Chapter 1: A New Arrival
"Hey, Drake, wake up."
"Nnngh, five more minutes."
"No, we're arriving in two."
"Fine then."
As I stretched, the light from the window caused me to flinch. I really did not want to get up. But my destination was coming up, so no choice.
As I turned to look at the conductor, the smile he was giving me was one that only I get considering I am constantly getting on this train. Me and him had gotten to know each other pretty well because of that. Every time I get on he always greets me with a warm smile and a really bad joke.
"So, are you here for some work or are you gonna finally settle down?" he asked with a sly smile.
"Work, as usual," I responded.
"Typical Moondrake for you," he stated. "You are always on the move, except during winter."
"You know I am not a fan of the cold."
"Still, you could at least look around and see if a mare catches your fancy," he said while jabbing a finger in my face.
I simply rolled my eyes and walked past him out on to the station. Of course he would not let the issue drop. "I mean it."
"What are you, my mother?" I retorted.
"No, I'm your friend Drake. I just want you to be happy. I want you to enjoy life. Stop trying to put this off, it will catch up to you and give you a good kick in the flank."
"But I am happy with my life right now," I responded.
A lie.
I was lying to myself and I knew it. I was tired of having to run. Running from my "calling" and trying to hide my secret was driving me up the wall more than anything. I didn't want to have to keep lying, but what choice did I have? No pony would want to be with me after finding out the truth of what and who I was. Plus, the moment they found out I was some "Doomsday Dragon", I would be carted off to Canterlot to be locked up. Or worse, executed.
"At least give it some thought, ok?" he begged.
I sighed. No way in Tartarus was he going to let me walk away from this conversation. "I'll think about it," I said. I knew that I wasn't going to. So why say sure? To get him back to work.
"Alright, well see you in..... four months?"
"You know it. Oh, and tell your family I said hi, ok?"
"I will."
As the train pulled away from the station, he leaned out the door and gave me one of his signature salutes. By this point I knew the drill and returned with a two fingered one of my own. I held it as long as I could see him. When he disappeared I finally exhaled. Wait, why was I holding my breath? Huh, what ever it's not important.
Thank the stars for my disguise necklace. If I didn't have it on right now, I would be getting weird looks and questions on why my right arm is covered in scales. Yes, one of the side effects of being a dragon is my right arm, eye, and wing are different. Yes, I said wing. However, I keep my wings tucked into my body with cloth. No pegasi clothing for me. As for my right eye; eye patch. Simple and it makes me look cool. Back to my necklace, it's made of silver and the pendant at the end of it is designed like my cutie mark. The charm only affects my right arm, so I have it on at all times. I was very lucky to have bought it from a pawn shop.
Finally getting my body into gear, I grabbed my duffel bag and put on the strap. After making sure I had everything, I proceeded to head into town. There were ponies everywhere in the market place. It was not as bad Manehatten, but it was still up there. The chaos of it all was kind of nostalgic. The hustle and bustle of the town right now was taking me back to the time I was-
"HI! You're new around here aren't you?"
"GAH!" I instinctively spun around and nearly decked a pink mare with my fist. But for some strange reason it didn't touch her. It was as if she could teleport. The strange thing was that she wasn't a unicorn. She looked a little shocked when she saw my face.
"I thought that you were a mare," she said while holding her expression.
"I get that a lot," I said. The reason for that is the average stallion stands at about six-foot-five. For me, I am six feet tall. Unfortunately, that is the same height as the average mare. So I am constantly being mistaken for a mare when viewed from the back. Don't ask me why when I have the build of a stallion, it just happens.
"I don't think that I have ever seen you around here before," the pink mare stated. I finally got a good look at her. She was my height and was, as stated before, pink. Even her mane and tail were pink. She wore a
Deciding to have a little fun, I said the next thing that came to my head. "Nor have I seen you before." I knew that mares could be a little bit of airheads at times. Might as well see how long this lasts.
"That's ridiculous, I know everypony in town. Wait, that must mean that you are capable of turning invisible." She gasped. And I mean a long gasp. Seriously, how big is her lung capacity?
"Nope, not invisibility. I'm just that good at staying undetected," I said after gathering my brain back together. That was one of the strangest things I have ever seen.
She didn't seem to be buying it as she got really close to my face. "I don't believe you. My Pinkie Sense went off the moment you walked off the train."
"I-I-I......Fine you win," I said with a sigh of defeat. Not even gonna ask about this "Pinkie Sense" stuff. Just accept it and move forward.
"I don't think that I got your name," I said. I really wanted to change the subject.
"Oh, my name is Pinkie Pie. And your name is?"
"Moondrake," I stated.
"Welcome to Ponyville, Moondrake."