Calling All Creatures
ZEBRAT
It had been a while since the village had recovered from the drought, and the locals were adjusting and revamping their wounds from the said disaster, returning to normal. Chief Marini, Zecora’s friend and the village’s leader, was pleased to see the recovery by her and her citizens. Of course, she also gave lots of assistance to them when they struggled.
As she inspected, she saw one of her friends, Cactus Rose the camel, by the well getting more water from below. As she pulled the rope, Chief Marini let out a slight smile on her face and headed towards her.
“Rose!” the chief called. The camel turned to see her approaching. “How were you?”
“We’re doing great,” Rose noted while grabbing the full bucket from the well. “All plants are full of life and the crops should be ready for harvest soon.”
“Wonderful!” she cheered. “Keep it up.”
“Speaking of which, I wonder how Zecora is doing.”
“I bet she’s doing fine back home. After that amazing happy reunion we had with her, she never felt better than before. I hope we can see her again.”
“Me too.”
Chief Marini was about to continue inspecting the progress when she noticed figures approaching them. They looked to be two white stallion pegasi guards wearing special uniforms to help them in the desert heat.
“Greetings,” one of the guards said, both taking a bow. “We apologize if we intruded on your domain. We come in peace.”
“May I help you?” Marini asked.
“We come from the land we called Equestria,” another guard continued, “we are here to offer you an official letter from Her Highness, Princess Twilight Sparkle, to Chief Marini of Zebrat.”
“That would be me,” Marina responded, and then one guard gave her the sealed letter. “Much obliged.”
The guards bowed one more time in reply and flew back.
She opened the envelope, took out the letter, and read it. “What does it say?” Cactus Rose said curiously.
“I’m reading it.”
CANINIA
In her sports uniform, Princess Ambrosia was practicing pawball on the playing field of an outdoor stadium with three guards as her trainers. Her mother, Queen Katherina, and her sister, Princess Fiona, were watching her from the front seats with the queen wearing a foam finger on her paw. As she kept the ball away from her opponents, the guards did their best to block her. With much expectation, they weren’t able to stop Amber from scoring a goal.
“Alright, sis!” Fiona jumped and cheered.
“Well done, Ambrosia,” Katherina complimented. Both applauded for the princess who approached over to sit down with them.
“That was amazing,” Fiona exclaimed.
“Yeah, thanks,” Amber replied and panted. “I feel like… I could play a real game now.”
“There is still a long way to go,” The queen encouraged with a smile. “Once you master that skill, you will be the best.”She handed her a water bottle for her to refresh herself.
“Thank you, mother.” As she was drinking water, a pink husky guard approached them.
“Your Majesty,” he called. “Pardon me for the intrusion. You just received an official letter.”
“Ah, who is it from?” Katherina asked.
“Someone titled Princess Twilight Sparkle of Equestria.” The guard then gave the letter to her for her to open and read.
ORNITHIA
Lots and lots of renovations were still ongoing after the major combat. Every citizen has done their best to bring back their kingdom to its former glory. Every house, every pavement, and every lamppost were repaired. Even a park was getting its renovation too. As they modernized, Princess Ocypete and her royal family were pitching in too. King Thaumas, her father, was assisting the villagers with a pulley system to pull the frames into place and successfully got in before they secured it into place.
“Father, how is the new bakery coming along?” Princess Ocypete asked.
“We’re getting there, sweetie,” King Thaumas responded. “We need more materials to proceed.”
“Somebody called fer more materials?” exclaimed a voice. King Thaumas and Princess Ocypete turned to see Captain Celaeno and her crew had returned with more resources for the renovations.
“Cellie, welcome back!” Ocypete cheered. She didn’t hesitate to hug her childhood friend with a bright smile, making her chuckle.
“Easy, princess,” the captain proclaimed, “I be happy t’ see ye again too. Aaand… we’ve got somethin’ fer ye and yer family.”
“More resources?”
“Aye,” the captain pointed to her crew carrying more stuff needed. “But also…” She then put her claw in her right pocket got out a letter and handed it to the princess. “…This. A letter. And it be from Princess Twilight Sparkle… and Queen Novo.”
Princess Ocypete was amazed to hear Queen Novo being mentioned. “Allow me!” So she grabbed it and gave it to her father for him to read.
ABYSSINIA
The doorbell rang at the Fluffington manor. Hearing it, the male butler headed towards the door and opened it. Standing in front of him were Chummer and his newly adopted daughter, Molly. They were here for a visit. “Ah, good afternoon, Mr. Chummer.”
“Good afternoon,” Chummer greeted back. “Is Mrs. Shadow Fluffington here?”
“Yes, she is expecting you here. Right this way, sir.”
Chummer and Molly came inside the manor and followed the butler toward where his childhood friend was located. They arrived at the living room and saw Shadow inside preparing a big paper map waiting for them. She was super pleased when she saw them.
“Chummer!” she exclaimed happily, hugging her one-eyed friend. “Great to see you!”
“Nice to see you as well,” Chummer said warmly. “Thanks for letting us meet in your place.”
“Anytime,” Shadow smiled, then turned toward the butler. “You may leave now, sir.”
The butler heard her order and left her and her guests alone. “So, I was hoping you would have good knowledge about a school that would be perfect for Molly. I don’t want her to be too far from home.”
“You’re in luck, Chum. I asked Andy for help and he’s given me this map here with all key academies in Panthera.” Shadow unrolled the map, which had all the locations of the school highlighted, onto the table. The ones highlighted were the most prominent academies in the city, including the University of Abyssinia and the Royal Panthera College which have their branches of primary schools. There are also notable elementary schools like The Black Panther Elementary School, Softpaws Elementary, and Arctic Lynx Elementary. “Now, you should think about your budget as well. The tuition fee, school uniforms, supplies, etc., etc., etc. These could cost you a lot. Both the UA and RPC were the two top universities that also offer primary education for the young ones like Molly, and…”
“Um, Mrs. Fluffington,” the butler came back and called, getting their attention, “You have an important visitor here to see you.”
“Oh? Who is it?” The butler drew their attention to King Meowmeow, who entered the living room still with his cape and staff and wasn’t acting as high and mighty as he was heretofore. Chummer, Shadow, and Molly didn’t seem pleased to see him due to the situation with their other friend, Capper Dapperpaws. “Oh dear…”
“Can I help blow something up this time?” Molly said.
“Uh…. It’s just me. Most of my men are still helping to… fix that.”
“What brings you here, Your Majesty?” Chummer asked with a very unpleasant tone with his arms crossed. “It’s been a while since that… previous situation with you.”
“One,” he started, “I understand that, and we are resolving. Two,” he grabbed the already-opened letter from his pocket, “I… have received this letter from a visitor. It’s from Princess Twilight Sparkle of Equestria, and I know you are familiar with it.”
The king then handed the letter to Shadow and they read it.
His Majesty King Meowmeow of Abyssinia,
I, Princess Twilight Sparkle of the Kingdom of Equestria, am officially inviting you to visit my nation to discuss building bridges with other kingdoms. It is the most devoted way to establish diplomatic relationships with each other. As leaders, it is significant to also support and assist economically especially in particular circumstances such as moments of dilemma. We hope that with this occasion, we can make the world a better and more promising place for future generations to come.
Sincerely,
Princess Twilight Sparkle.
“Hmm, didn’t Capper tell you about that pony named Twilight?” Shadow asked.
“I think Thorax said something about that,” Molly informed.
“Yeah, I remember him,” Chummer commented. “And that dragon too.”
“Right,” Shadow exclaimed. “Man, that was a wild ride we all had.”
“Um… indeed,” Meowmeow muttered. He tugged at the collar holding up his cape. “I feel that they’ll be very delighted to see you. That is the reason why I came here. I humbly ask you to be official ambassadors of Abyssinia since…”
“We ain’t the ones who blew up the bridges!” Shadow asked sassily.
“Again… That was all on them, but yes. But I humbly and openly request that you and your companions will come with me for my official visit to another land.”
Chummer and Shadow then thought for a moment. Since Capper currently resides in Equestria, it will be their opportunity to see him once again after their bizarre adventure. “I can ask Max if he wants to come along,” Chummer noted. “I’m in.”
“I’ll also convince Andy to see if he can get business partners there,” Shadow added. “I’m in too.”
“Splendid,” King Meowmeow exclaimed. “Now, the princess will be sending an airship for us to ride on. My men will notify you about the departure, so be prepared. Farewell.” The king soon walked away as Shadow and Chummer felt things were going to be interesting.
“It’ll be amazing to see Capper again,” Shadow noted, “And so soon too.”
“I know! I would like to see these ponies he’s told us about,” Chummer added. “This will be our very first trip outside Abyssinia.”
“Can I go too?” Molly asked. “I’d love to see what it is like there.”
Chummer then thought about this for a moment. “Yes, you should,” he noted. “I don’t think I can hire a babysitter in such a short amount of time. You’re coming with me.” The kitten excitedly cheered and ran around, getting an opportunity to see more of the world.
A few days have passed, and it is time for the grand welcome. A lot is happening there at Canterlot since they’ll be visited by four leaders of different lands. Everypony was talking about it a lot, and newspaper outlets were covering it too. Many were very hopeful to see what comes in the future with newly-made diplomatic relations although there were a few who were skeptical about them since they didn’t know what actions they would take. At the base of the Canterlot Castle, a banquet was held.
Pinkie Pie fired her party cannon all over the said palace, swiftly setting up the decorations this way and that. Rainbow Dash and Fluttershy were setting up more decorations, including a banner reading, “Welcome to Equestria.” Princess Twilight Sparkle and Spike inspected the scene.
“How does it look, Spike?” Twilight asked.
“So far, everything is looking incredible,” Spike commented while holding his checklist and a pen. “Decorations were in place, the banner’s up, and the food was ready too. Applejack will be bringing them in a moment.”
“We’re here!” a voice called.
Spike turned and saw Applejack coming in with a cart of food. She wasn’t alone as Zecora and Applebloom were right behind her.
“Zecora,” Twilight gasped, “I didn’t think you would make it.”
“I often prefer to be alone, for reasons complicated to explain,” Zecora admitted, “But I am very excited to see my good friends again.”
“I hope this won’t involve an explosion,” Applebloom commented.
“...I’m sorry?” Twilight questioned.
“Don’t ask,” Applejack stated. “So, Twilight, how’s everything else going?”
“We’re on schedule. We should be finished as soon as our guests arrive.”
“Alright then. Where do we set up the food?”
“We’ll have them set up after our dialogue.”
Pinkie Pie hopped over to Twilight after she finished decorating. “Oh boy! So excited! You’re going to love the Diamond Dogs, especially Amber,” she said. “Rarity would be happy too… Where is she by the way?”
“She and Capper were at the Canterlot Carousel,” Spike explained. “I’ve been told that they’re talking about giving Capper the new outfit. His jacket was so outdated.”
“Rarity has already told me that too,” Applejack commented. “Glad he’s getting that too. Don’t even mention the stench, his jacket smelled worse than an undercooked apple pie left out in the middle of Appaloosa.”
“I hope they will get back in time,” Twilight said, grabbing her pocket watch to check the time. “The guests should be here in a moment.”
“Uhh… Princess,” Zecora raised. “May I ask? Hopefully, it doesn’t sound dumb. Where did that other zebra come from?” They turned to notice an unfamiliar-looking zebra standing. It almost had the looks of Zecora, but was a male with a funky-style mane. He looked frazzled until a flash surrounded him and revealed it was King Thorax all along.
“Oh… sorry,” he apologized with a chuckle. “I didn’t mean to throw you up.”
“Woah! You actually pushed that?” Ember said in amazement. The Dragon Lord flew up to her boyfriend chuckling a bit as the rest of the royals started showing up.
“Still think you should’ve pretended to be Dash,” Queen Gilda smirked. Looking behind them, they could see Prince Rutherford, Queen Novo, Iron Will, Chief Thunderhooves, and Rain Shine coming in with her. “I gotta say, it is amazing to witness this historic moment with other leaders from new nations.”
“I know, right?” Ember exclaimed. “They’ve met us, and now it’s their turn.” Thorax nodded in agreement.
As they entered the banquet, they greeted Princess Twilight and the rest, looking forward to greeting with other leaders from the said four lands as well. While she met, she noticed from behind them came Princess Cadence and Shining Armor.
“Twilight!” she called while waving.
“Cadence!” Twilight beamed, running into her and hugging her. “I’m glad you’re here.”
“I wouldn’t miss this moment,” the sister-in-law said. “It would be an honor to have new leaders from different foreign lands to meet our kind to create formal relationships.”
“Me too,” Shining Armor said, hugging his young sister too. “As long as they came in peace.”
“Where’s Flurry Heart?” Spike asked. They heard giggling as Princess Skystar flew in with Flurry Heart flying right behind her. The two girls looked like they were having fun. “Never mind.”
“So where are the visitors?” Cadence asked.
“They should be here any minute,” Twilight explained. “Everything should be ready.”
“Everything looks fine to me,” Shining Armor commented.
“I’ll say,” Thorax agreed. “They’re going to love this.”
“The party is one thing,” Twilight noted. “It’s whether or not they and us get along.”
“I bet they would like what we have with you before,” Queen Novo proclaimed. “Dragons, yaks, kirins, and so much more. We have gotten along very well with your kind for a long time. So it is going to be the same for others like the avians. You’re going to like them, aside from Captain Celaeno, of course.”
“Same with the Diamond Dogs,” Spike added. “They were very considerate when me, Pinkie, and Rarity visited Caninia.”
“And the Abyssinians… maybe at best,” Ember guessed. “That was one heck of an experience.”
“I appreciate where you all are going,” Princess Twilight said. “As long as it all goes to plan, it should be okay. Our diplomatic relationship with them will be powerful and influential.”
“Zepin,” Flurry Heart babbled. They heard her but didn’t comprehend. “Zepin!” she repeated, pointing toward the sky. Princess Cadence, who was now carrying her baby in her arms, knew what she was talking about as she looked up to where Flurry Heart was pointing.
“Ahh, she meant zeppelin,” Cadence clarified. “And it’s here.”
Everyone turned to the sky and saw a zeppelin docking in the city. “Just in time. Take care of yourselves.”
“Good luck, Twilight,” Princess Cadence encouraged. “We’re all counting on you.”
Princess Twilight smiled and quickly teleported toward the docking area with Spike swiftly joining her. Once the zeppelin landed, the gangplank dropped with a loud thump. Exiting the blimp was their first official guest, Chief Marini of Zebrat, wearing her official traditional attire. Beside her were her friends, Medley Brook, Crystal, Dust Devil, and Catus Rose, also boarding out the blimp, seeing the beauty of Canterlot for the first time.
“Greetings,” Princess Twilight greeted, shaking hooves together.
“Greetings,” Chief Marini greeted back, now standing in front of the princess also shaking hooves. “How are you today?”
“Splendid. You must be Chief Marini of Zebrat, I suppose.”
“Yes, I am,” the chief spoke. “Princess Twilight Sparkle of Equestria, I suppose.”
“Indeed.” She, Chief Marini, and her companions bowed to each other.
“I thank you for inviting us. As representatives of Zebrat, it is a huge honor to have this moment with you to develop a new start of the relationship between the two kingdoms and the others.”
“Same here.”
“We hope you’ve had a comfy journey,” the dragon assistant said. “If you follow me, I can lead you to your guest rooms.”
“Thank you,” Medley Brook said. “Please do.”
They started following Spike toward the castle as the royals started to walk over to the visitors. The said guests were more interested in seeing Zecora and the Apple sisters again. Speaking of which, Chief Marina got a glance at her old friend and made the expression on her face turn to excitement.
“ZECORA!!!” Marini exclaimed gleefully, running over to where Zecora was standing.
To the surprise of the royals, the chief scooped up her old friend and hugged her tight. Zecora was astonished to see her friends so soon. “Marini, I’m happy to see you et al. too,” the resident zebra said, “I have a feeling Princess Twilight has a lot planned for you.”
“Oh, I’ve heard,” Marini said. “New faces will come, and I can’t wait to meet them.” She then saw the Apple sisters and gave them a wave too.
“You certainly would, Chief,” Pinkie Pie said, “And you’d be amazed when you see the dogs.”
“Ooh, I didn’t know this place has a lot of dogs. How many are there?”
“Uhh… no, Canterlot Castle doesn’t have a lot of dogs… and I didn’t mean the dog-dogs… The other dogs that will come later.”
Marini and her friends were a little confused since they didn’t understand what she meant by this.
“You’ll find out,” Applejack said. “Come on, Applebloom, let’s get this food to the kitchen.” Applejack and her sister then headed inside the castle as Spike began leading the guests from Zebrat to the guest rooms.
“You planned a special dinner for them?” Queen Novo asked.
“Yes,” Twilight confirmed. “I have also planned on the scheduling for all four leaders to arrive about ten minutes apart from each other. Just as long as things don’t run behind schedule.”
“Speaking of which, I think they might actually be early,” Cadence commented, pointing to another zeppelin that would be flying towards Canterlot. As the first blimp left, the other shortly docked where it once stood.
Again, Princess Twilight Sparkle quickly headed to the docking area. The gangplank dropped. From the deck stood the next guests, the Diamond Dogs from Caninia. The guards first stepped out of the deck and stood on the sidelines. The maroon Doberman guard then came in standing to make his statement.
“Hear ye, hear ye, citizens of Equestria. Here to announce the arrival of Her Majesty the Queen, Katherina Proudpaws, with her royal family and ambassadors.”
Passing the Doberman guard came down the pink poodle playing the trumpet the best he could, and the orange pug appeared to be holding a trumpet too, but he was pretending to play it and wasn’t even breathing into it. Then from the ship, while the trumpet was playing, came down Her Majesty the Queen herself and her two daughters, Ambrosia Muffinbuns and Fiona Floppyears. Along with her buddies, Jennino Lanternlight, Indiana Ambereyes, and Moonbeam Twinkletail whom she was holding her cane to support.
Once they stood in front of the ruler of Equestria herself, the trumpets stopped playing, then got interrupted shortly by a trumpet sneeze from the pug, making a funny sound.
“Bless you,” the queen uttered. The pug guard bowed thank you in reply.
“Greetings,” Twilight greeted. “Her Majesty, Queen Katherina Proudpaws of Caninia, I assume.”
“Indeed.”
She and Katherina bowed to each other, and Princess Fiona did the same. Princess Ambrosia was about to do it too until a certain pink pony jumped forward.
“Hi, Amber!” Pinkie called.
The blonde princess forgot about what she was doing and quickly greeted the mare. “Pinkie!” she exclaimed.
“Amber,” Fiona whispered. She motioned toward their mother, who had a simple look that told her to take things seriously. Amber corrected herself and nearly fell on her face as she bowed.
“Um… We hope you enjoyed your long trip,” Twilight said, feeling things were getting awkward.
“It was pleasant,” Queen Katherina noted. “My daughters and companions are very thankful you’ve given us a ride. And it is an honor to have this opportunity to meet the one who has achieved a lot for the future. I’ve heard from your fellow friends and your loyal assistant who visited our kingdom before that you’ve made amazing official relationships with other kingdoms. I have high expectations for this.”
Spike looked over to where Moonbeam, was still using her cane to move around. “Do you need some help, Moonbeam?” the little dragon asked.
“Thank you, but I’m trying to get back on my own paws,” Moonbeam noted. She slowly made her way over to where her friends were standing.
“I gotta say, this place looks fascinating,” Jennino commented in awe.
“Certainly,” Indiana admitted. “The castle is unique too.” Jennino nodded. “So, what do we do now?”
“We planned on having a discussion with leaders while everyone else who followed along will be brought to Ponyville, a town just right below,” Twilight explained.
“Oh good, I was worried about the girls getting bored,” the queen admitted. “Activities like that can help that.”
“Um, Princess,” Jennino said, looking up, “who’s ship is that?” Everyone turned to where she was pointing and could already see another airship. Unlike the first two, its design was more beneficial to avian culture and had rainbow wings on it.
Rainbow Dash, who was standing beside Gilda, immediately recognized the ship belonging to and flew up to check. No surprise that it was Captain Celaeno and her maties were on board. She was controlling the steering wheel as she saw the rainbow-maned mare flying onto the deck.
“Captain!” Dash exclaimed gleefully.
“Ahoy, Rainbow Dash!” the captain exclaimed gleefully also. “I been hopin’ we’d see ye again. How’ve ye been?”
“Eh, nothing new, a bit boring from time to time. Any adventures you and your crew have been on?”
“Aye. A jolly one would be helpin’ me home recover from that there traitor makin’ bloody doubloons. They be still imprisoned aft thar, and as we speak, the royal family be on board, and will be landing shortly.”
On cue, Princess Ocypete approached the captain, surprised to see Rainbow Dash. “Cellie, is this the pony you told us about?” the princess asked.
“Ye bet,” Celaeno confirmed. “Rainbow Dash; the pony who helped get me and my maties back into our thrill of an adventure.” She gave a fist bump to the pegasus, who could see the rest of the royal family looking over Canterlot from the deck.
“So, this is Canterlot,” King Thaumas commented.
“Wow, it’s so nice to see this glorious kingdom,” Queen Ozomeme added. “I’m looking forward to this moment.”
“Me too.”
“Prepare fer landin’!” Captain Celaeno loudly called, quickly bringing their ship down to the docks.
Once the ship landed, they began disembarking, with the captain and crew exiting first, followed by King Thaumas and the royal family, being welcomed by the ponies and other creatures.
“Welcome back, Captain Celaeno,” Twilight proclaimed.
“Thank you,” she replied, shaking her hoof, “It had been a while since me and my maties last met ye.”
“I know right?”
“Anyways, allow me t’ introduce ye to Thar Majesties King Thaumas and Queen Ozomeme with the royal family of Ornithia.” Celaeno then made way for the king and queen to meet the princess.
“Greetings, Your Highness,” the king greeted and bowed together with the rest. Princess Twilight then noted back as well.
“Greetings as well. Thank you for coming.”
“It was a pleasure,” King Thaumas responded. “We apologize if we don’t look our best.”
“It’s perfectly understandable,” Novo proclaimed as she stepped forward.
“Ah, Her Majesty Queen Novo. It’s great to meet you again.”
“Great to see you again too. It’s been a while since we last visited.” She shook talons with the royals as her daughter, Princess Skystar, drew her attention to the pirates.
“Hi, captain,” the young princess called.
“Skystar!” Celaeno exclaimed. “Good t’ see ye again. Been waitin’ fer another adventure?”
“Um… actually I’ve been taking some time to relax from the last time we had our adventure.”
“Can’t say I blame ye. Ye’ll be happy to know those criminals are properly locked in thar prison.”
“It be a giant aquarium,” first mate Mullet noted. Boyle and Lix snickered at this while Squabble just laughed at this fact.
“Oh, you still have them captive?” Novo asked.
“Aye, King Thaumas still be reckonin’ what t’ do with that,” Celaeno responded.
“Maybe you’d bring them here so we can get them a real fish tank to swim in.” Queen Novo and Captain Celaeno chuckled as the Diamond Dogs’ zeppelin departed.
“Captain, could you please move your ship?” Twilight politely asked. “We want the last group of guests to have enough space to park.”
“Aye, aye, Princess,” Captain Celaeno declared with a salute. “ALL CLAWS ON DECK!” She and her crew headed back onto her ship with Rainbow Dash joining her so she could help her where the ship should be parked.
“Now we wait for the last group, which are representatives of Abyssinia,” Twilight noted, checking her pocket watch. “They should be here any moment.”
The Diamond Dogs’ ears raised when they heard the word. “Uh… I… I’m sorry… who are the last?” Queen Katherina stutteringly asked.
“Abyssinia…” They stared at her in a weird way.
Dragon Lord Ember leaned closer to Thorax’s ear to whisper, “I knew something like this would happen,” she whispered.
“Is there a problem, Your Majesty?” Twilight asked the dog queen.
“It’s kind of obvious,” Gilda stated. Instantly, another airship came into view. It quickly docked beside Captain Celaeno’s ship and they could see something small and blonde-looking kitten over the deck. Thorax recognized it before she was pulled back from the edge.
When the ship docked and the gangplank dropped, guards on the deck played their trumpets announcing their arrival. When the tune was finished, the creatures could see the Abyssinian cats, Shadow, Chummer, and little Molly boarding off of the ship, much to the disdain of the Diamond Dogs.
“Do you see Capper around?” Shadow asked.
“No. I think he’ll arrive in a moment.” She looked around for her old friend as Chummer was trying to keep Molly in line. “Molly, I know you’re as excited as I am, but you have to stay close, you don’t wanna…” He paused his sentence as he saw the Diamond Dogs staring bizarrely at them. “…Oh boy.”
“What’s wrong?” Molly asked.
“They’re here.” Molly then turned in his direction and saw the said dogs.
“Make way!” called King Meowmeow. Some of his guards pushed their way past the others. Soon, he saw Queen Katherina standing together with the other Diamond Dogs. He, like the dogs, was much in disdain.
“Why are you here?”
“I should ask you the same thing,” Katherina stated.
“Um, Your Majesty,” Twilight said to the queen, “We’ve brought you all here, so we could bring our kingdoms closer together.”
“I understand your motive, but I have no intentions of collaborating with an egotistical feline,” Katherina stated.
“Says the one with the surname Proudpaws,” Meowmeow blurted. “And I had no intentions either of collaborating with a stubborn mutt.”
“Who’re you calling me a mutt!?” she grunted.
“Shall I draw my spear, Your Majesty?” the Doberman sergeant asked. He held up his weapon and the other Diamond Dog guards followed suit as the Abyssinian guards were ready for a possible counterattack.
Spike quickly got in between the two species before it could get ugly. “Okay… okay… enough. Let’s settle this out before we turn to each other to scratch wallpaper and chew toys. Alright?” he asked.
The Abyssinians and Diamond Dogs faced each other before King Meowmeow spoke. “I agree with the small dragon,” he said.
“Ditto,” said the orange pug, putting down his spear. “Less work for me.”
Pinkie snuck up to Amber to whisper. “Amber, don’t be afraid to sneak off with me if it goes south,” the pink pony quietly explained. Amber just nodded as the last two guests boarded off.
“I honestly thought that would be worse,” Max the big purple cat commented.
“You too?” Chummer asked.
“Our apologies,” Andrew Fluffington spoke, “Most of us are still in our old ways. The relationship between cats and dogs is still very sour, and it is evident in the history of both kingdoms.”
“We understand you attempting to break old habits,” Twilight said, “And that is one of the reasons why we’ve called you here.” She motioned to Gilda, Ember, Thorax, Rutherford, Rain Shine, and Novo. “When different kingdoms and Equestria worked together, they managed to work together and defeat some of the most devilish figures in the land and beyond.”
“Like a terrorist group from my domain who should not be named,” Gilda noted, “which began my rise to power in monarchy.”
“Or a group of three working together,” Thorax added, “which they have been in ‘stony’ prison for eternity.”
“Or….” Ember paused as she looked at Chummer. “Wasn’t there a kitten with you?”
“Wha…?” Chummer quickly looked down and saw that Molly was no longer beside him. “Son of a….” He caught himself before he could curse. “Did anyone see where Molly went?” he asked.
“Found her,” called a voice. Everyone turned to see a familiar Abyssinian approaching them. It was Capper Dapperpaws, and beside him was Rarity and Molly, whom he had found. Capper was wearing a red-button shirt under an indigo sweater vest and black pants.
Chummer was happy to see his adopted daughter was safe but he, as well as Shadow, were impressed with their friend’s new look.
“Cap!” Chummer exclaimed happily. You made it.”
“Yes, I did,” he said. “Glad you all made it too. And uhh… yeah I found Molly. Keep her tight.”
“Thanks, Cap,” Chummer said, getting a firm grip on Molly’s paw.
“You look very nice with that sweater vest,” Shadow commented.
“Why thank you,” Capper responded. “Rarity here helped develop it for me.
Rarity walked up to Capper’s childhood friends and held out her hoof. “It’s a pleasure to meet you,” the mare said. “I’ve been told a lot about you two.”
“Oh, really?” Shadow asked. “I have to say you did an excellent job on his new outfit.”
“Thank you,” she smiled.
“I have to ask,” Chummer said, “What happened to the old trench coat?”
“I threw it away,” Capper admitted, “We couldn’t get the foul odor out of it. That and the stitching was coming apart. Though I have to say, a trench coat looks good on you.” Chummer nodded as he looked at the green trench coat he had on.
Rarity could see it was a little crowded as she approached Princess Twilight and Queen Katherina. “I apologize that we arrived at the last minute,” the generous mare apologized. “I made sure everything was set at the boutique in Ponyville.”
“It’s alright, Rarity,” Twilight said. “I understand.”
“What did you have planned?” Queen Katherina asked.
“We will discuss our future relations between Equestria and other kingdoms like yours would go,” Twilight explained. “But first, we should lead you to your guest rooms.” She then turned to her assistant. “Spike, lead the way.”
He nodded and led the guests from Caninia, Abyssinia, and Ornithia to their guest rooms.
While they sorted it out, Fluttershy caught Rarity up to speed. “Queen Katherina and King Meowmeow nearly started a fight,” the yellow pegasus explained.
“Oh, I should’ve known something like that would happen,” Rarity muttered.
“If it makes you feel better, we’ll keep a close eye on them,” Thorax proclaimed.
“Now is a good time,” Queen Novo noted. The royals went into the castle as Pinkie Pie hopped over to Skystar.
“Try to convince the younger visitors to get to the train station,” Pinkie whispered. “There is a lot for them to see.” Skystar nodded as she flew inside the castle to find them.
Inside one of the guest rooms, Moonbeam was making herself comfy on one of the beds. Queen Katherina was in there too and was still feeling frustrated about their situation with the ruler of Abyssinia. “Do you feel some kind of narcissism from that cat?” the queen questioned.
“By the look of his cape, I’d say so,” Moonbeam noted.
“The others don’t look bad,” Indiana admitted. “Not just those cats, but the bird guys and other creatures too.”
“Were those bird creatures pirates?” Fiona asked.
“I think they were. They didn’t seem like the classic kind of pirates described in the books I’ve read.”
“They seemed to be trustworthy enough to transport the royal family here,” Jennino commented. “They seem to be nice. Amber, what do you think?”
“Uh… yeah. I’m kinda curious about those cat guys,” Amber noted.
“Are you serious, Amber?” Katherina questioned.
“One of them seems to have been living with Rarity. So they can’t be all bad since we got along with her. I understand the long history of the feud between the Caninians and Abyssinians, but we should get along with the ones with good intentions.”
“She’s correct,” Moonbeam commented. “Rarity isn’t the pony who would keep some punk or slum-like creature around.”
“How do you think the other creatures are?” Jennino asked.
A knock on the door was heard. “I’ll get it,” Ambrosia said.
She then headed towards the door and opened it. In front of her was Queen Novo standing outside with Princess Skystar quickly joining her.
“Skystar, what are you doing?” Novo questioned.
“Pinkie Pie told me to check on with some of the younger visitors,” the young hippogriff answered.
“Oh, that’s a great idea. You go and have a bond with the princesses while I talk with the queen.” Skystar agreed to this idea as she went over to the princesses.
“You’re here to have a chat?” Queen Katherina asked.
“Yes, Your Majesty.” Queen Novo nodded.
“Alright. Come in.” Queen Novo then closed the door behind her and had their seats at the desk. While the mother queens talked, Skystar took an interest in Princesses Amber and Fiona.
“So, how are you two?” the hippogriff asked.
“The trip from Caninia to her was a little boring, honestly,” Fiona admitted. “I mostly went outside the deck and had the view of lots of mountains, lakes, trees, and other stuff from time to time. But Amber managed to make it bearable thanks to her Narra.”
“A what?”
“Narra. It’s a type of book we have in Caninia,” Amber explained. “Here.” She showed Skystar one of her Narra books, which had a cover showing a gray sheepdog wielding black swords as a book floated next to him.
“Black Rover?” Skystar read.
“Yep, that’s the name of this series. The main protagonist of this series has a special ability: Anti-magic.”
“What does that mean?”
“Think of someone doing a transformation spell. Just one smack of these swords of Anti-magic and the spells will be canceled out.”
“That’s cool, but… wouldn’t that cut the creature using the spell?”
“These swords are a lot less sharp than regular swords. They work more like golf clubs than anything.” Amber handed Skystar her Narra comic for the hippogriff to read.
Their mothers watched from across the room, both looking pleased. “They seem to be getting along pretty well,” Novo commented, drinking water from a mug.
“Looks like it,” Katherina agreed, also drinking water. “So, where do you come from?”
“Mount Aris,” Novo explained. “It’s filled with great valleys, sandy beaches, and unique structures. You should come.”
“Maybe some other time. That sounds like a very nice place to visit. I’ll keep that in mind.”
“Nice. And another thing about Mount Aris is that it is also connected to the underwater kingdom of Seaquestria, where sea ponies reside.”
“How does that kingdom function?”
“It’s a long story. In a nutshell, we use special shards from a magical pearl to change us from hippogriffs to seaponies.” She then showed her pearl shard necklace to her.
“No. You’re making that up. No way a piece of accessory would do such a thing.”
“Am I?” Novo gave a smug smile. “Hold my mug.” As she sat on the bed, she activated her shard to change her base form into her seapony form, much to the shock of Katherina and the Diamond Dogs with their jaws dropped. “Told you.” Novo then quickly changed back into a hippogriff and stepped off the bed.
“Woah… I’m amazed,” Katherina commented. “What does your shard do to other creatures?”
“My niece has given me a list of creatures corresponding to their sea mammals. I unfortunately left it back home.”
“It would be more fun if we could show you what happens in Ponyville,” Skystar proclaimed, flying to the window and pointing to the town visible from their room. “Right there.”
The Diamond Dogs then peeked down the window to see Ponyville from their point of view.
“That’s Ponyville?” Amber asked. Skystar nodded.
“Huh… I guess that’s where ponies are planning on taking us,” Moonbeam commented sarcastically.
“Exactly.” Skystar quickly explained what Pinkie had told her and the Diamond Dogs were interested.
“Again, it’s a great idea,” Katherina commented. “It’ll give you all something to do.”
“I have been wanting to see some of Rarity’s dress designs,” Jennino added.
“Yeah, a nice chat giving each other advice,” Indiana added.
“I hoped for something to keep the girl entertained,” Katherina noted.
“Yes, it’ll be a great icebreaker,” Novo agreed. “Now excuse me, I’m going to check on the others and see what they think of the plan. You take care.” The queen of Mount Aris left the room just as Spike was about to come in. She gave a thumbs up and a wink and Spike could see the Diamond Dogs were already looking forward to the events now.
The other visitors were looking forward to the plan and already had their rooms set up, almost all of them started heading to Canterlot’s train station. Marini was a bit disappointed she couldn’t go with her friends.
“Sorry you can’t come with us,” Crystal sighed.
“It’s okay,” Marini said. “I have a huge responsibility as chief of Zebrat, remember? There is a need to have this conversation with the princess to not only start a relationship between our village and Equestria but also improve our future.”
“We understand you have much work to do,” Zecora said, “We’ll try not to have too much fun without you.” The friends shared one more hug before the chief went back into the castle to prepare for their meeting.
As the plan goes, the visitors were given a chance to have a trip to Ponyville while the leaders were having their meeting with Princess Twilight. They met up at the station where they waited for their train to arrive. The Mane 5 were also there to guide them. “This will be a good time to see how Equestria’s rail network functions,” Andy Fluffington commented.
“Wow, you are seriously dedicated to your work, are you?” Shadow chuckled.
“I’ve got some more responsibilities in the future.”
Capper overheard this comment and remembered what had been discussed in Panthera. “So… You two are…” Capper said.
“Two weeks pregnant,” Shadow finished. “Yes, I am. I’m already feeling the symptoms, morning sickness already made itself known.”
“Well… This is what you wanted, right?”
“Of course. It’s just going to be a harder process than I thought.”
“Have you ever thought of a name yet?”
“Too early to call,” Andy confirmed, “but we have been thinking of good names.” Capper smiled.
“Would you like some assistance?” Rarity asked, walking close to Shadow.
“That would be appreciated, thank you.” They heard a whistle as the Friendship Express approached the station. Once it stopped, they quickly got on board and took their seats.
“These seats are pretty comfy,” Cactus Rose commented as she sat down. “Nothing like this in Zebrat.”
“It be nice to finally rest and let someone do the transportation,” Mullet noted.
“I’m right here” Celaeno agreed with a smirk. She sat back and relaxed, while Skystar had a hard time sitting still due to her excitement.
“I’m going to see my cousin again,” the hippogriff cooed. “I cannot wait to show you to her.”
“I’m sure she’s as happy as you are,” Princess Ocypete smiled. She then peeked out the window before she did a double take.
Applejack saw her shocked expression and checked. “Is there something wrong, Your Highness?” she asked.
“Call me crazy, but I think I saw a giant eye staring right at my soul.” Captain Celaeno looked concerned as she approached her best buddy.
“I think you stayed underground for too long,” the captain commented. “Relax, yer gonna have some fun once we arrive.” She touched the princess’s head to see if she was feeling well as Ocypete had a feeling she was right.
The train left Canterlot towards Ponyville. However, Ocypete wasn’t too far off from what she witnessed. A pair of yellow eyes were watching the express leave and Fluttershy had a feeling she knew who they belonged to.