After a rescue mission becomes a mission of discovery what will Twilight find herself in this time.
After Applebloom goes missing for the day, Applejack leads a panicked search for her little sister, after recruiting help from Twilight and finding the trapped filly with her friends in a hole in the Everfree Forest, Twilight makes a momentous discovery about the history of Equis.
“The planet of Equis is told to have once provided a home to a immensely powerful race. This race has long since gone, disappeared to who knows where, leaving no trace. It has been said that they might have brought the very ancestors of the Celestial sisters to our planet, however now there is only myth and legend about them. It was said that at the height of their power they had the ability to live in the heavens and control life and death.”
“Is that it Twilight?” Spike said, obviously interested in this myth.
“Yeah... That is the only mention of it in the whole book, huh, weird.” Twilight replied, an irritated look on here face while she flipped through some of the pages. Suddenly there was a loud pounding on the front door.
“Spike could yo-” she began to ask.
“I know, I know, I'll get the door,” with that the little dragon got up and walked across the room to open the door. As soon as he had turned the handle though he was bulldozed by Applejack.
“Twilight have you seen Applebloom?! I can't find that little filly anywhere!” she shouted, sweat beading on her forehead. “Have you seen her?”
Twilight shook her head and replied as calm as she could, “Sorry AJ, I haven't seen her all day. Do you want me to help look for her?”
“Thats mighty kind o' ya Twi, I am checking over at Fluttershy's house next.” She said attempting to compose herself, “I am just worried is all, I haven't seen her since this morning.”
So with that Twilight and Applejack walked out the little dirt road to Fluttershy's house. When they got near the house they heard a whimpering animal and soon found Fluttershy tending to the poor thing. After a quick conversation the distracted pegasus let them know that she had seen the Crusaders at the edge of the Everfree Forest.
“Well what in tarnation did you let them go in for?!” Applejack said accusingly, her worry temporally overpowering her general composure.
“Oh... ummm... well I wasn't trying to let them... but well there was this sick animal... and... and...” Fluttershy responded growing more and more quiet as she started to feel bad.
Applejack started to soften up after she started to see tears form in the corners of Fluttershy's eyes, “Well shucks Sugarcube, Ah am sorry I didn't mean to yell, Ah'm just plum worried that something bad has happened to them.”
Just at that moment there was a shout from outside, “Ponies come quick, I am worried sick! A small shout from young Applebloom, hurry come with me, save her from her doom!”
The three ponies hurried through the forest following Zecora to a large deep hole in the ground where they could hear the shouts of three little fillies. Twilight wasted no time with shouting down and just teleported herself to the bottom of the hole. After quieting the trapped crusaders she quickly used her magic to shed some light on the situation.
“Whoa...” all four of them exclaimed at once. In the light of Twilight's horn they could see a long passage way, all tiled, clean, like it wasn't some kind of underground worm tunnel. Then she inspected the fillies. They were huddled together, shivering slightly, and covered in dust and scratches, but seemed ok.
“W-what is this place M-m-ms. Twilight?” asked Sweetie Belle.
“I... I don't know girls.” Her first instinct was to flee from this place, for it gave her an eerie feeling, like there was something wrong here. Still though her investigative side was pushing her further into the tunnel... or corridor as it were.
"How did you get in here?" She asked somewhat absent mindedly still wondering over this development.
"We w-was crusading fer our herb collecting cutie marks, an' the ground just collapsed under u-us." A mud covered and weary looking Applebloom replied.
“Alright, I am sending you up girls, tell the others I will just be a minute.” she then teleported the Cutie Mark Crusaders back to the top of the hole with AJ, Zecora, and Fluttershy, who immediately went about making sure the little fillies were alright. Twilight then immediately started to think about what this place could be.
It isn't anything made by ponykind, so where did it come from? She then tried to decide which way she should venture down this tunnel. Well, there were only two directions so she decided to go left, she liked left, it was a nice side. Also the tunnel on her left side was in better condition. So in this case the left was doubly a good choice. Moving away from what she guessed was a collapse in the room, the tiles became a brighter white from lack of dust. Her hoofsteps echoed as she continued down the dark passage, her instincts telling her to run, screaming, but her insatiable mind forced her farther in. As she continued down the tiled hall she soon came upon a large set of stairs. She took a deep breath like the air down there would be poisonous or something and began to descend. She soon reached the final step, there the room extended out of the range of the light from her horn. When she placed her front hoof on the floor, there was a loud click and lights flashed on, flooding the whole room with light. Startled, she jumped about as high as Pinkie could bounce after eating copious amounts of sugar. After she regained her courage, she let her eyes adjust and surveyed the room. It was a large and filled with weird pieces of furniture and what looked like black... windows? All over the room there were these small rectangles of glass on top of little stands placed on the weird pieces of furniture. There also appeared to be some of the larger windows mounted on the wall. Her right ear twitched picking up a low hum that wasn't there before.
Where did it all come from? What is this place? She got closer to one of the small black panels and tapped it tentatively with a hoof, nothing happened.
“Well,” she said to herself, deep in thought, “With this many windows it must be some kind of... observatory? Maybe a research station? But what could be seen through these? They are just blank.”
As soon as the words left her mouth, one of the larger windows mounted on the wall lit up. A second later lines of text started to scroll across it. It was in a language she had never seen before.
“Um... Hello? I can't understand you.”
As soon as she spoke again the text stopped. It soon started again, flashing what she assumed were singular words. It kept scrolling through these words, waiting a couple seconds before it changed to the next. The symbols kept changing but then it displayed, “Equestrian?”
“Yes! Equestrian! You are smart aren't you!”
The window? Or whatever it was simply stayed blank for a few moments, then displayed, “More input required”
Ok... Twilight had never met anything as weird as this... thing. She, however, assumed it was a greeting and an introduction was in order.
“Hello my name is Twilight Sparkle, I am the-” She had started but was cut off a loud chime.
“Loading Language... Complete” The black panel stated in a voice Twilight had never heard come out of anypony, “Station 283 ready for operation, Engage?”
Engage? What on Equis is it talking about? Why do I always meet the crazy ones?!
“Sorry sir, but I don't really understand your question. You can't be asking me to be engaged, what do you really want?”
“Restating question... Do you want this facility to engage its primary directive?”
By Celestia's beard what is it talking about?! Well I better not make it angry. “Sure?”
With that the black panel started to fill with words rattling off each line as they are printed.
“Generators powering up... Complete
Internal systems powering up... Complete
External systems powering up... Error”
“Umm... sir?”
“Primary lights... Online
Scanning atmospheric levels... Optimal
Engaging pod 1... Error”
“Sir?”
“Engaging pod 2... Error
Engaging pod 3... Error
Engaging pod 4... Error”
“What is happening?” Twilight asked, terror starting to rise in her voice.
“Engaging pod 5... Success
Engaging pod 6... Error
Engage wake up procedure?”
“I uh... I dunno...” Twilight replied now in the full grip of terror. What is this thing doing? What are all these systems and what pods are these?
“Processing response...
Processing...
Response classified as: Positive
Engaging wake up procedure”
At the back wall a large tube started to glow and steam started to flow from it. Then the panel next to Twilight started blinking red.
“ERROR!
ERROR!
ERROR!
Primary awakening procedure failure, Activating fail-safe wake up. Subject will require immediate medical attention.”
With that final line a tube at the back of the room began to open quickly, blinking red as well, and a creature burst out of it falling to the floor. With that Twilight ran as fast as she could, she finally teleported, escaping the chokes and wheezes coming from the creature she left in the room. She collapsed to the ground from fear and sudden tiredness next to her very confused looking friends.
Twilight Sparkle woke up in bed, she had been startled awake again by her dream, or memory as it was. She just kept repeating the previous days events, every time being startled awake when that creature fell out of the tube. Every time she awoke at that scene feeling terrified and at the same time extremely curious, almost to the point that she felt she was being pushed to going back. She then would toss and turn until she had fallen back to sleep, however this time she gave up and just sat in bed thinking.
What could be there? What was it? Why am I so afraid! Is it dange- She was interrupted by a light tap on her window. She turned to see the dark silhouette of Fluttershy hovering outside. After a short flurry of hooves she had gotten free of her blankets and crossed over to the window.
"Fluttershy, its late! What are you doing out here?" She whispered as she carefully opened the window.
"Oh um... Sorry Twilight... but I need your help with something."
"What do you need help with in the middle of the night?" Twilight asked quite irritated that her friend couldn't just leave it till morning.
"Well um... Zecora told me that she thought she heard coughing and sputtering from the bottom of that hole while she was picking some night blooming flowers for her one brew, and I am worried that a poor little critter could be down there hurt, and I want to go help it but it is dark and dangerous out in the Everfree, but I am really worried about what ever animal is down there so could you please come with me so I can try to help it?" Fluttershy blurted out in one breath, and followed up with a big, innocent smile.
"Well... I, uh." Twilight's mind was just flashing to the creature she had witnessed fall in that strange room and her previous terror returned to her. She was about to freak out again when Fluttershy spoke.
"Pretty please Twilight? What if it was a cutesy wootsey little bunny? Oh no... or maybe a little squirrel! Come on, Twilight! Please?" She said with a startling amount of force, already half carrying Twilight out the window.
"Ug... Fine." She grumbled and facehoofed, "I will come with you."
The two mares ventured back to where they had found the hole earlier that day. It was hard to find due to the Everfree's seeming ability to absorb all light and it was only until Fluttershy almost fell down it that they found it. They remained there, listening for a while. There was silence, except for the crickets and the hum of mosquitoes, but there was no sound coming from the hole.
"Fluttershy, I don't think Zecora heard correctly, I don't hear anything." Twilight said.
Just then, as if on cue, there was a faint wheeze which echoed up the hole, causing Twilight to sigh and Fluttershy to look restless.
"See Twilight! Oh! It sounds like it is hurt pretty badly, we have to help it!" Fluttershy said while leaning down near the hole to listen.
Twilight took a deep breath getting ready to go back down to whatever waited. She was just trying to buy as much time as she could before she had to travel back down into the unknown.
Come on Twilight, It can't be that bad. It might just be a bunny... Or that creature. I mean I have to help it right? I can't just let it lay there to die. It is my duty to help save it, no matter what it may be. Even if it could be a sharp toothed, pony eating, blood sucking, brain stealing....
"Come on Twilight! Lets go!" Fluttershy said, breaking Twilight from her spiral back into panic.
Twilight took one more deep breath before surrounding them both in her magic and teleporting them to the bottom of the pit. Just like last time, it was pitch black, which sent shivers down her spine.
Oh please just be a bunny, please just be a bunny! I don't want to have to face that... thing again. Not here. In the dark, where it could be lurking in every shadow! NO! Keep it together Twilight Sparkle, Fluttershy needs you to stay calm. I can do this!
Twilight powered up her horn and preformed the light spell she was fairly familiar with, the light illuminated the area and left her in the same corridor as last time. Fluttershy stood next to her, she was attempting to look as brave as she could, always ready to help anything in need, however she was still observably shaking.
"Well it wasn't right here... but how were we hearing it then?" Twilight asked.
"Erm... Echo maybe?" Fluttershy suggested.
After a few seconds of silence there was coughing coming from down the tunnel, a weak, sputtering cough. It was bouncing off of the walls and funneling down to them.
"Oh my... it sounds r-really hurt... b-but how did it get so far into this tunnel?" Fluttershy asked forcing Twilight back to her previous fear. They were indeed returning to save whatever it was that came out of the pod. Twilight was still torn, she was thinking about how amazing a discovery this was! How she had stumbled on a different form of life never before seen. However the dream like encounter with the large black panel and the glowing pod left her with a constant fear. Something way beyond rational, it was a basic natural fear. Where this came from she had no clue.
"Well... We better go find it." Twilight said breaking the silence and trying to force her fear to the back of her mind. They continued down the tunnel till they came across the large room from before. The lights clicked on just like before, revealing the same dust covered room, nothing was different, except for the crumpled up being in the back.
"LOOK!" Fluttershy exclaimed rushing over to the body on the floor, "Oh no... It looks much weaker than I could have ever imagined."
Fluttershy attempted to wake it up by nudging it with a hoof. It only responded with a cough and a weak groan. Twilight remained standing a good distance from this weird being. Fluttershy appeared severely worried, all fear had been pushed from her body by her particular need take care of all living things. She attempted to wake it up again by shaking it by its head. Still no response.
"Twilight, we need to get it back to my house so I can have the proper supplies to save this poor... critter's life." Fluttershy said with some force, attempting to lift it but finding it to be too heavy for her. Twilight seeing her friend struggle was finally able to move a bit closer. She gently took grasp on this alienesque figure with her magic and lifted it into the air. Now that she was a little closer she started to take a closer look at it. It seemed to have only one small patch of mane on its head, which was quite small compared to its body. Its body, which was the largest part of the creature was roughly square in shape and didn't appear to have any remarkable features apart from its very short coat which covered most of it up till the neck and the top part of its forelegs. The bottom part of this coat was blue and covered it the whole way down to some of the weirdest hooves she had ever seen... were they even hooves? She had no clue at all.
This is the weirdest thing I have ever seen! How can it even walk on those? The front ones aren't even the same as the back! And it must get awfully cold with its face and forelegs uncovered with any sort of body hair. What a strange... thing! I will have to study it further!
Twilight had started to relax a little more as her mind switched to her research side. She became so busy studying the weird creature that the trip back to Fluttershy's tree house was not even in her world anymore. All she could concentrate on was studying this weird creature which in actuality was much less frightening than what she had made out of it.
Maybe it is of my initial encounter with it, or maybe there is something else to it, but seeing it helpless like this is definitely made it a little less scary. That will be helpful while studying it, It wouldn't help to have my notepad so shaky I couldn't write on it!
Twilight had started to smile, thinking about how much she can contribute to the scientific world from her discovery that she didn't see the door to Fluttershy's house get very close, really fast.
CRASH!
"Oh my! Twilight! Are you ok?" said a spinning Fluttershy.
"Er... I am fine." Twilight replied, shaking her head to stop the world from rotating. Just then the limp body she had been levitating with her finally crashed to earth, landing in a nearby bush.
"Oops!" Twilight exclaimed, lifting the creature back out of the bush and into the air. She grinned sheepishly, realizing how stupid she must have looked, being so distracted that she ran into a door and dropped what she was carrying. Fluttershy however wasn't concerned with that, she just wanted to make sure it was ok. After they opened the door and gotten inside, Fluttershy hurried to her supply cupboard and started rummaging through for anything she could possibly need.
"Twilight just put it on my sofa over there! Be gentle!" Fluttershy called from her closet. Twilight slowly hovered it down on the couch and yawned.
Well... I am bushed. Erg. Looks like I will have to leave the research for tomorrow.
"Twilight, you look a bit well... tired. Would you like to just stay here for the night? I could go upstairs and get some blankets and..."
"Thanks... That... sounds... great..." Twilight said very slowly as the full force of her fatigue hit her. A night of restlessness and a discovery of amazing importance would wear out anypony, and soon she was asleep on one of the many cushions that were littered around the room. Fluttershy took one second to smile at her sleepy friend before she remembered the terribly sick creature laying on her sofa, and then rushed back to her work.
"Twilight... Uh... Twilight! Wake up!" Fluttershy shakily spoke while nudging twilight, "I think it is waking up!" There is a sputter and cough from across the room where the previously unconscious creature was waking up. Twilight snapped awake.
"Wha did ya just say?" She slurs out quickly after waking up.
"The creature we saved is waking up!" Fluttershy says a little excited, "I managed to save him!" There was a loud gasp almost immediately after. When Twilight turns to follow Fluttershy's gaze she sees the now upright figure twist what must have been its expression into something of shock and horror. That can't be good.
It leaps up off of the sofa and starts to flee, dashing for the door. Despite moving on only two legs it moved with grace and agility right out of the now fully open door pursued by a notebook wielding Twilight.
I can't lose it now! After all that has happened I am not going to lose it now! She redoubles her efforts to speed up, moving her less than athletic legs into overdrive. The lavender pony starts to gain on the now slowing creature, foot by foot the gap closes. Giving up to its fate it drops to the ground with a wheeze, quickly rambling off in a strange yet slightly familiar language. Twilight notes this.
"Omigosh! Is it ok?" Fluttershy asks catching up to her friend and the now cowering mass on the forest floor.
"I don't know... but I think it tried to communicate to me!" Twilight says half-mindedly while the other half manages cramming the now mostly filled notebook with all possible data she can squeeze out of the situation.
"Do you know what it said?" Flutters asks, taking a slow step towards the aforementioned being which cringed at the motion.
"No, I figure if I attempt a telepathic link I will be able to roughly communicate enough to understand though. Here goes nothing." She declares more to herself, seemingly unaware of the other mare next to her. She powers up her horn and is sucked into the void.
I will never get used to that. Twilight thinks as she recovers the disorienting process of entering another's mind. Around her things are foggy and darting about, a state of confusion. Images of the individual's past flicker in front of her, darting in and out of sight, moving much too fast for clear observation. Ok just need to show that we mean it no harm. No use in leaving it to freak out all the time.
Twilight projects as many thoughts of her friends and herself, warm friendly thoughts. She thinks about first meeting them and all of there adventures since. These images and concepts fade into existence a little in front of her and are whisked off to join the rest of the darting thoughts. Might have over killed it but I hope it understands the meaning. The stream of consciousness around her slows down, as the creature calms. There is a long period of inactivity as it seems to mull over her projected memories and thoughts. Eventually she sends a collage of thoughts attempting to communicate that she has entered its thoughts quite literally. Pictures of the brain, a funny cut out of her face in the center of its forehead, diagrams of brain activity, anything that could possibly have to do with thoughts and the mind.
Her tactic works as a cloud of thoughts pass over her, a literal brain storm. Images, concepts, considerations, and feelings pass around her in a whirling maelstrom of consciousness. She keeps her cool attempting to appear stable as the consciousness around her investigates her.own conscious presence. After a period is starts to slow and she releases her grip on the mind of her subject.
Reality spirals back into existence around her, causing her to lose her balance and drop quickly to the ground.
"Twilight are you ok?" Fluttershy asks turning from the creatures side to face her.
"Fine, its rough coming back is all." She replies mater-of-factly, dismissively waving a hoof. "I think I have it calmed down..."
The figure next to them, has moved to what appears to be a sitting position and is simply staring back and forth between the two of them. They look back and then look at each other.
"Twilight... you did it... It seems much... calmer..." Fluttershy says watching the mysterious creatures movement.
"It would appear so, lets get back to your house, no reason to be out in the middle of the Everfree like this."
The begin to trot along down the path followed by the now much calmer... whatever it is. Intelligent life! Or at least it seems intelligent... I sure hope it is! I can't even begin to think about what this means for Equestria. Twilight mused to herself. But I need to learn more about it... It obviously doesn't speak our language. I guess old fashioned research will have to do.
Fluttershy's small cottage rolled into view through the woods, showing them the edge of the clearing. Twilight starts when she feels something bump into her side causing her to snap her head around to see a nervous looking Flutters moving as far away from their new "friend."
"Twilight, it won't stop looking at me!" Fluttershy whispers in distress.
"Don't worry, I am sure its just confused... or something. If it was gunna hurt us it would have already done so, right?"
"I suppose... It just makes me nervous..."
"It'll be fine, you could have Harry come stay with you. Whatever this thing it I don't think its a match for a bear."
"Uh ok... If you say so." Shy squeaks in semi-agreement.
They enter the clearing and proceed to the house. A quick push and it swings open, the inviting little cottage warm and well lit sits before them. Twilight stands to the side to let her host and their "guest" in after they enter she follows, closing the door with her magic behind her. They all stand around, the two ponies exchanging glances and the creature gazing around the quaint little cottage.
"I am hungry!" Fluttershy suddenly proclaims, breaking the silence. "Let me go get us something to eat." She laughs nervously and leave the room. Just twilight looking up at the tall thin creature and it looking back before becoming distracted by something else. What are you? Twilight thinks, once again studying its build and structure.
"Who wants an apple?" Flutters sings, signalling her return. She gracefully hovers to the coffee table in front of her sofa and and gently places the apples she had scooped up in her forelegs down. "There, one for you, one for me, and two for our larger... guest."
Twilight approaches the table as casually as she can manage, and lifts up the apple. She looks at it a moment and shines it on her chest. As she does so the biped does the same grasping it in whatever it has and taking a bite. She floats it to her mouth and takes a bite, its a good one. Flutters holds hers between her two from hooves but remains focused on the creature, eyes slowly growing bigger as internal panic builds.
"I hate to impose Fluttershy, but its still pretty earlier, and I am exhausted. May I have a nap? Once its daylight out I will head home. I have a lot of research to do."
"Oh... uhm. sure... I don't see how it could be a problem." Shy replies, secretly relieved to not have to be alone with the... whatever it is.
"Thanks." Twilight mumbles through a yawn and settles down on a cushion, hit pretty hard by a wave of exhaustion. The apple slowly dips and lowers to the ground as she quickly falls asleep.
