Lucas Chronicles, the Afterstory Part 2: Monster Behind Mountain Dew Interlude; Of Skillets, Waffles, and Other Things

As we walked towards the train station, Seth eyed the loaded backpacks and saddlebags that Fluttershy and I carried. "Sooo.... What's in those?" He pointed to them.

I replied, "Oh, these are our supplies for our trip."

Just then, John's eyes grew wide, "Guys, I just realized... Most of our stuff was on the bus..."

They gasped as I facepalmed. "First of all, why was it still on the bus? Fluttershy tells me you been here for, what, a month now? Secondly, why wouldn't you bring supplies with you to Cantorlot?"

He replied, "Firstly, we didn't exactly expect the bus to spontaneously explode a month after it crashed... Second, I dunno. I guess we kinda thought we'd get there, you'd talk to the princess you told us about, and everything would work out alright."

I sighed. "Did you all think this?"

The rest of the band mates shrugged and nodded. "Actually," Seth stated, "I'm just stoked that we're getting outta here. This place is eerily colorful, the main color being pink. It's kinda freaking me out..."

"Yeah..." I chuckled as I agreed. "now, back to the supplies. See, the thing is, last I checked, Celestia- that's the princess, by the way- didn't exactly like me too much. She came and took my first method of going home while I was unconscious."

Then, Fluttershy interrupted, "Y-You... Don't like it here?" She looked as if she were on the edge of tears.

John, Korey, Jen, and I gave a slight gasp as Seth tried to explain, "I- I mean- It's a little- But it's-" Fluttershy sobbed as he turned to us with a pleading face, "Um, guys? A little help?"

John placed his hoof on Seth's shoulder, "Hey, man, you know I normally would, but I've been through this kind of situation with Korey... and it's not really a minefield I wanna revisit. So... Good luck!"

Fluttershy began sobbing harder, "B-But everyp-pony's so nice here... D-Did we d-do something wrong? I... Y-You were so n-nice in c-concert..."

John stepped away quickly as Seth tried to calm down the now-hysterically sobbing pegasus. "Hey there, Fluttershy was it? Please don't- Please don't cry. It's okay... You... You're a very kind flying horse... Um... And-"

Although Fluttershy cheered up a little at being called kind, I could see this whole situation not going well at all, so I interrupted, "So, um, hey, don't you guys need supplies for the trip?"

"I'LL GET THEM!" Seth immediately shouted as he jumped towards the nearest shop.

The other band mates and I laughed. Korey sighed, "I'll tag along. I'm good in stores and such. Plus, I could use some Ibuprofen for my neck. I think I rocked just a little too hard last night..."

"I'll go too." Jen offered in that British accent of hers. "I, for one, enjoyed meeting the villagers and such."

"Don't crash." John joked.

She rolled her eyes, "Ha, ha. Very funny."

Well, at least they're just joking about it now. I thought. Skillet might have needed a new drummer soon otherwise. "Oh wait!" I said as John and Korey started walking to catch up, "Fluttershy, you should give them our list. It'll help them out a bit."

Fluttershy, now calmed down to an extent, reached into her saddlebag. She paused. "... I... I don't have it..."

"What? I asked. "You were the last one to- WAIT!" I reached into my pocket and pulled out a crumpled piece of paper. "Nevermind, I had it." I laughed nervously as I uncrumpled the paper and handed it to Korey. I smiled. "You may tailor that list to your own needs."

Korey read down the list, then looked up and smiled back, "Alright, thanks! But... Why are 'Doritos' written on here twice?"

I blinked, "I like Doritos."

John interrupted, "Well, if you have a list, I don't see any point in me coming. I'll just hang out with Lucas and, Fluttershy, was it?"  (*sigh* Yes, I admit, I had a minor fangasm. Actually, I think Fluttershy did as well)

Korey shrugged, "Alright, see you later Doggy. We'll be back soon."

Fluttershy looked confused, "I thought you're name was John... And you don't look like a dog..."

John laughed. "Haha! No, you see, Doggy's just a nickname."

The yellow pegasus smiled, "Oh, okay!"

Korey kissed John (they're married by the way), "Be safe. Please don't get into trouble."

He chuckled, "Oh, never!"

She smiled and rolled her eyes as she walked to catch up with their drummer and guitarist.

So, John, Fluttershy, and I just bummed around town for a while until...

"HEY!"

I knew that voice. I turned to see a cyan mare with a rainbow mane walking with an orange pegasus colt that resembled a sunset and night sky. "Hey Rainbow Dash! How's it been?" I held out my fist for a brohoof.

She met my fist with her hoof (I know this is repetitive, but they don't have hands for typical greetings such as handshakes, high-fives and the like) as she responded, "It's been alright! What brings you back to Equestria, anyway? Fluttershy here tells me she's gonna try to throw a party."

I laughed, "Oh, you know, trans-dimensional troubles, minor head trauma, the usual stuff. But yeah, a party sounds fun."

John interrupted, "I'm down for a party. I could definitely get the band to supply music. And it would totally ROCK."

Rainbow Dash looked puzzled, "Wait, who are you again? I haven't seen you around."

Fluttershy looked down and coldly stated quietly, "That's because you aren't around anymore..."

Silence dropped like an anvil. You could just FEEL the awkward. The other colt broke through the awkward screen, "Hey, um, Dash, we kinda have that race to get to in Cloudsdale."

She gasped, "Oh shoot! Your right! Well, it was good seeing you guys again! Wish I could stay longer, but you know how it is. Always on the fly." She unfurled her wings. "See you guys later! We'll be touch!" She took off.

"It was nice meeting you Lucas." The colt said. "Dash told me a lot about you. Oh, and it was good to see you again Fluttershy."

He took off after Rainbow Dash as Fluttershy whispered, "Yeah, that's what you both always say..."

And so, the awkward silence was upon us once again.

It remained this way until Korey, Jen, and Seth returned with saddlebags much like Fluttershy's. I started to wonder how they actually paid for all of that, but then I figured they just spent money that they most likely made from their concerts (or they just straight up stole it. But that's highly unlikely).

"Alright guys!" Korey called, "I think we're ready!"

But I noticed she stumbled slightly. I realized that she carried two sets of loaded saddlebags. I was about to jump and help her, but John noticed this first and beat me to it. He slipped one set of bags onto his back.

I smiled. "Alright! Let's do this! ...But actually, I'd like to do something first."

Everyone had confused looks as I took off towards a little hill outside of Ponyville.

I trudged up the hill where three graves lied. I stood over them with my hands in my pockets and spoke, "Hey, Twilight... Hey Pinkie Pie... Hey Applejack... It's been a while, huh? How have you guys been?" I looked downward, closed my eyes and laughed slightly.

I felt a hoof on my shoulder. I turned to see Jen. "Friends of yours?" She asked.

"Yeah..." I replied.

"I'm so sorry..." She gazed at the tombstones.

I shook my head and chuckled, "Nah, don't be. We had some fun times and awesome memories. And that's what we gotta remember, y'know? Not the fact that they're gone, but all the good times we had. That's what really matters."

"Amen!" I heard John concur as he reached the top of the hill.

I sighed. "I guess we should get going then, huh?"

"Only if your ready." Korey added.

I turned to descend the hill, "Yeah. I think I'm-" Then, I thought of something. I walked back over to the gravestones, reached into my backpack, and pulled out three waffles. I laid one on each of the gravestones (What? I didn't exactly have roses, so I used the next best thing) and smiled, "Alright guys... See you later..."

I nodded to everyone and we started making our way to the train station.

________________________________________________________________________

The train ride to Cantorlot was EXTREMELY uneventful. We ended up just teaching Fluttershy some more of Skillet's music(a-Capella, of course), such as Awake and Alive, American Noise, Lucy, Those Nights, and What I Believe.

We disembarked at Cantorlot and strolled to the castle.

That was a dumb idea.

As we reached the entrance, we were stopped by guards. "Halt!" One yelled. He paused as he examined us. It seemed as if he were about to let us through, but then he recognized me. "YOU! You're the human fugitive! QUICK! SOUND THE ALARMS!"

CRAP. I had to think of a plan. "WAITWAITWAIT!" I waved my hands in front of him. "All I need to do is speak to Celestia! So if you just-" I could see this wasn't getting me anywhere. I yelled in desperation, "EVERYONE! STAY CLOSE TO ME!"

Instantly, I pushed past the guards and dashed down the halls of the castle, searching for the throne room.

But I didn't make it very far... I tripped.

I was quickly apprehended by the guards. They tied me up painfully (I think they did it on purpose...).

They dragged me to the throne room and forced me to kneel right at the hooves of just the pony I wished to talk to.

The princess glared at me. "Lucas."

I replied as the guards dragged in my friends, "'Sup Celestia. How's it going?"

"Don't patronize me." She growled.

John leaned over to me and whispered, "Wow. When you said she didn't like you very much, you weren't kidding."

I shook my head as Celestia continued. "Why have you returned? And why have you turned another one of my subjects against me?" She motioned towards Fluttershy

To which I replied, "Yeah, my re-arrival was kind of accidental. And you also stole my way to get back while I was unconscious. Not cool. Secondly, Derpy was never your subject. She was from the future, remember? And I tried to deter Fluttershy, but she wouldn't listen. Now, maybe you could answer me a question. Or maybe not, but you never know. Anyway, why is Skillet- MY world's Skillet- even in this world?"

"Oh, that's simple." She smiled. "I wanted entertainment."

My jaw dropped as well as those of the band mates. I yelled. "Wait, WHAT?!? Is this world's entertainment not good enough for you?!? You can't just steal people and turn them into ponies for your own personal gain! It's WRONG!" At that moment, I noticed that Chillrend and my Chaos Emerald were hanging just above her throne. But... there was NO way I'd be able to grab them bound as I was. I continued, "Plus, the only reason we're here in Cantorlot is because we wanted to go back to earth! And on top of that, you need to change Skillet back into humans! And we aren't leaving until you do!"

Well, actually, that wasn't COMPLETELY true... I did indeed need my Chaos Emerald and Chillrend...

Celestia sighed, "Aw... I did not even get to hear Skillet play... I'll tell you what, I'll send Lucas home and keep Skillet here. That's a good plan. I like that plan."

Celestia was clearly insane.

...Did I really screw up her kingdom THAT much? Whoops.

John spoke up, "With all due respect ma'am, although we think all our fans our awesome, we can't stay here. We have to go back to OUR world's fans. They're kinda how we got where we are, y'know? We can't just abandon them."

The princess sighed and looked down. "I must do the right thing here, don't I? Then, I have a proposition. Guards! Release them."

They did as they were commanded. Instantly, I dashed over to the throne, leaped on top of it and reached for my weapons. But just as was within reach, Celestia froze me in midair. "CRAP..." I whispered.

She spoke in an irritated tone, "I JUST released you! And THIS is how you repay me?"

I laughed nervously, "So, um, haha, yeah, um... About that proposition?"

She just shook her head, set me on the ground away from my weapons and sighed, "In order to do all that you have asked me, I need three things."

"Uhkay..." I raised my eyebrow.

She continued. "Firstly, I need a Holy Sweetroll. Next, I need something called 'The Almighty Waffle of Power'."

I whispered to Fluttershy. "Yep. She's definitely lost it. She's COMPLETELY insane."

"And finally," Celestia concluded, "I need you to bring me the Ever-Wandering Soul of Admiral Bobbery."

My jaw dropped. "Admiral Bobbery? You mean THE Admiral Bobbery? Of Rogueport?"

"Yes. You knew him?" Celestia asked.

I answered, "Sort of. Well, when he was alive at least."

HECK YEAH, I knew Bobbery! I mean who hasn't played Paper Mario: The Thousand Year Door? That game was awesome! And this also wouldn't be the first time that a world from a video game was connected to Equestria somehow.

"Sooo...." Seth asked. "where do we start?"

Celestia started scribbling on some paper without saying anything.

Then, something hit me. "Wait, why are you helping us so readily? I assumed you'd want us, or at the very least, me to suffer since you kinda hate me."

"That's precisely the point." She growled. "I hate you and simply want you gone. Whatever gets you out of my kingdom fastest is best."

WHAT THE HECK DID I EVEN DO? CAUSE A FREAKING REBELLION?

She handed me the drawing. I looked at what seemed to be a map. I sighed, "You do realize there's NO way we'll be able to pull this off without my weapons, right?"

She shook her head. "I can't do that. How do I know that you won't just leave like the first time?"

I sighed. "Listen. You have my word as a Christian. That's the best I got. On top of that, IF I decided to just leave with Skillet, they'd still be ponies. Trying to explain that to their fans would NOT be very enjoyable."

She paused. "...You were indeed trustworthy the last time you were here... Fine." She used her magic to relay my weapons from the wall to me.

I grabbed both and smiled. "Alright guys!" I turned to my friends. "Let's do this!"

As we headed for the doors, Celestia called to us. "Just hurry up."

When we walked beyond earshot, Jen commented, "Wow. She REALLY doesn't like you."

I laughed as we continued down the corridors of the castle.