Chapters --Earth - Day Zero--
I could hear the sound of my family downstairs preparing breakfast for the morning. Of course, I had no plans to join them, not until I was at least hungry.
Slowly, over the course of about twenty minutes, I try motivating myself to get up and out of bed. If only I could at least open my eyes first. Once that's out of the way, I put my arm on the pillow next to me, pushing it down to where I can see my alarm clock on the nightstand. This clock read 2:15 AM , now why the hell is someone raiding the fridge at two in the morning?!
Wait, now where are my manners? My name's Jason, Jason Hendricks. A little more than the average 16 year-old American brony, I write fanfiction. Other than that, yeah, no. That's about it. However, my family doesn't know about my being part of the fandom, so it's kind of a secret... yeah, it's definitely a secret.
It's about two twenty now, and I can smell... pancakes ? Yeah, those are pancakes. The only other person I know that lives here that can make pancakes is Mom. Well, it looks like it's time for me to head downstairs and question just why she decides to make pancakes at this time.
As I head downstairs, the aroma of pancakes grows ever stronger. However, once I get down the stairs, a certain sight pulls my attention away from the rest of the kitchen to my left, and the smell of pancakes coming from it. What I saw, by the dining room table, was something I never thought I'd find in reality.
This can't be real...
"Uh oh," spoke one of them. Wait, why am I saying 'one of them' when I already know who they are? It was Twilight who spoke, and the lavender alicorn did so once she saw me.
"Uh... hello?" I decided to speak, currently trying to decide wether it would be good or bad if this were a hallucination. Whilst trying to decide wether or not this was a hallucination. Maybe this is another realistic dream of mine?
No response, not from either of the seven ponies now in my kitchen.
"Would any of you like to tell me why you're all in my home?" I questioned.
No response, again, only bemused stares as I walked towards them.
"Twilight, why are you all in my home?" I asked again.
"It, it... knows my name." Stuttered Twilight.
"Yes, and would you like to tell me why you're in my home?" I repeated, for the third time.
"Oh, sorry..." Twilight shook her head, "we came to earth looking for help."
"Help with what?" I ask, getting a little worried.
"It's fine, we have plenty of time while we're here on... Earth, right? Yeah, Earth. We've got plenty of time while we're here." Twilight responded. "It seems a little early for you to be up, so why don't you just head off to sleep," Twilight spoke, a little nervously, guesturing to the oven clock.
"Ugh, whatever you say, Princess." I replied, mocking her a little, but she didn't seem to notice. I'd decided to sleep on the couch, and if this was just a realistic dream, I'll be waking up back in my bed.
Strange, Twilight doesn't normally act like this, and to my surprise, none of the other six ponies had anything to say. Whatever it is they may need nelp with, it must've really screwed with them this time. However, there was one question didn't leave my head until I fell asleep: what are these ponies doing on Earth?
"So, how did you know my name?" Questioned Twilight, just as I was falling asleep, too.
"I'll explain later, we have plenty of time, remember?" I responded.
"Oh, fine." The mare muttered, walking away from the couch she was just peeking over.
After that, I drifted off to 'sleep'.
* * * * *
--Equestria - Four Hours Ago--
Princess Celestia stood atop her castle balcony, simply gazing beyond the Equestrian horizons. The princess herself hadn't a clue as to what was going on beyond that flaming horizon, but some part of Celestia was begging her not to raise the sun... and she hadn't. Celestia was simply pondering, thinking about what could cause this beautiful, yet mysterious, and terrifying light show. However, a muffled shout pulled her out of this stupor.
"Princess Celestia!" The shout of a royal guard was heard, coming from one of the castle's endless corridors, barely making it's way through the princess' bedroom door, as it had been left ajar.
This better be important... Celestia thought to herself; she began walking towards the royal guard.
"Princess Celestia! We've recieved a letter from just beyond Griffonstone!" The guard shouted, as he levitated a half-charred letter over to the princess. "All we could get from the letter was something about the sun exploding, taking shelter underground, not raising the sun, and support being needed for evacuations."
"Wait, the sun did WHAT?!" Celestia exclaimed. Facial expressions of disbelief and pure shock made themselves very visible on said princess' muzzle.
"Your Highness, the letter states that your sun exploded ." The guard said flatly, "And from the looks of it, it still is." The guard pointed, with a hoof out the window.
Well, that makes more sense now... Celestia thought to heself, looking out the window. One word came to her mind, Supernova .
It took a while of thinking, looking beyond the fiery horizons, until an idea popped into her head. To possibly save all of Equestria, it was well worth the risks; it did however, involve a highly unlikely alliance.
"Request the presence of the elements of harmony, tell them this meeting is of the utmost importance and urgency." Celestia spoke, a more serious tone taking place in her voice.
* * *
--Six More Hours Ago --
It was just another normal day for farmer Daisy Field, completely un-noteworthy. In fact, Daisy was just about to call it a day after watering the few plants she had. Her home, she liked to call it a farm, though her property was about a half acre in size, and she really just had some fruit trees, and of course, daisies.
Said pony was headed inside, however, the whole sky darkened for a brief few seconds, thus causing Daisy to look up. The sun itself had seemed to have dimmed for a moment, and Daisy watched, as the sun quickly gained it's original brightness, and exceeded that. This nearly blinded Daisy, luckily, she looked away just in time.
After this 'explosion' came something that almost looked quite beautiful actually, the sun looked somewhat like a giant Marigold flower in the sky. When this 'Marigold' began to grow, Daisy was pulled out of her stupor. The more that stuff in the sky grew, the closer it was getting, and it warmed up outside, quickly. Daisy galloped into her home, now feeling no more than fear of what really could be happening outside. She didn't bother to close the door behind her, let alone lock it. Daisy simply sat in her cool, dark basement, staring out the one, small window in the wall. The farmer had planned to head into one of the lower levels of her basement, hopefully it would be cooler down there.
A few knocks were heard coming from Daisy's front door.
"H-hello? Is anypony home?" Came the unfamiliar, but friendly voice of a stallion.
Daisy trotted up the stairs, through her kitchen, and into the foyer, where she greeted the stallion, and a mare that apparently arrived with him.
"Please, do come in." Daisy spoke, "I know it must be really hot out there."
"Why, thank you for letting us in. We were just outside when-"
"The sun exploded." Daisy finished the mare's sentence.
"Yes, how exactly did you know?" The stallion questioned.
"I was out there when it happened, it looked, quite breathtaking actually." Daisy answered, giving a little extra detail, of course. "Let's... head downstairs, it'll be cooler down-"
Daisy stopped mid-sentence, her right ear perked up at a faint crackling noise. Said pony sniffed the air, something was all too familiar about that smell.
"Is that... fire ?" Daisy spoke to herself, peeking out of her front door, what she saw however, frightened her a little. No fire, not a single flame, save the now fiery skies outside. The moment of realization hit Daisy, "The house is on fire... everypony downstairs!"
"But we are downstairs!" The two other ponies argued.
"No! Down to the basement!" Daisy exclaimed, galloping over to the stairs. "Come on!" The farmer gestured down the stairwell.
The sound of wood tumbling could be heard mere seconds after making it into the basement.
Author's Note
So, how's the first chapter? Terrible? Each scene ends in a cliffhanger, and it's already moving along too fast... God, why am I so impatient sometimes?
--Earth - Day Zero--
-11:38 AM-
As I gain consciousness, I feel something warm wrapped in my arms. It's pretty big too, almost my size; and from what I can tell, I can feel... feathers? That's not right, nothing that lives in my home has feathers! I decide to open my eyes. All I can see is a yellow and... pink blur?
My vision clears up, not only am I on the couch from early this morning, but an all-too-familiar pagasus was in my arms.
So, if last night wasn't a dream, then the ponies I spoke with did come here for help... but why, and how? I sit up, only to become light-headed, and go half-blind. Dammit, why did I just have to get up too fast? I attempt to rub my eyes with my hand, only to be whacked in the face with... something hard?
"What the hell?" I softly asked myself.
Wait, that's not my voice; I mean, it was definitely me who spoke, but that isn't my voice! I thought to myself. I decided to look at my arms, only to see a couple light-grey forelegs.
I've taught myself to stay calm over the past few years, and this proved to be nearly impossible in this case. But just before I even have the chance to start panicking, something I hear grabs my attention. It sounded like, a door opening.
"I just want to see my son." I hear my mom speak up, sounding impatient.
"Look, I'm not going to stop you. Just, don't freak out, okay?" Spoke a worried Twilight.
"Yeah, you've already fainted once; we don't need that happening again." Spoke another familiar, yet raspy voice.
"Rainbow! She's already been through enough, just let her go downstairs! This is her home after all." Twilight said, sounding a little irritated.
Having put everything together as the three spoke, I'd decided to head upstairs and let my mother see me. However, getting off the couch is the first thing on the list, and it isn't coordination that was the problem. It was getting off the couch without waking up any of the other sleeping ponies around me; originally, I'd only noticed fluttershy. Now I see four other ponies: Applejack, Pinkie, Rarity, and Starlight.
Whilst looking around, I see something grey protruding from my new blue mane, but just barely in sight.
"I can bring her up if you want." Twilight says, but I didn't hear her.
Oh, good. At least Twilight, I think, made me a unicorn. I thought to myself. Maybe I could teleport? Yeah, sounds like it's worth a shot.
Before I know it, I'm in my mom's bedroom, on her bed, feeling very nauseated.
Dammit Twilight, you could've warned me.
"Jason, is that really you?" Mom questioned, sincerely worried.
"Yeah... Mom." I reply, now noticing how the new, and girly voice sounds.
"Are you okay? How do you feel?" Mom continued.
"I'm fine, and I feel fine." That answer seemed to calm my anxious mother.
My mom, who stood by the bed, walked over to me. I took this as an offer for a hug, and stood on my hind legs, resting my forelegs and head on her shoulders. I don't know exactly why, but she decided to scratch behind my left ear, making my right hind leg kick.
"Hehe," Mom giggled.
"Mom," I respond, "please... just stop. I just want a normal hug."
"Fine."
After the well needed hug, I'd decided to gather some information from a certain Twilight.
"So, Twilight, would you mind explaining to me why this is happening?" I asked.
"Well," she nervously laughed a little, "that's going to be rather difficult to explain." Twilight responded.
* * *
-12:34 PM-
Twilight had sat on the edge of my bed, her lavender coat bringing in a little more colour to the blue and grey painted room. Huh, my mane matches the same blue on those walls. And my coat matches the light grey on the other two walls, and my bedding.
I could quite easily hide myself in plain sight. I slightly grinned.
"So, might I ask why you're here? On Earth, I mean." I spoke up.
"Well, we were sent here in hopes that we could find some help." Twilight began.
"Help with what?" I asked.
"Um... you see, the sun. It kinda, exploded." Said pony answered. Seeming nervous at that.
"So, you're telling me that your home star went supernova ? We haven't got time to waste! We need to work on evacuations, shelter... those ponies need help out there! They can't survive that kind of heat, nor the radiation that must be out there as we speak!" I snapped.
"Actually, we have plenty of time here on Earth." Twilight said, quite flatly.
"Wha- How so?"
"Well, for every day that passes on Equestria, about a couple of weeks are supposed to pass here, on Earth."
"So that has something to do with gravitational time dilation? Assuming our worlds are a part of the same universe."
Wait, does Twilight know anything about that? I mean, she would be most interested in this subject.
WHAT HAVE I DONE?!
"Gravitational time dilation?" Twilight asked, giving a bemused look.
"Oh, no! It's- it's nothing!" I tried to cover up the idea, knowing what I'm about to get myself into. I am not discussing gravity with her.
"Um... okay. Moving on then."
"So, how do you expect to get help from Earth ? And I'm assuming this would be for evacuations?" I was a little curious.
"Well, yes. It's for evacuations, but the evacuees need a place to stay. We've got about two Equestrian days to find a place for them, before half of Equestria, um... begins to freeze over." Twilight said, with a more depressed look on her muzzle
"What about the other half? They can't survive long out there, even if they've taken shelter underground."
"We don't have any safe ways of evacuation in that firestorm." Twilight looked at me with a somber expression on her muzzle; so solemn that it was in fact, probably the most sobering thing in sight.
"Well, we're going to have to come up with something. I'm sure we've got about six weeks before it gets too bad." I continued, but I'd rather stop at this point. Seeing tears build up in Twilight's eyes; and I'm sure that, as a princess, said pony must be very stressed about this. I'd hate to see her cry, but I'm sure she just needs to let it out, it's her choice. "Look, Twilight. If you're gonna cry, do it. I understand you must be very stressed about this, sometimes the crying helps. Just let it out already."
At that, the lavender alicorn began sobbing into my shoulder.
* * *
-1:20 PM-
After about forty-five minutes of sobbing, Twilight cried herself to sleep. I'm sure she was already tired, possibly from being far off of her sleep schedule. That explains the 3 AM wakeup. I'd decided to walk over to the bathroom and see myself in the mirror; just a couple feet to the right of my bedroom door was the bathroom.
I saw what I can still barely see as myself, but I know it's still me. In the mirror, I saw a grey mare with a light grey coat. And I had a mane with two different shades of blue, a couple white streaks passing through it. My tail, wait... I'm still wearing the clothes I slept in! I slipped the basketball shorts and boxers off quite easily, but the white t-shirt proved to be problematic. After a couple of minutes of struggling with my hooves, I finally got the shirt off, only to reveal another surprise. Wings.
"Holy shit."
Not only do I have a horn, but I also have wings . Fucking wings !
But, I do notice something different about them, compared to Twilight's wings. Mine weren't alicorn wings, they were pegasi wings, and were slightly fading to blue at the tips of their feathers.
Pegasi wings.
Well, that raises even more questions.
Author's Note
So, how did this chapter do? Please just tell me what you think, don't sugar-coat any of it. Constructive criticism is very much appreciated.
Thanks for any feedback! Until next time, everybody!
--Equestria - Day One--
-7:29 PM-
As the trio of ponies recovered after tumbling down the last few stairs, an orange light started to flicker through the first basement door, dimly lighting the room. Wood could be heard rolling, crackling, and falling. Smoke began to flow through the planks of the wooden door. A few embers made contact with the door, causing the door itself to begin to smoke.
"This door's not going to hold; we need to go farther down." Daisy stated, gesturing towards a larger metal door, leading to another stairway.
The other couple of ponies hesitated at first, but for the sake of their safety, they agreed to trot over to the lower door. This metal door looked like it belonged to a vault, the main difference was a small window in the upper part; and the window itself seemed to be a few inches thick. Daisy attempted to turn the large wheel on the door, only for it to turn a fraction of the way, whilst screeching. The mare pusheded the wheel back, then tried turning it again, only another failed attempt.
"Can somepony help me open this?" Daisy asked, looking back. Said pony had noticed the wooden door above was now set ablaze. The two unicorns were staring at the now burning door until Daisy called upon them.
"Somepony. HELP. ME."
"Okay, okay!." Spoke the unicorn stallion, who rapidly moved to the other side of the room.
Both Daisy and the stallion tried to turn the wheel, neither of them alone were strong enough. The duo got the metal door open, and all three ponies rushed through. With the large door shut, Daisy secured it, and headed down the stairs. The pair of unicorns stayed at the door, unwilling to descend the stairs. However, after a long few moments, lights began flickering on.
The unicorns saw an open doorway in the new light, and headed through it, simply because they could now see. What they saw looked more like any regular home, just without windows.
"Welcome to the bunker!" Daisy gave a false cheer.
"It actually looks nice down here." Spoke the pair of unicorns.
"My name's Daisy, Daisy Field; but, I um... I never got your names." The farmer spoke up.
"And my name's Shadow Bolt, you can just call me "Bolt". This is my fiancée, Lily, Lily Bloom." The stallion gestured to the two-toned green mare just behind him, who gave a bashful smile.
"Well, it's nice to meet you both! It would've been better had I met you two under different circumstances." Daisy continued, "Looks to me like this might be home for a while. Make yourselves comfortable, and hopefully we'll get along well."
"Say, how long do you think we could be down here?" Shadow Bolt asked.
"Um, I'm not too sure. It could be a few months, a couple years, or..." Daisy's voice faded away.
"Or what?" Lily questioned.
"Or maybe the rest of our lives." Daisy answered, beginning to feel saddened at the thought.
"Oh, my." Lily said, she had no idea how to respond.
"So, what is going on outside?" Bolt inquired, hoping to change the subject.
"Well, what's going on outside is called a supernova , for starters. Naturally, if a star is massive enough near the end of it's life cycle, it would undergo a gravitational collapse. The star is collapsing in on itself. The star then releases gravitational energy, gamma ray bursts, and matter from the star itself comes in shock waves." Wait, shock waves ? Daisy had forgotten about the shock waves!
A light rumbling could be felt travelling through the ground, it gained strength almost exponentially. A few cups in the kitchen cabinets could be heard shaking, Daisy just knew this was going to get stronger.
"BRACE YOURSELVES!!!" Daisy ordered.
* * *
After I called out to Bolt and Lily, I took cover under the table to the right of the stairwell. Hoping the shaking would stop. With each second that passed, the shaking grew stronger, and more violent. The sounds of silverware being rattled in their drawers could be heard, as well as the shattering of ceramic plates on the tiled kitchen floor.
A few more moments of the shaking, and it finally stopped.
"What the buck was that?!" Bolt questioned, slightly frightening Lily Bloom.
"Shockwave." I simply stated, trembling.
"Okay, one question. How do you know so much about this situation?" Lily asked.
"When I was a filly, my parents wanted to teach me everything about astronomy and space. At such a young age, I wanted to learn everything about the stars." I answered, remembering the family that I had long lost. I miss them, I truly do, but now's not the time for mourning.
"Then, how come you live on a small farm?" Bolt inquired.
"Well, even though my parents mostly tought me about space, I still had other interests. Horticulture was one subject I'd found myself to be very skilled at. Even after I got my cutie mark, my parents still taught me astronomy, but gave more free time for me to enjoy what I loved most."
And here come the emotions. Why does my family have to be the subject now?
"Sounds like you have nice parents." Lily added.
I began sniffling. Oh, Celestia, how much I would give to see my family again!
"Oh, um... should we just give you some time alone, Daisy?" Bolt questioned.
"Please. I would appreciate that. Rooms are on the left of the stairwell." I replied, still sniffling.
* * *
And it was then that I remembered all the things I wanted to forget, all the tragedy that's happened in the past few years. My parents, gone. About four years ago, they went to visit some relatives at the Crystal Empire. Nopony ever heard from them after the snowstorm on the outskirts, I'd only heard about what happened there. My brother, who moved to Ponyville almost a decade ago, gone too. Not much longer than two years ago, his home was destroyed, with him in it. No signs of life were found on that property.
Oh, how I miss them right now...
--Earth - Day Zero--
-6:45 PM-
Here I am, standing alone, in the darkness, my own dream. This is how they usually begin, just me, standing in the dark. However, this me in my dream wasn't the old me; it was the new me, the me that had been turned into a pony.
This dream, however, was different. It felt all too real, yet I knew it was a dream. It felt more like this would be a déjà vu sort of dream. I've learned how to differentiate between these dreams through experience.
This dream began like any other. Soon enough, after what felt like standing in the mindscape for a few moments, images began to appear...
What I saw, looked like your life, flashing before your eyes. Only that you haven't seen these images... at least not yet.
The first thing I saw was Twilight's face, a worried look formed on her muzzle. The only thing I heard from her was, Jason? Are you okay? . That image faded to black, and moved on to another.
The next image was a little disturbing. I was staring down the barrel of a gun, which was held by what looked like a man in a dark uniform. This man had a look of fear worn on his face, and was trembling. Click . Nothing happened. Everything faded to black again.
Next, I was in the backseat of an SUV. I see the driver's pointing at the car ahead of us, then, in my new voice, I hear a shout, you absolute fucking walnut!!! Thinking about it now, it was actually something I would say. Darkness surrounded me yet again.
This time, I saw stars surrounding me. In a fiery sky, almost floating. It looked like I was wearing a bulky, pressurized suit, or something. I turned towards the blazing sun, and a few moments later, a flash of black blocked my vision. Once it cleared up after a split second, I felt air being sucked out of my lungs. I saw glass, floating weightlessly in front of me. Darkness again engulfed me.
Next, I see the earth, coming at me. Fast. I felt heat on my muzzle, and I couldn't even breathe. Friction. As the ground grows nearer, I see patches of scorched and already burning ground... My vision didn't fade to black, it just... blanked out. Like the dream abruptly ended, almost as if-
* * *
"GAAH!!!"
"Huh? Jason, are you okay?" A worried Twilight Sparkle was now over me, the mare looked down at me, almost frightened.
Just like in that nightmare.
I calm my breathing after a few moments. "Yeah, I... I just need some fresh air." I say, almost trembling, as I open my bedroom window. Thank goodness I've left it unlocked.
"What happened?" Twilight questioned.
"Oh, nothing. Just a nightmare, Twilight." I respond. I've already calmed myself from that terror.
"Um, okay. About last night..." Twilight began.
"You want to know how I knew your name?" I ask.
"Um... yeah. How did you know?"
"Same way I knew your name, just a hunch." It was half a lie, and half a truth.
"I'm not even going to ask."
I should probably explain really quickly. A couple of hours ago, I just felt exhausted, so I went to my bed to sleep. However, Twilight was still sleeping in it, so I just fell asleep next to her, hoping she wouldn't mind. It is my bed, after all.
"Might I ask why I'm a pony now?" I inquire.
"Okay, remember when you came down the stairs and saw us?"
"Yeah."
"And how you fell asleep on the couch?"
"Yeah."
"Well, uh..."
"Spit it out!" I was getting impatient.
Twilight hesitated to apprise me."You went into a coughing fit in your sleep. After a few moments, you stopped breathing, and we panicked. We were scared; and we hoped changing you would save you."
Asthma attack. I had an asthma attack... in my sleep. I thought to myself, looking over to the albuterol inhaler on the nightstand next to my bed. I didn't know how else to respond, so "Thank you, Twilight." Was all I could manage to say, as I sat up and pulled her into a hug.
"Don't scare us like that again, Jason." Twilight began to tear up as well.
A few minutes passed, we calmed down, and I finally let go of Twilight to ask her something. "Is that why Fluttershy was sleeping so close to me?"
"Well, first Fluttershy volunteered herself to look after you. She then fell asleep not long after you grabbed her, apparently she finds you... comforting." Twilight answered.
"Huh." I say, sniffling a little. "I'm assuming you'd explained everything to my mom, since she didn't faint when she saw me?"
"Yes, we did. But she did faint on us." Twilight explained.
"Ah, well that makes more sense." I responded.
"If I may ask, why did you fall asleep next to me?" Twilight asked.
"It was unintentional, I just threw myself onto the bed. I was a little surprised when you didn't wake up" I informed her.
"Hm..." Twilight began thinking to herself, "works for me." And she shrugged it off.
"Okay, one more question..." I began.
"Go ahead." Twilight responded.
"Why do I have wings?" I ask.
"Oh, boy." Twilight spoke, before she continued. "When we cast the spell on you, it may have taken samples of our DNA in order to to assist the formation of your new... pony body."
"Oh, well then." Another thought pops into my head, and my pupils shrunk. "Uh, Twilight?"
"Yes, Jason?"
"My stepfather's on his way home from work." Just great.
I hear mom speak up, "I've discussed your situation with Greg already. He thought I was screwing around with him. Boy, does he have a surprise waiting for 'em."
I gave a sigh. But, seriously mom, stop the eavesdropping.
"So, Jason. How does it feel, to be what you are now?" Mom asks me.
"Well, I no longer have fingers. However, I have a tail, wings, and a horn that a can use for magic. I'm covered in fur, which makes up for clothing. But, becoming a mare, not so enjoyable." I said.
"And what's wrong with being a mare?" Twilight demanded, I could sense her hostility as she spoke.
"Nothing, Twilight. I never said anything's wrong with being a mare, but becoming one is a completely different story." Take that, Princess.
"Fair enough." Twilight huffed, with a slight growl.
"She does have you there Twilight." Mom spoke up. I didn't even say anything about her calling me she . I am what I am now, there doesn't seem to be any changing that. I mean, I'll never get used to it, but I might as well accept it, at the least.
BOOM!
"GAAH!!!" The three of us scream in unison, as confetti filled the room.
Author's Note
Had this done a couple of days ago, but I would rather keep a weekly schedule instead of updating it whenever.
Tell me what you thought of the chapter, please.
Again, if anything needs attention brought to it, please inform me of it.
--Earth - Day Thirteen--
-2:45 PM-
Twilight began to teach me how to use magic, last week. She had even brought a few books with her, apparently.
And Starlight said she had a few "tricks" she wanted to teach me.
"Alright, you'll begin learning teleportation today."
I wasn't doing too well. It took me a whole week to learn to levitate a few pieces of tupperware concurrently. I think it was because Twilight was having me focus on objects behind me, where I couldn't see them. I was told that I'd need to focus on the object itself, without having to see it; and that's just not something I can easily do.
"Look. I know last week was a little rough, but this should be easier for you." The lavender alicorn tried to help, "Jason, remember how easy levitation was getting for you last night?"
Yeah, I remember being able to bring my own dinner to the table.
"Yes. I recall." Was my response.
Twilight continued, "Good. You're moving on to teleportation today. Let's head upstairs."
The lavender pony promptly trotted off, heading upstairs. I followed, slightly hesitant. I've gotten better at traversing the stairs, going up the stairs, fine. Going down them, terrifying. In one week, I've managed to tumble halfway down the stairs six times, faceplant into the carpet twice, and end up being carried down by Twilight each time.
You'd think I'd be able to levitate myself, right?
WRONG. I can't see shit if I have my own magical aura surrounding me; the inside of that thing is pitch black, and cold.
On the way up, I looked at the dimly lighted white walls aside the stairwell. We were planning on moving out, and had pulled any picture frames off the walls. Now it's just a plain, blank, wall. Honestly, I'd always looked terrible in those pictures and I've been almost happy the walls are blank.
I spoke up, "Twilight. It took me almost a whole week to get levitation down. Do you really think we'll have the time for me to figure out teleportation?
"Oh, no. Of course not." Dammit, Twilight.
"Twilight, serious answers. Come on, we've been through this." I responded as we reached the top of the stairwell.
Another voice came from the family room ahead.
"Have you ever thought that, maybe Twilight just finds it funny, or calming, or even relieving, and she's only using her sarcasm to cope ; to take her mind off of everything stressing her out?" Starlight's voice, and she seemed a little concerned.
Uh... no, I hadn't thought of that. That doesn't even sound like the Twilight I know... but I guess it's better than her just being a sarcastic ass. "I'm- I'm sorry, Twilight. I know these past two weeks have been stressful for you. And..." My voice trailed off as more thoughts came into mind.
"No, no, that was my bad. Sarcasm's not going to help anypony, in the long run."
It makes me wonder just what's running through Twilight's mind... during her restless nights, spent on a foreign planet. It must've felt so wrong to her, everything she knows... she needed to leave it behind if she wanted to save it, even if just a chance. It must've felt so wrong, to leave so many helpless ponies she had sworn to protect.
And I realise that Twilight's not the only one feeling this way. Applejack, Rarity, Fluttershy, Pinkie, Rainbow, even Starlight... they've left everything behind. And who's supposed to help them? Me? A mare who's barely capable of travelling down a flight of stairs, who's experience with magic consists entirely of levitation, which is pretty much just foal's play?
This just feels, completely hopeless. How am I supposed to DO anything to help? What good do these ponies even see in me?
"Jason, look. You'll get this done in time. It took most ponies years of practice to achive the levitation skills that you have. And it took you one week. Jason. One week." Can Twilight... hear my thoughts, or something?
"Look." Starlight began, "You have enormous potential, Jason. Magically, you're an exremely fast-learner. We've discussed this, and, you've made better progress in one week than Twilight and myself ever could have. Twilight tells me she's never seen or even read about anypony learning magic this fast." She took a moment to breathe, "Do you hear that? Twilight has never read about anypony making this much progress. With just how much of a bookworm she normally is, that means you're likely the best chance we have right now."
A barely audible "Oh," was all I managed, as I looked to a teary-eyed Twilight, then a hopeful Starlight.
"So, can you do this? For us?" Twilight asked me.
* * *
-3:11 PM-
"Remember when I said teleportation was going to be easier than levitation?" I was questioned.
"Yes, Twilight." Honestly, at first I was excited to have Twilight teach me magic. But the past week has been a lot more exhausting than I had expected.
"It's simple for you. Just try channeling your magic, and focus on a certain place you want to be. And remember, the farther the location, the more magical energy it will take." Okay, so basically I'm going to need practice if I want to get anywhere far. "However, with the type of magic you use, distance isn't as much a factor as it would be for me."
Right. And I don't really remember what type of magic that was...
I'm not entirely sure why it's the only magic I can use, nor its purpose, either. Or if this is why I'm learning so fast, so I can learn what is necessary before we need to go. I've been using this magic for two weeks, there have been no 'side effects.' So I'm assuming I was made immune to any other effects, as Twilight described. Was it for some sort of-
"Jason... Jason, you zoned out again." Twilight's voice brought me back into reality as she nudged my shoulder.
"Huh? What were ya sayin'?" Was my instinctive response. I tend to zone out, lost in my own thoughts, still.
"Ugh, as I was saying, distance won't affect your use of the teleportation spell. I just want you to channel your magic, and focus on somewhere nearby."
That's it? Sounds too easy.
I began channeling my own magic, a cold feeling surging through my head and focusing itself into my horn. It felt, cold, and tingled a bit. I closed my eyes and tried focusing on another room in the house; the downstairs family room.
Everything goes cold, and dark for a split second.
When I reopen my eyes, I find myself disoriented, nausiated, and very... hungry? I felt my stomach as it growled; I hadn't eaten lunch today.
Unimportant stuff aside, I just figured out teleportation!
And with a bright flash that nearly scared me to death, Twilight and Starlight appeared at my side.
"GAH!" I jumped back, landing on my rear with a heavy thud. I haven't had a scare like that since I set off one of Pinkie's party cannons. And God knows why those things are so loud.
I recieved giggles from these two mares as a response, I felt a warm blush rush across my cheeks. I hadn't been this embarassed before, nowhere near as bad as right now. I could even feel the blush in my ears.
"That, was impressive. I haven't seen anypony teleport like that for their first time." Starlight grabbed my forehoof, pulling me back onto all four hooves. "You just need to work on the landing," I rolled my eyes as Starlight joked.
Author's Note
[OST] Part One: Outset.
Also. I'll make sure you don't have to wait six months for one damn chapter next time.
--Earth - Day Thirteen--
-4:19 PM-
"So," Twilight began as she placed her dish in the sink; we'd just finished our lunch. "When you teleport, you simply disappear. No flash, no noise." She seemed to pull a small notepad out of thin air, taking notes with her pencil. "Guess that could be of some use."
"Er, some use for what, exactly?" I interrupted.
"Honestly, I don't know. And it's because we don't know that might make it some use." Twilight stated, rather bluntly.
"Alright, well, I'm gonna give you some time to think it out. Or more preferably, rest." I turned away, and started moving towards the stairway, "I'll just, speak with Starlight upstairs. Did you want to sleep on the couch? Or do you want me downstairs?"
Twilight groaned as she buried her muzzle into a pillow, "I don't care." So I promptly began trotting up the stairs. I had realised that her time on Earth so far was only messing her up, I'd decided to stop going to her for answers. We'd either kept the television on some movie channels or shut off entirely when she was downstairs; anything to keep her from seeing the news channels. Albeit they rarely reported anything significant, it was never any good news. Again, this is for Twilight, who is probably the most stressed right now, with every right to be. And everything going on in my world shouldn't be a burden to her.
I'd made it up the stairs, knowing I would likely regret it later. I moved into the upstairs family room directly in front of the stairway, Starlight was, well...
Shit, I don't know. And it was even happening right in front of me.
"Hey, Sta- !" I was immediately hushed by Rainbow, who pretty much appeared out of nowhere... again.
"Starlight's busy." Was the only clue I was given.
"I see that. But what's with her eyes?" The unicorn seemed to be in some sort of stupor, her eyes glowing a bright, pure white. I'd swear they were even bright enough to put the sun to shame.
"She's busy. "
* * *
-4:37 PM-
It's been a good fifteen minutes since I came upstairs, still waiting on Starlight. I lie beside her on the couch, waiting for her to 'wake up'. Suddenly, the near-blinding light in the room went dark, and I felt a hoof on my flank, "Hey... how long was I out for?"
I gave a relieved sigh, and responded to Starlight's question. "I'm not sure, I came up here fifteen minutes ago and you were still 'busy'. What were you doing?"
"I... well... I got some news from home." Please tell me this is good news... please. "We need you. B- but..." I saw tears beginning to form in Starlight's eyes.
This definitely wasn't good... "But what, Starlight?" I could almost feel her trying to pull herself together, "We need to take you with us... to Equestria." The calm and collected Starlight was now gone. All I had now was a sobbing, distraught mare. I felt sorry for her, truly I did. But I saw no issue in heading to Equestria now. There were ponies still alive there, so it couldn't be that much of an issue, right? I mean, Celestia's not raising the sun where she is, so it must still be safe. For fuck's sake, they even saw it coming, and when it's confirmed she... well, she does this ?! She was even going to teach me magic just for the occasion !
I sighed, "Damnit, Starlight. You even knew this was going to happen, we have like, three more weeks!"
"No. We don't." She spoke, coldly. Her sudden change in mood did in fact, scare the shit out of me. "We've been given three Earth days, it's urgent." Starlight shot me a glare that made Fluttershy's 'Stare' seem weak. "We are in no way, ready for this."
I... what?
Author's Note
Yes, I am aware that this is a very short chapter, but I've been slacking off lately & need to get back to business with this story.
As promised, no six-month wait this time!
