From Mars With Love

This was a mistake. The voices in my mind only intensified. I spent the rest of the walk through the streets looking down at my hooves and counting the cobblestones to try and keep my mind distracted. It mostly worked. “You could just change shape.” Flash pointed out, I guess he noticed my distress.

“Yeah I could. But I like this shape, and I shouldn’t have to change. Also I’m too stressed…” I still hated speaking out loud. Maybe I could stop that in Ponyville.

Fortunately the train station was less populated. Only a half dozen ponies stood on the concrete platform with Flash and I. Three of them quickly began muttering about me, one red unicorn seemed entirely unaware of my presence as he was busy looking after a larva. The other two however, a grey pegasus mare with a blond mane and a dusty brown stallion with a tousled darker brown mane approached me.

I looked them over in more detail as they drew near. The mare had a marking of a small cluster of bubbles on her flank, and the stallion had an hourglass marking. They both seemed friendly, smiling faces can be deceiving though. I had an odd suspicion that they were going to give me pamphlets and talk to me about the ‘Great Enlightenment’ or some such nonsense. The train had yet to roll into the station so I geared myself up for the inevitable conversation.

The grey pegasus spoke first, one eye drifting lazily up and to the left as she waved, “Hi!”

The stallion held out a hoof for me to shake, “Ello there, I’m the Doctor.”

I frowned, timidly reaching out and shaking his hoof, “One of Four, Primary Drone of… You can just call me One.”

“It’s so nice to meet a polite Changeling. See Ditzy? I told you she was nice, smelled it all the way across the station.” The Doctor let go of my hoof trotting around me with an analyzing look on his face.

I wasn’t sure what he was up to, and gently probed at his mind to scan for any surface thoughts. Was he sizing me up for any weaknesses to exploit? The more I tried to get a reading on his mind, the harder it became. It was as if there was nothing there to read.

“Doctor, stop harassing the poor thing.” Ditzy sighed, “Sorry, he’s just… curious.”

“What are you doing? I can't just read your mind and find out apparently.” I asked, stepping away from the circling stallion.

“You… are shape-shifted…” He mused, looking up as I mentioned my telepathy, “Oh, that’s just basic psychic shielding. Simple thing really anyone could learn it. Well, almost anyone. Anyone whose favorite color isn't mauve. Er- Would you mind showing me your real shape?”

I shook my head, “I don’t want to give those ponies more reason to hate me. I would rather keep looking… less… alien, I guess.”

“Ah.” The doctor nodded and trotted back to his companion’s side.

“I’m sorry they are being so mean,” Ditzy reached into a saddlebag and took out a small blueberry muffin, “I know it won't make up for anything but… muffin?”

I accepted the muffin, levitating it to my harness hoping I could pocket it for later, then thought better of it and simply ate the muffin. I replied not wanting to speak with my mouth full.

“You're welcome! So how come you are in Canterlot? I mean, Changelings live in Hives right? And well since you guys have been abducting ponies I mean so many people must be mad at you, but I guess you weren't a part of that because if you were I mean you wouldn't be standing at a train station… Oh hey where are you going?” Ditzy babbled.

I was about to reply, but between bites of muffin and the Doctor taking out a pair of 3d glasses, putting them on and going back to staring at me I was at a loss for words. The Doctor hummed and hawed for a few moments before reaching up to his mane and pulling out a small metallic device and waving it over my general direction. The device made a really obnoxious sound almost like a…

“Screwdriver,” the Doctor corrected reflexively before looking up at me over the 3D glasses, “How did you know what…” He shook his head and inspected the multitool.

I honestly had no idea how I knew it was an ultra/infrasonic wave multi-function probe. Or even really what one of those was. Whoever or whatever I was must have known, I started to try and recall anything Old Me might have known that would be useful, but all I could think of was: Where did a pony get a sonic probe in a kingdom which appears to be 1600’s era technology at best?

As I thought the two ponies began talking to each other, having some form of mild debate. I decided to listen in. Ditzy was currently talking, “Well I guess we could. But we don't have a spare room. Unless you want Dinky sleeping in the TARDIS I really don't know how we could manage-”

“Well… I wouldn't mind Dinky sleeping in there, she has a room after all.”

“Still? I thought you said you were deleting it to save power.”

“The TARDIS wouldn't let me, you know how much she likes Dinky. It’s like the broom cupboard outside the library all over again.”

I asked finishing the muffin.

Ditzy looked over at me… while still looking at the Doctor. I had enough time to guess her eyes worked like a chameleon's before she answered, “My husband wants to rent you a room. I don’t know if we have the space though.”

“Er-well that’s nice of you, but you don’t even know where I’m going.” I replied.

Ditzy and the Doctor laughed together for a few moments. The Doctor wiped his eyes and nodded, “Right! Well, if you happen to be traveling to Ponyville-”

“I am yes. I’m going to see a friend. Hopefully live there if people are nice enough.”

“Brilliant! Well, if you don't already have plans would you consider taking a room with Ditzy and I?” He squinted at me through the 3d glasses again.

Ditzy gave him a nudge, “Dear, you are frightening her… What have I told you about explaining things to ponies?”

The Doctor sighed, “To at least attempt to explain myself.”

“That’s right. Now tell her why you want to rent her a place to stay.”

“Well you see,” The Doctor began, “you are saturated with Void Stuff. It’s a sort of… ethereal gunk which gets stuck to things that travel between dimensions. Normally it carries a negative or a positive charge, kind of like a big invisible magnet. The charge can be used to pull something back into the dimension where it came from. But you… Hold on… What’s a good way to… Ah! Forget magnets, think about matter and antimatter. Most people don't know it but there is also neutral matter, that is matter without a charge which is perfectly stable.

“Basically the two coats of void stuff you have are so perfectly in balance with their charges they cancel each others effects out. I didn’t even know that was possible and I believe I could learn a lot from studying you… So if you would like, I can rent you a room. For a few bits a month, and permission to well… science.”

I blinked. So did the guard who was escorting me. I looked at him, “Did you follow any of that?”

“Nope.”

Ditzy giggled, “You either learn to tune him out or start understanding after a while. He means that he’s a scientist, and you are an interesting space/time anomaly he would like to learn about.”

“Oh.” I turned back to the Doctor, “So you want to learn about the Void… whatever I’m covered in? Um… is it harmful to be covered in it? Can I wash it off?”

He shook his head, “Nope. It’s just harmless background radiation which sticks to things which pass between dimensions. Oddly enough, you somehow are a perfect storm of… Basically you have somehow managed to cancel out the one negative effect. You can't be banished from this dimension using trans-reality-magnetics.”

I nodded, at least whatever I was covered in was harmless. “Ok and why do you want to study it?”

Ditzy grinned, “Oh! I know this one! If we understood what made the void stuff around you neutrally charged we might be able to upgrade the TARDIS to allow us to explore other dimensions safely… We’re adventures.”

That made sense… kind of. I had one more question I just had to ask. “What kind of adventurers? And what is a TARDIS?”

“Big blue box, bigger on the inside.” The Doctor replied nonchalantly.

“What kind? Umm… the fun seeking kind?” Ditzy answered.

I mulled the idea over in my head, “Well… I don’t think Sandy will want me to live with her at first… Ok you have a deal.”

The Doctor grinned, “Brilliant!”

The looked about to say more but the loud whistle of the most absurdly decorated train I had ever seen shattered the air. With a screech of metal on metal the train slowed, stopping at the station in a light cloud of steam. The Doctor nodded, “Right, there’s our ride. Allons-y!” Trotting off to the train alongside Ditzy.

I followed along, my body guard moving ahead and explaining to the fairly nervous looking conductor that I was in fact supposed to be here. I showed him my ticket, which after a look from Flash he punched with a sigh asking, “Miss, if you would kindly do your best to keep out of sight for the comfort of the other passengers, it would make my job a lot easier.”

I thought about it, perhaps it would be a good idea. Less annoying thoughts directed my way. “Sure,” I quickly cloaked, vanishing in a ripple of green tinged light, “is this out of sight enough?”

The conductor jumped, nodding before clearing his throat, “N-next passenger?”

I boarded the train and followed Ditzy and the Doctor on board, sitting in the same group of seats as them. To my surprise Ditzy’s left eye focused on me, she frowned slightly as she focused on me with her other eye as well until, “Oh! That’s a neat trick! I didn’t know Changelings could turn invisible.”

The Doctor looked over, “What are you talking about?” Ditzy pointed to me, he squinted at the area for a moment, “Ah, optical camouflage. That’s a very interesting trick… You are an odd one.”

I asked, figuring ‘stay hidden’ meant quiet too.

Ditzy shrugged, “I’ve always been able to see things others can't. My depth perception is terrible though, I’ve never been able to throw something and hit a target. Like last year at the fair…”

Ditzy it turned out was incredibly talkative. She spent the entire three hour train ride talking about everything which happened in Ponyville the last year. It seemed like a crazy place to live! Almost every week something of note happened, infestations of magical locust, rampaging monsters, a mental breakdown of somepony or another, a town wide party, even a meteor strike. It certainly wouldn't be a quiet town.

On the positive side the ongoing Craziness meant that both Ditzy and the Doctor were very certain I would be accepted eventually, and most likely not treated with cruelty. After the local forest ranger Fluttershy made friends and begun to date someone named Discord the entire town had become much harder to spook. But the most interesting thing to me was when Ditzy mentioned a cave in at the local gem mine.

I asked.

“Oh, yeah. Most of the town’s income is from the mine. Rarity has a talent for finding gemstones and uses a lot of them in her projects so she cut a deal with miners years ago and marked the largest veins of gems in the area on a map. It’s really good business, but it’s hard work and since it pays well many ponies work there for a few years then move on to other things. It’s a good place to get start up money for your own business, or to save up for a vacation to Germaney.” Ditzy answered.

I hoped I could, it would be nice to get underground again. Rock on all sides, stale air, and that lovely sent of cave was simply comforting. Besides, no one tunnels like a Changeling.