Starbound

by Rytex

Rating: teen
Tags: Other, Romance, Science Fiction, Adventure, Crossover, Human, Twilight Sparkle, Gore, My Little Pony: Friendship is Magic
Length: 108820

Princess Twilight is the first pony to explore unknown space. Things go bad during the initial flight, and she ends up floating over an unknown planet in unknown space. Now she has to survive long enough to find her way home.

A/N: This is based on the Koala patches of the indie game Starbound. The game has since seen a full release and things have changed. These changes will be nodded to, but otherwise do not appear in the story.

Princess Twilight Sparkle is given the honor of being the first pony on all of Equus to engage in interstellar travel. Her mission: to explore unknown space, discover new planets, find new life, boldly go where nopony has gone before, and report back her findings five years in the future.

Things go wrong during her flight, and she soon finds herself stranded above a planet many worlds away from her home, with no fuel and dwindling power. If she wants to survive, she has to gather resources from the planet below. She slowly starts to develop her survival skills, but along the way, she encounters a friend who can help.

Jack Thomas, a "human" from a planet called "Earth," happens to be exploring space as well, and he seems to have a head start in figuring out where exactly she's at. Together, the two of them set out to find a way to return Twilight to her home.

NOTICE: Gore will be minor, and will appear most prominently in later chapters.

09 June 2014: 100 likes, 8 dislikes! Thanks a bunch, you guys!
05 October 2014: Featured! Thanks, guys!
02 April 2015: Computer Science milsetone! 128 likes! That's 2 to the 7th, or 80 in hexadecimal! Only 127 more until I can say I have FF likes!

Published 2014-01-09 21:10:03 UTC
Last updated 2018-05-21 16:30:38 UTC

The First Day

Starbound
Chapter 01 - The First Day

The first thing Twilight noticed as she materialized on the surface of the planet was how strikingly similar to Equus it was. The yellow star looked no different than the sun, the sky was a clear shade of blue, the grass around her was soft and verdant, and the trees were tall and sturdy. If her very first different world was one so similar to Equus, she could only wonder if there were many others like it out there in the vast frontier of space.

Well, first thing’s first. She needed a shelter to spend the night. As she looked around, she thought about finding a cave, or just digging a hole in the side of a mountain. Or even an underground shelter, covered by leaves and such, just in case the natives were hostile.

Her transporter tracer contained a link to the ship’s scanner, and it indicated that the intelligent life the ship had sensed was only a few miles in a northeast direction, relative to this new planet’s magnetic pole.

“Well,” Twilight said, pawing at the ground beneath her hooves, “if the computer called you the second planet of the third planetary system of the Alpha Prime system, I suppose I’ll call you Alpha Prime III B.”

It was simple. It was in the third system of planets, and the second of them. It made sense to name it like that. Name the stellar system by the sector it’s in, number the planetary systems, letter off the planets. That way, any time she came upon a new planet, they would be easy to name.

She adjusted her pack and began to trot off in the direction of civilization. Or at the very least, intelligent life. She never knew what she would find out here. Perhaps it was intelligent, but they didn’t live in cities or such.

Only a few minutes into her hike, Twilight exited the forest she had been transported to. Upon emerging from the trees, she saw that she was on a tall hill, which gave her an unobstructed view of this new planet.

As far as she could tell, there were no mountains on this planet, which appeared to be mainly grasslands. There were a few ponds scattered around the surface, but there were no caves as far as she could tell. The land was mostly flat. It would appear that her shelter would be underground after all.

However, far off in the distance, there appeared to be a strange group of shapes in close proximity to what appeared to be a river. Twilight instantly thought that had to be her city.

The fastest way there would have to be to fly, but due to the rather cumbersome survival kit on her back that she needed to keep with her, she was going to have to hike this one out. Well, no sense putting it off.

With that, Twilight resumed her trot down the hill and toward the strange collection of buildings in the distance.

The hill she had been observing from was tall, but its sides were only gentle slopes. Descending the hill into the plains below took almost five minutes, and she wasn’t entirely sure how long a day was on this planet. Sure, five minutes was only 1/12 of an hour, but for all she knew, this planet had a 3-hour day, and she had just burned 1/36 of the time she needed to find the town, which, judging by how far away the town was, was still at least another hour or so away.

Or maybe, came her brother’s nagging voice at the back of her head, you should stop overcomplicating this and cross that bridge when you come to it.

“Maybe you should shut up,” she snapped back to the phantom voice in her head.

Almost instantly, she cringed. She was already talking to the voices in her head. She hadn’t even left Equus a full day ago! What was the universal record for falling to insanity, again?

Well, considering Twilight’s history of mental instability when things go wrong, and her tendency to use magic to right those wrongs, some incidents that happened in the past might just keep her from holding that record. The first thing that came to mind was that one time she had accidentally managed to give most of Ponyvile psychedelic hallucinations for an entire week (“Derpy in the Sky with Diamonds”), and then there was the business with the Smarty Pants doll when she had still been a unicorn…

Twilight blushed. Being her, summed up in seven words: phenomenal cosmic powers, itty-bitty insanity threshold. Sure, she wouldn’t trade lives with anyone ever (except maybe Starswirl the Bearded, or even Princess Celestia), but it still would have been nice to not freak out every time you ended up seventeen seconds behind schedule. Or for that matter, whether schedule is pronounced with a hard “ck” sound or a “sh” sound.

Over her head, a red bird flew. Or, that’s what Twilight thought it was. It had four wings and looked a bit more like a lizard than a bird. But it flew like one. Alien animals were weird! Fascinating, but weird.

The lizard-bird dove, landing a few meters in front of Twilight, which gave her the opportunity to inspect it further. Indeed, it was covered in scales, and its wings looked leathery, like a bat’s. Its eyes seemed to emit a slight golden glow to them as it stared at her, cautious of this new creature it had found.

Ever so slowly, and crawling on the ground using small claw-like appendages on its wings, it moved forward. Twilight stood still, not sure what she should do in this situation. Was she supposed to keep looking it straight in the eye, like a hippogriff? Or did lizard-birds like this one see eye contact as a sign of aggression?

The being stopped in front of her and continued staring into her eyes without breaking its gaze. After a moment, it cocked its head and looked toward her left side. Her wings were out from under the survival kit, seeing as how putting sensitive appendages under a heavy and cumbersome load would probably not be the best idea. The lizard-bird seemed confused by them. It was now moving to look at her wings more closely. Maybe in its mind, it wondered why they were feathered and not leathered like its wings were.

And then it leaned forward, opened its mouth, and nibbled on one of her feathers. Twilight jumped at the unexpected action, but it didn’t hurt. Her wings were sensitive, being an erogenous zone for the ponies who had them, so it surprised her. The lizard-bird touched the wing with its tongue for a moment before retreating and returning to stare at her.

They kept the eye contact for several seconds, but then the lizard opened its mouth, revealing that it had a blue tongue and no teeth, and it gave a slight shriek before taking off and flying away.

Twilight released the breath she didn’t realize she had been holding ever since it had nibbled on her wing. That had certainly been an interesting experience.

“Become first pony to step hoof on alien planet? Check,” she said to herself. “Become first pony to experience alien planet fauna? Check. Now I just have to make it to that town.”

And so she again resumed her trot.

An hour later, she arrived at the town, after nothing else eventful happening on the hike. The town itself appeared to be roughly a quarter of the size of Ponyville, and it was filled with multicolored bipedal bird people.

Are they related to the griffins? she wondered, observing that they seemed to have the same facial structure, had beaks, and were covered in feathers, but that they didn’t have tails or walk on four legs.

What surprised her most, however, was that all of them were wearing clothing. On Equestria, clothing was something ponies usually wore as a symbol of their affluence. After all, their coats kept them warm enough on any normal day, and even on some wintery days as well, so they weren’t necessary. But here? Everyone had a shirt and pants, but they lacked hoofwear-- or would it be claw-wear?

Twilight trotted into the town cautiously. As soon as one of them noticed her, it immediately called in a verbal pattern she didn’t recognize, and a green-feathered one jogged over toward her.

“Hello? Are you quite alright?” it asked, sounding alarmed.

Twilight froze. It had spoken Equish! They were on a planet worlds away from Equus, and it was speaking fluent Equish!

“You know Equish?” she asked, startled.

The being blinked for a moment.

“Eh-kwish?” it said slowly, sounding like it was processing the word. No. I speak Een-glis.”

“Eenglis?” Twilight repeated, confused.

The being shook its head. “No, Een-glisssth,” it said, putting more emphasis on the last part of the word, and coming out with a slight lisp. It dawned on Twilight that if they were really like bird people, maybe they were unable to correctly pronounce the “sh” sound, due to how their tongues would sound on their beak.

“Een-glish?” Twilight asked. What a strange name for this language.

The being nodded. It pointed to itself. “I am Ranato’ono,” it said, bowing.

“I am Twilight Sparkle,” she said, bowing in return.

“Please, as a guest of our town, I would be honored to welcome you into my home for the evening.”

Twilight smiled.

“Thank you. Your generosity is appreciated.”

The being turned and, with a motioned talon, began to lead her through the town.

“It is interesting,” Ranato’ono mused, “only a few years ago, we received our first visitor to our small town. Now it seems as though they drop by every few weeks.”

“You’ve had other visitors?” Twilight asked.

“Yes, we have,” it answered, “though you are the first of your species we have ever seen. If I may be so bold as to ask, what are you?”

“I’m a pony,” she answered. “And, forgive me, I return the question.”

“We are the Avia,” Ranato’ono answered. “Avians, as you might call us.”

A fitting name, Twilight thought.

“Also, may I ask what your eating habits are?” Ranato’ono asked as they passed through what appeared to be a market. Various other Avians were hawking wares, buying, or generally speaking with each other. However, as Ranato’ono passed, all of them paused to glance at Twilight curiously.

“Do not be alarmed,” Ranato’ono said, noticing Twilight’s unease at all of the Avians inspecting her. “We are a friendly folk and we mean no harm. Now, your eating habits?”

“Oh, I apologize,” she said politely. “We are herbivores by nature. We only eat fruits, vegetables, some dairy, and grains.”

Ranato’ono made a clucking noise with its tongue, but it nodded.

“That is good,” it said, sounding quite pleased. “The last visitors we had were of a species of omnivores, but many preferred meat. They had to hunt the animals outside of town. You, however, ssare our diet, so our meal tonight will be no problem for you.”

Again, it had been unable to make the “sh” sound.

It...

“I beg your pardon,” Twilight said, bothered by the sudden issue of gender, “but are you a male or a female?”

Ranato’ono laughed, a strange sound that resembled chirping. It wasn’t humorless or ironic at all. It seemed genuinely amused by her question.

“Quite the eager student, aren’t you Twilight Sparkle?” it asked. “I am a male. Males have blue, green, or red feathers, while the females have pink, purple, or white. Judging by your voice and comparing it to some of our earlier visitors, I would assume you are female.”

Twilight dipped her head.

“And considering the multitude of questions you have been asking thus far,” Ranato’ono continued, “I would also assume you would like to know how it is that you and I speak the same language, yes?”

“It seems highly unlikely that you would know my language when we have never stepped hoof off of our planet until now, and we have no record of extraterrestrial visitors,” Twilight answered. “You said you had earlier visitors, but I highly doubt that they could have been ponies like me.”

Ranato’ono laughed again.

“After meeting me, do you truly think your pony folk are the only other intelligent life in the universe?”

“Well, no,” Twilight answered, “but I would imagine that we are the only species that would speak this language. The probability of another race knowing exactly the same language is astronomically low, pardon my pun.”

Ranato’ono nodded.

“Indeed, it is strange. However, perhaps this would be a topic of discussion,” and here he pronounced the long-I sound. “best had over food tonight. It is nearly.. how you say, ‘dinner time.’ I am sure my mate and my children would love to meet you.”

Twilight’s stomach answered for her with a loud and long growl, and she suddenly remembered she hadn’t had anything to eat since breakfast hours earlier.

Ranto’ono laughed again, and began to lead her toward his home.

Ranato’ono’s house was small, by pony standards. However, that may have been because Twilight was used to living in the Ponyville area, where everything seemed a tad larger inside than on the outside. However, that didn’t make it any less cozy.

The walls were rather barren of any decorations, and only the simplest of furniture was there. Chairs, a table, beds in separate rooms, and so forth.

Ranato’ono’s wife was slightly shorter than he was, standing a full head taller than Twilight. She had purple feathers, and a kind, matronly look to her eyes. Their children were tall enough to reach Twilight’s barrell, and they both had green feathers. When Twilight asked, it was because they were twins.

“We are pleased to have a guest such as yourself, Miss Twilight Sparkle,” Ranato’ono’s wife said in a kind voice that reminded her so much of her own mother. “My name is Mira’dano, and these are my children Rika’luno and Luka’luno.”

“Simply for the sake of convenience,” Twilight asked, “may I call you Mira?”

Mira nodded.

“It is equivalent to your ‘first name,’ miss Twilight,” she answered, “so we implore it.”

“Thank you,” Twilight said, with a courteous bow of her head, “and please, just call me Twilight.”

That made things a lot easier. Though, it still felt weird to call him “Ranato.” She hoped he wouldn’t mind if she shortened it to just “Rana.”

“Are you part Avian?” asked Rika, gazing at her with wide, green eyes.

Twilight blinked.

“I’m sorry?”

“Are you part Avian?” Rika repeated. “You have wings like we do. Does that mean you’re part Avian?”

Twilight chuckled, but she shook her head.

“No, I’m not, Rika,” she said. “I’m called an alicorn, a type of pony.”

“What’s a pony?” Rika asked, cocking his head.

“Well,” said Twilight, thinking about how to describe something she had never had to describe to anyone before, much less to a child that didn’t know any of her basic terminology, “ponies look like me, generally speaking. Quadrupedal, tails, manes, and so on. Aside from mares and fillies being female and stallions and colts being male, there’s also four different varieties of pony.”

With a shimmering of her horn, her favorite “laser-grid” appeared. Luka’s and Rika’s eyes widened with amazement. Rana and Mira also seemed surprised. Twilight, however, continued.

“First, since you seem so enamored by that side of me, are unicorns,” she said. A magenta silhouette of herself as she had been half her life ago appeared. “They have a horn, but no wings, and they can cast magic, just like I am.”

“Magic?” Rika asked, while Luka just stared at him with his mouth hanging open. Rana and Mira appeared lost for words.

Twilight giggled to herself. “Yes, Rika, magic.”

Her horn shimmered again, and Rika was lifted into the air in an aura of magenta magic. Rika gave a cry of surprise that quickly turned into a raucous fit of laughter as Twilight levitated him all around the room. Not one to leave anyone out of the fun, Twilight also caught up Luka and before long, she was playing a little chasing game with the two children, to both their and their parents’ amusement.

“Now,” Twilight said, setting them down back in front of her board, “unicorns can cast magic, like I said. Though some unicorns choose to go and do different things in their lives, some, like me, choose to dedicate their life to studying magic.”

“But I thought you said you were an ala-corn,” Rika interjected.

“My my, Mister Rana,” Twilight said, “you have a very curious child.”

“Yes, his questions are like the leaves on a tree,” Rana said while his mate chuckled.

“Yes, Rika, I am an alicorn, but I used to be a unicorn. However, I will explain that in a moment. Second, we go to pegasi.” A cyan silhouette of Rainbow Dash appeared, wings extended. “As you can see, they have wings, but no horn. This being said, they can fly on their own, and with magic native to their kind, they are the ones who control our weather.”

“Does that mean if I can fly, I can make it rain?” Luka asked.

Twilight shook her head. “I’m not really familiar with Avians, so I wouldn’t know if you could or couldn’t.”

“Can you?” Rika asked.

Twilight nodded.

“Another note on alicorns that I will cover later. Third, earth ponies.” An orange silhouette of Applejack appeared, though she lacked her stetson for simplicity’s sake. “They have neither a horn nor wings. However, they are generally very muscular and have a very strong attachment to the earth. Due to their native magic, they can produce the best crops the land can offer, provided there’s enough water and sunlight.”

Finally, a white silhouette of Princess Celestia appeared.

“Last, alicorns. Alicorns are a very special variant to our race, and as you can see, we have wings and a horn. We are made, not born. Only two alicorns that were born that way exist, and they are both immortal and the princesses of our land. Alicorns have traits of all three races. We can fly and manipulate weather like pegasi, cast magic like unicorns, and we can produce good crops like earth ponies.”

“So you can do all three?” Rika asked. “Does that mean you’re, like, the best ponies?”

“Well, Rika, in a way, we are. However, like I said, alicorns are made, not born. Princess Celestia and Princess Luna only choose to bestow alicorn-hood on those who have proven themselves worthy. All of us are in some way princesses of Equestria.”

“You’re a princess?” Rana interjected.

“I am,” Twilight answered, “but please don’t treat me any differently than you would any other avian,” she quickly added.

“What are you doing all the way out here?” he asked. “How did a princess end up on our world? Were you kidnapped or--”

“No, Mister Rana,” Twilight said. “After I became a Princess, I sort of started this technological revolution in Equestria that ended up with us inventing a ship that could traverse the stars. I volunteered to go on a journey out here, simply because I was so interested, and they let me. My ship was attacked mid-flight, and I’m stuck out here now. I need to gather supplies like coal so I can hopefully find my way back home.”

“Attacked? By whom?” asked Rana.

I don’t know,” said Twilight, dropping her spell. “That’s what scares me. It leads me to think that we as a race aren’t ready for interstellar travel yet. That thing came out of nowhere, pulled me out of warp, and attacked my ship. I can only imagine what would have happened if I had not jumped to warp as quickly as I could.”

For a grim moment, everyone was silent. Twilight wondered if even the children were as frightened by what was out there as she was.

“Well, our food is ready,” said Mira, who had gone over to check on baking bread. “Please, join us at the table, Miss Twilight.”

Dinner was a wonderful, comforting experience. The foods were much the same as those back on Equus. Breads, salads, berries, the whole shebang, though the Avians didn’t appear to add grass and flowers to their diet as well. According to them, these other visitors, the hyoo-mans, had given them recipes they could bake and eat with ease, which had added all sorts of new delicacies to their diets. What had once been a lean year had suddenly turned into the most bountiful harvest they could imagine.

“Miss Twilight, I think I might be able to help you with your little situation,” Rana said after about half-an-hour of eating. “You see, one of our regular hyoo-man visitors set up a bit of a sselter along the north path. It is a bit of a walk, though with your wings, I’d expect you could fly here and back in no time. However, we would recommend staying there and working until you can gather enough fuel and resources to power your ssip again. However, you are welcome to stay here as long as you wiss. We have a guest bed ready.”

“Thank you, Mister Rana,” Twilight said graciously, dipping her head. “Your hospitality is appreciated.

Twilight lay awake in her bed. It was difficult for her to sleep. For whatever reason, she continued to have the same vision of her ship being attacked by an unknown assailant flying a sleek black saucer. The being seemed to just radiate misequinopy and wanted to kill all of them simply because of what they were.

She heard a shuffling, but she kept still, wondering if Rana was just checking on her.

“She sleeps peacefully,” Rana’s voice whispered.

“More than I do,” Mira’s voice whispered back. “If what sse said about those visitors is true, we could all be in danger. Rana, do you think it’s… them?”

“I cannot say,” Rana whispered back. “Nevertheless, we ssould be prepared. I do not know if we could contact Jack, but it seems close to the time when he comes to us. Perhaps he would know about their movements, with all the traveling he does.”

Twilight could only ponder why they had spoken in Equish-- no, they called it Eenglish. In any case, why they were speaking it and not their native language. Perhaps they did it just in case she actually was awake, and they wanted to warn her.

Whatever the reason, it didn’t help her sleep. Her visions and dreams continued to plague her, just as they had before she had heard them, but they now featured multiple beings, hellbent on destroying both her and Equestria.

Survival 101

Starbound
Chapter 02 - Survival 101

Twilight Sparkle glared at the rough wall of stone in front of her, grinding her teeth in frustration. She could sense there was a lode of iron behind this rock wall, but for all she was worth, she just couldn’t get the stone to come loose.

It had started when she had arrived. She had already come up with the idea to modify Rarity’s gem-finding spell into something that would let her detect metals and carbon-based materials behind stone and dirt and the like just as well as gems. Upon testing her spell and finding that it worked to perfection to a few meters down, she had discovered a rather sizeable lode of iron and was now attempting to prise it from its spot in the wall.

An hour later, and literally no progress had been made. The stone wall remained resolute and refused to yield the metal for Twilight.

Twilight groaned in frustration, plopped right down onto her rear and continued to stare at the wall angrily.

But then a thought suddenly hit her. If she got the metal out, what was she going to use to melt it for smithing? She needed a furnace. To make even a primitive furnace, she was going to have to dig out the stone.

She needed a tool that would let her do that with ease. She glanced outside, where some of the foliage in front of the entrance, including several trees, obscured the view of the path.

By chance, her gaze caught a rather large stone close to the mine entrance. Suddenly, she had an idea. She was going to need to make a pickaxe. That would do for starters, but she would need several tools. However, pickaxe first. She would need to hone that large stone into a pickaxe head, and then use wood to make a handle for leverage.

With a grunt, she got up, trotted over to the rock, and set to shaping it with magic. Surprisingly, it didn’t take as long as she thought. Magic did have its benefits, but she supposed it helped that she wasn’t trying to pull rock from a wall, but instead shape it with magical erosion.

After a few moments, she had a perfect pickaxe head, complete with a hole for the handle to fit. With her pickaxe head in hoof, she trotted outside the mine, found a very large branch that had fallen off of one of the many trees, and set to breaking it down to a wooden dowel that could fit, a process which took even shorter than eroding the stone. After that, magic polished the dowel and shaped it to look and act more like a miner’s pickaxe when used.

When she was content, she slid the dowel in and with magic, sealed the dowel inside the slot. With a forceful tug on both ends with magic, she attempted to prise the dowel from the pick head, but it stood firm. Twilight smiled to herself. She now had a basic tool to use. Now to test.

She trotted back to her spot on the wall, found a chunk of rock that stuck out a little bit from the wall, aimed the pointy end of her pick into a groove, and gave it a mighty swing. The pick dug straight into the rock with some ease, but when she pulled it out, she noted that the head seemed pretty damaged already. She was going to need to get a better pickaxe quickly.

However, that first use was promising. She raised her pickaxe high again and brought it down, this time embedding it further into the same groove. Now, she decided to test the leverage. She stuck the flat end of her pick head into the hole she had made, and using her dowel and the leverage principles of the laws of physics, she tugged.

With a crunch, the chunk of rock broke free and fell to the ground. Twilight sighed, wiped her slightly sweaty brow, and smiled. It had taken an hour and a few minutes, but she had finally gotten it to work.

She had a chunk of stone to shape. It was far too small to be used for a furnace. She was going to need a few more chunks of rock to shape. And she was going to need cement. Having read a survival guide before, she knew that mud with high clay deposits in it, when mixed with lots of hay and grass, made an effective paste to seal gaps between smoothed rocks.

Fortunately, clay was in no shortage in the dirt outside, as she discovered when she went to check, and neither was dead grass to use.

But first, Twilight needed things to work with. Inside the mines was an older set of tools and an old work bench, which she figured would be very useful when putting together her items. They were in a room dug into the walls of one of the shafts, which also included a bed. Twilight would probably need to sanitize and wash it all thoroughly before it was fit to sleep in, though. For now, however, she was still welcome at Rana’s.

For the next few hours, Twilight decided to renovate the mines to function more like a shelter that she could stay in. With the help of her new pickaxe, she was able to dig out some coal. However, she decided she was going to need to set up a stock of it immediately, so as to use when smelting her found metals and for making torches and the like.

Out of the chunk of rock she had cut out, she chiseled both a hoe head and an axe head, which she also added dowels to. In short order, she was chopping down trees, using magic to saw the logs into planks to use, and then creating a working set of doors to close the entrance to the mines whenever she needed it.

There was just so much to do! She needed to make this area into a functioning shelter, create a furnace, dig out the iron to make good tools out of, and in general, survive. She decided to start by focusing on making a functioning shelter. There was a stream that flowed from the top of the hill the mines were cut into, and with some simple irrigation principles, she had diverted a part of it to irrigate a section of land she had set aside for farming. Rana had been kind enough to donate to her a few seeds for various crops at her request. Potatoes, corn wheat, and so forth. Twilight had never had much reason to tap into her earth pony powers, even in the few years since she had ascended, and she figured this would be the perfect opportunity to learn.

Soon after she had a functioning door, she had a fenced enclosure with seeds growing in the ground, perfectly irrigated.

She was probably going to need to purchase a bed from town, or at the very least learn to make one herself. Still, her emergency survival kit included a very well-insulated blanket. It would have to do for now.

After she had finished up with her little garden and her door, she got right back to work on her furnace. It was going to be essential, both as a source of warmth and as something that could help her acquire metals.

The collection of rocks proved to be a shorter task than Twilight had anticipated. All she had needed was a primitive furnace. Just stones and cement to glue them together. By finding the right stones and shaving them via magic to be smooth enough for a furnace, she had collected all of her quota within the day, not to mention acquired plenty of coal.

Unfortunately, she was going to need to use this coal as fuel for her furnace. At least, at first, so to start the fires. With an ample supply of wood, she’d be able to fuel the furnace a lot more easily. Maybe later, she’d find even more lodes of coal to use equally after she had a decent supply of wood for furnace fuel.

It was after Twilight had put the finishing touches on her new furnace that she chanced a look out of her door. To her surprise, the sun was already setting. Had she really just spent the entire day working?

Well, the soreness in her muscles certainly felt like it.

Satisfied at a day well worked, she shut her door and set up her emergency blanket as a sleeping bag.

Oversight number 1, emergency blanket made good sleeping bag, but it lacked a pillow. She was going to have a lot to buy in town tomorrow. A bed, a pillow, so many things! And to top it off, she didn’t even have any currency!

She sighed again, this time more of an irritated one. Of all the planets to wind up on, it just had to be a civilized planet. Landing on a civilized planet had its pros and cons versus landing on an uncivilized one, but overall, it would have been better to land on a completely vacant world. She wouldn’t have had to worry about currency and the like.

Well, beggars can’t be choosers, she thought, as she rolled over on the ground and fell asleep.

The next few days were a bit of a blur for Twilight. She continued renovating the mineshaft into a shelter, which was surprisingly easier than she had anticipated. According to Rana, another visitor, one of the hyoo-mans, had carved out the mine himself and had used it as his own shelter when he himself had been stranded on the world.

At first, Twilight had been crestfallen, knowing that he must have mind out all the coal himself. But that changed when she found a path leading to a sizeable lode of coal in the shelter. After digging it all out, she had found that not only did she have enough coal to at least get some power to her ship, she had a good amount to fuel her furnace with.

She had started to make her own survival supplies as well. With some help from one of the town’s carpenters, she had been able to assemble a simple bed, complete with feather mattress for her to use. Apparently, the Avia collected their fallen feathers to use in items that required their use, such as mattresses or arrows. Twilight wondered if her own feathers would work as well, but given how painful it was to pull some of them out, she reasoned it probably wasn’t a good idea to test that theory until her next molting period sometime in the next couple of years.

That thought aside, now had a rather cozy shelter to live in. While it was quite different from the openness her library had had, or even her castle, if anything, it was more comfortable as a result. The nights were cold, and the closeness of the cave made a good insulator for her furnace to keep her warm. Some clever spellwork had also helped magnify the heat inside while keeping it comfortable outside, and prevent stray sparks from flying out of the furnace as well. All in all, it was a very well-made shelter.

Satisfied that she had completed her place to stay, she had decided to take a day off and explore the town with Rana and Mira as translators. It seemed there were those who were sympathetic to her plight, for they offered her free wares that she had to deny. There were others who seemed indifferent to her plight, but that didn’t stop them from offering advice on different things on the planet. And then there were those who couldn’t have cared less. In fact, they seemed quite anti-non-Avian. Rana and Mira didn’t explain why, but Twilight understood. There were many ponies who were anti-nonpony in Equestria as well. She had known there would be the same beings in other races.

But then she discovered the one thing that promised to make her experience on the planet that much more bearable. She had been walking around the town in the late afternoon, when she saw it. A normal shop, appearing completely ordinary. Upon investigation, however, it had turned out to be a bookstore.

Some of them were even written in Equish, somehow! Which would imply English and Equish were the same as a written language, somehow. Just like they were the same as a spoken language, somehow.

Her suspension of disbelief was starting to wear off, in all honesty.

Her lack of currency prevented her from buying a book, unfortunately, but it didn’t stop her from plying the shopkeeper with questions on how he made the books, where he got them, and so forth. She was wondering if she would be able to add any of the literature she had memorized to the books for sale, a thoroughly extensive list, might the author add.

Nevertheless, this provided the perfect opportunity for Rana to give her the low-down on the currency of the Avian town: pixels. They were just small bits of metalled rock that didn’t seem to have originated from this world. Perhaps the hyoo-mans had brought them to use?

While Twilight was self-sufficient when it came to things she needed for survival, she desperately wanted books. So she utilized her magical talents for the town for the next couple of weeks, doing things for the townsavia in exchange for pixels. The books she prioritized buying first were instructional manuals on how to make certain useful items. Unfortunately, most every book was written in the avian language, so she needed to translate, which is where Rana came in handy. He would read the book aloud in Equish/English, and she would write it all down in an empty book. Within a couple of hours, she had a translated book.

The first few weeks passed in what seemed like the blink of an eye, but that may have been because it seemed time was accelerating to her. She remembered when she had first moved to Ponyville, and the Grand Galloping Gala, which was only three months away, seemed like an eternity in the future. Now, however, she was going on those same three months, and it had seemed the time had just blown past. Perhaps it was now that she had a larger scale to look at, being a little under fifty Equestrian years old, yet not feeling a day older than when she had ascended.

A sad thought entered her mind, a thought that had been plaguing her ever since it became clear that her friends were starting to show their age while she remained youthful. What if she was stuck here? Stuck as an eternally-young alicorn princess on another world while her friends grew old and died? Well, at least they all had special someponies and each other; they wouldn’t be alone through that time, like she would.

She smiled wanly. It had started only a few years after she had ascended. Pokey Pierce had been bold enough to ask Pinkie on a date, and before Twilight knew it, they were married with a foal on the way. Applejack and Rainbow Dash both found coltfriends shortly after Pinkie, with Soarin’ pursuing AJ and a Wonderbolt teammate of Dash’s going after her. To nopony’s surprise, Big Macintosh and Fluttershy almost magnetically fell toward each other, which left Rarity. For the first decade or so, Rarity refused to accept any suitor. Twilight secretly thought she had to be waiting for Spike, and was genuinely surprised when Spike instead began to pursue Sweetie Belle. Rarity then explained that she had made a promise to an old friend many years ago, who was a Peacekeeper assigned in Prance.

Twenty-five years after Twilight had arrived in Ponyville, all of her friends were married with foals, and she remained alone.

Though it wasn’t for want of suitors. She’d had quite a few ponies she knew ask her on dates, and even some snobbish aristocrats who had the gall to drop hints about an arranged marriage between them. But they were always turned down, even the ones she called herself friends with. Almost all of them were just trying to further their social status. The rest she wasn’t willing to risk her friendship with, should the relationship go south.

Twilight’s wan smile turned amused. It had been rather funny watching Cadence fuss over her for turning down Flash. Really, it had sounded like she was completely distressed by the concept of her old foalsat waiting for the right--

Wait a minute, Twilight thought, suddenly elated. An idea had sprung to her mind! An idea she wondered how she hadn’t thought of it before!

As she had learned many years ago, electricity was essentially the same brand of energy as magic, which meant she could be a living battery if she wanted to be, so long as she had the Mana in her system, and goodness did she have a lot of Mana.

She almost-literally flew over to her work bench and set to work designing schematics for a distress beacon.

The roar of his ship’s engine died as the Ulysses dropped out of warp. The human in the pilot’s chair looked out over the planet below him, and a fond smile worked its way onto his face. It had been far too long since he had seen Rana and Mira. He wondered how much bigger Rika and Luka had gotten in the last year.

A bipping sound issued from his scanner, and he turned his head to the smaller screen. It was showing a ship floating above the planet! The human furrowed his brow as he stared at the small blip of green on the screen. The ship resembled his own, at least in concept. It looked like it was designed to go at warp speeds, but it looked nothing like any of the ships he had seen during his time traveling among the stars.

With a few button pushes on his controls, the ship was being scanned. It would take a few moments to complete, so the human stabilized the flight of his ship to put it in orbit around Alpha Prime III B. Once that was set, he got up and walked back to his storage chamber, where he found his armor and his weapons of choice laying on top of one of the drawers.

Without any hesitation, he picked up the pieces of silver and steel armor and started to put it all on. It looked quite like some of the armor used by the USCM, except it shone white instead of black. While he recognized the value in the black armor and its stealth capability, the USCM was hardly the image he wanted to invoke when meeting new beings.

After he had donned his armor, he holstered his pistol, slung his assault rifle over his back, and clipped a few different varieties of grenade to his belt. One he had all of his gear ready, he walked back to his cockpit, to find that the scan was finishing up.

SCAN COMPLETE
ORIGINATING SPECIES: Unknown
DESIGNATION: E.S.S. Enterprise
WEAPONS: None
POWER LEVEL: <10%
STATUS: In orbit.
LIFE SIGNS: Negative

The human stared at the screen for a moment, studying what the screen was displaying. It made him laugh out loud to find that the ship was named the Enterprise. But the other information only sobered him. An unknown entity was stranded on the planet, unless it was dead aboard the ship. Well, there was only one way to find out for sure.

He walked back to his transporter, locked it onto the ship, and was surprised to find another transporter signal coming from inside. With that information in hand, he locked onto it and beamed over to the other ship.

Instantly, he pulled out his pistol, keeping it ready in case something malevolent attacked him, but the ship was empty of living beings.

“INTRUDER, IDENTIFY YOUR NAME AND SPECIES,” came an automated voice.

“Jack Thomas, human,” he answered. Perhaps it was a custom human ship, like his.

“SPECIES NOT RECOGNIZED.”

At once, the dimly-lit ship started blaring alarms and flashing red light. Jack figured this would probably be a good idea to take his leave and see if he could find the ship’s pilot before the ship’s computer decided to kill him, and he beamed down to the planet via the Enterprise’s transporter.

Twilight’s ship monitor on her left forehoof began to issue an alarm noise. She paused in her work on her distress beacon to read the report. A member of an unknown species had beamed aboard her ship for a few seconds before beaming down to the planet’s surface. It had apparently done nothing more than scan her ship with its own, before transporting aboard, triggering the alarm, and then leaving.

This put Twilight in a state of caution. For all she knew, this could be those mysterious creatures that had attacked her on Day 1, and they had found her. She needed to get this distress beacon working. Progress was swift, and she was already almost complete. She practically threw a few more lumps of iron ore into her furnace to get it melted quickly.

Thanks to magic, her beacon was completed quickly, almost three hours before it would have been completed without.magic. The smithing had taken just as long as it would have without, but it was the arrangement of the wooden supports and copper wires. In moments, she would be able to channel her magical energy through the machine, and after shaping some pixels into certain primitive logic gate arrangements, she had a tailored distress beacon that would send out an S.O.S. signal in Horse code. Maybe the hyoo-mans, or some other sentient species would hear and come help. If their languages were the same, maybe their radio languages were too.

Gotta get this thing working, she thought, tapping into her magic and touching a pile of pixels with it. She had discovered that pixels made an excellent battery of magic, if she channeled certain amounts into it. She could power her machines via magic without constantly having to channel it.

After a couple of minutes spent saturating her batteries, she picked a few up and stuck them in a slot on her machine.

I sure hope this works, she thought, as a small light on the end of her transmitter dish started blinking. Three times rapidly to signify three dots, three times prolonged to signify three dashes, and then three times rapidly again. And it would repeat until she deactivated it.

Since it seemed to be working, she grabbed the beacon, rushed outside, and set it up in a clear spot in the forest on top of her little hill.

The human’s ship monitor beeped, and he glanced down at it.

INCOMING RADIO SIGNAL

Radio signal? he thought, bewildered. Is there even a level of technology on this planet capable of using radio yet?

“Computer, locate the source of the signal,” he ordered.

The ship monitor instantly spun the planet around on his little screen, then showed a crosshair at--

My old shelter?

Jack didn’t need telling twice. He was already marching toward the avian town, and from there, to his old mine.

“Computer, play the radio signal,” he ordered again.

Instantly, the sound of beeping met his ears.

Beep beep beep! Beeeeeep beeeeeep beeeeeep! Beep beep beep!

And then there was silence for a moment, but then the pattern repeated. Jack would have been a total fool not to recognize it.

“An S.O.S. signal,” he muttered. “Whoever owns that wrecked ship must be in trouble.”

His march became a jog as he started running toward the hill.

Twilight had been sitting in a nearby clearing for a little over an hour now, waiting for something to happen. She had given up watching the beacon, thinking the responders would just beam down to see what the fuss was about While she hadn’t expected something immediate, each passing minute did up the suspense she was feeling.

How long must I wait? she wondered.

BOOM!

Twilight’s head bolted around to where the beacon was. The explosion had come from that direction!

She galloped over, to find a shallow blackened crater in the ground, exactly where her distress beacon had been. But there was a massive shadow on the ground, which shouldn’t have existed in a clearing.

Her head snapped up, and her heart sank completely. There, floating above her, was the same, saucer-shaped black ship that had attacked her.

Penguins

Starbound
Chapter 03 - Penguins

Twilight Sparkle dashed down the hill as the tree behind her exploded, sending fragments of wood flying all around her.

WHY THE TARTARUS ARE THESE THINGS ATTACKING ME!? she wondered as she ran. WHAT THE BUCK DID I EVER DO TO THEM!?

You existed, her brother’s nagging voice said. Remember, not every species is as gentle as ours.

Twilight rolled her eyes, even as she ducked behind a boulder in time for another explosion to erupt on the other side of her little shield. If she could just get down to the mines…

Jack dashed through the town, surprising several Avia as he madly sprinted toward his old shelter. He had seen a smooth black flying saucer fly past, and he knew very well what those were.

Ludicrous as the concept sounded, space penguins were attacking the planet. Or more specifically, the place the distress beacon had been set up. It would seem they were the ones who knocked out the Enterprise. He’d been hearing rumors of a few of these saucers flying around and pirating off of unsuspecting stellar travellers.

He had even encountered and defeated one himself. They had been foolish enough to think they could mess with someone running around a planet occupied by Apex. Jack had found an Apex facility, grabbed an ion blaster, and proceeded to disable the ship, which then fell out of the sky and exploded, leaving Jack to search through the debris to find something useful.

Something that could, perhaps, help the trapped being escape.

Well, he or she had to survive first.

The shelter was a little more than two miles away, but Jack was in shape enough to jog most of the way and run even faster the rest of it. It wouldn’t take too much longer...

Twilight was hiding in a small bush. The strange ship was flying around the hill, searching for her. However, it had beamed down several creatures to search manually. At first, Twilight had to rub her eyes with her hooves, but it looked like penguins were attacking her.

And yet, there they were. Five penguins, about half her size. And they were carrying strange, L-shaped devices, except one, who was carrying a long cylinder of some kind. They were searching through the brush, attempting to find her, likely to kill her and take her things.

Take my things? Prioritize! Life first, things later! she thought.

The landing party of space penguins were aiming their strange things at everything that so much as shifted, including more than once her bush. And every time they did, she would tense up and suck in a breath, then release it in relief when they aimed away.

The one with the cylinder jabbered in penguin language to the others, and they started to spread out. Twilight knew it was only a matter of time before they found her, so her best bet would be to attack first and gain the element of surprise. However, she would have to do it in a way that didn’t alert the ship to her location. The last thing she needed was to have hellfire rain down upon her.

Taking a deep breath, she directed the flow of magic into her hooves, and through them, into the ground. Willing the energy she was manipulating, she guided it into the trees, the bushes, and the ground beneath the penguins’ feet.

A branch suddenly swiped at one of the other four penguins, catching it completely by surprise and sending it flying into a half-buried rock. The remaining three instantly whipped their L-shaped things around and pointed them at the tree. A series of loud bangs and small bursts of light emitted from the Ls, and Twilight saw small holes being punctured in the trunk.

A miniature cannon? she thought. It must be firing a ballistic of some kind, and since they’re able to punch their way into a tree that deep, those things have to be done away with.

The dirt under another penguin suddenly shifted. Before it could react, a small fissure formed in the ground. The penguin toppled in, before the dirt closed up, burying it completely.

Twilight allowed herself a small smile. She had the upper hoof now. The penguins had no idea what was happening, and they had yet to communicate to their ship what was going on.

A vine on another tree dropped down, ensnared a third penguin by the neck, and then yanked it sharply up about two meters off of the ground. The last two penguins, including the one with the cylinder, were looking wildly around. Twilight seized her chance. With two quick bursts of magic from her horn, both penguins’ weapons were sent flying out of their flippers. As they turned to face her, two more quick bursts of magic sent them both flying into the same half-buried rock the first one had hit.

She let out a sigh of relief. Up above, the alien ship was still floating around, searching for her, and it seemed to give no indication that anyone aboard knee what had just happened below.

She felt the magic in the ground, feeling that the penguin buried was now unconscious, and so she released it. After the buried one was taken out of the ground, she dropped the hung one, whose collision with the ground also knocked it unconscious.

Twilight trotted over to the fallen penguin that’d had the cylindrical object. The fact that it was the only one with this weapon seemed to make it the leader, which likely meant it had a better weapon than the others.

She examined the strange metal cylinder. One end was open, but the other was closed off. All in all, it looked like yet another cannon. This being said, she turned it over, open end down, and sent a magic probe to feel and free any ammunition. A few inches in, her probe felt something, so with the proper exploration and procedures taken to prevent an untimely firing, she managed to release whatever was stored inside.

Imagine her surprise when a miniature rocket fell out.

A… rocket? she thought to herself, scrutinizing the small metal object. She used magic to scan the rocket, and what she found almost made her drop it. Fuses had been stored in the point, and if any of them were tripped, it would explode. But the way in which these were arranged left no doubt that this was its intended purpose the entire time.

A tool of science, made to take objects beyond the area gravity could affect, and it had been weaponized. There were few things that could make Twilight Sparkle truly angry (such as the repeated failure to come up with a scientific explanation for a physics-and-logic-breaking Pinkie Pie), but nothing ever came as close to taking something used for a purpose as normally-harmless as science and turning it into a tool to kill beings.

A truly wonderful idea then presented itself to her. Murderous, yet wonderful. What if she turned their own weapon against them? Sure, she could not properly use that metal cylinder, but with her magic, she was sure she could fling it at the velocity needed to properly trip the fuses.

Without pausing to think after that logic train, she flung the rocket at the ship high above her.

To make a long story shorter, she had been right. She could fling it fast enough to cause it to explode. What she was not able to do, however, was penetrate the ship’s exterior with it. The rocket exploded on its underbelly, but aside from sending it reeling slightly, it did apparently no damage.

And it alerted its occupants to her position. At once, it responded with laser fire.

Twilight, unable to react, was hit directly by a red beam of energy that sent her flying into a tree, but she didn’t notice. She was screaming in sheer pain. It felt like every hair on her coat was on fire, and so was the skin underneath. She looked down at herself to see several burns all over, several patches of hair burned off, and several open and oozing spots on her body.

The ship fired again, this time missing her narrowly. But the impact of the blast sent her careening sideways again, through a bush, where the branches added scratches and dug the open wounds even deeper. The situation did not look good.

Twilight saw another group of penguins running toward her now. They were aiming their weapons at her, but they weren’t firing for some reason. Did they want to take her prisoner?

A series of sharp popping reports rang out. At once, all six of the penguins keeled over, penetration wounds erupting on their bodies.

Twilight looked around wildly and saw a strange, bipedal, armor-covered being running toward her, carrying a weapon that looked similar to what the penguins had been carrying.

“Are you alright?” it asked in a voice that sounded like a typical stallion. “Can you understand me?”

Twilight nodded weakly. The being knelt down, picked her up with its arms, and started to carry her towards the shelter.

“I’m guessing you got hit by the penguin ship,” it said again.

“Y-yes,” Twilight said shakily. She was becoming increasingly distressed; he was cradling her touching her wounds while doing so, and she could feel no pain! She had to have been third-degree burned!

“It’s quite alright, I’m here to help,” the being said, obviously mistaking her distress as fear of it. “By the by, how do you know English?”

“I-I think th-that’s n-not an appropriate topic to t-talk about right now,” she said, before crying out as a line of pain lanced up one of the wounds it touched.

“Oh dear,” it said, looking her over. briefly. “You have multiple third-degree burns, severe lacerations, and, hang on,” he added, turning her face to stare at the strange helmet that covered its own face, “spell Cat for me.”

“C… a… t.” she recited.

“Okay, good, your brain seems to be functioning fine. Doesn’t look like you’re concussed, which will make this easier.”

The light around them vanished. The being had gotten Twilight into the shelter.

“This all your handiwork?” it asked as it approached the bed.

“Y-yeah,” she said.

“Good. Might help save your life.”

The being reached into a pouch and pulled out a smaller little kit. Upon opening it, Twilight saw a series of syringes filled with different colored liquids. He picked up a smaller machine included in them, which had an injecting end as well.

“These are stim-packs,” the being explained. “They stimulate certain parts in your body, be they cells, eyes, et cetera, but first, I need to make sure you have a compatible biology to where these will work. That’s what this is for,” he indicated the small machine. “This is going to be a bit painful,” it warned, putting the injecting end on her bare skin before pulling a trigger on the strange machine.

Twilight hissed as it stung her. Still, if this was what it took to save her life, she gladly accepted it. The being sat there, watching her.

“W-what’s your name?” she asked. “And w-what are you?”

The being reached up and pulled off his helmet, revealing a strangely-proportioned face, with red hair growing out only the top of it, and blue eyes. It kind of looked a bit like a primate’s face.

“My name’s Jack Thomas,” he said. “I’m a human.”

“You’re a hyoo-man?” Twilight asked, curiosity piqued.

“Yeah. So, tell me, what about you?” he asked as he looked at a device on his wrist, if the primate terms applied correctly. “Obviously an equine of some kind. Birds are the dominant species here, monkeys elsewhere, even plant creatures. But horses? Haven’t seen you guys before.”

“Ponies,” she corrected. “My n-name is Twilight Sparkle.”

“Pleasure to make first contact with you, Twilight Sparkle,” he said, inclining his head. A beeping sounded from his wrist device, and when he looked at it, his face instantly grew a lot more relieved.

“Well, I have good news and bad news,” he said, pulling out one of the red stim-packs. “The good news is, you’re going to make a full recovery, burned hair and all.”

“H-how?” she asked.

“Red stim-pack contains a chemical that stimulates the cells in your body at a tremendous rate, allowing you to regenerate from wounds a lot faster for a short period of time. Your burns will heal, even your hair will grow back. But like with the little thing I injected into you a moment ago, it’s going to hurt.

“With this level of damage,” he said, pulling out a different syringe, this time with a clear liquid, “I’m going to have to put you to sleep for a while, so the stim-pack can do its job without you feeling anything. Is that alright?”

“I-if it saves my life, go ahead,” she said, laying her head on her pillow. “Alright. N-now what about the bad news?” she asked.

A boom sounded, and the shelter shook slightly around them.

“Dreadwing is still attacking,” Jack answered. “I’ll take care of him, and it won’t take long. Just sleep and heal up.”

With that, he injected the clear liquid into her system. For a few seconds, nothing felt any different. Suddenly, she felt as though her eyelids had 1000kg weights attached to them. Instantly, she fell asleep, snoozing peacefully despite the attack outside.

Jack took a brief moment to study the pony before he went ahead with the injection of the stim-pack. During his inspection, he checked several things. Such as the purpose of the horn (where he felt a strange sort of vibrating air as he reached to touch it), the state of the wings (which looked far too short to allow her to fly), and whether or not it was male or female.

When he shifted the tail aside, he found clear evidence that it was, in fact, a female. What had surprised him and sent more than a few unwanted images to his head was that unlike a typical equine… girlhood, her’s was remarkably human-looking. Really tough to describe.

Either way, he knew the gender now, and that’s what mattered. With that, he injected the red stim-pack and watched for a few moments as her skin immediately started to heal. It was a slow process, but it was noticeable. Regardless, it would take time.

Shaking his head to (unsuccessfully) clear his head of said thoughts, he reloaded his gun, put his helmet back on, and opened the door to the shelter. He knew what to do to take it down, and he was going to put down Dreadwing permanently.

Once outside, the hill was now in even worse shape than it had been. Several sections had been blown off, and Dreadwing’s ship was flying around, looking for its quarry.

Jack calmly walked up to a point where he knew he would have a good firing line of sight for both his gun and one of his grenades. He needed to make sure he got this absolutely right, or else it wouldn’t work.

Raising his assault rifle, he fired a few shots at the ship. They wouldn’t penetrate the ship, nor did he expect them to, but they did get Dreadwing’s attention inside.

The ship rotated to get a clear line of fire at him, revealing the laser cannon. Before Dreadwing could shoot, however, Jack had activated a grenade and tossed it at the gun.

Come on… come on… he thought desperately as the grenade soared through the air…

Before barely grazing the cannon and exploding in a burst of lightning. The gun coursed with the electrical energy, before exploding quite violently.

“YES!” Jack yelled in triumph. The most dangerous weapon of the ship had been neutralized, but that still left the penguin crew. Of whom six were dead, six were incapacitated, and an unknown number were hurt by the exploding gun. However the pilot, Dreadwing himself, was still alive.

Jack tossed another Electromagnetic Pulse grenade at the ship, having a much larger target to hit, and was rewarded when the second grenade hit the underside. Lightning coursed over the ship, but instead of exploding, the engines keeping it in the sky shut down.

“Oh shit,” Jack said, scrambling away as fast as he could before the ship could squash him like a bug. With a crash and a resounding boom, the hulking saucer of metal slammed into the hill, crushing trees and throwing dirt and rocks everywhere.

Jack kept his rifle raised at the cockpit part of the ship, directly in the center of the top. He knew the glass was shielded by forcefield normally, which protected it from attacks from above, but now that the ship was down, Dreadwing was in danger.

Jack ran over to the ship, leapt onto the topside of the ship, and went straight to the cockpit, where a dazed penguin sat at the controls. Nova punched through the glass, his armored hand preventing it from damaging him, and yanked the pilot through.

“The infamous Dreadwing the Pirate,” Jack said, tossing the penguin off his crashed ship. The penguin was no different from the others aboard, except Jack knew this one was intelligent. “I’m disappointed. I thought you would be a better fight than this.”

The penguin pushed himself off the ground, before turning and levelling a pistol pointed at him. Jack just laughed. Ballistic guns did nothing to his armor; only the modified laser rifles that the Apex and the USCM carried did anything worth worry.

Dreadwing snarled.

“Human scum,” he said in a strange, boyish-sounding voice. “You’ll pay for what you did to my ship!”

“How will I pay?” Jack responded. “Go ahead and shoot me. I dare you to try.”

Dreadwing did what most others didn’t do in this situation; he actually fired at Jack. But the bullets hit the armor and bounced off harmlessly.

“Wha--” Dreading said, trailing off. “How is that possible?”

“Science, bitch,” Jack said, jumping down and yanking the gun away. “Nicked this set of armor from an abandoned USCM base in Sector Beta. Was supposedly experimental and on lockdown, but an EMP grenade was enough to shut down security. Unfortunately, not the best armor out there, but it’s enough to stop you.”

He backhanded Dreadwing, sending the diminutive penguin crashing into a tree trunk. Jack calmly walked over and picked up the penguin again, before turning around and climbing up the ship. Once there, he tied Dreadwing down to his pilot’s chair, before heading to one of the higher points on the hill, where the ship’s highest end rested.

And utilizing lever physics, he turned the ship over, belly-up.

It really was quite amazing. The ship didn’t weigh very much. The anti-gravity engine must not have shorted out with the EMP. But whatever the cause, Jack felt like so much more of a man, having flipped a space ship.

Once the underside was exposed, Jack found the six engines placed on the bottom and ripped out five of them. The EMP had completely fried the ship, but some parts were still salvageable, such as the molten cores he knew this ship carried in its engines. And he knew this ship’s design allowed for the entire engine to be replaced easily, having seen a blueprint for one of these in an Apex facility. They had been intended for the Avia, back when the USCM weren't out to take over the universe, but Dreadwing had hijacked the ship during his escape from a USCM facility on the same planet.

Better times… Jack thought. We were working cooperatively with the other species, and the schism hadn't happened yet...

Dismissing that thought, he took each engine apart, which was pretty easy due to the nature of the ship designs, and found the one component he was looking for: a metal fusion core that utilized extremely high temperatures of heat.

These cores were a decent size, so once he had his five, he had to carry them two at a time back to the shelter, where Twilight Sparkle still recovered on the bed. He was pleased to see that all of the lacerations had been healed, and that most of the burns were as well. In a few more minutes, her hair would return to the state it was minutes ago, before she was hit.

Once all five cores were stored safely in the shelter, Jack returned to the flipped UFO, where Dreadwing glared at him from his upside-down vantage point. Jack just knelt down and spoke up to make sure the penguin could hear.

“Well, just wanted to thank you for those warp cores you’ve so kindly given me,” he said, patting the ship. “That being said, so long, enjoy your time in hell.”

Jack took the five engines and tossed them into the opening on the bottom where the penguins were beamed down to, before adding a normal remote grenade into the mix.

He had to run further up the hill to completely avoid the debris from the blast, and while the shelter would have effectively protected him, he wanted to watch the fireworks. Upon reaching the very top of the hill, he tapped the detonate button on his wrist.

The ship exploded, blasting flaming bits of metal in all directions and digging a little into the hillside, but not enough to cave in his shelter. Jack watched the explosion, feeling a grim smile appear on his face. The infamous Dreadwing, scourge of the Alpha Sector, beaten so easily.

Guess that’s why he’s only in the Alpha Sector, Jack thought. Still, he was defeated, and now none of the beings out there had to live in fear of the penguins attacking them again.

“Well,” Jack muttered to himself, surveying the flaming wreckage of the ship, “now that he’s out of the way, let’s go see about Twilight Sparkle.”

Twilight woke up, and the first thing she noticed was that the pain was gone. For the first time since her departure, she felt… good. Rested, healthy, generally good.

She surveyed herself. No burns, no lacerations, and her fur was exactly the way it should have been. She bolted over to a mirror she had crafted. Her mane was perfect, just the way she liked it.

She smiled broadly. She was going to need more of that stim-pack stuff. Though only Jack Thomas would know where to get any. And speaking of Jack Thomas, where was it?

The door to the shelter opened, and the armored figure of Jack Thomas walked in.

“Well, you’re looking better,” it observed, noticing immediately that she was on her hooves and completely injury-free.

“Those stim-packs saved my life,” Twilight said. “Thank-you,” she added, giving him a very sincere and heartfelt thanks.

Jack Thomas pulled off its helmet, and then started to take off his armor as well. Twilight noticed that he wore clothes as well, like most of the rich ponies did, and that his skin was mostly bare, apart from some very thin body hair.

“Are all of your kind like that?” she asked curiously.

“Like what?” Jack Thomas asked.

“Well, hairless.”

Jack nodded. “I don’t think you’ve met the Apex yet, since it seems you’re stranded on this planet, Twilight Sparkle, but--”

“Twilight,” she corrected.

“Hm?” Jack asked.

“Call me Twilight, Jack Thomas.”

Jack just smiled.

“Call me Jack, Twilight.”

Twilight nodded. “And, if you don’t mind me asking, are you male or female?”

“I’m a guy,” Jack said. “And I don’t mean to embarrass you, or anything, but I already know you’re a girl pony.”

“Mare,” Twilight corrected again, blushing slightly at the thought of a stranger inspecting… her.

“Whatever,” Jack said. “Yeah, we’re mostly hairless. When you meet the Apex, you’ll see they look like us humans, only hairier. They went a different way on the path of evolution.”

“Oh. And what are those?” she asked, indicating a bunch of metal orb things.

“Molten cores. Used in engines and things. Plan on using them to repair your engines. That ship, the Enterprise, is it yours?”

“Yeah.”

“Well then, it’ll take some time, but I can get it repaired without too much trouble,” he said, before yawning slightly. “How’d you get stranded over this planet, anyway?”

“Those penguins attacked me,” Twilight said, ears drooping. “We knew nothing about anything outside of our planet, and my ship was prepared in case of a battle, but they struck in the middle of warp. So now I’m just down here, hoping to find something to get me to another planet.”

“Well,” Jack said, gesturing at the molten cores, “I can use these to fix your engines, but unless you know where your planet is, and have enough fuel to get you there, I highly doubt you’re going to get back to your home planet.”

“I’ve been digging up coal--”

“Not going to be enough to get you anywhere but elsewhere in Sector Alpha, or in Sectors Beta, Gamma, Delta, and Chi.”

“Sectors?” Twilight asked.

“Yeah,” Jack explained, flashing up a holographic image of a group of planets. “We divided known space into several sectors, based on their threat level as well as resources and the like. My planet’s all the way in Sector Σ,” he flicked the map, and it zoomed through several planet groups, finally coming to rest on a random assortment of stars. “Right here, in the Sol system, to be exact,” he added, indicating a yellow star. “So unless you know exactly where your planet is by our coordinates, we’re going to have to manually just look for your planet.”

“Well,” Twilight said, suddenly appreciating the daunting task ahead, “if it helps you at all, I would have been able to make the trip in one warp jump if I wasn’t pulled out. Warp speed seemed constant and drained a constant amount of energy in our experiments, at least for us ponies--”

“Warp is constant across all races, Twilight,” Jack said, but he was rubbing his chin with his hand quite thoughtfully as he flicked back to Sector A. “This actually helps narrow it down a lot. Since you were only able to make it in only one warp trip, or so you say, this means you could only have come from Sectors A, B, Γ, Δ, and χ.”

“Are there many planets in those sectors?” Twilight asked curiously, feeling that flame of needing to know things suddenly light up once again.

“Quite a few, but if you describe your stellar system to me, I might be able to narrow it down. We’ll have to explore more systems as we go, because I’m only really familiar with Sectors A and B, so we’ll have to mooch Starmaps from other races along the way.”

“We?” she asked, surprised.

“Yeah,” Jack said. “You’re stranded, and you have no idea how to get back home. I want to help you find your way, and I’m willing to go with you. Think of it as a mutually-beneficial relationship. I get to go exploring planets, we both find your way home, you get home eventually.”

“And I get to see the stars, too,” Twilight interjected.

Jack just shrugged.

“So, do you accept my offer?” he asked, holding out a hand.

Twilight smiled, nodded, and gave him her hoof.

“I do, Jack.”

Jack smiled and ran a hand through his red hair.

“Well then, Twilight Sparkle, let’s go get you home.”

Author's Note

Two updates in one day! My fingers are on fire! I feel so ready to do what I can to churn these chapters out over the summer!

Please review, since it helps me get better.

Rytex out. Have a good day!

Sand and Star Land

Starbound
Chapter 05 - Sand and Star Land

“Now watch closely,” said Jack though his helmet, as he and Twilight stood within the depths of his mine. There was almost no light, so Jack had injected a yellow stim-pack into Twilight, which made her glow like a mini-sun. It was the most curious feeling, as if fireflies were actively flying around inside her skin, but with no actual sensation. “This is going to make your resource-gathering this much easier. Now, use your magic to scout out minerals and such in the sand above us.”

Twilight extended tendrils of energy into it the ceiling and sent them out in a sort of sonar-wave. As the wave of magic passed over thicker, denser materials, she was made aware of it, including some sizeable chunks of ore she couldn’t identify.

“Now then, watch what happens. Keep a bubble of air around your head at all times, because we’re going to be doing some climbing upward here in a moment.”

He hefted his steel pickaxe down below his waist, before swinging it up and digging into the compressed ceiling.

“See,” Jack explained, as he pulled the pickaxe down and slung it across his back, “that one little hit is going to work its magic for just a moment. Still keeping tabs on the ores in the sand?”

Twilight nodded.

“Good. Now get a bubble of air around you; it’s about to--”

But his words were drowned out as the crack he had caused in the ceiling split open and sand flooded downward. Twilight instinctively flinched, but Jack just calmly stuck both his hands up, as if he were going to dive into it.

Twilight managed to successfully get a second spell keeping oxygen around her just before the sand was all over her. Everything was just a blur of yellowish orange, courtesy of her glowing. She could sense Jack next to her, and he was already starting to sort of climb his way up, as if he were slowly swimming in all this sand. Twilight decided to emulate him, and soon enough, she was ascending slowly, working to get close to him as quickly as she could.

Before long, she managed to get right beside him, and bumped him to let him know she was there.

“Oh, you’re there?” he asked, voice muffled a bit. “Good. Now, still know where all the ore is?”

“Yeah.”

“Good. Let’s start moving towards it.”

It was a slow process, but the ease with which the two of them could dig for ore simply by loosening the sand was astounding. Within twenty minutes, they had found large quantities of coal, iron, copper, and even some silver and gold.

After almost half an hour after first delving into the sand, Twilight broke through the top of the sand surface, breaking herself back out onto the surface of the world. Thanks to her being able to store items within her Source’s massive space, she had kept all of the ore she had gathered squirrelled away there.

With another cast of her Ore-Finding spell, she could see a large collection of ore in one place, directly beneath her, and it was moving upward, fast.

A hand popped out of the sand right underneath her. Twilight yelped and flew up into the air, having not expected Jack’s emergence a la Jaws.

As Jack climbed out, Twilight landed, smiling sheepishly at herself. Jack didn’t seem to notice or care, though, for as soon as he had climbed out, he was emptying his pack of all the sand that had found its way inside when he had begun pocketing all the ore.

“Nice haul we got,” he said, as Twilight cast a spell that repelled all the grains of sand from her fur. “With all this ore, we might be able to get us a good set of armor for you from one of my friends on another planet.”

“You mean, you don’t make your own armor yourself?” Twilight asked, confused.

“Nope,” Jack said. “I ain’t that talented. Had to steal this armor from the USCM. Some experimental lab in one of their asteroid belts had it locked up in a storage cupboard. Nicked it when they changed the guard. I don’t know why the secrecy, though. It’s not even that strong. It’s just iron and silver, part of their prototype ‘Scout’ class of armor. At least, it was when I stole it.”

“Why is it so special?” Twilight asked. “It just seems like a normal bit of armor.”

“Beats me,” Jack shrugged. “I had to have my friend who made the armor modify the helmet so it could sustain me when I went for a spacewalk. I had to craft the Survival System and everything else.”

“So when do I get to meet this friend of yours?” Twilight asked as they started walking back in the direction of the encrypted transmitter signal Jack had left in his base to lead him back.

“Today, Earth-time, if all goes well. His community isn’t far. It’s even protected by a fragment of the good varieties of the USCM. You might even get to see some other alien species, aside from the Avians. Maybe an Apex, a Floran, or a Glitch.”

After only a few days of knowing her, Jack immediately regretted that last statement. He was forced to answer Twilight’s every question about them for the next couple of hours, even as he piloted the Ulysses to a planet back in Sector Alpha with her and their recent haul aboard.

“...and if the Apex evolved from the same apes the humans did, how is it that they and you are so different? It just doesn’t seem scientifically possible for two species to evolve from one. Oh! Maybe if I meet one I can study its DNA and compare it to yours!”

“With what equipment?” Jack asked as the ship came out of warp above another temperate, grassland planet. He, of course, wasn’t going to tell Twilight that he didn’t like the idea of her slicing off part of his skin to study.

“Magic!” Twilight exclaimed, almost salivating at the thought. “I’ve examined such particles with my eye, though I used magic to focus my sight down to that level. Equestria isn’t quite on that level of technology just yet. My ship’s only the first space ship we’ve ever built that’s capable of interstellar travel. I mean, we’ve explored our own solar system and a couple of the planets, but this is the first one to go further than that. And it’s miles ahead of some of the other non-arcane technology we’ve come up with.”

“Well, let’s not get ahead of ourselves here,” Jack said, getting up from the pilot’s chair and walking back to his transporter, pausing for just a moment to drag a hand up Twilight’s neck an distract her before she could continue. “We’re here on business, not science.”

The city was significantly more advanced than the Avia village on Alpha Prime III B had been. Where the Avia town had been full of wooden buildings, here were metal constructions. Everything from small square buildings to towers that would rival some of the skyscrapers in Manehattan. Twilight could hardly believe her eyes as she beheld the city ahead of her.

“Welcome to the city of Terra Stella,” Jack said, smiling at the look on her face. “In the old Latin language of Earth, it literally translates to ‘Star Earth.’ This was one of the first human colonies we built that survived the first months, almost a century ago. Here, the humans, the Avia, the Florans, the Glitch, the Hylotl, and the Apex meet in peace, guarded by a coalition of soldiers from all six races. The peaceful part is quite an achievement for us, given the history of the Florans and their penchant for violence.”

“It’s huge!” Twilight exclaimed as they passed through a gap in the large stone and metal walls surrounding the city. “I’ve only ever seen three cities this big in all of Equus.”

“It’s amazing what seven races can build when we all work together, instead of just killing each other because we’re different.”

“Seven races?” Twilight asked. “I thought you said there were only six here.”

“There used to be a seventh,” Jack said, countenance darkening. “The Novakids.”

“The Novakids?” asked Twilight as they started walking down a street while dozens of speeding ships flew above them in orderly lines from tower to tower.

“The Novakids,” confirmed Jack. “I think they were the first alien species the humans ever met in our travels. Their species is much, much older than ours, and they’re really spread out across known space. Or at least, they were. The known Novakid colonies have just vanished.”

“Vanished?”

Jack nodded. “Novakids are a strange race, to be sure. They’re very flighty, have a poor grasp of history, and yet have some of the best memories you could ever come across, so it’s not uncommon to see them go from the Stone Age to technological marvels and then back to the Stone Age in as little as ten generations of Novakids. And they really love new and interesting things. No one knows where they’ve gone off to or why they’re even gone. There are, however, signs of a struggle at some of them. And most people have their suspicions on who or what chased them off, but there’s no proof. They are, after all, notoriously difficult to kill. The fact remains, however, we’ve no hard evidence that tells us what happened to them. And the ones who are still around, well...” he smiled wanly, "they couldn't tell us anything because they weren't there, and even if they were, no guarantee they'd even want to tell us."

Jack led Twilight to a station with several yellow speeders parked around, handed a human attendant some pixels, and then hopped into the speeder. Twilight was quite impressed with the attendant because he didn’t seem to bat an eyelash at the sight of her. She figured with all the species in the galaxy, nothing surprised him anymore.

“Industrial district, please,” Jack said to the driver, who nodded and began to pilot them past the central collection of towers that made up downtown.

“So, allow me to school you on what all the different races look like. You’ve seen a human and several Avia, so they should be easy. Now, see that ape-looking one?” he pointed to a monkey-looking being walking along the road with a human, carrying a strange metal device she didn’t recognize. “That’s an Apex. Name kind of gives it away. And that plant one there? That’s a Floran. Again, the name should give it away.”

“What’s that one?” Twilight asked, indicating an amphibious green creature with three red eyes, which seemed to be in an argument with a Floran.

“A Hylotl,” answered Jack. “Expect to see them and the Florans fight a lot if they’re together. They have a history of wars, but they aren’t allowed to come to blows under penalty of imprisonment here.”

“And what about those robots?”

“The Glitch. Don’t tell them they’re robots. Not to their faces, anyway. They’ve been programmed to believe they’re actual life-forms, and they can get quite violent if someone disrupts that view. They’ve even destroyed their own kind when they become self-aware.”

They rode in silence, with Twilight being content to gaze around the city with wonder and excitement while their taxi sped them off to wherever Jack’s friend was.

“Oh! I forgot, there’s one more race you might want to be aware of, even if we won’t ever run into them in all probability. They’re called the Agarans, and the best way to describe them is that they’re bipedal mushroom people who live on random planets that no one’s been able to nail down any kind of formula to finding.”

“Wow,” she breathed, still taking in the vast quantity of different forms of life that she was the first to meet as an Equestrian. “This is all so amazing…”

“Eh,” Jack shrugged, “I’ve seen it all before, so the new-ness of it is lost on me.”

“You mean the novelty?”

“Whatever. Almost there,” he noted, peering over the edge of the yellow speeder to the ground below. “My friend’s name is Jason Jones, and he’s a damn good smith. They’re employed to shape the metal around here for anything other than large sheets for building these towers, and they’re pretty efficient. I bet we’ll have your armor and be out of here within a day.”

When the speeder landed in a much dirtier section of the town, Jack began to lead Twilight through the masses of alien life forms. The industrial district wasn’t too crowded, but it was very busy, judging by the different mostly-human workers moving from building to building at quick paces. To Twilight’s slight self-consciousness, the workers were giving her interested looks as they went from building to building, but they didn’t stop to chat.

“And right through here,” Jack said, leading Twilight into large hangar-sized building. Upon entry, Twilight’s first impressions were of light and heat. A massive black machine occupied the middle of the room, where several workers of varying species were operating at different stations. Some were throwing coal into a depository, some were loading ores onto a conveyor belt to be dumped into a smelting pot, some were maintaining the various machinery parts, others were collecting the smelted ore and wheeling it over to smithing stations to be crafted…

Twilight was very impressed with the organization and teamwork of this group of smiths.

She couldn’t see any faces, as most were wearing welding shields to protect them from sparks or other unwanted stuff getting into them and causing damage. One such person noticed Jack and Twilight, waved to Jack who waved in return, and jogged over, flipping up his mask as he went.

He was a weary-looking man, with a lined face, full cheeks, green eyes that sunken into his head, and a hooked nose that looked like it could have been broken more than nnce. Despite the weary look, he smiled cheerfully and shook hands with Jack.

“Well well, if it isn’t Jackie. What have you been up to these last couple of months, eh?”

His voice was rather baritone. Twilight had been expecting such, but it was very deep and rich, deeper and richer than Big Macintosh’s had gotten over the years.

“Well, making first contact, for one. Jason Jones, this is Twilight Sparkle, a pony of the planet Equestria.”

“A pleasure to meet you,” Twilight said politely, extending a hoof, which Jason reached down and shook.

“And you as well,” Jason said. “So, to what do I owe the pleasure?”

Twilight’s horn lit up as she levitated the backpack with the ore off of her back and set it down in front of her. She didn’t miss Jason’s eyes light up with surprise at the sight of her magic, nor the lingering gaze on her wings, which had been uncomfortably pinned to her back by the the ore-laden pack.

“Armor and weapons,” Jack said, opening the top of it to reveal all the lumps of ore they had collected. “She needs a good set of steel armor to wear, as well as maybe a spear or something to defend herself with.”

“Hmm,” Jason said, looking through the pack. “You’ve brought plenty of iron and coal, I see, as well as some silver and gold too. Do you think I’ll need to add a full face mask as well?”

“Might be best,” Jack answered, “but try not to make a helmet that interferes with her magic.”

“I’ll see what I can do,” Jason said, looking Twilight over. “Making armor for a new species is not going to be a swift process, I’ll be honest. We’ll have to custom craft the plate molds, the face mold, everything. It will probably be a good month or so before it’s all ready. And considering you’ve brought the materials, I can give you a good discounted price on the pixels, but we can discuss that later. I assume you have adequate payment?”

“How much is adequate?” Twilight asked.

“About 50,000 pixels.”

Twilight’s eyes widened. The most she had ever had at one time was in the neighborhood of a few hundred.

“I… I don’t. Jack?” she asked, but Jack groaned and shook his head.

“I was expecting it to be expensive for a new race, but not this bad,” he admitted.

“All I have in payment are these, I suppose,” Twilight said, conjuring a few gems from her Source. “Will these suffice?”

Jason blinked. “Ma’am, you’re offering payment with gems?”

“Is it too few?”

“It’s too much,” Jason said, laughing wryly. “Ma’am, these are worth several thousand each. I suppose you’ll want to get them appraised first so you can be sure what they’re completely worth, but why do you even carry those around with you?”

“Magical energy storage,” Twilight explained. “Gems are created when a unicorn stores magical energy within a crystal. They’re so common in Equestria, they’re barely worth anything.” She gave a small smile of disbelief. “I didn’t expect them to be worth so much here.”

“Well, if they’re as common as… hang on, did you say unicorns?”

“Yes…” Twilight said nervously. “Unicorns, pegasi, and earth ponies make up all the types of the pony race. Pegasi can fly, earth ponies bless the land, and unicorns use magic. All three are equal in total number, if their proportions are skewed in different regions…”

Jack shrugged. “Well, I suppose if unicorns are as common as I think, and these gems are as easy to make as they sound I guess, they really wouldn’t be worth that much there. I can only wonder what it is they consider to be a luxury resource.”

“Cloth,” said Twilight. “With our coats, we have no need for clothing like you humans do for climate survival, not to mention it is a slow and laborious process for a pony to weave something without using magic.”

“Actually,” Jack said, tilting his head, “that makes a surprising amount of sense to me.”

“Well, from what I see,” said Jason, shaking his head in disbelief at the drop of information, “you’ll still want to get them appraised and sold. Can’t pay with gems alone, only pixels. I think if you’re willing to trust Jack with the money and gems, he can get them sold. He knows some pretty good places around the city.”

“I can do that,” Jack said. “May I?” he asked, reaching out a hand.

Twilight nodded, dropping several gems in his hand. He pocketed them, turned right around, and started walking out of the shop. Jason, however, indicated that she should follow him, and so Twilight followed the large smith back to a small room in the corner of the large smithing building.

“You’re a new species to us in the city,” he explained as he started grabbing different materials down off of several shelves and started pouring measured amounts into a bucket that he had grabbed and propped on a table. “So lucky you, we get to make a mold for your face for this. Making body armor is easy, in that all we need is a sketch and some measurements, as well as a mannequin to style it on, but faces are damn difficult. Normally we use a generic bust to shape the armor on, but since we don’t have one for you ponies, you get to stick your face in plaster to make one.”

One the bucket was filled with a viscous white liquid, he picked up two halves of a buckling box and set them both down, open ends up, and began to pour into each one until the liquid was reaching the lip. One he was satisfied, he drained the bucket and washed it out, but meanwhile Twilight just stared at the strange goopy white liquid before her.

“What do I do?” she asked, confused.

“Well, when you’re ready, you’re gonna stick one side of your face in there, and I’m gonna close the other side with the other half for a few minutes. When it dries, which it does really fast, we’ll pull it off and we should have a perfect mold of your face for us to build a bust for shaping.”

“I just stick my face in there?”

“That’s all there is to it. Be sure to take a deep breath and hold it in as long as you can.”

It really wasn’t as bad as Twilight thought it was going to be. It lasted only a few seconds, cold and sickly sensation aside, but once finished, they were unfastened and Twilight removed her head, leaving a perfect impression of her face behind.

“Now we’ll fill it with a special gel that mimics flesh, and within the day we should have your bust. After that, it’s all about the styling of the armor. But we need to get you measured for that too. Wait right here, we’ll do it as soon as I can get measuring tape.”

While Twilight had been left in the capable hands of Jason Jones and was making tremendous progress, Jack Thomas was feeling very incapable of going through with his simple task of finding a gem appraiser and selling for enough pixels, and as a result, his progress was absolute zero.

“What do you mean you won’t appraise it!?” he shouted at the Apex sitting across from him, who stared at him down the length of his nose through his oh-so-breakable-looking pince-nez.

“I mean, sir,” the Apex said in his snootiest voice, “that I will not judge the quality of the gem. It is closing time, and I have already recorded all of the day’s transactions. If you wish to make one, you may come by tomorrow, but I, frankly, am not in the mood to appraise likely-fake gems for a would-be adventurer such as yourself.”

Jack was seriously considering reaching across, grabbing his suit by the tie, and hitting him square in the nose just to break the pince-nez. He did seem to value it quite highly.

“Hey look buddy,” Jack said, “I’m no would-be adventurer. I took down Dreadwing.”

“Oh yes, the villainous pirate penguin,” the Apex rolled his eyes. “Likely story. If you would kindly remove yourself from the premises, I have no wish to do business with you tonight. Otherwise, things could get ugly.”

Jack snatched the gems up and stormed out, grinding his teeth and making sure to ever so slightly move one of the delicately-placed items in the store nearly to the edge of the table, leading the smug Apex behind him to scramble to try to reposition it.

Maybe it didn’t help things, but damn, did it make him feel better.

“...and we’ve traced the warp trails to a desert-biome planet in Sector Beta, where their most recent trails lead to Terra Stella.”

“I see,” Captain Jensen said as he examined the datapad that contained all the information from the investigation. “Any news on any other USCM activity, Lieutenant?”

“No sir,” the aryan lieutenant replied, shaking his head. “Only the usual. More ships headed into Sector Chi, but other than that, we know nothing.”

“Hmm. Good work, Ross.”

Lieutenant Ross saluted his captain, then turned and walked out of the command center, back to his room where he could take a nice sleep. Interplanetary day/night cycles were worse than Terran jet lag, and that was saying something.

Captain Jensen, however, was even more troubled by this recent development. They had gone to Terra Stella? If Jensen’s little outpost wanted to find these unknown entities, but they wanted to hide, they had gone to the right place. Needles in a haystack, they would be, unless…

Unless…

“Veers, Piett, front and center,” he barked, struck by an idea.

Two of the soldiers in white USCM gear moved in front of their CO quickly and snapped to attention.

“Have either of you ever been to Terra Stella before?”

“Sir, no sir.” answered Veers, identified by the deeper, sterner voice behind his combat mask. Piett nodded, though, which made the job easier.

“Since you have, Piett, you’re familiar with its sheer size, yes?” he asked, to which Piett nodded. “Good. I’m going to inform you now, we are operating under the assumption that they are extraterrestrial and thus hate the USCM. We cannot simply walk up and tell these beings to come to our outpost because we’re the friendly ones, either literally or figuratively. We need to approach this delicately.”

“How so?” asked Piett, his lighter voice sounding a bit out of place under a soldier’s helmet.

“All warp ships must carry some kind of record of coordinates,” he explained, knowing that Veers was never much of a pilot himself, despite his proficiency with a lot of technology, “so that starpilots don’t get lost and lose track of where they came from. This being said, your mission is to trace these ships’ warp signals and plant the coordinates of this planet on them. We need to see what they’re after and see if we can keep them under the radar from the other USCM. Are your orders clear?”

“Sir, yes sir!” they said, saluting.

“Good. And for Terra’s sake, don’t be detected! That’s the last thing we need, is for them to notice your break-in.”

“Understood sir.”

“Good. Try to time it to where you do this when it’s very late at night in the city.”

“Sir!” they exclaimed again, before exiting. As the doors slid shut, Captain Jensen signed and turned to stare out at the jungle again. Why do I even care so much about these unknown entities? It’s not like they’ve done me any favors.

His gaze shifted from the thick foliage below to the starry sky above. He couldn’t explain why, but he had a gut feeling that these two or more beings were beings he needed to befriend. How he knew that, he couldn’t say.

“Motti,” he barked again.

“Sir!” one of his staff at one of the many computers around the room looked up.

“Sign into the USCM comms frequency,” he ordered. “I think it’s time we started making preparations for Project Terminus.”

A hush fell over the room.

“Sir, you-- you can’t be serious,” one of the men said.

“Captain, we’re just one small outpost. What can we possibly do against--”

“I don’t know,” Jensen answered. After the meteor fell, and the USCM gave Terra its ultimatum, the UN had to pull their support from the project, but... I don’t know, I have a feeling like this is it. This is going to bring Project Terminus to fruition.”

“This what?” asked Motti.

“The two ships. I can’t explain it,” the Captain answered, turning to face his men, “but these beings took down Dreadwing. Dreadwing! Scourge of the Alpha Sector! Not even an elite USCM strike team could down his ship, and somehow, these two ships are our best lead at finding who is responsible for downing and killing that mad mutated bird, if it isn’t their pilots themselves who did it. If we win them over, we could have ourselves just the very weapons we would need.”

The men didn’t look convinced, but Jensen didn’t need them to. Not when he himself wasn’t convinced, but his gut had never led him wrong before.

“Gentlemen, ladies, with the USCM distracted with whatever they’re in Sector Chi for, this is the perfect opportunity to begin our preparations. So with that being said...” he turned back around and intentionally struck a dramatic pose, arms clasped behind his back as he stared out at the starry sky.

“Start focusing all our resources toward the fulfillment of Project Terminus. Today’s the day we start preparing for the destruction of the USCM.”

Author's Note

Finals are over, all classes passed, back to writing as usual.

Also, if you want a quick visual comparison of what Terra Stella looks like, here's a picture of Kaas City.

By the way, for those who haven't figured it out yet, Sector Chi and Sector X are the same place. X is the Greek notation of the letter chi (pronounced kye). I interchange them regularly purely to keep that reminder fresh.

Rytex out. Have a good day!

The Fatal Circuit

Starbound
Chapter 06 - The Fatal Circuit

Jack threw up his hands in utter frustration, only just keeping himself from screaming in exasperation as he and Twilight exited one of Terra Stella’s Interstellar Travel Regulation buildings. They had been looking to acquire a starmap of Sector Gamma for their ships, but as it turned out, they weren’t as cheap as they were supposed to be.

“I just don’t get it,” he complained. “What’s stopping them from selling us just one damned starmap!? Surely they have spares!”

Twilight was doing a better job at containing her frustration, but she, too, was feeling incredibly infuriated with the apex bureaucrat that had sat behind his organized little desk and told them with a sickly-sweet smile that the ISTR had no inclination to sell starmaps. Even Twilight had a hard time finding some kind of conceivable logical reason for it.

“Argh, this is probably my fault,” Jack groaned as they started on their way back to the hotel they were staying in close to the city’s entry.

“Why is that?” asked Twilight.

“I dunno, he might be related to that stupid apex who wouldn’t take my gems that first night here a couple of weeks back,” Jack grumbled.

“Are you implying that just because they’re both apex, they must be related?” asked Twilight.

“I said ‘might be,’ I didn’t say he was. But that snooty attitude really isn’t common among the apex. It can’t be coincidence.”

“Are they the only place that sells starmaps?”

“It’s human interstellar law,” explained Jack. “I mean, there’s no real overseeing body governing all the different races at once, but when the UN had power here, only ISTR officials were licensed to sell starmaps because only they have the most accurate map of the known galaxy. The UN hasn’t been out of power for long, and no one’s really bothered to change that rule.”

“And they won’t let us buy one?”

“Nope,” Jack said, shaking his head. “Not even with all the pixels we have, courtesy of your gems. We have more than enough to purchase a regular starmap from any other bleeding ISTR facility, but that fucking--”

Twilight winced, making Jack regret saying that.

“Sorry, but that damned apex has to go and be all more-important-than-thou about it…”

He sighed and ran a hand through his red hair.

“Look, Twilight, it may be another few days before we’re able to continue with the search for Equus, so why don’t we just relax and wait for your armor to be finished up?”

Twilight gave him a grateful smile, and sidled up to him to give him an affectionate nuzzle, an act which left Jack tensing up in surprise, but after a hesitant moment, he ran a hand along her mane, which elicited a pleased coo out of her.

“You don’t have to stay with me this whole time, you know,” she said, pulling back and looking up at him. “After hanging around the city with you for the past couple of days, I’m sure I can manage till it’s finished.”

“”Not necessarily,” Jack countered. “There’s much more that needs to be done. I mean, you ponies are a new species. You’ve already caused quite a stir by your appearance here, which hasn’t gone unnoticed.”

“Wait, if they know I’m here--”

“They’ve spoken to me about it, not you,” Jack answered as they boarded a taxi bound for the district of the city with their hotel. “I told them to lay off of you, since all you’re trying to do is find home. Maybe after we find Equus, we can help open diplomatic ties and such, is what I told them, but not right now. Not when I’m trying to help you find your home.”

Unbeknownst to Jack, as the taxi flew past some of the skyscrapers of downtown Terra Stella, Twilight’s cheeks had gone pink, and she had suddenly found it difficult to look in his direction.

Jack, however, relished the silence. Not because he hated talking to Twilight-- on the contrary, she was the most interesting being he had ever interacted with for any long period of time-- but because it gave him a chance to survey the city he once lived in, and see the progress that had been made.

Around the edges of the city were projector dishes, and positioned directly in the exact center was a tall tower, too thin for habitation by any company or enterprise. If some malicious invaders decided to show up and bombard the city, the energy shields would keep them protected from anything short of the most powerful laser at their disposal.

They had done the testing and everything. Shortly after World War III, before the schism, the USCM had tested the shield in an asteroid belt by blocking an asteroid with it and then shooting the test lasers one at a time to see what it could withstand. Only their strongest one had managed to punch through it, and even that took a tremendous amount of time to do so.

“Jack? We’re here.”

“Hm?”

Jack was jolted out of his thoughts by Twilight, prodding his side with her hoof.

“Ten pixels,” said the hylotl pilot at the front of the speeder, and Jack handed over a few coins, before getting out and walking inside the tall building with Twilight at his side.

With all her pixels, and with Jack not having taken any sort of vacation over the last few evers, they had decided to take a month-long stay in a 5-star hotel. Their treasure trove of pixels was in no way greatly diminished due to the sheer amount of gems Twilight had brought to barter, and it was certainly so much better than staying in an underground desert cavern.

They walked in silence into the plaza of the large, expansive ground floor. Many different in-house restaurants were built into the plaza, but they had no current need for food. Instead, they passed by the multitude of hotel guests on the ground floor and went straight to the elevators.

They got into an elevator alone, Jack punched the button to one of the upper floors, and up the lift went.

For a brief moment, they rode in complete silence, with Jack staring out of the back of the lift at the floor below, with the different floors and their room doors overlooking the plaza. Twilight, however, was thinking. Exactly why was Jack so insistent on staying by her side and helping her get home?

A normal being, from what she had seen, would probably have given her some pixels, or pointed her in the right direction, but here he was, just staying with her and helping her find her way.

“Jack?”

“Hm?”

Jack looked over at Twilight as the lift continued to ascend. She was chewing the inside of her cheek, apparently mulling a way to say something.

“Something the matter?” he asked.

“I… yes, actually.”

“Well, go on, then,” Jack said, motioning with his hand. “If you’ve got something on your mind, you can tell me.”

For whatever reason, that only made Twilight feel even more apprehensive about actually asking. Jack’s gaze in her direction started to shift from expectant to a stranger look, as if he was wondering why she wasn’t talking.

“Are you alright, Twilight?”

Twilight nodded vigorously. A little too vigorously, which only amplified the strange look Jack was giving her. However, he just shrugged. Fortunately, the awkward moment ended when the elevator’s bell rang, and the doors opened. Jack stepped out, and she followed him as he walked to their room.

Despite staying in a 5-star hotel, they didn’t go overboard. Their room was quite simple. A large living room in the center, with two rooms off to either side, with a balcony overlooking Terra Stella outside the door opposite the entrance. Each of their rooms had a king-sized bed, a closet, and its own bathroom.

However, a problem had arisen the very first night they had slept in separate rooms in the hotel. And it wasn’t one of the comedic ones.

Twilight was running through the forests of Alpha Prime III-B, away from Dreadwing’s ship as it blasted apart the mountainside in her wake. She had no way to defend herself, her magic was gone, her wings were injured, and her armor couldn’t stop these lasers. There was no other option but to run.

A root tripped her up and she fell onto the ground, splaying helplessly as the ship loomed overhead. Twilight scrambled back as fast as she could, trying desperately to get to her hooves, but the roots of the ground rose up and tied her down. She struggled and wrenched them with all her might, but it was to no avail.

The ship’s cannon started to emit a red light from its barrel. Twilight screamed, pulling a hoof free and desperately throwing it up to block the incoming laser--

“TWILIGHT!”

Her eyes bolted open and she sat up in her bed. She wasn’t on Alpha Prime; she was in Terra Stella. Dreadwing was gone, and she was safe, but her throat felt raw. Had she really been screaming in her sleep?

Something warm pressed itself around her. For a moment, she simply blinked stupidly, wondering what it was as her mind caught up to her recent realizations. But then she comprehended that it was Jack, and that he was hugging her to comfort her.

“I’m here, you’re safe. Nothing’s going to hurt you,” he whispered reassuringly, stroking her mane in a way that somehow eased the fear inside. Twilight let out a shaky breath, which quickly devolved into a sob, which quickly resulted in her just collapsing and crying. How was she ever going to find her way back home when she couldn’t even get over an injury in the past?

“It’s fine, it’s fine,” Jack crooned, still stroking. “What was it?”

“I-it w-w-was D-Dreadwing,” she choked out. “H-his ship b-b-blasted me in the woods and I c-c-couldn’t get aw--”

She swallowed, and failed to continue from there. Jack was left to watch her, knowing what the nightmare must have entailed. The state he had found Twilight Sparkle in in the woods of Alpha Prime III-B, burnt and mortally wounded, saved only by his timely stimpack usage...

What would have happened had he not shown up when he did? Those penguins he’d killed, they had been about to kill her.

She would never have made it back to her planet…

“It’s fine, it’s fine,” Jack continued.

“But… but I might have never seen my friends again,” she whimpered, shaking her head as he released her.

“If you need help sleeping, my bed is open,” he said, starting to walk out. “I promise, Twilight, you will see your friends again, and I will do what I can to help that happen.”

It had been a simple enough gesture, and Jack had thought nothing of it. Even though Twilight thanked him multiple times. Jack continued to just shrug it off. It really was nothing to him. Though he had to admit, it had been a little strange, growing accustomed to Twilight’s presence on the opposite end of his bed at first.

Those blasted wings just couldn’t stay down!

But Jack had gotten to thinking that Twilight was suffering from PTSD. She fit the symptoms well enough, with her constant fear of the event with Dreadwing. He had considered confronting her with that information, but there never seemed to be a right time to do so.

But that wasn’t the point of his current thread of conversation with Twilight.

“Twilight?” he repeated, noticing that she had zoned out, staring out of the window at a line of hovercars zooming by.

“Huh? Oh!” She shook her head to return to clarity. “Sorry. I just… can I ask you something?”

“You just did,” Jack said, failing to not smile.

Twilight just rolled her eyes. “Look, this is serious, alright? I mean, sort of.”

“Well, if you say so,” Jack said, shrugging. “Ask away.”

“Why are you so determined to help me?” she asked. Jack opened his mouth to answer, but Twilight cut him off with a bit of an annoyed tone. “And don’t try to give me something stupid like, ‘it’s what everyone else would do,’ or something.”

Jack closed his mouth. Truth be told, he had been going to say that. The real reason felt strangely personal, for some reason.

“I…” he started, before rubbing his hair a bit embarrassedly. “Well, it’s just, I know what it’s like.”

“What what’s like?” asked Twilight, confused.

“What it’s like to be lost,” he clarified. “To be stuck wandering the stars, and to be lost from home.”

“You have your little shelter,” she pointed out.

“That’s a shelter, Twilight,” he retorted irritably. “I haven’t ever had a home, truth be told. Living on earth was hell, for the little of it I did. The war, the poverty, everything was just hell. So I left before things came to a head. And in all my years of wandering around space, I’ve never once felt at home.”

“What is home, to you?” asked Twilight. “For me, home is where my friends are, no matter where that is.”

“That’s a deep question,” Jack said, staring up at the beige ceiling. “Home is… the place you… when you’re gone, you just miss it.”

“A being can miss a lot of things,” Twilight said, seeming even more confused.

“What do you want from me?” Jack snapped. “Some kind of vague philosophical quote like, ‘Home is where the heart is?’”

“I-- sorry,” she said, her ears flattening and her head drooping. “I didn’t mean--”

But she was lifted up and pulled backward before she could finish. After a moment of panic, she realized that all that had happened was that Jack had simply picked her up and fallen onto their bed.

“I get it, Twilight,” he said, holding her close in a strange little embrace. “You miss your home and you miss your friends. I know what it’s like to be lost, to be trying to find what you’re searching for, and that is why I won’t stop until I help you find your planet. Do you understand now?”

There was just something about the way he had said that. That, and the way he had been there to save her from Dreadwing, and the way he had been comforting her with the nightmares that just set her mind at ease. She knew she could trust him, and she knew he meant everything he said.

“...so the plan is to create an interior outfit with all the hooks and latches like this,” said Jason, showing off a little model of the prototype pony armor made specifically for Twilight. “What you’ll do is if you want to update the armor yourself, you can simply fit the desired molten metal to the moulds we’ll be providing you, and then when it cools and hardens, you’ll have the same plates to attach. Just gotta switch the different plates in and out.”

“Are you doing that to my suit too?” Jack asked. “Because this armor comes made the same way, actually. See?”

He demonstrated by pulling out one of the sections of his armor out and sliding it back in, where it fastened with a snapping sound.

“Well,” Jason said, “we could have moulds for you to use with that as well, but it would take a few days. If you’d consent to leaving your armor here for a bit--”

*BOOM!*

No one knew what had just happened. Some of the smiths had dove for cover, Twilight’s eyes had shrunk and she had started to shake, and Jack had whipped his rifle off of his back and had pointed it at the door to the foundry they were in.

The ground shook, there came panicked screams from outside, and there was a grating sound that was growing louder and louder. Jack walked forward slowly, trying to get a view of what was going on outside. Crowds of beings ran past the foundry doors, no doubt putting as much distance between themselves and whatever was outside.

As he stuck his back to the wall and poked his head outside, all that presented itself to him was chaos. There was smoke very close by, and the flickering lights underneath made it clear it wasn’t from any kind of smithing. And there were metallic tramping sounds somewhere down the main street between all these industrial buildings.

Jack swept his visor down to give him a better view. It zoomed in on an energy reading all the way down the street, revealing a yellow robot with feet and hands floating independently of its body piece, and a large clear dome on its head with a brain inside.

“Magnets,” he said to himself, noticing how the hands and feet never strayed too far away from the body. The robot lifted its hand and aimed its palm at another building. A stream of fire issued from it and ignited something flammable that he didn’t see.

Where are the Terra Stella Peacekeepers? he wondered. But since they didn’t seem to be nearby, it would seem the lot fell to him. He hefted his rifle up, aimed it at the bot, aided by his visor, and fired a shot at the glass dome.

The bullet hit, but it had little effect aside from leaving a scrape mark. It was plainly bulletproof, and what’s worse, it had gotten the robot’s attention, for it started lumbering towards them.

“Shit,” he whispered, jogging away from the wall. “We’ve got a problem,” he announced aloud to the room. “There’s a big yellow flamethrowing robot out there, and it’s on its way here. Looks like it’s made of pretty strong metals, so we’re going to need some stronger weapons to take care of it.”

“You may need to get to the more high-tech smelting and smithing plants,” Jason said. “Further up the street. They work with the rare things from Sector X, like Impervium. See if you can snag something from there.”

“If they’ll let me,” Jack muttered to himself, glancing back out the door. The robot seemed to be fighting off some of the Terra Stella peacekeepers, who weren’t doing any damage, but at least they were keeping it distracted, and none of them were getting hurt.

With the robot occupied, he had his moment. So he took off, sprinting up the streets, past all the smelting depots, towards the heavy-duty smithing building near the end.

He had been there exactly once, and that was merely to retrieve an Impervium smithing hammer for Jason so Jason could work with his armor better. Hopefully they wouldn’t be completely locked up for any reason. As soon as the unimpressive steel building was in sight, he dashed inside, past a few surprised smiths, and followed signs into the weapons-forging wing, where he barged through the doors and started searching for something that could help..

“What the--”

“Someone stop him!”

“No time!” Jack called behind him as he dug through several large tubs, filled with different weapons. “There’s a huge flamethrowing robot out there that’s destroying everything in its path.”

As if to punctuate his statement, there came a low rumble and the ground shook under their feet.

“Go check,” he heard the first voice bark, followed by scampering feet. Jack ignored them and continued digging. There has to be something made of Impervium in here somewhere!

Finally, buried underneath several blue, green, and red metalled weapons, he found it. A glossy black warhammer, which he snagged by the shaft and yanked out.

Impervium weapons were several times heavier than normal steel, and yet that much stronger as a result. But after all of his time lugging around armor, Jack found the hammer pretty easy to carry. Without pausing, he dashed back out, passing by a panicked smith on his way, no doubt heading to confirm his suspicion.

The robot had almost made it to Jason’s facility, and the peacekeepers were no closer to defeating it than when they had started the distracting. Jack charged forward, even as the robot lifted its hand and aimed at another building.

“NO! STOP!”

A blast hit beside him and Jack was thrown sideways, hitting the building of another depot and falling to the ground. The blast hadn’t been strong, but the hitting of the building hadn’t helped things.

“Are you alright?” asked a calm voice to his right.

“Fine, fine,” he grunted. “Didn’t need to blow me sideways.”

“You were going to destroy it,” the voice said, a hairy hand entering Jack's vision, which he took as he was helped to his feet. It was an Apex scientist, who, despite the situation, looked completely composed, as if this were routine. “It’s a product of the TSPC, and we need it as intact as possible.”

“Wait, what?”

“The Fatal Circuit project requires a great deal of explanation,” the Apex said, rolling his eyes, “and a lot of time and money has been invested into it, so we would very much appreciate it if you were to not completely annihilate it. Simply do as you’re told and you will be compensated.”

Now it was Jack’s turn to be irritated.

“Are all of you Apex this snooty and egotistical?” he asked the scientist, thinking about flicking dirt on his immaculate labcoat.

“My apologies, if that is how I appear to you,” the Apex said, inclining his head. “Shatter the brain capsule and disable the brain inside, and the whole robot should shut down.”

“Smush the brain,” Jack said, nodding and hefting the hammer. “Got it. Thanks for the tip.”

And with that, he charged forward again. When he was within range, the robot still being distracted by the peacekeepers, he leapt as high as he could, lifting the hammer above his head, and brought it crashing down on the robot’s brain capsule.

To his relief and immense satisfaction, the glass of the capsule shattered under the force of the blow, and his hammer continued downward and completely squashed the brain underneath. At once, the robot’s arms fell limply to its side, and it fell backwards, landing with a very heavy crash.

Jack stood there simply staring at the fallen robot, even as the Apex and Twilight both jogged up beside him, looking down at the hammer.

“Ah, such a pity I can’t keep you,” he groaned, hefting it onto his shoulder.

“Very nice work, sir. Well done,” the Apex said, smiling down at his handiwork. “As promised, I can offer compensation of some kind. Is there anything you need?”

“We’ll… talk about that later,” Jack said, looking over at Twilight, who appeared to have recovered from her bout. “For now, let’s move somewhere a fair bit more private, since I highly doubt you’d want details of this machine being revealed to just anyone.”

“Quire right, sir,” the Apex said, nodding approvingly. “If these surrounding depots have offices, we can use one of them.”

“This one does,” Jack indicated Jason’s. “I’m sure they’d let us borrow it.”

“Yes, well, in that case,” the Apex began to walk inside without waiting for him. “If you would kindly follow me, then?”

Jack did as requested, with Twilight walking beside him. For whatever reason, she didn’t look particularly happy with herself, but Jack had a niggling suspicion for why.

“I don’t blame you, you know,” he said.

“Hm?” she looked up at him.

“For freezing up like that,” he clarified. “I don’t blame you.”

“How can’t you?” she asked, sounding quite angry. “You could have died out there and I wasn’t there to help. I was just stuck in here, hiding like some coward,” she spat.

“No, no you weren’t,” Jack reassured her. “Look, from what I can gather, you’re experiencing post-traumatic stress disorder from that ordeal with Dreadwing.”

Perhaps most telling of her predicament was the way she flinched when he said the name. For a moment, he almost smiled at the similarities between one’s reaction to the name Dreadwing, and one’s reaction to the name Voldemort, but he placed a reassuring hand on the nape of her neck instead.

“Look, it’s alright,” he insisted, as they walked into the office of Jason’s metal hanger building. “You can’t control it, and you will eventually recover, but it’s not going to be immediate.”

Twilight just shook her head. Words couldn’t describe how much she hated herself at the moment. She knew it was beyond her control, but that didn’t make her feel any better. He could have been seriously hurt or worse by that robot, and she wouldn’t have been able to do a damn thing!

The office looked quite like what some of the offices in Hoofston had looked like. Tiled floors, different computing equipment set up on and around a desk in the corner, recordkeeping books in a shelf behind… the only real difference was the presence of a few chairs, as opposed to poufs.

The Apex shut the door behind Twilight as she entered behind Jack, before locking the door behind him.

“Trapping us in a locked room doesn’t really send the right message,” Jack pointed out.

“Forgive me,” the Apex said, inclining his head. “This is sensitive information, and I do not wish to be disturbed.”

“If it’s so sensitive,” Jack replied, taking a seat in one of the chairs. “why do I get to hear about it?”

“Because it has notably affected you, not to mention you have aided in our endeavor in this way,” answered the Apex, sitting in the chair behind the desk. “I must admit, I am a little opposed to the presence of your pet--”

“Companion,” Jack corrected immediately.

“--companion, my mistake, as… it? He? She?”

“She,” Twilight answered.

“--as she was not present to help you defeat it.”

“She was experiencing mild symptoms of PTSD,” explained Jack, giving Twilight a sympathetic look. “Had she not been triggered by the explosion, she would have been at my side.”

“I see,” the Apex said, nodding. “Very well, then. Allow me to begin.”

He removed a disc-shaped device from his pocket and gave a button on it a click. Instantly, a blue holographic model of the robot Jack had just defeated appeared above it.

“The Fatal Circuit Project is the TSPC’s latest effort to create an automated response team in the event of uprisings and the like. There are a few models, each specialized to take down specific races. The flamethrowing models were for humans, apex, and florans. There are electric models for hylotl, avia, and others, and so forth.”

“The TSPC?” asked Twilight.

“Terra Stella Peacekeeping Corps,” answered the Apex.

“In case of uprisings and the like?” Jack asked, sounding confused. “Maybe things have changed since I lived here, but uprisings never happened back then.”

“You lived here?” Twilight asked.

“I’ll tell you about it later.”

“Yes, uprisings,” confirmed the Apex. “No, none have happened. However, with the USCM in their current state, they cannot attack Terra Stella directly, and may seek to incite anti-extra-terrestrial confrontations within the city. This was the proposed plan to defend against that. As we had no better solutions, it was accepted and we moved forward with it.”

“How did you lose control over it?” Jack asked.

“We suspect it was the brain we used,” admitted the Apex. “We attempted at first to build it with an intelligence similar to a Glitch, but it failed to even run. So we integrated a superior animal brain with it for an experiment. It… didn’t go so well, as you noticed.”

“So where do you go from here?” asked Jack, cocking an eyebrow. “Attempt to engineer brains for these things?”

“The plan is to select willing volunteers from within the TSPC, induce a medical coma and inject them with red stimpack, and essentially clone their brains. The procedure, I believe, was first perfected by the human race’s brain surgeons and neurosurgeons, and has been tested many times over the decades. It has proven perfectly harmless.”

“I can’t say I understand, but I’ll take your word for it,” Jack said. “You mentioned compensation?”

“Yes, I did,” the Apex nodded. “We are willing to offer you a substantial sum in pixels, or its equivalent in goods and services that are readily available.”

“Well, we currently have no need for any pixels,” Jack said. “However, we do need a starmap for Sector Gamma. Those mongrel idiots at the ISTR refused to sell me one.”

The Apex blinked, before rolling his eyes.

“Ah, yes, we think we are aware why. Does it involve another member of my species? Because he and his brother refuse to work with lesser species.”

“Speciesism, even among non-humans,” Jack groaned. “Yeah, that sounds like him.”

“More like sapienism, as he only refuses to sell to those whom he considers to be of lesser intelligence.”

“Also, do you think you could gift us a pair of robotic crafting tables? There are a couple of things I will be needing to craft in the near future, and a regular crafting table won’t really help much.”

“That sounds well within my power,” the Apex nodded. “Anything else?”

“Actually,” said Jack, his face lighting up as an idea presented itself to him, “can you get that ISTR Apex and his brother fired?”

The Apex blinked again.

“The ISTR does owe the TSPC a favor,” he mused, “I’ll see what I can do. Should I get his brother for good measure?”

“Does his brother own a jewelry and gem appraisal store in the Upper District?” asked Jack, remembering his encounter with the stubborn shopkeeper.

“That sounds like the one, yes,” the Apex confirmed.

“Yeah, get his brother fired, too.”

“Very well. We will have a starmap for you when you come by the TSPC main complex tomorrow. The robotic crafting table might take a few days, but we should have it soon at the main complex as well. Ask for me, and I can vouch. My name is Timaeus, and I am the Chief Science Officer of the TSPC at the present moment.”

“A pleasure meeting you,” Jack said, offering a hand, which Timaeus shook.

“I assure you, the pleasure was all mine.”

The Apex cheerfully hummed to himself as he walked toward the skyscraper in the heart of Terra Stella. Today just seemed like it was going to be a good day, which hopefully meant he would have to interact with any members of those stupid lesser species.

As he slid his employee keycard in the slot, a red light flashed and a little buzzer sounded.

“Access denied,” the cool female voice announced.

That’s odd, he thought. Probably a fault with those damn Glitch in Maintenance.

However, who should walk by him but an Administrator? The Apex administrator slid his keycard in and out, and the doors opened with no problem. The first Apex tried to follow, but before he could, the administrator stopped him.

“Where do you think you’re going?”

“I work here, sir.”

The administrator gave a satisfied smile.

“Oh, right, yes. You do work here, my apologies. For the next three hours, you will be working to clean out your office, so that we do not have to do it for you, and then you will not be working here.”

Jack and Twilight, who were watching from only a few yards away, would be immensely entertained by the meltdown that the fired Apex went through upon the realization he had been sacked.

Author's Note

Here's the real chapter. Ending seems a bit hasty.

Since you guys put up with my April Fools' prank, the current plan for next chapter is Jack's and Twilight's histories.

Don't forget to leave a comment critiquing the story!

Rytex out. Have a good day!

History Lessons

Starbound
Chapter 07 - History Lessons

“Repeat the stellar system’s specifications to me again,” Jack instructed.

Only two days had passed since the Fatal Circuit incident. As promised, Timaeus had given them an updated starmap for installation on both of their ships, and that knowledge was currently being used in the same way it had been only a month and a half ago. The robotic crafting table was still under construction and the armor moulds were almost finished, but both Timaeus and Jason said they’d be finished soon.

“Five-planets, yellow star,” recited Twilight, “Equus is the second planet, and the only planet with a single moon, and it has a very diverse climate.”

The seconds passed as Jack ran the searching algorithm on the known planets in Sector Gamma, but to Twilight’s surprise and joy, four results turned up positive for fitting the stipulations.

“Four results,” Jack said, gesturing at the board. “Let’s see…”

He opened it up, and on the computer’s screen appeared a visualization of the system. However, upon looking at it, Twilight immediately could feel it wasn’t the right system.

“No, that can’t be it,” she said. “Continent shape is all wrong.”

Everything had appeared the same, but for that glaring error. And sad though it was, it was the closest result to how Equus had appeared. She let out a groan after the last planetary system vanished from Jack’s computer and rubbed at her eyes with her hoof.

“Two more sectors,” she grumbled. “And they only get larger and more dangerous.”

“Can’t help but share your sentiments,” Jack sighed. “I really don’t want to go anywhere near Sector X if I can help it. That’d put you in too much undue danger.”

“You know, you don’t have to baby me,” Twilight replied irritably. “I’m not helpless, you know.”

“What?” Jack asked, confused. “I never said you were.”

“Sure seemed like it,” she retorted.

“Twilight, are you still that upset over the whole PTSD thing?”

“I’M NOT UPSET, AND I DON’T HAVE PTSD!” she yelled, slamming a hoof into the floor of the Ulysses. “I’m perfectly capable of helping, and I can prove--”

Her reply was cut off as she was suddenly lifted off her hooves. After a moment of surprise and panic, she stopped kicking out her hooves before she managed to nick Jack. Jack, however, paid no attention to the four hooves that were currently flailing in all directions and just held her there, hugging her until she calmed down.

It took Twilight all of a minute, but after a long moment of letting the last dregs of her anger vanish, she finally relaxed as he held her there.

“Why?” she asked, hiding her face so he couldn’t see the redness that had started to tinge her cheeks.

“You looked like you needed a hug,” he responded simply. “You’ll get through this. There’s no magic cure for a psychological condition, but you’ll get through this.”

Twilight simply hummed to herself as she realized the truth in his words. Sometimes she just knew she was her own worst enemy. That well-known quote about the doctor ignoring or denying his own symptoms echoed through her mind, and only making herself feel that much worse about it.

“You know, you’re really tactile when it comes to your affections,” she noted, still content to simply stay in the hug.

“You’re one to talk,” retorted Jack, smirking. “What with the nuzzling and all.”

“My race is very tactile when it comes to showing affection,” Twilight stated. “Your’s isn’t, and yet you seem to do it all the time. Sometimes I think you’d fit in with us ponies better than with your humans.”

“I can’t help it,” Jack replied, smiling to himself. “You just look so huggable sometimes. You’re like living teddy bears, or something.”

“Teddy bears?” Twilight asked, feeling thoroughly bemused. “What are teddy bears?”

“They’re these little dolls filled with fluff that we used to give to children so they’d sleep better. Shaped like bears, obviously, and named after one of the old United States of America’s earlier presidents and a weird little hunting incident.”

“You name children’s dolls after an incident in which a human went out and senselessly killed an animal for sport?” Twilight asked, her deadpan voice making it clear just how dumb she felt humans had been in that particular moment in their history.

“Well, the story is he didn’t shoot the bear after his friends tied it to a tree, but it had to die anyway, and then it got all political and people drew cartoons of it, and then some guy went and made a stuffed doll of it. And suddenly, just like that, children are sleeping with teddy bears all across the world for hundreds of years.”

Twilight shook her head.

“You humans have some really strange history.”

“Oh, and you ponies don’t?” Jack asked. “Everyone has rather ridiculous moments in their history. Know why the Apex got so smart? They literally started by just crafting tools specifically to get to the bananas that were only just out of their reach by inches on their homeworld.”

“Seriously?” Twilight asked.

“Yep,” Jack said, and she felt him nod. “And the Florans had consciousnesses long before the Hylotl began to feed on them. When the Hylotl started to use Floran plants as their main crop, the Florans evolved specifically to stab them back.”

“That… I… how does… what?”

“Yeah, everyone has goofy bits in their history,” Jack said, nodding sagely. “There was this one time where a group of humans at war with a different city decided to pull back and lull them into a false sense of security.”

“They were at war, right?” Twilight asked. “Just pulling back would make them think the fight was over?”

“Well, no,” said Jack, grinning mischievously. “Not that alone, in any case. They built a giant wooden horse and left it at the city’s gate. The city, called Troy, thought it was a surrender gift and pulled it right into their city.”

“How did this lower their guard?” asked Twilight. “I mean, I get they thought it was a gesture of surrender, but wouldn’t they just close the gates behind them, or something?”

“Oh yes,” Jack said, nodding again. “But the Greeks hid soldiers in the horse. And when it was night time, out came the soldiers. They unlocked the gates for the Greek army, which hadn’t left at all, and then they all set fire to Troy.”

“Wow. Humans are idiots sometimes,” Twilight said., failing to keep a straight face.

“Hey now,” said Jack, rolling his eyes. “Maybe we were, but just look at what we’ve done since.”

“Yes, that is true,” Twilight agreed. “Humans have done a lot. You’re more advanced than ponykind are, that’s for sure, and I don’t mean to brag, but I had a huge helping hoof in getting us as far as we are today.”

“Did you, now?” asked Jack, surprised. “Considering how smart you are, I’m not surprised.”

Twilight smiled bashfully at his praise.

“So, here’s the question. Were I to show you where different human revolution periods, do you think you could pinpoint the current era you ponies currently live in?” Jack asked, getting out of the pilot seat of the Ulysses and walking back to his ship’s main computer. One of the things Jack had gotten installed on it was a special encyclopedia to help him store information on races during his travels, the better to relate and work with them. But he had made sure to keep a complete encyclopedia of human history as well.

“I suppose I could,” Twilight said as Jack powered it up. A holographic user interface appeared before her, with a long list of different eras. Prehistory, the Stone Age, the Bronze Age, the Iron Age, the Classical Era, the Medieval Era, the Renaissance Era, the Industrial Era, the Modern Era, the Atomic Era, the Space Age, the Information Age, the Nano Age, the Stellar Age, the Interstellar Age, and the Galactic Age.

Jack touched the Interstellar Age line with his index finger. “Technically, the human race is still in the Interstellar Age, as we have yet to really create technology that can communicate over 100,000 light years away,” he explained. “But when that happens, we will have made the jump.”

“What’s the Renaissance Era?” asked Twilight.

“It’s an era of human technological advancements, starting in about 1450 CE, where a guy by the name of Gutenberg created the printing press. A few years later, Christopher Columbus discovered the, quote, ‘New World,’ which was just the West Indies islands in his search for India.

“See, the Medieval period had been a period where very few inventions had appeared. With this one invention and this one discovery, everyone everywhere started making things, and human technology made great leaps and bounds. It was in this era that Pierre de Fermat came up with his last theorem and a man by the name of Leonardo da Vinci created all these different diagrams for inventions that wouldn’t be realized for several hundred more years, like a flying machine.”

“So, you would say the Renaissance is where the technology level advanced to a great degree?” asked Twilight. “And also, ‘CE?’”

“Oh, CE stands for Common Era,” Jack explained. “Before Year Zero, as it’s called, we call it BCE, or BC, and after, for about two-thousand years, we called those years AD. BC and AD are tied together, because we used to measure time based on one of the historical religious figures by the name of Jesus, whom a certain sect of religious people call Christ. So BC is ‘Before Christ,’ that is before his traditional birth date, with his actual birth date supposedly being four years earlier, and AD is anno domini, which means ‘In the year of our Lord.’ They changed it because suddenly it dawned on people that not everyone worshipped Jesus. Took several years to really catch on, and even now, we still have some people who use the traditional notations, but it’s not like it hurts anyone, so no one really cares anymore.

“And yes, I would say the Renaissance is what you’ve just described.”

“Based on that knowledge, I’d say… actually, can I see some of the inventions of the Renaissance era?”

With another touch of his finger, different images began to appear around Twilight. A machine labelled a printing press, a refracting telescope, a microscope, some clocks, even eyeglasses.

“Well, I can see we were already mostly past that when I helped start our revolution,” she said as the images vanished. “What about the Industrial era?”

A steam engine, an aeroplane, a cotton gin, a telephone, and several others appeared around her.

“Well okay, that’s clearly not it either. Modern era?”

As the many inventions of the Modern Era appeared, Twilight’s eyes brightened.

“That’s it. Well, that and a little of the Industrial Era, but the Modern Era is where we mostly were when I got things going.”

“And now?”

“Well,” Twilight tilted her head to the side, thinking. “What’s the Information Age?”

“It was the age at the turn of the second to third millennium, in which computers and their applications became immensely powerful. It lasted a good forty years until advances in nanotechnology took us to the Nano Age.”

“I’ve never heard of nanotechnology before,” Twilight mused, “but with all of the computers we had to build just to get the Enterprise flyable, I guess, you could say we’re currently in the Information Age. Out of curiosity, what is nanotechnology?”

Jack opened his mouth to answer, but he stopped, paused for a long moment, and then closed it.

“You know, I really can’t explain it very well. I know it involves working with subatomic particles and atoms directly, but beyond that, there were a lot of advancements that I couldn’t even comprehend. The Nano Age lasted for another forty or so years, and then we arrived at the Stellar Age, which is when we first started to expand past the Sol System. Didn’t set up cities like Terra Stella for another hundred years or so, but this was when we started putting finite colonies on other planets to see if we could. Once we perfected warp and made it commercially available, and especially once we got Terra Stella up and running, we officially entered the Interstellar Age.”

“Wow,” breathed Twilight, letting her mind run through the possibilities. What if ponykind expanded beyond the Celestine System? What if they became like the humans, the avia, the hylotl and the many beings that roamed the galaxy? The possibilities for ponykind’s technological and scientific growth were endless!

“Say Twilight,” said Jack, interrupting her thoughts.

“Hm?”

“I know this may seem a bit out of the blue,” he preempted, “but what ‘s your life been like?”

“I beg your pardon?” asked Twilight, confused. Jack rolled his eyes at his poor way of phrasing that.

“I mean, we’ve been talking history, and it just suddenly struck me that I really don’t know much about your life. What Equestria’s like, where you’ve lived, all that stuff.”

“I could say the same thing for you, Jack,” countered Twilight.

Jack could only nod. “Yeah, exactly my point. We’ve been traveling together for a while now. Think we should get to know each other a bit more?”

Twilight had to be honest, she was surprised it was him that asked the question and not her. She’d wanted to get to know Jack a little more for quite a while now, but there had never seemed to be a good time to ask.

After her moment of surprise, she smiled and nodded. “Yes, I think that would be nice.”

They left the Ulysses in orbit around Terra Stella’s planet and returned to their hotel room, reasoning that it would probably be a lot more comfortable than in a metal ship with only one seat. Along the way, Twilight told Jack about her time growing up as Princess Celestia’s pupil, of her time spent in Ponyville with her friends, of the time she had uttered those fateful words that had transformed her into an alicorn, and of all the adventures they’d had ever after.

“For twenty years, everything as perfect,” she said. “We went on even more adventures, we spread the magic of friendship,” Jack snorted, “and all the time, I aided the scientists of Equestria more and more, leading to a massive technological boost. About a year ago, before I was going to go into my training to handle the Enterprise, though, we all met together in Ponyville for something Pinkie Pie had labelled on the invitation as a ‘Super-Duper Special Occasion…”

As usual, Rainbow Dash was late. Though when you had become a celebrity, not to mention you spent almost every waking hour of the day training in some way or another, Twilight supposed there was little of that they could blame her for.

As the five of them stood around Sugarcube Corner, a giant dish cover placed over what Twilight could only assume was a recreation of the Marzipan Mascarpone Meringue Madness over on top of the counter that Pound and Pumpkin were dutifully tending to, Twilight felt a familiar pang of sadness over what she had to know the real occasion was.

Her bittersweet feeling was mirrored in the eyes of the others, though not the smiles. Rarity was telling them all about her recent invitation from Hoity Toity to be a judge in Equestria’s Next Top Model, which would be taking place up in Canterlot in two seasons. Even Applejack seemed impressed.

“Something on your mind, Twilight?” asked Fluttershy quietly, her pink mane showing only a tiny sliver of fade.

Rarity stopped in the regaling of her tale, to give a look in Twilight’s direction.

“Yes, darling, is there something wrong?” she asked.

“I… yes, there is.” She took a deep breath. “I think we all know the real reason why we’re all here today.”

Pinkie’s omnipresent smile faded slightly.

“I mean, let’s face it, with me heading off to Hoofston in three days, this will be the last time in five years the six of us will be able to be together as… well, the six of us.”

Rarity smiled wanly. “I know, Twilight. This has been the most wonderful chapter in my life-- in our lives, I’d say!-- but all good things must come to an end.”

“I mean,” Pinkie cut in, “it’s not like we won’t be friends after this, right? We’re still super-duper-pony-friends forever!”

“But… our time together has run its course,” said Fluttershy. “I mean, Applejack and I will still be in Ponyville, but with Rainbow Dash always gone with the Wonderbolts, you going off who knows where, and with Rarity moving to Canterlot and Pinkie and Pierce moving away to Manehattan while you’re gone, we won’t be the same anymore.”

“Fluttershy’s right,” Applejack stepped in. “We may even get to meet each other every now and then, at the very least we’ll all see each other at the Galas when Twi gets back, but Ah think this really is gonna be the last time we’re all together as best friends.”

“Girls, come here,” Twilight said, eyes watering and holding her arms open. The others didn’t need any better invitation and the five of them just held each other.

The door banged open and an incredibly frantic Rainbow Dash flew in.

“I’m not late, am I? I had to stay back because some rookie got lost in the Weather Factory again! Tell me I’m not late!”

Twilight could only let out a giggle. “You’re right on time, Rainbow Dash. Get over here and join the group hug.”

Twilight was startled to feel her eyes sting, and that the fur on her cheeks was suddenly damp.

“Are you going to be alright?” Jack asked, placing a gentle hand on her shoulder.

“I… I just… I miss them so much,” she said, as her lip trembled. Jack immediately swept her into another hug.

“I know what that’s like,” he muttered into her ear, which twitched slightly, before she pulled away.

“You know what everything’s like, don’t you,” she said bitterly. “I’m beginning to wonder if you actually mean it.”

She felt him stiffen against her for a moment, before his arms let her go. Startled, she looked up at him, only to find that he was looking away, an unreadable expression on his face. Twilight couldn’t tell if it was hurt from her comment, or if it was pain from something only he knew about.

The moment she saw that expression, it finally occurred to her what she had said without thinking.

“I’m sorry!” she blurted out.

He just held up a hand to forestall a response, before shaking his head.

“I really do know what it’s like, Twilight,” he said quietly. “You’ve told me your story. Would you like to hear mine?”

She could only keep quiet still while she watched him. But after a moment, she hesitantly nodded.

He sighed and glanced out a window, where a number of thunderheads were starting to gather overhead.

“I told you about the UNA, the EU, and China, how they all became superpowers because more and more countries couldn’t support themselves,” he said, “so bear in mind, when I say ‘America,’ I mean what was once the original 55 United States of America.”

“Fifty-five?” asked Twilight. “Fifty-five countries that make one big one?”

“Sort of,” Jack rubbed his temple with his index finger. “There were originally thirteen, but then they added more and more until they owned 48 states in one big body of land. Then they added Hawai’i’ and Alaska which are a bit of a ways away from, shall we say, the continental US. About a century after they came in, some island territories like Puerto Rico and Guam were granted statehood, and then it stayed that way for several decades.”

He yawned slightly, before shaking his head wildly as he came out of it, causing his red hair to flail about and take on an almost flame-like appearance for just a fleeting moment.

“I was born in Boston Massachusetts, capital of one of the original 13 states. When I was four, my parents both died due to sickness. The country was so massive, and so much of it’s resources were going towards preparing for the inevitable war with China, that there were too many sick people and not enough doctors. My parents were also poor, and as a result, they died because they couldn’t get treatment.”

“That’s horrible!” exclaimed Twilight. “How could such a country exist, that doesn’t allow people medicine if they don’t have money?”

“You have no idea,” Jack said in a low voice. “No idea. A few hundred years ago, one of our presidents introduced a new healthcare system designed to provide health insurance to people who couldn’t afford regular health insurance, and therefore couldn’t afford medicine or treatment, and the political party set against him just went apeshit over it. A few decades later, everything just went back to the status quo. And it all led to the deaths of my parents,” he spat.

Twilight’s mind was still reeling from that. What kind of country doesn’t even take care of its own citizens?

But Jack continued. “So there I was, four years old, and living on the streets. Ended up meeting a couple of other orphans like me.” He smiled fondly at the memories. “There was Ross O’Donnell, the son of Irish immigrants whose parents had also been lost to sickness, and Rory McKellan, a Scottish-American kid whose parents had died in a car crash with a drunk driver.”

“How did you all survive?” Twilight asked.

“My third friend, whose parents hadn’t died yet,” answered Jack. “James Kent, whose father happened to be a Colonel for the United Nations of America Space Marine forces. He took all three of us in in addition to his own son. Didn’t raise us like his children or anything, but he still kept us fed and healthy, and let us have a place to sleep.”

“He sounds like a good person,” observed Twilight.

“Oh yeah, Mr. Kent was the best,” Jack suddenly grinned. “I remember the time we were in his backyard playing baseball, and we accidentally broke one of Mr. Kent’s windows. He comes right outside, angry as could be, saw what we were up to, and then proceeded to join right in.”

He giggled. “I think we might have broken at least twelve windows that day. He told us he was getting them replaced soon anyway, and he couldn’t sell them. Mrs. Kent got all the glass cleaned up without a problem.”

His smile fell.

“We got older, he got promoted to a General in the UNASM forces, so he was out of the house a lot. He staked us all in college. But when World War III looked like it was about to start, we went our separate ways. I of course left the planet on the Ulysses, but I had Rory with me. He’s still somewhere in Terra Stella, last I heard, but I have no idea what he’s up to or even where he’s working, and it’s been four years since I last saw him.

“James’ dad got him a job with the UNASC, and since I know Mr. Kent’s now the UN’s top admiral, I can count on him to be safe from Earth’s destruction, since I know for a fact Mr. Kent’s keeping his family aboard UN Home One, the UNSC’s space station orbiting Earth.

“But Ross... “ he shook his head. “Ross got involved with the USCM before the schism. I have no idea which side of it he’s on, but given that 90% of the USCM forces went for the xenophobic side, and they pretty much massacred everyone who wouldn’t cooperate, it’s most probable he’s either dead or turned.”

He pinched the bridge of his nose and sighed.

“See what I mean? You miss your friends, and I miss mine too. I only know where to find one, and I ain’t going anywhere near Sector Sigma any time soon, and the other two could be dead for all I know.”

He let go of his nose and leaned his head back. Twilight saw him take a long breath in through his nose, hold it for a moment, before slowly letting it out through his mouth. That simple action did wonders for his composure, since although he had been trying to hide it, she could see the effect it was having on him, talking about his friends’ fates when almost none of them were happy endings.

“I don’t mean to belittle your own plight, Twilight,” he explained. “I’m just saying, I know. I understand. And if you need anything, a shoulder to cry on, someone to laugh with, that’s why I’m here. I’m your guide, in a manner of speaking, but I’m also your friend, and I’m here for you.”

Twilight didn’t know what to say. Jack didn’t seem to know what to follow it up with, but in the end, after a moment of letting the silence hang, he smiled and ran a hand up Twilight’s neck, before tousling her mane, much to Twilight’s good-natured irritation. No one messed with her mane.

“Well, our armor and the moulds should be ready in a couple of days. We’ll be exploring Sector Gamma in the next few weeks, and hopefully we can find Equus when we reach Sector Delta.”

“Hopefully,” repeated Twilight.

“I’ve got a few things to do, Twi,” h said, suddenly getting up and stretching. “I forgot, I have to go grab a few extra things for the Enterprise.”

“Wait, a few extra things?” Twilight asked. “What are you doing to my ship?”

“Getting it properly repaired, that’s what,” Jack said. “I’m no expert mechanic, and the job I did to fix your ship was little more than a patch job. Now we’re here, we can get it fixed by actual starship mechanics. It won’t take more than a couple of extra days, coinciding with our armor being finished. I figure a properly-running ship will help more than just about anything, won’t it?”

Twilight grinned. Ever since it had been wrecked and stranded above Alpha Prime III-B, it had felt a bit clunkier. Good to know that it would be fixed.

“I’ll be back, Twilight. Want me to bring any dinner?”

“That would be welcome, yes,” she nodded.

Jack smiled and left with a little wave. But it left Twilight feeling strange. A little wave and some eye contact, leaving her with a strange giddy feeling?

That’s impossible, she said, thinking back to the couple of other times she had felt like this regarding someone else. How… how is that possible? I’ve only known him for almost a month!

Still, he had saved her life, begun shepherding her home, and was offering himself as an emotional crutch when she needed it. And that wasn’t to mention the fact that they both had been through so much since they had started space travel.

Sure, Jack probably wouldn’t ever be on the same level as her when it came to total experience, given her extended lifespan, but there was already a connection forged in fire between them.

And with all of that information going through her brain, she was forced to confirm the inevitability to herself.

Twilight Sparkle liked Jack Thomas.

Author's Note

And all of Celestia's people said, "It's about damn time!" Both for Twilight figuring that out, and for me uploading the chapter.

Yeah, I'm still not dead, nor is this fic. We're actually getting to the good parts soon.

Anyway, what did you think of the chapter? Let me know in the comments below!

Rytex out. Have a good day!

The Hunt

Starbound
Chapter 08 - The Hunt

Three months had passed since they had first arrived on Terra Stella, two months since the armor was finished, and a month and a half since the repairs on the Enterprise had finally finished. No progress had been made in the last ninety days.

Not for want of trying. They had been attempting to procure a Starmap of Sector Delta, but they had been… unsuccessful.

“WHAT DO YOU MEAN IT’S RESTRICTED!?”

As in, “screwed by the bureaucracy” unsuccessful.

Twilight couldn’t help but be amused by Jack when he was angry. He would always seem to overreact to some of the simplest things. Except this time, it was the fourth time they had been screwed by the ISTR, not including the time the apex they had gotten fired had been doing the screwing.

And this time, it was actually for a good reason.

“Sir, I’m sorry about this,” the hylotl receptionist, who was supposed to have given them a Starmap that morning but now was forced to not. She turned the computer monitor to face them, her red fingers looking pink against the white light of the screen. “As you can see, according to intelligence, the USCM has been making an aggressive push toward Sector Delta, Sector Phi, and Sector Omicron. As such, the ISTR has forbidden the sale of all new Sector Delta, Sector Phi, and Sector Omicron Starmaps, and will be detaining those who attempt to leave without authorization until further notice.”

The computer screen showed a two-dimensional diagram of the galaxy, with yellow lines showing sector divisions, a red field showing the extent of USCM territory, and an illuminated blue dot showing where Terra Stella was, in the heart of Sector Beta. Unfortunately, the USCM territory had expanded into the three sectors the receptionist had listed.

Jack buried his face in his hands and let out an exasperated groan.

“It’ll be fine,” Twilight assured him. “We just have to find something to do until the USCM backs off, is all.”

“I wish it were that simple,” Jack groaned, sliding his hands down and off of his face. “There’s not many other organizations that can get us a Starmap, and those that are won’t do it as cheaply as the ISTR would.”

“What about Timaeus?” asked Twilight as the two of them walked out of the ISTR building, the sliding doors closing behind them with a gentle hiss. “He was able to get a Starmap of Sector Gamma. Can’t he get one for Delta as well?”

“Maybe,” Jack sighed, stretching his arms behind him, “but I don’t think his influence reaches that far.”

“It wouldn’t hurt to go and ask,” suggested Twilight.

“You’re probably right,” agreed Jack. “We’ll pop in and see if he can.”

The Apex scientist stared down at his desk as Jack explained the situation. Twilight, however, felt the familiar tug of curiosity pull her away from the conversation as she started to look around the large and expansive space of the TSPC facility. Several different projects were being worked on at once. The majority of employees seemed to be Apex or Human, but there were substantial amounts of Hylotl, Florans, Avia, and even a few Glitch, though Twilight noticed the Florans and Hylotl were never working in the same workspace.

She saw a number of scientists studying what looked like the same busted Fatal Circuit Jack had put down in the Industrial District, and working with a nearby Glitch as well. She saw an Apex studying a strange rock that seemed to have glowing blue lines on it. She noticed a group of humans working a machine, but one of them was shoveling a bunch of glowing yellow rocks into it.

“Is that… solarium?” Twilight asked, tapping Jack on the side and pointing at the engin that the substance was being shoveled into.

“Looks like it,” Jack nodded.

“Could we… get some?”

“I’m afraid not,” Timaeus shook his head. “Solarium can only be found in abundance in Sector Chi, and I don’t think I need to tell you why it’s in limited supply right now.”

“Is the USCM prohibiting entry, or something?” Twilight asked.

“No, because the Sector’s too big to patrol borders,” Timaeus explained. “However, they are well aware of Terra Stella’s existence and what we stand for. So if they discovered someone mining solarium to be taken back to Terra Stella, we would probably never hear from them again.”

“What happen to them?”

“If they’re non-human, three guesses and the first two don’t count,” Jack answered grimly.

“And if they are human?” Twilight asked, not sure if she wanted to hear the answer.

“They get sent to the Rock,” Timaeus replied, interlacing his fingers just under his nose and resting his elbows on his desk. “Their prison for humans aiding non-humans. No one knows what happens there. Execution seems likely, torture possibly, interrogation… you know the drill.”

Jack grimaced. Twilight, however, started feeling very sick to her stomach, thinking of a race that would do such horrors to their own species. Sombra’s empire only thrived because he brainwashed them, and even then, it had lines it wouldn’t cross.

“What’s with the Fatal Circuits?” Jack asked, indicating the bot Twilight had been looking at earlier. Twilight made a mental note to thank him for changing the topic. “It looks like you’re not continuing with the project.”

“We ran into a problem,” Timaeus answered. “We did some more experimentation, and found that no brain would survive the process. They all go haywire, and it forced us to change our plans. The current plan is to make it fully AI-based, but there’s also a backup plan to turn it into a mech suit.”

“A mech suit?” Jack asked. “I thought you wanted an automated response team.”

“We do,” Timaeus nodded, “but we recognize that we may not ever be able to get one up to our standards. The penguins have built a weapon mech of their own, and we’re borrowing a few of their design principles.”

“Penguins?” Twilight tensed up.

“Dreadwing wasn’t the only intelligent penguin in the galaxy,” Timaeus explained, a hologram of a penguin appearing on his desk, “though he was certainly the most famous and feared. Quite a few penguins live independently in the galaxy. Most of them are good with mechanics. We’re trying to reach out and get some to work for us, but apparently they don’t seem to like the idea.”

“Stop laughing!” Twilight swatted Jack with her wing. “It isn’t funny!”

“I can’t help it,” Jack said as he covered his mouth to hide his giggling. “Of all the things to be afraid of, you’re afraid of penguins.”

“Well, when you consider my only encounter with them...” Twilight reminded him, glaring up at him.

“Are you afraid of anything else? Perhaps, something inanimate, like kumquats?” he asked, failing to stifle a snort.

“Mr. Thomas, I must agree with the mare,” Timaeus said, rolling his eyes. “Do be careful not to tread on her toes-- err… hooves, here. She did experience something traumatic at their hands-- err… flippers.”

“Well… there is one thing,” Twilight seemed hesitant to share this inormation. “I also don’t like… cheese quesadillas…”

“Sorry?” Jack held a hand to his ear.

“Cheese quesadillas, alright!?”

Jack and Timaeus both stared at her.

“What? They’re just so… cheesy…” she shuddered.

Jack stared at her. “Blimey, you think you’ve seen everything…”

Twilight snarled, reared back, and bucked him in the gut. Why could he not see that this was no laughing matter!?

Jack, for what it’s worth, took it like a champ. The armor he never seemed to stop wearing outside of sleep absorbed most of the impact of the blow, and she never was able to buck as hard as Applejack had been able to in her youth. Jack stumbled backwards all the same, grunting at the contact, but managed to stay upright.

“Alright, alright, point taken,” he said, unbuckling his armor to examine the titanium plates for any damage. They had done a fair bit of exploring in Sector Gamma, upgrading their armor sets and weapons in case they were needed at any point in the rest of their search for Equus.

“I did warn you,” Timaeus stared down at him from his desk. “Well, if you are interested in doing something and not just idly waiting for me to procure a Starmap for Sector Gamma, might I suggest the bounty boards?”

“Bounty boards?” Twilight asked. “What are they?”

“If someone needs something acquired, or a monster taken care of, they post a bounty on a galactic network,” Jack explained. “Whoever takes care of the mark and brings back proof gets rewarded. You know, like normal old bounty hunting?”

“Oh,” Twilight inwardly facehoofed at the thought. “Should have guessed.”

“I don’t think you need anything in the way of pixels, considering you have someone who can create priceless gems out of crystal without a problem,” Timaeus indicated Twilight, “but at least it would give you something to do while I pull some strings with the ISTR.”

“Thanks, Timaeus.”

“Go on, you two,” Timaeus waved them out of his workspace. “I have work to do.”

Jack nodded and they started on their way out of the TSPC R&D wing, Twilight still fuming that Jack had treated her experiences like a joke.

I mean, for Celestia’s sake, he should know better! she mentally screamed.

“I’m sorry, alright?”

“Huh?” Twilight glanced up at him as they entered an elevator down to the ground floor of the TSPC tower.

“I’m sorry about poking fun at your fears,” he said, scratching at the back of his head awkwardly. “I just… I don’t know, I can’t help it. The idea that someone can be afraid of penguins or cheese quesadillas is going to take some getting used to.”

“Everyone has something they’re afraid of,” she chastised him. “To treat someone else’s fear as something stupid is really thoughtless of you.”

“I know, I know,” Jack sighed.

“So, what are you afraid of?” she asked.

Jack grimaced. “Needles.”

“Needles?” she repeated.

“Yeah,” he nodded. “I had to go and get the vaccination for the disease that my parents died from. Like I said, so many sick people, not enough doctors. So, when Mr. Kent took me to get my shots, the doctor giving me them was a citizen trained on the job, with no prior medical background.”

“Oh no,” moaned Twilight. Jack nodded.

“It took him almost fifteen minutes to find the vein to inject the vaccine into,” Jack took off the armor sleeve on his left forearm and slid up the mesh underlay to expose the inside of his elbow, where a number of faded white dots peppered the skin near the crease.

“Don’t needle punctures heal?” Twilight asked, turning to stare at the spot on her rump where he had injected her with red stimpack to save her life.

“Normally, but because he kept missing, it just expanded the wound more and more, and it wasn’t a particularly well-made needle. And ever since,” he slid the underlay back down and started putting the sleeve back on, “I’ve been deathly afraid of needles.”

“How do you use stimpack, then?”

“Easy. I don’t look, and I make it quick.”

The thoughts of needles must not have been sitting well with him, because he looked paler than usual.

“Come on,” he said, striding forward a bit faster, “I’m bored, and I want to get my mind off of needles. Let’s do some bounty hunting.”

“I can’t believe we’re hunting a giant jelly monster,” Jack stared at a random Neighponese-looking building as they continued to stay crouched in the bushes of a Hylotl-inhabited planet.

“I think it’s racist that you think it’s hiding on a Hylotl planet,” Twilight peered through her binoculars at the town. “Just because they’re amphibious people with translucent skin and--”

“A giant… jelly… monster…”

“You’re not even listening, are you.”

“Jelly… monster…”

“It’s going to be a long hunt filled with sighs, isn’t it?”

“Maybe,” Jack said dully. “And I didn’t assume that the jelly monster was here just because they have gelatinous skin,” he crossed his arms. “I came here because the dossier said that Hylotl planets would probably be a good starting place.”

“Oh, so the contractor’s the racist one,” Twilight facehoofed.

“You keep using that word,” Jack put on a strange fake-accent, sounding a bit Spaneighsh. “I do not think it means what you think it means.”

“Well, ‘speciesist’ does apply, but it more applies to when someone thinks that they’re morally superior to mindless animals,” Twilight hefted the binoculars up to her face.

“You know, it was your idea to sit here and watch the town,” Jack started stretching. “What makes you think they won’t just help to us if we ask them nicely?”

“So far, I haven’t had good experiences with creatures carrying things that go boom,” Twilight jabbed a hoof toward a kimono-clad Hylotl female, carrying a rocket launcher slung over her back. “Why does she even have that? What purpose does it serve?”

“Beats me,” Jack shrugged, before standing up and stepping out of the bushes. “I’m gonna go talk to them. I’ll be right back.”

“Jack, I’m going to ask very nicely,” Twilight tried to put every ounce of irritation with the current circumstances into her voice, “please don’t go and make them angry. You told me they’ve got beef with the Florans. I can only imagine what a serious rivalry with a race that stabs things for fun can do to their violence threshold.”

“You’ll be calling me The Great Negotiator when I’m through with this,” Jack ruffled her mane. Twilight tried not to let the slight tingle in her spine or flutter in her gut show too much on the outside. It had been two months and she still hadn’t come to a conclusion on whether or not he’d be open to the idea of romancing a non-human.

Twilight didn’t doubt for a moment that he wasn’t racist. Or was it speciesist? Off topic, she mentally chastised herself. She had no doubt it wasn’t because he hated non-humans or found the idea abhorrent. Just like there were ponies on Equus that just didn’t find other races attractive, there must be humans (and members of the other species, come to think of it) that were fine with other races, but just weren’t cut out for interspecies romance.

Tartarus below, she’d had to do some serious soul searching before she finally came to terms with that part of herself, considering she had spent 40% of her life living in Canterlot among the snooty, richer-than-thou nobles. Those two weeks had been some of the most mentally taxing she had ever experienced. On one occasion, Jack had wondered about her condition, but thankfully, she’d managed to pass it off.

“Are you feeling okay, Twilight? You’ve looked out of sorts for a couple of weeks now.”

“I’m perfectly fine, honest! I’m not thinking about the possibility of romancing someone not a pony right now, or anything!”

Sometimes, her ability to divert suspicion impressed herself.

She heard angry shouting and looked through the binoculars again.

And she let out one of the loudest groans she’d ever made.

“TWILIGHT! THEY DON’T KNOW WHERE IT IS!” Jack wailed as he sprinted away from a mob of angry Hylotl.

“Ulysses, Enterprise, beam us aboard,” she sighed again as both her’s and Jack’s bodies vanished from the planet.

“I can’t believe we’re hunting a giant jelly monster,” Jack stared out at the Floran hunting party as they prepared to go off on an expedition.

“You’ve complained about that already,” Twilight took a sip from her canteen.

“When are they going to leeeeeeeeeave?” Jack whined, flopping backwards and sighing as he hit the grass. “This is more boring than doing nothing on Terra Stella.”

“It’s a cultural tradition,” Twilight reminded him, her own irritation at Jack’s incessant complaining threatening to break through her patient facade. “The hunting party only leaves when everyone who is participating is present.”

“Then who the hell are we waiting on?” Jack whispered.

As soon as he had said it, a young Floran had suddenly joined the hunting party. Twilight could tell that there was something different about this one. Perhaps it was the fact that the leaves that made up her hair were more… significant-looking. Instead of the usual blue or green, the top tresses featured purple, and she carried an intricately carved staff with her, one end featuring a hook-shape and the other a strange sort of h-shape with what looked like berries pinned atop it.

“Human. Huuuuuman!” a Floran poked Jack with the butt of his spear.

“Oy! Point that thing someplace else!” Jack said, leaping to his feet and shoving the spear away.

“We’re ready to go. Nuru’sss here.”

“Did we seriously have to wait for her?” Jack asked. “We need to find something and we figured this hunting party could help!”

“Sssssh! Hunting party now, bounty hunting later!” the Floran hissed.

“I thought that by appealing to your baser desires to stab things, I could get you to help.”

“And Floransss will help ssstab human’sss target,” the Floran promised, “but hunting party firssst.”

“What’s so special about Nuru, anyway?”

“She’sss lassst year’sss champion,” the Floran shrugged. “Floransss cannot participate in hunting party without the champion.”

“Figures,” Jack shook his head, his red hair dancing as he tousled it before sliding his silver helmet on and pulling off his assault rifle an slinging it onto his shoulder “Let’s get this show on the road.”

The Floran hunting party started toward a weird little Avian-looking building. Given its underground nature, Twilight’s first thought was that it was a burial crypt or perhaps some kind of storage facility.

“Never hunted alongside a human before,” came a surprisingly musical-sounding voice. Twilight blinked and looked over to find the colorful Floran from earlier, Nuru, walking alongside them. “Nor have I ever seen one of your kind,” she nodded at Twilight.

“I’m the first of my species to even make it this far out into space,” Twilight stated as the trio entered into the hunting ground and let the light of the system’s yellow star vanish as the dank atmosphere of the building took over. “What about you? I thought all Florans had a hiss to their voices.”

“We do,” Nuru nodded. “I’ve spent a long enough time away, living and hunting on my own, to where the accent isn’t nearly as pronounced.”

“You seem very young,” Jack noted, “and yet you’re champion of a Floran hunting competition. Do you do this for a living?”

Nuru laughed. “Of course! I may not speak like a typical Floran, but I still like stabbing things just like anyone else. I just prefer to stab beasts for the thrill. I’ve spent the last 12 of your human years doing it.”

“Out of…?” Twilight tilted her head.

“17.”

“Not bad,” Jack inclined his head. “Even by Floran standards, to be grand champion of the hunt at that age is pretty damn impressive.”

“Is that why we’re here?” Twilight asked, suddenly struck by a realization. “To ask her to help us find the Jelly Monster thing?”

“I was just gonna ask the Florans in general if they’d like to stab the giant jelly monster that I still can’t believe we’re hunting.”

Twilight snorted. Nuru, however, seemed quite interested at this piece of information.

“You’re hunting a giant jelly monster?” she asked, black eyes sparkling in the light as she looked over at him.

“Yeah, pretty much,” Jack answered. “We needed something to do while we waited to procure a Starmap for Sector Delta, so we took on a mark. And we can’t seem to find it anywhere.”

“Ah, I believe I know of the jelly monster of which you speak,” Nuru nodded sagely. “We’ve hunted them before. There aren’t very many of them left, and those that are appear to have found their way outside of their usual home in Sector Delta.”

“How could a mindless monster find its way offworld?” Twilight asked, confused.

“These jelly monsters have one of the strangest biological abilities we have ever seen,” they entered a large, open area of the Floran hunting location. “They can teleport anywhere at any time, but they don’t seem to use the ability consciously. And they have an uncanny ability to detect when their favorite food is out in the open.”

“So, basically, just find out what their favorite food is, throw some of that out in the open, and then ambush it?” Twilight asked as the trio stopped in the midst of the crowd of Florans, while a Floran game master apparently went over some rules.

“Pretty much,” Nuru shrugged. “Attracting them is the easy part, fighting them is the hard part. Though it’s worth pointing out, they only come out when it’s a very specific variety of their favorite food.”

“And that is?” Jack asked.

“Peanut-butter covered bread. But not just any peanut-butter. It has to be specifically the avia variety.”

“Why the avia?” Jack asked, sounding a bit surprised by this revelation.

“Hell if I know,” Nuru shrugged. “Something to do with the way they make it, or something.”

“Thanks for the help<” Jack inclined his head. “Would you be willing to join us while we attempted to hunt it down?”

“If you would help me slay the beast in this hunting party, I shall join you.”

“What kind of beast is it?” Twilight asked, tilting her head.

“An Ixodoom.”

“What’s an Ixodoom?”

“It’s a giant four-legged arachnid that spits out its own young when threatened--”

“FIFTY SHADES OF NOPE!” Jack slipped an arm under Twilight’s barrel, yanked her under his arm, and practically sprinted his way out of the crypt the hunting party had housed itself in.

“I can’t believe we’re hunting a giant jelly monster!” Jack shouted.

“Shut up and run!” Twilight yelled at him as they sprinted out of an avia temple with a jar of avian peanut butter held tightly in Jack’s hands. Behind them, a crowd of angry avia chased after them with apparently every weapon housed in the pyramid they had on wing, up to and including an actual kitchen sink.

“You know,” Twilight shouted as she ducked under a thrown spear, “we could have just gone back to Alpha Prime III-B and asked Rana and Mira for some!”

“In hindsight, that seems like the better idea!” Jack jumped over an arrow as it lodged itself where he had been about to step an instant earlier.

They rounded a corner and continued the uphill run. Twilight wished she was able to fly, or that she knew enough about the planet’s surface to teleport both of them up there, but with the armor weighing her down and with the lack of knowledge about Gamma Centauri IV’s surface, she could do neither.

And the ships couldn’t beam them aboard unless they were on the surface, due to the interferences caused by the avia temples on the planet.

“SHIT!”

Jack stumbled over something, causing the jar of peanut-butter to go flying out of his hands and shatter on the opposite wall.

“Worry about that later, just keep running!” Twilight slapped him with a wing while Jack tried to use what few moments he had to try to salvage at least a bit of their quarry.

Jack took her advice and continued sprinting away. After several twists and turns, they eventually were able to emerge back onto the surface of the mostly-water covered planet

“Ulysses, get us out of here!” Jack shouted into the device on his wrist. Almost instantly, Jack and Twilight felt the temperate coastal air vanish, replaced by the coolness of the interior of Jack’s ship.

Twilight skidded to a stop as Jack swung himself around using a pole. Given how practiced the act looked, Twilight wondered if he’d installed the pole specifically for that purpose.

For a moment, all was silent save for their panting.

“Well, that happened,” observed Jack.

“I can’t believe--”

“--that we’re hunting a giant jelly monster, I get it,” Twilight tried not to let her exasperation show through her voice.

Not that it was hard, considering it was good to see a familiar environment. The hill in which she had made her home for a few weeks appeared to be growing flora again after Dreadwing’s attack, her shelter looked just as well-equipped as when she had left it (albeit a little bit in disrepair from lack of use), and for some reason, the weird lizard-bird that had met her on her first day seemed to have found her again.

Or at least, Twilight thought it was the same one. It seemed to go for her wings a little too quickly to be coincidence.

“It likes you,” Jack noted as they strode to the avian town, with the creature flying overhead.

“How can you tell?” she asked. “All it did was nibble my wing, screech, and then fly off.”

“You didn’t try to fight it,” Jack explained, before whistling and holding out an arm. The lizard-bird dove downward, landing on his armored glove and curling its feet around his wrist. “They’re very docile beings, despite what appearances would lead you to believe. But if you piss them off, well...”

He grimaced.

“I learned my lesson about that on Day 1 of my time on this planet,” he said, reaching up with his free hand and pulling at the neck a bit, where a thin, almost invisible white line started right about at where his neck met his shoulder and continued underneath his undershirt.

“How come it didn’t heal?” Twilight asked. “Didn’t you use stimpack?”

“Nope,” Jack shook his head.” “For one, I didn’t have any. Also, it’s not safe to use stimpack on anything other than life-threatening injuries or other dire healing needs. Mainly because it’s a waste, to use it on a scratch like this, but also because it could cause mutations and tumors, what with it causing cells to regenerate faster than present cells can die.”

As they approached the village, Twilight noticed a group of Avia children playing just on the outskirts of town, Rika and Luka included. At the sight of her, the two chicks squawked with excitement and charged the two of them, Rika leaping onto Twilight’s back, Luka wrapping himself around Jack’s leg, while the other avia children danced around them.

“Rika! It’s good to see you!” exclaimed Twilight, lifting Rika up with her magic to get a good look at him. “Are your mother and father in town?”

“Dad ssould be at home with Mother,” Rika answered, chittering happily. “Wan me to go and get them?”

“No, we’ll visit them in due time,” Twilight patted the growing avia on the head, before leaning back and taking a great whiff. “So good to be back some place with fresh air.”

“Agreed,” Jack took a deep whiff of the air. “The city’s not as fresh as out here, and my shelter in the desert only had sand to inhale.”

The Avia village came into sight, and with it came Rana and Mira walking out to meet them, Luka having slipped off from the crowd of children to alert her parents.

“Twilight! Jack! What an unexpected surprise!” Mira exclaimed as she and Jack hugged.

“Indeed,” Rana clucked happily. “To what do we owe the pleasure?”

“As a matter of fact,” Twilight started, but Jack cut her off.

“Actually, we’ll talk about that later. How about we get caught up on everything that’s been going on?”

“...and so now, while we wait, we’re out bounty hunting for a giant jelly monster,” Twilight finished recounting their adventures over the last few months, before flashing a quick smile.

“That’s so cool!” Rika and Luka both said at the same time.

“The hillside took some time to refertilize, and to dig up the dead ground, but as you no doubt saw, things are growing again after Dreadwing attacked,” Mira’s eyes twinkled. “Apparently a few penguins thought they’d do that as their apology for everything Dreadwing did.”

“Are you biological cousins, or something?” asked Twilight. “I mean, considering avians and penguins share a common ancestor where I come from--”

“We are related much the same way the humans and the Apex are related,” Rana nodded. “Though that doesn’t mean we get along very well. The penguins just care about doing… whatever it is that they do, while most avia just want to be left alone in their airssips or temples in peace.”

“Speaking of,” Jack said, eyes lighting up as he recognized the segue, “we tried to break into an avia temple a bit ago.”

“What for?” Rana asked, bemused. “Avia don’t keep anything of importance in temples. We just keep what is necessary for life, as many who live in the temple are merely pilgrims.”

“...Peanut butter.”

Rana and Mira both stared at him. A pair of thuds jolted them out of their reveries, as Rika and Luka rolled around on the floor laughing next to the chairs.

“You could have just asked us,” pointed out Mira, already getting up and going back to grab a spare jar.

“We figured that when we shattered their jar,” Twilight admitted, “though I did point that out before we even went in.”

They said their goodbyes shortly after, promising to visit more often, and beamed aboard their ships, now ready to finish their job.

“I can’t believe we’re using peanut buttered bread to hunt a giant jelly monster,” Twilight said, propping up a rather large cardboard box with a fairly decent-sized dowel, since apparently this was the exact method the dossier on the mission said it had to be done.

“Why does it have to be here in Sector Gamma? I thought you said these things were from Sector Delta,” she continued, glancing behind her as Jack cleared out a bush for them to take cover in.

“Well, if the USCM has been encroaching into Sector Delta, they likely chased them all away.”

“How is that even possible?” Twilight gaped at him. “You can’t just chase a non intelligent creature off a planet!”

“Apparently they can phase themselves in and out of being or some such. I dunno,” Jack shrugged. “I just want to get this done and move on to Sector Delta with looking for your home.”

With their trap set, Jack and Twilight hid in the bushes nearby on this forested planet, hoping they wouldn’t have to wait long for the giant jelly monster to appear.

“I wonder how long this is going to take,” jack sighed.

“If they can phase in and out of being, I don’t think it will be long at all,” Twilight sat on her haunches in the bush they were hiding in, once again feeling like the simple box trap wasn’t going to be sufficient against a monster they didn’t even know the size of.

“What if it’s tiny?” Twilight asked, suddenly struck by a thought.

“It’s not. The dossier had a picture, remember?” Jack held up his wrist device, which flashed up a hologram of a large translucent pink jellyfish-looking creature with five eyes, one contained within and four around the outside. “It’s 1:42 scale, apparently,” he shrugged.

“How will we know when it gets here though? Do they make sound?”

Jack shrugged again. leaning his head forward toward the box trap site due to a sudden shade that had appeared around them.

“I’ve never encountered one, so I wouldn’t know.”

He paused.

“Damn it,” he groaned.

“What?” asked Twilight, confused.

“It’s right behind us, isn’t it.”

There was a weird, high-pitched chirp behind them.

“...fuck.”

Twilight flapped her wings as powerfully as she could and felt herself shoot forward out of the bush at breakneck pace, with Jack diving away behind her. A second later, the bush they had been hiding in was smashed as the giant jelly monster slammed a tentacle down onto it.

The jelly creature from the hologram was floating in the air in front of them, its large central eye and two of the ones around its insides staring at the two of them.

Jack pulled a handle off of his belt and a long titanium sword blade extended from an opening in the hilt.

“Come on, then!” he taunted, pounding a metal-clad fist against his armored chest and raising a racket to try and goad the creature. “Come at me, Broseph!”

“What the hell is wrong with you!?” Twilight stared at him incredulously after that braggart display.

“I’m just taunting it,” Jack defended, momentarily going out of his fighting stance to turn toward Twilight and argue. “I mean, it’s not like I’m telling them where our hunting buddies are or anything.”

The jelly creature bellowed at him, which only served to irritate Jack.

“Excuse me!” he snapped at the Jelly, which seemed to recoil in surprise. “My friend and I are trying to have a conversation! Stop interrupting me, it’s very rude!”

The jelly creature let out a little whimper and seemed to be ashamed of itself.

“Now then, where was I?” he asked.

“Taunting,” Twilight repeated automatically, her brain trying to comprehend the fact that Jack somehow told the jelly monster to shut up in the middle of what was supposed to be a serious confrontation, and he had succeeded.

“Right!” Jack snapped his fingers as he remembered his train of thought. “Yeah, all I’m doing is taunting it. I mean, Sun Tzu’s The Art of War says that if your enemy is of choleric temperament, you should seek to anger him, so I figured that if I gloated a bit, I could get it to make a stupid mistake.”

The jelly let out a quiet whine.

“Oh hush! I’ll get to you in a minute!” Jack snapped back at it.

“I can honestly say that in all my years as a Princess of Friendship and virtuoso of magic,” Twilight commented, “I have never seen a situation as ludicrous as this.”

“Wait, hang on,” Jack seemed to have finally realized the jelly was just sitting there, waiting for him to attack it. “It’s obeying my every word.”

“You just realized that?”

“I was in the middle of a conversation, can you blame me?” he asked, his helmet managing to conceal whether or not he was irritated with Twilight and the jelly.

“Can we just kill that thing and go home? I want to be done with this whole bounty hunt and get back to finding Equus.”

“You and me both.”

“So how was the hunt?” Timaeus asked as he handed Jack a card-sized computer chip.

Pretty much a huge waste of time,” Twilight shrugged. “We sent the contractor a jar of the jelly monster’s jelly, received our pixels, and now we’re just ready to get back to trying to find our way to my planet.”

“Sounds like a grand old time,” Timaeus smiled. “A floran friend of mine says he saw you at the hunting party. Were you trying to recruit them to help you find your mark?”

“How’d they know it was me?” Jack asked.

“Because there’s only one purple pony princess roaming the stars at the moment,” Timaeus answered. “Unless you took up with another human during that time, we can only assume it was Mr. Thomas here.”

“Fair assessment,” conceded Jack.

“If I may ask, who was the contractor?”

“Some novakid,” Jack shrugged, his wrist device beeping. “Probably a good thing we didn’t meet in person. He’d probably try to steal Twilight just because she’s new and exciting.”

“You are aware they don’t actually intend to steal, right?” Timaeus tilted his head.

“Yeah, I’m aware,” Jack navigated to his mail. “Hey, he sent us a thank-you note!”

Dear bounty hunters,

Thank-you for finding me a jar of that jelly! It tasted very delicious with the avian peanut butter I managed to find in a random temple. I had been wondering what would go best with it!

Sincerely,
Your contractor

Jack’s eye twitched.

"I... he... ate the jelly..."

“Jack?” asked Twilight, noticing that it probably wasn't healthy for an eye to be twitching that much.

“I’m sorry, Jack.exe has encountered a problem and needs to close. Would you like to reboot?” he mumbled.

“Great,” Twilight facehoofed. “Well, at least now we can get back to finding Equus.”

“Best of luck!” Timaeus waved as she levitated a still-broken Jack out of the building.

Author's Note

That's right, Jack and Twilight spent the whole chapter trying to help a Novakid make a peanut-butter and jelly sandwich.

Hey, you guys asked for a random, one-chapter plot, so I gave you one. Now that that's over with, we can move back on to the main plot since now we're at a part where we can actually get somewhere.

Anywho, Rytex out. Have a good day!

2016 April Fools Special: The Immortal

Author's Note

Like I said, after getting through that filler chapter, we're getting into the very plot-heavy chapters, and I think it shows in just how quickly I was able to rattle off 23k words here. Easily the longest chapter in the story, even of the chapters yet to come, but I did that in Apprentice too. Though be warned, the story is going to get a bit darker and more graphic from here. Don't say I didn't warn you.

2016 April Fools Special: The Immortal

Chapter 1.

AN: Special fangz (get it, coz Im goffik) 2 my gf (ew not in that way) raven, bloodytearz666 4 helpin me wif da story and spelling. U rok! Justin ur da luv of my deprzzing life u rok 2! MCR ROX!

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Hi my name is Ebony Dark’ness Dementia Raven Way and I have long ebony black hair (that’s how I got my name) with purple streaks and red tips that reaches my mid-back and icy blue eyes like limpid tears and a lot of people tell me I look like Amy Lee (AN: if u don’t know who she is get da hell out of here!). I’m not related to Gerard Way but I wish I was because he’s a major fucking hottie. I’m a vampire but my teeth are straight and white. I have pale white skin. I’m also a witch, and I go to a magic school called Hogwarts in England where I’m in the seventh year (I’m seventeen). I’m a goth (in case you couldn’t tell) and I wear mostly black. I love Hot Topic and I buy all my clothes from there. For example today I was wearing a black corset with matching lace around it and a black leather miniskirt, pink fishnets and black combat boots. I was wearing black lipstick, white foundation, black eyeliner and red eye shadow. I was walking outside Hogwarts. It was snowing and raining so there was no sun, which I was very happy about. A lot of preps stared at me. I put up my middle finger at them.

“Hey Ebony!” shouted a voice. I looked up. It was…. Draco Malfoy!

“What’s up Draco?” I asked.

“Nothing.” he said shyly.

But then, I heard my friends call me and I had to go away.

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AN: IS it good? PLZ tell me fangz!

Chapter 2.

AN: Fangz 2 bloodytearz666 4 helpin me wif da chapta! BTW preps stop flaming ma story ok!

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The next day I woke up in my bedroom. It was snowing and raining again. I opened the door of my coffin and drank some blood from a bottle I had. My coffin was black ebony and inside it was hot pink velvet with black lace on the ends. I got out of my coffin and took of my giant MCR t-shirt which I used for pajamas. Instead, I put on a black leather dress, a pentagram necklace, combat boots and black fishnets on. I put on four pairs of earrings in my pierced ears, and put my hair in a kind of messy bun.

My friend, Willow (AN: Raven dis is u!) woke up then and grinned at me. She flipped her long waist-length raven black hair with pink streaks and opened her forest-green eyes. She put on her Marilyn Manson t-shirt with a black mini, fishnets and pointy high-heeled boots. We put on our makeup (black lipstick white foundation and black eyeliner.)

“OMFG, I saw you talking to Draco Malfoy yesterday!” she said excitedly.

“Yeah? So?” I said, blushing.

“Do you like Draco?” she asked as we went out of the Slytherin common room and into the Great Hall.

“No I so fucking don’t!” I shouted.

“Yeah right!” she exclaimed. Just then, Draco walked up to me.

“Hi.” he said.

“Hi.” I replied flirtily.

“Guess what.” he said.

“What?” I asked.

“Well, Good Charlotte are having a concert in Hogsmeade.” he told me.

“Oh. My. Fucking. God!” I screamed. I love GC. They are my favorite band, besides MCR.

“Well…. do you want to go with me?” he asked.

I gasped.

Chapter 3.

AN: STOP FLAMMING DA STORY PREPZ OK! odderwize fangs 2 da goffik ppl 4 da good reveiws! FANGS AGEN RAVEN! oh yeah, BTW I don’t own dis or da lyrics 4 Good Chralotte.

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On the night of the concert I put on my black lace-up boots with high heels. Underneath them were ripped red fishnets. Then I put on a black leather minidress with all this corset stuff on the back and front. I put on matching fishnet on my arms. I straightened my hair and made it look all spiky. I felt a little depressed then, so I slit one of my wrists. I read a depressing book while I waited for it to stop bleeding and I listened to some GC. I painted my nails black and put on TONS of black eyeliner. Then I put on some black lipstick. I didn’t put on foundation because I was pale anyway. I drank some human blood so I was ready to go to the concert.

I went outside. Draco was waiting there in front of his flying car. He was wearing a Simple Plan t-shirt (they would play at the show too), baggy black skater pants, black nail polish and a little eyeliner (AN: A lot fo kewl boiz wer it ok!).

“Hi Draco!” I said in a depressed voice.

“Hi Ebony.” he said back. We walked into his flying black Mercedes-Benz (the license plate said 666) and flew to the place with the concert. On the way we listened excitedly to Good Charlotte and Marilyn Manson. We both smoked cigarettes and drugs. When we got there, we both hopped out of the car. We went to the mosh pit at the front of the stage and jumped up and down as we listened to Good Charlotte.

“You come in cold, you're covered in blood
They're all so happy you've arrived
The doctor cuts your cord, hands you to your mom
She sets you free into this life.” sang Joel (I don’t own da lyrics 2 dat song).

“Joel is so fucking hot.” I said to Draco, pointing to him as he sung, filling the club with his amazing voice.

Suddenly Draco looked sad.

“What’s wrong?” I asked as we moshed to the music. Then I caught on.

“Hey, it’s ok I don’t like him better than YOU!” I said.

“Really?” asked Draco sensitively and he put his arm around me all protective.

“Really.” I said. “Besides I don’t even know Joel and he’s going out with Hilary fucking Duff. I fucking hate that little bitch.” I said disgustedly, thinking of her ugly blonde face.

The night went on really well, and I had a great time. So did Draco. After the concert, we drank some beer and asked Benji and Joel for their autographs and photos with them. We got GC concert tees. Draco and I crawled back into the Mercedes-Benz, but Draco didn’t go back into Hogwarts, instead he drove the car into……………………… the Forbidden Forest!

Chapter 4.

AN: I sed stup flaming ok ebony’s name is ENOBY nut mary su OK! DRACO IS SOO IN LUV wif her dat he is acting defrent! dey nu eechodder b4 ok!

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“DRACO!” I shouted. “What the fuck do you think you are doing?”

Draco didn’t answer but he stopped the flying car and he walked out of it. I walked out of it too, curiously.

“What the fucking hell?” I asked angrily.

“Ebony?” he asked.

“What?” I snapped.

Draco leaned in extra-close and I looked into his gothic red eyes (he was wearing color contacts) which revealed so much depressing sorrow and evilness and then suddenly I didn’t feel mad anymore.

And then…………… suddenly just as I Draco kissed me passionately. Draco climbed on top of me and we started to make out keenly against a tree. He took of my top and I took of his clothes. I even took of my bra. Then he put his thingie into my you-know-what and we did it for the first time.

“Oh! Oh! Oh! ” I screamed. I was beginning to get an orgasm. We started to kiss everywhere and my pale body became all warm. And then….

“WHAT THE HELL ARE YOU DOING YOU MOTHERFUKERS!”

It was…………………………………………………….Dumbledore!

Chapter 5.

AN: STOP flaming! if u flam it menz ur a prep or a posr! Da only reson Dumbledeor swor is coz he had a hedache ok an on tup of dat he wuz mad at dem 4 having sexx! PS im nut updating umtil I get five good revoiws!

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Dumbledore made and Draco and I follow him. He kept shouting at us angrily.

“You ludacris fools!” he shouted.

I started to cry tears of blood down my pallid face. Draco comforted me. When we went back to the castle Dumbledore took us to Professor Snape and Professor McGonagall who were both looking very angry.

“They were having sexual intercourse in the Forbidden Forest!” he yelled in a furious voice.

“Why did you do such a thing, you mediocre dunces?” asked Professor McGonagall.

“How dare you?” demanded Professor Snape.

And then Draco shrieked. “BECAUSE I LOVE HER!”

Everyone was quiet. Dumbledore and Professor McGonagall still looked mad but Professor Snape said. “Fine. Very well. You may go up to your rooms.”

Draco and I went upstairs while the teachers glared at us.

“Are you okay, Ebony?” Draco asked me gently.

“Yeah I guess.” I lied. I went to the girl’s dorm and brushed my teeth and my hair and changed into a low-cut black floor-length dress with red lace all around it and black high heels. When I came out….

Draco was standing in front of the bathroom, and he started to sing ‘I just wanna live’ by Good Charlotte. I was so flattered, even though he wasn’t supposed to be there. We hugged and kissed. After that, we said goodnight and he reluctantly went back into his room.

Chapter 6.

AN: shjt up prepz ok! PS I wnot update ubtil u give me goood revows!

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The next day I woke up in my coffin. I put on a black miniskirt that was all ripped around the end and a matching top with red skulls all over it and high heeled boots that were black. I put on two pairs of skull earrings, and two crosses in my ears. I spray-painted my hair with purple.

In the Great Hall, I ate some Count Chocula cereal with blood instead of milk, and a glass of red blood. Suddenly someone bumped into me. All the blood spilled over my top.

“Bastard!” I shouted angrily. I regretted saying it when I looked up cause I was looking into the pale white face of a gothic boy with spiky black hair with red streaks in it. He was wearing so much eyeliner that I was going down his face and he was wearing black lipstick. He didn’t have glasses anymore and now he was wearing red contact lenses just like Draco’s and there was no scar on his forhead anymore. He had a manly stubble on his chin. He had a sexy English accent. He looked exactly like Joel Madden. He was so sexy that my body went all hot when I saw him kind of like an erection only I’m a girl so I didn’t get one you sicko.

“I’m so sorry.” he said in a shy voice.

“That’s all right. What’s your name?” I questioned.

“My name’s Harry Potter, although most people call me Vampire these days.” he grumbled.

“Why?” I exclaimed.

“Because I love the taste of human blood.” he giggled.

“Well, I am a vampire.” I confessed.

“Really?” he whimpered.

“Yeah.” I roared.

We sat down to talk for a while. Then Draco came up behind me and told me he had a surprise for me so I went away with him.

Chapter 7. Bring me 2 life

AN: wel ok u guyz im only writting dis cuz I got 5 god reviuws. n BTW I wont rite da nxt chapter til I git TIN god vons! STO FLAMING OR ILL REPORT U! Evony isn’t a Marie Sue ok she isn’t perfect SHES A SATANITS! n she has problemz shes depressed 4 godz sake!

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Draco and I held our pale white hands with black nail polish as we went upstairs. I was wearing red Satanist sings on my nails in red nail polish (AN: c doez dat sound lik a Maru Sue 2 u?). I waved to Vampire. Dark misery was in his depressed eyes. I guess he was jealous of me that I was going out with Draco. Anyway, I went upstairs excitedly with Draco. We went into his room and locked the door. Then…………

We started frenching passively and we took off each others clothes enthusiastically. He felt me up before I took of my top. Then I took off my black leather bra and he took off his pants. We went on the bed and started making out naked and then he put his boy’s thingy in mine and we HAD SEX. (c is dat stupid?)

“Oh Draco, Draco!” I screamed while getting an orgasm when all of a sudden I saw a tattoo I had never seen before on Draco’s arm. It was a black heart with an arrow through it. On it in bloody gothic writing were the words………… Vampire!

I was so angry.

“You bastard!” I shouted angrily, jumping out of the bed.

“No! No! But you don’t understand!” Draco pleaded. But I knew too much.

“No, you fucking idiot!” I shouted. “You probably have AIDs anyway!”

I put on my clothes all huffily and then stomped out. Draco ran out even though he was naked. He had a really big you-know-what but I was too mad to care. I stomped out and did so until I was in Vampire’s classroom where he was having a lesson with Professor Snape and some other people.

“VAMPIRE POTTER, YOU MOTHERFUCKER!” I yelled.

Chapter 8.

AN: stop flassing ok! if u do den u r a prep!

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Everyone in the class stared at me and then Draco came into the room even though he was naked and started begging me to take him back.

“Ebony, it’s not what you think!” Draco screamed sadly.

My friend B’loody Mary Smith smiled at me understatedly. She flipped her long waste-length gothic black hair and opened her crimson eyes like blood that she was wearing contact lenses on. She had pale white skin that she was wearing white makeup on. Hermione was kidnapped when she was born. Her real parents are vampires and one of them is a witch but Voldemort killed her mother and her father committed suicide because he was depressed about it. She still has nightmares about it and she is very haunted and depressed. It also turns out her real last name is Smith and not Granger. (Since she has converted to Satanism she is in Slytherin now not Griffindoor. )

“What is it that you desire, you ridiculous dimwit!” Snape demeaned angrily in his cold voice but I ignored him.

“Vampire, I can’t believe you cheated on me with Draco!” I shouted at him.

Everyone gasped.

I don’t know why Ebony was so mad at me. I had went out with Vampire (I’m bi and so is Ebony) for a while but then he broke my heart. He dumped me because he liked Britney, a stupid preppy fucker. We were just good friends now. He had gone through horrible problems, and now he was gothic. (Haha, like I would hang out with a prep.)

“But I’m not going out with Draco anymore!” said Vampire.

“Yeah fucking right! Fuck off, you bastard!” I screamed. I ran out of the room and into the Forbidden Forest where I had lost my virility to Draco and then I started to bust into tears.

Chapter 9.

AN: stop flaming ok! I dntn red all da boox! dis is frum da movie ok so itz nut my folt if dumbeldor swers! besuizds I SED HE HAD A HEDACHE! and da reson snap dosent lik harry now is coz hes christian and vampire is a satanist! MCR ROX!

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I was so mad and sad. I couldn’t believe Draco for cheating on me. I began to cry against the tree where I did it with Draco.

Then all of a suddenly, an horrible man with red eyes and no nose and everything started flying towards me on a broomstick! He didn’t have a nose (basically like Voldemort in the movie) and he was wearing all black but it was obvious he wasn’t gothic. It was…… Voldemort!

“No!” I shouted in a scared voice but then Voldemort shouted “Imperius!” and I couldn’t run away.

“Crookshanks!” I shouted at him. Voldemort fell of his broom and started to scream. I felt bad for him even though I’m a sadist so I stopped.

“Ebony.” he yelled. “Thou must kill Vampire Potter!”

I thought about Vampire and his sexah eyes and his gothic black hair and how his face looks just like Joel Madden. I remembered that Draco had said I didn’t understand, so I thought, what if Draco went out with Vampire before I went out with him and they broke up?

“No, Voldemort!” I shouted back.

Voldemort gave me a gun. “No! Please!” I begged.

“Thou must!” he yelled. “If thou does not, then I shall kill thy beloved Draco!”

“How did you know?” I asked in a surprised way.

Voldemort got a dude-ur-so-retarded look on his face. “I hath telekinesis.” he answered cruelly. “And if you doth not kill Vampire, then thou know what will happen to Draco!” he shouted. Then he flew away angrily on his broomstick.

I was so scared and mad I didn’t know what to do. Suddenly Draco came into the woods.

“Draco!” I said. “Hi!”

“Hi.” he said back but his face was all sad. He was wearing white foundation and messy eyeliner kind of like a pentagram (geddit) between Joel Madden and Gerard Way.

“Are you okay?” I asked.

“No.” he answered.

“I’m sorry I got all mad at you but I thought you cheated on me.” I expelled.

“That’s okay.” he said all depressed and we went back into Hogwarts together making out.

Chapter 10.

AN: stup it u gay fags if u donot lik ma story den fukk off! ps it turnz out b’loody mary isn’t a muggle afert al n she n vampire r evil datz y dey movd houses ok!

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I was really scared about Vlodemort all day. I was even upset went to rehearsals with my gothic metal band Bloody Gothic Rose 666. I am the lead singer of it and I play guitar. People say that we sound like a cross between GC, Slipknot and MCR. The other people in the band are B’loody Mary, Vampire, Draco, Ron (although we call him Diabolo now. He has black hair now with blue streaks in it.) and Hargrid. Only today Draco and Vampire were depressed so they weren’t coming and we wrote songs instead. I knew Draco was probably slitting his wrists (he wouldn’t die because he was a vampire too and the only way you can kill a vampire is with a c-r-o-s-s (there’s no way I’m writing that) or a steak) and Vampire was probably watching a depressing movie like The Corpse Bride. I put on a black leather shirt that showed off my boobs and tiny matching miniskirt that said Simple Plan on the butt. You might think I’m a slut but I’m really not.

We were singing a cover of ‘Helena’ and at the end of the song I suddenly bust into tears.

“Ebony! Are you OK?” B’loody Mary asked in a concerted voice.

“What the fuck do you think?” I asked angrily. And then I said. “Well, Voldemort came and the fucking bastard told me to fucking kill Harry! But I don’t want to kill him, because, he’s really nice, even if he did go out with Draco. But if I don’t kill Harry, then Voldemort, will fucking kill Draco!” I burst into tears.
Suddenly Draco jumped out from behind a wall.

“Why didn’t you fucking tell me!” he shouted. “How could you- you- you fucking poser muggle bitch!” (c is dat out of character?)

I started to cry and cry. Draco started to cry too all sensitive. Then he ran out crying.

We practiced for one more hour. Then suddenly Dumbeldore walked in angrily! His eyes were all fiery and I knew this time it wasn’t cause he had a headache.

“What have you done!” He started to cry wisely. (c dats basically nut swering and dis time he wuz relly upset n u wil c y) “Ebony Draco has been found in his room. He committed suicide by slitting his wrists.”

Chapter 11.

AN: i sed stup flaming up prepz! c if dis chaptr is srupid!1111 it delz wit rly sris issus! sp c 4 urself if itz ztupid brw fangz 2 ma frend raven 4 hleping me!

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“NO!” I screamed. I was horrorfied! B’loody Mary tried to comfort me but I told her fuck off and I ran to my room crying myself. Dumbledore chased after me shouting but he had to stop when I went into my room cause he would look like a perv that way.

Anyway, I started crying tears of blood and then I slit both of my wrists. They got all over my clothes so I took them off and jumped into the bath angrily while I put on a Linkin Park song at full volume. I grabbed a steak and almost stuck it into my heart to commit suicide. I was so fucking depressed! I got out of the bathtub and put on a black low-cut dress with lace all over it sandly. I put on black high heels with pink metal stuff on the ends and six pairs of skull earrings. I couldn’t fucking believe it. Then I looked out the window and screamed… Snap was spying on me and he was taking a video tape of me! And Loopin was masticating to it! They were sitting on their broomsticks.

“EW, YOU FUCKING PERVS, STOP LOOKING AT ME NAKED! ARE YOU PEDOS OR WHAT!” I screamed putting on a black towel with a picture of Marilyn Mason on it. Suddenly Vampire ran in.

“Abra Kedavra!” he yelled at Snape and Loopin pointing his womb. I took my gun and shot Snape and Loopin a gazillion times and they both started screaming and the camera broke. Suddenly, Dumblydore ran in. “Ebony, it has been revealed that someone has - NOOOOOOOOOOOOO!” he shouted looking at Snape and Loopin and then he waved his wand and suddenly…

Hargrid ran outside on his broom and said everyone we need to talk.

“What do you know, Hargrid? You’re just a little Hogwarts student!”

“I MAY BE A HOGWARTS STUDENT….” Hargirid paused angrily. “BUT I AM ALSO A SATANIST!”

“This cannot be.” Snap said in a crisp voice as blood dripped from his hand where Dumblydore’s wand had shot him. “There must be other factors.”

“YOU DON’T HAVE ANY!” I yelled in madly.

Loopin held up the camera triumelephantly. “The lens may be ruined but the tape is still there!”

I felt faint, more than I normally do like how it feels when you do not drink enough blood.

“Why are you doing this?” Loopin said angrily while he rubbed his dirty hands on his clook.

And then I heard the words that I had heard before but not from him. I did not know whether to feel shocked and happy or to bite him and drink his blood because I felt faint.

“BECAUSE…BECAUSE….” Hargid said and he paused in the air dramitaclly, waving his wand in the air. Then swooped he in singing to the tune of a gothic version of a song by 50 Cent.

“Because you’re goffic?” Snap asked in a little afraid voice cause he was afraind it meant he was connected with Satan.

“Because I LOVE HER!”

Chapter 12.

AN: stop f,aing ok hargrid is a pedo 2 a lot of ppl in amerikan skoolz r lik dat I wunted 2 adres da ishu! how du u no snap iant kristian plus hargrid isn’t really in luv wif ebony dat was sedric ok!

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I was about to slit my wrists again with the silver knife that Drago had given me in case anything happened to him. He had told me to use it valiantly against an enemy but I knew that we must both go together.

“NO!” I THOUGHT IT WAS HAIRgrid but it was Vampire. He started to scream. “OMFG! NOOOOO! MY SCAR HURTS!” and then….. his eyes rolled up! You could only see his red whites.

I stopped. “How did u know?”

“I saw it! And my scar turned back into the lightning bolt!”

“NO!” I ran up closer. “I thought you didn’t have a scar anymore!” I shouted.

“I do but Diabolo changed it into a pentagram for me and I always cover it up with foundation.” he said back. “Anyway my scar hurt and it turned back into the lightning bolt! Save me! then I had a vision of what was happening to Draco…………….Volfemort has him bondage!”

Anyway I was in the school nurse’s office now recovering from my slit wrists. Snap and Loopin and HAHRID were there too. They were going to St. Mango’s after they recovered cause they were pedofiles and you can’t have those fucking pervs teaching in a school with lots of hot gurlz. Dumbledore had constipated the cideo camera they took of me naked. I put up my middle finger at them.

Anyway Hargrid came into my hospital bed holding a bouquet of pink roses.

“Enoby I need to tell u somethnig.” he said in a v. serious voice, giving me the roses.

“Fuck off.” I told him. “You know I fucking hate the color pink anyway, and I don’t like fucked up preps like you.” I snapped. Hargrid had been mean to me before for being gottik.

“No Enoby.” Hargrid says. “Those are not roses.”

“What, are they goffs too you poser prep?” I asked cause I was angry that he had brought me pink roses.

“I saved your life!” He yelled angrily. “No you didn’t I replied.” “You saved me from getting a Paris Hilton p- video made from your shower scene and being vued by Snap and Loopin.” Who MASTABATED (c is dat speld rong) to it he added silently.

“Whatever!” I yelled angirly.

He pointed his wand at the pink roses. “These aren’t roses.” He suddenly looked at them with an evil look in his eye and muttered Well If you wanted Honesty that’s all you haD TO SAY! .

“That’s not a spell that’s an MCR song.” I corrected him wisely.

“I know, I was just warming up my vocal cordes.” Then he screamed. “Petulus merengo mi kremicli romacio(4 all u cool goffic mcr fans out, there, that is a tribute! specially for raven I love you girl!)imo noto okayo!”

And then the roses turned into a huge black flame floating in the middle of the air. And it was black. Now I knew he wasn’t a prep.

“OK I believe you now wtf is Drako?”

Hairgrid rolled his eyes. I looked into the balls of flame but I could c nothing.

“U c, Enobby,” Dumblydore said, watching the two of us watching the flame. “2 c wht iz n da flmes(HAHA U REVIEWRS FLAMES GEDDIT) u mst find urslf 1st, k?”

“I HAVE FOUND MYSELF OK YOU MEAN OLD MAN!” Hargrid yelled. dUMBLydore lookd shockd. I guess he didn’t have a headache or else he would have said something back.

Hairgrid stormed off back into his bed. “U r a liar, prof dumbledoree!”

Anyway when I got better I went upstairs and put on a black leather minidress that was all ripped on the ends with lace on it. There was some corset stuff on the front. Then I put on black fishnets and black high-heeled boots with pictures of Billie Joe Armstrong on them. I put my hair all out around me so I looked like Samara from the Ring (if u don’t know who she iz ur a prep so fuk off!) and I put on blood-red lipstick, black eyeliner and black lip gloss.

“You look kawai, girl.” B’loody Mary said sadly. “Fangs (geddit) you do too.” I said sadly too, but I was still upset. I slit both of my wrists feeling totally depressed and I sucked all the blood. I cried again in my bathroom and put the shades on so Snap and Loopin couldn’t spy on me this time. I went to some classes. Vampire was in the Hair of Magical Magic Creatures. He looked all depressed because Draco had disappeared and he had used to be in love with Draco. He was sucking some blood from a Hufflepuff.

“Hi.” he said in a depressed way. “Hi back.” I said in an wqually said way.

We both looked at each other for some time. Harry had beautiful red gothic eyes so much like Dracos. Then……… we jumped on each other and started screwing each other.

“STOP IT NOW YOU HORNY SIMPLETONS!” shouted Professor McGoggle who was watching us and so was everyone else.

“Vampire you fucker!” I said slapping him. “Stop trying to screw me. You know I loved Draco!” I shouted and then I ran away angrily.

Just then he started to scream. “OMFG! NOOOOO! MY SCAR HURTS!” and then….. his eyes rolled up! You could only see his red whites.

“NO!” I ran up closer.

“I thought you didn’t have a scar anymore!” I shouted.

“I do but Diabolo changed it into a pentagram for me and I always cover it up with foundation.” he said back. “Anyway my scar hurt and then I had a vision of what was happening to Draco…………….Volfemort has him bondage!”

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SPECIAL FANGZ 2 RAVEN MY GOFFIX BLOOD SISTA WTF UR SUPPOZD 2 RIT DIS!11111111

HEY RAVEN DO U KNOW WHERE MY SWEATER I

Chapter 13.

AN: raven fangz 4 gelpin me agen im sory ah tok ur postr of gerard but dat guy is such a fokin sexbom! PREPZ STOP FLAMIGNG!

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Vampire and I ran up the stairs looking for Dumbledore. We were so scared.

“Dumbledore Dumblydore!” we both yelled. Dumbledore came there.

“What is it that you want now you despicable snobs?” he asked angrily.

“Volsemort has Draco!” we shouted at the same time.

He laughed in an evil voice.

“No! Don’t! We need to save Draco!” we begged.

“No.” he said meanly. “I don’t give a darn what Voldemort does to Draco. Not after how much he misbehaved in school especially with YOU Ebony.” he said while he frowned looking at me. “Besides I never liked him that much anyway.” then he walked away. Vampire started crying. “My Draco!” he moaned. (AN: don’t u fik gay guyz r lik so hot!)

“Its okay!” I tried to tell him but that didn’t stop him. He started to cry tears of blood. Then he had a brainstorm. “I had an idea!” he exclaimed.

“What?” I asked him.

“You’ll see.” he said. He took out his wand and did a spell. Then…… suddenly we were in Voldemprt’s lair!

We ran in with our wands out just as we heard a croon voice say. “Allah Kedavra!”
It was……………………………….. Voldemort!

Chapter 14.

AN: fuk off PREPZ ok! Raven fangz 4 helpin agen. im sory ah kudnt update but I wuz derperessd n I had 2 go 2 da hospital kuz I slit muh rists. PS im nut updating til u giv me 10 god revoiws!

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WARNING: SUM OF DIS CHAPTA IS XTREMLY SCRAY. VIOWER EXCRETION ADVISD.

We ran to where Volcemort was. It turned out that Voldemort wasn’t there. Instead the fat guy who killed Cedric was. Draco was there crying tears of blood. Snaketail was torturing him. Vampire and I ran in front of Snaketail.

“Rid my sight you despicable preps!” he shouted as we started shooting him with the gun he Then suddenly he looked at me and he fell down with a lovey-dovey look in his eyes. “EbonyIloveyouwiluhavesexwithme.” he said. (in dis he is sixteen yrs old so hes not a pedofile ok)

“Huh?” I asked.
”Enoby I love you will you have sex with me?” asked Snaketail. I started laughing crudely. “What the fuck? You torture my bf and then you expect me to fuck you? God, you are so fucked up you fucking bastard.” I said angrily. Then I stabbed him in the heart. Blood pored out of it like a fountain.

“Nooooooooooooo!” he screamed. He started screaming and running around. Then he fell down and died. I brust into tears sadly.

“Snaketail what art thou doing?” called Voldemort. Then…… he started coming! We could hear his high heels clacking to us. So we got on our broomsticks and we flew to Hogwarts. We went to my room. Vampire went away. There I started crying.

“What’s wrong honey?” asked Draco taking off his clothes so we could screw. He had a sex-pack (geddit cuz hes so sexah) and a really huge you-know-what and everything.

“Its so unfair!” I yielded. “Why can’t I just be ugly or plain like all da other girls and preps here except for B’loody Mary, because she’s not ugly or anything.”

“Why would you wanna be ugly? I don’t like the preps anyway. They are such fucking sluts.” answered Draco.

“Yeah but everyone is in love with me! Like Snape and Loopin took a video of me naked. Hargrid says he’s in love with me. Vampire likes me and now even Snaketail is in love with me! I just wanna be with you ok Draco! Why couldn’t Satan have made me less beautiful?” I shouted angrily. (an” don’t wory enoby isn’t a snob or anyfing but a lot of ppl hav told her shes pretty) “Im good at too many things! WHY CAN’T I JUST BE NORMAL? IT’S A FUCKING CURSE!” I shouted and then I ran away.

Chapter 15.

AN: stup flaming ok! btw u suk frum no on evry tim sum1 flams me im gona slit muh ristsz! fangz 2 raven 4 hlpein!

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“Ebony Ebony!” shouted Draco sadly. “No, please, come back!”

But I was too mad.

“Whatever! Now u can go anh have sex with Vampire!” I shouted. I stormed into my room and closed my black door with my blood-red key. It had a picture of Marylin Manson on it. He looked so sexy in a way that reminded me of Draco and Vampire. I started to cry and weep. I took a razor and started to slit my wrists. I drank the blood all depressed. Then I looked at my black GC watch and noticed it was time to go to Biology class.

I put on a short ripped black gothic dress that said Anarchy on the front in blood red letters and was all ripped and a spiky belt. Under that I put on ripped black fishnets and boots that said Joel all over them with blood red letters. I put my ebony black hair out. Anyway I went downstairs feeling all sad and depressed as usual. I did sum advanced Biology work. I was turning a bloody pentagram into a black guitar. Suddenly the guitar turned to Draco!

“Enoby I love you!” he shouted sadly. “I dnot care what those fucker preps and posers fink. Ur da most beautiful girl in the world. Before I met you I used to want to commit suicide all the time. Now I just wanna fucking be with you. I fucking love you!.” Then……………. he started to sing “Da Chronicles of Life and Death” (we considered it our song now cuz we fell in love when Joel was singing it) right in front of the entire class! His singing voice was so amazing and gothic and sexxy like a cross between Gerard, Joel, Chester, Pierre and Marilyn Manson (AN: don’t u fink dos guyz r so hot. if u dnot no who dey r get da fuk out od hr!) .

“OMFG.” I said after he was finished. Some fucking preps stared at us but I just stuck up my middle fingers (that were covered in black nail polish and were entwined with Draco’s now) at them. “I love you!” I said and then we started to kiss just like Hilary Duff (i fukin h8 dat bitch) and CMM in a Cinderella Story. Then we went away holding hands. Loopin shouted at us but he stopped cuz everyone was clapping by how sexy we looked 2gether. Then I saw a poster saying that MCR would have a concert in Hogsmede right then. We looked at each other all shocked and then we went 2gether.

Chapter 16.

AN: u no wut! sut up ok! proov 2 me ur nut prepz! raven u suk u fuken bich gimme bak mah fukijn swteet ur supsd 2 rit dis! Raven wtf u bich ur suposd to dodis! BTW fangz 2 britney5655 4 techin muh japnese!

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We ran happily to Hogsmede. There we saw the stage where GC had played. We ran in happly. MCR were there playing ‘Helena’. I was so fucking happy! Gerard looked even sexier than he did in da pictures. Even Draco thought so, I could totally see him getting an erection but it didn’t matter cuz I knew know that we were da only true ones for eachother. I was wearing a black leather minidress and black leather platinum boots with red ripped fishnets. Draco was wearing a black baggy MCR t-shirt and black baggy pants. Anyway, we stated moshing to Helena. We frenched. We ran up 2 the front of the band to stage-dive. Suddenly, Gerard pulled off his mask. So did the others. We gasped. It wasn’t them at all. It was.,……………………….. Volsemort and da Death Dealers!

“Wtf Draco im not going to a concert wid u!” I shouted angrily. “Not after what happened to me last time? Even if its MCR n u no how much I lik them”

“What cause we…you know…” he gadgetted uncomfortbli cause guys don’t like to talk a bout you-know-what.

“Yeah cause we you know!” I yielded in an angry voice.

“We won’t do that again.” Draco promised. “This time, we’re going with an ESCORT.”

“OMFG wtf/ Are you giving into the mainstream?” I asked. “So I guess ur a prep or a Christina or what now?”

“NO.” he muttered loudly.

“R u becoming a prep or what?” I shootd angrily.

“Enoby! I’m not! Pls come with me!” He fell down to his knees and started singing ‘Da world is black’ by GC to me.

I was flattened cause that’s not even a single, he had memorized da lyrks just 4 me!

“OK then I guess I will have to.” I said and then we frenched 4 a while and I went up 2 my room.

B’loody Mary was standing there. “Hajimemashite gurl.” she said happily (she spex Japanese so do i. dat menz ‘how do u do’ in japanese). “BTW Willow that fucking poser got expuld. she failed al her klasses and she skepped math.” (an: RAVEN U FUKIN SUK! FUK U!)

“It serves that fuking bich right.” I laughed angrily.

Well anyway we where felling all deprezzed. We wutsched some goffic movies like Das niteMARE b4 xmas. “Maybe Willow will die too.” I said.

“Kawai.” B’loody Mair shook her head enrgtically lethrigcly. “Oh yeah o have a confession after she got expuld I murdered her and den loopin did it with her cause he’s a necphilak.”

“Kawai.” I commnted happily . We talked to each other in silence for da rest uv da movie.

“OH HEY BTw, im going to a concert with drako tonight in Hogsmeade with mcr.” I sed. “ I need to wear like da hotset outfit EVA.”

B’Loody Mairy Nodded ENREGeticALLlY. “Omfg totally lets go shopping.”

“In Hot Topic, right?” I asked, already getting out my spshcial Hot Topic Loiyalty carde.

“No.” My head snaped up.

‘WHAT?” my head spuin. I could not believe it. “B’Loody Mary are u a PREP?”

“NOOOO!NOOOO!” She laughed. “I found some cool goffic stores near Hogwarts that’s all.”

“Hu told u abut them” I askd sure it would be Drako or Diabolo or Vampire(don’t even SAY that nam to me!). Or me.

“Dumblydore.” She sed. “Let me just call our broms.”

“OMFFG DUMBLYDORE?” I asked quietly.

“Yah I saw the map for Hogsmeade on his desk.” She told me. “Come on let’s go.”

We were going in a few punkgoff stores SPECIALLY for the concerts in Hogsmeade. The salesperson was OMG HOTTER THAN GERARD EXCEPT NOT CAUSE THAT’S IMPOSSIBLE and he gave me a few dresses. “We only have these for da real goffs.”

“Da real goffs?” Me and B’Loody Mary asked.

“Yah u wouldn’t believe how many posers ther are in this town man! Yesterday loopin and snap tried to buy a goffic camera pouch.” He shook his head. “I dint even no they had a camera.”

“OMFG NO THEIR GONNA SPY ON ME AGAIN!” I cried, running out of the changing room wearing a long black dress with lots of red tulle coming out and very low-cut with a huge slit.

“Oh my satan you have to buy that outfit” The salesperson said.

“Yeah it looks totlly hot.” said B’Loody Mary.

“You know what I am gona give it to you free cause u look really hot in that utfit. Hey are you gonna be at the concert tonight?” he asked.

“Yeah I am actually.” I looked back at him. “Hey BTW my name’s ebondy dark’ness dementia TARA way what’s yours?”

“Tom Rid.” He said and ran a hand through his black-dyed hair. “maybe I’ll see you there tonight.”

“Yeah I don’t think so cause I am going there with my bf drako you sick perv!” I yelled angrily, but before he could beg me to go with him, Hargrid flew in on his black broom looking worried. “OMFG EBONDY U NEED OT GET BACK INTO THE CASTLE NOW!”

Chapter 17.

AN: I sed stup flming da stryo! if ur a prep den dnot red it! u kin tel weder ur a prep or not by ma quiz itz on ma hompage. if ur not den u rok. if u r den FOOOOOK UFFFFFFFFFF! pz willo isn’t rely a prep. Raven plz do dis il promis 2 giv u bak ur postr!

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Tom Riddle gave us some clothes n stuff 4 free. He said he wud help us wif makeup if he wunted koz he was relly in2 fashin n stuff. (hes bisezual). Hargird kept shooting at us to cum back 2 Hogwarts. “WTF Hargrid?” I shouted angrily. “Fuck off you fjucking bastard.” Well anyway Willow came. Hargird went away angrily.

“Hey bitch you look kawaii.” she said.

“Yah but not as kawaii as you.” I answered sadly cause Willow’s really pretty and everything. She was wearing a short black corset-thingy with blood red lace on it and a blak blood-red miniskirt, leather fish-nets and black poiny boots that showed off how pale she wuz. She had a really nice body wif big bobs and everything. She was thin enouff 2 be anorexic.

“So r u going 2 da concert wif Draco?” she asked.

“Yah.” I said happily.

“I’m gong with Diabolo.” she anserred happily. Well anyway Draco and Diabolo came. They were both loking extremely hot and sexy and u could tell they thoufht we were ot 2. Diabolo was wearing a black t-shirt that said ‘666’ on it. He was wearing tons off makeup jus like Marylin Manson. Draco was wearing black leather pants, a gothic black GC t-shirt and black Vans he got from da Warped tower. B’loody Mart was going 2 da concert wif Dracola. Dracola used to be called Navel but it tuned out dat he was kidnapped at birth and his real family were vampires. They dyed in a car crash. Navel converted to Satanism and he went goth. He was in Slitherin now. He was wearing a black Wurped t-shirt, black jeans and shoes and black hair wif red streekz in it. We kall him Dracula now. Well anyway we al went 2 Draco’s black Mercy-Bens (geddit cuz wer gpffik) that his dad Lucian gave him. We did pot, coke and crak. Draco and I made out. We made fun of dose stupid fuking preps. We soon got there…….I gapsed.

Gerard was da sexiest guy eva! He locked even sexier den he did in pix. He had long raven blak hair n piercing blue eyes. He wuz really skinny and he had n amazing ethnic voice. We moshed 2 Helena and sum odder songz. Sudenly Gerard polled of his mask. So did the other membez. I gasped. It wasn’t Gerard at all! It was an ugly preppy man wif no nose and red eyes... Every1 ran away but me and Draco. Draco and I came. It was…….Vlodemort and da Death Deelers!

“U moronic idiots!” he shooted angstily. “Enoby, I told u to kill Vampire. Thou have failed. And now……….I shall kill thou and Draco!”

“No no please!” We begged sadly but he took out his knife.

Sudenly a gothic old man flu in on his broomstick. He had lung black hair and a looong black bread. He wus werring a blak robe dat sed ‘avril lavigne’ on da back. He shotted a spel and Vlodemort ran away. It was…………………………………DUMBLYDORE!

Chapter 18.

AN: I SED STUP FLAMMING! if u do den ur a fuken prep! fangz 2 raven 4 da help n stuf. u rok! n ur nut a prep. fangz for muh sewter! ps da oder eson dumbeldor swor is koz he trin 2 be gofik so der!

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I woke up the next day in my coffin. I walked out of it and put on some black eyeliner, black eyesharrow, blood-bed lipstick and a black really low-cut leather dress that was all ripped and in stripes so you could see my belly. I was wearing a skull belly ring with black and red diamonds inside it.

(Da night before Draco and I rent back to the skull (geddit skull koz im goffik n I like deth). Dumbeldore chased Vlodemort away. We flew there on our brooms. Mine was black and the broom-stuff was blood-red. There was lace all over it. Draco had a black MCR boom. We went back to our rooms and we had you-know-what to a Linkin Park song.)

Well anyway I went down to the Grate Hall. There all da walls were painted black and da tables were black too. But you fould see that there was pink pant underneath the black pant. And there were pastors of poser bands everywhere, like Ashlee Simpson and the Backstreet Boys.

“WTF!” I shouted going to sit next to B’loody Mary and Willow. B’loody Mary was wearing a black leather mini with a Good Chraloote t-shirt, black fishnets and black pointy boots. Willow was wearing a long gothic blak dress with blood red writing that was all lacy and came up to your thighs and black boots and fishnets. Vampire, Dracula and Draco came. We started to talk about who was sexier, Mikey or Gerard Way or Billie Joe Armstrong. The boys joined in cause they were bi.

“Those guys are so fucking hot.” Navel was saying as suddenly a gothic old man with a black beard and everything came. He was the same one who had chassed away Vlodemort yesterday. He had normal tan skin but he was wearing white foundation and he had died his hare black.

“……………….DUMBLEDORE?1!” we all gasped.

“WTF?” I shouted angrily. “I thought he was just wearing that to scare Volsemort!”

“Hello everyone.” he said happily. “As u can see I gave the room a makeover. Whjat do u fink about it?”

Everyone from the poser table in Gryiffindoor started to cheer. Well we goths just looked at each other all disfusted and shook our heads. We couldn’t believe what a poser he was!1.

“BTW you can call me Albert.” HE CALLED AS WE LEFT to our classes.

“What a fucking poser!” Draco shouted angrily as we we to Transfomation. We were holding hands. Vampire looked really jealous. I could see him crying blood in a gothic way (geddit, way lik Gerard) but I didn’t say anything. “I bet he’s havin a mid-life crisis!” Willow shouted.

I was so fucking angry.

Chapter 19. im nut ok i promise

AN: plz stup flaming da story if u do ur a foken prep n ur jelous ok!11 frum noq un im gong 2 delt ur men reviowz!111 BTW evonyd a poorblod so der!1 fangz 2 raven 4m da help!11

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All day we sat angerly finking about Dumbelldore. We were so fucking pissed off. Well, I had one thing to look forward too- da MCR concert. It had been postphoned, so we could all go.

Anyway, I went to the common room sadly to cut classes. Draco was being all secretive.

I asked what it was and he got all mad me and started crying all hot and angsty (rnt sensitve bi guyz so hot).

“No one fucking understands me!1” he shouted angrily as his black hare went in his big blue eyes like Billie Joe in Boulevard of Borken Dreamz. He was wearing black baggy paints, a black MCR t-shirt and a black die. (geddit insted of tie koz im goffik) I was wearing a blak leather low cut top with chains all over it all over it a blak leather mini, black high held boots and a cross belly fing. My hair was al up in a messy relly high bun like Amy Lee in Gong Under. (email me if u wana see da pik)

“Accuse me? What about me!” I growled.

“Buy-but-but-” he grunted.

“You fucking bastard!” I moaned.

“No! Wait! It’s not what it fucking looks like!” he shouted.

But it was to late. I knew what I herd. I ran to the bathroom angrily, cring. Draco banged on the door. I whipped and whepped as my blody eyeliner streammed down my cheeks and made cool tears down my feces like Benji in the video for Girls and Bois (raven that is soo our video!). I TOOOK OUT A CIGARETE END STARTED TO smoke pot.

Suddenly Hargrid came. He had appearated.

“You gave me a fucking shock!” I shouted angrily dropping my pot. “Wtf do you fink you’re doing in da gurl’s room?”

Only it wasn’t just Hargrid. Someone else was with him too! For a second I wanted it 2 b Tom Rid or maybe Draco but it was Dumblydore.

“Hey I need to ask you a question.” he said, pulling out his black wanabe-goffik purse. “What are u wearing to the concert?”

“U no who MCR r!” I gasped.

“No I just saw there was a concert dat a lot of gothz and punx were going 2.” He said. “Anyway Draco has a surprise for u.”

Chapter 20.

AN: I sed I dnoty ker wut u fink! stof pflamin ok prepz!1 fangz 2 raven 4 da help!1 oh yah btw ill be un vacation in transilvania 4 da nex 3 dayz so dnot expect updatz.

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All day I wondered what the surprise was. Meanwhile, I pot on a blak ledder mini, a blak corset with urple lace stuff all over it, an black gothic compact boots. MCR were gong 2 do the concert again, since Volxemort had taken over the last one. I slit my wrists while I moshed 2 MCR in my bedroom all night, feeling excited. Suddenly someone knocked on the door while I was trying on sum black clothes and moshing to Fang u 4 da Venom. I gut all mad and turned it of, but sacredly I hopped inside dat it was Draco so we could do it again.

“Wut de fucking hell r u doing!” I shouted angrily. It was Loopin! “R u gonna cum rape me or what.” I yelled. I was allowed to say dat because Dumblydore had told us all 2 be careful around hem and Snap since he was a pedo.

“No, actshelly (geddit, hell) kan I plz burrow sum condemns.” he growld angrily.

“Yah, so u can fuk ur six-yr-old gurlfriend, huh?” I shouted sarkastikally.

“Fuker.” He said, gong away.

Well anyway, I put on some black eyesharow, black eyeliner, and some black lipstick and white foundation. Then I went. Den I gasped…………………………………………………………….Snake and Loopin were in da middle of da empty hall, doin it, and Dobby was watching!1

“Oh my god you ludacris idiot!” they both shooted angrily when they saw me. Dobby ran away crying. Dey got up, though. Normally I wood have ben turned on (I luv cing guyz do it) but both of them were fuking preps. (btw snake is movd 2 griffindoor now)

“WTF is that why u wanted condoms?” I asked sadistically. (c I speld dat)

“Only you wouldn’t give them to me!” Lumpkin shouted angrily.

“Well you shoulda told me.” I replayed.

“You dimwit!.” Snake began 2 shoot angrily. And then………I took out my black camera and took a pic of them. U could see that they were naked and everything.

“Well xcuse me!” they both shouted angrily. “What was dat al about?”

“It wuz to blackmail u.” I snarked. “So now next time you see me doing it with my boyfriend you cant fuking rat me out or I’ll show dis to Dumbledork. So fuck off, u bastards!” I started to run. They chased me but I threw my wound at them and dey tripped over it. Well anyway, I went outside and there was Vampire, looking extremely fucking hot.

“WTF where’d Draco?” I asked him.

“Oh he’s bein a fucking bastard. He told me he wouldn’t cum.” Vampire said shaking his hed. “U wanna cum with me? 2 the concert?”

Then….. he showed me his flying car. I gasped. It was a black car. He said his dogfather Serious Blak had given it 2 him. The license plate on the front sed MCR666 on it. The one on da back said ‘ENOBY’ on it.

……….I gasped.

We flew to the concert hall. MCR were there, playing.

Vampire and I began 2 make out, moshing to the muzik. I gapsed, looking at da band.

I almost had an orgasim. Gerard was so fucking hot! He begin 2 sing ‘Helena’ and his sexah beautiful voice began 2 fill the hall. ……….And den, I heard some crrying. I turned and saw Draco, cryin in a corner.

Chapter 21.

AN: fuk u ok! u fokng suk. itz nut ma fult if itz speld rong ok koz dat bich ravern cuz it fok u prepz!1 woopz soz raven fangz 4 da help. btw transilvana rox hrad!1 I even gut 2 go 2 da kasel wer drkola was flimed!

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Later we all went in the skull. Draco was crying in da common room. “Draco are u okay?” I asked in a gothic voice.

“No I’m not u fuking bitch!” he shouted angrily. He stated to run out of the place in a suicidal way. I stated to cry cuz I was afraid he would commit suicide.

“Its ok Enoby.” said Vampire comfortly. “Ill make him feel better.”

“U mean you’ll go fuck him wont you!” I shouted angrily. Then I ran 2 get Draco. Vampire came too.

“Draco please come!” he began to cry. Tears of blood came down his pail face. I wuz so turned on cuz I love sensitive bi guyz. (if ur a homophone den fuk of!)

And then………………………….. we herd sum footsteps! Vampire got out his blak invincibility coke. We both gut under it. We saw the janitor Mr. Norris there, shouting angrily with a flashlight in his hand.

“WHOSE THERE!” he shouted angrily. We saw Filth come. He went unda da invisibility cloke and started to meow loudly.

“IS ANY1 THERE!” yelled Mr. Norris.

“No fuck u you preppy little poser sun of a fukcing bich!” Vampire said under his breast in a disgusted way.

“EXCUS ME! EXCUS ME WHO SED DAT!” yelled Mr. Norris. Den he heard Filch meow. “Filth is der any1 unda da cloak!” he asked. Filth nodded. And then……………………….Vampir frenched me! He did it jus as…………………….. Mr. Norris was taking of da cloak!1

“WHAT DA-” he yelled but it was 2 late cuz now we were ruining away frum him. And den we saw Draco crying n bustin in2 tearz and slitting his rists outside of da school.

“Draco!” I cried. “R u okay?”

“I guess though.” Draco weeped. We went back to our coffins frenching each other. Draco and I decided to watch Lake Placid (c isnt da deprezzin) on the gothic red bed together. As I wuz about 2 put in the video, my eyes rolled up and suddenly I had a vision of something that was happening now. There was a knok on the door and Fug and da Mystery of Magic walked into the school!1

Chapter 22.

AN: stfu! prepz stup flaming ok if u dnot lik it fuk of I no itz mr. noris itz raven’s folt ok!11 u suk!1 no jus kidding raven u fokieng rok prepz suk!1

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All day everyone talked about the Misery of Magic. Well anyway, I woke up the next day. I was in my coffin so I opened the door. I was wearing blak lacey leather pajamas. Then I gasped.

Standing in front of me where………………. B;loody Mary, Vampire, Diabolo, Draco, Dracula and Willow!

I opened my crimson eyes. Willow was wearing a tight black leather top with pictures of bloody roses all over it. Under that she wart a black poofy skirt wit lace on it and black gothic boots that was attached to the top. Vampire was wearing a baggy Simple Plan t-shirt and baggy black pants and Vans. Draco was wearing a black MCR t-shirt and blak jeans and a leather jacket. He looked just likee Gerard Way, and almost as fucking sexy. Vampire looked like Joel Madden. B’loody Mary was wearing a tight black poofy gothic dress that she had ripped so it showed of all her clearage with a white apron that said ‘bich’ and other swear words and MCR lyrics on it kind of like one dress I had seen Amy Lee wear once. Darkness (who is Jenny) was there too. She was weaving a ripped gothic black dress with ripped stuff all over it and a lace-up top thing and black pointy boots. So were Crab and Goyle. It turns out that Darkness, Diabolo, Crab and Goyle’s dad was a vampire. He committed suicide by slitting his wrists with a razor. He had raped them and stuff before too. They all got so depressed that they became goffik and converted to Stanism.

“OMFG” I yielded as I jumped up. “Why the fuck are u all here?”

“Enoby something is really fucked up.” Draco said.

“OK but I need to put my fucking clothes on first.” I shouted angrily.

“It’s all right. We have to go now and you look kawaii anyway. Your so fucking beautiful.” Draco said in a sexy voice.

“Oh all right.” I said smiling. “But you have to tell me why your being all erective.”

“I will I will.” he said.

So I just put on some black eyeliner, black lipstick and red eyeshadow and white foundation. Then I came. We all went outside the Great Hal and looked in from a widow. A fucking prep called Britney from Griffindoor was standing next to us. She was wearing a pink mini and a Hilary Duff t-shirt so we put up our middle fingers at her. Inside the Great Hall we could see Dumbledork. Cornelia Fudged was there shouting at Dumbledore. Doris Rumbridge was there too.

“THIS CANNOT BE!” she shouted angrily. “THE SCHOOL MUST BE CLOSED!”

“THE BARK LORD IS PLANNING TO KILL THE STUDENTS!” yelled Cornelia Fudge.

“YOU ARE NOT FIT TO BE THE PRINCIPAL ANY LONGER!” yelled Rumbridge. “YOU ARE TOO OLD AND YOUR ALZHEIMERS IS DANGEROUS! YOU MUST RETRY OR VOLDEMORT WILL KILL YOUR STUDENTS!”

“Very well.” Dumbledore said angrily. “Butt we cannot do this. We can’t close the school. There is only one person who is capable of killing Voldemort and she is in the school. And her name is…………………………………………………………………..Enony Dark’ness Dementia Raven Way.”

Draco, Crab, Goyle, Darkness, Willow, Vampire and B’loody Mary looked at each other………I gasped.

Chapter 23.

AN: dhut da fok up biches!1 ur jus jelos koz I gut 10000 reviowz!1 fangz 2 raven 4 da help n telin me bout da boox gurlu rok letz go shopin 2getha!

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The door opened and Proffesor Rumbridge and Cornelia Fudge stomped out angrily. Then Dumbledum and Rumbridge sawed us.

“MR. WAY WHAT THE BEEP ARE YOU DOING!” Rumbridge shouted angrily. Dumbledore blared at her.

“Oops she made a mistake!” he corrupted her. “She means hi everybody cum in!”

Well we all came in angrily. So did all the other students. I sat between Darkness and Draco and opposite B’loody Mary. Crab and Goyle started 2 make some morbid jokes. They both looked exactly like Ville Vollo. I eight some Count Chocula and drank som blood from a cup. Then I herd someone shooting angrily. I looked behind me it was………Vampire! He and Draco were shooting at eachother.

“Vampire, Draco WTF?” I asked.

“You fucking bustard!” yelled Draco at Vampire. “I want to shit next to her!1”

“No I do!” shouted.

“No she doesn’t fucking like u, you son of a bitch!” yelled Draco.

“No fuck you motherfucker she laves me not you!” shouted Vampire. And then……………… he jumped on Draco! (no not in dat way u perv) They started to fight and beat up each other.

Dumbldore yelled at them but they didn’t stop. All of a sudden…… a terrible man with red eyes and no nose flew in on his broomstick. He had no nose and was wearing a gray robe. All the glass in the window he flew thru fell apart. Britney that fucking prep started to cry. Vampire and Draco stopped fighting….I shopped eating….Everyone gasped. Da room fell silent………………….Volzemort!

“Eboby…..Ebony…….” Darth Valer sed evilly in his raspy voice. “Thou havfe failed ur mission. Now I shall kill thou and I shall kill Vampire as well. If thou does not kill him before then I shall kill Draco too!”

“Plz don’t make me kill him plz!” I begged.

“No!” he laughed crudely. “Kill him, or I shall kill him anyway!” Then he flew away cackling.

I bust into tears. Draco and Vampire came to contort me. Suddenly my eyes rolled up so they looked all cool and gothic. I had a vision were I saw some lighting flash and then Voldremot coming to kill Draco while Draco slit his wrists in a depressed way.

“No!” I screamed sexily. Suddenly I locked up and stopped having the vision.

“Ebony Ebony aure you alright?” asked Draco in a worried voice.

“Yeah yeah.” I said sadly as I got up.

“Everyfing’s all right Enoby.” said Vampire all sensetive.

“No its not!” I shouted angrily. Tearz of blood went down my face. “OMFG what if I’m getting possessed like in Da Ring 2!”

“Its ok gurl.” said B’loody Mary. “Maybe u should ask Proffesor Sinister about what the visions mean though.”

“Ok bich.” I said sadly and den we went.

Chapter 24.

AN: prepz stup flaming da story ur jus jelous so fuk u ok go 2 hel!11 raven fagz 4 di help!

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Well we had Deviation next so I got to ask Proffessor Trevolry about the visions.

“Konnichiwa everybody come in.” said Proffesor Sinister in Japanese. She smelled at me with her gothic black lipstick. She’s da coolest fucking teacher ever. She had long dead black hair with blood red tips and red eyes. (hr mom woz a vampire. She’s also haf Japanese so she speaks it and everyfing. she n b’loody mry get along grate) She’s really young for a teacher. 2day she was wearing a black leather top with red lace and a long goffik black ripped dress. We went inside the black classroom with pastors of Emily the Strong. I raced my hand. I was wearing some black naie Polish with red pentagrams on it.

“What is it Ebony?” she asked. “Hey I love ur nail polish where’d u get it, Hot Topik?”

“Yeah.” I answered. All the preps who didn’t know what HT was gave me weird looks. I gave them the middle finger. “Well I have to talk to you about some fings. When do you want to due it?”

“Ho about now?” she asked.

“OK.” I said.

“OK class fucking dismissed every1.” Proffesor Trevolry said and she let every1 go. “Except for you Britney.” she pointed at Britney and sum other preps. “Please do exorcize (geddit) 1 on page 3.”

“OK I’m having lotz of visions.” I said in a worried voice. I’m so worried is Draco gong 2 die.

Well she gave me a black cryptal ball to lock in. I looked at it.

“What do you c?” she asked.

“I said I see a black gothic skull and a pentagram.”

Suddenly there was a knock at the door. I looked at it. It was Draco. He was looking really sexy wearing a black leather facet, a black gothic Linkin Park t-shirt and blak Congress shoes.

“Okay you can go now, see ya cunt.” said Proffesor Sinister.

“Bye bitch.” I said waving.

I went to Draco and Vampire was sitting next to him. We both followed Draco together and I was so exhibited.

Chapter 25.

AN: stop flaming ok if u dnot den il tel Justin 2 bet u up!1111 n il tel al da nredz 2 put vrtuz in ur computer!11111111111 FUK UU!1 raven fangz for de help!1

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I was so excited. I fellowed Draco wandering if we where going 2 do it again. We went outside and then we went into Draco’s black car.

“Ebony what the fuck did Profesor Trevolry say.” whispered Draco potting his gothic whit hand with bvlak nail polish on mine.

“She said she would tell me what the visions meant torromow.” I grumbled in a sexy voice. He took out a heroin cabaret and spiked it, and gave it to me to spork. He started to fly the car into a tree. We went to the top of it. Draco put on some MCR.

“And all the things that you never ever told me
And all the smiles that are ever gonna haunt me.” sang Gerard’s sexy voice. We started tiling of each other’s cloves fevently. He took of my blak thong and my black leather bar. I took of his black boxers. Then……………………… he put his trobbing you-know-what in my tool sexily.

“OMFG Draco Draco!” I screamed having an orgism. We stated frenching passively. Suddenly………… I fell asleep. I started having a dream. In it a black guy was shooting two goffik men with long black hair.

“No! Please don’t fucking kill us!1” they pleaded but he just kept shooting them. He ran away in a red car.

“No! Oh my fucking god!11” I shouted in a scared voice.

“Ebony what’s wrong?” Draco asked me as I woke up opening my icy blue eyes.

I started to cry and tears of blood went down my face. I told Draco to call Vampire. He did it with his blak Likin Park mobile. Butt the worst thing was who the ppl who were shot in the dream where……………………… Lucian and Serious!111

Chapter 26.

AN: PREPZ STUP FLAMING SDA STRY OK!1 if u dnot lik da story den go fok urself u fokeng prep! U SUK!111 oh y and I wuznt beng rasist ok!11

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A few mutates later Vampire came 2 da tree. He was wearing a blak leather jackson, black leather pants and a Good Chralotte t-shirt.

“Hi Vampire.” I said flirtily as I started to sob. Draco hugged me sexily tryont to comfrot me. I started to cry tears of blood and then told them what happened.

“Oh fuck it!” Vampire shouted angrily. He4 started to cry sadly. “What fucking dick did that!”

“I don’t know.” I said. “Now come on we have 2 tell Dumbledor.”

We ran out of the tree and in2 da castle. Dumblydor was sitting in his office.

“Sire are dads have been shot!” Draco said while we wipped sum tears from his white face. “Enoby had a vision in a dreem.”

Dubleodre started to cockle. “Hahahaha! And How due u aspect me to know Ebony’s not divisional?”

I glared at Dumbledore.

“Look motherfucker.” he said angrily as Dumbeldore gasped (c is da toot of crakter). “U know very well that I’m not decisional. Now get some fucking ppl out there to look for Series and Lucian- pornto!”

“Okay.” he said in a intimated voice. “Were are they?”

I fought about it. Then all of a sudden….. “Longdon.” I said. I told him which street. He went and called some people and did some stuff. After a few mistunes he came back and said people were going out looking for them. After a while someone called him again. He said that they had been found. Draco, Vampire and I all left to our rooms together. I went with Draco to wait in the nurses office while Vampire went to slit his wrists in his room. We looked at each other’s gothic, derperessed eyes. Then, we kissed. Suddenly Serious and Lucian came in on stretchers……………………….and Proffesor Sinister was behind them!1

Chapter 27. vampirz wil never hurt u

AN: u no wut!111 I dnot giv a fok wut u prepz fink abot me!1111 so stup flaming da foking story bichez!1111 fangz 2 raven 4 ur luv n sport n help i luv u gurl soz i kodnt update lol I wuz rly deprezzd n I silt muh rists I had 2 go 2 da hospital rraven u rok gurl!11111111111111111111

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Every1 in the room stated to cry happly- I had saved them. Drako, Lucian, Serious bond Vampire all came to hug me. The nurse started to give them medicine.

“Cum on Enoby.” said Proffesor Sinatra. She was wearing a gothic blak leader dress with a corset top and real vampir blood on it and fuking black platinum boots. “I have to tell you the fucking perdition.”

I locked at Lucian, Serifs, Drake and Vampire. They nodded.

I smelled happily and went into a dark room. I had changed Profesor Sinister took out some black cards. She started to look into a black crucible ball. She said……………………… “Tara, I see drak times are near.” She said badly. She peered into da balls. “You see, you must go back in time.” She took out a Time-Toner like B’loody Mary had. “When Voldemint was in Hogwarts before he became powerful he gut his hearth borken. Now do you fink he would still become Volxemort if he was in love?” I shook my head. “U must go back in time and sedouce him. It is the only way. If he is still evil then you must kill him. You can come to my room tomorrow and you can do it.”

“Okay.” I said sadly. We did dethz tuch sin. I went outside again sadly.

“What fucking happened?” asked Draco and Vampire.

“Yeah what happened?” asked Darkness, Willow and Boldy Mary?

I was about to tell them butt every1 was there. They were celebrating Lucian and Sirius being fond. Everyone was proud of me butt I jut wonted 2 talk 2 Draco. They were cheesing my name and some reporters were there, trying to interview Dumblydore. A banner was put up. Lotz of fucking prepz were there oviously tring 2 be b goffik wering the HIM sign on their handz- depite them not having akshelly heard of him. Even Mr. Noris looked happy. A blak and red cake had been brought out. Crabbe and Goyke set up some fireworx in the shape of skulls from Wesley’s Whizard Wises.

I put on my Invisibility coke with Vampire and Draco and we sneaked outside 2gether.

Chapter 28.

AN: I sed stop gflmaing da story it wuz a miskat wen profsor relory sed dat ok!11111111 GO 2 FOKENG HELL!1111 U SUK! fangz 2 fily 4 da help!1! raven hav fun wif kiwi!1111111

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We went in2 a blak room. The wallz were blak with portraits of gothic bands lik MCR, GC and Marlin Mason all over them. A big black coffin was in the middle. Red vevlet lined da blak box. There were three chairs made of bones with real skullz in dem. I wuz wearing a blak corset bar wif purple stuff on it, fishnet suckings and a blak leather thong underneath.

I sat down one of da chairs dispersedly. So did Drako and Vampire.

“Are you okay?” Vampir asked potting his albastard hand on mine. He was wearing black nail polish. I was wearing blak nail polish with red crosses on it.

“Yah I guess.” I said sadly. Drako also pot his hand on mine sexily. I smiled sadly with my blak lipstick. “The problem is……………………….I have to seduce Volxemort. Ill have 2 go bak in time”

Draco started to cry sadly. Vampire hugged him.

“Itz okay Eboby.” he said finally. “But what about me? Ur not gonna brake up or anyfing, are you?”

“Of coarse not!” I gasped.

“Really?” he asked.

“Sure.” I said.

We frenched sexily. Vampire looked at us longingly.

Then………… I took off Draco’s MCR shrift and seductvely took of his pants. He was hung lik a stallone. He had replaced the Vampire tattoo that said Enoby on it. Black roses were around it. I gasped. He lookd exactly lik Gerard Way. Vampire took a vido camera. (I had sed it wuz ok b4).

I took of my clothes den we were in 4 da rid of r lif.

We started freching as we climbed into the cofin. He put his spock in my you-know-what and passively we did it.

“I love you Eboby. Oh let me feel u I need 2 feel u.” he screamed as we got an orgasm. We watched Vampire filmed everything perfectly. Suddenly………………………….

“WHAT THE FUCK R U DOING!”

It was………………………….Snope and Profesor McGoggle!111

Chapter 29.

AN: sot das fok up!11 ur jus jelouz koz ur prepz so fok u!1111 raven u rok gurl fangz 4 da help MCR ROX 666!111111111111

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“Oh my satan!1” we screamed as we jamped out of da coffin. Snap and Professor McGoonagle started to shoot at us angrily.

“CUM NOW!1!” Preacher McGongel yielded. We did guiltily. We left the room putting on our clothes. Snoop garbed the caramel and put it in his pocket.

“Hey what the fuck!111” Vampire shooted angrily.

“Yeah buster what the fuck are u going to do with the fucking camera?” Draco demonded all protective, looking at me Longley with his gothic red eyes. “Look, Dumblehor noes your little secret and if u do dis again, then u will go to St Mango’s. So give back da camera!1111”

Hahahaha the Mystery of Mogic thinks he is crazy there is no way dey wil believe him. Snoop laughed meanly.

“Yes so shut your mputh you inlosent fools!” yelled Proffesor McGoggle. She made us cum into a weird room with white stones all around it. There were all these werid tools in it. Draco started to cry all sexy and sexitive (geddit koz hes a sexbom lol tom felnot rulez 4 lif but nut as muxh as gerard ur sex on legz I luv u u fokeng rok mary me!111).

I started to cry tearz of blood (it hapnz in vrampir kroniklz raven sed so ok so fok u!1). Vampire took out a black honkerchief and started to wipe my red eyes.

And then……………….. he and Snoop both took out guns using magic. They started to shoot each other angrily. Non of the ballots gut on eachodder yet. I took out my wand.

“Crosio!” I shouted. Snap stated 2 scram he dropd da gun. But it was too late. Both of them had run out of ballets. I STOPPED DA CURSE. Profesor McGoogle did a spell so that we were all chained up. She took out a box of tools. Den she said “OK Serverus I’m going 2 go now.” She left. Snap started to laugh evilly. Vampire started to cry.

“It’s ok Enoby.” said Draco. “Evergreen will be all right. Remember the cideo u took of Snake.”

Snape laughed again. And then...he took out some whips!1!1111

Chapter 30.

AN: stop flaming da story ok u dnot no wutz even gona happen ok!1111 so FUL U!111 if u flam u wil be a prep so al flamerz kan kiss muh ass!111 soz 4 soz 4 sayin alzhimers is dongerous but datz da mysteries opinin koz sosiety basically sux. fangz 2 raven u rok bich!111

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“No!11” we screamed sadly. Snap stated loafing meanly. He took out a kamera anvilly. Then…………………… he came tords Darko!1! He took sum stones out of his poket. He put da stones around Draco and nit a candle.

“What the fuck r u doing!” I shooted arngrily. Snoop laughed meanly. He polled down his pants. I gasped- there was a Dork Mark on his you-know-wut!11!

He waved his wand and a nife came. He gave da knife 2 me.

“U must stab Vrompire.” he said to me. “If u don’t then I’ll rap Draco!1”

“No you fucking bastrad!1” I yielded.

But den Draco looked at me sadly with his evil goffik red eyes dat looked so depressant and sexy. He lookd exactly like a pentragram (lol geddit koz im a satanist) between Kurt Cobain and Gerard. But then I looked at Vampire and he looked so smexy too wif his goffik black hair. I thought of da time when we screwed and the time I did it with Draco and Dumblydore came and the tame where Draco almost commited suicide and Vampire wuz so sportive.

Snipe laughed angrily. He started to prey to Volxemort. He started to do an incapacitation dancing around the stokes whipping Draco and Vampire. Suddenly an idea I had. I clozd my eyes and using my vampire powers I sent a telepathetic massage to Drako and Vampire so they would destruct Snape.

“Dumbeldork will get u!” Draco shooted.

“Yah just wait ubtil da Mystery find out!11” Vampire yelled. Meanwhile I took out my wand.

“You ridiculus dondderhed!111” Snoop yielded. He took off all of Drico’s clothes. Just as he was about to rape him…………………….

“Crosio!” I shited pointing my wound. Snoop scremed and started running around da room screming. Meanwhile I grabed my blak mobile and sent a txt 2 Serious. I stopped doing crucio.

“You dunderhed!111 Im going to kill-” shooted Snape but suddenly Serverus came.

Snake put the whip behind his bak. “Oh hello Sev I wuz just teaching them sumthing.” he lied. But suddenly Lusian and Profesor Trevolry came in2 da room and they and Serious unlocked the chains and put dem around Snap. Then Profesor Trevolry said ‘Come on Ebony let’s go.”

Chapter 31.

AN: I sed shut da fok up u quiephs!111 stop kalin ebony a mary su ok u dnot even no wutz gong 2 happen ok so fuk u!1111 fangz 2 muh bff raven 4 di help!1111

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“I always knew u were on Voldemort’s side, you sun of a bitca (bufy rox!111).” Serious said 2 Snape.

“No I’m not I was teaching them somefing!1” Snap clamed.

“Oh fucking yeah?” I took some blak Volremortserum out of my poket and gave it to Serverus. He made Snap dirnk it. He did arngrily. Then Luscious took out a tape recorder and started playing it while he did curses on Snap. Then Proffesor Sinister and Lucian made us get out wif them while Snape told his secretes. Lucian took Vampure and Draco to the nurse after thanking me a millon times. Profesor Trevolry took me to a dark room. Now I wuz going to go back in time to sedouce Volxemort. Moving posters of MCR and Nrivana were all over. Hermoine, Darkness and Willow came too. B’loody Mary gave me a blak bag from Tom Rid’s store.

“Whatz in da bag?” I asked Profesor Trevolry.

“U will c.” she said. I opened thee bag. In it was a sexy tite low-smut black leather gothic dress. It had red korset stuff and there was a silt up da leg. I put it on. My frendz helped me put on blak fishnetz and blak pointy boots Willow had chosen. Willow and Darkness helped me put on black eyeliner and blod-red lipshtick.

“You look fucking kawaii, bitch.” B’loody Mary said.

“Fangs.” I said.

“Ok now you’re going to go back in tim.” said Proffesor Sinister. “U will have to do it in a few sessionz.” She gave me a blak gun. I put it in a strap on my fishnetz like in Redisnet Evill. Then she gave me a black time-tuner. “After an hour use da time torner to go back here.” Proffesor Trevolry said. Then she and B’loody Mary put a Pensive in front of me. Every1 went in front of it.

“Good luk!1” Everryone shooted. Darkess and Willow gave me deth’s touch sin. Then……….. I jumped sexily in2 da Pensive.

Suddenly I was in fornt of teh School. In front of me wuz one of da sexiest goth guyz I had ever seen. He was wering long blak hair, kinda like Mikey Way only black. He had gren eyes like Billie Joe Amstrung and pale whit skin. He wuz wearing a blak ripped up suit wif Vans. It was…………………….Tom Bombodil!1111

Chapter 32.

AN: I sed stup fflaming I no his nam iznt tom bodil dat wuz a mistak!1111 if u dnot lik de story den u kan go skrew urself!11111 U SUK!111111

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“Hi.” I said flirtily. “Im Enoby Way da new student.” I shok my pale handz wif their blak noil polish wif him.

“Da name’s Tom.” he said. “But u kan call me Satan. Datz ma middle nam”

We shok hands. “Well come on we have 2 go upstairs.” Satan said. I followed him. “Hey Satan……..do u happen to be a fan of Gren Day?” (sinz mcr and evinezenz dont exist yet den) I asked.

“Oh my fuking god, how did u know?” Satan gasped. “actually I like gc a lot too.”(geddit coz gc did that song I just wanna live that’s ounded really 80s)

“omg me too!” I replied happily.

“guess what they have a concert in hogsment.” satan whispered.

“hogsment?” I asked.

“yeah that’s what they used to call it in these time before it became Hogsmeade in 2000.” he told me all sekrtivly. “and theres a really cool shop called Hot-“

‘topic!” I finshed, happy again.

He froned confusedly. “noo its called Hot Ishoo.” He smiled skrtvli again. “then in 1998 dey changd it to hot topic.” he moaned.

“ohh.” now everything was making sense for me. “so is dumblydor your princepill?” I shouted.

“uh-huh.” he looked at his black nails. “im in slitherin’”

“OMfG SHME TOO!” I SHRIEDKED.

“u go to this skull?”(geddit cos im goffik) he asked.

“yah that’s why im here im NEW.” I SMELLED HAPPili.

Suddenly dumblydore flew in on his broomstuck and started shredding at us angrily. “NO TALKING IN THE HALLS!” he had short blonde hair and was wearing a polo shirt from Amrikan ogle outfters. “STUPID GOFFS!”

satan rolled his eyes. “his so mean to us goffs and punks just becose we’re in slytherine and we’re not preps.”

I turned around angrily. “actually I fink mebe its becos ur da barke lord.”

“wtf?” he asked angrily.

“oh nuffin.” I said sweetly.

then suddenlyn………………. the floor opened. “OMFG NO I SCEAMED AS I FEEL DOWN. everyone looked At ME weirdly.”

“hey where r u goin?” satan asked as I fell.

I got out of the hole n it was bak in the pensive in professor trevolry’s classroom. dumblydum wuz dere. “dumblydore I think I just met u.” I said.

“oh yeah I rememba that.” dumblydor said, trying to be all goffik.

sinister came in. “hey dis is my classroom wait wtf enoby what da hell r u doing?”

:”um.” I looked at her.

“oh yeaH I forgot bout that.”

“wth how?” I screamed forgetting she was a teacher for a second. but shes a goff so its ok.

professor sinster looked sad. “um I was drinking voldemortserum.” she started to cry black tears of depression. dumblydum didn’t know about them.

“hey r u crying tears of blood?” he asked curiously, tuching a tear.

“fuck off!” we both said and dumblydum took his hand away.

professor sinster started crying again in her chair, sobbing limpid tears. “omfg enoby…I think im addicted to Voldemortserum.”

AN: SEE U FOKKING PREPZ GO FOK URSELXXZ DATZ SERUS ISSUZ 2O GO 2 HELL!1111112

Chapter 33.

AN: I sed shut up itz nut my folt ok if u don’t lik da story den ur a prep so fuk u flamerz!1111 ps im nut updating ubtil u giv me fiv god reviewz nd diz tim I men it!111111 U SUK!1111 fangz raven 4 di help il promiz to help u wif ur story lolz1

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“Oh my fuking god!1” I shooted sadly. “Shud we get u 2 St Manga’s, bitch?”

“Hel no!” she said. “Lizzen Egogy, I need ur help. Nex tim u go bak in tim, do u fink u kod ask Tom Andorson 4 sum help?”

“Sure I said sadly. I went outside the door. Draco was there!111 He wuz wearing a big blak GC tshit which wuz his panamas.

“Hey Sexxy.” I said.

“How’d it go Enoby?” he asked in his voice was so sexy and low kinda like Gerard Way when hes talking.

“Fine.” I reponded. We stared 2 go bak in2 da dorm.

“How far did u go wif Satan?” Drako asked jealously.

“Not 2 far, lol.” I borked.

“Will you hav to do it with him?” Draco asked angstily.

“I hop not 2 far!111” I shouted angrily. Den I felt bad 4 shooting at him. I said sorry. We frenched.

“What happened 2 Snipe?” I growled.

“U will see.” Draco giggled mistressly. He opened a door……………Snap nd Lumpkin werz there!11 Serious waz pokering dem by staging dem wif a blak nife.

“NOOOO PLZ!1111” Lumpkin bagged as Serious started 2 suk his blood. I laffed statistically. I tok some photons of him and Snap bing torqued. (ok I no dis iz men but fink abot it ppl dey r pedoz nd Snap trid 2 rap dem and neway sadiztz rok haz any1 seen shrak atak 3 lolz). We took sum of Snipe’s blod den Drako and I went bak 2 our roomz. We sat on my goffik blak coffin. My cloves were kinda drity so I pot on a blak leather outfit fingie kinda like da 1 Suelene haz in Undreworld. (if u haven’t herd of it den FUK U!111) . I put on some blak platform high heelz. Darko put on ‘desolition liverz’ by MCR. Den………………………………………….we storted 2 take of eachotherz clozez. I tok of his shit nd he had a six-pak, lolz. We started 2 mak out lik in Da Grudge. He pot his wetnes in my u-know-what sexily. I gut an orgy.

“Oh Draco!111111!1 Oh mi fuking gud Draco!1111” I screemed passively as he got an eructation.

“I luv u TaEbory.” he whispred sexily and den we fel aspleep lol.

Chapter 34.

AN: SHOT DA FOK UP PREPZ!1111 hav u even red de story!11 u r proly al just prepz nd posrs so FUK U!111 fangz 2 raven 4 da help!1

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I wook up in da coffin de next day. Draco waz gone. I got up and put on a blak tight sexah drsss that was all ripped at da end. There wuz red korset stuff going up da fornt and da bak and it came up 2 my knees. There wuz a slit in da dress lik in mr & mr simth. I pot on ripped blak fishnets and blak stilton bo-ots. Suddenly…………………. Sorious cocked on da door. I hopened it.

“Hi Ibony.” he said. “Gezz wut u have 2 cum 2 Profesor Sinistor’s office.”

“Ok.” I said in a deprezzd voice. I had wanted to fuk Draco or maybe lessen to MCR or Evonezcence. I came anyway.

“So what the fuck happened 2 Snipe and Loopin?” I asked Sorious flirtily.

“I fucking tortured them.” he answered in a statistic way. “They r in Abkhazian now, lol.”

I laughed evilly.

“Where r Draco and Vampira?” I muttered.

“Dey are xcused form skool 2day.” Sodomize moaned sexily. “Rite now they are watching Da Nigtmare b4 Xmas.”

We went into da office. Proffesor Sinister was there. She was wearing a goffik blak dress that was all ripped all over it kinda lik da one Amy Lee wears in this pic

( http/ She wuz drinking some Volximortserum.

She took out da Pensiv and the time-torner.

“Enoby, you will have to do anozzer session now. Also I need u to get me da cure 4 being adikited.” she said sadly. “Good luck. Fangz!”

And then……….I jumped into the Prinsive again. Suddenly I looked around……………I was in da Grate Hall eating Count Chorcula. It was mourning. I was sitting next to Satan. On a table was a tall gottik man wif long blak hair, pail skin and blue eyes wering a suit and blak Cronvrese shoes. He looked just like Charlyn Manson. I noticed……he was drinking a portent.

“Whose he!11” I asked.

“Oh, datz Profesor Slutborn.” Satan said. “He’s da Portents teacher…………..Ebony?”

“Yah?” I asked.

“Did u know dat Marylin Mason is playing in Hogsemade tonight? And they r showing The Exercise at da movies b4 dat.”

“Yah?”

“Well…...want 2 go 2 da contort and da movie wif me?”

Chapter 35. gost of u

AN: fangz 2 suzi 4 da idea!1 u rok! fuk of prepz!11111111 fangz 2 raven 4 di help u rok gurl!1 ps im gong 2 end da stroy rlly sun so FUK U!111 oh yah nd if u no eny gofik namz plz tel me koz I ned 1 4 serius!1 fangz.

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I went in2 da Conmen Room finking of Satan. Suddenly I gasped………………..Draco wuz there!111

I grasped. He locked as hut as eva werring blak ledder pants, a blak Lonken Prak t-shrit and blak eyeliner.

“Draco what da fuk r u dong!111111” I gosped.

“Huh?” he asked. Then I remembred. It wuzn’t Draco. It was Lucan!1 He stil had two arms.

“Oh hi Lucian!1” I sed. “Im Ebony the new student lol we shook handz.”

“Yah Satan told me abot you.” Lusian said. He pinted to a groop of sexxxy gottik guyz. They where siting in a corner kutting. It wuz Serious, Vampire’s dad and………………Snap! All of them were wearing blak eyeliner and blak Good Chralootte band shirts. “Lizzen I’m in a goth band wif those guys.” he said. “Were playing 2nite at da Marylin Mason show as back-up.

“ORLY.” I ESKED.

“Yeah.” he said. “Were calld XBlakXTearX. I play teh gutter. Spartacus plays da drums” he said ponting to him. “Snap plays the boss. And Jamez plays the guitar to even fo we call him Samaro, after Samara in da ring.”

“Hey bastards.” I told them they gave me Dethz tuch sin. Suddenly I gasped again. “But don’t u have a lead singer!” I asked. Lucian looked dawn sadly.

“We uzd to but she did. She contempted suicide by silting her rists.”

“Oh my fuking god!11 Datz so fuking sad!1” I gasped.

“Its okay but we need a new led snigger.” Samaro said.

“Wel………..I said Im in a bnad myself.”

“Rilly?” asked Snap. I cudnt belive it. He used 2 b goffik!111

“Yeah were called Blody Gothik Rose 666. Do u wanna hr me sing?”

Yeah said everyone. So the guys tok out der guitarz. They began to pay a song bi (geddit koz bi guyz r sooo sexah!11) Gurn Day.

“I wok dis empt stret on da bolevrad of broken dremz.” I sang sexily (I dnot own da lyrikz 2 dat song).. Every1 gasped.

“Enopby? Will u join da band? Plz!1” begged Lucian, Samoro, Serious and Snap.

“Um…….ok.” I shrugged. “Are we gong to play tonight?”

“Yah.” they said.

“Ok.” I said but I new dat I had 2 get a new outfit. I walked outside wondering how I kud go forward in time. Suddenly someone jumped in fornt of me. It wuz…..Morty Mcfli!1 He was wering a blak bnad tshrit and blak bagy jeans.

“What da hell r u dong here!11” I asked.

“I wil help u go frowad in tim Enoby.” he said siriusly Den……….he took out a blak tim machine. I went in2 it and……………………..sudenly I wuz forward in tim!111

Chapter 36.

AN: I sed stop flaming ok!111111111 I bet u r al proly old srevinty yr oldz!111 ps PORTERSUZ UR A PREP!1 o ya nd fangz 2 raven 4 di help!111 hav fun in englond gurl!11111

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I loked around in a depresed way. Suddenly I saw Profesor Sinister. B’lody Mary, Socrates and Draco, Vampire and Willow were their to.

“OMFG Sorius I saw u nd Samaro and Snip nd everyone!11111 I kant beleev Snap uzd 2 b goffik!111111”

“Yah I no.” Serious said sadly.

“Oh hey there bitch.” Profesor Trevolry said in an emo voice dirnking some Volxemortserom.

Hi fuker.” I said. “Lizzen, Satan asked me out to a gottik cornet and a movie so I need a sexah new outfit for da date. Also I’m playng in a gothic band so I need an ootfit for that too.”

“Oh my satan!1” (geddit lolz koz shes gofik) gasped B’lody Mary. “Want 2 go to Hot Topik to shop 4 ur outfit?”

“OMFS, letz have a groop kutting session!11” said Profesor Trevolry.

“I can’t fucking wait 4 dat but we need 2 get sum stuff first.” said Willow.

“Yah we need sum portions for Profesor Trevolry so she wont be adikted 2 Volxemortserum anymore nd also………….sum luv potion 4 Enoby.” Darko said resultantly.

“Well we have potions klass now.” Willow said so let’s go.

We went sexily to Potionz class. But Snap wasn’t there. Instead there was…………………………………………Cornelio Fuck!11111

“Hey where the fuck is Dumblydore!111” Draco shouted angrily.

“STFU!1” shooted Cornelia Fuck. “He is in Azkhabian now wif Snip and Loopin he is old and week he has kancer. “Now do ur work!111”

My friendz and I talked arngrily.

“Can you BELEVE Snap used to be gottik!1” Vampire asked surprisedly.

“DATZ IT!11” CORNELIO FUK SHOOTED ARNGRILY. “IM GETTING PROFESOR BRIDGE!111”

He stomped out angrily.

Mi frendz and I began talking again. I began to drink some blod mixed wif beer. Suddenly I saw Hargrid in da cupboard.

“WTF is he doing?” I asked. Then I looked at Draco. He wuz wearing tonz of eyeliner nd he locked shexier den eva. Suddenly……………“HARGRIF WUT DA FOK R U DOING!11” he shooted.

I looked around…………….Hairgrid wuz putting sumfing in my glass of blod!11 Darko and Vampire started 2 beat him up sexily.

“God u r such a posr!1” I shooted at Hairgrid. Suddenly I looked ar what he was putting in da blood. It was………………Amnesia Portion!111

Chapter 37.

AN: OK EVRYBODY IM GONG ON VOCATION ON DA FRIST OF JULY SO IM EEDER GONNA END DA FIK OR UPDAT IT IN WEEX. fangz!1 oh yah nd prepz stop flaming sa story!11 raven fangz 4 da help c ya gurl afta vocation!11

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DARKO’S PONT OF VIEW LOL

Vampire and I chaind Hairgrid 2 da floor.

“Oh mi fucking satan!11” Enoby said. She wuz so hot. “Maybe I cud uze Amnesia potion 2 make Satan foll in love wif me faster!1”

“But u r so sexy and wonderful aneway Tata,” said Vampire. “Why would u need it?”

“To make everyfing go faster lol.” said Enoby.

“But you wont have to do it wif him or anyfing, will u?” I asked jelosly.

“OMFG u guyz r so scary!11” said Britney, a fucking prep.

“Shut the fuk up!1” said Willow.

“Ok well anyway lets go 2 Profesor Trevolry’s room.”

Draco, Ebory and I went to Profesor Siniater’s room. But Profesor Sinister wasn’t there. Instead Tom Rid was.

Oh hi fuckers he said. Lizzen, I got u sum kewl new clovez.

I took out da cloves from da bag. It was a goffik blak leather miniskirt that said ‘666’ on da bak, black stilton bootz, blood red fishnetz and a blak corset.

“OMG fangz!” I said hugging him in a gothic way. I took da clothes in da bag.

“OK Profesor Sinister isnt hr what the fuk should we do?” asked Draco. Suddenly he loked at a sign on da blak wall.

“Oh my fuking satan!1” I screamed as I read it. On it said Evry1 Profesor Sinister is away. She is too gottik she is in Azkhabian now. Classes shal be taught by Dubledork who is bak but he shall not be principal 4 now. Sincerely Profesor Rumbridge.

“OMFG!111” I shoted arngrily. “How could they do that!11”

Suddenly Dumblydore came.

“WHAT DA HELL R U DONG IN MY OFICE!1” he began to shoot angrily. Sudwenly I saw Morty Mcfly’s blak tim machine!111 I jumped seductivly in2 it leaving Draco and Vampire. Sudenly I wuz back in tim!11 I looked around. It was……………Profesor Slutborn’s efface! I sneaked around. Suddenly I saw da Amnesia potion on his desk. It wuz blak wif blood-red pentagramz in it. It was the shape of a cross. I put it in my poket. Suddenly da door opened it wuz……..Profesor Slutgorn!11

OMG wut r u doing fuker he shooted angrily I don’t kno wut da fuk r u DOING I SHOUTED ANGRILY.

“Oh sorry I wuz just looking around koz I thought it wuz class.” you said finally hoping he couldn’t c da potion in ur pocket.

“Oh ok u can go now.” said Profesor Slutborn.

You went to the conmen room after putting on my clothes. Silas, Samaro and Snap were there practicing Vampirez will Never Hurt U by MCR.

“Oh hi you guys.” I said seductively. “Wheres Satan?”

“Oh he’s cumming.” said Serious. “BTW u can kall me Hades now.” Suddenly Satan came. He was wearing a smexxy blak leather Jackson, blak congres shoes, a Slipnot t-shirt and a blak tie.

“Ok I will see you guyz at da concert.” I said and then I went with Satan.

Chapter 38.

AN: wut doez every1 fink if I end da strory and den I add sum more 2 it after vocation? oh yah asnd prepz stup flaming if u dnot lik dat story den take muh quiz ok den u wil c if ur gofik or not!1111111

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Satan and I walked 2 his car. It wuz a blak car wif pentagrams all over it. On da license plate said 666 just lik Draco’s car. I went in it seduktivly. Stan started 2 drive it. We talked about Satanism (lolz he wuz named after Satan), kuttting, musik and being goffik.

“Oh my satan, Gerard is so fuking hot!11” Volxemort agreed as we smoked sum weed. (koz bi guyz r hot dey r so sensitive I luv dem lol goez fux a bi guy)

“Lol, I totally decided not 2 comit suicide when I herd Hilena.” I said in a flirty voice. “……….Hey Satan do u know da cure 4 when ppl r adikted 2 Volxemortseruem?”

“Well………………” he thought. “I fink u have 2 drink Vampire blod.”

Suddenly Volxemort parked da car behind a blak movie theater. Satan and I walked outside. We went in2 da movie tether were they were showing da Excercist. In it a boy and a gurl were doing it sudenly a cereal killer came lol. Satan and I laughed at da blood koz we’re sadists.

While Satan was watching da movie, I had an idea. I took Satan’s gothic blak Nightmare b4 Christmas cigar sexily from his poket and put sum Amnesia potion in it. I put it bak in his blak Emile the Strange bag. Satan turned arund and started 2 smoke it. Blak cloudz wif red pentagramz ind em started 2 fly around everywhere.

“OMG!111” Satan said jumping up. I gasped koz I wuz afraid hed notizd. “Enoby gess what?”

I new that the amnesia had worked.

“Amnesia potion has not been invented yet so it will not work.” He said. “2 badd coz I wanted 2 use sum on u.”

“Kul.” I raised my eye suggestingly. And den………. he tok of my cloves sexily and we started 2 make out. I tok of his shit. He had six-pak justr lik Gerard Way!11 We frenched.

“Xcuze me but u r going 2 have 2 leave!111” shooted da lady behind us she was a prep.

“Fuk u!11” I said. Suddenly…………………. I attaked her suking all her blood.

“Noooooo!11” she screamed. All the preps in da theater screamed but everyone else crapped koz Satan and I loked so cute 2gether. Satan and I started to walk outside.

“Zomg how did u do that?” Voldremort asked in a turned-on voice.

“I’m a vampire.” I said as we went into the car.

“Siriusly?” he gasped.

“Yah siriusly.” I said drinking sum beer. Satan started 2 drive da car. I smelled happily.

“Itz too bad we didn’t get 2 c da rest of the movie, don’t u fink?”

“Yah.” I said as we kised passively. Satan parked in a blak driveway next 2 da place where Draco and I had watched GC for the frist time. We went inside where Marylin Mason wuz playing and started to mosh lol.

“Anti-ppl now uve gone 2 far Jeus Krist Superstar!1111” screamed Marlin on da stage. We did the devil fingers. I started 2 dance really close to Satan. He was so shmexay!1 He looked at me all emo with his gothic red eyes and he looked exactly like Mikey Way. I almost got an orgaism!1 Suddenly Marylin Mason stopped singing.

“I wood like to peasant……………..XBlakXTearX!11” he said. I ran onstage. Lucian, Samaro, Snap and Hades were there. They started 2 play their instilments. I got onstag.

“Wel if u wonted honesty datz all u had 2 say!1111” I sang. (I dnot own da lyerix 2 dat song) My voice sounded lik a pentagram betwen Amy Lee and a gurl version of Gerard Woy. Everyone clappd. Satan got an eructation. “I’M NUT OKAY!1” I sang finaly. Suddenly Lucian started playing da song wrong by mistak.

“OMFG!1” yielded James. “Wut the fuck?”

“Woops im sory!” said Lucian.

“You fuking ashhole!1” James shouted angrily.

“U guys are such prepz!11” Snap said. “Cum on it wuz a mistake!1”

“Yah itz not his fault!11” said Serious.

“No he ruined the fucking song!1” yelled Samaro.

“U guys stop!11” I shotoed angrily but it waz 2 late. They all began 2 fight. Sudenly Samaro took out hiz nife.

“OMFG no!11” shouted Lucan but it wuz 2 late James tried 2 shoot off his arm.

And den……………………………I jumped secxily in front of da bullet!11

“No!111” yielded everyone but it wuz 2 late suddenly everyfing went blak.

Chapter 39. I Am A Trolling Genious, lolz

Disclaimer: I do not own the HP series and I am not the real XXXbloodyrists666XXX.

AN// I am an extremely immature pathetic idiot girl, I know. Out of boredom, I crack this girl's passy for fun (and it took less than 8 minutes to do it too) and will probably get in a shitload of trouble. Which I probably deserve 'cause I'm being a troll right now. Meh.

And I present to you MY crappy part in this story. (And take note I haven't even finished reading this fic yet, but instead skip over to skim chapter 38.) Flame, laugh, do whatever you want "preps."

I, the American retail wearing british vampire Sue, coughed up blood.

Satan kneeled down beside me.

"Noooooooooooooooo! Don't die!"

I gave him a rueful smile. "I'm sorry. It's something I had to do, to fufill my duty as the noble gothic Mary Sue."

Satan sobbed. "I love you Ebony."

"I love you two. I'll...I'll see you in hell." I mumbled, already finding my surroundings fading to black.

B'loody Mary Smith suddenly popped into the room for no apparent reason. She frowned when she realized the room was oddly quiet, but at the sight of Ebony's lifeless body, she screamed. Her face became pale with horror. She screamed for the healers, Dumbledore, Mcgoogle, and every single gothic person she could think of.

Suddenly, a glow started to surround the body of Ebony. Everyone stared in shock. Her body started to lift ever so slowly and then, to everyone's shock, it started to incinerate.

When everyone realized what was happening, they rushed over to try to rescue the body, but it was too late, the Sue became nothing more then a pile of ashes.

A loud resounding of everyone bellowing "NOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO...!!" filled the room.

A flash of white light from the ashes then started to bounce around the room. Everyone cowered in fear and were temporarily blinded. When it was all over, things changed.

All the silly goth clothes dropped from everyone's bodies (AN//I will refuse to explain how the hell that happened.) and, in their place, clothes the characters would normally wear in canon appeared on their bodies.

When everyone got over the shock of becoming free of the gofick power, everybody cheered. Everyone started singing 'Ding dong the sue is dead...' Well, that is, until all the HP characters realized the true implications of becoming more canon like again.

All the characters who were supposed to be dead fell to the floor, their bodies cold and lifeless. Harry and Voldemort started dueling. On the left side of the two, the battle of the Light Side and the Dark Side were reaching a climax.

And, because the replacement author also likes to screw around with canon, Draco and Hermione fled the scene and got married.

Meanwhile...

Down in hell, Ebony shed a single tear because of her current situation. A situation that would live on for all eternity. Or at least until the end of fanfiction time.

She lost it all, but she knew she had to remain strong. Nothing would ever break her down.

She looked down over her pale body, and frowned. 'Where are my emo clothes?' She asked herself in confusion.

And then it occured to her...

For her shirt, she was wearing a bright pink polo with a little seagull on the (right or left? I can't remember) side. Below that, she was wearing a denim miniskirt with the "destroyed" look on it. Paired underneath that skirt were leggings with a little moose at the bottom. And then Ebony realized, on her shoulder, she was carrying a pretty bag with an eagle on it that said Live Your Life written all over the bag.

Ebony supressed the urge to scream. Here she was decked out in clothes prep to the extreme wearing stuff from Abercrombie and Fitch, American Eagle, AND Hollister.

Panicked, Ebony hastily tried to take off the Hollister polo, but underneath it, there was another Hollister polo underneath. Ebony frowned, and looked under her shirt. All she saw was a bra underneath (dare I point out it's from the Aerie line available at American Eagle?). Ebony tried to remove the shirt again. But to her frustration, there was yet again another polo to replace it.

"THIS IS UNLOGICAL AND DOES NOT MAKE ANY SENSE!!" Ebony bellowed out to the air. She failed to see the irony in her statement, how hypocrytical her words were, seeing as she was practically calling the kettle black here.

Ebony slit her writs and mumbled to herself, "Omigod."

/End Crap Fic.

AN// Oh yeah, if you wanna see the original content this chick had planned for this chapter, I accessed it through the document manager thingy, which I copied and pasted, so you can read it here:

AN: stfu prepz git a lif!111111 U SUCK!11 oh and form now on il be in vocation in englind until lik august so I wont be able 2 update 4 a while, lolz. fangz 2 evry1 hu revoiwed expect da prepz hu flamed FOK U!1 MCR RULEZ 666!111

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I woke up in da Norse’s offace on a special gothik coffin. Hairgrid wuz in da bed opposite me in a comma coz Vampir and Draco had bet him up. Mr. Noris was cleaning the room.

“Oh mi satan wut happened!” I screamed. Suddenly Volxemort came. He loked less mean then usual.

“Get the fuk out u fucking bastard!11” I yielded.

“Thou hath nut killd Vampire yet!11” he said arngrily. Sudenly he started 2 cry tearz of blood al selective.

“Volxemort? OMFG what’s wrong!111” I asked.

Sudenly………. Lucian, Profesor Sinister and Serious came! B’lody Mary and Vampire were wif dem. Every1 was holding blak boxez. VOLXEMORT DISAPAERD.

“OMFG Enoby ur alive!111” Scremed Vampire. I hugged him and B’lody Mary.

“What the fuk happened?” I asked dem. “Oh my satan!11 Am I lik dead now?” I gosped.

“Enoby u were almost shot!11” said Serious. “But da ballet could not kill u since u were form anodder time.”

“But fangz anyway!1” said Lucian holding oot his arm. I gasped. He had two arms!

“OMG I cant beleve Vampirz’ dad shot u!1” I gasped.

“Well 2 be honest Snap wuz pozzesd by Snap bak den.” said James.

“Yah he wuz a spy.” Serious said sadly. “He wuz really a Death Dealer.”

“And he wuz such a fuking poser 2!11” said Lucian. “He didn’t even realy no hu GC were until I told him.” Well anyway everyone tarted 2 give me presents. I was opening a blak box wif red 666s (there wuz a dvd of corps bride in it) on it when I gasped. Mr. Noris looked up angrily coz he h8ed gothz.

“Hey haz aneone fuking seen Draco?” I asked gothikally.

“No Draco told me he wood be watching Hoes of Wax.” said Profesor Trevolry. “He duzzn’t know dat ur better. Anyway da norse said u could get up. Cum on!1”

I got up suicidally. Lucian, Serious and Profesor Sinister left. I wuz wearing a blak leather nightgun. Under that I had on a sexxy blak leather bra trimed wif blak lace, with a matching thong that said goffik gurl on the butt and sexy fishnetz that kind hooked on 2 my thong (if u don’t get da idea massage me ill tell u). I put on a blak fishnet top under a blak MCR t-shirt, a blak leather mini with blak lace and congress shoes. I left the hospital’s wings wif B’lody Mary, Willow and Vampire.

“OMFG letz celebrate!11” gasped Willow.

“We can go c Hose of Wax wif Draco!1” giggled Vampire.

“Letz go lizzen 2 GC and kut ourselvz 666!11” said Hermoine. We opened da conmen room door sexily. And den………..I gasped……………………………………… Draco wuz there doing it wif Snap!1111111111111111111111111 He wuz wearing a blak tshirt wif 666 on da front and baggy jeanz.

“U fucking prep!11” we all yielded angrily.

“Yah u betrayed us!111” shooted Vampire angrily as he took out his blak gun.

“No u don’t understand!1” screamed Draco sadly as he took his thingie out of Snake’s.

“No shit u fuking suk u preppy bastard!111” said Willow trying 2 attak him (u rok girl!1). I ran suicidally to my room I sexily took a steak out.

“Enoby no!11111” screamed Draco but it wuz 2 l8 I had slit muh ritsts wif it suddenly everyfing went blak again.

Sincerely,

An-Anon-Author-Who-Will-Silently-Not-Reveal-Her-Identity-Because-She's-A-Coward :P

A.K.A. Just a troll with rocks for brains.

Chapter 40. LOL! Someone has taken my account over!

THE IDIOT'S NOTE: Well... this was in the doc area... might as well let the whole world see what the real Tara wanted to show us... Have a nice day!

AN: stfu prepz git a lif!111111 U SUCK!11 oh and form now on il be in vocation in englind until lik august so I wont be able 2 update 4 a while, lolz. fangz 2 evry1 hu revoiwed expect da prepz hu flamed FOK U!1 MCR RULEZ 666!111

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I woke up in da Norse’s offace on a special gothik coffin. Hairgrid wuz in da bed opposite me in a comma coz Vampir and Draco had bet him up. Mr. Noris was cleaning the room.

“Oh mi satan wut happened!” I screamed. Suddenly Volxemort came. He loked less mean then usual.

“Get the fuk out u fucking bastard!11” I yielded.

“Thou hath nut killd Vampire yet!11” he said arngrily. Sudenly he started 2 cry tearz of blood al selective.

“Volxemort? OMFG what’s wrong!111” I asked.

Sudenly………. Lucian, Profesor Sinister and Serious came! B’lody Mary and Vampire were wif dem. Every1 was holding blak boxez. VOLXEMORT DISAPAERD.

“OMFG Enoby ur alive!111” Scremed Vampire. I hugged him and B’lody Mary.

“What the fuk happened?” I asked dem. “Oh my satan!11 Am I lik dead now?” I gosped.

“Enoby u were almost shot!11” said Serious. “But da ballet could not kill u since u were form anodder time.”

“But fangz anyway!1” said Lucian holding oot his arm. I gasped. He had two arms!

“OMG I cant beleve Vampirz’ dad shot u!1” I gasped.

“Well 2 be honest Snap wuz pozzesd by Snap bak den.” said James.

“Yah he wuz a spy.” Serious said sadly. “He wuz really a Death Dealer.”

“And he wuz such a fuking poser 2!11” said Lucian. “He didn’t even realy no hu GC were until I told him.” Well anyway everyone tarted 2 give me presents. I was opening a blak box wif red 666s (there wuz a dvd of corps bride in it) on it when I gasped. Mr. Noris looked up angrily coz he h8ed gothz.

“Hey haz aneone fuking seen Draco?” I asked gothikally.

“No Draco told me he wood be watching Hoes of Wax.” said Profesor Trevolry. “He duzzn’t know dat ur better. Anyway da norse said u could get up. Cum on!1”

I got up suicidally. Lucian, Serious and Profesor Sinister left. I wuz wearing a blak leather nightgun. Under that I had on a sexxy blak leather bra trimed wif blak lace, with a matching thong that said goffik gurl on the butt and sexy fishnetz that kind hooked on 2 my thong (if u don’t get da idea massage me ill tell u). I put on a blak fishnet top under a blak MCR t-shirt, a blak leather mini with blak lace and congress shoes. I left the hospital’s wings wif B’lody Mary, Willow and Vampire.

“OMFG letz celebrate!11” gasped Willow.

“We can go c Hose of Wax wif Draco!1” giggled Vampire.

“Letz go lizzen 2 GC and kut ourselvz 666!11” said Hermoine. We opened da conmen room door sexily. And den………..I gasped……………………………………… Draco wuz there doing it wif Snap!1111111111111111111111111 He wuz wearing a blak tshirt wif 666 on da front and baggy jeanz.

“U fucking prep!11” we all yielded angrily.

“Yah u betrayed us!111” shooted Vampire angrily as he took out his blak gun.

“No u don’t understand!1” screamed Draco sadly as he took his thingie out of Snake’s.

“No shit u fuking suk u preppy bastard!111” said Willow trying 2 attak him (u rok girl!1). I ran suicidally to my room I sexily took a steak out.

“Enoby no!11111” screamed Draco but it wuz 2 l8 I had slit muh ritsts wif it suddenly everyfing went blak again.

Idiot's Note: Ugh... I know... terrible... but then again, this wouldn't be called the 'worst fanfic ever if not for the fact that the writing standards meets the level of a day old fetus...

Chapter 41.

AN: 2 every1 hu kepz flaming diz GIT S LIF!!!!! I bet u proly odnt no hu gerod way is ur proly al prepz and pozers!!!!!!!!11111 neway sum1 hakked in2 mi akkount in November and dey put up my last chaptah but now der is a new 1. im surry 4 nut updating g 4 a while but ive been rilly bizzy. im trying 2 finish da story b4 da new movie kumz out. Im gong on vacation 4 a mons I wont be bak until abott 2 weeks. OMFG drako iz so hot in all da pix 4 da new movie!!!111 I wunted dem 2 put a kameo by geord way lol he hsud play drako. if u flame ill slit muh risztz!!!!!!!!11 raven u rok gurl hav fun in ingland.

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When I wook up I wuz in a strange room. I loked around I wuz wearing da same outfit I had when is performed wif XBlakXTearX!!!!!11 I looked arund confusedly. It wuz da Norse’s office but it looked difrent!! On da wall wuz a pik of Marlyin Munzon!!!1111 (just imagin dat he is an 80s goffik band 2 ok koz he is more old den panic?! at da dizcko or mcr) der wuz also a goffik blak Beatles calander with a picture of the beetlez werring iyeliner and blak cloves. On it said ‘1980.’

“OMFG!!! Im back in Tim again!!!!111” I screamed loudly. Suddenly Satan(dis is actually voldimort 4 photo refrenss!). Voldimort wuz wearing a blak leather Jackson, blak tight jeans and fishnet pantz. He looked so sexah I almost had an orgy!!!!11

“OMFG Enoby r u ok.” He asked gothikally.

“Yah Im okay 4 ur in4mation.” I snapped sexily. “OMG am I dedd???” koz I remembered I had jumped in front off da bullet from Jame’s gun. I also rememberd cing Drako doing it wif Snap!!!!111

I guessed dat when I had slit mi wrists I had went bak in tim instead of dieing. I knoew I could go forward in time if I found a time-toner or da tim machine.

“No ur not dead.” Satan reassured suicidally as he smokd a cigarette sexily and smoke came all over his face. “Ur a vampire so u kant die frum a bullet. Cum on now lets go c how Hairy’s dad is doing.”

I noo dat da real reason I didn’t die from da ballet was koz I was from da future. “WTF!!!! James almust shot Luciious!!!” I said indigoally. I knew that James had really ben possezzed, but I didn’t want him2 know I knew.

“Yah I know but he had a headache he wz under a lot of stress.” Satan reasoned evilly.

“I guess that’s ok.” I said because James hadn’t really shot Lucian. Also I noo that Lucian wood now have 2 arms instead of 1. I walked seduktivly outside with Satan. Suddeni I saw a totally sexi goffik bi guy!!!!!11 He had bleched blond hair wiv blak streaks up 2 his ears and he wuz wearing goffik blak iliner, a blak Green Day shirt (it showed billy joel wiv bolnd hair since it was da eighties), blak congress shoes and black baggy pants. He walked in all sexly like Gerrd way in the vido for I Don’t 3 u lyk I did yesterday and you cud see a blak tear on his face lyk da wmn in dat video. “Hey.” He sed all qwietly and goffically.

“Who da fuck is that?” I asked angrly cos I did nut kno him.

“Dis is…Hedwig!!!!!!!!!11” Sed Volximort. “He used to be in XBlackXTearX 2 but he had 2 dropp out koz he broke his arm.

“Hey Hedwig.” I said seductively evn tho I wuz nut tring to b.

“Lol hi Enoby.” He answered but then he ran away bcos he had hair of magical creature. He was humming Welcum 2 da Blak Prade under his breth( I no dat is not 80s but pretend it is ok!!)

“Bye.” I sed all sexily.

“Dat was Hedwig. He used 2 b my boifreind but we broke up.” Satan said sadly, luking at his blak nails.

“OMFG I can get u bak 2gether!” I said fingering something I didn’t know wuz in my pocket- a blak Kute is What we Aim 4 cideo ipod that I could take videos wif (duz ne1 elze no about dem??? dey kik azz!!!!).

“Ok u can 4get about ur class for now, Hedwig. Im going 2 show u something grate!!!!1” I led them to da Great Hall. “Cum on u guys.”

Lucian, James, Serious and Snake were all in da Grate Hall. Lucian woudnt talk wiv James because he had tried 2 shoot him.

“Go fuk urself you fukking douche!” he shouted at him. “Drako is never gong 2 b frends with vampire now!!1”

“Yah go fuck urself Samaro!” Snape agreed but I noo he wuz lying koz it had been his folt James had almost shot Lucian.

“B quiet u guys.” I said sexily. Mi plan waz working oot great. Now I kood make Voldement good wivout doing it with him! Now Vampire’s dad wood never die and “OK Satan and Hedwig, u guys can start making out.” I said and I started 2 film dem wiv da ipod.

“Kool.” said Serious as Voldemort and Hedwig started 2 make out sexily. We watched as tdey started 2 take each odderz cloves off sexily. Samaro, Serious, Snake and Lucian all watched koz dey wer prolly bi. I noo Snape was bi.

“Oh my fukking god!!!! Voldimort! Voldimort!” screamed Hedwig as his glock touched Voldemort’s.

But suddenly everything stopped as da door opend and in kame………………Dumblydore and Mr. Norris!!!!111111111111

Chapter 42. da blak parade

AN: omg da new book iz kumming out rlly soon I kant wait!!!1111. I fink dat snap will be really the same person as Volximort koz dey are both haff-blood so dat will explain y he kild dumblydore and he hated hairy!!!!!1111 nd den hairy wil have 2 kommit suicide so voldimort will die koz he will rilly be a horcrox!!!!!111 omg I hope draco nd harry get 2getha dat will be so shmexxy, wont it?? If dey don’t den JKR is hamophobic!!!!!111111 fangz 4 da help wiv facts, medusa u rok!!!111

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I sat depressedly in Dumbledork’s office wiv Hedwig, Satan, James, Serious, Snap and Lucian. Dumbledore was sitting in front of us cruelly. He looked more young den he did in da future. He had taken da ipod away and wuz now lizzening 2 a shitty Avril Levine song.

“What da hell is this anyway??” he cackled meanly. I hoped he didn’t find out dat I was frum another time.

“Whatever u do don’t blame Ibony, u jerk.” Satan said.

“Yah, siriusly she was trying to get Satan and Hedwig back together.” Serious said deviantly.

“Be quiet you Satanists.” Dumbledore cockled. “If ur lucky I’ll probably send u all to Akazaban!!! That will teach u to copolate in da Great Hall.” He changed the song on da ipod 2 a n’Sync song. Suddenly I noticed sumfing strong about da Ipod. It was slowly chonging! Dumblydore didn’t notece.

“You fucking poser.” I muttoned.

“I bet you’ve never herd of GC.” James said. Know I knew waht da iPod was chonging in2- Morti McFly’s tim machine!!!!!11

“Shut up Jomes!!!” Drako’s dad shouted.

“Yeah shut up!!!!” Snake said preppily.

“No u shut up Dumblydore!!!!!!!!1111” said Tom.

“I’ve had enough of u Satanists in my school!!!!” shouted Dumbledore spuriously.

Suddenly I grabed da iPod from him. “Evry1! Jump in b4 itz 2 l8!!! I jumped in2 it. But only 1 odder person jumpd in. It was……..Satan.

“You dunderheads!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!1111111111” screamed Dumbledore wisely as we went.

I looked around. I wuz in da Slitherin conmen room wiv Satan. I was wearing a blak plaid miniskirt with hot pink fishnetz, a sexy blak MCR corset and blak stiletto boots with pink pentagroms on dem. My earrings were blake Satanist sins and my raven hair was all around me to my mid-black.

“Hey kool where iz dis?” he asked in an emo voice.

“Dis is da future. Dumbeldore’s iPod dat he tried to take away from me wuz really also a tim machine.” I told him.

“Kool what’s an ipatch?” he whimpered.

“It’s somefing u use 2 lizzen 2 music.” I yakked.

“OMFG kool wait whatz a 4-letter-wurd 4 dirt?” he esked in his sexah voice.

“Um I guezz sand????” I laid confuesdly.

“Yah I wuz just triinyg to make sure u were stil da same perzon.” He triumphently giggled.

Suddenly some of my friends walked in.

“OMG you’re fucking alive!” said Ginny wearing a blak leather jocket, blak baggy pants and a goffik black Frum First to Last shirt. I explained 2 her why I was alive.

“Konichiwa, bitch.” said Willow. She was wearing a blak corset showing off her boobs with lace all around it and red stipes on it. With it she waz wearing a blak leather miniskirt, big blak boots, white foundation, blak eyeliner, red eyeshadow, and blak lipstick.

“Hey, motherfucker.” Said Diabolo with his red hair. He waz wearing a black P?ATD t-shit and blak baggy pants.

“Hey whose that, Ibony?” B’loody Mary questioned as she walked in wearing a black t-shit with a red pentarom on it with lace at the bottom, red letther pants with blak lace, and black stolettoes.

“Oh its Satan.” I told her and she nodded knowing da truth.

Suddenly Satan started to cry.

“Are you okay Satan?” we asked concernedly.

“OMFG ur from da future!!1! What if u don’t like m anymore koz were from difrent times?????” he asked.

“No I still like you.” I said sexily to him.

“Ok.” He said ressuredly. I let him lizzen 2 Teenagers by MCR on my ipod while I was about to go outside to find out some fingz. I gave Diabolo a signal to keep Satan occupied. Satan fell asleep. I took the iPod. I was about to walk outside. Profesor Sinister ran in!!!!!!!1111 She was wearing a gothic blak minidress with depressing blak stripes, white and blak stripped tights, and red converse shoes. She was wearing LOTS of blak iliner.

“Oh my fucking god, where’s Draco!!!!111 How did Snap get back here!!! I tohot he wuz in Azerbaijan.” I asked sadly.

“Ebony I was so worried abott u but I know you can’t fucking die because you’re a vrompire. Snape came back because that girl Britney freed him. I never liked her she was a bad student.” Trevolry said reassuredly.

“That bitch!!!!!!!11 Did she also free Hargrid and Loopin?” I shouted angrily. I hated Britney because she was a fucking prep.

“Yes they are on the loose at this school. Dumblydore is back Cornelia is on his way to help evry1. Tell evry1 u see to lock themselves in their conman room!!!!!!” Trevolry said worriedly.

“OK. But where’s Dracko???? How cum he was doing it with Snap?????”

“I dunno why but I know he almost tried 2 commit suicide after he saw u almost kill urself.” she said.

“OMG dat’s terrible!!!!!!!!” I gasped. Satan was still asleep, so he couldn’t tell what was going on. Then I said “Lizzen evry1, I have sumthing imptent to do. in hr evry1 stay!!!!!!!!!” wiv dat I ran out.

“Good luck Tara!!!!!!!11” everyone cried.

I ran sexily down the staris in2 da Grate Hall while da portraits around looked at me scaredly. There was hardly ne1 else in the stairs nd tere was an atmosphere of horrer. On da way I saw Britney laughing on da stairs. She was wearing a a slutty pink shirt wiv flowers on it, a blu jean skirt Abercromie and pink stiletoos. She looked jest like a pentagram of those fucking preps Hilery Duff and Lindsey Lohan.

“You fucking bitch!!!!!111” I shouted angrily.

“No, your totally a bitch. Now Voldemort will like totally kill u!” she laughed.

“Crucious!!!!!!!!!1” I shouted selectively pontificating my blak wand and she started screaming koz she was being tortured and I laughed sodistically.

“No!!!!!!1 Help me!!!!!!1 Please!!!!!!!!1” Britney screamed terrifiedly.

I put up my middle finger at her. In her hand I saw da video camera Snape and Lumpin had used to take da video of me. I put the tape of Voldimort doing it with Hedwigg onto it. Then I continued to rown down the stairs with the camera. When I had reached da Grate Hall I saw Vampire Potter. “OMG Vampira!!!!111” I yielded.

We hugged each udder happily. He locked at me wif his gothic red eyes and spiky blak hair. Around them were blak eyeliner and iShadow. His He wus wearing a blak leather Jackson, ledder pants, a Panik at da Disko concert shirt and his blak congress shoes. He looked mor like Joel from Good Charlote than ever. (did u hear der song da river it rox!!!1)“I wus so worried you died!” moaned Vampire.

“I know but Im a vampire lol. When I woke up I wuz back in 1980, so neway I bought Voldimort from when he was yung with me.”

“Where’s Draco?” I asked spuriously.

“Draco? You mean that fukking poser who betroyed you?” Vampir snarkled with anger in his sexy voice.

“I NO BUT WE HAV 2 FIND HIM.” I SED SMARTY.

“I’ll do it den.” Harry said angstily.

“OK.” I argreed. Suddenly……….all da lights in da room went out. And den…….da Dork Mark appeared.

“Oh my fucking satan!!!!!” Harry shouted.

“I fink Voldimort has arrivd.” I sed anxiously. “Fuck, I have to find Draco!!1 I guess we shood separate.”

“Ok.” Vampire sed diapperating. Sadly I ran into the Great Hall.

Chapter 43.

AN: I fink after dis I wil hav abott 2 or three mor chapterz. Fangz 2 all muh revyooers not das flamers if u flamed sis story den u suk!!!!!!!!!111111 if u flam den fukk u!!!111

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I walked sexily into the Great Hall. It was empty except for one person. Draco was there!! He sat der in deddly bloom in his blak 666 t-shirt and his baggy blak pants. He had slit his wrists!!!!!111 I felt mad at him for having sexwith Snape but I felt sorry for him. He looked just like Gerard Way with his red eyes and his pale white face.

“Draco are you okay????” I asked.

“I’m not okay.” he screamed depressedly. I thought of the MCR song nd I got even more depressed koz that song always makes me cry. I gave him a pot cigarette and he started to smoke it.

“Oh Draco why did you do it with that fucking bastard Snape?” I asked teardully.

“I-” Draco began to say but suddenly Lupin and Mr. Norris appearated in2 da room!! They didn’t see us.

“Im so glad we me and Snape were freed.” said Loopin.

“Dam, this job would be great if it wasn’t 4 da fukking students!” Mr. Norris argreed.

“Pop addelum!!!!!111” I yielded angrily pointing my wand at them.

“Noooooooo!!!!1” Lupin shouted as chains came on him. Mr. Norris ran away.

“You fukking perv.” I said laughing wiv depths of evil and depressedness in my voice. “Now u have 2 tell us where Voldimort is or I’m gong 2 torture u!!!!”

“I don’t now where he is!!!!1111” said Loopin. Suddenly Satan and Vampire ran in2 da room. Vampir didn’t know who Satan was really.

“Oh my satan, we were so worried about u guys!!1” Vampire said. I looked sexily at Draco with his goffik red eyes with contacts, blak t-shirt that said 666 on it and pale skin like Gerord Way, Vampir with his sexy blak hair and red eyes just like Frank Iero and Satan who looked jist like Brandan Urie then.

I selectively took the caramel from my pocket. And then….. I began frenching Draco sexily. Loopin gasped. Draco began to take all of his cloves off and I could see his white sex-pack. Then Vampire took his own clotes off too. We all began making out 2gther sexily. I took off my blak leather bra, my blak lace thong and the rest of my clothes. Every1 took their glocks out except 4 me im a girl lol. “Oh mi satan!! Draco!!!!” I screamed as he put his hardness in my thingy Den he did da same fing to Harry. I began making out wiv Satan and he joined in. “OMS!!!111” cried Vampire. “Oh Vampire! Vampire!!!” I screamed screamed. “Oh Satan!!!!!” yelled Harry in pleasore. Loopin watched in shock. Wee took turns doing torture curses on him koz we were all sadists. Suddenly……………………………..

………….a big blak car that said 666 on the license plate flew strait through da windows. And Snap wuz in it!!!!!!!11

Chapter 44.

AN: well I hav noffing 2 say but evrt1 stup glamming ok!!111 if any gofik ppl r reading dis den u rok!!!11 omg I stil kant wait 4 da movie!!!1 tom fleton is so hot lol i hop harry wil bekum gofik koz mi frend told me he iz rlly emo in dis book!!!!1111 omfg im leeving dubya pretty soon kant wait!!! Diz wil prolly be da last chaptah until I kum bak.

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“Dat’s mi car!!!!” shooted Draco angrily. But suddenly it was revealied who was in da car. It wuz………….Snape!!!!!

“I shall free you Loopin but first you must help me kill these idiotic donderheads.” he said cruelly from the car as it flew circumamcizing above us. “Ebony Dark’ness Dementia Raven Way must be killed. Den the Dork Lord shall never die!!!!”

“You fucking prep!!!” yelled Draco. Then he loked at me sadly. “I forgot to tell u, Ebony. Snape made me do it with him. I didn’t really have sexx him but he’s a ropeist!!!!”

We all put our clothes on quickly except Satan. We were so scarred!!!!1 But Satan didn’t change. Instead he changed into a man with gren eyes, no nose, a gray robe and white skin. He had changed into………… Voldemont!!!!!!!111

“I knew who thou were all along.” he cackled evilly and sarcastically at me. “Now I shall kill thee all!!!!!!” Thunder came in da room.

“No plz don’t kill us!” pleaded Vampire. Suddenly Willow, B’loody Mary, Diabolo, Ginny, Drocula, Fred and Gorge, Hargrid, McGonagall, Dumblydore, Serious and Lucian all ran in.

“What is da meaning of dis?” Dumblydore asked all angrily and Voldimort lookd away (bcos dumblydore is da only whizard he is scared of.) He did a spell and suddenly his broomstick came to him sexily. Volxemort flew above the roof evilly on his broomstik.

“Oh my goth!” Slugborn gosped. (geddit kos im goffik)

“The Dark Lord shall kill all of you. Then you must submit to him!!!!” Snape ejaculated menacingly.

“You fucking preppy fags!” Serious shouted angrily.

“I know a four-letter word 4 dirt, CRUCIATUS!!!” screamed Harry but da sparks from his wand only hit Draco’s car. It fell down Snap quickly crowled out of it and picked up the cideo camera.

“Oh my fucking god!!!1” I cried becoze the video of me in da bathrum, the video of me dong it wif Drako and the video of Satan doing it with

“If you kill me then deze cideos will be shown to everyone in the skull. Then u can be just like that goffik girl Paris Hillton.” He laughed meanly.

“No!” I scremed. “FYI I hav da picter of u doing it with Loopin!!!!11”

“Whats she talking abott??????” Lupin slurped as he sat in chains.

“I saw 2 she’s gunna show evry1 da picter!!!111” Harry shouted angrily.

“Shut up!!!111’” Lumpkin roared.

“Foolish ignoramuses!!!!!!” yielded Voldemort from his broomstick. “Thou shall all dye soon.”

“Think again you fucking muggle poser!!!!!1” Harry yelled and then he and Diablo and Navel both took out blak guns! But Voldimort took out his own one.

“U guyz are in a Latin stand-of!!!!!!!111” I shouted despariedrly.

“Acco Nevel’s wand!!!11” cried Voldrimort nd suddenly Nevil’s wind was in his hands. “Now I shall kill thee all and Evony u will die!!!!!!!!11111”

He maid lighting come all over da place.

“Save us Ebony!” Dumbledark cried.

I cried sexily I just wanted 2 go 2 the commen room and slit my wrists with mi friends while we watched Shark Attak 3 and Saw 2 and do it with Draco but I knew I had 2 do somefing more impotent.

“ABRA KEDABRA!!!!!!!!!!!11111” I shooted.

Growing Disquiet

Starbound
Chapter 09 - Growing Disquiet

“Twilight?”

“Yeah?”

“I still can’t believe we had to hunt a giant jelly monster.”

Twilight almost screamed as she buried her face in her hooves. Jack, meanwhile, was snickering across the intercom.

“Sorry, couldn’t resist,” he said between chortles. “I’m sure we’ll both be laughing about this in a few years, eh?”

“You won’t let it rest until then,” she accused, glaring out into space at his ship from her spot in the Enterprise’s cockpit. “Seriously, when you die, your last words are probably going to be ‘I can’t believe we had to hunt a giant jelly monster,’ and it will probably show up in your will that someone will have to torment me with it…”

“Now that you mention it, that does seem like a good idea,” she could almost hear Jack smirking. “Only, it would probably be even more entertaining to see how your Princess Luna or Celestia would react to being constantly reminded that I can’t believe we hunted a giant jelly monster.”

Twilight snorted. “Knowing Princess Celestia, she would probably find some way to troll you back, just as hard.”

“Almost done, almost done,” Jack muttered quietly. Yet again, they found themselves in space, running a search for similar systems to the Celestine System

“Since we’re into more dangerous territory, we’ll have less detailed information on planets,” he explained through the communicator. “That being said, if we get a few matches, we’ll likely have to visit the planet ourselves to make sure. If it’s not the planet we’re looking for, I suppose we could beam down and explore, maybe mine a little bit and get some ore for better armor.”

”Sounds like a plan!” chirped Twilight, smiling to herself. Even if they didn’t find Equus in Sector Delta, which she figured was probably going to be the case, at least she got to spend more time not hunting giant jelly monsters in ridiculous wastes of time with him.

“Right,” Jack grunted. “Oh! And I picked up a little gift for you while I was out yesterday.”

“Really?”

“Yeah. Check your ship’s storage compartment.”

Twilight did just that and pulled out a strange, C-shaped yellow-orange metal device, with a sleeve of metal in the center of it. A blue diode glowed at the end of the object, and Twilight noticed a little switch further into the sleeve of the thing.

“What’s this?” she asked out loud.

“Matter Manipulator,” Jack’s voice answered. “New model, too. Old model could only handle little bits of rock and metal at a time, but the new ones are definitely a lot better off. Had to pay quite a bit extra to get those penguins down at TSPC R&D to modify it with your hoof in mind.”

“What does it do?” she asked, sliding it onto her right forehoof.

:Well, it does what its name implies,” Jack answered, most unhelpfully. “It manipulates matter. In theory, this allows it to manipulate, solids, liquids, gasses, even a few plasmas here and there, but they have yet to make a model that can manipulate gasses and plasmas just yet.”

“So, it just messes with solids and liquids?” she asked, feeling a bit disappointed as she inspected it.

“Not exactly just ‘manipulating’ it,” Jack replied. “Think about the implications. It can mine large chunks of stone or metal at once, faster than we could with pickaxes and drills, it can even change the color of things with the right module, and if it’s a simple-enough thing. Just imagine how efficiently this could help us mine!”

Twilight continued to stare down at it.

“How?” she asked, thinking about how much easier their mining could be, especially without having to constantly replace their pickaxes every few weeks.

“You’ll see when we find another world to go mining in,” he promised. “Gonna make our materials-gathering so much easier.”

“Sounds like a plan!” chirped Twilight, already looking forward to it. Jack’s description could only do so much, after all. It would be far better to test it out herself. “So, need me to repeat specifications?”

“I think I have it,” he replied. “Yellow star system, five planets, second planet is the only one with a single moon, varying climate type,” he recited.

“Sounds about right.”

“I’ll just save the query. But… oh.”

“What?” asked Twilight, a slight bit of hope springing within her.

“Seven possible matches,” Jack said. “No data on five of them, though. We’ll have to visit them in person. Beam aboard the Ulysses and we can see if these two are the ones you’re looking for.”

It took her only seconds to comply. The white interior of her ship vanished around her, to be replaced with the metallic white interior of the Ulysses, where Jack sat in his armor, next to a navigation console, typing away.

“New armor?” Twilight asked, noting that the armor plating was a dimmer shine than the titanium plates that had made up his Pioneer-class armor.

“Yeah, had some of the durasteel taken to Jason yesterday,” Jack nodded. “Apparently, he was able to add a few more things to it to make it fit the specifications for the Outrider-class model of armor.”

“Did you know Jason when you were on Earth?” Twilight asked, recalling how they had seemed a bit more casual with each other than a business paradigm would suggest.

“Nah,” Jack shook his head. “I met him when I arrived in Terra Stella for the first time. He got me a job working at the foundries and forges there for a while. It’s how I learned to smith my own basic stuff, though I could never do armor efficiently.”

He keyed a few lines into his console, and then got up and stepped back for Twilight to see. There were seven different planets that matched, but only two of them had any visual representation. The others were just blank circles with a question mark inside them.

“These two definitely aren’t Equus,” she pointed at the two visible ones. “Their continental shape is all wrong. The others, I guess, we’ll have to visit?”

“Probably,” Jack shrugged. “When we hit Sector X, we’ll likely have to hit up every single possible match. With the USCM running around, there’s so little data on worlds beyond the border that we’ll likely be required to scout out these worlds in person.”

“That ought to be fun,” Twilight sighed. “Dodging USCM ships, finding out exactly what makes Sector X turn up a Level 10 Threat Rating…”

“Cheer up, love,” Jack moved over to the cockpit chair and started flipping a few switches on the console. “Maybe I can hire help. I’m sure Timaeus is wanting to know all about what can be found in Sector X. Especially if we can find a good source of Solarium or some of the rarer ores.”

“What kind of ores are we talking about?” Twilight asked, curiously, welcoming the distraction to avoid any remote fluster from Jack’s offhand use of “love.”. After all, they did always seem to find new types of ore in each new sector. What more was there to find?

“Well, there’s three new ores and then an upgraded version of each one,” Jack said, heading back over to the computer that seemed like a fount of infinite knowledge these days. At his keyed command, three bars appeared on screen. One was green, another blue, and the last red. “Aegisalt, Cerulium, and Rubium. With enough coal, you’d be able to further refine them into Ferozium, Violium, and Impervium, though apparently they just discovered this new way to refine them without coal involving Solarium.”

“How often do you keep up with the new discoveries?” Twilight asked. She had read something about this not long ago, even though she didn’t quite understand it at the time.

“Every few months,” Jack shrugged. “Things change so much and I have so many things to do, it’s hard to keep up with what’s current with technology.”

“What kind of things?” Twilight asked, bemused. “You’ve been dealing almost exclusively with me for the last few months.”

Jack shrugged again.

“Right,” Twilight said delicately, her mouth a thin line. “Okay. So we actually gotta go visit some of these planets to make sure they aren’t Equus.”

“That we do,” Jack nodded.

“Odds of none of them being Equus?” Twilight smirked humorlessly.

“Oh, I’d say it’s guaranteed,” Jack nodded sagely. “It’d be poor form to end this story now, with that climax being teased and all these loose threads still hanging around.”

“That and it hasn’t been properly updated since January,” added Twilight.

“But enough with breaking the fourth wall. Let’s get back to the story. Beam back to your ship and let’s head to the first planet.”

Four planets later, they found themselves floating not in front of a planet, but an asteroid cluster within the same stellar system as one of their planets, as their ships were low on fuel and this cluster apparently held high concentrations of both aegisalt for armament and plutonium for fuel. Jack, clad in his armor, now pressurized, was floating next to a giant rock with traces of aegisalt in it.

“Time to test out your new Matter Manipulator,” he announced into the commlink in his helmet. “I’ll show you how mine works.”

He produced his own U-shaped device, aimed it at one of the floating rocks, and fired. A beam of blue energy erupted from it with a subtle but recognizable laser sound, and even as Twilight watched, the rock crumbled away into smaller, more manageable chunks, leaving behind a few chunks of green metal. As Jack batted the rock chunks away, leaving them to drift out into space, he grabbed ahold of the aegisalt and put it into a duffel bag he had secured to his waist.

“Now you try,” he instructed. Twilight aimed her matter manipulator toward a rock containing some ore behind its surface and added a bit of pressure to a switch on the surface via magic. The same blue beam erupted from the device, hit the rock, and crumbled it to reveal a few more chunks of aegisalt.

“Pretty nifty, huh?”

Twilight had to agree. It would certainly make mining that much easier.

“Has several other useful features, too,” Jack continued, flicking a switch and watching as a bright LED light lit up the asteroids around them. “Apparently, this is a precursor to a model that can scan things, but that one’s not commercially available yet.”

“How does it do it, though?” Twilight asked, shooting the mining beam at a random chunk of rock.

“Best I can tell, it condenses everything it is powerful enough to reach into smaller like-material chunks. Stone gets compressed to like stone, metals compress with identical molecular structure, and so on. Don’t ask me how it knows,” he added before Twilight could, “but if anyone knows how, it would be Timaeus, since this is his baby.”

“I thought matter manipulators are commercially available.”

“Oh, they are,” Jack nodded, snatching at a chunk of aegisalt before it could drift away. “Timaeus is one of the guys in charge of making better models.”

It didn’t take long before they had mined out several asteroids. A good stock of aegisalt for better armor in the future looked pretty promising. But then Twilight noticed something.

“Jack? What’s that over there?” she asked, instinctively flapping her wings to propel herself over to a strange shape embedded in a large asteroid.

“You know that doesn’t work when there’s no air, right?” Jack asked as Twilight went nowhere.

“Sorry,” she was glad Jack couldn’t see her face. “Force of habit.”

Jack pushed off of one of the larger asteroids and floated toward the strange shape. With a quick adjustment to his matter manipulator, a light turned on, illuminating a small metal door with the letters USCM spray-painted on it.

Twilight felt her blood go cold, but Jack didn’t seem to be concerned.

“Just one of the old USCM’s asteroid emergency caches,” he muttered over the commlink. “Come on in, there’s no one here.”

“How do you know?” Twilight asked skeptically. It was a big asteroid, but there wasn’t enough room for a full complex or base. Probably a few rooms at most.

“They’d have come out by now. I want to see what they’ve got in stock in here. And besides,” he glanced at his wrist device, which displayed a clock that was synced to Terra Stella time, “it’s night time and we haven’t found any plutonium. We’ll need to sleep here”

“How did you know this was here?” Twilight asked, convinced by Jack’s arguments, mainly because there wasn’t a bed on her ship and if this were an emergency cache, there likely would be one here.

“Used to be standard procedure that they installed emergency caches in asteroid fields, in case ships ran out of fuel or needed a place to hide out and radio for help,”Jack pressed a button by the door, causing it to open to reveal a small, square room. “Come on in, this is an air lock.”

Twilight floated on over to where Jack was, and once inside, the door shut behind her. A soft white light suddenly appeared, and a cool female voice rang out, “Artificial gravity engaged.”

A humming sound reached their ears, and they both felt their feet touch down on solid ground again. A whooshing noise filled the room, followed by light spurts of steam, before the inner door opened to reveal a small living area, featuring a few chairs, a small bookcase, a subspace radio, a few small kitchen appliances, a cabinet likely filled with food, another cabinet also likely filled with food, and a single double-wide bed over in the corner.

The walls were bland, but Twilight reasoned that, in case of emergency, interior decoration probably shouldn’t be a terribly big deal.

“Nice and cozy,” Jack said, pulling off his helmet. “One cabinet’s got food, the other has some tools in case of emergency repair, and maybe a fully-loaded weapon or two in case of defense. The place is powered by stellar energy. Panels outside absorb the light from the star and use it to power everything. It’ll all shut down except for air and gravity when we sleep.”

He yawned.

“Speaking of,” he added as he finished, before stripping down to his undersuit.

“There’s only one bed,” pointed out Twilight as Jack started to climb in.

“So? You sleep in my bed all the time,” Jack replied, patting a spot beside him. “It’s more comfortable than trying to sleep on one of those chairs, and I figured you wouldn’t be terribly opposed to the idea.”

Twilight rolled her eyes under all her armor, before proceeding to take it off and climb in.

“You seem to know your ways around these facilities,” she noted, as he slid himself under the covers.

“This is the fourth time I’ve had to camp out in one of these,” he replied, before settling down and tweaking his wrist device, probably putting it to low-power mode. “They all operate the same way,” he said, before raising his voice. “Activate Night Mode.”

“Night Mode initiated,” the cool female voice repeated. “Good night.”

The lights went out and the room instantly became a good deal colder, though the covers (and Twilight’s fur) kept them warm.

“Night Twilight,” Jack said, turning his back to her and starting to drift off.

“Night Jack,” Twilight replied, having to turn toward him out of necessity due to her wings.

It didn’t take them long to drift off to sleep.

“Admiral Drogun, sir!” the young man snapped to attention as he stood before the leader.

The viewing deck of the ship was almost completely empty, aside from a throne-like chair and a few bookcases. The admiral enjoyed spending his time here, in the quiet and serene environment while he could continue poring over his collection of human literature. It also helped that his own quarters were located a floor below.

As the crew typically operated at maximum capacity almost around the clock, situations involving his advice or intervention rarely arose, which meant that in all likelihood, this was simply a report of something interesting going on.

“Yes, what is it, Ensign?” came a pleasant, middle-aged voice from the chair, even as the ensign could hear a page turn.

“We’ve compiled a report of the noteworthy events we’ve managed to get an eye on. I apologize for the lateness,” he added, inclining his head in case the admiral saw, as he didn’t want to meet the admiral’s eye, “but there was a development only a few minutes ago.”

“Let’s hear it, then,” the admiral waved a black-gloved hand.

“Science Team III reports that the Novabane aerosol has begun testing in The Rock. They estimate it will take up to fourteen standard days for the formula and implementation to be perfected.”

“Good,” Drogun muttered. “Finally, a weapon that can truly harm the Novakid race. Perhaps now we might finally gain ground with our prisoners. What next?”

“Science Team IV reports that they have discovered a new radioactive substance on a meteor-impacted planet in Sector Pi and are setting up research bases and mines to begin extraction and experimentation. Team IV reports that this new substance seems to be leading to beneficial mutations that could prove to bolster our forces beyond hope of being able to match us.”

“Hm,” grunted the admiral, idly turning a page. “What substance is it, may I ask? There’s so many radioactive mutative substances these days…”

“They have yet to identify,” the ensign shook his head.

“Hm,” grunted the admiral again.

“Occasus Cult leader Asra Nox escaped from a Protectorate prison, and former Grand Protector Esther Bright just appeared in the Ark mere hours of the development.”

“Bright ‘appeared’?” The admiral shifted, obviously surprised.

“Yes sir,” the ensign dipped his head. “Our contact doesn’t know how or why she showed up, but she just popped into the Outpost less than four hours ago and apparently is spending her time deep inside the Ark studying.”

“Good,” the admiral smiled to himself. “With the Terrane Protectorate occupied by the Occasus Cult, that leaves only one more concern. How soon can we begin testing on the Ragnarok Beam?”

“Preliminary power tests have already started,”the ensign read off of the tablet he had brought with him, “and firing tests are slated to begin tomorrow. We’ll head to the nearby asteroid cluster for target practice.”

“Good,” the admiral’s smile widened. “What’s the timetable for the Valkyrie to be declared fully operational?”

“As soon as tertiary firing tests are completed, within two standard weeks, we are expected to be fully operational.”

The admiral’s grin hit its widest, and he dipped his head. “Excellent news. And what is the ETA on the last few USCM frigates?”

“They should arrive tomorrow, sir,” answered the ensign, swiping over to a schedule that showed which ships had arrived and which hadn’t. “Only seventeen ships remain, and then your fleet will be fully assembled.”

“Excellent,” repeated the admiral, standing up from his chair. “Dies Irae approaches. On that day, the wicked shall perish, while we the righteous will reign.”

He ran a hand through his short brown hair, before adjusting the sleeves on his immaculate uniform, the gold epaulets shaking slightly with his movements. He turned away from the large window staring out into the emptiness of space to face the ensign for the first time.

Despite being at least forty-five, he looked no older than thirty. His eyes were cool and grey, the slight amount of stubble on his face gave him a rugged appearance, which the high cheekbones, square jaw, and hollow cheeks added a hard, angular quality to it.

But despite the somewhat intimidating appearance, Ensign Joanes knew the admiral to be a kind man, the epitome of human goodness to those who deserved it.

It was always the small things that set the admiral apart. Joanes’ father had known Charles Drogun when the USCM was still whole, tainted by the United Nations’ orders to protect even non-humans on earth colonies. When the admiral was still only a commander. Drogun was always quick to toss a few pixels to the poor soul left homeless, to the waitress receiving abuse from the ungrateful, and he even showed mercy when mistakes were made.

A far cry from the leaders who were quick to fire their subordinates or otherwise throw them under a bus when things went south.

“Do you have any other news to report, Ensign?”

“Two more things, sir,” Joanes glanced down at his tablet. “First, Science Team II reports that the Black Project is complete, and have even sent me a sample.” The ensign pulled out a vial of black liquid from his pocket, which he handed to the admiral. “They noted that you do need to configure an incubation chamber with it, which can be done via the instructions sent directly to your private comms terminal.”

The admiral nodded. “When we’re finished here, Ensign, send word that I will be having Talon Outpost configure everything. What is the maximum distance it works from? And how long does it take until the process is complete?”

“It begins incubation from the moment you inject,” the ensign read off of his memo, “and it continues to update data as long as it is in your bloodstream, and all data is sent to the incubation chamber to create the perfect clone, though it takes approximately one standard year for the clone body to mature.”

“I assume it will not cheat death for long, but in cases of emergency?”

“Yes sir, repeated exposure has apparently caused degradation over time,” the ensign read from the report. “Similar to how when you copy a paper, it gets whiter and whiter until it’s illegible, the more you use this, the more it degrades both body and mind. More than one prisoner either went insane or just fell apart.”

“More testing is needed, then, to really nail down how much exposure a human can take,” the admiral instructed, leading the ensign to make a couple of notes on his tablet to be sent to Science Team II at earliest opportunity. "And you said there was one more thing?”

“Yes,” the ensign finished his notes and slipped the tablet into a satchel he wore fastened to his belt, before pulling out a small slip of paper from the breast pocket of his olive-green uniform. “As I said before, this is a very recent development. One of our emergency caches has been raided.”

“This is not news,” the admiral waved his hand dismissively. “Alien scum raid our caches all the time, and they will get their comeuppance.”

“No sir, you’ll want to hear this,” the ensign promised. “The radar scan of the area turned up two ship signals. One of them is a standard, albeit modified, human Sparrow-class vessel with the callsign Ulysses. The other, however,” he pulled out a small holographic emitter and clicked it on to reveal a strange, palatial white ship, with golden towers and purple patches of painted metal decorated with stars, that all in all strangely looked like an aquatic vessel, “is an unknown ship in both design and energy readings, but does turn up a callsign: the Enterprise.”

The admiral frowned down at the strange ship, studying it. The four-pointed star adorning each side was new; he couldn’t think of a race or culture that used it as a sigil.

“Investigate further,” instructed Admiral Drogun sternly. “We must know the make and origin of that ship, be it human or otherwise. Do we have camera access?”

“No sir, and it would take seventeen hours for our closest scout ships to reach them at top speed.”

“Do whatever you can to ensure we continue to keep tabs, but do not lose that ship if at all possible.”

“Sir!” the ensign saluted.

“Return to your post, ensign. I have work to do,” the admiral smiled at the young man, before waving him away. The ensign nodded and exited the room, leaving the admiral alone to think.

That design is unlike any I have ever seen, he thought, no small amount of disquiet raging through his mind. It could be human, but it is more likely something… else.

Another minute of careful thought on how to proceed shed no light, but this would be something to continue to ponder.

If the owner of that ship was human, he or she had nothing to fear, so long as they were not aiding any non-humans.

But if it is nonhuman… Drogun thought as a smile came to his face. Their Day of Wrath will come as swiftly as the others.

“More tea, Princess?” asked the elderly maid, offering a teapot toward the alicorn.

Princess Celestia, as she had done countless times, managed to conceal her distaste. Tea had never been one of her favorite drinks. Unfortunately, she’d had to pretend it was to convince the unicorns to allow her to move into their castle after Luna’s downfall, and eventually, the charade had gotten so ingrained that it just couldn’t be stopped.

“No thank-you, my little pony,” she said, waving her away. “I have had quite enough for the time being.”

“As you wish, Princess,” the maid bowed and retreated out of Princess Celestia’s sitting room, leaving Celestia to wait for her sister.

After the maid had left completely, Celestia let the worry that had permeated her being for the last eight months finally flicker through.

Eight months… she thought. Has it really been so long?

Contact with the Enterprise had been lost mere hours into her voyage. Of course, so few ponies were privy to the mission’s details and schedule. Twilight had known just how risky this mission was and had volunteered regardless.

She wasn’t dead. Celestia was beyond certain of that. Every alicorn had a unique connection to each other, and if Twilight had perished, they all would have known immediately.

But if the Enterprise had crashed, leaving Twilight forever alone on a deserted planet…

“Sister?”

Luna poked her head in. Upon seeing that her beloved sister was, in fact, in here, she strode in. Perhaps most telling was the lack of the GameColt she usually carried around with her at all times, tapping away even without her looking.

Luna must have some very alarming news, indeed.

“Has there been any news from Hoofston?” Celestia asked, immediately turning her full attention to Luna.

“Neigh,” Luna shook her head. “A few probes have been sent out, including one following the coordinates Twilight first warped to, but I fear we will not know of what has become of Twilight until she either returns or long after she is beyond help.”

“I see,” Celestia replied, a frown developing. “And has your stargazing revealed anything new?”

Luna was, without a doubt, their greatest asset when it came to astronomy. Her magic with the moon and stars gave her an unprecedented ability to see further into space than any of Equestria’s or Grifffonia’s observatories.

“Nothing relevant to Twilight, I fear, but I have learned some very disquieting news.”

“Oh?” Celestia’s eyebrows rose.

“As we have long theorized, aliens do exist,” Luna said, frowning deeply. “I have seen many ships of a common build gather in a place of emptiness. I first discovered them many moons ago, but I was not sure whether or not they warranted any kind of serious investigation, so I merely kept an eye on them. At the very least,” she added, as if to justify herself to Celestia, “we could learn more about this alien life.”

“Why tell me this now?” Celestia asked, though not angrily, as she raised a conjured cup of wine to her lips (it was 5:00 somewhere, after all, and she needed something with taste to wash the tea out of her mouth). She knew Luna had an excellent reason to withhold the information.

“Because I have just discovered, it is an invasion armada,” Luna announced gravely.

Celestia dropped the glass.

“What!?”

“As far as I can tell, it is not meant for Equus,” Luna interjected before Celestia could add more. “These ships are a fair distance away, and I have double- and triple-checked the surrounding space and there is no sign of any probes or ships keeping an eye on our location.”

“How did you know it was an invasion army?” Celestia asked, paying no attention to the spilled wine. “And do you know where this armada is headed, if not here?”

“I cannot say,” Luna frowned. “I can only see so far. But what tipped me off was that a massive construct suddenly arrived with the fleet. I couldn’t even begin to describe how large it is. It must be…” she shook her head as she searched for the right analogy, “it had to be about the size of… of a moon! And right at the center of it… I know a cannon when I see one, and this thing was large enough that whatever projectile it fires could level mountains!”

An icy tendril curled in Celestia’s gut, sending chills up her spine.

“We… were not ready to explore space,” she realized aloud, swallowing as her mouth went very dry. “If such armies exist out there…”

“We cannot trust that they do not know of our existence,” Luna stated, a grave look matching Celestia’s own feelings working onto her face. “We should begin preparing defenses of some sort. We may not be able to do much, but we should at the very least begin training unicorns in shielding magic. But we cannot get ahead of ourselves,” Luna added, seeing the look on Celestia’s face. “We are in no immediate danger, as best I can tell, but it would be foolhardy to not start strengthening what little defenses we have.”

Celestia nodded, still reeling from Luna’s revelation. Her sister would never lie about something this serious.

“Send…” she licked her lips, “send word to the World Council informing them of your findings.”

“I will,” promised Luna, before exiting the room, leaving Celestia alone once again.

“Should these aliens visit Equus, what hope would we have?” she moaned quietly as she hunched over her table. “Who could possibly stop them?”

She felt her insides constrict all of a sudden at the thought of Twilight out there, caught up in this mess.

“Please, stay safe Twilight…”

Twilight woke alone. She had felt Jack get up from the bed, heard him put on his armor, and heard him walk out of the airlock to do who knows what, but she guessed he was off mining some more in the asteroid belt.

Getting out of the bed and stretching, she languidly strode over to the radio, where a small note had been left with a channel on it, along with the words “Tap three times.” A few adjustments to the radio’s settings gave way to radio silence, and she tapped on the microphone of the radio three times as the note instructed.

“Morning, Twilight,” Jack’s voice resounded out of the speaker. “I didn’t mean to alarm you or anything. Just thought I’d get an early start.”

It’s fine,” Twilight assured him. “Found any fuel yet?”

“Yes,” Jack said. “Your ship is fueled up enough to last for a few more warps. Just topping off my fuel as well. Only got two more planets to check out today, and then we can head back to Terra Stella, get some new armor, weapons, and tools, and see what we can do about Sector X.”

“You know, out of curiosity,” Twilight realized out loud, “this really isn’t a well-thought-out emergency cache.”

“What do you mean?”

“It would have fuel stored for people who weren’t able to mine it,” she answered.

“I imagine it was salvaged before we got here,” theorized Jack. “I mean, check the food and tools cabinets and you’ll see what I mean.”

Twilight opened each one to reveal nearly-empty interiors. Only a few MREs remained in the food cabinet, and Jack’s rifle sat in the tools cabinet.

“Your gun is here.”

“I swapped it. This one was better. A LOT better. And it made big boom.”

Twilight could almost hear him grinning over the mic. Nothing seemed to excite him more than finding something that, in his own words. “Bigger boom than boom I make.”

“I don’t suppose you’ve been using it to clear asteroids.”

“Did you even need to ask?” Jack asked. “Oh! More plutonium! I do believe that’s enough to power the Ulysses. Go ahead and salvage anything else you might want to hang on to, because it’s time to go. Let’s get those last couple of planets checked out and we’ll start making preparations for Sector X.”

Twilight needed nothing more from the shelter, so a few taps of her watch and she was beamed aboard the Enterprise.

And rather than beam aboard his own vessel, Jack opted to beam aboard as well. As soon as he was nice and fully beamed in, he dropped a stack of purple plutonium rocks and stored the matter manipulator away.

“Excuse me,” he said, pushing past her without so much as a “nice to see you.” Twilight was pushed to the side as Jack stalked right over to the AI system and started tapping the keys.

“Erm, what are you doing?” Twilight asked, naturally a bit taken aback.

“Something’s wrong,” he said. Twilight could almost hear the frown from inside his helmet. “There’s a set of coordinates to a planet in Sector Delta saved to my list of preloaded coordinates.”

“Okay,” Twilight said in confusion. “And that’s bad how?”

“It’s not bad, but…” Jack sighed, “I’ve never even been in Sector Delta before yesterday. How could I have saved that set? I want to see if... “

He trailed off and drew himself up to his fullest height.

“It’s here too,” he said, pulling his helmet off, which triggered a whoosh of air as it depressurized. “A set of coordinates in Sector Delta is saved to your system too.”

“What?” Twilight practically flew over and shoved him out of the way. “How!?”

“I don’t…” he shook his head, reaching a gauntlet-clad hand to massage his temples. “It’s…”

“How did you find this?” she asked as she looked up the date of entry and found that it had been added at some point when they were exploring Sector Beta.

“I loaded one of the coordinates to one of the planets we were heading to, and it preloaded this set of saved coordinates.”

“This is one of the planets we have to check?” Twilight asked, an idea forming in her head. “What if it’s Equus? What if the computer recovered the coordinates and put it back in?”

“What if it’s a trap?”Jack asked back, leaning back against the pristine white metal walls. “What if someone is looking to kidnap you? Or worse, what if it’s the USCM trying to lure you to one of their outposts?”

“And what if it’s not?” Twilight asked back, giving him a look. “I want to go check it out one way or another.”

She smirked as she trotted over.

“I guess you,” she poked him with a hoof, “are just going to have to come with.”

Jack scowled at her.

“Twilight, you need to understand, this is not just some little cutesy adventure you’re trying to go on,” he returned his gaze to the screen, but leaving Twilight with the distinct impression that he was intentionally trying not to meet her eye. “This is your life. And possibly the lives of everyone on Equus. If it’s a trap and the USCM get us--”

Whatever he was about to say was cut off, as Twilight simply reached up and stuck a hoof to his lips. His blue eyes widened and he jumped a bit at the action.

“I love you too, Jack,” she said teasingly. “But really, I understand your misgivings. But I want to exhaust every option before we head into Sector X. And I know a thing or two about magic, so I don’t think we’ll have too much trouble fighting our way out if we have to.”

“You freeze up when it comes to combat,” Jack reminded her, giving her a chilly look. “Twilight, I trust you with my life, but you still need to get over what happened with Dreadwing. If we find ourselves in another sticky spot, I’m afraid you’ll just freeze up again and doom us both.”

Twilight’s smirk devolved into a glare.

“I won’t,” she promised him through grit teeth, before leaning even further in so that they were mere inches apart. “I’m going to this planet. You can either come with me, or you can leave me to go alone.”

She stomped off to the pilot’s chair..

“It’s up to you, Jack.”

“For the love of…” Jack muttered to himself, before tapping a few buttons on his wristwatch and beaming over to the Ulysses.

Twilight didn’t dwell on it too long, however. She was already keying in the coordinates of the planet saved to her AI System. She would explore this planet with or without Jack.

One way or another, they’d just continue their explorations after she had a looksee at this planet. A looksee that would be starting right… about…

Now.

She pushed the Warp button and her ship shot off into space, leaving behind Jack, the asteroid belt, and everything. Barring, of course, Jack deciding to come along after all.

But she would cross that bridge when she came to it. For now, she wanted to make sure this planet wasn’t Equus.

And maybe see why the coordinates were in her computer if it wasn’t. If that meant visiting the surface, so be it.

“...and then she just warped off!” Jack complained loudly over the comm channel. “I swear, that mare is going to go blundering off into trouble.”

“And you, her gallant knight, shall rescue her,” Jack could almost hear Timaeus roll his eyes. “Yes, yes, exactly like when Dreadwing attacked her.”

“Seriously, though, Tim, any particular insight into why she did that?” Jack said, hitting his own warp button and blasting off on the three-hour warp to whatever the name of this planet was.

“Don’t call me Tim. But I can think of a few reasons, actually,” Timaeus replied, which actually surprised Jack. “While you were out and going about your business, Twilight would stay behind at our R&D center, getting a handle on our technology. I have had many opportunities to speak with her and get to know her.”

“Cool,” groaned Jack, rolling his own eyes. “You two getting comfy behind my back?”

“Is that.;.. jealousy, I detect?” Timaeus queried.

“No,” replied Jack flatly, dutifully staring straight out into the tunnel of light his ship was barrelling through.

“Hm,” Jack imagined Timaeus tilting his head. “To answer your question though, Mr. Thomas, in our conversations, Twilight Sparkle has fit the mould for a textbook perfectionist. She takes great pride in everything she does, and whenever possible, she goes the extra mile to impress.”

“I see,” Jack replied, only half-paying attention as his mind drifted toward thoughts of this planet being a USCM planet. And what would happen if Twilight were to get caught.

“With that in mind, her experiences with Dreadwing have forced her to confront a fact she does not wish to accept,” Timaeus continued, his words getting heavier with meaning. “She was not ready. She was not prepared. And she is never not prepared.”

“Well what can she do about it now?” Jack asked, exasperated. “It’s not like I can fix that.”

“But you have!” answered Timaeus. “You saved her, and you helped her get accustomed to the current state of our space-faring. And she has been a quick study when it comes to how most of our gadgets work.”

“And this makes her react like that how, exactly?”

“She flashed back to her experiences with Dreadwing when the Fatal Circuit went haywire,” reminded Timaeus. “She was reminded of her failure against Dreadwing, and that created an entirely new failure: not helping you.”

“That still doesn’t--”

“I’m getting to it!” Timaeus cut him off. “You humans…”

“I resent that,” grumbled Jack, glancing at the clock. It was going to be a long warp with no one fun to talk to...

“She wants to be useful, after everything she’s learned,” continued Timaeus unperturbed. “She told me of a time in her life in which she felt as though she did not know what her purpose as, and how much it ate at her. Now, however, with her condition, she can be a burden, and she knows that, and she hates that.”

“She’s never a burden!” protested Jack indignantly. “She’s been more helpful than Rory was when we traveled together.”

“I do not know this ‘Rory’ of which you speak,” Jack could hear the sound of the slightly haughty adjustment of Timaeus’ glasses, “but be honest. You wish to keep her from combat because you fear she will freeze up again, correct?”

“Of course. I don’t want her getting hurt in her current state.”

“Consider that. She wants to prove she is not a burden, and you believe her to be a burden during combat, even if you don’t want to. Consciously or not, you pushed the wrong buttons by informing her of those feelings, even if you meant to be gentle or have her best interests at heart.”

Jack’s mouth became a thin line on his face as he could almost hear Timaeus’ admonishing look.

“Deter her from combat if you must,” Timaeus continued, “but make her understand it’s not because you see her as a burden.”

Jack’s thin line of a mouth relaxed as he frowned. “I just don’t want to see her in danger.”

“Hmm,” the apex hummed. “Mr. Thomas, do I have your permission to be blunt?”

“Please,” Jack replied, grinning wryly.

“Very well. I believe you are attracted to Twilight Sparkle.”

Jack’s breath caught, but before he could respond, Timaeus continued on.

“As she’s the first companion you’ve had in years that you’ve really had a good relationship with, and she happens to be female, I needed a way to gauge your feelings on her. Your reaction when I lied about us spending time behind your back--”

“Hey!”

“--all but confirmed everything, but your desire to keep her out of harm’s way pretty much leaves no doubt.”

“You can’t be serious,” protested Jack indignantly. “I’m not attracted to her!”

“Oh, I apologize,” Timaeus said sincerely. “I didn’t think you exclusively preferred male company--”

“I’m not gay either!” Jack groaned.

“Are you xenophobic, as far as romance goes? Obviously not as far as platonic relationships go, of course--” Timaeus hastily added before he was forced to put his primate foot into his mouth.

“Tim,” Jack cut him off, “I don’t think I’d mind a relationship with a non-human. I’ve just…” he sighed. “I’ve just never given it much thought. Been too busy trying to make my way after Rory left.”

“Well, you have a few hours before you reach your planet,” pointed out Timaeus. “Mr. Thomas, whatever your feelings for Twilight Sparkle are, I suggest you give them some thought. In my experience, running around confused about your companion only muddies the situation up. Once you have time, I would also advise sitting down and actually talking about this with her.”

“What if she finds that idea disgusting?” Jack fired back reflexively. Timaeus didn’t answer at once, giving Jack a window of opportunity to realize exactly what he’d said. “I… well damn,” he muttered. “Maybe I do like Twilight.”

“Something tells me she wouldn’t, but that’s not to say I believe she would be all for it,” answered Timaeus, either not hearing or just ignoring Jack’s sudden realization. “Which is why you must talk about it. It would not to do have all of this unresolved feelings on the matter when you’re out there trying to keep her safe and guide her to her home.”

There was a long moment of silence as Jack considered his words.

“Just something to think about,” Timaeus finally added. “I must go, Mr. Thomas. It has been nice talking to you, friend.”

“Tim, call me Jack,” Jack replied to the intercom.

“Very well, Jack, but only if you stop calling me Tim.”

Jack chuckled. “Deal.”

The feed cut out after that, leaving Jack to stare out of his ship in silence as he waited to arrive at his destination.

A few hours and no one to talk to… It was going to be a long flight.

DISENGAGING WARP IN 5… 4… 3… 2… 1…

The tunnel of light around the Enterprise vanished as it exited warp.

As Twilight had expected, the planet sitting before her was definitely not Equus. The earth looked a light green with purple oceans, and preliminary scans revealed it to be a mostly-forested planet, bordering on full jungle.

A few clearings here and there made for a perfect landing spot, and Twilight was about to set one as a good spot to beam her down when an alert went off.

ALERT! LIFE SIGNS AND ARTIFICIAL STRUCTURES DETECTED!

Twilight’s heart skipped a beat. Someone was down on that planet. Perhaps the USCM…?

“Computer, set a transporter tag at the clearing closest to the artificial structures,” she instructed as she trotted back to put her armor on. Whoever was down there likely put these coordinates on her ship, and if they were friendly she had nothing to fear.

But if they weren’t…

She shook that thought from her head as she stepped onto the transporter in her gleaming durasteel armor, a spear slung over her back and a pistol sitting in a holster up on her withers. With a quick bark at the computer, down she went, dematerializing and being reassembled down on the surface of the planet.

The first thing she realized was that though the system’s star was in the sky, the sky itself was still dark, with the stars glimmering. There must not have been any moisture in the air, whatever the air was comprised of.

Her suit’s survival systems were supplying her with oxygen, just in case the system didn’t have a breathable atmosphere, but she wasn’t too keen on testing it.

“Computer,” she whispered, “Analyze the atmospheric composition, and find the magnetic north pole of the planet and let me know where the artificial buildings are, relative to me.”

“CONFIRMED,” the ship’s cool voice echoed in her helmet. “ATMOSPHERIC COMPOSITION IS NON-THREATENING. MAGNETIC NORTH FOUND. ORIENTING COMPASS. ARTIFICIAL STRUCTURES LOCATED APPROXIMATELY ONE-POINT-OH-EIGHT MILES NORTH-NORTHEAST OF YOUR PRESENT LOCATION.”

“Thanks,” Twilight muttered as a holographic compass appeared on her heads-up display pointing NNE, before she started walking in said direction. She had beamed into a small clearing, around fifty yards in diameter, with several trees around it, which meant she was going to enter the brush.

The sound of someone beaming down behind her put her senses on alert, but before she could do much, something had picked her up and tackled her into the foliage nearby. Before she could do much else, her helmet was pulled off.

“WHAT THE HEMMMPH!”

“Quiet!” hissed Jack’s voice as an armored hand clamped over her muzzle and held tight. She immediately tried to pry his fingers off, but he just shifted his legs to hold her down and used his hand to stopper the magic.

“Stop struggling and be quiet!” he hissed again, the electronic filter of his voice not doing him any favors in calming her. Twilight didn’t heed his words, but she did have to wonder what brought about this sudden change. “Twilight, I’m serious. I… need… you… to… stop!” he grunted as she redoubled her efforts.

Finally, he had no choice but to gently body slam her, just to shock her enough to renew his tight grip.

“There’s a massive life-sign headed this way, Twilight. I need you to be quiet and hold still!”

She froze, turning her head to give him a look that, even through her helmet, clearly said, “Why didn’t you say so?”

“Because you were about to go traipsing off into a noisy forest in full armor,” Jack replied in a low voice, loosening up and letting her out of his vicegrip. “Stay low and keep quiet.”

“What massive life-sign? Were you able to tell what it is?” she asked quietly, ducking low into a bush as he followed. The clearing they had beamed into was still quiet, but now Twilight noticed, it was eerily so. She slipped her helmet back on and rebooted her heads-up display.

“The moment you beamed down, some massive creature started making its way over here at an alarming rate. We have to be careful not to alert it to our presence, and we need to beam out of here and try to beam down at a different location.”

“Why? There’s a settlement nearby,” she informed him.

“I’m aware,” Jack nodded. “It’s an old apex research facility. Not exactly a welcome place for us, knowing what we’re likely to find inside.”

“Do you think whoever’s there is the one who put those coordinates into our ships’ computers?”

“Most likely,” Jack nodded again, before suddenly tensing.

“What?” asked Twilight.

“It’s coming!” he hissed.

“Why can’t we just beam away like we did with those avia?” Twilight asked.

“Not in a forest,” Jack unsheathed the durasteel sword on his back. “Not with any kind of overhang. You can try it now and see what I mean. And if we run out there, we’re standing still for a few moments while that beastie has precious time to claw us to shreds. One of us is gonna have to fight our way outta here one way or the other.”

“You’d better not say what I think you’re gonna--”

“I’m not!” Jack interrupted her with an askance look. “I wasn’t going to make you be the one to run. Only… only if you wanted to.”

Needless to say, Twilight was very taken aback by this.

“Jack…”

“We’ll talk later. Let’s get out of this mess first.”

And then, it happened. A loud roar sounded across the landscape, making Jack tense all the more, and causing Twilight to remove her spear from its spot on her back.

They heard three great whooshing sounds, before suddenly, with an almighty crash, it landed.

Everything was made of bone. There appeared to be no skin on it at all. Its feet were pale white and ending in sharp claws, its wings were massive, yet cracked. It had a tail that extended several feet behind it, and sitting atop the ribcage that made up its torso was a horned white skull, with great glowing red eyes staring right at them, and a maw filled with extremely sharp teeth.

“Oh shit…” Jack moaned. “A bone dragon.”

Author's Note

IT'S FINALLY DONE! HOLY SHIT! THAT TOOK FOR-FUCKING-EVER AND IT'S FINALLY DONE!

Okay. Got that out of my system.

Seriously, holy shit, I'm sorry that took so long. Once I got a job around April, my free time got sucked up like a ghost in Luigi's Mansion and what time I did have always seemed to go toward Apprentice or Worlds. I'll try not to have the next proper update take ten months this time.

Anyway, let me know about what you guys think of the chapter!

Rytex out. Have a good day!

2017 April Fools Special - Attack on the Valkyrie

Starbound
April Fools Special 2017 - Attack on the Valkyrie

The bone dragon, it turned out, was only roaring because it thought roaring made it look cool. All it really wanted was a friend, so after some tea and crumpets, during which time said dragon revealed it had been the one who had programmed the coordinates into their computers, Jack and Twilight found themselves drifting through space once again in both the Ulysses and Enterprise.

“That was a fun distraction,” Jack mused over the communicator. “Who knew red herring could be so delicious?”

They were preparing to warp to a set of coordinates that just seemed a bit important, and the ships were powering up.

“So, when we find Equus, what are you gonna do from there?” Twilight asked.

“I dunno,” Jack shrugged even though Twilight couldn’t see. “Probably take up smuggling or something. This whole jumping around the galaxy thing has been kinda fun. Might want to do it more often.”

“Isn’t smuggling dangerous?” Twilight asked. “I mean, by the sound of things, you’re sneaking things past an authority. You could get in serious trouble.”

“What, you think I’d accept a massive contract from a fat slug thing to haul spice from Kessel, get followed by a galactic empire, dump it off next to a bunch of black holes as I skim closer to them than anyone else ever has and create a massive misconception on whether a parsec is a unit of time or distance--”

“Distance, obviously.”

“--get a bounty put on my head, contract an old guy and a whiny kid from the desert to take them to a planet that gets blown up, shoot first, get caught by the galactic empire on their superweapon, rescue a princess--”

“You already did that.”

“--escape to a rebel alliance, run away from a rebel alliance, join a rebel alliance, serve as a general for three years and get confronted by a bounty hunter about that bounty that was put on my head, try to pay off my bounty, get backstabbed by a friend and captured by the galactic empire, get frozen in carbonite and taken back to the space slug guy?”

Jack could almost hear Twilight just staring straight ahead.

“That’s oddly specific,” she finally commented.

“Because I won’t do that,” promised Jack. “I won’t reenact that plot that’s been done to death.”

Right before Twilight could say something back, however, her radar started going off. And by the sound of things on Jack’s end, his was too.

“SAIL, where is it?” Twilight asked her ship’s AI.

Her radar screen blinked on and created a 3D representation of the area around her, with a flashing red light down, forward, and to the right side of her ship. No sooner than the one had appeared than four smaller ones appeared and beelined straight for it.

“Shit,” cursed Jack. “It’s a downed ship. the four readings headed for it are a USCM scavenger squadron. Probably to pick apart the wreckage and see if there’s anything to grab.”

“If the ship is downed, we need to go see if there are any survivors!” Twilight exclaimed, already dashing to the pilot’s seat.

“Agreed. And we can see if the USCM were after anything of interest,” Jack added. “My ship’s weapons ought to make short work of these scavenger ships, but we’ll need to hightail it out of the area before the bigger ships show up to avenge their fallen comrades.”

Jack and Twilight maneuvered their way down toward where the lights were, which was a considerable distance away, near where the edge of a smaller, tightly-knit asteroid belt was situated.

“Damn it,” Jack hissed. “Those fools tried to navigate that asteroid belt. Don’t they know the odds of successfully navigating an asteroid field are approximately 3,720 to 1?”

Twilight had no response. If the unknown beings had been desperate enough to try to navigate an asteroid field, what was chasing them?

Silently, she pressed the master switch to prime all defenses. Jack’s ship systems seemed to be powering up as well.

“This is gonna suck,” Jack muttered, before the Ulysses suddenly powered forward toward a pile of wreckage floating by the edge of the field. Twilight was only moments behind him as she surged forward as well.

“SAIL, lock onto any USCM targets,” she commanded, reaching away from her dashboard and preparing to fire her laser defenses as soon as they were locked.

“Target locked on four ships,” SAIL replied in her cool voice. One of the nice things about Jack was that he was able to replace the harsh, calculating voice of her regular computer with a softer, more emotive one.

“Target locked.”

“On my signal,” Jack said over the mic. “We don’t want to give them the opportunity to run or call for help.”

“Got it,” Twilight assured him.

The mic went quiet as they waited. Twilight could hear her heart beating in her chest as the seconds passed.

Finally, there came a loud sort of howling sound as four H-shaped ships with circular cockpits flew out of the wreckage. Dangling off of the bottom of each cockpit was a strange magnetized cord. Twilight could see it was magnetized because it was already attracting metal pieces of the wrecked ship away.

“What are they looking for…?” muttered Jack.

Twilight had nothing to say. They were this close to being discovered. She could only imagine what would happen if the USCM found out about her.

“Now!” barked Jack suddenly. Twilight reacted instantaneously.

There was a burst of laser fire from both ships and in mere moments, all four scavenger ships were reduced to scrap metal.

“Nice job, Twilight,” breathed Jack. He sounded just as tired as she did despite having done no actual physical effort. Perhaps the suspense of the situation had messed with him.

“Let’s go see what all the fuss was about."

The Ulysses and Enterprise glided forward toward the wrecked ship, and Jack let out a slight gasp.

“That’s a YT-1300! Light freighter, perfect for smuggling and cargo transport! I haven’t seen one of them in ages!”

Twilight didn’t know what a YT-1300 was, but the strange, vaguely disc-shaped ship was definitely completely downed, with the engines dead and no life signs.

“I’m gonna go beam aboard and see what all the fuss was about. Want to come with?"

“Sure,” said Twilight, stepping out of her seat and trotting back toward the transporter.

“Beaming now,” said Jack, before the line cut completely.

“SAIL, send me over,” commanded Twilight, and no sooner than she had said this that she saw everything around her flash into different colors, and suddenly, she was standing in a padded round corridor on top of a metal floor. Next to her, Jack materialized in a flash of light.

“Is that--” Jack immediately asked, before suddenly dashing forward toward a strange, circular chessboard-looking table. “A dejarik board! I haven’t seen one of these in years!”

“What’s dejarik?” Twilight asked, looking over the metal table with interest.

“It’s like chess, but with holographic creatures,” Jack summarized, before looking around the dark ship. “No life signs on board. I’m gonna have a look around. See if I can find what the fuss was about.”

He pulled a pistol out of its holster and stepped into the circular hall and out of sight. Twilight took her own peek around the ship. No one was aboard in her quick look, but she figured she wasn’t the one looking around the cockpit.

“Found anything?” Jack’s voice called from some other part of the ship.

“Nothing,” answered Twilight.

“Come on back to the lounge area, then,” Jack replied. “No one’s aboard, but I found something.”

Twilight complied, heading back to the room with the dejarik board, where she found Jack standing there, inspecting a small disc.

“I found this in the pilot’s seat, he said, looking it over. “No one aboard, not even Glitch or droids or whatnot. The ship was shot out here remotely with this information on it, but the launcher probably didn’t account for the asteroid field.”

“Do you know where the ship was trying to go?”

Jack nodded. “I have the coordinates. And this disc has USCM encryption. See?” he angled the disc so Twilight could make out some lettering engraved on it. “It uses the Aurabesh alphabet. So unless I’m much mistaken, this ship was on its way to the Rebel Alliance.”

“Rebel Alliance? Rebels from what?” Twilight scrutinized the disc. The writing looked nothing like the standard Basic alphabet human civilization used.

“Rebels from the USCM’s tyranny,” Jack slipped the disc into a protective case and then stowed it on his belt. “They’ve been hiding out at a secret base on a hidden planet since about the time this April Fool’s Chapter was thought of. Fortunately, the coordinates stored in the ship's navicomputer should lead us right to them.”

“Then let’s go. If this has USCM data, then they need to see it."

“Way ahead of you. Beam back aboard the Enterprise and I’ll send you the coordinates. We have to get there before the USCM does. They’ve probably already deduced the location of the base, so we need to get there as soon as possible.”

It only took them five minutes to beam back aboard, share the coordinates, and warp off.

“Admiral Drogun, sir? The scavenger ships vanished when attempting to investigate the Millennium Falcon. Readings in the area indicate a standard human Sparrow-class vessel and the mysterious readings we received from our scans by our emergency outpost were in the area,” Private Joanes informed, reading off of his tablet.

“Interesting,” said Drogun, tilting his head. “Did they take the bait?”

“Looks so. The tracking device is functioning and is leading toward the Yavin system. The Valkyrie is already on its way.”

“Good,” Drogun nodded. “I’m taking an awful risk here, Joanes. This had better work.”

It took them some time to reach the Yavin system, but once there, they detected readings originating from the fourth moon, which they promptly flew on down to. Once there, they found themselves in the midst of a massive assortment of beings in the middle of a large military operation headquartered in several old stone temples. The standard Hylotl, Glitch, Avia, Human, Apex, and Novakid entities ran back and forth, but there appeared to be other beings down there as well.

“I guess this is the rebel alliance,” observed Jack as he sent hailing transmissions, along with a message that they had recovered some sort of USCM plans, as well as the proof.

“What a ragtag bunch of misfits,” Twilight noted.

“They all fight for a common cause: the destruction of the USCM.”

“You are cleared for landing in the main temple.”

“Roger that,” Jack replied. “Follow me down, Twilight.”

Having never landed the Enterprise planetside before, Twilight found it easier than expected. What was not easier than expected was how they were going to win their way into the good graces of the Rebel Alliance, because as soon as they stepped out of their ships, they found themselves at gunpoint.

“How did you find us?” asked a man dressed in simple clothes and with a long beard, as he stepped out of the crowd.

“We found a ship on its way here that was attacked by the USCM, and it was carrying this,” Jack removed the disc from its protector on his belt. “You’ll notice standard USCM encryption.”

“The ship you recovered this from,” the bearded man took the disc and looked it over. “Was it a YT-1300, by chance?”

“Yeah, it was,” Jack nodded. “Found it beat up outside an asteroid field. No life signs aboard, not even droids.”

“It is as I feared,” the bearded man bowed his head. “Our strike team on Scarif was completely destroyed, but they said they managed to launch a ship remotely with the plans in a last-ditch effort to get them to us.”

“The plans?” asked Twilight. “The plans to what?”

“To the USCM’s planet-devastating battlestation, the Valkyrie,” the bearded man answered. “You have our sincere gratitude for completing the delivery. My name is General Jan Dodonna, head of the Rebel Alliance’s military forces here on Yavin IV.”

“I’m Jack Thomas,” Jack nodded. “Just a wayward star-traveler. This is Twilight Sparkle. I’m looking to lead her back to Equestria.”

“An Equestrian?” Dodonna’s eyebrows rose. “Our other Equestrian ought to be happy to see you,” and here Twilight perked up incredibly quickly, “but we’ll have to leave the reunion for later. We must get the information out of this disc as soon as possible. It’s most likely the USCM have tracked us all here, so we haven’t a moment to lose.”

Drogun and Joanes stood in the control room as the Valkyrie approached a giant red gas planet surrounded by several planet-sized moons.

As he and Joanes discussed something, their comms beeped.

“Yes?” Drogun asked as he opened the link.

“We’re approaching the planet Yavin. The Rebel base is on a moon on the far side. We are preparing to orbit the planet.”

“Good,” Drogun nodded, before closing the channel and smiling grimly. “So it begins.”

Jack and Twilight stood in a room surrounded by many different pilots wearing orange flightsuits, some already wearing helmets, others with them off. General Dodonna had successfully decrypted the contents of the disc and its contents were now on-screen for all to see. The Valkyrie was a massive spherical moon-sized battlestation, it turned out, with a strange divot in the surface that was presumably the source of the ray of destruction.

“The battlestation is heavily-shielded and contains a firepower greater than half the starfleet. Its defenses are designed around a direct large-scale assault. A small one-man fighter should be able to penetrate the outer defense.”

Jack scowled as the information came on-screen. He hadn’t signed up for this.

“Pardon me for asking, sir,” interjected one pilot, “but what good are snub fighters going to be against that?”

“Well, the USCM doesn’t consider a small, one-man fighter to be any threat, or they’d have a tighter defense. An analysis of the plans provided by our two visitors,” he indicated Twilight and Jack, “has demonstrated a weakness.in the battlestation.”

He looked back toward the crowd meaningfully as the screen zoomed in on a precise point on the surface of the station, the beginning of a trench. “The approach will not be easy. You’re required to maneuver straight down this trench and skim the surface to this point,” the screen froze at a wall in the trench with a hole in the surface. “The target area is only two meters wide. It’s a small thermal exhaust port right below the main port. The shaft leads directly to the reactor system. A precise hit will start a chain reaction which should destroy the entire station.”

A ship indicator appeared on screen and dropped a small ball right into the hole, which fell straight down the shaft to a central point in the station, where an indication showed the station blowing to pieces.

“Only a precise hit will set up a chain reaction. The shaft is ray-shielded, so you’ll have to use proton torpedoes.”

The room around them exploded into murmurs of disbelief.

“That’s impossible! Even for a computer!” exclaimed one human pilot.

“It’s not impossible,” retorted Twilight. “I used to bulls-eye Everfree Womp Rats on my old T-16 prototype back home, and they’re not much bigger than 2 meters.”

Jack felt himself smirk as the pilot flushed.

"Man your ships,” commanded Dodonna, “and may the Force be with us.”

The executives around the ship had gathered in the control room as the Valkyrie began its final orbit.

“We are orbiting the planet at maximum velocity. The moon with the rebel base will be in range in 30 minutes.”

Joanes smiled at the thought. “This will be a day long remembered,” he announced with finality. “It has seen the end of the Rogue One strike force, and will soon see the end of the rebellion.”

Twilight emerged from a dressing room in an orange pilot’s flight suit, feeling her heart racing. She would be joining the attack, since if this Valkyrie were allowed to continue to exist, Equus would forever live in fear of beings they had never met.

However, she was dismayed to see Jack loading several boxes worth of stuff onto the Ulysses as she emerged.

“So... you got a reward and you’re just leaving then?” she asked, trying to conceal the betrayal she felt.

“That’s right, yeah,” Jack didn’t meet her eye. “I, uh, I got some old debts I gotta pay off with this stuff. And besides, you didn’t think I‘d be fool enough to stick around here, do you?”

He stopped and looked her straight in the eyes.

“Why don’t you come with me? I’m trying to get you home, and we’re this close.”

Twilight felt anger bubble up inside her. “Come on, why don’t you take a look around!? You know what’s at stake here, what they’re up against! They could use a good pilot like you, and you’re turning your back on them!”

“What good’s a reward if you ain’t around to use it?” retorted Jack. “Besides, attacking that battlestation isn’t my idea of courage. More like… suicide.”

Twilight snarled. “Well, take care of yourself, Jack. I guess that’s what you’re best at, isn’t it?”

And she stomped off.

“Hey, Twilight,” Jack reached out and caught a leg. Twilight stopped and turned around to glare at him. He was working his jaw like there was something he wanted to say, but at the end he just sighed. “May the Force be with you.”

They held each other’s gaze for some seconds more, but then Twilight turned and headed off to the ship that was going to be her’s.

No sooner than she had left than Dodonna found himself walking with her.

“Something wrong?” the general asked.

“It’s Jack,” Twilight sighed. “I don’t know, I guess I just thought he’d change his mind.”

The general nodded sagely. “Mr. Thomas must follow his own path. No one can choose it for him. And in any case, in light of our odds, it is understandable that he would wish to survive.”

Twilight sighed, thinking of her mentor. “I just wish my teacher, Princess Celestia were here. She’d know what to say to boost my confidence.”

“You’ll be fine, Twilight Sparkle,” assured Dodonna. “Go get familiar with your ship. We’ll be monitoring everything from here.”

And with that he was gone, leaving Twilight alone again, marching toward her ship.

But not for long.

“Twilight!”

She knew that shout from anywhere. Spinning around as quickly as possible, she was astounded to see a prismatic blur rush up to her and tackle her to the ground.

“Holy crap, Twilight, it is you! I’ve been looking everywhere for you!”

“R-Rainbow Dash?” Twilight pushed the being off of her and stood up. Sure enough, the former Element of Loyalty herself stood there in an orange flightsuit, her mane as vibrant as ever, showing no signs of the age that had befallen their friends, and she looked giddy as could be.

“How did you find us!?” Dash asked in disbelief. “I found them when I went looking for you! Figured I could use all the help I could get and with the USCM out there, they were willing to help me find you to possibly ally ponykind with the Rebels! And now you’re here, I can bring you back home when this is all over!”

“We found our way here, actually,” Twilight grinned. “We found the plans and followed the trail here.”

Dash looked down at her suit.

“Are you going up with us?”

“I’ll be right up there with you, Dash. Have I got stories to tell you!”

“Twilight Sparkle!”

An older man came walking up to both of them. Once he reached them, he indicated the T-shaped ship just a bit further down the garage. “You sure you can pilot that thing?”

“With all due respect, Captain Dreis, my friend Twilight here is one of the quickest learners in history.”

Dreis smiled. “You’ll do alright. Let’s get a move on.”

Twilight and Dash shared one final smile and nod, before parting, with twilight heading to the indicated ship.

The ship attendant was lowering a strange, pill-shaped droid on stilts into a slot in her ship.

“We’ll be assigning you this R2 astromech unit,” the attendant said. “They’re good for making ship repairs mid-flight. He’s a dependable little droid. You should be fine.”

Preparations were just about finished, and as Twilight slid into the cockpit, she noticed that most of the controls matched those of the Enterprise, with a few extra buttons here and there. It wasn’t going to be that hard to pick up.

“Time to lift off,” came Dreis’ voice over the commlink in her helmet.

One-by-one, the T-shaped ships all lifted off from the ground, maneuvered out of the garage, and into the open air, where they al soared into space, followed by several Y-shaped ships as well.

As the blue of the sky gave way to the darkness of space, they heard the alert from Mission Control.

“Stand-by alert. Valkyrie approaching. Estimated time to firing range, 15 minutes.”

The ships flew through space toward a grey dot that was growing ever larger the closer they got to it.

Twilight closed her eyes and took a deep breath, recalling her teacher’s words. “Twilight, the force of magic will always be with you.”

I sure hope you’re right, Princess.

“All wings report in,” came Dreis’ orders over the commlink.

“Red ten, standing by.”

“Red seven, standing by.”

“Red three, standing by.”

“Red six, standing by.”

“Red nine, standing by.”

“Red two, standing by,” came Dash’s voice.

“Red eleven, standing by.”

“Red five, standing by,” Twilight chimed in.

“All wings present and accounted for, Gold Leader,” Dreis said over the comms.

“Acknowledged,” came Gold Leader’s voice. “All Gold Wings present and accounted for.”

“Acknowledged,” replied Dreis. “Lock S-foils in attack position.”

Twilight reached over and hit the S-Foil button on her dashboard. The ship rumbled around her, as she saw other ships’ wings split from the back of a T into an X.

The ships around them began to rumble even more.

“We’re passing through the magnetic field! Hold tight! Switch your deflectors on, double-front.”

They got ever closer to the station, and it soon filled up their entire field of view.

“Look at the size of that thing!” exclaimed Dash.

“Cut the chatter, Red Two,” barked Dreis. “Accelerate to attack speed!”

She heard him sigh. “This is it, boys.”

“Red Leader, this is Gold Leader.”

“I copy, Gold Leader.”

“We’re starting for the target shaft now."

“We’re in position,” confirmed Dreis. “I’m going to cut across the axis and try to draw their fire.”

The squadron of X-wings spun down and began the attack. The battle was on.

Suddenly, green lights lit up the nightscape around them as the USCM began firing on them from every possible angle. However, Twilight thanked her lucky stars that their ships were so small and agile that they were evading the fire too easily.

“Heavy fire, boss,” informed Dash. “23 degrees.”

“I see it,” Dreis replied. “Stay low.”

Twilight looked out in time to see Dash expertly maneuver herself around the surface of th battlestation, which was littered with towers and laser turrets.

“This is Red Five,” said Twilight, pulling her X-wing up. “I’m going in.”

With that, she pushed down and started peppering the surface of the station with laser fire, which produced several sparks but didn’t seem to be doing any damage, until a cloud of smoke erupted from something she hit.

“Twilight! Pull up!” barked one of the pilots.

Twilight complied, only just pulling away from the surface of the station in time to avoid getting hit.

“Are you alright?” asked the same pilot

“Yeah, I got a little cooked, but I’m okay.”

“Keep it up, boys, we’re doing great!” Dreis called.

Joanes calmly marched down a hall as an officer ran up to him.

“We count thirty rebel ships, Ensign Joanes, but they’re so small, they’re evading our turbolasers. What would you recommend?”

“We’ll have to destroy them ship-to-ship,” Joanes said firmly. If the ships were that small and fast, there was no reason not to deploy their own hornets nest to sting them back. “Get the crews to their fighters.”

“An excellent idea, sir,” said the officer, hurrying off.

“Watch yourselves!” cautioned Dreis. “There’s a lot of fire coming from the west side of that deflection tower!”

“I’m going in,” Twilight stated.

“I’m on it,” also said Dash. “Cover me, Porkins."

“Right with you, Red Two,” came Red Six’s voice.

Dash and Twilight worked in total tandem, spraying laser fire at the dull grey tower, before their shots managed to blast it to smithereens.

“Nice one, Twi!” Dash called.

“I think I’m getting the hang of this,” Twilight smiled.

“I’ve got a problem here,” Porkins said quietly over his commlink.

“Porkins, get out of here and eject!”

“No, I can hold it!” assured Porkins, but Twilight noticed his ship was falling dangerously low.

“Pull up!” she yelled over the mic.

“No I’m all--AAAAAAARGH!”

A flash of fire suddenly erupted where Porkins’ ship had been moments before.

Twilight sucked in a breath. If she thought herself invincible, that moment had certainly done away with that.

“The rebel base will be in range in seven minutes.”

Drogun calmly took a deep breath. Everything was under control. These fighters could do nothing against their armor.

Twilight pulled back up and prepared for another run.

Twilight, trust your feelings, Princess Celestia’s voice sounded in her head.

Twilight took a steadying breath, and then aimed her ship where the most unlikely place for a turret to be at would be and began to fire. Several small explosions erupted on the surface and some of the laser fire ceased. She smiled to herself. This was going well.

“Squad leaders, we’ve picked up a new group of signals. Enemy fighters coming your way.”

Twilight glanced down at her radar.

“My scope’s negative, I can’t see anything,” she said over the commlink.

“Pick up your visual scanning! Here they come!”

The scream of several H-shaped ships sounded. More of the scavenger ships from before had appeared.

“Watch it, Red Seven, you’ve got one on your tail!”

And in short order, the heard Red Seven’s panic over the mic.

“I’m hit!” he shouted, before suddenly his line went quiet and another burst of flame illuminated the spacescape around them.

“Dash, you’ve picked one up! Watch it!” Twilight yelped, immediately redirecting her X-wing toward her friend’s, who had suddenly picked up a fighter on her tail.

“Can’t see it!” Dash said over the mic, and Twilight could hear her twisting around in an attempt to find it.

“I’ll be right there,” Twilight promised, getting right on the TIE fighter’s tail and trying to get it into weapon range.

Her indicator showed the fighter weaving around the targeting reticule as it attempted to lock onto Dash, before finally hitting dead center, where Twilight immediately blasted it into space dust.

She could hear Dash sigh over the mic. “Thanks, Twi.”

Joanes marched down the hallways inside the battle station, seeking out two particular pilots, who appeared to be awaiting his command.

“Several fighters have broken off from the main group,” Joanes barked, before turning. “Come with me.”

“Yes sir,” said one of the pilots as both of them started following him.

“Pull in! Twilight, Pull in!”

“Watch your back, Twilight, watch your back!”

Twilight did her best to try and maneuver her ship out of the sights of the TIE fighter behind her, but it was sticking to her too well.

“Watch your back! Fighter’s coming in right above you!” came Dash’s alert.

She heard the sounds of several blasts, followed by a sudden shift in her ship as something made contact.

“I’m hit but not bad! R2, see what you can do with it!” Twilight quickly instructed the droid.

R2 whistled and immediately set to trying to make the quick repair.

“Hang on, back there!” Twilight called back.

“Red Two, can you see Red Five?”

“There’s a heavy fire zone there, boss,” Dash replied. “Red Five, where are you?”

“I can’t shake him!” Twilight shrieked as the scream of the TIE fighter sounded yet again right behind her.

“Hang on, Twi, I’ll be right there!” Dash promised, before the line went quiet.

Twilight continued dodging the TIE fighter’s shots, even managing to get it to fire on its own station a few times, but no matter what she did, she just couldn’t get the TIE off her tail.

“Blast it, Dreis, where are you?” she muttered, hoping the captain would be coming to her aid.

She continued flying around, hoping to manually shake him off, but it was again to no avail. But then suddenly, she saw Dash’s X-wing appear out of nowhere and pepper the spot behind her with fire, shredding the TIE fighter instantly.

Twilight sighed. “Thanks, Dash.”

“Good shooting, Dash,” came Red Three’s call over the radio.

“Red leader, this is Gold leader. We’re starting our attack run.”

“I copy, Gold leader. Move into position,” Dreis answered.

Joanes let out a calm breath as the trio of TIEs, the center being a heavily self-modified one, launched from the main docking bay.

“Stay in attack formation,” he instructed his cohorts.

“Copy, sir,” one of his wingmen replied.

Davish Krail took a calm breath as the trio of Y-wings flew down into the trench.

“The exhaust port is marked… and locked in,” he said, hitting a series of buttons, locking onto the exhaust port. With that, the trio began zooming straight down the trench at top speed, before a sudden storm of laser fire forced them to slow.

“Switch all power to front deflector screen,” he instructed, “switch all power to front deflector screen.”

“How many guns do you think, Gold Five?” Dutch asked almost conversationally.

“I’d say about 20 guns. Some on the surface, some on the towers,” Krail answered, staying alert.

“The Valkyrie will be in range in 5 minutes.” came the alert from the command center.

“Switch to targeting computer,” Dutch said as he pulled alongside Krail’s ship.

“Computer’s locked. Getting a signal,” Krail replied. Behind them, Tyree stayed to keep eyes on the rear.

Suddenly, the storm of laser fire ended.

“The guns! They’ve stopped!” Krail exclaimed, before instantly adjusting his shields. “Stabilize your rear deflectors! Watch for enemy fighters!”

“They’re coming in! Three marks at 210!” Dutch said.

Krail looked around to see three TIE fighters quickly slide themselves into position behind the three of them.

Joanes adjusted his control stick, before activating the rotating fire mechanism on his blasters.

“I will take them myself. Cover me,” he barked at his wingmen.

“Yes sir,” the same from before replied.

It didn’t take long for him to lock onto the rear ship and open fire. The Y-wing pilot never stood a chance as his ship exploded into fire.

“It’s no good, I can’t maneuver!” Dutch was losing it. Krail had to calm him down. They had come too far to let it go to waste!

“Stay on target!”

“We’re too close!”

“Stay on target!”

“Loosen up!”

But suddenly, Dutch’s line went dead as his ship exploded into fire and he smashed into the walls of the trench.

“Gold Five to Red leader,” Krail sighed as he pulled out of the trench, “lost Tyree, lost Dutch.”

“I copy Gold leader,” he heard Dreis say.

“The came from behind--”

And after that, everything exploded around him.

An aide walked up to Admiral Drogun, who was watching the proceedings with a slight bit of nervousness. These one-man fighters were doing more than originally anticipated.

“We’ve analyzed their attack, sir,” the aide said, hoping not to anger the admiral, “and there is a danger. Shall I have your ship standing by?”

But despite all of that, the chances of the rebels succeeding were laughable.

“Evacuate? In our moment of triumph?” he asked, nonplussed. “I think you seriously overestimate their chances.”

“Rebel base, three minutes and closing.” the command center intercom called, emphasizing his point.

“Red boys, this is Red leader. Rendezvous at mark 6.1,” commanded Dreis.

“This is Red Two, flying toward you,” Dash answered.

“Red Three, standing by,” came another.

“Red leader, this is Base One,” came Dodonna’s voice from down on the planet. “Keep half your group out of range for the next run.”

“I copy, Base One. Twilight,” and here Twilight perked up. The stoppage of laser fire had proven a nice rest for her and the others, “take Reds Two and Three and hold up here. Wait for my signal to start your run.”

Twilight wordlessly complied, beginning to circle around near the entrance of the shaft with Dash and the other one, Biggs she thought he was called, on her wing.

“This is it,” Dreis commented as him and his wingmates flew into the shaft, with him taking point several meters ahead.

The storm of laser fire erupted again and the three of them flew through it almost as though it weren’t there.

“We should be able to see it by now,” Red Eleven growled tensely over the mic.

And again, the laser fire stopped suddenly.

“Keep your eyes open for those fighters,” Dreis instructed.

“There’s too much interference!” Red Eleven replied. “Red Five, can you see them from where you are?”

Twilight looked around, trying to spot the ships. “No sign of any--” suddenly, she saw three blurs of motion. “Wait! Coming in at .35!”

“I see them,” Red Eleven responded.

The three ships slid behind them again, despite Twilight’s, Dash’s, and Biggs’ attempts to shoot them down.

“I’m in range,” Dreis murmured over the mic. “Target’s coming up. Just hold them off for a few seconds.”

Joanes adjusted his control stick again.

“Close up formation,” he said, as he started to lock onto one of the X-wings.

“Almost… there…” Dreis muttered.

Behind him, Red Ten’s ship exploded into fire and Red Eleven began to panic.

“Get a little loose! They’re right behind me!”

“Almost… there…” Dreis muttered again as he got closer.

“I can’t hold them!” Eleven shouted even louder.

A few seconds later, his ship, too, was destroyed.

Twilight continued to watch with bated breath as the trio of TIEs flew further ahead and got right behind Dreis’ X-wing.

And just in the nick of time, two light blurs shot from Dreis’ ship and he pulled up…

“It’s away!”

...just as a massive explosion rocked the surface of the Valkyrie.

“Did it hit?” Biggs asked.

“Negative,” and Twilight felt her breath leave her as though she had been punched in the gut. Dreis sounded resigned as he flew off. “It didn’t go in. It just impacted on the surface.”

Twilight, Dash, and Biggs shot toward him as the central TIE with the curved wings closed in on its kill.

“Red leader, come to .05. We’ll cover for you!” she promised over the mic.

“Stay there! I just lost my starboard engine. Get set up for your attack run!”

The curved-winged TIE let of a spray of laser fire, which struck Dreis’ ship in the engine, sending him plummeting.

“AAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAA--” he screamed, before the line went deathly quiet. Out of the side of the ship, Twilight watched as his X-wing collided with the surface and exploded in a flash of fire.

It was just down to the three of them.

“Valkyrie, one minute and closing.”

“Biggs, Dash, let’s close it up,” she said, sounding a lot more confident than she felt. “We’re going in, and we’re going in full-throttle.”

“Right with you, boss,” Biggs affirmed over the commlink.

“Twilight, at that speed, will you be able to pull out in time?” asked Dash in serious concern.

“Funny, your mom asked me the same thing last night, Dash.”

Author's Note:
THAT'S RIGHT. I WROTE 6000 WORDS JUST TO SET UP ONE PERFECTLY TIMED YOUR MOM JOKE. I TOLD YOU NO MORE LAST-SECOND APRIL FOOLS JOKES. THIS ONE WAS PLANNED MONTHS IN ADVANCE! JOKE'S ON YOU, FOR EXPECTING ME NOT TO TROLL YOU GUYS THIS YEAR!

FUCK YOU RYTEX

JUST KIDDING

"It'll be just like Ghastly Gorge back home," Twilight replied, smirking at the memories of racing Dash through the canyon.

The trio of X-Wings aileron'ed into the trench, upon which Twilight immediately hit the accelerator to full-speed, sending her X-wing rocketing forward.

"We'll stay back far enough to cover you," promised Biggs, as his and Dash's ship slid back several meters.

"My scope shows the tower, but I can't see the exhaust port. Are you sure the computer can hit it?" Dash asked.

The ships continued their breakneck pace forward, their deflectors pushing all the bolts from the Valkyrie's turbolaser turrets away.

"Watch yourself! Increase speed, full throttle!" Twilight commanded.

"What about that tower?" Dash asked.

"You worry about those fighters! I'll worry about the tower!" Twilight snapped back.

Forward they continued, evading the storm of laser fire as they went. However, one bolt did manage to slip past Twilight's shields and graze the engine, where her R2's earlier work had been.

"R2, that stabilizer's broken loose again," Twilight said as the ship started to rumble around them. "See if you can't lock it down."

R2 whistled set to trying to tie down the stabilizer.

No sooner had she said this than the laser towers stopped firing. Twilight felt her throat go dry. Here they come, she thought.

"Fighters! Coming in 0.3!" Dash called over the commlink.

Twilight could hear the sound of the TIE fighters shooting behind her, followed by Dash groaning.

"I'm hit!" she called. "I can't stay with you!"

"Get clear, Dash," Twilight nodded to herself. "You can't do any more good from back there."

"Sorry!" Dash apologized, before her X-wing soared out of the trench behind her.

Joanes watched the X-wing he had hit fly off into space toward the forest moon.

"Let him go. Stay on the leader," he ordered his wingmen.

Twilight could hear the roar of the TIE fighters get louder.

"Hurry up, Twilight! They're coming in much faster this time!" Biggs shouted over the mic.

Twilight hit every possible accelerator to keep pushing her ship forward, but no matter what she hit, the screaming behind her got ever louder.

"R2, try and increase the power!"

R2 acknowledged with a chirp, but the TIEs were getting closer and closer...

"Hurry up, Twilight! Quick!" Twilight could not miss the fear in Biggs' voice at this point. "QUICK!"

She heard the blaster fire, heard the explosion, and heard the commlink completely go dead. The force of the moment hit her like an iron punch. She was alone.

She was alone, and she was next.

Drogun let out an easy breath. One fighter left, with a few scattered survivors fighting a losing battle. It was about to be over, and they could fly directly to Terra Stella and put an end to that blight upon civilization.

Rebel base, thirty seconds and closing.

Joanes smirked as they closed in on the final X-wing, already taking aim.

"I'm on the leader," he commanded, to his wingmates' acknowledgement.

Twilight's breaths were coming shallower and shallower with each passing second. It was with a shaky hoof that she hit the button to turn on the targetting computer, and only with a craned head could she even see into it, to see that she was still 30,000 meters away and closing. 30,000 meters!

She was never going to make it!

The icy grip of panic began to set in as she adjusted her targeting computer. This had to have been a mistake! They can't have come so close just to fail!

And at 20,000, it was as though magically, her fear and restlessness mysteriously vanished. She let out a deep breath as she felt a strange, peacefulness wash over her.

Use the Force, Twilight, she heard Celestia's voice say into her head as she flew, providing her with more comfort than the Princess would ever know.

She let out a deep breath, then reached back up to look through the targeting computer.

Let go! Celestia's voice said again.

Twilight felt herself slide back into her seat, though a slight unease entered her. She needed that computer!

Joanes felt his smirk slip into a scowl. There was too much familiar energy in the area.

"The Force is strong with this one," he said to himself as he continued to try and lock on.

Twilight, Celestia's voice said even gentler than before, trust me.

And with that, Twilight nodded to herself and confidently pressed the button to turn off the targeting computer.

"Her computer's off." she heard Command say. "Twilight, you switched off your targeting computer. What's wrong?"

"Nothing," answered Twilight with a suddenly easy smile. "I'm alright."

Her X-wing surged forward as she continued her breakneck pace toward the exhaust port, managing to stay low and continue to swerve side-to-side to evade the ships behind her. Each breath was easier than the last as she remained vigilant, waiting for her moment.

Joanes couldn't get a lock, but he'd be damned if this being singlehandedly took down this entire station.

Because of that, when he had even the slightest lock on the ship, he fired.

Twilight felt the bolts connect, followed by R2's shrill wail.

"R2!" Twilight exclaimed over the mic. "I've lost R2!"

"The Valkyrie has cleared the planet!" Command relayed, only adding to the punch Twilight felt she had just taken.

"Rebel base, in range. came the call.

Drogun smiled. "You may fire when ready."

"Commence primary ignition," came the call from the Ragnarok Fire Control Station, and the operators set to beginning the firing sequence.

Twilight's earlier ease had vanished as she continued to evade the TIE behind her, but she didn't know how much longer she could. She knew she would feel the moment when she was meant to fire away, but it still hadn't come! If it didn't come soon, the Valkyrie would destroy Yavin IV and the Rebel Alliance!

She swallowed as she pressed the ship even faster.

Target locked.

Joanes' smirk returned. "I have you now."

And he squeezed the trigger.

But instead of the X-wing exploding, something beside him blew up, jostling him out of his concentration.

"WHAT!?" he looked around wildly for the source of whatever had destroyed his wingman.

"YEAHOO!"

Twilight felt her breath leave her. She knew that voice!

"Look out!" Joanes' wingman said, before swerving in an attempt to avoid the blaster fire coming from the Sparrow-class ship, but his swerve caused him to nick Joanes' wing and send Joanes hurtling through space away from the Valkyrie as he collided with the ship's trench!

"You're all clear, Twi!" Jack cheered over the mic. "Now let's blow this thing and go home!"

No sooner had Jack said this than Twilight felt it.

This was the moment!

The slammed her hooves onto the Proton Torpedo Launch button, sending two orbs of light flying forward toward the exhaust port, where all of a sudden, they dipped into the ship without a single explosion.

Twilight felt herself let out a breath as she pulled clear of the trench, barely missing the end of it by inches.

"Clear the station!" she called over the mic, as whatever allies she had left flew away toward the planet.

Drogun watched the viewing screen with shaking hands. Joanes had failed, and that blasted pilot had gotten the shot off!

"Stand by," the chief operator said over the mic. "Stand by!"

"Why does he need to stand by? The weapon is primed!" Drogun growled to himself.

And then a look of horror washed over his face as he realized. The Chief Operator was buying time for the Rebels!

He turned to stare at the man, continuing to instruct the operators to stand by.

"What have you done?" he asked.

With an explosion to rival what happened when Pinkie Pie drank cola, the Valkyrie exploded behind them.

It was a beautiful sight, creating stars composed of burning metal, a planar shockwave, and a force that pushed Twilight's ship and the others that made it only slightly faster.

"GREAT SHOT, TWI! THAT WAS ONE IN A MILLION!" Jack cheered over the mic.

Twilight rested her head on the headrest behind her, feeling relief course through her. It was over. We've won!

Remember, came Celestia's voice one final time, the Force will be with you. Always.

Joanes finally righted his ship after several minutes of spinning, which had given berth to disorientation to maximum degree. That damned pilot had destroyed the Valkyrie! He or she was going to pay for this!

So caught up in his thoughts of revenge was he that he didn't notice the planar shockwave coming, and it split his ship in two, killing both him and any hopes for a sequel chapter to this one.

"So, Twilight," Jack said casually over the mic as they continued toward the forest moon. "You've just destroyed the Valkyrie, ended the USCM's reign of tyranny and guaranteed a safe future for non-humans everywhere, and met up with a friend that can take you back to your home. What are you going to do now?"

"I'm going to Disney World!" she said excitedly.

So that's exactly what she did. Two weeks later, Jack, Dash, and Twilight all found themselves chillaxing in line for Star Tours.

"Well, that was a fun adventure," said Twilight happily, her Mickey Mouse ears hat sliding down the side of her head.

"You're telling me. This is a nice vacation," Dash concurred.

"What are you on about? This is literally your first appearance in this entire fic,"Jack shook his head at her. "You don't need a vacation."

"Welp, I'm here, so who cares?" Dash smirked.

"Too true," Jack nodded, and then looked straight at the reading audience. "Hey! Buzz off! We're trying to relax, here!"

So they are. The narrator guesses this is as good a spot to end a chapter as any other.

Dedicated to Carrie Fisher

21 October 1956 - 27 December 2016

She is one with the Force, and the Force is with her.

Good-bye, Carrie.

Author's Note

End of the chapter. For real this time. Just because it's an April Fools chapter doesn't mean I can't have a moment of seriousness at the end. After all, since she was the only known person ever to own a legitimate copy of the Star Wars Holiday Special, which she used to scare people away from her house, I am sure this honors her memory.

Here is a poll about whether you want to see me do more special chapters like this one in the future, but be sure to give it a read before you just vote.

I hope you enjoyed the chapter! And I hope you didn't throw something at your computers at the fake A/N in the middle.

Rytex out. Have a good day!

Dragone Baby Gone

Starbound
Chapter 10 - Dragone Baby Gone

“DUCK!”

Twilight didn’t need to be told twice. She threw herself onto the ground just as the great skeletal beast swiped at her with its claws. She could feel the brush of hair over the nape of her neck as the claws missed by inches.

Next to her, Jack had gone prone instantly as well, but was already up and dashing around the giant dragon, yanking his new gun off of his back.

“Time to use you in action,” Twilight heard him say to it, before he turned off the safety and took aim.

Rather than the loud bang or the many pops Twilight was used to hearing, there came a shump sound, and something small and black hurtled toward the bone dragon’s ribcage.

The moment it made contact, there was an explosion that made Twilight flinch. It wasn’t big, but she wasn’t expecting it. The bone dragon let out an angry roar as cracks appeared on its rib cage.

“He sure didn’t like that,” Jack mused to himself as he pumped a handle on the bottom of the gun. “Don’t think he’ll be liking any more.”

Jack launched three more explosives at the same spot, and each time, the cracks in the ribcage grew more stark, until finally, as the fourth explosion cleared away, powdered bone crumpled to the ground.

“Yes!” Jack pumped a fist victoriously, even as he dashed away from the dragon’s retaliatory hammerfist.

But then, all the crumpled bone dust was suddenly sucked back to its spot in the dragon’s ribcage, fusing itself back into position and in mere seconds, it was like there had been no wound at all.

“God damn it!” Jack shouted, blasting a few more explosives at the dragon, though these just seemed to be to let off some steam. “How the hell do we kill this thing if it can put itself back together!?”

“Hide the pieces?” suggested Twilight, firing several blasts of magic at the dragon’s face to get it off of Jack.

“Worth a shot,” Jack dodged the dragon’s errant tail as it flew overhead. He fired off a couple of explosives at the tail in retaliation, and Twilight almost heard him smirk as the end of the tail fell off. “Yank out a chunk of dirt, Twi. I’m on my way with the tail.”

Instantly, a section of the ground was ripped away and held at the ready as Jack grabbed the tail chunk and sprinted in her direction. It didn’t take long, disregarding the bone dragon’s attempts to stop him, and a few seconds later, Jack had dropped the tail into the hole in the ground, upon which Twilight replaced the chunk of dirt.

“Now I gotta make it more mad,” Jack commented, aiming his grenade launcher. “Open wide, Spike!”

Twilight couldn’t help but chuckle, despite the situation they were in. Even as the bone dragon roared and shied away from Jack’s grenades, she felt any nervousness about the fight slowly melt away. She was ready now.

Fortunately, the chunk of earth containing the bone dragon’s fragment seemed to be holding strong. For now. Only time would tell if it would continue.

The dragon lashed out at him with a claw, catching him on one of his shoulders. Jack grunted in pain as he was tossed a fair distance away, several sections of his armor getting ripped from his armor as well.

“Jack!” She was off, dashing toward where he landed, but she needn’t have bothered. He got back to his feet and jabbed himself with an injection pen full of presumably red stimpack.

“I’m fine, I’m fine. Stay focused on that blasted thing,” he barked, yanking the pen out as its work finished, and tossing away the casing.

Twilight noticed his shaking hands as he did that though.

Even in the midst of battle, that needle-phobia is getting to him, she thought, even as the wound beneath the gash in his undershirt slowly started to heal itself.

“Go!” Jack repeated, dashing back toward the bone dragon, which was now lumbering toward them.

Twilight, however, had a different idea. She turned right around and fired a beam of magic so concentrated and so powerful, the very air around it hummed with a dangerous tone. This beam of magic shot right at the dragon’s skull and pierced it at top speed, causing it to shriek in pain. A quick jerk of her head as well was all it took to separate half of the skull and send it clattering to the ground.

“What the…” she heard Jack say from somewhere. “You seeing that, Twi?”

She was. There was a black, gooey-looking mass within the skull, just solid enough to look tangible. Strings of it stretched away toward different parts of the skull, burrowing inside.

That must be its brain! she realized, already preparing to shoot another spell right at it. Destroy that, we destroy the dragon!

Unfortunately, the dragon wasn’t going to make it easy. It turned its damaged half away from her spell before she even got it off, and the broken half flew right back up to reform with the main half of the head, and to Jack’s tremendous irritation, the tail broke its way out of the earth and flew to reform with its stump, and like that, the bone dragon was whole and ready to fight once again.

But now, they had a plan.

“Alright. I’m gonna try to get its attention. You, slice open the skull, and give me an opening. It’ll only take one shot. Got it?”

“Got it,” Twilight pawed at the ground as the dragon roared its challenge at them.

Jack cracked his neck and readied his grenade launcher.

“Ready when you are.”

“Go.”

Jack was off, dashing one way around the dragon and once again peppering the bones of the dragon with grenade after grenade. Twilight stayed rooted to her spot, gathering energy to let loose in another blast, ready to cut right through the beast’s skull to give Jack his opening.

There was a mighty roar as Jack managed to get a particularly well-aimed shot of the grenade launcher to hit directly at the center of one of the dragon’s claws, and with a mighty crunch, the claw crumbled away.

“Nice one!” Twilight called. “Almost there!”

She heard Jack grunt with triumph, before he began peppering the other claw as much as he could.

“Keep it up, keep it up!” called Twilight. The beast was hurt. Without its claw, it had to constantly shift and turn as it tried to block Jack’s incessant assault.

But then, something happened that made her heart freeze.

Jack fired one more shot, right for the beast’s eye. But the beast, with a flail of its unharmed hand, batted it right back at him before it could go off.

Jack had absolutely no time to react as the live round came flying back toward him, before detonating just before it hit the ground.

“NO!” screamed Twilight, channeling magic in desperation.

But then, all sound around her ceased. In fact, everything around her ceased. Everything instantly froze, mid-movement, including the explosion that had caught Jack completely by surprise and had him dead to rights.

Twilight stopped in confusion. What had she done!? What was this? She had never cast a spell like this before!

It was like…

...like everything just stopped.Like time stopped!

And now that she could pay attention to it, now that she had nothing else to focus on, she could feel the drain on her reserves. It was rather substantial, and she didn’t think she could hold onto it for very long.

But maybe… she thought, already feeling exhaustion set in, maybe just long enough.

A second spell was channeled, and Jack was pulled away from the explosion, his body frozen midway through flight as the force of the impact had caught him.

A trickle of blood seeped from her nose as the toll of the magic grew steeper and steeper, but Jack grew closer and closer, away from the explosion, before she started to lay him on the ground to try and cushion his body from the force as much as she could.

But even after he was safe, and even after she felt he was going to be as fine as he could be, she had one last thing to do.

Even as her strength began to fail, as her eyesight dimmed, a beam shot from her horn and sliced open the skull of the dragon, exposing the tendrils once again.

And after that, the last of her strength and concentration left her, and she swooned as everything around her went black.

The last thing he heard was “NO!”

The next thing he felt was an explosion next to him.

And then to complete the Trifecta of Confusion, everything around him changed in an instant to suddenly lying on the ground several feet away while the dragon roared in pain.

A small explosion went off several feet away as he looked up, trying to get the measure of his new surroundings. He was definitely still in the same general 30 yards or so. The dragon was roaring painfully. There was that too.

Where was--

“TWILIGHT!”

She had fallen over, completely non-responsive, and she was bleeding profusely from her nose.

“What the hell…” Jack breathed, checking for a pulse. “What happened? Did you… what did you do?”

Once he was able to ascertain there was a pulse, he stood up and turned to face the Bone Dragon. It was roaring in pain and swinging wildly with its remaining claw, but the skull had been cut in half, revealing the black substance inside.

Jack ground his teeth as he tossed away his grenade launcher in disgust, and instead grasped a retraced sniper rifle from his back. With the press of a button, it all snapped into form, and he instantly raised it to firing position, taking aim.

The dragon wasn’t making it easy. It was roaring and writing, swinging, turning… but he had to take the shot before the head started to reform.

There was a loud CRACK!

The tail had whipped around and hit a tree at the edge of the clearing, sending it crashing down. If Jack wasn’t careful, that tail would be coming for him next.

He took a deep breath…

...took aim, slowly, deliberately…

and fired.

“Please don’t bother me, Ramirez,” Timaeus sighed, before the human intern could even get a word off. The poor boy, always so eager to make a strong impression, but too far out of his league to do that. “I’m in the middle of something rather important.”

“I wasn’t going to bother you!” protested the young black-haired man, his green eyes fixed on Timaeus with indignation. “It’s urgent news.”

He offered a datapad to the apex, which Timaeus took and glanced at.

“Thank-you, Ramirez,” he said, standing up and adjusting his white uniform, before handing it back and stepping away. “Tell Travers I’ll be back when I’ve seen what the Council wants.”

“Yes sir, Mr. Timaeus,” the human bowed.

“Ramirez,” Timaeus snapped, though not harshly, “I’ve told you time and again that bowing isn’t necessary.”

“Y-yes sir,” the teen winced. “Sorry sir. Won’t happen again.”

“That’s what you’ve said the last twelve times,” Timaeus turned around and started to stride away. “As you were.”

His walk took him out into the main laboratory, where a pair of Fatal Circuit Mk. II models were lumbering around in drill formations.

Good to see that project bearing fruit.

Especially after its… setback. There had been one hell of an inquiry on that. Timaeus still hated the mere sight of lawyers.

The TSPC Research and Development Laboratories were not all that far from the Citadel, a central tower that was at least a good fifty feet taller than the considerable skyscrapers around it. Atop the citadel was also the main generator for the energy shield. A rather convenient place for it, since the citadel was where the TSPC were headquartered.

What do the High Council want with me, exactly? thought Timaeus as he strode along the walkway, ships zooming overhead and other passers-by chatting with each other. The TSPC already have a representative on the High Council. Does this have anything to do with the Fatal Circuit project troubles? They’ve already moved me to something else, so probably not.

Entering the Citadel wasn’t as long as he thought it would be. A quick identification check and biometric scan, and he was striding through the lobby toward the lifts, noticing every one of the various citizens of the city, from the hylotl behind the information desk to the novakid, geeking out over the informational map.

He did enjoy coming here. Despite the unflappable facade, he did always enjoy seeing so many different species cooperate for something greater.

But he couldn’t linger. He was expected.

The main terminal for the lifts was a large round room with different doors, and everyone seemed to be in there, but they were waiting for different ones than he was. The lift to the Council Chamber was a private one, one that he was able to step in almost immediately and ride to his destination.

The lobby of the Council Chamber was very simple, a plain cubical room, with a door that led to the titular room itself. There was security, naturally, but as soon as they saw Timaeus, they waved him through, allowing him to step into the round room.

Seven seats arrayed in a circle, around a table with an opening and gap in the center of the circle for someone else to step in, and the seven seated beings were arguing furiously.

“...cannot possibly be considering this proposal!” one of the councilors roared, standing over his desk as he glowered at all of the other councilmen in their immaculate robes. He was an older man, with dark skin and wispy white hair. “The USCM are an organization of tyrants and sadists!”

“What other choice do we have, Councilor Adams?” a human female answered, lighter-skinned, though middle-aged and grey-haired. “Do I need to show you the tape again?”

“Once was enough,” sighed Councilor Adams, falling backward into his seat heavily. “Millions of lives lost, twice that many doomed unless they can escape the planet in time… we cannot negotiate with them with the amount of nonhuman life in this city.”

Councilor Critias, the councilor representing the Terra Stella Peacekeeping Corps, who happened to be an apex like him, noticed his presence and stood up.

“Fellow councilors, perhaps we can come to an agreement on what to do in this situation now that our guest has arrived,” he motioned for Timaeus to stand in the center. “This is Timaeus, one of our Research and Development officers, and I believe he has had some contact with the two beings mentioned in the message.”

A small amount of alarm shot through Timaeus as he heard that. There was no doubt in his mind who “the two beings” were.

“Good afternoon, honored councilors,” he inclined his head respectfully as he stepped into the middle. “You summoned me?”

“We did, Timaeus,” Adams sighed, and he held out a hand toward one of the other councilors expectantly. “We have received a… message. An ultimatum, to be more specific, from the USCM.”

The other councilor, a green hylotl who looked completely shell-shocked, passed Adams a remote with a shaking fin.

“You… had best see it for yourself.”

Adams clicked a button on it, and on a screen that was posted above the path to the lobby, a screen came to life. A man was sitting on a simple rotating chair in the camera, and he was looking at the camera with barely-concealed distaste. He was wearing a white uniform, with golden epaulets on each shoulder. His jaw was square, his face young, his eyes cool and grey, his cheeks hollow, and his aura unforgiving.

“To the High Council of the city of Terra Stella,” the man said, his voice the only thing that showed his age, and even then, it couldn’t have been older than forty-five. “I am Admiral Charles Drogun of the USCM.”

The man named “Drogun” rose from his seat and gestured to his side. Behind his chair, out in the vastness of space, was a planet. From first glance, it appeared to be entirely an aquatic planet, though there were polar ice caps that were visible.

“Behold planet four of the Delta Tertius stellar system. If you take the time to look up this planet in your records, you will find that it is a planet that was colonized by the hylotl race, and if my information is up to date, then Councilman Rakiga, this must be your homeworld.”

Timaeus glanced at the hylotl councilman, who had his eyes clenched shut and was quivering from head to toe.

What in the…

“Behold the Valkyrie,” the admiral continued, and the screen shifted to reveal an absolutely monstrous battlestation. The camera was clearly mounted on a regular ship, as it panned around it at an incredibly slow rate to show the battlestation in its entirety. It appeared to be a large, rectangular ship, but at the center of its front face, there was a large round indentation, with what was very clearly a laser-emitter of massive scale. On each side were several hangars, from which Timaeus knew the fighter-ships would be docked, as well as several places for the larger capital ships as well. Also noticeable were the large afterburners and engines on the back and smaller ones one the sides of the battlestation, to allow it to move and maneuver as best its size would allow.

“This is the weapon with which the USCM will strike down all of its enemies. Completely impregnable to any external penetration, whether by projectile, laser, or missile. The result of years of research and construction. And now, I would like to give you a demonstration of its offensive capabilities.”

The camera switched to the admiral again, who was watching the planet from his viewing room.

“There are a documented nine-billion, three-hundred-forty-eight million, six-hundred-twenty-two hylotl who call this planet their home,” Timaeus felt revulsion as it was dawning on him what was about to happen. But what was worse was the admiral’s satisfied smile as he waited. “I know it is rather hard to wrap your head around that many beings, especially if you’ve never met them, but I am sure Councilman Rakiga’s reaction will suffice.”

The admiral raised a communicator to his lips.

“You may fire when ready.”

At once, they could hear a dull roar as the ship prepared to fire its weapon. The admiral had nothing to say, choosing instead to stare with rapt attention at the planet.

It felt a lot longer than it actually took. After several seconds of charging, the dull roar intensified, and from the laser emitter down below, a massive beam of golden energy blasted out of the ship and struck the planet dead on, perilously close to one of the ice-caps.

The effect was immediate. Clouds were pushed away, the closest shores of the ice cap all but vanished, and Timaeus, even from this great distance, could see the tsunamis forming from the point of impact.

“You perhaps are wondering why I didn’t choose to simply destroy the planet,” Drogun continued. “The reason for that, of course, is quite simple,” the admiral turned back to the camera. “The weapon was only fired at ten percent capacity. Enough to boil the water, melt a large portion of the ice-caps, and irreversibly damage the planet’s ecosystem.”

A report appeared on one of the sides of the screens, clearly a life-scan report, and the number was plummeting. In mere seconds, over 300 million had vanished, and the number continued to drop.

“All beings in the immediate radius of one-hundred miles from the point of impact were instantly killed, the surrounding four-thousand miles will see devastation from the abrupt rise in temperature, as well as the current from the waves above and the rapid push of water away from the impact point as well. The planet’s average water temperature will increase by over twenty degrees Celsius, meaning that in a few short years, the ice caps will be but a memory, and no organism currently alive within the sea will be able to survive. Short term estimated loss of life, 2,572,000,000. Long-term, assuming no one leaves the planet? Total annihilation.”

His satisfied smile vanished.

“I am not without mercy, councilors. I wished to send a message, but I will not take needless lives. The hylotl who haven’t yet perished have approximately six months to find a ship and get off the planet before it becomes uninhabitable to their race. The Valkyrie is capable of far greater damage, including wiping the planet on which your wretched city is built to pieces, but there is no need for a senseless massacre.”

A graphic appeared on-screen of a strange vessel. It was large, white, and resembled a palace, with golden towers and patches of purple metal decorated with stars.

Timaeus recognized it instantly.

“We have uncovered this ship, and are quite aware that it has been making frequent visits to your city. Its design matches that of no species, and its energy output readings are… unnatural.”

The admiral had a look of complete distaste cross his face as he said that.

“It is traveling with a human Sparrow-class vessel. Our demands are simple, councilors. You have one month to take the alien being in control of that white ship into your custody and turn it over into our care. If you are faithful with this, we will allow your city to continue its existence, and we will even refrain from interfering with your day-to-day life.”

The admiral’s mouth became a snarl.

“You have, as I said, one month to make your choice. Make sure it is the right one.”

And then the video cut.

For what it was worth, Timaeus was secretly quite glad that years of apex conditioning had helped him learn to keep his emotions in check. His lack of an expression could prove to be an advantage. The councilors wouldn’t be able to read his reaction.

“You were brought in here because we know you have had extended contact with the visitor and her human companion,” stated Councilor Adams, an impassive expression on his face.

“I have,” Timaeus dipped his head. “Though I’m afraid they are off-planet at the moment.”

“And you have no idea when they will return?” Adams asked.

“None,” Timaeus shook his head. “They come and go as they please.”

“I see,” Adams grunted. “And you have no idea where they are?”

“None,” Timaeus lied.

In truth, he knew exactly where they were. Jack had attempted to keep their location on the down-low, as apparently someone had gotten into their ship and planted coordinates to a system in the Delta Sector, but what they didn’t realize was the Starmap he had installed on the Equestrian vessel was fitted with a tracking device.

Twilight Sparkle was the first of an entirely new intelligent species to appear on the galactic landscape. He wasn’t going to simply allow them to run around the galaxy unmonitored.

“I see,” Adams watched him carefully. “Very well then. You may go.”

“Sir?” Timaeus surveyed him just as close as he was sure Adams was watching him. Something’s wrong. “Are you certain?”

“Completely. You are dismissed, Timaeus. You may return to your work.”

“By your command, sir,” Timaeus inclined his head, turned tail, and marched out.

The USCM’s ultimatum aside, there was too much to ignore. The Council were acting strangely. Adams hadn’t spoken for them the way he had that day before.

They must be… dealt with, he thought. It seems the Council are going to need to be neutralized.

But that would have to wait. Preparations would have to be made, and with the USCM ultimatum hanging over their head, he would need to be quick about it.

Jack’s throat was completely hoarse by this point. He had yelled out in frustration so many times by this point, yet the bone dragon was resisting every one of his ideas.

His sniper shot had been blocked, every time he shot a grenade it was batted away…

He was running out of options. And Twilight was still down. She would have thought of something by now, he knew it.

But he was back to being on his own again. All he had were guns.

Wait… Guns, and something else!

Well, it wasn’t a gun, but at this point, nothing else was working. Desperate times called for desperate measures.

With a grunt of irritation, he threw his rifle away, coming to rest next to Twilight’s unconscious form, and pulled out the matter manipulator.

The dragon glared at him from its spot on the ground, but then roared its challenge to him, daring him to attack it. It could piece itself back together. What could he hope to do?

Frankly, it was a miracle he had managed to avoid getting hit at all. Well, outside of the time Twilight had pulled him away from a returned-grenade…

Maybe he wasn’t as lucky as he thought.

But at this point, luck wasn’t going to help him.

He raised the matter manipulator to eye-level and took aim.

“Work, damn it,” he muttered just as he lined up his shot right where he wanted.

The bone dragon was just watching him now, perhaps curious to see what his new strategy was. Either way, what had it to fear?

A blue beam shot out of his manipulator at a high speed as he pulled the trigger, grabbing hold of several chunks of the dragon’s face. And with a yell of exertion, Jack wrenched the manipulator back over his shoulder, as if pulling a rope tied to a boulder.

With a screeching crunch, the manipulator fractured the bone plate, causing the dragon to let out a roar as the top of its sull was broken open to reveal the shifting mass of black within.

Not waiting for another moment, Jack whipped around and fired another shot, aiming directly at the black mass before the dragon could react.

This time, thank fuck, he connected.

And with a yank, he pulled the black mass right out of the dragon’s skull. The moment it was pulled free, the bone structure collapsed, falling to the ground with numerous thuds.

The black mass, whatever it was, was struggling against the hold of the light of the matter manipulator, but it wasn’t going anywhere. And now that it was beaten, it wasn’t going to be causing any more damage.

With a quick flick of the compression setting on his improvised weapon, the field the black mass was confined to imploded, and with a sickening squelch, the mass was crushed and destroyed.

It was over. The bone dragon was beaten.

And with a sigh of exhaustion, Jack collapsed, the exertion in his legs and his body in general finally catching up to him.

It really is a nice planet when you’re not being attacked by a bone dragon, he thought dimly, watching the starry sky above him as he lay in the grass, trying not to fall asleep. Sure, the planet’s atmospheric composition was breathable, but he was worried about that structure and its inhabitants nearby.

There was no way they hadn’t heard the dragon. And unless they were some of the slowest beings ever, there were likely two or three of them that had been keeping an eye on their battle.

Whether or not they were friendly was not something he wanted to chance.

“SAIL,” he mumbled inside of his helmet. “prepare to beam us aboard.”

“PREPARING TO TRANSPORT. STAND-BY.”

Jack chose the opportunity to retrieve his weapons and situate himself next to Twilight’s unconscious body. The sooner they were off this planet, the better. The bone dragon had been the least of their concerns.

“ERROR. TRANSPORTATION IMPOSSIBLE. SIGNAL CANNOT BE ESTABLISHED.”

Signal can’t be established? Jack thought, alarmed. He leapt to his feet. Transporter-jammers were the only thing that could stop them from trying to transport in a clearing like this. But where were they?

A flash of light caught his eye in the forest around them, and his heart sank. They had been found. Out of the trees stepped several beings, humanoid in appearance. All of them were wearing a standard issue of armor, all of them were marching toward them…

And all of them had, branded on their shoulder-plates, the letters “USCM.”

Author's Note

You'd be amazed how quickly I got this written when I got to the parts I wanted.

The next chapter is already in the works, so hopefully I can get another one off before April Fools, though I am juggling it with Worlds, so who knows.

Anyway, the plot-heavy stuff has started, which means Starbound is finally getting where I've wanted to be at since I started.

Anywho, I won't keep you.

Rytex out. Have a good day!

Heart to Heart

Starbound
Chapter 11 - Heart To Heart

The door to his cell slid open silently, with only the heavy footsteps of the being outside alerting him that someone was coming in.

Jack, however, scowled and kept his gaze firmly at the opposite wall, staring at its unremarkable metal texture wordlessly.

It had only been roughly twenty minutes since they’d stuck him in here, despite all of his fighting, while they carried Twilight off who knows where. And to keep him from fighting, they had, of course, restrained him with durasteel manacles that were hardlocked to a stand in the middle of this holding cell.

Good thing, too. Even without his armor, he was going to fight tooth and nail to get to Twilight and ensure her safety.

The man who entered his field of view, however, was not wearing armor, unlike the ones who had found him and dumped him here. He was wearing a navy-blue uniform, unadorned save for the captain’s emblem stitched into his breast, and he carried a datapad in his left hand while he typed with his right.

“Where is she?” Jack asked in a deathly quiet voice the moment the captain strode in.

He looked rather plain, all things considered. His hair was brown, eyes were brown, his face was hollow, and he looked rather tired.

But when he met Jack’s eyes, he gave a small smile.

“Your concern for the equine is rather touching.”

“Where. Is. She?” he asked again, wrenching against the manacles.

“In good hands,” answered the captain, wiping his brow with a gloved right hand. “We don’t know what happened to her, but while we observed your battle with the bone dragon, that… shift she caused, where both of you seemed to appear in different places, so we’re trying to--”

“DON’T BULLSHIT ME, YOU USCM BASTARD!”

The captain only seemed mildly disturbed by his sudden shouting, which was what infuriated Jack the most.

“Mr. Thomas, I assure you, she is perfectly whole and in the best care.” Perhaps what was most impressive was how the captain looked him right in the eye while he told that bold-faced lie. Jack knew how the USCM were. Whispers and rumors of their cruelty toward nonhumans was commonplace on Terra Stella, and just about everyone suspected they had more than a little to do with the near-total disappearance of the Novakid race. “I have had our best caretakers working on her since we brought the two of you in.”

Jack let out a derisive bark of laughter.

“Really?” he asked, putting as much sarcasm as he felt he could get away with into his tone. “The same group of people responsible for the Novakid massacre are giving my companion the best possible care? Should I be on my knees right now, or will a simple ‘Thank-you’ suffice?”

The captain sighed patiently.

“You believe we are that section of the USCM.”

“Let me guess, you’re not?” Jack fired back. “Because that’s just what you would say if you weren’t. Assure me you’re on my side, get me to give over information, then use it to tear her apart!”

“Nothing I say to you can possibly convince you to my sincerity,” the captain smiled humorlessly. “Very well, then. Viers, Piett, if you would.”

Two USCM guards stepped in. Unlike before, when it had been a dark grey color, their armor was now white. Jack guessed it must be programmed to reflect the environment around them to act as camouflage.

One of them inserted a keycard into a slot on Jack’s restraining pedestal. With a click and a hiss, the manacles holding Jack to the center console came free. At once, Jack thrust them over to grab at the captain’s neck, hoping to wring his head from his shoulders, but the other guard stepped in the way and tackled him to the ground.

“None… of… that… now,” the guard grunted, managing to get Jack’s hands stuck behind his back, before grabbing them and hoisting him back to his feet. His partner was over to double-secure his arms again within a second.

Rather than manacle him, they seemed content to simply keep him held there.

“If you’ll follow me,” the captain turned and strode out wordlessly, after which the two guards practically dragged Jack, who was writhing and twisting and trying to break free all the while. “If you will not believe me with my words, perhaps you will believe by sight.”

Jack was dragged through several halls, past several doors, past several “USCM” sigils on the wall, and several more Apex Empire sigils that were faded, scratched out, or otherwise covered up.

What happened to the Apex who first resided here? he thought. Were they massacred as well?

It was a shorter trip than he thought it would be. A door slid open to reveal an observation room, into which Jack was taken. The room being observed was clearly a medical bay, and inside, the unmistakable unconscious form of Twilight Sparkle lay on a medical gurney while several medical personnel worked around her.

Nothing appeared to be out of the ordinary. She had standard medical equipment attached, an IV, medical readers, and an oxygen mask fastened around her snout. Even her readings appeared normal.

Or what Jack thought was normal, at least, being no expert on Equestrian physiology.

“Twilight!” Jack finally wrenched himself free of the two guards and bolted to lean as far forward into the glass as possible.

“She is stable,” the captain said as he took a spot next to him, observing the proceedings. The medical staff appeared to be doing no more than simply taking measurements and writing down information, with the occasional prod with some kind of instrument. “As far as the doctors can tell, she’s just unconscious.”

Jack had nothing to say to that, so rather than humor the captain, he kept his thoughts to himself this time.

“She’s not in a coma or any kind of unnatural sleep,” the captain continued. “As best we can tell, it’s simply exhaustion brought about by overexertion. Meaning she’ll reawaken when she has enough energy to.”

“And then what?” growled Jack. “Then the ‘experiments’ begin?”

“And then we clear her for release, have a nice little ‘heart-to-heart’ about how exactly the both of you killed Dreadwing--” at the sight of Jack’s look of surprise, the captain smiled, “--oh yes, young man, we are quite aware of your exploits in Sector Alpha.”

“Have you been following me?” Jack narrowed his eyes suspiciously.

“Frankly, yes,” the captain shrugged. “When even the USCM couldn’t deal with a rogue homicidal penguin, and two unknown beings come along and wipe him out in one fell swoop, surely you didn’t think you’d attract interest?”

Jack scowled at that, but had nothing to add. He supposed the captain was right.

“You know, I really don’t get the hype,” he commented.

“How do you mean?” asked the captain, giving him a quick once-over, as if a bit wary of something.

“Dreadwing went down easy,” Jack answered, recalling the encounter. “Too easy. For a penguin everyone was afraid of, I was expecting a harder fight. Instead, I had him and his entire penguin army taken out within about ten minutes.”

“Hm,” grunted the captain, turning back to the viewing screen, where a couple of doctors were measuring her facial features..

This only reminded Jack of the day he and Twilight met, how he found her having been hit by one of Dreadwing’s lasers directly and how he had nursed her back to health with some stimpack and rest. Not to mention the rather embarrassing moment that came from when he determined that Twilight was, in fact, a she. Here, though, the USCM doctors just seemed to be keeping her stable and getting data.

For what sinister purpose, he had no idea, but he could do absolutely nothing about it.

“Perhaps he was degrading over time.”

“Sorry?” Jack turned back to the captain.

“Dreadwing,” the captain said, still staring at Twilight on her bed. “He was an experiment gone wrong by the USCM. Perhaps he was simply degrading and that’s why your battle with him was so simple.”

“Maybe,” Jack crossed his arms.

“Hm,” the captain grunted again, but he seemed to tire of watching the procedure. “Viers, Piett, dismissed. No escort will be necessary.”

Jack turned to glance at the captain in surprise. Leaving him unguarded? What was his game?

The captain must have sensed his thoughts because he smiled rather wryly. “We will get nowhere if I continue to treat you like a prisoner. I am a man of my word, and when I say I intend to simply nurse your companion back to health and then let you go, I have no intention of going back.”

“If you were a liar, you’d say the same thing,” Jack scowled. “I have zero reason to trust you.”

“Which is why I am going to show you to your room,” the captain replied, stepping away from the window and motioning for him to follow as he stepped out into the hall. “No surveillance, no guards, just a normal quarter with two beds.”

Jack only followed out of curiosity. Truth be told, he wanted to stay in that viewing room until all was well, but if he was going to get them both out of here, he figured it was best to play along and see what the captain’s plan was.

“Jack Jensen,” the captain said as they walked down the halls again.

“Beg ya pahdon?” Jack replied, before covering his mouth slightly. The annoyance that was his Bostonian accent still seemed to creep in at inopportune moments.

“My name,” the captain clarified. “My name is Jack Jensen.”

“Huh.”

They finally arrived in front of yet another plain-looking white metal sliding door, which shifted open as they drew close to reveal a rather bare room with two beds, a couple of writing desks on opposite ends of the room, a pair of end tables with plain lamps, and a normal sliding door at the back that led presumably to a closet or latrine.

“Here’s your room,” Captain Jensen said, gesturing at the beds. “If you need help finding the mess hall or some other room that strikes your fancy, just ask any of the guards and they’ll point you in the right direction. Obviously,” he added apologetically, “we can’t allow you into any military or restricted areas, but other than that, you and… Twilight, was it?”

Jack just stared at him, hoping not to give him anything.

“Regardless, you and your companion will have free rein over the facility except for the aforementioned types of rooms, of which you’ll find surprisingly little.”

“Ain’t this a military facility though?” Jack asked, raising a skeptical eyebrow.

“A converted science one, but the fact of the matter is,” the captain sighed and brushed some of his hair out of his face, “we’re by no means a military-capable force. We’re no more than exiles here, hiding away from the main force of the USCM and doing everything we can to help non-humans who have incurred their wrath.”

“And you think it’s best to do this by wearing the same uniform of the guys trying to take them down?” Jack asked.

“If the USCM find us here, and we’re wearing an enemy’s uniform, do you think they’ll allow us to live?” the captain asked back. “That, and there’s just not many different clothes here. Yeah yeah ‘just go get more,’” he added before Jack could retort, “but we can’t take very many trips to and from this planet. The more we do, the greater likelihood that the USCM finds us, and then we’re in a heap of trouble.”

“How do they find you, then?” Jack asked, finally stepping into the room and sitting on one of the beds. “Frankly, how did you find us?”

“Warp trail analysis,” the captain shrugged. “We were able to track the two of you all the way to Terra Stella and plant the coordinates of our base on your ship.”

“That was you?” Jack asked, suddenly angry. “I knew it. I told her this could be a trap by the USCM--”

“Think what you will,” the captain tossed his hand dismissively. “I can’t sit here and spend an unnecessary amount of time convincing you of the truth when there’s work to be done. As I said before, you’re free to go anywhere you like other than restricted sections. If you want food, the mess hall is indicated by the signs on the walls.”

And with that, he stepped out, letting the door slide shut behind him and leaving Jack alone in his room.

Or rather, his cell.

“Our guest is from Boston,” Jensen remarked in the Control Room of the outpost. The analysts and other officers were dutifully going about their business, but ever his right-hand man, Lieutenant Ross O’Donnell was there with him, his pale complexion rather eerie under the red sky of the planet in the evening.

“How’d you know?” Ross asked, monitoring the condition of the equine being from his datapad. Everything seemed normal, but normal beings didn’t just collapse unconscious after altering reality, so everything was rather relative.

“His accent,” the captain answered. “He tried to cover it up, but with the stress of the day, it bled through. You’re from Boston too, aren’t you?”

“Was, yeah,” Ross nodded. “Before I joined the USCM. Why, you’re not going to ask if I know the guy, do you?”

“I was going to,” the captain shrugged. “I know the metro area was, like, 7 million before World War III, but you never know.”

“Was gonna say,” Ross smirked. “That’d be a hell of a coincidence in this galaxy. What’s his name, anyway?”

“Data mined from his ship gives us the name ‘Jack Thomas.’”

Ross froze.

“The name’s familiar?” the captain glanced at his lieutenant.

“It’s… a name made of common names,” Ross admitted, but his look grew a bit distant. “I grew up with a Jack Thomas once. What did he look like?”

“Pale skin, kind of like yours, blue eyes, and red hair.”

Ross just stared at the captain for a long moment, mouth parted in astonishment.

“Lieutenant?” Jensen asked, giving him a strange look. “Do you know him?”

“I… maybe,” the lieutenant shifted his gaze out of the main viewing window. “Permission to go and see him?”

“Granted,” the captain nodded tersely. “If you do know him, see what you can do to get him to trust us.”

“Yes sir, captain,” promised Ross, before he walked out.

He was in the viewing room again. The doctors assured him that she was fine, but he just couldn’t help but shake the feeling that something was definitely wrong with Twilight this time. Something he couldn’t understand or fix.

They had used every manner of healing possible, including red stimpack, but nothing seemed to be helping. Twilight just slumbered away peacefully, stable but dead to the world.

Jack, meanwhile, was pacing impatiently in his spot. The seats in here were uncomfortable, and there was the lingering fact that he was currently sitting in a USCM military facility… Jack didn’t care what the captain promised. He wanted him and Twilight out of there at the earliest opportunity, but he couldn’t do that with Twilight in her current condition.

The door slid open again and a rather thin uniformed man stepped in. His skin was pale, his eyes a dark brown, his hair black, and his face an impassive mask as he stepped in.

But once he entered the room and saw jack, the impassiveness disappeared, replaced by incredulity.

“It can’t be!”

“Uh…” Jack stared at the man, feeling a bit confused. He did look a bit familiar, but Jack just couldn’t quite place where he had seen him before.

“Jackie? Is that you?”

Jack felt his jaw drop. Only three people in the entire universe ever called him that.

“Ross!?” he gasped.

“Holy shit, it is you!” Ross practically charged forward and rather aggressively gave Jack a massive bear hug. “God damn, what are the odds!?”

“What the hell are you doing here?”

“I work here,” Ross shrugged. “Well, work and live, but you get my point.”

“Right, right,” Jack nodded, “yeah, I remember you joined up back when… well…”

“Yeah,” Ross walked over to one of the seats and sat down. “I was in Drogun’s fleet; Back when he was a colonel, before the schism.”

“No kidding?” Jack sat down a bit away from him, though he kept his gaze firmly on the slumbering alicorn a room away.

“Yeah,” Ross smiled humorlessly. “Back when he wasn’t a piece of shit. After the schism happened four years ago, well…” his smile twisted into something far more distasteful, “I escaped. It was chaos back then. Drogun seized power, personally took out Admiral Marcus’ ship, got a bunch of like-minded xenophobes in position to keep him in power, and then began his ‘Crusade of Cleansing,’ as he started calling it.”

“You escaped, but how’d you end up out here?”

“A friend of mine pointed me this way,” Ross smiled rather ruefully. “He’d been helping dissenters get out of the USCM for a few months. It got him found out and taken to the Rock, but long after I arrived here. I hope he’s okay.”

.”Probably not,” Jack growled. “If even half the things I’ve heard about that place are true…”

“Yeah,” Ross took off his cap to run a white-gloved hand through his hair for a moment before putting it back. “Who’s that?”

“Hm?”

“That… equine,” Ross stood up and strode to the window Jack had been standing in front of moments before. “You haven’t been able to take your eyes off of it.”

“Her,” Jack corrected reflexively.

Ross smiled. “Oh, you’ve been traveling with a female companion? “Have you two…?”

Jack gave him an irritated look. “What kind of question is that?”

“That’s not a no~!” Ross smirked back at him. “I’m not judging, Jack. Did you know I had something going with a hylotl for a while when we were sheltering her.”

“What was her name?” Jack asked, feeling surprised by this.

“Yoko,” Ross’ eyes glossed over and a rather familiar dopey smile slowly spread acrtoss his faceas he thought of her. “She had the smoothest aquamarine skin,,gorgeous red eyes, and she was a dead-eye with a pistol.”

“What happened?” asked Jack, now staring at Ross rather than at Twilight.

“Nothing,” Ross shrugged. “Nothing bad, anyway. I helped her get off-planet and get settled in Terra Stella, then came back here. She wanted me to stay with her, and I really wanted to, but, well…” he crossed his arms, “The USCM need to be thwarted, and I was gonna keep doing it. We still keep in contact, though,” he added.

Jack grunted.

“So, how’s Rory? I remember you two went off on your own when we all left Earth.”

“No idea,” Jack shrugged. “When I decided to go off on my own, he was working at the Terra Stella foundries. Haven’t seen him since I left.”

“I bet he’s alright,” Ross returned to his seat. “And I think we both know James is on Home One. Guess when your dad’s the leading Admiral of the UN Space Fleet, you can get your family to safety without much of a problem.”

“Define ‘Safety,’” Jack replied dully. “Don’t the USCM have eyes watching Earth to make sure no one tries to escape unless they pledge support?”

“Something like that, yeah,” Ross grimaced. “Earth needs help. Humans still on the planet desperately need to escape before the planet is devoured, but the USCM are stopping any aid attempts. We’ve tried,” he added, before shaking his head. “Only twice, and both times failed.”

Jack’s gaze returned to Twilight, sleeping on the medical bed peacefully as the doctors continued their measurements.

“I don’t know how long you plan on staying,” Ross got back to his feet, adjusting his hat as he did so, “but if you can find me while I have free time, I’d love to get caught up.”

“Yeah,” Jack nodded. Deep down, he still didn’t trust this “Jensen” person, but he knew Ross, and Ross seemed no different than he had when they had flown out. “I’ll keep that in mind.”

They shook hands, and with that, Ross left the room, leaving Jack alone to continue watching Twilight.

She was floating alone in a void. Around her were hundreds, thousands, nay, millions of stars in the inky nightscape. How long she had been here, she didn’t know. It seemed as though time had no meaning.

Deep down, she knew what these stars were, and with a flap of her wings, she was propelled toward the nearest one, which came into focus. There were planets and asteroids in orbit around it, but after a moment of investigation, she knew it couldn’t be the one she was looking for.

She investigated a second, and then a third, and a fourth. Not long after that, she lost count. Her search was endless. No star had her home in it, but it had to be here! She knew it, and she would find it.

“Twilight? Twilight, can you hear me?”

Faint voices echoed around the void, and she suppressed a small cry. How cruel, to hear the voices of her friends to taunt her in her distress? It only emboldened her to search all the more.

But as her search went on and on, and no star had home, she began to feel despair claw at her. Was she doomed to continue this search forever? Or until the heat-death of the universe? Would she ever find home?

Princess Luna’s eyes shot open.

“Sister!” she shouted, before, with a great flap of her wings, she propelled herself out of her room, off of her balcony above Canterlot, and straight across to Celestia’s.

Her sister had heard her call, and was busy pulling her sleeping mask and sliding out from under her covers as Luna entered.

“What is it, Luna?” Celestia asked, pawing the sleep out of her eyes, “are we under attack?”

“Neigh, sister!” Luna shook her head. “I’ve touched Twilight Sparkle’s dreams.”

Celestia’s mouth parted. “You’ve found her!?”

Luna shook her head again. “No. The dreamscape is not a way for me to locate a pony. But this proves she is still able to be contacted. If I can locate her again and speak to her--”

“You mean you didn’t speak to her just now?”

“I tried,” Luna grimaced, “but I was not able to get her attention within her dream. She…” she looked away, “she’s falling into despair, Tia. She’s spent the last several months trying to find Equus again, but she is starting to become convinced she’ll never do it. Her despair kept her from recognizing that I was there.”

Celestia felt her head droop at that, but only for a moment. “Keep trying, Luna. You can do it. you can break through. I know you can.”

Luna nodded, before taking off again and flying backward out of her room. Celestia, meanwhile, had a letter prepared and sent off to Spike and Twilight’s friends and family, informing them of her safety. At the very least, they could all finally sleep peacefully, knowing that much.

It was the second day after their initial “capture” that it happened. Jack had finally been allowed into the medical room, once the doctors had all the measurements they needed, which wasn’t too long after his conversation with Ross. Once there, he had only left Twilight’s bedside to sleep, eat, and keep himself clean.

And after almost two full days of sitting in a chair, morosely staying with her in the hope that she would wake up, her eyes shot open and she gave a great gasp.
At once, he was roused to alertness. She was wildly looking around, hyperventilating as she tried to piece together where she was.

“Twilight!” he leapt to his feet

Her eyes locked onto his the moment he shouted her name, and at once, her breathing slowed, and she stopped flailing.

“J-Jack?” she asked softly, before looking around at the sterile, white room and down to the simple restraints and medical instruments hooked up to her. “Where are we? What happened?”

“Relax, relax,” Jack gently pushed her head back down onto the pillow she had been sleeping on. Twilight complied, but not happily. Jack knew her natural curiosity was burning on waking up in an unknown place, and she wanted to explore, but while Jack had come to uneasily trust this USCM branch, he was still skeptical. “We’re in the medical wing of a base on the planet we fought the bone dragon.”

“A base?” she asked, looking around again. “Was that the settlement I found before?”

“Yeah, this is it,” Jack nodded. “Formerly an Apex science facility, it was taken over by a splinter cell of the USCM.”

Twilight’s eyes widened, and she paled. “The USCM!? Then we need to--”

“Twilight, calm down,” he pressed a hand to her sternum to keep her relaxed. “Splinter cell, one of the ones that shelters non-human species from the xenophobic group.”

Just like it had with him, that did little to calm her down. But to her credit, at least she stopped trying to get up.

“How do you know?” she asked.

“My friend Ross is here,” Jack smiled a bit at the sheer coincidence of it. “Told you about him, right? How he joined the USCM before the schism? He’s been hiding out here for the last few years, helping the guys here do what they can to shelter non-humans.”

“You trust him just because he’s a friend from foalhood?” Twilight asked, with more than a bit of skepticism in her voice.

“Childhood, for humans,” he corrected, leading to an irritated glare from her. and then he shrugged. “But yeah, I do. I’ve had two days to see if they were lying to me, and so far, they haven’t been. They’ve even upgraded my ship.”

“You do realize how suspicious that looks, right? Just upgrading a ship for no reason?”

“I don’t think it’s for no reason,” Jack sat back in the chair he’d occupied for hours before this. “They are the ones who planted the coordinates in our ship. Ross tells me they had planned on introducing us to something called ‘Project Terminus,’” he sniffed, “something to do with rallying other splinter groups like this one together to fight the USCM. They probably think we’re a two-being army, capable of wiping out entire fleets of USCM ships, all because I got lucky and caught Dreadwing by surprise.”

“They want to use you, or us, to take down the USCM? The entire USCM?” Twilight clarified with an unreadable face. “Jack, as soon as we can, we need to leave. I just wanted to find Equus. I just want to go home! I didn’t sign up for any of this.”

“Welcome to my world,” Jack sighed. “I wanted to help you find Equus. I didn’t want to get caught up in this whole war between two sections of a xenophobic organization hellbent on destroying all non-humankind.”

“But what about after we find Equus?” Twilight asked, her face still unreadable. “Do you just go back to your shelter, and that’s the end?”

“I…”Jack stopped, a tumult of thoughts running through his mind at that. What was his plan post-Equus? What would become of him and Twilight as friends? What would become of them beyond that.

He sighed again and sagged his shoulders.

“I have no idea. I haven’t really thought about it. This,” he gestured at the general everything around him, “this adventure we’ve been having… it’s been nice. Dreadwing, Fatal Circuit, Bone Dragon, and Giant Jelly Monster, which I still can’t believe we fought, aside,” Twilight rolled her eyes, “I’ve honestly found this… kind of fun.”

“So you haven’t given any thought to what happens after we find my home because you don’t really want this adventure to end?” Twilight asked. Jack didn’t really like how she sounded more curious than angry. He thought that him mentioning that would lead her to suspect he was intentionally steering her away from Equus or something.

Jack smiled humorlessly. “I guess.”

“I’ve done plenty of thinking myself,” Twilight replied, laying back against the pillows of her bed. “We’re not ready to be out here now, but now that I’ve been out here and seen some things, I think ponykind will be far better prepared. And whether it takes one year or a hundred, ponies will be counted among the species colonizing the stars.”

“Sounds nice,” Jack’s smile actually gained a semblance of humor behind it. “Seeing a pony on the Terra Stella High Council would be pretty interesting for a city that prided itself on its diversity.”

“But here’s what I want to know,” Twilight continued unperturbed.

“What’s that?” Jack asked, folding his hands in his lap and leaning back in his seat.

“What happens to us?” Twilight asked, her face going a bit pink.

“No idea,” Jack shrugged. “I guess when you find Equus, it’ll depend on what I’m doing. But if you get back out here, who knows? We could do more exploring.”

“Jack, I don’t mean this,” she gestured at everything around her the same way he had. “I meant… I meant our relationship.”

Jack blinked stupidly at that, even as Twilight’s pinkness grew to match his hair in its shade of red.

“Wh-what do you mean?” he asked nervously. This was definitely a minefield. One wrong move…

“Romantically,” answered Twilight, in as deadpan a way as possible. “I’ve been meaning to tell you for some time,” she glanced away, “but I… I like you. I enjoy spending time with you. I’ve been angry lately because I feel like I’m not doing anything to help while you’re risking your life for me, and I’m just freezing up any time I get reminded of what happened on Alpha Prime III-B.”

“Well,” Jack said, running a hand through his hair as he took it in. “You’re rather… nonchalant about this.”

“No sense in beating around the bush anymore,” Twilight replied, still staring sideways. “Correct me if I’m wrong, but… do you like me as well?”

“What makes you ask that?” he replied, hoping to buy a little time.

“You’ve spent the last however long I’ve been asleep sitting by my bedside, haven’t you?” she asked, though the knowing look in her eye told him this was less of a question and more of a light accusation.

“Guilty as charged,” Jack inclined his head.

“I don’t know how you humans are,” she preempted, speaking slowly, as if to weigh every word, “but… we ponies, to borrow your expression, ‘wear our hearts on our sleeves.’ It’s usually easy to tell when a mare or stallion is interested in pursuing a relationship because if they are, they’re more affectionate, they show greater concern even over friends, and they spend a lot of time around the pony they’re interested in. Considering my predicament, the third point is a bit irrelevant,” she quickly discounted before Jack could point it out, “but you’ve been very… huggy since we met. And you’re always so concerned with my well-being, it’s almost overbearing. Almost,” she added as he had again opened his mouth to comment. “For all I know, you humans could see all of this differently, but to a pony like me, well,” she shifted a bit uncomfortably so as to free her wings, “let’s just say I’m picking up signals.”

Jack let out a quiet, nervous laugh. She was right, but for the wrong-- well, mostly wrong reasons. Still, as she demonstrated time and again, she was picking up on things a lot faster than he anticipated. However, at Twilight’s look of indignation, he held his hands up.

“Sorry, I’m not making fun of you,” he assured her. “I’m just… I’m not very good at these one-on-one talks, these heart-to-heart conversations. Rather surprising for a guy who spent the last few years practically completely alone, isn’t it?”

Twilight snorted, but kept her gaze on him.

“But…” he looked down at the floor and kicked his feet, “I dunno, I guess you’re right.”

“You guess?” Twilight asked, raising an eyebrow.

“I’ve only just been introduced to the idea,” Jack shrugged. “When you warped off, I had no one to talk to but Timaeus, and you know how he gets. All blunt, and uncomfortably honest and stuff.”

Her eyes softened. “So you don’t know, but you’re not opposed?”

“I haven’t given it any thought,” he reiterated. “But… how about we wait until after we find Equus? Then we can give some kind of relationship a shot.”

“But what if we don’t?” Twilight asked.

“We will find Equus,” Jack assured her.

“But what if we don’t?”

“Twilight, we will,” Jack repeated sternly. “Stop thinking so negatively. It’s obviously out there. We just have to find it. If these guys can get us a Sector Chi starmap, we ought to find it quickly.”

“I hope you’re right,” sighed Twilight, sinking into her bed.

“Everything will be alright, Twilight,” Jack promised, smiling at her. “I promise.”

Author's Note

As promised, it's complete this weekend. Just a few more chapters to go. From here, it's all been planned out, so no more wandering as far as writing is concerned, and a ton more structure. Given how quickly this chapter came together compared to previous chapters, I'm pleased with that.

Lemme know how I did.

Rytex out. Have a good day!

Found and Lost

Starbound
Chapter 12 - Found and Lost

There it was, sitting before her.

Its beautiful oceans, the shape of the Zebrican continent, the icy reaches of Yaktakistan, the unmistakable Equestrian continent, and the mountains of Griffonia to the west. All arrayed before her, waiting for her.

Beckoning to her.

”Twilight?”

It was a call she answered, flapping her wings as powerfully as she could, trying desperately to fly toward it. And she was flying. the wind whistled past her ears, ruffling her mane and tail, as she pushed and pushed toward the planet with all her might…

”Twilight, can you hear me?”

...but it only seemed to grow farther and farther away...

“TWILIGHT!”

The scene exploded into a glimmer of light-blue stars around her. She was no longer chasing after a retreating planet. Instead, she was standing in a void, pure and white, but shapes began to form around her. A round bed, purple walls, moon-shaped symbols…

...and a blue alicorn.

Twilight's mouth fell open.

“Princess Luna!” she exclaimed, as the contents of Luna’s room became clearer, as did the alicorn herself.

Luna broke into a wide smile as soon as Twilight bounded toward her and tackled her to the ground in a back-breaking hug, something she eagerly returned.

“We are immensely relieved to see thou art unharmed,” Luna said, sounding every bit as pleased as Twilight felt. “We felt your dreams only a few nights ago, but we could not reach you. But Tia, thy friends, and thy family were most relieved to hear that thou wert alive and searching for us.”

“I guess we must be getting close,” Twilight mused aloud. “If this is the first time you’ve felt me in months…”

“We have been searching this entire time, and truth be told, we almost gave up hope of finding thee,” Luna admitted, but she grinned again, “yet our fears were unfounded; here thou art!”

“You’re doing that old-time speech again, Luna,” Twilight gave her an amused look. “We talked about this.”

“Our-- my apologies,” Luna grinned sheepishly. “Old habits and all. Tia says it took her close to sixty years to fully lose it.”

“So you’ve found me, right? Does that mean you can guide me home?” Twilight asked hopefully.

“Neigh,” Luna shook her head sadly. “We are in the dream realm right now. Physical locations mean next to nothing, though you must be in a certain range for us to touch like this. We speak via my dream magic, but I still have no idea where you are located.”

“I’m in Sector Delta,” Twilight told her.

Luna just blinked uncomprehendingly at her.

“Oh, right,” Twilight grinned sheepishly. “There’s a lot to get everyone caught up on. There are whole civilizations out here! There’s an entire city where different races meet! Humans, hylotl, florans, avia, apex…”

“These names mean nothing to us,” Luna reminded her. “Perhaps when you get back, you can enlighten us as to all you learned. What happened on that first day, anyway? What went wrong?”

“I was attacked,” Twilight said, remembering the day, a day that had been so full of promise.

“By whom? Who would attack you?” Luna queried. “You were just an explorer.”

“Luna, we have a lot to learn out here,” Twilight answered with a trace of sorrow. “It’s… savage, to say the least. There’s an entire organization of xenophobic members of one race that are currently terrorizing half the galaxy. I got attacked by sentient spacefaring penguins!”

An odd expression crossed Luna’s face, as though torn between disbelief and amusement. “Penguins?”

“Yes, Luna, penguins,” Twilight affirmed. “Genetically modified, experiment-gone-wrong type penguins. And as I understand it, they attacked me just because I was helpless.”

Luna remained silent at that, pondering her words, but Twilight continued.

“I have seen places you wouldn’t believe, heard stories that scare me, and all the while, I’m actually starting to wonder if it is even a good idea for me to even find Equus again.”

“How could you come to such a conclusion?” Luna asked, aghast. “This world is your home! Your friends are here! You are a very important figure to us!”

“Because of all of the terrible things I’ve seen,” Twilight answered with a shrug. “A race on its last legs due to that xenophobic organization, people living in fear…”

“People?” Luna tilted her head.

“It’s… how they refer to themselves,” Twilight explained. “I’m hesitant to continue searching because there’s no guarantee I won’t be leading someone who wants to do us harm right to our doorstep. Equus is my home, and that’s why I want to keep it safe.”

Luna looked as though she could not believe her ears.

“Is there nothing redeeming about the realm beyond our system?” she asked. “You are a mare who could see past Tempest Shadow to the good within her. Is there truly nothing redeemable?”

“There’s plenty redeemable,” Twilight replied, clearly annoyed that Luna was taking her statement that the realm beyond was savage a bit too far. “Luna, it really is beautiful out here. And to see so many races cooperating to build something greater is extraordinary. But I do not wish to come home until it is safe. I am the only pony out here, and I am well-aware that some of the beings have taken notice of me. I have allies that will help, but not everyone out here wants to see me unharmed.”

“I see,” Luna frowned. “I will speak with Celestia about this. I fear our time is short, but we will speak again soon now that we may contact you. There is something that I believe you need to see.”

Luna’s room around them changed. Now, they stood out in space, and all around them were massive ships, grey and dull, and very rectangular in shape, but with no shortage of weapon arrays along their sides. Twilight recognized that some of them looked like different-colored, larger versions of Jack’s ship, and the Ulysses was supposedly a distinctly human design.

But then her eyes fell onto it.

There was a massive construct, also rectangular like the ships, but at its center was a round indentation, as if it had been scooped out. Arrayed all along the sides of the massive station were several hangar bays, no doubt for the ships flying in and around the station. All along the back of the station were colossal afterburners and engines, which Twilight felt would give the ship impressive mobility for its size, and she could see smaller propulsion engines along each side, no doubt for strafing or turning.

“What do you know of this?” Luna asked. “We saw this fleet in our nightly star-gazing only a few nights ago. Are they friend or foe?”

“I… don’t know,” Twilight said, trying to scrutinize the ships for some kind of tell. “One moment.”

She continued to look around, even at different ships. There had to be some kind of branding on them somewhere!

But then she saw it. Blocky black lettering on the grey of one of the smaller ships, and her heart stopped.

“Twilight, are you okay?” Luna asked, concerned.

She had gone rigid and pale, her eyes wide.

The owner of this fleet was the USCM.

“Luna,” she said in a small voice, “these… these are not friends.” She took a moment to take a few deep breaths. It wouldn’t do well to show fear in this one place where she couldn’t be harmed. When she was sure she was calm again, she continued. “Do everything you can not to attract their attention. The USCM are an organization that want to establish human superiority over all other races, even going to far as to imprison, torture, and kill even fellow humans who side with other races.”

“These ‘humans’ sound as though they are quite a monstrous race,” Luna frowned. “Of course other races would have those who view their own kind as being more deserving of life and luxury than others, but to kill members of their own species over disagreeing?”

“Not all humans are bad,” Twilight replied firmly. “In fact, most of them aren’t, but the ones that are are dangerous.”

“You sound as though you speak from experience. Have you met a human?”

“I am currently traveling with one,” Twilight nodded. “He saved my life, and he has been helping me try to find Equus for the past few months.”

Luna nodded her head thoughtfully. “Very well, I will take your word for it. Our time speaking is at an end. I will tell Celestia of everything we’ve discussed here. Have you anything to pqass along to your family and friends?”

Twilight grinned at the thought of all of her loved ones. Hopefully, she would see them again soon.

“Only that I love them all and I am fine. Goodbye, Princess.”

“Until we speak again, Twilight Sparkle,” Princess Luna bowed, and all around them, the dream faded.

Jack had come into this facility with complete and total distrust of every single member of the organization. Yet here they were, two weeks later, and any distrust he’d had was gone.

Captain Jensen, it seemed, was truly a man of his word, and Ross had proven that in the years since they had all fled Earth, he had hardly changed. The people hiding out on this planet did appear to be doing their best to help non-humans escape from the wrath of the USCM.

According to Ross, there had been a large number of hylotl they’d had to get off of a nearby planet not all that long ago due to some catastrophe that no one seemed sure about. What was unmistakable, however, was that something had caused the northern ice cap to almost totally melt at an unprecedented rate, and the average temperature of the water to suddenly spike, as well as laying waste to several hundred thousand square miles of developed hylotl cities at the bottom of the sea.

None of the hylotl seemed to know what had happened. Suddenly they had been hit with something, and then suddenly everything was in uproar. Millions were dead, millions more were dying, and the planet was rapidly becoming uninhabitable.

Where the victimized hylotl were being taken, he didn’t know, but there was little doubt just who was responsible.

So when Twilight and Jack approached Captain Jensen and requested a Starmap for Sector Chi, he just responded by staring at them.

“I promise you, I’m asking this in total seriousness,” Jack assured him, but that did absolutely nothing to affect Captain Jensen’s look.

“You want me to give you a Starmap that would lead you right into the heart of their territory?” he raised his eyebrows. “Do you know what will happen if you are found?”

“We won’t be,” Jack said rather forcefully, as if daring the captain to retort.

The command center of the base had a very nice view of the surrounding landscape, with the black starry sky, framed by red at the horizons. Alien trees with brown leaves littered the ground around them, but due to the height of their current building, they could see over and around the surrounding land with ease. It was a very strange environment, to be sure, but the view was nice.

No doubt how they found us, thought Jack, thinking back to how quickly they were surrounded after their battle with the Bone Dragon.

“And how can you be so sure of that?” the captain crossed his arms and met his gaze with a challenging look of his own. “We found you. We found your warp trail and used it to plant coordinates of this planet on your ships, and look at the size of this outpost.”

He gestured to everything around him, and the commandeered Apex facility in general.

“Now imagine if the USCM, with all of its power and resources, dedicated itself to tracking you down. Look me in the eye and tell me they won’t find you.”

“If they only used the Equestrian ship, they couldn’t.”

That voice had not come from either Twilight nor Jack, but instead, Ross. The lieutenant came dashing into the command center at an astonishingly-appropriate time, and carrying a tablet that he thrust into the captain’s hand.

“What?” asked Twilight, Jack, and the captain all as one.

“We’ve been studying your ship for the last few days now,” Ross explained to Twilight. “Its design and technology are rather alien to us, after all. While it is similar to ours in a lot of ways, some of the ways it does things are just… unheard of!”

“How do you mean?” Twilight suddenly frowned. “What have you done to my ship?”

“We have done nothing to it, you can inspect it and see for yourself,” he said hastily before the angry lilac alicorn could find a reason to incinerate him for tampering with the Enterprise, “but we have been running some tests, such as studying how it warps. And we’ve found out that your ship is so energy efficient, it leaves behind no warp trail.”

“Wait, what?” both Jacks did double-takes.

Ross just flipped the tablet around to show a grid of data recorded by the team performing these experiments.

“Ten tests, zero warp trail. I couldn’t believe it either.” He looked over at Twilight. “When your kind join us among the stars, the design you used could revolutionize the way ships are built. It’s incredible! And we can barely even begin to understand it!”

“Barely begin--” she mouthed, before turning to her Jack. “But you repaired my ship after Dreadwing’s attack!”

“Yeah, but only the parts I knew about,” he answered. “There was a ton of stuff in your ship that I couldn’t make head or tail of. And most of your damage was concentrated on your engines and warp drive, both of which proved to have similarities enough that I could fix.”

“So the ship leaves behind no warp core,” the Captain gave Ross an intrigued look. “Then how did we find their ships?”

“Jack’s ship,” Ross answered. “Viers and Piett traced the warp trail left by his at-the-time Sparrow-class vessel.”

“Can confirm,” one of the workers said, raising a hand. Jack had seen him around, but the only time he had met Viers and Piett was then they had been there the time he had first tried to strangle Jensen, wearing armor so that he couldn’t see their faces.

“So…” Jensen folded his hands together under his chin. “You are telling me that, while Jack Thomas’ ship is fairly typical, Twilight Sparkle’s ship is, for all intents and purposes, untraceable?”

“Exactly,” Ross nodded. “Unless there’s a tracking device inside or on the hull, naturally, but by warp trail analysis, she cannot be followed.”

He turned to the equine princess.

“When your kind are active in the galactic landscape, I can only imagine just what other innovations you can bring,” he said, positively beaming as he imagined the possibilities.

“If I find our planet again,” Twilight reminded him, giving the captain a meaningful look.

The captain just shook his head. “This is a bad idea.”

“You won’t be involved, Captain,” Twilight said. “I must find my home. The USCM are out there, and for all I know, they could have already found it.”

“You don’t know that.”

“I’m not willing to risk it,” Twilight retorted.

With that, the captain tossed his hands. “Fine. I’ll let you borrow a Sector Chi starmap. There’s almost no data on it, mind you, since the USCM have been very good about keeping others from spreading information on the sector, but that’s all I can offer. And I suppose if you use the Enterprise, you’ll be as safe as you can be.”

“We were just going to do it anyway,” Twilight said, before looking back at Jack. “Right, Jack?”

“Well, you were, and I was going to get dragged along… but what you gonna do?” Jack shrugged unhelpfully.

Three weeks after their arrival on the splinter USCM base, and a week after their departure, they had once again resumed searching for Equus. Captain Jensen had been right. There was almost zero information on Sector Chi whatsoever. All that was known was how many planets were in each system and what kind of star they orbited.

And when they searched for Equus in the Enterprise’s computer banks, they had found a whopping sixty-two systems that matched it.

“Hoo boy,” Jack ran a hand through his ginger hair, the glove of his new Universalist armor gliding through his locks with ease. “Lot of systems to cover. Lucky they gave us all that fuel.”

“Mhm,” Twilight dipped her head, but she frowned all the same as she stared at the Enterprise’s navigation console.

“What’s up?”

“That many planets, and the USCM are out here somewhere,” she said quietly. “And from what Princess Luna has told me, they’re within scoping sight of Equus.”

“Hang on, who?” Jack asked.

“Princess Luna,” repeated Twilight, trotting over to her pilot’s seat and queueing up the coordinates for one of the systems. “She’s Princess Celestia’s sister, alicorn of the Night and the Moon, and she’s been trying to keep watch over the stars to find me.”

“How do you know this? You haven’t exactly been to Equus since--”

“Really? I hadn’t guessed,” snapped Twilight, before she winced. “Sorry, that was uncalled for.”

“‘s alright,” Jack shrugged.

“Princess Luna can enter ponies’ dreams. I’ve seen her twice now, the first being once while we were back at Captain Jensen’s base. She reached out to me while I slept, and we were able to exchange information.”

“So what’s this about them being within scoping sight of Equus?” Jack asked, following along so far.

“She has seen them, Jack,” Twilight answered, and he could hear a note of fear in her voice. “They’ve got several hundred ships. There’s a monstrous battlestation! And they’re close enough that she can see them.”

“You’re worried you might lead them to your home?”

“I am,” she nodded. “You spent all this time telling me how we needed to be careful out here, and now I know why.”

“Hey,” he stepped beside her chair as the Enterprise entered warp, and ruffled her mane, causing her to shiver. “It’ll be alright. Remember, they can’t track your ship through warp. If we stumble upon them, all we have to do is warp away before they can do anything about it. And when we find Equus--”

“If--”

“When we find Equus,” he overrode her, “we can alert Terra Stella and the other organizations of its existence, and get your planet protected.”

His optimism motivated them for the next three fruitless days of their search. The systems dwindled, bit by bit, but never did Jack lose hope. Twilight honestly had to wonder just what inspired the change in him. Was it because they were right there? Was it because they were so close and the end was in sight?

“Thirty-seven systems left,” Jack said, as he continued to push the coordinates to her pilot console, where she input them and sent them off. “Almost halfway through the lot.”

“We’re going to need to take some time to refuel,” she said, glancing at her fuel gauge. “I have six warp jumps left.”

“So, five more systems and then a visit to the base again.” Jack noted, scrolling through the list of coordinates. “Should we call it a day?”

“We’ve only been up for six hours,” Twilight replied. “It’s only 1:34PM Terra Stella time. Getting tired already?”

Jack shrugged. “Not really. My eyes are, but I’ve got energy. Maybe we should switch places.”

“No,” she answered, a playful grin as she looked back. “This is my pilot seat. If you wanted to fly, you could have brought the Ulysses.”

The ship exited warp with a bang, the sun and five planets arrayed around it coming into view. They had come out of warp in a top-down position relative to the plane the system was on, and instantly started to beeline straight toward the third planet, as always.

“You know why we can’t do that,” Jack reminded her with a bemused look. “We don’t want the USCM tracking us.”

He glanced down at the scanning console.

“Two habitable planets here. One of them is the third one, like you said, and the other is the second. That sound familiar?”

Twilight scrutinized the planet coming into view as the ship shot toward it.

“We never colonized the second planet, even though its climate is very much like our own, but yeah, we do have two habitable planets. But I’m still not getting my…” she trailed off as she looked out at the planet as it came into focus.

“Your…?” Jack asked, glancing over.

She said nothing, continuing to look out. Her mouth had parted, and he could see her leaning forward, just barely.

“Twilight?”

“That’s it,” she said softly.

“Do what?”

“That’s it,” she repeated, louder, and he could see the beginnings of a smile tug at her mouth. “That’s it!” she suddenly shouted, leaping out of her chair to grab him and drag him to the viewing port. “That’s Equus, look!”

She jabbed her hoof at planet they were flying toward. He could see continents, he could see ice caps, he could even make out a few tiny satellites orbiting the planet, and the moon, barely visible over one of the sides of the planet, orbiting rather close to the planet in question.

“It’s Equus! We’ve made it!” she then hugged him, with every bit of her alicorn strength. “We’ve found it!”

As Jack groaned in pain, she suddenly backed off and flew over to the communications console and started establishing a connection with some base on the ground.

“Come on, come on, come on, come on, come on!” she huffed impatiently as the connection continued to establish, the red indicator blinking to show that it was still in progress.

Until it turned green.

“Hoofston Space Center, this is the E.S.S. Enterprise!”

“Enterprise, is that really you?” came a voice from the console, pure disbelief in every syllable. “We lost contact with you months ago! How did you find us!?”

“It’s a long story, Hoofston, but right now, I’m just ready to dock and see home again.”

“Copy. Princess, you have no idea how good it is to hear you again.”

Twilight’s smile turned into a dreamy one of relief. “Welcome to my world, Hoofston. I’d almost lost hope of ever finding you.”

However, something interrupted the conversation. A blinking red light on the communications console got Jack’s attention.

“Twilight, hold on,” he said, pulling up information about the signal. “I’m getting an incoming message.”

“Princess? Who is that voice?” the beings on the other end said.

“It’s Jack Thomas,” Twilight replied. “He’s been helping me find my way back.”

“Twilight,” Jack said sharply, eyes widening, “it’s from Terra Stella.”

Twilight’s mouth parted. “Terra Stella? What’s going on?”

“I don’t know. It’s got an audio message.”

“Hoofston, can I put you on hold?”

“Sure thing, Princess,” Hoofston replied, whoever he was. “We’ll alert the Princesses that you’ve been found.”

“Go ahead Jack,” she motioned with a hoof.

Jack nodded, silenced the current transmission, and then put the distress signal on.

“--ysses and Enterprise! Come in! This is Timaeus with the Terra Stella Peacekeeping Corps with an urgent message! Respond immediately, over!”

Jack enabled communications at once.

“Timaeus, this is the Enterprise, we copy.”

“Mr. Thomas, we need you to get to Terra Stella as soon as possible, at the latest before the end of the week. And bring Twilight Sparkle with you. There’s a serious problem.”

“Whoa, whoa, slow down, Tim,” Jack frowned, staring at the screen intently. “What’s going on?”

“The USCM have delivered us an ultimatum, to either deliver you to them or to face their wrath,” Timaeus said. The first thing Jack noticed was that Timaeus didn’t snap at him for calling him “Tim” again. “They want us to deliver them to you at the end of the month. We need you here as soon as possible so we can get you to a safe place.”

“Wouldn’t the safest place for us be away from Terra Stella?” Jack asked. “If the USCM are looking for us, and they’re currently at Terra Stella…”

“A valid point,” Timaeus conceded, “but consider, would you be safer with or without military power in front of you? The USCM know Twilight Sparkle exists and are actively on the hunt for the both of you.”

Jack and Twilight met each other’s gaze.

“What do you think?” he asked her.

“Why are you asking me?” Twilight asked.

“I’m leaving this up to you,” he got up from the communications console and started to pace. “We’ve found your world. There’s nothing else for you to do out here. You owe us nothing, and if you were to stay here, there’s a good chance the USCM wouldn’t be able to find you.”

“I…” she glanced out of the viewing port toward her planet down below. “I can’t do that,” she shook her head. “You say I owe you nothing, but Jack, I do. If it wasn’t for the people at Terra Stella, like Jason, or Timaeus, we never would have found Equus.”

“Twilight, if you go and they capture you, they’ll torture the location of this planet out of you. They may very well try to extract it from your ship if they capture it.”

“I will never allow them to know,” she said firmly, stamping a hoof for emphasis. “I would rather die than give them the power to enslave or exterminate my race. But I cannot let innocent people be in danger just because I exist.”

“You want to go help Terra Stella?”

“Are you surprised?” she asked, giving him a raised eyebrow.

“No,” Jack smiled wanly. “Just want to make sure we’re on the same page here. I figured you’d never let anyone come to harm through inaction, and I was prepared for it.”

Twilight stared at him for a moment.

“Prepared… how?”

Jack responded by walking over to her ship’s storage locker and opening it, revealing some shiny new pieces of armor, both a human set and an equine set.

Twilight’s mouth parted. When did he have the time for this? And what metals were these?

The equine set of armor was primarily blue, with a pit of purple trim here and there. The helmet was a fully-encasing helm, with an orange visor, and would no doubt feature a heads-up-display like some of her earlier armors had. Conversely, the human armor was a deeper purple, with blue trim.

“Thanks to medical data collected by the Delta Outpost,” Jack said, brushing her equine armor, “they were able to craft this armor for you out of Ferozium, and it apparently ought to help augment your magical abilities, if they’re to be believed.”

“How?” Twilight asked, still staring at the armor in astonishment. “They know nothing about Equestrian physiology.”

“I guess that’s what the studying was for,” Jack shrugged. “My armor’s made of Violium, which means it can take better hits than the durasteel armor I had before. Might even survive a grenade explosion, unlike last time,” he remarked. grimacing a bit as he recalled that particular blast and its aftermath. “I had a feeling we’d need to use it. And now we can.”

“You make it sound as though we’re seeking out a battle,” Twilight observed, eyebrows furrowing.

“I’m not,” Jack answered, and shrugged, “but I’m pretty certain it’s a good idea to be prepared in case a battle comes to us.”

“Fair enough,” Twilight dipped her head. “Timaeus?”

“Yes, princess?”

“We’ll get there as soon as possible.”

“Very well. Stay safe, and do not do anything to attract unwanted attention,” the apex cautioned over the intercom. “Until you get here and until this mess blows over, keep a low profile.”

“Aww, you really do care about us,” Jack grinned.

“I don’t know what you’re talking about,” Timaeus replied, but Jack knew better.

“We’ll be there as soon as possible,” he promised. “Enterprise out.”

With that, Twilight flipped a switch on the Communications console, returning the conversation to Hoofston down below.

“Hoofston, I’m afraid I’m going to have to delay my homecoming a bit longer,” Twilight said over the mic. “There are hundreds of other planets out here, and civilizations the likes of which you wouldn’t believe. And right now, one of them needs my help.”

Hoofston was quiet for a moment, though Jack could hear some chatter in the background as everyone reacted to her statement. They couldn’t have been happy that she was leaving so soon.

“I suppose nothing we say will change that, will it?” came the voice of mission control a moment later. “Princess Celestia won’t be happy about this, you know.”

“She’ll understand,” Twilight replied firmly. “She did teach me to look out for those who need help, after all. I will be back soon,” she promised, and then added, “but only once I can be certain Equus is in no danger from the menace attacking the civilization in question.”

“Roger that, Enterprise. Shall we pass along a message to the Princesses on your behalf?”

“Yes, please,” Twilight answered. “Tell them that I have found home, and will see everyone again soon. I won’t be off the radar anymore.”

“Roger that. Mission control out.”

And like that, communications cut off. Jack dipped his head as Twilight deactivated the console.

“Well alright then,” he said, pulling out the Ferozium helm of her armor and tossing it to her. “Suit up, and let’s get to Terra Stella.”

The Enterprise popped into existence near the planet Terra Stella was located on, with its deep green surface, and the myriad of ships circling it, but Jack noticed an inordinate number of ships warping away compared to usual.

Not good, he thought. “Twilight, move the ship behind that moon, there,” he pointed at one of the planet’s two moons, this one being the closest to the planet, kept roughly the same distance from the planet as the moon that orbited Equus.

Twilight complied, piloting the ship around to the side of the moon facing away from the planet. It was just within transporter distance of the city, but kept hidden away.

“When we’re down on the planet surface, put the ship in emergency low-power mode,” Jack frowned, as a sudden wave of unease came over him. “Something’s wrong.”

“The USCM made an ultimatum against the city, right?” Twilight stared out as the moon started to hide the planet form view, though there were still ships warping out of sight within view. “Looks like everyone’s getting away. The news must have broke.”

After the ship was safely hidden away, they beamed down and started to walk through the city. In stark contrast to the armored pony and human striding confidently (if a bit hastily) through the city, everything else was a mess of chaos. Beings everywhere were beaming aboard ships, trying to escape in light of the threat. The TSPC had deployed troops everywhere, including several of the new Fatal Circuit models to try and maintain order, but it was failing miserably.

“Is turning on low-power mode a good idea?” Twilight asked him as they headed for a taxi platform to get to the TSPC headquarters. “If something happens, it can only beam one of us aboard at a time, and then it has to recharge. I think full power mode would be best, given the situation.”

“Fair point,” Jack nodded. “My main concern is what happens if they find it during a scan. Because if they do, there goes our ride.”

“With how many ships are warping out, I doubt they’ll be able to find a needle in a haystack,” Twilight responded.

“Also a fair point.”

Taxis were still in operation, which was a blessing considering most of them were completely automated, but on loading up, Jack received a message from Timaeus, asking him to head to the citadel.

“Odd,” Jack said, frowning under his helmet. “Why would he be there?”

Twilight didn’t say, probably because she knew next-to-nothing about the citadel in question, or why it would be odd for Timaeus to be there, but if she felt the same unease as him, she didn’t show it.

Once there, they were met by an escort of four peacekeepers in white armor, and Timaeus, his uniform as prim and proper as ever.

“Good to see you again, Twilight Sparkle, Jack Thomas,” the apex inclined his head to them as they approached, the peacekeepers taking up positions around them. “This way, please. There’s quite a bit to get you up to speed on.”

They were led up a lift and through several winding hallways as they navigated around the towering structure. The passages of this place were labyrinthine, though for a center of military and government, Jack supposed they were by necessity.

“So, this ultimatum,” Twilight broke the ice tentatively. “What’s going on?”

“A few weeks ago,” Timaeus said, brushing some of his facial fur away from his eyes with a gloved hand as they continued, “the USCM sent the High Council a video exhibiting their new battlestation, the Valkyrie. They demonstrated it by firing a massive laser at the surface of a hylotl planet, devastating it and killing millions in an instant.”

Jack felt his insides growing cold. The aquatic planet the Delta outpost had been transporting hylotl off of… he thought. No… no, it couldn’t be…

“Their ultimatum was simple,” Timaeus continued. “Hand the two of you over to them, or they would unleash its laser on Terra Stella.”

He sniffed.

“The High Council deliberated on such an obvious choice,” he shook his head. “Without waiting for their approval, I started my work, reaching out to contacts and trying to salvage this situation.”

They had arrived at a plain door that was labelled as being a conference room, identical to the many around it in this particular hall.

With a weary sigh, Timaeus brushed his facial fur again.

“Fortunately, my work appears to be paying off. It appears as though we may no longer have to worry about the USCM. I’ve made a deal that should remove them as a threat to the city.”

With that, he reached out and opened the door. With a quiet hiss, it slid open. The room inside was rather plain, with a long table and several empty seats around it, and one human man sitting at the far end.

He was wearing an immaculate white uniform with gold epaulets, with a white cap sitting on the table. His hair was short and brown, his eyes a cool grey. His jaw was square, with high cheekbones and hollow cheeks peppered with some stubble. As soon as the door opened, the man stood up, his eyes shifting to stare down at Twilight.

A sudden mass of clicking got Jack’s attention, and he whirled around. Their escort had leveled their weapons at them. Before Jack could even react further, he felt something cold touch him on his neck, in the gap between his helmet and armor.

“Don’t do anything stupid, Mr. Thomas,” Timaeus said coolly. “Any magical outburst out of you, Sparkle, and I will end his life right now.”

Jack, hands trembling through a combination of fear and fury, slowly turned to glare at the Apex through his visor. It was a good thing neither Timaeus nor that man could see his reaction.

Twilight’s head was whipping every which way, no doubt trying to find a way out, but another clattering filled their ears.

Soldiers of a different set of armor had appeared in each of the hallways, weapons raised and aimed at the two of them, cutting off any avenue for escape. Unlike the white helmet-less armor of the Terra Stella peacekeepers, these were armored un a black metal, wearing full armor just like the two of them.

The white branding “U.S.C.M.” on each one’s left breast was too stark to miss.

“We would be honored if you would join us,” the man at the head of the conference table said, a slight mocking edge to it, as he gestured to the seats at the table.”

Jack felt his helmet be wrenched off of his head, and once it was free, he saw out of his peripheral vision that one of the peacekeepers was doing the same to Twilight.

His eyes, blazing with anger, met Timaeus’, who were a picture of cool serenity as he kept his pistol pressed against Jack’s neck.

“Two lives versus the millions of this city,” Timaeus said. “An easy choice to make.”

His eyes left Jack’s.

“I’m sorry.”

Jack felt his jaw clench and his lips tighten. As if that somehow made things better.

“I’m sorry too,” he growled.

With that, both of them were shoved into the conference room, the door sliding shut behind them, sealing their fates.

Author's Note

If you haven't figured it out, this chapter was inspired by a certain scene from The Empire Strikes Back. Little did I know I actually released this chapter on its 38th anniversary of release. Weird coincidence.

Lemme know how it did in the comments below.

Rytex out. Have a good day!

Prologue

“There we go,” muttered the lavender alicorn mare, adding more energy crystals to her ship’s Energy Absorption system. With the flip of a switch, a whirring sound, and a bright light, all of the magic crystals were disintegrated, their energy stored by the ship to be used as fuel for her journey, however far out that may be.

“How’s it looking?” she spoke, raising her voice slightly as she addressed the intercom system above her.

“Looking good, Princess,” came a phantom voice from somewhere on Equus below. “Your ship appears to be fully fuelled, and all systems are operational.”

“Thank you,” Twilight said, heading back to check that her emergency survival kit was still completely stocked for at least the fourteenth time. “Everything’s looking good and ready to go. How long until departure?”

“Whenever you’re ready, Princess,” the voice said again. “I would advise caution, though. We haven’t explored much outside of our own solar system. Who knows what could be out there?”

“Which is exactly what I’m going to find out,” Twilight said, smiling to herself and doing her best to contain her excitement. She was going to be the first being on all of Equus to explore unknown space!

“Anything you would like to say on the subject, for the press?” asked the stallion from Mission Control in Hoofston. “Any ideas on where you’re going to go? They’re going to want to hear something from you before you leave.”

Twilight smirked. She had been waiting for this. Her brother had put her up to it. Ever since that new “tele-vision” invention from a few decades ago, a certain little title sequence just seemed completely fitting for this occasion, and by Celestia, she was going to take advantage of the opportunity.

“Are they listening in right now?” Twilight asked.

“I can bring some of them in. Want me to?”

“Yeah, do that. I’m going to make sure everything’s still working.”

“But you’ve already done that twenty--! Oh, forget it.”

Twilight giggled.

“It’s interstellar travel. You can never be too careful. One mistake and I could be in pretty big trouble.”

“Whatever. I’ll bring in the press.”

The intercom switched off, leaving Twilight’s ship in utter silence. She trotted over to the transporter platform, took readings, checked the supply cache for her survival kit again, did in fact find an error with her technology scanner/3D printer and fixed it, and checked to see if the ship's scanners and defenses were up and running, which they were. No matter where she went, as long as the ship had enough power to run, it would scan the planets for billions of miles around, not to mention search for intelligent life on any planet it found.

“Princess Twilight?” came the voice again. “They’re ready.”

Twilight smiled, and trotted over to her chair in front of the controls.

“Well, I’m going to have to say goodbye, then,” she said to the voice, feeling herself choke up slightly. “I plan on doing something unforgettable when I finish up with the press.”

There was silence for a moment, but then she heard a slight sniff.

“I’m trying to keep it together, Twily, but the thought of not seeing my sister for at most five years is really getting to me.”

Twilight felt the tears start to come, but she held them back. She needed to be composed for the next part.

“Love you, BBBFF,” she said.

“Love you too, LSBFF,” he responded. “See you when you get back.”

There was silence for a very short moment, but then a cacophony of noise broke over the intercom as the paparazzi, for want of a better term, broke over the intercom.

“Everypony, please, be quiet,” she said over the intercom as she started to input coordinates into her ship’s computer. The media ponies quieted down slowly, but soon, she was met with silence once again.

“This message is for everypony, and it will be the last words I speak to all of you until I return. So please, take them down well, because I won’t be answering any questions.”

She took in a deep breath to calm the butterflies in her chest that she was getting, which was moderately successful.

“Space: The final frontier,” she announced.

For one moment, she waited, where she already heard laughing coming from the background as the scientists at Mission Control started to lose their composure.

“These are the voyages of the starship Enterprise.” Which was actually the name of her ship, at her request. “Its five-year mission: to explore strange new worlds, to seek out new life an new civilizations, to boldly go where nopony has gone before!”

And she slammed her hoof on the “Go” button. At once, the ship rocketed into warp, into the final frontier.

Twilight was awakened from her dozing abruptly, after a violent jolt from her ship. Did she already come out of warp? It had only been a few hours at most! She had expected a few days! Were they closer to other planets than they had thought?

An alarm started blaring, fully rousing her from her slight stupor. She bolted out of her bed and ran to the navigation console. The ship was indeed out of warp, but at the wrong coordinates. She continued searching for the source of the alarm, only to findthat it was not the navigation console, but the scanner.

Something powerful was attacking her ship.

The ship violently jolted again, and Twilight ran to the controls and started activating the ship's defense mechanisms. She glanced up and out the main window to see what it was that was attacking them and saw a strange, dark silver saucer-shaped ship flying quickly over the top of the Enterprise. It had a clear, dome-shaped cockpit, where some being was controlling it, and that being was Tartarus-bent on blowing her ship up.

"WARNING! PRIMARY FUEL CHAMPERS RUPTURED! SECONDARY FUEL CHAMBERS EMPLOYED!"

She was trying to power up her defense systems, but it would appear that those were the first things these beings had taken out to prevent her from retaliating. As her ship continued to take hit after hit, and as her shields continued dropping, she realized there was no winning this fight. She needed to get away as fast as possible.

An explosion rocked over her ship.

"WARNING! SHIELDS FAILING!"

Twilight flew into her chair and started hammering key after key, attempting to punch in the coordinates for a jump to warp. Her shields were down, and if these enemies were smart, her engines would be the next target. She needed to get away before that could happen.

"Come on! Come on!" she cried at the computer, almost bashing it with her hoof to make it work faster.

Another explosion. Her engine integrity was falling. These enemies must have had previous encounters with other vessels.

"WARNING! JUMP TO WARP NOT ADVISED! FUEL WILL BE EXHAUSTED AND RENDER THE ENTERPRISE UNABLE TO REENTER WARP!"

Even in this circumstance, Twilight knew it was either this unknown fate or death.

So she slammed her hoof on the warp button.

At once, the stars grew longer and with a resounding roar, her ship blasted into space, leaving her unknown attacker behind. As soon as she was safely in warp, Twilight let out a sigh and wiped her forehead, taking plenty of sweat with her hoof.

"Well, first interstellar journey, first alien enemy," she mused. Frankly, she couldn't help but wonder who it had been, and why it had preyed on Twilight's vessel. For that matter, how had it managed to take her out of warp? There had been no planets, no asteroids, nothing around her!

The reality washed over her that maybe, ponykind was not ready for space exploration. There were beings in space with malicious intent, more powerful than they were capable of facing in space. On Equus, that would be a different story, however.

She had been forced to take a jump to random coordinates that had been zeroed in on evidence of a yellow star and planets, so she could only hope that this planetary system she was heading towards contained resources she could use to power her ship.

It wouldn't be long before she arrived, though. It had been a desperation move, and with her fuel capacity low, she probably wouldn't be able to travel very far before warp disengaged.

Speaking of...

The roar of her ship's warp drive suddenly quieted, and normal space rematerialized around her. The first thing Twilight noticed was that there was a bright yellow star directly in front of her, surrounded by several planets, including one which looked quite a bit like Equus. Water and land in equal amounts on the planet's surface gave it a very desirable quality for her to visit first.

"Computer," she asked, "scan the stellar system."

"SCANNING."

While the computer scanned the system for an environment hospitable for life, she went and got her emergency survival kit. She was going to need it.

"SCAN COMPLETE. YELLOW STAR SYSTEM, LABELLED ALPHA PRIME SYSTEM. SCAN INDICATES SIX PLANETARY SYSTEMS, 87% OF ALL PLANETS IN THIS SYSTEM CONTAIN AN ENVIRONMENT HOSPITABLE FOR EQUINE LIFE. SCAN INDICATES INTELLIGENT LIFE ON PLANETARY SYSTEM THREE, PLANET TWO."

Twilight looked over to the main window, out at the several planets. All of them were in little groups of two or three, spaced further and further out from the star. This made it a similar system to the Equestrian System, which was good. The planet in question was even the one she had been hoping was hospitable.

"Computer, are there any compatible fuel sources on that planet?" she asked, pulling out the backpack containing all of her survival supplies and putting it on.

"SCAN INDICATES A MODERATE PRESENCE OF COAL. AN INEFFICIENT FUEL SOURCE."

"But fuel is fuel," she said to herself. "Better than having nothing and being stranded out here."

A thought suddenly occurred to her. Where even was she? As she started toward the teleporter, she stopped before the navigational computer and pulled up the coordinate memory logs.

ERROR: CRITICAL EXTERNAL SYSTEM DAMAGE. SYSTEM MEMORY AFFECTED. REPAIRS NECESSARY TO LOG COORDINATES.

It felt as if ice had gone up her spine. No logs!? That meant that not only was she stranded, she was also completely lost! Just when this trip couldn't start any worse...

But she would cross that bridge when she came to it. After all, she was out here to explore. What better motivation for exploring than trying to find her way back home? But before she could start looking around other planets, she had to get her ship back in flying shape and refuel it.

With that thought in mind, she trotted over to the transporter, activated it, and set to programming it to transport her to the planet's surface. As she glanced out of a viewhole at the planet below, she suddenly felt giddy, despite what had transpired only minutes ago. She was going to be the first pony to step hoof on another planet!

"Well," she said happily, "a little optimism never hurt anypony. Guess I'm making Shiny proud. All at once, I get to find a new world, look for this new intelligent life, and boldly go where nopony had gone before."

With the push of a button, her transporter was active. She detached her transporter tracker, which would allow her to beam back aboard the Enterprise from anywhere on the planet's surface, and pushed it onto one of her forehooves, where two straps sprouted from either side of the little black square of plastic and connected themselves, binding it around her forehoof.

Satisfied that everything was in order, she pushed the activate button of the transporter and stepped on the glowing space on the floor. And with a high pitched humming noise, Twilight Sparkle was beamed to the new planet below.

PRINCESS TWILIGHT SPARKLE

IN

Author's Note

First thing's first, the other chapters will be longer than this. This was merely an introduction to get things moving. The main story will more closely follow the usual line of events that take place in a game of Starbound. Just give it a chapter.

Well, I needed a story to write when I got bored with my main one, so I made this one. Fear not, I am not putting Even In Other Worlds on hiatus or anything. I just needed the creative venting, so to speak. then I got this idea while playing the newest indie game sensation, Starbound. More specifically, I got the idea from the pony mod package.

Well, how is this for a start? How can I improve it? Please read and review!

Rytex out. Have a good day!

A Dying Planet

Starbound
Chapter 04 - A Dying Planet

Twilight stood in Jack’s ship, the Ulysses, as he began to run a search over the known systems in the two sectors he had explored. It had been four days since he had saved her life from the penguins, and in the time since, he had worked tirelessly to help her get everything in gear. He had donated a generous amount of excess coal, he had managed to repair the Enterprise’s engines in the span of a couple of days, even adding some of the molten cores he had salvaged from Dreadwing’s ship for better efficiency, and now he was attempting to locate Equus in the midst of what planets he had access to.

“Alright, so, can you describe your stellar system to me?” he asked, looking up at the giant computer screen that showed all of Sector Alpha.

“Yellow star, five planets,” Twilight recited, for starters. Jack typed in the information and narrowed the search field. Several systems disappeared, but many more remained.

“Anything else you can narrow it down with?”

“Equus is the second planet, and it is only a single planet with a single moon.”

Jack added that information to the search field, and even more systems vanished. They were left with about thirty systems.

“What primary climate type is it?” he asked.

“Well, there isn’t a primary one,” she said. “There’s a lot of different ones.”

Jack looked at the list of planetary systems that were still on the list, but upon sorting them by primary climate, none of them had a varying type. Frankly, none of the applicable planets in Sector Alpha had a grassland type of biome at all.

“No luck,” Twilight said, feeling slightly let down. But then again, there were only four more sectors to explore. “What about Sector Beta?”

Jack repeated the process in the second sector, but while it did turn up more results, and two of them with varying biome types, upon further inspection Twilight could tell they weren’t Equus. Her disappointment grew, but her optimistic side informed her that this meant there were only three sections left to look through. Now if they could only get the maps to them...

“Well,” he sighed, “I was hoping I wouldn’t have to do this.”

“Do what?” Twilight asked.

“We’re going to need to procure a starmap for Sector Gamma,” Jack said. “Problem is, there aren’t many places that sell Sector Gamma starmaps. There are places that have them there for us to take, but they typically have hostile beings toward humans in them, or humans that are hostile towards other beings. Fortunately, I think I might know a place for us to purchase one. However...”

He got out of the pilot’s chair and walked over to his armor stash. His preferred armor was inside, as were his guns, or so she learned they were called. Other things lay inside as well, such as swords, pickaxes, and different tools or weapons.

Jack pulled out a set of weapons for melee combat. A sword, a spear, a hammer, and a shield.

“You’re going to need protection besides your magic. These should be pretty easy to figure out to use offensively. As for defensively, we’re going to need to find you some armor that fits your equine form. I know a good smith on a human planet who has done this sort of thing for a different species. I don’t think he’d mind crafting a set of armor molds for your pony form. Then we can craft your armor ourselves.”

“Why do I need something besides magic?” she asked. “It’s served me well in the past.”

“Twilight, there are going to be times when you won’t be able to use your preferred brand of magic. Those lasers you can shoot are nice, and I don’t doubt they’d help in a pinch, but you can’t just go around blasting everything with them.”

“Well, duh,” she snorted. “I know that. But--”

“You know the fact,” concurred Jack, “but in the moment, against something you don’t know, you can’t just fire away. You have to take time to survey the enemy and determine what you have to do to take it down, whether it be physical force, or your magic.”

He studied his own armor, then surveyed her for a moment.

“And besides, if what I’ve seen with you and your magic wasn’t just a miscalculation, you need protection in case you’re too exhausted to use it.”

He picked up the spear.

“Your shield goes down, the enemies get through and you have no armor? Dead.” He punctuated the statement by thrusting forward and missing her left side by less than the width of his smallest finger, which caused her to hiss, but Jack could see the understanding in her eyes.

“Shrapnel from an explosion gets flung too fast for you to react and you have nothing to stop it? Dead. You need armor to protect yourself from these kinds of things. Perhaps we can tinker it and allow you to channel magic through it later, but the important thing is to get you protected first.”

Twilight could only smile to herself as he returned to the pilot’s chair.

Dove right into the deep end, didn’t I?

“This excites you?” Jack asked, eyebrows slightly raising.. “I mean, I know we were excited at first too, but that quickly wore off when we saw what was out here waiting for us.”

“It does a little,” admitted Twilight, smiling coyly. “I mean, I get to be the first pony to see all of this. I get to make my mark on magic and science in a way I’ve done only once before.”

“Once before?” he asked, doing some quick typing and consulting of the map.

“Remember when I told you about how alicorns like me are made, not born?”

“Yeah.”

“I managed to complete a final spell written by an absolute genius who couldn’t figure out the end of it.”

The typing paused for a moment, but after a few seconds of staring at his computer screen, Jack continued typing.

“Sounds like something out of our history of mathematics,” he commented. “Guy by the name of Pierre de Fermat wrote that for positive integers A, B, C, and N, A to the Nth power plus B to the Nth power--”

“--can’t equal C to the Nth power,” Twilight recited, “for any integer N greater than 2.”

“Yeah,” Jack nodded. “Works with negative numbers, but that’s beside the point. This guy wrote that theorem almost eight hundred years ago, back in the 1600s AD of human time. Took our mathematicians almost 360 years to prove it to be true.”

“Eight hundred years?” Twilight asked. It had taken ponykind over one thousand three hundred years to complete Star Swirl’s Last Spell, the count ending when Twilight uttered the fateful words that caused her ascension.

“Eight hundred years,” Jack repeated. “The guy was centuries ahead of his time. A few decades before that, it suddenly got people studying different fields of math in an attempt to prove it.”

“You seem to know your mathematical history,” noted Twilight.

“Dropped out of college immediately prior to planet-jumping, but not before I had passed Calculus III with a good solid A. Have to know my math when piloting a starship, else I end up doing this shit wrong.”

Twilight winced at the cursing. She had never liked it when ponies used profanity. Just seemed unnecessary and rude, even when it was Rainbow Dash doing it.

Especially when it was Rainbow Dash doing it.

“Sorry,” Jack added, though he sure didn’t sound sorry. “Didn’t know you were one of those that didn’t like cussing.”

Twilight shrugged. “I never liked it. Don’t really know why, even though a few of my friends do it. Just makes me uncomfortable.”

“If you want, I’ll not do it,” offered Jack, looking up at a screen that was showing a system of desert planets. “You’re kind of my guest for the foreseeable future. I can suspend the habit.”

“No no, it’s fine,” Twilight said. “I don’t want you to feel like you have to change just because of me being here.”

“Oh, well in that case,” Jack smirked, “fuck the police.”

A chorus of beeps rang from the back of the ship as he prepared the Ulysses for warp.

“I’ve just sent the data for the Sectors Alpha and Beta starmap over to the Enterprise,” Jack explained, continuing to monitor several different gauges and numbers that Twilight couldn’t make out. “I’ve also sent you coordinates to the planet I’ve made my little base on as well, in Sector Beta. It’s a desert planet, should have plenty of sand to sift through, with plenty of ore to get out. Should be easy to get metal for your armor, not to mention any coal we dig up.”

“So, do I need to bring the Enterprise along?” she asked.

Jack turned and gave her an amused look. As soon as she realized she had asked a dumb question, her ears drooped and a shade of pink colored her cheeks.

“Why do you ask? Do you not plan on bringing, I don’t know, your one method of transportation along, and instead relying on me to be your mommy and take you everywhere?”

Twilight just gave him a flat look.

“Science and survival are not joking matters,” she chided.

“You sound like my old teacher,” Jack retorted, rolling his eyes. “Lighten up. Just trying to ease the tension here.”

He glanced up at the screen.

“Anyway, you might want to be getting a move on. My calculations are almost finished. Should be ready to warp momentarily. Might want to go get your calculations started.”

Twilight complied, trotting over to the transporter and beaming over to her own idle ship.

Jack had done more than repair it. Her engines were now more powerful with the help of some of the molten cores he had pilfered, allowing her to go further off the same fuel. As well, he had managed to craft a smelting station using her anvil and his last one. She was very pleased to see that her new anvil was much more of an efficient workstation than before.

She trotted over to the pilot’s chair, where the sent coordinates were ready to be punched in. Thank goodness the engineers at Hoofston had had the foresight to make it to where her ship could receive and intercept subspace frequencies, allowing her to communicate with the other ships if she ever came across them. While they may not speak the same language, they would still be able to sense and communicate.

There was a roar, and the Ulysses shot off into space faster than her eyes could follow. Her calculations would take a bit of time, but she would be following him soon after.

Struck by the sudden impulse, she glanced down at the planet, toward where her shelter had been. They’d spent part of the second day vacating it and putting everything on her ship, since with proper organization it had plenty of room to hold all of her crafting supplies. Her materials had also been stored away in a large metal locker that had been installed on her ship, courtesy of Jack.

In short, she didn’t need a planetary base if she had access to her ship. Still, the fact that Jack knew how to make basic shelters despite his ship also having such items meant that it would be a good survival skill to learn.

The computer beeped several times, signaling that her calculations were complete. Twilight casually trotted over to her console, buckled in, and hit the “Warp” button, and as with the Ulysses, her ship maneuvered itself into position to warp straight to this unknown planet in Sector Beta.

As soon as she was in position, the stars stretched toward her, and the Enterprise blasted off.

“Captain, sir, we have some news you might want to have a look at,” a military officer said, jogging over with a tablet. “Dreadwing the Pirate’s ship has been downed.”

The captain in question, currently studying a star-map of Sector Gamma, looked up with interest.

“Dreadwing?” he asked. “The mutated penguin?”

“Yes sir,” said the officer, handing the tablet over. “We got a distress signal that matches the USCM’s experimental prototype from a few decades ago, downed on a planet in the heart Sector Alpha.”

The captain investigated the tablet’s contents. Dreadwing’s ship had ventured down to the planet’s surface, and after a few moments, the distress signal had been sent out, before the ship just vanished completely.

“Interesting,” the captain murmured. “I wonder who took him out.”

“I don’t know, sir. We’ve no other information than that.”

“Take a guess, then,” the captain responded, starting to pace around the outpost’s operations room. The windows around the room showed the plains of the planet outside, a deserted planet once home to a colony of Apex, before the USCM came and drove them all out to take over their research facility as a base.

“We’ll need to send an investigative team if we’re to make any sort of educated guess,” the officer explained. “But given that not even a USCM strike team was able to take him out, I’m going to go ahead and guess that it was magic.”

The captain stared out of the window, letting the silence drag on. Magic may have sounded like a stupid answer, but after what had happened over the last few decades, nothing could surprise him anymore. Not after seeing Novakids and walking and talking plants up close, or witnessing an asteroid carrying a tentacle monster crash straight into a drill-hole meant to tap the energy from Earth’s core.

The asteroid had flown at exactly the right angle to fly in with no friction. The captain thought that some malevolent species had fired it at Earth. Now, Earth had mere months before that thing matured. And when it matured, it would eat the world and everything on it. Earth had only a few precious months left to live.

The captain sighed sadly.

“Lieutenant Ross,” he began.

“Sir!” the officer said, snapping to attention.

“Send that forensics team, and be quick! We need to find the wreckage of that ship before they do. If there’s another species out there that’s now able to take out USCM experimental ships, we’d better make sure the main USCM force don’t find out, else they’ll be on another extermination spree for whatever race did it.”

“Sir! Yes sir!” the lieutenant said, saluting and jogging off.

Captain Jensen removed his officer’s cap and ran a gloved hand through his brown hair, then rubbed at his equally brown eyes. It had been a long day. From reports that several USCM frigates had been moving toward Sector X, to rumors that the Rock had started implementing new torture methods, and now Dreadwing the Pirate had been taken out. Far from good news, though it seemed like it. It only meant there was now another party running around, and if it got on the wrong side of the USCM…

“Sergeant Smith,” Jensen barked, turning towards one of his operations men, suddenly struck by an idea.

“Yes sir!” acknowledged one of the technical members sitting at one of the many computers around the room.

“Send a message to that forensics team. Tell them to scan for warp drive signals within the last week that don’t match Dreadwing’s. We need to find those responsible as soon as possible.”

“Understood, sir,” Smith said, already working on typing and sending the missive.

Jensen looked out again, but this time up at the starry sky, visible even in the day. Whoever was responsible was going to need protecting. And if he was going to make good on his oath to protect any spacefarer, as every member of the USCM had made before the Great Earth-Jumping and the breaking of those oaths, he was going to help this unknown being or beings.

“I hope they stay safe,” he muttered to himself.

Jack’s shelter, it turned out, was on a desert planet. As in, entirely desert. Twilight had never thought single-biome planets were possible, only to find one sitting right in front of her.

“Wow,” she breathed as she beheld the tan planet. It may not have looked like much, but to her at that moment, it could have been the jewel set in her old tiara.

The Ulysses was maneuvering itself into an orbiting position as Twilight watched, and a few orders plugged into her ship later, the Enterprise was doing it as well.

INCOMING TRANSMISSION.

“On screen,” Twilight replied to the ship’s notification. At once, an image of Jack aboard the Ulysses appeared on screen.

“Welcome to my planet,” he said immediately. “Or at least, the planet that houses my current base. I move around every so often trying to find more plentiful resources, but this is where it’s at right now.”

“It’s beautiful,” Twilight said sincerely.

“Eh, it’s an eyesore if ever there was one,” Jack replied. “And that’s including how Earth looks right now.”

“What makes it an eyesore?” Twilight asked curiously.

“The tan color? That’s a monstrous sandstorm that’s been going on for years, and since I’ve lived here for a couple of months, I’ve gotten sick of it. My base is underground, and we’ll have to move quickly if we want to get in without the sand getting everywhere. It’ll be in your best interest to put on some kind of clothing or armor.”

He left the screen for a moment, but Twilight heard the sound of armor clanging, so she assumed he was putting his on.

“I’ll send the coordinates for your transporter, which should send you right down by the entrance. I’ll go first so I can let you in,” he called from offscreen. “Give me a moment. And keep a sand-shield up when you’re down plantside. That stuff really does get everywhere.”

The screen cut out at that, leaving Twilight to begin putting the Enterprise in orbit around the desert planet.

A few short minutes later, Twilight had beamed down to the surface of Jack’s desert home. And she had not been prepared in the slightest.

It was hot, it was dry, it was windy, the sand was everywhere, and she had no shields up for three of those four facts. A few quick spells later, that was fixed, but the visibility was still very low.

How can he stand this planet? she wondered. And for that matter, where is he?

A flat panel on the ground suddenly flipped up right next to her, startling her for just a moment, before she realized it was just a wooden trapdoor as the sand fell off of it. A testament to just how sharp her survival instinct had become since being stranded on Alpha Prime III-B.

Jack’s armored figure climbed out of the hole in the ground as she watched.

“Well, come on, then,” he said, motioning for her to get into the hole. “You’re letting the sand in.”

Twilight had to go in backwards, and it was incredibly awkward. These humans designed steep ladders with rungs for flat feet on a bipedal body. Trying to go down it on hooves was both strange and difficult.

As she descended, she saw him start climbing down, and she saw the square of light above her vanish. Slowly, she continued downward, until after a few minutes, she had reached the bottom of the ladder.

Jack’s base was incredibly well-equipped. A furnace and anvil like her’s, a loom, a strange second furnace which appeared to be an oven, and a machine set in the middle with a pad for teleportation. Several hallways and sets of stairs led off to various places. It was quite a bit roomier than the mines Twilight had slept in over the last couple of months.

“That’s my Transporter platform,” Jack explained as he removed his helmet and shook his red hair around. “Directly wired to the Ulysses, and it lets me teleport directly down here, rather than go up there and dig for my trap door every day.”

“With all that sand up there, how does your tunnel not flood?” she asked.

“Wooden walls,” Jack said. “You probably didn’t see them. It’s just a bunch of wooden planks stuck tight together there.”

Twilight then noticed something strange. Jack had a garden down here, in this cave! There was a tilled patch of actual dirt in a corner, with a lower stone ceiling compared to the rest of the room, just large enough for Twilight to fit under it. And there were strange glowing yellow rocks embedded in it.

“What is that?” she asked, gesturing to the stones.

“Solarium,” he answered. “Found a lump of it while digging here. Strange little element, that is. Up close, it gives off the heat and light, just like a yellow star. Perfect for use farming underground. It also makes a good source of energy. Remarkably efficient, very strong output, it’s the ideal source of energy for large cruisers.”

Twilight furrowed her brow, staring at the glowing rock.

“How common is it?” she asked.

“In Sector Beta? Almost unheard of,” answered Jack. “Guess I just got a bit lucky with it being here. It’s much more common in Sector X. In fact, it practically only exists there. There are other nodes, of course, but Sector X is 99.99% of all solarium is mined.”

“Would it make an efficient fuel source for the Enterprise? I mean,” she called forth one of the magical energy crystals she had kept in storage, in case she had needed this kind of comparison, “these are extremely energy efficient, extremely powerful, and they got me from Equus to being pulled out of orbit, to Alpha Prime III-B in one load.”

“I can’t compare the energy levels, though,” Jack said, shaking his head as he took the clear crystal, shining with the light of magic inside, and scrutinized it. “If I knew how far away Equus was, I could, but since we don’t know where it is, we have nothing to base it on.”

“But it’s out there, right?” she asked. “Even if we can’t compare it, my ship consumes minerals for energy, and you said it’s abundant in Sector X. It will require a test, but if the Enterprise can consume coal for energy, I’d bet my wings it can consume solarium.”

“Are you suggesting we go to Sector X, just for solarium?” asked Jack, handing the crystal back to Twilight, who returned it to within her Source. “Do you know what Sector X is like, Twilight? Have I not explained it?”

“No, I don’t,” answered Twilight.

“You know Dreadwing?”

“The penguin who attacked me? What about him?”

“There’s something in Sector X that’s a lot worse than him.”

“What could be worse than Dreadwing?” Twilight asked, confused.

“Many things,” replied Jack, sitting on the floor cross-legged. “Many things are far worse than him.”

He placed his helmet in front of her so she could inspect it.

“This armor’s not mine. I stole it to stay alive. But notice these initials here,” he tapped a small branding close to the right side of the eye goggles.

“U.S.C.M.?”

“Yep, the USCM.”

Jack took a moment to draw a few shapes in the dirt. A few circles, a strange comet-shaped thing, and a rocket..

“The USCM started off as a human space police, essentially,” he explained. “The United Systems Colonial Marines were instituted as humankind expanded further and further into the stars. They were meant as both a defensive and peacekeeping force for the different colonies, and they were kept in check by Earth’s United Nations.”

“Your home planet’s name is Earth?” Twilight asked.

Jack nodded, and pointed to the circle closest to the other strange shapes.

“Well, I think the technical name is ‘Terra,’ or ‘Gaia,’ but Earth was falling into terrible shape over the course of the last century. Resources were drying up, and star-travel hadn’t developed into a public thing yet. With this being said, smaller nations began to fold into larger ones as resources dwindled. Now, on Earth, there are seven continents. There’s North and South America, Europe, Africa, Asia, Australia, and Antarctica. North America used to have a large country set right in the center called the United States of America, but as nations above and below it folded into it, including every South American country, it became known as the United Nations of America. Europe had several nations be part of the European Union, so when resources dwindled, they just became a sovereign body rather than a national union. As Australia had been part of the EU before, it stayed with them.

“And this leaves Asia and Africa-- Antarctica was devoid of life except for researchers. China, a world superpower, accepted more and more folding nations until it became as large as the EU or the UAN. But because of political differences dating back hundreds of years, China and the UAN maintained a very tense relationship. The EU had a kinship with the UAN because of several factors, and so it was always two against one. But China’s population meant they had just about as much manpower as the two put together. And when it became clear relations were going downhill, all three countries started manufacturing nuclear weapons.”

“So… a weapon designed around an atom’s nucleus, or something?” Twilight asked.

“Something like that,” Jack said, shrugging. “They were designed with unstable molecules in the missile, with fuses that, when tripped, would cause the atoms to split, resulting in a massive, radioactive explosion. About eight years ago, though, it finally happened.”

Twilight could hear the sadness in his voice. With this in mind, she wondered what would happen if ponykind and the griffins got into a war on this scale.

“China, with dwindling resources of their own, invaded Africa. Africa had yet to declare whether they were going to join the EU, China, or the UAN, but they had a very fertile region that China desperately needed. This didn’t sit well with the UAN or the EU, and they sent in their own troops to fight to repel them.”

He sighed heavily.

“That’s when the nukes started flying. The population of earth, just utterly decimated by the three nations. And in all the confusion, there was a strange little meteoroid that happened to land in South America. South America was home to many deep mines. So many that this meteoroid, of the slim chance to land in such a hole on another continent, fell right into one. But there was a nasty surprise in the meteoroid. A strange, tentacled alien creature was inside. The nuclear radiation mutated it as it fell, but it eventually found its way to the bottom of the hole.

He pointed to the strange comet.

“We call them World-Eaters. There are several cases of small planetoids being consumed from the inside by them, but a case like Earth was unheard of. It grew exceptionally large and began to eat the Earth from the core outward. And now, Earth only has about a year left.”

“I’m sorry,” Twilight said, noticing that Jack seemed very put off by having to talk about this.

“‘S fine,” Jack said, though his voice told Twilight the opposite. Jack was trying to maintain composure, and he was succeeding, but not in a stoic way. “I, uhh, haven’t called Earth home in eight years.”

“Why not?” she asked.

“World War III,” Jack said. “Soon as it looked like things were turning south, many people, me included, stole or borrowed or just hopped on ships we owned and sped off into unknown space, looking for Earth colonies to live in instead of the new battleground. We call it the Great Planet-Jumping, and we who abandoned Earth are, naturally, referred to as Planet-Jumpers.”

He shook his head again.

“World War III ended two years after it began, but the damage had been done. The UAN and the EU combined to become simply the United Nations, after an old organization that had been founded back a few hundred years to prevent calamities like this. Their combined might, along with a few tactical exploitations, was enough to crush China and have its warmongering leaders imprisoned. The UN now, from what I’ve heard, is trying to find a solution to the current problem. It would be easy, were it not for the USCM.”

Despite the seriousness of the story, he smirked.

“Got back to it eventually, didn’t I? Well, the USCM, like I said, was founded as a space colony defense and peacekeeping force. But when Earth went to hell, they were leaderless, since Earth was where they got their orders. In the confusion, a schism happened, and this wasn’t the good kind of schism. A ruthless leader of the USCM with an aggressive streak managed to sway several other leaders to his cause, and soon, this USCM peacekeeping force had become a military, and it already had a sizeable conquest. They coerced other USCM outposts to either join their cause or be eliminated.”

“Their cause?” Twilight asked, but she had a feeling she knew where this was going.

“The leader of the new USCM is a ruthless human-supremacist,” Jack said, a bitter edge to his voice. “He’s not a human racist, but he expresses genocidal tendencies toward any sapient non-human out here. Their cause is the complete domination of the human race. They’ve committed atrocities the likes of which haven’t been seen since World War II, when a similarly-ruthless man attempted to exterminate a whole race of humans. And the rumors are, their entire fleet of ships has been moving into Sector X for the last year or so for some unknown reason. They have plenty of bases to marshal at, but the belief is that they’re preparing an assault on a world capable of defending against them for a long period of time.”

With that, he swept away the many planets he had drawn in the dirt. “We can’t go to Sector X because you’re non-human, and you have a high risk of running into them.”

“I can defend myself. I’m willing to, if I want to get back home.”

“You don’t understand,” Jack said, shaking his head. “You’re a new species. They’ve never seen you before. If they find you, if they see what you can do, they will torture you until you give them the location of your home planet. And then they will invade and exterminate. If you value your planet and your race, Twilight, I would suggest staying away from Sector X, unless we can get in and/or out undetected to find your planet. We had best hope it’s somewhere in Sectors Gamma or Delta.”

A sense of dread washed over Twilight. Fate always had the cruelest sense of irony. There was no way Equus was not going to be somewhere in Sector X now.

“It’s going to be in Sector X,” she said.

“You never know,” Jack said. “It could be in the others. We’ll have to get starmaps for Sectors Gamma and Delta, though. Could take some time. We’ll need to find civilized plants, but before that, we’ll need a steady supply of fuel and some combat armor for you. We’ll get started on the latter two tomorrow. For now, it’s getting late. We need our sleep.”

He motioned for Twilight to follow him, and with her mind still reeling from the information she had just received, she followed. He led her down a hall, past a few doors, and into a room with several beds.

“In case of company,” he explained. “Take your pick of beds. Don’t worry about me, I’ve slept on all of them at some point.”

She gave a grateful smile, and hopped onto the nearest one, before burrowing under the covers.

Jack took longer to prepare for bed, having to strip down to a sort of athletic shorts sort undergarment. Twilight blushed slightly, noticing that under the armor and clothes he always wore, while he wasn’t the size of Bulk Biceps by any means, he was certainly moderately toned. Mining, smithing, and survival must have taken its toll. As Jack climbed into his bed, he grabbed a small black thing, pointed it at a torch on a wall which emitted the lights they could see with, and clicked something on it. At once, the light vanished.

“Good night, Twilight,” she heard him say as she rested her head on a pillow and began to sleep. “I promise, I still will do whatever it takes to get you back home.”

Author's Note

BACKSTORY AHOY!

You know how I said a new chapter wasn't going to be uploaded for a while? Amazingly, I was able to finish this chapter in a couple of hours after I got everything figured out. About damn time, too. Anyway, we're starting to get into the meat of the story. As I said before, it won't be a terribly long one, like Apprentice, but it will still be long enough to tell a whole story.

Enjoy the new chapter! And please leave me some critique! I needs it to get better at my writing.

Rytex out. Have a good day!

2015 April Fools' Special - A Picnic With Friends

Starbound
2015 APRIL FOOLS' SPECIAL - A Picnic with Friends

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“Well, that was fun,” said Jack as he finished his bread. “Who’s for chinese?”

“That sounds lovely. Same time next week?” asked Twilight.

“Sounds absolutely marvelous,” said Jack nodding politely at the love-sucking succubi in human form. “I’ll bring the earl grey next time, do please bring the crumpets and scones. Such a great word, scone.”

And then Jack got Twilight back to Equestria, and Jack and Twilight got married and they had lots and lots of sex and they had lots and lots of babies and everyone lived happily ever after.

“I wonder how many readers Rytex will piss off with this chapter,” Nova Shine commented from the other side of the fourth wall and from the other story Rytex writes.

Author's Note

I regret nothing.