The Metal Armed Vigilante 2: Nightmare Adventureby WhalenJPChaptersChapter 01: A New DayChapter 02: Royal VisitChapter 03: Weakening HeroChapter 04: A New WorldChapter 05: Welcome To EquestriaChapter 06: Adventure & Adorable Fillies...Chapter 08: The 'LOVE' Talk...Previously...Chapter 07: Nightmare Meet Nyx, Dinner, & The Punisher…Chapter 01: A New DayChapter 01: A New Day, A New Year… Blue eyes snapped open before immediately shutting them, using his hand to block the intruding sunlight piercing into his eyes, interrupting his sleep in the process. He sat upright slowly, his ribs groaning and aching in protest, the bandages slightly dirty and had dried blood stained the gauze due to the events with Gaia Everfree… And maybe stopping a few robberies gone wrong a few nights ago… Jon groaned a little, holding a hand to his bandaged side, smiling a little in gratitude as the two bottom Actuators held him off the ground a few inches and maneuvered to the bathroom, where he stood in front of the mirror… Then snorted… Jon’s reflection was the image of a man who has gone through hell; His blue eyes looked a little dim, and had small bags under them indicating sleep deprivation, and he had a small beard growing on his lower face, making him look like a lumberjack a bit. … Not to say the fact that his chocolate brown hair became a mullet in the back, grown long enough to even put it into a ponytail. Besides that, he looked normal, except for the reddened and dirty bandages covering his naked flabby torso. His top left Actuator slinked off to his room, the coils stretching for extended reach as she grabbed a fresh roll of gauze, before returning to her father. ...That’s right, you read correctly… The Actuators are sentient enough for individual personalities and saw Jon as their father ever since he got them from an Anonymous Sender. He saw them as his daughters once the fact came to him one day, melting his slowly cold heart, giving him a purpose, and a way to distract himself from the depressing and dark thoughts of never seeing his family again, back on Earth… ...But, thanks to his boss, Principal Celestia, and her younger sister Luna, the family of the Ancient and Noble House Of Faust, adopted him as a brother, instead of a son, since that would’ve became awkward on all sides. Jon was grateful of the two getting him out of his depression, at least temporarily, but that darkness always comes back, and it never leaves… Shaking off the memories of his time alone, he gently plucked the roll of bandages from his actuator, who held it in front of his nose like a carrot on a string. It is amusing that the four Actuators’ personalities grew as he did, learned at a fast rate and can share that information at hypersonic speeds to his brain and able to process that much power into problem-solving during a situation that may or may not save his life whenever he was out as The Metal Armed Vigilante. After using a small knife to carefully cut the dirty bandages, he gently peeled off, flinching with a hiss of pain as he revealed his black and purple bruise to the world. ...For some reason, Jon couldn’t help but wonder why he wasn’t healing normally, and the pain was beginning to become just bearable day to day ever since Camp Everfree a few days ago… Jon discarded the small pile of used gauze into the trash can and grabbed a tube of healing salve. This specific salve was made by the resident shaman witch named Zecora, who readily agreed to mix the salve with a numbing potion of her own design to heal the wound and keep it pain-free while it heals… ...It didn’t work for some reason… Jon sighed as he finished wrapping the fresh bandages around his torso and tied a small knot to keep it in place. Then he turned on the cold tap, letting the sink fill with water, then began splashing his face to wake him up. After he was done, Jon sighed and carefully went through the doorway, making sure to duck his head down before he hit his head on the way out. He went out of his room and out into the wooden and rundown hallway, the floor was creaking with the weight of his Actuators and himself, but still held somehow… ...As if by magic… He made it to the living room that was slightly larger than his bedroom, looking around as he saw that Nightmare was nowhere in sight. Odd. He thought as put on his shirt, which was white with a v-neck collar and was large enough to fit him, and then some. He then noticed a note on the worn coffee table and his top right Actuator slinked over it on the assumption of grabbing it for her father. The large pincers then slammed shut and slid back to reveal small two prongs that can act as fingers to grab things without damaging them. She grabbed it delicately and slithered through the air and held the paper in front of Jon, squeaking lightly. Here you go, father! Said the squeaky shy voice that spoke from his Actuator, slightly bobbing up and down in the air with a little bit of excitement. Jon smiled, saying with a hoarse whisper, “ Thank you, Rosie.” He took the paper and saw that it had Nightmare Moon’s writing on it. Dear Jonathon, If you notice me gone when you wake up, I am currently going to Zecora’s hut for more healing salve since we seem to be running out. There’s breakfast on the kitchen table that I made for you, I wanted to do something to show you my gratitude for taking me in when I was at my weakest, and thank you for teaching me how to fit in this new world. I will return soon. With love, Nightmare Moon Jon blinked, then shook his head with a soft smile as he remembered teaching the newly banished Queen of The Night how to speak modern English, wearing clothes that were not torn to hell and back, as well as other necessities to living without making a fool of yourself. ...It has been a hectic few days… Jon set the note back to where it was and went into the aforementioned kitchen, and his eyes laid on the large plate holding a stack of 3 pancakes, a couple of fried eggs, and a couple of sausages, and it was still steaming. After trying to figure out how Nightmare cooked without burning the warehouse down or making a mess, he sat down and carefully ate the scrumptious meal with a pace that would make people think he was sluggish. His bottom left Actuator slinked over to the coffee pot on the other side of the kitchen, and grabbed a small white coffee cup with the words #1 father of the year logo on the side. It’s been a running joke for a while… After Susie poured the coffee into the cup with accurate precision, Rosie slithered over to the fridge and grabbed a carton of creamer, putting a small amount that would make it a bit sweet, but still strongly bitter. Susie grabbed the coffee and carefully returning to her father, Jon grabbing the coffee cup with a tired smile. This was the life… ... But All Good Things Come To An End... Author's Note Ooh~ You guys excited? I am to write it! Anyways, Hope you enjoyed this first chapter, if there's something missing in it, lemme know and I'll add it in to make the chapter longer and more enjoyable. See You Soon, TOODLES!!! Chapter 02: Royal VisitChapter 02: Royal Visitation… The bell of Canterlot High School rang out through the building, signalling that the end of the day has come and students can go home or go to work. The hallways got crowded with students, some staying behind to talk to friends, or for after school classes. Jon sat behind his wooden oak desk, hunching over the small pile of papers that he collected from students, it’s the same thing he does every day. And the students are getting smarter with every lesson he does, since he sometimes simplifies the terms and makes the instructions on the work easy for them to start figuring it out on their own without causing stress and frustration. It’s how he was all those years ago when he was in high school… Jon was snapped out of his own little world by a small screech from the top left Actuator, Stepha, who was watching the classroom window, which had a view of the colt statue outside of the school. According to his older stepsister Celestia, that statue was a portal to the other world that Nightmare talked about on the night he found her hiding in his home. She woke up in front of it in the rage she wore, until Jon went shopping for clothes that fit her. He didn’t get embarrassed about women’s clothing, including undergarments... He never dared to go near the magic because he didn’t want to risk his daughters, no matter how many times they nag at him… He was slightly curious himself after all on what he would’ve looked like on the other side… Jon made his way over to Stepha with the help of the bottom Actuators, Raven and Monica, since his body was sore, and can hardly move without his muscles aching in protest. ...He was actually getting worried that whatever’s happening to him is very serious and could cause problems in the future… He looked out the window and saw a glow come from the statue portal, indicating that something, or someONE is coming through. Stepping out of the portal was a woman with rainbow colored hair, wearing a alabaster white dress that hugged her body with shiny yellow gloves covering her hands that went up to her elbows. Jon raised an eyebrow at the woman he knew was Celestia, but she looks more older, according to zooming in with Stepha’s lens, her eyes were older than the rest of her young body, like a Time Lord from Doctor Who. Celestia, his step-sister, walked out the front doors of the school to greet her counterpart with a smile, there were words exchanged, but Jon couldn’t hear through the glass. Only when there is nothing between him and the source of the noise he could find it with ease… The two Celestias went inside the school, and Jon pulled back from the window, his expression a thoughtful one as he was maneuvered back to his desk, and sat down on his office chair. He was finishing the final grading on a student’s essay, when the door to the classroom opened, knocking their knuckles on the wood to show that someone is there. Jon lifted his head and saw Celestia, both of them, standing in the doorway. Jon groaned lightly as he lifted back his head to get the cricks out from hunching, a small satisfying crack rang out through the room. He sighed in content as he felt more awake, since the time was about 5:30 pm that showed on the classroom clock. He smiled at his older step-sister, “ Hello Tia, what brings you here? I am sure that family dinner isn’t for another hour, don’t worry, I’ll be there.” Principal Celestia smiled warmly, while Princess Celestia quirked an eyebrow, a small amount of intrigue showing in her older looking eyes as she observed the interaction between her counterpart and this stranger. Principal--Let’s call her Tia, shook her head with fond exasperation. “ No Jon, I know. I was just coming to visit you with my other self here. She seems curious to meet you.” She said, gesturing to the head taller woman next to her, who smiled benevolently. “ It is a pleasure to finally meet the stallion that protected my counterpart multiple times.” Jon smiled and slowly got up, his muscles aching in immense protest as he did so, causing Tia and Celestia to look at him in concern, even more so on Tia. Susie and Monica came out from their hiding place behind him and lifted their father over the desk, the two women backing up to give the man room. Tia had a warm smile on her face mixed with confusion and slight worry about her stepbrother not walking around his desk. Princess Celestia on the other hand, had a look of surprise as she traced the sinuous metal carrying the stranger with ease, her cerulean eyes widened a little bit, and tilted her head as she eyed a third and fourth one joining their two siblings and watching the newcomer with their red lens. “ Where are my manners? I forgot to introduce you to my daughters.” Jon said, a small smile forming on his lips as the Actuators wrapped the area around the Solar Diarch, their thoughts and screeches were curious of the identical twin of their father’s sibling. Susie’s pincers were only inches from the Princess’s face, red lens staring with quiet curiosity as Celestia raised a hand and gently pressed her fingers against the metal body, the digits emanating a barely noticeable heat that was higher than a normal human’s body temperature. It was as if she had an unknown source of heat coming from inside her, and it was leaking out into the real world… After the examination and slight petting session, the Actuators went from Celestia to Tia, affectionately wrapping around their aunt as she giggled and petted their pincer-heads and bodies, sating their attention. Jon chuckled, shaking his head with a warm smile on his face, grabbing the attention of the Solar Diarch, who was watching his Actuators interact with their ‘Auntie’. “ I’ve noticed that they have sentience and high intelligence, yet they are attached to you. Are they being forced to obey your will, Mr. Whalen?” She seemed to say the last sentence in a stern tone, as if accusing him of doing something wrong. Jon raised an eyebrow and shook his head, leaning back against his desk as he spoke the answer to the question she was gonna ask, “ No, I don’t control them, they have free will, and I would never force them to kill anyone, unless there’s danger to me or to them, otherwise I let them explore.” Celestia tapped a finger to her chin as Rosie wrapped around her body gently, as if a snake snaring it’s prey. She didn’t even seem to be phased that she was trapped by something that could crush her body with relative ease… Tia spoke up around the quiet shrieks of his Actuators, “ She’s actually here to investigate a phenomenon that happened, she didn’t want to send her fellow Princess and bring risk to Twilight’s life.” Jon nodded his head, but not taking his eyes off the Princess. “ So, an unusual amount of magic was detected?” He said, his tone a thoughtful one, yet his eyes twinkled like stars with a knowing look. Celestia caught that, and sent a Stern look at the man that could rival Fluttershy’s Stare. “ Do you know the source, Mr. Whalen? What is it?” Jon chuckled as he then felt his legs start to shake slightly in exhaustion, but ignored it as he answered the Sun Princess’s question, “ I do know it’s not a WHAT...But a WHO…” Author's Note Pinkie: You guys excited? You guys Hyped? I AMSUPERHYCITED!!! WhalenJP: Wha?... Pinkie! Get the HELL out of my computer! Pinkie: Aww, C'MON, Whalen! Why?! WhalenJP: Because I said so! If you do, you get a cookie. Pinkie: Okie Dokie Lokie! Chapter 03: Weakening HeroChapter 03: Weakening Hero The room was deathly silent besides the loud BEEP of a heart monitor interrupting the silence of one’s impending demise, the blinds were open to let the rays of sunshine in, also lighting up the room. The bed was holding one occupant, his breathing shallow and wheezing as he tried to get oxygen into his lungs. The room was empty, except for the occupant, and the person laying her head on the edge of the stallion’s bed, holding his hoof in a iron grip, her eyes shining with unshed tears as she watched the life being sucked out of her lover with every breath, knowing that his inevitable demise was soon upon them. How could this happen? You may ask. ...There’s always an answer… Jon and the two Celestias were walking across the street, making sure that no cars were going down the road, and entered his warehouse/home. Jon opened the door for the two women, who smiled at him for his gentleman-like behavior. As soon as the door close with a loud SLAM! A woman’s voice rang out from the darkness of the abandoned building, “ Jon? Your home early? That’s a record!” Tia’s eyebrow quirked in confusion, Jon simply chuckled as he guided the two through the maze of metal shelves and rusty mechanical parts. Celestia’s eyes narrowed, the voice was FAMILIAR to her… As soon as Jon, Tia, and Celestia made it to the newly built staircase that led up to the lit office, the door opened and out came Nightmare Moon, wearing a pair of jeans and a black shirt that had the symbol of the moon on it. Jon greeted her, “ Hello Nightmare.” Tia’s eyebrows shot up into her hairline, shock showing on her face as she laid her eyes upon the woman who she never met before in her entire life. Celestia however, tensed her body up, clearly ready to fight if necessary… But it was not, because Jon went up and hugged her, as if greeting an old friend, which made her blink away the smoldering embers that manifested in her eyes. Even though Celestia didn’t like Nightmare Moon since she possessed her little sister a thousand years ago, she was willing enough to hear the Night Queen out on how she got here in the first place, especially since there was an Actuator staring at her with what appears to be a glare of death, as if just begging the Solar Diarch to do something to the banished mare. Jon and Nightmare came out of the hug and turned to Tia and Celestia, Nightmare’s eyes widened as she spotted the Sun Princess standing next to her counterpart, and held her breath, as if she was… A thought came to her and she saw how the Sun Princess wasn’t glaring at her with contempt, but patience, and slight curiosity. ...It made no sense… and Discord wasn’t even IN THIS STORY! “ Greetings Nightmare Moon. It’s been a long time.” Said Princess Celestia, ignoring how the same Actuator was now hovering over her shoulder, either in curiosity or readying itself to attack, she didn’t know, but what she did know was the dropped jaw that Nightmare had, her turquoise dragon-slitted eyes bugging out of their sockets in surprise and a lot of shock. Jon and Tia watched as the two Alicorn-turned-humans begin to interact with each other, amusement showing on the Pseudo-siblings’ faces as they stood on the sidelines. Jon shook his head before saying, “ C’mon, let’s get inside and sit down. A staircase isn’t an ideal place to talk.” At that, he slowly walked up the stairs, not noticing the concern on the three women’s faces as they eyes his gritted teeth and sluggish movements. Nightmare and Princess Celestia gave each other a look that said ‘ Something’s wrong’. Tia had the same look, but it was with more intense worry, since she got to know her middle brother better over the course of the last week. Ever since Camp Everfree and she adopted him into the family, he has been more open, more emotional, more kind. So she KNEW something was wrong, and she bet he was just hiding it as to not worry her, Luna, and Cadence. The three then heard a THUD! Snapping them out of their own little world and started running up the stairwell. The three women made their way into the office, but stopped as they saw Jon’s slumped form on the couch, his Actuators sprawled out all over the place, as if they suddenly dropped dead. ...Oh no… Tia ran quickly to his side and shook his shoulders, trying to wake him up. “ Jon? JON! Wake up, Come on wake up! This isn’t funny!” She said, her voice cracking more and more as her brother didn’t wake up, not even when she slapped him in the face hard. ...He didn’t stir… Celestia and Nightmare watched in horror as they noticed black veins start to crawl up Jon’s neck and spread to his arms, ending at his fingertips, which twitched with pained spasms. What is happening to him? The three thought the same question as they tried to wake Jon up, with failed expectations. “ Call 911!” Tia shouted, tears beginning to drop down her cheeks as she noticed the black veins. Nightmare snapped out of her shock, and ran over to the old fashioned telephone that Jon and her got to work, and connected to the local line. Princess Celestia eyed the veins with a small glare, as if trying to magic them out of the friendly man’s blood. Even though they just met, she felt a small part of her magic wrap around him in an embrace, as if it was familiar with him. It must’ve been her counterpart’s magic that connected them, since Tia was the one to adopt Jon into the Faust family, meaning that in her world, he would be her brother. It made a small part of herself leap in joy for a new family member, besides Twilight. ...It didn’t work, since they still seemed to spread across his body, which means that it was killing him slowly, probably painful as well. She didn’t know what to do, she never saw this kind of sickness before, nor did she never see a creature that used this type of attack either, so she was out of her element... The Canterlot Hospital was bustling, A gurney was being rolled with the man lying down on his side, his Actuators tucked in carefully so they don’t fall off the gurney. Princess Celestia practically ran back through the portal, since she and Tia didn’t want to answer uncomfortable questions on how there’s a second her. Celestia galloped through the halls of Canterlot Castle, swiftly avoiding working servants, guard ponies, and butlers, her cerulean eyes shining with determination on what is happening to her counterpart’s brother. Principal Celestia called the family and they were sitting in the waiting room of the hospital, a solemn air filling the room which was empty since they were the only ones in there. Cadance and Shining Armor were holding hands, her other hand on her stomach that was starting to show her pregnancy to the world in the form of a baby bump. Celestia and Luna were hugging one armed style, Luna trying to comfort her older sister, as well as to comfort herself that nothing’s wrong with her older brother… But she had a feeling that it is worse than anyone thought… Nightmare on the other hand, was sitting alone, with her head in her hands, shoulders shaking slightly as she cried quietly, tears rolling down her dark cheeks and a despairful air surrounding her as she thought the worst has happened to her friend. Her ACTUAL Friend… The doors to the waiting room opened and out came a nurse, a clipboard in hand, and called out, “ Celestia Faust?” The mentioned woman’s head shot up, her eyes rimmed red from crying, saying in a hoarse voice. “ Yes?” The nurse took a breath and only said, “ Follow Me”, before going back through the open door. The Faust family looked into the window of the room and saw Jon sleeping on his back, his Actuators spread in the air and suspended by casts, his pale face sweating slightly with bags under his eyes. Celestia gasped slightly, a lump in her throat as she tried to speak. Luna beat her to it, asking the same question that was on all of their minds, “ Is he gonna be alright, nurse?” The nurse, Redheart, took one look at the group, before shaking her head in sadness, “ I don’t know. Whatever’s happening to Mr. Whalen is worse than we thought. Those black veins under his skin show that of a powerful toxin going through his body, slowly killing him every day, and there’s no known cure in the world that can save him. We’ve tried everything! From gamma treatment to basic blood replenishing bags.” Cadance, who was staring at her pseudo cousin, said, “ So there’s nothing anyone can do to save him? What is in him anyway?” Her voice began cracking due to the thought of her child never seeing their uncle. Nurse Redheart, her name showing on a tag on her lapel, looked at the woman, before shaking her head. “ No. Whatever IT is, it’s not normal by our standards. If I didn’t know better, I’d say that it’s from another world entirely.” Celestia stiffened slightly as she caught the last part of Redheart’s sentence and gears started to turn in her head. Another world… is it possible? She thought as she and her family were herded out of the hospital, since visiting hours were over. After returning to her and Luna’s mansion, she laid in her bed, and couldn’t get the thought, and slightly stupid idea out of her head. Tonight... She’ll get Jon out of the hospital… Tonight… She is gonna take her brother to the other side of the portal, and cure him of whatever is making him ill and then take him back home... Tonight, Celestia would get answers … Or she’ll die trying… And Nightmare is gonna help her… Author's Note A/N: What do you all think? Is Jon gonna make it? What is the virus? Is it even from Equestria, or somewhere else entirely? Who knows! Hope you enjoyed the new chapter, be ready for more soon! Chapter 04: A New WorldChapter 04: A New World… The sun was shining brightly in the land of Equestria, the Ponies of the land going to school, work, or just taking a walk through the towns and large bustling cities that they live in, enjoying the light that their ruler, Princess Celestia, gives them day-to-day. In the depths of Canterlot Castle, where the Sisters live and work and sleep, Princess Celestia is sitting in the middle of the Royal Archives, surrounded by piles and stacks of books, arranged from basic cure spells to dark healing. Her cerulean eyes scrolled from one page to another, bags under her pristine eyes, her rainbow-colored mane lulling with barely any magic, indicating that she has been there, in one spot for the entire night, looking for whatever was ailing her counterpart’s, and possibly HER pseudo-brother. It’s unusual that she feels the emotions of caring for another ever since Luna got back from her thousand-year vacation on the moon. But they are there, festering in her heart that is beating with the pace of familial longing that not even Luna couldn’t fix. It felt like there was something missing, or someone missing to complete the picture of a happy family. Celestia’s silent musings were halted by the sound of the Archive door opening with a creaking groan, making the Solar Diarch lift her head to see who dared to interrupt her search of a cure. Poking her head in, cyan eyes locked onto Celestia’s, and narrowed with tired worry. “ Sister? You look like Fluffy used you as a chew toy and spat back out. Pray tell why thou look so?” Said Princess Luna, the Lunar Diarch. Celestia smiled tiredly, letting out a yawn that ruffled a couple of pages from the book she was levitating, answering as she took off the small specs that were placed on the edge of her muzzle. “ Good Morning Lulu, just studying.” Luna’s deadpan expression was the indication that she was not believing her older sister’s B.S., and levitated the nearest book and read it aloud. “ ‘1001 Ways To Cure Dark Illnesses Before Fatal Consequences’?” She looked up from the title, a raised eyebrow and a quirk of her lips showed that she wanted answers. Celestia sighed as she began levitating the large piles of books and sent them back to their slots absentmindedly. Afterward, the two Royal Sisters trotted through the bustling hallways of the castle and entered Luna’s study. The study was dark, the only source of light is the blue flames flickering from candle wicks that dot out on the walls of the room. There was a large red oak table with a black seat cushion. Sitting on the desk was a bottle of ink, a large black quill with a peacock feather. Luna sat down on the cushion, and Celestia teleported her red cushion from her own study and sat down next to her sister. “ So… What is causing thou to run yourself ragged so much that you shut yourself in the Royal Archives overnight with barely a wink of rest?” She said, a look of concern shining in her cyan orbs, clearly worried that whatever is happening is serious. Celestia sighed, her once graceful body sagging like a bag of potatoes settling on the ground, and conjured a bottle of fire whiskey. Luna blinked, pursing her lips in surprise as she watched her sister conjure two large tumblers with ice cubes and poured the whiskey into both glasses. She then levitated the second glass to her younger sister, who took it into her own magic. Luna watched as Celestia took a large gulp of the firewhiskey, concerned now showing that something was CLEARLY wrong with her sister. “ Sister?” She whispered. Celestia, who was staring into space since she stopped taking the drink, turned to look at her sibling. “ Did you know that ever since you were banished, I had a hole in my heart?” She sighed then took another sip, “ When you returned, I was overcome with joy, grateful that the Elements gave me back my sister.” She then laid her head down on the wood desk, closing her eyes as she continued, her tone one of sudden sadness. “ But it never filled the entire void in my soul, it feels like, that there’s--” “Something missing.” Luna finished, finally taking a small sip of the whiskey from her tumbler. Celestia looked at her sister in the eyes and nodded, “ Yes, yes, it feels like something, or perhaps someone is missing from my life… I’m guessing that you feel the same thing?” The last sentence was aimed at her Luna, who nodded. Suddenly, the door to the study slammed open and Raven Inkwell, Celestia’s aide for Day Court came galloping in, a look of severe disbelief and slight fear mad Celestia’s fatigue disappear in a moment and sat upright to her regal posture. “ Raven, whatever is the matter?” She asked, curiously looking at the white-coated, dark brown-maned unicorn who was looking over her shoulder, trotting in place. “ Your Majesties, I… I think that you need to see this…” The unicorn said. Celestia and Luna looked at each other with raised eyebrows, not knowing what to say… Royal Guard Ponies of all races surrounded the glowing mirror that was set in a large empty room that had no purpose, slightly wobbling with the power it was exuding, holding their spears, crossbows, and magic at the mirror in case that whatever comes through is not friendly. Raven was in the center of the room, looking at the mirror in awe as three silhouettes were spat out of the magical artifact. There were a few loud clunks as four metal arms fell to the ground and twitched from the cream-colored stallion’s back, who had black veins that spread from his ears to his short brown messy tail. Next to the strange stallion was a mare that made all of the Ponies gasp; Princess Celestia, who was holding up the stallion on her back, panting with exertion as she held up the large stallion. Next to her was a tall dark coated mare with a billowing blue mane filled with stars, and her turquoise dragon slitted eyes giving the Guards a ferocious stare down as she got up from the fall. “ Nightmare Moon?” Raven gasped, her eyes wide with horror at the myth of so many legends and fear from a thousand years ago. The Mare In The Moon whirled her head and spotted Raven, only saying, “ Help him.” Her voice that used to give every colt and filly nightmares with powerful overtones, was normal, weak, and cracking slightly. The door behind everypony slammed open and in came another Princess Celestia, along with Luna, who spotted Nightmare and froze with her cyan eyes in pinpricks. The Celestia that came through the portal spotted her double and called out, “ Please… Help us…” Then she, along with Nightmare, whose limbs were shaking with sudden exhaustion, fell to a pile on the floor, surrounding the large stallion with the four metal sinuous limbs that protruded from his back. The two mares were curled up around him, as if protecting him from the Guards that began to slowly advance towards the downed trio. Until Luna stomped a metal cloven hoof, her voice a tone of authority. “ Halt! We will take care of this!” She said, causing everypony to back away as the two Royal Pony Sisters trotted to the fallen Ponies. Celestia, who stared at the black veins pulsing under Jon’s pale coat, flinched at the movement of her sister, who grabbed Nightmare Moon in her telekinetic grasp and set her on the Lunar Diarch’s own back, pursing her lips with a thoughtful expression as she did so. Raven levitated Jon, being careful of his Actuators, slightly awed at the sight of the metal snake-like limbs sticking out of the stallion’s back. Celestia didn’t think before lifting her double up and onto her back. “ Follow me, we’re gonna bring these three to the Royal Hospital Wing, and wait for them to wake up. Luna…” The Night Princess looked at her older sister from staring at the skinnier Nightmare Moon, and the Solar Diarch continued, “ Make sure Nightmare is comfortable and near Jon and the other me.” At the mares’ questioning looks of the foreign name, she added, “ The stallion that Raven is levitating.” “ Now, let’s see what in the name of my mother is going through my own skull.” Celestia murmured to herself as the trio trotted at a fast pace, through the hallways, and into the Hospital Wing. Author's Note Hmm. What do you all think is gonna happen next? Hope you all enjoyed this fic so far, I'm trying to make this last as long as I possibly can without losing focus on the big picture, but that probably flew out the window as soon as I started the story! Heh... Can't wait to progress this, TOODLES!!! Chapter 05: Welcome To EquestriaChapter 05: Welcome To Equestria It was quiet in the hospital Wing, empty except for the two sleeping patients on three separate beds. It was quiet, except for the trio’s even breathing to break the silence. Jon felt cold, his muscles ached from not moving too much, but what caught his attention was that he felt weird, as if his body...changed… Blue eyes slowly opened, his eyelids feeling like 50 lbs weights that took a small amount of energy that he didn’t have to open them fully. What happened? Where am I? He thought to himself as he tried to move, grunting slightly as he felt how little his muscles tightened and pull, yet… Something feels wrong, as if his body wasn’t… His eyes snapped open after closing them from tiring himself out and looked down at his body. He didn’t scream, he didn’t gasp, he just… stared… Am I in Equestria? Jon thought to himself as he lifted his cream-colored left forehoof to inspect it. It was almost like the color of his human skin, but with FUR. It was very weird. He then felt his daughters wake up and began to study their father’s new form, squeaking and slightly shrieking their opinions. That coat looks good on you, it sorta looks like your human skin, Father! Said Stepha. I think the black veins are something to be concerned about. Said Monica, who was studying the pulsing darkness spreading under her father’s fur coat and skin. Jon had noticed that too, and the painful exhaustion came back as soon as he acknowledged the fact. There was the sudden sound of hooves on stone, and his daughters whirled around to the door, ready to strike at the source of the noise. Jon lifted a shaking hoof and said with a hoarse whisper, “ Calm down, girls. They might not be hostile to us. Let’s see who it is.” He turned to Monica, “ Peek out through the crack in the doorway, see who’s there?” Monica bobbed her pincers and slithered as quietly as she could to the cracked open door. Jon closed his eyes, then Monica’s camera lens flickered to life with a blue light, showing him what she sees. Coming down the hallway, pushing a metal cart with a tray of some type of soup, was a unicorn mare with green eyes, a pale yellow coat and a red mane highlighted with stripes of white. Her cutie mark was a champagne glasses on top of a tray, maybe some kind of waitress talent? The mare kept going down the hallway, slowing down as she got closer to the room where he was laying down in, humming a familiar tune that Jon couldn’t place at the moment. Monica went back from the doorway and returned to her father, who opened his eyes that were bloodshot, his blue and grey irises dilated and we’re dim instead of glowing in the darkness. He was turned, so very very tired… He wants to rest… His drifting thoughts were interrupted by the door opening, making him achingly lift his head from the pillow and look at whoever was coming in… It was the mare that Monica spied on a few moments ago, humming that same familiar tune, eyes closed, but somehow able to get to where she’s going without bumping into anything. Monica’s sinuous body moved along the ground, making sure to be extra careful as to not get heard by the new arrival and caught. She is the more paranoid one out of the four, after all, she wanted to make sure that this mare isn’t a threat to her father… The mare opened her eyes and sighed happily, clearly thinking that her day couldn’t get any better… Then she locked eyes with Jon’s, whose, while dimmed down immensely since falling unconscious, still glows enough to be noticed. That’s when Monica struck from behind, rearing up her body and wrapped around the mares throat, a smaller tentacle coming out of the pincers to wrap over her mouth to prevent her from screaming and alerting anyone nearby. Jon sighed internally, noting absently to give a Stern talking to Monica about being paranoid, she has gotten better over time, but not much progress was made. “ I apologize that my daughter decided to be precautious, especially around strangers. As you can see, I am vulnerable at the moment and just woke up.” The mare only stared at him with fear in her eyes, and Jon smiled softly, “Monica, let her go, she won’t hurt us.” He asked, almost commanded the actuator wrapped around the young mare, willing to give her a chance to speak. After a few seconds of reluctance, she uncoiled herself and slithered back to him, laying her pincers against his pudgy barrel. The blue mare didn’t run, didn’t scream, only stared at him with an emotion that he could identify as shock, awe, and worry. “ Um… My name is Shine Glass. I was told to bring you food in case you woke up soon.” She stopped and eyed the black veins pulsing under the stallion’s coat with worry and slight disgust. Then she continued, her confidence coming back, since she now knew that the strange Stallion won’t hurt her, “ Well, looks like I came at the right time!” She ended the sentence with a smile, “ So I thought you’d be hungry.” Jon chuckled, then began coughing hard as it hurt his chest immensely to even laugh, much less even breath normally. Shine began to trot forward with a hoof outstretched to help, a look of worry on her face, when he held up his left hoof. “ I’m… I’m ok, Miss Glass.” Swallowing his saliva to wet his dry throat, Jon asked, watching his daughters move around the unknown room with curiosity, scanning the books with a foreign language that must be Equish. Shaking his head internally at the sight of Rosie looking at a pony fashion magazine, he turned his attention back to Shine Glass. “ I don’t suppose you could answer a couple of questions for me, Miss Glass?” He asked, tilting his pale cream head, his brown-frost mane falling onto the right side, almost covering his eye from view. The mare opened her mouth to reply, when the door to the room opened, and in came a mare that Jon, and by extension, Shine Glass, recognized. Princess Celestia watched the metal snakes that were attached to the Stallion’s back, one of them, might be even the same one, watching her every move with careful and accurate precision. The Solar Diarch watched her new maid bow to her presence. Amusedly, her flank and rear were practically in the Stallion’s face, causing his ears to press against his head and burn a bright tomato red. Stifling her chuckles, Princess Celestia turned her attention to Shine Glass, who was still in her… compromising position. “Rise, Miss Glass. How long has the guest been awake?” She said, asking the question at the end with a slight tilt of her elegant head. The young mare rose from her bow, causing the stallion behind her to breath a silent sigh of relief, his cheeks still pink. Shine Glass smiled, happy to report to her ruler that Jon was only awake for a minute and a half… …Trust me… She counted when she saw the small light peeking out at her through the doorway… Celestia nodded, smiling softly as Shine Glass rolled the tray over to the other side of the bed and trotted out of the room, waving at the lying Stallion, who smiled with a nod. Acknowledging and returning the friendly gesture. Rosie slithered over to where the benevolent ruler of Equestria stood and wrapped around her barrel gently, making Jon quirk an eyebrow and Celestia to stiffen slightly for a moment, before relaxing as Rosie began to nuzzle her cheek affectionately. The Solar Diarch turned to Jon with a quirked eyebrow, asking with her eyes on what the Actuator was doing, but the only answer she got was a shrug, wearing the same expression she was using. “ Rosie, what in the world are you doing?” Jon whispered, making Celestia internally cringe at the cracking vocal cords. Cleary whatever was infecting the Stallion was making sure he was suffering… A feeling welled up in her chest that was buried a long time ago, and the heat of the room rose a tiny bit, causing Monica to screech slightly. The screech snapped Celestia out of whatever trance she was in, and her cheeks slightly pink in embarrassment. “ I apologize, Mr. Whalen. It seems I am… Not myself today.” She said, her voice soft and gentle, making sure to not raise her voice to disturb the quietness of the room. Jon shook his head, smiling weakly at the Sun Goddess. “ It’s okay. Sometimes we all lose ourselves once in a while. You are no exception.” He said, weakly sitting up as Susie adjusted the large pillow so that he could sit up comfortably. Celestia’s eyes widened a very small fraction at the sentence. “ What do you mean, Mr. Whalen?” She said, trotting over to the side of the bed and sitting down on the royal purple pillow that was conjured there. She wanted to hear him say what a small part of her was feeling, that she wasn’t just a Princess, a Ruler, or Diarch. As if hearing her hopes, Jon let out his thoughts. “ No matter how everyone else sees it, you are yourself, a Pony, not just a Goddess of the Sun, even you have to let down the mask you hide behind day to day, and show the world that even YOU have normal needs.” Celestia felt something stir in her chest, and it wasn’t anger… Nor arrogance… It was relief and disbelief. Because Jon accurately figured her out, as if she was a puzzle or a problem to solve, and gave the solution that would best suit everypony, because he sees the world a different way than her Ponies, he sees the best in everything, even Nightmare Moon; who was asleep recovering from the portal transfer. She nodded after mulling over the piece of wisdom he gave casually, as if seeing what he says, and smiled. Jon smiled back, then blinked in surprise as a glass of water was held up in front of him. He looked to who was holding it, and saw Monica, her red lens beaming at him through the clear liquid, which was perspiring the glass from the two ice cubes floating in it. Not wanting to ask how his daughter got the glass of water without him knowing, he asked her to bring it to his mouth. After drinking slowly from the small glass, he sighed in relief as the water helped to make sure his voice can work. Then he cleared his throat, and asked, “ Where am I? I remember my sister and Nightmare carrying me to a statue, then nothing.” Celestia lightly sighed, then said, “ Nightmare Moon is recovering in the next room, and the other Me is currently in my bedchambers, sleeping.” Jon raised an eyebrow, then smirked with mischief. “ Oh? I didn’t know you were into that.” Celestia would’ve done a spit take if she were drinking anything. Instead, she choked on her spit, her white cheeks turning tomato red at the innuendo. Rosie, who was still wrapped around the Solar Princess, chirped in confusion, tilting her pincer head cutely. What does that mean, Father? She asked. After chuckling at the now-glaring Celestia, he turned his attention to Rosie, only saying. “ When you’re older, my dear Rosie. When you’re older.” After Celestia got her breathing under control, she glared at the impishly grinning Stallion on the bed. “ She’s ONLY sleeping! And no!” She continued after seeing Jon open his mouth, “ I am NOT into that!” Internally, she said in a whisper, Maybe… The Stallion raised his hooves in a sign of surrender, still grinning as he said. “ Alright, alright. I couldn’t resist the temptation.” Celestia snorted, clearly showing him that she didn’t believe that. Then Jon felt sleepy, and his eyelids were heavy. His daughters returned from looking around the room and onto him, curling up around their father gently, including Rosie, who unwrapped herself from Celestia and joined the pile. Celestia felt her heart warm at the sight, even though it was slightly ruined from the black veins on Jon’s body, it was still an ideal picture of a father-daughter moment. Metal arms with the sentience of an average Pony and intelligence of Twilight Sparkle aside. It was silent in the room for a moment, before a knock on the door interrupted it. Celestia watched the sleeping Stallion for a moment or two more, before using her magic to open the door. Speak of Tartarus, She mused internally as she looked over her shoulder to see who was at the door. Twilight Sparkle, her former student and now an equal Princess of Equestria, more specifically, Friendship, was standing there with a clipboard and quill. Celestia snorted quietly, some things never change. She thought to herself as she spoke, “ Yes, Twilight?” The lavender Alicorn jumped from staring at the Stallion lying in the bed surrounded by metal contraptions to her former mentor, now friend, and replied. “ Um, Celestia, the other Celestia, I mean, um- You- UGH! The other Celestia is awake and waiting to see you.” She finished, her cheeks turning to an adorable shade of pink. Celestia chuckled and trotted out of the room with Twilight, making sure to shut the door behind quietly. “ It’s ok, Twilight. I know who you’re talking about.” The pair of Alicorns trotted down the hallway in silence, their hooves interrupting the silence every second. Then… “ How is your daughter doing, Twilight?” Author's Note A/N: Yes, yes, I can already hear the comments saying that it can't be possible to have Nightmare and Nyx in the same universe... TOO BAD, I am! Anyways, I am making the chapters longer so that you all might enjoy the story even more! I am currently working on another story, so... yeah... TOODLES!!! Chapter 06: Adventure & Adorable Fillies...Chapter 06: Adventure & Adorable Fillies... Jon woke up, yawning lightly as he slowly got into a sitting position, then once his vision cleared up, he noticed that he wasn’t exactly sleeping in his bed… Aw, crud… He thought to himself as he saw the white marble walls with a small bookshelf and end table, the heart monitor beeping next to him, causing the human-turned-stallion to cringe at the sudden noise. He looked down at his hooves and saw the discolored veins got even worse, almost popping out of his skin and fur. He doesn’t even know how he got sick! Which is ridiculous! He sighed as his daughters activated and gently lifted him off the small bed that barely held him and the Actuators. Setting himself on his four hooves, the Actuators and Jon slowly made their way to the window, squinting his eyes as the bright sunlight caused them to sting. He needed to get out… He needed to get out of the dark, claustrophobic room… With that objective in mind, he turned and half trotted, half maneuvered to the closed door, grabbing the hat and trench coat that was made for a pony from the table and coat rack that was next to his bed. After carefully putting on the trench coat and setting the fedora onto his head, he stopped and thought about something… What if there are guards just outside? Waiting for me to come out? He thought as Rosie nuzzled his cheek lightly, humming with concern at her father’s sudden stop. Besides, going out the door is boring. It’s not me. I must go another way… He then turned to the large window behind him… Jon smirked, his eyes lighting up slightly in an ideal fashion. Oh yeah... That’s more like it. He then grinned at the way he was gonna get out. The city of Canterlot was bustling with activity, Nobles trotting around with their noses in the air, shops of expensive taste open to the world for marketing, It seems just like a normal-- A window high up on Canterlot castle shattered and jumping through it was a cream colored Stallion with four metal arms sticking from his back and through a billowing trench coat. Stepha grabbed the stone wall, causing a small crater to form from the sheer impact of strength. Jon cringed slightly at the sight of it, noting himself to pay for the damages he might cause from his escape/exploration… Monica, Rosie, Stepha, and Susie clung onto the side of the giant castle, holding up their father with ease, also taking in the new surroundings while they climbed up. A few Royal Guards heard the commotion and stormed into the room where Jon was held in, looking out and up the window as the thumping of the Actuators caught their attention. Jon was grinning weakly as he scaled the tower, breathing in deeply to take in the fresh air that replaced the polluted air of his home-world and the Equestria Girls’ world. He then basked in the sunlight, perching on top of the tower with his trench coat billowing in the wind. He looked down and saw a balcony that was located beneath where he stood, and he jumped down, making sure that his legs bent slightly to absorb the impact, and his daughters looked around to search for any hostiles. Jon slowly trotted to the glass doorway, opening it slightly with Susie’s help, then looked inside. It was a dark room with purple wallpaper and stars dotting the ceiling in a mass of constellations and galaxies he didn’t recognize. There was a small twin bed with a blue comforter made on it and a royal red pillow at the head of it. It looked empty for the most part, so Jon went inside, looking around and making sure that his daughters not touch anything, so that he wouldn’t cause a mess in whoever’s room he technically broke into. Technically… What a fine line between almost and did. He mused to himself for a moment, before something caught his attention. Sitting on the bed in the most innocent way, was a large book, no, a photo album. It was a dark brown with red and blue lining the cover and spine of it, but there was no title, no name to indicate who it belongs to… Jon trotted to the bed and Rosie grabbed the book in the most careful like fashion anyone would’ve ever seen if they were to witness it. Jon sat on his haunches and held the light photo album in his hooves, before setting it down and opening it. Curiosity killed the cat, and his curiosity REALLY piqued at the sight of a dark filly with turquoise eyes and had a horn. “Cute…” He chuckled lightly as he continued looking at the photo, trying to rummage through his memories and remember where he’d seen the filly before. The filly’s mane was a bright purple, shining almost like-- Wait… He thought as he looked closer, analyzing the photo from every angle with a tilt of his head. I KNOW that filly… He thought, before the door opened behind him, causing him and the Actuators to leap onto the ceiling, the sound dampeners activating overtime to keep himself quiet and unseen by whoever was coming in. Trotting inside is the same filly with the dark coat, purple mane and tail, and turquoise dragon-slitted eyes, wearing saddlebags and holding up a small book in her telekinetic aura. She hummed a small tune as she took off her saddlebags and set them off next to the door, then put her book on the small little table next to the bed, placed on top of a stack that was just as tall as Jon’s height. Speaking of which… The Stallion watched quietly as his daughters held him up against the dark ceiling, making sure that he wasn’t being seen by the new arrival. Huh, didn’t know Nyx was here… Now THERE’s a paradox I don’t wanna mess with. He thought as the filly Nightmare Moon looked around the room. She froze as her eyes spotted the open balcony doors, then noticed that her photo album was on the floor, and opened to her first picture, after the incident with eternal night for two weeks and near death situation from defending Ponyville form the creatures of the Everfree Forest. After gently picking up the album, she looked around slowly, her little body tensed with wings pressed against her back in fright. “ He-hello? Is anypony in here?” She called out, her voice slightly trembling by the thought of her room being invaded by a stranger or worse, an assassin set out to kill her. ...Which wasn’t far off the mark… Except that he didn’t want to hurt the adorable filly… Silently lowering himself down behind the filly, his Actuators coiled themselves up in case to defend their father. Then he spoke in a whisper, his throat hurting once again from thirst, even though it’s only been a couple of hours since he woke up. How did he know? Well Susie has an internally clock that tells him and the other Actuators what the time currently was, which was 4pm… “ Hello there.” Nyx jumped at the grating hoarse voice and whirled around, then her eyes widened as she spotted the metal arms that looked like snakes sticking out of the stranger’s back, their eyes gleaming blood red as they stared at her stiff form. She was contemplating on whether or not to scream at the metal snakes, or the throbbing dark veins spread across the Stallion’s skin. Then her logical side kicked in and she took a small breath to calm herself. “ I am sorry for the unannounced visit, miss Sparkle, but I was just looking around when I came in from the balcony.” Jon continued, jerking his head to gesture at the open doorway, swaying in the light breeze. “ It’s- It’s fine, sir. But if I may… Who are you, and what are you doing in my room?” Nyx asked, slowly backing up from the large Stallion standing in front of her, keeping a sharp eye on the four metal snakes that watched her movements. Jon smiled lightly, taking off his fedora from his head and placed it on his wide chest, bowing his head as he spoke, “ Where are my manners? I am Otto Octavius. As you can see, The name comes from these four beautiful beings.” He said, smiling at the Actuators, who felt themselves perk up in pride. Nyx gulped as ‘Otto’ spoke to her, like she was a normal filly, but the intelligent gleam in his eyes suggest that he knew who she was. Just as she slowly walked backwards, she felt something metallic wrap around her barrel, and another pincer head came into view, staring at her with an intelligent, cold gaze. Her face reflecting off the small glass that could be used as the tentacle’s eye. Nyx didn’t scream, only yelped in surprise. She had worse things done to her than being taken by surprise. Hay, she even got swallowed by a Hydra, and she came out okay… The Hydra that ate her, not so much… Jon frowned as Rosie wrapped herself around the tiny filly, and shook his head as he heard her mutterings. Adorable, cute, pretty. Rosie chanted in her mind, nuzzling her pincers against the soft mane of the filly. Nyx’s expression was one of surprise, clearly thinking that he was there to hurt her. Jon internally sighed in annoyance, feeling the urge to find the ones that are stubborn enough to call for ‘Nightmare Moon’s’ execution, and give them… a stern talking to… Rosie unwrapped herself from Nyx and returned to her father’s side, still muttering the same things over and over again. Nyx blinked once… Then twice… Then after a sound of someone clearing their throat, she snapped out of her daze and locked eyes with the large Stallion, clearly looking for something. She was looking for the signs of disgust, fear, revulsion, and pity. But she didn’t find anything but warmth, like that of somepony who doesn’t care about appearance, but friendly to everything around him. And that includes the metal arms that are watching her, looking around her guest room, and the one that was nuzzling her every minute or so… Jon’s attention was now turned to the photo album, and Susie carefully picked it up from the ground, then held it in his hooves unsteadily. The picture that was opened to when Jon hid from Nyx before she came into the room, was one of the aforementioned Alicorn, snuggling into the side of a night blue Alicorn with a starry mane, Twilight Sparkle on the other side of the filly wearing a smile on her face that showed a caring mother. Jon’s lips turned upwards into a half-smile, his stern eyes turning soft at the picture. Then he came to a sudden realization… God, I miss my family… He thought as Nyx cantered to his side and looked at the photo of herself, Princess Luna, and her Mom, Twilight. When the filly looked back up at the large Stallion, she noticed a couple of tears going down his cheeks. It was starting to worry her that she might know the cause of said tears… “ You miss your family, don’t you?” Said a voice that surprised Nyx, and one that Jon recognized. Standing at the now-open doorway, was Celestia wearing a white shirt and her ethereal mane in a bun that Jon was familiar with. This was his older sister, the one from the Equestria Girls world that he arrived in a few months ago… Jon swallowed and replied, “ Yeah, Tia. I miss them… I miss my Sister... Mom... Dad... Everyone.” He said the last part with a lump in his throat. Celestia crossed the room and wrapped her hooves around her pseudo-brother’s barrel, placing her head against his shoulder, while he quietly cried into her chest, his tears staining her white fur. Nyx watched the scene as she backed up slightly with sadness, her draconian eyes shimmering with unshed tears. It felt weird, now that the mood has shifted from normal to sad in ten seconds flat… Rosie, Monica, Rosie, and Stepha wrapped around their father and Auntie, humming with comforting sounds as they squeezed very lightly to know that they are there for them. Another set of hooves enter the room and wrapped around both of them, causing the two to look up slightly at who was holding them. Nightmare Moon held Celestia and Jon in her forehooves that easily wrapped around them, eyes shedding tears that trickled down her cheeks… The three were like that for a whole minute before another voice interrupted them. “...What…” Said a young voice. Jon, Celestia, and Nightmare got out of the group hug, and turned to the source of the voice. Nightmare’s eyes slitted even more, her eyes wide in shock as she caught sight of Nyx, who was doing the same… “...What…” Nightmare said, her voice full of shock and confusion. Jon blinked, then something in his mind clicked, and began to smirk, his mood cheering up again, as well as the Actuators. Nyx and Nightmare Moon stared at each other as the two began slowly moving towards the other, stopping a few inches away… “ What…” Nyx said, her voice full of bewilderment and awe as she looked up at the form of Nightmare, her old body in all its glory, staring down at her with the same emotions she felt. “Well… This is new…” said Jon, who was grinning with amusement and slight mischief at the scene. Author's Note A/N: BWAHAHAHA!!! I couldn't help but add this, because IT MAKES SENSE! Hope you all enjoyed the chapter, and expect more with a couple of suggested ideas for the next one! Nyx belongs to Pen Stroke, I unfortunately, don't. Anyways, hope you have a wonderful day, and I'll see ya later! TOODLES!!! Chapter 08: The 'LOVE' Talk...Chapter 08: The ‘LOVE’ Talk… It was a few hours later, that Nightmare couldn’t seem to fall asleep, twisting and turning in her bed every few minutes, trying to get comfortable. But it was not to be… She sighed as she sat up and got off the large bed with the idea to take a small walk through the palace gardens. She trotted as quietly as she could to the doorway, making sure that Jon didn’t wake up. He looks handsome with the way the moon shines on his fur, despite the veins. She thought to herself. Then she shook her head, a pink hue on her midnight furred cheeks. Snap out of it Nightmare! Get a hold of yourself! What in the world is making me like this? WHAT AM I FEELING?! She thought, her mind running a thousand questions per second as she slowly shut the door, making sure the knob was twisted so that the door latch won’t make noise. She broke off in a normal trot to the nearby entrance to the Palace Gardens, her lips curled down in a thoughtful frown of contemplation. She was snapped out of her thoughts at the sound of metal clad hooves sounding next to her. Nightmare didn’t need to even look to see who it was, “ Good Night, Luna. You’ve outdone yourself again.” She said, breaking the slightly tense silence as the two Alicorns began walking through the batches of flowers and trees. The Night Princess nodded, a small smile on her lips, “ Indeed it is, Nightmare Moon.” Then she looked at her counterpart, eyebrow raised with slight suspicion on her face. “ Why are you not in your chambers?” She asked, a slight stern tone underlying the confusion in her voice. Nightmare sighed, and stopped walking, sitting down on her haunches. She stared at the moonlit grass swaying in the light breeze, her thoughts churning for answers. Luna watched as Nightmare’s face scrunches up in confusion, and contemplation, before her counterpart lifted her head, looked at Luna in the eye and said, “ I don’t know…” It was silent for a moment, before Luna blinked and sat down on her haunches, slight concern in her eyes as she asked, “ Is it something to do with your Consort?” Nightmare shot her head up and Luna’s eyes widened at the sight of watering draconic eyes staring back at her. “ I DON’T KNOW!” Nightmare sobbed out, tears breaking free of their dam and sliding down her cheeks as she sobbed. Luna felt concern, worry, maybe even pity form in her gut as she watched the darkest of evil cry… Luna got up from her spot and sat down next to her, a blue wing wrapped around the Night Queen’s barrel in comfort as she tried to calm herself down. “ Shhh… It is ok, to fear for someone close, everything’s gonna be fine…” Luna said, her voice gentle. Nightmare took a couple of deep breaths, and her sobbing lessened. “ That’s just it! I don’t know what I’m feeling around him. I feel like my heart warms up whenever he smiles at me and makes me want to stay by his side whenever he gets hurt, I just don’t know what I’m feeling!” She whispered, her voice croaking from the breakdown. Luna thought for a moment, before going into a giggling fit, her left hoof covering her mouth as she did so. Nightmare glared at her lighter counterpart, before asking in a harsh tone, “ What the buck is so funny?!” Luna kept giggling for a few moments before answering, “ Isn’t it obvious? You’re in LOVE with him!” She said, before going back to giggling like a schoolfilly. Nightmare blinked, wiping her tears with her forehoof, before asking in the most confused tone, “ What is love?” Luna stopped giggling suddenly, gaping at Nightmare Moon before her face turned grim, making her darker side shift a little in her spot. The Night Princess asked, her tone low, with confusion and disbelief coloring her voice, “ YOU don’t know… What LOVE is?” It was quiet, before Nightmare, uncomfortable on how fast her counterpart’s mood shifted, nodded uneasily. Luna stared at her for a few moments, before a gleam entered her cyan eyes. “ I believe We can teach you ALL about it.” *An Hour Later* Luna and Nightmare Moon were sitting in the Royal Lounge, on a dark blue couch, waiting for the pony of the hour to arrive. Nightmare was uncomfortable about meeting these new strangers that might teach her about what she feels for Jon… Luna was calmly looking through a book, humming a light tune under her breath as she did so. When the time hit 2AM, the door slammed open and standing there was… Two pink Alicorns with purple, magenta, and yellow mane colors, their cutie marks are the exact same; A teal crystal heart inside golden lace… Luna blinked before tilting her head, Nightmare doing the same thing, “ Pray tell niece, did you have to bring HER into this?” She asked, an eyebrow raised with a little bit of grump in her tone. One of the pink Alicorns spoke up, a look of outrage on her face that was definitely NOT befitting a Princess. “ Hey! I get by, alright?! Besides, Cadance contacted ME to accompany her!” She said, her eyes glowing green for a split second. Nightmare looked at the other Alicorn, Cadance, before speaking the question going through her mind, “ Why are there two of you?” Cadance, the REAL Cadance, squealed in delight before wrapping her hooves around the Night Queen’s barrel. Nightmare flinched at the sudden contact, before looking down at the Princess Of Love with an eyebrow raised. Then she looked at Luna with a confused expression, making the Princess Of The Night shrug with an amused smile. Nightmare’s eyes narrowed at her counterpart, Oh she is gonna regret that! She thought with anger as Cadance pulled back. " Oh, I heard so many good things about you! Then I got Auntie Luna’s message about someone with love problems that needed my expertise.” Cadence said, not once stopping for breath. Nightmare blinked for a second, staring down at the pink Alicorn mare, taken aback by how fast she spoke without breathing at a rate that would’ve made a certain pink mare jealous. In Ponyville, Pinkie Pie sneezed, before her eyes narrowed with a frown. " Somepony’s talking about me behind my back!” She said, before turning to the right and stared at you, the reader with a big happy grin on her face. " You go back to the main story now! Nothing to see here!” Nightmare sat down on the red velvet couch, staring between Luna, Cadence, and Queen Chrysalis, who transformed back into her original form and was sitting next to Cadence and Luna on the blue couch across from her. All three of them were staring at her with expectant smiles… Nightmare shifted, a little uncomfortable at the states the three were giving her. " What?” She snapped, wanting nothing more than to be done with whatever they’ve got planned. Cadence eyes her up and down, tilting her head from side to side, before smiling even more, " I’m trying to figure out who you are in love with, and why.” She answered, then got up from her spot and started pacing between the two couches. " When did you meet this stallion? Did he do something that made you drawn to him?” She asked, her eyes shut in concentration, her horn glowing with her light blue signature of magic. Nightmare thought back to that day, when she and Jon just met. " I broke into his home, trying to find a place to sleep for the night because I didn’t have any Bits on me, when suddenly I heard a noise coming from the main warehouse--” She said, but was interrupted. " Warehouse?” Luna asked, her eyes slightly narrowing. Nightmare shrugged, before answering truthfully. " Jon woke up on the rooftop and saw that it was abandoned, and he didn’t want to deal with the authorities because he has a deep distrust of them going to conclusions before explanations.” Cadence only hmmed, still pacing back and forth. " I panicked and tried to run, but I forgot the stairs leading up to the living area was rusted and they fell apart beneath my feet.” Nightmare continued. " I was falling about a 15 foot drop that would’ve made me have a broken bone at the very least, before something wrapped around my waist and stopped my descent suddenly.” Cadence stopped and looked at Nightmare, eyes pleading her to continue. " I heard a voice speak out from behind me, and was turned around by whatever grabbed me. There he was…” Nightmare trailed off, thinking back to how heroic and villainous he looked in the moonlight and shadows of the dark warehouse, his trench coat billowing with the lens of his Actuators piercing in the darkness, his bright blue eyes shining with power and kindness mixed with concern staring into hers, asking who she was and what she was doing in his home. Nightmare snapped out of her trance by the sound of giggling and turned towards the source, glaring darkly at the Changeling Queen who was giggling by a holed hoof. " You’ve got it BAD, Nightmare. That was when you first met him and you described how beautiful he looked despite his appearance.” Chrysalis said, her poisonous green eyes glowing with mirth. Nightmare was about to retort, before Cadence spoke up once again sitting on her haunches in front of the former Night Queen. " It sounds like a ‘Love-At-First-Sight’ scenario to me. I believe you don’t even need my help on loving this Jon.” She said with a smile, her eyes slightly shimmering with her magic. Maybe she is seeing my aura? Nightmare thought. " Nightmare.” Cadence said, catching the mare’s attention, " There is only one thing you can do about whatever you’re feeling…” Nightmare leaned forward, almost nose to nose with the young Alicorn, her draconic slits narrowed with anticipation. “Tell him…” Cadence said, a smirk on her face. Nightmare reeled back, blinking at the blunt statement. Then her eyes narrowed. " That’s it?” She asked, skeptical about this. Cadence’s smirk became a heartwarming smile. " That’s it.” She repeated. Nightmares eyes dropped down to the floor, quiet for a few moments, before her shoulders slumped and responded with a whisper. " But what if he rejects me?” She said, her voice cracking. Cadence’s smile faded, before concern flashed into her eyes, glance at Luna and Chrysalis who had the same look of emotion at the feared mare being fearful of rejection from the first pony that she could call friend. Cadence looked back at Nightmare before placing an armor clad hoof on the taller mare’s shoulder, which made the taller mare look up and into her eyes with tears shimmering in hers but not dropping down her cheeks yet. Cadence spoke, with fierce determination, " Then you move on. Remain friends so you don’t lose each other. That’s the only thing he and you could do.” Nightmare stared at Jon’s shuddering form sleeping on the bed with a determination that would’ve made anyone blink in surprise. She was debating this for the last hour, staring at the person of her affections in severe concern at whatever must’ve caused this affliction in him. She was trying to remember if he got injured in the past that must’ve gotten snuck in. That’s when her eyes widened at something that occurred to her, from when she first met Jon… ***** Jon’s form was suspended in the air by the bottom Actuators with the top ones poised to attack. His body was covered in cuts and scratches as he faced a woman with vines and thorns. His face locked with determination despite the agonizing pain he must’ve been feeling, despite the various scratches and small cuts grazing his flabby torso. ****** Nightmare whispered, her voice echoing, " Could it be that simple? That when he told me he faced Gaia Everfree herself, all he got was a couple of scratches and a couple bruised ribs…” Nightmare looked closer at his chest and saw a small healed diagonal scars from the big vines that Gaia Everfree whipped at him. “Could the infection have got in from those wounds?” She whispered, with a small crack. Her body shook, but not with anger, but with disgust, disgust at herself for being blind. Tears were falling down her cheeks as she held back the sobs that tried to claw out of her throat. “How could I have not seen this?!” She said, her fangs gritting hard as she started to pace, her thoughts spinning a million miles a second. After a few minutes of pacing at the end of Jon’s bed, she stopped then whirled around to face the sleeping stallion, staring at his rising and falling chest with a faint bit of effort, his body trying hard to keep him alive as much as possible. Nightmare quietly trotted to his side, on a large empty space of his bed and carefully climbed on, making sure to not make too much movement, avoiding his Actuators that were curled around him. She stared at his back, wishing that he would turn around and smile at her, but she knew it was fruitless with this damned infection slowly killing him. Nightmare took a deep breath, then slowly wrapped her forehooves around his thick barrel, pulling his sleeping body towards her. Jon shifted until his head was snuggled against Nightmare’s chest, breathing a sigh of contentment as her head was placed above his, breathing in her scent as he dreamed. Nightmare’s dark cheeks glowed with tomato red at him sniffing her, but felt a burning warmth in her chest at how perfect he seemed to her, how she knew that he’ll keep her safe if she was in danger. True, she never really saw him mad, tired, yes. Frustrated, absolutely. But never angry or filled with hatred at everyone around him. It is what she… loved about him… Now that she thought about it, Nightmare Moon can truly feel like she can say that she has more than friendship in mind with Jon Whalen… She closed her eyes after inhaling, taking in Jon’s scent of wood and metal, mixing along perfectly with the smell of lilies and bluebells. It was truly intoxicating to her… Nightmare smiled, then let the magic of Luna take her to the Dream Realm… Previously...Previously on The Metal Armed Hero… The 300lbs boy looked at the tall covered object in the corner of the room, excited to see his new gift work. He was going as Doc Ock From Spider Man 2, the one where Alfred Molina acted as. He always watched that movie when he was a kid and still does watch it every now and again. As soon as the pain decreased in his spine from the needle injectors, he felt four minds connect to his, and the arms came out of their hold sockets of the platform, and rose in the air with a mental thought, looking around with their sinister blood red sensor lights. He looked towards the man and said, “ How much are these?” The old man smiled, “ It's free. Try it on, it might fit ya.” Then all he saw last, was a bright light surrounding him, and the gleeful smile on the Merchant’s face… The next thing that Jon knew was waking up. The door to the classroom opened, and in came a man wearing a white buttoned up shirt and a red bow-tie with suspenders, a pair of black slacks that fit him, brown hiking boots, a belt, and a black vest and trench coat. His blue eyes scanned over the students with a sharpness nobody has ever seen. The actuators sprawled themselves around him in a sort of relaxed manner. One of them was laying down across his lap, him running his hand over its sinuous body, making it hum in a sort of purr. The other three were sprawled over the top of the couch and one on the ground. The bus drove down the dirt road leading into the mountains and dense forest. The bus was full of Canterlot High students who were listening to the two Principals as the two siblings spoke of their time at the Camp. Jon was sitting in the back, reading JAWS on a hardback cover that he brought from the library to read, while his bottom right actuator was hidden from sight as it went up the aisle so that he could hear and read at the same time, so he wouldn’t miss any information. He was already accustomed to the Equestria Girls world pretty good to not make a fool of himself, yet it still felt weird. Twilight took note that when Mr. Whalen’s back was turned, she saw a small red light peek from a tiny hole in the trench coat. When she blinked, it was gone. She made a mental memo to find out if she saw something that was real, or she was losing her mind again... It was a weird feeling for him, being called father, let alone being called it by four sentient mechanical arms that are attached to his spine. He looked at the actuator that spoke to him, albeit sheepishly in possible fear of her father’s reaction, “ Someone almost spotted you? Who?” At the answer, he chuckled and shook his head, “ Of course, Twilight Sparkle. You need to be more careful, I don’t want to cause mass panic at the sight of you four, not because your ugly, you’re beautiful, so stop looking at me like that. But because they sometimes don’t understand new things, they fear new things that they don’t understand, whether it is natural, man made, or alien-like.” Then he put his hand against his face and sighed, I guess this is what it’s like to be a father. He thought as he finished, “ Just be more careful in the future, I don’t want to lose my four daughters that I just met.” The four voiced their agreement with loud clicks and quiet screeches. Luna thought about something as he talked, How does he know? We only met a week ago, either he’s a creepy stalker or is really good at reading people. Jon snorted as he saw the slightly dazed look in Luna’s eyes, I bet she’s wondering how I know what she’s going through. He’s gonna have to go into the possibly wolf infested forest, isn’t he? A scenario popped into his head and his eyes shot open, his blue irises glowing with primal fury. I wonder what Mr. Whalen is hiding? The only way he shows true emotion is through me and Lulu. Yet he acts as if he has a positive and professional mask on to everyone else, or just doesn’t talk about his family life in general. What is that about? She thought. Celestia’s eyes widened, as did every other person in the room as they laid eyes on the four metal arms snaking and whirring about in the air above Jon’s head attached to his back, looking around at them with red lights. The top right actuator lowered it’s head and looked at him, its red camera lens gleaming at him, We will not fail, father. She spoke, a light yet slightly squeaky voice replied back. We can do this. Jon stared at the speaking actuator for a second before his eyes lit up and nodded sharply. Jon chuckled, glad that worked and turned back to the campsite and smiling at the way everyone is helping each other to fix up the dock, and the Lodge. He was interrupted by a throat clearing and turned to look at the two people beside him. Celestia and Luna were looking at him with deadpan expressions and similar looks in their eyes that told him, ‘You have a lot to explain for.’ Father, One of the actuators said to his mind, a shy stuttering child’s voice emanating, do you not like us anymore? Jon recoiled back as if he was slapped in the face, “ No!, nononono! Of course I do, I was being sarcastic, sweetheart. It’s just…” Then he heard guffaws, and he whirled around, glaring at Celestia and Luna who were laughing at him, “ It’s not funny! You try being a father of four!” The conversation turned to Celestia asking something, “ Mr. Whalen, I want to offer you something.” After a few moments, Celestia drew a breath and asked, “ Would you like to be part of our family?” At those words, Jon froze, his brain gears screeched to a halt burning with smoke and smelt like burning rubber. Jon stared at the familiar woman with the cat eyes looking at him in fear and exhaustion. He spoke, a stern tone in his voice, “ Who are you? What are you doing in my home?” “ Nightmare Moon, my good sir. My name is Nightmare Moon.” And Now With The Conclusion... Author's Note I have finally began on working this sequel for Metal Armed Vigilante! It's a work in progress, practically the bare-bones right now, but expect a longer story as well as maybe longer chapters. It's gonna take me awhile to get this story going since I have been infected with Writer's Block. Stay Tuned for the First Chapter! TOODLES!!! Chapter 07: Nightmare Meet Nyx, Dinner, & The Punisher…Chapter 07: Nightmare Meet Nyx, Dinner, & The Punisher… The two incarnations of the same mare stared at each other for a full minute, blinking owlishly as they took in their similarities and details of the other, Tia and Jon sitting on the sidelines with amused and tired grins and a bowl of popcorn. Wait… Where did you get that popcorn? I WANT SOME!... Anyways… “...Wow…” Nyx muttered under her breath as she took in the, admittedly curved body of her original incarnation, her black furred cheeks glowing pink. Nightmare Moon tilted her head to the left a tiny bit as she examined what may be the filly version of herself. But how could that be possible? She questioned herself. “Well, I’d hate to interrupt, but I believe introductions are in order?” Jon smirked, his tired eyes glowing dimly in the shadows of the dark room, his flabby equine body slouching just a tiny bit and leaning against Tia’s side. Nightmare Moon felt a sliver of worry settle into her heart at the sight of his eyes looking tiredly at the world… Nyx, being the sorta filly who wanted to introduce herself to new potential friends ( or allies, if you wanna get paranoid), she smiled and stuck out her hoof at the taller version of herself. “ Hi! I’m Nyx! Nice to meet you!” Said the beaming filly, her fangs and molars shining white in that adorable grin people love so much. Nightmare Moon blinked down at her again for a second, before lifting her left forehoof and gently bumped it against the smaller hoof. “ It is nice to meet you too, Nyx. But I guess you already know who I am?” Said the Alicorn with a small smile. Nyx nodded, not a sliver of hesitation or nervousness to be shown. Either she’s really brave or naive. Nightmare thought. Tia got up from beside Jon, making sure he stayed upright without wobbling and trotted over to the small filly, smiling softly. “ My name is Celestia Faust. It is nice to meet you, Nyx.” She got lower to the ground as she introduced herself, making sure to not frighten or make Nyx uncomfortable. After a small hesitation, Nyx smiled and stuck out her hoof, which Tia bumped her right hoof against in greeting. She was still wary of the Princess lookalike, but she was willing to get to know this Celestia, who seemed more relaxed than the Princess. “ I guess we don’t have to wait to introduce each other later tonight, I take it?” Said a familiar voice at the door. Nightmare, Tia, and Nyx jumped and turned to the still open doorway, towards whoever spoke. Standing there with a motherly smile, was Princess Celestia in all of her glory. Alongside her was Princess Luna, and Twilight Sparkle, who was trotting over to Jon, who weakly smiled at the lavender Alicorn with tired eyes. “ Hey Ms. Sparkle. Glad to see you again, AND in better circumstances.” Twilight’s eyes scrunched in concern, looking at the black veins pulsating under the earth pony’s coat. She snapped out of her very small daze on whether or not to get her former Science teacher to the Hospital Wing of the castle, and smiled in return. “ It’s good to see you again as well, Professor Whalen.” She said, letting Rosie coil around her small barrel and nuzzled her cheek, nuzzling the Actuator in return. It’s been awhile since she saw her teacher and the Actuators… Jon’s form slightly straightened from it’s slouched position, staring at her with seriousness on his face, but she could see the amusement in his sunken blue eyes. “ Please, Ms. Sparkle, call me Jon when we’re outside of the classroom. Besides…” he lifted his left forehoof to gesture around the room, “ We’re not in school now, are we?” Smiling, Jon wrapped his forehoof around the back of Twilight’s neck, and pulled her into his wide chest, her head carefully tucked under his chin. “ It’s good to see you again, Twilight. You had me worried.” He whispered, his throat going dry for talking this much. Twilight returned the hug and smiled as the Actuators did the same with gentleness. “ Not as much as you are worrying me now.” She pulled her head back, worry crossing her eyes as she took a closer look at the black veins. Jon snorted, pulling himself out of the hug as he looked at his right hoof in interest as one of the veins pulsated in his movement. “ All I feel is sluggish, and weak. Hopefully, whatever this is goes away without any complications.” Twilight sighed, feeling like that would not be the case. “ Hopefully…” The sound of a clearing throat behind them snapped them out of their conversation and they looked towards the perpetrator… Luna was smirking as Jon’s eyes moved towards her star filled mane, but ignored the childish curiosity, she was used to such things during Nightmare Night. She turned to Twilight, her voice gentle, yet authoritative,. “ We should escort Mr. Whalen and our guests to supper, to get their strength up.” Twilight nodded after hearing Jon’s stomach growl, causing Nightmare Moon, who sidled over to his side, to lightly giggle. Hahaha. Laugh at the tired and sick stallion whose hungry, why don’t you? Jon grumbled internally. The walk there was quiet, and the air with thick with an emotion that Jon couldn’t put a finger on, much less know. He wasn’t really good at interpreting emotions, much less knowing and expressing specific ones… Celestia and her counterpart were trotting side by side and speaking to each other in low tones that he couldn’t pick up. Luna and Twilight and Nyx were hanging back to make sure Jon and Nightmare don’t fall behind, Twilight with concern on her face, Luna with a small frown at the sight of her evil counterpart walking in front of her and close to the stallion with four metal arms attached to his spine, Nyx humming a small diddly tune under her breath that reminded Jon of Little Nightmares. She even had the same voice as Six, which is ASTONISHING! Nightmare was trotting at a slow pace next to him, a wing carefully wrapped around his back so that the Actuators can move with ease without harm. She had concern and a protective tensity in her body that came up whenever they passed a Royal Guard, her lips turned in a small frown as her eyes took in every detail of the halls and corners they were taking. She was never like this before, I wonder what made her like this? Jon thought, his body slowly moving with more ease at every minute. The more he moved, the more normal he felt… Maybe the cure was to keep moving?... ...Nah, that would be too easy! The group came up to a set of double doors and Celestia lit her horn, the door handles glowing the same bright yellow color of her magic, and the doors opened wide. The sight that introduced them to was a large long table that was centered with about 10 chairs, 4 on each side, and one on either end. It was slightly modest to note that there weren’t any throne chairs stationed at the table. The table itself was a bright oak, with a small glaze that made it shine in the evening light, making it look new. Celestia took her spot at one end, Luna on the other, the rest of the group followed with random abandon on spots in the middle of the table. ...Somehow, Nightmare was sitting next to Jon, and Nyx placed between the two. Jon’s eyes went slightly blurry for a second before clearing up with the slight bout of lightheadedness, but he didn’t mention it to anyone, not wanting to worry them… It was his problem that he got sick with whatever this disease is, it was his job to fix it… What he didn’t notice was Nyx looking at him with worry as he slightly shook his head with eyes shut tight for a second to clear his mind. Nightmare kept an eye on her friend/roommate during the time the group conversed, worried that Jon was about to fall unconscious at any given moment. She could tell that her younger counterpart and the others were doing the same… While she was grateful that the other ponies cared for his well being even though they just met him, there was that small pang of a feeling going through her body at the thought of them caring about Jon more than her. Nightmare contemplated what the feeling was, but couldn’t find an answer to what that specific feeling is, except that it was familiar… Shaking her head, she turned back towards the delicacy that sat in front of her; chicken Caesar salad with light vinegar dressing. Ignoring the slightly disturbed looks from Twilight, she daintily dug in, careful to keep her mouth shut like Jon taught her a few times. Jon took small bites of his, chewing slowly as he tried the Daisy flowers that garnished his salad. Not bad… He thought with approval as he took another bite. It was a quiet dinner, except for the noisy chewing from Nyx, who ate her food with gusto, ignoring the amused looks from those around her, until… “Nyx.” Said Jon, his voice gentle. Said fully looked up, cheeks adorably bulging with wide innocent eyes that would cause anyone to have a heart attack. Jon smiled lightly, a look of amusement as he continued speaking, " Can you please eat slower? You don’t want the hiccups, do ya?” He said the last part with a sly smirk. Nyx nodded her head up and down, before swallowing, a faint hue of pink on her cheeks from embarrassment. “Sorry, Mr. Octavius.” She said, ducking her head a little. Ignoring the looks of confusion at his ‘name’, he smiled more, " It’s ok, everyone forgets their manners at such exquisite food.” He winked. Nyx smiled as she thought over what Jon said, before nodding and eating her dinner with a more normal pace and keeping her mouth shut. Twilight was intrigued, “Wow. I didn’t know if you could do that!” She exclaimed. Celestia, who was silent for some time during dinner, spoke, “Mr. Whalen, or Octavius. I am curious… How did you come by Nightmare Moon in your world?” There was a small gleam in her eyes suggested that she was actually curious, and not interrogating. Jon shrugged, Why not? He thought as he began the story of how he and Nightmare met that one night… After explaining the story and boring details of him teaching his friend the basics of human etiquette, Celestia was satisfied in his answer. Luna was more curious about something else… “Pray tell, Mr. Whalen, on how you have four metal constructs attached to your back that seem to act… sentient?” She asked. At the curious looks everyone except Tia, Nightmare and Nyx were giving his daughters, Jon smiled, feeling more normal by the second as he explained how he got them, leaving out the small details of transporting dimensions and foreknowledge of both worlds. Luna was still curious about something though… So she asked, Are you a threat to anypony, if you thought about it?” It was said in the most innocent way possible, but it made Jon freeze at the out-of-the-blue inquiry. After thinking it over for a minute, which garnered a couple of suspicious looks from Twilight, and slightly narrowed eyes from the Princesses, he answered truthfully, " To be honest, if there was a truly good reason to go against the world? Yes. Yes, I might be.” He lifted a shaking right forehoof at the protests of Nyx and Nightmare, Twilight watching with wide eyes at his answer, " But… Only if there was a great reason to be like losing a family due to someone’s mistakes.” Celestia raised a delicate eyebrow at this, " You sound like you’re speaking from experience, Mr. Octavius--” Jon interrupted, " Please, call me by my given name. Jon or Otto, either one will do. Mr. Makes me sound old.” He shuddered. Celestia giggled lightly, and answered, “Alright, so long as you call us by ours.” She gestured to Herself, Luna, and Twilight. Jon nodded and continued speaking his previous explanation. “Anyways, there’s a person in my world named Frank Castle, an ex-Marine. Think of him like a guard on the frontlines.” He elaborated at seeing the confused looks. " He was doing an illegal ops ordered by a higher government, but it turns out that the leading agent turned on the group of Marines, and everyone close to them or they themselves died, or “disappeared”. “All except one… Nyx, can you guess?” Smiling towards the attentive filly. “Frank Castle?” She guessed. Jon nodded, " Correct! Good job Nyx.” Nyx blushed and smiled sheepishly, electing laughter from the group of ponies around her, including her mother. Nightmare giggled behind her hoof, remembering the times when Jon got into his “Professor” persona. “Frank’s family died by the hands of the leading Agent, and a close friend of his, Billy Russo. He watched as his family got killed in cold blood, his wife, and his daughter and son…” The last part got many shocked gasps and enraged looks from the listening group, even a couple sad looks from Princess Celestia and Luna. Tia only gave him a comforting look, regretting to sit a little bit aways from her brother… Jon smiled back gratefully, clearing his throat and sipped a little bit of water before continuing, " Everyone thought that Frank died with his family, but it turns out he survived…” " He wanted to avenge his family, make the wrongdoers pay for what they did to his family, so he took on an alias: The Punisher.” The name made fur on the back of the groups’ stand up and a shiver of dread crawl down the spine of Nightmare. " The Punisher, he has a motto, one that he took from a storybook that he read to his daughter before her death. One Batch, Two Batch, Penny And Dime.” " He takes care of the evil that festers in the world, that people ignore. From rapists to murderers, from pedophiles to mobsters, but he doesn’t keep them alive. He kills them.” Jon said the last part with a serious face, " He doesn’t give second chances to criminals. So if he so much as hears a peep of a very dirty thing, The Punisher comes and takes care of that wrongdoer.” It was silent for awhile, the dinner abandoned in lieu of the story about The Punisher. " He has a symbol to let you know who he is. A white skull on his chest to give a vibe of death, to strike fear into the hearts of bad people. It’ll be the last thing you’ll see if you do something very, very wrong.” Jon finished, before taking a bite from his salad. It was quiet for the rest of the evening, before the silence was broken by Celestia clearing her throat, grabbing everyone’s attention, " I believe it is time we turn in, my little ponies. Get some rest, we have a long day ahead of us.” She said, getting up from her seat. Luna followed, and trotted side by side of her sister to raise the moon and begin her nightly duties. Jon sluggishly got up from his seat, legs wobbling like crazy, before he started falling to the floor. Someone caught him, grunting at his dead weight on their side, and Jon looked up with bleary eyes to see who he fell against. Nightmare looked down at him with pink cheeks as he felt his fur on hers, causing a shock to go through her. She adjusted her body and lifted Jon onto her back with her magic, carefully placing him between her wings, opening her flight appendages slightly to make herself comfortable. She looked back at her friend and smiled lightly as she saw that the large stallion was fast asleep, his Actuators coiled around his body, as if protecting their father from the dangers of the world while he slept. He looks more peaceful asleep. She thought as she followed after Twilight Sparkle to the guest room, worrying about what the future will hold with Jon’s sickness. Now if only she could find out what the hay is happening to her whenever he’s around! Author's Note A/N: Sorry For not Updating My Stories In A Long Time, Folks! Life Just Keeps Getting In The Way! I Will Try And Figure Out What The Next Chapter and Future Chapters Will Entail, But I'm Coming Up With Blank At The Moment. If You Guys And Gals Have Any Suggestions, Lemme Know On What It Is, The only Rule is That It Is Something That Can Progress The Story Even Further. Hope You Guys Are Hyped And Still With Me Through These Stressful Times, And I'll Talk To You All Later! TOODLES!!!
Chapter 01: A New DayChapter 01: A New Day, A New Year… Blue eyes snapped open before immediately shutting them, using his hand to block the intruding sunlight piercing into his eyes, interrupting his sleep in the process. He sat upright slowly, his ribs groaning and aching in protest, the bandages slightly dirty and had dried blood stained the gauze due to the events with Gaia Everfree… And maybe stopping a few robberies gone wrong a few nights ago… Jon groaned a little, holding a hand to his bandaged side, smiling a little in gratitude as the two bottom Actuators held him off the ground a few inches and maneuvered to the bathroom, where he stood in front of the mirror… Then snorted… Jon’s reflection was the image of a man who has gone through hell; His blue eyes looked a little dim, and had small bags under them indicating sleep deprivation, and he had a small beard growing on his lower face, making him look like a lumberjack a bit. … Not to say the fact that his chocolate brown hair became a mullet in the back, grown long enough to even put it into a ponytail. Besides that, he looked normal, except for the reddened and dirty bandages covering his naked flabby torso. His top left Actuator slinked off to his room, the coils stretching for extended reach as she grabbed a fresh roll of gauze, before returning to her father. ...That’s right, you read correctly… The Actuators are sentient enough for individual personalities and saw Jon as their father ever since he got them from an Anonymous Sender. He saw them as his daughters once the fact came to him one day, melting his slowly cold heart, giving him a purpose, and a way to distract himself from the depressing and dark thoughts of never seeing his family again, back on Earth… ...But, thanks to his boss, Principal Celestia, and her younger sister Luna, the family of the Ancient and Noble House Of Faust, adopted him as a brother, instead of a son, since that would’ve became awkward on all sides. Jon was grateful of the two getting him out of his depression, at least temporarily, but that darkness always comes back, and it never leaves… Shaking off the memories of his time alone, he gently plucked the roll of bandages from his actuator, who held it in front of his nose like a carrot on a string. It is amusing that the four Actuators’ personalities grew as he did, learned at a fast rate and can share that information at hypersonic speeds to his brain and able to process that much power into problem-solving during a situation that may or may not save his life whenever he was out as The Metal Armed Vigilante. After using a small knife to carefully cut the dirty bandages, he gently peeled off, flinching with a hiss of pain as he revealed his black and purple bruise to the world. ...For some reason, Jon couldn’t help but wonder why he wasn’t healing normally, and the pain was beginning to become just bearable day to day ever since Camp Everfree a few days ago… Jon discarded the small pile of used gauze into the trash can and grabbed a tube of healing salve. This specific salve was made by the resident shaman witch named Zecora, who readily agreed to mix the salve with a numbing potion of her own design to heal the wound and keep it pain-free while it heals… ...It didn’t work for some reason… Jon sighed as he finished wrapping the fresh bandages around his torso and tied a small knot to keep it in place. Then he turned on the cold tap, letting the sink fill with water, then began splashing his face to wake him up. After he was done, Jon sighed and carefully went through the doorway, making sure to duck his head down before he hit his head on the way out. He went out of his room and out into the wooden and rundown hallway, the floor was creaking with the weight of his Actuators and himself, but still held somehow… ...As if by magic… He made it to the living room that was slightly larger than his bedroom, looking around as he saw that Nightmare was nowhere in sight. Odd. He thought as put on his shirt, which was white with a v-neck collar and was large enough to fit him, and then some. He then noticed a note on the worn coffee table and his top right Actuator slinked over it on the assumption of grabbing it for her father. The large pincers then slammed shut and slid back to reveal small two prongs that can act as fingers to grab things without damaging them. She grabbed it delicately and slithered through the air and held the paper in front of Jon, squeaking lightly. Here you go, father! Said the squeaky shy voice that spoke from his Actuator, slightly bobbing up and down in the air with a little bit of excitement. Jon smiled, saying with a hoarse whisper, “ Thank you, Rosie.” He took the paper and saw that it had Nightmare Moon’s writing on it. Dear Jonathon, If you notice me gone when you wake up, I am currently going to Zecora’s hut for more healing salve since we seem to be running out. There’s breakfast on the kitchen table that I made for you, I wanted to do something to show you my gratitude for taking me in when I was at my weakest, and thank you for teaching me how to fit in this new world. I will return soon. With love, Nightmare Moon Jon blinked, then shook his head with a soft smile as he remembered teaching the newly banished Queen of The Night how to speak modern English, wearing clothes that were not torn to hell and back, as well as other necessities to living without making a fool of yourself. ...It has been a hectic few days… Jon set the note back to where it was and went into the aforementioned kitchen, and his eyes laid on the large plate holding a stack of 3 pancakes, a couple of fried eggs, and a couple of sausages, and it was still steaming. After trying to figure out how Nightmare cooked without burning the warehouse down or making a mess, he sat down and carefully ate the scrumptious meal with a pace that would make people think he was sluggish. His bottom left Actuator slinked over to the coffee pot on the other side of the kitchen, and grabbed a small white coffee cup with the words #1 father of the year logo on the side. It’s been a running joke for a while… After Susie poured the coffee into the cup with accurate precision, Rosie slithered over to the fridge and grabbed a carton of creamer, putting a small amount that would make it a bit sweet, but still strongly bitter. Susie grabbed the coffee and carefully returning to her father, Jon grabbing the coffee cup with a tired smile. This was the life… ... But All Good Things Come To An End... Author's Note Ooh~ You guys excited? I am to write it! Anyways, Hope you enjoyed this first chapter, if there's something missing in it, lemme know and I'll add it in to make the chapter longer and more enjoyable. See You Soon, TOODLES!!!
Chapter 02: Royal VisitChapter 02: Royal Visitation… The bell of Canterlot High School rang out through the building, signalling that the end of the day has come and students can go home or go to work. The hallways got crowded with students, some staying behind to talk to friends, or for after school classes. Jon sat behind his wooden oak desk, hunching over the small pile of papers that he collected from students, it’s the same thing he does every day. And the students are getting smarter with every lesson he does, since he sometimes simplifies the terms and makes the instructions on the work easy for them to start figuring it out on their own without causing stress and frustration. It’s how he was all those years ago when he was in high school… Jon was snapped out of his own little world by a small screech from the top left Actuator, Stepha, who was watching the classroom window, which had a view of the colt statue outside of the school. According to his older stepsister Celestia, that statue was a portal to the other world that Nightmare talked about on the night he found her hiding in his home. She woke up in front of it in the rage she wore, until Jon went shopping for clothes that fit her. He didn’t get embarrassed about women’s clothing, including undergarments... He never dared to go near the magic because he didn’t want to risk his daughters, no matter how many times they nag at him… He was slightly curious himself after all on what he would’ve looked like on the other side… Jon made his way over to Stepha with the help of the bottom Actuators, Raven and Monica, since his body was sore, and can hardly move without his muscles aching in protest. ...He was actually getting worried that whatever’s happening to him is very serious and could cause problems in the future… He looked out the window and saw a glow come from the statue portal, indicating that something, or someONE is coming through. Stepping out of the portal was a woman with rainbow colored hair, wearing a alabaster white dress that hugged her body with shiny yellow gloves covering her hands that went up to her elbows. Jon raised an eyebrow at the woman he knew was Celestia, but she looks more older, according to zooming in with Stepha’s lens, her eyes were older than the rest of her young body, like a Time Lord from Doctor Who. Celestia, his step-sister, walked out the front doors of the school to greet her counterpart with a smile, there were words exchanged, but Jon couldn’t hear through the glass. Only when there is nothing between him and the source of the noise he could find it with ease… The two Celestias went inside the school, and Jon pulled back from the window, his expression a thoughtful one as he was maneuvered back to his desk, and sat down on his office chair. He was finishing the final grading on a student’s essay, when the door to the classroom opened, knocking their knuckles on the wood to show that someone is there. Jon lifted his head and saw Celestia, both of them, standing in the doorway. Jon groaned lightly as he lifted back his head to get the cricks out from hunching, a small satisfying crack rang out through the room. He sighed in content as he felt more awake, since the time was about 5:30 pm that showed on the classroom clock. He smiled at his older step-sister, “ Hello Tia, what brings you here? I am sure that family dinner isn’t for another hour, don’t worry, I’ll be there.” Principal Celestia smiled warmly, while Princess Celestia quirked an eyebrow, a small amount of intrigue showing in her older looking eyes as she observed the interaction between her counterpart and this stranger. Principal--Let’s call her Tia, shook her head with fond exasperation. “ No Jon, I know. I was just coming to visit you with my other self here. She seems curious to meet you.” She said, gesturing to the head taller woman next to her, who smiled benevolently. “ It is a pleasure to finally meet the stallion that protected my counterpart multiple times.” Jon smiled and slowly got up, his muscles aching in immense protest as he did so, causing Tia and Celestia to look at him in concern, even more so on Tia. Susie and Monica came out from their hiding place behind him and lifted their father over the desk, the two women backing up to give the man room. Tia had a warm smile on her face mixed with confusion and slight worry about her stepbrother not walking around his desk. Princess Celestia on the other hand, had a look of surprise as she traced the sinuous metal carrying the stranger with ease, her cerulean eyes widened a little bit, and tilted her head as she eyed a third and fourth one joining their two siblings and watching the newcomer with their red lens. “ Where are my manners? I forgot to introduce you to my daughters.” Jon said, a small smile forming on his lips as the Actuators wrapped the area around the Solar Diarch, their thoughts and screeches were curious of the identical twin of their father’s sibling. Susie’s pincers were only inches from the Princess’s face, red lens staring with quiet curiosity as Celestia raised a hand and gently pressed her fingers against the metal body, the digits emanating a barely noticeable heat that was higher than a normal human’s body temperature. It was as if she had an unknown source of heat coming from inside her, and it was leaking out into the real world… After the examination and slight petting session, the Actuators went from Celestia to Tia, affectionately wrapping around their aunt as she giggled and petted their pincer-heads and bodies, sating their attention. Jon chuckled, shaking his head with a warm smile on his face, grabbing the attention of the Solar Diarch, who was watching his Actuators interact with their ‘Auntie’. “ I’ve noticed that they have sentience and high intelligence, yet they are attached to you. Are they being forced to obey your will, Mr. Whalen?” She seemed to say the last sentence in a stern tone, as if accusing him of doing something wrong. Jon raised an eyebrow and shook his head, leaning back against his desk as he spoke the answer to the question she was gonna ask, “ No, I don’t control them, they have free will, and I would never force them to kill anyone, unless there’s danger to me or to them, otherwise I let them explore.” Celestia tapped a finger to her chin as Rosie wrapped around her body gently, as if a snake snaring it’s prey. She didn’t even seem to be phased that she was trapped by something that could crush her body with relative ease… Tia spoke up around the quiet shrieks of his Actuators, “ She’s actually here to investigate a phenomenon that happened, she didn’t want to send her fellow Princess and bring risk to Twilight’s life.” Jon nodded his head, but not taking his eyes off the Princess. “ So, an unusual amount of magic was detected?” He said, his tone a thoughtful one, yet his eyes twinkled like stars with a knowing look. Celestia caught that, and sent a Stern look at the man that could rival Fluttershy’s Stare. “ Do you know the source, Mr. Whalen? What is it?” Jon chuckled as he then felt his legs start to shake slightly in exhaustion, but ignored it as he answered the Sun Princess’s question, “ I do know it’s not a WHAT...But a WHO…” Author's Note Pinkie: You guys excited? You guys Hyped? I AMSUPERHYCITED!!! WhalenJP: Wha?... Pinkie! Get the HELL out of my computer! Pinkie: Aww, C'MON, Whalen! Why?! WhalenJP: Because I said so! If you do, you get a cookie. Pinkie: Okie Dokie Lokie!
Chapter 03: Weakening HeroChapter 03: Weakening Hero The room was deathly silent besides the loud BEEP of a heart monitor interrupting the silence of one’s impending demise, the blinds were open to let the rays of sunshine in, also lighting up the room. The bed was holding one occupant, his breathing shallow and wheezing as he tried to get oxygen into his lungs. The room was empty, except for the occupant, and the person laying her head on the edge of the stallion’s bed, holding his hoof in a iron grip, her eyes shining with unshed tears as she watched the life being sucked out of her lover with every breath, knowing that his inevitable demise was soon upon them. How could this happen? You may ask. ...There’s always an answer… Jon and the two Celestias were walking across the street, making sure that no cars were going down the road, and entered his warehouse/home. Jon opened the door for the two women, who smiled at him for his gentleman-like behavior. As soon as the door close with a loud SLAM! A woman’s voice rang out from the darkness of the abandoned building, “ Jon? Your home early? That’s a record!” Tia’s eyebrow quirked in confusion, Jon simply chuckled as he guided the two through the maze of metal shelves and rusty mechanical parts. Celestia’s eyes narrowed, the voice was FAMILIAR to her… As soon as Jon, Tia, and Celestia made it to the newly built staircase that led up to the lit office, the door opened and out came Nightmare Moon, wearing a pair of jeans and a black shirt that had the symbol of the moon on it. Jon greeted her, “ Hello Nightmare.” Tia’s eyebrows shot up into her hairline, shock showing on her face as she laid her eyes upon the woman who she never met before in her entire life. Celestia however, tensed her body up, clearly ready to fight if necessary… But it was not, because Jon went up and hugged her, as if greeting an old friend, which made her blink away the smoldering embers that manifested in her eyes. Even though Celestia didn’t like Nightmare Moon since she possessed her little sister a thousand years ago, she was willing enough to hear the Night Queen out on how she got here in the first place, especially since there was an Actuator staring at her with what appears to be a glare of death, as if just begging the Solar Diarch to do something to the banished mare. Jon and Nightmare came out of the hug and turned to Tia and Celestia, Nightmare’s eyes widened as she spotted the Sun Princess standing next to her counterpart, and held her breath, as if she was… A thought came to her and she saw how the Sun Princess wasn’t glaring at her with contempt, but patience, and slight curiosity. ...It made no sense… and Discord wasn’t even IN THIS STORY! “ Greetings Nightmare Moon. It’s been a long time.” Said Princess Celestia, ignoring how the same Actuator was now hovering over her shoulder, either in curiosity or readying itself to attack, she didn’t know, but what she did know was the dropped jaw that Nightmare had, her turquoise dragon-slitted eyes bugging out of their sockets in surprise and a lot of shock. Jon and Tia watched as the two Alicorn-turned-humans begin to interact with each other, amusement showing on the Pseudo-siblings’ faces as they stood on the sidelines. Jon shook his head before saying, “ C’mon, let’s get inside and sit down. A staircase isn’t an ideal place to talk.” At that, he slowly walked up the stairs, not noticing the concern on the three women’s faces as they eyes his gritted teeth and sluggish movements. Nightmare and Princess Celestia gave each other a look that said ‘ Something’s wrong’. Tia had the same look, but it was with more intense worry, since she got to know her middle brother better over the course of the last week. Ever since Camp Everfree and she adopted him into the family, he has been more open, more emotional, more kind. So she KNEW something was wrong, and she bet he was just hiding it as to not worry her, Luna, and Cadence. The three then heard a THUD! Snapping them out of their own little world and started running up the stairwell. The three women made their way into the office, but stopped as they saw Jon’s slumped form on the couch, his Actuators sprawled out all over the place, as if they suddenly dropped dead. ...Oh no… Tia ran quickly to his side and shook his shoulders, trying to wake him up. “ Jon? JON! Wake up, Come on wake up! This isn’t funny!” She said, her voice cracking more and more as her brother didn’t wake up, not even when she slapped him in the face hard. ...He didn’t stir… Celestia and Nightmare watched in horror as they noticed black veins start to crawl up Jon’s neck and spread to his arms, ending at his fingertips, which twitched with pained spasms. What is happening to him? The three thought the same question as they tried to wake Jon up, with failed expectations. “ Call 911!” Tia shouted, tears beginning to drop down her cheeks as she noticed the black veins. Nightmare snapped out of her shock, and ran over to the old fashioned telephone that Jon and her got to work, and connected to the local line. Princess Celestia eyed the veins with a small glare, as if trying to magic them out of the friendly man’s blood. Even though they just met, she felt a small part of her magic wrap around him in an embrace, as if it was familiar with him. It must’ve been her counterpart’s magic that connected them, since Tia was the one to adopt Jon into the Faust family, meaning that in her world, he would be her brother. It made a small part of herself leap in joy for a new family member, besides Twilight. ...It didn’t work, since they still seemed to spread across his body, which means that it was killing him slowly, probably painful as well. She didn’t know what to do, she never saw this kind of sickness before, nor did she never see a creature that used this type of attack either, so she was out of her element... The Canterlot Hospital was bustling, A gurney was being rolled with the man lying down on his side, his Actuators tucked in carefully so they don’t fall off the gurney. Princess Celestia practically ran back through the portal, since she and Tia didn’t want to answer uncomfortable questions on how there’s a second her. Celestia galloped through the halls of Canterlot Castle, swiftly avoiding working servants, guard ponies, and butlers, her cerulean eyes shining with determination on what is happening to her counterpart’s brother. Principal Celestia called the family and they were sitting in the waiting room of the hospital, a solemn air filling the room which was empty since they were the only ones in there. Cadance and Shining Armor were holding hands, her other hand on her stomach that was starting to show her pregnancy to the world in the form of a baby bump. Celestia and Luna were hugging one armed style, Luna trying to comfort her older sister, as well as to comfort herself that nothing’s wrong with her older brother… But she had a feeling that it is worse than anyone thought… Nightmare on the other hand, was sitting alone, with her head in her hands, shoulders shaking slightly as she cried quietly, tears rolling down her dark cheeks and a despairful air surrounding her as she thought the worst has happened to her friend. Her ACTUAL Friend… The doors to the waiting room opened and out came a nurse, a clipboard in hand, and called out, “ Celestia Faust?” The mentioned woman’s head shot up, her eyes rimmed red from crying, saying in a hoarse voice. “ Yes?” The nurse took a breath and only said, “ Follow Me”, before going back through the open door. The Faust family looked into the window of the room and saw Jon sleeping on his back, his Actuators spread in the air and suspended by casts, his pale face sweating slightly with bags under his eyes. Celestia gasped slightly, a lump in her throat as she tried to speak. Luna beat her to it, asking the same question that was on all of their minds, “ Is he gonna be alright, nurse?” The nurse, Redheart, took one look at the group, before shaking her head in sadness, “ I don’t know. Whatever’s happening to Mr. Whalen is worse than we thought. Those black veins under his skin show that of a powerful toxin going through his body, slowly killing him every day, and there’s no known cure in the world that can save him. We’ve tried everything! From gamma treatment to basic blood replenishing bags.” Cadance, who was staring at her pseudo cousin, said, “ So there’s nothing anyone can do to save him? What is in him anyway?” Her voice began cracking due to the thought of her child never seeing their uncle. Nurse Redheart, her name showing on a tag on her lapel, looked at the woman, before shaking her head. “ No. Whatever IT is, it’s not normal by our standards. If I didn’t know better, I’d say that it’s from another world entirely.” Celestia stiffened slightly as she caught the last part of Redheart’s sentence and gears started to turn in her head. Another world… is it possible? She thought as she and her family were herded out of the hospital, since visiting hours were over. After returning to her and Luna’s mansion, she laid in her bed, and couldn’t get the thought, and slightly stupid idea out of her head. Tonight... She’ll get Jon out of the hospital… Tonight… She is gonna take her brother to the other side of the portal, and cure him of whatever is making him ill and then take him back home... Tonight, Celestia would get answers … Or she’ll die trying… And Nightmare is gonna help her… Author's Note A/N: What do you all think? Is Jon gonna make it? What is the virus? Is it even from Equestria, or somewhere else entirely? Who knows! Hope you enjoyed the new chapter, be ready for more soon!
Chapter 04: A New WorldChapter 04: A New World… The sun was shining brightly in the land of Equestria, the Ponies of the land going to school, work, or just taking a walk through the towns and large bustling cities that they live in, enjoying the light that their ruler, Princess Celestia, gives them day-to-day. In the depths of Canterlot Castle, where the Sisters live and work and sleep, Princess Celestia is sitting in the middle of the Royal Archives, surrounded by piles and stacks of books, arranged from basic cure spells to dark healing. Her cerulean eyes scrolled from one page to another, bags under her pristine eyes, her rainbow-colored mane lulling with barely any magic, indicating that she has been there, in one spot for the entire night, looking for whatever was ailing her counterpart’s, and possibly HER pseudo-brother. It’s unusual that she feels the emotions of caring for another ever since Luna got back from her thousand-year vacation on the moon. But they are there, festering in her heart that is beating with the pace of familial longing that not even Luna couldn’t fix. It felt like there was something missing, or someone missing to complete the picture of a happy family. Celestia’s silent musings were halted by the sound of the Archive door opening with a creaking groan, making the Solar Diarch lift her head to see who dared to interrupt her search of a cure. Poking her head in, cyan eyes locked onto Celestia’s, and narrowed with tired worry. “ Sister? You look like Fluffy used you as a chew toy and spat back out. Pray tell why thou look so?” Said Princess Luna, the Lunar Diarch. Celestia smiled tiredly, letting out a yawn that ruffled a couple of pages from the book she was levitating, answering as she took off the small specs that were placed on the edge of her muzzle. “ Good Morning Lulu, just studying.” Luna’s deadpan expression was the indication that she was not believing her older sister’s B.S., and levitated the nearest book and read it aloud. “ ‘1001 Ways To Cure Dark Illnesses Before Fatal Consequences’?” She looked up from the title, a raised eyebrow and a quirk of her lips showed that she wanted answers. Celestia sighed as she began levitating the large piles of books and sent them back to their slots absentmindedly. Afterward, the two Royal Sisters trotted through the bustling hallways of the castle and entered Luna’s study. The study was dark, the only source of light is the blue flames flickering from candle wicks that dot out on the walls of the room. There was a large red oak table with a black seat cushion. Sitting on the desk was a bottle of ink, a large black quill with a peacock feather. Luna sat down on the cushion, and Celestia teleported her red cushion from her own study and sat down next to her sister. “ So… What is causing thou to run yourself ragged so much that you shut yourself in the Royal Archives overnight with barely a wink of rest?” She said, a look of concern shining in her cyan orbs, clearly worried that whatever is happening is serious. Celestia sighed, her once graceful body sagging like a bag of potatoes settling on the ground, and conjured a bottle of fire whiskey. Luna blinked, pursing her lips in surprise as she watched her sister conjure two large tumblers with ice cubes and poured the whiskey into both glasses. She then levitated the second glass to her younger sister, who took it into her own magic. Luna watched as Celestia took a large gulp of the firewhiskey, concerned now showing that something was CLEARLY wrong with her sister. “ Sister?” She whispered. Celestia, who was staring into space since she stopped taking the drink, turned to look at her sibling. “ Did you know that ever since you were banished, I had a hole in my heart?” She sighed then took another sip, “ When you returned, I was overcome with joy, grateful that the Elements gave me back my sister.” She then laid her head down on the wood desk, closing her eyes as she continued, her tone one of sudden sadness. “ But it never filled the entire void in my soul, it feels like, that there’s--” “Something missing.” Luna finished, finally taking a small sip of the whiskey from her tumbler. Celestia looked at her sister in the eyes and nodded, “ Yes, yes, it feels like something, or perhaps someone is missing from my life… I’m guessing that you feel the same thing?” The last sentence was aimed at her Luna, who nodded. Suddenly, the door to the study slammed open and Raven Inkwell, Celestia’s aide for Day Court came galloping in, a look of severe disbelief and slight fear mad Celestia’s fatigue disappear in a moment and sat upright to her regal posture. “ Raven, whatever is the matter?” She asked, curiously looking at the white-coated, dark brown-maned unicorn who was looking over her shoulder, trotting in place. “ Your Majesties, I… I think that you need to see this…” The unicorn said. Celestia and Luna looked at each other with raised eyebrows, not knowing what to say… Royal Guard Ponies of all races surrounded the glowing mirror that was set in a large empty room that had no purpose, slightly wobbling with the power it was exuding, holding their spears, crossbows, and magic at the mirror in case that whatever comes through is not friendly. Raven was in the center of the room, looking at the mirror in awe as three silhouettes were spat out of the magical artifact. There were a few loud clunks as four metal arms fell to the ground and twitched from the cream-colored stallion’s back, who had black veins that spread from his ears to his short brown messy tail. Next to the strange stallion was a mare that made all of the Ponies gasp; Princess Celestia, who was holding up the stallion on her back, panting with exertion as she held up the large stallion. Next to her was a tall dark coated mare with a billowing blue mane filled with stars, and her turquoise dragon slitted eyes giving the Guards a ferocious stare down as she got up from the fall. “ Nightmare Moon?” Raven gasped, her eyes wide with horror at the myth of so many legends and fear from a thousand years ago. The Mare In The Moon whirled her head and spotted Raven, only saying, “ Help him.” Her voice that used to give every colt and filly nightmares with powerful overtones, was normal, weak, and cracking slightly. The door behind everypony slammed open and in came another Princess Celestia, along with Luna, who spotted Nightmare and froze with her cyan eyes in pinpricks. The Celestia that came through the portal spotted her double and called out, “ Please… Help us…” Then she, along with Nightmare, whose limbs were shaking with sudden exhaustion, fell to a pile on the floor, surrounding the large stallion with the four metal sinuous limbs that protruded from his back. The two mares were curled up around him, as if protecting him from the Guards that began to slowly advance towards the downed trio. Until Luna stomped a metal cloven hoof, her voice a tone of authority. “ Halt! We will take care of this!” She said, causing everypony to back away as the two Royal Pony Sisters trotted to the fallen Ponies. Celestia, who stared at the black veins pulsing under Jon’s pale coat, flinched at the movement of her sister, who grabbed Nightmare Moon in her telekinetic grasp and set her on the Lunar Diarch’s own back, pursing her lips with a thoughtful expression as she did so. Raven levitated Jon, being careful of his Actuators, slightly awed at the sight of the metal snake-like limbs sticking out of the stallion’s back. Celestia didn’t think before lifting her double up and onto her back. “ Follow me, we’re gonna bring these three to the Royal Hospital Wing, and wait for them to wake up. Luna…” The Night Princess looked at her older sister from staring at the skinnier Nightmare Moon, and the Solar Diarch continued, “ Make sure Nightmare is comfortable and near Jon and the other me.” At the mares’ questioning looks of the foreign name, she added, “ The stallion that Raven is levitating.” “ Now, let’s see what in the name of my mother is going through my own skull.” Celestia murmured to herself as the trio trotted at a fast pace, through the hallways, and into the Hospital Wing. Author's Note Hmm. What do you all think is gonna happen next? Hope you all enjoyed this fic so far, I'm trying to make this last as long as I possibly can without losing focus on the big picture, but that probably flew out the window as soon as I started the story! Heh... Can't wait to progress this, TOODLES!!!
Chapter 05: Welcome To EquestriaChapter 05: Welcome To Equestria It was quiet in the hospital Wing, empty except for the two sleeping patients on three separate beds. It was quiet, except for the trio’s even breathing to break the silence. Jon felt cold, his muscles ached from not moving too much, but what caught his attention was that he felt weird, as if his body...changed… Blue eyes slowly opened, his eyelids feeling like 50 lbs weights that took a small amount of energy that he didn’t have to open them fully. What happened? Where am I? He thought to himself as he tried to move, grunting slightly as he felt how little his muscles tightened and pull, yet… Something feels wrong, as if his body wasn’t… His eyes snapped open after closing them from tiring himself out and looked down at his body. He didn’t scream, he didn’t gasp, he just… stared… Am I in Equestria? Jon thought to himself as he lifted his cream-colored left forehoof to inspect it. It was almost like the color of his human skin, but with FUR. It was very weird. He then felt his daughters wake up and began to study their father’s new form, squeaking and slightly shrieking their opinions. That coat looks good on you, it sorta looks like your human skin, Father! Said Stepha. I think the black veins are something to be concerned about. Said Monica, who was studying the pulsing darkness spreading under her father’s fur coat and skin. Jon had noticed that too, and the painful exhaustion came back as soon as he acknowledged the fact. There was the sudden sound of hooves on stone, and his daughters whirled around to the door, ready to strike at the source of the noise. Jon lifted a shaking hoof and said with a hoarse whisper, “ Calm down, girls. They might not be hostile to us. Let’s see who it is.” He turned to Monica, “ Peek out through the crack in the doorway, see who’s there?” Monica bobbed her pincers and slithered as quietly as she could to the cracked open door. Jon closed his eyes, then Monica’s camera lens flickered to life with a blue light, showing him what she sees. Coming down the hallway, pushing a metal cart with a tray of some type of soup, was a unicorn mare with green eyes, a pale yellow coat and a red mane highlighted with stripes of white. Her cutie mark was a champagne glasses on top of a tray, maybe some kind of waitress talent? The mare kept going down the hallway, slowing down as she got closer to the room where he was laying down in, humming a familiar tune that Jon couldn’t place at the moment. Monica went back from the doorway and returned to her father, who opened his eyes that were bloodshot, his blue and grey irises dilated and we’re dim instead of glowing in the darkness. He was turned, so very very tired… He wants to rest… His drifting thoughts were interrupted by the door opening, making him achingly lift his head from the pillow and look at whoever was coming in… It was the mare that Monica spied on a few moments ago, humming that same familiar tune, eyes closed, but somehow able to get to where she’s going without bumping into anything. Monica’s sinuous body moved along the ground, making sure to be extra careful as to not get heard by the new arrival and caught. She is the more paranoid one out of the four, after all, she wanted to make sure that this mare isn’t a threat to her father… The mare opened her eyes and sighed happily, clearly thinking that her day couldn’t get any better… Then she locked eyes with Jon’s, whose, while dimmed down immensely since falling unconscious, still glows enough to be noticed. That’s when Monica struck from behind, rearing up her body and wrapped around the mares throat, a smaller tentacle coming out of the pincers to wrap over her mouth to prevent her from screaming and alerting anyone nearby. Jon sighed internally, noting absently to give a Stern talking to Monica about being paranoid, she has gotten better over time, but not much progress was made. “ I apologize that my daughter decided to be precautious, especially around strangers. As you can see, I am vulnerable at the moment and just woke up.” The mare only stared at him with fear in her eyes, and Jon smiled softly, “Monica, let her go, she won’t hurt us.” He asked, almost commanded the actuator wrapped around the young mare, willing to give her a chance to speak. After a few seconds of reluctance, she uncoiled herself and slithered back to him, laying her pincers against his pudgy barrel. The blue mare didn’t run, didn’t scream, only stared at him with an emotion that he could identify as shock, awe, and worry. “ Um… My name is Shine Glass. I was told to bring you food in case you woke up soon.” She stopped and eyed the black veins pulsing under the stallion’s coat with worry and slight disgust. Then she continued, her confidence coming back, since she now knew that the strange Stallion won’t hurt her, “ Well, looks like I came at the right time!” She ended the sentence with a smile, “ So I thought you’d be hungry.” Jon chuckled, then began coughing hard as it hurt his chest immensely to even laugh, much less even breath normally. Shine began to trot forward with a hoof outstretched to help, a look of worry on her face, when he held up his left hoof. “ I’m… I’m ok, Miss Glass.” Swallowing his saliva to wet his dry throat, Jon asked, watching his daughters move around the unknown room with curiosity, scanning the books with a foreign language that must be Equish. Shaking his head internally at the sight of Rosie looking at a pony fashion magazine, he turned his attention back to Shine Glass. “ I don’t suppose you could answer a couple of questions for me, Miss Glass?” He asked, tilting his pale cream head, his brown-frost mane falling onto the right side, almost covering his eye from view. The mare opened her mouth to reply, when the door to the room opened, and in came a mare that Jon, and by extension, Shine Glass, recognized. Princess Celestia watched the metal snakes that were attached to the Stallion’s back, one of them, might be even the same one, watching her every move with careful and accurate precision. The Solar Diarch watched her new maid bow to her presence. Amusedly, her flank and rear were practically in the Stallion’s face, causing his ears to press against his head and burn a bright tomato red. Stifling her chuckles, Princess Celestia turned her attention to Shine Glass, who was still in her… compromising position. “Rise, Miss Glass. How long has the guest been awake?” She said, asking the question at the end with a slight tilt of her elegant head. The young mare rose from her bow, causing the stallion behind her to breath a silent sigh of relief, his cheeks still pink. Shine Glass smiled, happy to report to her ruler that Jon was only awake for a minute and a half… …Trust me… She counted when she saw the small light peeking out at her through the doorway… Celestia nodded, smiling softly as Shine Glass rolled the tray over to the other side of the bed and trotted out of the room, waving at the lying Stallion, who smiled with a nod. Acknowledging and returning the friendly gesture. Rosie slithered over to where the benevolent ruler of Equestria stood and wrapped around her barrel gently, making Jon quirk an eyebrow and Celestia to stiffen slightly for a moment, before relaxing as Rosie began to nuzzle her cheek affectionately. The Solar Diarch turned to Jon with a quirked eyebrow, asking with her eyes on what the Actuator was doing, but the only answer she got was a shrug, wearing the same expression she was using. “ Rosie, what in the world are you doing?” Jon whispered, making Celestia internally cringe at the cracking vocal cords. Cleary whatever was infecting the Stallion was making sure he was suffering… A feeling welled up in her chest that was buried a long time ago, and the heat of the room rose a tiny bit, causing Monica to screech slightly. The screech snapped Celestia out of whatever trance she was in, and her cheeks slightly pink in embarrassment. “ I apologize, Mr. Whalen. It seems I am… Not myself today.” She said, her voice soft and gentle, making sure to not raise her voice to disturb the quietness of the room. Jon shook his head, smiling weakly at the Sun Goddess. “ It’s okay. Sometimes we all lose ourselves once in a while. You are no exception.” He said, weakly sitting up as Susie adjusted the large pillow so that he could sit up comfortably. Celestia’s eyes widened a very small fraction at the sentence. “ What do you mean, Mr. Whalen?” She said, trotting over to the side of the bed and sitting down on the royal purple pillow that was conjured there. She wanted to hear him say what a small part of her was feeling, that she wasn’t just a Princess, a Ruler, or Diarch. As if hearing her hopes, Jon let out his thoughts. “ No matter how everyone else sees it, you are yourself, a Pony, not just a Goddess of the Sun, even you have to let down the mask you hide behind day to day, and show the world that even YOU have normal needs.” Celestia felt something stir in her chest, and it wasn’t anger… Nor arrogance… It was relief and disbelief. Because Jon accurately figured her out, as if she was a puzzle or a problem to solve, and gave the solution that would best suit everypony, because he sees the world a different way than her Ponies, he sees the best in everything, even Nightmare Moon; who was asleep recovering from the portal transfer. She nodded after mulling over the piece of wisdom he gave casually, as if seeing what he says, and smiled. Jon smiled back, then blinked in surprise as a glass of water was held up in front of him. He looked to who was holding it, and saw Monica, her red lens beaming at him through the clear liquid, which was perspiring the glass from the two ice cubes floating in it. Not wanting to ask how his daughter got the glass of water without him knowing, he asked her to bring it to his mouth. After drinking slowly from the small glass, he sighed in relief as the water helped to make sure his voice can work. Then he cleared his throat, and asked, “ Where am I? I remember my sister and Nightmare carrying me to a statue, then nothing.” Celestia lightly sighed, then said, “ Nightmare Moon is recovering in the next room, and the other Me is currently in my bedchambers, sleeping.” Jon raised an eyebrow, then smirked with mischief. “ Oh? I didn’t know you were into that.” Celestia would’ve done a spit take if she were drinking anything. Instead, she choked on her spit, her white cheeks turning tomato red at the innuendo. Rosie, who was still wrapped around the Solar Princess, chirped in confusion, tilting her pincer head cutely. What does that mean, Father? She asked. After chuckling at the now-glaring Celestia, he turned his attention to Rosie, only saying. “ When you’re older, my dear Rosie. When you’re older.” After Celestia got her breathing under control, she glared at the impishly grinning Stallion on the bed. “ She’s ONLY sleeping! And no!” She continued after seeing Jon open his mouth, “ I am NOT into that!” Internally, she said in a whisper, Maybe… The Stallion raised his hooves in a sign of surrender, still grinning as he said. “ Alright, alright. I couldn’t resist the temptation.” Celestia snorted, clearly showing him that she didn’t believe that. Then Jon felt sleepy, and his eyelids were heavy. His daughters returned from looking around the room and onto him, curling up around their father gently, including Rosie, who unwrapped herself from Celestia and joined the pile. Celestia felt her heart warm at the sight, even though it was slightly ruined from the black veins on Jon’s body, it was still an ideal picture of a father-daughter moment. Metal arms with the sentience of an average Pony and intelligence of Twilight Sparkle aside. It was silent in the room for a moment, before a knock on the door interrupted it. Celestia watched the sleeping Stallion for a moment or two more, before using her magic to open the door. Speak of Tartarus, She mused internally as she looked over her shoulder to see who was at the door. Twilight Sparkle, her former student and now an equal Princess of Equestria, more specifically, Friendship, was standing there with a clipboard and quill. Celestia snorted quietly, some things never change. She thought to herself as she spoke, “ Yes, Twilight?” The lavender Alicorn jumped from staring at the Stallion lying in the bed surrounded by metal contraptions to her former mentor, now friend, and replied. “ Um, Celestia, the other Celestia, I mean, um- You- UGH! The other Celestia is awake and waiting to see you.” She finished, her cheeks turning to an adorable shade of pink. Celestia chuckled and trotted out of the room with Twilight, making sure to shut the door behind quietly. “ It’s ok, Twilight. I know who you’re talking about.” The pair of Alicorns trotted down the hallway in silence, their hooves interrupting the silence every second. Then… “ How is your daughter doing, Twilight?” Author's Note A/N: Yes, yes, I can already hear the comments saying that it can't be possible to have Nightmare and Nyx in the same universe... TOO BAD, I am! Anyways, I am making the chapters longer so that you all might enjoy the story even more! I am currently working on another story, so... yeah... TOODLES!!!
Chapter 06: Adventure & Adorable Fillies...Chapter 06: Adventure & Adorable Fillies... Jon woke up, yawning lightly as he slowly got into a sitting position, then once his vision cleared up, he noticed that he wasn’t exactly sleeping in his bed… Aw, crud… He thought to himself as he saw the white marble walls with a small bookshelf and end table, the heart monitor beeping next to him, causing the human-turned-stallion to cringe at the sudden noise. He looked down at his hooves and saw the discolored veins got even worse, almost popping out of his skin and fur. He doesn’t even know how he got sick! Which is ridiculous! He sighed as his daughters activated and gently lifted him off the small bed that barely held him and the Actuators. Setting himself on his four hooves, the Actuators and Jon slowly made their way to the window, squinting his eyes as the bright sunlight caused them to sting. He needed to get out… He needed to get out of the dark, claustrophobic room… With that objective in mind, he turned and half trotted, half maneuvered to the closed door, grabbing the hat and trench coat that was made for a pony from the table and coat rack that was next to his bed. After carefully putting on the trench coat and setting the fedora onto his head, he stopped and thought about something… What if there are guards just outside? Waiting for me to come out? He thought as Rosie nuzzled his cheek lightly, humming with concern at her father’s sudden stop. Besides, going out the door is boring. It’s not me. I must go another way… He then turned to the large window behind him… Jon smirked, his eyes lighting up slightly in an ideal fashion. Oh yeah... That’s more like it. He then grinned at the way he was gonna get out. The city of Canterlot was bustling with activity, Nobles trotting around with their noses in the air, shops of expensive taste open to the world for marketing, It seems just like a normal-- A window high up on Canterlot castle shattered and jumping through it was a cream colored Stallion with four metal arms sticking from his back and through a billowing trench coat. Stepha grabbed the stone wall, causing a small crater to form from the sheer impact of strength. Jon cringed slightly at the sight of it, noting himself to pay for the damages he might cause from his escape/exploration… Monica, Rosie, Stepha, and Susie clung onto the side of the giant castle, holding up their father with ease, also taking in the new surroundings while they climbed up. A few Royal Guards heard the commotion and stormed into the room where Jon was held in, looking out and up the window as the thumping of the Actuators caught their attention. Jon was grinning weakly as he scaled the tower, breathing in deeply to take in the fresh air that replaced the polluted air of his home-world and the Equestria Girls’ world. He then basked in the sunlight, perching on top of the tower with his trench coat billowing in the wind. He looked down and saw a balcony that was located beneath where he stood, and he jumped down, making sure that his legs bent slightly to absorb the impact, and his daughters looked around to search for any hostiles. Jon slowly trotted to the glass doorway, opening it slightly with Susie’s help, then looked inside. It was a dark room with purple wallpaper and stars dotting the ceiling in a mass of constellations and galaxies he didn’t recognize. There was a small twin bed with a blue comforter made on it and a royal red pillow at the head of it. It looked empty for the most part, so Jon went inside, looking around and making sure that his daughters not touch anything, so that he wouldn’t cause a mess in whoever’s room he technically broke into. Technically… What a fine line between almost and did. He mused to himself for a moment, before something caught his attention. Sitting on the bed in the most innocent way, was a large book, no, a photo album. It was a dark brown with red and blue lining the cover and spine of it, but there was no title, no name to indicate who it belongs to… Jon trotted to the bed and Rosie grabbed the book in the most careful like fashion anyone would’ve ever seen if they were to witness it. Jon sat on his haunches and held the light photo album in his hooves, before setting it down and opening it. Curiosity killed the cat, and his curiosity REALLY piqued at the sight of a dark filly with turquoise eyes and had a horn. “Cute…” He chuckled lightly as he continued looking at the photo, trying to rummage through his memories and remember where he’d seen the filly before. The filly’s mane was a bright purple, shining almost like-- Wait… He thought as he looked closer, analyzing the photo from every angle with a tilt of his head. I KNOW that filly… He thought, before the door opened behind him, causing him and the Actuators to leap onto the ceiling, the sound dampeners activating overtime to keep himself quiet and unseen by whoever was coming in. Trotting inside is the same filly with the dark coat, purple mane and tail, and turquoise dragon-slitted eyes, wearing saddlebags and holding up a small book in her telekinetic aura. She hummed a small tune as she took off her saddlebags and set them off next to the door, then put her book on the small little table next to the bed, placed on top of a stack that was just as tall as Jon’s height. Speaking of which… The Stallion watched quietly as his daughters held him up against the dark ceiling, making sure that he wasn’t being seen by the new arrival. Huh, didn’t know Nyx was here… Now THERE’s a paradox I don’t wanna mess with. He thought as the filly Nightmare Moon looked around the room. She froze as her eyes spotted the open balcony doors, then noticed that her photo album was on the floor, and opened to her first picture, after the incident with eternal night for two weeks and near death situation from defending Ponyville form the creatures of the Everfree Forest. After gently picking up the album, she looked around slowly, her little body tensed with wings pressed against her back in fright. “ He-hello? Is anypony in here?” She called out, her voice slightly trembling by the thought of her room being invaded by a stranger or worse, an assassin set out to kill her. ...Which wasn’t far off the mark… Except that he didn’t want to hurt the adorable filly… Silently lowering himself down behind the filly, his Actuators coiled themselves up in case to defend their father. Then he spoke in a whisper, his throat hurting once again from thirst, even though it’s only been a couple of hours since he woke up. How did he know? Well Susie has an internally clock that tells him and the other Actuators what the time currently was, which was 4pm… “ Hello there.” Nyx jumped at the grating hoarse voice and whirled around, then her eyes widened as she spotted the metal arms that looked like snakes sticking out of the stranger’s back, their eyes gleaming blood red as they stared at her stiff form. She was contemplating on whether or not to scream at the metal snakes, or the throbbing dark veins spread across the Stallion’s skin. Then her logical side kicked in and she took a small breath to calm herself. “ I am sorry for the unannounced visit, miss Sparkle, but I was just looking around when I came in from the balcony.” Jon continued, jerking his head to gesture at the open doorway, swaying in the light breeze. “ It’s- It’s fine, sir. But if I may… Who are you, and what are you doing in my room?” Nyx asked, slowly backing up from the large Stallion standing in front of her, keeping a sharp eye on the four metal snakes that watched her movements. Jon smiled lightly, taking off his fedora from his head and placed it on his wide chest, bowing his head as he spoke, “ Where are my manners? I am Otto Octavius. As you can see, The name comes from these four beautiful beings.” He said, smiling at the Actuators, who felt themselves perk up in pride. Nyx gulped as ‘Otto’ spoke to her, like she was a normal filly, but the intelligent gleam in his eyes suggest that he knew who she was. Just as she slowly walked backwards, she felt something metallic wrap around her barrel, and another pincer head came into view, staring at her with an intelligent, cold gaze. Her face reflecting off the small glass that could be used as the tentacle’s eye. Nyx didn’t scream, only yelped in surprise. She had worse things done to her than being taken by surprise. Hay, she even got swallowed by a Hydra, and she came out okay… The Hydra that ate her, not so much… Jon frowned as Rosie wrapped herself around the tiny filly, and shook his head as he heard her mutterings. Adorable, cute, pretty. Rosie chanted in her mind, nuzzling her pincers against the soft mane of the filly. Nyx’s expression was one of surprise, clearly thinking that he was there to hurt her. Jon internally sighed in annoyance, feeling the urge to find the ones that are stubborn enough to call for ‘Nightmare Moon’s’ execution, and give them… a stern talking to… Rosie unwrapped herself from Nyx and returned to her father’s side, still muttering the same things over and over again. Nyx blinked once… Then twice… Then after a sound of someone clearing their throat, she snapped out of her daze and locked eyes with the large Stallion, clearly looking for something. She was looking for the signs of disgust, fear, revulsion, and pity. But she didn’t find anything but warmth, like that of somepony who doesn’t care about appearance, but friendly to everything around him. And that includes the metal arms that are watching her, looking around her guest room, and the one that was nuzzling her every minute or so… Jon’s attention was now turned to the photo album, and Susie carefully picked it up from the ground, then held it in his hooves unsteadily. The picture that was opened to when Jon hid from Nyx before she came into the room, was one of the aforementioned Alicorn, snuggling into the side of a night blue Alicorn with a starry mane, Twilight Sparkle on the other side of the filly wearing a smile on her face that showed a caring mother. Jon’s lips turned upwards into a half-smile, his stern eyes turning soft at the picture. Then he came to a sudden realization… God, I miss my family… He thought as Nyx cantered to his side and looked at the photo of herself, Princess Luna, and her Mom, Twilight. When the filly looked back up at the large Stallion, she noticed a couple of tears going down his cheeks. It was starting to worry her that she might know the cause of said tears… “ You miss your family, don’t you?” Said a voice that surprised Nyx, and one that Jon recognized. Standing at the now-open doorway, was Celestia wearing a white shirt and her ethereal mane in a bun that Jon was familiar with. This was his older sister, the one from the Equestria Girls world that he arrived in a few months ago… Jon swallowed and replied, “ Yeah, Tia. I miss them… I miss my Sister... Mom... Dad... Everyone.” He said the last part with a lump in his throat. Celestia crossed the room and wrapped her hooves around her pseudo-brother’s barrel, placing her head against his shoulder, while he quietly cried into her chest, his tears staining her white fur. Nyx watched the scene as she backed up slightly with sadness, her draconian eyes shimmering with unshed tears. It felt weird, now that the mood has shifted from normal to sad in ten seconds flat… Rosie, Monica, Rosie, and Stepha wrapped around their father and Auntie, humming with comforting sounds as they squeezed very lightly to know that they are there for them. Another set of hooves enter the room and wrapped around both of them, causing the two to look up slightly at who was holding them. Nightmare Moon held Celestia and Jon in her forehooves that easily wrapped around them, eyes shedding tears that trickled down her cheeks… The three were like that for a whole minute before another voice interrupted them. “...What…” Said a young voice. Jon, Celestia, and Nightmare got out of the group hug, and turned to the source of the voice. Nightmare’s eyes slitted even more, her eyes wide in shock as she caught sight of Nyx, who was doing the same… “...What…” Nightmare said, her voice full of shock and confusion. Jon blinked, then something in his mind clicked, and began to smirk, his mood cheering up again, as well as the Actuators. Nyx and Nightmare Moon stared at each other as the two began slowly moving towards the other, stopping a few inches away… “ What…” Nyx said, her voice full of bewilderment and awe as she looked up at the form of Nightmare, her old body in all its glory, staring down at her with the same emotions she felt. “Well… This is new…” said Jon, who was grinning with amusement and slight mischief at the scene. Author's Note A/N: BWAHAHAHA!!! I couldn't help but add this, because IT MAKES SENSE! Hope you all enjoyed the chapter, and expect more with a couple of suggested ideas for the next one! Nyx belongs to Pen Stroke, I unfortunately, don't. Anyways, hope you have a wonderful day, and I'll see ya later! TOODLES!!!
Chapter 08: The 'LOVE' Talk...Chapter 08: The ‘LOVE’ Talk… It was a few hours later, that Nightmare couldn’t seem to fall asleep, twisting and turning in her bed every few minutes, trying to get comfortable. But it was not to be… She sighed as she sat up and got off the large bed with the idea to take a small walk through the palace gardens. She trotted as quietly as she could to the doorway, making sure that Jon didn’t wake up. He looks handsome with the way the moon shines on his fur, despite the veins. She thought to herself. Then she shook her head, a pink hue on her midnight furred cheeks. Snap out of it Nightmare! Get a hold of yourself! What in the world is making me like this? WHAT AM I FEELING?! She thought, her mind running a thousand questions per second as she slowly shut the door, making sure the knob was twisted so that the door latch won’t make noise. She broke off in a normal trot to the nearby entrance to the Palace Gardens, her lips curled down in a thoughtful frown of contemplation. She was snapped out of her thoughts at the sound of metal clad hooves sounding next to her. Nightmare didn’t need to even look to see who it was, “ Good Night, Luna. You’ve outdone yourself again.” She said, breaking the slightly tense silence as the two Alicorns began walking through the batches of flowers and trees. The Night Princess nodded, a small smile on her lips, “ Indeed it is, Nightmare Moon.” Then she looked at her counterpart, eyebrow raised with slight suspicion on her face. “ Why are you not in your chambers?” She asked, a slight stern tone underlying the confusion in her voice. Nightmare sighed, and stopped walking, sitting down on her haunches. She stared at the moonlit grass swaying in the light breeze, her thoughts churning for answers. Luna watched as Nightmare’s face scrunches up in confusion, and contemplation, before her counterpart lifted her head, looked at Luna in the eye and said, “ I don’t know…” It was silent for a moment, before Luna blinked and sat down on her haunches, slight concern in her eyes as she asked, “ Is it something to do with your Consort?” Nightmare shot her head up and Luna’s eyes widened at the sight of watering draconic eyes staring back at her. “ I DON’T KNOW!” Nightmare sobbed out, tears breaking free of their dam and sliding down her cheeks as she sobbed. Luna felt concern, worry, maybe even pity form in her gut as she watched the darkest of evil cry… Luna got up from her spot and sat down next to her, a blue wing wrapped around the Night Queen’s barrel in comfort as she tried to calm herself down. “ Shhh… It is ok, to fear for someone close, everything’s gonna be fine…” Luna said, her voice gentle. Nightmare took a couple of deep breaths, and her sobbing lessened. “ That’s just it! I don’t know what I’m feeling around him. I feel like my heart warms up whenever he smiles at me and makes me want to stay by his side whenever he gets hurt, I just don’t know what I’m feeling!” She whispered, her voice croaking from the breakdown. Luna thought for a moment, before going into a giggling fit, her left hoof covering her mouth as she did so. Nightmare glared at her lighter counterpart, before asking in a harsh tone, “ What the buck is so funny?!” Luna kept giggling for a few moments before answering, “ Isn’t it obvious? You’re in LOVE with him!” She said, before going back to giggling like a schoolfilly. Nightmare blinked, wiping her tears with her forehoof, before asking in the most confused tone, “ What is love?” Luna stopped giggling suddenly, gaping at Nightmare Moon before her face turned grim, making her darker side shift a little in her spot. The Night Princess asked, her tone low, with confusion and disbelief coloring her voice, “ YOU don’t know… What LOVE is?” It was quiet, before Nightmare, uncomfortable on how fast her counterpart’s mood shifted, nodded uneasily. Luna stared at her for a few moments, before a gleam entered her cyan eyes. “ I believe We can teach you ALL about it.” *An Hour Later* Luna and Nightmare Moon were sitting in the Royal Lounge, on a dark blue couch, waiting for the pony of the hour to arrive. Nightmare was uncomfortable about meeting these new strangers that might teach her about what she feels for Jon… Luna was calmly looking through a book, humming a light tune under her breath as she did so. When the time hit 2AM, the door slammed open and standing there was… Two pink Alicorns with purple, magenta, and yellow mane colors, their cutie marks are the exact same; A teal crystal heart inside golden lace… Luna blinked before tilting her head, Nightmare doing the same thing, “ Pray tell niece, did you have to bring HER into this?” She asked, an eyebrow raised with a little bit of grump in her tone. One of the pink Alicorns spoke up, a look of outrage on her face that was definitely NOT befitting a Princess. “ Hey! I get by, alright?! Besides, Cadance contacted ME to accompany her!” She said, her eyes glowing green for a split second. Nightmare looked at the other Alicorn, Cadance, before speaking the question going through her mind, “ Why are there two of you?” Cadance, the REAL Cadance, squealed in delight before wrapping her hooves around the Night Queen’s barrel. Nightmare flinched at the sudden contact, before looking down at the Princess Of Love with an eyebrow raised. Then she looked at Luna with a confused expression, making the Princess Of The Night shrug with an amused smile. Nightmare’s eyes narrowed at her counterpart, Oh she is gonna regret that! She thought with anger as Cadance pulled back. " Oh, I heard so many good things about you! Then I got Auntie Luna’s message about someone with love problems that needed my expertise.” Cadence said, not once stopping for breath. Nightmare blinked for a second, staring down at the pink Alicorn mare, taken aback by how fast she spoke without breathing at a rate that would’ve made a certain pink mare jealous. In Ponyville, Pinkie Pie sneezed, before her eyes narrowed with a frown. " Somepony’s talking about me behind my back!” She said, before turning to the right and stared at you, the reader with a big happy grin on her face. " You go back to the main story now! Nothing to see here!” Nightmare sat down on the red velvet couch, staring between Luna, Cadence, and Queen Chrysalis, who transformed back into her original form and was sitting next to Cadence and Luna on the blue couch across from her. All three of them were staring at her with expectant smiles… Nightmare shifted, a little uncomfortable at the states the three were giving her. " What?” She snapped, wanting nothing more than to be done with whatever they’ve got planned. Cadence eyes her up and down, tilting her head from side to side, before smiling even more, " I’m trying to figure out who you are in love with, and why.” She answered, then got up from her spot and started pacing between the two couches. " When did you meet this stallion? Did he do something that made you drawn to him?” She asked, her eyes shut in concentration, her horn glowing with her light blue signature of magic. Nightmare thought back to that day, when she and Jon just met. " I broke into his home, trying to find a place to sleep for the night because I didn’t have any Bits on me, when suddenly I heard a noise coming from the main warehouse--” She said, but was interrupted. " Warehouse?” Luna asked, her eyes slightly narrowing. Nightmare shrugged, before answering truthfully. " Jon woke up on the rooftop and saw that it was abandoned, and he didn’t want to deal with the authorities because he has a deep distrust of them going to conclusions before explanations.” Cadence only hmmed, still pacing back and forth. " I panicked and tried to run, but I forgot the stairs leading up to the living area was rusted and they fell apart beneath my feet.” Nightmare continued. " I was falling about a 15 foot drop that would’ve made me have a broken bone at the very least, before something wrapped around my waist and stopped my descent suddenly.” Cadence stopped and looked at Nightmare, eyes pleading her to continue. " I heard a voice speak out from behind me, and was turned around by whatever grabbed me. There he was…” Nightmare trailed off, thinking back to how heroic and villainous he looked in the moonlight and shadows of the dark warehouse, his trench coat billowing with the lens of his Actuators piercing in the darkness, his bright blue eyes shining with power and kindness mixed with concern staring into hers, asking who she was and what she was doing in his home. Nightmare snapped out of her trance by the sound of giggling and turned towards the source, glaring darkly at the Changeling Queen who was giggling by a holed hoof. " You’ve got it BAD, Nightmare. That was when you first met him and you described how beautiful he looked despite his appearance.” Chrysalis said, her poisonous green eyes glowing with mirth. Nightmare was about to retort, before Cadence spoke up once again sitting on her haunches in front of the former Night Queen. " It sounds like a ‘Love-At-First-Sight’ scenario to me. I believe you don’t even need my help on loving this Jon.” She said with a smile, her eyes slightly shimmering with her magic. Maybe she is seeing my aura? Nightmare thought. " Nightmare.” Cadence said, catching the mare’s attention, " There is only one thing you can do about whatever you’re feeling…” Nightmare leaned forward, almost nose to nose with the young Alicorn, her draconic slits narrowed with anticipation. “Tell him…” Cadence said, a smirk on her face. Nightmare reeled back, blinking at the blunt statement. Then her eyes narrowed. " That’s it?” She asked, skeptical about this. Cadence’s smirk became a heartwarming smile. " That’s it.” She repeated. Nightmares eyes dropped down to the floor, quiet for a few moments, before her shoulders slumped and responded with a whisper. " But what if he rejects me?” She said, her voice cracking. Cadence’s smile faded, before concern flashed into her eyes, glance at Luna and Chrysalis who had the same look of emotion at the feared mare being fearful of rejection from the first pony that she could call friend. Cadence looked back at Nightmare before placing an armor clad hoof on the taller mare’s shoulder, which made the taller mare look up and into her eyes with tears shimmering in hers but not dropping down her cheeks yet. Cadence spoke, with fierce determination, " Then you move on. Remain friends so you don’t lose each other. That’s the only thing he and you could do.” Nightmare stared at Jon’s shuddering form sleeping on the bed with a determination that would’ve made anyone blink in surprise. She was debating this for the last hour, staring at the person of her affections in severe concern at whatever must’ve caused this affliction in him. She was trying to remember if he got injured in the past that must’ve gotten snuck in. That’s when her eyes widened at something that occurred to her, from when she first met Jon… ***** Jon’s form was suspended in the air by the bottom Actuators with the top ones poised to attack. His body was covered in cuts and scratches as he faced a woman with vines and thorns. His face locked with determination despite the agonizing pain he must’ve been feeling, despite the various scratches and small cuts grazing his flabby torso. ****** Nightmare whispered, her voice echoing, " Could it be that simple? That when he told me he faced Gaia Everfree herself, all he got was a couple of scratches and a couple bruised ribs…” Nightmare looked closer at his chest and saw a small healed diagonal scars from the big vines that Gaia Everfree whipped at him. “Could the infection have got in from those wounds?” She whispered, with a small crack. Her body shook, but not with anger, but with disgust, disgust at herself for being blind. Tears were falling down her cheeks as she held back the sobs that tried to claw out of her throat. “How could I have not seen this?!” She said, her fangs gritting hard as she started to pace, her thoughts spinning a million miles a second. After a few minutes of pacing at the end of Jon’s bed, she stopped then whirled around to face the sleeping stallion, staring at his rising and falling chest with a faint bit of effort, his body trying hard to keep him alive as much as possible. Nightmare quietly trotted to his side, on a large empty space of his bed and carefully climbed on, making sure to not make too much movement, avoiding his Actuators that were curled around him. She stared at his back, wishing that he would turn around and smile at her, but she knew it was fruitless with this damned infection slowly killing him. Nightmare took a deep breath, then slowly wrapped her forehooves around his thick barrel, pulling his sleeping body towards her. Jon shifted until his head was snuggled against Nightmare’s chest, breathing a sigh of contentment as her head was placed above his, breathing in her scent as he dreamed. Nightmare’s dark cheeks glowed with tomato red at him sniffing her, but felt a burning warmth in her chest at how perfect he seemed to her, how she knew that he’ll keep her safe if she was in danger. True, she never really saw him mad, tired, yes. Frustrated, absolutely. But never angry or filled with hatred at everyone around him. It is what she… loved about him… Now that she thought about it, Nightmare Moon can truly feel like she can say that she has more than friendship in mind with Jon Whalen… She closed her eyes after inhaling, taking in Jon’s scent of wood and metal, mixing along perfectly with the smell of lilies and bluebells. It was truly intoxicating to her… Nightmare smiled, then let the magic of Luna take her to the Dream Realm…
Previously...Previously on The Metal Armed Hero… The 300lbs boy looked at the tall covered object in the corner of the room, excited to see his new gift work. He was going as Doc Ock From Spider Man 2, the one where Alfred Molina acted as. He always watched that movie when he was a kid and still does watch it every now and again. As soon as the pain decreased in his spine from the needle injectors, he felt four minds connect to his, and the arms came out of their hold sockets of the platform, and rose in the air with a mental thought, looking around with their sinister blood red sensor lights. He looked towards the man and said, “ How much are these?” The old man smiled, “ It's free. Try it on, it might fit ya.” Then all he saw last, was a bright light surrounding him, and the gleeful smile on the Merchant’s face… The next thing that Jon knew was waking up. The door to the classroom opened, and in came a man wearing a white buttoned up shirt and a red bow-tie with suspenders, a pair of black slacks that fit him, brown hiking boots, a belt, and a black vest and trench coat. His blue eyes scanned over the students with a sharpness nobody has ever seen. The actuators sprawled themselves around him in a sort of relaxed manner. One of them was laying down across his lap, him running his hand over its sinuous body, making it hum in a sort of purr. The other three were sprawled over the top of the couch and one on the ground. The bus drove down the dirt road leading into the mountains and dense forest. The bus was full of Canterlot High students who were listening to the two Principals as the two siblings spoke of their time at the Camp. Jon was sitting in the back, reading JAWS on a hardback cover that he brought from the library to read, while his bottom right actuator was hidden from sight as it went up the aisle so that he could hear and read at the same time, so he wouldn’t miss any information. He was already accustomed to the Equestria Girls world pretty good to not make a fool of himself, yet it still felt weird. Twilight took note that when Mr. Whalen’s back was turned, she saw a small red light peek from a tiny hole in the trench coat. When she blinked, it was gone. She made a mental memo to find out if she saw something that was real, or she was losing her mind again... It was a weird feeling for him, being called father, let alone being called it by four sentient mechanical arms that are attached to his spine. He looked at the actuator that spoke to him, albeit sheepishly in possible fear of her father’s reaction, “ Someone almost spotted you? Who?” At the answer, he chuckled and shook his head, “ Of course, Twilight Sparkle. You need to be more careful, I don’t want to cause mass panic at the sight of you four, not because your ugly, you’re beautiful, so stop looking at me like that. But because they sometimes don’t understand new things, they fear new things that they don’t understand, whether it is natural, man made, or alien-like.” Then he put his hand against his face and sighed, I guess this is what it’s like to be a father. He thought as he finished, “ Just be more careful in the future, I don’t want to lose my four daughters that I just met.” The four voiced their agreement with loud clicks and quiet screeches. Luna thought about something as he talked, How does he know? We only met a week ago, either he’s a creepy stalker or is really good at reading people. Jon snorted as he saw the slightly dazed look in Luna’s eyes, I bet she’s wondering how I know what she’s going through. He’s gonna have to go into the possibly wolf infested forest, isn’t he? A scenario popped into his head and his eyes shot open, his blue irises glowing with primal fury. I wonder what Mr. Whalen is hiding? The only way he shows true emotion is through me and Lulu. Yet he acts as if he has a positive and professional mask on to everyone else, or just doesn’t talk about his family life in general. What is that about? She thought. Celestia’s eyes widened, as did every other person in the room as they laid eyes on the four metal arms snaking and whirring about in the air above Jon’s head attached to his back, looking around at them with red lights. The top right actuator lowered it’s head and looked at him, its red camera lens gleaming at him, We will not fail, father. She spoke, a light yet slightly squeaky voice replied back. We can do this. Jon stared at the speaking actuator for a second before his eyes lit up and nodded sharply. Jon chuckled, glad that worked and turned back to the campsite and smiling at the way everyone is helping each other to fix up the dock, and the Lodge. He was interrupted by a throat clearing and turned to look at the two people beside him. Celestia and Luna were looking at him with deadpan expressions and similar looks in their eyes that told him, ‘You have a lot to explain for.’ Father, One of the actuators said to his mind, a shy stuttering child’s voice emanating, do you not like us anymore? Jon recoiled back as if he was slapped in the face, “ No!, nononono! Of course I do, I was being sarcastic, sweetheart. It’s just…” Then he heard guffaws, and he whirled around, glaring at Celestia and Luna who were laughing at him, “ It’s not funny! You try being a father of four!” The conversation turned to Celestia asking something, “ Mr. Whalen, I want to offer you something.” After a few moments, Celestia drew a breath and asked, “ Would you like to be part of our family?” At those words, Jon froze, his brain gears screeched to a halt burning with smoke and smelt like burning rubber. Jon stared at the familiar woman with the cat eyes looking at him in fear and exhaustion. He spoke, a stern tone in his voice, “ Who are you? What are you doing in my home?” “ Nightmare Moon, my good sir. My name is Nightmare Moon.” And Now With The Conclusion... Author's Note I have finally began on working this sequel for Metal Armed Vigilante! It's a work in progress, practically the bare-bones right now, but expect a longer story as well as maybe longer chapters. It's gonna take me awhile to get this story going since I have been infected with Writer's Block. Stay Tuned for the First Chapter! TOODLES!!!
Chapter 07: Nightmare Meet Nyx, Dinner, & The Punisher…Chapter 07: Nightmare Meet Nyx, Dinner, & The Punisher… The two incarnations of the same mare stared at each other for a full minute, blinking owlishly as they took in their similarities and details of the other, Tia and Jon sitting on the sidelines with amused and tired grins and a bowl of popcorn. Wait… Where did you get that popcorn? I WANT SOME!... Anyways… “...Wow…” Nyx muttered under her breath as she took in the, admittedly curved body of her original incarnation, her black furred cheeks glowing pink. Nightmare Moon tilted her head to the left a tiny bit as she examined what may be the filly version of herself. But how could that be possible? She questioned herself. “Well, I’d hate to interrupt, but I believe introductions are in order?” Jon smirked, his tired eyes glowing dimly in the shadows of the dark room, his flabby equine body slouching just a tiny bit and leaning against Tia’s side. Nightmare Moon felt a sliver of worry settle into her heart at the sight of his eyes looking tiredly at the world… Nyx, being the sorta filly who wanted to introduce herself to new potential friends ( or allies, if you wanna get paranoid), she smiled and stuck out her hoof at the taller version of herself. “ Hi! I’m Nyx! Nice to meet you!” Said the beaming filly, her fangs and molars shining white in that adorable grin people love so much. Nightmare Moon blinked down at her again for a second, before lifting her left forehoof and gently bumped it against the smaller hoof. “ It is nice to meet you too, Nyx. But I guess you already know who I am?” Said the Alicorn with a small smile. Nyx nodded, not a sliver of hesitation or nervousness to be shown. Either she’s really brave or naive. Nightmare thought. Tia got up from beside Jon, making sure he stayed upright without wobbling and trotted over to the small filly, smiling softly. “ My name is Celestia Faust. It is nice to meet you, Nyx.” She got lower to the ground as she introduced herself, making sure to not frighten or make Nyx uncomfortable. After a small hesitation, Nyx smiled and stuck out her hoof, which Tia bumped her right hoof against in greeting. She was still wary of the Princess lookalike, but she was willing to get to know this Celestia, who seemed more relaxed than the Princess. “ I guess we don’t have to wait to introduce each other later tonight, I take it?” Said a familiar voice at the door. Nightmare, Tia, and Nyx jumped and turned to the still open doorway, towards whoever spoke. Standing there with a motherly smile, was Princess Celestia in all of her glory. Alongside her was Princess Luna, and Twilight Sparkle, who was trotting over to Jon, who weakly smiled at the lavender Alicorn with tired eyes. “ Hey Ms. Sparkle. Glad to see you again, AND in better circumstances.” Twilight’s eyes scrunched in concern, looking at the black veins pulsating under the earth pony’s coat. She snapped out of her very small daze on whether or not to get her former Science teacher to the Hospital Wing of the castle, and smiled in return. “ It’s good to see you again as well, Professor Whalen.” She said, letting Rosie coil around her small barrel and nuzzled her cheek, nuzzling the Actuator in return. It’s been awhile since she saw her teacher and the Actuators… Jon’s form slightly straightened from it’s slouched position, staring at her with seriousness on his face, but she could see the amusement in his sunken blue eyes. “ Please, Ms. Sparkle, call me Jon when we’re outside of the classroom. Besides…” he lifted his left forehoof to gesture around the room, “ We’re not in school now, are we?” Smiling, Jon wrapped his forehoof around the back of Twilight’s neck, and pulled her into his wide chest, her head carefully tucked under his chin. “ It’s good to see you again, Twilight. You had me worried.” He whispered, his throat going dry for talking this much. Twilight returned the hug and smiled as the Actuators did the same with gentleness. “ Not as much as you are worrying me now.” She pulled her head back, worry crossing her eyes as she took a closer look at the black veins. Jon snorted, pulling himself out of the hug as he looked at his right hoof in interest as one of the veins pulsated in his movement. “ All I feel is sluggish, and weak. Hopefully, whatever this is goes away without any complications.” Twilight sighed, feeling like that would not be the case. “ Hopefully…” The sound of a clearing throat behind them snapped them out of their conversation and they looked towards the perpetrator… Luna was smirking as Jon’s eyes moved towards her star filled mane, but ignored the childish curiosity, she was used to such things during Nightmare Night. She turned to Twilight, her voice gentle, yet authoritative,. “ We should escort Mr. Whalen and our guests to supper, to get their strength up.” Twilight nodded after hearing Jon’s stomach growl, causing Nightmare Moon, who sidled over to his side, to lightly giggle. Hahaha. Laugh at the tired and sick stallion whose hungry, why don’t you? Jon grumbled internally. The walk there was quiet, and the air with thick with an emotion that Jon couldn’t put a finger on, much less know. He wasn’t really good at interpreting emotions, much less knowing and expressing specific ones… Celestia and her counterpart were trotting side by side and speaking to each other in low tones that he couldn’t pick up. Luna and Twilight and Nyx were hanging back to make sure Jon and Nightmare don’t fall behind, Twilight with concern on her face, Luna with a small frown at the sight of her evil counterpart walking in front of her and close to the stallion with four metal arms attached to his spine, Nyx humming a small diddly tune under her breath that reminded Jon of Little Nightmares. She even had the same voice as Six, which is ASTONISHING! Nightmare was trotting at a slow pace next to him, a wing carefully wrapped around his back so that the Actuators can move with ease without harm. She had concern and a protective tensity in her body that came up whenever they passed a Royal Guard, her lips turned in a small frown as her eyes took in every detail of the halls and corners they were taking. She was never like this before, I wonder what made her like this? Jon thought, his body slowly moving with more ease at every minute. The more he moved, the more normal he felt… Maybe the cure was to keep moving?... ...Nah, that would be too easy! The group came up to a set of double doors and Celestia lit her horn, the door handles glowing the same bright yellow color of her magic, and the doors opened wide. The sight that introduced them to was a large long table that was centered with about 10 chairs, 4 on each side, and one on either end. It was slightly modest to note that there weren’t any throne chairs stationed at the table. The table itself was a bright oak, with a small glaze that made it shine in the evening light, making it look new. Celestia took her spot at one end, Luna on the other, the rest of the group followed with random abandon on spots in the middle of the table. ...Somehow, Nightmare was sitting next to Jon, and Nyx placed between the two. Jon’s eyes went slightly blurry for a second before clearing up with the slight bout of lightheadedness, but he didn’t mention it to anyone, not wanting to worry them… It was his problem that he got sick with whatever this disease is, it was his job to fix it… What he didn’t notice was Nyx looking at him with worry as he slightly shook his head with eyes shut tight for a second to clear his mind. Nightmare kept an eye on her friend/roommate during the time the group conversed, worried that Jon was about to fall unconscious at any given moment. She could tell that her younger counterpart and the others were doing the same… While she was grateful that the other ponies cared for his well being even though they just met him, there was that small pang of a feeling going through her body at the thought of them caring about Jon more than her. Nightmare contemplated what the feeling was, but couldn’t find an answer to what that specific feeling is, except that it was familiar… Shaking her head, she turned back towards the delicacy that sat in front of her; chicken Caesar salad with light vinegar dressing. Ignoring the slightly disturbed looks from Twilight, she daintily dug in, careful to keep her mouth shut like Jon taught her a few times. Jon took small bites of his, chewing slowly as he tried the Daisy flowers that garnished his salad. Not bad… He thought with approval as he took another bite. It was a quiet dinner, except for the noisy chewing from Nyx, who ate her food with gusto, ignoring the amused looks from those around her, until… “Nyx.” Said Jon, his voice gentle. Said fully looked up, cheeks adorably bulging with wide innocent eyes that would cause anyone to have a heart attack. Jon smiled lightly, a look of amusement as he continued speaking, " Can you please eat slower? You don’t want the hiccups, do ya?” He said the last part with a sly smirk. Nyx nodded her head up and down, before swallowing, a faint hue of pink on her cheeks from embarrassment. “Sorry, Mr. Octavius.” She said, ducking her head a little. Ignoring the looks of confusion at his ‘name’, he smiled more, " It’s ok, everyone forgets their manners at such exquisite food.” He winked. Nyx smiled as she thought over what Jon said, before nodding and eating her dinner with a more normal pace and keeping her mouth shut. Twilight was intrigued, “Wow. I didn’t know if you could do that!” She exclaimed. Celestia, who was silent for some time during dinner, spoke, “Mr. Whalen, or Octavius. I am curious… How did you come by Nightmare Moon in your world?” There was a small gleam in her eyes suggested that she was actually curious, and not interrogating. Jon shrugged, Why not? He thought as he began the story of how he and Nightmare met that one night… After explaining the story and boring details of him teaching his friend the basics of human etiquette, Celestia was satisfied in his answer. Luna was more curious about something else… “Pray tell, Mr. Whalen, on how you have four metal constructs attached to your back that seem to act… sentient?” She asked. At the curious looks everyone except Tia, Nightmare and Nyx were giving his daughters, Jon smiled, feeling more normal by the second as he explained how he got them, leaving out the small details of transporting dimensions and foreknowledge of both worlds. Luna was still curious about something though… So she asked, Are you a threat to anypony, if you thought about it?” It was said in the most innocent way possible, but it made Jon freeze at the out-of-the-blue inquiry. After thinking it over for a minute, which garnered a couple of suspicious looks from Twilight, and slightly narrowed eyes from the Princesses, he answered truthfully, " To be honest, if there was a truly good reason to go against the world? Yes. Yes, I might be.” He lifted a shaking right forehoof at the protests of Nyx and Nightmare, Twilight watching with wide eyes at his answer, " But… Only if there was a great reason to be like losing a family due to someone’s mistakes.” Celestia raised a delicate eyebrow at this, " You sound like you’re speaking from experience, Mr. Octavius--” Jon interrupted, " Please, call me by my given name. Jon or Otto, either one will do. Mr. Makes me sound old.” He shuddered. Celestia giggled lightly, and answered, “Alright, so long as you call us by ours.” She gestured to Herself, Luna, and Twilight. Jon nodded and continued speaking his previous explanation. “Anyways, there’s a person in my world named Frank Castle, an ex-Marine. Think of him like a guard on the frontlines.” He elaborated at seeing the confused looks. " He was doing an illegal ops ordered by a higher government, but it turns out that the leading agent turned on the group of Marines, and everyone close to them or they themselves died, or “disappeared”. “All except one… Nyx, can you guess?” Smiling towards the attentive filly. “Frank Castle?” She guessed. Jon nodded, " Correct! Good job Nyx.” Nyx blushed and smiled sheepishly, electing laughter from the group of ponies around her, including her mother. Nightmare giggled behind her hoof, remembering the times when Jon got into his “Professor” persona. “Frank’s family died by the hands of the leading Agent, and a close friend of his, Billy Russo. He watched as his family got killed in cold blood, his wife, and his daughter and son…” The last part got many shocked gasps and enraged looks from the listening group, even a couple sad looks from Princess Celestia and Luna. Tia only gave him a comforting look, regretting to sit a little bit aways from her brother… Jon smiled back gratefully, clearing his throat and sipped a little bit of water before continuing, " Everyone thought that Frank died with his family, but it turns out he survived…” " He wanted to avenge his family, make the wrongdoers pay for what they did to his family, so he took on an alias: The Punisher.” The name made fur on the back of the groups’ stand up and a shiver of dread crawl down the spine of Nightmare. " The Punisher, he has a motto, one that he took from a storybook that he read to his daughter before her death. One Batch, Two Batch, Penny And Dime.” " He takes care of the evil that festers in the world, that people ignore. From rapists to murderers, from pedophiles to mobsters, but he doesn’t keep them alive. He kills them.” Jon said the last part with a serious face, " He doesn’t give second chances to criminals. So if he so much as hears a peep of a very dirty thing, The Punisher comes and takes care of that wrongdoer.” It was silent for awhile, the dinner abandoned in lieu of the story about The Punisher. " He has a symbol to let you know who he is. A white skull on his chest to give a vibe of death, to strike fear into the hearts of bad people. It’ll be the last thing you’ll see if you do something very, very wrong.” Jon finished, before taking a bite from his salad. It was quiet for the rest of the evening, before the silence was broken by Celestia clearing her throat, grabbing everyone’s attention, " I believe it is time we turn in, my little ponies. Get some rest, we have a long day ahead of us.” She said, getting up from her seat. Luna followed, and trotted side by side of her sister to raise the moon and begin her nightly duties. Jon sluggishly got up from his seat, legs wobbling like crazy, before he started falling to the floor. Someone caught him, grunting at his dead weight on their side, and Jon looked up with bleary eyes to see who he fell against. Nightmare looked down at him with pink cheeks as he felt his fur on hers, causing a shock to go through her. She adjusted her body and lifted Jon onto her back with her magic, carefully placing him between her wings, opening her flight appendages slightly to make herself comfortable. She looked back at her friend and smiled lightly as she saw that the large stallion was fast asleep, his Actuators coiled around his body, as if protecting their father from the dangers of the world while he slept. He looks more peaceful asleep. She thought as she followed after Twilight Sparkle to the guest room, worrying about what the future will hold with Jon’s sickness. Now if only she could find out what the hay is happening to her whenever he’s around! Author's Note A/N: Sorry For not Updating My Stories In A Long Time, Folks! Life Just Keeps Getting In The Way! I Will Try And Figure Out What The Next Chapter and Future Chapters Will Entail, But I'm Coming Up With Blank At The Moment. If You Guys And Gals Have Any Suggestions, Lemme Know On What It Is, The only Rule is That It Is Something That Can Progress The Story Even Further. Hope You Guys Are Hyped And Still With Me Through These Stressful Times, And I'll Talk To You All Later! TOODLES!!!
