were there as well. Tessla knew Twilight could do it. One thing was missing, however, much to Apple Bloom's dismay.

“Hey! Where'd mah apples go?”

“I couldn't take them with us, Apple Bloom. Deal with it.”

“But how am I supposed to throw 'em at him if they ain't here?”

“I could have left you behind and brought the apples here instead,” Twilight said rather deviously.

Apple Blooms sits down right there and starts pouting. With this going on Tessla feels it is safe to uncover his crotch. He removes his hands from that area and smiles at the thought of not being victim to a storm of apples. Apple Blooms sees this smile as an act of war and makes the first move. She pulls out one apple that she had stashed away behind her bow. She takes aim at the area he had covered most of the time. His hands weren't covering them now, though. She smiled evilly and took aim. She drew her leg back. She threw it forward with all the force she had. She missed.

“STOP!”

Thanks to the interruption of one pink party pony Apple Bloom messed up her throw. The apple left her hooves on the wrong trajectory. It flew through the air wildly until it collided with Tessla. He was hit hard with an apple in the side of his head. His hair took most of the damage, but he still felt it in his cheek.

Pinkie Pie hopped the two steps up to Tessla, who had hit the floor. Not because of the apple hit, but because he had horrible balance and the apple hit forced him into an unbalanced state. He tripped over his own feet and stumbled.

“Whew. Thank goodness that apple didn't hit you that hard. That would have really hurt. Apple Bloom should really be throwing cupcakes instead. They are soft and delicious and I just realized throwing them would be a huge waste of cupcakes. Apple Bloom! Do not ever throw cupcakes at any pony ever. Just eat them instead!”

Okay then. Apple Bloom slowly backed away from Pinkie Pie. She was about to make a run for the doors. She never got the chance as they opened before she could. Applejack, Rarity, and the rest of them filed into the throne room. Without even glancing at Tessla they walked on by and took their seats on their perspective thrones. Each of the little sisters stood next to their big sister's throne. Well, now that the council of six had arrived the interrogation could begin. It started with Twilight of course, who was also taking notes.

“So, you are from Canterlot High then?”

“No, not really. I am from a world similar to that, but mine is quite different. In my world, Equestria and all that live within are only real in TV and stories. I am a fan of all of you. Especially Pinkie Pie at the moment. She's nice to me.”

“Yay! I have a new friend.” Pinkie Pie smiled joyfully as thoughts of a new friend filled her head. “Wait. Whats TV?”

“TV is like a moving painting. It's pictures that move on their own.”

Twilight looked up from her notes. She could easily do that magically, yet decided to do it by hoof for some reason. “You mean, like magic?”

“Kinda. It's science. Sadly, magic doesn't exist in our world.”

The thought of a world without magic brought Twilight to a state of speechlessness. Her mind overflowed with each and every possible thing that could have or would happen to her if she was in such a world. She shook herself out of the near nightmare she had while she was still awake. She felt a sort of sadness for Tessla. His world was one without magic. She spared him the pity, knowing that he did not need or want it. She just resumed her questioning.

“Tessla, how is that you came to Equestria in the first place? You didn't come from Canterlot High, therefore you didn't use the mirror portal. Is there another portal here from your world?”

“Actually, I . . . don't remember. I haven't thought about it, and now that I am. I don't remember.”

“Hey. Don't start lying to us now!” Rainbow Dash slammed her hoof down against the hard surface of her throne. Scootaloo copied her from the floor beside the throne.

“I swear by the honesty of Applejack: I am not lying.”

With that said all eyes turned to Applejack's throne. She was sitting in it like all the others. Only she was kinda glaring at Tessla. She looked like she was trying to stay wary of him, for he was still unknown to her. At the same time she was trying to grasp the concept of swearing by her and her honesty. She scratched her head, lifting her hat up a little bit and almost causing it to fall off her head.

“Ya swear by me? And by my honesty?” Applejack mulled over the words of Tessla. She had no idea she was thinking out loud. “Why in Equestria would he do a thing like that? What does he know 'bout my honesty?”

“I know you have only lied twice. When Discord turned you all against your own Elements of Harmony, and when the Flim Flam brothers sold Granny Smith that fake cure all tonic.”

Applejack looked up from her thoughts. What was he talking about? How did he know those things? The other five ponies all pondered over the fact that Applejack has only lied twice. Wait, no. That was not correct. A fact Rainbow Dash was all to happy to point out.

“WRONG! Applejack lied to Pinkie Pie to make sure she didn't figure out about the surprise birthday party we were planning for her. That makes three times, not two. HA!”

“It is not a contest, Dash,” Applejack said flatly with a hoof in her face.

“Alright, enough!” Rarity shouted out with an unusual raise in the volume of her voice. She looked around at the ponies that sat in thrones with her. Then her eyes came back around and set on Tessla once again.

“So let me see if I understand this,” Rarity started. “You are from a different world, separate from our own. You came here, on fire and falling from the sky, and you know nothing of how that came to be.”

“Yep. That's about right so far.”

Rarity was not done. There was still some things she had to work through. “And not only that, you claim that we ponies are just. . . just stories in your world?!”

“Yeah, that's right. I'm a big fan of the stories.”

Rarity shook her head. It was going to take her a while to get used to this. She sat back in her throne and Sweetie Belle waved a fancy rag in front of her sister's face. The topic moved from Rarity back to Twilight.

“So, Rarity pretty much just summed everything up. Now all we have to do is figure out what we are going to do with you, Tessla. Since you seem to know so much about us, do you have any suggestions?”

Tessla thought about this for a moment. He had been thinking about it all along in the back of his mind. He had so much going through his mind that he was actually drawing a blank when it came to finding an answer to Twilight's question. He had so many questions and so much he wanted to know and learn. But when he looked down at himself he settled on much simpler request.

“If it's okay with you, Princess Twilight, I would like a room to stay in and a change of clothes.”

“A reasonable request. I can grant you a room in my castle here to stay in. That will actually be good while we try and figure out where you came from and how you got here.”

Tessla smiled happily. This was kinda like living a dream for him. Pinkie smiled even more at his smiling and declared a party in the honor of her newest friend. And yet, something was bothering Tessla. It wasn't something that came across his mind until just then. His smile faded, not that any of the others noticed. They were too busy talking amongst themselves. Well, all of them. One pony did notice.

“You okay, sugarcube?” Applejack had gotten off her throne and approached him. She still kept her distance a bit, but she was closer now than she had ever been before. “I can't rightly say I know much of anything 'bout your kind, but I can say you look mighty troubled. What's wrong?”

Tessla looked at her. She was genuinely curious and concerned about him. “I'm just thinking about a friend of mine. He is a fan of you, just like I am. Maybe even more so. He would really like to be here right now. I'm just wondering where he is.”

As if on cue, like reading from a script the doors of the throne room burst open. The doors opened with a loud bang that rang out and bounced off the walls of the castle. Another person entered the room. A small, purple person.

Spike ran into the room at full speed. He was to busy reading a scroll to look ahead of him. He knew the castle well enough to know his way around without looking, but he was in for a big, hairy surprise.

“Twilight! Twilight! Celestia just sent a really important letter that you nee-”

Spike stopped in his tracks. He had put the scroll down to talk to Twilight. The first thing he saw was not Twilight. The first thing he saw was a very large creature that stood a head taller than almost every pony he knew. It was hairy and covered in some very strange clothing. Well, Spike assumed it was supposed to be clothing. And now this creature had turned around. It was looking right at him.

“AAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAA HHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH!”

Spike screamed so much that even Pinkie Pie was about to tell him to shut up. Tessla covered his ears to give him some protection against the noise assaulting his eardrums.

Spike screamed out and then a new noise came out of him. A hiccup. He hiccuped, but that did not stop his freak out.

“AH!- hiccup- Twilight, what- hiccup- is that- hiccup- that thing?”

“Hi, Spike.”

“AH! It- hiccup- knows my- hiccup- name! Why does- hiccup- it know my- hiccup- my name?”

Twilight managed to calm Spike down enough to give him a short explanation. It ended with the words, “I'll explain later.” Not exactly the way Tessla had intended on meeting Spike, but that is how it happened. Nothing he could do about it.

Once Twilight was done with her short explanation she let Spike process it for a moment. It took a moment of eye twitching and mind racing for him to process it. He trusted Twilight to explain later, but he was still left with this strange crater creature who went by the name of Tessla looking at him. He decided it was best to change the subject back to the matter he ran into the room with.

“Twilight, Celestia sent a letter. It seems something happened in Canterlot.”

Twilight's floated the letter from Spike's hand over to her. She unrolled it and read through it with the thoroughness she was known to have. It was a rather lengthy letter. Much longer than Celestia was known to write, and surely longer than anything she had ever written to Twilight in the past.

Rainbow Dash acted on Twilight's look of confusion.“What is it, Twilight? What do the princess's want now?”

“They need our help. Apparently, something has happened with Luna. Celestia didn't go into detail, but it is enough to warrant us visiting the Royal Palace. She asks that we leave as soon as we can.”

“We can't do that!” Rainbow Dash jumped off her thrown and moved closer to Tessla. She thrust her hoof out at him quickly. “We cannot just leave him here by himself. No way!”

“And we're not going to,” Twilight responded. “As a princess I cannot ignore this, nor would I even if I was not a princess. So I will go. I would like it if you and Applejack joined me.”

“Sure as sugar, me and Dash will go withya, Twilight.”

“What are the rest of supposed to do, Twilight?” Pinkie Pie was still in her own throne. She hadn't said anything in a while. Now she was looking kinda sad. “We can't have the welcome to Ponyville party without all of you here.”

“Well, Pinkie Pie, I was hoping you would get the party ready for when we come back. I'm sure you can do that,” Twilight told Pinkie with a smile. Pinkie, in turn smiled back happily. Then she pointed a hoof at Rarity and Sweetie Belle, who was still waving a fancy cloth in front of her sister's face. “What about Rarity? What is she going to do?”

“Well, I was hoping Rarity would be able to make some clothes for Tessla to replace what he's wearing now.”

“I'M DOING WHAT?!” Rarity burst out of her own little world, sending Sweetie Belle to the floor. The fancy cloth floated down and landed on her, covering her face. Rarity leaped off her throne and went up to Twilight's throne. She pushed her face up into Twilight's before speaking.

“Twilight, dear. You cannot expect me to work with this thing. It is just too much. I cannot do it. I wouldn't even know where to begin on new clothes for him.”

Tessla turned to Rarity with an annoyed glare. “Really? You called me a 'thing' again. You do know my name, don't you?”

Twilight's talking to Rarity made it impossible for her to answer Tessla. “Rarity, look at him. Look at his clothes, or at least what is left of them. They are nothing but the tattered remains of what he was wearing. Plus, you are always looking for a new challenge. And you could be the very first pony to make clothes for a new creature of Equestria. This could make you even more famous.”

“Famous?! You think this will make me famous?! NO, Twilight. Everypony will look at him and me, and think that I have sunk so low I have to make clothes for every thing that falls from the sky. It will ruin me!”

“I was wondering when the drama would show up,” Tessla whispered under his breath. He was speaking to no pony in particular, just to himself really.

The ponies ended their little debate, or discussion, or whatever it was shortly after that. Twilight took Tessla and showed him to one of the many spare rooms she had in her mostly empty castle. It was nothing fancy. Tessla liked it. After that Twilight headed for Canterlot with Rainbow Dash and Applejack by her side.

Equestria! (Again)

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Earlier that day. . . . .

Luna stood at her balcony and stared up at the sky. She had long since lowered the moon and allowed Celestia to raise the sun. She remained awake, however, as thoughts plagued her mind. Thoughts of the a very unfortunate fact she had come to realize during her nightly watch of the ponies and their dreams.

You see, Luna had ventured into the dreams of a Manehatten colt during the night. He was having some issues in his marriage and Luna was determined to give them some much needed help. She had spent countless time with Cadance and believed she could at the very least push them in the right direction. How hard could it be, right? Yeah, she never even made it that far.

Luna used her vast Alicorn magical powers to venture into this colt's dreams. She was not surprised to find that his dream happy place was bar. One she recognized from her time visiting the streets of Manehatten with her dear sister. She had never gone in, but she recognized the smell. It was always the smell. But she pressed on in the name of love!

She walked into the bar after this colt, trying not to be seen by him yet. That didn't stop all the other patrons that were in his dream for reasons she did not know from see her. They saw her, they stared at her, they gawked at her. Some of them even whistled at her. Even more gestures that she did not dare to even look at were displayed also. The same could be said of the remarks she heard. She could not even find words to describe them. She did her best to ignore them until she found the colt she was after.

He was sitting at a booth in the back of the bar. She slowly made her way over to him. She stayed low and quiet so as not to alert him to her presence. Love was not something that many ponies noticed after all. She got right to the booth behind him when she stopped. She was not even a hoofs reach away from him. She froze. The colt was talking, and he was not alone.

“Yeah, my marriage is a bust. Now, if I could have that Princess Luna. Oh yeah, I'd be a helluva happy pony. She's a babe, what can I say.”

Luna felt a little weird at his. She heard what he said. She was close enough she could almost smell his bad breath. She was not sure how to feel exactly at that moment. She felt kinda flattered that he thought she was 'a babe' as he put it. She assumed that meant she was sexy. She could hear the other ponies at the booth echoing their agreements. Apparently, she was 'a babe' in the eyes of many ponies. Then it hit her. Smacked her right in the face.

She remembered exactly where she was. In the gritty dreams of a seedy pony. She was actually starting to feel good that a bunch of imaginary dream ponies thought she was a babe. She shuddered at her own oversight. This pony was a creep. She had to get out of there. Fast. She turned to leave when the colt started speaking again. It was about her again.

“Yeah, Luna may be a babe, but she can be a real buzzkill in the social department. I mean, have you ever seen her talking to anypony who wasn't Celestia or some other royal ass. You know what I'm saying. It begs the question: Does that pony have any friends?”

Luna no longer wanted to be anywhere near that colt. She picked herself up and stormed out of there. Since it was his dream she was in, her exit was rather chaotic and damaging. She left he colt with a bad dream and an even worse headache was waiting for him when he woke up.

Luna snapped back to her own post at her balcony in the Royal Canterlot Castle. There she stood, deep in thought. Was he right, that terrible Manehatten colt? Was he right about her? Did she have any friends at all? She thought back to all the time that had passed since she was freed from Nightmare Moon. The only ponies she really talked to were Celestia, Cadance, Twilight, and a few other royal ponies. Luna gasped silently at the startling realization that that colt had been right. She did not have any friends.

Luna stared up into the night sky. It was the same night sky she loved so much. It was the same night sky she watched over every night since she regained her freedom. She loved to look up at the stars. They were small bundles of light in an endless ocean of darkness, and yet there light would never go out. It would never fade away. This always gave Luna a little bit of hope. She liked it. And even among the endless ocean of night, there were certain things that not even Luna could control.

As she stared up into the night sky Luna saw a sight she had never beheld before. A star, shooting across the sky. A brilliant, radiant light trailed after it. Luna struggled to remember the superstition that many of the ponies of this day and age believed in. A shooting star and you. . .?

“AH! What is that I am supposed to do? What is it? I know I know this. I just heard it the other day. I believe it was from that royal mare's daughter. Something about wishing, I think.”

Luna stopped talking. She held a hoof up to her face, and facehoofed loudly. She had just given herself the answer. Then she smiled. Talking through things out loud always helped her get through problems. Sometimes the answers were wrong, but she still got through them. She shook her head and turned her gaze back to the shooting star. Was it just her, or had it gotten bigger? Eh, no matter.

Luna thrust her head and her horn out as far she could. Any farther and she would have fallen over the edge of her very own balcony. That would be embarrassing. She held her ground where she was and closed her eyes tightly. She wasn't sure if magic was needed for wishing on stars, but she was willing to try anything at that point. She focused in the shooting star that was crossing her night sky, and she made a wish.

“I wish upon this shooting star.” Luna took a deep breath. “I wish that I had a friend.”

Luna stood there for a moment, waiting. She waited for something to happen, anything. All she wanted was some acknowledgment that her wish had been heard. She got no such acknowledgment from the stars or the night sky.

Luna sighed deeply and opened her eyes. It would seem that such pony superstitions should not be believed after all. She turned back to go into her own chambers. The night was ending soon and she would have to lower the moon soon. Luna wanted to have her bed ready and waiting for her. The past few times she had lowered the moon it had left her so tired that she didn't even have time to climb under the comfort of her soft, warm, blankets. Not tonight! She was going to make it under her blankets this time. Or so she thought.

Luna finished preparing her bed for her arrival. She examined the bed and smiled. She was for sure going to make it tonight. At least, she would have it weren't for the interference from a force that not even Celestia saw coming.

Luna walked back out onto the balcony. She looked up at the dark of the night. It was time for it to end and make way for the day. Luna used her Alicorn magic to do her duty and lower the moon so that Celestia could raise the sun.. It was the one thing she found that was easy for her to get back into doing after her ordeal with Nightmare Moon.

It was not until after the sun had been raised into the blue sky that Luna said her silent goodnight to Celestia. She turned and laid eyes on her bed. She was so awaiting the comforts of the sheets, the softness and warmth of the blankets. She took one step and stopped. Something was wrong. Something was about to happen. She was not what it was or why she did it, but Luna turned back.

Luna stood at her balcony once more. Some unknown, unseen force was telling her that something was about to happen. Call it instinct, intuition, or whatever you want. Luna stood there and watched the sky with her keen eyes. It took her a moment, but she saw it clearly after that. A large, flaming object heading right for Canterlot. Was it? Could it be? The shooting star she wished on? Impossible. Yet it was there in the sky for her to see with her own two eyes. She did a quick check of the star's path and found a most disturbing result: The shooting star was shooting right towards her.

“AAAAHHHHHHH!!!”

Luna couldn't help but panic a little. The one aspect of the night she had no control over was shooting stars, and now one was heading right for her. By the time she pulled herself together the star was right above her. Literally.

Luna checked the sky again to see the the shooting star closer than ever. She turned tail and ran for the giant double doors that lead out of her chambers and into the hallway. She did not make it far before the room behind her exploded. The blast sent her into the doors she was running for, but not through them. She hit them hard and with a loud thud. She peeled herself away when another object struck her from behind and barreled her through the doors. The large set of double doors shattered under the pressure of such an impact, sending Luna into the hallway.

Celestia raced through the halls of Royal Castle to reach her sister. Because of her having to raise the sun she did not see the falling star in time. She saw it hit Luna's chambers too late and was now racing to check on her little sister.

She found her with several guards around her. All of them were clearing away pieced of rubble and debris that had fallen around the area. They all moved back and stood at attention at Celestia's approach. She scowled at them. Now was not the time for such trivialities. Damn fools.

“Where is Luna?”

The guards immediately all took a hoof and pointed it at the pile of rubble they had just cleared. Sure enough a pony lay in the mess. Celestia used her magic to clear the area around Luna. Celestia did indeed find her sister, and something else as well.

A strange creature had appeared in the dust and debris. It was draped over Luna like a towel. Luna woke up to this fact. She looked between Luna and the strange creature laying across her midsection with a dazed look of bewilderment. Slight confusion filled her eyes as well, but soon all her senses came back to her.

Luna blasted the strange thing off her body and into the nearest wall. She darted over and hid behind Celestia's body. As Luna quivered and quaked Celestia tried to get some answers.

“Luna, what happened here?”

“I don't know? Why in the hell do you think I know?”

“Because, this happened to you. It fell on your bedchambers. Care to explain?”

“I told you: I have no idea! One moment I am wishing on a shooting star, and the next thing I know I am going through my own doors the wrong way with you standing over me.”

It was Celestia's turn to look confused now. “Luna, why were you wishing on a shooting star?”

“I heard it was what ponies did when they really wanted something.” Luna's face turned a little red. She found it kind of embarrassing that a princess of Equestria was giving into stupid superstitions and she didn't want anypony else to know. Well, too late for that now. She had blurted it out in front of everypony, as well as her sister.

“Well, you see.” Luna's blush faded as she came to a realization. “I wished for a friend, and I got one!”

It was at that moment that Luna raced past her sister and to the wall where the strange creature still lay. It hadn't moved at all. Luna scooped it up and brought it over to Celestia. She held it for her sister to see clearly. Celestia recoiled back on instinct as the strange creature was thrust in her face.

“Luna, do you even know what that thing is?!”

Luna pulled it back and examined the thing she held in her hooves for several minutes. It did indeed look quite strange. A flat body with a bit of a gut. Four limbs extended out from that and a head was on top. Luna looked it over one last time before turning back to her sister.

“Celestia, this is my friend,” Luna said, “What more do I need to know?”

Luna smiled happily again. Then she felt the thing in her hooves shifting and moving. Luna set it down quickly, yet gently. She watched intently as it slowly sat up with it's back to the wall. The thing slowly opened up it's eyes. The first thing it saw was Luna's eyes staring back at him.

On the inside it leaped back and had an epic freakout. On the outside, however it remained still. It was pretty good at keeping calm in unusual situations. It's own eyes widened a bit more, though as he came to realize just who was staring at him and where he was.

“Princess Luna?”

For a moment, Luna didn't even move. Then she was gone. She had jumped up high into the air as she shrieked with sheer excitement. She flew a few circles in the hall before landing right in front of Celestia. Celestia herself was still trying to comprehend it all.

“You see, sister? It is my friend! How else could it know my name? There is no other way! Ahaha, I have a new friend! Yay!” Luna was hopping up and down in the hallway, much to the amusement of the present guards. Then she stopped mid jump and just hovered there for a sec with a look of worry on her face. “It needs a name. What am I going to call it?”

“How about 'Prisoner'?” Celestia threw the hint out there to see if Luna would get it.

“Oooh! Sounds tough, but it doesn't really fit.” She did not get it.

“Well then how about we call him 'Gone' or 'Hell No'? How do those fit, Luna?”

“You know I love you, sister, but you are absolutely terrible at naming friends.” Luna grinned and Celestia frowned. “Just so you know.”

Celestia looked down and closed her eyes. She put a hoof to her temple and rubbed gently. This whole thing was giving her a headache. She was getting really irritated with Luna and the most un-princess like behavior that she had shown the past half an hour. Whatever that thing was, Celestia knew it was dangerous. She could tell by the rather large hole in the side of the Royal Castle and the present damage done to Luna's chambers. Not that Luna cared. She was too busy trying to think of a name for this thing. Luckily, she didn't have to.

“I already have a name.”

Both Luna and Celestia stopped everything. If they could have stopped breathing they probably would have. It got awkwardly quiet in the hallway as all eyes made their way to the thing against the wall. Luna knelt down next to it and looked into the face.

“You can talk?” It was part question, part statement, and part awe, and all happiness.

“Yes, I can. I called out your name before. My name is Austin by the way, and I am 'he' not an 'it'.”

If Luna could smile any more she would have. If she could have jumped any more she would have. If she could have shrieked any more, Celestia would've shut her up. She had a headache.

Luna just ran up and embraced Austin in a huge hug. She wrapped her hooves around him and squeezed. Celestia didn't even try to stop her this time. There was no point. Austin could have been a toxic, deadly invader from a hostile land full of pony killers for all she knew, but that didn't matter to Luna at all. She hugged him still, and Austin was suffering for it.

Her hooves came around him on either side. Before he knew it he was in the air and being squeezed like a rag doll in the hooves of a filly. His arms and legs hung loose and flung about as he tried to keep his head attached to the rest of him. A moment later and he found what little breath he had was leaving. He couldn't breathe. He couldn't tell himself, but he was sure he was turning blue.

Oh no! Killed by a Princess of Equestria. Oh, the irony itself hurts.

Austin was about to say goodbye to this not so cruel world when he hit the floor. His legs gave out underneath him and his face was the next thing to hit the hard floors of the hallway. For a second he didn't move. He lay still on the floor with Luna and Celestia standing over him. When he didn't move after a moment Luna reached out with a hoof and nudged him.

Austin spurred back to life and lifted himself up off the floor. Luna smiled for he was alive still. For a moment she thought she had killed him. Good thing she did not. Celestia spoke to her sister after that. Both of them were able to come to an agreement on one thing. This thing, Austin. It needed to be questioned.

Luna took Austin in her hooves and in a dark flash they were in another room: Celestia's chambers. She burst into her own room just moments later. Luna was sitting quietly next to Austin, waiting for her. Celestia started right away.

“So, Austin. Where did you come from?”

“A world far off. Similar to that of Canterlot High, but different enough to separate the two.”

“How did you arrive here?”

“I have no idea, Princess I don't really remember much of anything before now.”

“How is that possible?”

“I have no answers for you, Princess.”

Celestia frowned. This was not going exactly as she planned, but at least he was polite and respectful. Celestia left him with Luna while she went to write a letter. She needed help, and if there was anypony who could help her out in this situation it was Twilight Sparkle, Princess of Friendship.

“Celestia, do you have any glue in here?”

“Glue?! What do you need glue for?”

“My time spent with Twilight and her friends has revealed much to me. Pinkie Pie in particular has expressed an interest in this thing called scrapbooking. I do so much enjoy it, but I require glue, and glitter, and many other things.”

Epic facehoof.

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Celestia eagerly awaited Twilight's arrival. She sat on her throne and went about royal business as usual. She was only able to keep half her attention on the royal tasks she had to do, though. As much as she was worried about this new Austin, she had to admit she was just as curious about him. Maybe she was a bit too hard on Luna about him. She sighed and put away the stack of paperwork that required her royal seal. They would get done later. Eventually. Just in time, too as Twilight Sparkle walked into the throne room at that point.

“Twilight! I am glad to see you. And you brought Applejack and Rainbow Dash as well. Good. Where are the others? Why did they not come with you?”

“Oh, they have other things to do.” Twilight said with a smile. She really hoped Celestia couldn't tell if she was lying or not. Technically, it was the truth. Just not all of it.

“Very well. Come with me. All of you.”

Celestia got off her throne and started down a side corridor. The other three followed close behind her. Twilight moved up to walk right beside her. For a moment she didn't say anything. Neither did Celestia, even though she clearly saw Twilight there.

“So. . . . Your letter said something about Luna. Is she alright?”

“Yes, Twilight. Luna is just fine. In fact, I have not seen her this happy in a very long time. She is smiling more and seems more joyful.”

Applejack scratched her head slightly as she walked. “Eh, pardon me, Princess, but that don't sound like much of a problem to me.”

“Normally I would agree, Applejack, but it is the reason behind this behavior that worries me.”

“What is the reason behind it, Celestia?” Twilight still felt a little strange every time she called Celestia by just her name. This was her former mentor. Twilight was her student. Celestia didn't notice Twilight's plight as she opened the doors to her chambers. Celestia motioned with a hoof at the center of the room. “That would be the reason.”

At the center of the room was Luna. She was smiling, and laughing, and even rolling around a bit. Beside her on the floor was a being. Another being just like the one they found back in Ponyville.

“Are you kidding me?!” Rainbow Dash was the first one to speak out. Twilight and Applejack were still stuck in shock. “There is another one? How many of these damn things are going to pop up?”

“Another one? Twilight, what does she mean?”

Twilight glowed with embarrassment. “Oh, well. You see. We kinda found another one like him back in Ponyville. He fell from the sky in a ball of fire. He didn't know how he got here, though.”

“His story is the same. He crashed into Luna's room and remembers nothing of how he came to be in Equestria. Interesting.”

“Were there any ponies hurt?”

“A few guards got some cuts and bruises, but that was all. A few others came when they heard the commotion. They have been ordered to never speak of what they saw.”

Celestia stood there, deep in thought. Twilight just stared at the second of the creatures to fall from the sky. He looked just like Tessla, relatively speaking. Same body type, around the same height, but different enough in many areas to make them both two separate and distinct individuals. As Twilight thought on it some more her mind rolled back to something Celestia had said just a moment before.

“Wait a second!” She shocked herself out of her own thoughts and shocked everypony else with her sudden outburst. “Celestia, you said he crashed into Luna's room. Why is she so happy and smiley if he crashed into her room? That makes no sense.”

“It would seem that in the moments before it happened Luna wished upon a falling star.” Celestia explained to them. Twilight still didn't understand what she was talking about. She was never a pony who put much stock in those silly superstitions. Celestia, knowing Twilight's need for logic that made sense, went of with her explanation. “You see, Twilight, Luna wished for a friend. Just moments later she had a strange being crashing into her room like a falling star.”

“And she believes that her wish came true and that he is her friend,” Twilight finished connecting all the dots. “That actually makes some sort of sense.”

“TWILIGHT!!”

Twilight was taken by surprise when the sudden shout overwhelmed her ears. She could almost feel her brain bouncing around the inside of her skull. Luna bounced over and lifted Twilight up in a big hug. Twilight just stay limp in her hooves with her head still hurting. Then she noticed the other two. “And friends!”

Luna moved past Twilight to Applejack. She tried to back away, but found only the wall behind her. She looked up to see Luna looming over her with a smile she would swear was more than just happy and playful. Even with all her strength Applejack couldn't match that of an Alicorn Princess. Luna reached out and wrapped herself around Applejack's body. She squeezed just slightly, but it was enough to send Applejack to the floor when Luna finally released her. Then she moved on to the last of the three.

Rainbow Dash watched as Luna nearly popped Twilight's head like a balloon and almost squeezed the life out of Applejack. That was not going to happen to her. No way. She turned tail and bolted in the other direction. She didn't make it far when she felt a small tug in her tail. Luna grasped the end of her tail with her magic and was slowly pulling Rainbow Dash towards her. Dash was digging at the floor in a desperate attempt to get free. It was no use. She found herself wrapped in a double hug. Not only were Luna's hooves around her, but her wings were also there.

“Luna, you might want to put her down. I think she's turning blue.”

Luna released her grip and held Rainbow Dash out in front of her. She was dazed and felt kinda violated. Luna looked at her and laughed a little. Then she dropped her. Thankfully, Dash had a soft landing. That landing just so happened to be Applejack's ass, but it was better than the floor.

“I get it. Rainbow Dash is already blue. 'Turning blue' is a joke. Ahahahahah! You are funny.”

Luna lost herself to laughter. Austin walked over to Twilight and Rainbow Dash and the now bruised Applejack. “Sorry about that. She did the same thing to me earlier.”

Twilight sighed and started talking with Austin. He introduced himself and went on to affirm Twilight's suspicions. It was more or less the same story Tessla gave her earlier. Ponies were stories. He was a fan. A big fan. The two of them talked for a bit as Celestia and Luna spoke off to the side.

Twilight was getting mixed feeling about this one. This Austin. He was not like Tessla. He was a little less of a smartass, for one. He was polite and respectful. He was not giving off the same fanboy vibe that she was expecting. She actually thought that maybe she was going to like this one. Twilight shook the thought from her head soon after it came in. No way. These things were just too weird.

“So, Twilight. What's his story?” Rainbow Dash had climbed off Applejack's ass and walked over to Twilight. Applejack herself was still getting up.

“Same as Tessla's, unfortunately. There are no answers here, Dash.”

“There may be one.” Dash dashed up to Austin and darted up to hover right in front of his face. She was eye to eye with him. “So, buddy. How do we know you're telling the truth?”

“I swear by Applejack's Element of Honesty: The words I speak are the truth.”

A noticeable and quite audible groan could be heard coming from Applejack. She raised a hoof and lifted herself up off the floor. “Why do y'all keep saying that 'bout my honesty?”

“Think about, Applejack. It makes sense.” Austin shifted his weight between his feet before speaking to Applejack again. “You are the bearer of the Element of Honesty. You are the most honest pony around. Swearing by you, and/or your honesty signifies that I am showing the same honesty. I mean no disrespect.”

Applejack was still processing the things Austin said. It was going to take her a moment. Not that she was slow or anything. It was just that Austin had a really bad habit of talking really fast. Especially when he got excited. Applejack's brain was still catching up and going through everything he said. Not all ponies had the same trouble, though.

“That actually makes a lot of sense.” Twilight and Celestia both agreed aloud. They traded a look between them before turning their eyes back to Applejack. “Do you understand?”

“Notta bit.”

“It just means that he is telling the truth. He just explained in such a logical manner that I understood more than you. I really don't think he meant anything by it.” Twilight's smile worked well in dismissing Applejack's worries. She was still a little confused on the whole thing, but she trusted Twilight's judgment in this situation. Now that that was all said and done they were able to move onto the next matter at hoof. It was actually Austin that brought it up.

“So, there is another one like me, isn't there?”

Everypony present turned to look at him. Now he was leaning against the wall. All the princess's traded a few glances. Rainbow Dash and Applejack just stayed back. Better to let the royalty handle this than get involved themselves.

Eventually, Twilight stepped forward to talk. “How did you know that?”

“First off, you weren't surprised to see me. A strange thing that has never been in Equestria before. Secondly, you weren't surprised to hear about ponies being stories where I come from. And lastly, Applejack said so.”

All eyes turned to Applejack. At once, her usual calm demeanor changed. She got a worried look in her eye and her cheeks turned to a rosy red color that almost matched Big Mac's. She was trying to avoid the issue by thinking of when she said that there was another one like Austin. She couldn't think of anything.

“You said, 'Why do y'all keep saying that 'bout my honesty?' earlier.” Austin chimed in. Applejack looked up at him. She remembered what she said and it took no more than a second longer for her to realize it.

“Y'all. It means more than one,” She groaned. “Sorry, Twi. I didn't mean to spill the secret like that.”

“That's okay, AJ. It really wasn't a secret. But we are going to keep this between us. For now, at least.”

“Yes, but I would like to meet this other one,” Celestia stated.

“How about we all go to Twilight's castle?” Austin threw the suggestion out there. They all took a moment to think it over. Luna walked back over and stood next to her new friend. Austin didn't mind.

It was a better acceptance than he thought he was going to get. It definitely could have been worse. What amazed him was just how big these ponies were. Well, some of them. Twilight and the girls only stood at around four feet in height, where as Luna was just barely taller than him at six feet even. Celestia was even taller, and that worried him a little. He was going to make it a point to never piss either of them off, ever.

A few minutes of discussion later and it was decided. They would go to Twilight's castle. Twilight left with the girls she came with. They headed back and were supposed to get everything together. Twilight was actually dreading the upcoming ordeal. Pinkie was going to go nuts. Even more so than she usually did.

Austin stayed close to Luna's side, not the had any real choice in the matter. Luna was not letting him go anywhere else. They waited for an hour before leaving themselves. Celestia used the time to prepare the castle for her departure. She would be leaving on an unexpected, and rather unofficial business. Whether it was official or not was yet to be determined actually. It could be big, or it could not be. Who knows?

Luna was barely staying still as the hour mark was drawing closer and closer. Every time she stopped to sit still she shook like a small earthquake was raging somewhere deep inside her. It looked like the very act of sitting still was going to hurt her and she had to keep moving to avoid it. Eventually, Celestia just gave in and told Luna to go on ahead of her. She would be there in a few moments. Luna smiled as happily as she could. She walked back over and stood as close to Austin as she could get without leaping into his arms.

Once at his side, Luna's horn flared up with magical power. They were enveloped by the glow of Luna's magic. Austin could feel the magic flowing around him. Next came a bright flash that forced him to cover his eyes. He felt a great sensation deep in his chest and abdomen. When he opened his eyes he found himself with Luna, as he was expecting. He also saw that he was no longer in the Royal Canterlot Castle, but in Twilight's castle. Her throne room to be exact.

Austin could no longer stand. He dropped to one knee before Luna could catch him. He stayed there for a moment as Luna and others ran up to him. He looked up to see Pinkie standing by him. The smile on her face told him she was planning something. That worried him a bit, but he shrugged it off. Whatever it was he could handle it. Maybe.

Fluttershy was also there. She was standing closer that any of them, save Luna. She had a worried look on her face and it looked genuine. It always with her. Austin smiled to let her know he was okay and she smiled back. When he looked again he saw that Pinkie had vanished from the room. He did see Rainbow Dash a little ways off, though.

She glided over to him with one thrust of her wings and landed next to Fluttershy. She didn't say anything. She just stood there next to Fluttershy, as if to guard and protect her from a foreign threat. Only one of those words could be used for Austin.

“What are you looking at? Huh, buddy?” Dash caught Austin sneaking in a few sidelong glances at her every few minutes. Her eyes narrowed and she got into an attack position.

Austin responded with a look of his own. It wasn't really menacing, or threatening. It was just a stare. A dead stare right into the eyes of Rainbow Dash. His face was blank and could not be read. Dash growled at him. It was clear that Dash was getting more and more annoyed with him. She rushed him and only stopped about a foot from his face.

“Why won't you answer me?!”

Austin kept up his blank stare. She was staring back into his eyes. He held her gaze for a solid minute. Neither of them moved. Neither of the wanted to budge and possible be seen as weak for backing down. Then Austin made his move. His stare with Dash kept her eyes so focused on his she never saw it coming.

Before she could react, Austin had reached out. His arm sprang from his side. It cut its way up and through the tension to reach Dash's face. His arm only stopped mere inches from Dash's nose. His hand was curled up into a fist, but not for long. When his hand stopped moving his fist uncurled. With one finger he reached out and drove Dash crazy.

“Boop.” He said amidst the silence.

For a very short while after that Dash did nothing but stare at her nose as best she could. She was in a state of shock. She couldn't believe he just did that. She just stood there in stunned silence. Her eyes were wide and her mouth stuck in that just barely open surprised look. And there she stayed.

Fluttershy and Luna both were trying their damndest to not roll over and laugh their hearts out. Luna was having much better luck than Fluttershy was. She had already hit the floor and one wing was already up as small snickers escaped her. Three solid minutes later and nopony had moved. It was about time something happened. Right?

After those solid three minutes were up it was just too hard. Two ponies erupted. One, and Alicorn Princess who ruled the night. The other, a shy Pegasus who loved animals. But just then, they were both just two ponies who barreled out laughter and giggles. Hooves were in the air, manes were in a mess. A few feathers even flew threw the air. And yet still, Rainbow Dash didn't move. Then the doors to the room burst open to the sound of party poppers and balloons. Streamers streamed in. Twilight, Applejack, and Rarity walked in with the pink party pony responsible for it all. They took one look around and knew something was wrong.

“What in the hay happened here?” Applejack spoke the same question that they were all thinking.

Pinkie Pie looking about the room and saw the state the ponies were in. She rushed back out, only to come back in a second later. Literally a second. She really moved fast. Anyway, it was different this time as she was now wearing a doctor coat. You know, the long white ones. She ran up to Dash and did a few things.

Pinkie poked her in the side a few times. She got no response. She moved to the other side and lifted her wing up and stretched it out. She took one of Dash's own feathers and tickled her. Again, no response. Pinkie moved to look into Dash's face. She took one glance and automatically knew what happened.

“Interesting,” Pinkie whispered to herself before moving on.

Pinkie moved onto the next closest pony. That being Fluttershy. She was on her back giggling and occasionally snorting. Every time she snorted she sent herself into another giggle fit and that made her snort even more. Pinkie had to duck as she walked up to her yellow friend. Her wing nearly took her head off. Pinkie was able to get close to her, though and did a few things.

She stood next to Fluttershy, who seemed to be calming down a bit. Pinkie examined her all over until she stopped and focused on one spot. Pinkie took a hoof and gently nuzzled it against this spot before moving just a little bit. Fluttershy was sent into another fit of roaring laughter. Pinkie stopped and smiled. She had finally discovered Fluttershy's tickle spot. After that she was done and moved on to Luna.

“Don't you dare,” Luna got out in between a few laughs.

Luna was also on her back and was about to be pounced on. Pinkie leered over her like a hunter who just caught the prey it was after. Pinkie lifted a hoof up only to find herself staring at Twilight's face.

“Stay away from Luna, Pinkie.”

“Aww, Twilight. Do you know how much fun we could have if we knew where he tickle spot was. Oh, it would be so awesome! But, at least I found Fluttershy's. That will have to do.”

The others just stared at Pinkie for a moment. It was that same stare of disbelief that always had the same message. “Is she being serious right now?”

After the stare moment was done, Applejack finally spoke up. “Pinkie, didya find out what happened while you was hunting for tickle spots or not?”

“Oh, right. Give me a sec.”

Pinkie rushed back over to Rainbow Dash. She did a few doctorly things like take her temperature, and open her mouth and eyes a few times. Then she reared back with a mighty gasp. She walked back over to Twilight with an official pace. She took some glasses out of one of the coat pockets and put them on, just to take them off again.

“Princess, I'm afraid it's worse than I feared. You see, Rainbow Dash., she has been booped.”

“What the hell are you talking about?” Twilight asked with a raised eyebrow.

Pinkie sighed heavily at Twilight's lack of knowledge. She ditched the doctor getup and looked at Twilight. Then she held out a hoof and booped her. Twilight shrank back and wrinkled her nose a bit.

“Pinkie, why did you do that?”

“That was a boop.”

“Oh. Well, who booped Rainbow Dash?”

“I dunno.”

Pinkie ran over to Fluttershy, but she was too far gone. She moved on to Luna and stopped. She then went on to do her impression of Rarity. “Luna, deary, do you happen to know who it was that planted the boop onto poor Rainbow Dash?”

“That was me.” Austin emerged from the shadows of the far wall. Luna jumped back up to her hooves as he approached. She was still giggling a bit, but it was slowing. It was sure to stop soon. Just as Austin reached Luna, even more ponies entered the room.

Rarity walked into the room with Tessla at her side. She was smiling and talking. She looked like she was having a good time. Tessla was also smiling. And he had some new clothes. He was now wearing blue pants. Not dark blue, but light blue either. It was a nice color in the middle. A purple shirt covered his top half. Just for kicks Rarity wove a yellow letter 'T' into the design. The points of the top line that crossed the 'T' reached out to each of his shoulders. To go with all that, Tessla was also sporting a pony tail. Rarity had generously given him a band to use for his hair.

“Well, it you two seem to be getting along.” Twilight smiled at the fact that everyone was getting along now.

“Yes, it would seem we are,” Rarity glanced back at Tessla before returning to Twilight. “You see, Tessla here has a greatly creative mind when it comes to colors And the purple and yellow shirt really becomes him, don't you think?”

“I'm glad you two are getting along so well.” Twilight's smile faded a bit as she talked with Rarity “Because now there is another one. Right over there.” Twilight widened her smile as far as she could, even if it was fake.

Rarity just stared at her for a moment. Then her smile also faded. It was replaced with a look of shock and confusion. “Um, what?”

“Austin?!”

Everypony in the room turned to look at Tessla. He was staring over in Luna's direction. Luna stared back at him, but it was her strange friend that stepped forward.

“Tessla?!”

The two of them crossed the space between them in just a few steps each. Austin offered a arm out. Tessla gripped it so that each of them had a hand on the others forearm. They then leaned in shoulder to shoulder and gave one another a few pats on the back. They released each other from their greeting and Austin was the first to speak.

“Tessla, my friend. It is good to see you.”

“Yeah, you too. Can you believe this? We're in Equestria, man.”

“Yeah, I know. I crashed right into Luna's room apparently. That's what I'm told anyway. My memory isn't all there.”

“Yeah, same here. I crashed a little ways outside of Ponyville. That's all I know.”

The ponies just stood back and watched the encounter. The two of them talked back and forth for a few moments more. Rarity now realized what Twilight meant when she said there was another one. Twilight thought she would have been more upset about it, but she actually seemed kinda excited. So did Pinkie, but who didn't see that coming? Luna came to stand by Twilight and brag about how her friend could be friends with Twilight's Tessla.

“He is not mine.” Was all Twilight had to say about that.

Just then the moment was broken up by a loud noise. It was a mix between a belch and something burning. A flash of green light later and Spike came running up to Twilight with a letter. Two guesses who its from.

Twilight took the letter from Spike without a word and read it quickly. She had to read it twice to make sure she was getting it all. The others, ponies and non ponies all, looked at her with anticipation.

“It would seem that Princess Celestia will not be joining us today. There is an urgent matter in the Crystal Empire that requires her immediate attention.” Twilight announced. “Also, Shining Armor and Cadance say hi to everypony.”

“Let me guess, she wants us to come help too.” All eyes turned to Rainbow Dash. She was now unstuck from her state of shock. Pinkie popped up beside her and gave her a squeeze.

“Rainbow Dash, yer not stuck anymore!” Applejack proclaimed.

“Yeah, I got that much. What happened?”

“I booped you.” Austin admitted what he had done.

Tessla just stared at him in disbelief. “You booped Rainbow Dash.”

“Yep. I sure did.”

“Why?”

“HEY!” Dash interrupted them. She hovered in the air above where was just standing. She flew over to them both and gave them the nastiest, deadliest glare she could come up with. “What the hell is a boop?”

Just as she asked it Dash was yanked down to the floor. With her head spinning Dash could see Pinkie standing over her. Pinkie reached out with a hoof and helped Dash up. Once she was on all fours again Pinkie reached out with her other hoof and booped Dash on the nose.

“That's a boop, silly,” Pinkie Pie said cheerfully.

Dash said nothing. She just flew off to sulk in a corner behind Twilight.

“Well, now that that's done we should go.” Twilight said with hopes that they would be leaving, but when was it ever that easy?

“What about them?” Fluttershy asked in regards to Tessla, Austin, and Luna. Yes, Luna as well.

Rarity raced up to Austin and her horn flashed. A rack of clothes appeared before them and Rarity gazed up at Austin. Her eyes were not normal. She was sizing him up, seeing him with different things on already. It was kinda creepy, to be honest.

Austin knelt down to speak with Rarity before she did anything. They talked back and forth for a few moments. The others were too far away to hear exactly what they were saying. Austin was speaking quietly and Rarity was whispering in turn. It seemed to some kind of negotiation. They both came to an agreement and Rarity's horn lit up once again.

The magic power flowed through her and Austin stood back a bit. Clothes from the rack flew off and surrounded Austin. A flash of light later and he stood there with new clothes on. He now wore dark blue jeans and a crimson shirt to go with it. A collared button shirt of black was over that. The sleeves were rolled up. Austin seemed pleased with it, but Rarity not so much.

“I just feel that needs something. . . more, but I can't put a hoof on it.”

“Yes, Rarity. I know exactly what you mean. This is simple compared to the beautiful masterpieces of fashion that you are used to creating. But there can be elegance in simplicity. A lady of class such as yourself surely must know this.”

“Yes, yes! Not everything needs to big and flashy to also be elegant and beautiful. This gives me so many ideas!” Rarity was lost then to the ideas of her own mind. She melted onto the floor as the ideas flooded into her mind.

“Heh, smooth talker.” Applejack joked with Twilight.

“Well, he most certainly has a way with words.” Twilight smiled and it was finally to leave. It was decided that everypony was going to come along for this trip. All of them.

Celestia and Cadance were waiting for them. Taking a train would take to long. There were two princess's there now, so they decided to teleport again. Luna stood by both Austin and Tessla. By them stood Pinkie Pie and Fluttershy. Twilight would be taking Rainbow Dash, Rarity, Applejack and there was no pony else. Good. They both flooded the room with magical energy as they readied their spells. Seconds later and they were all no longer in Twilight's throne room. They were in the Crystal Empire. They were in the Crystal Palace. And they were not alone.

Equestria (Again? Yes, Again)

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Cadance paced back and forth. She was waiting for the rest of them to get here. Celestia could do nothing to calm her nerves. Then they were there, in a flash of light. Cadance bounded forward as the light faded. She skidded to a stop as she saw the two figure before her. Tessla and Austin watched as she stopped, stood and stared at them.

“Hiyas,” Austin said.

Cadance screamed in terror and blasted away before anypony could stop her. Austin was gone and there was now a rather large dent in one of the walls. Cadance panted heavily as Twilight backed her away from them all a bit. She got Cadance up on her throne and did her best to calm her down.

The other ponies looked back to where Austin had impacted the wall. Each of them grimaced when he hit. The very loud, sharp crack he made when he hit told everybody that it hurt. A lot.

Fluttershy flew over to help him. She put her hooves under one arm and helped to lift him up from the floor. He was okay, but the black shirt Rarity had given him was shredded. He took the rest of it off and Rarity made it go away with some magic. Austin walked back to the rest of them with Fluttershy just over his shoulder.

“Oh, are you sure you're okay? That was a pretty hard hit?”

“Yes, Fluttershy. I'm fine. I'm pretty sure the shirt took more damage than I did.”

“Man, first Luna nearly hugs you to death, and now Cadance blasts you into a wall. You are not having a good day, are you?” Tessla couldn't help but poke fun at his best friend.

“Yeah, I know. Anypony else want a crack at me?”

Applejack' glanced over to her left. She quickly shoved her hoof into Rainbow Dash's mouth. She smiled as Rainbow Dash tried to get away, and get the taste of apples out of her mouth. Austin saw this and gave AJ a nod of appreciation. She nodded back and held Rainbow Dash down for a big longer.

The rest of them got a laugh out of that. Even Rarity. Celestia just watched. A blast like that would have put any normal pony in a three day coma. But this thing, Austin. He just got up and walked it off. Why? How?

“Okay. It's safe for everyone to come closer. Even Tessla and Austin.” Twilight gave the announcement and they all moved closer to Cadance. She had indeed calmed down and offered and apology to Austin.

“I accept your apology, Princess. But if I may ask: Why did you act so when you laid eyes on me?”

Earlier that day. . . . .

It started off as such a normal day. It was a weekend, so Cadance was able to get a little free time in her schedule. She also got a little leeway when it came to the rules. Instead of having a grand royal breakfast like one would expect of a princess she was helping herself to a nice bowl of oat cereal. Yes, she was getting it herself. It was a lax weekend, and many of the guards were given the morning off and not coming in until later that day.

Shining Armor was doing his duty as Captain of the Guard and doing a check of all posts. He didn't always support giving the guards the morning off, but he understood why. They had families too. He was lucky in that way. His family, his wife was the Princess. He lived in the castle full time.

Now, he was leaving one of the guard posts. Nothing to report, just like the rest. Just like usual. He liked his job as Guard Captain, but there were times he found his post in the Crystal Empire Palace well. . . .boring. Most days were like this. Checking posts. Changing guards, or switching posts were the most exciting things he did most of the time. Some days, he wished he could go back to playing RPG games with a group of friends. Luckily, this day was not going to be one of those days.

As Shining Armor patrolled the posts he stared up into the sky. Currently he had three Pegasus guards circling the Palace skies. Normally, there were at least twelve out at any given time. He literally had just a fourth of his normal force. Eh, he could work with that.

As Shining Armor watched the skies, he saw something. A big, bright, hot, frightening something. It was just a big ball of fire falling from the sky that looked to be on a crash course for the Palace. Shit! Shining cursed to himself and ran for the point closest to the falling object. He sent the three Pegasus guards to rally the others and prepare the Princess for any fallout if he couldn't stop this. They went without hesitation and he moved off in the opposite direction. He was headed for the giant ball of fire falling from the sky.

Shining Armor reached the tippy toppity top most tip of the highest point of the tallest tower that he could get to in time to save the Palace from the present threat. Admittedly, he had to crawl the last dozen or so feet, but he got there still. He dragged himself to the balcony hoof after hoof, and hoof after hoof he pulled himself up to the ledge. He heaved as he righted himself. He couldn't avoid looking down, and he almost hurled. He hated heights, or at least looking down from them. He yanked his head back and focused on his mission. Gotta save the Crystal Palace, and Cadance!

Shining Armor focused all his energy into the one spell he knew would work. The one spell that always seemed to work. It was pretty much the only one he used. His magic flowed into his spell and the magical barrier went up around the Palace. It was moving slow, though. He must have used to much energy just sprinting his way up here, and then slowing to a walk, and then a trudge, and then a crawl. Yeah, that might have done it, maybe. Anyway, Shining tried everything he could think of to get the barrier to move faster and faster, but it wasn't working. Then he heard something. It was in his mind, but all too familiar. Let me use my magic to help you, Shining Armor. Well, you don't say 'No' to a princess, now do you? That was a rhetorical question. Cadance used the power of love to help her husband, but still it was not enough. Something got through. Some thing.

The barrier was moving faster now. It almost covered the entire palace. One might question why it was not covering the entire Crystal Empire, and the answer is simple. Shining Armor could tell the trajectory of the falling object from the first moment he saw it. He knew it was heading for the Palace, so that is where he focused his spell. Now, back to the important stuff.

The barrier was moving faster now. It almost covered the entire palace. Only a small patch of openness remained open. By some twisted joke of fate it was the patch right in the path of the falling object, and it was moving faster than ever.

It crashed down right as the barrier went up. The edges of both met in a loud, flashy explosion. Shining Armor dived for the nearest cover as the object soared above him. The small impact with the barrier with the barrier sent it off course and directly into the Palace. Close enough anyways.

Cadance was just sitting down, eating her breakfast, when all of the sudden a Pegasus guard burst in through a conveniently open window. She was annoyed at the interruption, but still it was her royal duty to hear him out. She shut the window behind him as she listened to his report.

He explained that the Crystal Palace was under threat from a flaming object falling from the sky and that Shining Armor was taking care of it. Cadance listened intently, but she was really imagining the guard talking with a really high pitched voice and beating up some changeling. She got the most of it. Palace threat. Shining Armor was handling it. That was all she needed to know. She trusted her husband to handle the situation. Once the guard was done she bid him farewell. She was about to take another bite of cereal when she heard a crash that sounded thunderous in the empty space of the dining hall. She looked over to see the Pegasus guard with his face still planted in the window pane of the same window she had closed. She blushed ever so slightly as she peeled him off, opened the window, and pushed him through. Then she closed the window and returned to her breakfast. It happened about five minutes and thirty seven seconds after that, give or take a second.

Cadance was still chewing the last bite she took of her cereal. Shining Armor had been gone a while. She was still waiting for him to come back. Normally he was back by now. Eh. She shrugged it off and went in for another bite. As the spoon neared the bowl she noticed how bright the room was getting. She looked out the same window the guard nearly shattered earlier and was horrified. A bright, flaming object was falling and it was falling directly at her. She screamed as it made impact with the window. It was not what she was expecting.

It was alive. Whatever it was that fell, it was alive. She just stared at it. She didn't scream. She didn't run. She just stared. The thing was big, very big. Almost as big as she was, but not quite. And it was wrapped in the most mysterious of garments. A large coat of three different shades of green all splotched in what appeared to be random order. Strange, very strange. Cadance nearly screamed again as it started moving.

The thing had a rather small head compared to the large coat it was wearing. It tried to move its small head only to find it stuck to the glass. The thing peeled its cheek away with some effort and it was now looking inside the window. With some confusion it looked around until it found Cadance, shaking in her chair and clutching the back like it was brave Shining Armor there to protect her. The look of confusion was replaced by sheer delight as a gigantic grin grew upon the things face.

“Princess Cadance?!” The thing said in a muffled voice. “You are so amaziiiiiaaaaaahhhhhhh!”

The things sticking to the window was fading and it lost grip so to speak. Mid sentence it popped off the window like an old sticker and fell with a shout. Cadance was left alone with her bowl of cereal and her Shining Chair.

“I thought these things only happened to Twilight.”

Meanwhile, the thing survived its fall from the window. There was another part of the Palace with a flat roof and all that not to far below. It took a moment, but the thing picked itself up and dusted itself off. Remarkably, the coat was not at all damaged. It got up and looked around. It noted that he was indeed in the Crystal Empire and that this was not a very vivid hallucination. So, in short, it was happy. As it looked around, though, it couldn't help but noticed something was missing.

“Where is that conveniently located door that's always there for when people need it?”

That is when a pony he had not seen until just then chimed in. It was a Pegasus pony who looked to be wearing damaged guard armor. Strange, but helpful. The pony reached a hoof toward the sky and pointed to a door that was conveniently located just a few feet away. It was easily missed, but there. The thing gave thanks and marched off to find the Princess, leaving the injured guard to lay there in his agony.

The thing walked through the halls of Palace like it owned the place. He passed by several ponies and nodded its head. It even waved to a few. When it passed by another guard it mentioned the Pegasus outside and the guard ran off. The thing took a right down a corridor and found itself in the same room it was looking into from the window. He even saw his face print in the window glass. He also found Cadance there. She saw him just as he saw her. By then it was too late.

The thing laid eyes on her and ran up to her with surprising speed for something of its size. He reached her just as she jumped out her Shining Chair and was heading for the nearest escape way. She screamed and the next the she knew she was in its arms. She screamed some more, but eventually ran out of power. She went limp in the things arms and stayed like that for a while. That was also the point when Shining Armor burst into the room. Needless to say, it did not end well for the thing that fell from the sky in a ball of fire.

Back to the present. . . . .

Everypony and everything else listened as Cadance explained what happened. Many a pony had wide eyes and eyebrows in the manes. Even Celestia was finding it very hard to keep a straight and professional face. She was simply astonished at some of Cadance's behavior.

“Cadance, you and I will have to have a serious talk about the way you handled some of the things here today.”

“But it's Saturday, Auntie Celestia.” Cadance complained to no effect.

“With all do respect, that is a conversation that can wait for another time.” Twilight interjected herself in between the two royals. “Right now we need to focus on the thing Cadance spoke of. Cadance, where is your thing?”

“In the dungeon.” The voice came from none other than Shining Armor himself. He walked into the room via a side passage and stood next to his troubled wife. “Where else would it be? It assaulted my wife?”

“I highly doubt that.”

Shining Armor turned his gaze to the newest voice. It was the one voice he didn't recognize out of all the ponies there. When he saw what made it he moved to copy his wife. Surprisingly, Austin didn't move to avoid the blast, or hide behind somepony else. He stood there and waited for it. Shining Armor was all to happy to blast him too, but Twilight intervened just in time.

“WAIT! Shining Armor, don't blast him.”

“Twilight, why are you protecting that thing?”

“Cadance has her thing. This is kinda my thing.” Twilight's weak explanation did little to stop her brother. It was only confusing him more. “It is a really long story and one you are only going to hear if you power down.”

Cadance got down off her throne and walked up to her husband. She nuzzled her horn with his and he powered down. He was always powerless when it came to her. She then stepped forward and looked to Twilight and Austin.

“Let's hear him out.”

“Princess Cadance, you said the thing that 'attacked' you was wearing a big green coat, yes?” Cadance nodded. Austin continued. “Was it about this tall?” Austin held a hand up about four inches above his head. Cadance nodded again. “This big around, and with red cheeks?” Cadance nodded twice more, and put the pieces together.

“You know this thing?”

“I do, and he is not a thing. He is a friend of mine. His name is Ben, and he was not attacking you. He was giving you a hug.”

“I don't believe you,” Shining Armor said accusingly as his horn lit up again. One look from Cadance, however, and he powered down again

Austin took one step forward towards Cadance. “If you have any trust in me, or Twilight's or Luna's judgment then do one thing. Give Ben a message.”

Cadance gazed deeply into the eyes of Austin. His deep brown eyes would give her all the answers she needed. And they did. “What is the message?”

“Tell him 'Camoskimo'. He will understand. He will know it's me.”

“Very well. I will escort him up here if he does indeed know of you, Austin. You shall remain here.”

“Of course, Your Highness.”

Austin backed up into the group again and both Cadance and Shining Armor disappeared down the same corridor that Shining Armor came through the first time. They were gone for about fifteen minutes before they returned. At first, it just seemed like a large shadow was following them. Only Austin and Tessla knew what it really was. Before too much longer a large mass of green and flesh came walking out behind Cadance and Shining Armor.

Ben immediately recognized Austin and Tessla. He moved right up to them both and they shared the same greeting that Tessla and Austin did when they first met with one another. It was strange to see as Tessla and Austin are around the same size where as Ben is bigger than both of them.

“So. . .” The moment was broken up by Luna's voice cutting between them. “You all know each other then?”

“Yeah, we do.” Austin replied with a smile on his face. He was in a strange, and yet somewhat familiar world, but at least he was amongst friends.

Now What?

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The four Princess's of Equestria were talking. Apparently, this talking could not be done in front of the others. Not even the five friends that accompanied Twilight Sparkle were allowed in. They too were left out. Now it was just them and the three other creatures. They were separated, but it was by choice. The creatures stood off to the side and talked amongst themselves.

“So, how the hell did we all get here?” Tessla asked the first question. They were all thinking it, but he was the first to ask it. At the asking of that question, however, both him and Austin turned to Ben.

“We know how you got here, Ben. Grand entrance much?” Austin gave his friend a sarcastic look and Ben just laughed at his own trouble making.

“Says the guy who landed in Luna's bedroom,” Tessla threw it out there.

Ben nearly fell to the floor. If he had a cup of something to drink he would have spit it out. “You crash landed in Luna's bedroom?!”

“No. No. No, it was more like I went. . . through her bedroom, and then I landed on top of her.”

Austin knew that it was not going to end there, but he was admitting no more.

Tessla shook his head and Ben just laughed. Austin wished he had kept his mouth shut. The three of them calmed down enough to get back to normal conversation.

“So, what do we do now?” Again, Tessla threw out the question that they were all thinking.

None of them knew the answer. They were in a world they all wanted to visit, but they had no idea how they got here. Yes, it was a world they somewhat knew. They were somewhat familiar with the inhabitants. They were not afraid, but at the same time they were not exactly at peace either. They had no idea as to why they were there, or how they got there.

“Only one thing we can do,” Austin said. A sigh escaped him before he continued. “We livehere in Equestria, we live until we find something, anything that leads us to answers. Answers to how we got here, why we're here, and why us?”

“I don't understand,” Ben stated. “Why did say 'Why us?'”

“Three humans end up in Equestria. These three fall at the hooves of each of the Princess's of Equestria, all at the same time of day on the same day. These three humans happen to be friends who know each other. Come on, you can't tell me that's a coincidence.”

Neither Ben nor Tessla could disagree. It was most definitely weird. And Austin was right. They were here now and until who knows when. They had to do something. They all decided to just do what Austin suggested. They would live. Just live their lives and hopefully find some answers along the way.

“What are we going to do, though? That's what I'm stuck on.” Austin pondered the thought. He was not helpless here in Equestria but he could foresee the struggles he would go through.

“I have no idea, but I'm sure we'll figure it out.” Ben offered his reassurances, and they helped. Not much to be honest, but it helped.

“Whatever happens, we have to stay together.” Tessla affirmed.

The two groups stayed apart and kept talking amongst themselves. All the while there were some things that were seen. One such thing was noticed by Tessla. A pair of eyes that seemed to be locked onto Austin, There was a clear line of sight between them and Tessla ventured far enough to put his hand in that line. As soon as he did he felt a sudden and unexpected shock go through his hand. He recoiled and held his hand close, trying to get some feeling back into it.

“Hey, Austin. What the hell did you do to Rainbow Dash?”

Austin looked over Tessla's shoulder at the pony in question. Sure enough Rainbow Dash was glaring daggers at him from across the room. Tessla wasn't the only one to notice either. Applejack and Fluttershy were both trying to pull her back.

“Oh, Dash. I booped her.”

This time it was both Ben and Tessla that were surprised. Austin was lucky they were given nothing to drink. He just kinda stood there with both friends looking at him with a look that said they were shocked and that he was an idiot.

“Why? Why would you do that?” Tessla finally asked.

“Because, she wasn't expecting it,” Austin replied with a smirk.

Again, Tessla shook his head. It was pretty much all he could do. Meanwhile, the other group of five ponies were busy with their own conversations. Most of them anyway.

“So, whatya all think of those three?” Applejack asked the others.

“I'm not really sure what to think,” Rarity stated. “I mean, there are just so many questions. Where did they come from? Why are they here? How long are they going to stay in Equestria?”

“I don't know about all of you, but I like Austin. He's funny,” Fluttershy said with a smile. Her statement did get a growl from Rainbow Dash, though, but Fluttershy wasn't worried. “Oh, Dash. You're just angry he booped you.”

“Damn right I am!” She growled and turned back to the rest of the ponies. She really wasn't ready to forgive him just yet.

“Just get over it, Dash.” Applejack said.

Dash growled again. A huge argument was about to erupt between her and the others. It would have started with her yelling and shouting. Thankfully, it never reached that point. As soon as Dash opened her mouth to shout and yell the doors opened.

One by one the Princess's of Equestria filed out. They only stopped when they stood side by side before the ponies and the three strangers from far off. It was hard to tell what any of them were thinking at that moment. Celestia looked between all her subjects that were before her.

“We have talked about the situation at hand, and we have come to a decision.” Celestia spoke with the same regal tone that she used for all her speeches or any other formal declaration. This was far from formal, though. Why was speaking that way now? Austin had a theory, but not one he was likely to share. Maybe she's talking like that to hide what she really thinks of us, and the predicament we put her in. Who knows?

“But before we share what we have come to agree on there is something we wish to know.” Celestia took a step back as Twilight stepped forward. “What we want to know is: What do you want to do?”

The question was directed at Austin, Tessla, and Ben. They hadn't really been expecting it. It was definitely Equestria, but they didn't think they would be involved in the decision making process. Ben grew red in the face and Tessla fidgeted with his air as they fumbled around in their heads for an answer. They finally just turned to Austin for what they couldn't come up with. Austin stepped up as the speaker for the three of them.

“We came here with nothing. With no answers to how we got here or why we're here, we have come to an agreement of our own.” Austin showed off his skill with words once again as he addressed the Princess's.

“And what might that be,” Twilight asked.

“We have talked and come to agree on one thing: Until we find the answers that we all want we should just live out our lives here in Equestria. That is, with your permission of course. We all understand how we could disrupt the normal flow of things.”

Twilight let a small smile slip through her royal image and back up. Her and Celestia traded a look as Celestia stepped up once again. Now that the three of them had their say it was time for their decision to be made.

“You three have talked amongst yourselves and have come to a conclusion very similar to our own.” Tessla and Ben couldn't hold back their excitement at Celestia's words. Austin smiled, but that was all he showed. He was just as excited as his friends, but he had more self control apparently.

“I wasn't finished.” Ben and Tessla immediately calmed down and looked back at Celestia. “You three will be staying in Ponyville until further notice. You will be considered subjects of Twilight's kingdom, and will be treated as such. Do you have any objections?”

“No, Your Highness,” Austin said for all of them. “Thank you for this opportunity.”

“Don't thank me. Thank Twilight. She's the one who suggested you all stay at her castle.”

With that said an audible thud was heard across the room. Everyone looked over to see Rainbow Dash's face in the floor. Her wings twitched a bit every few seconds. Applejack snicked a bit before pulling her face off of the floor. Fluttershy fervently waved a rag in front of her face to wake her up. Pinkie Pie was taking pictures for her scrapbook.

“It would seem that Rainbow Dash doesn't like the idea of having them in Ponyville.” It was Rarity who spoke. She had moved closer to Twilight during the whole debacle.

The other ponies laughed. Even Ben and Tessla joined in. The only one who didn't was Luna. She sighed heavily and turned away. She trudged out the nearest door and walked down the long corridor. Celestia noticed her absence as the laughter died down. She knew how her sister was feeling. Luna was adamant about keeping at least one of the strange things in Canterlot, but she was outnumbered and overruled.

It was going to be a while before they would leaving, so everypony had a chance to talk. Cadance and Twilight took a moment to catch up before spending a few moments talking to Ben and Tessla. As for Austin, he was off doing his own thing.

She had noticed her sisters departure just moments earlier. She felt she had to talk to her. They were sisters after all. But, as soon as she reached the door she was stopped by an unexpected voice.

“Princess Celestia,” Austin called out. She turned to face him as he approached. “You are going to talk with Luna aren't you. You were not the only one to see her leaving.”

“Yes, I am. You are smart, Austin, so I'm sure you already know how Luna is feeling right now. She hasn't had many friends in her life, even before she became Nightmare Moon. Then she wishes for one and you appear.”

“Next thing she knows she has to give me up, so to speak. I'll be staying in Ponyville, and she will be in Canterlot.”

“Yes. I have to talk with her. She has to know that this is the best course of action. She has to know that I am there for her, as a sister.”

“With all do respect, Celestia, what Luna needs now is not a sister.” Austin took a chance here by calling Celestia by name alone. She definitely heard it, but let it slide. Austin was taking an even bigger chance by telling her she was wrong. “What Luna needs right now is a friend.”

Celestia looked at Austin for a moment. He looked back at her. She smiled. His concern for Luna and how she was feeling was as genuine as she ever saw. She told him where Luna's would most likely be found and let him pass. This exchange did not go unnoticed.

“Where is that one going?” Cadance asked with mild worry.

“Yeah, we're going to be leaving soon,” Twilight stated.

“Do not worry,” Celestia warmly said to them. “Austin is just saying his goodbyes to Luna.”

~~~

Austin walked the halls of the Crystal Palace after Luna. Celestia had told him where she might be found, and sure enough she was right. Luna was on an empty balcony overlooking the city. She was slumped on the floor with her head laid on the railing. She sat and watched all the ponies scurrying about below.

“You look sad.”

Luna's head whipped around to see who spoke to her. At first she was happy to see Austin standing there, but then it faded. She turned back and rested her head on the railing again. She let out another heavy sigh, but didn't respond to him.

“I know why you're sad, Luna.”

“Of course you do.” Finally, she responded. That was all he was going to get from her though.

“Okay. I will talk.” Austin walked up and stood beside her. “You wished for a friend, and I came into your life. You couldn't be happier, even if Celestia wasn't as excited about me as you were. Not a day goes by and you learn that I am going to live in Ponyville.”

“You are saying what I already know,” Luna blankly stated.

“Then here is something you may not know,” Austin replied quickly. She looked at him as he spoke and he looked back into her eyes. “I am not leaving, Luna. No matter how far away I am, or what is going on I will always be your friend. Nothing will ever change that.”

Luna lifted her head up and smiled. A small tear formed in her eye, but she didn't let Austin see. She reached her wing out and brought it around Austin one last time before he left. Austin smiled as well and the two shared a moment together. Meanwhile, back with all the others. . .

“Hey, one of them is missing,” Twilight stated as if nopony knew already. “Tessla's there. Ben is with him. Where did Austin go?”

Celestia walked up to Twilight's side and looked down at her. Twilight was calmed down by that look Celestia always gave her. That warm, motherly look in her eyes and that smile. It always made Twilight feel calm and safe.

“There is no need to worry, Twilight.” Celestia said. She said it to Twilight, but in a way that everypony could hear it. “Austin is just saying his goodbyes to Luna.”

New Lives

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The next day came too soon. The day before had been long for all involved. Every pony and other thing was exhausted by the end of the day, whether they knew it or not. Twilight more so than anypony else. She had to use her last bit of magic to teleport all of her friends as well the three strangers back to her castle. She did it. . . barely.

Twilight collapsed from all the teleporting she had done that day. Fluttershy and Rainbow Dash carried her off to her room. Fluttershy said goodnight to them all before flying off with Twilight, much to Dash's annoyance. That left three ponies left with three strangers. Nobody there knew what to do at that point. Until a certain baby dragon walked in.

The doors to the throne room opened up and an unhappy looking Spike walked in. His steps were heavy and slow. A wide yawn escaped him. He looked half asleep. “Alright. I was this close to falling asleep when you all showed up.” Spike held up two fingers until they were barely touching. That was close. “Now, would somepony like to tell me why I was woken up from what I was sure was going to be a good nights sleep?”

“Sorry, Spike, for wakin' ya up and all,” Applejack said, “But these three need rooms here in the castle, and we ain't sure where to take 'em.”

Spike's face changed when he realized what three she was talking about. It was bad enough earlier when it just the one with long hair. After all that he took the Cutie Mark Crusaders out for milkshakes. He needed to unwind. Now there were two more, and one of them was even bigger than the other two. He stared up at them for a few moments. His eye twitched slightly and he did not speak.

“Just lead the way, Spike. Ah will go with y’all.” Applejack said warmly. She just wanted to leave herself. She was tired too. It was late. Spike leaned over a bit and looked past Applejack. Applejack followed his gaze and knew what he was thinking. “Yes, Pinkie can come too.”

“YAY!” Pinkie exploded with confetti as she leaped into the air. She stopped in the air and looked down at Applejack. “Wait, where am I going?”

Applejack just sighed as she left to follow Spike. Pinkie walked down from her place in the air and followed them. The three strangers all shared a look of confusion, amusement, and tiredness between them. After that they all followed the ponies who followed the dragon.

Spike lead them all to a hallway not to far away from his and Twilight's rooms. He would have liked to have them farther away, but he was too tired for that. One by one, he showed each of the strangers to a room. Each room was side by side in the hallway. Each of them said goodnight and turned in.

The next day came too soon. Sunlight poured in through the windows, and probably shone through the crystal structures of the castle somewhat. Austin rolled out of bed with one last yawn. He was rather reluctant doing so. The bed was soft and warm and comfortable, but he left it anyway.

He had taken his shirt off before sleeping and thrown it over the back of a chair. He took it up and was about to put it on when he saw something. He also had a large standing mirror in the corner of his room. He saw himself in the mirror, but it wasn't himself. At least, not all the way, not how he remembered himself. And Austin liked to believe that he knew himself pretty well. It wasn't really that different. It was a couple of things. He was never the skinniest or strongest of people before he came to Equestria. As he looked over himself in the mirror he could see that he was most definitely thinner than before. And there were some definite muscle that was starting to show. Austin gave a small chuckle at his own image and threw the shirt on. Just then a knock on his door drew him away from the mirror.

The door opened up to reveal Twilight herself standing there. Ben and Tessla stood behind her. Ben looked awake and ready for the day. Tessla looked like he was ready to go back to bed.

“Come on, sleepyhead. It's time for breakfast.”

Breakfast. One word that would always get Austin moving. He quickened his step and practically bounded out the door after Twilight. She lead the way a foot or so in front of them. The three of them took the opportunity to talk.

“Anyone else wake up feeling different?” Austin asked.

“I have been feeling different since the moment I got here,” Ben replied. It was only then that Austin noticed he was wearing the green coat. He pointed at it and raised an eyebrow.

“I don't have any other clothes.” Ben explained, “Unlike you two, Rarity never gave me anything.”

“Anyway, what did you mean by 'different', Austin?” Tessla asked.

“Okay, this may just be my imagination, but I swear I am different. I am thinner. I have a bit more muscle. It may be just me, but I don't know.” Austin illustrated his point by gesturing his hands over his stomach and tracing lines down his upper arms.

“And you think what? The fall caused it?” Tessla asked.

“I don't know, and that worries me a little.”

Any further talking was cut off. It was actually Austin who stopped it all. Even though he was deep in conversation with his two friends he still paid attention to what was going on around him. He noticed that Twilight had stopped walking and stopped the three of them before they ran over her. She glanced behind her momentarily before the walking continued. Interesting.

They made their way to the dining hall. Before they even entered wonderful smells drifted out on the air. It passed through the group and swirled all around each of them. Except for Twilight all those present took in the deepest breath they could of that delicious scent. It promised that even more delicious food was coming. Oh boy, were they ever right.

Twilight took one last turn and brought them all to the doors of the dining hall. The doors glowed with the power of Twilight's magic and slowly opened. Tessla, Ben and Austin waited until they were fully open. Every pony from before was inside. All the mane six, except for one. Even the Cutie Mark Crusaders were all present. Twilight walked in and took her seat at the long table. The three strangers were stuck for a moment.

“Well come on in, fellas.” Applejack waved them over and pointed to a few seats at the table. “Ah didn't spend all mornin' cooking this up for y'all to just stand there.”

Of course. Applejack made breakfast. That explained all the smells and the food. It also explained why Tessla and Ben were drooling a little bit. Austin smiled and took a seat next to Fluttershy. Next to him sat Ben, and Tessla took the last seat. Next to him sat Apple Bloom. She glared at him and made the hoof to her face and then to his gesture. She wanted him to know that she was watching him. Tessla returned the gesture before moving for some food.

Soon after the whole table was abuzz with activity. There was talking and laughter and even a little food throwing. Rarity got on Sweetie Belle about that. Sweetie Belle proclaimed her innocence while Scootaloo snickered in her seat. Meanwhile the strangers were all enjoying their breakfast.

Among the food served that morning there were delicacies like apple pancakes, apple breakfast tarts, and other apple related foods. There were also some simple things like oat cereal and eggs. Tessla helped himself to the latter. He was a simple breakfast type of guy. There were also drinks such as apple juice, orange juice, and plain milk.

Austin got a large plate full of apple pancakes and some apple juice to go with it. He didn't even know they made apple pancakes. A little bit of syrup and it would be as good a breakfast as he can imagine.

After everypony and other thing was done getting their breakfast Twilight made an announcement. She had been patiently waiting for a chance to speak and now was it. “Excuse me,” She said. “Excuse me. I have an announcement to make.”

No pony was listening to her. They were all deep into their own things. There were a few that were looking up at her, but it was far from all of them. Twilight groaned and her horn flashed. Magical covers appeared and covered up every plate on the table that was being used and some that weren't. Not everypony was happy at this. Rainbow Dash glared at the cover, as if hoping it would shatter under her gaze. Apple Bloom hammered hers with her fork while Scootaloo attempted to wrestle hers off. Needless to say none of the attempts worked.

Twilight smiled as everypony and thing looked up at her. “Now, as I was saying. I have an announcement to make. This pertains mostly to Tessla, Austin, and Ben, but that doesn't leave you ponies out of it either.”

“Uh, Twilight, can you get to the point,” Rainbow Dash asked. “My pancakes are getting cold while you're talking.”

Twilight groaned again. “The point is that the Mayor and I are going to introduce the three of them to Ponyville tomorrow morning. Until then, I want you to stay here in the castle and out of sight. Can you do that for me?”

“I think we can handle that, Princess,” Austin said.

“Good.” Twilight's horn flashed and the magic covers vanished, revealing the food once again.

Rainbow Dash almost literally dived back into her breakfast like it was an island of pancakes in an ocean of syrup. Scootaloo was still wrestling with her cover when it vanished. She fell right into her bowl of cereal. That got a big laugh. Breakfast went on as usual after that. Everyone ate their food, drank their juice. Twilight watched as they all talked and laughed.

It was a good breakfast. No, it was a great breakfast. And then came the time to clean up. Twilight's castle was still missing pretty much all of the normal royal things. That list included a kitchen staff to clean the dishes, so she was stuck doing it herself. At times like that she was so very happy she had magic. Fluttershy helped her with the dishes while the others cleaned off the table. It was a bit of a mess.

Applejack strapped Apple Bloom's hooves with some scrubbers while Rainbow Dash brought the soap and water. She splashed the table and Apple Bloom scrubbed it down good. At one point she slid right off the table and into the waiting hooves of her best filly friends. They all laughed and threw Apple Bloom back onto the table.

“Well, they seem to have this under control,” Ben said. “Which makes this a good time to bring something up.”

They moved off to the side and out of earshot of the ponies. “What's up, Ben?”

“Okay. I was up last night thinking, and something occurred to me. We are in Equestria. We're actually here, but we're here as people. What about our OC's?”

Austin had an answer. “Just add that to the list of answers we need to find.” Even if it wasn't the one they were looking for it was one they expected.

Austin's response was met with a heavy sigh. They needed a lot of things. Answers most of all. At the moment they had none. So they just stood there and accepted the fact that more questions were going to be piling up.

“What's an OC?”

This time everyone jumped. Austin and Ben and Tessla all leaped back. When they looked back they saw that it was just young Scootaloo standing there. They took a moment to collect themselves again and calm down a bit.

“You guys are pretty tense, you know that?” Sweetie Belle walked up and stood with Scootaloo. “Either that, or you're just really afraid of Scootaloo. What did she do this time?”

“I overhead them talking about something called an OC, whatever that is.” Scootaloo told her filly friend.

“Hey, were you eavesdropping on us?” Tessla asked. He was half joking. The other half actually wanted to know what she knew.

“I was not eavesdropping,” Scootaloo defended. “It was more like overhearing with intent.”

“Okay then,” Sweetie Belle said. “So, what is an OC anyway?”

“Its just something from our world. I don't think you would understand.” Austin told them with a smile, hoping they would leave it alone. He should have known better. This was CMC he was dealing with. Luckily, he was saved by a couple of big sisters.

Applejack and Rarity walked over to the group. Apple Bloom had her saddlebags for school on and the older ponies were carrying the others. Without warning Applejack dropped Scootaloo's bags down onto her. They were a bit heavy. Scootaloo was busy remembering how to breathe while Rarity gently helped Sweetie Belle with her bags.

“There. Now off to school with you three. You can talk with these three later.”

The three young fillies all trotted off on their way to school. However, they were stopped before they even made it to the doors of the dining hall. Applejack ran up to them and looked them right in the eyes.

“You three know you can't tell anypony 'bout this, don't ya? Nopony can know about these three. Not yet anyway.”

“Yeah, Applejack. We know. Can we get to school now? We're gonna be late if we don't hurry.”

Applejack nodded and they were off once again. Scootaloo boarded her scooter as the other two climbed into the wagon behind it. They were going to make it to school on time. No need to worry. Unless you're Rarity. Then you always find something to worry about.

Rarity let out one her big and dramatic gasps. GASP! When everyone looked at her they saw that she was staring at none other than Ben. He was just standing there, drinking some orange juice. It took him a second to notice all the eyes on him.

“What?”

“What do you mean 'What?'?,” Rarity asked dramatically. “How could you not tell me that I neglected to make you some fine clothing as I did for those two?”

“Oh, I was going to, but then I got distracted by breakfast. It was delicious, by the way.”

Austin and Tessla echoed this fact. Applejack blushed a bit, but that faded quickly. “Thank ya kindly.”

“This is unacceptable. Unacceptable I say! You are coming with me!” Ben's coat began to glow and Rarity dragged him so fast his glass of orange juice hung in the air for a moment.

“Rarity, he can't leave the castle. You can't take him to the boutique.” Twilight yelled after her as she rounded the corner out of the room.

“Then I shall bring the boutique to him,” Rarity yelled back.

Twilight sighed and turned back to Austin and Tessla. They were staring at Ben's glass of orange juice which was still in the air. Even Twilight was kind of puzzled at that. Austin reached out a hand and grabbed the glass. Nothing happened. Absolutely nothing. He took the glass and set it on the table. Still nothing. Guess it really was nothing but a normal glass of orange juice. Okay then.

Well, that was that. Breakfast time was over and it was time for the ponies to get back to their daily lives. Applejack returned to Sweet Apple Acres, Rainbow Dash went to take a nap before she changed the weather for the day. It was sunny for now and could wait. Pinkie Pie went to do. . . whatever it was that Pinkie Pie did in her free time. Roll around in the park maybe. Fluttershy went home to her animals. As for Twilight, she had a busy day of royal duties ahead. Spike would be helping her with that. That left two with nothing to do.

As each pony left for their own reasons Tessla and Austin were left to their own devices. They left the dining hall and headed in the general direction of their rooms, maybe. They thought they were. As they walked they talked.

“So, we can't leave the castle. What do you think about that?” Tessla asked of Austin, who seemed to be deep in his own thoughts. He usually was.

“I think,” Austin said after another moment of thinking, “That I would like to see the library in this here castle.”

“OOH, the library. I forgot about that. That would be nice.”

“Well then it's decided. Off to the library we go. Just one problem.”

“What's that?”

“Where in the hell is the library in this place?”

Meanwhile. . .

“Hey, Rarity. Not there. No, that needs to stay there. No! No, no, no! I am keeping those.”

“Oh, please. It is completely normal-”

“Naked is not normal!”

Rarity backed away from Ben. His outburst surprised her greatly. She assumed he was simply a gentle giant, but he did have some spunk in him. And now that he was down to nothing but his skivvies he was showing a lot of it. Ben grabbed the nearest screen and hid behind it. Rarity rolled her eyes and finished the pair of pants that she had been working on for him. He had specifically requested that she incorporate some pockets on the sides of the legs for extra carrying space.

Rarity finished up the final stitching on the pockets and lifted the pants over the screen to Ben's waiting hands. He fumbled around with the pants. They were a nice medium blue color the he liked. She had made plenty of shirts for Tessla and Austin already and now she just used her magic to make a few larger to fit Ben's larger frame. She chose one of the white shirts she had. It was rather plain, but she got the impression that him and the other two strange creatures like their clothes that way. Plain. It did, however, have an intricate dark blue border around the sleeves and collar. The blue around the collar dipped down into an inverted cone like pattern.

“Oh, I like this shirt, Rarity.”

“Thank you. Mixing the two colors was a nightmare, but I was quite up to the challenge.”

“I believe it.” Ben stepped out from behind the screen for the first time wearing his new clothes. Although they seemed plain Rarity had to admit it was some of her better work, given the strange conditions she had work with.

“Well, now that I have some clothes, what will you do?” Ben asked of Rarity as he inspected his pockets.

“You have a ceremony tomorrow, yes? Why, you will need some of the finest clothes I can produce, and I have yet to make them.”

“Then you better get going. I'll be fine here, restricted to the castle. You have work to do.”

“Darn right I do!” Rarity shouted to both of them. She lifted up some of the larger items that she brought with her and ran out of the castle as fast as she could.

Ben was left standing there, alone. At least his new clothes were comfortable. He moved out the doors and started wandering the halls of Twilight's castle. He was moving in the general direction of his room, and then he remembered the thing he forgot. His coat. It didn't really fit in with his current clothing, but he would like to to keep it with him anyway. He raced back to the room and snatched it up real quick like.

“Okay, now all I have to do is search an entire castle for two people. I wonder where Tessla and Austin are?”

Disappearing Act

View Online

Tessla and Austin had searched high and low in the castle. They searched four floors down from where they started and found nothing. Nothing but more rooms of varying sizes, that is. Few of the rooms had furniture, but that was to be expected. Twilight's castle was still rather new. So they trekked back up the four floors to where they started and started over.

They moved up this time. One floor was apparently composed of nothing but closets. Closets and rooms that led to balconies overlooking other rooms. Strange. The next floor had a grand ball room area with high vaulted ceilings and a great chandelier in the center of the ceiling. Every step and footfall echoed throughout the grand hall as they moved through it. It was kinda creepy.

Finally, three floors up they found it. Austin and Tessla stood in awe. Before them were two large doors that looked nearly impossible to move. They knew Twilight could use her magic and open them with ease, but how would they. They were sure that the library lay beyond. It had to be on the other side of those doors.

“You think that's the library, Tessla?”

“It makes sense. Big doors mean really important, right? And Twilight does love books, so the library would be really important to her.”

“Yeah, especially after what happened with Tirek.”

“So, how do we get in?”

“I suggest we push the doors.” Austin smiled and stepped up to the doors. Tessla quickened up right behind him. Both of them laid their hands upon the doors and were about to push when Tessla got a thought.

“What if this doesn't work?”

“Then we find a handle and pull.”

Tessla shook his head and chuckled. Yeah, that was Austin for ya. He had an answer for just about everything. It wasn't always a smart answer, but it was usually an answer. Tessla smiled again and both him and Austin pushed on the doors.

For a solid minute they pushed and nothing happened. They were about to give up and try pulling when the doors finally gave way. Just not the way they were expecting. The doors were opening outward. Both of them stepped back to avoid the path of the doors, but one of them wasn't fast enough.

The large doors swung open and Tessla's fingers got caught between the door and the wall. He stifled the pained scream as he heard the sound of small feet walking toward them. It was coming from inside the library! He pressed himself against the wall as best he could and Austin did the same. Luckily, the large doors covered most of them. As long as whoever it was didn't look back they would not be seen. As the footsteps grew closer Austin and Tessla took one last look at each other. They sucked their guts in and remained as silent as they could.

Seconds later a small, purple baby dragon emerged from the library carrying a stack of books that looked too tall for him to handle. He struggled as the stack leaned to one side, but he recovered nicely with a well timed jolt that shook the books back into a straight stack. Even when one fell off Spike didn't falter as he quickly lashed out with his tail and caught the book. He then proceeded to catapult the book back to the top of the stack like it was an everyday thing he did. Maybe it was. All Austin and Tessla were thinking was that the library doors were closing, and fast.

They quickly rushed out from their places by the doors and entered the library. Austin's big feet proved a problem however, as he nearly tripped over them on his way in. He was able to quickly get back up and hide on the other side of the wall. Tessla did the same just as Spike looked back.

“That's odd. I thought I heard something,” He said, but as he looked back he saw nothing. “Huh, must be my imagination. This big, empty castle gets kinda creepy sometimes.”

“Yeah, right. Have you been to the ballroom?” Tessla's sarcasm was barely above a whisper.

The doors closed fully behind Spike, leaving Austin and Tessla in the library. As soon as they were sure the doors were closed and nopony else was coming in they emerged from their hiding places. And they emerged into a place of wonder and magic: Twilight's library.

“So where are you heading first?” Austin asked Tessla a very reasonable question. There were rows upon rows of bookshelves, and each of them had dozens upon dozens of books. Every subject was here. Pony lore, pony history, pony anatomy, and everything else they could think of.

“I was thinking about checking out some pony mythology. You?”

“Come on, Tessla, you know me. Pony magic, of course.”

“Of course.”

The two friends nodded as they moved to the center aisle. They looked down either way of the long library. They said nothing as the same thought entered both their minds. It was one of those 'needless to say' moments. Now all I have to do is find the section I'm looking for. That shouldn't be too hard, right? The two split up and each took one side of the library. Austin went left and Tessla took right. The search for knowledge had begun. Meanwhile, Ben was still on his own search for his friends. His was not going so well.

Ben. . .

After Rarity left Ben alone, he went off by himself. He did wonder why they were being left alone in Twilight's castle on just their second day being there, but he was quickly pulled away from that thought. The castle had oh so many wonders to distract him.

First it was the kitchen. He wasn't quite sure how he got there. It was either two lefts, a right, up a flight of stairs, another right, and then three lefts, or it was two rights, three lefts, up some stairs, across a hall, and then two more lefts. Something like that, yeah. It didn't matter to him, though, because he was there. He was in the kitchen.

Ben smiled as he walked in. He loved cooking, and so the kitchen was one his favorite places to be. He was pretty good at it too. He wasn't quite chef material yet, but he was on his way. Ben made himself busy looking around and inspecting everything. It could have been considered snooping, but he didn't see it that way. He looked in the fridge and the cupboards. He looked on shelves and in drawers. He was simply curious about what a royal Equestrian kitchen was like. And he was getting hungry. The whole thing with Rarity took longer than he expected and all this walking was building up an appetite.

“AAAAHHHHHH!!!”

Ben whipped around faster than a startled Fluttershy. Well, maybe not that fast, but you get the idea. Spike was standing there in the doorway to the kitchen. His eyes were wide with terror and his little dragon body was trembling a bit.

“Sorry, Spike. Am I not supposed to be in here? I got a little turned around on my way back to my room.”

Spike snapped out of his own stunned state. He shook his head and turned back to Ben. “NO! You are NOT supposed to be in here. Especially not now. Twilight has an official royal staffer coming over and they cannot see you!”

“'Official royal staffer'? What's that?”

“It's a pony who's job it is to find staff for royal castles and stuff. I'm pretty sure that's what it is, at least.” Spike got lost in his own thoughts for a moment after that. He quickly snapped back to reality at the thought of Twilight's fury if Ben ruined this day. “It doesn't matter! You have to leave! NOW!”

Spike got behind Ben and started pushing with all his might. It didn't really do much as Spike's tallest point only came up to just above Ben's knee. The tips of his claws were pretty sharp though, even for him being a baby dragon. That got Ben moving.

As they walked toward the door, they both heard voices coming from down the hall. The voices were clear as day and one was unmistakable. It was Twilight, and the other voice must be the royal staffer. It was an older male voice that teemed with a hint of royalty and a lot of experience.

“Oh no! Twilight can't find you here. You have to hide. NOW!” Spike was freaking out. He ran over to some empty cupboard under the counters and threw the doors open. “Hurry! In here.”

Ben just looked at him and tried not to laugh. “I'm not going to fit in there.” Spike looked at Ben, and then at the cupboard. Then at Ben, and back again. He was right. He wasn't going to fit in there.

The voices were closer now, they were almost to the kitchen. Spike was epically losing it at that point. He grabbed Ben by the hand and dragged him over to a door. He opened the door and pretty much tossed Ben inside. He quickly closed the door just as Twilight came into the kitchen.

“This is the kitchen. As you can see it is quite spacious, with four stove tops, two large refrigerators, and plenty of storage space.” Twilight just then noticed her small, purple assistant standing at the other end of the kitchen. “Spike, what are you doing here?”

“I'm sorry!”

“Sorry? Sorry for what?”

Damn. Spike let it slip. Just a little, though. Maybe he could salvage this. As he stood with his back to the door he heard a small voice in his ear. It was barely audible, but it gave him a good idea.

“I slipped and fell in the pantry. I made a bit of a mess doing it. I was actually trying to clean it up before you and your guest arrived, but I wasn't able to.”

“Oh, well I'm glad you tried at least, Spike. Maybe we can come back around a little while later. Is that okay with you?”

The royal staffer looked half asleep as he stood there. Twilight's question shook him awake, though. He jumped just a little and adjusted his glasses. “Oh, that's fine by me,” He said in his old voice.

Twilight left with the royal staffer and Spike waved her goodbye as she took him to see the rest of the castle. Spike stood there for several moments after they left to make sure they were gone. Then he opened the door to the pantry and saw Ben. He was munching on a carrot.

“Eh, what's up, Spike?”

“What are you doing?”

“Eating a carrot. Good idea with the pantry, by the way. There is a lot of room in here.”

“Just get out,” Spike breathed.

Ben walked with Spike to the hallway and then Spike turned him over to himself. “I would show you to your room, but I have to go and get a bunch of books from the library for Twilight.”

“Have fun with that,” Ben called out as Spike trudged off.

“Please, do you know how hard it is carrying a stack of books that's taller than you down flights of stairs?”

It was a rhetorical question, and Ben knew that. Therefore, he kept his answer to himself. No. No, he had never had the chance to carry a stack of books that was taller than him down flights of stairs. And he was proud of that. That was because Ben was a tall guy. A stack of books taller than him would have to be at least seven feet tall, if not taller. And he wouldn't make it past the first step before something terrible happened. That he was sure of.

So, Spike went one way and Ben went the other. He figured it was best this way as Twilight and the staffer went the same way Spike was going now. His thoughts were that he was less likely to be spotted if he went away from them. Seemed logical, right?

Back in the Library. . .

Austin was having the time of his life. Well, as well as he could with a mountain of books. Magic had always interested him, but back in his own world, it was little more than illusion and fantasy. The stuff of stories and not something to be taken seriously, but here in Equestria it was real. It was real and taken seriously, so naturally he was curious about it. He stalked the great shelves of the library until he found the section he was looking for. It was a rather difficult search as there lay mountains of books everywhere. Twilight had made a lot of progress when it came to shelving the books, but there were just so many of them. It took forty-five minutes at least for him to find what he was looking for. The section was so neatly labeled 'Magic' making it easy to spot.

Austin delved into the first books that caught his eyes. They were all on magic, of course, but they varied so much. Some were on growth magic, some were all about nature magic. A few even had to do with the anatomy of ponies and how magic could affect it in all sorts of ways. Austin placed that one back on the shelf. He found about five or six books that interested him and then he came upon one that made sense to him. Magic for Ponies: The Beginners Guide. Made sense to start with that one. He sat down in one of the conveniently placed chairs nearby and opened the books first pages.

The book was all about the basics of pony magic for young Unicorns. Obviously, he was not a young Unicorn, but he read the book anyway. He also had a stack next to him that was ready to be read after he finished with that one. Even if he couldn't do magic himself, he still wanted to learn about it. He was pretty damn sure it would help him out along the way while he lived in Equestria. And he wasn't the only one having a grand time in the library. Tessla was at the other end of the library indulging in his own interests.

Tessla found what he was looking for much faster than Austin did. That was mostly due to the fact that his section was much bigger than the one Austin was looking for. Tessla was looking for pony mythology and lore. That fell under the 'History' part of the library, which was almost half of Twilight's entire collection of books. So he found some books to read quite fast. However, finding a chair to sit in while he read those books. That was another thing altogether. Every possible seat or place to put your ass was taken and filled by books, bindings, and pages. He settled for the floor under one of the windows and started to read. The first book he chose was about the many strange creatures that could be found throughout Equestria.

The book delved into details about such creatures as hydras, manticores, chimeras, and even parasprites. Tessla knew of all of these, but nothing in great detail. And he was a man of details. So he read and read and read. Every word, every page, and every picture was studied and committed to memory as best he could. He would most likely forget a lot of it by tomorrow, but he could always read the book again. Maybe. If he could sneak into the library again.

Hours went by and the both of them had gone through several books each by then. Austin was fascinated by all the magical insights those books provided. Some confused him, and some were simple to comprehend. He was really into the books he found about elemental magic. But even as fascinated as he was, there was only so much time he could spend on his ass before it went numb. He stood up and placed a marker in the book he was reading so he wouldn't lose his place.

“I wonder what Tessla's up to. He's awfully quiet,” Austin yawned out the last words. He stretched out tall and heard all the cracks that came with it. That was normal, so don't worry.

Austin knew that Tessla was supposed to be at the other end of the library. That was where he would start looking. It felt good for him to stretch out his legs. His left foot had fallen asleep some time ago, so that made walking a little awkward. But he pushed onward. It was not the first time he had been forced to move on asleep feet, and he had gotten rather good at it. As long as he didn't fall on his face he was okay.

Austin searched for Tessla in the library the same way he would at a store back in his own world. He walked down one aisle and glanced down each one he passed until he saw something or someone that was familiar. It was a bit easier in the library as there were only two people in there, and Austin knew where he was. He was waddling down the center aisle with a tingling sensation taking over his foot and slowly traveling up.

Tessla was found at the far end of the library, only two rows away from the very last one. He was huddled up underneath a window. Austin passed by it, only to back pedal a moment later and turn down that row.

“Hey man. Light's fading. You may want to find a candle or something.” He playfully said.

Tessla didn't look up from his current book. “I would, but all the tables and chairs are covered in books. And I highly doubt that there would be a candle so close to all those books.”

“Good point.” Austin looked around Tessla. He had a pretty good stack of books on either side of him. “How may of those books have you read so far?”

“Four.” Tessla stated proudly. “They were all on the beasts of Equestria, both magical and mythical. Some interesting stuff in there.”

“I bet, but I think we should be going. Somepony might start wondering where we are. I still have no idea if we're allowed to be in here or not.”

Tessla was about to respond when a sound echoed throughout the library. It was a sound they had heard just a few hours earlier. Doors. Two large, heavy looking doors. The library doors, to be exact. Both Austin and Tessla peered around the corner of the bookshelf and looked for whoever it was that was coming inside.

“WHOA! Now this is a library!”

“That's gotta be Ben,” Austin said. Tessla agreed.

They walked out to meet their friend. He was so entranced by the sheer volume of books that he didn't even notice them coming towards him. He turned to every side, taking in all the knowledge that must be accumulated in that room. It wasn't until he heard some talking that he looked down to see his friends standing there.

“Oh, hey guys. You found the library, too.”

“Yeah. We've been here for a few hours now. Reading.” Austin said. Ben was still in awe a little.

“This place is awesome. What have you been reading about?”

“Magic,” Austin state flatly.

“Beasts of Equestria, magical and mythical,” Tessla told Ben.

Ben nodded. His pudgy cheeks turned out as a huge smiled grew across his face. As the three stood there the library doors opened up once again. It was too late for any of them to move. Even if the wanted to there was no way they wouldn't be seen. That was it. They were done for.

“Wha-? Not again!” Spike griped as he stomped up to the three. “You can't be here. Nobody is allowed in Twilight's library. Nobody! Not to mention that she on her way here right now with the official royal staffer.”

“The official what?” Tessla asked, confused.

“Oh, its a pony whose job it is to find staff for the castle,” Ben explained with a smile.

“And she's on her way here right now?” Austin asked.

As soon as the words left his lips sounds could be heard coming from the hallway. All of Spike's color drained out of him. Even Ben went kind of pale. Tessla shrugged when Austin looked back at him. Austin himself understood the importance of it all.

“No, she's not on her way.” Spike uttered, barely. “She's here. Hide!”

The four of them scrambled about as they searched for a place for them to hide. It was quickly discovered that no such places existed in a library. It was just shelves and books. A few tables thrown about the room and you have all the big stuff. Wait a moment. Tables!

Austin got a great idea. He took Ben and Tessla over to a nearby table and shoved them underneath. There was only room for those two and even that was a tight squeeze. With Spike's help he stacked piles and piles of books up to create a wall of pages and words around the entire table. Spike sighed as they got done, but that left one more problem still around.

Spike scrambled around and ended up hiding behind the end of a bookshelf. Austin was at the end of another a little ways off. In between them, the doors and a whole lot of empty space. Twilight came in just a second ago and Spike's heart started racing. Seriously bad news. Even worse was the fact that Austin was still in plain view. Spike's heart skipped a beat when he saw that. Austin was also freaking out a little, but that did nothing to calm Spike's nerves. He wanted to tell him to hide, but he couldn't say anything without giving away his position. The only choice he had was to motion and use hand gestures.

Spike frantically waved his hand from one side to the next. Hide! Hide! Austin got the message and looked around, but found no suitable place to hide. Spike glanced back at Twilight. She was standing in the doorway talking with the staffer. That would not give them much more time.

Spike looked around him. Both sides of the library were basically the same, so if he found a place to hide over here, it should be the same over there. He looked around and found about as much as Austin did. He got a few ideas, but not really any good ones. He decided to throw them out there anyway.

He looked over at Austin and picked up a few books. He used them to make a four sided box and and stuck another book on top of that. He then motioned a person going inside the box. Make a fort out of books and hide in that.

Austin raised an eyebrow at that. He pointed at Twilight and then made a two fingered gesture from her to the box. Don't you think she might notice that?

Spike facepalmed. He was right. Of course she would notice that. He tapped his chin and another idea came to him. This one was sure to work. He looked back at Austin. He used both hands for this. He put one in the air higher than the other and then made it look like climbing. At one point he stopped and rolled on the floor just a little bit.

Austin raised an eyebrow again. Donkey Kong in a barrel? That can't be right. He looked back at Spike who was waiting impatiently for a response. The shrugging of Austin's shoulders was not the one he wanted. So Spike went into more detail with his motions. He didn't have much time either. Twilight was beginning to move closer.

He frantically made the hand over hand climbing gestures again, but instead of rolling this time he moved over to behind the bookshelf. He removed some books and shoved himself into the space the books used to occupy. Now Austin got it. He gave Spike a thumbs up. Climb a ladder and hide on an empty shelf. Got it.

Austin was lucky. There just so happened to be a ladder in the first row next to him. He was rather unlucky in the fact that the only shelf that was empty enough for him to squeeze into was high up. Too bad, oh well. He caught sight of Twilight's coming closer. She was about to round the corner any second. He scrambled up the ladder as fast and quietly as he could, which was actually pretty damn quiet. But it was no use. He was going to be caught, found. Or was he?

“Oh, Twilight. You're here?”

Twilight and the staffer turned around to see Spike carrying a small stack of books. “Spike, what are you doing here?” Twilight asked with more than hint of curiosity.

“Well, I finished cleaning that mess in the pantry after I delivered those books you asked for, and then I remembered how messy it is in here. I came to clean up the library a little bit.” Spike smiled, but it was not genuine. It was one of those 'I'm lying, but I want to look innocent' smiles and he was really hoping it was working.

Twilight didn't say anything right away. She looked around the messy library, and then looked back at Spike. “It looks the same in here. Did you fall asleep or something?”

Spike glanced over Twilight's head. He saw that Austin had made it to the shelf and was securely 'hidden' away. “Gee, Twilight, you caught me. I may have taken a small nap. Anyway, I'll get out of your hair and leave you with your guest. Bye!”

Spike put the books down and ran out of the room as fast as he could. Any faster and he would have left a trail of fire behind him.

“That was weird. Spike doesn't usually act that way.” Twilight was stunned, Spike doesn't usually do that kind of thing, and when he does it usually means he did something wrong. Twilight brushed it off for now. She had important business to attend to.

She walked throughout the library with the pony staffer and spoke with as they walked. “As you can see, the library is one of my most prized rooms. I love books, and I know how to treat them well. Don't mistake the mess here for laziness. I just haven't had the time to do all of this by myself, and it's just me and Spike here at the castle.”

“Oh, yes. This would be a lot for just one pony to do, Princess or not.” The staffer said. “Now, what kind of ponies were you looking for again?”

“I am looking for ponies who will treat these books with the utmost respect and thoughtfulness they require. Some of these books are quite old. You understand, don't you?”

“Yes, I do, Princess. I know just what you mean. And I think I know of a two ponies in the Crystal Empire who might be perfect for the job. A sister and brother pair who love books almost as much as you do. They would most certainly treat your books right.”

“That's wonderful. I look forward to meeting them. Well, that concludes the tour of the castle and the list of all the ponies I will need. How soon do you think I will get them?”

“Well, it will take some time. These things always do, but I assure you, Princess, you will have the finest royal staff I can get you. I promise that.”

Twilight smiled. She had been waiting for months already to get some ponies hired in to work at the castle. Now she actually had a plan. And this pony here was used by Cadance and Shining Armor, so he could be trusted.

As the Princess and the staffer walked back to the doors a book caught the eye of the staffer. It was one of the only books that was open, so it seemed a little odd to him. He stopped and investigated. He looked at the book for a second before closing it and then he saw the title. It was only then that Twilight noticed his absence and walked back to find him.

“Oh, did one of my books catch your eye?” She asked genuinely. She didn't often meet other ponies who shared her love of books as deeply as she did.

“You could say that,” The staffer replied as he held up the book, “A book on basic pony magic? Why, Princess, I would have thought you above this level by now. Or perhaps, do you have a young pupil that nopony knows about?”

Twilight stared at the book. It really was the book he said it was. She would recognize that book anywhere. But she couldn't figure out what the book was doing out. She shelved that book a long time ago. It was one of the first books she shelved. Twilight brain rattled as she tried to find some response, any response.

“So, where did you find that?” That was all she could come up with. She was going to beat herself up about it later.

“It was right over here by all these other books on magic.”

Twilight looked over to where he gestured. There was a chair pulled out and several books on magic were stacked up on the table. She quickly read through the titles and saw exactly what they were. That was almost the exact pile of books she studies when she first began to study magic under Celestia. That also gave her an idea. It was a fib, but maybe it would work.

“Oh, I had a fit of nostalgia the other night,” Twilight fibbed. “This being my castle, and having Spike here all the time. I was reminded of the time I spent with Princess Celestia as my mentor. I ended up going through and reading a lot of the books I read back then. And you know what they say about magic. You can't do anything if you don't understand the basics. Hehe he he.”

“Ah. A moving tale. Well, I should go and get to work on those ponies for your staff. I'll be off.”

He moved for the doors before Twilight could stop him. She was still kinda surprised that her fib actually worked. It was only half a fib really. She did feel nostalgic at times in her castle. She hadn't reread any books, but now kinda wanted to.

“Oh, wait.” She turned and trotted off after the staffer. “Let me walk you out.”

“No need to worry about me, Princess. I have a good memory. I can find my own way out.”

The staffer turned and gave one last wave to Twilight before leaving. She gave him a weak wave back, still feeling kinda bad that she fibbed. Eh, she'll get over it. The staffer turned around quickly and smacked face first into the doors.

“Oof. That always happens at least once. Don't you worry now.” The staffer mumbled as he righted himself and tried again. As soon as he took his first step the door swung open real fast and slammed into him.

“Or maybe it will happen twice,” The old pony said as he stumbled out the doors. He passed a confused Spike along the way, but didn't seem to acknowledge him at all. Spike just shrugged and walked up to Twilight. She was still waving.

As soon as the staffer was safely out of earshot- and hopefully safely out of her castle- Twilight turned her attention to Spike. She whipped her head around and gave him the nastiest glare she could. Not many ponies knew this, but Twilight could get really scary sometimes. Spike had been with her long enough to know that.

Twilight's eyes narrowed to mere slits as she glared at Spike. Beads of sweat began to run down the scales of his face. He could swear his heart stopped beating. The color left him, pale and helpless. Twilight came up on him like a wolf stalking prey.

“Spike,” She growled, “Have you been messing with my books again?”

“No,” Spike squeaked. “It wasn't me. I swear!”

“Then who was it? Who else could it poss-” Twilight's anger stopped mid flow as her sentence did. Normally, it would have been a perfectly reasonable question. But things as of late were not normal. Not in the least.

“Spike,” Twilight growled as she turned her attention back to him, “Have any of the strangers been in my library?”

As if on cue and in response to her question, a table surrounded by books. . . well, it basically exploded. The sudden wave of pages and colored bindings caught them all of guard. Twilight was utterly stunned as she watched many of her precious books fall all around her. It happened so fast she almost forgot how angry she was. Then one of her books landed flat on her face. It barely missed her horn and all that anger came rising back up to the boiling point.

“There may be two in here,” Spike weakly mumbled.

Twilight grumbled and ground her teeth as she peeled the book off her face. She gave Spike one look. One look that said it all. “Is that all, Spike? Are you sure?”

Before Spike could talk, another noise drew Twilight attention away. It was a voice. “Oh shit!” It said. “This is gonna hurt.” It said. And then Austin fell and hit the floor. His body hit the floor with a sharp crack and a loud groan followed. He was hurting, but alive.

“Maybe all three,” Spike uttered, but it was barely audible.

Twilight was fuming at this point. Smoke was practically bellowing out her nostrils. Fire nearly engulfed her mane. Spike shrank back to avoid the rage, but it was no use. Twilight was driven over the edge, and poor Spike was never seen again.

“WHAT?!?!?”

“You cannot do that! Rewind! I said re-fucking-wind!”

Cautiously nervous “Calm down, Pinkie. Calm down. It was just a joke.”

“Well, it wasn't funny! You don't go messing with Spike like that!”

Slightly afraid “Okay, okay. I'll change it. It shall be rewound.”

“Good. Now re-fucking-wind the story. It was getting good up til that part.”
Cowering in terror “Okay, okay. Rewinding.”

“And that poor narrator was never seen again. See? How do you like it? Oh,wait. He's gone.”

Several minutes of rewinding later. . .

“Spike,” She growled, “Have you been messing with my books again?”

“No,” Spike squeaked. “It wasn't me. I swear!”

Twilight's anger subsided at that point. “I'm too tired to do this right now. Just be honest with me, Spike. What happened?”

“It was the strangers! They were here when I got here just before you got here with the staffer. They must have been reading your books.” Spike blurted it out as fast as he could to try and exonerate himself.

“And where are they now, Spike?”

As if on cue and in response to her question, a table surrounded by books. . . well, it basically exploded. The sudden wave of pages and colored bindings caught them all of guard. Twilight was utterly stunned as she watched many of her precious books fall all around her. It happened so fast she almost forgot how angry she wasn't. Then one of her books landed flat on her face. It barely missed her horn and a small amount of annoyance rose up. She sighed as the book slid off her face and landed on the floor in front of her.

“There are two right there,” Spike mumbled.

“And the third,” Twilight asked flatly.

Before Spike could talk, another noise drew Twilight attention away. It was a voice. “Oh shit!” It said. “This is gonna hurt.” It said. And then Austin fell and hit the floor. Or he would have if Twilight's magic hadn't caught him in time.

“Thanks,” Austin said as he stared at the floor.

“No problem,” Twilight said, just before dropping him on his face.

“That makes three,” Spike said weakly.

“Ugh, I'm going to bed early. This day has been exhausting, and I need some sleep before the ceremony tomorrow.” Twilight left them with that and went off to her room for some rest.

“That's so much better! Thank you!”

Several moments later. . .

“Oh, wait. He's still gone.”

Day of Ceremony

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The next day came with everyone wishing for a new beginning. The three strangers were glad Twilight wasn't angry with them, but that was still a bad impression on only their second day. They didn't want that, nor did they need it. They were on shaky ground is was being strange creatures even by Equestrian standards.

But the day was one of ceremony. It was to be the day that Twilight and the Mayor introduced them to Ponyville. So, one by one they rose from their beds earlier than any of them liked. Spike came around at 7:00 AM and woke them all up. He took some pleasure in it, too. He was in hot water with Twilight as well and was hoping this would get him back in her good graces.

“Okay, okay. I'm up,” Austin groaned as he rolled out of bed.

“I really wanna punch that baby dragon sometimes,” Tessla grumbled. His eyes were still closed, but he was awake.

“I'm awake!” Ben's head shot up, but he immediately regretted it. He lay back down for a minute before getting out of bed.

They all threw on whatever clothes they had and walked out to meet Spike. He was waiting for them in the hallway. He didn't say anything as he turned and started walking. Austin just started following him. Tessla and Ben shrugged and then started following Austin. After a moment of silence, Spike started to speak.

“Twilight is talking with the Mayor now,” He explained. “You are going to meet her and have breakfast with her. During that time you will talk and she will get to know you. The ceremony itself isn't until 10:00 AM. At 9:00 AM Rarity will be here with your fancy attire for the ceremony. Are you all clear on how the day will proceed?”

“I have a question,” Tessla proclaimed. “Why are talking like that?”

Spike groaned. “I am trying to be more professional so Twilight will forgive me for screwing up yesterday.”

“When did you screw up?” Spike whirled around and angrily pointed at Austin, who asked the seemingly stupid question.

“You know darn well when I screwed up! You were all there!”

Austin knelt down to Spike's level so he could speak with him. “Spike, you did all you could to salvage a day that Twilight needed. We are the ones that screwed up. You saved her and that staffer from having a full blown meltdown.”

“I tried explaining that to Twilight, but she wouldn't listen to me,” Spike said.

“That's probably because this day is even more important to her. It's important for us as well. Trust me, we won't screw up today. But, can you try to act like you in the meantime?”

“I guess I can do that,” Spike said. He and Austin shook on it and they started walking again.

It didn't take as long to get to the dining hall as it did before. They were greeted by the same lovely smells as the morning before. At least it was going to be a good breakfast.

The four walked in to see all of the Mane Six there as well as the Mayor. Spike froze when he saw them all. “When did you all get here?”

“Just a few moments ago, darling,” Rarity answered.

“Yeah, now get your scaly butt on over here so we can eat already. We've been waiting on you.” Ah, Rainbow Dash. As blunt as ever.

This time the three of them were given seats closer to Twilight. She sat at one end of the table with Spike right next to her. To her immediate left was Tessla and Ben. To her immediate right sat the Mayor and then Austin.

The Mayor was still staring at them as they sat down. They most certainly were the strangest looking creatures she had ever seen. Even as Twilight floated a plate full of delicious food to her the Mayor's stare remained. It shifted between the three of them and was currently stuck on Ben.

“My, my. You are certainly. . .” The mayor searched for a word that would sum him up and not make her seem offensive. “. . . big.”

Ben gulped down the last bite of food before responding. “I am getting that a lot, Mayor.”

“Oh, I am not surprised at that. He he,” The Mayor whispered. She turned her eyed away from Ben and over to Tessla. She stared at him at a moment. “Why are you the only one with a mane?”

Tessla was mid drink in a cup of orange juice when the Mayor asked him her questioned. He choked back a spit take before he covered the Mayor in a mix of orange juice and spit. He composed himself again and answered as best he could.

“It's not a mane, actually. The men of my world wear their hair in a variety of ways, from short to long. I chose to grow my hair out to this length. Although I would like to wear it up, but I don't have a hair band.”

“OH! I simply forgot in all the commotion, dearie.” Rarity apologized and floated over a purple, stretchy hair band. Tessla apologized and put his hair up in a single cluster that hung behind his head.

“Oh, what is that hairstyle called?” Rarity asked. “It's lovely.”

“It's a pony tail.”

All sound in the room stopped. Not a thing moved. Tessla stopped with his hands still in his hair. He looked about and saw that all eyes were on him. All eyes except those of Austin and Ben. They were preoccupied with holding in their laughter. Tessla cleared his throat and finished with his hair.

“Yes. It's true,” Tessla said. “My world is messed up.”

More than a few nods followed that, along with a few gaping mouths. That was broken up the sudden and totally unexpected fit of giggling that was coming from a totally unexpected pony.

Rainbow Dash was trying to hold and failing miserably at it. When asked by Twilight what was wrong she simply flew out of her seat and fell into a fit of howling laughter. “Ahahahaha! Hey, Tessla. If that's a pony tail, wouldn't that make your head a pony's ass?”

Dash's remark made many around the table have mixed reactions. Ben and Tessla had to use every ounce of their significant self control to not hit the floor and roll around laughing. Austin had just slightly more luck with it than Ben did, but they both were still failing at it. As for Twilight, her head hit the table as soon as the word 'ass' left Dash's mouth. She repeated the action a few times before she finally just let her head rest there a moment. And Twilight wasn't the only one to have that kind of reaction. Rarity exclaimed her shock and held a hoof to her head. Then she fainted and was still in the process of recovering when Twilight spoke up.

“I apologize for this, Mayor,” Twilight pleaded, “If I had known Rainbow Dash would be so vulgar, I would have left her outside of this breakfast.”

“Hey! I'm not a pet. You can't just leave me outside whenever you want!” Dash defended herself.

“My warding spell a few days ago says differently,” Twilight teased. She knew Dash still had a few bruises from the time she repeatedly bashed into her library windows. It was the same day Tessla first showed up. Dash grumbled. She hid it well, but she did still feel a small twinge of pain every now and then.

“That's quite alright, Princess Twilight.” The Mayor said, “To be honest, I was actually expecting something to go wrong here with all of you here, and then there's these three.”

The Mayor motioned at all three of the strangers. Tessla was eating. Ben was still chuckling to himself. Austin was breathing heavy and deeply in a last ditch effort to bring himself together. He was still bringing it all together when he turned to face the Mayor.

“I'm sorry, Mayor. I haven't introduced myself.” Austin held out a hand just enough for the Mayor to take it. “My name is Austin. It's a pleasure to meet you.”

The Mayor leaned back at first. She looked down at the hand offered with wide eyes, unsure as what to do with it. She looked back over her shoulder at Twilight, who was smiling and trying to push the Mayor closer without actually touching her. It was more like a reassuring wave with both of her hooves. The Mayor got the hint.

She leaned back in until she was sitting normally. Austin's hand was even closer to her now. She looked at it nervously before finally reaching a hoof out. She just barely touched the tips of his fingers and that was that. Austin followed through with the rest of the hoof/hand shaking.

“Nice to meet you, too, Austin.” The Mayor nervously replied.

The breakfast continued for about an hour after that. The Mayor got more familiar with them all. She heard all the stories about how they all arrived in Equestria. She was particularly tickled by Ben's story.

As the morning drew on the Mayor relaxed. She had conversed with all three of them and found their company to be rather pleasant, or not as unpleasant as she originally thought. Their time together was coming to an end, however and she had only one last question to ask. It was directed to the other ponies that she shared the table with.

“So, what do you all think of these three?”

The room fell silent for the second time that morning. Every pony finished chewing their latest bite of food. They swallowed it nervously and avoided eye contact with just about everything. Rainbow Dash focused in the image of herself she saw shining through at the bottom of her plate. Fluttershy was the first to speak up.

“I think they're all quite nice. I like Austin, because he has strong opinions about animals. He really likes reptiles, like snakes and lizards.”

“What about tortoises?” Rainbow Dash asked fervently.

“Tortoises are reptiles, so he would like them too,” Fluttershy softly spoke.

“You got one more point in my awesomeness scale, buddy. Maybe two.” Dash said a bit more aggressively than it was meant to be. “But the whole boop thing set you back at least fifty, if not more.”

Fluttershy waited for Dash to float back down to her seat before continuing. “I also like Tessla. He has a nice mane, or hair. Whatever it's called,” She said with a smile. “And Ben is quite nice and gentle, for being so big.”

The others echoed Fluttershy's kind words, but in their own way. They even added a few of their own. Rarity praised the creative minds of Tessla and Austin, but chose to leave Ben out of it. When asked about it she simply said that adding pockets was not creative.

Dash had no opinion worth anything other than a few choice words about Austin. She was quickly hushed by Applejack. She herself had no opinion to offer, saying that while they seemed nice enough she didn't know 'em well enough to make a sound opinion. It was a well said and respectable statement.

Pinkie Pie shouted out that she like them all the same, and that that was a lot. Everypony was expecting that, though. I mean, really, is there a pony that Pinkie Pie doesn't like? These guys were far from ponies, but Pinkie Pie liked them all the same anyway. With all their opinions heard that left only one pony left.

The Mayor turned to Princess Twilight Sparkle to find out what she thought of these three. Twilight was a little nervous, but chose to follow in her dear friend Applejack's hooves. Honesty through and through. “They can a pain in the ass sometimes,” Twilight stated, “But they aren't all bad. Austin has an interest in magic. I can understand and respect that. Tessla seems to like the lore of Equestria and has already done some reading into the creatures that live here. And as for Ben, I hear he likes the kitchen. Maybe he can make breakfast for us all one day.”

Twilight finished her testimony on the three and waited for a response from the Mayor. She just stared blankly back at her for a few moments. It was actually Dash who spoke up first. Hopefully she would have something reasonably nice to say this time.

“What the hell?!” Maybe not. Dash jolted up and out of her seat. She hovered there for a second before darting over and hovering in between Austin and Tessla. “You mean to tell me that of all three of you guys, you two are eggheads just like Twilight?”

“NO,” Both Austin and Tessla said simultaneously. Austin shot Twilight a sympathetic glance, but he wasn't sure if she fully got it. He turned back to Dash as he could feel her gaze burning a piercing hole through his one shirt.

“We enjoy a good book every now and then, Dash.” Austin told her, “But we are not quite on the same level as Twilight when it come to 'eggheadness' so to speak. And I am more of a storyteller than a story reader.”

“So, what? You guys are half eggheads?” Dash seemed genuinely confused at the whole thing.

“Sure, let's go with that,” Austin dismissed the whole topic then and there. Dash accepted it and went back to her seat. Twilight was seriously considering an antiDash spell for the castle. The Mayor didn't seem to mind at all. She even got a chuckle out of it.

“Well, I better be going then, Princess,” The Mayor said as she got up to leave. Twilight walked her out, but not before giving Rarity a look. It was the look. Rarity got and followed it promptly. That is, after she finished her glass of cider.

Once Twilight and the Mayor were away Rarity shot up and ran over to the three guys. She poked and prodded them with her horn to get them to move faster. She did not have the energy to drag anyone today, and the day itself was too important.

Rarity rushed them all into a room and presented them with their ceremony outfits. They weren't that bad. They looked like black tuxedos, kind of. They had long black pants and pair of nice dress shoes to go with them. That was good seeing as how their shoes were all damaged in the fall. Up top they had nice white button up shirt, but no ties of any kind. Over that was a black dress coat that went down to everyone's mid thigh. Rarity was catching on quick when it came to making clothes for them. But they weren't putting them on.

Rarity sighed and magically unfolded some screens to go between the three. Once that was done they immediately got into changing for the big event. It didn't take them long to change and there were a few issues.

The first issue was simple for Rarity to take care of. It was that Tessla pants were a bit too small around the waist. She just glanced over to his side of the screen and poof, like magic they fit perfectly. She smiled to herself as she waited for any other problems that might arise. And sure enough, they did.

The second problem came from Austin. It was another matter of size, but one not so easily fixed. Everything of his fit just fine except for one item. His pair of shoes. They were quite small. Rarity came over and stared at them and at his feet.

“I had everything perfect,” Rarity murmured to herself. “How could I get this so wrong?”

“It's not your fault Rarity,” Ben said from across the screen, “Austin just has big feet. Even back in our world they are unusually large for someone of his size.”

Rarity glanced back at a clock that was on the wall. “Oh no! There isn't enough time for me to go back to the boutique and find another pair of shoes for you. What am I going to do?”

Ben came out from his screen side looking all spiffy and fancy like. Everything of his was fine. His shoes to his shirt fit perfectly. He took a few test steps to see how everything felt and he was satisfied. Everything was fine. He saw Rarity freaking out and walked up to her. As he did he noticed a few things that allowed him to come up with a solution.

“Rarity, I have an idea that just may work, but only if you want to do it.”

“Anything!” Rarity exclaimed panicked.

“Could you possibly make Austin's regular shoes look like the dress shoes?” Ben gestured to the two pairs of shoes that were conveniently places next to one another. Rarity stared down at them for a moment.

“Yes, that might work. It is a shortcut that I don't normally take, but this day is too important to let a pair shoes ruin. They will feel like the old shoes, but look like the nice ones.”

Rarity focused all her concentration on the shoes and before their eyes they changed. After a flash of magic there seemed to be two pairs of nice dress shoes before them. Austin slipped the bigger pair on and tied the laces quickly. He walked out with Tessla to stand with Ben. Rarity looked at them with awe and wonderment in her eyes. They were ready.

Every pony from Ponyville and a few that were just visiting were gathered in front of town hall. It was actually because of this that they were able to sneak three large, strange, and unknown creatures through town and through the back door to the town hall. The Mane Six were already there and waiting. Spike was outside with the CMC. As Rarity arrived with them all in tow they could hear the Mayor starting her speech.

“Citizens of Ponyville, I am standing here now to give you a very important announcement. This comes from the Princess of Friendship herself, Twilight Sparkle.” The Mayor pointed a hoof over at Twilight who was just a few steps away from her. Twilight blushed and waved to the crowd as they cheered her on.

The Mayor calmed the crown back down and continued her speech. “Just a few days ago, Equestria was graced with the arrival of three strangers. They come from a far off land unknown to ponykind.”

That was the cue. Austin, Tessla, and Ben were shoved onto a spot that lead directly to the outside with only a curtain separating them. The girls all surrounded them on that spot. Tessla nervously fidgeted with his collar. He hated these kinds of public spectacles, and especially the ones where he was the spectacle. That was one thing he and Austin would always have in common. They hated being in the spotlight. Ben was either enjoying it, or not really caring about it at all.

“And now I give you the three strangers, new to Equestria.” The Mayor waved a hoof back towards the curtain and it raised up quickly. Twilight moved to stand by her friends. As the Mayor said each of their names in turn they would emphasize a bit.

“Austin!” The Mayor exclaimed. Twilight pointed with a wing to Austin while Fluttershy hovered above his head and pointed down.

“Tessla!” Applejack stood next to him while Pinkie Pie bounced on his other side. He smiled as Pinkie's antics calmed his nerves a little bit.

“Ben!” Rarity stood close to Ben and Rainbow Dash hovered just over his shoulder.

The Mayor turned back to the crowd after they were all introduced. It was silent. All pony eyes were locked onto the three of them. A cricket sounded off from within the crowd and that was the most sound heard for several moments. After that it was just whispers and murmuring that ran through the crowd.

Twilight stepped forward to speak. “I assure you theses three are not to be feared. I know they look really strange, but I am sure you can look past that. Me and my friends did. And you can trust our judgment, can't you?”

Twilight's words fell upon the ears in the crowd. At first they did little but create even more whispers and murmurs. After a few moments they got louder and three ponies stepped forward to stand by them. Three small ponies with a small dragon right behind them.

The CMC ascended the stairs of the stage where they were all standing. Sweetie Belle walked up to Austin and looked up at him. He looked down at her. Then she reached out with her hoof and placed it on his leg. A small, collective gasp traveled through the crowd, but nothing happened. Sweetie Belle was safe and unharmed. Apple Bloom ran up to Tessla and gave him a swift hoof punch to shin. He held back the shouts of pain and anger that threatened to escape him. Finally, Scootaloo went up to Ben and cautiously reached out to touch her hoof to his leg. But as she got close a loud crashing sound scared the wits out of her.

A large thunderclap sounded off above their heads. Scootaloo jumped up and ended up hugging Ben's leg for dear life. Rainbow Dash flew towards the sky as a large pink cloud formation was moving in.

“Hey! There isn't supposed to be any clouds in the sky today. What gives?”

The answer came in bolts from the pink cloud. They shot out and Dash flew circles around them to evade getting struck. She and many other Pegasus ponies retreated back to ground level. As they did this the bolts became stronger and began to only appear in one spot.

The bolts rained down above the crowd. They all backed away as one bolt came crashing down where the crowd was. The bolt was prolonged and powerful. After it was down there was nothing left but a scorch mark and some hot ground. Then the pink clouds rained down onto just that one spot before promptly leaving and disappearing forever.

“I have a bad feeling about this,” Twilight stated.

Before all their eyes, the sight of the lightning strike shook. The ground there rumbled and then it stopped. All of the sudden a tall green sprout erupted from the ground. It clawed up from the earth as it reached for daylight. The sprout turned into a flower bud and the petals were big and yellow with pink tips. They were also closed. The sprout stopped growing once it reached about seven feet in height. With a big yawn the flower petals opened to reveal one being.

“Discord,” Applejack hissed. “I still don't like 'im.”

Discord stretched out his arms as if he just woke up from a long and restful nap. He opened his eyes to see dozens of ponies staring at him. One high pitched girlish shriek later and the flower petals closed one again. The ponies could hear rumbling and movement coming from inside. Just how big was the inside of that flower?

After a moment the flower opened. Discord unzipped the petals and he was ready this time. He was wearing a fancy suit much like the ones Austin and Tessla and Ben wore. He snapped his fingers and a red carpet rolled out from within the flower. However, Discord pulled out an umbrella and opened it. A phantom breeze carried him away and deposited him onto the stage next to Twilight and the mayor. Everypony was looking confused.

“What? Am I overdressed?”

“I think you look quite dashing, Discord,” Fluttershy kindly complimented the Lord of Chaos.

“Discord,” Twilight said flatly, “Why are you here?”

“Why do you think, dear Princess Sparkle? I am here because of them.” All three of Discord's arms pointed over at the three guys. Twilight did a double take to make sure the number of arms she saw was just due to stress. She counted again and counted two. Okay. Stress.

“So you know what they are?”

“Do I! Why, they are called humans. Hu-mans. I haven't seen one of them in ages. Ah, it brings back so many memories. The chaos, the mayhem, the boredom.”

Boredom?! That was not a word anyone expected Discord to use after chaos and mayhem. Weird. Unfortunately, Discord would have to explain himself later. “They do have some interesting names, though.” Discord floated on by in front of the three humans. “What might yours be?”

“Ben.”

“Tessla.”

“Austin.”

“Ahaha! Such strange and interesting names,” Discord loudly and excitedly proclaimed for all of Ponyville to hear. He settled back down to their level and stopped just short of Fluttershy. “What do you think my name would be if I was a human?”

Fluttershy immediately got red in the face. It was happening. Her worst fear. The one thing she never wanted to happen was happening right now at this moment. Public spotlight! It was on her.

“Meep!” She dived back and behind the curtains real quick before anypony could stop her.

“I got it!” Discord announced. “John is a common human name. So is Lance. John Lancey!

Discord shot up with excitement. He was happy that humans were here, but that would have to wait. There was something much bigger happening in Ponyville at the moment. One of the ponies from the crowd summed it all up in one word.

“TIMBERWOLVES!!!”

A pony wearing an odd looking hat ran into the crowd. The crowd separated to let him pass. He ran right up to the stage platform. “Timberwolves! Timberwolves in the town!” Everypony took a moment for the news to sink in. “Just thought you ought to know.” The pony that brought the news collapsed, fainted right there where he stood. What happened after that could only be described as such: chaos.

“Well now, isn't this exciting.” Discord shouted out for all to hear. He leaped into the air and that's when he saw them. Timberwolves. A whole damn pack of them. They were coming right this way. For a second he went pale with fright. In the next second he went down and scooped up Fluttershy. She was peeking around the curtains corner. He raced over and gently set her down in his flower thing. During the chaos of all the ponies running around and all some got misplaced. This was most evident in two ponies who lost their way. Two ponies who so desperately wanted to be near to one another and hold each other close.

Lyra called out for Bon Bon. They had become separated as the ponies of the crowd scattered about at the news of timberwolves. She wasn't interested in getting to safety. The only thing she cared about at that moment was finding her love.

She braced herself against the oncoming tide of ponies. They rushed past her in their scramble for safety. Lyra fought back against the tide, moving the opposite direction through them. This act of defiance resulted in her being a bruised and battered pony, but it was worth it. For at last, she had found Bon Bon. She was cowering underneath a table to avoid the very tide against which Lyra was still struggling. Lyra's joy was quickly cut short as a large stallion stampeded over her, knocking her to the ground. Bon Bon saw this from her place under the table. That was enough. It was time for her to act.

Bon Bon mustered up the courage she needed. It did not take long as she saw the love of her life huddled up in a poor attempt to stave off any more bruises. Bon Bon rushed out and into the stampede of ponies. She bashed and fought her way through until she reached Lyra. She got her own collection of bruised from that, but it was worth it.

“Lyra!”

“Bon Bon!”

The two mares took each other in their loving embrace and waited as the rest of the ponies passed. They did, like a river washed past a firm boulder the ponies poured around the two of them. And for a long while after the ponies were gone they still embraced each other.

“Lyra, I though I'd lost you.” Bon Bon lovingly whispered her thoughts into Lyra's ear.

“Never again. I promise.” Lyra whispered back to Bon Bon.

Tears formed in their eyes as the two finally released each other. Lyra looked into Bon Bon's eyes, but she saw something else out of the corner of her eye. It took her attention away from her love and a stark terror rose up from deep within. Bon Bon saw this change and looked behind her. Timberwolves were closing in on them. They were almost to them. Bon Bon grabbed Lyra's hoof to run, but Lyra was too hurt. She had taken a few to many hits to her legs and that made walking difficult and painful, and running even more so.

“Bon Bon, just go.” Lyra pleaded with Bon Bon to no avail. “Save yourself.”

“NO! You said I would never lose you! I'm not going to now, and I am not leaving you either.”

Lyra conceded the point. The two mares were equally stubborn, and even more loving. Neither of them was going anywhere. That was clearly evident. It was plain for all to see. The tears welled up in their eyes as they took each other in one last lovers embrace.

The Mane Six watched from the stage platform. It all happened so fast there was not much they could do. Applejack and Rarity both held their little sisters close to them. Rainbow Dash stood in front of Scootaloo, as if making herself a wall between her and the present danger. Twilight flew up to get a clearer image of what was going on throughout Ponyville.

“Oh no! Lyra and Bon Bon!” Fluttershy screamed out and pointed with a hoof. Normally, at least two of them would be off in an instant, but with as scared as some of the ponies were they all hesitated.

“Rarity, I apologize in advance,” Austin said over his shoulder. He stepped forward and threw off his black dress jacket. Rarity instinctively caught it with her magic and brought it back close to her.

Austin himself jumped down from the stage. He saw the timberwolves going after Lyra and Bon Bon. They were right up close, almost withing striking distance. He ran as fast as he could over to meet them. Even moving at a full sprint he wasn't going to make it in time. The timberwolf in front got to them. It growled and snarled at the two mares, but they didn't move. They were clearly terrified, but stuck in place. It was both fear and love that held them where they were. The timberwolf raised a wooden paw, with each toe tipped with sharp claws capable of shredding a pony. And it brought them all down upon Lyra and Bon Bon.

Austin reached them just in time. He used every last drop of speed he could muster to reach them. He half leaped and half ran the last steps. He came right up to the face of the nearest timberwolf. He stopped so suddenly that the first hand place on the wolf's face was just to balance himself. His second hand came in the same second as the first, and was driven right into the side of the wolf's face.

Austin could feel the the wood beneath his hands. He could feel the rough texture of the bark. He could feel the grain of the wood pushing back against his strength. He groaned with effort as the initial impact from his running hit was not enough. He pushed the wolf's face hard and moved it just enough to make all the difference.

The sharp claws of the timberwolf came crashing down next to the pair of mares, barely missing them. The wolf cut through part of Lyra's tail, shortening it by about a third. She retracted her tail and held it closer to her body. Bon Bon did the same.

Just as Austin stepped back from the timberwolf did another lash forward. Powerful jaws lashed out at Austin, but he narrowly avoided them. He backed up too quickly, though, and fell to the ground below. The first timberwolf came back around to exact some revenge. It lashed out in its own right and Austin backed up as fast as he could, using his hands like paddles to try and give him more speed to move. The timberwolf was faster than he was and was upon him quickly. He threw up an arm in a poor attempt to shield himself from whatever attack was coming. He expected to feel nothing but searing pain in his arm after that.

“Whoa, Twilight!” Pinkie Pie shouted. Twilight had landed back down a moment ago and was currently watching the whole event between Austin and the timberwolves go down. “Good timing on that force field spell.”

“Uh, Pinkie Pie, that's not me.” Twilight looked over at her friends. They looked as confused as she surely felt. “Rarity, is it you?”

“Darling, you know force fields are not my cup of tea.”

True. Rarity may be a Unicorn, but that doesn't mean she knows a lot of spells that are handy on combat. Most of her spells only helped her out in her boutique. But now Twilight was even more confused and even a bit bewildered as a realization dawned on her, given what her and Celestia talked about just before she returned to Ponyville with all three of them in tow. She didn't want to say it out loud, though, as it was crazy and she still wasn't sure if she was right.

Austin had closed his eyes in anticipation for the immense pain he was sure was coming. Yet, after a moment or so of nothing he opened them and looked up at his arm. What he saw both amazed and confused him. A barrier of some energy had appeared in between him and the timberwolf. The wolf looked on angrily from the other side. It lashed out a number of times against the barrier, only to find its claws useless. Austin took this rare opportunity to shift himself.

He shifted his stance so that one of his knees was on the ground and one was raised. He was more or less kneeling in a defensive stance in front of Lyra and Bon Bon. He stood his ground and glanced over to Twilight. He saw that she wasn't casting any magic, and neither was Rarity. Then who was creating this barrier? A thought dawned on him and he followed it up the only way he knew how.

He raised his other arm and put it across his body to match his other arm. Sure enough, the barrier pulsed once as more magic was poured into it. It was him. He was the source of the magic. The timberwolf seemed to sense this as well as the attacks increased. All three of them traded turns taking swipes and lashes and bites at the barrier. It was built to take the punishment, but Austin was not ready for it.

One particularly powerful swipe came down and obliterated the barrier. That didn't stop the claws of the wolf as they also slashed down Austin's chest. He roared out as the pain shot throughout his torso with a searing fury. He fell back onto his backside, but manage to get to his feet and stand again. Not that he needed to. The ponies had had enough, as well as the humans.

At Apple Bloom's persistence Applejack raced out to meet the timberwolves. She ran full speed just as Austin did, but her sprint ended much differently. She ran until she had almost reached the wolves. She skidded to halt as she neared and rose up her back legs. She slid on just her forelegs the last few paces while also turning in the air. By the time she reached the wolf looming over Austin she had a powerful kick readied and waiting. She blasted that wolf with her double hoof fury. She avoided a few swipes from the other two and kicked them in turn. When Pinkie Pie came up with her party cannon the wolves decided it was time to retreat back to the Everfree Forest.

“Hey there, partner,” Applejack said as she came around to Austin's side. “You took one helluva hit. Are ya alright?”

“You know you're supposed to avoid the claws coming at you, right?” Dash said sarcastically.

“I didn't see you out here, Dash,” Austin hissed. Dash got the message. It was his unspoken words that she understood. I didn't see you out here, so keep your damn mouth shut.

“So, now what do we do?” Fluttershy asked.

“Well, I saw timberwolves all throughout Ponyville when I flew up there,” Twilight reported.

“Split up,” Austin said. “Tessla and Ben, both of you take a different direction and defend the ponies as best you can. Applejack and Pinkie Pie can go with Ben and help him. Rarity and Dash can go with Tessla and help him. Fluttershy, Twilight, keep watch from above and let them know of any dangers ahead of time.”

For a second nopony moved, as well as no human. It took them all that second to process what he had just said. But after that second was up they all flew or ran off to do just as Austin had said. Even Dash knew it was not the time to argue with him, no matter how much she disliked him. As for Austin? He stayed right where he was. The pain from his wounds only grew if he tried to move and so he just lay down next to Lyra and Bon Bon.

Why does being a nice guy have to hurt so much?

Aftermath

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Pain. The first thought that entered Austin's mind. It was pain. His eyelids drowsily lifted up to reveal the new day. At first everything was just a blur, nothing but shapeless blotches of color against a white background. As his eyes focused more the shapeless began to take on shapes of their very own.

“Hey, everyone. I think he's waking up.” Austin would know that soft voice anywhere. And Fluttershy was pretty much clear in his vision now, as well as every other pony.

“Hey, Flutters,” Austin said groggily. “What happened?”

“You took a pretty nasty scratch from one of those brutish timberwolves, that's what happened,” Rarity said as she walked up to the side of his bed.

“Yeah, but then you passed out,” Dash interjected. “How not awesome is that?”

Austin grumbled. There was so much he wanted to say to Dash, but he didn't want to seem mean or spiteful. He also didn't want to start yelling and aggravate his wounds at all. So he just grumbled and bottled it up. He would have to talk with her later at some point. For now, he was just content to lay there.

“How are you feeling,” Fluttershy asked. “That looks like it hurts. A lot.”

“It does, but I can handle it.” Austin put on the brave face but this was absolutely, definitely the most pain he had ever been through. Sure he could handle while laying motionless in a hospital bed, but as soon as he moved he would feel it.

“Good, because I need to talk to you.” Twilight. Of course. He had almost forgotten, but the memory came back as her voice echoed through his mind.

“Of course, Princess. Could you girls give us the room please?” Fluttershy kindly nodded and moved to go out of the room. Dash pulled her back in by the tail. “Whatever you can say you can say in front of all of us. You got that, buster?”

“I just thought it was getting kinda crowded in here,” Austin responded and gestured around the room. “Besides, we're going to be talking about magic. Do you really want to stay for that boring conversation?”

Dash had no reply other than leaving the room. She was still dragging Fluttershy by the tail when she left. Rarity also left. She had a little sister to get back to and there were several ponies with several more questions. There were also parts of Ponyville that really needed to be fixed up. That left him alone with Twilight. Meanwhile, Ben was still dealing with some trouble. Trouble of the Tessla variety.

Meanwhile. . .

Ben was standing at the edge of the Everfree Forest. Two ponies stood with him. He still wasn't sure as to why it was those two ponies, but he was glad he some help nonetheless.

“So, why are we here again,” Pinkie Pie asked.

“Because, Tessla is in there somewhere.” Ben thought back to the previous day. Austin had delegated them all some jobs after he got slashed. Ben followed through with his job and protected the ponies as best he could. With Pinkie Pie and her party cannon to back you up it was an easier job than Ben thought. Also, timberwolves are apparently scared of a big six foot tall human running at them at a full sprint while also yelling like a madman.

“What are we waitin' fer, then? Let's go in and get 'im.” Applejack's enthusiasm was easily passed to the other two. Ben buttoned up his big green coat and Pinkie Pie party growled. The three all readied themselves and traded one last glance. A shared battle cry echoed from them as they ran for the Everfree Forest. However, as soon as they got close they saw Tessla walking out with Zecora at his side. That changed things.

Applejack skidded on her rump to a complete halt so as to not charge through the human and the zebra. She finally managed to stop when Pinkie Pie crashed into her backside and carried her further. The two sides collided with surprising amount of force and toppled onto each other. Tessla at the very bottom with Zecora above him. On top of her was Applejack and Pinkie took the top. The title of King of the Hill went to another, however.

His larger frame made it harder for him to stop. Try as he might he wasn't able to slow down in time. He stopped just short of the dogpile and teetered on the verge of falling. His arms flailed about at his sides as he rocked back and forth.

“Oh no!” Applejack said. “Don't ya dare fall now, ya hear me?”

Ben was to busy to answer her, and for a moment it seemed like all would be fine. From his limited field of vision Tessla could still see Ben. He also saw a Pegasus pony flying towards him. This pony flew over, nearly hitting a tree and several ponies on the way. This pony, who Tessla could now see was a mare flew over and did the most ridiculously adorable thing ever.

“Hiyas!” Ditzy Doo said as she landed on Ben's shoulders. With that, the fight was over. It was a hard fought battle and one Ben fought well, but it was too much now. Gravity won and Ben's mighty form toppled like a felled tree onto the four others. All that was missing was a flannel wearing pony with an axe shouting “Timber!”

Eventually, through groans and aches and pains and more than a little annoyance every pony, zebra and human was able to separate themselves. With the pile now dissolved all eyes turned to one person. Or rather, one pony.

Ben moved out of the way so they could all glare at Ditzy Doo. She was sitting a little ways off with her head spinning. She had on her Equestrian Mailmare uniform. The mail in question was now littered all over the place, not that Ditzy really cared at the moment.

“Ditzy Doo,” Applejack growled, “Just what in tarnation were thinking just now?!” She immediately regretted raising her voice as it sent an ache traveling down her spine.

Ditzy turned her attention to Applejack and the others. “Letter!” She shouted joyfully.

“Yes, yer supposed to be deliverin' the mail, right?”

“Uh huh. Letter!” Ditzy said. She stood up and brushed herself off. Then she searched around her. There was mail everywhere, but just not the right one apparently. She scooped up as much as she could and haphazardly stuffed it back into her mail bag. Once she was done she looked around. No more mail.

“No more letters,” She whimpered. She was sad. She didn't find the letter she was looking for. Until Pinkie Pie pulled her party cannon out of bush that is. Ditzy Doo immediately recognized the form of a letter slip down the barrel.

“Letter!” She happily exclaimed and darted over to Pinkie and her party cannon. She dropped her mail bag and shoved herself down the barrel of the party cannon in order to retrieve the letter. Her weight kept the cannon shifting from side to side and on the verge of falling over.

“Pinkie Pie, don't let that thing go off!” Applejack hurriedly shouted to Pinkie Pie.

Why is it always too late?! The cannon slipped out of Pinkie's hooves as she tried to keep it right side up. It smacked into the ground and the jostling of the impact fired the cannon, and the pony inside the cannon.

Ditzy shot out of the cannon at party speed, which was pretty darn fast. She shot out of it amidst confetti and streamers. She shot out right at Ben. He took the hit right in his chest. It sent him flying on his back. He groaned as he landed with an even more confused than usual Ditzy Doo on top.

She righted herself and blew some streamers out of her mane. “Letter!” She held up the mangled mail and then slapped it down on Ben's face. “For you.”

“Thank you, Ditzy Doo,' Ben groaned out.

“You're welcome!” Ditzy replied in her always cheerful attitude. She sprang off Ben and retrieved her mail bag once again. Then she set out to deliver the rest of the mail. The rest of them sat in silence for a moment.

“So. . .” Pinkie Pie disrupted the awkward silence, “That just happened.”

“What was all that about anyway,” Tessla asked. “And why are you all out here anyway?”

“We came ta look fer you,” Applejack said, “I coulda sworn I saw ya hop on the back of a timberwolf yesterday. How in the hell did ya end with her?”

“I simply lead him back to Ponyville,” Zecora said, “And remember, strange Tessla, you owe me a favor still.”

Tessla waved goodbye to Zecora and watched her as she disappeared beyond the trees of the Everfree Forest. “So now what do we do?”

“Well, I reckon we go and help out around Ponyville,” Applejack suggested.

So that is what they did. The four of them walked back into Ponyville and helped out as much as they could. Many of the ponies were hesitant to accept help from Ben and Tessla at first. They were still strangers and still unknown to them. This was good however, as it gave them a chance to prove themselves. They were not without a few fans, however.

Lyra and Bon Bon moved about the town assisting the other ponies where they could. Both of them moved together. They were as inseparable as hydra heads and they didn't care who saw it. If a pony didn't like it they could just go away. At one point the pair even came by to help AJ and Pinkie Pie.

Applejack was struggling with this wall. Somehow the timberwolf invasion had knocked a few walls over or down. This particular wall, belonging to somepony neither Applejack not Pinkie knew was a tad bit on the heavy side. Good thing two mares showed up to help.

Lyra and Bon Bon jumped in and helped out. They added their strength to that of Applejack's already considerable strength and that of Pinkie's unusually and often unexplainable strength. With all four of them helping out the wall went up with no problem. Applejack made sure it wouldn't fall down and then turned back to her other pony friends.

“Howdy there, Lyra, Bon Bon.” Applejack greeted them warmly. “I'm glad to see you both ain't hurt to bad. I saw you two take quite a hit out there yesterday.”

“I know. It's amazing isn't it.” Lyra said. “That human, Austin. He just jumped out and threw himself in front of that timberwolf. I honestly don't think we would be here if it weren't for him.”

“Lyra, dear. I think you might be exaggerating a bit, don't you?”

“Come on, Bon Bon. I know you feel the same way.”

“Oh, you're right. He did save us after all.”

Bon Bon rested her head on Lyra's shoulder. They had been working hard today and both of them looked pretty worn out. They weren't work ponies like Applejack was. She was used to laboring away all day.

“Hey! I gots an idea!” Pinkie blurted out loudly. She hopped up and thrust a hoof out at Lyra and Bon Bon. “Why don't you two go and visit Austin in the hospital? He's still there from that scratch he took for you guys.”

“I don't know about that,” Bon Bon worried, “The town still needs a lot of work.”

“Come on now,” Applejack interjected. “You two have been runnin' 'round all day helping out ponies left an' right. You two deserve and look like ya could use the break. Take it. We got it from here.”

“Okay. I'm sold.” Lyra quickly stated as she dragged Bon Bon off in the direction of the hospital. Bon Bon struggled to keep up with her better half as she was nearly running. Applejack chuckled to herself. That's love for ya.

Meanwhile, at the hospital. . .

They came as soon as they could. They didn't waste a second of their time. They actually got there in record time. And now Austin had three young visitors staring at him. Not that he knew that at the time.

The CMC burst out of the school building as soon as they possibly could. The whole class was talking about the new humans, and how they helped to save the town. They could finally brag about how they were actually the ones to find the one called Tessla. Of course, not many of their classmates believed them, but they didn't care.

The first thing they did when the most long and boring day of school ended was head for the hospital. When they got there they asked where the human was. They raced over to it quickly but stopped at the doorway. They could hear voices inside. A doctor and a two nurse ponies came out of the room a moment later. One of them was carrying a whole mess of bandages. The CMC ducked down low as they passed by, but they could still see that most of the bandages were stained red.

The three young fillies peeked their heads into the room and looked up at Austin. He had his head turned to look out the window. They entered the room more silently than they meant to be. None of them noticed at the time. They moved over to his bedside and stared up, but they said nothing.

Scootaloo tapped Apple Bloom on the shoulder and pointed up at the human in the bed. Apple Bloom shook her head almost violently and pointed back at Scootaloo. Scootaloo defensively waved her hooves in front of her. She fluttered her wings and moved behind Sweetie Belle. Sweetie Belle sighed and walked up to the bed with all the confidence and courage she had. Then she opened her mouth.

“H- Hello,” She mumbled.

Austin turned and looked down. “Hey, Sweetie Belle, Apple Bloom, Scootaloo. What's up?”

“We just came by to see how ya doing.” Apple Bloom said. “So, how ya doing?”

“Are you dying?” Scootaloo blurted out. She stole a step stool like thing from the next bed over and had brought it over to the bedside. She hopped up to Austin's bedside and took one more small jump to actually land on the bed. The other two followed and Austin sat up and gave them some room. Once they were all up and comfortable Apple Bloom gave a Scootaloo a hard hit to the shoulder.

“Ouch! What was that for?”

“You know darn well what it's for!” Apple Bloom said, “You can't just come out and ask somebody if they be dying or not.”

“But there was so much blood on those bandages. I know you were thinking it too.”

“Was not!”

“Were too!”

“Was not!”

“Were too!”

As those two bickered, Sweetie Belle noticed Austin had moved again. His head lay on the pillow and his arms lay at his sides. He did not move even as two young fillies were having a near wrestling match using his legs as the arena.

Sweetie Belle stepped closer and that was when she got her first real good look at his injury. Even though bandages were just changed blood still seeped through, though not nearly as much as the last bandages had. No, this was just four long, thin lines of red that stood out against the white fabric that wrapped around his torso.

“Hey, girls. Come here. You've got to see this.”

“Were too!”

“Was not!” Apple Bloom shouted back angrily. “What was that Sweetie Belle?” She said with a smile.

Sweetie Belle waved them over and they moved along his other side. They moved along his left side while Sweetie Belle stood at his right. She gestured down at his chest and the others looked on in awe. As they stared at his chest and the wound that now decorated it they noticed little else.

“Whatchya doin'?” Austin quickly said as his snapped up from the pillow. The all too sudden words surprised the CMC and sent them off the bed. Well, not all of them.

Apple Bloom and Scootaloo jumped back far enough to clear the bed and then just fell to the floor. They could hear their hearts pounding in their chests and little else. They could feel the cold tile flooring of the hospital room. And as their senses returned to normal they could hear Sweetie Belle laughing her little butt off from still on the bed.

“Hey!” Scootaloo said accusingly. “Why didn't you fall off?”

“That's because I wasn't scared.” Sweetie Belle proclaimed from on high. She looked down at her friends as they righted themselves and got back their hooves. She was still laughing a bit but most of it had passed.

Needless to say neither Scootaloo or Apple Bloom believed her when she said she wasn't scared. The three young fillies brushed the whole thing off, but they would surely laugh about it later. They would most likely argue about later as well. Austin had one small laugh as he sat up a bit more. He could only move a little bit at a time or pain would shoot through his torso. Unfortunately, this was a painful time.

He sat up just a bit more as he laughed. The combined effects on his chest aggravated his injuries and sent pain shooting through all of his wounds and the surrounding flesh. It was far from pleasant. He kept it together as best he could so as not to worry his three young visitors, but they did notice his discomfort.

“Whoa. You all right?” Apple Bloom asked after she climbed back on the bed again.

Austin smiled and nodded. The pain was fading, but it still hurt. “I'm fine, young one. Just hurts a little.”

“Ooh. Let me sing a song for you. I promise it will make you feel better.” Sweetie Belle excitedly proclaimed. Without waiting for an answer from Austin she started to sing.

Sweetie Belle's voice filled the room. Her lovely song rang out in a sweet harmony of notes and verses. Austin closed his eyes as he let the song flow through the air around him. It filled his mind and touched his soul. And soon he was lost to the music.

“That was lovely, Sweetie Belle. Thank you.” Austin said. He smiled and the pain in his chest was gone. “I truly am feeling much better now.”

Sweetie Belle smiled happily. She was glad that she was able to make him feel better. The four spent the next several minutes just talking. Austin mostly listened while the CMC talked. He was glad to see them so upbeat and excited.

They would have liked to keep talking, but a nurse came in and told them it was time for them to go. She looked oddly familiar to Austin. White coat. Light pink mane. She wore a strange expression on her face. It looked a mix of annoyance and happiness. OF course. Now he remembered who pony was.

“Awww, do we have to leave now?” Apple Bloom whined as she and the others jumped off the bed.

“Now girls, listen to Nurse Redheart.” Austin said as he motioned at the nurse and the door with the same motion. Nurse Redheart herself looked up at him with the look of confusion now mixed in with her face. That got the CMC to laugh.

“How did you. . . .”

“It's a long story.” Sweetie Belle said.

“It's also mighty confusing.” Apple Bloom added.

“Better just leave it alone.” Scootaloo chimed in.

They walked past the still confused Nurse Redheart on their way out. Nurse Redheart stood their for a moment longer before turning to look at Austin one last time.

“You have two more visitors,” She said before quickly exiting the room.

Austin chuckled at himself. He hated the boringness of hospital rooms as much as Rainbow Dash did, but he had managed to amuse himself a little bit. The CMC visiting was a nice change of pace, and now Austin found himself wondering who these next two visitors were?

Lyra and Bon Bon walked in side by side. They wore smiles on their faces and happiness followed them as they moved. Love filled the air around them and everypony knew it. If it were any more potent it would be a widely spreading epidemic of love!

“Of course it's these two,” Austin whispered under his breath. “Should have known they would come by.”

Once Austin stopped talking to himself he saw that they remained a few paces away still. Both Lyra and Bon Bon stared at him as if they had only just seen him for the first time. In a way they were. There last encounter was rather brief, and they were too preoccupied with each other to take much notice in him. Now they saw him as he truly was. Just flesh and blood, but still just as strange and unusual as any unknown thing.

“So. . .” Lyra finally started to speak, “You are a human?”

“I am,” Austin blankly stated.

Silence.

“I KNEW THEY EXISTED!” Lyra loudly shouted out for all of Equestria to hear.

Bon Bon shook her head to try and get the rining to stop. Once she realized it wasn't working she just gave Lyra a glare.

“Sorry, Bon,” Lyra said with a nervous chuckle.

“Anyway,” Bon Bon started, “We wanted to come on by and thank you. We owe you so much more than we could ever repay.”

“Yeah. Thanks. You saved our lives, and now we can keep on loving each other forever and ever.” Lyra draped her forelegs around Bon Bon's neck, much to Bon Bon's annoyance. She was still sore there and Lyra knew that. She gave her a swift, almost imperceptible kick that pushed her off. Lyra nervously smiled and Bon Bon smiled back. They would work out all the kinks later. ALL of them.

“It really was nothing,” Austin said. “I wasn't about to stand by and let two innocent ponies get trampled by Timberwolves, or worse. I had to do something, so I did.”

“That's so brave,” Bon Bon said, “Are all you humans like that?”

“Unfortunately, no. There are some who stand by and let that happen just for laughs and amusement. I am not one of those people, and I don't like those people.” Austin said. He could tell his words had an effect, but now was not the time. “But lets not think of such things now. This is a time of happiness.”

“You're absolutely right!” Lyra stated as excitedly as ever. “I have an idea.”

“Really? You? And here I was thinking you were just a pretty face,” Bon Bon teased.

“You know we already talked about this, Bon. You're the pretty one. I'm the crazy one,” Lyra said as her eyes narrowed to a wickedly devious point. “Remember, after that wild night a few months back. You heartily agreed.”

Lyra's sultry voice had an immediate effect on Bon Bon, whose cheeks turned bright red and her own eyes darted around.

“Lyra!” Bon Bon said with a nervous chuckle. “You know I don't like it when you talk like that in public.”

“This isn't public.” Lyra said, still using her teasingly sultry voice. “This is a hospital room, and I don't think the human minds.”

“My lips are sealed.” Austin reassured Bon Bon.

Later That Night. . . . .

Ben sat with the Mane Six at Sweet Apple Acres. It was a beautiful night and they were determined to spend at least a portion of it under the stars. He had spent the majority of the day laughing and working alongside Pinkie Pie and Applejack. It was nice to just sit and relax. He plopped down on a bail of hay provided. This caused his large green coat to fall to the ground and spill out a few things. Most notably among the items was a letter.

“Hey, whats this?” Twilight asked asvBen picked up his belongings. Most of it was odds and ends he found in town while helping to repair and clean things.

“A letter. Ditzy Doo gave it to me.” Ben involuntarily winced at the memory of his “meeting” with the Mailmare. “I didn't open it then, because of all the help Ponyville needed.”

Twilight held the letter with her magic. She had absolutely every intention of giving it back to Ben when her eyes caught something that caused her to pull it back for a closer examination. It was something familiar, like she had seen it before a million times.

“This letter is from my brother, Shining Armor.” Twilight stated.

“Why would yer brother be sendin' a letter to this fella?” Applejack asked as she lounged back in her own bail of hay.

“Maybe it had something to do with him assaulting his wife,” Rainbow Dash said from the comfort of her cloud.

“I did not assault her!” Ben protested! He declared his innocence as clearly as Pinkie Pie declared she was pink. “I simply gave her a hug. If a hug is now considered assault then Pinkie Pie would be Public Pony Enemy #1!”

All eyes turned to Pinkie Pie. She had just shoved an unnaturally large apple into her mouth. She could feel the gaze of all the eyes on her after that. She turned to face the group. She chewed and swallowed the apple before smiling at the in her usual way. “What?”

“Apparently, you are Public Pony Enemy #1 now Pinkie,” Dash blankly reported.

Silence.

“WWWHHHHHAAAAATTT?!” Pinkie screamed out. She stamped around nervously and started mumbling to herself. It was incoherent to everyone else, but Fluttershy went over to console her anyway. She was such a good friend.

“Okay then. Back the matter at hoof,” Twilight said. “ That letter. It's from my brother. Have you read it?”

Ben didn't answer as he held up the letter to show Twilight the seal had not been broken. The letter had clearly been through a rough journey, but it had not been opened. Twilight took it upon herself to make a small incision down the length of the letter. Ben nodded his thanks as he retrieved the paper inside the envelope.

He unfolded the paper and skimmed through the letter quickly. He would do a more thorough reading later, when he was alone. For now, he was just wanted the same answers Twilight did.

“It seems my arrival at in the Crystal Empire has caused a bit of commotion,” Ben said as he read the letter further. “Shining Armor requests my assistance in resolving some of the matters that I have caused, whether intentionally or not. That's all.”

“Yeah, I know my brother. That is not a request,” Twilight said as she pointed at the paper. “That is a demand, a command, a summons, a call to arms if need be. You have to go!”

“I was already thinking just that.” Ben said. Twilight was staring at him very intensely and it was putting him on edge. He was a big guy. Edges were not nice places to be for him.

Just as he was getting his soul picked apart by Twilight gazing eyes a loud, booming sound broke the moment rather nicely. It came from the direction where Pinkie Pie and Fluttershy were standing. Only now, it was just Fluttershy and she looked like a mini sonic rainboom went off right in her face. It left her with her mane blown back, one eye closed and the entire front half her was covered in pink sugar dust for some reason.

“Hey now! Just where in the hell did Pinkie run off to?” Applejack asked.

“Don't worry,” Tessla said casually. “She may not be back in the next chapter, but maybe the one after that. Yeah, I'm definitely thinking that one..”

You Want Me To. . . What?

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“Explain this to me one more time, please.” Twilight massaged the side of her head with a hoof.

Ben sighed. “For the third time, Twilight, Shining Armor needs my assistance repairing some of the damage I caused.”

“Yes, but how?” Twilight asked. “No offense, but how are you going to help my brother in the Crystal Empire?”

“I will find out when I get there.”

“Yeah, about that,” Tessla chimed in for the first time that morning, “You sure you should be traveling alone right now? I mean, we haven't even been here a week yet?”

It had only been a full day and Ben had received another letter from Shining Armor. He received this one in much the same manner as the last one.

“INCOMING!” Dash yelled out as she saw a dark shape through the window.

A small flash of lightning was followed by the sound of a window shattering. A blonde haired Pegasus with a gray coat came crashing in in just about every way possible. She hit Dash's ass with a bounce and then headed for Ben. He caught her in his arms, but ended up falling on his backside just like last time.

“Letter!” Ditzy Doo said happily. She slapped the letter down in his face with a smile. “For you!”

“Thank you, Ditzy Doo.” Ben mumbled.

“You're welcome!” She got up and jumped off Ben's chest. She took off with a grunt from him and flew out the now open window.

Ben stood up and dusted himself off. Then he took the letter and opened it. He read through it and then handed it off to Twilight for her to read. It was shorter than the last one. The letter was very to the point and clearly stated the message it was intended to.

“Huh. So my brother is sending somepony to get you.” Twilight stated after reading the letter. “How convenient.” And with that, Ben was gone.

The ride from Ponyville to the Crystal Empire was long and boring. The escort arrived for Ben shortly after he and Twilight finished talking. He barely had enough time to say goodbye and farewell to Tessla and Austin.

His royal escort was two ponies of the Crystal Guard. They were steadfast and quiet, even with the strange thing known as Ben not a foot away from them. He tried to strike up some conversation, but got nothing back. These ponies were not talking. It was a very long and very boring trip.

“Ugh, we already know this.”

“Well, what would you like me to do, Pinkie?”

Menacing glare “Don't you start back talking me! And would you kindly skip ahead a little bit.”

Shuddering in fear “Okay. Just how far ahead would you like me to go?”

“Three days should just about do it.”

Three Days Later. . .

Ben's face hit the hard crystal floor. Again. It was only the third time that day, but over the past three days the number had risen to forty nine, including this time. Yes, that's right. His face had hit the hard crystal floor forty nine times. Why, you ask? And you should be asking.

“Get up!” Shining Armor shouted the command over to Ben, who was still peeling his cheek off the floor.

The floor finally released his cheek and Ben quickly stood. Too quickly. Ben's head spun one direction as the world spun the other way. He got dizzy and lightheaded and before he knew it he was gone. He toppled forward and face met floor once again. That makes fifty.

“Ouch,” Ben mumbled before picking himself up.

“That has got to be one of the most embarrassing things I have ever seen,” Shining Armor said as he walked over. “That is the fourth time today. Just how much punishment can your face handle?”

“I don't know, and I'm not eager to find out anytime soon.” Ben lifted himself up and got to his feet. He stumbled one step, but stayed on his feet.

They ended for the day right then. It was getting dark out and Ben headed back to his room. He was graciously offered a guest room within the Crystal Palace itself. He knew the real reason was nopony wanted a human walking around the Crystal Empire by himself. Him and his kind were still very new to Equestria and many ponies were still getting used to have them there. Hell, many ponies were still not even sure if the stories were true.

Ben walked along the halls of the Palace. He was sore all over. Ever since he first arrived Shining Armor had been all over him. Withing half an hour he had Ben in training. Of course putting a human through a training regimen meant for ponies had some difficulties. Let's just say that this contributed to Ben falling on his face so many times.

As Ben walked along the halls he saw the ponies that worked there at the Palace. They avoided him. He was nice and friendly, sure, but he was still different. And he looked funny. They were slowly warming up to him. One pony in particular. One pony Ben didn't expect to even get close to him. The one pony that could possibly get him killed by her husband. Yep, that's right. Princess Mi Amore Cadenza AKA Princess Cadence.

“Hi, Ben.” The Princess said as she starting walking with him down the halls.

“Good evening, Princess,” Ben replied with a smile.

“How was your training today?”

“I only fell on my face four times today,” Ben reported, “I'm getting better.”

Cadence chuckled. “It would seem so, yes. You have been training for three days straight now. You look like you could use a break.”

“Thank you, but I'm okay. I can keep at this like any other pony of the guard.” Ben said confidently, “Besides, I don't want to be seen as getting preferential treatment.”

“I understand,” Cadence said, “But something is bothering you. I can tell.”

Ben was silent for a moment. “My friends back in Ponyville. I never really said goodbye. This all happened so fast I didn't have chance. I wonder what they're up to.”

Meanwhile. . .

Time moved on after Ben left. Three days passed, and then it became a week. He sent no word, and his friends back in Ponyville knew nothing of what he had been through. To be honest, they hadn't really put much thought into it. They were dealing some of their own stuff.

Tessla trudged through the streets of Ponyville. He was by himself. Austin was still hospitalized and Ben was off doing something in the Crystal Empire that Tessla knew nothing about. The only thing Ben said to him about was that Shining Armor himself had summoned him. Tessla had only one thought after hearing that. That will turn out well. But that was just the beginning of his problems.

“Hey! Like, where are we going?”

That was the rest.

“Ugh. Silver Spoon, do you know where we're going?”

“I have no idea, Diamond Tiara.”

Tessla trudged on as the two little fillies walked behind him. Tessla did not like these two particular little fillies. Not at all. Not one bit. And now they were following him around like his own personal storm cloud that was constantly raining on his parade.

“Hey! You, like, never answered my question, human.” Diamond Tiara shouted out to Tessla.

“Yeah.” Silver Spoon backed up the other filly. “Like, where are we going?”

Without stopping or even looking back at them Tessla answered. “I'm going to see my friend Austin in the hospital,” He said with emphasis on the I'm. “I don't know where you're going.”

This actually caused the two fillies to stop in their tracks for a moment. They were not the brightest of the bunch and weren't sure how to take that last part of what Tessla said. Eventually, they just shrugged it off and kept following.

Tessla reached the hospital to find a surprise waiting for him. It was Austin. He was at the front doors. He was actually leaving the front doors. He had on some nice clothes that Rarity must have dropped off. It was amazing how much work she was getting done when it came to their clothes. Anyway, Austin was wearing the same dark blue jeans he had on before. The only thing new was the green short sleeved shirt he had on and the black jacket he wore over it.

“Hey, Tessla.” Austin said as his friend approached. “What's up, man?”

“Sup. You're leaving?” Tessla was clearly confused, with good reason. The wound Austin sustained was a bad one. It should take much longer to heal than that.

“Yeah, I am.” Austin said. “I have been given leave to stay in Ponyville. I will need to come in every now and then, but I can manage that.”

“Well, good. Now that you are out maybe you can help me with a problem.”

Austin folded his arms across his chest. He gave Tessla a good long look before speaking. “Sure, why not. I mean, the last problem I helped with put me in the hospital, but why not go again. I'm a nice guy.”

“Relax. Not that kinda problem,” Tessla said as he nodded over his shoulder. Austin followed his movement only to see a group of ponies standing across the street. He just raised an eyebrow at Tessla.

Tessla turned around to see that his storm cloud had disappeared. He looked around to make sure it wasn't hiding out and waiting to pounce on him. When he didn't see them he nearly jumped for joy. Not really. Tessla wasn't the jumping type of guy. He turned back to Austin with a huge smile on his face.

“Ugh. I hate hospitals. They are gross and disgusting and full of sick, disgusting ponies.”

Smile gone. Like magic the smile on Tessla's face vanished with remarkably fast speed. He looked back to see that two young fillies were crossing the street over to the hospital as he stood there.

“I see your problem,” Austin said flatly.

“Help me!”

Austin took Tessla by the shoulder and turned him so that their conversation would be less likely to be heard from the street. He lowered his voice and was almost like they were conspiring to do something.

“Have you tried talking to them?” Austin asked.

“And say what?”

“Have you tried telling them the truth?”

“What are you talking about?”

“You know, the truth where you hate them and you want to punch them in the face.” Austin said. “Wait, was it both of them you wanted to punch in the face or just one?”

Tessla glared at his friend. “You're an ass.”

“No, that's an ass.”

From in the street somewhere. “The name is Cranky!”

Tessla glared at Austin still. This was a very serious matter and he wasn't taking it seriously at all. It must be all that fresh air getting to his head after spending a week in a bed in the hospital. Some kinda natural high on life effect. Whatever it was, Tessla was not amused. However, Austin was not blind to his friends discomfort and he knew when it was time to stop.

“Okay, in all seriousness I think I have a solution,” Austin said in hushed tones as the two fillies drew ever closer. “Just take those two to all the places that they don't want to be. Trust me, they'll leave you alone after that.”

“You think so?” Tessla said nervously. He knew what Austin was talking about, and it came down to one thing. Well, more like three things. Three little fillies. “Oh god, I have to hang out with the CMC, don't I?”

“No need to worry, Tessla,” Austin said reassuringly, “I hear the hospital is quite nice this time of year.”

“You're an ass.”

“The name is Cranky!”

Nothing I Can't Handle

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Silver Spoon was so desperately trying to cool Diamond Tiara off. She was on fire, so that's that. You see, Tessla took up Austin's suggestion on how to deal with the two fillies. He went out that very day. Just minutes after Austin left he set out to find the CMC. Thinking back Tessla might regard that as one of the worst decisions of his life, as well as one of the best. This is what happened.

Day 1

First things first, Tessla had to find the CMC. Since their quest for their cutie marks usually ended up with something broken and them stuck in a tree covered in sticky sap Tessla figured he would start looking wherever there was some havoc in Ponyville. Unfortunately, Ponyville was a little light on the havoc as of late.

Tessla walked through town on his way to Sweet Apple Acres. He was sure he would be able to find at least a clue as to where the CMC were. He was still being followed by Diamond Tiara and Silver Spoon. They had stopped talking to him for now. He wasn't sure why they were suddenly silent, but he wasn't complaining.

The first stop in his search for the CMC was their clubhouse. They did spend a lot of time there, planning crusades in their search for their cutie marks, hiding from Diamond Tiara and Silver Spoon, or figuring out how they would repair the damage they caused to Ponyville and/or the ponies that live in Ponyville. Sometimes they did all three in the same day. Sometimes multiple times a day. But as for today, they were nowhere to be seen.

Tessla frowned. HE had done a lot of walking today and that was something he was not exactly used to, as his gut clearly showed. As he thought about it he looked down. To his surprise his gut was actually quite small. Or at least smaller than it was when he first arrived in Equestria.

“Ugh. Why are we here?” Diamond Tiara looked away from the clubhouse like it was disgusting pile of old garbage that somepony had left out to rot for one too many years.

Dear god, they started talking again.

“Yeah. Like, why are in the blank flank capital of Ponyville?” Silver Spoon whined.

Tessla groaned in response. These two little fillies were the worst. He really didn't like them, but he was trying to avoid exploding on them. Luckily he didn't have to.

As he groaned he heard something. Something that was not him groaning. No, this sound was a sharp snap. He checked the ground to make sure he didn't step on a twig or something. The ground was clear of any twigs or small branches. It was then he remembered something that Austin had once told him. When people are looking for something outside they very rarely look up. He was just full of advice today. And so Tessla looked up.

He looked to see a blur falling at him. This white blur also had some light purple thrown in the mix. That was all he was able to discern before said blur met Tessla's face. And then Tessla met the ground.

“Hey! I'm okay?!” Sweetie Belle said as she looked up from her rather rough landing. “I'm okay, girls! Come on down!”

She shouted out at what appeared to be nothing but the air. She didn't even notice her two mortal enemies standing just a few feet away staring at her. They really should have seen coming what happened next. But they didn't.

“AAAHHH! Blank flanks are falling from the sky!!!” Diamond Tiara screamed. After Sweetie Belle shouted at at nothing something happened. Another member of the CMC appeared. IT was Scootaloo this time. Diamond Tiara wasn't sure where she came from. All she knew was that one moment she was standing with Silver Spoon and the next Silver Spoon had been crushed by a Scootaloo shaped projectile. Scootacomet? Scooteor? Anyway, she was freaking out. She really, REALLY should have have seen this coming.

THUD! Diamond Tiara lay flat on the ground with her legs going in every direction. Her head was spinning and her back hurt like a safe just fell on it. She groaned and slowly opened her eyes. The pain in her back lessened as her blurry vision came back into focus. What she saw did not make her happy. But nothing really did, so that makes sense.

“Here. This thing fell off yer head.” Apple Bloom offered Diamond Tiara her hoof. In it was none other than the tiara that Tiara was always wearing. “Ya know, I wasn't really sure if that thing came or not. I kinda though it was just a part of yer head.”

Diamond Tiara said nothing as she snatched the headpiece from Apple Bloom with a huff. She put it on and made sure it was adjusted perfectly before even acknowledging the presence of anypony else. When she did finally look back she saw Apple Bloom standing there with Sweetie Belle. The human, Tessla was behind them massaging his face. It was much redder now than before. To her right she saw Silver Spoon. She was out. Gone. Her eyes were swirls. There were birds flying in a circle around her head. One hoof slightly twitched, but that was the only sign the filly was even still alive. Scootaloo on the other hoof just popped up like a picture in a pop up book.

“WHOO! That was awesome!” She climbed off Silver Spoon real quick. “Sorry about that, by the way,” She whispered back as she left. Silver Spoon groaned.

Apple Bloom and Sweetie Belle stifled a laugh that just gave Scootaloo an even bigger boost to her ego. She had literally, if unintentionally, knocked her mortal nemesis down a peg. Maybe two.

“So,” She said as she approached her other mortal nemesis. “What are you doing here?”

Diamond Tiara turned her head with her chin up the way all those rich, uptight, brats have a habit of doing. She even made the “Hmph!” Noise. “I came with him.” She pointed back at Tessla.

Scootaloo turned to Tessla and gave him a dirty look that she must have learned from Rainbow Dash. “Why would you bring them here?”

“I came here on my own,” Tessla defended, “They have been following me all day. Don't know why.”

“Oh.” Was all Scootaloo said. She looked between the filly and the human with some confusion. She just shrugged it off and then trotted up to Tessla. “Well then. What can we do for ya today?”

“You could start with washing off,” Tessla bluntly said to the filly.

The CMC looked themselves over and then they looked at each other. Yep, they were dirty. Like so many of their other adventures this last one ended with them stuck in a tree. So naturally they were covered in tree bark shavings, leaves, various things none of them wanted to think about and most of all, they were covered in sap. Sweet, sticky, messy, tree sap. The CMC giggled as they realized just how many times they ended up like this. Yet as they giggled they could hear a significant gasp from just behind them. It was Diamond Tiara realizing just how dirty she was, and she was mortified.

“AAAAAAHHHHHHHH!!!!!”

“Hey! Shut your yap, will ya?” Apple Bloom said. “It ain't gonna kill ya.”

“I. Hate. You. Blank flanks. So. Much.” Diamond Tiara grumbled through her teeth. She was glaring angrily at all of them. Even Tessla was subject to this angry gaze of hers, not that he cared. He actually found the whole situation hilariously funny. Except for the part where his face hurt. “I am so going home. I need to forget this whole day ever happened.

As Diamond Tiara turned and strutted off Apple Bloom called out to her. “Hold up. What about her?” She pointed over at Silver Spoon with a hoof. She was still passed out with swirly eyes. Only now she had laughing Pegasi flying in circles around her head instead of chirping birds.

“Well that seems appropriate,” Tessla said.

“What do you want me to do,” Diamond Tiara asked snobbishly, “It's not like I can drag her all the back into town.”

“Do you want me to give you a ride in the wagon?” Scootaloo asked.

If looks could kill there is a good chance Scootaloo would have died just then. She got a look so evil and dirty and nasty that Discord himself would have shuddered under its gaze. And this came from a filly. “I would rather let the timberwolves drag me off into the Everfree Forest then accept help from you three,” She hissed out at the CMC before turning her eyes to Tessla. “And you. You are so not cool anymore.”

“Fine by me.” Tessla responded.

Diamond Tiara turned back and ran off for Ponyville and her shower. She wanted that gunk off her as fast as pony possible. One by one the CMC and Tessla all found themselves standing around the still out Silver Spoon.

“Now what?” Sweetie Belle asked.

Apple Bloom picked up a nearby stick. Tessla stepped back and she pointed one end at the filly on the ground. The other two members of the CMC shook their heads in unison. No stick poking today. Tessla sighed a sigh of relief and stepped up again. They nearly put a stick up his nose when they poked him in the crater.

“Why don't you take her home?” Tessla asked.

Three heads snapped up to look at him.

“Why would we do that?” Scootaloo asked.

“Yeah. She is out mortal nemesis!” Apple Bloom pitched in.

“Yeah, this won't end well,” Sweetie Belle put it plainly.

Tessla sighed again. As much as he liked the CMC they were a pain in the ass in their own way. I guess it was his turn to teach them a lesson.

“You three are better ponies than those two,” He started. “We all know if it was one of you out here they would just leave you. However, you can show everypony in town how much more mature you are by helping those you don't like and who don't like you. Do you understand what I'm saying?”

“Yeah, yeah,” Scootaloo mumbled, “I'll go grab my scooter.”

Day 2

Tessla woke up the next day surprisingly awake. That groggy feeling people get when they first wake up from a night of dreams that may or may not have been good was not with him that morning. He sat up feeling awake and alert. He didn't even yawn once as he climbed out of bed and dressed himself as he got ready for the day ahead of him. This was going to be the very first day he spent with the CMC actually doing things. A little worry entered his mind, but he pushed it off. For some reason he was feeling really damn good.

“This is gonna be a good day,” He said to himself as he left the room.

He walked over to Austin's room. He had been back at the castle for a day now, and he was curious as to what he had been up to. Or what Twilight had been up to. Austin had performed a minor feat of magic after all. Tessla reached out to knock on the door when it suddenly flung open from the inside. Austin rushed out, taking barely a second to register Tessla's presence and move around him. He left the door wide open as he moved down the hallway at a brisk pace. Tessla blinked once before following.

“What's up with you?” Tessla asked.

“Was up all night reading some books Twilight gave me on magic,” Austin said. Even though what he said was true one could barely tell. You see Austin was rather strange in that way. He could stay up all night and then work the next day with almost no problem, except for the fact that would be a little bit loopier than usual. He like to refer to this as “high functioning while under the effects of sleep deprivation.”

“Oh. She question you on that display of magic during the timberwolf thing?”

“Yeah, she did. Told her the truth. Don't know how I did what I did.”

“What did she say to that?”

“She wants to teach me pony magic.”

“Can you even do that? You're just a person.”

“I will find that out today. Don't you have some fun with the CMC planned or something?”

Tessla didn't get to answer as Austin was quite literally dragged away. He finished his sentence and then a field of magical energy enveloped him entirely as Twilight's smiling face greeted him. Not her creepy smiling face, just her normal face with a smile.

“Good. You're here. I am so happy you decided to come. I can't wait to start teaching you some of the magic that I learned when I was young. Let's go!”

Twilight turned so fast it was almost like she teleported. In the same exact spot, just facing the other direction. Nevermind, that sound just ridiculous. She was just excited and therefore moved quite fast. She snatched Austin up like a diamond dog snatched up gems and then ran off with in much the same manner.

Austin's last words as Twilight carried him into the unknown were, “This feels so strange!”

“This place never gets boring,” Tessla said.

Tessla reached the main lobby that lead to the doors that lead to the outside about ten minutes later. Yes, it took Tessla ten minutes to reach the front doors. He only got lost once on the way. If he hadn't he would have gotten their at least five minutes earlier.

“Sup, dude.” Rainbow Dash was flying slowly beside Tessla now.

“Sup, Dash.”

“So, I just saw Twilight carrying your friend off with her magic. She had a creepy smile. It was the same look she had when she decided to do a bunch of experimenting last time Trixie was in town.”

Tessla thought about that for a moment. “I'm sure he'll be fine.”

Nothing more of note happened that day. Tessla sat around with the CMC and they had a tea party. That was all. Just a tea party. That lasted all day. Yep. That's it.

Day 3

Tessla walked over to the CMC clubhouse. He was having a pretty good time hanging out with them. It was more fun than he thought and much less dangerous. He hadn't actually planned on hanging out today but Scootaloo had woken him up early in the morning telling him something about something he had to see right away. He told her he would be there in about ten minutes.

“What the hell?” Tessla stared at the object in front of his eyes. It was a large round, red egg. It was about the size of a Scootaloo's head. And it was just sitting there in the clubhouse.

“It's an egg,” Apple Bloom said happily.

“Got that,” Tessla replied without taking his eyes off the egg.

“And we're gonna hatch it!” Sweetie Belle proudy and joyfully exclaimed.

“I'll just say it again,” Tessla said, “What the hell? Sweetie Belle, I would have thought you smarter than this. What could possibly make you think this was a good idea?”

“We have tried everything else,” Sweetie Belle said, “Now we want to try and get our cutie marks in monster egg hatching.”

“Have you at least talked to Fluttershy yet?”

Silence. Each of the three looked at each other with puzzled glances. After a moment they looked back at Tessla with sheepish slightly embarrassed smiles on their faces.

“That ain't a bad idea,” Apple Bloom said, “Let's go an' do that.”

Getting the egg out of the clubhouse was not as easy a task and Tessla thought. The damn thing was heavier than hell and he got the feeling that it was getting close to hatching. But he got it out and managed to get it gently into the wagon that Scootaloo pulled behind her scooter. He held up while Sweetie Belle placed a few blankets down. It was still an egg after all.

There wasn't enough room in the wagon for everyone to fit, especially with a big human tagging along. And so Apple Bloom stayed with the egg while Tessla and Sweetie Belle ran after them.

Scootaloo raced through town with that surprising speed she could pull out on that scooter of hers. Even with that heavier than hell egg in the backseat she was still going pretty fast. Of course, this all came at the cost of Apple Bloom. She was stuck with the egg. It wanted to roll with every turn, shift with every speed up and jump with every bump. Keeping that egg upright was more of a job than babysitting Rainbow Dash in Canterlot's most popular prank shop.

Eventually the odd group carting a large egg through the streets of Ponyville made it to their final destination. A small, humble looking cottage on the outskirts that was home to the one pony who might be able to tell them just what kind of egg they had.

“I have no idea,” Fluttershy said. “I mean, I have never seen an egg like this before. Never ever.”

Fluttershy examined the egg more closely. It was actually three different shades of red. They all overlapped and faded into one another that it was hard to see all three unless you looked really close. She looked over the egg until her eyes had scanned every last inch of the surface and every last crack. Wait a minute. Crack?

“Oh my! It's hatching!” Fluttershy quickly, yet gently placed the egg down on the floor. She stepped back and eagerly waited for the egg to do something. Tessla just stood back and watched as the CMC got more comfortable. They had a feeling they would be there for a while.

For half an hour nothing happened. Fluttershy had not moved in that entire time. Her eyes were glued to the egg while the rest of her body was stuck in same position a dog took when it wanted to play. Her head was down with her tail in the air. Her wings were slightly away from her body, and that was how she stayed.

Another half hour passed with little more than mouse farting to break the silence that had overtaken the room. The mouse excused himself and scurried back into his hole in the wall. Fluttershy's big eyes and smile hadn't faded as she watched the egg. Scootaloo was not so quietly snoring a few feet away. Apple Bloom was playing cards with Angel, and losing. Sweetie Belle was still watching the egg. Tessla had been adjusting his hair for the past fifteen minutes. He needed a shower. He was about to announce his leave to go and take one when Fluttershy sounded off.

“AAHHH!” She screamed in sudden excitement, catching them all off guard. Angel's hand of cards went everywhere as Fluttershy screamed once again. Scootaloo rolled over and continued snoring.

It was a happy excitement that drew them all closer, except for Scootaloo. As the three visitors crowded around her she thrust out a hoof to point at a specific spot on the egg. All eyes were drawn to that spot and they watched intently as a truly miniscule crack emerged at the top of the egg.

“That's it?” Tessla said. “I was expecting something . . . bigger.”

As Tessla finished speaking the egg shook violently. It rocked back and forth and back and forth and back and forth and then it stopped. And then shook back and forth one more time. Cracks appeared all over the egg. They spread down from the top as the egg shook. Every pony and human took a step back as the egg shell shook one last time before exploding out. Shell fragments rained everywhere in Fluttershy's home. One of the larger pieces flew over and landed on Scootaloo's head, leaving her with a new hat and some strange fluid covering her head.

“So. . . “ Apple Bloom said, “What is it?”

The question was directed at Fluttershy, but she didn't answer right away. Apple Bloom looked back to see Fluttershy crawling out from under her sofa. She blushed momentarily before stepping forward to join them once more.

Fluttershy looked over at what used to be an egg. Only a few, small fragments of the shell remained now and what was in the egg now lay on Fluttershy's floor. She looked it over, up and down and side to side. She checked every side of that thing before coming to a sound conclusion.

“This is. . . ,” Fluttershy explained. “. . . A chicken. A rare Everfree Pink Chicken to be exact.”

Jaws dropped. All of them. Before them really was a pink chicken. It looked just like a normal chicken, only pink! All pink, all over. The thing was small and fuzzy right now. It looked at all of them staring at and then it fell over.

“You can't be serious,” Apple Bloom said.

“Oh, I am,” Fluttershy said, “The rare Everfree Pink Chickens are indigenous to the Everfree Forest and very endangered. As you can imagine chickens don't last long in there. But they are really quite smart and have a fondness for dancing. That's how they find mates, you know. It really is quite amazing.”

“This is awesome!” Scootaloo raced up to the chicken. She still had the shell piece on her head. She stared at the chick right before her eyes and it stared back. As she looked at it it reached out to touch Scootaloo. It stole the egg shell hat off her head and put it on it's own.

“AWW! That's so adorable!” Fluttershy crooned over the baby chick. And just is this adorable moment was happening Tessla felt a great disturbance was coming to ruin it all.

The door to the cottage flung open with a loud bang. Thunder clapped and lightning flashed even though it was a sunny day outside. The flash illuminated the silhouettes of two little fillies as they stood in the doorway.

“I thought I felt something bad coming,” Tessla mumbled to himself.

“What are you two doing here,” Sweetie Belle asked, annoyed.

Diamond Tiara and Silver Spoon stepped inside to talk. “Well, after I left that filthy, horrid place you call your clubhouse I went home and took, like, five showers. I went to bed and the next day Silver Spoon showed up. She had to take, like, seven showers to get the filth out of her hair.”

“No, I took eight showers. I still didn't feel clean after the seventh so I took another one.” Silver Spoon shuddered a bit at the memory of being dirty. Tessla resisted the urge to start yelling at them.

“Right, that's it. Anyway, we got to talking after morning tea time and we decided to give you another chance,” Diamond Tiara explained. She made a point to make sure it was just Tessla who got the chance. “After all, you did get Silver Spoon back home safely.”

“I didn't have anything to do with it,” Tessla said, “It was all these three.”

Diamond Tiara glared over at the CMC, who had formed a wall in front of the baby pink chick. Diamond Tiara knew they were up to something, and she wanted to know what.

“What are you hiding back there?” She forced her way through the filly wall and looked down at the baby chick. It looked up at her with its adorable pink fuzzy self all puffed out. Diamond Tiara stopped in her tracks. She had never before seen something so cute and adorable. She stood there and she felt something deep inside of her. It was something she had never felt before, stirring around and coming to the surface. Was she starting to. . . to care? To feel?

The little pink chick leaped up and snatched the tiara of her head. It landed behind her and took off at a full sprint before Diamond Tiara could stop it. It raced out of the cottage and headed for Ponyville. Diamond Tiara angrily glared at the CMC.

“I AM NEVER COMING ANYWHERE NEAR YOU EVER AGAIN YOU BLANK FLANK-”

Tessla and Fluttershy quickly lunged to cover the ears of the CMC. Diamond Tiara went off on a tirade of bleeps, blips, tootsy-fruitsies, and several other sounds that would traumatize Fluttershy later on. Even Silver Spoon was taken aback. A very red in the face Diamond Tiara stormed out of the cottage leaving smoldering hoof prints in her wake.

Silver Spoon looked back and forth between the open door and the CMC. She just shrugged her shoulders after a moment and headed for the door. But before she left she stopped and looked back. The CMC had their ears free now and she told them something they never thought they would hear from her lips.

“Thank you,” She said, “For taking me home, I mean.” Then she was gone.

“Whoa,” Pinkie Pie said, “That was intense.”

Day of the Duel

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It started out as a normal day. As normal as Ponyville could be with two humans living among the ponies, that is. All the ponies moved about the town, their time occupied by their own jobs and affairs and worries. Cheerilee was busy teaching her students at the schoolhouse. Ditzy Doo was buzzing about giving ponies the wrong mail. Roseluck was selling flowers at her flower stand. Nothing seemed out of the ordinary. And so when the trained pulled into the Ponyville station, it was a wonder that anypony at all noticed the figure who disembarked.

===

Meanwhile, Austin was busy with Twilight in the town square. It was such a nice day outside that she insisted on having their daily magical lesson in the fresh air of the outside world. Austin had no complaints. It even turned into a small picnic of sorts.

Fluttershy brought most of the food, but Pinkie Pie had some sweets she offered to the other ponies. They were all there, too. The Mane Six, Spike. Even Tessla. They got to setting up the blanket and setting out the food while Twilight gave Austin his lecture on magic for the day.

“I don't know how he can stand it,” Rainbow Dash said. “Listening to her talk on and on about magic, day after day. Twilight's my friend and all, but damn.”

“Yes, Twilight does tend to ramble from time to time,” Rarity said, “Especially on the subject of magic.”

“The better question is how he even understands any of what she says,” Pinkie chirped in, “I speak seven different languages from pastries to hard candy and I don't even know what she says half the time.”

“Ha! HE doesn't understand everything,” Spike said as he stuffed a large ruby in his mouth. He chewed and swallowed before gulping it down and talking again. “He just doesn't want to say anything to Twilight. Thinks she'll be hurt or get mad or something.”

“Why, that's absolutely absurd,” Rarity scoffed at the notion. “What say you, Tessla? You're his friend.”

Tessla thought for a moment. He had to phrase this right or sound like an idiot. “Austin is a lot of things,” He began. “But one thing he is not is stupid. He may not always show it, but he is very intelligent.”

"Well said," Rarity replied.

They all nodded their heads in agreement and got back to the picnic. The food was wonderful. Fluttershy had a talent for making salads. She blushed whenever somepony complimented her on it. They sat there and watched Twilight with Austin.

She had him sitting down on the grass with his legs crossed. His arms lay loosely over his knees. He took a few deep breaths before closing his eyes. His breathing slowed to a crawl. He seemed to enter a near trance like state. Twilight backed up and trotted over to the rest of them after a moment. She sat down and quickly grabbed a bite to eat. She was starved.

“Hey, Twilight. What's he doing?” Tessla asked.

Twilight finished with her latest bite of food before answering him. “Lately, I've been teaching Austin about balance. The ebb and flow of magic. Today I am using Ponyville itself as an example.”

“Ah don't get it,” Applejack stated plainly.

“It's actually quite simple,” Twilight said, “Ponyville is made up of all the ponies that live in it. They all work and live and do their jobs all at the same time, every day. There is so much going on here in this one small town that you would think it would be completely chaotic, but it's not. Ponyville has a flow to it. Every pony has their place, their job to do, and they do it. And unless some catastrophic calamity of some proportion lands right in our laps it will continue to have this flow.”

“I'm actually following you so far.” Tessla said.

“I'm glad,” Twilight replied with a smile. “What I have Austin doing is focusing on sensing this flow. Since everything has some sort of energy one can sense the flow around it if one focuses hard enough.”

Tessla nodded a nod of understanding. He understood most of what Twilight had said. He had faith that Austin would get the hang of whatever magic she threw at him. He was good like that. So they sat there and ate their food while Austin sat just a few feet away. After a while some of the smaller stones and pebbles started to float around him. It was just an inch or two at most, but it was noticeable. It was also pretty cool. But then a thought struck Tessla. It hit him hard. Any harder and it would have been Ditzy Doo knocking some sense into him.

“Is Austin going to eat anything,” He asked.

All at once the ponies stopped moving, some of them mid chew or with their mouths still open and waiting for the arrival of more food. A silence crept up then and surrounded them. For a second it stayed silent, only to be broken by small squeak that lasted a second or two. All the eyes were drawn to Fluttershy, whose cheeks betrayed her embarrassment with a thick layer of red.

“Excuse me,” She said softly. The other ponies looked away and Fluttershy turned to the hummingbird hovering right next to her. He gave a silent thanks that only Fluttershy could understand and flew off.

As everypony settled back into a comfortable eating position they realized they hadn't answered the question. Eventually, all their eyes collected on the food laid out. There really wasn't much left. They all traded glances back and forth nervously, but still said nothing. The next sound to break the silence that had blanketed them was a very loud, very unexpected crunch. Spike stopped mid chew as they all looked at him.

“What?” He asked, “It's not like he's going to eat my gems. He doesn't eat gems. He told me so himself.”

“Come to think of it he really doesn't eat much at all,” Twilight said. “Huh. I guess I never really noticed until now.”

===

By that point the figure from the train had made their way well into town. They walked the streets trying be as inconspicuous as possible. It's a kinda hard thing to do in a town like Ponyville. This figure eventually overheard a conversation between two ponies about the Princess eating lunch in the center of town with her friends. Perfect. They headed over their right away.

There she was. Princess Twilight Sparkle, and all her friends. They were sitting around a picnic. It was perfect. All of them in one place. This was the best they could have hoped for. And so that figure headed off to meet Twilight. She ran at a full sprint and didn't care who saw her at that point.

They were all caught off guard. Twilight didn't see it coming until the very last second. By that time there was nothing she could do. She didn't even have time for an eye twitch before she was gone, tackled to the ground behind her by this as yet unknown figure. Twilight had to roll them off of her body before getting up and collecting herself.

“Trixie,” She half yelled it and half questioned it. “What are you doing here?”

“Please, Twilight.” Trixie said weakly, “I need your help.”

With that Trixie lost all consciousness. She lay there as they all loomed over her. Twilight herself leaned her head down and touched her horn to Trixie's head. She sent a flash of energy through Trixie. For a while nothing happened. During this time Twilight looked Trixie over. She was not in good shape.

Her coat was worn and dirty. It looked like she hadn't bathed in days. There was dirt and mud caked all around her hooves. A few patched here and there even looked to be scorched as if by intense heat. Her mane was in worse shape. It was a mess, frazzled and unkempt. There were leaves and a few small twigs sticking out of the tangled mess. Whatever had happened to her obviously wasn't good, but that wasn't what had Twilight worried. It was what she couldn't see.

Trixie's eyes opened slowly. She blinked a few times to let her eyes adjust to the light in the room. Wait, room?! Trixie shot up and out of bed only to instantly wish she had not done that. Every fiber of her being ached and a soreness like nothing she had ever felt just reminded her that it was still present and staying for a while. With a pained groan she slowly slumped to the floor.

“Good. You're up.”

Trixie slowly turned her head to see Twilight standing just a few paces away. Despite the pain Trixie shot up and draped herself along Twilight's neck. She pressed herself into Twilight's mane and held herself there for a moment.

“Um, Trixie. What are you doing here?”

“Oh, right.” Trixie said. She separated herself from Twilight. “Sorry,” She said with a blush.

Twilight brushed it aside and let the rest of her friends in, Austin and Tessla as well. It was time for an explanation and Trixie was going to give one. Twilight still wasn't quite sure if she was going to like what she heard, but she never knew with Trixie.

“Twilight, I have gotten myself into some trouble, and I need your help.” Trixie said. “You see, I did something that in hindsight I shouldn't have, but it's too late now. The damage has been done. I don't know what I am going to do.”

“Relax, Trixie,” Twilight nearly shouted. Trixie was starting to get worked up again. “Just calm down and tell us what happened.”

“It was a duel,” Trixie stated. “A magic duel. Now, I know what you all are thinking, but I didn't start this one. At least, not intentionally.” Trixie got a few raised eyebrows at this, so she explained it further.

“Twilight, you know how I like to boast,” Trixie said. “It is an unfortunate character flaw that I am still working out, and it has gotten me into a bit of trouble. My boasting attracted this stallion. He was interested in me and my magic. I should have something was wrong just then, but I wasn't thinking. Anyway, he challenged me to a duel. I swear, HE challenged ME!”

“I reckon it didn't go to well for ya,” Applejack said.

“No, it did not go well for me,” Trixie said. “He seemed nice when we were talking, but when we dueled he changed. He was mean and violent, brutal and ruthless. He was completely without mercy.”

“Sounds like a fun guy,” Dash remarked. “So what did you do?”

Trixie looked up at her and then turned her head away from them all. “The only thing I could. I ran, and he's been chasing me ever since.”

“And you came straight to me for help,” Twilight said. “That would kinda explain why you look so . . . so. . “

“Disheveled,” Rarity finished.

“It's true,” Trixie said, “I haven't eaten in days. I am dying to wash my mane. A good hooficure would be grand right now.”

“I think we can manage that,” Rarity said. “You may not have always treated us right, Trixie, but not even you deserve to go on looking so. . .”

“Disheveled?” Trixie asked.

“Right,” Rarity said, “Come now. We're off to the spa. This will give Twilight some much needed time to figure out a game plan for your problems.”

It was a unanimous agreement. Rarity was right, after all. On both counts. Trixie needed to improve her look and Twilight needed some time. They all walked out together, seeing as how they all had their own lives to get back to. All except for Austin and Tessla.

Rarity and Trixie were the first out the doors of the castle. The two stopped to talk for a moment before heading off to the spa. Applejack and Rainbow Dash headed off to do what they did best, leaving the rest of them with their goodbyes. Not a single being there noticed anything out of the ordinary. Then again, why would they? A single pony in Ponyville wasn't out of the ordinary. But this particular pony, he was here for a reason.

===

He stalked the streets of Ponyville. His prey taken away by a pesky purple princess. He had followed the Unicorn here from halfway across Equestria. He would finish what was started, but he needed her to do it. And so he waited.

Finally, he saw her once more. She emerged in the company of the Princess and her friends. It did not matter. He would have his end. He would finish what had been started, and he would have it done before sundown. And so he approached. His eyes were locked onto his prey. She would not get away from him again.

Nopony noticed the magic power he was building up. Nopony seemed bothered by the low, pulsating glow emitting from his horn. It was either that, or nopony cared. He truly didn't care which one it was. His eyes were on his prey, and he was closing in. He just had to be clear from the mob of ponies filling the streets to get a clear shot. An easy enough task. His prey had moved away from the rest of them. All except one. Oh well. And once he was clear, he pointed and he unleashed.

===

Austin barely reacted in time. It was actually Tessla who pointed it out. That feeling in the air. That spark that charged the air. There was something that made the hair in their arms stand up. Austin got a bad feeling that was coming up from deep withing him. He looked out to the town and his eyes fell upon one pony. One pony that by all standards, should not have looked out of the ordinary. His coat was white. with it seeming to be more empty and void of anything rather than just being plain white. His mane and tail were ash black with streaks of a gray barely lighter. His face was formed in a look of twisted delight as Austin saw and felt the magic coming from him. It took less than a second longer for him to realize this pony was locked onto Trixie. Austin barely reacted in time.

Tessla stepped back quickly as Austin turned to Trixie and Rarity. He nimbly slipped past Tessla and the others. He could hear Tessla shouting out to the two ponies, but he didn't stop. They did, and they turned to look back. NO! Don't stop! Austin raced up to Rarity and Trixie, reaching them just as that pony unleashed his magic blast. Now it was a race against time.

An unknown pony and Austin. Both locked in a battle against time. One had fired a blast of magic, and the other was protecting the target. Could he use magic against it? Could he move fast enough? Good question.

The world slowed down as Austin stared at this blast coming at him. It was powerful, he could feel it. He could feel his hands moving on their own. He couldn't control them, and he didn't want to. He trusted that he knew what to do. And he did. His body moved on its own, throwing his arms up to cross his body defensively, a barrier of arcane energy forming just inches away. He could hear the whispers and murmurs starting behind him, but only for a second. For the next thing he knew, the wall exploded as that unknown pony's magic blasted the barrier to not but dust.

Austin stood up slowly. The ringing in his ears was preventing him from getting and keeping his balance. It was going away slowly. He could hear somebody talking to him, but he couldn't tell who it was. All he saw was blurs and shapes and a few colors. He felt a small tap to his forehead and a purple blur in front of him came into focus. Twilight looked at him, into his eyes for a moment.

“Are you okay,” She asked with concern and worry heavy in her voice.

“Yeah, I'm fine,” Austin said, barely believing it himself. The impact aggravated his previous wound, and it was throbbing something fierce.

The dust cleared and settled and a pony approached them. A red pony, with an ashen mane. He found Austin in his gaze and glared at him fiendishly.

“You guard my prey,” He said with a deep, yet empty voice.

“That's him! That's the stallion,” Trixie said. “That's Thorn Blackrose.”

“Thorn Blackrose,” Twilight asked.

“Yes, dearest Twilight.” Rarity said, “I've actually heard of him. I wish Trixie would have mentioned his name sooner. I could have warned about something like this.”

“Who is this pony?” Tessla asked.

“He's a skilled magical duelist,” Rarity said, “He's also a brute, mean and heartless. He has put more than a few ponies in the hospital due to his duels. Now he travels Equestria challenging any pony he deems worthy to duels. To the best of my knowledge, he has never lost.”

“I see my reputation extends even here,” Thorn said. He stepped forward only to find Austin and Twilight blocking his path. “Still, you guard my prey.”

“Prey?!” Twilight growled, her voice rising with her anger, “Prey?! She's a pony, just like you! How could you do that, firing off a magic blast that powerful? Do you have any idea what kind of damage that could do? Do you have any idea how many ponies could have been hurt?”

Thorn's face remained as blank and emotionless as ever. “Collateral damage,” He said with an empty, heartless tone.

“I wasn't going to let you hurt Trixie,” Twilight said, “And now that you've threatened my friends I won't let you leave Ponyville.”

“Whoa,” Rainbow Dash said, surprised. “Twilight, that's kinda dark, especially for you.”

“I hate ponies who use magic to abuse other ponies!” Twilight said with anger. “I pisses me off to no end!”

Twilight nearly snapped. She surely would have if it were not for Austin. He stepped in front of her so that she couldn't see Thorn. He knelt down so that he was eye to eye with her. He looked her right in the eyes.

“Twilight, you can't do this. You're a princess now. I know you want to defend your friends, but not like this. It isn't you. I want you to be you. Stay here with Trixie. She needs you as you are now.”

Austin's touching words caught Twilight off guard. She hadn't ever really thought of herself like that before. She had given into anger just now and was ready to destroy Thorn. No pony would have been brave enough to step in between her and him, but Austin did. Before she could say anything to him he had stepped back and turned to face Thorn. In one smooth, flowing motion he stood and turned. A hand lashed out at Thorn, it met a barrier but still he was forced back a few feet. Austin straightened his body and stood tall and ready.

“I will fight you,” Austin said, “I will defend Trixie here and now.”

Thorn thought about this. He wasn't a pony, but he was magical. Judging by that barrier he was also at least mildly competent. He would be an intriguing opponent, and being the first pony to defeat a human in a duel did have advantages that he could use far into his future. He shook off the push back that Austin had just given him and stepped forward.

“A duel is set,” He said, “Let's begin.”

===

Ben disembarked the train just in time to see that nopony was on the platform. It was empty, devoid of any intelligent life except for him. Even the crickets that chirped when it got too quiet were gone. It was rather eery. It was made even worse by the fact that he had expected to see some of his friends there, both pony and human.

“I thought they would be here,” Ben said under his breath. He couldn't stop the wave of disappointment that washed over him. He had been gone for two weeks now and he comes back to find that his friends were not awaiting him.

Ben slung his bag over his shoulder. He had gotten some new stuff in the Crystal Empire. He took it all and headed off to Twilight's castle. It was only then that he heard the noise. Or the lack thereof. At this time of day Ponyville should have been abuzz with activity, but there was silence. It wasn't until he got further into town that he heard the noise.

He rounded a corner to see that almost every pony in Ponyville had gathered in the center of town. Something big had gotten their undivided attention, but what? He had to push his way through the crowd of ponies. It wasn't until he was right next to the ponies that they realized who, and what, he was. Many ponies parted to let him through unhindered. He nodded his appreciation and moved to the front of the crowd. That was where he found some familiar faces.

“Hey guys,” Ben called out.

The Mane Six all turned to greet the tall fellow. Pinkie rushed up to give him a hug as the others sounded off their hellos. Each of the seemed to be a bit distracted, however. Their attention was divided between him and whatever the crowd was watching.

“What's going on?” Ben asked after he pried Pinkie off him.

“Look fer yerself,” Applejack said.

“Your friend has gotten himself in a spot of trouble,” Rarity stated.

Ben looked away from Applejack and followed her hoof. His eyes fell upon a sight that caused his heart to skip a beat. It was Austin. Ben's sight fell on him just as a magically created hoof gave him a right hook to the jaw. Austin reeled back, but managed to keep on his feet. Ben cringed at the impact. It looked painful.

Ben looked back at them with a more serious look than he had ever had before. “What the hell happened?”

Pinkie Pie appeared once again in Ben's hands and she inhaled one long, deep breath. After that she went on to explain to Ben everything that had happened since that morning in the following three and half seconds.

“Okay,” Ben said after a second. “So what happened?”

“He's fighting for me.”

Ben heard the voice, but did not see the pony it came from. Rarity gestured behind them and Ben moved past them to see Twilight and Trixie standing there. Trixie was looking back toward him, telling him that it was her that Austin was fighting for.

“But, why?”

It wasn't Ben that spoke, but Twilight. She was locked onto to the duel playing out before her eyes, and onto Austin. Trixie gave him a short explanation of what transpired before he arrived. That gave him a lot of answers, but not Twilight.

“I don't understand,” She absentmindedly mumbled. “Why is he doing this?”

Ben looked back at the duel. He had no idea if Austin was winning or not, not that it mattered at the moment. He was holding his own.

“How could you let this happen?!” Ben turned on Twilight. “You're a princess. Can't you stop this?”

“I've tried,” Twilight shouted back. “Nothing has worked. They won't listen to me. I don't know why.”

“I expect this from Thorn, but why is Austin acting this way,” Fluttershy asked. “It doesn't make any sense.”

Ben sighed. “It does if you knew him like I do,” He said, “I've known Austin since my Junior year of high school. He has always said how he fights with honor. That's what this is to him: A matter of honor”

“That don't make a lick a sense,” Applejack said.

“Think about it,” Ben explained, “Trixie came for help. Twilight's a Princess, so she is too powerful to make the duel fair. There isn't anypony else in Ponyville that could challenge this guy, so Austin stepped up. He's the champion defending the honor of a wronged pony.”

“Still don't make sense,” Applejack muttered.

“It does to him,” Ben said quietly.

===

Austin kept himself from falling flat on his ass once again. He had just taken yet another hit from Thorn Blackrose. The pony was good. Really good. His magic was strong and he knew how to use it. Unfortunately, all he used it for was hurting other ponies. That couldn't be allowed. Not anymore. And so, as Austin's vision came back from distorted blurs in a haphazard heap of motion to a slightly less haphazard blurry outlined world he was determined to end this once and for all.

Thorn Blackrose. A pony duelist that had been keeping Austin on the defensive since their duel began. Austin had just taken another blast from him. One too many, if you asked him. Not nearly enough if you asked Blackrose. He went down to a knee, but that wasn't enough.Why won't he go down?!

Blackrose was getting really tired of this human. Austin was really starting to irritate him. No, he was irritated a while ago. At this point, he was borderline pissed off. He wanted it to end almost as much as everypony else did. As much as he enjoyed the thrill of dueling this one was not as much fun as he thought it would be.

His chest heaved, every breath heavier than the last. Most of his duels were done long before this point. He glared at Austin, but maintained as much of his composure as he could. He didn't want to be seen as unruly. And then he attacked.

Less than a second for his horn to charge up the attack. A beam, thick as pony's leg fired off like a laser. Austin threw his arms up in front of his body in an 'X'. He deflected the blast up and away from the other ponies, much to Thorn's delight. This left him open for just long enough.

He immediately launched another attack. A small volley of distracting magic missiles diverted the human's attention away from him. He barely had time to avoid those and took two of the hits. They little more than bug bites in comparison to everything else he had already taken. That was okay, for it let Thorn get into position. He leaped to the side and ran up Austin's exposed left side. He skidded to a halt as his horn charged up another blast. The red magic flowed around him and he unleashed everything he had at Austin. This time he went down.

“NNOOOO!” Twilight shouted out over the gasping crowd, her eyes widened by worry.

“NO! Come on, Austin,” Tessla said. “Get up. You can do this.”

“Come on, Austin,” Ben shouted, “Don't let this asshole beat you.”

The noise of the crowd was a dull ache in the background of the pounding that was resounding in Austin's skull. Everything hurt. Literally. Austin loudly groaned as he slowly rolled himself over to his stomach. He lay there for a moment to catch his breath. His lungs were on fire, his chest felt like an entire hoofball team had just barreled over him. But still, he got up. Austin got to his feet. It was only then that he realized that Thorn had just ruined another of Rarity's shirts. That was what, three, for Austin now that he had lost? Something like that. But the shirt wasn't important. What was underneath it was.

Thorn stared in wonder as the human actually got up from the blast he had just delivered. That would have put nearly any pony in the hospital for weeks, if not months. These humans were tougher than he thought. That's when he saw it. As Austin stood, Thorn Blackrose got a much clearer picture of the opponent he was facing.

Scars. Fresh, but healed. Long and deep, but still prominent. He would never admit it to anypony that ever asked him, but Blackrose actually felt a bit intimidated at that point. After all, whoever could survive something like that was more than they seemed. What the hell happened to this guy?

Austin noticed Thorn's slightly distracted state, and capitalized on it. It was just the moment he needed. He created a small orb of magic in the palm of his hand. He threw it at Blackrose, who noticed it almost immediately. He put up his own barrier, but that had no effect. Austin's small magic orb wasn't an attack. The orb stopped just short of the barrier and then exploded in a brilliant, dazzling flash of light. Blackrose was blinded. By the time he could see again Austin was right on top of him.

Austin reached out his right hand and slammed it down on Thorn's face. Two fingers on either side of his horn with Austin's thumb just under his eye. He looked up at the human with a pleading look. All he saw was Austin's emotionless face and soulless eyes. This must be what they see when they look up at me.

Austin followed up that look with a shocking arc of power. It was like lightning itself had shot down from the heavens and now coursed through Austin's hand. Thorn Blackrose, pony duelist extraordinaire. now stood there with his white coat marred and blackened by scorch marks. His eyes showed the terror of his victims. He finally understood how they felt.

“Do you yield,” Austin asked flatly.

Thorn moved his head just enough to nod yes to Austin's offer of surrender. Austin removed his hand and looked down at the pony. He was defeated, and it looked like he learned something in the process.

“Good,” Austin said, just before he collapsed.

The Next Day. . .

Austin woke up to find that he actually wasn't in the hospital. Surprising. He tried to move only to be blindsided by a heavy dose of throbbing pain. It wasn't too bad, but it caught him by surprise. It took him a moment to remember everything, all the aches and pains. He could definitely feel that he was covered in bandages again, though.

“You're awake.” Twilight said from the doorway. “I came to check on you. You've been asleep for nearly fifteen hours.” Her voice was steady and authoritative. Something was wrong.

“Twilight, I-”

“Save it,” Twilight said quickly. “I'm sorry. It's just that you- you.” Twilight stepped into the room quickly as she spoke. “You didn't need to do that! You shouldn't have done that! What were you thinking?!”

“Somebody had to do something.”

“And it had to be you? I had everything under control, Austin.” Her voice was heavy with anger at him. It and her volume were rising with each sentence.

“What were you going to do, Twilight?” Austin snapped back. He got out of bed and stood with her. “What exactly were you going to do? Fight him yourself?”

Twilight stopped in her tracks. She had come in expecting to give a lecture, not get one.

“You are a Princess. That would have been a one sided fight that would have solved nothing. Blackthorn would have just come back at a later time.”

Twilight didn't speak. He had a point. She beat Trixie and she came back, with more power no less. But there was something else. “What aren't you saying?” Twilight asked. “I know there's something more, so say it.”

“Twilight, I never wanted you to see me like that,” Austin sighed, “That kinda violence is just a fraction of what humanity is capable of. That was human nature. I hate it, and I never wanted you to see it.”

“Then why did you stop me?”

“Because, Twilight, I would rather me do it than you.” Austin said, “You are the Princess of Friendship. You can't be seen beating up ponies in magic duels. You can't be seen losing yourself to anger, even if it is to protect your friends. Your too important to me.”

“What?”

“Important to ponies,” Austin quickly corrected himself, “You are too important to every pony out there.”

Austin quickly turned his back to her. He faced the window. He mostly did this to hide his blushing cheeks. I am an idiot. For a guy so careful with his words, how could I let that slip? Gah! Stupid. I can hope she didn't notice, but come on. This is Twilight Sparkle. Austin's thoughts were cut off by Twilight. She had come up and rest her head on his arm. She just left it there. Neither of them said anything. After a moment Twilight looked up at him.

“Thank you,” She said, “For everything you have done.”

Another moment of silence passed between them. It was starting to get awkward when they heard something behind them. They both looked back to see Spike standing there. He had cleared his throat to get their attention and now he was trying to looking anywhere but at them.

“Oh, Spike,” Twilight sputtered nervously, “How long have you been there?”

“Long enough,” Spike answered.

“Did you need something,” Twilight asked.

“I was told to come and get you, and him to if he was up,” Spike said, “I guess he is.”

“Spike,” Twilight said, “We will be with you in a moment.”

“Okay.”

. . . . .

“Spike?”

“I'll just, uh, wait outside.”

“Good idea.”

Spike practically left a trail of fire as he exited the room. The awkwardness was definitely there now. Twilight look at Austin and smiled nervously. Austin smiled back. “There are gonna be rumors now.” He said.

“Oh jeez. I'm barely a princess and already a scandal.” They shared a chuckle and Twilight moved for the door.

Awkward silence. . .

“I should really be going now,” She said with a nervous chuckle.

“Yeah,” Austin agreed, “I'll be with you in a moment. I just gotta put a shirt on.”

“You do that.” With that Twilight left the room. Austin was left with the silence and the awkwardness. Before he put a shirt on Austin gently touched the part of his arm where Twilight laid her head. She has a really soft mane. The pain wasn't bad but he knew somebody had made a “He's gonna feel that in the morning.” joke. Probably Tessla. Maybe Pinkie.

Twilight and Spike had gone on ahead of Austin. He knew where they would all be though. The throne room. Sure enough, when he walked in they were all there. All six, plus Ben and Tessla. Unfortunately, silence replaced the chatter in the room when he entered. They all just watched him as he walked in. Then Trixie saw him.

“You okay,” Austin asked.

“You take on an incredibly dangerous Unicorn and take a beating, all for me,” Trixie said, “And then you ask if I am okay? You are a strange one, human.” Trixie lunged forward and wrapped Austin in a big hug. Twilight shifted uncomfortably in her seat, but did her best to make it unnoticeable.

“Thank you,” Trixie said. “I don't what would have happened if you had not been there.”

“I'm sure it would have all worked out in the end,” Austin said as Trixie released him.

Pinkie Pie ran up and embraced him in one of her stranglehold hugs. They all gave their sympathies and praise for winning the duel. None of them said anything about him being more violent than necessary or anything. He did not press the issue. Ben and Tessla were the last to come up to him.

“Ben. I thought I saw you on the sidelines,” Austin said, “How you been?”

“Really? I come back to Ponyville to find you getting your ass kicked, just weeks after you receive a nasty wound. What in the hell were you thinking?”

“I did what I had to do.” Austin replied. “End of story.”

Life Goes On

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The weeks following the duel were busy. Austin stayed in the castle for a week straight afterward, recuperating. The pain was not really present much and the magic left no lasting scars other than some bruises and a few small burns. The first week went by pretty fast for Austin. Twilight kept him in the castle so she could make sure he was healing well, which he was.

“Actually, you're healing remarkably fast, Austin,” Twilight said. She had that tone to her voice that she got when something interested her and she wanted to study it. Of course, she was not aware she had adopted this tone to her voice.

“I think its me being here,” Austin said, “I think being in Equestria is having an effect on me.”

“Hmm. Interesting,” Twilight said. “Well, I have an idea. One that might work out for the both of us.”

“Sounds sciency,” Austin replied, “Do tell.”

“Get out.” Twilight said. “Out of the castle. You have literally spent weeks here already. Go outside, have fun with your human friends. Ben is back now and I'm sure you have some catching up to do.”

Austin wasn't about to argue. “You just want me out of the way so you can do some science stuff, don't you?”

“You got me,” Twilight said. “Honestly, Austin. I've watched you the past couple weeks. Your skill with magic is remarkable, but your science skills are not really that great.”

“Say no more, Twilight. I'm gone.” With that Austin grabbed his black jacket and left the castle.

Austin caught up with Tessla and Ben outside. He wasn't wearing his big green coat, but that was most likely due to the fact it was a bright, warm, sunny day that didn't call for such large weather wear. Ben was wearing one thing that did strike Austin's interest, though. As he approached Austin saw the hilt of a sword jutting out from behind Ben's back.

“You like it?” Ben asked as he unsheathed it and showed it off. The sword was beautiful. A blade of pure crystal with a hilt of polished silver, and a few choice gems inlaid within it. It was about the length of a longsword, around three and half feet in length. Ben held it out for Austin to hold. He heartily accepted the blade. As soon as the sword changed hands Austin felt the full weight of it.

“This thing weighs a ton,” He said as he held it up. “I honestly could not use this without both my hands.”

“I know, but the thing is is that its light as feather for me,” Ben replied. “I don't know what it is, but I can use just fine. It's like it's the perfect weapon for me.”

“Cool,” Tessla said as he took the sword, “So why exactly are you walking around Ponyville with a sword strapped to your back?”

“Showing it off, making sure no more ponies like that Thorn guy show up.” Ben said as he scanned the area. “I'm also showing the Ponyville residents that there is someone here to protect them.”

“Well then. I guess that makes you Ponyville's first guard.” Austin said. “Congratz. Maybe we can get Pinkie to throw you a party.”

As soon as he said those words the ground just a foot away burst with an explosion of confetti and sugar dust and glitter and streamers. Random party favors rained down the area for a moment. When they all looked they saw Ponyville's Pink Party Pony standing there.

“You called?” She asked with her usual cheer.

“I am not sure,” Austin said. “You can never tell with you.”

“Oh well,” Pinkie said. “Hey, now that I'm here you guys want to have lunch with me and Fluttershy?”

“Sure, why not?” Was the unanimous answer. They were all hungry. Pinkie Pie hopped along through the streets and they followed her. Tessla was the only one who actually seemed to know where he was going. Unlike the other two he had actually been out in the streets more often.

They arrived at a nice little spot just outside of Ponyville. You could see them from the town, but it was nice and peaceful, away from the hustle and bustle that a small town has. Fluttershy waved to them as they got close.

“Oh, hello you three.” She softly spoke. “I didn't realize you would be joining us today.”

“That's okay, isn't it?” Tessla asked, “You don't mind that we're here.”

“Oh, not at all.” Fluttershy said with a smile.

An Hour Later. . .

“. . .So I'm standing there with this huge crystal shield. I'm supposed to be holding this thing up at all times, but it was so heavy. One day, Shining Armor comes in. Cadence had called for him and he was running full speed. He busts through the door and it catches me by surprise so I immediately throw my shield up and smack Shining Armor in the face.”

“Oh my. What happened after that?” Fluttershy asked.

“Well, it took him a full thirty minutes to come to. When he did he had not idea what had happened to him. Cadence told him it was the door. He bust it open so hard the door swung back and hit him.”

“My god,” Austin said. “All the funny stuff happens to you two.”

“What do you mean by that?” Pinkie asked. “What funny stuff?”

“Well, Ben's off having laughs with Princess Cadence,” Austin explained, “And I'm sure Tessla has told you about the pink chicken incident by now.”

“NO HE HAS NOT!” Pinkie screamed. “There was a pink chicken and I wasn't told about it. This is an outrage! I will not stand for it.”

“Um, Pinkie. You were gone when this happened,” Fluttershy said. “It was a few days after you were branded Public Pony Enemy number one.”

“Oh. You know, I still don't know what I did,” Pinkie Pie pondered the cosmos for an answer.

“Anyway, you two get the funny stuff. I get hit with the painful stuff.” Austin said.

“You know it's your own fault right,” Ben said. “I'll explain it later.”

“Hey, I just remembered something,” Tessla said. “I wanted to bring this up beforehand, but I forgot until just now. What are we going to do for money?”

“Good question,” Austin answered, “I doubt we're gonna be allowed to live here like freeloaders much longer.”

“You guys aren't freeloaders,” Fluttershy said. “But if you're worried about earning some bits, I could use some help around the cottage. I don't have much, but I might be able give you a few bits for your time.”

“Are you sure, Fluttershy,” Austin asked. “We don't want to take any money that you need for yourself.”

“It's fine. I don't need much,” Fluttershy smiled. She did indeed live a simple life, enjoying the simple things that life had to offer. “I'll let you know if I ever could use some help, okay?”

“Hey!” Pinkie Pie sprang up and hopped around them. “I have an idea.”

“Oh dear,” Austin said. “The four most dangerous words in any language.”

“I don't know what that meant, but maybe you could talk to the mayor about some work.” Pinkie said as she hopped about.

That was as good an idea as any. They packed up the picnic and said goodbye for the day. It was still early afternoon, so they had some more time in the day to hang out. They just walked aorund town for the rest of the afternoon. Tessla helped Ben and Austin get more familiar with the town, helped them know what was what and where it was at.

The Mayor went into work the next day with all intentions of taking it easy. It had been a rather slow week so far, and that was saying something given the town she was in. Ponyville was usually always subject to some strange and usually destructive event, but not lately. Well, there was that duel not too long back, but that was resolved pretty quickly, and with no destruction at all. However, she would be getting a reminder of all that was strange later on that day.

Her day started off normal as any other. She got some coffee from her favorite place in all of Ponyville. A small shop that made a delectable cup. After that she headed to the office. It was a short walk from the coffee place to there, and she gave a friendly hello to the ponies she passed. She entered the town hall with a smile on her face. She unlocked her office and sat down at her desk. She took a sip of her coffee before looking at the pile of paperwork that was stacked up on her desk.

“Well, time to get to work,” She said with determination. If she had knuckles she would have cracked them.

The hours went by as the Mayor was hard at work. Lunch had come and gone before she knew it. She had come back from eating out. It was actually a meeting she had with some residents of Ponyville. They had a few concerns that they wanted to bring to the Mayors attention. The lunch meeting went well and the Mayor came back to find that her day was about to get much more complicated.

“You want jobs?” The Mayor was dumbfounded, flabbergasted, and downright astounded. Never did she expect to see these three in her office, and looking for jobs of all things.

“Yes,” Austin said. “We would like to start earning out keep around here.”

“Right,” Ben agreed, “We want to start contributing more and stop simply living off other ponies.”

“That, and a few extra bits here and there would be nice,” Tessla input.

A knock at the door stopped the Mayor before she form her next thought. The door slowly creaked open and a pony's head peered around the door. It was mare, and she was doing her darndest to keep as much of herself out of the the Mayor's office as possible. She avoided looking at the the three visitors as much as possible and started shaking whenever she did.

“W- w- would you l-like anything?” She asked through a clattering set of teeth.

“Yes, please,” The Mayor answered. “Please, send in some water and a coffee for me.”

The three guys nodded and she left as quickly as possible. The Mayor got up and moved over to a nearby bookcase full of binders and folders, all of them looking very official and such.

“Forgive my secretary,” The Mayor said, “She can be a very timid mare at times.”

“It's quite alright,” Austin said, “We've gotten used to the fact some ponies will be that way around us.”

“Well, with the things you have done, can you blame her?” The Mayor was still searching the shelves as she spoke. “You fight off timberwolves, you defeat a renowned pony duelist, with magic no less. You are building up quite the reputation.”

“I suppose we are,” Austin whispered to no one in particular.

The Mayor selected a few binders from the bookcase and brought them over to the desk. She hoofed through a few pages of one before looking back up at the guys. “We have a fewodd jobs that you three could look into, but I can't promise anything.”

“What do you have for us?” Tessla asked.

“Sewer maintenance?”

They all thought about it for a moment. Instinctively, their minds went straight to hell no, but they still thought it through. Ben was probably too big to properly maneuver in the sewers. There was no way Tessla was going to be able to handle the smells and the filth down there, and Austin would most likely blow something up with magic. Not on purpose of course, but it would still happen.

“I don't think that's quite right for us,” Austin said, imagining all the houses in ponyville with their toilets exploding. Yeah, somehow he didn't think the excuse “Shit happens.” would get him out of that mess.

The Mayor searched the binders for a minute more. “How about window washers for Princess Twilight's new castle?”

A scream sounded off behind the guys before the could answer. It was the secretary again. She looked like she had just seen Tirek himself rising up from behind the Mayor's desk. She had also dropped the tray full of drinks.

“Ohmygosh! I am so sorry!” She said as she furiously scrubbed the spot on the carpet. “I was just walking in when I heard what you said and then I imagined opening my windows at home and the first thing I see being one of them.” She let out another small scream.

“It's okay, really.” The Mayor said. Please, get some more drinks and come back.” The secretary nodded and left. The Mayor sighed. “I don't suppose any of you know anything about cleaning floors, do you?”

Three heads shook no. It was also a no to the window washing thing. It pretty much came down to heights. None of them really like heights. Austin couldn't speak for the rest of them but for him it really wasn't that he was afraid of them, just falling from them.

And so the Mayor kept up her search. “How does a masseuse job sound?”

Again, a scream interrupted all thoughts. Again, the secretary pony was standing behind them, and she had that same look of fear she had on before. Again, she dropped the tray of drinks. This effectively doubled the size of the stain that was already ruining the carpet.

The secretary's eyes darted back and forth between the floor stain, the humans, and the mayor. A few times she looked between them. She was already a nervous wreck. This day was not making it any easier, and the Mayor was only going to forgive so much. Beads of sweat rolled down her face as her body shook. Her eyes were going in circles as she looked them all over. Finally she stopped, screamed as loudly as she could possibly manage and ran out the door, and out of the building.

The Mayor sighed once again. “It would appear I need a new secretary as well.”

===

“Well, that was a bust,” Tessla said after the left the Mayor's office.

“Yeah, it was.” Austin agreed. “We'll find something eventually. I'm sure of it.”

As they walked and thought about their dilemma, a couple ponies came up to them.

“Thank heavens I found you three,” Rarity said. Fluttershy fluttered next to her with a kind smile. “Fluttershy here told me of how you were looking to earn a few bits. Well, I could use some help around the boutique if you're interested. I can give you some bits, and maybe even a gem if you are lucky.”

“I'm in,” Ben said, and he was standing next to Rarity before anyone had registered what he said. He blushed a bit as not only his friends eyes, but the eyes of passing ponies fell on him. “Not to sound too eager or anything.”

“No, you should be eager, darling. For you get to work with an artiste of fashion!” Rarity dramatized this excessively before trotting off in a quick, yet ladylike manner with Ben sprinting after her.

“Also, I could use some help around the cottage now. If one of you could please help me out, that would be so wonderful.” Fluttershy said.

“You go, Tessla.” Austin said. “You read all those books on the animals of Equestria. You and Fluttershy could probably talk for hours on that alone.”

“Yeah, probably.” Tessla said.

“Oh, but what about you, Austin? What will you do?” Fluttershy asked, concerned.

“Don't you worry about me, Fluttershy. I'll be fine.” Austin said with a warm smile.

With that, Fluttershy and Tessla walked off. Austin could hear Tessla asking her about some of the animals he read about as they walked off. Soon after they were out of earshot and gone. He was left alone to do as he wished.

Austin walked through town wondering what to do. As he neared the market he got an idea. Maybe he could stop by Lyra and Bon Bon's place to see how they were doing. Sure, why not? He strolled over to the shop, opening the door slowly. He was a bit nervous. He wasn't sure how they would react to seeing him. He knew two things.

One: They would most likely be happy to see him. It had been weeks, so they might be a little unhappy it took him this long to visit, but he could live with that.

Two: They would probably announce his presence like it was Celestia herself coming by for their sweets. He really didn't like the attention being on him unless absolutely necessary. But he went in anyway.

The first thing that met him was the smell. The sweet scents of dozens of decadent candies wafted through the air to meet his nose. Each of them smelling like the best versions of themselves, all mixing and melding together to create a wondrous aroma. He took a few deep sniffs. He smelled the distinct scents of caramel, butterscotch, and something else he didn't know above everything else. He wondered if they made candles that smelled like that. Maybe he would get a few. It would be a nice smell to have around the castle, and he doubted that Twilight would disagree.

“HEY!!”

Austin looked over to where the voice was coming from. It was Lyra. She was sitting in a corner playing her sweet music when she noticed him. She immediately stopped, jumping up to greet him.

“Hey! About time you came by to see us.” Lyra said as she gave him a hug. It always surprised him how many ponies were huggers. Austin returned the hug, and then Lyra called back to the kitchen area. “Hey, Bon Bon! Guess who's here?”

Austin could hear the clamor of pots and pans as Bon Bon ventured out. “I swear by Celestia, if it's your family again trying to get free samples of everything, I'll-” Bon Bon stopped mid sentence. She raced up and gave Austin a hug. He hugged back and they let each other go. Bon Bon gave him a light tap on his arm with her hoof. “About time you came by to see us.”

“That's what I said,” Lyra told her.

“Great minds think alike,” Bon Bon replied.

The two mares stared into each others eyes for a moment. They seemed to lose themselves for a moment, forgetting everything and everyone around them. Austin got the impression this happened to them a lot.

“Yeah, I've been meaning to come by, but Twilight's kept me plenty busy.” Austin said, breaking the silence.

“Oh, sorry about that.” Bon Bon said with blush. “You said something about Twilight keeping you busy? I'm not surprised, with you doing magic and all. We witnessed that duel that took place here a few weeks back. You are quite the duelist.”

“Thanks, but I didn't come here to talk about me. How are you two doing?”

The group talked for a few moments. Bon Bon had to rush back to the kitchen to keep her latest batch of whatever it was from burning. After that they all sat down and talked. The shop wasn't real busy, but a pony came in every now and then. Occasionally, they would stay a few moments longer to talk to Austin. He didn't mind. None of them had anything bad to say. Time flew by and nighttime was descending by the time he left. Austin waved the pair goodbye and wished them a goodnight before heading back to the castle to turn in for the night.

Morning dawned the next day and Austin rolled out of bed sluggishly. He yawned one last time before heading off to the shower. The showers in the castle were a lot like the ones back in the human world. He turned the knob and let the hot water rush over his body. He loved the feeling of the water over his shoulders and down his back.

After his shower Austin dressed and headed down for breakfast. He was surprised to see that Ben and Tessla were not present for the morning meal. Strange. They loved breakfast. He ate quietly by himself. As breakfast ended he saw Spike rushing through the hall outside.

“Whoa, Spike. What's the rush?” Austin asked as he exited the dining hall.

“Twilight's real busy today,” Spike said. “And I slept in half an hour late and now I'm behind schedule. So I can't talk now. Sorry, bye.”

Austin stopped Spike before he could rush down the hall. “Wait, Spike. One last question. Where are Tessla and Ben?”

“Rarity came to get Ben for some help earlier and Tessla headed over to Fluttershy's to see if she needed help a little while later. I really gotta go now!”

Spike rushed down the hall, leaving Austin with his thoughts. Austin was also left with a sort of unnatural silence he always felt in Twilight castle. It was only in Twilight's castle that he felt it, and only when he was alone.

“Weird,” Austin whispered. “So Ben and Tessla are helping out. I wonder what they're doing.”

Ben and Rarity

Ben had spent some time helping out Rarity the day before. He spent the majority of that time just cleaning up or sorting through things or organizing other things. He didn't mind doing any of it, as long as he was helping out and getting some bits. Much to his surprise Rarity came by and asked him to help out some more. He leaped at the opportunity.

Ben walked with Rarity to the boutique. She hadn't yet said anything about what kind of help she was needing that day. In fact, she hadn't really said much of anything. She just walked along, staring off in the distance and smelling the flowers as she walked by. She hummed a little tune as she went, but Ben couldn't make out what it was, if it was anything at all.

“So, what do you need help with today?” Ben asked, trying to spark up some conversation.

“No need to worry, darling,” Rarity said. “I just need the help of someone big and strong today. Normally, I would have Spike helping me out, but he is so busy nowadays. And since you helped me out so much yesterday I thought of you.”

Rarity didn't look back at him. IF she did she would have seen that his cheeks had turned a little red. She said I was big and strong. Ben forgot reality for a moment as they walked. He was only snapped back by Rarity's voice breaking through.

They stopped at the boutique for only a moment. Rarity was already packed and prepared for the day. She levitated her saddlebags onto her back and pointed out a much larger pack that was for Ben. He walked over to it and lifted it up with one hand, or at least he tried to.

“Holy crap! This thing weighs a ton!” He exclaimed. “What is in here? What are we going to be doing?”

“I suppose I should explain,” Rarity said. “You see, my supply of gems is running rather low and I need to acquire some more.”

“Oh, we're gem hunting.” Ben said. “That makes sense, with what you mentioned about Spike usually helping you out. But what is all this stuff got to do with it?”

“Gem hunting is an involved process. Spike being a dragon makes him uniquely suited for making the process a bit easier, but he isn't here. You are, and I thought that you might need this stuff.”

Ben didn't feel like arguing with her, and neither of them wanted to take the time to go through the bag. And so, the pair set off to hunt for gems. Once Ben got the pack onto his shoulders it wasn't that heavy. As long as he didn't lean back he would be fine.

A little while later Ben and Rarity found themselves walking along. They had left the borders of Ponyville some time back, and were in completely uncharted lands to Ben. IF he had to guess he would say they were going through some section of the White Tail Woods, but he had no way to be sure if he was right or not.

“Here we are!”

Ben stopped and looked out. They had come to an area of flat plains outside of Ponyville. There was evidence that she had come here before with Spike and they had dug up a great many gems. Ben looked out over the plains and all he saw were holes. Some small, and some large.

“You've been coming here for a while.” Ben pointed out the obvious.

“Yes, well, why not take advantage of such supple land. Although, we will have to walk a bit more to get to the gems.”

“Lead the way.”

As it turns out, Rarity's definition of 'a bit more' translates into half an hour of walking. By that point the pack on Ben's back was getting really heavy. Sweat dripped off his face with each step. Rarity didn't seem phased at all. As the sun rose higher into the sky, she pulled out a sunhat from one of her saddlebags and was now wearing that. Ben wiped away some sweat and just trudged on.

“Here we are,” Rarity said as short time later. “I mean it this time.”

“Good,” Ben said. He put the pack down and sat next to it for a moment. “I need to rest for a moment.”

“Take all the time you need,” Rarity said, “I'll be off marking the nearest gem deposits.”

Rarity nearly skipped off like a shoolfilly. Her horn glowed as she activated her gem finding spell. Ben watched as she moved back and forth, watching the ground intently. Every now and then she would stop and exclaim her joy as she found some gems. She would then take a stick and mark the spot with an 'X'. After a few moments of watching her mark nearly a dozen spots Ben rose up. It was time to do his part.

He moved over to the nearest 'X' on the ground. He brought the pack along with him and set it down next to him. He assumed that there was a shovel or something in the pack. That would make sense. There was no shovel. There was no sense.

Ben opened the pack to see a collection of random things. It was like the CMC had packed this so they could go crusading for a year and have everything they could possibly need for whatever situation they got themselves into. As far as Ben could see not a single thing was of any use to him there.

“Uh, Rarity,” Ben called out. “We got a bit of a problem.”

“Oh, really? What is it?”

“You should see this for yourself.”

Rarity trotted back over to Ben after she marked her fifteenth spot on the ground. The smile on her face had not dissipated at all that day. It had been there since morning, but it was about to leave. Rarity came over and Ben showed her the pack. She peered inside to see the mess and her smile was gone.

“ARGH! I am going to ground her for a month!” Rarity shouted. “Sweetie Belle, I asked you to do one thing. One thing!”

“Perhaps we can help you.”

Both Ben and Rarity spun around to see that they were no longer alone. Two had now become five, as three joined them. These three just so happened to be Diamond Dogs, however. It was at that time that Rarity and Ben had the same thought between them. Oh great. Not these guys again.

“You better just move along,” Rarity said. “We want nothing to do with you or you kind.”

Ben stood as tall as he could and even puffed his chest out a little bit. He was going for the big and imposing look. He didn't know if it was working or not, but the Diamond Dogs were not moving. They seemed to be more interested in Rarity than him, anyway.

“Please, we really do just want to help,” One of them said. It was the short one with the jowls. “We realized our mistake last time, and want to apologize.”

With that said the other two leaped back and dug up a pile of gems each. They offered them up to Rarity like it was tribute to appease a goddess. And that was how Rarity treated them. She closely inspected each of the gems, keeping most of them and storing them in her saddlebags. The few that she rejected she tossed to the side. The Diamond Dogs cringed as they watched the gems fly off into the bushes.

“Well, if this is how you wish to apologize I see no harm in it,” Rarity said. “But be warned, if you try and double cross us or something my large friend here has a pack full of dangerous items he can use to make your day much worse.”

“Oh no, we wouldn't dream of it.” Said a Dog. It was the tall one this time, with the red vest.

And so the day went on. The Diamond Dogs dug up every gem pile that Rarity had marked and the ones she was marking as they worked on those. A few hours had gone by and they had dug up somewhere around thirty piles of gems. Needless to say, Rarity did not have room for all of those gems in her saddlebags. Meanwhile, while they were doing that Ben was going through the pack a bit. Trying to find any of those dangerous items Rarity mentioned. He really hated not being in on a bluff, and then being surprised when it comes up. Improvising wasn't his strong suit.

So far Ben had found many things in the pack of random things. Rope was the most useful thing he had found so far. He also found a pad of paper but nothing to write with, a feather duster, four fireworks, a box of tacks, a boomerang, a pair of underpants, a pad of pink post it notes, six inflated balloons, a colorful box, two reels of wrapping paper, a magnifying glass, a pony tuxedo, three bottles of medicine, and ten rolls of duct tape. That was what he found in just a few hours and he was only halfway through the pack.

“How did they fit all this stuff in here?” Ben mumbled to himself.

“Oh, what is going on over here?”

Ben spun quickly to see one of the Diamond Dogs standing there. The short one with the jowls again. He looked over to see the other two were busy talking to Rarity. By the looks of it they were laying on the flattery, and laying it on thick. Rarity was so caught up she didn't even realize that one of them had left.

“Nothing,” Ben blurted out in response to the Diamond Dog. “Absolutely nothing is going on.”

“Ooohh,” The Diamond Dog darted past Ben and started going through all the items. “What are these? Dangerous items that Lady Rarity said you had?”

“What? No, of course not. Do these things look dangerous to you?” Ben said. “Hell, this is practically a party.”

“Dangerous items must be in here then,” The Dog said as he peered into the open pack. He stuck his whole head into the pack to look. Ben tried to stop him, but it was too late.

A second later and Ben heard a snap and the Dog started howling in pain. He yanked his head out the pack and Ben saw an oversized mousetrap stuck to his jowls. He was clawing at in an attempt to get it off. It was not working. In his struggle the Dog didn't notice the items Ben had already laid out. His foot slipped on a roll of duct tape and he fell on the colorful box, which proceeded to launch him into the air with the force of spring powered boxing glove.

“Where do they get these things?” Ben asked the universe.

Rarity was completely taken in by the Diamond Dogs flattery. They were lavishing her with compliment after compliment and she was loving it. She knew they didn't mean a word of it, but that didn't stop her from letting them keep going. That is until one of the fell from the sky right between them all.

The Diamond Dog fell with a scream, landed with a thud, and cringed as the mousetrap snapped off his face and flew off to the side. Everyone just stared for a moment at the fallen Dog. He was eagerly trying to keep what breath remained in him where it was and trying to get more.

“Oh my,” Rarity finally said, “What happened to you?”

The Diamond Dog lifted a hand weakly and pointed over to the side. All eyes turned to see Ben strolling up to them with the pack slung over his shoulder. Rarity was confused, but the Diamond Dogs were quick to come to a conclusion. They jumped over their fallen brother and attacked Ben.

“Hold it!” Ben cried as they got close. He had one hand in the pack already. “I have many dangerous items in here. I can make your day much worse.”

The two Diamond Dogs traded a single glance. “We'll risk it.”

There was nothing left to decide. Ben would have to fight. For himself. For Rarity. The Diamond Dogs were closing in. He reached farther into the pack and pulled out the first thing he could grasp. He yanked it out and held it menacingly.

“Beware, Dogs!” He said.

“AHAHAHAHAHAHAHHAHAHAHA!”

Ben looked up at his hand to see that he was holding onto the rubber ducky he had found. Great. I pull out the most useless item I've found. Ben did the only thing he could and threw the rubber ducky at them. It bounced harmlessly off one of them with a small squeak.

“He has nothing. Get him!”

Ben scrambled to find something in the pack. He fumbled around until he found his hands on a box. He pulled it out and threw it, not even knowing exactly what it was. Luck was with him however, as the box spilled tacks all over the ground between him and the Dogs. They couldn't stop in time and ended up falling over one another as they rolled into the tacks with many exclamations of pain.

“Ha! I do have things. I have tack- tics!” Ben shouted. He reached in the pack for more things to use. However, the Dogs recovered much faster than he expected. They were slowly making their way out of the the field of tacks.

Ben reached in until he found the boomerang. He stood up and aimed carefully. He threw the boomerang with all his might. It flew through the air on a collision course with the Dogs. They could see it coming, and then it was gone. The wind has suddenly kicked up and took the boomerang away.

“Dammit!” Ben let out. “Don't worry, Rarity. I'll be there soon. Just give me a minute.”

“Oh, I'm not worried dear,” Rarity said. She was sitting on the fallen Dog and filing a hoof. “You are doing quite well, actually.”

The next things Ben pulled out were the pad of pink post its, and a bottle of manespray. By that point the Diamond Dogs had reached him. They were about to swipe at him with their digging claws, but Ben was faster.

He spun and lashed out with the post its like a ninja. He pasted their faces with enough pink post its to spontaneously summon a pink party pony, but that didn't happen. Instead Ben stepped back and sprayed their posted faces with the manespray, letting it seep into the paper. As the Diamond Dogs clawed at their faces Ben found the duct tape and fireworks. He quickly moved around them, taping two to each of them. Of course he had no way to set them off, but they didn't know that.

The two finally managed to free their faces up and they breathed deeply a breath of fresh air now that they could actually breathe again. It was just after that that they noticed the duct tape and fireworks.

“You better leave us alone, or I will set those off and send you both to the moon,” Ben bluffed. “I wonder if you will come back in a thousand years.”

Another shared glance between them. “ARGH!”

Ben really thought that would work, but he forgot how stupid these Dogs could be. He quickly reached into the pack and pulled out the first thing he could find. It was heavy, really heavy. He pulled up with all his strength.

“A cinder block? That explains why it was so heavy.” Ben said as they came upon him. “Here, hold this for me.”

Ben shoved the cinder block into the claws of the Diamond Dog wearing the red vest. He didn't wait for a response as he pulled out the magnifying glass and the three bottles of medicine. He turned around with a wickedly devious smile across his face.

“Now, lets see who is sick, shall we?”

Ben lunged forward and inspected the Diamond Dog not holding the cinder block. It just so happened to the be the bigger, bulkier one. Ben did a small, simple examination of the Diamond Dog. Nothing to intimate, although the Dog's breath alone nearly ended things then and there.

“Ah, it is as I feared.” Ben said as he gazed through the magnifying glass into the Dog's left eye. “You are infected with the sickness. And since it is highly contagious, I must assume you have passed it to your friends as well. You will all need to take these pills three times a day for a month.”

Ben held out the bottles of medicine for them to see. The Diamond Dogs stared at the bottles. They could see the pills inside, and they were huge. How were they supposed to swallow those? Each of them gulped with nervousness.

“One more thing,” Ben said as if he read their minds, “These pills are suppositories.”

“NOOOO!” The Dog in the red vest threw his hands up, dropping the cinder block. It landed on his foot, causing him to scream even more. His arms flailed about and hit the other one. He fell over onto his belly. Ben's magnifying glass caught the glare from the sun at just the right angle and set spark to the fuses of the fireworks duct taped to him. Very quickly, Ben found the rope and tied their tails and feet to each other. Just as he finished the last knot the fireworks launched, carrying them both off to an unknown destination.

“Haha! I win.” Ben stated proudly.

“Not quite, darling.” Rarity said as she jumped off the other one. “I believe this one is coming to. You might want to deal with him.”

Rarity was right. He was coming to. The first thing he saw was his two brother Dogs flying off somewhere in a blaze of embarrassment. He got to his feet and found Rarity. He quickly went to attack her.

Rarity backed away slowly from the angry Dog. He was angry and she was alone, and her wits would do her no good here. As she backed up she felt her hoof hit something. She heard a small squeak underneath her. She looked down to see that she had stepped on a rubber ducky.

“So that's where my ducky went,” She said.

She reached down to pick it up. As her head lowered the Diamond Dog saw something. It was flying through the air. It was also spinning. And it was getting bigger. He didn't know why, and then it hit him. Rarity came back up to see one end of a boomerang sticking out of the Dog's teeth.

“Nevermind, Ben. This one is taken care of.” Rarity said as she walked off with her ducky.

With all the stuff Ben used to fend off the Diamond Dogs there was now much more room in the pack. Him and Rarity loaded it with as many gems as possible and then some. After that they headed back to Ponyville. They wanted to go home and relax.

“So, Rarity,” Ben said. “Do you think we have enough gems?”

“Ahaha.” Rarity giggled at Ben's question. “My dear, first rule of fashion: You can never have too many gems.”

Later That Evening

“Whoa,” Tessla said. “That sounds intense.”

“And totally untrue,” Austin said. “If we weren't in Equestria, I would swear you were lying. But I actually believe every word you just said.”

“Hells no! No way that's true,” Rainbow Dash slammed her cup of cider down. “I don't believe a word you just said. You saying you beat three Diamond Dogs with nothing but tacks, fireworks, duct tape, and a lie.”

“It's called bluffing, Dash,” Ben said, proud of himself. “You can do a lot with it.”

“Bullshit,” Dash said, right before her head hit the table. Sounds of snoring came from her a few seconds later.

“Well, that was my day,” Ben said, “Tessla, how was your day?”

“Me and Fluttershy just went around feeding the animals and caring for them. The most exciting thing I did today was bandage a bluejay's injured wing. Trust me, your moving up the badass scale with that story.”

“Bullshit,” Dash said in her sleep in between loud snores.

“Come on.” Austin said. “We should probably head back to the castle.”

“Yeah. I'm beat.” Ben said.

“I thought you won?” Austin joked, to which Tessla facepalmed.

“Don't worry guys,” Applejack said as she waved them goodbye. “I'll take mighty fine care of Dash.”

===

Austin shot up from a dead sleep to a hard banging on his door shook him from his post Luna dream state. He hopped out of bed and went to the door. He opened it to find Tessla standing there. He looked worse than Austin did, with his hair barely even put up.

“Ben wants us,” Was all he said.

Watch Out for the Indicator!

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Tessla and Austin traveled down deeper into the depths of the castle. They didn't even know it went down that far. Spike came and found them soon after they left their rooms. He was now leading them. They went down pretty far until they came to a large room. They entered into another world, or so it seemed. It might as well have been Twilight's playground. A laboratory. They were not alone, though.

“Hey, guys.” Twilight said happily. “Glad you could make it.”

“What time is it,” Austin asked.

“It just turned 4:27,” Twilight said.

“Oh, good,” Austin said sarcastically. “I was afraid I got up too early.”

“Ha, you're funny,” Twilight said with a giggly, “But seriously. Ben's doing a really interesting experiment.”

“Ben's doing an experiment,” Tessla asked. “What kind of experiment?”

“That's what I would like to know,” Discord said as he popped into view. A sleepy Fluttershy stood next to him. She yawned a big yawn and then looked around.

“Oh my. I must be dreaming again.” She said sleepily.

“You see. I was called here spur of the moment while I was out with Fluttershy. I need to get her home and quickly.”

“You were out with Fluttershy at four in the morning,” Tessla asked.

“I get what your insinuating there,” Discord said defensively, “And I'll have you know we were studying the nocturnal habits of the rare Everfree Pink Chicken or something like that. It dances you know.”

“I'm aware,” Tessla said, “I brought her the egg.”

“Okay, you're all here,” Ben said. To pretty much everyone's surprise he was wearing a well fitting lab coat. Where it came from, no one knows. “Now, my goal here is to create a kind of chaos infused crystal magic device.”

“Excuse me,” Discord said. “Chaos infused?”

“Yes, that is where you come in, Discord,” Ben explained, “I need you to put a small portion of your chaos magic into this crystal here. From there, I will try and infuse other crystals with it. If I'm right I will be able to throw the infused crystals and make completely random things happen with the power of chaos.”

“So you want to create a chaos grenade?” Austin asked.

“Pretty much yeah.” Ben said with a huge smile on his face. “Isn't it awesome!?”

“Only if it works,” Tessla answered.

Ben turned and gestured to Discord to pour a small portion of his powers into the aforementioned crystal. It was a large round crystal about the size of a pony head. Discord held up his finger to say wait a minute.

He snapped his fingers and a small, personal bar appeared in front of him. The alcoholic bar, not just a random metal bar. He reached below and pulled out a metal shaker, shaking it vigorously for a few moments. After he was done he took the top off and poured out the contents. A water like fluid flowed down from the shaker and fell into the form of a tall margarita glass, minus the actual margarita contents. Discord took this from the bar over to Fluttershy, who was swaying back and forth as drowsiness and a need for sleep was taking over her. Discord took the glass and threw its imaginary contents against a wall. A door appeared. He opened it, revealing that it lead to Fluttershy's own bedroom. He gently scooped her up in his arms and placed her in her bed. He pulled the blankets up over her and made sure she was comfortable before leaving. He took one last look at her before he left. He could hear the faint sounds of her breathing peacefully in her sleep as he closed the door behind him, snapping his fingers after.

Discord walked over to Ben. The crystal was right next to him on a table. “Be wary, human. The powers of chaos are not to be trifled with.”

Discord reached out and touched the crystal with the tip of his forefinger. Instantly a dark mist filled the crystal. It was an ever shifting mist, never staying in just one shape. Occasionally, small arcs of electricity would arc around in the mist. Sometimes, you would see other things. Like cotton candy where mist should be, or a stained glass figure swimming through the glass. Once they even saw an explosion. Not a small little boom either, but a huge mushroom cloud causing, havoc creating, mutant making, terror inducing, five inch tall nuke blast that rocked the misty crystal.

“Excuse me,” Discord said with a small blush. “Silent but deadly.”

“Now the fun starts,” Ben said with an evil mastermind like grin.

He took several crystals he had prepared beforehand, which were all about the size of a small can of soda. One of them he took and placed in a chamber underneath the larger, round crystal. There was a slot that would funnel the raw chaos power down into the chamber with the small crystal. The crystal were treated beforehand and would take in this chaotic energy and hold it until thrown, upon which time the crystals would shatter. The chaotic energy would be released and something random will happen. In theory.

Ben closed the chamber and locked it tight. Twilight herself spelled that chamber so that none of Discord's magic could leak out and cause any trouble in town. It was strangely silent in the room for the next several moments. All the eyes in the room were locked onto that chamber, waiting for something.

None of them heard what they were expecting to hear. They expected to hear the sounds of heavy machinery pounding away at something, sounding much to large to be in such a small chamber. They expected to hear the sounds of wild animals randomly making their noises from within the chamber. They would not have been surprised to hear moaning coming from within that chamber, but there was nothing. It was silent. Eerily silent. Dead silent.

Ben was glued to that chamber. Time passed on by as he stared at the doors, but he paid no attention. He tuned out the tic and the tocs of the clock on the wall. He ignored the sounds of the others breathing around him. He focused on just that chamber, blocking out the rest of the world around him. And then he heard it.

It was small, barely noticeable, but he had rehearsed this experiment so many times that he had been expecting it. That one small hiss that came just before. That one little sound that told him his waiting was almost over. That one small noise that told him he was a genius.

A much louder, prolonged hiss forced steam out of the edges of the chamber door. Ben opened the door carefully with a special heat resistant mit that allowed him to pick up the hot crystal with ease.

Ben turned around to face the rest of them. He held the chaotic crystal in one hand. He stared at for a moment before looking up at them. The smile on his face had only gotten bigger. He was happy. “I have done it!” He said, laughter escaping him that sounded more like laughter of relief more than laughter that came from something funny.

“I don't believe it,” Austin said, “Ben just created a crystal chaos grenade.”

Ben's laughter subsided and he took another look at the chaos grenade he held. It was then that he noticed the heat. It was coming from the crystal and he was feeling it even through the oven mit Twilight loaned him. It was getting hotter and hotter by the second. Ben rushed over to the table to set it down, but by the time he reached the table it was already burnt into the oven mit. Quickly trying to relieve the pain his hand was now feeling and safely contain the crystal Ben accidentally did something.

In his attempt to relieve his hand from the mit Ben somehow caught his hand on a piece of fabric. The oven mit traveled with his hand as he yanked it out. The oven mit reached its limit and snapped back, but the crystal broke free.

Through the air it flew, like a chaotic crystal tumbling end over end through the air on its way down to the ground. Both Twilight and Discord watched for a second before leaping into action. Unfortunately, both of them lost their wits for that second and both decided to actually, physically leap. Discord's longer reach and soft lion paw gave him the best chances of safely getting the crystal. If it were not for Twilight slamming into him from the side and sending them both off course he might have actually succeeded. But Twilight hit him and they both rolled away from the crystal.

“I got it,” Tessla shouted as he starting moving.

He rushed up as it was falling. The chaos crystal grenade was right above him now. It was falling right to him. He held out his hands to catch the falling crystal. He was right in it's path, and it was really close. Tessla lunged forward to catch it, and it slipped right through his fingertips.

“And . . . I don't got it.”

The world stopped for a second as only the sound of that crystal shattering filled the air. Tessla stared down through his fingers at the broken pieces. Dark mist was lazily flowing around it. As he stood there staring down at it, the mist rose up. It rose up, circling and shifting around Tessla. More mist than they thought would have been in just one crystal was now encircling Tessla. Tessla himself was standing there, unsure as what to do in a situation like that. It was then that the mist moved again.

The mist that encircled Tessla moved closer to him, much closer. It swirled around his entire body like a dark chaotic vortex. It swirled around, faster and faster and faster, getting closer to Tessla as it went. Finally, Tessla absorbed all the chaotic mist that was surrounding him, whether he wanted to or not.

At first nothing happened. Then he changed. It was not a drastic change. Barely anything at all really. It was just that one of his eyes changed. His eyes were normally a color of brown, but now that only applied to one of them. His other eye had become like that of a fox. It was a slit down his eye, now an eery shade of magenta.

“What just happened?” He asked with a pant. “I feel. . . strange.”

“Well, I shall be taking that back, thank you very much,” Discord said. He strolled on over to the table with the large round crystal on. He placed his hand on the crystal and reclaimed only a fraction of the power he put into it. He groaned and turned on Tessla.

“You stole my power,” He said accusingly.

“It wasn't my fault,” Tessla defended, “It was Ben's experiment.”

“My failed experiment,” Ben said, looking sad.

“So, does this mean that I have some of Discord's chaos magic now?” Tessla asked, looking over himself. “I don't look any different, do I?”

Austin grabbed a crystal of a nearby table. It was large and flat, so it made a sufficiently good mirror. He walked over and held it up to Tessla's face. Tessla stared at the reflection of himself in this crystal.

“Whoa. So I do look different,” Tessla grabbed the crystal and casually tossed it behind him. The crystal mirror hit the floor, and exploded. An actual explosive boom went off, covering them all with a layer of brown sugar. Next thing they knew the sprinklers Twilight didn't have covered them all with chocolate milk.

“Tessla,” Austin said.

“Uh, yeah?”

“I believe that is a yes to your question. You have some of Discord's power.”

“No shit, Sherlock.”

“Who is Sherlock,” Pinkie asked amidst licking Austin's arm clean of chocolate milk saturated brown sugar.

“Um, Pinkie,” Twilight asked, “What are you doing here?”

“Oh, my Pinkie senses told me there was going to be a sugary explosion at your big, shiny castle, so I came by to check it out.” Pinkie said,” Nobody told me there was going to be chocolate milk, though. Bonus surprise!”

The rest of them left the laboratory one by one, leaving Pinkie Pie in their by herself to clean up the mess. She was licking the floors when they left, using her mouth like an industrial strength vacuum.

They all filed back to their rooms to get back the rest of the night they had wasted in the lab. Ben and Twilight went to sleep especially sad that night. Science had failed them. It had left both of the as well as Discord not liking the outcome. Austin did not really care at the time. His one good night of sleep and he got woken up for a damn science experiment that could have waited until morning.

It was nearly five thirty by the time they all got back to their rooms. Austin and Ben both collapsed onto their beds as soon as the doors behind the closed. They assumed the others did much of the same. The only one who didn't seem to be tired at all was Tessla. He was more excited than anything. He resisted the urge to snap his fingers all the way back to his room, but that wasn't going to last. Austin just hoped he was going to wake up in his own bed.

Austin rolled over in bed. He was having an immeasurably bad time trying to fall asleep. No matter what he did nothing seemed to be comfortable for him. Finally he rolled over onto his back and stared up at the stars. A shooting star streaked across the sky as he gazed up towards the heavens. It was only then that he heard the sounds of a pony next to him.

Twilight lounged on her own side of the bed looking much more comfortable than Austin. She was sleeping soundly, and even snoring softly and adorably. It took him a second to notice that there was something off about her, and everything else. He looked around him in all directions. It all seemed normal, except for the star laced ceiling, the Princess laying next to him and the fact that there was no discernible floors beneath the bed.

“I must be dreaming.” He whispered out in a single breath.

Twilight's form next to him shifted slightly as she stretched out her legs. She sat up in the bed and rubbed her eyes with a hoof. She sleepily gazed about until her eyes fell upon the human in the bed next to her. Immediately, she was wide awake. She blinked a few times while trying to calculate all possible reasons as to why he would be there.

“Uh, hi Twilight.” Austin uttered after a few awkward moments of silence.

“AAAAAAAHHHHHHHHHHHH!!!”

Twilight freaked out as she lashed out at Austin. Hooves were flying everywhere, the covers to the bed were in the air, and Twilight was still screaming things that Austin couldn't understand. All the while he was trying to calm her down. Needless to say it didn't go well. At one point, Twilight actually nailed him with a right forehoof across the jaw that sent him back. Austin slowly fell back and off the bed.

Twilight calmed down, but was still breathing heavily. She crept to the other side of the bed and looked over the edge of the mattress. Austin was laying on his backside with his feet in the air on a crystalline floor that resembled the floors of her castle. Above his head she saw three little versions of Twilight flying around with their right forehooves extended out.

“What the hell is going on?” Twilight said with heavy breath.

“Well, this is awkward.”

Twilight spun around in the bed to see Luna standing their with Ben at the foot of the bed. Luna was holding back a laugh while Ben sported a rather large smile. He obviously found it as funny as Luna did. Twilight panned around to see that it wasn't only those two their with her.

“I agree, sugarcube. That is right embarrassing.” Twilight cringed with sheer embarrassment.

“Oh my.” Red was filling Twilight's cheeks faster than a thermometer in a pot of boiling water.

“Really, dear, why keep it a secret for so long?” Twilight felt her eye moving in a familiar twitch.

“Do you two want a moment alone?” It was then Twilight decided that Dash was going to be the first in her grand plan for revenge.

She was waiting to hear from Pinkie Pie, but got nothing. She could see a patch of pink in the corner of her eye, but when she looked all she was a big, fat ball of pink fluff. It rolled over to reveal itself to be Pinkie Pie, just blown up from all the chocolate milk and brown sugar. She let out an impossibly loud snore and so Dash flew over to wake her up. In response to Dash poking her in the belly Pinkie Pie rolled over, trapping the would be waker upper underneath her girth.

“What the hell is going on,” Twilight asked. “How did I end up in bed with Austin?”

“You mean you don't know,” Rarity questioned, “Oh my.”

“I can explain,” Luna said with a giggle, “If you will all give me a moment.”

Luna took a moment or two to compose herself properly. She took a few deep breaths and got the laughs out of her system. Finally, she brought herself back to her serious princess mode before speaking to them all once again.

“This is not real. You are all in a small pocket of the dream realm I patrol during the night.” Luna explained. “I have gathered you all here to give you a very important message.”

“That's all well and good,” Austin said from the floor before clawing his way up to the bed. He rested his arms on the mattress, using them to support himself as he spoke. “But that doesn't explain . . . this.” Austin nodded down to the bed.

“Heya, Austin,” Applejack said. “You, uh, got a little something by yer face there.”

Austin looked up to see the little flying Twilight buzzing around his head. He waved them off, but they only came back to rest on his shoulders. All three of them. The giggled as they evaded his hands when he tried to swat them away.

“I swear, I am not doing this on purpose.”

“It's okay.” Luna said, “It is just the power of the dream realm. I didn't have time to properly create the right setting before I plucked you all out of your own dreams and brought you here. I started with Twilight and Austin.”

“It would seem this dream realm created a setting of its own,” Rarity said.

“Yes, so it would seem.” Luna said.

Austin was only half paying attention. The three mini Twilight's were swishing their tails back and forth, tickling his ears. Annoyed, he snatched one up with a very quick move of the hand. He held her firm, but not tightly. He brought the little Twilight in close and whispered something to her. When he was done she giggled some more, got the other two, and flew off for Pinkie Pie. They danced around on her back, tickling her with their tails and causing her to roll over and over as she laughed.

Rainbow Dash's head shot up. “I can breathe! I'm free!”

“Anyway,” Applejack said, “Why ain't that Tessla fella here with us?”

“For some reason, he is not sleeping at the moment,” Luna replied. “Now, I must give you the message before it gets too much later.”

Later That Day . . .

Morning broke over Ponyville and Tessla bounded out of his room. He had showered, brushed his teeth and gotten dressed for the day. But when he exited his room he was surprised to see that everyone was already up. It seemed rather early to him, so why were they all up? He simply shrugged it off as a pony thing and headed off.

He entered the dining hall for breakfast to see that there were more ponies than usual there. All the Mane Six had gathered there, as well as Austin and Ben. He did notice a rather unusual distance between Austin and Twilight, but didn't ask about it. He sat down between Ben and Pinkie Pie and across from Applejack.

“Where ya been, sugarcube?” Applejack asked.

“In my room,” Tessla answered, “Preparing for the day. You know, showering, dressing, and all that.”

“Sure,” Applejack said. “Say, what's up with your eyes? One of 'ems different than the other.”

Oh crap. Tessla had completely forgotten about that. One of his eyes had changed colors due to his absorbing some of Discord's power. “It's a long story,” He finally said. “Speaking of stories, why are you all here?”

“It's amazing,” Ben said, as giddy as ever. “They found the Changeling hive! We are going to investigate!”

“Really?! Where is it?” Tessla asked as he poured his cereal.

“Don't know yet,” Ben replied, “Details are being given to us at the Castle in Canterlot. We're leaving in half an hour.”

Half an hour later and all of them were on a train headed for Canterlot. Of course, the three guys got some strange looks. Still not every pony in Equestria was used to seeing them around. A few crystal ponies recognized Ben and waved at him. He waved back. The ride their really wasn't that interesting.

Ben and Tessla were the most excited to see Canterlot. Austin had been there before already. His 'visit' may have been short and limited to a small area of the castle, but he had been there already. He was pretty excited, either way.

The train pulled into the station at Canterlot. Ponies filed off by the droves. A seemingly endless sea of ponies disembarked while another was waiting just beyond the doors to get aboard the train. Although, the crowd did part when Princess Twilight stepped her hooves on Canterlot streets. They took another step back when three humans followed her off the train.

Whispers and gossip filled the air as the group all traveled to the Royal Canterlot Castle. It followed them like a bad smell that wouldn't go away all the way to the castle gates. It persisted even after they were all out of view. A large crowd of ponies had assembled outside the gates in a quest to feed their curiosity and find out what they were doing there.

Meanwhile, in the throne room were Luna and Celestia, eagerly awaiting the arrival of their guests. They had to reschedule something else, but that was okay. It happened often when royals and nobles were involved. Celestia and Luna both brushed the thought aside as their guests entered the throne room.

“Hello,” Celestia said with a smile, “It is good to see you all again. Now, I bet you're all wondering why you are here right now.”

“Yes, Celestia, we are,” Twilight said, “We were given so little information before.”

Celestia was about to speak when a sound interrupted her. It was hooves. They were stomping across the tile floor leading into the throne room. The sound echoed off the high, vaulted ceilings making it hard to determine which of the many corridors the pony was coming from. Celestia knew, though. She turned her head just as the pony entered the room. In an angry huff the doors flew open to reveal that it was none other than Prince Blueblood.

“Aunt Celestia, I must speak with y-” He stopped mid angry step as he caught sight of the group before him. It wasn't the ponies that he found odd, it was the others. The humans. He put his hoof down and glared at them before turning on Celestia.

“Really?!” He shouted. “We had this lunch planned for weeks, and you blow me off because of these freaks?!”

“Hey,” Tessla shouted back, “We are not freaks.”

“Well, you look like freaks to me,” Blueblood sneered, “And I am not the only noble pony who thinks so.”

“I'm not surprised,” Tessla replied, “Except for the Princess's, most noble ponies have their heads up their asses.”

“You best watch what you say, freak.” Blueblood angrily glared at Tessla.

“And you need-” Tessla started to speak and he thrust out a pointed finger for emphasis, but something went wrong. His Discordian chaos powers accidentally activated. Something manifested itself just as Tessla pointed, and it flew out right towards Blueblood. There was no way for him to react in time. All he could do was watch as it got closer and closer and closer. SPLAT!!

Blueblood wiped the whipped cream from the pie that just hit him. The tin bottom was hanging from his horn, but he tossed that aside. He glared through glazed eyes at the long haired human who was still pointing at him.

“I did not mean for that to happen,” Tessla announced, “But I am also not sorry.”

“You dare?!?!” Blueblood shouted. He let out a roar of anger and charged Tessla.

Tessla screamed as Blueblood closed in. It wasn't a girlish scream. It wasn't the manliest of screams either. More a scream of surprise than anything. Everyone and everypony else promptly back far away from Tessla by that point, if they hadn't already.

Blueblood reached Tessla with shocking speed and raised up on his hind legs. He slammed his forehooves down with a thunderous echo. The figure of Tessla shattered into smithereens and fell to the ground like glittery dust.

“HA!” Blueblood exclaimed, “Weak.”

Just then he got tapped on the shoulder. Blueblood turned to see a tall figure with an oversized mustache standing there in a brown uniform marked with three letters. He didn't have time to read them as this figure produced a box from behind him.

“Package for you.”

“I wonder what this could be,” Blueblood said as he took the quill in his magic and elegantly signed his name at the bottom of the paper. He took the package and placed it on the floor in front of him. He cut the tape with his magic and opened the flaps. As soon as he peered in the box a very large red, round glove shot up from the box, hitting the Prince square in the jaw and sending him into the air.

The figure stepped out of his brown uniform and mustache to reveal that it was in fact, Tessla. He smiled and raced over to a random spot on the ground. Tessla did a few things when he reached this spot. He marked it with a red 'X' and placed a game there. It was one of those test your strength carnival games, except there was no hammer. After that he drew a watch on his wrist with a blue crayon and counted down.

“Three. . . two. . . one.”

Blueblood came down like a comet, shrieking like a schoolfilly all the way. Tessla side stepped as Blueblood landed square on the marked spot, and also on the game. The little metal piece that went up slammed the bell on top with amazing force.

“And we have a winner!” Tessla shouted, “Here you go, sir. Your prize.” Tessla pulled out a stuffed plushie doll that looked like a life size fat, round, overstuffed Pinkie Pie. He dropped it onto the already dazed Blueblood who just groaned as Tessla walked away.

“Hey!” Pinkie Pie shouted, “Where can I get one of those?”

The Hive Pt.1

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The journey to the Changeling Hive would be a long trek, through hot deserts and misty swamps. But that wasn't going to stop them. The Princess's of the Day and the Night had given them the mission themselves. And now they were on their way. All of them. At least they were given a cart.

The cart was being pulled by none other than Applejack herself, with Pinkie Pie at her side keeping up the same pace. Being the only two Earth ponies they had been elected to provide the power behind the transport, not that either of them minded. Applejack was used to the physically taxing work of bucking apple fields, so pushing a cart really wasn't that hard. And Pinkie was really the only pony in all of Ponyville that could keep pace with her for long stretches, other than Dash maybe. Then again, Dash could never stay at the same speed for more than a minute.

Fluttershy and Rarity sat in the front and enjoyed the scenery as it passed by. They both took in the sights as they came. Rarity loved seeing the colors of the flowers as the gentle breeze caressed the petals on its way through. There was all sorts of of colors, from a bright redish violet color to a darker blue that set a sharp contrast to each other. This was all set against a backdrop of the most vibrantly green grass she had ever seen. Fluttershy waved at all the animals they passed on their way. She had encountered many of the species before, but she always enjoyed meeting new individuals. Every now and then a bird would venture close to say hello before flying off again to frolic in the flowers or whatever it was that birds did.

Twilight sat in the back of the cart. She had the map. Her job was to interpret the map as best she could and find them the safest, fastest, most logical way there. Judging by the grunts and groans the others could hear it was not going too well.

“Really, Twilight, dear? You must calm down before that eye twitching things starts again,” Rarity said over her shoulder.

“Calm down?” Twilight repeated, “Calm down?! How am I supposed to do that? This map is so crudely drawn, I could have Spike redo it blindfolded and it will still turn out better than this.

Look around you, we are clearly traveling through some pleasant hill country, but the map clearly reads like this exact spot is a desert, and that spot over there is supposed to be a swamp with what I can only assume is mist around it. Whoever this scout is that stumbled upon the Changeling Hive must have the intelligence of a rodent. No offense, Fluttershy.”

“That okay, Twilight. Some rodents do have some trouble sometimes,” Fluttershy said, “But they make up for it with an abundance of cuteness.”

“I'll just have to take your word on that,” Twilight stated flatly. “I need a break. Let's talk about something else, anything else. Please.”

“Very well,” Rarity said. “So, what do you think of the humans? Ben, and Tessla, and Austin?”

That got Twilight thinking, even more so than usual. “Well, what do you girls think about them?” Was her only response.

Fluttershy was the first to speak. She had a smile on her face and seemed genuinely happy all the time, but now she seemed more conflicted than anything else. It was like she was trying to make a really hard decision and wasn't sure what to say.

“I don't know,” She eventually said, “They can be very nice and polite and helpful. Tessla has helped me with some of the animals around the cottage a few times. But they can also be kinda scary.”

“Scary?” Twilight repeated, “What makes you say that?”

“Well, they are big and strong,” Fluttershy explained, “And Austin can do magic. He beat that duelist pony, and he did it by hurting him. And we all saw what Tessla did back in Canterlot.”

“Yes, I suppose I never did think of them that way,” Rarity said, “I can see how they help around town and each of us, but is it really worth it to have that much danger around us all the time? I have Sweetie Belle to look out for.”

“What's goin' on over here,” Dash said as she landed in the back of the cart. Twilight was looking down at the wooden planks of the cart, deep in her own thoughts. She didn't even look up when Dash landed not so gently.

“Hey Dash,” Twilight said rather seriously, “What do you think of the guys?”

“Haven't really spent much time with 'em,” Dash said, “They seem cool enough though. I mean, that Ben guy kinda seems like a stick in the mud, but Austin can do some pretty cool shit. I'm not really sure about the other one. Seemed kinda boring before, but now he might be useful for a good prank or two. Why you wanna know?”

“You don't find them . . . scary, do you, Dash?”

“Pleaase, I am not afraid of anything,” Dash said, “But that doesn't mean I would go looking to pick a fight with 'em either.”

“Oh,” Twilight said, “Okay. Thanks.”

Twilight sat against the side of the side of the cart. She was lost deep in her own thoughts to the point that she wasn't responding to anypony else. They all knew she could get like that sometimes and just left her alone. Fluttershy was concerned about her, but there was not much she could do.

Dash quickly devoured some snacks while standing there. She grabbed a few more and launched herself into the air once again. She took the half a second she needed to right herself and set herself in the right direction. She loved the feeling of the wind in her mane as she flew up to Applejack and Pinkie Pie.

“Hey, brought you those snacks you asked for,” She said as she rained down the grub.

Pinkie Pie moved side to side as much as she could to catch each of the snacks in her mouth. It was a game to her. Life itself was a game to her, and she always seemed to be winning. Applejack's hat caught most of hers. She had to take it off to funnel the crumbs into her mouth.

“Thank ya kindly, Dash,” Applejack said, “It's mighty hot out here in these parts, and I really needed the boost.”

“It's alright,” Dash said, “At least it gets me out of there. Twilight's being weird again.”

“Whatca mean by that?”

“Well, she asked me what I thought of the guys, and I told her. Then she asked me I found them scary at all,” Dash reported, “And she was all weird about it, like she was distracted or something. I don't know.”

“Yeah, that does sound kinda odd,” Applejack said, “I don't reckon I find 'em scary, but they all can do some pretty impressive things. Fighting off timberwolves and the like.”

“I just find them all really funny,” Pinkie said with a bounce, “Do you know how many laughs I've had since they arrived? Do ya? 4,328! That's 567 more than my usual laugh counter.”

“Riiigghhht,” Dash said, “I just don't know what Twilight's deal is, AJ. She seems different ever since these guys got here.”

“Well, she is a princess now, Dash,” Applejack stated, “A lot of ponies look up to her, and she is responsible for every one of them. That's a mighty big burden for anypony to handle.”

“Well, she doesn't have to do it alone,” Dash said, “She has us.”

===

The guys all sat in the cart behind the rest of the girls. It was connected to the one in front like a set of train cars, just on a smaller scale. A little bit of magic infused in there made it where the carts weren't too heavy for the ponies pulling them.

Ben sat up in the front, staring off into the distance with his mind a million miles away. He had a ridiculous smile spread across his face, not that anyone would know as to why. Well, Austin and Tessla did, but they weren't saying just yet. They left Ben to his fantasies and sat in the back. Thank Celestia this cart was uncovered, unlike Twilight's. She demanded the covered one for her books and maps. The last thing she wanted was a stray breeze blowing away all her work.

“Wonder what they're talking about,” Tessla said, looking past Ben at the ponies ahead of them. He had spent the majority of his time in the cart sleeping. His brush with chaos excited him into staying up all night, and then his game with Blueblood drained him. He had only woken up a short time ago.

“You got three guesses,” Austin replied. His time was spent doing one of his favorite pastimes. One that he hadn't really done a lot of since he arrived in Equestria. That was drawing. He had a fair bit of talent, wished he had more, but ultimately was proud of anything he created. He had drawn a few pictures, but nothing that was really noteworthy or important.

“Us?” Tessla said, more of guess than an actual answer.

“Most likely,” Austin replied, still not looking up from his paper. “The real wonder pertains to what they are saying about us. Is it good, is it bad?”

“You really think they're talking bad about us?”

“Sure as hell hope not,” Austin said. “But you never kno-” Austin stopped talking without finishing his sentence. He had put down the pencils and looked up at Tessla, who was now looking back at him with some concern on his face.

“Austin, what is it?”

“Your eye, the chaotic one,” Austin said, “It isn't purple anymore, its green.”

“Are you serious?!”

“I am as serious as your powers aren't.”

“Sonofabitch!”

Ben was completely oblivious to the problems of his friends behind him. He was lost in his own mind. He was completely consumed in the world of his own imagination, an endless place of fantasies and wonders all for him.

“Ben!”

Ben's imaginary world fell apart to reveal reality was once again before his eyes. He sighed and rubbed his eyes a few times. He had to adjust again to being back. He looked around to see that they had arrived at the forward camp. The ponies had all ventured away from the carts, and the guys were busy stretching after spending nearly a full day stuck in a cart. That seemed like a good idea to Ben and he disembarked.

“Hey, look who's back with us in reality,” Austin mocked as Ben neared them. “Enjoy your fantasies, Ben?”

“You know what, I was enjoying them,” Ben answered sarcastically, “I would love to go back some time. It is a great vacation destination.”

“Well, try to stay in this reality for a while. We have work to do.”

With that said Austin walked off. He was going to join Twilight in the command tent, but was stopped before he could enter. Tessla and Ben were rounded up and all three of them were lead to a another tent near the outskirts of the camp. Only two other tents were set up nearby. They could see the girls making themselves comfortable from their tent. All of them except for Twilight of course.

Meanwhile, Twilight herself was greeted by a surprise upon entering the command tent. It was rather large tent that also doubled as the living quarters for the pony in charge. It was this pony who surprised Twilight so. She had walked in prepared to give an in depth scolding to the pony who devised that map, and then delve into an even more in depth discussion onto the next step. All that went out the window, however, when she saw her brother standing there.

“Hey, Twily,” He said with a smile. He waved off another pony who left promptly.

“Shining Armor?!” Twilight said, confused, “Nopony told me that you would be here.”

“Same here. I just got here a little bit before you arrived. I didn't even know you were coming until a few minutes ago.”

“I really need to have a talk with the pony in charge of this camp.”

“Yeah, well, you're looking at him,” Shining Armor said, “That's why I was brought in. The previous Captain was captured by the Changelings a week ago, along with four of the guard ponies who were with him.”

“He's been gone for a week, and nopony thought to call for help sooner?”

“They didn't know where he had been taken, but we do now. Question is: Are you ready?”

“Hell yeah! We all are. I brought the girls and the guys with me.”

“The guys? You mean the humans?” Shining Armor asked with some concern.

“Yeah, why?” Twilight asked, noting the concern on her brother's face. “Is that a problem?”

“No, it's just that I wasn't expecting them,” Shining Armor said, “And we don't know how the Changelings will affect them. Bringing them maybe wasn't the best idea.”

“With all due respect, Shining,” Twilight said seriously, “That is your opinion. You don't know them like I do. They can really help here.”

“Or maybe they could cause even more trouble for us,” Shining defended, “We don't know. We know nothing about them. That is what worries me.”

“You know nothing about them, brother,” Twilight annoyingly uttered, “But I know them. I trust them. Maybe someday you will to.”

Twilight turned and left the tent. She left her brother with his thoughts, and enough worries to sink a ship. She was angry at him for what he said. How could he not trust them? They have done nothing wrong, nothing to not earn his trust. They help ponies. They save ponies. He should at least trust Ben. He trained him, for Celestia's sake.

Twilight stomped on, with her eyes on the ground. She angrily kicked at a pebble and sent it flying off into the distance. She could hear the clicking and clattering of the pebble echoing through the evening air. She gazed over the emptiness before her. It was a serene landscape, full of green grass and rolling hills. Flowers grew in seemingly endless amounts with as many colors dotting their petals. The sun shone down bright on the animals as they scurried about. It was hard for her to believe that somewhere around this beautiful was a hive full of love sucking dark Changelings and their even darker Queen. She put aside her emotion and went off to bed. Tomorrow the real work began.

The Hive Pt. 2

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Yawn. That was the first thing he did when he woke up. He yawned and stretched out his limbs, trying to get out all the kinks of the previous nights sleep. Then he stood and reached for one his shirts, forgetting for a moment that he wasn't back in his room. He dug around in one his bags until he found one that he like and slipped it on over his head. He got the last yawn out before leaving the tent.

He was immediately greeted by a couple of pony guards who wasted no time in whisking him away to some other part of the camp, and without any breakfast first. They walked fast, forcing him to move at a near running pace. They weaved their way through the bustle of the camp with ease and got him to his destination within minutes.

The command tent. Much emptier than he thought it would be. That also made it much quieter, almost eerily quiet. Only a few ponies stood inside. Twilight and Shining Armor were there, along with a couple of guard ponies from the Crystal Empire. One of them seemed to really be enjoying his job. He had a smile on his face that he was trying to hide and failing at it. Every step he took had a bounce to it. It all seemed odd for a Crystal Guard pony.

“Hello there. Nice to see you again.”

. . . . .

“Hey, Ben,” Austin said. “Glad you could make it.”

“Shining Armor is here,” Ben whispered to Austin, “Why is he here?”

“He's the pony in charge of the camp,” Austin whispered back.

Their talking was cut off by Twilight coming from another entrance into the command tent. She had a look of intense determination about her. He had not seen her like this before. It was an interesting sight to behold.

“Ben, glad you could join us,” She said, “Austin said you could help us with the Changelings but he did not go into detail on the matter. Would you care to fill us in?”

Blank. That was all his mind was capable of producing at that moment. He had just woken up and he hadn't even eaten yet. He needed some food to jump start his thinking process, and then the rest of him. But for now all they got was, “Umm. . .”

“Ben,” Twilight said, “You okay?”

“Yeah, I'm fine,” Ben said, “Just a little hungry. As for your question, I have a unique view on the Changelings that gives me an advantage when I deal with them, not that I actually have any experience dealing with them.”

Ben heard a snap to his left and saw Tessla standing there with a tray of food. Ben cautiously grabbed an apple and took a big bite out of it. Within a nanosecond he knew something wasn't right, but it still tasted delicious. It just didn't taste like the apple he thought it was. It tasted more like. . .

“. . . pudding?” Ben questioned.

“Well, I remember how much you said you love desserts, but its time for breakfast so I improvised,” Tessla said, “Just wait til you taste the oranges.”

“I don't want to know,” Ben said, “Back to the Changelings, please.”

“Yes, the Changelings are the more important matter here,” Shining Armor stated. “What exactly is this advantage you claim to have, Ben?”

“It's hard to explain,” Ben replied, “I'd rather show you.”

“Then it's decided,” Twilight said, “Ben will accompany us into the Hive.”

Shining Armor shot Twilight a quick glare, hoping that no one else noticed. “Can you give me and my sister a minute, please?”

One by one everyone nodded and left. Austin was the last, lingering just long enough to let Twilight know he didn't want to leave. It was that look in his eyes that only she understood, that way he crossed his arms defiantly. He leaned against a tent post as if he was getting comfortable, but he wasn't staying. He had seen the look Shining Armor gave her, and he didn't like it. Twilight silently told him to go, though, and so he did. Reluctantly, Austin left the

Ben and Tessla waited outside the tent. Austin came out a moment later looking worried, which was a drastic change in his usual demeanor. He took a few steps and sat down on a rock near the entrance to the tent.

“What was that all about,” Tessla asked, eating an orange from his tray.

“Same thing anypony talks about nowadays,” Austin said, “Us. Only it didn't exactly sound pleasant this time.”

===

“What is your problem with them?” Twilight demanded of her brother. “Why don't you like the humans?”

“It's not that I don't like them, Twilight, I just don't know them. And I don't trust those that I don't know.”

“You know me, and I trust them,” Twilight said, “Isn't that enough?”

“Normally, yes, but this is different.”

“You mean they are different.”

“Yes! That is what I mean. They aren't ponies,” Shining Armor said, “I don't want them anywhere near the Changeling Hive. I told you before, we don't know what will happen. They could be even more susceptible to their magic than ponies. I am not taking that chance.”

“You're right, Shining. We don't know,” Twilight replied, “And we never will if we don't take at least one of them with us.”

“Dammit, Twilight!” Shining Armor roared, “This is not one of your science experiments. I am risking the ponies of the Crystal Guard here. I will not toy with their lives just so you can get some answers.”

Twilight stepped back and turned around. She needed to not be looking at her brother for a moment. She sighed heavily once, and then again. She closed her eyes in a slow blink before composing herself. Slowly she turned around to face her brother once again. He was not as composed as she was. She calmly stepped up closer to him and calmly looked him in the eye.

“You're right, big brother,” She said, “This is not one of my science experiments. I never said, or thought, it was. I understand how you feel about your guard ponies. I brought my friends with me, in case you've forgotten.”

Twilight took another step closer as she spoke. With each sentence she was a step closer to her brother. “I don't know what happened to you, but you aren't acting like my brother. You are acting like somepony I've never met before. Somepony that I don't know.”

Twilight was up to her brother by this point. She was right in his face, barely whispering the words as they slid off her lips, but he was hearing them just fine. “And I don't trust those that I don't know.”

She swiftly turned toward the exit of the tent. Twilight stopped just short of the exit. One thin, cloth panel lay between her and leaving her brother to his own thoughts. She stopped there with thoughts of her own. “When you want to start acting like my brother again, come find me,” Was the final thing she left her brother with.

“That sounded intense.”

Twilight stopped suddenly. The voice came out of nowhere seemingly, but all she had to do was look to her left to see the source. She was just so caught up that she didn't realize he was there.
She sighed a heavy sigh that was like all the weight of her burdens were sliding off her shoulders.

“I take it you heard that,” Twilight said, “I thought I put up a silencing spell around the tent.”

“You did. I just happen to be sitting inside the radius,” Austin replied, “Twilight, can I offer you some advice?”

“Sure, why not?”

Austin stood up and walked over to Twilight. He was taller than she was, but he knelt down so they were more eye to eye. He looked at her and told her just one thing.

“Don't let humans be the thing that separates you and your brother,” He said, “I wouldn't want that, and neither would the guys.”

“What do you suggest I do then?”

“At the moment, let him sit and think. You both need it. After that. . . .hell if I know.”

The two went their own ways after that. And then the day went on like normal. The minutes ticked on by slowly. Tick tock, the hands on the clock moved around. Every minute felt like five, and the next felt like ten. It was like the whole camp was moving in slow motion, and not a pony was aware of it.

Eventually the minutes turned into hours. Hours rolled on by, one and then another. The hand on the clock rolled over to strike noon, and yet it seemed that a day had passed. And the hours continued, pushed on by ticking minutes. Together the two made up an everlasting, unending cycle.

With nothing to do, but stare at the clock, Ben sat in the tent. He and Tessla had left Austin to sit and eavesdrop on Twilight arguing with her brother. They didn't want to be anywhere near that particular powder keg. And so, Ben sat in the tent. Tessla had fallen asleep yet again and was snoring

“Gah. I need something to do, anything,” Ben said to himself.

It wasn't long after that that Austin returned. He didn't say much about Twilight and her argument. Just that it was about them, and her and her brother were on opposing sides. He walked over and shook Tessla awake a bit more violently than he meant to. It got the job done, however as Tessla raised his head and opened his eyes. His chaotic was now a stylish dark blue in color.

No time was wasted as Austin informed them of a meeting that was taking place in an hour. They all took the time to ready themselves. They all washed up with a few pales of fresh water and some cloths. Rarity assisted them in choosing out the best clothes for the situation. Nothing to flashy, easy to move in, and also quite comfortable. They got everything done and with a full five minutes to spare. They immediately headed off for the command tent.

“It's mighty crowded in there,” Applejack warned as they got close. “Watch yer step. Don't wanna be stepping on anypony's hooves.”

Austin elected the stay outside with Applejack's. He hated large crowds and avoided them as best he could. Tessla stayed as well. He liked large gathering of people, or ponies in this case about as much as as Austin did. He was glad to hear that Rarity was staying out as well. She had her own reasons of course. Mainly she didn't want to be stuck in a large area filled with little but stallion testosterone and the smell of sweat. She shuddered at the thought. Ben did go in, though.

Ben entered the tent and seemed to cross into another world. The world outside was dark, as the light of the sun slowly descended as Celestia lowered it. Soon the only light would be coming from the distant stars and the moon that Luna would raise. Still, the chill evening air swept through the camp in the low light of the setting sun. And then Ben stepped in the tent.

Ben crossed into a sauna. The level of heat in the tent was almost palpable. It was nearing a smothering level. With as many ponies were in the room, Ben wasn't surprised, though. All those bodies created a lot of body heat and then they all got crammed into a small space. Not a good idea. Ben forced himself to ignore the heat, however and focus on the pony speaking.

“Scouts have officially located the Changeling Hive,” Shining Armor said, “We now have an exact location, and after days of watching we now have an opening to strike back. They took the former Captain of this camp, as well as four guards. We will get them back. Tommorrow, we strike!”

His words were inspiring. Many of the ponies around Ben signaled their approval. Some of them stomped their hooves, others hollered out their feelings. Still some others were content to just stand there and nod. Ben remained focused on the stage Shining Armor was standing on.

Twilight stood beside him with her head held high. She wasn't smiling at all, not that that was unusual. This was a very serious time, but he sensed it was more than that. He could probably get an answer or two from Austin later.

“We will march on the Hive tomorrow. As the sun rises with Princess Celestia's will, so shall we! And by the time Princess Luna raises the moon, we will be marching home with victory at our backs.”

Again the ponies all around erupted with cheer, from whoops and woos to hollers and nods. Ben's attention was caught on another pony however. It wasn't Twilight or Shining Armor. Instead it was the pony who stood behind Shining Armor. He had seen that pony before. The last time he was in the command tent Shining Armor waved him off. He seemed so chipper and full of cheer. His every step bounced, he smiled all the time and he was full of energy it seemed. But not now.

Now he just seemed to be the opposite. His smile had twisted into a frown that he made little effort to hide. His legs were wobbly and unstable, giving the impression that he was either very tired or very drunk. Overall, he just looked drained of everything that mattered.

Ben politely moved through the crowd of ponies. He pushed his way past the ponies leaving them with his apologies as he went. Everypony else was obsessed with Shining Armor and his rousing speech of inspiration. They were completely oblivious to the pony, and that caused them to completely miss the signs Ben was seeing.

Ben was now rushing. There was no telling how bad this could be. That, and he was absolutely terrified of the aspect of him being wrong. If he was, Shining Armor would hate him forever and never talk to him again. So would Twilight, for that matter. He hoped with all hope was good for that he was right. By this point, Ben was practically shoving ponies aside. He got more than a few nasty looks, but otherwise had gotten no attention. That is, until he jumped up on stage.

“What the hell do you think you're doing?!” Shining Armor asked, demanding answers from the human.

“Sorry, can't talk,” Ben replied. He kept his eyes locked onto that pony. He was so out of it that it was only then he realized a human was standing right in front of him. His eyes widened with fear as the human raised its left hand and slammed it down on his face.

“Ben! What are you doing?” Twilight pleaded.

Sure hope this works. Ben reached inside of him, He went deep down, to the places he didn't even know he had. There was something he had, or thought he had. He just wasn't sure of it, and now he was putting everything on the line for a longshot he wasn't even sure would work. But he had hope, and he also had love. And that shed away the false appearances of most things. Ben brought forth the power of love and cast away the disguise of the pony under his hand. And before him and everypony under the tent, stood a changeling.

“Oh, crap.”

The Hive Pt. 3

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All hell broke loose. Ben stood amidst the chaos, his eyes passing over everything. The camp was gone, destroyed. Tents everywhere were torn down. Wooden posts were all that remained of most of the them. A few scraps of fabric hung loose and ragged from some of the least damaged. The rest were scorched from the flames of the previous night, many of which were still burning strong. Pillars of black, charred wood stood throughout the camp, as if on watch and keeping an eye on all the ponies. Most of them no longer stood up straight and sagged as if they themselves knew they had failed in their duties. And through all of this Ben could still hear the crackling the flames around him.

===

The Changeling looked up at Ben. He was horrified. Not only was the human much larger than him, but he had just walked up, laid his hands on him, and revealed his true form. That was suppose to be impossible, or so damn near it that nopony is supposed to be able to do it. He did the only thing he could think of. He mustered up what little strength he had left and sent up a magical flare. It passed easily through the tent fabric and lit up the night sky with a brilliant green light. Brothers and sisters! I have been found! The time is now! Attack!

A moment of the purest silence filled the tent. Ben stared up at the tent. The hole created by the Changelings flare was smoldering slightly, ready and waiting for any cause that would let it ignite and erupt into an inferno. The silence kept on. Not a pony breathed in the tent. All the eyes split between the hole and the Changeling, or bouncing between the two. With each one they didn't know what to do. The Changeling teetered ever so slightly as its eyes drifted to a close. Consciousness faded away as the world around to turned to black. It fell to the ground just as the wind outside picked up. An eerie whistle tore through the silent tent followed the quickly by the crackling of a growing flame that was hungry for anything. The silence persisted for just a moment longer, and in that moment something set in. It came upon them in the quiet of the night and sank deep its fangs into their minds. Panic.

===

Ben gazed out over the camp. Ponies were scattered about. Nearly all of them were injured. The injuries varied from minor cuts, bruises and burns to more serious things. Deep gashes, larger burns of a more serious degree. He watched as two guard ponies helped another limp away to a temporary medical center that had been set up a little ways outside of the camp. The guard pony was limping due a rather nasty bruise on his left hind leg. Something hit him, and hit him hard. The bruise almost completely obscured his cutie mark and went down to his knee. That had to hurt.

Ben found his eyes searching for familiar faces among all the ruin and carnage. He first found Fluttershy. Her and Rarity were helping tend to the wounded, which was just about all the ponies. Fluttershy's natural kindness and affinity for caring for others made it the perfect place for her to be. She had just finished wrapping a ponies hoof in some bandages when Ben saw her. And she was smiling. Even through all of this Fluttershy could still find something to smile about. Rarity was right there with her, using her magic to move things about as needed. Her mane was a mess and her coat was less than pristine, but she didn't seem to care. She may seem like a priss sometimes, but Rariity had one of the biggest hearts of anypony Ben knew of. Noise off to the side drew his eyes to find more familiar faces.

Applejack and Rainbow Dash were securing the rest of the camp, making sure no surprises could pop up and hurt any more ponies. They made up the front lines of the rescue operations going on. It wasn't a big job as most of the ponies had been accounted for. Still, it was a very important job. Rainbow Dash directed a few Pegasi she flew with. Their flight advantage gave them an edge when it came to spotting trouble. Opposite her on the ground, Applejack coordinated a small team of earth ponies. Their inherent strength made them well suited for clearing away the rubble and the debris. A few Unicorns also accompanied them. They were busy pulling a couple of clear of a wrecked tent as Ben looked away.

Next was Pinkie Pie and Tessla. They actually suggested the job they had. It was quickly agreed that the job was well worth some effort so they headed that up with a small team of ponies composed mostly of unicorns. It was basically the salvage job. They moved around checking the areas that the rescue teams had deemed safe and secure for anything that could be salvaged. Pinkie Pie seemed to be having fun with it, but it was Pinkie Pie. She could make fun with nothing but a paper clip, a gum wrapper, and tissue. Then she could make it it fun for you.

Twilight was standing with Austin and her brother. They were deep in conversation, if it could even be called that. It fluctuated a bit as they went on. Most of the time it was a normal conversation. Other times it blew up to a full on argument between the three of them. In between those times were fleeting times of debating and intense discussion. Ben wondered how they were going to get anything resolved. Three strong and forceful personalities like that all colliding. He hoped they would not cause more trouble.

As Ben looked around at all these ponies. From Fluttershy's kind smile to Applejack's determination and Pinkie's fun loving nature Ben saw something. Something that some would be surprised to see after the night they had. Ben looked around the broken and burned ruins of the camp, and what he saw was more than happiness and cheer. It was better than that. It was hope.

===

Ben emerged from the tent in the middle of a mass of ponies. They all ran out with no clear direction where they were going. Panic was driving most of them. Reason, logic, and thinking were abandoned in the now blazing command tent. Ben stopped and stood there. He watched the ponies rush past him, moving around him like a raging river past a boulder. He looked around, finding his friends off to the side. He had to dodge a few ponies running by to get to them.

“Hey, Ben,” Tessla called out, “What's with the flare and the stampede?”

“I found a changeling,” Ben quickly spat out, “In the tent, on stage behind Shining Armor. A changeling. He sent up the flare, probably to alert more changelings either in camp or near it.”

His words proved true as a commotion sounded off behind them. They all turned to see everything turning to chaos, and not the fun kind. Nopony was prepared for this. Nopony was prepared at all. The stampede had stopped for now, and they were joined by Twilight and Shining Armor. They arrived just in time to see the camp go straight to hell. Fights were breaking out all over camp, between all the ponies. Friends were accusing one another of being not being themselves. Brothers and sisters were fighting each other. Arguments rose and tempers flared. As if to add insult to injury the command tent behind them erupted into a full on blaze, casting an eery glow over the entire camp as the flames danced in the night air, seemingly the only thing enjoying the chaos brought that night.

“This is horrible,” Twilight said. “How do we stop this?”

The camp was burning around them. Pony was fighting against pony. Everything was going downhill faster than anyone could believe. And it was all about to get a whole lot worse. Such was the chaos around them that nopony ever thought much of the Changeling, or of the flare it sent out.

The nighttime sky was already dark, but the shining of the stars and the moon gave it a dim, yet calming light. It was a soothing kind of low light that made it feel comfortable and safe to just lay down and slip into peaceful slumber. That was about to end.

A shadow came forth from the sky and blocked out that lovely light from the moon and the stars. It cast the camp in all its entirety into darkness with nothing but their own burning tents to light to the way ahead. This shadow did not come alone, however, as it was accompanied by a buzzing. A buzzing that could only mean one thing.

The first words of warning were barely spoken before it happened. A small flash of green light and a changeling appeared in a shallow crater before them. It smiled before running off. Then they flooded in. Changelings rained down from the sky like comets of green fire. The ponies of the camp scrambled to avoid being hit as their enemy fell all around them. If it wasn't chaos before it most certainly was now.

“This is absolutely insane,” Shining Armor muttered angrily, “I have guards running around trying to get their armor and weapons. I have guards running around trying to fight changelings. And I have guards that I don't even know are actually my guards. How the hell did this happen?!”

“We can worry about that later. For now we have more important things to worry about,” Twilight replied to her brothers outburst.

“Agreed,” Ben said, “For now we just save as many and as much as we can.”

“Alright, spread out,” Twilight said commandingly.

Everyone there turned a different direction and moved out. Immediately they had to do their best to protect and defend. Not every pony in that camp was a trained guard pony. There were scholars and scribes. A few interested in the magic of the Changelings, so they came to study it. Barely a few steps out and it all started for them.

Like a hurricane they swept through the camp, their light guiding the way for all to see. Wherever they tread it was like their light brought a sense of order to the chaos reigning around them. With a swift justice they dealt with all the changelings they encountered. Each had their own way of going about it, but each was effective in their own right. From Ben and Twilight, who focused his energy more on the defense of the ponies than on the defeat of the changelings to Shining Armor and Austin, who believed the best way to defend the ponies was to stop the threat before them. It didn't matter how they approached the problem, as each of them accomplished the same goal to some extent. That was to save as much as they could. But the night was long and filled with danger. Some they knew, and some were unknown to them.

Ben breathed heavily. His chest heaved with each breath heavier than the last. He wasn't exactly built for this and he had been going at it for a few hours now. He wasn't sure exactly what time it was. There was no moon visible to try and figure it out. He didn't have a clue. Any further thought was cut off by the hissing of the Changeling standing no more than two feet from him. The only other sound was the whimpering. Ben heard it behind him. It was the sound that originally drew him to this spot. A pair of sister mares. Scholars, the both of them, sent here by both the princess's to record the Changeling Hive location in the history books. They huddled together hoping to find protection in one another. Ben stood in front of them, and now he was staring down a changeling.

“Go on!” Ben shouted, “Leave them alone. Just leave.”

The Changeling paused for a moment and stared back at Ben. Then it got angry. The hollow eyes narrowed in on Ben. It hissed and snarled angrily. It lowered itself down into a stance that told Ben it was ready to attack at any second. And in just that time it did.

The Changeling's horn powered up as green energy built up around the tip. It glared at Ben one last time and unleashed the built up magic with a hiss. Ben carried with him a crystal kite shield he had picked up along the way. It was pretty banged up from all the abuse he had put it through during the night. All around the edges were chipped areas and there was even a small chunk gone from the bottom. And yet, Ben raised the shield anyway. He placed it over himself so as to cover as much of his body as he could. He made it so that he was looking just over to top of the shield. Ben took a deep breath and braced himself for the impact of the blast.

The blast hit directly into the shield, shattering it into countless crystal shards. Ben was knocked back from the sheer force behind the blast. He flew back just an inch or so and landed in front of the pony sisters. The world around him was gone for a moment, but then it all came rushing back. The cold of the night wind brushing along his sweaty skin sending a chill down his spine. The feeling of exhaustion from half a nights worth of physical exertion. The pain in his body from the blast knocking him on his ass. The crying of the ponies so close to him. Ben looked up as the pounding in his head faded to dull thud. The sisters were crying. Ben rolled over and looked up at the Changeling. It wore a wicked smile and stared down it him with another blast already charged and waiting. Another wicked hiss and it was out.

Just as the Changeling let loose that blast something happened, something appeared. A curtain of sorts, a screen. It was as if it formed from the night sky itself, dark in color with purples and blues shimmering across its surface. It encircled the Changeling at the very last second as it let loose the magic. The screen was so dark they could no longer see the changeling on the other side. All anypony saw was the silhouette as the blast let of a flash of green light whenever it struck the curtain. Six times it ricocheted off the screen. Six times the Changeling felt the pain of his own magic. And then the screen melted down into nothingness and the Changeling fell with it. Beyond it Ben saw a very welcome sight.

“Austin,” He exclaimed excitedly.

Austin nodded but said nothing in return. He didn't speak much when he got really focused on something. He this intense stare to. Ben saw and knew. He also saw something else. Fatigue. Exhaustion. Austin was even more drained than he was. Austin stood, barely. His breathing was heavy and slow. Each breath took more and more effort from him. His eyes had lost their focus and his was absentmindedly drifting with his gaze. Beads of sweat lined every part of his body, giving him a almost a shine that was only accentuated by the glow of the flames around them.

“Austin, you okay?”

“Fine,” Austin said. “But I don't know for how much longer.”

He managed to make his way over to them with no trouble. Austin held out a helping hand to Ben. He gladly accepted it and Austin helped him up off the ground. He looked over to the two sisters. Still they huddled together and still they cried. Tears ran down their faces and fear filled their eyes.

“Let's take them back to the center of camp,” Austin said, “The ponies have managed to get setup there and are holding off the Changelings.”

“What about Tessla and the Mane Six?”

“Tessla, Fluttershy, and Rarity are there with the non combat ponies. Everypony else is scattered about doing everything they can to help.” Austin explained.

“Alright,” Ben said. “Let's go.”

Meanwhile, the others were just where Austin said they would be. Scattered. Everypony was everywhere and nowhere at the same time. Somewhere in the chaos of what was quickly becoming a warzone were friends, and absolutely no way of knowing who was where and in what condition they were in. But that didn't stop anybody.

Ben and Austin lead the two trembling sister ponies through the ruins of the camp. Fires blazed everywhere. Changelings ran amok terrorizing whoever they could find. For every pony fighting to defend and protect there were at least three Changelings ready, if not more. Ben and Austin got the two sisters to what used to be the command tent with little trouble.

“Hey, we got two more,” Tessla announced as they arrived. Quickly a couple of medical ponies hustled the sisters away to safety. Tessla my not have been out there fighting, but that didn't mean he wasn't as affected as the rest of them. He wore the stress of the night like any other that was there and suffering it.

“You two look like hell,” He said.

“Look around, Tessla,” Austin said, “This is hell. We're just looking to fit in.”

“Oh my,” Fluttershy said as she rushed over, “Are you guys okay? You don't look that good. Do you need to rest? Maybe some food will help. How about some water?”

“Calm down, Fluttershy,” Rarity hushed her worried friend. “She does have a point, however. You two look simply dreadful.”

“As much as we would like to stay and rest and eat and all that,” Ben said, “We can't stay for too much longer. There are still a lot more Changelings to deal with out there.”

As if on cue a screeching drew all their attention away. They looked behind Ben to see a Changeling with an injured wing falling from the sky. Screeching as it went it struck the ground like a falling meteor, leaving behind a trail of green fire. The Changeling bounced once after it fell and soared over the small wall some of the ponies had managed to build up. A rather large Earth pony was quick to respond by bucking the incoming Changeling back over the wall before moving on.

“Besides,” Ben stated, “It seems like you have everything handled here.”

Fluttershy refused to let the two leave without at least having a small drink of water. The two were in no state to argue and gladly accepted as she went and got them. The small rest they did get while there did more to help than they let on. The two had aches and pains that were feeling better, but wanted to move on out again before everything else set in.

Fluttershy was back within just a few minutes with their water. Both of the cups she had were broken in some places but they still held the water. The two said their thanks and drank heartily. Austin was never fond of water, but he was never happier to drink it than at that moment. They gulped down every drop as the fluid satiated some of their considerable thirst. They handed the cups back to Fluttershy, who nearly dropped them as a thunderous sound shook the camp.

Fluttershy barely had a hoof on the fragile cups as the whole camp shook beneath her. There were fires raging all around and the sounds of battle filled the air. Ponies calling out, crying out and Changelings screeching and hissing and snarling. Yet all of that seemed to stop suddenly as the sound filled the air. Another thunderous sound rang out. Fluttershy threw the cups away and huddled closely to Rarity.

“W- w- what's g- going on?” She asked with a frightful shake to her voice.

“I haven't the foggiest idea, dearest Fluttershy,” Rarity said, trying not to let her know how truly terrified she really was.

Again, it rang out. That thunderous sound. In the sudden silence that overtook the camp it was easier to tell where it was coming from. The front. The front of the camp. The main entrance. Twilight and the girls as well as the guys all walked through that very same entrance when they arrived just a few days before. It seemed like ages ago to them. They all stared toward the entrance. It was a straight shot to them. An empty pathway with nothing but a few ponies and Changelings scuffling about. Many of the posts that bordered the camp had fallen to block the way, but that was doing little to stop whatever was on the other side.

“Whatever it is, it is big,” Austin said, feeling like he was stating the obvious.

Another thunderous hit struck the posts, nearly splitting the lot of them into pieces. That only reinforced Austin's obvious statement. It made Fluttershy shudder against Rarity and Tessla take a step or so back. Ben and Austin looked at each and shared the same thought. It passed between them as easily as if they had used telepathy. They had to do something. They both nodded to one another and stepped up to meet the challenge.

“Tessla, you stay here and keep these ponies safe,” Austin said, “You okay with that?”

“Perfectly fine,” Tessla replied

They walked out to meet the unknown that was coming in. Whatever this was they were going to face they were going to do side by side. They tried not to think about what it was.

They reached the halfway point when it finally happened. Another thunderous strike on the barricade of broken posts. This was the last hit. The final nail in the coffin. The posts broken and betn shattered into even more pieces. Many split just enough to make an opening. A set of hisses filled the air as the posts shattered more. Whatever it was was in. The posts were pushed inward by sheer force of strength. Ben and Austin finally saw the face of their foes. Changelings, but not like any they knew of.

These were not the same Changelings that had been besieging the camp so far. No these were much different. Bigger, meaner. The brutes of the Changeling Hive. Wingless, so they could not fly up to their enemies. But bigger and stockier in frame. They looked to be able to take more damage than any other Changeling. Natural armor plating covered these large Changelings. Every limb was toned with muscle that oozed raw physical power, as was portrayed with their entrance.

“Great,” Austin said, “Changeling Tanks. You got any ideas for these guys?”

“Yeah,” Ben said, “One of your favorites. Improvise.”

Austin should have seen that one coming. But Ben was right, that was one of his favorite ideas. Flying by the seat of pants, surviving by the skin of his teeth. Narrowly escaping the enemy grasp while getting the job done. That was how he usually went about things. It was also the reason he had the collection of scars building up. This night was giving him plenty to add.

The fight was brutal. It really wasn't even a fight. There were four of them. Tanks by Changeling standards, and they acted like it. They were sent to reinforce the Changeling force that had already laid waste to most of the camp. Austin and Ben did their best to hold them off. And that was all they did. Two against four already put the odds not in their favor.

The Tanks were large, but they were also fast. Surprisingly so, catching both the guys off guard as they were quickly put on the defensive. Forced to duck and dodge the flurry of blows laid out by the Tanks the fight was quickly turning into an enemy advance. They did share one commonality with the other Changeling, though. Horns. That meant magic. They did not use it to the same extent that the rest of them did, but they did use it.

Every time it seemed one of the humans was getting the upper hand he lost it. Austin played the defense with a shield catching the magic blasts of one, and as he pressed forward another Tank moved in, swiftly kicking him aside and pressing he attack. Ben was faring no better. Every time he ducked or dodged the attack of one he found himself staring down another. It was a constantly shifting box of attacks that never ended. He rolled out of the way of one attack just to find himself in place for a bucking. The Changeling Tank landed a hard and truly devastating blow to Ben;s right arm. And that was how the night went on.

With the night slowly ebbing away and only a few hours left everyone was doing everything they could to help. All around camp ponies scrambled to stop the Changelings. They were holding their own and that was the best that was to be said of them. Many ponies fought bravely that night. And they fought well into the night and on into the morning.

The darkness that followed the Changelings that night was slowly fading, ebbing away as the night came to a close. Morning broke over the horizon finally. A single night of fighting, and yet it felt like so much longer. Morning came up, it rose from behind the hills to greet everyone and everything and it brought with it the brilliant light of a new day.

The light spread over the land and came quickly upon the camp. The Changelings froze in place as the light of the day washed over them. They hissed and screeched and flew up into the air. They called out to each of their own in their own language that nopony understood. Day was coming and it was time for them to leave. High into the sky the sun rose. It bathed the camp in the warm light that signaled an end. And end to the fighting, and end to the injuries, and hopefully and an end to all this conflict once and for all.

The Changelings scrambled to get themselves out of that place. It took only a full ten minutes for them all to clear out. They flew away in large mass with many of the Changelings carrying more of their kind that were unable to fly themselves. The ponies did not cheer as they fled. They did not throw up their hooves as they enemy left. They just stood. They stood and watched.

===

Ben stood there and looked out over the camp. His injuries were all wrapped and bandaged, but they still caused him pain. He blocked it out though. Now was not the time to be bothered by pain. They spent the first day after the attack just trying to make sure nothing else would fall apart. Healing the injured the ponies assigning duties to those well enough to carry them out and the like. And now it was time. Time to go.

“Hey, Ben,” Austin said. “Come on. Shining Armor is speaking.”

Ben followed his friend to the place outside camp. Most of the ponies that occupied the camp had amassed in or around the makeshift medical center. A small stage like area was set up so Shining Armor could speak to everyone. Ben and Austin found Tessla soon after getting there. Twilight was on stage. Shining Armor made his way up there, although it was clear that each step was made with pain. Twilight watched as he finally got up. He breathed deeply before stepping up to talk to them. He looked out over all the ponies.

“Many of you may want to say that we won that night,” He started, “But you're wrong. You are very wrong. We did not win anything. Let's face the facts here, the Changelings beat us. They got one of their own on the inside and they used that inside link to get the drop on us.”

Shining Armor was putting his whole heart into his words, but that also was aggravating his wounds. He nearly doubled over on stage right there. Twilight moved forward and helped her brother. She showed genuine concern. Although they fought before, she did love her brother more than anything. He took a few breaths and stood up to continue speaking.

“We did not win the night. We merely endured it, survived it. And look at what happened. Look at what was lost. An entire camp. Gone! Every tent gone to scraps. All our maps and logs and history books. Gone! All of it is gone.

Look around you, all of you. You know what you see. You see the faces of the injured and the wounded. That's all there is. Not a single pony came out of this unscathed. We have each gotten a reminder of this night. But I am not standing here just to tell you what you already know. I am here to tell you to have hope. Not a single pony came out unscathed, and not a single pony was lost. We fought and we held off the Changelings. We showed them that ponies are not to be messed with, even here in their own backyard! We may have lost this one night, but we have all survived to see this new day! “

Each and every pony there took Shining's words to heart. He was right. The Changelings won that night, but they all survived. For the most part each and every pony was intact. It was still morning then, and the day moved on so much faster than before. Before anyone knew it noon had rolled around and a plan had been set in motion.

In the ruins of the command tent stood a group. Shining Armor stood with his sister at his side. Before them stood five ponies. Applejack, Fluttershy, Rainbow Dash, Rarity, and Pinkie Pie. Each of them had some sort of bandage or wrap on and they wore them proudly. Each of them had played an importance role during the night and each of them were thanked beyond measure. Those five parted as three more entered the tent. Shining Armor looked at theses three. These humans.

“You three did more for the ponies here than I ever thought possible. You fought well. You defended the honor and stability of this camp, even when it was long gone. You defended the weak and the defenseless when they could not do so themselves. I am not to proud to admit that I was wrong about you. You have my thanks. More than that you have my respect.”

“Ughh, can we get on with this and get to the good stuff,” Rainbow Dash blurted out. “I heard that there was a plan or something to be heard.”

“Yess, Rainbow Dash, there is,” Twilight said through grinding teeth. “We have discussed it thoroughly and have come to a conclusion. One final push on the Changeling Hive.”

“You know, I never thought I would say this, but I really don't want to fight anymore after last night,” Dash said with a groan. Her left wing had taken a bad hit and she had been in an even worse mood ever since.

“Good, because this is a mission of peace,” Twilight said. “We will venture into the Changeling Hive and talk with Chrysalis directly. This has already been decided. The only thing that hasn't is who exactly is going. So, who wants to go?”

“I will,” Ben said. “I will go with you.”

“Good,” Twilight said. “That is one.”

“Ah will go too.” Applejack spoke up. “Ah reckon Apple Bloom will want to know all the details when we get on back to Ponyville.”

“Ooh, I wanna go! I wanna go!”

“Okay. Applejack and Pinkie Pie make three.”

“Some of you will need to stay behind and watch over the camp. Just because the Changelings left doesn't mean they won't be back,” Shining Armor said.

“I can do that,” Tessla said.

“Same here,” Austin answered.

“Really?” Twilight replied, “I kinda thought you guys would want to see this for yourself. And back up Ben.”

“Trust me, I am pretty sure I know what Ben will do in there,” Austin said.

“Me and Fluttershy will also stay behind,” Rarity said, “Fluttershy is frightened enough as it is and that bug nest is no place for a lady.”

“Rainbow Dash,” Twilight questioned. “What about you?”

“Ya know, I think I'm gonna stay here. I can't fly to well with my wing messed up like this. I don't wanna slow you down if you have to hurry out of there.”

“Then it's decided,” Twilight said, “Five of us will go into the Hive and five of us will stay behind.”

As the two groups went their own ways on to the their own separate missions a common thought was shared among them. It bounced around from mind to mind getting in front of whatever was previously there.

Good luck.

===

Five stood at the entrance. Th entrance, the gateway that lead them to a place that seemed to be outside of Equestria alltogether. The Changeling Hive rose before them. In this land of green grassy plains full of colorful flowers and rolling hills that directed the gentle breezes sat this Hive. This Hive, this dark, ugly thing. It rose from the ground and emerged from a cliff side. It was obviously built to go deep within the cliff and even deeper under the ground.

The Hive was was a truly strange structure. It was large, yet little of showed above the ground. What did show was completely alien to all who saw it. It was unlike anything they had ever seen. An unusual dark material made up most of the Hive structure. It was harder than anything they knew of and coated in a layer of something. Some substance covered every inch of walls. It was so thick in some places that it ran and dripped off in globs. Whatever this strange substance was it had an equally strange effect on the surrounding area. In the immediate vicinity of wherever this substance was found there was no life. No life, no plants, not even water could be found there. It was nothing but dead, cracked, broken layers of dust earthen rock.

“Ooohh. This place is kinda spooky,” Pinkie Pie remarked as they came ever closer.

“Well git over it already,” Applejack said in a hushed tone, “We ain't exactly alone anymore.”

She was right. As they continued to move forward getting ever closer to that place they could hear them. Changelings, scurrying about behind the rocks. They could hear them scuttling about like bugs. Every now and then a few pebbles would trickle down from a place high up in the rocks. That meant that even more were watching, waiting. But for what?

The five of them. They finally came to an end of their journey. A dead end. They came to a stop in the path. It was a wall of rock higher than they could see. Smooth and rough, filled with holes and cracks many witch oozed that strange substance. This was the place.

Twilight stepped forward and Shining Armor stepped up beside her. They stepped out ahead of the other ponies and Ben. Although, as they stepped up Ben did notice the shadows creeping up on them, and the hissing that came with them.

Twilight took a deep breath. “We are not here to fight,” She called out. “We wish to speak to your queen. All we want is to speak with Queen Chrysalis.”

“Take us to her,” Shining Armor said. “Please.” He added lastly in hopes it would better the chances they wouldn't be spontaneously attacked.

Silence filled the air for the next few moments. Ben could practically feel the shadows as they crept ever closer. Pinkie Pie was shaking so much it was clear that her Pinkie senses were letting her know. Applejack was getting antsy, too. Although Ben was sure that she would say that was just intuition.

Suddenly, before them the face of cliff itself shifted before their eyes. Green light flashed brightly, forcing them to cover their eyes until it passed. When the five finally looked again the cliff was gone. Before them was a doorway. A massive set of double doors faced them now. As they stood and stared up at them the doors eeked open slowly with the sounds of heavy chains behind them. On the other side of those doors stood four Changelings. This was the welcoming committee.

The four Changelings were of the Tank variety. They stood tall and at rest in a manner similar to how guard ponies stood at the royal palaces and castles. Two stepped forward to meet them. They took only a couple steps forward before stepping to the side. The two left just inside the doorway turned and stood with their backs to the five. It was clear they were to lead them inside.

“This could be a trap,” Shining Armor whispered.

Everyone else had the same thought, but he was the only one that said it openly, even if it was just a whisper. Slowly they moved up behind the Tanks inside the doorway. They moved in and the other two took their places behind them. The five were effectively boxed in.

“This is not making me feel any better,” Shining mumbled under his breath.

“Hey, we're in, aren't we?” Twilight said back to him.

“Ah honestly wasn't sure if we was gonna make it this far,” Applejack said.

They passed through what seemed to be the lobby area, or the equivalent of a lobby at least. They emerged into the true Hive shortly after. An enormous room lay out before them. A wide center walkway went the length of the room. The Changelings didn't stop and wait for the five to get their heads together. They pushed Pinkie Pie and Applejack to get moving. That didn't stop them from looking as they walked. Ben couldn't stop gawking at all that was going on around him. Changelings filled nearly every open space. They covered the entire cavern floor below them. They argued and wrestled among themselves. That all stopped as they saw them walking past. Once they saw the five they stopped whatever petty squabble they had going and moved in to investigate. Swarms of them moved in to get a closer look. This was the first time any outsiders were allowed in without being restrained or being unconscious.

“Well, we are definitely in,” Ben said, “Now what?”

Just after Ben spoke their tour came to a halt. They had stopped at a large round platform at the very center of the cavern. Many other Changelings were on that very same platform. They tried to move in and investigate when they could but for some reason the bigger Tanks blocked them whenever they got close.

For a moment all was still, except the occasional Changeling trying and failing to get at them. Them came a shadow, bigger and darker than the others they had seen. All eyes turned upward as she finally appeared. The Changeling Queen, Chrysalis. She glided down quickly from a perch higher up, landing quite gracefully a few paces away.

“So, I heard you wanted to talk,” She hissed as she walked up. With a wave of her hoof the Changeling Tanks backed off and took up positions along the outer edges of the round platform.

“Yes, Chrysalis,” Twilight said nervously, “We came here today to talk with you.”

“You know, I was having a hard time deciding if I should let you in or not,” Chrysalis said. She slithered her way up close to Twilight, getting close to her face. Twilight didn't back down, though. “I had my reason not to. Mainly you, Twilight Sparkle. You bested me once before, but that was on your ground. This is my home.”

“But then again,” She hissed as she moved past Twilight and on to Shining Armor. She ran a hoof along his face, but he leaned back as she got close. “I also had plenty of reasons to let you in. Oh, how would like to get my fangs into you once again, my dear Shining Armor.”

Chrysalis eventually moved on past the two ponies. She glided up to Ben. Chrysalis stood almost as tall as Ben surprisingly. Her eyes were at the height of his chin. She stood tall and straight to get as close to his eyes as possible. “Eventually my decision came down to you human. I was intrigued to find out one you had accompanied them here. Tell me, what is your name, human?”

“My name is Ben,” Ben answered quickly and directly. “And I know you are Queen Chrysalis.”

As Ben spoke, all around them the Changelings began to change their behavior. No longer were they simply glaring and hissing, hoping to get close enough to attack them. Now they were wobbly, and their eyes unfocused. It was a lot like how Rainbow Dash looked after she drank her normal amount of spiked cider. Chrysalis didn't seem to notice, or just didn't care.

“Indeed I am Chrysalis, human,” She said. “Ben, is it? A strange name. Tell me, why are you here?”

“It's just as Twilight said,” Ben replied, “We are here to talk.”

“Many would think you would not want to talk after my Changelings attacked your camp just the night before last,” Chrysalis stated. She moved back out of the five and Ben followed her to the middle of the round platform. “I did injure many of your pony friends, did I not?”

“You did,” Ben said, “But we also injured many of your Changelings. The fact that we are both here now, and talking is a good sign I think.”

“You are here because I was curious and wanted to see a human up close. Nothing more,” Chrysalis, “Do not pretend to know my motives, human. Ben.”

“Well, if that is the case than I have just three words for you, Queen Chrysalis.” Ben said quite seriously.

Ben took one step forward and sent off an invisible wave. No pony could pick up on this wave, but the Changelings sure could. And they reacted to it. They swarmed in close just to fall into the same state as the rest. That didn't stop Ben as he quickly bounded forward to grasp the Queen. In just a moment he had her in her arms. This spurred even more Changelings to action. They flew up and charged down to him, but they never got close. Whenever a Changeling got within ten to fifteen feet of him they dropped out of the air. Even the Tanks were effected. One of them was currently on his back with his hooves in the air.

“What in the pink blazes of hell is going on with them?” Pinkie asked.

“Ben is using some magic,” Shining Armor said, “Some strange human magic that is putting every changeling through some grueling punishment. Just look at their pain.”

“Ah don't think that its pain they're feeling,” Applejack said as she examined one from afar. It was quivering on the floor and rolling slightly as it experienced every bit of what Ben was doing.

“I'm with AJ, brother,” Twilight said, “Ben, what are you doing?”

“Yes, human, what are you doing,” Chrysalis said, “Why is that I don't feel the need to strike you down right now? What have you done to my Changelings?”

Ben released Chrysalis from his grasp and looked at her. He was still close and looked deeply into her eyes. She looked deeply into his. A moment of silence passed between them, and that was enough. It was in that moment that it dawned on Chrysalis, just what it was she was feeling. Normally she took this by force or through some sort of trickery, but this time it was freely given. She looked deeply into Ben's eyes. Ah, this feels so nice.

“I love you.”

Meanwhile. . .

View Online

Celestia paced the length of room for the hundredth time. Normally she never got this nervous about anything. Not even upon meeting the humans for the first time was she this nervous. Not to say she never got nervous. It was just that she managed to contain it much better than this. But this was an unusual time with even more unusual circumstances. A knock on her door shook Celestia free from the groove in the floor.

“Enter,” She said.

The doors opened and Luna entered the room. She held her head up high with a dignified look on her face. It was the face that Celestia wore every day and was used to seeing in her mirror. She was only recently growing accustomed to seeing it on her sister. It was the face of royalty that the public saw whenever they saw the princess's.

Luna entered the room quickly and shut the doors behind her just as quickly. She did a quick scan of the room to make sure they were alone before doing anything else. It was only then that she opened her mouth. She sighed a heavy sigh of relief as her royal composure crumbled into pieces. She sat down with a huff and saw the marks on her sister's floor.

“It would seem that I am not the only one nervous of the upcoming arrival,” Luna said.

“So it would seem,” Celestia said. “It isn't even the guests that I am worried about.”

“Then what is it, sister, if not the guests?”

“Something far worse,” Celestia said solemnly, “The consequences.”

“I see,” Luna said, “By the way, who is coming over again?”

===

Celestia and Luna talked for only a few moments longer. The day was long gone and Luna had risen the moon well over an hour before. Celestia bid her sister a good night and started her nightly ritual when it came to bed time.

Celestia walked over to an ornate cabinet on the far side of her chambers. She used her magic to open the doors. Inside were a few stands for her regalia. One by one, Celestia floated up her royal hoof wear until each one of them was sitting upon their stands. Next was the piece she wore around her neck. She carefully removed that from her body and gently placed it inside the cabinet. The very last piece to come off was her crown. The most important piece to some ponies.

Celestia removed this piece with her own hooves. What almost no pony knew was that her crown actually held back a secret. Not a big one, but one she still kept closely guarded. As the crown came off her head a few dozen small strands of her colorful mane came from behind her and dangled in front of her face. This was her secret. She had a truly terrible time controlling these bangs of hers. Every time she got them cut they just grew back with a few extra strands as well. Her crown was the only thing that held them back. Only Luna knew this secret of hers, and that was only because she had a similar problem with her own mane. Celestia smiled at the thought of her and Luna with out of control manes. It made her laugh quietly to herself before she settled into bed.

Celestia loved her bed. Of course it was made from only the finest materials from across Equestria, but that wasn't why she loved it so much. That was definitely part of it. She couldn't deny that it was quite comfortable, but that was only a small part of it. It was the memories that lay within every stitch, every fold and wrinkle that she loved so much. As Celestia pulled the covers up her mind drifted back onto those memories.

She saw herself and Luna when they were younger, long before anything happened between them. Back then neither her or Luna could have ever foreseen the Nightmare Moon incident. They were happy back then. Her and Luna played in this bed. They both slept in this bed on the nights when Luna didn't want to sleep alone. It was only now that she was having times like those again with Luna.

Celestia's mind drifted forward a long ways, to thoughts of a purple unicorn. One she would eventually come to call her pupil. Twilight practically grew up in the castle. From the young age when she first came here. Celestia often had their private lessons right there on the very bed where she now lay. It made her smile as she remembered all the laughs she had with the young Twilight Sparkle. This bed helped them both learn so much. Celestia went to sleep with only the happiest of thoughts filling her head. She fell asleep smiling.

Meanwhile, in the rest of Equestria . .

The night passed by quietly and calmly. The stars filled the night sky and shone with all their starry might. The moon rose and fell with Luna. She patrolled the dreams of the ponies. A calm breeze swept through the air and passed over the land. All was good that night.

All of the denizens of Equestria slept soundly. They were snuggled up in their beds sleeping peacefully as the night went on. The night went on and before long it was time for morning. For some ponies, the morning came all too soon. Their wake up would not be a good one.

She just lay there, sleeping. Her head was in the pillow as dreams danced about in her subconscious. It had been a good night, if rather uneventful. But now she was dreaming peacefully and even drooling just a little bit. And then suddenly. . . SMACK!

Vinyl sat up in the bed and the pillow slowly slid off her face. She blinked a few times to get the tiredness out of her eyes. One last yawn and she was finally awake enough to be aware of her surroundings. The first thing she saw as her post sleep vision cleared was a dark maned blur darting about the bedroom they shared.

“Hey,” She said with another small yawn, “What was that for?”

“Oh, good. You're awake.” Octavia said.

“Well, yeah. You threw a pillow at me. Why wouldn't I be awake,” Vinyl asked.

“You forget, I have seen you sleep through your own shows,” Octavia replied as she stopped at the end of the bed, still wearing only the night shirt she wore to bed.

“That was only one time, Tavi,” Vinyl said in response. Vinyl took the chance and crept up on Octavia like a wild cat about to pounce on its prey. “And besides, you kept me up that night. Don't you remember?”

“I remember that night all too well,” Octavia said as she looked away. She was only a second away from stepping away from the bed, but a pair of hooves stopped her from going anywhere.

“Good,” Vinyl breathed into her ear, “Then you won't mind a quick reenactment then, would you, Tavi?”

“Oh no,” Octavia said as she pushed her way out of her lovers hooves. “I have a long day of practice ahead of me and I can't spare any time. I know how you get when you're like this. I would be here half the day.”

“I take that as a compliment,” Vinyl replied.

Octavia's day went exactly as she said it would. She spent the whole day with the symphony practicing for an upcoming event. She was one of the best musicians they had and she knew it. Practice to her was getting rather boring at that point. They had been told they had an event coming up, but were spared the details. Needless to say, this annoyed more than just Octavia. So she spent that day just like she did the past several weeks. A long day of boring practice. Many would think that she would come to hate this, these long boring days, but she did not. She didn't hate them because she knew that her home life with Vinyl Scratch was more than enough excitement for her.

Octavia just finished up her piece. Hers ended just a few moments before the rest of the symphony because of the particular number they were doing. For just a few moments she sat in silence as the composer waved the wand, commanding the ponies to sound off in a precise way. It all ended soon enough and they all began to pack up their instruments. She was already halfway packed when everyone else was just getting started. That was when she saw it. The composer was handed a small note. He quickly read it and nearly jumped out of his coat.

“Everyone, please. Can I have you attention,” He said, tapping the wand on the stand on front of him as he spoke. “I have just received wonderful news. We have been requested by Princess Celestia herself for an upcoming celebration.”

Octavia was stunned. This hadn't happened in such a long time. She had played a few royal occasions before, but never at personal request from the Princess. This was big news indeed. The rest of the ponies there were all having the same thoughts she was.

“Now, now,” The composer started speaking again, tapping that wand a few times more, “Settle down now. There is much to discuss. We have been practicing this number for a long time now, and will be performing it at the celebration, but we will also be doing a few others. We will talk more about tomorrow.”

“Wait, that's it?” A pony Octavia recognized from the symphony stepped forward. She didn't know him well, just knew of him really. A nice stallion who played the violin if she was correct. “Can you give us any more information? When is this celebration? What is it for? Anything?”

“I'm afraid I don't know much more than what I have already said,” The composer replied, “I don't know when the celebration will be held. I will have more information tomorrow. As for what it's for I know even less. But it is not our job to know. It is our job to play music. Now go home, all of you. Get some rest.”

Octavia got home a bit later than usual. Only about a half hour or so. She got caught up talking to some ponies at practice. Gossip. Not something she did, really, but this sudden news had her more than a bit curious. Anyway, she got home to find herself staring at a rather odd sight.

It was all normal. Everything was normal. That was most not normal, especially considering who her housemate was. On any given day when she came home and Vinyl wasn't out doing some gig, she came home to find the house shaking itself apart from the force of Vinyl's beats. But not this time. The whole place was quiet, very quiet.

Octavia slowly opened the front door to her house. “Vinyl,” She called out cautiously. Even when she was out, the house was never this quiet. She would always leave some sort of music playing or some recording going. Immediately, she noticed how dark it was. There wasn't a single light on in the whole place. She could barely see in the dark as the waning light from the evening was fading away.

“Vinyl, are you here?”

“In the kitchen, Tavi.”

“Oh, dear. This can't be good.”

Octavia set her cello down and walked into the kitchen. She bumped into a few things as she went, but that didn't stop her. She did a quick check to make sure nothing was broken, but kept going. When she did make it to the kitchen, she found another odd sight.

It was Vinyl, but she looked different. She wasn't wearing her trademark shades for one. Octavia turned the corner to see her lovers red eyes looking back at her. But more than that was the setting. A nice cloth was thrown over the table. Candles were set out with their low flames providing the only light in the darkness. Two plates, each of them covered sat on the table.

“What's all this,” Octavia asked with a slight note of concern in her voice.

“I know how hard you've been practicing lately,” Vinyl said, “I wanted to do something nice for you. This is nice, isn't it?”

Octavia sat down in the chair across from Vinyl. She couldn't deny the beauty in Vinyl's eyes in the candlelight. It gave them a glow that she hadn't seen before in the wild pony. Octavia looked down at the covered plate beneath her and then looked back up at Vinyl.

“This is very sweet of you, Vinyl, but how much did this cost?”

“Hey, I may not be much of a homebody, but that doesn't mean I can't do anything in the kitchen.” Vinyl responded somewhat defensively.

“Ah, I see,” Octavia said as she lifted up the cover to her plate. She set it aside as she stared down at the immaculately created peanut butter and jelly sandwich that lay on the plate. “What really happened?”

Vinyl's head lowered a bit as a nervous smile crept across her face. “I really did try,” She said, “But my first attempt at real cooking failed miserably. Between the smoke alarms and my music blaring, the fuse blew. The whole house went dark, but then I remembered you had some of these fancy candles. I found the tablecloth and the plates in the box with the candles.”

Vinyl was scratching the back of her head nervously as she spoke. Octavia was just staring at her. This was one of those rare moments that she treasured. Here was this wild pony with the loud music and attitude who always seemed to be as far from civilized as a pony could get, yet here she was trying to do something so wonderfully kind and romantic. It was so unlike her, and yet she still did it.

“Thank you, Vinyl,” Octavia said as she took a small bite of the sandwich. It really was a good sandwich.

“Anytime, Tavi.”

“Oh, I don't know about that. I think your ventures into the cooking world should stay in your head.”

“But, Tavi, then how would I make you smile like you are now?”

Octavia finished her bite and looked up at Vinyl. She took a large bite out of her own sandwich was busy chewing it all. There she was. The same wild child pony that she fell in love with.

“Vinyl,” Octavia said. She motioned with her hoof to move a bit closer. Vinyl swallowed her bit and leaned in closer to Tavi. Octavia leaned in closer to her. The two met in the middle and Octavia gave Vinyl a small gift. Vinyl could feel her tongue move across her cheek as she licked a bit of jelly of Vinyl's face. Octavia leaned just a bit farther so she could whisper into Vinyl's ear.

“My dearest Vinyl,” She breathed, “One thing you have always been able to do is make me smile. Don't ever stop.”

===

The next day, in another part of Ponyville a certain young Pegasus was having a good day. Well, every day to her was a good day and this day was no exception. The sun was shining brightly in the sky as it was almost every day, unless there was one of those Ponyville moments where all hell seemed to be breaking loose, but it was not a day like that. There was a nice breeze blowing through the sky and she loved the feeling of it under her wings. She was going to have a good time flying today.

“Eh!” A voice called out from below, “Ditzy Doo! Get your ass down here now!”

Ditzy cringed as the words traveled through the air to meet her ears. This was the voice of the postmaster. It wasn't the normal postmaster of Ponyville, though. He was on leave to see some family off in Manehatten. This was his replacement, and not a real nice one at that.

“Ditzy, you have mail to deliver. You best get to it,” The interim postmaster shouted, “And no mistakes this time!”

He scowled at nothing, the world maybe, and walked back into the post office. Ditzy stood up on her cloud and stretched out all her morning kinks. She did a few test flaps of her wings. All was good. She bounced once on the cloud. Good buoyancy, perfect for take off. She bent her knees slightly and got ready for once last bounce off. But as she left the cloud and landed once again the cloud had a negative reaction. A flash of dark in the cloud and Ditzy was shocked. The next few seconds went by in a bit of a blur, but it happened pretty much like this.

Ditzy was shocked from her bouncing on the cloud. She stood there for a second and huffed out a small puff of smoke. She took a step off the cloud and lost her balance. She could not react fast enough as she plummeted the short distance to the ground. Once she made contact with the ground, which was covered in surprisingly soft grass she rolled a few feet until she collided with her mail bag.

“Hmm,” Ditzy muttered to herself, “I wonder what went wrong.”

Ditzy righted herself and collected a few pieces of mail that escaped her bag. Then she started her day of delivering the mail. She was a Mail Pony after all.

Her first stop, the Cakes! They were getting a lot of mail lately. Well, more than they usually got that is. Ditzy flew through the clear Ponyville skies on her way to Sugarcube Corner. She passed by Roseluck tending to her flowers and waved to her. She waved back in between watering the flowers.

Ditzy passed by the Cutie Mark Crusaders. It was the weekend so they didn't have school. They didn't see Ditzy as she flew above and waved. The three little fillies were much to bust concocting another one of their “Crusades” to find their cutie marks. Ditzy never did understand where they got these ideas from.

Ditzy finally came up on Sugarcube Corner. She glided down on a gentle breeze and came to a slow halt that ended with no accidents. Ditzy felt so proud of herself. She didn't mess up this time. She savored the moment real quick and then went inside. It was still pretty early in the morning so the popular sweets shop was a bit one the empty side. The Cakes were busy in the kitchen baking up some goodies when Ditzy walked in.

“I wonder who that could be at this hour,” Mrs. Cake said as she heard the front door open and close. She came to the front counter to see the one and only. . . “Ditzy Doo! Haven't seen you in here in while. What brings ya by this early?”

Ditzy reached her into her mail bag and grabbed a couple pieces of mail in her mouth. “You hab sum letters,” She said as they fell out of her mouth and onto the floor. Ditzy looked down at the mail and then back up at the Mrs. Cake. “You have some letters,” She repeated.

“Ooh, wonderful. I wonder who they're from,” Mrs. Cake said happily. She was always in a good mood Ditzy noticed. She handed the letters off and moved for the door.

“Oh, Ditzy, wait just a moment. I have something for you.”

“Something for me?” Ditzy responded. This was not normal. She didn't get things back when she delivered the mail. Not usually. But now she was curious.

“Wait right there a moment,” Mrs. Cake said. “I'll be right back.”

Mrs. Cake disappeared into the back again. Ditzy heard her and Mr. Cake talking back and forth a little, but couldn't understand what they were saying. After a moment or so Mrs. Cake reappeared and held something out for Ditzy.

“Muffins!?” Ditzy exclaimed.

“That's right. They are leftovers from a batch that we were about to throw out, but then I remembered how much you loved them. Best to eat the quickly, though, or else they'll go bad.”

“Don't worry, Mrs. Cake. They will be gone by lunch time,” Ditzy said. She turned back and left Sugarcube Corner with her prize. This truly was a great day for her.

Mrs. Cake was about to go back and help Mr. Cake when she remembered the letters that Ditzy gave her. She put them on the counter real quick so she could go and grab the muffins. She picked them up and read them on her way to the back. The first one was nothing of importance. An informational pamphlet about some new miracle baby stuff for the twins. She was quite happy with the stuff she had already. She tossed that one in the trash. It was the second one that got her attention, however. She recognized the envelope. She had seen Pinkie get a couple just like it.

“Dear, come look at this,” She said to Mr. Cake. “I think we have a letter from Princess Celestia.”

“Really?” Mr. Cake replied, “Are you sure?”

“Yes, yes. Come and read this. Hurry!”

Dear Mr. and Mrs. Cake,

I have heard much about you and your delicious delicacies from Twilight and her friends, especially that Pinkie Pie. She speaks very highly of you. I have even been able to sample some of your fine deserts myself, so it makes perfect sense to me that I extend this formal invitation to you both.

Would you please be willing to cater an upcoming celebration I am hosting here at Canterlot Castle? It would mean a lot to both myself and Luna. Please, take some time to think it over. If you do say yes, I will send Spike a scroll with more details enclosed.

Sincerely,

Princess Celestia

“Honey. . . ,” Mrs. Cake said after a brief moment of stunned silence.

“You start the cake mixers, dear. I'll go and get Spike,” Mr. Cake stated firmly as he nearly jumped over the front counter. “That is, of course, if we plan on saying yes.”

“Well, what are you waiting for? Go on, hurry up,” Mrs. Cake replied hurriedly, “And hurry back, too. This cake is gonna take the both of us to pull off.”

Mr. Cake bid his wife a quick farewell and rushed out the door and headed for the castle as fast as he could. He had to talk to Spike as soon as possible and then get back to help Mrs. Cake just as fast. As he ran for the castle another thought crept into the forefront of his mind.

“Oh, we're gonna need a babysitter,” He mumbled to himself and started running even faster.

As he rushed down the streets of Ponyville, Mr. Cake brushed past several ponies. Somehow he managed to throw an apology out there for every pony he came across, and ran over. One such pony just so happened to be a white Unicorn with electric blue hair and a thing for vibrating music.

“Whoa!” Vinyl exclaimed a Mr. Cake shaped blur moved past quickly. She barely heard the apology as her head was still spinning. “Jeez, buddy. What are you in such a hurry about?”

Vinyl shook the whole thing off and walked back over to the table where her better half was sitting. Octavia waved to her as she walked up. Vinyl smiled back and sat down across from Octavia. It was a good day, and Vinyl was happy.

Vinyl was happy because Octavia was happy, and Octavia was happy because of her, so that made her even happier. For a moment her mind drifted back to the previous night. No electricity, no music. Just candlelight and emotions. Normally, that would have driven her crazy, but Octavia found a few ways to distract her until morning came.

“Vinyl.” The voice brought her back from her oh so pleasant memories.

“Huh? Yeah, what is it, Tavi?”

“I was going to ask you the same thing,” Octavia said, “You were totally zoned out, as you would say, for a moment.”

“Oh, it's nothing,” Vinyl brushed away the thought. Normally, she would have made a naughty joke, but they were in public and Tavi would just have kicked her under the table for being indecent.

“Well, I just want to thank you again for treating me to a nice breakfast. I really do appreciate it, Vinyl.”

Vinyl smiled. She loved it when she made Octavia happy. “Well, I wanted you to eat something nice before your big day, and we both know how my last cooking venture went.”

Octavia reached out and took Vinyl's hooves in her own. They met at the center of the table and Octavia looked deeply into Vinyl's shades. When she first met Vinyl, she had never before seen a pony where anything like them, and like most ponies she couldn't see her eyes behind them. But now, in that moment, she could. She could make out a hint of red gleaming from behind the purple lenses. It was one of those moments that doesn't come around often. And it was all ruined by a muffin.

It came crashing down from the skies like a comet from the heavens. Vinyl barely saw it out of the corner of her eye as it came down. She quickly pushed Octavia's hooves back and leaned back herself as it hit the table. The muffin struck the table with an audible thud and bounced once before stopping.

“Sorry,” Ditzy said she dropped down to the table, barely hovering above the ground. “Oh my! I'm really sorry. I don't know what happened. I didn't mess anything up, did I?”

“Just the moment, Ditz, just the moment,” Vinyl stated flatly. She slammed her head down onto the table. For a second she stayed there before picking the muffin up and handing it to Ditzy. “Here you go. Just take it.”

Vinyl's outstretched hoof went right up to Ditzy's nose, but she didn't feel her take the letter. In fact she didn't feel anything to do with her hoof. She just kept her head on the table for a solid minute and by then she knew something wasn't right.

“Are you going to take the damn muffin or not,” Vinyl asked as she looked up, only to find that Ditzy was already three bites into the muffin and in its place in Vinyl's hoof was an envelope.

“By the way,” Ditzy said between bites, “You got a letter.”

“What the- How did you- When- ” Vinyl stammered, “Whoa. Did you see that, Tavi?”

“Yes, now are you going to open it or not?”

Vinyl just shrugged off what just happened. She was definitely still curious, but she knew she would probably have forgotten the whole thing by the next day anyway. She just let it go and set her mind on the letter she got. Which was weird. She didn't get letters. This was new.

Vinyl took the envelope up in her magic field and tore the top open to get at the paper inside. She tossed the envelope aside when she had the paper out. She leaned in closer and quickly read through what was written.

Dear Vinyl Scratch,

I have heard from several ponies that you are a pony of music. My sister and I are having a celebration later on and I would like to invite you to come and be my musical guest. I am sure Celestia will have found some old, boring, musical group by now, but I would like something more fun and upbeat, something truly worthy of the party that I am sure this will become. That is where you come in.

Take some time, think it over and then get back me as soon as your able. With you there, I am sure this will be the party of the year!

Sincerely,

Princess Luna

“Vinyl, dear. Are you alright? What does it say?” Octavia asked, noticing that she was in some sort of discomfort.

Vinyl scanned through it once more. She stifled her laughter and handed off the piece of paper to Octavia. She took it in her hooves and read it thoroughly. Her expression gave away how she felt the further down she read. She started with a neutral, yet curious look and that spiraled into the annoyed and quite confused look she now wore.

“What is the meaning of this?” She almost screamed out the words. “Why are you laughing?”

“Sorry,” Vinyl said, “But she assumed Celestia found some 'old, boring, pony for music. If only she knew how awesome you really were.”

“Well that makes me feel better, but this is still a problem,” Octavia said. “What are we going to do? Princess Celestia wants the symphony, yet Princess Luna has asked for you by name.”

“Maybe we should go and find out what the whole gig is all about,” Vinyl suggested, “Ya know, see if we even want to do it.”

“Oh, one of us is definitely doing something,” Octavia said seriously, “We need the bits to fix electricity, remember?”

“I was trying not to, but thanks for bringing it up again,” Vinyl replied with her face in the table again. “Well, lets go and sort this mess out. Hey, if we both play do ya think we'll get paid separately or what?”

The two mares walked off towards their house and left Ditzy standing there with a mouthful of muffin crumbs. She just kinda stood there for a moment before flying off to deliver the rest of the mail. She just so happened to pass by the castle as she flew. A window was open and she saw Spike as she flew by. She waved at him, but he didn't wave back. He was busy.

Spike was just finishing putting the last few words on the scroll when Ditzy flew by. He didn't even register her as she passed. His mind was a million miles away as his body moved on its own. He had done this so many time he could probably do it in his sleep if Twilight asked him to. He wrapped the scroll up and held it high in one hand. He took a deep breath and exhaled the green flames that would take the scroll all the way to Celestia.

===

The scroll popped into being in front of Celestia. She took it and read through it real quickly.

“Good news, Luna. The Cakes agreed to cater the event,” Celestia announced.

“I told you they would. It was almost a certainty. Not even worth betting a few bits on.” Cadence said.

“Okay, Cadence,” Celestia rolled her eyes. “Have you handled the musical arrangements?”

“I have,” She replied, “I got the Canterlot Symphony. How does that sound?”

Luna turned around to face the princess. They were all doing equal work trying to handle the party arrangements. Normally, they wouldn't be doing such things, but the best party planners they knew were unreachable. Pinkie Pie was on her way back, but they wanted the party to be ready by then, and they also wanted it to be a surprise. Cheese Sandwich was nowhere to be found. Celestia sent out some scouts, but so far they have found nothing. And so that left the task up to them. And now Celestia was standing there with a smile on her face at the thought of a symphony.

“It sounds awful, Cadence” Luna stated. “It really does.”

“I like a good symphony,” Celestia interjected.

“Oh, really? And do you have any better ideas, Luna?” Cadence asked.

“As a matter a fact I do,” Luna replied. Her horn sparked with magic and a small flash of light revealed a poster. It was from the walls of her chambers. Luna held it out proudly and smiled at Celestia. “I have already made contact with her and am awaiting a response.”

Cadence leaned in closer to read the oddly drawn letters of the poster. “DJ PON-3? Who in the world is this?”

“Oh, her real name is Vinyl Scratch,” Luna said, “I actually learned of her through a dream, and then I did some research on my own. She will really liven the party up.”

“Absolutely not!” Cadence exclaimed loudly, “I will not have some random club pony you found dream surfing at this celebration.”

Luna stared at her sister for a moment. She was not going to back down. Cadence always stood firm when she made a decision. Impressively so. Annoyingly so. “Care to make a bet on it?” Luna asked after a moment, still staring.

“A bet? You really think something like that will work-”

“Hey, if you can't do it-”

“IT'S ON!” Cadence roared, “What are the terms, Princess?”

“Simple,” Luna said with a devious smile, “If I lose, I will dress in a ridiculous clown outfit and ride a unicycle through Canterlot telling terribly bad jokes to everypony.”

“And if I should lose,” Cadance asked.

“You will dress as a sexy Cupid and fly through the Crystal Empire shooting ponies in the butt with fake arrows and telling them to kiss.”

“I like it,” Celestia said as she faced the two other princess's, “But just to make this a little more interesting, if this should end in a draw, or a stalemate, or anything other than one of you winning you both do the embarrassing things you just said. Understood?”

“Deal,” Luna and Cadence said simultaneously as they shook hooves on it.

The two stood there each with a look of determination in their eyes. Celestia said what she said and then got back to doing what she was doing. The one thing she didn't like about her job. She hated it, and she wasn't afraid to say so. It was the paperwork. But thankfully a well timed interruption was about to come knocking.

“Excuse me, your Highness's.”

“Enter,” Celestia said.

A pair of guard ponies entered the room with another pony behind them. “Your guest has arrived.”

“Ah, yes. We have been waiting for him,” Celestia said, “Thank you. You may go now.”

The two guards left the room and left the other pony with the princess's. He watched the guards leave nervously before turning back around. His head came back to find three of the most powerful ponies in all of Equestria staring him down.

“Hello, Private Eye,” Celestia stated, “Nice to finally meet you.”

Yay, They're Back!

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“Is everything ready?” Celestia asked. Luna and Cadence glared at each other under Celestia's imposing figure. Neither of them answered, and neither of them moved. They were annoyed.

“What is it this time?”

“The musical guests haven't arrived,” Luna said.

“Really,” Celestia said, unable to suppress her shock, “Which one?”

“Both of them,” Cadence said through grinding teeth. Her voice was heavy with a tone implying that Luna had something to do with it. Luna got the implication and raised her head high like the regal princess she was.

“The party does not start for another few hours yet,” She said, “We shall have to wait and see which of us wins our wager.”

“Agreed,” Cadence replied, “It seems that is the only thing left to do other than look for them ourselves.”

“Nay, Cadence. We are much to busy for that,” Luna said as she walked off. Cadence followeed behind her after she realized that Luna was right. They were busy with the party. And so the two princess's left Celestia standing by herself.

She stood in the middle of the room. All around her ponies buzzed about doing their duties. There were dozens more ponies than usual in the castle so they could set up for the party. Celestia watched as they styled and decorated the room.

“Hmm, not bad.”

===

Austin stared at Tessla. He looked into his friends mismatched eyes. At the moment, he was the opponent. They were enemies, locked in combat on the field of battle. And the battle was intense. Hit for hit, strike for strike. They went back and forth for many rounds, but Austin was losing this battle.

“King me,” Tessla said.

Austin looked at the board. Somehow, in the last two and half seconds Tessla had jumped half his pieces and was now demanding a king. He hated checkers.

“Hello there.” Fluttershy walked in and sat down to watch them. “How are you doing today?”

“Pretty good,” Tessla said. He moved his rook in position and destroyed Austin's last pawn. Austin smiled and made his move. He was good at chess. He usually won. “Can't complain. How bout you, Fluttershy?”

“Oh, I'm doing just fine. I'm so glad to be heading home.” She said, “We are gonna be in Canterlot soon, too.”

Austin nodded and moved around his pieces as the game of Chinese Checkers moved into full gear. Tessla said something back to Ben as he moved his own pieces around. Ben watched them closely as their battle continued.

Ben came in in the next few moments. He closed the door behind him and walked up to the three of them. He was about to speak when he looked down and saw the strange battle of board games going on. He watched as Austin let loose the metal ball in the game of mouse trap. Miraculously, it went all the way around and didn't stop once. Fluttershy seemed equally confused but didn't say anything.

“Do you know what's going on,” HE asked her. She shook her head and kept watching the two.

“YAHTZEE!” Tessla shouted as the five dice came to a dull stop on the table. Austin stared down at the five dice, each of them with the number six facing up. Austin hated Yahtzee. His luck was always terribly bad whenever he played.

“Whoa,” Ben said, “What just happened?”

“I have no idea,” Austin answered, “But I'm pretty sure I lost.”

Tessla took a small bow and packed up the box. Each side of the box was a different board game. IT all folded up nicely into a cube. All the pieces went inside and Tessla tossed it out a window after he was done.

“Well, that was fun.”

“I'm still not sure what happened,” Fluttershy said, “It was kind of hard to follow.”

They all stood there in an awkward silence for a moment. Tessla was looking at the watch he didn't have on. Ben was thinking about the Changelings. Fluttershy and Austin traded a few glances, but nothing really happened. Finally the awkwardness was broken, shattered by the appearances of more ponies.

“Hey guys,” Applejack said, “We're gonna be in Canterlot in 'bout ten minutes. Ah can't tell ya how excited ah am.”

“Are you kidding me,” Dash exclaimed as she flew over Applejack's head. “That was an awesome trip. Haven't had a vacation like that in years.”

“You cannot be serious, Rainbow Dash,” Rarity said. Applejack moved farther in and took a seat so she could get in. “A lot of ponies were very hurt, and you yourself got an injured wing. The Changeling attack was quite serious.”

“I know,” Dash said as she looked back at her bandaged wing. “They ruin everything.”

“Hey now,” Ben said, “Changelings don't ruin everything, Dash.”

“Says the guy that literally professed his love for the bugs,” Dash replied, “That is really weird, man. I mean really, freakin' weird.”

“Well, it was most definitely unexpected,” Twilight said. She came in with her brother right behind her. He was still recovering from his own injuries. He didn't say anything as he moved past them all and took a seat near the doors.

“So, how are the ponies in the back doing,” Austin asked. The back two cabins of the train had been converted into makeshift medical cabins. They all had to work on getting the ponies in and out carefully.

“Good,” Twilight said, “They're all stable and doing well. The pain is sometimes too much for some of them.”

“Well, that's probably my fault a little bit,” Pinkie Pie said as she bounced in. She just stay there and bounced for a bit while also eating a doughnut. It had sprinkles on it. She took a big bite and savored the taste for a second.

“I didn't know there were doughnuts,” Austin mumbled with some dissappointment.

“I keep making them laugh. They're busting guts in there,” Pinkie finally finished her thoughts, “But not really, because then they would be dead. Or maybe zombie ponies. Wait, no! That would be bad. Like, really super duper, ultra bad of the most baddest bad there can be. I don't want to trapped on a train with a bunch of zombie ponies. Run for your lives!”

Pinkie shuddered for a second before running full speed back into the cabin full of injured ponies. A moment later and they all heard a sprinkle filled scream that sounded a lot like the word 'zombies'. Pinkie crashed through the door and hurriedly closed it behind her. She placed Ben against it and sighed with relief.

Pinkie smiled nervously, “Hehe. Wrong door.”

The scene was interrupted by a voice coming over the speakers. It carried through the cabins and the voice gave them all the news. They were pulling into the Canterlot train station now. All of them hurried about excitedly and got their stuff together. They didn't have to much to get around but they still had to get it all. Tessla grabbed the one bag he had. As he moved through the cabin for the doors a thought occurred to him.

“Hmm, I just thought of something.”

“What is it, Tessla?”

“Why didn't we just take the train there in the first place?”

Celestia stood between Luna and Cadence. They still weren't talking to each other. Neither of the musical acts they had bet on had showed up. On some level they each blamed the other and that was the source of much of the animosity between them On the other hoof it was the bet itself that caused it. They both had to do ridiculous things if they lost, and they were both losing. Out of the three of them only Celestia was smiling.

“Come now, smile,” She said the unhappy two. “I'm sure it will still be a great party.”

Both Luna and Cadence traded a glance between them. Luna grumbled something about something and Cadence mumbled something under her breath. Celestia's smile was slowly fading. This was not going well.

“The humans will be here soon,” Celestia said, “Don't you want them to see you happy?”

Celestia got a response this time from both of them. It was more of a response than last time. Both of them lifted their heads up and smiled at her. It was not a big smile, but a smile. It also wasn't the smile she wanted. They put on the fake smile royalty came to know all to well as they wore it when dealing with ponies they didn't like, but had to put up with anyway.

“Well fine then,” Celestia said as she walked toward the entrance to the hall, “I guess I will be the only one happy to see them all again.”

“Auntie Tia,” Cadence said, “I'm sorry.”

“As am I, dear sister,” Luna said.

“Good,” Celestia said as she turned back to them. “Because they will be here any-”

“AAAAHHHHH! They're here! There they are. Right there. That's them. The humans,” A pony shouted out from close to the doors.

“Places everypony!” Celestia called out and they all scrambled to get to where they were supposed to be.

One the ponies turned the lights down real low until there was nothing but a dull glow emanating from just a few sources. The curtains were closed. No candles were lit. Luna hushed all the ponies there until not even a mouse could be heard scuttling across the floor in his quest for cheese. Everything came to a still as they waited and watched the doors.

With all eyes on the doors they opened wide. A light, brilliant and illuminating, poured into darkened room. Dark silhouetted forms could be seen against the harsh light. Three of them tall and strong with smaller forms taking up spots on either side. Together they all walked in, although they moved cautiously.

“SURPRISE!!!” The lights flared up in a flash, momentarily blinded the group that just walked in. As the lights came on the ponies jumped out.

First came the three Princess's. They jumped out from behind the thrones and shouted out the word with all their might. Luna had to keep her voice under control, however, lest the royal canterlot voice deafen a few ponies near to her. Celestia was a little late on the leap, but she didn't let that bother her. She was fairly certain nopony saw anyway.

After that ponies started coming out from everywhere. They came from behind the columns. They appeared from the shadows like creepy night stalkers wearing oddly bright and formal wear. Ponies flew down from the ceilings and the windows and landed all around them. The group blinked collectively a few times and stared out at the ponies.

“Surprise!” Ditzy said as she jumped up to them all.

“Consider me surprised,” Austin said.

They all looked out over the ponies. Many of them were ponies they knew. At least half of Ponyville was there, and that wasn't all. There were ponies from every city here. Some were here just to meet the humans for the first time.

“We had hoped you would be,” Celestia said. “We had to put this all together ourselves. The best party planner we knew was gone.” Celestia gave Pinkie a look and Pinkie blushed a bit and then bust out the party cannon.

“I thought there would be music,” Rarity said, “A nice orchestra or something.”

“Oh, you want music do you,” Tessla said. “ Then I have just the thing.”

===

“LET'S PINK THIS UP A NOTCH!!!”

“Pinkie Pie, don't interrupt him.”

Utterly shocked “Fluttershy?! When did you get here?”

“I've been here for a while. Didn't you know?”

“WOAH! You are a friggin ninja, Fluttershy. I had no idea you showed up.”

Slightly hurt feelings “Oh, okay then.”

“Don't feel bad, Shy. She didn't notice me either.”

“Applejack?! You're, like, the least sneaky one. How did I not notice you?”

“You were to busy scaring the poor fella away”

“Oh, that makes sense. Where were we?”

“I think we were just about to find out what happened to the music.”

“Well then. Let's pay attention.”

===

Octavia sat with Vinyl. They sat across from each other in their kitchen. Each of them glared at the other, or at least Octavia thought Vinyl was glaring at her. It was nearly impossible to tell with her shades on. It was made even more so by the fact that they still didn't have electricity. A lantern swung lazily above them, hung up by Vinyl's magic.

“So, which on of us is going?” Octavia asked for the third time.

“I already told you, Tavi,” Vinyl said with a yawn, “I don't care.”

“And I told you that I don't believe you,” Octavia shouted, “Just the other day you were saying how you wanted another gig, and now you are willing to just pass on the Princess's personal invitation? Ha! Like I am supposed to believe that.”

“Tavi, did you ever wonder why I am saying no to the Princess's invite,” Vinyl asked with sigh. “It's because of you, but not for the reasons you think.”

“Me?” Octavia said. She repeated the word in her head a few time. Whatever could she possibly mean by that. What was this mare up to?

“The royal stuff is more your speed, Tavi,” Vinyl said, “I mean, would a like to go? Hell, yeah! It's Princess Luna herself asking for me, and the money would be nice too. But I know it would mean more to you than it would to me. So I want you to go.”

Octavia felt all the emotions that she was feeling start to fade away and melt. She could feel her heart beating faster and faster in her chest. She stared at Vinyl across the table and couldn't hold back the feelings she was feeling. As she stared she came to realize that Vinyl was only wearing her shades so she couldn't see her eyes, as they gave her away every time. Octavia didn't resist the urge she felt as she reached over the table and wrapped her hooves around the Unicorn.

“I love you, Vinyl.”

. . . . .

“Vinyl?”

Octavia looked down at where Vinyl should have been. She was just there a second ago. Where did she go? Octavia looked around the room. It was there house. There were no trap doors or secret passages as far as she knew. Octavia stared at the floor for a moment as she thought about it.

“Vinyl, where did you go?”

Vinyl was asking herself that very same thing. One second she was feeling Octavia's hooves as they moved to embrace her, and the next she was staring at the strangest thing she had ever seen. Two legs, tall, long hair, and two eyes of different colors.

“What the hell is going on?”

“HA! I WIN!”

All eyes turned to stare at the overly excited Princess of the Night. After a moment she realized how loud she had been and backed up with some slight embarrassment. Cadence stared blankly at the white Unicorn with the electric blue mane.

“I lost,” She said as horrifying images of her in a sexy cupid outfit flooded her mind. Ponies were laughing at her. None were taking her seriously. Her powers of love dwindling away. And yet, somehow she knew that Shining Armor was going to love this.

“Uh, Tessla,” Austin said, “As much as you like Vinyl, don't you think you should probably get some more appropriate music?”

“Like what?”

“Let me put it this way,” Austin said as she pointed to the very confused Vinyl Scratch. “You already got half of them here.”

“Why didn't I think of that,” Tessla remarked as he snapped his fingers.

===

Octavia sat in her chair at the table. She was still coming to grips with the fact that Vinyl had just up and disappeared on her. She wasn't sure how she did it, either. Octavia knew her lover was a Unicorn but she had never before done anything like this.

“Vinyl, I swear if this is some sick joke I will lock you out of this house for the next two weeks!”

Octavia looked around the room, but all she got in response was silence. She was starting to worry. What could have happened to Vinyl? Where could she have gone? And how did she get there? Around that time darker thoughts started to flow into her mind. What if she was taken? By some pony, or some thing?

“AH! What was that!?!” Octavia said as she leaped on top of the table in a fit of fright. Her head swiveled around as she tried to watched every direction at once. One of her hooves knocked over the salt shaker and she jumped back down to her chair.

“I don't know what's going on!”

At that exact moment Octavia noticed something. Her senses were working in overdrive, but even if they weren't she would've seen this. It was a light. The light was coming from the floor. Beams of it danced around the room and she just watched them for a moment.

“What the-”

Octavia followed the path of the light beams down to the floor. Her eyes fell upon a swirling mass of energy underneath her chair. It turned and swirled and Octavia came to the conclusion that it was bad. She also decided it was time to scream again.

“AAAHHHHHH!” She screamed as she and the chair she was sitting in fell down into the portal. The portal closed and the candles went out.

===

A portal opened above the heads of Tessla and Austin. They both simultaneously took a step back as a screaming came from said portal. A second later and a chair fell out of. Attached to the chair was a pony, screaming and clutching the chair like it was her lover.

“Tavi!”

Octavia looked up from the back of the chair to see Vinyl rushing up to her. Before she could react Vinyl tackled her off the chair and embraced her in a warm hug. Vinyl held her close for a moment. She nuzzled her shades into her mane, and Octavia didn't mind.

“Tavi, are you dead too?”

“What?” Octavia exclaimed with surprise, “What do you mean dead?”

“I am dead, aren't I?” Vinyl said as she looked herself over. “That's the only reason I can come up with as to how I ended up at such a strange, and boring place. Am I wrong?”

“Vinyl,” Octavia said with a smile as she shook her head. Sometimes the mare could be such an airhead. “This is the Royal Canterlot Castle. This must be the party we were both invited to.”

“Oh,” Was all Vinyl said. She looked around the large room all the ponies were gathered in. The huge pillars held up the vaulted ceiling far above them. The stained glass windows let in a lot of light now that the curtains had been opened up. Not that she could really tell any colors apart with her shades on.

“I've never been here before,” She stated plainly.

“What?” Octavia looked at her with wide eyes. “You have never played for the Princess's, and you were still willing to give it up? For me?”

“Well, yeah. I'd give up a whole lot more for you, Tavi,” Vinyl said.

“I love you, Vinyl Scratch.”

“Yeah, You too, Tavi,” Vinyl said. “Now, why don't we make this real party?”

The touching moment was interrupted by the sounds coming from the side. The two mares looked over to see three strange creatures standing there. One of them was holding a small napkin and his lip was quivering. It was the large one.

“That was so much love,” Ben said. “I promised myself I wouldn't cry.”

“Don't mind him,” Tessla said. “Follow me and I'll get you set up with your instruments and stuff.”

Tessla walked off with the two mares. He was smiling happily. Other than Zecora, those two were probably his favorite ponies. He started up some small talk with them as they went. Pretty soon they were out of earshot and Austin was left with a teary eyed Ben. He handed him a glass of milk and moved off in another direction. Meanwhile, two Princess were having a very intense debate.

“You can't win, Luna. My musical guest showed up!”

“But mine did arrive before yours, Cadence,” Luna said, “And one more thing. Your guest was the entire symphony, not just one pony. So technically, only a small part of your musical act arrived.”

“Oh, please. That so doesn't count!”

“I'm counting it,” Celestia said as she butted in with a plate floating next to her. She levitated a bite of cake and ate it quickly. The two looked up at her and waited for hew wise decision to be placed with them. Celestia wiped a few crumbs away with a napkin and smiled. “You both lose.”

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wNmet9lILy0

The music washed over them. It moved across the air waves as they played. All of the ponies were drawn to it. Vinyl and Octavia stood upon the stage and played. The ponies gathered around and listened as the music washed over them. Tessla had set them up with absolutely everything to two of them needed. He stood off to the side and slowly moved his head to the music. Austin and Ben stood with him. Ben had stopped crying and their eyes were as glued to the stage as any other pony's.

Celestia stood with Cadence and Luna. Their eyes were locked onto the scene, their ears pointed toward the music as they did everything to hear every note and beat that was played. They listened well and watched in awe. Two ponies, two musics, each as different from the other as they could be. And yet, they came together in such perfect harmony. The sounds they made, it was. . .

“Beautiful,” Cadence said with Luna. Celestia smiled. For the first time since the party had started those two weren't thinking of that stupid bet.

Parteus Interruptus

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“Seriously? What kind of a title is that? Hey, narrator guy! Answer me, will ya!”

“Now, now. Don't frighten him into leaving again, Pinkie darling.”

“Huh? Oh, hi Rarity. When did you get here?”

“Just now. Thanks for noticing.”

“You're welcome, Rares. Now, back to the title!”

Slightly annoyed “It says party in the title. I thought you'd like it.”

“I don't speak no pig Latin! You fail as a narrator!”

Even more slightly annoyed “It's not pig Latin! It's Pink Latin!”

“Oh, really?” Reading title again “Oh, yeah. I guess that makes more sense. Carry on.”

===

The party went on for hours after Vinyl and Octavia started playing. The ponies partied to their hearts content. It was a really good party. A bit more exciting and playful than most parties that took place at the Royal Castle, but still not anywhere near as most of the parties Pinkie planned. And yet she was having a wonderful time, and made sure to praise the Princess's on their collective party planning skills. Austin and Tessla watched from their places against a far wall. Parties weren't really their scene.

“Hey, humans. . .” A voice called to them from a nearby table. “”mere.”

Austin made his way over to the table and sat down opposite a pony. He seemed to have lost all his wits. Several punch cups littering the table told Austin that he had partaken of the punch. It was apparently spiked sometime earlier and it was clear this pony had drunk quite a lot of it. Tessla joined him as a sober pony sat down as well. It was clear he was sober by the way he acted to the other pony and the cups. Brushing them off and focusing on the humans.

“”Ey there, Boss,” The drunken pony said, “Ah found the humans for ya, just like ya wanta me to.”

“I apologize for my associate,” Said the sober one. He pushed the glassed he wore up a bit and levitated a card from his shirt pocket. “My name is Long Story, and I am a reporter for the Manehatten Chronicle. My associate is from the less reputable Fillydelphia Herald.”

“Hey!” The drunken pony hollered as he lifted his head off the table, “That ain't nice.”

“Oh, please! You are just one of a long line of drunken idiots to come out of that office.”

“Enough!” Austin said sternly, and just loud enough to get their attention without causing a scene “You wanted to see us for some reason I'm guessing.”

“Apologies,” The sober one said, “Yes, we did. We have been paired together by our cities to get an exclusive with you. Our readers want to read about you and we want answers.”

“To what questions?” Tessla asked.

“Where you came from. How you met. How long have you known each other. When and where did you meet up? Those sort of questions.”

“You want background on us,” Austin said, “Our back stories.”

“Precisely!”

“'Eah, wat he said.”

“Where do you want to start?” Austin asked.

The sober pony recoiled back quickly. So quickly, in fact, that his glasses slid down to the end of his nose and hung there for a half a second before falling off. His wide eyes didn't leave Austin's face as Austin himself caught the glasses in a field of magic. He lifted only a hand to place the glasses back on Long Story's face.

“You seem surprised,” Austin said.

“I just wasn't expecting you to be this cooperative, to be honest,” He replied. He took off his glasses and wiped them down with a small cloth from his pocket, as if Austin had somehow dirtied them up with his own magic. Austin chose to ignore it as the pony continued to talk.

“From everything we've heard, you humans can be quite uncooperative at times.”

“Where did you hear that?” Tessla asked.

The drunken pony looked up and placed a hooves a on the table. In a moment of rather certain clarity he focused his eyes on Tessla. He leaned over the table to the point where he almost fell onto it. He was almost close enough to take the place in between him and Austin. He stared at Tessla and just narrowed his eyes. “We have our sources,” He said, and then he returned to his drunken stupor.

“That is why I will never drink,” Tessla said.

“Agreed,” Austin responded.

“Well then,” Long Story said with an ink pen and paper pad ready, “Shall we begin?”

===

“I met Tessla and Ben in high school, but at different times,” Austin said, “Tessla was a year ahead of me and Ben a year behind. I met Tessla first, in a weight lifting class of all things. The two most unfit guys there. We drifted closer because of that. We talked, and became friends. Been that way ever since.”

“I see,” Long Story, “Truly the makings of a great friendship. And how long ago was that exactly?”

“Years,” Tessla said, “Many years. Don't remembered the exact date.”

“And what of this Ben? How did you meet him?”

“Well, I met him first,” Austin said. “My last year of high school I found myself alone most of the time. Tessla had already graduated, and we didn't talk much. Not for lack of trying. Eventually, a few other kids found their way over to me. Ben was one of them. We had a lot in common. We laughed and joked and became friends just like me and Tessla did. A while after that and I introduced Ben and Tessla. We all got along real well.”

“Of course, a big part of that was ponies,” Tessla said, “All of us being bronies and what not.”

“Bronies?” Long Story inquired.

“Tessla,” Austin said with a rough smile, “I thought we agreed to keep words like that to ourselves.”

“Sorry, it just slipped out,” Tessla said apologetically.

“I dun understan,” The drunk pony said all of the sudden.

“Holy crap,” Tessla said, “I honestly forgot you were there.”

“Waz this word mean? Brony?”

“It's a term from our world,” Austin said, “Long story short, it means we are fans of ponies and just about anything related to ponies.”

“Hey guys,” Ben said as he planted his rump in a seat beside Tessla. “What's going on?”

Long Story introduced himself to Ben and gave him a card. He didn't bother with introducing his drunk associate as Ben clearly had no interest in him. He did a quick recap of what the other two had told him and nodded along with what the pony said.

“Yep. Sounds about right,” Ben said after.

“Wonderful!,” Long Story exclaimed joyfully. “This will make a most excellent story. Just one final thing.”

“What is it?”

Long Story pushed his glasses up again and a smile most sinister crept along his face. He glared at them behind his lenses and his voice changed to something almost opposite what it just was. “What have you to say for yourselves in regards to your activities since coming to our fair land of Equestria?”

“What do you mean,” Austin said. He had a hunch what this was about, and it wasn't going to be good.

“Why, the danger you present of course,” Long Story said. “Since you have arrived we have seen an increase in dangerous events occurring all over Equestria. Timberwolves in Ponyville, Changelings in the barren lands, and that is just some of the events that involve you three. How many more ponies will be put in harms way because of you?”

Austin stared in the eyes of the pony across from him. His eyes didn't stray and his face didn't change. He could feel Tessla next to him. His power was rising up. False accusations really pissed him off. He sensed a change in Ben as well, but he kept it contained better than Tessla did.

“Luna is waving me over,” Austin said without breaking eye contact with Long Story. “I'll be back.”

Austin got up and and placed a hand on Ben's right shoulder. A slight squeeze told him not to answer any more of this pony's questions. No good could come of it. As he moved to his feet, thought, Austin gave a small piece of advice to Tessla.

“Not here,” He whispered in passing. Tessla understood what he meant and pushed back the magic in him. The thought, however, replayed in his mind a few dozen more times. As Tessla and Ben sat with Long Story he casually looked back over his shoulder and saw that Luna was indeed waiting as she watched Austin approach.

“What's wrong,” Austin said as he came up to Luna.

“Nothing,” Luna said with a smile, “Nothing you need to worry about at least.”

“Luna, come on,” Austin said with a sly smile, “What is it?”

“I don't know why I'm telling you this, but here it is,” Luna said, “An envoy from a a foreign country was supposed to meet us later this week. We just received word that he has arrived early.”

“He's here now, isn't he,” Austin guessed. He knew he was right when Luna's expression changed.

“We know he is in Equestria, but we aren't sure where exactly,” Luna said, “And the report says that he brought a small force with him.”

“Luna, who is this guy?”

Just then the sounds of the party were silenced. The doors to the great hall where the party was being held were opened suddenly. A few ponies were forced to scramble to a different place or be pinned behind one of the large and heavy doors. A surprising amount of light streamed in as a single figure made his way into the room. He was silhouetted against the light but the details of his form came into view as he got further and further inside. Ponies moved to either side of the room, parting to let this mysterious figure on a path that lead right to the Princess's, and to Austin.

“Please, do not ztop on my account,” He said. His accent was thick, but his English near perfect.

Celestia and Luna came up to meet him halfway. They approached him carefully. More carefully than they would anyone else Austin noticed. Who was this guy? There was one thing about him that Austin noticed almost immediately. Anyone there would have seen it too. This figure, this mysterious one, he was a zebra. His stripes could be seen underneath the form fitting, yet flowing robes he wore.

“Hello, Ambassador.” Princess Celestia said with a small bow. “A pleasure to meet you.”

“You az well, Princess. Tell me, what iz the cause for such grand celebration?”

“Peace,” Luna stated calmly, “We are finally at peace with the Changelings.”

“I zee,” He said with a nod. “Even in my homeland we know of ze Changelings and their magics. A dangerous enemy. How were you able to defeat zem?”

“We had some assistance in that matter,” Celestia said. Her and Luna stepped to the side and left a line of sight open to Austin. The zebra looked at him intently. He was finding it hard to believe that just one of any creature could take on the entire Changeling horde. As Austin was never fond of having the spotlight thrust upon him he gestured for Ben and Tessla to join him. Then it clicked.

“I zee now,” The zebra said, “Word haz spread far about the three strangers that fell from the sky in a rain of fire. These must be the three. And such strange zings they are.”

“And here it thought we were past that,” Ben said under his breath.

“Allow me to introduce myself,” The zebra said, “I am Warchief Zakir of the great Zebrican Nation. It iz an honor to meet you.”

“You as well,” Austin said with a forced smile. He made sure to put some emphasis on the next word. It seemed the most important thing the zebra said in that entire sentence and Austin wanted to make sure he had it right. “Warchief.”

“Ha. An old title,” Zakir stated, “More tradition now than anyzing else. It iz important to hang onto tradition. Especially in my homeland.”

“Of course,” Austin agreed with a slight, polite nod of his head. “Is there a matter you wished to discuss with the Princess's?”

“Oh no. Not at ze moment,” Zakir said. “I just wanted to come and thank Prinzess Celestia herself for generously extending the off for me andz a few of my fellow zebras to come and visit.”

“It was my pleasure,” Celestia responded, “We are all glad to have you here. I'm sure there is much our two nations can learn from one another.”

“I would hope so,” Zakir blurted out with much enthusiasm, “Many storiez have been told of Equestria. Storiez of adventures full if magic, and villains. It iz my hope to get even a small glimpse of that during my stay.”

“Well, I'm sure you will find everything you are looking for,” Luna stated with a smile.

Zakir looked into the eyes of the Princesses. There was something about his eyes that put them on edge, but none could say exactly what it was. It was just a feeling they had that they couldn't quite explain. The three of them continued to put up the royal image they had to uphold as he stared at them.

“Yes, I am zure I will,” Zakir said as he moved for the door. He quickly exited the room and moved down the long corridors of the Royal Caste. A silence hung around long after he left, lingering in the air like a foul mist. Not a word was spoken, not a sound was made until everypony was sure that Warchief Zakir was away from the castle.

“What was that all about,” Twilight asked when she came up to the Princesses and Austin.

“I'm not sure exactly,” Celestia said, “But I have a bad feeling things will only get worse as the situation unfolds.”

Life Goes On. . . Still

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The weeks following the party were good. The three humans were hailed as heroes throughout Equestria. Ben in particular was in the spotlight. Word had spread among the ponies about how he defeated the entire Changeling horde with just three words. Three words with so much power behind them. Power enough to thrust Ben into history and end a war before it truly started. And that was just what happened after the attack. The Changeling Assault was brutal, but Ben was known for standing his ground. He was the immovable object placed between ponies and the danger presented. Ben took the fight so they didn't have to, and he was glad to do it. As for Austin and Tessla, they were becoming famous in there own ways.

Tessla was less known than the other two, but that was quickly changing. He was coming to be known as the human that really helped the ponies. The story of the Changeling assault on the camp had spread like wildfire through the cities and towns. Everypony knew it or heard in some way, some version of it. And yet one thing remained true to all variations. Tessla stayed. When both Ben and Austin left to do what they did, Tessla stayed behind with the ponies and protected them. He made sure the ponies were safe, and they knew all knew it. Austin was a different story.

Austin already had a bit of a reputation. It was one that put ponies on the fence with how they should treat him. As the story of the Changeling assault circulated around it just helped to create a divide among the ponies. One that would come to cause problems if he wasn't careful. Austin was dangerous. He was the warrior, the mage, the force of magic that none could stand against. Some ponies found him too dangerous as they worried what would happen if he turned against the ponies. Others found his actions necessary and believed him a friend to ponies. Only time would tell which side was correct.

===

Sweat ran down his face. Every muscle in his body ached as the effort he put forth strained them beyond anything he had ever been through before. Involuntary spasms shook his limbs. He grunted as he held back a wave of energy from escaping. He groaned even more as he forced back another, and another.

In a rare and fleeting moment of peace, he glanced behind him. Ponies were running, fleeing. Terror filled their hearts and drove them away. Not all of them ran. Twilight stood by herself, the single solitary pony standing her ground. But the fear still had her, as it held her in place. She stared at him with only tears filling her eyes.

“Get away from here!” He yelled, shouted over his shoulder at the immobile Princess. He was too slow to catch the next wave and it exploded outward, nearly taking Twilight with it. The blast exploded out and skimmed the edges of Twilight's mane. She was too afraid to even move. He was able to hold back the next one as he turned to face her. He struggled to get his hand up and placed it on the barrier that separated them.

“Go, Twilight,” He said almost commandingly, and yet with compassion. “Get as far away from here as you can.”

“I- I – can't,” Twilight murmured.

“You must,” He said as his eyes fell behind her. “Get her out of here.”

Silence fell over the entire area. Twilight was slowly being pulled away from him. She cried out and shouted until her voice cracked, but it all came out as silence. A deafening, silence that weighed heavy on him. He let his own tears stream down his face as he struggled to contain the power. It was coming fast and harder, now more than ever. He prayed for his apologies to be heard and that was the last thing he remembered. A blinding, pure white light erupted forth and he was . . .

“Aahhh!” Austin shot up in his bed, his body covered in a cold sweat. He wiped away the sweat from his brow. It was only then he realized how heavy he was breathing. Every breath he took felt like he had just run a marathon. He swung his legs out of bed and just sat there for a moment.

“What the hell,” He mumbled to himself, “Why do I keep having this dream?”

He sat there for a moment and massaged his eyes. Small flashes, images shot into his mind before fading away back into his subconscious. He threw on a shirt and decided to take a walk through the castle. Before he left his room he looked outside. The moon was still high in the sky. He must have only been asleep a few hours at most.

“Damn,” He cursed under his breath, “This is getting kinda ridiculous.”

Austin left his room quietly and headed for the kitchen. For some reason he was feeling extremely dehydrated and a slight bit hungry. It was time for a late night snack. He was quite glad he had finally gotten down the layout of the castle. He managed to find his way to the kitchen with no trouble whatsoever.

In the fridge he found not a lot to his liking. Mostly just milk and some juices that he wasn't in the mood for. He did some searching on the shelves and he was able to find something that did sound good to him. Cider, and not the fermented kind. Just normal, regular cider. He poured himself a glass and sat the table. He sat there in the dark for a few moments. He sipped at his cider and sat with only his own thoughts to keep him company. He tried to think about lots of things, but nothing ever stayed with him. Every time he tried to think of something else his thoughts drifted back to that light. But it was more than that. There was a feeling in that dream. Something that tugged at him. Something that he couldn't quite explain, but it kept his thoughts going.

“You look like you need to talk.”

Austin's head shot around to see Twilight standing in the doorway. He calmed down enough to take a deep breath. And then another. And then another.

“Didn't mean to startle you,” She said as she moved over to the fridge, “I didn't even think that was possible.”

“I was just. . . caught up in my own thoughts,” Austin said before taking another sip of cider.

“Oh,” Twilight said. She poured herself a glass of milk and sat down across from Austin. “What were you thinking about?”

“Nothing, Twilight,” Austin said with a fake smile. “Nothing for you to worry about.”

“Is it about your dreams?” She asked as she took a drink from her glass.

Austin stared at her for a moment. He pushed his own glass aside and leaned in a little bit. “How did you know about my dreams?”

Twilight smiled a sly smile. “You just told me,” She replied. “But in all seriousness I have seen you lately. Your not the same. Your constantly staring off into the distance and you look more and more tired with each passing day.”

“You really noticed all that?” Austin asked.

“Yes, I did. Frankly, I'm surprised no one else did.”

“I play it off pretty well,” Austin said as he stared at table. His eyes traced the patterns in the wood. “It started about a week ago. These dreams of mine, if that's what they are. It's always the same too.”

“What happens? In you dreams?” Twilight said. She felt kind of uneasy as she looked at the human before her. She had seen him do a lot. He had faced a lot. He had always put up a brave front and show a strong face. It was worrying her to see him so shaken up over a dream. What could possibly do this to him?

Austin looked at Twilight deeply. She had become a good friend to him in the months that he had been here. She was kind to him and treated him not like a human, but like anyone else she knew. Austin could talk to her about the magic he had, she was possibly the only one who could understand that about him. Austin could feel like he could tell her anything, and yet he lied to her in that moment.

“I don't remember much of it,” Austin said to her, as he looked into her eyes. “Just a passing dream, you know.”

“Must be passing pretty slowly if it's still affecting you now,” Twilight replied.

“I guess its more of a drifting dream than a passing one then," Austin joked.

“What are you going to do about it?” Twilight asked.

“I don't know,” Austin said. He ran his hand down his face as the drowsiness was setting in. “I was thinking about heading to Canterlot to talk with Celestia. She might know something about something that could help.”

“Celestia? Why not talk to Luna? Dreams are more her thing than Celestia's.”

“I know, Twilight, but this has been going on for a near a week. If Luna was going to help me, I have a feeling she would have by now. For some reason, I don't think these are normal dreams. It's hard to explain.”

“Alright then,” Twilight said. She finished her glass of milk and stood up. “Well then, maybe I will go with you to see her.”

“What?! No,” Austin said quickly as his head shot up. “I mean, there is no need for that.”

Twilight turned back to face him. She took the few steps it took to reach him. She put her eyes at the same level as his. For a moment she just stood there and they looked into each others eyes. And then she walked away. She moved around to his side and rest her head on his shoulder. Austin could feel her mane spilling over his chest and down his back. He felt as her wings stretched around his sides.

“You are my friend, Austin, and I care about what happens to you,” Twilight said softly. “I would like to go with you. Is that okay?”

“Well, if there's no talking you out of it,” Austin joked. He could tell that she was getting tired herself. And before he knew it he could hear her breathing softly, and rather adorably as she dozed off. Austin carefully moved his shoulder out from under her wing. He had to move slowly to not wake the sleeping princess. It took him a few moments, but he finally got free of her. A few moments more and he found himself carrying Twilight back to her own room.

“There you go,” Austin whispered as he lay Twilight down in her bed. She shivered and curled up a bit until Austin pulled the blankets up to cover her. She was nearly asleep as Austin tucked her in and left the room.

“Austin,” He heard just as he turned the handle to the doors out of her room. Not even a creak or a cricket sounded off after that. It was as if the whole world was waiting for Twilight to finish, Austin included. His breath escaped him as he stood there, heart pounding for reasons he couldn't even begin to explain.

“You really are amazing, you know that.” Twilight finished as she rolled over in her bed.

Austin didn't know what to say or do. He wasn't even sure if anything he said would even register with her. After another silent moment of his just standing there, he just left. He quickly, yet quietly opened the door and exited. His heart was still pounding, he still didn't know why.

“Oh, what is happening to me?”

===

“Where is Austin?” Tessla asked. He scanned the park quickly, but his equipment wasn't picking anything up. He put the low tech binoculars down and frowned. “I don't see him anywhere.”

“I think he's still sleeping,” Ben said. “He has been pretty tired lately. You've seen him.”

“Yeah, I guess you're right,” Tessla said.

“Yeah. I agree,” Pinkie said, “Plus, I heard that he was up pretty late with Twilight last night.”

Both Ben and Tessla turned to look at the pink party pony that now stood with them. For some reason she had her own pair of binoculars and she was looking through them at something. Ben and Tessla shared a look between them and then they looked back at Pinkie.

“What do you mean when you say Austin and Twilight were 'up late last night', Pinkie,” Ben asked with great suspicions.

“I dunno. Heard it from Spike,” Pinkie replied, “But it would seem I have spotted my prey. By the way, check with Rares. I think Spike said something about going to see her today.” Pinkie's butt wiggled as she took a far leap into the bushes. From there she rolled over to take cover behind a tree. Ben and Tessla watched as she stealthily moved her way over to the unsuspecting pony they were sure was her intended target.

“Hey, guys,” Rainbow Dash said as she waved a hoof at them. “Wazzup?”

“Nothing much,” Tessla replied. “How 'bout you?”

“Just getting ready to practice a new trick. You wanna wat-”

“I GOTCHA NOW!”

Pinkie Pie burst forth from her hiding place. She leaped over to Rainbow Dash and pulled out from somewhere a mask. A mask so terrifyingly horrible it could scare a dog into pieces. These monstrosity of a mask was green in color, with a large, purple nose hanging from the middle. One of the eyes was bigger than the other, colored in a hypnotic pattern of black and yellow circles. The other eye was normal, but the big and oversized teeth made it hard to focus on the eyes. Pinkie slammed it down and Dash couldn't help but scream at this unforeseen turn of events.

“Ahahaha! I totally got you, Dashie,” Pinkie spilled out as she rolled along the floor.

“You know what, screw you, Pinkie Pie,” Dash retorted rather angrily.

“Ahem. Excuse me, miss.”

“What do you want?” Dash said. She looked back at the pony who was talking to her only to find that he was unusually close to her. Like, uncomfortably close. Well within her comfort zone. Nobody gets that close to her without her say so.

“Please get off me,” The stallion said. Dash was about to respond when she realized that she was indeed hanging off his neck. She had jumped up on instinct to the nearest thing. The nearest thing being this unfortunate stallion.

“Sorry,” Dash said quietly as her cheeks turned red. She gently pushed off of him and hovered in the air for a moment. “Once again, sorry.”

The stallion did not respond to her apologies. He simply turned and walked away from them all. The last thing Dash saw was him flicking up the hood to his cloak to cover up his black and white mane. And by then she was back to facing Pinkie Pie.

“Pinkie Pie!”

“Now, now, Dashie. If you want to yell at me please do it on ground level.” Pinkie stated simply and calmly, like it was any other reasonable request that any pony would give.

“Fine,” Dash snorted. She flew over closer to Pinkie and folded in her wings. She landed on the ground with her usual grace, but her hooves felt awfully strange. Each of her four hooves felt like they were being soaked in jelly, or molasses. Dash knew she wasn't going to like it when she looked down, but she did it anyways.

“Really, Pinkie,” Dash grumbled. “Pie? You made me land in pies?”

“Yupperdoodles!” Pinkie said as she hopped around her very annoyed friend. “Sure did! If you take a lick of the pies you know what you'll taste? Well, let me tell ya. Revenge!” Pinkie uttered that last word with more of a whisper than the others. She put her face real close to Dash's when she said it too.

“Revenge?” Dash repeated. “Revenge for what? What did I do to you?”

“You know what you did, missy,” Pinkie said. “Now taste my sweet, delicious revenge and do not enjoy it!” And with that, Pinkie was gone. She hopped down a side street and was no longer seen by any of them.

“I have no idea what is going on with her,” Dash said as she heard some noises coming from off to the side. “And what are you to laughing at, huh? You like seeing me humiliated like this, is that it? Does this get you off or something?”

“No, Dash, sorry,” Ben said, “We're not laughing at you.”

“Besides,” Tessla said, “It could be worse, you know.”

“Oh yeah, and how exactly is that?”

“Your a Pegasus with pies on your hooves,” Tessla explained, “You could be a Pegasus with a pie in your face.”

“Uh, whatever.” Dash said as she flew up and shook the pies off her hooves. “I gotta go home and take a shower.”

Ben and Tessla watched her fly off really quickly towards her house of clouds in the sky above Ponyville. They were still smiling at what they had just witnessed. They just loved Pinkie's antics, even when they didn't make a lick of sense. And as they laughed out the last few chuckles they headed off to see Rarity at the Boutique. Hopefully Spike would still be there. They needed some answers.

===

“Ahaha! Hell yeah!”

Vinyl was practically glowing as she laid eyes on the piece of paper in front of her. She smiled so widely she wouldn't have been surprised if her face froze that way. She jumped off the bed and raced through the house until she found Octavia. She was in the kitchen, brewing herself a cup of coffee.

“Hey, Tavi, have you seen this,” She asked as she waved the paper in front of her, “It's the check. Have you seen how much money the Princesses want to give us for that party? It's freakin' awesome!”

“Yes, I have seen it,” Octavia said with a calm voice, “I opened mine earlier, dear.”

Octavia gestured to the table behind her. Vinyl spun around and saw a piece of paper laying there that was nearly an exact copy of hers. She looked back at hers and then looked back up. She then fell quiet all of the sudden. She turned back to face Octavia with her eyes so wide they were almost showing even behind her shades.

“Vinyl, are you alright?”

“Tavi, they payed us separately.”

“Yes, dear, I know that.” Octavia said. “What of it?”

“That means we are both getting the amount written on this piece of paper.” Vinyl said, still a little out of it. “I think I might pass out. This is too much.”

“Oh, please, Vinyl. It's just money.”

“No, it isn't,” Vinyl snapped back, apparently back in reality now. “Tavi, you have always had money. You come from money. Your family is money. I know you don't like to talk about it-”

“That's right, I don't,” Octavia interjected forcefully.

“But, Tavi, I have never had this much money. Nothing even came close to this. The most I ever had before meeting you was barely enough to pay rent for my crappy apartment in Manehatten and feed myself. A lot of the time I had to choose between the two.”

Octavia looked back at her marefriend. She had not been wrong. Octavia did come from a wealthy family of ponies, even though she didn't have access to the family money anymore. Old money, old beliefs. But that didn't matter. She was happy with the money she made from her job with the symphony. But as Vinyl started talking about money she realized that she never actually thought about the money she had.

“I'm sorry, Vinyl. I never that of it before,” Octavia said.

“It's okay, Tavi. Really, it is,” Vinyl replied. “I mean, that part of my life is behind me now. I met you, and we're marefriends, and we don't ever have to worry about money ever again.”

Vinyl gave Octavia a hug that she happily returned. Octavia sat down with Vinyl at the table and reexamined her own check. It was a good deal of money. It was just around the amount she had expected to get from performing at a royal party. And if they both got that amount. . .

“. . . oh, there is so much that can be done with this.” Vinyl said, nearly drooling as her mind poured over every possibility it could come up with. Most of them Octavia would not agree to.

“Vinyl, we have to spend this right. You know that,” Octavia lectured. She knew how Vinyl could be with money. She had done enough impulse buying to sink a ship. Enough that Octavia seriously considered giving her a weekly allowance at one point. But she couldn't blame her really. Like she said before, Vinyl had never had this much money. Octavia knew how to handle money because she grew up with it.

“Yes, Octavia, I know that. And the right thing to do with this would be to get some new sound equipment. Some of my stuff is getting pretty worn out.”

“Why not just get what you have repaired?” Octavia asked with a heavy sigh.

“Because, it is also getting kinda out of date,” Vinyl answered. “Come on, Tavi, you should know this, you've spent enough time around the stuff.”

“I know that I bought you a brand new piece of equipment just last year, for your birthday. How can that be out of date?” Octavia said with her tone of voice rising to match her level of annoyance. There was absolutely no possible way that she was going to let her blow a ton of money right away.

“That is not out of date, Octavia, but some of my stuff is. And this isn't the kind of stuff you can just get repaired,” Vinyl said. “Look, I'm not saying that we go out and buy all brand new stuff. Just some stuff that's at least a little better than what I got now. Okay?”

“Okay, Vinyl,” Octavia said. She was learning. “I suppose I could use a few new things as well.”

“That's the spirit, Tavi!” Vinyl said with renewed joy.

“But first and foremost, there is one thing we have to do before we do anything else.” Octavia said. “I'm pretty sure you know what I am going to say.”

“Yeah, I think I know where this is going.” Vinyl said. Her newly found joy crumbled away into nothingness as Octavia pointed out her last, and greatest blunder to date. Octavia sipped her coffee and Vinyl's head hit the table with a loud thud.

“Vinyl,” Octavia said, “We have to get the electricity back on.”

===

“What do you mean your leaving?” Spike stood there, awestruck, as Twilight gathered a few things and gently placed them in a suitcase. “Where are you going? And why? Why now?”

“It's nothing to worry about, Spike,” Twilight said. “Me and Austin are just going to go to Canterlot.”

“Oh, I see,” Spike said, his tone suggesting that he had uncovered some motive buried deep within Twilight's words. “I think I get it now. Alright, Twilight.”

“Spike, what are you talking about?”

“Oh, nothing. It's just that I think I finally understand why you're going away,” Spike said as he built up to the final stroke. “You just want to be alone with Austin.”

Twilight stopped midstep, mid sentence, mid everything. She just stopped. She had been floating a few books by her and they dropped to the floor, the echoing thud being barely audible over the sound of her fast beating heart. She stayed frozen in that way for a few seconds before talking back to Spike.

“Spike, the next time you want to say something so ridiculous can you please warn me first,” She played off her utter shock as best she could by turning away from him and towards the books she dropped. She had to hide her blushing cheeks somehow.

“Come on, Twilight. I know how you are around him,” Spike teased and prodded. “You act like a schoolfilly with a crush.”

“I do not!” Twilight quickly blurted out as she snapped around to face the young dragon.

“HA! Deny it all you want, Twi, but I can see it,” Spike said, “And if I can see it, who knows who else can.”

“Spike, where did you get such a silly idea from,” Twilight asked as she fiddled with her wingtips.

“Well, you two were up real late last night,” Spike answered, “And then I saw Austin leaving your room in a hurry. At first I didn't know what it meant, and when I asked Pinkie about it, she-”

“You told Rarity?!?!” Twilight asked vehemently as she rushed up and put her face right next to Spike's. “Please tell me you didn't tell Rarity.”

“So what?” Spike asked with a shrug of his scaly shoulders. “It's just Rarity. She's your friend.”

“Uuuugghhhh,” Twilight groaned as she melted into a puddle of embarrassment on the floors.

“I don't understand what's going on,” Spike simply stated as he left Twilight's room.

===

Zecora sat in her hut in the Everfree Forest. This was her favorite time of the day. It was the early morning, the day was just getting started. The animals that were out in the daytime were waking up from a restful nights sleep. She listened as the birds started chirping and singing their songs. The trees were creaking and stretching as their branches reached up to take in all the light of the day they could. A small breeze was rustling through the Forest. It carried with the sounds of the animals. Nocturnal beasts turning to slumber after an eventful night. Zecora took a deep breath as she sat inside her hut in the Everfree Forest.

“Today is going to be a good day, I think,” She said to herself with a happy smile, “Now, the time has come to mix my morning drink. Fortunately it shouldn't take long to mix the brew, for today there is much see and much to do.”

Zecora moved about her hut. She went from shelf to shelf collecting the ingredients. Most of them were common things she could easily find in town. A few others were more uncommon, and she had to search the Everfree for those. As she collected the last ingredient off the fourth shelf she made a mental note to reorganize her shelves. Maybe she could have Twilight help. She did love to organize things. Zecora made the note and set to making her brew. She mixed the ingredients in her cauldron and let them sit for a moment or three. After that she got a cup. And once again she sat down to listen to the sounds of nature. And drink her tea. She always had a cup of tea in the morning.

Half an hour after Zecora had her tea she set out to do her chores for the day. Her list was quite simple. She had to go deeper into the Forest to collect some special herbs and a few other ingredients. After that she was supposed to meet Rarity in town. Apparently, Rarity had suddenly become a bit obsessed with making Zecora a dress or something. Zecora didn't much care fro dresses, but she knew how much it would mean to Rarity. There was something else too, but it was escaping her thoughts at the moment.

“Hey, Zecora.”

The unexpected voice shook Zecora back to the present. Although unexpected the voice was not unwelcome. Zecora smiled as the human whose voice it was approached her hut. His long hair tied back and a smile on his face.

“Tessla, my friend. I have not seen you in quite a while,” Zecora said “You have been off giving the Changelings quite the rile.”

“Yeah, I guess you could say that,” Tessla said, “I irritated them, Austin fought them, and Ben professed his love to Chrysalis.”

“Ah, yes. That is what the stories are saying,” Zecora exclaimed, “If I had to face all three, I too would be praying.”

“Anyway,” Tessla said, “I was wondering if we could, I don't know, hang out or something.”

“Well, I have some things that I must get done before days end,” Zecora said. “I would like the company, though. It would break a rather boring trend.”

Tessla smiled and started walking with Zecora. She lead him through the winding paths of the Everfree Forest. She took the time to tell him all about the things they came across. In just the first hour they walked, Tessla learned about nearly a dozen different flowers alone. Some of which were filled deadly poison or toxic to touch. Others were harmless or had great healing properties. Tessla like to learn all about this, especially since it was Zecora who was teaching him.

She taught him how to read the trails of the Everfree. She taught him how to find his way inside a place where it was quite easy to get lost. In a place of forgotten dangers Zecora was teaching him how to survive. All the while Tessla had a great big smile on his face, and so did she.

“Man, I need a rest,” Tessla said as the two of them stopped for lunch. The hours of the day had rolled on by faster than he could believe. “I certainly did learn a lot today, though, so it was worth it.”

“Yes. I must say, I am glad to have someone to which I can speak,” Zecora said, “Mostly, the sounds I hear in the forest are the tree's creak or the clack of a bird's beak.”

“Yeah, I guess not too many ponies come out here to see you, do they,” Tessla said, half a question and half a statement.

“In many weeks nopony has come, it is true,” Zecora said to him with a touch of sadness in her voice. She had been alone for so long that shad gotten used to the solitude, but the ponies in town weren't afraid of her anymore. On some level she had hoped that somepony might visit every once in a while, but none ever did. “Which I why this morning I was so glad to see you.”

Her tone turned from sad to happy and Tessla was glad to hear it. It made him smile even more. They sat together and ate the lunch. Originally Zecora had only packed enough for herself. However, Zecora was able to scrounge up a whole other meal from the Forest while walking with Tessla. It wasn't a bad meal either. Berries and roots. She had packed some bread which they shared. She had some tea as well, but Tessla refused that after his first sip. That got a laugh out of Zecora. She admitted that it was an acquired taste that wasn't for everybody. After they were done eating they sat there for a few more moments and enjoyed the wonders of the Forest.

“I gotta say, it is good to get out of town for a while,” Tessla said. Zecora gave him a puzzled look and he explained what he meant. “There is just a lot going on right now. With the whole Changeling situation turned upside down and the Zebra's that arrived, everythi-”

“Zebras?,” Zecora asked, with a single word.

“Yeah,” Tessla said. “They showed up at the party the Princesses threw for us a couple weeks back. Well, one Zebra showed up. Some guy named Zakir or something.”

Zecora kinda froze up when she heard the name. Her mind flashed back to a time before Equestria, a time before all of this. It was not a good time in her life. Every day was a struggle, every meal was barely enough. Every word had to be carefully considered before being said. It was a time she had thought long forgotten, until that name brought all those terrible memories back up to the surface of her mind.

“Zecora?” Tessla said, “Are you alright? You seem a little off?”

“Oh, I am just fine,” Zecora said as she shook herself free of the memories. “Just thinking about these people of mine. It is not often that Zebra's visit this land. I can't help but wonder as to where they stand.”

“'Where they stand'. What do you mean,” Tessla asked. Zecora seemed a little preoccupied as she hurriedly packed everything up and stood up on her hooves.

“It is nothing. I simply remembered there is something that I must do,” Zecora said as she moved for the path they came from. “I am afraid I have no more time to spend with you.”

“Zecora, wait,” Tessla said. He shot up fast and headed after her. He was only steps behind her when he started, but she knew the forest better than anypony. Not even the Princesses knew it like she did. And even though she was only steps ahead of him, she disappeared like a spirit vanishing into the unknown. It was almost like she was turned invisible as she worked her way through the twisting trees and gnarled branches. Tessla had to concentrate on what he had just learned from her just if there was any hope to get back.

“Zecora!” He yelled as he made his way back to trail. “Zecora, where did you go?”

No answer, and Tessla continued on. He could swear it was still early in the day, barely the afternoon, and yet it was getting darker in the Forest where he was. Maybe it was the branches closing in on him, not letting the light of the day through to shine anymore. Maybe it was the shadows of the Everfree itself, devouring the daylight as it shone down. He didn't know, and he didn't care. He just wanted to find his way to Zecora.

After a little while of half running through the Forest, Tessla came across a small clearing. He and Zecora did not pass through it before. “Zecora!” Tessla yelled out. He got no answer. “Alright. Fine. Be that way.”

Zecora stood in the shadows near her hut. She pulled her cloak tightly across her. She wanted to be as unnoticeable as she could possibly be. The Forest had become dark, and she could do nothing about it. As she stood there, in the shadows, Tessla emerged from the trees. He stumbled off the path with heavy breathing. He took a moment to curse the Forest and catch his breath. He pulled a leaf out of his hair and moved over to Zecora's hut. It was dark, and every door and window closed.

“Zecora,” Tessla said aloud, hoping she was somewhere nearby. “I don't know what is going on with you, but I want you to know you can talk to me. About anything.”

Tessla stepped back from her hut and turned. He turned around and around. He looked in every direction for her. He scanned the trees, the branches, the leaves. He searched the ground, the bushes, and the trails. He looked for her and he found nothing. Eventually he just sighed and walked away. Zecora waited for several moments. It seemed like an eternity for her, but she wanted to make sure he was out of the Forest.

“I am sorry, my friend,” She whispered as he left the Forest for good. “It would seem our story has come to its end.”

===

Ben sat in the park in Ponyville. It was a beautiful day, as most days are in Ponyville. The sun was shining down, there was a lovely breeze rolling about the sky, a few clouds drifted lazily. It was a good day and Ben was more than happy to just soak it all in. That is, until he felt eyes on him. Three sets of eyes to be specific. Ben opened his eyes to see three young fillies staring up at him.

“Uhh, hello?” Ben said awkwardly as they stared up at him still.

The fillies erupted into a giggle fit after Ben spoke to them. They all looked at each other and had an apparent conversation through just trading looks back and forth. Finally, after more looks were traded and even a few gestures were given one of the fillies stepped up.

“Um,” She said. “Hi.”

“Is there something you wanted,” Ben asked.

“Well,” The same filly that said hi was starting to turn bright red. She was shaking so much her glasses almost vibrated off her face.

“Jeez, will you just ask him already,” Said another filly behind her.

“Why don't you ask him,” Said the first filly.

“Fine then,” The second filly stepped up with a bit more attitude than the first one. Where the first filly was shy and awkward this filly had sass and the attitude to go with it. “We want to know something about you.”

“Okay. What do you want to know,” Ben asked. This was starting to be a really strange conversation.

“So, like, where is you magic?”

“What?” Ben replied quickly.

“You know, magic,” The filly said, “That Austin guy has it. He's pretty cool. And the other one with the long hair has some of Discord's power, right? So, where is your magic? Do you even have any?”

“That is a pretty darn good question,” Ben said. “I don't know if I have any. I might have some, but I don't know.”

“How can you not know if you have magic?” This filly asked, She shook her head and it was then Ben noticed that she was a Unicorn.

“Well, little one,” Ben started, “Humans don't normally have magic. We aren't born with any definite signs, such as a Unicorn horn. Austin discovered his magic because of his instinct to protect ponies. Tessla got his powers from a lab accident.”

“I don't understand you guys,” The Unicorn filly said as she walked away.

“You are not the only one,” Ben said.

The sassy Unicorn with the attitude walked away but the other two fillies stayed by Ben. Ben looked down at them and they looked away. Another moment of awkward silence fell between them. Ben wasn't sure what to do or say and they weren't talking either.

“Excuse me,” One of them finally said, “Can I ask you another question?”

It was the same, quiet, shy filly that spoke to him before. She was a lot like Fluttershy in that way. However, her mane was shorter and white in color.

“Sure,” Ben said. “What is it?”

“The other human, Austin,” She said, “What do you think of him?”

“What do you mean?”

“Well, my momma says that he real dangerous and that I should stay away from him.”

“That ain't true!” The third young one finally spoke up. A young colt who was finally sounding off. “He ain't dangerous. At least, not to us. He only dangerous to his enemies.”

“What are you names?” Ben asked.

“I am Starlight Charmer,” Said the shy filly.

“Name's Strong Gunner,” Said the colt.

“Okay, Charmer and Gunner. Let me tell you something,” Ben said. “I may not have magic, but that doesn't mean I don't understand it. Austin is a good friend of mine, and he has a lot of power. That power is dangerous, but he would never use it against any pony of Ponyville. It's like I said to the other filly, Austin only found his magic because of his instinct to protect ponies.”

“HA! I knew it,” Strong Gunner exclaimed happily.

“Okay, thank you,” Starlight Charmer said. “I'll tell my momma what you said. “Bye.”

“Goodbye, little ones,” Ben said. “Well that was kinda odd.”

No Answers Yet

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Austin stood with Twilight. Celestia had sent two of her most loyal Pegasus guards to escort them both to Canterlot. They were discreet and quiet. Nopony would know about this visit that wasn't supposed to. Twilight had only told the girls and Austin the guys. They had to know. This visit was very important. Something was wrong with Austin, and he was sure Celestia would have some information about. If he was lucky, she would have answers. If he wasn't, well, he had a small worry his head would explode. And so now he was standing next to this mare.

Austin chanced a look over at Twilight. She was focusing on the sky ahead. In the distance she could see the light of the city of Canterlot. She didn't notice Austin looking at her, or she just didn't mind it at all. Austin could barely look at her now, though. When he did, he didn't see this Twilight. This beautiful lavender princess so full of compassion. She insisted on coming on with him. He really didn't want her to, now more than ever. Because every time he looked at her, all he saw was the crying, tearful pony of his visions. All he saw was the pain and grief in her eyes. He could almost feel it in his own chest. And he hated it. He forced himself to look away from her.

“Austin,” She said. “You seem distracted. I know this is probably a stupid question, but are you okay?”

His mind flashed back to the hall of the castle. He was almost out, almost to Twilight. He was right there, and then he got slammed with another vision. He was fully awake. He was not asleep.

“Yeah, I'm doing okay,” Austin said. “Better now that we are getting closer to Canterlot, and Celestia. And hopefully some answers.”

“If anyone can help you, it is Celestia,” Twilight said reassuringly. “Don't worry. We'll figure this out.”

Twilight gently touched his shoulder with the tip of her wing. Austin felt it, but still he didn't look back at her. Twilight was worried by this. Why wasn't he looking at her? Was it something she did? Was it his dreams? What did he see?

“Twilight,” Austin said after a moment of silence. “Why did you come with me?”

“What do you mean,” Twilight asked. “I already told you. I'm your friend.”

“And you care about what happens to me,” Austin finished her sentence. “I know that, but you put your duties as a Princess on hold. You left the girls on short notice with barely an explanation as to why. You did all of that to come with me to see Celestia about some bad dreams. Why?”

“I- I-” Twilight was at a loss for words. She had no idea what to say. She thought about what he had said. He was right. She had just up and abandoned her duties as an Equestrian Princess. She put that part of her life on hold to come with him. And then there were the girls. She was gone, and she was pretty sure none of them knew why. She really hadn't done a good job of explaining herself very well. The truth was she didn't know why she did it, and that scared her a little. Twilight always had a reason for everything she did.

“Excuse me, Princess,” One of the guard ponies said, “We are coming in for the descent soon. We will be safely within the walls of Canterlot Castle within ten minutes time.”

“Good,” Twilight stated as she stared at Austin. “Very good.”

===

“Whoa.” Dash said.

“Grand entrance much?” Ben asked.

“What did you expect,” Tessla replied with a laugh.

“Alrighty then. Back to the business at hand,” Ben said. “Can you help Applejack?”

“Help Applejack,” Tessla repeated, “What's wrong with her?”

“She witnessed Pinkie Pie and that zebra Zakir, uh. . . flirting,” Ben explained as best he could.

Tessla's eyes widened as he heard the news. But he regained his composure and held up a finger to them. It was the 'give me a minute' finger. Tessla snapped his fingers and a cup of coffee appeared by his face. He took the cup in his hands and drank deeply, right before spitting it all back out all over the ground.

“What in the hell?” Tessla exclaimed. “She should have known. This is gonna take more than just me.”

“Well, what is gonna take then,” Dash said, flying right up close to Tessla and putting her face right up close to his.

“What's with all the bellyaching goin' on out here?” Not a pony moved as Granny Smith slowly moved over to where they all stood. Big Mac and Ben stood silently and watched as the old pony slowly crossed in front of them. Rainbow Dash didn't even dare to breath as she came closer to them. Tessla just watched from either side of Dash's body.

“Applejack,” Granny smith said as she came up to the hay bale she was leaned up against. Fluttershy had set her back up there and ducked behind it again as Granny Smith approached. “Applejack, what's with all the visitors? And why are you actin' so funny? And why you ain't talking?”

Applejack just stared blankly back at her. Granny Smith stared at her for a moment. It was the most intense moment of silence ever. Fluttershy was right behind the hay bale, and she could almost feel the stare of Granny Smith boring through the hay and right into her.

Granny Smith took a hoof and as politely as she could gave Applejack and whack on the head. “Snap out of it,” She said simply.

Applejack's head kinda wobbled for a bit, as did the rest of her. After a moment she got her balance back and shook the shock out her head. Her head hurt something awful and her vision was cloudy for second but it cleared up enough for her to make out the form of Granny Smith.

“Granny Smith,” She said, “What are you doin' here?”

“Why, you were off daydreaming and the like,” Granny said while shaking a hoof. “I had to come out here and slap you out of it myself.”

“You mean snap me out of it?” Applejack replied.

“Sure, I guess,” Granny said. “Now tell yer friends to git going, it's time for you to get back to work bucking them apples.”

“Right,” Applejack said. She looked around at all the ponies, and humans that were there. The barn was packed full of them. Granny smith walked back to the house and suddenly it was like Applejack birthday. Ponies popped out of nowhere and were giving her hugs.

“Applejack!” Fluttershy burst out of hiding behind the hay bale and wrapped her hooves around Applejack's body. “You're back with us. I'm so happy I could just scream.”

“AJ!” Rainbow Dash zoomed from Tessla to Applejack and slammed into her with a hug of her own. She hit with enough force to knock all three of them off the bale of hay and onto the ground.

“Well,” Ben said. “It would appear that she is alright.”

“Yep,” Tessla said. “By the way, Ben, how was it being naked in front of Rarity again?”

“WHAT?!” From behind the hay bale the world exploded with that word. It echoed through the air like a shockwave. One by one, three heads popped up and stared at the two of them. Three sets of eyes darted back and forth between Tessla and Ben. Eventually they all stayed on Ben. His face had turned a deep, rosy red and he was trying to avoid looking at just about anybody.

“Dammit, Tessla,” He said, “Why did you have to bring that up?”

===

Zakir walked through the streets of the cit of Canterlot. He looked up at the sky above him. It was night, the stars were shining brightly against the darkness of the nighttime sky. The moon hung low amidst the sea of stars, the low light shining down and illuminating his path. He had had a very eventful time in Equestria. But his time to leave was coming, and faster than he expected. And so he returned to his ship. He had much to do to prepare for his departure.

“Warchief Zakir! You have returned.” Zakir heard as he approached the ship. A small Zebrican tribe pony scrambled about and lowered the ramp. Zakir climbed aboard the ship and was greeted by even more zebras. Dozens of them. All of them were big, muscular, and very strong.

“Yes, I have returned,” Zakir said. “And I come with news. I have learned much from my time spent among the ponies. I have watched, and I have observed.”

“What did you find out? Are the stories true? Is this place really what we think?” The questions poured out from the zebra crowd. He quickly calmed them down and got back to telling them all about it.

“There iz power here,” Zakir said. “And magic, powerful magic. I have met some the heroes of the stories we have all heard. Ponies, such strange creatures. I know what I need to know to accomplish the mission. We have our orders, and I will explain how we will fulfill them to ze letter.”

===

Twilight stood in the halls of the Royal Canterlot Castle. She just stood there. Every muscle twitched and moved under her skin. Every fiber of her being cried out to move and find answers. She was restless, and yet she remained still as a petrified victim of a cockatrice.

She was in a part of the castle she knew very well. The Celestial wing of the castle was the one place she knew almost as well as Celestia herself did. It was Celestia's home. It held her quarters, and wash room. Her relaxation rooms and her personal libraries. As well as other things that Celestia had deemed to be hers and wanted to be kept close. Twilight had spent much of her fillyhood in this very wing of the castle with Celestia, and now she was standing outside her doors staring out one of the many windows that lined the corridor.

“You seem distracted, Twilight Sparkle.”

“Huh,” Twilight said. She hardly even registered the words, let alone the voice. But she did get enough to turn her head a little bit. It was just enough. Enough to see the other resident princess of the castle. “Oh, Luna,” Twilight said rather blankly.

“As I said, distracted,” Luna said to Twilight as she came to stand next to her at the window.

“Oh, yeah. I guess so,” Twilight told her. “It's just- something is wrong with Austin. He isn't doing well.”

“Yes, I know,” Luna replied flatly as she looked at the window.

“He is havin-” Twilight stopped suddenly, “Wait, what?! You know?!”

“Yes, Twilight. I know about Austin's dreams,” Luna replied.

“But how? And why haven't you done anything about it? Why haven't you helped him?” Twilight was firing off questions faster and faster and she was letting more emotion get into each one.

“Twilight Sparkle,” Luna said firmly. It was enough to get Twilight's undivided attention. “Look there, at that tree.”

Twilight turned her gaze to the tree Luna was talking about. There were many trees in the gardens below the window, but one of them seemed to stand out for some reason. It wasn't any taller than any other tree. Its leaves weren't any greener that that of any other tree. And yet her eyes were drawn to it for some unknown reason.

Twilight saw in that tree a bird. It was a simple bird. A small cardinal. Maybe male, but Twilight wasn't sure. She knew Fluttershy would know if it was a male or not. Twilight was willing to bet Fluttershy actually knew that bird, too. The cardinal hopped along the branch, and came upon a nest. He flittered around the nest, carefully placing a few dried twigs and blades of grass along the way. After a moment or two another cardinal showed up. Together they placed a few more things along the edges of the nest. It was only then Twilight noticed the eggs. Three of them. Nestled tightly in the middle of the nest.

“You see that cardinal, Twilight?” Luna said. “I can even sense his dreams if I so choose. I know that over that past several weeks he has been greatly worried for those eggs. You see, a predator has come to make its home in the gardens as well. And so his worries are in his dreams, where I can read them quite easily.”

“Why are you telling me this, Luna?” Twilight asked impatiently. “What does this have to do with Austin?”

“Hush, now, and I will tell you,” Luna said. “You see, I could easily mend that little bird's dreams. I make his worries melt away and let him wake up to a blissful happiness every morning. Sounds like the right thing to do, does it not?”

“I suppose so,” Twilight answered.

“And you would be wrong,” Luna said. “You see, I let him have his worries, and I work on the real problem. The predator he fears so much has been lured here by a certain flower the gardener has taken to plant around the castle. By eliminating that flower, and having a few pest control spells cast around the gardens I have driven out the predator. This night that is coming will be the first in many weeks that the cardinal will not have to worry for his eggs.”

“I still don't understand why you are telling me this,” Twilight said.

“I have known about Austin's dreams for some time, Twilight,” Luna said, turning to face the young princess. “I could sense his discomfort during my nightly watch. I could tell he was sleeping less and less, and what little sleep he did get was plagued by something terrible. Why do you think I did nothing to help him?”

Twilight kept her mouth shut for the immediate five seconds after Luna asked her that question. Just like her body before, every muscle and fiber cried out to be heard. She wanted to yell and scream. She wanted to say that Luna didn't care enough about him, or that she was not doing her job as Princess of the night. Twilight wanted to say this, but she knew it was just her emotions talking. She thought about the bird and the eggs Luna had just told her about.

“Because his dreams are not the real problem,” Twilight said after a moment.

“Yes, Twilight,” Luna said. “I could have helped Austin sleep, and he would have dismissed his dreams as just that. Dreams. But they are more than that, and now he is here. He is talking with my sister and figuring them out. Do you understand what I am saying Twilight Sparkle?”

“Yes,” Twilight said with a sigh. She thought she knew a lot about being a princess by this point. She should have known that even now Luna could still teach her things. “It's just that- I really want to be in there with him.”

“And why is that?” Luna asked. Her tone shifted from that of a teacher to that of a wise old one who had a lot of answers to a lot of questions. “I don't think this has anything to do with his dreams.”

“What do you mean by that?”

“Why do you want in, Twilight Sparkle?” Luna asked. “Do you wish to simply know the answer to what is causing Austin discomfort? And the solution for it? That would certainly satisfy your scientific mind, or is it something else? Do you wish to be closer to Austin himself, perhaps? You are his friend, are you not? Or is there something. . . more?”

“You have obviously been spending too much time with Cadence,” Twilight said with a weak, nearvous giggle. “It's just that Austin told me about this. He shared with me, and then he let me come along with him. So, why is it that when we get all the way here, does he ask me stay outside? I just don't understand!”

“Perhaps you should be the one talking to Cadence then,” Luna said as she turned from Twilight. “For now, I will leave you be. I have duties to attend to. It has been nice to see you, Twilight.”

Luna slowly walked down the corridor away from Twilight. She had left the young princess with much to think about, and many questions to occupy her time. Twilight was left staring out the window not moving a muscle, even though every muscle and fiber screamed. And now her every thought was buzzing around.

“”Nice to you see you to, Luna,” She said, distracted.

===

She looked around her. Her eye carefully scanned the environment for anything suspicious. Anything out of the ordinary. Anything that she didn't know. Nothing, It was clear for her to move. Slowly, she moved forward. She stepped out, one hoof in front of the other and ventured further along her path. She had to get away, as far and as fast as she could. She knew it with all her heart. As much as it hurt her, Zecora could not stay near Ponyville any longer.

She took one last look behind her. She had come out of the Everfree Forest a good ways away from Ponyville. She could still see many of the building that she used to visit to see her friends. It was hard to make out any ponies from that distance, let alone spot one in particular. All she knew was that they were much safer the farther away she got. She sighed heavily as she gazed back, knowing that she was most likely never going to see this place or these ponies ever again.

“Goodbye, my pony friends. Know that our friendship never ends.”

“And what about your human friends?”

Zecora leaped to the side quickly. She reacted just as quickly when her hooves hit the ground again by grabbing her staff and readying herself for a fight. She narrowed her eyes and locked them on the face of her would be attacker.

“That's quite the reaction,” Tessla said without his usual smile. “What's with the staff?”

“Tessla,” Zecora nearly shouted with surprise. “Tessla, why are you here with me? Did you not understant when I left you in the Everfree?”

“No, Zecora, I didn't understand,” Tessla said. “Why did you do that? Please, explain it to me.”

“I am sorry, Tessla, I cannot. Tis my burden to bear,” Zecora said solemnly . “Although I call you my friend, this I cannot share.”

“Bullshit!” Tessla said. “I mean, come on. I know everyone has their secrets, but you are leaving Zecora. You are actually leaving Ponyville once and for all, or you were trying to. You didn't say goodbye to me, or Twilight or the rest of the girls. Don't we get any explanation at all?”

Zecora relaxed in Tessla's presence. She stood on all four hooves and laid her staff down along the ground. She breathed in deeply, not letting her nerves get the better of her. She hadn't expected to run into anyone as she left, let alone him. He was quite literally the last person she wanted to see.

“I wish I could explain all to you, but I have my fear,” Zecora said, “I must leave before everything descends upon Ponyville here.”

“Fear?” Tessla said. “Fear? You're afraid? What are you afraid of? You can talk to me Zecora.”

“I cannot! Just leave me be,” Zecora cried out. “Just let me alone and go back to being humans three.”

“Not gonna happen,” Tessla stated. He locked his eyes on Zecora and they changed before her. His chaotic eye shifted between the eyes of several animals. An entire spectrum of colors cascaded across his eyes as they shifted. “I have the powers of chaos at my disposal, Zecora. And chaos is everywhere. I will always find you, no matter where you run to.”

“It is my secrets that you desire, but I will not feed them to your greed fire,” Zecora said.

“Dammit, Zecora! I am trying to help you!”

“You cannot help me! I must keep running. I know what is here, and what is coming.”

“I cannot help you,” Tessla said back to her. “We fought back the the Changeling horde, Zecora. Austin took down a duelist. My powers alone are unpredictable and by nature chaotic. Ben is as close to a portable brick wall as you can get. We can help you. And don't forget about Twilight and the girls. They can help you to. All you have to do is give us the chance.”

Zecora stood there with Tessla. It was becoming clearer and clearer that he was not going to back down. He was not going to leave her alone, or simply let her leave. She thought about what he said. It was true that he had power, and so did his friends the other humans. They would certainly be formidable. She also thought about Twilight and Applejack and Pinkie Pie and Fluttershy and Rainbow Dash and Rarity. She had made friends with them. She had made friends in Ponyville, and they had done so much together. Maybe it was possible that they could help her.

“Maybe, there is truth to your words,” Zecora sighed with some defeat in her tone of voice, “But I am unsure of what that is worth.”

Tessla walked over to her. He had seemed angry at her before, but he laid a hand on her shoulder and it was not anger that she felt coming from him. She looked up at him and saw only compassion and caring. He encompassed her in a hug that took her by surprise and she wasn't sure what to do. She could to nothing but feel the heat coming off his body.

“You have friends Zecora,” Tessla stated firmly. “And we would do anything for you.”

As Tessla held her close to him Zecora finally came to a choice. It was a choice she assumed she never had to begin with, and then this human came along and gave it to her whether she liked it or not. Was she going to leave Ponyville for goof, or was she going to stay? She had a choice now. And she made her up her mind. A single tear flowed from her eye as she realized just how right Tessla was.

“I see now what you say is true,” She said, “I will remain here in Ponyville, and stay with you.”

===

“Twilight.”

She almost ignored the very sound of her own name. After all, it was Austin that had said it, During that past few days had barely looked at, spoken, or even generally acknowledged her much at all. So when he said her name, aloud and quite clearly she almost ignored it. Almost, but she looked up just in time to stop right before she ran horn first into Celestia's doors. Her eyes traveled up even more and over to Austin. She was surprised to find that his were looking back, back at her. She quickly averted her eyes and turned her head.

“Twilight,” Austin said again. “I'd like to ask you to do something, but I don't think you are going to like it.”

“What is it?” Twilight asked, still not looking at him. She turned her head to let him know she was still paying attention but that was it.

Austin already had his hands on the doors. He pulled one open but waited to step inside. Austin looked at Twilight. “Please, Twilight. Stay here.” He said before taking the final steps through the doors. Twilight herself was so stunned she didn't even respond to him.

Austin stopped on the other side of the doors. His heard pounded and he breathed in heavily. He slowly let out the breath and continued on. It wasn't far til he saw Celestia. She was sitting at a desk and had three quills fervently scribbling out notes or notations or something.

“Hello, Austin.” She said without even looking up.

“Princess Celestia,” Austin said back.

The quill made a few last, quick motions before floating over to a small container full of other quills and letter openers and such things that might be found on a desk. Celestia organized the papers with a few nods of her horn and then turned to look at him.

“You don't look so good, Austin,” Celestia said. She gestured for Austin to sit on one of the many pieces of furniture she had in her chambers. He stepped over and sat down on a small loveseat. “Tell me, why are you here? Why have you come to see me?”

“I'm having dreams,” Austin said.

“Then you should be talking to Luna,” Celestia said, “Or maybe you aren't here to talk about dreams?”

“It started as dreams,” Austin explained. “It was getting worse and worse as the days went on. I was getting less and less sleep. Always the same dream, I saw the same things. But they didn't feel like dreams. I don't know how to explain it.”

“You said they started as dreams,” Celestia said. “Did something happen to make you think otherwise?”

“Yeah, you could say that.” Austin looked up at her. He wanted her to see his eyes. A lot could be told about a person by watching their eyes. He believed that if Celestia could see his then she would have a better understanding of just what he was going through maybe. It was an idea at best, and blind faith at worst. But he went with it.

“Just moments before we left, I was in the hall. I was steps away from the door, and then it hit me. A pain in my head like nothing I had ever felt before. It felt like my skull was going to explode from the inside out, or something. And then I started seeing things.”

“What things?”

“My dreams, for starters. I saw every explicit, detailed moment of that and more. I saw so much more.”

Celestia thought about this for a moment. She moved away from the desk and pondered what Austin told her. Visions? Premonitions? Was he having them, or was it something else? Was it even something that she could help with? She knew a lot about a lot of things, but humans wasn't one of those things. Maybe what was going on with him wasn't even a pony related thing. Maybe it wasn't even magic related. If so, then she wasn't quite sure what to tell him.

“My guards tell me that Twilight traveled with you, correct,” Celestia asked Austin after another moment of pondering.

“Yes, she is just outside the doors,” Austin answers. “Why?”

“Have you told her about these dreams of yours?”

“Not really. I mentioned them, but I said nothing in great detail about them.”

Celestia tuned back to face him. She moved over and gracefully took a seat across from him.

“Why is that you didn't tell Twilight?”

“Why does that matter,” Austin asked. “I didn't feel as if she needed to know.”

“She is your friend, is she not?”

“Yeah, she is. A very good friend,” Austin said. “Again, why does this matter?”

“Do you want my help or not?” Celestia asked sternly. She gave Austin a glare that spoke just as much as she wanted it to. That was one trick she had mastered a long time ago. Saying a lot without actually saying a lot.

“Sorry, its just that this- whatever it is has been really messing me up lately.”

“I understand,” Celestia said. “But if you want my help then you must answer my questions. All of my questions. Now, why did you not tell Twilight about your dreams?”

“Because she is in one of them,” Austin stated. “My dreams, back when they were dreams, it was the same thing over and over. I was overcome with this energy. I don't what it is, but it was dangerous. I was trying to hold it back, and there was this barrier that was up. Twilight was on the other side of it.”

“What happens Austin,” Celestia asked.

“I see her face,” Austin sighed. “I see the pain, the grief, the guilt, the fear. I see everything from that Twilight whenever I look at her now. I can't even bring myself to do it, and it is damn near breaking me because I know she is confused and hurting.”

“Then why not just tell her?”

“Because, it is an unnecessary burden for her.” Austin said in all seriousness. “She will become obsessed with that one event and what it has to do with me and many will suffer for it. I will not do that to her. I will not let that happen.”

“So you are willing to take on such great pain to protect Twilight?”

“Wouldn't be the first time I have protected a pony by taking pain. Look at what I have done. It's kinda is what I do.”

“Yes, but this is different,” Celestia said. “And I don't just mean that this is not physical pain. This is something from inside of you, and it is trying to tell you something.”

“Something inside of me?” Austin repeated. “Well that narrows it down.”

“Austin, you do have a serious problem,” Celestia said. She closed her eyes and her horn got a small, low glow that flowed around it. Austin looked up at it and glanced around to see if anything was moving or happening. Nothing was, and so he looked upon himself. He wasn't glowing or being affected in any way that he knew.

“Austin,” Celestia got his attention, “You have strong magic in you, but it must flow and move the right way or else it may become a danger to you. I believe that this is the reason you are having these visions.”

“So you do think I am having visions? Premonitions?”

“I believe it is a possibility,” Celestia replied. “I believe your magic isn't flowing properly. Something is interfering with it in someway, and it must be undone. To start, tell me of all that you have seen.”

“Well, there is the energy. I try to hold it in, but there are waves of it coming off, coming through. There is a barrier now. It is set up around me and Twilight's on the other side of the barrier. Ponies are running everywhere. They're scared, frightened. Some of them pull Twilight away. And then there is this blinding light. It always ends there.

“Next is more bloody than the first one. I see an arm. A blood covered arm, separated from the rest of the body. I can feel the pain and the numbness at the same time. And I see crystals. I don't know what to make of it, but the crystals maybe, join with the bloody arm somehow. Maybe, I'm not sure, but they make something new.

“The next is less of a vision, and more of a set of feelings. It starts with these eyes, twisted with anger and shifting different colors. But I can feel the sheer rage coming from this is. Its overwhelming. And then there is this instinct, this thought. To bring destruction, death. And throughout all of this is the power. It is there, and it is strong. It scares me, honestly.”

Celestia sat in her seat and listened as Austin explained what he had seen. The more he told her the more she was beginning to think he was having premonitions of some kind. But normally they didn't come in fractured pieces like that, and almost never with the splitting head pain that he described before.

“Well, that's it,” Austin said, “What you make of it?”

“Interesting,” Celestia said. She was sounding more and more like a therapist. “Very interesting.”

“I need some time to look into this, Austin,” Celestia said. “Are you willing to wait?”

“Depends.” He replied plainly, “How long? The dreams got bad quick, and I really don't want any more of those headaches.”

“A few days,” Celestia replied. “Give me a few days and I believe I can find something that can help you. In the meantime, I ask only two things.”

“Okay. They are?”

“First off, allow me to bring Luna and Cadance into this,” Celestia said. “Things will move much faster if I have their assistance.”

“Agreed,” Austin said, “And the second thing?”

Celestia got back up and moved for the doors. She stood not too far away from Austin and looked at him for a second. She then turned toward the doors and her horn lit up with magical energy.

“Do tell Twilight,” She said as she opened the doors.

Later on, in another area of the castle Twilight and Austin moved in silence. Their bags had already been moved to the rooms they would be staying in for the foreseeable future. Some of the staff did that while they were with Celestia, or standing outside her quarters. The two of them were now walking there, but there was a silence between them.

Twilight stared forward. She would occasionally chance a glance up at Austin. Whenever she did she saw the same thing she had been seeing for days now. A man, distracted and confused. A friend who is struggling, in pain, and there is nothing she can do about it. He was not looking at her still, avoiding her own gaze even. Although, he seemed even more distracted now than ever. Was it something Celestia said to him, maybe? Twilight sighed a small sigh and kept on walking next to her friend.

Are we even friends anymore? The thought played over and over in Twilight's mind. It never went away. It was always there. Are we? Why is this happening? What did I do?

“Hey, uh, Twilight.”

“Huh? What?” Twilight said, as if waking from a dream. Her head darted around as she got a hold of her reality and realized where she was. She was in the room. Her room. The rooms she had always had whenever she stayed in the castle. She was so absorbed in her thoughts she didn’t' even realize that she had walked in. And when she looked to find Austin, she found a truly amazing sight.

“Austin,” She said with some disbelief in her tone of voice. Maybe a bit more than she intended. “You are looking at me?”

“I'm sorry, Twilight,” Austin said somewhat ashamed of the way he had been treating her as of late. “I haven't been acting like a good friend these past few days, especially when it comes to you. I want you to know that none of this is your fault, you didn't do anything. This is all on me.”

“Does this have anything to do with why we're here?” Twilight asked.

“About that,” Austin said. He moved over to a small sofa and sat down. Twilight followed suit and sat down across from him. “There is something I need to tell you Twilight.”

“What is it?”

Austin sighed a deep sigh. It was a sigh of nervousness. He leaned forward and looked at Twilight in her big violet eyes. He breathed deeply and then he told her. He admitted that he had lied to her before, and that he was not at all in a good place. He told her all about the dreams he had when he got back to Ponyville. He explained to her the sleepless nights and the dreams s vivid he could almost swear they were reality.

“You lied to me?” Twilight said, not wanting to believe that he would do this. “I asked you about this, and you told me it was nothing. Just a drifting dream you said.”

“I know, Twilight,” Austin said. “I can't apologize enough for lying to you, but even though I tried to do this myself you stayed by my side. I am thankful of that.”

“But why, Austin?” Twilight asked as she shot up from the seat she was in. She paced back and forth a little bit. “Why did you try and push me away? What is it about me?”

“It had nothing to do with you, Twilight,” Austin said. “This was my burden to bear, and I didn't want you to worry about me.”

“That's what friends do,” Twilight shouted as she turned to face him once again. “Friends worry, they care about each other. “I mean, I care about you. I am worried about you. Nothing will ever change that.”

“Twilight.” Austin said. He stood up from the sofa and stepped forward, toward her.

“No, Austin,” Twilight said. “I don't want to hear it right now. I mean, what could possibly be in those dreams that is so bad you would want me gone.”

Austin already took his step toward her, and that was all he was going to get. He could feel it coming. There was nothing he could do about it, though. The feeling swelled up and grew from a place within him. And then he was hit with it, all at once.

“Austin?!” Twilight exclaimed as she saw him go down.

He collapsed. Austin fell down to one knee, barely holding himself up there. His head pounded and throbbed like something was about to make it explode. He groaned as the feeling of pain washed over him. He threw his hands up to his head and closed his eyes. He shut them tight, as if the lack of sight would somehow make this all the more painless.

“Oh no! Austin, what is happening?” Twilight said quickly as she came up to the pained human being on the floor in front of her.

“NO, TWILIGHT!” Austin yelled, fighting the words through the pain. He threw up a hand to hold her back. “Don't come near me.”

Austin's eyes still remained closed, and yet images flashed before them. In his mind, piercing through the wall of pain and presenting themselves were images, visions. They flashed and disappeared only to reappear again. They came together to form loose depictions of something that Austin didn't understand. Suddenly, he was back in his dream, trapped in body, held in a barrier.

“Austin,” Twilight said. He had fallen silent. His movements were small and almost not even there. She approached him warily, not sure of what was happening or what she could do to help. And then, Austin slumped down. He fell to the side and Twilight raced over to him. She called out his name and placed a hoof on him. She touched her hoof to him, his chest. Right over his heart.

“Go, Twilight,” He said almost commandingly, and yet with compassion. “Get as far away from here as you can.”

“I- I – can't,” Twilight murmured.

“You must,” He said as his eyes fell behind her. “Get her out of here.”

Silence fell over the entire area. Twilight was slowly being pulled away from him. She cried out and shouted until her voice cracked, but it all came out as silence. A deafening silence that weighed heavy on him. He let his own tears stream down his face as he struggled to contain the power. It was coming fast and harder, now more than ever. He prayed for his apologies to be heard and that was the last thing he remembered. A blinding, pure white light erupted forth and he was . . .

“AAHHH!” Twilight's head shot up. She breathed heavily as her memories replayed over again. But were they really hers? She took a moment to go back. The dream she had, it was. . .intense. It was more than just a dream. It wasn't hers. It was Austin's. She could feel him underneath her. His chest slowly rising and falling. His rhythmic breathing told her that he must have been sleeping peacefully. She looked over at his face. His eyes were closed and he was breathing quietly at the moment. Twilight kinda smiled and lay her head back down, not even realizing that it was just over his heart or how it would look if some pony came into the room right now.

As soon as she closed her eyes, however, her mind filled with images. Memories, pieces, shards of the vision she had seen through Austin's eyes flooded her mind. She had never experienced anything like that before. Her head shot up again and she looked over at him once more.

“Holy shit,” Twilight muttered to herself. “Is that what you've been seeing, Austin?”

She remembered back to what she had seen. The images were still fresh in her mind and came to her easily. She remembered being stuck in that place, seeing the world through the eyes of another. She remembered looking out and seeing herself in the crowd. The image of her face stayed with her. So full of sadness and grief she was. Her eyes so full of pain and tears.

“Now I understand,” Twilight whispered to herself. “Now I know why you couldn't bring yourself to look at me.”

Moving Forward

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Ben trudged along the small path leading down to Sweet Apple Acres. His mouth opened widely as a great yawn escaped from him. His feet were barely leaving the ground as he took each step. His body, weary and tired moved forward slowly. And why is he in this sad state, you ask? Well, the reason is quite simple. He was dead tired.

“I got up too damn early,” Ben said. Walking next to him, fully awake and alert was Applejack. She trotted alongside the big human with a smile.

“Ah know, Ben,” Applejack apologized for the third time. “It's just that when yer friend with the long hair mentioned how you were laid bare in fronta Rarity, well, you just had ta know we were gonna have some questions.”

“Questions, yes.” Ben stated. “A full blown interrogation complete with lights and an uncomfortable room that also had Rainbow Dash wearing a cheap FBI style suit thanks to Tessla. . . No, wasn't expecting that.”

“Yeah, that was kinda interestin',” Applejack said as she remembered back to the last few hours they had spent in her barn. Thanks Celestia Tessla turned it all back to normal. That would have been a might hard to explain to Granny Smith.

“That's one word for it, I guess,” Ben said with another yawn. “We were up til around 2 wasn't it?”

“Sounds about right,” Applejack replied. “Which is why ah am so happy you are still doing this today. Helping out mah sister on her field trip and all that. I would do it mahself, but I got chores back home that got me busy. Same with Big Mac.”

“Field trip. Right.” Ben said. He was slowly waking up, little by little. He yawned once more as they walked on. “Remind me please what this is all about?”

“Sure thing,” Applejack replied happily. “Apple Bloom's whole class is heading down into a safe part of the Ghastly Gorge. There are some parts of it that are actually a lot safer than Rainbow Dash would have most ponies believin'”

“Why in the world are they going anywhere near Ghastly Gorge in the first place?”

“I dunno,” Applejack said. “Somethin' ta do with rocks, I think. Apple Bloom mentioned it once, but I reckon I forgot. Maybe it was collecting rocks.”

“Oh, okay,” Ben said. “Anything else?”

“Yep,” Applejack replied. “We're here.”

Applejack lifted up a leg and used her hoof to point to the side. Ben's eyes slowly lifted up off the ground and followed the direction of Applejack's outstretched hoof. Sure enough, she was right. Why wouldn't she be? She had actually gotten a decent amount of sleep, or apparently could function perfectly on just about three to four hours. Anyway, Ben was standing right out front of the school building and Applejack waved her goodbyes. Ben waved back but he didn't enter the building right away.

He took a spare moment to collect himself. He pulled out of one his pockets a small hand held mirror. Rarity had given it to him a while back for some reason. Ben forgot it, much to his own annoyance. Anyway, he did a quick study of his looks in the mirror, and found himself to be better off than he thought. Other than the bags under his eyes there wasn't really too much out of place, and the bags weren't even that noticeable. All he needed was a little more time and he would be good to go and ready for anything. He patted down a few loose hairs that he had noticed were going slightly astray and stashed the mirror back into one of his many pockets. He took a deep breath, put a smile on his face, and headed on inside the school building.

Cheerilee was watching the young filly students with a gaze only a teacher could have. Her senses were trained like that of a hawk to notice anything that was out of place. Anything. From the wandering eyes of a wayward student trying to get a better grade of the work of another to the subtle sounds of a paper crumpled up or folded over and being passed from student to student, she could always find it.

Right now, she was having all her students do a short writing assignment on the upcoming field trip. They were to write at least three things they believed they would be seeing while on the field trip. Cheerilee watched as the students worked. Some of them, of course, worked harder than others. Some of the young students lazily jotted down just the bare minimum of three things and were just wasting the time they had now. Others were still writing away and down into the double digits as to what they thought they would see. But Cheerilee was smart. She had set all of this up. A test of sorts. You see, she had told the students at the beginning of the class that there was going to be a surprise coming in later on. Only the students with the best answers would be allowed to participate, though.

“Keep writing class,” Cheerille said happily as she moved toward the edge of the room. Her very sharp teacher senses were acutely tuned and she picked up on the creaking of the doors in the front of the building. Her surprise guest must be here.

“This building is much bigger on the inside than it seems from the outside,” Ben mumbled to himself as he walked in. He glanced around a bit before his eyes fell on Cherilee herself who had come to greet him.

“Ben,” She said with a warm smile. “It is so good to see you today. I'm glad you could take the time to chaperone the class today.”

“No problem, Cheerilee,” Ben replied with a smile of his own . “Happy to help.”

“Well then, lets go and introduce you to the class,” Cheerilee said. She turned on a dime and was already down the hallway a bit by the time Ben started moving. She was a surprisingly fast pony.

Cheerilee came into the classroom again and moved right for her desk. She didn't waste a second in getting the attention of all the young ponies in the room. Within seconds she had them all with their pencils down and their eyes forward looking at her. She smiled at them and decided it was finally time to reveal her master plan.

“Students, it is time for your surprise,” She said. “Well, surprise guest I should say. He is going to be coming with us on out field trip.”

“What?!” Diamond Tiara exclaimed. “I thought there was going to be a prize or something! You mean I worked this hard for nothing? Nothing at all?!” She quite dramatically slammed her little hooves down on her desk, showing everypony exactly the four one word answers she had written down on her piece of paper.

“Hey now. That work isn't for nothing,” Cheerilee said. “Anyway, it is time for me to introduce out guest. Can you please come in, Ben?”

As if on cue, and not at all like he was waiting outside of the door listening for a signal to come in, Ben entered the room. He smiled and walked past the desks of the young ponies to the front of the room. All of the young ones had their eyes locked onto the large figure moving past them.

Ben moved to the front of the classroom and stood there. “Hello, kids,” He said with a smile. When none of the kids answered back an awkward silence descended and filled the room. Ben shifted his weight nervously between his feet as he stood there.

“Well, then,” Cheerilee said. “Does anyone have any questions before Ben before we get started?”

For a moment the silence still hung in the air like a fog. Then nearly all of the hooves belonging to the little schoolfillies shot up and waved around dramatically. All around the room the young ones had their hooves up and were trying their hardest to get their name called. They shook their hooves and called out, some with just grunts and oohs. Others still just bluntly shouted out that their name should be called. But between all the, “Pick me!” cries Ben and Cheerilee heard it was hard to tell who was who. Ben instinctively took a step back. With all the fillies giving their attention to him now the whole room seemed to get a whole lot smaller.

“Well, go on and choose one, Ben,” Cheerilee said with a gesture of her hoof.

A new worry swelled up in Ben as his gazed fell over the little ones once again. His eyes scanned the lot of them. HE found the fillies he was most familiar with first. He knew their was science behind why that is, but he let his eyes pass over Apple Bloom and Sweetie Belle. Scootaloo wasn't even paying attention.

“Why are we, like, even doing this at all?” A familiar voice called out above all the others. Some of the others actually quieted down and turned to face this filly. Diamond Tiara proudly held her head up high with all her attitude. “We all know he is just going to pick one of the blank flanks. This is pointless.”

He resented that. True, him and the others spent a lot of time around the Mane Six and their families, but that didn't mean that they automatically got chosen. Although Ben had to admit he was probably going to pick one of them anyway. HE was, that is, until he saw a familiar face among the young fillies. He had only met this young one once, but he liked her.

“Excuse me,” Ben said aloud. Immediately all the fillies that were still paying attention turned to face the front of the class and had their attention on Ben. “I believe your hoof is still raised, Starlight Charmer. What is your question?”

The little filly turned red as every pair of eyes turned on her. She sat in the very back row and that seemed to fit her timid nature, but now she was unfortunately thrust into the spotlight.

“Oh, you remembered my name,” She squeaked out first. “I was, um, just wondering if you, uh, knew what we doing today? Miss Cheerilee hasn't told us anything.”

“Excellent question,” Ben said before he turned to Cheerilee. “Miss Cheerilee? Care to share any information on the subject?”

The school teacher pony came out from behind her desk and stood next to Ben. She smiled as she explained to the kids, “We are going on a field trip!”

Ten minutes later and the whole lot of them were off on the start of their grand adventure. Ben wanted to walk with Cheerilee at the front of the class, just to talk to her and get some more information on the are they were going to be visiting today. He was able to get some info, but not much.

“It is a small canyon with several recessed inlets near the bottom,” Cheerilee explained. “In these inlets the students will be able to find and identify many of the crystals and stones that are naturally occurring in the area. Fun!”

“Yeah, sounds real fun,” Ben said. “But isn't also kinda dangerous?”

“Well, it is technically part of the Ghastly Gorge, but this area has been declared an official safe zone by the Mayor, and only after rigorous studies and tests were done. One was even done by Princess Twilight herself.”

“Cool,” Ben said. “Can't wait to get there.” After that his time with Cheerilee came to an end. Slowly, Ben was swallowed up by a small sea of slightly smaller ponies. They surrounded him on all sides with their eyes locked onto him and wide with excitement. It was also kinda creepy.

The see of young ones moved around Ben as one entity. If any one part of them stumbled or fell out of line the emptiness was immediately filled with another, and their empty spot was filled with one from behind them. It was a vicious cycle as each of them tried to claw their way to the front to get as close to the human as they could. And then came to questions, so many questions.

“How did you get here?”

“What's it like being a human?”

“Do you like peas?”

“Who is your favorite pony?”

“What's you favorite color?”

“Why do you wear clothes all the time?”

Ben eyes darted about as he tried to keep track of all the questions he was being bombarded with. Eventually he called out loudly for a moment of silence. That got everyone's attention as even a few passing ponies stopped their conversation as they walked by.

“Don't know. It's interesting. Yes. Not telling. Blue. It's a human thing.” Ben rattled off with not a single breath in between. “Now, does that answer all of your questions?”

“How can you not know how you got here?” Diamond Tiara asked sarcastically.

“I came down in a ball of fire that most ponies mistook for a meteor or a falling star,” Ben stated very matter of factly. “So did Austin and Tessla. As to the how and why that happened? Don't know.”

They all continued on their way. Ben answered all the questions the young ones had as best he could. Sweetie Belle kept trying to pry the answer to who his favorite pony was out of him. But Ben was as sturdy and defiant as a well built castles walls on this and he did not reveal the answer. Before too long Cheerilee announced that they had arrived at the entrance into the canyon. Standing at the entrance with them was a small earth pony.

“Hello, kids,” He said happily, “My name is Rocko. I will be your guide today.”

The class followed Rocko as he lead them down a rough path made of dust rocks and dirt. They went down deep into the earthen crust and emerged into a fantastic, glittering wonderland of brightly colored gems and stones. All around the small canyon floor veins of crystalline gems jutted forth. Seeming like trees there were branches emerging from the sides of the canyon walls. The sun was right above then, making them all shine and glitter like nothing Ben had ever seen before.

“Huh,” Ben exclaimed. “Why doesn't Rarity just get her gems here?”

“Now kids,” Cheerilee called out from ahead of Ben. “These may not be the same quality gems that you would see on one of Rarity's dresses, but they should be more than enough for your assignments. Now, line up please so that I may hand out your assignments.”

“Oh, that's why,” Ben said.

Cheerilee handed out the assignments for all the young students. They all went about trying to get them done as fast as possible. Many of them ended up forming small teams so that they could all help each other out. Ben watched as they all went their ways. His job from this point on was to just watch them and make sure they didn't get hurt or into any trouble. He walked among them and liked what he saw. Each of the little ones were so interested in what they were doing. All of them were very focused on their assignments. Except for a few.

Farther along the canyon were more places to find the gems these fillies needed. He thought he had heard some voices and so Ben glanced over to an alcove in the rock. It was actually quite large, but not nearly big enough to be called a cave. The light shining down from the sun was at the wrong angle to illuminate the area, and so it was filled with shadows. But when Ben peered into the shadowed area he saw three familiar faces.

“Scootaloo, what are you doing?”

Ben walked up to them because he saw something odd. Both Apple Bloom and Sweetie Belle were hanging on to their saddlebags. Each of them were filled with a wide and varied assortment of gems. Surprisingly enough they also had almost all of their assignment sheets done already.

“My sister is Rarity,” Scootaloo said when she saw Ben looking. “I know a thing of two about gems.”

“Okay, but what is she doing?” Ben asked while pointing at Scootaloo. Meanwhile, Scootaloo was much to busy to listen to them. She was doing her own thing. Her flank was high in the air while her head was mostly buried beneath this large rock that made up much of one wall of this large alcove. She was squirming and grunting as she was making an obvious effort for something.

“She dropped a crystal she picked up,” Apple Bloom said. “Now she's tryin' to get it back.”

Ben was about to respond when he noticed something. A very small amount of rock dust had fallen from the ceiling of this place. Ben glanced up to see the rocks in their full detail. What he saw did not make him happy. It actually made his worry greatly. The ceiling wasn't one big slab of rock as he originally thought. IN fact, it was a great many rocks all wedged together and held tight. The boulder Scootaloo was now squirming under seemed to be the one thing keeping this part of the ceiling from caving in.

“Scootaloo, get out of there,” Ben said hurriedly.

“Hang on. I almost got it,” She replied from under the boulder. Her voice was so muffled that he almost couldn't hear her at all. It didn't matter, though, as Ben watched the ceiling above him.

“Scootaloo,” Ben called out louder than before. “Get out of there now!”

An audible thud was heard and the whole place seemed to shake. The rocks of the ceiling shifted violently as it rained down dust and dirt on them. The clinks of rocks hitting one another sounded off.

“Scootaloo!” Ben cried out. He raced to her quickly and planted a hand on her back. Without a word or even a second to respond Ben gripped the filly Pegasus tightly and dragged her out of that hole. He didn't even let go of her as he and the other two quickly exited back out into the sunlight. Ben coughed and coughed as he tried to rid himself of the rock dust that filled his every breath. Apple Bloom and Sweetie Belle were doing the same. After his coughing fit was over he remembered he still had a filly in one hand.

“Scootaloo,” Ben said sternly as held her up by her ass almost. His hand was above his head, but her body hung low so the two of them were pretty much eye to eye. “What the hell is wrong with you?! You could have gotten us all killed in their. Do you have anything to say for yourself?”

Scootaloo looked at Ben. She smiled sheepishly as she held up a hoof. In it was a very beautiful and intricate gem. “I got it,” She said flatly.

“No, you don't,” Ben said as he swiped the gem from her hoof with his free hand. He then lowered her to ground level and released her. She wasn't happy about losing her hard earned gem, but she wasn't about to argue with him for it either.

“Hey, y'all. Come look at this,” Apple Bloom called out from behind them.

Ben looked over his shoulder to see Apple Bloom back in the same spot that they were just nearly crushed in. He sighed heavily as Sweetie Belle was there too. And now Scootaloo was making her way over there. Well, if her couldn't stop them he might as well go with them. Keep them out of trouble as much as possible.

“There's a hole in the wall,” Sweetie Belle said. “I wonder where it goes.”

“Deeper into the Ghastly Gorge, ah bet,” Apple Bloom said. “Let's go on through.”

Apple Bloom took a single step before her path was blocked by a very large human. He looked down at them as his large framed blocked the hole. His was full of disapproval and some shock, but the shock was fading.

“Are you three serious?! You just almost got buried alive and now you want to go gallivanting around in some unknown area of the Ghastly Gorge? Really?”

“Is it just me or does it sound more exciting when he says it” Scootaloo asked somewhat sarcastically. The three young friends laughed until Scootaloo stopped suddenly. “Wait. Do you hear that?”

“Yes,” Ben said seriously. He did hear that. He turned to face toward hole in the rock wall. He made a hand gesture that told the rest of them to be silent. What he had heard before, what Scootaloo heard, they were voices.

===

Zecora stared at the reflection of herself in the mirror. She had almost made it. She was almost out. Out of Ponyville, out of danger, out of this old life. And then he appeared, Tessla. He talked her out of it, somehow. She still doesn't quite understand how he reached her, or why she even agreed to come back him. And yet she was here, staring at her reflection in the tall standing mirror in one of the many empty rooms in Twilight's castle.

Zecora turned sideways and took a long look at her right side in the mirror. “Blast these accursed stripes stripes of mine, betraying me and giving me away just fine.”

“Yep. You were almost out of town, weren't you, Zecora?”

Zecora spun around quickly. Spike stood in the doorway of the room. Zecora never did close it all the way. And the little baby dragon was now giving Zecora a look. There was something about his eyes that gave off more wisdom than he normally implied. Spike took a few steps into the small, sparsely furnished room.

“I overheard the girls talking about it downstairs,” Spike stated, as if reading the mind of the zebra. “You almost left Ponyville for good, eh? Why?”

“Spike, my young dragon friend,” Zecora said with a sigh, “I don't believe you would quite understand.”

“Well, we won't know until you tell me, now will we,” Spike said as he crossed his arms in front of him, his words giving way to that unknown wisdom of his.

“Perhaps my tale should be told to everypony,” Zecora said, “It is a story that is difficult to tell, especially for me.”

“Alright then,” Spike said. “Come on then. I'll take you to them. Only Twilight isn't with them. She went off to Canterlot with Austin.”

“I would have liked for Twilight to hear all that I have seen,” She said as she made her way through the doorway. “But perhaps having the rest of you with me will be all I need.”

Zecora followed Spike through the halls of the castle. It was a short travel from the small room she had down to the main hall of the castle. Spike walked a few feet ahead of her. He stayed quiet as they walked, which made it all the easier for her to hear the voices.

As she walked down the corridor that lead to the main hall, the same chamber with the crystal chairs and the map table, the voices became clear. Zecora recognized them. How could she not? She had heard them a great many times as she lived in and near Ponyville. Five ponies, five mares, five friends. Spike turned on a heel and walked through the doors into that room. Almost immediately the voices died down, and Zecora stopped. She froze in her tracks as her eyes focused on the doors. A few beads of sweat rolled down her face.

She stood there for a small, and seemingly unending, moment. She couldn't move her hooves, as if her legs were made of rubber and were wearing brick shoes. Her voice wouldn't work, she couldn't speak any words even if she wanted to. And as she stood there, with weak knees and a fumbling tongue the doors moved. It was a small shudder as a thin veil of magic surrounded the doors. They were opened from within and Zecora was faced with the five faces of her friends.

“Hello darling,” Rarity said with a kind smile. The glow around her horn faded as she released the magic surrounding the doors.

Zecora wordlessly stepped into the room with her legs wobbly and each step shaky. She fought through each step to hold her head up high, even as she walked to a most uncertain situation.

“No need to fret, darling,” Rarity said. “You aren't in any trouble.”

“All we want is some answers,”Applejack said. “And we got some questions for ya.”

Zecora lowered her head finally, “Yes, I suppose you do desire an explanation, and so I will tell you the story of my damnation.”

===

Luna's eyes passed over the words on the page. Her mind taking in each word as she read it, analyzing it carefully to see if it could be put to use in the current situation. The situation being Austin's predicament with the apparent premonitions of a possible future. Unfortunately, Luna was not having any luck.

“Agh!” Luna exclaimed as she slammed the two sides of the book closed in front of her face. She moved the large tome over to the side of her chair and let if fall onto the rest of the books that lay there. None of them had anything coming close to the answers she was seeking, and her pile of books was a rather large one. It was taller than both Celestia's and Cadance's.

“There are no answers in these books, sister,” Luna said with an increasingly angrier tone, “None of these old tomes, or grimoires, or spellbooks, or anything have any information on what could be plaguing Austin with his visions.”

“There has to be something,” Cadance said with enough hope to maybe convince a foal he could get away with the cookie from the cookie jar, but not enough for any of them. “We just have to find it.”

“And just what will we find, Cadance,” Luna asked, rhetorically, “All our knowledge, gleaned from over a thousand years of watching and learning will do little seeing as how it is all about ponies. Austin is a human, lest you have forgotten.”

“Calm yourself, sister,” Celestia said as she neatly set down a book of her own on an end table.

“I apologize,” Luna replied. “It is just that he is my friend, and I wish to help him. I just wish I knew how to help him.”

“Perhaps we are focusing on the wrong things,” Cadance suggested out loud as she had her eyes focused on the pages of the book in her hooves. She looked up only when she noticed the silence and feeling of eyes on her.

“Explain, Cadance.” Celestia said.

“Well, this book here has a powerful spell in it that could work to help Austin,” Cadance said. “It won't lead us to the source of his premonitions, but it just might lead us to what they mean. That could be helpful.”

Celestia leaned back in her seat to think this over. She had imagined that Luna would be doing the same, but she was not. She was doing something quite different, in fact. Luna sat with her chin high, her body out and smile was slowly slipping onto her face.

“That is it, Sister!” Luna loudly and happily exclaimed as she nearly leaped from her chair. “IF we can find the source of the images Austin sees in his premonitions then perhaps we could sever the connection at that end.”

“Relax, dear sister of mine,” Celestia said with a warm smile. “We haven't even seen this spell that Cadance has found yet. I know you wish to help him, but we must not act prematurely.”

===

Ben listened carefully. The noise made by all those rocks and boulders collapsing was bound to draw some ponies, but not from the other side of this mysterious hole. The collapsing ceiling sent all sorts of debris rumbling and rolling and opened up this hole. So who in the hell was on the other side?

“So, what do w-”

With surprising speed for someone his size Ben quickly brought his hand over Apple Bloom's mouth. He closed it shut and held it that way. She resisted at first but as the voices became louder she stopped struggling against his grip.

Ben strained to hear the voices more clearly. He could tell there were at least two of them, but little else than that. He tried to make out words, but every time he thought he had one the voices would prove him wrong. Was he just too far away? Or were they speaking another language altogether? Ben was so focused on trying to hear the words he almost missed Scootaloo's attempt to sneak up on the voices.

Scootaloo's was slinking along the ground in her best impersonation of a prowling cat. She moved slowly and carefully in the direction of the voices. She would have probably gotten away with it to, if Ben hadn't seen her. After a few seconds of an epic freakout Ben reached forward and just barely got a hold of the tip of the young Pegasus’s tail. She felt a tug behind her and looked back to see him holding her tail. He was also holding up a finger in front of his lips, signaling her to stay silent. Scootaloo glared back at him and attempted to free her tail from his grip. Her attempt was unsuccessful as Ben only tightened his grip on her tail. After that attempt Ben tried one of his own. He took his grip on her tail, and used it to pull her back towards the rest of them. He had more luck than she did as she was forcefully dragged back about six inches.

“What are you doing,” Scootaloo hissed as quietly as she could.

“Stopping you from doing something stupid,” Ben replied equally quiet.

“Let me go!” She struggled to get the words out through strained groans of effort. She was pulling away from Ben's grip and even using her wings to give her a little boost. An unexpected side effect was that she was blowing up dust and dist into Ben's face. He was forced into a small coughing fit as her tail slipped from his grasp.

“No! Scootaloo!” Ben hissed in his right as he moved after her. Scootaloo herself could barely recover after she escaped from his grasp. She shot forward before she knew what was happening and hit the ground in a less than graceful roll.

Luck was on her side in some small part at least, for she stopped just before the edge of a corner that could only lead to the voices they had heard earlier. However, whatever luck she did have didn't last after that. The voices were still there, and now they were coming closer.

Scootaloo stared up at the empty space before her. It was just a small, narrow canyon. The sun was shining down from above, casting long shadows along the wall and floors of the canyon. That was exactly what had Scootaloo frozen, stuck in place while she just stared at what was to come. Two shadows. They were moving. They were coming closer.

Scootaloo couldn't do anything. Every second that passed felt like minutes. Every beat of her heart sounded off in her chest like the beating of a drum. Her mind began to create images, scenarios of what those shadows belonged to, and none of them were good. It was until she felt another harsh pull on her tail that she was brought back to this reality. Her head snapped back around to see Ben standing there along with Apple Bloom and Sweetie Belle. Ben raised a hand to his face and held up a single finger in front of his lips. She nodded, and Ben stepped in front of her.

Ben had rushed up after the young, foolish little pony. As he moved up after her, though, he made sure to take with him one of the many small rocks that littered the immediate area. The one he grabbed was a good sized stone about the size of a pony eye. He gripped it tightly as he stood at the verge of being seen around the corner. There Ben stood and he listened. They were close, whoever they were. They were coming this way. He only had once chance to stop them. Ben stepped back a few paces, and he threw that one rock as hard as he could.

The rock, bigger than a pebble and yet smaller than a boulder sailed through the air like, well, a rock. It didn't go very far but then again, it didn't have too. It went a little lower than Ben intended but the effect was the same. The rock hit the canyon wall on the opposite side, away from them. It scraped against the other rocks as it fell back down, creating a miniature rock slide that followed it. It was mostly dust that fell with it. Ben stood there in silence with the three fillies. The shadows stopped moving, and the voices rose up once again. He still couldn't make out anything they were saying, but the tone was clear. He could hear stress in the voices. Whatever it was, it was clear they weren't coming this way anymore and so Ben guided the young ones back with his hands. At least, that was the plan.

Ben motioned for the girls to follow him and he turned around to go back through the hole that was recently created. He made it only a few steps before he saw it. Another shadow, this one from above. He stopped the girls just as the shadow came down from on high. Now Ben was face to face with one of them, so to speak. It had the shape and size of a pony, but it was covered in a large cloak that hid many, if not all, distinguishing features.

“What in the world,” Apple Bloom said as she looked at this strange being.

“What is it?” Sweetie Belle asked. The question wasn't really asked of any one in particular, but it was out there now.

“I don't know,” Scootaloo said, “But it ain't from around here.”

“Quiet, girls,” Ben said authoritatively, “Who are you?” He then asked of the strange figure that stood between them and the hole in the wall. No response. Not even a single small movement that Ben could see. What was more important, however, was what he could hear.

Hoofsteps. Coming up from behind them. The same direction they were trying to avoid. Ben didn't want to take his eyes off this mysterious figure to look that way, but he wanted to see what it was that was coming. He wasn't alone, though, and the girls were his eyes in that direction. The news wasn't good, not that he thought it was going to be.

“Two more, Ben,” Apple Bloom said. “We got two more of these creeps.”

Ben glanced behind just enough to see the two of them. They were dressed the same as the other one. Long, thick cloaks that masked nearly everything about themselves. Who were these guys? Ben was about to find out. In the instant that Ben glanced away the first one sprung up.

It lunged at Ben with amazing speed, running up with a blade it pulled out from under its cloak. Ben saw it just out of the corner of his eye. As quickly as he could Ben turned to face his would be attacker. It leaped up and thrust the blade out at Ben, thinking his size would be his disadvantage. It would be wrong. Ben's size gave him a reach it hadn't accounted for. Ben leaned back as far as he could to avoid the blade and his outstretched hand grabbed onto the things foreleg. Regaining his balance Ben planted a foot firmly behind him, and he turned. Spinning on a heel Ben turned and he threw that thing as hard as he could at the other two. They nimbly dodged their thrown counterpart, who collided with the wall in an impact that caused almost all of them to cringe a little bit. It was alive, as a few groans of pain came from under the cloak.

“That's your first and final warning,” Ben said confidently as he stood up straight. “Leave us alone.”

“Yeah!” Scootaloo blurted out. “What he said. Leave us alone.”

The two figures looked at them for a few seconds before turning to one another. Ben could hear them talking to each other, but it seemed more like a whispering back and forth. He couldn't make any sense of it. It was all just unintelligible gibberish to him. But it would seem they came to a decision because they turned back to him and the girls.

“Bring it down,” They said in unison. Together they both reached under their cloaks and pulled out small, round objects. For some reason Ben knew exactly what these objects were. Or at least, he had some instinctual idea that told him what they might be. And for some reason, his only reaction was to run, to run right toward them.

Startled by this sudden and unexpected move the two strange figures leaped high up and above Ben, clinging to canyon wall before pushing off to land behind him. But once again they underestimated the reach of human. Ben managed to reach up and grab one of their cloaks as they jumped over him. He had stopped and with all his strength pulled. The figure slipped out of his cloak quickly, and skidded to a stop alongside the rubble and debris that littered the area.

“What the hell?” Ben said in surprise. This moment, this single act of surprise was just enough. Both figures threw their objects up, and then they ran. They ran at Ben, but only to get past him. Ben watched as theses two objects, small and round, exploded against the ceiling of the that small cave. It was the only way back to the other ponies. Ben wasted no time as he full on sprinted back.

The ground was shaking, tremors wracked the canyon as if it was almost alive and in pain. Like tears, streams of dust and debris rained down from above. Rocks fell from the canyon walls. Some were as small as pebbles one would kick on the side of the road. Others were the size of carts, and nearly crushed Ben. And yet, Ben didn't much care in those moments. He was solely focused on the three young fillies that were desperately trying to survive the disaster.

Ben dodged a few of the bigger boulders as they came crashing down from above. It was getting harder to see from all the dirt being kicked up into the air. He struggled to find his way, but he to the girls but he had their voices to guide him. Even among the sounds of rocks clashing together like thunder Ben was able to hear their three voices. They called out for help, for each other, for Ben.

“I'm coming,” Ben yelled out as loud as he could, hoping they could hear him.

It wasn't long after that that he found Scootaloo, just seconds really. At lease it seemed like it to him. Must have been minutes to her, maybe longer. She had stepped up away from the other two earlier, and had paid the price for it. A large piece of rock had fallen between them and they were separated. He found found her huddling behind this very same rock. Ben barely even stopped as he scooped her up and ran on.

Apple Bloom and Sweetie Belle managed to find one another and were clinging to each other for dear life. Tears streamed down their young faces as fear took hold in them. They didn't even see him coming. All they knew was in the next moment they were off the ground and moving across the canyon with amazing speed. They looked up to see Scootaloo also in Ben's arms. The three of them all shared a smile. One last smile before darkness, before the black.

===

He froze. He stopped just before the doorway. Austin couldn't even move. Something, something he couldn't quite understand was holding him in place. He had this feeling welling up in his chest, unlike anything he had ever felt before. What was it?

“Austin?” Twilight said, drawing his attention to her, “What is it? What's wrong?”

“I don't know,” Austin replied with a breath. “Just a feeling, I guess. Something's not right.”

“What do you mean?” Twilight asked of him, “You're starting to worry me, Austin.”

“I'm worrying me, Twilight. “Let's just get this over with.”

Summoning up all the strength he had left Austin lifted his foot up and stepped forward. The doors parted and he stepped into a grand chamber. Twilight was at his side. He wouldn't have it any other way. Austin moved forward into the middle of the room. Before him stood the three other Princess's.

“Good day, Austin,” Celestia said calmly. “I am glad to see you are doing well.”

“That's a debatable point,” Austin replied, “Let's get this done and then we can have that debate.”

“Of course,” Celestia said with a nod before turning to Twilight. “Twilight, you will have to come over here with us. Austin must do this alone.”

“It is just for the spells sake, Twilight,” Luna said. “Any others in his immediate proximity could cause interference with the spells results. So to speak.”

“Understood,” Twilight replied before taking her place among the Princess's.

“Are you ready to begin?” Celestia asked Austin.

Austin didn't reply. He stared at the floor for a moment. His hands curled up nervously curled up and he was rubbing his fingers against his palms. He forced himself to breathe easy as he closed his eyes and turned his head upward. Another moment longer, maybe two. He was never going to be ready for this. He gave Celestia a silent nod to begin, and that was that. It was all he could do to prepare for what was to come.

The room they were in was rather small by castle standards. It was located nearer to the bottom of the castle, closer to the crystal caverns. Twilight guessed that would explain why the room was made entirely of crystal structures. Celestia nodded to Cadance and her horn glowed brightly for a second. The door in which they came in was quickly covered up as a slab of crystal rose up in front of it. It settled into place and match the wall all around. IF Twilight looked away she was certain she wouldn't be able to find it again.

Together, Celestia, Cadance, and Luna all raised their horns. They each let their own magic flow through them freely and into their horns. In the dimly lit room, the radiant light from their horns bounced and reflected off of every crystal surface. Twilight watched as symbols began to appear.

All along the smooth crystal walls symbols were beginning to appear. Arcane symbols, runes, and writings. Magical verses and lines of text. Runic circles and magics with meanings Twilight could barely make out flooded the chamber. It was a glorious sight to behold and she wished she could just sit and study it all for days, but she wasn't here for magic scribblings. She was here for Austin, and her focus turned back to him.

Austin's eyes were closed. He held them shut as tightly as he could, and yet that didn't stop the images from coming. It felt just like one his visions, but there was no pain with this. There was only the sense of emotions. Each image had a different on attached to it. They flashed before him in his mind. At first it was just one image among a dozen, slowly coming into focus before fading back out again. Then they started to come faster, and faster, and faster. He couldn't follow them anymore, he could not keep up.

Austin's eyes snapped open. Although his eyes were no open his unfocused gaze told Twilight he was seeing what she was. Austin could barely hang on to what he had coming into this. Now this, this was going to drive him mad, insane. Worse than Discord and Chrysalis combined. He could feel it. And yet, there was a sense to it all. He could feel some underlying meaning with each image that flashed before him. He recognized a few of the images he saw.

Bloody arm, rocks, the feeling of pain and fear that came screaming with each one. He saw the images of crystals flashing in front of him before they too disappeared. He could feel the power in them. And then came the rage. A dark silhouette, one red eye. An overwhelmingly powerful rage, animal almost. Austin dropped down to his knees and fell forward, slamming his hands down on the crystal floor to hold himself up. He dug his fingers across the floor as these feelings passed through him. And then came something new, an image he hadn't seen before.

An army, a dark army silhouetted against the setting sun. The clashing to two mighty powers. Black and white fighting. A strange mix of emotions he couldn't figure out. What was it? What was coming? And then as quickly as they came those images disappeared as well. And a wave a darkness overcame Austin's mind. Austin fell to the floor and rolled over onto his back. There, he finally saw it. His visions, the images he had been seeing. Pieces, small and insignificant on their own, but put together they form a grander picture. Like a puzzle he could now see the pieces falling into place.

“Twilight, you are needed,” Celestia stated firmly. The three Princess's stopped the spell and Twilight raced over to Austin's side.

“Celestia, what am I supposed to do?” She asked. Twilight stared down at Austin. She gently placed a hoof on his chest. His heartbeat was slow and faint. “Celestia, he's dying!”

“Then give him a reason to live, Twilight Sparkle,” Luna said clearly. She stepped up and walked to Twilight. “You care for him in ways no one else does, Twilight. You can bring him back from this. You know how.”

“But- but,” Twilight stammered. She looked down at Austin. His heartbeat was even fainter now, and even slower. “No, Austin. You can't go. You can't leave me.”

“Tell him, Twilight,” Cadance said.

Twilight looked down at Austin. Tears fell from her eyes onto his body. She lay her head down on his chest. She wished to feel the rise of fall of his breathing body again. She wished for him to smile at her again, to show her some unique magic thing he could do. She wished she had told him sooner.

“I love you, Austin,” She said in between her tears. “You can't go, because I love you and I need you here with me.”

Twilight cried into his chest for a moment more. She was draped over his body. The other three Princess's gathered around. Another moment passed. Worry began to spread among them. Was it too late? Luna looked at her sister, tears of her own coming to the surface.

“Ah!” Twilight exclaimed suddenly. She opened her eyes and the tears stopped coming. She listened intently as she lay over Austin's body. Was it what she thought it was? Did she hear it?

“Is he. . .?” Cadance asked, letting the question trail off.

“He's alive,” Twilight said quietly at first. “He's alive!” She joyfully shouted as she lifted her head up and looked down at him with a smile on her face.

At first nothing happened, but then they saw a gentle rise in his chest. He was breathing at least. He turned his head to Twilight and opened his eyes. She smiled and he raised a hand. He ran his hand down her cheek to wipe away a few tears before pulling her in closer to him. He gave Twilight the most passionate kiss he could, one which she returned with passion of her own.

“I love you, too, Twilight Sparkle,” Austin whispered to her after their kiss.

“Is it warm in here or is it just me?” Cadance asked. “Seriously, I am burning up over here.”

“Are you alright, Austin,” Celestia asked.

“You knew this would happen, didn't you?” Austin asked as he climbed off the floor and got up to his feet.

“Every spell has its dangers,” Celestia said with a slight smirk. Austin took that as the Princess's version of neither confirming nor denying anything.

“Whatever,” Austin said. “It's time to go. We have work to do.”

Buried Secrets

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She sighed, a heavy breath of finality.. The moment had come, and she was here. Before here sat the five of them, friends who had always been there for each other. And for her. But they weren't alone before her. He also stood with them. The one being she couldn't have possibly planned for. The one thing happened that she couldn't have possibly foreseen.

“You ponies five, my friends,” Zecora started, “I promised you a story, a tale that not yet ends. This story of mine, a story of dangers and secrets. A story that leaves me with so many regrets.”

“It's alright, Zecora,” Tessla said, standing beside one of the pony thrones, but still he was closer to her than the others. He wanted her to know that he was there for her. “You can tell us. Nothing you say is going to turn us away from you.”

Zecora smiled at him. He was the one person that was able to get her back to Ponyville. She was set on leaving, had her bags packed and everything. Then he showed up and somehow talked her out of it. She still wasn't sure what exactly it was that convinced her to stay, but she was content with her decision.

“Thank you, Tessla my friend, for being here with me til the end,” Zecora said with a signature rhyme. “But I fear I may yet turn ponies away, for the start of my story shall surely cause dismay.”

Zecroa took a deep breath. It was mostly to calm her nerves. She was content to be here, but every fiber of her being still screamed inside of her, telling her to turn and run. Run out of that room, out of that castle. They told her to run clear out of Ponyville, go back to the comfort of the Everfree Forest, where she had always felt safe. But she didn't do that. She stood where she was and took a deep breath.

“I come from a land of ancient traditions and even older magics,” Zecora started her story. “My birth was a normal one, but my life after was most tragic.

“Grew into a fine mare I did, but always was I watched and eyed, for I had a talent many of my people had long thought died. I possessed a talent for the magics of the old times, and for that I was cursed with this insufferable rhyme.”

“Hold up,” Tessla said, interrupting Zecora's story. “You're voice? You're saying that you are cursed? That's why you always speak in rhymes?”

“Yes, that is what I meant to say. I am not hiding anything from you this day,” Zecora replied. “Upon my being this curse was laid, from my very family this curse was made. I grew into a fine mare, but I was far from alone as I grew. I was born alongside another, a brother I hardly knew.”

“A brother?” The word went around from one mouth to another. Every pony had it slipping off their tongues before the next second had passed. It was hard to believe, but it was true. Zecora had no reason to lie to them.

“A brother,” Applejack said. “That you hardly knew? How can ya not know yer own brother, Zecora?”

“Choices made in the time we were young,” Zecora stated. “I chose the path of a daughter to tradition, while he became a warrior son.”

Zecora's eyes closed as her mind traveled back. She went back to a place she never thought she would every go again. Her thoughts raced back to her homeland, her village in the plains. She could see her home in her memories. Her parents were there, smiling. They had all the warmth and comfort about them that one could expect from any family. Zecora could see it in their smiles, and in the light of their eyes. But that light was quickly overtaken. A great shadow came from behind them. It loomed over everything Zecora knew and it was coming for her.

“I had only one choice left to me, to run and hide from my brother and his army. And so I came to this land of Equestria and ventured into the Forest Everfree.”

As Zecora told her story a low rumble filled the air. It was a small thing, a vibration that seemingly traveled through the entirety of the castle at once. They first thought nothing of it. One of the many small disasters Ponyville citizens were used to by now. But the rumble was not alone, followed only by a crash that sounded as if it came from the heavens itself. A mighty, colossal tremor ran down the streets of the town. Shaken from their seats and hooves everyone in the castle ran for the nearest window.

“Tarnation! What was that?” Applejack exclaimed loudly.

“I haven't the faintest idea, but I do say I rather ruined the moment,” Rarity said rather plainly.

All eyes were focused outside and so none of them paid much heed to what was said. In less than a moment's time all of their eyes were looking at the same place, drawn to it by a growing sense of dread and worry as much as the ponies running toward it. A cloud of dust like none they had seen before, except for the day in which the humans had arrived, all those months ago.

“Wait a sec,” Rainbow Dash said as she strained to see into the distance where all the commotion was. “I think that's Ghastly Gorge.”

“What?! Ghastly Gorge?” Applejack repeated in a much worried tone. She didn't even wait for a response, for she had already turned and was heading for the door. “Oh no, Apple Bloom.”

“Sweetie Belle,” Rarity said with her own worry clear in her eyes. “I'm coming. Hold on.”

“What's up with them?” Dash asked.

“The fillies had a field trip to the Ghastly Gorge today,” Fluttershy said. “It was supposed to be safe.”

“Oh, shit,” Dash said. “Scootaloo's in that class. I gotta go.” Dash flew the castle corridors as fast as her wings would carry her. She saw her two friends running along below her. How could she forget? Scootaloo was like a younger sister to her, just like they had their own actual sisters. And Dash couldn't even remember a damn field trip. She hated herself for it, but had to ignore it for now. It was far from the right time for that, and she needed to fly faster.

===

Austin stood with Twilight. Together they were standing in the throne room of the Royal Canterlot Castle. It had been a full day since the spell had been performed and Austin had been feeling wondrous. No more mind aching, skull splitting visions of blood and doom and what not. Twilight looked at him a lot throughout that day, and she had seen something about him she hadn't seen in a while. He was smiling again. Not a half smile somebody puts on when they say they're fine, but a real, true, genuine smile. It only made her smile even more.

“I am glad to see you are doing well, Austin,” Celestia said.

“Yes, very glad indeed,” Luna shouted joyously. Austin was glad to see her in a more playful mood. He hadn't seen Luna for a while before this whole vision thing started, and this was how he preferred to see her.

“Yes, well, I think it's time we got going,” Austin said. “Ponyville is probably missing us, and who knows what disaster has sprung up since we've been gone.” If only he had known how true his words were in that moment.

The doors to the throne room burst open abruptly, silencing all the quiet laughter among them. Cadance came inside quickly, the look upon her face wiping away the smiles they had been wearing until then. She stopped just short of the rest of them with a solemn look about her.

“Cadance, what is it?” Celestia asked.

“I had said my goodbyes and left for my return to the Crystal Empire. That's when I saw it,” Cadance said. “It is Ponyville. There's been an accident in Ponyville.”

“What kind of accident?” Twilight asked hurriedly.

“A collapse,” Cadance reported. “I couldn't tell much from where I was, but it looked serious. It looked bad, Twilight.”

Celestia wasted no time in taking command of the situation. “Twilight, you teleport to Ponyville with Austin. I need you to assess the situation and take command there. I will assemble an emergency response team and have them meet you there as fast as I can. Alright? Twilight, can you do that?”

“O course,” Twilight stated matter of fact. This was one of those times where she let her emotions lay in the back of her mind and her thinking part take over the controls. It made her seem cold sometimes, but it also let her stay calm in situations just like this. For better or worse, whether it was a good thing or bad, Austin could do the same. He nodded to the Princess's and he and Twilight were gone in the blink of an eye and the flash of a spell.

“It would seem that Austin spoke the truth,” Celestia said. “We do indeed have work to do.”

===

Applejack and Rarity ran through the streets of Ponyville. They raced through the crowds of ponies huddles together, ignoring the whispers and rumors already circulating around as to what happened. They moved down the path outside of town that lead down the place they now knew disaster had struck. Dash was right earlier. IT was Ghastly Gorge. The two ponies moved as fast as their hooves could carry them. They rounded a corner only to see that Rainbow Dash herself was already there.

“Dash? What are you doin' here?” Applejack asked hastily, but she wasn't moving. Rainbow Dash was as still as lifeless stature, staring straight ahead. It didn't take long for them to figure out why. They just had to follow the path of her terror filled gaze.

A wall. That was what was she was staring at. A wall, solid and sturdy and right in the place where the class was supposed to be. Rocks of every size and shape had fallen into place between the walls of this canyon here to form a dam in effect. But that wasn't even the worst part.

“Sweetie Belle,” Rarity cried out. “Sweetie Belle, where are you? Sweetie Belle?”

“Apple Bloom,” Applejack called out for her own sister, “Apple Bloom, where ya at?”

“Applejack. Rarity.” Both mares turned to face the pony who called their names. It was Cheerilee. They were relieved to see the face of the teacher, but their relief soon subsided back when she smiled even less than they did. In fact, the look on her face couldn't get any worse as a few tears started to roll down her cheeks.

“Cheerilee,” Rarity said. “Where is Sweetie Belle?”

“And Apple Bloom?”

Cheerilee could hardly even look at the two of them. She could barely tell Rainbow Dash. All she could do as the tears came more and more was turn and face the rock wall.

“What?! They're still in there?” Rarity said with shock and disbelief. She wasn't sure what to feel at the moment but she was sure on what to do.

She raced to edge of the rock wall and furiously started moving rocks with her bare hooves. Applejack raced up with her, but not to join her. She was there to stop her.

“Rarity, you can't do this,” She said.

“Out of my way, AJ,” Rarity said as she attempted to shove her friend to the side. “I have to get to Sweetie Belle.”

“I know, Rares, I do-”

“You damn well should, Applejack,” Rarity shouted, “You have a sister underneath all this as well. You should be helping me, dammit!”

“If there is a chance they're still alive I will move this mountain mahself, Rarity, you know that. But I am not going to risk their lives by bringing the rest of this heap down on the rest of us.”

“They are alive, AJ,” Rarity said surely. “I know it. Those girls are as tough as they come, and darn lucky to go with it.”

“Plus, they have us,” Applejack said with a weak smile. “Ain't nothing gonna go wrong.”

Applejack's smile, although weak, was enough to get one of equal value from Rarity. She sighed and looked up at the wall of rocks and rubble. Somewhere in there was her sister, and Applejack's. And Rainbow Dash had someone in their as well. She was feeling their pain just as much as they themselves were.

“Everypony, shut up!”

Both Rarity and Applejack looked back quickly, as a deathly silence filled the surrounding area. Not a pony made a sound, not even a breath escaped from them. The ground did not shake, the earth did not rumble. Everything from the rocks to the air was completely still. And there was Rainbow Dash, hovering just a few feet above the ground, her wings beating slowly as she lowered her head. She turned her face to the wall, to the rocks. She glided in closer to them. Something had drawn her undivided attention. She was solely focused on the rocks. Almost nothing drew her attention like this.

“What is it, Dash?” Applejack whispered.

“Shh,” Dash replied. “You hear that?”

Applejack turned to face the rocks Dash was focused on. Rarity came up on the other side of her. Together they stood in silence for a few moments, but not a sound was made in that time. Not anything they could hear.

“I don't hear anything,” Rarity told Dash.

“Close your eyes,” Dash said back. “You're not listening hard enough.”

It was a ridiculous thing to say, but Dash was far from joking. Both Rarity and Applejack did as Dash did. They closed their eyes, closing themselves off from the sense of sight and opening up their other senses. Together they listened, and together they heard. Something.

“They're alive,” Rarity uttered, just under her breath.

“They're alive,” Applejack stated.

“They're alive,” Rainbow Dash shouted to whole word, for everypony to hear. And everypony did hear. Ponies that did not already come from town streamed down from Ponyville to help.

The three mares were off to one side of the canyon. They were closer to an actual canyon wall and the wall of fallen rocks was only partially covering the area they were standing at. As many of the strong worker ponies came into the canyon they waved their hooves to get them over here. Big Mac was among them, and feeling stronger than ever. He probably could move a whole mountain by himself just then.

Together, with Rainbow Dash guiding them from above and Applejack leading the ponies, they were able to clear away some of the rocks and rubble. It was long, slow moving process but it was getting done. In an hours time there was a hole, a gap just big enough for a filly sized pony to squeeze through.

Rarity pushed her way up to the front. She moved past the rest of them. “Sweetie Belle,” She called deep into the hole. Once again, silence fell upon the ponies as they eagerly awaited a response from the darkness. And it came. Not a voice, not a call from the young ponies. But a light. A faint light as the young filly lit up the tip of her horn just enough to make her face, and the faces of the other two young fillies as well.

“Sweetie Belle,” Rarity said with relief and happiness overflowing from her eyes.

“Apple Bloom. Are you okay?” Applejack asked.

“My leg hurts,” Apple Bloom said. “And Scootaloo's wing is looking real bad.”

“You hang in there, lil sis,” Applejack said with a smile. “We'll have you out in no time.”

“Maybe I an help,” Tessla said as he approached the small hole and the three mares.

“What can you do?” Rainbow Dash asked. “What can your magic do to help us? Not trying to sound like a bitch here, just asking.”

“I can do this,” Tessla said. He held his hands out and traced a small circle in the air. As soon as the circle was complete, it was immediately filled in. It looked like the bottom of a tin can, and that is exactly what Tessla had in his hands when he held up the circle. It was like an illusion, but what he had was a solid thing.

Tessla set the can down on its side and held a hand on it to make sure it didn't roll away. He gave it a hard tap with his other hand and good kick to the far end. The end closest to the hole popped open suddenly and it was like one of those prank cans with paper snakes in them. Only this time, there was only one and it was headed right for the hole. It was just the right size as it slithered into dark, as if drawn to the light of Sweetie Belle's horn. It stopped just before the three young ponies and its mouth opened wide.

“Climb on in,” Tessla called down. “I promise it's safe.”

The three of them didn't really care how safe it was. No matter how safe he said it was it was definitely safer than that cave they were stuck in. And so they climbed into the mouth of this paper snake. One by one, with Sweetie Belle standing at the mouth but not climbing in. Scootaloo went in first. She winced every time her injured wing so much as brushed the surface on anything else. Apple Bloom was the second of them in. She needed help from Scootaloo to climb in, seeing as how her one leg was hurting real bad. Sweetie Belle was the last in. The light from her horn faded away as she fell inside the mouth. She was so tired. Before they could move any farther the snake moved itself.

The mouth closed around them and the whole length of it lurched back a bit. On the outside the ponies watched as this oversized toy that had extended into the cave was now receding back into the equally oversized can it came from. And just before the head of the snake reached the can it stopped. It opened its jaws wide and revealed the three little fillies just as they were a moment ago. Before they knew it they three of them were in the arms of each of their sisters.

“Ow!” Scootaloo cried out. “Ow, ow, ow. Damn that hurts.”

“Hey. Watch the language,” Rainbow Dash said sternly as she held Scootaloo close to her. “I am glad to see you're okay, though.”

“Ouch. That hurts, Sis,” Apple Bloom said as she was lifted off the ground in Applejack loving grasp.

“Oh, sorry, Apple Bloom,” Applejack said as she put her down. “Where does it hurt?”

“Ah, everywhere,” Apple Bloom said, carefully trying not to move at all.

“Oh my! Sweetie Belle, I am so happy that you are safe and sound. I;m just so glad you aren't hurt,” Rarity cried as she squeezed and hugged her young sister close to her. “You aren't hurt, are you? Sweetie Belle?”

“I'm fine, Rarity, really,” She replied wearily. “I'm just really tired.”

The three mares just wanted to stay there with the young fillies, but it was not meant to be. The day was not over yet and help was just about to arrive.

In the next instant before any pony, human, or other being could do anything a flash of light that could only have come from a magic spell blinked in and then out in the canyon. Standing there were Twilight and Austin. They didn't waste anytime whatsoever.

Twilight turned to face the nearest familiar face that wasn't preoccupied at the moment. “Applejack,” She said. “What's the situation like?”

“Apple Bloom,” Applejack looked down at her little sister, “Tell Twilight what happened.”

Apple Bloom winced, biting her lip to get through the pain. Nurse Redheart had arrived at the scene as was tending to her injured leg. She as being less than gentle. Once she was done she moved on to Scootaloo's wing and Apple Bloom looked up at Twilight.

“We was just having a bit of fun,” She said. “We found this spot, barely even a cave, and it was fulla gems we needed for our assignment. Ben said it was unstable. Guess he was right, 'cause next thing we knew rocks started falling from the ceiling and the walls.”

“So that's what caused all this?” Twilight asked, a half statement. “Some loose rocks in small cave? I thought I cleared this whole area. How could I have missed that?”

“No, that ain't it,” Apple Bloom said. “That didn't do this.”

“What do you mean? Then what did?”

“Ponies,” Sweetie Belle said. She walked up and stood next to Apple Bloom. Rarity was following behind her but keeping her distance, as Sweetie Belle asked her too. Sweetie Belle herself had a bandage wrapped around her head. Her horn was protruding up between the layers of medical gauze. “Ponies did this.” She said again.

“Sweetie Belle, what are you saying?” Twilight asked, worried at what the little fillies answer would be.

“After the small cave ceiling came down, there was something else. The falling rocks had uncovered a hole that lead to another area of the canyon. We were stupid and went through it. Ben tried to stop us, but we were not listening,” Sweetie Belle reported. “And then we heard voices coming from the other side. We found out they were coming from ponies.”

“We don't know if they were ponies or not.” Scootaloo added her own voice to the conversation. She slowly trudged up to her two friends, one of her wings was so wrapped up and covered in tape it almost looked like a makeshift cast.

“Scootaloo, why aren't you on your way to hospital?” Sweetie Belle asked.

“I'm not going without you guys,” She replied. “And we need to tell Twilight about the things we saw first.”

“The ponies?” Twilight said.

“No,” Scootaloo replied. “They wore these long, hooded cloaks that looked really creepy. We couldn't see their faces.”

“What about their bodies?”

“Nope,” Apple Bloom said. “We only gotta look at one of 'em, and he had some kinda clothes on all down his legs.”

“Okay,” Twilight said, internally groaning at the severe lack of information. She really didn't like not having information. “What happened after that?”

The three young friends all traded worried glances between one another. Slowly they sank down to the ground and their heads all lowered as far as they could. They all sat their, slouching and pouting for a moment. Apple Bloom's eyes began to water. Dirt and dust and filth covered her all over. The tears ran down her face, marking a clear path down her cheeks as if in an attempt to wash away some of her guilt. Sweetie Belle was beginning to cry as well, her own tears cleansing her cheeks.

“He- he- he picked us all up,” She said with her tears.

“He ran with all of us in his arms,” Scootaloo said slowly. “Rocks were falling down all around us.”

“He threw us all into the cave,” She said as she held back a sobbing fit. “But he didn't make it in.”

The sobs took over and all three of them started to cry profusely. Twilight turned away from them. Austin had gone that way to talk to Tessla. He was over there, that way. Twilight turned away only to find both humans standing not even a foot away, both of their faces contorted in horror as their eyes shifted. They came to focus on the immense pile of rocks they just learned their best friend was trapped underneath.

“Oh my god,” Tessla said. “Austin, what do we do?”

Austin didn't know what to say. He always had an answer, for everything. Always. If it wasn't a good, honest answer it was usually something else. Sometimes it was a joke, or a just a bad an answer. But this time, he didn't have anything. Nothing. He didn't have the damndest clue as to what to do.

“I don't know,” He finally said. “I just don't know.”

“Perhaps I can be of assistance.”

Al eyes turned upward. It was true they needed help, but this was the last thing they expected. Twilight had a better chance of predicting Discord's every move for an entire day before she would guessed this. She just stood there and watched this help arrive. She was one of the few who didn't move. Many ponies backed up, retreated, or just ran away. For you see, this help, this being, she was most unexpected.

“Queen Chrysalis,” Twilight said seriously, and with a noticeable edge to her voice.

“Relax, Twilight Sparke, I come in peace.” Chrysalis stated as she fluttered down and landed next to them. “I have come because of Ben. Where is he?”

“There,” Austin said, pointing at the rocks. He hid his shock and worry for his friend behind a straight face. It was easier for him to focus on Chrysalis than it was for him to worry about Ben. He hated how cold he felt to himself when he did this, but he did it anyway.

“On the other side of the rock wall. Well then-”

“Under it,” Chrysalis was shocked that Austin interrupted her so sharply. She let his words sink in as she looked down at the ground.

“I see,” She said after a moment. “Perhaps that is why I have this feeling in me. Twilight Sparkle, do you know what this feeling is? Ever since Ben left the hive me and my Changelings have been ,well, happy. It is hard to explain. And then, suddenly I get this pain in me, right where I would feel happy. Somehow, I just knew it was Ben. And I knew that of anyone in Equestria you would know where he was.”

“Actually, Austin would know where to find him more than I would,” Twilight said in response.

“And I knew that Austin would be with you,” Chrysalis replied with a tone to her voice. Twilight's confused looked mixed with her slight blush urged her to explain a bit more. “Did you think Cadance was the only one who could sense love? How is it did you believe we found suitable prey?”

“That doesn't matter right now,” Tessla nearly shouted. “We need to get Ben out from under there. Right away. Now, you came to help, Chrysalis. What can you do?”

“I live in a underground hive, human. Cave ins and rock slides a bit more common there, so what I can do is provide an expert opinion,” Chrysalis replied. “And some labor as well.”

Chrysalis smirked and raised her head up toward the sky. Her horn flared up with the dark green magical aura that the Changeling Queen had. She charged up a magic bolt and fired it skyward. She let it soar higher and higher into the sky before finally it exploded outward, releasing whatever signal it was meant to send. On some level both Austin and Twilight wanted to believe that she was here to help, and at the same time they both changed their footing as if expecting a battle to begin in the next few seconds. Thankfully, the latter never did come to pass.

From over the horizon a small, dark cloud emerged. It quickly formed from the shadows and moved. It cut its way through the breezy sky, going against the winds and heading for the canyon. Before long a quiet buzzing had begun to resonate through the air. The cloud, actually a grouping of Changeling drones flying closely together, stopped in the air above where Chrysalis stood.

“Surround the collapse,” She ordered with a commanding wave of her hoof. “I want the layout within an hours time. Move!”

The Changelings didn't even show any sign that they registered her orders. Other than the fact they all moved at once to fulfill them, that is. The drones, they never nodded or spoke or even blinked as far as Twilight and them knew. But it would seem that Chrysalis spoke true before. She was here to help.

“You seem surprised, Twilight,” She said as she turned back to them.

“This is just a bit unexpected,” Twilight said. “Your arrival, I mean.”

“Yes, I'm keenly aware that my sudden change of heart will not be believed my many ponies, but it is true nonetheless,” Chrysalis said. “That human, Ben, changed me. I owe him much.”

“Well, you can do that when we get him out,” Austin said. “In the meantime, why don't you tell us what it is your drones are doing?”

Austin gestured back to the Changelings. They had separated away from their tight flying group and gone individually to different areas. All of them stood at some point around the collapse of rocks that formed the wall. Many of them stood like sentries at watch before them wall on their side, as Twilight and Austin watched them closely.

They had landed and stood firmly on the ground, but their wings were still outstretched. Why? Then they started to do something odd. Their wings, they blurred. Like a hummingbird moving their wings so fast the Changelings wings vibrated and moved until they were just blurs above their bodies. The noise created by this was something new to them. It was loud, unnatural, and overwhelming at times. When it was just one it was different, interesting even, and could almost be listened to without trouble. But there wasn't just one Changeling here. There were dozens, and one by one their wings started blurring in and out.

“What are you waiting for,” Chrysalis asked in a demanding tone. She saw a look in the eyes of those around her. “Not all of my Changelings are drones, you know. You should know this. You saw the big ones back at the hive.”

As she explained this to them, a lone Changeling flew up above the rest. This one was not like the others. It wasn't even an it. It was a she. Unlike the drones, whose similarities in size and shape and general look make them seem like they all come out of the same mold she looked like someone had specifically designed her. Tall, lean, with an exotic charm about her appearances that could even rival many of the ponies that lived in Equestria.

“She's special,” Chrysalis explained, like a proud parent showing off their child's talent to strangers for the first time. “You see, the drones are vibrating their wings in such a way that it sends small soundwaves into the wall. The waves are harmless themselves but will get picked up by the drones on the other side, or even by themselves if it gets back to them. With all these drones connected by a hive mind they will collectively map out the entire collapse, inside and out. From there, we will be able to find and rescue Ben.”

“Where does the mystery female Changeling fit into this,” Twilight asked.

“The drones collect and map the area,” Chrysalis replied. “Think of her job as the reader of the map. She is in tune with the hive mind of these drones to the point where she can see the collective image formed by all of them. Once she has it all she can create a magical image of it by memory.”

“Magical radar with 3D virtual mapping,” Tessla said. “Awesome. Why didn't I think of that?”

“Because you aren't nearly as intelligent as Queen Chrysalis, human.” The voice belonged to the same female Changeling that had flown above the rest. She had come back down to the ground to take a place next to her queen's side. Tessla was still in awe about her appearance.

Her mane, similar in colors to that of Chrysalis herself flowed down from her head and off to her left side. It dangled freely and waved back and forth in the light breeze that filled the air. Her eyes were sharp, piercing slits that betrayed her Changeling nature.

“And you are,” Tessla finally responded.

“My name is unimportant,” She replied. “For I will not be here for long. Just long enough to assist my Queen and then I will return to the Hive.”

“I take it you don't like outsiders much,” Tessla stated frankly. “Good to know.”

This Changeling glared angrily at him. She seemed like she wanted to continue her barrage of insults at Tessla and the rest of the humans. However, she instead turned her attention away from them and towards Chrysalis.

“My Queen, the drones will have the collapse fully mapped out in a matter of minutes.”

“Well done,” Chrysalis said back. “Your abilities of control have come quite far. Impressive.”

“You honor me, my Queen.” The Changeling said with a slight blush appearing in her cheeks.

“Okay,” Austin said, entering into the conversation between them. “What happens then? Once the collapse has been mapped out?”

“We will enact a plan to get him out, of course,” Chrysalis said.

“How will you do that?” Austin asked.

“You ask a lot of questions human,” The Female Changeling stated with a sharp edged tone to her voice. “You should simply have faith in My Queen.”

“With respect, your Queen is your queen,” Austin told her directly. “I have no reasons of my own to place my faith in her. That may change after today, though.”

The Changeling stared at him for a moment, as if unsure what to think. She exhaled strongly before turning her head back her Queen. Chrysalis gave her a nod and she left the ground to return to her spot in the air. Her horn glowed with magic while she connected her mind with all the drones. Simultaneously, a magical glow surrounded the drones and a single pulse of light was sent through the collapsed canyon rocks. When then light of the pulse finally subsided the Female Changeling sent a silent message to Chrysalis.

“The drones are done,” She said. “Now we can proceed.”

Chrysalis spoke with Twilight and Austin for a few moments more after that. She explained to them how she would be coordinating the drones in the rescue. They would be helping from the air. Due to the help of the Female Changeling in the air Chrysalis had found Ben's location and the safest way to reach him.

From the air her drones would be slowly removing the boulders and rocks that had fallen. Rainbow Dash had been volunteered by Twilight to gather some willing Pegasi and assist the drones. She was more than willing to help, but she wasn't sure who else would be. She gave Twilight her word that she would come back with at least one other Pegasus, and then Dash flew off. Meanwhile, they continued on with the plan.

The drones went to work on the rocks from above. They had to remove a few of the biggest ones first. It took three to four of them all working together to lift some of them. Other drones would then come in quickly, as soon as there was enough room to get in, and sweep away the smaller stones and pebbles that could fall down and destabilize the entire collapse. They worked as a very efficient team. From one area to the next they removed these larger boulders.

From below Austin and Tessla worked with the Earth ponies. Austin and Tessla had their magic to use, and use it they did. The only thing they could do with it was support the collapse from the underside. Applejack and Pinkie Pie managed to pry loose one of the larger boulders standing against the side of the collapse. It took the both of them plus Big Mac's considerable strength to move the chunk of rock off to the side. However, with the loss of this one piece the entire collapse became a bit unstable, more than it already was. Austin stepped forward to help in the only way he knew he could. With his magic.

He stepped up to the newly made hole in the collapse, like a great mouth to an even greater beast. It was as if the gaping maw of the beast was opened wide and ready to swallow them whole in the sea of rock and stone. Austin held his hand above his head and and field of magical energy appeared around the rocks where the chunk of rock used to be. He pushed them back as far as he could safely do so and he held them there.

Tessla stepped forward with Applejack to the mouth of the collapse. “Alright,” He said. “Austin isn't gonna be able to move much now that he's holding all this up. We gotta get in there and get Ben out.”

“But we havta go in carefully,” Applejack said. “Or else we are gonna bring this down on all the ponies here. Now, lets get moving.”

They didn't waste any time talking it over. It was clear to everypony that this wasn't a time for talking, that they had to act fast. The ponies moved forward as quickly as they could. It really wasn't that quickly at all. Only two ponies were able to be inside of the collapse at a time. Any more and the risk of the collapse coming down on top of them would be too great. Not to mention that only a few ponies could get past Austin, who stood just outside the entrance like an ever vigilant guardian.

Applejack was one of the first ponies inside. She headed in before any other pony could even speak up. Another Earth pony joined her inside. Applejack didn't recognize him right away and she didn't really care then. He was small for an Earth pony, but solidly built. Tessla conjured up a few dancing lights for illumination and Applejack directed him what to do. The whole area down here was littered with the small, broken up pieces of the rocks that crashed together above them. Together, the both of them started removing these rocks and filling small sacks with them. It was slow and tiresome work.

Every time they got a sack filled they called out to let Tessla know. He would send down another of his snakes in a can tricks to grab the filled sack and bring it outside. Once there it was immediately taken by other ponies to be emptied and another sack put in its place to be brought down to them.

The day dragged on. The heat of the sun beat down on them with a fierce intensity. After nearly two hours underneath the rocks Applejack and her Eart pony companion had to crawl out for air. Two others immediately stepped out to volunteer for the next shift, and so they went in.

“Applejack, you need some water,” Tessla said as he came over to her. He handed her a bottle of water. She happily accepted it and guzzled down half the bottle before her next breath. The rest she emptied over her mane, letting the cool refreshing feeling wash down her head and back.

“How's he doin?” She asked as she gestured at Austin. They both looked over at him. He hadn't moved since he started hours ago. The air was hot and dry, and yet the ground all around Austin seemed to glisten with moisture. It was due to the sweat rolling down from him. Beads of sweat poured from him. His face, his back, his chest.

“He's moved his arms a few times, adjusting to the shifting of the rocks as more are taken off I guess. Other than that he seems to be fine,” Tessla said. “But its hard to tell with him sometimes.”

“The human has great endurance and stamina.”

Both Applejack and Tessla looked over to see the Female Changeling standing next to them. While Austin was drenched in sweat and baking in the sun, Applejack was covered in the dirt and dust from the underbelly of the collapse, this Changeling looked just as good as she did when she first showed up with Chrysalis.

“Why are you here?” Applejack asked.

“To observe the human,” She replied. “As I said, he has remarkable stamina, as well as endurance.”

“Yeah, I'll be sure to let him know you actually complimented a human,” Tessla said. “Now go get back to your drones and help get my other friend out of this rubble.”

“My mind is linked to these drones. They will do as I have ordered. I need not be present for the entirety of the task.”

As if to show off what she meant, what her drones could do, a group of four drones lifted up a piece of rock. It was a large chunk of the canyon wall that had fallen. One drone took hold of each of the edges of it and lifted it into the air. The Changeling pointed to these drones and smiled as if they were the prime examples of the what it was to be worker drones. The moment would have been hers if it weren't for the fact that the piece they had lifted into the air was falling apart.

The chunk of rock they had lifted up seemed to be whole from the sky view. From underneath, however, there was a maze of cracks running through that rock and small pieces of it were already raining down with the dust and dirt. Before another second had passed, the whole rock split and slipped from the grasp of the Changeling drones. They had to release their grip or be dragged down with it.

“NOO!” Applejack screamed. The smaller chunks slammed down on top of the collapse. Instantly, Austin had reacted. His knee slammed into the ground in kind, just as the rocks hit the collapse. He visibly struggled with his magic field, as if the entire weight of this was on his shoulders. The two ponies inside were trying not to panic as they raced for the only way out. Austin was able to raise the field, and the surrounding rocks ever so slightly. It was just enough to give them room to squeeze out from under the rocks.

“That was too close,” Applejack said.

“You. Changeling,” Twilight said as she approached. “That is why you are needed above, with the drones. To supervise the handling of specific rocks and help maintain the little structural integrity this thing has. Do you understand?”

“Only my Queen can speak to me in such a manner,” She replied to Twilight.

“Trust me, Silk Weaver,” Chrysalis hissed through and angered demeanor as she came up to her Changeling. “I would not have put it so nicely myself. Now get back up to your post!”

“My Queen,” The Female Changeling, Silk Weaver, cowered before her, “It was the drones that dropped the rocks.”

“Because you were not there to tell them that the rock they had in their grips was breaking apart,” Chrysalis scolded her underling. “Understand this, Silk, if anything happens here to harm the human Ben in any way that you could have prevented I will personally hold you responsible. Do you understand me?”

“Perfectly,” Silk replied. “Returning to supervise the drones now, my Queen.”

She flew off in a hurry and took her place with the drones once again. Chrysalis' eyes watched her closely for a few moments. Silk flew around from group to group, personally checking every piece of debris they even touched to see if it was intact enough to be moved.

“Well done,” Twilight said after a few moments. “A little harsher than I would have done it, but you got her back in the air.”

“Did you think I was harsh,” Chrysalis asked. “I didn't even notice. I usually try to bring a certain amount of imposing to all my declarations, but something seems to have gotten to me. I don't know what's happening.”

“Tell me Chrysalis,” Twilight said. “You have been here among the ponies for several hours now. Have you felt the need to feed on our love since you've been here?”

“No,” Chrysalis replied. “In fact, I feel quite sated actually. Now that I think about it I have felt sated for quite some time now. How did this happen?”

“It's called love,” Twilight said. “Real, true love. Not the stuff you suck out of us whenever you can. This is the kind of love you were given.”

“Given love?” Chrysalis repeated the words a few times. It was like she was pondering some great concept and she couldn't quite understand it all. “I don't understand, Twilight Sparkle. Is not all love the same? Why is this given love still satisfying me? Why does the love taken only last for a meager amount of time?”

“I can't explain it all to you,” Twilight said. “This is something you have to figure out for yourself. I can offer you one thing though.”

“And what is that?”

“A question,” Twilight said. “Changelings feed off of love. What would happen if a Changeling themselves fell in love? You don't have to answer it now. Jut think it over.”

“I shall do that,” Chrysalis said, her mind already working to answer to question Twilight proposed to her. It was like a riddle that needed solving. The only problem was, she couldn't figure it out.

“I see this day is full of unexpected encounters.” Twilight looked over and Chrysalis was snapped out of her haze as the voice of Celestia herself spoke to them. She glided down on the winds with several ponies behind her. She gave them a nod as they all landed their hooves on the ground and they moved right away for the collapse. This must be the emergency response team Celestia had assembled.

“Queen Chrysalis,” Celestia said seriously.

“Princess Celestia,” Chrysalis replied with an equally serious tone. “I am not here as your enemy, but as an ally. My drones work to uncover the human, Ben.”

“I can see that,” Celestia said as her eyes glanced behind them at the other Changelings. Her serious face faded away and was replaced with the warm, welcoming smile Twilight was used to seeing. “We are most glad for the assistance.”

The day dragged on slowly. Hours felt like mere minutes. The heat of the sun seemed to grow ever more intense as the hours rolled around and finally passed. The team of ponies Celestia had gathered really helped. They brought with them materials that made the whole job easier. Austin had to make and effort to raise the entrance of the collapse again. The great maw of the rock skinned beast opened again. Ponies rushed inside with specially designed beams and posts they used to hold up the rocks above them. They used these things to carve out a path deep into the collapse from below. Hours went by, but eventually a call was given. A singular voice rang out from amongst all present, pony, Changeling, and human alike. This one voice called out, and silence followed.

“I've found him,” Silk called out. “I've found Ben.”

Disarmed

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Silence. It was so strangely silent. She couldn't hear anything. She stared at him as he lay there, motionless and barely even alive. Ponies rushed all around him. They were saying things, medical terms and words she didn't understand. There were voices everywhere, each one of the trying to be heard above the rest. Machines were being dragged into the room with tubes and buttons and flashing lights. Beeps and noised could be heard just under everything else. The voices blended together, the machines rhythmically made whatever noise they were meant to make. It all came together in a cacophony on the senses.

“I can't believe this,” She breathed out in a low breath. “I can't believe that this has happened. Not to him.”

“My Queen,” Silk started to say but she had no words to follow with. What was there to say?

Ben lay on a large hospital bed in the room below them. Ponies had been running in and out of the room ever since he was brought into the hospital. When he was found under the collapse, Ben was in better shape than anyone thought he would be. But that didn't mean he wasn't severely injured. The larger rocks that landed around him shielded him from some of the collapse as it came down. But that was only a small part of it.

His body was crushed. Numerous small but deep cuts and punctures were scattered over his back and left side. One of his legs was broken in at least three places. Blood covered seventy percent of his large body. Most of the crimson substance was pouring from one place in particular. It was the most serious injure he had, the most serious injury any of them had ever seen in their entire lives. Somehow, during the collapse, as the rocks came crashing down around him and on him Ben had suffered a great loss. His right arm, it was gone. He had lost it forever, separated from the rest of his body. Austin's mind payed back the images he had seen from his visions.

“I saw this,” Austin mumbled. “I saw this in a vision, and I couldn't do a damn thing to stop it.”

“What?!” Silk said at a near shout. “You foresaw this?”

“Explain yourself,” Chyrsalis said. Her voice did not carry with it the same commanding tone that she normally had. Her eyes never moved from the still form of the human in the other room either.

“I had some visions before” Austin said. “Not too long ago. All I got was a bunch of vague images and some odd feelings. I didn't understand any of it.”

“But if you saw it then why did you let this happen?” Silk asked accusingly. “What kind of person are you?”

“Watch it, Changeling!” Austin hissed as his hand shot out faster than she could react. His open palm collided with the tiled wall just centimeters away from her face. Broken pieces of tile were ejected from the wall and she could see the anger in Austin's eyes. “That is my friend in there, remember that.”

“Stand down, Austin.” Twilight said. “We all know you would have down anything to save Ben if you could have.”

“Indeed,” Chrysalis murmured.

“Don't worry, Chrysalis,” Tessla consoled her as best he could. “Ben is the toughest guy we've ever met. He'll pull through this. Just wait and you'll see.”

The door to the room opened up and a doctor pony stepped through at a brisk pace. He stopped as soon as he saw the group of them standing there. He eyed Chrysalis suspiciously for a moment before stepping around to talk to Twilight directly.

“Princess, I have some news about the human Ben.” He said.

“What is it doctor?”

“He came in with several surface lacerations and punctures as well as s numerous internal injuries. We have managed to find and mend most of the internal injuries already. The surface wounds, while deep, are not critical.”

“What about his arm?” Austin asked. He was doing his best to keep a straight face for the rest of them.

“Yes, that.” The doctor said. “That is much more serious injury than we initially believed. His right arm was simultaneously severed from his body from the collapsing rocks falling and slicing into it. We believe that he lost consciousness due to the pain at that time. We have stopped the bleeding for now but that is a temporary solution at best.”

“What are you going to do about it doctor?” Twilight asked.

Before the doctor could answer Twilight's question a great crashing sound erupted from the still open doorway that lead into the room Ben was in. A few ponies inside the room screamed and shouted as a shadow appeared in the window. Everyone was barely able to move in time as the shadow grew larger before shattering the window into countless shards of glass. After evading the machine that had somehow been thrown threw the glass Austin was the first to recover. He scrambled to his feet trying not to skid on the broken glass. He jumped through the newly created opening and rushed into the room further. There were several ponies all trying to restrain Ben.

Ben had regained consciousness, but his mind was still reeling from the shock of everything that had happened to him. His one good arm was flailing about in a feeble attempt to get a hold on anything he could, but everything he could grasp was being thrown about the room instead. Two nurse ponies huddled in a far corner only racing to the exit when Austin entered the room. Grunts of effort mixed with pain filled the air as Ben tried to move. A large earth pony was doing his very best to keep Ben laying on the bed but he was at a disadvantage of being only half the size of the human.

“Ben!” Austin called out as he got closer. He took a few cautiously placed steps forward. He heard the crunch of the glass behind him. Someone had followed him in here. A quick glance back told him it was Tessla.

“I'll get his arm,” Tessla said “You calm him down.” Tessla didn't wait for a response before he moved up. Quickly he stepped up, narrowly avoiding the swinging arm of his friend. He had to evade another swing before he finally chanced getting a hold of his arm. Tessla timed it right so he got both arms around Ben's one arm. The force of the swing sent Tessla into the wall behind him, yet he did not lose his grip at all. He used a small bit of his Discordian magic to secure himself to the wall for a short while. Austin wasted no time in moving up after this.

“Ben” He said as he came up to him. “Ben, can you hear me?”

Ben's eyes shifted about, unfocused and darting around from place to place. He groaned in pain again just before his head snapped towards Austin suddenly. He let out a labored breath of relief as his bloodied face twisted into words. Ben was trying to speak to Austin.

“What?” Austin said. He leaned in closer to hear what it was. Ben's voice was low, but clear. He cleared his throat and fought through the pain. Ben spoke the words just barely loud enough so that Tessla could hear what he had to say as well.

“What is it Ben,” Austin asked, worried about his friend.

Ben looked up at his two friends. With the last strength he had he uttered out only a single word. “Zebras.”

===

“Are you sure that is what he said?” Applejack asked for the third time that night. They had all left he hospital earlier. At first, everyone's intentions were to go home but none of them could sleep. They all knew it and they all had bigger things on their mind. And so they never did go home that night. Instead they all headed over to the castle. They congregated in the throne room to talk.

“I was there, AJ,” Tessla said. “I heard him, too.”

“Ah just don't get it,” Applejack said.

“What's there to get, Applejack?” Rainbow Dash blurted out. “It was the zebras. Ben said so himself, with his last breath.”

“He's not dead, Dash,” Tessla sighed, “He's just incapacitated at the moment.”

“Whatever the means, we have to at least look into what Ben said,” Austin said plainly. “But I have no idea how to do that.”

“We'll figure something out,” Twilight said as encouragingly as she could, “For starters, we should find out how and when the zebras left Equestria.”

“They did not leave Equestria. The still linger in this place,” Zecora said. She sat at the edge of a nearby window, resting her head on the windowsill and staring out over the rest of Ponyville. Her tone betrayed her mood. “At least a few remain here, hiding behind a false face.”

“Zecora, are you sure?” Tessla asked her. She gave him a slight, depressed nod.

“It is the way of my people, we have made it an art,” She said with a slight quiver to her voice she spoke of her own people. “We strike, unseen and unheard. We end battles before they even start.”

Zecora's eyes stared lazily out the clear glass window. She was not really focusing on any one thing at all. Nothing stood out to her, nothing worth focusing on. Everything was dull to her. The grass was a flat, lifeless green, the sky a pale blue. Even the ponies in the town seemed so unimportant. They were just going about their day, running their stalls and doing their jobs, buying things in the market and living their lives, or just simply having some fun. It didn't matter. Zecora couldn't bring herself to care anymore. Or so she thought.

As she stared outside from the window she saw something. If asked she couldn't tell you what it was, the one small thing that got her attention. That one tiny detail that she saw that drew her eyes in and kept her focus. But she saw. A single pony near the edge of town. He stopped whatever it was he was doing and just stared out at the road that lead out of town. He stood still for a moment like this, and then he moved off. Quickly as he could without breaking into a full sprint he walked off. Zecora watched him closely after this. She followed him as he shuffled his way through the ponies in the street.

“Zecora,” Tessla said, “What is it?”

She ignored him. She kept her eyes on this pony. He was walking with even more determination in his stride now than before. He took a turn after a few moments and Zecora lost sight of him. She would have cursed aloud but she knew where that turn lead. There was only place he could be going. Quickly Zecora pried herself away from the window.

“Zecora,” Tessla said again, “Where are you going?”

She didn't respond as she left the room and left them all standing in silence. Tessla barely had time to shrug before they all headed off after her. She was almost outside by the time they all caught up. There was only the main doors between them and the rest of Ponyville now, and Zecora was only a few feet away from them. And she wasn't alone.

“Zecora,” Tessla said. “Who's your friend?”

“That's not important,” Said the friend. “What is important is the message I was told to deliver to Princess Twilight Sparkle with great haste!”

“Well then, please, speak the message,” Twilight said kindly.

“There was a disturbance noticed in the fields just outside out Ponyville,” She relayed. “A few of the Pegasi flew overhead and that's when they saw it.”

“Saw what?” Twilight asked, afraid of what the answer would be.

“Zebras,” The messenger said rather dramatically. “Dozens of them at least. And in front a massive zebra male, taller than most stallions and really mean looking. That's all.”

“Zakir,” Austin growled.

“They are here,” Zecora muttered. She was starting to show signs of fear. It was coming back, creeping back up her spine like some dark shadow.

“Zecora,” Tessla said as he came around to her. She had backed up to a wall and was hugging it closely. Tessla stood next to her. “You don't have to be afraid, Zecora. We are all here for you. We won't let anything happen to you. We are your friends and we will protect you.”

Zecora didn't really react to anything he said for a few moments. Her mind was still swimming with fear and nothing could stop it. But his words did get through to her just as they did once before. Zecora pushed through her fear and turned to face Tessla. She could feel it still gnawing at the back of her mind, but she gave Tessla another silent nod. His warm smile helped her a little bit more.

“Oh, one last thing, though. Almost forgot.” The messenger piped up, “That big zebra was seen heading for town with a couple others. Just so ya know.”

“Well then,” Austin said. What say you, Tessla?”

“Let's go say hi.”

===

“Twilight, I am so glad you're here,” The Mayor ran up to her as soon as the doors of the castle had closed. “It's him. He's back. I never thought he would return, but he is back.”

“I know, Mayor. It's Warlord Zakir,” Twilight said back to her.

“What are we going to do, Twilight?” She asked in a near panic. “He has an entire legion with him.”

“There is nothing you can do.” Zecora said. “He is coming for me, and he will destroy all of you too.”

Everyone stopped to contemplate the words of their zebra friend. Her words betrayed her. Her voice gave way to her secrets. She knew more than she was telling. But her voice also gave way to the truth. She was scared and frightened of this other Zebra. She had run and remained hidden for so long. As much as she was praised for her wisdom, not even she could tell how this day was going to end.

“She is correct,” Came a voice from behind them. Twilight, Applejack, Tessla, Austin. They all knew he was coming. Ponies all around them started to back away. At this point there was only them in the Ponyville marketplace. “There is nothing you ponies can do. I will take my sister, even if I have to go through you all.”

Slowly, all of them turned to face him. The Zebrican ambassador. He had come before, yet was here again. He had come for one thing and he was going to fight for it. He stood with a small army at his command. Dozens of other zebras stood in formation behind him. He stood before them with only ten as his personal guard, not that he needed protection.

“Warlord Zakir,” Tessla hissed out his name like a vile poison rolling off his tongue. “You are Zecora's brother.”

“By blood alone are we related,” He roared in return, a clear anger in his tone. “And by her blood will I be cleansed of my own.”

“What are you talking about,” Tessla demanded. “You know what, I don't care.”

“You should,” Zakir said. “Or did she not tell you yet? How is it she came to speak the way she does, or why she fled our homeland in the first place?”

“She practiced the old magics, traditions,” Tessla said firmly. “But her home was changing and she was forced to flee.”

“But not before she was marked,” Zakir said with a wicked, proud smile. “A curse to take place and last for all of time. A curse, so that she could only speak in rhyme. As long as she is well and alive, for her safe return is everything I strive.” A small chuckle escaped from the lips of the mighty zebra at his apparent cleverness.

“You won't get her,” Austin said. “She ran before alone and afraid. Now she stands among friends. She isn't alone.”

“Ah, the magical human,” Zakir said. “You wish to fight me don't you? Test your strange magics on me and my kind?”

“If it should come to that,” Austin said. He summoned forth a small portion of his magic, letting it flow around his arms and torso. He stared into the eyes of the enemy as his glowed with power. “I will do what I can to protect my friends, all of them.”

Zakir seemed almost pleased at Austin's reply. His already smug smile only grew. That wicked grin decorated his face as he turned his back. He approached one of the ten zebras he had with him. When approached the zebra brought out something from the cloak he wore and relinquished it to the Warlord Zakir. Austin barely got even a glimpse of it from the other side of Zakir's large frame. With an astonishing speed for a zebra of his size Zakir whipped around and thrust out a hoof at Austin. With it a cloud of mysterious powder showered over the human.

“You can do nothing, human,” Zakir said with a clearly edged tone.

Austin tried to shake off the powder. It took him by surprise, and it felt weird. It made him feel weird. He could feel the power within him. His own power. He shook his head side to side, as if to shake this feeling that was coming over him. He could feel it all pulsing from deep within his very being. A sudden surge of power came rushing up. He couldn't keep it from exploding outward, and a wave of magical energy washed over them all. If it was any more powerful then the ponies and zebras would all have been injured, or worse. The sudden outburst was followed by an even more intense fatigue. Austin dropped to one knee.

“What the hell,” Austin snarled at Zakir. “Did you to me?!”

From his place Austin dared a single step. He lunged forward with the intent to get close to Zakir. It was an impossible task. Austin only made it that single step. His foot left the ground, the dirt clinging to the leg of his pants and turning them brown. When that foot came back down, meeting the ground once again, Austin's step exploded with power. A small crater just inches deep is where he stood after that.

“AAAAHHHHHHH!!” Austin roared as his body pulsed and shimmered with energy. He dropped down to his knees in the smoking crater. “Twilight, I can't control it. My power.”

“Austin, wha-” Twilight couldn't finish. Her eyes were locked onto Austin as his power came and faded around him. “What did you do,” She demanded of Zakir. “WHAT DID YOU DO TO HIM?”

“No,” Zecora said.

“What is it, Zecora,” Tessla asked. “Do you know what he did to Austin?”

“No, I will not let it happen a second time,” She said, seemingly oblivious to the question asked of her. “I will learn to live without you, just as I learned to live with this rhyme.”

Austin let out a pained grunt. Zecora was shaken free of whatever daze she was in. She saw her opportunity, her one and only chance, and she took it. Zecora stepped back from the ponies she had called friends for so long. With all their attentions focused on Austin and Twilight she could finally do as she pleased. And so she left. Zecora turned with tears in her eyes, and she ran.

Zakir watched as his powder took effect. He loved seeing this. It was always different with each and every victim he had used it on. It took only seconds for Austin to fall to his knees. Zakir was actually impressed he had held out this long. But worried at the same time. The longer this continued the more dangerous the results would be. And then he saw it. Out of the corner of his eye he saw his sister leave. He watched her run the other way.

“No one leaves this town,” He issued the order to his ten followers. They all nodded in turn as Zakir himself left to retrieve his sister.

Tessla was the only one to realize what was going on. He also watched Zecora leave. And now he was torn. What was he supposed to do now? Something was going on with his friend, and then there was Zecora.

“Go on,” Tessla heard it from off to the side. Austin was looking up at him. “Go and save Zecora. You aren't needed here.”

===

Ben slept under the blanket of the hospital bed. Occasionally he shook from the pain, even with everything the doctors were doing to help keep it as low as possible. A nurse came in to check up on him. She did her job, checked the machines, took note of some things and then left. She didn't say a word as she went about her duties. Meanwhile, there was someone in there with Ben the entire time.

“Ben,” Chrysalis said to the unconscious human. “What is it? What is it about you? Why do I feel this way?” She got no response other than the same beeping from the machines that she'd been listening to for hours now. “Oh, Ben,” She sighed. “I wish there was something I could do to help you.”

“You are doing everything you can, Chrysalis.” Celestia walked through the door into Ben's room. “You are here for him. That is what he truly needs.”

“What he needs is his arm back, Princess,” Chrysalis snapped at her. “I'm sorry.”

“It's alright,” Celestia said.

“Is there nothing that can be done for him?”

“Everything that can be done is being done, Chrysalis.”

“That's not true,” Chrysalis said just under her breath. A sudden realization dawned on her. A forgotten report buried away under the new feelings she had been overwhelmed with as of late. “Celestia, what is the fastest way to get a message to Cadence?”

“Why do you ask,” Celestia inquired. She was genuinely curious, as well as concerned. The being before her was at one time Cadence's mortal enemy. Why now does she ask for the one pony she should hate above all else?

“Because, dearest Celestia,” Chrysalis said. “I need her help.”

Saving Friends

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Chrysalis paced anxiously around outside the hospital. She was asked to leave when Ben needed some procedure done. She needed the air anyway. She had talked with Celestia and the Princess had agreed to get Cadence here as soon as she could. Chrysalis knew from experience that when properly motivated a princess could move pretty fast. She just hoped it was fast enough.

“My Queen.”

Chrysalis turned around, stopping only to acknowledge her title being spoken. “Yes, Silk. What is it?”

“Please, forgive me if I overstep my boundaries, but I wish to know what your plans are for the human. The one you call Ben.”

“Hm,” Chrysalis said. “You have always been one of my best Changelings, Silk. I suppose there is no harm in telling you. I plan on fixing him. I plan on healing him. I plan on making him whole once again. That is my plan.”

“But, my Queen, how are going to do that?”

“With help, Silk. This is not something that I can do alone.” Chrysalis said. As she spoke to her Changeling a shadow came from overhead. They both looked up to see a winged, pink form gliding down from the sky. Instantly, they both knew who it was.

“My Queen, you can't-”

“Can't what?!” Chrysalis hissed at Silk. “I will do what I must to save him, Silk. Have you not figured that out yet? She has what I need to save him. Now get back to the hive, and do not question me again.”

Silk just stood there for a moment, in shock. Her Queen had snapped at her yet again. What was she doing wrong? Why was this happening? “Yes, my Queen,” Was all the response she could muster. She bowed her head one last time to her Queen before lifting off the ground and heading out for the Changeling hive. Cadence landed and walked up to Chrysalis as she was flying away.

“Cadence,” Chrysalis said plainly. “I am glad you came so quickly.”

“I heard this was about Ben,” Cadence said. “I probably wouldn't have come at all otherwise.”

“I understand. Our history is quite far from friendly, to say the least,” Chrysalis replied. “But I do need your help, as I hope Celestia told you.”

“Yes, she did,” Cadence said. “But I still don't understand how I can help you save Ben.”

“Ben lost his arm in the collapse,” Chrysalis stated. “Together, we are going to fix that. We are going to give him a new arm.”

“That's impossible,” Cadence said back.

“Cadence, I know you have been working on giving your crystal pony subjects prosthetic limbs made from crystals. You have had ponies researching it for months now.”

“How could you possibly know that?”

“I have a total of thirteen Changelings disguised among various positions in your Crystal Empire. Three of them are in the medical and scientific fields. I hear things.”

“What?!” Cadence blurted out. “Thirteen? You have thirteen spies in my city? How dare you! Who are they? Where are they?”

“My dear Cadence,” Chrysalis said, “You help me, and I will help you.”

“Very well,” Cadence said, keeping her rising anger in check. “Let's go.”

===

Zecora ran. She ran from Ponyville, from her friends, from everything she had ever known for many years. All of it was gone now. She closed her eyes and ran off at the fastest pace she had ever run. She was sorry. She didn't want to leave. She didn't want to move on, but she had to. It was for the best. It was the only way she knew how to protect the ponies.

“You cannot escape me, sister!”

What?! No! How did he get here? So fast, so quiet, how did she not sense him coming at all? Now, when Zecora looked back all she saw was the impending shadow of her brother, her captor, her doom. She couldn't push herself to run any longer.

Zecora slowed and came to a slow walk. She only moved a few paces before stopping completely. She could hear the hooffalls behind her come to a stop behind her. “Brother,” She said. “I tire of running from you. I don't want to run, but what else can I do?”

“Be silent, first of all,” Zakir said with a sneer. “Do not call me 'Brother'. You lost the right to call me family when you left. You have only one option left to you. Surrender!”

“Why?” Zecora pleaded. “Why are you doing this? Were we not family once before? Just leave me be, please, with the friends I adore.”

“Enough of your rhymes, witch!” Zakir shouted. “This will be your end. I will take your hide back to our home. Yours will be the final grave of the restless, and the damned.”

“No, it won't.”

Zakir's head slowly turned around. Tessla was standing about ten feet away. His differently colored eyes both focused on the large Zebrican Warchief with an intense glare. The air around him shimmered and shifted. It was as if the entirety of reality was warping around Tessla's body. Everything was possible, and nothing was out of the question.

“Human,” Zakir said as he turned. “Why are you here?”

“I am here for Zecora,” Tessla said, a rising anger growing within him. “Leave her alone, now.”

“You are a joke,” Zakir said. “You are the joke among the humans. You do nothing, and know even less.”

“I usually leave the fighting to Austin. He's better at it,” Tessla said. “And I don't need to know everything to know that you want to hurt her. I won't let that happen.”

“You are too late, human,” Zakir said with a nasty smile that hid an even darker secret. His eyes narrowed to wicked slits and he twisted around with shocking speed. Three small darts, needles sharp and thin, shot forth from Zakir's outstretched hoof. Zecora's fear paralyzed her. All she could do was watch as the needles came closer, and pierced her chest.

“NO, Zecora!” Tessla worriedly exclaimed. Zecora's eyes stared as they turned blank. Her lifeless stare extending out to Tessla. Her legs gave out from under her. She fell to the ground. Tessla watched as the dirt and dust clung to the beautiful black and white coat.

“Zecora!” Tessla stepped forward as a portal opened in front of him. He appeared a flash of light behind Zakir, standing over Zecora. His body trembled as a combination of worry and fear, compassion and anger. Tessla knelt down over the body of his fallen friend. “No, Zecora. I never got to tell you.”

“Tell her what? You're feelings?” Zakir said, provokingly. “Come now, human. What did you really think was going to happen? You'd tell her how you feel and then you two would live happily ever after in that wretched Forest she calls a home.”

“Shut up!” Tessla shouted furiously. He rose from Zecora's side and turned to face her brother.

“You are going to pay for this, you bastard!”

“And just what are you going to do?”

Tessla's angered, raging eyes focused on Zakir. He raised his hands to the sky. With a roar of power Tessla's chaos poured forth. All around them, the reality changed. Where they stood before, a wonderfully green plain with grass and flowers. Ponyvlille sat off in the distance, a gleaming reminder of where home was.

“Trust me, zebra,” Tessla said, “I may not show it much, but I can be plenty dangerous in my own way.”

Clouds rolled in to darken the clear skies. Where the sun shone down just moments before now only shadows remained, illuminated only by arcs of lightning. The world itself seemed to roar as the lightning came down with a ferocious intensity. True to the chaotic powers of Tessla, the area where lightning struck erupted with ice. The ice spread out from every point where the lightning hit. Warchief Zakir watched as he came to be surrounded by several ever expanding sheets of ice. The air chilled as a frosted wind blew threw Zakir's mane. He worried as the ice came closer and closer, his worry only relieving when the ice poured under his hooves and cracked underneath them.

“Merely a trick,” Zakir said to Tessla. Standing firm against the cold, Zakir spoke to Tessla. “Tell me, why is it you fight for her? Why do you risk your life for this zebra? You barely know her.”

“That doesn't matter,” Tessla said. “She is my friend. I would do anything for her, even fight for her now.”

“Then enough with the tricks, human,” Zakir said with a hiss. He charged forward against the chilled winds, the ice barely slowing him down. He came at Tessla, pulling out a small yet long knife that was hidden within the layers of his cloak. He gripped the blade tightly in his jaws as he slashed at the human.

Tessla's hands shot up and across his chest in an attempt to block the blade coming for him. He tried to put out some form of shield or barrier, but the zebra was simply too fast. The blade he wielded slashed deeply between Tessla's arms. Zakir stared up at him, as light poured from the wound. Tessla looked shocked as his eyes traveled from his wound to Zakir's face. Zakir couldn't help but let a smile creep across his face. It immediately disappeared once Tessla bore one of his own.

“What is the meaning of this,” Zakir spat out with the blade.

“Just a mere trick,” Tessla said with his own sly smirk. Cracks and fissures spread out from his slashing wound until Tessla himself quite literally fell to pieces. He exploded into glowing, shimmering dust that got absorbed into the ice.

“What is this? Where are you?” Zakir asked aloud to the ice and cold air.

The light from Tessla's apparent death coalesced into a single image. A single Tessla. Within the ice he appeared, a moving picture in the frozen land. “Just a little fun,” Tessla said. “It's the best way to show you just what I can do, and how I do it.”

With that, Tessla did what he did. His image in the ice floated around the quickly angering Zebra. He followed the images as they danced from side to side. One image turned into two, and two turned into four. They made silly faces and spat insults up through the ice. One of them even went so far as to say Zakir's mother was a hamster. Zakir always prided himself on being a zebra of composure, able to stay calm even under the most dire of circumstances. And yet, there was something about this damn human that was driving him to the edge. And now his ridiculous tricks were quickly forcing him over that edge.

“Arghh!” Zakir roared. “ENOUGH!!”

A very large draft blew across the Warchief's path. There in an instant and gone just as soon. Tessla stood behind it. He still had that glow around him that he did in the ice, but this was no image. Zakir learned this firsthoof as his Tessla's fist came slamming into the right side of his face. Zakir caught a fistful of power from Tessla's hand. The impact of the hit sent his head spinning for a few seconds. .

“Whoa. I landed a hit,” Tessla said. He almost couldn't believe it himself.

“The last one you will ever get,” Zakir said. He turned his head back to face Tessla. A small cut above his eye was bleeding. The crimson substance stained the white of his coat, and turned the black to an even darker, vile color.

“Oops,” Tessla said. A hoofblade from Zakir whizzed by Tessla's face as he said it. He was violently and viciously stabbing and slashing at Tessla. Somewhere along the line of attack the Zakir had picked up the same small blade he had before. He used it to get in a small surprising cut at Tessla's face. The blade stopped only a few inches away from Tessla's eyes.

“Whoa,” Tessla said. “That was a close one.”

“Yeah,” Another Tessla said. This one had his hands around Zakir's leg.

“Don't even want to imagine what would have happened if I hadn't caught it.” A third Tessla had only a single hand on Zakir. “Would've been one hell of a haircut.”

“Okay, now that was bad,” Said the second Tessla. “Even for you.”

“Hey. I am you,” Said Third Tessla.

“Technically, you are both me,” Said the original Tessla. He was still looking at that blade that was much to close for comfort, but he was a bit less nervous now. He had good company at least.

“Enough games,” Zakir angrily yelled. He deftly twisted his body underneath the grip of the Tessla trio. Using the skills he had learned in his training, he tore himself free of their hands. This human may have had the numbers, but he held the experience. He had the many years of battle behind him. HE carried with him the skills that he had honed over a hundred battlefields. He had seen the world stained red before, and this day was to be no different.

“I think we pissed him off,” Said the second Tessla. Zakir was on him almost before the sentence was away from his lips. He had a fury in his eyes as he slashed away at Tessla. He sliced the air in front of Tessla's eyes just before sending his hoofblade right towards his belly. It was all Tessla could do to evade the oncoming attacks. Zakir was as fast as he was big. And more intelligent than both put together. He was a dangerous opponent.

Each move of his hooves, his head, his body. It was expertly done. Each step he took flowed into the next attack, and each attack let him closer and closer to his prey.

“He needs help,” Third Tessla stated the obvious.

“I need help,” Tessla said. He ran forward at the attacking Zebra. Zakir sensed his coming presence. He assaulted the second Tessla with a very quick and deadly attacks. Three wide slices going for the abdomen. Tessla leaped back and Zakir jumped left. He used the ice covered field to his advantage, sliding back and around the original Tessla that was charging him. He drove the tips of his hoofblade into the ice to steer himself closer. Tessla could barely react as Zakir came in with a powerful kick aimed at his chest.

“Ouch,” Tessla said with a groan after he slid to a stop along the ice. “That hurt. Hey, me three. Call in reinforcements. We need some more.”

“On it,” Third Tessla shouted back. He turned to make a call, but Zakir was focused on him now. Zakir threw out his hooves. A wave of needles flew out at Third Tessla. He hit a button on the device in his hands. A great tremor shook the fields before an even greater green object erupted forth from beneath the ice.

The needles bounced harmlessly off the green object and landed on the ice. Some stuck out of the ice after piercing into it and some rolled farther away. Zakir held in a growl of contempt as he looked up at this green object. This large, round, green, pipe.

“It's a me, Tessla!” A head shot up from the top of the pipe. This onehad a red hat on and ridiculous looking mustache.

“That was more Brooklyn than Italian,” Third Tessla said up to Mario Tessla.

“Shuddup,” Mario Tessla replied. “And don't worry about backup. I brought a friend with me.”

Mario Tessla jumped down from the pipe and whistled up to the opening. Zakir didn't like to waste time so he went back to attacking. He knew he had to get rid of a few of these Tessla's or he would be in trouble.

Zakir threw another wave of needles out at the Tessla's. It was more like a shower. Needles rained down from skies as Zakir moved in closer. He needed to get closer to his prey, he was closing in for the kill.

===

“Are you sure you want to do this?”

“Yes, I am.”

“Then let's do this.”

Cadence stared at Chrysalis for a another second. What had happened to her? This was the Queen of the Changelings. At one time she had sworn to destroy her and all her hive. Now she stood less than two feet apart from the mare. They were in the same room. She was staring into her eyes, and yet she could find no wrong. All she could sense was something new, something. . .

“We have to leave,” Came a voice from the hall. “Please, everypony, stay calm and remain in orderly fashion while we exit the building.” The voice was faint but it was definitely clear. Something was happening.

Both Chrysalis and Cadence turned their attentions to the door of Ben's room. The voice had come from beyond the wood and the glass. It came from the other side of that simple barrier. It had gone now, but why was it their to begin with? The answers came when a nurse opened the door.

“Oh my, I didn't realize there was anyone in here still,” She said a bit shyly.

“What is going on out there?”

The nurse nodded her head to reply, but her words failed her in that second. She let out only a mumbled squeak as the lights came to focus on the form of Chrysalis. She was absorbed in the image of the Changeling Queen before her. A commanding presence. Chrysalis loomed over her and her eyes cast an unintended, yet intimidating glare down at the nurse.

“Please, tell us what is happening,” Cadence said.

“It's the zebras,” Said the nurse in a hushed tone. “They have come to Ponyville in force. Nopony knows why. We all have to leave, now, for our own safety.”

“Leave if you wish, but we have work to do,” Chrysalis said as she turned her attentions back to Ben.

“You can't honestly think we can still do this?” Cadence asked, “Not now, with all this going on.”

“I expect you to honor your agreement, Princess,” Chrysalis hissed. “Or I shall never reveal where any of my Changelings are in your kingdom. You will be left to wonder, constantly suspicious of each and every one of your subjects. You will never again be able to trust what you see with those eyes of yours.”

Cadence stared intently at the Changeling Queen for a moment. She closed the distance between them with a just a few paces. She stood a near eye level with her. “Do not threaten me, bug queen,” She whispered. “I have many projects going in the Crystal Empire. I can promise you that at least four of them involve eradicating your kind from Equestria.”

“Help me save Ben, an maybe we can avoid all of this. . .” Chrysalis said just above a whisper's tone. “. . . unpleasantness.”

“I always keep my word.”

===

Zakir leaped back from an attack. The Mario Tessla hurled a bouncing ball of fire that he narrowly avoided. He quickly glanced over the icy field where he was fighting. His opponent had turned from one to many. This human was unlike anything he had ever faced before. The original stood before him. On either side of him stood his first two copies. Those things had numbers brightly colored onto their shirts. A blue one and two on the red shirts they wore. The Mario Tessla stood to his right with another ball of fire in his hand.

“What are you waiting for? Just hit him already,” Called out the latest of the copies. This one had bright, blazing yellow hair that was longer than any of the others as well as strange devices on his wrists. “Too late, I got him.”

This Tessla lunged at Zakir with unnatural speed. He was barely able to dodge to the side. He was glad he did though, as the spot where he stood just seconds ago exploded into a fine icy mist. From the mist came another furious lunge. This one missed Zakir by mere inches as he moved his head to one side just in time. From this angle he watched as the device on this Yellow Tessla's wrist spat out an explosive blast of fire and metal. The shock made him stumble as he tried and failed to shake the ringing from his ears and head. Yellow Tessla took this opportunity to strike one last time, the explosive blast sending Zakir farther away and driving him into the ice.

“What are you,” He stammered the words out as he struggled to get back on all four hooves again. “Just what the hell are you supposed to be?”

The Yellow Tessla looked around from side to side. “Are you talking to me specifically, or me in general?”

“If it's me in general then the answer is simple,” Said the Second Tessla.

“Yes, take a spin at this slot machine,” Third Tessla said as he very whimsically revealed a slot machine from under a large red cloth cover. “You get one free spin. Let's see what you get!”

Third Tessla reaches his hand up and yanks down on the handle of the machine. Zakir wasn't interested in seeing this. He did not care about this machine or what it was doing. He instead brought a hoof up to his neck line and unclasped his cloak from his shoulders. The garments fell into a slump on the slick ground and Zakir stood there in his full Zebrican pride.

A belt across his body had several small bags attached to it. Zakir tore off three of these bags and hurled them into the middle of the mass of Tessla copies. He waited for the right time, the very opportune moment. At that time he threw out several of his needles. The needles ruptured the bags and a fine dust like powder shimmered as it covered them all.

“Even your strange magic is susceptible to this powder,” Zakir said as he threw more needles.

The original Tessla stood there and glared at Zakir. The needles sank into his many copies. One by one, they all became akin to pin cushions. Second and Third Tessla were the first two to go, each of them taking a small cluster of needles to the chest. Mario Tessla took a line of needles up his arm and finally one sank deep into his neck. The Yellow Tessla took more than any other as a small hail of needles rained down over his body. Tessla watched as his copies dropped on at a time. He glared at Zakir, and he was smiling.

===

“Are you ready?”

“Begin.”

Ben's body surged with pain. His body lurched upwards in response as he let out an anguised wail. His painful cries echoed down the halls of the now empty hospital. The nurse decided to stay with the two in Ben's room. Chrysalis still frightened her, but what they were doing was just too fascinating. It captivated her as she watched the two of them work.

Chrysalis started off this strange procedure. With a deep breath she put her magic to the forefront of her being. Her twisted horn glowed with a green magic that Cadence was all too familiar with. This frightened the nurse a little, but she couldn't take her eyes away. With another deep breath she poured forth her magic into the area of Ben's lost arm. He screamed in pain as the very flesh of his body began to change forever.

===

“What? Why?” Zakir screamed, “Why are you smiling?!”

Tessla grinned like the madman he was, “You really don't get it, bitch,” He said with a chuckle, “My power is chaos, a little gift from Discord himself, the Lord of Chaos. I'd like to welcome you to my little sandbox of fun.”

“Magic or no, chaos or not, I will spill your human blood.” Zakir sneered at him, his naked anger rolling from his striped body.

“You know, you talk to much,” Tessla said. Quickly, before another breath passed between them Tessla threw his hands up above his head. HE slammed his hands together in a mighty clap that shook the heavens.

Literally.

Zakir eyes glanced upward to see the stormy skies intensify even more. His sweaty coat nearly frosted over as the chilled breeze that once blew across the plains grew into a piercing, biting wind that tore its way across the land. Zakir stood his ground against the cold.

“If this is all yo-”

“Oh, I'm not done yet!”

Through a blizzard of ice and snow Tessla's voice rang out, but it was coming from everywhere. Every place Zakir turned there was nothing but the cold, white nothingness that was the battlefield. The icy winds blew across his coat like a blanket of nails. He could barely focus on anything more than keeping his own body warm, and yet he was able to find more in the white than just the cold.

Zakir's ears perked up as he shuddered in the cold of the snowstorm. He closed his eyes and honed in on the small noises all around him. This whistling of the winds as they burned his cheeks red surrounded him. But there were other sounds other than that, hidden beneath the ambient noise. Al he had to was focus for a second. Zakir forced himself to contain his anger and annoyance with this human. He forced himself to be calm and to listen to the world. He turned just in time, thrusting out with a hoofblade.

HE felt it. HE felt the impact, the sharp edges of his blade sinking into the body of another. Slowly, Zakir opened his eyes. Among the white whirling around him, he was finally seeing red. Tessla stood right before him, blood poured forth from a wound in his side. Zakir smiled and slowly pulled out the hoofblade.

“No more light in you, human,” He said, “No more tricks and illusions. You have lost.”

“Hehe,” Tessla snickered. “I just wanted to get closer to you.” Tessla looked up at Zakir with a strange look about his eyes. No more were they filled with the playful, joking side of him that he normally portrayed. No more were his eyes two different colors, which normally gave way to his powers being of Discord. No, not this time. This time Tessla's eyes were filled with a rage all his own.

“What?!”

Tessla sprang up despite the pain throbbing in his side. He pushed Zakir back with all the force of a freight train. Zakir skid across the ice, rolling and cursing before slowing to a complete stop a few dozen feet away. By the time Zakir lifted his head off the snow the storm was clearing. Tessla called the snow and the ice back into the sky. The storm winds and the clouds above all swirled as the eye of the great storm passed overhead.

“You will pay for what you did to Zecora,” Tessla stated flatly. “She was my friend, and you killed her.”

Zakir mouth opened but sound was absent from him. Everything around him had died down. The harsh, chilled winds that pierced his coat were now barely even gentle breezes. The white snow and crystal ice that once clouded his vision had all but dispersed, giving him a clarity once again. He glanced around. He saw the body of Zecora off to the side as if she was untouched by all the things that Tessla had done. He saw Ponyville behind her. Ponies ran about, scurrying to get out of town as he saw the light of Austin's power pulsing over the edges of the buildings. Zakir looked up into the sky. The eye of the storm was overhead. He stared up into it. Everything else around here had died down. Was he next?

“You. Will. Die!!” Tessla roared. A sudden flash of light arced across the sky. A torrent of lightning flooded the clouds above before streaming down. An immense and powerful pillar of raw electrical fury came down upon Tessla. Zakir threw himself to the other side as to avoid being blinded by the flash of light. When he looked back he could barely believe what he saw.

Tessla stood tall and strong from the midst of the blast. His eyes glowed with the power of lightning. It seemed to be at his beck and call. On a whim he held out a hand and the lightning that surrounded his being split behind him. Tessla walked forward with the lightning tailing behind him like the many tails of wild beast, and he his eyes on only Zakir.

“I will rip you apart,” He stated as fact. Zakir was inclined to agree with him. He was nothing like the other human, Austin.

Tessla took a step and was there on Zakir in an instant, crossing the distance between them in less time than it takes to blink. Zakir was determined to face his death with his head held high. His chest out and his pride intact. But it was a great challenge as the horror before him raised a hand to the skies as it seemed even the heavens itself looked to strike him down.

“Tessla. . .”

Zakir's eyes stared on in shock as Tessla's hand hovered just an inch or so from his face. He had stopped, but why? What had happened?

“. . . stop this. . .”

“What?” Tessla said. “What is that?”

“Tessla, don't. . .”

Tessla moved his hand away from Zakir's face. He immediately looked over towards Ponyville. He saw it then. The subtle movements that let him know she wasn't dead.

“Zecora?!” Tessla said with a breath. He started walking over to her. “Zecora,” He said again but louder this time. His walk quickened to a faster pace.

“Tessla,” She said weakly.

“I'm coming Zecora,” Tessla said as he broke into a full sprint over to where she lay in the grass.

He knelt down by her side. She looked up at him with her eyes watering from tears. Tessla couldn't believe it, but she was alive. He could not help but smile as he lifted her up into his arms. He wanted to keep her there forever, safe and away from her crazy brother. Only her cries of pain persuaded Tessla to lay her down again. Carefully he removed the needles from her chest. Thankfully, none of them were barbed or hooked or anything else that could have been nasty.

Zecora gasped and groaned as the last needle was removed. “Is he alive? How is my brother,” She asked looking into the eyes of Tessla. “Or has his he met his end by the hands of another?”

“He's alive,” Tessla said quietly. “But I don't know why.”

Fighting Back

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Austin's chest heaved with heavy breaths. Still on one knee from the strain he looked up at Twilight. She was a just out of reach, not that he would risk reaching out to her. Whatever Zakir did to him, whatever that powder was, it was messing him up. He could feel it inside of him. It was like there was a raging storm inside of his body and he was doing everything he could to not let it out.

“Austin,” Twilight compassionately whined. “IS there anything I can do to help you?”

“We,” Applejack said. “Is there anything WE can do to help?”

She stood by Twilight with the rest of the girls. They all looked like the were ready to take on the world, like any other time. They had literally done it a few times before. But this wasn't one of those times. He wasn't a part of their world.

“Yes,” Austin said seriously. “Get away.”

“Gotta admit, not the answer I was expecting,” Pinkie said it for all of them.

“Twilight,” Austin spoke directly at her, as if it was just the two of them. “You have to get away. Away from Ponyville, away from the Zebras, away from me.”

“No, Austin, I won't,” Twilight pleaded. “I can't.”

“Twilight,” Austin grunted. A pained grunt escaped him as another wave of magic cascaded over him. Even the steadfast Applejack as pushed back a few paces by the raw force of the magic. “Twilight, look at me. I don't want to hurt you.”

“Um, Twilight, darling,” Rarity said. “I think he may be right.”

“Applejack,” Austin said, using a lot strength just to look up at her. “Get her out of here. Get everypony out of Ponyville.”

“Applejack,” Twilight fiercely whispered. AJ looked at Twilight just to see tears forming in her eyes. They started running down her face as she spoke. “Evacuate the town, Applejack. Once I know that everypony is safe I'll leave. Until then, I'm staying right here.”

Applejack only nodded. She could hardly begin to understand the emotions flowing through Twilight mind right then. But not only was she her friend, she could tell that Twilight was being very serious. More than any of that, though, was the ponies. She looked around at the citizens of Ponyville. Scared and confused, they stood around in a crowd. Zebras stood behind them on almost all sides. It was just like that big zebra said. He didn't want anypony leaving this town.

“Alright girls,” Applejack said with determination. “We're getting these ponies outta town.”

“How do you suppose we do that, Applejack,” Rainbow Dash asked. “I mean, I'm awesome, but even I can't take on this many zebras. We don't even know what they can do.”

“I don't matter,” Applejack nearly shouted. “We gotta get past 'em somehow.”

“Lead the way then,” Dash sarcastically offered.

Applejack took a a breath. “I will.” She barely blinked before sprinting off. The others had a hard time keeping up with her. She ran for the nearest road that lead outside of town. It just so happened to be the main road to Canterlot. The largest number of zebras were collected there. Along with a great many ponies. Some of them clamored at the Zebrican ranks, trying to get out. Their efforts only got them tossed back on the butts. Applejack stood proudly in front of the Zebras.

“Hey! Yur gonna let us leave, ya hear me,” She called out. Her voice shook with an imposing determination. She hoped they wouldn't hear the worry underneath it all.

One of the zebras stepped forward a few paces. He was as big as Big Mac was, at least. Was that normal for Zebras? She would never want to admit to it, but she a little intimidated by it. Yet she stood her ground. Rarity and Fluttershy hurried to help as many ponies as they could get back up on their hooves. They backed away from the scene unfolding before them.

“You really think you can stand against ze might of the Zebrican Nation,” He boasted. He quickly stomped the ground twice. Within a second every zebra among the ranks behind him had a spear and shield at the ready. “You cannot.”

He flicked his tail. The ponies didn't know this, but that was a signal. A dozen zebras behind him, spears at the ready, charged. They parted around him, yet kept their focus on the mare in front of them. Applejack was ready to fight. It wasn't her favorite pastime, but she had done it before. What she didn't expect, though, was for the whole situation to get to this so fast. She froze for a moment, not knowing what to do. Her mind blanked.

A crash in front of her brought her thoughts back to her. She could feel the vibrations of the impact in her hooves still. A thin layer of dirt stuck to her coat. She looked up to see her brother. Big Mac strained under the wait of the door. Applejack had actually forgotten. He was helping Daisy fix her door today. Now he had that very same door slammed into the ground in front of her, with a dozen spears sticking into it.

“Thanks, Big Mac,” She whispered. “Think you can hold that for a bit?”

“Eeyup,” He groaned.

Applejack stepped out from behind the door. A few ponies exhaled in relief. The zebra still stood there. He looked annoyed that she was still standing. He sneered at her and turned to glare at his zebras. A new line came to the front, spears ready and aimed at her.

“Not gonna lie,” Applejack said to the zebra in charge. “That scared me good just now.”

“We haven't even started yet,” The zebra said. Another signal went out with a swish of his tail. Applejack knew something was up. She had no idea what was coming exactly. She assumed it was just another dozen zebras. She wasn't sure exactly on how she was going to stop them, however. She would soon learn that she was wrong.

It started with a flash of color. She stared down the Zebrican ranks. There black and white coats were a maze of stripes, with only splashes of color coming from what they carried. She could have sworn she saw something. For less than a second, she could have sworn that a zebra moved. Her only suspicion came from a black flash that could only have come from one of their coats. She scanned them all, doing everything she could to spot anything out of the ordinary. But nothing moved. Literally, nothing. All of them, every zebra stood as close to motionless as she had ever seen. It was starting to creep her out. It was unnerving. The only thing keeping her from being lost in a sea of stripes was listening to her brother beside her. His groaned effort and stomping hooves were a welcome distraction.

“Applejack look out!”

With barely any time to even register what she had said, Applejack's eyes glanced upwards to Rainbow Dash. Dash moved faster than she did, already moving to intercept the zebras. Only now did she realize. Four of them, out of nowhere, had leaped towards Big Mac. His body was pressed up against the door still. A dozen zebra had all their strength on that door, determined to get to him on the other side. Unfortunately, this left him as vulnerable as a little child.

Dash flew down with astounding speed and slammed all four of her hooves into the side of a zebra shield. The force was enough to send a wave of dust out and the zebra into the ground. Not even stopping to gloat she bounced back, literally. Her wings curled around her as she flapped them only once to carry her past the zebra. She passed over his spear, in front of his face and connected a hoof with his jaw along the way. This did little other than distract him, but that enough. Dash followed up with a double hoof kick to his back. This zebra ended up on the ground with his friend before he could react.

Applejack was in the air as soon as she knew Big Mac was in danger. Four jumped to attack. Dash took out the two in the middle. Applejack firmly planted her front hooves on her brothers back. She knew he could handle it. But she didn't have time to think about that. She immediately spun her body around, not even letting her back hooves touch Big Mac. As she turned in the air she bit down as hard as she could on the shaft of the spear on the left. By the time her body was right she was already in the prime position for bucking. The zebra could see it coming. He threw his shield up, but that didn't help. Not at all. The impact rocked him all the way through. Any momentum he had was gone and he fell to the ground below. He was lucky enough to stay on his hooves. Applejack followed this up by letting her hind legs drop on the side of Big Mac. Still holding the shaft of the spear she slid back, carrying the zebra with her. Turning at the last second and twisting her head down she was able to drive the spear into the ground. The zebra had abandoned it long before, leaping back to join the only other of the four that was standing. She spit out the rest of the spear. She brought a heavy hoof down on it, breaking with an audible snap.

“Aww yeah!” Rainbow Dash exclaimed with excitement. “Is that all you got, Zebra assholes? Huh!”

“Shut up, Dash,” Applejack breathed angrily. She glared at the zebra in charge. He had an angry smile on his lips. She hated it. “You just attacked mah brother. He didn't have any way of defending 'imself, and you attacked him anyway. Why?”

“Because we could,” He hissed back.

Now, Rainbow Dash was fast. The fastest pony in all of Ponyville. Hell, all of Equestria. So when she say she knows a thing or two about speed, you can pretty much believer whatever she says. So, when she says that she saw an Earth pony move as fast as Pegasus with the strength of a minotaur and the anger of a dragon, well, you should just believe her.

Aww, shucks, Dash. Is that really what ya thought of me?

AJ, that's the kinda thing I would make up about a pony. Even if I did make that up, I wouldn't believe it. Not even if I myself told me about it. I still wouldn't believe it. It was just that unbelievable. Does that make sense?

It's okay, Dash. It doesn't have to make sense. By the way, when did you get here?

I came here with you, Pinkie. I was napping in the corner before your shouting woke me up.

Oh, sorry about that.

Eh, whatever. Can we get back to the story now, please?

Yup. I was ready to go hoof to hoof with them there zebras. But I reckon ah never got the chance with what happened next.

The zebra in charge was on the ground before he even knew he'd been hit. A terrible pain in his chest almost made his stop breathing simply because it hurt so much to take even a small breath. His eyes slowly came back into focus. The world came back from shapes and shadows. He gulped nervously as an orange shape stood above him. As much as he wanted to deny it. As much as he wanted to say I wasn't true. This pony scared him. Never before had he seen anypony move the way she did. A throbbing in his chest brought the memories surging back. It was only seconds ago, but he felt like he might lose it if he didn't remember it now.

She was in front of him before he even saw her move. Time stopped for an instant. Just long enough for him to see her eyes. Mere inches away from his own. Even from his homeland tales of the ponies of Equestria were told. Kind, cheerful ponies. Strong in magic, but lacking in the might to use it. They had so many ponies in this land, and most of them would never have held a weapon in their lives. And yet this orange pony before him showed such an awesome display that even he would reluctantly admit fear. Such raw anger and rage. Such honest emotion. He didn't know that ponies could be like this. And the next thing he knew he was having trouble breathing on the ground. He tried to move, to stand. More pain in his leg told him to stop. A glance down told him why.

Shards of wood jutted from his leg. At least a dozen shards of varying sizes stuck out from his leg. Minor panic set in as he raced to figure out what had happened. Was this some kind of shrapnel? Had something around him exploded? His mind raced as she stared at this scene. His panic escalated when he figured it out. The shards in legs, they had paint on them, and it was not the pain of anything in this town.

“My shield,” He weakly muttered.

“I bucked right through yer shield,” Applejack said coldly, “And I will buck right through you if ya ever threaten my family again, ya hear?”

“Applejack, calm down, now,” Rarity nervously chuckled. “You're beginning to scare me.”

“Yeah,” Dash admitted. “That's kinda cold, especially for you.”

“I'm just being honest with him,” She replied to her friends, not taking her eyes of the zebra.

An incredibly uncomfortable silence descended upon the whole area. Only the labored breathing of the zebras on the ground escaped into the air. This lasted only moments in reality, but much longer for them. None of them knew what to do next. The zebra in charge was injured, and Applejack was intent on making sure he stay that way. Because of this, the rest of the ranks of zebras didn't know whether to push on the ponies or not. Meanwhile, none of the ponies could decide if they wanted to attempt an escape. They wanted out, they needed to get out of Ponyville, but crossing Applejack's path caused them some unease. Her new attitude was frightening to many of them. This silence filled the air, only being broken by the sounds of hooves.

=====

Tessla knelt next to Zecora. He gently placed his hand on her neck, careful not to aggravate her wounds. A smile forced its way out. He couldn't help but be happy that she was okay. He thought for sure that she was dead.

“Zecora,” He said, holding back some tears.

“My friend,” She wheezed. “This is the end.”

“NO! No, Zecora! Don't say that,” Tessla begged of her, pleaded with her.

“Not for you or I, not just yet,” She told him. “The end of the battle with the brother you just met.”

“You want me to stop fighting Zakir,” Tessla affirmed. “I can do that. I can do that.”

“Tessla!”

Tessla took one last look at Zecora. She was breathing. She was alive. He was happy about that. He looked up. A pony was standing not to far away. On top of a hill about twenty feet away, just outside of the area where all the madness of the fight went down, stood Ditzy Doo. She looked worried.

“Tessla,” She cried out again. “We need your help.”

Before he could ask who a small number of pony came up behind her. He only knew a few of them, and he knew even less of their names. In fact, the only one he could actually name was Nurse Redheart. The rest appeared to be doctors and/or patients. They must have come from the hospital.

“Ditzy,” He called out from his place by Zecora. “What is it?”

“It's Ponyville,” She said, rushing towards him. “The zebras won't let anypony leave.”

“How did you get out, then?”

“Hospitals have a lot of exits,” Redheart answered half joking and out of breath. “We slipped out before they fully locked down the place. We heard something going down over in this direction and followed the noise. Found you, duking it out with the big zebra over there.”

“Good thing you stayed back then,” Tessla said. “Wouldn't have done anybody any good if you had gotten hurt.”

“Speaking of hurt,” Redheart breathed out. “How's Zecora doing? What happened?”

“Zakir threw these needle things into her neck,” Tessla told her, careful not to touch any of the needles in question. “She went down seconds later. I thought she was dead. She didn't move. It didn't even look like she was breathing.”

Nurse Redheart did a very quick checkup of Zecora's body. Mostly, she was just looking for any more injuries, no matter how small. She was very gentle in how she handled Zecora's body and especially her neck and head.

“Near as I can tell, it could be some kinda paralyzing toxin,” She reported. “She doesn't have any other injuries that could cause any of this, so whatever happened it must've been those needles. Did you get hit by any?”

“Don't think so,” Tessla answered. “Even if I did, I'm fine. I can still move just fine.”

“Seeing as how I'm not in the hospital and I have no authority here, I'll just have to take your word for that,” She said. “Now that we've established that you are healthy enough to stand you need to get back to Ponyville.”

“Where do I even start,” Tessla muttered to himself.

From the direction of Ponyville a brilliant flash of light erupted into the sky. A distant sound could be heard with it. Tessla wasn't quite sure what it was, but it didn't sound good. It was coming from the near the center of Ponyville. It was as good a place as any to start. He had absolutely no idea what in the hell he was going to do once he got in, but he could just figure that out later. What was the point in planning anything anyway, when he had the powers of chaos at his disposal?

=====

Austin threw his head back, his body arched back as a wave of pressure blasted out from him. A wall of pure energy strong enough to uproot trees crashed into the barrier as he cried out in a losing effort to reign this power back in. Heavy breaths fell from his lips as he collapsed forward. Shaking, he brought a hand up to the barrier. Twilight's hoof met it on the other side. Her horn was glowing with magic. It would be as long as he was like this. She had put this barrier up to help him, to keep this power away from Ponyville, and the ponies in it. Tears fell as the barrier went up.

“Austin, I hate this,” She sobbed. “I don't know what's happening, bu-”

“I'm losing control, Twilight,” Austin whispered. “I don't know how much longer I can hold it back.”

“I won't leave you, Austin,” Twilight shouted. “I won't!”

“Perhaps you wont have to, Twilight.”

Twilight turned to look. Cadance was walking up to her. Apparently, whatever was going on with her and Chrysalis at the hospital was done. She didn't bother asking her what it was all about. Frankly, at the moment she didn't care. All she cared about right now was the words that she just spoke.

“What do you mean, Cadence?”

“You think I can't feel how much you care for him,” She asked as she came close to Twilight. “This is love Twilight. And it is stronger than any magic. We both remember my wedding. We know it's true.”

“What does that have to do with what's happening now?”

“Love can fuel the most powerful spells, Twilight,” Cadence said, turning her head to look at the barrier. “Close your eyes. Focus on Austin. Think about all the things about him that you love. Bring all those feelings to the surface, let them flow out of you. Take those emotions, and then weave them into your magic.”

As Cadence was talking Twilight through this, she was casting a spell of her own. It was another barrier spell. It was to go on top of Twilight's. With a calm exhale she brought forth a crystal storm to surround Austin. Shimmering gems of all kinds, shapes, and sizes fell into place around him until a great wall had been constructed around him. It stood taller than every other building in the town with the exception of Twilight's castle. Each crystal was magically enchanted to absorb vast quantities of magical energy. Meanwhile, Twilight's own barrier felt like it was getting stronger than ever, matching Cadence's in power and height.

“Yes. I can feel it, Twilight,” Cadence said with a smile.

“Cadence,” Twilight said with a breath. “He's trapped in there. How is this love? I can't do anything but lock him in there. How am I supposed to believe that's love?”

“Oh, Twilight,” Cadence sighed. “Love is an ever changing thing. It can mean so much. You are doing what is best for Austin, and for all the ponies in Ponyville.”

If they weren't talking, they might have heard it. It was small, but it was there. A buildup. A small, high pitched humming that started in Austin's head. From inside the barriers he could feel it rising up. The energy crackled around him, arcing through the air like electricity. This was new. Before it had been waves, rolling off him like water. What was worse was that this new energy came with its own set of pain, beyond the shear effort and strain he was already going through. He screamed out as he couldn't hold back a powerful arc.

The timing couldn't have been more perfect. It was almost as if the universe was watching this all unfold and intentionally dicking around with all the rules. Twilight closed him off for the safety of others. He wanted this, but that didn't make it any less hard for her. Cadence reinforced this decision. She gave Twilight the words she had been expecting. She was doing what was best for everyone. Everyone but her. And here is where the universe seemingly intervened. Just as the two of them shared this tender moment, they heard it. A scream. A cry out of pain and strained effort. Neither of them had even the briefest of seconds to think before the crystal barrier right next to them exploded outward. It happened so fast neither could react. It wasn't until after the fact that Twilight even felt it at all.

She started to breath again, not even realizing she was holding her breath before. Cadence looked to Twilight. “Twilight,” She gasped, concerned as a thin, but long cut appeared under her right eye. Twilight herself was too in shock to even notice the blood dripping down. Thankfully this was her only injury.

Twilight simply stood and stared. Her eyes were locked on the he break in the barriers. It looked like a broken window somepony had thrown a rock through. Austin was on his knees on the other side. His face contorted into a tearful mess when he saw Twilight's. He cried his tears. He sobbed his apology, knowing that it would never be enough. Not for him.

“Go, Twilight,” He commanded, and yet with compassion in his voice. “Get as far from her as you can.”

“I- I- can't do that,” She murmured through tears.

“You must.”

OC, Oh Crap!

by SmokeShadow95

Equestria!

Equestria! (Again)

Help With Things

Equestria (Again? Yes, Again)

Now What?

New Lives

Disappearing Act

Day of Ceremony

Aftermath

You Want Me To. . . What?

Nothing I Can't Handle

Day of the Duel

Life Goes On

Watch Out for the Indicator!

The Hive Pt.1

The Hive Pt. 2

The Hive Pt. 3

Meanwhile. . .

Yay, They're Back!

Parteus Interruptus

Life Goes On. . . Still

More Questions

No Answers Yet

Moving Forward

Buried Secrets

Disarmed

Saving Friends

Fighting Back