Chapters Based off of War Of the Worlds, a classic best seller written by H.G. Wells
Beyond The Stars
An elder and fragile Twilight Sparkle sat quietly at the diner table patiently awaiting for the waitress to arrive with her sandwich and morning coffee. The diner was quiet as usual, with few ponies inside reading newspapers, eating, and drinking. Usually, Ponyville would be thriving, full of culture and life. Sadly, ever since the events that had happened so long ago, much of Ponyville, or Equestria for that matter lie in ruins.
Twilight expected her usual day. Go out and have breakfast by herself, go back to the library, and work the rest of the day until dinner. Every day has been like this for quite a while now...day after day of the same routine, eating, working, and sleeping. It was as if someone continuously played the same episode of a TV show on a VHS player, rewinding it every time it finished.
As her waitress came to her with her order, an unfamiliar young couple walked into the diner. A orange furred stallion with a yellow mane, and a green furred mare with a light pink mane. It was easy to know who was new, due to Equestria still rebuilding, and repopulating after what had happened. They scanned the diner from one side to the other, and stopped to gaze at Twilight, who calmly ate her breakfast. The couple walked over, grabbing two chairs as they approached her. Twilight stopped eating, and looked at the two as they sat themselves across the table from her.
"Are you Twilight Sparkle?"The mare asked politely.
"Maybe...what have you come to throw me into a retirement home like some doll?"Twilight replied in immediate irritation, remembering the young ponies that have come to her countless times trying to persuade her to come into retirement.
"No-no-no nothing like that Miss Twilight."The Stallion now spoke. "My wife and I have travelled a long distance to find you."
"Find me? Not sure what you'd want from an old mare like myself."Twilight replied, taking another bite into her sandwich.
"Well, I thought you'd like to know, my name is Applejack...I was named after a relative, who was apparently very close friends with you."The stallion spoke. Twilight immediately stopped, and looked at the stallion. His appearance immediately brought the image of her old friend into mind.
"Applejack...oh how long it's been since I've seen her."Twilight felt a tear roll down her cheek as she thought about the old mare on her deathbed in the hospital. For such a strong mare, she didn't last very long once she became ill.
"Listen Twilight...we've come in pure curiosity. We want to hear what happened."The mare spoke.
"...Hear about what?"Twilight asked.
"We want to know your stories, from when you a young mare. You know, when the outsiders came."
"...You both travelled this far just to hear from me personally...about them?"Twilight asked in disbelief.
"Yes. We want to know what it was like...to learn about the invasion."
Twilight sat quietly, thinking of a place to start. All those years ago, a young mare, fighting to survive.
"You want to hear my stories...well get comfortable, and let me start from the beginning, as always."Twilight sat back in her seat, putting her hooves together.
Approximately 53 years earlier
At the time, nopony in Equestria would even begin to think about life on a planet other than our own. They always looked up and admired only the light the millions of stars gave off. Not much were known about the stars either. We used to think they were there because of Celestia herself, but Starswirl proved that wrong some time ago...but still, we can only gaze upon them, like I am now.
I stared, wondering about the amount vast life that lied beyond the planet that I lived on. It's recently come to my mind that in all the things I've studied, biology, chemistry, physics, ecology, geology, you know it. Of all the thing's that I've read in a book, I've never looked into astronomy. The study of the stars and the universe around it.
With my new, and sudden passion, I looked through my recently bought telescope, which allowed me to see the celestial bodies in higher definition. I scanned the sky for a target, and soon found a planet. Manes (Mars) was it's name, named after an ancient Equestrian leader, who died in a ferocious war.
No other planet was like Manes. It's color is what separates it from the rest of the planets. The planet appears red to the naked eye when you look at it from the ground, but look through a telescope and it appears more dull and brown with a red tint to it. It's also our neighboring planet, and the last planet before you cross the asteroid belt. Beyond the massive field of floating rocks, are the gas planets.
Just thinking about the fact that I was one small specimen, on one small planet, in one small system, in a decent sized galaxy, in the entire universe filled with bigger and smaller galaxies was mind boggling...and yet some ponies think that we're the only ones out here. What ever is in Equestria, is the only living thing in the universe.
In my mind I know there's no possibility that Earth is the only planet with life on it. Not in a universe this big. There has to be more race's with minds equally, or even greater intelligence than our own.
As a stared at the neighboring planet, I suddenly witnessed an odd event...a sudden flash blinded my eye, forcing me to back away from the telescope. I looked up toward the sky, and there it was, completely visible with the naked eye. A green star, flickering as it sat still in the sky
I quickly went inside, and grabbed a notebook and quill. As I returned back outside, another flash illuminated the sky. A second green star was now appearing from Mars. As I stared, I wrote down what I was witnessing before my very eyes...I was frightened and chilled by this unnatural sight, but somehow, I was enlightened and drawn towards its light.
I couldn't believe what I just witnessed...in my mind I'm believing I just watch not one, but two stars form from barely anything in the matter of seconds. In my heart however, I knew it wasn't that simple. The only star we've really known about is our own, and it's believed to be hundreds, maybe even thousands of years old. An object that old couldn't just form in seconds...so I assume.
Still, I watch, and wonder...And that's how it was for the next two weeks. Two green stars growing farther apart every night, growing slightly larger, and much brighter than before. By this time I knew the two green lights weren't stars...they weren't planets either. They were moving intensely fast through space, and whatever they were, they were coming for Earth.
2-The Flare Reaches Earth
The Flare Reaches Earth
The following night, about two and a half weeks after I had first seen the green flares, the first one finally reached Earth. It illuminated the entire valley, from the Everfree Forest to Canterlot, with an unbelievable color of green. The feeling of something smashing into the ground wasn't just scary. When the flare crashed down I'm sure an elder pony somewhere collapsed in shock, followed by a heart attack...
"Twilight..." I heard a distant voice call to me. "Wake up!" I heard it again, only much closer. My eyes slowly raised themselves as I regained consciousness. Spike stood beside my bed with a claw on my shoulder, gently shaking me.
"What is it Spike?" I asked.
"That green thing, I think it's getting really close! Come and look at it." Spike grabbed my hoof, and pulled my to my hooves. I pushed myself up, and climbed out of the bed as Spike impatiently tugged at my hoof. He began to lead my to the balcony as I let out a deep yawn. As he opened the doors to the balcony, a rush of wind from the outside howled through the library. I walked out, and looked up. There is was, brighter than ever. I had to squint my eyes to look at it directly from the intense light it was giving off. As I watched, I could clearly see it's movement.
"What is it Twilight?" Spike asked.
"I'm not sure Spike." I replied. By now it gave the allusion it was picking up speed as it came closer. Suddenly, the flare turned orange as it came even closer. The mix of orange and green spread light throughout the valley as if it were daylight. Spike and I gasped as it came down at an intense speed. It flew over Ponyville, and sped on towards the Everfree Forest.
As it disappeared behind the buildings, I braced for some sort of impact. "Inside, now!" I ordered Spike. We both went in as the ground trembled from the flare finally making contact with the ground. "Ah!" I shouted as I nearly fell off my hooves. The sound of the impact sent a ring through my ears, as the ground trembled violently. Spike held on to my leg as the quake quickly came to an end. I looked out the window and saw the orange light of what I assumed were fires that now ignited in the Everfree Forest.
"Are you okay?" I asked Spike with a worried tone.
"Yeah, I'm fine. Just a little shaken up." Spike replied.
I grabbed my scarf and headed downstairs. "Come on Spike." I said.
"Where are you going?" Spike asked me with a shaky voice as we made our way downstairs.
"To get a closer look at whatever hit the earth." I replied.
"That doesn't sound like a good idea Twilight..." Spike was still trembling, "It might be dangerous to go out there into the Everfree at this time of night."
"I wouldn't worry Spike. There's bound to be other ponies who are doing the same." I walked out the door with Spike close behind me. I closed the door, and begun walking towards the crash sight. Outside, many other residents of Ponyville were coming out of the safety of their homes to come see what had struck the earth.
Upon coming to the crater in which the extraterrestrial object had landed, I saw a metallic cylinder the size of the average house. The moonlight gleamed off the metal, which was still glowing hot. As ponies gathered to see the cylinder, a faint tapping sound began to emit from the inside of it.
"There's somepony trapped inside!" A stallion shouted. He rushed to help, but the intense heat of the metal stopped him before he could burn himself. A slight shudder occurred, as the top begun moving, unscrewing. It twisted slowly, as the sound of metal gliding against metal could be heard. I quickly turned, and made my way through the crowd as I headed back to Ponyville to catch much needed rest.
A crowd was still gathered around the pit the following morning. Everyone seemed to be hypnotized by the unscrewing, which was still being done from the inside of the cylinder. Two feet of shiny new metal was shown, when the cap suddenly came loose. It fell, and hit the ground with a heavy thud . As everyone watched, a head slowly rose from the cylinder. It had two luminous, disk like eyes that observed the crowd. It's pulsating body heaved as it retreated back inside the safety of the cylinder. Next, a funnel appeared from the hole.
Something in the back of my mind told me that this was no friendly item...It turned toward the crowd, and a faint hissing noise began to emit. WHOOSH -I was instantly blinded. I fell backwards, wiping my eyes as I looked up, and saw a beam of light coming from the funnel. Whatever made contact with this terrible light was instantly combusted, and turned to flame. It struck the small crowd, vaporizing anyone it touched.
The crowd, now separating, began to run. I still lied on the ground as the funnel came toward me. Without hesitation, I teleported out of the path of this unearthly heat-ray. My heart pounded, as I too begun to run for my life. I didn't dare look back, as ponies a couple feet away began to burn, and wail as they were instantly vaporized. I felt as if the moment I would reach the safety of the library, this mysterious death would leap up and strike me down.
I quickly shut the door behind me as I ran into my home, where Spike was casually eating breakfast. He peered at me, and spoke aloud.
"Whoa, what happened out there?" He asked. I had no response for him as I collapsed to the ground, out of breathe, and out of focus. "What's all over your fur?" He added. I looked down at myself, and realized I was covered in dust, and dirt. I pulled myself up, and made my way to the bathroom sink, where I splashed my face with cold water.
"Spike..." I said, "Pack your things."
"What, why?"
"Just do it!" I ordered. Spike didn't question me that time as I raised my voice. He quickly ran upstairs and began to gather the few belongings he had. In a couple minutes, he was back downstairs with a blanket, and a pillow.
"This is pretty much all I need, since I don't exactly wear clothes." He commented.
"I'm sending you to the Crystal Kingdom." I said. "It'll be safe there, Cadence will watch you until we can figure out how to deal with this ."
"Safe? From what? What's going on Twilight?"
"Please Spike, no questions, just do as I ask." I ordered. Spike didn't reply, he only nodded his head. I gave him a pouch of bits. "Go to the train station, and get yourself a ticket to the Crystal Kingdom, understood?"
"Yes Twilight."
"Good, now go." I opened the door, and saw a plume of smoke rising in the distance where the crash sight was.
"Whoa..." Spike said. He understood a little more why he had to leave.
"I'll see you in a couple days." With this, Spike made his way to the train station.
It amazed me how the rest of the day were like any other...Ponies still went through the daily routine of eating, working, and sleeping. It's as if nothing changed. I went downtown to get the daily paper. There, a train stopped at the train station. I watched as Equestrian Soldiers walked out on to the platform, bringing artillery pieces with them.
They marched through Ponyville in a column, heading toward the rising smoke. From the pit, a faint hammering noise could be heard. The creatures were building things inside the cylinders. I thought about what they were building...perhaps a weapon, or a way to communicate...or worse, more heat-rays.
I went back to the library, and sat there thinking to myself...the image of those ponies burning kept re-appearing in my head. The sound of blood curdling screams played again and again in my mind. The fur on my back stood erect as shivers were sent down my spine. I would've helped them...but the intensity of the moment kept me running for dear survival.
Hours later, in the afternoon, there was a violent crash. The ground heaved as the artillery began firing upon the cylinder. I realized with horror that my home was now in range of the heat-ray...The pounding of guns continued on through to dusk, where another falling star was descending toward the ground...the second cylinder.
That night, I couldn't eat. I felt incredibly sick to my stomach. The pounding of guns no longer existed, as the hammering continued. I watched from the windows as ponies were walking through town, pulling carriages full of their belongings. The only thing I could do was watch. I decided to try and get some sleep...With the hammering from the pit still audible, I fell into a deep, haunted sleep.
The next morning, my fear rose to the sound of someone creeping into the house. I heard a hoof step down on the wooden floor, and saw a young artillerycolt. His face, and muzzle were streaked with blood and dirt. "Is anypony here?" He asked. The way he asked that made the world seem incredibly lonely...But I walked in, and made eye contact with him.
"Yes, come in." I said, he closed the door behind him. "Drink this." I gave him a glass of water.
"Thank you..."
"What's happened out there?" I spoke.
"Out there..." He shivered a bit, "...They wiped us out. Hundreds dead...maybe thousands."
"The heat-ray?"
"The Aliens! They were inside the hoods of machines they'd made. Massive metal things on legs, giant machines that walked...they attacked us...they wiped us out.
"Machines?" I questioned.
"Yes! Fighting machines, picking up ponies, throwing them, and bashing them against trees. Just hunks of metal...but it wasn't an accident, they knew exactly what they were doing..."
"There was another cylinder that came last night." I said.
"Yes...it looked bound for Canterlot."
"Canterlot ?" I realized with horror what that meant..."Shining...I couldn't have dreamed there'd be danger to my brother so far away." I stood up, and quickly begun packing a travel bag. "I must go to Canterlot immediately."
"And me...to report to headquarters. If there's anything left of it."
With that, the artillerycolt and I left the safety of the library. We got to the train station, only to discover the train service had been halted. "I guess we're going on hoof..." The artillerycolt said.
We came across a small town that seemed to be completely deserted. We came upon an inn where tables had been turned over, and windows were shattered. "Is everypony dead?" The artillerypony asked.
"Not everypony..." I pointed toward a column of artillery, with gunners standing by. "Look. Six cannons."
"They haven't seen the heat-ray yet...they don't know what they're up against."
As we made our way to a bridge, there was a heavy explosion. The ground heaved, windows shattered, and gusts of smoke erupted into the air.
"Look! There they are, what did I tell you!" The artillerycolt shouted, pointing at a hill that overlooked the town. I watched, as four of the fighting machines appeared. Massive tripods higher than the tallest steeple, striding over the pine trees and crushing them with ease. Each carried a huge funnel...and I realized with horror that I had seen this horrible thing before. Heat-rays. As I watched, a fifth machine appeared. It raised itself to full height, waved the funnel high in the air, and the ghostly heat-ray struck the town.
Each of the five machines advanced aggressively, releasing black smoke and emitting deafening howls which roared like thunder. The guns now fired simultaneously, decapitating a fighting machine. It fell as the alien inside was instantly slain. The other machines raised their heat-rays, and struck the artillery. Now, with nothing to defend the town, ponies began to run, coming from their houses and running across the bridge.
As the monsters advanced; ponies ran away blindly, the artillerycolt among them. I jumped into the river, and hid, until forced up to breathe. The foot of a tripod came down close to my head as the heat-ray swept across the river. I stumbled ashore, and fell helplessly in full sight of the enemy, expecting nothing but death. The foot then lifted away, as the remaining machines carried away the debris of their fallen comrade...I realized that by a miracle, I had escaped the clutches of death.
I stumbled back on the road, and continued to make my way to Canterlot...
The clock tower bell rang as I made my way into the suburbs of Canterlot. For three days, I fought my way along roads packed with refugees, the homeless, burdened with boxes and bundles containing their values. All that was of value to me was here in Canterlot. By the time I reached their house, Shining and my parents were gone.
I felt tears begin to fall down my cheeks as the autumn leaves began to fall from the trees. I wiped my muzzle, and continued to walk with the crowd. As I did, the sound of a familiar voice echoed behind me.
"Twilight!" I couldn't mistake that country accent in a million years. I turned, and saw Applejack, along with her family, Applebloom, and Big Mac.
"Applejack!" She ran into my hooves as we hugged. "Thank goodness you're alive...what about the others?" I asked, concerned for my friends.
"Fluttershy is staying with Rainbow up in the sky, I doubt the invaders could get up there. Rarity and Pinkie Pie caught the last train to The Crystal Kingdom, and found little Spike on the train."
"I sent Spike away as soon as possible...it's good to know you're okay too. Where's Granny Smith?" I noticed the elder relative of the Apple Family wasn't present.
"Right here." Big Mac pulled an urn out from the carriage he was pulling.
"Oh..I'm sorry for your loss."
"It's fine sugarcube...she went peacefully a couple weeks ago. Sure we were upset, but we can't keep her passin' from distracting us around the farm."
Suddenly, fire leapt from house to house. The population packed, and ran. We were swept along with them, aimless and lost. Finally, Applejack and I agreed that the only hope of survival was a boat out of Equestria...so we headed eastward, to the coast. As we made our way through the suburbs of Canterlot, more and more ponies joined the painful exile. Sad, weary women. Their children stumbling, streaked with tears. Their men, bitter and angry. The rich, rubbing shoulders with beggars and outcasts. Dogs snarled and whined, and wild animals had lips covered with foam. Here and there, were soldiers, wounded, and as helpless as the rest of us.
We saw tripods wading up a river, cutting through bridges as though they were paper. One, appeared above the royal castle, smashing a tower to the ground. Never before in Equestrian history had such a mass of pony kind moved and suffered together. This was no disciplined march, it was a stampede. Without order, and without a goal. Thousands of ponies unarmed, and unprovisioned, driving head on toward the coast. It was the beginning of route of civilization, of the massacre, of ponykind...
