A Journey Unthought Of

by Hustlin Tom

Rating: everyone
Tags: Main 6, My Little Pony: Friendship is Magic, Alternate Universe, Lyra, Princess Luna, Original Character, Adventure, Princess Celestia, Crossover, Human
Length: 184590

A man finds himself in Equestria after being teleported there by a shady human think-tank. As he learns to live among the pony populace, though, unsettling parallels between equine and human culture drive him to search for what their connection is.

NOTE TO NEW READERS: I've completed the full rewrite of this story, but if you wish to see the original story as well it will remain below the revised chapter entries. Because several chapters were expounded on or compressed together there's unfortunately no real corresponding order between where events appear in the "Revised" and "Original" chapters.

NOTE TO RETURNING READERS: This rewrite was more than skin deep. While core events will largely remain the same, the plot's events may still unfold in drastically different ways in terms of scenes and details from what you previously experienced. Hopefully the new interpretation of events will be an improvement in your eyes.

Our narrator has seen the darker side of life; abandoned, homeless, and finally chosen by a think-tank to serve in an experiment against his will. In their attempt to teleport him across continents, he was instead dumped into the Void between universes, where his only chance to exist again was to reach for the light.

By chance or purpose, he later finds himself in a world strangely similar to the one he had always known, but is yet completely alien; a world populated by many colored horses who can speak, think, fly, and even do magic. This is the story of that man. This is an adventure that was never supposed to happen. This is A Journey Unthought Of: A human's life in Equestria.

NOTE: This story has been marked 'Crossover' because the Earth the protagonist comes from is the one in the Doctor Who universe. The Doctor will also make appearances in later chapters.

If this story holds your interest, I've written four appendices and a now completed sequel, all of which you can find here. These stories enhance past events of My Little Pony: Friendship is Magic, though some of them may have been made partially obsolete by later episodes.

The Maiden and the Serpent
The Sorrow and the Temptation
Apocalypse Unbound
Lessons for a Benevolent Tyrant
SEQUEL - AJUO: Revival of Chaos

Published 2012-03-03 22:04:01 UTC
Last updated 2017-01-05 05:01:56 UTC

Chapter 2 REVISED

I stared at the mint colored unicorn in front of me, then I took a long, hard blink. She was still there. She flipped her ear with her left hoof, making sure that she was hearing things correctly, and then returned to staring at me.

“What are you,” we both blurted out at the same time. We both flinched at the other's speaking, and then we returned to looking at each other.

“Where did you come from?” she asked as she looked around my body, trying to analyze exactly what I was.

"This feels real," I muttered to myself as I leaned forward to get get a better look at her, "so how are you talking?"

Blinking, the unicorn looked at me with an arched eyebrow, "What kind of a question is that?"

"You're a horse," I exclaimed in frustration, "Horses don't talk! They don't have horns, or hairstyles, or whatever that tattoo thing is-"

I felt some sort of force strike against my cheek. My face stung like I had just been slapped, but nothing was anywhere near my face. As I looked again at the unicorn in front of me, I saw that there was some sort of visible aura around her horn that was quickly fading away.

"You better watch the language," she declared as she looked at me with a cold expression, "I don't know how you speak Equestrian so well, but call me a horse again and I'll kick your flank like you wouldn't believe!"

I stared in uncomprehending disbelief at her.

"How-" I sputtered breathlessly, "How did you do that?"

Now angry and confused, she brought the bottom of her hoof up and shrugged her shoulder, adding sarcastically, "Uh, I'm a unicorn. I can do magic: that's kind of our thing!"

Seeing that the strange being in front of her was almost mesmerized by the sight of her horn, she grew a little uncomfortable at the attention.

"Look," she exclaimed, trying to steer my attention somewhere else, "How about this? I told you something about myself, now you tell me something about you. You know I'm a unicorn, but what in the name of the stars are you?"

My eyes returned to her face, and I thought about how utterly strange it was to have to introduce myself by what species I was. “Well," I coughed nervously, "I, uh, I’m a human.”

She cocked her head and looked at me quizzically, “A what?”

Nervously I exclaimed, “A human, yes! Look at me! A head, two arms, two legs, hands, feet, and hairy! I’m a human!”

"Do you have any other volume setting besides 'Spastic and Loud'?" she asked sardonically.

“Right now, all things considered, I think I'm taking the existence of a mythological animal fairly well," I said as I raised my voice. I looked at her again, I saw that she was starting to get scared. Something about that struck me: would she be acting this real, this human, if she were just a figment of my imagination? I consciously lowered my voice, and I tried to speak more calmly.

"I'm sorry," I declared with a sigh as I rubbed my eyes with my right hand, "I'm frustrated, confused, and just a little bit scared. I am really far out of my depth right now on what's familiar and what isn't, so I'd kindly appreciate it if you gave me a chance to not completely freak out."

Uneasy, but still curious, the unicorn offered me a hoof.

“Do you have a name?" she asked.

Perplexed, but somewhat recognizing the symbolism of the action she was doing, I took her outstretched hoof in my hand and shook it slightly, "Yeah. I'm Adam."

"I'm Lyra Heartstrings,"

“What kind of a name is 'Lyra Heartstrings'?” I asked without thinking.

Lyra shrugged, "I dunno. What kind of a name is 'Adam'?"

I was about to respond, and even had my mouth open to do so, when her words struck me. Realizing their validity, I shrugged and pointed at her, "Touché."

After standing up and nearly hitting my head on the ceiling of the quaint cottage, Lyra led me outside to look out on the small meadow that surrounded her’s and Bon Bon’s home. It stretched out for about 50 feet before hitting the forest edge on two sides: one to the west behind me, the other to the south. It was almost noon from what I could tell. The cottage had a view down to a little town in the plain below the foothills; the grass was green as far the eye could see. A large mountain was off in the distance, on the side of which I could see a large, pristine castle-like city sitting. The entirety of the landscape around me was quite picturesque.

“So where am I?” I asked as I strolled out and away from the home behind me.

“Well, you’re in a grove near the Everfree Forest, but more specifically you’re in Ponyville, in the land of Equestria”, she quipped.

I gave an involuntary snort of laughter.

“What? Is there something funny about it?” she asked with a half-cocked eyebrow.

I waved my hand at my side, “No, it's just...nevermind.” She couldn't see it, but there was a smirk on my face.

"What's so funny about the name 'Equestria'?"

I looked back at her, "A nation of...ponies that lives in 'Equestria'? That just sounds so typical!" I chuckled to myself, and then muttered the next few words so that only I could hear myself speak, "Maybe this is all fake, and I'm just delusional."

She looked at me indignantly, “Oh really? And what sort of strange named place are you from 'Adam the Human'?”

“It’s a place called Earth.”

“You think I'm funny because I live in a place named Equestria, but you live in a country named after dirt? That's rich.”

“Actually, it’s the name of my planet.”

Her jaw dropped in surprise, “You're an alien? I guess I should have figured, but you own an entire planet?!”

I gave a quick bark of laughter: I couldn't help smiling after a question like that, “I wish! I live on it, but it’s not mine. I'm no one special.”

She looked up at me, still trying to make sense of who I was, “But you still have a country or a town that you live in, right? What sort of place do you call home?"

Here my smile faded. I looked up to the clouds in the sky, “I don’t have a home.”

"What do you mean? Everypony's got a home!" she replied.

"Yeah," I scoffed, a small amount of bitterness escaping into my voice, "That's the dream, anyway."

I decided to sit down on the grass. I rested my arms on my knees, a position I was habitual in taking up. I had to admit, the ground was pretty comfy; much springier than the asphalt I was used to.

Lyra cocked her head and looked at me, "Wait, are you seriously saying you don't have a home?"

"Why?" I asked as I looked at her skeptically, "Why do you care?"

"Because that sounds horrible," she replied, visible aghast at how casually I seemed to be talking about my condition.

"Yeah, it kind of is, which is part of the reason I don't want to talk about it," I replied matter-of-factly, and I returned to looking off into the distance of the unfamiliar landscape around me.

Hurt by how I had dismissed her concern so callously, she stood and looked at me for a very long time. After a while of watching me zone off into space, and me wondering exactly how long this delusion would last before I either woke up or passed on, she lay down in the grass a few feet away from me. I noticed, and found it a little odd that she stayed, but I didn't bother to look or acknowledge her in her new position.

"I saved your life," she quietly declared.

Surprised by what she had said, I turned my full attention back toward her. I didn't say anything, but I suppose my eyes communicated to her that I wanted her to go on.

"I saw you fall out of the sky. You fell into a river, and I saved you."

I blinked a little after she had finished. I remembered bits of the insane journey, the flash of light, and the fall, but it was just fragments. As I realized I had been rescued from drowning by the mare, I also became conscious of how I had been treating her. I definitely hadn't been setting the best example of myself, that was for sure. I sighed and quietly murmured to her, "Thank you." We sat in silence for a few seconds, and I realized that there was still something that needed to be said, "I'm sorry I was so agitated with you."

"It's OK," she replied after a while, "I'm sorry if I hurt your feelings asking about your home."

A few more seconds of awkward silence passed between us. I felt some fluid still clinging stubbornly in the back of my throat, and I started to cough to try and remove it. Becoming alert at the sound of wheezing, Lyra put her hoof on my left shoulder. "Why don't we get you checked out with somepony who might be able to help you," she quietly asked.

"That doesn't sound like a bad idea," I commented quietly as I stood up.

Chapter 3 REVISED

Fluttershy was a compassionate soul: anyone who knew her well would say that such a statement was so obvious that it would be laughably redundant. The pegasus mare would take in any animal, no matter how fearsome or unusual, and would take care of their needs as best as she could. Though all ponies were decidedly more connected to nature than I could say the majority of humans were, Fluttershy would shine amongst her fellow Equestrians as an acolyte of all things that scurried, lumbered, or flew. For the time being, one of the 'unusual animals' that she would end up helping would include me. Since Lyra didn’t know anything about medicine, and I couldn't exactly call myself knowledgeable on the subject either, the town veterinarian seemed a much better place to start than an equine doctor.

Fluttershy was tending to a blue jay who had injured its wing joint, and had just finished carefully setting its wing into a brace when she heard a knock on the door. Another attribute anyone who even tangentially knew her would be able to point out would be her timidity. While her introversion in the presence of strangers was normally crippling, she was now put into a good mood by the deed she had been able to do for her avian friend.

"Why don't you hop on Mister Jay," she suggested to her patient as she extended her wing out to act as his perch. Standing up from where he had been laying, the blue jay hopped onto her wing tip and sidled closer to the center. Fluttershy then delicately walked to a nearby bookshelf on which Mister Jay could rest. Another round of knocking came from her front door. "I'm coming," she exclaimed softly as she trotted over to the door. Quickly checking the peephole in her door, she realized that it was someone she recognized, and she set about dismantling the various locks she had had placed on her door many years ago.

"Why hello, Lyra," she said with an almost breezy air to her voice, "How are you doing today? Is your next composition coming along well?"

The unicorn shrugged a little as she tried to force a smile, "Oh you know, everyday I make a little progress!" She then quickly glanced to her left, and then rubbed the back of her head sheepishly, "Say, uh, I know this is kind of out of the blue, but could I ask you a favor?"

Fluttershy blinked, and she became uneasy, so much so that her entire body seemed to clamp up.

"W-what sort of favor?" she asked nervously: surprises weren't something that she typically enjoyed, after all.

Lyra stamped her hoof nervously, "I have a...pet that's sick, and he's not exactly from around here, but since you're good with all kinds of animals I thought you might be able to help."

"Oh," she let out a sigh of relief, and an encouraging smile quickly returned to her, "Well that's just dreadful!” She dropped to the ground searchingly, "Where is this poor critter of yours? I hope I can help him!"

Taking that to be my cue, I walked into view of the cottage door, and leaned down to get a better look at the mare who was going to be taking care of me.

Fluttershy looked up at me, and while her eyes did widen, she wasn't afraid. "Oh my," she exclaimed, "He's much taller than I was expecting! I didn't know that you were interested in pets Lyra, let alone an exotic one like this! How did you convince Bon Bon to let you keep him?"

"...Thaaat's still up in the air," Lyra said nervously as she looked up to me, the both of us realizing simultaneously we had left the earth pony still passed out on the floor of their cottage.

"Well, why don't you bring him in then?" Fluttershy said as she turned and walked further into her home.

When I knew the pegasus wasn't looking, I looked Lyra in the eyes and half mouthed, half whispered indignantly, "I'm your pet?!"

"Shut up and roll with it," she hissed back as she gestured for me to come inside and make sure to duck through the doorway, "I didn't figure 'Hey, I found an alien in my backyard' would work quite as well!"

I carefully entered the house, but found I could stand fully upright unlike in Lyra and Bon Bon's. I realized later that it was because pegasi had the added need for space to stretch their wings in their homes, and that I was just lucky enough to passively benefit from this.

"Now, could you please sit down right here in the center of my carpet, Mister?" Fluttershy asked as she gestured to the decorative object in question.

"Adam," Lyra responded, "His name is Adam."

I obliged, but as I bent over I began to cough, each one getting a little stronger and more fluid filled.

"Oh my goodness!" she exclaimed in shock as she came a little closer to me, "You sound awful! What happened to him?"

Lyra's eyes shifted about as she quickly thought of what to say next, "Uh, well, I wasn't watching him when we were out in the forest together, and he fell into a river. His lungs were filled up with water, but I managed to get most of it out."

Since I couldn't immediately remember events before nearly drowning at the time, it took me a minute to realize what she was saying. My eyes grew wide, and before I could stop myself and maintain my cover as a dumb animal, I blurted, "Oh God, please tell me you didn't do mouth to mouth!"

The three of us froze as we realized what had just occurred. I put my hand to my face and muttered something indecent. Lyra put her hoof to hers and did something similar.

Fluttershy just looked at me in bewilderment, "H-he can t-talk?"

"Yes, the idiot can talk," Lyra said with a sigh as she glared at me.

I glared right back, "Oh yeah, like your paper thin act was going to hold up forever! Now did you do mouth to mouth?"

"No," she exclaimed back, half disgusted with me, "I thought you were an animal!"

"S-So how much of what you said is actually true?" Fluttershy asked as she began to cringe up because of our yelling at each other.

"Most of it," she replied in as calm of a tone as she could muster, "I'm just his savior instead of his irresponsible owner."

I then burst into another fit of coughing, which attracted both of the mares' attention. With the care of a practiced professional, all nervousness was gone from Fluttershy, and she flew over to her medicine cupboard. "Let's see," she thought aloud, "Fluid in the lungs. Two hundred pounds in weight. How long ago did this happen?"

We were both surprised by how fast the transition had occurred for the mare, but as she turned to look back at us for an answer, Lyra called out timidly, "About two hours ago."

"No chance for inflammation to occur then," Fluttershy murmured as she found the small bottle she was looking for. Using a measuring spoon that had been on a hook inside the cupboard, she poured the powder that had been in the bottle to the edge, then smoothed it out flat with a brush of her wingtip. Leaving the spoon to sit on the shelf space below the medicine cupboard, she then quickly went to her kitchen, filled up a glass with water and returned to us. She then took the medicine and stirred it into the water, making an opaque mixture. Taking the glass between her hooves, she then gently flew over to me and hovered there, offering the drink to me. "This should help get rid of the fluid that's still in your lungs, which should clear up that cough in a few days," she declared, and she softly gestured for me to take it, "It's going to taste very bitter, but just remember that it's going to make you better in the end!"

I looked at the liquid I was meant to drink, an expression of loathing for it clearly written all over my face. I quickly exhaled, then took the whole glass in one dose. I almost retched as the horrid liquid made its way down my throat. I took the next breath through my nose and shook my head side to side. "I've tasted worse," I said as I sat the empty glass at my side, "but not by very much."

"Well, you'll have to get used to it," Fluttershy declared as she took the cup away, "You'll need to take a dose each day for about a week. I don't have enough on hoof to give to you, so I'll come with the last four days worth when you run out."

"How much do I owe you for this," Lyra asked, "I don't have any bits with me, but I'll pay for the treatment when you come over."

"Oh, don't worry about it," she replied with a wave of her hoof as she came back into the room from the kitchen.

"Wait," I said as I put my hands up and waved them a little for emphasis, "You just met me, we lied to you to get this medicine, and now you're just going to give it to us for free?"

Fluttershy looked at me thoughtfully, then looked at Lyra. "I don't believe that ponies, or any other race, are bad at heart," she declared as she turned to look at me, "We all make mistakes sometimes. Lyra was just trying to help you, and you, well, I'm sure there was a reason."

"There has to be something I can do," I said as I stood up, looking down at the pegasus who's head came up to my hip, "I can't just take this from you."

She thought hard for a few moments, and then she looked up at me with an admonishing tone in her voice, "I'll let you take it, on the condition that you never lie to me again."

I was stunned by the simplicity of her demands, and dumbly accepted the small bottle of powder she gave me. Finally I found my words, and my confusion was plain in both my voice and my face, "How?"

"Well, I am the Element of Kindness," she said with a smile, "If it didn't come naturally, then I wouldn't be who I am!"

She ushered us out of her home, and offered us an apology, but that she had to see to her next patient. As Lyra and I walked back to her cottage, what Fluttershy had done for me rolled around in my head, and I couldn't make the least amount of sense of it. Finally one thing she had said stuck out to me. I turned to Lyra, "What exactly did she mean, 'She was the Element of Kindness'?"

Lyra looked up at me quizzically, "You know, she's the Element of Kindness!"

I looked down at her, my eyebrow arching at hearing that spectacular explanation, "Is this one of those 'Clap your hands if you believe' things? Or I guess in your case, 'clap your hooves'?"

“What in Tartarus are you talking about?” Lyra asked, and then sighed as she realized how ignorant I was and how under-prepared she was in dealing with it, "OK, explaining it is going to take a lot longer than this walk is going to last, and with the amount of segues I'll need to do to explain the explanations this is going to take all day."

"Oh wonderful," I said with a sigh as I began to realize just how big of a hole I had stepped into.

Chapter 4 REVISED

As the two of us came into sight of Lyra's cottage, we both saw Bon Bon waiting outside for us. Her body language reeked of fear and defensive aggression as she caught sight of us.

"Lyra Heartstrings," she yelled, "Get away from it!"

Lyra and I looked at each other for a second, then back to her.

"Bon Bon, just calm down," she exclaimed, "Let me explain what's going on."

"No, let me explain what's going on," the earth pony said as she stamped her hoof on the ground, "You brought an unconscious animal into our home, which then woke up. The next thing I know, I wake up on the floor and both you and it are gone! I was about to go into town and file a missing pony report when I see you just waltzing back here like nothing strange was going on!"

"First off, he's not an animal: he's an alien," Lyra retorted as she pointed up to me, then she brought her hoof around to aim at Bon Bon, "Second, I went to Fluttershy's like we'd discussed before you fainted! You knew exactly where I was the entire time!"

Bon Bon gave a quick huff as she yelled back, "But I didn't know I knew where you were! I thought it had kidnapped you, or eaten you!"

"Oh my sweet Celestia," Lyra murmured to herself as she brought her hoof up to her face.

My stomach growled, as I realized I hadn't eaten anything in a good while. Fortunately only Lyra and I heard the gurgling coming from my belly. "If it makes you feel any better, I don't eat horses," I said in as calm of a raised voice as I could, which I mentally appended, I think. Who the hell knows what's in processed meat anyway?

Bon Bon flinched when I spoke to her, and she was physically forced to come to terms with the fact that I wasn't some dumb beast. She shook her head slightly, and then turned her frustrated eyes back to Lyra, "I thought that you were leaving it with Fluttershy. Isn't that what we also agreed to?"

"He's sick, and needs rest. We can offer him just a few days of hospitality, can't we?"

Alarmed and dumbfounded by what Lyra was asking, Bon Bon shook her head, "A few days?! Let me remind you that we still have no idea what he eats beyond 'not horses', no idea what sorts of other needs he may have, and no idea who he is! Besides, how can you trust him? You only just met him!"

I didn't even hear what Lyra said in reply as I experienced a sense of Déjà Vu. Old memories began to creep into my consciousness, and they replaced the waking world around me.

"Don't give him anything," I heard a mother scold her child who had tried to offer me something as they passed my spot on the street, "He'll just waste it on drugs."

"We're sorry," the man in the suit said, "but given the fact that you don't have a stable home address, a good credit score, or even a complete high school education, we cannot accept you into our company."

A man wordlessly looked at me as he threw a bag of garbage into the dumpster I'm huddled next to. I'm so cold. My feet have become frostbitten through the frayed and half-destroyed shoes I'm wearing. Silently he just turned away back down the alley, leaving me to my fate. I realized that he wasn't looking at me; he was looking through me.

I stepped around Lyra, not caring or paying attention to what was being said, and I started to walk away into the field towards the south of the town in the valley below.

"Adam?" Lyra asked hesitantly as she watched me, "Where are you going?"

"I won't stay where I'm not wanted," I yelled bitterly over my shoulder.

"Wait!" I heard her call out, and I heard her trotting towards me from behind.

"It's okay," I snapped, "Really, it is. I'm used to the whole 'Untrustworthy, dirty scum of the earth' treatment. I just didn't think I'd one day get it from-!" I coughed, "a talking horse of all things!"

My cough intensified until I was leaning over with each one, feeling like I had an entire ocean in my lungs. Lack of oxygen made me dizzy, and forced my trembling legs to squat a little. Lyra yelled my name in alarm. "I'm fine," I wheezed as I started to breathe deeply through my nose to keep any more attacks from immediately happening.

"Adam, we both know you aren't in the best of condition," she tried to reason with me in a soft tone, "I'll keep working on Bon Bon every day, but I want you to know that you can and you will stay with us until you are better."

I was beginning to breathe more evenly now, and I was able to stand up fully again. Despite knowing how messed up I could be if I tried going out on my own anyway, I was seriously considering the possibility: I knew how to handle myself. Well, I knew how to handle myself in a city. Admittedly the countryside had to be something else entirely, as I couldn't exactly depend on a wasteful society around me to provide for my needs.

Lyra looked up to me and wrapped her hoof around my knee, "If it's any consolation, I trust you. You could have hurt me or done something to Fluttershy, but you didn't, so I think you're safe."

I looked down at her, and then I looked over my shoulder to the distant earth pony. She glared at me. I glared right back.

"Alright," I replied, "but you better keep her in line!'

I trudged towards the cottage, giving Bon Bon as wide of a berth as possible when I reached the door, and walked inside. After I had entered the house, I heard heated whispering outside. I strained my ears as best as I could: all I heard was 'similar situation', 'parents', and 'away' from Lyra, and from Bon Bon I heard 'different'.

After a tense dinner of what amounted to a bunch of vegetables and water for me and a few assorted grasses and grains for my hosts, I tried to ponder what exactly the jumble of words meant. So far I hadn't come up with much of anything that made sense. I was glad that I at least had somewhere to sleep for the night, but I expected that wouldn't last much longer. The couch, while I’m sure it would have been comfortable for someone much shorter than I, simply wasn't an option for my makeshift bed. The floor and one of the sitting pillows made for a decent combination, though. At least I was someplace warm with something soft for my head to rest on, and at that moment it was all that mattered to me.

Chapter 5 REVISED

It was a cold, damp morning. I was utterly miserable. I had tried to cover myself with bits of collapsed boxes in the middle of the night to insulate myself, but that plan hadn't worked. Instead I was surrounded by soaked cardboard that had melted down around me. As soon as I started to feel a blissful warmness despite how I had felt numb and damp a few minutes ago I knew I was experiencing hypothermia. It wasn't my first time, but I knew if I didn't find somewhere dry and warm very soon I would go to sleep and not wake up. I'd seen it happen to others, and by God I wasn't going to let it get me!

That's when the truck had driven into the area. It's not often you see any large vehicle get off the road in the inner city. The place where I and a few others had decided to stay that night was a vacant lot. It sat underneath a stretch of highway that bent around and over it. Whatever building that had once stood here was torn down and ripped out years ago. A weathered sign on the property line near the adjoining street had read that development was underway, but it was also many years old. More likely than not the site was a victim of the Great Recession of 2008, and whatever grandiose plan that had been made for it was long scrapped, gathering dust in some file bin wherever the city hall was in this town.

The truck hissed as it hit the breaks and switched into park. Then they came for us. We were a gilded city's downtrodden. We were the living embodiment of the statement 'There is something wrong with this society'. We were the dispossessed. The shunned.

Now, however, we were wanted.

They grabbed us and dragged us into the waiting van. I was too weak to run or resist in any kind of way. If they were willing to take me out of this place, I didn't care where we went: I wanted to live.

When next I became conscious, I found myself in a small, well-lit room. I was lying on a cot that extended out from the wall nearest me. There was a toilet a few feet to my right. It looked like a prison cell, but brighter. As I sat up, I realized that it was clean; not one iota of dirt or dust surrounded me. I was warm. The bizarreness of my situation was dulled by that small comfort, but as I looked down I saw I was in a set of white, form fitting clothes that I know I had never put on. Food came eventually through a slot at the foot of the door on the opposite side of the room, but no one replied when I tried to speak with them. Hours passed. The light above dimmed, but never fully turned off. I don't know how long I was there, but the waiting was agony. I couldn't tell which was worse: starving, cold, and able to go where I wished, or having all of my needs except my freedom satisfied.

Finally someone came to my door; an older woman with glasses and a clipboard.

"You are going to become a part of history," I remember her saying, "The greatest achievement in science since the creation of the atomic bomb: teleportation of large masses across continents."

They came for me when I was sleeping. I was dressed in my environmental protection suit, and escorted down several hallways. There was a long elevator ride down to the test chamber. I was forced at gunpoint to stand in front of a large circular cavity in the wall. The segmented panels around the hole reminded me of teeth, like I was being sacrificed to some demonic beast. Sparks flew from inside the cavity, and as the lights dimmed I saw a black and white window grow inside the cavity. I had finally realized that this was some kind of gateway, and that they meant to shove me through it. As I was tossed into the Void, my body fragmented into thousands of shards that floated in midair. I was consumed completely by the beast, and then it swallowed.

My eyes flew open. I realized I was still on the floor of Lyra and Bon Bon's cottage, and I breathed a little sigh of relief. I was safe. I was nestled under a thick blanket with an equally-thick blanket between me and the hard floor, with a soft, downy pillow to rest my head upon. It was the best awakening I’d ever had. All those things I had dreamt about were in the past; they couldn't hurt me now. It was mid-morning from the look of the sun through the front window. Today marked the second day of my stay in the little cottage. Things were of course still rocky between Bon Bon and I, with Lyra doing her best to mediate between the two of us.

As I sat up I caught the smell of vanilla extract and warming cookie dough. I stood slowly, my joints creaking a little as I did, and I gave a little grunt of satisfaction as I popped as many of them as I could. Slowly I made my way towards the kitchen area, rubbing my eyes awake as I did. When I came into the doorway I stopped and bristled a little: Bon Bon was doing the cooking. She hadn't seen me yet; she was too busy taking care of the last of the dirty bowls and utensils she had used. Part of me wanted nothing more than to pretend I hadn't gotten up yet and just go back to my bed to wait until she vacated the room, but I knew that at some point I had to do my best to come to terms with her. Lyra was doing everything she could to make peace between us, and her sincerity eventually made me feel guilty enough to try and offer the earth pony some sense of cordiality.

I cleared my throat softly. She turned her head to look at me: as soon as she realized what the sound was her expression became more guarded. She had been smiling, but she wasn't now.

"Morning," I said as I fully entered the room.

"Morning," she replied curtly, as she turned back to her dirty dishes.

"Where's Lyra," I asked as I approached the small table near the wall closest to me, and selected an apple that appealed to me most.

"She's out getting groceries."

"Ah."

I took a bite of the green fruit in my hand: it was pleasantly tangy.

The silence continued on for a while. The tension in the air could be cut with a knife.

I broke the silence first in an attempt to offer an olive branch, "What're you cooking?"

She glanced in my direction for a moment before she responded, "They're called 'Lemon Snowflake Cookies'. Do you know what cookies are?"

My agitation grew because of her condescension, but I did everything in my willpower to bury it, "Yes, I do." I took a moment to dispel it completely as I put a bit more aggressiveness into my next bite from the apple. "Do they have something to do with your..." I wasn't sure of what the proper word was, so I put my finger in the air and drew a circle around the strange tattoo on her flank.

She looked back at the area I was designating, "My Cutie Mark?"

"Sure."

For a split second, Bon Bon's smile returned, albeit somewhat subdued, “Sort of. A pony gets their Cutie Mark when they find their talent. It's a sign of their own unique experience when they discover it: it’s mine and mine only." Her smile grew as she reminisced, "I found mine early as a filly. Both my parents were culinary aficionados. As I watched them growing up, I found my little niche in the family business making sweets.”

She stopped smiling suddenly when she realized how much she had said and to whom. She quickly returned to her task, vigorously scrubbing her mixing bowl. "So," she continued after a few seconds of silent work, "I suppose you don't have Cutie Marks where you're from?"

I twirled my apple between my thumb and middle finger as I thought about the question. "There's nothing really obvious like with your...Cutie Mark," I struggled with the concept as I tried to take the word seriously, "There are tests humans can take when we're young that give others an idea what we're good at. Some people swear they're absolutely true estimates of who we are, but they don't necessarily dictate our talents."

Bon Bon paused her work to look back at me curiously, "So what is your special talent?"

I searched my mind, looking through my past for that glimmer of light, for a memory of a bright future. I'd made mistakes, living one moment at a time, never looking back or forward. My life for so many years, from my youth until now, had been bouncing around from place to place, tossed about like I was in a small boat in a large, turbulent ocean. Choice then became practice, and practice became habit. It had been so long since I was actually able to stop and think about more than what I was immediately about to do that I wasn't sure where to start.

"I honestly don't know," I replied, vocalizing my realization.

She glanced at me for a moment longer, then her gaze trailed off. Finally she saw that the bowl she was working was already clean, and she put it down. Taking up the next one, she began to mechanically work on it with a dish rag. A small "Hm," escaped her throat.

I looked down at my apple for a moment, and found that I wasn't very hungry anymore. Putting it down, I leaned on the table behind me, my hands holding the edges. The silence returned, as we each considered our thoughts.

With a sigh, I stared at the back of Bon Bon's head, "Look, I know you still don't want me here. I know I ruined your tidy, orderly life, and I'm sorry for that. In all honesty, I don't want to be here either."

This caught Bon Bon's attention, and she turned to look at me curiously.

"I don't know where I'm from is in relation to here, but I had no friends, I don't know what is going on with my family, and I have no home. Every day was a struggle to get by as I looked for my next meal, hoping I wouldn't go hungry each night. I was expecting to die, but then they, whoever they are, scooped me up from the streets and sent me here." I waved my hands once in the air for emphasis, "I don't know why I'm here to bother you, but there's nothing I can do to change what happened. I'm here, whether we like it or not."

My peace said, I waited for her response.

A buzzer dinged on the oven, which stole both of our attention. Bon Bon put down her rag and the bowl she had been holding and reached for a set of cooking mittens. Slipping them on, she reached for the oven and opened it slowly. Reaching underneath the cookie sheet with one hoof, she found the center of balance and carefully brought it out, Walking on three hooves, she put the yellow cookies onto a cooling rack she had set up near the sink. Taking off the gloves and closing the oven, she reached up into an overhead cabinet and got out a small container of powdered sugar. I watched and waited impatiently as she wordlessly sprinkled the white stuff over each individual cookie.

As she finished prepping the last one, she carefully nudged the nearest cookie to her off the sheet and into her hoof. She then turned and silently offered it to me. Looking her in the face, unsure of what exactly she meant by the gesture, I slowly took it from her. I brought it to my lips and ate it. I was surprised by the tartness of the cookie at first, but it ebbed away as the mellow sweetness of the powdered sugar took over.

"Mmm," I softly exclaimed as I finished the last of it, "That was phenomenal."

"Thank you," Bon Bon said in return, in a softer tone than I had ever heard from her before, "It was a recipe my grandmother taught me."

"Well, she obviously knew what she was doing," I declared with a small smile.

The earth pony mare looked back at the cookies with a smile, and then back to me. It seemed like she couldn't decide on an expression, as she keep switching between a smile and an uncertain frown.

"I'm going to be honest," she declared as she continued looking up at me, unsure how to feel, "I don't know if I like you, but now at least I feel like I better understand you."

I nodded softly, "I guess that's all I can ask for."

Chapter 7 REVISED

The morning had gone by quickly for Bon Bon, Lyra, and I. Breakfast was decidedly not as tense as it had been the previous two days, and each of the ponies was curious to find out what exactly had occurred between me and the other. It was around two in the afternoon when there was a knock on the door. While Bon Bon went to answer the door she signaled for me to go to the bedrooms. In some of the talks Lyra and I had had she had mentioned that while Ponyville was typically a warm and inviting place, there were times when they were skittish around strangers, especially around those who were not of species they were familiar with. I couldn't help but laugh hollowly when she had explained that the last individual the town had encountered and had initially ostracized had been a zebra. She had looked at me curiously after that, unsure of what I had meant when I had muttered 'typical'.

I took up temporary residence in Bon Bon's room, in the corner out of immediate sight from the view of the doorway, and I waited. I had hoped that I wouldn't have to be tucked away for very long.

Just a few seconds after mentally making that request, Bon Bon popped her head into the room.

"You can come out," she declared, "It's Fluttershy and a friend of hers."

I started to stand up, and then I realized that last part of what she had said, "Wait, so this friend-"

Bon Bon nodded, "She knows."

Trying to mentally take in this unexpected surprise, I awkwardly made my way towards the door back to the rest of the house. I was a little nervous, partly because I wasn't sure how this new pony would react to me: would she be afraid? Would this somehow take away the place I had been calling home the past few days?

I stepped out into the small hallway after Bon Bon, and made my way back towards the living room. Lyra was already waiting, talking softly to Fluttershy as she accepted the bag of medicine that would finish removing the fluid in my lungs, and also to a purple unicorn. As soon as the newcomer saw me, a small look of wonder and excitement came across her face, which she was doing everything in her power to restrain.

Fluttershy glanced at me before she pointed her hoof at the other unicorn, "Adam! I hope you're feeling better since I last saw you. I'd like you to meet my friend, Twilight Sparkle. She hopes that she might be able to help you."

I habitually offered my hand out to her and curtly declared, "Nice to meet you."

Twilight put her hoof out, allowing me to grip it softly and shake it. Though we were both familiar with the gesture of greeting among our own kind and in our own way, when Twilight experienced something so common like it in such a new way she couldn't help but smile, "It is such a pleasure to meet you!"

"What exactly do you mean when you say you want to help me?"

Fluttershy tentatively began to balance on one front hoof then the other, all while nervously looking away from me, "I'm afraid that I need to ask for your forgiveness. I went looking in the town library out of curiosity for information about your species, but there was nothing there, and after my constant questioning Twilight became curious, and I just couldn't keep a secret from her if it might be able to help you. I should have asked your permission first before telling her about you, but sometimes I can be such a blabbermouth!"

I was fairly certain that there was no intent for harm behind the pegasus' actions, and the fact that her friend wasn't afraid of me put me at ease a little. "Are you sure she can keep a secret?" I asked guardedly as I pointed at Twilight. Considering that I'd just met her, I didn't know if whatever she said would hold true or not, but I suppose I asked to make myself feel better about the way everything was going.

Twilight put her hoof to her chest and looked up at me intently, "You have my word."

I looked back to Fluttershy and nodded, "Then I suppose there's no harm done."

"So why exactly did you come with Fluttershy, Twilight," Lyra asked as she turned to look at her fellow unicorn, "What kind of help did you have in mind?"

Unable to contain her intellectual excitement any longer, Twilight finally burst, "When Fluttershy told me there was a member of an unknown sapient species nearby I almost couldn't stop myself from coming over right away! This is absolutely incredible! There hasn't been a discovery like this in centuries." She walked up and began to circle me as she simultaneously observed as much about me as she could while firing off a slew of questions, "Are all of your species self-aware? Where are you from? Are there more of you nearby?"

Overwhelmed, I didn't have time to respond to any of them, and I quickly became frustrated as she continued on, "Look, can you-"

"It's possible you're not even from this planet," she thought aloud to herself, "Are you related to minotaurs in any way, or is that purely coincidental?"

"Twilight," Fluttershy tried to caution her, but she was too caught up in her own questions and observations. She then grabbed a section of my protection suit with her magic and yanked on it, "This doesn't feel like a layer of skin. Is it some kind of garment or exoskeleton?"

This was the last straw. I stepped away from the reach of her spell, swiping at the air around where it had been, trying to clear it away like an unwanted smell, and I yelled, "Just stop!"

All four ponies flinched at my outburst. I glared at Twilight and pointed at her, "I'm not your specimen, alright? Ask me questions if you want, but you never touch me again, understand?"

Twilight was bewildered by my sudden change in attitude, but then she took into account her own behavior. She swiftly began to apologize, "I'm sorry. I guess I was so excited to start learning about you that I didn't consider asking if you wanted-"

I glared down at her, then turned and silently walked over to the my blanket and sheets, which I sat down on top of. The sudden bending over to sit down made me cough a little. I saw Twilight try to walk towards me, probably to finish her apology, but Lyra stopped her with an outstretched hoof, then spoke with her quietly. Walking over to me, she did her best to stand exactly in front of me.

"Adam," she declared softly, "I can vouch for Twilight; she didn't mean to make you uncomfortable. She just wants to ask you some questions back at the library." She then put her right hoof on my knee for a moment, "You don't have to go if you don't want to."

"How exactly would you get him out of here and to the Golden Oak without him becoming the center of attention for the entire town," Bon Bon asked as she glanced at me and then to Twilight, "It's not like you can dress him up and pretend he's your brother that nopony's ever heard about."

Twilight smiled confidently, "Fortunately, I've already put some thought into that." She then looked over to me, "I can make a shroud of invisibility for you. You'll be able to easily get around Ponyville without being seen. You've probably been here long enough that you want to see the rest of what's out there. I know I would be!"

I leaned forward a little as I considered her offer, trying to hold back the tickle in my throat that made me want to cough again. "I have been stuck here a while," I relented, and I sighed a little, "It would be nice to be able to walk wherever I wanted again."

She placed her hoof to her chest once again, "I promise that I won't touch you, and that if there's a question you don't want to answer, just let me know and I won't pursue it."

I thought about it a little longer. I wasn't sure if I trusted this Twilight Sparkle, but the other three ponies seemed comfortable around her. Lyra I knew I could trust, and I was pretty sure of Fluttershy's sincerity. Bon Bon, while still neutral about me, certainly didn't seem the type to lie or want me harmed. I shrugged to myself: I supposed I could trust them and their judgments, so I guess by extension I could reasonably trust this new unicorn too.

"Alright, I'll do it," I declared to Twilight as I stood up, then I waved my hand over in the direction of the other three ponies, "But I'm not going with you unless they can come along."

Twilight nodded and smiled, "That's alright: I'd never ask somepo- ah, someone to do something on their own when they had the opportunity have friends help them." Reaching out with her magic, she brought the sheet I'd just been sitting on up over the top of me. As it began to cover me, I could see a bright flash of light from underneath it. As I watched the sheet became translucent before my eyes, and I could the other ponies look in my general direction, but not exactly where I was.

"So I guess it's working," I asked, and then they all looked towards the area where my head should be.

"Alright, I think we're all ready," Twilight exclaimed as she trotted towards the door merrily, "Let's get going!"

Chapter 8 REVISED

The walk into town was odd to say the least. I was used to having no one see me because they were ignoring me, but to now be literally invisible was something incredible. The wide roads of dirt and grass felt so alien compared to the claustrophobic streets of concrete and asphalt I was used to. I had to chuckle to myself.

"What's so funny?" Lyra whispered out the side of her mouth as we walked along the path into town.

"It's just the little differences between what I'm used to and what's happening now I suppose," I replied softly.

"Let's try and keep talking to a minimum," Bon Bon murmured to the two of us at her side, "Or else ponies might wonder why we're all talking to the thin air."

"Maybe we're crazy," Lyra replied with a smirk, "and as we all know, crazy loves company!"

Fluttershy cleared her throat as she began to talk to us from behind, "Not to be an annoyance Lyra, but I believe the phrase is 'misery loves company.' "

"Eh, mine'll catch on too."

As a precaution, the four mares decided to surround me on all sides as they escorted me to the library, just to make sure nopony bumped into me and made my presence known to the world. Lyra was at my right, Bon Bon to my left, Twilight lead the way, and Fluttershy brought up the rear. We mostly kept away from the main streets to avoid traffic and accidental contact, which made things take a little longer than usual for everyone involved. After walking around a blue shed of some kind behind 'Dr. John Whooves' Invention Emporium', we rounded the corner of the building to see a massive tree with a door in its side and a balcony in its upper branches. I was amazed to now see that the Ponyville Library wasn't called Golden Oak just to be creative: the library literally resided in a golden barked oak tree.

"Almost there," Twilight muttered, "So long as nothing bad happens now we should be in the-"

"HEEEEEEEEEY TWILIIIIIIIIIIIIGHT!" a voice yelled out from across the way, the suddenness of which startled us all.

Frazzled, the unicorn in question recovered quickly and sighed heavily, "clear."

A pink earth pony with a mess of a curly mane and tail galloped towards us, her every step exuding an enormous amount of pent up energy. As she screeched to a stop her whole body seemed to vibrate, and she looked to each of the ponies around me, "Hey gals! How we all doin'?"

"I may have had a minor coronary," Bon Bon mumbled after taking a nervous breath, "but otherwise, alright."

"Hi Pinkie," Fluttershy said with a smile.

"Hey Pinkie," Twilight replied, and she signaled to the others and I to keep going to the library, "What's going on?"

As we walked out of earshot, I heard Pinkie begin to explain herself, "Well, I was helping the Cakes with their babies just a few minutes ago when suddenly my Pinkie Sense started going bananas!"

As I stepped inside I was surprised by the fact that I didn't have to duck in order to get through the doorway. I suppose I still hadn't subconsciously accepted the idea that there were now flying ponies to consider when it came to building interiors. When I looked up, I marveled at the insides of the bizarre but remarkable place: bookshelves carved into the very wood of the tree ran across the entire first floor, while a staircase near the doorway grew up towards an open second floor, its layout surprisingly spacious while still conforming to the natural boundaries of the oak's interior.

"Sorry about that," Twilight said as she walked in then closed the door behind her, locking it shut as she did, "It was just a friend of mine and Fluttershy's."

"She certainly seemed excited about whatever her 'Pinkie Sense' is," I commented as I threw off my cover behind me, to which Twilight replied with a small chuckle, "She's excited about almost everything." As my shroud settled on top of the horse's head adorning the circular reading table behind me, it returned to its plain white color and completely draped across it.

"Huh," Lyra exclaimed as she saw the spell revert, "Good thinking Twilight!"

The librarian smiling knowingly, "You would not believe how many unicorns have misplaced an invisible artifact because they couldn't find them again once they put them down. There's probably a book somewhere in Equestria about all the times ponies cast spells with unforeseen consequences." She then looked towards a door on the opposite side of the room and trotted towards it, "Now then, let me just quick grab Spike and we can get started!"

I turned to the other three ponies as Twilight opened the door and disappeared into the basement, "Who's Spike?"

Lyra nonchalantly threw her hoof back, "Oh, he's just the little dragon that lives with Twilight."

My eyes bulged, "A d-dragon? Are you...serious?"

"Oh, you don't need to be scared," Fluttershy offered as she took the air and shook her forehooves softly, "He's actually quite friendly, and he's only a baby dragon. You don't need to be alarmed at all: he's really quite a wonderful little gentledrake!"

I then saw Twilight come back from downstairs, and sure enough there was a little dragon behind her, walking on his back legs like a human being. From his lower claws to the green spines on his head he was about two and a half feet tall. His scales were very purple, and I was quick to note, almost with disappointment, that he didn't have a set of wings on his back. He was looking at me as well, studying all my equally strange features. He then looked back over to Twilight and exclaimed, "Well, now I can certainly see why you wanted me to take notes!"

"Spike, this is Adam," she declared to him, and then she turned to me, "Adam, meet Spike!"

I got down on one knee to better reach him, and we shook hand and claws.

"This is really going to take some getting used to," I said as we finished.

He looked up at me quizzically, "What's that?"

"Oh, it's nothing," I replied, trying to divert away from my continually forced suspension of disbelief at all the new and mythical races I was getting introduced to, "So, dragon huh?"

"Yup," he replied with a nod, "and also Twilight's number one assistant! What exactly are you?"

"Oh, I'm a human," I replied.

"Well I suppose that's as good of a place as any to start," Twilight declared as she floated a scroll and quill over to Spike, who easily caught them as they approached. She then looked to me expectantly, "Just start with whatever you feel most comfortable telling us about yourself."

The questions started out with a personal bent. As we moved away from the topics solely concerning me I began to ease into the questions, and their scope of subject consequently increased, until we began talking about much larger and more esoteric issues: politics and governance, religion, ethics, technology, social customs. Hours slipped by as between the six of us we scratched the surface of human society as a whole, while simultaneously I learned some about equine life. We did notice a strange convergence as we continued our talk. Patterns began to emerge between our civilizations, and the first place that we noticed it came from probably the most bizarre one to find such a connection: geography.

"So you mean to say that you have your own versions of Fillydelphia, Las Pegasus, and Manehattan?" Twilight asked.

I shrugged, "I suppose so; though we pronounce them 'Philidelphia', 'Las Vegas', and 'Manhattan'.

"And even though we're using two different calendars with different benchmarks of significance, our two species both have a solar based 365 day calendar. They even use the same month names!" Twilight frowned as she looked up at the ceiling, rubbing her chin with her hoof as she did, "It's just too strange to think that these things would just be similar by coincidence. Still, what could it possibly mean?"

We each turned to our own thoughts as we pondered that same question. The silence was broken when a familiar but unexpected voice chimed in, "Beats me, but I'd bet a baker's dozen that Celestia knows!"

Startled, we all turned to stare at the earth pony from earlier, who had seemingly just materialized from out of nowhere. When she noticed that she had my attention, she waved a hoof at me, "Hiya Adam! Looks like you were the doozy I felt earlier." She stopped for an instant and thought to herself, "Adam. Aaaa. Duuuum." She then shook her head up and down a little as she thought, then she giggled, "That seems like a silly name! But then again, Pinkamena Diane Pie is a silly name too!" She then effortless began cartwheeling end over end towards me, until she stopped, balanced on her two hindhooves, and offered a forehoof to me, "You can call me Pinkie Pie; everyone else does!"

I didn't know how to respond. Had the secret of my existence in this town just been completely revealed? What was going to happen to me now that the damage had been done? I looked up to the others away from the pony waving her hoof around expectantly, hoping any of them had some idea of what was going on or what I should do.

Oblivious to my distress or to any of the other ponies' panicking, Pinkie began to muse to herself, hoof still outstretched, "You know what? We need to throw you a 'Welcome to Ponyville' Party! Everypony gets one. Even though you're not a pony I'm sure we can grandfather you in or something! Is 'grandfather' really the right word? I dunno. I guess it doesn't really-"

"Pinkie," Twilight yelled to get the excited pony's attention.

She immediately stopped talking and turned to look back at the one who had called to her, "Yes?"

"Right now there can't be a party of any kind," Twilight firmly declared.

Pinkie Pie looked back at her with a smile, "Whaddaya mean 'there can't be a party'? Of course he's gonna get a party! Everyone does!"

Twilight looked at her with an eyebrow arched, "Did Zecora get a party?"

Pinkie blankly looked at her for a moment, released a sharp hissing sound from her mouth, then replied with a small, "Oooooooh."

"Yeah," Twilight exclaimed, "We just want to avoid something like that from happening again."

Having been clued into the entire scope of what was going on, the pink earth pony looked up to me, her mane and tail appearing to somehow deflate. She finally lowered her hoof, only to quickly squeeze me tightly around the middle with a hug, "Sorry if I gave you a scare. I just get so excited when I meet new people, and I get so caught up in my excitement that I forget some really important things, like other's feelings." She looked up at me, her blue eyes full of empathetic remorse and compassion, "Are you gonna be ok?"

The rate at which this pony cycled through her emotions, each of which so incredibly intense she could barely contain them, was absolutely staggering to me. Still, I could see she was sincere, not simply apologizing as some sort of social formality. "Uh, yeah," I replied unsteadily, "I'll be fine."

"Oh good!" she replied with relief as her bright mood returned, and somehow managed to tighten her hold on me to an almost bone-breaking point, "Because I couldn't stand to see my newest friend become a sad-y, wadd-y-kins on me: not on my watch; not when I can help them! Speaking of-" she turned to Lyra and Bon Bon, "dontcha think he smells a bit funny?"

"Uh, Pinkie," Bon Bon pointed up at me, "you're right next to him. Also, you're crushing his organs."

"Oh," she then looked up at me apologetically and released me from her vice grip. All I could do for a minute was clutch my sides. "I bathe every day now," I wheezed a little, "maybe what I need is a new set of clothes."

"We know somepony who could help with that," Twilight declared with a smile, "and since you can't eat grass or flowers, you probably want to stop at Sweet Apple Acres for a bushel and a few recipe ideas."

"I'll have a talk with Rarity," Fluttershy chimed in, "she and I are supposed to have a spa day tomorrow. I'm sure she'd be delighted to have a new customer!"

"Applejack should be pretty easy to talk to," Pinkie Pie exclaimed as she bounded toward the library door, "I'll handle it!"

"Woah, hang on," I said as I shook my hands for everyone to stop what they were doing, "I thought the whole point of this secrecy idea was to not let anyone else know: now we're bringing in two more people?"

Twilight looked to me and put one hoof in the air to stop me, "I know what you're thinking, but don't worry. These two ponies are our friends. If we take them into confidence, they won't break it."

Pinkie Pie looked back to me, her facial expression surprisingly serious, "Just to be sure though, I'll make them perform," here her voice deepened a half octave, "the Pinkie Promise." Her face then switched back to her cheerful personality, like flipping a switch in its ease and speed, and she waved goodbye to us all, "I'm gonna beat it for now. See you all later!" With that, she flung the door open and leapt out into the darkening evening.

I blinked after a moment, then turned to the others, "She really is an odd one, isn't she? Sweet, but very odd."

Twilight gave a knowing smile to Fluttershy, who returned it.

Spike gave a good-natured chuckle as he finished rolling up the scroll he had been using, "Trust me; you have no idea how right you are."

Chapter 9 REVISED

After having said our goodbyes to Twilight and Spike, Fluttershy, Bon Bon, Lyra, and I made our way back to our respective homes. As we walked toward the outskirts of town, the lights inside the many houses we passed went out, and that's when I noticed the ambient light still around us. I looked up at the night sky through my shroud to see the stars blink into life one after the other, creating designs of wonderful and infinite complexity. "Incredible," I exclaimed in awe as they continued to appear.

"What?" Lyra asked as she looked up towards where my mouth should be, "What's incredible?"

"The stars," I replied matter-of-factly, "Look at them!"

The three ponies glanced up as they continued walking.

"They certainly are beautiful tonight," Fluttershy mused with a smile, "Princess Luna must feel very inspired!" I literally stopped in my tracks as I thought about what she had said for a moment, then walked briskly after them when I realized I had fallen behind. By the time I caught up to them, Fluttershy had already said her goodbyes and was trotting off to her cottage.

"So wait," I exclaimed, then paused for a bit as I continuing thinking over what had sounded absolutely ludicrous to me, "You're telling me that what you guys had said earlier about your Princesses raising the sun and moon was true?"

Lyra looked in my general direction curiously, "Well, yeah! What did you think we meant?"

I shrugged to myself, "I dunno. I thought it was a metaphor or something!"

Bon Bon glanced up, "Sooo who raises your sun and moon?"

The strangeness of what she had asked overcame me for a minute, but I put it aside after a little while: different universe, different rules after all, "No one does: they just move through space like they're supposed to."

Bon Bon scoffed a little, "Well, that's certainly odd."

Irony, I determined in that moment, is a peculiar but funny thing.

By the time we arrived at the cottage the last light of the daylight skies had completely left the horizon to be replaced by deep azure and purple. There wasn't a cloud in sight as far as the eye could see, and the stars danced. The moon looked as if it was set to completely rise within the next few minutes. I couldn't help but stare at its amazing light. Back on Earth, I could rarely ever glimpse the stars from the inner city because of the light pollution. More times than I could count the lights in the sky were typically airplanes or helicopters flying overhead, while a solitary moon watched on. Now, however, the entire sky was populated with lights, so many that I couldn't even begin to think where to start counting them, even if I could count them all.

"You know what," I said as my two hosts approached their door, "I think I'll stay out for a little bit; I never really got a good show like this where I'm from."

Bon Bon shrugged then yawned deeply, "Suit yourself. I'm headed to bed!"

"Same here," Lyra chimed in as she rubbed her eyes a little, "Good night Adam! Be careful not to be seen."

"I'll be sure too. Good night you two!"

As they entered the house I turned to look back towards the now celestial-lit horizon. With no large sources of light coming from Ponyville, one could see for miles around by just the moon's illumination. No matter how much I kept looking, the sight never became old. I walked a little ways from the house and sat down in the middle of the field, all while remembering to remain concealed. As the minutes passed the stars seemed to swirl in front of me, like partners on a ballroom floor, each in synchronous tempo as they revolved around the moon, their master of ceremonies. Suddenly I noticed a dark spot fly across its pale white surface. I frowned a little as I thought about it. Craters don't just appear on the moon; there was something up there. I shrugged after a moment's thought; it could just be some night owl pegasus flying around, appreciating the night's sky like me, just from a bird's eye view. I then realized that the speck was slowly getting larger and larger.

As I watched, a large pony descended on deep azure wings. I also noticed in amazement that there was a horn on her head: there wasn't any doubt at all that this was one of the ponies the others had called 'alicorns'. Her coat was a deep shade of blue; close to a dark purple color, and her mane and tail appeared to be streams of glowing ether, as if the cosmos itself were woven into her hair like a tapestry of light. She wore glass-like shoes, almost like those described in the stories of Cinderella. A crown of obsidian sat on her head, and a ceremonial yoke of similar color hung around her neck onto her chest. A crescent moon of clear diamond sat inside that yoke, and the same insignia adorned her flanks as her Cutie Mark. She flew overhead without a sound, then gracefully banked into a tight curve above the cottage. Gliding to the earth below she finally touched the ground, and with a canter came to stop not but thirty feet away from me.

She glanced around, turning her head this way and that, before walking aimlessly about, idly looking about as she did. My nervousness began to increase: it was entirely possible that the something she was looking for was me. I began to breath through my nose to avoid making too much noise, and I stayed absolutely still. She stopped dead in her tracks. Her mane and tail continued to move in a nonexistent breeze. Her ears twitched slightly. I was beginning to sweat. I covered my nose and mouth with my hands just to be sure she wouldn't hear my breathing. She didn't move: her ears just kept twitching. Finally fed up I mentally grumbled to myself, Come on! Why won't you just fly away?

The mare slowly turned on the spot, and her eyes met mine with an unnerving stare that pierced straight through my shroud.

Because I know you are here, an imposing feminine voice declared in my head.

I quietly cursed to myself in fright. I hurriedly tried to stand up, but in my rush I accidentally stood on my sheet and yanked it off of myself, leaving me completely visible and unprotected. I cursed again.

"Fear not," she hurriedly said aloud as she approached, "If thou art afraid of malcontent or cruelty upon our part, verily, we mean no ill will to you if thou would be peaceful."

I stared at her for a long few seconds before I stammered, "W-What?"

She thought back on her words, and then gave a small sigh, "My apologies. My intention in speech was that I meant you no harm."

"Oh," I replied, still slightly afraid but now more confused than anything else, "Well that's good."

The alicorn mare approached me, "I sensed you in my realm not but a few nights ago. Your mind is just as different from my subjects as is your form: mercurial, dark, and full of pain." She took a few steps closer, and I nervously took a step back, "Your dreams show of places that have never been, of things unseen and unimaginable, of things not in this world." She then stood still, her gaze again cutting through me, "You are not of this world."

I was dumbfounded by all the things she had said, but finally I stupidly exclaimed, "You can read my mind?"

She nodded, "Indeed I can, for I am Princess Luna: keeper of the night, guardian of all dreams, and co-ruler of Equestria. Now answer me this: who and what art thou?"

I had to admit, the way this mare carried herself was intimidating: she exuded power like I had never seen, and her bluntness was a little off-putting. Still, I wasn't about to let her think that I was some doormat that she could just walk over. I rolled my shoulders in a slightly exaggerated manner, then crossed my arms and looked her square in the eye, "My name is Adam, and I'm a human being. I'm a wanderer, and I come in peace."

She arched an eyebrow imperiously, "Peace? Your thoughts are caught up in turmoil about much everything under the sky, including yourself. Such an erratic imbalance of thought does not inspire credulity."

I looked at her in confusion, blinking slowly as I did. Finally understanding why I wasn't replying, she gave a small sigh, "I don't trust you: you're unpredictable."

"Then I suppose there's one way to prove myself to you," I replied, and I tapped my temple three times, "Dig deeper. Just mind the few good things I have in here, alright?"

She silently looked at me for a few seconds, gauging I suppose what I had said, perhaps determining if she was comfortable with what I had volunteered to let her do. Whatever the case, after a while I began to sense alien thoughts within my head, probing, searching for any falsehoods or evil intentions on my part. On compulsion I wanted to fight the invading influence, if there even was a way to do so, but instead I realized there was something else I could try. Communication is two ways; perhaps it was the same with thoughts. Visualizing the influence of the plucking sensors as they sifted my brain, I reached around them, pulling on what I imagined to be the wrists of their hands, and blindly following them along their reach back to their source. I knew when I succeeded because I felt myself floating in a vast dark space with no walls, ceiling, or floor: it was just a swirling blackness that hung all around me.

Suddenly there was a rush of memories that were definitely not my own.

Swords clashed.

A deep wailing had passed my lips, as had insane and cruel laughter.

Then nothing, utter oblivion.

From zero sensory input rapidly came total over-stimulation: a burning rainbow's light, which then bound me like cold shackles of iron. Imprisoned until I had learned the error of my ways, harming nopony.

Suddenly I became aware of the merged consciousness I had become part of, and I remember something important: I wasn't a pony, and there was nothing protecting me from her. I remembered her, the demonic black horse. Then memory became reality as I sunk deeper into the darkness, and she was there with me, or rather I was there with her, deposited before her presence. I finally understood the correlation: the princess and the monster were one. I now had a name for the dread I had felt, and it was Nightmare Moon. She looked at me from her place within the blackness, defining it, filling it, and giving it substance, and she smiled in mock happiness, "Oh, it's you again! Did you miss me so much you dropped by to make a house call? It's only fair I suppose; I stopped by yours."

I snapped back to the real world, gasping deeply for air and trying to hold back a whimper that would turn into a scream.

"By all the stars in the sky," Princess Luna exclaimed in horror as she looked at me, "What hath thou wrought?"

"I," I stumbled over my words after a few minutes of just breathing, "You-"

"Thou didst not heed my words," she said, anger, guilt, and shame oozing off of her, "I trust not a tumultuous mind, especially my own."

Through the new memories I'd found one defining detail emerged, and I clung to it. She was forgotten by her people at one time, just like me. She was struggling with a world she didn't know, and coping with things she had seen, felt, and done. Though there was quite a lot separating us, those things that were similar clung to my conscience, and my heart ached for her. Having only scratched the surface of who this mare was, I knew she had to be feeling responsible for what I had seen, embarrassment at having her consciousness just as naked before me as mine had been to her, and reopened emotional wounds for what she had done and had wished to do.

"Don't feel bad," I finally declared, "I chose to look where I shouldn't have."

She glanced away, not responding at all. An awkward silence passed between us.

"I like your night sky," I exclaimed, floundering for any way to connect with her.

She cautiously looked back towards me. "Dost thou-" she started, then she cleared her throat, "Do you really mean that?"

"I do."

She gave a broken smile, "My thanks to you, vagabond, for your kind words."

I nodded a little in return, and then I cautiously tried to say the words I thought she'd need most, "I know you're feeling guilty, and it just keeps weighing down on you. What matters, though, is that those who care about you most have already forgiven you. Why not share with them in their belief? I've met other ponies, and they know you're making strides towards atonement. Join with them: believe you can be forgiven."

Her face became melancholic, and once again she turned away, now to look out over the waving grove and fields below us. “There is no forgiveness for what I tried to do,” she said in monotone. She then gazed up to the moon and stars above, “I abandoned my true duty for my own desires. My destined task has been returned to me, that of raising the moon and caring for the astral bodies, but I am adrift; without cause or meaning.”

She then thought about what she had just confessed, and then in bewilderment turned to look at me. She scrutinized me intently for a while before she spoke again, "Why am I speaking of these things to you, vagabond? I've not spoken of this to a soul, not even my sister, and yet I converse freely with you? What powers have you?"

"Maybe it's because I'm a stranger that you're able to talk about it so easily: if I have no idea who you really are, I don't have any expectations on what to think about you?" I paused, then shrugged a little as I shook my head, "Or maybe it's just because we were sharing minds; I don't know."

The Princess ruffled her wings a little as she thought to herself for a moment, then she slowly turned on the spot and began to walk away. "I've found no fault in you, Adam the Human," she declared regally, "You have my blessing to roam these lands in peace." She spread her wings to fly, but before she took off she looked to me with a small, appreciative smile, "I'll also take into account what council you've offered. I accept it with sincerest gratitude."

With her peace made, she briskly flew away, her large downy wings flapping to gain altitude as she went. As I watched her shrink into the distance, I heard her voice in my head, now much softer and kinder than when I'd first heard it, If ever you'd seek my aid, call my name, and I shall come swiftly.

Chapter 10 REVISED

"You're kidding me," Lyra exclaimed as she looked up in the general direction of where my voice had come from, "You were visited by Princess Luna last night?"

I nodded underneath my invisible shroud, "I certainly was. Do all of your royalty speak in 'old-timey' though? How do they manage to get anything done when nobody understands what they're saying?"

"That's more just her shtick," she replied in a subdued voice as we walked closer to a bridge where some friends were sitting together, admiring the beautiful day around us. The fortunate thing about these ponies as opposed to the people I had always known was that they didn't seem to be in any hurry to go anywhere, so predicting where they were walking to was all the easier. I side-stepped a couple as they walked by Lyra, chatting about the performance of their foal in school.

As we reached the other side of the bridge I murmured back to Lyra, "'Her shtick'?"

"Yeah. Everypony else in the Canterlot Royal Family talks normally, it's just because Luna wasn't around for the past thousand years. See, back then-"

"Oh trust me," I stopped her, unconsciously waving my hand, "I know the details about Nightmare Moon."

She cocked her head a little and arched an eyebrow, "Really?"

"Intimately," I replied flatly.

"Ooookaaaay," she exhaled, before turning her gaze back to the road ahead, "Still, it is pretty odd to see any of the alicorns outside of Canterlot, let alone the Castle. The last time I heard anything about Luna was when she came to the Nightmare Night celebration a couple months ago."

"I'd think that'd be kind of super awkward," I exclaimed, "Showing up to the event dedicated to keeping away your evil side? That whole idea is-" I trailed off. I didn't want to say it out loud, it being about a holiday tradition and all, but it sounded utterly horrible.

"Yeah, it was initially pretty bad," she replied, "But we got over it once we realized she was reformed and her own pony, and not the dark figure we all knew from old pony's tales. She means well," she paused and smiled with small laugh, "Even if she can’t always get the words to come out right the first time."

My thoughts turned back to the concept of Nightmare Night itself. Why did it feel so much like Halloween? With the city names it was weird, and the holidays it was weirder still. Was I really looking into this too much? For all I knew this could be a parallel world or something where all those things were pretty similar, but obviously with the difference of talking animals. I had a momentary feeling of wanting things to be back to the way they were, just so something would make sense in a concrete way, but it passed. On the whole this place was treating me much better than Earth ever had, so I suppose it was really time for me to get some perspective. I needed to wrap up my thoughts anyway, because we had arrived at Rarity's.

The best word to describe Rarity I would say is probably “classy”: the white unicorn with the swirly stylized purple mane always tried to keep an aura of sophistication about her. Even though she did her best to appear like the upper echelon of society, she came from humble enough roots. She never forgot this, and because of that, she never could be known as stuck up. She had become a near-preeminent fashion designer in Equestria over the past few months, her creations being observed by some of the most popular and powerful ponies in the land. Even so, she didn’t allow the fame to stifle her creativity: she still took the time to make unique outfits for each and every customer, whether they were a friend or simply a client.

While of course I had my need to be here, seeing as my environmental protection suit was ragged and falling apart, Lyra also had a reason to come besides escorting me: the First Equestrian Orchestra was performing at an annual charity event in Canterlot, and she had received an invitation to join them as a guest musician. I was told it was a prestigious honor, and from the way Lyra had excitedly jumped around when she received the letter I could tell it was something she had wanted to be apart of for a very long time, and I was happy for her. Once the arrangements were made between the two of us and Rarity, we waited until a time when she would have a full morning open for 'the practice of discretion'.

A little bell tinkled as we stepped inside the Carousel Boutique, Rarity's refuge of creative talent. Pony shaped mannequins were arranged throughout the showroom floor, each wearing some gorgeous design that the fashionista had used her all to create. An elevated platform with three mirrors was to the back right of the showroom floor, with a concealed stairway not too far away. "Coooomiiiing," the two of us heard someone say in a whimsical sing-song voice. After a few seconds, the mare we'd been waiting for appeared from upstairs, gently but energetically trotting towards Lyra. "Welcome, welcome, Lyra my dear," she exclaimed excitedly, "How are you doing today?"

"I'm doing great Rarity," she replied in a normal volume, before lowering her voice to a whisper, "Is everything ready for Adam too?"

Rarity's posture straightened even further, somehow, and she proudly raised her head while continuing to look her in the eye, "But of course! Let it never be said that I don't keep my promises! I've booked out the full day for the two of you just in case, and Sweetie Belle will be off with her friends until later this afternoon."

Her horn lit up with a pale blue light, and the shutters of all the windows gently closed until they were only slightly ajar, letting in just enough light that we could all see, but not wide open so that somepony could casually look in. The door locked quietly behind us. At last we were in a safe, private place once again.

"Now then," she said as she began to look around, "Where is your exotic friend?"

I pulled back enough of my invisible blanket that my head was exposed, before letting it fall away completely, "Right here."

The fashionista's eyes sparkled a little as she looked up at me, her excitement now almost uncontainable. "What the others said doesn't even begin to cover it," she said as she cantered over, "You are extraordinary!"

Unprepared for such an opening statement, I blushed a little. "Do you talk to all customers like this," I asked bashfully.

"Only the cute ones," she said with a wink and flirtatious tone, "I like to think everypo-, apologies, everybody deserves a chance to have a sense of mystique. It's my expertise to help what's already there to shine!"

It was readily agreed upon that Lyra's measurements and ideas be taken first: Rarity was already very familiar with the equine form, so the technical side of her work was going to be a breeze. “Alright! Now let’s take a look at that midsection," she exclaimed as she wrapped her line of measuring tape around Lyra's barrel with her magic, "I’m thinking of a style that complements your personality: something that gives a sense of your free-spirited nature: something that says, 'Hello world! I'm alive and loving every minute of it!' " She stroked her chin in thought for a moment as she adjusted her red, wide rimmed glasses. Like a lightning bolt inspiration struck her, and she gave a little ecstatic jump and yelp, "A-hah! Something flowing and extravagant. Orchids! Graceful, charming, and absolutely marvelous! I’m getting chills just thinking about it!”

Lyra looked over with a smile, "I can't wait to see what you come up with, Rarity, but can we keep it a little restrained when it comes to flashiness? I'm not saying I want a frumpy dress or anything, but maybe something more subtle than you'd make for say Sapphire Shores?"

"I'll try to curb my ambitions," she replied with an over-exaggerated pout, "The customer is always right after all!" With a flourish she rolled her measuring tape back up before she took a look in my direction, "Now it's your turn, darling."

"Oh, um, right," I replied a little nervously with a slight cough as I stood up. While the majority of the fluid in my lungs was gone, the tiniest amount was still stubbornly hanging around. Fluttershy reassured me it would be gone within a few more days of treatment. Lyra stepped down off the platform to allow me access, and I hesitantly took her place.

"If you'd give me just a moment I need to think about my approach a little bit," Rarity declared as she paced around me. Her eyes narrowed as she thought for a moment, "I suppose it would be similar to dressing a minotaur, at least for the upper torso. Let's start there. Arms up please!" I quickly raised them for her, and her measuring tape snaked around my chest.

"Is this your first time having a set of clothes made for you," she asked with a smile as she worked.

"Um, yeah," I replied.

"Well then, I'll do my best to create an excellent experience," she replied, "Relax your shoulders. Don't hold your breath. Just breathe in and out like you would any other time."

I hadn't even realized I'd been holding it in out of nervousness, but started to realize how silly it seemed now to be doing so.

"Thaaat's it," she replied in a soothing matter, "You're collected. Cool as ice! You own this room and everything in it; now act like it."

Although mock praise, it still did raise my spirits just as she clearly intended. I didn't see it but she smiled knowingly to Lyra, who returned it.

"So there are Minotaurs in Equestria," I asked.

"Oh, there's a few," Rarity replied as she began to measure my arm length, "but the majority of them live to the southeast of Equestria near the sea."

"Have you ever met one?"

"No, not yet, but I can't wait to! I always enjoy meeting new beings, and exotic cultures provide me with a great deal of inspiration." She began to measure down my other arm, "Take yours for example: Twilight gave me a few pointers. Is it true your kind normally have more than one set of clothing?"

"Yeah," I said, even as internally I couldn't help but think how strange it was to be explaining this topic, "Most people have tons. Frankly, a lot of people have more than what they know what to do with."

"You must all be very rich to be able to afford so much," she declared before wrapping her tape around my stomach, "Don't suck it in: be comfortable with who you are."

"Sorry," I said as I exhaled again, "No, it's just that being naked is a little more frowned upon where I come from. Besides, the weather can get really cold at times where I was."

"Now that's fascinating," Rarity replied as she moved down to my waist, "What sort of style would you like for your top by the way?"

"Honestly, I don't really need anything fancy," I replied, "I know it's probably some kind of faux pas, but I'd be happy with just jeans and a t-shirt. It'll feel incredibly open compared to this stupid suit."

"Hmmm, all things considered it is probably for the best," Rarity said with a sigh before she became playful again, "Though it's just my first attempt at working on a frame like yours, you could at least credit me with some kind of challenge!"

"Ask for tons of gemstones," Lyra exclaimed impishly, "We can get you the most bedazzled t-shirt in all of Equestria!"

I gave a quick laugh, "I'm not sure I'm THAT comfortable with myself." The both of them got a good chuckle out of that too.

"So then," Rarity began before clearing her throat, "The, ah, next part does require the removal of your lower garments."

My mouth opened up a little, and I nodded my head nervously as I looked away, "Ah."

"I wanted to put it off as long as possible because of your sense of modesty. I promise I will be quick, and you don't need to take off more than is absolutely necessary." She gestured towards the other side of the Boutique, "Would you like me to get some screens, or-"

"No, uh, no it's fine," I replied as I reached for the discrete belt buckle around my waist, "I'm okay. I'm just still new to this whole, 'getting tailored for' experience."

After removing my boots and pants we continued on as if nothing had changed. Though still in boxers, it was odd to be standing there and not having either Lyra or Rarity looking at me as if something were different about me. I still had a momentary twinge of shame, but judging by their reactions I was the only one with a problem. It made me start to think just how different this world was. It felt more...innocent somehow. I couldn't explain it.

Rarity measured from my waist to my ankle, "That suit of yours is very...subtle in its aesthetics."

"What," I asked in confusion.

"She's trying to politely say it's really drab," Lyra declared.

"Well if it makes it any better I didn't want to wear it," I said, "It was sort of necessary for the trip over here."

"Clearly science just doesn't have the panache to discover things in style," Rarity said with a smirk, "Open your leg up please, I need your inseam."

"Right," I exclaimed as I open my thigh for her.

"Do they have cities where you're from," she asked.

"Loads!"

"Did you live in one of them," she asked as she glanced up at me, "While I do enjoy Ponyville and the pony's here, my heart has always ached for the metropoli: Manehattan, Vanhoover, Canterlot-"

"I, ah, more or less lived in one," I said before changing the subject, "Do you ever want to live in a city?"

"In certain moments I daydream about it," she said as she began her final measurement on my other leg, "Wondering what it would be like to move into a highrise, one with enough room to house a studio, then renting out floor space somewhere to show off my designs. Somedays it seems like I could be satisfied with that, even love it, but then I remember one thing."

Lyra cocked her head, "What's that?"

With her measurements done Rarity looked to her and then to me as she spoke, "I'd be leaving so many wonderful ponies behind to do it. For it's lack of distinction and occasional roughness around the edges Ponyville is my home, and providing for my friends and neighbors is my greatest pleasure."

With her measurements taken, and with myself all put back in order, Lyra and I exited the Carousel Boutique around just after noon. It was a great experience, just like Rarity had promised, but in the end when Lyra had meant to pay her she politely declined, saying our conversation was of enough value already.

"I almost can't believe it," I murmured.

"What," Lyra asked as we began our trek towards the edge of town.

"How can someone be so generous? I don't know anyone who would-"

"You sort of hit the nail on the head there," Lyra said with a smile, "The answer's 'Somepony like Rarity.'"

Chapter 11 REVISED

It was just a few days later that our clothes were ready to be picked up, and I must say that Rarity did a stunning job! It felt good to slip out of my nasty old protective suit and into something much looser. I drew my t-shirt over my head as I let my arms slide into their holes. My jeans were snug around my waist, but were nice and roomy around my shins and ankles. Somehow this little bit of familiarity amongst all the strangeness that my life had become over the past few weeks was an incredible feeling: the 'normalness' of it made things a little more comfortable.

"For an outfit so simple you wear it quite well," Rarity commented before she gestured my way towards the other stall, "Let's see how Lyra's coming along, shall we?"

As we turned, the changing room door opened slightly, and Lyra stepped out, "Well, for starters, I'd say I'm coming along very nicely."

I have to admit that I had to stop for a second to admire her. Her formal dress was styled like a toga, where it wrapped around her chest and over her shoulder, secured by a golden pin shaped like a disk. Emblazoned on that disk was an image of her Cutie Mark. The edges of her dress that reached back over her rear end and towards her hooves faded into a yellowish-green color. My words fail me here, I'm afraid, because I can't give its description the justice it deserves. I did, however, come to recognize the choice of coloration for her rear half, as she turned her head and I saw a single Lily's blossom held behind her ear on some kind of ribbon.

She twisted her dress back and forth a little before doing a small curtsy with a happy, but slightly shy smile, "How do I look?"

It took me a minute to compose myself, I was so shocked by the difference in how she looked normally and now, "Incredible."

"Well I'll say," Rarity said with an almost teary smile, "She looks absolutely stunning!"

Lyra blushed at our praise, "You know you made this dress, right Rarity?"

Rarity waved her hoof dismissively, "Oh posh. It's just like I told Adam: my creations only cause what's already present to shine brighter!"

With our clothes in hand (and hoof), we began our trek back to the cottage, albeit with one slight deviation.

"Now, Applejack's our 'in' at Sweet Apple Acres. We may have to check around a bit first before we actually find her, but hopefully we'll be able to sneak in while she's on break from bucking the apple trees."

With no one around us to hear the mysterious voice coming from nowhere I was able to speak freely, "Is she anything like Pinkie? I know she said she was going to handle meeting with her."

Lyra gave a little chuckle, "They're veeeeery different from each other. AJ's a lot more down to earth, but neither of them would break a promise."

"And with being the 'Element of Honesty-"

"She can keep a secret, don't worry."

We turned to the right up the dirt road that led further into Sweet Apple Acres, guided onward on both sides by beautifully painted white fences. To my left I saw rows of carrots, then heads of lettuce, and then stalks of corn, each reaching nearly six feet tall. Harvest time had to be around the corner as I thought about it, though my knowledge on agriculture was obviously pretty limited. To my right there were a few haystacks every fifty feet or so, and after that a small enclosed area for chickens to roam, with a few henhouses not far away. A very large cherry red barn rose up out of the horizon. To the northwest appeared to be some sort of storage building; it was topped by what looked like a carrot. I felt it necessary to describe all this because I wanted this next part to put things in perspective: in almost every other direction or place I looked, all i could see were apple trees. They were everywhere! I'd never seen so many on such a enormous scale! Where I had grown up maybe one person I knew of grew their own fruit, a pear tree, and only because it helped them ensure they were eating all organic, no additives. This was an orchard if ever I were to see one!

From the barn we heard the loud but merry tinkle of a metal triangle.

"Sounds like we're in luck," Lyra exclaimed, "That's gotta be the signal for lunchtime!"

It wasn't long at all before we saw the few members of the Apple clan come back to their homestead. A large, deep red colored stallion, his mane and brow covered in sweat, gently lumbered up from the trees in the east. He looked our direction and gave a small, respectful nod, "Ms. Heartstrings."

"Big Mac," she replied.

"Ya here ta see AJ?"

"You're right on the money," she said as she took a step closer, "Any idea where she might be?"

He nodded his head back in the direction he had just come from, "She's back yonder in the valley with Apple Bloom. Ya might catch'em on the way up."

"Thanks," she said with a wave as she began the trek in that direction, with me not far behind.

"Eeyup," was his only reply.

Once we'd put some distance between us I said aloud, "He's not much of a conversationalist, is he?"

Lyra looked up in my direction, "Who, Big Mac? Nah, he's not. Of course, he always manages to get his point across one way or another. Maybe he's better at it than we are."

I squinted my eyebrows unseen skeptically, "How do you figure that exactly?"

"He's more efficient," she said with a smirk.

It wasn't too long before we found the mare we were seeking; we just followed the persistent thumping sound. Just as we spotted them, it seemed that work was being wrapped up for the moment. An orange pony wearing a stetson was now headed up towards us, a little yellow filly with a bow in her mane not far behind.

"Well hi there Lyra," Applejack exclaimed with a smile as she looked up.

"Hey Applejack," she exclaimed, then looked back at the filly, "Hey Apple Bloom!"

"Hey Ms. Lyra," she replied with a weary but happy smile, "What're you doin' here?"

"Well, I've come here to ask your sister for some recipe ideas! I've got a friend coming into town who's kind of a picky eater, and they don't like daisy sandwiches, grass, or a lot of other things."

The little filly looked up at her incredulously, "How's that even possible? Ah thought everypony liked daisy sandwiches. Tha's like a law er somethin'!"

Lyra chuckled a little and gave a covert glance up at me, "Yeah, but my friend's a little weird, so I've got to get creative."

"Well fortunately you've come to the right place," Applejack declared with an upturned grin, "We've got plenty-a good food here and ideas ta go along with it!" She gestured with a wave to her little sister, "You go on ahead Apple Bloom, we'll catch up. We've gotta discuss some of the boring stuff behind her friend's visit."

Apple Bloom gave a little shrug and slowly began to walk up the path, "Alright, AJ: if you say so." She looked back once quizzically as the two mares started talking before she disappeared above the valley ridge.

"Ah got a bit of the skinny from Pinkie when she came by," Applejack murmured, "You've got some new type-a critter hangin' out at your place, one that can talk?"

I cleared my throat a little, "'Critter' is just the tiniest bit not nice, don't you think?"

Applejack stumbled back a little with a tiny 'guh' sound as she realized she wasn't alone with Lyra. She righted herself though, and she straightened her hat in mild frustration as she tried to recover her dignity, "Land's sakes! If you were here why didn't ya say somethin' then? Come on out from wherever you are!"

Lyra grimaced a little, "We're pretty sure the farm's safe, but the skies aren't always. The last thing we need is for him to be spotted out in the open without his shroud of invisibility."

"Fair 'nough Ah suppose," the earth pony replied grumpily, "Still, can't ya just keep it over yer head without taking it all the way off? Ah wanna see who Ah'm talkin' with!"

I quickly glanced around just to put my mind at ease, and then lifted up my shroud. The earth pony's eyes widened, I was glad to see not out of fear, but out of curiosity. "Hmm," she breathed as she scanned my figure up and down before letting out a quick 'huh.'

"Alright," she exclaimed, "Ah suppose we should just go on an’ get the elephant in the proverbial room outta the way: you a carnivore?"

"I eat vegetables and fruits too," I replied indignantly, "I just can't eat your guy's sandwiches, or burgers, or your grass-y stuff." I then silently thought to myself, Oh dear God how I miss burgers.

The farm pony nodded, "Legumes should do nicely fer a start. Do you eat eggs?"

"Yeah, those would work," I said, "Is there anything else you need to know?"

"Business-wise, nope. All that's left is personal intrigue on mah part."

I never really thought I'd have to do this many introductions, and I certainly didn't expect all the background knowledge I had to give each time it seemed, but with a quick sigh I played my part, waving my right hand in gesture, "Go ahead."

"It's pretty clear yer not around from this neck of the woods: just how far away is the place you call home?"

"Worlds apart," I replied, then with a small smirk added, "Both figuratively and literally."

Applejack squinted with a smile as she brought a hoof up to her mouth, "You don't exactly seem to fit the stereotype of 'alien' all that well, unless you're hiding a flyin' saucer around here."

"I'm not," and then I fired back, "But you seem smarter than the 'redneck' stereotype, so I guess we're all subverting expectations."

Lyra snickered a little and clopped her right hoof against the ground, while Applejack gave a single hearty laugh and a smile, "Now's mah turn ta ask for sensitivity! Ah'm country, not redneck. Maybe one day Ah'll teach you the difference."

We quickly decided after that to head back up towards the Apple homestead, as we didn't want Applejack's absence to be conspicuous, and so she could actually have a little time to eat before she had to get back to work. It was as we were making our way back that my shroud snagged on some bushes momentarily, but thinking nothing of it I quickly dislodged myself. What I didn't realize was that while I was snagged some very ripe wild berries burst on my sheet, leaving some telltale hanging speckles of juice in the air as they merrily floated away.

It was only later that I found out that we had been eavesdropped on. From out of the bushes a very quizzical Apple Bloom leapt after we were out of earshot. The way her sister had acted was pretty funny she thought, but when whatever it was had touched that berry bush its shroud had flickered, revealing a very strange shape underneath. The inquisitive filly ran ahead of us to provide the illusion that she had been back at the barn getting food all along. She watched her sister and Lyra, waiting until she had bought a modestly sized care package with her bits and was half way down the dirt drive before she made her move.

"Granny," she turned to her elder, whose ear twitched at the sound of her little one's voice, "Ah helped out Applejack this mornin', but could Ah please get the afternoon off?"

The old earth pony mare shrugged, a smile on her wrinkly face, "Ah don't see why not Ah suppose: run along Apple Bloom!"

The little filly was out the door before she had even finished her sentence. Making sure to tail us from a safe distance, she stalked after us all the way back to the cottage. Stealthily she peeked in through the cottage's front window, just as I tossed off my shroud and shook myself free of the cramps from constantly being under it.

"Ooooh," I exclaimed as I began stretching, "It feels SO GOOD to be home and visible again!"

"So the trip went well," Bon Bon asked us from her pillow seat, flipping a page in the book in front of her as she did.

"About as good as could be expected," Lyra replied as she went to unfold and hang up her formal dress, leaving me to put away the food stuffs that would feed me for the next week. I turned towards the front of the house as I picked them up to put them in the kitchen, and I thought I saw some sort of motion outside of the cottage. When I didn't see anything else move I just shrugged and set about my task.

Meanwhile Apple Bloom sat outside just out of sight: her eyes were like saucers, and her left ear twitched sporadically. After she had collected herself she bolted from the cottage, running back towards the center of Ponyville, "Wait until the gals hear 'bout this one!"

Chapter 12 REVISED

The next few days passed by quickly, with only a few small events of note that occurred. I tried my first Equestrian Apple Pie, and it was incredible! I helped Bon Bon out with the actual baking part just for the experience; I really think she was appreciative of it too. I went to the library and checked out a few books: one or two books of fiction for the entertainment value, but mostly history and geography. While it was a slog to get through them I had time and motivation: I didn't know how long I was going to be here, and knowing a little more about the surrounding land couldn't hurt! Fluttershy at last pronounced me cured of the blasted cough that had stuck with me for so long as well. It was hard to believe at the time but I had lived in this place, with all the strangeness that came with it, for almost two weeks. Two weeks! It felt more like it had been months with the learning curve that I had come through.

In time the First Equestrian Orchestra event loomed ahead, and Lyra's excitement grew by the day. As she packed and prepared herself she replied back to Bon Bon in the living room, "Yes; I absolutely insist that the both of you are coming! I get one special guest, and with the other being invisible I get to bring a second one too!"

Bon Bon gave a small sigh and looked at me, "There's no point in arguing with her I suppose."

"Oh come Bon Bon," I exclaimed with a small smile and playful shove that slightly startled her, "I'm sure we can make this work. What's the worst that can happen?"

"When you're a realist, plenty," she replied. Lyra came back into the living room to sit down with us, and Bon Bon shook her head a little as she put her hoof to it, "Are you really sure this is the best idea? Getting Adam around Ponyville unseen is hard enough, but now you want to try the same trick in not just a huge, bustling city, but the capitol of Equestria? There's guards everywhere! How do you think they'd take him appearing out of nowhere if he loses his invisibility all of a sudden?"

"That's not gonna be a problem," Lyra said with a wave of her hoof, "Canterlot's my hometown: I know all the alleyways, back entrances, and hidden streets. We can go by those and only have to deal with about the same amount of ponies as we usually do here."

"There's still the issue of getting him there undiscovered too," Bon Bon fired back, "You can't just walk there, which leaves you two options: by carriage or train."

"Oh," I declared softly before speaking up, "And without a lot of effort taking the train isn't really a good one. With it being so small I'm bound to be bumped into." I looked back over to Lyra, "I want to come and support you Lyra, but this sounds like it'll be riskier than we initially thought."

She bit her lip a little and clicked her hooves together as she thought about what to do, "I suppose carriage is our only option then. We have enough time that we can allow ourselves to take the scenic route."

"You'll end up paying a premium for this," Bon Bon said, leaning forward to ensure Lyra looked her in the eyes, "You do know that, right? It's three days versus a half of one by rail."

"I know," she said with a small hiss as she thought about the hit her bit purse was going to take, "but having you two there matters more."

Bon Bon nodded her head a little, then slouched back into her seat, another sigh escaping her mouth.

I smirked a little and pointed at her as I looked in her direction, "If you keep doing too many of those you'll throw out your back."

Lyra chuckled a little to herself, while Bon Bon looked at me unamused, "You know you can shut it at any time, Red Face."

Lyra began laughing harder, while I too began to not find things funny: not at all.

The ride to Canterlot for the most part went fairly smoothly, which given our collective nervousness was both a surprise and a relief. For the most part I rode on the back of the carriage, hanging on to the other bits of luggage as best as I could for both balance and protection from wandering eyes. It was riskier being inside the carriage, seeing as it wasn't designed for someone my size, so I only rode there during the one time there were morning showers on the second day. That was another strange aspect to get used to: weather on a schedule, and a near perfectly accurate one too. We entered the bounds of Canterlot during the late afternoon, the blazing orange sun sinking into the west. Great plastered spires jutted into the sky like arrows, waiting to be shot towards the open horizon. Their normal white hue mingled with the dying sunlight, producing a wondrous color. It reminded of the many patches of California Poppies that used to grow on the outer edges of a town I'd stay in for a few months.

Canterlot was the current capitol of Equestria, and had been so for nearly nine hundred years. While it did not have the biggest population it did have the honor of being the first planned city of the country. For Lyra it was obviously nothing new, but for Bon Bon and I our first visit gave us a small shock, me moreso than her: the city was split between three terraces, each an enormous disk fused with the very face of the mountain. I can't imagine the scale of each, but suffice it to say they were massive. The lower terrace was primarily the financial district: local and regional trade took place here, as well as some measure of manufacture. Tourism did occur here, but it mostly took place in the middle terrace. Entertainment, services, and the majority of the residential areas of the city were found here. That was where our hotel ended up being, but the musical event would take place in the upper terrace. Culture, international trade and travel, homes and offices of government officials: all of them were up there, but the crown jewel of the city was Canterlot Castle. It sat atop the mountain as a shining beacon of ancient Equestrian accomplishment; a literal city on a hill. From its high towers one could see practically all of Equestria at a glance, and within its walls lived the two icons of the land: the Royal Sisters, Princesses Celestia and Luna.

The light had all but disappeared from the horizon as our carriage rolled into the Grand Canterlot Hotel. Before we had even come to a full stop I was already getting ready to delicately leave the back without being noticed. The two stallions pulling the coach halted just so that the doors to the hotel were directly in front of carriage one. Just after the coachponies had removed their saddles to retrieve the luggage I stepped off. For all my carefulness the coach did shift somewhat. The two ponies came around towards the back with an increased pace, but I was able to step out of their way without them touching me. Lyra and Bon Bon had already stepped down onto the cobblestone street, but they also noticed the concerned looks on the stallions' faces.

"Is everything alright," Lyra asked, a small trail of nervousness entering her voice.

"I think so, Ma'am," one stallion replied, "Thought we might have done something to the luggage when we stopped. Everything looks in order though!"

Lyra then went about paying the two coachponies for their service, a small breath of relief escaping her lips. The second stallion helped Bon Bon unload their things off the carriage and away from both hoof traffic and regular traffic. I waited off to the side, leaning against one of the foyer supports.

"Bon Bon," Lyra called out as she turned away from the first coachpony, "Can you manage to get everything inside? I just need a minute to...reacclimate. To being home again."

Bon Bon nodded as she tossed another bag on her back, "Sure thing, Lyra."

The coachponies, now paid, got back in their saddles and pulled their carriage away, giving us precious seconds alone to talk. I whistle softly, lifted my shroud up enough to reveal my foot, and tapped my shoe. Lyra immediately locked in where I was and nonchalantly scooted towards my direction.

"There's an emergency door down the alley to the right of us," she whispered, "If I'm not there for you in five minutes you're going to have to climb. Look for Bon Bon's or my face if it comes to that."

"Got it," I replied, "I'm moving."

Lyra moved back just enough to be out of my way, and she gently trotted into the hotel. I peeked my head around the corner to the alleyway. Apart from trash cans and the odd puddle it was completely empty. Perfect, I thought, No one to spot me if things get complicated. I jogged down the alley, my shroud lifting up a little behind me as I went, until I spotted the red door I was looking for. I stood just out of the doorway and waited. It wasn't long before somepony came out. I was about to call out to Lyra, but I stopped myself in time. A unicorn buspony exited. His horn lit up with a pink light, and he reached for a nearby brick with his magic. He then propped the door open with it. A small packet floated up out of his uniform, which with some small amount of shock I realized were cigarettes. Actual, regular old cigarettes. Putting one in his mouth, he replaced his carton back in his pocket, focused his magic again, and the end of his cigarette lit up with pink fire. He puffed at it expertly before he let it float out of his mouth, and he exhaled a cloud of smoke. I made for the door, opening it just enough to pass through the crack. I had to be fast, mainly because I couldn't stop myself from giggling. The buspony turned around, the air his smoke fell through disturbed by some invisible movement, and looked around for the laughing invisible specter. "This town gets weirder by the day," he mumbled. "You don't know the half of it," I whispered more to myself than anyone, then mouthed to myself, "A unicorn smoking cigarettes: the most normal thing I've seen in weeks."

I met Lyra on the stairs. She and I almost collided between first and second floor if I hadn’t popped my head up out of my shroud. She instantly saw my floating head, stopped, and motioned for me to follow her. Replacing my sheet over me like a hoodie top, she led me back up towards our room: Suite 312. Lyra had a little chuckle all her own as we knocked on the door.

"What's funny for you," I whispered.

"Give it a minute," she said with a broad grin as she looked up in my direction.

Bon Bon opened the door almost violently, her face flush with embarrassment and a spark of anger. "Get in here," she said in a hushed tone, then looked both ways in some vain hope of seeing a shimmer of me, "Both of you!"

"Why, Yes Ma'am," I said said in a mocking tone as I passed into the room, before I returned to a normal voice as I took off my shroud, "What crawled up your tailpipe?"

Bon Bon looked up to me with a near death glare, "Lyra didn't warn me about her plan for getting us a cheaper shared room," and then she turned to look at the unicorn, "I was going to pay for my own, and would have been quite happy to!"

"But now you don't have to worry about that, 'Sweetie,'" she said with a mischievous tone.

If the wording wasn't enough the inflection was. My eyes widened, and a smile grew on my face as I point from Lyra to Bon Bon, "So you-"

"You could have said we were cousins," Bon Bon snapped, "Nopony would have batted an eye at that, but NOOOO! You had to go and make a scene! Now everypony will think we're together when we're just friends!"

"Cousins almost sounds worse," I said with a snigger.

"AH," Bon Bon exclaimed to silence me, an outstretched hoof pointed at me, "Ah! No! Zip it!"

"Oh, it's okay 'Sweetie Drops'," Lyra said playfully as she stepped a little closer to her, "In the privacy of our own room we can be who we really are." She then booped Bon Bon's nose with her hoof, "Which is just friends."

"UUUUUUUUGH," Bon Bon groaned from the bottoms of her hooves, while Lyra retreated with a giggle. "For that you are going to get out of my mane," she said grumpily as she went over to the newspaper rack, swiped the latest one up, and sat down next to a lamp near the single bed, "If you are not out that door in five minutes I'm going to beat you out of here with a broom!"

"Horror of horrors," I said in my mocking tone once again, "not the broom!"

"You too," she gestured at me, "Either to keep her in line or give her a reason to stay out; I don't care which!"

"I'll show you the nightlife around here, Adam," Lyra said as she almost skipped towards the door with playful energy, "I bet you'll love the sights I've got in store for you!"

Though a little disappointed for having to put up with annoying invisibility, I couldn't wait to see something new with her, "Oh, why not. The night is still young!"

Chapter 13 REVISED

Because of course I couldn't be seen our options were somewhat limited for what we could do. We did go to a diner where we quickly downed several donuts and some coffee. I'm sure the owner had to wonder where Lyra put all of the food she ordered judging by the look on his skeptical face, but he got paid so he didn't have to think to much about it afterward. There of course were taverns and pubs we could go to, but sitting down in one for too long might be risky.

"We could always go to the opera," Lyra said in her normal tone, unafraid of anyone hearing while we remained on the backstreets.

"Uuuuuh, no," I replied as I rubbed the back of my neck, "That's definitely not my cup of tea."

"We could go to the movies," she also offered, "A couple of bits could get us three or four showings."

"Three or four showings," I asked in confusion as we hit the halfway point of the alley, "Just how long are these movies?"

"Oh, about eight or ten minutes depending on the show," she replied, unaware of my culture shock. She gave a little laugh, "There's this one actor, Happy Chap, who plays a bumbling stallion named Buster. Every feature he's in is comedic gold!"

"Yeah? What kind of jokes does he tell?"

"Tell," Lyra looked up at me, almost as confused as I was becoming, "He doesn't tell any of his jokes; they're all slapstick or situational, like he'll go into a building and in some way the whole thing will fall down around him but leave him unharmed."

"So you haven't gotten to movies where they talk yet," I asked, beginning to lower my voice as we approached the street ahead.

"Talking movies?" She shook her head a little, "That sounds completely weird. Talking would just ruin the magic of it I think."

Everyday it felt like I could laugh more and more at the strangeness of how similar but how foreign our worlds were from each other. "Don't knock it until you've tried it," I said just loud enough over the bustle of the moving ponies around us to be heard, "You might find they have a magic all their own."

"Until it happens here I will remain skeptical," she replied, "Still, why not give me an example of what your favorite movie is?"

"Hang on a sec," I said as we weaved through the crowd, angling for the next alley we could pass through. Once we hit the entrance I began my defense of my world's strange art, "My favorite movies are a trilogy, actually. They were originally a set of books written a long time before I was born. The author grew up with the kind of movies you're used to, so he never thought his work could be done justice by adapting it. When I was young though, some people did their best to do just that."

"What was it called," she asked.

I smiled to myself as I reminisced, "The Lord of the RIngs."

"And what was it about?"

"Well, I guess it boils down to this: it's a story about a hobbit, that's someone like me, but about half as tall, named Frodo, who goes on a quest with the help of eight friends to rid their world of a great evil. Action and battles were had, bonds were forged, and sacrifices were made." I paused for a moment as I thought a little longer on what I wanted to say, "What really stuck with me though was when Frodo started to lose hope that the quest could be completed, because his best friend, another hobbit named Sam, told him that were some good things left in the world, and that they were worth fighting for."

Lyra seemed to understand the impact this idea had on me, even if she wasn't sure why. She instinctively stopped when she no longer heard me walking beside her. "What happened next," she said with a pause, "Did they succeed?"

I nodded, though she couldn't see it, and finally I said with a small exhale, "It didn't seem like they would, but yeah, they did."

"Why would you say it's your favorite?"

I really had to think on that for a second. There were plenty of obvious reasons, but I felt like there was something deeper I was trying to express along with those things, even if I hadn't quite caught up verbally with what I was feeling. "I guess," I declared at last, "I guess it's because I need a story like that: one where in spite of everything going against me, there's still a chance there's a happy ending just over the horizon."

After that I felt a little awkward, and just unsure why I felt kind of embarrassed to admit it. I was so caught up in my thoughts that I didn't initially feel a foreleg reach around my knees and pull tight. Surprised, I looked down to see Lyra giving me a tight sidehug.

"Um-well-I," I sputtered a little before Lyra looked up right into my eyes somehow.

"I don't know why you feel that way," she said quietly, "but I can tell how much it means to you, and I'm glad you have it."

"Thanks," I said quietly, suddenly unsure of what I was feeling.

"It's not a problem," she said as she let me go and returned to all four hooves.

I wasn't sure what I wanted or needed to do next, that is until I heard a sudden but muted explosion of bass-y sound, followed by some electric beats and synth. Snapped out of my stupor, a moment of disbelief came over me, "No way!"

"What," Lyra asked, before she realized the sounds of my footfalls were already getting quieter as I was running down the alley, "Hey, wait up!"

It turns out that the music was indeed what I thought it was: though worlds apart from Earth, I could still get my electronica fix. The building it was coming out of appeared to have once been a mid-sized shop or small warehouse, but now held the role of a very colorful nightclub. Ponies were lining up to get in, almost to the next business over even! The bass thrummed, the speakers peaked for a second on some squealing notes, all before it was brought back around by some expertly handled scratching. It sent a thrill up my spine like I hadn't felt in a long time. It made me feel so alive! Lyra seemed to be enjoying it as well, but in a more subdued kind of way.

"It's good stuff," I exclaimed with a grin on my face.

"It's certainly got more finesse than most house music I've heard," Lyra commented, "It's got a flow and attitude that I'd expect to find in sheet music rather than something mixed together. Whoever's jockeying clearly has a lot of musical talent!"

"We should totally get closer," I said, the music inspiring a little bit of misplaced confidence in me.

"You know we can't go inside: there's too many ponies to bump into."

I smirked down at her before lifting my shroud and gesturing for her to come under with me, "I didn't say we had to go in: we can just get closer!"

She looked at my pantlegs and then up to where my voice had come from. "I dunno," she replied slowly, "We've already taken a lotta risks tonight. Can't we just sit here maybe and listen for a little bit?"

I looked up at the roof of the club, then off to the side of the building opposite of the line, and I said, "Come on! We can listen from up above, and we get to see what's going inside. It'll be fine so long as no one sees us go up I'd bet."

After struggling with a some reservation, Lyra stepped under the hem of my invisible sheet.

"There's no way we will not be spotted like this," she said as we both realized the shroud wasn't big enough to cover the both of us walking together.

"Just let me carry you," I exclaimed, "If I carry you we only need to worry about one set of legs, and we'll both fit that way."

Lyra looked up at me for a second then sighed with growing frustration, "Fine, let's just make it quick."

I squatted down and brought my arms out to gently scoop her up. She braced her forehooves against my right arm, I supported her back hooves from below with my left forearm, and brought the rest of my arm around to support her body. I could tell from her body language that Lyra wasn't really comfortable with this situation, so I held her close and walked as quickly as I could across the street. There was a flight of metal stairs in the alley that I quickly took us up two at a time. When we had reached the top I set down my friend, who was all too happy to be back on the ground again, where she could feel the support of something under her hooves. Jumping down out from under my shroud, she walked towards the large pane glass windows. I threw back some of my shroud so I could feel the night air across my face, and not have to look through the muffled veil. We settled down near the closest windows to look at the show beneath us.

Lights flashed, lasers zigged and zagged all over the place, and ponies danced the night away. Our attention then turned towards the elevated stage from which the music was booming out. Standing amongst the subwoofers and hundreds of feet of cable was a white unicorn, her hooves a constant blur. Her eyes, obscured by a set of specialized glasses, turned to one side of the board in front of her, checking the levels of her sound, then modulating her switches. She eased a dial to her right a little bit higher then gave her records a deep scratch, causing her sound to frenetically wobble, before her hooves came up in a grand finishing gesture, and the music faded.

The crowd roared in delight. I wanted to yell too, but knew if I did the fun would be over for the both of us for sure. Still, I was feeling a lot more comfortable than I had been before, so I started to take off my shroud completely.

Lyra noticed and looked at me with bewilderment, "Adam! You can't-"

"Just give me a few minutes," I exclaimed, "I don't want to feel like I'm hiding all the time anymore."

"GOOOOOD EVENIN' CANTERLOOOOOOT," the DJ's words drowned out Lyra's protests as she spoke into the microphone in front of her, "HOW'RE WE FEELIN' TONIGHT?"

The crowd roared again.

"YOU ENJOYIN' MY ARRANGEMENTS, EH?"

The crowd cheered and whistled in response.

"YOU WOULDN' LIKE MORE, WOULDJA?"

"YEAH," we roared back.

"YOU SURE OF THA'," she said with a smile, and we all responded back with another big yeah. "GRAND," she replied, "COZ I'VE GOT MORE WHERE THA' CAME FROM, AN' I'D HAVE LOOKED LIKE A RIGHT NINNY IF I'D SUDDENLY STOPPED, HUH?"

The crowd laughed a little.

"DON'T YOU FRET MY LOVELIES," she said as she switched records, "DJ-PON3 WOULD NEVAH LEAVE YOU HANGIN'. LET'S BLAST'EM OUT IN THE STREET, SHALL WE?"

We cheered. Even if I was separated by glass from the club below I felt like I was a part of the atmosphere. I felt like I belonged, and I hadn't felt like that in a long time. We all got to share in the experience: the music didn't care, and it entertained us whoever we were.

"Hey you," I heard a voice I didn't recognize. My senses returned to me, and I remembered that I wasn't invisible anymore: I was exposed.

Lyra whirled around, and the voice continued, "What're you doing up here?"

I jerked upward as I bolted to my feet, but I slipped due to my surprise. I tried to correct myself, but it was too late. I fell hard onto the glass pane. It only supported me for a moment, and then I was falling through it. It was all happening in such a rush, but I felt like everything began to slow around me. I saw the bouncer who had busted me and Lyra, head turning and eyes widening as she realized what was happening. I saw more than heard her yell my name. I saw the hole I had made in the glass as I fell, sparkling shards falling around me, yells and screams coming from below. It was a pretty big fall I remembered, and that now there was no suit to protect me.

What a stupid way to go out, I thought.

Suddenly I felt something grab my ankle hard. My fall was halted. It was at this point I realized my eyes had involuntarily closed, and now I forced them open. There was still at least thirty feet to the floor below, and though I had stopped I was ready to smack into it head first. Then I noticed the crowd. All eyes were on me; not a set looked away. I was exposed, with nothing to hide, as if I could hide anymore; the alien had gone public, and in the worst possible way.

Chapter 14 REVISED

"Somepony help him," Lyra screamed from above, "He's slipping!"

I felt her magic waver for a split second and I knew she couldn't hold me much longer. Ponies below were getting their friends away from the glass shards, but they were all looking at me. I'd blown it. For just a momentary taste of freedom I'd blown everything. Trying not to panic, I resorted to the strategy I'd used with Fluttershy: if I shut up everypony might think I was just a dumb animal, and the fallout would hopefully be less horrible. Still, that didn't matter for squat if I didn't live past the next few seconds. For a moment it seemed the crowd was too stunned to do anything but gawk at me.

The DJ was the first one to recover; she ran around her set to get onto the floor as quick as she could. Standing just outside the ring of broken glass she cast a spell at me that slowly began to turn me over so my feet were facing downward. "You 'eard the mare," she yelled as she rapidly looked to the ponies around her, "Give us a hoof 'ere!"

Lyra's magical grip wavered once again. From all around the room though a few horns lit up, and I saw that that their magic was creating a multi-layer platform for me to slowly ride down. The ankle Lyra had grabbed me by twinged, and I realized I was about to lose my balance all over again. Even as I prepared for the worst two pegasi ravers came to my aid, holding me up by my arms to give me support. Finally my feet touched the ground and I was safe at last, relatively speaking anyway. I gingerly leaned on my left foot: it turned out in her attempt to save me Lyra had bruised my right ankle. I drew in air through gritted teeth because of the pain, but tried my best to even out my breathing. The ponies around me could still startle, and I had to do my best to not in any way look hostile.

"Woah there," the DJ said to me in as soothing a tone she could muster, "Steady on." She looked me up and down, seemingly unafraid compared to the others around her, "Doesn' look like yer 'urt beyond the sprain," she looked up at me and gave a quick smile, "You'll be fine, champ."

I honestly wasn't sure if she was pretending like I could talk or somehow knew I could. Just to be certain I went along with my original plan: shut up and wait.

"Ms. Scratch," the bouncer yelled from above, which got the DJ's attention, and mine too. He had a very strong hold on Lyra's shoulder, who was still in shock by what had occurred. We locked eyes. No matter what we could do to correct what happened, we both knew the life we had tried to keep before was never coming back. She softly nodded at me. She knew what my plan was, and she was going to follow it too: shut up and wait. "What do you want me do to with this one," he finished.

"Bring 'er back around to my office," she yelled up to him, then lowered her head and sighed, "We can deal with this mess there." She then turned her attention back to the crowd and clicked her hooves together, "Apologies, fillies and gentlecolts, but due to obvious technical difficulties we will be closin' down early tonight. Once I get all this back up and runnin', we will be back in the 'party hard' business." The crowd began to murmur to itself, each pony wondering what would happen now. "Chop chop," Vinyl said with another click of her hooves, "It's time to go! You don' have ta go home, but you can't stay 'ere!" The ponies began to grumble but filed out of the club all the same, organized by the other bouncers.

"Now then," the DJ said as she turned back to me, "Let's get you back to yer owner: boy am I gonna hafta give 'er a racket." She stomped her right hoof against the floor and clicked her tongue at me as if I were a dog, and then turned and walked towards the stage. Embarrassed, but pretty well figuring I deserved some kind of punishment for what was about to happen, I obediently and silently followed her.

I didn't see it directly, but out of the corner of my eye I noticed an earth pony, a burly one too, staring directly at me, as if he were sizing me up somehow. He disappeared into the flood of ponies exiting the building; I currently had bigger problems to deal with beyond wondering about him.

The DJ entered a discrete metal doorway off to the side of the stage, which she walked through, and I followed. The hallway she led me through was dimly lit, but definitely didn't look like it should be connected to the room we had just walked out of: it was a creme colored hallway with a stripe of daisy themed wallpaper trailing along about pony neck height. I ducked down into it and followed the white unicorn to the last room on the left next to the emergency door that led outside. The bouncer was waiting for us.

"Take off for the night, Lancer," she said wearily, "I'll 'andle this one."

He nodded before he walked back the way we'd come from towards the employee lockers, "Alright."

The DJ stood outside for a minute, leaned from one set of hooves to the other. She then took in a quick breath, and opened the door. Lyra was sitting on a well used, but mostly abused, couch. A beanbag chair sat in the farthest corner near the couch, with a keyboard next to that. A guitar sat in its stand in the corner opposite her, with a mixing station near that. To my right and next to the doorway was an off-color fridge covered in half ripped off stickers. The floor was covered in a light brown ugly looking carpet.

The DJ looked straight at Lyra without saying a word. I'd seen this kind of stare before: it's the kind where you both want to intimidate a person and make them feel like the worse kind of human being on the planet. I expected it from an authority figure, but not from someone like this unicorn. Presumably just to make her point even more clear, she removed her glasses with her magic and set them down gently on her mixing desk. The stare continued, trying to make Lyra squirm: purple eyes to gold ones. Though she maintained eye contact she didn't even break a sweat.

"You know the front door's a great way to get inta places ya want ta go," the DJ declared as she walked in and sat herself down in the swivel chair in front of her desk, moving it so she was looking Lyra in the eyes once again, "Didja think you were betta than everypony else, Mintyfresh, that ya didn' have ta pay to get in?"

Lyra didn't budge, but I stepped into the room, remaining standing to avoid suspicion.

"I know yer type," the DJ said coldly, "the "Canterlot Princess", right: not lived a day withou' a silver spoon in ya mouth? Think because Mummy and Daddy are old money that you can waltz where you please, takin' your exotic pet with you all the way?"

Lyra didn't say a word, but it was getting harder for me to stay silent. This DJ might be good with music, but she was totally out of line!

"You're probably one of those Celestia Preppies, ain't ya," she continued on, "We'll I'm a strugglin' business owner, no thanks to yer offish pet, and I've got bills to pay. You let me know whoever yer parents are, and I'll get off your case, comprende Minty?"

"Look, back off, okay," I finally blurted at the DJ, "This wasn't here fault."

She looked up at me with widening eyes. Realizing what I'd done I swore: Lyra did too for good measure.

"For Celestia's sake I'd wish you'd keep your big mouth shut," she yelled at me.

"I couldn't just let her rip you apart and make up lies about you," I said defensively.

"I'm a big mare, Adam; I can handle my own issues. We could've been out of here quick, or maybe not have had this happen if you'd just listened to me!"

"But Lyra-"

"No buts," she blurted as she shoved her hoof in my direction, "I shouldn't have let you go as far as we did. You screwed up, and I screwed up by allowing you to do it."

"Well I'm a big man too," I said angrily, "so don't pretend like you're somehow responsible for me; you're not my mother!"

The next few seconds were spent with the both of us glaring at each other, each of us breathing a little heavily.

"Um," we heard a third voice exclaim. We both remembered simultaneously there was someone else in the room, and we both looked at our host with a mix of dying anger and rising worry. The DJ now looked at us back and forth, then pointed to me, "Did you say 'er name was 'Lyra'?"

"Yeah," I dumbly exclaimed.

"Lyra Heartstrings," she asked expectantly as her hoof moved toward the other mare in the room.

"Present," she declared numbly before she asked in confusion, "You know me?"

The DJ reached underneath her desk for a large cardboard box, which she lugged into view for us. Gently she flipped through her records before she finally came to the one she wanted, and lifted it up high. Lyra had a little gasp of shock. The sleeve was covered in artwork of a big urban industrial skyline, sunrise peeking up around the factories and skyscrapers. The title of the album was 'Trottingham's Soul'.

"Your composition is some of my favorite downtime music," she exclaimed, "Whenever I get 'omesick I put et on and just think about the streets I grew up on." Her eyes began to slightly sparkle with emotion, "You got wha' my city means."

To say this was a transition was an understatement; one second the mare was practically shaking Lyra down, and now she was gushing over her music. It was a weird but fortunate turn of events I'd say.

"Oh," Lyra exclaimed, a small blushing coming onto her face, "Well, I did spend quite a while there to get the feel right: five months if I remember correctly."

"You are an inspiration to me," the DJ continued, "One of my muses! If I could capture passion in wha' I create like you do, I would be a happy mare!"

"Well from what I heard you certainly have the natural talent for what you do," Lyra declared, which brought an embarrassed but happy laugh from the other mare, "I'm sorry, but I never asked your name."

"Vinyl," she blurted, "Vinyl Scratch, and it is such an honor to meet you!" She then gestured back in the direction of the dance floor, "Don't worry about the windows: insurance will cover it!"

"Why the big show then," I asked irritably, "If you were covered anyway?"

Vinyl looked at me, also remembering I was in the room now as well, "I've had to make a few too many claims over the past few months on account of my patrons." She nervously laughed a little as she looked back to Lyra, "If you had been a stallion, I'd of probably also guilted ya with some imaginary kids of mine."

I was visibly a little less than enthused by this, by Lyra waved her hoof, "Well, I'm sorry we had to meet like this. Adam just wanted to have a listen to your work. He was yelling right along with everypony else!" She looked at me expectantly and nodded her head gently.

Taking the hint, I sighed a little, "I'm sorry I busted your roof. Also, yes, your music is really, really good."

"All things considered, I suppose I should be alrigh'" she said as she rubbed the back of her head, "I can freelance to make up the bits, and I get to meet an idol and an E.T." She looked at me expectantly, "Tha' is what you are, right?"

I sighed, looked away a bit, and brought my hands up just enough to slap them back against my jeans, "I guess so."

"Tell you wha'" she exclaimed, "So there's no hard feelin's, how about I share somethin' special I've been cookin' up, eh?"

"Like what," Lyra asked.

"Oh, you could listen to it too," Vinyl asked with an ecstatic smile, "It's somethin' experimental I've been workin' on."

She turned around and switched on her audio board. Making sure all of her settings were attuned for her next performance, she took a record from out of a plain sleeve labeled "Mix #3: Testrun" and put it on a record player to the left of her table. She then found two sets of headphones in a nearby box of audio equipment and jacked them into her board.

"Right then," she said as she stood poised above her record player, "Put those on. When I give the signal I'll drop my needle." She shook her head a little and gave a giddy laugh, "Your minds are gonna be blown!"

"That's a pretty big claim," Lyra said with a smirk.

"Didn' you hear," Vinyl fired back, "I'd nevah leave you hangin'."

We put our headphones on, and all outside sound was cancelled out. We looked over and saw the DJ mouth her countdown. 3...2...1. At zero she dropped her needle.

At first there wasn't much too hear: just some scratching sounds coming from the record itself. Slowly I began to notice some sort of strange solo. It sounded like a woman singing a mantra, while in the background several other voices harmonized in almost a whisper. Suddenly a strange sense of euphoria came over me. In that moment I was happier than I'd ever been in all of my life. As i become conscious of it, while I was still indescribably happy, I felt a sense of almost vertigo. I looked over at Lyra: her eyes were half closed in surrender to the music, and tears were coming down her face. I felt like I belonged, but in a greater sense than I had with the music earlier. I felt great. I felt joyous. I felt...loved.

My hands flew up to my headphones, and I almost threw them away my hands were fumbling them so much. Vinyl nodded with a knowing smile on her face.

"What...What was that," i asked, my voice almost croaking. As I realized what I sounded like I brought a hand up to my face: I had been crying as well.

"Evah since I was a little filly I've wanted ta make others bettah through the power of music," Vinyl declared, "Eventually I decided the way I wanted ta help ponies most was through somethin' I want to call 'audiotherapy': enchantin' music and usin' it to help treat any issues they might have. The first track is called 'Sunshine at Midnight'. I want ta use it ta fight depression."

I heard Lyra take off her headphones behind me, and after a few moments collecting herself finally declared, "Wow."

Vinyl nodded with a smile and a laugh, "Right?"

"What other stuff have you tried," I asked almost breathlessly.

Vinyl shrugged, "Not much. It's been a struggle just stayin' afloat here, and this is a personal project at the moment. Besides, the hexwork needed for this kinda thing is really complicated. For now I've been tryin' out just the basic emotions: happiness, sadness, anger, fear. I've been workin' on apathy for what feels like forever, but I just can't care enough to finish it, ironically."

"Couldn't you see about getting funding from Canterlot University," Lyra asked, "They are quite generous with their funding if you can show progress."

Vinyl Scratch snorted a little to herself, "Do I look like an academic to you? Nah. No way in the heavens will I resort to that: too much oversight, and I'm not into authority figures."

Lyra nodded a little, "I probably should have expected that, but I just want you to be able to succeed. This is truly amazing stuff, and it deserves attention! Maybe you could talk with Canterlot Hospital and their mental health staff? It could do incredible work there I'd think."

Vinyl cocked her head a little as she thought, "I'll hafta look into that, but that sounds like a pretty good idea."

I took a glance at the clock on the wall above the mixing desk and realized with a shock we had been gone from the hotel for almost four hours. "Lyra," i exclaimed as I pointed to it, "We should probably get outta here."

She looked and her face flushed pale: we both knew we had been gone too long, and we had stayed here way past what we should have. "I'm sorry, but we've really got to be going," Lyra said in a rush, as she burst onto her hooves and tossed me my shroud, "It was nice to meet you Vinyl!"

"It was absolutely a privilege," Vinyl declared as she got to her hooves, "I'll be seeing you in concert in a few days!"

"Really," Lyra asked as she abruptly stopped and turned back toward her fan.

"Oh yeah," the DJ nodded enthusiastically, "I wouldn' miss it for the world! Later! Later, E.T.!"

"Seeya," I said with a small wave before I disappeared under my shroud and followed after Lyra.

Vinyl whistled appreciatively as she realized what had happened, "Neat."

Two bits slid into the coin slot of the payphone. The big earth pony brought the receiver to his ear and shifted the rotary dial. The waiting tone came through.

"Canterlot Telecommunications," the operator greeted, "How may I direct your call?"

"I need access to the following private line: 259. Authorization: Charlie-9-1-Sugar-5-Zebra."

"One moment." There was a pause as the operator verified the credentials, but she quickly came back on, "Authorization confirmed. Please hold."

The waiting tone returned for two consecutive tones.

"Hello," the voice started, but the earth pony interrupted, "Get me the Director immediately. We have a new contact."

The voice went silent. Another transfer. The phone picked up.

"Stock, I'm surprised," a deep voiced stallion greeted him, "It's not often I hear from my Quartermaster when he's off duty."

"Sir," Stock said with a pause, "We have a new contact."

He heard the small intake of breath over the line. "When and where," the Director asked.

"Canterlot middle terrace, night club on Bright Street, just five minutes ago."

"You personally witnessed it," he asked.

"Yeah, me and about fifty others; it fell through the club roof. It's probably long gone by now, but a pony either owns it or is collaborating with it."

"We'll keep tabs on that location, but for now I need you to come in for a full debrief."

"Yes, sir," Stock said, then hung up the payphone.

Chapter 15 REVISED

The next morning passed by uneventfully. Breakfast came early on account of Lyra needing to be ready by 8 for practice with the orchestra. Bon Bon didn't seem to notice how we ended up nervously passing glances at each other. Living in the morning after my enormous mistake was gut-twisting: whatever was coming had yet to happen, and waiting for it was maddening. It felt like I could see the axe above me, but the executioner was letting me squirm before they finally carried out my sentence. What would be the consequences for what I'd done? I wasn't sure, and that brought me worry to no end.

"I've got to get going," Lyra said abruptly as she stood up from the coffee table.

"Aren't you going to take Adam with you," Bon Bon asked without looking up from her newspaper.

"Actually, I think it's best if I stayed here," I interjected, "We already did a lot yesterday. Besides, we can go out later."

"Yeah, that sounds like a good idea," she replied as she went to grab lyre satchel.

"Huh," Bon Bon said with a small scoff, "Finally some sense seems to be catching on around here."

Things were quiet after that. I wish I could say it was the peaceful kind of quiet, but it was most definitely apprehension for me. I tried my best to brush it away by wondering how Lyra's practice was going. I hoped she was doing fine and not worrying about me; it was the last thing she needed on her mind. I couldn't believe how stupid I'd been, and my mind kept coming back to those events of last night, wishing there were some way I could go back and change them. At some point when I was lost in my thoughts Bon Bon had gone out, because I only realized she had gone when the door opened. I visibly flinched, which she noticed.

She took a long look at me before she finally asked, "What is going on with you?"

"Going on," I asked in a more quiet voice than I'd ever spoken in, "Nothing."

My earth pony friend's eyes narrowed suspiciously. She then trotted over to her chair; as she did I now saw why she had left: the afternoon paper was draped across her back. Settling herself on the edge of her seat she brought it around to in front of her, then opened it up fully. She skimmed the articles only a few seconds, turning each page with an agitated flick.

"Is there anything you want to tell me, Adam," she asked in a calm tone that veiled frustration very thinly beneath it.

"Ummm," I adjusted my posture in my floor pillow seat, "Nope."

"Really," she asked, before she cleared her throat and read aloud in a clear tone, " Exotic creature breaks up club scene; destroys property'". Her eyes angrily peered over the paper before she crumpled it into a ball and threw it directly at my head. "You stupid foal," she quietly exclaimed.

Admittedly I did deserve that after the mistake I'd made. The earth pony sighed and brought her hooves up to her eyes, rubbing them gently as she rested her head in them. "I knew this would never have worked," she murmured before she looked up at me, "Do you know what you've done?"

"Yes," I said hollowly, "I screwed up, but we can fix this, we just-"

"Don't you understand," Bon Bon said with a raised voice, "The world knows about you now! You had a chance at privacy before but now they'll all come looking for you, and once they find us, once they find you, you will never be able to be alone ever again."

I flinched again. Memories of sterile rooms, tests, and white blinding lights flashed before my eyes. The big earth pony; the one who had been staring at me. Was he one of them, whoever 'they' were? "What's going to happen," I asked quietly.

Bon Bon huffed a little after a pause, and started to slowly shake her head back and forth, "I don't know." She then got out of her seat and went to her belongings, calmly but hurriedly packing her things, "We can't stay here," she exclaimed, "They've already had a couple of hours to look for you, and we should have been gone long ago."

I stood up and stepped closer to her, "We can't leave Lyra here."

"You have to," she said firmly, "She's smart: she can find a way out. There's bound to be a lot of green colored unicorns in Canterlot the authorities could be looking for, but you are one of a kind. Ponyville's far away from here. I don't know if it's safe, but at least it's familiar ground."

"We were keeping up a masquerade because you guys thought everyone would spook," I said as I put my hands at my sides, before bringing them up again, "What's the point now? If I step up now maybe the cops will understand I'm not evil or something."

"Oh," Bon Bon said with a laugh as she shook her head and turned to look at me, "You're definitely not evil, just really stupid." She then turned back to her bags and murmured to herself, "Why I feel the need to help you out of this, I don't know. Maybe it's because you're not so bad after all."

"Ok, yes, I goofed," I said with growing agitation, "but maybe if I'm honest they'll just let me go."

"Adam, look at me," Bon Bon firmly said, and I did, "Now look at my world. I know you haven't been here long, but try to think from a pony's perspective. There's a lot of creatures in this world, and lots of them are violent and savage. Ponies will panic about you, but we should be worried about the ones who won't." Bon Bon closed up her bags, saddled them around her barrel, then tossed me my invisibility shroud, "We need to get out of town, then lie low and let this blow over. Lyra would want you safe if she were here, and Celestia help me I'll make sure that happens whether you like it or not!"

As much as I wanted to deny that things couldn't be fixed, she had a point. I'd made myself a danger for the both of them, and I was making it worse by staying there. To this day I still have a hard time comprehending the disparity between the coarse, frumpy image of Bon Bon I had had before, and the strong, caring mare I now know her to be. As we checked out, Bon Bon made sure to leave a message for Lyra, informing her that she had to take care of their pet, and was leaving for home. "Pass it to her hooves personally," she said with a forceful tone to the desk clerk, before she turned and walked out the front door.

"Where to now," I asked her softly.

"To the train station," she replied, before she began a quick trot towards the direction of Canterlot's lower terrace.

"But I thought you said that was risky."

"It's less so now for different reasons," she replied, "Carriages can more easily be stopped and searched, and on hooves would take too long. Just stay out of everypony's way and we'll be back in Ponyville by midnight."

"If I didn't know better I'd have thought you were some kind of secret agent or something with all this planning and dodging around stuff."

"No, I just think ideas through," she said with a bite in her tone, "unlike some people!"

"Look, can you stop that," I hissed angrily, "I get it, just come on! Uncle!"

" 'I told you so' is the only satisfaction I'm going to be getting out of anything for a long time," she replied in frustration, "I'm going to enjoy what I can!"

Vinyl Scratch was in a very good mood, considering the previous few days. Without being able to open up her club until she could get a contractor in to replace the broken window in her ceiling, she had spent many long hours working on her special project, tweaking each track to get just the right emotional response out of each. For now though she was taking a well deserved break: she had a concert to get to, and for once not one she had to worry about beyond getting there on time! Swiping up her ticket for the symphony, which she placed just behind her ear, she exited her studio and began her merry trot down the hallway towards the front entrance. She was just beginning to hum a jaunty tune that she'd heard a few years back when she noticed that the lights in the club area were already on. She readily saw movement from underneath the door. With the bouncers taking a few days off until things got sorted out, she grumbled to herself anew, "Wha' now?"

Slamming the jockey's exit door open, she was startled to find that her entire business had become overrun by ponies in uniform. A few were examining the covered window from inside the club, while she could readily see others going over the outside as well. Others were marking the area out where her alien guest had landed, while still more were combing the entire area with strange devices. Overseeing the operation were two earth ponies and a pegasus. One of them, the stockier, bald earth pony, she recognized as a regular of hers, though she couldn't quite place a name on him. The pegasus was chestnut colored, his body clad in what looked like some kind of rubberized armor, leaving only his tail, wings, and head exposed. The last earth pony seemed to be the one in charge. Sporting a set of half moon spectacles along with a trimmed beard, black cardigan, and lab coat, the tan colored earth pony surveyed the progress of his team, quietly gesturing to the pegasus and the ceiling, who quickly flew up to offer assistance to the analysts above.

"OI," Vinyl yelled loudly, which attracted the attention of most everypony there, "In case you lot weren't aware, this business is CLOOOOOSED for renovations, so kindly shove off and leave a mare in peace, wouldja?"

Everypony's attention turned to the earth pony scientist, who gestured for them all to stand down. Almost as one the group obeyed. He then approached Vinyl, declaring as he did, "My sincerest apologies, Ms. Scratch. We meant to have vacated here several minutes ago. We will only intrude as long as necessary, but you may go about your business as you wish so long as it does not interfere with our investigation."

"Well I'm pleased ta hear that I can walk about my own home without anypony else mindin'," she exclaimed sarcastically, " 'Thing is I don't remember inviting you in."

"In times of emergency our ability to act supersedes the need for permission or warrants," the scientist said matter-of-factly, "If you wish to give us that permission though, we'd feel obliged I suppose."

Vinyl's eyes grew wide behind her shades, "Yer not cops, but you're not E.U.P. either. Who in Tartarus are you shadies?"

"Ah, of course," he said calmly, "My manners have left me. Director Bunsen Burner of the Royal Science Division. We are on a hunt for the entity that fell through your club roof two nights ago. If you would be willing, we would like for you to make a statement about what occurred then, and any potential interaction you had with the entity."

"Certainly," she said with a nod, "I'd like ta give a statement." She leaned forward a little before saying a brief two words, "Bugger. Off."

"Charming," he declared before breaking into a prepared speech, "In accordance with the RSD Charter I hereby conscript you into the crowns' service until this matter is adjourned. You are hereby extended the benefits and restrictions of a government researcher-"

" 'Conscripted'," Vinyl yelled, "What are these horse apples?"

"It's quite simple Ms. Scratch," he replied coolly, "You work for the government now, whether you like it or not. For the duration of this hunt you will be perfectly open with us about everything you know. If you resist you will be brought into compliance. Your business is now ours, your work is now ours."

"Sod off," Vinyl said with a growl as she turned to buck the scientist in the face. Her hooves sprang back but made contact with nothing but air. Suddenly she felt something nudge her off balance. Startled, the unicorn fell to the floor, all the wind knocked out of her.

The earth pony stood above her for a moment before leaning down and picking up the ticket that had come loose from her ear. He then turned and walked out of her sight, and two forelegs began to pick her up, "Take her away."

Chapter 16 REVISED

Bon Bon and I made it back to Ponyville safe and sound even with our use of the train system. We were fortunate no one had stepped near me, but it was also helpful that we were headed out into the country: there would probably have been trouble if we had been headed to one of the greater urban centers of Equestria. The next few days were tense. Every knock on the door sent the two of us scrambling: me to another room with my shroud on, and Bon Bon to try her best to calmly answer it. Most days it was a customer or two, calling for a small, personal dessert rush job for a friend or loved one. Soon after our return we reached to Twilight for help and advice. Though we were surprised by the lack of news surrounding my 'public appearance' in Canterlot, we didn't want to risk any further slip-ups and meant to take precautions.

After we determined who it was at the door and that it was safe, we quickly let her in. I explained the whole situation to her: what happened, and why it happened. She blinked a few times, her eyes wide. She brought her hoof in front of her mouth before sighing into it, "Oooookay. Now that the water is under the bridge we need to come up with a plan should something like this happen again. First, we have to show everyone you aren't an animal, and that you don't mean any harm."

"That's as good a place to start as any, I guess," I replied, "How do we go about doing that, though?"

"We'll go straight to the top," she said, "I'll send a letter to Princess Celestia. If we can get her on your side, you'll at least have the Equestrian government's protection."

"How long do you think that's going take," Bon Bon asked, "I'm going to be honest, after the last three days I don't know how much more we can handle this increased paranoia we're living in."

Twilight nodded sympathetically, "I'll have a letter in writing and sent within the hour. After that, I guess all we can do is wait." A small smile grew on her face, "I can't imagine how hard it’s been for the both of you, living in hiding like this. I have an idea though! I'll talk to a friend of mine, and see if she can come and visit. She recently had to deal with being cooped up after she broke her wing, so she might be able to help you out with your restlessness."

That's ultimately how I met Rainbow Dash. A courageous mare, if a little headstrong and mistrustful of strangers, but she was always there when her friends needed her. When Twilight had asked for her help, she was more than happy to help her out, and I suppose me as well. It turned out that she managed a good portion of the weather detail in and around the Ponyville area, which is why I hadn't seen much of her around town. I'm not quite used to looking for people in the sky like that! Meteorology, however, wasn't Rainbow's passion: that strictly belonged to the Wonderbolts.

"So you want to join the army," I asked incredulously as she flew above me and my seat in the living room.

"Nah, not exactly," she replied as she flipped over onto her back, still floating in midair somehow as she did, "The Wonderbolts are a part of the military, but are more for boosting morale than anything. They regularly do stunt shows, but they also get called in for emergency situations or search and rescue." She arched an eyebrow as she looked down at me, "What's weird about that?"

"Nothing's weird about it," I said, trying to backtrack somewhat, "I just wouldn't have guessed that someone like you would be okay taking orders."

"Eh, I'll get by," she replied with a wave of her hoof, "When I fly with them one day that'll be enough: I can put up with whatever they want."

"You seem pretty sure that's going to happen," I said.

"Oh, I know it's going to happen," she exclaimed matter-of-factly, "Every day, no, every hour I'm not on duty or sleeping I train. I do maneuver after maneuver, trick after trick, to make sure that I'm the very best!"

"Like no one ever was," I asked with a little snicker at the end.

"Exactly!" She came right up to my face and gently planted her hoof on my nose for a second, " 'Like no one ever was!' I like it!"

"What made you want to join the Wonderbolts," I asked.

"I had family with them," she replied with a shrug, "and I want to help others by keeping them safe." She smirked a little, in a conspiratorial fashion, "Plus, I want to be able to show off while doing it. Nothing's better than soaring high in the skies, while others watch you do death-defying, super-awesome stunts, where it looks like you're not going to pull up in time, or you get too close to that mountain or thunderhead, and BAM! You do it in the nick of time! Heh heh!" She cocked her hoof back then let it fly upwards, and her body followed, doing a tight end over end tumble through the air behind her.

I laughed at her display of aerial and acrobatic skill, "Well it looks like you've got the enthusiasm part down!"

She chuckled a little to herself before she descended to the floor and came a little closer, "Tell you what: you've been stuck in here a couple of days now. What I think you need is a little outside time, and I know just the place." My eyes grew wide in shock, but she headed me off, "I didn't mean in town. There's loads of stuff to see in the Everfree! The outskirts are pretty safe, so if we can stay under cover of the trees and away from the edge of the forest, we can explore to our hearts' content! There's this one place I've been dying to see, but I've never gotten the chance to."

"Oh yeah? What kind of place is that?"

"Hang on a sec," she said, then turned to the kitchen area, "Hey Bon Bon, do you have a map anywhere around here? A local area one?"

"There's a small almanac in the bookshelf: second row, leftmost book." She then peeked her head around the corner, her body language showing her worry, "What do you need it for?"

"Oooooh, just you wait," Rainbow said with smirk as she jumped over to the shelf and quickly located the small booklet.

"I'd rather not," Bon Bon said flatly, "Last time someone got that adventurous tone in their voice we got landed in the situation we're in now."

After flipping through the first few pages, the pegasus exclaimed a quick, 'Aha' before sticking her hooftip right on a map of the outskirts of Ponyville. A large section of the left side of the map was covered in forest, but there was one section in particular that was marked as unforested. A small landmark sat in that area with a title just beneath it, which I read aloud, "Tumulus of the Kings?"

Bon Bon visibly shuddered. I glanced at her for a second to make sure she was okay, before looking back at Rainbow, "What the heck is a 'tumulus'?"

"What am I, a bookworm," she asked with a shrug, "Ask Twilight! If you're a normal pony, the place has a different name-"

"Spectre Howe," Bon Bon said with another shiver, "What are you two talking about that dreadful place for?"

"Okay, what the hell is a 'howe'?" I asked in frustration, but my question went unanswered.

"What," Rainbow asked defensively to Bon Bon, "We're looking for excitement: discrete, local excitement! What better place to take the dude than here?"

"How about for starters I understand why I wouldn't want to go there," I asked the air as I looked towards Bon Bon.

She looked away for a second before she turned back to us, "I've never been because it's...haunted. The Everfree Forest is already a strange, untamed place, but Spectre Howe is wrong."

"What do you mean, 'wrong'," I asked further.

Slightly upset, the exact words not coming to her how she'd have liked, she sputtered, "I don't know! It's just wrong. The ponies who have been there have said there's no wildlife nearby. It's dead quiet, because even beasts know better than to approach it."

"See," Rainbow exclaimed, "You're using all my good reasons like they're something bad! We won't have to worry about wildlife, and nopony's going to be around to see us. Besides, the spookiness is what makes it fun, otherwise it'd be just a bunch of silent hills."

"So why have you never gone," I asked as I turned to her.

"Nopony ever wants to come with me," she said with a huff, "Fluttershy is scared stiff of the place, but then she's Fluttershy, Pinkie Pie would rather focus on partying with the living, Applejack's always busy, and yadda-yadda-yadda! I think deep down they're all chicken!" She then turned her head to look me straight in the eye with a cocky smirk on her face, "The real question is, are you?"

My eyes narrowed, and I smiled back at her, "I'm no chicken! I've been to my share of haunted houses back home. I'll do it!"

Bon Bon grumbled, "Just bring him back safe before dark," before she went back into the kitchen to check on her next batch of treats.

With our new activity settled on, I grabbed a small canteen and filled it with water; within five minutes we were out the door, hiking off into the woods in search of a little adventure. I'd soon find I'd get a little more than I'd bargain for.

"What do you think it was though," Scootaloo asked as she and the other Cutie Mark Crusaders strolled through the main stretch of Ponyville's central circuit.

"Ah don't know, but Ah know what Ah saw," Apple Bloom repeated, "It was a big, weird thing; stood maybe eight, no, nine feet tall! An' Lyra an' Bon Bon were treatin' it like it was just the most normal'a thing as could be!"

Sweetie Belle slid her hoof over her chin, the little filly pondering feverishly as she did, "I don't know if this is a great idea, but what if we just went and asked them what it was?"

"Nah, they wouldn't probably tell us," Apple Bloom said with frustration, "Whatever it was, Sis was real hush hush about it; sent me away like she was just shootin' the breeze with Lyra, but I know her tells. It's hidin' fer some reason, so the only way we'll find out what it is is to find somepony who knows weird stuff, an' I know just the pony for it!"

The trio of stouthearted fillies arrived at the business they'd been looking for, and entered one after the other. The shop was filled with row after row of various trinkets and knickknacks, each a unique piece and with a unique function. Everything here was hoof-made. Some of it seemed useless. Some of it was just plain bizarre, and while they couldn't be sure how to even pronounce half the nametags in the shop, the fillies knew the proprietor would have the answer they were looking for. Approaching the checkout desk at the back of the store, Apple Bloom squatted a little to let Scootaloo up onto her back, who then with a small leap and a flutter of her wings reached for the attendant's bell and gave it a sharp ring.

It wasn't long at all before they heard a quick cry of 'Coming' from a feminine voice. A grey pegasus with a blond mane leaned over the counter after a quick glance elsewhere in the shop, and put on a big grin, "Hi there, Cutie Mark Crusaders! Welcome to Dr. John Whooves' Invention Emporium!"

"Hey Ditzy," Apple Bloom said with a smile, "We was wonderin' if maybe the Doctor were around. We need his help with somethin'!"

Ditzy's crossed eyes shifted as she leaned her head a little to the side, offering an apologetic smile, "Sorry, Crusaders, but he's in the middle of a big experiment. I could write a note for you though!"

"Oh," Apple Bloom exclaimed flatly.

"No, it's okay," Scootaloo said as they began to turn towards the door.

"We'll just come back later," Sweetie finished their thought.

"Girls, wait," Ditzy exclaimed as she flew over the counter and came to hover in their path, looking for their trust, "I Pinkie Promise that I will get your message to the Doctor."

The fillies looked at each other, uncertain for a few seconds, but then they made up their minds; she had made a Pinkie Promise after all, "Okay."

"Great," Ditzy replied with a whole new smile on her face, and she returned to her spot behind the counter, a pad of paper at hoof and a pen in her mouth, "What's the message?"

"We're just wondering if he's seen any strange critters," Apple Bloom exclaimed, "Like real strange ones."

Ditzy didn't even put the pen to paper, but one eye glanced up while the other remained staring down at it for a second, "Can, uh, you narrow that down a bit?"

"It's this weird pale creature living at Lyra and Bon Bon's," Sweetie Belle explained, "It walks on it's back two legs, and it uses the front ones to hold stuff with hands of some kind."

"It doesn't have a horn, wings, tail, or even fur," Scootaloo finished, "but apparently it has two eyes, ears, a nose and mouth, and can even talk too!"

As their description went on Ditzy's eyes widened and her gaze centered exclusively on the three girls in shock.

"Didya get all that," Apple Bloom asked.

"Yeah," the grey pegasus said numbly, "Yeah. I'll just, um, I'll just get that to him right away."

"Great," she replied before the three of them turned and walked back out of the shop, "Thanks a lot Ditzy!"

As soon as they exited out the front, Ditzy herself went out the back in a rush, heading for the blue shed behind the property. She knocked twice on the door. It wasn't long before it opened from the inside.

"Hello Ditzy Doo, my wonderful companion-" a voice began, but she cut him off, "Doctor, you're not going to believe this."

"Oh, I very much doubt that," he replied with a cocky tone of voice, "but try all the same." She gave the description, just as it had been given to her. "Well-" he said with a pause to clear his throat, and a quick exhalation, "You've certainly succeeded this time!"

Chapter 17 REVISED

The terrain in the Everfree Forest was treacherous and, just as Bon Bon had promised, untamed. I'd visited parks back home on Earth and thought I was decently prepared for what wilderness hardships would come our way, but it seemed I was sorely mistaken. Pits and dropoffs were common, some with only a few feet of a drop, some that seemed bottomless. Rainbow Dash was kind enough to survey the route just ahead of me, warning me of gaps and crossings before I would have even been aware of them.

"We're still headed the right way, right," I asked as glanced up at her.

"Positive," was her confident reply, "We're traveling by the sun. All we have to do is keep it to our right and a little in front of us, and we'll be there in no time."

I crested a small hill; a dirt path petered down from the top to a gap about two feet wide. Leaning back as I walked forward I made my way down the hill and strode over the gap with a wince of pain from my bruised ankle, courtesy of Lyra saving my life. Out of curiosity I looked back behind and down: this gap seemed to have no bottom. I shivered to myself as I turned away from it, "Is the rest of the Everfree like this?"

"What little I've seen, no, not really. It's mostly flat ground and easy paths. There's definitely more crevices here than any other part of the forest I've been in. My guess is the run-off from storms over the years eroded the ground here more than anywhere else. This area is a great watershed, and this is probably the flattest part of the region!"

After a few minutes more we came back to flat, stable ground. Rainbow darted a ways ahead, just to be sure it all was uniform and without any obvious pitfalls, and then she rushed back to me, a giddy smile on her face, "We're almost there!"

Remembering the simple description I'd been given of the place, I strained my ears to hear the sound of anything nearby. There was the ruffle of Rainbow's wings as she descended to walk by my side, the plodding of our feet and hooves, and our thundering breathing. That was it. No birds chirping, no rustling of the wind or breaking of twigs, nothing. Everything was shrouded in an impenetrable quiet. We stepped through some foliage and the small sproutlings near the clearings’ edge, and we had officially arrived.

Spectre Howe. Tumulus of the Kings.

We stood where we had entered for a moment, simply taking in the area around us: it was basically flat, no holes or disturbances in terrain. The only things of note besides the unnatural ambiance were a few mounds covered in grass.

"This is so cool," Rainbow Dash whispered, her voice shattering the silence.

I didn't really have a response. I was tense, sure, given the reputation this place supposedly had, but I wasn't afraid. I strode into the clearing, approaching the unnatural formations nearest me. When I realized I didn't have a companion at my side, I looked back from where I came. Rainbow Dash had taken flight again, and was eyeing the area around us as she slowly followed after me.

"What's the problem," I asked in a whisper. I wasn't sure why, but it felt like saying anything louder was somehow insulting, like this place deserved respect somehow.

"I dunno," she replied slowly, "If there's nothing around this place but us, why do I feel like we're being watched?"

I glanced around, now a little more suspicious of our surroundings. With all the other strange things in this world, who knew if this place was really haunted? After everything else I'd seen and heard of in Equestria, I wasn't above chancing a belief in ghosts now. I now noticed Rainbow's legs were jittering as she landed next to me, and as she looked down in alarm it seemed to be against her will.

"Don't you hear that," she asked with a hiss.

"Hear what," I asked in confusion.

Suddenly my anxiety was strangely put at peace. I felt something like a warm blanket drape down around me. I looked down at Rainbow Dash, bewildered by intense but out of place feelings welling up inside of me. She looked back at me. She wasn't jittering anymore, but from the looks of it we were very wary about this place now.

"Are you okay," I asked now in a normal voice.

"I...I'm fine," she said, "I didn't see anything, but just a second ago I was super afraid, and I don't even know why." She looked up at me, "Now it's like that fear is gone, and I can't tell if I'm more afraid now than I was before."

I think I had an idea of what she meant. There was something here, and it was injecting emotions and ideas into our heads. It was trying to manipulate us; toy with us. I didn't like it one bit.

"Alright," I said, my voice booming into the clearing, "I don't care what you are, but cut the theatrics! If you have something to say, say it to my face!" I probably sounded a lot more confident than I felt.

"Yeah," Rainbow joined in, flapping her wings and splaying them wide, "Show yourself! Fight me if you're brave enough!"

We unconsciously glanced at each other, both of us seeming pretty aware we had no idea what we were dealing with and feeling pretty unprepared for whatever it was. Even so, our bluff continued. All that answered us was silence. The feelings or visions didn't return. The apparent lack of a response was unnerving. Did whatever it was care? Was it still toying with us? The air felt a little thicker around us suddenly.

"Hang on," Rainbow exclaimed, "That's ozone! I'd know that smell anywhere!"

A faint light glimmered behind us. Our pupils shrank, and we stood stock still for a second. We then slowly turned our heads to look behind us. A greenish-yellow light hovered just around four feet above the ground, near my stomach height, and a couple inches above Rainbow's head. Startled, we jumped back a bit, each with a yelp, and we took aggressive stances instinctively, my fists at the ready, and her ready to soar into the skies for a divebomb. The ball didn't move beyond where it had appeared. Its light flickered somewhat, but it seemed to be waiting for us to do something.

After about a minute of us awkwardly standing ready for it to attack, I slowly put my fists down. "Okay," I exclaimed, unsure what would happen next, "You don't want to hurt us, I guess. What do you want?"

The light slowly circled around us. Rainbow Dash was behind me, her wings still flared. She snorted and pawed the ground with her right hoof. She didn't trust it, and she was ready for any funny business it seemed. The ball now floated between us and the rest of the mounds in Spectre Howe.

Without moving towards me, it floated to its side so it was directly in front of me. "Come," it said in an ominous female voice. It then moved to its left to just in front of Rainbow Dash, "Leave."

"That's not going to happen," I said pointedly, "If you want to show or tell me something, you can do the same with her."

"There's no way in Tartarus I'm leaving him with you," Rainbow Dash snapped at the wisp.

It floated back and shrank, almost as if it were conveying hesitance. "Show, yes," it replied once again with a female voice, "but understand?"

It floated away, amongst the mounds. When it noticed we weren't following, it flashed twice, then continued on more slowly. Looking at each other, in nonverbal agreement we walked after the wisp. As we journey further into the site, I noticed there wasn't any uniformity to the mounds locations or sizes. They were spread all over the place irregularly. My mind then wandered back to the names of this place on a whim. We'd now seen the spectre of Spectre Howe, but what about the other name? Tumulus of the Kings. Equestria had pretty much always been a matriarchy, at least from what I'd read. What if what we were dealing with wasn't equine in nature at all? What if it was some other species. There was a growing pit in my stomach I couldn't explain. What, if anything, did the sensations I'd received have to do with these other fragments of information I could recall?

On the far side of the site we came to the largest mound where the wisp had finally stopped. It seemed to be rectangular in shape, and was about twenty feet wide, seven feet tall, and a whopping eighty feet deep.

"Were you the one who put the thoughts in our heads," I asked the ball as we approached.

"Yes," it replied.

"Why," I asked.

"To explain."

It's stilted sentences were really starting to irritate me, as were the obscure replies, "Explain what?"

"Why we are no longer here." There was a pause, and it's light grew brighter, "Why we are extinct."

The emphasis it had used. There was still a part of me that was in denial, something that couldn't accept what I was hearing.

The wisp paused and grew dimmer. It seemed to shake, as if it were uncertain of what it was about to do. It's particles slowly started to expand, stretching out into some kind of form. Its shape became more defined, until it became sharp, crystal clear. Rainbow Dash gasped, and I looked on, finally forced to accept and understand what I couldn't explain.

A woman floated in front of me. A human woman.

She looked down at me with a tragic, pained smile.

Without realizing it, my right hand slowly reached out to her, searching for connection with her. Seeing my movement, she mirrored my gesture, her left hand stretching out to me.

Our hands met. A soft, warm tickling feeling ran through my fingertips where we touched. She felt real; not an illusion. I had thought that human contact was something I'd never experience again after I accepted that Equestria was not a figment of my imagination, but here I was now, seeing another, albeit one deceased. Even across universes, amid all the strangeness of the land I now knew, seeing even this shade lit a sense of kinship in my heart.

"Who are...were you," I asked her softly.

"It doesn't matter," she replied softly, "Where are you from?"

How could I explain it all? I tried, unsure how much shared knowledge we could possibly have with each other, "Somewhere else. From another place."

She nodded, her eyes drifting to the side as she thought. Her image grew brighter before she spoke, "We're gone, but our secrets-" She slowly gestured to the mound in front of us, "-are below."

"What kind of secrets?"

She took a long glance at Rainbow Dash, who looked back at her in agitated confusion, then looked to me, "What's her deal?"

"Earth shattering," the spectre replied, "Beyond anyone's wildest dreams."

"Why tell me," I asked as I took a step closer, "I'm nobody. I was sent here because I'm a nobody. What's so special about me?"

A small trite smile appeared on her face, "You're human. You're our legacy."

It didn't matter how she tried to make me sound more important than I was, she was trying to make me into a pawn. For a long time I'd had so many people try and tell me what to do, forcing me to do what they wanted. The world, the scientists, and now this ghost who I had just met!

"What if I don't really feel like 'being a legacy'," I snapped, "What if I'm not interested in being told what to do?"

She took my words in silence, her eyes making her look like she was lost in thought.

"You made it here because you have a purpose," she declared. Her form began to drift back into the mound, her substance passing through it, "One day you will see. One day you will set things right."

"What do you mean," I raised my voice as I walked towards the mound, yelling down into the grass and dirt, "Do you know about how I got here? What do you mean, 'I'll set things right!?"

The silence from before hung over the clearing again. Neither the ground nor the ghost gave me an answer. I began to look around the rest of the site, scouring the surface for any sign of human artifacts, anything out of place. There was nothing. Rainbow watched me roam around silently, puzzling over what the spectre had said, her face darkened: what could it mean by ‘earth shattering secrets’? In frustration I brought up my balled fists and threw them down again. Nothing! There was nothing here but the weird mounds and a cryptic, obstinate ghost! There was only one way to be sure that I would find something. I was legitimately about to get on my knees and start clawing the dirt away for answers, when I heard Rainbow say, “Adam, I think it’s time to go.”

I whirled back to look at her. “Why,” I snapped.

“By the time we get back near Ponyville it’s gonna be getting late. You don’t wanna be anywhere near here or anywhere in the Everfree after dark.”

There was definitely wisdom in her words, but I couldn’t let go of my frustration so easily. Kicking a tuft of grass in front of me, I started walking back the way we had come, with a short, “Fine,” as a reply.

Chapter 18 REVISED

Bon Bon had finished her last batch of baking for the day about a half hour ago, and was now resting in the common area of the cottage, distracting herself with a novel. At least, that’s what she had intended to do for the rest of the afternoon. She was having a difficult time putting that dream into practice though. Her worried mind kept drifting back to the situation with Adam, and especially Lyra. Sure, it had only been a day since the charity performance, but she knew that there was not a chance that Lyra would delay this long. She should have been home by now. Given the gravity of the situation she wouldn’t have bothered taking a carriage back, and the train to Ponyville was only a half-day’s travel. Something didn’t seem right.

She sighed, and closed the book in front of her. “Stop wigging yourself out, Bon Bon,” she muttered, “Surely she’s on her way here. She could be just trying to get out of Canterlot without drawing attention.”

‘How much you want to bet,’ her pessimistic mental voice replied. She ignored herself, but the dark murmuring went on, ‘What if she’s been caught? What if they had her?’

“Who would ‘they’ be anyway,” she grumbled.

There was a knock at the door. Forgetting her caution, she got up in a frustrated huff and went to open it. “I’m sorry, but I’m not taking any more business today-” she said wearily, before she actually saw who was at the door and froze.

A tan, bespecalled stallion in a labcoat stood on her doorstep. Behind him were a half dozen ponies in strange armor. They wore specialized saddles with various bits of gear attached, one even with some strange kind of long bore rifle.

“That’s quite alright: I don’t wish to place an order,” the labcoat pony declared coolly, “but perhaps you can help me with my business.” He then looked past her into the cottage, before politely asking, “May I enter the premises?”

Numbed by panic and dread, her head came up slightly and she stepped a little closer towards the door.

“My thanks,” the scientist said, before he turned to his squad and said, “Stand guard and await my orders.”

Bon Bon backed away from the door and tried to return to the exact spot and position in which she had been sitting before. It was impossible though, because her back was rigid and her muscles were taut and alert. The stallion nonchalantly stepped towards the chair near the left legrest of the couch Bon Bon was sitting in, and sat down into it smoothly with a small sigh.

“Ms. Bon Bon,” he began, “I am Bunsen Burner of the Royal Science Division. I’m afraid I come to you seeking aid under grim circumstances.”

Bon Bon, confused by this opening statement, replied back, “You need my help?”

“Yes,” he replied as he casually straightened the black turtleneck under his coat, “I’m afraid if we are to continue some further introductions are necessary. I am the Director of the RSD, a government organization dedicated to the pursuit of science for the advancement of the Equestrian herd, and the safeguarding of the same from paranormal artifacts and entities that could cause great harm to the civilian population.” He crossed one hindleg over the other, “We come to you this evening because we believe your live-in-tenant, Lyra Heartstrings, has come into contact with one of these beings, and we are concerned for her safety as well as others.”

The way he was portraying the situation made it seem as if he wasn’t accusing anypony but was instead on a factfinding mission. Still, Bon Bon held her suspicions and remained guarded, “What do you mean? What’s happened?”

“Four days ago at around 2200 hours there was an incident in a Canterlot nightclub: a strange biped creature fell through the glass ceiling.”

“I read about that,” Bon Bon replied with a nod.

Bunsen’s eyebrow raised imperceptibly before he continued, “No one was harmed, but your tenant was present with the creature on the nightclub roof.”

“I haven’t heard from her since she left for Canterlot,” Bon Bon replied with some false assurance, “She was scheduled to perform with the First Equestrian Orchestra yesterday.”

“Indeed,” he replied, “I was present for the event. She has quite a talent for the strings. Unfortunately after giving her performance we lost all contact with her. We believe the creature has taken her captive.” At first Bon Bon was relieved that Bunsen Burner and his subordinates seemed to be going down the wrong path, but then he looked her straight in the eye, “If you have any information about this being, it might help return her to you.”

Comprehension dawned on her as to his whole meaning, and she stood up to point an angry hoof at him, “Where is she? What have you done with her.”

A muted smile of vindication grew on his face, “And there it is: the final confirmation. The newspaper you read? It slipped through our media freeze before we could lock it down, but that publication was only made in Canterlot. You also called out my lie. To be so certain of my deceit you must know one of two things: the location of your tenant, or the rogue element.” He put his hooves up, “It seems between us all parties are accounted for.”

Bon Bon, at first confused by his mental gymnastics, realized that she’d given herself away, albeit unintentionally. She unconsciously took in a hiss of a breath, and backed away from the stallion.

He threw his hooves up in the air as if to dismiss the whole situation, “Fine, no more subterfuge. Let’s be perfectly honest with one another, since we now know where each of us stands. You have a being in your company who is a potential threat to the nation. I have the leverage necessary to deliver it to me. You have a very simple choice, each involving your cooperation. You cooperate voluntarily, as a law-abiding citizen would, and which I am told you are. You will help me secure the capture of this being, and I will leave with my cargo. Ms. Heartstrings will be returned to you in due course, and you need never see me ever again. If you choose to not comply, the same scenario will occur, with the addition that you will be brought in for a debriefing. Seeing as this being operates for an alien power, and given its dangerous nature, to in anyway obstruct our capture of the entity or assist it against capture is tantamount to collusion with an enemy agent.”

After sitting in slackjawed silence for this absurd ultimatum, Bon Bon angrily replied, “You’d charge me with treason? ‘Colluding with an enemy agent’? He’s harmless! He just appeared one day, barely able to breathe. Adam isn’t going to harm anypony or overthrow the government: he just wants to be left alone, in peace, much like I do! What possible reason could you have to be so inquisitorial?”

Bunsen put his forehooves together and clicked them twice, “I understand that my methods do appear extreme and far too swift, but swiftness is very much needed in this case. This ‘Adam’ as you call him, is no mere alien from another country. Our researchers have identified him as belonging to a race only spoken of in antiquity: an extinct race so ancient they predate the royal sisters.” He tucked his left hoof into the crook of his foreleg, while his other hoof went to his chin, “He is one of the Ruined.”

The name rang in the back of Bon Bon’s mind. “You’re willing to destroy lives to act on a hunch based on ancient myth,” she asked, “How can you expect he is dangerous if you’ve never even met him? What kind of scientist are you?”

“One who lives in times where myths and legends are real,” was his reply, “How long ago was it that not just the common populus but historical scholars thought the idea of Nightmare Moon was a work of dark fiction, a sociopolitical tool to solidify Solarianism as the dominant religion? Or what of Discord, an allegorical figure to explain why disharmony, entropy, and strife exist? There are still other larger than life figures in this world,” here he pointed an accusatory hoof at her, “and you’ve been housing one.”

He stood, “If there is one of them, there is almost certainly more nearby. With their powers and craftiness they would pose a dire threat, one unlike Canterlot or any other city is capable of facing, much less our nation. Now, Ms. Bon Bon, is the time for you to choose how you will help us. Will you protect your neighbors, or risk the rise of a crisis?”

Bon Bon felt utterly powerless in the face of this false choice. Either let life return to the way it had been, with the false imprisonment of a being on her conscious forever, or be put on the fast track to being labeled a traitor and having herself imprisoned. If this had been a few weeks earlier, she would have been more open to the first option: Adam was still a nuisance, that was undeniable, but he did not deserve to be taken away for the mere fact of existing. As much as she didn’t think it would be possible, she had come to care for him in her own unique way. She looked back up to the G-pony with a hard stare. “I suppose you’ll have to cuff me now,” she said coldly, “No matter what you think I still believe Adam is innocent, and that he deserves better treatment as a guest in our world.”

He blinked in surprise, having expected a much different result, but his tone remained the same, “Very well. I will note your statement, however I will be the judge of his innocence, and his right to be in our country.”

I stalked my way through the underbrush of the Everfree. Although it was only approaching four in the afternoon the forest was growing darker, as what little light that could penetrate through the canopy above had begun to pass it by. We had reached the more level sections of the forest, so now I could angrily trudge through it at whatever pace I wanted, which right then was a brisk walk away from Spectre Howe. Rainbow Dash was flying along at my side. While I didn’t notice it she was looking at me with a worried expression, probably because I was muttering aloud my thoughts in an aggressive nature. “What happened to them? Are they like me, or did they actually live on this planet? Did they bomb themselves to hell or what? Is this Earth or something? It can’t be; the moon and sun revolve around us somehow. Urgh!” I stopped for a second and locked my arms, staring at my fists before throwing them out, “Why do I just end up with more questions instead of answers? What the hell does it all mean!?”

“Adam,” she called out to me.

I caught myself this time so I didn’t lash out at her like before. I sighed wearily, “What, Rainbow?”

“Gonna level with you, but I’m not getting any of this. I mean, Twilight told me some basic stuff that I...sorta listened to, but I’m lost.”

I took a deep breath in through my nose, then exhaled softly through my mouth. I slowly began to walk again back towards Ponyville, and my acquaintance dropped to the ground to walk beside me. “Alright,” I exclaimed softly, “Where are you lost?”

“Well, you’re called a human, right?”

“Yup.”

“Aaaaand the ghost chick was also human?”

“Right.”

“Okay. How did ghost chick end up in the middle of the woods? I’m not good with history, but even I can tell those mounds are older than Ponyville.”

“I don’t know,” I replied, “I feel like now I know less than you do.”

“Are these humans like your distant relatives or something,” she asked as she looked up to me with a half curious, half confused expression.

“I can definitely say no, we’re not related,” I swung a branch out of my way, “but it’s weird to think humans exist in more than one universe.”

“Oooooh,” Rainbow Dash declared in realization, “So that’s what Twilight meant by saying you were from far away.”

“Yeah, real far.”

There was quietness between us for a couple of steps, before her questioning continued, “What do you think she meant by ‘earth shattering secrets’ anyway? What was that about the ‘legacy’ stuff?”

“Still not sure,” I replied as my eyes narrowed in frustration, “But my bet is they’re something awful: some big WMD, or who knows what.”

“Doubyah-Em-Dee,” she asked, the tone of voice testing the word like when someone is tasting something new they’ve never tried, “What’s that?”

I realized what I had said and immediately backtracked, “It’s nothing.”

“Considering you connected that and ‘earth shattering secrets’ I’d say it’s not nothing.”

“Sorry, I was thinking of something wrong, but it’s wrong, so don’t worry about it.” I didn’t even want to begin to imagine how I would explain such a concept to her, let alone any other pony. They didn’t need to understand that kind of horror.

“What would she even care about ‘legacy’ for anyway,” I wondered aloud, “If these humans are dead who would care about their stuff?”

“Well, she’s a ghost, right? Maybe she’s got unfinished business and she needs your help to pass on,” Rainbow pointed out.

I scoffed to myself, “That’s not likely to happen.” I then noticed she was giving me a strange look because of what I had said, and I continued, “Don’t get me wrong, I don’t know what she’s gone through or why she’s here, but I’m not big on focusing on the past.” I then quietly muttered, “and I’m not big into people anymore.”

“Hey, I’m not exactly stuck in the past either,” Rainbow replied, “but come on! She’s like your cousin or something; don’t you want to help her out?”

“You haven’t known people as long as I have,” I replied, “They’re always hiding something. They’re always looking out for themselves, and they’ll do it all at your expense if they have to.”

They appeared vividly before me, my memories.

The man who was supposed to be there to raise me, gone; thrown on a bus to some out of state penitentiary. Mom, who I had lived with but never been raised by, walked out on me and my life when I was 13, looking for the next fix. Aunt Marilyn tried to look after me in her sister’s place, but I was young, angry, and stupid. I had the makings of a family, but I looked for it in others. I traded that for a bunch of idiots with fake ideas of ‘brotherhood’ and ‘respect’. When it came down to it, they left me, and I took the fall. Auntie bailed me out. I couldn’t look her in the face. Whatever she wanted I couldn’t do it. I left. I drifted. Then I ended up here.

Rainbow Dash walked in silence beside me, and I her. We didn’t speak for a long time. I’d pretty well picked up that she wasn’t the emotionally sensitive type, but I kept noticing her trying to form words, but ultimately falling silent. She went on like this for a little bit, before genuinely asking, “That all really happened to you?”

“I don’t get anything out of lying, do I,” I said a little more frigidly than I intended.

Her feathers ruffled a little, and she snapped at me, “Hey, you don’t have to bite my head off! I’m just trying to help somehow!”

I bristled a little, before I let out a big sigh, “You’re right. I’m sorry I was short with you.”

We could both see the edge of the forest only a few hundred yards ahead of us; the light peaking through was growing cooler colored and deeper by the minute.

“Look,” the pegasus said at last, “I’ve only known you for a few hours I guess, if we’re being honest, but Lyra and Bon Bon aren’t stupid. I think you’re not a bad guy, all things considered, and they wouldn’t have kept you around if they thought you were. Maybe this ghost isn’t so bad either, and you just haven’t given her the chance she deserves.”

Her words were sobering to me. While they didn’t take away my frustration at the world around me, they did help me see I was being angry at the wrong things for the wrong reasons. For all of the attitude of the cocky ace she exuded, she did seem to care about others deep down, just like all the other ponies I’d met face to face. Maybe I was wrong about more things than I wanted to admit. Some of them personal.
At last we emerged from the forest into the early evening twilight. I was so embroiled in my thoughts that at first I didn’t see what was going on. It wasn’t until I heard a familiar voice shouting “NO,” that I was lurched back to reality.

It was Bon Bon, who was being hauled out of the cottage by two armored ponies. Near them were five others: four armored, one in a labcoat, and they were all looking straight at me.

“RUN,” she yelled again.

I was frozen in shock by what I was seeing: they’d come for us. It was all over. It was all my fault.

“Secure the target,” the labcoat earth pony yelled, “Detain the filly as well. Minimal force; she’s an Element Bearer.”

“GET OUT OF HERE,” Bon Bon yelled again, struggling against her captors, “RUN, YOU STUPID FOAL, RUUUUUN!”

The armored ponies began to trot towards me. Suddenly I felt a hoof hit me on the side of the head, and I jerked out of my numb state.

“Get to Twilight,” Rainbow Dash yelled before she bolted towards the four ponies, flying low to the ground and swiping just in front of them, cutting them off.

Twilight. The letter! There was still hope!

I didn’t have that big of a chance, but what little there was inspired me. I wasn’t good at much, whatever world I lived in, but there was one thing I could always count on. With the distraction and opening she gave me I took my opportunity. I ran.

Chapter 19 REVISED

My shoes thumped against the soft grass beneath me. The sun was at my back, lighting the way into Ponyville, but that light was fading fast with the approaching evening. I didn't care that I would be seen now. What mattered was staying safely away from the ponies chasing me, and the only place that could offer refuge was Twilight Sparkle's. I glanced behind me for a brief moment as I finally hit the dirt path leading into town. The soldiers weren't far behind; two unicorns and a pegasus. Rainbow had to be dealing with the fourth one somewhere. I felt my leg muscles stretch like guitar strings, and my lungs were beginning to burn. I hadn't had this much activity for weeks, and my body was beginning to protest. I shut it out, running over the bridge towards the outer edge of homes and shops leading into the town's center. I sprang off one foot to the other, gliding around ponies in my haste to get away. Some looked back at me in wonder, some gave a quick startled cry, but all gave way to let the soldiers through. What did they know? They might think I was a loose animal or something, and that they were just trying to protect others from me. I can't say I would blame them.

As I neared the center of town I blazed past a grey blonde maned pegasus cleaning the area in front of what I guessed was her shop. I left her spinning in mid-air, with a quick "Sorry!" Alarmed, she flew back into the shop without saying a word. I was close now. The Library was right there: I felt like I was just a few steps away!

"Twilight," I yelled desperately on my run up to it, then quickly yelled her name again, "Twilight!"

A window on the second floor opened up, and the pony I was happiest to see at that moment peered out. She saw me, then my pursuers. I saw her horn light up, and she yelled back into the library, "Spike, gang way!"

A bright violet-pink aura appeared around the front door, and it quickly swung open. I saw safety was just ahead, and without thinking I gave my last burst of energy to get there. I blasted into the library, only now remembering I had to stop at some point. I just missed the reading stall at the center of the first floor and only managed to come to a halt by nearly running face first into the far shelf walls, my hands bracing against the frame.

The door had shut fast behind me, with Spike taking the finishing measure of locking up. "Woah," he exclaimed in an alarmed tone, "What's going on Adam? Why'd you come in like a hellbat out of Tartarus?"

"What on earth-" Twilight was asking in bewilderment as she rushed downstairs, when heavy rapping hoofbeats at the door cut us all off.

Out of breath and barely able to speak, I pointed to the door and simply said, "Them." I was heaving for air as she approached the front door, trying to wave her away, "Keep them out!"

Keeping the bottom part of the stall door locked tight, she swung open the top half to see what was going on. Outside waited five ponies of the seven, who seemed now to be a little bit more reluctant about continuing after me. In a tone I'd never heard her speak in, Twilight looked each of them face to face with a formal but angry demeanor, "Good evening. Is there something I can help you with?"

"Indeed you can," the labcoat pony declared as he stepped forward, "You will release the entity who just entered your library into our custody immediately."

"And what is he accused of," she asked with a small snort of frustration.

"Being an agent of an alien power, with intent to harm the Equestrian herd," he replied.

"And should I refuse to allow you to have him?"

Here the earth pony remained silent. Twilight was a clever pony, as most understood, but she was well aware of who she knew, and so were they it seemed.

"Please wait while I have a moment with him," she finished without waiting for a reply, then closed the top stall door. She then turned to me, "Adam, what have you done? Those aren't just soldiers out there; they're some of the most well equipped ones I've ever seen!"

"All I ever did was fall through a roof by accident," I exclaimed back, agitated that she could think this was somehow my fault, "but it's not just me they're after. They were taking away Bon Bon, and they were thinking about taking Rainbow Dash too!"

Spike's face screwed up for a second before he looked at me in confusion, "Why though? The only thing they've ever done is be near you."

My hands went to my forehead and my head craned up as I closed my eyes, "I don't know. I feel like that's all I've said all day now, but it's where I'm stuck right now; a great big ditch full of 'not knowing!'"

Twilight's eyes narrowed, and she tapped her hoof to her chin, "There's only one way we can fix this now I think, and that's to go through with our plan to appeal to the Princess. At this point it might be the only thing that can get these other ponies off your back."

"But a letter will take too long," I said, my frustration building, "You might as well get on a train and hand deliver it, all the good that would do!"

Twilight looked at me with a confident smile, "We won't have to worry about waiting: Spike's breath is enchanted to deliver messages directly to her. It'll only be a matter of minutes!"

"Oh," I exclaimed, sheepishly. It seemed I was still used to a world without the everyday miracles of magic. Spike, in the meantime, had retrieved a quill and parchment and was readying himself for Twilight's dictation. While I'd never noticed it before, it was clear to me now how much of a team the two of them were.

"Dear Princess Celestia," she began, walking around the small room to follow whatever her thought process was. There was another knock at the door, and we all knew then our time was running out before she had to return with an answer.

She restarted, "Dear Princess Celestia, I'm writing to you with an urgent matter. A member of a hitherto undiscovered race has come to me seeking asylum. We spoke briefly of him before: his name is Adam, and he is being oppressed by members of some military squad. I would ask that you intercede on his behalf, and act as an impartial arbitrator between him and these other ponies. Your faithful student, Twilight Sparkle."

With a final swirl on the 'e' of her name, Spike was finished and he nodded to her. Twilight once again walked to the front door, while I watched Spike roll up the parchment and seal it. With the scroll now immaculately ready, he then lightly blew on it, green flames sparking along its length, before it vanished in a small puff of smoke. The smoke drifted upwards, as though with a sense of purpose and direction. Though she had tried to comfort me, and she was confident in her teacher, I was still nervous. Celestia was the head of the government, so wouldn't these ponies already be acting with her orders? I supposed that Twilight trusted they were out of line, but I had no inherent trust. I didn't know what was going to happen, but I knew that I'd be meeting my fate soon enough, whatever way things went.

The door had just closed on Bunsen Burner and his squad. He knew Twilight would never give up on this cause if she saw him and his squad as anything but defenders of the public safety. Fortunately he had accounted for a number of possibilities, and he launched his plan B.

He turned to the pegasus soldier with the long bore rifle, "Set up, and look for my signal. I'll be near the southwest window." He then turned to the others, "Maintain a perimeter should things escalate and he finds a route to escape."

The ponies nodded and replied with quick, "Sirs," and variations thereof, before breaking for their positions. The pegasus soldier flew above the library, about fifty feet up, before he spotted a low-lying cloud a few hundred feet away that would prove the ideal vantage point. Placing himself down on the cloud, he rolled it halfway over himself, giving him a concealed snipe box from out of which he had eyes on both the target area and his window. Settled in for the right moment, he prepped his rifle, placed the war saddle's trigger just inside his mouth and waited, ready for the moment when his jaw had to twitch into the ready position. The others created a triangular perimeter around the library, all eyes pointed in, prepared for the target to flee.

While there were now many curious eyes looking their way and many murmuring voices among them, there were two sets of eyes that stuck out from all the rest. One, the grey pegasus mare, Ditzy Doo, who was looking straight at the army ponies: the other set were the brown eyes of one Dr. John Whooves.

"What do you think's gonna happen, Doctor," she asked quietly.

He stared at their armor, sizing it up, judging its chemical makeup at a glance, and gauging the muscle density of each soldier's body. He breathed in deeply through his nose before he replied in a low murmur, "I do not know, Ditzy. I do not know."

"Isn't there some way we can intervene," she asked quietly as she looked to him, "With all you've said about them, surely this human can't be all bad."

"Oh, dozens," he replied off-handedly, "A few successful ones, and one even involving a unicycle. Right now, however, it would be best to watch and wait."

While he didn't turn to look at her, his face momentarily flashed in her direction, revealing a few points of light shining out of the afterimage, and a much larger form behind the shape of the pony in front of her. It was a momentary flash, one which you'd have to have been looking at him in the moment it occurred for it to be noticed. It was a singular error, and then it was gone, replaced once again by the more comfortable equine facsimile projection.

"We don't want to spread undue panic," he finished.

The library door swung fully open, and Twilight stood in the doorway between the earth pony and her home. He was a half head taller than her, but she didn't allow this to intimidate her one bit, and let him know for certain with a pronounced frown on her face. She noticed the other ponies were gone, until she saw one standing sentry looking in at the library door a few yards away. The building was surrounded it seemed. She meant to show everypony that such a measure was unnecessary and insulting.

"I'd like to invite you inside," she said with a very evident agitated tone, "I've asked the Princess to help mediate this...harassment."

He noticed her pointed choice of words, but dismissed it, "Very well. If conflict mediation is what you're seeking, though, there is no need. There is no conflict, except that which I hope to avert."

Surprised by his words, she tried to open diplomacy by meeting him in common ground, "Then we're of the same mind it seems, Mr.-"

"Bunsen Burner," he replied, "and I very much doubt we are. The entity you're championing is as much a danger to itself as it is to us all."

Her frustration grew with the obstinate stallion, but she contained her feelings behind an air of civility, "I was taught by Celestia that every species deserves its chance to prove itself, and to be offered the friendship of other races."

A light appeared in the library as a teleport flash dissipated. Bunsen leaned a tiny bit forward to say in a quieter tone, "Not too long ago, so was I."

Twilight's eyes grew wide as her mind quickly processed the meaning of his words, but she was interrupted by a sweet familiar voice, "Twilight, so good to see you. Bunsen, I'm surprised to see you so far from Canterlot."

“A necessary cause drives me,” he replied as he stepped around Twilight to enter into the library, “I’m afraid, my good mentor, it has to do with the strange being among us.”

When my eyes had adjusted to the bright light that had spontaneously appeared nearby, I saw the form of a great white horse. Her horn was the longest I had ever seen, and her wings, though tucked snuggly away, were bound to have an enormous span. Her mane flowed like aether in the air, its pastel colors complimenting her serene disposition. I could most definitely see the family resemblance between her and Luna. Working off that thought, I hoped to personally reach out to her, without the intervention of this ‘Bunsen’ pony. Opening my mind as I had before during my last royal experience, I thought as loud as I could, I’m innocent; please help me. I’m innocent; please help me!

When she turned to scrutinize me I thought I’d done it, but when no obvious reply came I began to worry that perhaps she wasn’t as much like her sister as I had hoped. She did seem to notice the intense look I was inadvertently wearing on my face, but she smiled all the same, “Hello there! I take it that you are the Adam that Twilight mentioned?”

I nervously chuckled a little and replied, “Uh, yep! That’s me.”

She took a step to my left, looking over me, examining my physical form as if I was some sort of zoo animal. It agitated me, but given the situation it was best to let things slide. Out of the corner of my eye I saw Bunsen’s left hoof return to the floor, and he cleared his throat, “Princess-”

“My apologies, Bunsen,” she declared as she looked back to the old stallion, then to me, our faces practically at the same height, “and my apologies to you as well: it’s been a long time since I’ve seen something new. I’ve forgotten what that kind of awaiting curiosity feels like.” I felt a subtle anger begin to burn inside me, but I buried it deeper and held my silence. She looked back to the other two ponies in the room, and addressed them, “My students, I trust the both of your judgment, and I believe you are each acting with only the best of intentions in mind. However, I’d like to hear Adam’s testimony first.” She looked to me again, and smiled, “He does, after all, have the unequivocal right to defend himself.”

Though an informal court, there was now no more important case for me than proving myself. I gave a sigh of relief, “Thank you, Princess.”

“Please, tell us what is going on here,” she asked, her dulcet tones putting me at ease, her voice somehow carrying with it a sense of wisdom and maternity that I’d never experienced. It actually felt like everything was going to be alright, now that she was listening. “Just tell me how you see what’s happening, and don’t worry about any ill will: there’s none here.”

While I wasn’t so sure about the stallion in regards to that last bit, I felt like I at least had her ear. Now I saw why Twilight spoke so highly of her. “Well,” I began after a small cough, “to make a long story short, I was sent here from another world, and I want to live here peacefully. Given how nervous others might be about me, Twilight gave me an invisible shroud to able to move through Ponyville and meet with her friends. I was in Canterlot a few days ago with two friends, Lyra and Bon Bon, when I messed up and a lot of ponies saw me.” My anger was growing again, but somehow it felt like not all of it was mine. I pointed to the stallion standing by the window, “Now Lyra is missing, and Bon Bon’s been carried away, thanks to him!”

The Princess’ smile had faded, and was now replaced by a thin pursed line as she listened to my account. She then turned to the earth pony, “Bunsen, what have you to say in regards to this matter?”

He straightened up a bit, adjusting his glasses, and spoke in the most condescending tone I’d ever heard, “This ‘Adam’ was seen by a group of ponies in a Canterlot nightclub, when he fell through the pane glass roof above them. No substantial injuries were reported, but he’s a threat to the public, aside from the property damage already perpetrated.”

How could they stand his talking? It was making my blood boil! I fumed in silence. He continued, “As for the two mares he mentioned, we’ve taken Ms. Bon Bon in for questioning. She is not being charged with any crime, as we are taking her into protective custody. The Lyra he mentioned is Lyra Heartstrings. She’s been missing for several days now.”

“And so what,” Spike blurted out furiously, “You think Adam’s responsible somehow for her disappearance? That’s idiotic!”

Bunsen offered no comment. Twilight shot Spike a look that told him he had overstepped his bounds, but he defiantly looked back at her before addressing the Princess, “Look, I might not have been in his company for very long, but Twilight and I have talked with him. We took notes for hours! He’s no kidnapper. Besides, he lives with Lyra and Bon Bon; if he had wanted to take them somewhere he didn’t have to wait to do it in Canterlot!”

“I fully agree with Spike’s observation,” Twilight declared, before adding with a bit more bite than I would have expected from her, “Despite his apparent lack of tact!”

Finally, something was going my way! Though still frustrated with him, she did seem happy with his calling out of the old stallion. I’d not really paid him much attention before, but I was counting my lucky stars now on account of that little dragon!

“A high profile abductee was initially the reason we were tracking him,” Bunsen replied as he yet again adjusted his glasses, “but information has come to light which has increased our wariness of him. Being a member of the Ruined, we understand the seriousness of the threat he represents to all other beings.”

There was a now a strange audible thrumming sound in the air. It felt like it was focusing on the back of my head. I then angrily yelled at the stallion, “What the hell is a ‘Ruined?’”

The Princess looked at me, and I glanced at her, then to Twilight. Princess Celestia’s eyes had grown wide, while Twilight’s mouth had come slightly open in alarm.

“It is what you are,” Bunsen declared, his hoof coming up to his glasses again, “You enjoyed the pain of our ancestors; you hid them away in dark holes. You crave dominion but poison everything you touch.”

A fire burned inside me like I’d never felt before; anger so hot it turned my blood to acid, and my eyes felt as if they were masked in red. I roared in frustration, and I meant to run towards the stallion and rip him apart. I was sick of being told who I was and who I should be! Why couldn’t I have my friends back? Why couldn’t things be the way they were? I felt a sharp blow hit me in the back of the head. I heard the sound of glass shattering nearby. My knees hit the floor, and I slumped to the side, crumpled on the library floor. As my mind drifted away, I tried to mentally call out to Luna for help, but it was beyond me. Why couldn’t things be...right...

Chapter 20 REVISED

Princess Celestia saw everything go wrong all at once, her heightened senses causing everything to appear as if it was transpiring in slow motion. Adam had snapped. He was rushing towards her former student, Bunsen Burner. Acting on instinct, she intervened. In a flash of golden light, particles of magic spontaneously appeared, coalescing into the shape of a long sword, its blade shaped in a waved pattern, its guards like two elegant flames. She sprang off of her back legs, clearing the gap between her and the being easily. She brought her blade up, and her hilt came down, striking him across the back of the head in a clean blow. His body crumpled beneath him. Suddenly glass burst into the room: the window in the front of the library facing the southwest had burst inward. A strange, nearly melodic sound, one which seemed both familiar and alien, ceased. She hadn't noticed its presence until it had vanished. Time it seemed had also returned to its normal pace, and she became more aware of her surroundings.

Bunsen was shaking off bits of glass from his back, a grimace on his face. The unconscious creature lay before her. She then turned to Twilight and Spike, and quickly asked, "Are you both alright?"

Spike nodded his head, a quiet 'yeah' escaping his lips. Twilight was speechless, her mouth open as she looked down at the human, then back up at her. The Princess then realized that the both of them weren't staring at her, but right next to her. She quickly glanced at her side, realizing her sword was still there, blade pointed downward but at the ready. She quickly dematerialized it, waving the golden dust away left in the air with her right wing.

She turned to Bunsen once again, her expression now back to its practiced blank poker face, "Search him." He strode over to the fallen being and began to flip him over.

"I-" Twilight tried to say, then she began again, a little stronger this time, "I don't understand."

The Princess turned back to her, a small sympathetic frown on her face.

"He was looking for help," she continued as she walked towards Adam's body, "He wasn't like this before. He just wanted to be left in peace."

The Princess stopped her student as she tried to go around her, bringing her into a quick hug, "Oh Twilight. I'm so sorry." She broke the embrace, but keep a firm hoof on her right shoulder with her left hoof. "It can sometimes be that foul enemies come in fair guises," she declared, "Believe me, in my many years I've seen it time and time again."

"He's been around a lot of ponies, including me, and never acted like this before," Twilight said with a small shake of her head, "He's not like what the legends ever said. He's not like them!"

"No weapons," Bunsen called out, "He only has a canteen it seems. He might have set up a shelter in the Everfree, or taken a quick walk there: it wouldn't hold more than a day's water."

The Princess looked over her shoulder to him and gave a quick nod, "Bunsen, you have my permission to take him into custody. Put all your resources towards finding the missing mare."

He gave a stiff nod in lieu of a bow and turned to get his squad's help, "As you wish."

"And Bunsen-"

He turned back to her.

"Treat him better than he did you," she commanded, "Show him what we've become in their absence."

Another quick nod, a 'Your Majesty', and he trotted out the door, coordinating his troops.

Spike strolled toward the broken window, looking at the shards he now had to clean up. "What a mess," he grumbled to himself softly. He was about to go to the nearby closet and retrieve the dustpan and broom when he noticed something odd outside. A small solitary cloud, which practically sat smack in the center of the oak frame of the wall, suddenly had its bottom drop out beneath it. A lone figure, an armored pegasus, slipped out from within the cloud and flew away. Judging by its direction it was heading northeast towards the train station. Spike's draconic eyes narrowed, and as Bunsen came back in to oversee the two armored ponies carrying Adam out, his suspicions grew.

"I cannot stay here any longer," the Princess declared as she turned to Twilight, who now stood at her side as they watched the procession remove the being from the library, "One of the Ruined is a threat, but if there are more...preparations must be made." She craned her neck down so she was at eye level with her student, "I know this has to have been traumatic for you and Spike. If you need anything don't hesitate to write."

"Yes...Princess," Twilight replied dejectedly, her voice just as broken as her will.

"Rest well tonight," the Princess murmured, before she walked to Bunsen's side, who stood near the door, "I'm sure you're keen to get to your observations about him, but as soon as you get back to Canterlot I want a packet concerning the Ruined in front of me with everything from our archive. I also want a progress report every twelve hours on the rescue status of our missing pony. Set your priority on finding out whether this was just a lone figure, or if there are others nearby."

"It will take us a few hours to return, but I'll have the Lieutenant begin compiling our findings once we can hail him."

"Safe travels, Bunsen," she declared, before she vanished in a flash of light.

The earth pony stood momentarily in the doorway, before he exited. With a quick wordless glance he looked back at Twilight for a moment before he closed the door behind him, and trotted off into the evening's growing darkness.

The crowd ringing the library began to disperse as the soldier's capture was brought out, their destination an emergency high speed engine and rail car parked on the secondary train track. There were a few faces in the crowd who recognized their quarry. Rarity looked on in alarm, but did her best to restrain Pinkie Pie, covering her mouth. As the energetic pony tried to speak around her friend's hoof, the unicorn muttered, "There's nothing that can be done for him right now. What we can do is talk with Twilight and find out what mess our biped friend has gotten himself into. See to getting the others, would you?"

"Oo-ie Doo-ie Lo-ie," replied with concern but also muffled enthusiasm, her mouth still full of hoof.

"What now," Ditzy Doo asked solemnly as they watched the soldiers pass.

Despite their attempts to be quiet, the Doctor had overheard everything the two friends had been discussing. "We wait for the Elements to arrive," he murmured with a quick gesture of his head towards the two now retreating ponies, "If I had to wager I'd say they want to get him back as much as we do. We have our various motivations, but what we all need is a rescue plan."

Twilight set down the third book she had skimmed through in the past twenty minutes. “Nothing useful at all,” she muttered in frustration and turned to the next in the stack near her.

Spike was quick to swipe up the now discarded book and walked back to the nearby shelves to put it back in its place near its fellows, “What exactly are you looking for, anyway? You didn’t really explain.”

Twilight finished the last sentence she had read, gazed up at the ceiling to collect her thoughts for a moment, and then turned to look at him, “I’m looking for any definite information on the Ruined. So far I’ve got nothing that really feels concrete aside from a hint on their physical description. In Zebra culture they have their own more benevolent interpretation of what they are. They called them the Upright Ones.” Twilight gave a little snort, “I guess if the connection is true their ancients were a bit more literal than ours.”

Spike looked at her curiously as he came back to the table, placing his claws on the tempered wood edge, “So I’m still really not getting this. Why have I never heard of them, whatever they’re called, before?”

“You know how ponies had a hard time remembering Nightmare Moon,” she asked.

“Yeah.”

“That was just a thousand years. The myths about the Ruined are even older than that. Good record keeping and archiving didn’t really start until around YOL 300, so what we do have are recordings of oral tradition, each retelling potentially different from the last.”

“Sounds like that’d be mess to get all those different versions written down,” Spike declared with wonder.

“There do seem to be some agreed upon details though,” Twilight said as she jotted down a new note as she continued reading, “The Ruined had their dominion over the world before the First Diarchial period, so that puts us hundreds of years before the establishment of the Solarian calendar system we use today. They were said to have been slavers and masochists, as well as summoners and retainers of demons.”

“What is a masochist?”

“It’s, uh, somepony who enjoys pain, specifically pain inflicted on themselves.”

“Oooookaaaay,” Spike said, momentarily surprised and confused by such a strange idea, “What was that about demons?”

“It’s believed they actually made Tartarus as a home for the creatures they summoned. They put more than half the things believed to be in there for safekeeping.”

The little dragon’s brow furrowed, “So if they had so much power, why aren’t they here anymore?”

She looked at him for a moment before uttering one word, “Discord.”

Spike shuddered a little.

She didn’t want to admit it but she felt the back of her mane stand up a little, “I’d say it was the only good thing he’s ever done, but it was really just one oppressor overthrowing another. After that the Royal Sisters overthrew him, and Equestria was eventually formed.”

Twilight closed the last book in front of her, and Spike dutifully took it away. She thought hard for a long time, staring off to the other side of the table, her internal world full of tumult.

“I’m trying to convince myself that that’s not Adam,” she said with a thread of doubt strung through her voice, “but after that...episode...I don’t know.” Spike looked at her expectantly, waiting for her to continue, which she did with his silent prompting, “I’ve never seen such a violent rage before, and to think that he’s one of them.” She then turned to look him straight in the eyes, “Did it seem like when we talked to him he was ever lying to us about himself? Were we- Was I blinded by my curiosity?”

Spike thought for a second before he looked back to Twilight, “I’m not a lie detector or anything, but I’m pretty sure he was telling the truth when we had our big talk with him. Besides, he is from another world, right? Maybe where he’s from they’re not as bad as the stories say they were here.”

“Can we risk that though,” she asked as she looked for his advice, “Those stories...they’re of ponies in pain, put in that state by the Ruined, who subjugated them and made them their playthings. They were kept in dark places, kept from learning and communicating. That’s a kind of ugliness I’d never want to see put on anypony.”

Spike looked down at the table for a moment, then reflexively closed his claws a little, “I get that he could remind you of something scary, but what about me?”

She looked at him quizzically, “What do you mean?”

“Well, I’m a dragon, related to big, scary, fire-breathing, big winged dragons. What if it were me instead of him?”

“There’d be no question Spike,” she said with a shake of her head, “I’d fight to keep you safe, but you’re different than other dragons.”

“Yeah, I am,” he replied, “but if one different dragon is enough, isn’t one different human enough?”

That gave Twilight a self-conscious moment of pause. In the scenario Spike had given her, would she really be so committed to saving him if she’d never really known him? Would she have instead let him be taken away because he could be a threat to the ponies around him, with his lust for jewels and desire to hoard, his magical flames, and his teeth and claws? While he still had all these attributes, he was able to control those urges: plus he was a wonderful assistant and a friend. Another thing to consider was this: Fluttershy dealt with many creatures that had violent tendencies all the time, and that didn’t stop her from caring about them. They could lash out, and ponies could lash out at others as well. Perhaps Adam’s kind was no different? He could reason, just like her. He could get angry, just like her. Then there was the other account of the Ruined told by the zebras. In it they had given themselves up to reveal Discord’s weakness, allowing him to be toppled from his pedestal as mad ruler of the world. It was a noble sacrificial story, but was it true? Moreover, did the stories she knew have any truth to them either?

Internally she had made up her mind, and was ready to answer him when the both of them heard a soft boom in the distance. Just a moment later there was heavy, incessant knocking at the door, “Twilight! Spike! Are you in there? Is Adam with you?” Twilight galloped towards the door and yanked it open from a distance, allowing a very frazzled and out of breath Rainbow Dash to stumble in. “Is he...downstairs,” she puffed between heaving breaths before her friend stopped her,

“Just calm down, Rainbow. Spike, can you get her a glass of water?”

“On it,” he replied as he rushed off to the kitchen.

“Is he here,” Rainbow tried to ask again, worry growing in her eyes, “Did he make it?”

Twilight nodded her head, then replied quietly, “Adam made it, but there was nothing we could do: he’s been taken away.”

Rainbow Dash looked at her in stunned silence for a minute, before she exclaimed, “You just let them take him away? I covered for him, almost got caught doing it too-”

Twilight replied in frustration, “You weren’t here: he attacked one of the ponies. We tried to argue his case, but after that we couldn’t do anything.”

The other four Elements and Spike had rushed into the front room upon hearing the raised voices. It took a few moments to get everyone calmed down and informed about the situation, but eventually everyone was more or less on the same page.

“Even if we’re fairly certain he is innocent, what he did is going to be hard to brush under the rug,” Rarity exclaimed with a sigh, “Do we know for certain what caused him to become as agitated as you described, Twilight?”

She shook her head, “One moment he seemed fine, but when the pony he attacked, Bunsen Burner, called him one of the Ruined, he just went berserk.”

“This is the first I’ve ever heard of this pony,” Fluttershy exclaimed, her shock at Adam’s behavior still written all over her face, “Who is this Bunsen Burner?”

“He’s apparently one of my predecessors,” she said, and then she clarified, “Another student of the Princess’.”

Spike, who had been silent for a little while, spoke up, “I don’t think we should really give Bunsen Burner the benefit of the doubt: in fact I have a feeling we shouldn’t trust him at all.”

Twilight glanced at him for a moment, and began to gently chastise him, “I know he was rude and a little off base, Spike, but that doesn’t mean he’s a bad pony.”

“Maybe,” he replied, “but when I was cleaning up the glass shards from when the window shattered I saw a pegasus fly away from a cloud that could look directly in on us as we were talking.”

“They did have two pegasi with them,” Rainbow Dash exclaimed, “I saw them when I was with Adam: one had a war saddle with some kind of long rifle-like thing.”

Twilight put a hoof to her chin, then turned back to Spike, “What did the glass look like as you were cleaning it up?”

“Besides broken? I dunno, like glass.”

She waved her hoof in a circle, “But what was the glass’ shape? Were the pieces big or small?”

“Big,” Spike said as he nodded his head and confirmed his memory, “Really big.”

“Were there any pieces that looked like they had a hole in them or near their edge?”

He shook his head, “No, they were just jagged pieces and some dust. The fragments looked like teeth almost.”

“Where’re ya goin’ with this, Twilight,” Applejack asked with an incredulous frown.

“Just bare with me a little longer, AJ,” she replied, then swiped Rainbow’s empty glass away, “I just need to check something for sure: did you know that you can shatter glass with sound alone?”

“Oo! Oo! Oo Oo! Let me! Let me!” Pinkie Pie exclaimed as she jumped from side to side.

“Uh, I was just going to make a sound with my horn-” Twilight tried to finish before the pink earth pony cut her off, “It’s ok! I know what to do. When I was growing up on the rock farm my sister would get sent to a time out in the silica mine. She’d shatter most of the crystals with her angry screams.”

Twilight blinked twice in quick succession as she tried to comprehend what Pinkie had said before the glass that had been taken from her was placed gently down on the floor far away from the others.

“You might want to cover your ears,” Pinkie declared lightheartedly, “This is going to be super loud!” Despite her jovial tone the others in the room quickly sought cover, all while shoving their hooves as far as they could into their ears. Pinkie took in an enormous gulp of breath.

Suddenly, a soft, strange vibrating sound entered into earshot. The glass broke into seven large fragments, each piece rolling on its curved surface on the floor. The earth pony was so surprised by her thunder being stolen that the air in her lungs rushed out of her like a deflating balloon, leaving her with very long lips and an equally long face, “What gives?”

“My way’s a little quicker,” a brown earth pony with deep brown eyes declared as he stepped into the library, a grey wall-eyed pegasus hovering near his side. The blue light at the end of the device in his mouth turned off, and the alien sound ceased. “Plus it’s not nearly as deafening. Hello, all! I’m the Doctor; this is Ditzy Doo, and we’re here to help save your human friend!”

Chapter 21 REVISED

"Dr. Whooves," Twilight exclaimed in surprise on account of his and his companion's sudden appearance, "I- Wait. Did you say 'human friend?"

"I certainly did, Twilight Sparkle," he said with a smile as he put his device away, "Now I know you're all bound to have a ton of questions, but before we get started I'd like to head a few of them off: the glass in your window did break as you suspected because of focused sonic resonance, Adam is in fact most likely a nice enough person, I know a great deal about humans because I've traveled with plenty of them in the past, and my favorite flavor of cupcake is raspberry mint." Seven mouths that had been open in surprise and awaiting a silent gap to speak suddenly snapped shut, including Pinkie Pie's. "So," there was a slapping sound, then a two second delay before the earth pony's hooves caught up to replicate the action, "any of you got a plan?"

The six mares and dragon were still looking at him in surprise until Rainbow bluntly asked, "Why should we trust either of you? If we have a plan," she looked to Twilight, who shrugged back to her, "When we have a plan, we don't want anypony else messing it up."

There was another clapping sound from the earth pony, and another delay until his movements caught up, "You don't have a plan: great! I do. I know with everything going on right now, and the potential ramifications and fallout for what we need to do, trust is a limited commodity, but if you give me just five minutes, five minutes, of your time, I think we can help each other get him back." He paused then exclaimed, "Right! Allons-y," and rushed out the door.

Ditzy Doo lingered a little longer however, "Like the Doctor's basically saying, we need each other to get Adam back. I know he seems a bit wide-eyed and crazy, but believe me, he's brilliant."

"Ditzy," Twilight waved her hooves in overstimulated frustration, "just stop for a minute!"

"Please dear," Rarity implored to her, "You've rushed in here but neither of you really explained: what is it you and Dr. Whooves want? The both of you aren't making much sense."

Ditzy Doo smiled sweetly, "When he gets excited he can be like that. Sometimes he can be on a whole other level than the rest of us."

"Ah'll say, from the looks of it," Applejack mumbled under her breath.

"Just please come to the Emporium," Ditzy pleaded with them, "Back behind it is a blue box. He'll explain everything when we're all there."

She then turned and ran off into the darkening night. The seven of them turned to look at each other.

"We're not really going, are we," Rainbow asked, "We'd be better off staying here and coming up with a plan on our own."

Fluttershy cleared her throat a little, "While I would like to ask for a pardon of some kind on Adam's behalf, it's looking like that might not happen. I say we should give them both a chance: Ditzy may be a little clumsy, but she's well-intentioned, and Dr. Whooves is intelligent."

"Seriously, though," Rainbow looked at her demure friend, "If we're being real here, what's the likelihood of this turning out good?"

"Ah come on Dashie, it's only five minutes," Pinkie exclaimed as she looked up to her floating friends, "They may have more of an idea than we do, and they won't waste much of our time telling us about it! Why not? Besides, I could use a look at the cool gadgets bound to be over there!" She then bounced of into the night after Ditzy.

Applejack watched her go, sighed, and then shrugged her shoulders, "She has a point. It'll at least be quick. Might as well!"

Rarity, though puzzled by the whole mess, joined the farm pony as they both walked towards the door.

Twilight turned to her best assistant, "Spike, can you watch the library for a while?"

"Can do," he exclaimed, "I'll get everything ready for lock-up!"

As Twilight left and Fluttershy followed, the yellow pegasus turned to her friend in silent expectation that she'd follow. Rainbow snorted, before grumbling, "Fine, five minutes. Then we can get to the actual plan to save Adam from those stooges!"

The walk wasn't far by any means, but even Twilight had to admit she wanted to get back to the library to brainstorm some ideas rather than this. Doctor Whooves was a nice enough neighbor, but for the most part he had kept to himself up to this point. He had moved in to his emporium a few months back, and mostly stayed sequestered in it the majority of that time. She and Spike had visited once or twice to peruse the knick-knacks there, but had rarely ever seen him: the times they had come in Ditzy was at the counter. He said he had traveled with humans before. Perhaps he had been trying to find a normal life here, a retirement from adventure or something. The same question kept coming back into her head: why did he want to help Adam? Maybe the ones he had known were good, so he was giving him the benefit of the doubt, but to what end? For that matter, what were they going to do if they did manage to get him back? Life couldn't go back to the way it was before: the djinn couldn't go back in the bottle, as it were.

Ditzy Doo was waiting for them as they rounded the side of the Emporium, standing in front of the blue shed.

"It's, ah," Rarity tried to say something positive, but was struggling somewhat, "It's rustic."

To be fair the exterior appeared quite weathered, the royal blue it had once been was worn to grey, almost to a state of an ashen hue. Each side had two six pane windows, out of which a soft pale grey light emitted.

Rainbow pointed to the side that sat at the top of each side of the box, "What the hay is a 'Police Public Call Box'?"

"Haven't the foggiest," Applejack muttered before she spoke up for all to hear, "Alright Ditzy, we're here." She then looked all around, "Where's Pinkie at?"

As if her ears were burning, the doors to the shed burst open, and Pinkie's head appeared from inside, "Come on in gals! You would not believe how roomy it is in here!" Her head withdrew from their sight, but they heard her cheerfully singing to herself as she moved farther away.

After she thought back over that again, Twilight shook her head and realized that it almost sounded like Pinkie's singing was echoing somehow. "So is the Doctor inside," she asked.

"Oh yes," Ditzy said with a smile, but she lifted up a hoof, "I just want to let you know, what you're about to see is real. Just don't be afraid. The first time is..." She laughed nervously.

Twilight had been referring to the Emporium in regards to the stallion's location, but was now more unsure of what to expect than she had been before.

The grey pegasus then trotted into the box with Pinkie, yelling as she did, "Doctor! They're here!"

Here Twilight knew she was not mistaken: Ditzy's voice echoed.

Rainbow Dash, perplexed as well by the echo, stalked around to the front of the box and stuck her head in, "Why the hay is her-" she stopped, both voice and body, suddenly, just on the threshold to the box.

Rarity was next, her mouth falling open to a slack-jawed gape. "My word," she finally exclaimed.

Fluttershy's face filled with wonder, and wordlessly she flew in.

"Sure as shucks I could use a barn like this," Applejack muttered as she too stepped into the box, leaving Twilight the only one outside.

How could seven ponies fit into one small structure? Her mind couldn't make sense of it. Finally fed up with the suspense and seeking answers, she too stepped towards the threshold, and was stopped, no, arrested by what she saw. Beautiful sandstone coral, the color of which was burnt orange. It spiraled up towards a domed ceiling. This coral was not shaped in columns to support the interior structure, but twisted and wound its way upward, as if they were grown, not built. Four segments of coral supported the high vaulted ceiling, the walls lined with rectangular segments, each with four hexagonal indentations, and each filled with a lightbulb. Twilight took a step forward, then looked down as her hoof hit metal. She stood on a catwalk, one which led to the center of this oh so large, wondrous room. The centerpiece of the room was a circular console, its surface covered in levers, mechanisms, and switches of all kinds and sorts. A soft green glow emitted from the panels, which matched the light of the glass central column that grew out of it towards the ceiling. The room was massive, at least seventy-five feet in diameter.

"This," she finally said, as her friends and Ditzy turned back to her, "This is...How is this possible? It's bigger on the inside!"

The group heard a chuckle from a corridor they hadn't originally seen, and the stallion they'd been looking for emerged, "I will never get tired of hearing that as long as I live!" Seeing that the six, minus Pinkie, were still bewildered by the room they stood in, he shook his forehooves lightly, "It's alright, really! It's just a room that transcends the confines of normal spatial reality. Just imagine the interior size has been scaled up a bit, and you'll feel better. Impossible and possible is really just a matter of perspective."

"What is this place," Fluttershy asked, a strange whimsical curiosity in her voice as she flew about the room now.

"It's my home," the stallion said as he approached, and reached for something in the air near his shoulder they could not see. Suddenly, the image of the stallion stalled and became murky. Finally, the illusion lifted. Blinking, the group now saw the being who stood before them was in fact a man, one in a blue suit and red tie, with spiky brown hair and an overcoat to match. Of all the surprises they had now had all day, this one almost seemed paltry by comparison. "And this is my real face," he exclaimed, "Well, one of them anyway. I'm the Doctor. Welcome to the Tardis."

The ponies took a second look around the large room again, admiring and taking in its details.

"The exterior certainly leaves something to be desired," Rarity remarked as she studied the nearest coral structure, "But this interior...it's simply exotic! Do all humans have these 'Tardis' boxes?"

"Naaah," the Doctor said with a scrunch of his face as he walked closer to her, hands in his coat pockets, "Tardises aren't really a human thing."

"But aren't you-"

"I know how you can see the family resemblance," Ditzy Doo said with a nod of her head, "but I can assure you he is most definitely not human."

Twilight cocked her head and stroked her chin, a growing sense of confusion in her voice, "If you're not like Adam, then what are you?"

"Time Lord," he blurted out as he turned toward the console, his hand grazing the rough stony edge with an almost gentle caress as he gazed down at it, "The very last of them, too. The old girl and I have been traveling for a while now, roving across time and space."

"This shed travels in time," Applejack asked incredulously.

"Oh, sorry," he paused to look at them in turn with a smile, "Did I forget to mention? Tardis is an acronym. T.A.R.D.I.S. Time And Relative Dimensions In Space. It means I can go anywhere I want, anywhen. Back in my universe, Adam's too, I'd traveled all over the earth and beyond, seeing new sights, meeting all sorts of people."

"So if that's the case, how exactly didya end up here?"

"It's not really important honestly," he said with a wave of his hand, "In fact it's quite boring, but this has all been a bit of a sidetrack! Adam! We need to focus on getting Adam back."

"Well, this is a time machine, right," Rainbow said with a roll of her eyes, "Why don't we just go back in time and rescue him before he was ever kidnapped?"

The Doctor shook his head, "We can't do it. Five of us witnessed him being carried away: to alter what we've already observed would mean interfering directly with our own timestreams, which is an incredibly bad idea."

"So what happened to 'impossible is a matter of perspective'?"

"Just trust me," he said with a now neutral face, his joviality drained away, "there are some lines that aren't meant to be crossed, ever. I've learned it the hard way." He looked at her with an intense stare before turning towards the others, "We have to be especially cautious here. In my own universe I generally know what I'm doing, but here I don't really know more than you do. I'm not sure how much I can change or how much should be changed: I'm running blind."

"So, uh, what exactly do we do with a time machine that can't travel in time," Pinkie piped up.

"Well it's not all the Tardis can do," he replied indignantly, "She can do loads of things, just not her main thing at the moment! For example, we're going to use her to break out a high security prisoner, already having been spirited away by the Equestrian government, and from whose clutches we will snatch him!"

"Oh my goodness," Fluttershy exclaimed softly.

"How are we going to do that,” Twilight asked, “I may not understand your machine, but I do know Canterlot and its history. The prisons beneath it were once a large mining operation, and they are deep down in the mountain’s heart. Even if we could sneak this box past one set of guards, somehow, there would be ten more nearby. It’s probably the most high security facility in all of Equestria, prison notwithstanding, because it’s also home to the most advanced government research organization in existence. We won't be able to even get near Adam, much less rescue him!"

"You want near him? Simple," he replied with a smirk, "Just ask politely before going through the front door. You've already got the Princess' ear Twilight; just find a way to convince her to let you near him, and give him this."

He reached into his coat pocket and withdrew a small billfold, which Twilight took with her magic and opened. There was a blank slip of paper beneath a clear protective shield in its interior. "Uuuuh, what is this?"

"It's psychic paper," Ditzy Doo exclaimed, "It bends others perceptions to make them think you can be places you normally shouldn't. The device the Doctor uses to blend in is based on similar principles; I designed it myself."

"You designed Dr. Whooves' faux-sona," Pinkie blurted, ramming her nose into Ditzy's, "Make me one! I want everypony to think I'm an alicorn!"

"Anyway," the Doctor said with a raised voice, "I've modified the paper to act as a psychic transponder. Give it to Adam, and I can locate him with the Tardis, and the rescue can begin!"

Twilight looked down at the paper before her eyes, then glanced at her friends, and then back to the Doctor and Ditzy, "I'm not so sure about this plan. It seems a little...half-baked."

"Most of my plans are," he said with a grimace, "It’s broad strokes that really matter! I can make due with the details as we go along. So long as you can get the paper into Adam's hands, I can take care of the rest."

Twilight had to admit that her's and her friend's plans were sort of similar in that regards, so it didn't seem like all that big of a change from the norm. Still, with two new players with unknown abilities, she wasn't sure what they could and couldn't do. "It's better than nothing," she finally relented, "but I guess we'll go along with your plan, Doctor. All the same, I think we might make a backup instead."

"Whatever you'd like, just so long as we get Adam back," was all he said. He grabbed the handle of the monitor that pivoted around the central control panel, and yanked it towards the side of the Tardis away from the others, who began to file out.

"Just what is so important about Adam to you anyway, Doctor," Twilight asked as she brought up the rear of the retreating ponies.

He looked around the monitor to her, his expression blank. "Nothing really, but what happened isn't right, and I'm pretty good at setting things right."

Regardless of vague reasoning Twilight left, more perplexed by her neighbor than ever.

Ditzy looked worriedly up at the screen with the Doctor. A sequence of numbers was displayed, its corresponding language for the Doctor appearing above. 2:17:43:18 2 days, 17 hours, 43 minutes, 18 seconds, and it was counting down.

"I might have fibbed a bit," he murmured to Ditzy, "I think he's key to helping me fix this. To fixing everything."

"Do you think you can make it in time," Ditzy asked softly.

"We can only hope," he replied, and then looked up towards the door, imagining the ponies as they ventured back to the library, "The fate of the world is riding on their shoulders, and this time they don't even know it."

Chapter 22 REVISED

The girls returned to the library to hatch a plan in earnest now that they had some focused perspective. After some hours the night crawled into the early morning, and they had solidified what they meant to do. While they were going to attempt to make an appeal on Adam's behalf they decided that if things didn't go well they would resort to the Doctor's plan. Twilight composed a letter and left it for Spike to deliver as soon as he awoke. The others also made the necessary preparations for an emergency trip: Fluttershy leaving extra food for her animals, and the others leaving notes to their various ponies, whether siblings or employers. At a little past two in the morning they went to the railway station, eager to catch the first scheduled train to Canterlot. After some listless napping and a few more hours passing, the five o'clock train was ready and waiting.

"Most be somethin' serious," the conductor exclaimed when he arrived at the station to see six mares already awaiting him, "Hopefully nopony died or nothin'". They paid their hard earned bits, and were on their way in a matter of minutes. The temptation to sleep was great and one after the other the Elements dozed off in their seats, as the gentle movement of the train rocked them each to a blissful slumber.

Twilight was awoken by the sound of Pinkie excitedly exclaiming, "We're almost there; just a tiny few more minutes!" Stretching her forelegs and yawning a little, she glanced out the railcar window to her left. There they were: the shining spires of Canterlot, her first city. Though Ponyville was now her home she still held great affection for the resplendent capital. It was just a little afternoon judging by the angle of the sun: the express tickets they had all purchased had seen to the conductor going full steam, cutting down the usual half day journey to almost eight hours.

"Do I really have to stay behind," Rainbow Dash asked again in frustration.

"It's for the best," Twilight replied, "We don't know if Bunsen Burner still wants you for your connection to Adam, and you don't have the immunity that I do, so it's best if Rarity and Pinkie stay with you until we're all ready to move together to get him out."

"Like I need defending," the pegasus grumbled.

Applejack gave her a sideways smirk, "We'd rather not hafta go in and break out another friend on top of all the others we've already gotta wrangle, 'specially if you went in with your usual method'a diplomacy."

"What's that supposed to mean," she asked indignantly.

" 'Kickin' down the front door and takin' names isn't quite gonna work here," the earth pony replied bluntly.

"Cooler heads do need to prevail for the moment, Rainbow Dash," Rarity declared as she put a hoof on her friend's shoulder, who looked at her with a grumpy expression, "Your passion is appreciated, but needs to be channeled at the right time and in the right place."

The pegasus grumbled to herself about 'passion' and something about where it could be stuck, but Pinkie abruptly interrupted, "While we're on Dashie Duty can we do some reconnaissance at Donut Joe's? We need to be sure that we're in the best condition possible, and that doesn't happen on an empty stomach!"

"Canterlot Station in five minutes," the PA system said in the conductor's calm voice, "Canterlot in five minutes. Please begin gathering your things and be seated. You will be allowed to exit the compartment when the train has come to a full stop."

After they had each grabbed some belated breakfast and wake-up coffee, the Elements split as they had planned. Applejack, Fluttershy, and Twilight briskly made their way to the upper terrace, each contemplating what exactly they meant to say, and their mutual fatigue making them all quiet. At long last they arrived. Canterlot Square, the most central hub of the upper terrace, where all government buildings were located, the most important of which being the Houses of Lords and Common-ponies, and of course Canterlot Castle. An enormous fountain sat in the center of the square, it's streams serenely shooting up to the sky to trickle back down over the shape of a featureless Earth Pony statue.

Twilight glanced once to each of her present friends, asking, "We ready?"

Fluttershy, with a rare certainty in her voice that neither of her friends could recall she'd last had, said, "We are."

"Ready as we'll ever be," Applejack said after she'd gotten over her initial surprise, "Let's storm these gates!"

"Asking politely is more likely to help you get your audience, though," the guard nearest the front doors to the castle declared, a slight smile on his face as the girls realized he'd been listening, "Welcome back, Twilight Sparkle. Princess Celestia is expecting you in the Proclamation Chamber."

Twilight lifted a hoof and nodded, "Thank you, sir."

The three were ushered into said chamber a few minutes later by a set of guards, who quickly excused themselves and returned to the antechamber outside. While they had been to this part of the castle many times before, Fluttershy and Applejack couldn't help but once again gaze up at the many stain glass windows, each depicting an important moment in Equestrian history. Discord's defeat, the First Golden Diarchy, the Rise and Imprisonment of Nightmare Moon, the brief Rise and Dissolution of the Solar Empire, the Redemption of Princess Luna, and the Reimprisonment of Discord.

"Ah'm definitely never gonna get used to seein' muhself up there," Applejack muttered.

"Me either," Twilight and Fluttershy replied nearly in unison.

As they approached the thrones set up at the front of the vast chamber, Twilight was happy to see her mentor there waiting for them. She was however surprised that Princess Luna's seat was vacant, as she had asked for both of their presence in this matter. Twilight stopped just in front of the first step to the two thrones and bowed, her friends following suit, "Princess Celestia."

"Twilight," she said with her usual sense of warmness, "I'm happy to see you again, but am somewhat surprised at the immediacy of this visit. Spontaneity is unlike you!" She got up from her throne and descended the stairs to meet Twilight, "Are you alright? You seem troubled."

"I know this was relatively sudden," Twilight exclaimed, "but I feel I must speak to you about yesterday, specifically about Adam."

The Princess took note that the friends her student had brought were the Elements of Kindness and Honesty. It didn't take much thought to understand why they were here, even if Twilight hadn't just told her.

"Where is Princess Luna, by the way," Twilight asked as she looked around.

"She's currently assisting with defensive efforts, and won't be able to join us," the Princess replied, before looking at her student with the same type of melancholic expression she'd shown the day before, "I know you mean to see the good in all things and peoples, just as I taught you: the risk to the herd if the Ruined truly are returning though is too great. The threat they could pose, not just to us but to all nations, is too great to be ignored." Realizing her wording and seeing the slightly hurt look on her student's face, she backtracked however, "I didn't mean to imply you aren't taking this seriously, Twilight. Forgive me."

"It's alright, Princess," Twilight said with a small sigh, "and I have to admit that I was beginning to think similarly on how the Ruined should be approached last night, that is until Spike helped remind me of something. Do we truly act against an individual for the supposed sins they share with their race because we expect, without evidence, that they will act the same way? Spike is different from other dragons, and if nothing else I believe Adam is different from the Ruined, and not just myself, but my friends as well."

"Yer Majesty," Applejack interjected, "Ah understand what may have happened yesterday doesn't match with our description of him, but we each had moments where we were present with him, and he never once acted with hostility. Tempers' are bound tah flare when it feels like somepony's out tah get you, and while Ah know that's not much excuse for what Ah'm told he did, how he acted wasn't how he usually is."

"I understand you want him to be innocent," the Princess said with a sigh, "but the evidence as it stands alone is enough to keep him under observation, even if he were a pony. Assaulting a government agent is a serious crime. Then on top of that the possibility that he kidnapped Ms. Heartstrings, and he could be in custody for some time." She paused in thought for a moment, nodding her head a little as she verbalized, "Still, your example regarding Spike does hold merit. If we could be certain he is different from the Ruined and that he poses no threat he could be released, that is if he is eliminated as an abduction suspect and his case for assault looked over by a magistrate."

"Your Highness," the once quiet Fluttershy spoke up, a determination in her eyes, "Given the implication of who he is, could you be so certain there would be a juror in Equestria who would judge Adam's case impartially? I work with animals, and I have seen kind, wonderful creatures be mistrusted and feared because of their nature, their reputation, or for what they eat. If we can't even be objective with our friends in the animal kingdom, how could we offer him such an impossible chance? Furthermore, as stated in the Dawn Compact section, 'Regarding Unrecognized Species', I quote: "Any representative of a heretofore uncontacted species that can prove itself sufficiently aware will be granted the most basic of earthly rights, that is to be granted the most basic form of citizenry and asylum in the country they choose to live, to seek and obtain legal counsel in any foreign nation, to be presumed innocent until proven their guilt, to defend their reputation and life, and to be able to, without obstruction, live in peace with their fellow kindred of all races, so long as they do not bring to harm any of said kindred."

She pointed her hoof at the Princess, "You accepted that Adam was sufficiently aware when you agreed to help him, and though you may not have intended for it to be so, Adam's right of innocence has been violated in regards to his association with the Ruined, and it was only after provocation that he assaulted a government official. A trial for his tangible crimes can come when there is ample evidence, but if nothing else we'd like to visit our friend, please."

The room was silent for several seconds, as more than one set of eyes looked at the yellow pegasus for her surprise defense of the accused. The only thing that moved during that time was Princess Celestia's mane, waving idly across unseen currents. She then blinked, her head craning back slightly as she absorbed the entirety of the argument.

After a moment or two the Princess nodded, "You're all too right, Fluttershy. I have made a mistake, but perhaps here we can take the first step towards correcting it." She smiled, "Thank you for helping me find the right perspective, all three of you. I will send for a guard to take you to meet with your friend."

Twilight, still slightly bewildered by what had just happened, nodded stiffly and absently replied, "Thank you, Princess."

"Now then, there are some still outstanding issues that must be taken care of regarding this matter," she said as she rose and left the room by way of a side door near the throne, "I must speak with Luna and my councilors. Farewell for now."

As the promised guard escorted them out of the room, Applejack looked over to Fluttershy and exclaimed in shock, "Where'd you learn somethin' like all'a that? When-"

"Twilight's not the only one who reads in her free time," Fluttershy replied with a small smile, to which the purple unicorn cocked her head and chuckled a little.

Chapter 23 REVISED

The guard that had been assigned to escort the three ponies turned into a hallway that Twilight had never seen before, a first considering how much of the castle she had strolled through during her early years as Celestia's student. The hallway was plastered white with just the barest of ornamentation to make it seem like a part of an inhabited place, along with a small table to the left and a few seats to the right. A recessed doorway was at the hall's end, but no knob was present to pull it open or push it in.

The guard deftly passed his hoof over a nondescript part of the wall near the left side of the door, and a small orange circle of light appeared. The doors split apart, opening to reveal a wood paneled box with a brass railing. "If you would please enter, I will take you to the bottom, where you will then be escorted by security for the Royal Science Division to where you need to go."

"Why just the bottom though," Applejack asked as she and the others entered the elevator.

"My clearance isn't high enough to go beyond the receiving area below," he replied as the doors shut after them, and he pressed the descend button, "It's very rare for anypony to be granted access like this."

There was a gentle thrum, and they began to descend very quickly.

"Just how deep does this go," Fluttershy asked as she looked upward, imagining the city above that was now very far away.

"Straight into the heart of the mountain," Twilight replied, "Originally the valley below was the home of several mining communities that delved into the mountain for crystals and iron ore. When Canterlot was finished the mining operations increased until there was no more ore left. The various mines' deeds were bought by the Equestrian government after that, and were converted into a prison. At some point after the decline of the Solar Empire, the prison was emptied and replaced by the RSD. There's nothing on the books after that point: it's a very secure facility and secrecy is ensured with the utmost care."

The elevator began to slow, and at last silently came to a stop. The doors parted again, and they saw their first glimpse of the deep facility. Two ponies stood guard behind a barricaded checkpoint, their gear muted grey and brown compared to the shining metals of the Royal Guardspony's. As soon as the three mares had exited the lift their escort closed the door behind them, and began his lonely ascent back to his post.

Applejack adjusted her hat, a frown appearing on her face: their plan, such as it was, had been to sneak the Doctor's psychic paper to Adam underneath her customary headgear. This crowd looked like they would throw a wrench into the works for that plan. Twilight had realized this as well, but she had an idea if things didn't go their way.

"Stay where you are," one of the guards said in a firm but quiet voice before he stepped in front of the checkpoint to meet them, "I'm Officer Crossroads. Before we allow you further into the RSD interior we must ask you to submit to a security search. This is a customary procedure and is non-negotiable. Your valuables, such as your hat Miss," he pointed to Applejack, "will be returned to you upon your exiting of the facility. Once checked, you will be escorted to the Director's office where he will coordinate with you further. Are we clear?"

"Yes we are, sir," Twilight replied, then turned to her right, "Fluttershy, why don't you go first?"

"Oh, um, that's alright I suppose," she murmured as she proceeded to the station just in front of the barricade.

Officer Crossroads circled her, extending one wing out gently, then the other. "You're clear," he said, then ushered her through the checkpoint. Having never received such personal contact from a stranger under any circumstance, the pegasus mare felt a little unsettled, her wings ruffling unconsciously at her sides.

Twilight went next, receiving a similar invasion of personal space before she was allowed through the checkpoint. All eyes were on Applejack now, including the second guards'. Twilight's horn lit up, then faded. As it did, Fluttershy jumped a little as she felt something new tucked between her wing and her body. She quickly glanced at Twilight, who winked conspiratorially in her direction.

Applejack's hat was removed from her head, leaving her blonde mane underneath, as well as a mildly irritated frown to go with it. During her inspection, Applejack scoffed a little at the intrusiveness of it, "Ya couldn't get me dinner first?"

Crossroads didn't even smirk as he finished then cleared her to go through.

The three mares, now together once again, turned towards the hallway behind them only to be met by a chestnut colored pegasus with a dirty blonde mane and tail, also clad in the strange, dull armor. "Welcome to the RSD, Element Bearers," he declared, then gestured past them to the guards, "As you were. I'll take them from here."

"Yes, Lieutenant," Crossroads exclaimed as he stood at attention.

He nodded in reply, before turning once again to the three, "I won't waste your time. I'm Lieutenant Swiftfeet. Don't touch anything. You will not say anything about what you see here. You will be allowed five minutes with the subject." He turned and motioned for them to follow, "The Director is waiting."

Bunsen Burner sat in his office, looking over several different pages of the same packet. If there were a word to describe the workspace, one could easily go for 'dull', as three of its four walls were painted grey with dark brown wood as the baseboard. There were two bookcases and a large file cabinet to breakup the monotony, as well as the fourth wall, which was a single pane of glass. Looking out and downward one could see a large open space of flat concrete. When the facility was a prison this room had been the warden's office; the area below had been known as the Floor, the place where prisoners were let out for their allotted free-time from their cells. Nowadays it was used for the testing of large equipment, whatever that might entail.

The old stallion leaned forward in his swivel chair, sliding two pages of the docket before him apart, one was a picture of their newest subject, the other a compilation of notations a doctor had put together from their examination of him. Preliminary examinations revealed it had two lungs, a small but proportional heart with four chambers, a small and large intestine, a coccyx but no exterior expression of it, forward centered eyes, as well as incisors and molars. By all appearances it was near enough to a standard simian specimen. It showed no resistance to magic upon its physical form, and at least so far seemed incapable of any magic of its own.

Preliminary questioning had not revealed much. Given the guidelines the Princess had set down there wasn't much he could allow security to do to persuade the subject to speak. The two connections, Heartstrings and Bon Bon had been plumbed for information as well, and while they were certainly more verbose about who the subject was they remained steadfast in their belief of his innocence. He found such subjective, unsubstantiated ideas to be unhelpful. Once their statements had been taken they had been returned to a detention cell until more fruitful data could be gleaned from them.

Speaking of unhelpful connections, that also included the RSD's newest recruit, Vinyl Scratch. Since she had never publicly submitted her audio research to a consortium of peers or patented the production process, there was no paper trail to clean up in regards to obvious legalities. Her work was then stripped down and applied to another scientist's idea. It had been postulated that in the event of a crowd control emergency an auditory frequency could be projected into a population to pacify and disperse them, reducing the risk of harm to the crowd itself or others. Experimentation had attempted to bring about this effect by abrasive ultrasonic tones, the design philosophy being that a crowd under such stimulus would be unconsciously inclined to move away from the region they encountered the sound in. Ms. Scratch, however, had created a more successful solution by approaching the problem with a different perspective altogether: positive, rather than negative stimulus. During testing a member of the Cryptozoology branch was present for the prototype war saddle's transmission, and even submitted herself for exposure to it. After some digging in the archives the cathartic effects they claimed to have experienced were eerily similar to those described in traditional texts regarding Marianan sorcery. It would seem that the Trottingham disk jockey had unwittingly rediscovered Sea Pony magic, and had no idea what she had achieved. Until it's full effects could be tested the research would remain within the labs. The only reason it had ever left in the first place was because it would facilitate the acquisition of another artifact: the Ruined.

The door to his office opened and was quickly shut behind. Glancing up Bunsen saw that it was his right hand stallion, Lieutenant Swiftfeet.

"They're waiting outside," the pegasus said in a hushed tone, "What should we do with the detainees?"

"We should allow them every courtesy to speak with Ms. Bon Bon and the subject," he replied, "Sedate the other. One should always be prepared after all. This might be useful in helping divulge more pertinent information."

"Right away, sir," he replied, then turned to open the office door once again. After the three mares had entered the room, he excused himself and left quickly.

The old stallion stood from his swivel chair and approached them from around his desk, "A pleasure to see you again, Ms. Sparkle. These must be the friends who proved so persuasive when speaking to the Princess."

"Yes they are," Twilight replied with an edge, "I can always rely on them to support me, and we've come to do the same with Adam."

"So I've heard," he replied, "Perhaps with a familiar face he may relax enough to let something slip; every hour counts in a kidnapping case."

"While we don't know where Lyra has vanished to, we remain certain that Adam is innocent in all this," Fluttershy declared, "Now would you please take us to him."

Bunsen nodded wordlessly, then spoke with a breath, "I am duty bound to follow the Princess' instructions, despite my reservations. I will take you to the subject's holding cell straight away. Would you also like to speak with Ms. Bon Bon as well? We were keeping her for observation and a debriefing, but she will be released soon."

"How soon exactly," Applejack asked, "Without bein' charged with anything, why're you holdin' her?"

"We're only holding her until we're certain we have no further need of her account of the subject," he replied.

"That wasn't a clear timeframe," Applejack exclaimed bluntly.

"No, it wasn't," he replied, then gestured towards the door, "Shall we?"

Without waiting for a reply the stallion left the room, expecting them to follow. Twilight followed after him, her mind ajumble as she continued to consider that he had once been Celestia's student. How could he act like this: to another being, to other ponies, and just like this in general? Applejack hadn't started with a high opinion of him by reputation, and it was souring every additional minute she spent around him. Fluttershy's newest concern was for Bon Bon: they'd had her overnight and all the morning as well as now a good portion of the afternoon. That was more than enough time to get a testimonial, so what were they really after?

As they continued through a laboratory area, their little tour through the work place had attracted the attention of a few ponies, including a white unicorn with a messy blue mane and tail. Fluttershy was idly looking around as they passed when she noticed that the mare was staring at her, deliberately making eye contact with an unblinking gaze. Unnerved, the introverted mare turned away and looked to where the rest of her group was going. Vinyl Scratch had done her best to communicate through her eyes, but clearly it had not been enough. She had to act fast before they left the area.

"Oi, Tall, Dark, and Sinister," she called to one of the nearby guards who was assigned to keep tabs on her, "I've gotta use the little filly's room. I need a 'all monitor."

Before the guard acknowledged her she had already stepped away from her work area and trotted down the hallway the group of four had gone down. She rounded the corner to the right, allowing the guard to see her enter the restroom.

"Alright," she muttered to herself as she kicked off her metal shoes, "Let's 'ope this works."

Springing from one set of hooves to the other to hype herself up, a brilliant blue flash emanated from her horn, and she teleported a few feet away down the hall and around a corner, out of the guard's line of sight. She bolted down the hall, running near silently without the added weight and clank of her hoofwear. She reached the end of the hallway and looked down both ways before spotting the three visitors and the head honcho as they neared the halfway point of that hallway. There was an alcove to the right near where they were about to be. Perfect.

Vinyl bolted down the hall, catching up to them just as they passed the concealed space. Silently she grabbed Fluttershy away from the group, who let out a nearly inaudible yelp as she was grabbed from behind.

"Sorry 'bout this, but I don't 'ave time," she hissed quickly, "I know 'ho you lot are, and I need yer 'elp. I'm being 'eld here against muh will. Muh name's Vinyl Scratch. Please find a way to get me outta 'ere!"

With her peace made, she bolted out of the alcove and back down the hall from which she came, praying that the guard hadn't come to check on her. At last she was back to the corner just around from the bathroom. She peeked around it to see where the guard was. He was turning towards the door. Panicking, Vinyl screwed up her face and forced everything she had into teleporting back into where she needed to be.

The guard slowly opened the door, and came in to find the unicorn he was meant to guard standing in the middle of the room sweating, out of breath, and with no shoes on.

"Can't a lady take a leak in peace," she exclaimed hoarsely.

"Why aren't you wearing any shoes," he asked calmly.

"A girl needs 'er comfort to get 'er business done," she replied, before looking at him in frustration, "You don't like et? Tough. Don't judge me."

She then silently stepped back into her shoes and trotted out of the bathroom, leaving her guard shaking his head at the bizarre mare's 'habit'.

Chapter 24 REVISED

"Be careful what you say. I'm all but certain they're recording everything." The three mares stiffened at the pronouncement, now self-conscious about what they had already spoken and more guarded with what they meant to say. Bon Bon nodded and continued on, "I didn't think stuff like this still existed anymore. You'd hear about the reeducation convents the old Solarians oversaw and how they'd censor things, but this is getting a little too close for comfort. They're looking for a confession, either from Adam or from me about him; trying to get him to admit to a kidnapping he never did. They say I'm in protective custody, but if the 'threat' I'm being protected from is incarcerated, why are they keeping me here, huh?"

"They haven't told ya when you can go free," Applejack asked.

" 'When I've given my full statement' was their wording, so when I give him up essentially," she leaned back in her sitting pillow, "I'm not leaving him here. Either all three of us walk out, or we all stay."

Twilight's eyebrows narrowed as she noticed the earth pony's choice of words, "Wait a minute, 'three of you?'"

"She's here too, I know it. It's how they forced me here," she whispered as she leaned forward, "I can't say any more than that. I'm honestly not sure what they'll do, but this is a mockery of what I thought our government was."

"The Princess seems to be on our side," Fluttershy declared, "It's possible she doesn't know the full extent of what is going on down here."

"The longer this goes on the more I wonder," Bon Bon glumly said with a sigh, "Please, just find us a way out."

"We will," Twilight exclaimed. She exuded determination as she stood from her pillow, "I'll see to speaking with her, and once she knows exactly what is going on down here, I have full faith that she will put a stop to it."

"Thank you," she said wearily, "That's about the only hope I've got right now that this will end alright. See you soon hopefully."

"Buck up, sugarcube," Applejack said with a nod, "You'll be outta this before ya know it."

The three looked at each other as they left the interview room. Without being certain they weren't now being overheard at any given time, they remained silent on what they had learned. Bunsen Burner was waiting for them just outside.

"Onward to the subject's cell then," he said without a moment of pause, "If you could, please make it quick. We have many questions left for him still, and time is precious." It was becoming harder and harder for the three mares to remain tight-lipped in the face of this genuinely unpleasant pony, especially now with the mounting injustices he seemed to be orchestrating. Still, they soldiered on, at last able to fulfill their mission.

I was being held in a secure room. It wasn't all that different from the cell I'd had back on Earth, with a few minor differences. For one, I was restrained to my cot by four chains, one for each limb. I could reach the toilet at my feet and the sink at my head, but that was about all the mobility I was allowed by my restraints. The lights were different as well. Halogens were traded in for a single incandescent bulb that put a yellow pallor on everything in my room, making my skin look sickly and diseased. So far all they'd been feeding me was celery and water. It wasn't even twenty-four hours since I'd been brought here but I already felt myself retreating from the world around me back into my mind. There the questions continued to stockpile. To treat me like this, the humans here had to have done something terrible, especially with a name like 'The Ruined' that they constantly keep saying in relation to me. What were the secrets that spectre had been wanting to show me? What dark things lay beneath the earth back in that hollow in the Everfree? Whatever they were it wasn't like I was ever going to find out I thought dejectedly. Where was Lyra? Was she safe? What about Bon Bon? Had Rainbow Dash been caught? I had a feeling that whether I was innocent or not I was never getting out of this place. Why had I gotten so angry? Everything had been going our way until that government type started throwing around that 'Ruined' name, then I just exploded out of nowhere. Hold on. Out of nowhere...

The door to my cell opened, and he was there. He walked over to the corner, and walking in just behind him were Twilight, Fluttershy, and Applejack! "Oh my God," I exclaimed in amazement, "You have no idea how glad I am to see guys!"

Even as I was speaking I felt something pop into existence behind me. Momentarily confused, I then noticed the vanishing aura around Twilight's horn. She winked at me with the eye that the stallion couldn't see.

"Five minutes," the stallion said sharply, as he turned to face the three of us from his vantage point near the door.

"Alright, alright," Applejack snapped as she turned over her shoulder to look at him with frustration, "Don't get your necktie in a twist! We'll be quick."

"Twilight, what happened to me I can't explain," I began quickly, "but there is no way I would act like that normally."

"We know," she replied, "We've talked with the Princess, and we're going to get you out of here. She's agreed that once we've cleared up what happened to Lyra she will give you a second chance."

The stallion's glasses flashed as his head tilted backward a little, but he remained silent.

"It's going to be alright, Adam," Fluttershy said as she ruffled her wing a little as she took in the sight of my shackles, "What's happened here is going to be fixed, and everything will be okay soon."

"Is Bon Bon alright; is Rainbow Dash?"

"Rainbow's fine," Applejack said, "We just came from visitin' Bon Bon. She's holdin' up. She did mention Lyra-"

"Time's up," the stallion blurted, "You've spoken with the subject long enough."

We all looked at him suddenly. Applejack whirled on him angrily, "There's no way in Tartarus that was five minutes!"

"Time's up," he repeated in the same tone, "Move away from the subject now, or you will be moved."

Twilight looked back to me, a furious smolder in her eyes at this situation. "We'll be back soon," she said flatly, then complied with the command and turned and walked towards the door. The last one out of the room was the stallion, and then the door closed with a solid slamming of metal on metal. There were agitated voices outside my cell now. Certain that no one was coming back for a little bit, I hurriedly reached into my back pocket to find out what it was my friends had left me. I brought it in front of me directly in my lap, only to realize it was a billfold. I wordlessly muttered, "What the hell," before I opened it, and found a piece of paper behind a translucent plastic shield. The questions would never end would they, I began to think, but suddenly writing began to appear on the blank paper from nowhere. Finally, it seemed I was getting at least one answer! 'Don't lose hope,' the paper wrote in slanted block letters with blue ink, and then another line appeared, 'Rescue is coming soon'.

I quickly put the billfold back in my pocket. For all the cloak and dagger they must have pulled to get that to me they didn't just mean they'd petition my release or get me out on community service. My spirits were raised. There was a bright spot after all, even down here in this pit. Whatever that stallion and his cronies would throw at me next I could take. I had friends, and they were coming to save me. I realized what I had thought, and then it finally hit me. I had friends now. Real friends, and they were coming to help me when I needed it most!

"How could you be like this," Twilight at last blurted angrily.

"Be like what, Ms. Sparkle," Bunsen Burner replied as he began to walk away towards the stairs leading upward.

Twilight stalked after him, "How could you, a student of Princess Celestia, be so cruel, so dishonest to another being? This isn't about saving the life of a mare in danger, even if Bon Bon was wrong; it's about control, isn't it? What do you get out of locking up an innocent being?"

Bunsen turned his head to look back at her. There was a momentary spark of anger in his eyes. The intensity of it almost caused the unicorn to waver, but she did not back down.

"Let's begin addressing those judgments of my character in reverse order," he declared, a noticeable edge in his voice, "What benefit do I receive by keeping a Ruined One incarcerated? Simple: peace of mind. Innocent or otherwise, his kind's power and craftiness are only matched by their presumptive notion that they could rule another species. In the East the zebras worship them as near gods. I have yet to find any entities so beneficent, Ruined or no. To that end, control is necessary. If it weren't him I were stopping it would be something else. There are strange, foul things that lurk in this world, Miss Sparkle, something I discovered a long time ago, and which you should know from personal experience. In their presence Celestia's doctrine shows its frailty. Some powers cannot be reasoned with, as you should well know. After all, you were responsible for delivering my most notorious specimen to me."

Twilight's eye's grew wide as she realized what he meant, "Discord is here?"

"Where he belongs," the stallion replied, "Locked far away from the world, where he cannot harm or be stirred; under constant surveillance. While not a prison for ponies any longer, this remains a safe place for all manner of harmful, destructive things to be studied and safeguarded."

"Adam isn't either of those things," she retorted.

"You saw he has the capability," Bunsen fired back, "Do not underestimate his potential because he used kind words or a pitiable expression."

"You have no compassion," Twilight exclaimed.

"And you remain deluded by idealism," he replied coldly, "Our dear teacher's influence no doubt. You should not place such faith in her or her teachings. They sound lovely, even blissful in theory, but they do not survive real world testing. They fail, and she will fail you."

Twilight meant to argue out his statements to the bitter end, but Fluttershy put a hoof to her chest and shook her head at her. She then turned to the old stallion, a deep scowl on her face, "I think we're done here Mr. Burner. We'll just let ourselves be going now, but we will be back to see our friends release at once. Whatever your personal phobias, you have no legal right to hold him."

"You're quite right," he said, now calm once again, "You're done here. You know the way out. The nearest guard will see to escorting you back to our checkpoint and your belongings."

The three girls fumed at the situation, the stallion, and their friend's plight, but they helped each other silently leave the stallion to stand in the hallway. He stood there alone for a moment, then let out a quick sigh. He went back to the subject's cell and glanced in a small slot in the door's center. The subject lay on his cot, his hands cupped behind his head, a smile on his face. The old stallion's eyes narrowed, and then he turned and walked away, heading up towards his office.

Chapter 26 REVISED

Bunsen Burner sat back in his chair, a pen in his mouth. His neck was craned so that he stared at the far wall, his gaze piercing into it like swords. Unconsciously he clicked the pen with his tongue. His thoughts were centered on the subject; they swirled around in his head, darkening his mood.

He certainly was getting a good deal of physical data about it from all the tests being conducted. Still, so many of the blanks were left empty. Why was there so much fear of the Ruined in the ancient world? Back then things certainly weren't written to be concrete and factual, but even in allegory there should be circumstantial evidence. Everfree Castle, the original Equestrian capital, jutted up out of the course of history as the site of the confrontation between Celestia and Nightmare Moon, and would have been more easily discoverable had the the forest not retaken it for hundreds of years. Were there other sites concealed in the hundreds of square miles beneath that dangerous canopy? Of further note, why did the Zebharans have such a positive outlook of them? In what sort of species did the fear of the Ruined meet with the awe and reverence reserved for the Upright Ones? Their position in equine record was unique, in that the perception of them was in such a contradictory state. Other races most could agree on back then. The elusive bat ponies, the Antrozi, were feared for their seizures being misconstrued as possessions by evil spirits. The sea ponies, now extinct, were mercurial but kindhearted. Then there were the real nightmares. Them.

Involuntarily Bunsen bit down on his pen as the memories came rushing back in around his barriers.

Strung up in green slime. Cool air blew across his face.

"Why," he asked.

The green serpentine eyes lit up at his question. Her magically constructed knife twirled in the air, illuminating her black chitin, her gossamer wings. "Because pain is beautiful," she replied.

The living nightmare continued on, his bonds dropping away. Orange flames crackled around her. Before she was consumed, she smiled out of an open, lifeless jaw and empty eye sockets, "There are more of us. They're sleeping, but they'll awake. There are more of us, and we are coming."

A bitter metallic taste brought Bunsen back to reality, as did a long, sharp fragment lodged in his mouth. He spat it out, only realizing after he'd done it that what he'd almost choked on was bits of his pen; he'd bitten through the plastic casing, and ruptured the core where the ink was held. The bitter taste remained but he held it in, neither swallowing or spitting. He quickly went to his personal water closet to wash out his mouth. After doing so he splashed his face for good measure. His defenses were back up again, and he could review his memories impartially from behind the colorless, thick membrane holding them back. Over twenty-five years and they still hadn't faded; they never would.

It was here that Bunsen slowly placed his hooves on the edge of the sink and thought as he stared down the open drain. They're sleeping, but they'll awake. Who had put them to sleep? The Ruined were said to be conjurers of demons, and They most certainly held that status in Equestrian lore. Could they have-

He looked up into the mirror, his eyes narrowing for a second. He returned to his office area and quickly put back on his labcoat, then exited his office, the door closing behind him a little harder than usual.

The door to my cell swung open, and my captor appeared. I had been lying down looking at the ceiling, but I quickly sat up. There was something much different about him now as compared to before. There was a menacing glint in his eye and a syringe in his teeth. Before I could move or fight back he had lunged forward and stabbed me in the thigh with it. I let out a little gasp from the pain as the needle sunk into my skin, and the mystery fluid drained into me.

"We're going to have a little chat, you and I," he declared coldly as he now stepped out of my reach, "and I will find ways to make you uncomfortable should you be anything less than agreeable."

"What the hell did you put in me," I asked angrily as I took the needle out and tried to apply pressure to the area as best as I could.

"Sodium Pentothal," he replied, "I had to make some adjustments for your difference in weight, but with the dose I gave you I'll have my answers soon."

"How many times do I have to tell you I didn't kidnap Lyra-" I then thought back to the talk I'd had with the girls not long ago and how he'd interrupted them when they tried to bring her up. "You've had her here all along haven't you, you scumbag," I snarled, "What have you done with her? If you lay a finger on her-"

"Lack of fingers notwithstanding, I've done no harm to her," he replied, "She's sedated, nothing more. It's only ever been about you. So long as she's missing I get to keep you for now."

"I don't care what you think I am," I said, lifting my hand for a second to see if I was bleeding or not, "but I'm not from around here. I might look like whatever you want to call me, but I'm not a 'Ruined', okay?"

"Did you create Them," he asked me sternly, clearly not paying attention to a single word I'd said.

My head was starting to feel fuzzy, like a layer of fog was growing around the inside of my brain. "Who the hell are they," I asked as my eyes began to droop a little, "the conspiracy?"

"Don't play games with me, foal," he angrily snarled, "I can make sure you stay down here forever if you don't answer how I like. The shapeshifters: did you make them or not?"

The fog closed in deeper, and I slumped back against the wall, my hands falling off my leg. "You'rrre completely nuts," I said with a slur as my blood began to leak up slowly out of my leg, staining my jeans, "I told you, I'm from another universe. s'That so hardta belief?"

"I don't believe you," he yelled, "Tell me now what I want to know or I'll break something."

"I didn't do anythin'," I replied a little more pointedly. My head rolled to the side, and I giggled a little, "Wha' is this stuff? Feels kinda nice."

The stallion let out a yell of frustration before he crushed the fallen syringe underhoof. "He's too strung out to tell me anything," he growled to himself, "No matter. It's just a few minutes before he'll come back around." Still, a part of his mind began to wonder if indeed the subject had said all he could say. He dismissed it after a moment of hesitation. There wasn't evidence of parallel worlds. It was more likely the subject was from here, a member of one last pocket of the Ruined hiding away from the world.

Suddenly there was a rumble from above, one large enough to shake the dust from the hanging lightbulb.

"What in the starry abyss," he hissed before he turned and ran from the room, slamming the cell door behind him. He ran down the hall to the nearest intercom station, a pronounced rasp in his voice as he breathed heavily and spoke at the same time, "Comms, this is Bunsen Burner. What in Tartarus was that?"

"We're not sure, Director," the voice replied, "We're still gathering- Hold on. It's an Intrusion, sir! Something's impacted on the Floor."

"Take us to level 4 now," he declared, "All hooves prepare for appropriate level response. Lock down the Black Archive. Make sure not a peep comes from the Mad Adder, and secure our latest subject."

"At once, sir," the voice replied. Klaxons almost immediately began to sound, and the lights were powered down to pave way for the emergency red colored lights. Bunsen galloped up the stairs from the cells towards the Floor, all while others ran to their stations and the intercoms blared, "Intruders detected. RSD compromised. Location: Floor. Location: Floor."

Beneath even the floors of the human's prison there was another chamber. A large domed room was keep separate from the rest of the facility, sealed off from the world above. Nothing but two guards were ever allowed in beyond shift changes. The small room that they called their work space was close quarters, an observation room with a thick glass pane allowing sight out into the center of the dome. A small, blinking red light appeared, though its presence wasn't without warning. The guards had felt the tremor just like everyone else. Their eyes were now glued to their prisoner, near unblinking. The both of them were anxious, unsure of how long they would be at Level 4, but that it would be longer than either of them would like. Inside the dome, directly in its center, sat the statue of Discord, his mismatched forearms up as if to defend himself from them, his eyes frozen in a panicked state. For the first time since they had been posted to this assignment they were no longer sure whom was trapped with whom. The glass was too thick for them to hear anything from inside the chamber, but if they could their blood would have frozen solid. Though his mouth never moved, the Lord of Chaos' chuckle could be heard softly bouncing off the dome walls.

Chapter 27 REVISED

The alarms blared through every corner of the RSD. Everypony who was aware of what the particular code meant proceeded to their appropriate positions: soldiers and security to the Floor to confront the threat, and researchers to safe in-facility housing until the emergency had passed. The immediacy of the alert meant that most were busy concentrating on getting to those locations, and Vinyl's guard was no exception. Once she was left with a group of other scientists to be escorted to their panic suites, he proceeded to the armory to load up as quickly as he could for whatever intruders had penetrated the installation. The other scientists of course had their minds on escaping whatever harm was coming their way, and didn't notice when a new member of their party was missing. Vinyl sneaked a glance around the corner she was hiding behind, waiting for a group of security agents to pass further down the hall before she slunk after them. She was betting all her bits that the break-in was the Elements coming to rescue her, and not that it was some incredibly well timed invasion by other, more sinister parties.

"We're almost there," the Doctor yelled, as he fought to hang onto the console, the gravity still drawing them all to the floor at an angle. Through the still open doors of the Tardis the group could see they were plummeting straight through hundreds of feet of rock, air pockets, and leftover minerals.

"Hope so," Applejack grunted out, "not sure how much more of this we'kin take!"

As if in response to what she had said, a capacitor on the console exploded, and a heavy burning smell quickly filled the chamber. The rhythmic trundle of the Tardis' engines began to stall, and sounded as if it were hyperventilating.

"Hold together, you beauty," he yelled up at the oscillating glass cylinder, before bringing a rubber mallet down on the damaged component, stopping it from venting any further gas. He then reached for the gyroscopic sphere and gave it a twirl, "She's struggling too much for us to keep going like this. We've gotta set her down!" He pointed his hand in the direction of the open doors and snapped his fingers. The doors slammed shut, and with that the outgoing suction ceased. Just as the seven ponies began to relax the Doctor called out, "It's not over just yet. We're coming down hard!"

Ditzy's eyes grew wide and she looked to the others, yelling, "Brace yourselves!"

"I don't know if I can be braced any further," Rarity snapped as the pressure and stress finally got to her.

On the outside meanwhile, their intrepid blue box had just materialized through the wall of a large open space in the underground facility, spinning horizontally relative to the floor. The Doctor threw the switch that made them tangible to the outside world, and then jumped into the crash seat near the console, strapping himself in. Outside, the ponies on the Floor yelled in panic as they suddenly witnessed a blue shed phase through solid matter. Each got out of its trajectory, some grabbing others to remove them from it's path. The Tardis slammed through what appeared to be the bottom half of a bipedal cloven hoofed torso, knocking it to bits and sending components flying through the air in all directions. It glided ever closer to the floor, skidding against the ground, driving deep gashes into the concrete beneath it until an invisible barrier surrounding it collided with a wall, knocking an enormous circular crater into it. The scientists left in its wake scrambled for the nearest intercom to raise the alert of an intrusion.

"Alright," the Doctor said with a wince as he let free the strap keeping him secure to his chair, "I will be the first to admit that that landing in particular could have had some more...finesse to it."

"Are we stopped," Twilight asked, "I can't tell from in here."

"We are in fact stopped," he said as he brought the console monitor around to himself. The countdown now read 1:21:24:57. "Yes, yes, I know," he muttered and shooed away at the number. The monitor seemed to react to his movement, because it miniaturized into the bottom right corner, allowing room for a map to appear. "The inertia dampener has always been a bit janky, but you can take my word for it."

Twilight saw to helping her friends pick themselves up, the gravity having now normalized, and gave a boost to Fluttershy before she turned and asked, "Did we make it?"

"We are about 200 meters away from Adam. Any other circumstance and I would have just materialized in his cell and away we'd go," he sighed a little as he slipped his hands into his pockets for a moment, then threw them up in the air, "but the odds are against me here!"

"Doctor," Ditzy called out, immediately grabbing his attention. She was helping Rainbow Dash up, whose wing still hung at her side, "Could use your help with this!"

Seeing the problem he vaulted over the safety railing and jogged to the multi-chromatic pegasus' side.

"It's fine," Rainbow grunted in pain, "It's just a dislocation: had tons of them in the past."

As they recovered from their disorienting ride the others began to gather around and show their concern for her. The Doctor felt around where her wing met her barrel until he had located the exact edges of the socket, each with a hiss of pain from his patient.

Fluttershy hovered nearby, her attention rapt on her friend, "Rainbow, I need you to lay down flat on your stomach. Can you do that for me?"

"Yeah, yeah," she replied even as she stretched out, "I, Ah! I know the drill. 'Slight discoaaah-" she gasped in pain, "-omfort' and all that."

Fluttershy landed and settled herself down so she was eye to eye with her friend. "Look at me," she said gently as she nodded to the Doctor, who nodded back. Rainbow glanced back as best she could on instinct to see what was about to happen, but she forced herself to look forward into Fluttershy's eyes. "Everything's going to be alright, ok," her friend said in as soothing a voice as she could muster, "Everything is going to be-"

The Doctor forced the wing bone back into its socket at that moment, and Rainbow screamed, yelling a curse at the end, "HORSE APPLES!"

Applejack winced: she'd seen her fair share of injuries, but this one looked particularly painful.

"OOOoooh," Pinkie said with a hiss, "That'd hafta smart."

Rarity's hoof went to her mouth in alarm.

The Doctor's work, however, was not yet done. Reaching into his suit pocket he brought out the blue tipped device again and aimed it at the wing near the socket, sweeping it in a layered pattern, going row after row until he reached the muscles groups nearing her rump. "That should take care of that nasty mess," he said at last with a reassuring tone, then flashed a grin to the others. He then gently patted Rainbow on the back as he rose up, "You're all better now."

Quizically Rainbow flexed her wing, and found there to be very little left over pain at all; she felt as if she might even be able to fly on it again very soon! "Okay, that's definitely new," she exclaimed as she continued flexing her wing open and closed, "What'd you do? I feel great!"

"Stimulated your muscles to realign to their proper location and drew the pyruvic acid away from the bruised regions," he replied. When that elicited no amazed response from her, he simplified it, "I gave you the best speed massage of your life. Enjoy it while you still feel it." He then turned to the others, "Right, so we're on a time table, let's get to it, shall we?"

"Now just hold on one minute Doctor," Twilight at last said, her frustration boiling to the surface, "We deserve to know what is really going on. Admittedly we didn't expect Bunsen Burner would come after us when we made our plan, but we had the Princess on our side! She was ready and willing to help us, and now we've gone and broken into prison anyway. How is that supposed to look to her?"

"Like I said, time's a bit of a factor," he replied, "We can get through the nitty-gritty of the details after we've saved your three friends."

"Well, we're going to have to make it four," Fluttershy chimed in, "There's another pony named Vinyl Scratch who said she was being held prisoner as a researcher here."

The Doctor let air sputter past his lips as he sighed, "and I thought only humans multiplied so rapidly." The Tardis's monitor gave off a gentle pinging noise, which brought the Doctor scrambling to look at it. "Speaking of multiplication, there's a group of about a dozen soldiers outside and growing every second."

Pinkie placed her hooves on the console and hoisted herself up to get a better look, "They definitely don't look too happy."

"Yah think," Applejack asked with an arching eyebrow.

"Only sometimes," she replied with a smile as she looked back to her fellow earth pony.

"There's not exactly a lot we can do against them," Rarity exclaimed with worry, "What are we going to do?"

"Well, I was just going to go out and talk with them," the Doctor said with a shrug and a scrunching of his face.

"With those weapons they definitely don't look like talking," Rainbow comment as she hung her front hooves over the console safety railing.

The Doctor scoffed and smile at them, "Like those matter. You can come outside if you like, just stick close to the Tardis."

Ditzy was right at his side, matching him step for step. "You've really done it this time," she grumbled just loud enough so he could hear, "Now I've got to play translator between you and some very unhappy ponies. Wouldn't this have been better if we had tried to talk to them first before we invited ourselves in so dramatically?"

"They wouldn't have believed us if we would have done that," he murmured.

"Except now they'll think we're bluffing."

"Well if they don't believe me they can always do the sensible thing and get out of the way."

"You know they won't."

They had reached the end of the catwalk, the faded white interior of the police box doors just in front of them. The Doctor sighed, and his shoulders hung a little heavier, "No, they probably won't."

"We're coming too," Twilight declared, which got both of their attention, "All of us, and when we're done here I'm holding you to that promise of telling us everything. No misdirection, no lies."

The Doctor's face was neutral as he glanced at each of the six in turn before saying somberly, "Suit yourself." He then turned back to the double doors and reached for the handles to push them out, "Now, let's go say 'hello' to the neighbors!"

Chapter 28 REVISED

The soldiers took positions around the blue box, aiming their war saddles' guns directly at it, mouths on their triggers.

"Steady," Lieutenant Swiftfeet called out as he strode through their ranks towards the box, no trepidation in his steps, "Steady, everypony."

Bunsen Burner was not far behind, and he came to a stop just beside his second-in-command. "What do you make of it, sir," the soldier asked as they looked the box up and down, taking in all its details.

The light at the top of the box was strobing slowly until it finally remained completely on, and a deep *thoom* resounded across the Floor's concrete walls and floor. The soldiers adjusted posture, taking even closer aim.

Initially silent, the scientist shouted out, "Corporal, nearest to the box: teleport inside!"

"Yessir," the young lad called out, his horn lighting up even as he barked out the words. With a flash he disappeared from the spot he'd been in, only to reappear three feet in front of the box. Perplexed, the corporal tried to teleport into the box once again, but all that happened was a flashed appeared around his unmoving form. He looked back to the Director and shook his head, mystified, "I don't get it! There's an empty space inside, but something's keeping me out."

The doors to the side of the young unicorn were pulled inward gently, and a voice called out to him, "That's because if I wanted to let you in, I'd let you use the door like any normal, sensible being would!"

The unicorn soldier leapt backward, and the other soldiers nearest him shouted, "Contact!" The entire group of soldiers' mouths twitched around their triggers, but still they held, awaiting orders.

"Don't shoot," the voice called out from the box, "We have no weapons. My friends and I only want to talk! We're stepping out now."

The Lieutenant silently cocked an eyebrow, while Bunsen frowned suspiciously. What angle were these interlopers playing? All present were offered quite the surprise when out of the box stepped a biped, one with wild spiky brown hair and in a blue suit with red tie. At his side was a grey pegasus with a blonde mane and tail, and just after her processed out the Elements. Almost as one all soldiers stood down without taking orders, each bewildered in their own way. Bunsen's eyes widened, but the frown remained on his face. Another Ruined One? The assembled Elements? What in Tartarus' flames was going on?

"I suppose now that I think about it, I probably should have taken my own advice on the front door business," the man said as he surveyed the damage his box had done with a wince, "Glass houses and all that." He gestured to the unicorn he'd spoken to and gave a quiet, "Sorry," all the while the young stallion just looked up at him with eyes like saucers. "Now then," he said with a slap of his hands, and a swiveling of his head, "I'm looking for a Mr. Bunsen Burner. Would the real Mr. Burner please step up?"

With a quiet growl the stallion in question began to push forward towards the intruder, his soldiers now parting for him; he would not be simply summoned like some sort of pet. "You are trespassing on government property," he declared firmly, "as well as being a potential enemy of the state: tread carefully."

"Ah, there you are," the Doctor said nonchalantly as he locked eyes with him, "Grumbly, grim, ominous threats; just the pony I'm looking for."

"Identify yourself and state your intentions, Ruined," Bunsen snapped, "I will not have time wasted, not when I can have you arrested here and now to be sent to a cell next to your compatriot."

"Just call me the Doctor, and I'm not feeling ruined," the man said, ignoring the threat, "I feel just dandy in fact! Well, that's not entirely true: I am concerned. I've just stopped by to pick up my 'com-pat-riot' as you say and be off."

"Please just do what he asks," the grey pegasus declared, "He's only trying to do what's best for everyone."

"That will not be happening," the stallion said as he stepped closer, looking up angrily at the man, "You will not be leaving this facility, now or ever. As for you," he said as he looked to the Elements, "You would have been wise not to interfere in state business."

"Oh stop it," the Doctor said in frustration, "You're just angry somepony caught you with your hoof in the cookie jar. Let me take Adam away and we'll call your abuse of power resolved."

"Even if I were in a 'giving mood', what possible reason would justify his release, hm," the old stallion snapped, "I will not have two threats to Equestria's security out in the wild. Now identify yourself! Who are you?"

The man looked down at him, now suddenly very quiet, his face taking on a harder, much less jovial shape. "I'm the only man capable of understanding that your entire planet is in danger of annihilation, and I'm the only one who can stop it."

The Floor was silent for a brief moment, as the Elements started to look up at the man worriedly.

"Bah," Bunsen replied, "Empty threats. You should've tried harder if you actually wanted to convince me."

"Please," the grey pegasus desperately blurted out, "You must believe him! There's an anomaly in the Everfree Forest. If it's left open any longer it will soon cascade, and we are all put at risk for it swallowing us into the Void!"

"Adam is part of the problem, and he will be part of the solution," the Doctor declared, "We need your help to save the lives of everyone on this planet, but you must listen to me. Let me help you!"

"Sir," the Lieutenant whispered as he came up to his superior's side, "Shouldn't we consider the possibility they're telling the truth? What if there is something out there?"

"Based on just their word," he asked at regular volume, "I think not." He then turned and walked away, "We're done here."

"If you won't stand aside I won't let you stop me," the man said with a warning tone in his voice.

"I'd like to see you try," he yelled over his shoulder before calling out to his ponies, "Detain the ponies. Open fire on the Ruined, non-lethal."

"Step away from the box," a soldier called out to the ponies.

"Doctor," Ditzy Doo asked worriedly.

He looked down to her, and then sighed. He reached into his coat pocket, and brought out his blue tipped device, "I wished it didn't have to come to this."

Several things happened at once. "Weapon," was yelled out, and an instinctive bolt of magic was fired, then several more. Twilight was about to raise a shield against the magical assault, but she heard Pinkie yell, "Cover your ears and get down!" Immediately the Ponyville residents hit the floor and stopped their ears. The bolts of light that were aimed for the Doctor were suddenly absorbed by a bright flash near where he stood and vanished. He pointed his device not at the crowd of soldiers in front of him, but above them at the nearby wall, and activated it. The PA system shrieked an incredibly grating tone. All the standing ponies were forced to their knees, their screams of pain and discomfort drowned out by the still droning sound. The Doctor looked on grimly without a word, no triumph or smugness on his face, his ears uncovered but seemingly immune to the noise. At last he released his hold on the device's button, and the high-pitched sound ceased. He brought his hand down to help Ditzy Doo off the floor, who quickly took it. "We need to move now," he said to the others as they rose, "That pulse will only keep them distracted for so long, and we need to be long gone before they all come to."

The Elements all looked around at the collapsed soldiers, each amazed at how the small army had been incapacitated so quickly, and all by a magical little metal stick. The Doctor made his way to the closest wall, making sure to not step on anypony underneath, then jogged to the nearest door, forcing it open. He waved the others through with a quick encouragement, even now seeing some of the soldiers were starting to get up. He pulled the door shut behind him and pointed his device at the number pad next to the handle, causing it to fizzle and spark.

"There, deadlocked," he declared, "They're not getting out to come after us."

"But our only means of escape is in there," Rarity pointed out.

"Shshshsh," he exclaimed at her in a loud whisper, "Don't think that far ahead! We've still got to set the captives free and round out our shopping list!"

"Shopping list," she replied in bewilderment as the Doctor drew a pocket notepad out of his suit pocket and give it to Ditzy Doo, "Down that hall behind you. Take the stairs through the third door on the right, and go down two flights. Get into the room behind the fifth door on the left side of the hall: there's a smorgasbord of goodies we can use."

"On it, Doctor," she replied, then turned and bolted off.

He then turned back to the others to find Twilight staring at him intently with a quiet anger. "We're going to have a long talk when we get out of here," she declared simply.

"Oh, inevitably," he replied, then waved his hand down the other end of the hallway, "Now, let's get going!"

Deep below in Discord's chamber, the statue's eyes almost seemed as if they were looking upward to the situation above. Though the guards' attention was locked on the statue, they were certain somehow that the stony prison was not moving. From out of one of the spines on his frozen back appeared a tiny, blood red point of energy which trickled down his form unseen onto the pedestal. From there it speedily darted to the wall and wiggled into the most minuscule of cracks where it began a quick ascent to the chambers above.

Someone new is here, the imprisoned Lord of Chaos thought to himself, Someone interesting: messy, dark, unpredictable.

The spark appeared in what nominally was a sealed room, where lay the unconscious body of Lyra.

Oooh, but there's a pony here, just asking for a little...inspiration.

The spark paused for a moment, then slipped up the bed the unicorn slept on and slipped into her ear. Viewing her memories remotely, the draconequus paused as he recognized something in her most recent thoughts.

How- But I-

He paused in thought, mentally drumming his paw against his chin.

Hmmm. Perhaps I'll tell her the truth about them, he thought to himself for a moment, and in the silence one could practically see his malevolent grin, Oh yes! Sometimes the truth is more interesting than fiction.

Chapter 29 REVISED

I felt like I was underwater: my brain was sloshing around inside my head without a care in the world. My friends were coming for me, that's all that mattered. The room felt kinda fuzzy, but it was more clear than it had been a few minutes prior. I guessed then that whatever that madpony had given me was starting to wear off.

I heard subdued voices outside my door; they weren't my friends.

"Nopony's checked-in. Whaddya think? Maybe there's some kind of stand-off going on?"

"Not sure, but at Level 4 our guys should be able to take on anything coming their way."

"Yeah."

Right as the other guard finished speaking there was a deafening shriek. It pierced through the fog I was stuck in and forced me to cover my ears. I fell on my side back onto my cot, trying my hardest to get as far from the sound as possible by pushing up against the wall, but it was everywhere, bouncing off everything. As suddenly as it happened it vanished, replaced by the most empty of silences. There was then a faint buzzing sound, and I saw as well as heard my cell door unlock. I wanted to believe it was the others arrived at last to take me away, but I couldn't be certain. I remained with my back up against the wall.

At last the door opened, and of all things possible a man's head appeared around the corner!

"Hello," he said in an English accent as he brought up a hand to wave his fingers in greeting, and he smiled at me. I was stunned beyond belief, which he seemed to take advantage of, "Lots of questions, I know, but there's a time and place for everything. I'll get you caught up later."

I remained where I was lying, stammering out a simple, "Who-"

"The Doctor will do," he replied as he came closer, waving some sort of metal wand at me, "Protein deficient, mild confusion, bruised puncture wound. You're peachy! Remember though? 'Time and place'? Not here."

"Adam, move your stupid rump before you get us all captured, again," I heard a more familiar voice yell at me, and a creme coated dual mane colored earth pony appeared in the doorway.

"Bon Bon," I blurted, and I scurried out of my cell to wrap her up in a big hug, "You have no idea how much I missed you."

"That's nice," she snapped, "but I don't think we want to be here any longer than we already have, right?"

"Where's Lyra," I asked, taking in each of my saviors' faces, overjoyed to see ponies I knew again.

"Present," Applejack exclaimed as she adjusted the sleeping mare lying across her back and shoulders, "Well, sort of: the 'nopony's home' kinda present. She's heavier than she looks too!"

I waved my hands back toward me as I approached her, "Let me."

"Dude, are you bleeding," Rainbow asked in alarm, "What did they do to you in there?"

"It's nothing," I replied as I pulled the unconscious musician into the crook of my arm, her head laying on my shoulder.

"Right then, all but one prisoner accounted for," the Doctor exclaimed, "Let's head back up to the Tardis. Ditzy's sure to meet us on the way."

The girls all ran ahead, each tailing after the Doctor, leaving me behind to wonder what in the world he was talking about. There was a groan near my feet, and I realized I was still standing in the presence of my now recovering guards like a total moron! "Hey, wait up," I yelled after them as I ran after in hot pursuit, Lyra's chin bouncing on my shoulder. Realizing that, I put my other hand to the back of her head, bracing it so she wouldn't accidentally hurt herself. "We'll make it out of this Lyra," I said in a murmur to her, "We're almost there: out of the dark."

Meanwhile, Ditzy Doo was up in the Materials facilities, putting together quite the stockpile of odds and ends. "Two ten meter coils of magically conductive metal," she said to herself as she placed them in a rolling bin, "Anode and cathode posts from a battery, check." She then gently set a cloth wrapped parcel into the cart, "One 108 millimeter lens, check. An iridium cylinder, check. A two gear rotary mechanism, i.e. a record player," here she struggled hoisting up a wooden phonogram with brass touches into the side closest to her, but her grip slipped and it fell into the cart, an audible cracking sound coming out of it. She winced, before saying in a worried, high pitched tone, "Sort of check! That should be it." She then put her shoulder against the cart and began pushing it towards the nearest exit, and grunted to herself, "Now let's...get this back...to...the Doctor!"

Because of the high shelves and close quarters of the room she did not see the pony rounding the corner of of the aisle until they had already stopped in front of the cart, and she yelped in surprise.

"Are you with the Elements," the voice asked.

Ditzy nervously rose off the ground as she waved her forehooves, "Wait, don't call the guards. We need these to save Equestria! The fate of the entire world is at stake! You have to let me go, please!"

There was a silent pause. Slowly a white unicorn with an untamed blue mane craned her neck around the cart. "You're sayin' et's the end of the world?"

"Basically," Ditzy replied with a worried smile that devolved quickly into a worried expression, "Wait, are you Vinyl Scratch?"

"Thank the stars and all the 'eavens," she exclaimed as her horn lit up and she began to push the cart forward, "I was beginnin' to wonder if you lot had forgotten about me! Come on then! Et's your cart and the end of the world! 'Elp me push, damn it!"

Having forgot herself for a moment, Ditzy frantically flew to her side to contribute her own muscle, "Right! Um, I'm Ditzy, by the way. Ditzy Doo."

"Pleasure," Vinyl replied curtly as a bead of sweat traveled down the side of her face, "Ere's to 'oping we make it out of 'ere in one piece!"

Magical sparks arced through the air, vaporizing as they came in contact with the floor. A unicorn soldier was burning through the thick material of the metal hatch leading out of the Floor, his vision protected and obscured by a welder's hood.

"Once that door is down head for the nearest PPE station for thick earmuffs," Bunsen Burner yelled a little louder than usual due to his and his troops partial deafness, "After that check on the status of our various detainees: the human, Mad Adder, everything." He then set about checking on the still incapacitated soldiers, providing a few rounds of First Aid himself as best he could with the other medically trained ponies. Once that was done he was drawn back to the human's transport, the blue box. His ever-present frown deepened as he looked it up and down, "No teleportation...and no weapons-fire."

"I'm starting to wish we hadn't been so zealous in our security measures," Lieutenant Swiftfeet said as he once again came to his superior's side.

"Too true," Bunsen replied, "The walls are lead meshed and concrete, too thick to be breached, and my office's glass windows are shatter-resistant. This is the sort of situation I would never have predicted. What do you make of our invader's 'carriage'?"

The Lieutenant looked over the box again and thought back through the last few minutes. "Some sort of shielding prevents harm to the passengers, probably within a limited field since they didn't leave their position until after we were dealt with. It materialized right through the wall to get here, so it's able to shift straight through solid matter, and unless this is the most dull colored clown car in the world it has to be bigger-"

"-On the inside, yes," Bunsen replied as he tapped his hoof to his chin, "And not with a trace of magic."

"I suppose that's somewhat significant," the pegasus said as he ruffled his wings, "but all the same not too surprising."

"Do you understand what this means though," he asked as he turned to his subordinate and pointed at the box, "This not only equals but surpasses our current thaumaturgical achievements! Shielding is doable, passing through material is beyond but the elite, and the rest? Princess Luna only just recently achieved bending space to be filled with larger objects when she reacquired her old powers. If only an alicorn is capable of dimensional phasing, what other secrets does this box hold: what terrors?"

"They did only use non-lethal weapons," the Lieutenant said slowly, "and it is the Elements with this 'Doctor'. Can we at least make certain that what they've said is false? Why don't we send out a bulletin to the weather teams in around the Everfree, have them do a sweep for any unusual activity?"

Bunsen Burner thought to himself quietly for a few moments, a grimace occasionally appearing on his face as he weighed what he meant to do versus what seemed feasible. "Send the message, but also send a tactical team back to Ponyville," he pronounced, then glanced at his subordinate, "I want you heading up this mission, so select our best. I'll remain here to try and put our defensive plans back on course. The way things are going I might have to make an Appeal to Heaven."

The Lieutenant's eyebrow arched, "You think it's that serious?"

"They took us all down with a little bit of noise," he said grimly, "We are hopelessly outmatched if we keep our most potent pieces off the board."

"Would they agree to it though? There hasn't been an alicorn on the battlefield in over six centuries."

"With this," Bunsen walked up to the blue box and gently tapped with his hoof, "We might convince them."

Hooves and shoes clattered up the stairs in unison as we made our way up to the last available floor.

"Alright," I said with a small gasp, slightly winded from the weight of carrying Lyra and running full tilt up four flights, "Where do we go from here?"

"Where's the room with the glass panels," the Doctor asked in turn as he looked to Twilight.

She pointed just down the hall, "It's not far: it's Bunsen Burner's office."

"Doctor," I heard a female voice call out from the floor below us, and I looked over the edge of the railing nearest me: a grey pegasus was trying to push a pretty big cart towards the flight up, and accompanying her was-

"Vinyl," I blurted out, and she looked up at me.

"E.T," she shouted back with a smile.

"What are you doing here," I asked.

She shrugged, then realized she was still wearing a labcoat, and promptly started ripping it off, buttons flying in all directions, "Oh, you know. Got mah business raided 'coza you; then they took all my stuff an' me to boot!" My eyes grew wide and my mouth hung open slightly. I was about to apologize, but she cut me off, "Nah, don't worry 'bout et! 'Anyone's to blame it's the head spook and his mooks!"

"What about your music? Your research?"

Twilight reached out with her magic and slowly lifted the cart up and over the railing beside us, while the two newest members of our company trotted up the stairs to meet us.

"Don't worry about et," she said as she came up to me, giving me a light sock on the thigh, "Let's focus on gettin' outta 'ere first, yeah?"

"Right," I said with a wince: she'd hit my bruised leg.

"Oh bollocks," she muttered, "Sorry!"

"Why do we need back into the Director's office," Fluttershy asked as we made our way there, "Is there something special that we need there?"

"Yeah," the Doctor said as he took control of the chart, pushing it forward, "Our escape route! Lovely choice in record player by the way, Ditzy." He reached into the cart and brought up the brass bell, which had detached from the player's base, "It is a pity though that it has to die for us."

"So what's the plan," I asked.

"We play the part of distraction," he said as he brought the cart to a stop just outside the Director's Office, "While Twilight secures our escape."

"Wait, excuse me," Twilight exclaimed, but the Doctor turned to her and put up his hands to explain, "The glass isn't shielded in this room. You can teleport down to the Tardis and bring her to us, all I've got to do is give you a quick how-to on controlling her."

Rainbow Dash audibly snorted, "Yeah."

"With what we saw Ah'm not sure if you're the right teacher fer flyin' lessons," Applejack said bluntly.

"Oi," he exclaimed in offense before he turned back to Twilight, "I just need to connect with you via a psychic link; easy, nothing to worry about!"

Twilight glanced around at the others and I before looking back at the Doctor, "We don't have any other options I guess: half a chance is better than none!"

The spiky haired man put his splayed fingers gently against her face, and her eyes nervously glanced at each hand before focusing back on him. "Hold tight," he murmured, before he closed his eyes.

Twilight's pupils dilated as compressed information was fed directly into her brain from his, the exact instructions beamed into her subconscious mind. "I-Incredible," she exclaimed in wonder as she looked deeper into each step, wanting more knowledge.

"Ahahah," he said as he drew his hands away, "I'd normally be all for higher learning but trying to understand multi-dimensional engineering is a little beyond you. Did you get all that?"

Twilight's eyes were still wide in amazement at what she had processed, but she slowly refocused on him and nodded, "Yeah."

"Good," he said quietly, and then he stood up, "Now, distraction time! Adam, front and center!"

My eyes grew wide, and I glanced around in surprise and panic, "Wait, what?"

"We've got activity up in the Director's Office," a soldier blurted out across the floor as he flapped his wings and rose up.

Bunsen Burner and Lieutenant Swiftfeet both whirled around and looked up. "What in the-" Bunsen blurted as he now saw that his detainee was slapping his open palms against the glass to get everypony's attention: it was working. All eyes were turning now to the spectacle above. After he seemed to have everypony's attention he then turned his back on them and began to rub his backend directly against the glass back and forth. He then turned to look at them with a smirk and yelled at them silently through the soundproof glass, "You like that?"

Quite a few ponies looked at the bizarre spectacle with confused expressions, some even with disgust. Bunsen was more in the confused category than anything. "Why is he even doing that," he asked more to himself than others, "Why would they suddenly want our attention, unless-" He froze, and it was in his silent moment that he saw the magical flash out of the corner of his eye and heard the the unique sound of a teleportation spell. "-it was to draw it away from something else! I'm a fool," he said loudly as he turned to see Twilight slip into the now unlocked box. He ran back to the box and began to bang his hoof on it thunderously. "Open the door, Ms. Sparkle," he said in a raised voice, but there was no response.

Suddenly the foglight atop the box began to flash and a distinctive roar filled the air, VroOOOm. VroOOOm. VroOOOm. This time, however, the box began to fade from the spot it had just been located in, vanishing into thin air. Furious, Bunsen Burner turned to look up to his office to find the human slapping his backend and jogging away from his line of sight.

"Get up there," he roared to everypony who could hear him, "Melt the glass! Blast it to atoms! Teleport in! Just keep them here!"

The unicorn welder had just finished cutting through the large metal door to get out, and he punched the cut-out portion of it clear with his magic, allowing earth pony soldiers to rumble through. Others were firing lasers up at a focused point in the glass, stepping clear of the now soupy material dripping down on them from the rapidly forming hole. A braver pegasus than most flew through the still tiny crack to find that the last of the invaders, the 'Doctor' fellow, was the last into the blue box, now situated in the middle of the office. The man gave him a sarcastic salute and a smile before stepping inside. The light atop the box once again strobed, and the box faded away, vanishing into the ether.

It was a few minutes later that the Director and his Lieutenant arrived in the room to survey the damage they had ordered be inflicted. A few points of magical scorching and mage's fire were burning in the ceiling, with molten glass dripping down both into and out of the office, some of which was now burning through the carpet. Sparks fell from the ceiling light above.

In a low, bitter voice Bunsen told his subordinate, "Get this cleaned up."

"Of course, sir," he said with a nod. Before the old stallion left the room he spoke up, "What do we do now sir?"

"Have the emergency status cleared and our researchers returned to their projects, then do the security sweep as we discussed." Bunsen's eyes narrowed, "This was a defeat, undoubtedly, but that will not stop us from protecting our own and safeguarding this nation." He then spoke over his shoulder as he left the room, "Have me notified when you leave for Ponyville; I'm seeing to our illustrious leaders being apprised of the newest developments."

Chapter 30 REVISED

The doors to the blue box closed, and we newcomers were told to hang on. "Hang on," I asked, before we were all knocked to the right. The Doctor looked up at the central column of his machine with worry as he jumped around the console area in a hurry, righting the controls.

"Dark pits beloooOOOOOW," Bon Bon yelled out, ending in a scream as she flipped over the catwalk's safety railing to fall into a nest of cables.

I turned so that it was the side of my body Lyra wasn't on that crashed into the safety railing. "Aaaah, God," I exclaimed in pain, "I need both of my kidneys working: stop trying to do them in!"

"Sorry," the Doctor yelled out to us all as he focused on piloting the strange machine, "Prioritizing keeping us from being annihilated by the disruptions rippling through the Time Vortex!" He glanced at the swiveling monitor, and then his gaze froze on it as he turned to look again. The Countdown was rapidly decreasing now, several minutes flying by relative to the Tardis' interior. The Doctor's eyes grew wide, and without a second's worth of pause he pulled a long handled pump on the console out, threw a black headed lever, and pulled a large handled breaker, "Here's good." With an almighty lurch we were brought to a halt, each of us bracing ourselves in our own way.

"Never thought I'd find something worse than public transit," I said more to myself than anyone.

"Ah'll say," Vinyl said, apparently having overheard me, "Muh Dad's old wagon was just as bad; didn't look nearly as pretty as this thing's interior does though."

"Ditzy," the Doctor exclaimed as he waved her over to join him in front of the console monitor, "Would you come have a look at this?"

The pegasus' eyes grew wide as she approached, as the Doctor's tone made her dread what she was about to see. Using her hooves to hoist herself up to a more comfortable viewing angle, her face blanched as she saw the evident change: 1:11:43:21.

"We're in sync with local relative time," he murmured softly to her, "We've moved around 30 kilometers and touched down five seconds after the time we left."

"Instrument error," Ditzy asked wishfully as she glanced up to him.

"I don't think so," he said with a shake of his head, and he looked off into the distance, "Blasted anti-chronons."

"Guys," I called out as I set Lyra down on her back, "She's not waking up!"

Fluttershy was the first over, and she immediately set about checking her condition. The others began to slowly gather around, holding their own conversations about the problem. Twilight came over just beside her introverted but kind friend and began her own cursory examination. "There's nothing physically wrong with her, I think," the yellow pegasus said as she gently opened one eye, and then the other.

"Because there's nothing physical about it," the scholarly unicorn said with a frown as she reached for Lyra's eyelids and opened them again. The eyes beneath were unfocused, and there was a faint red discoloration to them that flickered against the frame of her golden pupils. "She's been put in a magically induced trance of some kind," she said, "There's no telling when she might come out of it."

"Can we force her out of it," Rainbow Dash asked.

"That wouldn't hurt her, would it," was my question.

Twilight shrugged, "It won't hurt her, but whether we can pull her out prematurely I don't know for sure."

"Would music help," Pinkie asked, her body suddenly now decked out in an assortment of instruments that I could for certain say were nowhere near her when I last glanced in her direction.

"Let's just try and talk to her first," Twilight said with a cautious wave of her hoof.

"Right," I said with a nod, "Like she's in a coma or something. That's gotta work."

Bon Bon and I moved in a little closer to our friend. Without thinking my arm went around her shoulder as I squatted down to be near Lyra. The earth pony was surprised for a moment, but she allowed my arm to settle where I'd put it.

"Lyra," I said softly, as I pulled Bon Bon closer, "Wherever you are in there, we need you to wake up. Shake off whatever's gotta hold of you, and wake up. We need you back." I paused as I started to realize there were deeper feelings involved with my plea, ones that I had not expected to find, and I wasn't sure how to address. "Lyra," I said with no small amount of uncertainty, "I need you back. Wake up." Bon Bon heard my inflection, and she looked up at me in surprise. I glanced over at her, unsure where things were going now or how I was going to handle my declaration.

In the depths of Lyra's subconscious the words echoed all around, Lyra, wake up. We need you back. The unicorn winced, and her ear flicked. The words repeated, more clearly but just as soft. Her ear flicked again, and her eyes began to open. She slowly brought her forelegs underneath herself and pushed up, looking around as she did. The place she found herself in was covered in darkness apart from a singular spotlight that shown down on her. She looked up to find the light source, but saw that somehow there was none. With the way the ambient light shown on nothing but her, she felt as if somehow she were sitting in some sort of purgatory designed for stage actors.

"Hello," she called out, quiet and nervous, "Is anybody there?" Silence was the response she received. Her resolve grew a little, or at least sounding agitated made her think so, "Whatever you think you're holding me for, you have no case; nothing! Adam is innocent. You have no right to hold us."

Suddenly she heard a sound come out of the darkness in response to her. Two beats, spaced too far apart to be hoofbeats, but the sound seemed familiar. As it neared, she could discern that the louder of the two beats had an accompanying faint sound of metal striking a surface. It wasn’t a pony that was for sure. She could count on her hooves all the things in the world she was aware of that normally walked on two legs. Could it be-

A bipedal figure's silhouette appeared just outside the range of the light, its features for the most part obscured.

Lyra was already spooked by the past few days and her now strange environment. Even though she was certain it wasn't him, she still called out to the figure, "A-Adam?"

The figure in the dark didn't move initially, leaving her to stew in her growing agitation and paranoia. It put one leg forward, then the other. A set of dark brown loafers were the first things she saw of the human, followed shortly afterward by a set of brown pinstripe suit pants. A golden tipped cane was in its right hand, its cane head in the shape of an ancient dragon lunging forward. It was carved of what looked to be pure gold, and its inset eyes were blood-like rubies.

"Oh, I'm terribly sorry," the figure said in an older stallion's voice, before his face appeared. His face was narrow and tall, and unnaturally gaunt. A grey beard much like that of goat sat on his chin, presumably to draw away attention from his heavily receding hairline. If that was the case it wasn't working however. His red pupils flashed and a smile appeared on his face, exposing a singularly long incisor. "Were you waiting for someone else," he finished.

Lyra looked up at the intimidating man with a shocked stammer, "Well, um, I-"

"Oh, but my manners have left me," he said, his mouth now returning to a small smile, "After all, neighbors should bring gifts when they come over." With that he brought his cane up and pointed it into the space just inside the palm of his other hand. The dragon's eyes flared to life, and from the ether glass began to form, weightless until the being gripped it tightly.

Lyra couldn't help but feel utterly repulsed by him. Something about the way he stood, or the way he bore himself, she couldn't wholly explain it. Standing in this man's presence felt utterly and completely wrong. He simply wasn't meant to be. His mere existence felt as if it were a declaration of war on all of nature. She had never felt a sense of disgust so powerful in her life.

With one last flash of residual energy the structure of silica was complete, its shape spiraling round and round like a spring, ending on one end like a beaker, and on the other the structure narrowed and thinned until it could be sipped like a straw. From the bottom a light brown liquid spontaneously appeared, filling the beaker and ascending up the structure until it was filled halfway. The man offered it to Lyra, "Care for a drink?"

Aside from the fact that the glass was almost as tall as she was when she stood on her backlegs, Lyra didn't want anything he could possibly give her, and she shook her head.

"Hm, fair enough," he said as he instead drank from the glass, drawing the liquid up all in one go to fall back down his throat. He then tossed the obtusely shaped glass to the side, "You have much better taste than I. I don't like repeating material normally."

Startled at first by his sudden violence on the defenseless silica, she returned to herself and thought over what he said before asking in confusion, "What?"

"Really, it was for the benefit of everyone else, so they know who I am," he said as he now walked past her before muttering to himself, "How original, like chocolate milk is my one and only trick." His cane pointed to the shattered glass and dust nearby and he raised it up; in response the particles flew back together to form a chair bottom with a back but no legs. The man then sat down on the legless seat suspended in the air, his cane tapping back and forth between each shoe and glanced at Lyra, not a bit of mirth in his face.

Lyra, still trying to take in the immense amount of strangeness she had been witnessing, was only able to ask, "What are you?"

The question brought a deep smirk to the man's face even as his eyes narrowed. " 'What am I,'" he repeated, "How perceptive of you. 'Who's' can be easily answered because they can be put on any old being. What is there for the bigger things? Bigger things have names, but they're 'What's'. 'What's' have a much bigger scale: they get names not to make them familiar, but to set the apart, to set them above others."

When Lyra looked back at him with a still confused expression, he sighed, "Maybe you're not as smart as I thought. Just because I put on a different face you forget who I am? Still, you're not the first. I am, and there were hundreds of cultures and languages that gave me names: to the Egyptians, I was Set and Apep. To the Babylonians, I was Tiamat. To the Teutonic tribes, I was Loki, and to the Arabs I was Iblis. To scientists I am Entropy, Inefficiency, and Chaos. I am the Serpent, and I am the craftiest of animals. But I believe you know me by a different name.”

The man suddenly made a retching sound, and bright, eerie red light spewed forth from his mouth. Primal energies burst from him, spiraling upward as his body was consumed by ruby fires. Startled, Lyra looked up in horror as she backed away, unable to look away from the spectacle before her. The man’s shoes, feet, legs, cane, then torso and arms, and finally his head were eaten away, or rather, released by the archaic fires that spewed from his mouth and eyes. Writhing above Lyra was a cloud of red energy, that slowly began to coalesce into a coherent form. It was a flying serpent, made and wreathed in smokeless flames and ruby lightning. It opened its mouth to roared silently into the darkness.

The dragon was then abruptly pulled to the floor, seemingly by some unseen force, and began to physically materialize, each body part twitching and jerking as it appeared from the red miasma. Its right leg formed into a reptilian hind leg, while it’s left leg took that of a goat. It grew a long red tail with a collection of white fluff on the end. Its torso was morphed into a slender, almost serpentine form, which was covered in brown fur. Its right hand formed into the paw of a lion, and the left into the grasping talons of an eagle. On its back it sprouted one bat wing and the other an airy pegasus wing. A ridged spine of long tough hair ran the length of its back and gray neck, which led all the way up to its goat like head, complete with two floppy ears, a goat horn and the horn of stag, and a long bushy white beard. Its eyes and tooth remained the same as in its human state.

He raised his arms, declaring “I am Discord!” He then offered his talons to Lyra, “It’s a pleasure to make your acquaintance!”

Chapter 31 REVISED

Discord smirked down at Lyra as she backed away from him slowly, her ears laying on her skull and fright in her eyes, "Finally, the reaction I've been needing all along. Now, 'How did you-'"

"How did you escape your prison," asked Lyra. Once she realized Discord had predicted her very next words she was even more disturbed.

"My dear, sweet, ignorant little pony," he said as she felt a patting sensation on her head before his face was right next to hers, "Surely you did not think that someone with the title of 'Lord of Chaos' could be confined to an itty bitty singular corporeal form, did you? Disorder is my profession! I have a degree in it in fact: self-ordained. I also have secondary degrees in Disharmony, General Mayhem, and Mischief." He then showed her a diploma with all the various mentioned subject matters before offhandedly finishing with, "Oh, I also have a Minor in Anarchy." A small Post-It note unfolded out underneath the edge of the diploma to add in his last pronouncement.

When Lyra continued to look up at him with a look of fear that was now mixed with confusion, he put his lion's paw to his chin and slowly pulled down his beard with a sigh, "Ugh, barely like Twilight at all, and nothing like dear Tia. Still, you'll do I suppose. There's not exactly a great deal of luxury in the slammer now is there?"

Lyra blinked with realization at this latest statement, "You mean you're down here in the RSD as well?"

A brass clang rang out above her before a pebble fell down on her head, causing her to involuntarily blink. She now noticed there was a medium sized gong suspended above her, levitating without string. It still resonated from being struck.

"Aaaand she's got it, Fillies and Gentlecolts," Discord said with a wink and a snap of his fingers to an unseen cheering audience, who abruptly stopped when he waved his other hand, "It's true, my dear, we are in fact together in this place, or at least we were until your friends came and got you."

Lyra's eyes widened and she now stepped closer to the mismatched being, "Adam and Bon Bon, are they safe? Was it the Elements who rescued me?"

She fired question after question until Discord, evidently becoming irritated with it, pinched two fingers together in the air and drew a line across space. Suddenly, Lyra's mouth was sealed by a comically oversized zipper to which her hooves immediately flew when she realized what had happened.

"If you want to actually learn something from someone else, you must let them speak," he said before cramming his face in front of hers, "It's called 'Di-a-logue. Speech 101! Are we clear?"

Lyra wordlessly looked back up at him from her sealed mouth and nodded her head softly. "Good," he said, a smile growing on his face spontaneously, and with a snap of his fingers the zipper vanished, replaced by her mouth. "Yes, your friends are all perfectly fine, and yes Twilight and hers were somewhat involved, but the real reason I stopped by was because you've got one friend in particular who intrigues me ever so greatly: the biped."

"Adam," she asked, "What about him's so interesting to you?"

"Oooooh, plenty," he said, and he gestured to something behind her, his paw became covered with red energy.

Suddenly she was hit from behind and forced back into what she soon realized was a seat, a very cushioned velvet chair with thick armrests. The light of a projector appeared above her, shining just over her head to fall on an invisible wall a few feet in front of the both of them. Discord was at her side, levitating with his legs crossed and his tail curled beneath him, "In a bygone age, the three most important pony species, because no one cares about the zebras or bat and sea ponies, banded together to make the magnanimous nation of Equestria."

Slides appeared in the field of the projector, showing the founding of the nation, the creation of the flag, and the eventual spread of ponykind to Equestria's modern borders. The slides began to reverse, and there was the sound of a record scratching. Discord's narration continued, "There was, however, one small problem: the land and all the universe had a ruler: the intelligent, wise, handsome, and humble chimera that is me." An overly muscled parody of the draconequus appeared in the slide, a ridiculous rock candy crown on his head and a sword hilt without a blade in his hand. The image looked down at them with a cheesy roguish grin.

Suddenly the image was rotated out of the frame and dragged downward, to be replaced by a swan with a gold crown on its head and a dark horse with buck teeth. "The golden age was brought to an end, unfortunately, when two alicorns who simply did not appreciate his guile or humor sealed him away in a stone prison. And so Swanlestia and the Ugly Duckling began their rule as separate but equal royals, who lived in unfunny peace and tedious tranquility for several years."

"What is the point in this," Lyra asked him as she gestured to the imagery before them, the Ugly Duckling Princess now being shot out of a cannon towards the moon, "Even if this weren't a parody of history it still wouldn't tell me what you care about Adam for."

"Hmmm," he said as he stroked his beard, "You're right; though artistic this film lacks historical accuracy." A wicked grin crossed his face which she didn't notice as he snapped his fingers, "Let's change that."

Like a shutter being quickly opened and shut the imagery changed from cartoon portrayals of pony figures to a dark wasteland. The stars were bright in the sky, but the world around was cold, ice frozen in strange sorts of formations all over the valley they saw before them. There was no wind. There was no life. There was only ice and darkness.

"What," Lyra started to ask, then she spoke up, "What is this?"

"Oh wait, sorry," Discord said as he grabbed a remote from nowhere, "I skipped over the part that actually mattered."

With the press of a button the scene changed again, and now the world was filled with lights flashing all around. Into the frame ran someone just like Adam: he was wearing some sort of armor that covered the majority of his body with the exception of his face. He brought up a device that he braced between his shoulder joint and his chest, and from it came a flash of light.

"This is total crap," he yelled behind him to someone they couldn't see, "We're never gonna make it out of here a-"

A flash suddenly appeared from nowhere. It caught him right in the chest. He fell.

Lyra was confused, assaulted by the visual spectacle of the lights, the booms in the background, everything about the scene in front of her. It was too much to take in all at once.

"Do we need a Med-Evac," another voice, a male called out as another figure came into frame. The new focus of the camera looked back at them, and Lyra was surprised to now see what a female of Adam's species looked like. "He's dead," was her quick reply.

"Wha-" Lyra was about to say in alarm, but the scene interrupted, "Incoming!"

Something shot down into frame, forcing the woman to fall on her back.

The second male came into frame. He shouted, "Droid!"

From out of the missile stepped some sort of man, but instead of a human head on its shoulders there was some sort of box with a single bar of light that went from its 'chin' to its 'forehead'. The metal man pulled something like the humans' flashlights from a belt at its side and aimed for the two of them. Before it could shine its light on them another missile came down with a whine. The image was lost in a flash and a screech.

Another appeared in its place. It was an image of the sun.

"Commander, there's only five minutes until the wavefront reaches us."

Another male human said this to a grey haired female. They were both wearing clothes more like what Lyra was accustomed to seeing Adam wear but they had stars on their chests and other blocks of colors. They must be military.

"Tell everyone to pull back to the ships and bunkers," she said with a defeated tone, "The planet's surface is done for."

Suddenly their view of the sun changed. One second it was lit, the next it was dark. Ruin and devastation were everywhere. The ice began to form, and the scene returned to the one they had first witnessed.

Discord began to snicker to himself, trying unsuccessfully to hold in his laughter. Lyra, drawn from her stunned silence into anger looked over at him and asked loudly, "What is wrong with you? What was that?"

"No no, wait," Discord exclaimed as he waggled a finger at her, "It gets even better."

The scene skipped forward. It was a dark room now full of cages. From out of them appeared all sorts of eyes. A human walked passed the cages down the hallway, the eyes of the creatures in each cage backing away, some hissing or growling in fear.

There was one reaction that was different though.

"Wh-h-h-h-h-h-hy."

The human stopped dead in her tracks.

The voice hadn't been the human's Lyra thought to herself, in fact it sounded like it came from one of the cages.

The question repeated, "Wh-h-h-h-h-h-hy?"

The voice who had asked sounded like they were crying deeply, or like-

Lyra froze, her eyes wide and her mouth partly open with dread.

The scientist walked back the way she came to the source of the voice. She took a small pen from her jacket pocket and from out of it came a light. Within this particular cage was a pony. No, Lyra thought, not a pony but a horse: large and clumsy looking, colored like a dusty road. The horse was sitting on its haunches at the back of the cage. It looked the woman straight in the eyes with a grief like Lyra had never seen, and from deep in its throat and out through its mouth came another whinnied declaration, "Wh-h-h-h-h-h-hy?"

"Oh my God," the woman whispered with no small amount of horrific realization in her own eyes.

"Bwahahaha," Discord raucously laughed as he pointed at Lyra and her own look of horror, before he exclaimed, "Wait, we need to capture this moment!" He pointed a camera towards the both of them, and with a quick flash the picture was taken. The camera spat out the picture even as it was developing, and the caption beneath it was 'Sometimes the truth hurts'.

"This," Lyra tried to vocalize, "This-"

"Come now, Lyra dear," Discord said as he patted her on the head, "Use your big filly words."

"This is a lie," Lyra at last blurted as she looked up at him, desperate and angry, "You're liar, and you always were a liar!"

" 'The truth doesn't change according to our ability to stomach it,'" the draconequus said with chuckle, "But who’s to say whether you can trust what I’m saying at all? You see, Lyra, I’m Chaos incarnate; I might be lying, I might be telling the truth. But, ironically, I’m consistent in at least one thing, and that’s being inconsistent.”

The chair and the projector light disappeared and Lyra was rudely dropped to the floor. Frantically she looked around until she found the mental invader, who was now floating in midair belly down while tracing an invisible line on the floor with his finger, while propping up his head with his paw. “I’m the closest thing this world has to a god you know; I might be stuck in a stone prison, but I won't remain there for too long. I’m a part of the universe! Celestia and Luna can never fully stop me, because you know what would happen if they did? The entirety of existence would collapse and nothing would work. Everything would die, because without chaos there is no life at all, and order is the death of everything. It’s inescapable; you need me, and you always will.”

"Adam would never do anything like what those things did," Lyra yelled at him, "He's kind, and caring. No matter what you say I'll stand by him!"

"It doesn't matter what you think, Lyra Heartstrings," he said nonchalantly, "For all my power, there's nothing even I could do to change the self-destructive compulsions of the human heart, and why would I want to? Life is cruel, destructive, domineering, and fickle, and they loved life with all their hearts." He righted himself to stand back on the ground without a care in the world, "You're much better off with me as your ruler than them. At least I wouldn't cage you."

He slowly moonwalked backward out of the light, leaving a crushed and confused Lyra. “You’ll remember what I said, and then you’ll find out whether what I’m saying is true or not. Goodbye Lyra. It was lovely dropping in for a bit.” His chuckle grew and grew into a roaring laughter even as it faded into the background.

Lyra’s eyes grew heavy. "No," she said as she tried to fight off the weariness, tried to stay aware so that he couldn't sneak up on her. Her willpower faded quickly, and she fell to the floor gently, curling up as she did, her forelegs clutching her backlegs against her barrel. The tears started to flow even as her eyes closed, and the moans of fear and sorrow died away as she lost consciousness.

Chapter 32 REVISED

The six Elements, Bon Bon, and I remained huddled around Lyra, who for now was still unconscious. The Doctor and Ditzy slowly came over from whatever they'd been doing and took up their own vigil. Suddenly the others and I noticed that red points of light began to flow out of her closed eyelids, much like tears would. Her eyes abruptly shot open and she lurched upward, much to our alarm.

"Woah," Rainbow Dash exclaimed as Lyra's horn almost grazed her chin, "Careful!"

Wordlessly Lyra hyperventilated for a few moments before her eyes turned upward from the floor to look at Bon Bon and I.

"Easy, Lyra," the earth pony said in a comforting tone, "You're okay now."

"We are safe and sound, far away from Canterlot," I declared reassuringly, but then I had to backtrack, "Uh, I think anyways. Doctor, where are we?"

"The Everfree interior," he replied, "A couple kilometers in, definitely far from any civilized areas; the distance will give us time to think and plan while not being immediately discovered. Plus, there's also something intriguing not far away that I plan on investigating."

Lyra looked up in bewilderment as she righted herself to all four hooves, "Who's he? Where'd he come from?"

"Call me the Doctor," he said with a smile, and then he looked up to all of us in turn, "I know there's a lot of questions that still have to be answered, and I will once I've got some visual aids." He then turned and ran down into a hallway adjoining the control room, yelling over his shoulder, "Back in a tick!"

We all settled into smaller groups, each talking about their own concerns or interests. Twilight settled in with Applejack and Rainbow Dash, while Rarity and Fluttershy began conversing softly. Pinkie instantly hit it off with Vinyl as the two discussed their party sensibilities and tastes. Ditzy, meanwhile returned to the console to look at the screen, now writing on a notepad as she glanced up with one eye while the other remained on her work. This left Lyra, Bon Bon, and I together to catch up.

"We missed you a lot, Lyra," Bon Bon said as she glanced over at me momentarily, "We were worried sick when you didn't come back after your performance."

I nodded my agreement, "Yeah, but you wouldn't believe how Bon Bon went all super-secret agent on me when we had to leave town! It was kinda out there seeing her all 'nerves of steel' handling and planning our escape on the fly!"

Lyra's ears perked up and she gave a single chuckle before looking over at her, "No way?"

Bon Bon waved her hoof, but did smile a little at my compliment, "Oh, he's over-exaggerating. A lot. Still, what has me intrigued is how they got to you finally. They tracked us down in Ponyville and they arrested me, but the big oaf here had to run all the way across town to get snatched up."

"And they had to brainwash me too after Twilight promised to protect me."

Both of the mares gave me a confused look at that statement.

I nodded, "They've got a mind control device or something, I swear."

"Anyway," Bon Bon said before she gestured for Lyra to tell her story.

"Well, they got me on my way out of the charity event," she started after nodding slowly, "I'm guessing they wanted everything to seem normal and not cause an incident by snagging me sooner." She leaned in close to us so that only we could hear, and she said softly, "Don't tell Rarity, but my dress got ripped when they took me in."

"All things considered I don't think she'd blame you," I said with a smirk, "but we'll keep the secret."

"Besides," Bon Bon murmured, "I doubt we'll ever see it again." She then gave Lyra a sad smile, "It's a shame though; it looked really good on you."

Lyra smiled and gave her friend a hug, "Thanks Bon Bon."

"Lyra," I blurted out, which got her attention very quickly. As she turned to look at me I suddenly struggled to get the words to come out coherently. "I-uh," I stuttered, "Well, I just wanted to-Um-"

"Alright, I'm back," the Doctor yelled up the hall as he rushed back into the room carrying something that looked like a very old, beat up projector box of some kind.

The others began to slowly gather around it, including Lyra.

Bon Bon held me back with a foreleg across my knees and a look, "I know you're happy to see her, but hold on to what you want to say." She glanced to the others and then back up to me, "Make sure it's not just some fleeting feeling first so nopony gets hurt. Alright?" I saw the wisdom in her point and understood that she wanted to protect Lyra, so I nodded wordlessly. She then nodded in return before she walked up close to the others and she muttered and shook her head, "Heavens know where any of THIS recent turn of events came from!"

I couldn't help but smile and laugh a little at that, because I thought she was right: when and where did these feelings suddenly come from? I mean sure, I was innately comfortable being around her, and I enjoyed her: her music, her smile, her sly but innocent charm. She was the best woman I had been around. That's when my mind came to a screeching halt as I went back over what I had just thought. She wasn't a woman. She never would be. The fact that there would be certain things that we could never share even if she felt the same way about me brought another layer of cold reality down on me. Maybe Bon Bon was even smarter than I first thought. Were Lyra and I big enough to overcome the massive gulf between us as human and pony? Could how we think on a base level even match up at all? Does she even share my feelings; would she even accept them if she didn't?

The enormity of it all made me draw back into myself emotionally. For the first time since I had landed in Equestria I felt more alone than ever. So self-absorbed was I that I almost missed what the Doctor was currently talking about, "So then, with introductions done for the eighteenth time, let's actually address what's going on."

He pressed a button on the large projector box, and a blue holograph shimmered into existence above us. A 3-Dimensional image of a galaxy appeared in front of all of us, its spiraling arms long and its center bright. "I hail from the same universe as Adam," he said, giving me a shock for certain, "Mostly I just try to stay out of things and see the universe and all its wonders, but as with most things I always get drawn into something complicated." The map zoomed out until the galaxy was a mere pinpoint, surrounded by other features like what I assumed to be other galaxies separated by enormous expanses of space, and then it refocused on the other side of the projection, where we saw a strange collection of dark purple swirling objects. "I was in the Regian Cluster when this all started. It's a collection of black holes that have somehow drawn together to form what amounts to a solar graveyard." A bright smile came to his face, "You would not believe what it looks like when their accretion disks play off each other: there is no greater beauty!"

"Oh, that does sound absolutely magnificent," Twilight said as an imaginative wonder filled her eyes at his description. There was a great big grin on Ditzy's face as well.

Rainbow Dash tsked as she leaned over and whispered in Applejack's ear, "Of course Twilight gets it."

"Eeyup," she replied with a slight nod, "Most'a that went over muh head."

Seeing he was rapidly losing his audience the Doctor refocused on his explanation, "Ahem, anyway, it turns out that during my sightseeing I didn't appropriately calculate when and how the Cluster's gravity would affect the Tardis and so I was-" he coughed awkwardly, averted his eyes and muttered, "-consequently sucked in."

The hologram changed so that a miniature blue box now fell down a deep expanse like it was circling a shower drain.

"Hold up," I said as I waved a hand to stop him, "I may not understand a lot of what you're talking about, but I remember what I was taught in grade school: black holes can catch and crush everything, even light. You're telling me this ship can survive a black hole?"

The Doctor rolled his eyes and smirked, "Please. Time Lords mastered black holes ages ago: the Tardis' core is a sun perpetually stuck between supernova and black hole. The worst it did was suck me out of the universe into the Void. The issue was my guidance system was on the fritz, and by the time I righted it she'd made up her own mind of how to keep us safe."

"Which was," I asked.

"Locking onto the nearest universal timestream and plonking us down in it."

"Which is how you came to be here," Lyra finished the thought, "in Equestria?"

"Exactly," he said with a nod, "But-" The blue box was suddenly joined in the hologram by what looked like a long snaking tube. The two objects met, with the little box slipping into the larger one. "-she landed in the universe a little harder than she meant to." Suddenly, what looked like static appeared around a rectangular shaped hole in the snaky tube, and it began to spread. "Once I realized what had happened I immediately devoted as much power to plugging the hole as possible." The static was stopped in its tracks by a visible ping pattern created by the blue box in the image, to which the Doctor pointed, "That's why I didn't initially use the Tardis' higher functions like instantaneous space-time travel; those resources were devoted to plugging the hole."

"That's where I come in I suppose," Ditzy said as she took a few steps forward, all eyes on her now, "I discovered him on a delivery near the Everfree. After I got over the initial shock of talking to an alien, he began to explain the situation, and I promised to help him build a device to seal the Void hole forever. To do it we came up with a plan. No one ever took my inventions seriously, so he offered to be the face who would make the sales. After I helped him with the psychic rectifier Dr. John Whooves was able to move into town, and he needed an assistant to help him mind the shop."

"So you mean to say that as long as you've been here the universe has been in danger," Rarity asked, her confusion growing, "You've been here for over a year! Why did you never go to the Princesses and ask for help? Why didn't you ask us? The Elements of Harmony would surely be able to-"

"While our universes are similar enough, what with near identical constants of gravity, electromagnetism and the rest, I still am trying to grasp how any of this world's 'magic' as you understand it works. It's a natural force for sure, potentially even a fundamental one, but it's not one I'm comfortable with using on a whim when the stakes are this dire, and since neither of their Majesties seemed even aware of the problem I wanted to fix it myself and be on my way, no fuss, no muss. There was no reason for a panic or to cause an alarm because of an alien species appearing."

"Until now it seems," Bon Bon said with a completely blank expression.

The Doctor took in a breath and pointed at her, looking at her for a solid two seconds in silence before he put up his hands in surrender, "You've got me, but things are worse than they've ever been: the Tardis hasn't been able to keep up with the Void leak for a while now."

Twilight looked up at the image to watch the static begin to spread again, and then looked back through the hologram at the Doctor, "How long has the leak been growing?"

The Doctor looked me straight in the eyes with a neutral expression, "About two months or so."

When he said that I realized what he meant, and in turn so did the others.

"So-" I said as my right hand came up to my mouth, "When I came here...I made the hole bigger?"

"Yes," the Doctor said quietly, "I'm afraid you did."

The silence was deathly as we all looked back up at the hologram; the projector had begun to fill with static.

"How long've we got," Lyra asked with dread.

"Around thirty-six hours," the Doctor declared, "relatively speaking."

"There has to be something we can do," I said as we watched the simulation turn to complete static, "You said you had a plan to seal this hole?" I pointed to the box full of parts that Ditzy and Vinyl had been in charge of, "Are those bits of junk there part of it?"

"Now hold on," the Doctor said as he walked towards it and picked it up to bring it towards the pilot's seat near the console, "These are...the highest quality bits of junk that the Equestrian government could provide! I've got the tools to fix this up. Probably."

" 'Probably,'" Rainbow Dash asked in an alarmed tone, "You tell us the entire universe is about to end and that you think you can save it, 'probably?'"

"There is still one thing I need to check on though; there's something here in the forest that's transmitting a weak perception field. It's a small area, but it is definitely technological in origin, which puts it miles ahead of any species on this planet. There might be something useful there that we don't have at the Emporium."

A look of worry suddenly came on Lyra's face, but I didn't initially notice it.

Rainbow and I looked at each other. "Hang on a sec," she started, but I interrupted, "You said we're in the Everfree? How deep in are we? Are we north of Ponyville?"

The Doctor looked at the two us with no small confusion, "Wait, you know the place I'm talking about?"

"Do you have a map," I asked as I walked closer to the console. The Doctor swung the monitor around so I could see the area he was referencing.

Bon Bon took a few steps forward as she started to understand, "Wait a minute, Adam, are you thinking it's-"

"It has to be," I blurted as the map zoomed out of the forest to reveal the nearby cities and terrain.

"Ah'm so lost," Vinyl said as she looked at anyone and everyone, "Cin somepony please explain ta me what in the blazes is goin' on? Ah'm drownin' in ignorance 'ere!"

"It is," I exclaimed as a red box appeared around the exact area I'd been expect, "The signal's coming out of Spectre Howe."

"Spectre Howe," Applejack exclaimed before adjusting her hat, a frown on her face, "The place is only good fer ponies lookin' for a cheap scare."

"It's a bit more complicated than that," Rainbow said as she flew closer to the earth pony, "We went there before Adam got captured, and believe it or not we saw a human ghost!"

Lyra took in a ragged breath, which made me look at her, and for the first time I finally saw she was shaking in fear. "Humans lived here in Equestria," she hoarsely asked.

"Lyra, are you alright," I asked as I stepped closer, but suddenly I felt a pressure against my chest forcing me back. I looked down just in time to see a golden field disappear from my shirt.

"Stay back," she yelled. Everyone froze to their spot and turned to look at her. Her eyes shifted erratically from one of us to another. "Is it true," she asked Twilight, a desperate edge in her voice.

Twilight looked to the closest of the other Elements near her, "They're just legends, nothing concrete," she said with concern on her face rapidly rising, "Lyra, tell us what's wrong."

Her eyes then turned to me, pleading with me, "Adam, what are humans like?"

I wasn't prepared for such a deep question, and i stammered, "Wha-What?"

"What are humans like," she repeated, "Tell me the truth! Tell us the truth. Do they hurt others? Do they...kill?"

Every single person in the room was alarmed, Twilight, the Doctor, and myself the most.

"I'm the wrong person to ask that kind of question," I said, going quiet.

"Adam, I have seen things; things I don't want to believe, and they felt so real. I need you to be one hundred percent honest with me. You promised Fluttershy you'd never lie to her, just do the same for me: tell me what humans are like."

"Adam," the Doctor murmured to me softly.

Every negative part of my life was rushing right back into me, and I didn't know what to do. How was I supposed to explain myself, explain humanity, when I didn't believe in any kind of defense for us; when I didn't feel like there was anything positive to say?

"Adam," the Doctor was in the act of saying again, when Rainbow Dash asked in a hesitant voice, "Adam, what's a WMD?"

With all the negativity inside me and the pressure from outside I snapped, "It's a weapon! Weapon of Mass Destruction: designed to kill lots of people at a time, all at once!" I turned to Lyra and knew everything was over. Words started flowing out of my mouth, "I can't tell you how much I hate what we do, but yes, we kill! We hurt. We destroy ourselves and everything around us, all for stupid things and stupid reasons. I don't think it's any different from one universe to another, but all we do, all we ever do, is screw everything up!"

The room was deadly silent as all the ponies beside us went back and forth looking at me, and then looking at Lyra. She started to nervously gasp for air as she continued to stare at me. Oh God, why did I say that? What I have I done? I tried to reach out with my hand, but the gesture wilted rapidly as I continued to look at her, heartbroken with the whole scenario, the whole damn, stupid thing, "Lyra-"

She turned away from me, a hoof now on her chest. Finally she muttered, "I need air," and then she ran for the doors and slammed right through them.

"Lyra," I called out again. Another voice joined mine, and with a shock I saw Bon Bon run out after her friend into the dark forest beyond, "Lyra, wait!"

I turned to look to the others, but now I saw their demeanor had completely changed. The entirety of the ponies, minus Ditzy Doo, were looking at me with a guarded, alarmed demeanor. They were afraid of me, i realized. And why shouldn’t they be after what I had just done? Now I truly was alone in all the universe, because I had driven all my friends away. I turned from them slowly, and grasped ahold of the safety railing around the console, clenching and unclenching my grip rhythmically. I moved them to my head slowly, and then it was my arms that came to rest on the railing. I was looking at the grated floor, a mess of cables underneath, trying to push out the world I had created, giving my all to now ignore it and have it ignore me, so that for one brief moment I could convince myself that I hadn't just ruined everything.

"Help the others stay on task," I heard someone murmur indistinctly, but I wasn't focusing on who it was. I then felt a hand on my left shoulder, gentle but firm. I tried to shake it off, but the hand stayed. "Adam," the voice of the Doctor said, an equal mixture of frustration and sadness in his voice, "We need to talk now; now."

Chapter 33 REVISED

The control room of the Tardis was silent for quite a long while after the Doctor and Adam went down the hallway that led further into her depths. Ditzy was the first to speak up as she looked to the others, "Come on everypony. We have just a little over thirty-five hours to cobble something together to help seal up the Void hole. Twilight, I'm going to need some help with your magic, Vinyl and Rarity you too."

"Ah'd say Ah've got some mechanical inclination," Applejack replied quietly, "Jus' tell me what yer thinkin' of buildin' with this mess and Ah'll see how Ah can help."

"I'm no good here with this kinda thing," Rainbow said as she flew up into the air and away towards the double doors, "I'm going to help get Lyra back."

Fluttershy gave a quick sigh, "Me too," and then flew off after her.

Pinkie Pie watched as her friends divided up into groups, and her heart was heavy. Her mane and tail lost a little of their spring as she thought over what had been said by the human, and how it was affecting everypony else. Was there a silver lining to all this? What could she do? Everything she would normally try surely wasn't going to work, not with the enormous downer everypony was suffering with; it just wouldn't be appreciated. And what about the bigger picture? What if this time things didn't go so well and the world did end? Her friends, all of Ponyville, her parents and sisters, all gone. Her mane was about to deflate even further as she drew into herself, but a hoof came to rest on her shoulder, and it abruptly stopped as she looked up.

"Hey," Ditzy murmured to her.

"Oh, hey," she replied bleakly.

"Pinkie, we need your help," she said firmly.

"But, there's no party in the world that can fix this," she said despondently as she gestured out with her hoof, "No amount of balloons or cake or funny hats can top this doozy of a downer, and all those things are the only things I'm good at! There's no way to fix this hurt."

Ditzy Doo nodded as she squeezed the earth pony closer, "Pinkie, you are the heart of the Elements. You're stronger in ways others can't imagine. You can push others to see the bright side of things in the deepest dark." Ditzy looked up at the others as they began to pull the components out of the box and organize them, "Well, we're sort of in that dark spot right now. I can't ask you to laugh or even giggle, but we need you to remind us."

"Remind you of what," she asked glumly.

Ditzy turned one eye and then the other to look back to her with a soft smile, "Help remind us to hope. If we lose that then we might as well have not even tried. Even if you can't feel it yourself, give it to them anyway: you might just find you have a little left over for yourself too."

Pinkie looked up at her wordlessly for a few moments before Ditzy had to go back and help begin overseeing the design and construction of the device. The earth pony watched her friends as they worked, and she could tell they were stumbling along on the inside. They did need her. They were depending on her. A spark came back into her eyes, and her mane began to slowly return to its frizzy state. She stood up and trotted over to her friends. "Come on you gals," she said with a certainty she would never have expected, "We're gonna build the best space cork the world has ever seen, and we're gonna do it with style!"

The others looked at her in shock, but she could already tell that they were feeling more positive just by how they carried themselves; their heads were held a little higher, their steps a little surer. Ditzy let out a small sigh of relief, and she muttered to herself, "We're counting on you now Doctor; just find a way to handle Adam."

The Tardis halls looked nothing like the control room. There was no coral design here: everything was smooth metal and sliding doors, the shape of each hallway a hexagon just tall enough that we could walk through it without having to duck. "How do you find anything in this place when it all looks the same," I asked, my curiosity overcoming my looming depression.

"The rooms of the Tardis are spatially asynchronous," he said as we turned left into a corridor that was hidden down behind the natural curve of the hall, "If ever you need to be somewhere specific, she'll read your thoughts and rearrange the architecture so that it's exactly where you'll end up."

The idea that the very layout of the ship was changing around us just out of sight was both terrifying and amazing at the same time.

"So is the ship alive," I asked with some worry.

"Oh yeah," he said as his hands went to his pockets, "but don't worry about her being hostile: any friend of mine is a friend of hers."

A strange whining sound reverberated from down the hallway, followed by a abruptly dropped tone.

"What was that," I asked worriedly.

The Doctor smiled and put one hand up to a support strut and patted it gently as we passed it by, "She's just agreeing with me. Ah! Here we are." He turned to the right into a small doorway through which a warm light was glowing. I came into the room just after him to find that it was a small kitchenette area with room for two to sit at a small table nearby. "Quite the rush job, but good quality all the same," he muttered.

"You mean this wasn't here before?"

"Pretty sure it wasn't, but then again I eat out more often than not. Used to be that the only food on board were high nutrient pills that could last you a whole day; tasted like overcooked asparagus though. If I had to wager on it the Tardis made this just for us in this moment, right here and now." He reached into a fridge located near the stove area and brought out a dish covered in plastic wrap, then placed it into a twist dial microwave located between it and the stove, "I'm hoping that having a full stomach will help you think better, if not at least make you more positively disposed."

"Oh," I said quietly as my curiosity from before was immediately squelched by my most recent actions.

The microwave dinged, and the Doctor opened the door and reached in, dragging the plate and quickly whipping it over to the nearby table as he hissed from its apparent heat. "Go on," he gestured to me, "Eat up!"

"You don't want anything?"

He rubbed the back of his head and laughed to himself, "Oh I already ate before we, heh, broke you out. Besides, I wanted to talk to you without too many interruptions."

Unsure of what exactly our conversation would be leading towards, I hesitantly took my seat in front of the still covered plate.

"Heads up," I heard the Doctor call out and instinctively I reached up for the blob in my peripheral vision and caught it with both hands. It was a utensil packet I immediately saw, for which I said, "Thanks." He nodded and came over to sit down opposite me.

I removed the plastic cover at last to find a glorious meal before me: green beans, seasoned and crunchy, mashed potatoes, a large whole wheat roll, and a good sized steak. My mouth in an instant became a faucet of desire and saliva, but I hesitated and looked up to my dining mate, "This wasn't anybody out there was it?"

"Absolutely not," he said solemnly, "Pure 21st century non-sentient bovine. Eat up; you need it since you haven't been covering all your protein intake lately."

Feeling a little awkward still but my mind put at ease I ripped my fork and knife out of their packaging and set into the steak, greedily cutting out slice after slice, savoring each delicious bite.

"You want a drink," he asked when he realized he'd forgotten to place a glass before me.

" 'm good," I mumbled as I continued devouring each part of the plate.

"I know you missed a lot of my explanation earlier about myself from your worrying," he said, and then nodded as I looked up in surprise, "Oh yes; it was that obvious. But I'll be brief: I've been around for a while, and humanity has always fascinated me. I've seen things, both good and bad, that you would never believe; heroes and villains alike. For every atrocity that repulses me there's always some new joy that brings me back to your blue little marble. What I want you to understand is that though there are certainly dark, horrific things in both your past and future, there are spots of hope, petals of tragic beauty that echo across time, and even moments of happiness interspersed throughout-"

"Doctor," I said as I lifted up my fork to point at him, "that's really flowery language and all, but you haven't lived my life. I was homeless. I starved, I froze, and I burned. I had no one to turn to. The only reason I didn't die of hypothermia one night was because some think-tank decided I'd make good interstellar garbage.”

“Interdimensional,” the Doctor corrected quietly.

I put my hands up and then jerked them down in frustration, “Point IS humanity isn't good, at all! We're hopeless, living through the life made of our constant mistakes; the smart exploiting the stupid, and the powerful keeping the weak under their thumb. And what do people do: keep their heads down, make token gestures of goodwill, and pretend they can make a difference. Now look at us; you said the two of us just being here is ripping this universe apart!" By this point I was shouting and fumbling from one idea to the next, not really thinking about what I was saying at all. I froze when I realized how loud and crazed I was sounding. The Doctor nodded a little and he put his hands together, placing them near his face as it seemed he thought about my tirade. I lowered my head to look back down at my plate, "Maybe it would've been better for everyone if I had never made it out of the Void."

"No," the Doctor blurted as his clasped hands slammed down on the table, "You cannot think like that. What damage you've done was a consequence of my mistake: you had no say in the matter."

"I still ruined Lyra and Bon Bon's lives," I shot back, "Vinyl's too. I got caught because of my stupidity and now they will always be chased by that scientist pony and his goons, or at least however long that is."

The Doctor slapped the table with an open palm and sternly looked at me, "Adam, just for a moment I need you to think outside of yourself and stop trying to win the argument about how terrible you are!"

The surprise sound and the seriousness of his look silenced me, which he most definitely took advantage of, "Have I ever lived a life like yours? I must admit, no, I haven't. I've made mistakes just as well as you have though, and if we wanted to put it to contest i can most assuredly say my nine-hundred or so years of experience in idiocy vastly dwarves yours. I can tell you for a fact that there's no satisfaction in focusing on self over others. You think there's no such thing as a good man? Fine, neither of us are; because good men are not so by nature, but by action and choice. I've seen people do good things, even when it would hurt them in the end, and it wasn't token or hollow. If you cannot consider humanity to be good then don't: consider them instead to be redeemable."

He put his arms out and his palms to the sky unseen above to which he momentarily glanced, and then looked back to me, "Look at us in this moment: we have a day and a half left to save the universe. That is more than enough time to prove to everyone here, pony or humanoid, that humanity still has something to offer this world!" He gestured to me with his open left palm and a closed right fist, "Stop focusing on what injustices have been done to you," here his left palm closed, while the right opened, "and instead see what potential you have to right other's."

I sat and looked at him, unsure of where I truly sat in my thoughts. If you could be redeemed, could your good actions ever truly outweigh your bad ones? Perhaps if you were trying to keep score you were thinking about it all wrong in the first place. The Doctor did have a point for sure: the clock was ticking, but there was still time to make things right. Maybe it was time to refocus priorities.

Unsure if he had reached me or not, the Doctor slapped his palms against his slacks and glanced off to the side before he focused on me again with his large eyes and frown. "There was a man around the time of your Revolutionary War named Edmund Burke. He had some pretty good nuggets of wisdom consistently through his life but a favorite of mine was this, 'The only thing necessary for evil to triumph is that good men do nothing.'" He then pointed to me, "If we can't be naturally good men, we can be good men made, and if you're like me doing nothing is not an option." He withdrew his finger and stared right into my eyes, "What will you do?"

I put my utensils down looked back at him intently until finally I asked, "How do we fix this?"

"Everything that's come through the breach, including us, has a specific radiation signature; it's difficult to trace at long distances, but it is definitely present in us. The only way to plug the hole is to eject the radiation back into the Void: the Tardis should be able to then easily seal it." He leaned back in his chair nonchalantly, "All well and good, but I think there is another problem that needs to be taken care of right now." He shrugged in jest and waved a hand towards the doorway, "Something a little more personally relevant? Perhaps a...missing roommate?"

Oh good lord.

"Lyra-" I blurted, and I burst to my feet, my chair falling back onto the floor.

"Theeere it is-" he said with a small smile, but it was only to himself as I had already bolted for the door.

I ran back the way I came, or at least I think I was. The hallways all looked the same. Then I remembered what the Doctor had said about the Tardis, and I began to mutter under my breath as I rushed straight ahead, "Lead me to Lyra. Just lead me to Lyra.” A turn to the left was fast approaching and it seemed to feel like the right choice. I took it. The hall bent around to form a circular incline until it came to a diagonal fork. There was a blinking light above the passage leading off to the right. I took it as my sign. Immediately after running down it there was a single sharp turn to the right, and suddenly I was back in the control room, all bronze and curvaceous coral. The other ponies were there, or at least six of them were: Bon Bon, Rainbow and Fluttershy were gone. Without bothering to stop and talk I ran around the console, down the gantry, and out the double doors of the Tardis. I heard Ditzy call out after me but I didn't respond. I ran out into the green, the mud, and the darkness. My eyes quickly adjusted, but night was nearing, and the obstructive canopy above was not helping provide any light. It didn't matter. She was out here somewhere. I didn't care if she was afraid of me or if she'd never forgive me. At this point, I just wanted Lyra safe, no matter the cost.

Chapter 34 REVISED

Galloping hard into the darkness, Lyra didn't once look back to the Tardis or anypony inside. She couldn't handle any of this. Living nightmares seemed to be coming from out of nowhere and attacking her from all sides now. The humans, their wars, the planet's death, and the equine races' origins. It was all madness! And then there was Adam. What in the stars had happened? She remembered he was gentle and caring, fun-loving and sweet, but who was it that she had woken up to? It was like he was someone completely different: angry, vitrolic, and, and-

A branch she hadn't seen whipped just past her face, grazing her cheek harshly. A slow trickle of blood began to form, a languid drop falling to the forest floor. With sudden alertness the young mare began to realize just how alone she was. Alone in the Everfree, the light now past twilight and heading towards moonrise. A small clearing lay just ahead, full of field grass but otherwise empty. Lyra slowed to a trot as she approached the center until finally she flopped into the soft embrace of the weeds beneath in utter exhaustion.

Even as she breathed deeply to get her wind back she couldn't keep her tears at bay. How could any of this be? If the planet had died how was anything here? Why had humans decided to create ponies at all? Nothing made any sense, and the sheer enormity of it crushed her soul, but it always came back to Adam.

"Lyra," she heard a voice shout her name from the direction in which she had come. It was Bon Bon, she knew, but so focused was she on her tears and confusion that she didn't respond. Bon Bon called out again, for much longer and with greater worry in voice, "Lyyyraaa!" Just a few moments later the earth pony appeared in the meadow, following the broken and crushed vegetation her friend had left behind in her stampede. Seeing her friend not moving where she lay, Bon Bon rushed to her side as she continued to call her name; only noticing the unicorn's weeping when she was right next to her. "Lyra," Bon Bon said softly as she lay down beside her friend to comfort her, throwing a foreleg around her shoulder, "What was that back there? What is going on with you?"

"Bon Bon," she whispered, "You wouldn't understand."

"Come on," she shook her foreleg around her friend a little for encouragement, "Try me. You'd better explain this because right now I don't know what to think."

"Humans lived here," she declared with a sniffle, and then clarified, "before us." She then looked over at Bon Bon, fear in her eyes, "They made us. Do you get it? The only reason we talk, and think, and can be free is because they are gone."

The earth pony froze, the comprehension of what Lyra having said seeping deep down into her brain. "Where did you learn that," she murmured, "Who told you that?"

Lyra glanced away, and then rolled over to turn from her friend's gaze, freeing herself from the foreleg around her, "Discord."

"What," she exclaimed quietly, "How could he have spoken to you? How could you believe him?"

"I don't know how," she yelled in dismay, "but everything he said about human nature Adam agreed with."

Bon Bon thought back about what he had said, not just from a few minutes ago, but even as far back as near to when he had first arrived. "Lyra," she said quietly, "i don't think he ever told you in so many words, but Adam didn't have a good life where he was from. When you get mistreated by others it can become hard to see the good surrounding you, and he's struggling to look past the bad."

"But what I saw-" Lyra tried to say even as her friend interrupted her, "It could just as well have been an illusion. Other species have done some bad things, but think about it: so have ponies too." She gestured out to the area in front of them, "Think about the three races: why is there even such a name when back in the day there were clearly six? We shunned and drove away the bat ponies, the seaponies, and the zebras because they were different and scared us. Think about what the Solar Cultists did back during the 300s: the zealotism, the coercion, and the 'reeducation'. If humans are bad at heart maybe we are too for all we've done." She looked away from her friend, slightly embarrassed by what she had to say, "Besides, I don't think he would ever try to hurt you."

"But you saw the way he acted," she said quietly, "How could he be so...different from the way he had been before?"

Bon Bon once again found herself in the unlikely position of having to defend the being she had never really enjoyed. The irony was not lost on her. She fumbled for words, trying to find some way to connect with her friend. Meanwhile, back on the forest path, a faint but eerie glow appeared around the area where Lyra's blood had fallen, and a low growl seemed to come from the surrounding twigs and sticks. Adam was running through the shrubs and fallen leaves not far away. following after the now widened trail from the two ponies who had cut it with their stamping hooves.

"It’s like-" Bon Bon started, and then stopped as she struggled with her analogy, "It's like when you’ve created one of your songs that has multiple layers in it. You know how sometimes some notes or chords become more prominent when you're listening in certain places or in certain moods? That's what's happening here with Adam. The same person you and I have known is still there, it's just things have changed somewhat, and what was in the background is now there for everyone to see and hear." She put her foreleg back around Lyra and stroked in a back and forth motion to try and comfort her friend, "He hasn’t changed, you're just seeing a side of him now that's new to you; after what he's been through just in the past night, us included...maybe we all need to take a step back and give ourselves time to think a bit, yeah?"

Lyra stiffened underneath her outstretched foreleg, and her head came up to look back from the way they'd both come. Bon Bon followed her gaze slowly. Both of them heard the sound at the same time: the snapping of twigs and a rustling sound with no wind. From out of the forest five sets of greenish-yellow eyes appeared, scrutinizing them in a predatory manner. The smell of decomposing moss and grass now hung in the air, filling them each with the very real desire to retch. Each pair of eyes gave a low growl, each one seemingly lower and more threatening than the last. The girls slowly got up and began to back away, offering them as much ground as they wanted. The eyes drew closer until their owners' forms were made plain when they entered the meadow: timber wolves.

They began to fork out from their pack in order to surround Lyra and Bon Bon. While their name was identical to those wolves of our world, they got their name for a more literal reason. Every timber wolf is made of hundreds of twigs and tiny branches, and while they may get their sustenance from the ground in a similar manner to trees, they were still extremely protective of their territory and just as ferocious as their more fleshy cousins. Lyra and Bon Bon had unintentionally encroached on their land, and regardless of whether intentional or not, the pack had come to show what happened to interlopers.

"Can you get us out of here," Bon Bon murmured quietly as they continued giving ground.

Exhausted physically and unfocused mentally, Lyra was only able to say, "No."

Bon Bon looked up to the sky and yelled, "Rainbow! Fluttershy! Come quick! Help!"

The timber wolves' ears perked but their stalking towards the two of them continued all the same. Lyra and Bon Bon stood with their faces in opposite directions, each now covering the other’s flank and making sure they kept their eyes on a wolf at all times. Each of the predators was trying to maneuver into a blind spot, and with each step came the distinctive twig snapping, branch bending sounds made by their footfalls. Bon Bon was facing down two of the pack’s five members, while Lyra was nearly six hoofsteps away from two additional wolves and the Pack’s alpha. Each of the pack’s regular members was about their size, but the alpha was nearly a head above either of them. The thorny branches that made up the alpha’s jaw were poised and waiting for one false move from either of the ponies.

"What are you doing," Lyra hissed as she nervously looked at the pack.

"They should be around here somewhere, and if we can't run we need to fight."

Lyra wanted to be able to just light her horn and blast through the creatures, but she didn't have the strength to take on all of them, even if she weren't exhausted already. There was, however, something she could yet do. It was true that Lyra couldn't get the both of them out of the mess they now found themselves in, but that was because she only had enough concentration and energy to do one teleportation spell. After that...

"Actually, I think I can do it," she said, trying to keep her voice from wavering anymore than it already was.

"Well if you think you can you'd better do it quickly," Bon Bon said softly as they started to turn with the now circling pack.

“Right,” Lyra’s voice cracked and she began quietly sobbing again as her horn lit up, “Okay.”

The alpha’s eyes narrowed and it's thorny grin became more pronounced as it snarled at the growing light. Judging by their behavior their attack was almost certainly imminent.

As soon as the teleportation spell became ready, Lyra glanced back at her best pony friend in the world. They had been through a lot, the two of them, even in just the past few days. She had always been good to her, Bon Bon had: allowing her to live with her, occasionally even cleaning up after her and being her voice of reason. She truly regretted that she hadn't been a better roommate, and a better friend. Perhaps now was the one chance she would get to pay that debt back.

“Good-bye Bon Bon", she whispered hoarsely, the words seeming to take more effort than the spell ever could have.

Bon Bon half whirled around as she processed what her friend had actually said, but even as she blurted out an alarmed, "What," she was already gone from the meadow, vanishing in a patch of green light to appear just a stone's throw from the Tardis.

After the post-teleport disorientation had worn off, Bon Bon realized what her friend had just done and what that meant for her. Even as the others saw her and began to gallop towards her, she stamped her hooves to the ground and yelled into the forest, “You stupid foal!” as tears began to pour down her face.

Lyra, still weeping but at peace with the knowledge that her friend was at least away from danger, looked up to see all the timber wolves shuffling in place, their wooden hackles raised, and their rears wiggling. At last the alpha lunged forward, ready to put its jaws around the throat of the tired and defenseless unicorn.

Then all hell broke loose.

It was just as Lyra was making her goodbye to Bon Bon that I burst into the area. I had the two ponies in my sights when I saw the green flash that made the earth pony vanish into thin air, and then I more clearly saw why. Monstrous creatures of wood and vegetation were surrounding Lyra. My Lyra. I saw that the largest of the five creatures had its back to me and that it was ready to strike. If I had been thinking rationally, or for that matter thinking at all, I would have probably stopped and tried to plan something or have made a weapon of some kind. Then again, I probably would have also been too late. Instead I leapt into the clearing, sprinting into reach of the monster and jumped, letting out a furious roar unlike anything I had ever heard myself do.

Even as the large thing pounced its ears perked and it tried to turn its head to see the new threat. The four smaller ones jumped in place, their eyes locking onto me as I flew through the air to land on the back of their leader, my weight forcing it to the ground. I grunted in pain as I now felt the notches and knobs of the wood beneath me cutting into my chest and abdomen. I saw Lyra's terrified face right in front of me, and with what air I still had left in my lungs I wheezed to her, "Run!"

I then felt the creature's legs adjusting underneath us and I knew it was trying to rise. I'd never fought a dog before, which this certainly looked like, but I sure as hell knew I wasn't going to let those jaws or claws anywhere near me! The smaller dogs seemed to back off, I guess to allow this one its space to take me on. I wrapped my arms tightly around its neck and my legs around its center, and I knew I was in for the worst rodeo of my life. It whipped its head back and forth, snarling, snapping and howling as it did, even as it tried to shake me off from side to side. I dug my knees in tighter and tried to constrict my arms around its neck, praying to God somehow I could strangle the damn tree wolf! Even as we jumped back and forth and whirled around I noticed out of the corner of my eye that Lyra was still stock still where she had been through the whole thing. "RUUUUUN," I bellowed out to her.

Suddenly the wolf thing froze in place beneath me, and out of nowhere I collapsed into the grass in a pile of twigs and moss. I froze for a second, thinking I had won. As I put my left hand to the ground to help right myself, I felt a searing stabbing on my forearm. I yelled out in alarm and pain. When I looked down I saw now that the head of the wolf was mauling my arm even as it reconstructed its form around the eerie green glowing light that I now realized gave it life. Blood was beginning to flow freely down to my wrist even as it tried to chew higher up my arm.

A ferocity like I'd never felt came over me, and with teeth bared I jumped on top of the creature to pin it and cocked my right arm back, slamming my fist down on its wooden skull again and again. I heard it yelp around my arm and the twigs around its face began to break under my blows, even as the skin of my knuckle broke and bled. Suddenly I felt its jaws lock deeper into my left arm, and they didn't move after that. The agony that came with it made my roaring louder. My left arm felt like it was on fire.

I slammed a fist straight down on its glowing green eye and the light faded, but its hold didn't yield. My strength was fading. I could swear there were now two wolves under me when there had been one just a second ago. I was starting to see double I realized fuzzily. The monster managed to tip me over, and someone screamed my name. It was Lyra. What the hell was she still doing here? The monster now stood above me I saw blurrily, and only now did I realize I had fallen onto my side. It looked down at me with its one good eye, a mix of abject hatred and triumph on its face, blood and poison dripping from its jaw. I figured this would be my end. From behind me I saw a sudden burst of mint green and a small pinpoint of light struck the creature. It howled in pain as flames consumed its bark. Lyra. I vaguely heard a thud as I started to black out. Maybe this was the end of the line for both of us.

Lyra gave every last ounce of magic she still had in her to fire that flicker of mage fire, but it only seemed to scour the outer bark of the beast’s hide. Completely depleted of all energy, her eyes rolled back into her head and she fell unconscious, musing this was probably the end of them both. The alpha, wounded but victorious, threw its head to the sky and howled, as did the four of its pack. It then stepped over the fallen biped to finish the kill and rip out it's throat, when suddenly from nowhere a small thunderhead pushed by two pegasi came above them and let loose a furious bolt. Spooked by the sudden thunderclap, the four small timber wolves retreated into the forest. The alpha initially stood its ground, but a second bolt struck right in front of it, scorching the earth near its wooden paws. Sufficiently threatened, it beat a hasty retreat after its fellows, leaving the two winged ponies to discover their compatriots below, unconscious and bleeding.

Author's Note

Greater love hath no man than this, that a man lay down his life for his friends. John 15:13

Chapter 35 REVISED

Deep cobalt energy readily flickered from Princess Luna's horn as she looked to the East, the sun at her back. From the balcony atop her personal tower of Canterlot Castle she called forth her energies from the ether to guide the trajectory of the moon yet to rise. On this evening in particular she was full of many emotions. For one, she was joyous to be able to do her ordained task of caring for the moon and the surrounding cosmos, but especially now that there were those who truly appreciated her nightly tapestry. Since her return to Equestria she had come to find that as more and more ponies rediscovered her there were more and more artists, musicians, writers, and painters who found inspiration and delight in her work. It seemed that at long last ponies were making a distinction between the cold and unlit darkness and her full, peaceful night.

Though this knowledge pleased her to no end she couldn’t help but feel anxiety. It was not so long ago that she had been Nightmare Moon, and while Ponyville had been the only town to physically see her in a thousand years in that form, there were still the legends of the Mare in the Moon, and the dread that brought to those who knew of it. With her return after so many years ponies had forgotten whether what her darkest ego had done was fact or fiction, but they turned to the the old legend and gleaned from them a sense of trepidation. There were no doubt a few who distrusted her, or perhaps even feared and hated her. She was quick to let these thoughts pass: surely such was the plight of any ruler, and the majority of Equestria had accepted her with open hooves. Such was the pony way it seemed: long to remember, but quick to forgive. The previous Nightmare Night had taught her as much. Still, there were moments where the memories of what she had done overtook her; these, and the guilt and shame she still held over herself, were her constant companions.

These however were not her only company: there was one other. For a brief instant as she looked over the now darkening valley and towns below she felt a looming unknown threat. As if in response to that feeling she could almost swear she heard the sound of jangling chains.

Something out there threatens our domain, a harsher, cold version of her own voice announced to her, but nothing so simple as an enemy to be crushed beneath our hooves. It must be found and purged. Cast from this world.

"Silence demon," the Princess murmured to herself as she turned away from the panoramic view to step back into the growing shadows of her chamber, "I've had enough of your prattle for one day."

You couldn't stop me even if you tried, the voice replied, an audible smirk in its tone, You can't stop me any more than a pony who would wish to stop automatically breathing, or for their heart to stop beating: I'm at your core.

Luna looked to her mirror on the far side of the room, tall but narrow. For a second she almost thought she saw her darker half's presence just beside her, but it vanished. Shakily she took in a breath, and then turned to exit her room, "Thou weren't before, and thou needn't be now."

Before she walked straight into her unopened suite door a portal appeared before her, ripped open from thin air. Wordlessly and without hesitation she passed into it, the last of her tail slipping through as it quickly snapped shut behind her. Instantaneously she appeared several hundred feet away and several stories below, just outside the doorway to the Royal Proclamation chamber. She had been expecting a quiet evening and night with the threat of the Ruined now seemingly addressed earlier in the day, but she was surprised to hear her sister speaking with somepony at length, only to realize it was one of her former students.

"When did this happen," she heard her say in shock.

"No less than an hour ago," was his reply, "The intruders arrived in some sort of blue box when they penetrated our facilities. We had several agents topside who say the box flew straight down through the street, passing through it like some sort of intangibility spell had been used."

Suitably intrigued by the discussion, Princess Luna signaled to the guards near the door to open for her entry, which they dutifully did.

Bunsen Burner glanced her way for a moment as she strode towards her and her sister's thrones before continuing his report, "Their objective was not an all out assault, but instead to retrieve their asset, our prisoner."

Luna was quick to settle herself in her throne before she interrupted, "Were they successful in their endeavor?"

"Sadly yes, your majesty. In addition, while I cannot find an explanation for it, the Elements were there as well."

The Princess' eyes widened, "Why were they not escorted to safety before the intruders were engaged?"

"You misunderstand, your majesty," he said with a sigh as he adjusted his half-moon glasses, "The Elements were among the members of the Ruined raiding party, as was a grey pegasus."

The proclamation chamber was silent as the grave as the two royals processed the news in shock. "How could this be possible," Celestia exclaimed.

"Our first guess was coercion of a sort: we had brief contact with the second Ruined One before their attack and retrieval where he claimed that there was a threat of some sort to the entire world."

Told you so, Nightmare Moon's voiced purred in Luna's ear.

"What sort of threat did he speak of," she asked as she leaned forward in intrigue.

"The grey pegasus, presumably his co-conspirator, said there was some sort of spatial rift present in the Everfree Forest. A team led by Lieutenant Swiftfeet is already headed there to investigate for Ruined activity. The idea of a world ending threat is what we believe to be the cause for the Element's alliance with them."

"If that were the case why would Twilight and her friends even bother to make a defense for Adam," Celestia exclaimed. Luna froze, realization dawning on her as she now understood the true identity of their most alien prisoner, the one whom she'd sworn to defend. "It simply does not make sense for them to have gone to the lengths of a legal appeal only to then break him out of your custody!"

Though she sat in silence on her throne, Luna reached up and out of the room, the castle, and all of Canterlot with the power of her mind's eye, scouring the lands for the abnormal thoughts of the human. Her search was thorough, and yet she could not find him. She mentally froze for a brief moment: he could just be unconscious, his mind so lost in his own little world she couldn't sense him, or perhaps he was-

In an instant she was brought back to the scene that had broken her so many years previous. The form of her greatest friend, soon to be Captain of the Guard, lay battered and crumpled at her naked hooves. The fire in his eyes was dying. His broken bat wings spasmed in pain as he lay on her balcony. The sky above was crying, weeping silver showers with her.

With his last breath he let a gasp of awe at the melancholic but beauteous display above, "I wish..that this..could last..forev—"

His last breath was nothing more than a whisper, and even it failed before he could speak his last.

The nobles. The wretched, damned unicorn dynasty were responsible for this! For the murder of her friend each of them, down to the last of their bloodline, would feel her blade. 'Let me out' she heard the Nightmare say, over and over, 'Let me out. Let me out. LET ME OUT.'

"Luna," she heard her name called. Though she could not see it, her pupils had momentarily grown draconic in shape, before they returned to their normal form. She glanced to her left to see her sister looking at her expectantly, and with some measure of worry.

"Apologies, dear sister," she said after taking a sharp breath, "I was caught up in a thought. What were we just discussing?"

"Is there any possibility that the Ruined had some sort of ability to enthrall the minds of others," Celestia asked, "Your memories that far back are more fresh than mine."

She shook her head and then turned to look at Bunsen Burner, her eyes narrowing in suspicion, "I don't recall them having such power. Even if the possibility exists, perhaps the true answer is more...mundane."

"Indeed," he replied, giving no indication that he thought her expression was related to anything but the Ruined, "With what time we had we did manage to extract some physical data from our captive; weaknesses, strengths."

Torture, Nightmare Moon mused in her head, And I'd have thought ponies would be squeamish about something like that.

"I did not give you permission to do something like that," Celestia declared in agitation as she leaned forward to look down at her student more clearly, "My words were clear, 'Treat him better than they treated us.'"

"It was merely a physical examination by our cryptozoologist, nothing more," Bunsen replied calmly, but as he continued speaking Luna had had enough of his talk. It was time to find out what his true level of involvement in all this truly was. Her mind shot out towards his like a spear, ready to pierce through his mental defenses, but suddenly she was stopped. Alarmed, she made another attempt, and was met with the same result. Experimentally she gazed out into the hallway just beyond the closed doors, silently reading the guards thoughts from afar. Dinner, lovers, bathroom breaks, the latest Canterlot Times Best Seller, it was all there for her see, and yet as soon as her gaze turned to this earth pony everything was silent, as if some invisible, unbreakable barrier were in place just surrounding him.

Now his eyes caught hers, and he stared for an unusually long time, silent as her sister made her newest pronouncement, but very clearly saying with his eyes, 'Back off and stay out of my way.'

"Continue to gather information for us about this supposed anomaly and the Ruined, be certain to report to us all of your findings," Celestia said in finality.

Bunsen Burner bowed low in response, "Of course, your Majesties." He gave a second glance to Princess Luna, same as the first, and then exited the proclamation chamber.

Nightmare Moon chuckled to herself a bit before her voice turned cold and furious, Infuriating as I'm sure it is for you, you have to admit that something like that takes stones.

How could he possibly block out my telepathy, she wondered to herself.

OUR telepathy, her doppelganger said sharply, It does pose an interesting dilemma, but shouldn't you be more concerned with the more pressing matters at hand, like how can I rule a world when it risks being swallowed into the abyss?

"Sister," Luna said aloud, drawing the white alicorn's attention to her, "Could I have a word? Privately? The being Adam: I know him."

Celestia, surprised by this most recent in a whirlwind of revelations, simply asked, "How?"

Luna looked first to the nearest set of guards just through the closed doorway and saw them listening now with rapt attention. Without giving them an additional thought she cast a sound cancelling spell, sealing the room away from unwanted ears. "Several fortnights ago I felt the presence of a new being enter into our realm, one unlike any I've felt before. I spoke at length with him, even gazed into his deepest thoughts. If the Ruined truly are returning, he is not among them."

"How could you possibly have left something so important unspoken," Celestia said in alarm.

"And pray tell how could you have left me in the dark about the prisoner's identity, especially one I had sworn to protect and allow to live in peace," she fired back.

"Don't pretend that this fiasco started with me," Celestia replied, "If he were innocent he would have been protected if you had let me know of his existence!"

"Was not my mandate enough," Luna said in agitation as she got up from her throne and stood before her sister's throne, "Doth our words no longer carry the authority they once held?"

"No, Luna, they do not," the white alicorn replied as she stepped down from her seat, "We share power; not just between the two of us, but with the ponies of our nation, and even with the species beyond. We have no exclusive right to rule. You didn't understand that long ago, and it seems your lessons on today's world have not taught you so now."

"It is my calling to protect the outcast," she at last yelled, "Especially from the likes of the oppressors nearest our thrones! I failed Orpheus, but I will not fail this human!"

"Nearest our thrones-" her sister muttered to herself, before she returned to a normal speaking voice, "What are you even saying?"

"Art thou blind," Luna asked in disbelief, "Has he made you so? This magister, this snake, how has he come to poison your mind?"

Celestia stood face to face with her sister now, but at the mention of her student her angry tone faltered somewhat, "Bunsen Burner simply does his duty, although he can be...abrasive at times."

"It is not his attitude we question, but his loyalty," Luna declared sharply, "If indeed Adam were able to enthrall others, would he not have made his escape on his own? In addition, he has somehow found a way to block me from entering his mind. Only one who had something to hide would bother to find such a mechanism and utilize it in my presence!"

She shook her head a little, "If he could block your thoughts he could have blocked the Ruined One's-"

"He's not a Ruined One, he's a human being, and he's not telepathic, I've checked. This student of yours is feeding you falsehoods!"

“Luna,” Princess Celestia could not believe the words coming from her sister’s mouth, “You have no right to call my former student a liar. He would never lie to me! I don't know how Adam fooled you, but there is no way Bunsen would be disloyal to Equestria.”

"That does not mean he is loyal to us," Luna replied, "Why is it so hard to believe me?"

"I would trust him over this 'human'. You didn't see what he was like! One second he was diplomatic, and then next he was ready to attack Bunsen!"

“There is not a chance in the cosmos he would have performed such an act of his own volition. He is docile, and simply wished to be left in peace. If Bunsen wanted him in his custody, goading him to attack in your presence is what would ensure that!”

"Why should I trust Adam over Bunsen," Celestia finally asked in frustration, "What makes you trust him after one meeting? I've known Bunsen for over twenty-five years." She let out a sigh, "Luna, I love you. I know you have a heart ready to believe anypony, but this-"

Finally there was silence between the two. Luna looked at her sister defiantly before she finally gave a deep sigh, "We...I cannot explain in full why I trust him beyond what I can tell you. I read his mind, and he wanted peace. I don't think Twilight would join with someone like the being you think you know. I can't trust Bunsen, and I don't know what has clouded your judgment about him, but you allowing him to do whatever he wants puts you in service to him, not him to you as it should be! You have allowed him to control your every decision, both large and small. He cannot respect you if you don’t take your rightful duties into your hooves!”

"That's enough, Luna," her sister finally said.

She pressed on, “In the time I've been gone, you’ve changed greatly. You used to be more than a figurehead! When Nightmare Moon was plotting against you to bring night eternal, you ruled your subjects with firm but gentle grace. You cared about ponies then as you do now, but you shirk your authority!”

“Stop it Luna, stop it!” Princess Celestia’s voice was twinged with veiled desperation.

“Why have you forsaken your duties? You may be loved, but can others respect you if all you are is a pony who cuts a ribbon here, smiles there—“

“Princess Luna, hold your tongue!” The edge in Celestia's voice cracked as she spoke, and tears began to well into her eyes. “Be silent,” she whispered softly.

Luna, stunned by this unexpected crack in her sister's porcelain mask, had to oblige, but she was utterly shocked to see her sister like this.

“You don’t know,” The Princess of Sun spoke shakily as tiny tears rolled down her face, “What it was like without you. We were meant to rule together for a reason. One pony is not meant to rule the world unopposed. When I sent you away for a thousand years, I was heartbroken for both your loss and mine. You lost yourself, and I lost a wonderful sister and friend. But with each passing day, I came to see the absolute power I held, and oh,” she closed her eyes and groaned as if in agonizing pain, “I was so greatly tempted. I was tempted to institute my own iron will over others. There were days I tried to justify it for their own good; the world under my rule would become a better place; I would make it so. I could have just as easily become like Nightmare Moon was; I could have made an eternal kingdom, a Solar Empire to last for countless generations. But I was made to realize that if I remained as I was, I would be like the Sun when it has overstayed its welcome; everything would burn. I severed our link to the Elements of Harmony, and I created a Royal Family to govern the world we created, one not stuck in recalcitrance and obsession with purity, but with service towards others at their hearts, both in the large and small.”

Luna blinked, and then blinked again, “So that is what you did? You locked yourself away so you could do no good at all rather than risk doing anything tyrannical?”

“No,” Princess Celestia shook her head, “I was not idle. I did take some time for myself; some time to think, to live, to love. It was through those years I truly learned what the Elements of Harmony are really meant to represent. So I taught others what I’d learned, and I have served Equestria through them for hundreds of years.”

Realization came to Princess Luna’s face, “You mean your students?”

Princess Celestia nodded, “They have been my gift to the world, and they have done so much more than I ever could.”

“All the same, I hold my doubts of Bunsen Burner. Even if you meant for him to be a gift to the world, he has a mind his own and his own motives, and I don't think his and your interests are truly in line with each other."

Princess Celestia looked at her sister with a silent sadness. The melancholy that filled her eyes expressed to Princess Luna that she was hurt by her mistrust of her former student, because it also meant she didn’t fully trust her sister’s judgment.

Princess Luna tried to apologize, tried to make her words softer, “Tia—“

“Good night, Luna,” Princess Celestia said in a pained whisper, and she turned and walked towards the door to head to her own chambers, leaving a guilt filled sister behind her.

Chapter 36 REVISED

"He's coming to," I heard a muffled voice say from what felt like miles away.

The first thing I felt as I came back to the waking world was a burning sensation around the knuckles of my right hand. Next came the scratches on my torso. There was a strange feeling on my left arm though, almost like it had fallen asleep or something. Maybe I'd lain on it for too long. I stiffened a bit and my facial muscles flinched again. My head rolled to the right a little and tentatively I opened my left eye to look at the world around me. Everything was blurry at first, so many different colors all around: pinkie and purple, orange and blue, yellow and white, brown and grey, all a big murky splotch. "Lyra," I said softly.

Things became a little more crisp as I waited. From above the Doctor's face came into my view, upside down from what I would have expected. "Lyra's safe," he said calmly as he glanced over to the left. I tried to follow his gaze but I felt a strong hand grab my temple and gently hold me in place and a soft blue light appeared before my eyes, "Ah-ah-ah! Not just yet. First I need you to follow the light; eyes only, no turning your head."

First it went to the left, then right: up, and then down. I tracked it all the way. "That thing's not going to make my brain melt through my ears or something, right," I murmured.

"Only if I put it on setting 1023," I heard him say, before the light went away, and I heard, "Hm, oops."

My eyes were completely open at that point and I craned my head up to look at man looming over me, blurting in agitation, "Did you say, 'Oops?' Because out of all the things any medical person can say, that is the most stupid thing I expect or want to come out of your mouth!"

He put his hands up and smiled a little before he said in a sing song voice, "Kiddiiiing!" His voice then returned to normal, "Don't make such a fuss; just bedside humor, and also a pretty good indicator of how responsive you really are. No additional concussions, proper tracking of your eyes, basically everything in good order. All things considered, you're doing great!"

My eyes came down to glance at everypony in the room. Fluttershy was looking at me closely, and I noticed that her mane and coat had recently been wet. I was surprised to see Rainbow just standing around, since almost any other time I had ever looked at her she was hovering a few inches off the ground at least. Pinkie...Pinkie's entire mane was hanging near limp. Moreover, she was still. No jitters, no energy, just stillness. All the ponies were silent.

With a sudden lurch I looked to the bed not so far from mine which had the Doctor in alarm. There sat Bon Bon at Lyra's bedside. Before I had awoken she had clearly been looking at an IV bag hanging from a rolling rack. Her eyes were staring straight into mine, except for a brief moment when she glanced downward. It was at that point I realized something new about myself: in spite of the sensation of tingling I felt in it, my body was not against my arm as I leaned over it.

I looked down for my left hand. There was nothing there to see. Shocked, but somehow compelled through it regardless, I brought the rest of my limb up to look at it. No hand, no forearm. I still had the remnants of an elbow, but all that was left beyond that was an inch or two of stump. I looked up to the Doctor in silence, and he looked back at me, his jaw set, but his eyes full of regret and sadness.

With a mighty heave the Doctor was able to get Adam's unconscious body onto the hospital bed.

"He won't stop bleeding," Fluttershy declared in alarm, the very evidence of which stained her yellow creme coat, "If we can't get his blood clotting in the next few minutes he is going to die."

Quickly taking off his coat jacket and rolling up his dress sleeves, he then walked over to a cabinet tall enough to have a full length mirror as its reflective doors. "Give me something good," he murmured before he cast them open.

The doors that would normally be populated with all sorts of medical devices were nearly empty, save for a few things: a roll of opaque rubber and gauze, some green paste in a jar, and what looked like a handle hanging across two stainless steel spokes, with nothing else seemingly attached to it. The Doctor looked at the handle for a brief second before he whirled back around and pointed his sonic screwdriver at the wounds on Adam's arm. When he brought it up to his face to analyze the data he saw now they had little time and no choice. Reaching into the cabinet he chucked the glass jar towards Fluttershy, who nearly fumbled it out of her hooves, "Start spreading this on his arm. Malvarian Extract has anti-toxin agents in it; will slow the bleeding and keep the anti-coagulants from getting any further into his bloodstream. All the way up the arm: stop just after the elbow."

After twisting the jar lid open with her teeth, Fluttershy set the jar down on the nearby surgery table, dipped her hooves in the paste and began to evenly apply the substance along his forearm. Ripping the rubber hose out of the cabinet he ran around the bed to get to the patient's arm, wrapping it around tightly. After tying it off he ripped the rest of the hose away with his incisor.

"Up to there," he said breathlessly, "Leave some room for the gauze."

Blood mixed with the paste and formed into a hard brittle substance. It looked as if Adam's arm had been encased in a brown stalactite.

"It's working I think," Fluttershy said hopefully.

"Yup," he grunted as he started wrapping the gauze tightly around the arm, leaving a little space between it and the rubber hose, "Sure looks like it." Fluttershy looked at what he was doing, and instantly she knew. Her face fell and her eyes grew wide. The Doctor saw her look, and he said with a firm tone, "It's the only way to keep him alive. The extract only bought us time; it's not permanent." He then glanced back to the cabinet before looking at her, "I won't think any less of you if you leave now."

Sad as she was for what was about to happen, behind her sorrow was a determined glint in her eyes, and she stood her ground, "Tell me what I need to do."

"Hold him down," he said as he reached into the cabinet and plucked the handle of it's rests, "Even though this is quick and he's far enough gone he shouldn't feel it, I'd rather be sure."

Fluttershy flew to just above the bed before she laid splayed across the human's chest, her hooves bracing against the bedside bars. She had never dreamed things would get this bad, but a timber wolf's bite was a grave matter indeed. Hoping for sure that the Doctor would have had some miraculous antidote, it seemed that that idea was completely dashed, and there was only one treatment if there was truly nothing else.

Before he started he looked down at Adam's vacant, near lifeless face. "I'm sorry," he said with a whisper, before he pressed a button on the handle, and a bright blue blade of light extend from the handle to form a round parabolic shape, "I'm so very, very sorry."

"You have to understand that the bites you received were laced with some sort of blood thinner," the Doctor said as I continued to stare at my newest feature, "With the limited time and resources available to me this was the best I could do." I looked up at him slowly, my arm still raised in the position I had put it in initially.

"I...I thought I was going to die back in that grass-patch," I said blankly.

"You certainly would have if it weren't for Fluttershy," he said before looking to her, "She and Rainbow Dash rushed you here as soon as they found the two of you. She also made for an excellent assistant."

I looked to the pony of whom he had spoken such high honors and said simply, "Thank you."

For a moment her silence continued as she looked at me, but finally the dam seemed to burst, "We all heard what you said earlier about humans, and I don't know if you think that way about yourself too, but after what we saw I don't think what you said is true, or maybe not the whole truth. You ran to help find Lyra, and you put her safety above your own even to the point of risking your own life! That kind of selflessness proves you're not as bad as you may think. I think you deserve to give yourself a second chance, because I don't think you can be all that bad, and neither can humans in general."

I blinked a little, as did the others after she was finished.

The yellow pegasus, suddenly very self-conscious, pawed at the tile floor meekly for a moment, then with a nervous breath she said with conviction, “Adam, I don’t think you give yourself enough credit. You did as much as I’d expect of any pony, and that can’t be bad, right?”

I wasn’t sure of how to respond to what she had said, and all the passion she had put into it, but I tried with another small “Thank you.” At last I said to the Doctor as I looked to him, "Can I get up?"

"Sure, but take your time," he cautioned, "You've lost quite a bit of blood."

The ponies surrounding me backed up a little to give me space as I slowly drew up my legs and brought them over the side of my bed.

"Slowly," he said as I placed my boots back on solid ground. I stood up too quickly though, and I felt my head grow fuzzy. His arms braced me as I began to lean too heavily to the side, "Sloooowly. You're not trying to run a marathon. Just focus on the next step."

My sense of equilibrium returned after a little bit, and i was able to stand up straight. I took a small, tentative step; then another. Walking around the end of the bed I brought my right hand across my body to brace me against the handle at the foot end of my bed. The Doctor was just behind me, giving me space but ready to catch me should I faint from exertion. Bon Bon was right there in front of me, standing just between me and the bed.

"I think," she said slowly as she looked at me, a slight catch in her voice, "I finally understand just how much I misjudged you." She looked over her shoulder to Lyra, "How I misjudged you both."

"I saw her save you," I said quietly.

"She saved us both," and then she stood on her backlegs and gently leaned into me, giving me a hug, "but we all saved each other."

Though we hadn't noticed it, Lyra had gently awoken. She blinked heavily, her eyes truly coming to life when she saw my lacking an arm. An involuntary noise came from her as she breathed in deeply. We all looked to her, Bon Bon immediately at her side, with Fluttershy and Twilight now coming to the other side of the bed to make sure she was fine.

"Hey," she said shakily.

"Hey," was my equal and identical reply, "Are you okay?"

"She'll be fine," Twilight said as she looked up to me, "She's had a pretty bad case of magic exhaustion. She just needs some fluids and some calories and she'll be okay."

"You-" she stopped as she pointed to where my arm used to be, "You lost your-"

"So long as you're safe that's all that matters," I replied softly, before a weak smile grew on my face, "After all, what's giving a hand between friends, eh?"

She was quiet for a couple seconds, before she gave a small chuckle, and I let out a small breath that turned into a long sigh as my gaze turned back to my stump. Lyra raised herself up while I was focused on it, and I only realized what she was doing when I heard the others warn her of not moving so much. She gently reached as far over as she could and gave me a hug right around my midsection. By the way she held me close, and the gentleness of it, this hug carried more meaning to it than the average one did; it was an embrace laced with sadness, true, where she was sorry to see my state, but more importantly she held me close. There was no fear between us now, no doubt at all. All that was wrong was right now. I gave the best one armed hug I could manage back, patting my stump against her back softly.

"Adam," I heard the Doctor say softly but abruptly, "I know that this is important to you, but we lost two hours while you were out. I'd have both of you on bed rest, and I’m sorry to ask so much of you right now, but we have no choice: time is running out."

Chapter 37 REVISED

"Et's the best we could do with wha' we got," Vinyl said as she gestured to the contraption sitting on the Tardis floor, a cobbled together mess of parts; wood, metal, glass, and plastic, probably held together by glue and happy thoughts, "The only way this thing es gonna work es if we can go somewhere that has actual tools an' materials."

"That's no problem," the Doctor said as he stroked his chin idly with his right hand, "The Emporium's got everything we'll need, you'll all have to just keep your heads down and not attract much attention: any residence of the Elements is probably now being surveilled, and since they've seen Ditzy too...You'll just have to grab what you need and run."

The unicorn shook her head and blinked her violet eyes in disgust, "When did this become my country: state police, conscription, the government puttin' their hooves into private lives?"

"I've seen it before," he said wearily, "It's a government run by the scared and ruled by an iron fist. Here's the real question though: if humans were a myth until a week ago, what are those ponies really afraid of that they would have that kind of infrastructure, training, and soldiery in the first place?"

"Ah cain't even begin to imagine," she muttered, and then said to herself as he moved towards the console, "and Ah'm not sure Ah want to."

Ditzy was there waiting for him, scribbling furiously on a notepad as she looked at the time until the Void hole collapse: 1:08:43:17. "We're gonna need something big," she grunted between the pencil in her teeth, "A nasty-big power source."

He looked at her calculations and cringed a bit, "And the nearest steam engine or water mill isn't going to cut it for those numbers."

"Not a chance," she said.

"Alright," he bellowed for all of us to clearly hear, "Here's what we have to do: we need to split up. Some of us have to continue building our Space Cork-" he gestured to Pinkie, "-thanks for the name, while the rest of us have to find an adequate power source for the thing. All that leaves unsolved is one question, a question that's been looming for a little bit now." He then turned to Lyra and asked calmly, "Why the little panic attack earlier?"

"Doctor," was exclaimed by at least three different people, myself included.

"Isn't that just a little bit insensitive," Twilight chided, as she gestured to her, Bon Bon, and I, "These three have gone through a traumatic experience. Can't you show some tact?"

"Perhaps," he said with a slight shrug, "but what has me most curious is what I expect was the very sudden change in attitude towards Adam that we all witnessed. We mention a place where humans supposedly might have been, and she got scared, yet she has been housing one for the better part of the entire summer without any misgivings. What has changed?" He turned to the unicorn and squatted just enough that they could see eye to eye. With a little more gentleness in his tone he asked, "Did you learn something in between being kidnapped and being rescued? Any detail could matter: anything could be significant."

Lyra for her part shifted back and forth from hoof to hoof uncomfortably, and then looked around the room to the other ponies, I guess to judge whether they would be open to what she was about to say. Her gaze lingered on Bon Bon who looked at the Doctor, wordlessly analyzing him, one eyebrow slightly cocked. She then turned to her friend and said aloud, "Go ahead, Lyra. It's not like things can get any worse or weirder."

Lyra unconsciously drew her head back as she began her confession, "Well, when I was unconscious I was...visited by Discord."

The whole room was obviously shocked by this announcement, even the Doctor. I, however, was completely clueless, "Who's Discord?"

"A malevolent trickster entity of some kind," the Doctor said as the others gawked at my apparent ignorance.

Twilight continued, "He almost put all of Ponyville under a perpetual state of chaos: roads were made of soap-"

"Night and day were minutes long," Pinkie blurted.

Rarity cringed, "and the ground was turned into a tacky checkerboard pattern."

"Suffice it ta say: he's bad news," Applejack finished, before she turned to look at Lyra, newly perplexed, "But how's somethin' like him talkin' to you possible? We sealed him away with tha Elements of Harmony!"

"I dunno how," she admitted, "but he said something along the lines of being chaos everywhere or something."

"We're losing focus," the Doctor said firmly but gently, "What did Discord tell or show you?"

Lyra's face blanched a little as she thought back over what she had played witness to, "It was horrible. There were humans, fighting some kind of battle with weird flashlights."

A frown grew on the Doctor's face as he looked up to me behind her. He'd probably seen them before being a time traveler, but I could sure make a guess: laser guns.

"Some lady said the planet's surface was lost, and then-" she shivered, "and then-"

"Go on," he murmured.

The whole room was listening in rapt attention. Lyra finally said with a shudder, "And then they made us."

You could hear a pin drop after that. The ponies all stared at her with mouths agape, and then involuntarily their eyes turned to the Doctor and I.

"Is there any way Discord could have just been lying to mess with her," Bon Bon asked Twilight as she patted her friend's back, "because that was my first thought."

"It's, ah," she stammered for a moment, "It's definitely a possibility. Discord has a knack for turning both truths and lies towards whatever his agenda currently is." She sat back on her haunches and brushed down her chest fluff with her hooves, "The thought of it though. What if it's true? Even though the source is Discord, the most unreliable witness as far as witnesses go, IF it were true it would change everything: public records only go back seven-hundred years, and then there's Nightmare Moon. Before that? Everything could be wrong. The Young Earth Theory would be dashed to pieces forever." She looked back to the troubled unicorn, "What do you think, Lyra? Discord touched each of the six of our minds, warping everything we saw and felt until we didn't see reality anymore. Are you sure you weren't seeing an illusion?"

"They are pretty vivid," Rainbow Dash interjected, "I thought a tiny cloud was all of Cloudsdale."

"I saw a human scientist looking at a pony, but it was like looking at those proto-pony exhibits at a museum. It was big compared to our size, and it could barely speak, but the pain and horror in it's eyes..." She shook her head a little to dispel the disturbing image, "If it was real, I want it not to be."

"You mentioned that there was a woman," the Doctor pressed on, "A woman who said the planet's surface was lost."

"Yeah," Lyra said somberly, "She said, 'Tell everyone to pull back to the ships and bunkers. The planet's surface is done for."

The Doctor, suddenly bursting with energy, rushed to the console and brought the monitor around to face him. "Ships and bunkers," he muttered, and then pushed a few buttons, changing the display with the newly input information, "With everything going on I've had my eyes down here on the ground-" He kicked the nearby 3D projector unit back on, which began to fill with a starry image, and he roared in triumph, "-when I should have been looking at THE SKY!"

As the blurred image came into focus all sorts of details popped out at us. Ten concentric rings shown around the projector center, at which there was a surprisingly large amount of nothing. Surrounding the third sphere away from the center were two small, equally sized objects rotating around it, on exact opposite sides of each other. Throughout the image there were weird blue jagged points, the largest being around the fifth sphere.

"What's that supposed to be," Rainbow asked as she looked up at it in equal parts confusion and wonder.

"This," the Doctor said with a small smile, "Is a real-time diagram of a solar system: the very solar system in which we are currently sitting, and it might look a little familiar to you, Adam, because if I am absolutely certain, which I am, then we are all standing on bright, beautiful planet-"

"Earth," I exclaimed in disbelief as I cocked an eyebrow and my head. I then walked closer to it, "No way. I mean, sure, you've got the right number of things going around the Sun, the planets, the asteroid belt-"

"Sorry, Adam, Pluto's not a planet anymore," he corrected me.

I looked at him as I rolled my eyes, "Like that matters right now-"

"It'd be a big deal for Clyde Tombaugh," he quietly shot back.

"Nononono," Twilight said as she waved a hoof, "This can't be Adam's Earth. I can certainly see some similarities from what he described though." She pointed to the next smallest ring over from the group of three made up of the planet and two moons, "That one there? That's Aphrodite, and this one here," she then pointed to the next largest ring, "Is Aithon, the red horse of war."

"Wait," I said as I thought, waving my right hand to grab the attention of the room, "Aphrodite? Isn't that-"

"The Greek name of the Roman goddess Venus, yes," the Doctor said with a smirk. All the ponies in the room not participating just watched us go back and forth, probably getting a good deal of neck strain from all the confusion going on. "Aithon, meanwhile, was one of the horses that drove Ares' chariot. Ares, the Greek name for Mars." He looked back up at the solar system image, "Two worlds, many names, and all the differences basically semantic."

"Alright, I've got a big burning question for you, around which everything else should be revolving," I said in frustration and unintentionally pointed at the image with my bandaged stump, "Just where is the sun?"

"Aw, silly Adam," Pinkie exclaimed with a smile, "You just missed it, but don't worry, it'll be back in a little while!"

I glanced at her suspiciously, "Was that sarcasm?"

She blinked and looked at me sweetly, "I have no idea!"

"Believe it or not it's still there," the Doctor said as he zoomed in on the center of the image. As we got closer I saw that what I thought at first was untrue; there was something there for sure, a small brown clump about the size of a silver dollar now sat in the display. "Oh," he said in surprise, "Oohohoho! Now things are getting interesting!" He pointed to it and jogged around the console to stick his finger straight up into the projection and wiggled it around. "This is a Brown Dwarf, one of the end-lifes of a star. When a sun gets older and begins consuming the last of its hydrogen fuel it eventually expands into a Red Giant. The weight of the waste product of the process eventually crushes the star down to it's core, and in this case causes it to become a low-light emitting mass called a Brown Dwarf. Normally it takes billions of years though, and the inner planets, including Earth, wouldn't even be here anymore to see it get to this state: the explosive Red Giant stage of the Sun's life would either melt or push away the planets beyond the boundaries of the solar system we know. So here's a good mystery: how do you get to a dying star but still have all these planets, even the ones that can sustain life?"

Twilight just looked at him and pointed to the bright point of light near the third planet, "What's this then?"

"The other Sun," he blurted, "Your Sun. Sun Jr. Or rather, Sol 2.0: made after the original one burnt out I reckon. Most importantly, this sun is impossible. It is physically too small to actually be a sun: the process by which solar fuel is burned should not be able to take place anywhere near this size."

"Almost like it were magic," I said flatly.

The Doctor meant to add to his thought, but then as he heard what I said a single finger of his right hand came up to his mouth and he scowled at me slightly. "It seems we have more questions now than answers," he finally said.

Applejack blew out her lips and simply declared, "Eeyup."

It was only a minute or so later that the Doctor had brought the Tardis to life once again, and we flew up out of the forest back towards town. At this point the stars were already out, and most of the homes were shut up for the night. The Doctor set us down with a small thud right on the spot the blue box had always appeared to have rested at. Ditzy Doo peeked out one way, then the other before giving us the all clear signal. Leading the way she quickly escorted all the other ponies through the back door, with Twilight gently carrying the mishmashed device in her aural glow. While the others were focused on moving out to the Emporium, and I was looking once again at my bandaged arm, unable to truly look away from it or focus on anything when I remembered I'd lost it, Bon Bon and Lyra were just inside the swung out doors, speaking in low tones.

"You can't talk me out of this," the unicorn said, her tone incredibly final, "I have to go. I have to find out why I think Adam is different."

"Even if you traumatize yourself further," her friend hissed, before she said in defeat, her hoof raised, "Fine. I, personally, have had enough adventure to last me for as long as I live, but if you don't think you've had enough, by all means. As for your curiosity, I think we both know what the answer is."

"What are you talking about?"

Her frustration melting somewhat, she looked to her friend and just shook her head, "I'll admit it took me a while to see, but take a look back at the past few months and how he's been around you, the way he's acted. Now imagine he was just a regular colt. You're a smart filly: do the math."

Lyra's eyes drifted a little as she thought about her and Adam. They enjoyed their time together, they got each other's humor. He always listened when she played or when she wanted to talk. He'd gotten in a fight and lost an arm to a Timberwolf for her, but all he really seemed to care about was that she was alright. Her eyes grew wide. Did he feel that way?

Bon Bon wrapped her hooves around her to give her a send-off hug, and said softly into her ear, "Keep each other safe, and don't do anything too stupid."

"Right," was all Lyra was able to say as she walked away towards the Emporium. Her mind was still locked into the cycle of memories she had been thinking of, both good and bad. Did she- She wasn't sure if she felt that way, or if he did to her. Bon Bon seemed to think he did. She turned back towards the center of the enormous room, a resoluteness in her eyes.

The Doctor was about ready to take-off again when he noticed there was still an additional passenger. I saw her pass in front of me as I leaned against the safety railing examining my stump. Her presence immediately brought me back to focus on the reality around me. She turned and sat down on her haunches just at my right side.

"I'm staying," was all she said at first, before she looked up at me and smiled slightly, "Someone's gotta make sure you're safe."

The Doctor looked back and forth at the two of us before he shrugged, "If you say so. I wouldn't divide a horse and her boy for the world." Realizing what he had let slip he immediately followed it up with, "Ah, pardon the language."

She seemed to take it in stride I guess, though I couldn't be sure why she was looking so distant. I had to smirk a little at what she had said about keeping me safe though, and I said softly, "Thanks for the offer."

She looked to me and gave a quick smile, "No problem."

Without even consciously giving it thought as we took off I began to run my fingers through her mane. I first realized what I was doing when I felt Lyra freeze underneath me, and I started to withdraw my hand. Before I could put it back at my side though I felt resistance, and i looked down to see her magic field surrounding my hand. She then gently guided me back down to her mane and she smiled up at me again. Understanding it was okay, I resumed my gentle brushing, and I felt her slightly lean into me.

With a slight lurch the express engine came to a stop at Ponyville station. In an instant a door on the side of the second car slid up like a garage door, and a squad of six ponies in armor, led by Lieutenant Swiftfeet, jumped onto the platform. Surveying the structures and land surrounding them, he mentally locked in the quickest path to their destination, and declared, "Move out," before he galloped away. The other five formed up and rode hard in pursuit of their field commander, wherever he might take them.

Chapter 38 REVISED

With a final thrum of her engines the Tardis landed back on solid ground, this time with only a mild tremor as she drifted out of the sky.

"There's something you both should know," I said as we touched down with a lurch, absentmindedly rubbing my left elbow just above the stump, "I don't quite know how to describe it, but as soon as we get near the mounds you might feel something weird."

"Weird," the Doctor asked flatly as he looked at the console screen, "What kind of 'weird?'"

I struggled with the words as I rubbed the back of my head. Lyra looked up at me expectantly. "It's like, you might feel emotions that aren't actually yours? Rainbow felt afraid until suddenly she felt normal, and I felt like...I'd come home somehow." I looked around the central glass column at the Doctor, "Does that sound like something you've dealt with?"

"I suppose there's only one way to find out," he said as he retrieved his coat from the crash chair near the console and flashed me a smile, "Step right into the middle of it!"

I looked down to Lyra and put my hand gently on her shoulder, "Don't know if you remember Rainbow mentioning it, but we met a ghost here. She seems kind of iffy on ponies, and I don't know how she's going to take him," I gestured to the Doctor with a twitch of my head, "but I'll vouch for you."

"I don't care what way she feels about me," she declared with an angry frown on her face, "Right now she's going to have a lot of explaining to do for everything they've done."

"You've got that right," I replied with a nod, "Let's put this to rest, huh?"

"Let's," she said, and side by side we walked to the Tardis doors.

I meant to go on, but I ultimately felt I needed to speak my mind, so I stopped just before we would have exited, "Uh, and-" Lyra once again looked up waiting for me to speak my mind, but temporarily I was struck with second thoughts. Maybe this wasn't the time and place to say...Oh to hell with it. I settled for an awkward, "Thanks again for coming. I didn't say it before but I didn't want to come back her at first; she- It felt like the ghost was trying to manipulate me into helping her or...I don't know for sure. I'm just glad to have someone I know and can rely on."

She smiled up at me and patted my leg reassuringly, "Sounds like we both aren't sure if we want to find out what's really going on."

"What if it's something that we just can't accept," I muttered, "I mean, sure, I can probably take it and keep quiet, but you? If what you say is true, and the legends about humans prove even partly true...Twilight said it, but pony society as it is now would be over. What if the truth is too terrible to know? What do we do then?"

Lyra frowned as she looked ahead in thought, visibly struggling with the concept. "We've kind of already had at least one lie broken in our history," she said slowly, making sure each word was the right one before she uttered it, "when Princess Celestia declared she wasn't a deity I mean. It took a few years, but we struggled on." She then looked up at me with an assured smile, "We may not look it, but ponies are more resilient than we're given credit for. Even if it's initially horrible and we don't want to know our true history, whatever that is, we have a right to know it."

"Oh darling compaaaniooons," we heard the Doctor call from outside of the Tardis doors, "Adventure awaits! Let's up and at 'em!"

I squatted down to eye level and put a hand in Lyra's mane again before bringing it back around her shoulder, and squeezed her to my side with a smile on my face, "Maybe between us we'll make one brave person?"

"Deal," she flash a quick grin at me.

"Alright," I said with a nervous sigh as I straightened up, "Let's go."

And with that we pushed the doors out, striding onto the green grass and pale moonlight. The Doctor was standing in the middle of it all, the grass, mounds, and trees, taking in the night air it seemed. As soon as we were a few feet away from wooden blue craft the feelings once again returned. Lyra froze in the spot she'd just stepped into, a feeling of dread clearly overtaking her. I was back at her side instantly, making sure that she would be okay.

"It'll pass," I murmured softly, "Don't let it bother you. Whatever you're feeling can't hurt you."

She began to shiver in spite of the warm evening, and her eyes grew unfocused for a moment. She brought a hoof up to my hand, and I gently gripped it. "The images," she whispered, "They're coming back."

It all flashed before her eyes again: the death, the ice, and the imprisonment. She couldn't help but once again focus on the last image and everything surrounding it. The large, lanky horse in its cage, it's plaintive eyes and tortured whinnies. Suddenly the foreign emotions passed. Even though each one of the images bit into her psyche, the memories of what she had seen began to creep back into her subconscious, save for one detail, one which she hadn't noticed before: the woman's eyes. As she looked from horse to human, the horrific state of being of the one seemed to inspire the apparent horror the other experienced from their situation. The woman herself was frightened by and sickened from what she was seeing.

The Doctor took in a deep breath through his nostrils, quickly exhaled out his mouth, and then turned to us. "You were right Adam! Pretty impressive how invasive those electroencephalographic signals are. Crude, but definitely do their job well!" When the both of us stared back at him blankly he walked a little closer to us, his coat swaying side to side as he walked, "It's like a psychic electric fence, only instead of running electricity through a physical boundary, a signal is broadcast over open-air that directly communicates with the brain over it's own native electrochemical frequency to either stay away or come back."

"So what's with the high pitched buzzing noise I'm hearing," Lyra asked as she flicked her ears and rubbed the inside with her hoof.

"Auditory hallucinations caused by minor incompatibility. Non-lethal, and scares most beings away, though clearly some ponies have been using this site as an easy adrenaline doping spot. Non-lethal and hidden, but most importantly hidden in plain sight: easily acknowledged as out of place but also subtle enough to be written off and easily ignored. Whoever set up this system had some good ideas on camouflage."

Over his shoulder the two of us noticed several greenish-yellow points of light seemingly appear out of nowhere. They swirled closer together until they clustered into a bright mass of light, and finally began to expand outward. Arms, legs, head, and clothes took shape out of the kaleidoscopic display, and the pale woman appeared once again.

The Doctor turn and gave a quick "Ooooh," of excitement before he looked at the spectral entity with a smile, "Hello there!"

Lyra meanwhile looked up at the spectre with some momentary confusion, murmuring to herself, "Same clothes but a different face."

I stepped forward to stand shoulder to shoulder with the Doctor. "Hey," I said in a truncated manner, "We need to see what you wanted to show me."

She looked first to Lyra, who glared right back at her. She looked visibly surprised by the animosity she seemed to show her, and just as surprised to see yet another humanoid. "You've brought more strangers," she said quietly, "Who are they?"

"Why does it matter-" I asked stiffly, before the Doctor interrupted me, "We're interested third parties, myself in particular."

Her attention was now drawn to him, silently waiting for him to continue, while Lyra came to stand at my left.

"I can sort of understand the theatrics when it comes to keeping the locals out," he gestured to his right, presumably to all the civilizations beyond the forest, "but we've had a good look at what's going on just behind the curtain. This solar system is a colossal wreck, and yet somehow complex life is still kicking when they haven't even managed to bang two atoms together. Now I've been around the block a few times, so in situations like this I'm accustomed to seeing the exploitation of lesser species for resources, profit, what-have-you, and while I admit it's charming NOT to see that happening here I think you owe all of us an explanation, starting with what you really are."

The spectral woman seemed surprised by the show of knowledge that the Doctor had provided and then looked first to me and then Lyra. The three of us looked at her silently, waiting and standing our ground for her to give in and spill the secrets of what was really going on with this bizarre world. Finally her image gave a sigh and she looked at us with weary eyes, "Very well. You may ask your questions."

"Don't mind if I do," the Doctor said as he deftly reached for his sonic screwdriver, and pointed it at the ghost as he activated it. The spectre shimmered with increased luminosity even as her features temporarily blurred. "Thought so," he said as he brought the device back to just in front of his face, "A nano-ghost, through and through: composed of trillions of molecule sized robots that are imprinted with a human intelligence." He looked our way as he continued his explanation, "In our universe's 23rd century Earth started digitizing human consciousnesses in an attempt to preserve great military minds and use them in battle simulations to evolve new tactics in a safe environment. When the technology started launching to the public people were unable to disassociate the memories of their loved ones with the real but now dead ones, and when a movement formed calling for the ghosts' right to personhood it was quickly gathered up and destroyed." He looked back to the spectre with a perplexed frown, "but it looks like the idea was allowed to go forward here, and this one got access to nanotechnology. Passive hydrogen consumption as your fuel source, am I right?"

She nodded silently as her figure now fully returned to it's sharp, crystal clear projection. I put my hand on the Doctor's shoulder and he looked to me. Gesturing with my head that I want to speak he silently took a step back. I looked up at her as I pondered the Doctor's words: who was she in life? A General? Perhaps the one Lyra had been talking about before? She didn't strike me as the type, but then again who knew if I was guessing right?

"Look," I finally said with a wave of my arms, righty and stubby, "I don't know who you are or were, but this world is in danger. There's a hole we ripped in reality, and we need something powerful to fix it. I don't care if you see me as some kind of legacy or successor or whatever, just help me save everyone, alright? After that you can do whatever the hell you want with me." I glanced down at stubby again, and muttered, "What's left of me."

"You mean the Tessaract has opened," she asked.

"Tessaract," I muttered as I looked back to the Doctor and Lyra and shrugged, "Are we talking about the same thing?"

"It might be we aggravated an already present problem," the Doctor murmured to me as he once again stepped forward, "Alright, you seem to already have some knowledge of advanced astronomical phenomena. My ship," he pointed over his shoulder to the Tardis, "smashed into your universe many months ago, I’m guessing 'opening the Tessaract', while he came about two months ago making the hole grow bigger. We already have a device that can close it back up. Do you have a power source available that might be enough to close the Tessaract?"

"And while we're at it, did you create the pony races," Lyra at last blurted as she looked up to the woman, "I know you're a scientist; I've seen a woman wearing the same clothes as you. Why did you create us? Why did you put us in cages? What did you do to destroy everything?" She didn't realize it, but she had been taking a step forward with each question, and with each the ghost gave ground, almost as if she was afraid of her. "Well," Lyra at last barked, and the woman visibly flinched, "Tell me! I deserve to know! What is our history? What really happened?"

After some indecision, the ghost quietly declared, "You already know a great deal, more than I would have expected," She nodded to herself before she looked down at the now fearless pony, "but you have so much yet to learn. I will help you all, but to do that I will need your help in return. I need a body."

I looked over to the Doctor in alarm, murmuring behind my remaining hand, "Is that a good idea?" Before he could respond I heard Lyra say with a frustrated huff, "Fine. Use me."

"What," I exclaimed in disbelief, "Lyra, no! We can't trust her like this."

She looked back at me, her frustration now venting on me, "Adam, just think for a second! We need the Doctor because he seems to get what's going on more than either of us, and I've got magic that I can use for whatever she needs one of us for, and you're not exactly in the best shape. Right now I'm the most logical choice if this has to happen, so get over whatever feelings you have for me, and just let this happen!" She then looked back up to the ghost and snorted slightly, "Make this quick. I've had one too many beings inside my head today already, so I'm not in the mood for any funny business. Got it?"

Perplexed by the comment but seemingly letting it slide, the spirit declared softly, "I only need you for some tasks: you will remain your own self otherwise." She gently reached a hand down, and the image seemed to cup Lyra's cheek, and she stiffened. Instinctively I took a step forward, but the Doctor held me back with just his left hand. "You remind me so much of them," she said softly, a deep sadness coming over her face, before she slowly evaporated into countless points of light. Lazily they began to spin around Lyra's head, slowly covering her neck, legs, barrel, and hind-end, all the way down to her tail. For a moment her entire form was covered in golden-green light, like a bright torch cutting through the night.

Eventually the light faded and her coat was returned to normal. I jogged to her side, putting a hand to her coat as I knelt down to see if she was alright. As soon as I touched her I instinctively drew my hand away, as I felt a new ticklish sensation on her barrel. As I did I saw what looked like strange, luminescent dust come off of her. As soon as my hand was free the particles froze in mid-air, and then slowly flew back on Lyra, almost as if they'd never been disturbed at all. When she turned her head to me and opened her eyes they seemed to stare past me completely. The spirit's voice emanated out of her, but her mouth did not open at all, "Come with me: time is growing short."

She then walked away from me towards the mound I had seen her disappear into before. I lurched upward to watch, now noticing the Doctor as he casually walked by after the woman who now held possession of my best friend.

"What do we do," I said breathlessly.

He looked at me calmly, clearly not a care in the world, "I think we'll let her invite us aboard."

I was about to ask what he meant when he simply pointed to Lyra's body. A small cloud of the spirit's particles flew off of her left shoulder to pass straight into the mound before her. At first nothing much happened. Suddenly there was a small but definite tremor beneath our feet, and Lyra's body backed up from the mound. Slowly the earth turned and rolled, and the grass ripped up from the ground as something rose upward and forward towards us. It was metal, that much I could figure, and it was rectangular in shape, taller than the both of us. Finally with a groan and a lurch the metal structure halted its advance and silence followed, but for only a second. The spirit turned Lyra's head toward us and she gestured for us to come closer. As we walked to just in front of the metal frame a small hatch appeared above us, and a bright blue light shone at our feet, and then slowly slid over our bodies. I guessed we were being scanned, for what I don't know, but I didn't necessarily want to make any sudden movements.

"Unidentified," a cold, metallic voice said with a boom, "Leave this area at once. Your presence is in violation of our security protocols. Leave this area at once, or be subject to the full extent of the United American Continent's military force."

"Override security protocols," the spirit's voice said out of Lyra's body, "These refugees are under my protection in accordance with the Fernandez Asylum Mandate."

"Warning: two entities outside of expected physiology detected. Do you wish to continue with invoking Asylum Mandate?"

"Yes," she replied firmly.

"Authorization required. Please enter personnel number and state Call-Sign."

From out of nowhere a keypad made of light appeared in front of Lyra's body. Her horn lit up and a golden rectangle materialized in the air just in front of the pad. The golden field warped to punch in number after number. The way it looked made it seem like a finger was pressing through the field to push the buttons, white numbers appearing in front of her mirroring the code she was entering, until the sequence was finished.

"Personnel number: 25037854. State Call-Sign to finalize appeal."

With a frustrated sigh at the tedium of the procedure, the spirit declare crisply, "Call-Sign: Maiden. Grant these refugees Master level access to all facilities."

There was a pause, I'm guessing to make us sweat, because I would have figured machines however far in the future this was wouldn't need to grind or load too much. "Authorization confirmed," the mechanical voice finally intoned, "Master level access granted." The uniform metal suddenly caved in slightly, and pieces of the door slid in and open, leaving a hexagonal shaped hole for us to walk through. "On behalf of the United American Continent, we welcome you aboard the UAC Vanguard." With it's peace seemingly made, the machine voice went silent, and the blue light turned off.

Lyra's body then shook its head, and she turned to look back at us, and I was glad to see it was really her. She let out a quick breath and rolled her eyes, "Seriously, is that all you needed me for? All that drama for nothing?"

Suddenly her body went stiff and her eyes unfocused, and the spirit responded through her, "No, there is still more to do. As we go further in I will show you more. You might believe me if you see it rather than just hearing what I say."

Lyra's posture returned to normal, and she once again sighed in frustration, "Great. Looking forward to it."

"If we're going to go any further we need to know who you are really," I finally said, "I'm getting tired of just calling you a ghost, or him-" I pointed to the Doctor, "-calling you a nano-ghost like it makes a difference."

"Just call me Maiden," the spirit said through Lyra, and she stepped into the hexagonal portal, "Now we need to get going. There's still a lot we need to do."

"Then by all means lead on, Maiden," the Doctor said as he strolled in after Lyra's body, and I after him. The door seamlessly closed behind us, and with a rumble I knew it had sunk back into the ground, leaving barely evidence it had been there at all. Low level lights turned on beneath us to illuminate our feet, and the box we were in slowly began to descend, sinking further into the ground to greater mysteries deep down.

Chapter 39 REVISED

"So how is it you can use Lyra's magic," I asked as we finally came to a stop deep below ground.

The Maiden turned Lyra's head to look at me, "Magic? It would seem like that, wouldn't it? No, it is most definitely science; a natural expression of the Tessaract's unique energies."

"When did you first notice it," the Doctor asked before he quickly corrected himself, "the Tessaract I mean."

"The archives I have access to state that it was discovered around the middle of the twenty-third century in the Canadian-American sector."

The Doctor nodded that he understood, but he caught out of the corner of his eye how incredibly confused I looked. It wasn't lost on the Maiden either. "Oh, sorry," he said, "He's from the twenty-first: they haven't gotten there yet."

"Oh," she said simply, and I was surprised to see her blink Lyra's eyes in shock. She then seemed to look at me in a whole different light, "I figured you weren't quite as advanced, but I didn't realize by how much I'd overestimated you."

I glowered deeply at her, "Look, I get I'm not all that smart, especially considering I'm the guy who didn't even get his GED, but I at least know where the hell Canada is in my world. Can we get moving and stop making back-handed remarks about me? You're hurting the caveman's feelings!" There was a tight lipped silence between the two as they looked at me and then glanced at each other before I finally gestured with my hand towards the now opening passageway beyond the platform we'd come down on. "Now," I snapped.

The Maiden's voice cleared before she said, "Very well."

The three of us made our way down through a myriad of passages, some with blastdoors and bulwark that sealed off behind us. It was becoming difficult to keep track of where we were in this place.

"How does this place still even have power," Lyra said suddenly as she looked all around at the floor level lights brightening our path through the behemoth of a ship, "Hasn't it been like billions of years like you said Doctor? I doubt there were that many spare batteries lying around here."

"Weeeell I'm certain that theory died as soon as we got down here," he said with a slightly embarrassed hiss, "Care to explain, Maiden? Just the highlights, please? Plausible time-traveling deniability and all that?"

"As you wish," Maiden's voice said as Lyra looked down at her own chest fluff where she heard the voice coming from, "Before the discovery of the Tessaract humanity was embroiled in a competition for resources. By the early twenty-third century the world's population was nearing eighteen billion. War ultimately broke out when an agreement could not be made on the colonization and terraforming of Antarctica. The Corporate Alliance chose to brazenly take the neutral ground and establish their own puppet state, and when radical citizens of the Eurasian Union sabotaged their production they declared war on them. The United American Continent as well as the South American Coalition declared the Alliance's brutal retaliation as war crimes, leading them to declare war against them. Poly-stralia, Africa, and Indo-China were initially bought by the Alliance and unwitting used as cannon fodder while they began the production of an android army, the scale of which had not been seen in all of history. Some disillusioned national unaffiliates chose to begin a project to expand to the stars, terraforming and colonizing other planets, but the war continued out there for no better reason than the continued claim to resources and reprisals."

None us of dared speak a word as she continued her story. What she was saying certainly made sense. There had been a giant mass near what was now most certainly Jupiter which had to be space station of some kind. The other blips in the Doctor's projector must have been hundreds upon hundreds of dead or abandoned ships drifting out there in the cold backdrop of the universe.

"It was in the middle of our infighting that the world abruptly came to an end," she said in a incredibly nonchalant tone.

"That's not exactly something that typically sneaks up on people," the Doctor said incredulously.

"One would think," the Maiden said dryly, "but it certainly caught humanity by surprise. On the 17th of September, 2268, multiple sensor arrays across the globe began detecting that the Sun had instantaneously become several billion tons heavier. There were no meteors scheduled to impact, nothing it wouldn't burn to cinder. Seemingly out of nowhere a mass appeared near the Sun's core, and impacted with it. While it certainly was an oddity, we didn't think much of it until several days later when energy readings began to show the star was burning through it's fuel at an alarmingly unnatural rate. We were able to deduce a zero hour at which the star would finally burn out, but there was nothing we could do to save it. With what time we had left we negotiated a world wide cessation of hostilities and created a plan to slowly find a means to retake the planet's surface once the Sun had died. Those unlucky enough to be out in space when the wavefront hit were left stranded, while we down below did our best to survive off of the remnants of our world, our ships damaged, our civilization leveled, whole continents ripped from their foundations and slammed against each other. We should have been wiped out, but somehow we survived the rapid expansion of the Sun. Instead of focusing on why, we kept to the plan, and we worked ahead with each of our portions. The Vanguard's project was the creation of intelligent helper species to maintain the new world where terraforming would be imprecise. During the studies of the Tessaract it had been noted that one of the anomalous effects of being exposed to its radiation was the accelerated mutation of living things. After generations of gene and viral therapy to root out the negative mutations and encourage positives, one of our scientists around 2297 was alarmed to discover that the species being tested were actually becoming so intelligent as to be declared self-aware."

"I saw her," Lyra declared numbly.

"I saw that in your memories," the Maiden replied, "but I am confused as to how it could be there at all."

"A being called Discord showed it to me," she said quietly.

The Maiden was silent for several seconds, but her voice eventually returned, full of disgust, "How do you know of that snake? My daughters sealed that thing away forever."

We all stopped in our tracks at that statement, and we looked at Lyra, and she to her chest where the Maiden's voice came from.

"Celestia and Luna are your 'daughters,'" I asked with audible quotations.

"Are-" Lyra tried to ask, but her voice was a mix of uneasiness and, oddly enough, reverence, "Are you the Primeval Matriarch?"

"How is it you know of Discord," the Doctor asked.

"I will tell you soon," the Maiden said, now calm from her momentary venomous speech, "but first I want to show that I mean well to you, by taking care of your arm, Adam."

I reflexively looked down at my stump before looking back to Lyra's body, "There's not exactly a lot you can do I'd think, not after the whole "Post-amputation" phase of things."

"Perhaps that was the case in your time," she said as she moved Lyra's body near a hatch I hadn't noticed on our walk until now, but which slid open with a high, feminine voice saying, 'Med-bay-14', "but medicine has advanced quite a bit since the time you knew."

As we walked in I saw empty reclined beds lining the cramped suite on both sides. At the back was what looked to be some sort of open air booth that had two obvious plates to place one's feet.

"Organ repair was incredibly extensive in my time, but the substitute tissue on board Vanguard is long gone," she said as she approached a panel on the side of the booth and turned Lyra's head to look at me, "I can only offer you a mechanical one for replacement."

While I certainly didn't doubt that the technology would work, I wasn't so sure about the Maiden's intentions. What was she getting out of this? I had to admit though, ulterior motives or not, the thought of being stuck a one handed man forever didn't seem appealing, and let's be honest, what kind of person turns down the chance at a robot arm?

"I don't know if that's entirely necessary," the Doctor said nonchalantly, "I mean after this is over I can just get him a flesh and blood one. You wouldn't even be able to tell the difference!"

"Doctor," I said, "I think I'm going to take her up on her offer."

"I'm just saying it doesn't make blending in very easy," the Doctor said with a sigh.

"It's not like I blend in anyway," I shot back, and then pointed my stub at her, "Alright, Maiden, let's get this over with."

She gestured for me to stand in the booth, and I warily stepped inside. A harness of some kind came down from the booth's ceiling and gently came to rest on my shoulders. Segments of the harness extended down my back and wrapped around my chest to brace me in place. Another blue light scanned the area I took up, and eventually a panel of some kind opened in front of me, and out of it extended a socket that came to a stop within easy reach of my stub.

"I'm not so sure this should be the one," I heard her mutter from outside, "but he'll make better use of it than I can."

I looked over my left shoulder and spoke with a raised voice out to her, "Hey, uh, what exactly are you talking about?"

"The prosthetic has some special features," she said simply before she spoke in a more clinical fashion, "You will feel some pain when the anchor is first mounted, and there will be prolonged Phantom Limb Syndrome for some time until the nerves fully reconnect, but you will be able to functionally use your new arm moments after it's installed. Whenever you're ready place your arm into the hole and the procedure will take care of the rest."

"Here goes nothing," I muttered, and slotted my stump into the socket. Almost immediately after I'd placed it inside the hole snapped shut around my arm. Instinctively I flinched and tried to draw it back with a shout of pain, but the socket slid further up my arm, holding it in place.

"Adam," I heard Lyra yell from behind me, but I heard the Maiden say in reply, "Don't try to stop it: you'll do more harm than good."

I felt something at the base of my stump, what seemed like things wriggling underneath my skin, and a fiery sensation started building around the join between me and the machine. I took in sharp breaths and blew them out in rapid succession, "It's alright! I'm fine!" Finally I felt something give behind the mechanism and the clamps came off my arm. The procedure done, the harness rose off my shoulders. Having braced against the machine while it worked I stumbled backward out of the booth and fell right on my backside, and then my back.

Chapter 40 REVISED

I shook my head a little to dispel the last bits of pain that lingered in my entire left side. I rolled my head over to take a look at my brand new appendage as I began to sit up. It looked sleek, but wasn't flashy. I could see the plates and the gaps between them, but there weren't any obvious screw holes that held it all together. I was also amazed to see that there was no obvious seal or scars from the procedure or even a trickle of blood. I reflexively twitched my fingers, drumming them midair, before closing my new hand into an experimental fist.

"Come on," the Doctor said quietly as he gave me a hand, "Up you get!"

I then began to notice some peculiar circular patterns that were placed at the elbow, wrist, and second knuckle. Each of them began to softly glow with a dim grey light before they went dark once again.

"That augmentation was a prototype, the last device ever made by humanity," the Maiden said as Lyra drew close and also began to marvel at my strange new arm, "While other species do directly manipulate Tessaractal power through their metabolism we hadn't yet found a way to apply those benefits to ourselves. This was a proof of concept to show that the mind and nervous system could stimulate those particles, even if humans couldn't do it organically." Once again her voice filled with anger, "Discord put a stop to all that."

Lyra's body began to move towards the exit even as she tried to keep looking over at the arm, "Hey, hold up! Can't I still use my own legs for Celestia's sake?"

"This was just the first step," the Maiden said as she walked to the med-bay doors, and we jogged after her, "The Dominion Gauntlet is going to help us produce the power source we need, and time is running short."

Huh, I thought to myself, So there's the ulterior motive: not a negative one per se, but we could have at least talked it over a little more first.

"So I can do magic now," I exclaimed as we lightly ran after the now cantering Maiden.

"Absolutely," she replied, to which Lyra balked, "Woah, woah, woah! Hold on. Magic isn't just something you can wing, even for unicorns! It takes years of practice and proper exercise to even understand the most basic of concepts and spells. Whatever you think you're doing is bound to be way beyond anything he, I, or any other unicorn could possible hope to do!"

"You are now both conduits," she replied, " 'Magic' is simply another form of energy: it's just a matter of applying the energy at the right place and time."

Lyra began to mutter how much she disagreed when we arrived at what looked like a glass paneled overlook. Beneath us I was amazed to see an enormous open area full of overgrown trees, almost a whole forest canopy surrounded by metal on all four sides.

"How-" I tried to ask.

"Oxygen factory," the Doctor said as we slid to a stop in front of an open elevator the right of the gigantic panel of protective glass, "Let's get back onto the more interesting subject: Maiden, what's your relationship with Discord and the Royal Sisters?" The panels slid open, and we stepped into the compartment. Softly we began to descend, the box or whatever that was steadying our 'fall' produced zero sound.

"I was one of the junior geneticists in the equine species division. I was one of the students of Dr. Zacherle, the original scientist who discovered their sapience. It was under her tutelage that I truly came to see just how intelligent the various subspecies we humans had created were, and how the treatment they were receiving was unforgivable. Inspired and convicted by her teachings, I did what I could to make their lives easier, but it simply wasn't enough to ease my conscience. I was able to remove two infant fillies from experimentation without being noticed. They were so young then, they inevitably imprinted on me, and they-" She stopped, and I saw tears form in Lyra's eyes, "And they became like my own children. My little Dawn and Dusk." Her voice returned to it's normal tone from the wavering state it had been in, "Around this time Scientist High Command began to push even further past the ethical boundaries we had already lain waste to. They wanted to truly try something previously unachieved: the creation of life from pure Tessaractal energy. I and several others were against it, but we were overruled, and out of that idea Discord was born."

"So all that talk he gave about being the universe itself and all it's power was a load of horse apples," Lyra asked as we neared the tree canopy's top, to then drop below it into the darkness beyond. Soft lights in the tube gave us some illumination, but only just enough.

"I never liked him. He seemed innocuous at first to some, but I never gave him the benefit of the doubt. He was an insult to all true life; abominable. It seemed random to most when he chose to rise up and tear us apart, but I felt he always hated us, even feared us. We could make sense of his madness at any level with time; we had him quantified and understood, and that's why we had to go: because we could beat him at his own game, and he was a very sore loser. I can't even explain it now, but I felt I acted in time only because some voice of intuition told me. Even as Discord was exterminating everyone on board a colleague and I took Dawn and Dusk and gave them numerous mutations and an enormous dose of Tessaractal energy. It changed them forever, gave them power unimaginable, but their entire bodies were rewritten, down to the cellular level." The doors opened as we hit the 'ground' floor: the trees on our right, and a long hallway to our left. Lyra's hoof came up to her eyes to remove the tears reappearing there, "When they looked at me...they didn't know me. They'd forgotten."

"They regenerated," the Doctor murmured. When we looked at him to explain he spoke a little louder, "It makes sense: if they were changed on a cellular level it basically reformatted their brains, including long and short-term memory. I've, ah, seen it before a few times."

"I haven't thought of these things in over fourteen-hundred years," the Maiden said as Lyra sympathetically sniveled for her, "I'd almost forgotten how deep I'd buried them."

"Fourteen-hundred years," I said in surprise before glancing at the Doctor, and then unconsciously leaned in to look down at her, "What year is it now?"

"It's 3783 A.D."

I looked at the Doctor again, who just shrugged at me. I too ended up shrugging and rolling my eyes, "Why should I even bother being surprised with any of this at this point? Really though, you've been...'you' I guess for a millennia and a half?"

"Millennium," she corrected, and then turned and galloped off, shouting over her shoulder, "and yes, I have. Now let's not waste any more time! We need to get to the Tessaractal Battery Chamber."

"Magic batteries," I muttered as we ran after her, "Really, what else would it be at this point?"

The room she eventually brought us to had a domed ceiling, massive amounts of cables running along the ceiling to route down into a hexagonal box. Once again she brought Lyra's body over to a control panel near the container, and started bringing the ancient machine to life. "Vanguard's standard power systems are run by a 6th generation Tokamak. Aaaah, nuclear fusion generator," she added as she glanced at me, "While we could initially only store so much Tessaractal power from the source, eventually we discovered how to create receptacles for the exotic energy. A good deal of our reserves have discharged into the nearby environment over the centuries, but we might just have enough to create a set with this Atom Forge." She pointed to me for a moment and then looked back at the box, "Where you come in is that they need an initial surge of energy to become correctly imprinted."

"Like when a rechargeable battery is made," the Doctor explained to me.

"Is anyone here going to ask advice from the pony who has daily experience with magic," Lyra blurted in frustration to get all of our attention, "He's not going to be able to do this. He has. No. Training! He could hurt us or himself assuming he can do anything at all, and I probably can’t take what you want either; I don't have the reserves for it! If we had someone powerful like Twilight or one of the Princesses maybe, but neither of us are good enough for this."

I looked to the Maiden and the Doctor in turn, "She kind of has a point. I get this is all for saving the world and that time is of the essence, but shouldn't we get someone more qualified?"

Lyra stiffened as the Maiden's voice returned, "While more likely than not your kind has intuitively come to understand some of the principles of Tessaractal energy, we understand it as pure science. Adam's Gauntlet acts as a conductive rod, absorbing the ambient energy around us. There is no real caloric loss or threat of exhaustion: he will be fine."

"Sure, I might be," I said as I lifted my left arm up and pointed at the metal, "but this is a prototype. What if it backfires and hurts them like Lyra said?"

"A prototype is perfectly functional in its form and execution," the Doctor offered, "It just means it might have needed a little tweaking to be just right. It'll run fine, I'm sure."

"Just a few hours ago you said you didn't want to use magic at all," I fired back in frustration.

"That was because in my mind it was untested. Now that it's been independently verified by a second source I have no problem with it at all. The burden of choice is on you now, Adam."

I looked to the Doctor, and then to the Maiden. He seemed so sure of himself, and she was a scientist. I looked into Lyra's eyes, ignoring the light shimmering haze around her coat. She silently shook her head. I wanted to trust them all in a sense, but I just wasn't ultimately sure of what to do. It was killing me that I didn't know who to defer to. With the few moments I had I made my choice.

"I'll give it one try," I said firmly, "but if that doesn't work, I'm done: we get somepony else."

"Adam, this isn't a good idea," Lyra said with a pleading tone in her voice as she began to take a step towards me, but her upraised hoof stopped in midair and then returned to the ground as her body turned back towards the console, "Hey! Let go of me! Give me back my legs!"

"He has already made his decision," the Maiden replied, "We need to start now."

I knew that I had ultimately agreed with her on this one chance, but I did not at all like how the Maiden was treating my friend. I took a step forward and balled my fists, and something just sort of clicked. The Dominion Gauntlet thrummed to life, each of the nodes glowing with a grey light. A field with the same color surrounded Lyra's coat, vibrated intensely, and the Maiden's yellow-green points of light became visible once again. The field grew out and away from Lyra's body, and bewildered she looked up at the light show above her with a turn of her head this way and that before looking at me. The Doctor too also looked in surprise at the display. Alarmed when I realized what I had done, whatever connection that keep the action going suddenly dropped, and the grey light disappeared in an instant. The Maiden's particles fidgeted and flickered for a moment before they gathered together to form just her head above Lyra, and her expression was one of shock.

With a quick exhale I pointed a finger on my new arm at her and she flinched a little, "Look. You're smart and you're anxious. I get that, but if you lay even one finger on her in a way she doesn't like, I will find a way to make this thing rip you apart," I then pointed to the hexagonal box, "Now let's get to work, alright?"

The Maiden silently nodded before her image dispelled gently back over Lyra. I glanced over at the Doctor, and saw him withdraw his empty hand from his suit coat pocket. He seemed to be staring at me just as intently as I had at the Maiden. When I realized what he had been moments away from doing, I gently let my palms fall open and my hands to my sides. He gave a slight nod at my doing that.

"I'm injecting the crystalline assemblers now," the Maiden said with the same calmness as I had heard when I'd met her yesterday, "Once the metallic structure turns to liquid, aim at the batteries and give them a quick pulse of energy. I will give you a verbal signal."

"Got it," I said as I took a step back and raised my left arm up a bit in preparation.

"Clear your mind Adam," Lyra offered even as her hooves began to hunt and peck for buttons, "And really believe you can do this."

"Talking out of both sides of your mouth, are we teacher," I said with a slight upturned smile.

"Well it's not like you listened to me anyway," she said in exasperation, "So just pretend like what I said earlier doesn't count, not that you'd bother paying attention to what I tell you."

Silvery metal began to slowly ooze out of the glass box's ceiling through a few holes that had opened there and then began to arch and grow towards the center like the roots of a tree almost.

"Can you two leave your spat until after the procedure is done," the Doctor snapped as the metal began to organize itself into a six rectangular blocks, "This sort of requires his full attention if we're going to get this right!"

The metal rectangles had taken their general shape, but we could also see that their shape had become irregular as random portions seemed to either reshape themselves throughout the basic area of the battery to be, or shuffle around, in, out, and inside of each other. Segmented lines began to form through the shapes and bright lights shown through as the constructive material began to crack around the creations at their core. The root-like structures began to slowly sink and dissolve to the box's bottom, their substance turning to liquid as the Maiden had warned me. What remained were six immaculate crystals, pearlescent white in their sheen.

"Wait a minute," Lyra said as she looked up in wonder, but the Maiden interrupted her, "Do it now!"

I didn't catch what Lyra had said until I had already tried to cast again. I didn't know if I could do it, but I had to try. Would I really be able to though? The nodes on my arm once again began to light up, but remained very dim by comparison to what they had been before. "No, no, no," I said under my breath as I watched the light begin to die, and I unconsciously began to run to the glass chamber, thinking I could somehow toss the magic into the box by putting it close like throwing kindling into a firepit. I thrust my left arm towards the gems, trying to get any flicker of the magic embers to pass through to them, get some, no ANY kind of charge. It was just as my metal hand came in contact with the glass that I heard a chorus of different phrases telling me to stop, but it was only afterwards that I truly realized what I was doing. It was too late. My outstretched palm struck the glass, creating a spiderweb of cracks in the shielding surrounding the liquid metal and the pedestaled gems. A solitary spark of magic was all that remained of what I had tried to create, and it traveled right through the crack, reflecting onto the goo below instead of the intended recipients above. It began to sizzle, leaping into the air like it were grease leaping out of a fire, only to suddenly freeze midair, vibrate and tremble, and then fall back down into the mass.

"Oooooh, nooooo," I said as I began to back away slowly.

An alarm began to sound. It was once we heard the grinding sound that we looked to the door, only to see it sliding closed. The Doctor rushed over to it, grabbing onto the indented patterns in the door to try and keep it open. He was able to slow it, but by the time we had bolted over to him the door had sealed shut anyway. Several simultaneous thuds came from within it just after it had done so. He quickly fetched his screwdriver from his coat pocket and pointed it at the door panel. No response came from it at all.

"Aaah," he yelled out in frustration, "Deadlocked, and the one time I would absolutely need to use the blasted thing!"

"It's sealed shut," Lyra asked, "but you can't do anything? I thought that was like your magic wand!"

"It doesn't work on deadlocked devices or wood," he said in agitation as he looked around the rest of the chamber, "I wasn't too concerned about the wood until your fun with timberwolves, and now I get stuck because of human thickness!"

"You told me I could do it," I yelled at him and then pointed to Lyra's chest, where I now saw the Maiden raising away from her body to return to her independent ghostly form, "And you said magic was no different than electricity or whatever!"

"And I told all of you that this was a bad idea," Lyra shouted back, "but nobody wanted to listen to the unicorn, whose entire trick and trade is MAGIC."

"Everyone quiet down," the Maiden interrupted our shouting and blaming match to point at the chamber, "We have a bigger problem to deal with." The metal goo had begun to turn a sickly pale yellow and copper color in the glass box, but we began to see that it was now seeping underneath the glass itself, gently oozing its way to the floor, where it began pooling at the floor; the mass there was somehow larger than what had been in the box. "The surge you let loose into the nanites must have accidentally activated their decomposition function," she said, "They're permanently haywire. If we can't find a way out of here soon one of two things is going to kill all of us: the nanites melting us, or the nanite countermeasure; a room full of high frequency microwaves."

The Doctor began to scan around the room with his screwdriver: the ceiling, floor, and everywhere, "How much time until that kicks in?"

"The safety system is adaptive based on threat level, but I'd say at minimum twenty-five seconds now."

"Grates or other access points," I heard the Doctor ask, but my attention was focused on Lyra. She was unbelievably scared, her back to the wall.

"I'm so sorry," I said with tears forming in my eyes, as I glanced back at the copper-like sludge drawing closer, "I'm sorry we're about to die because of my idiot mistake."

The Maiden drew some energy from the air, light glowing at the center of her mass, and a small laser began to draw intricate trenches into which the nanites would flow, buying time from them but not the microwaves.

Lyra looked up at me with a stern face, "If we get out of this, with what little time the world has left I'm making sure I teach you magic. We should have just had one of the Princesses handle this."

Suddenly another night's memories came back to me, and I realized there yet may be a way out of this nightmare. With everything I had I began to scream out in my thoughts, Luna I need you! Help me! Please help! We're all going to die! PLEASE HELP US! SOMEONE HELP US. WE NEED YOU. YOU PROMISED. YOU PROMISED.

"The magnetrons are cycling up," the Maiden said, "We have fifteen seconds."

The Doctor looked back to us as he stood close to the wall now, "I don't know if there's a way out of this. I...This doesn't happen."

I banged my head on the wall, and then banged it a second time. At the third time my eyes which had been shut flew open and I yelled to the ceiling, "LUNAAAAAAA!" As I was about to bring back my head for a fourth and final pound against the wall, the Doctor's eyes were filled with horror. A light filled the room, and we were all consumed by its brightness.

Chapter 41 REVISED

It was in the earliest hours of the morning that the line to the royal proclamation chamber had finally trickled away, and the Princess of the Night and her personal guards were left by themselves. The two Antrozi, more commonly known as bat-ponies, hung from the the ceiling as they watched their mistress internally struggle with something. She sat on the throne brooding, wondering what she should say to her sister. Being her usual self she had allowed her passions to overtake her, and instead of further opening her sister's mind on her concerns about Bunsen Burner she had driven her away and put a wedge between them. Perhaps the first step was the least difficult in theory: apologize. Everything else after that was still very much shrouded in her thoughts. Answers were not swiftly coming to her, and she grew impatient very quickly. With a frustrated snort she stood from her throne and began to stride towards the southern chamber doors. Silently the guards detached from the ceiling and glided down to just in front of the them, pulling them open to allow the Princess immediate access to the hallway outside.

"Thank you Umbra, Nox," she said with a sigh as she attempted to bury her thoughts deep.

"It is what we are here for, your grace," Nox replied, while Umbra grunted his agreement.

"Pray tell," the Princess said before initially stopping herself, only to relent and continue on, "Pray tell, when it comes to pass that the two of you are divided on some matter, how do you mediate your conflict?"

The two guards, who were now walking just behind the Princess, glanced at each other. "Nox attempts diplomacy," Umbra gruffly declared, "but more often we tend towards my form of negotiations."

"And that is?"

"The first to draw blood makes the decision, with the advice of the other," Nox said airly.

"Though we suppose that would not be of help in the quarrel you must face with your sister," his brother added.

The Princess looked back to them and sighed once again, "No, it would not."

Princess Celestia had been pondering in her Solarium for many hours since her talk with Princess Luna. It was a chamber that she only truly frequented in times of great inner turmoil, as she didn't wish to bring any troubles into her personal chambers to sit heavily on her shoulders. The room was made mostly of glass, both clear and stained, that channeled the light of all the heavenly bodies in the sky into glorious patterns on the walls, creating a natural and ornate tapestry of changing color and intensity depending on the weather and time of day. The wonders she had seen on this wall helped to soothe her state of mind time and time again over many years. Now, however, her mind was more deeply troubled than it had been in some time. On any other night she would have noticed the beauty of the walls and their fresco composed of deep violet, royal blue, and the pale light of the full moon, but her world was focused inward in totality. Before her, at the center of the Solarium and its focal piece was an enormous bronze sundial. Of a magnificent size, its span from crowning point to its indicating point was a distance of twenty-five feet. It had been crafted and built for her near the rise of the second Equestrian period, after the disbandment of the Solar Empire. To anypony else the piece would be an abyss in time, but to her it was an inanimate companion, nearly as inseparable to her as she felt to Philomena. The three of them had been traveling for over six-hundred years in time, and they had seen so much together.

Time. The Princess' shoulders slumped as she continued to look down at her sundial from her utilitarian, non-gilded throne, thinking of the personal meaning that word had to her. Time, the great gnawing canyon into which all things were drawn to their ruin, save for her and her sister. It had never been on her side. Though it could not touch either of them, it found new ways to hurt them over and over again. It had stolen her friends from countless years. Her students had been lost to its grasp: Clover, her first, Fairy Flight, Abd al-Salaam. She even missed the lost and fallen students, Sunset Shimmer among them. Even those of them who had been blessed with descendants were dying out day by day, consumed and ravaged by the toothy maw that made them old and frail, and here she remained. Here she remained. Now she feared that time, like a tatzlwurm, was ready to rumble up from below and come crashing down to destroy and devour an even greater prize; it was coming for her kingdom, all of Equestria and the lands beyond. In the deepest corners of her mind she could now hear the voices of nature itself, screaming in warning of an imminent threat to everything, and she believed it to be the Ruined. They would surely come with great sorcery and power, all to return to subjugation those species they had once ruled.

She closed her eyes, and then exhaled as she opened them again. Her eyes were filled with a cold wrath that only a mother’s mindset can bring when their children are threatened; she would not stand idly by and see any child of her country or any others' harmed by them: no matter what forces of Tartarus they would summon, whether demon or dead, they would all be brought low by her power. If Discord could indeed be imprisoned and defeated twice, then they could most definitely handle the ones he had overthrown. Plans had been drawn up, evacuations would be put in order, and the full might of the Equestrian military would be ready to go anywhere to defend their borders, and she would stand with them in the field like she had not done since the time of the Empire. She would push them back and, if need be, destroy them before they could harm anypony or anything she cared about. Her horn lit up with golden power. Her sword with its wavy, fiery blade appeared once again, elegant and deadly. She had given the human the hilt before, but now if his kind was determined to harm hers, she would give them the blade.

Princess Luna trotted with a determined pace now as she made her way to the Solarium. She didn't know if she had overlooked some evidence that she could use to convince her sister that humans were yet innocent, but she still had to appeal to her sister to stop her from going to war against at least the one she had met. Adam could not have possibly attacked Bunsen Burner without provocation, but what more could she say to- She growled to herself as her mind kept circling back to the same questions over and over again. If nothing else, she would be able to speak with conviction she thought to herself, even if she couldn't be sure of what she was entirely convicted of. The anomaly that the earth pony had spoken of, that much she could be certain of as a possible greater threat. Even if it was caused by humans as surely he'd think, it was bound to be of greater importance than an invasion, surely? "Wait out here for my return," she said to Umbra and Nox, as they opened the doors for her. It was once she had entered the room and the doors had closed shut quietly behind her that she saw what her sister had been doing. A golden sword hung in the air before the white alicorn. As she inspected it she brought it up to the light of the moon to investigate its patterns further. That blade. Luna hadn't seen it since-

A dark purple and cobalt great sword slammed into the castle's stone wall. A tapestry was thrown in her direction, but her blade sliced through it. The other blade, golden orange, was there in front of her, upraised to defend it's wielder. Jab after jab she made, her sister jumping around them and parrying them away from her center. Finally their blades locked. She struggled to twist it around and stab at her pink maned sister's barrel, but it was fighting the very blade that was doing everything in its power to hold them in place; complete deadlock.

“You are a failure and a weakling, dear sister!” her lips parted as she spoke to reveal her newly pronounced incisors. Her sister was barely holding her blade high enough now, and soon both weapons would come back towards her, piercing her through. Her boast continued, “I will drown out your precious little Sun, and veil the land in my glorious unending darkness! All shall love me and despair! Tremble before the might of Nightmare Moon!” She laughed maniacally, and shadows fell.

The Princess visibly fidgeted as the memory jolted through like an electric current, there one moment, gone the next. Her eyes misted over for a second as she unconsciously began to fall straight back into it; the darkness, the despair, the rage, the final memory of a burning multi-chromatic power unlike any she'd felt before, and then oblivion. She shook her head harshly to be rid of the compulsive thoughts. She had to focus now on the task ahead. She took a few wavering steps forward, and then her gait strengthened. She was ready, more or less. Wherever Adam was, she hoped that he was keeping himself safe, away from Equestria's law and reach.

Even as she uttered the first word of her prepared introduction, a soft and gentle 'Sister', the thoughts she'd had of Adam reached into the back of her brain and tugged hard on her brain stem, Luna.

She saw the mare's sword dissipate and she turned to ask her what was wrong, but all her attention was now turned inward: it was Adam, and he was alive! Thank the starry vaults! Her joy was quickly turned to dread when she heard him call to her again, an edge of desperation in his voice, Luna I need you! Help me!

The chill of imminent danger ran down her back, she involuntarily puffed her wings. The summons had come, but she could not have foreseen that it might be under such circumstances, no, not at all.

Please help! We're all going to die!

Once again her mind was involuntarily drawn into memory. Once again she saw before her the battered, broken, dying form of her dearest friend Orpheus, unable to do anything but witness his last moments on the earth. Still further back her mind tumbled as she remembered him as a young colt, so vibrant and full of life, inquisitive and carefree in all things. She could see him now, standing before her in both unspoiled youth and grown to his prime.

"It's not too late for him like it is for me," he breathed heavily as his eyes filled with tragic weariness.

PLEASE HELP US! SOMEONE HELP US. WE NEED YOU.

She took a step back as the intensity of the horror in his mind had increased five-fold. It was almost too much to bear. Her sister called to her again to ask what was wrong.

Orpheus remained, his hoof reaching out to her face, holding her chin gently in place. "There’s no need for tears, purple lady," he murmured gently with a broken smile. The name. The one he had given her as a sweet foal, and which he'd made their secret name for her. Tears formed on her face all the same. "He still lives," he now said with a stronger tone, "You can yet save him. Go, my Princess! GO! Remember your oath! Be his champion, just as you were once mine."

YOU PROMISED, Adam's voice cried hopelessly, YOU PROMISED.

"Luna, please talk to me," Princess Celestia asked in a worried, fearful tone, "What is wrong? Do you feel the danger, too? Tell me what is happening to you!"

In one moment of crystal clarity all thoughts and memories fell away, leaving the Princess of the Night in the still calm between dread events, right in the center of it all, able to act or not act as she chose. She looked her sister in the eyes for one brief moment, tears staining her face. Silently, without any exclamation of why or what she was doing, she turned to her left and began running towards the glass wall at full gallop. A slice formed in the space before where she would collide with the translucent segment she was aimed at. She leaped straight into the rend in space and time, and was gone without a trace to parts and places unknown.

Princess Celestia was now herself filled with fear and dread as she was once again left alone. Now it seemed time had taken her sister from her, stripping her of her most trusted equal and ally, and just when she was certain she would need her most. There in the false serenity at the eye of the storm, she was forced to wait and see what was yet to come, all while feeling more and more powerless as to what she should do with every minute that went by.

"So what's et like," Vinyl asked as she gave a tug on the wrench in her magic's grip.

"What's what like," Bon Bon asked as she stared out the window into the darkened Ponyville beyond, now simultaneously bored with how little was happening and tense with the possibility of the end of the world mere hours away.

"Livin' with Lyra," she clarified as she tightened down the hex bolt she had been working on, " 'Er music is just so...extraordinary. Ah've got a bit of a musician's crush on 'er work."

"Weeell, living with her is frustrating at times," Bon Bon said frankly as she quickly glanced over her shoulder at the unicorn before looking back outside, "She's always leaving things out, whether it's her notes, books, or lyre, just for any old pony to trip over or accidentally destroy. She's an utter mess somedays, and it frustrates me to no end when I pick up after her all the time like she's my child." She then turned back to Vinyl and waved a hoof at her to add to her point, "I've even floated her rent a few months now and then!"

She paused, and her hoof went back down to the floor. Her agitation clearly defused, she sighed heavily, her eyes now filling with an almost guilty expression, "Still, she always was sweet in her own way; helping me bake when I got behind on orders when I was sick. She even made a piece of hers dedicated to me when I was having a heavy bout of seasonal depression last winter. Now she's gone away, and I'm not sure what's going to happen to her."

Initially shocked by the rollercoaster of surprises Bon Bon had laid on her, Vinyl set the wrench down and moved away from the other ponies working on the Space Cork's components. She came up to the earth pony and sat down beside her, "Sounds like she kinda became a sister ta yah, eh?"

Bon Bon laughed a little at that, "I don't know. Maybe. I could definitely see the parallels: looking out for her like I have, bonding with her like I did."

"Ah never had one personally; mum ended up ‘avin' me as the third of four, all brothers. I saw the older two become real mates after they stopped tryin' tah kill each othah, and lil Treble an' I got along well, but et wasn't in the same way, y'know? We didn't 'ave that kinda bond." She slyly glanced at Bon Bon before she socked her right on the shoulder, "Maybe Ah envy ya now more than evah!" Bon Bon gave a little smile to her after she rubbed her shoulder to make sure it was okay. "Jus' know tha you'll always have tha bond, no mattah what distance separates the two of you," Vinyl said with a smile and a confident spark in her violet eyes, "Yer thick as thieves! Tha' means yer close from anywhere."

"Hey guys," the group of ponies heard Rainbow Dash call from above, "I've got soldier types coming in. Looks like they're headed for the outskirts of town!"

Everypony stopped what they were doing at that pronouncement.

Ditzy Doo had just finished welding a piece of metal to the exterior structure of the Cork to guide its rotation while it turned, as well as to ensure that it didn't go off-balance. She quickly shut off the torch and pulled back the hood she had been wearing to look up at the ceiling, "How far away are they now?"

A door to the Emporium's attic opened up from above, and Rainbow's head peeped down at the eight of them, "They just passed Sugarcube Corner running like the wind! I don't know what those ponies' training is, but they were galloping pretty darn fast. Bunsen's right hand stallion was leading the pack."

Ditzy ripped the welding helmet off and threw it to the ground, made sure the fuel and oxygen on her lines were off and then tossed them too, "We have to stop them! The anomaly will have grown larger by now, and they don't know where to look for it. Their entire patrol could stumble right into it and be lost forever!"

"But the doo-hickey isn't even finished," Applejack pointed out, "how can we help them if-"

"Somepony grab the remaining parts, a screwdriver, wrench, and the ohm-meter," Ditzy yelled as she went to the nearby workbench and picked up what looked like a large remote with a glass screen on it, "We'll have to finish building it in transit. Most of it's simple stuff anyway. Somepony grab the blueprints! Twilight-"

"Already on it," she responded as she lifted the device up off the welding table in her magenta grip.

"We need to move now if we even want to try and catch them," Ditzy yelled over her shoulder as she burst out the back door of the Emporium, "Let's go! Go! Go!"

Rainbow Dash was already flying overhead, taking the initiative to burst after them and trying to flag them down. She just hoped she was fast enough to reach them in time.

The RSD troopers were now blazing past the town's edge towards the Everfree. Lieutenant Swiftfeet surmised that if the Ruined One had been staying at the cottage owned by Bon Bon at the forest's edge all this time, it was entirely possible that he had been discovered near there, which was also how he was able to maintain such a low profile until the last few days. Whatever lay ahead of them, whether the anomaly that pegasus mare had spoken of, or an amassing Ruined army, he hoped he was there in time to stop the threat.

Chapter 42 REVISED

The flash had engulfed us, and the ground beneath me had disappeared. Lyra, the Doctor, and I now tumbled through a disorienting kaleidoscope of colors and patterns. With the stress of what we had just gone through I had already felt ready to vomit, and the visuals we were getting weren't exactly helping to make things any better. I could account for the others as they were right in front of me, but it was only after I turned my head to the left that I finally saw our rescuer. Princess Luna looked no different than if she were gliding across open air, her wings keeping her steady even as we all tumbled through the hole in space she had forced us through. It was then that I noticed that the Maiden had in fact come with us, her particles spiraling along just after us until finally she was just behind the Princess. A hole in the nether-splotch finally appeared, one with a simplicity of color waiting just on the other side; dark purple, white marble, and shadows. Even as I was relieved to see it we were already through to the other side, back in the reality I was comfortable with. I slammed down onto the floor with a thud, the wind forced from my lungs. Even as I groaned from the sudden impact I was left wheezing for air.

"Ugh," the Doctor said as he already began to right himself and get to his feet, "I've had worse. Sometimes a bad transmat feels like a parade of elephants walked right through you. This was more like a...tower of giraffes."

"I literally have," I started to say before I had to take a breath, "no idea what the hell you are talking about."

"Finally, someone gets the usage right," he said with a chuckle as he once again pulled me to my feet, "We'll make you a full-fledged English student yet."

I looked over to Lyra to see how she was doing, and found her shaking her head a little as she stretched one foreleg, and then the other. The Princess looked at each of us in turn, and I was struck by the look in her eyes. It seemed like it was one part panic because of the situation she had found us in, as well as another part relief that she was able to get there in time. "You were," I said with a breath and a quick smile, "cutting it kinda close there."

"I'm simply glad I was not late in your time of need," she declared. The Maiden's points of light began to descend on the Princess, so even as she was in the moment of asking, "Who is this second of your own kind," she was already being influenced by the ghostly presence.

"How is this possible," the Maiden exclaimed even as she sifted through the alicorn's memories of ages gone by, "I had thought by now that the first set of Tessaractal batteries would have been completely depleted."

"First set," I said, before I looked to the others, and my anger spiked. I then turned back and yelled at the Maiden's essence in Luna's chest, "You mean to tell me that us almost getting killed was completely pointless?"

"Even if you could have charged those crystals it would have been pointless," Lyra said as she too came closer to the Princess, "The 'first set' she's talking about are the Elements of Harmony I told you about!"

"If they have lasted this long they should suffice as the power source you desire," the Maiden declared, "I shall have Dusk light your way to them, but it is up to you to retrieve them first. I need to explain what is happening to her, and how she might be able to help in all this." The Princess' eyes were vacant, staring off into the distance, but her horn still lit up with her power. A small ball of magical energy appeared from the tip of her horn, detached from it to float before all of us, and then began to gently drift towards the set of doors leading out of what I now realized must be the Princess' private room. "Follow the light, and you will find what you need," the Maiden said more urgently. We took the hint, and we jogged for the doors, opening them quickly and running out to the halls beyond. Finding herself now alone with the Princess, the Maiden's voice turned inward, so that only Luna could hear, "Hello, my sweet Dusk. It has been so very long since last we spoke."

The mare's eyes became more focused, and a new set of tears began to fall down her cheeks all over again, "Mama? But I don't remember you being like-"

"I know sweetie, I wasn't like this before," she said, sadness tinging her words, "You can remember me as I was, but we need to save your ponies and everyone else. Listen closely; this is what I need you to do..."

"Why didn't you tell me you had the Princess in your back pocket," Lyra asked as we made our way down a set of spiraling stairs after the glob of light the Maiden had given us, "You could have had us all out of the dumb prison situation we were in, and we wouldn't have had to have been on the run!"

"I sorta thought that the promise she made wouldn't matter since we were in the prison she rules over, probably under her orders," I said as I jumped down the stairs two at a time, "I figured another potential round of prison vs being eaten alive by tiny robots was a pretty good move, but she still seemed to be concerned about us, so I don't know what is going on. All I care about is fixing this stupid mess we've made." The spiraling stairs now opened up into a plastered white hall as we made our way down them, a railing appearing at our left that merged seamlessly with the walls of the tower we had just exited.

"Coming through," we heard from behind us, and then from closer, "Mind the fingers!"

Jerking my hand away just in time from the marble it had been touching I saw the Doctor and his Converse shoes grinding down away from us, leaning into the curve to avoid being tossed out, his trenchcoat and buckle billowing behind him as he made his rapid descent. One of the night staff who had been ready to go up the stairs to begin dusting and changing the sheets of the lunar tower was caught by surprise when a large primate being came blazing past, only to be be nearly trampled down by another similar creature and a unicorn. After an initial cry of alarm she called out for the guards to come to her aid. With a push off the stairs and a leap the Doctor tucked and rolled down the hallway after the light, and with a quick start was back on his feet again. I jumped off the stair third from the bottom, Lyra not far behind me. The guards were quick to respond, barreling in from other rooms of the castle only to see us, "It's him: the Ruined One!"

I grumbled under my breath, "Yes, mortals: cower in fear of the mighty crippled hobo."

"Come on Adam, let your stride out," the Doctor called back to us, "You should stick with me; cardio will become a regular part of your routine."

"I'm an American," I yelled out after him as Lyra began running ahead of me, "All we're good for is sprinting to the next burger joint!"

He looked over his shoulder with a toothy grin and laughed, "Well we can all learn to overcome our disadvantages with patience and practice, now put some effort into it before I have to rescue you again!"

I let out a frustrated sigh as I ran after my two compatriots, the guards still on our heels. As we passed through a set of thick wooden doors, I thought aloud to my new arm, "Close them, close them, close'm close'm close'm!" The nodes on the Dominion Gauntlet did flicker a little, and it did look like they shifted slightly, but I couldn't tell for certain. Hearing what I was trying to do but seeing that I was failing, Lyra reached back behind and brought the doors closed behind me after I'd passed through.

"I wish I knew how this stupid thing worked," I said angrily.

"Frankly, me too," Lyra replied as we ran down a corridor to our immediate right.

"Sir, there's been a Ruined sighting," a young soldier said as he burst into Bunsen Burner's office, "It's here in Canterlot right now."

Bunsen's eyes went wide as he looked up from the journal he had been reading, "Party size?"

"Just two," he blurted.

"Their target?"

"They seemed to have come from inside the Castle somehow, but they've left. We have eyes in the towers and sky following their every move. Should we have them taken down?"

Bunsen left his seat and quickly opened up a drawer on the right side. From out of it he pulled what looked like an oversized jeweled pendant and placed it around his neck, "No. Let them go wherever they need to. We need to find out whatever it is they're after before we capture them: from that we can deduce their end-goal. You've done well, Sergeant."

"Thank you, sir," he said before he quickly exited the room again.

The old stallion slammed his hoof down on the speaker button to all the PA units throughout the facility, "Attention RSD, there's been a Ruined sighting in Canterlot. Echo Squadron, prep for Upper Tier insertion at elevator 17 and await my arrival."

The light lead us out from the castle into an open garden area, only to then take us into the city interior. Most of the guards broke off pursuit after we left the building, but an earth pony and pegasus kept on us following from behind and above.

"They could catch us, but they're not," I thought aloud as we ran, "Why aren't they trying harder?"

Unseen to us, the pegasus was receiving a signal of flashing lights tell him to give us space, and their partner followed suit. Finally the light brought us to another open space, where we saw a large ornately designed building, stained glass arrangements dotting its structure: it was the Cathedral of the Elements. We each took the stone steps up to the large doors as quickly as we could. The soldiers who had been chasing us now did so in earnest, quickly gaining back the distance they had initially given us. Before they could catch up to us we closed the doors behind us. Lyra and I held the door shut against their banging their hooves on them while the Doctor picked up a thick piece of timber that slotted straight down into several supports spread across the door's interior. With the timber in place we were able to back away from the door and take a quick breath.

"Wooh," Lyra let out a heavy breath as she put her hooves to her sides as she leaned back on her haunches, "I have stitches in places where I didn't know I had places!"

"You're telling me," I breathed.

The ball of light had at least given us a reprieve before it began to pulse softly and float away towards the back where could be found doors made of ornate stone carved with mysterious patterns.

"I can't remember the last time I'd have been in a place like this," I murmured as we walked towards it, my eyes wandering to the stain glass and the stories told there.

"What do you mean," Lyra asked as she looked up to me.

"I just get the feeling like this place is sort of...special. Like there's some innate respectfulness called for here. It reminds me of my Aunt's church a bit."

"I do admire places like that," the Doctor said as we caught up to him, "Even if I'm not able to join in all the way because of a, well, lack of applied belief. The vaulted places full of memory, steeped in worship. They can become points of stability in ways people couldn't possibly imagine. With enough presence and faith buildings of all kinds can become anchors in time, homes away from the metaphorical storm of life, and even enriching and preserving the soul."

"Doctor," I asked, and he turned to me with an airy smile. I began slowly as I tried to gather my thoughts coherently, "With everything you've had to have seen and done...Is there anything out there? Like, at all? Or have we gotten it all wrong and been chasing after myths?"

"Just because there's a myth about something doesn't mean it's not real," he intoned, "but if you are asking 'Is there a god or gods out there,'" he blew out his cheeks, "Well, I've seen a lot of posers: a lot of charlatans both powerful and not so powerful. I've even met and made friends with beings worshiped as gods. If you're thinking of the one I expect you are, no, I haven't seen God." He gave a bit of a smile, "Still, it's a big, wide, and aging universe, and I haven't seen everything yet. Believe whatever you want, Adam, but don't look to me as a cheat sheet: make your own choices and decisions, but work with what is unequivocally good in terms of morals, and you should turn out fine."

We had neared the doors during this time, and as we watched the light entered a small cavity near chest height for the two of us. The sudden presence of it within the stone doors seemed to activate some magical mechanism, and light began to flow out through lines in the ornate patterns throughout their structure. The doors split along what had been an unseen seam, and slowly began to open wide, revealing six artifacts: five clasping necklaces and a regal tiara, each with Twilight's and her five friends' Cutie Marks somewhere in their design.

"They, uh, don't look much like batteries," I said matter-of-factly as I pointed to them, "Did this just become the most high profile jewelry heist in all of history? I, uh, was typically the getaway guy, so I'm outta my element here."

"Does it really matter what shape they are in," Lyra said with a roll of her eyes as she brought the tiara over and stuck it on her head and clasped another around her neck. Even as she handed over two for me and the Doctor to hold she declared, "What matters is that apparently these are going to save the world again, so let's stop wasting time and get moving!"

The Doctor gave a mock salute even as he stood at attention, "Oh, yes ma'am."

Suddenly from behind us there was a bright burst of light. When we turned we found that a strange jewel, initially unnoticed by any of us was now beaming a strange light down onto the floor, and out of that light stepped a stallion. It was the crazed scientist from before. Immediately I was put on edge, and the nodes on the Dominion Gauntlet seemed to resonate with the change in the situation, thrumming with a strong grey light. Silently the stallion turned back to the door to the cathedral and raised the timber locking the way in. A group of soldiers came in once the way was clear, and they quickly trotted in with their guns pointed right at us.

"So, this was your plan all along, hm," the old stallion said, a triumphant tone in his voice and a smirk on his face, "Attempt to deprive us of our nation's most powerful tools and bend them to your own designs? And now it seems you've turned Ms. Heartstrings to your side, a traitor to her fellow citizens and nation." He seemed to now notice the change that had happened with my left arm, even arching an eyebrow and frowning, "That's an interesting piece of equipment you've got there."

The lights on my arm flashed brighter than ever, as now all my mental energy, concentration, and will was focused on the one who had been my warden and tormentor. "Yes, it is," I replied, my voice filled with growing rage, "You want to see what it can do?"

"Adam, stop," Lyra said as she put a hoof to my right arm, "We don't have the time, and he's not worth it." She turned to the other ponies and tried to plead, "Look, the Void hole we told you about is only hours away from completely opening. We have it on good authority that the Elements of Harmony will help to seal that hole forever."

"And where are Twilight and her friends," he asked bluntly, "They seemed to have been very friendly with your group after they broke into my facility, and yet they're not here. We won't negotiate without proof of life."

Lyra snorted angrily, "The Elements are working with our friend Ditzy Doo right now to build a device to channel the Elements' power. We need to get back to them as soon as possible to get that device working. If you don't believe us, ask Princess Luna! She's the one who sent us here."

A strange look came into Bunsen's eyes upon hearing that, "The Princess' judgment on these matters is in question. I don't know by what sorcery you've twisted her mind, but she is no longer able to keep a focused perspective on the issues here that are truly of importance." The soldiers under his command discretely began to cast odd looks at him before refocusing their attention back on us. "The game is up for all of you," he said with a tone of finality, "There will be no escape this time. I've instructed my soldiers to open fire if you," he pointed to the Doctor, "even so much as reach towards your coat pocket. Now, with the current state of emergency in place I have unilateral authority to take you all into custody, where upon you will be examined and incarcerated."

"There is no way you have that right," Lyra finally angrily burst out, "The princesses would never give you the power to virtually replace them."

"These are dangerous times," was his simple reply, "Under such conditions in the eyes of the law I can in fact do just that."

"Only if we so deign to allow it be true," a familiar voice intoned icily from nowhere. Suddenly from out of the shadows between the light coming in through the cathedral's stained glass windows rose the form of Princess Luna to stand between us and them. Almost at once the soldiers took a knee to bow before their royalty; Bunsen noticeably did not. Stepping into the light, she flared her wings and glared at the old stallion, "We hath heard many audacious things in our time, but this is sure to be the chiefest among them! Thou would usurp our sister's, our authority, and claim it to be lawful in so doing? Outrageous!"

"Princess, you are not well," Bunsen said flatly, "Please step aside; I'm only doing what is best for the herd."

This last pronouncement seemed to at last cause the Princess to snap, because she then yelled in a voice louder and deeper than I'd ever heard before, "BE SILENT, THOU IMPUDENT FOAL." I could almost swear I heard a thunderbolt fly outside, and the hall became deathly silent. The soldiers took a step back at their ruler's now darkening visage, but still Bunsen stood his ground, looking no different than he would if he were in an art gallery scrutinizing a particularly complex piece.

With a sharp intake of breath as she strode forward, the Princess roared, "Thou hath abused our authority, and the trust of thy teacher, Princess Celestia! Thou hath betrayed the values you were beholden to under my sister’s tutelage, and thou hath nearly cost every single being in this world their lives to pursue thine own intrigue and agenda! Were it solely for me to be the judge I would have thee banished to beyond the reach of any warm and loving star in the night sky!”

The two ponies were now face to face, nearly snout to snout.

"Then do it," he replied in an even tone, anger seething just beneath the surface, "Do it and watch this world crumble before the likes of his kind. If not him, there are other monsters hiding in the dark, waiting for us to show our weakness, and even then there's always you." The Princess blinked in surprise and leaned back somewhat. The stallion continued on in a raised voice, "The world will always need ponies like me, ready to face any threat with steely eyes and fire-forged hearts, whether from within or without. You are no different, Princess. When the gods of Equestria become its demons, who but me is to stand in their way?"

The Princess' head drew back, and there was a cold fury in them. For the briefest of moments one could see the flicker of draconic irises just behind her eyelids, but surely it was a trick of the light. The shadows throughout the room did grow deeper for an instant, but only long enough for us to nervously take notice. "Do. Not. Test me," she said in a deep, haunting voice.

It was at this point she noticed something about her mortal adversary. This close to his face she only just did notice the half-moon shape of his glasses, but it gave her pause for thought. As she continued to look at his frames and not into his eyes he became increasingly nervous. The old adage went that one could not harm one's own self with their magic, and it seemed now the Princess understood why she could not read his thoughts: he had taken on a likeness of her magic, allowing him to be shielded from her attempts at connection with his mind, but no more.

"Adam the Human has proven himself trustworthy to me," she declared firmly, "by his actions and his openness. You have proven otherwise for yourself at every turn."

With a sudden burst of magic she ripped the spectacles clear of his head, leaving him mentally unprotected. He attempted to run over to retrieve them with a quick shout of, "No!"

"Let us see if you can pass muster," she cried, "Your mind, your memories, every wicked thought is now mine, and I take them thusly!"

Shocked by her seeing through his machinations at last, and for the first time showing fear, Bunsen Burner was unable to do anything as the Princess of the Night forcefully entered his mind and crashed into his consciousness, laying his soul utterly bare before her.

Chapter 43 REVISED

When Princess Celestia felt her sister return to Canterlot, she had a momentary swell of relief; she knew now at least where she was. That sense of things was quickly robbed of her when she then felt her sister move through the shadows in Canterlot to the Cathedral of the Elements. Whatever her reason for being there the situation had to be dire indeed, but there was nothing that she or her sister could do with them. In centuries past she had severed their link to the Elements so that neither she nor her sister could be tempted to abuse their power. Perhaps she had found Twilight and her friends? Whatever the case, she had to get down there quickly to see what was going on. With a bright golden flash the Princess of the Sun vanished, leaving behind two very confused bat pony guards at the doors of her Solarium. In the very moment that she materialized into the Cathedral, her sister was forcing her way into the mind of her eldest student.

Aghast, all she could say was, "What are you doing?!" So focused was she initially on the alarming invasion of Bunsen's mind that only then did she notice the presence of the others in the room: Bunsen's guards, the missing Lyra Heartstrings of all ponies, and two Ruined Ones, including- "You," she said with growing anger. She began to quickly stride towards him most of all, and almost on reflex her golden, wavy blade materialized at her right side, "What have you done to my sister, fiend? You've stolen her mind, haven't you?"

"Do not lay a hoof on him," Princess Luna blurted even as her eyes turned a vacant milky color, her horn just at the tip Bunsen's forehead, "My mind is my own, and he is more important than you know." Through memories years, even decades old she tumbled, looking for every scrap of evidence she could find of his wrongdoing. He had intentionally kidnapped Lyra and blamed it on Adam to get authoritative carte blanche on his pursuit. He had lied to both the Princesses about the human's measure of dangerousness. He-

The last thought seemed so ridiculous, so impossible, that she had to view it again and trace its origin back in his mind. He had been in charge of an emergency strike team that had been just outside Everfree Castle when the Elements had bound Nightmare Moon. She could see through his eyes the very outcropping he had hidden behind, remembered the cool night air escape his nostrils as they lay in wait. The soldiers near him were buckled up with war saddles, their guns ready to fire into the devastated castle. He had just loaded a round into his fellow's chamber; inside was a sickly orange liquid in a specialized glass round. The others didn't know for sure what it was, only that it was what could stop her if all else failed. This precaution was not sanctioned by the Princess; he had made this decision on his own, without her authority. The fluid, whatever it was, was the key to something darker.

"Luna, if you are truly in there I will find a way to free you," Princess Celestia said as she continued her march towards me, "After I've put this twisted being to rest, once and for all." She looked at me with a judgment of finality in her eyes, one like I'd never seen, and now I was afraid once again for my own existence; not for just my freedom, but now my life. "Adam, for what you've done, perverting the minds of my ponies, even twisting my sister's mind to your dark purpose, and for endangering all the world, there is only one place for you in all of existence."

Without giving any sign that she would have done so before she did it, Lyra took up a place directly in between me and the Princess. I blurted out in a panic, "Lyra, no! Don't-"

"Princess," she said as firmly as she could, even though she too was beginning to shake from fright, "Adam actually is better than you think: he never wanted to endanger anything or anypony, and he's trying to help save it all now."

The Princess' face remained firm, "Move aside child. I don't know if you are ensnared by him fully or if you made some pact with him, but he cannot offer you anything good. He's imprisoned you for too long, and your mind is bent around him, but you will be set free of him soon."

"I said lay not a hoof on him, Tia," Princess Luna yelled again, now more on edge than ever. The fluid was made down below in the bowels of the mountain, and tested on dark creatures. When at last it was finished he looked at the small sample of the first batch he had made. The Princess had assumed with her sister's return that there were only two options: eternal night or life without her. Now there was a third option: life without Nightmare Moon. "By the pits of Tartarus," she exclaimed softly, a thin vein of icy fear dripping into her voice.

"Princess," the Doctor now declared as he too came closer, "there is still time to set things right. We can close the Void hole with your help, but for the plan to work we need to be alive. If you can't see reason then I'll be forced to stop you. Please just listen to us and stop being so blasted stubborn for a second!"

The Princess' coronal mane began to glow even brighter, the edges of it flickering like the tip of a flame. Her blade began to waver slightly, and sparks of ether crackled off of it. "How dare you," she said angrily, and a white fire burned in her eyes, one that had not been seen for seven centuries, "I don't care about your deceit, manipulations or powers. I am the Avatar of the Sun. I am the Sun Unconquerable! By what right can you try to stop me in the defense of my world?"

An unnatural wind began to blow in through the open doors of the cathedral, ruffling the tapestries adorning the walls. The stained glass began to groan in their frames as a rapid pressure change took place, and they were trying to get out of the way of what was coming next. Lyra's mane and my shirt began to flap in the mysterious breeze, and we drew a little closer to each other. The Doctor's trenchcoat twisted and turned right along with us, but he didn’t seem to pay it any attention. A dark, angry frown had grown on his face, and he took step after step to confront the Princess, undaunted by her challenge.

Then, he answered it, "I am the last of my people; the last of the Time Lords.” As he approached her, his words seemed to carry a weight of their own, as if each was the heart of a black hole, “I am the Oncoming Storm." Everything in the room seemed to shrink and look pale before this man, as if he were the only constant, real thing, and that nothing else mattered, because all of existence, everything else known was trivial and in flux. “I have seen universes blossom in life and in their last spasms of death. I know of then, now, and all that is to come! You are the Unconquerable Sun? I am the Lord of Time Victorious! I am the Doctor! And no one stands in my way for long.”

“Is that a threat,” Princess Celestia spread her wings to their full span, and she did not give an inch of ground to his advance. The Doctor stood a mere three inches from her nose, both eyes glowed with ethereal energy. Hers were like the heart of a living sun, an inferno given life, burning bright as phosphorus. His eyes were like a field of stars; cauldrons of endless depth. These eyes had beheld everything that had ever existed, and were brimming with ancient but eternally young life. These were eyes like those of the ancient Greek gods, and they carried with them that same finality as what her words held. They both were unmatched, and now there seemed to be nothing standing in the way, leaving all the rest of us not as spectators, but collateral damage, “No, it’s a fact.”

“ENOUGH!!” Princess Luna finally roared as she disconnected from Bunsen Burner's consciousness and whirled around on the two of them. All became silent after the necessary outburst. With a heavy breath she looked back and forth between the two in frustration before speaking, “While we sit here posturing like quarrelsome foals, our world is nearing collapse! While Bunsen Burner has not known of it until recently, he has predominately used this as an opportunity to seize more power and to control both of us, even though we are mere hours from total annihilation!"

"Bunsen Burner has already proven his character to me," Princess Celestia said with a glance to her sister before returning her gaze to us, "and these Ruined continue to prove their own; overbearing, corrupt, and manipulative. Release my sister at once; this is your last warning."

"Bunsen Burner has been betraying your trust for years now," her sister said furiously, now fed up with her sister's stubbornness as well, "I have seen into his innermost thoughts! He went behind your back when Nightmare Moon returned. If Twilight failed he meant to kill me, and he even made the means to do it! He's had the ability to slay us for over a decade, and he believes he could replace us as well!"

“Lies,” muttered Bunsen Burner groggily as he reached once again for his glasses lying nearby. “All lies. Princess, your sister has been psychically taken by the subject. She is trying to destroy everything you’ve created!”

“Will your lies have no end, blackguard," Princess Luna snapped as her fury now instantly turned to him. She seized him telekinetically by the joints in his armor, and brought his face near hers. Princess Luna’s eyes glowed white with power, “Bunsen Burner, from this day onward, thou art hereby stripped of thy title as a Prince of Equestria, and thou art thusly banished from this capital of Equestria, never to return to it for the term of your natural life." The power dissipated just long enough for her eyes to convey just how absolute her words were, "May your name become a byword and be a shame to those called by it!”

Before anyone else could respond, even Bunsen Burner himself, he disappeared in a vibrant purple and blue flash of light. Princess Celestia gazed in horror as the last remaining sparks of her sister's magic descended to the floor, fizzling away. Her one ally that she had been so certain of, her student that she failed once before she had now failed again. Now she was alone. Everypony she cared for had been taken away, either physically or mentally. As she focused on that feeling her mane's luminosity grew until it shone like some otherworldly fire, ready to consume anything in its path. With this new and terrible light came her deepest wrath.

"You may have taken my students away," she snarled, and then brought her up sword, golden sparks flying everywhere, ready to cut us down, "You will not have her any longer! You will not take my sister from me!"

A golden field of magic formed around Lyra, not of her own making, and she was shoved roughly out of the way. With a grunt she fell to the floor before immediately shouting, "Princess, no!"

The Doctor was closest to the insane ruler, and he had even less time to respond than I before a gigantic cleaver came down on us. Without thinking at all, I put my good hand on the Doctor's shoulder and threw him off balance out of the way to the right, in the exact opposite direction as Lyra. I wasn't thinking beyond the fact that I wanted to live, when with so far unseen power the Dominion Gauntlet surged with energy. Reflexively I brought it up to protect my head and chest, when a grey barrier formed just in front of me between my attacker and I. The golden blade came down, and struck against it with a slight resonating gong. It then swung away, reflecting off of it, leaving both the Princess and myself incredibly surprised. An idiotic grin formed on my face when I realized that I had done it, I had done magic! It was short-lived indeed when she overcame her initial shock and began to slam her sword down more forcibly on my shield. Cracks quickly spread throughout its surface, until on the last blow the shield shattered completely, forcing me backward. Stumbling, almost falling, I saw her looming just over me, ready to drive home the killing blow. It should have been all over for me, but as the blade came down, a gateway opened up just between us, and Princess Luna's form flew out. Her trajectory was set already, and with a loud, "No," she intercepted her sister's strike with her own body. The golden sword, still fully materialized, was ripped away from Celestia's mental grip, and traveled with her sister as she crashed to the floor near Lyra. Purple feathers fell through the air, and Princess Luna's form lay still.

All of us looked on in utter horror, especially Lyra and the guards, but no one was so utterly terrified about what had happened as was Princess Celestia. The blade now vanishing from her sister's form, she rushed to her side with a yell of, "Luna!" As she at last stood over her she saw the ugly wound. A deep gash had caught the Princess of the Night in her midsection. Still terrified of what may happen if I came too close to look, I stayed where I was, but I was perplexed by one very simple fact: for a wound that looked that grave there was no blood whatsoever.

"Please get up, Lulu," we all heard her say softly. She began to quietly weep, her voice cracking even as she spoke anew, "Why did you? I didn't mean for this to-" She stopped and took a ragged breath, "Please just get up. Don't leave me alone again, Lulu. I'm so sorry."

Without any sort of warning or sign, greenish-yellow particles flew off of Princess Luna's still form and began to attach to Princess Celestia's coat. The fallen alicorn's eyes opened and she began to slowly but surely rise. From out of the grievous looking wound silver particles of light emerged, drawing back together the flesh that had riven apart until the light vanished with a quick flash, and the wound was there no more; not even a scar left behind to show for it.

"Are you alright, Dusk," the Maiden's voice asked, bewildering the guards with where it truly came from.

"I am fine, mother," she said with a slight twinge of pain in her voice, "but what about my sister?"

"Leave her to me. I will help her see reason one way or another." She then projected her voice towards the three of us, "As for you, Dusk will help you get to wherever you need to go to help end this threat to existence."

"That would be be my ship," called out the Doctor, "I can help guide the sealing process, making it like it was never there. It's in the forest just above where you found us."

"Good," the Princess said curtly, before she drew back the veil of reality and opened a portal to the space between existence.

As we made our way to this new exit, Lyra looked up at me mystified, "How is it you can throw up a shield that powerful, but you can't even do a real fizzle of magic when we need you to?"

I shrugged my shoulders and sighed heavily, "At this point I don't know and I'm not sure I really care. I just want this to be done so we can get back to our lives together."

" 'Together', huh," she said with a smirk, "Making a few assumptions, are we?"

"Well," I stopped and then stammered out, "Well, I, uh-"

"Oh, forget it," she said with a smile, "If nothing else you'll need a real teacher. Let's just take things slow, okay?"

I nodded wordlessly. It was more like I nodded dumbly with the facial expression I was sure to be giving.

After the three of us had stepped through the gateway across space with the Elements in hand and horn, Princess Luna looked back to the highest ranking officer amongst the guards, "Until this crisis is resolved and a replacement for the Director's chair is found, I place you in charge of the Royal Science Division. Return to the facilities below and handle business as you usually would. I will be near Ponyville."

"Y-Yes Your Highness," she said, unsure if things were returning to normal or if a coup had just occurred, "Lieutenant Swiftfeet and his squad are already in the area hunting down either the anomaly or a Ruined encampment."

"Then I suppose we will see him soon," was her simple reply. Her peace made, she stepped through her portal and sealed it off behind her.

The now temporary Director of the RSD pointed to two of her fellows, "Keep watch on the Princess, but from a distance. Don't intervene in any way, just stand back and observe whatever she does."

"Yes, ma'am," the two said.

They moved into position a few feet away, while the other four left the cathedral completely, all the while Princess Celestia stood still as a stone, the Maiden's lights glowing on her barrel.

Chapter 44 REVISED

The Lieutenant glanced around cautiously as he stepped down into the river bed before him. Glancing back over his shoulder he motioned to his fellows to proceed further into the forest using the banks above. They hadn't yet encountered any resistance of any kind, but the possibility of a threat still remained, so their senses were on high alert, sharp for any danger, whether wildlife or something else. With that current state of mind their arboreal trek was going at a crawl, that is at least until one of the soldiers gave a sign for them all to halt. As one the unit stopped in their tracks.

"Contact at Three O'clock," he whispered just loud enough for them all to hear.

Silently the Lieutenant jumped out of the bank to the other side, his wings open to give him a near noiseless landing. Just to the northwest, loping along as quick as it could to the east was an enormous grizzly bear. Initially as it moved it looked back over its shoulder, but then it began lumbering along into a full on sprint away from that direction.

"What do you make of it sir," the spotter asked.

"Bears do retreat," he said softly before looking back in the direction in which the bear had come, "but only if there's a bigger threat than anything we’re able to fight. Pick up the pace, but remain quiet."

With a strong flap of his wings he was up in the air, gliding along until he touched down again a few yards away. He repeated this process again and again, even as his squad followed after him. An ominous pale light was coming out of the forest deeper in, its rays somehow feeling malevolent. What was going on here, he wondered. Then all of a sudden he heard a voice from behind the group, shouting in the distance, "Lieutenant!"

Surprised but still on high alert, the rest of the squad snapped around to the direction of the voice, war saddles preemptively armed and ready. "Hold your fire," he hissed, "and wait."

The ponies under his command stood stock still, waiting for the next order.

The voice repeated its cry, and then some, "Lieutenant, this is Twilight Sparkle. You're headed straight into danger. The Void hole is nearby!"

"Sir," a second pony said, but he hushed them silently, "They don't know we're here. Hold."

"We are headed towards the hole's location," he recognized this voice as that of the grey pegasus, "The device to seal it shut is ready. We came out here to save you from falling into it."

"So show some appreciation for us having to come out to save your flanks," another voice yelled more closely and from above.

"Rainbow," Twilight called out in shock.

"What," she retorted grumpily, even as she flew into view of the squadron from above, not looking where she was flying, "It's not like we had to." A great surge arose in the pale light behind the group of soldiers. Glancing back behind them the Lieutenant now saw a wall of repulsive white and black light, its patterns swirling around and crashing in on themselves. Seeing the light now for the first time, the multi-chromatic pegasus let out a loud but short 'Woah," before she arced her flight path upward out of the way of the event horizon. Flipping over in the air she looked down at the window into hell and noticed the terrible truth: the blasted thing was growing at a visible pace. "Ooooh, boy. This ain't good," she muttered before she flew down to regroup with the others.

"Clearly you were more right than we gave you credit for," the Lieutenant said sincerely to Ditzy Doo as the two groups gathered some distance away from the anomaly, "You said earlier that eventually this would cascade. How long do we have to evacuate Ponyville?"

"This isn't about evacuations," Ditzy said plainly as she helped Twilight guide the Space Cork down to the ground, before locking open the tripod it would rest on, "We either seal it for good, or the Void hole opens completely and we kiss everything on this planet goodbye. My biggest problem is I thought we had more time, but we had to come out and stop you from running headlong into this, and we don't have a dedicated power source yet."

Taking the new information in stride but, still agitated by the all-or-nothing situation they were faced with, Lieutenant Swiftfeet asked, "Well why'd you bring it out here then?"

"We can't stop it right now," she said as she mounted the device on its tripod, "but maybe we can buy ourselves some time. Besides we can use the ambient magic of the forest for now as our source of power. It's not much by any means, but we can maybe get a few minutes? I don't know for sure at this point."

"At this point anything will do," the Lieutenant agreed as the ensemble of ponies looked to the advancing wall, "Fire that thing up. Dazzling Point, Willow Wisp, give it every drop you can spare."

"Aye sir," the two unicorns said as they came next to the machine, "What do you need us to do?"

Ditzy Doo brought around a metal plate which she quickly attached to the Space Cork by two leads, "Just aim at the plate and give it what you've got. The machine can take care of the rest."

"Just so you know, that material is explicitly owned by the Equestrian Government, and reproducing it is a crime," one of the other soldiers said.

The Lieutenant turned to him calmly and simply said, "For now, screw the law."

"Add it to the list of other felonies we've committed in the last few hours if you want," Ditzy said casually with a shrug, and then she cranked the the dial on the machine to it's maximum setting, "Give it the juice!"

The two soldiers aimed their horns carefully and projected their magic onto the plate, their auras vibrant green and deep pink. Arcane power crackled with a rush up through the leads and straight into the machine's inner workings. The projector end began to turn rapidly, and then fired out a beam of molten magic straight into the Void hole. When the two lights met, the event horizon buckled against it, retreating back.

"It's working," Ditzy called out excitedly, "Everypony else not a unicorn get back to Ponyville and gather up every foal, filly, and colt who can squeeze out a spark!"

A crackling sound began to fill the air, and as the group looked up at where the lights met they could see wisps of ozone forming, some of which was sucked up by the event horizon, but most of which broke off into small, highly concentrated packets of cloud that flew in all directions at random. The hole stopped its retreat and began to advance again, gaining back the ground it had previously lost.

"What's happening," the Lieutenant asked.

"The air around the hole is becoming ionized when it comes in contact with our magic," Twilight said worriedly, "The ozone created must be sapping away some of our energy to make these rogue storms clouds."

The Lieutenant pointed to the hole and looked to his fellow winged soldiers, "Keep your distance, but get that ozone out of here; we can't risk it building it up into full-fledged clouds and turning the place into a storm hazard on top of everything else."

"Sir," they both shouted, and immediately took flight, Rainbow Dash immediately after them with a comment of, "Never thought I'd have to kick clouds to save the world!"

"Let's make up for what we lost, everypony," Twilight called out as she came next to Dazzling Point and Willow Wisp and joined them in their magical transfusion. Quickly joining their fellow unicorns, Rarity and Vinyl Scratch offered up theirs as well, making a veritable rainbow of colors go in and come out of the Space Cork.

"How much more of this can your machine take," the Lieutenant asked as he looked back at the Void hole with a worried eyes.

"She can take the punishment," Ditzy said with sweet smile, "It was built to withstand worse!"

Everything seemed to be going well, and they were at least holding their ground with the system they had in place: the magic was slowly forcing the hole back towards where it came, and the ozone was being successfully siphoned off. Out of nowhere the Void hole's light grew brighter and it surged forward rapidly. One of the RSD pegasi was too close and caught off guard by the sudden expansion. She was trying to escape, but her back legs and tail were already past the event horizon, and she screamed in shock and fright. Her wingmate flew up to her, as did Rainbow Dash, and they held onto her hoof as they tried to pry her loose.

"Come on, Sunny," her wingmate snarled, "Flap as hard as you can!"

"It's eating me! I can feel it eating me," was all she could shout in terror.

"Somepony work with us here," Rainbow Dash screamed in frustration as she looked back to her friends.

Twilight reached out with her magic for the three of them and yanked them away from the hole as hard as she could. The three pegasi tumbled into the forest, each landing in separate spots. The Lieutenant immediately was on priority as he jumped over to his potentially wounded subordinate. He galloped over to her side to assess the damage. Sunny's wingmate was in the act of joining when she saw her condition as well. With a sigh of relief the Lieutenant was able to shout out to the others, "She's okay."

While physically that was mostly the case, the only damage having been done to her being that her tail hair was now considerably shorter than it had previously been, she was hyperventilating and clearly scared for her life.

"That's it," Dazzling Point said wearily as she stopped her flow of magic to the device, "I've given all I can give; any more and I'll collapse."

"What caused the hole to expand do you think? Was it something we did," Rarity asked as Ditzy Doo shooed the others away while she began to pack the Space Cork back up.

"I don't think so," was her reply, "The hole only ever seems to grow when there's something causing dimensional instability, like the Tardis in full flight, but this close to the hole cascading he wouldn't risk something like." Offering up the components for Twilight to once again carry, she looked to the others, "We did what we came to do, and even learned a bit about some of the Void hole's behavior, and that's a net positive."

"We should go back to Ponyville now," Twilight declared, "We have new data, and perhaps the Doctor's found a power source that can work for this. We can all regroup and revise our plan," she rolled her eyes a little, "Maybe even add a few bullet points under how we're going to 'save the world.'"

"My squad and I can work on organizing Ponyville," the Lieutenant offered as he came closer, "It looks like we're also going to need several care units while both the unicorns and pegasi are working; the earth ponies, the old and the young can help out where they can there. There is a possibility of a wildlife outbreak in the town since they're being driven forward by this hellhole."

"I can manage them," Fluttershy said with normally uncharacteristic confidence, "Just leave them to me."

"Sounds like we all have a plan," he said confidently, "Now let's move out."

With that the ponies galloped off towards the forest edge and back into town, even as the Void's reach grew greater and greater by the second.

Chapter 45 REVISED

Celestia awoke with a sudden burst of energy, her eyes whirling around her environment. Craning her head this way and that all she saw was grey air and a rolling fog. Strangely the fog only seemed to cover the ground around her, as it did not touch her in any way or come near her within a five foot radius of where she lay. She didn't remember when or why she lost consciousness, only that she had been crying over Luna-

She stood up in a rush, her wings puffed and ready to flare. Though there were no threats around her in the enshrouding mist, she couldn't help but feel on edge. Where was she? This had to be the work of the Ruined, some sort of prison perhaps. She couldn't be dead. Once again her mind flashed back to what she last remembered; her sister before her, a deep gash in her side, placed there by her own sword. She couldn't really be dead. Neither of them could be. After hundreds of years of life and eternal vitality they couldn't possibly be gone from the earth. Was Equestria truly left without the both of them? Certainly there was still Cadence, but-

No, she thought as she shook her head, I'm not dead, and even if I were Equestria could carry on. Even so, her mind carried her back to the image of the two Ruined, Adam and that Doctor fellow. They goaded her into attacking and like a first class foal she had fallen for it, allowing her sister to become injured. She then came to realize now what might be the possible explanation for why she was here, why she couldn't remember falling asleep. Her sword flared to life again and she whirled around, watchful and aggressive. This was her mind; they had to play by her rules in here.

"Show yourselves, monsters! It doesn't matter where or what I am; I am Princess Celestia, ruler of all equinity. I'm not amused by your parlor tricks. If you want to try and ensnare my mind, face me now!"

"I'm not trying to take your mind from you. If there's one thing I can be accused of, it's the crime of abandoning you," she heard a mare's voice say.

"Who goes there," she called out undaunted, "Face my challenge or get out of my way; my world will be defended."

"On that we can both agree, my bright, little Dawn," the voice continued. A form appeared out of the mist to her right, and she whirled around to confront it. What she saw bewildered her to no end. As the being had exited the fog she saw now more clearly her features, namely her white coat, long horn, and wings. Her blue eyes looked weary, as if she held back a thousand eons and a billion worlds on her shoulders. Her mane and tail were vibrant scarlet, groomed and combed straight, "but are you looking at the right enemy?"

"M-Mother," Celestia exclaimed in shock, "but I thought you were-" Her surprise subsided and her face steeled again as she turned away, "No, this is an illusion. It must be."

The other alicorn nodded solemnly, "In many ways, yes, it is."

Celestia turned once again to look at the facsimile; why would this shade out and out tell her this wasn't real instead of maintaining its ruse? There must be some deeper trick, some hidden strategy.

"The form you've given me in your memories," the alicorn looked at her wings with a glance when she brought them out to in front of her muzzle, "is built on what you thought you knew of me; what you expected me to be. I wasn't all-powerful, I didn't create anything worth mentioning. I gave you the power to stop Discord, but with the same stroke I took everything else from you, even your real memories."

"Get out of my head," Celestia said angrily as she walked closer and swiped at the image of the alicorn, but it vanished in a whisper as she meant to bring the blade down on it. She whirled around to see the image behind her, and she snarled, "How dare you try and use my own mother's image against me. Do you truly have no shame?"

"I am ashamed that I used you," the alicorn said, tears coming to her eyes, "I am ashamed that I lied to you, but more than anything I am ashamed that after it was all said and done I left you and your sister alone to find you way in the world, with a responsibility no parent should force on their child."

"You are not my mother," the Princess yelled, her horn blasting a yellow beam at the projection in her mind.

In the waking world the same occurred, blasting a hole in the cathedral's western wall, masonry obliterating in its path, stain glass melting back into silica around the hole and dripping to the floor. The two guards keeping watch over her quickly retreated back towards the antechamber.

"There's a good chance if she keeps this up she could bring down the whole damn structure," one guard said as they hid around the corner, while the other only offered a nervous nod in reply. The Princess' head reared back up suddenly.

In her mind, Celestia was alarmed to feel something stuck between her teeth reining her in. Her eyes grew wide when she realized it was a bit, and angrily she snarled, whipping her head back and forth. She tried to summon a shockwave to clear whatever in Tartarus was on her back but for some reason she couldn't cast. Instinctively she started bucking her back legs and jumping into the air, her legs slamming down into the floor like steel pistons, smashing through the stonework below. Even as she was bucking she did manage to get her head around just enough to catch a glimpse of her captor, only to see it was a red haired, blue eyed human, clearly a female.

"Get off me Ruined," she bellowed even through the obstruction in her mouth.

She felt the female's legs squeeze tighter, "No! Not until you will listen."

"I can do this forever," the Princess retorted, "I never age, never fatigue, never die. There's not a chance in Tartarus you'll beat this horse to death!"

The guards were just as surprised by her use of a slur as they were when she first fired off that blast of energy. Their articulate, respectable leader, a paragon of restraint was devolving right before their very eyes, and never would a soul believe them.

"You might be able to," the Maiden yelled into her ear even as she gripped her arms around her neck, "but your ponies don't have much longer, and they need you!" She gripped tighter, even as she closed her eyes to hold back further tears. She held her head firmly against Celestia's neck, "I don't want to do this to you, but I need you to listen! Humanity was dead; extinct, and should have been forever! There is no army, or invasion, or whatever lies you've been told. We're all dust! Your ponies walk across our graves every day, except soon they and this entire planet will be gone too, not even dust to show for it!"

At last Celestia finally stopped her bucking, and she stood in place as she realized what the ghost was saying. Even though she wasn't calm, only momentarily still, the Maiden gave the bit some slack, but still she remained on the alicorn's back. The pony craned her head to look at her momentarily with a glare, before she returned her gaze forward, "If that's true, where did the other two come from?"

"A different place," the Maiden replied gently, "Through a crack in space and time; the very same one ready to devour the entire world." An image appeared in front of Celestia's face, one which showed a eerie sphere of clashing white and black colors. With each second it grew noticeably bigger. In the forest below the image into reality they could both see all kinds of animals escaping to safety out of the forest's protective embrace. Among them was a group of ponies, one of whom was clearly-

"Twilight," she quietly exclaimed.

"You know her," the Maiden asked.

The alicorn gave a quick glance behind to the human, her eyes now more soft and her face less stern. She turned back to the image, "I thought she had been taken."

"She was never captured or indoctrinated if that's what you thought," the Maiden said quietly, "I never touched her, and neither did the other two. She may have seen only a little more than you did, but she freely made her choice, and it led her in a much different direction than you ever expected."

Twilight's words from just earlier that day came back to Celestia in that very moment. Do we truly act against an individual for the supposed sins they share with their race because we expect, without evidence, that they will act the same way?

"I know it will be hard, reevaluating everything you have been told about my species," the Maiden said as she drew her leg over and off Celestia so she could step down to the floor. Even as she was speaking the bit in Celestia's mouth completely vanished. The red haired female came around to her face, her eyes still very much the same weary ones she had seen on the illusion of her mother's memory. "Right now I don't even need you to trust me, or a single word I say. I simply need you to be open to your senses, use your own judgment instead of relying on others, and now see for yourself what is out there."

The fog around her lifted, and the human's face disappeared from in front of her. She now saw that she stood in the Cathedral of the Elements still. Seeing an enormous pool of moonlight fall over the floor in front of her, she turned to see a still cooling hole in the western wall, a fresh chunk of stone falling out of the top of the hole and onto the floor with a solid crunch. Alarmed, she now realized that everything she had said and done in the mist had had real world consequences. She noticed out of the corner of her eye two very alarmed guards who were trying to still keep their dignity and their armor presentable, but who definitely were cowering around the corner leading to the site's entrance.

The thought then occurred to her that if she had wanted to the human could certainly have allowed her to continue obliterating the environment around her, even destroying the entire chapel, yet she had kept her from doing so. The human had been protecting the ponies around her even when she had been inadvertently putting them in harm's way. Now a little more willing to take the human's words and council, she reached out into the world with her mind with every sense that she had. Gravity was exactly as it needed to be here, as were the minute changes in heat and air pressure surrounding the city. She closed her eyes and reached out further. She could feel the soft, ambient radiation of magic all around Canterlot, even down to the lake below the city where invisible energy penetrated straight through the ground to bounce off of hidden aquifers below, or tunneling straight into the mantle deeper still. There was something wrong. Some of that energy further to the west was being drawn up from the ground, out of the air, and from every which way it could, into an ever expanding singularity beyond which there was nothing: no mass, no energy, no life or time, just an empty hunger in the space between planes of existence.

"You may have used our plans and the tools I provided you," the Maiden said from the particles of light stuck to her coat, "but you remade this world, despite how thoroughly it was destroyed. You made a new sun, one that should by no rights even exist according to the natural law, using our old weapons."

Ancient memories, many hundreds of years old, appeared in her mind's eye. Cold canyons of ice dropped away below as she and her sister flew in pursuit of Discord, the mad titan. Red, purple, and golden lightning flashed all around as they waged war against the Lord of Chaos. When he was at last sealed, the Elements of Creation traced circular patterns around them before a gigantic explosion of life and light emanated out of them. Trees, grass, and flowers spontaneously germinated out of the diseased, scourged soil. Deep in space she had taken several capsules and in an instant caused them to collide together, sparking an enormous but silent explosion. Her magic had contained, guided, and polarized it. A steady stream of hydrogen was injected into it from a pocket dimension, all of it compressed into a tight gravity well to maintain the warm, life giving reaction for all growing things beyond its reach.

"What is all this," she murmured, "And why only now is it appearing?"

"You've had longer to forget," the Maiden said, her light flashing in time with her voice, "Though your sister didn't immediately recall any of this either. Dusk's memories are much younger because of her...slumber."

She winced a bit at that. It made sense that her memories were perhaps a thousand years younger because of the banishment, but that still left everything else, "Why not before that? Before Discord?"

"Your mind couldn't take the strain of the transformation to adulthood, much less that of a winged unicorn." The Maiden paused, and then quietly replied, "Perhaps if we'd had more time things would have been different. It didn't make a difference then whether you remained Dawn or not; Discord had already begun to wipe out the last remnants of humanity, and he would move on to torment others after us. You stopped him, and that was all that mattered. I can tell you more later, but right now there is no time left to waste. Discord's fall was already decided by history, but this moment still hangs in the balance. We've already delayed for far too long. You need to go!"

The Princess gave a glance to the guards who at first flinched when she looked their way. She gave them a soft, embarrassed declaration of "Sorry," before she unfurled her wings and took flight through the very hole she had made in the cathedral wall.

The two guards quietly emerged from around the corner after she had left. One pawed the floor with his hoof slightly, and then looked to his fellow, "What do we say to the commander?"

After a long pause to think, the second replied, "I think we do what any guardspony would do when faced with a...situation like this."

"Say nothing and take it to the grave," the first guard said.

"Aye. That will do."

Chapter 46 REVISED

Though it was now early morning Ponyville was alive with activity. Pinkie had been the one to sound the alarm to get everypony awake, which was not a complicated task when you are your own walking orchestra pit. Every able bodied pony was gathering to the west of town, while the rest set up stations near the edge of town preparing rest areas under Twilight's instruction. Fluttershy, along with the help of Applejack and a few others, were helping to divert animals coming from the forest out and away from the town itself and from where the others were coordinating their efforts. Into this raised state of alertness careened the Tardis over the treetops of the northwest Everfree, once again flying through the air to preserve what precious time was left, a mere two hours until the world was consumed by the encroaching black and white horizon.

"Such an expansive space, all pressed into such a small frame," the Princess commented as she looked up at the high vaulted ceiling, "Truly, this puts my magic to shame."

"She may have what some would called a plain exterior," the Doctor said as he patted the control console, "but the Tardis has it where it ultimately counts."

In response the ship's engines seemed to make a slight rumble and purring noise.

"So," I exclaimed, "After we get the girls their...brooch things they'll save the world somehow?"

"First of all they're five necklaces and a tiara," the Doctor said as he began to set us down, "Second, they're going to need all the help they can get to close this hole. The Tardis will be helping to smooth things out from the other side of the rift, but we're still going to need every ounce of power we can squeeze from these-" he brought up one piece that had a lightning shaped ruby on it and twirled it around on his wrist like a hula-hoop, "-lovely little pieces." We felt a slight shift in the floor as the Tardis gently settled down onto the grass just behind the Emporium. "We need to get these to the Elements right now, as well as our findings to Ditzy Doo." He whipped his coat aside to reveal a hip mounted device that he activated with the push of a button. Within a few moments he was concealed by the equine persona that Ditzy Doo had constructed for him. "For right now Adam, just stay here until I get back: I'm going to need your help as a second pair of hands when we access the Tardis' higher dimensional functions."

"Alright, I guess," I said with a shrug, "No point in providing everypony with another source of panic, right?"

"Exactly," he said as he ran out the doors, then called back to Lyra and the Princess, "Whenever you're ready, you two!"

I leaned back against the railing and started to count the lights in the wall's structure. Though I didn't see it, the Princess' eyes narrowed, and she looked out after the Doctor as he went with a growing sense of distrust. She made hard eye contact with Lyra, who noticed her stare. Gesturing her to come towards her with a gentle waving of her wings, she began to speak in a hushed tone with the unicorn. Lyra's eyes grew wide and she glanced at me, all the while unaware of anything but the coral structures of the ceiling. With nothing of her own to say to the Princess, Lyra bolted from the Tardis and vanished into the night.

Turning back to me, the Princess cleared her throat softly. Suddenly alert, I whirled around to look to her, "Ah! Sorry. I was just settling in for the oncoming boredom for who knows how long."

"I know," she said, and I was concerned to hear an almost gentle tone in her voice, though I wasn't sure why.

"Oh right; telepathy. Should have figured. What's up?"

"I don't have time to waste words, and soon neither will you," she said, cutting me off before I went further, "You and I may have had only so much contact, but we have done much for each other; You've been instrumental in giving me a look into my past, one which I had all but forgotten. You even guided me back to my mother. For that, I thank you."

"Well, I can't really say that was because of anything on my part," I said with a shrug, "Frankly I feel like I've just been stumbling through everything here, pretending like I know what's going on."

"Well, you are not wholly a buffoon," she said with a smirk, "so perhaps it is more a case that you are a servant of Fate? Regardless, you have my thanks, and Equestria does owe you an apology." Her horn then lit up, and from out of thin air a crystal materialized. It was shaped like a half crescent moon and was deep sapphire in color. "This will be a sign of my power and authority for all to recognize," she declared, and she gave a smile, "and I hope a sign of our friendship as well. Please, present your left arm to me." Unsure of what she meant to do but trusting her all the same, I raised my mechanical arm for her. Gently grasping the arm by the wrist joint, she rolled it over so that the forearm plate was pointed up and gently brought the icon towards the surface of it. As they touched the gem merged and fused with the exterior layer of the arm, and it gently began to glow; a soft grey light behind a dark blue veil.

"I thought you might appreciate this more than a brooch as you so put it," she pointedly put an emphasis on the word 'brooch'.

I brought it up to look for myself, and remarked, "Well look at that; I'm worth more than I've ever been in my entire life!" Putting my bad joke away I did actually respond with gratitude, "Princess, you've done so much for me and I feel like I've barely done anything at all to deserve it."

"If there is one thing you can do for me, Adam the Human, it would be this: remember where you were, and then think to help others from their own plights." She wrapped her wings around me, put her head first on one shoulder, and then the other, before drawing back to look at me with serious eyes and a warm smile. "Remember the pariahs, and do well by them," she said solemnly before she flapped her wings to gain lift. With her peace made, she turned and flew out the doors of the Tardis, leaving me to wonder why I got the feeling that this was some kind of last goodbye.

Lyra had bolted for the edge of town, unseen by anypony and only known of because of the Princess. For all anypony else knew she had simply vanished from the face of the Earth. She was headed straight into harm's way, as the wavefront of the Void hole was dangerously close to the edge of the Everfree now, but there was a greater purpose that drove her, greater than even her own sense of safety. Time was running out in more ways than one, and she needed to head back to the one place that had everything she needed: home. Barging straight through the front door of the cottage she quickly began searching for all the items she needed, including her lyre, saddlebags full of sheet music and spare ink, quills, and paper. With what time she had she quickly took out a piece and scribbled a quick message on it. In her rush to head back into town the note she'd written rolled up and dropped onto the floor from the table side she had placed it on, but she was already gone from the quaint little homestead. Even as the mint colored unicorn rode hard back to Ponyville the back wall of the cottage was slowly consumed by the wavefront, until it now monstrously rose above the last of the tree line, leaving nothing to challenge its height but the mountains in the far north and east.

"And you're certain that the Elements of Harmony can do the job," Twilight asked as she placed her tiara on her head, adjusting it into just the right place even as she asked.

"Oh absolutely," the Doctor said with an enthusiastic nod, "Well, ninety-eight...more like seventy percent, but having more available power never hurt anything."

Ditzy Doo had just finished attaching a large metal ball to the back of the Space Cork, and with a wipe of her brow she called out to the others, "Alright, it's working! Using this giant magical conductor all anypony has to do is aim at the sphere and their magic will be channeled into sealing the hole; no more metal plates to worry about!"

"Where's the Princess," Twilight asked, but it was almost immediately answered by the mare herself as she serenely floated down towards them. "I am here," she said curtly, "Had to attend to an additional matter." She looked around expectantly, "Pray tell, is my sister near? Surely I'd think she'd be here by now."

"You mean she's not with you?"

Worriedly the alicorn looked back up to the east toward Canterlot, "Perhaps she needed more convincing than even I had." She then turned back to look at the other ponies and the Doctor, "We cannot delay; we must act now to stem the tide of this threat to reality, even if it must be without her." With that she took off once again towards the skies above, calling out below, "I will provide the signal. At the third count, we make our efforts as one."

"See you from the other side then," the Doctor said as he rushed back towards the Tardis.

It was all happening in such a rush that the six Elements only now became cognizant of the duty that was on their shoulders. They looked to each other, each silently nervous. If they failed...If all of Ponyville failed here, the world as they all knew it was over. The magnitude of it all was too great for any of them to bear. However, they then looked to each other, and then they knew; it was not about being too much for them alone, and it never would be. Each of them complimented the others. Each of them brought their knowledge, their strength, and their courage together into this. The task would not divide them, and it would not catch them alone or in need. If they faced annihilation, it would be together; friends to whatever end.

"Ready girls," Twilight asked, even with a thread of unease in her voice. They all heard it. They knew. They felt it too. They nodded. Looking up to the starry night sky, they awaited the Princess' signal.

Bon Bon was helping to finish the staging of one the rest areas with Vinyl's help. The two of them had seen some of the soldiers from the RSD helping out as well, but they had both decided to stay as far away from them as possible.

"Do ya think thes es gonna work," Vinyl asked as she hoisted a large water cooler into place.

Bon Bon looked up at the fast approaching wall of doom, and her ears folded toward her head. In the distance she could hear a child crying, their mother trying their best to console them, even as they surely looked up at the hideous light in terror. "I honestly don't know," was her quiet answer. After a few more silent moments looking up at the expanse she shook her head and growled a little, "I won't be caught doing nothing at the end. Come on, we need more blankets to put down."

Just as they were turning to go grab more supplies, a voice boomed out from above, "CITIZENS OF PONYVILLE, LEND ME YOUR EARS!" All eyes looked up to the Princess of the Night, her form illuminated by the background of the starry vaults above and the light of encroaching doom to her right. "YOU HAVE ALL PERFORMED ADMIRABLY THIS NIGHT, BUT THERE IS YET MORE WE MUST DO. CITIZENS...FRIENDS, I CANNOT HOLD BACK THIS FORCE OF DESTRUCTION ON MY OWN, BUT WITH YOUR HELP PROVIDING YOUR MAGIC, YOUR WINGS, AND YOUR STRENGTH, WE WILL PROTECT OUR HOMES AND LIVES." She turned to face the abyss, her eyes filled with steely purpose and resolve, "ON MY COUNT...1...2...3!"

Her horn lit up with an enormous power, and she channeled all of it straight into the Void. It's advance was visibly halted, and it buckled against her magical might. Six lights coalesced into a multi-chromatic beam that shot straight into the heart of the mass, and it slowly began to lose the territory it had already claimed. The crowd of ponies began to cheer, but that began to die out as they saw the massive columns of ozone forming where the two pillars of magic touched the Void hole, and that it was slowly returning to where it had been.

Taking command of the situation, Lieutenant Swiftfeet took to the air with the other pegasus member of his squadron, and they began to channel the ozone away from the interdimensional reaction. Seeing their actions, other pegasi now understood what the Princess had meant, and they too began to cautiously fly towards the building ozone to draw it away. The unicorns of the crowd also began to channel their magic into the hole or the Space Cork. The Void began to shrink even more, but with it came more and more ozone. The pegasi struggled to keep up but in time they began to lose energy, and they one by one began to fly back towards town in order to get some rest, water, and food at the stations the earth ponies provided. Some tried to tough it but, they just stressed themselves even more, and in time there were very few pegasi left to remove the ozone from the area around the hole. The unicorns had to pump more magic in just to keep up. The Elements were not faring much better, and their magic began to slowly wane to a trickle.

"Let's do it again," Twilight tried to cheer on enthusiastically, but even she was showing the signs of exertion and the toll their focused concentration required. As one they gave another burst of rainbow light, and while it was holding the Void at bay, it was not pushing back any farther. The event horizon slowly began to creep forward again even against their outpouring of might, as they had only so much left to give.

Alarmed by what she was seeing, Princess Luna poured even more magic into her enchantments. Even as she did so, she felt as if her bones were on fire, and her wings grew weak. Eventually she was forced to the ground by her weariness, but still she pressed on. Even if this act of sealing the hole would be the very thing that would at last kill her, she would give everything she had to do it.

Chapter 47 REVISED

"Grab that lever and hold it for seven seconds," the Doctor yelled to me, "Then spin that rotary to the right until you hit 'four', let it fall back to 'zero' and then spin to the left to 'eight', 'zero' and then left to 'eight' again."

It was taking all of my concentration just to keep up with his instructions, as I flitted back and forth to one side of the console, then the other. "How're they doing," I asked breathlessly.

Bringing the screen around the Doctor gave a small smile, "We're looking good so far! They've just got to keep it up for a little longer, then the Tardis can-" he paused and his face began to fall, "No, come on! They're losing power! They're fatiguing too quickly, and the Void's expanding in again!"

The Princess yelled in frustration as she channeled more of her power into the black and white horizon. Every fiber of her being was coursing with her power. It burned, and burned so deeply she thought she might very well burst into flames of mage fire, turned into her own burning effigy. She was now the main source of energy in the giant circuit she and the other ponies were creating, and if she gave in, the space between dimension would run roughshod over everything, consuming this entire plane of existence.

Why are you still trying, she heard Nightmare Moon yelling at her in panic, This isn't working! We can survive the collapse, but you have to stop now or we are doomed! What good's a kingdom or throne if you're not alive to enjoy it?!

"NO," Luna yelled, "I will not give in! Even if I have to give every last year of my life!" She took a pained step forward, and pushed back against the event horizon with as much power as she had left. It's expansion faltered, if just for a moment. She took another step forward, tears flowing from her eyes to fall upward, silvery points of light escaping from wounds opening across every part of her body, only to be brought back towards her frame to try and seal the gaps. The hole continued expanding, now dangerously close to the town. She was almost face to face with the veil, staring headlong into the abyss screaming in rage and pain.

Suddenly, like a bolt of lightning a large golden beam of light thrummed down from the clouds to strike the Void, and it cowered. All eyes turned upward as at long last Princess Celestia joined the fray, her horn bursting with light and her eyes burning like amethysts. Swooping down she was at once at her sister's side. "Let's finish this," she said said simply.

"AYE, LET'S," Luna roared, and as one they pushed a surge of magic towards the hole. The Void began to quickly retreat, even as it began releasing dangerous levels of ozone. When all the ponies saw their nation's rulers working together, they all got a second wind, and with a cheer every single one of them returned to what they were doing with gusto, especially the Elements, who let forth a third and final burst of power from their iconic jewelry. With all their combined force the hole quickly began to give back the ground it'd taken, and they began to chase after it back into the forest, pushing it to the exact space it had come from.

"Yes, Yes! Come on and do it," the Doctor yelled at his screen, and I was right there with him, "Come on guys, you can do it! Lyra, I know you can do it! Come Ooooon!"

At long last, the hole had shrunk to the size of a house, then a car, then a dinner plate.

"Containment time," the Doctor gave a raucous laugh, and threw two switches down on the Tardis console. The hole twisted and warped inside a strange, barely visible field of energy, before it sealed up with a flash, leaving behind only a tiny pin-sized scar in reality to show it had ever been there. "Yes," the Doctor yelled with another laugh, immediately followed by a shout of "Hot damn," from me.

"They actually did it," he said with a big grin on his face, "and no one got hurt or killed doing it! Oh, yes! Everybody lives! I need more days like this in my life!"

"Alright, now it's done," I said with a grin and a slap of the console, "Let's get back to Equestria and have a party! Hell, maybe at this point I might be able to walk around in public now like a normal human being and not the Hunchback of Notre Dame!"

The Doctor's face immediately began to change from an expression of elation to tired disappointment. "We're not going back," he said flatly, avoiding looking me in the face, "Our time in that universe is done. It's time to go home." With a heavy hand he pulled a single breaker down, and the Tardis' engines thrummed to life.

I looked at him in shock, and asked simply, 'What?"

"It's not our place to remain there. We were the entire reason their reality was put at risk. The Tardis can jump back and forth between all parts of the omniverse, but there's always a risk with every jump that something can go wrong. You barely made it there at all in the first place I'd wager; no one survives a trip through the Void unprotected, and you've been directly exposed to it, contaminated with it. You need to reacclimatize to our universe."

"There's literally nothing for me there," I said as I walked closer to him; not quite sure yet whether to cry or be furious, or whether to just do both at once, "I had nothing. I was nothing!" I pointed my thumb back behind me to the double doors, "I have friends back there; people who give a damn about me, whether I'm safe, whether I live or die." Finally I burst into a shout directly into his face, more exclamation then a question, "Why couldn't you leave me behind!"

"If we had stayed there any fix we would have tried would have been temporary at best. It took them everything just to seal it up with my help from the outside! You all would have died if we didn't both go."

"So everything you had me do was to make me think I was contributing," I roared, "I thought I was helping them, and it was all a lie just so you could make sure I went along with what you wanted? I could have said goodbye to everyone at least! I could have told Lyra that I loved her, that we could make things work! We could have had something, and you didn't even give me that much!"

"If you had stayed you'd all be dead by now," the Doctor yelled back, "You wouldn't even have had time to make a bucket list." He calmed himself with a frustrated sigh and opening his closed fist, "Adam, I am truly sorry for what I've deprived you of, but we did the only thing we could to make sure everybody stayed alive, you included. If I had given you that goodbye you might have been seriously tempted to just stay at the risk of everyone and everything else."

"Then you should have trusted me to make the right choice," I fired back, "Hell, you should have allowed me to choose at all. I'd have given Lyra up in a heartbeat to save her life, to save everyone's life!" I glared heavily at the Doctor; I didn't care what he'd done or who he'd stood down, he-

There was a sound towards the doors of the Tardis; a piece of linen falling to the floor. We both whirled around as one to see what had changed. There, walking right up the ramp as casual as could be, was Lyra Heartstrings. "I've never been out there," she said simply, "and you can't go back, so I guess this is even more of a one-way trip then the Princess told me it'd be."

"You-" I started as I completely turned and stepped closer to her, "-but Bon Bon, the house, everyone-"

"I was never going to stay in Ponyville, not forever," she said with a sad smile, "I guess I just left a little earlier than I'd planned. It's fine though: I left a note."

"Fine," I mouthed and looked to the left to the console in disbelief before I shook my head and spoke louder, "You left home. You left Equestria! Everyone and everything you've ever known is gone. No one is worth that! I'm not worth that! You should have stayed; it was a much better place than where I'm from."

Lyra came to stand right in front of me, giving me a solemn but not unpleasant look. She then slowly leaned back, rearing onto her hind legs, supporting herself gently with her magic holding up her barrel. Unsure of what she was doing or when/if she'd suddenly drop herself, I lurched forward to catch her left hoof in my soft right hand, my left mechanical one bracing her right elbow. Her back hooves straightened out as she braced herself against me. Her face was closer to mine now than it had ever been, I could see the brown flecks in her golden eyes.

She took a sharp breath, but gave me a quick smile with a small nod. "Sometimes," she said gently, "It's not about the darkness around you, or how much light you have nearby; it's about who you're with that gets you through the night." She gently tapped my chest with her right hoof with a quick look down, and then her eyes returned to mine, "Two hearts can beat any darkness, any sadness, any trouble the world can give, whichever one it is." She took another breath, her gaze calming me, "I made my choice, and that's to be with you, wherever we are going, whatever we do. Even if you can't see it in yourself, I think you're special, both to me and as a person, and I want to stay with you until the end of the line, wherever we end up."

Before I could make any kind of reply, there was a sound of several latches undoing themselves to our left, followed by a slight release of air and pressure, and a bright teal light. We both looked toward the console of the Tardis, only to find that a section of it had lifted free of it's base, temporarily exposing some intricate mechanisms beneath before it was drowned in an orange and yellow light.

I lurched to the left to look back at the Doctor, "What are you doing?" Even as I looked for a response from him I felt Lyra slip from my hands, and I turned to see she was being wrapped up into the embrace of the Tardis' power.

I felt the Doctor grip me from behind and drag me back in a rush, "Get out of it's reach!"

"What are you doing to her," I yelled as I tried to rip myself out of his grip.

"It's not me; it's the Heart of the Tardis. Whatever it's doing it would never hurt anyone, not like this." I stubbornly began to take step after step towards the light that had swallowed Lyra; if I could not free myself, I'd take the Doctor with me to rescue her from whatever it was doing to her! Seeing what I was doing he leaned back and braced himself, strengthening his grip around me until it began to hurt. "The Tardis is telepathic," he said in frustration, "Whatever it's doing it's doing it with Lyra's consent! If you step into the process now it could hurt both of you!"

I finally stopped struggling, which prompted the Doctor to loosen his grip somewhat, "What's it doing then?"

"I don't know," he said as we looked up at the now spherical orb floating in midair, "but I've seen it do miracles; I'd guess whatever Lyra wants most."

The light which had been obscuring our view of Lyra began to draw back like a veil so we could see within. Initially her form looked the same as it ever had, but with time we see that her silhouette was changing. Her hindlegs hung down beneath her, but their structure was changing, and radically so. Her knees flowed to the front of her legs, and those legs began to become streamlined to support her entire weight beneath her. Her hooves began to elongate and grow individual digits, five for each lower appendage. Similarly, her forehooves stretched outward, those hooves also growing their own small digits, one of which separated from the others to sit on its own portion of what was now unmistakably her hands. Her hips grew further apart than they had been before, and her horn and tail began to shrink and vanish from her form. The light obscured her once again, growing brighter as it did. We both had to shield our eyes because of its luminosity.

At long last the panel from which the spectacular display had appeared closed and sealed itself shut. The light remained for a moment more, suspended in the air of its own power, but it began to gently float to the floor. As it reached the gantry the power faded slowly, revealing a still glowing orange and yellow human form crouched in fetal position. Small particles of light flowed from off of her hair, back and the clothes that now covered her; much like my own, though noticeably cleaner than my mud covered and bloodied shirt and jeans had become. Taking in a deep breath, the woman slowly unclasped her hands and straightened up, even while remaining crouched. Her white and mint colored hair obscured her face, but gently she brought her hands up directly in front of her eyes. Turning them over, she looked at her fingernails and gasped softly. She brought them back so that she was now staring at her olive toned palms, and hesitantly began to flex each individual finger one by one. She slowly began to rise up so that she stood at her full height. "Woah," she exclaimed unevenly as she caught herself from nearly stumbling forward on her new feet. She then looked up at me, and though her face was much different from what it had been before, her golden and brown flecked eyes were still the same.

"Lyra," I asked, somehow still needing confirmation that what I was seeing was real, that this was actually happening right now. She took a step forward, then another. We stood in the exact same way as we had before, though now she stood on two legs without my help at all. She looked at me with a nervous smile, and then she said gently, "I told you, wherever we end up, I want to be right there. You can teach me, and I can teach you. We're in this together now, no matter what."

The engines of the Tardis gave a loud and final thump, and we had landed. "Here we are," the Doctor said with a neutral tone, "Early 21st century America, Montana; just outside of civilization." He looked at us silently, hesitantly even for a moment before he spoke again, "This is where you can get off, but it doesn't have to be the last stop. Frankly I'd like you to stick around, and clearly the missus has taken a liking to you; there's all of time and space to explore after all!"

I looked to Lyra and quietly murmured, "What do you want?"

She looked at me, and I guess she got an idea of what I was really thinking just beneath the surface. She looked to the Doctor and twined her fingers around my hand, "Thanks for the offer, but maybe some other time? You can always stop by to check again later, but right now we've both been through a lot."

"We need to stay in one place for a bit," I said pointedly, "we just need someplace to belong for a while."

"Okay," he said quietly with a small nod, then repeated, "Okay." He then waved his hand, beckoning us to follow him. He led us away from the control room back into the Tardis interior, straight into an enormous wardrobe room with hundreds of outfits many stories tall.

"You're both not meant for this part of the timeline in your current condition," he said, then pointed to me with a small smile, "Especially you, tin man. You need to keep your interesting bits covered, the both of you, especially with your wand Lyra; people may think it's a toy until they see it in action."

"Wand," she asked in bewilderment, then looked down, "What wa-" Glancing down at her right side she now saw that she had a specially fit holster of some kind that held a handle covered in gold patterns and an oddly mint colored ivory like substance. Gently reaching for it, she drew it out of the holster to reveal that the rest of that ivory and gold transitioned seamlessly into what looked like a more pointed reproduction of her horn, even down to the same specific swirl and color. Looking at it I could see it was a few inches long, but definitely less than a foot.

"If I had to guess it will still grow like normal even if it's a non-attached organ; take good care of both parts of you." He then looked back to me, "You're going to need some extra clothes. Invest in long sleeves and gloves when you start making a living; people asking questions about you will attract all the wrong kinds of attention, human or otherwise." He handed me a pair of each from his collection, which I quietly accepted.

"I don't have much use for this myself," he said as we moved along to another room, one that looked like a bank vault, "but I occasionally run into situations where I do need actual currency, albeit rarely." He offered me a simple looking suitcase which I accepted with my now gloved hand. "There's a couple thousand US dollars in there; all a mix of the smaller denominations. It should be enough to cover you for a little while. You can't just sit on them though; those bills are near their end of life in public circulation, so you'll need to get them tucked away in a bank somewhere or spent in the next year or so. Before you start, don't thank me yet." He gave a small smile back to us as he walked to deeper into the vault, "There's still one last thing I can give you." Opening up a safety deposit box, he took out the contents to show us; it looked like a slab of clay with a small pointed chisel. "This is a tablet of Ran'kron, one of a pair. I was going to keep it as a memento of my time with Ditzy Doo, but I think you might have better use for it even than I could."

"What does it do," I asked as Lyra accepted the gift from the Doctor.

"The tablets are transdimensionally connected. Ran'kron was a natural hotbed of overlapping pocket dimensions, so the inhabitants made these as a way to provide warnings or give calls for help if they got stuck in one and needed to be located. With this you can always reach out to her, send messages to anyone you want through her; I know she'd be honored to pass along anything you'd want to send to your friends back in Equestria." He gave us a sad look, "Consider this all a leg up from me, and recompense for what needed to be done. You can't be with them, but you can still reach out to them; not a terrible consolation."

"You know," I said with a half serious tone, "It's getting harder and harder to stay mad at you."

"I guess all things considered I can take that as a 'thank you,'" he said with a small laugh.

Finally we exited out of the Tardis onto long dry grass. The sun was bright overhead; I thought it must be sometime around ten in the morning for sure. Just to the right of us lay a paved road which led directly into a small one street town. Just down the way on the other side of the road sat a sign saying 'Welcome to Hollow Wood! Population: 582'

"Nice, scenic, and out of the way," the Doctor said as he stood in the Tardis doorway, "There are certainly worse places to end up."

"I could probably give you pointers on how to get to those places," I replied back without any mirth in my voice, and then turned back to look at him, Lyra glancing back at me over her shoulder before turning around to look at him with me, "Doctor, I do appreciate what you're doing, trying to soften the blow, but this..." I sighed and turned to look at Lyra who met my gaze. I took her hand this time and our fingers fit perfectly together. "It's more than I could have dreamed of, but I wish we could be back there."

"I know," he said solemnly. He paused as he hesitated on what he meant to say next, but it seemed he chose to say it all the same, "I know what it's like to not be able to go home; I ran away from mine, but returned just long enough to lose it forever. That doesn't matter though, not when there's so much left to do out there. I think Lyra has it right," he said as he smiled to her, "it's the people you journey with that make life livable. Now make one together worth retelling. Forgive me, won't you?"

"I'm not sure I can," I said matter-of-factly, "not yet anyway. I will think about what you've said though; be a good man made if not one born."

He nodded again with that same smile, and then turned to Lyra, "I know you'll keep on him for sure: don't let him get away with anything, yeah?"

"Never," she playfully said as she bumped her free knuckle to my arm, "Thank you for everything, Doctor, but try and keep to your own advice."

The Doctor had been about to duck back into the Tardis when he understood what Lyra had said, and he quickly brought his head out with a quick, "What?"

"Even if we can't come with, find some others who can keep you company. She really thinks you need them, and I'd bet she knows you best." The Tardis' engines gave a slight rev immediately after her speaking, which got the Doctor's attention. He silently mouthed the word 'okay' to her before he returned to addressing us both, "Well, I've got to get going. I need to meet with Queen Elizabeth I in 1567; apparently I'm due to become her sworn enemy, and I suppose I need to find out why."

He gave us an up-curled smile even as he disappeared back into Tardis, "Safe travels, you two!"

We both waved and said our goodbyes, even as the Tardis' engines powered up and the box slowly vanished from the spot, as if it had never been there. We both stood there a moment before I turned and looked at Lyra. "So," I said suddenly, "We're two young people with nothing to our names but the clothes on our backs, your saddlebags, a weird tablet, an invisibility cloak, and the suitcase of ones and fives here," I brought the suitcase up for emphasis, "Where do we want to start?"

She looked at me with a smile, "You really wanna know?"

"Yeah," I replied, curious as to why she'd worded it that way, "I really do."

She took two steps forward to stand in the gravel ditch on the side of the road and sat down. Bringing her bags closer to her, she brought out her lyre and hesitantly began to pluck a chord. She then looked up to me and drummed her fingers in the air, "We've got all the time in the world; I want to break these in. Learning in a new way like this is going to be a fun challenge."

I smiled, and with nothing further to say I joined her sitting down in the dirt. The rocks bit through my jeans a little, but being with Lyra, my Lyra, made it perfectly fine. She began a new song, one which I'd never heard her perform, one that seemed to embody a sense of curiosity, wonder, the trepidation of trying new things, but most of all hope. Hope in musical form was pouring out across the badlands, and it was from the chords of her lyre that it came. True, this was not what I'd have wanted if given the choice, but being by her I could live through anything, do anything, and together we'd face the challenge of living in a strange place together. For now though, I focused on her music, and its grand composure.

Epilogue REVISED

The door swung gently open, and the first light of morning peeked in like a curious child to reveal a home left disheveled in the wake of the Void's rampage. Bon Bon surveyed her little cottage with tired eyes. Some of the wallpaper looked like it'd been eaten away, as had bits of some of the items strewn around the room; her books, the sitting pillows, the carpet, the- She simply was too tired to care at the moment. So much had happened over the last forty-eight hours, and she'd had so little sleep during it. As she wearily began to make her way to the hall beyond which lay her beautiful bed, she brushed past a rolled up scroll. She was halfway down the hall when the thought occurred to her that she always kept a tight control of the little things in her home, even the paper. It must have been Lyra. Typical, to leave a mess everywhere without stopping to think how it might impact others. So this thought slipped through her head, but it was almost immediately followed by another; Lyra hadn't been home since her kidnapping, and the place had been immaculate when she herself had been taken, so where had the parchment come from? She stopped in her tracks, and looked back down the hall. Was it a break-in? She hadn't noticed anything missing. Was she safe? What did the note say?

Slowly, begrudgingly, she made her way back, her eyes already half-closed as they were still headed to the bedroom for a deep half day of sleep. Gently she stood on one end of the parchment and unrolled the other end up. It was in Lyra's writing, even if she'd not signed it. It wasn't even dated or addressed to anypony, but it had to be to her. It read simply, I had to go with him. Sorry.

Though still deathly tired, her eyes opened wider as she realized what the note had meant. She took another look around the living room. Her lyre, her music, Adam's shroud...gone. She looked back to the front door in bewilderment, but was temporarily blinded by the rising sun. Groaning she put her hoof up to shield her eyes. Where had they gone? Were they still in Equestria even, or were they headed back to his world? Would they even see each other again? Somehow after all this time, after her constant frustration with her and her initial resentment of him, the both of them were gone, and she wasn't as satisfied as she thought she might have been even a few months ago. Her face fell. She the remembered blurrily that she needed to close the front door. As she did, removing all the extra light from her living room, she realized how lonely she felt. The tiny cottage felt bigger, emptier, without the two of them.

Sleep. She needed sleep. After that, she'd do what she'd always do to keep herself from thinking: clean and bake, bake and clean, until there was neither left that could be done on either count.

Vinyl Scratch

Far away in Canterlot, a young mare had a similar mess to come home to. Vinyl entered her home and business to find that the dance floor was bare, as were the tables and stage.

"Ms. Scratch," her bouncer exclaimed as he noticed her; he'd just been speaking with a contractor who would be handling the overhead glass repairs.

"Mornin' Lancer," she said with a yawn.

"Afternoon to you, ma'am," he replied, but the worry was evident on his face, "After the first night we'd thought you'd gone out partying, but when we hadn't heard from you next day we got worried. We had to go to the authorities to try and locate you, but they weren't any good at all. Where've you been? We had to get Neon Lights to stand-in as a favor last night, but there's no way that'll tide over the crowds tonight."

"Rest assured, Ah sadly wasn't on a two-day benda," she said wearily, her eyes turned red from being up for way too long, "Fetch me a set of the spares, would you; mine got taken from me."

Lancer was quick to grab a set of his employer's iconic shades, leaving her to deal with the contractor. Finally her stalwart bouncer was back with her requested spectacles, which she immediately applied. They'd get this place fixed up better than it'd ever been. Nopony would stop the party, no matter how high up the government food chain they were. That stallion, the slimy RSD Director...She'd find a way to get her research back, whether it was by taking him to court, or by just going up to him and decking him one right in his smug muzzle.

Bunsen Burner

Several hours before, in the valley outside of Canterlot, there was a sudden flash of deep blue magic. Ungracefully Bunsen Burner fell to the ground below with a grunt. Immediately he regained his footing and surveyed the land around him. He was on the main route up to Canterlot which spread every which way across Equestria; all roads led away from it. Banished he may be, perhaps, but that would not stop him from defending his world. Even if he was technically deposed he'd convince his troops to rally, and they'd face the Ruined threat, Princesses or no. He was about to activate his teleportation beacon to get back to his office and begin his disaster fallout plans, when he saw the white and black sphere in the distance. He was struck dumb, stiff as a dead horse, his hoof hovering over the beacon. All he could do was watch as it fluctuated in size, growing larger, then smaller, and larger again.

Hearing a rush of the wind above him, he looked up. Even in the black of the night he could see her, his former teacher, blazing through the dark towards it, as well as the golden lightning bolt that she made to strike the anomaly. Within minutes the hellhole had vanished, leaving the night to be a peaceful affair once again. He stood only a moment longer, before he fell back on his haunches. He looked to the skies in growing despair, and he looked back on his memories; perfect, without fault. He'd received his warning about the expanse, but he'd become so consumed in containment and control of one tiny, infinitesimal thing, that he had risked all else to see it brought under his will.

He looked down at his teleportation beacon, a crown jewel in the melding of science and magic, the arcane and technical. He slowly brought it over his head to relief himself of it. The teleporter in his home estate of Pferdshire was surely still working, but he didn't know if the device had the range to do it. Probably not. Even if it did, he did not deserve the easy route, not for his sins. With great force he threw the device to the ground, cracking it's glass surface. He stomped on it with the fury he felt for himself, for his nonobjective thinking, his stupidity. The device was pulp with just a few stampings of his hooves. He stripped himself of his hardware and chucked it away. Now naked and metaphorically blind without his glasses, he began the trek north and west back to his home estate, a place full of it's own dark memories. News would spread over the coming weeks as he made his way there, and he'd hear all about the mad scientist who'd almost destroyed everything. He'd bare that badge of shame for the rest of his days.

Princess Luna

With the revelations she'd made about the former RSD Director, Princess Luna had seized the contents of his office when the place was being vacated for the new Director, a pegasus named Ditzy Doo. After seeing her device in action, she already had been considered for entry into the program if she chose it. She'd even gotten the recommendation of Lieutenant Swiftfeet. Though initially reluctant, Ditzy Doo agreed to the position, but only if one Vinyl Scratch's research were returned to her as well any equipment of hers, and that any prototypes based on her designs were destroyed. Specific requests though they were, the Princess had granted each of them after having been told of their context.

Now she meticulously had been going over every note of Bunsen Burner's, every meeting he'd ever gone to. She was looking for the sinister orangish-gold liquid she'd seen in his memories; the one thing he'd thought could kill her and her sister. Days she searched, and she did not find it. She tossed the files she'd made aside in anger, scattering them to the floor. Her guards watched from above, perched like gargoyles, waiting for a command before making any move. At last she calmed down, and she pondered the situation more thoroughly. The secret could never come to light, ever. Even if the world did not think that she and her sister were gods any longer, they were points of stability in the world now; if other nations had any idea that they could die, the global balance of power would shift irrevocably and the herd may become prey to them. She could not approach the stallion or his home in public so soon. It'd raise questions, make her look politically wishy-washy and weak.

Fine. If she could not take it from him, she'd ensure he'd never have a chance to use it or have anyone else use it for him. She could not destroy the stallion's work, but she could destroy his reputation. He truly would become a byword for 'madpony'; she'd make it so.

Celestia, the Maiden

Princess Celestia sat in her quarters, a fire roaring next to her, filling the enormous room with a tinglingly warm air that kept the cooling night away. Before her sat a small glass container with a latch on it, and within it swirled a greenish-yellow cloud; the Maiden. She'd had the jar made for her so that she had some place to stay, or more appropriately hide, so that the staff or guards would not become fearful thinking she truly was a spectre.

Gently she unclasped the lid, and opened the top. Initially the cloud did nothing.

"Can we talk," she asked simply.

With that the lights slowly blew up out of the glass, and settled gently down on her, her vision already blurring. In her mind's eye she now found herself on an extra long bench. A placid clear blue lake stretching out before her. The Maiden's true form was sitting right beside her, still in her lab coat and slacks.

"What is it, Dawn," she said gently as she glanced over to her, "What's troubling you?"

Celestia looked out across the imaginary lake, seeing if there was a boundary or an end to it in the vision; there didn't seem to be. She looked to the human and gave a little sigh, "I've lived a long time, and forgotten so much. I've tried to retrain the good over the years, but my memories take up a wing all their own in Canterlot library now. What I can't remember, no matter how hard I try, is our time together. I can't remember anything real before Discord."

The Maiden nodded silently.

Celestia paused, then said quietly, "Even if I can't remember, you do. Could you show me?"

"What do you want to see," the human asked.

"Everything," was her reply, "even the bad. I want to forget it all over again, but not because of some transformation. I want it to be mine again."

The Maiden looked away from her, and her shoulders fell. She didn't say a word in reply, but gestured to the air in front of them, and an image coalesced in front of them both. It showed them their shared memories, each from the other's perspective one at a time. It was the first time little Dawn had had french fries, made from real potatoes. The little pony had almost burned her mouth on them they were so fresh, but she couldn't stop herself from enjoying their taste. The ice cream afterwards helped fix that a little, but it permanently set her sweet tooth up forever.

Then there was the day the other pony arrived. Momma had called her her sister, but she'd never seen her before. She didn't even look anything like her. She hated her for taking away Momma's attention. As time went on she found that little Dusk wasn't so bad; it was actually kind of fun to have someone else to play with when Momma had to go to work. They'd make a game of hiding from the security teams when they did inspections of her quarters by hiding in her closet.

Then came the day when they asked her why they didn't look like her. The kids out in the park outside their door didn't look like them either. Why were they different? Were they people? It didn't matter to Momma she said: she would always love them no matter what, then it was time for bed and a story to go with. "Once upon a time, in the magical land of Equestria..."

Then the fateful day, when Momma needed them to help her fix a problem even she couldn't handle. The metal door to the dark box she'd put them in was closing. She was panicked, afraid. She called out to Momma; what was going on? Momma couldn't possibly be leaving them. Momma's eyes were full of tears as she closed the door shut, and then suddenly there was a light from above like none she'd ever seen.

Shocked by the scenes before her, Celestia leaned back against the bench, all four legs hovering just above the edge of the bench. The images stopped, and the Maiden was left sobbing beside her, her face still turned away, both to hide her tears and shame. Something stirred inside of the mare, and gently she reached over with her forehooves to wrap them around her mother. She held her close, even wrapping her wings around her, and said softly, "It's okay. I forgive you."

Impossibly the Maiden's sobbing became harder, but she gently wrapped her arms around her daughter. They held each other on that bench near the lake for some time before the tears stopped flowing.

"How," was all the Maiden could shakily say.

Celestia's smile twitched even as her eyes too filled with tears, "Because so much good came of it. I could never hate you, only the circumstances that gave you the impossible choice you made."

Hundreds of years flashed by on yet another image, nations rising out of the dusty, freshly made terrain of the world, friends both old and new came and went, with the latest being her most recent student, Twilight Sparkle.

"No matter what," the little filly before the human exclaimed, "I will love you forever and ever!"

The red maned alicorn before the Princess swooped her up in another winged hug, her tired eyes closing as she smiled through the tears, "I love you Dawn, my little daughter. I will always be proud of you."

Discord

Though no one could hear it, there was an audible clapping sound bouncing off the walls of Discord's chamber far below Canterlot.

Bravo, he exclaimed, followed by a brief kissing sound as he below it to the air, Bravo! The realm is safe once more because Twilight Sparkle and her friends did the same thing they always do: shine a light on it until it's friendly or goes away.

He snorted in frustration, but his mood improved quickly as he thought about what the future held. Well, with oblivion at bay, I can go back to focusing on my next vacation. There's so much planning to do! First I need to find my keys and wallet. There was a jingling sound followed by a slapping of his furred frame, Done! Now to just leave.

A minute crack appeared in the structure of Discord's prison, almost impossible to see with the naked eye. Oh, it shan't be long now! Soon I can have my fun. The game will soon be on, his tone changed to a much darker one here, and I can't wait to whip the opposition. His chuckle was unmistakably heard even by the guards looking in at home, and they shivered, hoping it was just a very good dream he was having, and that the sleeping titan was not ready to wake again and began a tirade anew.

There was another watching from the dark who could see both of them, the guards and the Serpent, but neither, yes, not even Discord, could sense the presence. It was always watching, always seeing. It knew that Discord's threat was not idle wishing of a return to glory; his revival was coming, his insanity terrible and power unimaginable. It was prepared, however, and it had been since the monster's creation by humanity. In the crystal basin in its realm outside all others it watched them all, waited, and it too mused.

The time of my revelation is coming as well, Discord, but you will never see it coming. So this piece draws to a close for now. You may play as you wish. I will wait, as I have for so long. I am patient; I am fate's maestro. All beings fall under my conductorship, and all bow to the pluck of my strings, all answer my trumpet call, even you.

It looked down at the statue, it's blue light in enmity with Discord's red.

Soon there will be nothing left of you, it declared, not even silence.

Chapter One

The sensation of falling was intense. I was falling thousands of feet every second, but I also felt as if I wasn’t even moving at all. My bones and muscles were burning within my body. They felt like they were on fire; like every atom of my being was bundled up with intense energy. As it happens, they were. I was falling, or standing, or even flying, (I’m not sure which), through a cauldron of potential energy, matter, and existence. I was flying through the cold darkness known simply as the Void. My environmental protection suit was straining at its' every joint, and it was holding me together in the nothingness. Then I saw it. Right before my eyes, a small pinpoint of light.

I was a lab rat; a test subject for what I was told would be a “great endeavor”, and becoming a part “in making the greatest scientific advancement since the Atomic Bomb”. I am valued, but only for what I was about to do; for scientific data, not for any other reason. My family is gone for all I know, which now that I think about it, is probably another reason I was chosen; no messy red-tape of grievances with the loved ones, no suits to be filed, just another human being gone from the world without a trace. I was prepped for the experiment after the last operation. I have only the faintest idea of what they’ve put into my body, or taken out for that matter. They have me put on my environment protection suit, and they stand me before a hole in the wall. I was told it was an experiment in teleporting matter, and that the hole is the window I will step into, to places unknown to me. It seems like the hole is a hungry ancient god, and I am its sacrificial feast.

The point of light grows slowly larger. I realize that if I want to survive this journey, and not be lost to all of reality, I must will myself towards the point. So I begin. As I concentrate on being alive and free from my perilous journey, the point of light grows larger still. I can see colors in the light now; blue, white, and, green. I feel like I’m staring through an out of focus lens on a camera, but the image slowly is coming into shape, and then I am swallowed by the point of light.

I’m alive! I’m back in the real world! I’m also falling. Oh, this is more than a sensation. The unspecific green, white and blue from before are the skyline of a forest, which is rapidly approaching me. I hit the upper branches of a pine tree, crashing through them. My suit is done protecting me, and it becomes dead weight; I can’t move! More branches hit my body, and then a large branch hits me right on the temple. Almost instantly I am knocked unconscious, and my body falls limp into a river below. My body plunges below the surface, and I slowly descend to what I’m sure would have been my death, if not for my savior. A local saw it all; the appearance of a white crackling lightning storm without clouds, a body falling from the sky, and the limp form falling into a the river. She pulled me out, and dragged me to shore. I was not conscious, but I was alive.

I came to in a small cottage. Very small, I had to note. But obviously someone lived here in comfort for so small of a room. There was a bed in the corner, and another in an adjoining room. A window was across from me, the morning sun having been what awoke me more likely than not. I heard the sounds of two people in the room next to mine, talking quite loudly. I found that they were talking about me.

“No! We are not keeping it! We don’t even know what it is, much less what it eats!”

This I was quick to note: They don’t know what I eat? The voice continued,

“We should have left it out there in the forest! It would have woken up and been gone to..wherever it belongs!”

“But Bon Bon, we couldn’t just leave it out there! It could have been eaten by something, like a hydra or a dragon!”

Dragons? Hydra? They must be talking some sort of slang for some other creatures; there are no such things as dragons or hydra.

“Well as soon as it’s awake, send it back to fly off into the forest!”

“It can’t fly Bon Bon!" (What kind of a name is Bon Bon? Must be a nickname I imagine.) "It somehow fell out of the sky and into the river!”

“Out of a lightning cloud that wasn’t a lightning cloud?”

“YES! I can’t explain it, but that’s how it happened! You weren’t there to see it. I was just playing on my lyre trying to get inspired by the sounds of the forest, when this..lightning thing, appeared in the sky, and out of it dropped this creature! It can’t fly, and it sure can’t swim! If I hadn’t done something, it would have died!”

“And you have a gold heart for saving the poor creature Lyra Heartstrings, but the thing has to go!”

I sniffed, and realized that the smell of alfalfa was lying in the air; so I’m on a farm obviously. I sneezed.

Absentmindedly, the one named Lyra Heartstrings mechanically said, “Bless you!”

“Thank you,” I replied back in like kind.

Afterwards, there was a long pause of silence. After a while, the cream colored head of a young pony emerged from around the corner, looking all around. Another pony came around the corner fully, which gave me a start, because its flank, head, legs, and all of its body were emerald colored. After that discovery, I noticed their manes were stylized, almost like human hair. The cream colored one had a string of pink hair through its navy blue mane. They looked all around the room.

“You didn’t tell me you had someone over Lyra.” The cream colored pony said.

Wait, the cream colored pony spoke.

Lyra replied back, “I don’t have anyone over”.

I also noticed they seemed to have tattoos on their flanks as well. The cream one had three wrapped up toffees on her flank, and the emerald one had a harp on hers. Slowly, words came to my mouth “What in the world..”

Both ponies looked at me. The cream colored one fainted. The emerald one stared at me in awe.

We looked each other up and down, both of us amazed by the other.

“What are you” both of us said near the same time.

“Where am I?” I said.

“How do you talk?” the emerald pony replied back.

“Well, how do you talk?” I spluttered back.

“I’m a pony, it’s what we do.” She replied back in half sarcasm.

“No you don’t!” I yelled back.

“What?”

“No, you don’t! Ponies eat grass, and live on ranches, not play lyres or save people!”

She cocked her head and looked at me quizzically. “I think you just insulted me, but I’m not sure. What’s a ranch?”

“It’s like a farm, oh sweet..I’m talking to a pony! Either the world has gone mad, or I have!”

“Not to be rude, but I’m pretty sure it’s you. And no, we don’t all live on farms, but the Apple family does.” She paused.

“You obviously know what I am, but what are you?”

“Well I’m a human.”

“A what?”

“A human, yes, look at me! Two arms, two legs, and hairy! Yep, I’m a human!”

“Do you have a name? I’m Lyra Heartstrings.” She offered me a hoof.

“Well, I’m guessing I’m the first human in this world, so you can call me Adam.”

“Adam, what kind of a name is that?”

“What kind of a name is Lyra Heartstrings?”

The cream colored pony, now obviously “Bon Bon”, stirred and woozily asked, “What’s going on?”

“Oh Bon Bon, check it out! This is Adam, and he’s a human!”

I twittled my fingers in a wave and smiled “Hello, Bon Bon!”

Bon Bon fainted again.

And that’s how it all began.

Chapter Two

After standing up and hitting my head on ceiling of the quaint cottage(“You walk on two legs?!”), Lyra led me outside to look out on the small meadow that surrounded her’s and Bon Bon’s home. It stretched out for about 50 feet before hitting the forest edge on two sides: one on the west, the other the south. The sun was just about to hit its zenith for the day I would find out later, and the view down to a little town in the plain below the foothills was quite picturesque.

“So where am I?” I asked again.

“Well, you’re in a grove near the Everfree Forest, but, more specifically, you’re in Ponyville, in the land of Equestria”, she quibbed, looking out with me on the sunrise.

“Equestria?” I had to give a snort; a land of horses with the name ‘Equestria’? That was pretty fitting.

“What? Is there something funny about it?” She asked with a half-cocked eyebrow.

“No, its just..nevermind.”

“Oh really? And what sort of funny named place are you from Adam the Human?”

“It’s a place called Earth.”

“What a weird name for a town.”

“Actually, it’s the name of my planet.” Her jaw dropped in surprise.

“You own an entire planet?!”

“Oh no, no, no! I live on it, but it’s not mine. I’m no royalty!”

“But you have a town you live in, right? A place to call home?” Here my smile faded.

“I don’t have a home. Not anymore.”

“I’m sorry,” her ears wilted as she apologized.

I decided to sit on the grass. With my arms on my knees, I had to admit, the ground was pretty comfy for sitting with the extra padding of the grass.

Lyra cocked her head and looked down at me, “Why are you doing that?”

I looked up at her, mystified. “It’s comfortable?”

“Why do you sit down on your rump though?” she asked as she got on all fours and laid down in the grass next to me.

“Why do you lay on your belly?” I fired back.

“It’s..comfortable?” I was struck by a mad little idea.

“Want to trade postures?”

“What?” she looked up at me quizzically, one ear rumpled.

“You sit like I’m sitting, and I sit like you are?”

“O..kay?” She repositioned herself so her tail was beneath her, her hind legs crossed below her, her forelegs propping her up.

“This feels weird..but, actually, it’s not all that uncomfortable!”

“Wish I could say the same.” I was on my shins and forearms, head facing down the small incline, head towards the little settlement below.

“This was kind of a bad idea on my part!” I heard silence in response. “Hello?” I then felt a shove, and then I found myself tumbling head over heels down the hill.

I stopped with a thud on my bottom, and amidst the laughter coming up from the top of the hill, I realized very quickly that Lyra Heartstrings was a mischievous one! She still had an evil grin plastered on her face, as a couple of laughing tears were welling up in her eyes.

“Oh you like fun and games do you?” I got up and brushed off the dust from my roll down the hill. “Well, two can play that game!” I got up and quickly shortened the distance between me and my pony acquaintance. Her eyes widened as I quickly stopped beside her. On a hunch, hoping I was right, I decided to see if she was ticklish or not. I found out immediately afterwards that she was, as she shrieked with laughter. All of a sudden, I felt a splitting pain right in my forehead. Not even twelve hours since the last time I decided to hit my head on something! My vision was blurry, but from what I saw, Bon Bon had just hit me across the head with a broom handle.

“You will not harm her, monster!”

“Bon Bon! He wasn’t attacking me!”

“You could have made a foal out of me! I come to hearing you screaming, what was I supposed to do; let him eat you?” My vision returned to me, just in time to see Bon Bon hit me across the shins.

“No one hurts my friends!” I fell, and with my luck it figured that I would find the only exposed rock in half of a mile.

“Oh Celestia! Bon Bon you idiot! Help me! He’s bleeding everywhere!”

“Leave the brute be! You can’t trust an animal! One minute they're nice and cuddly, the next they’ll tear your belly out, like he was about to do!” I had slipped into unconscious again. Lyra found some towels to try to stop my bleeding, as Bon Bon sat in the cottage, aloof to me and her friend.

“I got to get Fluttershy! She’d know what to do with him!” She lifted my body up with her magic and galloped as fast as she could to her neighbor’s home nearby.

Bon Bon called out after her, “Leave it there! She’s the only one who should bother with beasts! Not you!”

Chapter Three

As I would find out later, Fluttershy was a kind, compassionate pony, who would take in any animal, no matter how fearsome or unusual. For the time being, this would also include me. Since Lyra didn’t know anything on human physiology, she had figured that Fluttershy was my best hope for recovery. Fluttershy was tending to a blue jay who had clipped his wing, when she had heard a very rapid insistent banging on her door.

“Now I wonder who that could be.” She trotted to the door and began unlocking the 7 different mechanisms that keep her door secure from whatever could possibly lurk outside. As she neared unlocking the second to last doorbolt, it was busted down. Fluttershy gave a small squeak and bolted clear of the door giving way. Lyra rushed in, horn still aglow with carrying my limp form, which was stuck in the door frame by my shoulders.

“FLUTTERSHY! I NEED—oh hey Fluttershy! Thank goodness you’re here!”

Having hid in a potted plant from her noisy assailant, she looked out to mumble “Oh, hello Lyra, how are you today?”

“Just wonderful, listen, I have a friend who really needs your help.” She gave a tug on her magic to try and ram me through the door. My head jiggled, spurting a little blood onto the welcome mat.

“Oh, that’s not helping!” she exclaimed. After turning me sideways so I could get through the door, she unceremoniously dropped me on my back. My head hit the floor with a loud thud. Fluttershy quickly looked at the wounded area. Then she opened and looked into each of my eyes, and looked at my head injury again.

“Well?” Lyra asked with great consternation.

“The gash is pretty deep, but it should heal fine once we stop the bleeding,” as she collected medical supplies, “I never knew you had a pet, or even liked pets Lyra. I’ve never seen a pony own a creature so big.”

“He’s not mine; I just found him this morning in the Everfree Forest; he was drowning, and I had to save him.”

“Oh my! What a story!” She began to wrap gauze around my head, “What caused the head injury though?”

“Bon Bon thought Adam was attacking me—“

“He was attacking you?”

“No!”

“You must have grown quite attached to it if you’ve already given it a name!” Fluttershy smiled as she wrapped my head with a last layer of gauze.

“I didn’t name him.”

“He had a collar? Oh, then you should return it to its owners as soon as you can!”

“No nopony owns him.” Fluttershy paused and looked down on me, with a frown of curiosity.

“I’ve never seen a creature like this one before! It must be an exotic animal! It has such strange skin! It’s head is smooth while the rest of it is hard, like it’s some kind of shell.” Both ponies looked down on my body, covered by my environmental protection suit.

“He never did explain that.” Lyra murmured.

“What did you say?” Fluttershy looked at Lyra with wondering eyes.

Lyra quickly said, “You’re right about one thing Fluttershy, he’s not from around here. Will he be okay?”

“It’s just a minor concussion; the wound should heal quickly. I think I’ll go and get a book from Twilight Sparkle, she should have something about whatever this poor creature is.”

“That would be interesting!” Lyra said quickly,“Will he have to stay overnight?”

“No, I’m sure you can take him back to your cottage now! Just be sure to not get it stuck in the door again.”

“Oh, right!” Lyra sighed with relief. She carried me back to her cottage, despite the protests of Bon Bon, and laid me out on the floor to rest and recover.

Chapter Four

I awoke the next morning mentally fuzzy and hurting, “Oh my aching head.”

“Serves you right for attacking Lyra, monster.” Bon Bon flittered past my vision as she headed past me towards the kitchen.

“Ohhhh, great,” She paused and looked over at me, “I had to wake up to you.”

She furrowed her brow in agitation. “The same is true for me. I was hoping all of yesterday was a vivid dream, but obviously I’m still in this particular nonsense.”

“Where’s Lyra?”

“Off running errands. She went to see Fluttershy about how to best take care of you. She’s mad, that pony, keeping a beast like you in our home!”

“Hey! Where I’m from, it’s your kind that are the beasts, not me!”

Bon Bon looked at me with cold fury. “Well, I don’t care what you would mean by that, but I’m wise to all of your tricks, and you can’t fool me!”

“Where’s the broom then?”

“What?”

I repeated myself, “Where’s the broom?”

She stared and paused. “Lyra took it with her.”

I laughed, which made Bon Bon jump into a fighting stance.

“She knew that as soon as I woke up you’d try to bash my head in again!” She glared at me still.

Suddenly, I remembered something that had occurred to me earlier. “So,” I pointed to Bon Bon’s flank “what exactly are those for?” referring to the image of three toffees located there. Looking back herself, she followed my pointing finger, and then looked back to me.

“It’s a Cutie Mark. It shows what talent or special skill we ponies have.”

“Interesting. Is there anyone else with a Mark like yours?”

For a split second, Bon Bon held a small smile, “No, a pony gets their Cutie Mark from finding their talent from their own unique experience: it’s mine and mine only.” My head drooped a little as she continued on; the smile growing on her face as she reminisced. “I found mine early as a filly. Both my parents were fantastic cooks. As I watched them growing up, I found my little niche in the family business making sweets.” I was overcome with memories of my own mother and father; they were not so pleasant.

“But what does it matter to you anyway?” Bon Bon’s face returned to its hard as stone appearance, “Why should I talk to you? It’s not like you even care.”

“Deep down I scare you..don’t I?”

She paused for a second, an expression of mild surprise caught on her face, “Well obviously! You’re a raving monstrous creature!”

“That’s a lie and you know it!” I said a little too forcibly. She fell back on her rump, stunned into remaining in that position.

“I’m no monster, but I scare you for another reason entirely; I’m a change in your orderly lifestyle. It’s obvious you like things going according to plan. It’s why this house is so clean!” I waved my arm to the room in general as my example; the place was utterly spotless.

“Just because I like cleanliness doesn’t make me a neat freak!” she retorted; shakily, I might add.

“In the last twenty-four hours I’ve been in this world, I’ve messed up your life completely, and I’m sorry for that.”

“So why don’t you just go back to where you came from!” She shouted, starting to tear up, "Why don't you just leave us be and go away?"

I paused, and then I sighed, “I don’t know if I can, and besides, I wouldn’t want to. From what little I’ve seen of your world, there is more compassion for a complete stranger, an alien no less, from two or three of your kind then there is in my entire world.” I paused again; Bon Bon had stopped crying and was silently looking at me. “I was one of the homeless: I had no job, and I have no family. I was taken from the streets to be used in a test.” I had trouble trying to express myself in words she could understand. “This test had the risk of my life being lost, which was deemed as ‘acceptable losses’; because I mean, whose going to miss you if you have no one to care about you? I didn’t come by choice, and it’s probably by random chance I ended up here to bother you. So, for good or for worse, I’m here whether you like it or not.”

I’d been looking down at the floor all this time, expecting a judgmental look boring into my head; it’s what I was used to back on Earth. But when there was still silence, I looked up to see what was going on. Bon Bon was still silently looking at me. She slowly got off of her behind and came over me. She sat on her rump again right next to me, and she wrapped her forelegs around me, almost like a hug.

“I’m so sorry.” She kept holding on to me. Hell, even I was tearing up at this point! She then let me go.

“Here, let me make something for you,” she said quietly.

She went into the kitchen, and I could hear the sound of the clang of kitchenware. She was in there for a long time. She would intermittently come in and look at me with her own melancholy face. I started to smell wonderful things. I couldn’t put my finger on what it was though. Bon Bon came out with a plate full of yellow cookies, covered in powdered sugar. They were warm; fresh out of the oven. I took one from off of the plate and slowly put it in my mouth. It was really good! It tasted like lemons; very sweet lemons!

“Do you like them?” she asked.

“They’re very good. You’re a good cook!” I murmured. She smiled.

“They’re called ‘Lemon Snowflake Cookies”. My mother made them, and my grandmother before her.” She paused.

“Thank you.” I said. We sat there for a while.

“What does your name mean?”

“What, Adam?”

“Yes. Does it have something to do with your special talent?”

“It was supposedly the name of the first human. It’s a bit symbolic I guess. A whole new world, and a whole new life ahead of me, I might as well be a new man.”

“What was your name before?”

“There’s no point in telling you now. I’ve left my past behind me, and I want to look to a better life here.”

Chapter Five

A few days past. Lyra had been initially surprised about how fast Bon Bon had changed toward me, but we, the three of us, had become close-knit friends very quickly. It was hard adjusting to a life without eating meat: you don’t really miss something until it’s gone I suppose! Lyra and Bon Bon had decided that in order to keep the towns-ponies (it’s so hard to adjust to the vernacular here!) from running panicking from me, we would slowly let ponies in on the secret of two of their own housing an alien from another dimension. Since Fluttershy had already seen me, she already knew half of the truth, although she now thought Lyra was really into exotic animals. As it happened, she did stop by to see how the poor animal (me) was doing. After profusely apologizing for her door locks being broken, Lyra let her in to check up on me. I was feeling a little mischievous that day, but at the beginning I let Fluttershy believe I was a dumb animal.

“Did you ever find anything on Adam?” Lyra asked.

“Oh, I’m afraid I didn’t. I looked through as many of the zoological guides as I could, but there was nothing. I’m so sorry. But Twilight was nice enough to ask for access to the Royal Archive to see if they may have anything.” She then flew up to my eye level, and looked at my head wound (Bon Bon has quite the swing for only using her teeth I might add!). “How are you today, Mr. Adam? Are you feeling any better at all?”

“Oh, actually everything is just fine, thanks!” I said as I smiled. Both of my pony benefactors looked at each other nervously.

“Well that’s just wonderful-“, Fluttershy paused. I continued smiling. Her eye grew wider, as her pupils contracted. She looked at me, gave a little scream of fright and divebombed under the nearest bed, her hind legs skittering, trying to ram her further beneath it. Lyra gave a knowing smile at Bon Bon, whose face was full of concern.

“She took it better then you did.”

“Hey!”

I leaned over the bed to talk to Fluttershy, “I’m very sorry if I’ve frightened you, Ms. Fluttershy. I know I’m not exactly a sight for sore eyes for anyone in this world.” Bon Bon had just finished prying Fluttershy from beneath the bed frame, and she was tossed head over hooves to land right in front of me. She was biting her lip in fright.

“It talks! It talks!”

“He’s not an it! He’s a human being!” Lyra said, as she stood on her back hooves shakily and crossed her forelegs.

“Honestly Lyra, you’ve been spending too much time with him!” Bon Bon said exasperatedly.

“What? I get to meet someone from an entirely different race, not to mention another dimension! I can’t believe you don’t spend more time with him.”

Fluttershy was still frozen to the spot she had landed. I looked down at her, and then over to Bon Bon and Lyra, “I really don’t know what to do with her.”

“Just give her a couple minutes to come to grips with the fact that you’re an alien from another world.” Bon Bon looked at me matter-of-factly.

“It took you a whole day, bodily assault, and my whole story to finally get you to come around!”

Bon Bon shrugged, “Nopony’s perfect.”

Fluttershy had had enough; she had encountered an alien animal that could talk like a pony, and the ponies she had known had obviously been mind-controlled by its influence. She had to get to Twilight Sparkle’s library; she’d know what to do! With a last little yelp, Fluttershy, half flew/half ran out the door at a speed that would make a cheetah marvel.

“Wait! Come back!” I don’t really know what compelled me to go after her, but I had to explain myself a little better to her I guess.

Chapter Seven

Fluttershy cracked the door from the basement, and she looked out on her friends and her neighbors. She came to Twilight and helped her back to her feet.

“Don’t think badly of him. He’s just alone here.” She then looked to me, “I’m sorry for having run away from you. I didn’t mean to make you sad.”

“It’s ok.” I said. We all sat there in silence for a bit before Lyra spoke up for me.

“This is Adam. He’s a human.”

“What are you doing here Adam?” asked Twilight a little shakily.

“I was sent here. I didn’t come by choice.”

“Where did you come from?” she continued, I could tell strength was returning to her.

“From a faraway place. Farther then you could imagine.”

“Just how far away exactly?” asked the blue Pegasus, suspicion still on her face.

“I came from the other side of the cosmos.”

Somewhat satisfied, she continued with her questions. “What exactly do you plan on doing here?”

“Where I was wasn’t all that great, so I just want to live a new life here.”

“One last question,” she paused, “Do they have anything that can fly really fast where you used to live?”

I was stunned for a second. Then I burst out laughing, almost to the point of tears. The orange pony with the hat looked up at the Pegasus with annoyance.

“Now hold on there, Rainbow. Yah don’t need to pester him about that stuff right now!”

“No, it’s fine! I just—you must really like to fly!”

She smirked “I’m only the best flyer in all of Equestria! Call me Rainbow Dash!” I had to chuckle one last time.

“And you!” I pointed to the orange pony from before, “You have an interesting country accent! What’s your name?”

She crossed one forehoof in front of the other, almost like a curtsy. “Much obliged for the complement! And Ah’m Applejack. I saw you chasing after Fluttershy like my dog Winona does with stray cats! I live at Sweet Apple Acres; you probably saw our barn in passing.” She gave a smile. I smiled back.

She then had a spark of realization cross her face. “Oh, by the way, do you have apples where you’re from?”

“We do, and I love’um!”

She gave a little kick of her back legs at this. “Yeehaw! I got myself a new customer! And you look like you could eat a lot too! No offense there partner.”

“None taken.”

I then looked to the white unicorn. She seemed to be distracted, though: she was looking into a handled mirror held aloft by her magic, and was inaudibly muttering to herself. Applejack gave her a nudge with her behind along with a cough. This startled the unicorn to look around and then give a nervous laugh.

“Oh sorry! Is it my turn? You’ll have to forgive me! My hair is being unreasonably disobedient today.”

“You seem like a very classy pony! You wouldn’t happen to own the large fancy building would you?”

Her eyes lit up, “Oh! You mean my Boutique! Yes, I do. I design all kinds of outfits for all kinds of ponies from all over Equestria! My name is Rarity, by the way!”

I looked down at my environmental protection suit, which by this point was pretty torn up, being made mostly of leather, with sparse bits of aluminum to reinforce the joints. “I may need your help soon then anyway. My, ah, suit is falling apart.”

At the mention of the word ‘suit’, she gasped in delight. She practically flew over to me and grabbed my head with her forelegs, shoving my scrunched up face into hers. “What sort of fashions do they have where you’re from? Do you wear clothes all the time or only on special occasions? What about—“

“Hold ON Rarity!” Applejack saved me from starving of oxygen, as Rarity seemed to be taking all of mine. Still with stars in her eyes Rarity was half thrown/half pulled away from me.

“Worse than Rainbow Dash, I swear!”

Twilight was smiling at the display of all her friends meeting me, when she noticed something. She frowned a little, and looked around. “Where’s Pinkie Pie?”

At that, we all began to look around for the pink pony. And that’s when the music started, the confetti fell, and we all noticed everything was decked out in party gear.

“What?”

Chapter Eight

The pink pony, now known to me as ‘Pinkie Pie’, was..’interesting’ to say the least. She was the happiest sort of pony you could meet, could eat any amount of sweets no matter how large or rich, (I’d almost have to swear her blood was concentrated insulin!) had an uncanny sense of premonition to anything near her, which would display itself through a manner of bodily tics, and could make even the grumpiest person smile. She was also extremely ‘random’ as Rainbow Dash would later tell me. And it was true! She was a lovable kind of strange though, and was always ready to have a party out of the blue, as she was doing now.

“So your name is Adam, huh? That seems like a silly name! But then again, Pinkamena Diane Pie is a funny name too! You can call me Pinkie Pie, everyone else does!”

I still hadn’t quite grasped all of everything that was happening around me; the confetti, the lights, the music reminiscent of Polka, and the cake which had appeared out of nowhere. “What?”

Twilight Sparkle looked from me to Pinkie Pie. “Uh, Pinkie? I don’t think he can quite handle all of you at once.”

“But when I saw he was being all sad, I just wanted to help him out by having a party! That’s what any person whose being a sad-y, wade-y-kins needs!” She bounced over to me, and leaned her head directly into mine. “So, you feeling any better?”

“A little..thanks!”

She giggled. “That’s it! By the way,” she leaned in even farther to me, putting one foreleg around my shoulder, and whispered into my ear “You gonna eat that cake? It looks delicious from here!”

“Yeah, why not!”

I was already feeling a whole lot better from what I had been before! We partied for quite a while, though I only ate one slice of cake. It’s hard to eat cake in a society so used to eating with just their mouths, though Rarity was especially fascinated by the idea of silverware. I also got to meet Twilight’s little assistant, Spike the Dragon. He seemed to quickly get a feel of me, and we grew acquainted very fast. As the afternoon started to turn into evening, Twilight Sparkle looked out the window, and noted in passing that Princess Celestia was lowering the sun now. Here I made a mental connection; ponies of all sorts had mentioned this ‘Celestia’ before in a venerable manner.

“So is this ‘Celestia’ like your god of the sun? I thought that since you seemed the scientific type you wouldn’t believe in mythology Twilight.”

She looked at me in surprise, “Oh, Celestia isn’t a myth! She is the ruler of Equestria alongside her sister Princess Luna. They raise and lower the Sun and the Moon. They both live in the capitol, Canterlot. Celestia was also my personal teacher for many of my foal years. I write to her as I learn more and more about friendship.”

Here I marveled; a being lived in this place with essentially the powers of a god, and was also the ruler of this world? This made me shutter a little. No one could be trusted with that position and that power simultaneously!

Twilight noticed my shiver, “Oh, are you cold?”

“No, no, it just—uh, I’ve never heard of rulers like those before.”

She cocked her head, “What sorts of rulers do you have?”

My eyes fogged over, thinking of every single person of power; that was and was before. Some were cowards, tyrants, mighty men, heroes. Some were from the people, some were above the common man by their own belief, and others were barbarians.

“My country has no royalty.”

“Then who rules your country?”

“We elect a ruler from among ourselves to represent us to the world.”

“So I guess you choose wisely every time so that you can be best represented?”

“No, not always. We don’t even vote sometimes.”

“Why not?” she looked at me with growing confusion.

“Some people just take it for granted or just don’t care.”

She looked at me as if I was a math problem that was confusing her the more and more she thought. “Your people don’t make much sense to me Adam.”

“They don’t make sense to me either sometimes.”

Chapter Nine

After the others had left to go to their own homes, Twilight put Spike to bed and ushered Bon Bon, Lyra, and I out. It was dusk by this point, and the town of Ponyville was dark. Bon Bon and Lyra led me, Lyra with her magic grasping my hand, and Bon Bon with her voice. We had reached the outskirts of Ponyville as the moon began to rise. It was a quarter moon, just barely radiant enough that I could see my way and the silhouettes of my two caretakers. We had made our way to their cottage. I told them to go ahead and bed down for the night, and that I was going to spend some time looking at the stars. When I turned back to look on the moon again, I suddenly noticed a tiny speck clouding my sight to the slivered sphere. It was too dark to be something like a crater on the surface. No, there was something in the sky. Something far up. I then realized that the aforementioned speck was slowly getting larger and larger.

Rather than fear, I was filled with a sense of wonder, as a pony flew down from the sky and came to a graceful cantering stop right before me. This pony was much different from all the others I had met and seen. Her coat was a deep shade of blue; close to a dark purple color. Her mane and her tail appeared to be streams of glowing ether, as if the cosmos itself were placed on her as a tapestry. She wore glass-like shoes, almost like those described in the stories of Cinderella. Her wings were large, and I was quick to note she had a horn as well.

She made eye contact with me, which was easier for her then for other ponies, because her eyes were level to mine even though I was standing. She looked me up and down and walked around me, inspecting my every detail. She carried in her walk a statement of regality; she was meant to be respected, and, if need be, feared.

She came around to my face once more; her face was blank. “You are not of this world.”

She spoke it as a statement of fact rather than as a question. Her voice was lower than other ponies I had heard, but it was not unpleasant. It carried with it a tone I could only describe as ancient, though she looked to be only in the youngest stages of adulthood for a horse.

“You are not a dumb animal; your mind speaks volumes to me.”

She can read my mind? I thought to myself.

“Yes. I sensed you from above; you are different from these ponies, but you hold a strange familiarity to me. Tell me this: What art thou?” She commanded firmly.

I summoned up as much cordial language as I could. “I am known as Adam the Human.”

“What be thine intentions for this land of mine?”

“Only to live as peaceably as I am allowed too.” This seemed to please her.

“If I may ask, who are you?”

Standing even taller than before, she spake her titles. “I am Princess Luna, keeper of the Moon, guardian of all dreams, and the sister of Princess Celestia.”

Chapter Ten

“Do you enjoy my night?” She enquired.

I looked up into the sky, now lit up fully with the glow of uncountable numbers of stars. Some were regular white, a few were blue. With the moon as the centerpiece, it was the most glorious mosaic I had ever laid eyes on, and I told her so. She blushed a little at this.

She laid down on all fours, and she obliged me to sit beside her. “Even in these days of progress, there are very few who enjoy my handiwork.”

“Then it is their loss, Princess.” I never would have believed that such dark colored cheeks could turn so deep a red.
“You were not afraid of me,” I ask her. “Why?”

She paused. “I cannot show fear in the face of a new race that my country could have diplomatic relations with.”

“But it’s more than that, isn’t it?”

She looked at me with a blank face, but I knew I was right, because her pupils had dilated, even just the tiniest bit. “I don’t know what you mean.”

“You see a kindred spirit within me, don’t you? You know the loneliness of being feared, and of the anger that comes as reaction to that isolation.”

Her poker face was falling to shambles.

“Luna, I know about Nightmare Moon.” She brought in her breath with a small hiss.

“How didst thou glean this information?” she had regressed into an archaic form of speech.

“As soon as I knew you could read my mind, I decided to gamble and see if I could read yours. I know your anger at others not appreciating your night, of the jealousy of your sister, of your attempts to bring night eternal, and of your imprisonment, release, and most importantly, your redemption.” She looked at me with eyes that were full of a sadness without tears; the silent melancholy of one who has never forgiven themselves of their past sins.

“You have been forgiven by your sister, and by your subjects. But that’s all for naught if you don’t forgive yourself as well.”

“There is no forgiveness for what I’ve done.” She said this in monotone, looking out over the waving grove and fields below us. “I abandoned my true duty for my own desires. My true purpose has been returned to me, that of raising the astral bodies, but I am adrift, without purpose.” She paused again, and looked to me. “It is strange to me, but I have not reservations in trusting thee.”

I placed my hand on her shoulder, just above her wing. “You feel stagnant; you’re going through the motions required of you, but you are feeling purposeless. I have a feeling that you won’t be able to move on in your life until you can face your subjects and say, ‘I forgive myself’.”

She stood up abruptly. I did as well, but much more slowly. She had a blank face once again, while mine was filled with concern. She folded her wings about me like arms embracing a friend, and then she laid her head on one of my shoulders, and then the other. I assume this was some kind of royal farewell. She then looked me in the eyes.

“Thank you, Adam the Human, for your counsel. You have my royal blessing to walk these lands in peace.” She then backed away, and took off into the night. As I saw her form grow smaller and smaller, I heard these words in my mind:
If ever you need me, call my name, and I shall come swiftly.

Chapter Eleven

Lyra and Bon Bon didn’t initially believe my story of being an audience to one of the Royal Sisters; many ponies went their whole lives without ever seeing them. But after giving them a physical description of the Princess of the Night, they realized I was telling them the truth.

“We saw her just last Fall when she came to Ponyville for Nightmare Night” Lyra said.

“Nightmare Night?”

“Nightmare Night is a night where little colts and fillies go out in costumes and get candy from the ponies in the neighborhood,” Bon Bon explained. She had just finished up tidying the living room, and was coming in to sit with Lyra and I.

I was sitting on the floor as usual, and Lyra was occupying a bean bag chair, which I had created using an old burlap sack, leaves from the Everfree Forest, and a little ingenuity. Ever since I’d show her how a couple days ago, she loved sitting in it like humans do; on her back, back legs down to the floor, and forelegs supporting her head. Bon Bon laid down on her floor mat, looked over at Lyra and sighed a little.

“That style of sitting is still going to take some getting used to.”

“If you tried it Bon Bon, you’d find it’s quite enjoyable,” I said.

Bon Bon looked at me with a smirk, eyes half open. “Is that what Lyra told you? She’s only saying that because half of her enjoyment comes out of annoying me!”

I looked over to Lyra, she had adopted an expression of mock surprise. “She’s catching on, isn’t she?” I had to crack a grin at!

The smile faded as I began to think about what Bon Bon had told me. “On Earth we have a similar holiday to Nightmare Night called Halloween. In fact, from the descriptions, they sound almost identical.” I pondered.

Bon Bon looked at me quizzically, “Could that just be a coincidence?”

“I don’t think so. So many things of both of our worlds are similar; it has to mean there is some kind of connection. Similar tools, holidays, seasons; there has to be a connection!”

Lyra sat up from the bean bag chair. “Maybe we could see what else here is similar by going to the library and getting a book from Twilight.” Just as Lyra had finished the thought, there was a knocking at the door. As Lyra went to get the door, I hurried into her bedroom to hide; we didn’t want any more pony hysterics from the sight of me.

As I heard the door open, I heard a colt begin to speak. “Good morning Miss Heartstrings! How are you today?”

“Oh just fantastic Officer Blue Badge! What’s going on? Is something wrong?”

“No, no! I was just coming out to tell everypony that there have been rumors swirling around that there is some sort of new creature on the loose. There were sightings yesterday of a yellow pegasi being chased by a two legged animal of some sort. We’re not sure of its nature, but we assume it’s hostile to ponies. The Mayor Mare has put out a warning to all ponies to report sightings of it, but to stay a safe distance from it. Have you sighted the creature in question, ma’am?”

It was a good thing Lyra had only opened the door partway, because the officer might have become suspicious if he had seen Bon Bon. She was panicking a little, and lying was never a talent she had picked up.

Lyra, fortunately for me, had a very trustworthy face. “Nope! There haven’t been any creatures here! Well, any out of the ordinary anyway!”

Officer Blue Badge gave a little chuckle “Well, that’s good! Thank you for your time and be careful!”

“Thank you Officer!” Lyra calmly closed the door, trotted over to her bean bag chair, and plopped back down. She smiled and closed her eyes as she found a satisfactory position. She cracked one eye and looked over at Bon Bon, who was still wound up from the Officer’s sudden visit. “You can breathe now.” She smirked.

“How about me?” I yelled out of the bedroom closet. “Can I come out now?”

Chapter Twelve

I was starting to get antsy. I’d spent so many days cooped up in Bon Bon and Lyra’s cottage, and I just needed to get out! But because of the new level of watchfulness in Ponyville, I couldn’t take two steps outside without being spotted. Lyra went to Twilight Sparkle’s library for some advice, and Bon Bon and I were left to our own devices.

Lyra had just stepped into the library when she saw Twilight finishing up reading a lengthy letter. “Hi Twilight! Whatcha reading?”

Twilight set the parchment down and looked over to her guest. “Oh hello Lyra! I was just reading this letter from Princess Celestia about," here she lowered her voice “our mutual alien friend”.

Lyra’s eyes brightened with recognition. “Ohhhhh. What did she have to say?”

“Well, you see, Fluttershy first came to me about your ‘exotic pet’ a couple days ago, and I had sent a letter asking for access to the Royal Archive. Because at the time we only had a physical description, we couldn’t look specifically for what he was.” She paused.

Lyra looked at her in anticipation. “Yes? What did you find?”

“Well, his story about being from another world is probably true; there isn’t a single book that can document a species that walks upright on two legs that is also capable of reason, apart from minotaurs anyway. Of course, the library only contains about 700 years of history from all over Equestria. Maybe if we looked in less public libraries there could be even older stuff; books that may be even older then the beginning of Princess Celestia’s monarchal rule.”

Both looked down at the letter Twilight had been reading, each puzzling over the information.

“Hey Twilight?”

“Hmm?”

“Adam has mentioned that our holidays are a lot like his. From where he’s from, they have a Nightmare Night too, along with the same number of seasons, a Heartwarming’s Eve, and a Winter Wrap-up.”

This tickled Twilight’s curiosity. She arched one of her brows. “Really? That’s sounds..pretty farfetched if you ask me.”

“Doesn’t an alien from another dimension landing in your backyard also sound pretty farfetched?”

“Hm. Good point.”

“He’s also mentioned that a lot of our cities are a play on words of some his cities," Lyra continued on.

“Which ones?”

"They have a Fillydelphia there, but it’s pronounced Philadelphia.”

“That sounds like nonsense,” Twilight gave a little chuckle.

“He said it means “Brotherly Love” in some Earth language. Also, they have a city called Manhattan, not Manehattan.”

This got Twilight Sparkle thinking. She started to unconsciously rub her chin. “What could it mean?”

“Um, Twilight?”

Twilight was stirred out of her concentration to look at Lyra, “Yes?”

“I need your help. Well, actually, Adam does. See, he needs to be able to get out of the house, but he can’t because of the new neighborhood watch.”

Twilight’s eyes brightened, “Oh right! I’d heard about the news too! But, I had an idea, so I’ve got something that I got for you to try for him!” She cantered up to her room upstairs. She wasn’t gone long, and she quickly returned with a folded up cloth. “Here, take a look!”

It was a large, gray fleece blanket, and it was large by pony standards.

“Your idea for Adam to get around town is to have him hide under a blanket like a two month old foal?”

Twilight grinned. “Close, but I want him to get around Ponyville by hiding under a blanket that is magically invisible!” She stepped under the blanket, and as the last of her tail disappeared under it, she and the blanket disappeared entirely.

Lyra eyes grew with wonder and excitement.

“Pretty cool, huh?” Twilight called out from Lyra’s left. Lyra whirled around and saw nothing.

“Oh, I am so gonna pull shenanigans on Bon Bon with this!”

Twilight laughed and stepped out from under the blanket. “It will work perfectly so long as you occasionally recharge the magic in it, otherwise, the invisibility will fade.”

Lyra started jumping up and down with joy. “This’ll be great! Thanks for all your help Twilight!” She grabbed up the cloak and rushed out the door.

Twilight gave a last little chuckle. “That’s what friends are for!”

Chapter Thirteen

I found out about my new sheet of invisibility the hard way. I woke up very early to try and catch the sunrise without being seen, so I stayed close to the cottage and looked out over the meadow, over Ponyville, and off to the East. I was absorbed in my own thoughts, not really minding my surroundings, when golden eyes and a green face appeared out of nowhere right next to my face. “BOO!” I just about jumped ten feet in the air!

“Sweet!..Lyra!”

“Ah, thanks Adam!”

I let my breathing settle down a little. “Don’t ever, ever do that again!” then I paused. “How did you do that to begin with?”

Lyra unwrapped the large shoal from around herself. With her size it looked like a large tarp. “This is an invisibility cloak that Twilight gave to me for you! You can finally get out and around now, so you don’t have to just keep bothering me and Bon Bon,” she smiled as she spoke.

“That was really thoughtful of her. Now I can go out beyond the area around the just cottage!” I sighed with satisfaction. “It’s going to be good to finally be able to move around again; even being with you and Bon Bon, I was starting to get a little stir-crazy.”

Lyra chuckled a little. “Oh, I know that feeling! Not being able to do something when you really want to can drive you right out of your mind.”

We both looked out as the first shades of red and yellow appeared on the horizon, which didn’t expel the purple and blue of the early morning and night sky, but rather mixed with them and brightened them; like the colors of the dawn and the night were two harmonizing musical pieces.

As I was thinking this, I looked over at Lyra. I quickly realized I had never asked her about her Cutie Mark.

“Lyra?”

“Yeah?”

“Why is your Cutie Mark a harp?”

“Actually, it’s called a lyre, which is kinduva coincidence given my name is ‘Lyra’.”

“Ok, semantics aside, why have you never talked about it?” Her casual smile had faded a little, and her eyes misted over with memory. I knew that look; it was the look of someone who had a melancholy past. “I’m sorry. Do you not want to talk about it?”

“No, I want to talk,” she paused, her mouth half open as she searched for the correct words. “It’s just..hard sometimes. Wait a second; I need to get something.”

She left the cloak beside me and trotted back into the cottage. I began to worry about her a little as I waited. What could have possibly happened to her that made her sad thinking about the one thing that showed her true individuality? I heard the cottage door close softly, and as she came around to me, I noticed that she was carrying a satchel case on her back. She sat down, lowered the case off of her back, and then opened it with her emerald colored magic. The bag produced a lyre; a pure, golden colored lyre. She strummed a chord with her magic, and then strummed a full scale before she began her tale.

“I was one of the last of the fillies I knew who got a Cutie Mark.” As she spoke she strummed on her lyre, producing a sad, but beautiful piece. “My parents were rich, and they had wanted me to live the cultured life, so they taught me all of the social niceties in the hopes that I could get an aristocratic talent.”

The pace of the piece began to increase as her tempo and intensity grew.

“One day, our class went to a music shop, and they had a display full of instruments of every kind.” Her music slowed and became more graceful and flowing. “I felt a tug on my soul when I first laid eyes on the lyre. It was even at my eye level.” Her music grew with a sense of anticipation. “I reached for it, and as soon as I laid hooves on it, music just seemed to flow out of me, like I was a river channeling water.”

Her music had become beautiful, and, without a better word to describe it: elemental. The music she was making now seemed to be as natural and necessary as eating, breathing, and simply being alive. “When I came home with a Cutie Mark, my parents were not impressed. They were disappointed.” Her notes began to ooze with a growing anger. “Finally, after I perfected my art, I left. I had been fed up with how they had been trying to make me their little doll for years. I’m not something you can put on a shelf and look at!”

Her words and music burned with passion, and sorrowful frustration. She stopped. She then put her instrument away, and sat down beside me. “I may have left them, but I still love them, even if they have practically disowned me. I still send them a card every Heartwarming’s Eve. Through the good and the bad of my life they’ve never responded. I make some modest money from my performances, and I have a small group of ponies who really like my music. But the music I make isn’t my own.” She paused again, looked for more words. “It feels like..like the music I make is already written, and I’m just copying it down so everypony else can hear it. You see, to me, music is not just notes lined up on paper. Music is the sound of eternity ringing in our hearts and minds. Music is the language of the soul.” The sun had just crested the horizon, and it was glowing a golden hue, which reflected off of Lyra’s lyre, and made it appear as if it were alive with the colors of gold, yellow, and white. I could swear I saw a small rainbow as well.

I leaned over and gave Lyra a hug. “Thank you for your soul-talk. Thanks for your story.”

She embraced me too, and I began to feel small wet spots forming on my shoulders. “Thanks for listening.”

Chapter Fourteen

The best word to describe Rarity is probably “classy”: the white unicron with the swirly stylized purple mane always tried to keep an aura of sophistication about her. Even though she did her best to appear like the upper echelon of society, she came from humble enough roots. She never forgot this, and because of that, she never could be known as “stuck up”. She had become a semi-famous fashion designer in Equestria, but she still took the time to make unique outfits for her customers, whether they were friend or simply client.

I still wasn’t quite sure which category I fit into. I wasn’t even sure if the categories were mutually exclusive.

I found myself here with Lyra just hours after her heartfelt telling story of her life. Our primary reason for being there was that Lyra was one of several ponies who had been chosen for an ensemble at the next “Grand Galloping Gala”, (I’ve been told it’s some kind of Royal Ball) and as such, she would need an outfit that would look “absolutely marvelous”. Rarity was the one to exclaim this. I honestly have no sense of fashion at all. Our second reason for being there was that I had need of a second set of clothing. I hadn’t really been allowed to pack much before my eventful teleportation to Equestria, and my environmental protection suit wasn’t designed for comfort or longevity; large patches were beginning to appear in it.

I patiently waited in the corner, as Rarity was taking several measurements of Lyra. She was unaware of my presence in her boutique. “Alright! Now let’s take a look at that midsection. I’m thinking of a style that complements your personality: something that gives a sense of your free-spirited nature. Oh! Something flowing and extravagant. I’m getting chills just thinking about it!” She gave a little shiver and jumped for joy.

“No offense Rarity, but I’d like to keep it somewhat simple; I don’t really want to be a bedazzled mess of glitter and jewels.”

“Oh, if you insist!” Rarity gave a little pouting face from behind her large red working spectacles. After a few more measurements from Rarity, Lyra was all done. She waited a short span before she cleared her throat. Rarity turned from her design table to look up to Lyra. “Yes?”

“Um, our new mutual friend is here with us.”

Rarity cocked her head in confusion.

“Our, um, alien friend?”

Rarity’s eyes grew with realization. “Ohhh! He’s here? Where is he exactly? I don’t see him.”

“That’s because I’m invisible.” I whispered out from under my cloak of invisibility.

Rarity gave a rather overly dramatic gasp. “Oh my! Is this something you can normally do?”

Lyra shook her head, “No, Twilight was smart enough to give him a magic sheet he can wear to be invisible!”

“Ah, I see. Well then, we are going to need the boutique for ourselves for the rest of the morning, maybe the afternoon. I don’t know how long this could take!” Rarity quickly trotted over to the doors of her business, and locked them shut. She then drew the majority of the shutters. “We’re going to need as much privacy as we can get!”

“You don’t know the half of it.” I muttered as I removed my sheet, becoming visible. “Humans are generally a very modest bunch in public. We normally wear at least one layer of clothing at all times.”

“Really? That’s fascinating!” Rarity commented. I stepped into the center of the room to be measured. Rarity looked up at me; standing up completely. She then looked over at Lyra, “It’s probably a good thing you’re here; I’m going to need an assistant.” She then paused to think for one second. “And a step ladder.”

Chapter Fifteen

“So you had said earlier that humans wear one layer of clothing all the time? That sounds rather disgusting. How can you live with yourself like that?”

“We don’t always wear the same exact set all the time; we mix and match a lot.”

“Oh I see!” Rarity had just finished measuring my arm length, and was now moving along to my chest. “Here in Equestria, Canterlot is our fashion capitol; everypony who is anypony wants their designs to be shown off there!”

“I’m not really in the know on much when it comes to fashion, but generally the latest and greatest fashions come from France, I think.”

“Is that the capitol of your homeland?”

“Oh no! It’s a country actually. Almost coincidentally, your style has a very French vibe to it.”

“Your world has a whole country dedicated to the latest fashions?” Rarity’s eyes sparkled. She swooned a little. “Oh, how I’d love to be in such a sophisticated place as that!”

“I’ve never been there myself. It’s on the other side of a very large ocean from where I lived.”

“Then how do their fashions make it to where you live?”

“We have ships that can cover the oceans in a couple weeks, and we also have these machines that can fly like birds that take our people all over the planet.”

Rarity’s eyes grew wider and wider. “Your world sounds truly amazing! What else is there?” She looked over at Lyra and quick spoke some measurements which Lyra took down to paper.

“Um, well, we have these things like wagons that can take you anywhere.”

“What are they drawn by? Large creatures?”

“No, they drive themselves. In the older days horses used to draw them, but they are now powered by..um, heat! And lightning!” Both Rarity and Lyra looked on me in awe.

“What are these horseless wagons called?” Lyra asked.

“They are officially known as ‘Automobiles’, but most just call them ‘cars’.”

“Car.” Lyra spoke the word like it was a food of which she had no idea of what it tasted like.

“And what do you call those mechanical birds that carry people anywhere?” enquired Rarity.

“Airplanes.”

“Oh, I’ve got a feeling Rainbow Dash will love to hear about those!” Rarity took her last measurements.

“Well, it sounds like your world is a fantastic place! So sophisticated and wonderful! Why, it almost sounds like a dream to live there!” My face fell. She noticed, and asked “What? What’s wrong?”

“I described only a few things; but please trust me Rarity when I say, you would never want to visit my world.”

“But what could possibly be wrong with it? You have your “airplanes” and your “cars”, surely you have other things we could never dream of?”

I looked at her and I realized how innocent her species must truly be. They may have heard of war, but it was probably in the distant past. They had plenty to eat every day, and a peaceful world full of friendly faces. Ours, meanwhile, rather than living in harmony, had been devising new ways to harm ourselves and one another since it seems our very beginnings. I also knew what might happen if other humans bridged the gap between our worlds, and that day I made a vow to myself, that if I could find a way home, I would make sure no one would harm this world.

“Yes Rarity. We’ve made and done things you could never imagine.”

Chapter Seventeen

We were caught, the three of us. Whoever this red pony was, he had to have heard the warnings that had been spread about the ‘creature with hostile intent toward ponies’, and the alarm would be sounded. He looked at Applejack, then to Lyra, then to me. He didn’t move a single inch. The longer he stood there, the more details I noticed of him: he had a Cutie Mark that appeared to be an apple cut down the middle, he was wearing a yoke around his midsection, and he had a stalk of tall grass in his mouth, and his eyes. Anyone looking just in passing could assume this pony was just like any other country pony, but his eyes communicated to me that he was by no means unintelligent, and that his long stares didn’t mean his mind was empty, but was soaking up every detail and considering it.

“Big Macintosh! H-how’ve yah been?” Applejack stammered out. She was looking back from me to her older brother. She didn’t seem to know what his reaction would be either. Lyra just stared with wide eyes at Big Macintosh, and for that matter, so did I. He looked at us all in turn again. He let out a soft sigh, and slowly walked over next to Applejack, and sat down.

“Whater ya doin’?”

“Break.”

A slight breeze rose up, and tousled my companion’s manes and my hair. Bic Macintosh began to speak again.

“Where yah from?”

No point in trying to hide it I guess; and besides, he didn’t seem afraid or aggressive.

“A planet called Earth.”

“Planet, huh?”

“That’s right.” He looked out over the apple orchards his family had owned for years; many decades in fact, as he remain silent, I assume stoically thinking about me.

“Yah ain’t here to hurt nopony?”

“No sir.”

“Hmph. Alright.” No one at all spoke, though the girls seemed to be staying out of the conversation for the moment anyway.

“I’ve been talking with Applejack, and you all sound like good honest, er, ponies.”

“Eeyup.” Another pause.

“I don’t suppose you’re going to turn me in, are you?”

“Nope.”

“Not that I don’t mind, but why wouldn’t you?”

He looked over at me, and stated matter-of-factly “If you’er athreatenin’ anypony, Applejack woulda already tanned yer hide.”

Lyra, Applejack, and I chuckled pretty good over that one, and Big Macintosh just gave a good natured smile.

“Oh, Big Brother knows me all too well!” Applejack said through a jovial snort.

I looked over to Big Macintosh. “You seem to be a good guy, Big Mac.”

“Eeyup.”

We kept talking for a while longer; the hours drifting by just as easily as a river’s flow. The sun started to dip into the horizon, casting a golden orange over the many miles of Sweet Apple Acres. Lyra and I said goodbye to our two newest friends, and we made for the cottage.

Several more days past, and the time for the Grand Galloping Gala arrived. Lyra had to go, and Bon Bon was going as well. So, since there really was no one to take care of me, I tagged along. Bon Bon was, of course, apprehensive. More than likely it was rightfully so; going to Canterlot, the heart of Pony culture, commerce, and power was probably not the best idea, but I wanted to get out more. I needed to explore some; I couldn’t get enough of my new surroundings. I might even call this place..home.

Chapter Eighteen

The ride was fairly smooth, which did surprise me. We did eventually make it to Canterlot, but by the time we had arrived, it was nightfall. Lyra and Bon Bon got out of the stagecoach that had been carrying the three of us, and I timed my disembarking at the same time from the roof of the carriage.

The two driver ponies looked back my two benefactors. “Miss, was that your luggage shifting?”

Bon Bon gave a nervous laugh, “Oh, I’m sure that’s what that was. Sorry!”

“No need to apologize ma’am! Just wanted to make sure your things were ok.”

“Oh, of course.” Bon Bon still looked nervous.

“Don’t mind her. She’s just nervous about travelling!” Lyra quickly interjected.

The drivers didn’t appear to be worried after that. “Alright then. Have a good evening!” And with that, they cantered away, drawing the carriage behind them.

“Thank you!” Lyra called out after them. She then looked over to Bon Bon with an irritated look. “Come on Bon Bon! Pull it together, or you’re going to blow our cover.”

Bon Bon angrily whispered to Lyra, “Not so loud! I can’t help if Adam manages to leave the carriage like an elephant!”

I whispered from under my invisibility cloak, “I’m not fat!”

Lyra looked at the source of where my voice had come from. “Ooh, did we touch a nerve?”

“Shut up, hornhead!”

“Keep quiet, redface!”

“Enough you two!” Bon Bon exclaimed quietly. She started walking away, while we were close behind. “We need to get to our hotel before closing hour. I’m just glad that those chosen to be a part of the ensemble of the Gala are reserved rooms, otherwise we would have had to wait days on end beforehand.”

“Eh, we could have slept outside,” Lyra said. Bon Bon gave a sound of utter revulsion.

“It’s easier than it sounds; take it from the homeless guy,” I whispered.

“I don’t mind the outdoors, so long as they respect the space of me and my creature comforts!” Bon Bon replied, with a still palpable sound of disgust in her voice.

As we neared the hotel, we could hear a loud continuous drumming bass in the distance. The building just two blocks down was the culprit. Even though it was who knows how far away, apparently urban nightlife wasn’t all that different in Equestria then it was on Earth. The queue for the club was long; it reached the hotel’s doorstep practically! Obviously whatever, or whoever, was in that club was extremely popular.

The girls got through the front door easy enough; I was not as fortunate. I had to improvise if I wanted to get in. Because Canterlot was a planned city, the majority of the homes and businesses were mere feet apart from each other. Taking advantage of this, I entered the nearest alley, braced my feet on the opposite walls, and I began the climb up to Lyra and Bon Bon’s third story room.

As I reached their window, I found they had already unpacked. I gave a tiny knock on the window, which brought Bon Bon over to open up the window. She stuck her head out and looked around for the source of the knocking. “Peek-a-boo!”

She gave a little yelp and fell onto her rump. Lyra turned to Bon Bon with a knowing smile. “Adam’s at the window?”

Bon Bon’s eye were darting around the frame of the window, still looking for my invisible form. “Wait until I get my broom Adam!”

“I’m trembling in fear. Oh that’s right; you wouldn't know because you can’t see me!” Bon Bon grumbled and walked away as she mentioned ‘going to bed’.

“Lyra? You know what we should do?” She walked over and followed the sound of my voice.

“What?”

“The night’s young, and we’re in a city. Let’s explore the club down the street!”

Chapter Twenty

I heard Lyra scream “Somebody help him! He’s slipping!” I could feel myself slowly falling towards the floor as Lyra’s magic began to fail. I assumed later on that some of the ponies were stunned because a large creature being held up by magic was now dangling from the ceiling; others were trying to avoid the now falling glass because of said creature. Whatever the case, I knew that Lyra and I had just lit a match in a room full of gunpowder, and we had just let go of that match. The ponies were on the verge of panicking, and from their point of view, they had all the reasons to.

The white unicorn jumped over her disk table and into the crowd, running near the spot I was now hovering over. “YOU ‘EARD ‘ER! HELP!” As she yelled into the crowd, her horn lit with blue light again, and I could feel a lifting force holding me up and allowing me to slowly descend. I felt other forces also helping to slow my now safe fall. I reached the floor, and landed on my hands and knees. The other unicorns who had helped me down slowly backed away now. I breathed in and out heavily, and it probably cemented in their minds that I was some ferocious beast. The white unicorn stepped up to me and examined me.

For now, I decided to play the safest route and pretend that I was a docile animal. I didn’t want to cause a bigger panic then I already had.

“Hmm. He seems alright. No blood or anything.” She then looked up to Lyra, “Oi! You! I’m takin’ your animal to my studio near the back! You can pick him up there! Just use the ladder to your right and the back door is right next to it.” She then yelled out to the crowd, “Sorry fillies and gentlecolts, but tonight’s festivities are ending a little early tonight! Get to yer homes safe, you lot!”

It seemed that those closest to the doors had not seen all of the fiasco, so they grumbled. Those who were closest couldn’t get out of there fast enough. As the floor began to clear, the white unicorn looked to me, and I looked at her. “Well, time to get you back to ya’ master. Come’on you! Let’s step into my office.”

She began to trot off without looking back, so I just decided to stand up and walk after her. As she opened up a door back behind the stage that led down a short hallway, I followed her through. As we approached the door to her studio, another door opened and closed around a bend in the hall, and Lyra came charging around the corner, invisibility cloak folded up on her back.

“Woah, hold on there, Mintyfresh!” exclaimed the white unicorn, “don’t get your knickers in a twist! Your pet’s right here!” She turned around and saw me standing up, and her jaw dropped a little “Oh Celestia.” Then she looked to Lyra, and then back to me, and then back to Lyra, and back to me again.

Then her face contorted to a smile of glee as she squealed a little and yelled “Buck yeah! I just got a close encounter!” She offered her hoof to me, and I instinctively reached for it too shake..uh..hooves, I guess. She shook her foreleg vigorously. “I’m Vinyl Scratch! But everypony calls me DJ PON-3.” She then reached for Lyra’s hoof and shook her hoof hard as well. “Oh my Celestia! You have an alien from another world! This is fan-tastic! You need to tell me everything!” And with that, Vinyl Scratch shoved us into her studio.

Chapter Twenty-One

“Your show was pretty interesting until I wrecked it.” It felt good to be on solid ground again; more importantly, it felt good to meet a new face, especially one that wasn’t utterly terrified of me on the first time seeing me.

“Oh I don’t mind; I get to meet an alien all for the price of some glass paneling!” Vinyl Scratch exclaimed. She flopped down on a couch and invited us to sit nearby on her bed. She riggled around in excitement, “Oh, this is great! I barely know what to ask! So what kind of music do they have in your world?”

“Oh, all kinds, we have music with basic instruments like drums, wind, and brass. We also have music like what you make; it’s called Dubstep.”

“Dubstep eh? Sounds quirky!”

“How do you make your music? Your technology is nothing like anything I’ve seen in Ponyville.”

“You two are from Ponyville?” Vinyl looked from me to Lyra, then she stared intently at Lyra. “Hold on..green unicorn..lyre Cutie Mark..” She gave a tiny gasp, “You must be Lyra Heartstrings, aren’t you!” She hopped up and shook Lyra’s hoof again. “Your music is absolutely majestic! It’s a pleasure to meet you!”

Lyra’s face flushed with embarrassment. “Oh, well, thank you! I honestly didn’t take it to be your..type of music.”

“You got to get inspiration from somewhere, love!” Then she looked to me.

“Oh sorry! But yeah, Ponyville is doldrum country: you’re all a bit backwards anyways. Now Trottingham, that’s where the scene you’re talking about is. My equipment came from there, boy that was a hard move!”

“I thought you sounded like you came from Trottingham,” Lyra interjected. “But if it’s true that’s where the best technology is, why are you here?”

“Well, I’m here to promote my music, for one reason. The other is that I’m researching music.”

“You’re a researcher?”

“Actually, I guess you could say I’m more like a 'music explorer'. I’m studying how music influences pony behavior, and DJ-ing is just a fun side job. Bloody brilliant, don’t you think?”

“Yeah that is!” I said. “Being able to do what you love for money is awesome. Not to many people get to do that.”

Vinyl Scratch cocked her head. “What are ‘people’ exactly?”

“Oh, sorry. That’s what my kind call groups of us. We call ourselves ‘mankind’ as well.”

“Ooooh! Right.”

“Wait a second, you said you were exploring how music effects pony behavior,” Lyra questioned.

“Yeah?”

“But isn’t that already kind of, well, known? Some music makes you sad or happy. What’s so different about your study?”

“Well, yes, it’s true that music can make somepony sad or happy; what I’m looking for is the simplest, primeval form of it. How music can affect behavior and how we think. I’m trying to find the key note or notes that make everypony feel happy, content, sad, anything.”

“To what purpose?” I asked.

“Psychological therapy. Helping ponies to recover faster from grief and trauma. That kind of thing.”

“That’s..beautiful. To be able to help some..pony in such a way is truly wonderful! You have a heart of gold Vinyl Scratch.”

She blushed a little. “Oh, come off it! I will let you pet my ego a little bit though! I think I’ve held up enough of your time though. Besides” here Vinyl looked at Lyra and grimaced, “you got a big day tomorrow for the Gala! I might be there, so I’ll see you then!”

She ushered us out the back, and went back towards her room, when she heard a noise from the dance floor out front. Vinyl stopped and turned, only to see several ponies in military outfit poring over every inch of the room. “Oi! What’s this rubbish? Did I ask you to break and enter my home and business?”

“No, we invited ourselves in.” A regular pony stepped forward, and all the military ponies stood at attention to him. He was tan colored and wearing a lab coat; he had sideburns that ran the length of his jawline, and a receding mane on the back of his head. The spectacles that covered his sharp grey eyes were half-moon shaped. His Cutie Mark was an amalgam of a gear and a beaker. From his lab coat he produced a folded document.

“My name is Bunsen Burner, and this search and seizure is authorized by the Royal Majesties in relation to the creature that fell through your roof an hour ago. We will be taking your equipment and anything we deem necessary from the residence. Failure to cooperate will result in potentially imprisonment and if need be, banishment. Are we clear?”

Chapter Twenty-Two

After the night’s events, Lyra and I headed back to our hotel where we both hit the bed, and in my case the floor, snoring. In the morning, Bon Bon, Lyra, and I headed to the place where Lyra would be practicing that night’s music with the ensemble. Though I was invisible, Bon Bon and consequently I got to meet the renowned cellist Octavia, who had been classmates with Lyra back in their filly days. Octavia had been one of the first to gain her Cutie Mark, and she had been a master of her talent for some years now. She was reserved, which made her seem aloof, but she had a warm heart, and she also had an Italian accent! During the practice I politely sat unseen in one of the corners, but afterwards Bon Bon and I headed back to the hotel, while Lyra headed into the second portion of her long day of practice before the Gala festivities.

As we neared the hotel, Bon Bon passed a newsstand from which she purchased a sheet. She placed it on her back and she headed into the hotel, while I once again did the ‘back alley upward wall shuffle’. After letting me in and getting comfortable, she laid down and began to read. Initially, her face showed her boredom. Then she came across an item that made her eyes bulge. She looked up at me and yelled “YOU WE’RE SEEN?!!”

I quickly covered her mouth, for fear somepony might come. “Shhh. Yeah I was, but everyone thought I was just Lyra’s pet.”

She shoved the paper in my face. “Read the article!” she hissed at me. I looked at the headline on page 4: ‘Creature breaks up nightclub scene: ponies in distress’.

Bon Bon pointed with her hoof, “read further down here!”

“Where? Your hoof is covering up half the article!”

“Just. Eeeerrrggh!” She now pointed with the tip of her hoof. “Right. There!”

‘Royal Science Division is investigating similar creatures which seem to have been spotted in Ponyville. The creature is described as going on all fours when docile and when provoked walks on its two back legs. Reports also indicate that a pony of Ponyville was severely harmed by one of these creatures, and all who come in contact with it are advised to keep their distance and to alert the authorities immediately.’

“But I didn’t harm anypony! All I did was frighten Fluttershy a little, she’s not injured!”

“Regardless, you’re now gathering to much attention here,” Bon Bon said. She looked up at me “We’re going back to Ponyville; now.”

“But Lyra’s still here!”

“You are not safe here! You’re probably not safe in Ponyville either, but at least it’s familiar ground!”

“I’m not leaving her.”

“You have to! It’s for your own good. She would want you safe, and I’m going to make sure that happens, whether you like it or not!” There was no point in arguing now. Bon Bon had put her hoof down, and, as much as I hated to admit it, she was right. Staying here was not just endangering me, but also Lyra as well. Bon Bon left the paper on Lyra’s bed, and a note with the concierge saying 'Your pet is in bad shape, I’m going home to help him'. And we left Canterlot behind us that very afternoon. We arrived in Ponyville in the wee hours of the next morning, and we were both a wreck.

Chapter Twenty-Three

In the next couple of days while I was lying very low, my new pony friends came by to see how I was doing. They kept saying this would pass over, but I wasn’t so sure. My inherent pessimism was returning to me, and I began to think that eventually I would be found out. What would happen then? Perhaps they would study me? Maybe they would torture me? I caught myself here; no, these ponies were nothing like mankind was, they were not prone to violence like us. Perhaps they would just ask me to leave, or maybe after some time they would accept me as a lone nomad in this world of theirs.

One pony I hadn’t had the joy of interacting with yet was Rainbow Dash. She was strong, extremely competitive, and was a mite bit cocky, but she was good at heart. She was slow to form a friendship with, but once you had, she was loyal and dependable. She would be there as quick as a sonic boom to help. She and I had many discussions on airplanes, blimps, and other sorts of flying things, and just as Rarity predicted, she was excited to hear and learn more about them.

“So you’re telling me that you know of one of these “airplanes” that can go faster than three times the speed of sound?”

“It’s not my area of expertise, but yeah. It was called 'The Blackbird', and it could even almost go out into orbit.”

“Wow!” her face was filled with wonder, but it quickly turned into veiled indifference. “That's pretty good, but still not as good as me!”

“Oh, I’m sure of that!” Her stoic face let up a little for a small smirk.

“So, what exactly is it that you do Rainbow Dash? I mean, Twilight Sparkle reads books, Lyra plays the lyre, Applejack bucks apple trees: what about you?”

“Well,” she flapped her wings and rose up into the air as she put her hooves on her hips. “I make myself stronger and faster, so that one day!” She raised her right hoof “I can join the greatest group of fliers that Equestria has ever seen: The Wonderbolts! The day I don their blue and yellow uniform is the day my life is complete!”

The gears in my head began turning again, as once more similarities between or two worlds popped up. “Blue and yellow fliers? That sounds similar to a famous group of pilots called the Blue Angels.”

“What’s an angel?”

“Um, well, it’s a human with wings basically.”

“So your kind have wings too?”

“No, the Blue Angels still fly around in their airplanes, the planes just have blue and yellow coloring.” I continued to think.

“What?” Rainbow asked, as it became apparent that I was lost in thought.

“So many things between our worlds are similar! It’s crazy. This can’t be coincidence. But I don’t know any other way of explaining it! It’s like, we made the stuff, disappeared, and you guys took over afterwards.”

“So you think that humans once existed here, went extinct or something, and we ponies came after to take the reins?”

“I honestly don’t know. It sounds absolutely crazy saying it aloud.”

“But, hold on.” Rainbow paused and landed. “You might be right. There are some unexplained mounds in Everfree Forest that no one goes near. They say that they’re haunted. Maybe they’re an old human living space or something.”

“That sounds like the perfect place to explore then! You want to guide me?”

“I’d never back down from a challenge! Besides, this gives me a chance to be just like Daring Do!”

“Daring Who?”

Chapter Twenty-Four

The trek to the mounds took longer than we anticipated, but we found ourselves in the darker regions of the Everfree Forest soon enough. The place Rainbow Dash had been referring to was known on geographical charts as the “Tumulus of the Kings”, while the local ponies called the place by a different name: “Spectre Howe”. It actually didn’t look all that different from any other set of hills you could find just about anywhere: geologically speaking it was pretty commonplace. There was one thing that was fundamentally different: the silence. Dead, utter silence.

As Rainbow and I came near the site, that is what we noticed. No birds chirping, no rustling of the wind, not even twigs seemed to make sound as they snapped beneath us and the spongy soil. “I guess everyone was right about one thing,” I commented.

“What’s that?” Rainbow Dash asked as she looked up to me.

“This place is eerie. No noise whatsoever. I’m almost inclined to think it’s either out of respect, or fear.”

A little shiver traveled the length of Rainbow’s spine and her wings shook a little. “It’s scaring me just talking about it.”

“A little fear in life is alright. It can keep you alive sometimes.”

Then, things changed. Something shifted; something primeval. I could feel this buzzing in the back of my head that just screamed something absolutely important had just occurred. “Do you feel it?” I said. “Something’s different.”

Rainbow Dash looked at me with one eye cocked. “Um, no. Just us standing here, looking at some old hills.”

“No. These aren’t just hills. They are so much more. They were meant to be places of life, but now only hold the memories of the dead.” I stopped myself. “How do I know that?”

Rainbow stood by me with resolution in her eyes. “I’ll do whatever you’re going to do. What’s the plan?”

“I’ll let you know when I know.” I knew I was waiting for something, just not what. Seconds, then minutes slipped away. We were both getting very impatient, Rainbow for me to do something, and me for..whatever the hell it was we were waiting for!

There! It was there! A light floating amongst the mounds. It was fluorescent green, shimmering and moving slowly. I’m not the sort to believe in ghosts or spirits, but I know a Will-o-the-Wisp when I see one! “Now!” I ran after it, and Rainbow Dash was behind me with no trepidation in her step. The Ether seemed to notice us somehow, and it flew away, outpacing us both. “I don’t know why, but we need to see where that flame goes, at any cost!”

“Right!” Rainbow bolted into the sky, leaving a technicolor afterimage behind her. The Wisp bolted to the right past a large rocky spire; I tore after it. I might have lost it if it were not for Rainbow Dash above.

The Wisp slowed, and then finally stopped at what seemed to be the largest mound in the whole of the labyrinth of graves. As I came within twenty feet of it, it began to grow. I slowed to a halt, and Rainbow looked on from above. “What in the name of Celestia?” The ether had coalesced into the floating form of a woman. A human woman. With its arms raised, it looked at me, not with eyes of hate as I had expected for a spirit, but with a kindly smile.

“Who are you?” No reply was offered. She began to float backward, arms still raised. Her form floated near to one side of the large barrow, and pointed.

Chapter Twenty-Five

She continued to point to the spot, and I knew what I needed to do even if I had no idea why I was doing it. I rushed at the mound to the spot the spirit pointed to. I began to tear away clods of grass and dirt like a mad man. “Rainbow, help me dig!”

“What about it?” she pointed to the spirit. The spirit continued to point at the spot.

“I don’t know how, but she won’t harm us; it’s not like her. Just come on! This is dire! I can feel it in my bones.”

Hesitantly, Rainbow Dash began to draw near to me, and as she did she began shifting the dirt I had already tossed aside.

My hands, not exactly being manicuring masterpieces, could take quite a bit of the obstinance of the soil beneath them. But as I began to feel they would start to bleed, I hit what I was looking for. It was hard and cold, it went a long way in any direction I reached. I finished uncovering the discovery with Rainbow’s hooves for help. When we were finished, Rainbow Dash asked, “Adam, what is this?”

“So I was right, wasn’t I?” I whispered to myself.

“Huh?”

I turned to the spirit. She still looked as serene as ever. “I don’t know what you are, whether you’re a spirit with good intentions, or a demon hell-bent on chaos, but this is something I don’t think anyone in this world should ever find. Why did you guide us here? For what purpose? I need to know why!” The spirit continued to look at me with a smile. The lack of response was making me angry.

“You are human, or were, and so am I. From one to another, why have you done this? Why have you brought me here?”

She began to float into the mound, her form slowly passing into it.

“WHY AM I HERE? TELL ME!”

Her face was all that was still outside of the mound, but as the last of her passed into the grave long forgotten, she uttered three words, “For a purpose," and then she was gone. I quickly pondered over her words, looking for anything that that phrase might mean to me: for a purpose. I was walking in circles thinking about anything that it could be; was it a riddle? An overt truth? What?

Rainbow Dash looked at me worriedly. “Adam, are you ok?”

“No, no I’m not. I can’t think of anything. Oh, this is pointless!”

“What did you mean when you said this is something that nopony should know about? What shouldn’t we know about?”

“That spirit guided me, and only me for some reason. You said everyone else was scared of this place; probably because of her. She was protecting you from this.” I sighed as I tried to find a way to explain myself to her. “Beyond a doubt, humans lived here: in Equestria.”

“Well that’s pretty awesome, right?”

“No it’s not. We did more than that. What we just uncovered is a solid wall of steel, a refined form of iron that’s really strong. It’s used in a lot of buildings, but generally is only used in such quantities for underground buildings for one purpose.”

“You’re not making a lot of sense Adam.”

“It’s a bunker, Rainbow Dash. An underground fort. You know how you can make snow forts in the winter that can protect you from snowballs?”

“Yeah, so?”

“This protects you from bigger stuff: explosives, missiles, nuclear weapons.”

“I don’t understand you Adam! What are you trying to say? You found a big metal fort? Big deal!”

“It is a big deal, because this means humans not only lived here, we made war here. We died here. And these are their long undisturbed graves.”

Chapter Twenty-Six

We walked back to Lyra’s cottage, our pace slow but even.

“Adam?”

“What?” I probably said it a little too forcibly.

“Uh, well, what is war?”

I stopped, and so did Rainbow. I looked down at her, and here again I was reminded of the true innocence of her race. I squatted down to her height and hugged her. Tears started to come to my eyes, and I kissed her on the forehead. I’m sure she felt awkward for this strange show of emotion, but I just couldn’t stop crying silent tears.

“I truly wish, Rainbow Dash, that I could ask the same question with the same amount of innocence you have.” I looked her in the eyes. My blue eyes to her violet ones. “You are..truly blessed.”

“I don’t understand.”

“I know.”

I stood up, and we continued on our way. “War..is when two groups fight over something.”

“That’s awful!”

“Yes it is.”

“Why do you do it?”

“Sometimes it’s because our friends are attacked, other times it’s because we want something, sometimes it over something trivial like if we have different skin color or beliefs.”

“You fight each other over stupid things like that?”

“It always seems so important at the time, but yes, it is stupid.”

“But once you’re done everypony goes back home..right?” Rainbow looked up to me.

“…No.”

“Would’dya mean ‘no’? Everypony has to go home at some point, or their families will miss them!”

“Sometimes Rainbow..people don’t come home. Sometimes..people don’t die of old age, or disease, or accidents. In war, people kill each other.”

She stopped; stuck to the spot she last placed her hooves in shock.

“You.. kill..each other?”

“Yes.”

She looked at me, her eyes hollow. “Have you..killed.. anypony?”

“No.”

“Why do your people keep doing it then?”

“War?”

“Yeah, why do you keep killing each other? It’s horrible!”

“Some do it to help out their friends, others say they do it because they forget; they don’t remember the horrors war brings.” My face hardened like stone. “I don’t believe them. Between war and an alternative, the alternative is always preferable. They say wars bring out the demons in men. I call that wishful thinking; war brings to a head the monsters humans really are.”

“But you’re not a monster Adam! You’re nice and friendly, you don’t want to be a part of war. You are not a monster!”

We had reached the clearing in front of the Lyra’s and Bon Bon’s cottage, and I was about to reply to my Pegasus companion, when my breath stopped in my throat. Outside the doorway of the cottage were ponies dressed in regal military attire. Lyra and Bon Bon were hogtied in front of their home and a metallic clamp was placed over Lyra’s horn, I’m assuming to prevent her from using her magic. A tan regular pony in a lab coat saw us with his sharp bespectacled eyes. He motioned a phalanx of 6 ponies towards us, who slowly edged their way towards me and Rainbow Dash. Lyra saw me out of the corner of her eye, and she screamed, “ADAM! RUN!” The six ponies now began galloping toward me.

“Rainbow, fly away, now!”

“I’m not gonna leave you to them!”

“They’ll take you too, and I’m not letting anyone else sacrifice themselves for me! Now go!”

I picked her up, and threw her in the air, and as she flapped her wings to gain altitude, the military ponies were closing the gap between us. Bon Bon yelled to me, “Run you stupid foal! Run!” They were both being gagged. I did the only thing I could do, and I ran away from my two greatest friends in the world.

Chapter Twenty-Seven

Running, running, running! That’s the only thing keeping me alive! My life in this world depends on it! These ponies are no different from humankind; the proof was what I was leaving behind me. Gotta stay alive! The ponies chasing me had been training most of their lives in service to the government, they probably had the advantage in the end; stamina, strength. I had my limits, and any horse could outbeat me in the end.

But wait; the government. Princess Celestia. Twilight Sparkle! Twilight had said she was Celestia’s student; she had a better chance of pleading my case more than anyone else, especially me! I had to get to her library, now!

I leapt over a river spanning seven feet in one bound: adrenaline was fueling me now! I looked behind me as I ran; two of the six were unicorns, and they made a light bridge to span the gap easily. The other four galloped over it without hesitation, and the unicorns brought up the rear after dispelling the bridge.

I ran past ‘Dr. John Whooves Invention Emporium’ and saw Twilight Sparkle bolting the door shut to go out somewhere. As I was still a ways off I called to her, “Twilight!”.

She recognized my voice as she looked up startled. “Adam? What are you doing out here? What’s going on?”

I pointed behind me to the six ponies in hot pursuit of me, “Them! Now in!” She didn’t have time to comprehend, and I didn’t have time to stop; so I went with it. I busted down the door with my shoulder, the lock flying half the length of the room.

Twilight ran inside and looked utterly dumbfounded. “Shut the door! Keep them out!” Twilight’s horn lit up as she snatched the lock from the floor, placed it back in the frame along with the door, and reconstituted the door to stone. There was a banging on the window frame. Though muffled by the glass, the voice and its message were clear: “Obstructing justice and offering sanctuary to hostile elements is punishable with banishment; do I make myself clear?!”

“Adam, what is going on?”

“Someone saw me; they’ve captured Lyra and Bon Bon, and they may capture you too if you don’t contact Celestia immediately! I’ve had an audience with Princess Luna, and she offered me amnesty. Your rulers are my only hope!”

Twilight yelled to the ceiling “Spike? SPIKE?”

“What is going on now?” asked the small dragon as he came down the stairs. He spotted me, saw the stone door, and heard the repeated but failed attempts to dispel Twilight’s enchantments.

“Oh, I can’t wait to hear what this letter on friendship is about.”

“Cut the chatter Spike. This is an emergency letter to the Princess!”

“Right!” He quickly grabbed a scroll from the cupboard and whet his quill as Twilight began to dictate.

“My most wonderful teacher, I’ve come to you on a matter of greatest urgence. I’ve come across a hitherto undiscovered race known as “mankind”, (Undiscovered? Well, that’s a big joke now.) one of whom has sought diplomatic sanctuary from you. I need your immediate presence, as the authorities are attempting to persecute him. Please come as soon as you read this. Your most faithful student, Twilight Sparkle.”

I stood exasperated, “No offense Twilight, but I imagine postage around here isn’t all that great anyway. What good’s a letter going to do me? Maybe if we had three weeks, then maybe it would work!”

“Just watch.” Spike sealed the scroll, and belched fire on it. The scroll was completely disintegrated.

“Well, that was a fantastic. For the lot of good that did, I could have done the same thing with a lighter.”

Suddenly the room was filled with an enormous, radiant light. The stone door crashed down, allowing the awaiting six ponies, the remaining arriving forces, and the bespectacled tan pony to see a miraculous sight. A large white horse, a full grown horse, stood in a space which just an iota ago was occupied by nothing. She had wings, vast wings, easily spanning ten feet across! She had a horn as well, and her mane and tail were a flowing palette of the colors green, blue, and pink. This had to be her.

“Princess Celestia!” Twilight exclaimed.

Princess Celestia offered a small smile to Twilight. “Hello Twilight Sparkle. I got your letter.”

Chapter Twenty-Eight

Princess Celestia looked me up and down. Not unlike what her sister Luna had done. I voiced aloud in my head, so I’m guessing you’re telepathic too? Nothing. No response. No facial recognition. Ok, well she’s not going to be able to read my mind; that’s probably a positive.

“Bunsen Burner?” she called aloud, as she continued to stare at me.

“Yes Princess?” the lab coated, tan pony spoke up as he stepped forward.

“Do you wish to explain why you were chasing this poor creature?” I didn’t let my face show it for survival’s sake, but my mental voice was screaming I’m not a creature!

“Five days ago, we received word that one of these..things was spotted falling through the ceiling of a nightclub in Canterlot. After securing the scene and any suspicious evidence, we backtracked any physical descriptions of the subject for any otherwise unnoticed sightings, one of which was Ponyville. Reports indicated that a pony had been murdered by one of these creatures, and the swiftest actions were being taken to secure the creature as quickly as possible.”

Celestia’s eyes had never left mine, but at the accusation of murder, her eyes narrowed the tiniest bit. “You harmed one of my little ponies?” She spoke to me with the thinnest vein of ice in her voice.

“No, I did not. Your ‘expert’ here has been doctoring the facts. The pony he is referring to is completely unharmed. Her name is Fluttershy. If you were to go to her cottage, you’d find her safe and sound. Unlike, however, my two friends, Lyra and Bon Bon, who have been arrested unjustly!”

The Princess continued her far off gaze at me, as if she were trying to stare into my soul. “Is this true?”

Twilight spoke up. “Fluttershy is alright. But why have you arrested Lyra and Bon Bon?”

Bunsen Burner didn’t even bat an eyelash. “We were taking them into custody for their own protection. We found they had been forced to provide shelter to the creature, and it was speculated that ‘it’ has telepathic abilities; it could have caused irreparable psychological damage to them. We we’re taking them in for medical observation and testimony. In regards to ‘doctoring the facts’, it was completely unintentional. We were acting on the data we already had, and mistakes can be made.” Oh, he’s slick! “Given that this creature has even the minutest possibility of hostility toward ponies, and that there could be more than one, we suggest taking him in and intensively trying to understand the creature.”

My emotions exploded. My insides were boiling, and I had so much anger I could feel it bursting out of my eye sockets. Snarling, I screamed “NOO!” I didn’t know what was happening, but before I could stop myself, my hands were reaching, and I was throttling Princess Celestia.

Chapter Twenty-Nine

In a blast of light, I was pushed back against and through the wall of the library. The fog in my head had cleared; the rage was gone now. “What have I done?” I sat up a little, my eyes still holding the after images of my hands choking the one last hope I had of a free life in this place. “What have I done?” I felt a sharp blow to my head. It was a horse’s hind leg. I was out cold before I hit the dirt. Princess Celestia, coughing and choking a little, stood over my limp form along with Bunsen Burner.

“Bunsen, you were right. Lock this creature up, and make sure he never harms a single pony ever again!”

He bowed respectfully. “As you wish, my princess. What shall we do with Twilight Sparkle?”

“Don't touch her. She was ignorant; she’s still growing up after all. His sincerity almost had me fooled. If there is even the slightest possibility there may be more of these things, I’m giving you all the necessary powers to hunt them down and detain them. Not even a single drop of pony blood is to be risked in encountering these things. If it comes down to it..” She paused, and slowly sighed. “Execute them on sight.”

Bunsen Burner bowed low once more. “As you command, Princess Celestia.”

My body was magically placed in a wooden cage, and carted off to the most secure place in Equestria; Canterlot Castle’s dungeons.

As they started to carry me off, Twilight walked over to the Princess. “But Princess Celestia! He was never like this before. He was intelligent, kind, and caring. I don’t understand why he would do this.”

Celestia looked down at her student with a small hint of melancholy in her eyes. “Oh Twilight, I’m so sorry. You are still so very young, and sometimes things aren’t always wait they seem. Even among friends this can be true. I’m afraid you’ve experienced too great of a burden today.”

“But, I don’t understand! He was peaceful; he was frightened and was pleading for your help. He’d never do anything like this. It’s not like him!”

“I’m so sorry Twilight, but what you need is rest. Go ahead. I’m going back to Canterlot to make sure this never happens again.” She disappeared in a storm of light, and then she was gone, leaving a very confused and disheartened student behind.

My cart went up the street, past the Invention Emporium. As it past, two sets of eyes followed it. One, a grey Pegasus with blonde mane and tail; the other a brown regular pony with a short spiky mane. “Oh, this had to happen didn’t it? Well! This complicates things a bit,” murmured the brown pony.

“What are we gonna do?”

“I’ve got a plan, but it’s risky, and we’re going to need outside help.”

“I’m with you every step of the way. What’re we going to do?”

“Oh, nothing special; we break a highly guarded human out of the most complex and secure prison in Equestria, and save everyone. Haven't quite worked out all the details yet, but it will turn out great! Now then,” As they galloped out towards the library, the brown pony jumped in the air, exposing his golden hourglass Cutie Mark for the entire world to see.

“Allons-y!”

Chapter Thirty

Two ponies burst into the library; one a gray pegasus with misaligned eyes, the other, a seemingly mundane brown pony.

“TWILIGHT SPARKLE! Just the pony I wanted to see,” bellowed the brown pony.

Twilight rapidly twisted around to look for the origin of the voice. After having found it, she trotted over to shush him. “You do realize this is a library, don’t you Mr.-?”

“Oh it’s John Whooves. Well, actually, it’s Doctor Whooves. Well, really it’s The Doctor.”

Twilight’s face lit up as she recognized him. “Oh yes, you own the Invention Emporium just up the street don’t you?”

“Yeah, great bit of cover isn’t it? By the way, just to get pleasantries completely out of the way, this is Ditzy Doo! Though, I believe you’ve already met.”

Twilight was lost in thought, and then she remembered, a frown coming to her face. “Oh, right. You were the one who dumped all that stuff on my head from the moving truck.”

“Sorry!” replied Ditzy Doo in the sweetest voice, “it was an accident.”

“And you’re the mailmare too.”

“I work a few jobs. But I love to bring people their letters. Oh, and muffins! I love muffins.”

Twilight looked over the two noisy ponies. “You make a wonderful couple,” A thin drip of sarcasm in her voice.

“Oh no no no. We’re not a couple,” replied The Doctor, “She’s just a wonderful companion!”

“And what is it you two want exactly?”

“Well, for starters,” began The Doctor “We want to help your friend, Adam.”

“And how do you plan to do that? He just attacked Princess Celestia. More likely than not, he’s being taken to Canterlot to be put in some dungeon somewhere, and then who knows what after that! So tell me,” sarcasm was fully obvious in Twilight’s voice now. “What can you possibly do for him?”

The brown pony gave a smirk. “I’m The Doctor! I may not have a plan, but I do the impossible!”

“Oh?” Twilight replied, disbelief was evident in her voice.

“Oh, routinely!”

“I highly doubt it.”

“Oh yeah?” The brown pony began to shimmer, and then faded swiftly. Before Twilight stood a slender man with brown hair that seemed to stick forward and out. He wore a light brown overcoat, a brown suit with a blue shirt and tie underneath, and trainers. The Doctor raised his hands up, in a questioning gesture. “What about now?”

Twilight stood stunned, mouth fully agape. Just moments ago a pony stood before her. But now a man occupied the exact same spot.

“Tricky, isn’t it? You know, though you may not give her credit, Ditzy Doo is a very intelligent pony; genius I’d say! Almost as clever as me. Well, that’s not quite true, but irregardless, she is the Da Vinci of your people.”

“I…I don’t understand,” Twilight stammered

“Oh, I didn’t expect you to! It’s not often I get to use dramatic flair! I should be an actor, I’d be great! All I need is a stage name. David! David T..something. Oh, I’ve gotten distracted again. Um, where was I?”

“You were explaining my psychic rectifier!” Ditzy Doo jumped in.

“Ah YES! Anyway, what it does is tell your mind what you want to see, and makes the wearer become perceived as anything he or she wants! Works better than any chameleon could manage!”

“Ok,” Twilight was still trying to get her wits about her from The Doctor revealing his true identity, and had only heard half of the explanation anyway. “So, you’re a human too? Like Adam?”

“Close, but no. See,..well, for now let’s say, ‘Yes, I am, but I’m not.’ What’s more important is that we save Adam now! How long does it take to get to Canterlot by train?”

“About half a day. Why?”

“Ok, start packing! I need you to—“

“Wait, wait, wait!” Twilight held up her fore hoof. “If you’re the one who has the plan, then why are you sending me?”

“I need you take something to Adam for me. Then, once you’ve done that, Ditzy Doo will be waiting for you near the Palace Gates, supposedly on a mail delivery. Relay to her that you’ve made the delivery, and then I can go save Adam!”

“Why me?”

“You have Celestia’s trust more so than anyone else in this whole world. She’s more likely to let you near him.”

“I don’t know what you plan on doing, but I know for a fact that humans, and I’m sure whatever you are, can’t just teleport like we unicorns can!”

“Twilight Sparkle,” The Doctor got down on one knee and put this hands on each of her shoulders. “I know you just met me really for the first time three minutes ago, but it is absolutely important, for Adam’s sake, that you trust me right now, and do as I’ve told you. The fate of your world literally rests with him now.”

Twilight looked into his eyes, and they spoke absolute sincerity to her. “Ok.”

“Alright. Now! I’ve got to make some preparations of my own back at my place.” The Doctor was just about to run out the door when Ditzy Doo called to him. He swung around, a look of confusion in his face. She looked him up and down(which was significantly hard for her to do with her crossed eyes) and coughed.

“Oh!” He looked down at himself, realizing his pony camouflage wasn’t turned on. He winked at her, smiled, and commented to Twilight, “She’s a quick thinker, she is!” Ditzy Doo closed her eyes and smiled the most innocent grin ever made.

Chapter Thirty-One

Twilight Sparkle packed her satchel in silence. So much was spinning through her head: Adam, Princess Celestia, that Science Officer Bunsen Burner, and whoever this ‘Doctor’ person was, so many new beings crashing into her already hectic life of trying to learn the values of friendship. Adam had pointed out that Bunsen Burner and his bunch had captured Lyra and Bon Bon; both of whom had no reason to be incarcerated other than the fact that they knew Adam. And it was true that the Royal Science Division had acted on false information: but were they innocent in the matter? Did they plant the false information so they could capture Adam more easily, or was this just undue paranoia? Then Dr. Whooves, or ‘The Doctor’, or whoever he was shows up, being a human or something like a human, and claims that she has to save Adam by betraying the trust of her first friend and mentor, Princess Celestia.

“Oh, this is too much!” She felt pulled in every single direction. But in the end, she had to trust her instincts, and they told her that Adam was unjustly imprisoned, and that he had to be saved. It was mid-afternoon now, and Twilight was going to meet the Doctor at his Invention Emporium. As she was bolting the door shut, she heard a small boom, and felt a rushing wind. As she turned around, Rainbow Dash stood before her, panting from the exertion of the past couple of hours.

“Twilight! We..have to..save Adam!”

“Wait, how did you know about that Rainbow Dash?”

“I was with him for Pete’s sake! We had just come from Spectre Howe, when we saw Lyra and Bon Bon being arrested by some special Royal guardspony team or something! Adam told me to run, and when I didn’t, he made me fly away. I had to spend a couple of hours evading that group of ponies from getting me too!” Twilight’s heart warmed a little, her instincts proved right it seemed; Adam had tried to protect Rainbow Dash rather than see her captured too.

“He did that for you to keep you safe?”

“Yeah, but that’s not important now! Where is he? We got to hide him somewhere!”

“It’s too late.”

Rainbow Dash looked at her in disbelief. “Too late? No. It can’t be! They’ll do something awful to him, and he doesn’t deserve it! He just wanted to be left in peace!”

“I know Rainbow. They’re taking him to Canterlot’s dungeons, but I’m going to The Doctor’s Invention Emporium; he says he has a plan.”

They came to the Emporium right as Twilight finished. Twilight knocked, even though the sign on the front window said 'Closed for Renovation'.

“Who is it?” called out the voice of Ditzy Doo.

Rainbow Dash blurted out “It’s Twilight and Rainbow Dash! Let us in!”

“Sorry, we’re closed for renovations!” she yelled out, but at the door they heard her whisper, “Come around the back by the blue shed!”

Twilight spoke up, “Ok, we’ll see you around then!”

“Twilight! Dashie! What’s going on? I heard Adam got nabbed!” Pinkie Pie bounced toward her friends, and Applejack, Fluttershy, Rarity weren’t far behind.

“What happened is an absolute travesty, and I don’t think Adam is really like what everypony has been saying!” Rarity exclaimed.

“And we think yah have a plan to clear him of his guilt!” Applejack finished for Rarity. “You do have a plan, don’t yah sugarcube?”

Fluttershy demurely asked “Yes, do you?”

“I don’t, but supposedly Doctor Whooves wants to help. Oh, and apparently Ditzy Doo’s a genius, by the way. Go figure.” They began to round the Emporium to head for the back.

“Wait, the pegasus who screwed up leading the birds to the wrong place for Winter Wrap Up?” Rainbow asked. “Uh, I’m not convinced.”

Chapter Thirty-Two

They found Ditzy Doo just where she said she’d be: outside of the blue shed. As they neared, they got a closer look at the shed.

“Why does it have that light doo-hickey on the top?” commented Applejack.

“It looks really nice for a tool shed.” Fluttershy offered.

“I love the color! That royal blue is absolutely amazing.” Rarity stared up at it with a small sense of joy.

“You cain’t really help it Rarity; can you?” Applejack looked over to her.

“Not in the least, darling!”

Rainbow Dash looked around with an exasperated expression, “This is all wonderful, but I think everyone is missing the obvious question: What the hay is a ‘POLICE PUBLIC CALL BOX’?”

“Hello Ditzy Doo.” Twilight offered as they stopped in front of the blue box.

“Hey Twilight! I see you brought some friends. That’s great! The Doctor’s waiting for us inside.”

“Inside the Emporium?” Twilight asked. Surely that could be the only large enough space for him?

“No, no. In there!” She pointed to the box.

Everypony looked at it, then back to Ditzy. Twilight chuckled a little, “You got us Ditzy, now where is he really?”

“Like I said, in there!”

Applejack tried to be honest without hurting Ditzy Doo’s feelings, “Um, no offense, hun, but that seems a bit..small. Especially for a stallion.”

Ditzy Doo bumped one of the doors to the blue box, and it opened slowly. “Come on everypony! Come on in.” Ditzy Doo walked in. None of the others followed; but they did hear Ditzy walk in. She called out loudly, “Doctor!”, and strangest of all, it echoed.

“What the-?” Rainbow Dash stuck her head around the corner into the blue box. When she brought her head back out, her face was frozen in stark disbelief. “Omigosh, omigosh, omigosh, omigosh!”

“What? It’s just a little shed!” Twilight said, though her voice conveyed that she was rapidly losing confidence in her own statement.

Applejack looked into the box as well, “Uh, Twilight. I think we’re in a bit over our heads.”

Pinkie Pie bounced around her friends and into the box, and they heard her exclaim, “Oooooh, I could have HeeUGE parties in here!”

Twilight couldn’t take it anymore, she lightly shoved past Rainbow Dash and into the box, and the sight she saw stopped her dead in her tracks. The vast chamber that stood before her could never have fit into the tiny blue box she just entered, and yet it did. She was standing on a slightly raised catwalk, looking into a chamber that had to be at least 75 feet long and wide. Large curving structures of stone appeared to support the domed structure’s ceiling, while large bulbs covered every couple square feet of the dome’s walls. The centerpiece was a mushroom shaped console with a large green glowing cylinder protruding up and out of it. The console seemed to have every conceivable lever, knob, and switch on its surface, along with a couple of other things Twilight had never seen before.

“This is just..impossible!”

“And yet here it is, right in front of your face.” The Doctor, without his pony disguise, came around to them from the other side of the console along with Ditzy Doo. “I told you Twilight Sparkle! I do the impossible; bigger on the inside then the outside? That’s easy.” He looked behind her to see Applejack and Rainbow Dash eyeing into the chamber. “Oh you brought some friends? And I thought only humans multiplied. Come on! Don’t be shy. It’s only a room that transcends normal spatial reality, that’s all!”

The girls slowly made their way in, just as awestruck as Twilight Sparkle.

Pinkie Pie bounced back around to meet with her friends. “This is fantastic! You have a dining room, a swimming pool, a dance hall, a library, and lots of other rooms I haven’t got to see all of yet! This place is pretty neat!” Pinkie Pie paused briefly. “Who are you anyway? I was told we were meeting Dr. Whooves.”

His face split into a wide grin. “Oh Pinkie Pie, I am Dr. Whooves! That’s just my disguise so I could get around easily. But that’s not really who I am.” He paused as he put his hands in his pockets. “I’m the Doctor. And this!” He raised his hands up, gesturing to the room as a whole while he spun in a circle, “Is my transport. Welcome to the Tardis!”

Chapter Thirty-Three

Rarity cantered forward, her fully expressed amazement palpable as she said “Adam wasn’t kidding when he said humans had made things we could never imagine! This is unbelievable! Do all humans have these..Tardises?”

“No human has ever owned a Tardis.”

“But I don’t understand. You’re human, so how could you say that?”

“Well, yes, I did say that. But your argument hinges on the fact that I am human, and I am most certainly not human.”

“Then what are you?” Twilight asked.

“I’m a Time Lord; the very last of the Time Lords.”

“What do Time Lords do?”

“In the old days, when the universe was fresh and new, the Time Lords observed all of time and space; we explored and mapped practically the whole of the universe before Adam’s kind even saw their sun for the first time.”

“You’re the last of your kind?” Fluttershy asked.

The Doctor’s face lost its smile. He looked down at her, and his face was that of veiled melancholy. “Yes.”

“What happened? Your people sounded wonderful: where did they all go?” The Doctor paused, looking down at the most innocent pony to walk the fields of Equestria.

“There was a war.”

Rainbow Dash looked at him, her mind and heart brought to a screeching halt. The Doctor’s people, his whole race, wiped out. No family to go home to, no one. Even though he said he was different, it seemed he wasn’t all that unlike humankind after all.

“I’m so sorry.” Was all she could say.

“Nah, don’t worry about it. That’s not what’s important right now anyway! What is important is Adam. We need to get him out of Canterlot’s dungeons. Now, this is what I need you to do Twilight-“

“Hold on there, partner!” Applejack raised her right hoof as she spoke, “If we’re springin’ Adam, you’re includin’ all of us. We don’t split up.”

“Yeah!” Rainbow Dash exclaimed.

“Alright, fine, whatever! What I need you all to do, is slip this to him.” The Doctor handed a billfold to Twilight, who accepted it with her magic.

“What is it?”

“Inside that wallet is Psychic Paper; normally it says anything you want anyone else to believe about you on it; handy for getting in places you normally wouldn’t. I’ve tweaked it a bit so that it acts as a psychic transponder; if you give that to Adam, I can telepathically triangulate his position, and then we can go and rescue him in this.” The Doctor lovingly patted the console of the Tardis.

“So you plan on rescuing Adam from the most secure prison in all of Equestria with a blue box? You’re crazy.”

“Oh yes! I do sound a bit daft don’t I? But that’s because I haven’t mentioned that ‘Tardis’ is in fact an acronym, and it stands for ‘Time And Relative Dimensions In Space’.

Pinkie Pie whistled, “Fancy long name! No wonder you shorten it down to just ‘Tardis’. What does it mean?”

The grin was back on The Doctor’s face once again, as he playfully said, “It means, Pinkamena Diane Pie, that this is my time and space machine! We can travel anywhere! You want to go visit the moon or the sun?: Done in one of my two heart’s beats. Visit Starswirl the Bearded in his prime? We can stay for tea. All of space and time is reachable in this machine; nothing is impossible!”

“If that’s true, why not prevent Adam from gettin’ trapped in the first place?” Applejack queried.

“Can’t do it; it would place us in the chain of events, big no-no. Especially at the rate this universe is deteriorating. Besides, I would be crossing my own timestream; especially bad idea. Anyway, you all need to get going; we haven’t got much time to spare anymore; buy express class on the train, this world is counting on you, and I promise I will explain everything when you get back.”

“The world’s counting on us?” Rainbow Dash gave a tsk, as she flew out the door behind her five friends, “Doesn’t it always need us?”

The doors of the Tardis closed behind her. The Doctor’s face was grim. Ditzy stared up at him with a worried expression.

“How bad is it now Doctor?”

The Doctor was staring at a monitor linked to the console of the Tardis. It held a countdown: 2:17:43:18.

2 days, 17 hours, 43 minutes, 18 seconds until total event collapse.

“Very bad. This world is depending on those ponies getting to Adam in time. If they don’t, it’s Doomsday for everyone.” He looked down at Ditzy Doo, “This world needs those six ponies more than ever before.”

Chapter Thirty-Four

The six ponies had set out almost immediately for Canterlot. Twilight Sparkle quickly wrote down a letter for Princess Celestia so she would know they would be coming, in order that they could reach Celestia’s presence as quickly as possible. Since it was late evening, there wasn’t exactly a large crowd to contend with, so they did as The Doctor told; buying the express tickets. They arrived in Canterlot station around dawn. The sun rose with colors of deep orange, colors that seemed to reflect the girls’ determination and resolve to save their friend.

On the way to Canterlot, the girls had devised a plan, since none of them could sleep easily anyway. As the six of the approached Canterlot castle, Pinkie Pie, Rainbow Dash, and Rarity split from the others and headed towards the courtyards. Their main objective was distraction, something all of them had a spectacular talent in. Rainbow Dash could do her aerial stunts, Rarity had her feminine wiles for the less easily distracted guards, and Pinkie Pie was mare extraordinaire at distractions by simply being herself.

“Hey everypony!” Heads turned as Pinkie Pie cartwheeled into the central courtyard. “I’m here on serious business, so there is one thing you must absolutely know.” All eyes were riveted to her, as she pulled a rolling heavily decorated cannon from nowhere. “IT’S PARTY TIME!!!” The cannon fired straight into the air, and Rainbow Dash shot out and barrel rolled into the sky, her tailwind stained with the colors of the rainbow. Most of the guards were mesmerized; others needed more convincing.

“Oh my! What a display of technique and prowess!” Rarity spoke in her most melodramatic voice. “I’m feeling faint. Oh, who will catch my fall?” She began to fall, but was saved by a pearl white Pegasus in ceremonial royal armor. Rarity’s eyes fluttered as she put on her silkiest voice, “Well, hello handsome!”

Twilight, Fluttershy, and Applejack continued on their way to the Royal Sisters’ proclamation chamber, where public ceremonies, royal hearings, and general business of the castle took place. As they were allowed to enter, Twilight was quick to notice that though there were now two thrones, only one of them was occupied, that one belonging to Princess Celestia.

The Princess stood from her throne and came to give her student a winged hug. “Twilight Sparkle, It’s been so long since you’ve actually come to see me here in the castle. I was quite surprised to have received a letter so quickly since yesterday. How are you feeling today?”

“Very well, Princess Celestia. I’ve brought two of my friends with me: Applejack and Fluttershy.” Both of them bowed before their Princess. Celestia looked at Fluttershy with a small amount of realization.

“You were the pony Twilight mentioned yesterday. You were the one chased by the creature?”

“If I might say, your Majesty, he is not a creature; Adam is a human being.”

The Princess looked to Twilight and gave a small sigh, “I expect then this isn’t a social call?”

Twilight shook her head,“I’m afraid not Princess. We still believe Adam is innocent, and these are the two best character witnesses in all of Equestria.”

Applejack stepped forward and spoke, “Princess Celestia, if ah may, Adam was introduced tah me by Lyra Heartstrings, and she had been in company with Adam for a while before anyone else knew of him. He was intelligent; we talked fer hours with him, and he wouldn’t hurt a fly. There’s no doubletalk in what ahm sayin’; ah am the Element of Honesty afterall.”

“It’s true your Majesty,” Fluttershy quietly concurred.

Princess Celestia sighed again and looked at them like a knowing parent trying to explain something to a small child. “Like I told Twilight Sparkle yesterday; sometimes things are more than what they seem. I was on the verge of believing him as well, but his actions against me must be taken into account, along with all the evidence that Bunsen Burner has brought me.”

“But can you actually trust him?” Twilight asked.

“Bunsen Burner was my greatest student before you and your predecessor Twilight. He has been responsible for some of our greatest scientific innovations. He is loyal to me and to Equestria. He does his best to protect you and all ponies, just like I do. I would trust his word to the end.”

"But even if he was acting on misinformation, aren’t his measures too extreme? Where are Lyra and Bon Bon?”

“I’ve been told they are in the medical wing of the castle, being given the best of care.”

“Can you confirm that?”

“There is no need to. Bunsen Burner has seen to their affairs, and they should be released from observation very soon.”

“I have one request Princess, if you’ll allow it.”

“What is it, Twilight?”

“Could we assist Bunsen Burner in his studies then? Since we know so much about them, we could help him understand humans; we want to keep Equestria safe.”

The Princess thought about it for a moment. “I’ll allow it.”

Chapter Thirty-Five

The dungeons of Canterlot had had the reputation of being the most secure prison in all of Equestria. The public had little knowledge of the facilities beneath Canterlot Castle now, and seemingly had little reason to know; nopony in a few centuries had been sentenced there. In the three-hundred years before the events of our story, Princess Celestia had greatly adjusted the public view of capital punishment: a modern world needed a modern way of rehabilitating criminality. The facilities for the most part had been modernized around the beginning of the last century with both additional security and comfort in mind. For the most part, the prison had been converted into the Royal Science Division’s sanctioned area of operation, making the cells now the Division’s barracks, test chambers, or any other need required of the organization’s constantly changing and growing demands. State of the art sciences were being developed here; the fastest growing being Bunsen Burner’s pet field: Xenobiologies and technologies.

Bunsen Burner had been a prodigy colt. He achieved his Cutie Mark a mere five months after birth, when he discovered he had an innate talent of being able to extrapolate the function and purpose of nearly anything by only several seconds of intense observation, then being able to recreate and improve the function of that said object. While normal colts or fillies were just learning their multiplication tables, Bunsen Burner was attempting to create his own electro-dynamo for scientific experimentation, able to do intermediate level Calculus mentally, and read magic tomes for new ideas on inventions. Princess Celestia soon heard of the young pony’s accomplishments, and decided to take him on as an apprentice. That had been almost twenty years ago. By horse standards, he would have been the human equivalent of about his early 50’s. The onset of age had not dulled his mind or senses in the least bit. Since his release from Celestia's care, he had created a non-magical means of teleportation, an accomplishment he had been striving for since his early days studying arcane theory for inspiration.

After Princess Celestia obliged their request, Twilight, Applejack, and Fluttershy were led down to the dungeons by one of her guards. “Ah don’t understand Twilight,” Applejack whispered into Twilight’s ear, “I thought we were tryin’ to avoid comin’ face tah face with these ponies. What are you doin’?”

“If we act like we want to help, they’re more likely to let us deeper in, so we can find out where Adam actually is. If we can, we might be able to release Lyra and Bon Bon as well.”

The three of them were processed through a checkpoint. “I’m sorry ma’am, but nothing is allowed on your body past this point,” one of the guards said to Twilight Sparkle. “You’ll have to leave your bag here.”

Twilight momentarily panicked, but an idea struck her. “Are you absolutely sure I must?” As she asked, she quietly teleported the Psychic Paper. Fluttershy gave a little squeak as she looked at her left wing, then she looked to Twilight.

“I’m sorry ma’am but you must leave your bag here. You will have it returned to you later.”

Twilight huffed, “Oh, alright.” She magically placed her bag at the guards hooves and the three of the ponies were led further into the complex. Twilight looked to Fluttershy and whispered, “Can you hang on to that for me?” Fluttershy nodded her head.

They were led into a large office, and were told to wait patiently. The office was comfortable looking enough, though it was rather minimalistic. The only thing decorating the wooden walls of mahogany was a painting by Vincent Van Goat and a book shelve. The girls took their places on plush pillows placed before a desk set perfectly center within the room. The door opened once more behind them, and the stallion himself walked slowly into the office. He took his place behind the desk. He smiled thinly as he spoke, “So, you three have come to help me in my studies?”

Chapter Thirty-Six

Bunsen Burner looked at the three ponies before him. Though his duties generally kept him informed on current events, these three were a part of the group of ponies who were consistently responsible for those 'current events'. They along with the Elements of Laughter, Generosity, and Loyalty had restored Princess Luna to her natural state and thwarted Discord’s near successful rule of chaos. Those had been two interesting events that had been a part of recent Equestrian history which Bunsen Burner had had to clean up. It was a duty Bunsen Burner’s Royal Science Division had not been initially created for; the protection of Equestria and all its citizens, but adaptability had been one of Bunsen’s personality traits from birth.

Bunsen Burner was obligated and willing to follow Princess Celestia’s command to allow these three to help him in his research; he still retained his professional respect of his old mentor. He was willing to allow it if only because he was curious as to how they would react in the human’s presence. Twilight Sparkle had shown a belief in the human’s innocence; perhaps her reintroduction to the subject would catalyze the subject to reveal more information than what had been gained already. All the same, Bunsen Burner was no fool; they would try to help the subject if they truly believed he was innocent. Now it was time to be objective, and time to study his ‘graduate students’.

“So, you three have come to help me in my studies?”

Applejack nodded. “Yessir Mr. Burner. We wanna make sure we cain help our fellow ponies tah be safe.”

“Good, patriots are always appreciated here. And you must be Fluttershy? A pleasure to meet you. I was told by Twilight Sparkle here that you had the misfortune of being chased by our prized subject.”

“Yes.”

“Thank you for your support in spite of your experience.”

Here he came at last to look at Twilight. “Twilight Sparkle. It wasn’t too long ago that I was in the role of student as you are. Perhaps someday soon you can serve Equestria in a role protecting your fellow ponies.”

“To be honest Mr. Burner, we all sort of already do that.”

“True, but perhaps you might someday want to be paid for your hard work?” He gave a low chuckle. None of the three ponies before him laughed. They might be intimidated by him. He saw no need to dispel that.

“Now, I can see you are all eager to begin, so why don't we head down to the subject’s holding chamber?”

“Um, do we really have call him a ‘subject’?” Fluttershy asked quietly.

“I understand that it is in your nature to be caring to any creature Fluttershy, but we must also be objective: this creature is dangerous, and we must be of a scientific mindset in order to study it more effectively; without sentimentality.”

“Sorry.”

“It’s fine; not many ponies have a nature for the fields of science, and I appreciate your help greatly.” Bunsen Burner rose and walked to the door out of his office; the girls filed out behind him. As he led them out of the office, he led them past several cells. The cells were designed with observation in mind; the walls looking into the cells were made of one-way Plexiglas, and an intercom fed any sounds made by the occupants to the observers.

“With the subject’s believed abilities of telepathy, we made use of a technology we recently procured that utilizes sonic energy for therapy on those ponies who have had great exposure to its psychomagnetic projections.”

Applejack’s eyes glazed over “Um, beg pardon?”

“They’re using noise to stop the subject’s telepathy,” Twilight quickly explained.

“Very good, Twilight Sparkle. Now, here are our first two patients.” Within the first two cell’s beds lay Lyra and Bon Bon.

Chapter Thirty-Seven

“Lyra and Bon Bon?” Fluttershy gave a tiny gasp.

“I’m afraid so. They appeared to have had the longest exposure to the creature. Because of this, they’ve been under the subject’s telepathic will for quite some time, making our use of therapy quite delicate. They have recently been pacified."

“Pacefied? Whadja mean bah that?”

“When they are cognizant, they are extremely aggressive against any interaction or treatment. We can only hope they will be healthy again someday.”

“Princess Celestia said they would be released soon,” Twilight said.

“Pardon?” Bunsen Burner turned from the observation wall to face Twilight.

“Princess Celestia said you would be releasing them soon from the castle’s infirmary.”

Something flickered past Bunsen Burner’s face. Twilight saw at once that he did not like to be questioned. His stoic attitude returned almost immediately.

“I’m so sorry that misinformation was given; an oversight, I’m sure. Sadly, we may have to hold them indefinitely.”

“Indefinitely? Why?”

“As I stated before, these two are aggressive to any interaction; the subject appears to have weaponized them against other ponies. They hold a loving relationship to the subject, while animosity is held for anyone else. They have become a danger to other ponies and to themselves.”

Bunsen Burner trotted to a cell just across from the two cells to show the three ponies their next ‘guest’.

“This is Vinyl Scratch. A music entertainer of minor renown, she fell victim to the subject as well. It appears she had heard the rumors about the subject’s existence, and tried to prepare accordingly. She sacrificed herself to get the sonic technology to us.”

“What happened tah her?” Applejack asked.

“After providing us with the technology, she was taken by the creature. Rather than trying to enslave her, it destroyed her mind. She’s been in a catatonic state like this for several days now.” Bunsen Burner looked down at the form of the white unicorn, and shook his head. “It truly is a pity that it couldn’t have been stopped sooner.”

They walked further down the hallway, and they stopped at a secured door. Bunsen Burner approached the door, and lowered his half-moon spectacles for a light that scanned his eye. There was a decompression, and the sound of bolts retracting.

“This particular door only responds to my retinal patterns, so if you wish to do any research in the presence of the subject, you must have me to accompany you, otherwise you won’t get in. Understood?”

The girls nodded.

“Good. Now, be careful. The subject may attempt to telepathically seize you. Warn me if you begin to feel strange in any way, and I will take the according countermeasures.”

Applejack felt anger rise in her chest; to hear all of these lies about other ponies and her human friend was bad enough, but to actually cause harm to him? It was taking all of her self-control not to buck Bunsen Burner against the wall. The door swung open fully, and the three ponies filed in to get their first view of Adam in a while.

Chapter Thirty-Eight

In the short time I had been in the custody of my captor, I had been subjected to many forms of interrogation. I had been asked of my origin, my abilities, where my fellow soldiers were, where first we would strike at ponykind. I gave no answers; the last few were ludicrous to begin with, and I wasn’t in a really talkative mood. They subjected me to hypnotherapy; I resisted as much as I could, and they weren’t satisfied with the answers I gave. They finally put me on a sodium pentothal drip; truth serum. After pacifying me with some kind of tool that looked like a gun which made humming noises, they made me talk. In my hazy stupor, I was all too willing to offer conversation.

“Tell me..your name,” A voice asked me.

“..Which one?”

“Tell me your name.” The voice was more insistent this time.

“Adam.”

“That’s good. Do you know me?”

“Bunsen Burner.”

“Excellent. Where did we first meet?”

“Ponyville..library.”

“Very good. The serum seems to be in full effect now. Why are you here Adam?”

“..You dragged me down here?”

“..True, but why are you here in Equestria? What resources do we have that your alien kind desire?”

“..I dunno.”

“Surely you were briefed before you came to this land? You are a warrior after all.”

“I’m not a soldier..I was sent..Had no choice.”

“Really? What are you then?”

“An experiment..Sent by teleportation.”

“Fascinating, another species has achieved teleportation. What magic do they use?”

“Don’t use magic.”

“Hm. So I have contenders in technology. From where do you originate?”

“..Elsewhere.”

“Where specifically? The Griffon Confederacy? The Diamond Dog Empire? The icy Northern Wastes?”

“..Elsewhere.”

“ ‘Elsewhere’..You’re not even from this planet, are you?”

“No.”

“Extraterrestrial threat, wonderful.” The sarcasm was strong in Bunsen Burner’s voice. “I think that’s enough for today.”

Bunsen Burner exited my chamber. The next time he came, there were more questions, and more truth serum.

“What is the plan of attack? Where will you strike first?”

“I told you..I’m no soldier.”

“Yes, well, I don’t believe you.”

“You jack me up..on truth serum..and then..don’t believe what I’m saying?”

“You must have been trained very well to withstand its effects. It’s seems I’m going to need some other means of interrogation. Perhaps Princess Luna would be willing to oblige; her telepathy can withstand anything the subject may try to bring to bear.”

“I’ve met..Princess..Luna.”

“Have you now? Tell me, Adam, what does she look like?”

“Purple..Wings..Horn..Mane like a..sea of stars.”

“..Hmm. Perhaps he is even more resourceful then I originally perceived; to be able to be in the presence of one of Royal Sister’s uninvited takes a great deal of stealth to avoid the castle guards. Tell me, were you attempting to assassinate her as well?”

“No!..I..Wait.” I had paused. The pieces were clicking together, even in my severely idled mind. I chuckled groggily.

Bunsen Burner looked up from his note taking. “Something amusing?”

“Oh, yes..It was you..Aaaaall along..You made me..try to kill Celestia..With your magic gun..or whatever.”

“It’s science, not magic.”

“Semantics..How’d you..force Vinyl Scratch..—“

“To give me the technology for her experimental sonic therapy? When you can bring to muster the very force of a government down on a pony, you can easily convince them to cooperate.”

“..What have you..done to her?”

“I’ve put her out of the way for now. I’m using her technology to sedate you. I can’t risk her sabotaging her own tech even if she were conscripted under me with the threat of banishment. So I sedated her as well.”

“Why?”

“Why? Simply put, because of you. You are, first of all, a hostile rogue element; I cannot control you, and you are an imbalance in my perfect system of order that is Equestria. Secondly, you are a threat to ponykind, and it is my duty to restrain you, and if need be, execute you. Thirdly, you are a mystery to me; a mystery that seemingly popped from out of the blue into my hooves. I hate mysteries, and I most certainly hate surprises.”

“I’m a..big mystery?”

“Not for long. When this is over, I plan on becoming intimate with every mystery you could hold.”

“..Dissection?”

“If need be, yes.”

Here I chuckled again, which grew to mirthless laughter, which resonated off the porcelain walls.

“I can..finish your work..before you start..Wanna know how?”

“Thrill me.”

“You wanna..solve the mystery..of humanity? Look in the mirror..You’re just like me.”

This genuinely surprised Bunsen Burner it seemed. His face contorted to half veiled rage, and he snarled. “I am nothing like you, creature! DO YOU HEAR ME? Nothing.”

“My point..is proven,” I leaned back in my restrained chair with a dopey but smirking face. I might not have even been totally right in my assessment, but I have to admit that I enjoyed the vindictive message I left my captor. In my life, I have been passed from one ‘master’ to another; first the streets which I had lived on for so long, then some nameless scientists and whoever their leader was, and now this authoritarian horse. I had his name, his face, and I knew how he thought and operated, so I was going to do everything in my power to subvert him, even if I had to face my own mortality to do it.

Bunsen Burner stalked out of the room, and he wouldn’t return for many hours. The next time he did, he brought company.

Chapter Thirty-Nine

I saw Applejack, Fluttershy, and Twilight Sparkle enter after Bunsen Burner. He seemed to be in a better mood this time around. The Sodium Pentothal had worn off, so my mind was as sharp as could be, given that I still had a mild concussion from being kicked in the head.

“Oh no. Don’t tell me that he threatened you too?” Had Bunsen Burner conscripted them? My worries began to overtake me, as I realized my performance could hinge on their well-being.

Bunsen Burner spoke to them, “It appears the subject is already attempting to reassert control over you. I was afraid of this. Excuse me.” Bunsen Burner turned to face the wall. He went to a concealed panel and pressed a button, and a wall of Plexiglas began to descend. Fluttershy flicked her wing, and bizarrely enough, a wallet flew from her feathery appendage. It slid the last few feet noiselessly to stop right in front of my foot. Quickly I placed my foot over it; fortunately it was small enough that I could conceal it completely. I looked up to them; Twilight’s expression was stoic, Fluttershy was ruffling her wings. Applejack tipped her hat to conceal her face from Bunsen Burner as she gave a small smile and winked to me.

I had no idea what a wallet was going to do to help me, but I at least knew one thing; my friends hadn’t abandoned me, even if they had been coerced. All I had to do now was bide my time and play my part, and they would get me out somehow.

“What have you done to them? You can’t do this!” My raging voice was muffled significantly by the Plexiglas, but they could still hear me.

“Tell me, did he mention anything to you about specific cities he was interested in? I’m afraid this goes even deeper than just him. There is an invasion force of the subject’s kind waiting for his scouting report.”

Applejack continued to stare at me. “How didja get him teh fess up?”

“Truth serum. Kept him on a steady stream of the stuff for a while, but I’m afraid he may have been trained to combat it. What did he talk about with you, Applejack?”

“He mainly seemed only interested in Ponyville or Canterlot. Never really asked about any other cities.”

“And what about you Fluttershy? You encountered the subject first and survived with no ill effects by all accounts.”

“Um, well, he always walked on his two hind legs. He isn’t as fast as most ponies, but he is pretty strong.”

“Hmm. Yes. Twilight Sparkle? Any remarks?”

“I hope that you can better protect ponies by studying him. I guess I learned to not be as trusting by just appearance and words.”

“That is an unfortunate lesson that must be learned in life; as a scientist, I learned quickly to only be sure of something once I’d seen it with my own two eyes, and touched it with my two front hooves.”

“But what about trust in your friends?” Twilight asked.

Bunsen Burner paused. “Celestia is teaching you the ‘magic’ of friendship, yes?”

“That’s right.”

Bunsen Burner shook his head and sighed, “I can’t believe that old sow is still at it.”

Twilight’s mouth hung open; she was stunned beyond all belief, “What did you called Princess Celestia?”

Bunsen Burner looked Twilight firmly in the eyes. “From one former student to another, Twilight Sparkle, the faster you throw out the antiquated belief that friends can be any help at all, the better. Celestia, while having good intentions, sits in her castle all day, delegating most of her duties to me and several other ponies she calls ‘honorary royalty’ like the arrogant Prince Blueblood and his ilk. Her ‘pie in the sky’ philosophy lasts a very short time in the real world, as I found out soon after leaving her care. In this world, the only things you can rely on are your wits, and your hooves. Everypony else is fallible and unreliable, even sometimes the truest of ‘friends’.”

Twilight was absolutely dumbfounded by this ‘kernel of wisdom’. Applejack stepped in front of her, her face was as hard as stone,“I don’t think yeh require our services any longer, Mr. Burner. We’ll take our leave now.”

“Very well. You know the way out.” He waved his hoof toward the door.

The three ponies filed their way out of the room, and Bunsen Burner followed shortly followed thereafter. As soon as the door sealed, I frantically retrieved the wallet and opened it. The wallet contained a blank paper that took the place where the I.D. normally sat. I didn’t understand, and I almost threw the wallet down in a confused anguished rage when I began to notice the change. As if an invisible pen were writing it, letters, words, began to take shape on the blank paper, seemingly from nowhere. As it finished, I read the message in full, ‘Hope is a good emotion: rescue is coming.’

Chapter Forty

Rainbow Dash flew down to the three ponies that had just left the company of the less then appealing scientist Bunsen Burner. “What took you guys so long? I was starting to run out of maneuvers, and I have a pretty big playbook!”

Pinkie Pie walked over; the bounce that was usually in her step was gone, her hair was deflated a little, and she was sweating profusely. “I’m tired. Partying isn’t as much fun when you have to do it for a long time, or when you have to do it. Did you find Adam?”

“Yep! Mission accomplished!” Applejack exclaimed as she began to gallop away, the other five closely behind her.

“The sooner we get Adam out of Bunsen Burner’s hooves, the better.” Twilight said.

“The brute!” Rarity interjected, “What has he done to him?”

“Nothing major yet, it seems. I think that was mainly for our sakes; like he was planning for us to come to him.”

“Do you think he did?” Fluttershy questioned.

“He seems the type.”

Fluttershy nodded, “Yeah, the scary, not really want to get on his bad side kind of type.”

Rainbow Dash looked over to Twilight,“So now we just tell Ditzy Doo that we did it, so the Doctor can save him?”

“I guess so.” Rarity piped in, “Oh by the way, if we need to storm the castle, I know when the guards all change their shifts!”

“Really? Great! How’d you find that out?”

“A true lady is just as good as any diplomat,” Rarity cantered with her eyes closed and nose to the air to extenuate her classiness.

“What the hay does tha' mean?” Applejack asked impatiently.

“It means while you three were being super-duper spies on the inside, Rarity was being a super spy out here promising all the guards a date!” Pinkie Pie exclaimed.

They reached the gates of Canterlot at high noon, and just as planned, Ditzy Doo was there with her mail satchel.

“We did it,” Rainbow Dash said as she came to a landing stop in front of the mailmare.

“Now please help us to save Adam like you promised,” Fluttershy asserted.

“Follow me.” Ditzy Doo turned tail and ran down the mountain road that led away from Equestria’s capitol city, and the six girls followed. Just out of sight around the bend leading to the front gate stood the Tardis, the doors open and waiting.

As the girls rounded the bend, the Doctor was at the door, calling out to them. “Excellent! I knew you all could do it!” He stood aside as the seven ponies galloped into the remarkable machine. They stood back as the Doctor rushed to the console of the Tardis. “Now then, I fixed the position of the psychic paper, and we are ready!”

“So, how does this thing fly anyway?” Rainbow Dash hovered a little above the Doctor’s head.

“Well, normally the Tardis simply vanishes from one place and rematerializes in another, but I can’t do that right now; the Void is taking too much of her power, so we’re going to have to literally fly this box into the prison.”

He pressed several buttons on the console, and then pumped a handle on the side of the console several times. He pointed to Rarity, “Hold down that lever right in front of you!” Rarity complied, pressing down on the lever. “Now let go!” She let the lever return to its initial position. “Aaaand,” the Doctor pulled down a black handled crank, “we’re off!”

The central column of the Tardis began to slide in an up and down motion, which was accompanied by a mechanical wheezing sound. VroOOOm. VroOOOm. VroOOOm.

The six ponies paused, “Was something supposed to happen?” Pinkie Pie asked.

“Well, since you left the doors open, see for yourselves.”

The ponies whipped around and were shocked beyond belief: outside of the two doors, the landscape was thirty feet beneath them, and they were about to pass over two thoroughly surprised guards atop Canterlot Gate. They passed over several closely fit together houses, narrowly avoiding a spired building.

“Oh, gotta watch out for that!” The Doctor yelled as he laughed. “I haven’t had this much fun in years!”

“This is absolutely insane!” Twilight yelled above the noise of the wind while grabbing the nearest railing and holding on for dear life.

“I know! Isn’t it great?” the Doctor giddily replied back.

Ditzy Doo was hanging on to a nearby railing as well, while Rainbow Dash had become plastered to the farthest wall from the gale force wind outside, “I can’t feel my bones!”

Rarity screamed in fright as she gripped Pinkie Pie and Applejack, who was holding the three of them by her back legs alone. Pinkie Pie was laughing in delight. “This is better than any carnival ride ever!”

A yellow blur whizzed past, but the Doctor caught it with his outstretched leg; it was Fluttershy, scared nearly out of her mind. “We’re going to die!”

“Don’t be silly, you have me for a pilot!”

“I KNOW!!!” She now clung to his leg with a death grip.

The Doctor reached over to the monitor on the console which was charting their path to their destination. “Uh-oh.”

Rarity yelled, “You had better have not just said ‘uh-oh’!”

“Hang on, got to partially dematerialize then rematerialize. The power surge caused by the incomplete transition could short out her circuits, and we’ll lose more of the Void to the event collapse, but we’ll have to risk it, though the tachyon flow might not—“

"Speak regular Equestrian!” Applejack shouted.

The Doctor pulled another lever and cranked a wheel. He then turned to face the Tardis' doors, lifted his left arm, and snapped his fingers. The doors of the Tardis closed of their own accord. With that done, the Doctor strapped into the command chair and yelled, “BRACE FOR IMPACT!” Everyone screamed.

Chapter Forty-One

Bunsen Burner was in his office, thinking over the past hour and a half. While they were here, the three of the six Elements of Harmony had not attempted to rescue any of their friends. In fact, other than the one contradiction made by Twilight Sparkle, they had seemed helpful; too helpful.

He shook his head and put his hooves together. He turned his specially built office chair around to face the large glass window panel that had a commanding view of the old indoor yard. Though the place had not been an actual prison in decades, the workers, scientists, and soldiers under his command simply called it ‘The Floor’, just as it had been called for many years.

Bunsen Burner leered down at The Floor, his eyes glazed over. While physically he was looking at an expansive field of tile below; in his mind he was looking back over every single moment he had been consciously aware of. Sifting, sifting back seconds, minutes, an hour. The only time he had not had those three near or directly in his line of sight was when he turned his back on them to lower the sound shield in front of the subject. They must have done something then, something infinitesimal, but highly important; but what?

Over the noise of his own thought process, he began to hear a sound. His ear twitched as he became consciously aware of it. It was a sound unlike any Bunsen Burner had ever heard, a sound like the continuous breathing of a mighty beast. Breathing in and out; in and out. VroOOOm, VroOOOm, VroOOOm.

The sound was growing larger with each passing moment, and it seemed to be coming from behind the glass; beneath on The Floor. A little thought in the back of his head told him that something was coming; though that particular fact was obvious. But, it was something powerful, imperishable. Something..transcendent of all creation. So though reactively he yelled ‘What in the name of the Royal Sisters?’ when a large blue box flew through the wall without causing it any harm, he also foreknew of it’s coming, and that it was something to be in awe of, and a little twinge of fear gripped his heart.

The blue box glided toward the floor, though it continued to speed towards the incoming wall. It touched the ground momentarily, and skidded a bit, leaving torn up tile and concrete in its wake. Before it had a chance to come to a halt with a light bump on the wall, Bunsen Burner slammed his left hoof down on the Intercom button, “All personnel, report to The Floor immediately; intruders in the facilities.” He leapt from his chair and proceeded to the nearest flight of stairs down to the Floor. By the time he slammed the door open to The Floor, the first layer of unicorns and sonic armed regular ponies along with squadrons of pegasi were assembling, flanking and choking every exit point around the blue box.

Bunsen Burner stepped forward and in front of his ponies to look at the blue box. Odd; no movement, no noise any longer, it just sat there, looming over them. Stranger still, the box was made of wood, or at least it seemed to be; a wooden box that could rip up tile and concrete without being shattered to bits? This was an utter mystery, and Bunsen Burner didn’t like it.

Chapter Forty-Two

Rainbow Dash groaned. She started to pick herself off of the floor, noting with some small satisfaction that she at least appeared to be in one piece. Two front hooves, two back hooves, wings, ears, tail, mane; each in good working order. She stood up fully, only to feel a sharp jab of pain in her chest. She yelped involuntarily, and tears began to flow.

The others had started to get up as well; Pinkie Pie, Rarity and Applejack were piled up together next to the wall on her left. Twilight had ended up near them along with Ditzy Doo as well.

“Ooh, my aching head,” Twilight moaned. She looked over to her wall-eyed wall companion, “Do these trips normally have this much turbulence?”

Ditzy Doo jostled herself into an upright position from having her rump in the air and head to the floor, “I don’t know, this was only my second trip in the Tardis. The first was getting to Canterlot.” She looked around, “Where’s the Doctor?”

“Present,” came a short pained reply from the command chair that sat near the Tardis’ control console. Fluttershy was still gripping the Doctor’s leg with a vengeance. “Though my leg could use a little circulation; could you please get off Fluttershy?” Fluttershy wasn’t responding, As she was still in shock from the trip and the crash. After forcibly removing Fluttershy from his leg, he checked the console. “Well, it’s not the worst landing I’ve been a part of, but it could have definitely used a little more finesse.”

“How could you possibly have been in a worse crash then this?” Rarity asked loudly.

“Long story made short: I was forced to crash and I died for a sixth time.”

“Wait, what?” Twilight asked. “You died? A sixth time?”

“It’s okay, I got much better after that.”

“How could you die multiple times? That doesn’t make sense.”

“It’s a funny story that I might tell you sometime later. Is everyone alright?”

“I’ve been better,” Rainbow Dash whispered in pain as she gingerly walked towards her friends.

“Rainbow Dash! What’s wrong?” Pinkie Pie asked with concern.

The Doctor hurriedly stepped away from the console and made his way to the cyan pegasi, “Move, I can help.” He took a metal cylindrical device from his coat pocket, and pointed the humming electric blue tipped device into Rainbow Dash’s eyes, and then towards her midsection. “Pulse is steady, no internal bleeding, but she’s dislocated one of her ribs.”

Fluttershy shook her head, fully recovered from the crash, and quickly made her way over to her injured friend. “Oh no! We need to get her to a hospital soon! This is going to take weeks to heal!”

“Weeks?” Rainbow wheezed, “You mean, I can’t fly, again?”

“Hold on, this will only take a minute. Be strong, this is going to hurt for a few seconds. Ready?” Rainbow Dash nodded her head, tears were streaming down her face, and it hurt too much to breath or speak. “1..2..3.” He pressed the button once more on the device. There was a discernible popping noise, and Rainbow Dash cried out in pain. Her friends cringed in fear and concern. “Don’t worry, it’s done. You’re ready to fly again.”

Rainbow Dash looked down at her side, and flexed her wings. She breathed in deeply and sprang into the air with a little laugh of triumph. After doing a lap around the interior of the Tardis she came back down. “Wow! I feel great! More than great! Thanks Doc!”

“You’re welcome,” the Doctor said with a small smile on his face.

Applejack looked up at the cylindrical device, ‘That sure is an amazing thing-a-ma-jig you’ve got. Wha' is it?”

The Doctor tossed it upward, and it flipped in midair. “Sonic Screwdriver,” he put the device back in his coat pocket,
“The ultimate utilitarian aid; you can use it for just about anything. Now then,” he headed towards the double doors of the Tardis, “I think we’ve been putting it off long enough; let’s go say ‘hello’ to the neighbors.” He took the doors by the handles, and opened them towards himself.

Chapter Forty-Three

The doors to the blue box opened, and a man came forth. Bunsen Burner stood his ground, as did his forces. The man walked forward, and stopped directly in front of Bunsen Burner. He exuded an aura of confidence quite unlike Bunsen Burner had ever seen from any being he had met. Either he’s vain, bluffing, or both. Bunsen Burner couldn’t quite pick which one he favored as truth.

The man looked down at him, “I’m I to assume you are the pony in charge here?”

“That would be correct,” Bunsen Burner replied with a twinge of annoyance, as if it weren’t completely obvious who was in command.

“And what would your name be, Mister Pony-in-charge?”

Bunsen Burner was unsurprised to see the Elements of Harmony walking out of the blue box from the corner of his eye. “Bunsen Burner, the Royal Majesties’ Chief Science Officer, and Administrator of the Royal Science Division. State your name and intent, human.”

“Oooh,” the Doctor brought up his hand to his mouth, offering mock concern to the stallion, “like to get right down to business, don’t we, Science Officer Bunsen Burner? Well, I’m the Doctor.”

“That is a title, not a name; and practitioners of medicine are only needed in hospitals; not in my facility.”

“So stern! But whether you like it or not, I am the Doctor, and I’ve come for the human in your custody.”

“I don’t care if you’re one of the Royal Family; short of the Sisters themselves calling him forth, the subject stays under my control.”

“I must take him into my care; he is extremely important if this world is to be spared.”

“How dare you threaten my domain!”

“It’s not actually yours, but back to the matter at hand, have you noticed anything odd in the sky recently?” The question hung in the air, which was filled with an enormous intensity as the exchange of words grew more and more agitated.

“What are you blathering about?”

“You must have instruments pointed up at the sky. I mean, you said yourself you were the Royal Science Division; have you noticed anything odd? Atmospheric disturbances? Lightning without storm clouds?”

“I don’t know, but what I do know is that I can put you in a cell near the other human’s so you can throw your excrement in each other’s general direction like the apes you are.”

The Doctor gave Bunsen Burner a glare, which momentarily silenced him, “That was rude, but I’ll let it pass for their sake,” he pointed to the seven ponies behind him. The Doctor’s face lost any jollity it had before, and he spoke in a voice that matched his grave expression, “Your world is placed near an expanding spatial anomaly which will destroy your world completely. I am the only one who can help you stop it, but I need the human. Release him to me, and we can find a way to save your world together.”

Bunsen Burner glared back up at the Doctor, and as he spoke, every single word was laced with venom, “Why should I trust you, a human who threatens my world, and offers imaginary apocalypses? I will not release the human to you, and you will never leave this place. GUARDS! TAKE ARMS!” The ponies with sonic cannons took aim at the Doctor, the specially designed triggers for their cannons placed between their jaws. The unicorns lowered their horns, each aglow with its unique color. The Pegasi were poised in the air, ready for a strafing run or for any escape from the intruders.

The six Elements and Ditzy Doo were frightened, but they stood their ground as well.

“Doctor,” Fluttershy quietly asked, “what’s gonna happen?”

“Just stay close to the Tardis, and we’ll be fine,” he murmured to the group.

“AIM!”

“Ah don’t see how we’re gonna do this,” Applejack replied with growing worry.

“Do you trust me?”

“FIRE!” Sonic guns boomed, magic bolts flew, and Pegasi dove.

Chapter Forty-Four

The spells of every unicorn and the bolts of every sonic cannon blazed towards the Tardis and the small group in front of it. Pinkie Pie involuntarily closed her eyes, waiting for the impact of something hitting her. It never came. She open one eye a crack, and then opened them fully to see the amazing sight before her eyes. The bolts of energy that had been heading their way simply stopped several feet in front of her, and then instantaneously vanished, leaving no trace that they had even existed. The firing stopped for the Pegasi to dive-bomb the group, but they hit the same invisible wall and bounced off, ungracefully falling into the crowded forces below. Pinkie Pie looked to the Doctor to explain what had just happened, but she stopped as she saw he was pulling out his Sonic Screwdriver. Her back hoof gave a twitch, and her stomach gurgled.

“Everypony cover your ears!” She quickly yelled to her friends, who, knowing of her peculiar but useful Pinkie-sense, quickly did what she said by getting down and covering their ears. The armed ponies in front of them were not so quick or so lucky to comprehend what was immediately in store for them. The Doctor activated his Screwdriver, and it produced a screeching sound which crashed over the crowds before him. Each pony, regardless of type, was quickly brought to the floor, either unable to hear, or unable to stand or fly. Each sonic gun’s inner workings cracked and shattered before the force of the small but potent device held in the Doctor’s hand, but not before transmitting the same sound that was destroying them, ensuring that every single pony experienced the effects of the sub-sonic boom's cacophonous wail. Of all the ponies in the room, of which there were nearly 150, only seven were standing and alright now.

“Time to move!” the Doctor yelled as he stepped around and over the ponies on the floor. The Elements and Ditzy Doo quietly followed behind him in single file. It was a short distance to the door that led upwards towards where the captives were stored, and fortunately, for time’s sake, the door was unlocked.

The Doctor took the lead as he approached the prison holds, “Since Bunsen Burner and his troops didn’t quite seem the friendly type, I imagine these others are in need of rescuing?”

Applejack spoke up as they trotted behind the Doctor’s jog, “Yeah, Lyra and Bon Bon, and a unicorn named Vinyl Scratch.”

“The musician and the sweets-maker? I never had a chance to sample their arts, and since they were probably brought here for ‘colluding with the enemy’, that’s all the more reason to get them out.” He pointed his Sonic Screwdriver at the locks on the door and activated it. There was a thud as the locks opened up and the door released, allowing access to the two unfortunate prisoners. The Doctor quickly terminated the sonic anesthesia on the both of them.

“I’m afraid for now they’re probably going to be deadweight, but they should come to in a couple of minutes.” Twilight hoisted Lyra on to Applejack’s back, while Rainbow Dash took Bon Bon on her shoulders. The Doctor made his way to the poor DJ-PON3’s cell and quickly opened it. After leaving the pearl white unicorn in the awaiting hooves of Rarity and Fluttershy, he made his way to the doubly secure cell of the ‘subject’; Adam.

“Oh, biometric lock! This, this is quite a bit of technological wizardry for you pony lot. This’ll take a while to spoof Bunsen Burner’s retinal pattern,” the Doctor squatted down to the lock’s level and began his work.

Chapter Forty-Six

I had been slipping into the first stages of sleep when I heard the door open. With the sound screen down I wasn’t sure who to expect; was that my captors, or my saviors?

The sound shield began to rise, and Pinkie Pie was the first to come through. “Hey Adam! How’ve you been?”

I couldn’t believe it, even though I knew it had been coming; my rescue was finally here!

I gave a little laugh of joy, and said “Whatever I was, I’m better now knowing I’m getting out of here!”

I saw Applejack and Rainbow Dash carrying both Lyra and Bon Bon, and I would have rushed over to check on my two closest friends if I weren’t restrained. “How are they? They haven’t been hurt have they?”

That’s when I noticed the man in the long coat behind them, “They’re just fine, but more importantly, how are you?”

I looked at him. Was this really true? Was I seeing another human being; a real, flesh and blood human being? I hadn’t seen another human in the flesh for almost two months. “Are you real?” I asked the man in a whisper.

“Yes, and we’re here to rescue you, Adam.”

“How do you know me?”

“Oh, you’re all the rage in Ponyville! We’ve got a lot to talk about, but first we need to get you out of here.” He began to unlock my restraints with some sort of pen device.

“Who are you?”

“I’m the Doctor.”

“No, what’s your real name?”

“What’s yours?”

My mouth was left hanging half open at his quick retort, “Hm..Touché.”

“Want to call it even, Adam?”

“Sure thing, Doctor.”

The last of my restraints were loosed, and I was a free man again..except that I was still in a maximum security facility beneath dozens of feet of rock, and several guards now beginning to recuperate. All things being in perspective, we were only halfway through the ordeal, but it’s the feeling of freedom that counts really.

The Doctor quickly waved his penlight-thing near my face. “You’ve suffered a mild concussion that hasn’t quite healed properly, and you are protein deficient, but other than that, you’re clean as a whistle!”

“And your flashlight told you all that?”

“It’s a Sonic Screwdriver, but that’s not important right now, we need to get back to the Tardis immediately!”

“..Tardis?”

Rainbow Dash grunted as she shifted Bon Bon and spoke up, “Yeah, it’s his time machine that flies! How cool is that?”

“..I’m dead; that’s it. I’m dead, and I just don’t know it yet.”

The Doctor called through the doorway of my cell, “You might be if we don’t get back to my ship before Bunsen Burner and his army fully recover! COME ON!”

I looked down to the girls, and quickly took Vinyl Scratch from off of Rarity’s back and laid her across my shoulder fireman style. I then took Lyra and Bon Bon under each arm, and hoisted them into the crooks of those arms, “If we need to get out of here fast, let’s go!” I said.

The girls followed the Doctor who was taking the lead, and we came up behind them all; the captives set free.

“Hang on,” I said towards Lyra’s ear, hoping she could hear me, “we’re almost home. We’re almost out of the dark.”

Chapter Forty-Seven

The Royal Science Division was picking itself up from off the ground. All of them had been deafened by the Doctor’s sonic barrage, but now the majority were fully able and ready once more. Bunsen Burner, while not a medical doctor, was still looking over those who had not recovered as quickly as the others.

“Somepony find out what that group has been up to; see if other subjects have been compromised or if the human was the only one desired by the Doctor.”

A lieutenant in the Royal Army, a pegasus, came forth to report to the Chief Royal Science Officer, “Sir!”

“Lieutenant Swiftfeet, what is the status of the Mad Adder?”

“Subject is still fully contained; nothing has harmed its stasis.”

“Well that is one miracle for today, thank Celestia.” Bunsen Burner cleared away his patient and gave his full attention to the Lieutenant. “With the sonic cannons out of commission, our only true hope of fighting is in the Unicorn Corps; everyone else will either be deafened by that infernal device the Doctor has or lose their equilibrium completely. See to the retreat of non-essential staff and the incapacitated, and rally those unicorns whom are fit for duty to me.”

“Sir.” The soldier pony was true to his name as he left swiftly to do everything his commanding officer had ordered.

“Now then, has anyone made progress on the box? What is it? What does it do? How does it function? I need answers ponies!”

A researcher came to report, “We have literally not a single clue how this thing works. It looks like an ordinary blue shed, but it’s completely seamless between the panels of wood, almost as if—“

“Almost as if it were not made, but grown?” Bunsen Burner murmured.

“Well, yes, I suppose that could be said about it.”

“Have you try internally investigating?”

“Yes. The force field we, uh, experienced earlier only reacts to threats; as long as no one tries to teleport inside, force it open, or even kick it, they can stand quite comfortably close. Otherwise, they get thrown for a loop.”

“So you’ve gleaned next to nothing?”

“Not quite, we discovered after several attempts to teleport inside that the space we were aiming for was not as small as we thought, like two layers of space are overlapping each other. We attribute that to pony error.”

“I wouldn’t be too sure.”

“Sir?”

“What’s your name, my good earth pony?”

“Rustling Breeze, sir.”

“Can I call you Rustle?”

“If you like, sir.”

“Rustle, there is a very complex form of magic postulated by some and experimented in by very few ponies. It’s called Dimensional Phasing. Princess Luna herself is the most well-known practitioner of and creator of that magic. It’s the magic to make objects appear from seemingly nowhere or to make objects intangible, storing large objects in small spaces, and overlapping two different parts of space that would naturally never meet. That little box you’re trying to get into is much bigger on the inside than it is on the outside.”

“What does that mean sir?”

Bunsen Burner stared up at the blue box before him, intently studying every nuance and change in contour of the ‘wood’ panels. “It means that this is unlike anything any pony has ever laid eyes on. It took hundreds of years to technologically create teleportation, and thousands of years of study before that to create it magically. If Princess Luna has only just created the magic behind this blue box, and no magical traces have been detected, this is thousands of years ahead of our time.”

Another pony called out to Bunsen Burner, “Sir, the unicorns have detected the location of the intruders, and they’re almost here!”

“Positions everypony!” Bunsen Burner called out to those earth ponies and pegasi still there. He turned to the researcher in front of him, “Rustling Breeze?”

“Sir?”

“Thank you for your services, now please get to safety.”

“But you’re an earth pony too, sir. Shouldn’t you come as well?”

“I must do this; as an example to them, and to you. Now go.”

Rustling Breeze galloped off, and Bunsen Burner walked slowly to the door where his team of unicorns was already set up to intercept the troublesome intruders.

Chapter Forty-Eight

Our little band of ponies, a man, and a Time Lord had nearly reached our means of rescue. There however was the issue of the battalion of ponies we were sure to face if we stepped even a foot outside our protective stairwell.

“Life’s never fun without complications, is it?” I had to remark with a sigh.

The Doctor looked back to me with a grin on his face, “Complications are what make life interesting!”

“So what’s tha plan now?” Applejack asked.

The Doctor pondered a minute, “We can’t just go out there; that’s suicide. We need a distraction…” His eyes lit up, “They can’t get natural sunlight down here, so they have to be using electricity of some type! If we could find a circuit breaker, we could shut off all the power, killing the lights!”

“That might only provide us with a second or two of cover,” Twilight dejected rebutalled, “If the lights don’t go directly to backups, then the unicorns out there can easily cast a spell of illumination; we’d be walking targets!”

“You know Twilight Sparkle, for being such an intelligent pony, you only ever seem to be able to shoot down others ideas rather than creating a few of your own,” the Doctor said with a playful frown.

A thought occurred to me at that moment, “Can’t you just summon it to yourself? You know, like ‘Beam me up Scotty’, and whisk us away?”

“Who the hay is Scotty?” Rainbow Dash asked.

“Doesn’t really matter right now, and no, I can’t. It would make things such a hell of a lot easier though with all the times I’ve gotten trapped like this. You know, I really should work on that.”

“Doctor! Back to the subject!” Ditzy Doo quickly blurted to steer the Doctor back on course.

“Right, sorry! Anyway, Oh! I know what we can do.” He began to fiddle with his Sonic Screwdriver, “I’m going to access the Tardis and lower the shields,”

“What good is that going to do us?” Rarity asked.

“It means that now the Tardis will allow someone to teleport inside, specifically, Twilight Sparkle.”

Twilight had been zoning until she heard her name mentioned, “Wait, what?”

“You need to teleport inside the Tardis and fly her to us.”

Rainbow Dash shook her head and exclaimed “Honestly Doc, if you can’t fly the thing without nearly killing us all, how is Twilight gonna do it?”

“She’s going to be my hands..” He paused in thought and looked down at Twilight, “Hooves. My hooves. And we’re not flying out this time; we’re dematerializing.”

“What does that mean,” I asked.

“We simply vanish from here, and reappear somewhere else.”

“This is getting weird, even for my life,” I grumbled.

“Um, no offense Adam,” Fluttershy quietly said, “I don’t mean to be rude, but your life here wasn’t exactly normal to begin with.”

“Hm, touché.”

“I don’t know if I can do this,” Twilight finally broke in, “What if I mess up? I could end up nowhere, or worse!”

“Or worse would probably be the more likely option,” the Doctor pointed out, “But don’t worry, just follow my exact instructions, and you’ll be fine. Now, can you sense it out there?”

Twilight closed her eyes and concentrated. Her tongue involuntarily stuck out as she searched for the Tardis’ interior. “I’ve found it.”

“Good, now then,” the Doctor got down on his knees and placed his splayed fingers across her face as he closed his eyes.

Applejack cocked her eyebrow in confusion, “Wwwhat are yah doin’?”

“I’m psychically transplanting instructions into Twilight Sparkle’s head. She’ll be able to temporarily pilot the Tardis just as well as I can.”

“Celestia help us all,” Rainbow Dash muttered.

“Oi, I heard that!”

After a few seconds of the Doctor’s psychic link, both of them opened their eyes. “Ready?”

“Ready.”

“Alright then. Off you go!”

And with that, Twilight Sparkle vanished in a burst of lavender hued light.

Chapter Forty-Nine

The Unicorn Corps and Bunsen Burner had been waiting outside of the door for a while. No movement came from the door at all. The silence was tangible; enough that even Bunsen Burner was starting to get impatient and shift from hoof to hoof in place.

He adjusted his glasses, “Where are they,” he quietly muttered.

“Sir? Should we charge the door?”

“Don’t be stupid, you’ll only end up cowering on your knees in pain again. But at the same time, we can’t let them have any more time to plan either. Check for their life signs; I want to know what my enemy’s condition is.”

A royal blue unicorn sent out a tiny wave of energy from his horn, which approached and penetrated the wall.

A blue ring of energy overtook us and passed through us.

“What was that?” Fluttershy whispered.

“I think..We’ve been ‘pinged’,” the Doctor slowly replied.

“Like sonar?” I asked worriedly.

“Yes, exactly like sonar. They’re checking our conditions, and they’ll quickly notice the absence of a certain purple unicorn.”

The Doctor’s face twisted in frustration as he closed his eyes, like he was praying one last desperate time. “Come on, Twilight Sparkle! Hurry up!”

The Tardis was filled with light as Twilight Sparkle landed in a disheveled mess near the console. Picking herself up and shaking the post-teleportation landing cramps out, she approached the console “Right, no time to waste!” and then she began.

“Now then, adjust the Chronal Spectrometer!” She flipped several switches with the tips of her hooves.

“Setting target coordinates to Pi-1,2-7, Alpha-97, Gamma.” She twirled a tiny sphere with her magic and stopped it on a specific spot.

“Activating spatial drives, aaand..” With a dramatic swing of her front leg, she brought her hoof down on a large glowing button.

“Tea is now being prepared with scones in the lounge,” she said with an ecstatic tone of voice.

She paused, “Wait a minute, I don’t even like tea!” She thought to herself, with a confused expression rapidly creeping into her face.

She just as rapidly dismissed it, “Oh well!”, and threw down the black lever, bringing the wondrous Tardis to life.

VroOOOm. VroOOOm. VroOOOm.

The unicorns and Bunsen Burner were startled when they heard the noise behind them. The blue box was radiating a slowly strobing light from its top, and it was becoming hazy looking, almost as if it were..

Bunsen Burner recovered the quickest “Move! It’s disappearing!” The unicorns behind him bolted toward the box, some teleporting as they went. But they simply reappeared right outside of the blue box, which was slowly vanishing.

“Out. of. my. WAY!” Bunsen Burner spoke through gritted teeth. He dove for the box as he galloped toward it. His hoof touched it, for the most infinitesimal millisecond, before it vanished completely.

He whirled around, “They’re getting away! Blast the door down!” The nearest unicorns aimed for the door and cast their destructive spells. The door bent under their force, but did not give way. “Sir, they’ve deadbolted the door!”

“Then atomize the door,” Bunsen Burner yelled in fury.

The unicorns took aim again, and fired. This time, the door gave way as it melted before the forces of magic acting on it. As the first unicorn peeked through, he just saw the door on the blue box close. He cast spell after spell, each being absorbed by the shielding of the accursed blue box. Then, it vanished altogether.

He looked back to his Commanding Officer and shook his head. Bunsen Burner struck his back hooves hard on the tile beneath, as he was momentarily consumed by his fury. No one spoke or interrupted his internal conflict.

After a long minute, he recomposed himself, and said simply, “This is a grievous loss..but this is not a defeat.” He turned, and walked away to find another means of getting to his office where he could compose a plan, “There is never defeat; only opportunities lost or gained.”

Chapter Fifty

The Tardis careened through time and space, nearly out of control as it was hit with wavefront after wavefront of temporal shifts and spatial anomalies.

“We have to set her down now!” The Doctor said through gritted teeth, “We’re losing the Void even worse than before!”

There was a massive jolt, sparks flew from the Tardis’ console, and we landed. The girls let go of the railings, and I released my brace from the railing and my back from the side of the command chair near the console.

“Where are we?” I asked with a small wince of pain; I was almost positive I bruised my kidney in flight.

“Well, we’re in the middle of the Everfree Forest; about a 7 mile trek from Ponyville.”

“Are we in danger now?”

“No more than usual, I’d guess,” the Doctor quickly murmured as he took out a pair of wide black framed glasses and put them on.

“Ok, two questions.”

“Fire away,” the Doctor began to work on the console.

“Bigger on the inside?” I asked as I pointed up to the roof of the Tardis.

“Yep.”

“Alright, I can take that in stride.”

“You had a second question didn’t you?” the Doctor blithely pointed out, as he was making some adjustments while looking at the monitor.

“Yes, what the hell are you?”

“I’m an alien.”

“Ok.”

The Doctor abruptly stopped his work, and looked up and back towards me in near surprise, “Really?”

I nodded my head in the affirmative.

“Really, you’re going to let me say ‘Look at me, I’m alien’, and just let me waltz on by?”

“My life has been a bit surreal of late; I traveled to a world populated by colorful horses who can talk, fly, and do magic. An alien and his time machine just puts the cherry on top of the banana split of weirdness that is my life so far!”

“That is a fantastic analogy. You know that, right?”

“Thank you, Doctor!” I said a little breathlessly.

The Doctor gave a little grin to that, and I had to give a little chuckle at my own analogy.

“Ok,” the Doctor clapped his hands as he turned to address all of us, “We’ve stabilized, we’re safe,”

The girls had been clustered around the three recent pony captives, but they quickly drew away as both Bon Bon and Vinyl Scratch struggled to open their eyes.

“Ohhhhh, did I’ve to much cider last night?” Vinyl Scratch groggily questioned.

“When did the cottage get metal paneling?” Bon Bon woozily asked.

“And hey! The prisoners are coming to their senses!”

“Not all of them,” Rarity said out loud with growing anxiety, “Lyra’s not waking up!”

I ran over, and lightly brushed the others aside, “Oh no, no, no, no.”

I lifted Lyra’s limp body up, and placed my ear against her mouth. I felt thin vapors brush past my ear, and I instantly became relieved.

“Thank God, she’s alive!”

The Doctor was beside me, and he scanned her with his Sonic Screwdriver. “She’s dreaming,” the Doctor said with a note of curiosity in his voice, “and obviously sound asleep; almost like she’s in a trance or something.”

I whispered into her ear, hoping desperately that what I’d heard others say about coma victims were true. I tried to recall her to life with my voice. “Lyra, come back to us. Come back to me Lyra. Come back to me.”

Chapter Fifty-One

Lyra, come back to me.

Lyra’s eyes fluttered open, but she was not awake to the real world. She was in a dark void, the only light in the strange collection of shadows coming from above, with the source of that light seemingly out of sight and out of reach. She got to her hooves from the position she had been lying in, and she began to look around.

That’s when she heard it; two beats, one being louder than the other by just the tiniest bit. As it neared, she could discern that the louder of the two beats had an accompanying faint sound of metal striking a surface. It wasn’t a pony that was for sure. It walked with two beats, which meant two feet. So it’s bipedal, but that could only mean..”Adam?” Lyra called out with some uncertainty.

The figure neared the light, and stood directly outside it, where the darkest shadows always seem to lie.

“I’m afraid Adam won’t be joining us for this little conversation. You see, I have some things I need to discuss with you, Miss Heartstrings.”

Lyra’s eyes narrowed; she might be the tiniest bit afraid of whomever this was, but she wasn’t about to show it. “What sort of things?”

“Oh, a bit of this, a bit of that. Some things from the present, some from the past. But what sort of host would I be without offering company a drink?”

There were some sounds of straining coming from the being before her, and then a pop, as if a wine bottle had just had its cork taken out. Then there was a pouring sound. The being stepped into the light; it was a man, a human being. But rather than the charm she had experienced while in Adam’s presence, this one seemed to give off a low level aura of..Lyra couldn’t describe it, but being near this man made her aware of some..wrongness the man gave off, like his standing before her was a crime against nature, as if he were the walking monkey wrench wreaking havoc in the universe.

The man was tall and gangly. He wore a brown set of slacks with dark brown loafers to match. He also wore a tan undershirt with a dark brown suit jacket that nearly matched the color of his slacks. His hair was slicked back, the hair and accompanying beard were white, and his eyebrows were long and unkept. His corneas almost looked white, but they also seemed to give off a slight yellow glow as well, and his irises were royal red. In his left hand, he loosely held the end of a cane, which had been the source of the metal striking sound. In his right hand, he offered Lyra a glass of brown thick liquid.

“Would you care for a glass of chocolate milk?”

The man smiled, and as he did, Lyra couldn’t help but look at the man’s right incisor, which was sharpened to a long point.

She looked at him in shock, and half-whispered, “What are you?”

The man leaned back, balancing his weight on his cane and downed the large glass of chocolate milk in a single gulp. He then tossed the glass away, seemingly without a thought, and allowed it to shatter into hundreds of microscopic pieces all over the floor. Then before Lyra’s awestruck eyes, the glass shards shuddered, flew towards the original point of impact, and reassembled themselves into a perfect replica of the glass that had hit the floor. The glass was clean; not a sud of milk was left in the spotless glass.

“It’s rather perceptive of you to ask, ‘What am I’, because technically I have no name.” He straightened the grey bowtie he wore, “There were hundreds of cultures and languages that gave me names: to the Egyptians, I was Set. To the Babylonians, I was Nergal. To the Teutonic tribes, I was Loki. To scientists I am Entropy, Inefficiency, and Chaos. I am the Serpent, and I am the craftiest of animals. But I believe you know me by a different name.”

The man made a retching sound, and bright, eerie red light spewed forth from his mouth, and primal energies burst forth from his mouth and eyes. Lyra looked up in horror, but at the same time couldn’t look away from the spectacle before her. The man’s shoes, feet, legs, cane, then torso and arms, and finally his head were consumed, or rather, released by the archaic fires that spewed from the man’s mouth and eyes. Writhing above Lyra was a cloud of red and yellow energy, that slowly began to coalesce into a coherent form. It was a flying serpent, made and wreathed in red fiery energy and flame. It opened its mouth to roared silently, with what seemed a bizarre mix of triumph, sadness, and pain.

The flaming dragon was pulled to the floor, seemingly by a force outside of its will, and began to physically materialize, each body part twitching and jerking as it appeared from the red miasma. Its right leg formed into a reptilian hind leg, while it’s left leg took that of a goat. It grew a long red tail with a collection of white fur on the end. Its torso was morphed into a slender, almost serpentine form, which was covered in brown fur. Its right hand formed into the paw of a lion, and the left into the grasping talons of an eagle. On its back it sprouted one bat wing and the other an airy pegasus wing. A ridged spine of long tough hair ran the length of its back and gray neck, which led all the way up to its goat like head, complete with two floppy ears, a goat horn and the horn of stag, and a long bushy white beard. Its eyes and tooth remained the same as in its human state.

He raised his arms, “I am Discord!” He offered his eagle hand to Lyra, “It’s a pleasure to make your acquaintance!”

Chapter Fifty-Two

Lyra gawked up at the being before her. Discord had originally been sealed away in stone for nearly a thousand years by the Royal Sisters ages ago. He had recently broken free of his prison and tried to create a Kingdom of Chaos where houses floated, clouds were made of cotton candy, and where the rain was chocolate milk. Fortunately, the Elements of Harmony had stopped his short-lived rule, and returned him to the stony prison he had originally been contained in.

Discord smirked knowingly, “Don’t act so surprised. After all, Chaos is my profession!” He looked at the claws on his lion paw in an offhanded manner, “I have a Ph.D. in it, in fact. Along with a minor in Disharmony, General Mayhem, and Anarchy. Now, I’m a smart draconequus, so let me guess what you’re about to ask,”

“How did you get out of your prison?” Lyra whispered.

Confetti fell from out of nowhere, and an unseen audience clapped and cheered. Discord held a microphone up to his mouth and spoke to the unseen crowd, “And I guessed right! What a show. Thank you fillies and gentlecolts; you’re too kind!”

The applause and cheers abruptly stopped at the snap of his fingertips, and Discord tossed the microphone away for it to explode into a conflagration of burning ice. “As it turns out, my little pony, I’m not actually out of my prison; yet,” Discord flashed a wicked smile, “However, since we were prison buddies, I thought I’d stroll on into your head and offer up some tasty morsels of conversation.”

“This is the inside of my mind?”

“It’s a bit empty I noticed, but that’s because I rearranged all the clutter here. The music is fine, but you really should try free verse poetry sometime; that’s my favorite kind!”

“You’re reorganizing my mind?” Lyra asked with growing anger.

Discord raised his hands in mock fear, “Hold on there, dearie! I’ve just shoved them in the corner; I wanted to make sure you had a clear head, no distractions. You’ll have it all back soon enough”.

Lyra was hit from behind with something that forced her into a sitting position, and a small desk appeared before her with a paper and pencil. She looked back and realized that she was sitting in a chair, like she was back in school at Canterlot.

Discord cleared his throat, and Lyra turned to look at him, only to see that he had donned a long lab coat and a pair of thick spectacles. A chalkboard flew out of nowhere to sit behind Discord and he quickly began to draw on it. “Basic Equestrian History: As you all know, the nation of Equestria was founded by the three tribes of ponies that currently inhabit it: the Earth Ponies, the Unicorns, and the Pegasi. Then some boring stuff happened, and the oh so noble Alicorn Sisters appeared,”

Discord stuck his finger into his mouth and faked vomiting.

“The only problem for them was that Equestria already had a ruler: the intelligent, wise, handsome, and humble chimera that is me.” Discord placed his lion paw arm over where his heart should be and bowed. “But the Alicorn Sisters decided that he was too good of competition to keep around, and that his wonderfully chaotic world was harming everypony. Some ponies just don’t appreciate art! So using the magic pop rocks called the Elements of Harmony, Trollestia and the other one banished Discord to a prison of stone for all eternity.” Discord collapsed the pointer he had been holding.

“What is the point of this,” Lyra asked in exasperation.

Discord waved his finger at Lyra, “Speak out of turn Ms. Heartstrings, and I’ll have to use the Zipper.”

Lyra sighed. Not wanting to find out what ‘The Zipper’ was, she raised her hoof in the air.

“Is there something you’d like to add, Ms. Heartstrings?” Discord asked with a little snicker.

“Yes, what is the point of this? This is common knowledge.”

“I’m so glad you asked!” Discord jumped onto a rolling chair which appeared at the snap of his fingers, and rode it out all the way over to Lyra’s desk. “While I’m not normally a proponent for things making sense, I think this history seems a bit, oh, I don’t..‘fairy tale’, don’t you?”

“What do you mean?”

Discord had disappeared from the rolling chair to appear right behind Lyra. He clasped his arm around Lyra’s shoulder, and held his arm and open clawed hand out to show off the chalkboard. “You see, this entire history known by everypony and taken for granted by all,” Discord closed his clawed fist and the chalkboard shattered “is a lie!”

Chapter Fifty-Three

After brushing up the remains of the chalkboard with a dust pan and broom while dressed as a janitor, Discord placed a TV onto a small table before Lyra’s desk.

“What is that?”

“It’s called a television, and ponies haven’t invented it yet. Now shush! The movie’s starting!”

Lyra looked down to see she was now sitting on a comfortable patchwork couch. She looked over at Discord, who was munching on a box of popcorn while sporting a pair of 3D glasses.

As the program began, an announcer said “The following broadcast is supported by several foundations nopony cares about and viewers like you. Thank you!”

“I love public broadcast!” Discord murmured happily.

Lyra looked up at him with a face that expressed her half-bewilderment.

Then the narrator began, while images of large unbroken pieces of ice were shown, “Many years ago, the world was a much different place from what it is today. Glaciers roamed the planet, there was no sun, and the globe’s surface was utterly lifeless.”

“What?” Lyra asked in disbelieving surprise.

“I know, the place was dreadful back then: practically no chaos at all!” Discord exclaimed as he bit down into another mound of popcorn.

“But beneath that surface was a utopia created by the dominate life-form on the planet: humans.”

Lyra’s jaw dropped.

Discord giggled in excitement, “Oh hang on, the punch line is coming up!”

“The human race had created a paradise beneath the frozen wastelands, and everyone knew peace.” Discord heaved over in laughter so hard he almost fell off of the couch.

“What's so funny about that?” Lyra snapped at the chimera.

Discord wiped a tear from his eye and snorted in laughter, “Oh, you might see soon enough!”

“One day, the scientists of the human race discovered a large hole in the fabric of space, and they studied the radiation emitting from the hole. They discovered that any living thing that came into contact with the radiation began to mutate dramatically, until it almost became unrecognizable from what it once was. The scientists began exposing different animals to the energies of the hole, and found they could create any type of animal through increasing exposure to the mutating energy. Many animals were tested: canines, eagles, salamanders, horses—“

“Wait, what?” Lyra exclaimed loudly.

Discord stopped the television from playing even as he laughed and laughed. “Ohoho, you should see the look on your face! It’s absolutely priceless!”

Lyra couldn’t believe what she had just heard; she, her friends, family, everypony she had ever known, her entire race, were just the product of some group of humans meddling with horses?

Discord had calmed down by this point, and was simply staring off into space. Anger grew and grew in Lyra’s heart, until finally it burst forth. “This isn’t true! You’re lying! You have to be lying!”

“ ’The truth does not change according to our ability to stomach it,’ “ Discord quoted. He turned to Lyra and smirked, “But who’s to say whether you can trust what I’m saying at all? You see, Lyra, I’m Chaos incarnate; I might be lying, I might be telling the truth. But, ironically, I’m consistent in at least one thing, and that’s being inconsistent.”

The couch and the TV disappeared and Lyra was rudely dropped to the floor. Discord was now lying belly down on the table while tracing an invisible line on the floor with his finger, while propping up his head with his paw. “I’m the closest thing this world has to a god; I might be stuck in a magical stone prison, but I never remain imprisoned for too long. I’m a part of the universe, and Celestia and Luna can never fully stop me, because you know what would happen if they did? The entirety of existence would collapse and nothing would work. Everything would die, because without chaos there is no life at all, and order is the death of everything. It’s inescapable, just like waking up from a dream.”

Discord stood up, and slowly walked out of the light, leaving a crushed and confused Lyra. “You’ll remember what I said, and then you’ll find out whether what I’m saying is true or not. Goodbye Lyra, have a nice day!” His chuckle grew and grew into a roaring laughter even as it faded into the background. Lyra’s eyes grew heavy and then closed. Then, Lyra woke up.

Chapter Fifty-Four

I saw Lyra’s eye wince, and then she was awake! I moved my head quickly out of the way as she jolted up into a human’s sitting position.

“Easy! You’re safe Lyra, but if you keep waving your horn around like that, you’ll take out somepony’s eye!”

Awareness of her surroundings came to her, and she looked to me.

“Adam? How—“

“Relax, Lyra. Everything’s going to be alright.” I tussled her mint and white colored hair, and she did relax. She looked up at me. I guess she and I had developed a bond of trust, because she smiled up at me now, as if somehow everything was going to be alright, no matter what.

Lyra then began to look around, and as she did, she got to her hooves. Everypony else, assured of Lyra’s eventual recovery, had scattered into several different rooms of the Tardis, and some were more lost then others at the moment.

I quickly went over to the console, and pressed a button the Doctor had designated as capable of contacting him. “Doctor?”

“Adam! Has our last companion recovered?”

“Completely.”

“Splendid! I’ll head up to the Control Room straight away! Oh, and another thing; press the button two rows down and three to the left, and I’ll start to get everyone back there as well.”

After pressing the button, I looked over to Lyra who was gawking at everything in sight.

“When did this happen?”

I walked over to Lyra and sat down next to her, “Well, what do you remember after being captured?”

She looked down to her hooves and thought, “I remember being captured, with the horn clamp being placed on me. I yelled at you to run, and then they gagged us and blindfolded us. Then there was some traveling where they carried us on their backs. Then there was a whining sound, and a feeling like all of my bones were vibrating. After that, they tried questioning me, but I wouldn’t answer. Then they pointed some long barrel-like thing in my face, and then I was asleep until I woke up here.”

“Mine was a bit like that, but I had to carry you, Bon Bon, and Vinyl out.”

She looked up in surprise, “They had Vinyl Scratch too?”

“Yeah, so they could steal her sonic therapy technology and turn it into a weapon.”

Lyra looked down at the floor and shook her head, “I can’t believe that other ponies could do things like that or act like that. It just seems so..wrong!”

“So many things are wrong with this world now. Eden has been tarnished,” I said wistfully.

“What’s an ‘Eden’?”

I opened my mouth to tell my best friend in the world about the paradise lost, when I saw everyone and everypony was coming back to the Control Room now. “I’ll tell you some other time,” I said with a smile. She gave a small smile back.

Everyone gathered around the console. Ten ponies and two humanoids in one small space make for cramped quarters.

Lyra looked up to the Doctor, “Are you another human?”

The Doctor smiled down at her, “No, but I’ve come to help.”

“Who are you?”

“The Doctor will do.”

“Well, whatever you are, thank you.”

The Doctor replied back with a serious but kind, “You’re welcome.”

“Alright Doctor, the time has come for you to explain everything,” Rarity pointed out, “We’re all here, and we want to know what’s going on.” There were several agreements with that statement from the others.

Chapter Fifty-Six

“What? What do you mean?” I asked.

“Your arrival here wasn’t unnoticed, Adam. A couple weeks ago, I was fiddling around in the Tardis when I got an alert that the hole had started to outpace the Tardis’ ability to heal the Void Wound. I knew immediately something or someone had come through, and that the problem was becoming even more complicated. Several days later, Ditzy Doo rushed up to me and exclaimed she had seen another one like me; walked on two legs, talked; the whole shebang. I had to thank my lucky stars it was a human at least, but I had no way of finding out where it was you were hiding. Then you ran through town again, and I saw you had come to Twilight Sparkle’s library while some ponies of hostile intent were on your heels. I couldn’t go after you, or they would find two aliens for one, and then we’d be of no help to anyone! So I waited, only to have you go and get yourself captured for God knows what reason, and then we all came to rescue you!”

“I was brainwashed with Vinyl Scratch’s sonic technology by Bunsen Burner, and I attacked Princess Celestia.”

“You mean to tell me that scientist featherhead has been usin’ my equipment to brainwash others,” Vinyl Scratch asked with growing rage and sadness in her voice. “I nevah intended it for that! It was meant to be a tool for healin’, not for some sick, demented spook herd to use.”

“I’m afraid that’s how it always is with technology,” I said angrily, ”You start with something to help others, and someone finds a way to weaponize it.”

“That’s enough, Adam.” The Doctor said.

I started to argue and get defensive, which is unfortunately one of my worse traits, “But it’s true, isn’t it Doctor? You know our world’s history, and you probably know quite a few others and their futures along with ours. How many things has the human race or any other race ever invented that have been used exclusively for peace? Dynamite, war machines, weapons that can destroy all life on a massive scale, all of humanity’s prized work comes down to perfecting war and creating death, and this world is going the same way too—“

“ADAM!” The Doctor shouted at me, and I stopped. I realized some of the things I said, and I looked around. The ponies in the room began to look at me in a whole new light. It was heartbreaking; Fluttershy looked at me in worried fear, Rarity in astonishment along with Twilight as well. Rainbow Dash looked at me in pity, and Vinyl Scratch looked at me in shock and anger. Applejack, Pinkie Pie, and Ditzy Doo looked at me in just outright shock. Bon Bon looked at me with saddened disappointment, as if she knew all along that this was coming. But the worst, most painful reaction to my outburst was Lyra. I looked to her, and her face was filled with fright, almost like she was truly seeing me for the first time, and she didn’t like what she saw.

“Lyra,” I said weakly and I reached out to her, but she just turned tail and ran out of the Tardis doors. I lowered my arm, just beginning to realize what I had lost; the trust I had grown with my friends had been crushed in a couple sentences, and who knew if things could be recovered.

I felt a hand clasp my left shoulder, “We need to talk; now.”

Chapter Fifty-Seven

The Doctor led me away from my friends and further into the Tardis, “We’ll be back in a little while,” he had said to the others, “So don’t do anything rash, and someone go check up on Lyra.” Bon Bon made her way out of the Tardis to go and look for her roommate.

The Doctor lead me down corridor after corridor, until we reached a room which looked like a small kitchenette and dining area. “Go ahead and get yourself something to eat; I’m just going to finish up my tea and scones,” the Doctor offhandedly spoke.

I went over to the refrigerator, and within I found something my eyes hadn’t seen and my tastebuds hadn’t experienced in such a long time: meat. Glorious honey baked ham, mashed potatoes, green beans, buttered corn, and bread pudding. It was a meal from the gates of heaven itself. I almost forgot my manners entirely as I gorged on the most amazing thing to pass my lips in months, almost years.

The Doctor studied me, and I finally took notice just as I was finishing my meal. “Tell me Adam, how did you come to be such a negative person?”

I had a feeling this was where the conversation would be headed since he had led me away from the others, so my quick reply was, “I prefer to think of myself as a realist.”

“Oh really?”

I wiped my mouth with my napkin as I continued, “Yes. Just like I was saying before, you’ve seen most of human history I’m sure, when has humanity ever not been at war with itself? We fight for what we want, or for our prejudices, or for what others tell us to think.”

“There is one thing you haven’t considered.”

“Yeah?”

“Yes; you can fight for what is right.”

“ ’For what is right?’ ” I scoffed at this simple idea.

“Yes.”

I tossed my hands up in the air, and looked at the Doctor with eyes that truly spoke to him how much of an oversimplified idea I thought that was. “Right? What right? Who’s to judge which ‘right’ is correct? There are more philosophies, theories, and beliefs in the world than there seem to be people.”

“Some ideals rise above all the rest.”

“Like what? ‘Protect and serve’? ‘Do unto others as you would have done unto you?’ You may have been alive for a long time, Doctor, but you haven’t experienced life like I have. I’ve been on the streets since my teens; fending for my life and limbs nearly daily. I have no family; first they abandoned me, and now, for all I know, they are either dead, or uncontactable. My life has been a prison; being exposed to all the crimes humanity can inflict on itself, and just being passed from one new warden to another, whether it’s the government, scientists, or spooks.”

“You make yourself sound like you’re the victim in all this,” the Doctor blandly commented.

I grew infuriated at his condescending attitude, “I am, Doctor! I’ve tried to help others, only to get beat down and kicked in the teeth every time!”

“Did you try to stop any of those crimes you saw?”

“Yeah, but then I stopped, because I came to realize it’s pointless. I might be able to stop it once, maybe twice. But I can’t stop it forever. It’s all meaningless! From cradle to grave; painful, stupid meaninglessness!” I finished up my rant, and as I did, I realized just how pathetic and narcissistic I sounded. I was embarrassed; not for what I had said, but for the fact that I sounded like a little spoiled child.

“Life isn’t meaningless Adam. Everything, whether built or born, has a purpose. The difference between the born and the built is that the born can choose what they become.”

“Not all of them,” I shot back. I wasn’t arguing to make a point anymore, but to just argue for arguing’s sake, “Some are born with prejudices against them, or physical disabilities.”

“That doesn’t matter. They can still choose to overcome, or they could wallow in self-pity like you have all your life,” the Doctor said matter-of-factly. I felt like I had just been stabbed in the gut with a knife.

The Doctor leaned back in his chair and sigh deeply, “I told you my basic past, but I didn’t tell you about what has defined my life for the past couple of years.”

“What’s that?” I asked with spite still half-dripping in my voice.

“The Time War.”

Chapter Fifty-Eight

Lyra had galloped hard away from the Tardis, away from her friends both old and new, and from Adam.

She didn’t even know what to think of Adam anymore, he had always seemed so bright, so optimistic. Who was that human she had woken up to? He was dark and depressing.

A nauseating thought hit her; maybe this was the real Adam, and the one she had thought she had known was just an act.

She couldn’t believe the things he had said; the thoughts of war and the demise of her world. She was confused and unsure what to think anymore.

She finally stopped in a clearing and simply fell to the damp cold earth. She began to feel tears welling up in her eyes. It seemed what Discord had said was true.

Adam’s words rang in her head, ‘this world is going the same way again..’ War, she thought to herself. She had heard of it, and while she may have been fuzzy on all the details, she knew what it meant: death.

There had never been a true war in Equestria, but there had been news before of fighting among different factions of the Griffon Confederacy, and the details had been brutal.

Discord’s words flew through her mind now, “Oh hang on, the punch line is coming up! ‘And everyone knew peace’.” His cackling laughter echoed in her ears still.

So it was all true; humans lived here and they died here, but not before creating every race on the planet. What did they do it for? Did they think they would make good weapons or something? The thought sickened and disgusted her, and she began to cry for everypony she had ever known, for what their origins really were.

“Lyra,” she heard her name called out to her. She looked up to see Bon Bon approaching. Her friend cantered slowly right up alongside Lyra, and sat down on all fours next to her, and began comforting her as best as she could.

“It’s not right, Bon Bon,” she said through sobs. “I thought we all knew him. I thought he was—“

“You know who he is, Lyra Heartstrings,” Bon Bon replied with firm softness, “You just know a different part of him as well now.” She nuzzled Lyra’s neck, and Lyra began to be still.

Bon Bon brought her head back as she thought of the words she needed to consul her friend. “How can I put this in a way you’d easily understand? It’s like..when you’ve created a song that has multiple layers of notes in it. The notes are there, but it isn’t until a change in setting that some become more pronounced than they had been. He hasn’t changed, you just see a new side of him now; his sadness and anguish is just appearing now because of our circumstances right now.”

“That’s not the only reason I’m crying,” Lyra whispered now. Bon Bon remained silent as Lyra was about to explain herself, and that might have been the only reason she heard the sound she did; the sound of cracking twigs and underbrush.

“Bon Bon, we were—“

“Get up,” Bon Bon said with a fearful command.

Lyra snapped out of her stupor to see the danger that now befell her and her friend. Four sets of glowing yellow eyes looked at them from across the clearing, and from the forest emerged a pack of Timber Wolves.

Chapter Fifty-Nine

“The Time War,” I repeated.

“Yes,” the Doctor said with an anguished frown on his face, “My people, the Time Lords, had a bitter enemy. The entire universe had that same enemy. They are called the Daleks. They are an artificial cybernetic species designed to hate and destroy anything that isn’t exactly like them. Our races fought for the entirety of the universe. The War itself took place outside of time, but it seemed to last forever. Finally, I was given a way to end the war, once and for all.”

“What did you do?”

“I ended the war, but at an enormous price. I wiped out the majority of the Dalek race,” he paused, “At the cost of my entire species.”

I felt numb. I couldn’t believe it. This man was a creator of genocide; both to another race and his own. I immediately began to feel pity for him, but still I tried to push my argument, like the selfish man that I was, “But then you should feel just like I do. Don’t you just—“

“No Adam, you’re not listening!” the Doctor angrily replied. I was stunned to silence, which he took full advantage of, “I don’t like war, but I fought because you, your whole race, and every other race in the universe needed me! They needed us! If the Time Lords had simply stayed on our home planet Gallifrey, the Daleks would have wiped out all other life, every last permutation of it! We rose to the call, because while we may not have been able to protect everyone, we had to fight to protect all that was good. We had to fight the worst evil ever known, and we could at least try to save some of those who were dying. That’s what you need to learn, Adam; try to make a difference, even if things seem hopeless.”

“But there’s so much that can’t be changed about humanity—“

“Adam, humanity is all about change! Even in your lifetime, there have been humans who have done fantastically good things, some of them are never seen by the public eye, but the fact that they happened matters! You’re not bound by your parents’ actions, grandparents’ actions, or anyone else’s actions! Your actions are your own. You may never see how you helped a person, and they may not even know of or remember it, but the fact that you can make their life a little brighter makes the world a little brighter too. The instant the human race just hopelessly accepts its fate and gives in to the darkness and evil things of your world, that is the day you as a race seal your fate to only being able of doing evil.”

His words were true; I was sober to that fact now. But he continued, “Like I said, the human race is all about change, but that includes you, Adam! You can change too! You can move past what has happened to you and try to help other people in their lives as well. Edmund Burke was attributed as saying, ‘The only thing needed for evil to triumph, is that good men do nothing.’”

He pointed to my heart, and lightly touched my chest, “You are a good man at heart, Adam. Just don’t let yourself fall like you have again. I felt similar to you immediately after the War, but I found someone who helped me change for the better. Find someone who can help you carry on; someone who can inspire you to hope even when things seem hopeless.”

I had a lot to think about, and I knew I needed to change. With all the sincerity in my heart, I took the Doctor’s hand in mine and shook it, “Thank you, Doctor”.

“It’s what I’m here for..That, and being the guardian of the whole of space and time.” I laughed a single little laugh, and the Doctor smiled to me.

Then it hit me, “You know Doctor, I think I’ve found that someone who can help me hope when it’s hopeless. I need to find Lyra.”

“I saw Bon Bon head after her. Since the soil is pretty damp here, you should be able to follow them easily enough.”

I jogged out of the kitchenette and back towards the Control Room. I ran past the group of assembled ponies, and Rainbow Dash called out to me with “Wait!”

I barely heard her; I had to reconcile with Lyra first. I hope she’s alright.

Chapter Sixty

The pack of timber wolves began to fork out from their pack in order to surround Lyra and Bon Bon. While their name was identical to those wolves of our world, the timber wolves got their name for a more literal reason. Every single timber wolf is made of hundreds of twigs and tiny branches, and while they may get their sustenance from the ground in a similar manner to trees, they were still extremely protective of their territory just like their mammalian cousins. Lyra and Bon Bon had unintentionally encroached on their territory, and regardless of whether intentional or not, the Pack had come to show what happened to interlopers.

Lyra and Bon Bon stood with their faces in opposite directions, each covering each other’s flank and making sure they kept their eyes on a wolf at all times. Each wolf was trying to maneuver into a blind spot, and with each step of the timber wolves came the distinctive twig snapping, branch bending sounds made by their footfalls. Bon Bon was facing down two of the Pack’s four members, while Lyra was nearly six hoofsteps away from one additional timber wolf and the Pack’s alpha male. Each of the Pack’s regular members was about their size, but the alpha male timber wolf was nearly a head above either of them. The thorny branches that made up the alpha male’s jaw were poised and waiting for one false move from either of the ponies.

Bon Bon spoke in a calm tone, so as not to agitate the predators of the underbrush, “How good is your magic Lyra?”

Lyra did not break eye contact with the wolves before her, “I might be able to take on one of them, but four is pushing it,” her voice was cracking slightly since she was still recovering from crying.

Bon Bon’s face paled a little at this information, “We can’t trick them into thinking we’re a danger; they’d probably attack us all the same. We can’t run; they’d outrun us. Can you do a teleportation spell?”

Lyra’s heart sank and tears started to flow from her eyes again; a teleportation spell could only work for one pony at a time, and she was near exhausted already. She could only manage one teleportation before the timber wolves pounced en mass on the remaining pony, “Yes.”

“Well then quickly do it!” Bon Bon could feel in her gut that the attack was imminent.

“Right,” Lyra’s voice cracked and she began quietly sobbing again, “Okay.” Lyra’s horn glowed with emerald light.

The alpha male’s eyes narrowed and his thorny grin became more pronounced.

As soon as the teleportation spell became ready, Lyra glanced back at her best pony friend in the world. “Good-bye Bon Bon.” The words seemed to take more effort than the spell had. Bon Bon half whirled around and said in alarm and surprise a quick “What,” before she was transported several hundred meters away.

After the post-teleport disorientation, she realized what her friend had just done; Lyra had made the choice of ensuring her friend lived rather than risking the both of their lives to the timber wolves. Bon Bon stamped her hooves to the ground and yelled, “You stupid foal!” as tears began to pour down her face. Lyra, still weeping but at peace, looked up as the alpha timber wolf lunged at her.

Greater love has no one than this, that he lay down his life for his friends. John 15:13

Chapter Sixty-One

I was running through the Everfree Forest, looking for my best friend, Lyra Heartstrings the unicorn. As I followed the beaten down soggy grass and soil that was my trail, so many thoughts jumbled through my head; what should I say first? Should I explain, and then apologize? Should I just apologize? How could I get her to understand? I made it to the edge of a clearing, when I saw the most horrific sight I had seen in a while.

My two greatest friends were surrounded by what I could only think of as wooden hellhounds. I could just barely hear what Lyra was saying over the crackle of each of those creature’s footsteps. “Right. Okay.” I was frozen to the spot, out of fear for my friends, and simply due to the shocked disbelief that it was happening. My head was screaming GO! SAVE THEM! , but my feet weren’t responding.

“Good-bye Bon Bon,” I heard Lyra say, and then Bon Bon was gone in an emerald flash. I saw the largest of those demonic tree wolves lunge for Lyra, my Lyra, and I acted. Even though my brain was still at the clearing’s edge, my heart was already reaching out through my legs, my arms, my lungs, and my mouth. I yelled a great and primal warcry as I tackled the side of the wooden beast, and we fell several feet away from Lyra.

I pinned the creature to the ground, but it quickly recovered and began clawing at me with its hind legs, and reaching around to snap at me with its thorny jaws. In the back of my head I was reassured to notice the other three wooden wolves had not attacked either Lyra or I. I guess there was some honor code this big one, I assume the alpha male, had to hold to in order to keep the respect of his Pack in the face of a challenge, and that was to go at me mano y mano.

They walked around Lyra to come and begin to watch the fight, and I quickly shouted, “Go! Run!” Lyra was still shocked from nearly facing death, only to just being snatched literally from its jaws; she didn’t move. “I said RUN!” I unintentionally slackened my grip, and my foe took full advantage of it. He brought his head around and sunk his teeth into my left forearm, and I screamed in pain. The underlings to the brush beast called out in glee and triumph, sensing my agony.

The wolf held his grip on my forearm; fortunately the wounds were only punctures and he didn’t rip away from me. While I expected some things were different for this wolf’s anatomy, whatever was keeping the creature alive had to be flowing through its neck, so I took my good right arm and slammed my forearm down into the creature. He grunted in pain, and his jaw’s vice-like grip sprang open like a valve, releasing me. Blood was pouring down my arm. I brought my hands together, and they came down like a sledgehammer. I felt and heard something crack in the creature’s underbelly, and it yelped even as it bowled me over.

It had me pinned to the ground on my back while balancing all its weight on my stomach and my arms. I knew it meant to rip out my throat and it meant to do it very soon. So I did the only thing I could do. I brought both my hands up, and locked them around the creature’s throat. It lunged at my face, but couldn’t reach because of my grip. It started clawing with its back legs again, scraping deep wounds into my abdomen.

I was starting to black out; purple and black were on the edges of my vision, and it felt like my left arm was on fire. I had to do it now! With what power that was left in my body, I moved my hands up to its head, gripped with all my might, and twisted hard to the left. My vision blurred as I heard a snap like a large branch breaking. I felt the weight of the wolf fall off me to my left. I faintly heard a voice shouting out “Oh sweet Celestia! SOMEPONY HELP!” then a small set of hooves, I couldn’t tell if they were running to or running away from me. Then I knew nothing.

Chapter Sixty-Two

It was just after sunset, and Princess Luna had just finished the arcane spells that would guide and ‘raise’ the moon. While the process of the spell was completed, it would be another half hour before her nightly handiwork shown on the horizon for all to see.

The Princess stepped from the edge of the balcony where she had enacted her magic, and cantered back into Canterlot Castle. As she began to make her way to the proclamation chamber to relieve Princess Celestia of her royal post, she contentedly sighed. So much had indeed changed in the years she had been gone; ponies now enjoyed the night, and saw it as a release from the troubles of the day. A great amount of music, art, and poetry were being dedicated to her work now, as it seemed the subjects she ruled over had finally begun to see the beauty of the night sky without a fear of the darkness that accompanied it.

Though this knowledge pleased her to no end, for it did, she couldn’t help but feel anxiety. It wasn’t all too long ago that she had been Nightmare Moon, and while Ponyville had been the only town to physically see her in a thousand years in that form, there were still the legends of Mare in the Moon. Even after all this time, ponies had not fully forgotten what she had done, and Princess Luna was certain there were at least a few who were frightened of her still. She didn’t let these thoughts keep her depressed for long. She had learned from her subjects that they were quick to forgive, even if they were long in memory: Nightmare Night a few months before had taught her that. Sometimes, though, the memories; the guilt and shame she felt for what she had done drove her to a deep sadness.

As Princess Luna approached the doors to the proclamation room, she heard two voices. The one of them she knew all too well; her sister, Princess Celestia. The other she only knew by acquaintance; Bunsen Burner, the Chief Royal Science Officer.

“I’m afraid it’s worse than we imagined, Princess Celestia. The subject has escaped, but worse still, we’ve come to realize he alone is not the true threat.”

Any other pony would have had to listen at the door to grasp every word of the conversation going on within the proclamation chamber, but Princess Luna had a good ear, along with the fact that she had heightened senses. She listened more intently now to the exchange.

“Please explain Bunsen Burner,” Princess Celestia said in a grim voice. Princess Luna hadn’t heard her sister speak that way in a long time. This was a side not many ponies had ever experienced of their seemingly airy and lively ruler: the serious and no-nonsense side of Princess Celestia.

“The subject was rescued by another of his kind who came in a blue box. The box in question is of technological origin, not magic, and it is hundreds of years ahead of anything we have in either magic or science.”

The Princess of the Night decided now was as good of a time as ever to make her entrance. She signaled the guards within the chamber with her magic, and they promptly opened the doors to announce her arrival. As she approached the thrones, Princess Luna exclaimed, “Fair sister, I have come to offer you respite from your daily toil!”

Chapter Sixty-Three

Bunsen Burner looked toward the Princess of the Moon, who had just announced herself. Princess Celestia looked toward her sister as well, and her eyes softening a little at seeing her beloved sister, but her voice still carried a grimness due to the gravity of the situation, “Luna, it’s good to see you. Bunsen Burner here was just briefing me on a matter of utmost importance.”

Bunsen Burner internally seethed. Princess Celestia was easy enough to lie to; she trusted him after all. Princess Luna, however, was a different matter altogether. He and the Princess of the Night had no deep bond of trust through which he could suggest certain actions and use as leverage for one thing. Another fact was that she was telepathic; however this was no problem to Bunsen Burner.

With the initial return of Princess Luna to Pony society, he had been placed in charge of designing a reeducation program for her, along with helping her to redevelop her powers. The Elements of Harmony had not been surgical when they had stripped Nightmare Moon of her powers, and for a time, the Princess was as weak as any mortal pony. It had taken her several months to regain her powers and her usual physical appearance, which Bunsen Burner used to his advantage. Even as he taught her about the new culture, laws, and policies of Equestria, he was gleaning her for her powers and trying to learn from them. He had eventually found a way to passively reflect Luna’s telepathic powers, which suited him wonderfully; he didn’t want anypony poking inside his mind or reading any of his thoughts. Bunsen Burner had found other ways of distracting Princess Luna; such as suggesting research and reevaluation of Equestrian economic law: that would keep her occupied for years, and out of the way of Bunsen Burner’s attempts to maintain Equestrian order as he saw it. But now there was a new problem; the subject had mentioned he had met Princess Luna, and Bunsen Burner had no way of knowing if she had been contaminated by the subject. For now, she was a risky element in his orderful system.

“Yes, Princess Luna. We stand on the brink of invasion by a race we have not encountered before, and they have already made an attempt on your sister’s life.”

Princess Luna gasped; this had been the reaction he had played for. “Sister, you remain unharmed? You are of sound body and mind?” the purple alicorn asked of Princess Celestia with caring worry. It was only natural for her to feel such compassion and love for her sister, Bunsen Burner mused.

“Yes, I am well.”

“Oh, thank the heavens,” Luna said with a small relieved sigh, but her face hardened into cold fury, “But let us keep our minds to the matter at hand; how shall we seek retribution on our foes for this vile act of black warfare?”

“Our highest priority now is protecting your subjects, Princesses. This race of beings has scientifically utilized your magic of Dimensional Phasing, Princess Luna, and they have force fields which can absorb unicorn magic seemingly with great ease.”

Princess Luna’s eyes widened in wonder, “Well, what is the name of our enemy; who be they?”

Bunsen Burner had hoped it wouldn’t come to this; he had to reply to the Princess’ question, but it also meant he had no way of predicting Luna’s reaction. Who knew how much the human had contaminated her perceptions of itself.

He simply decided to play dumb for the immediate future, and he spoke the honest truth, “It should be of little concern to you, but they call themselves the human race.”

Chapter Sixty-Five

Princess Celestia couldn’t believe what she had just heard. “What? Why did you leave the castle? You could have been in terrible danger!”

Princess Luna gave a tiny huff, “I’m not a child; I can perform my magic from anywhere I choose. I sensed him on the ground below, and I investigated. He is a kind being, not willing to commit any violence.”

Princes Celestia shook her head in frustration, “You weren’t there Luna! One minute, he was as diplomatic as could be, the next he was trying to strangle me!”

“There is not a chance in the cosmos he would have performed such an act of his own volition. He is docile, and simply wanted to be left in peace.”

“Luna, there’s no way you could know that for sure.”

“There is: I have dominion over the mind and all dreams, if you recall. I knew his mind, and he was a peaceable human being. If there is an invasion force, Adam the human is not in league with them.”

“Bunsen Burner said that humans have telepathic abilities; he must have lied to you,” Princess Celestia defensively offered.

Princess Luna sighed with exasperation, “ ’Tis false! Sister, why won’t you listen to me?”

“I don’t know what they’ve told you about themselves, Luna, but it must all be lies.”

“We can trust Adam more than any other being in this world!”

“How can you believe that, Luna?”

“Because,” Princess Luna stopped, and looked for a reason she felt she could trust the human she’d met. She had no reason to implicitly trust anyone, even of her own species. However, something about Adam seemed familiar. Stranger still, though she was decades, centuries older then the human being, she had an unfounded and innate trust of him, almost like he was a father figure to her.

Princess Luna couldn’t come up with a reason to logically explain to her sister why she felt the way she did, so all she could offer was, “I cannot offer you a reason founded in logic or fact, only belief and faith. If you have ever trusted me, Tia, please, do it for me now. You cannot trust the silver-tongued Bunsen Burner.”

“Luna, I love you. You know that, but I don’t think I can believe this human to be docile. If it were not the small size of his hands and our regenerative anatomy, I would have the bruises from his attack. I trust Bunsen Burner with my life, and he has been of great use to Equestria and to us.”

“Sister, are you sure of whom is in service to whom? You have allowed him to control your every decision, both large and small. He cannot respect you if you don’t take your rightful duties into your hooves!”

“That’s enough Luna.”

“In the time I've been gone, you’ve changed greatly. You used to be more than a figurehead! When I was plotting against you to bring night eternal, you ruled your subjects with firm but gentle grace. You cared about ponies then as you do now, but you shirk your authority!”

“Stop it Luna, stop it!” Princess Celestia’s voice was twinged with veiled desperation.

“Why have you forsaken your duties? You may be loved, but can others respect you if all you are is a pony who cuts a ribbon here, smiles there—“

“Princess Luna, hold your tongue!” The edge in Princess voice cracked as she spoke, and tears began to well into her eyes. “Be silent,” she whispered softly.

Princess Luna had to oblige, but she was utterly shocked to see her sister like this. “You don’t know,” The Princess of Sun spoke shakily as tiny tears rolled down her eyes, “What it was like without you. We were meant to rule together for a reason. One pony is not meant to rule the world unopposed. When I sent you away for a thousand years, I was heartbroken for both your loss and mine. You lost yourself, and I lost a wonderful sister and friend. But with each passing day, I came to see the absolute power I held; and oh,” she closed her eyes and groaned as if in agonizing pain, “I was so greatly tempted. I was tempted to institute my own iron will over others. There were days I considered it for their own good; I would try to justify it. I could have just as easily become like Nightmare Moon; I could have made a kingdom of the Sun, a Solar Empire to last for countless generations. But I was made to realize that if I remained in the position I was, I would be like the Sun when it has overstayed its welcome; everything would burn. I severed our link to the Elements of Harmony, and I created a Royal Family to govern the world we created.”

“So that is what you did? You locked yourself away so you could do no good at all rather than risk doing anything tyrannical?”

“No,” Princess Celestia shook her head, “I was not idle. I did take some time for myself; some time to think, to live, to love. It was through those years I truly learned what the Elements of Harmony are really meant to represent. So I taught others what I’d learned, and I have served Equestria through them for hundreds of years.”

Realization came to Princess Luna’s face, “You mean your students?”

Princess Celestia nodded, “They have been my gift to the world.”

“All the same, I hold my doubts of Bunsen Burner. Even if he was a gift to the world, you may have given the world the wrong gift altogether.”

Princess Celestia looked down to her sister with a silent sadness. The melancholy that filled her eyes expressed to Princess Luna that she was hurt by her distrust of her former student, because it also meant she didn’t fully trust her sister’s judgment.

Princess Luna tried to apologize, tried to make her words softer, “Tia—“

“Good night, Luna,” Princess Celestia said in a pained whisper, and she spread her wings and took flight to her own chambers, leaving a guilt filled sister behind her.

Chapter Sixty-Six

“He’s coming too!”

I heard a muffled voice in the distance; everything was dark. I opened my blurry eyes, and they slowly began to focus. So many different colored faces surrounded me. The closest was a mint green one to my left. I couldn’t completely make her visage out, but I knew it was Lyra.

“Hey,” was all she said, and it was a shaky ‘hey’ at that.

“Hay is for horses, and cows eat it too. But I would not eat it if I were you,” I slurred out.

Her head cocked at an angle and she laughingly said, “What?”

“Nevermind,” I muttered.

“Hello down there,” another voice said to my right; it was the Doctor. I saw a blue light directly in front of me. “Follow the blue light.”

“That’s not going to melt my brain out, is it?”

“No, of course not!”

“Good,”

“That’s setting 1023,”

“Wait, what?”

“Excellent, you passed the test. Pulse is steady, cognition is normal. In short; excellent, all things considered.”

“All things considered?” I asked worriedly. I noticed everyone was silent. “What?”

Twilight Sparkle entered my now clear vision, her face was filled with fatigue and veiled sadness. “We chased after you when you left, and we found you right after your fight with the timber wolf. You were in bad shape; the timber wolf’s bite was laced with a poison, and you were bleeding and unconscious. I extracted all the poison, and the Doctor stopped the bleeding, but—but,” she stopped and began to tear up.

“Adam, be strong,” the Doctor said firmly, “You can do that for us, alright?”

“What’s wrong, Doctor? Give it to me!”

“..We couldn’t get the bleeding to stop in your left arm. There was something in the poison that if we hadn’t acted when we did, you would have bled out. So, we had to use a tourniquet.”

Tourniquet. The word rang in my head. “Oh,” was all I could say. I knew, but I couldn’t accept it with a meaningful string of words. It was the most pathetic display of vocabulary selection ever. “Oh,” I repeated.

“Yes,” the Doctor solemnly said. “I’m so sorry.”

“Shut up.”

“What?” It seems I stirred something in the Doctor not many people got; surprise.

“I said, shut up. Don’t give me that ‘I’m sorry’ garbage. You told me not to be a victim of my circumstances, but to overcome them. So that’s what I’m gonna do.” I looked to Lyra and Bon Bon, and I simply asked, “Are you two alright?”

“Yes,” Bon Bon said quietly. Lyra silently nodded.

I looked down at my future for the first time. My arm was gone. It wasn’t exactly what I had expected, but I would find out later the Doctor had simultaneously removed the dead arm and cauterized the wound with a laser scalpel. I looked back to Lyra, “Then the sacrifice was worth it.”

Lyra reached as far over as she could and gave me a hug. It was a hug that carried meaning though; an embrace laced with sadness, but also with some degree of acceptance. I gave the best one armed hug I could manage.

As we held the embrace, the Doctor cleared his throat lightly, “I’m sorry to ask so much of you right now, but we have no choice: time is running out. We have a matter of hours before the Void collapse.”

Chapter Sixty-Seven

The Doctor brought the lot of us back to the control room, and we all gathered around the console quietly. I cleared my throat, and in the silence it startled me. It startled Fluttershy too, as she gave a tiny jump. “Before we do anything, I want to apologize for my outburst earlier. I’m sorry for my attitude, and I want to ask you all to forgive me.”

“I forgive you,” Lyra responded.

‘I..forgive you,” Bon Bon added soon after.

Ditzy Doo and Pinkie Pie smiled, “Of course we forgive you Adam!”

“Yeah! You aren’t really someone’s friend if you can’t forgive them!” Pinkie Pie exclaimed.

Vinyl Scratch was silent, as were the other five. I leaned down to Vinyl Scratch, “I’m so very sorry for generalizing about your work and you. Will you please forgive me?”

“..I still need some time to think on et,” Vinyl Scratch said hesitantly.

“I understand, but for now, can we just shake on it?” I offered up my whole right arm to her with an outstretched and open hand. She looked at it for a little while, and then she offered back her hoof. I made to clasp both of my hands around her hoof, but then I saw and remembered my lacking a left hand immediately after seeing the stump. “Oh. Guess I can’t complete the whole thing, can I?” I glumly muttered.

We finished the shake, the both of us with sobered looks on our faces. I looked to the others; Twilight, Rarity, Applejack, Fluttershy, and Rainbow Dash. “Please, will you forgive me?”

Applejack stepped forward, “Adam, yah weren’t entirely honest with us when we all first met you, and tha’ has to be taken inta account,” she then looked over to her pink party pony friend, “but Pinkie Pie’s right: what kinda friends would we be if we wouldn’t forgive yah? We accept yer apology.”

“Thank you all for trying to understand,” I said, and I stood and looked to the Doctor, “Alright.”

“Ok, SO,” the Doctor shifted into high gear, “What do we all know about the situation?”

“Yah mean other than it’s the end of tha world?” Applejack pessimistically interjected.

“Yes, something a little more detailed than that.”

Pinkie Pie spoke up “I don’t think it’s time for an ‘It’s the End of the World’ Party. I never thought there’d be a party I’d want to avoid, but we can’t give up! No sirree!”

“Thoroughly enjoying that optimism, Pinkie Pie!” the Doctor pointed and smiled.

Rarity stroked her chin with her right hoof as she thought “Well Doctor, didn’t you ask that Bunsen Burner stallion about disturbances in the sky or something?”

“Quite right! Which leads me into some intriguing information!” The Doctor tapped on the keyboard near the console monitor, “Everyone who can, come around.”

Rainbow Dash and Ditzy Doo took to the air to make some extra room for us to gather around the console monitor. It showed ten concentric circles, with the fifth being made up of multiple randomly size objects.

“Is that what I think it is?” I looked to the Doctor.

He nodded. “This is a live observation of the Solar System. Your Solar System Adam. We’re on Earth.”

Chapter Sixty-Eight

I looked at the screen; it didn’t change, and it wasn’t wrong. While the information was somewhat surprising, the experiences I had had in my time in Equestria had begun to make more and more sense. Human tools were used here because they predated Equestria; human customs and holidays had existed as well, but had evolved into versions that ponies now used today.

Twilight looked up at the monitor, “I never knew that we were a part of a solar system so large,” her voice and face completely awash with her awe, “This is amazing! Look, there's the red planet Aithon, the horse of Strife. And there, the other planet is Aphrodite, the alicorn of passion and affection!” She looked to the Doctor, “but what do you mean this is Earth? That’s the name of Adam’s home.”

“This is Adam’s home. You live on an alternate version of Adam’s home planet. I’ve dealt with parallel dimensions before; time must flow at a different rate in this parallel stream, and it appears we are chronally displaced because of the accelerated rate of this universe's passage of time over mine and Adam’s universe.”

“What?” Twilight asked.

Ditzy Doo looked at her and shrugged, “Wibbly Wobbly Timey Wimey”.

“Wait, wait, wait,” I shook my arm and stub and pointed with my right index finger at the Doctor, “If this is Earth, then where’s the Sun?” I pointed to the screen, and sure enough, there was no Sun around which the rings and planets were orbiting, just a blank spot. “And what are these things?” I pointed to two smaller objects orbiting the third ring’s planet. Two spheres were lazily rotating around that planet. “I guess one is the moon, but what is the other thing? We should be able to see it from anywhere.”

The Doctor looked at me with a grin, the infuriating grin that plainly says, ‘I know something you don’t’. “Here’s the weird thing: the Sun as you knew it is not there anymore, but we are still orbiting something even if we can’t see it. If you were to look through the right instruments, you would see sporadic spikes of x-rays coming from this region,” the Doctor pointed to the center of the image. “The Sun still exists, but it’s a Brown Dwarf.”

“How can the Sun be short,” Rainbow Dash asked with frustration, “what does that even mean?”

“In the life span of a star,” the Doctor explained, “one of the last stages of its long life is what’s called a Brown Dwarf. The Sun collapses in on itself and it can no longer be seen because it doesn’t emit visible light. But that takes billions of years to occur. We must be almost 17 billion years in the future from the time Adam and I came from.”

“If that’s true; that the Sun has burnt out,” I pointed to the ceiling of the Tardis, “What would be hanging over us right now if it were daytime?”

“A secondary star, much closer to Earth. This is brilliant! Somehow, a second, younger Sun is orbiting Earth, and I have no idea how it got there!” The Doctor shook his hands in excitement, “I love mysteries!”

Chapter Sixty-Nine

“Ok,” I sighed, “I guess that explains that. This is Earth, but how do you explain the Hydra, Timber Wolves, or any of the other strange creatures here?”

“I think I might know something about that,” Lyra whispered. We all looked at her expectantly. “When I was still asleep, I had a dream where humans were here long ago.”

“Humans in Equestria?” Rarity asked. “But how?”

“No history books have documented evidence of humans here,” Twilight asked with a perplexed expression, “Remember Lyra? I looked in both the Ponyville library and Canterlot’s Royal Archive.”

“You said the records only went back 700 years. Besides, the Doctor did just point out that this is Earth. We were created by the humans. A lot of the species on the planet were created by humans.”

“But there's no way that could be possible.” Twilight stared at Lyra in stunned disbelief. As a matter of fact, so was everyone else.

“Humans experimented on horses in the past by exposing them to some hole in the sky that changed them into what we became today; probably that Void hole that the Doctor is talking about. Our ancestors were the first experiments of the humans!”

Twilight shook her head, “Lyra, there are hundreds of years of documented evidence and stories passed down for generations that in no way validate your dream! Maybe it was just a dream anyway. Stranger things have happened. This is just too farfetched to be the truth.”

“I don’t think so Twilight,” Rainbow Dash jumped in. “Before Adam got captured, he was with me, and we were exploring Spectre Howe, remember?”

“Yeah, so?”

“So, we discovered some musty tombs, and we saw a green glowing human ghost!”

“And let’s not forget,” I wanted to get my two cents in as well, “you ponies have many human tools and holidays. Maybe what Lyra thinks is true. But I got to ask,” I looked to Lyra, “how did this just come to you in a dream? That’s too uncanny if you ask me.”

Lyra became nervous, and she started to twitch her tail. She let out a sigh, “You’re all going to think I’m crazy, but I dreamt that Discord told me all this. But he wasn’t a dream; he said he hadn’t escaped his prison, but that he would eventually.”

“Tha’s impossible,” Applejack shook her head, “We sealed’em away in stone with tha Elements of Harmony. There’s no way he could’a gotten out!”

“Isn’t that the way he was when he escaped last time?” Lyra retorted.

Twilight sighed, “Even if somehow he was inside your head, why would he tell the truth? He lied to the six of us when we tried to stop him. He doesn’t have a reason to tell the truth.”

“Wait, I’m sorry, but who is this ‘Discord’ everyone’s talking about?” I asked. “He sounds like the Devil or something.”

Pinkie Pie cocked her head and looked at me strangely, “What’s a ‘Devil’?”

“Ummm, general bad guy of my world. No one believes in him anymore, but he was a supposedly a snake or something that help bring about the downfall of man. At least, that’s how the story goes.”

Lyra’s eyes widened, “ ‘I am the Serpent, and I am the craftiest of all animals,” she muttered.

“What did you say?” the Doctor asked.

“Discord called himself the Serpent, along with a couple other names, like, uh..Loki! And Entropy!”

“Loki? Now that’s a funny name!” Pinkie Pie commented. “What’s a ‘Loki’? Is he another funny make believe person?”

“He was an old primal god of Chaos certain humans believed in,” the Doctor said, “He was sometimes depicted with a helmet that had two horns on it.”

“This is getting even more bizarre by the minute,” I finally spoke up.

Rainbow Dash shrugged, “Guess there’s only one thing to do; let’s go get some answers from the green ghost lady!”

I shrugged, “I guess we had to anyway. We have to return to Spectre Howe.”

Chapter Seventy

We began to make preparations for the trip to our destination; ‘The Tumulus of the Kings’, or ‘Spectre Howe’. The Doctor flew us back to the Invention Emporium, and we began to stock up on gear that we might need for the trip into the tombs.

“I can’t take all of you,” the Doctor said, “It’s more than likely going to be extremely dangerous, and the more of us there are, the harder it’s going to be for me to find a way to keep us all safe. I’m leaving you all in the care of Ditzy Doo, since you can’t go back to your homes yet because of Bunsen Burner’s likely surveillance.”

“I have to go with you,” I said, “That spirit said I was here for a purpose, and I need to find out what she meant.”

“And I’m coming to,” Lyra stepped up to the Doctor, “Where he goes, I go.”

I looked down to the unicorn at my side, and she looked up to me with those golden eyes of hers. “I don’t want you to go with me, Lyra. I don’t want to see you put in harm’s way again, especially since I’m running out of arms here,” I lifted up my left stub as I spoke.

She looked at arm, and then back up to me. “No, I’m coming. Whether you like it or not, I’m going to be by your side. You’re my best friend, and I won’t let anything happen to you again.”

“Alright then,” the Doctor sighed, “Lyra comes. But no one else! Three might be pushing it as it is.”

“You won’t be getting an argument out of me!” Bon Bon called out, “I’ve had quite enough adventure for two lifetimes now! I don’t need any more unnecessary excitement.”

Ditzy Doo came up to the Doctor, her yellow eyes filled with sadness. She cocked her head and sniffled a little, “This is it then, isn’t it Doctor?”

The Doctor got down on one knee, and his eyes were filled with a muted sadness of their own, “Yes.”

The grey Pegasus jumped up to the Doctor and clasped her front hooves into an embrace around the lonely nomad.

“I won’t be seeing you again, but we can keep in touch. I’ve left something for you in the workshop. It’s in the top chest of the tool drawer.”

Ditzy Doo drew back from the embrace, and though her eyes were still full of tears, her smile was as full as could be. “Goodbye Doctor.”

“Goodbye Ditzy Doo,” a smile broke on the Doctor’s face, “My brilliant little muffin!” Ditzy Doo gave a little giggle.

“Take good care of the others, alright?”

“Okay,” and then she flew off back into the Emporium.

“Right then!” he said as he rushed back to the doors of the Tardis and swung them wide while jogging back into its interior, “We’ve got places to go, people to meet, and we’ve only got about four and a half hours ‘til everything goes kaput!”

Lyra and I were right behind him, and I worriedly commented, “I hope we can make it in time.”

Lyra looked up at me, and my resolve strengthened, “No, we will make it in time.”

“That’s the spirit, Adam!” The Doctor punched in the coordinates, and then he looked up at both of us. “Have either of you ever wanted to save the world?”

Lyra balanced on her hind legs and waved her foreleg, “Woah, hold on! I’m just a regular old unicorn who likes to play the lyre!”

“I’m just a regular old human.” I added behind her.

The Doctor continued to look up at us, “Yeah? Extraordinary people may make history, but its ordinary people who change history. Now here’s a chance for a horse and her boy to change the world!”

“Hey,” Lyra pointed her right hoof at the Doctor and narrowed her eyes, “Watch the language.”

The Doctor threw the lever that brought the Tardis to life once more, and we went off to meet our destiny.

Chapter Seventy-Two

“Lyra don’t! You don’t know what could happen if she takes you.”

“Look Adam, be reasonable. We need you here, and the Doctor is probably going to be some good here too. I’m the obvious choice!”

“Lyra, please.” I tried to plead with her.

“Don't be afraid,” the woman spoke to us, “I won't cause her any harm.”

I looked once again to Lyra, and I could tell she was set on her decision. “Alright.”

The woman glided down to Lyra, and she cupped Lyra’s face in her hands. Little particles of greenish yellow light broke off of her form, and they began to circle and land on Lyra’s body. Lyra shuddered softly as the last of the woman’s glowing dust landed on her, and then she opened her eyes. They looked the same as before, but they also seemed to be filled with age now, and wisdom as well.

“Interface Complete” Lyra spoke, but from the way she spoke it was obvious the spectral woman was in control now. “If we are to save this world,” the woman spoke through Lyra’s lips, “we must begin immediately: time is short now.”

Lyra walked away from us towards the mound I had partially uncovered before. Her horn glowed, and the spell she cast lifted the rest of the dirt from the mound. What was then revealed was a metal hatch that was seven feet tall and three feet wide. “Open, Master level access granted. Callsign: Maiden.” The hatch hissed and swung open.

“Follow me.” Lyra urged us, and she ventured through. We followed.

“Maiden?” I called out hesitantly.

Lyra’s body stopped. “Yes?”

“May we call you that?”

“You may.”

“Be careful with her, alright?”

“I always take good care of my children.”

“So it is true that humans created the species of this planet,” the Doctor affirmed.

“Yes, we did.”

The corridors we walked down were dark and empty.

“Excuse me,” Maiden said as turned her head to the ceiling and cast yet another spell. “Nothing but the emergency power has run in this facility for nearly twelve hundred years, but I will try to create some illumination.”

The spell flew upward and flashed a reflection into the lights above, and miraculously, they began to flicker with life. Light after light turned on, until the entire hallway and passages beyond were granted the warm green light.

“This is quite an advanced installation you have here,” the Doctor commented.

“It was the best at its time. Welcome to Vanguard: the last home of mankind.”

“How were you able to turn on the lights with magic?” I asked. “So far as I have seen in this world, magic and technology are separate.”

“What you have called ‘magic ‘ is actually an expression of the energies of the Spatial Tesseract: the hole in the sky through which matter and energy flow. We studied the hole intently and wondered of its possibilities. We soon came to realize that the energy of the Tesseract could be manipulated to almost any effect. Overnight, we came to the realization that we had become gods, and all opportunity was open to us. We could do anything; grant both death, and life itself. Here we are.”

The Maiden stopped Lyra’s body in front of a sliding door, which did its exact function to allow us access to the room beyond. “This is one of many medical bays. If you are to fulfill your purpose, you must be made whole again.”

“But what is my purpose?” I asked with frustration. “You keep saying I’m here for a purpose, but you never tell me what it is.”

A large, intricate machine descended from the ceiling, and approached me slowly along a track before stopping several feet in front of me. A hole opened in the machine facing me, and the Maiden positioned Lyra’s body next to mine, “I will tell you in good time, but please first place your left arm into the machine.”

Chapter Seventy-Three

I looked down at my left arm, my stub, and then I looked down to the Maiden. Though she continued to be annoyingly enigmic when I asked questions, she had never given me any reason to doubt her. Yet. I took my chances, and I stuck what was left of my left arm into the machine.

“This is an apparatus which will replace your missing arm. We were quite proficient in the design of biomechanical limbs. This is the culmination of our work. You will feel pain in a little bit as the nerves are connected with the appendage, but it will not last.”

There was pain. Lightning and ice seemed to course beneath my skin, and as I involuntarily wrenched my arm away, and as the machine released me, I saw what I had become. I flexed my fingers, but they were no longer mine. What had once been sinuous flesh, cartilage, and bone was now tempered metal, motors, and circuitry. I brought the back of the hand around, and I noticed the odd grooves traced throughout the hand. Tiny lanes traced down the top of each finger, leading into a hub on the back of my hand, which then fed into a large trench that ran the length of my arm into a final hub where my elbow used to be.

“We found that humans cannot directly manipulate the energies of the Tesseract. This is the device that circumvents that rule. We called it the Dominion Gauntlet, as it will give you the power to achieve and master anything you dream of.”

I looked down at it with fresh eyes, and I realized what I was now. “You’ve made me into a weapon. That’s all this can ever lead to.”

“Adam,” the Doctor spoke firmly to me, “You are not a weapon, and this arm is not you. It’s not a weapon either; it’s a tool, and it can help just as easily as it can harm. You’ve been entrusted with a lot of power.”

“I don’t want it.”

“No, but because of that, it’s probably best that you were the one it was given to. Now, we still have a job to do. Lead the way Maiden. We will follow.”

The Maiden steered Lyra’s body out of the room and into the hallway. We proceeded down hallway after hallway, seemingly even more lost in the maze of this labyrinth.

“It is best if I showed you as well as spoke to you of our plight.” She gestured to the rooms to our left and right; they were barracks. “We were at war for many years, and finally one day it just..ended. Not because one side won, but because we all lost. We had created weapons that destroyed entire ecosystems in a matter of hours, and radiation was beginning to poison everything and blot out the Sun. Then, not being satisfied with just destroying the Earth, we destroyed the Sun as well. Someone created a weapon that harnessed the power of the Sun, and once it was completed, it scorched the planet. The weapon backfired, though, and it simply sucked up all the Sun’s fuel. Eventually, the Sun was all used up, and it died. It’s still out there, you know; drifting along, the corpse of a giant, and a celestial monument to our folly.”

“How long ago was this?” asked the Doctor.

“If the surface world were still operating on human measurement of time, it would be 3756 A.D.”

“What?” The Doctor exclaimed, “When did the war begin and end?”

“2206 A.D. until 2273 A.D.”

“You burned through your Sun in sixty-seven years when it’s supposed to naturally take over 16 billion years?” The Doctor brought his hands up to clasp his head as he exhaled, “Wooh! I’d congratulate you if it weren’t so horribly awful. That’s quite an achievement!”

“One we were not proud of,” the Maiden commented. We passed a glass paneled wall that was meant observe the chambers below and beyond. “We were some of the only ones left. We hid away in our bunkers and prayed for our survival in the apocalypse we helped to create. Radiation teemed on the surface of the planet, plant life had been flash carbonized into diamonds, minerals were degenerated into radioactive slag, water was instantly frozen or vaporized. By all rights, the human race should have died with the planet that day. But we survived; wiser but undaunted. We created a near perfect civilization below ground, and we discovered the Spatial Tesseract. Our overarching goal once we came to realize the infinite potential it had was to recreate the planet, and we began by mutating what animals we had into more resilient, heartier breeds that could withstand the hostile surface. Some animals evolved, some devolved, and some went sideways in the chain of evolution.”

She then led us into the largest chamber of all of them, and the door sealed behind us. “Then our pride and curiosity struck us, and we brought about our penultimate destruction.”

“What did you do?” I asked.

“We created a life; a being of infinite power. In this very chamber, we created the Serpent, and we destroyed the Eden we had made.”

Chapter Seventy-Four

The Doctor and I stopped in our tracks as the full meaning of what the Maiden had revealed to us struck us like an anvil.

“Are you saying you created Discord?” The Doctor asked.

“Yes, we did” the Maiden’s guilt was palpable in Lyra’s voice and in Lyra’s face. “We paid for our hubris with our lives. I was the last human standing when Discord came for me.”

“Murder? Discord never showed any propensity for that, just spreading chaos and causing harm collaterally.”

“From the moment he was created, Discord hated and feared mankind. Is it not true that humans create order from chaos? We find the reason or make sense of the things insensible. In a world of insanity and turmoil, we staked out our order of things, and this was exactly why he feared and hated us; we could undo his work by merely existing. So, he wiped us from existence. With our last breath as a species, we limited Discord’s power by locking him to a single base form he must stay in. While he may never age or be able to fully change anymore, he is easily recognizable. Then, with only myself left, I had helped to create the three greatest checkmates of Discord’s power.”

The answer came to me as the pieces began to fit together, “You created the Royal Sisters and the Elements of Harmony.”

“I was selfish in that I chose Dawn and Dusk’s destiny for them, but I also did it for every other pony created, including this vassal.”

“The Cutie Marks,” I murmured to myself.

“I modeled their society on the theories of Plato; each individual having a purpose and benefiting the whole of society itself.”

“Plato’s Republic,” Doctor murmured, “Let me guess: the Earth Ponies are the bronze workers and tradesmen, the Pegasi the silver warriors, and the Unicorns are the golden merchants and knowledgeable ones.”

“Correct on all accounts,” replied the Maiden, “leaving Dawn and Dusk to be the Guardians, protectors of the land, the law, and a safeguard against the Serpent.”

“But what purpose do the Elements of Harmony serve?”

“I can only assume that is what they are called now, but when they were created, they had no name; they were simply powerful receptacles for the energies of the Tesseract. These ‘Elements’ tap the very power of the universe, and with them all of Discord’s machinations could be undone.”

The Maiden looked up to the ceiling, and the eyes of Lyra were lost in deep memory. “My two little girls sealed away the Serpent, and then they began the Panrestoration. Using some of the very weapons we created to destroy others, they created another Sun.”

“You used several hydrogen bombs and a gravity bomb to create a new star,” the Doctor couldn’t believe what he was hearing, “that’s utter genius!”

The Maiden continued, seemingly not noticing the Doctor’s praise, “Just as Discord’s power is connected to Chaos itself, so the Sisters and the ‘Elements’ are connected to Order. The eldest, Dawn, is bound to Energy. Dusk, the younger, is bound to all Matter. The Elements counteract the Destruction wrought by the Serpent with the pure, undiluted power of Creation.”

The Maiden returned Lyra’s gaze to the both of us, “If you wish to close up the Tesseract, only the combination of the Elements and the Sisters will stop it. No less will seal it.”

The Doctor looked to his watch and then to me, “We need to be off Adam; we only have four hours now.”

“Adam,” the Maiden called to me.

I turned to face Lyra once more, “Yes?”

“You wanted to know your purpose?”

“Yes.”

“Whether you came here by chance or not, I think your purpose here was to redeem us. Redeem us as a race, and make sure that my children do not make the same mistakes as I and our kind did, and save this world from the Tesseract.”

I solemnly looked to her, “I will try,”

“That’s all I can ask of you,” she said.

The Doctor made for the door of the chamber, and tried to open the door; it was locked.

I saw him from across the room struggling with the door, “Something wrong?”

“Yes,” was all he grunted.

He then tried to use his Sonic Screwdriver to open the door, and we came to realize our plight when we heard the hissing noise. The Maiden looked up. My gaze followed hers to see several nozzles emitting the hissing sounds, “Decontamination. Standard procedure was to wipe out all life in a hostile chamber by use of cyanide gas.”

She looked down at us once again, but this time there were tears in her eyes, “I’m so sorry. I’ve doomed us all.”

“Teach me how to use this,” I shoved my new mechanical left arm in her direction, “You need to teach me right now!”

“I don’t know anything about using it. It was the best arm I could give you, but I can’t tell you anything about how to use it,” the Maiden said morosely.

“The door is deadlocked!” the Doctor kicked the door with pent up frustration. “We’re stuck.”

Already I could sense the acute smell of almonds coming from the ceiling. We were trapped, nothing left to try, no hope at all, and then I remembered. I called out as loudly as I could in my mind, practically screaming it mentally, Luna, I need you now. Help me!

Chapter Seventy-Five

Princess Celestia had been pondering in her Solarium for many hours since her talk with Princess Luna. The room was made mostly of crystal that channeled the Sun’s rays into glorious patterns on the walls, creating a natural and ornate tapestry of changing color and intensity depending on the weather and time of day. Now, however, it was nearly midnight, and the walls were creating a fresco composed of deep violet, royal blue, and the pale light of the full moon. Princess Celestia studied a large sundial that was the centerpiece of the Solarium. The sundial was of a magnificent size; the span of the it from its crowning point to its indicating point was a distance of twenty-five feet.

Time. Princess Celestia sighed as she continued to look down on her sundial. Time had never been on her side; it had stolen her friends, her students had been lost to its grasp, and her nieces and nephews had been consumed and ravaged by it. Now she feared it was coming for her kingdom; time was running out. In the deepest corners of her mind she could hear the voices of Nature, screaming in warning of its imminent demise. Humans were coming, and this was not only meant to be her destruction, but her children’s destruction as well. This she would not allow.

She closed her eyes, and then exhaled as she opened them again. Her eyes were filled with a cold wrath that only a mother’s mindset can bring; she would not stand idly by and see her children harmed. It was time to take pre-emptive action, before any human forces could cause her little ponies any harm, she would push them back and, if need be, destroy them. Her horn lit up with golden power. A sword made of magic and light arced forth from nowhere. Its blade was large, elegant, and designed with waving patterns. Her eyes glanced over her blade; it was beautiful and deadly, just as she had left it over a thousand years ago.

Princess Luna trotted with a determined pace. She needed to speak to her sister again; she needed some way to convince her that there was no human threat, some way of proving their innocence. She opened the doors softly with her magic and saw her sister, with her back to her, holding aloft a golden ethereal sword.

“You are a failure and a weakling, dear sister!” her lips parted as she spoke to reveal her newly pronounced incisors. Princess Celestia was before her, barely holding that very same blade high enough against her shadowy sword, “I will drown out your precious little Sun, and veil the land in my glorious unending darkness! All shall love me and despair! Tremble before the might of Nightmare Moon!” She laughed maniacally, and shadows fell.

Princess Luna shook her head, excising the awful memories from her mind; still she was haunted by years gone so long they were only remembered in the dust. Now was not the time to become distracted.

As soon as she had opened her mouth, and the word ‘Sister’ had past her lips, she felt it; the summons had come. Adam had called to her and worse yet, she knew by the sound of his summons that he was in dire peril; he and his friends were facing grim death unless she did not intervene immediately. Time seemed to slow down; she saw Princess Celestia turning, but she was already gone. Using her magic, she leapt into the air, her body crackling with strange energies as she vanished into the wind.

On that night, some claimed to have seen a new low flying comet that left purple and blue in its wake. Princess Luna gritted her teeth, her eyes filled with worry as she sped lightning fast toward Adam’s location, and in that moment she heard the same elegy of destruction her sister had heard as well. Though her sister was right in thinking time was running out, she was not as naturally attuned to the cosmos as Princess Luna was, and she had not received the whole of the message; time was running out for the entire world.

Chapter Seventy-Six

I landed on a hard cold surface. For a second I thought I had gone blind, but then I realized my vision was returning to me, and so was my hearing.

“That was a nasty teleport,” I heard the Doctor mutter in pain as he picked himself off the floor.

“My insides feel like scrambled eggs,” I moaned. I then looked up, and before me stood a familiar purple alicorn. “Princess Luna, you heard me!” I said breathlessly.

“Are you unharmed, Adam the Human?” she looked all over me, “You remain well?”

“Yeah, nothing some fresh air won’t fix.”

I looked to my left and then my right, and then I saw the body of Lyra, lying near a crescent shaped balcony. Princess Luna’s eyes followed my gaze, and her eyes widened. She leapt to Lyra’s side and began to tend to her. The Doctor came over to Lyra and began to check her as well.

“Is she going to be alright,” I asked.

The Doctor's voice was laced with concentration,“I am pretty amazing, but in my near nine-hundred years I still haven’t learned how to be able to glance at a patient and instantaneously tell their condition,”

“How comest thou to say thou art near nine-hundred?” Princess Luna asked as she looked up to the Doctor’s face, “You appear to be no older then he,” she gestured to me.

“And you look pretty spry for a fourteen-hundred year old alicorn,” he quipped back.

Princess Luna leaned down to more closely inspect Lyra, when we saw the yellowish-green light begin to engulf the Princess. Lyra gasped for air, and the particles engulf Princess Luna completely. Lyra looked up to both me and the Doctor, “Did we do it? Did we find what we needed?”

“We did,” the Doctor quietly said.

Lyra looked over to me, and she saw my mechanical left appendage, “What the hay is that?” She looked up and saw her sovereign princess, “Holy horse apples, is that Princess Luna?!”

“She just saved all of our lives, but it looks like the Maiden has taken her instead.”

“Go”, we heard Princess Luna speak, “I will handle her; I will clear the way for you to the Elements of Harmony. We will meet again soon.” The Maiden was obviously in control, and she spoke again with greater urgency, “Go!” She flung a set of wooden doors open with Luna’s magic, and gestured to it.

We ran through the set of thick oak doors, and we made our way to the stairs toward the halls of the castle below. After many turns, we made our way out to a courtyard, where we spotted a large and ornate cathedral like structure. “That has to be the place,” I yelled over my shoulder.

As we approached the doors of the cathedral, several unicorns began to flank us and block us from going any further. Bunsen Burner stepped into the now complete circle, and approached me, “The game is up. No friends to rely on, no blue box to escape in; you have lost. Now then, I’m taking you into custody by the authority of the Royal Sisters.”

“Only if we so deign to grant that authority,” Princess Luna, without the Maiden’s influence, landed before Bunsen Burner and in front of the three of us.

The unicorns bowed before Princess Luna; Bunsen Burner did not. “Princess, I am surprised to see you.”

“BE SILENT, IMPUDENT FOAL!” Princess Luna roared, while thunder and lightning flashed and boomed in accompaniment to her loud voice. Bunsen Burner was unfazed, but silent. “You have abused our authority, and the trust of thy teacher, Princess Celestia! You have betrayed the values you were beholden to under my sister’s tutelage, and you have nearly cost every single being in this world their lives to pursue your own agenda! Were it solely for me to be the judge I would have thee banished to beyond the reach of any warm and loving star in the night sky!”

“Then do it,” he whispered angrily, “Do it and watch this world crumble before the likes of his kind,” he pointed to me, and then to her, “or your own. The world needs ponies like me. When the gods of Equestria become its demons, who is to stand in their way?”

Luna’s eyes flashed, and for the briefest moment her eyes were like haunting serpentine slits. “Do. Not. Test. Me.” Princess Luna looked to the unicorns surrounding her, and curtly said, “Leave us,” and all of them quickly obliged. She spoke in a low growl, “Your mind, your memories, all your inspiration, they are now mine; and I take them thusly,” she ripped off his spectacles with her magic.

His eyes widened in shock, surprise, and fear; his glasses had been the artifact that had stopped Princess Luna from entering his mind, and all of his defenses were now laid bare. “Don’t!” was all he got out before Princess Luna crashed into his consciousness.

Chapter Seventy-Seven

Princess Celestia had heard Princess Luna call to her, but by the time she turned to speak to her, she had already gone. She had tried locating her sister with magic, but she couldn’t make out a definite reading, so obviously Luna had to be dimensionally phasing.

Then she sensed her in her Tower of the Crescent Moon, along with three other beings and what felt like a half being. Then the half a being was gone, and the other three were running down to the bottom of Princess Luna’s tower. They seemed to be running toward the place where the Elements of Harmony were stored, but then they became surrounded by multiple others. She decided she just might investigate. She spread her wings softly and flew up toward the roof which she teleported around.

The night air was definitely cooler than it had been, but that was to be expected. She glided serenely on the air currents towards the courtyard below, until she heard from below “BE SILENT IMPUDENT FOAL!” and lightning nearly scorched her wings. She deflected it easily enough with a shield of light, but she was most curious to note that it was her sister that had said it.

She slowly descended and saw that Princess Luna was talking to Bunsen Burner, and then she saw Princess Luna forcibly remove his glasses and placed her horn to his forehead.

“What are you doing?!” Princess Celestia asked in stunned disbelief as she landed, and then she noticed the two men and the mint green unicorn. The last two were new to her, but the first was her would-be assassin. “You,” she began angrily as she took a step forward.

“Do not harm him, he is more important than you know!” Princess Luna yelled to her.

“He is a human, and more importantly, my attempted murderer. His kind has no place in our world.” Princess Celestia stepped even closer to me.

I was frightened, as I was certain she meant to end me. Then Lyra nuzzled my leg, and I crouched down to give her a hug. She looked up to Princess Celestia and implored through both her eyes and her voice, “Please Princess Celestia. Please don’t do this.”

“Move aside child. This human is a danger to our world.”

“He’s not the one threatening us,” she said quietly.

“Step out of the way child!” Princess Celestia said with growing fury.

“I said do not harm him Tia!” Princess Luna yelled, her mind still attached to that of Bunsen Burner.

The Doctor stepped forward and in front of us, “Don’t do this Celestia. There is still time; we can save your world.”

“I am saving my world, from you and this wretch. Now stand aside or I might punish you as well!”

“No.”

“What did you say?”

“No. I’m saving your world with or without your help. Your sister is right; he’s key to your planet’s survival, and if you don’t stop right now, I will make sure you do.”

“I’d like to see you try it!”

“No, you really don’t.”

“I am the Ruler of Equestria and the avatar of the Sun. Just who do you think you are?” Princess Celestia’s eye glowed with light, white as the purest light imaginable. A wind of unnatural origin started to swirl in the courtyard, seemingly a prelude to an enormous maelstrom.

The Doctor began to walk toward her, and as he walked his voice boomed out to meet her challenge. “I am the last of my people; the last of the Gallifreyans.” As he approached her, his words seemed to carry a weight of their own, as if each was the heart of a black hole. “I am the Oncoming Storm,” the vast open skies seemed to shrink, and looked pale before this man, as if he were the only constant, real thing, and everything else was trivial and in flux. “I have seen universes blossom in life and in their last spasms of death. I know of then, now, and all that is to come! I am the Lord of Time victorious! I am the Doctor! And no one stands in my way for long.”

“Is that a threat?” Princess Celestia spread her wings to their full span; she did not give an inch of ground. The Doctor stood a mere three inches from her nose, both eyes glowed with ethereal energy; hers: the heart of a living sun, an inferno given life. His eyes were like stars as well; cauldrons of endless depth. These eyes had beheld everything that had ever existed, and were brimming with ancient but eternally young life. These were eyes like those of the ancient Greek gods. They carried finality with them, as if they alone granted life and death. “No, it’s a fact.”

Chapter Seventy-Eight

“ENOUGH!!” Princess Luna roared. All became silent.

After disconnecting from Bunsen Burner’s thoughts, releasing a heavy breath, and seeing that all was quiet, she began to speak. “While we sit her fighting like quarrelsome foals, our world is nearing collapse! While Bunsen Burner has not known of it until recently, he has either ignored the warnings and signs, or has lied to you outright sister!”

“Why can’t you just trust him,” Princess Celestia spoke in frustration, “Why can’t you trust me Luna?”

“Because of what I have only just ascertained. Bunsen Burner has been betraying your trust for years now. Not only that, he has even devised plans to remove us from power or terminate us if necessary!”

“Lies,” muttered Bunsen Burner groggily. “All lies. Princess Celestia, your sister has been psychically taken by the subject. She is trying to destroy everything you’ve created.”

“Will your lies have no end, blackguard?” Princess Luna said furiously. She seized him telekinetically, and brought his face near hers. Princess Luna’s eyes glowed white with power, “Bunsen Burner, from this day onward, thou art hereby stripped of thy title as Chief Royal Science Officer, and thou art thusly banished from this capital of Equestria, and are to never return to it for the term of your natural life. May your name become a byword and be a shame to those called by it!”

Bunsen Burner was consumed in a large purple and blue flash, and he disappeared from us. Princess Luna turned to face her older sister, and started to canter away, “Now we must enact the plan that Mother instructed me in.”

Princess Celestia looked at the back of her sister’s head in shock, but tears slowly began to flow and her expression grew angry, “He was completely right! You’ve been driven insane.” Princess Celestia looked to me with a furious expression, and I could see the tips of her mane seemingly begin to smolder in consuming, otherworldly fire, “You’ve taken my students away from me. You will not have her! YOU WILL NOT TAKE MY SISTER FROM ME!” She drew from nowhere a sword made of golden light and brought it up to strike us down.

I saw what was coming, and I sprang to action. The Doctor had not processed precisely what was going on yet, but I knew Princess Celestia was half mad with grief over my supposed possession of her sister. I made a wild kick near the back of the Doctor’s left kneecap, and it connected. The Doctor began to fall to the left.

I then made to shove Lyra out of the way, and as I did, the Dominion Gauntlet came to life. I never connected with her body, but I found I had telekinetically shoved her fifteen feet away before I had even begun to bend over. I looked up in time to see the sword coming down, and a purple blur shouting “No,” arcing into its path.

I blinked. The sword had vanished, the Doctor was safe, Lyra was safe.

Then I saw the limp mass several feet away. Purple feathers were falling from the sky.

Princess Celestia’s eyes were wide with horror, and she sped over to the prone form of her sister's seemingly lifeless body. “LULU! Don’t do this to me! Why? Why? Why oh why oh why?! Don’t leave me! DON’T LEAVE ME ALONE AGAIN LULU!”

Chapter Seventy-Nine

Against my better judgment, I approached the fallen Princess Luna and the grieving Princess Celestia. I came close and through the forelegs of the Sun Princess I saw a wondrous sight. Princess Luna was not dead. The wound the sword of light had inflicted on her was still there and it was deep, but rather than seeing blood coming from the open area of flesh, I saw vapors of silver light flowing into the air.

The Princess of the Night was still breathing shallowly, but her horn glowed with a purple aura, and the wound slowly began to close. As the process neared completion, the Maiden’s green and yellow stars flew away from Princess Luna’s body and engulfed Princess Celestia. Princess Luna eyes opened, she hesitantly began to stand, and gingerly began to walk towards the doors of the cathedral where the Elements of Harmony were kept.

Princess Celestia’s body stood as well, and the Maiden spoke though Princess Celestia, “Go with Dusk; she knows what must be done.”

We quickly caught up with Princess Luna who had reached the large doors to the cathedral. “Please..open them for me,” she whispered to us.

The Doctor and I grabbed the doors by their handles and pulled them open slowly and with great effort.

Lyra stood close to Princess Luna and looked up to her, “If you’d like, you could lean on me Princess,”

“You are very kind, little one,” she said with a small smile, and she placed her right front hoof over Lyra’s back.

We slowly made our way down the long carpeted aisle leading to a large door with six circles on it. Princess Luna slipped her horn into a lock located in the center of the door, and the door began to glow as patterns of light formed on its surface. The doors slowly opened, and a chest was revealed.

“Take it Doctor,” Princess Luna said, and the Doctor stepped into the chamber and accepted the burden of the chest.

“We have less than four hours now,” the Doctor commented worriedly. He looked to Princess Luna, “Can you still teleport? I need to get to my ship.”

“I cannot do it alone, I would need help.”

“You have us,” I said, and Lyra smiled warmly up to the Princess.

“Very well. I will quickly teach you. What is your name, little one?”

“I’m Lyra Heartstrings.”

“Lyra Heartstrings, please kneel.” Lyra stepped in front of her Princess and knelt.

“And you as well, Adam the Human,” she looked to me. I knelt to one knee before her. She lightly placed her horn tip on Lyra’s horn, and there was a spark. She then placed her horn near my forehead, and it sparked me as well.

Vast and incredibly complex information flowed into my mind, and it almost drove me mad trying to comprehend it. Very quickly the confusion was replaced with understanding, and I knew I could do it. I stood up and walked a few steps away from the group, and I sliced the air with my fingers.

The Dominion Gauntlet surged with arcane power, and a rift opened in the air, with colors coming from it I had never seen before. “It’s so beautiful.” The colors swirled and ate each other, and I knew which way we needed to go in order to get to the Tardis, “Alright, let’s go.”

“Lead the way; I will guide you, and Lyra Heartstrings will be our rearguard.” We all stepped through the hole in reality, and Lyra closed it up behind us, leaving behind Princess Celestia and the Maiden.

Chapter Eighty

Princess Celestia found herself lying on a floor of white, from which she quickly rose. After ascertaining her surroundings and seeing no threats she was calmed, but only slightly.

Everywhere she looked about her she saw silvery white murkiness just a few feet away, and though the scene carried some intrinsic serenity to it, she felt uneasiness. Had it finally happened? After so many years of life and eternal vitality, had she died and passed on next to her sister? Was Equestria now doomed because of her impulsive vengefulness? With no one left to rule, the land would be utterly defenseless in the wake of the humans, or even worse, another ascension by Discord.

“Oh Luna,” she said out loud in quiet grief, “I’ve doomed them all.”

“Hope yet remains, little Dawn,” spoke a firm but loving voice from nowhere.

Princess Celestia looked around and readied herself for battle. Her wings flared, and her horn blazed with golden light, “Who’s there? Show yourself! Live or dead, I’m Princess Celestia, ruler of all equinity, and I demand to know the one who addresses me!”

“Oh, Dawn, but you do know me,” a pearlescent white alicorn stepped out of the mist. Her eyes were blue, a blue with brightness and intensity of unmatched beauty, and her mane and tail were a gorgeous red color. Adorning her flanks were an ink bottle and a quill. “How could you possibly forget me?”

“Mother!” Princess Celestia said in ecstatic delight, and she rushed over to give her mother a large and loving embrace.

“You’ve grown up so much my child, but how could you possibly have forgotten your real name?”

“No one has called me 'Dawn' in a very very long time Mother; I’d almost forgotten it.”

“Do you really even remember me?” asked the red maned alicorn with a trace of sadness in her voice.

Princess Celestia broke the hug she’d been giving to her mother, and looked at her with confusion, “Of course I remember you, Mother. Even if it’s been a literal eternity since you created the world and everything in it, I’ve never forgotten you.”

“Sweetheart,” the red maned alicorn smile lessened until it was a sad frown, “It hasn’t been an eternity, and though it has been a long time, I never had the honor of creating any world. It’s been around fourteen hundred years since I last saw you, and a little under that since I died.”

“But you gave your life to create the world,” Princess Celestia protested, “you created the world, and then you created Luna and I to fight Discord. That’s how I remember it!”

“But you’re wrong, bright little Dawn,” the red maned alicorn’s blue eyes began to form small tears, “and you’re wrong because the earliest memories I gave you were lies. I lied to you, and I’m sorry.”

Princess Celestia looked to her Mother imploringly, “Please Mother, I don’t understand.”

“That in and of itself is a lie. Dawn, I’m not your real mother, nor am I Dusk’s mother either.”

“That’s not true,” Princess Celestia said faintly.

“I’m so sorry.” The alicorn said, and as she finished, her form faded and was replaced by that of a human wearing a white lab coat. She also had red hair, pale skin, and blue eyes.

Chapter Eighty-One

Princess Celestia reeled on to her hind legs in surprise. She looked down at the human female before her, with her long straight red hair and pale skin, and she looked like an impression of her mother.

“This must be a bad dream,” she pointed to the human before her with her left front hoof, “you’re not real! Where’s my Mother? What have you done with her? Change back to Mother!”

“I’m sorry Dawn, but I won’t,” the Maiden said, “you need to know this truth.”

“Leave me alone,” Princess Celestia yelled as she ran away from the red haired woman, but the woman simply ran after her and kept stride with her.

Princess Celestia then felt the woman riding on her back, and then she reared back again, trying to knock the woman off her. She felt something grinding into her teeth, and she realized that it was a bit that was in her mouth. She thrashed her head about, and kicked with all the might she had in her back legs, but try as she might, the red haired woman wouldn’t let go.

“I don’t want to do this Dawn! Please stop making me!”

Princess Celestia snorted in fury and put as much revulsion as she could into saying, “Get off of me, human!”

“No, your ponies need you! And right now they need you to listen to your Mother!”

“You’re not my Mother!”

“No, but I raised you. I cared for you, and provided for you. I loved you for as long as I was alive, and I still love you now! Even though you were never mine, I treated you and Dusk like you were my real daughters.” The red haired woman wrapped her arms around the neck of Princess Celestia, “Please, trust me now.”

Princess Celestia stopped bucking, and as she did, she felt the bit release and disappear from her mouth.

The Maiden came around to face her, “My dear Dawn, I know you’ve felt the pangs of this world’s death rattle, and I know that you thought they were the work of humanity. It’s not true, though. Not this time. We did destroy this world a millennia and a half ago, and we ended up destroying ourselves as well. But we created you and others so they could have the same opportunities that our kind so foolishly squandered. I have already told Dusk all this, as you know, and I’m leaving the same message with you that I gave her. Forgive yourself.”

“But I don’t feel guilty about anything,” Princess Celestia said.

“Not even your sister’s forced imprisonment? Or your inability to help your world without fear of accidentally destroying it?”

Princess Celestia looked down at her hooves, and scraped the ground, “Maybe.”

“My kind destroyed our world. If I had never forgiven myself for the part I played in that act, I would have never created you, and you would have never created the paradise you did. Learn from your mother; forgive yourself. Now go. Do what you were meant to do.”

The Maiden turned and began to walk back into the mist. “Wait!” Princess Celestia called out to her.

The Maiden turned, “Yes, my little pony?”

“Will I ever see you again?”

“Perhaps. In a little while.”

“Mother,” Princess Celestia weakly called out, “Can I have a hug?”

The Maiden’s mouth turned up in a smile.

She walked back to Princess Celestia, and gave her a large embrace. “I love you,” the woman said to the most powerful pony in all the land.

“I love you too Mommy,” said the daughter to her mother.

The Maiden faded, as did the rest of the mist and marble, and as Princess Celestia faded into soft darkness, she heard, “I’ll always be watching over you, my beautiful daughter.”

Chapter Eighty-Two

We safely made it to the Tardis and we dematerialized. Princess Luna looked at the large interior with an air of an art critic assessing a new piece. She frowned and looked about. “A large room within a small box. You must have great knowhow of the universe, Doctor.”

“I guess you could say that,” was all he muttered as his gaze was fixed on the countdown.

We landed right outside the Invention Emporium, and the countdown came to 2:17:49.

“There’s little time left, and we need to coordinate with the others. Lyra, could you lead the Princess into the Emporium? I need to quick speak with Adam for a tick.”

“Alright,” she said as propped up Princess Luna once more and led her to the doors of the larger than life box.

The Doctor waited until they had cleared the door before he turned to me, “Adam, there’s something I need to broach to you, and honestly, I’ve had a terrible time trying to find the best way to say it.”

“Doctor, I don’t think I like the sound of this.”

“We can repair the Void hole with only one Princess and the Elements of Harmony,”

“Well that’s good news,”

“Yes, it is. I’ll fly the Tardis into the Void hole itself, and close it from the other side.”

“Okay, so what’s the trouble then?”

“Adam,” the Doctor sighed as he looked at me, “you have to come with me.”

“Why,” I asked numbly. I raised my arms; they were shaking. “Everything I’ve ever really cared about is here. I have true friends; friends who care about me and don’t have preconceived ideas of what I should be like. I have a chance at a completely new life here, and I’ve grown to love this place!”

“We are the disturbances that shattered the Hole into existence in the first place. If we don’t return to where we properly belong, any fix we attempt to make will only be temporary.”

“Doctor, please. Just leave me behind! It might not be my world, but it’s a place I would happily live all my years out in. I want to be here, even if it means I’m alone.”

“It can’t work like that Adam. If you stay here, you and everyone you love will be consumed by the Void eventually.”

“I’d still have time to be with them. We could start a bucket list together.”

“Adam, listen to yourself! If you truly love your friends, you’ll have to let them go. It’s the only way you can guarantee them a chance to live out their lives.”

He was right. If I stayed, my friends would die, but they would live if I sacrificed ever being able to see them again. There was a large part of me that just wanted to stay and use my time wisely before the end. As I thought though, I knew that the end would come for everyone, not just me and my friends. How many lives would be lost if I made my choice like that? Ten thousand? One hundred thousand? More? I would essentially be a bringer of genocide if I chose that path. For the sake of everyone and everypony, I knew what was required of me. I had to give up everyone and everything I loved so that they could live.

I looked up to the Doctor, resolve and water filled my eyes. “Damn you, Doctor.”

He looked at me, and his face was filled with frustration, “I’m leaving my friend behind as well, you’re not the only one affected here. Now you know a little of what it’s like making the impossible choices, sacrificing for others.” His face softened, “it’s not all bad though. I’ve left something behind so we can still keep in touch with them. I know it’s not the same thing as being with them, but it’s better than the alternative.”

I sighed in defeat and looked at the floor, “Fine Doctor. You win.” I walked toward the doors of the Tardis, “Just let me say goodbye to everypony.”

Chapter Eighty-Three

We discussed with Princess Luna how we woul seal up the Void hole with just her and the Elements of Harmony. “Perhaps the solution can be that rather than two Princesses, we could try one Princess and many others,” Princess Luna murmured.

“What do you mean,” I asked.

“I could telepathically summon as many ponies as I could from the surrounding area, and with our combined magic, we could try to seal up the breach.”

The Doctor pondered on the thought for a second, “It could work, but we need to start immediately; organizing that many ponies is going to be a nightmare, and we have only two hours now.”

Princess Luna closed her eyes for several seconds. I felt a chill run through my body, and all the others did as well. The Princess opened her eyes, “It is done. They will answer the call; every Earth pony, Pegasus, and Unicorn, whether young or old. Now we must begin the task of positioning ourselves. The unicorns will bolster me with their offered magic. The Pegasi must clear away the weather disturbances that will appear due to the enormous amount of magic in use, and when either group becomes tired, the Earth ponies must tend to their needs with food, drink, and comfortable places to rest.”

She pointed her hoof to the six living Elements, “You must also bolster me with your power; I’m going to need everything that you can give me.”

“You’ve got it Princess,” Twilight confidently declared.

Princess Luna then pointed her hoof to the Doctor and myself, “You two will help to close the hole from the other side as you already planned.” The Doctor and I nodded our understanding to her. “Now, let us begin!”

The Doctor made his way back to the Tardis, and I began to say my farewells. I got a large group hug and melancholy smiles from the Elements, and Ditzy Doo gave me a large hug as well.

Vinyl Scratch came to me and gave me a hug as well, “And yes, I do forgive yeh.”

“Thank you, Vinyl. Good luck to you in finding a way to help others.”

“And you’d bettah stay out of trouble now”, she chuckled.

I made my way to Princess Luna, and I got down on my knee to bow to her, “Thank you for believing in my continued innocence, your Majesty. Thank you for almost laying down your life for me.”

“’Tis nothing in my eyes. I have learned much from you, Adam the Human, in the short time you found yourself in my domain. Without you, I might have never discovered my origins, and you played a part in helping me to forgive myself. For that, I thank you.” She placed her horn on my right shoulder first, and then placed it on my left. “By the powers in invested in me as Princess of Equestria, I knight thee Sir Adam Human, honorary Protector of Equestria. I present to you your badge of office.”

Her horn lit up with blue energy, and out of nothing she created a jewel. It was colored silver and sapphire , and it was in the shape of a crescent moon. It hung from a small chain made out of ebony. After telekinetically placing it around my neck, she placed her head on my right shoulder and embraced me with her front hooves and her wings, “Leave these lands in peace and with my blessing.”

“Thank you, your Majesty. I will constantly look at the night sky and think of you.” She blushed, and smiled.

Next I came to Bon Bon. I gave her a big hug, and I slyly asked, “I guess I’ve grown on you, haven’t I?”

“Like a canker sore,” she sarcastically jibed back. I gave a small laugh at that.

“Despite nearly killing me when I first got here, I really am going to miss you, Bon Bon.”

“I’ll miss you too, you great big oaf.”

I looked all around for Lyra, but I couldn’t see her. “Hey Bon Bon, have you seen Lyra?”

“Well, after bringing Princess Luna in, she ran off. I thought I heard her say she ‘had something she needed to do’, but I’m not sure.”

I waited for a little bit to see if Lyra would come back, and the Doctor came up to me, “Adam, we need to go now.”

“But I haven’t gotten to say all of my goodbyes yet!”

“Adam, we need to go. I’m sorry.”

I desperately looked around for Lyra, and while I could see many unicorns gathering outside, none of them had her distinctive lyre on their flank, or her minty complexion. Crestfallen, I followed the Doctor into the Tardis, and we began our flight into the now visible gray and white hole in the sky, never to see Equestria again.

Chapter Eighty-Four

Princess Luna saw the blue box fly into the chasm in the sky. She knew the Doctor would be in position soon, so she summoned up her Royal Canterlot Voice to speak to everypony.

“CITIZENS OF EQUESTRIA,” all eyes turned to the azure alicorn and waited for the explanation as to why they were all there. “THANK YOU ALL FOR ANSWERING MY SUMMONS. HEAR ME, YEA, HEAR ME! OUR LAND IS IN PERIL FROM THE EXPANSE ABOVE.” She pointed to the skies, and as everypony looked up, there was hushed murmuring from the crowd. “FEAR NOT, MY SUBJECTS. THERE IS A PLAN. HOWEVER, TODAY I MUST TELL YOU A TRUTH THAT MAY BE HARD TO ACCEPT. I CANNOT DO THIS ON MY OWN, AND MY SISTER AND FELLOW SOVEREIGN, PRINCESS CELESTIA, IS NOT HERE. CITIZENS OF EQUESTRIA, I MUST HUMBLY ASK FOR YOUR HELP. WITH OUR COMBINED EFFORTS, WE CAN END THE THREAT POSED TO OUR HOMES, TO OUR LIVELIHOOD, AND TO OUR VERY EXISTENCE. WE MUST GIVE OUR ALL, OR WE HAVE NO HOPE OF ACHIEVING SAFETY FOR ALL. WHAT SAY YOU?” The crowd was momentarily stunned, but finally they all cheered and shouted. “FOR EQUESTRIA!” Princess Luna decreed, and the crowd roared even louder.

“Unicorns, form yourselves into five groups. Pegasi, to the skies! And clear away any inclement weather. Earth ponies, care and provide for the tired and fatigued. Elements of Harmony, to me! Create the sixth point of our pattern!” Everypony hurried as safely as possible to their designated regions.

The unicorns and the Elements of Harmony formed a perimeter around Princess Luna in the shape of a hexagon, with the Princess at the epicenter and the Elements at the northernmost point in the six point array. The pegasi were on standby in the sky, waiting expectantly for the ozone that would be created by the large magical discharge. The Earth ponies had created an area with comfortable places to rest, along with refreshments like Sweet Apple Acres’ apples, carrots, okra, and other foods common to the market place of Ponyville. By the time everypony was in position, a mere fifteen minutes remained.

Princess Luna spoke aloud for all to hear, “UPON MY SIGNAL, THE UNICORNS AND THE ELEMENTS MUST GIVE ME EVERY OUNCE OF MAGIC THEY HAVE. ON THE COUNT OF THREE. ONE!” The atmosphere was tense, and all fell silent. “TWO!” Princess Luna felt the nervousness in her stomach plunge into the abyss as she was about to begin the most important task of her long life.

The Elements gathered, and their eyes glowed with power. All the Unicorn’s horns were glowing, and the multicolored phenomenon could be seen for miles. “THREE! NOW!” Princess Luna’s magic arced high into the sky as a column of dark blue light. The Elements’ powers flew at the Princess in flood of rainbow light, which was joined by the power of every single magic bolt cast by each unicorn.

Chapter Eighty-Five

Power. Near limitless power. It was flooding Princess Luna’s every fiber. Every cell in her body was electrified with the magic that was being injected into her. She turned all that power to the sky, and her magic grew fourfold. When she had been Nightmare Moon and the Elements had been used against her before, it felt like a cold fire had burned in her veins. Now it felt like a soothing liquid was slowing being poured into her body. The skies quickly filled with charged atmosphere, which the Pegasi were doing an excellent job of removing.

Some Unicorns were already spent, all their magic given. They were quickly lead away by the ever vigilant earth ponies. Even in the face of total extinction, her subjects were still working in harmony and caring for each other. The hole in the sky’s expansion began to slow, but even as it did, she felt the edges of fatigue began to creep into her perception. ‘Go on,’ a little voice said in the back of her head ‘absorb the power of the Elements. We can survive the collapse of reality. What need have we of these ridiculous foals?’

She was part of the circuit of magic flooding and filling the void hole, and if she gave into her exhaustion, there would be no hope of closing it in time; mother had told her so. She pressed on, ignoring the voice in her head. She grunted in pain as her muscles began to burn and her head began to ache. She continued on. Soon she would be completely exhausted, and rather than drawing energy from her metabolism, her magic would begin to drain her very life-force. That was an acceptable price, she thought. She had many, if not infinite years to spare, and now she was giving them that all other ponykind might live. Resolute, she struggled on.

She saw out of the corner of her eye that more and more Unicorns were falling away, and the Pegasi were needing rest as well. She felt the gradually increasing power drain as less energy was being offered to her, and the increasing demand was coming out of her. How much had she given already? A year? Five? Ten? She didn’t know or care. She screamed in frustration and pain as she gave everything she had.

The void hole finally stopped expanding altogether. The tipping point had been reached. They had momentarily stopped the cataclysm, between the Tardis, the Elements of Harmony, and the Princess of the Night, but even then it was almost too much.

Princess Luna felt a screaming her ears; her very thoughts were crumbling, her body was literally starting to burn. In a short amount of time, she would be unable to resist the power pouring into her, and she would become her own funeral pyre, burning in magical effigy. She continued on through the agony.

She looked to the bearers of the Elements, and in horror saw they were becoming exhausted too. Her hide began to smolder, and she began to bellow in determination. The void hole began to slip and grow again. This was it, she figured slowly. This is the night they all die, and she would be oblivion’s last meal. She gave every last bit she had, and then there was white.

Chapter Eighty-Six

Princess Luna vaguely felt a shape inside the energy field surrounding her. It was large, equine, and..white.

“Tia?” Princess Luna croaked through parched lips.

“Hello Sister,” the Princess of the Sun replied with calm determination, “Let’s finish this.”

“Aye,” replied the severely weakened Princess of the Night.

Princess Celestia’s power roared into the atmosphere, a fiery arcing lance of light that accompanied the dark beam of energy that was her sister’s magic. Princess Luna felt her body slowly begin to ease and cool down, as now the burden of this task was shared with her sister. The combined field of magic was steadily growing, and the Elements seemed to have gotten their second wind with the arrival of Princess Celestia. Some of the unicorns that had recovered quickly got back into position and gave all their magic again to the pair of alicorns. The void hole slowly began to close, and it shrank, and shrank, and shrank. Then, with one last almighty push given by everypony, the sky closed up.

The hole was gone, and the danger averted.

Some in the crowd cheered, and cried tears of joy that the deed was done. For two princesses and six friends, their method of rejoicing was falling down on their backs in exhaustion and being overjoyed that they were alive.

“We did it,” Twilight muttered through her panting.

“Eeyup,” Applejack replied.

“I think we can have a 'Happy Not the End of the World' Party..after everypony stops being tired,” Pinkie Pie commented.

Rarity looked over at Pinkie Pie between breaths, “Agreed.”

“Sounds good,” Rainbow Dash chimed in.

“I think we should all just go home for now, and take a nice long nap,” Fluttershy wheezed, “If that’s alright with everypony.”

They all agreed.

After being brought some water and having time to cool down, Princess Luna looked to her sister, “What in Tartarus keep you?”

“I had a..heated discussion with mother.”

“If she’s no longer influencing you, where is she?”

“She’s still here in my head, although I have an idea of how to keep her around.”

They paused, and just rested for a few minutes, looking up at the stars and the moon. “It’s a beautiful night,” Princess Celestia commented warmly.

“Yes, it is,” Princess Luna offered back to her sister. “But what are we going to do?”

Princess Celestia looked over at Princess Luna “About what?”

“About the human ruins surely throughout the world. Do we tell everypony about our common lost heritage?”

Princess Celestia mused awhile on that thought, “Perhaps..It is not best for all to know immediately. We won’t speak but to those who ask, and we will slowly pass it down for generations to come as the legends of yesterday. There is both good and bad in the past, and the bad is worse than anypony alive has ever known.”

“But don’t they deserve to know?" Princess Luna pressed on, "Don’t they need to know of humanity’s struggles so we don’t make the mistakes of our mother and her race?”

Princess Celestia looked over her still celebratory subjects, and some were beginning to look in their direction. They looked as if they expected a speech, and those closest to them were beginning to quiet in preparation for it. “Perhaps you’re right sister, but not today. Let’s let our ponies have their hard fought joy, and perhaps we will tell them later. For now we wait. In the end,” she looked to her sister with a smile, “truth will out.”

Chapter Eighty-Seven

“They did it!” the Doctor gave a little laugh of joy. He began to clap his hands. “Oh, brilliant! Everybody lives! I need more days like this.”

“Yeah,” I commented with a hint of sadness, “I’m glad everyone’s safe.” I sighed heavily, and I looked to the Doctor, “I guess now it’s time to take me home, eh Doctor?”

“It doesn’t have to be like that. You can always come with me, with all of time and space as our destination!”

I sighed again, “No, Doctor. I’m tired. I don’t need to see anything at all. Just take me home Doctor; I just want to be left alone.”

“Now that’s no good!” I heard a familiar voice say. Both the Doctor and I whirled around to see Lyra appearing from beneath my invisibility cloak with two satchel bags around her midsection and she had a big smile on her face, “How about you turn that frown upside down?”

“Lyra!” I exclaimed as I ran over to her and squatted to give her a hug. As she leaned up to give me a large embrace her satchel bags fell off of her back. “What are you doing here?” I asked, still utterly surprised by her presence.

“As I was walking Princess Luna out of here, I overheard your talk with the Doctor. So I immediately ran home as fast as I could and packed. I waited here because I thought the Doctor wouldn’t let me come along, so I hid.”

“What about your family? What about Bon Bon and everypony you know?” I started to think about it: she abandoned everything for me. “You should have stayed. You followed me to a darker place.”

Lyra looked at me in frustration, “Adam, I don’t care! I wrote Bon Bon a note, and my family probably won’t even notice I’m gone. It doesn’t matter.”

“Of course it does! You’ll never see any of them again. Ever!”

“I knew what would happen, and I made my choice. I decided that nothing else matters; I wanted to be with you, no matter where you go, or what you do. You need me, and I need you. I just want to be with you forever.”

Suddenly, a panel on the Tardis console burst wide open, revealing a large bright light. “Adam, get back!” I heard the Doctor call out as he grabbed me from behind and dragged me from the wall of yellow and orange light.

“What’s happening?” I asked in half panic. I couldn’t see Lyra in the blaze of light.

“It’s the Heart of the Tardis. The Tardis isn’t just a machine; it’s alive. It can telepathically enter into being’s minds and it can hear their greatest desires in the secret corners of their hearts. And sometimes,” the Doctor looked at the light himself, “miracles happen.”

“I’m going in there,” I blurted.

The Doctor held me firmly, “No! Don’t interrupt the process! We have no idea what damage that’ll do. Besides, it knows what it’s doing.”

I was briefly granted vision into the blinding but smoothly swirling vortex of light. I saw Lyra’s silhouette, but it was changing. Her forelegs and head were spread upward , while her hind legs and tail were spread downward. Her body began to grow and lengthen, and each of her limbs began to lengthen and grow as well. Her tail slowly shrank and disappeared, while her forelegs grew in biceps, then forearms and palms, and finally hands. Her hind legs grew downward into well-defined quadriceps, forward facing knee joints, and her hooves became feet with toes. Her snout scrunched back into her face, and her ears shrank and receded into an expanding cranium. Her horn, bizarrest of all, disconnected from her head, and thinned and lengthened into a baton like shape, which her new formed fingers delicately but firmly grasped.

The light faded, and before me stood a full human being where a pony had once stood. Her hair was still mint colored, but her skin was an olive toned complexion. The clothes covering her body were identical to mine, apart from the mud and stains on my weathered clothes. She opened her eyes, which I immediately saw were her golden eyes from before. All doubt I might have had was gone; this was the Lyra I knew. It was my Lyra. The Doctor let me go, and I walked over to her. She looked up to me, and she nuzzled her nose to mine, “I’m going to be with you forever, whether you like it or not.”

The Tardis landed, and for me, I was home. For Lyra, it was a whole new beginning. We stepped out on to the top of a hill covered in a small frost.

“Where are we,” I turned to ask the Doctor.

“Montana, the United States. It’s a bit out of my usual purview, but this will be the best place for you two to start a new life away from most prying eyes. All the same, my offer still stands. Do you want to come with me? We could tour the stars, all three of us! Seeing all the wonders the universe has to offer.”

I shook my head, “Sorry Doctor. Like you said, I’ve got to make the world a little brighter.”

Lyra looked up to me and softly took my right hand in hers, “And I’m going to help him to hope. Besides, since both of us can do magic now, I can teach him the basics, and we can help others in our own little ways.”

The Doctor gave a small smile, “Okay. Oh, before I go, I’ve got something for you both.” He slipped back into the Tardis. After a minute or two he came back out with a stone plague which he placed into our hands. “This is the Tablet of Ran’kron. It’s a string-based pulse transmission communication system. Basically, it’s a trans-dimensional communicator. I left an identical Tablet with Ditzy Doo, so that you can ‘reach out and touch somepony’.” He grinned.

I reached out and took the Doctor’s hand in mine again. “Thank you for everything, Doctor.”

“It was all my pleasure.”

Lyra also took the Doctor’s hand. “Goodbye, Doctor.”

“Goodbye, Ms. Heartstrings. Remember you two: Live to make a difference, no matter what! Now, if you’ll excuse me, I’ve got to meet Queen Elizabeth I in 1567!” He walked back to the Tardis doors and looked back to us, “Good times to you, and good luck!” We waved to him, and he disappeared into the Tardis, and soon after, the Tardis itself disappeared as well.

We looked out across the hill, and we saw a little town not too far off, but that could wait. The sun was almost clear of the horizon before us, and we wanted to usher in our new life along with the rise of a new day.

Epilogue

In a world not unlike our own, there were two humans. They lived peaceably in a comfortable home just outside of a small town. Each had much to give to the other, and each had much to learn from the other as well. Their days were bright and happy.

Elsewhere, a cosmic vagabond ran away from fate in his little blue box, but eventually the drums of his doom would reach him, and they would overtake him, just as the horse of Death’s four hoofbeats pound for us all.

In a distant, wonderfully blessed land there lived six individuals who shared deep bonds of friendship. But as always, there would be trials that would strengthen those friends' bonds in the days to come.

Not too far off was one left all by herself. She had many sad days ahead of her in remembering the days gone by with the loss of one of her most dear friends, but she would find solace even in the ever changing world around her.

In a secluded corner of the world, a disgraced stallion of learning pondered. His stubbornness had nearly brought about an end to all, and the guilt was almost too much to bear. He spent his days seeking purpose, as painful memories from long ago and recent history crowded in.

In a large city there lived an entertainer with a heart of gold. Though her dream had been ravaged by the hooves of another, she struggled to rebuild it, and in the coming months she would provide happiness to many ponies with the gifts she offered.

An equally humbled heart was to be found in the Princess of the Sun, who now concerted more and more of her thought and efforts with her wise sister, the Princess of the Night. Their mutual bond of trust was never greater than now.

A certain wall-eyed Pegasus deserves mention, as it seems that recent events required the position of Chief Royal Science Officer be filled by worthier hooves. She spends her days laboring for the good of others, but now she does it without recrimination or prejudice.

For one being there was now rest. A consciousness that had agonized over the safe-being of all was now at peace, and she reveled in the paradise her children helped to create. She was given a vessel in which to reside, so that her children might readily seek her council at any time.

And far, far below the shining capitol city, deep in the bowels of the former dungeons, there was a chamber; a chamber that could only be accessed by those of calm mind, for those with unharmonious thoughts could very well unwittingly unleash the maelstrom that waited therein. Within that chamber was a seemingly innocuous stone statue, but those who were observant could see a recent change in the shape of that statue, and they might shudder, for what had been expression of terror on the stone chimera’s face was now an upturned smile. Yes, everything had gone better than planned. The danger now being averted, the game could continue, and his turn would come again soon.

THE END

Chapter 1 REVISED

The sensation of falling was intense. I was hurtling thousands of feet every second, but I also felt as if I wasn’t even moving at all. My bones and muscles were burning within my body. They felt like they were on fire; like every atom of my being was bundled up with immense energy. I experienced vertigo, unsure of whether I was falling, standing, or even flying through a cauldron of what looked like something I could only describe as a white blackness, and which sounded like a roaring silence. My environmental protection suit was straining at its every joint, and it was holding me together in the nothingness.

Then I saw it: right before my eyes, a small pinpoint of light.

It grew larger at an agonizing pace. I realized that if I wanted to survive this journey, and not be lost to all of reality, I had to will myself towards the point. As I reached out with my right hand to try and grasp at the seemingly distant hole in the mad world around me, I felt a numb sensation overcome my legs. Looking down I cried out to see that my feet were slowly disintegrating, eaten away by the energies of the Void. Panicking, I flailed my outstretched hand towards my destination. As I concentrated on being alive and free from the hellish world around me, the point of light grew a little larger. Seeing that my determination was giving me results, I did everything I could to ignore the nothingness I felt slowly climbing up my torso, and I reached. I screamed in anger, fright, and the intensity of my desire to be real again. I could finally see colors in the light; blue, green, and brown. I remember feeling like I was staring through a camera's out of focus lens, and as I felt my torso enter oblivion and the numbness claw up towards my arms and neck, my fingers touched the light.

I felt the wind cutting across my face and whistle past my ears. Now realizing that my senses felt something familiar and not hostile to my sanity, I screamed out in excitement: I was alive! I was back in real life! As my eyes opened to greet the world around me, the scream of exhilaration turned into one of terror as I saw I was free-falling towards a quickly approaching forest skyline. I hit the upper branches of a pine tree, and fell through them as they bent beneath me. My suit, made of nothing more than hard plastics, synthetic polymers, and bits of aluminum, was definitely not designed with a parachute, and it became a form-fitting, shock absorbing prison around me. More branches hit my body. Suddenly I saw a large and very thick branch loom directly in front of me, and before I could scream again I slammed down into it with a crack. I felt my chest cave in. All the breath was knocked from my lungs. I lost my balance, and my body fell to the side of that branch. My fall was cushioned, and I heard a splashing sound. Cold crystal clear water lapped up over me and swallowed me whole. I could feel it filling my lungs, but there was nothing my body could do to expel it from them. As the sunlight creeping beneath the surface grew dimmer, I remember feeling a delirious desire to laugh overcome me: I had exchanged one cold and dark death for another, but now I was at least experiencing one I was comfortable with.

Lyra Heartstrings strummed her instrument absentmindedly, trying to attune herself with the natural world surrounding her. Inspiration was a very nebulous and flighty thing to try and catch, but the musician was hoping that for her next piece the sounds of the Everfree could help her to write a mysterious and powerful melody. After what seemed like hours of waiting, she found a contentment in the sound of the chirping birds and a rustling of the wind in the branches of the trees, and she began her meditation in earnest, trying to internalize the spirit of the forest and find the beat she was looking to start with. She felt like it had to be something from the higher strings of her lyre, something primal and shrill, like that scream she was hearing.

As the yelling continued, she stirred from her trance to look up in the direction she heard the blood curdling call coming from. Some sort of creature was falling through the trees, but as it fell out of sight, obscured by more low hanging branches, its screaming abruptly stopped. Fearing the worst, Lyra ran towards the area where the creature should have landed, scrambling over the rugged broken forest floor, jumping over an eroded old river bed. There was a large splashing sound as she jumped up to the top of the ridge ahead of her. As she cleared the top, she saw the obviously unconscious form of the animal drifting down the river in front of her.

"Horseapples," she hissed to herself as she rushed to the riverbank and waded in after the poor thing. She started to paddle when the water became too deep to walk in. Horrified, she saw it was starting to sink to the bottom of the riverbed.

"Oh no you don't," she exclaimed, and she redoubled her efforts to paddle after it. When she felt she was close enough, she reached out with her magic, lifting it up with all her mental might. It rose up near the surface again, and then it rose up out of the water, suspended in a golden aura. Straining under the drain of her magical reserve and her need for concentration, Lyra levitated it towards the shore. Her hooves found purchase on the riverbed once again as she made it, and she slowly turned the creature over to lie chest down on the gravel strewn about.

Tired, but knowing she still wasn't done, she brought her forehooves up onto the creature's back and slowly pressed their weight down, then ground them up towards its head. Lyra repeated this motion several times until she heard it sputtering and coughing beneath her. When it had finished clearing its airway, the creature seemed to settle, and she realized that it had fallen back into its unconscious state as it raggedly breathed into the rocks beneath it.

Looking down at the creature she had just rescued, she realized that it could still be injured in some way. Now that she wasn't panicking over its life, she also realized she had never seen anything like it before. Its upper torso almost looked like a minotaur without its horns, but its lower half had straight legs instead of those of an ox. It wasn't awake and it had no obvious means of defending itself: by nightfall it could very well become some other animal's dinner. She glanced back in the direction she had come from: the forest edge wasn't all that far away. She could drag it to the cottage if she took a quick breather before she did. From there she could get Fluttershy. "Maybe she can help me with this poor thing," she thought to herself as she got ready to cast another levitation spell.

I slowly came to in a small cottage. Very small, I had to note as I blurrily looked at my immediate surroundings. The pain and ebbing burning I felt in my lungs either told me I was alive or that I was being very convincing at it despite being dead. Wherever I was, it appeared to be some sort of small living room. A bookcase sat next to me. A doorway and an adjoining hall were near my feet and to my left. To my right was a low sitting couch, and in front of it were two pillows, probably for some pets of the owner. There was a window on the opposite wall, through which I could see the magnificent clear sky. Next to it was a door that most likely opened to the outside world. Obviously someone lived here in comfort for so small of a room.

I heard the sounds of two people talking in a room next to mine, their conversation echoing out of a doorway in the far right corner. They were talking quite loudly. It was more than that I realized; they were having an argument.

“No! We are not keeping it! We don’t even know what it is, and we have no idea how to care for it!”

This I was quick to note: They don’t know what I was?

The voice continued, “You should have left it out there in the forest! It would have woken up and been gone to..wherever it belongs!”

“Bon Bon, I couldn’t just leave it out there! It had no means of protecting itself. Besides, I'm not asking that we keep it here forever; just until I can get to Fluttershy's!”

My mind sank into a further state of confusion: what kind of a name was 'Bon Bon', or for that matter 'Fluttershy'?

"And how do I know this won't turn into you begging for us to keep it? You have a gold heart for saving the poor creature Lyra Heartstrings, but I will be making sure it doesn't stay one second longer than it has to."

I sniffed the air and realized that the smell of grass was lying heavily in the room. So I’m on a farm of some kind, obviously. The smell agitated my already burning lungs, and I sneezed.

Absentmindedly, the voice of the one named 'Lyra Heartstrings' mechanically exclaimed, “Bless you!”

“Thank you,” I replied back in a similarly predetermined manner.

Afterwards, there was a long pause of silence. After a while, the cream colored head of a young pony emerged from around the corner, looking all around curiously. Another pony came around the corner fully, which gave me a start, because I saw that it had a horn on its head, and all of its body was painted some shade of mint. After that discovery, I noticed their manes were stylized, almost like human hair. The cream colored one had a string of pink hair through its navy blue mane.

“You didn’t tell me you had somepony over, Lyra,” the cream colored pony said.

Wait, the cream colored pony spoke.

I shook my head softly, while simultaneously wondering if I had somehow hit my head during my fall.

The mint colored unicorn replied back, “I don’t have anypony over”.

My eyes slowly grew wider. This wasn't a delusion: these two ponies could talk!

Words slowly and with a slight trembling came to my mouth, “What in the world...”

Both of the ponies looked at me.

The mint colored unicorn stared at me in awe. The cream colored one fainted.

And that’s how it all began.

Chapter 6 REVISED

It was a bright summer's day. I found myself in a small fenced off backyard I knew very well, and I couldn't help but smile a little to myself. I was at my Aunt Marilyn's house. The little two story home I'd come to love visiting as a child stood not but a few feet in front of me. It's exterior was light peach colored from exposure to the sun and the elements, and the paint was cracked in many places. Though she had been meaning to get a fresh coat of paint on the exterior for years, she had always joked that they provided the house with a 'lived in, personal' touch. The twin gables on either side of the house were accented with bleached white paint, and the shingles were charcoal colored. I found myself going up the stairs, my right hand loosely gripping around the back door hand rail, and I opened the screen door. Suddenly a strange sense of paranoia came over me, and I couldn't help but turn to look over the fence into the other neighbors' yards. I scanned each intently, looking for the justification for why I felt like I was being watched. After finding nothing, I let the feeling go, and stepped inside, as the weather had suddenly become overcast.

The brightly lit kitchen I had been expecting had darkened, but my vision didn't seem to be affected by it.

"Auntie, are you home?" I called out, but the voice I heard echo through the house was not the one I was expecting.

A whisper seemed to creep out of the walls, One thousand years.

The shadows lengthened as I walked from the kitchen towards the hallway that led to the front room. As I came to the area that made for the house's living room, I realized that the street lights had come on.

Someone new? the voice said with surprise, No, not only someone. Something new. The first new thing in ages.

"Who are you," I yelled as I started to looked around the various doors and the set of stairs that originated from the living room, "Where's Marilyn?"

And yet you're not new either, the voice continued without acknowledging me, and its presence grew stronger, Just something old with a new face.

The hairs on the back of my neck tingled. The presence was outside, just out the front window.

I whirled around, and I saw a monster.

On the other side of the glass, standing in the cheaply paved, cracked concrete driveway stood a black horse; not a pony but a true horse. It was as tall as me, it's horn spiring an additional nine inches above my head. It's mane and tail were like some dense purple fog instead of true hair. It flared its wings when it saw me looking, and it flashed a smile, showing off its horrific predatory fangs. I shouted in startled fear and tripped over the floor beneath me. It's serpentine eyes narrowed and it gave a chuckle which I heard inside my mind instead of through the glass. As I backed away as best as I could, I saw a light begin to shine behind me.

LEAVE HIM BE, FOUL SPECTRE! I heard a voice boom behind me, and then there was an abrupt rushing feeling all around me.

For the second morning in a row I woke up in a sudden burst. This one was of course more concentrated with fear and adrenaline than the previous one had been. I was breathing frantically, my mind still in a panic from the creature I had seen. I drew my legs up to my chest and brought my arms around them. I was doing everything I could to rationalize to myself that it was over, and that whatever it was couldn't hurt me anymore, but still my body was stuck in flight or fight mode. Even though I knew I was fine, I felt powerless against my own physical experience of fear, which overwhelmed and clouded my every thought.

Then I heard a few chords of music, like from the sound of a harp; haunting and beautiful. My breathing began to even out, and my grip squeezing my legs began to slacken. As the instrument's melody appealed to me, I began to calm down. Finally aware of my surroundings without the fog of dread, I saw that the sky was beginning to brighten through the front window. Dawn would be coming shortly. I realized that the sound was also coming from outside, and then I knew who it was I had to thank for helping me from my miserable state of being.

I quietly eased the front door open, and I stepped outside. Lyra was sitting a few feet away, delicately pulling at the strings of her instrument with her magic. She hadn't yet noticed my presence, and her music continued to be so beautiful that I didn't want to risk interrupting it. I slowly and noiselessly let the front door fall back into its frame, and I waited and listened to her performance. It was still almost too much for my mind to accept that there was something in the universe that equated real magic, and that it was happening right in front of my eyes. Taught metal flexed under a force that seemed to act out of nothing, and then without warning released the string, producing its chord. All this happened as the instrument sat suspended in the air, with no outside force keeping it from falling other than the golden aura that surrounded it.

A sour note brought me out of my musings, and I looked up to see that the unicorn was looking back at me in bewilderment.

"I'm so sorry," I softly apologized as I brought my hands up, "I-"

"No no, it's fine," she said as she let out a quick breath, "You just startled me was all. I'm not used to having an audience."

Some of the awkwardness now dispelled from the situation, I asked as a I pointed near to where she sat, "Do you mind if I-"

She nodded her head and looked to where I was pointing and then waved her hoof towards herself, "Sure! Come on, you can sit by me."

I slowly walked towards her, and then sat down a few feet away. Our backs were towards the house, and our faces towards the East. The sky was beginning to brighten towards a yellowish-orange tone, but light red and bluish-purple still hung on the edges of the sky.

"You're up earlier today," Lyra declared as she lowered her instrument and leaned it on her chest.

"Nightmare," I replied as I settled myself into a comfortable posture, "and a weird one at that."

"Oh?" she looked over to me, "What happened?"

"Well, I was at a family member's house, when nightfall decided to spontaneously happen in a few seconds. Then all of a sudden there was a big black hor-" I quickly stopped myself as I realized what I had been about to say, "Sorry, pony outside staring in at me." I shuddered a little, while Lyra stared at me with wide eyes. "Ah well, that's the beauty of dreams," I declared, blissfully unaware of my host's unnerved state, "they can never really hurt you."

"Yeah," she said as she turned back towards the rising dawn, concern filling her face, "harmless."

"So what were you doing up this early?" I asked.

Lyra shook her head a little to clear her thoughts and then spoke, "Oh, I was just trying to get inspired by the early morning and the coming sunrise. I'm trying to put together this whole ensemble of pieces that are dedicated to the natural world around me. I was just experimenting when I suppose you came out."

"Oh, I see," I said. I turned to look where the sun was going to rise; it hadn't yet peaked over the mountains in the east, "So I broke your musical chain of thought?"

She waved her hoof in my direction, "Nah, there wasn't any concentration behind it or anything; just stream of consciousness free-play. I wasn't feeling very synchronized with the environment anyway." My look of marveling over at her made her curious when she became aware of it, "What?"

"That was you on a bad day? I can't wait to hear you when you're at the top of your game: it was really beautiful!"

She chuckled a little, "Thanks! You really are too kind."

"It actually reminded me a little of my childhood," I said as I looked back through my memories unconsciously, "My Aunt Marilyn was incredible with music. Whenever I was allowed over to her place, she would try to teach me all about the various instruments she played: the piano, violin, and the harp." I rubbed the back of my neck a little, "I never had the patience to really learn any of them though. I really wish I could have changed that."

Lyra smiled as she listened, "She sounds like she would have been very nice to meet. Did she ever perform at any galas or balls? I'd be surprised if she hadn't, from the sound of what sort of caliber of musician she was."

I shook my head a little, "So far as I know she only ever performed for the little church she attended; nothing fancy like parties."

Lyra's eyes widened in disbelief, "How could she have gone unnoticed like that? It's an incredible achievement to master three instruments, and they weren't even related to each other in any way!"

I shrugged, "Even if she had been spotted by some talent agency, she'd have never wanted the fame." I then turned and looked at her curiously, "Are you famous?"

"I can safely say I'm not, but I'm still well off," she declared, "I've sold a few compositions her and there, at least enough to pay for food and save back a little for a rainy day." She nodded to herself and smiled, "Life's been pretty good to me."

"How'd you get your start?"

She looked down at her lyre, her eyes passing over every string. Wordlessly she took up her instrument with her magic and began to strum on the strings contemplatively. Her face screwed upward a little as she thought about what I had asked. Finally she played a full scale of notes, first up and then back down, and then she began her tale.

“I was one of the last of the fillies I knew who got a Cutie Mark.” As she spoke she strummed on her lyre, producing a sad, but beautiful piece. “My parents were rich, and they had wanted me to live the cultured life, so they taught me all of the social niceties in the hopes that I could get an aristocratic talent.” The pace of the piece began to increase as her tempo and intensity grew.

“One day, our class went to a music shop, and they had a display full of instruments of every kind.” Her music slowed and became more graceful and flowing. “I felt a tug on my soul when I first laid eyes on the lyre. It was even at my eye level.” Her music grew with a sense of anticipation. “I reached for it, and as soon as I laid hooves on it, music just seemed to flow out of me, like I was a river channeling water.”

Her music had become beautiful and, without a better word to describe it, elemental. The music she was making now seemed to be as natural and necessary as eating, breathing, and simply being alive.

“When I came home with a Cutie Mark, my parents were not impressed. They were disappointed.” Her notes began to ooze with a growing anger as she pulled harder at the strings unconsciously. “Finally, after I improved my skills, I left. I had been fed up with how they had been trying to make me their little doll for years against my will. I wasn't something they could just put on a shelf and look at!”

Her words and music burned with passion, and sorrowful frustration. She stopped abruptly. She then put her instrument back down in front of her, and held her head high.

I was stunned: I'd certainly not had expectations for a story such as the one I had just received. The music that had accompanied it was even more shocking.

“I may have left them, but I still love them," she said in a more calm tone, interrupting my silence, "Even if they have practically disowned me, I still send them a card every Hearth's Warming Eve. Through the good and the bad they have never responded. After I left, I started to make some modest bits from performances in Canterlot, but I felt restless. Eventually I started traveling from town to town, composing music I thought captured the soul of each, until I came here to Ponyville.”

"What's keeping you here?" I asked, both interested and mystified by her habit.

She paused again, and looked for more words, “I guess I haven't figured out what Ponyville is yet. You see, I feel like my music isn't my own. It feels like...like the music I make is already written and interwoven in this town's everyday life, and I’m just translating it so everypony else can hear it. To me, music is not just notes lined up on paper. Music is the sound of great and good things ringing in our hearts and minds. Music is the language of the soul.”

As she finished her thought, the sun crested the horizon around the eastern mountains, glowing a golden hue and bathed in a ruby red morning. Light reflected off of Lyra’s lyre as it lay against her chest, and made it appear as if it were alive with the colors of gold, yellow, and white. I could almost swear I saw a small rainbow reflect across the strings as it shown.

As we welcomed in the young day with our gaze, I glanced in Lyra's direction, "I'm sorry I interrupted your time to be creative."

"No, you're not," she replied with a smirk as she got to her hooves and began to stretch, "but that's okay. I can always come out the day after next."

I too got to my feet and shook myself a little. As we started to walk back towards the cottage, I spoke up again, "I saw that you were having a hard time deciding on whether to open up to me like that." I looked down at her and smiled a little, touched by what she had done, "Thanks for trusting me, and thanks for the performance."

Her horn lit up, and the door to the cottage swung open for me. She looked up to me and returned the smile, "In both cases, thanks for listening."

Chapter 25 REVISED

Rainbow Dash put her jaw down on the tabletop, and let out a long drawn out breath through her nose. "We've been sitting in this shop for three hours now," she exclaimed in frustration to Pinkie and Rarity, "I hate being sidelined like this, and these donuts aren't doing me any favors when it comes to my barrel!"

"Aaaaw, don't be such a fitness junkie, Dashie," Pinkie replied as she shoved a second full donut into her left cheek after the one in her right, allowing her to speak through the middle, "These are the simple joys in life: donuts, coffee, and friends! Besides, I'd rather be happy than thin."

"Being fit is kinda necessary for my job!"

"Everything in moderation, dears," Rarity said as she tried to work her way through the recently delivered afternoon paper, flipping to the next page with her magic, "It has been an awfully long time since the others left. I suppose if things had gone poorly they would've already been back by now. Perhaps they've managed to secure Adam's release."

"I don’t think so," the pegasus replied, "With as determined as those guys were to grab us there's no way they'd just let him go, not without a fight."

"Can I get you ladies anything else," Joe asked as he made his rounds about the seated area, "I'm thinkin' with the way your friend here's eating I might close shop early and call in my retirement!"

Pinkie jokingly pouted, her ears curling back as she did, "But if you retire who's gonna make the best glazed and sprinkled things in Canterlot, Donut Joe?"

The shopowner smiled and waggled his hoof at her, "You got me there, Ms. Pie! Guess I can't go outta business just yet. Gotta secure my legacy and protect my franchise! What'll it be?"

"Another dozen raspberry jam donuts please, with a round of coffee too!"

"Dozen scoops of sugar?"

"Yeeeeessir," she chirped with a smile.

He looked to Rarity expectantly, who sheepishly waved her hoof away, "Oh, nothing more for me, thank you."

"And you, Ms. Dash?" Rainbow Dash blew a sigh out the side of her mouth, resting her face on her left hoof, "Just a water, please."

As the proprietor made his way back to the kitchen area Pinkie's backlegs began to shake, her hair recoil back and forth like a spring, and her shoulders shook up and down. Rarity saw what was going on with a glance and simply asked, "Too much sugar, Pinkie?"

"Thaaaat would be the diabetes kicking in," Rainbow said with a smirk as she leaned back, putting her hooves behind her head.

"N-n-n-n-o! Th-i-i-i-i-s is diff-f-f-ferent," she said as she rode out the convulsions, then her eyes scoured the window to the right of their booth. "My Pinkie Sense is tingling," she said as her voice lowered in octave and became more raspy for dramatic effect.

This pronouncement caused Rarity to give her her full attention, placing her paper down in front of her, "What do you mean? What's happening?"

"Hey Joe," the earth pony called out, "Can we get that order to go?"

"Sure thing," he called out from the kitchen before he shoved the door open, "Give me a sec to get them in a box!"

"Can do," she replied, and then turned to her friends, "We're being watched. And followed." She paused a moment, rubbing her chin for the right word, then murmured, "We're being wallowed."

"Three guesses who," Rainbow said before she looked over her shoulder to the booths and tables behind theirs, "Are they already in here?"

"Nope, but they will be soon." Pinkie slunk out of her seat and tiptoed towards the front counter, where Joe was just coming out to offer her her donuts, "Say, you wouldn't happen to have a backdoor would you, Donut Joe?"

"Um, yes," he replied, perplexed by the sudden and unusual inquiry, "Why? Is this the start of a joke or somethin'?"

"No, not really. We were just wondering, that's all!" With that, Pinkie bolted through the kitchen door, while a bewildered Rarity and Rainbow Dash rushed after her to keep up. There was the sound of a door opening followed shortly by that same door slamming shut.

"Hey, wait," the poor baker exclaimed, "You didn't pay your tab!"

"Oh right," a muffled reply came from Pinkie. A large bag of bits suddenly landed in the open window between the kitchen and the public area, "Sorry! Everything else is the tip!" The door noises were heard shortly after again.

It was only a few seconds later that two ponies entered the front door, each as average looking as imaginable. They looked around the shop carefully before one said to the other, "They must have slipped out the back. You follow them around towards Broad St., I'll go through here after them."

Pinkie took the lead out of the alley, with Rarity not far behind while Rainbow Dash flew directly overhead. They spilled out into the street, Pinkie shouting over her shoulder, "This way," as she turned to her left, leading further up and in towards Canterlot Castle. Trying to take the sharp turn as close as possible, Rainbow rolled through the air, coming close to veering into the shops on the other side of the street before she corrected and returned to her friends. A pegasus was just on their trail, holding the same speed as them but keeping his distance. On hoof a unicorn kept up the chase: she was gaining on them. Her horn lit up, and she cast a bolo hex after them.

"Jump," Pinkie blurted, her hooves skipping a beat as she brought them up as close to her body as she could. Rarity got her legs up just in time so that she saw the yellow energy pass underneath her. The energy continued on its vector until one of a group of bystanders just in front of them, where it bound his legs together, causing him to fall off balance to the sidewalk a cry of alarm. The unicorn dissipated her bonds on the unintended target as she passed, not even stopping to check on his condition. The pegasus flying overhead paid no mind.

The two agents locked eyes as they ran and silently agreed on their next move. He flapped his wings harder, covering the space between him and Rainbow Dash easily as he gained altitude to be just above her. The multi-chromatic element bearer only saw him as he was about to drop nearly on top of her left side. With a cry she flapped towards her right to avoid him, unaware that a new bolo was headed to the space she had just occupied. The yellow mass snared her, wrapping around her wings and legs, drawing them tight to her barrel, and she plummeted to the street not far below. She bounced against the cobblestone street twice before coming to a halt, a yell of pain escaping her lips.

The other two stopped in their tracks and turned. "Dashie," Pinkie yelled in horror. The two agents were closing in on their captured friend, the unicorn picking her up in a telekinetic bubble. Rarity, ever the quick thinker, reached into her friend's box of donuts with her magic and popped the lid open. Pinkie gave a surprised "Hey," before she let the first one fly toward their aggressors. While not traditionally aerodynamic, the jammy donut flew straight and true, slapping against the back of the unicorn's head. The bubble surrounding Rainbow Dash disappeared, and she fell to the street again with another grunt of pain.

"Let our friend go you miscreants," she yelled as she chucked one directly at the pegasus' face, and another at the unicorn. Before she could get her guard up against the sugary assault the second stuck to the unicorn agent's horn, while the other splatted against the pegasus' wing just he brought it up to protect his eyes. The bonds around Rainbow vanished, and she quickly rolled her legs under herself and sprang off to join her friends, her right wing hanging limp and slightly open at her side.

"Just what is going on here?" The five ponies turned to look at a single member of the Royal Guard who was in the process of walking towards them from his post nearby. Even as he was walking up to them the other three Elements rounded the nearest street corner, and upon seeing the others in a state of injury and alarm they rushed towards them.

"This is is an official state matter," the pegasus agent said as he walked toward the guardspony, "Please return to your station and we will resolve this shortly."

"Let me see some credentials first, then I might start to believe this is a 'state matter' instead of 'harassment' and 'assault'," the guardspony replied. Neither stallion looked as if they would give any ground.

"Rainbow Dash," Fluttershy exclaimed, "What happened to you? Who are these ponies?"

"Just a dislocated wing," she said with a wince, "Figures that I can't skip out on an injury even when I'm not training, and just when I was almost all patched up. They're with the RSD, and they're after us, maybe all six of us!"

"We are members of the security team of the Royal Science Division in the process of detaining and questioning that mare," the unicorn agents said with a pointed gesture at the pegasus, never taking her eyes off the six of them in case they meant to run off, "It is a matter of national security that they be brought in immediately."

"I'm still not seeing anything that would actually authenticate your status as government associates," the guardspony said stubbornly, "Produce some identity papers now or I will have to ask you to leave immediately. You're accosting citizens without a verifiable arrest warrant, and national heroes at that."

The bureaucratic contest was about to step up another level it seemed, but the nine ponies were silenced by the presence of an alien noise that suddenly crossed their ears.

VroOOOm. VroOOOm. VroOOOm.

The noise was getting closer, and coming from above. As they all looked up they were met with a strange sight: from out of the late afternoon sky came a blue shed twirling end over end, hurtling directly down into the area they were standing around in.

Pinkie's tail twitched, and her left fore leg seized up. "Right," she yelled.

Those who understood what it meant immediately bolted to the right, while the three government ponies were taken by surprise when the box veered right into them, sending them flying across the street into some vendor stalls. The doors to the Tardis flew open, and the Doctor's human face popped out. He looked to his right to see the six mares lying in a collective dogpile, and waved for them, "Come on, get in!"

"Doctor, where's your disguise," Twilight asked as she disentangled herself from her friends, then she continued in frustration, "I thought you were trying to be subtle!"

"Prison breaks aren't typically what I'd call subtle, so I think we're a bit past that point," he yelled, then muttered to himself, "Along with other contributing factors." He waved again, his voice again at a normal volume, "Now come on; time is literally a-wasting!"

"I believe in this context you mean to use the word 'figuratively'," Twilight said as she launched into a teaching moment, "For time to 'literally' be wasted means that there's a finite amount of time left, as opposed to the idiomatic form meant to cause ponies to hurry up whatever it is they're doing."

The other girls were already climbing up into to the box, which was hovering a good six inches off the ground.

"Well lucky for you it's a case of both! Now quit arguing semantics and get in the bleeding Tardis!"

Twilight's eyes grew wide as the box began hovering a little closer, the Doctor bracing against the doorway as it did, dreading what implications he had meant from his correction. Their assailants and guardian angel were beginning to recover and remove themselves from the stalls they had been thrown into. Waiting not another instant, Twilight galloped to the Tardis doorway and leaped up into it.

The Doctor was already running up the ramp to the central control module, where the pale green glass column was rhythmically going up and down, producing the foreign sound they'd all heard before. Ditzy Doo, who had been managing the controls to hold them all stable, backed away as the Doctor approached. "Thank you, Ditzy," he said in a hurry, then began his work on the console, pumping what looked to be the end of a bicycle pump, hitting a large opaque button that lit up, then twirling a gyroscopic ball in its housing. "Everypony hang on to something," he said as he pulled down a large black-handled breaker, "She handles rough without dematerialization!"

The doors, having never been closed showed a fragment of the world outside. The buildings they had just been surrounded by disappeared beneath the door frame: they were ascending. Everypony was gripping onto whatever structure of the Tardis interior they were nearest to. Pinkie was closest to the door, hanging onto the ramp's safety rails, and she squealed in delight as they twirled up into the air higher and higher.

"We're about to descend," the Doctor called out.

"That's just where we came from," Twilight yelled.

"Oh, you think so two-dimensionally Twilight," he said with lopsided grin, "We're not aiming for the street, but beneath it!"

"You'll flatten us," she yelled as she tried to reach out with her magic to stop his hands from touching the controls.

"No," Ditzy yelled, "Just trust him! We'll make it where we need to go!" Then the plummet began.

Clouds zoomed upward outside, the highest spire of Canterlot Castle flashing into view before it was lost in the twisting horizon of their door frame to the outside world. Rainbow Dash gritted her teeth through the pain and the disorientation of what she was seeing, and gave out a yell in growing pitch and volume as she gripped to the support beam she was on even tighter.

"Now then, bring us out of Safe Mode," the Doctor muttered to himself as he flipped a row of switches on the console, stopping short on the last two. "No Time, but everything Space."

Sparks flew from the console after he'd made his adjustments, and he as well as the others were draw suddenly towards the floor at an angle. "Gravity's on the fritz," he blurted out, as he reach for the console and pulled himself back up, "We're about 30 degrees askew Normal!" He looked outside in time to see the street level buildings come into sight, "Here we go!"

From the outside the box hurtled toward the street from above, ready to be smashed to splinters. Everypony was keeping clear, including the three government ponies. Just as it seemed it was about to impact, the box passed through the street all together and vanished, leaving nothing behind as evidence that it had ever been there.

Chapter Six

She was fast! Fluttershy had the advantage of four legs and wings to boot! But I was pretty fast myself; I had had a life full of difficult situations, including living a life partially on the run. I knew how to be quick on my feet! We flew past a large barn with several different ponies in the fields nearby. She tried to lose me by looping around a large fancy home and business; it looked..I guess the best way to describe it was ‘French’. After bolting around a blue shed of some kind near a ‘Dr. John Whooves Invention Emporium’, we came to a building that was obviously the town library. The yellow blur that was Fluttershy dashed into the place of learning and closed and bolted the door behind her. I just managed to catch up to her at that point, and I began speaking to the door, hoping she could really hear me on the other side.

“Ms. Fluttershy! I’m really sorry that I frightened you! I was just trying to have a little fun! Could you please come out? I just want to explain myself.”

I heard faint voices. “Fluttershy! Get out of the basement! What’s the matter with you?”

“There’s a monster out there!”

By this point I’d grown a little cross about being called that. “I’m not a monster!”

“Don’t open the door Twilight! It’s going to take control of your mind!” she yelped and slammed what I’m sure was the door to the basement.

“She is acting worse than Pinkie Pie was with Zecora!” I heard ‘Twilight’ mumble.

“I’m sorry for all this trouble,” I said through the door “I just wanted to reason with her.”

“Finally, a pony who knows how to be reasonable! I’ve been waiting months for somepony like this! Thank Celestia!”

“Well…” The door was unlocked, and a unicorn with a purple coat stood before me.

“Now what exactly was your—“ She had opened her eyes at this point, and all she could do was gawk at me. With my reserves of patience almost completely used up, all I did was mutter “Yes, I’m an alien” as I shoved past her to go and sit down on the floor of the library. Fortunately, there was no one, or should I saw ‘nopony’, else in the library at that time. I had my back to the front door, and I was boredly staring at the wall. The door closed behind me, and the purple unicorn Twilight walked from behind me to look at me in the face. We were at eye to eye level; her standing and me sitting cross legged.

“I don’t understand,” was all she mumbled. “I don’t understa—I don’t—I can’t.”

“I know. I take some getting used to,” I replied flatly.

“You walk on two legs.”

“Ah-huh”

“You can speak like us ponies.”

“Yep”

“You can think and reason.”

“Yes”

“You must be some kind of mutant; a magic experiment gone wrong maybe?” Now I realized she was analyzing me and talking more to herself then to me! I had had it; people making assumptions about me, calling me a monster; I’m done!

“Hey hornhead!” She then looked me straight in the eyes, caught off guard by her concentration being broken.

“Let’s clear things up, shall we? I’m not a magic experiment gone wrong! I’m not an animal, or a monster, or a thing! I told you: I’m an alien! I’m a human being! Why can’t you all get that through your thick skulls!” I stopped myself here, as I saw I had blown up, the unicorn in front of me was frightened, and that I had company.

Six ponies stood in the doorway; two of them were Bon Bon and Lyra; the both of them had saddened faces. The other four I didn’t know. One was a blue Pegasus with a rainbow mane and tail, another was a white unicorn, the last two looked like regular ponies, but the pink one had a puffy mane and tail, while the other, an orange pony, was wearing a cowboy’s hat. They looked on me with different reactions; wonder, fear, and suspicion.

I looked at them, and I thought to myself Well, for not being a monster, you sure are acting like one. I looked back at the purple unicorn; she was recovering, but she still looked at me with a little fright. “I’m sorry. I didn’t mean to get angry at you, but I’m just sick of being treated..different.”

Lyra came over to me and gave me a foreleg hug, and Bon Bon laid down beside me.

Chapter Sixteen

I got my first set of Equestrian made clothes later that day, and weren't they comfortable! After having spent so many days wearing my environmental protection suit, it felt good to wear something a lot less formfitting. It took Rarity a bit longer to magically produce my clothes then it did for Lyra, but there was decidedly a lot more of me than there was of her; not to mention the ‘unusual contours’ of my body, as Rarity put it. I was in a rather simple outfit, just some denim jeans and a short sleeved t-shirt. I found the simplicity of it rather appealing!

As we were returning home, Lyra and I passed Sweet Apple Acres. Lyra looked up at me, or rather, where I would be if I wasn’t invisible. “Want to go visit Applejack?”

“I think that would be great.” I whispered, and added, “You may want to keep your voice down in public, or people may start to think you’re crazy!”

“Maybe I am. I kept you didn’t I?”

We came across Applejack in the farther out fields, which was good for me, because then we wouldn’t be seen from the country road. There she was, bucking at one of the many apple trees, when Lyra sauntered up with invisible me in tow.

“Hey Applejack!”

Applejack gave one last kick to the tree, bringing down the very last of the stubbornly clinging apples. “Oh hey Lyra! How you doing this fine Celestia blessed day?”

“Just great, thanks! Oh by the way, Adam is here.”

“Is’he now? Well, where is he? Come’on out Adam!”

“I’m right here Applejack,” I gave a chuckle as I reappeared, and I put on my worst Western accent ever. “Don’t you worry none, yuh hear pardner?”

Applejack snorted at my botching of the accent. “You better stick to your regular way a’ talkin’ Sugarcube. How you been anyways?” She sat down in the grass on fours, while Lyra and I laid on our backs, heads up to the incline of the hill. As Lyra laid one of her hind legs over the other, we began to tell our story of the day so far.

“Yep, Rarity can be a bit of a pain when it comes to fashion. She has a good heart though, even if she is a bit mamby pamby.”

“You certainly do give off that vibe of being more down to earth than most ponies.”

“I reckon I do, don’t I? We Apples know the secrets of the soil! Been our chosen lot in life for generations. The only thing special about us is common sense.”

Here Lyra interjected, “But you know Applejack, they say common sense isn’t as common anymore.”

Applejack sighed, “Ain’t that the truth.”

“So how big is your family Applejack?” I asked.

“Oh, it’s me, mah Granny Smith, brother Big Macintosh, and mah sister Applebloom. There are scores of other Apples throughout all of Equestria, but that’s just my immediate family.” She hadn’t mentioned her parents, but why not?

“So it’s just the four of you taking care of these fields?”

“It wasn’ always like that. There used to be my ma Gala and pa Apple Cider, but we lost them. Farming accident.”

“I’m so sorry.”

“Don’t apologize. Yah didn’t know. It happened when I was fairly young, and Applebloom was just a little foal. On a farm, you come to appreciate the cycle of life an’ death very quickly. Each is jus’ a part of the other.”

“Those are pretty wise words.”

“Yeah, I reckon so.”

Suddenly, we heard the sound of hoof steps approaching from behind us.

Chapter Nineteen

As Lyra and I neared the club, the pounding bass we had heard earlier was what we were feeling now. It was so powerful I could feel every other beat vibrating in my chest! Seeing as it would be difficult to go through the front door for me, we decided to look through the glass ceiling panels to solve our little distracting mystery of this noisy nightclub. We settled down between the two sets of panels that made up the majority of the ceiling, and we soon found our answer. Up on an elevated stage we saw the producer of the electronic music that was the life of the party. Sitting behind several tables, one a disk jockeying set up, another a table full of dials and switches, and the other a keyboard, was a pearl white unicorn. Her spiky mane was colored with multiple streaks of blue, as was her tail. She had a Cutie Mark in the shape of a beamed note, and she was wearing purple shaded goggles. Above her and the towering Subwoofers was a neon light sign which read ‘PON-3’.

I drew back the portion of my invisibility cloak that was covering up my face and I looked over to Lyra. “She seems pretty popular. Do you know who she is?”

Lyra looked down, and frowned. “Nope, can’t say I do. The music isn’t what I’m used to, but it’s not bad at all!”

We sat there for a few minutes more, soaking in the beats, until it died down after a while.

As the music faded we heard a voice over the speakers reverberating up through the windows to us and out to the crowd. “Alright, you lot! You enjoyin’ this?”

There was a very discernible roar from the crowd. “You hungry for more?”

Another roar came up from the crowd. “Well don’t you fret! DJ PON-3 is only gonna give you the best. Prepare to be electrified!”

At this she used her magic to create a blue light beam that shot up into the air. Unfortunately, it shot up into the air; directly into my face. I was blinded, and as I instinctively stood up, I tripped over my invisibility cloak. I fell over it, and fell right through the glass roof of the club ceiling.

Lyra screamed “Adam!” Even as she screamed, she instinctively caught me by the shoe with her emerald colored magic. I was dangling by her magic alone, with nothing to support me at all. The music had stopped practically the second I fell through the glass, and as my vision returned, I saw that every single regular, horned, and winged pony had their eyes concentrated directly on me.

Chapter Forty-Five

Twilight came up next to the Doctor and monitored his progress on the lock to Adam’s cell, all the while struggling with some questions that had been troubling her for the past couple minutes.

“Doctor?”

“What?” The Doctor asked with a small note of agitation as he was trying to concentrate on the lock.

“Um, well, see—“

“Twilight, you’re wonderful, but please either speak up or shut up: I’m trying to crack this lock here!”

“Why did you injure those ponies? I mean, I know they weren’t helping Adam, and they certainly weren’t going to help us, but—“

The Doctor’s eyes never left the lock as he spoke, “Twilight, I don’t believe in harming other beings willingly, but more importantly, I don’t stand aside and allow beings to hurt themselves or others. I try my best to persuade people, or in your case, ponies, from certain courses of action, just like you saw. And, just like usual, no one ever listens to me. I’m nine-hundred and five; you’d think people would listen to their elders! But, just like you saw, sometimes when people and ponies don’t do what I say, I have to step in and stop them.”

“But what gives you the right to decide what others do? Who died and made you Celestia?”

“What gave you the right to stop Nightmare Moon or Discord?”

“Well, they had to be!”

“What for?”

Twilight was getting exasperated, “Because it wasn’t right! What they were doing to the world and others was..wrong.” Twilight slowed as she pondered her own words. "Somepony had to step in and stop them, and we were there to do it."

The Doctor quickly took a glance at her and the other ponies listening to their exchange, “You all had to stop them, because they were harming others, because you had to save everypony, because you had the power and were in the right place at the right time, and because you had the friends you have to rely on and help you through. That’s what it means to be a guardian: doing the right thing for the good of all, even if you’re not sure of yourself; even if others question you and are afraid of you.” He paused, and looked back to the lock. “You really are lucky to have such friends, Twilight Sparkle. I wish I could have friends like yours.”

“Well, why don’t you?”

“A lot of the time they leave. Sometimes..I lose them. And, well, sometimes I simply outlive them.” The lock opened finally, and the Doctor stood up and looked down at the ponies behind him. They considered him with varying emotions; sadness, understanding, pity.

Rarity simply asked, “Who have you lost?”

“So many; countless, really. But the most important one..”

“It was somepony you loved, wasn’t it? You lost your love, didn’t you?”

“..Yes.”

“What was her name?”

The Doctor stood silently, but his shoulder’s slouching showed the renewed anguish he was experiencing, and then he uttered a singular syllable; “Rose.”

Chapter Fifty-Five

“You’re right; I do owe you all an explanation.” The Doctor walked over to the command chair near the console and sat down with sigh. “Alright, story-time with the Doctor; gather round everyone!”

He paused to collect his thoughts, and then he began. “I hail from your universe, Adam. I’ve been..‘involved’ with your world hundreds of times throughout the centuries—“

“Centuries?” I asked.

“I’m a time-traveler, and I’m a Time Lord. I’ve lived nine hundred and five years, and this is not my first face. You see, every time I die, I become a new man. I regenerate, almost like how a snake sheds its skin. But that’s not important to my story. You see, about a year ago, I was just traveling along in my Tardis, flying through time and space and what-not, when suddenly I fell out of the timestream and into the Void. It was bad, but not really bad; more like a minor nuisance. I would have just found my way out eventually and gone on my merry way. But then the Tardis and I fell through a rend; a wound in space and time. I’ve had to deal with these sorts of ‘holes in the universe’ before, but nothing like this. I got sucked in, and crashed through. I landed near Ponyville, where I had my first encounter with ponykind: Ditzy Doo here.”

He pointed to the blonde maned Pegasi who grinned lightly. “When I first found the Doctor, I had to admit, I was a little scared. But I also knew what it was like to be left lonely because no one would talk to you or take you seriously. I brought him back to my home, and he stayed with me there a while. He took an interest in the fact that I made so many different inventions, and one of the first things I made for him was his Pony Camouflage. I live modestly, but, again, no one would take me seriously because they all thought I was mentally handicapped, so I had to take several jobs to fund everything I wanted to create.”

Ditzy Doo looked over to the Doctor with both her eyes. “But then we got clever, and we hatched a plan. The Doctor would pay his keep by selling my inventions as his own; being the genius everyone wanted to see, and I could keep inventing. So for the plan to work, I had to act like I was stupid.” She crossed her eyes, wrinkled up her noise, and said “I just don’t know what went wrong!” She switched back to her normal speaking voice as she continued her story. “With enough money, we eventually got out of the small cottage we were in and we bought the large building by the library.”

“Dr. John Whooves Invention Emporium,” Twilight muttered aloud.

“So that was all an act?” Rainbow Dash asked, “Nearly destroying Town Hall and nearly killing me was an act?”

“It served its purpose!” Ditzy Doo shot back.

“Anyway,” the Doctor interrupted, “that was the situation. It wasn’t until shortly after we moved into the Emporium that I found out the rift in space and time was growing; the Void had been seeping in for weeks before I noticed. I immediately set all the Tardis’ power to mending the Void hole, but the damage was already done. I had managed to stop the growth of the hole, but even at full power the Tardis can’t fix it on its own. So I’ve been stuck here for all this time, hoping somehow to find a way to close the hole completely.” The Doctor sighed and then pointed to me, “And then you came along.”

Chapter Sixty-Four

Princess Luna gasped once more. When she had made audience for the human she had met months ago she had entered his mind. He had been an open book to her, and while admittedly she had only skimmed him, his mind had not spoken of an invasion force. He had not been lying to her when he said he had simply wanted to walk her world in peace. “You spoke of having one in captivity?”

Bunsen Burner nodded, “We did have one of their scouts; the very one who tried to assassinate your sister. He’s gone now, though, rescued seemingly by his comrades. We believe their kind has strong telepathy, as they were aided by your sister’s current student and her five friends.”

Princess Celestia eye’s widened and her pupils dilated in numb fear,“Twilight?”

“I’m afraid so, your Majesty.”

“What was the name of your prisoner?” Luna’s eyes narrowed.

Bunsen Burner waved his front hoof in an offhanded manner, “What does it matter? He was an enemy combatant; we’re more concerned of his itinerary and targets than his name.”

“SPEAK TO US, BUNSEN BURNER,” Princess Luna had unconsciously switched into the Royal Canterlot Voice., “WHAT WAS THE HUMAN’S NAME?”

Bunsen Burner adjusted his spectacles, “If you really desire to know, his name was Adam; no last name.”

“WE DESIRE A PRIVATE AUDIENCE WITH OUR SISTER. IF YOU WOULD PLEASE LEAVE US—“

“Luna,” Princess Celestia asked, “what is the matter?”

“WE HAVE--”, Princess Luna realized she was yelling and lowered her voice accordingly, “I have information only your ears can know.”

Princess Celestia sighed, “Very well.” Princess Celestia turned to her Chief Science Officer, “Bunsen Burner?”

“At once, my Majesties.” Bunsen Burner bowed, and made his way back to the nearest doors through which he left.

“Celestia. Tia, there is something I must speak to you about, but it cannot be here. Come to my quarters immediately. We will discuss it there.”

The two of the Royal Sisters made for the nearest door, and passed through. At the nearest open space, they spread their wings and flew up into the air and the growing dusky twilight. Up, up, up they went. It had been over a millennium since they had shared the skies. They flew until they came to a tower in the shape of a crescent moon. The center of the crescent formed a pristine balcony, which the alicorns quickly alighted on. This was Princess Luna’s tower: her study, her quarters, her guard’s quarters, her home within the castle walls.

Princess Luna quickly turned to her sister, “How well do you know Bunsen Burner?”

“Luna, what does this have to do with anything?”

“Can you trust him? Because I cannot.”

Princess Celestia was startled, “Why would you say such a thing?”

“Because either he is gravely mistaken, and thus incompetent, or he is deliberately lying to us.”

“Luna!” Princess Celestia could not believe the words coming from her sister’s mouth. “You have no right to call my former student a liar. Bunsen Burner would never lie to me, he is loyal to us and to Equestria.”

“My evidence is thus; several nights ago, I met a human while performing my duties and it was the very same human Bunsen Burner claims to have made an attempt on your life.”

Chapter Seventy-One

It was hard to believe that only one day had passed since I was last here. So much had happened since then; so much so it was almost all a blur in my mind.

The Tardis touched down, and I found myself once again in Spectre Howe. The chilling silence was still here, but it was even more eerie now that it was the evening twilight rather than midafternoon.

As we exited the trusty blue police box, I felt my senses heighten once again, and the primeval shift that I had felt the last time I began to feel once more. “Do you feel that?”

Lyra looked at me quizzically, “Feel what?”

“Wait,” the Doctor eyes roved the landscape, though they were clouded. “Yes, I feel it. There’s a low band psychic frequency being transmitted from this site. Something somewhere is broadcasting information.”

“Why am I not able to pick it up?” Lyra asked.

“Perhaps it only works for humans and near humans” the Doctor postulated.

“She’s coming,” I announced as I began to sense the approach of the green spectral woman.

“I sense her too,” the Doctor commented.

Then we saw her; a green glowing sphere appeared from behind one of the mounds, but rather than dashing off as it had done previously, it slowly wondered away. “Come on, we need to keep up with it,” I spoke as I followed after it at a light trot. The Doctor and Lyra weren’t far behind.

The light of the sphere began to coalesce into the ethereal woman even before it reached the mound it had previously brought me to. “Hello again,” I said as she floated along and I walked. She nodded and smiled. “We need your help; this world is in danger from something I helped to create, and we need everything we can to fix this. Will you please help us?” She nodded in the affirmative.

The Doctor stepped forward, “Excuse me,” the woman turned to him, “If you wouldn’t mind, might I scan you? It should do nothing to harm you.” She nodded again. The Doctor took out his Sonic Screwdriver and probed the spectral woman. “Hold on, hold on. She’s a Nano-ghost!”

“Nano-ghost?” Lyra asked.

“The woman we see before us is actually a projection created by millions of tiny machines that have been embedded with her personality. The projection alone takes up quite a bit of her power, and simulating a voice takes even more power.”

He looked to us, “to make things easier for her to help us, one of us is going to have to be her interface.” I scoffed, and said with bewilderment, “You don’t mean one of us is going to have to be possessed by her, do you?” The woman had a regretful expression on her face as she nodded.

Lyra stepped forward, with the tiniest bit of trepidation in her hooves, “I’ll do it.”