Chapters “Oh, a crested ibis! That’s not something usual around here.” Putting a set of goggles on, Far Sight scribbled in his journal, excited to see a new bird near Neighagra Falls. He liked to come around here during migration season. As an avid bird-watcher, the Falls were a prime location.
Of course, ‘around here’ meant about half a mile away. Far, as his few friends called him, was an odd pony. He had an extreme form of hyperopia, as the doctors liked to call it. Others just called it a vision disorder; far-sightedness, if they were being specific. To be named after a medical condition was slightly embarrassing. Then again, he could have been named something like ‘Gassy’.
Also strange was how comfortable he was on the ground. Most ponies assumed that a pegasus would be most at home in the sky. Far would rather lie in the grass, so as to not scare the birds he studied. He blended in well enough that only the most observant would see him should he lay still. Of course, it was rare he would get close enough to spook anything, but every little bit helped.
The thing that really set Far apart from his peers, however, was his cutie mark. Or, as the case was, his lack of one. He was the only adult pony born in Hollow Shades without one. He had come to accept the fact that he was a blank-flank. It was a sore subject still, but not enough to cause him to fly off the handle.
Taking his goggles off and glancing up towards Canterlot, Far saw a huge burst of pink light, followed by black specks flying into the sky. He remembered reading in the paper that a wedding was taking place today, and a big one at that. Maybe the light was a large firework? That might explain it.
Tracking one of the specks, he was quickly distracted. “Neat! A blue-spotted cockatoo!”
Returning home, Far greeted the guards at the gate. One ignored him, and the other simply told him, “He’s probably in the bar by now,” before going back to watching the forest.
That in and of itself was strange. Most of the time, the guards were rather chatty, ready to strike up a conversation after a long day of standing and watching for threats that never came. He would have to talk to Mighty Impact, the town guard’s captain, about that. It wasn’t a problem per say, but worrying nonetheless, especially for a pony that ventured outside the town’s walls as often as Far did.
Trotting to the tavern, Far pulled out his bit bag. It was disappointingly light, though that was the norm. Bird watching was just a hobby, and not many ponies were willing to hire a blank-flank. What odd jobs he managed to get didn’t normally pay well, either. Well, at least he didn’t have to pay for an expensive set of binoculars.
“Hey, Far Sight!” a voice boomed from across the room as he walked in. “I’d recognize those goggles anywhere! Come on over!”
Rolling his eyes, Far walked over to the source of the voice. It was the captain himself, already a pint and a half in the hole. “Good to see you too, sir,” Far said.
“Ha!” the unicorn laughed. “How many times do I have to tell you, drop the formalities in here. Seriously, just call me Impact. So, how’d the spotting go today?”
“Good, good. Several new types this year. I saw something happen to the southwest, though. There was a bright pink flash just about where Canterlot is. Any idea what happened?”
Impact sobered up immediately at the mention of Canterlot. “I really shouldn’t be telling you this,” his voice barely above the buzz of the bar, “but something big went down. Some sort of invasion got past Shining Armor’s shield. That’s all I know for sure. I ordered the guards on duty to be extra vigilant, just in case some part of it comes our way.”
“If that’s the case, is this a good time to be drinking?”
“What better time? The civilians see the guard carousing, they don’t think anything’s going wrong. Don’t get me wrong, Hollow Shades’ no Ponyville; we don’t get much action here. Of course, that means the guards here aren’t as well trained as the big city guys.” Impact took another drink.
“And you’re telling me this… why, Impact?”
“Far, to tell the truth, you’re the only pony outside of the guard I trust. For one, very few take you seriously. Two, you keep secrets pretty well. Three, I’m rather buzzed right now.”
“Well, at least you’re honest. You never held your liquor very well.”
After an hour or so, Far said goodnight to the captain, paid his tab, and went home. He had barely settled in for the night when he heard a knock on his door. He was rather groggy, but he put his goggles back on. He saw one of Canterlot’s royal guards standing outside.
“Mr. Sight?” the guard asked.
“That’s me.”
“The captain of the guard requests your presence.”
“Mighty Impact? I just saw him today.”
“No, not Captain Impact. Captain Armor, of the Canterlot guard.”
Far blinked, finally waking up. It wasn’t often the guard requested anyone, let alone someone from a secluded town such as this one. “May I ask why?”
“I’ll explain on the way. A train's waiting for us."
"And if I say no?"
"Then you will have to tell Captain Armor yourself. I have orders to get you onto that train, whether you come willingly or not."
Once aboard, the guard explained what was going on. "Under Princess Luna's orders, the guard is initiating a new enlistment program. She personally chose twenty ponies from throughout the land. My job is to bring you all to HQ. From there, you will be free to decide if you will participate. Choose to leave, and you can resume your normal life. Choose to stay, and Princess Luna herself will oversee your training."
"Alright, that sounds interesting, though I wish you had come to pick me up during the day. Although… why now? Does this have anything to do with the flash around Canterlot earlier?"
The guard sighed. "We had hoped no one outside of Canterlot would know about that yet. Well, it's declassified information now, so you might as well know. Changelings invaded the capital today, and managed to capture Princess Celestia and the Bearers of Harmony. In the end, Captain Armor and his bride drove them out with a powerful spell, but the implications are farther reaching than most can see. Other nations may see this as a sign of weakness, and try to invade themselves. Even with the Bearers and the three princesses, the elite can't be everywhere at once."
"So, the whole point of this recruitment program is to train more elite soldiers," Far Sight surmised. "But, why me? What's so special about me? I don't even have a cutie mark."
"That is exactly why you were picked," the guard assured him. "You haven't discovered your talent. With any luck, it'll be something beneficial to the military. It obviously isn't bird watching."
Most of the rest of the trip was spent in silence, both ponies looking out the windows as the scenery rolled by. It wasn't anything Far hadn't seen before, but it was different at night. Once the train rolled up to the Canterlot station, the pair disembarked. Navigating through the still bustling streets, the guard led Far Sight to the castle gates and into the training grounds. It seemed that he was the last recruit to arrive, as there were nineteen other blank-flanks in attendance. The captain stepped out onto the balcony above, ready to address the crowd.
“Good evening,” Captain Armor shouted from above. “I assume you all have been told why you are here, but I will summarize should any of you not know. Princess Luna has chosen each of you to train for an elite team. You have been picked based on qualities you may not know you have. However, the princess believes in you. For those who do not believe in themselves, the door is right there. You are free to leave at any time over the next three days.” He paused, watching as two of the recruits walked out of the courtyard.
“For those of you that are still here, thank you for volunteering. The guard that brought you here will show you to your barracks. Your training will begin at dawn, and a group of guards will be dispatched to pick up your personal effects soon afterwards. Dismissed!”
Far Sight turned to his escort, and the group proceeded around the castle and into the barracks. The accommodations were rather sparse, but livable. "This is where you'll be staying for the night,” the guard told him. “Get to know your fellow recruits; they’ll be your family for the foreseeable future. Just don’t stay up so late you can’t get up in the morning. Dawn’s in six hours. Good night.”
As the eighteen ponies shuffled in, they started to choose beds. Far picked one near the middle. Once they were all settled in, his fellow recruits started to converse.
“Hey, Goggles,” his neighbor got his attention, “where are you from?”
“I’m Far Sight, from Hollow Shades. What about you?”
“My name’s Shimmering Ember. I’m from Vanhoover. My dad was in the guard. When he hears about this…”
Far looked at Ember. The dark red unicorn seemed lost in thought. “My parents are going to freak out when they’re told,” Far said. “They always were over-protective. I mean, they went berserk the first time I left town by myself. They got better once Mighty Impact joined the guard, but I doubt they ever stopped worrying, especially with my eyesight.”
“What’s wrong with your eyes?” the pony on his other side asked.
“Nobody’s quite sure,” Far said while turning. “I was fine as a foal, but one day, I was staring through some binoculars when one of my unicorn classmates hit me in the face with a blast of magic. Something must have changed then, because when I lowered my binoculars, I could still see far off objects. I got glasses, but they only helped so much. Eventually, I commissioned these goggles from an “applied artist” here in Canterlot. They’re like backwards binoculars.” He pointed to a small knob on top. “This allows me to alter the strength of the effect. I generally keep it at reading distance, though.”
“Cool,” the large black earth pony said. “Hey, by the way, I’m Obsidian Mountain. I was born on a rock farm in the foothills of the Foal Mountains.”
“Neat. So, what’s your guys’ stories?” Far asked them.
“I’m a bit of a firebug,” Shimmering Ember explained. When the other two looked at him, he elaborated, “Ok, more than a bit. The guard actually got me out of jail. I was serving a few months for my first arson charge. The first they could pin on me, that is. I got careless, used my magic to ignite the flame, instead of the traditional flint and steel method. It was pretty easy to track my power’s residue, apparently.”
“Wow,” Obsidian said. “I’m nothing special. Sure, I’m strong, but there’s not much else. A rock farm isn’t exactly an exciting place.”
Dawn came earlier than expected. After what seemed like no sleep at all, Far and the other recruits were told to run two laps around the castle, pegasi wings bound to their sides. It was a hard run, to be sure, but Shining Armor definitely knew exactly how far to push the new recruits. Fortunately, Princess Luna hadn’t chosen any pony that was particularly out of shape, and all eighteen managed to finish in a reasonable amount of time.
Next was breakfast, followed by heavy lifting. The unicorns in the group were especially tested here, as they had to use both muscles and magic. The pegasai were tested for wingpower, Far Sight clocking in with a respectable eight point four. After that was the endurance test. Each pony was put on an enchanted rug that looped around on itself. The rug would then spin, forcing the pony to run on top of it. Most of the earth ponies did fairly well, lasting an average of two minutes at full gallop. The others lasted about a minute and a half.
Overall, it was a tiring day, and another three ponies left partway through, but Shining Armor still looked pleased as he dismissed the group for dinner. Sitting next to Shimmering Ember, Far began to eat the meager amount provided. As he bit into the hay fries, a grey pegasus slammed her tray down across from him, accidentally flinging food off of it.
“I can’t believe that anemometer! It must have been broken! Only nine and a half, really?” Her accent clearly placed her from Manehattan.
Far Sight looked at her, adjusting his goggles a bit. “Better than I got,” he told the newcomer.
“Sorry,” she said, picking up the food that had fallen off her tray. “I get frustrated sometimes. I’m Windy Days.” She held out her hoof.
“I’m Shimmering Ember, and this is Far Sight,” the unicorn said, extending his hoof to meet hers. “Nine and a half wingpower can’t be that bad.”
“Really, it’s not. It’s just… disappointing,” Windy admitted. “I was expecting at least eleven. I’m a strong flier, I really am. My mom was once a backup for Captain Spitfire of the Wonderbolts. I feel like I’m letting her down, getting that low.”
“Eh, I’m used to letting my parents down,” Ember said. “No cutie mark at the age of twenty, end up in jail, what have you. Disappointment is par for the course for me.” The two looked at Far.
“Hey, don’t drag me into this,” he said. “My parents are happy as long as I’m not hurt.”
Windy shrugged, beginning to eat. The rest of the meal passed in silence, as did the rest of the night. Still, Far couldn’t help but wonder what the days ahead would bring.
"Up and at 'em, recruits!" a guard shouted into the barracks. As Far Sight stumbled out of bed, he blearily noticed one unicorn several beds away already had his hooves under him, fully awake. Far was more than a little envious.
Once the group walked into the sunshine, they were told to repeat yesterday's run. It was harder than last time, though Far chalked that up to exhaustion from the day before. Breakfast was afterwards again. Today, Far sought out the unicorn he noticed that morning.
"Can I sit here?" he asked the beige pony through the tray.
"No skin off my back," he said. As Far set his tray down, the unicorn asked, "What brings you over here?"
"I was wondering how you got out of bed so quickly, is all. Figured now would be the best time to ask."
"Eh, I'm a light sleeper, and I've always had a great reaction time. They called me the ‘Sandy Colt’ back in San Palomino.”
"Really? The Sandy Colt had the fastest magic in the desert.”
“Not just the desert. The world,” the unicorn bragged. Far rolled his eyes. “Oh, you don’t believe me? Eat your apple, and I’ll tell you the truth.”
Far went to grab his apple. He closed his mouth on empty air.
"You looking for this?" the unicorn said, levitating the apple out of his bags. It was the exact same one. Giving it back, he said, "I'm Blink. Good to meet you."
“I’m Far Sight. What are you doing here, Blink?”
“Well, I had hit rock bottom, and turned to drinking. The guard literally found me at the bottom of a cider barrel. He offered me a chance to turn my life around, and I took it. Now, I’m sober and on track to becoming a royal guard myself.”
“Wow. That’s quite a difference, I’d say.” Before either pony could continue the conversation, a nearby guard told them it was almost time to start training. Both hurriedly chowed down, then walked outside. As the group assembled in the courtyard, they were greeted, not by Captain Armor, but by Princess Luna.
They were hit with a blast of wind as she spoke, “Recruits, I will be your commanding officer for the foreseeable future.” Far assumed this was the infamous Royal Canterlot Voice. “Captain Armor has travelled to the far north under the orders of Princess Celestia. Therefore, you fall under my responsibility for now. Today will be a field exercise, so all of you will report to the chariots in ten minutes. You will be given instructions upon arrival at your destination. Dismissed!”
The ponies were grouped two to a chariot, with pegasi flying alongside. Ranking pegasi were tasked with pulling the chariots. The group took off, bearing south. Within an hour, they landed on the outskirts of Ponyville, Luna close behind.
“Your objective for today,” Luna told the group in a much more subdued tone, “is to protect the town. The Bearers are out of town, so dealing with the disaster du jour falls to the royal guard. This is your opportunity to prove yourselves worthy of your position in this program. If at all possible, do not interrupt the daily lives of the ponies that live here. I shall observe from the center of town. Good luck, recruits.” With that, she teleported away. Far saw her appear on the roof of what must have been town hall.
The group looked around at each other. The first thing Far noticed was that nopony had been given any weapons. One other recruit must have noticed this, as a voice rang out, “I’ll see what I can scrounge up in town.” That pony walked off towards the town.
Windy Days flew over to Far Sight, trailed by the other three he had met in his time in Canterlot. “I figure we should patrol around the farm over there,” she said, pointing towards the southern edge of town.
“I’m seeing an apple over the gates,” Far said. “Is it an orchard or an Apple family farm?”
“Both, actually,” one of the guards that flew the chariots told them. “That’s Sweet Apple Acres, Equestria’s premiere apple orchard, and the only place you can find Zap Apples outside of the forest. The Bearer of Honesty runs the farm with her family.”
“Thanks,” Ember told the guard. “Hey, where will you guys be?”
“During your training exercise? I’m going to the bar. Seems that’s the most popular place in Ponyville not run by one of the Bearers.”
“Gee, thanks for your assistance,” Blink deadpanned.
The five had split from the group and walked onto Sweet Apple Acres. After introducing themselves to the matriarch of the family, they began to patrol the border between the farm and the forest. Far Sight perched atop the barn, scanning the edge of the woods. The Apples seemed comfortable with a group of trainees around; Granny Smith had said that the farm was the site of a lot of “training excursions” over the years. The stallion in the family, Big Mac, only added one word to the conversation before heading out for the day.
The youngest Apple, Apple Bloom, seemed to have an obsession with Obsidian Mountain. The filly was peppering him with questions, though Far couldn't tell what they were. Judging by Obsidian's eye rolling, and the kid's lack of a cutie mark, he guessed that they were questions about being a blank-flank. Obsidian seemed to take it well, considering.
Glancing back towards Ember and Blink, he saw something moving in the brush. Launching himself towards the pair, he caught the attention of the shadowy figure. As it leaped at him, Blink must have heard the rustle, and launched a bolt of magic its way. The timberwolf got half its face knocked off before anything else could react. Ember’s horn then lit up, and the other half of the wolf’s face caught fire. Far had enough distance to pull up, narrowly dodging the fire that was quickly consuming the beast.
Looking around, Far saw that Windy had flown into the air, well beyond any wolf’s reach. That just left…
“Obsidian! Get the filly out of there!” Far shouted towards the earth ponies. His call must have been just loud enough, as Obsidian picked up Apple Bloom and galloped towards the farmhouse. He was a little slow, however, and soon had a wolf nipping at his hooves. Apple Bloom whispered something into the stallion’s ear, and he planted his forelegs on the ground, flinging the filly forward. His back legs came crashing down on the wolf’s head, incapacitating it.
As the group raced towards Obsidian, the rest of the pack came out of the woods. There were another ten, bunched together. A pony crested a nearby hill in the other direction; Far recognized him as the recruit that had wandered off earlier that day. He stood straight on his hind legs, hefted something onto his shoulder, and launched what looked like a firework at the pack.
Turns out, it was a firework. It was launched from the perfect distance to explode right in the lead wolf’s face, setting eight of the wooden wolves on fire. Shimmering Ember made quick work of the last two, igniting them as well. The rest of the group ran to the farmhouse to get water, just in case the fires spread. Within minutes, the entire pack was nothing but ashes, and all the fire was put out.
As the other pony came trotting up to the group, Far asked, “So, who do we have to thank for saving our lives?”
The earth pony smiled. “I’m Sprocket, but you really should thank Pinkie Pie. It was her hidden stash of fireworks that did all the work. I’m just glad I got to be of some help to my hometown, really. Princess Luna probably expects us back in town soon, so let’s hurry.”
Assembling outside of town hall, the fifteen recruits waited for Princess Luna to say something. Four of them looked rather sheepish. They didn’t have to wait long.
“Good job, recruits,” she told them. “From here, I could see both the battles around the town. The team that took out the timberwolf pack at Sweet Apple Acres was superb. The five of you who took on a manticore, well, you could use a little training in reducing collateral damage. To those of you who decided to spend the time interacting with the locals, I am sorely disappointed. You will be sent home.”
The flight back to Canterlot was quiet, with only the rushing of the wind to fill the recruits' ears. By the time they arrived, Far's wings ached. It had been a long day. The two remaining groups separated, each sitting at a different table. Sprocket was the last to sit down.
"So, what was that thing you had earlier?" Obsidian asked.
"Oh, it was just something I cobbled together to launch fireworks," the light blue earth pony responded. "My neighbor, Pinkie Pie, who you probably know as the Bearer of Laughter, would call it a bazooka. Actually, that mare taught me everything I know about making homemade equipment. Of course, I've always been better at taking stuff apart than putting it back together."
"How'd you know to come to the farm?" Windy asked.
"Simple. It's Monday." Sprocket's statement was met with confused stares. "Oh, I guess I should explain. Mondays are when something happens to the Apples. It's every week, like clockwork. Tuesdays are when Pinkie experiments with cupcake flavors, Wednesdays are the weekly meltdown between Rarity and her sister, Thursdays are when the Crusaders run rampant, Fridays Fluttershy finds something new on the edge of the Everfree, and Saturday Twilight writes Princess Celestia about what she learned that week. Sunday's normally quiet, but it's kinda a wild card."
"Every week?" Far asked him.
"Yep. Like I said, it's like clockwork. Twilight even has a theory on why. She thinks that it's a mixture of chaos and harmony that was the result of the Princess' battle there with Discord ages ago, and strengthened by the more recent release of the draqueonous. Sounds crazy, but living in Ponyville, crazy seems to be the norm. It's nice to have a schedule."
"Wow." Blink shook his head. "I had heard stories, but I had no idea." He thought for a second. "Why do you call the Bearers by name?"
"Makes them feel normal," Sprocket said, shoving some food in his mouth. "Basically, all of Ponyville calls them by their names. Not only does 'Bearer of the Element' sound a little to formal for such a small town, Twilight has said repeatedly that she doesn't want to be treated any differently. 'Miss Sparkle' makes her uncomfortable enough, I don't want to set her off. She can get a little... twitchy when something goes wrong."
"Hmm," Far mumbled as he finished his dinner quickly. "Well, as interesting as this is, the flight back wore me out. I'm going to bed early tonight."
The next few months passed rather routinely. Most days had a run, followed by breakfast. Then came training, dinner, and bed. The beginning of each week was a day of relaxation. Every once in a while, Princess Luna would give out special assignments. Far Sight’s assignments were normally observation, typically in the woods around his hometown. He wasn’t sure what he was supposed to be looking for, but nothing seemed odd.
That is, until one night. Luna had visited him in his dream that night, giving him a specific location in the woods. When he woke, he had been surprised to find his friends standing around him.
“I suppose the princess visited your dream, too?” Windy asked. Far nodded. “Well, a train’s supposed to be waiting for us. Let’s get going.”
Day broke before the group arrived in Hollow Shades. The six were greeted by Mighty Impact as they stepped off the train.
“So, another trip through the woods, Far?” the captain asked. “Who’s the team?” After introductions were through, he added, “Well, it’s nice to meet you all. I’ll make sure there’s enough space for you to stay the night, if needed.”
“Thanks, Captain,” Far said. “Has anything strange been spotted in the woods? Probably about half a mile east of the town gates?”
“No, nothing ‘strange’. Then again, the guard doesn’t normally go that far out.”
Far nodded. He had suspected that was the case. Captain Impact wished them good luck, and they departed through the eastern gate. It wasn’t long before they came to the spot Luna had told them about the previous night.
“Well, that’s different,” Blink said. “I guess that’s what we’re looking for.”
There was a large rift in the middle of a clearing. Through it, the group could see… well, it was hard to say. There was more forest, but it was relatively dull. It was as if they were staring into another world.
Suddenly, a voice came from the other side. “Hey, Hank, are you seeing this?” it asked.
“I’m seeing, but I’m not believing,” another voice, probably Hank, answered. “What do you think it is, Bill?”
The six ponies scattered as two large ape-like creatures stepped through the rift.
“I don’t think we’re in Kentucky anymore,” Bill said, looking around. “It’s like, ah heck, I don’t even know. I’m not drunk, am I?”
“Only if I am too.” They turned, raising something in their paws as Obsidian accidentally stepped on a twig, snapping it. “Hey, I heard that! Come on out!”
As Obsidian stepped out from behind a nearby tree, the two creatures visibly relaxed. “It’s just a horse, Hank,” Bill said. “Came this close to giving me a heart attack, though.”
“Something strange about it, though,” Hank wondered. “You ever seen a horse with eyes like that?”
Obsidian sighed. “Horse this, horse that. If you’re going to insult me, at least have the decency to call me a pony. Hey, guys, you can come out now.”
The creatures panicked as the group came out of the woods. “Bill, did that horse just talk?” Hank asked.
“I think it said it’s a pony,” Bill answered. “I’m more worried that we’re surrounded by them.” He pointed the object he was holding at Blink. “That’s a freakin’ unicorn! Oh, God, what’s going on?”
“Humph. You’re pointing that at me like it’s a weapon,” Blink observed. “Normally, we’d welcome you with open arms, as the saying goes, but I don’t think that welcome is extended to hostile creatures.” The two looked at him blankly. “Ok… let’s try it this way. Put that thing on the ground and slowly walk away, or we’ll have to take it from you.”
“Nobody takes my gun!” Bill shouted, obviously offended. He pulled back on a segment of it, making a loud clicking noise and ejecting something. He jumped back when Ember picked the smaller object up in his magical grasp and showed it to Sprocket.
Sprocket took a second to examine it, then told the others, “A gun must be some sort of miniaturized cannon. Probably lethal, definitely dangerous.”
“Well, you heard the stallion,” Windy said. “Disarm them.”
“I can hear you, you know!” Bill shouted back at her. “Any of you takes one step closer, and I’ll shoot you!” He was suddenly enveloped by a shining red light. “What the- I can’t move!”
“That’s just what that spell's designed to do,” Ember said.
“I’ll take that, thank you,” Blink laughed as he took the gun out of Bill’s grasp. “While I’m taking stuff, I’ll just confiscate this knife of yours.” He pulled a large blade out of its sheath. “Hmm, I could almost call this a dagger.” He buried it hilt-deep in the ground.
The six looked at Hank. He dropped his weapons on the ground.
The two were lead back to Hollow Shades. As they entered the guard's headquarters, all eight of them blanched at the sight of Princess Luna sitting outside the interrogation room. The ponies knew that meant trouble, the other two were just intimidated by the larger horn and billowing mane. Blink set the weapons on a nearby table while the rest lead the creatures into the room. Once Far had told Luna about what had happened in the woods, she requested to talk to the creatures personally.
The conversation started as soon as the door was sealed. "You are humans, correct?" Luna asked. Both nodded. "Good. Now, are you aware of the fact that threatening an unarmed sapient being is generally frowned upon?" Again, both nodded, with a little delay this time. "I doubt you knew, but threatening a member of the royal guard with a lethal weapon is considered a very serious crime in this world. I can only assume these 'guns' are lethal, correct?"
"Well, sometimes," Bill said. "But we didn't mean nothin' by it, I swear. I was just protecting my rights."
"What about the right to life?" Luna asked, not expecting a response. "You see, I have dealt with humans before. I can forgive your predatory habits. I can even forgive your ignorance, seeing as our worlds haven't touched in fifteen hundred years. What I cannot forgive is your reckless threats. If you intend to start a war, then by all means, continue your actions. However, your kind used to fear gods for a reason."
"Pssh, gods. Listen to her, Hank. She thinks there's more than one."
"Bill, maybe now isn't the best time to be insulting the pony with the really pointy horn."
Luna laughed. "Oh, it's not me you have to worry about. I'd be more worried about the guards that brought you in. The red one looks ready to burn you alive, he's so angry. Of course, that tends to happen when you insult their Princess."
The looks on the humans' faces said it all. They were in big trouble.
Hours of questioning later, Luna stepped out of the room.
"What's the verdict, Your Highness?" Mighty Impact asked.
“They… are morons," Luna began. "All they talked about was 'stand your ground' laws and 'the Constitution'. They said if they feel threatened, they 'have every right to blast your face off.' Then they said that the police would be looking for them soon, and they wouldn't hesitate to kill ponies."
"So… what? Do we just release them?" Far asked.
Luna sighed. "As dangerous as they are, both to themselves and others, yes. I cannot risk putting your lives in danger, just to keep two humans incarcerated. However, I cannot authorize the release of their weapons."
"I don't think they'd want them anymore," Mighty laughed. "Not after what Sprocket's done to them. He's taking one apart, and saving the other for testing purposes."
"Testing? What for?" Luna's confusion was apparent.
"I'm trying to understand how these weapons work," Sprocket shouted from the far corner, "and see if I can modify them for pony use. It's funny, the one thing ejected from the guy's gun was still full. It had some little steel pellets in it. I assume it was supposed to split open at high speed, but it wasn't fired correctly."
"So, what you're saying is… what exactly?" Luna questioned.
"Put more simply than it needs to be, I agree. Those two are, or at least Bill is, a total idiot. Then again, it might have been a misplaced intimidation tactic."
"I see. Very well then, I want the six of you who captured these humans to escort them, and myself, back to the place they entered this world. I want to see this rift for myself. Private First Class Far Sight, I hereby place my safety in the capable hooves of you and your team."
Far and 'his' team saluted, then lead the humans out of the building. Herding them out of the town, Princess Luna following behind, they quickly came to the clearing with the rift inside. As they pushed the humans through, the two took off running into the brush on the other side. Meanwhile, Luna examined the rift itself.
“It is not as bad as I feared,” she said. “While large, it is stable. I was worried the rift would grow, but that does not seem to be the case. It seems that anything can traverse it, too, if those humans are anything to judge by.” She stepped through, into the night on the other side. She then spread her wings, flying up above the forest’s canopy.
Far and Windy followed; it was their job to protect the princess, after all. They were greeted by a sky even more beautiful than Equestria’s. Luna was staring at it intently.
“It’s almost exactly as I remember,” Luna said softly. “It’s wonderful.”
“Almost?” Windy couldn’t help but ask.
“Yes, very nearly exact, but not quite,” Luna explained. “We’re obviously in a different part of the world than the rift a millennium and a half ago, judging by the locations of the stars, but some are even further away than that could account for.”
“How is that possible?” Far asked. “Did the humans’ god redesign the sky?”
Luna chuckled. “Not at all. I’m not even sure the God humans worship exist. No human could ever prove it, one way or another. No, stars work differently on this side of the rift. This world is not fixed in space like Equis is. The moon rotates around the Earth, just like our home, but that’s where the celestial similarities end. The Earth moves through space, as do the stars. They move in different directions, meaning no two night skies are exactly the same. Of course, it’s hard to tell unless you have an unbound lifetime. Even then, the angles have changed so slightly over the centuries, only the most detail-oriented could tell the difference. It’s very fascinating.”
“Wow…” Far was amazed. To think that there was so much detail in one sky was a little overwhelming.
“Ah, but I have looked for far too long,” Luna sighed. “We don’t want any more humans to see us, if at all possible.” The three landed and walked back towards the rift. They stopped when they heard something crash to the ground nearby.
“Oh. My. God.” came a voice from the same direction. When Luna cast a small light spell, it revealed another human, who raised his hands and claimed, “I mean you no harm. I am unarmed, I just want to talk. I know you can; I heard you just now.”
“Who else is with you?” Windy asked.
“I have a colleague, Amanda, just at the edge of the woods. Besides us and those two hunters that came through this morning, there’s no other humans in the forest.” Keeping his hands raised, he slowly walked out from the bush he had been hiding in. “My name’s Jefferson. Jefferson Young.”
“Already, I like you more than the other two,” Luna complemented him. “Tell me, Jefferson, what are you and your colleague doing here so late at night?”
Jefferson looked at a small band at the base of his hand. “Well, it’s only nine o’ clock. It’s not that late. As for the reason I’m here, put simply, it’s research. I’m a theoretical physicist, studying the interactions between this universe and others. I think I just hit the motherlode. As for Amanda, she’s an… well, she calls her job ‘cryptozoological anthropology’, or the study of rare creature’s cultures. She keeps me company.”
“Ah, so you are here for the rift,” Luna surmised. “You are welcome to study it, as long as you do not destabilize it or expose what is on the other side to your world.”
“Thank you… I’m sorry, I don’t even know your name.”
Luna laughed. “No, I suppose you wouldn’t. I am Princess Luna, Mare of the Night, half of the ruling diarchy of Equestria.”
“Well, Your Highness, on the behalf of the scientific community, I extend my deepest gratitude,” Jefferson said, bowing.
Luna smiled. “I suppose you will be working by yourself, correct?” The human nodded. “Well, in that case, I shall ask my sister about having a certain pony scientist help you. As the saying goes, two heads are better than one. I’m sure she’d be very interested in your line of work.”
Once the princess walked through the rift, Far told the man, “You’ve taken the existence of talking ponies fairly well, considering the circumstances.”
Jefferson smirked. “Trust me, I’m freaking out on the inside. The reason I’m outwardly calm is a story I doubt you have the time for. I’ll have to tell you eventually, though. For now, I just need to talk with Amanda. She’ll be delighted to have something she can study.”