Beast Wars: Friendship is Magic

The screeching of the train’s wheels scraping against the rails of the tracks jolted Stronghold back online.  He’d dozed off a few hours into the trip, and had lost track of the time.  Wiping his eyes with his hoof, he then glanced out the window to find his train parked at a station.

“Dang nabit, Cornfed!” Matchstick’s voice ripped Stronghold’s attention away from the window and redirected it to the irritated Pony, who’d been chewing out his assistant. “You forgot to tell the train operator to stop!”

“Stop?  Where should we have stopped?” Stronghold inserted himself into Matchstick’s field of view, giving his head a quizzical tilt.

“We were supposed to stop in Canterlot and unload our cargo while we were at it, allowing you to depart as well.  But somepony decided that alerting the train operator about our change in schedule was of no consequence and decided to take a nap instead!”

Cornfed’s gaze fell, his eyes glued to the floor. “I’m sorry, boss.”

“And what’s worse is that there’s no trains heading out for Canterlot for another few hours.” Matchstick added.

Stronghold frowned.  Those words had hit his head like a brick.  Fortunately, his head was thick to sustain such pressure and was able to keep his composure.  Still, this had thrown a massive wrench into his plans and time was short enough as it was.  “Where are we as of now?”

“The Crystal Empire, ruled by Prince Shining Armor and Princess Cadance.” Cornfed spoke up.

“You’re in no position to talk, Cornfed!” Matchstick snapped, glaring daggers that would have cut right into the poor Pony’s skin.

“I-I’m just saying, boss!”

“How about you just stop being a lazy bag of bones and start unloading the shipment!”

With a groan, Cornfed mosied himself along, exiting the car of the train.

“As he was saying, yes, this is the Crystal Empire.  Princess Cadance isn’t exactly like Princess Celestia, but I’m confident that she can help you with whatever problem you’ve got.”

“Where may I find her and the Prince?”

Cornfed’s voice rang from outside the car.  “They live inside a castle!”

“I’m pretty sure he’d know that, ya twit!  Less talk more work!” Matchstick rolled his eyes, then focused on Stronghold once more.  “She lives in a big tower located in the center of town.  Ya can’t miss it, even if ya tried.”

“Thank you,” Stronghold gave a grateful nod.  “I will take my leave, then.  Farewell to you, Matchstick.”

“Anytime, partner!  See ya around, and thanks again for saving our cargo!” Matchstick smiled, then departed the car to assist with their haul.  Stronghold filed out of the train, looking out to see the vast, proud kingdom before him.  Pristine roads molded out of crystals studded the city in multiple directions, spanning in a web of streets.  Crystalline houses stood sturdy, gleaming with the light of the daytime sky, small gems acting as decorations.  The very residents themselves even appeared to have been comprised entirely out of crystals and gems, which filled the Maximal with a very internal sense of astonishment that he had barely kept in check.  It didn’t stop his jaw from dropping and his eyes shooting up, though he quickly snapped them back into place and returned to his level-headed demeanor.  How such creatures could exist, even with all the years of scientific study and analysis he’d conducted, puzzled him beyond belief.

With a steady trot, he navigated the streets, looking upward.  At the very center of the city, a white tower stretched to the clouds above, peering down over the rest of the kingdom.  Its height and very gem composition gave off a shining aura of peace and tranquility, combined with the sun’s benevolent beams that bounced off of its royal, smooth surface.  This Empire had presented a stark contrast to the town he’d been in before.  It appeared to be a nation of higher advancement, multiple upper-class Ponies going about the streets, chatting of things only they would take great interest in.  The common subject was still prevalent, heartily smiling as they went about their daily routine, undisturbed.

And in the midst of it all was a singular Buffalo.

Stronghold’s resolve remained steadfast, and he made his way to the tower.  Reaching the plaza took little time.  With the tower acting as his guide, Stronghold found it especially easy to find his way there.  His eyes were met with a bright, pink colored Alicorn and white Unicorn being escorted from the tower’s entrance by a cadre of Royal Guard Ponies, who were also made of the same Crystal material Stronghold had seen thus far.  The crown upon the head of the pink Alicorn had been the red flag Stronghold was looking for.  This Pony must have been Cadance.  Taking his chance, Stronghold headed toward the figures of Royal authority, stopping a few feet away, so as not to irk the Guards.

With a clearing of his throat, Stronghold spoke.  “Excuse me?”

“I’m sorry, sir, but I’m afraid that I’m a little busy at the--” the Alicorn was caught mid sentence to see that the being she had been addressing was a Buffalo and not one of her own subjects.

“What is it, Cadance?” the white Unicorn inquired before he, too, was seized by the sight of Stronghold standing before them.  What would a Buffalo be doing all the way out in the Crystal Empire?

The Guards’ features remained stoic, but they were clearly alert now.  Unafraid, Stronghold continued on. “I take it that you are Princess Cadance and Prince Shining Armor?”

“Yes.” Cadance blinked.

“What’s your business here?  This is quite a ways from where we’d usually encounter your kind.” Shining Armor added.

“Forgive me,” Stronghold gave a respectful bow of his head, then continued. “I know that you may have matters to attend to, but I must request a private audience with you.”

“May I ask what the reason behind this is?” Cadance asked.

Stronghold’s mouth became dry.  “This may come off as a bit jarring, but do you know of any strange activity that has been going on in these lands?  Particularly anything about… unusual capsule-shaped objects?”

The Maximal knew that what he was saying sounded incredibly difficult to believe.  If he were in their shoes, he would have had a hard time understanding himself, too.  It felt out of nowhere, and he was expecting a response of confusion, but was surprised when his words seemed to have actually garnered their attention even further.

“Actually… yes,” Cadance said.  “Are you implying that you know of these objects?”

Stronghold’s mind sputtered momentarily.  He didn’t expect them to have known by now, but they’re either quick to pick up on anomalies in their own land, or he’d been offline in his pod longer than he’d thought.  Either option could have been viable.  Stronghold steeled himself and continued on.

“More than that.  I was in one myself.”

The Equestrian marshes housed an ecosystem of wildlife.  The low wetlands acted as home to many amphibian creatures.  Frogs hopped across its scarce rocks, their moist skin gleaming off the light of the heavenly sun, which had begun to set over the horizon.  Dragonflies and mosquitoes emitted low, droning buzzes as they whisked through the air with their wings.  Tall patches of grass blades danced in whatever direction the wind blew, functioning as a majestic wave that brushed the air in a back and forth motion, allowing the sun’s rays to briefly intrude upon the water, which embraced the light with a reflection.

These ecosystem was disrupted when two armored Ponies of the Royal Guard sank their hooves into the marsh’s water, their armor stained with darkened splotches of mud mixed in with muck.  Thunder Strike and Onyx paid it no heed as they trotted through the wetlands, splitting apart the green mass of dancing grass blades.

Onyx gave a disgruntled sigh.  “Thunder Strike, we’ve been searching for hours.  We’ve looked through the Everfree, the swamps, and mountains, and haven’t found anything.  I doubt we’re going to find anything in the marshes, I think we should head back.”

“Onyx, I’ve told you a hundred times already that we’re far from done.  We haven’t even searched half of the marshes yet, so quit complaining and keep those eyes open.  Stay close, we don’t know if this thing is awake or not.” Thunder Strike replied sternly.  When given an assignment, one could count on Thunder Strike to carry it out until it was complete, not faltering or calling off his orders, unless told to do so by the Princesses themselves.  The Equestrian Royal Guard had deployed several detachments to skim the lands of their proud nation, in the hopes of finding another one of the extraterrestrial pods.  Multiple crafts were found, but all bore the same result; opened hatches with the occupant nowhere in sight.  Onyx and Thunder Strike were tasked with turning the marsh upside down and right-side up if it meant coming out with something fruitful.

“I know, I know,” Onyx’s horn lit up, a bright flash illuminating the marshes with a dim, milky white glow.  “That is if there’s anything here…”

Their search dragged on for minutes, which turned into a full hour.  Still, no pod was to be found and the sun had already sank over the hills, leaving an orange horizontal line over the mountain range.  By this time, stars had begun to appear, painting the skies in little, bright twinkles.

“See?  What’d I tell you?” Onyx’s eyes scanned the marshes, absently speaking to his partner.  “There’s nothing here, so why don’t we--” the Guard Pony’s throat suddenly clogged up with his words, his eyes widening with utter disbelief as his eyes fell upon a metallic object, buried more than halfway into the wetlands.

“Why don’t we what, Onyx?” Thunder Strike had noticed his comrade no longer speaking and turned to his partner’s direction, only to be greeted with the same sight, which shook him to his very core.  The sight of the object lying so idle in the water, peacefully stationary, left the Royal Guard Ponies speechless.

And the lid… it was closed.  Sealed tightly, its occupant remained undisturbed.  It finally dawned on Onyx and Thunder Strike that they were the only beings in the area, the rest of the wildlife having avoided this object, which had towered over most like an alien monument of the unknown.  The pair of Guards didn’t dare take another step closer, fearing that it would awaken the alien creature from its slumber.  Whether it was friend or foe, wasn’t a chance the two were willing to take, so long as they were alone.

“Onyx, how good are you at making magic flares?” Thunder Strike finally spoke, his voice shaking.

“Exceptional.” Was Onyx’s reply.

“Send the biggest flare you can, alert the rest of the patrols.  Tell them to keep their distance.  We don’t want that thing waking up.  I’ll head back to Canterlot to inform the Princesses of what we’ve discovered.  In the meantime, you secure a perimeter and make sure that this thing does not leave these marshes.”

“Yes, sir.” Onyx tapped his hoof to his forehead in a salute gesture, though his form still faltered, riddled with shakes of unease.  Thunder Strike rested his hoof on Onyx’s shoulder, instilling a shield of comfort over his friend, who’d calmed down within seconds.  Both exchanged a nod, and Thunder Strike shot to the skies with his wings, disappearing into the night.  Onyx breathed in and closed his eyes, focusing his magic, the tip of his horn birthing an orb of light, which only continued to grow bright as its intensity strengthened.  When the sphere was near blinding, Onyx propelled it above his head, the flare streaking to great heights, acting as a homing beacon to other Royal Guard units, wherever they may be, to rendezvous with their colleague.