The New Era: Prologueby CrystalSeekerChaptersChapter 1: An average day in Cetera gone wrongChapter 2: An early day offChapter 3: Rough AwakeningsChapter 4: First few stepsChapter 5: Golden Age of the VoidChapter 6: Under the surfaceChapter 7: The recruitmentsChapter 1: An average day in Cetera gone wrongCetera, the capital of the DBAC, a planet that makes Jupiter look like a simple grain of sand when it comes to size, and the fact the entire galaxy it resides in being the same size. It was the perfect planet to make as the capital, and the main palace was currently the size of a 16th of the planet, making it the largest building in DBAC history. This capital planet was the crowning jewel of the DBAC, and it was the one planet that no sane species would attack without a proper army and strategy. However, our story isn't going to start with this, instead it is going to start deep in the Gelken Sector, right above this city's slums. More specifically on the 24506th floor, room AZG-701. Inside, the alarm was ringing loudly as someone was fast asleep under the covers of the bed, snoring loudly as he laid there. After about a minute he groans and hits the snooze button, which was a holographic button on the simple metal sphere. He sits up with a great yawn, stretching his arms out as he scratches his head, looking to see the clock say it was currently 7:45 AM. "HOLY SHIT I'M LATE!!!" The man jumps out of bed, and rushes into the bathroom, jumping into the tube and hitting the quick rinse button. After cleaning up he throws on a simple T-Shirt with a pair of Jet-Jeans. He hops through the room as he tugs on the last boot, and grabs the keys as he rushes to the door while a hologram of a Dragon-Morph appeared. The hologram had her arms folded as she spoke. "Good morning, Jaxson, running late again?" The man, now identified as Jaxson, grunts as he grabs the disk she was emitting her form from alongside a pear as he dashes out the door, jogging a bit before entering the elevator as it opened, and punched the 1 button. The elevator responds by making him disappear into a rip in the void itself, then dropping out of another rip on the first floor elevator room, then dashes out the front door as he bit into his pear. 'Shit shit shit shit, the first day of work and I'm already an hour and forty-five minutes late!' He soon jumps into a Street Portal, and appears right outside of a rather run down building with a sign reading 'Borrus's Taxis!' Jaxson rushes in and pats the counter as he runs past the Salarian Secretary. "Sorry I'm late, I'll stick around to make up for it!" The salarian adjusts his glasses. "Very well, I'll tell the boss." Jaxson stops when he reaches the taxi, and grins as he hops in, adjusting the mirror, and checking the systems before turning on the vehicle. The taxi comes to life with a soft hum, hovering off of the ground. Jaxson then drives right out the garage door and flies off to the first pick up. "Time, Kylla?" The Dragon-Morph appears on the disc he had set over the steering sphere. "You made it in 10.3 minutes." Jaxson sighs, and gives a soft chuckle. "Heh, they upgraded the Street Portals today then." He adjusts his hat as he pulls out a square disk. He taps the holographic screen that appeared, and says aloud. "Mother." The disk blinks, and starts ringing. Soon enough someone picks up. "Hillary Hound speaking." "Hey mom." "Jaxson, how are you doing? Don't tell me you made it late..." "How'd you know?" "You've been late to school almost every day of every year, it's pretty normal for you." Jaxson nervously chuckles. "Yeah, sorry mom, I was just up all night, excited... I couldn't sleep..." "Mmhm, probably because you were playing the latest game on Sons of Eldra." "Ahehehe... I have no idea what you're talking about..." "Jaxson, that's the most famous game out there, so famous that they show the championship competitions on TV. I saw your name on the board." Jaxson groans. "I know you're sore from that, but that doesn't excuse your day to work." "Yeah, I know..." "Good, I have to get your dad some peppers, so be a good boy." "Yes mom. Love you." "Love you too." Jaxson hangs up and leans back with a sigh. "You still continue to underestimate your mother, I'm truly surprised, Jax." "Oh don't give me that, I know how good she is at reading me, it doesn't help." "Maybe not." She then summons a small holographic screen. "Customer, two kilo ahead." "Got it." He drives there, then presses a button, causing the bottom of the car to glow blue, before a young woman appears through the sudden rip of the void in the back seat, which closes behind her. "Void-Tech Central please." "Got it." Jax starts driving. "So, you a Void-Tech scientist?" "No, at least not yet. I'm going there to sign up." "Oh yeah? What's it take to join them these days?" "Mainly a decent understanding in Void-Technology. They don't want some rookie creating another Tech-Dragon with the void." "Makes sense... Good thing we got those things around." He points a finger at a nearby patrol giant, a massive black robot covered head to toe in ranged and close quarters weaponry, even having lasers on the shoulders. "To think someone actually tries to take those things on..." "They're actually rather easy to bypass..." "How so?" "For starters, their scanners are limited to the lower levels, while they have the POB Security Drones scanning the upper levels. The giants however cannot do anything hostile unless either A: The surrounding area is void of civilians, or B: The target is large enough to take out without collateral damage." Jax adjusts his hat. "Makes sense I guess, don't want to go killing the people you're ordered to protect." "Exactly, however they have a good silent alarm, which can call forth Union Police." Jax shudders. "You mean those nearly emotionless guys able to take out a super soldier like it's nothing?" "The very ones. Only way to deal with them is through anyone from the DBAC... Or..." "Or?" She shakes her head. "Nothing, it's just a myth." "Well now I want to hear it." She sighs. "You know of the Twilight?" "Yeah, a ancient enemy of the First DBAC. A big black form that encompasses a section of a civilization, having a Black Heart in the center, and able to turn anyone except a small few into mindless puppets." "Yes, I suppose they could take out a squad of Union Police... But that's if they don't have the flamethrowers." "Right, the Twilight hate fire and the sun, the classic vampiric cliche... I'm serious, those things can adapt to any kind of combat BUT fire, and it makes no sense to me." She adjusts her glasses, her fox ears twitching. "Maybe, but then again, aren't we following in the original DBAC's footsteps? Using the void as a part of our daily lives and the such?" "Maybe? So what? Not like we didn't stuff flammable material into the everyday life either." She looks out the window. "Maybe, but it still doesn't sit right with me. Here we are, the most advanced and most dangerous empire in all of existence... And yet we could never be more dangerous than those who defeated the ones who were in our shoes..." Jax gives a sigh as he gazes at her through the mirror. She was a young Kitsune, probably 16 in human years, having soft amber hair, and a set of green tech-eyes, meaning she was blind at a point in time. She was also wearing a white shirt and black jeans. Jax adjusts his hat. "Guess it's official, skirts are beginning to go out of fashion." She snorts. "No, they're just not for everyone, my guess is you've only run into those who don't like skirts, but there's still plenty out there who wear them." Jax shrugs as he parks at the Void-Tech HQ. "Here we are." The kitsune nods and gives him a 20 platinum tip as she disappears in a void rip and appears down below again. Jax grunts as he eyes the coins. "Ugh... First day and I get a cheap tip..." He sighs and stuffs it into his pocket. "In this day and age, you'd expect platinum to cost a fortune, but instead it's so abundant it's the exact worth of a quarter per coin... This life sucks." He slumps his head against the steering sphere. "Hey, Kylla?" She appears. "Yes?" "What do you think? Could our life fall apart so easily to something that isn't around right now?" "Her theory is correct, a simple Twilight Heart in the right place could cripple the empire to a great decree. And the Twilight are not gone, they retreated after we had purified a good section of them. It is likely they are rebuilding their forces for a counter attack." "Right... Purified..." He sits back again. "That's how we explain the Dawn Hearts around here..." She nods. "Indeed." She stretches. "Customer, 4.5 Kilo to the Southeast." "Yeah, got it." He drives that way. ... Deep underground, a simple excavation team was currently around one of the ancient ruins from long ago, an old kingdom filled with blue lights. One excavator rubs his helmet as another was digging through the Throne Room. "How the hell did these people expect to get through this simple place." "Probably didn't expect things to happen." "Maybe... Hey, Dorn! Get over here!" A man walks over. "Dorn said he was going to check out a sound deeper in." "You're shitting me, he's supposed to be bringing us some explosives, not playing Archaeologist!" "He went down there." The man nods and jumps down there. "Hey, Dorn! What the hell do... you..." He stops as he sees Dorn staring at a few ancient crystals that had put a few unknown creatures into stasis. "Holy shit... Dorn, you mother fucker... You just found us a fortune!" He pats the man's back. "So that's really..." "Yeah, that's really a Pony." "Meaning..." "We found the forgotten land of Equestria! Our own Atlantis is right in front of us!" They both cheer and clap their hands. "Boys! Get down here! We got some ponies to excavate!" Within the crystal, there stood at least seven ponies, one was large, white, and had both wings and a horn, while the other six consisted of a unicorn, two earth ponies, two pegasi, and another like the white one. Author's Note So, I have decided to replace the one that recieved high dislike with something I thought would be more original... I hope you all enjoy. Chapter 2: An early day offJax groans softly as he sat at the table in the staff room, lying his head on said table as he fiddled with a pen in his hands. He had finished up the taxi runs, but now he had to stick around and help out the boss so to make up the hour and forty-five minutes. It's nothing too major, he just had to fill out paperwork officially and occasionally get the boss a cup of coffee. He yawns again as Kylla appears on the disk at the counter next to the Element-Microwave. "Your black cheese burger is done." Jax nods as he stands up, stretching his arms as he finished signing page 340 of 2,000. Once he got to the microwave, he pulls out the burger and puts on top some lettuce, tomato, onion, and some of the musty-red sauce. Once it was set up, he sits back down and takes a bite as he continued signing the papers. Thinking thoughtfully, he looks at Kylla. "What's going on tomorrow?" "According to the calendar, you're free tomorrow, and will be working on Saturday." "Oh yeah? Cool, so I got Tuesday off, that's something to go by." "Thinking of hitting the cross-species coffee shoppe?" "It's called a cafe, but yeah, they have a special on Tuesdays." "Ah yes, the Cinnamon Chocolate King Blast. It's a wonder how no one gets a sore throat from the strength of the cinnamon in those things, let alone the fact it's meant for the cinnamon lovers." Jax rubs his head. "I'm not that much of a cinnamon lover, but it's unique to me. Besides, I always wanted to try it." "Fair enough, just make sure to get me a Minty Chip Latte." "How do you even drink those things?" She points at the disk. "Ever since the law written that AI have the same rights as any other individual, we've been upgraded in enough ways to enjoy normal human luxuries, such as eating and drinking things through putting them in the center circle, and occasionally giving them a built-in holo-physical disk so that they're practically a solid being that appears as a hologram." Jax looks at his burger. "Makes sense, I suppose. Still have no idea how we became roommates." "We're childhood friends, Jax, you know that." "Yeah... I know." "Something wrong?" "No, just thinking about something." "What?" "The paper is asking me who I consider my fiancee." Kylla instantly whacks him on the head, causing him to grip his head with a yelp in pain and rub the bump. "Owowowowowowowowowowowowow..." Kylla raises her fist with a visible vein in her forehead. "You weren't even listening to me, were you..." "Sorry... I made out the 'we're' part, then just spaced out..." "Need another whack to remember?" He quickly raises his hands with a sweat bead on his forehead. "No! No really, I'm good!" She nods as he rubs his head, then returns to signing the papers. After a moment, she decides to ask as he writes. "So... Have you... You know... Found anyone yet?" "No, not really. Why?" She fiddles with her fingers. "No reason..." Jax raises an eyebrow, but shrugs as he sits back. ... Dorn grunts as he lifted a large piece of debris out of the way while the mech-lifter steps into the chamber. As Dorn moved some debris, his supervisor steps over. "How's the work going, Dorn, manage to find anything else?" Dorn rubs his helmet. "Not yet. This palace may not be as large as Cetera Palace, but it's still massive. It's a wonder how they managed to keep most of it occupied." "And it's Not a wonder on how we keep Cetera Palace completely occupied?" "Good point." He wipes his brow. "I Did find what looked to be a kind of study, but it was locked shut, some kind of magical barrier." "Well, then why didn't you go and get an mining-mage in here?" "Because it's no magic I've seen before. I Did get one by the way, and the woman said that the magic is primitive, however it wasn't researched, so she can't be 100% sure how to open it. Even if primitive, something bad could happen if not handled properly." The supervisor sighs as he rubs his neck. "Damn, do we at least know what's of interest in there?" "She said there's a ton of magical tomes and books recording ancient studies and work. Enough to improve onto the magic we use these days." "Huh, so we won't have to use Element-Implants to increase our magical prowess then?" "That's what she said, yeah." He sighs as he looks at the crystals. "It's been what... 200 million centuries, and still these ponies seemed to leave behind some form of legacy, after all this time... It's a wonder how we managed this far without them." "Things change and work themselves out, it's normal." "That was a rhetorical question, okay?" "Right, right." He grabs a metal plate from the miner that stepped over to him. "Ah, got the scans?" "Yes, sir." "And your personal opinion?" He asks as he presses the center button, causing a holographic screen to appear, revealing the scans on the seven ponies. "They've been in stasis for this long, and somehow they look to be no older than 18... Among the smaller six, while the seventh looks to be around 45." "Isn't it said that the larger ones have extended lifespans?" The miner adjusts his glasses. "Good point, so my guess would be around 3,000 to 5,000." "That's a big leap." "If the theory is right, then that's the most likely. I used to research them as a kid. I never got more than small pieces, but I read enough to know that the first 'alicorn' as they called them was revealed about 4-5,000 years before the event that made pony kind disappear." "Huh, did your homework then..." He shrugs. "About as much as a scholar could know." "Good to know. Could we move them?" "Yes, however they could possibly awaken in the process." "So even if we don't break the crystals they'll wake up. Damn it, was hoping to move them to the palace to at least get some compensation before they would be woken up." "So? We can just wake them up and ask them kindly to join us, can't we?" Dorn asks. "Well, yeah, but wouldn't they try to run away or possibly get lost because of how different our worlds are?" "Maybe, but it's better than forcing them." The supervisor sighs, rubbing his face. "Fine, you have a point. See what you can do." Dorn nods as he follows the miner with glasses to the crystals. "So, you're the new guy?" The man suddenly asks. "Yeah, wanted to try and get a good bit of money. I'm trying to join Void-Tech University." The man whistles. "Damn, that's a whole lot of money to fork over." "Yeah, about 50,000 Diamond Glow-Crystals." The man whistles again. "Damn man, it's hard enough to find a job that'll pay more than 14 a week." "Yeah, I know." "Well, good luck. It Is the highest recommended university for Void researchers." "No kidding." Dorn offers a hand. "Dorn Fujai." The man shakes it. "Killon Moji." "Moji?" "Yeah, I know, I'm the son of Boka Moji, the famous artist..." "No kidding?" "Yeah, but don't go spreading it around. I don't like the attention. I'm not dad." Dorn nods as they step over to the crystals. "So, how do we open it?" "We got a system hooked up." He picks up a small cube. "Here." "Right." Dorn takes it and hovers his hand over it, causing the cube to scan his hand, then blink a green color, before they crystals begin to slowly melt. After the crystals melt enough, Dorn catches the large white one before it could fall to the ground, while Killon gently shakes the cyan one as it was the closest. "Vital signs are good, they're just asleep. We should get them back to the camp." "Sounds good, I'll start up a pot of Herv Stew." Killon nods. "They would probably appreciate some. Make sure not to add any meat." Dorn chuckles. "Herv isn't a meat man, it's a kind of fig." "I know, I'm just saying." Dorn nods as they both get the unconscious ponies over to the camp, and get them under some covers while they return to their things. ... Jax groans as he lays down in bed. "Ugh... Can't wait for tomorrow... I could go with a jog right about now..." Kylla appears on the disk. "Perhaps. Do you not like rain?" "It's not that, I just don't like getting soaked." Kylla clears her throat as she leans against a holographic wall. "Well, that's fair..." 'Though I did enjoy the show when changing...' "Anyways, night Kylla." "Good night, Jaxson." Jax hits the lights and covers up, going straight to bed. Author's Note Chapter 2 is out, and I hope you all enjoy. I'm putting a lot of effort into this story. Chapter 3: Rough Awakenings"GAH?!?!" "HOLD STILL!" "THIS HURTS!" "BECAUSE YOU KEEP SQUIRMING LIKE A CHILD!" Within the apartment of Jaxson and Kylla, Jaxson was holding his head in pain as Kylla stood in a form that was the same height as him, currently giving the man a haircut. "I swear, you're such a child sometimes, Jax." "Doesn't help that you have a rough touch on this thing!" She raises her fist, vein appearing. "Rough touch huh?" Jax's pupils dilate, and he shrinks in his place. "Mommy..." And with that she starts beating the shit out of him as he cries out like a little girl, before eventually he's now sitting still in the chair, a black eye, bruised forehead, and a fork sticking out of the back of his head as streams of tears ran down his eyes. Meanwhile Kylla was finishing up her work on his hair, then gives his beard a nice trim. Once done, she puts her hands on her hips. "There, you'll look good in a little bit." Jax grunts. "No thanks to your bad temper." She raises a fist, making him go into a defensive flinch. "SORRY! SHUTTING UP!" She nods and sets the tools down as she yanks the fork out of his head, and goes back to the disk. Jax rubs his head, a few more tears. "She's terrifying sometimes..." He then blinks as he looked out the window, seeing a massive rip in the void over the city. "Oh sweet! Finally get to see one up close!" He watches as the rip in the void begins to slowly form until out comes a massive DBAC Flagship, the remnant void rip closes behind it as the massive Flagship is then taken to the Guardian Shipyards, probably to be part of the recent fleet. This made Jax rub his chin. "That'd make 240568 fleets now... Kinda small given how big the empire is..." He shrugs and slips on a shirt, then looks at the clock. "Oh god damn it." 12:28 PM Jax jogs down the sidewalk within the Gal District, and stops in front of the local Cafe, the name reading 'Golden Ocean Cafe'. He enters into the cafe, and steps up to the counter, causing a Dragoness to step up in the usual clothes and an apron. She gives a nod as her hairstyle was a ponytail with some of her banes were brushed to the side over her forehead. "What can I get you, sir?" "A Cinnamon Blast King with a Savory Scone." She types onto the cashier with fluent ease. "Here or to go?" "Here, need to get out of the house for a bit." She gives a chuckle. "Just like you, Jax." He gives a shrug. "Today's haircut day." She winces. "That had to have hurt." "No kidding, this time it was a fork." She rubs her head, able to feel that just by hearing it. "Thank the Wind Gods it wasn't a chainsaw like last time." "Don't remind me, those bills still put me in a bad mood." She nods and sets the now ready cup down. "And a Savory Scone, dunked in cheese, and a couple slices of bacon in the middle." "I hate that you know my usual by heart." "Oh well, doesn't help you're here every week." "Good point..." He sets down the 20 platinum coins. She takes it and puts it in the cashier. "And my tip?" "You're kidding? You don't Ask for one." "But you always give me one for excellent service." He scratches at his cheek. "It wasn't at it's best at this point of time." "Oh, ow, my poor heart can't take that blow..." "Oh fine." He pulls out a Bronze Glow-Crystal and gives it to her. "Oooh, that earns a little extra." She gives him a couple Minty-Chip Cookies. "Uh..." She whispers. "So to make Kylla feel better." He gives a nervous chuckle. "Yeah, thanks..." He takes the cookies, and sits down at the table nearby, taking a bite of his scone as he stares out the window, watching the many people pass by. 'It's a wonder that no one notices the Union Police since the days they came out... It's like they fit in as well as a dimension traveler.' He sips his drink as a Union Police outside was arresting a guy who stole a purse from an old lady nearby. 'And yet people are dumb enough to do crime anyways... Jeez...' ... Dorn sips his canteen as he sat in front of the fire, the pot of Herv Stew being reheated in the pot as he did so. He was currently sitting in what he assumed to be the market of this kingdom, the place the supervisor called 'Canterlot'. The glowing blue lights helped with sight, but they didn't keep the place warm, hence the fire, while out the gate was simply dirt and stone leading down what was once a mountain, where they could see pockets of the blue lights, most likely where the many settlements or such would be at. Dorn sips his drink again, then heard some ruffling in the tent. Looking over, he spotted the tall white pony step out of the tent. His eyes widened for a moment, but calmed as he had a feeling this'd come about eventually. When she looked at him, he motioned to the spot next to him. "Want to warm up and have some Herv Stew?" She tilts her head, while her stomach growls loudly. He chuckles. "Hungry, huh? C'mon, made sure not to add meat to it." She nods and comes over, sitting down by his side as she sniffed the air, and had a pleased look. "So... You're a pony..." She nods. "Yes... And you are a... Human?" He pulls the helmet off, revealing wolf ears. "I'm a Wolf-Kin, but close enough." She was wide eyed for a moment, but nods softly as she looks at the land beyond. "...So... It became this while we were gone..." He slowly nods. "Yeah... Pretty much." She looks at him. "Do you and your kin live here now?" "Well, not here, but kinda." He points a finger upwards. "We came from the surface, we excavated down here and found the place like this. Welcome to 200 million centuries in the future." Her eyes were wide for a long time, before slowly nodding. "Mind if I ask a question?" "Go ahead." "How do you know our language?" "I silently cast a translation spell, and after you all talked a bit, I got the basics of the language... Alongside some other words." He nods as he looks at the fire. "Yeah... Sounds about right." "Does it? It sounds more like a fairy tale to me right now, given..." "All that has happened and became of your home?" She nods. "I can understand that." He pours a bowl of the stew and offers it to her. "So... What is a Herv?" "A type of Fig, a vegetable's version of meat." She slowly nods and starts eating, she smiles softly after the first bite and finishes the bowl. "That was better than expected." "Well, it's not my first time cooking with Hervs." She chuckles softly as she sits back. "Do you have something I could drink?" "Sure. Water or Beer?" She blinks. "Um... Something strong enough to knock a goddess onto her flank." "The situations that bad, huh?" She nods. "Alright, I got just the thing." He pulls out a large bottle. "This is a special brew from back when the First Emperor was still around, it's called God's Blackout Moonshine." She blinks. "Is it truly that strong?" "Probably for you, but for our kin above, it's just a stronger version of whiskey, vodka, and moonshine mixed together." She nods and takes the cup, which he pours some into. Upon taking a simple sip, her cheeks go beat red, her eyes roll behind her head, and she falls over in an instant knockout. "And she's out." He sips his own cup. "Well, what did I expect, she didn't grow up with a strong endurance to alcohol like us... Ah well." He pulls his coat off and lays it on her, then goes to get some tools for work. Celestia simply laid there, muttering in her sleep. "No... I'll have more cake please... Double the icing..." Chapter 4: First few stepsJax continued to walk down the sidewalk, currently taking a stroll in the Gelken sector's upper levels, where the more expensive items were kept. He patted his hand on a window that had a beautiful pink wedding dress hanging on a mannequin. He sighs as he kept walking. 'Wonder if Kylla would like a dress like that, but for formal occasions instead of a wedding...' He grunts and rubs his head. 'Damn, that crazy woman will drive me crazy... But... She has a kind of... I don't know, appearance? That deep down she's more caring, but defending herself with the tough girl act? Nah, that's too cliche, like almost every anime show I've watched...' He sighs again and stops at the intersection, watching ground rovers drive by. As Jax watched the rovers drive by, a man steps up by his side. "You waiting for the Vex too?" Jax looks. "Hmm? Oh, no, I'm just walking around town." He nods as he checks his watch. He was a tall man, having a pair of cat ears, a cat tail, and cat eyes alongside small whiskers. He was probably a Catle, and the well made suit and tie means he's a type of city man. Jax could also see a small item in his pocket. "So, you're a Elemental?" He looks. "Heh, yeah I guess." He raises a fist, causing it to become encased in ice. "Specialize in melee and unarmed mostly." "What's your job?" "I'm working as a Union Detective." Jax groans. "How do you manage to get along with those guys?" "I don't, but the pay is good enough to look past it." "Oh yeah? How much?" "20 Golden Diamond Glow-Stones." Jax stumbled, gripping his head. "Holy shit... That's a good 20,000 Diamond Glow-Stones..." "Yeah, well, the cases are life-endangering, even for an Elemental-Psion." "Shit, that explains the high price." "Yep." He looks down the trail. "And here's the Vex." A large and highly advanced Void-Entity drives up, causing Jax to grin like an idiot. It's rare to see a Void-Entity outside of the transports for Very rich individuals. "You must be hella rich." "Nah, I live on a good 20 golden diamond glow-stones every month." "Then how'd you get permission to get on one of these?" He shows a pass. "Saved up the money." "Lucky. See ya around." "You too, kid." He gets onto the Void-Entity, before it soon drives off. Jax sighs and looks down at the ground, which was a good 200 floors down. "...Please tell me there's a Street Portal nearby..." ... The young kitsune from the taxi drive yesterday was currently typing in the terminal codes for objects, before soon enough she got the device to produce 4 GML-90 Black Hole Magnums, then sits back with a sigh. "Why the hell did I get the weapon manufacturing section..." She rubs her head with a sigh, before her ears twitch as a scientist steps in. "Miss Jolor, you are requested in the meeting on level 23." She looks. "I thought levels 30-10 were off limits to the lower ranks?" "They made an exception for you given your family heritage." She glares at him. "You mean to tell me they looked at my personal records, looked up my mother, and based me off of her?" He nods, making her throw a coffee cup at him, which he ducks just in time. "I am NOT some little girl who needs permission because of her family! I will go when I earn it!" He nervously nods. "Alright, then I'll reschedule it for another day... Aheheh... heh..." He quickly rushes out the door and closes it behind him, sighing heavily. "Another Flame Temper... Why do we get so many from that clan?" He shakes his head and returns to work. ... The young dragoness serves a couple men their drinks, before stepping behind the counter. "Hello and welcome to the Golden Ocean, what can I-Oh! Hey Kylla, what can I get you?" "The usual." "Ten Minty-Chip cookies, a double fudge brownie, and a Minty-Chip Latte coming right up." "Can I ask you something?" "Sure thing, hun." She finishes the drink. "How do you usually get a man's attention?" She gives a grin as she leans her head on her hand while her elbow rests on the counter. "Got an eye for someone?" Kylla fiddles with her fingers. "You could say that..." "Well, I personally work on my appearance, and let the men come to me." "Yeah?" "Yeah, but then again, most who come to me are perverts, so the best way to attract an actually good one, is to show some humility and that you won't bed just anyone who says yes." "That's pretty obvious." "Then why are you asking me?" Kylla glances to the side. "You seem to get a lot of attention from the male consumers, so I thought you might've had a secret..." "Nope, I'm just being myself, and I keep my eyes open for any would-be perverts." Kylla nods softly, then rubs her head slightly, her claws brushing through her hip-length hair. "Well, maybe if I try a ponytail..." "Not everyone is interested in the ponytail, hun." She puts the cookies down. "I mean, Jaxson is more into the long flowing style, when the woman let's her hair down." "R-Really?" She nods. "Yeah, though... He is a bit dense, which is why I gave up on trying." "You tried to date him once?" "At the time, I was a newbie here in Golden Ocean, only around 15 or 16 years, and then I see him come in after a day at high school. He treated me like a friend, not like some sexy eye candy, and he was the first to do so. So at the time I had a big interest, but eventually I reached 18 and realized he wouldn't notice. So I simply viewed him as a good friend. Though, nothing could beat a childhood friend, now could they?" Kylla chuckles softly. "No, I suppose nothing could." "Tell you what, I'll give you an extra special drink. Try offering it to the one you're after." "What kind of drink is it?" "My own special brew, a cinnamon chocolate minty-chip espresso." "Is it any good?" "Everyone I sold it to loved it, and anyone who bought it for a date ended up winning their hearts... or so they tell me. if I'm wrong, then I'm wrong, but then again I can only go by what the customers tell me." Kylla nods softly. "How much?" "Drinks for the man you're after are always on the house here, love." "Thanks, you're the best." "I try to be." Kylla takes the items once they're done, and rushes home. ... Dorn grunts as he rubs his head, then looks at the six mares who had woken up mere moments ago. "So, you said your names were...?" "Twilight Sparkle." "Applejack." "Rainbow Dash, Fastest Flyer in All-" "Pinkie Pie!" "Rarity." "F-F-Fluttershy..." He nods. "And you call yourselves the...?" "Elements of Harmory, or Mane Six." "Uh-huh, and you fight for...?" "Peace and harmony." He just stares at them, then snorts as he shoves a piece of debris out of the way as they moved down the halls of Canterlot Palace. "I don't know about you six, but from the sounds of it, you didn't have what it took to stop whatever happened. Hell, the fact your elements only did that kinda tells me that." "The Elements of Harmony are the strongest weapon in all of equestrian hi-" "Can it blow up an entire solar system?" "..." "Then we have something stronger." Twilight clears her throat. "Yes... Well... Um... What are you and your... 'People', doing here?" "Like I said, excavating the ruins to find something worth a nice Diamond Glow-Stone." Rarity gasps at the name. "Oh my, there's such a thing here?!" "Yeah, it's part of the currency system, backups in case you can't access your credits." Her eyes sparkled with wonder and excitement, while Applejack watched him move another large piece. "Well, ahm thinkin' y'all coulda been o' great help back on Sweet Apple Acres. How in tha hay can y'all move that?" He looks at his hand. "Well, I'm a Wolf-Kin, alongside being an Earth-Elemental." "Elemental?" Twilight asks. "Someone who specializes it manipulating with ores, stone, and dirt." Twilight curses under her breath. "If only I had my notepad and quill..." "Don't worry about it, they got an entire series of encyclopedias around the Elementals." Her eyes sparkle this time. "I have a question." RD finally said. "What's the fastest flying thing here?" Dorn stops and thinks a moment. "I'd say a Void-Elemental cross-breed vortex. It's the fastest hovering vehicle we have at the current date." "How fast?" "About 240.50 kilometers per hour." Dash's jaw drops to the ground as he shoves the debris to the side, while everyone else's jaws dropped as well. "C'mon, we're almost there." Soon enough they reach the end of the hall, and spot a stairwell going down, and at the bottom was a door covered in magical layered barriers. Dorn whistles. "That doesn't look like an average barrier." Twilight steps up. "It isn't an average one, it's a containment red barrier spell, meant to keep anything highly dangerous locked away." "And given how old it is, even a Black Heart couldn't live down there without some beings under it's control to feed off of." "Black Heart?" "It's what we call the hearts in the center of a Twilight Field." Twilight raised an eyebrow. "There's something out there with my name?" He shrugs. "Names are names, I didn't choose it." She shrugs as he pulls out his caller, then looks at it. "Supervisor Holland." It rings, before the man picks up. "Sir, we got another barrier deeper in, around what looks to be the..." He looks at the sign over the door. "The Laboratory." "Alright, we'll send a couple mining-mages down there to help with that." "Think they'll know how to dispel it?" "Not really, but I'm hoping. We found barriers around the main bedchambers and the massive tower, so who knows what they were hiding, or maybe even guarding." Dorn nods. "Understood, we'll wait here." "Right, and I'll be sending the white-" "I LOVE ICE CREAM CAKE AND CHOCOLATE CAKE AND-" "Damn it get that bottle away from her!" The supervisor hangs up. "...Guess she liked it." Dorn shrugs. Chapter 5: Golden Age of the VoidJaxson yawns slightly as he walks through the halls of floor 24506, his apartment just down the way. He had gotten the walk he wanted, got to try out that cinnamon chocolate king blast, and even got to see a Void-Entity, so his day, while didn't exactly pay anything, was a good one, and he got to see some cool things. Shaking his head, he heads to his apartment, and goes inside, closing the door behind him as he's greeted to the lights having been dimmed a great deal. This causes him to raise an eyebrow as he goes into the dining room, and blinks upon seeing Kylla wearing a rather attractive dress, nervously fidgeting her fingers, and keeping her eyes mainly at the ground. "Hey, Kylla." She jumps slightly and looks at him with a large blush. "What's all this for?" "I-I-I-I thought I'd g-g-give you a g-g-g-good afternoon since you worked so hard yesterday... I got you a drink and made you your favorite meal..." He blinks in surprise. "You did all this? For me?" She nods. "Why? I haven't exactly done anything special lately..." "I just thought you'd... You know, like something nice after so long." "Heh, thanks Kylla." He sits down at the table as she smiles softly. "So..." He looks down at the plate. "Hydranian steak, Verrian salad, and a glass of Blood Dragon wine? You went all out." He chuckled the last part out softly. "I-I-It's nothing, just a little something I put together..." He gives a small laugh as he sips the wine. "Kylla, these things cost a fortune to by already made in a restaurant, you can't just tell me it's just a little something." She nervously rubs her arms. "Well, let's dig in, huh?" She nods as they both start eating. ... Miss Jolor sighs heavily as she tosses her purse onto the table at her home, an apartment in the Golden Eye Sector, floor 340,506, in the Upper and Middle class levels. She sits down on her couch, and opens up a take-out she bought from a nearby restaurant, Black Cheese Steak and Griffonian beats. She shakes her head and takes a bite as she turns on the Holographic TV. "Recently there have been a number of reports coming from the mining operation down in the Hillside Sector. The miners are keeping their mouths shut, but it's obviously something big, and the fact they've called in some Union Police and extra mining-mages means it's bigger than an average excavation. Just what is the Broadened Gold Company, one of the lesser known companies, found down there? We'll hopefully know more right after the break. But for now, back to you Dolland." The kitsune blinks as she had a piece of the cheese steak hanging from her mouth, speaking with it there. "That much security and additional help and they aren't saying a word? Must be something big..." She looks out the window. "Wonder how far they'd go to get what they're looking for..." She asks as she stares at a massive rip in the void creating another large ship. ... The young Dragoness hangs up her apron, and pulls on a simple jean jacket as she checks her time, then jogs out, waving a taxi, which soon picks her up through the usual void portal. She sits back as she looks at the driver. "Green Garden, Apartment Tower 40,506." The driver nods and starts driving. She sighs and looks out the window as the driver spoke. "So, you're one of them rich kids?" "No, why?" "Usually Green Garden only takes in Rich and Famous, how'd you get a place there?" "Family might be rich, but I'm no one special." "Ah, they gave you a place and nothing else?" "I refused anything else. Wanted to make my own name and the such." ":Who's the family?" "The Jolliers." "Jolliers eh? Weren't they the first to colonize on Cetera back before it became the capital?" "Please, don't lump me up with them. I may have their last name, but that doesn't make me special." "If you say so." He looks out the window. "Ugh, damn POB Drones..." The dragoness watched the large drones fly by, scanning the windows and vehicles for anything hostile. "Got an issue with those security drones?" "No, they just keep flying in my driving lanes, hard to drive without almost crashing into one that flies in front of me." "Ah." She brushes her hair out of her eyes, and looks at the driver. "What about you? Anything special?" "Heh, not really, just an average Night-Taxi driver, working for the Graying Silver company." "Huh, they new?" "You could say that. We don't have much, but we manage to get by. It's a wonder though, we could never get past the rank those guys at the Borrus's Taxis. It's like they're better than they let on." The dragoness chuckles. "Maybe they just tend to hire good workers..." She says, thinking about Jax. "Yeah? Well, maybe, guess not all companies are hiding something..." He shrugs. "Anyways..." He blinks. "Oh, we're here." The dragoness nods as she hands him a good 2 Silver Coins. "Well, you pay better than the others I pick up." He takes it. "I'm serious, they're always paying in Platinum..." "It's not so bad, so long as they pay in large majority." "20-30 coins a drive." "Okay, that's pretty bad." He nods. "Well, see you around." "Sure, whatever." She nods and gets off. ... Over in Cetera Palace, on the tallest balcony, the man wearing the emperor's robes, cloak, and crown gazes upon the land, rubbing his chin thoughtfully. "Hmm..." His steward comes in. "Milord, is there something wrong?" "No... Not yet at least..." He glances at the steward. "Any reports on the Twilight?" "None, they're still beyond the borders of the DBAC, it seems they're playing it safe until their plans to do... Well... Whatever it is they're planning, is ready." The emperor gazes out to the land. "I see..." He sighs and places his hands on the railing. "I've been the emperor for nearly 10 years now... And yet I could never accomplish what the first seven could..." "To be fair, the first seven were highly gifted in all classes, they were the top elite in everything..." "And then they disappeared, and left us to choose emperors through votes..." He looks at the man. "Could they be dead?" "Possibly, but then again, we never knew much about them to begin with, so it is unknown... Maybe they're the ones watching over us, and the temples are actually right about these things..." "Maybe..." He looks to the steward. "Get a letter ready." "For whom?" "I'm going to get something to eat." "You mean outside of the palace walls? Anywhere specific?" "The favorite of the seven emperors." "Understood, we'll make sure Mark's Diner is ready at the time." He chuckles softly. "Something so old fashioned, and yet it's the most booming restaurant in the capital." "Because they don't use anything artificial." "Fair point." ... Dorn steps out of the way as about three mining-mages step through to the doors of the laboratory. He stuffs his hands in his pockets as he watched a couple Union Elementals drag the now passed out Celestia in, who was hugging a bottle of moonshine to her chest with a drunken grin on her face. Twilight gives one of those blank looks. "I've never seen the Princess in this state before... What in the name of Celestia did you give her?" "God's Blackout Moonshine." RD bursts out laughing. "Oh man! The name itself tells me everything!" Rarity adjusts a pair of glasses she suddenly had on and was wearing. "Well, I can honestly say I'd have rather a glass of your finest wine than something like that." Dorn shrugs, before they all heard the barrier dispel, causing Dorn to jog over. "You guys got it?" A mining-mage comes up with a thumbs up. "Yeah, this one's barrier was the easiest do figure out. It didn't have additional security and magical coding." Twilight tilts her head. "Magical coding?" Dorn folds his arms. "Most mages in the DBAC compare magic to things like math and computers. So they can see the 'coding' of a magical spell, much like how a techie or hacker can see the coding in a computer or program." Twilight smiles. "Fascinating. it makes sense in a way, thought that's not how we view it... Or at least I don't." Dorn nods as they seven of them head down to the door, and see the other two mages had already opened it, having cast a lighting spell to reveal the old laboratory. It was well preserved, and one mage was currently looking over a large containment cell holding... A currently frozen in green crystal black mare wearing odd armor. Twilight whispers under her breath. "It can't be... Is that... Nightmare Moon?" Applejack tilts her hat. "How in t' hay did Princess Luna turn back inta Nightmare Moon?" A mage says as she looks at a clipboard, rubbing her head. "Says here she had turned into this a few days before everything went to hell. Apparently something was tearing Equestria into a chaos ridden land." Twilight curses. "Discord..." "No, Discord is written here to be in containment cell E." Said containment cell held Discord within another green crystal. "Seems to read that while everything was happening, most, if not all of the populace was being frozen in time within the green crystals..." "...That means my mom and dad are-" "Still alive." Dorn finishes, adjusting his helmet. "Which means the entire populace of Equis is very much alive... God damn the supervisor is going to freak upon hearing this." The mage looking through a folder says as he steps over. "Yeah, this find itself could be worth up to 240,000,000 Golden Diamond Glow-Crystals." Dorn's jaw drops at that. "H-H-Holy shit, we'd be able to do anything with that kind of money!" "Very much so, meaning your company could become the next generation of the Ceterian Founders." Dorn stumbles and collapses into a chair nearby. "...This is insane..." The mares look at each other with confusion, before suddenly hearing Celestia upstairs. "Hey, where is everypony?" Chapter 6: Under the surfaceAuthor's Note Quick note before you read, I am now accepting ocs, any and all are allowed, however if they are overpowered, please don't expect them to be used too often, as I'm trying to avoid being one of Those stories. Chapter 6: Under the surface Jaxson yawns softly as he sits up, rubbing his head slightly as he looks out the window, seeing that the sun was just now coming over the horizon, through the towers of the city. He yawns again and checks the clock. Which read 5:10. "Huh, guess I'm finally getting around to waking up early... Kylla sure helped out with that last night... Haven't had that good of a meal in nearly two years." He stretches his arms out before getting up and heading to the bathroom, opening the menu and choosing the '30 Minute Shower' button. While he showered, Kylla yawns loudly as she wakes up on the couch, rubbing her eyes slightly as she noticed the TV was still on. She yawns again as she looks over at the special drink she got for Jax, which was currently sitting in the Elemental-Emitter, not losing it's hot temperature that it had when she bought it. Shaking her head, she grabs the remote to turn off the TV, but stops when she notices that the news was on. "And in other news, the DBAC Emperor has sectioned off the excavation site in Hillside. It seems that they have found something of such great importance that they demand to keep it secret until further notice. What could this mean? Well, according to a witness, they heard a couple miners whispering to themselves about finding a group of 'Ponies' down there. If that is true, then we may very well be looking at the rebirth of an ancient myth. Only time will tell. Back to you Judy." Kylla blinks a couple times, then turns off the news as what was next was weather. Setting the remote down, she gets up and heads to the kitchen, where she decides to cook some Hennier Eggs, Hykrin Bacon, and a side of hashbrowns. After cooking it all, she sets two servings down at the table, and sits down, taking a sip of her coffee afterwards. She rubs her head slightly as she looked up at the ceiling. 'Ponies, huh? That would be an interesting mind blower... But news is news, they don't always tell the truth... Ah, I'll keep an eye out just in case they're being honest...' She sips her coffee again. Jaxson comes in after he had dried off and gotten dressed, sitting down at the table as he adjusts his hat. "Morning, Kylla." She nods. "Made something simple this time, but still something nice." She takes a bite of her food. "What's your plan after work today?" "Was thinking of checking out that excavation site, heard they found something big." "Mm, the Emperor himself put the area on lockdown, something highly secret or something." Jax tilts his hat up. "Yeah?" He looks out the window. "...Feel like checking it out?" "We'd be arrested on the spot." "So?" She sighs. "You're one heck of a guy, Jax." "I'm just curious, I mean, come on. The biggest excavation in the world being done by a company that's not that well known, and it's sealed off by the Emperor himself. All kinds of people could be sneaking in as we speak." "I can see your logic in this, but we're not criminals." "Who said we were? We don't even have to barge in, we could just stop there and check it out in the spot other civilians are allowed to see it from." "And Now you're making more sense." She sips her coffee again. "Why don't you try the coffee I got you from Kathil?" "Alright, but it's just coffee." He takes a sip, while Kylla grips her chair's edges, leaning in slightly in anticipation. "Hmm, not bad, tastes pretty good." She nods at that, waiting. "...Yes, Kylla?" She blinks, and sits back with the blush. "Nothing, was just... Nevermind." Jaxson stares at her for a moment, before nodding slowly as he returns to his food, her doing the same. ... Miss Jolor sighs as she stood with three other Void-Tech researchers as they stood on the elevator, which took them down deeper into the excavation site. The young kitsune adjusts her gloves she was wearing, something she made for herself using the Void-Tech, it's basically a hand version of the manufacturing systems, something that could be used for millions of things, such as summoning a blade of energy, a magnum, or even a simply deck of cards or a slab of steak. She shakes her head slightly as the elevator passes the main section, and her eyes go wide while her jaw slowly drops as she steps up to the window, placing a hand on it as she stared at the great land of what was once Equestria. She couldn't help but whisper. "Wow... This is..." One of the other scientists steps next to her. "Wow is the understatement of the millennium... Look at this... We could be here for months and still not research enough to get an understanding on how the ancients lived here." She slowly nods, taking a small gulp. "This job is... It's going to take a Lot of people..." He looks at her. "You know anyone who could help out?" She thinks. "I think I could get us a good pilot for transport." "Yeah? Who's the lucky bastard?" She thinks. "He's a Borrus's Taxis taxi driver." The man blinks. "...Well, at least he's decent in some way." "Maybe... I still need to figure out if he's the right choice... I only know what I did when I met him." "Well alright then." He nods. She folds her arms as the elevator stops, and they step off of the elevator in time to see a couple Elemental's carrying a currently snoring white pony, who was muttering something while her face was covered in some kind of cake. "Huh, must be a cake lover..." "Scans indicate the cake was made with some alcohol." One scientist said, scanning it. "It also says she made it herself." "So she made herself drunk with a cake... Good to know." A miner steps up to them. "More like she thought the bottle held milk in it. Claims it was dark, but I assume she didn't pay attention." The four nod as he offers a hand. "Supervisor Dillon Holland, currently the one commanding this excavation. If you want the guy with the most experience, he's currently in the tent in the market, probably making Herv stew." "Herv? That's a rather expensive, and might I say hard to cook, type of fig." The scientist with the glasses and more rounded figure said. "Maybe, but he's the best when it comes to using them. The ponies seem to like it." "So you've confirmed that they're ponies?" The tallest one asks. "Yeah, they said it themselves." Jolor rubs her chin softly, before nodding. "I'll go take a look, you three go do... Whatever it is you do." They nod as she heads to the market. Once she reaches the market, she steps up to see the man cooking, and clears her throat. He looks over, and raises an eyebrow. "What are you doing down here, kid? You sneak in, or..." He realizes she's in a Void-Tech lab coat. "Ah, you're with the requested Void-Tech researchers, gotcha." He stands up and comes over, offering a hand. "Dorn Fujai." She takes it. "Jill Jolor." "Jolor? You're from the upper levels then?" "Please, don't group me with them, I'm just a simple woman trying to make her own name." "Gotcha." He looks at the tent. "Hey girls! Got someone I want you to meet!" The six mares step out, making Jill go wide eyed, but politely bow her head as they were soon next to Dorn. "Hello there, are you one of those... 'Void-Tech' scientists that Dorn spoke highly of?" "Well, this is my third day, but yeah, you could say that..." She gives a bow. "It's a pleasure to meet you, my name is Twilight Sparkle, and these are my friends, Applejack, Rarity, Fluttershy, Pinkie Pie, and Rainbow Dash." Jill rubs her eye a little. "Okay, I assume these names are normal for ponies..." She noticed they were staring. "What?" "What the hay's with your eyes?" RD asks, making AJ instantly cover her mouth. "Sorry 'bout her, she doesn' think before she spills it." Jill smiles softly. "It's fine, I was blind at one point in my life, so they fixed them with advanced implants and surgery, so now my eyes repair themselves in a sense whenever damaged." They all give out an 'ooooooooooo' while Twi's eyes sparkled greatly. "I take it you're a fan of science?" Jill asks. Twilight nods. "Mainly anything knowledgeable, but math and science are up there with that." Jill nods, before looking at Dorn. "So, I hear you're an expert in cooking Herv." He rubs his neck. "Expert is a bit..." "Mind if I try some? I could use something since I missed breakfast." He nods. "Sure, I'll get you a bowl." Jill nods and sits down on the nearby chair, looking at the six. "So, you probably have as many questions as I do if not more so, so how about we swap questions and answer them for each other?" Twi nods. "Sounds fair." Jill nods again. ... Miss Jollier sighs as she steps behind the counter of the cafe again, and takes some orders, before noticing Jax's taxi drive by, and sighs softly. She then looks at the next customer, which appears to be a elf, a young female who looks to be about 18. "What can I get you, miss?" "A Jumba Orange Mango Blizzard." "Ah, so a smoothie. Coming up." She looks to the back. "A JOMB! ICED!" "ON IT GWEN!" She then looks at the elf. "Anything else?" "Maybe some advice?" "On?" "How to make a good cookie..." "Oh? Sure, what kind?" She points at the one on display. Gwen's eyes sparkle. "A White Chocolate Heart Claimer, eh? I think I know how to do it just right." The elf nods softly with a tiny smile. Chapter 7: The recruitmentsSomething has gone wrong. We don't seem to have an archived copy of that chapter.
Chapter 1: An average day in Cetera gone wrongCetera, the capital of the DBAC, a planet that makes Jupiter look like a simple grain of sand when it comes to size, and the fact the entire galaxy it resides in being the same size. It was the perfect planet to make as the capital, and the main palace was currently the size of a 16th of the planet, making it the largest building in DBAC history. This capital planet was the crowning jewel of the DBAC, and it was the one planet that no sane species would attack without a proper army and strategy. However, our story isn't going to start with this, instead it is going to start deep in the Gelken Sector, right above this city's slums. More specifically on the 24506th floor, room AZG-701. Inside, the alarm was ringing loudly as someone was fast asleep under the covers of the bed, snoring loudly as he laid there. After about a minute he groans and hits the snooze button, which was a holographic button on the simple metal sphere. He sits up with a great yawn, stretching his arms out as he scratches his head, looking to see the clock say it was currently 7:45 AM. "HOLY SHIT I'M LATE!!!" The man jumps out of bed, and rushes into the bathroom, jumping into the tube and hitting the quick rinse button. After cleaning up he throws on a simple T-Shirt with a pair of Jet-Jeans. He hops through the room as he tugs on the last boot, and grabs the keys as he rushes to the door while a hologram of a Dragon-Morph appeared. The hologram had her arms folded as she spoke. "Good morning, Jaxson, running late again?" The man, now identified as Jaxson, grunts as he grabs the disk she was emitting her form from alongside a pear as he dashes out the door, jogging a bit before entering the elevator as it opened, and punched the 1 button. The elevator responds by making him disappear into a rip in the void itself, then dropping out of another rip on the first floor elevator room, then dashes out the front door as he bit into his pear. 'Shit shit shit shit, the first day of work and I'm already an hour and forty-five minutes late!' He soon jumps into a Street Portal, and appears right outside of a rather run down building with a sign reading 'Borrus's Taxis!' Jaxson rushes in and pats the counter as he runs past the Salarian Secretary. "Sorry I'm late, I'll stick around to make up for it!" The salarian adjusts his glasses. "Very well, I'll tell the boss." Jaxson stops when he reaches the taxi, and grins as he hops in, adjusting the mirror, and checking the systems before turning on the vehicle. The taxi comes to life with a soft hum, hovering off of the ground. Jaxson then drives right out the garage door and flies off to the first pick up. "Time, Kylla?" The Dragon-Morph appears on the disc he had set over the steering sphere. "You made it in 10.3 minutes." Jaxson sighs, and gives a soft chuckle. "Heh, they upgraded the Street Portals today then." He adjusts his hat as he pulls out a square disk. He taps the holographic screen that appeared, and says aloud. "Mother." The disk blinks, and starts ringing. Soon enough someone picks up. "Hillary Hound speaking." "Hey mom." "Jaxson, how are you doing? Don't tell me you made it late..." "How'd you know?" "You've been late to school almost every day of every year, it's pretty normal for you." Jaxson nervously chuckles. "Yeah, sorry mom, I was just up all night, excited... I couldn't sleep..." "Mmhm, probably because you were playing the latest game on Sons of Eldra." "Ahehehe... I have no idea what you're talking about..." "Jaxson, that's the most famous game out there, so famous that they show the championship competitions on TV. I saw your name on the board." Jaxson groans. "I know you're sore from that, but that doesn't excuse your day to work." "Yeah, I know..." "Good, I have to get your dad some peppers, so be a good boy." "Yes mom. Love you." "Love you too." Jaxson hangs up and leans back with a sigh. "You still continue to underestimate your mother, I'm truly surprised, Jax." "Oh don't give me that, I know how good she is at reading me, it doesn't help." "Maybe not." She then summons a small holographic screen. "Customer, two kilo ahead." "Got it." He drives there, then presses a button, causing the bottom of the car to glow blue, before a young woman appears through the sudden rip of the void in the back seat, which closes behind her. "Void-Tech Central please." "Got it." Jax starts driving. "So, you a Void-Tech scientist?" "No, at least not yet. I'm going there to sign up." "Oh yeah? What's it take to join them these days?" "Mainly a decent understanding in Void-Technology. They don't want some rookie creating another Tech-Dragon with the void." "Makes sense... Good thing we got those things around." He points a finger at a nearby patrol giant, a massive black robot covered head to toe in ranged and close quarters weaponry, even having lasers on the shoulders. "To think someone actually tries to take those things on..." "They're actually rather easy to bypass..." "How so?" "For starters, their scanners are limited to the lower levels, while they have the POB Security Drones scanning the upper levels. The giants however cannot do anything hostile unless either A: The surrounding area is void of civilians, or B: The target is large enough to take out without collateral damage." Jax adjusts his hat. "Makes sense I guess, don't want to go killing the people you're ordered to protect." "Exactly, however they have a good silent alarm, which can call forth Union Police." Jax shudders. "You mean those nearly emotionless guys able to take out a super soldier like it's nothing?" "The very ones. Only way to deal with them is through anyone from the DBAC... Or..." "Or?" She shakes her head. "Nothing, it's just a myth." "Well now I want to hear it." She sighs. "You know of the Twilight?" "Yeah, a ancient enemy of the First DBAC. A big black form that encompasses a section of a civilization, having a Black Heart in the center, and able to turn anyone except a small few into mindless puppets." "Yes, I suppose they could take out a squad of Union Police... But that's if they don't have the flamethrowers." "Right, the Twilight hate fire and the sun, the classic vampiric cliche... I'm serious, those things can adapt to any kind of combat BUT fire, and it makes no sense to me." She adjusts her glasses, her fox ears twitching. "Maybe, but then again, aren't we following in the original DBAC's footsteps? Using the void as a part of our daily lives and the such?" "Maybe? So what? Not like we didn't stuff flammable material into the everyday life either." She looks out the window. "Maybe, but it still doesn't sit right with me. Here we are, the most advanced and most dangerous empire in all of existence... And yet we could never be more dangerous than those who defeated the ones who were in our shoes..." Jax gives a sigh as he gazes at her through the mirror. She was a young Kitsune, probably 16 in human years, having soft amber hair, and a set of green tech-eyes, meaning she was blind at a point in time. She was also wearing a white shirt and black jeans. Jax adjusts his hat. "Guess it's official, skirts are beginning to go out of fashion." She snorts. "No, they're just not for everyone, my guess is you've only run into those who don't like skirts, but there's still plenty out there who wear them." Jax shrugs as he parks at the Void-Tech HQ. "Here we are." The kitsune nods and gives him a 20 platinum tip as she disappears in a void rip and appears down below again. Jax grunts as he eyes the coins. "Ugh... First day and I get a cheap tip..." He sighs and stuffs it into his pocket. "In this day and age, you'd expect platinum to cost a fortune, but instead it's so abundant it's the exact worth of a quarter per coin... This life sucks." He slumps his head against the steering sphere. "Hey, Kylla?" She appears. "Yes?" "What do you think? Could our life fall apart so easily to something that isn't around right now?" "Her theory is correct, a simple Twilight Heart in the right place could cripple the empire to a great decree. And the Twilight are not gone, they retreated after we had purified a good section of them. It is likely they are rebuilding their forces for a counter attack." "Right... Purified..." He sits back again. "That's how we explain the Dawn Hearts around here..." She nods. "Indeed." She stretches. "Customer, 4.5 Kilo to the Southeast." "Yeah, got it." He drives that way. ... Deep underground, a simple excavation team was currently around one of the ancient ruins from long ago, an old kingdom filled with blue lights. One excavator rubs his helmet as another was digging through the Throne Room. "How the hell did these people expect to get through this simple place." "Probably didn't expect things to happen." "Maybe... Hey, Dorn! Get over here!" A man walks over. "Dorn said he was going to check out a sound deeper in." "You're shitting me, he's supposed to be bringing us some explosives, not playing Archaeologist!" "He went down there." The man nods and jumps down there. "Hey, Dorn! What the hell do... you..." He stops as he sees Dorn staring at a few ancient crystals that had put a few unknown creatures into stasis. "Holy shit... Dorn, you mother fucker... You just found us a fortune!" He pats the man's back. "So that's really..." "Yeah, that's really a Pony." "Meaning..." "We found the forgotten land of Equestria! Our own Atlantis is right in front of us!" They both cheer and clap their hands. "Boys! Get down here! We got some ponies to excavate!" Within the crystal, there stood at least seven ponies, one was large, white, and had both wings and a horn, while the other six consisted of a unicorn, two earth ponies, two pegasi, and another like the white one. Author's Note So, I have decided to replace the one that recieved high dislike with something I thought would be more original... I hope you all enjoy.
Chapter 2: An early day offJax groans softly as he sat at the table in the staff room, lying his head on said table as he fiddled with a pen in his hands. He had finished up the taxi runs, but now he had to stick around and help out the boss so to make up the hour and forty-five minutes. It's nothing too major, he just had to fill out paperwork officially and occasionally get the boss a cup of coffee. He yawns again as Kylla appears on the disk at the counter next to the Element-Microwave. "Your black cheese burger is done." Jax nods as he stands up, stretching his arms as he finished signing page 340 of 2,000. Once he got to the microwave, he pulls out the burger and puts on top some lettuce, tomato, onion, and some of the musty-red sauce. Once it was set up, he sits back down and takes a bite as he continued signing the papers. Thinking thoughtfully, he looks at Kylla. "What's going on tomorrow?" "According to the calendar, you're free tomorrow, and will be working on Saturday." "Oh yeah? Cool, so I got Tuesday off, that's something to go by." "Thinking of hitting the cross-species coffee shoppe?" "It's called a cafe, but yeah, they have a special on Tuesdays." "Ah yes, the Cinnamon Chocolate King Blast. It's a wonder how no one gets a sore throat from the strength of the cinnamon in those things, let alone the fact it's meant for the cinnamon lovers." Jax rubs his head. "I'm not that much of a cinnamon lover, but it's unique to me. Besides, I always wanted to try it." "Fair enough, just make sure to get me a Minty Chip Latte." "How do you even drink those things?" She points at the disk. "Ever since the law written that AI have the same rights as any other individual, we've been upgraded in enough ways to enjoy normal human luxuries, such as eating and drinking things through putting them in the center circle, and occasionally giving them a built-in holo-physical disk so that they're practically a solid being that appears as a hologram." Jax looks at his burger. "Makes sense, I suppose. Still have no idea how we became roommates." "We're childhood friends, Jax, you know that." "Yeah... I know." "Something wrong?" "No, just thinking about something." "What?" "The paper is asking me who I consider my fiancee." Kylla instantly whacks him on the head, causing him to grip his head with a yelp in pain and rub the bump. "Owowowowowowowowowowowowow..." Kylla raises her fist with a visible vein in her forehead. "You weren't even listening to me, were you..." "Sorry... I made out the 'we're' part, then just spaced out..." "Need another whack to remember?" He quickly raises his hands with a sweat bead on his forehead. "No! No really, I'm good!" She nods as he rubs his head, then returns to signing the papers. After a moment, she decides to ask as he writes. "So... Have you... You know... Found anyone yet?" "No, not really. Why?" She fiddles with her fingers. "No reason..." Jax raises an eyebrow, but shrugs as he sits back. ... Dorn grunts as he lifted a large piece of debris out of the way while the mech-lifter steps into the chamber. As Dorn moved some debris, his supervisor steps over. "How's the work going, Dorn, manage to find anything else?" Dorn rubs his helmet. "Not yet. This palace may not be as large as Cetera Palace, but it's still massive. It's a wonder how they managed to keep most of it occupied." "And it's Not a wonder on how we keep Cetera Palace completely occupied?" "Good point." He wipes his brow. "I Did find what looked to be a kind of study, but it was locked shut, some kind of magical barrier." "Well, then why didn't you go and get an mining-mage in here?" "Because it's no magic I've seen before. I Did get one by the way, and the woman said that the magic is primitive, however it wasn't researched, so she can't be 100% sure how to open it. Even if primitive, something bad could happen if not handled properly." The supervisor sighs as he rubs his neck. "Damn, do we at least know what's of interest in there?" "She said there's a ton of magical tomes and books recording ancient studies and work. Enough to improve onto the magic we use these days." "Huh, so we won't have to use Element-Implants to increase our magical prowess then?" "That's what she said, yeah." He sighs as he looks at the crystals. "It's been what... 200 million centuries, and still these ponies seemed to leave behind some form of legacy, after all this time... It's a wonder how we managed this far without them." "Things change and work themselves out, it's normal." "That was a rhetorical question, okay?" "Right, right." He grabs a metal plate from the miner that stepped over to him. "Ah, got the scans?" "Yes, sir." "And your personal opinion?" He asks as he presses the center button, causing a holographic screen to appear, revealing the scans on the seven ponies. "They've been in stasis for this long, and somehow they look to be no older than 18... Among the smaller six, while the seventh looks to be around 45." "Isn't it said that the larger ones have extended lifespans?" The miner adjusts his glasses. "Good point, so my guess would be around 3,000 to 5,000." "That's a big leap." "If the theory is right, then that's the most likely. I used to research them as a kid. I never got more than small pieces, but I read enough to know that the first 'alicorn' as they called them was revealed about 4-5,000 years before the event that made pony kind disappear." "Huh, did your homework then..." He shrugs. "About as much as a scholar could know." "Good to know. Could we move them?" "Yes, however they could possibly awaken in the process." "So even if we don't break the crystals they'll wake up. Damn it, was hoping to move them to the palace to at least get some compensation before they would be woken up." "So? We can just wake them up and ask them kindly to join us, can't we?" Dorn asks. "Well, yeah, but wouldn't they try to run away or possibly get lost because of how different our worlds are?" "Maybe, but it's better than forcing them." The supervisor sighs, rubbing his face. "Fine, you have a point. See what you can do." Dorn nods as he follows the miner with glasses to the crystals. "So, you're the new guy?" The man suddenly asks. "Yeah, wanted to try and get a good bit of money. I'm trying to join Void-Tech University." The man whistles. "Damn, that's a whole lot of money to fork over." "Yeah, about 50,000 Diamond Glow-Crystals." The man whistles again. "Damn man, it's hard enough to find a job that'll pay more than 14 a week." "Yeah, I know." "Well, good luck. It Is the highest recommended university for Void researchers." "No kidding." Dorn offers a hand. "Dorn Fujai." The man shakes it. "Killon Moji." "Moji?" "Yeah, I know, I'm the son of Boka Moji, the famous artist..." "No kidding?" "Yeah, but don't go spreading it around. I don't like the attention. I'm not dad." Dorn nods as they step over to the crystals. "So, how do we open it?" "We got a system hooked up." He picks up a small cube. "Here." "Right." Dorn takes it and hovers his hand over it, causing the cube to scan his hand, then blink a green color, before they crystals begin to slowly melt. After the crystals melt enough, Dorn catches the large white one before it could fall to the ground, while Killon gently shakes the cyan one as it was the closest. "Vital signs are good, they're just asleep. We should get them back to the camp." "Sounds good, I'll start up a pot of Herv Stew." Killon nods. "They would probably appreciate some. Make sure not to add any meat." Dorn chuckles. "Herv isn't a meat man, it's a kind of fig." "I know, I'm just saying." Dorn nods as they both get the unconscious ponies over to the camp, and get them under some covers while they return to their things. ... Jax groans as he lays down in bed. "Ugh... Can't wait for tomorrow... I could go with a jog right about now..." Kylla appears on the disk. "Perhaps. Do you not like rain?" "It's not that, I just don't like getting soaked." Kylla clears her throat as she leans against a holographic wall. "Well, that's fair..." 'Though I did enjoy the show when changing...' "Anyways, night Kylla." "Good night, Jaxson." Jax hits the lights and covers up, going straight to bed. Author's Note Chapter 2 is out, and I hope you all enjoy. I'm putting a lot of effort into this story.
Chapter 3: Rough Awakenings"GAH?!?!" "HOLD STILL!" "THIS HURTS!" "BECAUSE YOU KEEP SQUIRMING LIKE A CHILD!" Within the apartment of Jaxson and Kylla, Jaxson was holding his head in pain as Kylla stood in a form that was the same height as him, currently giving the man a haircut. "I swear, you're such a child sometimes, Jax." "Doesn't help that you have a rough touch on this thing!" She raises her fist, vein appearing. "Rough touch huh?" Jax's pupils dilate, and he shrinks in his place. "Mommy..." And with that she starts beating the shit out of him as he cries out like a little girl, before eventually he's now sitting still in the chair, a black eye, bruised forehead, and a fork sticking out of the back of his head as streams of tears ran down his eyes. Meanwhile Kylla was finishing up her work on his hair, then gives his beard a nice trim. Once done, she puts her hands on her hips. "There, you'll look good in a little bit." Jax grunts. "No thanks to your bad temper." She raises a fist, making him go into a defensive flinch. "SORRY! SHUTTING UP!" She nods and sets the tools down as she yanks the fork out of his head, and goes back to the disk. Jax rubs his head, a few more tears. "She's terrifying sometimes..." He then blinks as he looked out the window, seeing a massive rip in the void over the city. "Oh sweet! Finally get to see one up close!" He watches as the rip in the void begins to slowly form until out comes a massive DBAC Flagship, the remnant void rip closes behind it as the massive Flagship is then taken to the Guardian Shipyards, probably to be part of the recent fleet. This made Jax rub his chin. "That'd make 240568 fleets now... Kinda small given how big the empire is..." He shrugs and slips on a shirt, then looks at the clock. "Oh god damn it." 12:28 PM Jax jogs down the sidewalk within the Gal District, and stops in front of the local Cafe, the name reading 'Golden Ocean Cafe'. He enters into the cafe, and steps up to the counter, causing a Dragoness to step up in the usual clothes and an apron. She gives a nod as her hairstyle was a ponytail with some of her banes were brushed to the side over her forehead. "What can I get you, sir?" "A Cinnamon Blast King with a Savory Scone." She types onto the cashier with fluent ease. "Here or to go?" "Here, need to get out of the house for a bit." She gives a chuckle. "Just like you, Jax." He gives a shrug. "Today's haircut day." She winces. "That had to have hurt." "No kidding, this time it was a fork." She rubs her head, able to feel that just by hearing it. "Thank the Wind Gods it wasn't a chainsaw like last time." "Don't remind me, those bills still put me in a bad mood." She nods and sets the now ready cup down. "And a Savory Scone, dunked in cheese, and a couple slices of bacon in the middle." "I hate that you know my usual by heart." "Oh well, doesn't help you're here every week." "Good point..." He sets down the 20 platinum coins. She takes it and puts it in the cashier. "And my tip?" "You're kidding? You don't Ask for one." "But you always give me one for excellent service." He scratches at his cheek. "It wasn't at it's best at this point of time." "Oh, ow, my poor heart can't take that blow..." "Oh fine." He pulls out a Bronze Glow-Crystal and gives it to her. "Oooh, that earns a little extra." She gives him a couple Minty-Chip Cookies. "Uh..." She whispers. "So to make Kylla feel better." He gives a nervous chuckle. "Yeah, thanks..." He takes the cookies, and sits down at the table nearby, taking a bite of his scone as he stares out the window, watching the many people pass by. 'It's a wonder that no one notices the Union Police since the days they came out... It's like they fit in as well as a dimension traveler.' He sips his drink as a Union Police outside was arresting a guy who stole a purse from an old lady nearby. 'And yet people are dumb enough to do crime anyways... Jeez...' ... Dorn sips his canteen as he sat in front of the fire, the pot of Herv Stew being reheated in the pot as he did so. He was currently sitting in what he assumed to be the market of this kingdom, the place the supervisor called 'Canterlot'. The glowing blue lights helped with sight, but they didn't keep the place warm, hence the fire, while out the gate was simply dirt and stone leading down what was once a mountain, where they could see pockets of the blue lights, most likely where the many settlements or such would be at. Dorn sips his drink again, then heard some ruffling in the tent. Looking over, he spotted the tall white pony step out of the tent. His eyes widened for a moment, but calmed as he had a feeling this'd come about eventually. When she looked at him, he motioned to the spot next to him. "Want to warm up and have some Herv Stew?" She tilts her head, while her stomach growls loudly. He chuckles. "Hungry, huh? C'mon, made sure not to add meat to it." She nods and comes over, sitting down by his side as she sniffed the air, and had a pleased look. "So... You're a pony..." She nods. "Yes... And you are a... Human?" He pulls the helmet off, revealing wolf ears. "I'm a Wolf-Kin, but close enough." She was wide eyed for a moment, but nods softly as she looks at the land beyond. "...So... It became this while we were gone..." He slowly nods. "Yeah... Pretty much." She looks at him. "Do you and your kin live here now?" "Well, not here, but kinda." He points a finger upwards. "We came from the surface, we excavated down here and found the place like this. Welcome to 200 million centuries in the future." Her eyes were wide for a long time, before slowly nodding. "Mind if I ask a question?" "Go ahead." "How do you know our language?" "I silently cast a translation spell, and after you all talked a bit, I got the basics of the language... Alongside some other words." He nods as he looks at the fire. "Yeah... Sounds about right." "Does it? It sounds more like a fairy tale to me right now, given..." "All that has happened and became of your home?" She nods. "I can understand that." He pours a bowl of the stew and offers it to her. "So... What is a Herv?" "A type of Fig, a vegetable's version of meat." She slowly nods and starts eating, she smiles softly after the first bite and finishes the bowl. "That was better than expected." "Well, it's not my first time cooking with Hervs." She chuckles softly as she sits back. "Do you have something I could drink?" "Sure. Water or Beer?" She blinks. "Um... Something strong enough to knock a goddess onto her flank." "The situations that bad, huh?" She nods. "Alright, I got just the thing." He pulls out a large bottle. "This is a special brew from back when the First Emperor was still around, it's called God's Blackout Moonshine." She blinks. "Is it truly that strong?" "Probably for you, but for our kin above, it's just a stronger version of whiskey, vodka, and moonshine mixed together." She nods and takes the cup, which he pours some into. Upon taking a simple sip, her cheeks go beat red, her eyes roll behind her head, and she falls over in an instant knockout. "And she's out." He sips his own cup. "Well, what did I expect, she didn't grow up with a strong endurance to alcohol like us... Ah well." He pulls his coat off and lays it on her, then goes to get some tools for work. Celestia simply laid there, muttering in her sleep. "No... I'll have more cake please... Double the icing..."
Chapter 4: First few stepsJax continued to walk down the sidewalk, currently taking a stroll in the Gelken sector's upper levels, where the more expensive items were kept. He patted his hand on a window that had a beautiful pink wedding dress hanging on a mannequin. He sighs as he kept walking. 'Wonder if Kylla would like a dress like that, but for formal occasions instead of a wedding...' He grunts and rubs his head. 'Damn, that crazy woman will drive me crazy... But... She has a kind of... I don't know, appearance? That deep down she's more caring, but defending herself with the tough girl act? Nah, that's too cliche, like almost every anime show I've watched...' He sighs again and stops at the intersection, watching ground rovers drive by. As Jax watched the rovers drive by, a man steps up by his side. "You waiting for the Vex too?" Jax looks. "Hmm? Oh, no, I'm just walking around town." He nods as he checks his watch. He was a tall man, having a pair of cat ears, a cat tail, and cat eyes alongside small whiskers. He was probably a Catle, and the well made suit and tie means he's a type of city man. Jax could also see a small item in his pocket. "So, you're a Elemental?" He looks. "Heh, yeah I guess." He raises a fist, causing it to become encased in ice. "Specialize in melee and unarmed mostly." "What's your job?" "I'm working as a Union Detective." Jax groans. "How do you manage to get along with those guys?" "I don't, but the pay is good enough to look past it." "Oh yeah? How much?" "20 Golden Diamond Glow-Stones." Jax stumbled, gripping his head. "Holy shit... That's a good 20,000 Diamond Glow-Stones..." "Yeah, well, the cases are life-endangering, even for an Elemental-Psion." "Shit, that explains the high price." "Yep." He looks down the trail. "And here's the Vex." A large and highly advanced Void-Entity drives up, causing Jax to grin like an idiot. It's rare to see a Void-Entity outside of the transports for Very rich individuals. "You must be hella rich." "Nah, I live on a good 20 golden diamond glow-stones every month." "Then how'd you get permission to get on one of these?" He shows a pass. "Saved up the money." "Lucky. See ya around." "You too, kid." He gets onto the Void-Entity, before it soon drives off. Jax sighs and looks down at the ground, which was a good 200 floors down. "...Please tell me there's a Street Portal nearby..." ... The young kitsune from the taxi drive yesterday was currently typing in the terminal codes for objects, before soon enough she got the device to produce 4 GML-90 Black Hole Magnums, then sits back with a sigh. "Why the hell did I get the weapon manufacturing section..." She rubs her head with a sigh, before her ears twitch as a scientist steps in. "Miss Jolor, you are requested in the meeting on level 23." She looks. "I thought levels 30-10 were off limits to the lower ranks?" "They made an exception for you given your family heritage." She glares at him. "You mean to tell me they looked at my personal records, looked up my mother, and based me off of her?" He nods, making her throw a coffee cup at him, which he ducks just in time. "I am NOT some little girl who needs permission because of her family! I will go when I earn it!" He nervously nods. "Alright, then I'll reschedule it for another day... Aheheh... heh..." He quickly rushes out the door and closes it behind him, sighing heavily. "Another Flame Temper... Why do we get so many from that clan?" He shakes his head and returns to work. ... The young dragoness serves a couple men their drinks, before stepping behind the counter. "Hello and welcome to the Golden Ocean, what can I-Oh! Hey Kylla, what can I get you?" "The usual." "Ten Minty-Chip cookies, a double fudge brownie, and a Minty-Chip Latte coming right up." "Can I ask you something?" "Sure thing, hun." She finishes the drink. "How do you usually get a man's attention?" She gives a grin as she leans her head on her hand while her elbow rests on the counter. "Got an eye for someone?" Kylla fiddles with her fingers. "You could say that..." "Well, I personally work on my appearance, and let the men come to me." "Yeah?" "Yeah, but then again, most who come to me are perverts, so the best way to attract an actually good one, is to show some humility and that you won't bed just anyone who says yes." "That's pretty obvious." "Then why are you asking me?" Kylla glances to the side. "You seem to get a lot of attention from the male consumers, so I thought you might've had a secret..." "Nope, I'm just being myself, and I keep my eyes open for any would-be perverts." Kylla nods softly, then rubs her head slightly, her claws brushing through her hip-length hair. "Well, maybe if I try a ponytail..." "Not everyone is interested in the ponytail, hun." She puts the cookies down. "I mean, Jaxson is more into the long flowing style, when the woman let's her hair down." "R-Really?" She nods. "Yeah, though... He is a bit dense, which is why I gave up on trying." "You tried to date him once?" "At the time, I was a newbie here in Golden Ocean, only around 15 or 16 years, and then I see him come in after a day at high school. He treated me like a friend, not like some sexy eye candy, and he was the first to do so. So at the time I had a big interest, but eventually I reached 18 and realized he wouldn't notice. So I simply viewed him as a good friend. Though, nothing could beat a childhood friend, now could they?" Kylla chuckles softly. "No, I suppose nothing could." "Tell you what, I'll give you an extra special drink. Try offering it to the one you're after." "What kind of drink is it?" "My own special brew, a cinnamon chocolate minty-chip espresso." "Is it any good?" "Everyone I sold it to loved it, and anyone who bought it for a date ended up winning their hearts... or so they tell me. if I'm wrong, then I'm wrong, but then again I can only go by what the customers tell me." Kylla nods softly. "How much?" "Drinks for the man you're after are always on the house here, love." "Thanks, you're the best." "I try to be." Kylla takes the items once they're done, and rushes home. ... Dorn grunts as he rubs his head, then looks at the six mares who had woken up mere moments ago. "So, you said your names were...?" "Twilight Sparkle." "Applejack." "Rainbow Dash, Fastest Flyer in All-" "Pinkie Pie!" "Rarity." "F-F-Fluttershy..." He nods. "And you call yourselves the...?" "Elements of Harmory, or Mane Six." "Uh-huh, and you fight for...?" "Peace and harmony." He just stares at them, then snorts as he shoves a piece of debris out of the way as they moved down the halls of Canterlot Palace. "I don't know about you six, but from the sounds of it, you didn't have what it took to stop whatever happened. Hell, the fact your elements only did that kinda tells me that." "The Elements of Harmony are the strongest weapon in all of equestrian hi-" "Can it blow up an entire solar system?" "..." "Then we have something stronger." Twilight clears her throat. "Yes... Well... Um... What are you and your... 'People', doing here?" "Like I said, excavating the ruins to find something worth a nice Diamond Glow-Stone." Rarity gasps at the name. "Oh my, there's such a thing here?!" "Yeah, it's part of the currency system, backups in case you can't access your credits." Her eyes sparkled with wonder and excitement, while Applejack watched him move another large piece. "Well, ahm thinkin' y'all coulda been o' great help back on Sweet Apple Acres. How in tha hay can y'all move that?" He looks at his hand. "Well, I'm a Wolf-Kin, alongside being an Earth-Elemental." "Elemental?" Twilight asks. "Someone who specializes it manipulating with ores, stone, and dirt." Twilight curses under her breath. "If only I had my notepad and quill..." "Don't worry about it, they got an entire series of encyclopedias around the Elementals." Her eyes sparkle this time. "I have a question." RD finally said. "What's the fastest flying thing here?" Dorn stops and thinks a moment. "I'd say a Void-Elemental cross-breed vortex. It's the fastest hovering vehicle we have at the current date." "How fast?" "About 240.50 kilometers per hour." Dash's jaw drops to the ground as he shoves the debris to the side, while everyone else's jaws dropped as well. "C'mon, we're almost there." Soon enough they reach the end of the hall, and spot a stairwell going down, and at the bottom was a door covered in magical layered barriers. Dorn whistles. "That doesn't look like an average barrier." Twilight steps up. "It isn't an average one, it's a containment red barrier spell, meant to keep anything highly dangerous locked away." "And given how old it is, even a Black Heart couldn't live down there without some beings under it's control to feed off of." "Black Heart?" "It's what we call the hearts in the center of a Twilight Field." Twilight raised an eyebrow. "There's something out there with my name?" He shrugs. "Names are names, I didn't choose it." She shrugs as he pulls out his caller, then looks at it. "Supervisor Holland." It rings, before the man picks up. "Sir, we got another barrier deeper in, around what looks to be the..." He looks at the sign over the door. "The Laboratory." "Alright, we'll send a couple mining-mages down there to help with that." "Think they'll know how to dispel it?" "Not really, but I'm hoping. We found barriers around the main bedchambers and the massive tower, so who knows what they were hiding, or maybe even guarding." Dorn nods. "Understood, we'll wait here." "Right, and I'll be sending the white-" "I LOVE ICE CREAM CAKE AND CHOCOLATE CAKE AND-" "Damn it get that bottle away from her!" The supervisor hangs up. "...Guess she liked it." Dorn shrugs.
Chapter 5: Golden Age of the VoidJaxson yawns slightly as he walks through the halls of floor 24506, his apartment just down the way. He had gotten the walk he wanted, got to try out that cinnamon chocolate king blast, and even got to see a Void-Entity, so his day, while didn't exactly pay anything, was a good one, and he got to see some cool things. Shaking his head, he heads to his apartment, and goes inside, closing the door behind him as he's greeted to the lights having been dimmed a great deal. This causes him to raise an eyebrow as he goes into the dining room, and blinks upon seeing Kylla wearing a rather attractive dress, nervously fidgeting her fingers, and keeping her eyes mainly at the ground. "Hey, Kylla." She jumps slightly and looks at him with a large blush. "What's all this for?" "I-I-I-I thought I'd g-g-give you a g-g-g-good afternoon since you worked so hard yesterday... I got you a drink and made you your favorite meal..." He blinks in surprise. "You did all this? For me?" She nods. "Why? I haven't exactly done anything special lately..." "I just thought you'd... You know, like something nice after so long." "Heh, thanks Kylla." He sits down at the table as she smiles softly. "So..." He looks down at the plate. "Hydranian steak, Verrian salad, and a glass of Blood Dragon wine? You went all out." He chuckled the last part out softly. "I-I-It's nothing, just a little something I put together..." He gives a small laugh as he sips the wine. "Kylla, these things cost a fortune to by already made in a restaurant, you can't just tell me it's just a little something." She nervously rubs her arms. "Well, let's dig in, huh?" She nods as they both start eating. ... Miss Jolor sighs heavily as she tosses her purse onto the table at her home, an apartment in the Golden Eye Sector, floor 340,506, in the Upper and Middle class levels. She sits down on her couch, and opens up a take-out she bought from a nearby restaurant, Black Cheese Steak and Griffonian beats. She shakes her head and takes a bite as she turns on the Holographic TV. "Recently there have been a number of reports coming from the mining operation down in the Hillside Sector. The miners are keeping their mouths shut, but it's obviously something big, and the fact they've called in some Union Police and extra mining-mages means it's bigger than an average excavation. Just what is the Broadened Gold Company, one of the lesser known companies, found down there? We'll hopefully know more right after the break. But for now, back to you Dolland." The kitsune blinks as she had a piece of the cheese steak hanging from her mouth, speaking with it there. "That much security and additional help and they aren't saying a word? Must be something big..." She looks out the window. "Wonder how far they'd go to get what they're looking for..." She asks as she stares at a massive rip in the void creating another large ship. ... The young Dragoness hangs up her apron, and pulls on a simple jean jacket as she checks her time, then jogs out, waving a taxi, which soon picks her up through the usual void portal. She sits back as she looks at the driver. "Green Garden, Apartment Tower 40,506." The driver nods and starts driving. She sighs and looks out the window as the driver spoke. "So, you're one of them rich kids?" "No, why?" "Usually Green Garden only takes in Rich and Famous, how'd you get a place there?" "Family might be rich, but I'm no one special." "Ah, they gave you a place and nothing else?" "I refused anything else. Wanted to make my own name and the such." ":Who's the family?" "The Jolliers." "Jolliers eh? Weren't they the first to colonize on Cetera back before it became the capital?" "Please, don't lump me up with them. I may have their last name, but that doesn't make me special." "If you say so." He looks out the window. "Ugh, damn POB Drones..." The dragoness watched the large drones fly by, scanning the windows and vehicles for anything hostile. "Got an issue with those security drones?" "No, they just keep flying in my driving lanes, hard to drive without almost crashing into one that flies in front of me." "Ah." She brushes her hair out of her eyes, and looks at the driver. "What about you? Anything special?" "Heh, not really, just an average Night-Taxi driver, working for the Graying Silver company." "Huh, they new?" "You could say that. We don't have much, but we manage to get by. It's a wonder though, we could never get past the rank those guys at the Borrus's Taxis. It's like they're better than they let on." The dragoness chuckles. "Maybe they just tend to hire good workers..." She says, thinking about Jax. "Yeah? Well, maybe, guess not all companies are hiding something..." He shrugs. "Anyways..." He blinks. "Oh, we're here." The dragoness nods as she hands him a good 2 Silver Coins. "Well, you pay better than the others I pick up." He takes it. "I'm serious, they're always paying in Platinum..." "It's not so bad, so long as they pay in large majority." "20-30 coins a drive." "Okay, that's pretty bad." He nods. "Well, see you around." "Sure, whatever." She nods and gets off. ... Over in Cetera Palace, on the tallest balcony, the man wearing the emperor's robes, cloak, and crown gazes upon the land, rubbing his chin thoughtfully. "Hmm..." His steward comes in. "Milord, is there something wrong?" "No... Not yet at least..." He glances at the steward. "Any reports on the Twilight?" "None, they're still beyond the borders of the DBAC, it seems they're playing it safe until their plans to do... Well... Whatever it is they're planning, is ready." The emperor gazes out to the land. "I see..." He sighs and places his hands on the railing. "I've been the emperor for nearly 10 years now... And yet I could never accomplish what the first seven could..." "To be fair, the first seven were highly gifted in all classes, they were the top elite in everything..." "And then they disappeared, and left us to choose emperors through votes..." He looks at the man. "Could they be dead?" "Possibly, but then again, we never knew much about them to begin with, so it is unknown... Maybe they're the ones watching over us, and the temples are actually right about these things..." "Maybe..." He looks to the steward. "Get a letter ready." "For whom?" "I'm going to get something to eat." "You mean outside of the palace walls? Anywhere specific?" "The favorite of the seven emperors." "Understood, we'll make sure Mark's Diner is ready at the time." He chuckles softly. "Something so old fashioned, and yet it's the most booming restaurant in the capital." "Because they don't use anything artificial." "Fair point." ... Dorn steps out of the way as about three mining-mages step through to the doors of the laboratory. He stuffs his hands in his pockets as he watched a couple Union Elementals drag the now passed out Celestia in, who was hugging a bottle of moonshine to her chest with a drunken grin on her face. Twilight gives one of those blank looks. "I've never seen the Princess in this state before... What in the name of Celestia did you give her?" "God's Blackout Moonshine." RD bursts out laughing. "Oh man! The name itself tells me everything!" Rarity adjusts a pair of glasses she suddenly had on and was wearing. "Well, I can honestly say I'd have rather a glass of your finest wine than something like that." Dorn shrugs, before they all heard the barrier dispel, causing Dorn to jog over. "You guys got it?" A mining-mage comes up with a thumbs up. "Yeah, this one's barrier was the easiest do figure out. It didn't have additional security and magical coding." Twilight tilts her head. "Magical coding?" Dorn folds his arms. "Most mages in the DBAC compare magic to things like math and computers. So they can see the 'coding' of a magical spell, much like how a techie or hacker can see the coding in a computer or program." Twilight smiles. "Fascinating. it makes sense in a way, thought that's not how we view it... Or at least I don't." Dorn nods as they seven of them head down to the door, and see the other two mages had already opened it, having cast a lighting spell to reveal the old laboratory. It was well preserved, and one mage was currently looking over a large containment cell holding... A currently frozen in green crystal black mare wearing odd armor. Twilight whispers under her breath. "It can't be... Is that... Nightmare Moon?" Applejack tilts her hat. "How in t' hay did Princess Luna turn back inta Nightmare Moon?" A mage says as she looks at a clipboard, rubbing her head. "Says here she had turned into this a few days before everything went to hell. Apparently something was tearing Equestria into a chaos ridden land." Twilight curses. "Discord..." "No, Discord is written here to be in containment cell E." Said containment cell held Discord within another green crystal. "Seems to read that while everything was happening, most, if not all of the populace was being frozen in time within the green crystals..." "...That means my mom and dad are-" "Still alive." Dorn finishes, adjusting his helmet. "Which means the entire populace of Equis is very much alive... God damn the supervisor is going to freak upon hearing this." The mage looking through a folder says as he steps over. "Yeah, this find itself could be worth up to 240,000,000 Golden Diamond Glow-Crystals." Dorn's jaw drops at that. "H-H-Holy shit, we'd be able to do anything with that kind of money!" "Very much so, meaning your company could become the next generation of the Ceterian Founders." Dorn stumbles and collapses into a chair nearby. "...This is insane..." The mares look at each other with confusion, before suddenly hearing Celestia upstairs. "Hey, where is everypony?"
Chapter 6: Under the surfaceAuthor's Note Quick note before you read, I am now accepting ocs, any and all are allowed, however if they are overpowered, please don't expect them to be used too often, as I'm trying to avoid being one of Those stories. Chapter 6: Under the surface Jaxson yawns softly as he sits up, rubbing his head slightly as he looks out the window, seeing that the sun was just now coming over the horizon, through the towers of the city. He yawns again and checks the clock. Which read 5:10. "Huh, guess I'm finally getting around to waking up early... Kylla sure helped out with that last night... Haven't had that good of a meal in nearly two years." He stretches his arms out before getting up and heading to the bathroom, opening the menu and choosing the '30 Minute Shower' button. While he showered, Kylla yawns loudly as she wakes up on the couch, rubbing her eyes slightly as she noticed the TV was still on. She yawns again as she looks over at the special drink she got for Jax, which was currently sitting in the Elemental-Emitter, not losing it's hot temperature that it had when she bought it. Shaking her head, she grabs the remote to turn off the TV, but stops when she notices that the news was on. "And in other news, the DBAC Emperor has sectioned off the excavation site in Hillside. It seems that they have found something of such great importance that they demand to keep it secret until further notice. What could this mean? Well, according to a witness, they heard a couple miners whispering to themselves about finding a group of 'Ponies' down there. If that is true, then we may very well be looking at the rebirth of an ancient myth. Only time will tell. Back to you Judy." Kylla blinks a couple times, then turns off the news as what was next was weather. Setting the remote down, she gets up and heads to the kitchen, where she decides to cook some Hennier Eggs, Hykrin Bacon, and a side of hashbrowns. After cooking it all, she sets two servings down at the table, and sits down, taking a sip of her coffee afterwards. She rubs her head slightly as she looked up at the ceiling. 'Ponies, huh? That would be an interesting mind blower... But news is news, they don't always tell the truth... Ah, I'll keep an eye out just in case they're being honest...' She sips her coffee again. Jaxson comes in after he had dried off and gotten dressed, sitting down at the table as he adjusts his hat. "Morning, Kylla." She nods. "Made something simple this time, but still something nice." She takes a bite of her food. "What's your plan after work today?" "Was thinking of checking out that excavation site, heard they found something big." "Mm, the Emperor himself put the area on lockdown, something highly secret or something." Jax tilts his hat up. "Yeah?" He looks out the window. "...Feel like checking it out?" "We'd be arrested on the spot." "So?" She sighs. "You're one heck of a guy, Jax." "I'm just curious, I mean, come on. The biggest excavation in the world being done by a company that's not that well known, and it's sealed off by the Emperor himself. All kinds of people could be sneaking in as we speak." "I can see your logic in this, but we're not criminals." "Who said we were? We don't even have to barge in, we could just stop there and check it out in the spot other civilians are allowed to see it from." "And Now you're making more sense." She sips her coffee again. "Why don't you try the coffee I got you from Kathil?" "Alright, but it's just coffee." He takes a sip, while Kylla grips her chair's edges, leaning in slightly in anticipation. "Hmm, not bad, tastes pretty good." She nods at that, waiting. "...Yes, Kylla?" She blinks, and sits back with the blush. "Nothing, was just... Nevermind." Jaxson stares at her for a moment, before nodding slowly as he returns to his food, her doing the same. ... Miss Jolor sighs as she stood with three other Void-Tech researchers as they stood on the elevator, which took them down deeper into the excavation site. The young kitsune adjusts her gloves she was wearing, something she made for herself using the Void-Tech, it's basically a hand version of the manufacturing systems, something that could be used for millions of things, such as summoning a blade of energy, a magnum, or even a simply deck of cards or a slab of steak. She shakes her head slightly as the elevator passes the main section, and her eyes go wide while her jaw slowly drops as she steps up to the window, placing a hand on it as she stared at the great land of what was once Equestria. She couldn't help but whisper. "Wow... This is..." One of the other scientists steps next to her. "Wow is the understatement of the millennium... Look at this... We could be here for months and still not research enough to get an understanding on how the ancients lived here." She slowly nods, taking a small gulp. "This job is... It's going to take a Lot of people..." He looks at her. "You know anyone who could help out?" She thinks. "I think I could get us a good pilot for transport." "Yeah? Who's the lucky bastard?" She thinks. "He's a Borrus's Taxis taxi driver." The man blinks. "...Well, at least he's decent in some way." "Maybe... I still need to figure out if he's the right choice... I only know what I did when I met him." "Well alright then." He nods. She folds her arms as the elevator stops, and they step off of the elevator in time to see a couple Elemental's carrying a currently snoring white pony, who was muttering something while her face was covered in some kind of cake. "Huh, must be a cake lover..." "Scans indicate the cake was made with some alcohol." One scientist said, scanning it. "It also says she made it herself." "So she made herself drunk with a cake... Good to know." A miner steps up to them. "More like she thought the bottle held milk in it. Claims it was dark, but I assume she didn't pay attention." The four nod as he offers a hand. "Supervisor Dillon Holland, currently the one commanding this excavation. If you want the guy with the most experience, he's currently in the tent in the market, probably making Herv stew." "Herv? That's a rather expensive, and might I say hard to cook, type of fig." The scientist with the glasses and more rounded figure said. "Maybe, but he's the best when it comes to using them. The ponies seem to like it." "So you've confirmed that they're ponies?" The tallest one asks. "Yeah, they said it themselves." Jolor rubs her chin softly, before nodding. "I'll go take a look, you three go do... Whatever it is you do." They nod as she heads to the market. Once she reaches the market, she steps up to see the man cooking, and clears her throat. He looks over, and raises an eyebrow. "What are you doing down here, kid? You sneak in, or..." He realizes she's in a Void-Tech lab coat. "Ah, you're with the requested Void-Tech researchers, gotcha." He stands up and comes over, offering a hand. "Dorn Fujai." She takes it. "Jill Jolor." "Jolor? You're from the upper levels then?" "Please, don't group me with them, I'm just a simple woman trying to make her own name." "Gotcha." He looks at the tent. "Hey girls! Got someone I want you to meet!" The six mares step out, making Jill go wide eyed, but politely bow her head as they were soon next to Dorn. "Hello there, are you one of those... 'Void-Tech' scientists that Dorn spoke highly of?" "Well, this is my third day, but yeah, you could say that..." She gives a bow. "It's a pleasure to meet you, my name is Twilight Sparkle, and these are my friends, Applejack, Rarity, Fluttershy, Pinkie Pie, and Rainbow Dash." Jill rubs her eye a little. "Okay, I assume these names are normal for ponies..." She noticed they were staring. "What?" "What the hay's with your eyes?" RD asks, making AJ instantly cover her mouth. "Sorry 'bout her, she doesn' think before she spills it." Jill smiles softly. "It's fine, I was blind at one point in my life, so they fixed them with advanced implants and surgery, so now my eyes repair themselves in a sense whenever damaged." They all give out an 'ooooooooooo' while Twi's eyes sparkled greatly. "I take it you're a fan of science?" Jill asks. Twilight nods. "Mainly anything knowledgeable, but math and science are up there with that." Jill nods, before looking at Dorn. "So, I hear you're an expert in cooking Herv." He rubs his neck. "Expert is a bit..." "Mind if I try some? I could use something since I missed breakfast." He nods. "Sure, I'll get you a bowl." Jill nods and sits down on the nearby chair, looking at the six. "So, you probably have as many questions as I do if not more so, so how about we swap questions and answer them for each other?" Twi nods. "Sounds fair." Jill nods again. ... Miss Jollier sighs as she steps behind the counter of the cafe again, and takes some orders, before noticing Jax's taxi drive by, and sighs softly. She then looks at the next customer, which appears to be a elf, a young female who looks to be about 18. "What can I get you, miss?" "A Jumba Orange Mango Blizzard." "Ah, so a smoothie. Coming up." She looks to the back. "A JOMB! ICED!" "ON IT GWEN!" She then looks at the elf. "Anything else?" "Maybe some advice?" "On?" "How to make a good cookie..." "Oh? Sure, what kind?" She points at the one on display. Gwen's eyes sparkle. "A White Chocolate Heart Claimer, eh? I think I know how to do it just right." The elf nods softly with a tiny smile.
Chapter 7: The recruitmentsSomething has gone wrong. We don't seem to have an archived copy of that chapter.
