Starcraft: The Fate of the Artifact

Authors Note:  When you get to the scene with the song, it will start with ***, and end with ***. The important part is that the song and the scene end at the same time, so keep that in mind. Other than that, enjoy, and be sure to comment if you notice anything!

Chapter 5: At Long Last….

Ponyville Library:

Time until the Raiders arrival:

6 hours, 13 minutes:

Three days.

Three days until Luna arrived.

Three days until this whole ordeal with the artifact could be resolved.

Three days of nothing but waiting.

Those days passed over Ponyville just as any other day, moderately sunny skies, a pleasant breeze, and the sounds of the birds singing their beautiful symphonies. The shop owners sold their wares; Cherilee taught the students multiplication tables, Snowflake the super-buff pegasus went to the gym, and Mr. and Mrs. Cake baked treats for the town. For most of the residents of Ponyville, nothing had changed. For Twilight and her friends however, it was a painfully long time.

Twilight was waiting for Princess Luna’s chariot to arrive in the middle of the town square. Celestia had not specified that this would be the location of her appearance, but based on previous visits from the Royal sisters, it seemed appropriate. Looking at the position of the sun, the book smart unicorn could tell that Luna should be arriving soon, but that did little to stop her from growing increasingly impatient. Twilight had so many questions she wanted to ask Celestia, but the white Alicorn sent her another letter explaining that she had “important business” and would be unable to respond at all. Growing weary of standing, Twilight found an unoccupied bench and began reminiscing on her friend’s reactions to this whole ordeal as she rested.

Fluttershy, the timid pegasus was kept in the dark through most of these events. Not because her friends didn’t want her to know, but because there was simply no time to explain. When Twilight went to her cottage to explain what happened to Scootaloo and of the aliens coming to the planet, she didn’t take it so well. Perhaps she was too frightened of the idea that super-advanced aliens were coming to their planet, but the poor creature said she wouldn’t leave her house until this incident blew over.

Applejack had missed out on several days worth of work, and for her, the hard, backbreaking labor of apple bucking made the days drag on like they always did. Applebloom tried her hardest to stay in a cheerful mood. But her thoughts always drifted back to her friend in the hospital. The country filly knew that Scootaloo would never have wanted her friend to be this depressed over something like this. The three fillies had gotten into tough situations before, and Scootaloo would think of her injury as nothing more than another hurdle in the quest to obtain their cutie marks. The energetic pegasus would give her friends an encouraging speech, and the crusaders would be back on their hooves in no time at all. But things were different now.

This time there was no bruise, no tree sap, no love potion gone wrong; This time, the problem had spiraled so far out of control that it left Scoots unconscious in the hospital with a hole in her wing. Even if the pegasus had succeeded in getting her cutie mark, Applebloom had to ask her self; was she truly willing to go through an ordeal that deadly just to have an image on her flank? After very little thought on the subject, she spent the majority of these three days sulking in her room, unwilling to pursue her cutie mark with Sweetie Belle.

Pinkie Pie was overly excited at the prospect of meeting alien life. But when Twilight told her that the Princesses wanted to keep the situation secret, (Which meant no party) her mane lost a fraction of its cloud-like bounciness, and she spent the rest of the day drowning her sorrow in sugary snacks. The Cakes offered her support, but the pink mare simply locked herself in her room. She was fine and full of energy the next day, as the prospect of meeting intelligent life from another planet significantly out-weighed the slight disappointment of not being able to throw a party an extra day this week.

Rarity had gotten very far behind in her work as well. And she pulled 2 all-nighters trying to finish her outfits by the deadline. Being exhausted from her work, as well as the most recent events, she decided that the entire day would be spent sleeping. While she slept peacefully, Sweetie Belle was thinking about the aliens. She wondered what they looked like, if they could use magic and even if they had any music. Mostly, she pondered what a Protoss’ cutie mark would look like.

Zecora had ventured to Ponyville to examine Scootaloo for herself. When she arrived at the hospital, she offered RD some cryptic words of encouragement, and gave the purple maned filly her most sincere apology. The Zebra apologized for not being there to protect her, and for allowing the child to venture into the forest by herself. When Zecora left the hospital, her guilt of what she had let happen had not diminished in the slightest.

Rainbow Dash was taking this situation much harder than anypony. She opted to use all of her remaining vacation time to avoid leaving the hospital. However, her employers told her that she had used them all up this year, so she resorted to actually doing her job early to stay with her orange sidekick. She rarely slept, hardly ate any food, and when Twilight had last checked up on her, it almost seemed like her cyan fur and flashy mane had grown dull and grey. She told her athletic friend that things would work out for the better, but Rainbow didn’t buy it.

After what was an eternity of sifting through painful memories, Twilight heard somepony say something about Celestia’s carriage, and her head bolted up in surprise. She looked up to the sky along with the many ponies in the square, and flying right above them was without a doubt, Princess Celestia’s carriage, being pulled by two of Celestia’s guards. Twilight was confused, why was Luna not riding in her personal chariot? And where were her two lunar guards? As the well-recognized blue and gold craft descended to the town square, the many ponies around began bowing in shock and respect of the unexpected arrival of the solar princess.

But, when the door swung open and the Alicorn that stepped out of the carriage was the dark coated, starry maned Princess of the night instead of the benevolent, solar ruler they anticipated, the citizens became concerned. Luna turned around and gave the chariot flyers the signal to return to Canterlot. Her cloak suddenly dissolved into a swarm of bats as her wings flared out. (Which wasn’t very intimidating in the middle of the day) Luna folded her wings back, and turned her head over to the crowd of confused ponies. Some were murmuring to themselves about “Nightmare Moon”, others were confused that she was without her personal (and very frightening) guards. As the dark mare gazed over the crowd, she cleared her throat in preparation for her speech.

“CITIZENS OF PONYVILLE! WE HAVE RETURNED TO THIS FAIR VILLAGE TO BESTOW UPON IT LEVELS OF FUN NEVER BEFORE SEEN BY PONYKIND!!” The crowd looked just as confused as before, many ponies had cringed in fear of the “Royal Canterlot Voice”, but several of them had leaned forward in anticipation of the “fun” their princess was about to give them. Luna began walking back and forth, her four diamond slippers making a dull clink as they touched the cobblestone of the town square.

“That is what I want to be able to say, unfortunately, I am here strictly on business, and as such will have no time for fun.” After saying this, Luna looked down at the street with sorrow. She truly did want to have some adventures here like she had during last years “Nightmare Night”. But Celestia told her that she was not allowed to have any fun during this trip. The large group of ponies were completely unprepared for the princess’ usage, or lack of, the “Royal We”. And they merely stood in place, staring at her. Luna noticed this and spoke to the crowd once more. “What? Does it make you uncomfortable that I can speak without using the Royal We? I can just as easily go back to yelling at you…” That snapped the crowd out of its trance, and the ponies shook their collective heads, clearly not wanting another verbal assault on that level. The princess stood up tall on her four legs, and dismissed the crowd.

The Princess of the night then began walking toward Twilight as the rest of the crowd quickly went back to their schedules and lives. The two smiled warmly at each other, before Luna embraced the librarian in a violently unexpected hug. “Oh, Twilight Sparkle, I have missed you so much! I wish I could have talked to you more at the royal wedding, but I was so busy and-” Luna stopped herself as she realized that she was gripping the purple unicorn too tightly, accidentally squeezing the air out of the poor mares lungs. She immediately released Twilight, who tried to forgive the Alicorn in between sharp intakes of precious oxygen.

After finally catching her breath, Twilight looked up at her faintly blushing matriarch. “Welcome to Ponyville Princess. Would you like to talk in the library? It would be more private.” Twilight then leaned closer to Luna and whispered, “Celestia told me she wanted to keep this artifact business secret.” At the mention of the artifact, Luna’s blush grew brighter, and she let loose a nervous cough. “Um? Princess? Are you all right? We can go to the hospital first if you need to.” Luna raised a hoof to silence her.

“That will not be necessary, Twilight Sparkle. Please, take us to the library, so we can discuss my sister’s plans for the artifact.” The pair then made their way to Twilight’s home, greeting the ponies who hadn’t witnessed the arrival of Luna earlier on the way. Most of the citizens took her appearance rather well, and Pipsqueak even gave Luna a card he had made in school. It was a simple piece of white stationary that said, “Luna is my favorite Princess”, accompanied by a crude crayon drawing of the winged unicorn. This earned the little colt a hug and thank-you from the dark Alicorn. After a short walk, they both arrived at the library. After the duo entered the massive tree, Twilight closed the door behind them to allow some privacy in their important discussions.

“Pardon me for asking princess, but, why didn’t you show up in your personal chariot? I was kind of shocked when you emerged from Celestia’s carriage.” Twilight asked as she went to the kitchen to prepare some tea. While she was making the tea, Luna said hello to Spike, who made his own introduction to the princess, and then scurried outside to the market to retrieve some groceries. When Twilight emerged with the hot teakettle and cups, she saw Luna sitting on one of the cushions on the floor, her face a mixture of unspeakable rage and torrential sadness. Luna looked toward the purple pony and sighed, releasing her pent up emotions, and regaining her stoic attitude.

“Celestia has confiscated my personal chariot as part of my punishment. She also has… additional punishments planned for me when this is over, and I have returned to Canterlot.” Luna shuddered at the thought of her older sister coming up with all sorts of pranks and torture methods. Despite her reputation as being a kind and benevolent ruler, the alabaster Alicorn was actually quite the deviant. Twilight looked confused.

“Punishment? What for? It must have been serious if she has even MORE planned for you.” She asked while pouring the tea with her magic, setting the kettle on a small tray next to the two. She sat down on another cushion across from Luna, and grasped her cup with her purple magical aura, bringing it to her lips as she awaited the Alicorn’s response.

“I destroyed an alien craft and killed thousands of aliens in the process.” Luna replied casually, taking a sip of her tea. She closed her eyes and put up a magical shield in front of her, so that the scalding liquid that jetted from Twilight’s mouth would not soil her Royal coat. Twilight’s magical hold on her teacup vanished, dropping it with a loud clink onto the floor. The lavender mare gazed at the pony that had admitted to such a serious crime like they committed it on a regular basis: her face one of horror and astonishment.

“WHAT? You mean that YOU are responsible for all of this?” Twilight held her head in her hooves, trying to make sense of this news. “This means that Scootaloo is in the hospital because of you!” Twilight stood up and began circling the princess, mumbling to her self how she would explain this to everypony. Luna remained seated, still sipping her tea. She had gone through the “bla, bla, you shouldn’t kill advanced alien life forms, BLA” rant from her sister, and Luna droned out the mutterings of the librarian, patiently waiting for her to come back to her senses. When Twilight slowed down her thought process enough to form coherent sentences, she turned back to the princess.

“What are we going to do, your highness? Those Protoss are going to be FURIOUS when they find out that you are the cause of all this.”

“That is true, Twilight Sparkle. And I have struggled for days to come up with a plan to deal with their inevitable rage. Unfortunately, only one plan seems feasible at the moment.” Luna peered at Twilight with regret of her own plan. Though shameful, it was the only way to make sure that no Equestrian lives are lost. Twilight picked up what Luna’s plan was, and stuttered out a reply.

“B-But P-Princess. You can’t mean… That we have to… Lie?”

“I wish it could be another way, Twilight Sparkle. But, if we do not feign ignorance on this matter; if we admit to the Protoss that I killed thousands of their kind; there is no telling how violent their reaction will be. And no defense against their onslaught.” Luna sighed once more, setting her now empty teacup beside her. “But that is a plan for later. Now then,” The princess rose to her full height. “Where is this artifact that I am to protect?” Twilight got up as well, motioning for Luna to follow her up the stairs to her room.

When they entered Twilights room, the artifact was resting on her bed. For safekeeping, Twilight had placed a protective spell over it, encasing the blue rock in a purple, shimmering shield. Twilight had outdone her self with her spell, but she knew that her brother, Shining Armor’s shields were far more efficient. Luna gazed at the rock for a good five minutes, not saying anything at all. Twilight turned her head to the Alicorn, then to the artifact, and back to Luna again. Twilight waved her hoof in front of Luna’s unblinking face.

“It is a strange fate,” The lunar princess whispered, her eyes transfixed on the blue relic. “That we should suffer so much fear and doubt, over so small a thing.” Luna shook her head fiercely, her senses swiftly returning to her. “I shall add my protection spell to yours, that should suffice as ample defense.” Luna lit her horn up with her dark blue magic, and the purple shield surrounding the artifact became deep blue, the same color as the night sky when the moon has not yet fully risen. “There, no force other than me can open this spell. It will be safe until they arrive.”

Satisfied with the status of the artifact, the two ponies walked back down to the library’s foyer, once again sitting on a soft cushion. Twilight looked over at her mentor's sister, having still more questions to ask.

“Princess, how will we know when the Protoss get here? They might have already arrived, and we wouldn’t even know it.”

“I have only one way to detect the presence of their ships. When I destroyed their other craft, it resembled a star in the night sky. So much so, that I indeed believed it to be one.” Luna now felt remorse for actions, though the results of her actions were completely unintentional, she still endangered the life of one of her subjects. “And so, when they appear again, they should be visible as a new star in the sky. We only need to watch the skies, and wait.”

“That’s sounds like as good a plan as any, but we still have another 6 hours or so before we can start looking. And what if they get here in the meantime?” Luna looked at Twilight with a grin of excitement.

“Twilight, look out that window over there.” Luna pointed her hoof towards the window, and Twilight could not believe what she was seeing. The sun was already setting! She glanced nervously at the clock; it read a time of 1:24. The sun shouldn’t be setting for another 6 hours! She quickly turned her attention to Luna.

“What is going on princess? Don’t tell me….” Twilight was silenced by the lunar Alicorn’s hoof.

“Celestia has come to this same conclusion, and so she is willing to shorten the length of the day temporarily, while we search. Considering how furious she is at me at the moment, I gladly accepted this kindness as if it were the last she would ever show me. Now, let’s set up your telescopes and star maps. We have a very long night ahead of us.” The Alicorn rose to her full height, and began walking up the stairs to the balcony. Twilight followed closely, bringing some candles, quills, parchment, and of course, her boundless curiosity.

Ponyville Hospital:

Time until the Raiders arrival:

5 hours: 20 minutes

Rainbow Dash sighed for what seemed to be the millionth time that day. She looked at the still recovering form of the orange filly. She could see the steady rise and fall of her chest, and hear the beep-beep of the machine that checked her heart rate. The doctors told her that she was recovering, but they were unsure of how long she would be in this coma. Rainbow wanted to cry, but her tears had long since dried up. She closed her eyes and looked back on the days when Scoots followed her around everywhere.

It was always the same; Rainbow would just be relaxing on a cloud, or practicing her moves for the Wonderbolts, or just hanging out with her friends. It never failed; Scootaloo would find her, hunt her down with a never-ending source of excitement, until Rainbow agreed to hang out with her. Scootaloo always tried her hardest to impress Rainbow and get noticed, and what did she do? Dash just ignored the filly, never giving her more than a moments thought.

She officially named herself Rainbows’ sidekick, which was unavoidable, as the orange filly rarely left her side. The cyan pegasus never really understood why she looked up to her so much. Sure, Rainbow was the fastest flyer in all of Equestria, but Scoots seemed to be too excited for just that. When she went through her “town hero” phase and had acquired a fan club, Scoots was always around. She would be first in line for Rainbow Dash souvenirs and trinkets, and she always plowed through the crowds to be in a picture with her hero.

RD just passed it off as blind adoration at the time, and never really acknowledged the filly’s feelings. She mentally kicked her self for being so dense, how could she have been so oblivious to Scootaloo’s actions? When Scoots finally had the courage to ask her hero to help her fly, she only accepted because she had nothing else to do that day. Rainbow visibly cringed at that memory. She never told the kid that, she just said, “Sure thing, squirt!” Squirt. The name ricocheted around Rainbow’s mind. That wasn’t a proper nickname for her friend, it was a half-assed title she came up with on a seconds notice and never bothered to change. Rainbow promised her self that she would never call Scoots by anything other than her full name again.

As Scoots began making steady progress with her flying, they started hanging out even more, with Rainbow’s willingness to do so increasing by the day. At least, it seemed that way because Dash actually acknowledged the existence of her sidekick. The two had some very fond moments, but their relationship never escalated from anything more than friends. Even at this point, Dash still took the young filly for granted, never truly thinking that Scoot’s feelings for her were more than the dreams of a school foal. Before, Rainbow had never looked back on her treatment of her number one fan. But now, with Scootaloo in this terrible condition, she had all the time in the world to think back and regret it all. If she could turn back the clock, she would treat the filly like a true pony, instead of a hindrance, an annoyance, and deadweight. Rainbow, in her dream-like state, was unaware when nurse Redheart entered the room to check on the filly. When she looked out of the window, she gasped in shock.

“Oh My! I didn’t realize it was so late!” She turned to the depressed blue mare. “I’m terribly sorry, but visiting hours were over a while ago, I’m going to have to ask you to leave. And please, Rainbow Dash, don’t worry about her. I told you before, she will be fine.” The kind nurses words did not reach Rainbows brain. Her compassion and understanding went unheard, the same way it had been these last few days.

As she gazed over the young pegasus, a flaming passion lit up in her soul. Rainbow swiftly leapt out of the chair, startling the nurse, and landing expertly on the floor in front of the window. She peered into the town, the sun was almost gone from the sky, but there was still time to prepare. If Scootaloo was unable to do her job, then Rainbow would do it for her. This artifact would never leave her sight; she would protect it with her life. Her heart was racing with determination. Without all the doubts and fears that weighed her down, Rainbow Dash opened up the hospital window, and leapt outside into the cold, dusk sky. Her outstretched wings caught onto an updraft, and she sailed across the sky, filled with energy she believed to be long lost. Making an agile turn, she flew above the rooftops, sailing past Sugar cube corner at breakneck speed, making her way to her cloud home.

When RD reached her cloud house, the first thing she did was check on her tortoise, Tank. Thanks to Twilights magic, the slow turtle was able to move on the top of the clouds. RD found the tortoise sleeping in his bed next to the window; the light from his specially made lamp casted a bright light on the slow-witted reptile. Rainbow said hi to the reptile, and he gave a slow smile. She walked up the steps into her room. Her poster of the Wonderbolts hung on the wall, filling her with the confidence to challenge the world. She gazed at it for a while, soaking in the image of her hero, Spitfire. She realized now that Scootaloo looked at her in the same way; and now it was time to return the favor.

She turned her attention to the small box near her bed. Inside was the reason she had come back here. The Element of Loyalty. After the fiasco of the Changeling invasion, Princess Celestia gave the order that each element bearer was to guard their own necklace: so that if danger strikes, they can’t lose them all at once. RD looked at the blue lightning bolt on her gold necklace. Surely, its power would be needed soon; she could feel it in her heart. She attached the chain to her neck, and quickly ran downstairs. Tank was actually asleep now (not surprising). She filled his bowls with food and water, respectively, and then sat down at her kitchen table, trying to think of a plan of defense.

Ponyville Library:

Time until the Raiders Arrival:

5 hours:

Twilight and Luna had at last set up the telescope on the library balcony. The wide platform was able to hold the two ponies, the massive telescope, and the papers and candles they brought with them. They finished just in time too: the sun had finally set, leaving the vast sky dark and eerily empty. Twilight shivered slightly from the cold of night.

“I’m kind of anxious, princess. I have never seen you raise the moon before.” Luna smiled, but Twilight couldn’t see it in the vast darkness.

“Prepare to be amazed, Twilight Sparkle, as I light the sky with the shimmering aura of a million stars.” ***

Luna closed her eyes, and a sphere of magic formed around her. Twilight stepped back out of shock, but soon regained her composure when Luna moved again. Raising her head, the sphere took her into the sky. The magic transport brought her closer and closer to the top of the library before stopping. When it opened, Luna extended her beautiful wings, using them to gently hover over the town as she prepared for the night. Luna concentrated the dark blue aura of her magic on her horn.

A bright ball of magic appeared on the tip of the princess’s horn. It shined as brightly as the sun for a moment, before suddenly shooting forth as a stream of magic went upwards into the heavens. As the stream faded, a single star appeared. Followed quickly by another, then two, then three more, until the entire sky was alight with her powerful magic. The stars shone brightly in the night sky, their light was Luna’s to command, and she made them dance before her self and her guest. Twilight’s mouth hung agape the entire time, her eyes trying desperately to take in as much of this once in a lifetime moment as possible.

Luna moved the stars this way and that way. Luna commanded, and they obeyed, loyal to her till the end of time. Her horn aglow as her magic moved the specks of light into the shape of a dragon, and a griffon. She moved them into a thin line, and from this she gathered the stars into the forms of a scorpion doing battle with an axe wielding earth pony. Having had enough action, she repositioned them into a bird singing in a tree. For the final act, she grabbed only the brightest stars, pushing all the others to the sides. Gathering the brightest stars in one spot, she slowly moved each one until it became the shape of Twilights Cutie mark. As Twilight gleefully clapped her hooves in approval, the dark Alicorn clustered every last star together with her magic, creating a massive spiral that churned out the randomly placed stars into constellations.

Her first choice was her favorite, Centaurus. Orion came next, followed by Ursa Major and Ursa Minor. She made the two bears play with each other before sending them off to create Lacerta. She continued in this fashion until the stars were all in their proper place. Twilight began checking the star maps for anything out of the ordinary, but Luna snapped the book shut with her magic. When the bookish mare looked up in confusion, Luna pointed out that there was one last piece to play.

“It is not time to begin working, we still have the grand finale to unveil.” Luna said softly, as if to speak in a higher voice would blow the stars out. She smiled at Twilight for a moment, before lighting her horn up again. Her horn thrumming with power once more, her eyes became pure white as she added the final piece to the sky.

The moon, at the peak of its cycle, slowly rose into the sky, adding its brilliance to the night. The full moon sparkled regally before Luna, the glory of its smooth surface was understood by few, and appreciated by even fewer. But she knew that Twilight cared, and that she always would. The white rock hung in the sky, waiting for Luna’s call. When she spoke to it, it gladly submitted to her will, and rose higher into the night. The glistening rock far outshone even the brightest stars in the sky. The night princess gazed upon her stellar masterpiece, the stars and moon together creating a far more beautiful scene than any painting. Satisfied, she let go of the moon, leaving it floating in its highest seat, until it needed to be moved again.

Luna’s wings carried her back down to where Twilight sat; the young mares’ entire body shook in awe of the display before her. Luna gave the unicorn a gentle nudge, and she snapped back to reality. Luna looked over at the book of star maps, and surrounded it with the glow of her magic, levitating it towards her. Twilight took out some scrolls and a quill. She waited patiently for Luna to start. The night Princess looked toward the eager unicorn and smiled wider than ever before. “I hope you are ready Twilight, for this is were the fun begins.” Luna said; her face filed to the brim with excitement. Who cares if Celestia said Luna couldn’t have any fun? She was not here to stop her, and Luna was going to make the most of it. They both knew that this was a daunting task, but perhaps they could make a game of it? That would surely make things easier. As Luna peered through the telescope to take the first look, Twilight readied a scroll and quill. In order to find the protoss ship, they would need to check every last star in the sky…

As the two watched the sky, taking notes and recording the position of the constellations, time itself seemed to stand still. Seconds turned into minutes; one minute became ten; ten became an hour; and those hours dragged on for centuries. As prepared as they had been, there were so many stars to count, and only two of them. Luna had given them the confidence they needed for this task, but their physical limits would prove to be problematic. Somewhere along the way, Twilight had dozed off, leaving Luna alone to tend to this monumental duty. She tried with all her might to search for any outstanding stars, but her willpower had gone down with Twilight. Defeated, Luna walked over to the lavender mare, her head resting in an open star map; a quill lay on the balcony beside her. Luna got down on her haunches next to the young mare, and draped a wing across her body; the same way Celestia did when the two were fillies.

Luna looked back on those simpler times with fondness, and despite her teasing; she knew that Celestia did as well. Twilight made a mumbling sound, but did not wake. This did not bother Luna very much, and she sat on the balcony, watching the stars. The sleeping body of the unicorn felt warm against the chill of the night air. Princess Luna looked over the notes they had taken over those painfully long hours. Not one irregularity to be found amongst the entire sky. Luna sighed in frustration and weariness. So far this trial had been a waste of time, a failure. But she had no other way of knowing when the Protoss would arrive, so they would simply have to try this experiment again tomorrow night.

She sighed and looked up at her masterpiece once more. The moon continued to shine with all its majesty. Celestia had given her more than enough time to search the sky for the aliens, but the citizens were surely confused about this sudden loss of sunlight. Knowing her citizens, if the sun did not return soon, they would panic. Although it pained her greatly to do so, Luna decided to end the night early as well.

Luna called out to the moon, and it gladly accepted her command to come down from his seat in the sky. As the moon began its arc to the edge of the night, she lit up her horn, calling all the stars to group into one spot. The orbs of light fused together into a single ball of light. It then slowly descended from the heavens, and was absorbed into the Alicorn’s horn. Luna looked down at the peaceful form of Twilight’s sleeping body. The purple pony’s chest slowly rose and fell in time with her breaths, and Luna wondered how often the Librarian fell asleep with her head in a book. The beautiful moon and constellations were Luna’s pride and joy, and she was able to share her happiness with Twilight. The fact that at least one other pony shared her love of the night filled the Alicorn’s heart with such joy that she was completely oblivious as a new star streaked across the sky. ***

1 hour later, on the Hyperion’s Bridge:

As usual, the bridge was bustling with activity. Matt had ordered the ship to orbit the planet several times to get some scans of the planets surface; and the crew was going over the findings. They would need all sorts of information, from the geography to the atmosphere to the wildlife. As Matt was over looking the data they acquired, Jim Raynor walked in. He placed his hands down on the edge of the star map and looked up at his friend.

“Alright Matt, let’s get down to business. Is there anything we should know about this planet before we go down there? It looks very Earth-like, actually.” Jim asked in his calm, calculating demeanor.

“Well sir, there is some bad news, there aren’t many mineral deposits on this planet. And those that do exist are deep underground.” Matt said, bringing up an image on the hologram screen. It showed a massive, barren field with a few sparse trees. There were a few holes in the ground, but they were completely vertical. “We could go down there to harvest those minerals, but our conventional methods would make it difficult.” Matt said. Jim looked concerned.

“Well, that definitely puts a lock on our plans doesn’t it? What about Vespene gas?” Jim asked, hoping for some good news.

“That’s the other problem, sir, there isn’t ANY Vespene gas on the planet at all.” Jim’s eyes widened briefly in shock. The Raiders needed that special gas for anything more advanced than marine armor. Without it, they couldn’t stand a chance against an attack from any of their opponents. Especially the Protoss.

“Well, dammit. How the hell are we supposed to secure the artifact without an offensive force?” Jim started rubbing his temples in frustration.

“Well, sir, that’s the good news.” Matt said, bringing up another image on the hologram. This one showed what appeared to be a town of wooden shacks in the middle of a valley, the sun shining on them and the inhabitants who were slowly going about their lives. “The artifact is in the possession of this planets native life. Fortunately for us, they do not appear to be very technologically advanced.” Matt said, pointing out the rather low-tech appearance of this village. More importantly, the natives appeared to be walking around.

“Matt, are those ponies?” He asked with a look of disbelief. “Multi colored…. ponies?” He closed his eyes and brought his hand up to his forehead, slowly dragging it down his face as he sighed loudly.

“Yes sir, they are definitely equine in nature. But they have established a community, and appear to have some level of technology.  I don’t think it would be fair to judge them on appearance. Besides,” He added with a smirk. “At least its not the Zerg.”

“Well, they appear to be peaceful. Maybe we can negotiate them into giving that artifact to us. I’d rather not storm in there and just blow everything up with a Siege tank. Seems we do that a lot lately.” Jim said, his demeanor much more serious now.

“Don’t forget sir, the carrier was attacked from this planets orbit. Whatever it was, it might still be here.” Matt brought up the image of the fallen carrier. Jim was completely shocked by the state of it.

“Good god, Matt. This thing wasn’t attacked; it was destroyed! I hate to think that one of these… ponies was able to destroy such a powerful Protoss weapon. If worse comes to worse, I hope we can fight ‘em off.” Jim shook his head sharply, remembering what he was talking about. “Who am I kidding? They’re PONIES. We have this under control.” He waved his hand, dismissing the thought. Okay Matt, prep my ship, I’m goin down there to see if I can’t bargain with ‘em.”

“Alright sir, I’ll get your drop ship ready, is there anything you want before you go?” Jim thought for a moment before answering.

“Yeah, get Stettman and Tychus over to the hanger. They’re goin down with me.” Jim smiled before leaving to suit-up in his specially designed marine armor.

Later, in the hanger:

Tychus, Stettman, and Jim himself were all set and ready to go down to this planet. Stettman had equipped himself with Terran infantry armor; Tychus was still stuck inside his marine armor, and Jim was suited up inside his own, black colored gear. They weren’t sure if the natives were friendly, so Tychus brought his massive chain gun, and Jim had his favorite Commando Rifle. Right now, they were just waiting for the ships pilot to finish prepping the ship. Jim noticed Tychus looking slightly uncomfortable, so he walked over to him, to ask what was wrong.

“Getting cold feet, Tychus?” He asked with a sarcastic smile. “I know those creatures Matt showed me on the projector didn’t exactly look normal, but that’s no reason to get anxious.”

“Brother, ah faced the Zerg and the Protoss. Whatever’s down there aint nothing compared ta them. This is gonna be a piece of cake.” Tychus replied confidently. Jim turned around to see Tosh walk in through the hallway; he was flipping around his knife, and he had a grim look on his face.

“Well look who it is. What are you doin here Tosh?” Jim asked with genuine curiosity as to why the dark skinned man was suited for battle.

“I can feel it brotha. There be something down there. A force beyond our comprehension, somethin’ so powerful that the heavens themselves bow to its will. If you goin down there, ya might not make it back alive.” Tychus looked at Jim cautiously, before Jim spoke up.

“How could you know something like that, Tosh? What can you tell me about this planet, or the creatures on it?” Tosh twirled his knife closed, and placed it in his holster.

“I don't. I just feel it be true.” He then walked into the cargo hold of the drop ship. Stettman followed him inside soon after, leaving Tychus and Jim alone.

“There’s something… wrong with that man, Jimmy. He keeps mutterin’ to himself and fiddling with those damn… Dolls of his, why do we bring him along?” Jim gave a short laugh.

“Well, I need someone to balance out your sophistication and good manners.” Jim gave his friend a casual snicker and walked aboard, with Tychus following. With all four men inside, the drop ship lifted off and flew out of the hanger, and down to the planet below.

On Equestria:

Rainbow Dash had fallen asleep at her table. Despite her efforts to remain focused, the lack of sleep she was having finally caught up to her, and she was now snoring softly with her forelegs acting as a makeshift pillow for her cyan head. She dreamed of how much fun she and Scoots would have once she got better. She imagined the two of them flying through the sky, the wind in their manes, without a care in the world. Just as the two had stopped to catch their breath on a marshmallow cloud, her dream was torn apart by a deafening roar the likes of which she had never heard before.

She awoke with a jolt and ran outside her house just in time to see a black, sleek craft. It was long, with fire spewing out of four cylinders on its sides that propelled it forward. It had two front wings that were angled down sharply to be aerodynamic, but the most striking thing Rainbow found about it, was the white markings on the ship. If she didn’t know any better, she would say they were skulls! But of what creature? They looked different from anything she had seen before.

She shook her head to clear her thoughts. She ran back inside and looped her element around her neck, feeling its power surge through her body. Rainbow hurried back outside her house, stretched out her blue wings, and rocketed after the craft. She chased after the flying ship for a minute before realizing that based on its current course; it was headed for Town Square. She immediately changed course and headed for Twilight's library.

When Rainbow crashed through the wooden doors unexpectedly, Twilight jumped out of her seat in shock, and Luna gave the pegasus a disapproving glance before moving her attention back to the notes from last night. The two mares were having a light breakfast while trying to decide what they could do to make the next nights search more efficient. But Rainbow jumped in front of her purple friend before she could get back to her work.

“Twilight! Noise! Ship! Skulls! Aliens!” Rainbow then collapsed onto the floor, out of breath. Twilight and Luna both looked at each other in shock. The Protoss were here already? They had no time to prepare!

“Rainbow Dash, are you sure that the Protoss are here already? And why did you bring your element with you?” Twilight asked with worry. Luna was now standing up, getting ready to retrieve the artifact from upstairs. Dash finally caught her breath and rose to her hooves, and shook her head.

“I don’t think its them, Twilight. This ship was way smaller than the one that crashed in the forest. And it wasn’t gold either. It was…Black.” Rainbow said, sticking her tongue out and making a repulsed face at the thought of the color. “Why black, anyway? Why not orange, or blue, or red, or anything besides that hideous…” She realized that the lunar princess standing not 4 feet away was glaring fiercely at her. “I…Mean… What an awesome… color choice.” The athletic mare gave a nervous laugh. “Cause, black is the toughest color around, right?” Rainbow looked toward Twilight for support, but her friend was too busy thinking about this black ship.

“If these aren’t the Protoss, we should keep the artifact secret from them. We should still meet them, though, and see what they want.” Twilight gave a high-pitched squeal at the thought of meeting aliens. She quickly caught herself. “Anyway, Rainbow, where were they going?”

“I saw them heading toward Town Square. If we go fast enough, we can make it before anything bad happens, that’s why I brought my necklace.” She added, touching the lightning bolt that fell over her chest with a hoof.  “We might have to fight these new guys off, and we would need all of our strength for that.” Rainbow growled that last sentence, her sudden aggressiveness stunning Twilight, but she kept her composure.

“Okay then, Rainbow, go meet these new aliens when they land, make sure that nothing bad happens. Luna and I will be there as soon as I get my tiara.” The bookish mare turned, but Rainbow had already flown away, leaving Twilight and Luna behind.

On board the Special Ops Drop Ship:

“We’re here, commander.” The pilot said, alerting the passengers inside. “You want to leave through the gravity tube?” The drop ship was equipped with a high-speed gravity tube, which allowed troops to be deployed directly onto the ground from mid-flight. Jim and the rest of them stood up, readying their weapons, and in Stettman’s case, his research tablet.

“No, I think it would make a better impression on these natives if we landed directly on the ground. Bad enough for them that aliens are comin’. Even worse if they just fall right out of the sky.” After giving the order, the drop ship began descending into the middle of the cobblestone plaza.

The crowd of ponies that were around to see or hear this strange craft had formed a massive crowd in the middle of town. When they noticed it was coming closer to the ground, they backed away, forming a circle more than wide enough for the ship to land. As the ship touched the ground, the four turbines died down, along with their thunderous roar. A ramp on the bottom of the craft opened up, and a walking black Suite of armor stomped heavily down and onto the stone of the street, each step causing a small quake. This monster, standing tall on two legs, towered over the crowd menacingly. It had a skull emblazoned on his helmet, and in his claws he carried an object of unknown purpose. Some ponies were muttering that it was a weapon, and that this thing was the grim reaper. The armored thing gazed over the scared stiff ponies before uttering the most unexpected phrase they though an alien would say.

“Howdy.”