The Encounter

Chapters

Lost
Fear; Assistance
Apprehensions...
...Part II
Pinkie
Blood
A Dangerous Admission
Applejack
Fluttershy, Part One
Fluttershy, Part Two
Revelations
Rarity
Confrontations
Priel and R'el
Big Mac
Last Stands
The Hkari
Missteps
Acceptance
Captain H'iix
The Battle of the Everfree
...and Last
The CMC
Rainbow Dash
Lessons and Cupcakes
Final Preparations

Lost

I awake on my back, feeling pain in every limb. Groaning, I push myself to a sitting position and try to get my bearings. The last thing I remember I was tossing and turning in my bed, experiencing another delightful bout of insomnia. I must have eventually drifted off, but this doesn’t explain why I'm no longer in my room. Instead of my hardwood floor, I feel leaves and dirt. It is pitch black, and by squinting, I can just make out the shapes of trees all around me. This is bad. My heart starts beating faster as I take in my situation, and I start to sweat. I have to get out of here!

I struggle to my feet and look around. I can smell the plants, and there’s a cool breeze blowing. The breeze has a snap to it, like early autumn. Distantly, I can hear what must be the sound of animals moving about and I feel the first cold fingers of real fear seeping up my back. I’ve never been an outdoors type, but I’ve seen lots of documentaries. Right now the only thing I can remember about them is you drop a few steps on the food chain when you go out in the woods. I only hope there are no bears or mountain lions… or worse.

The wind picks up, and it’s gone from slightly cool to distinctly chilly. I wrap my arms around myself and look around for a house or a building. I’m wearing my wool pajamas, but that’s it. No slippers, no glasses…so I’m barefoot and half blind. Just then the moon appears from behind a thick bank of clouds, and I find myself staring up at it. It’s way larger than I can ever remember seeing, and looks closer. In any other circumstances I would have been impressed by its beauty, but right now all I can think about is finding out where I am and somehow getting back home. But I can’t do anything in the dark, so I sit back under a tree and huddle against it, trying to keep out of the wind. I force myself to think calmly as I sit there. Whoever took me from my bed is most likely not a friend of mine and maybe it was all some sort of cruel prank. I don’t know anyone who would do something like this to me, but you never know what someone else may be capable of. I take solace from the fact I am uninjured, but that could change out here, wherever “here” is. I should be angry about all this, but right now I need help.

The more I think about it, the more worried I become. As far as I know, there were no thick woods like this anywhere near where I live, but it made no sense that I could somehow be taken miles from my home in the middle of the night, and just dropped off in the middle of nowhere. Unless I’d been drugged. That thought did nothing for my composure.

I listen, but besides the sound of scuffling and the snap of twigs from what I assume to be animals and the creak of trees shifting in the wind, there are no sounds of traffic, no glow from streetlights. I must be out in the boonies, away from civilization. I debate whether or not it is better to wait for daylight, or try to find a way out now. But I’m chilly, and will probably be hungry soon. Besides, who knows what else may be out here, which may not be averse to sampling human? I get to my feet, pick a direction and slowly start walking. Fortunately, the ground is very soft, but I still went slowly, sliding each foot along and feeling with my toes for any rocks or twigs before planting them. I’d only rarely been outside barefoot before.

After about an hour, as far as I could tell, I stop and sit under a tree again. There seemed to be no end to these woods, but other than an owl hooting unexpectedly and making me jump, I’d encountered nothing scary or threatening. But now I could faintly hear the sound of water. There must be a stream or a river nearby, so I get back up and follow the sound. After a few minutes, I see a small stream with the moonlight glinting off its surface. There were probably fish in there, but I had no way of catching one or even cooking one if I could. I sit down next to the water and think about my next move. The sound of the stream was somehow comforting, but I had no intention of trying to cross it, not barefoot and certainly not with the chilly wind. I looked up and downstream and then stopped. There, a few yards away was a small bridge, and I felt relief flood me. Where there’s a bridge, there’s got to be people, I reasoned, so I made my way towards it. Sure enough, there was a path on either side of the bridge, and that meant I’d found my way out!

The thought of finally getting out of this dark forest made me hurry as quickly as I could. The path was smooth, and hard packed, but I still was wary of stepping on sharp rocks. As I went, I considered what I should say to whomever I met. It’s the middle of the night, and I’m a stranger. Whomever I woke would probably not be very trusting; I know I wouldn’t be. All I had to do was convince them to let me use their phone, and I could call the police and get home. That shouldn’t be too much to ask.

Before too long I saw what appeared to be farm buildings, for in the moonlight I could just barely make out a barn, and a house next to it. There were trees in rows stretching off as far as I could see in the dim. It must be some kind of orchard, but they were no help to me now. I couldn’t see any lights in the house, so everyone must be fast asleep. They were certainly not going to be happy about answering their door at this time of night, but other than that thought I was almost giddy with relief. I’d soon be on my way home, and then I’d see about whomever it was that pulled this “prank” on me.

As I made my way to the front door, I paused before knocking. This is odd. The door is much smaller than it should be, almost level with my head. I shrug and knock on the door. I’m probably just tired. There’s no response, so I knock again, a little more forcefully this time.

“Hello?” I call out. “Can someone help me? I need help!”

After a few minutes, I see a light come on through the window, and I hear a voice, but I don’t recognize the language. More oddness, but I’m in no position to be choosy.

“Can you open the door, please? I just need to use your phone.”

The door opens, and I start to speak, but then I get a good look at what just opened the door, and ice cold fear shoots through me. It’s some kind of tiny horse, but it just appears…wrong. Its eyes are huge and intelligent, unlike any eyes I’ve ever seen on an animal. It’s holding a lantern up in one hoof, and the look of fear and shock on its face must match my own. We stare at each other for a few seconds, then we both scream! I turn and run, while I hear the door slam and lock behind me. Heedless of rocks, I take off back down the path. Once I get some distance between me and that place, I stop and catch my breath.

That…that thing was speaking just before it opened the door!

Fear; Assistance

"Sweet Celestia, what was that?!” Applejack whispered urgently to herself. She took a few moments and calmed down, trying to think clearly. She had to do something! Whatever it was, it was still out there, somewhere on her farm or close by. If she hurried, she could get Twilight to send for the Royal Guards, and they could track it down before it hurt somepony. But would Twilight believe her?

Quickly she ran up the stairs to Big Mac’s room, and quietly knocked on his door. After a few moments he opened it and looked annoyed, but his expression changed to concern when he saw the look in her eyes.

“AJ? What’s wrong?”

“Big Mac, there’s something outside, something I’ve never seen before. I need you to watch Granny and Apple Bloom; I’m going to go wake Twilight and get some help.”

“What is it? What did you see?”

“I can’t explain, but it scared me more than I’ve ever been.”

“Then I’m coming with you!”

“No! Stay here, lock the door after me, and watch the family! I’ll be back as soon as I can!”

“But—”

“No 'buts'! Just lock the door after me!” She quickly turned and ran back down the stairs as Mac followed her. He put a hoof on her shoulder just as she started out.

“Be careful.”

She nodded. “I will, just keep everypony safe!” She paused a moment to look around, then bolted out and down the path, running as fast as she could.

Big Mac watched her go, then shut and locked the door. He then set himself to watch. Nothing was getting through to his family, not while he still breathed.

Applejack ran full out until she made it to the castle. Panting, she hammered on the front door, and called out, “Twilight! Spike! Open up!”

After what seemed like an eternity, the door creaked open, and there stood Twilight yawning and rubbing her eyes.

“Applejack? What’s—she yawned—wrong?”

“Twilight, I don’t know if you’ll believe me, but I just saw something at my door, something I’ve never seen before. We gotta go catch it!”

“Wait, slow down…what was it you saw? Some kind of animal?”

“It was standin’ on two legs and it had tiny eyes and sharp teeth! I don’t mind sayin’ I got pretty scared!”

“A…minotaur?”

“It weren't no minotaur! Can we please get Celestia or Luna to send some guards and get that thing? Who knows what it can do?”

Twilight considered. Applejack’s fear was genuine, so she definitely saw something. But there must be a logical explanation.

“Applejack, please: just take a moment and tell me exactly what happened. I need as many details as you can remember.”

Applejack sighed, but quickly recounted how she’d heard loud knocking, and a voice calling out. She’d gone down and opened the door, only to see that tall creature looming in her doorway.

“…and then I told my brother to watch over the family, then came an’ got you! It’s probably run halfway through the Everfree by now, so if’n we’re gonna catch it we have to hurry!”

“Wait, Applejack, back up: what did the creature do when it saw you? Did it try to get in?”

“No, it probably screamed louder than I did, and run off!”

“Then…it saw you as a danger as well. And you say it ‘knocked’ on your door? It must be intelligent.”

“Don’t that make it worse if it’s smart? That’ll make it harder to catch!”

“It may not be a threat, despite its appearance. Based on what you’ve told me, it chose flight rather than confrontation. But you’re right, we need to find it. Come in, I’ll have Spike send a letter to Princess Luna.”

__________________________________________________________________________________________________________

My God what is this place?

I didn’t stop running until I made it to the cover of some trees. What if there were more of those freaky aliens? Then that would mean I’m definitely not where I’m supposed to be.

Maybe I’m even not on…I quickly pushed that thought away. It was impossible; the nearest planet possible for habitation was hundreds of light years away, or so that science show had said. There was no way I’d traveled that distance in the few hours I’d been sleeping! So there had to be another, more plausible explanation.

Just then my stomach growled. On top of everything else, I was now hungry. I had to do something, but I’d never even fished, let alone brought down any game. My only choice was to find something on the ground, or maybe some fruit. Then I remembered the orchard, but that would mean going back to that farm. I wasn’t that hungry yet.

I suddenly noticed birdsong, and in the distance, the sky was getting lighter. That meant it was almost dawn. How long had I been out here? Then I saw something that rocked me to my core. The moon. That bright, oddly large moon, simply moved and went below the horizon! How could a celestial body move that fast?! And what kind of tidal forces would it create? Not for the last time, I wondered where I was, but if this is Earth there’s something very, very wrong.

As I get to my feet, I take a step and then scream. My luck had run out; I had stepped on something sharp. I quickly examined my foot. There was a large gash, and it was bleeding. I searched the grass for the culprit and found a sharp stone. I picked it up and threw it angrily away. Now I couldn’t run, and was becoming desperate. No shoes, no glasses, no food…and now lame. In a place with a moon that had a mind of its own, as well as mutant horse creatures, or at least one.

I struggled back to my feet and tried to put my weight down on my foot. I hissed and quickly drew it back up as I leaned on a tree. I couldn’t use the whole foot, but I could go tiptoe. I just needed something to lean on. I looked around for a stout branch. Finding one, I used it to slowly hobble away.

As I went along, I thought about my situation, and the more I thought about it, the angrier I became. This is all crazy! I didn’t ask to be brought here, wherever this is. That creature had been scary, but now that I thought about it, it was small and had been scared of me too. It had been speaking some kind of language, so it had to be sapient. If it was sapient, maybe I could somehow reason with it, or others of its kind.

There was so much I didn’t know, but I did know I didn’t want to die out here. If I could find one of those things alone, I would try to get it to help me. If it didn’t, I would make it!

As I hobbled along the path, I looked up and saw what appeared to be a small cottage. A stream flowed right in front of it, and there was a bridge that went over it. I got off the path and hid behind some bushes, and watched the place in the growing light. I could see a fenced-in enclosure and a small building that looked like it had chickens in it. Where there are chickens, there’s probably eggs. I’d never eaten a raw egg before, and any other time the thought would have made me queasy, but I was rapidly running out of options. Suddenly the door to the cottage opened, and another of those horse-things came out. This one was as small as the first one, with a yellow coat and a long pink mane. Pink? Yellow? Since when are horses that color? It only added to the weirdness.

While I watched it, it went into the chicken enclosure and threw some feed on the ground. The wind shifted, and I could hear what had to be singing. The thing was singing to the chickens. Other than the chickens and a few other small animals, it appeared to be alone. This was my chance. Quickly as I could, keeping ahold of my stick, I crawled over the bridge and tried to sneak up on it, just like I’d seen those army guys do in the movies. I made it as far as the fence before one of the chickens saw me, and squawked. I stood and brandished my makeshift weapon, then yelled. The horse-thing turned and saw me. Its eyes got even bigger as it screamed, then those eyes rolled up into its head and it fainted.

I stepped over the fence, stumbled up next to it, and poked it with my stick. It didn’t move. It was definitely out, so I took the opportunity to get my first good look at one of these things. Besides the odd color, I noticed markings on its butt that looked like butterflies. It must be some kind of tattoo, but I had no idea if it meant anything. More curiously, I finally saw a detail that had escaped my near-sighted eyes before... it had wings! What kind of creature is this? A...pegasus? It can't be! Those things only exist in myths! The unreality washed over me, and I had to pause for a moment while I stared down at it. Now that I could take my time and really see one, the creature looked sort of cute. When I realized that, I started to feel a little bad for scaring it. I tentatively reached out and touched it. Its fur was soft, and its mane wasn’t coarse like I’d seen on other horses, but it was like a girl’s. Then it struck me: whatever this is, it's a female! I felt even worse.

I couldn’t leave it out here in the dirt, so I tried to pick it up. It wasn’t as heavy as I thought it would be, so I cradled it in my arms and slowly limped up to the house. I managed to turn the knob without dropping…her…ducked and went through the doorway.

I was amazed at the sight. Not only did this look like a regular house, albeit smaller, this place was a zoo! There were small cages everywhere, and I could see chipmunks, squirrels, ferrets, and one tiny white rabbit. I stared at it, it stared at me. Then it looked at the horse in my arms, and screamed in what had to be rage! It flew at me, and latched onto my pajama leg!

“Ow! Hey, quit it!” I yelled. If it had been bigger, I might have been in trouble. As it was I shook it off, and it fell with a piece of my pajamas in its teeth.

“I’m not going to hurt her!” Why was I talking to a rabbit? The rabbit growled, and hunched its back, preparing to spring again, but I slowly side stepped as best I could over to a couch, and set the horse down on it. I turned and raised both hands to the rabbit, trying to show I was harmless. Then it did something I’ve never seen an animal do before... it scowled, scowled, then sat back on its hind legs and pointed to the door! I did a double take as it pointed more forcefully once again. This was no ordinary rabbit.

Just then I heard a groan behind me, as the horse slowly sat up. The rabbit seemed to forget me as it ran to her and hugged one of her legs. I limped away and watched them. She saw me and stiffened, then shrank back into the couch. I raised my hands again, palms out, and hoped she’d understand my meaning. Then she quietly spoke.

What are you?

I blinked. Did…did I hear that, or was it in my mind? Her verbal words, her language, was unknown to me, but somehow the meaning had gotten through. Then she looked down at the foot I was favoring.

You’re hurt.

My stomach rumbled.

And you’re hungry.

All I could do was nod, as I didn’t trust myself to speak. She got up and motioned towards the couch. Not knowing what else to do, I limped over and sat down. The rabbit growled at me again, but she spoke quietly to it as she walked by, and it backed off, but still kept its eye on me. The other animals walked or hopped cautiously up to me, sniffing and staring. I sat still. If they all decided to turn on me, this could be bad. I’d at least be bitten a dozen times, and I didn’t want to hurt them. But they all seemed to take their cue from the horse girl and the rabbit, so I wasn’t attacked.

The horse returned with a box that had a red cross on it. I couldn’t read the words, but it looked like a standard first aid kit. She spoke to the animals again, and a few of them went and came back with a bowl of water and some towels. This was amazing. Once she had the water, she gently washed my wounded foot, and then opened the first aid kit and applied some ointment and a wrap bandage. I could only stare at her. This was the first act of kindness I’d experienced here, and it was a bit overwhelming. I felt tears beginning to start, but I quickly wiped them away. Even though she was kind, I didn’t want to show weakness. Once she was done, she spoke again.

My name is Fluttershy. Who are you?

This form of communication was still frightening to me, but I managed to stutter, “I’m Charles.”

Char-Elles?

Close enough. “Yes.”

She smiled, then left me again. A few moments later, she returned with a large plate of fruits and set them on my lap. I dug in. I could have really gone for a cheeseburger, but these would do in a pinch. The horse…I mean, Fluttershy, watched me eat without speaking. Once I was done, she took the plate away, then came back and sat down in front of me.

Now, tell me all about yourself.

Apprehensions...

“This dog really is just going for a walk!” said Scootaloo.

The little group had been wandering for some time now, following Winona. They had no idea where to begin looking, so they’d hoped the dog could pick up a strange scent on her own. So far, nothing.

Apple Bloom had been unusually quiet the entire time, and had kept glancing back in the direction of her home. At Scootaloo’s outburst, she looked up and said, “It ain’t her fault.” She sighed. “I just knew this was a bad idea. Let’s go back afore them Guards see us.”

“You worry too much, AB,” said Scootaloo. “They aren’t searching for us!”

“But, what if we do find whatever they’re looking for first?" asked Sweetie Belle. “What if it is dangerous?”

“Don’t you start, Sweetie! I told you, we’ll be fine: if we spot it, we’ll just run off and tell one of the Guards or Twilight where we saw it.”

Apple Bloom stopped and planted her hooves. “No.”

The other two stopped and looked at her. “Apple Bloom? What’s wrong?” asked Sweetie Belle.

She looked straight at Scootaloo and said, “This is as far as I go. I lied to my family, I’m hungry, my dog ain’t found a thing, and you ain’t got no idea what you’re doing!”

“Don’t you yell at me!” said Scootaloo. “We need to be bold and brave, just like Rainbow Dash, if we’re ever going to get our cutie marks! You know that!”

“Girls, please don’t fight!” squeaked Sweetie Belle, as she tried to step between them. They took no notice.

“What I know is we been out here wastin’ our time! What kinda cutie mark would we git? Bein’ lost? Bein’ hungry? Lyin' to my family?! I don’t want none of those!”

Scootaloo started to make an angry retort of her own when Apple Bloom’s last words sunk in. She backed off a few steps and lowered her eyes.

“You…you’re right, Apple Bloom. I’m sorry. I know how much your family means to you. I just…I just want my cutie mark so bad.” Tears welled up in her eyes, but she wiped them angrily away.

Apple Bloom stepped back as well. “I do too,” she said, “but I just don’t think this is workin’.”

“We all do,” added Sweetie Belle. “C’mon, we can try something else. Let’s go home. We can have breakfast at my house.”

They got to their feet and started back when Apple Bloom noticed Winona was missing. “Winona? Here, girl!” She whistled loudly. The border collie came bounding out of some bushes and began to bark excitedly.

“What’s going on, girl? Did you find something?” asked Apple Bloom. The dog barked again, and then ran off a few feet, then looked back at them. The three Crusaders looked at each other.

“C’mon!” yelled Scootaloo. They chased after Winona, who ran off, stopped and sniffed, then ran off again.

“She’s got the scent! We’re gonna find it!” yelled Apple Bloom. All thoughts of going home were forgotten as they followed the dog. Soon, they came to the bridge that led to Fluttershy’s house. The dog would have run up to her door, but Apple Bloom grabbed her collar with a hoof before she could cross the bridge. Winona whined and tried to pull away. The Crusaders exchanged glances.

“This cain’t be right,” said Apple Bloom. “We been searching all this time, and it’s in Fluttershy’s house?”

Scootaloo huffed, “Does that dog even know what we’re doing out here?”

“Don’t you make fun o’ my dog!”

“I’m not, I’m not!” said Scootaloo hastily. “It’s just…well…unlikely she’s found what the Guards were looking for in there. You just said so.”

Before Apple Bloom could answer there was the sound of leathery wings above them, as two Night Guards swiftly landed. The three backed up in fear. Bat ponies tended to be frightening at first, and they’d never seen any up close before.

“Don’t be alarmed, young fillies,” said one. "We saw you running in this direction from the Forest. Is something wrong?”

“We’ve been looking for—” began Sweetie Belle before Scootaloo suddenly stuck a hoof in her mouth.

“No, no problem, officers! Just taking our friend’s dog for a walk!” She smiled her toothiest grin. The Guards looked at her, glanced at each other, then looked at the dog, who was still trying to get away and cross the bridge.

“Your dog seems pretty excited about something,” said one. “Is that a border collie?”

Apple Bloom spoke up. “Yes, she is, officer. Her name’s Winona.” The Guard smiled.

“I had a border collie when I was a filly. They can get pretty worked up when they want to.” The Crusaders couldn’t keep the look of shock off their faces.

“You had a dog for a pet?” Sweetie Belle blurted out after she’d removed Scootaloo’s hoof. Both Guards turned their cat-like gaze on her.

“Yes. Is that so strange?”

Sweetie Belle seemed to realize she’d misspoken, for she stammered an apology. The Guard smiled and waved it off.

“No offense taken, young pony. But you three had best be getting home. It may not be safe to be outside right now. Take care.” With that, they both flew off.

Once the Guards were out of sight, Sweetie Belle turned on Scootaloo. “What’d you do that for?! I thought we were going to tell the Guards if we found it!”

“We can’t say we found it if they do first! We need to investigate on our own. C’mon!” With Winona straining to get away, they each crossed the bridge and stood at Fluttershy’s door.

“Hush, Winona! Down!” whispered Apple Bloom. The dog quieted herself but looked dejected. She really, really wanted to get whatever was inside. Apple Bloom turned to the others. “So, now what? Do we knock?”

Scootaloo thought for a moment. “Let’s look inside one of the windows first. That way we can tell if there’s something weird in there, without bothering Fluttershy.”

Apple Bloom frowned. “That seems really sneaky. We should just knock. What do you think, Sweetie?”

“I’m with you. Let’s just get this over with.”

“Fine!” said Scootaloo. “But I think this is a mistake.” Even so, she approached the door and knocked loudly on it. There was a pause, during which they could hear a voice being raised, and another answering, and then the door slowly opened a crack and Fluttershy peeked out.

...Part II

I made a decision: I didn’t like the one called Rainbow.

I was already uncomfortable with knowing they were both talking about me, and I couldn’t understand a word. What made it worse was the rainbow one kept giving me dirty looks. She seemed to have gotten over her initial fear of me, so I supposed that was good. However, some time during the conversation Fluttershy must have told her about my scaring her, and I could tell that didn’t go over too well. I still felt bad about it, but I was desperate, and it was before I’d gotten to know her. Everything about this place was freaky to me, and I’d already apologized. I was just glad I hadn’t made that mistake with this other pegasus, for I’m sure I would have had a fight on my hands. I tried to observe her without her noticing.

This one is slightly bigger than Fluttershy. The markings on her butt are different too: some kind of stylized lightning, or some such. I really missed my glasses. I wondered if the tattoos indicated rank, or class of pony? Fluttershy seemed somewhat diffident towards her, and I didn't know if that was just her personality, or that's how they address one of theirs with higher rank. I could see Rainbow's wing muscles were far more developed as well, and she seemed more comfortable hovering in the air than sitting on her butt. Which made me think.

The gravity here must be lower than on Earth, and the air pressure must be greater. How else to explain these creatures being able to fly with such relatively small wings? Maybe it was the magic? And I’d mentioned the ponies are small, but more accurately I should say they’re simply shorter than me. I’m just over six feet tall, and these beings are just above my waist at the shoulder. Standing on their hind legs, one could easily look me in the eyes. And these are just the females. I assumed the males are bigger, but I hadn't met one yet. A conservative estimate should have put the average weight of the females at about two hundred pounds by Earth measurements. So there’s no way I should have been able to lift Fluttershy when she was fainted. Unless I’m stronger here with the diminished gravity…which would also explain how I was able to run so far and so long without getting winded, for I am no athlete. I couldn’t keep the look of shock off my face once I realized this: I truly am on another planet. Nothing else would explain the things I’ve seen and experienced. It was a good thing I was already sitting down, or I would have fallen down. As it was, I leaned forward, put my face in my hands and groaned. Fluttershy must have noticed this, for she then addressed me.

Char-Elles, what’s wrong?

“I’m…fine I guess. It all just hit me: I actually am on another world. How am I supposed to get home?”

We’ll think of something, try not to worry.

I looked up at her and smiled. “Thank you, Fluttershy. You really are too nice to me.” She smiled back, and then turned to answer what must have been a question from the other pony. Fluttershy spoke to her for a few moments, and then the rainbow one looked right at me. I wasn’t sure, but I thought I could see a little bit of compassion in her eyes. Fluttershy must have told her what I said about getting home. I tried smiling at her again. She didn’t smile back, but this time she didn’t give me a dirty look either. Maybe I was wrong about her.

Just then there was a knock on the door, and all three of us startled. I felt apprehension. No doubt it was more ponies, and from what I’d seen Fluttershy was the only one inclined to be friendly. I considered hiding, so I got to my feet. Immediately Rainbow spoke sharply to me, so I stayed where I was. Then she and Fluttershy seemed to have a quick disagreement, but Fluttershy went to the door and opened it just a little. I could only hope for the best.

___________________________________________________________________________________________________

“Oh, hello girls. What can I do for you?”

“Sorry to bother you, Fluttershy, but Apple Bloom’s dog tracked something to here. You seen anything?” asked Scootaloo.

Fluttershy turned beet red. “Oh my, she did?” she said. “Er…umm, what are you looking for?” she evaded.

“We don’t know, but whatever it is Luna’s Night Guards are flying all over the place looking for it too,” said Sweetie. “Two of them were just here.”

Fluttershy started to visibly sweat. “They were? Oh dear, that’s…nice?”

“You okay, Fluttershy? You don’t look so good,” said Scootaloo.

“I’m…okay. I’m just…just...” Suddenly another voice interrupted her.

“That’s it!” said Rainbow as she came to the door. “You squirts take off; we’re kinda busy!”

“Rainbow Dash!” cried Scootaloo. “I didn’t know you were here!”

“Hey, Scootaloo. I’m sorry, but we can’t talk to you three right now.”

“Is it something we can help with?” she asked.

“No! I mean…no, it’s fine. I’ll talk to you later.” Scootaloo started to further protest, when Winona had had enough,and managed to break free of Apple Bloom’s grip. Barking happily, she pushed past Fluttershy and Dash and ran into the house.

“Hey!” cried Rainbow, “stop that dog!” But it was too late. The door flew wide open, and the entire group was treated to the sight of Winona barking and jumping happily on…a surprised creature that was petting her and scratching her ears.

All three fillies could only stare at first, and then they all screamed at once.

“Girls! Please!” cried Fluttershy. “It’s alright; he’s a friend!” But they all backed away, and only screamed louder.

“What is that?!” yelled Sweetie Belle.

“Keep it away from my dog!” yelled Apple Bloom.

“Rainbow Dash! Save Winona!” cried Scootaloo.

“Calm down!” yelled Rainbow. “I won’t let it hurt her or any of you! Just calm down!” She turned and addressed the hue-mon. “Hey, you! Leave that dog alone!”

“Rainbow, he can’t understand you, remember?” said Fluttershy.

“Fine! You tell it!”

“Him, Rainbow.” She spoke softly to the creature, who immediately took his hands away from the dog, and sat back down.

“Here, Winona! Come here, girl!” said Apple Bloom. The dog gave one last wag of her tail and reluctantly walked back to her.

“See? There’s nothing to be scared of, girls. Winona likes him,” said Fluttershy. The three looked at each other.

“I’m…I’m not afraid, if Rainbow Dash isn’t!” said Scootaloo.

Rainbow scowled. “I’m not afraid of…him,” she said while giving a look to Fluttershy, “but I don’t trust him.” The others had almost made up their minds to follow Scootaloo’s example when there was the sound of bat ponies landing behind them.

“We heard screaming! What’s going on?” said Corporal Sable. She and her companion looked through the doorway, hissed, and then assumed combat stances.

“Everypony down! We’ll handle this!” Without waiting for a response she and Private Nocturne flew into the house and tackled the creature. It yelled at them and fought back, but the two of them soon pinned it to the floor. The animals went crazy, running all over the house in their attempts to get out of the way. Winona added her voice to the din. It was pandemonium.

Fluttershy started to run to him, but Rainbow held her back.

“Don’t hurt him, please!” cried Fluttershy.

“Please, ma’am! Stand back!” yelled Nocturne. Soon they had the creature cuffed, and dragged it outside. Everypony moved out of the way as they went. The creature shot a pleading look at Fluttershy, who had burst into tears.

“It’s going to be alright, Char-Elles!” she said as she was still being held by Dash.

Once they got him outside, the Corporal turned to her companion and said, “Call for backup.” The Private nodded, took a deep breath and then opened his mouth. The other ponies couldn’t hear the sound, but it made their teeth vibrate. Soon, two other groups appeared over the trees and landed. Corporal Sable spoke quickly to one group, who saluted and then took off again. She turned to the ponies.

“Princess Luna will soon be here. We appreciate your cooperation.”

“What are you going to do to him?” Fluttershy tearfully asked.

“That will be up to the Princess, ma’am.”

“He’s not dangerous! He’s just scared and alone! Please don’t hurt him.”

“We won’t ma’am, but I really need you to stand back.” The other Guards had surrounded the creature, blocking anypony from getting near. Fluttershy buried her face in Dash’s shoulder and cried.

_________________________________________________________________________________________________

A little ways off, under the shadow of some trees, a dark figure watched the goings on, and smiled to itself. Taking out a communicator, it said, “Subject has been captured by indigenous forces. Probability of future encounter with the being known as Celestia, 98%. Phase Two complete.” It smiled again, and then melted into the trees.

Pinkie

Well, that happened.

I thought I’d been freaked out before by the things I’d already seen, but that was nothing compared to being tackled and assaulted by those nightmare fuel ponies. In the brief conversation I’d had with Fluttershy, she’d never mentioned creatures like those. I was already having a hard time with the whole notion of talking equines, let alone the fact some are pegasi and some are unicorns. And alicorns. Can’t forget those.

Meeting their boss was a singular experience. As I lay there, surrounded by those freaks of nature, I heard a thud! and looked up to see two hooves planted in front of me. My gaze carried up until I met the eyes of what had to be royalty. Even without the crown, the pony’s bearing simply shouted “higher class.” My sense of reality took another nosedive as I squinted up at what had to be an Alicorn: wings, horn and an…ethereal mane and tail? The eyes I met were far from friendly, and the sense of menace that hung about her was almost palpable. Then she spoke.

Her voice rattled my teeth and shook my eardrums. From her inflection I knew I was being asked a question, but that’s as far as my understanding went. I closed my eyes tight and put my head back down on the ground.

Apparently that was the wrong thing to do, for suddenly I found myself being forced up and to my knees by my guards. The Alicorn spoke to someone behind me, and I looked around to see Fluttershy coming forward. Her eyes were red from crying, and I felt a pang as I saw her. Less than two hours ago, I’d frightened her into fainting. Now here she was crying…for me? I had to say something.

“Fluttershy, I’m so sorry I scared you before. Please don’t cry.”

I’m sorry too, Char-Elles. I didn’t know they’d treat you like this.

The Alicorn interrupted anything I would have said by taking over the conversation. Even though I knew I was the topic, her eyes were much softer and her tone much gentler as she addressed Fluttershy. That gave me hope. If this imperial being was on friendly terms with the only pony that could communicate with me, I might have a chance. That hope quickly faded as their conversation went on. It ended when I could hear a pleading tone to Fluttershy’s voice, but the Alicorn simply closed her eyes and slowly shook her head.

“What’s going on? What did she say?” I asked. Fluttershy folded her ears back, stared at the ground for a few moments, and then looked me in the eyes.

They’re going to hold you as a prisoner at Twilight’s castle. Princess Luna says you’re too much of an unknown to let free.

“But…but I didn’t do anything! They can’t treat me like this!” She let her gaze fall once again.

I’m sorry.

________________________________________________________________________________________________

I got somewhat of a good look at the castle they brought me to, and it looked like something straight out of a fairy tale. I might have actually enjoyed the sight of it if I wasn’t bruised, battered and restrained. Now I’m stuck in a fairly large spare bedroom, so it could be worse. It seems weird that they didn’t throw me into one of the cells, for I’m most certainly a prisoner: there are more of those bat ponies guarding the door and flying by the big windows, and I shudder every time one of them looks at me with those slit-eyed stares. I don’t want to mess with them again.

I went over to the small bed and sat down. It’s soft enough, but I can tell I’m going to have to curl up while laying on it, or my feet will hang off the edge. Speaking of feet, I noticed mine was already healing. I’d read about this. Back on Earth, sports organizations used hyperbolic chambers on athletes to speed recovery from injuries. This world’s increased air pressure and elevated oxygen levels acted like a natural healing system, apparently. Already I could put my weight on the foot, and it didn’t hurt as much. One bit of good news in the middle of all this mess.

____________________________________________________________________________________________________

In the throne room of the castle, Twilight was holding a meeting with her friends, including Princess Luna.

“This is amazing!” said Twilight. “An actual alien! Just think of all the things we can learn from it!” Fluttershy sighed and looked away, but remained silent.

Rainbow spoke up for her.

“It’s a ‘he’, Twilight. Some kind of stallion.” She looked at her friend and added, “Fluttershy likes him, so he’s probably not dangerous.”

Fluttershy looked at her in surprise, and then gave her a small smile of gratitude.

“And what do you think of him, Rainbow Dash?” asked Luna.

“Me? I could take him, even though he’s so tall.” She looked again at Fluttershy. “But, he didn’t do anything bad. He did scare her when she first saw him, but he carried her into her house when he could have really hurt her. So…I guess he’s alright.”

“Thank you, Rainbow,” said Fluttershy quietly. Rarity was sitting next to her and gave her hoof a squeeze.

“He sounds like he was most gallant, despite everything else,” she said soothingly. “What does he look like?”

Fluttershy took a deep breath and described him for the sake of Twilight, Rarity, Pinkie, and Spike.

“As Rainbow said, he is very tall. He stands on two legs like a minotaur, but he has no fur, except on his head. He doesn’t have hooves, but has hands like minotaurs or Spike's, but without claws.” His eyes are very small, and he has sharp teeth, so I think he’s probably a carnivore, but he can eat fruit at least.” Here she looked at Princess Luna. “He’s not dangerous, but very kind. It’s not his fault he’s here, and he just wants to go home.”

“Yes, Fluttershy, you said that before. But as I said, we cannot allow him to walk about free. Even if he’s not a threat, he’s frightening to other ponies. We cannot allow panic to ensue.”

“That sounds good to me,” said Applejack. “I could go without seeing…him…again, thank you very much. And he scared my sister and her friends something fierce, I’m told.”

Fluttershy tried once more. “That’s not his fault he looks the way he does. On his world, everypony looks like him. And Winona wasn’t scared but ran right up to him. Angel doesn’t like him, but the other animals weren’t scared either. Doesn’t that count for something?” She looked around the room.

“Well, I’d like to see him!” said Pinkie. “Just think: a new friend that’s not from this world!” She put one hoof to her chin in thought. “I wonder if he likes cake…?”

“And I heard two Guards had a hard time getting him down, and it took a couple more to hold him, so he must be really strong! That’s so cool!” said Spike. “Does he have any other powers?”

“Now, Spike, you know that’s ridiculous. The Guards couldn’t have captured him if he had any powers. But this is all speculation. I think it’s time the rest of us met him,” said Twilight.

_________________________________________________________________________________________________________

I let my thoughts drift back to home. Try as I might, I couldn’t remember anything that had happened to account for my being here. Last thing I could recall, it was about three am when I’d gone to bed. I’d lain there for what had to have been an hour, as per usual, but I must have eventually dropped off. I thought harder. I…I could catch snatches of my dream. I was flying, but I couldn't recall where I was going. I tried to think some more but then gave it up.

Just then there was a knock at the door. Why would they be knocking? I went to the far side of the room and braced myself.

The door opened, and first two of those bat ponies scanned the room for me before entering. Once they found me, one entered and locked eyes on me while the other turned and nodded to whomever was behind him. Soon, that tall Alicorn princess entered, followed by a purple one. To my relief, Fluttershy entered next. I could see a few others waiting in the hallway.

It looked like they were all content to stay out there until suddenly a bright pink one made her way in. While the others had all stopped and were staring at me, the pink one’s gaze was more intense. Fluttershy had mentioned one of her friends was named ‘Pinkie Pie’, so this had to be her unless pink was a common color among these beings. I was about to dismiss her and focus my attention on Fluttershy, when the pink one came forward, staring at me all the time. The guards moved to block her way. The pink one kept her gaze on me but spoke to those behind her. The tall Alicorn spoke a question, and the pink one replied. After a moment the Alicorn spoke again, and the guards stepped back and allowed her to proceed.

The purple one said something to her, but if she heard her she gave no sign. I had no idea what her intentions were, so I backed up until I was against the wall. I put my hands up to ward her off and cast a ‘help me’ look at Fluttershy. She just shrugged. The pink one shifted her gaze from my eyes to my hands, then looked in my eyes again.

Then, she did something that caught everyone off guard: without warning, she stood up on her hind legs and placed her hooves on my hands. The purple one said something again, and she turned her head and replied, but turned back to me. She stared at me for a few more moments, and then…she smiled. I couldn’t help myself. I smiled back. Then she did something even more surprising: she came closer and then, she…she hugged me! I was shocked. At first, I couldn’t move, but then I hugged her as well. Breaking the hug, she said something to me. I looked at Fluttershy.

She said, ‘Welcome to Equestria.’

________________________________________________________________________________________________________

“Pinkie, what are you doing?! Stop!” said Twilight.

Pinkie kept moving forward. The alien backed up and watched her approach until he couldn’t move back any further. Twilight started forward but stopped when she saw the alien’s expression. He was just as confused as everypony else, but she could read no hostility. When he put his hands up, everypony tensed. Then, Pinkie surprised them all when she stood up and placed her hooves on his hands.

“Pinkie, please! We don’t know what he’ll do!”

Pinkie looked back at her. “Shh, Twilight. It’s okay.”

She turned back to the alien, and did something that made him…smile? Once he did that, she stepped forward and wrapped her hooves around his barrel. The alien looked just as shocked as everypony else, but after a few moments, he hugged her back. She then sat down and welcomed him, which he must not have understood. He looked at Fluttershy, who translated for him with a smile on her face.

When Pinkie turned and came back to the group, Twilight didn’t know whether to hug her or strangle her, but the atmosphere in the room had changed.

“Truly you are a singular pony, Pinkie Pie,” said Luna. “Why did you do that?”

“Because everypony needs a hug, Your Highness!”

Luna looked over at the alien, who still had a slightly stunned expression. “It would seem so.” She was silent and then turned to Twilight.

“I leave him in your care, Twilight Sparkle. Do as you think best.”

Blood

The next night found me tossing and turning in the small bed. It seems my insomnia has caught up with me again. After some time I gave in, sat up and turned on the light. Early on, in addition to my books, I’d requested a blank one in which I could write down notes. On the small nightstand there was a quill and an ink pot, so I carefully dipped the quill and made a few journal entries, making sure not to allow any ink to drip onto the bed. My teacher would have freaked.

Day 5. Still no closer to getting home, but rapidly picking up the language. Can use simple phrases, but still a far cry from having an actual conversation.

My foot has completely healed, to my utter amazement. Made a request for some shoes, or at least some socks. The ponies were surprised I needed such things, as they only wore such on formal occasions. Twilight said she’d see what she could do.

Pinkie visits me every day she can. I know she works at a place called 'Sugarcube Corner' because she talks about it all the time. I'd love to see it.

The others keep their distance. I don't think the blonde pony has forgiven me for scaring her and her sister. I can tell Rarity is still a bit creeped out by me, and as for Rainbow Dash? I don't think we'll ever be close, but she's not as distant as she's been. I think that has a lot to do with Fluttershy.

Met the dragon Spike a few days ago, yet another wonder of this place. Beginning to believe anything is possible here. The young dragon seemed very excited to finally speak to me and made an odd request that made Fluttershy smile, Pinkie giggle and Twilight sigh in exasperation if I read her expression correctly. Apparently, Spike was under the impression I might have, and here I’m directly quoting, “laser eye beams.” He wanted to see me use them. When I shook my head and smiled, he seemed disappointed, but then showed me a comic book and pointed to one of the characters that very roughly resembled humans. Out of curiosity, I inquired if the character was a hero or a villain. Once he’d heard the translation, he launched into a tirade that would have taken much longer if Twilight hadn’t cut him off. The little guy really likes his comic books.

The condensed version of his speech was the character is a misunderstood entity, shunned at first but then gradually accepted. Considering my situation, I found that…oddly specific. Twilight shooed him out after a few minutes, as it was time for my lessons. I could tell he really wanted to stay, but he brightened when I told him through Fluttershy I’d love to talk to him again. Pinkie also said something to him and patted his head, which seemed to cheer him up further. I already like him.

I smiled to myself as I made these last entries. Then the lamp went out. At first, I was annoyed and reached over to turn it back on. Then something brushed against my hand. I jerked my hand back and stared. Someone or something was standing next to my bed.

I screamed and scrambled away, my eyes practically staring out of their sockets. Then I heard breathing.

“Who…what are you?!” I shouted.

It…laughed, and then it spoke.

“Not alone.”

I felt a presence behind me, and I spun around. In the dim light coming through the window, all I could see were its teeth. I screamed again and tried to bolt for the door, but it stuck something in my shoulder. I was out before I’d taken two steps.

______________________________________________________________________________________________________

When I awoke I was pinned down on the bed. I thrashed and tried to scream for help but only heard more laughter. The room was still in darkness, but there was just enough light to let me see the vague shapes of my assailants. Whatever they are, they’re not ponies.

I could see them standing over me, and then I felt claws run lightly down my face. I shut my eyes and jerked my head away. Then I noticed my pajama top was pulled up, leaving my belly exposed. The claws touched my stomach, and I flinched away. Pain shot through me, as I felt something moving underneath my skin. New horror seized me. What had they done?! Then I felt rage building. I didn’t know what these things are, but I realized now they’re toying with me. I put forth all my strength, and I felt my restraints start to snap.

Then I was grabbed around the throat. The claws were razor sharp, and I felt blood start to trickle down my neck.

“Hold still and listen, or your head will leave your pitiful body.” It squeezed a bit tighter, and I felt more cuts. I stopped struggling. It loosened its grip, just enough for me breathe.

“Very good. We have a task for you, one which you will complete.”

“What do you want?” I wheezed, trying to sound brave.

“You will seek an audience with the one called Celestia. You will make sure you are within five feet of her. This implant will do the rest. You have three days.”

“What…what do you want with her?”

“Three days. Tell no one. Or we finish what we started.”

The next moment they were gone, my restraints disappeared, and the lamp came back on. I jumped up quickly and looked down at my stomach, as I felt my gorge rising. The "implant" spasmed a few times, then was still. Then I looked up, and then I fell to my knees as the meaning of their last words became clear.

Fluttershy lay beaten and bloody in a corner of the room.

_______________________________________________________________________________________________________

Twilight bolted straight up in bed. Somepony was pounding and yelling at her door. It sounded like…Char-Elles? She quickly got out of bed and used her magic to open the door and turn on the lights. He ran into the room, yelling at her in his language.

“Char-Elles…what’s going on? What’s wrong?” He yelled and pointed out the room, then made motions for her to follow him.

“I don’t understand you! What is it?” As she moved closer to him, she noticed the red stains on his neck and clothing. Then the scent hit her.

“Dear Celestia! Is that…blood?!”

The alien screwed up his face in concentration.

“Flut-ter-sy! H-u-rt!” He turned and ran to the door, stopping only to desperately beckon to her.

“Pl-ees!”

She quickly followed him out and back to his room. The smell of blood was almost overpowering for her as she got within a few feet of his open door. Her heart gave a sickening lurch when she saw who was inside.

“Fluttershy! What happened?!” Twilight was utterly still as she watched the alien kneel and carefully cradle her friend in his arms. He turned his face towards Twilight and started to speak, but stopped when he saw how she was staring at him.

Her voice was deathly quiet. "What did you do?"

A purple glow surrounded Fluttershy as she was forcefully taken from his arms.

“What did you do?!” she screamed.

There was a flash. They disappeared from the room.

A Dangerous Admission

“Rainbow Dash! Wake up!”

“Zzz…what? Twilight? What are you doing here?”

“Rainbow, something terrible has happened. Fluttershy is hurt!”

“Fluttershy?! How?!”

“I can’t explain right now. I just need you to get the others and meet me at the hospital. Please hurry!” With that, she teleported away.

Rainbow quickly got up and sped towards Sweet Apple Acres. Her thoughts were going just as fast, and they led to one conclusion: somehow, some way, that freak was involved. She gritted her teeth as she flew. She’d wait until she knew for sure, and then she’d make him pay…

______________________________________________________________________________________________________

Twilight paced the floor of the emergency room. So far, the doctors and nurses had only asked her to stay outside; they’d tell her Fluttershy’s condition as soon as they knew.

Along with her terror was an overwhelming sense of guilt. If she hadn’t been so lenient with that alien, if she’d allowed Luna to post one Guard, none of this would have happened. Her friend wouldn’t be here, fighting for her life.

As these thoughts plagued her, the door to the hospital burst open and Applejack came hurtling into the room.

“I got here as fast as I could, Twilight! What happened?!” said Applejack.

“I don’t know what happened! All I know is that alien had something to do with it! And it’s all my fault!” She burst into tears. Applejack embraced her and let her cry. Soon Rainbow Dash arrived, followed closely by Pinkie Pie and Rarity. Without a word, they each joined in the hug, taking what little comfort they could from each other.

After a few moments, Rainbow spoke. “Twilight. Can you tell us what happened?” She nodded.

“I was fast asleep when the hue-mon started banging on my door. Once I opened it, he was trying to get me to follow him back to his room, so I did. That’s when I saw Fluttershy! She was…covered in blood, and unmoving.”

There was a gasp from the others. Twilight continued.

“When he tried to pick her up, I took her from him and teleported here.” She raised her tear-stained face to her friends. “If I hadn’t allowed him so much liberty, none of this would have happened.”

“I knew it!” cried Rainbow. “Wait until I get my hooves on that thing!" She turned and would have bolted out the door if Pinkie hadn’t grabbed her tail.

“What are you doing?! Let me go!”

“Hang on, Dash! Something’s not right!” Pinkie said.

“What’s ‘not right’?! You heard Twilight!"

Pinkie’s mane was completely straight as she spoke with uncharacteristic seriousness.

“Twilight said he woke her up and took her to his room! Why would he do that if he’s the one that hurt Fluttershy?”

“I don’t know and I don’t care! Let me go!”

“Wait,” said Rarity. “Pinkie’s right. It doesn’t make any sense. Please, Rainbow? Let’s sort this out.”

Rainbow struggled mentally. If she insisted on going, she might have to fight Pinkie, as she showed no signs of letting her go. She didn’t want that.

Setting herself down, she said, “Alright. But if I don’t like what I hear, I’m going!” Pinkie slowly released her tail, and then turned to Twilight.

“Twilight, you've seen him with us. He’s friends with Fluttershy. Why would he hurt her?”

“I don’t know, but who else could it have been?” Nopony had an answer.

Finally Applejack said, “Something else that doesn’t add up: how could he have gotten her to his room, at this time of night? If he did it, then he snuck out, walked to Fluttershy's house, either hurt her there or lured her back to the castle and hurt her then. It doesn't make sense.”

They all were lost in thought. "We know so little about him," said Twilight. "Who really knows how his species thinks?"

Twilight stood up. “Until we know for sure, I’m going to have him locked up. I’ll have Spike send a lett…Spike!” With a look of shock, she teleported away.

__________________________________________________________________________________________________________

I never realized how quiet this palace can be. And cold.

I sat for what seemed like hours with my head in my hands. I hadn’t moved from the spot where’d I found Fluttershy. I could still see her blood stain on the floor, and could still see the look Twilight gave me before she vanished. And I knew she blamed me, even though I didn’t understand every word. But those were the least of my worries. Somehow I had to figure out a way to beat those creatures, before Fluttershy’s time ran out.

There was movement at the door, and I jerked my head up to see what it was. The dragon was staring at me, with a worried look on his face.

“Char-Elles? What happened?”

If there was ever a time to use what few words I knew, now was the time.

“Flut-ter-sy. H-urt. Twi-liit…take.”

He stared at me in disbelief, and then rattled off a quick series of words, far too fast for me to follow.

“Pl-ees. Talk…slow.”

He came over and sat next to me. When he saw the stain, his face went pale. Then he saw the wounds on my neck.

“Something…bad?” he asked. I nodded my head as the tears started flowing from both our eyes.

“Tell me,” he said.

Even without my limited vocabulary, there was only so much I could say. Those beings’ warning still rang in my ears. But I needed to say something.

“I…not sleep. Lights…go…off. Lights…go…on, I see…Flut-ter-sy. She…hu-rt. I get…Twi-liit. She…take…Flut-ter-sy…away.” I made a motion like an explosion with my hands.

Spike became thoughtful. Then he asked, “Fluttershy…dead?”

I shook my head. “I not know.”

Just then we both heard Twilight yelling for Spike. He turned and yelled back, and soon she appeared at the door, looking much frazzled. She stopped when she saw me with him.

____________________________________________________________________________________________________________

“Spike, come away from him.”

Spike looked at Twilight, then back to the alien. “It’s alright, Twilight. He told me what happened. But he doesn’t know how Fluttershy got here.” Spike looked back at Twilight. “Is she alright?”

She hung her head. “The doctors haven’t said anything yet. All our friends are there, waiting. I came back to get you.”

Spike said, “Can Char-Elles come with us? I know he’s just as worried about her as we are.”

Twilight stared at the alien. “No. Until I know for sure what happened, he’s not going near her.”

He read her expression, scowled, then stood to his full height and yelled, “I not hu-rt Flut-ter-sy! She friend!”

Twilight yelled back, “Then who did?!”

The alien turned away and looked at the bloodstain. Then he seemed to come to a decision. He turned back, pulled his collar down and pointed to his neck.

“The ones do this… the ones hurt Flut-ter-sy.”

Applejack

Applejack hated hospitals. They served a good purpose, of course, but she hated going to them. The last time she was here, it was to take Apple Bloom for a sprained hoof, after another enthusiastic round of ‘Crusadering.’ But a long time before that…

________________________________________________________________________________________________________

She could remember everything quite clearly. She'd been nine years old, but she'd felt lost and much younger. She remembered being ushered into the room by her very pregnant mother, and the room was quiet except for the sounds of weeping and the soft beep of machines. Her father was in the bed, surrounded by flowers and as many of the Apple clan as could reasonably fit.

She felt very small, looking up at all her relatives, and seeing their sad faces. They made room for her. She came forward and her mother lifted her up onto the bed. She watched her father for a time, and then she gently nudged him.

“Daddy?” asked Applejack. “You alright?” Her father opened his eyes and mustered up a smile for his little filly.

“No, baby girl, I’m not.” He was seized by coughing, while his wife held him. Once he recovered himself, he turned back to her.

“I ain’t got much longer left, sweetie. I’m sorry. But you…you be strong now, y’hear? You’re an Apple. Ain’t none more capable than us in Equestria.”

Her tears were flowing freely now, but she quietly said, “okay.”

“That’s my girl. You got a little brother or sister on the way; you gotta be strong for them.” He coughed again, then pointed at the table. “I got something for you.” He nodded to his wife. She reached over to the nightstand, picked up his hat, and gave it to her.

“That’s yours now, honey. You take good care of it,” he said.

She clutched it to herself and said, “I will, Daddy! I promise!” He smiled, then lay back on the pillow, and closed his eyes. He looked very peaceful.

________________________________________________________________________________________________________

Applejack wiped away the tear that was sliding down her cheek. No, she didn’t like hospitals.

She looked around. Rarity and Pinkie were huddled next to each other. Rainbow Dash was pacing back and forth, now flying, now walking, but never keeping still. And Twilight? She still hadn’t made it back, and it’s getting close to an hour. Those doctors should have told them something by now.

As if in answer to her unspoken thought the door to the examination room opened, and a grave-faced doctor came out. They all came forward.

He cleared his throat. “Are any of you family?”

“No, but we’re her best friends, doc,” said Applejack. “Please tell us how she is.”

He looked at them over his glasses. “I recognize you all: you’re the Bearers, correct?” They all nodded.

“Very well. Your friend is in serious condition. We were able to stabilize her, for now.”

Applejack asked, “Can we see her?”

He shook his head. “She’s still sedated. It’s best to let her rest.”

Rainbow asked, “What happened to her, doc? How bad is she?”

He looked at them all. “Are you sure you want to hear this?”

“Yes, doctor. We have to know,” said Rarity.

He slowly removed his glasses, and then closed his eyes. Finally, he said, “She’s been lacerated all over her body. Both her wings are broken, and she has a severe concussion. It looks like she was attacked by some sort of animal.” He opened his eyes and faced them. “She may never fly again.”

At this news, there was a collective gasp. Rainbow looked stunned as she plopped down on the floor. Rarity and Pinkie broke into fresh tears, while Applejack remained outwardly stoic. As such she noticed something off in the doctor’s demeanor. She walked up to him and lowered her voice.

“What are you not telling us, doc?”

The doctor considered a moment. Of the four, the blonde pony seemed to be better in touch with herself. Best to tell her away from the others for now.

“May I speak to you in private, Miss…?”

“Applejack.”

“Miss Applejack, please come with me.” He led her to a quiet corner of the room.

“I didn’t want to say this in front of your other friends, but we’re baffled. There’s a poison in her wounds we can’t identify. We’ve made her stable, but if we don’t find an antidote soon, she won’t survive.”

Applejack blanched, but managed to ask, “How soon?”

“Two or three days at the most. I’m sorry.”

Applejack nodded, then turned away. She closed her eyes tight and thought. She knew she should be feeling sad at this further news, but she didn’t. What she felt was anger, building into rage.

She needed answers. And right now she only knew of one being who had them.

Raising her voice, she said, “Listen up, y’all! Rainbow Dash, go contact Fluttershy’s family. Tell them to hurry. Rarity, stay here and keep watch. Pinkie, you’re with me.”

“Where are we going, Applejack?”

“To go talk to that alien friend of yorn. He knows somethin', he has to! We need that information. C’mon!” Quickly she burst through the doors and sped off.

Pinkie looked around at the others, then yelled, “Wait up!” and followed her.

________________________________________________________________________________________________________

Twilight examined the hue-mun’s wounds closely as he knelt on one knee. They were definitely claw marks, and they were fresh. She stood back and stared at him, while she thought about everything she knew so far, and the conversation back at the hospital:

(1) Fluttershy was found here, so the crime was committed at her house and she was carried here, or she was brought here and then assaulted. She had to agree with Applejack: that seemed unlikely he did either.

(2) Apart from small amounts of dust, the hue-mun’s feet were clean. If he’d walked the dirt roads between here and Fluttershy’s cottage and back, they’d be much filthier.

(3) The wounds on his neck could not have been made by Fluttershy. Ponies kick and bite to fight back. Pegasi can use their wings, but only for distance and speed, not for direct assault. The wounds were inconsistent with a pony defending herself.

(4) Finally, she knew he considered Fluttershy a friend. If friendship means the same to hue-muns as it does to ponies, he would not have attacked her.

These mental calculations took her only a few moments, while the alien met her gaze. It was a mark in his favor he could look her in the eyes, as her experience with liars is they have difficulty doing so. Therefore, the most logical conclusion is he did not attack Fluttershy.

“Alright,” she said as she sat back down. “I believe you, for now. But who are these ‘others’ you say did this?”

The hue-mun sat cross-legged on the floor and took his own moment before answering.

“The ones…not pony. Not like I. I not know what.”

“What did they want?” asked Twilight.

The alien’s face scowled in indecision.

“If I sey…what the ones…what they…want, they sey they kill Flut-ter-sy.”

Both Twilight and Spike gasped at this statement.

“I won’t let that happen!” said Twilight. “Listen to me: I need you to tell me everything you know about them. How many you saw, what they said, what abilities they have.”

It was plain that the hue-mun did not understand every word, but he did as well as he could in explaining. At the end of the half-hour Twilight knew there were at least two of them, they had some form of teleportation and they could communicate directly with the hue-mun. Fluttershy’s injured body arose unbidden in her memory, so most importantly Twilight knew they were both vicious and ruthless. Even Tirek had only drained ponies of their magic; he’d never physically harmed any besides herself, and he was the most vicious creature she knew. Before now.

“Plees. I see Celes-te. Must see Celes-te.”

“'Celes-te?' You mean ‘Celestia?’ Why her?”

“She…help.”

Twilight considered. “You’re right; she can help. But it might take some days to arrange it.”

“Plees. Not…know what…you sey?”

Twilight sighed in frustration. “I can see we still need to continue your lessons, despite what’s happened. In fact, everything may depend upon you being able to better communicate.” Spike, who had been sitting quietly and watching, piped up.

“I can help him, Twilight!” She smiled at him.

“That would be great, Spike. With the two of us working with him, we should make better progress.” She got to her hooves. “We should get back to the hospital. The doctors must know something by now.”

The hue-mun startled at the word ‘hospital.’ “I go with Twi-liit? See Flut-ter-sy?”

Twilight hesitated. Just as she was about to answer, she heard yelling. It sounded like Applejack.

“In here, Applejack!” Soon, she and Pinkie appeared at the door, both of them winded from running.

“Twi…Twilight! The alien! He’s…he’s gotta help Fluttershy!” Applejack panted.

___________________________________________________________________________________________________

I was never so glad to see a friendly face. Even now, Pinkie was able to manage a smile when she saw me, though I could tell she’d been crying recently. But a smile was all she had time for, as her attention was drawn to the urgent conversation Twilight and the blonde pony were now having. The blonde pony, Applejack, was talking about me and Fluttershy. There was something she needed me to do, that much was clear. But I had no idea what she wanted.

I went over the talk Twilight and I had had, and I felt guilty about not telling her everything. I hadn’t mentioned the device those monsters had stuck in me, nor the mission they’d given me. I thought it was too dangerous for Fluttershy, and I still hadn’t come up with a plan, other than to do as they demanded and meet Celestia.

I’d probably said too much already if they were monitoring me. But I reasoned I needed help; I couldn’t do this alone. Besides, I couldn’t stand one more second of Twilight thinking I had hurt Fluttershy. I hoped that selfishness hadn’t condemned my friend, but it was clear to me that neither I nor Fluttershy were the focus of their intentions. We were simply a means to their ends. I’d never met Celestia, but from the ponies’ descriptions, she is at least a demi-god, just like her younger sister. What could those aliens or their implant possibly do to her?

Now the blonde pony said something that made them all gasp. I didn’t catch every word, but I understood it was about Fluttershy’s condition. I caught the phrase, “three days left.” That can’t be right. How would she know about the deadline? I had to know more.

“Ex-cuse plees. What means, ‘three deys left,’ Epple-jeck?”

I could tell she was reluctant to speak directly to me, but I saw no accusation in her eyes, so Twilight must have told her she believed me.

“Fluttershy’s been poisoned,” she said.

I stumbled over the unfamiliar word. Then I pieced it together from context: the ponies didn’t know about the deadline, but they knew Fluttershy had three days left. Something else was wrong with her in addition to her wounds. It could only mean one thing. Those aliens had lied to me about my mission. They intended to kill her no matter what I decided. I wasn’t going to let that happen. But in order to help, I had to learn the ponies’ language. And we were all almost out of time. I turned to Twilight.

“Twi-liit. Teach…I…more pony-talk. Fast. I…must…help Flut-ter-sy.”

_____________________________________________________________________________________________

Applejack watched the alien closely. He still frightened her: his height, his teeth, those weird, five digit hands of his. But she could read his face, and she knew honesty when she saw it. She only hoped he could help in time.

Fluttershy, Part One

One day earlier

Fluttershy was very happy with the progress Char-Elles was making. Even more so, she was glad that some of her friends seemed to be less fearful of him, if not actually friendly. Pinkie was, of course, but she would have been surprised if she’d been otherwise. Rainbow would take some time. She knew her oldest friend was very protective of her, and the hue-mon’s actions when he’d frightened her into fainting hadn’t won him any points with Rainbow. But hopefully that was all behind them, and they could move on to seeing him the way she did.

After supper for herself and her animals, all was quiet. At first. Sometime during the night, after all had settled in, she was awoken by nervous chittering all through her house. Angel was especially agitated and kept shaking her and pointing outside the bedroom. She’d better get up and investigate.

As a rule, she always locked her doors and windows and checked them all at least once before she went to bed. She hadn’t heard glass breaking, so it was unlikely anything untoward had gotten in. Still, she lit a lantern and peeked out her bedroom door.

“Hello? Is anypony out there?”

All she heard were the squeaks and chirps of her various birds and animals. She ventured out and down the stairs.

“Shhh…quiet, my friends. What’s wrong?”

But they didn’t settle down.

Suddenly there was an explosion of activity, as all the animals went into a panic. Fluttershy’s heart starting beating wildly, as she stared about her.

“What is it?! What do you see?!”

Then she felt a presence behind her, and she whipped around. There was enough time for her light to fall on a nightmare standing there, grinning at her. She opened her mouth to scream, just as it quickly moved forward and stuck something in her shoulder. She fell senseless to the floor.

_________________________________________________________________________________________________________

She awoke in pain. Groaning, she pushed herself up and looked around. She was in a cage that was filled with sodden, filthy straw. Then she noticed she was wearing some sort of metal collar. She couldn’t see it, but it was heavy and had raised bumps on it like switches. Also, she could feel a strange hum coming from it. She tried a few times to remove it, but it wasn’t going anywhere.

She held her nose as she noticed hers was one of several cages: four were next to her on her side of the huge room, a few others across it. The near cages held creatures she knew: there was a minotaur next to her, a gryphon in the next and a manticore on the end. She didn’t recognize the inhabitants of the other cages, but one…one exceptionally large cage held something from her nightmares. It was vaguely insectoid, but also like a centaur. She stared at it as it paced its enclosure. There were four legs on the lower half, and two arms on the muscular upper body. Its face (?) had monstrous pincers beneath multi-faceted eyes. It hadn’t noticed her yet, and at that moment she was glad of the cages.

She looked at the surrounding room. It was dimly lit, with spotlights over each of the cages. The walls, ceiling, and floor appeared to be metal, with stains on the floor and walls that looked suspiciously like blood. Though she couldn’t see the entire room, she got the sense it was bigger than it appeared to be. On the walls, there were lights and control switches that reminded her of Twilight’s basement laboratory.

She turned to the minotaur.

“Excuse me. Mr. Minotaur? Where are we? What is this place?”

The minotaur didn’t answer her but just sat facing away. He was huddled with his arms upon his knees and stared at the floor of his cage. In the glare of the spotlight, she could see he also wore a collar. She could also see fresh, untreated scars along his back.

“Dear Celestia! What happened to you?”

He slowly raised his head, and then looked over his shoulder at her. She brought a hoof to her mouth to stifle the involuntary gasp as she saw the ruin of his face. He stared at her with his one remaining eye, and then turned back and resumed his former position.

“Who did this?” she quietly asked.

He remained silent, but the gryphon finally deigned to speak. Raising her head from the floor of her cage, she said, “Pipe down, you stupid little pony. Just leave him alone.”

“I’m sorry! But…what happened to him?”

“The same thing that’s going to happen to you, most likely.”

“What do you mean?!”

The gryphon painfully got to her feet and stared at her across the cages.

“You ponies are too soft for this.” She gestured around. “We’re in a fighting pit. See that thing?” She indicated the large cage. “The minotaur fought it. I fought one of the smaller creatures, but if I have to fight that thing, I’ll claw its eyes out and eat them! But you? You don’t stand a chance.” She hooked a claw into her own collar and winced as she tried to adjust it.

“But…but why? Who are the ones who brought us here, and why would they make us fight? If you don’t mind my asking, of course.”

The gryphon gave a bitter laugh. “I don’t mind at all! For entertainment! My people have similar sports, but they’re not this bloody. You ponies couldn’t handle it.”

Fluttershy’s face went pale. She turned and again stared across the room at the insectoid. She peered more closely at the creature. One of its arms was hanging loosely, and it appeared to be in pain. This time, it noticed her starting at itself, and then it charged its bars and roared at her. She flinched away.

The gryphon chuckled. “Better hope you don’t have to fight him, pony! You’d just be a snack.”

“It’s not so tough.”

The words were spoken so quietly Fluttershy wasn’t sure she’d heard them. She looked at the minotaur, who had raised his head and was staring at her.

“Did…did you say something?”

“Manx said, ‘it’s not so tough.’ Manx beat it and broke its arm, but not before it did this to Manx.” He pointed to his face.

“I’m sorry.” She changed the subject. “So that’s your name? Manx?”

He nodded. “You?”

“I’m…I’m Fluttershy.”

The gryphon spoke up. “Fluttershy? What kind of name is that?”

Fluttershy just looked at the floor. The gryphon snorted and then lay back down in her soiled straw. All became silent except for the low thrum of machinery and the pacing of the insectoid. The click of its feet echoed in the stillness.

After a few moments, Manx slowly shifted his position so he was facing Fluttershy. A tremor seized him, and he shook from head to hoof.

“Are you alright? Why are you shaking?” she asked.

He got control of himself and waved her question off.

“Manx is fine, but Manx is sorry Fluttershy is here. The gryphon is right: this is no place for a pony. Manx would help Fluttershy escape if he could.”

“Th…thank you,” she quietly said. “But, can you tell me about the ones who brought us here? If you don’t mind, of course.”

Fluttershy saw anger blaze in the minotaur’s eye, and she backed up at first, thinking it was directed at her.

“They are the real monsters,” Manx growled. “Manx isn’t sure what else they are, but Manx knows they enjoy seeing us suffer.”

He indicated his collar.

“These things are used to control us. They can make us feel pain…lots of pain.”

Fluttershy’s eyes grew wide. She reached up again and tried to remove hers, but Manx shook his head.

“Don’t bother. Manx has tried many times to take his off. Manx did not succeed.” He coughed and trembled again.

“How…how long have you been here?”

He shrugged. “Hard to say. No windows, so Manx can’t see the sun, but it feels like three days.” He used his thumb to shakily point over his shoulder. “The gryphon and the manticore were here before Manx.”

She’d almost forgotten the manticore, it had been so silent. “Is it hurt as well?”

“Don’t know. Manx can see it breathing, but it hasn’t moved from that spot in a very long time.”

Any other reply she was about to make was cut off by the sound of a heavy door sliding open. The gryphon got to her feet and stared out. Manx visibly tensed.

“They are coming.”

_________________________________________________________________________________________________________

This world had been under surveillance for quite some time and had been declared off-limits by the Stellar registries. So it had taken many bribes and countless days of traveling undetected to reach it. But it was worth the risks. This world was unique among the many planets they’d snuck onto. Even though this planet had no space-faring technology, through clandestine observation they'd discovered two of the inhabitants somehow had control over their own star and satellite. Such creatures would make valuable additions to their cargo, but such couldn’t just be captured like they had done all the others. No, as powerful as they appeared to be, they had to be subdued from a distance. If the device they’d implanted in that creature they’d captured from that blue planet worked, the target creatures could be weakened enough to be captured and transported. Then they’d study their abilities at leisure.

One of the captors spoke to the other, who replied in the affirmative. Then they both donned their battle suits, activated the extra limbs and flexed the attached claws. Even with their specimens caged and collared, they were taking no chances with any of them.

They both got to their feet and made their way to the pit. It was time to see how well that pony could fight. If it could, then they would get a better price for it. If not, it could still be of use. They had observed an emotional attachment between the pony and the earther. The earther couldn’t be used as a fighter, but it may need motivation to fulfill its mission. Those beings tended to be difficult when directly confronted. The ones that didn’t first die of fright, apparently.

Just before entering the pit, they stopped at an off room and picked out a particular cage. Within it sat a very small and very frightened rabbit. One of the captors held the small cage up to its face, and slowly poked one of its claws through the bars. The rabbit squealed and backed up as far as he could go. The captor smiled, then turned to its companion.

“Motivation.”

Fluttershy, Part Two

Author's Note

I'm so very sorry.

Fluttershy, Part Two

The lights came sharply on as the door to the pit opened. Fluttershy got her first good look at the room. It was circular, and roughly the size of Ponyville Square. The walls were all of dark metal, and there were two benches on a raised platform overlooking the pit. To these benches two misshapen creatures now entered and sat. One was carrying a small cage, but they were too far away for her to see what was in it.

All was silent as they watched them. Then, there was a click as Fluttershy’s cage came open. She backed away from the door. There was another click, and the door to one of the cages on the far side swung away. Out crept a distorted shape, covered in black fur and heaving itself along on several legs. It opened a mouth filled with rows upon rows of jagged teeth and flicked out a snake-like tongue. Raising its head and sniffing, it then slowly started making its way over to Fluttershy’s open cage.

“Fluttershy! Fly and stay out of its reach!” Manx urgently whispered.

But she was frozen in terror.

“Please!” begged Manx. “It has no eyes, but if it smells and catches you in that cage, you’re done for!”

Her eyes never leaving the slowly approaching thing, she backed up as far as she could and whispered, “I can’t! I can’t go out there!”

The creature was now less than a few yards away. It seemed to be in no hurry, but it gave no indication of having homed in on her scent yet, as it stopped periodically and sniffed. But it still came closer.

The gryphon had had enough.

“Stupid, useless little pony! Move or die!!”

She then attacked the bars of her cage, shaking them and yelling at the creature, “Hey you! Come here, you freak!! Come taste my claws!!”

The creature snapped its head in her direction, and then shifted its approach.

“That’s it, you stupid freak! Come closer!”

She poised herself to quickly reach through the bars and embed her claws in it as deeply as she could. If she could somehow reach its belly, she’d spill its entrails all over the front of her cage.

But she never got the chance.

_________________________________________________________________________________________________________

The captors had been watching this scene play out with growing dissatisfaction. The pony wouldn’t come out on her own; in fact, she seemed too terrified to move. To make matters worse, the gryphon was drawing the Blinn to herself. This wouldn’t do at all. There was no way to accurately measure her fighting ability if she wouldn’t fight. First things first. Time to see if the pony would positively respond to motivation.

One of them pressed a button on the control panel before it, and the room filled with the shriek of the gryphon as she held her collar and thrashed upon the floor. The Blinn was still drawn to the noise she was making and pressed its noses against the gryphon’s enclosure.

Activating the repulsors on the tiny cage, they directed it to float down to the pit’s floor, and then open. Immediately the Blinn caught the scent of fresh meat and whirled away from the meat it couldn’t reach, and ran to the meat it could. The rabbit saw his death approaching, and tried to run, but one of his legs was suddenly secured to the floor of the cage. He shut his eyes tight, covered his head with his front paws and waited.

But he’d been spotted and recognized by one other creature.

__________________________________________________________________________________________________________

“Angel!!”

Fluttershy launched herself out of the cage. Like a bullet she flew straight at the monstrosity, and at the last second she flipped over and drove both back hooves into its head. There was a sickening crunch as she connected, and knocked the creature on its side. It hissed in pain and tried to rise, but she gave it no time to recover. Flying up as quickly as she could, she then fell like a stone. With a cry of rage, she again drove her back hooves down into it, using her weight, momentum, and desperate strength to smash its head into the metal floor. The boom echoed through the chamber. It convulsed once, twice and then lay still. Her panting was the only sound as she stepped away and pulled her now ichor covered hooves out of it. The gryphon, minotaur, captors and even the manticore had finally sat up and was staring at her in shock.

Then the silence was broken by the minotaur’s loud cheers. The gryphon had pulled herself up to a sitting position, but even she gave a weak cheer and said, “Well done, pony!”

But Fluttershy paid them no heed. Going swiftly over to Angel, she at first tried to remove his bonds, but then addressed herself to the captors.

“Let him go, please!”

_________________________________________________________________________________________________________

The captors each exchanged a satisfied grin. This was even better than they hoped! The pony had dispatched the Blinn in record time, all to protect that tiny animal. Time to see what the pony could really do.

They held a quick conference with each other, while the pony kept pleading with them. Coming to a decision, one activated the switch that released the rabbit. The pony picked the rabbit up and started back to her cage. They let her get halfway there before they hit another button on the panel.

__________________________________________________________________________________________________________

Fluttershy stopped as the sound of a cage being opened came from behind her. She slowly turned around and watched as the insectoid lumbered out. Setting the bunny down, she said, “Angel. Run.”

Before Angel could move the insectoid roared, and rushed towards them. Fluttershy flew at him, but the insectoid was too fast. With its one remaining arm, it quickly swiped at her and connected with its claws. Fluttershy screamed and was thrown bodily to the side. She crashed to the floor and rolled a few times, but quickly regained her feet. Just in time. She leaped up and away as the insectoid’s claws slammed down and dug furrows into the metal floor, right where she’d been a moment ago. It spun around and tried to orient itself at her again, but she gave a desperate kick with one of her back legs and connected with a compound eye. It howled as the eye was blinded. But now she’d made it angry.

As she tried to gain altitude, it suddenly gathered itself and leaped straight up, and caught one of her wings. There was a crunch as it tightened its grip and fell, then it slammed her into the floor and threw her across the room.

Fluttershy spit out blood as she tried again to stand. Her wing hung uselessly at her side, throbbing with pain, but Angel needed her. The insectoid rushed her again. She gritted her teeth and ran forward to meet it. Turning, she again used her momentum to buck it as hard as she could in its midsection. It staggered backwards, but then lunged forward and grabbed her other wing. She screamed as she was slammed into the floor again, and then her vision doubled as her head spun. She tried to scramble away, but the insectoid picked her up and drove its fangs into her side. It then threw her down and began savaging her with its claws. It was too much to bear. Just as the darkness was about to claim her, she heard a roar.

But it wasn’t the insectoid.

________________________________________________________________________________________________________

Bellowing, Manx backed up and slammed into the door of his cage again. His collar came alive and searing hot pain shot through him. It only made him angrier. The door bent forward and out. With one more mighty heave, the door fell open and he was free!

Climbing over the wreckage, he began running and cried out, “Fluttershy! Hold on, Manx is coming!”

The insectoid heard the sound but turned too late to face its enemy. It was its last mistake. With his collar smoking and teeth clenched, Manx hit it at full speed and buried his horns in its torso. His momentum carried them both forward as he then lifted it fully off the floor and slammed it down. There was a squelch as it was thrown off his horns and lay there kicking, but Manx gave it no chance to regain its feet.

For days Manx had suffered. He had fought this creature and been damaged by it. He had watched that brave pony take on two of them. All for those monsters' amusement. This was it! No more suffering! No more torture! He roared as lost himself in a berserker rage and smashed his fists down into the creature again and again. Only when it was a quivering pile of flesh did he stop. His collar had stopped humming, and he could no longer feel any pain. His chest heaved as he stared down at his defeated foe for a few moments. Then he turned and went back to Fluttershy to pick her up, but weakness came over him. Another shudder ran through him as he looked back at the monster he had just slain. Something was wrong. A wave of dizziness hit him as he stared at the remains of the beast. Its fangs. They must have had...oh, no.

_________________________________________________________________________________________________________

The captors stared down at the tableau. This wasn’t supposed to have happened! The last time they'd made these two fight, they'd stopped it before either had killed the other. The Garlax had cost them a year of bribes, and now it was dead, slain by that horned creature. And this time, it had been able to ignore the pain from the collar, until the collar had shorted out. At least they’d be able to study the horned creature's body after it succumbed to the poison, which should be any moment now. Even though these beings seemed to have an unusual resistance to the Garlax' poison, they couldn't withstand it more than a few days. Fascinating! They’d have to capture another one.

_________________________________________________________________________________________________________

Fluttershy fought to remain conscious, as Angel came forward and hugged one leg. She turned her gaze and could register the shape of Manx standing over her.

“Th…thank you,” she whispered. She could never afterwards be sure, but she thought she saw him smile. Then he fell over, sighed, and did not move again. She heard somepony calling to her. She could just make out the gryphon gesturing and calling out. Just before darkness took her, she said to Angel, “Go to her.”

__________________________________________________________________________________________________________

The gryphon had been watching with growing awe. She had never, ever seen a pony do such things. It was like she was a full-fledged warrior, something she’d never considered a pony could actually be.

She looked and saw her captors floating down to the pit. She felt anger rise inside her. There was nothing she could do for the pony, or for Manx, but she could help that rabbit. As the captors drew nearer to the bodies, she cried out, “Fluttershy! I'll protect him! Send him here!” She then addressed Angel. "Come here, little guy. I'll keep you safe."

The rabbit turned and looked at her, but shook his head. But then the pony whispered something to him. He looked at the pony, then at the approaching captors. He made up his mind and then ran to her.

“Don’t worry, rabbit. I won’t eat you.”

One of the captors approached the cage, but before it could get close the gryphon brandished her talons and screamed, “You stay away from him!”

The captor stared at her for a few moments, then turned away.

__________________________________________________________________________________________________________

One bent down to examine the pony. She was still alive, but barely. If she didn’t die of her wounds, the poison would soon take care of her. Time for the alternate plan. They knew where the earther was staying. With the right threats and this pony as the proper motivation, Phase Three would soon be complete. Then they could leave this planet, before the Stellar authorities showed up. They’d pressed their luck staying as long as they had. It was time to finish this business.

__________________________________________________________________________________________________________

Present day

Pain. That was her first sensation as she woke. She looked around using only her eyes, as it hurt to move her head. Where was she?

She blinked to clear her vision. Now things came into focus: she was in a hospital bed. How did she get here?

Then everything came rushing back. The cages. Manx. Angel!

The machines went off as a nurse ran in. Fluttershy tried to rise, but the nurse held her gently but firmly to the bed.

“It’s alright, Fluttershy. You’re safe now. Shhh.”

“An…Angel?” she whispered.

The nurse looked troubled, but she said, “Don’t worry about him right now. You just get better.”

She settled down, but her mind was a turmoil. What could she do? She had to get him back and warn the others about those creatures. Then a tremor seized her, and she coughed.

Revelations

Something has gone wrong. We don't seem to have an archived copy of that chapter.

Rarity

Rarity watched the tall alien as he and Luna had a seemingly one-sided conversation. His understanding of Equestrian was still limited, but at least his clothes fit well. She looked at his hooves. No, they weren’t called “hooves,” were they? No matter, as days ago she'd taken his measurements and relayed them to Ponyville’s one and only cobbler. It should prove to be quite the challenge.

Now Fluttershy’s brother was speaking up. Despite the lack of resemblance, he seemed to share her ability to communicate with non-Equestrians, as he helped in translating. But what could the alien, the “hue-mun,” do to help Fluttershy? He looked about as lost as everypony.

Her thoughts drifted back to the evening before, when she was alone waiting for word. It had been the longest night of her life. Not to know if her dearest friend would survive until morning and if she did, in what condition would she be? She’d paced the floors for almost an hour until finally, the same doctor had made another appearance. She approached him and put on her best pleading face.

“Oh doctor, can’t I please see her?”

He considered. “As long as you don’t disturb her, I suppose it will be alright. Where did your other friends go?”

“One went to get her family, while the others are trying to find out as much as they can from that alien.”

The doctor scowled. “I’m not so sure having that alien in town is a good idea. Who knows the trouble it can cause, just being here.”

Now it was Rarity’s turn to consider. “I don’t choose to be in his company, but I’ve met him, doctor, and despite what everypony thinks he seems to be very friendly.”

“Didn’t it…excuse me, he have something to do with your friend’s injuries?”

“We still don’t know, but I do not believe he did. He simply does not seem the type.”

The doctor snorted but otherwise kept his opinion to himself. “Alright. You can go in and see her now, but again, please don’t try to wake her.”

“Thank you, doctor!” He turned and led the way as she followed.

He stopped at Fluttershy’s door. “Now brace yourself. This will be disturbing.”

She took a deep breath. “I’m ready.” He nodded, and then opened the door.

It was all she could do not to gasp in horror as she got her first sight of her friend. She slowly walked forward and stopped at the side of the bed. Fluttershy lay on her stomach, wrapped in bandages from head to hoof. Some of them would soon need to be changed, as blood had seeped through. Both her wings were spread out in casts and in traction, while her eyes were sunken and dark. Her breathing was labored behind her mask, though it was steady. But worst of all, her head had been shaved. All that lovely mane, which she’d secretly envied, was gone. Gone.

“Are you going to be okay?” asked the doctor.

Rarity could only nod.

“I’ll leave you two for now. Don’t stay too long.” He quietly left.

Rarity closed her eyes and began to weep. It just wasn’t fair. With all the adventures they’d had, and all the dangers they’d faced together, it was inevitable somepony would eventually get hurt, but why Fluttershy? She literally would not hurt an insect! Rarity took another deep breath to calm herself, and tried to force the anger away, but failed. Then resolve hardened within her. Whomever did this would regret the day they were born, she’d see to it!

_____________________________________________________________________________________________________

She sat still and quiet, just watching and listening to her friend breathe. Finally, she leaned forward and planted a delicate kiss on her cheek.

“Get well, dear.” As she turned away she heard a faint sound.

“Rar...Rarity?”

She spun around. “Fluttershy?!”

“Are…are you…?” she whispered.

“Shh, dearest. Don’t try to talk,” said Rarity.

“I’m…sorry. Sorry…to see me…like…this.”

Rarity’s heart shattered. “Don’t you dare apologize! It’s not your fault!”

“Sorry…” She fell back under. Rarity broke into fresh tears and ran from the room.

That is how Twilight, Applejack, Pinkie, Spike and the alien found her, bitterly sobbing alone in the waiting room. It was some time before they could get any word from her, so they stopped trying while Pinkie quietly held her and let her cry herself to sleep.

______________________________________________________________________________________________________

That had all been many hours before. Rarity brought herself back to the present as she watched the alien and the Princess interact. This didn’t appear to be something in which she could help, so she thought hard to find something in which she could. There had to be a task she could do to help poor Fluttershy! For the first time in her life, she found herself regretting she had not studied magic further. Her magic was well suited to her profession, but most other forms had eluded her, and she’d been content. But if a pony as well versed as Twilight couldn’t come up with a solution magically, Rarity doubted she could, even if she’d been better prepared. Still, she had to try.

She cast about inside herself, accessing her talents. Her sense of fashion was of no use here. She could manipulate many objects at once, but what good could that do? Finally, she settled on her gem finding spell. She could sense and locate various gems from great distances, and that was powerful in and of itself. But how could it help?

Then it came to her.

“Twilight, you spoke of two other aliens that must have hurt Fluttershy, correct?”

“Yes, Char-Elles told me about them.”

“It seems to me we need to find them before it’s too late.” She took a deep breath. “I know this may be a lot to ask of you, but can you help me modify my gem-finding spell to instead find them?”

Twilight took a moment, then her eyes brightened. “That’s a great idea, Rarity! But we have to know what we’re scanning for. Let me think.” Twilight closed her eyes and concentrated. Her eyes flew open. “I’ve got it! We know where they were last; there has to be some residue of their presence in Char-Elles’ room! We have to hurry.” She quickly excused herself to Luna and told her Rarity’s idea, while the rest looked on. Luna turned to Rarity.

“Such a spell may permanently alter your own, Rarity Belle. Are you willing to make such a sacrifice?”

“I am. Anything to help my friend.”

Luna nodded. “So be it. You have my blessing, and may you succeed in your endeavor.” Rarity bowed, and then Twilight ported them both away.

____________________________________________________________________________________________________

They reappeared in the alien’s room. Twilight cast a sweeping arc of her magic that encompassed the entire space. Nothing. She tried again, making the spell stronger. Just as she was about to start over again, she caught the tiniest wisp of something out of the ordinary. But it was not enough. She turned to Rarity in frustration.

“I found something, but it’s faint.”

“Can we use it?”

“I’m not sure. It appears they didn’t interact with anything in here. The portion I detected may be from them making contact with the floor, but it would be better if they’d touched something in here. It doesn’t look like they did.”

“Let’s work with what we have, Twilight.”

They both ran to the library where they began searching the books for a way to modify Rarity’s spell.

“I know the type of spell we need, so we need a tome on…got it! Here we are: Spells and Spell Modification.” She opened it to the glossary and read down.

“This is it.” She turned to the chapter and began reading as Rarity paced nervously.

“Okay,” said Twilight as she turned away from the book and looked at Rarity. “I don’t know if I’ll be able to reverse this, but this technique should work! Hold still.” She closed her eyes and concentrated again, as magic flowed from herself to Rarity. After a few moments, Twilight stopped.

“Try your spell now.”

Rarity, in turn, closed her eyes and swept out with her magic. The familiar feeling of finding precious stones was gone, replaced by a very, very faint…presence. She opened her eyes.

“I think I can feel what you found in the room, Twilight, but like you said it’s very faint. Too faint…”

Then Twilight knocked herself on the head. “I’m an idiot! We know what they touched! Or rather who they touched, and he’s back in the hospital! Let’s go!” She ported them both away.

______________________________________________________________________________________________________

When they returned to the hospital, Luna was speaking with the ponies while the alien was backed up in a corner, keeping his hands upon his own stomach, as far from Luna as he could get.

That is odd, Rarity thought to herself. Is he hungry?

Luna turned to Twilight.

“Did you find that which you sought, Twilight Sparkle?”

“Yes, but we need more residue. I believe we can find it on Char-Elles, if I can examine him.”

Luna looked at him. “I am loathe to enter his dreams again without his consent, and he is adamant about my keeping my distance. Yet he will not explain why. He trusts you more than I, perhaps your method will be met with greater success.”

Rarity and the others watched as Twilight drew near and quietly spoke to the alien. He nodded, and then bent down on one knee as she directly applied her magic to him for the first time. Her beam visibly scanned his neck, but then she passed it below his neck to the rest of his body, looking for residue. The alien's eyes widened as he saw where the beam was going. He started to get to his feet, but it was too late.

“What’s that?” she asked, as her beam crossed over his stomach. “Rarity, I think you’d better…” she began, before an arc of what looked like lightning shot from the alien’s stomach and enveloped them both. Twilight and the alien screamed, and she fell to her knees.

“Twilight Sparkle!” cried Luna, as she tried to pull her away with her own magic. The lightning shot from Twilight and encompassed Luna, as she cried out as well. Then there was a flash, and all three were gone.

Confrontations

I awoke on my back feeling pain in every limb, but mostly my stomach. I groaned as I sat up and looked down. There’s a painful scorch mark there, but it’s not too bad. I gingerly poke and prod, but I can no longer feel that implant. I’m still examining the place where it was when everything came flooding back: Twilight’s beam hitting my stomach, the arc of electricity coming out and covering the both of us, the pain. I’d shut my eyes and the next thing I knew I was here.

I stared around me. The light is dim, but I can see I’m in a bare metal room and I can feel a hum coming from the floor. There are no windows, but there’s one door that looks like it belongs on a submarine. This has to be the aliens’ ship, but where are we? Are we still on the planet? If we’re not, what’s going to happen to Fluttershy? I have to find a way out!

I experienced déjà vu as I continued to ponder my circumstances. The waking in a strange place, the pain, the disorientation. It’s all like my first night in Equestria. I tried the door. As expected it’s locked, so I started yelling and banging on it.

“Hey! Let me out of here!” I kept this up for several minutes then stopped. My hands are sore and there’s no answer.

I tried to think. The arc of electricity came from the device, so Twilight’s magic must have triggered it. All I remembered was shutting my eyes and screaming, but as I concentrated I could recall another voice doing so as well. Was it Twilight? And if so, is she here as well? I had been instructed to go before Celestia, but she’d been nowhere near. Only the ponies and Luna were there, so Luna might be here. I put my ear to the wall, stilled my breathing and focused my awareness on hearing. I couldn’t hear anyone, so I then tried tapping all around.

“Twilight? Princess Luna? You there?” No reply.

Just then there was a movement of the door’s handle. I jumped back and waited. The door opened and there stood the two beings I’d come to hate. One entered while the other stood outside as I got my first good look at them. They were both taller than me, encased in what appeared to be some sort of armored suits. They each walked on four legs, with two other upper limbs that ended in wicked looking claws. Their faces could be seen behind the glass front of their helmets, and I tried not to look at them too closely, as in doing so I felt my bile rising. Their pupils were slits and their mouths were full of teeth like a shark’s. They grinned at me, and then one in the room spoke.

“Thank you, human. We wanted the elder of the two creatures, but this will work out just fine.”

“What…what do you mean?”

“It doesn’t matter. We got what we came for. Which means we’re done with you.” It pulled out a weapon and fired as I twisted to one side. I moved faster than I normally could have done and smashed against the wall. Not fast enough. The beam lay a scorching trail across my shoulder.

“Ahhh!! ______ you!” I screamed and fell to my knees. The alien paused as it lowered the weapon.

“What did you say to me?”

I curled up and held my wound, but I clenched my teeth and screamed again, “You heard me! _______! You!” Then I shut my eyes tight and waited. After a moment of inactivity, I opened my eyes and stared at them.

“What are you waiting for?! Get it over with!”

It had completely lowered the weapon as it stared back at me. Finally, it spoke.

“This was going to be an easy death, human,” it spat, “but now you’ve earned a much more painful one.” It smiled coldly as it turned to leave the cell.

“Wait!” I cried, “what about Fluttershy?” It stopped mid stride.

“What about it?”

“You have to save her! Whatever you did to her, she’ll die if you don’t help!” Another throb of pain hit me, and I bit down on my sleeve to keep from crying out.

It laughed at me. “You do not give the orders, human. That creature is as good as dead.”

Just then its partner spoke to it in their language. As it turned to reply, its attention was drawn away from me. I am no hero, but fear made me desperate. With a grimace, I lunged forward and actually got my hand on the weapon before the alien turned and casually batted me aside. I hit the back wall as a tooth went flying. They looked down on me as I struggled to a sitting position.

“You have some fight in you, human, so we’ll make you a deal: if you survive the Pit, we’ll save that creature.” It smiled. “You won’t.”

Once they left me alone I immediately regretted my outburst as I spit blood onto the floor. Whatever this “pit” is, my friend’s fate is now tied into my success or failure. But then I remembered I couldn’t trust those things. They’d lied to me once already, so I couldn’t take them at their word. Even so, the alien had said, “she’s as good as dead,” so I seized onto the hope Fluttershy is still alive. Somehow, I’d have to win if she’s to stay that way. God help us both.

_______________________________________________________________________________________

Twilight was jolted awake as pain shot through her. She clutched at her neck as her hooves came in contact with a hard, metal collar. The pain stopped almost immediately as she frantically looked around.

“I…I am sorry, Twilight Sparkle. I did not know what would happen when I used my magic,” said Luna.

“What happened? What are we doing in these cages?” she panted.

Luna painfully got to her hooves. Twilight saw she was wearing a collar as well. Looking further, she could see a gryphon and a manticore in the near cages, slowly getting back to their feet.

“Who are they?” she asked.

Luna indicated the gryphon. “This is Belinda Windrider. I have learned much from her, but neither of us knew the effect my magic would have on our restraints. I cannot communicate with the manticore.” She stepped aside. “Here is one other I think you may know.” Down by the gryphon’s feet stood a small white rabbit.

“Angel?! What’s he doing here?”

“He was here with that pony Fluttershy,” said Belinda as she rubbed her own neck. “Protecting him was all I could do for her.” Then her features grew dark. “Those monsters used him to get Fluttershy to fight.”

“Fight?! Fight who?”

Luna stared across the room at the other cages. “Those creatures.” As Twilight followed her gaze, Luna continued.

“It is the same as I discovered in Fluttershy’s dreams. Our assailants have placed us in this area for the purpose of fighting those other beings.” She paused, and a scowl crossed her features. “For sport.”

Twilight could see other cages across the dimly lit room, but she didn’t recognize any of the creatures in them.

“Where’s Char-Elles? Is he alive?”

“I do not know. The gryphon tells me she has not seen any such being matching his description.” She laid a hoof on her own collar. “But we have a more pressing situation. These devices are keyed into our magic, and it would appear if you or I try to use our own spells they are all activated. So we cannot use magic without causing severe pain to all.” She grimly nodded. “Clever. Despite their questionable motives, we are dealing with intelligent beings.” She turned and stared at Twilight. “We simply have to be smarter.”

“Whatever you ponies want to do, count me in.” Belinda flexed her talons. “I only need one chance to gut those two.” Twilight looked shocked, but Luna merely gazed at her.

“I think we can accomplish this without further bloodshed,” she finally said.

“Then you must not have been listening when I told you what happened!” snapped Belinda. “These things are utterly without mercy. After what they did to Manx and Fluttershy and me, I’m getting some payback.”

“Who is Manx?” asked Twilight.

“He…he was a minotaur and a hero. He died saving Fluttershy.”

Twilight put a hoof to her mouth. “I’m so sorry.”

Belinda shrugged. “He went down fighting. That’s all I want as well.” She quickly wiped at an eye, then cleared her throat. “Shall I tell you about him, and that glorious battle?”

“Yes, it is best that you tell us that and everything you told me about this situation, Belinda Windrider,” said Luna. “Twilight must know.”

So Belinda began her tale anew, growing more animated as she went along. Even Angel appeared to be listening. When she finished, Twilight let out the breath she hadn’t realized she’d been holding. Then her expression hardened.

“Those beings hurt Fluttershy and Manx…for their own amusement?!”

Luna shook her head. “Not just for their amusement. Consider: they used Angel to get Fluttershy to fight. They then used Fluttershy to involve Charles. Something reached out from him and affected you and I, so now we are here. If this is a game to them, then we are the prizes.”

Belinda scoffed. “This…Chars-elles sounds like a real jerk if he is working with these monsters.”

Twilight began to pace. “I don’t think he is working with them. From his reaction to that which brought us here, I’d say he was in just as much pain if not more than we were. I only hope he’s still alive.”

__________________________________________________________________________________________

The others stared in shock at the place where Twilight, Luna, and the alien once stood.

“Are they…dead?” asked Spike.

“They can’t be,” whispered Rarity.

Applejack walked up to the spot and peered closely at it. After a few moments, she turned to the others.

“There’s nothing here that looks like it could have been a body: no ash, no smell…they’re just gone.”

“Well then, we gotta find them!” cried Rainbow.

“I’m all for that, but first, we haveta let Princess Celestia know what happened,” said Applejack. “Spike, send her a letter. Tell her we’ll be waitin’ here for her.”

“You got it!” he said. He ran to the front desk and asked for some paper and a quill. After the nurse gave him the items, he quickly scribbled out the letter, rolled it up and sent it by dragonfire. He turned to Applejack.

“Now what?”

“Now we wait. This shouldn’t take too long.”

“We can’t just wait around!” said Rainbow. She whirled upon Rarity. “Didn’t you and Twilight do something with your horn so we can find those creeps?”

Rarity took a step back. “Yes, but what we found was very faint. I’m not sure it can help, as Twilight was scanning Char-Elles for a greater sample before they disappeared.”

“Try!”

Rarity closed her eyes. “Alright, give me a moment.” Her horn glowed as she concentrated. She began to sweat as she poured more of her magic into the spell. Finally after a few moments, as all were staring at her, she stopped and opened her eyes. She couldn’t look at any of them.

“I’m sorry, there’s just not enough for me to detect,” she quietly said. There was a collective groan, which made Rarity shrink into herself. Applejack noticed.

“Don’t blame yourself, sugarcube. It ain’t your fault.” Then Pinkie gasped, and started jumping up and down.

“I know! I know! You can’t find those aliens, but can you find the alien?”

Rainbow scowled. “Pinkie, what in Equestria are you talking about?”

“The alien! Char-Elles! He’s been all over the place, so he should be easy to detect!”

Rarity stared at her, and then her eyes grew wide. “Pinkie…that’s genius!”

Pinkie stuck out her bottom lip. “You don’t have to sound so surprised.”

“That’s not what I meant, dear!”

Applejack interrupted. “We don’t have time for this! Can you find the hue-mon, Rarity?”

“I…I don’t know. I’m not good at spellcraft, and mine would have to be slightly modified to detect him.” Then she squared her shoulders. “But I must! I need that book Twilight used!”

“Go on an’ get it, the rest of us will wait here for Celestia,” said Applejack.

“Oh no we won’t! I’ll go with you, Rarity. I gotta do something!” said Rainbow.

“I’ll be happy to have you, Rainbow. Let us be off!” cried Rarity. They burst through the doors, through the crowd and galloped away.

“Hey! What’s going on?” asked an earth pony as they ran past. Neither stopped to answer but sped on their way. The Night Guards crossed their heavy lances to block the doorway after Rarity and Rainbow left.

“Sorry,” said one of the Guards, “but nopony gets in without direct permission from the Princess.”

“Can you at least tell us what’s happening? We saw a brilliant flash earlier, and then those two ponies ran out. Is there trouble?” asked a pegasus.

The Guard didn’t know but decided to fall back on his training and wing it.

“I’m sure the Princess will let you all know when Her Majesty deems it prudent. Please be patient.”

The crowd started to grumble.

“We’re always the last to know whenever anything happens around here. I hope they all know what they’re doing,” said one.

___________________________________________________________________________________

Several light years away:

The bridge of the Hkari battle cruiser Diligence was a sea of activity. For twenty cycles the humanoid crew had been attempting to track the intermittent trail of a rogue ship that had thus far eluded them. That ship’s cloaking technology had made them difficult to detect, but now their quarry had made a critical error. The Science Officer checked her findings one last time, then submitted them to her captain.

“Confirmed, Sir: a vessel with Antashi identification codes made an unauthorized landing on the planet Equus six cycles ago.

The Captain studied the report transmitted to his command chair’s screens and then scowled. “Why wasn’t I informed of this earlier, Lieutenant?”

Lieutenant Chapel stood at attention and looked her Captain in the eyes.

“Long range scanners just now detected their decaying heat signature entering the planet’s atmosphere. The ship has been cloaked, but anomalies within the planet’s magnetic field exposed their vessel for a brief window of time. The signal is faint, so I doubt they themselves were aware of it.” She examined her instruments. “I have double checked my findings.”

The Captain sat back in his chair and sighed. “Very good, Lieutenant. Navigator, plot a course to Equus. Hopefully the damage those fool Antashi must have done can be corrected.” He clicked a toggle on his panel and his voice resounded throughout the ship.

“This is the Captain. We are in pursuit of a criminal crew that has violated Stellar Authority protocols and landed upon a forbidden planet. The planet its inhabitants call Equus is unique in that they have control over their own star and satellite. This process is unknown, but it has been assumed beings that powerful could possibly be a threat to neighboring star systems. Hence it was decided the planet should be avoided. We have no way of knowing the rogue ship’s intentions, but from what little we know about the indigenous beings there this may turn into a rescue mission for the Antashi. Captain out.” He addressed his bridge crew.

“Go to General Quarters, activate cloak and prepare all long range scanners. I want that ship found within one cycle. Helmsman, Level Ten power to engines. Navigator, ETA to Equus?”

“One-eighth cycle, Sir!”

“Initiate pursuit.”

“As ordered, Sir!”

_________________________________________________________________________________________

At Twilight’s castle:

Rarity had no trouble finding the book Twilight had used, but her face fell once she saw the complicated text.

“How does Twilight sort through subjects like this so quickly?” she asked.

“She’s an egghead, how else?” said Rainbow as she tried to read over her shoulder. “Can you make the spell?”

Rarity glanced at Rainbow, then back to the tome. “I suppose I have to, don’t I? Give me a minute.” She silently read to herself as Rainbow paced the room. Rarity quickly realized trying to take it all in at once was a mistake: there were too many variables. Then inspiration struck her. She read the spell again, but this time approached it as if it were a dress pattern, and mentally divided it into sections. She then saw she was missing a vital ingredient.

“Alright, Rainbow, I think I understand, but I need something of Char-Elles’. Can you go to his room and find something of his?”

“What, you mean something that smells like him?”

Rarity’s face grew red. “I’m not a bloodhound! The spell detects the essence of the individual, not their scent!”

“Okay, okay I didn’t mean anything by it! I just need to know what you want.”

“Just grab anything he’s handled.”

Rainbow nodded. “I’m on it!” She flew out and quickly found Char-Elles’ bedroom.

Rainbow looked, and then grabbed the first thing she saw: a book lying on his nightstand. She flipped it open and glanced through it. He’d written in what had to be his own language, so this must be very personal. She flew back to Rarity.

“Will this do?”

Rarity quickly scanned it with her magic, then smiled. “Excellent work, Rainbow! This will do indeed. Now stand back.” She concentrated, and again, took the spell one section at a time. This took several minutes, and she was drenched in sweat by the time she was done. Finally, she let out a breath.

“Is it over? Did it work?” asked Rainbow.

Rarity fired up her horn once more and swept out with her former gem finding spell. The smile she then gave was weary, but satisfied.

“Yes. I can detect him.”

“Awww yeah!!” cheered Rainbow. “Good job, Rarity! Let’s go find them!”

“Just…just a second. We first need to meet back up with the others,” she panted.

“Are you okay?”

Rarity waved the question off. “I’m fine, just a little winded. I’ve never performed magic like that before.”

“I can fly you back to the hospital. We need to hurry!”

Rarity stiffened at the thought of being carried like a foal, but she saw the wisdom in her request. “Very well. Fluttershy needs us, so I shall suffer this indignity!”

“It’ll be awesome! Let’s go!” They both ran to the front door of the castle, then Rarity allowed Rainbow to hold her beneath her forelegs as Rainbow quickly took off.

“Whoa!” said Rainbow as she shifted her grip.

“What was that?!” cried Rarity.

“Nothing!”

She flew on. Fortunately for them both, they did not have to fly far. As they approached the clearing before the hospital, they were met by Princess Celestia and her Guards. Rainbow almost dropped Rarity when she saw the expression on Celestia’s face. Her eyes were blazing white, and her horn crackled with discharges of energy. As she set Rarity down before her, Rainbow looked and saw the rest of her friends were there as well. Rainbow and Rarity both bowed at once, but Celestia was the first to speak.

“Rarity. You can find my sister, correct?” It wasn’t the Canterlot Voice, but it was close.

“Yes…yes, Your Highness.” Rarity trembled despite herself. She’d never seen the Princess so angry. And I hope I never see it again. “I can locate the hue-mun, and we think he’s with those that took Princess Luna and Twilight.”

“Get into my chariot. Guards, follow her directions.”

“Yes, Your Highness!”

“Wait!” cried Applejack. “Beggin’ your pardon Princess, but we’re coming too!”

Celestia turned and stared at her, and for a moment it looked like she would deny the request.

“You are about to see a side of me nopony has seen for many centuries, Applejack. I would spare you all such a sight.”

“Our friends need us, Your Majesty,” said Pinkie. “We have to help them!”

Celestia nodded. “Very well, my little ponies. Join Rarity in the chariot. Let us be off!”

Applejack and Pinkie climbed in beside Rarity, while Rainbow and Celestia hovered above. Rarity fired up her horn. The beam became visible as it shone towards the Everfree Forest.

“That way!” cried Rarity. The Pegasus charioteers reared up and gave a battle cry, and then shot into the air.

_________________________________________________________________________________________

As I waited for the aliens to come back and subject me to whatever they had in mind, I went over my options. There weren’t many. The chances are I’m about to die a horrible death. I thought about it, and realized that wasn’t what truly troubled me. I don’t want to die, but what most troubled me was the knowledge that I’d failed at the end: failed to help Fluttershy, failed to beat those monsters, failed to get home. But what could I do? I’d been out of my element from the moment I’d been brought here to Equestria. The only thing I had going for me is my physical strength is increased on this planet. That, and as a result, I am also slightly faster. But would it be enough to face the upcoming ordeal? I'd already been hurt again, even though the pain was already bearable. Would my new wound make me slower? I couldn't afford that to happen.

My heart gave a leap and started jackhammering as the latch shifted. I got to my feet and faced them as the door swung open. They both spoke not a word, but beckoned me out of the room. I had no choice but to follow them. As we walked, I began to furiously consider a way out. I saw that they both gripped their weapons, so there was no chance I’d be able to grab one, nor was there any guarantee the outcome wouldn’t be the same as the last time I’d tried. So I followed them silently and took in as many details of the place as I could.

I could easily get lost in here, as there were corridors branching off at every turn. Most of the doors we passed were shut, but a few had enough glass on them I was able to see into the rooms, if only briefly. Most of them held little interest for me, but one caused me to actually stop and stare. The door to this one was wide and looked like some sort of laboratory. It held rows upon rows of … human sized containers, all covered in frosted glass and standing upright, connected to a central hub. I felt new horror seize me as I actually took a step into the room, trying to see what I only suspected. I didn’t get far as one of the aliens came back, grabbed me and threw me forward along the corridor. Just as we passed the room, out of the corner of my eye, I thought I saw movement in one of the containers. But I didn’t get the chance to confirm it, as one of the aliens now walked behind me to keep me on our way.

If I survive, I’m coming back to see what’s in that room.

Finally we stopped at an unusually large door, and then the lead alien pressed a button on the side. The door swung open to reveal a vast, circular room. An animal smell hit me as soon as I walked inside, and looked around. The room was huge, and I could see cages set against the walls. The near cages held creatures the likes of which I’d never seen before, but as I looked at each one I could feel a palpable sense of menace coming from them. Then I heard my name being called! The far cages were a blur, but I could just make out the shape of a purple pony. It was Twilight! In the cage next to her was a larger, dark pony, which I guessed had to be Luna.

“Char-Elles! Are you hurt?!” called Twilight. It was so good to hear her voice!

“I okay! You…hu-rt?” I shouted.

“No, I’m fine!”

Then I squinted. “Is…Lu-neh…there?”

“Yes, Charles. I’m here,” she said. Then I was shoved in the back.

“Get moving, human. Your friends get to watch this.”

I hissed as one of their hands made contact with my shoulder, but I manage to stifle the cry of pain as I stumbled forward. I heard the door slide shut behind me, and then as I turned and looked my two assailants floated up to a raised platform overlooking the floor. This had to be the “Pit” they spoke of earlier. Then one of the cages opened, and a nightmare creature shambled out. It was almost as tall as me, covered in black fur with six legs, with some kind of metal collar. From the way it reared its head and sniffed, I thought it might be blind. That, and I couldn’t make out anything that might be eyes on it. Then I heard my captors taunting me.

“Meet the Blinn, human. It was the companion to the creature your pony friend killed. Let’s see how well you do against it!”

I wildly looked around for anything I could use as a weapon, but all I had were my fists. The cowards couldn’t even provide me with means to protect myself. And that’s when I got angry.

I ran forward to meet it and threw everything I had into one punch to the side of its head. I was actually able to knock it back a few feet, and if the howl it gave was any indication, I also must have hurt it. But my victory was short-lived, as it now whipped out a paw and pinned me to the floor. I managed to get my hands around its collar just as those jaws came down and snapped within inches of my face. I felt its claws dig into me as it forced its head down, trying to bite me. I held that maw away only by sheer force of will, but if I couldn’t get to my feet and get away, I wouldn’t make it.

It can’t end like this!

______________________________________________________________________________________

Twilight watched in horror as the hue-mun struggled with the creature.

“We have to help him!” she cried.

“Yes,” said Luna. Her voice had a strange inflection to it that made Twilight turn and stare at her.

Luna slowly turned and stared back. “I am sorry, Twilight Sparkle and Belinda Windrider. And to you, manticore, though you cannot understand me.”

Then her eyes went white and she charged up her horn. Immediately the agony shot through them all, causing the three to fall to the floor and scream. But Luna did not stop, though it was plain she suffered as well.

Now the power she channeled lifted her off her feet, and the entire vessel began to shake. Then a force beam arced through her horn, and briefly touched first Twilight’s collar, then the other collars in turn. As it did so, there was a spark as each restraint fizzled out and fell off them all. Lastly, she destroyed her own as the bars of her cage melted into slag. As she floated out, she cast one more beam from her horn towards the creature attacking the hue-mun. The impact knocked it across the room and it slammed into the wall below the raised platform, then lay still. As she approached the injured hue-mun, she looked up at the platform. It was empty.

_______________________________________________________________________________________

Once the ship had started shaking, the aliens lost no time. They quickly jumped down, unlatched the door and ran as fast as their suits could carry them. It was time to leave this planet, but not before one final act.

Within a hold in the bowels of their ship they kept dozens of creatures from various worlds, all picked for their viciousness and fighting ability. Now one of the aliens hit a series of controls that released each of the enclosures and at the same time opened the main cargo bay doors, while the other made ready to lift off from the surface. Let these “Princesses” deal with the most dangerous creatures from a hundred worlds! They’d be long gone in the meantime. But before they could go, they’d have to take care of the immediate threat, and that was the one in the Pit. Hitting another series of controls, they released every cage there. With any luck, she wouldn’t be able to fight them all. Even if she could, they had only to leave orbit, depressurize the Pit and then blow them all out into space. Problem solved.

As one pushed the levers forward that controlled the ship’s engines, they could actually hear them straining. But they weren’t moving. They tried again, but nothing. Where they should have reached the outer atmosphere by now, they were somehow being held in place. One ran a quick check of the instruments and then activated the front view panel. Its suit’s mechanical arms fell away from the control panels in shock as it stared out the portal.

Celestia had arrived.

Priel and R'el

Twilight got to her feet and shook her head to clear it. That pain had been like nothing she’d ever felt before, and she needed a few minutes to recover. But when she looked out of her cage she saw she wasn’t going to get those minutes as all the enclosures in the pit suddenly opened. She was free, but now so were every other creature in there with them. Some crawled, some flew, but those that came out were united in their ferocity. Three of the larger ones attacked Luna, and she quickly threw up a shield to surround herself and the hue-mun. There was a roar as the manticore flew out of its cage and used teeth, claws, and stinger to defend itself.

Twilight stared in shock for a moment as three others quickly covered the distance between herself and Belinda. Belinda grabbed Angel, set him between her shoulders and flew out to meet them.

“Fight, pony! Kill or be killed!” she called as she attacked the largest of the trio.

She sounded an eagle’s cry as she blinded her assailant. Just as one of the creatures flew at Twilight and tried to rake her with its claws, she ported herself out and to Luna’s side. She then used her beam to knock the attacking creatures away, but to her horror, she saw them quickly regain their feet. The one Belinda had blinded lay on its side and howled, but she still faced a creature that could fly as she soared towards the ceiling. The beast that had attacked Twilight looked around in confusion, then spotted her and began to race towards her. A much more powerful beam lanced over her shoulder and pierced the creature through its body. It shrieked and then crumbled to the floor. Twilight turned and looked in shock at Luna. Luna’s face held a mixture of sadness, but determination.

“Now is not the time for mercy, Twilight Sparkle!” she shouted as she blasted another.

The area around the two was clear for the moment, giving Twilight a chance to look around. She saw another flying creature attacking Belinda from behind. So intent was Belinda in engaging the one in front of her she didn’t notice it yet. Twilight had no choice and sent her most powerful beam burning through the air and lanced the creature through the heart. It fell to the floor like a puppet whose strings were suddenly cut, dead before it could cry out.

Belinda shot her beak forward as swift as a snake and ripped out the throat of the being she was fighting. As it fell to join its companion she gave another eagle’s cry, while Angel clung to her back for all he was worth. Belinda hovered and looked around. All about them lay the bodies of their enemies. The manticore had downed two and was prowling about looking for more. Twilight and Luna stood side by side over the hue-mun, who lay clutching his chest. The gryphon landed next to them and took Angel off her back. It took some doing and she winced as a few of her feathers came loose in his grip, but he was otherwise unhurt.

“Don’t worry, little guy. You’re safe now,” she told him.

Angel looked up at her, and then chanced a glance around. He stopped, and then pointed. Belinda and the ponies followed his gaze and saw one last creature. It was similar to the one Manx had fought, only smaller. It was cowering in its cage and showed no sign of wanting to come out. The manticore spotted it at the same moment, roared and ran towards it but was gripped in a telekinetic field.

“Stay, manticore,” said Luna, “that one is no threat.”

The manticore looked at Luna, then at the creature, then back at Luna with an unusually intelligent expression. Then it nodded and sheathed its claws. Luna released it, and it turned its back on the creature and wandered over to them. Luna then focused her attention on the hue-mun.

“Are you badly hurt, Charles?” He sat up and pulled the remains of his tunic open. There were three parallel claw marks on his chest, but the bleeding had already slowed to a trickle.

“It…hu-rt…but I okay.”

She then began to address Twilight, but stopped. Twilight lay staring at the creature she’d killed. Luna again tried to speak to her, but Twilight just shook her head. Then the ship began to violently shake, and there was a sound like metal being rent open. They all looked up and saw the ceiling being slowly pulled apart.

______________________________________________________________________________________

While its companion had stood immobilized by shock, the other had darted forward and activated the ship’s weapons, then released everything they had at Celestia. There was a huge explosion as their weapons made contact with her field, and so much smoke their vision was temporarily obscured. They looked at each other, and there was enough of a lull in the action for them to hope they’d actually killed her. But when the smoke cleared, Celestia hovered some distance from their ship, unscathed. Then she spoke.

“My turn!”

The aliens dove for cover as she sent beam after scorching beam into their ship, obliterating everything the beams touched. The ship was rocked by several explosions as her onslaught continued. Finally, she stopped and peeled back the metal of the ship’s bridge with her field as if it were paper. The aliens peeked out from their cover, drew their weapons and started wildly firing. The few shots that landed bounced off Celestia with no more effect than a flashlight. She concentrated, and then gripped them both in her field, lifting them into the air. With teeth clenched, she slammed them into one wall and then another hard enough to dent the thick metal again and again. Only when she saw their suits were wrecked and broken did she stop. They both hung limp in her field as she brought them up to her face.

“I am only going to ask this once: WHERE ARE MY SISTER AND TWILIGHT?!”

Her voice shook what was left of the bridge, as more panels shorted out and sparks flew. But all she got from them was incoherent babbling. Just then a voice called out to her.

“Your Highness, I can pinpoint the hue-mun! We don’t need their help!” shouted Rarity. She and the other ponies were still in awe over what they’d just witnessed. Celestia turned to her and then floated back out of the ship, carrying the two with her.

“Very well. Show me!”

Rarity’s beam hit the middle section of the rounded ship. “They’re down inside there, Your Majesty.”

Levitating herself and her captives over the top of the vessel, she then used her magic to open up the section Rarity had indicated. The scene below was one of carnage. Bodies of misshapen beasts lay everywhere, with their blood or ichor staining the floor. The stench of death was heavy in the air, causing the newly arrived ponies to recoil in shock and some to fight to keep from vomiting. As they watched, the gryphon landed next to a howling creature and put it out of its misery. She turned to them with a defiant look in her eye, as if daring the ponies to reprimand her for killing that last beast, but it was to Twilight her friends most attended. She was staring in silence at the body of the being she’d killed and did not look up when her name was called. Her friends approached her as Celestia landed with the aliens and spoke quietly to Luna.

“Twilight? Are…are you okay?” asked Pinkie. Just as they thought she wasn’t going to answer, she spoke just barely above a whisper.

“No. No, I’m not.”

Rainbow followed Twilight’s gaze to the dead creature and then turned back to her friend.

“Whatever you had to do, Twilight, we support you.”

Twilight closed her eyes and then got to her feet.

“This can wait.” She looked at the aliens as they were held in Celestia’s field. “So these are the ones who caused all this trouble?” Charles stood as well, held his chest and nodded.

“Yes. They…must…save Flut-ter-sy.” His face darkened. “Make them.”

Celestia released them and they both fell flat on the floor. Twilight walked up to them and noticed breaks in their armor that showed their bodies underneath and some that showed only metal. The aliens lay staring up at her. Twilight drew closer and saw that even though one’s helmet was cracked, it was still breathing.

“Twilight, what are y—” began Applejack.

Twilight held up a hoof. “Something’s not right.” She took that same hoof and poked one of the cracks in their suits, and observed the alien’s reaction. She turned to Celestia.

“This armor isn’t their true forms,” she said.

“Is that so?” asked Celestia. As all the ponies and her guards stood and watched she slowly, carefully used her field to pry their suits open. When she was done, there were revealed two short, pale, bipedal humanoid creatures, each about four feet tall. Though their eyes looked the same as in their helmets, they lacked the frightful mouths that had appeared before. Their heads had dark hair, but one’s hair was longer than the other’s. They had hands like Charles’, yet they had only four digits. They each still wore a device that was attached to one ear and curved forward like a microphone. As all stared at them, the two slowly got to their feet and looked fearfully around. Charles walked up to them, holding his chest.

“So…those suits were a farce. This is what you both really look like.”

With one hand he reached down and grabbed the closest one by the throat, and lifted it off the floor.

“The antidote for Fluttershy. Now,” he growled.

The alien’s eyes bulged as he struggled for breath.

“We…we don’t have it!”

Charles squeezed tighter.

“But…but we have another creature with poison like the Garlax! It’s that one!” he wheezed. He pointed at the one remaining beast, still cowering in its cage. Charles opened his hand, and the alien dropped to the floor. He stayed where he landed, not daring to move, while his companion fell to her knees.

“Please…we’ll go and never return. Just…don’t kill us,” she begged. She looked at Celestia and threw herself down in front of her. “Please spare us, Your Majesty.”

Celestia stared down at the creatures without pity. Then Belinda gave a bitter laugh.

“After the way you treated Manx? And me?! I’m going to gut you both and eat your entrails!” She started forward, but Celestia stopped her with a glance.

“Stay, Gryphon. I’ll decide their fate,” she said.

Belinda began to protest, but her angry retort died in her throat when she met Celestia’s gaze. She dropped her eyes from her and then stared at the two.

“I want blood, Princess. For Manx.”

Glancing at the blood that still covered her beak and talons, Celestia said, “Enough has already been spilled in the heat of battle. Many lives have been lost this day,” and here she looked at the aliens, “but if two more join this number it will be for justice, not revenge.”

At this the female alien looked frantically around, searching the faces. Finding one she thought favorable, and before anypony could stop her, she jumped up and ran to Pinkie, then threw herself down as before. Gripping Pinkie’s front hooves, she said, “Pink one! You seem kind! Don’t let your ruler kill us!”

Pinkie recoiled from her touch, closed her eyes and said one word: “Fluttershy.”

The alien stared up at Pinkie. “W...what?”

Pinkie’s eyes snapped open, and focused a look of such intensity the alien got up and backed away. Pinkie took a step closer and repeated herself: “Fluttershy!”

“I…I…don’t…”

Pinkie drew in a sharp breath and leaped forward, but was quickly grabbed by Applejack. Pinkie still fought to free herself and swung at the alien, all the while screaming, “FLUTTERSHY! FLUTTERSHY! FLUTTERSHY!”

“Pinkie!” shouted Applejack. Pinkie stopped yelling and relaxed but had to take some deep breaths to calm herself. Finally, she spoke.

“I’m okay now, Applejack…you can let me go.”

“You sure?”

Pinkie nodded, and Applejack slowly released her.

The alien had backed away in horror, but visibly paled when she saw Applejack release Pinkie. “Keep her away from me!”

Applejack scowled at her. “You just keep your distance, and you’ll be fine.”

The alien gulped, and then went to her companion and huddled next to him. He spoke to Celestia and said, “What are you going to do to us?”

Celestia stared at them without speech for a few moments. Finally, Luna stepped forward and said, “What are your names?”

The alien stiffened at the question, and for a brief moment the same arrogance from before showed on his face, but he quickly fought it down.

“I’m…Priel…and this is R'el,” he said as he dropped his eyes and scowled. R'el shot a look at him but dropped her eyes as well. Priel spoke again while staring at the floor.

“Now that you know our…” and here he grit his teeth, “names, what are you going to do with us?” Celestia finally deigned to speak to them.

“You will be held in Canterlot until your trial.”

At this, both Priel and R'el stared at her. “You can’t try us!” Priel finally said. “We’re not from this world, so we cannot be judged here!”

Luna’s eyes blazed, and she took a step forward. “You have committed crimes on our planet! You WILL answer for those crimes!”

Priel and R'el cowered at her voice, their arrogance once again disappearing.

“Take them to Canterlot, Luna,” said Celestia.

“With pleasure, Sister.” Luna gripped them both in her field and then ported away. Once she was gone, Twilight turned to Celestia.

“We still need the antidote for Fluttershy.” She pointed at the remaining beast. “A sample of that one’s poison should be sufficient if those aliens weren’t lying.” Celestia approached it, while it tried to back up further into its cage.

“We have zoologists in Canterlot that may be able to safely extract its poison,” she said. “But I do not know how long it will take to fashion an antidote, and the time is short.” Then Pinkie spoke up.

“Your Majesty, Fluttershy’s brother can communicate with animals as she does. Maybe he can tell it what we need?”

“That’s a good idea, Pinkie,” said Twilight. “I can go explain the situation to him, and if he’s willing bring him back here.”

Celestia gave her a worried look. “Are you feeling well enough, Twilight?”

“What do you mean?”

Celestia fully faced her. “I know you just went through a traumatic experience. Perhaps it’s best if I make the trip?”

Twilight shook her head. “I’m fine, Celestia. I’ll be right back.” She concentrated, then ported away.

“Twilight, wait! —” began Celestia, but it was too late. She turned to the friends. “I was going to say she should take this one with her,” indicating Charles with her hoof. “He’s hurt and needs medical attention.”

He caught the word “hurt” and knew she was referring to himself, so he said, “I…fine, Flut-ter-sy need he-lp. She...more…hu-rt than I.”

Celestia looked him over. “I must say my sister described you well, Char-Elles. I am sorry we did not meet under better circumstances.”

Charles did not understand every word, but her tone and manner were welcoming, so he simply nodded.

“If you all are done being lovey-dovey, I’m getting out of here,” said Belinda. She turned to Angel. “Good luck, little guy. One of these ponies will take care of you now.” She looked at the group. “Right?”

Rarity stepped forward. “Of course we will. Thank you for looking after him.”

Belinda nodded, then turned to Celestia. “I want to be there when you have a trial for those two, Princess.”

“Of course.”

Belinda’s face softened, and then she added, “Tell Fluttershy I’m wanting to see her. She’s a true warrior.” She then gathered herself, leapt up into the air and away. The manticore softly growled at the Princess, and then took flight as well.

Celestia looked around the area with distaste. “I think it best if we leave this place.”

“Quite agree, Your Highness,” said Rarity. “But what’s to be done about that creature?” She pointed at the remaining beast. "We need some way of shutting that cage, for now."

Pinkie looked around and spotted the raised platform. “What’s that up there?”

Rainbow flew up to it and looked it over. “It’s some kind of science-y stuff. Twilight would know.” Celestia smiled.

“And who do you think taught Twilight?” she said as she alighted next to Rainbow. Celestia peered closely at the control panel. All the buttons were arranged in a circle. She counted, and soon realized that each set of three buttons, red, green and black, corresponded to each cage. All of the green buttons were lit, and consequently, all the cages were open. Celestia pressed a red button, and all looked up to see that cage door slide shut. It was easy after that.

Once she had the remaining beast properly caged, she addressed the group.

“Alright, my little ponies…and Char-Elles, we’re leaving this place of death. We’ll go outside and wait in the fresh—” she was interrupted by the sudden reappearance of Belinda, who flew back into the ship and quickly spotted Celestia.

“Princess, you better get out here!”

Big Mac

Zecora knew something was wrong about the sunlight. The sun hadn’t moved from the afternoon phase for over an hour, which was long enough for it to have been evening by now. As long as she’d lived in Equestria, there had only been a few times the sun had not set at the proper time, and that had usually been some precursor to serious trouble. Celestia or Luna never failed in their duties, unless something was preventing them like the time Canterlot had been invaded by the Changelings.

She went to her door and listened with her whole being. Something was off about the Everfree this evening. There was only silence as far as she could hear, and that was ample cause for alarm, as the Everfree was never completely silent. She quickly turned and filled some saddlebags with defensive potions, threw on a cloak and ventured out. She’d only made it a few hundred yards from her home when she heard a crashing sound through the trees, as if some large animal, or animals, were making their way through the forest. She wrapped her cloak about her and faded into the shadows of some foliage, and waited. Her wait was not long. As she stared and held her breath several creatures rumbled past her hiding place, the kinds of creatures she’d never seen before. The sight of them just felt wrong, as if somepony’s worst fears had taken physical form. Even worse, they were on their way to Ponyville. She knew what she had to do: somehow, someway she had to get ahead of them and warn the ponies there. Quickly and as silent as smoke she left her hiding place and galloped along one of the many paths that only she knew. With fortune on her side she’d not be too late.

_____________________________________________________________________________________

Twilight reappeared at the hospital lobby, and quickly sought out Fluttershy’s family. The three of them were in Fluttershy’s room, silently keeping watch. They looked up as she made her way into the room.

“I’m sorry to disturb you all, but I need to talk to Haze. It’s important.”

Haze looked at his parents, who nodded at him.

“What’s this about?” he asked.

“We may have found an antidote for your sister, but we need you to communicate with the creature that has the poison,” she said.

“Of course,” he said. “I’ll do whatever I can, but what sort of creature is it?”

Twilight’s expression turned dark, and she hesitated. “It’s not from this world,” she finally said, “and the place I’m taking you will be upsetting. But it’s the only chance Fluttershy has, or I wouldn’t do it.”

“Just take me there, I can handle it.”

“Alright. We need something in which to carry the poison, if we can convince that creature to help us. I’ll be back in a moment.”

While she was gone, the family turned back to their injured daughter. Willow gently held one of her hooves, and softly wept, while her husband held her and did the same. Haze stared at his sister and fought back tears of his own.

Twilight returned with a few vials in a saddlebag. After securing them to her back, she quietly said, “Are you ready?” Haze nodded. Still, Twilight hesitated, then said, “Mr. and Mrs. Posey, I’m sorry what happened to Fluttershy. My friends and I will do our best to make it right.” Stormcrow turned to her.

“She’s moving back to Cloudsdale with us once she’s better. I can’t help but think this never would have happened if she wasn’t friends with you ponies.” He said this without anger, just quiet resignation, but still his words hurt. Twilight didn’t have the strength to argue.

“If…if you think that’s best, Sir.” She looked him in the eyes. “But for now, let’s just make sure she’s better.” She turned to Haze. “We’re going.” She concentrated, and ported them both away, but not before they saw a single tear slide down her face.

“She didn’t deserve that, Crow,” Willow quietly said. “She’s a Princess.”

“She didn’t protect our daughter,” he said as he rejoined her by the bed. “What good are any of them?”

Willow gave a soft smile. “You don’t mean that.” He sighed.

“No, I suppose I don’t.” He gave his wife a squeeze and stared at Fluttershy. “We can’t lose her.”

She snuggled closer to him. “We won’t.”

So intent were they both on their daughter they did not at first hear the screams that were coming from the front of the hospital.

_____________________________________________________________________________________

“Celestia? Applejack?” Twilight called out as she looked around. Only the one beast remained, now locked in its cage. Beside her, Haze fought to keep his stomach contents down.

“What happened here?!” he said.

“We all had to fight these creatures,” she said, while making it a point not to look at the one she’d killed. “Celestia and my friends were supposed to be here, I wonder where they went?” She turned to him. “I told you it would be distressing. I guess I wasn’t clear.”

Haze gulped as he stared about him. “No. No you weren’t.” He looked up. “Is that the one we need?” He faced in the direction of the cage.

“Yes.”

“It’s…revolting.” Then he squared his shoulders. “Let’s get this over with, I have to get out of here.” So saying he took flight over the sprawled bodies and made his way over to the beast, as Twilight landed next to him. The creature looked out at them and growled.

“Can you talk to it?” Twilight asked.

Fighting his revulsion, he said, “I can try.” He cleared his throat and tried to speak calmly.

Hello. We need your help.

The creature stared at him for a moment, then said, *Stay away from me!*

We’re not here to hurt you, we just need a sample of your poison.

*Come any closer, and I’ll give you more than you can stand!*

Please. It’s for my sister. She’s dying.

*I don’t care! I just want to go home!*

Haze fought to keep his anger under control. He then turned to Twilight and told her what the creature had said. Twilight stared at it, thinking. The creature stared back. Finally she said, “Tell it this: we’ll do everything we can to help it, but it needs to help us first.” Haze dutifully translated, but received the same reply.

“Now what?” asked Haze.

Twilight closed her eyes. She deliberately called up the memory of Fluttershy and how she lay broken and dying in the hospital. But also unbidden came the memory of what she’d had to do to one of these creatures, and her stomach roiled. But it was the only way.

Stepping closer to the cage, she slowly lit her horn as she looked the creature in its compound eyes. Then, without warning, she fired a blast that went through the bars and melted part of the wall behind it. The creature ducked and covered its head with its claws. Twilight spoke to Haze without taking her eyes off it.

“It can help us, or the next time I fire I won’t miss.”

Haze reached and took one of the vials from the saddlebags, then laid it near the cage. Then he told the creature Twilight’s threat. It came forward without speaking, took the vial and held it up to one of its fangs, gently piercing the membrane stretched over it. After the vial was filled with its poison, it slowly put it down outside the cage, then scuttled back deeper into its prison. Twilight took the vial and placed it in her bags.

“Tell it I said ‘thank you’ and we’ll try to help it any way we can.” Haze translated, but he scowled at the creature’s reply.

“What did it say?” asked Twilight.

Haze hesitated, then said, “You don’t want to know.”

____________________________________________________________________________________

Food!

This was the main thought in every creature that came out of the ship’s cargo hold. The aliens had given them all a bland, unappetizing nutrient paste, and the choice had been to eat it or starve. But now, now they were all free to pull down sweet, fresh meat!

Some stayed within the vicinity of the ship, and hunted the small animals they could sense nearby. But others caught the scent of a much larger population, and fanned out in that direction. This world was new and strange to them all, but there was no mistaking the innate sense of prey. They had only to find it.

Three of the larger ones hunted together. They had all been captured from the same planet, and even though they were all from different packs they instinctively knew they’d have better success if they worked together. They soon came upon an apple orchard. The fruits were of no use to them, but they could sense there were prey animals nearby. Gliding in among the trees, they each paused as they stared at the structures before them. As one, they slid down to their bellies and crept forward, keeping to the trees as much as possible. They hurried across the open space and kept low, each choosing a different window. Just as they were about to crash through, a creature inside began barking.

______________________________________________________________________________________

Big Mac had been uneasy all day. He tried without success to place the feeling, but there was no mistaking it. The sun should have set over an hour ago, which only added to his disquiet. He looked up. He, Granny and Apple Bloom were having supper in their rustic kitchen. The sun streamed gently through the windows, shining off the well-worn wooden furniture that had graced the Apple clan for a generation or more. All looked peaceful, but he couldn’t shake that feeling of discomfort.

Suddenly Winona sat up, faced one of the windows and began barking.

“What’s the matter, girl?” asked Apple Bloom. She started to get out of her chair, but Big Mac stopped her.

“No, sis, I’ll check.” He had just reached Winona when there was a crash in the living room.

“Get upstairs!” he cried to Granny and Apple Bloom, as he grabbed Winona.

He was turning to run with the dog under his foreleg when there were two more crashes, one directly behind him and another to the side. All three Apples looked in horror as three dark shapes approached them. The creatures were on all fours, with the largest one as tall as Big Mac’s shoulder height. Their eyes had no pupils, and their mouths had rows of fangs that dripped slaver as they slowly came nearer.

Big Mac retreated and gave the frantically barking dog to Apple Bloom.

“Go! Get to the rooms!” shouted he as the leader suddenly lunged forward.

Mac stood on his hind legs and met the charge with both hooves, knocking it away and across the room. But the others closed on him as he tried to back up the stairs. Mac ducked his head as he saw one fly at him out of the corner of his eye. It tried to latch onto his throat but succeeded in biting his neck. The other sank its fangs into his flank, and began to pull him down. Big Mac turned his head and bit the one holding his neck, gave a mighty heave and threw it aside. He then turned and brought his hoof crashing down on the leg of the one on his flank, and there was a wet snap! as the bone was splintered. The beast howled and let go, and Mac began to limp backwards up the stairs, as the leader once again came forward.

“Mac!” screamed Apple Bloom as she struggled to hold Winona.

But it was no use. The dog had been furiously barking, but when she saw Big Mac bleeding she went mad! Lunging forward, she broke free of Apple Bloom’s grip on her collar and launched herself down the stairs, leaping over Mac’s shoulder. With fangs bared she flew straight at the monster that was many times her size, but she was heedless to any danger to herself. This thing had hurt her family!

Her ferocity caught the being by surprise as she went for its throat, but it quickly moved aside, causing her to miss her target. She latched onto its neck and began furiously shaking her head, trying to rip and tear the creature. The thing screeched, then used its claws to pull her off its neck and threw her aside. Winona flew through the air and crashed broken into a wall. She fell silent.

Now bleeding, the creature slowly turned and growled at Big Mac, as the other joined it. The leader looked down at the injured beast that was still howling. Suddenly, the leader shot forward, sank its fangs into its neck and twisted the beast’s head. The leader then stared up at Mac with the limp beast in its jaws. After a moment it opened them and let it fall to the floor.

Big Mac backed up the stairs. His only chance was to get them into the narrow hallway, where they could only attack him one at a time. But now he faced two wounded beasts, one of which had just killed its own kind. He could sense his family were still in the hallway behind him, so without looking he said, “Lock yourselves in the rooms. Don’t come out.”

“We ain’t leavin’ you!” cried Apple Bloom.

“Don’t argue, child! He’s gotta fight, and we’re in the way,” said Granny.

She pulled her granddaughter into the room with her, but not before adding, “You give ‘em hell, Mac.”

Then she shut and locked the door.

Last Stands

Private Nocturne was too good a soldier to allow the boredom to show on his face, but sweet Luna did he feel it! He and Corporal Sable had been guarding the front of the hospital for hours while most of the crowd had dispersed, presumably to return to their homes. Now there were only ten ponies left, all chatting amiably with each other and paying the guards little mind. The private was fine with that, as he wasn’t much for idle talk either on or off duty. Because of this habit he knew his compatriots referred to him as “Silent Knight,” but he didn’t mind that either; he had duties to perform and that was all that mattered.

Not for the last time, his thoughts went back to that alien and the day they’d captured it. That thing had given him a fairly solid punch before they’d gotten it down and if he’d have had his way he would have knocked it out cold instead of just cuffing it. But “use only as much force as the situation calls for” had been drilled into him at the Academy, so he’d restrained his first impulses.

He cast a sidelong look at his superior. The corporal had seen far more action than he and he knew she’d used deadly force on more than one occasion. Canterlot had a very small criminal element compared to other cities, but he’d heard stories about some of the more violent encounters. One day he’d get up the nerve to ask her about them.

As he was musing on these thoughts he suddenly heard the corporal hiss. He turned to look at her and saw her face visibly pale. He snapped his head in the direction she was staring and tuned his ears forward. He could hear something crouching down in the trees just outside the clearing…watching the ponies. No, it was more than one, as he heard rustling to the left and right of the first disturbance.

Keeping her voice even Sable said, “Everypony. Get into the hospital. Now.” To her companion she quietly added, “Prepare yourself.”

“Well, it’s about time!” said Carmel as he trotted forward. “I thought we’d never get in.”

He was turning to speak to his friend Emerald May, another earth pony, when he noticed she was no longer beside him. Then several things happened at once. There was a roar as six creatures suddenly broke cover and exploded out of the trees straight for the ponies. Emerald May had been facing that direction and she screamed as one of the beasts closed on her. At the last second she threw herself flat on the ground and its claws passed harmlessly through her mane, but cut a great tuft of it away. As the beast spun about to attack again she got up and lashed out with her back hooves and connected to its face. It snarled in rage and shot forward, intending to rake her with its claws, but was knocked aside as Carmel threw himself at it from behind. The beast was belted away and it rolled over and over, then regained its feet.

Carmel stood between it and the mare and screamed, “Run, May!”

Then the beast snarled and leaped, but a heavy lance flew in and transfixed the thing through its body. The force of the blow was such that the beast was pinned to the ground as it writhed and screamed, this time in agony.

Private Nocturne landed in front of them and shouted, “Get in the hospital! We’ll hold them off!”

Both Carmel and May gathered themselves and ran into the building, where they joined several others. But some ponies weren’t so lucky. Two of the beasts had downed a pony each and were dragging them off back into the trees. Nocturne grabbed his lance and twisted it, then pulled it out of the creature’s body. He didn’t wait to watch it die, but quickly joined the corporal as she engaged two of the beasts at once.

“Better late than never, Private!” she shouted as she spun her lance over her head and used its razor sharp tip to slice one creature open, then used the weapon’s momentum to smash the heavy base down and crush the head of the other. If Nocturne didn’t know better, she seemed as if she was actually enjoying this battle! He stabbed the one she’d sliced and its screams were suddenly cut off as he turned his attention to the ones dragging the ponies away.

“Come on, Corporal!” he shouted as he gave chase. He knew he was probably too late, but by Luna these abominations wouldn’t get to enjoy their feast!

“No, Private. Stop.”

He turned to look at her. “We have to help them!”

Sable shook her head. “They’re already dead.” Then she pointed. “We have bigger problems.”

Nocturne followed her gaze and watched four more large creatures emerge from the woods. He turned at a sound and saw the sixth of the originals attacking the front of the hospital. Then he heard the last thing he expected to hear: laughter. He stared at the Corporal as if she’d gone mad. She was covered in blood and grinning at him.

“Who says Ponyville is a boring town?” she laughed as she flew forward to face the new threat.

_________________________________________________________________________________________

Big Mac knew he’d have to finish this fight soon. He was bleeding from his neck and his flank, as well as several claw marks. He could feel the blood loss taking its toll. His vision swam and he shook his head to clear it, just as the lead monster pounced.

As the creature rushed him, he again stood on his back legs and met it with full force. It used one set of claws and opened his face, but the other got hooked into his harness. Then Mac landed a solid blow to its throat and its snarl was cut off as it choked. He knocked the paw away from his harness, threw the creature down and began stomping it, using all his weight to crush its head into the floor. He managed to only stomp it twice before the other leaped over its companion and knocked him backwards. The two rolled together and then crashed into the back wall. The creature landed on top and bit down. Only Mac’s harness saved his throat from being opened. Then the beast tried to score its claws across his eyes, but he threw up a foreleg and caught the claws in it, while using the other foreleg to hold back the fangs that snapped again and again at his face. He gathered his back legs up and kicked upwards into its midsection. Big Mac felt something snap inside the beast, then he threw it off him and back down the hallway.

As Mac regained his hooves, the beast slowly got to its own feet and spit out blood, as the leader stood as well. Mac’s blows had blinded one of its eyes and opened a section of its head, but it wasn’t done. Now wary, both creatures came cautiously forward, one after the other, their snarls low and their claws fully extended. Mac was bleeding from half a dozen wounds. His face had a large flap of skin that hung down, but he pushed the pain aside, set his stance and took a deep breath. This was it.

_________________________________________________________________________________________

Granny Smith had not been idle. As soon as she’d locked the door, she went to the bed and stripped it, then began tying the sheets together. Apple Bloom stood facing the door and cried out every time she heard a crash. But Granny focused on her task and did not react visibly to the sounds of her grandson fighting for all their lives. Visibly.

Apple Bloom looked back and said, “What are we gonna do? We cain’t leave him out there!” She stopped when she what Granny was doing. “What’yre doin’ that for, Granny?”

Granny didn’t answer, but quickly tied one end of the sheet rope to a dresser leg, then threw the rope out of the window.

“Come here, child.”

Apple Bloom slowly realized what Granny intended, then shook her head. “I ain’t leavin’!”

“You gotta, dear. You’re the only hope Mac’s got. Git outside, run to town, find help. I ain’t gonna let you die in here!”

There was another mighty crash on the wall, making Apple Bloom jump.

“But, Granny—”

“No time, young’un! Git!”

With tears beginning to form in her eyes, Apple Bloom ran over to the window, grasped the sheets and slowly slid down them. She looked up to see Granny watching her. Granny only nodded.

Now crying, Apple Bloom turned and ran towards the road. She made it as far as the trees before she was stopped by another creature coming out of them.

_______________________________________________________________________________________

Zecora knew she’d never make it in time. The beasts had too big a lead on her and she already heard screams coming from the direction she was going. She pushed herself further and shot out of the trees just as Apple Bloom was running past. She saw Zecora and ran to her, then threw herself at her.

Zecora held her and said, “Apple Bloom, my dear! Why is your face so filled with fear?”

“Zecora! It’s Mac! He’s fightin’ these creatures inside the house!”

Zecora looked up at the farm and started running, as Apple Bloom fell in behind her. Zecora ran to one of the broken windows and stopped only long enough to say, “Wait out here, be safe from fear!” Then she dove into the house.

____________________________________________________________________________________________

Mac felt his strength going, but kept standing through sheer willpower. The knowledge that he was the only thing that stood between these monsters and his family was his only thought. He grit his teeth and started forward, but stopped and looked over their heads. The hallway had suddenly grown dark as a mist sent its tendrils looping and swirling about the creatures. The lead beast had gathered itself to spring at Mac, but suddenly found it couldn’t move. The rear creature turned to look behind itself and saw two eyes floating in the darkness. It too was stricken with immobility and its rage gave way to fear as its snarls turned into a screech. It dug in its claws and fought to escape.

Now the mist curled up and around their heads as both beasts yelped and continued to fight their restraints. Then, as the mist grew thicker around their heads the noises they made became indistinct, as if they were trying to scream underwater. Soon even these sounds faded and their struggles became weaker.

Big Mac had backed up and away as the mist had appeared, but it went no further than the lead beast. As he watched, it completely covered both creatures and became so thick he could no longer see them. Then it became more opaque, and became lighter and lighter until finally it was gone. Mac blinked as the light slowly returned and the darkness receded back down the hallway until there only stood Zecora. She rushed forward and held him up as his strength finally gave out.

“What…what happened? Where’d they go?” he whispered.

“Shh, my friend, you’ve done your best. Let me take care of all the rest.”

As she gently laid him down, he said, “Granny…Apple Bloom…they’re in there.” He shakily pointed a hoof at the room. Zecora knocked on the door.

“Granny Smith? The fight is done. Come out and see to your grandson.”

Granny unlocked the door, slowly opened it and looked out. The first thing she saw was Zecora smiling at her, then she spied Big Mac and hobbled as quickly as she could to him.

“Oh, son! What did they do to you?” She looked up at Zecora as she held Mac. “I just sent Apple Bloom to git help. Did you see her?” Zecora nodded.

“She’s outside and down the stairs. I will go and bring her here.”

________________________________________________________________________________________

“There’s another one!” screamed Belinda as she pointed out a creature.

Celestia quickly snatched it up in her field. She now had five of those misshapen beasts in her telekinetic grip, with more scattering in every direction. She stood on the ground and looked about her. The alien’s ship rose behind her with its massive door standing open. They were in the middle of the Everfree, but still close to Ponyville. Too close.

“What should we do, Your Majesty? There’s too many of these things loose!” cried Rarity.

Celestia considered. She knew she couldn’t capture the beasts if she couldn’t see them and she didn’t want to kill the ones she had. There was only one thing to do.

“Guards! Release your harnesses from my chariot and one of you go and get yourself back to Canterlot! Tell my sister to bring those aliens back and the entire Night and Solar Guard force here! I want them all fully armed! Go!” The guards quickly did as they were told and one sped off.

“Now to cage these things. Come with me Rainbow.” Celestia floated up and back into the cargo hold and held them in their prisons while Rainbow looked around for the controls. Finding them, she manipulated the locks.

While they were occupied with this task the other ponies, Belinda and the hue-mun kept watching for other creatures.

“I was looking forward to getting home,” said the gryphon. “But it looks like my work isn’t done yet.” She turned to the hue-mun. “You’re a strange-looking thing, but you fought well.”

The hue-mun matched her gaze and nodded. Belinda looked like she was about to say something further to him, but she then just shook her head and turned away. “I’ll do what I can, ponies.”

“You sure?” asked Applejack. “This isn’t your fight anymore.” Belinda regarded her.

“Anything those bastards did is my fight now. If I can’t kill them, I’ll at least get to kill their monsters.”

“We’ll certainly need your help, dear,” said Rarity. “If any of those things make it to Ponyville, we’ll have a fight on our hooves.” Applejack stared at her as her face slowly lost color.

“Ponyville? But…but Sweet Apple Acres is between here and Ponyville! My family!” She turned and sped off.

“Applejack! Wait!” cried Pinkie. Celestia heard the yelling and bolted out of the ship, followed by Rainbow Dash.

“What’s going on?” Celestia asked.

Pinkie pointed in the direction Applejack had gone. “Applejack said something about her family and took off! We have to catch her!”

“I’ll do it!” cried Dash as she flew off in pursuit of her friend.

“We’re coming with you!” cried Rarity as she and Pinkie took to their hooves.

“Stop!” yelled Celestia, but they had already disappeared. Only Celestia, her guard, Belinda and the hue-mun were left. The gryphon turned to Celestia.

“You ponies are crazy, you know that Princess? Who knows what they’ll run into between here and wherever they’re going?”

“Then they’ll need help,” replied Celestia. Catching Charles up in her field she gave chase, followed by her guard.

Belinda looked around, put Angel on her back and then followed.

___________________________________________________________________________________

Applejack plunged swiftly along the dappled forest path, thinking only of home and what she might find there. The few alien creatures she’d seen alive, coupled with those that were dead in that ship made her blood run cold at the thought of them attacking her family. So occupied was she with these thoughts she almost ran head first into two of the very creatures she feared as she entered a clearing. They were framed in the sunlight, hunched over a deer they’d brought down. They both looked up when Applejack came around the bend. She skidded to a halt and stared. The beings were wolf-like, yet they stood on two legs and were covered in grey fur. As she backed up they advanced and growled as the blood from their kill dripped off fangs and claws.

“Applejack!” called out Rainbow as she came up from behind her.

“Rainbow! Get back!” cried Applejack as she kept her eyes on the two. “It’s too dangerous!”

Rainbow zoomed around the bend, saw the creatures, but instead of stopping she poured on more speed and flew into one. They tumbled over and over, then Dash broke free and gained altitude.

“Run, AJ!” she yelled as the beast leaped up after her.

“Not on your life!” cried Applejack as she ran in and dove under the swipe of the remaining creature, spun around and bucked it with all her strength. She knocked the wind out of it and it doubled over but quickly recovered and sprang at her, jaws agape. Applejack dove to one side and rolled, but the thing’s claws scored her across her flank. She faltered and fell, but got to her feet and faced her enemy, while it dropped down to all fours and snarled.

Just then Pinkie and Rarity entered the small clearing. Rarity took one look at the tableau before her and lit her horn. She lacked the raw power of offensive magic Twilight had, but she could still create a strong enough beam to temporarily blind an opponent. The beast looked back and then screamed and clutched at its face when Rarity’s magic hit it in the eyes. It then started wildly swinging its claws about, trying to strike one of the ponies.

Meanwhile Rainbow kept taunting the one away from her friends. Enraged, the creature dug its claws into a tree and used the purchase to launch itself directly at Dash. She tried to dodge but it caught her in its paws and they both fell to the forest floor. It held her down with one paw and raised the other to finish her off but was suddenly struck from behind. Pinkie had rushed in and head-butted it in its lower back, causing it to lose its grip on Rainbow and tumble head over heels for a few yards.

“Get out of here, Dash!” cried Pinkie.

“No way, Pinkie!” yelled Rainbow as she got to her hooves and stood by her side. “We face it together!”

“Not without me!” cried Applejack as she ran up and joined them.

“Nor I!” yelled Rarity while lighting up her horn. But she never got the chance to fire. The second creature’s companion had recovered enough of its sight to rejoin the battle. Its roar as it leaped was the ponies’ only warning as it landed on Rarity and bit down. Rarity screamed as the monster’s jaws closed on her back. It then lifted her up and threw her off to one side against a tree.

“Rarity!” cried Applejack as she turned to face the renewed threat. It raised itself to its full height, kept its head low and slowly advanced on her. Applejack backed away.

Now the second creature sprang at Dash and Pinkie. Pinkie quickly pushed Dash out of the way as the beast closed on her and knocked her on her back. She held its jaws away from herself with her front hooves and double-kicked it in the chest with her back ones. Then Dash dove in and punched it as hard as she could. The beast’s head snapped back on its neck as it was knocked away, giving Pinkie time to jump back to her hooves.

The three friends stood back to back as their assailant’s eyes turned red and they advanced. Suddenly a beam shot down from over the trees and took the head off one creature. It still stood on its hind legs for a moment, then fell over, its neck still smoking. The second beast saw what happened to its companion, snarled, and then turned to run. It was struck down in mid-leap and tumbled to the ground, a gaping hole in its chest where its heart once was. As Celestia landed, the three friends ran to Rarity. She was still breathing, and slowly opened her eyes as they gathered around her.

“Is…it over?” she whispered.

“Don’t try to talk, sugarcube,” said Applejack. “You done your part.”

Pinkie and Dash were speechless as they looked at her. She was bleeding from several puncture wounds along her back, as well as a large bruise from landing against the tree. Rarity struggled to her hooves.

“I can walk, I just need to—” then she fell over again. Celestia came up and took her in her field.

“Applejack is right, my brave little pony…you have done your part.” She turned to the others. “This is one more charge to lay at those aliens' feet.”

She looked at the creatures' bodies and her visage grew dark. “There will be no more mercy from me this day.”

___________________________________________________________________________________

Twilight reappeared with Haze in Fluttershy’s room. She heard the screams coming from out in the hallway and said, “What’s going on?!”

“The hospital is under attack!” cried Stormcrow. He pointed. “We barricaded the door, in case whatever it is tries to get in!”

Twilight took off her saddlebags. “Here, take this. The poison is in one of the vials. I’m going out to help!”

“I’m going with you!” said Haze.

“No, son!” cried Willow.

“She’s right,” said Twilight. “Stay here and guard your family!” She ported out and into the hallway, hoping it was clear. She didn’t dare rematerialize into a crowded room.

Finding it empty, she breathed a sigh of relief and sprinted to the front of the hospital. What she saw when she burst through the doors was chaos.

One of the creatures had made its way into the lobby and several ponies were down. But so was the beast. Carmel and three others had pinned its arms and legs and he was now engaged in stomping its head into the floor. By the time Twilight arrived, its face was a quivering mess as the blood-spattered ponies paused and caught their breath.

“That…that one…won’t…eat anypony…else,” panted Carmel. He turned and looked at Twilight.

“Oh…hello, Princess.” He pointed outside. “There’s more.”

The Hkari

“Gamma Attack!” cried Sable, as she and Nocturne closed on the four.

They both opened their mouths and let loose an ultrasonic scream directed at their foes. But only one seemed to be affected, as it fell to the ground and clutched its ears, while the other three separated and pressed their attack. Sable caught the jaws of one across her lance, while to her side Nocturne held off the remaining two with his. Sable fought to free her lance, then kicked the creature in the throat. If it had been an Equestrian beast that blow would have finished it, but it only caused the beast to release its hold on the weapon.

“Duck, Private!” screamed Sable as the creature she fought suddenly sprang at her.

It sailed over them both and landed next to its companions. It then growled at the other creatures, and then they all backed off as the ponies watched. It turned to its companions and growled again as the fourth shook its head and rejoined the fight. They cocked their heads at their leader as it rumbled low in its throat. Then they quickly spread out and surrounded the guards on all sides, who then stood back to back.

“Oh, great! They can communicate with each other!” said Sable. She then spoke over her shoulder. “Private! Fly off, go get help! That’s an order!”

“I’m not leaving you, Corporal!”

She laughed. “I’m confining you to the barracks after this!” She gripped her lance and braced herself. They could both fly away, but that would leave the hospital unguarded. She knew they had no choice as the beasts all rushed in at once.

“Retirement was going to be too dull anyway!” she cried as she thrust her lance forward.

_______________________________________________________________________

Off in a corner, Spike slowly opened his eyes when he heard Carmel mention a princess. All around him, the hospital lobby was littered with ponies: some standing, some flat on the floor…and some not moving. For a moment, the memory of that creature finally bursting into the hospital rose up in his mind. He’d done what he could, but even blinded the creature had gotten him with a single swipe of its claws. Only his tough scales had saved him from serious harm, but he didn’t remember anything after that. He pushed the thoughts aside and called out.

“Twi..Twilight?”

Twilight was almost out the door, but spun around when she heard her name. “Spike? Spike!” She ran over to him and held him. “Spike, what happened?!”

“I was so scared, Twilight…so scared.” Then he fell silent and held her while staring at the remains of the creature. Carmel wandered over.

“We owe our lives to him, Princess. If he hadn’t rushed forward and hit that thing in the face with his fire, we never would have gotten it down. But he paid for it. That thing got him with his claws and threw him over here.”

“Oh, Spike…I’m so sorry!” As the sounds from the continuing battle outside reached them, Spike shook himself and looked up at her.

“They need you out there, Twilight. Don’t…don’t worry about me.”

Twilight fought back tears as she looked down at him, then looked outside. Turning to Carmel she said, “Look after him!” Carmel nodded, and she gave Spike one last hug. “I’ll be back!” Then she gently released him, and then ran out. Once clear of the doors she took flight and rushed into the battle, knowing what she’d have to do…again.

The bat ponies were surrounded and they fought back to back as the creatures closed in. Twilight hesitated only for a moment, then sent her beam through one of the creature’s bodies. As it fell, the three remaining looked up at her and then immediately ran for the woods, dodging and zigzagging until they reached the forest and disappeared within.

“Get after them!” cried Twilight as she plunged past the trees. The two guards were winded, but they dutifully gripped their weapons and followed her.

The beasts’ tracks were easy to follow at first, but then they abruptly disappeared. No marks on the ground, no sounds of foliage being pushed aside…just nothing. Even the bat ponies’ sensitive ears could make out no trace of their quarry.

After a few minutes of searching, Sable said, “It’s no use, Your Majesty…they’re gone.”

She leaned on her weapon and caught her breath, while Twilight scanned the immediate area. It was when she turned to look in their direction she noticed both guards had suffered wounds. Sable was marked on one side where a beast’s claws had gotten through her armor. Nocturne had fared slightly worse, as he’d lost his helmet and had sustained a head wound.

“You’re right, we need to get you both seen to at the hospital,” said Twilight. “But we have to find those things.”

They turned back and made their way to the hospital. When they arrived at the clearing before the building, Twilight stopped and stared at the creature she’d downed. Sable watched the Princess’ face.

“First time having to kill, Your Highness?”

Twilight startled, and glanced over at her. “No…unfortunately. The second time.”

Sable took her helmet off and wiped her brow. “Don’t think about it too much, Highness. Or rather, think about the fact you probably just saved the two of us.” Twilight said nothing.

Sable had seen that look before on her own face, long ago, and she knew the only remedy for now was distraction. Replacing her helmet, she bowed to Twilight and said, “What are your orders, Your Majesty?”

“My…what?”

“Your orders. What do you wish for us to do? Keep going after those creatures?”

“No…no! Get yourselves seen to in the hospital.”

Sable and Nocturne exchanged a look. “We’re fine, Your Highness.

“I insist.”

“Very well.”

Nocturne found his helmet and replaced it, then the three of them went into the hospital. Twilight immediately rushed to Spike and picked him up, while the other ponies were being examined by the hospital staff. Some were left where they’d fallen, but this number was small. One of the nurses came over to Twilight and looked at Spike.

“Please set him down, Your Majesty.”

“Can you help him?” asked Twilight.

“We’ll do our best. Dragon anatomy is not well known, but we can try.”

Just then a pegasus guard showed up with Rarity in his hooves. Twilight’s face lost color when she saw her, then she quickly went to her side as the guard gently laid her down.

“What happened to her?!” cried Twilight.

The guard took off his helmet and said, “Your friends encountered a pair of beasts in the Everfree and fought them off. She was bitten by one of them, so Her Majesty told me to bring her here, while she went with the rest to investigate a farm.” Just then Rarity stirred.

“Twilight? Where…where am I? Why is it so…cold?”

“Doctor! We need help over here!” cried Twilight. “Hang on, Rarity! Try not to move.”

A doctor and one nurse rushed over. He took one look at Rarity’s wounds and said, “She’s going into shock. Prep this one for surgery. Immediately.”

“Yes, Doctor,” said the nurse as she motioned for two orderlies to bring a gurney over. The two of them put Rarity on the gurney and wheeled her off, with the nurse following. Twilight tried to follow but was stopped by the doctor.

“Please, Your Highness. Your friend’s in good hooves, we’ll do what we can.” He turned and left to follow Rarity, while Twilight stood and stared. Then she faced the guard.

“You said Celestia was investigating a farm. Was it Sweet Apple Acres?”

“Yes, Your Highness. Your friend Applejack was most insistent.”

Twilight looked around for Spike. He had been bandaged and he now sat staring at the door where Rarity had been taken. Twilight went back to him.

“I’m going to go help Applejack, Spike. Are you going to be okay while I’m gone?” He didn’t answer, so she nudged him and said, “Spike.”

Spike startled and looked up at her with tears in his eyes.

“Is she going to die?”

Twilight’s heart gave another lurch as she quickly gathered him up.

“No, Spike. She’s not going to die.” She gave him a fierce hug and put him down. “I’ll be back as soon as I can.” She turned back to the guard. “Come with me.”

“Yes, Your Highness.”

“Wait, Princess! We’re coming with you!” said Sable. She also had been bandaged up and she was replacing her armor as she spoke. Nocturne had settled his helmet back on his head, as his wound had been cleaned and dressed as well.

“No,” said Twilight. “I need you both here in case more of those things show up.”

Sable and Nocturne looked at each other and then nodded to Twilight.

“As you command, Highness.”

"And one more thing," said Twilight as she pointed.

"Get that thing out of here."

___________________________________________________________________________________

“Standard orbit, Helmsman,” said the Captain. He turned to his Science Officer. “Any sign of the Antashi?”

Lieutenant Chapel studied her instruments, then replied, “Inconclusive, Sir. There’s some sort of anomaly within this planet’s atmosphere that disrupts our scans. I’ve located the Antashi vessel, but my readings on it are unclear.”

“Then we’ll have to go down there,” he said. He flipped a toggle. “Security Chief. Assemble a team with standard weapons and cloaking armor in the shuttle bay, then stand by for further orders.”

“Right away, Sir.”

The Captain addressed the Science Officer again. “What do we know about this planet?”

“It has a standard atmosphere capable of sustaining most known lifeforms, with a decreased gravity factor than Hkar. From previous expeditions the dominant lifeform appears to be sapient equines, of which there appear to be three distinct variations. One is standard equine, one is capable of flight as it is endowed with wings, while the third seems to be able to directly manipulate the unclassified energies that inundate this planet. There are rumors of a forth variation, but no data exists that can verify.”

“Speculate.”

“It is assumed that the fourth must be some sort of ruler, and as this is a primitive society with no space faring technology such a ruler must be more powerful than the three, as none of the other variations were observed manipulating this planet’s star or satellite.”

“Given the circumstances we will probably have to engage these beings and their ruler. Can we communicate with them?” said the Captain.

She checked her files. “Yes, their language was incorporated into the translation matrix.”

The Captain sighed. “So that’s one bit of good news.” He turned to his own comm controls. “Security Chief.”

“Standing by, Sir.”

“Your orders are to find the Antashi and capture them without incident. Under no circumstances are you to harm any of the indigenous life forms except in self-defense. Am I clear?”

“Yes, Sir!”

“Carry out your orders.”

“Sir!”

___________________________________________________________________________________

It had been quite the experience flying through the air while being invisibly held by Celestia. I’d felt the crackle of energy dance across my skin as she’d taken out those two creatures, then she’d set me down as she talked with the ponies. I gasped when I saw Rarity, but hung back and out of the way as they clustered around her. I saw her try to get up, and I was amazed once again at these ponies’ resiliency: from what I could see of her wound she shouldn’t be alive, but there she was. Celestia took her up in her magic, then addressed the ponies again. I couldn’t tell what she said, but from the look on her face I was glad that emotion wasn’t being directed at me.

I looked at Applejack and could see she’d sustained a wound as well, but if I hadn’t seen it I wouldn’t have known, as she showed no sign of having noticed it herself. Now she was gesturing urgently to some point off in the distance as she spoke to Celestia. I caught the word “farm,” so she must be talking about her home. I then saw Celestia speak to the remaining guard, who picked Rarity up and flew off with her. The next thing I knew I was in the air again, as our group quickly made our way through the forest. Soon the trees cleared and the farm lay before us. Even nearsighted, I could tell something was wrong. I saw a couple broken windows and as we quickly flew up and landed I could hear someone crying inside. I followed Celestia and the ponies as they entered the house.

The place was a shambles and I could tell a fight had taken place here. I heard Applejack calling out for her family and then heard her wail when she got upstairs, as Celestia and the other ponies followed. As I stood there, feeling very much in the way, I heard a noise off to my right. I looked and saw that same dog that had greeted me before, that seemed like ages ago now, lying on the floor and whimpering. She opened her eyes when I carefully approached her. Her tail gave a little wag as I knelt down and gently stroked her head. Something had gotten to her, as she was slowly bleeding and it looked like she couldn’t move. I didn’t know what was going on upstairs, but I knew this dog needed help.

“Peen-Kee! Reigbow! He-lp!”

They both ran back down the stairs, followed by the last creature I expected to see: a zebra! She was taller than Rainbow and Pinkie, and was wearing cloak that seemed to shift in the light. She stopped for a moment and stared at me, then came forward. I shook myself from her gaze and pointed at the dog while they all surrounded us. The zebra motioned me aside as she knelt to examine the dog. I got to my feet and stepped back, then turned to Pinkie.

“Who…this?”

Pinkie looked up at me. “Her name’s Zecora.”

“Zeh...ko-reh?”

Pinkie nodded. “She’s a friend.”

I looked from Pinkie to Dash, who was hovering in place and watching… “Zecora.”

The zebra got to her feet and looked at me, then rattled off some words far too quick for me to follow. She then offered me a small jar with some sort of substance like white grease in it. When I hesitated, she set the jar down, then pointed to it and then to my face and chest. She made a motion like she was rubbing her own face. I picked the jar up and sniffed it. It smelled like an antiseptic, so I figured it would sting. I gingerly applied a bit to my chest, which tingled and went slightly numb, so I covered the rest of my chest wound with it, then stretched and was just able to put some on my shoulder. Finally I put some on my mouth where I'd lost the tooth, which tasted awful but numbed the pain. I returned the jar to her and thanked her in my limited Equestrian. She smiled, and spoke again. I looked at Dash and Pinkie, hoping they could help me understand.

“She wants you to pick up Winona,” said Dash as she looked at me.

I just stared. Rainbow made an exasperated noise, then flew low and gently lifted the animal, then gave her to me. I cradled her and her wounds must have not as been as bad as they looked, for she then lifted her head and licked my nose. I could see the zebra had applied that same salve to the dog. I smiled my further thanks to the zebra.

I looked up at a sound and saw Celestia coming back down the stairs, with an unconscious large red horse floating behind her. Applejack came next, with an older pony and a little filly following. I recognized the filly from my first day here and concluded she must be Applejack’s little sister, but I didn’t remember her name. The older pony looked like she must be their mother or grandmother, which made the red one their brother...Mac, something. The filly saw me holding the dog and ran over. I knelt down so she could see her, then she lifted a hoof and gently petted her. She looked up at me and asked a question, but she was crying so hard I couldn’t understand her. The zebra said something to her that must have helped, for she nodded to her then wiped her nose. She smiled up at me as I got back to my feet. It was nice to see she wasn’t afraid of me anymore.

Now Celestia was speaking and I caught the word ‘hospital.’ She then walked outside, and we all followed. Belinda had been standing guard outside and her face was hard to read when she saw Celestia’s and my burdens. Then it became very clear she was angry at seeing two more casualties, for her voice grew sharper as gestured at the red horse and then to Celestia.

All this time the rabbit…Angel…was sitting on the Gryphon's back and looking at me holding the dog. His face was hard to read as well, but if I didn’t know better he seemed pleased I was helping.

The next thing I knew, there was a flash as Twilight appeared, with one of those Guards from earlier. She paused when she saw Mac, but then quickly spoke to the group at large. I didn’t need to know Equestrian to know what Twilight was saying, for judging by all their reactions I could tell it was bad news.

____________________________________________________________________________________

Luna arrived with all her forces, who surrounded the aliens’ ship and arrayed themselves about her. She held the two aliens in her grip, who both did not look at all happy to be dangling in the air. As her captains approached her, Luna conferred with the Guard whom Celestia had sent. She then addressed her troops.

“Attention! Several of these creatures have been released into the woods about us.” She cast a set of images into the air portraying all the creatures she’d encountered while she had been captured. “They are all to be considered threats and treated accordingly. If any immediately surrender they are to be shown mercy, but all are to be attacked on sight. Captain Nightfang, keep your troops near this ship. Remaining captains, you have your orders.” They all saluted as one, then turned to give further instructions to their companies. Luna set the two aliens down and they cowered before her.

“Now then: it's time for the two you to tell us how many of these things we have to confront. Answer me!”

Priel and R’el both covered their heads with their hands, and Priel said, “There’s no way to tell without access to our ship!”

R’el added, “The bridge controls were destroyed by your Celestia! If the central computer is still intact, we can get the information you want from the cargo bay’s controls! Please allow us in there!”

Luna shook her head. “Absolutely not. Under no circumstances will the two of you be allowed near your technology. If you won’t help us, then you are of no further use.”

They both threw up their hands. “Wait!” cried Priel. “I think I remember now! Please, give us a moment.”

“You have one minute.”

The two put their heads together and spoke rapidly to one another, while frantically counting back and forth. After a few moments, Priel said, “There were seventy creatures in our cargo hold.” Then he hesitated.

“And?” said Luna.

Priel looked at R’el, who then quietly said, “They all are the most dangerous beings we could find.” Luna took a menacing step forward.

“So you released these foul creatures onto our planet?!” The aliens fell to their knees and clasped their hands together.

“Please! We can still be of use! We’re…we’re sorry!” cried R’el.

“I do not believe you are, and I should have let the Gryphon have you both! Sleep!”

Her horn lit up and its magic enveloped them. They immediately fell over and lay prostrate on the grass. She turned to the Guards.

“Captain Nightfang, do not let these two out of your sight! I go to inform my sister of this new information and will return shortly. They should be unconscious for a day, but if they do awake keep them from going inside their ship.”

“Yes, Your Highness!” Luna flew off.

______________________________________________________________________________________

“Tell me you recorded all that, Ensign,” said Security Chief Saacs.

He and his four Hkari landing team had pinpointed the Antashi vessel, and were approaching it on foot while cloaked, when the indigenous beings had shown up. The Hkari troops had immediately spotted the Antashi, and faded back into the foliage to watch the scenario play out.

“Yes, Chief, I got it. What now? Do we take the Antashi from these creatures?”

“That’s why we’re here. Set weapons to stun and remain cloaked. Follow me.”

Missteps

The three creatures that had escaped Twilight were a breed apart from their fellow captives. On their homeworld, they had been the apex predators through their cunning and adaptability. When they’d run from Twilight, they’d gotten deep into the woods and then quickly climbed the trees, held their breath and waited. They were even able to slow their heartbeats, so there had been nothing to give away their hiding place. If those creatures had looked up, they would have seen them, but after a few moments of searching they’d turned away.

The leader waited another half-hour, and then signaled his companions to climb down. They then had an immediate conference for their next move. That purple one with the horn and wings was the greatest threat, so it somehow had to be eliminated. Direct confrontation was out of the question, as it had an energy weapon that could kill from a distance. But they all had its scent and could sense from great distances. They’d wait until the cover of darkness and track the purple beast to its lair. It had to sleep sometime.

________________________________________________________________________________

Roseluck slowly opened her eyes and stared down. She was being dragged away by one of those monsters that had attacked the hospital. Her limbs felt numb, and she could feel herself bleeding around the fangs of the creature that held her in its mouth. Fear flooded through her, but she couldn’t have moved if she’d tried, so she remained perfectly still. All she remembered was everything going black as it had attacked her, then waking up now. She cut her eyes to the right. She could see another pony being dragged, but she didn’t remember her name. And she was glad she didn’t know her, for the other pony’s eyes were open and staring and her mouth hung slack. Roseluck shut her eyes tight and prayed.

Now they had stopped, and the beast opened its jaws and let her fall. She thought about all the things she’d never get to do as her life passed before her. She knew she wasn’t brave and all her fears had come down to this moment. If only she’d fought back! If only she hadn’t fainted and at least ran, maybe she wouldn’t about to become a meal for these nightmares! All she could do now was face her death with some semblance of dignity, so she opened her eyes one last time. Both creatures had their backs to her and were starting in on the other pony. They were hideous, resembling some kind of bear but with scales and spikes instead of fur. She closed her eyes again, but couldn’t block out the sounds of ripping and tearing.

Then hope dawned inside her. Maybe, just maybe while they were occupied, she could slip away and then run. She tried to will her limbs to move, but could only manage the barest twitch. She involuntarily let out a sob as she struggled to get to her hooves. Move, pony! This is it, move! But her sob caught the attention of the monsters. They both turned and gazed at her with blood dripping from their maws. They approached her, fangs and claws at the ready.

Tears filled her eyes as she shut them tight again and begged, “P-Please…please don’t eat me!”

Then she heard a hiss come from behind her. Another creature must have been drawn by the scent of blood. As she kept her eyes tightly closed, she heard the first two growl uncertainly. Then, when a few moments passed and nothing else happened, she slowly opened her eyes. She couldn’t believe what she saw. Both beasts had turned to stone with looks of surprise frozen on their faces. She finally managed to turn her head and stare over her shoulder. A strange beast that looked like a cross between a chicken and a winged serpent stood there staring back at her. She had just enough time to think a cockatrice? before she herself became stone.

_______________________________________________________________________________

Captain Nightfang knew something was wrong the moment he heard a twig snap in an area currently clear of his Guards. He turned his ears in that direction and listened. Something was approaching from behind him, making its way to his prisoners. He opened his mouth as if he were yawning, but sent out the subsonic alert signal to his bat ponies. He then slowly, casually turned to face whatever it was. Sending out his echolocation, he detected five invisible creatures that had now stopped and he could feel their eyes upon him. Then all hell broke loose.

_______________________________________________________________________________

Saacs froze when the creature guarding the Antashi slowly turned and faced them. It had to be a coincidence it looking in their direction, for their cloaking armor made them and their weapons invisible. Then the creature pointed directly at them and shouted commands to its troops, removing all doubt.

“Fire!” cried Saacs, as they unleashed their energy weapons at the creatures. They managed to down several of them before the creatures retaliated with some sort of sonic attack that caused he and his team to fall to their knees and clutch their helmets. The pain was unbearable!

They were quickly surrounded and only their armor saved them for now, as the creatures used their primitive lances to strike them again and again.

“Fall back, fall back!” cried Saacs, but it was too late.

Stealth was their armor’s main component, so they weren’t designed to long withstand the type of punishment the creature’s weapons were unleashing. And their helmets did nothing to stop the sonic attack.

To his left he saw Arksin get hit with several thrown lances, which his armor withstood but the damage caused his cloak to fail, further exposing him to direct assault. Arksin cursed and quickly set his weapon to wide dispersal, but got off only one shot before he was brought down. Saacs turned and fired at the creature that was just about to stab Arksin through his helmet with its lance, a blow that would have killed him. Before he could fire again he was knocked over and his weapon was almost thrown out of his grasp.

He quickly gripped it and took aim, but he was then pinned to his stomach. He heard one of the creatures give a command and the ones holding him held off their attack. Still, he fought his weapon clear and fired. That was a mistake. The weapon’s discharge clearly showed its location, so it was knocked from his hand and his arm was stomped into the ground with such force it was shattered. Now damaged, his armor’s cloak fizzled and went out. He cried out in pain when his arm was crushed, but then behind him he clearly heard one of his team had changed the setting on his weapon and was now shooting to kill.

“No! Stand down! Stand down, they’ll kill you!” he shouted.

He heard several more discharges and screams from the creatures before they unleashed their sonic attack again. There was a single cry of great pain, and then he heard several metallic thuds as the creatures attacked. Then all was silence.

Saacs looked around as well as he could from the ground. He was surrounded by the creatures and all were glaring at him. Then their group parted, and the leader strode forward. It was limping on one side where the stun shot had grazed it, but it looked otherwise unaffected.

“Bring him to his knees,” said the leader.

The creatures forced him up to face it. Saacs clutched at his destroyed arm, clenched his teeth and looked around. All of his team were down, with lances that had been forced through their helmets.

“Jacco? Arksin? My team…”

“Good, you can communicate,” said the leader. At the creature’s words Saacs turned back to face it. It nodded in the fallen Hkari’s direction and grimly smiled. “They’re all dead.”

Saacs stared at the creature and felt such hatred boil inside him that for a moment it eclipsed the agony.

He shut his eyes and focused past the pain. “My…my Captain will…rescue me, beast,” he managed. “You…you will all…pay…for this!”

The creature shook its head. “I doubt that. My name is Captain Nightfang, not ‘beast’. You are only alive because I want answers: what are you, and why did you attack us?”

“I…am Security Chief Saacs, of…of the Hkari, beast.” He bit down on his lip as a wave of agony hit him. “We…we were sent to…to rescue those Antashi you captured.”

Nightfang looked behind him. “So that’s what they’re called.” He faced Saacs again. “They have committed several crimes on this world and will stand trial. It appears you will as well, if you don’t give me an excuse to kill you right now.”

Saacs’ head was now spinning as he fought to remain conscious, but he went through his options. His communicator was on his belt, but on his right side, out of reach of his uninjured arm. Out of the corner of his eye he saw his weapon lying a few feet away. He’d never make it to it before they brought him down, he knew. He looked again at his slain crew and a wave of guilt ran through him. There was nothing else to be done.

“I…need…medical attention. Just…just let me contact my ship.”

Nightfang turned and pointed at the bodies of his own slain troops. They had been torn apart by the Hkari weapon and they lay there still smoking.

“Not a chance.” He spoke to his Guards. “Search him.”

Saacs found himself thrown to the ground again and roughly searched. He ground his teeth as his arm came in contact with the earth and the agony shot through him, but he refused to give them the satisfaction of hearing him cry out. Anything that could be pried loose was taken from him and he knew that included his communicator. One thought sustained him: the Diligence had been monitoring their lifesigns and had probably sent another shuttle already. This was his last thought before he spiraled down into darkness.

_________________________________________________________________________

Science Officer Chapel stared at her monitor, then slowly faced her Captain.

“Confirmed, Sir. I detected weapons fire, then all lifesigns except Saacs’ went offline.”

The Captain slammed his fist down on his chair. “I told them not to engage! What was Saacs thinking?! What’s his condition?”

“He has sustained a broken arm and he has lost consciousness, but his other lifesigns are stable. The shuttle is still locked on him and transmitting his signal, but if he goes out of the shuttle’s range the planet’s atmosphere will interfere with the transmission and we’ll lose him. Respectfully suggest we mount a rescue effort before that happens.”

The Captain shook his head. “Enough damage has already been done. First by the Antashi, now by us.” He put his head in his hands, then spoke again.

“Prepare my personal shuttle. I must find this planet’s leader, then speak to them directly.”

The crew turned as one and looked at him. The Captain glanced up.

“What are you all staring at? I gave a direct order!”

Each crew member turned back to his or her station as activity resumed.

Lieutenant Chapel cleared her throat. “Permission to speak freely, Sir?”

The Captain shook his head. “Not here. Follow me.” He got up and made his way to the conference room just off the bridge as his Science Officer followed him. Once the doors closed he spun about and said, “I know what you’re going to say…that this is foolish and suicidal.”

“No, Sir…I was going to say you shouldn’t go alone.”

“Are you volunteering, Lieutenant? This could indeed be a one-way trip. If they weren’t hostile before, they most certainly are now.”

“I realize that, Sir. Which is why you need a team to go with you to show strength on our side.”

He shook his head again. “That’s the last thing we need now. We were not supposed to be on this planet, but we're in too deep to turn back now. We need to show we’re peaceful if we’re to get Saacs back, let alone those Antashi. Permission denied.”

The Lieutenant stepped back and nodded. The Captain smiled grimly. “I know you’ve always wanted command, Chapel. You’ll be in charge until I get back.”

He held up his hand before she could speak and said, “If I don’t make it back, contact the Stellar Authorities and give them a complete report. Do. NOT. Come after me. Saacs could not follow orders. Can you?”

Chapel stood at attention and saluted. “Always, Sir.”

_____________________________________________________________________________

Some of the creatures preferred to hunt alone and some only sought specific prey. One of these was the Prrl, a beast that was able to blend into shadows and alter its skin to match its surroundings. Long and lithe, resembling a cross between a huge rat and a python, it had quickly separated itself from the large group. Once released from the ship, it had melted into the shadows and sought its preferred prey, the young of any species.

The Prrl had watched from the cover of trees when those two creatures had been taken down in the woods by these native beings. The big white one had particularly earned its respect, as it had killed without teeth or claws. That one would bear watching. The Prrl had followed from a distance and watched again as the group had entered a dwelling in the midst of fruit trees and came out with a large red being. It could smell the red one’s blood from its hiding place, which made its stomach growl. As it watched, a small one came out with the others and the Prrl paid close attention. It knew it could never catch it, not with all those others in the way. There had to be easier prey close by. Then the wind shifted, bringing with it the scent of many, many creatures like the ones before it.

Enough time had been spent here. It was time to resume the hunt.

It slipped from the trees and followed the scent. Soon, it found itself in the streets and alleyways of these beings’ dwellings. There were plenty of young ones here. Now all it had to do was find one alone.

_____________________________________________________________________________

Even ponies that had not been at the hospital knew something very wrong was going on, for the sun was still up during the time it should have fallen a few hours ago. Word soon spread about the hospital incident, which compelled more than a few to shut themselves inside their dwellings. Others milled about, sharing their fears with each other and trying to understand their situation.

On the outskirts of town, in the poorer section, a certain crossed eyed pegasus was one of those who shut herself in with her foal. For her daughter’s sake, Derpy did her best to put on a brave face, but inside she was close to panicking as the unnatural afternoon wore on.

Dinky’s concern had been growing as she watched her mother go through their small house and check and recheck the doors and the windows, so finally she asked, “Mommy, is something wrong?”

“No, sweetie, everything’s fine. Mommy’s just making sure all the doors and windows are locked.”

“But why, Mommy? You look scared.”

Derpy felt her own face. “Do I? Mommy’s just a little nervous. I’ve never seen the sun stay up this long.”

“Did something happen to Princess Celestia? Is that why the sun is still up?”

“I don’t know, baby, but I do know that’s enough questions. Brush your teeth and go to bed.”

“But why?”

Derpy felt her patience slipping, so she spoke sharper than she intended.

“Dinky! Upstairs to bed! Now!”

Dinky burst into tears and ran up the stairs.

“Mommy’s sorry, Dinky!” she called, but all she heard was the bedroom door slam.

Derpy sighed. She very rarely lost her temper with her daughter and her yelling had only added to the uneasiness of this overlong day. She had to make it up to her. But how?

Derpy sat and thought. Maybe…maybe if she made her a snack? Something that wouldn’t take too long, but something she’d enjoy. Then it came to her: cookies! Dinky always loved cookies!

Filled with this new idea, she trotted up the stairs and knocked on her daughter’s door.

“Dinky? It’s Mommy. Would…would you like to help me make some cookies?”

Silence.

“Dinky?”

Finally there was a noise of something being pushed against the door.

“Go away!”

“Dinky…Mommy’s really, really sorry she yelled at you. Won’t you please come out?”

“Go away!”

Derpy sighed and descended the stairs. Maybe the smell of the cookies would help draw her daughter out. She went into the kitchen and got started.

_______________________________________________________________________________

Princess Luna first stopped at the Apple Farm in search of her sister and the others. Fear shot through her when she saw the broken windows, which only increased as she went inside and saw the blood staining the floor. She inhaled deeply. She could just barely catch the scent of something unnatural in the farm house. Those creatures have been here.

Quickly exiting the home, she immediately made her way to Ponyville Hospital. Behind her, four-pony teams of Guards were scouring the Everfree, but if the scene at the farm was any indication, Luna knew she’d have to direct them to search the town as well. But first she must find her sister.

She landed in front of the hospital and saw the broken front doors. Through them she could see many ponies running about. Outside, off to one side, lay the body of one of those beasts. She could see its head had been crushed, but she wondered how many ponies it had injured or worse before it had been taken down. The same two of her Guards remained placed out front. They both bowed when she strode up to them.

“Corporal Sable. Private Nocturne. What has happened here?”

Sable quickly recounted all that had befallen them. When she had finished, Luna closed her eyes and said under her breath, “Will this nightmare never end?”

____________________________________________________________________________________

Derpy put the finishing touches on her baked goods. Much to her disappointment, the smell hadn’t coaxed her daughter from her room, so it was time for a little more persuasion. She carefully set the cookies on a plate, picked it up and took them upstairs. She knocked on the door.

“Dinnnnky…” she sing-songed. “Mommy’s got cooookies!”

There was no answer. Derpy set the plate down and knocked harder. Enough was enough.

Keeping her voice even she said, “Dinky. Open this door. Now.”

Still no answer.

“Alright, I’m coming in, young filly!” Derpy set her shoulder to the door and pushed. She could immediately tell something was wrong once she crossed the threshold. “Dinky?” She wasn’t on the bed or at her desk. Derpy ran in and looked under the bed, then in the closet, all the time saying, “no, no, no!”

Her heart started pounding when she saw the window was open. She ran to it, looked outside and screamed.

“Dinky!”

Acceptance

I don’t think I’ll ever get tired of the sensation of flying through the air while being carried by Celestia, for my reservations about magic were long since gone. I’d only seen what I now knew to be casual telekinesis from unicorns like Rarity, but this…this was many times greater. Celestia seemed to have no trouble carrying me as I held the dog, while she also carried all of the Apple family, Pinkie and the zebra. Rainbow Dash and the gryphon kept pace as we sped off over the trees, and soon landed in front of the hospital. There were many ponies milling about and going in and out of the building.

Something bad had happened here. I saw the bodies of more of those creatures, some near the edge of the trees, and one right by the building. Princess Luna was there speaking to those same two bat creatures I’d “met” over a week ago. One gave me a piercing look, which I returned in full measure. No, bud…I still don’t like you either. Celestia rushed Mac into the building, while the rest of us followed.

It was a mess. There was blood on the floor and I could see what had to be pony bodies off in one corner with blankets pulled over their faces. I looked, but I couldn’t tell if one of them was Rarity. I hoped not.

I was startled out of my reverie by someone tugging on my pants leg. I looked down to see Applejack’s sister there. I could tell she was speaking to me about the dog, so I knelt down again so she could see her. She then turned and addressed someone over her shoulder, and I saw a pony with a nurse’s cap come over. The nurse pony gave me a strange look at first, but then focused on her furry patient.

I noticed when some of these ponies get agitated, their speech is harder to follow. That, and some had different accents than others, like Applejack and her little sister. It seemed strange to me their way of speaking should be so radically different from the other ponies I’d met, because they’d presumably all been raised in the same town. Speaking of whom, she was sitting off in a corner with her mother or grandmother, both of them staring at the door through which I assumed the staff had taken her brother. Applejack looked up at us, said something to her mother, and then came over. I’d laid the dog on the floor as the nurse examined her and Applejack’s sister hovered nearby. Applejack came up and hugged her as they both watched the nurse go through her ministrations. I stepped back, feeling very much in the way, when Applejack finally noticed me and said, “Thanks for helping.” I shrugged and nodded. I could see she was in turmoil, not only over her brother but this animal as well, and despite her words I still felt in the way and pretty useless.

I looked around. Pinkie and Rainbow Dash were gathered next to Twilight, who was comforting Spike. He in turn was staring at the same door Applejack had been, so that’s also probably where they'd taken Rarity. The lion-eagle creature was in discussion with Celestia, Luna and the zebra. I didn't see that bunny, and I wondered where he was. Everyone else was involved in some way with each other, and I was beginning to feel like an uninvited guest. Which I supposed I was.

The truth is I simply don’t belong here. Looking upon the agitated faces of the other ponies I didn’t know, and seeing more than a few hostile expressions aimed at me, I decided it would probably be best to keep to myself as much as possible. But still, I had to see Fluttershy.

I slowly approached the front desk. The pony nurse working there was doing several things at once, and at first didn’t notice me looming over her. So I cleared my throat. Startled, she looked up and cast an unfriendly eye at me.

“Yes? Can I help you?”

“Flutter-sy. I w-ant see Flutter-sy. Plees.”

She scowled. “I don’t think that’s a good idea right now.”

I looked around for help. All the ponies I knew were engaged with each other. I could see the pain on each of their faces, so the last thing I wanted to do was intrude. With that thought in mind, I quietly turned away and slipped back outside.

I gave a curt nod to the bat ponies again, who both stared at me without speaking, and then I walked some distance away. I tried smiling and waving to some of the crowd of ponies waiting outside the hospital, but for the most part, they didn't return my gestures and looked at me with suspicion. I sighed and kept walking. I knew not to go too far, as I hadn’t yet been given permission to roam, so I found a fairly large rock strutting out of the ground away from the crowd and perched myself on it. The afternoon sun shone warmly down upon me, and that same chill in the air was present. It all looked idyllic, except of course for the bodies of those monsters I could see from my vantage point. I wondered how many ponies they’d attacked before they’d been brought down. This sent a pang through me, as I couldn’t imagine anything wanting to hurt these ponies. But I remembered my time in the Pit, and I remembered with disgust those two aliens. Then like a flash another memory surfaced: that odd room with the large cylinders. I’d told myself I would examine that room if I had the chance. I turned and stared off into the woods. I knew the general direction from which we’d come, so I was certain I could find that ship again, especially considering how big it is.

Then before I could further entertain the foolish thought of leaving on my own, Celestia, Luna, the lion creature, Pinkie and Rainbow came out of the hospital. Celestia and Luna quickly took flight, followed by the lion-eagle creature. Pinkie looked around until she spotted me, then she spoke briefly to Rainbow and the two of them came over.

“Are you alright, Char-Elles?” asked Pinkie. She indicated my chest as she spoke. I looked down at my tattered clothing and shrugged.

“I fine, Peen-Kee. Zee-brah’s…stuff…help much. Not h-urt anymore.”

Rainbow watched the two of us, and I was somewhat surprised to see concern on her face. I knew my lack of understanding Equestrian was a source of frustration for her, but despite that she’d been warmer to me since she’d made up to me in the hospital.

“Twilight wants you to wait in the castle until this is all over, Char-Elles,” said Rainbow.

I slowly broke down her sentence, then it became clear to me: they wanted me somewhere safe and out of the way. I nodded. That strange room in the aliens’ ship would have to wait. But then a new thought occurred to me: maybe with Pinkie and Rainbow’s help I could get in to see Fluttershy? I pointed back to the hospital.

“Can I see Flutter-sy…first?”

Pinkie and Rainbow exchanged looks.

“Of course, Char-Elles,” said Pinkie after a moment. “Let’s make that happen.”

As we were about to enter the hospital, I heard a very faint scream. All the ponies outside pricked up their ears and startled. It was plain they heard the sound better than I did.

“What was that?!” said Pinkie.

“It sounded like it was coming from town,” said Rainbow.

I saw the two bat ponies speak urgently to each other, and then one came forward and spoke to Rainbow and Pinkie. The three then turned and sped off in the direction of the scream, with Rainbow quickly outdistancing them all. I didn’t know how much help I could be, but I followed as fast as I could. I pushed myself, and was able to keep Pinkie in sight as we bolted through town. I heard gasps from the few ponies that were outside as I ran past, knowing the sight of me probably didn’t help their anxiety. But it couldn’t be helped. These ponies had helped me in every turn. I wasn’t about to pass up an opportunity to do whatever I could to help them.

I noticed the section we were in was a bit more rundown than I expected, and I had time to be a bit disappointed to learn poverty was also part of this world when I came around the corner to see a crowd of ponies all clustered around a blonde Pegasus mare that was frantically crying out. The other ponies were trying to calm her down when a few of them saw me and yelled. Pinkie and Rainbow looked back and saw me, and I saw shock on their faces as they realized I’d followed. Then they both spoke to the crowd, I assumed to reassure them about me. The bat pony approached and spoke angrily to me, pointing back the way we’d come, but I shook my head.

“I he-lp!”

Rainbow turned and spoke to him. He backed off, but still kept an unfriendly eye on me. As I watched, all the ponies but Pinkie then began to fan out, looking as if they were searching. Pinkie walked up to me with a worried look on her face.

“Char-Elles, I don’t know how much you understand, but a filly is lost. We need to find her.”

I caught the words “filly” and “lost.” That was all I needed to know.

“I he-lp, Peen-Kee!”

Just then there was another scream, and the sounds of fighting. Pinkie and I exchanged looks, then we both turned and sprinted in the direction of the commotion.

_____________________________________________________________________________________

An hour earlier

Dinky paced her room, sulking. She didn’t know why her mommy was so upset, but she didn’t have to go and yell at her! As she continued to pace for a few minutes, there was a knock at her door. She scowled as her mom invited her back downstairs to make cookies. Cookies?! She wasn’t a baby! Cookies couldn’t make up for anything! She looked around, then pushed her toybox up against the door.

“Go away!”

Her mother apologized for yelling, but Dinky still wasn’t having it.

“Go away!”

She heard her mother sigh and retreat from the door. Dinky ran over to her bed and plopped facedown on it, still fuming. After a few more minutes, she rolled over on her back and stared out the window a bit longer. Then she sat up. If Mommy wouldn’t tell her what was going on, then she’d just have to find out for herself!

Dinky got up and trotted to her window. Her Mom had locked it, but she had enough magic to turn the lock and open it. She hiked her little self up to the windowsill, then scrabbled with her back legs until she was able to pull herself up. She gulped as she looked down and out to the street, then slowly turned and lowered herself down onto the bricks that made up her home. They were stuck out at uneven angles and made for a natural ladder if she took her time. It took some doing, but she finally gave a sigh of relief as she felt her back hooves make contact with the street. She looked back up at her window, and felt a pang. She knew her mother would be furious with her, but there was no turning back now. She turned and trotted off.

_______________________________________________________________________________________

The Prrl was getting more and more frustrated as time went on. It could hear and smell plenty of its preferred prey about, but none presented themselves as easy targets. It faded into the shadows of an alleyway, watched, listened and smelled. All were so tantalizingly close! Just as it was about to move on to another section, it froze. It could hear the footsteps of something coming by the alleyway, and from the light sound it was one of their young, alone. Perfect! But it wouldn’t do to have the creature cry out, not with so many others near, so it had to be subtle. As the small creature began to pass the alley, the Prrl made a musical sound. The creature stopped and looked into the alley.

“Hello?”

The Prrl changed its color to bright pink, then rolled over on its back and began to purr while comically kicking its legs into the air. The creature giggled.

“You’re funny.”

The Prrl rolled over onto its stomach and stuck out its bottom lip. The creature took a step forward into the alley.

“I didn’t mean to hurt your feelings! Ponies make fun of my Mom, too.”

Just then the Prrl’s stomach gurgled.

The creature’s face lit up with concern. “Are you hungry? I think my Mom is making cookies. I’ll go get you some!”

The Prrl frantically shook its head as its prey started to turn away and run off.

The creature stopped. “What’s the matter? You don’t want cookies?! Everypony loves cookies!”

The Prrl shook its head again and beckoned it forward. Just then there was a scream, and the creature turned towards the sound.

“That was my Mom! I’m sorry, but I have to go.”

The Prrl hissed and shook its head again, then grabbed its own neck, choked and then fell over and lay on its side. The creature gasped, and then ran all the way into the alley.

“What’s the matter?! Are you hu-” the Prrl flipped over onto its feet and grabbed the prey, using one paw to cover its mouth.

As it struggled, the Prrl changed its own color to black, looked around and tried to listen. The adults were all starting to come out of their homes at that one creature’s scream. It slunk deeper into the alley, keeping hold of its struggling meal. It thought about starting in on it right there, but then a shadow passed overhead as a winged creature flew by. That was too close! It would have to find someplace less conspicuous than its present location. If it killed the prey and carried it off, the Prrl wouldn’t have to worry about it giving away their position, but it liked its meals fresh. Killing it and then finding a better spot could take some time, and by then the meat could be spoiled. No, it didn’t go through all this hunt for spoiled meat!

A few more creatures ran past the alley as its prey kept struggling and trying to scream. Then it bit down on the Prrl’s paw. The Prrl just smiled. Its leathery pads were so thick the prey’s tiny teeth were little more than an irritation. But then the prey did something unexpected. The protuberance on its forehead lit up, and light flashed from it straight into the Prrl’s face. It hissed and let go, clutching at its eyes. The prey then landed on its feet and let out a surprisingly loud scream as it bolted for safety. The Prrl snarled and leapt after it, catching it again in one bound. That was it, time to end this. Spoiled meat was better than no meat.

Just then an adult creature stopped and saw what was going on.

“Hey! Let her go!” The adult’s eyes widened with fear when it saw the Prrl and hesitated, but then came forward.

“Help me!” cried Dinky.

The Prrl snarled again, tightened its grip on its meal and then lunged for the adult. The adult reared up on its hind legs and struck out at its face with its front hooves, but the Prrl was too quick. It whipped past and raked the adult along its back as it sped away, still carrying its burden. The adult screamed as the claws made contact, but then gave chase, crying out for help as it did so.

The Prrl doubled its efforts. If it could make it to the trees, it could lose that adult and enjoy its meal in peace. But then it looked up and saw two others in the way, with more appearing. It stopped and growled at them all, then placed one set of claws against its prey’s throat, and growled again. The Prrl kept its full attention on the adults and tried to edge away towards the forest. But it forgot about the trick the prey had pulled on it before.

_____________________________________________________________________________________

Pinkie and I exchanged a look at the sound, then we both rushed to find it. After a few moments we turned a corner, and there was another of those disgusting beasts surrounded by a few ponies. Worse, it held a struggling filly in its grip, and I could see it was about to open her throat. I looked around for a rock, a heavy stick, anything! I found a good sized rock, but neither I nor the ponies seemed to want to take the chance and rush it, for fear of it killing the filly. That’s when the little scrapper made up our minds for all of us.

“Let me go!” she cried as she lit up her horn and blinded the creature. It was enough for it to drop her, and that’s when I let loose with my rock. I caught it beside the head, and it hissed and turned to face me. One of the ponies rushed forward and grabbed the filly, while I and two others fell upon the beast. I didn’t look to see who they were, I just ran forward and grabbed it around the throat, then began smashing it with my fist. It hissed and snarled, lashed out with its claws and tried to bite me. I kept a firm grip on its throat and held those jaws away as the claws cut deep furrows into my arm, but I didn't dare loosen my grip. The ponies latched onto it and were biting and kicking. Suddenly, it whipped its tail and struck the ponies off. I barely had time to register that was one was Pinkie before it wrapped its snake-like body around me and began to constrict as we both fell to the street. I got it in a headlock and began to apply all of my enhanced strength. I could feel the veins popping out of my neck and arms as we both fought to finish the other off, but I grit my teeth, pushed past the pain and applied the power in my arms I didn’t know I had. After a few moments I felt the pressure ease off my chest, as my enemy’s eyes began to roll up. Even though it began to relax its grip on me, I was taking no chances. With a final roar, which I only afterwards realized came from me, I gave one more heave, then heard and felt its neck snap. It was done. I stood up and wobbled as I let it fall to the ground. Then I heard a sound I didn’t recognize. I looked up at the ponies around me, and only then did I realize it was…cheering.

Captain H'iix

Captain H’iix went through the pre-launch procedures as the massive shuttle bay doors began to open. His commlink clicked on.

“Is there any way I can still talk you out of this, Sir?”

H’iix smiled. “No, Lieutenant. It has to be done. If it will settle your mind any know that I have no intention of going in unarmed. I have a small weapon secured on my person. It should be undetectable, but I'll only use it as a last resort. I’m not looking for a fight.” The link was still open, so he heard her give a resigned sigh.

“May the Seven keep watch over you, Sir.”

“And They over you as well. Captain out.”

The shuttle lifted smoothly off, and he angled it to quickly enter the planet’s atmosphere. His map showed the location of Saacs' shuttle, still transmitting his lifesigns, so H’iix set that as his destination. He briefly considered cloaking his vessel, but no, he needed to be as conspicuous as possible, without a hint of guile, if this mission was to succeed.

As he located the other shuttle and prepared to land, he suddenly lost control of his vessel. Some kind of force was holding the ship in place. Try as he might, nothing he did could make a dent in what he assumed to be a form of tractor beam. Then there was a flash behind him, and he spun around to see a dark, horse-like being standing there. The shock of seeing his ship suddenly boarded caused him to instantly reach for the controls to the ship’s internal defense system, but then the creature’s horn flashed, and he himself was seized with immobility. Then it spoke.

“Our Sister holds this vessel in her field, alien. We will destroy it and you if you give Us reason.” It took a step forward. “Why are you here?”

H’iix swallowed and took a moment to think before answering. In all his years of being a ship’s captain, he had never been subjected to the raw power he felt now, and inwardly he cursed Saacs for his foolishness that put him in this position. He cleared his throat.

“My name is Captain H’iix of the Hkari battle cruiser Diligence. I mean you no harm. I have come for my crew and those Antashi in your custody.”

The creature’s eyes flashed at the mention of the Antashi. “Their fate will be decided by Us. We are Princess Luna of Equestria, the land you have invaded. Your soldiers have killed several of our ponies, and as their Commander, you will answer for their actions. In addition, the Antashi are responsible for the deaths of many of our subjects when they released alien creatures onto our world."

H’iix seized upon the opportunity. “I can assist you in locating and capturing all those creatures, Your Highness. I know we have not given you reason to trust us, but please allow me to help in whatever way I can.”

Luna stared at him, considering. After a moment she released him from her field. “We need all those beings off our world, Captain H’iix. We will inform our Sister of your offer.” There was a flash, and she was gone.

The vessel hung motionless for a time, then H’iix felt his shuttle resume movement as it returned to his control. So far, so good. He gently landed, dropped power to standby, and opened his doors. He slowly exited with his empty hands in full view.

For a moment he was struck speechless. He’d seen images of these inhabitants before, but the reality far outstripped those representations. All around him, on the ground and hovering in the air, were dozens of the creatures, all staring at him with murderous intent on their faces. One also was a creature unlike the others, some sort of hybrid that stared at him and flexed its talons. But his attention was most drawn to the two imperial beings that gazed upon him. The one called Luna was dwarfed in height and the radiating power of the one beside her. She stared at him without speaking. H’iix swallowed, then dropped to one knee. This was the unknown force that could move stellar objects, of that he was certain.

“Your Majesty. I am Captain H’iix of the Hkari. I have come to offer my help to you.”

The One stared at him for a few more moments, then she took a step forward.

“Rise and come with me.”

H’iix quickly got to his feet and fell in step, as the crowd of creatures parted. In front of him loomed the Antashi vessel, with its main cargo bay door standing open. They were heading off to one side of the vessel, and he could already see their destination. Before him were lain the bodies of several beings, each covered with a blanket. The One stopped and nodded to her subjects, and they came forward and lifted the blankets off the bodies. H’iix felt the blood leave his face as he stared, and recognized Hkari weapon patterns. The One turned to him. He tore his glance away from the bodies, and saw sadness mixed with anger on her face.

“Here you see the “help” we have already been given, Captain.” She watched him closely. H’iix knew he was walking a very fine line. One more error could not only cost him his life, but the lives of the Diligence as well.

“On behalf of my crew, I deeply apologize for this mistake, for mistake it was. I gave no such orders for my people to attack yours.” He looked back down at the fallen ones. “I know that is little comfort now, and I can see you care for your own as much as I do mine.” He squared his shoulders and looked her in the eyes again. “If one must be punished, then I ask you to punish me. I take full responsibility for the actions of my crew.”

A ghost of a smile appeared on her lips. “Well said, Captain. Tell me, how do you intend to rid us of those creatures released from that ship?”

H’iix almost let a sigh of relief escape him, but he was too disciplined for such raw emotion. Instead he answered, “I will need access to the Antashi computer to accurately identify and locate each and every creature. Your planet’s magnetic field interferes with my ship’s sensors, or else we could accomplish this from orbit. Will you allow me to do so?”

She silently regarded him, then spoke: “You may.”

H’iix hesitated once more. “I…do have a request of my own, Your Highness. My crew…may I see them?”

A shadow passed over her face, and for a moment he feared he’d angered her. But then she addressed one of her own.

“Captain Nightfang. I require your assistance.”

Another creature stepped forward from the crowd.

“Yes, Your Majesty?”

“Take him to see what remains of his crew.” She turned to face H’iix again. “Do not linger long, Hkari. Every moment those beasts are free is another moment my ponies are in danger.” H’iix nodded.

The other creature made no effort to hide the contempt from his expression as he spoke to H’iix. “Follow me,” he snapped. He led him some distance away to the edge of the trees. There, propped up against one with a makeshift bandage and sling over his arm, was Saacs. All his armor had been removed except for his translation device, and he was clad only in his black bodysuit. His eyes were closed, and his face was wracked with pain. H’iix and his escort stopped in front of him.

“Saacs.”

Saacs slowly opened his eyes and looked up. When he saw his Captain his face brightened and he started to rise, but H’iix waved him back down.

“It’s good to see you, Sir!”

H’iix scowled. “Is it, Saacs? I thought you understood my orders.” It wasn’t a question.

“Sir…I…I…”

“You not only disobeyed me, but in so doing you caused the deaths of my crew and these creatures! Any chance we had to make a peaceful resolution is all but shattered, Saacs!” For a moment H’iix’ discipline slipped, but he regained it.

Saacs stared at the ground. “Sir, I’m sorry for all that. I…I thought we could take the Antashi from these beasts…”

Captain Nightfang sharpened his gaze at this last. “I told you once before about that word, alien.”

Saacs sent a burning stare at Nightfang, who met his eyes with the same intensity.

“Enough,” said H’iix. Saacs tore his eyes away from Nightfang and faced his Captain. H'iix added, “You’ve done enough. If they will allow me, you are to return to the Diligence. There you will be placed in confinement. Where are Jaaco and the rest?”

Saacs turned accusing eyes on the pony and said, “They butchered them all, Sir. The bodies are over there.” He pointed to an area some distance away.

“Where are the Antashi?”

“I don’t know, Sir. For all I know they’re dead as well.”

Captain Nightfang ground his teeth as he said, “We do not kill without provocation, Hkari. They are safe.” Saacs’ face showed he was about to make a retort, but he then looked up at his Captain again and held his tongue.

“Get on your feet,” said H’iix. Saacs struggled up as he impassively watched him.

“Follow me.”

H’iix turned and walked off in the direction of Celestia as Saacs painfully matched his steps. Celestia and Luna watched him approach. H’iix stopped in front of them, then spoke over his shoulder to Saacs.

“Bow.”

“But, Sir—”

“Bow!”

Saacs did as he was told, but did not keep the emotion from his face. H’iix addressed Celestia.

“Your Highness, you may do with him as you like—” he heard Saacs gasp behind him. “But I ask that he be returned to my ship. I will stay in his place, and accept whatever punishment you deem fit on his behalf.”

“Captain, you can’t just give in to these—”

“Silence!”

He turned back to Celestia. “What say you?”

Celestia nodded. “Get him off our planet. Take the bodies of your crew as well. You will indeed remain.” She shifted her gaze. “Captain Nightfang.”

“Your Highness?”

“Retrieve the bodies and load them onto this creature’s ship.”

“Yes, Your Highness.” He turned and directed his soldiers to carry out the order. H’iix addressed Celestia.

“Thank you, Your Majesty.”

He turned to Saacs and stared him in the eyes. “Return to the ship and inform Lieutenant Chapel of my situation, then surrender yourself to the brig.” He looked down. “Get that arm seen to, but take no further actions.” He stepped closer. “The shuttle’s controls will allow you operate her engines. Its weapons respond to my authorization codes only, so do not attempt to override them. Do I make myself clear?”

Saacs scowled at the implication, but nodded. “Yes, Captain. Very clear.”

“Good. Now get out of my sight.”

____________________________________________________________________________________

I saw a bench and walked over to it. As I sat heavily down the ponies were clustered all around me. One had produced a cloth from somewhere and wrapped it tightly around my arm to stop the bleeding, smiling at me the entire time. Pinkie came and sat beside me, so I lay my uninjured arm over her back and leaned on her as it hurt to breathe. That thing must have bruised a few ribs when it had wrapped me in its coils.

I looked up. Rainbow Dash and the bat pony had arrived, and I could see the other ponies speaking to them as they pointed at the monster and then to me. The bat pony turned and gave me an incredulous look, then nodded at me. I nodded back. I guess we weren’t exactly friends, but it appears we were no longer enemies.

Now that blonde pegasus I’d seen earlier came up to me. She was crying and speaking to me as she held her foal. I now noticed her eyes weren’t totally in sync and I wondered at that, but I was glad as she thanked me over and over. The little unicorn she was holding squirmed until her mother released her, then she came up to me, climbed up on my lap and kissed me on the cheek. I smiled and helped her back down as she returned to her mother.

The crowd was getting larger as more and more ponies came out of their homes. I could see the ones who had already been here speaking to the new arrivals, and there was a lot of pointing in my direction. I started to feel a little awkward at all the attention, for I hadn’t been the only one to save that filly. Hell, that filly really saved herself when she fought back, for I doubt we could have gotten to her before that thing had killed her. I turned to Pinkie.

“Can I go, Peen-Kee?” I held up my arm, then felt my ribs. “I see doc-tor?”

“Of course, Char-Elles! Let’s go now.”

I’m not ashamed to say I needed her help to get back up. My arms felt like lead, and the pain was really starting to make itself known in my chest. Another pony, a stranger, ran up and helped me on my other side as I got to my feet. Rainbow approached me and smiled.

“Sounds like you were awesome, Char-Elles!”

I had no idea what the word meant, but I took it for a compliment and thanked her. As we slowly made our way back to the hospital, the crowd followed us, still whispering and pointing. I felt my cheeks burning. I’d never been the center of attention before, not like this, but I certainly understood their intentions.

When we arrived at the hospital the bat pony spoke to the other guard. She looked at me and smiled as we approached. Then, to my surprise, she beckoned me forward then saluted. I didn’t know what to say, so I just smiled and nodded as I walked past. But before I could fully enter the place, Pinkie stopped me and pointed back to the crowd. I turned and looked. They all seemed to be expecting something from me as I saw all their faces, so I slowly raised one hand, smiled and waved. They all erupted into cheers again. Even though I still felt self-conscious, I had to admit the attention was wonderful.

The blonde Pegasus had carried her foal inside with us, and I watched as she spoke to a nurse. Rainbow and Pinkie walked up to Twilight, who was still sitting with Spike. I took a seat and looked around for the zebra, but she was gone. I could see Pinkie becoming quite animated as she spoke to Twilight, and pointed back to me a few times. Twilight’s eyes got wider and wider as Pinkie continued. Even Spike had turned and was listening.

A nurse came over and was examining me while all this was going on. She grimaced as she slowly unwrapped the cloth over my arm, but she spoke softly to me the entire time. I couldn’t understand every word, but her voice was soothing, so I started to close my eyes. That’s when she nudged me, and repeated what must have been a question. She’d turned and faced away, then looked back at me over her shoulder. I then understood she wanted me to follow her, so I slowly got to my feet. I held my ribs as I walked, for every step sent a dull throb of pain through them. I hoped we didn’t have to walk too far.

______________________________________________________________________________

“…and then he wrapped one of his forelegs around the monster and defeated it! He was amazing!” cried Pinkie. Twilight just shook her head.

“I had no idea he’d put himself in danger like that. Are you sure you’re alright, Pinkie?”

Pinkie enthusiastically nodded her head. “I got knocked down, but I didn’t get hurt, thanks to Char-Elles!”

Twilight scowled. “I’m glad he was there and fought that thing, but this tells me Ponyville is in immediate danger. If one of those things could make it inside the town as far as it did, there may be others.” She looked over at Applejack, who was sitting with Granny Smith and Apple Bloom. “I can’t ask Applejack to do anything right now, and I need somepony to patrol the area until I get back with either Celestia or Luna. Rainbow, fly over the town and watch for anything suspicious. Pinkie, please stay here and keep an eye on Spike for me.”

“Will do, Twilight!” they both said at once.

“I’ll be back as soon as I can. Stay safe you two.” She ported out.

She reappeared in the air close to the aliens’ ship. She looked down, and could see Celestia and Luna watching yet another alien. How many of these things are there?

As she landed, she caught it telling one of its own, “…now get out of my sight!” She had time to be surprised she could understand it before Celestia turned and greeted her.

“What’s going on, Celestia?”

Twilight could see the other one had one of its forelegs in a sling as it scowled and walked off, and then entered a smaller vehicle, as it was followed by several bat ponies bearing what appeared to be...bodies? The remaining alien turned and faced them. Twilight could see it was similar to Char-Elles in basic structure, except for the eyes and ears, which were both slanted and pointed. Its skin color was darker than his, and it was encased in armor from its neck to its hooves. She could see it was bare of fur except for the same amount on its head as had Char-Elles. The scientist in her wondered if their species were related, when its eyes widened as it saw her. Then it bowed and spoke.

“Greetings.”

“Twilight, allow me to introduce Captain H’iix of the Hkari. He has offered to help us track down all those creatures the Antashi released,” said Celestia.

“The ‘Antashi’…those other two aliens?”

“Yes.”

Twilight stared at him without speaking. Finally, she said, “How can we trust you?”

H’iix closed his eyes and took a deep breath. “I do not suppose you can, given the present circumstances. I only ask that you believe me when I say I’m here to atone for the wrongs done to your people by mine. I will do what I can.”

Twilight hesitated, then said, “The only alien I trust almost died saving a filly from one of those creatures.” She turned to Celestia. “It got into Ponyville and would have killed her, if Char-Elles hadn’t been there. We need patrols extended in and around the town.”

H’iix spoke up again. “Your Highness, one of my shuttles is still here on your planet. Once I get the information from the Antashi vessel, the shuttle’s scanners can pinpoint each and every one much faster than you yourselves could hunt then down.”

Twilight looked around. “Speaking of those two, where are they?”

Luna pointed to an area where her guards were clustered. “They’re over there. I placed a sleep spell on them, but I still had my ponies restrain them.”

Belinda snorted and spoke up for the first time since arriving. “I imagine you have your guards around them to keep them safe from me, Princess.” She grimly smiled. “That’s probably for the best.” She took a step closer to H’iix and flexed her talons. “But I’m not picky. One alien is as good as another to me.”

H’iix met her gaze without flinching. “Once I access the Antashi computers, you will have your fill of targets, creature.”

“And your creatures killed several of these ponies, alien! I agree with Twilight: why should we trust you?”

Celestia spoke up. “Enough. I have decided to accept his help in tracking down all those beasts that threaten our land. Every moment arguing is another moment they are all still free to wreak havoc. I won’t allow that.” She turned to H’iix. “What do you require, Captain?”

“This will go faster if I can get the authorization codes from the Antashi for their computer. Otherwise I’ll have to break in.”

“So you will have to converse with them, then? That is a great risk, as they are both completely untrustworthy,” said Luna.

H’iix smiled. “Oh, I think I can put the fear of the Seven in them, Your Highnesses.”

“Very well, follow me,” said Luna. She led the way as the rest of the group followed. Soon they came to the spot where her bat ponies were on guard. They saluted and stood aside as Luna approached. Priel and R’el lay before them, still prostrate with their hands tied together behind their backs. When Luna began to light up her horn, H’iix held up a hand.

“I think it best if I wake them, Your Highness, to set the tone of this interrogation.” Luna stepped back and they all watched as the Hkari knelt and placed a hand on the back of their skulls. Then, without warning, he suddenly pressed down with his thumbs as both Antashi screamed and rolled away from the pain. They sat up and looked around. Seeing H’iix, the color drained from both their faces. Priel found his voice first.

“Why did you do that?!”

H’iix impassively watched them both. “That’s only one of several nerve clusters you have, Antashi. Now that I have both of your attention, I need something from you. And I’d advise you cooperate.”

Priel and R’el scooted back away from him. “What…what do you want, Hkari?” asked R’el.

H’iix stood and stared down at them. “Give me the authorization codes for your computer, Antashi. Apparently you released many non-indigenous creatures onto this world. We need to find them all. Now.”

Priel and R’el looked at each other. “We’ll...help you, Hkari. But…but you have to do something for us!” said Priel.

“You’re hardly in a position to bargain, criminals. Even before you violated this world, that is off limits mind you, you both are still wanted for several other transgressions of Stellar Authority laws.”

“Just hear me out: we’ll give you the codes if you take us with you off this planet!” He glanced in the ponies’ direction, but didn’t meet their eyes. “They’re going to put us on trial here if you don’t!”

“You represent the Stellar Authority!” added R’el. She stared at his uniform’s insignia and said, “…Captain! Don’t leave us to these creatures!”

H’iix shook his head and turned to Luna. “You were right, Your Highness. This was a waste of time.” He began to walk back to the Antashi vessel.

“Captain! Captain! Help us!” cried Priel.

H’iix gave no sign he’d heard them.

____________________________________________________________________________________

“Stop yelling! It’s not doing any good,” whispered R’el. “Besides. I think this is going to work out in our favor.”

Priel turned to her and whispered back, “How so?”

She jutted her chin in the direction of their ship. “The crowd control device in the main cargo bay. If that Hkari tries to use the computer without the codes, he may just trigger it.”

Priel looked back at the ship. “I’d almost forgotten about that. But will it affect Celestia and her sister? And that purple one?”

“We may soon see.”

_______________________________________________________________________

Entering the ship, H’iix searched for a computer interface. Several creatures quietly watched the group from their cages, but either due to their previous ill treatment by the Antashi, or their fear of Celestia, they made no sound.

“What exactly are you looking for?” asked Twilight.

“Some sort of console that connects to this ship’s main computer. It shouldn’t be that hard to…ah, there it is!” He walked over to the unit and studied it for a moment.

“Can you operate it?” asked Luna. H’iix nodded.

“It’s a standard interface, there should be no problems.” The screen lit up as his fingers flew over the console. All was going well until there suddenly started an incessant beeping.

“What’s that?” asked Belinda. H’iix frowned.

“I’m…not sure…” Then the keyboard froze up. Above their heads, a strange device lowered itself. H’iix took one look and his eyes grew wide.

“Psionic defense! Everyone ou—” but it was too late. In a flash, the device triggered a pulse that knocked all to the ground. The pulse spread outside the ship and effected the guards as well. All but Priel and R’el.

They stared at each other, then looked around at the unconscious bodies.

“I can’t believe that worked,” said Priel.

Priel rolled over and struggled to his feet, not an easy task with his arms secured behind him. He stared around again while R’el copied him.

“I don’t understand why that pulse didn’t affect us,” said Priel.

“It wouldn’t be much of a control device if it affected the ones doing the controlling,” said R’el. “Here, help me with this lance.” She’d returned to her knees and was trying to pick up one of the guards’ weapons from behind herself. Priel knelt down and joined her.

“Hold it steady so I can use the sharp edge to cut through these restraints,” she added. After some moments of fumbling, she was free. She then turned and did the same for Priel. “Now let’s get into our spare battle suits and get out of here. And hurry, we don’t know how long they’ll all be out.”

They both cautiously made their way into the cargo bay and looked around. Celestia and her group lay there, including the Hkari captain. Priel and R’el smiled at each other, then continued on into the ship. After some minutes they found that which they sought: the armory. There, they quickly suited up and holstered their weapons after making sure they were fully charged.

“Now what?” asked Priel. “Celestia destroyed the bridge and with it any chance of flying this ship.”

R’el checked the settings on her weapon then turned to face him. “Our only hope to get off this planet is that Hkari’s shuttle. And we take him with us in case his crew decides to retaliate. Let’s go.”

Filled with new confidence, they both returned to the cargo bay. Priel hoisted H’iix up onto his back, then stared at Celestia. He drew his weapon.

R’el looked back at him and said, “What are you doing?!”

He slowly pointed his weapon at Celestia. “This may be our only chance to kill her.”

R’el hissed, “Fool! Don’t you remember what happened the last time we tried that?! It’s not worth the risk! Let’s get out of here!”

Priel looked at her, then back down at Celestia. Finally, he holstered his weapon and followed the impatient R’el. “Which way are we going?” he asked.

R’el used the sensors on her suit to sweep the area. A telltale dot made itself known on her scanner. She looked up and pointed. “That way.”

As they entered the forest, all was still. Celestia’s sun, now freed from her holding spell, swiftly descended. A moonless night now settled over Equestria.

The Battle of the Everfree

Author's Note

Inspired by The Walking Dead, Season Six Episode Nine, No Way Out.

The Battle of the Everfree

Captain H’iix returned to consciousness with a slight gasp. He slowly opened his eyes and looked around. The Antashi had their backs to him and were both concentrating on the shuttle’s controls and they appeared to not have noticed him awake. Then he heard a sound in his ear.

“Captain! It’s Chapel, sir! Nod if you can hear me.”

H’iix did so, keeping the rest of his body still. He then heard a sigh of relief from her.

“We’re working on getting you out of there, sir, but we don’t want to do anything to provoke the Antashi.”

H’iix shook his head and smiled.

“Captain?”

Instead of answering, H’iix slowly charged up the holdout blaster embedded in his suit’s right arm. He then raised that arm at the nearest Antashi and fired. The bolt struck R’ell in her back and she screamed as her armor seized up and went rigid. Priel spun around to face H’iix, but he was too slow. H’iix fired again, and Priel joined his companion in immobility. H’iix got to his feet and addressed Chapel.

“The situation is now under control. These two should be out for hours and I want them off this planet. Send down a shuttle with ten fully armed security personnel. We still have a mess to clean up down here.”

“Sir?”

“The creatures these two unleashed. I want them all contained.”

“As ordered, sir!”

___________________________________________________________________

The mood had changed at the hospital with the setting of the sun and the absence of the Moon to replace it. Nopony there could remember a time when the Moon had not shone in the night sky and the effect was extremely unsettling. Add to that the bodies of those creatures that had been piled in a heap a short distance away, but not out of sight. Their presence made the night all the more sinister, as who knew what else could be hiding in the dark? As a result, the majority of townsponies decided home would be much safer, and had started to trot away, when Zecora showed up. She was panting with her exertion, but still raised her voice and addressed the crowd.

“Citizens of Ponyville, hear my plea! Our Princesses are in need of thee!”

The crowd turned to each other in confusion.

“The Princesses? What do you mean?” asked one.

“What can we do?” asked another.

“Their Highnesses are in a helpless state! We must defend them before it is too late!” cried Zecora.

Just then Applejack came out of the building. Zecora’s voice had carried through the broken doors of the hospital, but she couldn’t believe what she’d heard.

“What’s going on, Zecora? Why do the Princesses need our help?” she asked.

Quickly Zecora explained all she’d seen and the conclusions she’d drawn. That was enough for Applejack.

“Then there’s no time to lose!” She raised her voice. “We need all the help we can get! Who’s coming with us?” Several ponies raised their hooves, but the majority fidgeted and looked at each other uncomfortably. Applejack stared at them.

“What’s the matter with y’all?”

The ponies refused to look her in the eyes. Finally, one said, “We…we can’t fight monsters, Applejack!”

“But if’n we don’t do something, the Princesses could die!”

The crowd’s faces all turned red, but nopony dared speak up again. Finally, Carmel came forward.

“We can do it, everypony!” He pointed at the bodies of the slain beasts. “Me and a few others took one of them down. If we band together, we can stop more of them!” He looked around, but all except a few wouldn’t meet his eyes.

Applejack felt the anger building inside her and she started to make a retort at their reticence but bit it back. Instead, she said to Carmel and Zecora, “I’ll be right back!” then turned and ran back into the hospital. Making her way quickly to Fluttershy’s room, she burst in and said, “Pinkie! We’re needed by the Princesses. Let’s go!” As they both turned to leave, Haze held up a hoof.

“What’s going on? Are the princesses in trouble?”

“Yes!” cried Applejack. “I hate to be rude, but I ain’t got time to explain this!”

Haze got to his hooves. “That’s alright; you can explain on the way. I’m coming with you.” Seeing his father about to speak, Haze cut him off. “I have to, Dad! Just stay here with Mom and Fluttershy.” Before his father could reply he turned back to Applejack and Pinkie. “Let’s go.”

They’d almost made it to the front of the hospital when they felt a tall presence behind them. The ponies looked back to see the hue-mun had followed them, seeming just as determined as they.

“I come with you!”

The ponies looked at him.

“It’s too dangerous, Char-Elles. Stay here!” said Applejack. But he shook his head.

“I come with you! I he-lp!”

Pinkie and Applejack exchanged a look, then Applejack said, “We don’t have time for this! Come if you’re coming!” With that, she turned and sped away. When she got back to the front of the building, many of the crowd had taken advantage of her absence and fled. Carmel, the two bat pony Guards, Zecora and the few others that had raised their hooves remained, and were in a group by themselves. Applejack’s heart sank at the low numbers but she put on a determined face. For their part, the other ponies’ faces lit up when they saw the hue-mun. One of the earth ponies ventured a question.

“Is…he coming with us?” as he pointed a hoof at Char-Elles.

“Why? Is that a problem?” asked Applejack.

The other ponies exchanged glances and smiled. “Far from it being a problem; this gives us every advantage!” said the pony.

“Beg yer pardon?”

A unicorn piped up. “He’s the Hero of Ponyville! Didn’t you know?”

Applejack started to say something, but Pinkie stood on her hind legs and said, “That’s right! The Hero of Ponyville is coming with us!” When she dropped back down, Applejack was staring at her, but Pinkie said, “Ya gotta play the crowd, Cousin!” as the ponies murmured among themselves and some pointed at the alien. Many of those that had refused to join the group before now came over and stood with Carmel and the rest.

For his part, the hue-mun just looked stunned. Pinkie noticed and asked him what was the matter.

“I…I not ‘hero,’ Peen-Kee.”

“Oh, you understood that! Don’t worry, we can use this to our advantage! Look!” She pointed at the crowd, which had gone from being apprehensive to almost merry. Still, there were more faces that didn’t look too thrilled, Hero or not, and these began to turn away and leave.

Applejack looked from the crowd to the hue-mun, then she raised her voice once again.

“Alright, y’all! Everypony…and hue-mun…that’s coming with us, we need to go now! Zecora, lead the way. Let’s move!”

“Not yet.”

Applejack spun around to see who had spoken. Glancing down, she saw someone she registered as Spike, but she’d never seen that look on his face before. His claws were balled into fists, and a steam issued from his nostrils as he stood there.

Pinkie was no less stunned. Taking a step forward, she quietly asked, “Spike? Are you alright?”

Spike stared at the ground as he spoke. “You all are going to fight those monsters, aren’t you? I’m coming with you.”

Delicately, Applejack said, “Spike, sugarcube, you’re not old enough for this fight.”

Spike’s eyes swiveled like gun turrets to Applejack and she took an involuntary step back.

“Those creatures hurt Rarity and Fluttershy. I’m going to make them pay!”

Applejack tried once more. “I know yer angry, Spike, but if something happened to you Twilight would never forgive me.”

“You’ll have to tie me up or worse to keep me from following you, Applejack. I’m. Coming. With. You.”

Applejack exchanged a look with Pinkie, then she sighed. “Alright, Spike. Just…just stay close to me, alright?” She then lifted him onto her back. “Hold on.” She turned and nodded to Zecora, who began to lead them all back into the Everfree at a brisk pace.

As Spike clung to her back, Applejack thought to herself, This is a mistake.

____________________________________________________________

The Stellar Authority Stalwart, a Dreadnought-class interstellar vessel, engaged its engines and set course for the planet Equus. This capital ship is the highest caliber vessel operated by the Stellar Authority, their commanders all hand-picked from the noble Houses by the Stellar Council. Unfortunately, this led to more bureaucrats being in charge than seasoned military personnel. The Stalwart’s commander was one of the former.

As soon as they entered orbit, Lord Suurno addressed his crew. “Open a channel to the Diligence and bring her up on the main viewer.”

His Communications Officer spoke up. “Diligence responding, sir.”

The main viewscreen was filled with the rather harried face of Lieutenant Chapel. “Diligence reporting in, sir. Acting Captain Chapel in command,” she said.

“Chapel? Where is Captain H’iix?” Suurno asked.

Beads of sweat immediately broke out on Chapel's brow when she realized who was addressing her. Suurno's reputation was well known throughout the sector, but maybe this time, he could be reasoned with. She took a steadying breath before replying. “He is down on the planet’s surface, sir. We have a situation where two Antashi smugglers were caught interfering with the indigenous lifeforms and released dozens of non-indigenous creatures onto the planet. The Captain has ordered us to send more Hkari to the surface in order to capture them all.”

“Belay that order, Lieutenant. Patch me through to your Captain.” Chapel turned and nodded to her subordinate. After a moment, H’iix responded.

“Chapel? What is happening? Where are my troops?”

“Captain H’iix, this is Lord Suurno. Why have you violated Stellar Authority by making contact with an off-limits species?” he demanded.

H'iix inwardly sighed, then said, “My Lord, as I’m sure my second in command already explained, we are dealing with the aftermath of the actions of two criminals. We—” but he was cut off.

“Stellar Authority rules are clear: no interference with unsanctioned worlds. Report back to your ship at once.”

H'iix only just managed to keep the scowl off his face. “With all due respect, sir, we are correcting an error committed by members of our own, albeit fringe members. The creatures they released are all extremely dangerous, and I do not know if the natives here can properly engage them. I respectfully refuse that order.”

Suurno smiled, leaned back in his ornate throne and steepled his fingers. “Then you leave me no choice. You are hereby relieved of command."

"My Lord, again with respect, you cannot simply relieve me of command. These natives need our help!"

Suurno waved the situation aside. "I care not for some primitives on a backwater planet. And as for relieving you?" He leaned forward. "I just did. I will confer with the Admiral in charge of this sector if anything is to be done about the planet’s situation, but until then you are to return to the Diligence and place yourself in the brig. Chapel, you are now in full command. As soon as your former Captain is on board, you are to leave orbit.”

Chapel’s struggle was visible on her face. Finally, she said, “I…I cannot obey that order, sir. Captain H’iix needs us, and the planet needs us.”

Suurno’s face turned red, and he slammed his fist down on his chair. “I will not tolerate this insolence from a mere crew member! Do you finally see what your 'leadership' has done, H'iix?!” Turning to his Weapons Officer, he barked, “Tractor beam! Pull the Diligence out of orbit. If she resists, disable her engines!”

As soon as the order was carried out, Chapel knew she was beaten. The Stalwart was more than a match for the Diligence, even if she’d been so foolish as to fight. All she could do was make one last transmission to her Captain.

“Seven keep you, sir.”

H’iix was on his own.
______________________________________________________

Most of the ponies’ enthusiasm lasted right until they’d entered the heart of the Forest. The majority had never ventured into it at night and were now regretting their decision to follow. Their murmuring reached Applejack’s ears, and she gritted her teeth in frustration. After a few more minutes, she called a halt and faced the group.

“Listen up y’all! I know this is scary, but like I said before the Princesses need us! If any o' y’all want to go back, now is the time. We ain’t that far into this here Forest, and y’all should be able to make it back to Ponyville safely. But,” and here she pointed at the hue-mun, “this here alien is risking his life not only fer the Princesses but fer all of us!” She looked around. Some met her gaze, many did not. Finally, she sighed and said, “I ain’t gonna try to talk y’all out of it. If’n yer coming, let’s go! The rest, go on home.” She turned and sped off, with Spike still clinging to her back. She refused to look behind her. They’d all follow or they wouldn’t, there was nothing left to say.

As for the townsponies, many were shamed by Applejack’s words and continued the journey. The rest, roughly a third of the group, hung back and looked sheepishly at each other. After a few moments, they turned as one and ran back to Ponyville as fast as they could. Many months after the battle, most of this group moved away from town out of shame. The rest found ways of coping, helped largely in part by Princess Twilight and her friends. But things were never the same for them.

Back in the present, the alien kept his thoughts to himself.
_______________________________________________________

What the hell was I thinking? My ribs still hurt, but the pain was just bearable. Even so, I was now going into yet another battle and worse, all these ponies considered me a hero. No one has ever depended on me in my life, and I found the sensation extremely uncomfortable. Especially given the fact we may be all marching to our deaths. Still, if I understood the situation, we all had little choice: the Princesses are in danger, and that meant Twilight was there as well. I remembered tangling with one of those creatures in that ship, and I didn’t come off too well then. I’d have to find some sort of weapon better than a rock this time.

Ahead, some of the unicorns had lit their horns to light the way. Good thing too, as with no moon the night was pitch-black. The bat ponies flew on, one ahead of us and one in the rear. I’m guessing they have superior night vision, so the dark wasn’t a problem for them. As we all ran through the forest, a large section of the ponies was keeping unusually close to me, which further increased my anxiety. I knew those guards were capable of defending themselves, but I wasn’t so sure about these regular types. Hell, I wasn’t that sure about myself when it came to it, but I couldn’t sit this one out. Before I came here, I’d never even been in a fight with anyone, let alone having to fight for my life. The only thing that made this bearable is I’m fighting for another person, or pony I should say. I thought about all the battles I’d ever heard of, and wondered if those involved felt the same fear I was now feeling.

All of a sudden, the lead guard called out, and we stopped. By squinting, I could just make out the shape of something large blocking our path. It’s starting already! But the creature or whatever it was didn’t make any threating gestures, it just growled in what sounded like an inquisitive manner. Then Fluttershy’s brother came forward, and we all waited as he spoke with the beast. Turning to us with a relieved look on his face, he explained the beast wanted to know where we were going. Apparently, the sight of so many ponies in the forest at night was such an unusual occurrence it had piqued its curiosity. Then I went forward and got a good look at the creature. I couldn’t be sure, but it seemed to be that same lion-scorpion creature I’d seen in those aliens’ ship. At the same time, it saw me and growled. Fluttershy’s brother translated its greeting, which removed all doubt. I came forward and spoke.

“This is one of those Equestrian creatures that was in those aliens’ ship when the Princesses and I were captured. Is he here to help?”

Fluttershy’s brother spoke to it again. It then growled again, nodded and flew off. I looked at the pony in confusion.

He says not only will he help, but he’s also going to go get others of his kind.

Hope surged through me at these words. I’d already seen that beast take out a number of the aliens’ monsters on its own; a pack of them would surely shift the balance in our favor. The pony then told the rest of the group what had just happened, and there was a collective sigh of relief. We may just survive this after all.

___________________________________________________

Far on the other side of the Forest, the alien creatures’ scout group lost no time in making it back to the gathering. Quickly, the lead scout told its leader what they’ve observed, and emphasized the time to strike was now. With the purple one disabled and helpless, there would never be a greater opportunity to take over this forest, maybe even take over this world. The Alpha growled its agreement and gave the order to move out. They were only a few dozen strong, but they all were the most vicious and cunning of the aliens’ horde. As such they’d yet to encounter any large, indigenous predators. But that was about to change.

Abandoning all means of stealth, the leaders opted instead for speed as they made their way towards their goal. As they crossed a wide stream, they were suddenly assaulted by a large cragodile. It leaped out of the water and grabbed one of the larger beasts in its jaws. That would have been the end of the creature, but the Alpha rushed back with its subordinates and sank their fangs into the neck of the cragodile, gave a mighty wrench and pulled its head from its body. Even so, the alien creature it had grabbed lay panting and bleeding, while the Alpha silently regarded it. After a moment, the Alpha turned away. This creature was now too weak to fight, so it was of no use. Growling again at its group, it turned and continued on its way. The wounded beast watched as it was quickly abandoned, then gave a great cry of rage. That was its undoing, for the noise attracted other cragodiles to its location. It was over soon after that.

The brief fight had further convinced the Alpha of its species’ superiority, for if one of the others could fall so easily to the beings of this planet, only for that creature itself to be dispatched so quickly and easily, the Alpha knew only one being stood in their way. It doubled its speed, for all now rested on killing the purple one, its only real threat, before it could regain consciousness.

__________________________________________________

Timorous had never stood out in a crowd. True to his name, the unicorn had never been known for doing anything of note. This was an aspect of his personality he’d always hated but had never found the opportunity to change. So he’d purposely moved to Ponyville a few years prior, for he’d heard of the adventures of six mares there and while he didn’t believe half of the stories before coming there, he’d then seen ample examples since. And each time there had been some crisis that had involved the majority of the town, he’d told himself he’d spring to action and show everypony “timorous” was just his name, not his destiny. And each time he’d failed. Until now.

He’d been part of the crowd at the hospital that had followed that weird alien back to the hospital and listened as the ponies around him excitedly spoke of its deeds. He did his best to keep the emotion off his face and force a smile while he listened, but all he felt now was jealousy. It simply wasn’t fair! Here was this creature, this freak, being showered with admiration just because it had supposedly killed some monster. And here he was, a pony that belonged in Equestria, being ignored once again. He sat on the outskirts of the crowd, keeping his thoughts to himself when all of a sudden the sun had sunk below the horizon and full night replaced it. But there was no Moon, and he felt the same fear most of the ponies around him were feeling as they stared up at the unfamiliar night sky.

He’d just about made up his mind to turn and head back to his home when that zebra had shown up and began yelling at everypony, something about the Princesses. That couldn’t be right! Nothing could hurt Princess Celestia or Luna; that zebra had to be mistaken. But as he listened, that familiar voice inside him began to speak up, the one that always told him to leave while it was still safe, to let somepony else deal with whatever the trouble was. For though he didn’t know the zebra well, as he watched and listened to her he knew she was telling the truth: the Princesses are in trouble!

As he wavered along with most of the crowd, there suddenly emerged from the hospital the one pony he’d always admired but had never the courage to approach: Applejack. As he watched, she’d spoken to the zebra, and then she’d added her voice to the plea. He dared not speak up as some ponies argued against their going and then another pony had added his encouragement, pointing at the dead creatures. Timorous looked again at the bodies of those monsters and could not for the life of him understand how anypony could face them. Then Applejack had run back into the hospital and like many, he saw this as an opportunity to slink off, but then he realized that’s just what he’d be doing: slinking off like a coward. Again. Then Applejack came back, and behind her was a creature that made up his mind for him.

So now he was running behind Applejack as she carried that dragon on her back and that alien…that... “hero,” followed close behind.

We’ll see this time. We’ll see who the hero is.

_______________________________________________________

H’iix quickly went through his options. The Antashi had taken several panels apart in their efforts to override the shuttle’s controls, so repairing them would take time. Time he probably didn’t have, if the urgency of the situation hadn’t changed. H’iix swore to himself as he glanced down at the two criminals. Damn them! And damn “Lord” Suurno for being his usual porcine-headed self. Yes, H’iix had violated regulations by coming down here, but what about the Authority regs about “preserving life?” He’d lodge a formal complaint if he got out of here, but now these are the priorities: doing whatever he could to help this world’s beings and then getting out of here alive.

He looked down at the Antashi again. His blaster had disabled their armor and rendered them unconscious, but there was a chance their weapons were still operational. Then he remembered the device that had affected himself and the ponies in their ship and thought better of trying to use their equipment. As wily as these two were, it wouldn’t be that much of a stretch for them to have rigged their own weapons to malfunction without their authorization. It simply wasn’t worth the chance, so he was left with his holdout blaster as his only weapon. Which did not have an infinite charge.

But right now, he had to get back to the aliens’ ship and do what he could for the ponies. He activated the door panel and stepped out into the night. Engaging his optical implants, he was able to see almost as well as during the day, which was needed as there was no illumination other than his shuttle. He set the door to close, confident the Antashi would remain unconscious for at least a few hours, and then began running back to the criminals’ vessel.

When he arrived there he stopped and watched as several ponies were engaged in carrying their companions into the ship. He couldn’t see Celestia or Luna from his angle, but he assumed they must be on the ship as well, still affected by that psionic device. He then reasoned without Celestia or Luna to speak up for him, these ponies would probably be hostile, so he carefully raised his hands and spoke in a loud, clear voice.

“Ponies! I am Captain H’iix of the Hkari! I am here to help!”

The nearest guards spun around at the sound of his voice and leveled their weapons. “Step into the light where we can see you!” one shouted.

H’iix did so slowly, keeping his hands in plain view.

“That’s far enough, alien! What are you doing here?”

H’iix looked around. The guard that had spoken was a pegasus, as were several of her companions, but he saw a few bat ponies as well as one pegasus with multi-colored fur. He tried again.

“I am here with the blessing of your Princess Celestia, who accepted my earlier offer to help rid you of those creatures released by the Antashi.”

The rainbow one came forward. “Hang on. You look like Char-Elles, except for the ears. Do you know him?” H’iix shook his head.

“I don’t know him, but he must be a similar species the Antashi captured if there’s a resemblance. Please,” he added, “I’m here to help and we may be running out of time.”

“What do you mean?”

H’iix gestured at the area. “Look around you. It’s nightfall, which means it’s the predators’ time. If any of the creatures I suspect were on that ship, they could be in the vicinity right now, watching—" everyone froze as a roar shook the night.

"Look out!" cried the multi-hued one as she pointed behind H'iix. He ducked and rolled forward without looking at whatever it was. He only knew he had to get some distance away from it! The beast's jaws closed on air as it missed H'iix, but it bounded forward after him, followed by its pack.

H'iix rolled to his feet, spun around and fired his blaster, but he only managed to graze the beast's shoulder. That only angered it. Before he could fire again, he was flung aside by claws that would have impaled him if not for his armor. His head spinning, he got to his feet again and yelled, "Get inside the ship!" to the ponies. Firing his blaster as quickly as he could, he managed to finally bring down the creature that had attacked him while he backed up into the ship's hold.

The loss of the one caused the others to approach more cautiously, giving the ponies and the Hkari time to regroup. The ship's hold was filled with the unconscious bodies of several guards, as well as the Princesses and the gryphon. H'iix backed slowly into the hold, keeping his blaster trained on the creatures outside. He cast a quick glance at his weapon's readout and saw he only had a few charges left. May as well make them count!

_______________________________________________________

The Alpha hung back and watched, keeping the two others of its species near it. It observed the pony guards come up to either side of that alien with the energy weapon as they blocked the way into the ship’s hold. This wouldn’t do at all. The Alpha could see the purple one in there lying helpless, but just out of reach. And now its forces appeared to be wavering. None seemed eager to face that energy weapon again, so the Alpha came to a decision: they all needed to fear itself and its companions more than that weapon, so it roared to get the pack’s attention. Once enough of them had turned to face it, it bounded upon the nearest beast, pulled it down and ripped it apart.

As it stood over the mess, it roared once again. The Alpha’s meaning was clear: face them, or face me! That turned the tide, as now all the beasts rushed forward. The first two fell to the energy weapon, but then the alien stopped firing. The pony guards came forward and took out one other, but then they were quickly overwhelmed. The Alpha watched with satisfaction as two of the ponies were taken down, but the others just managed to retreat further into the hold as the beasts climbed over and around the fallen bodies to get at the defenders. The alien with the energy weapon was now using its fists and feet to attack, so its weapon must no longer work. Excellent. Now it was time for the Alpha and its companions to join the fight, so it barked the order at them and they then started forward, knocking the others out of the way. They were just about to enter the ship when the Alpha saw something moving beyond the ship’s illumination.

Another group of ponies had arrived.

_________________________________________________

Timorous froze in terror as he got his first look at the live monsters. He saw the hue-mun grab a discarded lance from the ground and run forward. Beside the alien came Applejack, Pinkie and a few others, including the bat ponies and that zebra. This was madness! The sight alone of those monsters made his blood run cold and he couldn’t move.

Now all around him, the other ponies were rushing into battle. The monsters had all stopped their advance into that odd structure and had turned upon the newcomers. Timorous fell to the ground, tightly closed his eyes and covered his head with his hooves, but he couldn’t shut out the sounds of roaring, fighting and creatures dying. And he would have stayed that way, had it not been for somepony screaming, “For the Princesses!” Moments later, the cry was echoed by the battling ponies and radiated through the night like a thunderclap, as they all fought with renewed vigor. Ponies that had never harmed another living being suddenly became savage, unstoppable warriors, all intent to protect their Princesses. That made him open his eyes to look. Ponies were fighting with all their might in groups, engaging the monsters en masse, just as that one pony had said. The hue-mun roared as he was laying into the beasts with his lance, and there was one creature dead at his feet already. Applejack and Pinkie fought side by side and he now realized it was Applejack, like a Pony Valkrie of legend, that had initially shouted the Battle Cry. He then slowly got to his hooves. There were only three other ponies beside him, looking just as terrified. Ahead, he could see some others were on the ground, not moving. The rest were all fighting. Even that dragon, that baby dragon, had joined the battle, searing any of those beasts that came near with his flame. The sight moved him, but it was the Battle Cry that had awoken something within him: anger!

He slowly looked around the Battle as his knees firmed, and his Fear evaporated. His jaw jutted forth. He looked back at the ponies who had been cowering with him and saw the same light of resolve shine in their eyes.

Before he could stop himself, he echoed the Cry, “For the Princesses!” as he and the others with him ran forward and began to fight.

___________________________________________________

Corporal Sable laughed when she took in the sheer number of monsters facing her group. "Now this will be worthy of a song!" she shouted as she flew forward and attacked the nearest creature. The beast reared up on its hind legs and swiped at the bat pony with both sets of claws. Big mistake. Sable dropped and rolled under the attack, then drove her lance into the creature's belly. It screamed and pulled at the weapon, but managed to strike Sable across her face, knocking her away. The blow forced her to release her primary weapon, but she was far from done.

She spit the blood out of her mouth and smiled. "That the best you have?" Then as the monster leaped after her, she inhaled a deep breath and unleashed her sonic attack at point blank range. The beast screeched at the pain and fell as its eardrums exploded. The bat pony leapt up into the air, somersaulted and drove both back hooves into its head, crushing it into the dirt. She then quickly retrieved her lance as Private Nocturne joined her. He was already bloody, but from himself or from the enemy she couldn't tell.

"Late to the party again, Private?!" she shouted as they both engaged another monster.

He was already panting as they took on the creature, but managed to yell, "You're crazy, Corporal!"

She grinned as she fought.

______________________________

Though Charles tried to stay as close to Applejack and Pinkie as he could, he saw ponies in trouble all around him. Nearby, he saw a group of Earth ponies giving everything they had to bring down one of those monsters, but they were about to be overwhelmed. That's when he decided he had to intervene, so he left Applejack and Pinkie and engaged the beast. It had already taken down one of the ponies by the time he'd ran over, but by God, it wouldn't do that again! Charles bared his teeth and plunged his lance into its throat, then ripped sideways, spraying blood and viscera over the area. The beast had only enough time to center its fading vision on the hue-mun before those same eyes rolled up in its head and it toppled over. The ponies he'd saved had no time to thank him as they quickly joined another group and fought with them against the monsters.

And that's when Charles heard a scream behind him.

He turned around and froze in horror as a huge creature took down both Applejack and Pinkie. He screamed "Noooo!" as he started to run back, but before he'd taken two steps another pony, a unicorn, leapt forward and threw himself at the beast. It sank its claws into the pony as it held him off the ground, but though mortally wounded the pony refused to quit fighting.

__________________________________

From the ponies that had fled the Forest, news of the impending battle soon reached the ears of the ponies remaining in Ponyville. Some, like those that had fled, were too frightened to leave the safety of their homes to do anything about it. But a great many others gathered in the Main Square of Ponyville, and, despite the danger to themselves, resolved to do whatever they could to protect the Princesses, even if it meant giving their lives.

In the end, it was at least a hundred strong shopkeepers, merchants, family ponies, and other assorted otherwise ordinary ponies who marched as one as quickly as they could to swell the ranks of those fighting the monsters, led by a few of those who had previously fled, but now filled with new resolve to restore their own honor.
_________________________________

Timorous coughed up blood as he was being impaled in the beast's grip. He kicked it with his rear hooves as it brought him to its mouth, intending to bite his head off. The moment became slow motion as Timorous knew he was about to die, so there was only one thing left to do. Deep inside him, from a place he'd never touched before, he drew power from his own lifeforce and channeled it through his horn. He screamed as he let forth a blast of such intensity it burned the beast's eyes right out of its head. His horn cracked from the discharge. The creature howled in agony as it dropped him and clutched at what was left of its smoking face, as Timorous fell heavily to the ground.

__________________________________

Charles ran over and buried his lance in the beast's stomach, then twisted the lance. He then ripped it free as he'd done before and the creature gave one last cry before it fell. He started to kneel to check on Applejack and Pinkie, but there was no time. Already another beast was approaching, so Charles stood to face it over the bodies of his friends.

__________________________________

Sable crawled over to Nocturne and held him close. All around them, the civilian ponies were fighting, but she could see they wouldn't last long. Her throat was raw from using her sonic attack and one wing and leg was broken. That last monster had a particularly tough hide, which is where she'd finally lost her lance. The bastard had been strong as well, for with one blow it had smashed her side, causing her injuries. And that is also when she'd lost the Private, for he had dived in to defend her, only to get savaged by the beast himself. The intervention of several townsponies had saved her life, for they had piled on the creature and overwhelmed it by sheer numbers, though the effort had cost them dearly. The fighting continued, but in her area it was relatively quiet, just quiet enough for Sable to make her way over to Nocturne and place a hoof under his head.

Sable gently chided him. "I told you to help those civilians, not me, Private." He didn't answer, so Sable smiled and said, "Lucky you're gone, or else I would have demoted you." Her smile turned to tears as she wept.

_________________________________

The ship’s massive hold gave Dash just enough room to circle it once, build up her speed and rush into the few creatures that had remained inside the ship. She became a blur as she plowed into one of the creatures and knocked it off its feet, which gave the guards behind her time to rush forward and impale it on their lances. But the largest of them all was just ahead of her, so she poured on more speed and flew directly at it. She put everything she had into her right hoof and slammed that hoof against its head as it had turned to observe whatever was outside.

The impact made her hoof go numb and she managed to stagger the beast, but it quickly regained itself and turned on her, snarling. She flew up and out of its reach as it swung its huge claws at her, which would have cut her in half had they connected. She dove down and angled both back hooves at it while it leaped upward to meet her.

But she was slightly faster.

_____________________________________________________

The Alpha roared in pain as the pony, an insignificant creature, managed to blind one of its eyes as they collided together. It fell heavily to the floor and the wind was knocked out of it. It clutched at its face as it roared at its subordinates, but they were too busy fighting battles of their own. With its now one good eye, the Alpha looked up to see the cursed creature hovering above it, out of its reach. It then felt the first tingles of fear, for it had never before been wounded.

Then it shook off the pain and pushed its fear aside. It would not fall to these creatures! That pony wouldn’t wound it again; it would wait until it flew forward, then grab it and snap it in half! The pony was faster, but the Alpha was stronger and it was time to show these creatures who would rule. Then its subordinates came up on either side of it and its confidence grew. The guards and the two-legged alien backed up as they advanced. The rainbow one was circling again, gathering speed for another run. That would be the first to fall, the Alpha would see to it!

Just then there was another, unfamiliar roar behind it, but the Alpha refused to look, concentrating on the fast approaching pony. All of a sudden she screeched to a halt in midair and stared behind the Alpha. Then the Alpha turned to look, only to see a pack of creatures it didn’t recognize enter the ship.
________________________________________

Charles stood over the fallen bodies of Applejack and Pinkie. He couldn’t tell if they were dead, but he refused to leave their side, stabbing any creatures that came near and quickly moving back to position. Then Spike came running over and stood beside him, keeping the monsters at bay with his flame, but Charles could tell he was tiring. He himself was exhausted as well, but there was no turning back now. The hue-mun was covered in the blood of the creatures he’d slain, as well as his own blood from those that had gotten through past his lance. But they’d paid for it as in his desperation his strength and his weapon had so far kept him from serious injury. But it couldn’t last.

All around him, the townsponies and remaining guards were falling, but those that still stood fought courageously, which made him double his efforts. These deceptively cute creatures were a terror in battle as they fought against these monsters, biting, kicking and in the case of the unicorns using their magic to blind the creatures until a group finished one off. But the tide was turning against them. They needed a miracle!

All of a sudden the air was split with the roar of several creatures that flew into the battle. Charles looked up, and hope surged inside him as he recognized the beasts. The manticores dove into the enemy, using fangs, claws, and stingers to decimate the remaining creatures. Some of them turned at last to run, but they were cut down midstride and torn to pieces by the furious beasts.

Charles fell to one knee to catch his breath. He then turned to Applejack and Pinkie, afraid of what he might see. But they were both still breathing. Zecora ran up, her supply of defensive potions exhausted, and she herself sporting a gash in her side, but still she took the time to quickly examine the fallen ponies. She then turned and smiled at Charles and Spike, and they both heaved a sigh of relief.

Now all turned to the three remaining beasts inside the ship, the largest of them all. As Charles watched, the manticores flew in and attacked. He saw Rainbow dive in as well, strike fast and hard then fly off again. Charles gripped his lance, picked himself up, and ran in.

_________________________________________________________

The Alpha managed to get his fangs into one of the manticores and kill it, but now the others redoubled their efforts. As it and its subordinates fought, the Alpha then felt an excruciating pain in its back. It spun around and lashed out with its claws, but the two-legged alien ducked under the strike and stabbed again with its lance. Then the pony dove in once more and landed a solid blow to its face.

The Alpha fell to its knees. To its side, the manticores finished off its subordinates, until only the Alpha was left. It screamed its defiance and made one last leap at the pony, but it was pulled down from behind by the angry manticores. They took their time, biting, slashing and stinging…
_________________________________________________________

The battle was over.

_________________________________________________________

Sable kept herself awake through sheer force of will, so she had witnessed the manticores dive in and savage the remaining creatures. She'd even seen that alien take on several monsters himself, which had surprised her. She resolved never to be surprised again after this.

She looked around. Some of the manticores were still prowling about, making sure those creatures were dead. Ponies were already being tended to by those those ponies who could stand and that zebra shaman...those who could be helped, that is. There was nothing she could do at this point, so she sighed, and lay her head down on the Private. The fighting was complete, so now it was time to rest. At last.

She closed her eyes and fell asleep, still cradling Nocturne's body.

...and Last

Two weeks later

Princess Celestia sat staring out her bedroom windows. The afternoon sun shone gently within, illuminating her with its golden glow. On the wall, an ancient clock ticked, a present from some long ago visitor to Canterlot. The ticking seemed loud in the stillness, so she diverted her attention briefly and looked at it. Then, ever so quietly, she used her magic to pull the device from the wall. She stared at it for a few moments, then crushed it with her field. The ticking stopped. She let it fall to the floor, then resumed her gaze out the window, across the mountains, and down to Ponyville below.

There was a knock on her door. Without turning around, Celestia said, “Come in, Lulu.” Princess Luna entered, shutting the doors behind her with her magic. She noticed the crushed timepiece but made no mention. She walked up to her sister and sat beside her. Her brow furrowed as she silently watched Celestia, then she turned and looked out the window at Ponyville as well.

After a few moments, Celestia spoke again. “They died for us, Luna. Our little ponies gave their lives to protect us. How could I have let this happen?” She turned expectedly to Luna as she spoke, but Luna remained silent. Celestia resumed her original gaze, and only then did Luna speak.

“It was not your fault, Tia. We, all three of us, were subdued by those aliens’ device. All we can do now is honor those that survived… and make sure nothing like this ever happens again.”

Celestia sighed. “As to the first thing, that’s easily remedied. As to the second, how are we supposed to do that? What happens when the next group of aliens decides to visit us without our knowledge?”

Luna smiled. “I can set your mind at ease on that regard. I’ve been speaking with the Hkari captain, and he has assured me we can apply for membership with the Stellar Authority. Apparently, the officer that relieved him of his command has in turn been relieved. This Stellar Authority has very strict rules concerning the preservation of life, and the former commander’s actions violated those rules when he left H’iix on our planet and disregarded our plight. We can expect their full protection from here on.”

Celestia turned and nuzzled her sister. “Thank you, Lulu, for seeing to all that. I’m afraid I just haven’t been up to dealing with them all.”

Luna nuzzled her back. “It’s alright; that’s why I’m here.” She rose to her hooves. “Now come, Sister. We have a ceremony to attend!”

Celestia got to her hooves and followed her sister while making an effort to maintain a bright expression for her sake. They both had already seen most of the ponies that had survived the battle, along with seeing Charles, but they’d promised to come back and visit again as soon as they were able.

It had been too much for Celestia. Seeing their broken bodies the first time had caused her to feel such a mixture of rage and grief she had to take herself back to the castle for a few days. But there was one thing she’d done that caused her little trouble.

Passing the gardens, Celestia said, “Wait a moment, Lulu. We have to make a stop first.” Luna turned to her with a quizzical expression, which turned to a knowing one when she saw the direction that Celestia had chosen. They walked in silence until they reached the hidden appropriate spot and stopped. There, they stared at the petrified forms of Priel and R’el, both turned to stone with expressions of terror on each of their faces.

Celestia gazed at them with satisfaction but then turned to her sister.

“This fate is far better than they both deserve, Luna. But,” and here she hesitated, “I still think I should have killed them for what they’ve done.”

Luna stared at them for a few moments, then said, “That would have been beneath you, Tia.” They both lapsed back into silence, remembering that night.

___________________________________

Princess Celestia came awake with a gasp. All around her, the other princesses along with the Gryphon and the caged creatures returned to consciousness as well. Then the smell of blood hit her like a physical blow. The first thing she saw was Rainbow Dash standing over her, looking extremely relieved. But Celestia’s attention was immediately drawn to the bodies of several creatures, the manticores standing over them…and many of her guards who weren’t moving.

“What…what happened here?”

Luna stood up and came next to her, staring at the carnage as well. “Yes, Rainbow Dash. What happened?”

Dash looked extremely nervous as she favored her right hoof. Right now she wished anypony, any at all, would be the one to break this news to the Princesses, but she drew a deep breath and began.

“There was a battle, your Highnesses.” She looked over at Twilight and the gryphon as they joined the group standing over Celestia, who still hadn’t arisen. “You all were unconscious…so we had to protect you.”

“ ‘We?’ You mean…my guards?”

Rainbow couldn’t meet her eyes. “No, your Majesty…not just your guards.”

Celestia stared at her, then got to her hooves. Slowly, she walked around the creatures’ bodies to the entrance of the ship and looked out, followed by her sister and the others. They all joined her as she stood there motionless.

The night was a buzz of activity as she saw nurses and doctors working by torch and unicorn light, tending to dozens of ponies. Her heart lurched as she took in the numbers.

There was the human, cradling Pinkie and Applejack, with Spike sitting near as well. There was the Hkari captain, using what looked like a first aid kit as he assisted Zecora. There were so many others, all bloody and… some motionless. Her little ponies…

Her horn glowed, and the sun came up over the horizon, bathing the scene in its early morning light. There was a collective cheer as all the ponies that could looked up and saw the sun. They then all turned and searched until they found the Princesses, then they all cheered again. But still, she stood there. Luna was the first to move as she walked down the ramp, followed by Twilight and Rainbow Dash. They both found their way around the bodies of those creatures and the manticores that remained. A doctor and a nurse began working on Pinkie and Applejack as Twilight and Rainbow approached. Charles saw them, then got to his feet and out of the way. But Twilight shook her head at him and motioned for him to sit. She hugged Spike, then knelt as close to her friends as she could and watched the doctors aid them. After a few moments, she spoke to Charles.

“What happened to them?”

Charles brushed a tear away and said, “I…try to pri..pro..protek them. I…not fast…enough. I…sorry.”

Twilight’s heart lurched inside her. “Don’t be sorry, Char-Elles. I’m sure you did your best.” She got a good look at him. “You’re hurt as well.”

Charles looked down at himself. “It…nothing.”

“You should have seen him, Twilight! He was awesome!” said Spike. But Twilight frowned at him.

“You shouldn’t have been here, Spike! What were you thinking?”

Spike fidgeted with his claws. “Please don’t be mad, Twilight. When Applejack told us you all were in danger, I had to help! I…I couldn’t let anything happen to you.”

Twilight hugged him fiercely. “No, Spike! I’m not mad, just scared. I don’t know what I’d do if you'd gotten hurt!” She nuzzled him as tears began to fall from her eyes. She then let him go and spoke to the doctor.

“How are they, doctor?”

The doctor looked up for the first time and noticed the Princess, but he was too tired to bow. “They’ll be fine, your Highness. They’ve sustained severe head injuries, but we’ve done what we can and they should be regaining consciousness soon. They are a few of the lucky ones.” He then sat back and sighed. “It seems the medicine the zebra used helped them immensely. But excuse me…I have other patients to attend.” The nurse put the finishing touches on their bandages, then followed the doctor away to another injured pony.

__________________________________________

Luna had stayed within earshot of Twilight as she had her moment with Spike and the alien, while she saw to the ponies that lay injured. Some were clearly beyond help and seeing these caused her to weep bitter tears. If she herself was having such a hard time accepting what she saw, she could only imagine what her sister must be feeling. Unfortunately, she didn’t have to wonder long.

“Where are they?!”

That scream had come from Celestia, and Luna turned as did all the ponies and creatures to face her. Celestia’s eyes were blazing white as she floated above the ship. In her state, there was no telling what she might do, so Luna flew up to her and tried to calm her down. But Celestia wasn’t going to do so.

Addressing the Hkari captain, she repeated herself: “Where are they?”

H’iix hesitated, then said, “Your Highness, they’re in my shuttle, unconscious. But, I ask you to —”

Celestia cut him off. “Show me!”

H’iix swallowed, then sighed. Turning in the direction of his shuttle, he simply pointed. Celestia immediately took flight, followed by Luna. All too soon, they landed by the shuttle. Celestia studied it for a moment, then used her field to rip the door off the vehicle. There inside, still unmoving, lay the aliens. As she began to light her horn once more, Luna suddenly stood in between them and her.

“What are you going to do, Sister?”

“Get out of the way, Luna.” But she stood her ground.

“Tia, they both deserve to die. But not like this!”

“I said get out of my way!” Roughly, she shoved Luna aside and picked up Priel and R’el in her field. Quickly, she used her field to pry them both out of their armor, then shook them both awake. Both aliens looked at each other, then stared into the eyes of their Death, too terrified to say a word. Just as she was about to crush them both, suddenly there was movement behind them. Celestia turned and saw several ponies had followed them and were now watching. One of the crowd spoke up.

“Are those the ones responsible for all this?!” He pointed at the aliens as he spoke. “They are, aren’t they?! What are you waiting for, your Highness? Kill them!!”

Celestia’s eyes returned to normal as she and Luna stared at the crowd in shock as they began to chant, “Kill them! Kill them!”

“Stop, my ponies! We are not butchers!”cried Luna.

“They deserve it, Princess! My friends are dead because of them!” a mare shouted.

“And if my brother dies it’s their fault!” shouted another. “Do it!”

As the herd began to surge forward, both Sisters took a step back. Celestia quietly whispered, “What have I done?”

But Luna couldn’t speak. Seeing the bloodlust in their eyes was truly unnerving, and she retreated as they all came forward. The ponies would have ripped the terrified aliens out of Celestia’s grasp if another voice had not suddenly spoken up.

“What are you all doing?!” cried Twilight. She had finally made her way to the area, followed by Spike, H’iix and the hue-mun. The ponies all turned to look at her, but their expressions remained unchanged.

“Don’t try to stop us, Princess Twilight! They deserve to die!” cried a unicorn.

“Their monsters would have killed you all if we hadn’t been here! We want justice!” cried another.

Twilight ported herself between the aliens and the herd. “Please, everypony…this isn’t our way!” But they were past reasoning.

As they all surged forward again, Twilight threw up a shield around herself and the other Princesses. Seeing she had no choice, and to spare her former teacher the burden, she fired up her horn and blasted both Priel and R’el. They screamed in agony, then went limp. The crowd fell silent, watching.

“Good riddance,” said one of the ponies. They all turned as one and left, some casting guilty looks behind themselves, but the majority simply remaining silent as they walked away.

Once the area was clear of the townsponies, and only the Princesses and the Hkari, Spike and Charles remained, only then did Twilight drop her shield. Twilight hung her head as Luna came up and put a hoof over her shoulder, then whispered her thanks to her.

But Twilight shook her head. “I didn’t kill them…I only sent a pain spell that knocked them out.”

Luna smiled. “I know.”

Twilight looked at her. “You knew? Then why are you thanking me?”

Luna drew back her hoof. “Because it was the only way to appease them.” Here she looked at Celestia. “And now my sister has been spared a terrible responsibility.” She turned back to Twilight. “You were very brave to take that on.”

Just as Twilight was about to speak, the aliens stirred and began to wake. Celestia dropped them in disgust and they fell heavily to the ground. They lay where they fell, first staring at each other, then slowly looking around. They spotted the Hkari captain, and opened their mouths to speak, but H’iix only shook his head. “Your fate is in their Majesties' hooves, criminals.”

At this Celestia found her voice. “Look at me.”

They slowly turned and their eyes widened as they saw her light her horn once more.

Her voice was deadly quiet as she said, “You both deserve death." Her face then twisted with rage. "This will be much worse.”

They both screamed, “Wait!!” but it was too late. Starting with their feet, they slowly were both turned to stone. They managed to get to their knees as they fought against the change but could do nothing else. They screamed in agony once more until the spell reached their chests. They flailed their arms until the spell reached those appendages, then they could only silently scream until the spell was complete.

Celestia closed her eyes. Luna was the first to speak. “That spell normally does not cause pain, Sister.”

Celestia opened her eyes and looked at Luna. “I know.”

______________________________

Present day

Twilight and Dash had spent most of the morning visiting ponies in the hospital. Some were chipper, some were sullen, but there were no patients as stubborn as Applejack. It took them both to convince her to stay in bed, for once she’d been bandaged and the blow to her head stitched up she had insisted on leaving her room to see all the other wounded.

“I cain’t just lie here! I gotta do sumthin’!” Twilight smiled and shook her head.

“What you ‘gotta’ do is get better, Applejack. I’ve made the rounds; everypony is doing as well as they can. Pinkie’s recovering, Rarity and Fluttershy are sleeping peacefully, Zecora and Spike are fine.” Though she forced a smile, Twilight didn’t mention those ponies that had been gravely wounded…and worse. The time would come all too soon to talk about them.

Rainbow added, “Besides, I don’t want you using this as an excuse the next time we compete! I want you at your best!”

Applejack lay back and snorted, then looked over at her family. Apple Bloom and Granny both smiled at her. Even Winona was there with one foreleg in a cast, but she still wagged her tail happily. The room was filled with flowers and cards from all over Ponyville. There were even gifts and flowers from the ponies in Canterlot, once word of the Battle had reached the capital. She turned to Twilight.

“I never did git to apologize for bringin’ Spike inta that fight, Twilight.” She hung her head. “I’m sorry.”

Placing a hoof on the bed, Twilight answered, “Please don’t blame yourself, Applejack. By now I’ve been told everything that happened that night and I know how stubborn Spike was then.” She smiled. “Remind you of anypony?”

Applejack frowned. “No…who?”

Rainbow rolled her eyes and Twilight simply giggled. “Get some rest, AJ. Things will be fine while you recover,” said she. They both turned to go, but Applejack stopped them.

“Wait! How is Char-Elles?” They turned back.

“He got a bit of a shock, but he’s fine,” said Rainbow.

_____________________________

Charles sat in his room at the castle, recovering from his wounds. As he’d promised himself, he’d visited that room with the odd cylinders. He was still slightly in shock over what he'd found. He got up and looked out a window in the direction of the Everfree, remembering…
______________________________

After all the ponies had been taken care of, Charles turned to the ship and looked inside.

“Char-Elles? Is something wrong?” asked Twilight. “We need to get back.”

He turned and looked at her. “I need…see...something…first.”

“What are you talking about?”

Charles turned to the Hkari captain and said, “Please tell her I saw a room in this ship when I’d been captured, a room that may contain others of my kind.”

H’iix looked surprised, then grim. “Those fool Antashi,” he muttered. He then turned to Twilight and translated. She looked shocked when he’d finished and said, “You think there may be…other hue-muns?” She addressed H’iix. “Tell him I can’t allow him to go inside, there may be more traps like the one that got us.”

When Charles heard the translation he frowned. “Plees,” speaking directly to her, “I…must know.”

H’iix interceded. “I’ll go with him, your Highness. He’ll be safe with me, now that I know what to watch for.”

Twilight looked like she was going to further argue, but then she saw the look in Charles’ eyes. She dropped her own and said, “Alright, Char-Elles. But please don’t take too long. I don’t know what I’d do if something happened to you.”

H’iix started to translate, but Charles held up his hand. “I understood most of that.” He bent on one knee and drew her close. “Thak...yuu.”

He and H’iix turned and wandered into the ship. It took a few tries, but eventually they found the room he’d been looking for. His heart started beating rapidly as he stood in the doorway. It was just as he remembered. He walked inside, with H’iix close behind him, and stopped in front of one of the cylinders. He reached up and wiped the frost away. His worse fears were immediately realized as he saw what was inside. He then went around to all of them and saw the same results. His hand trembled as he laid it against one of the cylinders and turned to H’iix.

“How many other times has this happened?!” He was shaking.

H’iix sighed and said, “There’s no way to tell. The Stellar Authority forbids direct contact with unsanctioned worlds, but there are many races just as bad or worse than the Antashi and they’re not all under our jurisdiction. I cannot speak for them.” Charles turned back and stared at the being inside the cylinder. She had a peaceful look on her face as if she was just resting, but Charles could only imagine her reaction if she was awakened and saw where she was. He looked at her clothing. She was wearing pajamas just as he had been, so she must have been taken in her sleep. His eyes roved the chamber and saw all the other figures in a similar state of dress.

“What are we going to do with all of them?”

“The same for all the surviving creatures: take them back to their worlds.”

Charles turned back to H’iix. “Can you do that? I thought you’d been relieved of your ship?"

H’iix smiled. “My crew contacted me an hour ago. The Admiral in charge of this sector wasn’t at all pleased with my being marooned here and no help being offered to these ponies. The Diligence will be back in orbit soon and arrangements have already been made.” He paused. “Which brings up a question: what do you wish to do?”

“What do you mean?”

“What I mean is do you wish to remain here? Your situation is unique in that you are an abductee who is now fully conscious of the wider universe. Can you return to your previous life with this knowledge?”

Charles dropped his eyes and thought. After a few moments, he finally said, “I honestly don’t know. I’ve made some special friends here and I’d hate to leave them. But I miss my family and friends back home.” His face brightened with a new thought. “Would I be allowed to return?”

H’iix shook his head. “You weren’t supposed to be here in the first place. I doubt my superiors would allow me to return you here once you leave. For that matter, I doubt you’ll be allowed to stay. But I can speak with them on your behalf if you wish to remain.”

Charles paused. “How long do I have to decide?”

“I can give you at most two weeks. It will take about that long for my crew and I to return these humans and creatures to their respective worlds, and then present your case to the Admiral.” He placed a hand on his shoulder. “Talk to your pony friends; I’m sure Celestia’s word will carry weight with our Council.”

“Thanks,” was all he could say as he was still shaken by what he’d discovered.

____________________________________

There was a knock on his door, and the hue-mun got up to answer it. Twilight and Spike both stood there, she in a gown and full regalia, he in a tux and bowtie, smiling up at him.

“It’s time, Char-Elles,” she said.

Charles straightened the tie and smoothed down his suit provided him by one of Canterlot’s best tailors. He would have much preferred to wear an outfit provided him by Rarity, but she was still too weak to do anything other than cast a critical eye over his ensemble and pronounce it acceptable. So he followed Twilight and Spike out to the waiting chariot. The pegasus charioteers both saluted him as they climbed into the conveyance, and they all quickly took off.

They all soon landed in the main courtyard before the castle, where every citizen of Equestria appeared to have gathered. There were representatives of the Gryphon Empire as well as those from Equestria’s other allies in the throng, all awaiting the appearance of the Royals.

Soon, Princess Celestia arrived, flanked by her Sister, as well as Princess Cadence and Princess Twilight. The cheer that accompanied their appearance was deafening and shook the very walls of Canterlot. Celestia held up a hoof for silence, which after a few moments was achieved.

“Subjects and Citizens of Equestria, we are gathered here to pay honor to those that fought and to those that died to protect our Persons during the recent conflict." Celestia took a moment to compose herself, then continued. “No words can express the great sorrow we feel for those that are no longer with us. But at the same time, we cannot adequately convey the pride and honor we feel as well.” The tears were flowing freely now, as she stared out over the crowd. “First, a moment of silence for the Fallen.” She bowed her head as a complete hush fell over the assembled. After a few moments, she spoke again. “Here we honor them.” She cleared her throat, then began to speak from memory the names of every pony that had died, guards and civilians alike.
_____________________________

Timorous’ heart was complete. He thought back to that night and remembered the fight. He could still recall the pain, but it was a distant memory, like a dream he could barely remember. What he most recalled was rushing to the defense of his secret love when she’d fallen. He’d not been able to stop the monster that had attacked her and Pinkie, but he’d managed to slow it down long enough for that alien to finish it off with his lance. Before the alien had killed it, the creature had done…something to himself with its claws? That he couldn’t recall, but he did remember lying there next to Applejack, close enough to reach out a hoof and gently touch her face. He remembered smiling, then everything going dark.

Now here he was, floating above the crowd and listening as her Majesty recited his name. His heart swelled. But then he felt a tugging, faint at first, then growing more insistent. He turned and looked above him. There was a light, brighter than Celestia’s Sun, that seemed to be calling out to him. As he obeyed the summons, he turned one last time and looked down. He smiled as he saw them all. “They’ll be fine,” he said to himself, “now off to the next adventure!” He turned and flew off into the Light, laughing as he went.

___________________________

“And now we honor those that remain!” Celestia’s voice brightened as she said their names and one by one they came across the stage to receive their medals. For each, Luna placed the medals over their heads and bowed, while Celestia bent down and kissed each on both cheeks. Some that had been part of the mob that had tried to kill the aliens looked a bit sheepish, but a smile and a kiss from their Ruler let them know all was forgiven.

Soon, in due course, it was time for Charles to cross the stage, and here Celestia paused when she heard the murmuring of the crowd. For though most by now had heard of him this was the first time many had laid eyes upon him. Celestia held up a hoof.

“My Subjects, here you see before you an alien every bit as brave and heroic as any! We do not hesitate to honor him!” There was a loud cheer from the crowd as she turned him to face her, then kissed him as she’d done the others. Charles blushed bright red, then bowed. He then joined the rest of the ponies that had received their medals and stood there fidgeting. After the last pony had received her reward and joined the rest, all four of the Princesses turned to the group and bowed themselves down on one knee, and the crowd went crazy.

Luna held up a hoof and shouted in her best Canterlot Voice, “Let the FUN begin!” Thousands of balloons were released as the party began down on the streets of Canterlot. For all the others, they were ushered into a huge banquet hall, where a full orchestra was waiting, along with chefs and caterers from every corner of Equestria. Food and wine flowed freely, as well as entertainment from a certain caped unicorn. It was quite the spectacle.

When the music began, several mares, who had all been giggling to themselves, suddenly ran up to Charles and asked him to dance. Among the mares was the Flower Trio. Their sister Roseluck had been found and restored to normal, as she and the others crowded around Charles. He blushed again, then put down his drink and started the first of many dances. After about an hour he was tired, and in his broken Equestrian asked to be excused. They all pouted and sighed, but allowed him to sit. Twilight, Spike, and Rainbow wandered over.

“Having a good time, Char-Elles?” asked Rainbow. She was smiling at his discomfort with the mares, but not in a mean way.

“I…miss my…friends. I...am wish…they…here.”

“We all do, Char-Elles,” said Twilight. “But at least they’re alright.”

Charles nodded his agreement, then a thought occurred to him, but he wondered if now was the time to ask. Seeing the conflict on his face, Twilight asked, “Is something else bothering you?”

Charles hesitated. He really liked all these ponies and he believed they liked him as well but did that extend to the question he had? He took a deep breath and asked anyway.

“I…thinking…about stay here. In pony-world.” He looked from Twilight to Spike to Rainbow. “Would that be…okay?”

Their jaws all dropped as one, but Spike was the first to speak.

“Are you kidding? That would be awesome!”

Twilight smiled and her face was bright as she nodded. “You are more than welcome to stay in Equestria, Char-Elles. We would love to have you!”

“We’d be sad if you left, big guy!” said Rainbow.

“Th…Thank you,” was all he could say.

_________________________

One year later

Charles sat on the porch of his home one morning, drinking a coffee and breathing deeply of the breeze. Fluttershy had promised to come by later and he was looking forward to seeing her. Her mane still hadn’t grown back completely, but her wings were almost as good as new and she could now make short flights. Rainbow was her coach, and she vowed her friend would be an even better flier than before.

Though he missed Earth, he’d asked H’iix if there had been some way to contact his family without scaring them to death, to let them know he was alright. H’iix had nodded in the affirmative and told him that wouldn’t be a problem.

Charles heard movement and pushed his glasses up his nose to better see not only Fluttershy but all of his friends coming to visit. He stood to meet them.

“Welcome, all of you. I wasn’t expecting to see you all this morning.”

“We all thought it would be a good idea to have a picnic on such a lovely day,” said Fluttershy. “If that’s alright with you, of course.”

“That’s a great idea! Let’s go.” So saying he closed his door, took the basket from Pinkie, and they all set out to the meadow.

It was a wonderful day indeed.

The CMC

Princess Luna and a contingent of her Guards landed in front of Twilight’s castle. Twilight and Applejack were waiting, the latter still a bit worked up. The delay had done nothing good for her composure, even though it had only been a few minutes between the sending of the letter and Luna’s arrival. As the two approached Luna, she spoke first.

“Your letter told of a strange creature, Twilight Sparkle. Where was it last seen?”

“That would be by me, Your Highness,” said Applejack. “It came to my door, but it run off as soon as it saw me!”

“Which direction, young Applejack?”

“I think it was heading for the Everfree.”

“Then we shall begin our search from your farm. Guards!”

“Please, Your Highness,” said Twilight, “we have to capture it for study. It may not be dangerous.”

“That will depend upon the creature’s actions when we find it, Twilight. But we will do our best not to hurt it.” She paused, then added, “We need more light.” Her horn slowly lit as she concentrated, and the moon left its place in the sky as the sun peeked over the horizon. Turning to her awaiting Guards, she gave them their instructions. They saluted, and then flew off by twos.

Applejack watched them go, then turned to Luna and Twilight.

“I gotta make sure my family is alright. I told Big Mac not to let anything get in the house.”

“Don’t worry, Applejack. We’ll accompany you to your home,” said Twilight.

“Indeed, friend Applejack. We must make sure your family is safe,” said Luna. So saying, they all three ran off as one in the direction of Sweet Apple Acres.

_________________________________________________________________________________________________________

A few of Ponyville’s early risers saw a sight they talked about for days: armored bat ponies flying in twos, headed over the Everfree Forest. Something big must be up, for nopony ever saw Princess Luna’s Night Guards during the day. Most ponies simply chalked it up as part of the weirdness that came with living in Ponyville, but one little orange filly saw them through her window, and thought: Opportunity!

As she ran down the stairs and grabbed her scooter and wagon, her mother called out, “Scootaloo! Where are you going, honey?”

While she strapped on her helmet, she yelled, “I’m going to go get the other Crusaders, Mom! Something weird is happening!”

“What is happening, dear?”

“Tell you later gotta go bye!” Off she went. Her mother sighed, and went back to reading her paper. Her daughter rarely got into too much trouble, and she, of course, worried about her, but there was no stopping her once she got into “Crusader Mode.” She’d just tell her husband about it when he got home from work. It’s good to share the worry.

Meanwhile Scootaloo was buzzing as fast as she could to Sweetie Belle’s house. Her mind was buzzing just as fast. If they could find out what Luna’s Guards were doing, they could probably help, and get their cutie marks in…helping? That didn’t seem right. She’d find out when she could. Right now she had to get the others.

Braking in front of Sweetie Belle’s house, she jumped off her scooter and quickly rang the doorbell. After a few minutes a sleepy, mustachioed, somewhat annoyed stallion opened the door.

“Do you know what time it…oh, it’s you, Scootaloo. Sweetie is still asleep.”

“I’m sorry, Mr. Belle, but it’s important! Can you please wake her?”

He sighed. “‘Crusader’ business, I’m guessing.” He yawned. “Alright, c’mon in. I’ll get her.” Scootaloo followed him inside but was too keyed up to take a seat. She fidgeted and paced until a drowsy filly came down the stairs.

“Scootaloo? What…what are you doing here?”

“C’mon, sleepy! We gotta go get Apple Bloom and head out to the Everfree! There’s something weird going on, and if we hurry we may be able to help!”

Sweetie paused and was unable to hide the look of worry on her face.

“The Everfree? I don’t know…it could be dangerous.”

“We’ll be fine!” She leaned in and whispered, “Luna’s Guards are flying all over the place. We gotta see what they’re up to! Besides, this is the perfect opportunity to get our cutie marks!”

Sweetie looked at her. “In what, exactly?”

Now it was Scootaloo’s turn to pause. “I don’t know exactly,” she admitted, “but we’ll never know if we don’t hurry!”

Sweetie Belle sighed. “Alright. Just let me brush my teeth real fast.”

Scootaloo grabbed her by one hoof and said, “No time! Let’s go!” She dragged the still protesting filly outside, threw a helmet on her and jumped on the scooter. Sweetie Belle barely had time to settle herself in the wagon before Scootaloo took off towards Sweet Apple Acres.

They were still a good distance from the farm house when Scootaloo suddenly swerved into some bushes.

“What are you doing?!” cried Sweetie.

“Shh!” said Scootaloo. “Keep your voice down! And duck!” she added, pulling her down beside her. “I just saw Princess Luna, Twilight, and Applejack out in front of the house. If they see us they’ll probably try to stop us.”

“Stop us from what?”

“Getting Apple Bloom, of course! If we’re gonna find out what’s happening we have to tell her without them interfering. C’mon.” Taking off her helmet and motioning for Sweetie to do the same, she then hid behind some trees, as her friend followed her. Going from tree to tree they quickly made their way to the side of the house that Apple Bloom’s window was on. Grabbing some pebbles, Scootaloo tossed them up at the window.

“Apple Bloom!” she stage whispered. “You up there?” The window opened, and Apple Bloom leaned out.

“Scootaloo? Sweetie Belle? What are you guys doing out there?”

“We came to get you! There’s something going on, and we need to find out what it is!” said Scootaloo.

“I cain’t go. I was told to stay in my room. Somethin’ got Applejack ‘n Big Mac awful riled up!”

There was a collective gasp from the two outside. “‘Something?!’ Did you see it?!” asked Sweetie Belle.

“Well, no,” she admitted. “But whatever it was, it made my sister run off to get help, and Mac’s been guardin’ the house. Granny’s still sleepin’ or she’d be all riled up too!”

“Applejack already got help, ‘cause Twilight and Princess Luna are here at the front of the house. Plus, Luna’s Guards are flying all over the place, looking for whatever it is! We gotta help! Ponyville could be in danger!” said Scootaloo.

Just then there was a bark from the inside of the room. Apple Bloom turned to hush the dog.

“Is Winona in there?” asked Scootaloo.

“Yeah, she’s been in here all night.”

Scootaloo thought for a moment, and then her eyes lit up as she got an idea.

“That’s perfect! We can use Winona to track down whatever they’re looking for!”

“I already done tole you: I cain’t go. Besides, how’m I gonna get Winona down there?”

“Just a second, lemme think,” said Scootaloo. She and Sweetie Belle whispered together for a few moments.

“Here’s what you do,” she said. “Tell them you’re taking Winona for a walk. She probably needs to go out anyway, if she’s been up there all night.”

“Yeah, she does, but…you want me to…lie to Applejack ‘n my brother? I cain’t do that.”

“It’s not a lie! You are gonna be taking her for a walk!” said Scootaloo.

“Hmm,” said Apple Bloom, “that is true. But what if they say ‘no’?”

“If they say ‘no’ we’ll think of something else. C’mon, Apple Bloom! We can’t do this without you!”

“Okaay…I’ll try. Wait there.”

Steeling herself for the task ahead, Apple Bloom took a deep breath, and then opened the door and went out, as Winona followed her. She made it to the bottom of the stairs before Big Mac saw her and said, “Apple Bloom! I thought I told you to stay in your room!”

She almost lost her nerve when she saw not only her brother and sister but no less than Twilight and Princess Luna standing there.

“I…I just thought I should take Winona out. She’s been cooped up with me all night,” she gulped.

“Your concern for your animal is commendable, young Apple Bloom,” said Luna, “but ‘tis dangerous to be out and about at this time.”

Feeling even guiltier, Apple Bloom said, “But she needs to go! We won’t be long.” Just then, as if waiting for her cue, Winona started whimpering. “See?”

The adults all exchanged glances. “Alright,” Applejack finally said. “But you come straight back, y’hear?”

Apple Bloom mumbled something under her breath, then quickly ran outside with the canine in tow. Feeling like yesterday’s garbage, she told herself, “This had better be worth it…”

Rainbow Dash

As instructed, two of Luna’s Guards were flying low over the area between the border of the Everfree and the outskirts of Ponyville.

“See anything?” asked one.

“Nothing worth noting ma’am,” replied the other. They flew in silence for a few more minutes, when all of a sudden they both noticed what sounded like trees being sawn down. They halted and looked at one another, and then scanned the area, trying to pinpoint the source.

Corporal Sable, the senior of the two, nudged her companion and pointed at a cloud house about a hundred feet away.

“Look there, Private. It’s coming from that pegasus’ house,” she said.

“What could it be, Corporal?”

“I don’t know, and I doubt it has anything to do with our mission, but we’d best investigate. Somepony could be in trouble.” They quickly closed the distance and hovered at the front door. From this range the noise was unbearable, so they both took a moment and covered their sensitive ears!

“Auugh, what is that?!” cried Private Nocturne.

“Come on, we’re going in!” yelled the Corporal. Two kicks from her powerful back legs and they were through the door. They both located the origin and the Corporal said, “Through there!” as she pointed ahead. They both raced forward and kicked open the door of…a bedroom? Before them, lying on her back, was a certain rainbow colored pegasus. The sound of their entering caused her snoring to falter and halt as she drowsily sat up.

“Zzz—what? Who?” She looked sleepily around, and her eyes widened as she took in the sight of the two Guards staring at her in shock.

“What the heck are you two doing in my house?!”

Corporal Sable was the first to recover. “Ahem. We apologize, citizen. We heard a frightening noise and thought somepony needed help. Turns out it was you snoring.”

Rainbow Dash turned red in the face. “What are you talking about?! I don’t snore!”

The two Guards exchanged glances, and then Sable said, “Very sorry for the misunderstanding. We’ll be on our way.”

“Hang on!” said Dash. “What are Night Guards doing in Ponyville?”

“I’m afraid that’s classified, citizen.”

Rainbow got to her feet. “Oh, no you don’t! You don’t bust into my house, call me ‘citizen’, then leave without an explanation! Don’t you know who I am? I’m Rainbow Dash! Now tell me what’s going on!”

Private Nocturne’s eyes widened. “You’re Rainbow Dash? The Rainbow Dash?!”

Somewhat mollified at his tone, Dash replied, “So you have heard of me. Good, that should make this easy. I want answers!”

Corporal Sable shook her head. “I’m sorry, Ms. Dash. Our orders are very specific, and they come straight from Her Highnesses Luna and Twilight.”

“Twilight? Now we’re talking. Where is she?”

“Princess Twilight is currently at the Apple Family Farm, or she was an hour ago,” said Sable.

“Fine,” said Dash, “I’ll just ask her.” As she flew through her house and surveyed the wreckage of her doors, she turned to them and said, “Somepony is paying for this damage. What are your names?”

The senior bat pony swallowed, and then said, “I am Corporal Sable, and this is Private Nocturne.”

“Sable. Nocturne. Good to know.” She then turned and flew off in the direction of the farm. The two watched her recede into the distance.

“Think we’ll be in trouble, Corporal?”

The Corporal sighed. “Our intentions were good, Private, but I don’t know. Let’s get back to the mission.”

__________________________________________________________________________________________________________

As she made her way to the farm, Rainbow’s keen eyesight noticed other pairs of Guards in the distance.

“Something really big must be going on,” she said to herself. She looked down and saw she was nearing a familiar cottage. “I’d better let Fluttershy know what’s happening.” With that, she flew down and alighted at her friend’s door.

“Fluttershy! Open up!” said Dash as she hammered at the entrance…

__________________________________________________________________________________________________________

This truly is a fascinating creature.

Fluttershy and Char-Elles had been speaking to one another for about an hour or so. In that time they’d learned many things about each other, and the worlds from which they came. This… “hue-mon” had said many things that surprised her, and vice versa. Some of the words did not translate well, like ‘phone’ or ‘TV’, but she understood most of what he was saying. He, in turn, seemed most fascinated by ordinary things like her wings.

“Yes, I can fly with them, but…I’m not a very good flier.”

He made a request.

“Okay…but you’ll see.” Spreading her wings, she slowly flapped them and hovered in place, flew up to the ceiling and then she landed. The hue-mon’s eyes got big, and he smiled and clapped those “hands”. Fluttershy blushed.

“Thank you, you’re too kind, but that really wasn’t impressive. Wait until you see my friend Rainbow Dash!”

He asked a question.

“Soon, I think. We’ll be meeting all my friends, and maybe Twilight can find a way to get you home. She’s the smartest pony I know.”

He looked skeptical, if she was reading his expression correctly, and then asked another question.

“No, she’s an Alicorn, not a unicorn, and her use of magic is much better than a unicorn’s. She’ll be able to help you.”

Here he muttered something that sounded like the word “impossible.” She sighed. In the course of their conversation, this was the one point at which they’d kept getting stuck: the hue-mon did not seem to be accepting the fact that magic existed here. She could not imagine a place without magic, as he insisted was the case on… “Earth.” But now it was time to get some help. They’d spent enough time talking, and she was just about to suggest they go into Ponyville and find Twilight when there came a loud hammering on her door. Even before she heard the voice, she knew which pony it was.

“Fluttershy! Open up!”

The hue-mon looked startled, and she hastily assured him that it was okay, that’s just one of the friends she’d been talking about. She went to her door and opened it.

“Hey, Fluttershy,” said Dash. “I thought you should know Luna’s Guards are all over the place, looking for something I think.” She started to walk in when Fluttershy stopped her.

“I…I think I know what they’re looking for. Or actually, who they’re looking for. But please, Dash…stay calm,” she added as she swung the door wide.

“Stay calm? What for? You hiding something…” she trailed off as she looked through her doorway and saw what was seated on the couch. She just stared, as a creature she’d never seen before…smiled nervously at her and waved.

(Three…

Two…

One…)

“Gaaahhh!! What is that?!” cried Dash.

“Please Dash! I asked you to stay calm!”

She pointed and yelled, “What is that thing? And what’s it doing in your house?!”

The creature had stumbled to its feet and backed away at her outburst.

“His name is Char-Elles, and he’s a hue-mon! He’s a friend!”

Rainbow looked at her as if she’d lost her senses. “A ‘friend?’ How can you be friends with…that?”

“Just…just please stop yelling. I can explain if you’ll let me,” pleaded Fluttershy. She placed a hoof on one of her shoulders.

Rainbow stiffened but didn’t pull away. She also couldn’t stop staring at the… “hoo-mon”. After a few tense moments, she finally spoke.

“Alright, Fluttershy…I’ll listen. But,” and here she pointed again, “that thing better keep its distance, or I’ll buck it through a wall!”

________________________________________________________________________________________________________

I should have known I’d get a reaction like this. The Fluttershy and I had been having a nice conversation, considering the circumstances. When the loud knocking came to the door, and the voice had yelled, the hairs on the back of my neck had stood up for some reason. She told me everything was fine, it was just her friend ‘Rainbow Dash’. She had then gone to the door, spoken for a few moments and then swung the door open. I then saw the one she’d described standing there, staring in at me. I tried smiling and waving, and there was a pause just long enough for me to think everything would be alright. It wouldn’t.

When she started yelling and pointing, I got up and backed away. I couldn’t understand her words, but her tone was crystal clear: she saw me as a threat. As I watched her reaction and read her expression, I realized something else: she didn’t just see me as a threat, she saw me as a monster. That…hurt.

Fluttershy spoke softly to her, while the other pegasus kept staring at me. I backed away a little more at the next outburst. I could tell this one would never accept me.

Even though the situation was tense, I noticed I could not understand Fluttershy when she wasn’t speaking directly to me. That was weird, but I reasoned it must be some of that “magic” she had mentioned. I still wasn’t ready to accept it, but it was getting harder to deny its existence. Fluttershy eventually turned and addressed me.

Please, Char-Elles…have a seat. It will be alright.

I took my time and slowly approached the couch again, then resumed my seat. The other pegasus never took her eyes off me as she backed up and sat as far away from me as she could.

_________________________________________________________________________________________________________

“Okay, Fluttershy: start talking,” said Dash.

Lessons and Cupcakes

A quiet afternoon a few days later found the alien seated on the floor in his room, with Fluttershy, Twilight, and Pinkie sitting about him. There were simple picture books scattered on the bed, the first attempts by Twilight to teach him Equestrian. It was going better than she’d hoped.

They’d allowed him to clean himself up, and Rarity had made a simple tunic and some pants for him. His eyes had lit up when he’d been presented with the clothing, and he’d used the opportunity to use one of the first phrases he’d learned: “Th-Ak yuu.” His pronunciation still needed some work. Even so, Rarity had blushed and told him it was no trouble. She’d had a couple minotaurs as customers before, so she’d loosely based his proportions on those patterns. She was still a bit nervous around him, so after giving him her gifts she’d politely excused herself.

Twilight, however, was fascinated with him. As far as she could tell, he had a keen mind and was eager to learn. The scholar in her rose to the challenge, but it was a struggle for her to slow down and be patient in her instructions and await Fluttershy’s translations.

“No, no. It’s pronounced “A-a-a”, not “ahhh,” said Twilight.

The alien repeated her sound while looking at the book. When she smiled and nodded at his better attempt, she moved on to the next letter. This went on for about an hour when Fluttershy quietly suggested they take a break. The alien yawned and stretched his arms, then spoke briefly to Fluttershy. She listened, then turned to the others.

“Char-Elles wants to know what’s going to happen to him. Also, he’s a bit hungry.” This was the moment Pinkie had been waiting for.

“Wait right there!” She bolted out of the room. The others looked at each other in confusion, until she came back in bearing a large box on her back. Setting it down in front of the alien, she grinned from ear to ear as she slowly opened it. Inside was a variety of cupcakes and donuts, all freshly baked. The alien hesitantly reached for a cupcake, then looked at Fluttershy. She smiled and nodded, so he took one and slowly brought it to his mouth. Pinkie leaned forward watching him until she almost fell over. The alien took a small bite, and then his eyes rolled up in his head. Quickly finishing off the first one, he started to reach for another, but then picked up the box and offered it to the others. When they all politely declined, he helped himself to the rest. Pinkie was overjoyed.

“I knew he’d like them!”

Twilight smiled at her friend and then turned to Fluttershy.

“Tell him this: until we can find a way to send him home, we’ll help him to adjust to life here. But tell him I’ll do everything I can to get him back to his people.” Fluttershy spoke to him, and he looked at Twilight, then nodded.

“ThaK yu.”

________________________________________________________________________________________________________

Despite the best efforts to the contrary, word quickly spread in Ponyville some kind of alien was now residing in Twilight’s castle. The reactions ranged from cautious indifference to just short of outright panic.

“What will we do if it gets loose? And what if there are more of them?” Roseluck asked her companions, Daisy and Lily.

“The horror!” cried Daisy. “Won’t somepony think of the children?”

“Let’s go talk to the Mayor!” said Lily. “We can’t have that monster living here, just waiting for an opportunity to gobble us up!”

Applejack was just closing up her stall next to them when she overheard.

“Calm down, you three. Twilight knows what she’s doing.” They all turned on her.

“How can you say that?! What if…what if it eats her?!” said Daisy. Applejack rolled her eyes.

“It’s not like that. It just wants to get home, and it’s not dangerous.”

“How do you know?” said Lily.

“Because I saw it when it first showed up, and yes, it scared me then. But Luna’s Guards caught it easily after that and took it to Twilight. Luna Herself put it in Twilight’s control. If it was dangerous, Princess Luna woulda taken it to Canterlot, or gotten rid of it. I ain’t scared of it now.”

All they heard was she’d seen it.

“You saw it?! What does it look like?” said Roseluck. “I heard it has big, sharp teeth, long spindly tentacles, and it’s ten feet tall!” The other two gasped at this description and came close to fainting.

The loud conversation had drawn a small crowd, so Applejack looked around before answering.

Applejack sighed. “No, no…nothing like that. It is tall, but its teeth aren’t that big, and it seems pretty harmless.” There were suspicious murmurs from the crowd, so Applejack raised her voice.

“Okay, listen everypony: I don’t trust that thing, but I do trust Twilight. She won’t let anything bad happen to us, an’ you got an Apple’s word on that! If that ain’t good enough for ya, then that alien is the least of your worries!” This answer seemed to satisfy most of the impromptu gathering, but Daisy and her friends still looked worried.

“Are…are you sure, Applejack?” she asked.

Applejack started to make an impatient retort. These three were known to faint if the wind suddenly shifted, so she could feel her patience slipping. But then she saw the real fear in the ponies’ eyes and remembered her own initial reaction to the alien.

“You got nuthin’ to worry about, sugarcube. We got things under control.”

She finished packing up her stall and headed for home. She thought about the recent events to herself as she trotted. Despite what she’d told them, she was still a bit nervous around that thing and wondered what it was doing now.

________________________________________________________________________________________________________

Oh dear God, those cupcakes were amazing!

It was all I could do not to wolf down the entire box at once, but I remembered my manners at the last moment. I still badly wanted, no, needed to get home, but if the food was this good I could afford to stay a bit longer. I still could use a steak or a hamburger, though. I knew Earth equines could eat meat if they had to, but I didn’t suppose these could, and I hesitated to bring it up. I didn’t need any right now.

Right now I had to learn this weird language. I was never good in school when it came to learning other tongues, but then I’d never the same motivation as I did now. Maybe it was my overactive imagination, but when I looked into the eyes of those guards and remembered my first encounter with that princess, I knew that killing me wasn’t off the table. So I figured I’d better learn how to properly express myself because I reasoned Fluttershy wouldn’t always be there to speak up for me.

Even if I’d been so inclined, there was nothing to be gained and everything to lose if I’d resorted to violence. Besides, I was starting to feel real affection for Fluttershy and Pinkie, and respect for my teacher Twilight. I saw she was an Alicorn as well, but she lacked the height and the ethereal mane of Luna. Plus, she was far more approachable. Also, there was no denying they all were almost unbearably cute. All but those bat ponies. They still gave me the willies.

I got up and looked out the window as they spoke among themselves. From my vantage point, the city was a bit of a blur, but I could make out individual buildings. It all seemed very rustic: there wasn’t a building over two stories as far as I could tell, and they seemed to favor thatched roofs. I couldn’t see any power lines, but I knew they had some form of electricity. The technology wasn’t that advanced, though.

When I’d talked about computers, Twilight had gotten excited and asked me all about them. I knew Fluttershy was having a hard time explaining, as some of the words just didn’t translate, but she did her best. I wasn’t able to tell her very much, other than how they were used. Even if I could build one, I wasn’t sure these beings were ready for something like the Internet, or at least the one I knew.

As I stood there musing, I was joined by Pinkie and Fluttershy.

Thinking of home?

“Hmm? Yes, I was. But I’m starting to like this city of yours.” I turned to her. “If it’s possible, I’d like to see more of it.”

Pinkie asked her a question, and she answered while gesturing at me. Pinkie’s eyes got bigger, and she started a long, animated speech, and grew more excited as she went along. I smiled. I was starting to really like this hyper pony. True, she didn’t seem to understand the concept of personal space, but I didn’t hold that against her.

Finally, she stopped for breath and gave Fluttershy a chance to translate. I was amazed. I was beginning to believe Pinkie could breathe through her ears, from the quantity of words she could produce at once. I turned to Fluttershy.

She says she thinks that’s a great idea, and she’d love to show you around.

I cocked an eyebrow. “That’s all she said?”

Fluttershy giggled. That’s the heart of it. She’s very excited.

I smiled at Pinkie, and then said to Fluttershy, “I guess this is all up to your Princess. From what she said, I’m too scary to be seen right now.”

Actually, Twilight can decide. Luna put you in her care.

“Really? I suppose that’s good then. Maybe we can ask her later.”

Twilight must have caught her name being mentioned, for she joined us at the window and spoke to Fluttershy and Pinkie. While they were talking, I looked up and noticed all the books I’d scattered over the bed were now in precise piles. Hmm. If this alicorn is also a neat freak, we may not get along after all. I tend to be a slob. Fluttershy caught my attention.

She says it’s a good idea, but not right now.

I shrugged. “That’s okay. I really wanted to go for Pinkie’s sake, but I can wait.” I looked at Pinkie to see how she was taking the news. She didn’t take it well, and in fact, she seemed positively miserable.

In an effort to cheer her up, I absently reached down and scratched her behind the ears. I quickly pulled my hand away once I realized I was treating her like a pet, and started to apologize, but she shot out a hoof and placed my hand back on her head. I didn’t need a translation to know what she wanted, so I gave her ears a vigorous scratch. She leaned into my hand and closed her eyes. It got awkward after a few moments, so I stopped. She pouted, and pointed at her ears again. Twilight said something to her that made her pout again and sigh, but then she nodded. Both Fluttershy’s and Twilight’s cheeks were flaming, but Pinkie seemed not to notice, as she just sat there with a dreamy look on her face.

Twilight pointedly cleared her throat, and then spoke to Fluttershy. Afterward, Fluttershy turned to me and said Twilight was very happy with the progress I’m making, and they’d continue tomorrow. I smiled at them both and nodded. They started to leave but noticed Pinkie still hadn’t moved. Twilight nudged her, and she startled as if she’d been sleeping. Looking up, she said something to me that I assumed was goodbye, and skipped after her friends.

Author's Note

It gets decidedly dark after this.

Final Preparations

There are few things that spread faster than rumor and gossip, so Charles’ deed grew in the telling. Ponies were already making plans to see how they could best reward him, and they buzzed excitedly over the few things they knew about the alien. As most ponies did not know a whole lot about him, they were quite happy to make things up. One pony, in particular, was the town’s resident cobbler, a unicorn named Quick Step. He had been given the assignment from Princess Twilight a few days earlier to make shoes and socks for the then-scary being, but he hadn’t been in any hurry to complete the task, as he hadn’t wanted to go near him. But now that it was known that creature had "saved a schoolyard full of fillies by fighting alone against a herd of monsters," Quick Step had no further reservations as he gathered his materials and made his way to the hospital. Rarity, that unicorn that ran the boutique in town, had given him the creature’s measurements, but he was done avoiding.

At first, he thought he wasn’t going to be able to get in once he arrived there. There were many ponies still hanging about in front of the hospital, and from overhearing their conversations Quick Step understood the majority had the same purpose as himself. But after speaking briefly to the guards and showing the materials he had they waved him in. Making his way to the front desk he asked the nurse about the alien and told her why he was there. To his relief, she smiled and told him to follow her. When she opened to door to one of the exam rooms, he was not surprised to see he wasn’t the only visitor. There was Pinkie, whom he knew, but there was also that apple vendor and a few other ponies and the dragon there. But looming over all was the strange alien. They all had turned and were staring at the new arrival, and Quick Step’s resolve almost faltered. But then he took a few steps into the room and cleared his throat.

“I am here to give the alien a gift, if I may.”

“Who are you?” asked the apple vendor.

“My name is Quick Step. I’m Ponyville’s cobbler, and Princess Twilight asked me to make the alien some shoes.” He looked intensely at him. “Can he understand me?”

“He’s not stupid, if that’s what you’re asking.”

Quick Step shook his head. “That’s not what I meant at all. I just want to explain why I’m here, but perhaps it’s best if I just show him.” He took off his saddlebags and laid out his materials. The alien’s eyes grew wide and he sat up as Quick Step levitated some woolen socks over to him. They were simple tube socks, and his heart swelled within him as the alien seized them with delight and pulled them on. Quick Step then produced a measuring tape and got the precise measurements of his…feet. The Princess had given him a rough approximation before, so he had their basic shape, but now there was no guesswork involved. Within a few minutes he had created a pair of laced canvas slippers with reinforced soles. The alien put them on, then tightly laced them up. He then stood and took a few tentative steps in them, then smiled and said, “thank you.” At least, that’s what it sounded like. Quick Step smiled back.

“You’re quite welcome. Anything for the Hero of Ponyville!”

____________________________________________________________________________________

Socks and shoes! I’d forgotten how much I’d missed them. For the first time since coming here, I truly felt like myself, and no longer a vagabond. It’s odd how something so simple can have such a profound impact. My joy must’ve been infectious as I looked up and saw all the other ponies and Spike grinning up at me. But then I remembered the real reason I was there in the hospital, and it wasn’t to get myself taken care of. I had to see Fluttershy. I turned and said as much to Applejack, and she looked surprised.

“You haven’t seen her yet?”

“No…I got h-urt, ponies h-elp I, but I not see Flut-ter-sy…yet.”

Applejack spoke briefly to the other ponies, then addressed me again.

“C’mon. I don’t think you’ll have any problems now.”

I turned and followed her, after nodding and thanking the unicorn again for my shoes. We passed some doors until Applejack stopped at one and gently knocked. Receiving a response, she slowly opened the door and stood aside for me. I walked in.

A couch had been set up in Fluttershy’s room, and both her parents were curled up on it, fast asleep. Her brother was at the door and looked up at me as I entered, then walked over and nudged them both awake. Someone must have brought Angel into the room, for he was curled up at her side. He also sat up and gave me a somber look. But I took little notice of their reactions as my attention was drawn to my friend, and it was all I could do to stifle the gasp that tried to force its way out of me.

She looked worse than I’d imagined. My fists curled up in rage as I took in the sight of her, then impotent tears began to slide down my cheeks. I took a few hesitant steps forward, then knelt beside the bed. Her eyes were sunken and the flesh around them was dark. The tears were flowing freely now as I gazed upon her whole form, from the bandages that covered her, to the way her wings were splinted, to her ragged breathing. I slowly reached out and gently grasped her hoof.

“I’m so…so sorry, my friend.”

She stirred and opened her eyes.

Char…Char-Elles?

I leaned forward. “I’m here, Fluttershy!”

Wha…What happened to you?

I looked down at my bandaged chest, then tried to pull the remains of my tunic closed. “It’s nothing for you to worry about, I’m fine. You just concentrate on getting better.” I glanced at the rabbit who was staring at her. “Look,” I said. “There’s someone else here waiting to see you.” Angel crept forward until he was beside her cheek, then he closed his eyes and snuggled up to her.

“Angel. I’m…so glad you’re okay.”

She turned her attention back to me.

How… did you… find him?

But I just shook my head. “Please save your strength. I’ll tell you all about it when you get better, I promise. For now, get some sleep.”

I…am…very tired.

She closed her eyes and drifted off.

________________________________________________________________________________________

Rainbow had taken her fourth sweep of the town when she noticed the sun suddenly dip below the horizon. In a few moments it was full dark. She hovered where she was and watched. This was very odd. The sun hadn’t gone down for hours, and now it was acting as if it was making up for lost time. She waited, but the moon didn’t take its place in the sky as it normally would. Something was very wrong.

Rainbow thought quickly. The ones who knew about this situation for sure had to be Celestia or Luna. She knew Twilight was meeting up with them, so that had to be back at those aliens’ ship. She sped off in that direction, taking note of the guards’ patrols as she flew past. The majority of them were pegasi like herself, and a few bat ponies, but they all seemed to be as surprised as she was over the sudden dark.

“Hey! Any of you guys seen Celestia or Luna?” she called out.

One group of guards stopped and answered, “No, we’ve not seen their Highnesses in some time. We’ve been too busy searching for more of those creatures.”

“They may be back at that aliens’ huge ship. I’m going to go check it out,” said Rainbow.

“We’ll come with you. We can’t accomplish much in the dark.” So saying, they fell in line with Rainbow, calling out to other guards to follow. In short order, it was a fair number of ponies that eventually landed at the ship site, and they all were astounded at what they saw.

All around the ship lay the bodies of the guards. Dash quickly landed and searched for Twilight, Celestia, anypony she knew. Shaking one of the guards she said, “Hey! Wake up! What happened?” She could see him breathing, but other than that there was no sign he was alive nor was aware of her presence.

The guards joined her in her efforts, going from each to each and having the same lack of success.

“Aw, crap,” she muttered as she continued her search. As there was no moon, the only illumination came from inside the ship, so that was her next stop.

She gasped when she saw Twilight, Celestia, Luna and the gryphon out cold in the floor of the ship. Within their cages, the creatures they’d captured earlier also lay motionless. Dash landed next to Twilight and began frantically shaking her. “Come on, Twi, wake up wake up!” Frustrated by her lack of success with her friend, and inexplicably growing more and more nervous, Rainbow went to all the others and tried to wake them. Then she stopped and peered through the open cargo bay door. She could see nothing beyond the glow of the overhead lights, but suddenly the hairs on the back of her neck stood up.

_______________________________________________________________________________________

The apex predators and their leader had not been idle. They still had the purple one’s scent, but they reasoned they would not be able to take her out alone. The more help they had, the better. So with that plan in mind they began to hunt down and round up as many of the same creatures from the Antashi ship that they could find. Night fell, and with it their hopes rose as they found more and more of their fellow captives. Some were almost as intelligent and cunning as they themselves were, others less so. But they all could serve the purpose of being “cannon fodder” if need be. Besides, the less competition they had once they killed that purple one, the better they could rule this forest, and possibly this world. Already they had spotted groups of beings like that purple one, but the predators were extremely careful and the thick canopy of the Everfree hid them from their view.

Now under the cover of full dark, their leader sent out scouts to seek the purple one, with orders to observe and report, but not to engage. That would only happen when they were all at full strength, and there was little chance of their quarry escaping. One of the three apex predators lead a group of creatures back to the alien’s ship, so it was they who observed the aftermath of the crowd control weapon. As they watched, a number of those indigenous beings were carrying their unconscious companions into the hold of the ship. The predator’s sharp night vision caught a glimpse of a multi-colored one within the ship, standing over their purple target. It focused its full attention on the purple one…it seemed to be in the same unconscious state as the majority of creatures here. The predator flexed its claws in anticipation, but finally turned and led its group back to their leader. It would want to know this information.

____________________________________________________________________________________

Several hours earlier

That feeling of dread anticipation had never left Zecora, even after she’d helped the Apple family. After seeing the aftermath of the creatures’ attack on the hospital, she knew this ordeal was far from over. So once she was done speaking to their Highnesses and Belinda, she’d excused herself and slipped back outside.

After a brief nod to the guards, she ran just past the edge of the forest, then stopped, closed her eyes and listened. The Everfree retained that unnatural stillness, but by casting forth her awareness she could detect the movement of several creatures. They were too far away for her to distinguish anything about them other than their faint life forces, but it was a start. Wrapping her cloak about her, she melted into the trees and began her hunt. There were more alien creatures in this forest, of that she was certain. Now she needed to find them.

__________________________________________________________________________________________

Lieutenant Chapel bit her lip in concentration as she monitored her Captain’s lifesigns. She’d tried over and over to speak to him through the communication device in his ear, but she’d failed to rouse him. She was quite mindful of his orders to not interfere, but this was something unexpected. Through the small camera imbedded in his armor, she had watched the entire scenario play out. She and the bridge crew were aware as the Antashi made their plans and carried them out, bringing the unconscious H’iix to the remaining shuttle. All around her were mutterings of indignation.

Chapel was in a quandary. There were two options she could pursue, from disabling the shuttle to triggering its internal defense system, but they both presented the same problem: how would the Antashi react against H’iix? She addressed the crew.

“Suggestions? How do we rescue the Captain?”

Several crew members gave their ideas, but the one that stood out was from Sub-Lieutenant Oaks: find some way to revive the Captain without the Antashi’s knowledge, and get his input. Chapel mulled this suggestion over. The Antashi had placed the Captain on the deck of the shuttle, face up, so she could quietly maneuver the camera to an angle where she could observe the criminals. They were both crowded over the controls with their backs to the Captain as they tried to override the lockouts and launch the shuttle. She knew she had little time, for they’d soon figure out the controls and take the shuttle off-planet; if she could help it, she’d prefer to not have to chase them across space.

Then she hit upon an idea.

“Sub-Lieutenant Oaks, we’re going with your suggestion. We need to override the Captain’s armor controls, and slowly raise his body temperature. Can we do that?”

Oaks’ face turned grim. “We’d have to modify the systems that monitor his lifesigns, and send a feedback pulse to his armor. But we don’t know the effects that device had on him, nor if the condition is permanent. And we don’t know if it will work.”

“It’s the only chance we’ve got. Get started immediately.”

“Aye, Sir.”

______________________________________________________________________________________

Zecora looked up in alarm as the sun slid quickly below the horizon, and night fell. Nighttime was when the Everfree was at its most dangerous, for it was then the majority of predators began their hunt. But now with a completely new set of creatures roaming these woods, her mission became all the more urgent.

The Everfree Forest was vast and unknown. Nopony had ever made thorough maps of the place, so the zebra shaman had only her own experience with the Forest to guide her. She knew every rock, clearing and cave within a mile of her hut, and in addition to that she had her own sensitivity to the various lifeforms that made up its inhabitants. Closing her eyes once again, she could sense several creatures within a few hundred yards, and just as she expected their essences just felt wrong. Quickly and silently she made her way closer to them, making sure to keep their awareness of her nonexistent.

She soon came to a valley, and looking down through the trees she could see a large gathering of the accursed beasts. They looked for all the world to be meeting on purpose, which would indicate them being sapient. A cold ball of fear lodged itself in her stomach at the thought. She looked up at the sky. The Princesses had mentioned there were supposed to be guards flying about, doing just what she’s doing, but she could see no sign of them. In fact, now that she recalled, she had not seen any guards for some time now. This could not be good news.

She had made up her mind to return to Ponyville and alert the Princesses, when she saw a small group of the creatures, led by an exceptionally large one, break off from the main group and head off. They were coming in her direction, so she faded back into the trees and watched them file past. Something in their demeanor and purpose caused her to follow them at a distance. Whatever they were up to, the Princesses should be told. She followed them discretely until they came to another clearing. There, the mystery of the missing guards was solved. All within the clearing, around a huge alien vessel, lay the bodies of the guards. As she watched, she saw several other guards picking up their comrades and placing them within the ship. From the light streaming out of the large hold underneath she could just make out Rainbow Dash’s distinctive mane. She was visibly upset, as she went from one pony to another in her attempts to wake them. Then Zecora caught a glimpse of something white, and by peering closely she soon realized that pony was Celestia. Whatever had rendered all these ponies unconscious had affected her as well. As she watched, the group of alien creatures growled to one another, in a manner which she was sure was communication, then they all turned back in the direction they’d come, no doubt to alert the others.

Zecora thought fast. Celestia and her guards were helpless. She’d already seen these alien creatures were ruthless, and now she knew they were sapient. There could be little doubt as to their purpose in turning back to the others: they meant to attack! There was only one course of action left. She’d have to rally the ponies of Ponyville, for the few guards she’d seen would soon be overwhelmed by the numbers of creatures she’d already encountered. She waited until the creatures were out of sight, then hurried back to town. Again, she prayed she’d not be too late.