Away From Home

It was a very peaceful morning at the EDF HQ on Earth. The beautiful rainy weather contrasted with the black building as the sounds of gentle drops of water fell from the sky.

From the enormous building, two silhouettes emerged, Twilight and Graves. They had just finished meeting the lab staff, and where ready to head home.

The sound of a starting chopper´s engine greeted the duo as they walked into the platform. Across these six years, Twilight had become amazed with the technology in this world, wondering about how much they could do, but at the same time she found it horrifying how many destruction it could cause as well. She had been to the human world before, even though, she entirely forgot about the fact the first time she arrived here, the shock of the sudden moment was too high. All in all, the one she visited wasn´t as barbaric as this one, deal, she knew not everyone was evil, not everyone was a certified asshole like Dylan, but this human race was capable of pretty awful stuff. Sure, maybe the alien invasion had changed things around the globe, but international conflicts were still a thing.

Initially, the EDF was supposed to put a stop at these problems with the idea of reuniting world´s armies, but instead they ended up full of douchebags.

“Come on Skits.” Graves´ words cut Twilight out of her trance to notice the general already up in the chopper, it seemed that she went out of reality a good amount of time. “Anything wrong?” He asked.

“It´s nothing.” She answered, as she set foot inside the aerial vehicle.

Once she stood inside, Twilight took sit and placed one hand under her chin. Graves knew what was the problem. Twilight was a pure girl, one that used to think that friendship was the highest power. Graves chuckled internally ´It´s not like friendship has saved us from the past years full of shit´ he thought.

It had certainly been several rough years, not only had the invasion left a lot of death and destruction, but it also made a black hole in the monetary system, plenty of labor positions were lost, along with the money used to repair several cities, still, they all had managed to continue and restore balance, or at least as much as they could.

The engine began to run, shortly after, the chopper ascended into the air, getting ready to get Graves and Twilight to their destination.

The general returned to his thoughts, thinking about the economical crisis that ensured after the attack. Of course, much of the money was invested into the EDF to ensure it was upgraded with the latest technology in hopes of avoiding so much losses in case the invaders returned. Graves shuddered at this thought, even if they had him, another attack would be catastrophic, even with the advancements made.

His thoughts returned to Twilight. She had lost everything the moment she set foot in this planet and he didn´t want her to live a war, it was a good thing there were no signs of them returning. Still, he had to know.

“Skits?” He asked, getting Twilight´s attention. “I need to ask you something.” Graves gulped. “How prepared would you feel if there was another attack?” The young girl cocked her head to the side. “Do you think you could manage yourself if Earth was invaded again?” Not that he would leave her on her own luck, but this kind of situations had a tendency of separating people from their loved ones.

On her part, Twilight sighed, she really didn´t like the war subject, still, she had been in this kind of situation before, maybe not on the same scale, but certainly something alike. “I know if something like that happened again, you wouldn´t leave me.”

“That is not what I asked.” Graves replied, his tone serious but with a hint of concern. “Do you feel like handling yourself if something like that happened?”

“Why ask? Did something happen?” Twilight insisted, getting a look from the man.

“Skits, answer the question.”

Twilight remained silent a few seconds, she knew Graves was a very disciplined person and he wouldn´t let her get away before answering his questions. Finally, she lowered her head for a moment and took a deep breath. “Yes, I have managed myself before and I know I can do it now.” Graves nodded, however, twilight still wasn´t finished. “But why? Was it because of the anomaly? Do you think they could invade again?”

Graves scratched the back of his head, sighing as he formulated the words in his mind. “I know nothing about what the future could bring, but if something was to happen and if for some reason I wasn´t there to protect you, I want to at least know I can count on you to resist, Twilight.”

It were not many times he would call her by name and when this happened, she knew he was dead serious. “I can handle myself, you don´t need to worry about me.”

“But I do.” He answered. “That is why I asked and to answer your other questions: No, I don´t think they will come back, the anomaly just seemed to be the activation of one of their ships, probably activated by someone being curious, that´s all.”

“Hmph.” Twilight crossed her arms and gave Graves a look..

Graves chuckled. “Don´t worry, Skits, if something happens, I will try to remember using you as a shield to get out of the mess.”

“Hah, hah! How funny.” Answered Twilight, giving him an amused look. “If only you could catch me.”

“I´m not that old.”

Twilight let out a laugh and muttered under her breath. “Yes you are.”

Graves crossed his arms. “I heard that.”

Quickly, Twilight lifted her hands in a defensive position. “That was not me, it was the pilot.”

As soon as the word left her mouth, the man piloting managed to released a loud ´what?´, making Twilight chuckle. As soon as the moment was over, she turned to face the large seas, deep in thought.

“Don´t worry, Skits.” Graves said, getting Twilight´s attention. “Nothing is going to happen. Juts relax and enjoy your vacations”

The young woman smiled. “I know I will. I have been inside the facilities for three months, I really miss home.”

“We´ll get there, finally.” Trying to comfort the former princess, Graves placed his hand on her shoulder. “The amount of work you have done for the EDF deserves some rest and you can use this time to enjoy yourself, you deserve it.”

Twilight smiled. “I hope I can, thank you.” With those words, Graves nodded in response, while getting himself comfortable on his seat.

He was right, Twilight had been under so much pressure and it was already time for her to rest from all of her work, still she couldn´t help but to think about his words. She wasn´t as terrified about the possibility, she had been in those situations before. Of course, if something happened, Twilight would be more than prepared.

The chopper flew into the horizon, getting the two of them home.

A distant noise was heard amongst the military camp, each second getting closer to the place and it wasn´t long before a chopper made itself visible. None of the soldiers were alarmed, though, as the vehicle held the EDF insignia, as such, the chopper landed without any problem.

As it settled itself on the ground, the two passengers prepared themselves to get out.

“You can get now, sir.” Said the pilot, receiving a nod from Graves.

“Thank you, soldier.” The old man turned to stare at Twilight. “Lets go Skits. Mind the head.” The former alicorn nodded. Graves got off the vehicle and gave a helping hand to Twilight, who took immediately. Once on the ground, Graves turned to look at his surroundings, getting a familiar air.

Just as the two of them prepared to walk, a soldier approached them. “General! Good to have you back, here!” Graves extended his arm, receiving a bunch of keys. “You car is exactly where you left it.” He released a smirk. “We did our best to avoid driving it.”

Graves chuckled in response. “At least you tried, thank you, soldier.” With a nod from his head, the young man proceeded to leave, giving another greeting nod towards Twilight, who answered with a smile of her own.

Giving a deep breath, the former princess turned to look at Graves. “I was dying to get out of that facility.”

“You weren´t the only one, come.” They had been aboard the HQ for three months, were enormous amounts of work were the order of the day, not that Twilight was lazy, on the contrary, she was a rather active person when work was in the line, but having at least some time to enjoy herself out of her duties was something refreshing.

There would be a time were she complained about not having enough things to do as a princess, but now that she had her hands full without being royalty, she silently wished she could be a princess again.

The two of them made their way towards the military camp, entering the administration where they could see the parking lot at the other side of the transparent doors.

As graves and Twilight passed, every soldier they found saluted them, or at least their general. The way his men treated him, talked a lot about what kind of man he was and it sure did say many good things.

Graves had always been a very righteous man, even though he could be very disciplinary at times, still, it did not take away his goodness. Twilight smiled at the treatment he got, she had been student to a very powerful and wise entity, yet she felt like she could learn a lot more about this man, who wasn´t even an all powerful being. Maybe the greatest treasures came in small packages and that small package had made her stay in this world a very pleasant ride. Going out of her thoughts, Twilight proceeded behind Graves, as they got out of the administration and towards the parking lot, were their car was waiting.

A standard gray van was visible amongst the enormous amounts of vehicles scattered across the lot. Graves was a man of simple tastes, nothing to gaudy appealed to him, something that Twilight shared immensely.

On his part, Graves was happy with what he got, he did not need to live in the Taj Mahal to be happy and it showed.

Inserting the keys into the key hole of the car´s door, Graves gave a deep sigh. “Been dying to drive this.”

“Can I drive?” Asked Twilight, getting a scared look from the old man. “If you want us to end in the hospital just a few minutes after we arrived, then sure, go ahead.”

Twilight grunted and crossed her arms. “Come on! I´m not that bad of a driver.”

Graves chuckled as a response. “You really insist on me having this bad memories.” Another few laughs followed.

Twilight was very good in several things, however, driving wasn´t one of them; Graves learned this a little too late and now, everytime she slipped by into the wheel, his face would start to sweat cold and with enough reason.

However, contrary to Graves´ fears, Twilight wasn´t convinced. “Come on, I´ve been getting better.” She said, getting herself on the passenger sit, alongside Graves who had the seat belt already on.

The old man closed the door and turned to look at Twilight. “The last time you said that, one Sanborns and a clothes store went down in history as the receivers of your wrath.”

Twilight fumed in silence, as she crossed her arms. “One day I will slip into this car and you will never notice.”

“And when that happens,” Graves chuckled, “I will take the decision of hanging myself in the bathroom to avoid looking at the ensuing apocalypse.” Regardless of the old man´s laughs, Twilight´s face gave a very angry and grim expression.

“Don´t say that!” This caught Graves by surprise, who directed his gaze towards an angry Twilight and even though her frown hid it pretty well, there was hint of fear and sadness in the face.

“It was just a joke, Skits.” Answered the man, causing Twilight to sigh and lower her head.

“Just, don´t say that.”

Graves understood this, Twilight had suffered a lot of loses in her life and the subject of death was a delicate topic for her. He figure she didn´t want to be left alone. Releasing a comforting smile, Graves placed his hand under her chin to lift her face and get in eye contact with her.

“Don´t worry, Skits, nothing is going to happen.” Twilight´s frowned calmed. “We are finally home, lets enjoy the vacations.”

Closing her eyes, Twilight nodded in response. “Yeah, sorry.”

“No, I´m sorry.” Graves said, getting a thin smile from the former alicorn, then placed the key inside the hole to start the engine and placed both of his hands on the wheel.

Just in that moment, Twilight´s belly started to ´talk´. “Can we go eat something? I´m kind of starving.” She said, giving away a sheepish smile.

Graves began to drive the vehicle towards the exit and without taking his eyes from the upcoming road, he talked. “You sure you don´t want to try Duke burger?”

Twilight released a disgusted look. For obvious reasons, she had never been a fan of meat, not even when it was referred in a simple topic. The thought of someone eating someone else was something she could not stomach, however, she knew Graves was just messing with her, this didn´t stop from the man from noticing Twilight´s face from the corner of his eye and released a few chuckles.

“You know?” Twilight said. “Next time we go to Polaris, I will make sure to destroy that establishment of Tartarus.”

Graves laughed once more. “I´m sure you don´t need a nuclear missile to do something like that.”

Twilight deadpanned. “Why do I get the feeling you think of me as some kind of super powered item of destruction?”

Graves smirked. “A super powered item of destruction that talks with cows.”

“I told you I thought they were the same as in Equestria?” Twilight replied, letting out a rather comic frown.

Graves was simply enjoying himself at this moment and it showed. “And I had a lot of thinking to do to avoid getting you into a mental asylum.”

Contrary to Graves laughs, Twilight held a serious look. “Not funny.” She wasn´t angry in reality, she was just playing along.

“It is kind of funny.” Graves replied.

With this, the vacations began, shaping up to be a breath of fresh air for both the man and his little girl.

The vehicle sped up to descent levels, loosing itself on the horizon and going each time farther from the military camp, deepening itself into the upcoming city.

Twilight always ha a thing for huge, advanced placed, but she much preferred to bask herself in the beauty of most simplistic environments, still, the city she and Graves lived in was something rather impressive... Las Vegas, a city full of light.

The movement in this place was rather intense, not only for the numerous amounts of people living the nocturnal life, but also the countless casinos like The Lady killer, or impressive sights like the Duke dome. For Twilight, the social life wasn´t something she desperately needed, even though friends were important for her; sadly for the former alicorn, she didn´t exactly made any in the sleepless city, contrary to the EDF facility were she made fast friends with most of the scientific work staff.

The travel from the military camp to their home, went rather quiet, as both of them opted to enjoy their resting time, however, it wouldn´t be too long before Graves put a stop to the silence. “Okay, Skits, your decision.” Twilight turned to stare at him. “Either we go eating somewhere or we head back home and call a veggie restaurant. Personally, my bed is telepathically calling me.”

Twilight chuckled at Graves´ response. She wasn´t a going out person and actually, going home seemed like a most appealing option. “Actually,” she said, “I´m with you on that one,” The former alicorn shifter her gaze from the old man to the world outside the window, releasing a melancholic expression, “there is no place like your own home.”

With the decision taken, Graves directed his car towards their place, ready to enjoy a little bit of silence.

Soon enough, their home was visible amongst the numerous houses in the small neighborhood and wasn´t long before Graves set the car in the entrance of the average size place.

A white, medium sized home with red rooftop greeted the duo, who had just settled the vehicle outside and had started to place their feet on the ground. Twilight used the time Graves wasted in searching the right key for the handle, to smell the air of the familiar sight.

After a few seconds, the man walked towards the entrance and introduced the key, opening the wood door shortly after.

Going inside the small, white colored hallway, Graves gave a deep breath, followed by a certain young woman, who had a rather happy look on her face...

They were home, at last.

Graves took off his jacket and placed it on the living room´s brown sofa, then directed his steps towards the kitchen. “Have a little rest, Skits, I will call that veggie restaurant you like, then after they arrive and we eat, I´m going to have a serious meeting with Morpheus.”

Twilight couldn´t help but to chuckle at this, then she gave him a slight nod with her head and proceeded to go upstairs towards her room. Just before she ascended the stair case, the young girl released a smirk and turned to look at Graves, who was already looking for the number on the fridge. “You sure you don´t want a pair of good eyes to search for that number.”

Without looking behind him, Graves reclaimed. “Not that old.”

Twilight laughed once more and continued her way towards her dorm. A white wooden door with the emblem of her former cutie mark at the middle, greeted her. She took a few seconds to admire the symbol that had given her so much promise and a higher role that she could have ever imagined, but it was also the image of what he would never be again. It was in moments like these, were she did not know whether to loose hope or remain positive. In the end, she shook the thoughts of her mind, as she was eager to meet her room.

Carefully opening the door, twilight made her way towards the middle sized room. A small bed with rainbow colored sheets adorned the middle of the dormitory; in front of it, a rather big brown desk sat stuck to the wall; a lamp, a few books and a purple laptop rested on the wooden desk. Alongside it, a large bookcase found itself on the side of the window, its numerous books adorning the giant of knowledge.

Twilight grinned at seeing her room again and directed her gaze towards the desk once more to spot a few photographs. Getting closer to them, the former alicorn grabbed one and inspected it. It was a photo of her and Graves at the top of the Duke dome. Twilight gave a warm smile at the picture, she remembered this moment.

Three years ago, Graves took her to admire the sight of the restless city atop of one of Las Vegas´ greatest monuments. That day she had a huge letdown, as the staff team behind a teleportation program, gave her the false hopes of her returning home. Graves didn´t think it would hit her as hard as it did and he didn´t want her to feel depressed.

Twilight felt grateful with him. If it wasn´t for Graves, she didn´t know where he would find herself right now. The smile did not leave her face, as she placed the photo back on the desk, then turned around towards her bed, thinking about a moment. Casting another glance at the window, Twilight noticed the rainy day, then she took her decision. “Nope, too good of a day to let it be wasted.” With those words, she stepped out of her room and proceeded to descend the stairs, heading towards the kitchen.

Graves had just finished calling the restaurant and was already serving himself come cola. Turning around in time to spot Twilight, Graves cleared his throat to speak. “Already called, just thirty minutes before they get here.” Far away from what Graves was expecting, Twilight launched herself to hug the man with force, leaving a perplexed but smiling general, not exactly knowing what to do and simply opted to return the hug. “Wow, Skits, didn´t know you were that happy to return home.”

“Thank you for everything you have done for me.” Twilight answered, a huge smile painted on her face. “I it wasn´t for you, I don´t know what could have happened to me.”

Graves smile warmly at this. “Don´t mention it, Twilight, I could have never left you alone in this world.”

It was a rather weird occasion for the old man, sure, Twilight was such a sweet girl, it was her nature, but it was on rare occasions when she was this sweet. He had to admit it, having Twilight in his life made it less dark and more lively than it had ever been and not even crazy, would he change this last six years which, in his mind, had been some of the best in his life.

Soon enough, the man broke contact. “Okay, Skits, enough. I need whats left of my air to survive.”

Twilight laughed at this. “Come on, I didn´t even hugged you that strong,” she released a smirk, “Or is it your age that makes you weak?”

Graves rolled his eyes, a huge smile on his face, as he turned to grab his drink again. “Not that old, cow talker.”

“Hey!” Replied A frowning Twilight, making Graves chuckle.

“You started it.”

As the old man returned to his cola, Twilight grinned warmly. After all these years, she now felt like part of the humanity she was now in. Twilight loved the life she had here, even though, she still missed her past one.

The former alicorn once more wondered about what he friends have been doing all this time, did they forget about her? Or they, at least tried to search for a way to get her back and then, finally gave up? Whatever the case and whatever happened, Twilight knew she wanted her pop alongside her.

Setting the thoughts aside, the young girl prepared for the upcoming day and the travel she was about to make tomorrow.

Outside the Earth´s surface, a huge space ship cloaked itself in the vacuum of space. Inside, the horrors and nightmares prepared themselves for what was about to come.

It was a floating city, a moving world and from one the bridge´s windows, a single eyed creature stared into the blue oceans and brown colored spots of the planet.

The time had come.