The Planet of Eden

EDIT: This chapter is now long as hell.

Ponyville Hospital

Nurse Redheart had no idea that Apollo wasn't supposed to leave.

"I'm sorry, won't happen again. Assumptions can kill... could have been literal in this case." Nurse Redheart crammed as much as she could into five seconds of talking.

"It's fine, honestly. If his leg wasn't fully healed, he couldn't have gathered enough energy to teleport." Twilight eased the nurse's guilt with a partial lie. Teleporting while injured would still be an incredibly unlikely event, though.

"All right, back to work. Thanks for stopping by to resolve that. Oh, and here are the books that you left here." Nurse Redheart began to heave the books to Twilight, but she was stopped when the books were encased in a purple veil.

After receiving her books and placing them in her satchel, Twilight turned and trotted out the door to reunite with the patiently waiting ponies. This included Rainbow and Pinkie for once. Twilight then nodded a single time. Everypony else mimicked the action.

On the way to their destination, Apollo was too busy pondering the destination to notice how many ponies staring at his blank flank. Though he had known what his job would be on Earth ever since middle school, Apollo's uncertainty about how he could use his intelligence in Equestria prevented his realization of his talent.

As soon as he departed from his daydream imagining where he was going, Apollo turned red in the cheek from the presence of so many onlookers staring at him. Twilight took note of this and increased her pace.

Soon after, they arrived at a gigantic tree-house with several windows and a balcony near the top. Apollo was awestruck by the enormity of the tree, and payed no heed to the fact that everypony else was going inside. He shook his head and exited his trance, then entered Twilight's Library.

It was even more incredible on the inside. There were dozens of bookshelves with hundreds of books on each of them. Apollo noticed the presence of an upper floor with less books, but the mane six stopped and turned to face him at the side of the room opposite to the door. Or, at least, the members of the mane six that were there.

"Where's the other unicorn?" Apollo questioned.

"I asked Rarity to check the area around your bed in the hospital. You can never be too sure, especially with the explanation you gave us..." Twilight seemed a bit more friendly than when she was asking the questions. "Anyways, this situation calls for a full interrogation. We can't trust you when you have so much to hide."

"Understandable..." Apollo was looking at the ground in front of him, wondering about how many horrified reactions he would recieve.

"So... what is your specific occupation? 'Scientist' isn't enough this time."

"I am, or rather was, an aerospace engineer and astronomer. I was employed by the National Aeronautics and Space Defense Administration, or NASDA for short." Apollo stopped himself before mentioning NASDA's military background.

"Defense? Defense from what?"

I was hoping she wouldn't ask that...

Apollo bit his lip. "Defense from... foreign relations gone wrong."

Twilight detected Apollo in the act avoiding something. "How so?"

"As in hostile foreign relations." He avoided the topic of war yet again.

Twilight pierced Apollo's mind with her glare and continued her barrage of questions. "What kind of hostile foreign relations? And why is there so much worry about it?"

Gah! No avoiding it now...

Apollo sighed and prepared for the worst. "Human nature includes a severe tendency towards violence. War, crime, and terrorism are very prevalent dangers to every country..."

Everypony, including Pinkie, dropped their jaws and stared in disbelief. Twilight managed to scrape up the courage to press further.

"What kind of crime? And what is terrorism?"

"Crime can be anything from stealing a worthless object to mass murder. Terrorism..." Apollo winced. "...is spreading terror, usually by killing hundreds or thousands of people at a time. At times it can be over a trivial matter like a creationism belief..."

Twilight could not ask another question. She simply could not comprehend the hatred that humans must have for each other.

"I was payed by the military to make a deep-space vehicle. They hoped that it would eventually lead to space warfare. I only accepted because it had been my dream to explore the depths of space and find another planet with intelligent life..." Apollo looked away from the mortified ponies. "I assure you I am not like those people... I never would have accepted to construct a machine built for the sole purpose of destruction..."

Rainbow Dash shook away her nightmareish daydream and spoke everypony's mind.

"We can't trust you! What makes you think that claiming you're different will make any difference!"

"I agree... We need to report this to the princess." Everypony agreed with Twilight. "In the mean time-"

Rarity trotted into the room. "Hello! There's nothing there..." She trailed off as soon as she noticed the expressions on everypony's faces. "What... is going on...?"

"There wasn't anything...? Really?" Twilight almost seemed excited.

"Yes, I checked everywhere. I made the dreadfully messy beds too. Did I miss something?"

"Yes, a lot... you can catch up later." Twilight faced Apollo again. "Anyways, how did Rainbow get injured?"

"That's an easy one. She was shot with a gun. It's an object which uses gunpowder, a highly explosive substance, to propel a small metal cylinder called a bullet at speeds high enough to fly through just about anything."

"'Gunpowder?' What's that?"

"It's made of sulfur, charcoal, and saltpeter. It's used in cannons and fireworks."

Twilight bit her lip and tilted her head downwards.

How could somepony take something fun like fireworks and turn it into a tool of destruction...?

"So ya know how to make gunpowder and ya expect us to trust you?" Applejack took a step towards Apollo.

"C'mon everypony, cheer up! Maybe he likes to make fireworks!" Pinkie Pie brought the tiniest bit of happiness into the interrogation.

"Actually, it was a substance I considered at one point for separating an escape pod from the main spacecraft. I never got it to work, though."

Twilight brought the group back to inquiring Apollo. "All right, let's get back on topic. If you don't like war, why don't you like it?"

Apollo sighed.

This is it... This is definitely the last question. This is my last chance to clear my name to these ponies.

"I believe that any form of violence is like fighting yourself. You're always hurting yourself in some way when you hurt somepony else. For example, by killing another you reduce the number of people, er, ponies you can befriend, or at least cooperate with. Most people back home don't fully realize that at all. Come to think of it, I didn't either..."

Are they starting to rub off on me? What am I even saying? Is this my true opinion or is it something I made up to sound less guilty?

It most likely isn't my opinion, but rather something I made up just so I don't appear to be a madman... I'm screwed if they figure that out. I've ignored the Element of Honesty, and the Elements of Harmony are the closest things to laws in Equestria. It's incredibly cheesy and yet it works better than any law system we've ever had on Earth. Almost a thousand years of total peace with the occasional tyrant who gets overthrown after a while. Discord failed and Nightmare Moon failed because of a bunch of qualities of friendship... What the hell! That only brings me in a full circle... how do the Elements of Harmony bring peace so easily?

Apollo brought himself back to reality and analyzed the current situation. The mane six were whispering to each other, then became silent and broke their huddle.

"We told Rarity what you said before, and we came to an agreement." Twilight informed.

Apollo recognized the hints of emotion in everypony's faces, and determined that they were certainly less grim than before.

"Since there was a complete lack of evidence to find any wrongdoings, we can trust you."

Even though he saw this coming, Apollo felt pleasantly surprised. He faintly smiled, then abandoned the serious tone he had used earlier for a more lively one.

"Well, that's a hell of a lot better than being completely guilty."

"BUT! If you do one thing to hurt anypony, I'll take care of you personally!" Rainbow Dash rashly added.

Apollo heavily nodded. "Anyways, you have no idea how terrible it is to be put under so much suspicion. Thanks."

Apollo looked at the faces of the mane six, then ceased to smile after a few moments.

"Where's Pinkie P-" *BOOM*

Apollo jumped and took cover under the table and noticed a few balloons around the room. A handful of pegasi came from upstairs and shouted: "Surprise!" The door burst open and dozens of ponies flooded in. Pinkie Pie was hysterically laughing on top of a blue cannon. Apollo lightened up and discovered that he was the recipient of an incredibly surprising surprise party.

"I'm right here, silly! That was the funniest reaction I've ever seen!"

Apollo decided not to take the comment personally and replied. "You really got me with that one Pinkie, but a party? You didn't have to..."

"I do a 'Welcome to Ponyville' party for everypony! I even did one for myself! That wasn't a surprise party, though. Anyways, let's party!"

The party lasted through the remainder of the afternoon and late into the night. The party would have seemed childish if Apollo was only watching it, but it was better than it seemed. Apollo found a great amount of warm welcomes and amiable discussions. By the end of the day, he could remember almost everypony's names. Pinkie Pie's cupcakes were better than any cupcakes Apollo had eaten before, and the same could be said about the punch. Even Pin the Tail on the Pony was a highly entertaining game for him, especially since he gave the pony a mustache by mistake. After the game was over, ponies gradually started to retire from the party.

Once almost everypony had gone home, the mane six discussed where Apollo should go to sleep.

"Most of our houses only have one bed excluding yours, Applejack. But I don't think Apollo would like to sleep at a farm very much... No offense."

"Ah agree, Twi. Anypony else have a spare bed?"

Rainbow Dash spoke up. "Well, I have one, but he can't walk on clouds... What about you, Fluttershy?"

"Oh, um, no..."

The mane six strained to think of an idea, until Twilight thought of one.

"How Apollo stays here? He wouldn't have to walk to anypony's house tonight, and he should appreciate the library."

Everypony agreed.

Once Pinkie Pie finally left about fifteen minutes later, the party officially ended. Spike, the purple baby dragon whom Apollo had met during the party, walked to bed like a zombie. Twilight offered her bed to Apollo, but he refused and proposed to sleep on the couch. Spike's blanket was taken by Apollo while Spike was asleep.

Apollo laid down and processed the day's events.

So all four of the team were gone when Twilight arrived at the campsite, and the campsite was at the top of a hill. According to Twilight it seemed to be hastily cleaned up, but she brought nothing back... Since nothing was brought back, I can safely assume nothing important was left behind. That doesn't make any sense...

He figuratively bashed his brain for answers.

What about inside the escape pod? There's no way that anypony could have gotten in since the campsite was evacuated... Gah, the hell with it. Nopony can get in, so I shouldn't worry about it. I can just sit back and relax for a while.

Apollo clambered downstairs to bring up the history book he had begun reading in the hospital, titled A Brief History of Equestria.

Hah, there's nothing brief about a book bigger than a dictionary. Now where was I... there was something about the beginning of Discord's tyranny...

He read about two dozen pages, then submitted to darkness.

Twilight lasted a long while after Apollo fell asleep that night.

Dear Princess Celestia,

Our journey in Whitetail Wood was quite tranquil. We trotted for a total of an hour and a half along the border of the Everfree Forest with no hindrances whatsoever. Despite this, the trip as a whole was unsuccessful. Instead of finding the enigmatic creatures I told you about, there was a rashly cleared campsite at the top of a hill. A bulky device on a tripod was present in short proximity from the campfire. I have no clues as to what purpose it serves. As for the creatures, I suspect they may be headed towards Canterlot. I found bizarre hoofprints which lead away from the campsite in that direction. They probably will not pose too much of a threat once they arrive, but I for one hope they will not arrive at all.

Your faithful student,

Twilight Sparkle

Twilight purposefully avoided mentioning Apollo in case the princess would overreact. She proofread her letter once, twice, and thrice before finally feeling satisfied. She rolled the letter up and tied it shut with a red ribbon.

Should I wake up Spike, wait for morning then ask him, or send this via the postal service?

Due to the priority of the message, Twilight reluctantly decided to interrupt Spike's rest.

She nudged Spike with her snout and spoke in a near-whisper. "Wake up, Spike. I need you to send a letter."

"Wah...? This early?" Spike slackly peered towards Twilight with low eyelids.

"Come on Spike, it needs to get to Princess Celestia right away." She nudged Spike again.

"Okay, fine..."

Spike shot out a miniature lime green blaze which engulfed the scroll immediately. The fire diminished quickly, then disappeared with a strange popping noise.

"Hey, where's my blanket?" Spike became slightly more alert and scanned the room.

"Oh, I guess Apollo borrowed it. I'll get it for you." Twilight used a movement spell to relocate Spike's blue blanket. Apollo turned over on the couch.

"Thanks... Good night..." Spike thumped his head on the pillow of his tiny bed.

Apollo awoke about an hour after sunrise. The Sun was shining directly at his eyes, leading him to deduce that the blinding light had forced him to wake up. Apollo pivoted his head so that his face was buried in a pillow. As a result, Apollo's neck started to heat up until he couldn't ignore the nuisance any longer. He attempted to use magic to pull the shades in desperation, but all he got was a fizzle. Apollo lazily crawled out of the couch to pulled the shades of the window down.

I guess I can only do it when I'm entirely focused for now. Magic might take longer to get used to than I expected...

Apollo began to search for Twilight, since she wasn't in her bed the floor above. Even Spike was absent from his bed. Upon further investigation, they weren't downstairs either.

"That's a little odd..."

Where would they go so early in the morning? Apollo shook away his thoughts of curiosity. It doesn't matter anyways. I have things that I can spend my time on...

His stomach growled.

...Like getting breakfast, apparently.

Apollo decided to opt for the easy method by grabbing some apples he found in a bowl containing various fruits.

It'll probably take a while longer to get used to being a herbivore, too. I still can't imagine myself eating grass-based food.

He attempted to hold an apple in his hoof, but it slid off.

Oh yeah, hooves. I honestly don't know how pegasi and earth ponies survive without being able to move objects easily. Manipulating objects with your mouth must be a chore.

Apollo floated the apple through the air and took his first bite with a loud chomp.

It's a bit harder to bite through it with herbivorous teeth, too. Come to think of it, I'm glad I didn't tell them that humans are omnivores. I can't eat meat now, but still.

He rotated the apple and bit it again.

The door opened with a loud, persisting creak. Apollo turned instantly and saw Spike holding half a dozen pairs of quills and ink.

"Huh. Those hinges need to be oiled. Oh, hey Apollo."

"Hey Spike. Where's Twilight?"

"She went to Zecora's place." Spike walked towards Twilight's desk and neatly placed the new quills and ink in a drawer next to the desk.

"Zecora?" Apollo bent his face trying to remember a pony named Zecora.

"She's a zebra who lives in the Everfree Forest. At first Twilight thought she put a curse on her and everypony else, though." Spike chuckled. "And... Fluttershy had a deep manly voice for a day!" He chuckled again and then fell over while laughing hysterically.

Apollo imagined the ridiculousness of the scene of Fluttershy with a low voice. He let out a curt laugh. "How does that even happen? If that's not a kind of curse, I don't know what is."

"No, not like that. Like the kind a witch gives you. Except it was just some weird plant in the forest that did it."

"Hah! A witch? I guess the presence of that plant proves that the Everfree Forest shouldn't be taken lightly, though."

"Yeah..." Although Spike had never been in the Everfree Forest yet, he had heard too many stories about it.

Apollo continued to eat the apple from before Spike came in.

"By the way, are there any dragons where you're from?"

"No, only myths."

Spike frowned. "Maybe there were dragons, but then they died out and became myths."

"It's possible, but not likely. Then again, this entire planet would be a fairy tale back there. This place seems real enough to me. There are astonishing similarities, too. The odds of all these similarities would probably be one in a billion at the very least. " Apollo noticed Spike's disappointment to the first sentence. "Add dragons and it would be at least one in one billion million."

Seriously, how are there so many things that are the same? Especially language... Did Nightmare Moon replace the language portion of my brain or something? That must have been it. I would think I would notice if I was speaking another language, but it's entirely possible, not to mention it is the most likely explanation. But... I can't help but feel like I'm missing something here...

Apollo shook his head.

No, there is no other way. I beat the odds. That's all there is to it.

"You all right, Apollo?" Spike called while peeking out from the top of the stairs.

"I'm fine." A notion popped into Apollo's head. "What do you think is taking Twilight so long?"

"It's only been about half an hour since she left."

That's another thing, measurements of time are very similar.

"All right."

Apollo took his last bite from his apple and disposed of the core.

Everfree Forest

Twilight trotted away from the beaten path of the Everfree Forest. In almost any other situation, the consequences would be ruinous. This time, however, Twilight had set her mind on where she was going: Zecora's house.

She was about seventy paces away from the road when the home came in view. A few small creatures scuffled into the bushes to remain hidden as Twilight came in sight. She didn't notice since she was staring at the twisted, leafless tree colored an abnormal shade of brown ahead of her. There were a couple of mundane glass windows in sight from the front. A pretty door set the contrast between the house and the rest of the Everfree Forest. As Twilight steadily came closer, she noted that there was light peering out of both windows, most likely from multiple candles.

She rapped her hoof thrice in swift succession. The door drifted open with ease when Zecora opened it in response. Twilight entered after thanking the zebra.

The interior was as mystifying as the exterior was unnatural. Several large masks with expressions ranging from uplifting to unwelcoming decorated the walls. Myriad colored bottles dangling from ropes littered the cieling, most likely filled with potions or ingredients. A round black cauldron with an inscrutable bubbling liquid contained inside of it marked the center of the one-room house.

Twilight spoke urgently. "I need to know about a creature called a 'human.' None of my books say anything about them. Can you help me?"

"A human? Alas, I do not.

Does this mean your journey was all for naught?" Zecora said rhythmically.

"Hmm..." Twilight paused to recollect a few specifics. "Is it worth mentioning that humans are bipedal furless and clawless creatures which supposedly evolved from monkeys?"

"They seem to be lacking in many ways.

I know not how they'd survive many days.

But do not rely on my judgment,

For some details appear to be absent."

"All right... Thank you anyways." Twilight said gloomily.

Twilight thought deeply as she trotted out of Zecora's home and then through the Everfree Forest.

Since neither the library nor Zecora know anything about humans, odds are that nothing short of the Canterlot Archives or the princesses themselves would know. I can't just walk into the archives, and I don't want Princess Celestia to have any more to worry about. Would anypony else know anything with unquestionable reliability?

Twilight ceased trotting.

That leaves only one option. I think I've heard of a mind-reading spell before, and if I can find it, I can use the most reliable source of all. I don't like the idea of it, but it's the best option I have.

Ponyville

Apollo sat on the first story of the library in the middle of the floor. He had his hoof over his mouth as he stared blankly at the window across from him.

"Apollo..." Spike said. Apollo reacted by steadily standing up then turning his head. "Seriously, stop worrying. Sure you've reached a plateau, but there aren't many unicorns that learn as fast as Twilight."

"I know, but that teleportation spell-" Apollo's excuse was cut off by Spike.

"That was probably some kind of motivation boost from the situation. But enough about that.  I've heard that there's been a price drop for houses near Everfree. It's nice here in the library, but think about long term. I don't think you want to sleep on a couch for the rest of your life."

"That's true, but I don't have any money at all."

"All the more reason to start thinking. Try for a job."

Apollo paused for a moment to think about jobs. "Come to think, I don't even know what jobs there are..." He drifted off for more time to think.

"I think you'd be good as an inventor. Gain some reputation in Ponyville and it could take you a long way."

"Thanks. I'll think about it." Apollo peered back at the window showing a splendid view of the hilly noon horizon.

Apollo forgot about his magical predicament for the remainder of the day.

10 Hours Later

"Is Apollo asleep?" Twilight asked inconspicuously.

"I think so." Spike replied.

"Good. I think I might have to read his mind."

"What!?" Spike whispered. "He seems nice enough, and he hasn't done anything suspicious at all."

"I know, but I can't risk my friends by blindly trusting Apollo."

"That's what we have Rainbow Dash for."

"Rainbow Dash can easily be outsmarted."

"That's what we have you for."

"Hmm..."

"If he finds out about this, it might put him against you."

"What if he already is?" Twilight said forcefully. "If that's the case, then when we give Apollo the benefit of doubt he would be able to use it to his advantage."

"I guess it's your choice... I hope you don’t regret this." Spike reluctantly backed out of the conversation.

"I hope so too…” Twilight frowned and started searching through the bookshelves.