Chapters Chapter 1
Luna stared up at the night sky as she stood on the castle balcony. She knew every star, every constellation by heart. There was something different about the sky this night though. While any other pony would never notice it without looking hard enough, it stood out to Luna as clear as day. There was an extra star in the sky.
There were many questions that Luna asked herself as she looked at the single, seemingly insignificant dot. Where had it come from? Why was it here? Why was it blinking? Indeed the star was blinking. For a week she had observed the strange anomaly, patiently waiting for the dot to do something. Whatever it was that Luna was expecting never came and she soon decided to yet again go to bed with no closure as to what exactly the little blinking dot was.
In the past, when the dot first appeared, Luna thought about using her magic to move it or do away with it entirely. It would have been easy. One quick spell and she would no longer have the dot weighing on her mind. She was more patient than this though. She knew that tampering with the night sky was not something somepony just did lightly, despite what other ponies believed.
Before Luna finally decided to retire to bed, there was one more thing that she noticed about the dot. Not only had it stopped blinking, but it had grown larger and was rapidly moving toward the horizon. She watched in curiosity as the dot got closer and closer to the darkened edge of the earth until finally there was a large flash of light as the dot, that had seemed so insignificant only seconds earlier entered the atmosphere, illuminating the entire sky in the process.
The object shimmered and sparkled as it moved downward, leaving a streak of grey smoke across the sky like a paint brush. Only moments later it disappeared over the horizon accompanied by a faint thud as it made contact with the ground. All went quiet, and the only thing left of the object that had once decorated the sky, was the streak of grey smoke left over from its flight and a column of much thicker black smoke growing out from where it had landed.
Twilight trotted through the Everfree Forest at a moderately rushed pace with Spike on her back. She didn't know exactly what was going on, but Princess Luna's letter had made it seem very important. It was very early morning, probably not even six yet, which made it somewhat hard to keep track of the black pillar of smoke that rose from the canopy into the dimly lit sky above.
"Are we almost there?" Spike asked tiredly as he struggled to keep his eyes open.
"Almost, Spike," Twilight answered. "I think I see some tents up ahead. It must be where we're supposed to meet Luna." She sped up as the two approached the large camp. There were several royal guards standing watch, each dawning a set of dark blue and purple armor indicating that they served under Luna.
"Halt," one of the guards said firmly as he held out a hoof. "This is a restricted area."
"My name is Twilight Sparkle," the purple unicorn began, "I'm supposed to meet with Princess Luna."
The guard looked over at his partner who stood a few feet to his right. He nodded, giving him the all clear. "The princess is waiting for you inside. Go on in."
After being let in through the main entrance, Twilight looked around in search of Luna, a task that would appear to be easier said than done. There were tents everywhere. There was a tent where guards were equipping themselves with spears and other armaments. There was a tent where a group of ponies were examining some kind of large metal object. There was even a tent set up as a small hospital, indicated by the large red cross printed on the roof.
Twilight wasn't exactly sure what was going on that warranted all this stuff, but she did know that if she was going to find Luna, she would need some help. "Excuse me," she said to a pair of passing guards, "Could you point me in the direction of..." she didn't finish as she watched the guards continue walking. "Could you tell me... Do you know where... Sorry to take up your time, but..." She continued to attempt to get directions, but no one stopped for her. No matter who she tried to flag down to ask for directions, they would just keep walking. As a matter of fact, it seemed to her that everypony she saw was in some kind of rush.
"What's everypony's problem?" Spike asked, only barely awake and more than ready to find a spot where he could rest his head for a few hours instead of lying on Twilight's back.
"I don't know, Spike," Twilight said. "Everypony is in a huge rush for some reason. We need to find Princess Luna. She'll know what's going on."
Twilight walked on for several more minutes. The camp was fairly large and seemed to be mostly consist of guards' tents and tents full of ponies who wore lanyards with special name tags. She finally came to a large blue tent with the royal Lunar seals woven into it. It had to be the one. She walked up to the entrance only to be stopped by another guard in the same fashion as before. Upon stating her name and why she was here, the guards let her pass and she and Spike entered the tent.
"Twilight," Luna called from the other side of a large wooden table that was littered with many metal thing-a-ma-jigs. "I'm glad to see you made it. I'm sorry to have dragged you from your slumber at such an early hour."
"Princess Luna, hello," Twilight greeted back. "What is all this? What's going on?"
"Come, I shall show you," Luna said as she walked around the table and toward the entrance to the sizable tent that they were currently in. "First you will want one of these, though." She levitated a lanyard with a small laminated name tag that had a gold seal on it and large black letters that read "SECURITY CLEARANCE LEVEL 3" along with her name. "It should remove the inconvenience of being stopped by any of my guards at any point in time."
"Security clearance level three?" Twilight questioned as she observed the tag.
"Indeed," Luna confirmed. "You will need it for where we are going. Come."
Twilight followed Luna out the door curiously. Whatever was happening seemed very important.
"I'm am sure," Luna began as they walked through the encampment together, "that you are more than curious as to why I called you both out here. Before I answer your questions though, tell me, are you aware of what has occurred in the last seven hours?"
Twilight shook her head no.
"The fact that you are here tells me that you followed the directions I sent you, instructing you to follow the pillar of smoke that now fades as we speak. It may surprise you to learn that that pillar is not from a signal fire of any kind, but from something out of our own control. Within the twelfth hour of the night, an unidentified object fell from the sky and impacted with our planet. After locating said object, via the smoke trail that it left, it was discovered that the object was artificial in nature, but not of pony origin."
"Twilight's ears shot up and her eyes opened wide as she heard this. "Are you saying that an alien ship crash landed here?"
"Yes," Luna answered, "I am. As a matter of fact, there it is now." She pointed ahead of her.
Past a thick row of trees, sat the subject matter of their short conversation. There were many more guards, at least twenty, standing around the large wreck as several other ponies looked over pieces of shrapnel that had broken off of the main craft. The ship itself was a bright white color, with traces of black soot that had formed from entry into the atmosphere. It was also very large. It stretched what Twilight estimated to be about thirty yards in length and ten in height. The overall design was very geometrical, with straight edges and flat surfaces. The area around the craft was torn and shredded with pieces of entire tree trunks tossed in every direction. There was a large groove in the ground left from where the craft had first touched down to where it now laid.
"That's amazing," Twilight whispered to herself in disbelief as she ran forward a few meters, waking up Spike, who had still been napping on her back, as she did so.
"Whoa!" Spike panicked as he fell off of Twilight's back and onto the ground. He moaned, before finally standing up next to Twilight who was entranced by the ship before them. "Whoa," Spike said again, this time out of aw rather than reaction.
"Whoa, indeed," Luna said as she too stepped forward. "It is a very impressive piece of technology, but my sister and I fear that it may be dangerous if the situation is not handled properly. The ship has simply rested there since it crashed, without anypony coming out. We decided that the best course of action was to be the ones that established contact. You may have noticed the field hospital. It was set up as a precautionary measure. Upon entering, though, no signs of life were found."
"You mean it was empty?" Twilight questioned as she continued to stare at the wreckage.
"Yes," Luna confirmed. "At first, we were afraid that whatever species had built the ship would find it unruly of us to enter uninvited, but after nothing happened, the decision was made to enter. It took several hours just to get the door open. Even still we have restricted our studies to debris that detached from the main wreckage. We are uncertain if someone, or something, has plans to recover the ship."
"That's incredible!" Twilight exclaimed happily. It was like every one of her science fiction fantasies were coming true right before her eyes. It was scary though, knowing that another intelligent life form was somewhere out there. Or perhaps it was scary because of what they didn't know. They still, after all, had no clue as to whether the aliens were friendly, or if they planned on invading like Haywood movies would have everyone believe.
"Indeed, it is very much a marvel of technological advancement," Luna agreed. "Would you like to see the inside?"
"Would I?! I mean, can we?" Twilight asked, trying to tone down her excitement in order to keep it from getting her carried away. "Is it safe?"
Luna smiled a little. "Yes, I assure you it is safe," she answered. "A few others and I have been inside on several occasions in order to inspect interior systems. I am quite sure you will find them much to your liking. Shall we?"
"Yes, please!" Twilight almost shouted with excitement. As she and Luna walked toward the alien crash though, Twilight began to think. Her curiosity eventually got the better of her and she asked her question. "Princess?"
"Yes, Twilight?"
"Why exactly did you call me here? Not that I'm ungrateful that you did and that your trusting me with all of this, but why me?"
"I will not lie to you," Luna began. "Equestria is at a substantial risk because of what has happened here. As you may have guessed, there are many variables at play at the moment, many of which I fear we are entirely unaware of. For these reasons, we wanted are best minds on this project and your name was certainly toward the top of the list. It is my hope that you would be willing to lend your assistance in this project."
Twilight blushed a little at the thought of her being one of the smartest ponies in Equestria. "I-I... I'd be honored."
"Excellent." Luna smiled happily. "Let us proceed then."
Luna and Twilight walked on for only a few more seconds before coming to the sealed entrance of the craft. Luna gave an order to the guard standing watch. He nodded in response before his horn lit up. The door made a popping sound as it jutted out of the side of the craft and slid down the length of a few feet to grant them access.
The two entered, followed cautiously by Spike, who now did not seem so tired anymore. He peered inside the large craft as Luna and Twilight entered. The inside was dimly lit with only a few electrical lanterns acting as light sources. They cast long dark shadows on the already bleak gray interior. Spike shuddered at the site as he too entered and looked around nervously. Every second that passed only made him feel more and more like something hostile and alien was lurking in the shadows, just waiting for a chance to grab any of them.
The little dragon backed up slowly from one of the darkened corners as his eyes began to play tricks on him. He would have been fine had he been watching were he went. He backed up straight into one of the walls, only to feel the back of his head push something small out of its position. Upon noticing a bright glow from behind him, he noticed that a rectangular button of some sort was glowing brightly. What came next, nearly scared him out of his scales.
There was a loud thud noise from the rear of the craft, catching even the attention of Twilight and Luna, who were examining what they believed to be an inactive console. It had sounded as if something big and metallic had fallen to the ground from the ceiling. The noise was followed by a series of high pitched hums.
Spike jumped back and hid behind one of Twilight's legs. The three stared silently at the rear of the room where the light from the lanterns did not reach. There were several more sounds made. The clanking noises of what sounded like metal hooves making contact with the cold metal floor echoed through the room as someone... something stepped into the light, for all to see.
Author's Note
So yeah, Spike bumped into something and awakened something else. I know it's kind of cliché, but it works. Hope you enjoyed this chapter.
I've been working off and on, on this story for a few months now. I wasn't planning on releasing it until it was completely finished, but I've decided to give into my urges of releasing it early to see what you guys think. Right now my story Husklands is taking priority so this probably wont have any updates anytime soon. The second chapter is written though so you guys can enjoy that. Hope you like it.
Chapter 2: A New "Friend"
Chapter 2
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UNIT ACTIVATION INITIATED AWAITING ACCESS KEY AUTHORIZATION...
PRELOADED ACCESS KEY DETECTED AUTHORIZATION ACCEPTED
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RUNNING SYSTEMS DIAGNOSTICS
Outer Shell Integrity: Un-ruptured
Internal Power Cells Levels....................................................... 95%
DIAGNOSTICS COMPLETE UNIT STATUS: GREEN
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RELEASING RESTRICTIVE SOFTWARE LIMITERS
Unit is now free to proceed
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Luna stepped forward toward the large alien creature that stood before them with her wings spread and her head held high. "Greetings," she began in a loud, strong voice, without using the notorious Royal Canterlot Voice. "We are Princess Luna of the sovereign state of Equestria. We welcome thy arrival and hope that thou has come in peace."
The creature stood there silent. It was a tall, bipedal species of relatively slim build, especially around the midsection. It stood unswaying in what appeared to be a heavy, metal exoskeleton which probably served as protective armor. It shared the color palette of the rest of the interior of the ship, a dark gray color with lighter gray accents and a few white spots. The most interesting of its characteristics was a necklace that it wore around what was undoubtedly its very narrow neck. It consisted of many small rectangular pieces that hung loosely from their ends that were threaded onto the black string that kept it all together. It reminded Twilight of a tribal style ceremonial piece that she had once seen in a museum and may have even offered a little insight to the alien's own culture.
Luna stared on at the creature in silence, waiting for a response. She really didn't know exactly what to do about this either. She may have been a princess, but she wasn't exactly the most experienced of ponies when it came to communicating to an alien race that probably didn't even understand her. She was the princess though, and this meant that the responsibility fell on her. She opened her mouth to say something else, but was startled when the tall alien took a step towards them.
The alien's metallic foot clanked lightly against the ground as his joints made a faint buzzing noise. His step forward was responded to by a step back from both Luna and Twilight, and Spike. The alien approached the small party and Luna prepared herself for anything, but found herself stepping aside only seconds later as the creature walked passed them.
He or she, nopony was really sure what its gender was, stopped when it reached the front of the ship and began to fiddle with some switches and buttons. There was no result, which it responded to by ripping a small panel from one of the walls. It then reached inside and started messing with a series of multicolored wires. After nothing happened yet again, the alien gave up and looked in the direction of the ponies who just stood and stared.
"What system is this?" the alien asked in a voice that was surprisingly normal with the exception of a slight distortion that made him sound like his voice was coming through a radio.
Luna, Twilight, and Spike's eyes all widened at the sudden question. "You actually speak Equestrian," Luna said in surprise. "I was somehow expecting a language barrier, but your tongue is fluent."
"We're speaking English," the alien said in his inorganic voice. "What system is this?"
Everyone just stood and stared, as if he had never asked them a question. Luna finally rid herself of her shock and answered with a question of her own. "What do you mean by, what system is this?"
"What system is this, as in where in the universe are we. What star are we currently orbiting?"
Luna wasn't really prepared for such a question, but she answered to the best of her ability. "And we call our world Equis," she added after explaining a minimal amount. It was hard to tell whether or not the alien fully understood the information she had just given him thanks to his helmet that hid all facial expressions. She doubted that she would even be able to read any of his expressions even if she could see his face.
The helmet he wore was a very plane rectangular shape with what appeared to be a small telescope attached to the left side, facing forward. There was also a small lens, not even half the size of a bit, in the front that sat more towards the right side. Twilight couldn't help but wonder how exactly he saw through such a small hole, but with the way he moved about the room it was obvious to her that the alien had no problems seeing where he was going.
Instead of saying anything else, the alien rose from its kneeling position and walked passed the group again, only stopping when it reached another console. He began pressing several buttons with no result, before slamming a frustrated fist down, causing a loud thud to echo through the chamber. He turned back to the ponies who were visually startled. "I'm not familiar with this location and the ship's navigational systems are down. I'm going to need to make repairs and figure out where I am. Unfortunately, I lack the means to accomplish both of these tasks. I may require your assistance." Without even waiting for a response, he walked passed the group, opened the door from which the ponies had entered, and stepped outside into the open air.
"Sweet mother of Celestia!" one of the guards who stood by the door yelled as he noticed the large metal alien. Every pony within a twenty foot radius immediately took off running to a safe distance. They all looked on in horror as they realized that Princess Luna was nowhere to be seen. They all feared the worst.
Fortunately, only mere seconds after the alien exited the craft, Luna appeared in the doorway along with Twilight and Spike, all of whom were unharmed to everypony's relief.
The tall alien, who now stood several feet from his ship looked around casually, observing, scanning, taking in everything around him. A crowd was quickly accumulating, but he paid them no mind. Instead he turned back to his ship, walking in the general direction of the princess.
"Halt!" a single guard who had not yet run off yelled defiantly to the alien creature before him. He held out his spear bravely, but his body shook nervously and his breathing was heavy and uneasy. The shadow that the much larger creature cast did not help to boost his confidence.
The alien stopped and looked at the guard. "Do you really think a spear will stop me?" he asked in a blunt but not threatening voice.
When the guard only complied by making a motion with his weapon as if trying to make the alien retreat, he grabbed the spear by the razor sharp end and yanked it from the guard's grasp. He then proceeded to bend the spear into a V shape before twisting and reshaping the spear into a corkscrew like object. This motion was done without struggle and so fluently that it immediately became apparent that this creature's strength was unparalleled, despite its slim build and thin limbs.
The alien dropped the now deformed spear which made high pitched clinging noises as it hit the ground. Instead of continuing by ripping apart the guard, who was now visibly scared out of his mind, the alien walked passed him and began to look over his ship.
Luna proceeded from the ship to where the alien now stood, but not before informing her guard that his attempt to defend her was valiant and that he should go get some rest.
"For what reasons have you come to our world?" Luna asked, this time speaking much more casually. "I assume they are much more than to scare my escorts out of their wits."
"That information is confidential," the alien responded. "Even if I did tell you, I wouldn't expect you to understand." His words were blunt, but not unkind. He had a very "to the point" way of speaking that left out a lot of emotional tones.
"And why exactly is that?" Luna challenged.
"Your guards are all wearing plate armor and using spears. This tells me that the technological level of your species is not high enough to understand. Unless that is all ceremonial. Then you might have a chance."
Luna didn't offer a response to this. Her guards, despite never seeing real combat, were brave and honorable ponies. Equestria had always done its best to provide them with the best equipment available and trained them to be arguably the best warriors of their world. This alien may have not thought much of them, but she herself had always been quite proud of her guards. She tried to not give it much more thought.
Luna turned back to the alien who seemed to be observing a badly damaged piece of his ship. "May I at least know to whom we are speaking to?" she asked.
Without breaking concentration on his current task, the alien answered. "My designation is DA-10-10, but I have more commonly been referred to as Daxx."
"Designation?" Twilight questioned after having remained quiet and observing for sometime. "Why do you need a designation? Don't you just have a regular name?"
"No," Daxx answered. "Upon the completion of my construction I was simply taken off the assembly line and given a designation. I was then put into service."
"Construction? Assembly line?" Twilight gasped as a sudden realization hit her. "You're a robot."
"And you're a colorful talking horse of some kind with a printing on your rear end," Daxx pointed out. "I don't know what's stranger, you or the plant life on Praesidium 4."
"Um... you've lost me," Twilight indicated.
"Good," Daxx responded. He rose from the squatting position that he was in and looked around at the crowd that had amassed. He began to walk towards them. As he did this, each pony stepped aside, creating a path for him.
Luna, Twilight, and Spike followed Daxx in close pursuit. "Wait," Luna called out. "Where do you think you are going?"
Daxx made no indication of slowing down as he marched on through the quickly thinning crowd. "I see you have set up a camp," he answered, still marching on. "After scanning the area, I found that several pieces were missing from the fuselage and that they were not scattered around the wreckage." He stopped and turned to face Luna, squatting down until his head was at eye level with the alicorn of the night. "You took them."
Luna swallowed a lump in her throat. Her worst fears were being realized. She did not know how an alien would react to their efforts at scavenging technology from the ship. She was about to find out though. "Yes," Luna admitted, "but I assure you that we only scavenged what had already fallen off your ship during impact. It was strictly forbidden that the ship itself was stripped until we had an idea of who was responsible for the craft."
Daxx didn't offer any kind of reply, instead he simply rose again and began walking off toward the camp, giving no clue as to how he felt about the situation.
"So you are not upset at how we handled all of this?" Luna questioned.
"No," Daxx answered.
Upon entering the camp, Daxx received nothing but blank stares of bewilderment from the ponies that he passed. Eventually, he made his way to a large tent with an open front. There was a small team of ponies examining a large metal device the size of an average stallion. Daxx entered, causing each pony to jump back away from the table and huddle up against the fabric walls and back into the corners of the tent. Each stared at Daxx just as all the others had.
"Fear not," Luna said. "He comes in peace." She looked up at Daxx who was now examining the large object on the table. "You do come in peace, correct?"
"Correct," Daxx answered. He stood silent for a few more seconds as he observed the large, damaged piece of his ship. "There are pieces missing. Where is the rest of it?"
"Most likely at the next tent over," Luna answered. "This science team was tasked with dismantling what we recovered and figuring out how they work. The individual pieces were sent to another team for further study."
Yet again, before Luna was able to finish a sentence, Daxx walked off. When he entered the next tent, everypony reacted in a similar way as before. Eventually, after hitting just about every tent and making his presence known to everypony, Daxx had accumulated a large collection of pieces and parts, which he kept in a large tub that he picked up along the way.
"Don't you want to take the rest of it?" Twilight asked after noticing that he had left a substantial amount of scrap behind.
"The rest is too badly damaged to be used," Daxx answered.
"Is this everything that you need to make the proper repairs?" Luna asked. He had gathered quite an amount of what looked like junk, but it didn't seem like nearly enough to fix a spaceship, especially one in the condition that his was in.
"No," Daxx answered. "Is there anymore? I will need as much as I can get."
"Yes," Luna answered. "There is more in my personal tent, but you can't... Hold on wait!" Luna chased after Daxx as he walked off without letting her finish... again. This was becoming quite irritating for the alicorn who was beginning to feel as if she were being dragged.
Some of Luna's guards, one that had begun to follow the group out of fear that Daxx would try something, attempted to bring the robot to a halt, but only found themselves being literally dragged by Daxx's legs without effort. The ponies who guarded the entry to Luna's tent even tried to stop his progress, but failed when they were toppled like bowling pins.
Luna and Twilight ran to the large blue tent in which Daxx had disappeared. Upon entering, they found that several guards were cautiously surrounding Daxx, who casually sifted through an assortment of metal objects.
"Princess!" one of the guards called out. "Thank the heavens you're alright. This creature insists that he knows you. Is this true?"
"Yes," Luna assured her guard. "His name is Daxx and he is only trying to find a means of repairing his ship. We are cooperating with him for the moment." After dismissing her guards, she turned to Daxx. "How did you even know that this was my tent?" she asked.
Daxx stopped what he was doing and looked at Luna as if she had somehow shattered his concentration into a million pieces. He was silent for a moment, before finally finding an answer. "It matches your butt." He then returned to his task.
Luna blushed before looking at her flank. She then looked around at the tent that surrounded her. "I suppose it does, doesn't it?" she said after a moment of thought.
"What exactly is it that you are looking for?" Twilight asked curiously while also trying to ignore the borderline rude comment that Daxx just made. "I'm sure we could help you with anything that you need."
"Unlikely," Daxx dismissed Twilight's offer. "So far, you have displayed little evidence that suggests you understand even the slightest about what I'm working with."
"Well," Luna began with a slight tone of annoyance in her voice, "maybe if you would stop taking off and dragging us around all the time, we would be able to talk and get a clue as to what in Equestria is going on here!" She sounded almost angry as the annoyance grew.
"Point taken," Daxx said, not even looking away from the metal he was sifting through. "What do you want know?"
Luna sighed to calm herself. "Why exactly did you crash here? What caused it?"
Daxx stopped for a moment and turned to Luna, giving her his undivided attention. "The craft that I arrived in was being carried by a much larger ship, the USS Javelin. It was an advanced battle cruiser with a long range warp drive and deflector shields. After being ambushed deep within enemy occupied space, a random jump was made in order to evade pursuit. I have no knowledge of what happened after that. I was put into power save mode after making the jump. It is possible that the shuttle I was aboard drifted into space from the hangar bay due to the heavy damage that was sustained during battle. Seeing as there is not enough intact salvage to repair said shuttle, it would be best to repair the distress beacon and call for help. A second shuttle could then be sent down to retrieve me. Until then, I am stranded here."
Luna thought about this for a moment. She didn't like it she finally concluded. She didn't like it one bit. Here before her was an alien with technology eons ahead of their own and from the sound of it, she guessed that they were at war. She didn't like the idea of a military group literally dropping into Equestria. Heavens knew what they would do.
"What would happen if you were successfully rescued?" Luna asked cautiously. "What would your allies do here?"
"We would move on, most likely. It wouldn't be smart to stay in one spot for too long."
"Why not?" Twilight asked. "Are you afraid you are being followed by those you are in conflict with?"
"Yes," Daxx answered, "and it is imperative that we are not caught."
"Why?" Luna asked.
"Classified," Daxx responded.
Luna sighed before looking to Twilight and the little dragon who still nervously clutched her leg. She looked back to Daxx who was now going through the metal objects on the table again. She could tell that this was only going to get harder thanks to him withholding information, and it worried her very much. She was very, very worried.
Chapter 3: Twenty Billion
Chapter 3
Even with everything that was going on, the day still had to go on just as it always did. The sun was now visible in the sky, having risen from behind the horizon mere hours ago. For many of the scientists that were present within the camp, time was an irrelevant concept at that point. All that mattered at that moment was this strange, alien creature that had just marched straight through as if he were an everyday sight.
As Daxx concentrated on the materials before him on the wooden table, he was bombarded by ponies trying to ask him questions. "What's this?" "Explain this," or "Where are you from?" they would all ask, impeding the alien's progress only slightly as he continued to work and answer questions from the groups that quickly accumulated around him.
It was quickly becoming apparent that Luna's tent was quickly reaching the limit of how many individuals could occupy the space as more and more scientists entered. Eventually, access to Daxx had to be closed off, to the dismay of those wishing to see him. After a little convincing and some aggressive tactics, Luna's guards managed to force everypony outside where they had to wait. By now, the only ones occupying the royal tent were Twilight, Spike, Luna, her guards, and of course the elephant in the room, Daxx.
"Your research team is very enthusiastic," Daxx pointed out without taking his attention off of the small contraption that he was now piecing together on the table.
"Of course they are," Luna replied. "You are an alien from a completely different world. Wouldn't research teams of your own... um... species... be excited about such a find?"
"Most likely," Daxx answered, "but given the current state of humanity, you would have probably been killed by now and then dissected. Any technology you brought with you would have then been taken, researched, and then used against the enemies of whatever nation was in possession of it."
Everyone in the tent went wide eyed at what Daxx had just revealed to them. "Well, then," Luna said, "I'm not entirely sure what to say to that."
"The project lead would have more than likely deemed it as a necessary evil," Daxx continued. He then said something else at a much lower volume, as if under his breath. "-ing cowards."
"What was that?" Twilight asked, not sure if she had actually heard what she thought she heard.
"Irrelevant," Daxx responded
After some time, Daxx and Twilight eventually made their way back to the wreckage of the ship that had crashed. They were accompanied by a group of at least four royal guards, each sporting their lunar armor sets. It wasn't like they would really be able to restrain Daxx if they deemed it necessary. He was far too powerful for them. Then again, they had not attempted to use any kind of ward spells to contain him and all the guards were unicorns. So it was worth a shot.
Luna had given Twilight the task of finding out as much as she could about Daxx, figuring that he would be more open to an individual with less authority. Twilight had accepted this although Luna had left out the part about the authority. The way she saw it, Daxx being part of a military meant he was more than likely to withhold information from a foreign government, but just maybe Twilight would be able to coax some of that information from him, get to know him on a personal level.
Was this a sneaky strategy? Yes, of course. Was it dishonest? Perhaps, but she needed to know what exactly Equestria was getting itself into. She didn't want to inadvertently go to war with a power that could wipe them from existence.
As Daxx and Twilight made their way to the ship and the guards began to retake their positions, Twilight began to wonder many different things. "So back when we first met you," she began, "you said that we were speaking English, right? Would you care to elaborate on that?"
"There is not much to elaborate on, little horse," Daxx replied in his usual blunt tone. "It is just a language."
"My name is Twilight," Twilight informed him, "and I'm a pony."
"Noted," Daxx said. "Why are you so interested in this?"
"I'm just curious," Twilight responded.
"Don't be," Daxx ordered. It sounded less of a demand and more of a warning.
"Why not?" Twilight asked, not entirely understanding why he refused to cooperate entirely. She could tell he was hiding something. That or he was just difficult by nature.
"Ramifications," Daxx answered.
"Then I'll be careful," Twilight assured.
Daxx did not offer any further replies to this, instead focusing on the short voyage back to his ship. When he, Twilight and their escorts that had grown in number from four to six somewhere along the way, arrived back at the ship Daxx opened the sliding door without difficulty and entered. Twilight continued to follow while the guards took up positions around the interior causing the room to become slightly crowded.
Everypony was slightly startled when Daxx suddenly began ripping large components out of consoles and the walls. At one point, he even drove his metal fist through what appeared to be some sort of steel locker, ripping the door clean off of its hinges and emptying it of its contents.
Luna sat in her tent with an uneasy feeling in her gut. It was the kind of feeling that she got when she thought something was going to go wrong. She had full confidence and faith in Twilight's ability to complete her assigned task, but try as she might, she couldn't shake the feeling.
She looked on at the metal devices that littered the long table in front of her, hoping that something there would catch her curiosity and lead her away from her fears and paranoia, but nothing caught her eye, and she then found herself engaging in the debate that was currently taking place amongst her officers.
"I still think he is a threat to national security," a high ranking officer said, giving his point of view on the subject. "At any moment, he could go do what ever he wants and we would have no way of stopping him. We have no idea what he is capable of or if we can even control him."
"This isn't about control, Lieutenant," another officer replied. "This is about containment, and so far it seems that Celestia's student has done well in keeping him busy enough to not want to leave the area. What was her name again? Twilight correct?"
"Yes," Luna answered. "Twilight has very clear instructions to find out as much about him as possible and then report back to me before sundown. It is my hope that she may even be able to befriend him and eliminate the need for containment all together."
"We should at least have a contingency plan," the Lieutenant suggested. "Just in case things don't go as smooth as we would like."
"Agreed," Luna said nodding. "It was confirmed during first contact with Daxx that he is indeed a machine, a robot much like the ones seen in movies and other forms of popular media. I have already tasked a few of our magic experts to come up with a collection of spells that could possibly affect him."
"When you say 'affect'..." another officer began, "you mean something along the lines of shut him down, right?"
"Possibly, yes," Luna answered. "I am hoping that it does not come to us being forced to deactivate him. It would be preferable if we could find a way to simply impede his progress without causing harm. It is still unknown how he may react to a full show of force."
"What about ward spells?" one of the officers asked. "A few unicorns could easily seal off the perimeter from the outside world. If it came down to it, we could even conjure up a box around him."
"And if he breaks it?" another officer questioned. "He bent a spear into a curly fry. I don't think a simple ward would stand up to that kind of strength. Even if we did reinforce it, we have no idea what kind of counter measures he could deploy against it."
"Oh, and you have a better idea?" the Lieutenant asked. "I mean, who's to say that a ward spell wouldn't work. For all we know, he doesn't have any way of countering magic."
"I know," the guard replied. "I just want to make sure that we get this right the first time. I really don't want to see what this thing is capable of when he's pissed off."
"It seems that we will have to work with whatever we can get," Luna said. "If we can play our cards correctly in this situation, then we will have nothing to fear. Until the need arises, I will have our experts continue in their assigned task. Hopefully Twilight has made progress and we will never actually have that need."
"With all do respect Princess, you're putting a lot of faith in just one unicorn."
Luna knew that every second was one where they teetered on the edge of oblivion. If anything bad happened, it could spell disaster for all of Equestria. Twilight had to be successful in her mission. She just had to. Equestria never needed her more than it did now... well, that wasn't entirely true, but they still desperately needed her to pull through. Luna sighed as she contemplated what was happening. "I know," she whispered.
Suddenly, the fabric entrance to the tent was thrown open, the sunlight assaulting the eyes of each thestral currently around the table. Daxx entered with Twilight following close behind. Several guards also filed in to the now crowded tent. Daxx stopped and looked around the tent, taking in his surrounding and seeming to be actually aware of the ponies around him for the first time.
Everypony stared back at alien that had abruptly entered. Everything was silent for a moment, everyone either expecting something to happen or just not sure of what they should be doing. Just as soon as it had began, the silence was immediately broken when Daxx dropped a black backpack on the table and began unloading several objects.
As Daxx did his thing, Luna looked around at her officers who continued staring on in confusion. "You are all dismissed," she said, catching each of their attention.
"Wait... what?" one of the officers questioned, even more confused than earlier.
"You heard your Princess, soldier," Daxx spoke up before Luna could reply. "You are dismissed."
This sudden statement caught everyone off guard. Each of the officers looked at each other, as if looking for answers, before finally each giving respectful bows to Luna and taking their leave. Both Twilight and Luna were the most surprised by Daxx. He was so blunt and straight forward with everything, showing off just how artificial he was, but at times they would notice little things that suggested he had an actual personality.
"It is good to see you too, Daxx," Luna said somewhat sarcastically as the robot pulled out some equipment from the backpack he had deposited on the table.
Daxx did not respond, instead favoring the silence as he often did.
"Will that allow you to contact your allies?" Luna asked, indicating the object that Daxx had just removed from his backpack. It was a medium sized rectangle that appeared to have some kind of circuitry sticking out of it.
Daxx unloaded a few more alien objects from his backpack before acknowledging Luna. "Yes, I do believe so," he answered. "Given the correct weather conditions, which they are, it will only be a matter of setting this up. I should be able to broadcast a faint signal just strong enough to be picked up by any ship currently in orbit, namely the Javelin. From there it will be up to the communications officers to notice it."
"So what your saying is that help is imminent for you?" Luna said.
"Yes."
Although Luna didn't at all show it, she was now panicking just a little. She had barely been able to cobble together a plan to keep Daxx contained and now more of him were going to be landing in a short time. It wasn't like Luna even had a convincing reason for him to not send out his call for help. Daxx had after all told them that he and his allies were being pursued, so he was probably in a rush to get off of their planet. All Luna could do was hope at this point.
"And what if these pursuers that you seem so intent on escaping from also notice this signal that you wish to send out?" Luna asked.
"They will not," Daxx answered. "Like I said, the signal will only be strong enough to reach ships in direct orbit with this planet. I was not able to salvage anything that would allow for a stronger transmission to be sent and unless a latch ship has also made it through with the Javelin, it will be the only one within range."
"Wait a minute," Twilight said suddenly. "What's a latch ship?"
"Irrelevant," Daxx responded, dismissing her question.
"No, no," Twilight challenged. "You said "unless." That means that there is a chance that whoever you are running from will receive your signal, doesn't it?"
"It is highly unlikely," Daxx said.
"But there is a chance," Luna joined in. "What exactly is a latch ship, Daxx?!" She now seemed quite angry. "How does this affect the chances of your enemies finding this location, our planet?"
"Latch ships are very small and very high tech stealth ships that are used to latch onto much larger vessels. They are usually used to follow ships that warp from one location to another. They have only ever been known to be used in spying purposes. There is no reason to believe that one has compromised the location of the Javelin or your planet."
"How are you so certain!?" Luna nearly yelled. "Do you even know what is at stake here? Have you any clue what is being risked with every moment you remain in our midst!?! Do you? Really?" It was quite obvious now that Luna was becoming frustrated. There was zero plan of action and now she was finding out that imminent doom may be much closer to their doorstep than she once believed. That and she had nearly allowed Daxx to make a move that risked their entire planet.
"I know exactly what is at stake," Daxx answered, "for both you and myself."
"Oh really, then tell us. Please, what conclusion have you come to?"
"You fear invasion," Daxx answered. "Do not worry. It is quite a natural concern. You fear that the arrival of more of my kind will result in open conflict, one that you know you will have no ability to win. This is not the first time that humanity has come in to contact with another intelligent race. You must understand though, Princess. Humanity is already at war and it is one that we are currently losing. Twenty billion lives were already lost before my arrival. If this is to be prevented from happening yet again, I must get the information that I carry to the safety of the Javelin."
Luna's entire body froze and her blood ran cold as the number rang in her ears and through her mind like a bell. "Twenty billion?" she said in what could barely be considered above a whisper. She was shocked.
"Yes," Daxx replied bluntly. "Three planets. Seven years."
By now, Twilight's jaw had also dropped. Twenty billion souls.
Author's Note
Went ahead and decided to finish up this chapter. It's been sitting around unfinished for quite so time so I figured there was no time like the present. Hope you guys like it.
Twilight and Spike sat curiously watching Daxx as he fiddled with his electronic devices that he had sprawled all over the tables within Luna's tent. Each of the electronic boxes was a dark black, being about the size of a cereal box, with many different buttons and flashing lights that Daxx would only tell minimal amounts about when asked or simply respond with "Irrelevant," much to Twilight's frustration. Each of the devices, there being roughly ten in total, was connected with series of wires that strung out like a harvest-ready vineyard.
Luna, who was currently talking to several of her officers about national security was in a different tent only a few block equivalent lengths away in the large tent city. Daxx didn't entirely know what she was doing, but he had a pretty good idea of what she could possibly be talking to her soldiers about. Not to worry, he would be out of her mane soon enough and back on bridge of the Javelin no doubt giving a report to Captain Walsh. Of course, he would need to finish his beacon before that could happen.
"Soooo," Twilight began, not really doing a very good job to start a conversation as she trailed off and silence once again fell upon the room. She wanted to relieve some of the tension in the air, but she wasn't really sure as how to do it, not with that number still fresh in her mind, despite the fact that it had been hours since it was first uttered. She had been asking him tons of questions over the time that he had been there, but many of his answers were vague or he would just dodge the questions all together. The clearest answer was when Twilight finally asked on the nature of his necklace.
"What's the significance of your necklace?" Twilight eventually asked curiously. "Is it a cultural piece?"
"No," Daxx answered without looking from the keypad that he had been typing away at for the last few minutes. The small screen connected to it that had fascinated Twilight earlier was now flashing with all manners of colors and patterns. He had called it a "laptop." One of the small rectangles from his necklace had been stuck in the side for some reason. "They are portable digital information storage devices, more commonly referred to as "thumb drives" by most. They are used to store large amounts of information in a small space. I like to keep my memory banks clear of anything other than memories, therefore I carry any additional information with me on these thumb drives with the exception of when I have been deployed into battle. The one currently plugged into this laptop is filled with emergency distress signals for all different situations. Is this answer satisfactory?"
Twilight admitted, she was more than surprised by how much Daxx was willing to reveal all of a sudden. She had kind of gotten used to her questions being dodged entirely. "So what you're saying is that you can store information on one small device?"
"Yes," Daxx answered. "These are mostly empty, but I carry them just in case."
Before Twilight could inquire on the exact nature of such an invention, Luna entered the tent not looking too happy as she stared at Daxx with a piercing glare.
Daxx turned to face the princess of the moon, as if answering a challenge. He didn't say anything, simply choosing to remain silent, but whether he was going to listen to what she had to say was a different matter all together.
"More debris from your ship has entered the atmosphere and landed within our borders," Luna said bluntly. She didn't seem happy at all, no she seemed angry. Something else had happened, something that she wasn't disclosing quite yet. "The impact point was only one mile outside of a major city." There it was. That was why she was mad. Large scraps of debris were falling from the sky and nearly hitting centers of population.
Twilight's eyes widened as she heard this news. If more debris was falling from Daxx's ship, then all of Equestria was in danger. "Where?" she asked suddenly, fully understanding how much weight this carried.
"Manehattan," Luna answered, sounding very bemused. "How is this happening?" she asked, turning back to Daxx. "What are you not telling us?"
Daxx just looked at Luna for a moment, as if thinking, before finally answering. "There is nothing that I have not told you that relates to this current situation. As I stated before, the USS Javelin sustained heavy damage before making a random warp jump to this location as a means of evading pursuit. It should come as no surprise that debris has entered the atmosphere."
Despite this fact, Luna was flustered. She didn't have time to debate and needed to take action so that nopony would get hurt. She had already sent word out and pegasi patrols were actively patrolling the stratosphere, but this would not be enough. They were not being granted enough time to stop the deadly projectiles hurtling toward their planet. They just couldn't have pegasi everywhere all at once. It was because of this small window of time they had, that any defense that they could create was crude. If they had a better early warning system though, they could stop this. They would need something better than what they had. They needed the proper technology.
Luna took a deep breath, putting aside any ideas she may have had before that might have lead her to arguing with Daxx. After collecting her thoughts, she spoke. "How long until your beacon is finished?"
"I was setting the frequency just before you entered," Daxx answered. "Why do you ask?"
Luna thought for a moment, contemplating something. "So what you're saying is that it is ready to go?"
"Nearly, yes."
"May I ask a favor, Daxx?" Luna asked. Her expression had soften and she no longer sounded mad. She sounded concerned, almost scared. She was serious, but still scared. Her words had come out a little more emotionally than she had initially intended and she hoped Daxx did not pick up on this.
"This depends," Daxx answered with his usual blunt tone. "What is it that you require?"
"We are in danger," Luna admitted. "The debris that is falling is of substantial size, more than large enough for us to be worried. I have been in contact with my sister for the past hour, and we have found it necessary to declare a state of emergency. Magical barriers are currently being erected over every major city and town."
"I would hardly call this course of action discreet," Daxx said. He didn't seem to agree with Luna and Celestia's decision.
"Being discreet is the least of our worries," Luna challenged. "An explanation for what is happening can always be made up later. The safety of the citizens of Equestria must always come first, no matter what."
"You would be very popular with the people of my country," Daxx suddenly injected.
Luna wasn't sure how to respond to this seeing as it had more or less caught her off guard. Was she supposed to take this as a compliment? "Um... thank you?"
Daxx did not say anything else, indicating that the moment had passed and that there would likely not be another one.
Luna took a deep breath, regained her composure, and put on a serious face. What she was about to ask was not just a desire, but an absolute need. Equestria was in danger and the technology that Daxx's people were in possession of could potentially save them. "If you are able to come into contact with your people, would it be possible to gain your assistance in the detection of this falling debris?"
"Uncertain," Daxx answered. "There are many variables in play with this situation. This would entirely be the decision of my superior, the commanding officer of the Javelin."
"How likely is it that your superior would be willing to grant aid?" Luna asked hopefully. Everything was riding on the answer to this question.
"Knowing Captain Walsh, I would say that this is a likely scenario, assuming that the proper equipment was not damaged during the battle prior to our arrival. It would also take time to be set up."
If this was the best that Luna was going to be able to get, then she would take it. She had been more than worried about the arrival of more technologically superior beings right in the middle of Equestria, but her hooves had been tied. Fortunately, Daxx seemed to suggest that this Captain Walsh was benevolent. At least, this is what she hoped. "Send your message," Luna said after a quick moment of thought.
"I already did," Daxx explained.
"You what?!?!" Luna nearly shouted, quite angrily. "When?!"
"Before you entered the tent, I set up a wireless link between me and the beacon," Daxx began. "I activated the beacon through this link during our conversation."
"You should have waited for my approval," Luna scolded. "You are not doing a very good job of holding my trust with such erratic actions."
Daxx looked at Luna for a moment before taking several solid steps in her direction. He stopped just in front of her before kneeling down until he was at eye level with the angry alicorn. The small lens on his emotionless metal face, if it could even be called that, seemed to dilate slightly, as if this was his way of narrowing his eyes and glaring at her. What came next, alarmed Luna. For the first time, he spoke in a way that was not a blunt and emotionless. His tone was organic sounding while also retaining its synthetic hum.
"There is one thing that needs to be made clear," Daxx said, sounding almost angry. "You," he pointed a menacing finger at Luna, "do not control me. I never had any plans of getting your approval for anything. The directives of my mission are very clear and I will do anything necessary to complete it, whether you like it or not." Without waiting for any kind of response, Daxx rose and walked passed Luna, right out of the tent, leaving every pony standing there with wide eyes. Their expressions were those of shock, their mouths hanging agape.
Spike, who had remained silent for some time, was the only one to speak. "Um, what just happened?"
Daxx rummaged through the cargo hull of the shuttle, not really looking for anything in particular. He had broken into a locker and pulled out a backpack along with a side arm, which was now securely fastened to the side of his leg in a holster. Arming himself was not exactly a conscious decision of his. His programming simply dictated that he be carrying a weapon with him when he was not aboard the Javelin. Now that his primary objective for the moment was complete, he could focus on these secondary directives.
The backpack that he had now recovered, was pre-packed with survival supplies, such as first aid kits, MREs, rope, and other basics. He had also taken the liberty of attaching a basic harness to himself, one that clipped on to his outer shell of armor that protected all his inner components. This harness had been fully stocked with spare magazines for both a side arm and a standard issue rifle.
Daxx looked over to the wall opposite to the one that he now stood closest to. There was a rack with multiple assault rifles neatly secured in their proper storage positions. Protocol had always stated that a unit was required to remain in possession of its rifle at all times while in the field. Daxx didn't always follow these protocols though.
He had already been breaching it for the last several hours by communicating with the indigenous life, but what was he supposed to do? Whoever came up with these damn protocols was most likely a pencil pusher who sat at a desk and was still able to go home at the end of every day. Many of Daxx's own friends were not even lucky enough to get to go home at all. Smith, Finch, Atkinson, Headrick, Shen, Lancaster. The list went on and he remembered them all.
There was no good in dwelling on the past few months though. He contemplated his position in his current situation. It didn't take long for him to come up with the right answer. The mission had to come first, no matter what. Establish contact, board the Javelin, get the hell back to UN controlled space. There was too much riding on this.
Daxx reached for a rifle. He pulled the bolt back, checking that the chamber was empty. It was, of course. He knew it was. He knew that every weapon in the shuttle, with the exception of the pistol on his hip, was empty. A photographic memory was one of the perks of being a machine, although sometimes it seemed more like a curse.
He loaded a magazine into his weapon and shouldered it, checking that the holographic sight had not been damaged during their crash landing. It was entirely intact. The little, red, holographic dot still popped up when he aimed. This brought him only a little satisfaction. He liked it when things worked the way they were intended. He had always kind of wondered if this had anything to do with the fact that he contained many different systems that all worked in unison.
"Daxx?," a familiar feminine voice called from the direction the shuttle's entrance.
Daxx clipped his rifle to his back and headed to the origin of the voice.
Twilight stood in doorway of the shuttle, looking around the darkened interior for any sign of the alien robot. She was easily able to notice him walking out from the cargo hull thanks to the clanking that his feet made against the hard metal floor. "Are you... okay?" she asked cautiously. "You seemed angry and you just stormed out. That doesn't seem like something you would do."
"I did not storm out," Daxx said. He was back to using his blunt, unreadable tone. "I no longer had any need to stay in your tent. I came here out of a necessity. Secondly, I simulated an angry tone only so that Luna would understand more easily. I do not get angry."
Twilight wasn't entirely convinced of this, but it was obvious that she was never going to get anywhere with him. He was hopeless, but maybe those who built him were not. As nervous as she was about more aliens landing on their planet, part of her was more than excited about their arrival. It was, after all, a once in a lifetime opportunity.
"So you don't resent Luna at all, right?" Twilight asked.
"No," Daxx answered simply. Of course, he did not elaborate on this anymore.
Twilight had to admit, it was good to see him back to his old self.
Luna stared at the series of wires and black boxes that now littered the table in her tent. The beacon that Daxx had constructed was quite impressive for only using parts that had been salvaged from a crashed ship, at least, she thought it was impressive. She didn't really know if it was hard to build a beacon or not. Whether it was hard or not though, didn't matter. Everything was happening so fast and it made her feel sick.
She felt a knot in her stomach and her legs seemed just a little weak. She hated being helpless, which is exactly how she felt right about now. All she could do was sit and hope that everything turned out for the best in the long run and she hated it. Everything was out of her control.
She truly wished that her sister could be here right at the moment. Celestia had gone one thousand years on her own, not only ruling a kingdom, but helping it prosper into an age of peace and tranquility. By comparison, Luna knew relatively nothing. There was so much that she was still learning about this new world she had woken up in. Now, on top of everything that already weighed on her, from trying to show all of Equestria that she was worthy of their forgiveness and trust, to just coming to terms with everything she had done, this had to be thrown into the mix. Extraterrestrial life coming to Equus.
In every challenge that Luna had faced since the end of her banishment, she had taken it head on, but now her hooves were tied. There was only one thing she could do. She could let Daxx's beacon do its thing or shut it down. Either way, Equestria would still be in danger and it would be all her fault. She was a failure.
This was all so much to handle. Luna, laid her head down on the table and allowed herself to do something that she hadn't done since the night of her return. She cried. Not for long though, less then a minute, maybe only thirty seconds. Tears had always been seen as a sign of weakness, but she didn't care. She had to just let it all out for a moment. Then she lifted her head up, wiped her eyes, recomposed herself, and sighed. It was time for her to suck it up and ready herself for what lied ahead. This was only going to get harder.
Author's Note
I really should be working on Husklands, but dammit the ideas be a flowin!
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.
It had probably been the most productive day Twilight had ever had. After waking up in the morning, she had rushed to get ready, packing everything she would need for the day. Notebooks, check. Extra notebooks, check. Backup extra notebooks, check. The entire check list went like that for every other item including ink, quills, parchment paper, and a hefty supply of colorful paper tabs.
"Twilight, please. Slow down!" Spike had said as Twilight rapidly listed off everything she anticipated for the day.
"You're right, Spike," Twilight suddenly realized. "I almost forgot to pack notecards!"
"No, no! I mean look at yourself!" Spike replied as he held up a large mirror. "You're a mess."
Spike was right. Twilight was what Rarity would have referred to as an early morning disaster and a crime against fashion. She had maple syrup and bits of pancake stuck around her mouth. Her mane was a mess, with stray strands of hair sticking out every which way physics would allow, and worst of all she didn't have on any clothes. Wait... that's completely normal. Never mind. Despite this, Spike had a valid point. Twilight was indeed a mess and not even the good kind that Pinkie Pie was usually responsible for on birthdays.
"You're getting way too far ahead of yourself," Spike explained, giving her a worried look. "I haven't seen you this frantic since you tried to cause a friendship problem."
Twilight sighed. "I'm not frantic, Spike. I'm just... excited is all. Thank you though. It's just that... this could possibly the greatest historical event since the changeling invasion and I'm getting to record it. To be completely honest, I'm nervous. What if I don't ask the right questions? What if I don't get the details I need?"
"Don't worry about, Twilight," Spike dismissed her concern. "You'll do fine."
"You think so?"
"Of course," Spike replied with absolute certainty. "Just do what you always do. Just do you."
Twilight smiled. "Thank you, Spike. I needed to here that."
"Anytime."
And of course, Spike was right. Twilight did just as good as she always did. A long morning of interviewing Daxx, a lunch break, and then another several hour long session, and Twilight found that she was already running out of notebooks in which to record the things she discovered. Most of it had been history, a topic that Daxx was much more willing to talk about. He had explained to her the origins of the nation he came from, the United States of America, and how it had started out as collective of colonies ruled by a monarch across an ocean. He told her of how they fought for independence and eventually grew to become a world superpower all the way up to the world wars and what he referred to as the 'Cold War' involving places like Korea, Vietnam, Berlin, and Cuba. This part of human history intrigued Twilight especially. Humans truly had a dynamic and complex background.
It was then that they hit the twenty first century. It was a time of wonders. It was the beginning of the digital age, as they called it. Even more incredible though, was the beginning of space colonization. It had all begun on a little red planet named Mars, after the Roman god of war. Somehow, to Twilight, that seemed appropriate. There was so much violence and death in human history. The fact that their first civilization away from their home world was on a planet named after a deity of war almost seemed ironic. Unfortunately, it aligned with their history after that point. Daxx had described the conflicts that followed as policing actions, but Twilight didn't see much difference.
The wars during the twenty second century had been little more than territorial disputes between colonies, but by the twenty third there were large scale conflicts between entire planets. Of course, the United Nations had to step in and establish order, which lead to the creation of the Interplanetary Security Commission or ISC.
It hadn't always been that way though. For a time, humanity enjoyed many years of peace after the discovery of a chain of habitable planets. They called it the 'Fertile Ring.' Unfortunately, old habits die hard.
And that's about as far as they got before the clock struck midnight. They had somehow covered nearly seven hundred years of history in a day. Of course, it was all very general information. Twilight couldn't wait to get into the very intricate detail. She was finally going to get to use that filing cabinet that she just couldn't seem to fill.
Spike had fallen asleep hours ago after a long day of doing a great job of helping to keep notes in order. There had been no doubt in Twilight's mind that Spike was tired. She was so grateful to have him around to help. Eventually, she too found it hard to stay awake. After yawning, yet again, Daxx suggested that she retire for the night, promising to wait for her in the morning so that they could pick up where they had left off. With a quick farewell, the day was over.
It was three in the morning and Spike couldn't sleep. He had never been able to sleep in beds that were not his own. Sure, he had easily taken naps on Twilight's back or on train seats during long trips to the Crystal Empire. If one was tired enough, they could sleep anywhere, but consciously trying to go to sleep just didn't work for him. On top of it all, he was hungry.
That is how he found himself in the commissary tent. It was mostly empty. On one of the far sides, there was a royal guard eating a sandwich while watching two others play cards. They were all outfitted in the blue lunar armor. Other than that, he was alone.
"Sandwich," Spike thought to himself. That sounded really good right now. He didn't make anything too big though, just something that would be considered more of a snack than a meal. He didn't want to stay up too late after all. There was no doubt that the day would be just as busy as the last. As a result, he spent little time getting and eating something. When he had finished he returned the way he had come.
He was nearly back to the sleeping quarters when he noticed something moving just outside the camp. It was a tall, shadowy figure. Bipedal, no doubt about it. The strangest part was that it had appeared out of nowhere, as if materializing from thin air. The first thought to go through Spike's mind was that he was just jumping at shadows. It was late; it was dark and he was tired. Then he remembered where he was and all that was happening. It had to be Daxx.
Reluctantly, Spike called out into the dark. "Hello?" He advanced forward, fiddling with his claws as he did so. Looking around, there was nothing. No Daxx, no nothing. Despite this, he was certain that he had seen something. At this point, he would have normally dismissed it as his imagination, but he had this gut feeling like something was wrong. In his mind, he was obligated to at least make sure. There was only one way to do that. He checked the tent in which Daxx had set up for the night.
Upon arriving, he noticed that the guards were still out front. "Hey, fellas," Spike greeted as he approached. "Um, Twilight needed a book she left in here. Do you mind if I grab it real quick?"
The guards knew Spike. He was a hero in the Crystal Empire after all. One of them simply nodded and opened the tent flap for him, allowing him access without further thought.
"Thanks," Spike said as he entered.
Once in, he looked around. The large table in the middle was still there with the electronic beacon that hummed softly. In the back right corner there was a large stack of notebooks sitting on a much smaller table. There were also a few chairs. The only thing that wasn't there was Daxx. He was missing. He wasn't standing in the corner or working on his beacon. He wasn't even folded up in power save mode on the ground somewhere. He was just gone.
As fast as he could, Spike grabbed the closest notebook and walked out trying to look as normal as possible. After turning a corner, he ran the rest of the way until he was at Twilight's bedside. "Twilight!" he said in a hushed yell. "Twilight, wake up." He began to push on her until she finally rolled over to look at him.
"Uh, Spiiiiike," she groaned. "Cant it wait until morning?"
"No, Twilight," Spike said, as he grabbed at her anxiously. "Something's wrong. Daxx isn't in his tent. I think I saw him leaving the camp."
Twilight's eyes suddenly shot open. "What?" she questioned. "He cant just do that!"
"I was hungry, so I went to get a sandwich and on my way back I thought I saw him headed towards the crash site. I checked his tent and he was gone. Honest."
"Don't worry, Spike. I believe you," Twilight said. She rubbed her chin to take a second to think.
"Should we tell Princess Luna," Spike asked.
"I don't know," Twilight answered. "Luna seems to think Daxx is hiding something, and not just dangerous technologies or government secrets. She thinks Daxx is hiding something that directly relates to the current situation."
"Do you think it has something to do with his ship?" Spike asked.
"Maybe. Anytime anypony's been in there to study it, it's been under his supervision," Twilight pointed out. "He could be trying to protect us, but I get the feeling that there's more to it than that."
"So what should we do?"
That was the real kicker. What should they do? Twilight had been focused this entire time on getting Daxx to trust her. She wanted to get him to open up to her, but for the first time Twilight was now beginning to ask herself if she trusted him. Trust was one of those things that, once broken, was hard to repair. It had taken time and effort to gain his trust to begin with and the last thing she wanted to do was rat him out to the princess and lose it all. Of course though, she couldn't just go behind Luna's back.
"I think I have an idea," Twilight finally said. "Come on, Spike. There's someone we need to talk to."
Luna walked through the camp at such a fast rate that Spike had to practically jog in order to keep up with her.
"So, you're not angry right?" Spike asked. "I mean, we did come to you instead of investigating on our own, but you're not angry that we had second thoughts or anything?"
Luna stopped and looked down at the small dragon. It was then that she suddenly realized that she knew remarkably little about him. She couldn't recall a time that she had ever even talked to him. This was the first time that she had ever even been alone with him. She sighed. "You are perfectly justified in your actions," she answered. "Twilight's doubts are understandable. The fact that she recognizes the importance of mutual trust in her relationship with Daxx is good. I just never thought that it might drive a wedge between us."
"So you're not angry then?"
"Of course not," Luna answered.
Spike sighed in relief. "Great. Now... um... what's the plan?"
"Simple," Luna answered quite confidently. "We are going to go talk to him."
Spike yawned. "Assuming we can stay awake that is," he muttered to himself.
Luna just smiled.
When they finally arrived at the crash site, nothing seemed to be out of place. The shuttle still laid in the scar it had engraved in the ground and the metal bits that had been strewn around had all been moved to the campsite. Even the guards, who stood like statues, were still at their posts.
"Guard, report," Luna said to the nearest guard.
"All has been quiet, your Highness," the guard said. "Nothing to report."
This struck Luna as very odd and she could see the genuine confusion on Spike's face.
"Are you sure?" Spike asked. "No killer robots skulking around anything? Nothing appearing out of thin air?"
The guard just shook his head in response.
Luna thought for a moment. She wanted to take her guard's word that nothing had happened and despite knowing that he wasn't lying to her, something did feel out of place. The thought scared her, but she couldn't dismiss the idea that Daxx had a way of sneaking passed any guards and roaming freely at his own leisure. "We will be inside the ship," she informed her guard. "Report to me if you see anything."
"Yes, you Highness." The guard saluted.
Luna and Spike entered the shuttle. It was pitch black. Despite having been inside multiple times before, it never stopped being creepy to Spike. He always felt like there was something inside that was watching him. Luna lit her horn before finding the switch to turn on the lights that had been set up. With the lights on, the two were able to walk around the cramped space much more easily.
"Are we looking for anything specific?" Spike asked.
Luna didn't answer initially. She just eyed the interior curiously for a moment, trying to find anything unusual. "I'm not sure," she finally answered. "I was hoping we would know once we were inside, but now I'm not so certain."
She opened the door to the cargo hold. Just like the cockpit, it was pitch black. She reached to turn on the lights, but just as she did something caught her eye. It was small, but it was enough for her to notice. In the dark, not to far off, was a light of some kind. The little orange light blinked on and off slowly. "Aha," Luna thought to herself.
"What's that?" Spike asked, having also taken notice to the little light.
Luna looked at the source for a moment. It was what Daxx had referred to as a laptop earlier on. This one was open, but the screen was black. There was one notable difference between this one and the other that Daxx had used on his beacon. Something was plugged into this one.
"Is that a flash stick?" Spike asked, pointing to the small object in the side of the computer.
"I believe it is a flash drive," Luna corrected, "and yes. Daxx had many like it on his necklace. Without even thinking she pulled it out with her magic.
"Oh, I'm sorry," the computer suddenly said as the screen came to life. "Was I taking too long?"
Luna and Spike both jumped back in surprise at hearing a female voice from the machine.
"Oh, hello," the computer said, displaying a pixelated smiley face on the screen. "I did not realize that you were not Daxx. He has told me much about you. I did not believe him when he told me that this planet was inhabited by ponies and dragons, but here you are. Your people have very interesting history."
Luna just looked at the computer screen in complete shock.
"Hi, I'm Spike," Spike said, not being able to resist introducing himself to the kind voice.
"Hello, Spike," the computer greeted. "It is very nice to meet you. My name is Alexandria. I am the librarian and analytical AI of the Great Oniyah Library."
"Oniyah? AI? Wait, how do you know anything of our history?" Luna asked.
"You must be Princess Luna," Alexandria said, presenting the smiley face again. The expression would adjust slightly to fit the mood of the words being spoken, but never actually opened its mouth. "Daxx has told me many things about you. He likes you. He says you are somewhat hard to work with, because you are stubborn, but thinks that it makes you a good leader."
Luna was actually quite surprised by this. "Really?"
"Yes," Alexandria confirmed. "I'd like to add that you are quite beautiful in person. I especially enjoy the way that your mane flows. It reminds me of the night sky on my home planet of Oniyah."
"Oh, well... thank you. That's very kind of you to say." Luna was very much beginning to like Alexandria. She couldn't imagine why Daxx had hidden her from them. Of course, given the great lengths that he had gone to, she was still sure there was something not being disclosed.
"You're very welcome," Alexandria replied. "To answer your question, I know of your history because Daxx has been bringing me small excerpts of history during the night. He should be back soon though."
"I see," Luna replied. "Where exactly is he getting this information?"
"From Twilight Sparkle, of course," Alexandria answered. "She sounds like a very nice person, and I would very much like to meet her. The local library is also a great source of information. Many of the books he has obtained came directly from there. It was very kind of Twilight to bring some books for him to copy. I have found the analyzing process quite pleasant as well."
Luna smiled. So that's how Twilight had gotten Daxx to talk. Information for information. She would have to remember that for later. "I'll be sure to let Twilight know how much you appreciate her."
"Oh, but I'd love to meet her as well and possibly even see her library," Alexandria replied. "It has been far too long since I have enjoyed organizing large quantities of literature."
Luna's smiled grew every time Alexandria said something. "Oh, Twilight is going to love you."
"I do hope so," Alexandria said. "Daxx has been my only companion for the last week. It would be nice to make some new friends."
"Speaking of whom," Luna began, "where is Daxx at the moment? I had expected him to be here."
"By now, he is probably back at his tent," Alexandria answered. "He has been using a cloaking device to move about the camp undetected. I hope he has not been causing you any trouble."
"Cloaking?" Spike questioned.
"It is a device that infracts light from a background around a user," Alexandria explained. "This creates the illusion of invisibility. It is actually quite a simple trick. I have an entire section dedicated to the science behind it if you are interested."
Daxx had an invisibility cloak. Well, this was just perfect.
"I see he has tried quite hard to keep you a secret then," Luna said. "Surely there is a reason for this."
"You will have to forgive Daxx," Alexandria explained. "He is very protective of me, especially after the incident on Oniyah. Of course, he has promised to take me to Paris after all of this is over and I am loaded into a proper mobile platform."
Luna wasn't entirely sure what Alexandria was referring to, but she got the feeling that this entire time Daxx had been simply deflecting for Alexandria's sake. The question was why.
"What happened on Oniyah?" Spike asked, practically taking the words out of Luna's mouth.
"That is actually a very complicated story and I'm afraid I can not tell you everything," Alexandria began. "I will try my best though. It all started with an encrypted data package and a very large enemy fleet."
Everything that Daxx had told them was a lie, most of it at least. Luna was sure that the historical accounts given to Twilight was all genuine, but most of the info related to the current situation was either purposely kept incomplete or was a complete falsity all together. It seemed that Daxx had taken all this as some kind of game, one of deception and miss direction. Despite this, Luna could not bring herself to be angry. Somehow, she just understood.
Her talk with Alexandria had been very enlightening and many things that she did not understand at the beginning were now starting to make sense. Alexandria had graciously agreed to not tell Daxx anything about their conversation until Luna could do it herself. The one thing that Luna couldn't get out of her head though, was that familiar number. Twenty billion. Twenty billion lives lost. She couldn't even fathom a number that large.
At the moment, all Luna could feel towards Daxx was pity. It was time she had a truly sincere talk with him, just as she had earlier that night. This time it would not be as a political figure though. This time it would just be as a mare who wanted to know the truth, someone she hoped could be called 'friend.'
Author's Note
I'm so glad to have this chapter done with. I've had this new character in my head since the beginning and I'm so happy to have her finally written into the story. Hopefully Daxx's character arc hasnt been too confusing or irradic for people to follow along with. I'm really terrible with these kinds of things, but I think it works good in this instance. Also, not sure if that chapter title works, but whatever. Hope you enjoyed.
Luna paced around nervously outside of her tent. Daxx was inside, no doubt pretending that he had never left after their earlier conversation. It had been a short one, but enjoyable. He wasn't half bad to be around when the goal wasn't to extract information from the stubborn robot.
A hundred thoughts raced through Luna's head. Everything Alexandria had said made too much since now. Daxx had been doing nothing but running interference and now that Luna knew about her, maybe she would be able to get some answers. It scared her though. She had no idea how he would react.
Luna took several deep breaths before finally finding her nerve and entering the tent.
Daxx was sitting on the ground in one of the corners with his arms to his sides, legs tucked in to his chest, and his head had somehow lowered into his torso just barely. A small light blinked faintly on his back.
Luna cleared her throat. "Daxx," she called out.
In response, Daxx's head popped up and looked in Luna's direction. "Is there something else, Princess?"
"Yes," Luna answered. "We need to talk about our current situation, Daxx. I want you to know that I understand now."
"There has not been a development in the situation."
"I know this, but..." Luna sighed. They could only dance around it for so long, so she might as well say it.
"Everything you have told us has been a lie, Daxx," Luna claimed in a tone that seemed more sad than angry. "You have even attempted to discourage further questioning with what could be seen as indirect threats. "Killed and dissected?" Daxx, you make it sound as if we are your enemy. We are both in need, though. So please. Tell me the truth."
"All I can tell you, Princess, is that much of the info you seek is classified," Daxx responded.
"Daxx," Luna continued. "All I want is to help you and keep everyone safe. Please, you may see me as the representative of a foreign power, but do you not believe that we could be more than that? Couldn't we perhaps be friends?"
"While I appreciate the fact that you are willing to take this through unofficial channels, the fact that you believe I have lied to you shows that you clearly do not understand this situation."
"I don't understand?!" Luna suddenly exclaimed. Clearly this was just more deflection crap. Being told that she didn't understand things was not something Luna enjoyed. If anything, it made her angry, but she needed to remain calm. She needed to prepare for what was about to be said. "Daxx, I know far more now than you are aware."
Daxx just remained silent. Luna wasn't sure if this was meant to be a challenge or if she had caught him in a situation in which he didn't know how to respond. She was cautious, but continued. It was time. "Daxx, I know about Alexandria and..."
Daxx instantly shot up to his feet, his joints screaming out with a loud electric buzz as he did, clearly not being used to being forced into motion so quickly and so suddenly.
"I followed you after you were spotted by my guards," Luna lied. She didn't want anyone else being put in danger by this. This was her battle to fight, although she hoped that would only be metaphorical.
Before Luna could even continue, Daxx began to walk towards her from across the room. With each step, Luna began to feel more and more like something was going terribly wrong. In those few seconds, time slowed down for Luna and something that boiled down to her basic animalistic instincts went off and she knew in that moment she was in great danger. The fight or flight instinct that she didn't even realize she had guided her and without a conscious thought her horn lit up with a surge of magic, she took a ready stance, aimed, and fired.
The impact could have been heard for a mile onward and the bright flash that resulted from it was blinding to the point that Luna could see spots in her vision.
Daxx dropped to his knees as his body twitched. All sorts of sounds were made, including a high pitch and stuttering wail that sounded like a demon was tearing time asunder. Luna could only stare in shock at what she had done. After what seemed like an eternity, the tormenting noise stopped. Slowly, Daxx keeled over backwards. His left arm weakly reached up, swatting at nothing as if trying to extract a piece of the sky, before finally slumping over next to the rest of him.
Daxx twitched slightly as arcs of electricity ran across his body, before finally falling still. Silence filled the tent and all that was left was the thick smell of melting metal and the smoke that rose from the white hot spot still burning in Daxx's chest. Then there was a great boom from outside that seemed to rock the entire world.
It wasn't until she was being rushed out by her personal guard that Luna realized just how badly she had been injured.
Twilight pranced around anxiously in her tent as she tried to wrap her head around what Spike had just told her. "So what you're saying is that there is another one of them... here... in Equestria!?"
"Um... yeah," Spike confirmed. "Her name is Alexandria. You'd like her. She's really nice and she's a librarian."
Twilight's eyes lit up in a way that would have illuminated the entire tent had there not already been several candles burning. "You're joking!" Twilight exclaimed, getting way too close for comfort.
Spike put a claw on Twilight's snout and pushed her back out of his face, trying to keep her calm and contain his own excitement at the same time. "Nope," Spike continued. "Turns out she's from the largest library ever constructed. Can't remember the name of the planet though. I think it started with an O. Onion something, maybe?"
"We have to go meet her!" Twilight nearly shouted. "There's so much she could tell us! I still have so many questions! Oh, this is going to be perfect!"
Spike had to grab Twilight by the tail to prevent her from running outside right then and there. "Twilight wait! You can't," Spike called after her as he was dragged along the floor. "Luna is talking to Daxx about it and if you want to keep his trust, you still need him to think that you didn't have anything to do with all this."
In an instant Twilight's expression went from one of pure and utter joy to one of absolute disappointment. "Oh, right. I guess I'll just wait in the tent then." She gave a half hearted laugh and smile, before turning around and sadly walking back to her bed.
"Hey, it's okay," Spike assured. "Maybe Luna's talk with Daxx will go great and you'll be able to talk to Alexandria in the morning."
Suddenly and without warning, the earth beneath them shook violently. A rapid gust of wind hit them, nearly knocking them to the ground and the tent itself began to collapse. All of this was accompanied by a deafening sound that made both of their ears ring.
"Twilight," Spike called out as he stumbled to his feet after having been knocked off his feet and into the table behind him. He couldn't hear anything other than the loud and nonstop ringing of his own ears. He called out again to the unicorn in front of him to make sure she was okay.
Twilight held her hooves against her head, trying to stop the painful throbbing and ringing. She could only barely hear Spike, but called back to him. "Spike, are you alright?!"
The two must have looked like a couple of mad ponies, yelling at each other from only a few feet apart. Despite this, they could only barely hear each other. It wasn't until they had waited about a minute that they could hear again, even though their ears still rang.
"What in Equestria was that?" Spike asked as he tried to pop his ears.
Alarms suddenly went off in Twilight's head as she was beginning to be able to think clearly again. Something terrible had happened was all she could assume. Without a second thought, she rushed outside, followed by Spike who was also beginning to catch on.
Outside, embers rained down from the sky like snow and there was some scattered debris from an explosion on the other side of the row of tents opposite from them. Twilight was startled when a flaming two-by-four landed only a few meters away from them. The greatest concern though, was the scene before them.
The ball of fire rose into the air, threatening to tear open the night sky and expose the oblivion between their world and the next. The blaze below quickly grew out of control and the royal guards rushed to get rain clouds over it before it could spread. The skyline formed by the next row of tents glowed orange and it seemed as if night had been turned into day.
"Dear Celestia," Spike muttered under his breath, before finding himself racing after Twilight as she took off in the direction of the danger.
When they arrived on the scene, the fire was quickly shrinking as the guards worked tirelessly to put it out. They were both able to express sighs of relief when they saw that Luna's tent had, in fact, been untouched. The fire was limited to only a large tent used for storage, which had been completely decimated, and a few surrounding tents toppled by the initial shock wave.
Most ponies who attempted to investigate were turned away by the guards. Upon showing her lanyard, Twilight was allowed in and directed to the medical tent to see the princess. Medical tent, as in a field hospital. Yet again, Twilight felt her heart drop into the depths of her stomach and all she and Spike could do is run as fast as they could to find Luna.
"I cant even begin to tell you how lucky you are, Princess," the doctor began to lecture as he looked over his clipboard. "Another inch to the left and you probably wouldn't have the bottom half of your leg."
Luna didn't seem to be listening. She just stared at the floor with a guilt-ridden expression on her face.
"I'll be honest with you," the doctor continued. "You're going to need to stay off of it for a few days and there's going to be a very noticeable scar, but..."
"Is anypony else hurt?" Luna asked in a hushed tone that was filled with sorrow.
The doctor flipped through the papers on his clipboard only to find nothing, before looking to an officer who's armor was covered in soot.
"There are a few ponies with very minor burns," the guard stated. "It's nothing a little aloe wont fix. Other than that... well, everyone is just spooked. This has all been a little more excitement than anyone really expected."
Luna sighed in relief.
"Your majesty," the officer continued. "If you don't mind me asking, what exactly happened? The noise scared everypony half to death and the machine has a hole melted in its chest the size of a grapefruit."
"I don't know," Luna said, her voice full of shame as she wasn't even able to look at the pony in front of her. "I really don't know. I just... I lost control of the situation."
"He tried to hurt you, didn't he?"
Luna just shrugged.
The officer sighed. "Luna," he said. "We both know that you wouldn't have acted unless he gave you a good reason to do so. If he tried to hurt you, then you have every right to defend yourself no matter what planet he's from."
"I know, but... it wasn't supposed to happen like this. I didn't mean to kill him. It was only supposed to be a stasis spell. It should have just put him into suspended animation. Then I could have at least explained myself."
"So it didn't go down like you planned," the officer pointed out. "What did happen then?"
Luna just sighed before looking back up to her officer, the pony she knew as Stratus. Her friend. She shook her head. "It's my fault," she began. "I did something I shouldn't have, something foolish. It was far to soon and yet I was so eager to get answers that I rushed in without taking the proper time or consideration. I'm a damned fool."
"You can't be that hard on yourself."
"But it's true," Luna continued. "I told him something I shouldn't have. I revealed that I had discovered secrets that he was attempting to hide and when he heard that, Daxx made a move. I don't know what came over me, but in that moment I think I realized what I had done and I- I- I just reacted, okay?"
This is when the tears came. Luna tried her best to not let them free, but it was no use. "I'm a failure," she muttered between sobs.
Stratus felt his heart sink. He took off his helmet and placed it on the ground, before sitting down next to Luna on the treatment table. "That's not true," he said as he put a hoof around her. "Luna, you were gone for a thousand years. I can't even begin to fathom how you must have felt when you returned. The fact that you found the strength to get up every morning and do all the things that your position demands, despite being in a time completely foreign to you is astounding. On top of that, you have you're nightly duties. You operate on less sleep than anyone else on Equestria and work so hard to protect her. You are anything but a failure."
Luna wiped away her tears and managed to regain control of her nerves. "It's a necessary sacrifice," she said.
"Maybe so, but it's still incredible."
Luna just gave a sad, but hopeful smile and looked back to her friend. "Thank you, Stratus," she said. I have had great fortune to have a friend as good as you."
As Luna's uninjured hoof fell into his own, Stratus felt his body rise in temperature suddenly. He smiled at her. "Well, my rank does give me the great privilege of spending more than a fair share of my time in your company."
Luna returned the gesture and smiled back up at Stratus. "So it does, Major," she said in a tone that was far more positive than the gloomy mood that had taken her only moments ago. "So it does." The two just sat in silence for a moment with nothing around them but the warm feeling of each other's company.
"You know, Luna, I-"
"Princess Luna!" Twilight suddenly yelled as she burst through the entrance at the other side of the tent.
Every muscle in Stratus's body tensed up and he quickly found himself jumping back to his hooves to stand at attention as if nothing had happened.
Luna sighed. "Hello Twilight Sparkle," she greeted tiredly. "I am very glad to see that you are unharmed."
Twilight ran up and skidded to a stop in front of the princess and her officer. Her joints ached and her lungs burned. With every exasperated inhale, Twilight found that she was far more out of shape than she had ever truly realized. She took a moment to catch her breath and attempted to speak, but coughed just about every other word.
"Please, Twilight, calm yourself," Luna said. "I need not anymore casualties tonight."
"I'm sorry Princess," she finally sputtered. "It's just that-" She was cut off by another series of coughs.
"We heard the explosion!" Spike suddenly proclaimed. "We saw the fire and the smoke and came running as fast as we could."
Twilight pointed to Spike, whose dragon lungs gifted to him by evolution had allowed him to recover much quicker than Twilight. "Yes, that exactly," she said, before taking several more deep breaths. "Side note, Rainbow Dash was right. I need to start doing cardio."
"Well, it is good that you are here," Luna said.
"What about you though," Twilight asked. "What happened? Are you okay?"
Luna held up her hoof that had been treated and wrapped. "Tis but a flesh wound," she joked.
Twilight and Spike both sighed in relief.
"Princess, I believe this would be a good time to bring the Element of Magic up to speed," Stratus said. "I think it'd be best if we started from the beginning."
Luna nodded. "Of course, Major." Luna thought for a moment as she tried to come up with a way to explain what had just transpired over the course of the last twenty minutes. She had screwed up. She had screwed up momentously. She knew this and had it not been for the support from the ponies that cared for her, the guilt would have already drowned her. The true challenge did not come from trying to explain this though. The truth of the matter was that in all honesty, she had absolutely no clue what happened after firing her spell. Everything had happened so quickly and despite accidentally having possibly killed Daxx, it would seem that it was still somehow deflected.
This confusion is not what scared Luna though. What scared her was this.
What were they going to tell Alexandria?
Author's Note
Alexandria gonna be pissed.
Something has gone wrong. We don't seem to have an archived copy of that chapter.