Equestrian Wars: A Fixed Pathway

Chapters

Chapter 1
Chapter 2
Chapter 3
Chapter 4

Chapter 1

Author: Evowizard25

Chapter 1

Professor Bright Mind strolled through the halls of the palace. The old, grey mane unicorn trotted about, deep in thought. His cutie mark was a quill writing on a piece of parchment. His book sack was filled to the brim, so he felt quite exhausted carrying it for so long. 'But, the Princess ordered it.' He told himself. Apparently, these books were to go to Celestia's favorite student. 'Miss Sparkle. I would like meet her one day, if I ever get a day off.' Of course, his own scientific work kept him busy. He seriously doubted that he would have any time to visit Ponyville anytime soon.

His mind had wondered off again, which was a bad habit of his, so he failed to notice the pony walking in front of him. He bumped into them, knocking off the small spectacle he wore. "I'm sorry about that." He apologized, looking around the floor for them. "You don't know how many times I've nearly gored ponies doing so. The hazard of being a unicorn with a wary mind." He chuckled.

"I would thinkest that thou needeth a new physician." The voice said, rather loudly. "Your eyesight is rather poor."

'Why is that voice familiar?' He found his spectacles and put them on. As he adjusted them, he noticed he was face to face with Princess Luna, the lord of the night. Automatically, he bowed. "Princess Luna." He said. "My humblest apologies."

Princess Luna raised a hoof to silence him. "That is alright, professor." She said. "Though, we do question why thyself has cometh here?"

"Your sister has requested me to deliver some important material to the Elements of Harmony." Bright Mind said, still bowing. His old heart was beating fast, from both the shock of meeting the Princess of the night and her loud demeanor. "I was on my way to the carriers."

"Then, we think your endeavor has come out fruitless." Princess Luna said. "We were just coming from there. The last carrier has left with our own supplies."

Bright Mind raised himself off of his kneeling position. "But your highness, your sister ordered me to do this." He said, determinedly. He then stomped a hoof onto the ground. I demand you recall him at once."

Luna's indifferent look turned into a harsh glare. "So, my sister's needs take precedence over my own?" She said, her voice louder than ever. Bright Mind took a few steps back, quivering in fear. "And you, a mere commoner, dare order me to do your bidding."

"I am just following your sister's orders." Bright Mind said, hoping this would get her off his back.

"I shall here none of this." Princess Luna said, starting to walk off. "You shall send your package when a new carrier arrives."

As she walked away, the professor could breathe in a relaxed state. His heart stopped beating so fast. 'I don't know how long I could have stood that.' He thought, patting his chest. He then continued on the carrier station, despite the Princess's words. 'I could at least try.' It didn't take him long to get there.

It was empty, just like she said. He started swearing under his breath, disappointed by this turn of events, but as he turned to leave, he heard something. It was the faint sound of wing beats. He spun around, smiling, but it quickly turned into a look of shock. A grey, blond mane Pegasus came swooshing in. Bright Mind jumped out of the way, as she crashed. He quickly ran to the pony's side. "Are you injured?" He asked, concerned for her health and wellbeing.

She simply got up and smiled at him, goofily. "Nope." She said, rubbing her head. Her eyes were mismatched, looking in opposite directions. "Though, I need to get used to landing in these places. They're so weird."

Bright Mind suddenly had an idea. "So, you're a messenger Pegasus, right?" He asked.

"Yep." She said, saluting. "Ditzy Doo, at your service."

"Perfect." Bright Mind said, getting the packages he was carrying off his back. "Now, I need you to deliver these for me." He put it on her back. She buckled under the weight, but held firm. "This is important, you hear. The right side goes to Twilight Sparkle of Ponyville. The left side is to be delivered a colleague of mine at the Royal Academy. Do you understand?" Ditzy nodded, before taking off. "Well, I won't have to worry about that anymore."

________________________________________

The sun faded away, leaving the red evening sky bare. A calming wind blew through the lands. The birds of the night calls echoed about, while the crickets chirped. On this particular peaceful evening in Equestria, a rather special pony waited anxiously.

Twilight Sparkle paced back and forth inside her library. The Princess had promised a new batch of books to the library, since she had already read and studied most, if not all, the books she possessed. It was time for some more advanced stuff. Items straight from Celestia's own private stock. She couldn't help but be excited. Her tail swished back and forth in agitation. 'What's taking them so long?' she thought. Suddenly, Spike came into the room. Twilight swiftly got up and rushed to him. "So, are they here?" she said, excited.

Spike nodded. "Yep," he said, rather tired. "I left them downstairs." Before he could put in another word, Twilight teleported herself there. Spike sighed, before heading down himself.

Twilight shook her head, trying to get rid of the small woozy feeling she had. Teleporting still took its toll, albeit a very small one. She looked to the stack of books in the middle of the room. 'It's rather small,' she thought. She was a little disappointed by the books presented. Only five books were in the stack, but they were rather large and thick. 'Well, the Princess knows best.' She levitated one of them over to her stool and opened it up.

Hours of reading later, Twilight came across one spell in the book that caught her eye. "Inter-dimensional doorways?" she read aloud. She pulled back, rather puzzled. "Huh," She shrugged. "I'll give it a shot." She read the instructions. They were complicated, but she'd done tougher spells before.

The first step was to think of a location. 'Sweet Apple Acres.' She thought.

The next was to think of your target destination. "Huh," Twilight couldn't help but say. She already had. 'Redundant much.' So, she thought of Sweet Apple Acres again.

The last step was to focus on the portal, for complete concentration was the key. "Okay, just focus," She closed her eyes and concentrated. The longer and harder she concentrated, the more energy she drained from herself. Sweat peppered her brow, her breathing became hectic. She found it harder to stand as her legs couldn't hold her up. By the time the spell was done, she collapsed to the ground from exhaustion.

"Twilight!" Spike called out, running over to her. He went to her side and helped her back on her hooves. "Are you okay?"

"Yeah," Twilight said, trying to shake off the loss of power. "Just a botched spell is all..." Her eyelids started to grow heavy. "I think I need some rest." Spike escorted her to her bedroom.

________________________________________

Within her throne room, Princess Celestia sat peacefully, reading one of her favorite books. Romance was always her favorite subject; she couldn't help but smile as she got to the juicy parts. She closed her eyes for a second, playing her own romance all those years ago. Beautiful, yet sad feelings filled her, weaving their way into the past. All of a sudden, something pulled her out of her daydream. Like, something firing off inside her head. 'What is that?' she wondered. She kept shaking her head, trying to see if the feeling would go away.

One of the guards in the throne room noticed this. "Is there something wrong, princess?" he asked.

"I felt...a disturbance," Celestia said, a little scared. "Something I haven't felt in a long time."

"Should I sound an alarm, or send a patrol?" the guard asked.

Princess Celestia shook her head. "No," she said. "There is no need. Just a small problem, that is all. I shall send word to my student soon enough. And do not trouble my sister with this." She looked up at the moon. "For now, let me bask in the light of my sister's moon. I need some time to think."

The guard bowed. "Of course, your highness," he said.

Celestia stared at him for a moment. "Alone," she said, raising an eyebrow. The guards quickly filtered out of the throne room. She sighed. 'Why must I feel it again? That energy. That feeling. I thought it long gone. I thought it would never return. Why must it bring back such sad memories?' She let a tear fall from her eyes. 'Maybe I'm over thinking this. It could be anything. Anything! A little spell playing tricks on me. Twilight Sparkle will sort this out. Especially since I'm sensing it coming from somewhere near her. And what are the odds that anything could ever happen like that in Ponyville?' She stopped her train of thought, before facehooving. 'Oh, now you've gone and done it.'

________________________________________

The wind blew past through Russia, giving the lands a false sense of peace. The day seemed settled and calm. That is, until a mechanical march perturbed the air. Five fighter walkers continued on with their search. The large, two legged machines carefully and effortlessly maneuvered the grounds. Their left pincer arm swiveled in its socket, while its laser equipped arm stood at the ready. This patrol was sent out to check if any more hoonah fighters were anywhere near. They were ever vigil. Hoonahs had the nasty habit of surprise attacks. Of course, Kra had better senses than humans, so it wasn't a problem. "Report," a voice said through the speakers.

The Kra inside responded. "Nothing so far," he said, rather pleased. He even let out a small chuckle. "It seems the Hoonahs are too scared to come out of their holes."

"Don't get over your head, Hasgon," his commander said. "Those Hoonahs are cleverer than you give them credit for."

"Ah, what can they do?" Hasgon said. "Other than to be a late afternoon snack!" He laughed whole-heartedly. He could hear his commander sigh. His commander had been fighting since day two of the invasion. Now, on the third day, Hasgon himself, fresh from his training on the lunar base, was ready to fight. So far, there hadn't been any resistance to their movements, to Hasgon's annoyance.

"Oh, shut your mouth, Hasgon," another voice spoke up. "You are going to jinx us." He recognized the voice of his best friend, Kruk. They had known each other from day one, right out of the cloning machines. It was funny to think that they were born only one year ago. 'Time flies by.'

"How?" Hasgon said, cackling at the thought of being held up by humans. "You saw those few Hoonahs we passed. They were more concerned with fleeing for their little pathetic lives."

"Wait until you fight against one," his commander said. "You won't be laughing then."

Hasgon rolled his eyes. 'Cautious to the end, that one is,' he thought. "Have you ever fought one?"

"Yes," his commander said. "I have fought them. If it wasn't for our lunar cannon," At its mention, another arch of light burst from the moon. "We'd have fought against hoonah machines. Hundreds of them, going by the carnage I saw. So, be vigil. We can't take back Eka, with fools chasing their own tails."

"Then, we're going to have a problem," Kruk said. "Cause Hasgon can't help but chase his tail."

"At least I was awake during our studies," Hasgon scoffed. "You spent all your time chasing females." He could hear Kruk laughing. 'Kruk.' He thought. 'He's a bigger danger to this invasion then those hoonah machines. Those clumsy behemoths couldn't swat a fly, let alone take on us.'

"Ah, yes," Kruk said. "Good times. Good times, indeed."

________________________________________

Danil Ivanov quickly moved through the brush. His An-94 kept at the ready at his side, as he snuck quietly about. He and his comrades had been sent out to ambush some of the invaders. They had staked out this position some hours ago and had yet to spot one. 'Oh, but we'll be ready for those alien bastards.' he thought, patting his gun. He passed by an armored vehicle, a BMP-3. It was one of the few vehicles they had left. 'The general must really find this piece of dirt important.' The vehicle was primed and ready to get going at any second.

He stopped by one of the other soldiers, Kiril Makorov, one of the leading snipers in the army. At least, in Danil's point of view and he hadn't found one person who could dispute it. He was laying on his stomach, looking through the scope of his rifle. Kiril was just a young man, just got into his twenties. His dashing looks often got girls to turn their heads. 'Man I miss those days,' Danil thought, ruffling his graying hair. He was kneeling beside a tree, with his gun holstered. Danil put his hand on his shoulder. "See anything yet?" he asked.

Kiril shook his head. "Not a thing," He responded, looking up at him. "Been the least eventful few hours since this whole goddamn alien invasion. It's like I'm in one of those silly science fiction books."

"Never cared for them," Danil said, smiling. He was glad they could turn the conversation into something else. "I preferred good old fashioned mystery novels."

"If I wanted something to put me to sleep, I'll check them out." Kiril said.

Danil scoffed. "You have no taste." He said.

Just then, another soldier came rushing over. "Sir," he said, stopping to salute.

"What is it?" Danil asked.

"Enemy troops approaching from the west," The soldier responded.

Both Kiril and Danil stiffened at his response. "How many?" Danil said.

"About five walkers," The soldier said.

"Probably a scouting party." Danil said, rubbing his chin. Kiril nodded in agreement He smirked. "Alright," he unholstered and cocked his rifle. "Let's give them hell."

"I couldn't have said it better myself." Kirirl said, moving off to find a better sniping position.

________________________________________

Something wasn't right. The Kra commander could sense it. If only he could know what was causing this strife within in him. Maybe it was just the trees casting their shadows that simply spooked him. Maybe it was just being on this alien world. 'Not an alien world, just a different Eka!' he reminded himself. Though, it was so hard to find the difference. 'Maybe it's all in my head. Maybe it's just my imagination.' He kept telling himself, but his eyes could discern so much. He could see the shadows moved once in a while, but there was a breeze about him. 'It's just the air, moving the trees.'

The last thing he heard was a faint boom, as a human walker fired. The shell pierced his walker, killing him instantly.

________________________________________

The commander's walker went down in a fiery explosion. "Take cover," a voice resounded through the intercom.

"With what?" Hasgon shouted, looking around frantically. There was no response. The patter of bullets ricocheting off his machine was pecking away at his resolve. He couldn't move. The pride and fearlessness he felt only a moment before was replaced by a paralyzing fear of death. All his training, all his thoughts of fighting, dreams of conquest, did nothing to help him here. 'Stupid thinking on the commander's part.' he thought. 'Sending me out to fight in this deathtrap.'

There, to their right side, was a small forest. 'If we could reach there, we'd be safe from their weaponry.' He caught a gleam, as another shell went soaring past. It landed at the feet of Kruk's walker, wrecking it. "NO!" He yelled, as his lifetime friend's machine went down. Anger swelled up inside him, putting him back in control of his movements. "The trees!" he yelled.

The remaining walkers tried running up towards them. Hasgon fired off a couple of shots into the forest. He was soon rewarded with a pillow of smoke rising from some damaged Hoonah walker. Still, another couple of shells came their way. One missed, while the other smacked right into a fighter. It burst into flames as it fell to the ground. "Stay together!" he ordered the Kra fighter beside him. They finally made it to the tree line, walking past the Hoonah machine he had hit.

He could see a few hoonahs running off. Hasgon growled. 'How dare they fire on me?' he thought. 'How dare they kill my friends? I'll make them pay. All of them!' He fired, slicing through one of them. He kept firing, killing another, and wounding a couple more. Another human tried running, but he aimed straight at the mammal. He tried to shoot at it, but his gun did nothing. The Kra scowled. Their weapons could only fire a certain amount of shots at a time. This made sure the weapon didn't explode on its owner. Right now, however, Hasgon cursed the designer.

Suddenly one more rocket flew by, destroying the walker beside him. The blast knocked him to the side. His fighter crashed against a tree, breaking the glass barrier of the cockpit. Hasgon just sat there inside his walker, bleeding and disoriented. He couldn't even think straight. His head was pounding, agonizing him so. The only thought running through his mind was that he had to get out of there.

He grabbed his tintza rifle and clambered out. Once he got out of his fighter walker, he could hear the faint sound of Hoonah chatter. He couldn't tell where it was coming from, since he was still a little shaken. Still, he had to get out of there. He tried to run for it.

________________________________________

The sun beamed down upon Sweet Apple Acres. Applejack was collecting apples for a delivery to Fillydelphia. As ever, Applejack was doing her best to buck each and every apple out of their trees. Little Apple Bloom trailed behind her, ever exuberant. "Big sis!" Apple Bloom said, trying to get her attention. "How long is this going to take?"

"Not long," Applejack said, knocking down another series of apples.

Apple Bloom caught them in a basket. "But I promised Sweetie Bell and Scootaloo I'd meet up with them," she said. "I can't break my promise."

"Work comes first, little lady," Applejack said, bucking another tree. "You'll know that when you're grown up."

"But I am grown up!" Apple Bloom whined. "I just want to go have some fun."

"Later, sugar cube," Applejack said, wiping away some sweat on her brow.

"But I want to go RIGHT NOW!" Apple Bloom said, whining at the top of her little lungs.

Applejack's head started to shake from the intensity. She put a hoof to it to stop herself. "Alright, alright," she said, rather agitated with her sister's complaints. "You can go."

"Yay!" Apple Bloom exclaimed, jumping around in joy. She ran off.

Applejack sighed and shook her head. "What am I going to do with her?" she asked herself before going back to work. Nearby, a gleam of light shone out. She didn't really pay attention to it. Her work came first.

________________________________________

The sun grew larger in the sky, as its heat poured down upon him. He had been walking for more than an hour. Hasgon dragged is tintza rifle on the ground, as he held onto it with one clawed hand. 'How did this happen?' he kept thinking over and over. 'I don't want to die. Eng-kan, have mercy on me, please.'

As he walked on, a shimmer of light shined into his eye. He flinched turning his head to check it out. It looked like some kind of disk of light. He thought it was some trick of the light, but he walked towards it anyways. 'Hey, I'm delirious right?' he wondered if, which was a little difficult in his state. 'Might as well play along.'

He passed through it. The moment he did, he came across a huge area, filled with trees containing something red and round. He put his free hand up to his head. 'That's it. I've gone mad.'

Hasgon walked among the trees for several minutes, before he saw some building of some kind. They looked like Hoonahs designed them. 'Hopefully it's abandoned,' he thought, as he struggled to get to them. By now, every step he took, every gulp of air, took a heavy toll on his body. He didn't even think he could make it to the front door.

As he neared the structures, he stopped. He didn't know why, but he just didn't want to go in. Something wasn't right. Then, he heard a voice. He turned around and saw some kind of Hoonah. It was four legged, orange, and had light yellow hair in some sort of style. It wore a hat of some kind. His stomach rumbled. 'I could use a good snack,' he thought. It wouldn't be too hard. He seriously doubted those scrawny legs couldn't carry it far. However, he simply raised a talon and said, "Hoonah…" before falling down to the ground. His world was enveloped by darkness.

________________________________________

Applejack bucked another tree, causing the apples to fall into the basket. She sighed, wiping her brow with her hoof. "Well, I reckon that'll be enough for today," she said, putting the basket onto her back.

When she walked to the front of her house, she received a great shock. There was some creature standing there. It was quite tall, much taller than her, or it just looked like it because she was a little distance away. It had black feathers, although they were stained with dirt and blood. It had a crest on top of its head that was rather beautifully colored. The two legged creature just stood there for a moment. "What in the hay?" She couldn't help but say. She scolded herself for talking out loud.

The creature turned its head and looked at her. It moved a single step and raised one of its claws. Applejack prepared herself to run for it. She didn't trust those teeth or claws. Instead, it just said one word. A word she couldn't understand. And then fell down to the ground, unconscious.

Applejack just stood there for a minute. She didn't know what to do. A part of her wanted to help the poor thing, but another part of her wanted to bolt into town. Or better yet, get the rest of the family out of there. Still, she stayed put, waiting for some sign of movement from the creature. 'Could be playing opossum,' she thought. After five minutes of waiting, Applejack slowly and cautiously approached it. When she got to it, she could see it was hurt badly. Gashes and bruises ran its sides. Its breathing was hectic and harsh. She couldn't help but feel sorry for it.

Applejack hurried off into the barn. Big Macintosh was there looking over the previous days collection of apples. "Big Macintosh," she said, going to his side. "We've got a little problem."

"You could say that," Big Mac said, not turning around to look. "These here apples aren't enough for that order we got from Fillydelphia. We got to go buck some more."

"I think we've got a bigger problem than apples," Applejack said. Big Mac simply moved his head and eyed her. She led him over to the front of the house.

When they got there, Big Mac stopped in his tracks. He stared at the creature wide eyed. It even looked like he'd lose the piece of straw he always had. "You were exaggerating when you said little problem!" he said, looking at her.

Applejack smiled. "Well, I know it ain't little, but we can't just leave it there," she said. "The poor creature's hurt."

Big Mac fiddled with the straw in his mouth, moving it side to side. Finally, he sighed. "I'll get the wagon," he said, walking off.

"Thanks," Applejack said.

"No problem," Big Mac said. It didn't take long before he came back, pulling a cart behind him.

Applejack went over grabbed the creature. She was lucky she was an earth pony, or she would never have been able to get it onto the wagon. She looked down at the strange thing it had been carrying. 'Maybe Twilight can figure out what it does,' she thought, loading it on as well. "Do you think you can pull it?" she asked.

"Eyup," Big Mac said, before pulling it along into town.

Chapter 2

Equestrian Wars: A Fixed Pathway

Author: Evowizard25

Chapter 2

The two siblings walked, until they were right outside Ponyville. Once there, Big Mac stopped in his tracks. Applejack hadn't paid attention his stop, so she walked on a few steps before looking back. "What's the hold up?" she asked.

"I think we oughta hide this here critter," Big Mac said, motioning his head back to their passenger. "Don't want to spook the others."

"Right," Applejack said, going over to the back of the cart. The only blanket there was the one right underneath the creature. She sighed. 'Well, Pinkie Pie did teach you that one trick,' she thought. She grabbed the blanket with her mouth. 'Of course, that was with tables, not carts.'

The Earth pony closed her eyes and quickly pulled. Luck wasn't with her, as the creature came with it. It slumped to the ground. Applejack stared at it in pure horror. 'Horse apples!' she thought. The creature started to stir, so she did the one reasonable thing. She raised a hoof and knocked it out cold.

"He's gonna feel that one in the mornin'," Big Mac said.

"How do you know it's a he?" Applejack said, putting the creature back into the cart. "It could be a girl."

"I got a feelin' for these things," Big Mac simply said.

Applejack just stared at him for a moment. "You've been spending way too much time with Fluttershy," she said.

"Eyup," Big Mac said, chuckling.

Applejack rolled her eyes. She placed the blanket over it. "There," she said, before starting to walk on. "Come on, Big Macintosh. The sooner we finish this, the sooner we can get back to bucking those apples."

"I can't wait," Big Mac said, pulling along the cart.

____________________________________________________________________________________________

Nurse Redheart was busy fixing up the sheets. She hadn't had any patrons in her clinic for a while now. 'Thank Celestia for that,' she thought.

One of the other nurses came over to her. "Applejack wants to talk to you," she said. "She said it was very important."

"Alright," Nurse Redheart said. 'What kind of trouble did that pony get into now?' she thought. "Bring her in." The other nurse bowed her head, before departing. Another couple of minutes past before Applejack walked in. "Ah, Applejack, you wanted to see me?"

"I did," Applejack said. "I was wonderin' if you'd look over a critter I found. He's in poor condition."

"Well," Nurse Redheart said. "I don't normally do check-ups on animals. I believe that's in Fluttershy's department."

"Well, he's too much for her." Applejack said. "I don't want Flutershy gettin' hurt."

"Well, if that's the case," Nurse Redheart said, concerned for Fluttershy. "Then fine. I don't see the harm in it."

Applejack smiled. "Bring him in." She said, addressing someone outside.

Big Mac walked in, pulling along a cart. A large bulge could be seen under the tarp. "What is in that cart?" Redheart asked. She could hear some ragged breathing and could even see the tarp moving up and down.

Applejack walked over to the side. She pulled the tarp back, to reveal some sort of feathered dragon. "I suppose you've never seen one of these critters before," she said.

Nurse Redheart simply shook her head, staring at it. "What in Celestia's name is that?" she asked, in awe of the creature.

"I don't know, but it's hurt really badly," Applejack said. "I was hoping you could take care of it."

"Why didn't you leave it at your farm?" Redheart asked her. "I could've taken care of it there. That thing could start a panic."

Applejack raised an eyebrow. "And leave that thing around Apple Bloom and Granny? I ain't gonna do that!"

Redheart sighed. "Very well," she said. "Bring him to a bed." Applejack unlocked the cart from Big Mac, so he could help her move the creature. "Be careful. I don't want him harmed any further than he already is."

"Got it, Doc," Applejack said, putting him on the bed.

"I'm a nurse, not a doctor," Redheart corrected her. "The only Doctor in town isn't exactly one to perform treatments on patients."

"He is a strange one," Applejack said, "though Twilight is fascinated with his Tardis, or whatever he calls that box of his..." A groan from the creature stopped their conversation. "Is he awakin'?"

Redheart shook her head. "He'll be out for a while," she said. "He's received a nasty blow to the head. I expect not to wake for several hours." Applejack couldn't help but blush with embarrassment when she mentioned the blow to the head. Redheart noticed her blush. "It was you, wasn't it?"

"Well…He's got big teeth!" Applejack exclaimed, pointing at the creature. The nurse shook her head. "I couldn't just let him get up and try to take a bite out of me!"

"Yes, but next time, try not hitting so hard," Redheart said.

"I'll try next time." Applejack said, laughing nervously. "Well, I gotta go get Twilight," she said. "I think she might find this rather interestin'." Redheart didn't notice her walking off. She was just staring at the creature on the bed.

'How am I supposed to care for this thing?' she thought, looking it over constantly. 'I'm a nurse, not a vet, but I have to admit. This creature is fascinating. I'd love to study him.' Said creature growled, bearing its fangs. 'If it bites me, I'll have Applejack's head for this.'

Twilight's eyes slowly opened. 'What happened?' she wondered, before remembering last night. She tried moving, but her body ached, so she stayed there in her bed for a few more minutes. Finally, she was able to will herself out of bed. 'I've got the worst magical hangover, ever,' she thought. 'I shouldn't have tried that spell.' She started to walk downstairs. As she came into the front hall, Owlowiscious was on his perch, attentive as ever. "Good morning!" she said.

"Who," Owlowiscious said.

"Why, you of course," Twilight said, before realizing she was talking to an owl. "Never mind." She started to head for the door.

Spike, however, blocked her exit. He crossed his arms. "And where do you think you're going?" he asked.

Twilight just stared at him for a moment. Her mind was still a little frazzled. 'Where am I… Oh, the spa,' she thought. "I'm going to the spa," she said.

"But shouldn't you be resting?" Spike asked, raising an eyebrow.

"And shouldn't you stop asking me questions?" Twilight retorted, getting a little annoyed with the dragon's questions.

"Well, I'm not the one who messed up a spell!" Spike said, in a rather harsh tone.

Twilight sent him a glare. "Oh, you did not just use that tone on me!" she said, bobbing her head back and forth. She raised her hoof and pointed farther into the library. "Go to your room!"

"But Twilight—" Spike said, raising a scroll.

"Not now, Spike," Twilight said, shaking her head. "I need a little relaxation."

"But it's from—" Spike said.

"It can wait!" Twilight said. She started getting woozy. Her little talk with Spike had already drained some of her energy. Her knees wobbled a bit. "I just need to relax. And Spike," she lowered her face to his level, "please don't raise your voice at me again."

Spike looked away, looking ashamed. Twilight sighed and patted him on the head. "I'll be sure to get a few gems on the way back," Spike smiled. She walked out the door. "I'll be back soon!"

Once she closed the door, Spike turned around and fist pumped. "Oh, yeah!" he said. "Did you hear that Owlowiscious, she's getting gems just for me!"

"Who," Owlowiscious said.

"Me," Spike said, pointing to himself.

"Who," the owl said again.

"Me, Spike," The little dragon said.

"Who," the owl said.

"Spike, the dragon!" he yelled, waving his arms in the air.

"Who," the owl said once again.

Elsewhere, Twilight was walking over to the spa. Suddenly, a pink blur appeared before her. Twilight took a step back, to see Pinkie Pie smiling at her. "Hi, Twilight!" she said. "Good morning! Don't you think today is super fantastic? I do! The sun is pretty today, I could just stare at it!" She looked up at the sun for a moment.

"Um, Pinkie Pie," Twilight said, concerned for her friend. "That's not healthy for your eyes."

Pinkie Pie just giggled. "Oh, you silly filly!" she said. "A lot of people look at that sun, of course, they aren't ponies."

"Huh?" Twilight said, unsure of what she meant.

"Besides, I want to throw a party!" Pinkie Pie said, jumping around her. "Today is so wonderful I thought I could make it even more so, with cake and presents and…"

As Pinkie went on and on, Twilight couldn't help but feel light headed. 'Okay, I need to get out of here, now,' she thought. Out of the corner of her eye, she saw Gummy standing a few feet away. She looked back to Pinkie, who was too busy talking. She levitated Gummy all the way on top of Sugarcube Corner. Twilight feigned horror, rather poorly actually. "Oh, look," she said, pointing at him. "Gummy is on top of that building."

Pinkie Pie gasped. "I'll save you, Gummy!" she exclaimed, racing inside. Twilight sighed, before turning around. The moment she did, she jumped up in the air in fright. There stood Pinkie Pie, holding little Gummy. "I saved him!"

"But how did you—" Twilight said, looking at her, to the roof and back again. 'She's Pinkie,' she reminded herself.

"Now, how did you get up there?" Pinkie Pie asked her pet, staring into Gummy's eyes. They were emotionless, as usual.

"Uh," Twilight said, rather nervous of Pinkie finding out the truth, "I have to go. The spa awaits!"

"Okie, dokie, lokie!" Pinkie Pie said before trotting inside. "I have to throw an 'I saved Gummy' party anyways. Be sure to be there!"

"I will," Twilight said, before sighing. 'That was close,' she thought. Just then, as she passed Rarity's door, she felt someone drag her in. "What the…"

Rarity turned her to look her in the face. "Twilight!" she said, cheery as ever. "I knew you'd come!" Twilight just stared at her. "Didn't you get the letter I sent you?" Twilight face hooved. 'The letter,' she thought. "Oh, never mind. You're here and that's all that matters."

"Uh, Rarity," Twilight started.

Rarity, however, was already looking through her stuff. "I just want to see how it looks first. Now, where is it?" she asked, searching around.

Twilight quietly walked out the front door. Finally, Rarity found what she was looking for and turned around. "Now, this dress will look beautiful on you!" The store was empty. She pouted. "How rude."

Twilight sighed as she neared the spa. Suddenly, Rainbow Dash appeared in front of her, making her come to a stop. "Twilight!" she said. "I'm glad that I found you. I need someone to race against, and since Applejack is busy…"

"Okay," Twilight interjected. "We'll start right here." Rainbow Dash smiled and readied herself. "1…2…3." ON three, the Pegasus flew off. Twilight just stood there, before moving back to the spa. 'Man, she's easy to fool,' she thought.

As she got to the door, a small voice spoke up. "Uh, Twilight," Fluttershy said, coming up to her.

A strand of Twilight's hair popped out of place. Her left eye twitched. "CARROT TOP!" She yelled at the yellow pony on the other side at the street. "Help Fluttershy!"

"But…" Carrot Top started.

Twilight glared at her. "NOW!" she yelled, startling her and Fluttershy. They took off in fear. Twilight sighed. 'Now, for some relaxation,' she thought.

"Uh, Twi?" she could hear Applejack say.

Twilight turned her head. "What is it?" she asked, her voice trimming with venom.

"There's something you gotta see," Applejack said, cringing a bit under her gaze.

"It can wait," Twilight said, holding in her frustration. 'Just open the door,' she thought, putting her hoof on it.

"But it's really important," Applejack said. "I haven't seen anything like it before."

"Wow," Twilight said, rolling her eyes. Of course, Applejack couldn't see her expression, since she was facing the other way. "What a surprise."

"Hey!" Applejack shot back, rather offended by her friend's actions.

"It can all wait until later," Twilight said. "I need some alone time." She turned to face Applejack. "You know, me, myself, and I. Time to think. Some relaxation. I'm aching all over. And I think I deserve some of that, don't you?" Applejack was silent. "Good, now excuse me." She moved to open the door.

"Muffin?" Ditzy Doo said, appearing before her. She was carrying a basket filled with muffins, while wearing that goofy smile as always.

Twilight couldn't hold in the frustration anymore. "NO!" she screamed, accidentally letting out a spell that knocked the basket out of Ditzy's hands. It went soaring into town. "I don't want any muffins! Right now, at this moment, I hate muffins!" She turned to look at Ditzy. "Good day to you, miss!" She slammed the door shut.

Ditzy Doo was in tears. She looked at her hooves, where the basket used to be. Applejack patted her back, trying to calm her down. 'Man, Twilight does need to relax,' she thought. 'Though that's not a good excuse for snapping at Ditzy like that.'

"I was saving some of those muffins for Dinky!" Ditzy wailed, sniffling.

"I know," Applejack said. "Twi' is just cranky this mornin', that's all." Ditzy Doo wiped her nose, starting to relax.

Suddenly, sad music started to play. The Earth Pony looked over to see a brown stallion with a gray mane playing a violin. The pony stopped playing, when he notice their stares. "I though the moment needed it." He said. She sent him a fierce glare, to which he smiled, apologetically. He then put his violin back into his satchel and ran off.

Just then, Pinkie Pie appeared behind them. "Why are you crying?" She asked, concerned. "What happened? Tell me!"

"My muffins," Ditzy Doo said. "I was saving some for Dinky and…"

"Oh, you mean these muffins!" Pinkie Pie said, reaching behind her to reveal a basket full of them. "This basket fell on my head, and I was all like 'Ouch! A basket of muffins! These must be Ditzy's!' So, I wanted to give them to you!"

Applejack raised an eyebrow. "How did you know where she was?" she asked.

Ditzy, however, just hugged Pinkie Pie. "Thank you, thank you, thank you!" she said repeatedly. She then picked up the basket and started to fly off. "Little Dinky will love these!"

"Now, I got to talk to Twilight," Applejack said, going inside.

"What about?" Pinkie Pie asked.

"I found some strange creature this mornin' on the farm," Applejack said. "He's over at the hospital. He had somethin' with him and Twilight might just know what it is." They entered the spa.

Lotus, one of the spa ponies, came up to them. "What will you have?" she asked.

"Uh, nothin'," Applejack said, waving a hoof in the air to dismiss the idea. "I'm lookin' for Twilight Sparkle."

"Ah, she just came in," Lotus said, nodding. "She's taking a hot bath."

"Well, it's going to have to be cut short," Applejack said. "Isn't that right…" She turned around to find Pinkie Pie gone. She sighed. "Never mind."

They walked on into the bathing room. Twilight was about to get into the water. "Hold on there, Twi'."

The unicorn turned around to look at her. "One hour," she said. Her hair was on the fritz and her lef eye was twitching. "Just give me one hour of relaxation. IS THAT TOO MUCH TO ASK?" she yelled the last part.

Applejack and Lotus both jumped back. "Well…" the farm pony said, taken aback. "Once you're done, come straight to the hospital. I got something to show you."

Twilight sighed. "Alright, but not until I'm done," she said, getting into the tub.

Applejack could see that look of relief wash upon her, as the hot water worked its magic. She shook her head as she departed. "She is one high strung filly."

_'What was Applejack on about this time?' Twilight thought. She had just finished her spa therapy and was actually feeling better. 'Though, I do owe Ditzy an apology. Maybe a gift for little Dinky.'

As she neared the hospital, Pinkie came out to greet her. "Hi, Twilight!" she said. "Come and meet our new friend!"

"New friend?" Twilight repeated. She still didn't know what was inside. 'Maybe something from the Everfree forest,' she thought, walking inside. All of her friends were standing around some cot. Carrot Top and Nurse Redheart were there too. "Okay, what do we have—" She stopped when she saw what was on the bed. 'A feathered dragon!'was her first thought.

"I found him right at the front of my house," Applejack said. "He fell flat as a pancake the moment he laid eyes on me."

"Oooh, looks like someone has a crush!" Rainbow Dash said, before laughing.

Applejack glared at her. "Now, shut yer mouth," she said. "Anyways, that's not all."

Twilight found it hard to wrench her eyes away from the creature. But when she did, she was in for a surprise. It was some silver, elongated, cylinder of some sort. "What is this?" she asked, using her magic to lift it up.

"I have no idea," Applejack said, shaking her head. "And Fluttershy can't seem to identify this here critter."

"Well, remember the parasprite incident?" Twilight asked. Fluttershy couldn't help but blush with embarrassment. "I think we both know she doesn't know them all."

"Uh, guys," Fluttershy said, stroking the creature's neck. "I think he's waking up."

Carrot Top jumped back with fright when she said that. Nurse Redheart stood beside her. "Don't worry," she said. "We're safe." Then, the creature lifted its head. "I'm sure..." Her voice trembled as she spoke the words

Chapter 3

Equestrian Wars: A Fixed Pathway

Author: Evowizard25

Chapter 3

The world seemed to come back into focus. 'Have I died? Will I see Eng-kan and my friends?' Hasgon groaned, while a small surge of pain pierced his skull, shredding that thought. 'Why do I have this horrible headache?' he thought. He could feel something stroking his neck. Whatever it was, it brought him comfort, soothing comfort. 'It feels nice…' He slowly lifted his head and opened his eyes.

He expected to find himself in the care of his own kind, but what he saw shocked him. Standing around him were hoonahs! Not the two legged kind, but new, four legged ones. 'How? Only the two-legged hoonahs were intelligent. Are there any of them here? Are these their pets?' As he processed this in his mind, he looked over at the hoonah stroking him. While the others cowered in the corners, this one just smiled down at him. This yellow, four-legged hoonah, with a pink mane, just beamed serenity. He felt calm and safe. He felt cared for. He felt…

Just then, Hasgon's stomach started growling. It brought him back to reality. There was one simple truth: hoonahs were food! He let out a loud hiss that startled the hoonah. It lifted its leg from off him. He lunged forward, hoping to puncture its windpipe. The hoonah ducked out of the way, to which he missed it by a mere inch. He quickly jumped to his feet and readied himself. With a simple movement, he lunged toward it.

However, something whacked into his side, sending him crashing into the wall. He looked up to see a blue hoonah, flying over him. 'Hoonahs can fly now?' He thought, but dispelled that. He needed to focus here. He jumped upwards, trying to catch it. He missed. He tried a few more times. During those attempts, he could hear the hoonah talk in its guttural language. He shouldn't have cared what it was saying, but he could hear the tone. He just knew this flying creature was mocking him. That infuriated Hasgon. 'No hoonah makes fun of a Kra!' He jumped high enough, that he caught hold of its tail. It squealed in surprise as he brought it to the ground. Since the tail was just made of hair, he hadn't hurt it. Yet.

Before he could do anything else, he again was rammed right into a desk. He looked up to see the orange hoonah from earlier, the one that had brought him here. He growled deeply, glaring at it. The hoonah returned the glare. Hasgon cast a glance over at the gun beside him. The Kra knew he had to be quick. He rolled over, picked up the gun, and stood up, then pointed his tintza rifle straight at it. The hoonah just stood there, proud and challenging. 'Let's see how proud you are when you have a hole right dab center in your chest!' The two stared at each other for a minute, before he inched a finger over the trigger.

Suddenly, Hasgon felt a strange tingling sensation. He felt light, almost like one of his feathers. He looked down to his feet. His eyes widened, as he saw he was started to float up in the air. He dropped his rifle and tried to get back down. It was all in vain. He clawed and kicked, trying to get back down on solid ground, but to no avail. 'What is this? How can I be flying?' He looked around for the source. He then noticed the light purple one's horn glowing. Its eyes were closed in concentration. 'But that's impossible. Hoonahs don't have magic. Not even Kra priests have that power. Only Eng-kan can grant…'

Fear gripped him. "Stop!" he shouted. "Please stop!" 'Did he grant them this power? He must have. Why would he grant such hoonahs this power? No! I cannot question his will. Then, these must be his blessed ones. His chosen. I had attacked and tried to harm the chosen of my own god. Eng-kan would never allow me access to the afterlife. I will never see his friends again. Not after this action of selfish, destructive behavior.' He was doomed! Not just his physical form, but his soul as well. "I'm sorry! I'm so sorry!"

Fluttershy thought that maybe, it would be nice, like Spike. The very moment it woke up, it stared at her. She knew that there was intelligence on par with her own, lurking inside it. 'Maybe, he'll be our new friend,' she thought. But her feelings were short lived. The creature hissed, telling her of the upcoming strike. It lunged, but she ducked just in time. The timid Pegasus moved backwards, cowering before the predator. It quickly got to its feet and tried to lunge again.

"Oh, no you don't!" Rainbow Dash said, zooming right into the feathered dragon's side. The dragon fell to the ground, but was quickly back up. It tried jumping up at her. She laughed. "You can't catch me, lizard!"

It kept on trying to get her, to which she kept on taunting. "I'm the fastest flyer in Equestria. Do you really think you can catch me, slowpoke?" At that very moment, karma, or rather, the feathered dragon, grabbed her tail. Dash yelled in fright, as she came crashing to the ground.

Applejack launched herself at the dragon, knocking him into the stand. The creature quickly got up and rolled over. It then hefted its strange cylinder object. For a moment, they just stared at each other, waiting for one to make a move.

Fluttershy could feel the tension in the air. 'Please, let no one get hurt,' she thought. After a moment of staring, Twilight tried using her magic. Concentrating, she lifted the dragon up into the air. He clawed and kicked, desperate to get back down. He even dropped his strange stick. Soon, she could hear it cry out in some type of language. It was pitiful, absolutely pitiful. She could hear hurt, pain, and loss in that voice. It broke her heart to see it like that. "Please stop," she said.

Twilight looked at her. "Are you crazy?" she asked. "That thing just tried to eat you!"

"I know, but we have to give him a chance," Fluttershy pleaded.

"I don't think so, Fluttershy," Applejack said, keeping her gaze on the feathered dragon. "This thing won't think twice about having us for supper."

"I say we chuck it back into the Everfree Forest, where it belongs," Rainbow Dash scoffed. She was looking over her tail.

"We could change him," Fluttershy said. She walked up to Twilight. Her eyes were pleading. "I know we can do it."

Twilight just stared at her, with occasional glances to the dragon. She then sighed. She floated the creature back to its bed and dropped it. Just in case it attacked again, she prepared a spell. Instead, he just went under the covers. They could hear it whimpering.

"I want that thing out of here!" Nurse Redheart nearly yelled, pointing at it. "This instant!"

"But he still needs to be cared for," Fluttershy said.

Redheart was simply fuming. "That thing nearly killed us," she said. "I will not have it in my hospital. Think of the other ponies. I can't simply leave them in here with that thing. It would eat them."

"No, he wouldn't." Fluttershy said, defending the creature.

"Then, where do we keep it?" Nurse Redheart asked.

The ponies were silent for a moment. The only sound in the room, was the feathered dragons whimpering. "I got it," Twilight said, raising a hoof. "He'll stay with Applejack."

All the others just stared at her. "Why can't he stay with me?" Fluttershy said, looking at the creature. 'The poor thing… He must be scared, not even knowing where he is,' she thought.

"Because, Applejack's farm is far enough away for this thing to be of any danger," Twilight explained.

"Except to the Apple family!" Applejack said, getting up in her face.

"I know, I know," Twilight said, reeling back. "But you have Big Macintosh. Fluttershy has, what, Angel? I don't think a little white rabbit is going to be much help in defending her."

Fluttershy could see that Applejack was going to continue arguing in the matter. "If it doesn't go well, I could use the Stare, if you like," she offered, before ducking her head. "Just a thought."

Applejack pondered on that for a moment, before saying. "Alright," she relented. "He can come." She then eyed Twilight. "But if he even so much as lays a finger on Apple Bloom, I swear, I'll whip his hide into next week!"

"Sure," Twilight said. She started to sweat. "I got it."

"Is there any way we could talk to him?" Fluttershy said, standing next to the feathered dragon.

"Well, duh," Rainbow Dash said, flying over to Twilight. "You gotta know a spell or something!" She looked back at the creature. "I'll give him a piece of my mind. No one bites Rainbow Dash's tail and gets away with it!"

Twilight rolled her eyes. "I'll be back soon," she said. With that said, she teleported.

Fluttershy smiled down at the creature. "Don't worry," she cooed. "Twilight is coming back. Then, we can talk to each other. Isn't that wonderful?" She was only answered by a soft whimper.

Twilight soon appeared in the library. Her appearance was met by a yell. Spike stepped away from the mirror looking a little shy. "So, back so soon?" he asked.

"Yes, I need to find a book on translation spells," Twilight said.

"Why do we need one on that?" Spike said, raising a talon.

"Don't question me," Twilight said, "Just do it."

"Alright, alright," Spike said, going over to the bookcase. "Sheesh." They searched for several minutes, before Spike finally found it.

Twilight smiled. She used her magic to levitate it over to herself and opened it up. "Ah, simple enough," she said, quickly teleporting herself back into the hospital. "Got it."

She closed her eyes and concentrated on the spell. It didn't take much effort, and soon she felt it take effect. "Now, can you hear me?" she asked the feathered dragon.

The creature lifted his head up at the sound of her voice. "Yes," he said. "But how…?"

"Magic," Twilight stated.

The creature lowered his head. "Truly, Eng-kan has blessed you," he said.

"Who is Eng-kan?" Twilight asked.

The creature stared at her for a moment. "You do not know Eng-kan?" He sounded like he couldn't believe it. "He is our god. Our soul protector. The lord of the afterlife. He must have given you these powers."

Before anyone could reply, he stood up. They all took a step back. 'Is he going to attack again?' Twilight thought, preparing another spell. Instead, the feathered dragon bowed before them. "Take my apologies, Eng-kan's chosen. If I had known, I would never have sought to end you."

"Um… I'm sorry to say this," Fluttershy said, "but we have never heard of this Eng-kan. I'm sure he's a great god, but we have only the princesses. You could call them gods, if you want. Though, I'm not imposing." She reeled back. "Sorry for bringing that up."

"No, Eng-kan," the dragon said. He shook his head. "But he must have. There is no way… unless!" He jumped off his bed and looked at Twilight. "Is this Eka?"

"Eka?" Twilight replied, raising an eyebrow.

"Yes, Eka," The feathered dragon said. "Eka, my homeworld."

"I'm sorry, but this is Equestria," Twilight said.

The dragon blinked a few times, before replying. "Eng-kan must have sent me here," he said. "I prayed for my life, and he delivered me to safety." He looked down at his dressed wounds. "Who healed me?"

Redheart gulped and took a dainty step forward. "I did," she said, her voice shaking.

The creature bowed his head. "Then, I humbly thank you," he said.

"It was no problem," Redheart said, blushing under her fur.

The creature turned his head back to Twilight. "I must see these princesses immediately," he said. "They must know Eng-kan. I want to know why I was sent here."

Twilight blinked. 'Let a killer dragon into the princess's court,' she thought. 'Yeah, that will keep you on their good side.' "Well, I can't do that at this moment," she said.

The dragon growled. "Why not?" he asked.

"Only those with permission can enter their court," Twilight said, trying to think up some excuse. She wasn't about let some creature such as himself near the princesses.

"Then, I demand their permission," The feathered dragon said. "These princesses must know that the will of Eng-kan is supreme."

"Well, I'm sorry," Twilight said, getting rather annoyed with this creature and this 'Eng-kan'. "You can't go now."

The creature hissed threateningly. Applejack walked right up in front of him. "Now, don't you go an' disrespect Twilight!" she said. "She could have easily sent you back to where you came from."

The creature huffed. "Doesn't sound so bad," he said. "Although, I prefer four-legged hoonahs over the two-legged ones." The ponies just stared at him for a moment, before letting the comment slide. "Now, since I will be staying here, where will I sleep?"

Twilight looked over at Applejack. The pony in question closed her eyes and sighed. She opened them back up and walked over to him. "I'll let you stay with me," she said, before sending him a glare. "But don't you dare touch any of my family!"

The feathered dragon eyed her for a moment. "I would never harm the chosen ones," he said.

"Well, he's polite for a dragon," Fluttershy said.

"I'm not a dragon," the creature said. "Whatever that is. I am a Kra. My name is Hasgon. I am a great warrior." He puffed out his chest.

"Kra?" Rainbow Dash said, not really impressed. "Never heard of you."

"Well, you have now," Hasgon growled.

"Hey, don't growl at me, bub," Rainbow Dash said, getting in his face. "Don't think I forgot about you grabbing my tail."

"Next time, I won't miss," Hasgon threatened. The two tensed, looking as if they were ready to have a go at each other. Twilight sighed. 'Well, things have certainly gotten interesting.'

Chapter 4

Equestrian Wars: A Fixed Pathway

Author: Evowizard25

Chapter 4

Nurse Redheart finally finished packing her supplies. "There," she said, before turning around to the others. "That should be everything." She carried the pack over to Applejack and set it on her haunches. "The instructions on how to use them are in there too. Follow them to the letter."

"Got it," Applejack said. She adjusted the pack on her back, to make it more comfortable. She was used to heavier loads, so it didn't bother her any.

"Now, if you need any other assistance," Nurse Redheart said, "Just come and let me know."

"Can do," Applejack said, nodding.

Twilight walked up to her. "Are you sure you're okay with this?" she asked.

"Honestly, no," Applejack said. She turned to look at Hasgon. "But, hey, we might as well give him a chance." She turned her attention back to Twilight. "But I assure you. If he lays a single claw on any of my family members, I'll buck him so hard that he won't be able to walk straight again."

"Alright then," Twilight said, getting a little fidgety under Applejack's gaze. She walked over to Hasgon, who was finishing putting on his armor. He was carrying his stick with him. "Now, as promised, you are to go with Applejack, on the condition that you don't attack any of her family."

"I understand," Hasgon said. "It would be foolhardy of me to try."

"Well," Twilight said, "with that out of the way, I hope you enjoy your stay in Equestria." Hasgon just snorted. "Thank you for that heartfelt reply," Twilight said, sarcasm ever evident in her words.

Applejack started to head out to her farm, with Hasgon right beside her. The moment they got outside, the other ponies around them stopped what they were doing and began to stare. 'Oh, boy,' Applejack thought. "Alright, there's no need to—" she started, but it was already too late.

"PANIC!" one pony yelled in fright, before running off. Others soon followed suit.

'So many hoonah,' Hasgon thought, looking around at the ones all across the street. His stomach growled again. 'I can handle myself.' One of the hoonah let out a shriek of fright and ran, causing the others to do so. He had seen this with other prey species. It made his mouth water. Instincts were starting to kick in. The urge to give chase was starting to take a toll on his resolve. His nostrils flared, while his feathers on his neck started to rise. The Kra bared his teeth and focused intently on a youngling. 'Attack! Kill! Feed!' He couldn't hold back any longer.

Applejack could see the whole scene unfold. Hasgon tensed up and looked like he was going to try and hurt somepony. 'Not on my watch!' she thought. She quickly put a hoof to his side. The Kra turned his head giving her a deathly glare. His eyes held a predatory glint. "Hold your horses," she said, returning his gaze. "You promised not to hurt anyone."

Hasgon just stared at her for a moment, before his breathing went back to normal. The feathers on his neck went back down. He seemed to relax. "I am sorry for that," he said, bowing his head. "Instincts."

Applejack just kept eyeing him, afraid that he'd attack. "Well, control them, ya hear." She said.

A certain multi-colored mare floated beside her. "Don't worry about the others," Rainbow Dash said, "I'll set them straight." She took off like a bullet.

Applejack didn't pay any attention to her friend. "Now, are we going to have any other problems?" she asked.

"No," Hasgon answered, unwilling to make eye contact.

Applejack sighed. "Well, follow me," she said. "And no more snarlin'."

Twilight watched them walk away, a bit disturbed by the instance. 'Does he really think I'll believe that story?' Twilight thought, rolling her eyes. 'Not from Equestria, my hoof. He's obviously something from the Everfree forest. Just another dangerous animal. Anyways, interdimensional pathways are…' Her eyes shot open when she remembered the spell she cast. Immediately, she bolted out the door, heading towards the library.

Hasgon walked alongside the hoonah known as Applejack. 'Strange name,' he thought. She seemed to be still wary of him. This was understandable, since he had just tried to kill her and her friends. 'Not to mention your little slip up earlier,' he scolded himself. 'A true Kra doesn't let their inticts get the better of them.'

A pang of guilt resounded in his heart. He didn't know why. He had killed those two-legged ones without any regrets. He growled when he remembered them. 'Once my purpose here is done, I'll go back,' he thought. 'Hopefully, I won't miss out on killing more of them.' Yet, that same hate didn't apply to these hoonah. Sure, they were hoonah, but they weren't on Eka. So, this was rightfully their planet. Right? Therefore, he was trespassing. Unless, Eng-kan had designed this world, or he needed him to put it under his command. Was that his destiny? He clutched his head, as a surge of pain struck him. 'My brain hurts.'

"You okay?" Applejack asked.

"Yes," Hasgon answered her. Yes, he knew this hoonah was a female. All because of one simple fact. She was in heat. Her aroma filled his nostrils. It was not as he expected. He thought that hoonah females would smell rather disgusting, but these pheromones were rather pleasant. Really pleasant! Of course, he wouldn't allow himself to think they were better than Kra pheromones. 'These hoonahs don't even have a proper tail…' "Just a simple headache is all."

He could see Applejack blush slightly. "Sorry about that," she said. "A bit of self-defense on my part." Hasgon just groaned and rubbed his skull. "Anyway, you'd have just tried to eat me, if I hadn't."

Hasgon opened his mouth to reply, but quickly shut it. She was right. He hadn't eaten in a couple of days. He still was starving. He was even now tempted to make her a snack. He refrained from doing so. "So, what do you do here?" he asked, trying to turn the conversation away from the subject.

"I don't see any harm in telling you," Applejack said. "I work on my family's apple farm. We got the best apples in all of Equestria."

"Apples?" Hasgon repeated, scratching his lower jaw. "You mean those red things on the trees?"

Applejack just stared at him, dubiously. "Don't tell me you've never seen an apple before," she said.

"We don't have apples and such where I come from." Hasgon said, before his stomach reminded him of his hunger. "Though I am craving something juicy."

"Well, one of our dishes will clear up that hunger of yours," Applejack said confidently.

"As long as it doesn't involve plants, I'm fine with whatever you have," Hasgon said. Applejack just seemed to eye him for a moment, moving her mouth around. He paid close attention to that area. He was rather fascinated by hoonah mouths. 'How do they get their mouths do those things?' he thought. 'Twisting, puffing, and all that.'

"I'll do my best," Applejack said.

They walked on, until they got to Sweet Apple Acres. Big Macintosh was waiting for them. "I see he's doin' better," he said, eyeing Hasgon.

"Yes, he is," Applejack said. "He'll be stayin' with us for a while."

Big Mac's eyes widened a bit. "He's a stayin' with us?" he asked.

"That's right." Applejack nodded. She looked around. "So, where's Apple Bloom?" she asked.

"She's off playin' with her friends," Big Macintosh answered.

Applejack sighed. She didn't hate Hasgon, but she didn't want Apple Bloom anywhere near him. That just didn't sit right with her. "How about granny?" she asked.

"Sleepin'," Big Mac answered flatly.

"Well, then it's a perfect time to show him the farm," Applejack said, looking over at Hasgon. She was going to keep a close eye on him from now on. "Don't want you gettin' lost or somethin'."

"No, I wouldn't want that," Hasgon said.

Twilight threw another book over her shoulder. She'd been reading up all day on parallel universes and the plausibility of connection. 'Alright,' she told herself, looking through another book. 'There's nothing to worry about. Just the possible chance that I just broke a hole in the universe. That's all.'

"Spike, give me that book," she said, putting down the book at hand. Spike walked over and gave her the book he was holding. She used her magic and levitated it out of his hands. "Thank you." She quickly flipped through the pages, until she found the spell she was looking for. The unicorn looked over the spell she had cast, reading the instruction again. 'I followed it to the letter. Everything was perfect. Could it be possible I managed it? No one in the history of Equestria had been able to pull it off. Scholars had debated whether it was even feasible to do so. Yet, this creature claims to be from another world. What if...' Her eyes widened and she dropped the book.

"Something wrong, Twilight?" Spike asked, concerned.

"Oh dear," Twilight said, fidgeting with her hooves. "Oh no!"

"What is it?" Spike said.

"This can't be!" Twilight said, rather frantically. "What in the name of Celestia have I done?" At the mention of her Princess, fear gripped her. "WHAT WILL THE PRINCESS SAY!" she yelled.

"The princess?" Spike said, raising an eyebrow.

"She can't find out I messed up!" Twilight said, pacing back and forth. "I'll just deal with this myself. Yeah! That's it. I'll just send Hasgon back through the portal. Problem solved. The Princess's won't be the wiser."

"Wiser about what?" Spike said, waving his arms in the air to get her

attention.

"But what if they find out?" Twilight asked, her chest heaving in and out. "What if they find out I brought him here? And that I hid him from them!"

/"Twilight Sparkle!" Princess Celestia scolded, hovering over her student. She gave her a glare that could match her sun's ferocity. "I am so disappointed in you."

"I can explain!" Twilight pleaded. She was crying her eyes out, shaking in fear.

"No explanations are needed," Celestia said, stomping a hoof onto the ground. The Earth shook under her. "You brought a great evil into this world."

"He isn't evil," Twilight said.

"SILENCE!" Celestia shouted. Twilight covered her ears from the intensity of the princess's voice. "You shall be punished for this insipid and rather stupid act." She tapped her lower jaw with a hoof in thought. "Now, what sort of punishment should I use?"

Princess Luna came jumping up in glee. "Oooh, oooh," she said, jumping around her sister. "I know one!"

"What is it, Luna?" Celestia asked.

"Why don't I banish her to the moon?" Luna said. "Or better yet, the sun. I never get to banish people. Can I? Pretty please, big sis."

Celestia just laughed. "Alright, my dear sister," she said, patting the moon goddess's head. "You may banish her to the sun."

"Yes!" Luna exclaimed, hoof pumping. "I get to banish you," she said, before breaking down into a dance. "I get to banish you, yeah!"/

"NO!" Twilight said, her eyes clenched shut. "Stop it! It's bad enough that I'm being banished, but stop dancing!"

"Twilight!" Spike said, trying to shake her. "Snap out of it!"

Twilight shook her head, stepping out of her fantasy. "Sorry, about that," she said, smiling nervously. "My mind just wandered a bit."

"Yeah," Spike said, rolling his eyes. "You seem to do that a lot."

Twilight scrunched her face into one of annoyance. "Alright," she said. "Anyway, I won't be writing to Celestia about this creature."

"Why not?" Spike said. "You said yourself, he could be dangerous."

"Yes, but we have to deal with him on our own," Twilight said. Spike just stared at her. "I mean, honestly. What could possibly go wrong?"

Pinkie Pie popped out of a closet. "You did not just say that!" she said.

"What were you doing in my closet?" Twilight asked.

Pinkie ignored her question. "You just jinxed us!" she said, pointing a hoof at her.

"Jinxed?" Twilight asked. "How?"

"The whole, 'what could possibly go wrong' thing!" Pinkie Pie said, stating it as if it were a common fact. "Everyone knows that just asks for trouble!"

"Oh, Pinkie," Twilight said, shaking her head, "you should know that jinxes don't really work. I mean seriously, how could anything I say effect our world?"

"You did it again!" Pinkie Pie yelled.

Deep within the confines of Russia, Krotoosk, the Kra commander of all forces stationed in Russia, sat patiently. The wooden hoonah structure around him was sufficient enough of a base of operations. 'Where is that report?' he thought. He had been waiting hours for an update on their current situation. Of course, he knew they were doing well. His sector of Eka would be under control within in no time. 'Ugon, eat your heart out.' He thought. He would enjoy trumping his rival's achievements.

Suddenly, another Kra came into the room. He saluted. "Sir, the reports are in," he said.

"Well," Krotoosk said, "What about them?"

"Most of the resistance has been crushed," The Kra said. "Hoonah forces are too spread out to be of any threat to us."

If Krotoosk could smile, his face would be split into a grin. "Ah, victory at last," he said, before walking over to a window. He looked outside, marvelling at Eka's beauty. "Eka. You are ours once again."

"There is something you should know sir," the Kra said.

"What?" Krotoosk asked, turning his head to look at him.

"Well, we lost contact with a certain patrol unit," the soldier said. "They were investigating this one area suspected of hiding hoonah armor when they disappeared."

Krotoosk scowled. 'I should have known there would be a catch to it,' he thought. 'Wait! I had put Sevu in command of that patrol. Surely he would have reported as soon as possible. He'd never just disappear, unless...' "Gather the troops together," he said, before turning back to the window. "I'll lead the next incursion myself."

"Shall we move out now, sir?" the Kra soldier asked.

"No," Krotoosk said, "We'll wait until morning."

Meanwhile, in another part of Russia, Alexander Antonov looked over another patient. He didn't have any serious injuries, just a gash in his arm. He'd be ready to get back into the fight in no time. He sighed. He was a pacifist at heart and hated to see such carnage. 'Why did they come here?' he kept on thinking. 'What could they gain from all this destruction?' Their motives were a mystery to him, but others kept telling him the same thing, over and over again. 'They want us all dead,' was always their answer. Yet, that didn't settle right for him. 'Surely, they have some heart,' Nonetheless, he continued on with his work.

"OW! Be careful, doc." The soldier he was working on said. He noticed he'd accidently stuck him in the wrong place. "I'd like to keep this arm."

"Sorry." Alexander said. He mentally swore at himself for getting caught up in his thoughts.

All of a sudden, General Anastas Vereshchagin walked into the medical tent. He was a large and intimidating man, big broad shoulders, thick mustache, with a cut and trimmed uniform. Yet, one could see compassion in his eyes for his soldiers and his people. And also, one could see the strain of command. He was one of the few, if not only, Generals still in possession of armor support. "Doctor," he said, "are the men—" He took a glance at a female soldier, "and ladies ready to fight?"

Alexander took out a handkerchief and wiped off his hands. He nodded. "Yes. Nothing serious. They'll all be ready to move at your command."

"Excellent," Anastas said, clapping his hands together. "Good work, Doctor." He stopped for a moment. "Now, I need you to get your supplies loaded back into the truck."

"But sir, we just got here," Alexander said. "Some of them are in no condition to be moved."

"I know, but I have Intel that the enemy is closing in on this location," Anastas replied. He raised a hand to silence him. "You'll have plenty of time. We'll be leaving in daybreak, as long as that blasted moon doesn't hinder us."

Back in Equestria, Princess Celestia was again looking over some parchments dictating laws and such of Equestria. 'A Princess's job is never done,' she thought. Though, lately, she'd been putting more and more of her time into drowning herself in it. Luna was a bit worried, but Celestia had calmed her down. 'She is just so skittish.' There was a knock at the door. Celestia slowly put down her parchment and went over to the door to open it.

A servant girl stood there, with a glass of water in her hoof. "Your water, Princess," she said.

Celestia smiled and lifted the water with her magic. "Thank you very much," she said. The servant girl simply bowed. She closed her the door behind her. She sat herself back into her place and returned her attention back to her parchments. 'Alright, back to looking over the age limit of...' Her eyes flew open. There, in the middle of her stool, was a letter. That wasn't what frightened her; it was what was on it that did.

/My beloved Lest,

It has been so long since we last met. Indeed, it has put a heavy strain on my soul. I cannot express my loathing of every second away from you. I'm sorry if our time was cut short, but no matter. Fate once again brings us together. And this time, our love shall never be eclipsed.

From,

You should know

P.S. I see you still have a nice flank./

Celestia just stared at it for a moment. "It can't be," she said, distrusting the letter. "It can't be. He's gone. Gone forever!" Tears started to form in her eyes. "This is a trick. Just some sick, twisted trick," Her eyes narrowed in fury. "And they shall pay dearly for it!" Her voice trimmed with icy venom. "GUARDS!"

The instant she said that word, several Pegasus guards came running in. "You called, Princess?" one said.

Celestia held out the letter. "Find whoever wrote this letter and bring them here at once!" She demanded. "They have insulted me deeper than anyone in Equestria's history. Do what you must, but I want them here, NOW!"

The guards were taken aback by her anger. "We'll get right on it," he said. One of the guards stepped forward and grabbed the note. He took off with most of the other guards.

One stayed however. "Anything else, your highness?"

Celestia didn't know what to say. 'Is there anything else?' she thought. 'Have I overlooked something? That strange feeling I got yesterday, and now this note. Surely it can't be coincidence.' She tried shaking that thought away, but it was no use. "And tell Captain Courage to assemble his finest troops."

"Is there some sort of danger, your highness?" the guard asked.

Celestia remained silent for a moment. She closed her eyes and breathed out. "Yes," the Alicorn answered.