> Once Upon a Star > by IBaBrony > -------------------------------------------------------------------------- > Week 1: The Star(?) > -------------------------------------------------------------------------- Day 1 Jaden's log week 1; entry 1 Just got back from the grocery store today when I got a call from my "favorite" brony. Yeah, I have to go to Dexter Duckard's laboratory. Something about his latest project. He's working on a machine that will transport mankind to the world of ponies. I know some bronies can be obsessed with ponies, but the thought of an alternate universe where "everyone" becomes "everypony" is complete boulder dash. He believes he is on the precipice of scientific breakthrough. He can be such a Doctor Hooves with this crazy obsession. Anyways, he says he really needs my help. Said something about needing to hold a couple of circuits in place while he tinkers with some parts with such a long ass name that I don't even know how to say them. Well, I guess I'll just head over and see what the hell he needs. -Jaden Keller With that, I close my journal and head out of my room. I head over to my kitchen to grab a quick soda bottle to ingest while I head over to the main foyer in my home. "Lexy, I'll be out for a while. I just gotta head over to Dexter's for a bit. If I'm not back for a while, I'll pay you extra for your work." The maiden tending to a small puddle on the floor waves at me with a smile. She doesn't really talk much, but when she does, she's a nice girl. So, I equip my jacket and shoes before heading out to my car. Reaching in my pockets, I find I don't have my keys. I head back through the front door. "Lexy have you seen my..." Lexy reaches over my keys on the coffee table in my living room fireplace and tosses them over. "Thanks." I then head to my car again where I drive off. I turn on the radio while driving to help keep focus. Now, because Dexter is a science nut, he invents a bunch of crazy gadgets and machines. The radio I have, is not a regular radio. It has quite a lot of features to it and the main thing that plays on it is Everfree radio. This radio is just a wristband that pulls up a small holographic screen. It's actually more of a small computer rather than a radio. After about half an hour, I arrive at the front gates of Dexter's private laboratories. I slow down as I reach the security gates. A floating orb comes up to eye level at my window, starting to speak the usual statement. "PLEASE LOWER YOUR WINDOW FOR MAXIMUM IDENTIFICATION" I lower my window and turn my full attention to the floating robot. "TURN YOUR FACE TO THE OPTICAL SCANNER" I already did. Honestly, the more I think about it, the more I start to realize that Dexter makes his robots not so bright. A small circular section on the robot opens up to reveal a lens. "ARE YOU FACING THE CAMERA?" This crap again? "No duh, Sherlock! I do this all the time!" I argue. "VERY WELL. PLEASE STAND BY WHILE THE RETINAL SCAN OPERATES" A small infrared light emits from the lens scanning my eye with one quick motion. Then the robot starts to piss me off with it's next statement. "ERROR: COULD NOT RECOGNIZE RETINAL SEQUENCE! BE SURE NOT TO BLINK. PROCEED?" This stupid thing needs to be fixed. Not once do I ever blink when it scans me! "Yes you frickin son of a..." It stops me before I say another word. "LANGUAGE IS NOT PROMOTED HERE. WATCH WHAT YOU SAY. SCAN WILL CONTINUE." The robot scans my eye again before saying the same damn thing. Getting pissed, I whip out my cell phone and call Dexter. "Yeah, Dexter? You're optical scanner is being retarded again." I hear him groan on the other side. "No problem. Let me open the gates for you. I'll fix it later. Now hurry! I have the needed element for inter-dimensional travel and you must be here to help me carefully place it in the machine correctly!" He hangs up and seconds later, the gates open. I then drive inside and park my car. I gather my belongings and head through the front doors, showing my identification card to the secretary at the front desk who nods at me. "Floor B-14, Mister Keller." I head to the nearest service elevator and head down to the desired floor. Soon enough, I head to the usual experimental chambers to find Dexter with his lab coat and usual crazy, 70's hair, pacing back and forth. He then notices me from the corner of his eye. "Jaden! Come quick!" He rushes over to me and grabs my arm with a grip so tight, it hurts my arm. "You have got to see this! I discovered this extremely rare element that should give us the power to manipulate the dimensions between time and space causing a worm hole, opening a portal to the pony-verse! We're going to the pony world!" He turns his full attention to a huge monitor with a massive number of lines of code, typing away on a keyboard, starting some massive machinery to move in the room. I turn my attention to the center of the roof where a great number of locks start to move allowing a huge hatch in the ceiling to open up slowly with a chrome cylinder container lowering itself to the center of the room. "Get ready! You're going to be mind blown!" The chrome changes to bullet proof glass, revealing a mystical pink crystal with some magical glow emanating from it. "BEHOLD! The magical element that will bring us to the pony universe! I call it Maginite!" Holy shit! This crystal seems to cast some magical aura into the room! almost as if it actually does hold power. Massive power. "I found it when I made a strange encounter. I have proof in this very room that their world absolutely does exist! A unicorn came here! Could you believe it?!" I shoot a quick look to Dexter who has a smile ten miles wide like Pinkie Pie in that episode where the cutie mark crusaders were looking for Rainbow Dash to find out how she got her cutie mark. The part where the sonic rainboom occurred and filly Pinkie Pie was staring at it with pure happiness. Wait a minute... Did he just say a unicorn?! "Unicorn?!" "Hay yeah! Unfortunately, she didn't last long upon entry. the g-force of her worm hole must have made her feel like her innards were being torn apart and turned to jelly. Luckily that won't happen to us!" I walk over to Dexter with a still confused look. "Where is this unicorn?" Dexter points over to the miniature morgue where previous assistants lie. "Unit Alpha X-1. The one I kept specifically in case I ever met a pony who ended up just like the pretty mare." I look over to a door on the wall in the small morgue that has the My Little Pony logo embedded in it. I then open the door and pull out a casket. "Permission?" "Permission granted." I uncover the casket slightly, sliding the metal cover over the body to see not feet attached to the legs, but hooves! Cyan hooves! I start thinking, but then lose the thought that it cant be Rainbow Dash because she's a pegasus. I start uncovering the casket more to see the pale face of a unicorn. A frickin unicorn! Oh my Luna, this is intense! "Surprised? I was too." I examine the face further to see if I could recognize the pony when I notice small stitches in the horn. "What's with the stitching?" "The Maginite was contained within the horn itself. I had to surgically remove it after the pony died. It was quite hard. Some cord connected it directly to the brain. I formed a hypothesis when performing the removal. If the Maginite was connected to the brain directly, then they must channel their thoughts directly into a magic spell where, depending on how complex the spell, requires a specific amount of concentration. Maybe this is the reason behind some unicorns being able to do simple spells, while others get accepted into magic school due to their gift in magic use!" He has a good point. I bring the cover back onto the casket before returning it into its original resting place. "Right, so when do we get started?" "Right now! If you could just get into position in your cubical then we can get to work!" I head over to my miniature office and get onto my computer, staring at a picture of Derpy Hooves because I just love her so much. I don't care what anyone else thinks. She is best pony in the series! I don't care about Lyra, Colgate, DJ Pon3, even Rainbow Dash as much! I guess... maybe you could consider her my... Oh! The computer loaded up. "Let's get to it!" Cracking my knuckles, I start typing away at my computer with lightning speed. Hours pass by and the Maginite is successfully installed into the mechanism. Soon enough, I go on a lunch break with Dexter. We get our lunches and sit at our usual table. The one all the way in the back at the corner where air conditioning is worst, where most of the trash cans are, causing our area to smell like laundry that hasn't been washed for days worn by a gymnast. We sit here mainly because the other scientists at this lab shun us because we're bronies. The worst part is, this is Dexter's facility. They shouldn't even be treating us like shit. "Well, that was quite the challenge there. Who ever knew that it would be so hard to install such an unstable material into that machine?" "I know. my equipment is meant to handle the most unstable materials in the world, but maybe not materials from other worlds. Who cares though? We've got an inter-dimensional worm hole device! We could..." A couple of tall, muscular men come over to the table. one slaps his hand down on the table hard, causing our food to jump a little. "So. You bronies working on more lunatic devices that wont do shit?" The leader of the gang begins to chuckle. "Still working on the same old project?" "Yeas and this time, we're on to something. Just you wait. by tomorrow we'll..." One of the thugs silence Dexter by covering his mouth with their brute sized hands. "You'll still be here and we will too, laughing about it the whole time. You frickin bronies are just so determined! Look, your inventions will never work and you'll never mount to anything! You're pathetic, worthless, and you just don't know when to give up!" I pull out a knife on the leader. "You better shut your mouth right now or so help me, I will slip this into your throat. You think you intimidate me with your size? Guess again." The leader starts booming with laughter. "Hey check this out! A brony with no love or tolerance towards others! What happened? Get a little pissed off?" "You should back outa this, foo!" Chimes in new voice. The leader of the thugs turn around see a dark skinned man, almost as big as the thugs, staring directly at the leader with an undaunted look. "Who the hell are you?" "The new guy." The man replies with a monotone. "Well listen here new guy. There is one thing you should know. We run this place. Every man you see here that call themselves tough, I beat them all in a fight. Now if you're challenging me..." The new guy interrupts. "I am. You got a problem with that, bitch?" "What did you just call me?" "You heard me. If I ever see you lay a hand on this table again, I swear, I'm gonna f*** you up big time." The thug leader starts laughing hysterically. "Oh my god, that's a good one. You serious?" The new guy gets annoyed. "Do I look like I'm not?" The leader stops laughing. "Well then. Looks like we gonna go right now." He punches a fire alarm causing alarms to blare and water to rain down from the ceiling. The sudden event causes everyone in the cafeteria to leave except me, Dexter, the thug gang and the new guy. "You and me, right now." The leader grabs the new guy by the shoulders and throws him onto a table, causing it to break. The new guy doesn't seem hurt and gets up like nothing happened. He raises his arms sort of in a shrug. "This where you want me to be?" The leader charges at the new guy, only to be stopped by some weird force. "One thing you should know about me is I invent f****** weapons, sucka!" The new guy reaches out and clenches his fist, causing the thug leader to look at him questioningly. "I would suggest you two back away from that table." I look at the table which now has a blue aura surrounding it. "What the..." The new guy pulls his arm towards him, causing the table to fly over to his location. "Suck it." The table flies at the thug leader hitting him hard in the back. the impact is so hard, the table breaks and knocks the breath out of him. That's a first! The new guy then extends both his arms outward catching a few new objects in his non-physical grip. The leader gets up with a shocked look only to be sandwiched between two more tables. "You know, despite me being new, I was able to hear that you're the most notorious man here. Found out you murdered, stole, harassed, did unspeakable things to the ladies, and even vandalized. You must be Monc Tae. Heard quite a lot about you back in the crime reports. Did you know you've got a death wish? You were marked as "to be killed." You did quite a lot in your time." "And what makes you think I'm going to die any time soon?" The new guy smiles. "I have an idea. Look up." The leader looks up to see small particles of cement falling on top of him. Then the ceiling comes down crashing right on top of him. "Rest in hell, Monc." How did he know the ceiling was going to crash down like that. "Now how about you two big guys? You gonna join this motha f*****?" The two thugs at my table run away. "How did you..." "Let's just say I did a little studying and planning before accepting my new job." The new guy opens his palm and starts pressing on it before switching to the next. Then he shows his palms, revealing a small neon lit device attached to five neon rings on each hand. "Like I said. I used to invent military weapons. Got to pull a few strings and keep my favorite one. Watch this." The new guy holds his hand out towards the cafeteria's kitchen, moving his fingers around in a specific pattern, causing a bunch of ingredients to float around forming a lunch. When done, he brings over... raw hamburgers fixed up with ketchup, mustard, and tomatoes. "Umm...I don't like mine raw." The new guy flexes his index finger then extends it causing fire to shoot from it for a couple seconds before dissipating. You gotta admit, some glove like weapon that uses telekinetic physics and shoots fire out of your finger, that's awesome! "This was the prototype. There's some other things about it that I can use, but they're last resort." Dexter and I take our hamburgers and start eating. "Wow. Theesh are perfect." Dexter comments with a mouthful. "How did you make dat?" Dexter points to the glove. "Well, let's just say I took the smallest sample of a material that I ever took. Anyways, I was told that you guys were onto a scientific break through and that you might have needed my help." I start to ponder on what he could do when Dexter replies. "Actually yes. Jaden and I were working on a machine and we could use your help holding a few things together while we do our technological advances. Your Magion Teleken P-1 will help out a great deal." "How did you know the name?" "You're not the only one who goes on covert missions to find out about important things, you thief." The new guy stands, frozen at these words when Dexter grabs him by the arm and drags him out of the wrecked cafeteria to our laboratory. Hours pass by and we finally add the final line of binary code into the device. "Jaden, you ready to launch?" I give the thumbs up. "Marcus, please step away from the machine. I have no idea what the hay is going to happen." The new guy, A.K.A Marcus, steps away from the machine. "Activating binary sequence in 3...2...1..." He presses a red button on a terminal connected to the machine, but nothing seems to have happened. "I don't get it. It was supposed to..." Suddenly the whole room starts to shake as an explosion occurs, causing Marcus to fall to the ground, covering his face with shrapnels scarring his face and the explosion burning him a lot. When the explosion dies down, we see a massive hole in the ceiling with electric sparks flying out of electrical cords and full metal beams bent horridly. "Dexter, I think we may have f***** this up big time." "No shit, Jaden." We head over to help out Marcus up and get him to the infirmary before heading home after yet another failure and the loss of the most rare material to obtain. Never have I ever felt so defeated. As soon as I got home I slapped a $20 onto the coffee table and head straight to my room. "Take it and go." Lexy looks at me with a concerned look. "What's going on? Another failure?" "Yes! and one of the worst possible failures ever! We just frickin lost one of the most rare and unobtainable elements known to man in an experiment! That damn machine blew up and out of the facility and..." I start to feel my heart pounding, eyes burning, and breathing gone deep. "I..." I start to calm down a little. "I'm sorry. This was the biggest blunder yet. I'm going to my room. Your pay is on the table. Just... get out of my sight right now." She pats me on the back sympathetically before taking her pay and leaving. I then feel a pit in my stomach. She's the only one I ever talk to when I'm home mainly because no one lives with me and I just yelled in her face. I... I gotta calm down. After settling in onto my bed, I begin thinking with a renewed and calm mind. I remember something my mother used to tell me when I was young. Something that makes me laugh now because it's a young kids dream if it ever happened. She used to tell me that you could wish upon a star and if you truly believed, that dream might come true. It never really happened though so I quickly quit believing, yet she kept telling me that it could happen. Then I look over to the balcony facing my backyard where I go pigeon shooting sometimes in my leisure time. Then I get a stupid idea. I get off my bed and head over to the balcony, laying my hand on the fencing. It's a little beat up considering it's wood and was there for a couple years now. I should build a new one soon. Lots of splits in the wood and nicks in the sides. Anyways, I quit paying attention to that and look to the sky full of bright white balls of light and a huge moon. Looking at the moon, it appears to give off an image of a unicorn, but that's my usual brony mind speaking. Happens whenever I look at the moon. I look at the first star I notice. An orange star shining really bright. Then I make a wish, reciting what I used to say when wishing upon a star. "Starlight, star bright. First star I see tonight." I feel so awkward right now. "I wish I may, I wish I might, have the first wish I wish tonight." I take a deep breath. "I wish to be taken somewhere very far. For something to happen to that machine to miraculously take me somewhere I've only heard about before." As if on cue, I start to notice the star is flickering. Wait... okay, that's weird. It's getting brighter, this time with a bright light. I step back, gazing at the increasingly bright light. I then go wide-eyed as I see a huge beam of light heading towards me. Then my phone rings. I run to my phone and answer it quickly, still looking at the incoming light. "Jaden! The machine! I'm picking up massive energy readings coming from it! The machine is a..." Just then, I drop my phone, shrieking in pain as I feel my body undergoing massive pressure. Then everything goes white. I then pass out. That was day one. Day 2 Ugh. What the hay happened there? Wh...Where am I? There's something weird going on here. A light turns on causing me to squint, trying to adjust to the sudden environmental change. "Hello there. I see you're conscious now. Took a few hours." My eyes adjust to the light revealing a brown pony in front of me with a spiky brown mane and an hourglass for a cutie mark. I recognize that pony anywhere! I'm face to face with Doctor Whooves! "I saw you enter this world in a flash of pure white light and ran over to see you unconscious. I thought I'd drag you over to my place until you gained consciousness. It was a challenge though because...well, you were human. Now...well, look at you." I look at my feet to see hooves. A blue set of hooves. Now I'm really confused. What the buck happened back there? Then something occurs in my mind. "Wait a minute, does that mean the pony who somehow got into my lab... She must have became human?" The Doctor nods yes. "Your friend said so." The Doctor holds up my phone and plays a recorded message. "Jaden! You will not believe this, but that unicorn, I don't know why, but I checked on her and she wasn't a pony anymore! She is a human!" The recording ends. "How did I get that message?" Seriously, I'm in an alternate universe. How could I possibly get a message from Dexter when I'm possibly tens of trillions or more light years away from him? "You don't watch T.V. much, do you?" Oh. Right. I know what he's talking about. I used to watch Doctor Who a while back. "Right..." The Doctor hands me my phone. "You're not an earth pony though. Need a mirror?" What? "Umm...yes." The Doctor pulls up a mirror where I get a good look at myself. I'm a stunning, ocean blue unicorn with a mane and tail also blue, but with two red stripes running down the middle of my hair along with a motherboard for a cutie mark. "Oh my Celestia..." I'm breath taken. I... I have no words for this. "I'm...I'm a unicorn...How...?" I don't know if I can accept this. "I know. It's hard to take in." "But I'm a unicorn..." "Well, yes." "And you're an Earth pony..." "Umm...Also true." "So how am I a unicorn when you came as an earth pony?" "Excellent question." "Well?" "I have not a clue, but we can always find out." "I..." "Yes?" "I can't accept this!" I start running past him through the door hoping all of this is a lie. "Sir, wait!" I burst open the doors when I see something that almost makes my heart stop completely. "Oh my..." Before me is Ponyville overrun with ponies, pegasi, and unicorns, all mingling, working, and relaxing. "This... This is not real. It can't be." I feel a hoof on my shoulder. I wish this sort of was a dream. "It's real. You can feel me, can't you? It is not a dream." It almost seemed like he just read my mind! "So... This really is Equestria?" He nods yes. "I'm actually in Ponyville." I try to take it in, but for some reason I just can't accept it. "Celestia, I have so many questions right now." "I bet. Come inside and you can settle down. This whole scene right here probably isn't doing you any good." "Hay no, it isn't." The Doctor helps me inside and gets me settled down, up until he brings a snack for the both of us. "A dandelion sandwich?" "Yes. I wasn't too big on the idea of a vegetarian diet when I first arrived in Equestria, but you learn to deal with the hand you're dealt." I just let my head drop to the table, causing a bruise on my forehead. "My Celestia this is all so hard, damn it!" I feel like banging my head against a wall. "I know it probably shouldn't and I should enjoy this but..." "So you're a brony?" He starts munching away at hid sandwich. "Y...Yes. How did you ever hear of them? Do you have some special gadget that allows you to see every form of data from anywhere?" "Of course! I'm the Doctor!" I face...hoof? "Of course." I stare at my food for a second before finally taking a nervous bite out of it and OH MY CELESTIA DAMN IT! It tastes so bucking amazing! I underestimated the power of a new tongue! Well, I would assume my tongue is different if I'm now a pony... I gotta admit this is actually pretty cool! "Wow! This is quite sensational!" You know, I feel kind of reinvigorated. Maybe this new life may not be so bad! But that's just me talking after eating one of the most tasty sandwiches I've had since I got here. Well, the only sandwich I had when I got here. "Who's your favorite pony?" Wait, what? "Whatcha say?" "Who is your favorite pony from the show?" "Umm...It's umm..." I don't know. Should I answer? I thought Doctor Whooves and Derpy had something going on together. "Who?" He's pressuring me! "Derpy." "Derpy?" "Also known as Ditzy Do." The Doctor's face lights up. "My temporary assistant! You like her? Nice selection. She's very nice." This calms me down. Maybe there isn't something. "I plan to meet her sometime if I can find her. I'll search all across Equestria if I have to." The Doctor laughs. "Oh don't worry. You won't have to search far." "What do you mean?" "You'll see." I finish my sandwich. "Want another? I have more bits than I can count. It doesn't matter." "I couldn't. I just need to relax right now. Though I'm calm now, this is still hard to think about." "I understand. The couch is over there in front of the fireplace." He points a hoof over to a casual little couch in front of a fireplace that hasn't been touched for months. I trot over and lay down, taking a deep breath and closing my eyes. I fall asleep only to wake up a few hours later to a small explosion. "What the hay?!" I get off the couch and look around to see smoke coming from the basement. "You okay down there?!" "Yeah! Just need a little *cough* help if you'd please." I rush downstairs find The Doctor tinkering with the machine, all blackened from the explosion with his sonic screwdriver. "Alright, just hold that lever there down." I pull down a lever using up quite a bit of strength. "Good. Now hold it there until I get this reconfigured. I just need to swap a few diodes and wires." I just happen to notice the workbench where a pattern of different electronic combinations. "Pardon me, but what is this machine?" I am kind of curious. "It is supposed to server as an energy source detector. I have to rule out the unicorn magic sources though otherwise this machine would go haywire. I'm making this to help find a power source for the TARDIS. It kinda ran low on power upon entry into this world and I can't find an energy source that can match the power it requires. It should work if I can just... there. You can let go now." I let go and examine the new circuitry, then the different models. "Now, be prepared for another possible explosion, just in case." "Wait. You used this model right here." The Doctor turns his attention to me. "Well, yes. It seems the most effective now." "Wrong. This model has a cooling unit smaller than the processor. If I remember this model correctly, then the processor heats up quicker than it can cool. That would cause overheating which will reach the power source here and cause it to explode. Basically what just happened, except this would be worse because the processor is right next to the power source." The Doctor raises an eye brow. "I would suggest... this model here. This one has the cooler just the same size as the processor and in between the processor and the source. It would cause the processor to remain at a stable temperature, allowing it to run perfectly." "But the wires run all over the place and with all the little space there is in the machine, there's no way I could possibly fit that in there." I grab a couple of tools and start tinkering with the model, then show it to The Doctor who goes wide-eyed. "Fantastic!" We remove the previous model and install the new one. "Okay, now the moment of truth!" The Doctor activates the machine, bracing for a possible explosion, but it doesn't occur. Instead, the screen flickers to life with text flashing on the screen saying, "Scanning area. Please wait." The Doctor starts jumping for joy. "HAHA! You did it! Where did you learn this?!" "I have experience in inventing. I work for a science nut." "You are fantastic... umm..." "Jaden. Jaden Keller." "Thank you, Mister Jaden." "Just call me Jaden, okay? Mister makes my skin crawl. I don't like titles." "Right, Jaden. Well, I'll let this scan for the night. It's getting late. You can use the couch again." The Doctor heads to his room while I go get myself settled onto the couch. I then close my eyes hoping that if this really is a dream, it never ends. That was day 2 Day 3 I wake up the next morning to the sound of hoof steps drawing near. I look to see The Doctor walking down the stairs from his bedroom. "Good morning. There's cereal in the cupboards there and the silverware is in the drawer next to the stove. Help yourself to some breakfast." I get up kind of eager to see what ponies eat. I open a cupboard to find some cereal I haven't seen before. Dandely-o's, Muffin bits (wouldn't be surprised if Derpy got those for him. Or for herself), Trixie's, These all seem exotic and, well, nothing like I'd ever ate before. The only thing similar is the content labeling. It says the Dandely-o's are only five percent dandelions. I don't want to know what the actual ingredients are. Trust me. I saw the list for a split second and had to turn away. "Got anything else?" I start looking around to see if there is an alternative. "There should be a couple of muffins in the breadbox there. Derpy always makes an excessive amount and offers them to other ponies when she cant eat anymore." I crack open the breadbox to find a blueberry muffin. "Sweet! Thanks." "Any time." He munches away at his cereal while I take the muffin and find the glass cupboard. I take out a glass and fill it with some apple juice before sitting down and eating. I couldn't help but notice there was some cider in the back in what looked like a wine bottle. I guess cider is their alcohol? "Speaking of Derpy, weren't you going to go look for her today?" That's right! "Yeah, I was. You know, because she's my favorite pony." The Doctor finishes his cereal and goes to an inconspicuous drawer behind one of the cupboards to grab a small sack out of about five, then closes it and tosses the bag to me. "Take these bits. You might need them if you ever find yourself in need of some food or something. maybe a night at a hotel or something." The Doctor heads to the basement to check on the energy scanner. "Thanks." "It's the least I could do." I grab the sack of bits to see some sort of foreign writing on the bag. Ponies must have a different writing style than us. The writing looks like a couple of simple lines, spaced just like normal writing. There seems to be a comma on the bag with three characters of the same characters following afterwards. I'm guessing I have around one thousand bits. I bet that's quite a lot of bits considering that a cherry only cost around four or five bits. "One last thing, before you look for Derpy, I would suggest going to Rarity's before venturing off. It's kind of dangerous to show off all that money. Ponyville is not what you would expect it to be." Seriously? Maybe the show doesn't explain everything about Ponyville. I just hope that it's not too much like the hood I live in. Pushing the thought aside, I head out to find Rarity's shop. I'm walking down the roads of town and I can't help but notice every pony staring at me with the sack of bits in my mouth along with a couple of brute stallions with a few scars, smoking. I was wrong. Ponyville is a lot like the hood I live in. Except more colorful with all the different colored ponies and the houses not being so run down. I soon reach Rarity's with very little problem due to having a map of Ponyville in my old house. They're surprisingly similar. The only difference is that the map is a little off. I saw Sugar Cube Corner and on the map it said it was farther away from town hall in the center of town when it's really close by. So anyways, I walk up to the door and knock, heart pounding in excitement as I hear the hoof steps getting slightly louder. I'm about to meet Rarity! One of the mane six! This is a truly exciting moment for me. "Hello, darling! Welcome to Rarity's Carousel Boutique! Anything I can do for a fine stallion like you?" Oh my Celestia! My excitement is at maximum right now! Ok... Gotta calm down. "Sir?" I clear my throat. "Umm...Sorry. I...It's just I heard a lot about you here and I kinda got excited a little." "Many have heard about me. It's quite nice to know some pony actually came to me personally instead of mail. Doesn't happen quite often. Anyways, come inside. You shouldn't be holding that sack around for every ponies' eyes to see." She steps aside letting me walk in. "Wow. This place looks more amazing in person." I look around with a great feeling of awe. "Why thank you. I do my best to keep this place neat for all my costumers when they walk in. You have no idea how hard it is to keep all those filthy little specks of dust away. The thought of those dirty little things...."She scrunches up her face and shakes it in disapproval. "Ugh!" "I'll keep that in mind next time I step hoof into my house.If I ever do..." I mumble to myself. "What was that, dear?" "Uh, nothing!" I smile sheepishly. "Anyways, I need a saddle bag. Do you think you could make one for me?" "Is that all? You don't need me to make you something to wear? I could make a nice tuxedo for you if you attend special events. Maybe even a dashing hat considering you would look like a fine fellow with a top hat." "No, not really. I just need... well... I could go for one thing." Rarity levitates a clipboard, paper and quill over to her. "What would you like?" "I was thinking, maybe I could go for some sunglasses with a blue chrome plating for the frames and could you make them mirror sunglasses with an amber colored reflection?" Rarity blinks. "Well, that certainly is a different order. Never had a costumer that wanted sunglasses to act as a mirror before. I don't even know how that could be done." I gulp after not considering the fact they haven't discovered how to make mirrored sunglasses. Then I get an idea. "Oh, it's simple really. If you have some spare time right now, I could show you how." Rarity does a mental check of her schedule. "Well, I do have an important order to fill out for a client over in Canterlot, but it isn't due until next week and I have a lot of time to work on it. Very well." "Great!" I recall my knowledge of the machinery used to make sunglasses when I worked in a sunglasses factory before my current occupation and use it to teach Rarity. Two hours later... "Okay, it'll be hard work, but I think I get how to do it. Now, for your order, that will be 32 bits." I sigh. "Seems a bit expensive." "Chrome plating doesn't come cheap and shading it blue is a bit more costly. Not to mention the challenge it might be to make the glasses mirrored." Of course. "Right. Well, here you go." I open the sack and count out 32 bits before handing them over. "Thank you. Expect the saddlebag to be done in a few minutes. You can go sit down by that couch over there until I'm finished. Shouldn't take too long." "Thanks." I trot over to the couch and sit on it, getting a look from Rarity. "Umm...By any chance, have you been hanging out with Lyra?" Crap. She's looking at how I'm sitting. "Maybe." I reply quickly. Rarity roles her eyes and trots off to her work station while her younger sister comes into the room. "Hey, Sweetie Bell!" She gives me a surprised look. "How do you know me, stranger?" I think of another quick response. "There's some fillies and colts over in Manehatten who talk all the time about the CMC. Labeled you and your friends as the leaders." Sweetie Bell replaces her surprise with a smile. "Oh! Well its good to know we're recognized in other places." "You have no idea." "Well, I'm off to a meeting with Scootaloo and Apple Bloom. See ya, stranger." "Have fun, kid." Sweetie Bell runs off to her meeting. Wow, this is the best day by far! I already met one of the mane six and a member of the CMC! What's going to happen next? Might I meet Princess Celestia? Just then, Rarity comes down with a set of saddle bags, almost seeming like a designer bag being black and all with the outline of my head and my hair implemented into the design. Even my eyes are outlined on it like the neon art on the internet. There's also an electric spark where the tip of my horn is. Of course, the saddle bags are also sealed with a buckle shaped like my micro chip cutie mark. "Wow. I didn't ask for a designer bag." "I know. I just took the liberty of doing all of this because I had extra materials from a recent shipment. I got more than what I asked for as well and thought I could use what I got to make costumers more satisfied." She gives me a worried look. "You... are content, right?" "Content? I'm ecstatic!" I was curious how liberal she would be. Turns out, she's more generous than I originally thought. "Thank you. I was worried you might not have liked it." "You kidding? It reminds me of home. A lot of great artists." "Really now? Where are you from?" A blank look wipes across my face. "Umm...I live really far away. That's all I can really say." "Oh. Well, can you tell me your name at least?" "Jaden." She raises an eyebrow. "I can tell your from somewhere far. Haven't heard a name like that before." I chuckle. "You have no idea." Just like Sweetie Bell. "Well, thanks for the saddlebag! When can I expect the sunglasses?" "They should be done in about three days, maybe more if I can't figure out how to do it. They will be finished though." I equip my saddle bags and put my money bag in one. "Right, well, thanks. I'll be sure to come back. Have a great day, Miss Rarity." I head out the door to start my search for Derpy. "Good day, Jaden." She waves bye to me as I head off. "Hmm... He seems a little strange. Who is that Stallion?" <><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><> "You, get over here!" A stallion approaches the pony. "Yes, master?" "That blue pony that walked out of the boutique, he seems new. Are there any records of new arrivals into Ponyville?" "No sir. Not since you sent every pony that arrived back onto the train with force. It does seem odd how there's a new pony. Even if he was a unicorn." "I know. I surrounded this whole town with an aura that prevents teleportation into the town. How the buck did he get here?" "Well, there is one possibility." "You don't mean..." "Unfortunately yes." There is a moment of silence. "Watch him carefully. We need to know more about him before we label him our enemy." "Right away, sir. Also, it would be good for you to know he sat like a human in her boutique." "Intriguing. We still need more intel though. Just keep watching him." "Right, sir. Goodbye, sir." The stallion leaves. <><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><> Jaden's Log week 1; entry 1 In actuality, this is supposed to be entry 2, but I didn't have my journal with me when I came to this new world. Anyways, I've been traveling across all of Ponyville looking for Derpy, but I had no luck. I devoted my time into finding a new journal such as this one. I kind of like the new journal. It has an awesome blue shade to it and a glare when the light hits it that makes it look metallic when it isn't. That and I got myself some ink and a pretty sweet blue quill. I guess it's pretty obvious my favorite color is blue, isn't it? Oh well. I've noticed a couple of ponies here and there staring at me for no reason. One of them being a pony I saw before. Are there really stalkers in this universe? I thought home was bad enough with some of those spies on my flank when they discovered our projects. Well, I guess life never changes. So, I feel like I'm being watched and there's no sign of Derpy anywh... I black out as something hard hits my head. A couple minutes later, I slowly open my eyes with a massive headache. "Ugh...What happened?" I notice a pair of amber eyes, one looking slightly higher than the other, staring directly at me. "Are you okay, mister?!" I notice those eyes and voice anywhere! "You... You're Derpy. Aren't you?" "Yep." She lends out a hoof to help me up. "How'd you know?" "Let's just say I've heard of your services." "Really?! You heard of Derpy Mare Mail?" She begins to get a little bit closer. "Yeah. Pretty famous business you got going there." Derpy starts jumping up and down in excitement. "Wow! Where'd you hear about it?" I get a little nervous. "Umm...Let's say somewhere far." Derpy looks around anxiously. "Far? How far?" "Pretty far." "Wow! I must be well known!" She has no idea! "Yeah. Anyways, what hit me?" She starts backing away nervously. "I...I might have dropped an anvil on you." I start chuckling. "Please don't laugh." "I'm not laughing at you. It's just an anvil, seems a bit cartoonish to me." She looks at me curiously. "Cartoonish?" Crap! "Umm...uhh..." I can't seem to gather the right words! Come on, Jaden, think!" "Are you human?" What? "I know of a pony like you. Talking about things we ponies wouldn't understand. He's The Doctor." Damn it! I should have known! I let out a sigh of relief. "Yes. In fact, he's the first pony I met. Well, the first human pony too. Have you met any others other than me and The Doctor?" Derpy looks up to her forehead for a moment. Before looking back with a smile. "Nope. Just you." "Okay then. Looks like I'm alone in this world." "One question. How come you're a unicorn when The Doctor is an earth pony?" I haven't really thought about it much recently, but I do think I know why, or at least a little bit. "I was thinking maybe it was the Maginite from the device that teleported me here to this strange universe. It must have channeled some of it's power into me to send me here which is why I came is a unicorn. Or at least that's my theory." Derpy chuckles a little as she gets closer. "You talk just like The Doctor sometimes. I've got a feeling we'll be great friends." I smile at the thought. "Me too." My stomach growls causing Derpy to look down at my stomach before shifting her gaze back to my eyes. "Umm...Want some muffins at my place?" "Heheh... umm...sure." "Great! Follow me!" Derpy spreads her wings and flies off in the direction of her house. Occasionally, she stumbles with her flight pattern a little. "Would you rather walk instead?" I suggest. She lands in front of me still smiling. "Nah I'm good. I like flying." "Then why are you on the ground?" She pauses for a moment. "Good point." She takes off into the air again. "There!" I look closer at the house off in the distance only to recognize it almost immediately. "Wait... That's..." Derpy lands in front of the door and opens it. "Isn't that The Doctor's house?" "Yeah. I let him stay here. He's very nice you know. The only problem I have with him is when he works on his experiments at night. Sometimes they blow up and trust me, you do not want to see me cranky." "I bet. Looks can be deceiving." Derpy lets me inside first. "Thanks." There is a change in the atmosphere upon entry. "Wait...Where is The Doctor? Wouldn't he have welcomed us?" Derpy starts looking around. "You're right." Then we hear a roar in the basement. "Doctor!" We rush to the stairs leading downward to see The Doctor already subdued some sort of lizard-like creature. "No worries! Got it all handled!" The Doctor stabs the lizard creature in the neck with a needle and injects a tranquilizing fluid into it, causing it to pass out. "Welcome home, Derpy. I see you brought Jaden back." Derpy starts giggling. "Yeah, the usual welcome. You taking down...whatever it is this time." That's the usual welcoming? This is one messed up house. "Honestly, I don't know what this thing is. It's not like anything I've seen before. I'll need to do some research later." "Wait a minute, did you just say "bring Jaden back?" Do you mean to say he was here before?" "Umm...well, yeah. He was passed out a couple of hours upon entry. I swear, it was the most peculiar sight. He came in a flash of pure white light." "He doesn't know about the secret muffin stash, does he?" Derpy rushes upstairs in great worry. "She obsesses over muffins that much?" The Doctor laughs. "Yeah. It's her favorite food and favorite topic to talk about." "I bet." Derpy returns with a full smile on her face. "Thank goodness. Don't you go telling him anytime soon." Derpy warns. "Don't worry. Why would I tell him when I barely even know him? That and I don't even go into the muffin stash anyways. Not often at least." The Doctor drags the unconscious lizard to a surgical table. "Good. I don't know If I'd ever forgive you if you showed him and some muffins were missing." The Doctor starts laughing when Derpy gives a serious look with her eyes not so ditzy anymore. "I'm serious." "No offense, Derpy, but have you ever thought that you may be a bit too obsessed over muffins?" Derpy gives me a hard stare. "What? I didn't mean to offend you." Geez. She gets really tough when you push her to the limits. Better keep a mental note of that. "Okay, a different topic. What's your favorite muffin?" She gets a big smile on her face. "Blueberry muffins, of course! When they're fresh and hot out of the oven, I just love how the blueberries burst in your mouth! It's sooooooooo delicious!" What a shocker. "Really, now? Me too! Speaking of which, you said something about having muffins?" I point to my stomach which begins to growl again. "Oh! right. follow me to the kitchen! We can start baking right away!" Wait... we? "Come on!" She grabs my hoof with her wing and drags me to the kitchen. When leaving, we hear the sound of the lizard roaring again. We peek our heads around the corner to The Doctor who has another needle in its neck. "Got it covered! This thing gains consciousness fast!" Derpy nods with a smile before dragging me back to the kitchen. "Have you ever made muffins before?" "I can't say that I have. I mainly buy them at a store." "Oh, it's easy! Let me give you a lesson." She slaps a chef's hat on me head and wraps an apron around me. "Uhh..." "Alright gather some eggs, flour..." The lessons take about half an hour before our muffins are...well...can't say baked good. More like burnt to a crisp. "I suck at this." I admit, hanging my head down. Derpy touches my chin and lifts my head up before patting me on the shoulder with a smile. "Don't worry! This is your first time. you're bound to make mistakes. Every pony is when they first try something." This cheers me up a little. "Thanks." Maybe I got too excited to be doing something with her that I wanted to impress her a little too much. "Lets try again." We get back to baking after throwing the old muffins out. This time...the muffins are undercooked. "Try again, I'm guessing?" I ask after spitting part of my muffin into a napkin. "No. Just throw the other ones in for a bit longer. They should be done in about five minutes." "This just shows how much culinary skills I have." I throw out my muffin and gather the untouched ones and put them back in the oven. "No wait! Not with the..." The muffins set on fire. "Wrapper still on." I face hoof before turning off the oven, muffins still burning. "Hey, you think you could use your magic to bring those into the sink so you can run the water and put them out?" "I...I don't know how to." "Everything alright up there?" The Doctor comes into the kitchen only to try and hold his laughter in at the burning muffins. "Just try." "You aren't helping much, Doctor." "I...I'm sorry. I'll go." The Doctor leaves the kitchen to let all of his laughter burst out. "Just relax, Jaden. Concentrate on moving it with your mind." A question forms in my mind. I push it aside to exhale and close my eyes, starting to concentrate. Soon enough, my horn glows and the oven door open with the muffins levitating out and into the sink. I open my eyes to see I have done it. "Whoa! That is awesome!" "Good! Now turn on the water." I concentrate again and turn on the water, dousing the fire. "Good job!" I turn to face Derpy suspiciously. "How did you know what to do?" "One time I asked Twilight Sparkle because I was curious of how she was able to do all the amazing magic she can do." Oh. That would explain that. "Now, back to muffin baking!" We make one more batch of muffins. This time, they turn out satisfactory. We both begin eating our muffins. "Wow. You know what's better about homemade muffins?" "What?" "They're so fresh! A lot better than when you get them at a store." "Yeah. It's probably because they always package them with preservatives. Most muffins take a couple days trips from other countries because wheat isn't a common crop on this side of the world." "How do you know so much about these things?" "Umm...Hello!" She replies in a sing-song tone. "I'm Derpy! The mail mare. I know about these shipments. I have to memorize what's coming in and out of Ponyville and how long it'll take for each shipment to arrive." I just made a derp. "Oh. Of course." I finish my muffin. "Hey, it seems to be getting a little late. Do you have a place to stay?" "Well, no. Not really. I plan on getting a house when I get a job and enough bits." Derpy gulps down the last bit of her muffin. "You can stay here if you'd like. The guest bedroom, is free. It's just upstairs and to the left. first room you see on the right." "Where does Doctor Hooves sleep?" "TARDIS." "Right. well, thanks a lot, Derpy. You're very kind." "That's Fluttershy's job." She replies jokingly. I laugh letting her know I understood it. "Right. Element of Kindness. Anyways, thanks again." "Anytime for a friend." I pause for a moment while I was climbing upstairs. She just called me a friend. I'm already one step closer and I didn't even do much for her! "Right. Well, good night." I had into the guest bedroom and lie down on the bed, exhausted. I set my saddlebag down by the bed before resting and closing my eyes. I'm son sound asleep. You know, life isn't so bad. Day... Wait. Awake already? No...Can't be. I slap myself. It didn't hurt. I must be dreaming. "That you are." I whip my head around to see the face of Luna. "Y...Your majesty!" I bow down in respect. "Rise, Jaden. You're not meant to be here." I lift my head to meet her gaze. "I...I never wanted to come here to begin with." Luna gives me a look as though she doesn't believe me. "Well...Okay maybe I did, but I never thought it would happen and it's all just really confusing and conflicting now that I actually am in this universe! I feel judged, awkward, and..." Luna cuts me off. "We understand. If we are not correct, a device from your world brought you here?" My eyes shrink in surprise. "How did you..." "We know many things. Forget not that you are in the presence of an immortal." "Right..." "Jaden, you must find a way back sometime. If not, the balance between worlds will be disrupted and the universe will collapse." "Wait a minute, how come this never happened when The Doctor came here?" "Because he was destined to come. You were not. Your life is back in your own world." "How do I get back, though?" "Seek The Doctor's help. Reconstruct the device." "Damn. How can I do that when I don't have the blueprints?" "When you wake up, check your... umm... "phone", is it not?" "Yes. It's called a phone. But wait... how could they be on my..." When I blink, Luna is gone. "Phone..." Umm...Day 3? Day 4 Celestia! My neck feels so stiff! I get up and crack my neck. What the hay did I sleep on? I move the pillow to find a few partly eaten muffins. Of course they would be there. Must be Derpy's "secret" stash of muffins. That mare, I sware, she is sweet, but a bit too obsessive. After laughing on the inside a little, I stretch a little before levitating my saddlebags onto my back. I swear, this magic stuff is bucking awesome! I start to head downstairs when I smell breakfast. I head over to the kitchen table where the Doctor and Derpy are sitting next to each other enjoying some wheat bread and blueberry... why do they look like flat muffins? "Mornin'." I greet before sitting at an empty chair with the muffincakes laid out ion a plate. "Morning! Would you like some orange juice or milk?" "Orange juice." Derpy heads over to a cabinet and grabs a glass before going to the refrigerator to get the orange juice. "So, I couldn't help but notice this isn't any normal pancake." "Nope! Something better! Of course, it is just a little experiment. Taste pretty good though. Of course, I would expect that from a muffin pancake." I stare down my muffincakes for a moment before hesitantly picking up my fork and trying it out. As soon as it hit my taste buds, I was delighted. "Wow! This is amazing! I never thought of combining muffins and pancakes before. You're ingenious!" I see Derpy get a light blush. "Umm...thanks. Nopony really said that to me before." The Doctor looks up to Derpy. "That's not entirely true. I have." Derpy gives The Doctor a straight look. "Name one time." "Well, there was the one time when you came up with a way to subdue those zombie-like ponies without needing to touch them. A way that only stuns them." Derpy goes derp-eyed. "Oh! right! I still don't hear it often though." "I know, right? Ponies should start being more observant of your ever-expanding knowledge and intelligence!" I stop eating for a moment. "Sounds just like home when I was younger. No one ever took me seriously. I was always the bucking target of most bullies. How intelligent are you?" "Oh, she's brilliant!" The Doctor starts. "She really helped out in times when I needed it most and believe me when I say there are very few times where I need help." Derpy starts chuckling. "And yet your bragging is still as big as you're ego." "So, back to your intelligence. can you give me an example of what you can do?" "Well, most ponies never bother with it because they're not curious enough about the vast expanse of space, but I came up with a way to make a rocket that will propel a pony into space. I figured out all the formulas and did all the math and even designed the bucking space ship, yet not even Twilight bothers with them." "Don't tear yourself down. I made the same Celestia damn mistake once and I almost committed suicide because of it." Derpy goes wide-eyed. "Yeah, I've been there and it is not pretty. Just remember this, Derpy. You can do anything. If you want to build a rocket, then you go ahead and build a rocket. I can see you doing great things in the future." "And she does. I saw her future before you came. I went in the TARDIS and Derpy was all depressed and had really low self-esteem. Then you came and somehow, her future was altered. I haven't had much time to look into it, but somehow, someway, you changed her life and I thank you deeply for that." "D...Doctor... is that true? You're saying that he is an important part of my life somehow?" "That's exactly what I'm saying. Both of our lives, actually." There is a moment of silence before I pick up a new topic. "So, you said she has ever-expanding knowledge. Care to explain?" "Well, one day I was working on that machine you helped me out with when Derpy came down to bring me some muffins in case I were hungry." <><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><> "Here you go." Derpy lays a plate of banana muffins on the workbench where the Doctor is working on a new module for the power source locator. "Why thank you, dear Miss Derpy." The Doctor reaches over and takes a bite before tinkering again. "Anything I can do to help?" The Doctor starts getting a little nervous. "Umm...No, I'm fine. Just continue on." The Doctor keeps nervously shifting his eyes over to Derpy while facing the module. "Fine. I guess I'll just watch." "No no no wait!" Derpy sits down when the floor collapses a little causing cracks to run through the floor up to the ceiling where a chunk falls onto the machine almost destroying it completely while hitting Derpy in the head. "Your buns of steal, Derpy!" The Doctor face hoofs, while Derpy rubs her forehead and examines the broken machinery. "Don't worry. I'll fix it." "No Derpy. Just..." By that time, Derpy already gathered all the right tools while occasionally dropping a few and starts reassembling what was broken. "Wait...you're...wait...what?" Soon enough, the machine is fully restored and back to its original self. "Also, I would recommend moving the processor on that module there. It's kind of in an awkward area." The Doctor looks over to the module and sees Derpy's reasoning. "Holy Celestia..." <><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><> "After that, I examined Derpy's Cerebral capacity. It was normal, but I noticed that a small chunk of her cranium looked different, like it was something else. I did a little investigating and found out that it was a special agent that somehow got in her head that was supposed to expand on any damaged cells and replace them. The ceiling hit that agent and caused it to malfunction. Slowly, Derpy's brain gets bigger and with every hour, she acquires new knowledge that no pony has ever thought of." That was quite a long explanation. "Fancy that." "Hey!" Derpy chimes in. "That's exactly what you said when you found out about it!" "Right, well I'm going to see if I can get a job. I need to earn some bits to pay back the Doctor." "You gave him a bag to help him out when he first got here?" The Doctor nods before replying. "Why wouldn't I? He seemed nice and he went through a lot getting here. He needed help." "Oh. Well okay then! If you want, I can help you out and lead you to town hall for now. There's a cork board inside where ponies list jobs they need help with." I agree and start to adjust my saddlebags before heading out with Derpy. "Bye, Doctor! Don't do anything stupid!" "What would be the fun in that?" Derpy starts chuckling before closing the door behind us. "Right, town hall. It's just over here." I just realized, she has those derp eyes acting up right now. Celestia. I Hope she doesn't lead me in the wrong direction. After what feels like hours of walking, we still haven't reached town hall. I guess I was wrong. "Umm... I thought it was... Hold on." Derpy starts looking around when I just roll my eyes and lay down on a park bench. Then I notice something from the corner of my eye. Three ponies surrounding a scared mare in the corner of a secluded alleyway. "I'll be back, Derpy." She gives me a nod before flying off to find her way. Meanwhile, I sneak behind a dumpster and start eavesdropping on the little meeting. "Come on, Lyra. Quite playing games. We need those bits now or the boss is going to be pissed. Trust me. your life will depend on it if you upset him." One of the thugs warn. "I... I told you, I'm still working on the money! Just give me a few more days and..." "No. If we return empty hoofed, He'll have our heads. Literally. If you don't cooperate then..." "I have nothing! Quit threatening me!" The lead thug turns to his companions. "Well, we can't return like this. What the Tartaurus are we going to do?" "Here's an idea. Take the mare." Lyra's eyes shrink at the sound of the suggestion. "No! You can't do this! I didn't do anything!" "Exactly." The three thugs progress towards Lyra when I make a decision. I use my magic to break open a weak pipe right next to the lead thug and swing it outwards to hit him square in the head. "Shit! Who the buck...?!" The thugs start progressing to my position. I keep hidden behind the dumpster until it was time to strike. "Yahh!" I shout as I use my magic to lift the dumpster and flip it over, trapping the thugs in trash. I wish I could have seen the looks on their faces. I gallop over to Lyra who is still in shock and backing away from me. "You okay? You're not hurt or anything?" "W...Who are you?!" "I'll explain later. Let's get the buck out." Lyra gallops from behind as we leave the alleyway and hide noticing the thugs on full search for me and Lyra a couple minutes later. Soon enough, they leave. "Celestia, those guys, who were they?" "They were thugs trying to collect their so called "protection money" from me. They're part of an international terrorist group known as "Black Hoof." I thought you would know. you're not from here are you?" "Tartaurus no. Now, you said "international terrorist," right?" "Of course." "Damn it! Even here it's the same..." "What?" "N...Never mind. The more important matter is are you okay?" "Yes. That was very brave of you to attack them. Very stupid of you too." "That may be true." "May be? That is true. You just attacked them directly whether you know it or not. They're going to come after you for this. I'm not ungrateful that you saved me, but now you put yourself in danger. Tartaurus, I don't even know you so why do I even care?" "Calm down, Lyra. You're okay now. How much did you owe?" "Umm...Why do you need to know?" "How much?" "Okay! Fifty bits. Too expensive for my line of wor..." I drop sixty bits right in front of her like it's nothing, causing her to go wide-eyed in surprise. "Celestia... How much do you have on you?!" "I know somepe... ponies." Almost slipped up there. "But... I only needed fifty." "Think of a restaurant. I'm being generous and leaving a tip. Do what you want with it." "My Celestia... you're... thank you!" Lyra smiles wide before taking the bits and dropping it in her own small money bag. "Who are you anyways?" Crap. I haven't given too much thought into a pony name at all. "Jaden..." Hurry up! Think of something! Let's see... there's some flowers... too girly....umm... a... wait... Come on! Cutie mark... electronics... "Spark." Wow, that's what I come up with?" "Jaden...Spark?" Just go with it... "Yes. Jaden Spark." "Wow. Nice name. I'm Lyra. Lyra Heartstrings. It's a pleasure to meet you." This is...shocking. "Pleasure's all mine." Lyra adjusts her saddlebags before speaking up again. "Well, I must be off. Hope to meet you soon!" I turn around to see Derpy about to tear up. "Wh...What's wrong." She burst into tears as she hugs me, causing my eyes to widen in surprise. "Thanks so much for helping her out! She's one of my closest friends." "Umm...what?" "Lyra... She's a very close friend of mine. I knew her since I was a filly and with what she's been through lately, she needed you to help her out." "No kidding. Those thugs looked brutal." Derpy lets go of me starting to smile as she wipes her tears away. "Doing that though is going to get you screwed if you don't prepare though. We need to get you a job fast. Just follow me this way. I got the right direction for sure this time." I hope so. I do NOT want to get myself into an even worse situation. <><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><> Three thugs that smell of rotting trash enter the room. "Good...Celestia you reek! What the buck happened?!" "Sir, We tried to get the money." "And?" "Obviously we failed, but it was because of that new unicorn! He dropped a dumpster on us!" The boss starts snickering a little. "What's so funny? He just attacked us and ran off with the damn mare!" "I...I'm sorry. It's the dumpster thing. Don't worry. I'll look into this situation. In the meantime, all three of you, go home and take a damn shower! Don't even come back until that stench is gone." "Right away sir." The thugs leave when the boss pushes a button on a microphone. "I request one of our spies. There has been a little situation that needs looking into." <><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><> Jaden's Log week 1; entry 2 Derpy was finally able to get me to the town hall without a problem. I looked at the jobs listed and I took one where Rarity needed help carrying a shipment of her latest fashion design to the post office. That mare is restless! She had two wagons full of clothes, both of them filled to the top! Good thing I'm a unicorn or that would have been impossible. I was paid a hefty 250 bits for my work. She earns more money in a day than I do back home in my own universe! I also found out that my sunglasses will be coming out in two days and that some pony just happened to get a glance at the project and liked it. Rarity said if the idea becomes popular enough, she'll pay me half of what she receives from the product. This is turning out great already! Derpy is still letting me stay until I get enough bits to afford my own home. Derpy is so nice. With that, I close my journal, put it in my saddlebag and slip under the covers for a good night's rest. Day 4. Day 5 My day starts off just as usual. I wake up, go downstairs, and eat a good breakfast. I say my goodbyes to The Doctor and Derpy who continue prodding and probing that weird lizard-like creature in their basement. Meanwhile, I travel down the streets of Ponyville, feeling oddly uncomfortable. Almost as though I'm being watched... I shake off the feeling as soon as I come across a help wanted sign on the bulletin board outside Town Hall. Apparently some help is needed down at Sweet Apple Acres. I pass by Sugar Cube corner to see a pony galloping away as though he went through Tartaurus. Pinkie Pie soon follows after. Naturally, I say hi to the ecstatic mare. "Hi, Pinkie Pie, right?" The pink mare turns her head and comes over impossibly fast to shake my hoof. She wears an unbreakable wide smile on her face. "Hi there! Have I seen you around before?" I shake my hoof. "Probably not. I'm Jaden Spark. Heard you were quite the party pony." "That's what they all say! You know, I usually know every pony here in Ponyville. How come I never seen you before? Did you use some invisibility magic or something? You seem like a powerful unicorn." Forcing myself to believe she isn't flirting, I give the answer. "I crashed at Derpy's place for a few days. She seems kind of remote from town. Also, who was that terrified looking pony I saw running just now?" Pinkie looks in the direction the one pony ran off. "Oh that was um... Uhh..." Pinkie starts rubbing her head in deep thought. "Don't help me. I know this!" Pinkie starts walking off in one direction behind a building, still deep in thought before coming from behind, walking into a bush, coming from another direction somehow walking upside down in the air before disappearing off again to come back through the bush in front of me. That's normal around here, right? "Oh! Trench! That was Trench!" Umm... Even a pony would agree with me when I say that name can't be right. "Trench? That's a little bit of a weird name." Pinkie Pie chuckles. "I know! Aren't silly names great? We all have them! I have a silly name, you have a silly name, he, she, we have silly names!" Pinkie Pie keeps going on about silly names when I stop her mid-sentence. "Right, well I must be off to Sweet Apple Acres. I think Apple Jack there has a job for me." I'm about to head off when Pinkie Pie pops out of nowhere in front of me. "WAIT!!!" I jump back in a fright. "Try a cupcake first!" Pinkie Pie puts on that smile again holding a charred cupcake in front of me. I wonder if that was from the help she had from Trench. Geez, that's still a weird name. "Umm...sorry, but I'll have to decline the offer. I really have to get going before the job is taken. I'll help you out sometime if you need it." Pinkie Pie lowers the cupcake. "Okay. I'll be here all day 24/7 if you are looking for me. Unless my friends plan to hang out with me or if I get bored, then I won't be here. Of course there's also the possibility..." Pinkie Pie is rambling on and on again! How much sugar does she eat every day? "Right, well I'll be off. See you some other time!" I head off as Pinkie Pie stops chattering and sees me off. "Bye!" She sends off with a cheery wave. After heading down a long path away from Ponyville, farther than where Derpy's house would be on the path, I eventually come across Apple Jack's apple orchard. I try to look as far as I can, only to see a vast expanse of apple trees. They seem to have no end. This farm is amazing. I've been to my Uncle's farm before, but it's not nearly as big as this! How could one pony afford all this land? I continue heading down the path, admiring the sight of this massive plot of land when i come across what seems to be a stand for what would be alchohol in my home universe given it's secluded location, but is cider in this case. The one I am looking for is just behind the stand, helping to set it up. "Well howdy there, stranger! Unfortunately, we're not open at the time because we're preparing for our annual cider season. You'll have to come back tomorrow when it's ready." How considerate of her to inform me of the matter. "Actually, I was here because I saw the help wanted sign on the bulletin at Town Hall. I'm here to lend a hoof." Apple Jack brightens up at the mention of help. "Oh that's great! Geez, Ah thought most ponies pass that by." Apple Jack turns her head away and rubs her hoof on her mane in thought before turning back with a smile Thanks. Ah'm Apple Jack, by the way."She holds her hoof out to hoof shake. "So I heard. It's a great pleasure to meet you." I hoof shake with Apple Jack. "Pleasure's all mine. Now for your job, it's simple really. All you have to do is pick these here apples and put the good ones in these buckets. We'll take care of the rest from there. The bad ones you can just throw away on the ground. They tend to be good compost for the trees. Now, we need only the best of apples, so think this when picking them. Big, shiny, and juicy-lookin! Got that?" I nod yes before turning around to see a crimson stallion with a calm and straight face. "Big Mac, can you show this fine gentleman to his station?" "Eeyup." Big Mac walks off in the direction where I should be heading. "Thank you, sir and good luck." I follow Big Macintosh until he stops in the middle of the apple orchard. "This is where you start working." Big Mac turns around and walks off to resume his normal duties. "You don't talk much, do you?" Big Mac keeps walking, looking back with a slight smile. "Nnnope!" He faces forward and disappears behind the trees. I begin using my magic, focusing hard to grab all the apples in a wide radius from me, bringing them all off the trees to me. Every apple ranges from big to small, glossy and plain, and some just rotten and horrid. Hours pass by and I'm only half way done. "Yes...Yes...no... Ew! Definitely not. Yes... Oh that's perfect! Ye... wait..." I examine the apple further. "This apple is big. abnormally big." I hear the sound of hoof steps from behind getting louder and louder. I turn to see Apple Jack coming with a pleased look. "Boy, you sure did a lot of work there. You don't need a break, do you?" Apple Jack notices my concerned look. "What's wrong with that apple? It's huge and juicy!" "That's just it. It's too huge. Can I have a knife? I need to look inside this apple." Apple Jack pauses for a moment before answering. "Well, all the apples we choose end up getting squeezed anyways... I'll be back. Don't think about eating it yet." Apple Jack gallops off to the barn to return about ten minutes later with a small knife. "Here. Just be careful." I use my magic to use the knife to make a small incision in the apple before hitting something hard and metal. Apple Jack gives a look of surprise. I cut the apple in half and pull the two halves away from each other to let a small metal box drop to the ground. I hand the two halves to Apple Jack who keeps staring at the small box. I pick up the box and attempt to open it, finding it impossible. Instead, I try casting a spell to make the outer covering invisible. The attempt is a success. The invisibility spreads to the outer end to reveal a small device. "What the buck is that?!"I turn the device seeing what looks like a microphone wired up to a transmitter and something else. "A high grade spy's device. This microphone is wired to be super charged. It can pick up sound within half a mile's radius. even through thick walls. Someone is listening to us." Apple Jack starts getting worried. "Then why aren't we getting rid of it? didn't you get rid of that metal covering?" "I can't. I just made it invisible. It's not like I can just conjure up some acid to corrode the metal." I start noticing a small green light flashing synchronized with a muffled beeping sound. "That's not good." "What's not good?" I turn around hearing the sound of seemingly impossible machinery followed by a blue police box fading in and out of existance until the sound stops and the box is completely visible. The door opens with The Doctor and Derpy looking around curiously. "All that power and the TARDIS drops us off here? Now why would it do that? This isn't even the future!" I hold up the small device, causing The Doctor and Derpy to stare at it in understanding. "Oh..." "Take this far away out of radio transmission range where it can be disarmed if your sonic screwdriver can't..." The Doctor pulls out his sonic screwdriver and activates it. As if by magic or advanced science and technology, a wire is cut, stopping the blinking light and muffled beeping. "Never mind then. Hay, do you have acid somewhere in the basement? I made the metal cover invisible and I need to tap into the device to pinpoint where it transmitted sound to." "Not a problem. That lizard creature secreted some when we were extracting the energy. It's higly corrosive and should melt through almost anything. It's a fascinating acid. Might be very useful for me as well. Just in case." I nod my head. "Thanks. That's all there is here, really. Sorry for the lack of danger."The Doctor shakes his head. "Ah that's not a problem. Just be warned I will be asking a few questions at the dinner table." I chuckle. "Don't worry. I'm well aware and figured you would say that." The Doctor retreats back into the TARDIS with Derpy. "Well, I'll be seeing you later then. Avante!" The Doctor waves off. "Avante!" The door closes followed by the universal noise and fading out of existance to disappear to The Doctor knows where. I turn around to see Apple Jack with shrinkened pupils and a screwed up face. "Umm... you okay?" "Wh...What the buck...?" This is going to require a bit of an explanation. "I'm sorry for what just happened. That pony right there with Derpy was The Doctor. He's some sort of time travelling pony with a special machine that makes time travel possible even though it really shouldn't be. even with magic. Somehow it is though for both and that I really don't get. Anyways, The Doctor always tends to get himself in trouble when zipping through the fabric of time and space and ends up saving the world. Other worlds most of the time. He's a mysterious stallion. Some call him Doctor Whooves. Those who know him call him The Doctor." Apple Jack seems slightly less confused, yet still carries a curious look in her eyes. "Doctor who?" Apple Jack looks around worriedly as though he's going to come out of nowhere again. "Exactly. No pony knows his real name or if he even has a name. There are some things you just won't understand. You just have to trust the right pony when that time comes." I turn back to the pile of apples and begin to sort them out again. Soon enough, Apple Jack shakes off the shock and returns to work. Hours pass by before I'm let go. "Thank you so much for your work. Without you it would have taken half a tomorrow to finish up organization. You were a huge help." Apple Jack calls Big Macintosh over. "Thank you for the opportunity. I'm only doing odd jobs until I can get a real one." Apple Jack grabs a smedium sized sack of bits along with another basket of apples. She drops gives me the medium sized bag before grabbing five apples from the basket and dropping them in my saddle bag. "You've been a mighty fine help here. Those apples were from one of the buckets we hauled to the barn from where you worked. Have a great day." I nod in grattitude before heading off. "Good luck at the business." I wave before heading off. "If you come tomorrow for cider, you'll get half off." I turn my head, still walking. "Now how can I deny that offer?" I gallop over to Derpy's place , almost late for dinner. I open the door to smell the aroma of something delicious cooking. "Now something smells good! What's the occasion?" "Saved another world. It'll take too long to explain though." Derpy continues cooking up a storm when I walk over to the table finding The Doctor helping himself to a bannana. "Of course You'd be the one with the bananna." Derpy starts chuckling. "What? That's not a problem, is it? Banannas are delicious! Much better than pears. I just hate those things." I roll my eyes. "Honestly, I don't care about pears. I'm more into kiwi." The Doctor swallows part of his bananna. "Now there's a good fruit. Do you cut them in half and scoop out the insides with a spoon and eat it like that?" "You know it." "The best way to have a kiwi. Still not as good as banannas though." Derpy and I laugh in unison. The whole conversation continues on the same subject until Derpy finishes preparing the meal. Turns out to be some sort of vegetable kabab. The only thing is the meat is replaced with dandelions. Except for The Doctor's kabab which just consists of vegetables and not any form of flower. Being equine, I should have expected this. "You do know I'm human, right?" Derpy goes walleyed, rubbing her hoof on the back of her neck in embarresment. "Heh. Sorry. I forgot. I can take that off if you want." Then this weird idea pops into my mind. "Actually, it's fine. maybe being a pony actually changed my tastes a little to adjust to this new world." I get a surprised look from Derpy. I stare at the food wondering why the buck I got the idea in the first place. Then, I slowly bite into the kabab getting a look of disgust from The Doctor. I givew a look of delight as I find my idea to be true. "That's gross. Eating flowers like that. Weird how you humans get these ideas." Gettting annoyed, I look The Doctor in the eyes. "First off, I'm not human anymore, am I? Second, shouldn't you be more careful what you say before you actually say it in front of ponies who actually like this diet?" I tilt my head to Derpy who is looking down in hurt. "Derpy, I'm sorry. I..." Derpy sits down at the table with her meal in front of her. "No... just leave it. That is so like you. Sticking to what you think you know, not giving things a chance when they don't fit in with what you believe." Derpy collapses her head making contact with the table, crying a little. "You know, you're not too different from humans. You know very well that humans can be just as unthoughtful and rash. You showed you can be just the same, Doctor."The Doctor starts rubbing his chin. "I did do that, didn't I?" The Doctor ponder for a while before getting upset himself and collapses his head making contact with the table in the same manor. "Is...this something I should be doing as well? Just give me a moment..." I do the same thing getting a few looks from Derpy and The Doctor who slowly start chuckling. "Can I ask why?" Derpy and The Doctor both stare at me sharing the same look of amusement. "To tell you the truth, life back in my home universe was a little dull and boring. I want to make the best of the life I have right now until I can return back home." I get nods of understanding. "Smart. Now, I have a few questions about earlier. I know about your adventures and how you usually end up getting in trouble. Why did the TARDIS bring you to me when the bomb was the only threat?" "I was wondering the same thing. Then I realized there must be only one answer." I lean in closer to listen to what The Doctor has to say. "You're too important in the future to lose in the past." Hearing this sends a chill down my spine. What else would I be important for in the future other than somehow getting myself out of trouble with the Black Hoof? So far, that's all I know I have to do. That and re-creating the device that brought me here so I can return home. We finish up our dinner before heading to our rooms. I take off my saddle bag, leaving it by the leg of the bed before laying down and falling asleep with many questions running through my mind. Day 5.