CHAPTER 1: Landfall
“Alert. Hull breach on deck C-12. Alert. Hull breach on deck C-13. Alert. Hull Breach on Deck C-14. Alert, central computing center damaged. Unable to report status of the ship. It has been an honor, captain. Goooooodbye…….”
An explosion rocked the deck. The entire ship listed crazily in sky. The command center was a crater. The weapons were offline. The hangars were a burning wreck. Only the failsafes kept it from plummeting down into the Equestrian Wasteland below. And those wouldn’t last much longer either.
The crew lay dead or dying. Of the thousands of pegasi once cheerfully working together in harmony toward what their leaders had assured was a ‘better tomorrow’, only one remained whole and hale: Grey Summer. Yet he was not concerned with the ship’s death-spiral. The guns and cannons of the enemy held no fear for him. But the pegasus mare at his feet, she and she alone deserved his attention.
She lay there, in a pool of her own blood. More accurately, most of her lay there. One of her hind legs lay scattered across the room in a million, bloody pieces of bone and muscle. No matter how he tried to staunch the wound, no matter how many science-team uniforms he tore into pieces to staunch the flow, it did not help. Her fur and her Hellfire armor were red.
Her eyes fluttered open. “Grey…” She tried to rise.
He was by her side in an instant and pushed her back down. “Flash Flood! Easy there.” He swallowed. Words flooded out of his mouth, coming just as soon as the occurred to him. “The medical station. It’s around here somewhere. I...I need to get some bandages.” He frowned and shook his head. They would not be enough. “Yes, bandages. And maybe a potion and then…”
She frowned. Her eyes traveled down her flank to the bloody stump where her leg had been. She stared at it. A dry chuckle escaped her lips. “I guess the mission’s a failure then. Before we even started.”
“That’s not important now.” Grey sweated like a stuck pig. The deck rocked again. He clenched his teeth. Damn them! Why couldn’t they leave them alone? This wasn’t right!
Flash Flood weakly tugged her saddlebags open and pulled a thin metal box with a screen embedded on it out. She shoved it towards Grey. “The mission, it’s yours now.”
His eyes widened. “No! I...I couldn’t.”
“Take it!”
“I’m not leaving you!”
“You have to, Grey!” The pegasus clutched at the legs of her companion. Tears welled in her eyes. Whether from the pain of her missing leg or emotion, not even she knew. “You’re the only one left.”
Grey Summer’s limbs trembled. This wasn’t how it was supposed to be. They shouldn’t have meddled. They should have just left well enough alone. Here, at his hooves, lay the his best friend and lover. Her dark blue coat, the color of a storm cloud laden with rain, was soaked in her own blood. Her eyes were wild. Her mane was burnt.
“I couldn’t,” he repeated, “I don’t have training! I’m just an archivist! This is your mission. You should be the one going.”
She chuckled darkly. “I’m not going anywhere. Not now. Not ever.” Her eyes wandered down to her leg. “That’s something you don’t come back from.” She chuckled but it turned into a cough.
Grey fell to his knees beside her. She was fading fast. Panic stabbed his heart. “We’ll get you to a medic station,” he said, “We can reopen the portal later. When you’re better.”
Her head flopped to the ground and she smiled. “It’s funny.”
“What is? What’s funny?”
“You…” She coughed again. “You actually care.”
“Of course I care!” Tears flooded Grey’s eyes. “I love you, Flash Flood..”
“No one cares,” she muttered.
“I do.” He tried to lift her. To get his wings underneath her flank. He could use them to drag her. Forget the fire that filled the hallways. Forget the way the deck tilted. Forget the explosions that rocked the base. There had to be somepony around here who could help! There just had to be. “I’m going to save you.”
Her eyes turned hard. “Save me?” she repeated. She pointed to the door, the door which led to the lab. “You can’t. But you can still…” She coughed and blood trickled from her mouth. “Save...everypony else…” Her head fell forward. The light in her eyes went out. Her last breath left her lungs.
“Flash?” Grey nudged her. His breath caught in his throat. “Flash!”
Another explosion rocked the deck. A portion of it collapsed not two feet away. He yelped. The ruined, blasted fields of the Equestrian Wasteland loomed below him, rotten and putrid with radiation and taint. He backpedaled very quickly. “Help! Somepony! Anypony!”
But nobody came.
Tears flooded his eyes. The bodies of the strike team, the groan of the ship as it threatened to break in half, the ruins of the land below, and Flash Flood’s broken form at his feet: they fueled a cold hardness in him that he hadn’t known was there. It steeled him and gave him strength. He turned toward the lab. “I can stop this,” he said, “I can stop it! I can make it so this all never happened!”
He kicked the door open. In the center, fed by all the power the base could spare, a shimmering portal waited. It was beautiful, mesmerizing. On a better day, he would have stopped to study it. But there was no time. He gulped and trotted toward it. What was the best way to do this? Jump through? Step through? He decided a running start would be best.
“Alright then, you,” he growled, “You better not malfunction this time.” He bowed his head. “For the...” No, ‘for the Enclave’ didn’t sound right. Not anymore. The Enclave was shattered, tearing itself apart. A knot rose in his throat. “For Flash Flood.” With a battle-cry, he charged. His hooves pounded the steel deck. His wings folded tightly to his back. He made his expression grim so as to stop any errant tears. The portal drew closer.
The very instant he passed through, the whole world changed. The sounds of battle faded. The ship itself disappeared. So did the ground. “Oh,” he muttered, “Right.”
Normally, this would not have been a problem. Pegasi were known for their powers of flight. It was their distinguishing mark as a species. Their birthright, even. The wings made the pegasus. However, in Grey Summer’s case, there was one teeny, tiny little problem. He’d never learned to fly.
He fell screaming.
////////////
Lord Tirek was defeated.
There were many things clamoring for Twilight’s attention. Her new castle, her responsibilities as a princess, the destruction of her old library home (that one had really hurt. All those books gone in a single moment.), and the new, deeper connection she and her friends had with the Elements of Harmony. But right now, she was determined to set all that aside. Lord Tirek was defeated. That was all that mattered tonight. Yes. All that mattered. Mm-hmm.
Pinkie Pie’s “We Saved Equestria for the Millionth and a Half Time” party (also known as the Twilight’s New Castle party or the Rainbow Dash appreciation, as the rainbow-maned pegasus called it), was in full-swing. Everypony could just relax, laugh, and enjoy themselves again. Most importantly, do it with friends. And if that wasn’t cause for celebration, what was?
Discord had already left. Said something mysterious and ominous, like usual. “Look out for guests any uninvited guests that decide to ‘drop’ in!” he’d said with a cheerful wave and a coy chuckle. But she wasn’t going to let that bother her either. Nope! Not at all. Definitely not going to let it join the circus of thoughts swirling round and round in her head driving her to distraction and…
Where was a scroll and a quill? She needed to make a list of these things so she could properly deal with them.
“Twilight!” Pinkie Pie waved at her from the dance floor. “Get up! Get up! You don’t want to sit on that chair all evening, do you? I mean, I know my cake is good, but it’s not glue-you-to-the-ground good. That one comes after the dancing!”
Twilight blinked. She came back to the present. Tonight was...well, beautiful. And Pinkie had done a great job with the party, as always. She took a deep breath and let it out. The tension flowed out of her. “Coming, Pinkie.”
She trotted over to the center of the square. DJ-Pon3 and Octavia’s sweet music echoed through the town, providing a steady rhythm anypony could dance to. She looked around for her friends. Pinkie was dancing, naturally, and encouraging all the young colts and fillies to do the same. Rainbow Dash napped on a cloud, though Twilight wouldn’t put it past her to be secretly cooking up some mischief.. Applejack supervised some games (apple-themed, of course). Fluttershy and Rarity dined together, wrapped in conversation, though it seemed Rarity did most of the talking. Not that Fluttershy minded. Everything was perfect.
Twilight moved to join the dancers. Equestria wasn’t going to end in the next few minutes, right? She could afford to just kick back and relax. And dance! She’d never been the best dancer (that went to Pinkie), but it had always been fun. At least amongst friends.
“Hey Twilight?”
She glanced over and blinked. Pinkie was not dancing. She was staring at the sky. Odd, especially for Pinkie. “Yes, Pinkie? What’s wrong?”
Pinkie pointed at the sky. “Should a pegasus be falling like that?”
Twilight followed her hoof. She gasped. “Oh dear! Rainbow Dash! Wake up! There’s trouble!”
/////////
Grey Summer didn’t know what he’d been thinking. Of course he’d appear hundreds of feet in the air! That’s where the ship had been flying. He tumbled helplessly through the air, knocked this way and that by whatever breeze happened to want a piece of him right then. This was bad. This was very bad.
“Get ahold of yourself, Summer!” he growled, “You’re a pegasus! And what does a pegasus do? Fly!”
He spun around and spread his wings wide. The force of the rushing air ripped at his feathers and forced them straight up. He strained to push them out, just a little bit, to turn this fall into a glide, but they were not strong enough to fight the current of air.
The ground was getting a lot closer.
He began to panic. He kicked and bucked, against all reason trying to find a place to set his hooves. His wings flopped about uselessly and he began to spin out of control again. Well, this was how it ended. He should have listened to his commander. An excellent scribe he might be, but he should at least have bothered to learn how to fly without a rig!
A rainbow streak shot up towards him. Strong forelegs wrapped around his torso. “Gotcha!” a mare’s rough voice called triumphantly. His descent slowed to a slow glide. He heard grunts and sounds of exertion from his rescuer. “You can...start flapping anytime,” she snapped.
He strained to look over his shoulder and see who it was. His eyes went wide. A face, one he’d seen only in the records. A rainbow mane and tail. Blue hair covered her body and an annoyed look was in her eye. “R-Rainbow…” He muttered.
“Yep! That’s me,” she grunted, “Time for autographs later. You’re light for a stallion, but still heavy.”
A tremor went through Grey’s spine. He trembled. Something snapped. A mad light entered his eyes. “Let me go!” He began to thrash and buck.
“What?! Whoa! Hold still!” Rainbow Dash tried her best to hold on, but a hoof in her stomach knocked the wind out of her. She recovered easily enough, but she dropped her cargo.
Grey Summer fell once again. The ground wasn’t far now. He couldn’t fly. He couldn’t glide. But, there was a banner that, if he aimed just right, he could use to break his fall. Summoning all his strength, he forced his mad tumble towards it. With a thunderous crash, he tore through Pinkie Pie’s banner, through the front window of town hall, and landed on the stage with swathes of canvas wrapping him up like a mummy. He briefly fought against unconsciousness and lost.
The next thing he knew, somepony was talking to him. She sounded worried, frantic even. “Hey! Are you alright?!”
His eyes fluttered open. A beautiful, purple pegasus stood over him, concern and a little panic in her eyes. His foggy mind couldn’t process anything other than awe. A niggling voice warned him that something was wrong, but he couldn’t think what. No time for that now, either. After all, first impressions were very important.
He struggled to rise, but she pushed him down. “No, don’t get up. The doctor will be here soon. Just rest.” A faint glow came from her forehead. Grey squinted, trying to make it out. Oh, it was coming from her horn. She wasn’t a pegasus, she was a unicorn. He’d never met one before. He frowned. No, she had wings. She was a pegasus. Unicorn. Pegasus. Uni--
Alicorn.
Adrenaline surged through him. Limbs that should not have been able to move did. He thrust the monster away from him and jumped upright. “Hey!” she protested.
“Stay back!” he shouted. She wasn’t alone. Dozens of ponies were behind her. Horns and wings. Horns and wings. His eyes swam. He couldn’t tell who had what. Were they all alicorns? Had he fallen into a forsaken den of those creatures? “Stay back or I’ll…I’ll...!”
“You’re hurt,” a pink-maned pony with a soft voice said. She had wings. Did she have a horn? Everything was a blur.
He laughed wildly. “Think you can take me? I serve the Enclave! I’ll not go down, at least not without a fight.” They were looking less and less like ponies and more and more like blobs of color. Everything was so colorful here.
“If it’s a fight you want, how about you start with me?” A rainbow blob said.
“Rainbow Dash!” a white and purple blob said with a gasp.
“He kicked me in the stomach!” the rainbow blur protested, “It didn’t hurt ‘cause he’s a weakling and I’m awesome, but--”
“We aren’t going to fight you,” the purple blob interrupted, “We just want to help you.”
“Help me?” Grey repeated, “Help me right into an early grave you mean!” His legs trembled. The burst of adrenaline was fading and the pain was coming back. He stumbled and careened sideways. “I won’t be deceived. I won’t be…”
He tripped and hit his head on something hard and vaguely podium-shaped. The world faded. The last thing he heard was a very refined and ladylike, “Oh dear.”
////////////////////////
Boing! Boing! Boing!
“Wheeee!”
“Miss Pie! Please, stop...bending the laws of physics in my hospital! You are getting hoofmarks on the ceiling!”
Grey’s ignored the noise, just like he had all the others. No reason to pay attention to them, right? At least not if he could ignore them. Everything was lovely here. He drifted on clouds of sleep and bliss. Why would he want to leave?
A loud screech tore through his quiet reflection. A giggle followed it. “So! When he’s going to wake up? You said he’d wake up today and I so I baked a cake and got all my “Welcome to Ponyville” supplies ready! Tell me!” Boing! “Tell me!” Boing!
“Ms. Pie!” The second voice let out a weary sigh. “Please sit down. Yes, he might wake up today. Or tomorrow. There’s no way of telling. He could sleep forever.”
“Forever!” The first voice gasped in horror. “Forever as in forever? But that’s...forever! He’d never get to eat his cake! Or have ice cream ever again! Or…”
“I assure you, even if he wakes up this very instant, the one thing he will not be doing is eating cake. Hospital food for the next week, perhaps longer. He needs to make a full recovery.”
“B-but!”
Grey flicked an ear in annoyance and tried to roll over, away from the voices. If he could wrap the pillows and blankets around himself and his head, he just might be able to block out the sound of their conversation. Pain, horrible, aching pain, flared up and wracked his body. He let out a sharp gasp. His eyes flared open to see a pink earth pony staring down at him with a huge smile on her face.
“GAAAH!” He recoiled and fresh pain shocked his system. “Ow! Ow! Ow! Ow!”
“Hooray!” the earth pony shouted. Confetti exploded from...somewhere. “You’re alive! I can’t believe you’re alive! You were all like “AHHH! I’M FALLING!” and then it was Crash! Boom! Bang! Right into the town hall! And then you were shouting and Rainbow Dash wanted to fight you and--”
Grey gritted his teeth, fighting off the pain. He was a grown stallion. He wasn’t going to cry. “We’re going to need more painkillers,” the doctor said, “Nurse Redheart! Come in here please.”
The pink pony was now bouncing about the room. Not just the floor either. The ceiling, the walls, the other beds… Grey tried to follow her with his eyes, but his neck protested too much.
“Ow,” Grey replied. He wanted to smack himself. Real eloquent. Keep that up and you’re sure to get all the mares, Grey. They just love a stallion who speaks in monosyllabic sentences. And did he have to moan like a little colt with a bruised knee? Seriously, pull it together. You are a soldier of the...the…
A white-coated earth pony entered pushing tray of medical supplies. “Painkillers?” she asked in a droll, businesslike voice. The pink one waved to her and she sighed. “Ms. Pie. I do believe after the last...incident you were forbidden from entering unless you sustained some injury.”
The pink one stopped bouncing around the room and donned a sheepish grin. “Oh it’s okay! I just had to be here when he wakes up! He’s new in town! I need to find out what sort of party he wants!” She...materialized by Grey’s bedside, a huge grin on her face. “Soooo...what’s it going to be? Do you like balloons? I like balloons! And cake! Want some cake?”
“No cake!” the doctor snapped.
“Right now, painkillers sound nice. Can we get to those now?” Grey replied.
“Ooh, a practical pony.” She lightly punched his shoulder. “I like that.”
“GAH!” An explosion of pain rocked Grey’s world again.
“Pinkie Pie!” the doctor, the nurse, and the soft-voiced pegasus snapped.
She grinned sheepishly. “Sorry…” Immediately, she bounced back to her feet and out the door. “Better get going! This party isn’t going to plan itself!”
The nurse let out a sigh of relief and turned toward Grey with the bright and cheerful smile which something told him all nurses wore when dealing with patients. “We were not sure what dosage you would need and, due to the recent incident with Tirek, ran a bit low. Sorry about that. Let’s get you properly doped up, hmm?” She produced a needle. “Hold still, sir.”
Grey gritted his teeth as the needle entered his foreleg, but relief washed over him. He relaxed and sunk down into bed. “Thank you, nurse…?”
“Redheart,” she replied, “Nurse Redheart.” She pulled out a clipboard. “And you? What’s your name?”
“Grey Summer,” he replied, “of the…” He frowned and raised a hoof to massage his forehead. “Um…the something.” His head felt fuzzy and strange. “I...I know it’s something…”
Nurse Redheart scribbled down something on the clipboard. “Any family? Friends?” Grey stammered but nothing sensible came out. “Anyone at all we can call?”
“I...I don’t…” He shook his head and looked at her blankly.
She glanced over at the doctor, a worried expression on her face. Something passed between them. He exited the room. “Thank you, Grey Summer,” she said in a soothing, comforting voice, “It’s alright. There’s no pressure or anything. Memory loss is...common amongst patients with traumatic head injuries.”
“Or who spend too much time around Ms. Pie,” the doctor added under his breath.
“I or another nurse will be on call,” Redheart said, “If you need anything, do not hesitate to ask. If you want a book, we do have a small collection. Smaller since Rainbow Dash visited here last, but…”
Grey brightened considerably. “Oh yes! I love books. They’re a bit of a passion of mine. It’s my cutie mark, after all.”
“Yes, I saw,” she said, “Do you prefer adventure? Sci-fi? Romance? Mystery?”
Grey tilted his head to the side. “I’m sorry, I’m not sure I understand.”
Nurse Redheart rolled her eyes. “Genre. What is your prefered genre of fiction?”
Something clicked in Grey’s brain. “Fiction! Right.” He chuckled. “Do you have any good technical manuals I could read? Or the latest treatise on technology? I never fictioned any read.” He frowned. That was new. “Er, read any fiction.”
“Never read fiction!” That was one of the saddest things Nurse Redheart had ever heard.
Grey shrugged. “I suppose they didn’t have any around where I lived.”
Nurse Grey smiled, and this time it was an honest one. “Well, you are in for quite the treat then. Why don’t I pick one out for you?”
“That would be…” ‘Acceptable’ wasn’t quite the word for it. Grey racked his brain for the right one. “...Kind of you. Thank you.” Remember! Be polite to those who had authority. Deference, always deference. He didn’t know where that idea came from either.
Nurse Redheart left the room, a cheerful bounce in her step. Grey’s mind sank into quiet reflection. This place was nice. More cheerful than a hospital should be. A small smile crept over his face. Very nice, yes. It even felt...safe. How odd. He lay back and felt the quiet calm and peaceful clouds of his dreams come back to him.
“This mission, it’s yours now.”
He sat bolt upright, heedless of the muted pain in his shoulder. “Who’s there?!” The room was empty. “Show yourself!”
There was no answer.
CHAPTER 2: Books and Doctors
Twilight’s head fell forward and slammed into one of the library's tables. She groaned. “Maybe this would be easier if you just told me what you do remember.”
Grey rubbed his mane with his forehoof. Bandages and a few casts still wrapped around him. The doctors had been kind enough to let him rest and recover some before allowing him to be interviewed. Or allowing Pinkie Pie to throw his “Welcome, Welcome, Welcome!” party. “Oh! O-of course. I’m greyed Name Summer. I mean, named Grey Summer. I’m a pegasus.”
Twilight glanced down at Spike, dutifully writing down everything the short stallion said. Seriously, he and Fluttershy were almost the same size. The baby dragon shrugged. “And you’re sure,” she said, “That’s all you remember.”
Grey nodded. “I don’t remember the mission. I don’t remember if I had family. I don’t remember where I come from. I don’t even food what my favorite remember is!” He slammed a hoof to his forehead. “Ow. Remember what my favorite food is. Sorry. I don’t know what’s wrong with me these days.”
Twilight cracked a smile. “You did hit your head rather hard.” She nodded to Spike. He shut his book, put away the ink and quill, and strolled off to store them. “Well! I’m Twilight Sparkle. And despite the circumstances, it’s very nice to meet you Grey Summer.” She decided not to mention his crazed ranting about ‘alicorns’ and ‘monsters’. Proooobably not a good idea right now. “I know you’ve heard it before, but welcome to Ponyville.”
He chuckled. “Charmed, I’m sure.” He began to stretch, but a twinge of pain prevented that. One leg and both wings were pretty much immobile right now. The other three were not in much better shape. “I would say that it was the nicest town I’ve ever visited, but that wouldn’t mean much right now.”
She chuckled. “Very true. Still, it’s good you have a sense of humor about this.” Her horn glowed and books flew off the shelves. Grey whinnied in alarm and looked around nervously. Twilight ignored him. Not by design. Her “researcher” mode was activated. “I have a number of books on medical conditions. Let’s see if any of them shed light on your memory loss, shall we?”
Grey cleared his throat. “No offense, Ms. Sparkle, but I think we already know what the problem is.”
“Really?” she said absently, eyes on the pages of her first book, “Hmm, Crazy Hippo’s On Maladies. Bit outdated, but a good place to start.”
Grey looked slightly annoyed. “The told already doctored me--” He grit his teeth. “Doctor already told me that it’s, and I quote, “a heavy, traumatic bump on the head”.”
“Ah-ha!” Twilight glanced up with a smug expression, “But does Doctor Horse have access to the entire Canterlot Royal Library? I don’t think so~” She giggled. “Ooh this is exciting! It’s not just the memory loss, but the way your voice is all messed up. After our overview, we’ll have to delve into some anatomy, of course. With a focus on the brain.”
Grey gave her a flat look. “He’s the medical professional. You are, what, a magical researcher? I, for one, think that as long as Dr. Horse says that I am alright, then we should leave well enough alone and wait for something to trigger my memory.”
Speaking of which... He glanced back at his saddlebags. He’d gone through their contents several times, hoping they’d trigger something. He’d expected pictures or mementos or the things Pinkie insisted everyone carried, but he’d only had one strange, glass tablet and a few hardtacks.
“Oh please,” Twilight said with a chuckle, “This will be fun! Cracking open books. Researching long into the night. Even if we don’t find anything worthwhile, the effort alone will be its own reward. Think of how much we’ll learn about pony-biology!”
Grey opened his mouth to protest, but the words stopped in his throat. That didn’t sound half-bad, actually. His head felt empty. He didn’t like it. There were no old, familiar thoughts to occupy him in his spare time. Nothing to laugh at or cry over. He was a blank-slate, just like a newborn’s flank.
He put a hoof to his chest and took a deep breath. Then, he smiled. “Alright.”
“You’ll do it?” The expression of sheer delight on her face filled him with a warm, fuzzy feeling. He shrugged.
“For the time being, I have nothing better to do.” He saluted. “What are your orders, Commander Sparkle?”
“Commander?” She raised an eyebrow at him. “That’s a term the Royal Guard uses.” A grin slowly spread across her face. “I like it! ‘Commander Twilight: Savior of Equestria!’ I bet I could write my own books with a title like that.”
Spike slapped a claw to his face. “Please Celestia no,” he muttered. He trudged toward the door. “Well, you two have fun. I’m going to take a nap.”
“But Spike! We need you here to help find all the research materials.”
Spike sighed and gave in. Just have a good attitude about it, Spike, he told himself. Besides, what could he do? It was his job after all. And he was the Number One Assistant around here. And that was one thing nopony, dragon, griffon, or monster could take away from him.
Twilight smiled at Grey. “It’ll take awhile to get everything ready. Why don’t I get you something to read while you wait? Daring Doo is a favorite of me and my friends.”
“Is that another ‘fictional’ book?” Grey asked, “I had the, ahem, privilege of reading a few during my week in the hospital. Honestly, I didn’t see the point.”
Twilight gasped. “Didn’t see the point? Of fiction?”
Grey shrugged. “None of it really happened, so it’s useless information.”
She stepped close to him, an annoyed look on her face. “Fiction is not useless,” she scolded, “It transports you to other worlds, it lets you go places you’ll never actually visit, it’s all the best parts of reality condensed into a few pages. What’s not to like?”
“Yes. It’s likable.” Grey agreed. He took a few steps backwards. Despite her not-quite-fit appearance, she could be intimidating when she wanted to be. “But what serve does it purpose? Purpose does it serve. It’s entertaining, nothing more.”
Twilight sat down. For a moment, she was silent. “I see,” she said slyly, “So if I could show you that fiction, say, accomplished something, you’d admit it wasn’t worthless?”
“Yes…” he said carefully.
She grinned, triumph in her eyes. “Then allow me to enlighten you.” She cleared her throat. “Spike, do we still have my slide collection?”
“No, sorry,” he said, “That was destroyed with the old library.”
Her face fell. “Right.”
“Destroyed?” Grey asked.
She waved it off. “Tell you later. Anyway, when I said it took you to other worlds, I wasn’t kidding. The power of fiction is a vital part of a pony’s life. From the breezy-tales told to little fillies to the great epics of Pomer, the stories we read and tell train our minds and our hearts to react certain ways to certain situations.”
“Twilight,” Spike whispered, “This isn’t the Canterlot Academy. You don’t need to sound so official.”
Twilight glared at him. “The point,” she continued, “Is that stories teach by example what is honorable and just. At least the good ones do. That is why it is so important for parents to be careful about what they let their fillies read. What they put in is certain to come out later. Not to say that there isn’t a place for hard topics and difficult situations in storytelling, but an equal amount of maturity is needed to handle mature topics.”
Grey cleared his throat. “So these...breezy-tales. If what you say is true and stories teach us, especially at a young age, what to do in certain situations, then wouldn’t we all believe in nonsense things that could never happen?”
Twlight shook her head. “Not for long, at least. The real lesson of those, admittedly fantastic, tales is not that monsters exist, but that they can be defeated. With stout hearts and the help of our friends, we can overcome any evil. That is their power.”
Grey nodded. “I admit, your description...intrigues me. Perhaps I was too hasty to condemn them.” He smiled. “I’ll give it another shot.”
////////////////////
A week had passed. So had another crisis. A pack of timber wolves from the Everfree Forest had rampaged past Fluttershy’s cottage. Grey Summer never even saw them. Twilight and her friends had beat them back with apparent ease. Grey felt his estimation for the mares rise quite a bit. Not that he’d thought poorly of them, but they’d lacked the rigor and discipline he’d felt went hoof-in-hoof with an efficient fighting force. However, the results were undeniable and he adjusted his opinion accordingly.
In those seven days, he hadn’t left the library. Supposedly, he spent his time researching medical science. However, even he had to admit that he’d become...distracted. That small purple dragon, Spike, had introduced him to something he’d never imagined before.
Comic books.
Superheroes saving the city! Robots on a rampage! Vile villains cackling madly as they stirred vats of acid! Magic! Science! Both! Ponies that controlled the weather! The Mane-iac! It was a stunning transformation from his former, dour opinion. He tore through all of the small dragon’s collection and soon was ready for more.
“I’m sorry,” the dragon insisted, “But that’s all there is in the castle.”
“But there has to be more!” Grey paced back and forth, now moving with only a slight limp. “Where’s the origin story of the Power Ponies? And Electric Charger? He was a guest-star! He has to series his own have somewhere.” He rolled his eyes, but didn’t bother correcting himself anymore.
Spike crossed his arms. “Sorry, but I work hard to get those. I mean, I’ll eventually have more, but right now? If you want more, you can go buy them yourself you know.” He grinned. “And hey! When you’re done, we can trade. That way, we’ll have twice as many to read.”
Grey raised a hoof. “Problem.”
“Solution!” Spike countered. The steel-grey pegasus glared at him. “Sorry.”
“I have no bits.”
Pinkie Pie’s head popped up from underneath a pile of books. “Well duh! You don’t have a job!”
“Gah!” For a moment, Grey almost mastered the power of flight. Darn earth pony and her uncanny talent for sneaking up on ponies. “Where the you did hell come from?!”
“Tsk, language,” she scolded. She pointed toward Spike. “What would Twilight say if she learned you were teaching Spikey-wikey here bad words?”
Grey took a deep breath. A calming breath. “My apologies, Ms. Pie. You startled me.”
Pinkie burst out laughing. “Only Dr. Horse and Nurse Redheart call me ‘Ms. Pie’! I’m Pinkie! Sometimes Pinkie Pie. Never Maud Pie, though.”
“I’m sorry, mudpie?”
“No! Maud Pie!” She smiled at him.
“Like that makes sense…” Grey muttered.
“It might make cents, but I bet it doesn’t make a dollar~”
Sometimes, Grey felt like she took an eggbeater and swirled his brains around with it. He shook his head rapidly, as if that would help all this make sense. “What is a--”
“An Amareican form of money! Like Bits, but worthless. ‘Cause it’s made of paper. Like confetti!”
An explosion rocked the library and shook a number of books from their shelves as her party cannon went off. Grey yelped and leapt back. Great, now there was a ringing in his ears. One of the first rules of firearm use was to always wear ear protection. Even now, he could almost hear some harsh, cruel voice shouting at him to stand up straight, soldier! And hold that rifle steady! What do you think this is? Some filly’s picnic in the park?! You’re working for the Enclave now, featherbrain! And damn me if you don’t learn to shoot by the end of this month!
He blinked and shook his head. His return to the present allowed him just enough time to catch Pinkie saying, “Don’t worry, Spike! He’s not falling unconscious. He’s just in a flashback!” She bounced toward the door. “Anyhoo! Twilight’s taking us off to some place in the middle of nowhere. Except that’s silly, because it has to be somewhere because it was on the map! Tell ya all about it when we get back! We’ll have a party!”
Grey perked up. “Will there be cupcakes?”
“Duh!” She grinned at him and the door slammed behind her.
Grey stared after her for a long second. Then, his gaze snapped back to Spike. “I need a job.”
////////////////////////////////
“I’m sorry, son,” the sales-stallion said, “But I’m afraid I don’t need anymore help. Quills and Sofas has hit a pretty level market right now. Not much room for expansion. Me and my wife handle most of the work ourselves.”
Grey’s face fell. Same old story. “That’s quite alright, sir. Thank you for your time.” He turned for the door.
“Care to buy a quill?”
“No, no thank you.”
“You sure?” he said temptingly, “Can never have too many quills!”
“No,” Grey said firmly.
“Alright! No need to be cold about it.”
Grey blinked. Cold? He’d been cold? That couldn’t be right. “Sorry,” he said, ears drooping. “Er, I might be able to afford one quill…”
He wasn’t, but Davenport let him have it at half-price. Conveniently, that amounted to all the bits he had. He wandered out of the shop and plopped down on the nearest bench with a sigh. That was the third rejection so far. The Best Joke, Bound Books, and now Quills and Sofas. Everywhere it was the same. “Sorry, we don’t need help right now.” He swore he heard some whispers behind his back too.
It made sense. Small town. Newcomer. Very dramatic entrance, so Twilight had told him. Crashing out of the sky, assaulting the local heroes, and then knocking himself out onstage in front of everypony. No wonder there were bound to be questions. He hoped that the storekeepers were being honest when they said they weren’t hiring and weren’t hiding some ulterior motives.
A rustle came from the bush behind him. He turned, but nopony was there. Probably a squirrel or a rabbit or some other small creature. No need to pay it mind. He shrugged and went back to his thoughts. Maybe he should try Sugarcube Corner next. The smells coming off of that place were divine! It had to be the best mess hall in all of Equestria! The world, even! In fact--
“CUTIE MARK CRUSADERS, GO!”
“What the he--” Grey fell forward, three things on top of him. He flailed and bucked against his attackers, panic welling in his chest. He was not very brave. “Get off! Get off! Savage off me, you gets!” He heard giggles from on top of him. Great. Speech impediments do not help you intimidate anypony.
With effort, he rolled over and dumped three fillies off of him. A pegasus, an earth pony, and a unicorn? What a...diverse group. Diverse, that was the word. They stared at him, confused.
“Ah...don’t believe we’ve met,” the earth pony said.
“Wait…You’re the jerk who attacked Rainbow Dash!” the pegasus declared.
“I...um...well the thing is....” Grey stammered. He pointed a hoof at her. “You’re a pegasus.”
The earth pony chuckled. “Got ya there, Scoots. Ah bet ya can’t slip anythang past him.”
Grey rose to his hooves and dusted himself off. “Can I help you fillies? If you need directions, I’m not the pony to ask.”
“We live here,” the unicorn said brightly, “My sister owns Carousel Boutique!”
“Ah.” Grey took a step backwards. “So then, you are here because you want to...sell me something.”
“We’re Cutie Mark Crusaders!” the earth filly declared.
“That’s…” He searched for the right word. “...nice.”
“We were trying to earn our cutie marks in rooftop running,” the pegasus said, “But we fell down.” She glared at him. “But now that we’re here, I got a thing or two to say to you, mister! What the heck’s your problem with Rainbow Dash?”
“I don’t...who is Rainbow Dash?” Grey knew the answer, in a general sense. He’d seen the mare glaring at him from the clouds during Pinkie Pie’s party (overwhelming for him, but Pinkie Pie declared that it was quite small compared to her normal ones. Only five ponies!), but he’d never been introduced.
“Only the awesomest pegasus ever!” the orange filly declared, “And she tried to save your life, but you attacked her!”
Grey frowned. “Ah.” He wished he could remember what happened. “Ah. I see.” He pursed his lips. How to approach this? He didn’t have much experience dealing with foals and fillies. “Hmm.” He leaned in conspiratorially. “Would you believe me if I told you I don’t remember much of anything?”
The three exchanged glances. “So, what, amnesia?” the unicorn asked.
Grey nodded seriously. “So you see, I can’t be held responsible for what I did. However, I can apologize for it.” He bowed to them. “I am very sorry if my actions caused you any distress. I hope you have a wonderful day.” He kept his attitude calm, polite, and reserved, as if this were something of the utmost importance.
They stared at him. The earth pony burst out laughing and fell onto her back. “Yer funny, mister!”
Grey snorted. Try and be nice, and see what that gets you? “Now, don’t you have some...roof running to do?”
“Yeah!” the pegasus declared, “Come on, Crusaders! Let’s go!” Giggling and laughing, they tore their way up the street and out of sight.
Grey went his own way, his heart feeling light. How could he not? Happiness was infectious. As he walked, he took care to pay closer attention to the town around him. A unicorn wearing strange glasses performed a musical duet with an earth pony playing the cello. Somehow, dubstep blended with string. Flowers bloomed, carefully tended by skilled hooves. Delicious smells wafted from Sugarcube Corner. Everypony smiled. Everypony laughed. Everypony’s heart seemed full of joy. And Grey felt it inside his own heart too, like a window had opened up into an old, never used storage closet.
He found himself humming as he pranced along through the street. “Good morning!” he called to strangers as they passed. They replied in turn. The sun was bright. The grass was green. He took a deep breath and let the fresh, summer air fill his lungs. He had to get out more! Twilight’s library was impressive, but staying cooped up inside was a sad life to live.
His happy thoughts carried him all the way to the base of the Ponyville Clocktower. He glanced up at it. No, that couldn’t be right. The clock face read six, but the sun was still high in the sky. It had to be closer to noon. His heart beat a little faster. He thought of all the comics he could buy. Maybe, just maybe…
He rapped a hoof smartly against the front door. “Excuse me,” he called in his best ‘friendly neighbor’ tone, “Is anyone there? I noticed your clock seems to be out of order and I was wondering if you might need some help.”
No reply came from within. He pushed an ear against the door. A steady ‘tick, tock’ came from within, but no other sound. He knocked again, louder this time. “Excuse me,” he repeated, “Hello? I just wanted to--”
Hmm, that was odd. A new sound greeted his ears, a shrill, repetitive shriek. Not the sort of sound a pony would make, but a malfunctioning machine might. Was the tower about to collapse? He pounded on the door. “Hey! Are you alright? Should I call the...” Did this place have law enforcement officers? “Nevermind. I’m coming in.”
He tried the door handle, but it was locked. The shrill sound came to an abrupt stop. His heart froze. Oh no, he was too late! He looked around for anypony that could help, but the street was empty. It was about lunchtime, he supposed, but still! He pounded on the door one more time. “Please tell me you’re alright.”
To his surprise, the door opened. A brown stallion stuck his head out. “Hello,” he said in an odd accent, “Can I help you?”
Grey let out a sigh of relief. “Actually, I was looking to help you.”
The door opened wider. A pegasus mare appeared, a huge smile on her face. “Do you want to try a muffin?”
Grey tilted his head to the side. “What’s a muffin?”
He’d never seen a sadder expression on a pony’s face. “You don’t know...what a muffin is?” She seized his hoof and dragged him inside. She tried to clear off a chair for him to sit in, but knocked over the entire table instead. This did not deter her or dampen her spirits. “Doc! Fire up the Muffinator 9000!”
“Ms. Hooves!” the stallion said, “I told you, that idea would never turn out well. Something like that is better left to those scheming Flim Flam brothers than a pony of my talents.”
“Muffins are never a waste of talent!”
Grey’s eyes goggled at the menagerie of mechanical marvels around him. Machines full of blinking lights, bubbling tubes of mysterious green liquid, a giant, blue box. Okay, that last one seemed out of place. His best guess was a strange-colored wardrobe.
He cleared his throat. “So,” he said, “I was wondering what that horrible noise I heard from outside was.”
The pair paused in their argument and exchanged nervous glances, like foals caught gambling for candy by their parents. “I have--” the mare began.
“--No idea what you’re talking about, good sir,” the stallion finished. Grey rolled his eyes. Try and be more obvious why don’t you? Still, he was looking for a job, not an argument. Try not to be rude, eh?
“I thought something might be wrong with the clock,” he said.
“Yes! The clock.” The stallion nodded in agreement.
“Especially considering the fact that the clock does not show the correct time,” Grey continued.
“Great galloping goombas!” the stallion declared, “The temporal field must have messed with the workings again! Oh this will not do! How will I call myself a proper time turner if I can’t keep the time turned correctly?” He dashed off the to rear of the room, threw open a door, and ran upstairs.
Grey and the pegasus mare were left staring at each other. Well, Grey stared at her. Only one of her eyes met his gaze. The other wandered around the room and settled on the blue box. She smiled nervously at him. A flash of inspiration crossed her face and she reached into her saddlebag. “Muffin?”
Grey examined the offering. “So that’s a muffin.” It looked pretty good. A little smushed, but good. He accepted it with a smile. Oh Celestia, it was good! Pleasure shone clearly on his face.
“Yay!” the mare threw her forelegs around his neck. “Now we can be muffin-buddies!”
“You have a bit of a one track mind, don’t you?” Grey asked, a little amused. Make friends, he told himself, people are more likely to hire someone they like. “Well, if we’re going to be ‘muffin-buddies’, we should introduce ourselves. I’m Grey Summer.”
“Derpy Hooves!” she declared.
“How fitting.” The words came out before he could think. Grey wanted to hit himself. That was not how you talked to a potential employer! “Now, er, Derpy. What sort of work do you and…”
“Dr. Whooves,” she supplied.
“Oh, I didn’t know you were married.” A pegasus and an earth pony. Fancy that.
She blushed. “No, no. Hooves and Whooves.” She leaned in and whispered. “I’d say yes though, and he wouldn’t even need a ring. Just a reeeeeally big muffin. Like, the biggest muffin!”
Grey nodded conspiratorially. “I see. So, what sort of work do you two do together?”
She giggled. “It’s a secret.”
“Of course it is.” Why would he think anything different? “However, I bet I can guess.”
Dr. Whooves re-entered, out of breath and bow-tie slightly askew. “Time is back in proper working order!” he declared, “Ms. Hooves, I’d like a celebration muffin.”
She pulled a rainbow-colored muffin and threw it to him. He caught it neatly in his mouth and swallowed it in one gulp.
Grey strode forward. “Dr. Whooves! I was just about to guess what you and Derpy here do using my amazing powers of deduction.”
“Oh, er.” The Doctor tugged at his collar. “Well, let’s hear it then.”
Grey gestured to the machines. “Behold! That control panel. And those tubes running up the wall. See how the bubbles fizz inside. The generator in the corner, the...things hanging from the ceiling.” What in Celestia’s name were those anyway? “It seems obvious.”
“Does it now?” Sweat poured down Whooves’ head.
“Yes.” Grey wore a triumphant smile. “You, doctor, are an inventor! And Derpy here is your assistant. The Doctor and his Assistant, if you will, working together to bring new knowledge into the world and make it a better place.”
Dr. Whooves and Derpy exchanged glances. “You are exactly correct. Exactly!” the Doctor declared. “I’m an inventor! Ha, ha! Yes, and these are all my inventions!” He bounded forward and threw a hoof around Grey’s shoulder. “So clever of you to figure it out. And all on your own too.”
Grey grinned. He was so smart! And clever, and dashing. Everyone was gay for Grey. No, that was taking it too far. It’d be nice though.
The doctor cleared his throat. “So, what can I, a humble inventor--
“And definitely not time-traveler!” Derpy interjected.
“--do for you?”
Grey drew himself up. “Doctor, gonna be straight with you here. I need a job. I have amnesia and, when I get scared or excited, I sometimes switch my words around, but I’ll work hard, help however you want, and obey your every order.”
The Doctor’s face fell. “Without question?”
“Without question,” Grey agreed.
The stallion nodded grimly. “Then the answer is no.” He turned towards the control panel in the corner of the lab. “Derpy, would you be a dear and pull up the latest diagnostics?”
Grey blinked. “What?” He trotted over and put a hand on the doctor’s shoulder. “Why?!”
The brown stallion turned toward him. Gone was the bright energy and the cheerful exuberance. His face was grim. “I won’t have anyone working for me who isn’t able to tell good from evil. You can’t just--” His face contorted. “Follow orders without a thought for what you’re doing. You, me, Derpy, all of us. Everypony has a moral obligation to uphold the basic rights of our neighbors. And we can’t let anything, or anyone, tell us to do otherwise.”
Grey took a step back. “Yet, if you trust the person or organization giving the orders…”
The doctor chuckled, but it was cold. “And we see how good your discernment is, don’t we? You don’t even know me and yet a second ago you were willing to do whatever I said!” He pushed his face directly into Grey’s. “Tell me this, my young pegasus. If I had ordered you to bring me Octavia Melody in secret without anypony knowing and handed you a can of Sleepy-Time gas, would you have done it?”
“If you had agreed to be my employer,” Grey answered. He didn’t quite see the problem here. Oh! Of course! “But!” he added quickly, “I’d try to convince her to come of her own free will first. I’d only kidnap her if she refused.”
“No!” Dr. Whooves snapped, “That, that right there! That is exactly what I’m talking about. So no, Mr. Summer, I’m afraid I won’t be hiring you. And I’d suggest you get it into your head that people’s lives count for far more than anypony’s orders.” He leaned sideways and his eyes widened. “Ms. Hooves! What do you think you’re doing?”
“Look, Doc!” she said cheerfully, “It’s just like one of those “data-pads” from Space Station 12!”
Grey whirled. In her hooves, Derpy held that strange, metal and glass box he’d found in his saddle-bags. He snatched it from her. “Give me that! It’s mine!”
Dr. Whooves’ eyes narrowed. “Curious,” he said, “Would you mind if I examined that?”
Grey glared at him accusingly. “I don’t see why I should,” he said, voice surly, “After you made your opinion of me so very clear.”
“Oh, so you know what it is then?”
Grey hesitated. “Not...exactly. It was in my saddle-bags when I fell.” He looked sadly at it. “I was actually hoping it might tell me who I was, but I can’t seem to make it work.”
Hooves studied it for a moment. “Let’s make a deal,” he said, “I have an, ahem, interest in this sort of thing. If you’ll let me examine that, I can pay you...say, fifty bits.”
Derpy gasped. “Fifty bits!”
“Is that a lot?” Grey asked.
“You betcha!” Derpy said, “You could buy, like, twenty muffins!”
“And how many comic books?” Grey’s voice was hopeful.
A grin spread across the Doctor’s face. “Ah, a fan of comic books, are we? Yes, I think those would be good for you. Very good lessons to be learned in comic books. You’d do well to pay attention to them.” He held out a hoof. “Are we agreed then?”
Grey hesitated. “I’ll get it back, right? And unharmed?”
“Of course!”
Grey grabbed the Doctor’s hoof and shook. “Then we have a deal.” He gave it over. “If you...if you find anything about who I am or where I came from…”
Dr. Whooves nodded. “You’ll the first to know.”
Grey collected his bits and immediately ran to the bookstore. Their collection of comics was limited, but he bought out all the ones Spike did not already have. The rest of the day he spent in reading bliss, wrapped in the fantastic adventures of far-off places and imaginary characters. And he loved every minute of it.
