Fluttershy nervously looked behind her, back to the strange creature, who was still following them. She shuddered and turned around. This creature scared her. The thing that it held when it first saw her looked really scary, not to mention dangerous. It had seemed nice enough, but it was still strange.
...
John walked behind the pegasi, wondering what they could be thinking. He wasn't going to ask, because it really wasn't all that important to him, so he didn't bother. Eventually the came to a rather large castle, that was just outside the maze. Good thing the pegasi knew their way out. He looked up and observed the castle, which was rather large, and somewhat majestic. Just like everything else in this world, it had an animated quality. He was about to step forward, but the blue pegasus flew in front of him.

"You wait out here." She said, her tone very hostile. Regardless, John nodded and looked over to a stair. He calmly walked over to it and sat. Looking up to the sky, he noticed it still had the strange rainbow like atmosphere as when he first showed up. He didn't know why, but he could feel that this wasn't natural, even for a world as strange as this. It was almost like Earth or Reach. Except that it was strangely animated.

"You know they don't trust you right?" Cortana asked. John looked down to his pistol and inspected it, turning it to see each feature.

"I've noticed." He said as he placed the weapon back to his side, and places his arms on his legs, looking up into the sky.
...
Princess Celestia heard a faint knocking on the door, and knew that it was Rainbow and Fluttershy. She smiled. Maybe they had found the elements already? If so, this mess would be resolved sooner than she had hoped. To her right, Twilight also looked over to the door, and looked up to her. The Princess nodded, and Twilight ran over to the door, opening it. The Princess was about to greet them, but the looks on the faces of the two pegasi seemed distraught, and her smile vanished.

"Princess!" Rainbow said as she gave a quick bow, then jumped right up. Her tone was one of worry, and fear. Rainbow Dash? Scared?

"Calm down, Rainbow, what's wrong? Did you find the elements?" She asked. Rainbow shook her head. Looking over to Fluttershy, she could see her telling something to Twilight, who simply nodded and seemed to be trying to calm her friend down. She looked back over to Rainbow, who had uncertainty in her eyes.

"Well... We found somepony, or... Something... Actually..."
...
John let a bird land on his shoulder, which, unsurprisingly, was also animated. He looked over to the bird, inspecting it. Just like before, it was exactly the same as a bird on Earth or Reach. Except being animated. He calmly brushed it aside, and watched it as it soared into the air.

"Excuse me... sir?" He hears. Looking back, he can see the yellow pegasus from before. He looks at it, waiting for her to continue. It rubs it's foreleg and looks around, obviously nervous. John turns back around and looks to the sky again.

"Sir?" He hears again. Looking behind him, he can still see the yellow pegasus.

"Yea?" He asks. The pegasus looks down, it's ears growing flat, then back up again. She looks up again, and mumbles something.

"Speak up." He says. The pegasus backs away slightly, whimpering. It looks toward him, then away again.

"Can you come in? I mean... If that's okay with you..." It says shyly. John nods, and places his hands on his knees. He pushes himself up, then walks up the stairs. He passes her, and she backs away slightly. He opens the door, and finds himself in front of a strange mix of unicorns, pegasi, and an Alicorn. He stands there, just looking at them. The Alicorn's eyes grow wide, as does those of a purple unicorn. Three other 'ponies' from the looks of it, are all wide eyed and have their mouths agape. The blue one from earlier just looks at him. He turns his attention to the Alicorn, who has a mane of blue, pink, and green, which seems to be blowing despite their being no wind. She has a white coat, as well as a crown on her head. She also has a purplish shade of eye color. Her rear has a tattoo like the others, only this one is a sun.

"A human..." It says. John looks around the castle and crosses his arms, waiting for anything that they might ask. A white unicorn with a tattoo of three diamonds, a purple mane, and blue eyes turns to the Alicorn, asking what a human is. It seems to have an English accent.

"It's a mythical creature... Or... It's supposed to be..." The purple one replied. John looked over to it, seeing a dark purple mane with a stripe of pink in it. It has a star like tattoo on it's rear, and purple eyes. An orange one, seeming to be normal, has a tattoo of three apples, green eyes, and a blonde mane. Strangely enough, it has a cowboy hat on it's head.

"Just who are you feller?" It asks in a hushed whisper. Definitely female, and has a southern accent. John turns to it.

"Master Chief." He says. All the ponies except the purple one and Alicorn jump back.

"IT TALKS?" A pink one with a cloud like pink mane asks. It darts towards him, inspecting him. It has a pink coat, as well as light blue eyes. Just like the others, it has a tattoo on it's rear, only this one is of three balloons.

"He." John says calmly. The pony gives a long gasp and starts shouting thing after thing. John turns to it calmly.

"Would you mind shutting up?" He asks. The pony stops in midair, though John can't see how, and drops slowly to the ground. Her mouth is agape, and she is almost like a statue. Turing back to the Alicorn, he sees it shake it's head to get itself to focus. John looks over to the yellow pegasus, who still appears frightened.

"Who are you really? Where did you come from?" He hears an authoritative voice say. Looking back, he sees that her astonished look is now one of intimidation. John wanted to laugh, these things thought they could intimidate him? John uncrosses his arms.

"I'm Master Chief, Spartan of the UNSC. I'm from the planet that is known as Reach, but it was destroyed. Ever since then, I've been living on a planet know as Earth, where I was originally born." John says calmly. The Alicorn raises an eyebrow.

"Your name is Master Chief?" It asks. John shakes his head.

"No, but I never tell my real name. Master Chief is my rank. You can call me Chief." He says as he re crosses his arms. The Alicorn squints, seeming to try and read him.

"Remove your helmet." She says. John just stands there, unwavering. The Alicorn scowls and tells him to remove his helmet again.

"No." He says calmly. The ponies behind the Alicorn gasp, and the blue one rushes forward, clearly angry.

"Hey buster! I don't know who you think you are, but you better show Princess Celestia some respect!" She shouts. John just watches it float in front of him, not moving. Looking back over to the Alicorn, he can see an irritated look on her face. That must have been Princess Celestia. From what he knew, she was probably the ruler, despite only being a princess. Lots of sectors ran that way. He un folds his arms and walks forward. Celestia glares at him.

"Why won't you remove your helmet?" She asks. John stands there calmly, not showing any emotion.

"It is part of me. Not physically, but you want me, you get the armor. No exceptions." He says calmly. The blue pegasus flew back up to him.

"And just who said we wanted you punk?" It asks, trying to sound intimidating. John turns towards it and stares down at it. It falls back and grows fearful.

"Easy John..." Cortana warns. John backs away, listening to her. He turns back to Celestia, waiting for more questions.

"How did you get here?" The Princess asked. John explained what had happened with his ship. The Princess nodded, and looked to the purple unicorn. It gulped and stepped forward slightly.

"Are those... Guns you have with you?" It asks. John almost laughed. Their mythology must have been pretty detailed. He nodded as he brought out his battle rifle. The pony gave a short shriek and backed away, and John rested it in his hands. He looked over to the Princess, who was frowning. Trying to lighten the atmosphere, he placed the gun back onto his back, and backed away. He placed his arms behind him, and stood respectfully. The Princess rose an eyebrow, and asked if he was alone. John stood for a moment, unsure of whether or not to reveal Cortana.

"Cortana?" He asked.

"Go ahead." She replied. He nods and grabs her. The ponies and Princess appear confused, and are about to speak, when he reveals Cortana.

"Meet my partner. Cortana." He says calmly. In his palm, Cortana gives a slight bow.

"Princess." She says. The ponies stare wide eyed, until the Princess shakes her head and looks at him. She questions about Cortana.

"It's a long story." She says. The Princess nods and looks over to the ponies, who shake their heads and try to figure out what was going on. John puts Cortana back into his head, and puts his attention back onto the Princess.

"May I ask your names?" John says. The ponies seem a bit hesitant at first, but they each give a name. The purple unicorn is named Twilight Sparkle, and is apparently the student of the Princess. The white one is named Rarity, a fashion designer. The orange one with a cowboy hat is named Applejack, and runs a successful apple business with her family. The pink one is named Pinkie Pie, a party thrower. The yellow pegasus he first met was Fluttershy, who was good with animals. The blue pegasus was named Rainbow Dash, who called herself the 'best young flier'. With introductions out of the way, John moved onto what he was really interested in.

"Is this world naturally like this? Distorted skies and such?" He asks. The Princess shook her head.

"No, but the balance of Equestria has been shifting, and strange occurrences have been happening." She explains. John nods. He then asks why Rainbow and Fluttershy were in the maze.

"They were searching for the Elements of Harmony, a group of five traits that represent friendship and harmony. They have vanished." She said. John brought his hand to his chin.

"How long ago did they disappear?" He asks.

"Five hours ago." The Princess replies. Ten hours? That was about how long it had been since his arrival here... Just then, a strange stallion came up, saying that the Elements were not on world, and they were spread across several worlds and times. The ponies began to panic, and the Princess was troubled. John placed his hand to his chin, and thought for a while. He was used to space travel, and had even been the volunteer of time travel once. Perhaps if he could gain their trust, and regain these elements, he could find a way home.

"I know what you're thinking..." Cortana says. John lowers his hand and observes the ponies, they are talking with fear and panic in their voices, and each doesn't know what to do.

"And?" He asks.

"It's a good idea, just be careful John." Cortana says. John nods and steps forward, offering his help. The Princess glares at him, trying to read him. She wouldn't be able to.

"How do we know you won't betray us? According to legend, humans change their attitudes quickly. How can we be sure you will stay on our side?"

"I have nothing to gain from double crossing you." He says. The Princess thinks for a while, then asks each of the ponies what they think. John listens to each one hesitantly say yes, although all still are cautious of their choice. With a sigh, the Princess turns to John.

"Very well Master Chief. We will require your services."

Author's Note

From now on, once a week guys, once a week.