....."Ugh."
Greed was astonished by his ability to groan, let alone actually feel things. Considering that the last thing he remembered was being reabsorbed by Father he should have been dead. Nevertheless he found himself shifting around on coarse ground as a light scent made it's way to his nose. The fragrance of fresh air combined with flowers and wood made him think of some days he'd spent in a forest.
"I never thought I'd wake up again."
"Neither did I."
Greed's eyes snapped open upon hearing the familiar feminine voice of his once, long ago, companion. However the form that entered his sight in front of him was most certainly not that of Lust. What stood in front of him was a rather lanky horse covered in deep royal blue fur sporting a lush black mane.
"Why the hell is a horse here?"
The aforementioned horse opened it's muzzle to presumably let out a whinny, but what came out instead shocked Greed to his very core leaving him dismayed and speechless.
"Hello to you too Greed."
Greed found gurgling sounds to be the only things to make their way out of his mouth as he tried to figure out whether he should laugh or scream at Lust's current predicament. Finally he just settled on the most obvious course of action available to him at the time.
"Lust why the hell are you a horse?!"
"Pony." She corrected.
"Whatever. What the fuck happened? How'd you get turned into a chimera?"
Lust's brow furrowed as she thought of the best way to respond.
"To be honest I don't know what happened. The last thing I remember is being killed by Mustang, then I'm here." Lust paused before continuing, "I suppose it would be best to tell you now that it appears as though you have also become a chimera."
Greed's eyes widened.
"I WHAT?!"
Lust had flinched at the volume of Greed's shout as her ears instinctively flattened against her head. After a couple of seconds she returned to her usual calm collected self, however Greed hadn't. Said homunculus had taken to wildly inspecting his slate gray body with wide eyes and hitched breathing.
After a thorough inspection of his own body Greed turned his attention, once again, on Lust.
"What the hell's going on here?!"
"I do not know, but I do know that questioning it will not help right now. I suggest we take a moment to regain our wits and decide upon our next course of action."
Upon delivering that Lust gave her hair a quick flip, revealing something to Greed that just made the situation even weirder.
"Lust you've got a horn! You're not a horse, you're a goddamn unicorn!"
Lust raised a questioning eyebrow before bringing a hoof up to touch her forehead and feeling up the strange appendix that grew out of her skull.
"So it seems I do."
Greed was somewhat annoyed at Lust's seeming lack of reaction at the strange events they found themselves in, but he had known her long enough to understand that that was only a facade she put on. She was probably freaking out just as much, if not more, as him, but she was still trying to think things through rationally.
"Alright, fine, what is it that you suggest we do?"
"Well, since we are here I don't think it would be much of a stretch to assume that the others are here as well. Perhaps they are close, I suggest we look for them."
Greed let out a snort.
"Sure, fine, things are weird enough as is I could see those bastards here as well. But what do we do if we don't find them?"
"Then, Greed, I suggest we set up camp for the night and try to figure out where we are in the morning. If we're lucky we may be near civilization."
"Yeah, sure, let's just waltz into town as horses. That'll go over well."
"Ponies."
"Whatever, my point still stands."
"Actually I believe we may not be in Amestris any more, in fact we might not even be in our world any more. For all we know this world could be completely inhabited by other ponies."
Greed snorted again.
"Yeah, sure, and I bet there are other chimeras as well, like gryphons."
"You never know."
"Whatever," he sighed, "Let's just see if we can find the others."
Greed finally got his hooves under him and pushed himself into a standing position, finally allowing himself to glance around at their surroundings. Every which way he looked they were surrounded by a countless number of trees, only a bit of light being allowed through the canopy.
I was right, we are in a forest.
"So we just wander around and hope we just waltz into the others on happenstance."
Lust allowed a frown to grace her features.
"Well when you put it like that-"
She was interrupted as the nearby foliage rustled and the two found themselves assuming defensive positions. What came out, however, defied their expectations.
"OW! God damnit I hate this place already!"
"Envy?!"
The light green pony that had stumbled out of the bushes was most certainly the homunculus once known as Envy. He was easily recognizable by the large palm-like hair that sat atop his head. Upon hearing his name he looked up at the two as he frowned.
"Great, more fucking horses. Who are you and how do you know my name?"
"It's us Envy." Lust spoke.
Envy blinked as his brain registered the sight in front of him. When it did he let out a long groan and put a hoof to his face.
"God damnit! I just can't catch a break can I? First it was the pipsqueak, then it was being turned into a horse, now I gotta deal with you two."
Lust frowned.
"I understand that you don't like us Envy, but right now we don't have any clue as to what's going on. We need to stick together and try to find the others."
Envy let out an annoyed grunt.
"Since I woke up with Greed, and you found us, I can only assume that the other four are somewhere close by. It would be best if we looked for them and grouped up."
"Great, we gotta search for those pricks."
"Please just don't cause any trouble right now. We have no idea what's going on yet, we don't need more problems to deal with."
"Fine, whatever, just don't expect me to cover your asses."
With that Envy turned away in annoyance and Greed took note of one feature that the homunculus held.
"Envy, you've got wings!"
Envy rolled his eyes before addressing Greed.
"Yeah? What gave it away dumbass?"
Greed was about to respond when he found himself frowning thoughtfully.
"Hey wait! How come you have wings and lust has a horn but I'm just a normal horse?!"
"Maybe because you're worthless."
"Hey! You take that back!"
"Or what? You gonna fight me?"
Greed found himself taking an offensive stance, staring angrily at Envy.
"Get over here and you'll see!" he spoke, his voice now tinged with a sort of metallic noise making it seem as though it echoed.
"Why don't you come over here then."
"Too scared to face me palm tree?" Greed took a step towards Envy.
"What was that you horse face?" Envy took a step towards greed.
"Stop."
"Who are you calling horse face you pissant?" Greed continued towards Envy.
"I'm calling you horseface you dumbass!"
"Stop!"
"Oh, that's rich. Don't forget you're a chimera as well horseface."
"Oh yeah, well-"
"Stop!"
Lust hadn't so much shouted the word, but it still had the desired effect. Greed and Envy found themselves staring in surprise at Lust, having rarely ever seen her loose her cool. Lust took a minute to compose herself again before staring at the other two homunculi and speaking.
"Do either of you notice anything strange about Greed?"
"What, you mean those tattoos on his ass?"
"No, well yes, I suppose that is strange, but since it's the ouroboros and we all have it I think it's just a homunculus thing. No, what I'm talking about is his ultimate shield."
"My ultimate shield? What's so weird about that?"
"Yeah Lust, I don't get what's so weird about that."
"Just stop and think about it for a moment. We're in the bodies of chimeras right? So how is it that Greed is still able to use his ultimate shield?"
Greed and Envy looked at each other for a moment before turning their attention back to Lust.
"I still don't get it."
"Me neither."
Lust just let out an annoyed sigh before running a hoof down her face.
"Just... Let's just find the others okay? And no more fighting."
Envy and Greed each stared at the other before answering in tandem.
"Fine."
"Good, now Envy did you happen to see anything on your way here?"
"Actually I did see a couple of other horses on my way here, though I didn't get close enough to take a look at them. Coulda been some of those assholes we're lookin' for."
"Very well then Envy, lead the way."
"Yeah, yeah, I'm going."
With that Envy took off in the direction he had come from as the other two homunculi trudged behind, making sure to keep an eye out for any clues as to the whereabouts of their comrades. After traveling through the dark, dense forest for a few minutes Greed found himself growing impatient at the wait. Eventually he decided to speak up.
"Are you sure you know where you're going Envy?"
"Shut up! Of course I do! We've only been walking for five minutes!"
"I'm just saying that we haven't found anything yet."
"Of course we haven't! Did you expect to find them just like that?! Now shut up and keep walking."
"Whatever you say palm head."
Envy let out an annoyed grunt but chose not to rise to the bait and instead focused on continuing searching for the others. Thankfully for them, and for Greed's short attention span, the air was suddenly filled by the sound of a bestial roar. All three of them paused as the roar faded away before a grin made its way onto Greed's face.
"Finally, a little action!"
"Greed wait!"
However the avarice homunculus either didn't hear her or ignored her as he continued to rush headlong into what would probably be trouble. Letting out a sigh she turned and spoke to Envy.
"Let's follow him and make sure he doesn't cause too much trouble."
"Why should I have to babysit his ass? If he wants to get himself killed then I say let him."
Lust glared at Envy for a few seconds before he relented with an aggravated huff.
"Fine we'll go help his dumb ass. But if I die again I'm blaming it on you."
"Duly noted."
Without any more prompting the two galloped off after Greed to try and ensure that he would not cause them undue problems by getting them into something they weren't ready to handle. After a minute or so they finally caught up to Greed whom had paused upon reaching a small clearing in the forest created by the several felled trees surrounding them.
The two stared at him for a second before following his gaze to see...
"Is that a manticore?"
"I believe it is Envy."
"And are those who I think they are?"
"If they aren't then they have some explaining to do."
Fighting the manticore were what appeared to be a rather small deep violet unicorn colt bearing a deep brown mane and tail as well as a much older maroon pegasus stallion bearing a light black mane and tail as well as the addition of a mustache. The older stallion's left eye was covered by an eye-patch and he appeared to be easily avoiding the swipes the manticore made at him using both its claws and tail.
The young colt, however, appeared to have shadows writhing around him, coming up to block any attempts the manticore had made to prey on the 'weaker' of the two. As the manticore's barrage paused the colt took the chance to swipe at it with his shadows, but the manticore was too fast and dodged the incoming blow as it sliced through yet another thick tree as if it were nothing.
"This pest is too stubborn for it's own good." The colt spoke in a familiar voice, "It doesn't know when to give up and die."
"So it seems Pride, but now it seems we have reinforcements. Perhaps this beast will think twice about wanting to finish this battle."
The colt dubbed as Pride glanced over in their direction with a frown before speaking as he effortlessly parried yet another blow.
"Oh, it's you three."
"Yeah, glad to see you too runt. And you as well old man."
"Can it Greed, you're older than me and you know it."
"Yeah, but I don't age like you so it doesn't count."
"Whatever you say. We'll settle this later, for now I would appreciate it if you would give us a hand. This creature has become a nuisance and I don't have my swords to deal with it."
"Fine but you owe me for this."
Without any hesitation Greed's body was coated in his ultimate shield and he charged towards the large chimera nearly twice his size. Once he was close enough Greed reared up on his two back legs and lunged towards the manticore who leapt easily out of the way. Within a split second the manticore had sprang towards Greed and raked its claws over his body to no avail.
The manticore appeared to be in confusion as to why the homunculus was not currently a bloody lifeless hunk of meat unlike any other prey it had torn through. Upon seeing this chance Pride's shadows wreathed before lashing out towards the creature who had neglected to pay attention to the other combatants.
However the manticore would not be so easily killed as it noticed the attack and pounced out of the way just in time to avoid a fatal blow, though it was not fast enough to escape unscathed. The attack glanced the creature's front let leg, easily tearing through the muscle leaving behind a large gash that started bleeding profusely causing it to roar in pain and rage.
"Damn, this chimera's tougher than I gave it credit for. I think you might have to give us a hand Lust."
"And how, Greed, an I supposed to do that? I don't have anything to use for my ultimate spear."
"Use that horn of yours! It's gotta be good for something."
"Ah yes, I suppose I could do that. However this beast is more intelligent than it appears, once it learns of my ability I will not have a second chance so I need you to keep it busy for me."
"Can do!"
Without another word Greed once again launched himself into the fray, doing his best imitation of Sloth as he charged bodily towards the bulky beast. Without any considerable effort it pounced out of the way, though its movements were noticeably more sluggish than earlier due to its wound.
Pride was hasty to take advantage of this development as he went on the assault again, the shadows striking towards the manticore like rain. The manticore continued to evade the attacks enough that it wasn't seriously wounded, but small nicks started appearing over its body as they glanced it.
Wrath glanced at Lust before giving her a nod as he galloped forwards, planning on using himself as a decoy to distract the manticore while Lust got in a shot. Once he was within striking range the manticore made to swipe at him but he easily danced out of the way. Greed and Pride immediately capitalized on the opening and struck at it, once again forcing it to retreat back.
Lust closely watched the battle continue repeating for the next few minutes as she bid her time, waiting for a window of opportunity in which to strike. At last an opportunity presented itself to her and she lowered her head before charging towards the monster who noticed her at the last second and made to jump back.
Perfect.
At her whim her horn rapidly extended outward and pierced the creature's chest before it burst out its back in a spray of blood. As her horn retracted from the beast's body it let out a feeble mewl and collapsed. Its struggles grew weaker and weaker as it fought against its inevitable end before the light finally vanished from its eyes and it went limp.
Greed sighed in annoyance.
"Finally, I thought the bastard would never keel over."
"You're telling me. You guys couldn't have taken him out faster?"
"What are you complaining about Envy?! You didn't even help!"
"Please I could've stomped that thing flat in ten seconds."
"Sure, that's why you just stood there!"
"Calm down, the both of you."
At Wrath's statement the two of them quieted down, but continued to glare at each other.
"Now, would any of you mind telling us what's going on?"
"To be honest Wrath we don't know either."
"Yeah old man, we just woke up here."
"I see, so you don't know either. This is certainly a conundrum."
"Have either of you seen Gluttony or Sloth? It's rather likely that they're nearby."
"Sorry, can't say that we have Lust. The first thing we ended up running into was that damned chimera."
"I see, well then we'll have to bring them to us."
"Just what do you have in mind?"
Lust smirked at Wrath's query before turning to face Greed and Envy.
"Envy I need you to gather up some of the wood around here and stick it in a pile."
"Why me?!"
"Because you didn't do anything while we were fighting the chimera."
Envy grumbled in annoyance but didn't protest as he set out on his task. After a few minutes of wood gathering Lust deemed that they had enough wood piled up for what she held in mind.
"Alright Envy that's enough, you can stop now."
Envy grunted in acknowledgement before speaking once again.
"Okay, so what now miss bright idea?"
"Greed I want you to use your ultimate shield to make a spark and start a fire."
Greed's eyes hovered over the mound of logs and the manticore before widening in understanding.
"I get it! That's pretty smart Lust."
"Indeed it is." Wrath agreed.
Trotting over to the accumulated mass of firewood Greed allowed his front hooves to be covered with his ultimate shield before striking them together to produce sparks. It took a couple of tries but eventually the pyre burst into flames before turning into a raging inferno.
"Okay so what do we do now?"
Lust felt a grin worm its way onto her face.
"Now, Envy, we roast a manticore."
--
It had been little over an hour since the assembly of homunculi had tossed the body of the beast onto the bonfire to cook. Finally they got a response in the form of resounding thumps forging a path towards them. The five of them all took up a defensive stance as they awaited whatever it turned out to be.
After a couple of minutes they were able to make out two easily recognizable voices and allowed for themselves to relax.
"Hurry up Sloth, the good smell's coming from over here!"
"Ugh, such a pain."
From the thicket appeared a fairly chubby pony covered in light tan fur and lacking a mane or tail of any kind. Behind him emerged the bulkiest of ponies they had seen yet, easily the same size of the manticore they had fought earlier. The pony's fur was on offset white that accented his bulging muscles and his mane and tail were darkened brown, almost black, in color.
Gluttony stared in confusion and hunger at the group of ponies, then the creature roasting on the fire, then back to the ponies. As the slender unicorn mare trotted forwards and opened her mouth to speak recognition lit in Gluttony's eyes.
"Hello Sloth, Gluttony."
"Lust!"
As Gluttony excitedly galloped over towards the other homunculi Sloth instead sat down with a resounding thump.
"Can I rest now?"
Gluttony happily latched onto Lust, nuzzling her as she brought up a hoof and gently rubbed his head. After a little while Gluttony finally released the homunculus from his embrace and allowed his gaze to roam across the other four members. Once he noticed Pride he let out a whimper and sidled closer to Lust.
"What's wrong Gluttony?"
"I don't like Pride, Lust," he admitted, "He ate me."
Lust's eyes widened slightly and she glared at Pride before turning her attention back on the frightened, child-like homunculus within her grasp.
"Don't worry Gluttony, he won't hurt you again."
"Promise?"
"I promise Gluttony."
At Lust's reassurance Gluttony noticeably calmed down before his attention was once again taken by the manticore.
"Can I eat that? It smells tasty."
"Of course Gluttony. We made it for you after all."
"Hold on a second," Greed interjected, "Before this bottomless pit eats everything I want to grab a bite as well."
"Yes," agreed Wrath, "I would not mind having something to eat as well."
"You do know that we homunculi don't need to eat right?"
"Speak for yourself Envy," Wrath told him, "As you may remember I was born from a human."
"Same, or at least a part of my life was. I kinda got used to eating when I traveled with the brat."
"Hmph, do as you like I won't stop you. Just make sure fatty doesn't beat you to the punch."
"Don't worry I'm sure he'll share, won't you Gluttony?"
"Uhuh, I'll share Lust."
"See, nothing to worry about. Now time to eat!"
Lust swiftly used her ultimate spear to slice off a small portion of meat for the two homunculi before Gluttony ravenously dug into the monster. For a little while the only sounds filling the camp were that of chewing and crunching as Gluttony scarfed down the beast, bones and all. Eventually he finished and the camp once again descended into silence until Greed finally broke the monotony with a question.
"So what do we do now?"
Everyone appeared to consider the answer to that question when Wrath glanced up at the sky and spoke.
"It's getting late, I suggest we set up camp for the night and then set off tomorrow in search of civilization."
"I agree with Wrath," Lust spoke, "It seems like the most logical course of action."
"Alright you pissants! Any objections?" When no one spoke up Greed continued, "Then it's settled, we'll wait til tomorrow and then head out."
"I can rest? Good."
"Very well then," Wrath announced, "Everyone get some rest, we move out at first light!"
"Who died and made you leader?" Envy questioned.
"Everyone." was Pride's curt reply, "Any objections?"
Envy mumbled in annoyance but kept any complaints he had to himself. Even he knew not to get on Pride's bad side.
"That's what I thought."
"So tired. Feel sleepy. Need rest."
"Welp," Greed declared, "For once I actually agree with the big guy, I'm going to sleep. Wake me if you need something."
"I suggest we follow his example." Lust said simply before laying down herself.
"You guys can do what you want, but I'm going to stay awake."
"Suit yourself Envy. Come on Gluttony let's get some rest."
"Anything for you Lust."
"Pride," Wrath addressed the small homunculus, "Will you be joining us?"
"No f- Wrath, I'll keep watch for the night."
"Very well then, wake us if anything happens."
"Will do... Wrath."
With a nod Wrath settled down before laying his head on his forelegs and closing his eye.
--
Greed found himself awakening, feeling much more rested than he had in quite a while.
"I don't know about you guys," he yawned as he stretched, "But I am feeling pretty good right about now."
"Good for you. Now can we please wake up Sloth so we can leave?"
"What crawled up your ass and died Envy?"
"Sorry we can't all be as happy about this as you Greed."
"You just need to learn to let go and have some fun."
"That's rich coming from you!"
"Quite, the both of you. There's no point in fighting, what's happened happened. Right now we need to focus on finding out where we are."
"I concur, let us wake up Sloth and be on our way." Wrath agreed as he made his way over to Sloth.
"Lust I'm hungry."
"I know Gluttony, we'll find you something to eat later."
"Hey big guy! Wake up!" Greed had trotted over to the mound of unmoving flesh and kicked it, "C'mon we gotta go."
"Uuuuuuuugggggghhhhh, what a pain."
"I know, everything's a pain. But look at it this way, the sooner we find somewhere the sooner you can rest."
"Walking is a pain."
Lust turned to face Gluttony.
"Okay Gluttony, we need your help."
"What do I need to do Lust?"
"I need you to see if you can smell anything that might tell us where to go."
With a nod Gluttony closed his eyes and raised his muzzle as his nose twitched. Everyone silently awaited results as Gluttony continued to sniff around when he finally opened his eyes and beamed.
"I smell something! It's that way!"
Lust smiled and pat his head as he used his leg to indicate the direction in which to go.
"Good job Gluttony."
"Alright everyone, you heard him!" Greed declared, "Let's move!"
Surprisingly enough no one protested as they all set out in the direction Gluttony had indicated, well almost no one.
"Such a pain."
Other than that the trip was distinctly unremarkable as nothing out of the ordinary seemed to happen. After a good half hour of nothing but hush Greed got fed up and took it upon himself to start up a conversation.
"Thing's have been awfully quiet around here. You think that chimera we fought was the only one of its kind?"
"It's rather unlikely," Pride said, "I sensed several creatures last night but they all seemed to stay away from us. Perhaps they're afraid they'll suffer the same fate."
"Heh, cowards."
"You're one to talk Envy."
"What'd you just say Greed?!"
"You heard me! I know all about how you ran from your fight with Mustang."
"Why you!"
"Greed! Envy!" Wrath barked, "Stop your bickering, it seems like we're almost out of this forest."
Greed raised an incredulous eyebrow.
"Really? How can you tell?"
"Do you notice how the trees are thinning out? That indicates that we're getting close to the edge of the forest. Hopefully there's a settlement nearby."
"Huh, I guess you're right. Well then come on, let's pick up the pace!"
"Wait up Greed!"
"It's not my fault you're slow old man!"
Wrath merely sighed in annoyance as Greed ran ahead.
"At least he's staying in eyesight." Lust noted.
"He always was trouble."
"You have no room to talk Envy. You're just as bad as him."
"What was that Wrath? You wanna fight?!"
"Calm down," Lust told him, "Look, we're at the exit."
"Finally!"
With that exclamation Envy galloped off to join Greed past the border of trees within their sight causing Lust to sigh in annoyance.
"Come on Gluttony, let's join them."
"Coming Lust!"
As the two ran off the remaining three homunculi remained quiet as they forged forwards at a slow gait.
"Can I rest now?"
"Almost Sloth, just a bit further." Wrath assured him.
"What a pain."
Finally they caught up to the rest of the group as they exited the forest. Upon noticing all four of them staring at something they turned their gaze to the small village not too far off in the distance.
"Finally! Civilization!" Greed exclaimed, "Let's go!"
--
Somewhere outside the borders of Equestria lay a cave, and within this cave sat a grand alicorn stallion coated in light gray fur with a lustrous golden mane and tail. Upon his flanks the alicorn bore the symbol of the ouroboros which radiated with a dim red light, and set in his face was a scowl.
The stallion slammed his hoof down in fury, cracking the stone beneath him.
"Damn that Truth! Does he think he can make a fool out of me?!"
In spite of his earlier reservations Greed wasted no time in setting off at a gallop towards the small settlement that lay in front of them. With a sigh from Lust and a groan from Sloth the rest of the homunculi moved to follow him at a more lax pace. While the town was within seeing distance it would still take them all a few minutes of walking before they reached it proper.
"I suppose we shall see if I was correct in my assumption."
Wrath apparently took note of Lust's comment.
"Oh? And what would that happen to be Lust?"
"That this world may, in fact, be inhabited by others similar to us."
"Homunculi?"
"No, Envy, I mean ponies."
"Pfft, ha! Yeah, sure, I'd believe just about anything at this point."
Wrath hummed thoughtfully.
"That would certainly be interesting. Perhaps it could be to our advantage."
"I was thinking the same."
"Pride could you help us gather intel on these inhabitants?"
"Of course d- Wrath."
"I'm counting on you."
With one last nod the group descended into silence once more as they continued their trek towards civilization. Within a few minutes they could see that Greed had stopped upon reaching the village and was now just sitting there staring.
"What's that idiot doing?" Envy questioned, "I know for a fact that he didn't stop so he could wait on us."
As they came closer to the grouping of buildings Lust allowed a small smirk to grace her face.
"It seems I was right."
Envy found himself gaping at the impossible situation before them.
"No way. No fucking way."
As Lust had predicted the town was bustling with various types of ponies of all shapes, size, and color. The streets were littered mostly with ordinary ponies like Greed with a smattering of unicorns like herself and Pride. One or two pegasi could be spotted amongst the throngs of ponies but it seemed that, for the most part, they stayed in the air.
"Anything you want to say Greed?" Lust questioned upon moving beside him.
Greed mumbled something under his breath.
"What was that?"
"I said you were right okay!"
"Glad to hear it."
"You know," Envy spoke up, "We never actually planned on what we were going to do once we got here."
"Yeah," Greed nodded, "What's your brilliant idea now Lust?"
"I suggest that we first find a library so as to learn more about the land we have found ourselves in."
Greed groaned in exasperation.
"A library, of course. Why the hell didn't I think of that?"
"Cause you're an idiot."
"Shut it Envy. You brought it up."
"You wanna go?!"
"Bring it on you bastard!"
Wrath intervened before the two could start anything.
"Stop it you two you're making a scene."
As Wrath had stated several ponies within the town had taken note of their altercation and were now observing the group of homunculi with interest. The two harumphed but stopped fighting and after realizing nothing else was going to happen most ponies continued on their way, though a few continued to stare at them.
"What?!" Greed barked, scattering the remnants of those whom had stayed behind, all except for a way too pink pony.
"Heya!" she greeted as she bound over enthusiastically.
Envy growled at the newcomer.
"What do you want?!"
"I wanted to welcome you all to Ponyville! I mean I've never seen you before and if I've never seen you before that means that you're new to Ponyville so that means that I need to welcome you."
"Yeah, well you can take your greeting and shove it up your-"
"Envy!" Lust cut him off, shooting him a glare before smiling at Pinkie, "Thank you for the welcome Miss-"
"Oh right! My name's Pinkie Pie, though most ponies call me Pinkie! What're your names?!"
"Hello Pinkie it's nice to meet you. My name is Lust, and these are Gluttony, Greed, Envy, Pride, Wrath, and Sloth."
"Those are some funny names," Pinkie giggled.
"Our names are weird?" questioned Envy, "What kinda name is Pinkie?"
"It's my name silly."
"This place is already getting on my nerves."
"For once I agree with you Envy."
"Hush Envy," Lust spoke, "You too Greed. Anyways as you so pointed out we happen to be new here. We would appreciate it if you would kindly tell us the location of this town's library."
"Sure can do! It's thataway! Keep an eye out for the big tree and tell Twi I said hey! Now if you don't mind I have to go plan your surprise party!"
With that Pinkie Pie seemingly zipped off in a blur leaving the homunculi alone and confused.
"Jeez, she might move almost as fast as you Sloth." Greed commented.
"Moving is a pain." Was the only response Sloth gave.
"That was most certainly an interesting first interaction." Wrath spoke.
"Tell me about it." Agreed Envy.
"Regardless," Lust started, "We were able to acquire the location of this town's library and it seems this Pinkie character is a friend of its owner."
"How could anyone be friends with that annoying spaz?"
"I liked her!"
"Of course you would Gluttony. Just make sure to keep her away from me, I have enough trouble with Greed over there."
"You're making it sound like I'm the one who's the problem."
"Because you are!"
"What was that you bastard?!"
"Enough," Pride interjected, "Both of you are more trouble than you're worth. I'm amazed that you even consider yourself homunculi."
"What was that you prick?" The two said in unison.
"Now now, settle down." Wrath spoke calmly, "Pride try not to rile them up more than usual, that just causes more problems for us."
"Yes fat- Wrath."
Wrath nodded.
"Good. Now I suggest we make haste lest we make another scene. We're already starting to attract attention again."
As Wrath had pointed out a few of the town's residents had turned their attention back to the group.
"Alright" Greed agreed while Envy merely gave a grunt.
With another nod Wrath took off in the direction that the pink mare had indicated and the others made to follow him. As they made their way through the village the homunculi found themselves observing their new surroundings. It seemed that modestly sized cottages made up a large portion of the buildings that surrounded them, not too unlike a few of the smaller towns and cities that dotted Amestris.
As Lust studied the unfamiliar environment she found herself especially drawn in by the locals. While the populace did hold all three species of pony she noted that the spread was most certainly not even. A bulk of the masses appeared to consist of regular ponies while the second most abundant happened to be pegasi.
Unicorns, however, looked to be something of an oddity what with only three or four dotted around the immediate vicinity.
I wonder why the distribution of the species is how it is. Is it a cultural thing or are unicorns just that rare?
There was one other thing she happened to take notice of as they passed by what appeared to be a market of sorts. Any and all produce was being exchanged for small coins that looked to be made out of gold, or at least coated in it. Inwardly Lust smiled to herself and chuckled.
Wait until Greed learns about that.
With nothing else to observe Lust focused her full attention on locating the library. While it was rather unlikely that they would find a way to get back she still wished to try. If it turned out to be futile then at the very least she could study up on the new lands they now inhabited, in hopes of being able to forge herself a new life.
A few minutes of searching had yielded no results in trying to find a building that could have functioned as a library and it was obviously taking it's toll on the two most impatient of the group.
"Ahhhh!" Envy wailed in annoyance, "I'm starting to think that pink idiot had no idea what she was talking about!"
Greed nodded in sympathy.
"I'm starting to feel the same. Maybe we should've asked someone else for directions."
"Does it look like anyone else wishes to speak with us?" Lust inquired.
"Dunno," Greed answered, "They sure seem like it though with the staring and all."
"They are staring at us, yes, but have you noticed any of them try to actively approach us?"
"I suppose not."
"Then just keep an eye out for..."
Lust trailed off as she found herself at a loss for words upon taking notice of the structure in front of them. After a couple of seconds Greed broke the silence.
"That is one big tree."
"Indeed it is," Lust spoke, "I do not believe that any such trees existed in Amestris."
Greed took a moment to observe the sign hanging above the doorway that lead inwards before he groaned and face-hooved.
"Figures. I know she said it was in a tree but I didn't think she meant literally."
"This just keeps getting worse." Envy griped.
"Quit whining you two," Wrath interjected, "That won't get us anywhere. Right now we need to focus on learning as much as we can."
"Agreed," Lust concurred, "There's no point in complaining, we simply have to make the best of the situation at hand."
"Fine." The two agreed in tandem.
"Very good, now let us be on our way."
"After you old man."
Wrath shot a glare at Greed but made his way over to the colossal oak before he reached out a hoof and stopped.
"That's strange."
"What's strange?" Lust inquired.
"This door has a knob. If this world's primary inhabitants are ponies then why would they create something difficult to manipulate using hooves?"
Envy sneered.
"Who cares. This place doesn't make any sense to begin with, let's just get this shit over with."
Wrath rolled his eyes but didn't speak up as he contemplated how he would tackle the current problem in front of him. After some consideration he raised his right foreleg and pushed firmly against the knob before twisting. The handle thankfully turned but the amount of force he was using meant that the instant the door was free it swung inwards.
As the door opened it glanced a bell hanging from the wall which caused it to chime and alert those inside of their arrival. Though the room it lead to appeared to be devoid of ponies a feminine voice could be heard.
"Coming!"
The striking of hooves against wood sounded throughout the enclosure as it grew ever closer. Finally a purple figure made it's way into sight revealing itself to be a winged unicorn. The mare, obvious by her body build, opened her muzzle to speak.
"Welcome to Golden Oaks Library."
The group was quite when Greed took initiative.
"What the fuck?! Why does she get both wings and a horn?!"
The mare had flinched back at his outburst, her ears flattening against her head.
"I'm sorry?"
Seeing the potential disaster that was letting Greed continue to talk Lust stepped in.
"Please excuse him, he's an idiot."
"Hey!"
"Anyhow, would you happen to be the caretaker of this fine collection?"
That appeared to snap the mare out of her reverie.
"Ah, yes I live here and take care of this library. How may I help you?"
The seven of them all exchanged looks before turning back to her.
"It's a long story. Perhaps we could come in before we discuss it."
"Of course! The library is open to everypony."
The mare moved aside and ushered the group in one by one, though Sloth did have some trouble getting through the small door. Once they were all situated inside she closed the door behind them before focusing on the group once more.
"Ah, how rude of me I haven't even introduced myself yet. My name is Twilight Sparkle."
"Greetings Twilight Sparkle, you can call me Wrath. My comrades here are Sloth, Pride, Greed, Envy, Lust, and Gluttony."
Each of the members gave their own greeting as they were introduced by Wrath so as to ensure there would be no confusion.
"If you don't mind me asking where are you from? You certainly don't appear to be average ponies."
Wrath hmmmd as he contemplated how best to explain the situation to this pony.
"You would be correct in asserting as such. In fact if our supposition is right we might not even be of this world."
Twilight tilted her head to the side.
"Not of this world? That would certainly explain a few things, like how your cutie marks are the same."
"Cutie marks?" Lust spoke up, "I presume that you are talking about these images imprinted on our flanks. I noticed that several others also happened to have them as well, however they often differed."
"That's right! Whenever a pony finds out what it is that they're best at their cutie mark manifests itself."
"That's all very well and interesting," Greed assured her, "But could we hurry it up to the part where you actually tell us if we can get back or not?"
"Hmm, dimensional spells aren't really my forte, however from what I've read if there was a way for you to get here there's likely a way for you to get back."
"Is that so?" questioned Wrath, "Well then we would be particularly grateful if we could have your assistance in looking for a way back to our world."
The purple mare smiled kindly at them.
"Of course I'll help. I wouldn't be the Princess of Friendship if I turned away ponies in need."
At this Greed felt his interest piqued.
"A princess you say?"
"Yes, I wasn't always an alicorn though, once I was a regular unicorn. Through the magic of friendship, however, I managed to earn my wings and title."
Greed was practically salivating at the mere prospect of the kinds of riches the pony in front of them had when Wrath let out a cough.
"Ahem, anyhow is there any place we can stay at until this is all sorted out? Or at the very least until we can start earning money?"
"You can stay here for tonight, I'll contact Princess Celestia and tomorrow we'll work on figuring out more permanent arrangements for you."
"Are you sure?" Lust questioned, "We wouldn't want to inconvenience you."
"Of course! Like I said before I wouldn't be a Princess of Friendship if I just ignored ponies in need. Plus learning about an entirely new world is, in itself, payment enough. You wouldn't mind if I asked you a few questions would you?"
"Of course not, that is if you wouldn't mind answering a few of mine."
"Of course, it's only fair after all. First I need to write a letter to the Princess so that we can request a meeting then we'll exchange information. Spike!"
"Coming!"
As whomever Twilight had called for was coming down they all heard the distinct pitter patter of feet as apposed to the clopping of hooves they were accustomed to. From a set of stairs appeared a small purple lizard standing on two legs at whom Greed's eyes widened.
"Holy shit! Is that a dragon?! Forget horns and wings why couldn't I have been one of those!"
Twilight and Spike both found themselves cringing at his harsh language.
"Spike could you please write a letter to Princess Celestia."
Spike nodded in affirmation as he pulled out a quill and parchment paper from wherever he might have been hiding it and prepared to transcribe Twilight's musings.
"Dear Princess Celestia,
I have recently met a group of ponies who claim that they may be from another world and have asked for my assistance in returning home. However dimensional spells are not my forte so I wish to request an audience with you tomorrow so that we may discuss possible solutions to this problem.
Your most faithful student, Twilight Sparkle."
"Aaaand done!"
With that Spike rolled up the piece of parchment before letting out a breath of green fire which quickly burnt away at the scroll.
"Interesting," Lust hmmm'd in thought, "Tell me what was the purpose in burning that parchment? There must be some kind of reason behind it."
"Yes, in fact, there is. You see dragon flames are magical by nature and the parchment I use for writing letters happens to be enchanted with a spell that will send it directly to Princess Celestia when burnt by Spike's dragon fire. Actually I'm quite surprised, you're the first person I've had ask me about that."
"One can never have too much knowledge."
Twilight perked up at that.
"I agree! I love my friends, but you would not believe how often my friends make fun of me for being an 'egghead'. It's nice to find somepony who appreciates knowledge like me."
Lust spared a glance at Envy and Greed who had literally started butting heads.
"Same."
It was at that point that Gluttony's stomach decided to growl and he looked up at her.
"Lust I'm hungry. Can we eat now?"
"Twilight, is there perhaps a place nearby where we could get some refreshments? It's been quite a long day and I'm sure that some of us would like to eat."
Twilight looked thoughtful for a moment.
"Actually there is! My friend works at a bakery called Sugarcube Corner, we could go there for lunch and I could introduce you to my friend."
Lust gave a bright smile at the mare and Twilight's cheeks appeared to tinge pink.
"Why thank you Twilight that is a lovely idea. We would very much appreciate that."
"It's no problem Lust, as the Princess of Friendship it's the least I can do."
"Very well then, lead the way. Envy, Greed, save the fighting for later," Envy and Greed gave a 'Humph!' but stopped butting heads, "The rest of you come on."
"Oh goody, we get to eat now."
"Eating, what a pain. When can I sleep?"
"Later Sloth," Wrath spoke up, "That sounds like a lovely idea Princess, please lead the way."
"Please just call me Twilight."
"Very well Twilight, lead the way then."
With that Twilight walked out into the not so bustling streets of Ponyville, followed closely behind by Spike and then the seven homunculi. As they traversed the trodden paths Lust took note that there weren't nearly as many pony on the streets as there had been before hand. She chocked it up to everyone being out to lunch.
Eventually the group found their way to a strange confectionery house that looked like it was made of gingerbread, though if it had it likely wouldn't have lasted long, but that wouldn't stop Gluttony from trying to eat it.
"Lust can I have a bite?"
"No Gluttony, it's not nice to eat someone's house."
"Not even a nibble?"
"I wouldn't try it if I were you," Twilight interjected, "I know it looks like a gingerbread house, but that's all wood."
"Trust me Princess," Greed said, "Fatty over there has eaten way worse things before without ever getting a stomach ache. I'd advise you to keep him away from anything precious to you."
Twilight shook her head, not even willing to try to figure that one out.
"Never the less this is the place I was telling you about, they've got the best baked goods in Equestria. However my friend can be a little... overbearing so please brace yourself."
Without further adieu Twilight led the way into the bakery while the others closely followed only for them to stop and look around in confusion at the sheer darkness of the bakery.
"SUPRISE!"
The door slammed close behind them just as the lights flooded the room revealing a number of ponies scattered throughout the room as well as several tables upon which lay food and a banner hanging from the ceiling stating 'Welcome to Ponyville!'.
Sloth and Pride were nonplussed, Lust and Wrath held small smiles on their faces, Greed looked smug at the idea of a party thrown in his honor, Gluttony was bouncing up and down like an excited puppy, however Envy was in a defensive stance growling at the crowd of ponies surrounding them.
Upon seeing Envy's expression most ponies fell silent and stared worriedly at each other. Greed was the first one to dare break the silence.
"Jeez Envy, calm down a bit. You're bringing down the mood."
"Calm down?! After what these idiots just pulled they're lucky I don't kill any of them!"
"Jeez, okay, we get it you don't like surprises, now shut up so the rest of us can enjoy this party."
"You're just begging for me to kick your ass. Wanna take this outside?"
"Sure, I'll be happy to use you for stress relief."
"Greed, Envy, settle down you're causing a scene."
"Shut up Wrath, I don't have to listen to you. Don't forget I've been around longer than you."
"Then what about me," Pride's cold voice cut through, "I'm only going to tell you this once, settle down."
Envy certainly didn't seem happy at being told what to do, but he didn't try arguing with Pride. He was hard headed, not suicidal.
"Fine, enjoy your stupid party or whatever, I'll be outside."
With that Envy stormed his way outside, slamming the door behind him.
"Sorry about him," Lust apologized, "He's not exactly the most sociable person."
"C'mon why's everypony all downy frowny? This is a party!"
The six remaining homunculi plus one Twilight turned to look at the pink newcomer.
"Ugh," Greed groaned, "Not her again."
"Hello Pinkie, I'd like you to meet Lust, Pride, Gluttony, Greed, Wrath, and Sloth. The one who just left is Envy. Everypony I'd like you to meet my friend Pinkie."
"We've met." Lust stated.
"Hiya there Lusty. How do you like this party I set up for you guys?"
Lust felt a grin work its way onto her face, "Why yes Pinkie, it's quite lovely."
"Aw, thanks Lusty. Welp it was nice talking to you but I've got other ponies to make happy so I'll catch up with you later!"
Lust giggled into her hoof, and out of the corner of her eye she could see Twilight blush.
"My, she's quite... energetic isn't she?"
"Yeah, that's Pinkie Pie for you. Why don't I introduce you to my other friends?"
"That sounds like a wonderful idea Twilight, please lead the way."
"O-Of course!"
Twilight stiffly walked towards a group of multicolored ponies which consisted of a white unicorn, a yellow pegasus, a blue pegasus, and a regular orange pony.
"H-Hey," Twilight cleared her throat, "Hey girls I'd like you to meet the newcomers. These are Pride, Gluttony, Sloth, Wrath, Greed, and Lust, and the one outside is Envy. Everypony these are my friends, Rarity, Fluttershy, Rainbow Dash, and Applejack."
"It's a pleasure to meet you darlings."
"The pleasure's all mine Miss Rarity."
Rarity blushed and waved her hoof.
"Please Mister Greed you flatter me."
"It's nice to meet Twilight's friends, say hi Gluttony."
"Hi!"
"Well howdy!" Applejack exclaimed taking her hat off and holding it to her chest, "It's mighty nice to meet y'all."
"Agreed." was all Wrath said.
"Yeah, yeah, I'm Rainbow Dash, the fastest, and awesomest pegasus in Ponyville."
"I'm Pride."
"I'm Fluttershy."
"What was that dear?" Lust questioned.
"I said I'm Fluttershy."
"One more time please?"
"I said I'm Fluttershy. Eeep!"
"What's yer name big guy?"
"Sloth. Meeting people... is such a pain."
"Oh my, I understand how you feel, I always get so nervous about going out and talking to ponies."
"Lust can I go eat now?"
"Of course Gluttony, just be sure to save some for others."
"Yay!"
Lust smiled at Gluttony's child-like behavior before switching over to a more charming one as she turned towards Twilight.
"If you don't mind I'd like to discuss some things with you Twilight."
"O-Of course, I'd love to!"
The two trotted off into the crowd of ponies discussing some matter.
"I'd like to talk to Sloth, that is if you don't mind."
"What a pain." was Sloth's response, never the less he followed Fluttershy away towards a quieter part of the party.
"If you would be so kind I'd like to speak to Miss Dash for a while."
"Hay yeah! You gotta tell me where you got some of those sweet scars!"
"Be careful what you wish for."
Rainbow Dash and Wrath trotted off followed closely by Pride.
"I so do apologize for this, but I must go mingle. A lady has a reputation to keep after all."
"It's fine, I'll catch up with you later Miss Rarity. I should probably go check on Envy anyways. Who knows what kind of trouble he's gotten himself into."
"Au revoir."
Rarity made her way into the crowd of ponies and Greed took a moment to ready himself for the inevitable onslaught of insults about to be flung his way. When he was ready, or as ready as he could be, he made his way out the door and was greeted by the sight of Envy sitting sullenly on the front steps.
Greed was taken aback, he had seen Envy sulk before but he'd never seen the homunculus this shaken. He moved to sit down by the pegasus and didn't even get a glance.
"What do you want?"
Greed was surprised to hear something that sounded like an actual question rather than a demand from the usually arrogant homunculus.
"What's got you so scared?"
"I'm not scared," Envy argued feebly.
"C'mon Envy I've known you for over a century and I've never seen you like this before. What's wrong?"
"It's just, what happened, it reminded me of Mustang, when, well you know. For a second it felt like I was back in those dark cramped corridors being hunted again."
Greed had never really seen eye to eye with Envy, and sure he had done some pretty bad stuff in his lifetime, but Greed couldn't help but feel sorry for the person besides him. It must have been terrifying to have been hunted down by the Flame Alchemist.
"I know how you feel. Remember I died two times, and one of those times was when I was dipped in lava."
That managed to get a grin out of Envy.
"Shut up Greed, I don't need your pep talk, c'mon let's get this stupid thing over with so we can leave."
Envy stood up and made his way into the ongoing party. When Greed made to follow, for a split second, he could have sworn he saw something glittering at the corner of Envy's eye.
--
After several hours the party at Sugarcube Corner had tapered off and everyone had decided to part ways, leaving only Twilight, Spike, and the homunculi to head back to the library. Once there Spike had burped out a letter and Twilight was currently reading it.
"Dear Twilight Sparkle,
I apologize for the late reply as I have been kept busy with court today. I must admit you have raised my intrigue, and I would be happy to help search for a way to send these ponies home. I shall have a guard escort sent to collect all of you and bring you to Canterlot tomorrow at around 8:00 A.M.
With regards, Princess Celestia."
"I see," Lust commented, "That was certainly faster than I expected. I suppose with any luck that we might find the solution to our problem tomorrow. Or perhaps we shall learn that we are stuck in this world with no escape. If that happens to be the case then we shall have to decide upon our next course of action when it comes to that."
"Don't worry I'm sure the Princess' can find a way to get you home!" Twilight announced cheerily then blushed, "But I'd miss you if you left."
Lust gave Twilight a smile, "Worry not Twilight, I'm sure that if there's a way out of this world then there's a way back into this world. I'll be sure to come and visit."
"Really?!" Twilight questioned, perking up.
"Absolutely."
"That is all well and good, however it is late and I suggest we all get some rest so that we can get up bright and early tomorrow." Wrath interjected.
"Right, let me show you to the guest bedroom." Twilight said before trotting up the stairs leading to the second floor. The rest of the group followed closely behind until she stopped at a door and opened it.
"Here, sorry there's only six beds."
"It's fine," Greed told her, clapping Sloth on the back, "This big guy here could sleep anywhere couldn't ya."
"So tired."
"See."
Twilight still looked unsure but didn't argue.
"If you say so, I suppose I'll see you all in the morning, good night." With that Twilight trotted off into a room of her own as the seven homunculi wormed their way into the bedroom and each claimed a bed for themselves while Sloth just curled up on the floor.
"I get to rest now? Good."
The rest of them laid down without any more words and Greed had almost drifted off before his eyes shot wide open.
"Guys!" he called out.
"What?!" Envy called out, annoyed at Greed for having broken the silence.
"I just realized something."
"And what's that dumbass?"
"We're all naked."
--
Father was pacing back and forth as he thought of a plan.
"I need to know where I am, and then I'll start anew, I'll create a new philosopher stone, and this time there will be no one to stop me. But first I need some souls."
