Daxx stood in the large blue tent just as he had been for several hours now. His processors buzzed softly and the slight hum of his quickly heating power core could be heard if one were to get close enough. He did not move. He just stood there, seemingly eyeing the beacon he had created down with iron concentration.

Luna was not exactly sure what he was doing. Twilight was rapidly throwing questions his way, the nature of which were a wide range of topics. From where Daxx was from to questions about his world, Twilight seemed to have come up with enough to fill an encyclopedia. Most of the questions she asked were met with answers such as "Classified" or "That is confidential," much to her disappointment. Yet still, the little purple unicorn asked away, being more than over joyed that she had finally caught some time with Daxx where he did not have other things to do.

And yet, it seemed that Daxx was still doing something. Luna could tell he was running hot. Daxx definitely had something going on in that metallic head of his. He had never hummed or buzzed in the ways he was now. Even Twilight began to notice after a while. Despite the fact that he continued to answer her questions, he seemed to be in a distant, far off place.

Finally, Twilight diverted her questions to a different topic. "What are you doing?"

"Simulations," Daxx answered plainly, as if it were obvious.

"Simulations of what?" Luna asked. She didn't quite like the sound of Daxx's answer.

"Possible outcomes to this situation," Daxx elaborated. After a moment or two, the buzzing and humming died down and he repositioned himself to face the ponies whom he had been neglecting.

"And?" Luna pried, pushing for more info.

"Inconclusive," Daxx simply stated.

The ponies simply responded to this with raised eyebrows and bits of confusion. They did not entirely understand him and Daxx was okay with that. He was perfectly okay with leaving them in the dark. The less they knew, the better.

"What do you mean inconclusive?" Luna challenged.

"There is not currently enough information available to determine a definite or most likely outcome to this situation," Daxx specified, "although I can say that there is only a six percent chance that this encounter will result in an armed conflict."

"Only six percent," Twilight repeated. "That's good, right?"

"Relatively speaking, yes," Daxx confirmed. "In the past, it has been much higher with other extraterrestrial races. The last time a first contact type conflict occurred was nearly one hundred years ago and it only lasted seventeen months." After speaking, he unhooked one of the small thumb drives from his makeshift necklace.

Daxx then held the small device out in front of his "face" for a second, catching all the ponies interest for a moment.

"What are you doing?" Twilight asked curiously, being very interested in just about anything Daxx did at this point.

"I am adding the information that I have gathered in my simulations to the information in this drive," Daxx answered. "It will be archived later upon my return to the Javelin."

"Why?" Twilight asked.

Daxx didn't answer, at least he didn't give one that was satisfying. Yet again, in his own special way, he dodged the question entirely. "Protocol," he stated.

"So will all the information on your other drives be archived as well?" Twilight wasn't sure where this train of thought was taking her. It really didn't have much significance, but she couldn't resist.

"If deemed necessary, yes."

"What exactly is this information?" Luna asked. She knew she wasn't going to get a straightforward answer, but she tried anyways.

"As I have stated before, that is classified."

Of course it was. It was plain and simple, Luna understood this now. There was no breaking Daxx. There was no persuading or charming him. There was absolutely no way. He would carry out his duty and continue to be Mr. Mysterious for one thousand years if he had to, assuming he could stay online for that long. She doubted it, but thanks to her own longevity, she would have probably believed him if he told her he could. Nothing surprised her anymore, she thought. It would certainly make for an interesting match of chess. A machine versus a being with thousands of years of experience. Fighting to the brutal end until the last pawn fell and one side's king stood victorious. The other sitting in checkmate. It felt like a metaphor for the last day.

Both parties sat in silence for a few minutes. The quiet only being broken when Spike yawned, along with Twilight who was now catching the dragon's contagious drowsiness.

"It is getting late," Daxx finally spoke up. "I will enter power save mode and await a response from the beacon while you retire for the night."

"What?" Luna asked, almost startled by Daxx's statement.

"It is getting late," Daxx began to repeat, word for word. "I will enter power save mode and await a response from the..."

"No, no," Luna interrupted. "I heard you, but didn't expect what you said. It seems almost as if you are telling us it is our bed time. Why?"

"Spike yawned," Daxx pointed out as if it were obvious. "This was followed by a yawn from Twilight. Yawning is a sign of sleepiness. When one is sleepy, they go to sleep to replenish their energy."

"And why do you care if we are sleepy?" Luna questioned. It was almost like their tiredness was beneficial for him.

Daxx just stood there for a moment and looked at Luna before shifting his focus to Twilight, then to Spike, and then back over to Luna, who was still waiting for an answer. "A sufficient amount of sleep is healthy and necessary for remaining aware while awake."

"I don't mean to suggest anything," Luna began, "but you seem quite eager to get us to turn our backs. It's suspicious."

"I understand why you would think this," Daxx replied. "I have not been on this planet more than twenty-four hours. You not entirely trusting me is natural and an appropriate decision. I will remain here." Daxx turned back to the long table where his beacon was still buzzing softly and lighting up every few seconds. "If a development in the situation occurs, you will be the first to know."

Luna looked over to Twilight, who shared the same confused look that she had. All Luna could think was that Daxx was working to some unknown end. She didn't like any of this. Now, more than ever, she wanted her sister's help. Unfortunately, this was not Celestia's burden to bear, not yet at least. That all depended on how badly she screwed this up. Luna's own thoughts were beginning to make her feel sick again.

"Um..." Twilight said, not sure what she should be doing. "I think I'm going to take Spike home." She lifted the small dragon up onto her back with her magic. At the moment, he was drifting between sleep and consciousness. "I think I'm just going to sleep there for the night. I'll be back in the morning though. I have a long list of questions I still want to go over with Daxx."

"That will be fine," Luna agreed. "Goodbye Twilight. I look forward to seeing you on the morrow."

"She is very enthusiastic," Daxx pointed out as Twilight left the tent.

"Twilight is one of the brightest minds in all of Equestria," Luna pointed out. "Would your own scientists and researchers not be as excited if an individual of our species suddenly appeared on your home planet?"

"I think they would be fascinated, but possibly a little disappointed," Daxx responded, not even having to think about his answer.

"Oh?" Luna questioned. "How so?"

"There are many in the scientific community who believe in what is called the Theory of Infinite Probability."

"I'm afraid I'm not familiar with this theory," Luna explained.

"I didn't think you would be," Daxx replied. "The basic idea of this theory is that the universe as a whole is so massive and has been around for such a long time that anything that can be imagined has a chance of actually existing. For example, a world of colorful talking horses that use magic. The idea may seem natural to you, but where I come from, it all sounds more like something that would be found in a show for children. No offense."

"None taken," Luna replied. "Our own society has movies and books about extraterrestrial life visiting our planet."

"Then you do understand," Daxx said. "Under this theory, it is possible that there are thousands if not millions of other species of intelligent life just within our galaxy alone. Of all these civilizations that humanity could have possibly made contact with, which we may have been able to trade with, even learn from, yours was the one we found."

"You do not believe that relations between our races will be mutually beneficial," Luna realized. "You think we have nothing of value to offer."

"This morning, I pointed out that your escorts were armed only with steel plate armor and spears," Daxx said. "Others will make this observation and come to this conclusion."

"And what do you think?"

"I have yet to decide. I have seen very little of your world."

Luna sank into thought for a moment. This entire time, all she had thought about was how to keep Equestria safe, but never did it cross her mind that maybe this was an opportunity for them. At this point, there was no stopping more of Daxx's people from arriving on their planet and with every growing moment she grew more and more anxious. Now, this new idea was only adding to that anxiety.

"May I ask you something, Princess?" Daxx said, suddenly pulling Luna from her thoughts.

"I see no harm in it," Luna said. "What is your question?"

"What is her position?"

"Who, Twilight?" Luna asked. "She doesn't exactly have an official position."

"And yet she has been allowed unrestricted access to me," Daxx pointed out. "She speaks to you very casually and if I am not mistaken, the security clearance on her lanyard is of the highest level, is it not? You must trust her a great deal." For the first time, Daxx paused a moment as if processing a thought. "Is she your daughter?"

"What?" Luna responded before regaining her composure. "No, not at all," she said, smiling just a little bit at the idea. "If she were, I'd be very proud, but I am afraid that is not the case."

"Then who is she?"

Luna thought for a moment, not entirely sure if she should disclose this information. The Elements of Harmony weren't exactly a weapon, but they were powerful and they didn't entirely understand their nature. It was probably best if Daxx knew as little as possible about them unless it was deemed absolutely necessary. She decided to give as little information as possible. "Twilight is very important," Luna began. "She used to be the student of my sister, Celestia. Since then, she has gone on to play a very important role in the magic of friendship."

"So she used to be a student of your sister's, but has since moved on to something bigger," Daxx replied. "What I don't understand, is how friendship has anything to do with it."

Luna suddenly decided to take this opportunity to steer the conversation in a different direction. "Speaking of which, it's just occurred to me that you have never questioned magic, despite the fact that it seems to be a very foreign thing to you."

"Understanding magic has not been a priority. There were more pressing matters than questioning something that did not directly impact my mission," Daxx explained. "Now that there is nothing left to do though, I admit I am at least curious."

"Well, as you can probably guess," Luna began, "magic is very important part of our society. Every pony in Equestria, every living thing on our planet has its own unique magical signature. Unicorns and pegasi can naturally manipulate their own magic through spells and cloud walking, where as earth ponies have much more passive abilities that tie them to the land. When ponies share friendships with each other, their magics bond. Our understanding of this is that it creates a network like flow. Many scholars have referred to this as Harmony."

"That sounds like a very appropriate name," Daxx pointed out. "I believe I understand why Twilight is so important."

"Really," Luna said in surprise.

"Yes," Daxx answered. "She is able to interact directly with Harmony, isn't she? This gives her great power within your society."

Luna decided that it would be best to give him the minimum of info. "Yes," she answered. "Twilight has saved Equestria more than once. She is a national hero."

Daxx fell silent, not even giving a response. He must have been satisfied with this answer or was processing something, because he didn't make any indication that he cared to further discuss the subject.

This moment of pause gave Luna time to collect her thoughts and simply think. Suddenly, a realization hit her. "Earlier, when you mentioned sleep," Luna said. "Were you just trying to get rid of Twilight?"

"Yes," Daxx answered simply.

"Why?"

"She asks too many questions," Daxx answered, "and she has a very romanticized view of extraterrestrial life. Having only spent a day with her, I can tell that she believes that we are of some higher value than your own species."

"But you disagree?"

"Eventually, Twilight will begin to ask the right questions and realize that she does not like what she finds. Humanity may seem spectacular at first glance, but a deeper look will reveal many negative aspects."

"Is that why you wanted to know who she was?" Luna asked, "so you could figure out what you could tell her."

"Yes," Daxx answered. "I wanted to know who exactly who I was associating with before sharing further information. Based on Twilight's views and behavior, I determined it was best to ask someone who knew her, rather than asking her directly."

"Hmm," Luna just hummed. She wasn't sure what to think about Daxx or the past day at this point. There was another break in their conversation as Daxx silently watched the beacon that was strewn out on the table. Yet again, this gave Luna some time to gather her thoughts. To her, Daxx didn't seem as cold and rigid as he had when he first arrived. Sure, he was still dominantly logical, acting with very little noticeable emotion, but it was much easier to have a civil conversation with him. She found that she actually enjoyed it to some degree. It was almost relaxing.

"What about you?" Daxx suddenly asked. "What do you do? As a princess, you must have some political power."

"As a matter of fact I do," Luna answered. "I share equal power with my sister. Together we work to rule Equestria. We each have our own courts where we hear petitions and make decisions for the common good and at times we even hold a joint court for more pressing matters."

"So Equestria is a monarchy then."

"Yes," Luna said. "Although there are many checks and balances on our power. In fact, most cities and towns are allowed to govern themselves. Our central government is more about keeping peace with other nations and organizing Equestria under one banner."

"Sounds simple."

"It is," Luna confirmed.

"So why are you referred to as a Princess if you are a ruler?" Daxx asked. "Why not queen?"

"Believe it or not, this isn't the first time somepony has asked me this," Luna replied. "The answer is quite simple really. My sister and I rule side by side. Although we fill different roles, we both technically share equal power. If one of us were to take on the title of queen, it would suggest that one of us is greater than the other, possibly dividing the country. Even during my exile, my sister was careful not to take on such a title."

"You were in exile?" Daxx questioned.

"Yes," Luna answered. "I'm afraid I was."

"What for?"

"You would not understand," Luna deflected. "It was a long time ago and had much to do with magic. The main reason being for actions that I am..." She looked away, not able to make eye contact with Daxx anymore as a familiar wave of guilt came rushing forward with memories of grief. She took a deep breath and continued. "...actions that I am quite ashamed of."

"You shouldn't be too hard on yourself," Daxx said. "Everyone makes mistakes. The best thing you can do is move on."

This took Luna a little bit by surprise. She definitely had not expected to hear something of this nature come from Daxx. "Daxx, I dare say that's the nicest thing you've said to anyone since you arrived here."

"Don't let it go to your head."

"That almost sounds like a warning," Luna pointed out.

"Consider it to be one," Daxx replied.

Luna looked around the empty tent for a moment as the words sank into her brain. "Yes, well, I appreciate the advice. I will be careful."

Daxx chose not to give any kind of response to this.

"Well," Luna began, figuring that it was past time that she retired for the night. "The day has given me much to think about. I will not take up anymore of your time. Please, do keep me updated if anything should occur in my absence."

"Of course," Daxx answered. "As I said before, I will inform you if there is any development in the situation."

Luna nodded in confirmation, before turning to head out of the tent and to her temporary bed chambers which had only been set up about an hour or so ago. Before she was able to reach the exit though, Daxx stopped her.

"Luna," he said, catching the alicorn's attention. For the first time since their conversation had begun, he turned to face her instead of staring at his distress beacon. "Thank you... for everything."

Author's Note

Sorry for being a few days late with this chapter. I got really sick over the weekend (it wasn't pretty) and it made it hard to write. I know this chapte was mostly just diaglogue and build up, but the next few are where things are really going to get interesting. You can count on that.