Equilibrium, Book 1: The First Human.

July 22, 1000.
Everfree Forest.
9:13 A.M.

John watched as the sun crested over the horizon. From his vantage in the tree, he could see the breathtaking beauty that had befallen many a sunrise back on earth.

"Wow," he mumbled. Breaking his gaze away from the sunrise and casting his eyes down at the base of his tree caused him to sigh.

"At least somebody got some kind of sleep." He continued to stare down at the Timberwolves that were laying sprawled out at the base of his tree and decided to refocus his efforts. Standing on his branch he used as a bed, he grasped another branch above himself and stretched out his back. A satisfying popping noise reached his ears as he got his body limbered up.

"Ok time to see what I can see." Slipping his sword through his belt and tying it off with the provided length of cord, he set about climbing his way to the top of his tree.

9:15 A.M.

"Come on girls!" Pinkie said with a spring in her step as she and the other's headed back into the everfree forest.

"Is your Pinkie sense going off again?" Rainbow Dash asked as she lazily flew along beside her friends. Pinkie nodded her head.

"Uh huh." She zipped around the group as they all stared at the forest looming ever closer. All in all, only four ponies were going into the forest today, but that wouldn't be an issue. Pinkie stared at her friends. Dash looked a little sleepy, Applejack looked bright-eyed and alert, while Fluttershy looked calm and collected. She smiled.

"Don't worry girls. Today's the day we find our new friend. I just know it!" She zipped around them once more and then darted off down the trail that lead to the forest. All three of her friends chuckled.

"Nothing seems to keep her spirits down for long." Applejack chuckled as Dash and Fluttershy nodded.

"True. It takes a lot to keep Pinkie from smiling," Fluttershy commented as the trio trotted a little bit faster to catch up with their overenthusiastic friend.

A little while later, the four friends stood at the entrance to the Everfree forest. Silently, they all steeled themselves for what was to come. Even Fluttershy was a little nervous. Her eyes flashed a deep red color as she extended her senses to their fullest.

"Ok girls. Let's go find this pony and pray to Faust they aren't to badly hurt." The other three all gave her a nod as the set out into the forest.

9:30 A.M.

John scoured the horizon for anything that even remotely looked like a small town populated by talking technicolor ponies. Just as he was about to give up his eyes caught a glint of light off in the distance. Squinting through his glasses he could just barely make out what he thought was a tower.

"I hope that's the clock tower." He muttered as he made a mental note of its location relative to his tree and the sun in the sky. He rattled his brain and eventually brought a map of Equestria to the forefront of his brain.

"Ok, so Ponyville is to the north of the everfree forest." He looked up once more.

"The sun rises in the east-" He looked at the clock tower again, "- and sets in the west." He looked around once more.

"So north is that way." He pointed in front of him. His mind made up and his path sort-of clear, he set out to find Ponyville and hopefully meet up with somepony that could help him find out how he got here.

10:00 A.M.

"So Fluttershy, you sensing anything?" Applejack asked as the group made their way through the forest. She shook her head.

"Sorry girl's but I'm not picking up anything yet." Suddenly she stopped, her eyes narrowing to slits. Very faintly, she heard somepony.

"Wait, I'm getting something." She said as she focused her sight. Something was there on the very edges of her senses. Giving up on her sight, she closed her eyes and let her ears search for the traces of who they were looking for.

"Uh oh." Her muzzle hardened into a scowl as her eyes went red.

"Girls, follow me!" She took off through the forest with the others hot on her tail.

Same Time Across The Forest

"AHHHHH!" John screamed as he ran through the forest; right behind him a pack of timber wolves were hot on his tail, followed by a manticore, of all things. Chancing a glance behind him, John did the only thing he could think of.

"Nice kitty!" He shouted as he and the wolves tried to outrun the pissed off mythical creature. It roared in anger as it kept up the pursuit. As John's adrenaline began to fade, he frantically looked around for any way out of this situation. He snickered a little bit as he realized that the wolves had all scattered some time ago.

Looking back, Johns' face paled as he saw the manticore gaining ground. "Just great."

"Oh-" His words were cut off as he got real intimate with the forest floor.

"Shit!" He screamed as white-hot agony tore through his ankle and radiated up his leg. Trying to scramble to his one good leg while blindly groping for his sword with his right hand he flailed about with his one good leg and unencumbered arm until his back hit a solid wood truck behind him.

"Well, crap." He chuckled feebly as he got his blade out and held it in front of him. His breathing was ragged and shallow as he faced his death with all the dignity he could muster.

"Ok big-" His voice was cut off by a sound he never thought he'd hear again.

"Is that a jet?" His musings were cut off as a blue blur flew past him and tackled the manticore back a few feet.

"Looks like we were right on time." Rainbow Dash said as she came to a halt where the giant beast was once standing.

"Yeah sure looks that way." John jerked his head to the side to see Pinkie Pie standing next to him. She gave him a smile and a wave as she trotted past him. John was too shocked to really comprehend what he was seeing. His stupor was interrupted by a soft growling coming from his left. He looked to the side and yelped as a timberwolf melted from the tree he was leaning against and ignored him as it went and stood next to Rainbow Dash. She glanced at it but smiled when she saw it's red eyes.

"Oh, I hope we're not too late?" came a voice from above John, causing him to look up. Standing there perched on a tree branch was none other than Fluttershy.

"Wow." John squeaked as he looked around.

"Where did you guys come from?" Dash, Pinkie, and Fluttershy all looked at him with curiosity. His question went unanswered as a roar got everyone's attention.

"We'll talk later," Dash shouted as the manticore got back to its feet. The trio plus timberwolf got in a line between themselves and John who leaned against his tree, still too stunned to do anything other than stare. The manticore began to advance upon the little group but none of them backed down. Rainbow's eyes flashed a soft blue as electricity began to crackle around her body, Fluttershy's eyes flashed crimson once more as she summoned forth a bloody aura, while Pinky began to vibrate in place as she began to weave her hooves through the air drawing the very moisture from her surroundings and using it to cloak her body in a soft shell of water. Fluttershy heard a rustling from in front of them and grinned wickedly.

"Sure took your sweet time getting here." She called out. A soft chuckle caused the beast to look behind it, and as it did so, its face was met with a huge chunk of rock that looked like it had been ripped from the earth. As the manticore tried to get to its feet a lone mare trotted out of the woods behind it.

"Applejack?" John couldn't be one hundred percent sure, because the mare was covered from head to hoof in stone plates.

"Heard y’all could use a hoof," Applejack said as she trotted up to the group. Now that the gang was all here, they all began to eye the manticore that had finally managed to get to its feet all be it shakily as it tried to keep its balance. Once it was sure of its footing it looked at the assorted group. Then it looked at its potential meal behind all of the mares. It glared at them before snorting and deciding it was better to live another day it slowly began to retreat.

As soon as the manticore was gone the whole group gave out a collective sigh as their various powers began to recede.

"Woo, that was a close one." Applejack said as the stone plates she enveloped herself with began to fall off, no longer supported by her magic. They all heard a chuckle from behind them.

"You can say that again," John said as he slowly slumped to the ground carefully trying to not tweak his leg as he did so.

"I almost became a snack for some living Picasso." He said as he sat on the ground. The group of mares all converged on the strange creature and gave it a long look.

"Just what are you?" Dash asked as the lightning her body was giving off fizzled out into little sparks that danced across her fur.

"Yeah, you're new around here!" Pinkie Pie said as her water began to dissipate into thin air leaving her coat a little damp. John just chuckled.

"Well my furry, four legged saviours, I am a human," he said as he put his sword away. Fluttershy's blood aura had faded from view as she trotted up to John, glancing at his leg.

"Here." She said as she began to weave a spell through her wing's.

"May I?" she asked as she fully charged the spell, looking into John's eyes with an expression of pure concern. John just smiled.

"Sure." He said assured that he was in good hands. "Hooves. It's hooves now." He jotted that down in his thoughts for later. Feeling a cooling sensation running through his leg, he looked down to see that his leg was wrapped in a small current of air that was somehow solid..

"There. That should hold until we get out of the forest." She looked around at the others.

"Dash, do you think we can possibly make a detour to your house?" Dash nodded.

"Sure. I can get my trauma kit and help set his leg straight if anything is broken." She looked to the others.

"Pinkie? Applejack? Can you two go and get Twilight and Rarity? We may need their help if he-" She pointed to John. "-can’t walk around for a little while." Applejack gave the two pegasi a look. She knew there was more to their little story than they let on, but it was probably for the best that they not discuss their plans with this strange creature about. She nodded.

"Sure thing Dash. Come along Pinkie. Let's go get Twi and Rarity." She hustled off through the forest with Pinkie right behind her. When those two left. Fluttershy cast another spell.

"Wow!" John exclaimed as he was lifted onto her back by a soft cushion of air. Fluttershy gave him a sheepish smile.

"Sorry." She squeaked as she flared her wing's trying to keep Johns weight balance on her back while not putting any kind of pressure on his injured leg. John just smiled back.

"It's ok, Fluttershy." He said as he focused on keeping his balance. She noted the way he said her name.

"He seems so relaxed to see us." She noted as she scanned his facial features. True, she had never seen an animal like him before on all of Equus but in all her long year's alive she had gotten very good at picking up on body language. His was very relaxed and calm, almost as if he knew he was amongst trustworthy ponies.

"Curious." She mused filing that little tidbit away for later. "I better ask Twilight about this the next time I see her. Hopefully it’ll be soon." Dash, meanwhile, was scanning the area to make sure nothing snuck up on them. She turned to the two.

"You two ready to go?" Fluttershy nodded and looked back at John.

"Are you good to go?" she asked. John nodded.

"Yup." With that, the trio began their walk out of the forest.