Canterlot Castle; 8:00 am

Sleep would not come for the Princess of the Night. The past half hour had already provided more proof for that then Luna had wished. Instead, she sat atop her bed in a meditative pose to calm herself. One of only a few practices she had maintained from so long ago. Practices that were steeped in beliefs she had grown to despise over the years. But her heart continued to pound against her chest and her mind raced about in her head. She needed to move, to do something.

Anxiety pushed her heart to beat faster as her legs itched to rush to the scene she had witnessed. She knew in her heart what she had witnessed and her mind raced with questions demanding details. The sense of longing was forefront in her mind. She struggled to push aside her desires and focus on the present situation.

What lay ahead for the Princess Sisters would be to calm the citizens of fear after the sights and sounds that came from the distance, namely the direction of the town of Ponyville. The group of fire balls would have been easy to explain. A meteor shower with several stray meteorites that simply got too close for comfort and then an effort to ensure no pony discovered the truth. So long as they had landed in more remote areas with few eye witnesses, the situation would have been easy to contain. But what had followed complicated things one hundred fold.

As she witnessed the shower of fireballs, Luna had pleaded inwardly that they be something beyond what she knew in her heart they were. But there was no denying the triangular object that followed. She knew what it was and her eyes would not be deceived. For so long the ponies of the land, and the inhabitants of the planet as a whole, had believed they were alone. Now they would know what Luna had learned long ago. There was more to the sky then they had ever imagined. And with this instance, the stars had come to them.

The stars. With the thought, longing resurfaced once more and Luna struggled to suppress it. But now, such a feeling would not be subdued. She clenched her hands into fists on her lap, feeling her nails press against her palms. Was Celestia going through the same thing? Perhaps not or, at least, not to the same extent. Her sister knew her place, knew where she belonged. Not so for the Princess of the Night. At least, not anymore.

No. That was not true. Luna knew where she belonged. She knew her place, her true role. She had known for so long. But here in Equestria was not it. She had tried to make her place by her sister’s side. Joint rulers, guardians, of Equestria. But it never felt like home. In truth, she had realized she had no home long ago. But she knew where she belonged and here was not it.

But her desires would have to wait. For now, the present was priority. She tried to relax her body and remove her thoughts for now. She calmed her mind and focused, following another practice she had held onto. One still useful but more despised. The familiar sensation flowed through her body as she began to feel the world around her. She felt her room, the castle, and beyond. She reached out and touched Ponyville. What she felt was fear, pain, and death. She withdrew her touch. As she feared.

A quick and easy explanation to the masses was far more out of the question that before. Not that it would have been easy as it were with a massive object surrounded by fire soaring over the heads of the common pony. But what she had felt from Ponyville showed that the situation was already complicated beyond fear of objects falling from the sky. They likely knew more than they would have ever wanted.

Luna opened her eyes and stood. She took two steps towards the door before stopping. She and her body fought for control as her instincts pushed her to move but her mind told her to stay. Luna held her hands closer to her chest, pressing them against her breast. She could not leave, no matter how desperately she desired to. Regardless of her place, she had a duty as a princess of Equestria. Celestia had already mobilized the Royal Guard and soon the politics would begin.

Yet her mind would not return to ease. Her worries only compounded at the thought of having to wait. Were the other ponies ready for what they now saw? She had faith in Princess Twilight Sparkle. Faith she would be ready and able to handle the situation. But the common pony, the one who lived their life in peace without a care about what lay beyond the sky. They were who Luna worried for.

Her thoughts drifted to the vision she and Celestia had shared so long ago. Worry arose in greater fervor at the thought of what, who, had arrived and what may follow. So much to know, and all she could do was wait. She shifted in agitation. She could not wait. She had to know. Celestia had said that all would be well. Luna begged that it would.

Luna looked over to her private cabinet. The thought of its contents put her mind to some semblance of ease. Whatever happens, she would be prepared.

Outskirts of Ponyville; 8:15 am

Twilight watched the craft that now bore the wounded and dying aliens ascend and fly farther west. As it disappeared over a hill her mind drifted to the one alien she had just watched die. The face. Similar, even identical to the one she had helped in town. Such a coincidence that a pair of twins had arrived seemed astronomical. Or was the race all identical like that? It seemed unlikely. So many questions about the newcomers.

The one with the more ornate armor, the one she assumed was the leader, looked towards her and the guards before turning. With a gesture, the alien group gathered and began their march towards the direction of the craft. Twilight followed.

But with only two steps the alien stopped and turned to her. “There are a lot of questions each of us have but they will have to wait for now. Go back to your people and we’ll talk when this is all over.”

Twilight hesitated a second as he turned to return to the others. His voice, the language. Each brought on such curiosity in the young princess. Not only was his voice a bizarre blend of natural and unnatural, sounding as if it came from the helmet more than from underneath, it sounded identical to the one she had recently witnessed die. Were they related? Perhaps she had just witnessed triplets. The odds of such a coincidence skyrocketed with such a thought.

But the language he spoke raised another, greater, question. She knew it. She had been taught it by Celestia and, as far as she knew, only she and Celestia knew the language. But now she had witnessed aliens from beyond who spoke it as well. Why? How? It had been a private language before. One that she had regarded as a secret code in her fillyhood. But to hear it spoken by one who had come from the sky? Impossible. She did not know who to question first about this. The alien or Celestia.

Twilight quickly weighed her options. She turned to the guards. “Return to Ponyville and help in providing aid.”

“But what of you Princess? We cannot leave you alone with these – Princess!”

Twilight ignored the guard and quickly caught up to the aliens. “I’m staying with you. As a Princess, I must act as a representative of this land. As such it my duty to act as an ambassador for my citizens.”

The alien continued to walk, not even turning to her. “Then with respect your Highness, please stay out of our way. I appreciate the help earlier but these men are my responsibility not yours. We will take care of our own. The politics can come later.”

“Very well.”

The lead guard caught up and moved around Twilight to stop her. “Princess, I must object to this. You will go to the midst of these…aliens? You put yourself at too much risk.”

“I understand your concern and your duty. But there are more of them and even with you or the whole squad they will overpower us if they desired. Even in such an unlikely scenario, a princess is a valuable asset and they would likely keep me alive in such a situation. Not so for you. I wish for you to stay safe.

“For now, they appear more concerned with helping their comrades than harming us. For the sake of establishing a peaceful relation, I will go alone as a sign of faith and trust. For now, please return to Ponyville and help with providing aid to the citizens and the aliens there. Please try not to show any hostilities. If any more are found provide them with whatever aid they require.”

The guard stood silent as she moved around him to continue. “As you wish your Highness.”

Twilight heard the hooves of the guards move away. She knew they were sworn to protect the royalty at all costs so she could not blame them for wanting to stay by her side. But the situation was delicate. Any act that could even be remotely construed as hostile would only make the situation that much worse. A liaison was needed to begin relations with the newcomers and who better to begin an establishment of friendship than the Princess of Friendship? Besides, there was no time to properly elect an ambassador and Twilight was more than available.

After a few minutes the group ascended a hill topped by another one of the flying craft. Its side was opened slightly and she saw something set on a tripod poking out with an alien standing behind. As they rose, Twilight noticed two more of the crafts. They were set in a semi-circle with several aliens having taken positions around the area. The defensive formation was easy to see despite Twilight’s limited exposure to military tactics. What she saw, however, was vastly different from Equestrian tactics she had read up on from some of Shining Armor’s military manuals.

She followed the group as they moved around the primary defensive craft and through a small gap on the left side of the formation between it and the one set behind it. She took note of four strange objects she could only describe as two legged machines. The metal body and lifeless appearance stirred an eerie feeling inside the princess. Each had an alien on top who appeared to operate the objects. She looked around to count up the total number of the newcomers. More than thirty in this area.

Before she could do much more, one of the aliens rushed up to her. It held a smaller variation of the weapons she had seen but held it down in a non-aggressive fashion. The helmet was slightly different than the others, having a brim-like feature just above the slit. She read the body language as…excited.

“You must be one of the natives,” the alien said, removing the helmet and revealing the same face as the others. “What do you call your race? Can you really fly with those wings? What position do you hold in your society? Can you understand Basic?”

Beyond the string of questions, his face was what left Twilight the most speechless. Were all of these aliens the same? Encountering twins, even triplets, was unthinkable already. But to hear the same voice and see the same face yet again, impossible.

Mild relief came as the lead alien grabbed the other. “Helmet on and back to your post!”

Disappointed, the alien begrudgingly did as he was told without questions or argument. “Yes Sir.”

“Don’t mind him.” Twilight looked to her left at the alien who had just spoke, one who was with the group with the leader. “He has this thing where he has to know everything. Bit of a know-it-all.”

Twilight watched as the alien who had questioned her returned to his post and the others from the group spread out to positions of their own. She looked to the one who had just spoke to her. “What of your leader? Can you tell me about him?”

The alien stopped and looked at her then over to the leader. “The Captain? Bit of a hardline. He’s an elite trooper. Brought aboard just for this mission. Don’t really know much about him myself.”

The alien made his way to a position on the edge of the defensive line and relieved another. Twilight looked at the leader who appeared to stare into space, silent. She walked over to him. He stood firm but the silence was offsetting. Was he grieving for those who died? Perhaps she could lift his spirits and start on a path to a peaceful relation.

“Um…Captain?”

He turned to her rather suddenly, startling her. “I’m sending medical aid to your settlement and we’ll be taking over the care of my men. I’ve also informed all troopers to avoid hostilities.”

Twilight was struck speechless. Somehow, this alien not only knew of his comrades under the care of the ponies in Ponyville but also managed to contact all of his comrades without any sign of initiating contact with any of them outside those in the immediate vicinity of him. Knowledge of Ponyville and assumption of any medical aid needed was one thing. They did fall from the sky after all. But to know his comrades were there and to make contact with them brought all new questions to the princess. But given what she had seen of them so far, there was no telling what capabilities they possessed.

Regardless, she needed to maintain the upper hoof in some way. She was never one for any sort of less than honest means but politics were a messy business. And to have such an alien force nearby she needed any advantage she could get to ensure that peace could be properly negotiated. She had read up on enough books to learn political strategies to understand this.

“You can’t. You’re men are under our care for the moment and shall stay under our care for the time being.”

The alien leader stopped all movement and turned to her. His tone was low and respectful but she could hear the traces of frustration underneath his control. “With all due respect, they are my brothers and we possess the means to properly care for them.”

The armored alien was imposing but Twilight stood her ground. She took careful note of the word he had used to describe his comrades. Brothers.

“Regardless. In the name of establishing peace and trust, we shall continue to care for your men. Those who are well may return to your care but the wounded shall remain under our care with the exception of those that are beyond our capabilities to help.” He stood silent for a moment, likely contemplating the proposal. “You need to search for your other “brothers” who may be in greater need of care. Am I correct?”

The leader stood silent. Twilight noted his clenched fist at the use and emphasis of the familial word. Slowly he relaxed. He stood tall and silent before speaking again.

“Very well.” His voice was again laced with frustration hidden under control. “I have called the aid off but a medical team will stand by for any you cannot tend to.”

“Very well.”

The alien looked up suddenly as another craft flew in and landed near the rear of the encampment. He turned and started towards it. “I have something to tend to. For now you remain here until I return.”

“Of course!” Twilight shouted over the sound the craft made. “Before you go, I wish to know your name!”

The alien stopped a moment and turned back to her. “Captain Leonis of the Grand Army of the Republic.”

With that he turned back to the craft and boarded. The sides remained opened as it took off and even as it flew away towards the west. While it was possible he was going to meet with more of his “brothers,” it was also possible he was going to rescue more or even see to the massive object that had fallen in that direction.

With the craft out of sight, Twilight decided to gather information on the newcomers rather than sit around and wait for Captain Leonis to return. Hearing him call his comrades his brothers brought more questions to her mind. Did he regard them as brothers in arms or did this hint at an answer to the similarities they all seemed to share? She headed to perimeter of the encampment and found the one who had attempted to question her earlier.

“I wish to speak to you about your kind. I am willing to tell you of myself in exchange.”

The alien looked at her with his head slightly tilted. His voice was full of excitement. “Of course.”

He motioned to another as he led her to the center of the encampment. The other alien took his place as he began a string of questions following an introduction of himself. Twilight listened carefully and answered as many questions as she could, taking care to withhold sensitive or vital information as her books had taught her. But she needed to know as much as she could about the aliens to properly begin building a peaceful relation with them.

The likelihood of the aliens remaining for an extended period of time seemed possible and her head was still brimming with numerous questions about them. Where had they come from? Who were they? Why did they speak a language that only she and Celestia knew? As she began to gain answers, the number of questions only increased. Her world had become cosmically smaller.

Author's Note

"Know-it-all" clone is Clone Trooper OC Know-It-All from The Dark Soul. Thanks to him again for letting me use his OC.