Digimon Equestrian Frontier

It's been a whole month since the battle with Okuwamon, and things have been thankfully not too crazy. While there have been a few mishaps with rogue Digimon here and there, but thankfully with Fluttershy’s, Agumon’s and Gabumon’s help, I've been less stressed. A lot has changed besides the extra help. For starters, the ponies in town have gotten used to having the Digimon walk among them, and some would even greet them. Second would be my new training. Seeing after what happened with Okuwamon, I decided that I need more formal training, and just as I told Applejack, I went and sought out Dinohyumon. He was more than willing to train me and teach me the way of the warrior as he would call it. While I'm no master I can fight more effectively thanks to the belt I got for my birthday and my training, even managed to take down a champion Digimon without spirit evolution.

And even though Big Mac returned to work, I still offered to lend a hand down at Sweet Apple Acres. Applejack tried to pay me, but after the amazing birthday gift, she and the others gave me, I wasn't going to accept money from her. Applejack being herself was also stubborn about not paying for my hard work. I declined being paid in bits and made an offer with her to be instead with a few meals from her family's famous apple recipes. Applejack seemed adamant at first but was willing to agree. So from time to time I would help around the farm and get rewarded with a delicious home-cooked meal, though I didn't notice that anytime I was over Apple Bloom would look a bit nervous for some reason and I wasn't sure why. Come to think of it Scootaloo and Sweetie Belle have been acting the same way too, oh well.

On a more political note, I started to try and figure out who this "Queen" that TigerVespamon and those other Digimon mentioned was. My only possible lead was when Twilight suggested that it might be Queen Chrysalis, the former ruler of the Changelings. Unfortunately, no one had seen her since she lost her throne. I wanted to pay a visit to King Thorax and the kingdom of the Changelings to see if I could get any clue or possible leads on Chrysalis whereabouts. Unfortunately, that would have to wait due to a law that I wasn't currently aware of. It seems that with my position as ambassador comes with a few picks and some restrictions, one being that I must submit a formal request to visit any other kingdoms and that the time it takes for such requests to be approved. So I have another month before I can travel to the kingdom of Changelings. Other than that not much has changed, I attended another meeting with the same dignitaries from before three days ago, but thankfully they weren't as hostile as before. And much like I requested Dragon Lord Ember and Prince Rutherford have reported that a few Digimon villages have popped up, but like before they haven't attacked and the Digimon seem to cause no trouble. And then there was King Godfrey, he just growled and grunted like last time, but I think that's just how he acts.

Now let’s get back to the present. I was in my private studies writing down my usual report to Celestia informing her of all that has happened. Once I finish and read it over, I moved over to my fireplace and grabbed a pinch of dust that was in a tray that hung above it. I threw the small amount of dust into the fire turning the flames from red to green. I tossed the letter into the flames, watching the letter turn into dust and fly up into the chimney.

"Well now that's taken care of I can finally relax." I had today off from training due to Dinohyumon and Grizzlymon working on training the other Digimon in the village today. "Time to make me that spicy Italian sub sandwich I've been craving."

Just as I was about to exit my studies, I heard the sound of the flames in the fireplace flicker rapidly. When I went back inside, and a plume of smoke flew out from the fireplace and onto my desk manifesting three objects. The first was a large cloth bag with an image of a bit on it. The second was a booklet of some kind. And the last item was a scroll from Princess Celestia with her seal on it. I started with the scroll seeing as it would probably explain everything.

Dear Jack,

Hope you are doing well in all your endeavors. I am sending this month pay for your work as an ambassador, and I threw in an extra five thousand as thanks for protecting my subjects during your stay. Next, I would like to inform you that tomorrow evening the auction house in Manehattan will be holding one for those of the Nobles or foreign dignitaries. I wasn't sure if you would find anything of interest to you, so I sent a booklet that lists all the items for sale, so you know ahead of time. Sadly neither I or my sister or Twilight will be attending due to official business that we must take care of on Mountain Aris.

Best of luck to you,

Your friend Princess Celestia.

P.s To participate in the auction, you must register the following morning.

Once I had finished the letter, I looked over to the small booklet that Celestia had included. "Hmm, an auction, huh? It's not usually what I would ever consider going to, but it would hurt to look through it now would it?" I took a seat at my desk and picked up the booklet and flipped through the pages to see if anything would pique my interest.

Flipping through the pages, I saw many different items, all of which held little to no interest to me. "Wow not much worth looking at. Let's see, an old Griffin portrait of the old king, a golden scepter with Princess Twilight's head on it…..weird," I flipped to the next page. "The spirit of light, a lamp statue of discord ……..wait what!?" I quickly looked back at the previous item and saw right there a photo of the spirit of light. My mind had so many questions. I looked at the small article to see if there was any information given about it, but all I got was that one, Cabin A Lleron, found it. 'That's a strange name, even for a pony? And yet it sounds familiar, but from where?'

I had no time to waste but quickly remembered that the letter said tomorrow evening. I quickly rummaged through my desk, looking for something important. "Where is that train schedule!!?” I remembered receiving one from Mayor Mare last week in case I needed it. "Ah, here it is!" I pulled out the little pamphlet and opened it and checked to see when the next train would leave. "Let's the next train to leave for Manehattan should at noon." Looking over at my wall clock I saw that it said...”11:50!!! Crap I got no time to lose!!"

Given that Celestia mentioned that I must first register to participate and that it was tomorrow evening, I had no time to waste. I ran to my room grabbed a small luggage bag and filled it with the essentials, a suit for the auction, the bits Celestia just gave me plus an extra five thousand from last month’s pay, my D tector, and digigaunlet. Once I had all that I needed, I checked and saw that there were only seven minutes till the train would level. Running out of my house, I made a beeline straight for the train station.

I bought my tickets and quickly hopped on the train just in the nick of time. I slumped into my seat, relieved that I made the train. But then I quickly realized that I left without telling anyone. I opened my luggage and pulled out my digigaunlet and pressed the buttons needed. "Hello, Fluttershy, you there?"

I waited a moment before I heard her voice. "Hey, Jack, is everything okay?"

"Not exactly. I had to leave town for a bit due to something that came up."

"Oh, is something wrong?"

"Yes and no. Nothing bad had happened, so that's good. However, I just got a lead on a spirit that's being auctioned off in Manehattan. Listen, do you think you can keep an eye on Kotamon and Bearmon for me and protect the town while I'm gone?"

"Of course Jack I'll make sure that everyone is safe and I'll take good care of Kotamon and Bearmon for you."

"Thanks Flutters you're a lifesaver." I placed the digigaunlet back in my bag and relaxed into my seat and closed my eyes. "A little nap will do me some good."

The train came to a quick halt, causing the car to jerk, forcing me out of my seat and onto the floor."Whaaaa!!" I slowly picked myself off the floor and got up. "Are *yawn* we already here?" I glanced out the window and saw that we weren't in Manehattan, but instead Canterlot. "What the heck? I know I bought a ticket that was supposed to take me straight to Manehattan."

I looked around the car and saw one of the conductors walking out, so I grabbed my luggage and followed after him. "Excuse me, sir." He turned to me and gave me a curt nod. "Yeah um, I thought this train was supposed to go all the way to Manehattan?"

He looked a bit discouraged. "Oh well I am sorry sir, but you see a flock of sheep has flocked onto the train tracks ahead and unfortunately we cannot continue forward until they move." He explained while pointing ahead to a large group of white sheep.

"You've got to be kidding me? Well, how long until we can get moving again?" While I didn't want to come off as rude, I’m on a time-sensitive mission.

"I'm afraid it could take more than a few hours sir, but if you come back by then, we should be ready to go."

I facepalmed at me unfortunate luck. And while I could stay and wait for the tracks to clear up, I wasn't fond of the idea of doing nothing. "Okay before I go if I'm not back in time will the train leave?"

"Well sir I don't believe so, we will wait for a good six hours before we can try and depart if the flock leaves before that we will still wait for the six hours. So if you return by then, the train should still be here."

"Great guess I'll go walk around the city." I tried to hide my dread. For, in all honesty, I'm not the biggest fan of its citizens. All the nobles are always acting like they're better than everyone else. It doesn't bother me in a sense that I feel inferior. It just bugs me how stuck up they are. I would have just stayed on the train till it got moving, except.

*GRUMBLE!!*

My stomach decided to voice its demands, considering I skipped breakfast trying to get here. And the food in the catering car didn't seem that appealing to me. So with that in mind, I decided to make my way to restaurants row to see if they had anything decent.

As I had expected my walk to the restaurant district was met with nobles always sticking their noses up in the air when we cross paths. 'If you stick them any further back they'll go right up your ass, pompous fu-"

"LEAVE ME ALONE!!!" I female cry came from an alley to my right.

I quickly ran down the alleyway and around the corner, I caught a glimpse of two stallions cornering a mare against a wall. The Biggest one was an earth pony with tan fur and a bald head wearing a white tank top, and brown khakis moved in closer. "Come on babe all we want is to have a good time."

"Yeah so why don't you stop whining and come with us." The second stallion was a pegasus with tan fur grey hair and wore a black leather jacket and blue jeans.

While the two stallions obscured my vision of the mare, I wasn't going to stand by and let these two do as they please. "Hey, asshats!" I called out as I walk up to the two crooks. "I think the mare is not interested in going with you two."

The leather coat stallion pulled out a knife and pointed at me. "And what are you supposed to be? Some hairless diamond dog?"

"Yeah beat it runt, or else my friend and I will break your scrawny body." The larger stallion threatened while slamming his fist into his palm.

'Did he just call me scrawny?!' I could feel a few blood vessels popping up by that comment. 'I did not go through a whole month of working out, training my body to be in a fit condition to be called SCRAWNY!!!' I moved my hand so that I caught the knife between my index and middle finger, and with a twist of my wrist, it snapped the blade in half. "Alright you two asshats, I'm already having a bad day, what with beginning in a rush to get to Manehattan only to stop in fuckin Canterlot because a dumb flock of sheep stopped the train." I stepped forward, causing the pegasus stallion to back up. "And now I see two lowlifes trying to take advantage of a mare, which has already gotten my blood boiling, but now some dumb prick just called me scrawny!" I was now standing in front of both stallions. "Oh, I'm about to vent some rage today!!"

Your view quickly moves away from the fight. 'Hey, guys Nail here, yeah you’re not going to want to see this as my friend Jack just snapped. I don't blame him either he went through a lot of work to get that bod, don't worry we'll show what his physique looks like on the author notes towards the end...Oh wow, he's whaling into them...is that even supposed to bend that OH!!! Now it does, man that's brutal. Okay, it looks like he's just about done, so I'll let you continue watching. Have fun and please remember to leave a comment down below. Chow.'

I huffed and puffed after fighting with such rage that I may have gone overboard. I turned towards the mare and got a better look at her. She wore a white collared shirt, with the collars being a light purple while wearing a red scarf. She wore a light purple skirt with a red sash. Her mane was teal, and her coat was a cream color. She was also shaking a bit while in a daze, no doubt from witnessing the horrendous beat down I just gave. "Um, are you okay miss?" I tried to break the ice rather than breaking someone's bones. The mare quickly snapped from her trance and looked at me for a second before slowly nodding her head. "Great can you go get a guard while I make sure these guys can't escape." She gave me a slow nod and ran past me and out of the alley.

It took a good three minutes before the mare came back with two guards pony, I told them what happened, and the mare also vouched for me as well. Once the guards had properly detained the thugs, I was about to head back on my trip to restaurant row when I felt a slight tug at my shirt. When I turned, I saw the mare holding onto my shirt with a faint blush on her muzzle. "Is everything okay miss?"

She quickly released my shirt and gave another slow nod before she spoke. "Um, I wanted to say thank you for saving me. If you hadn't come along when you did who knows what those two would have done to me." She was slightly quiet; in a way, she almost reminded me of Fluttershy. "But anyway, I wanted to show my thanks and was hoping to give you a reward."

I held out my hand to protest. "That's not needed; I would have done that for anyone. So please don't feel obligated to do so."

The mare stepped forward, causing to step back in shock. "Oh please I must show my gratitude isn't there-"

*GRUMBLE*

And once again, my stomach voiced its presence. I could feel my face burning with embarrassment as the mare stared at me with a small blush on her muzzle still. "Okay for the record I have money, and I was going down to restaurant row to find a good place to eat when I saw you were in trouble along the way."

The mare giggled a bit which made my face burn that much more in humiliation. "Oh I'm not laughing at you, I just thought of a way to repay you for saving me." She reached forward and took my hand in hers as she started to guide me. “I know this perfect place to eat at that's much better than all of the snobby noble’s restaurants, c'mon." And with that she started to lead me in pursuit of this amazing place to eat.

After ten minutes of being led by this mare, we finally make it to restaurant row where most of the said restaurants look almost the same, even taking a peek inside through the windows I could tell they were the same. The only key difference was that they either had different colors or different shapes on the walls. But thankfully that neither one of these restaurants is where the mare is taking me. No, we make a turn down an alley where we see a small colorful restaurant with an elephant on the sign while holding a spoon. As we get closer, I could read the name of the establishment. "The Tasty Treat?"

"Mm, this place serves the most amazing dishes on this side of the restaurant row." The mare stops for a second before rubbing the back of her head while giggling. "I'm sorry I forgot to introduce myself earlier. I'm Coco Pommel." She also quickly noticed that she was still holding my hand and immediately let go.

"Well it's nice to meet you, Coco, my name is Jack Owens the pleasure is all mine. “I give a small bow, and in another second, a fragrant smell entered my nostrils, making my mouth slightly water. "Mm, what is that heavenly aroma?"

Coco giggled again and moved to open the door. "That would be the tasty treats inside."

"Oh, I saw what you did there." I chuckled, lightly, as we made our way inside.

Inside is just as colorful as outside. The roof had curtain like drapes hanging above, while there were wooden tables with lovely cushioned chairs, and the aroma fills my nose, causing me to smile without resistance. A short slightly plump stallion with mustard colored fur, a dark magenta mane, and mustache walked from behind the counter on the far side of the room with a big smile and gave us a small bow. “Welcome to the Tasty Treat!!' His enthusiasm was infectious as I smiled and bowed back. "It's good to see you in town Ms. Pommel, would you like your normal seating?"

Coco nodded. "Yes, one booth for two please."

Holding out his hand to guide Coco and me in the direction in which he's pointing to. "My daughter will be with you shortly to see what you would like to eat." The bell above the door jingled signaling that another set of customers had arrived. "If you'll excuse me." He bowed before going on to address the next customers.

"So you're a frequent customer here?" I asked, wanting to get to know my new friend a little better.

She nodded happily. "Mm, I always come here whenever I'm in Canterlot."

I quirked a brow at this "So you’re not from Canterlot?"

"Nope, I'm actually from Manehattan. I’m here because I was delivering some dresses to a friend of mines Boutique, she has three, and I work on the one in Manehattan. And I was on my way here when those two thugs cornered me. But thanks to you, I’m safe."

"Well, I'm happy to help anyone in need. So what are you going to do after this?"

"I was planning on doing some more sightseeing, maybe catch a play or two. What about you, Jack?" She asked while resting her head on her hands.

"Well I was going to grab a bite to eat and head back to the train station, I'm heading to Manehattan to participate in an auction. But a flock of sheep is currently blocking the way, so I have to wait." Coco giggled into her hands. "What's so funny?" I asked, curious as to why she was laughing.

"Oh , it's just that's not the first time that has happened, and I’m sure it's not the last." She giggled again, and even I couldn't help but get out a snicker or two.

While we were talking a mare with a light yellow shirt with light blue pants came to our table, she had orange fur, dark magenta mane, and eyes; she wore gold earrings. "Good evening, I'm Saffron Masala...oh it’s you, Coco, welcome back." She glances over to me then back to Coco with a smirk. "And I see you've managed to bring your coltfriend."

Coco understandably blushed which easily showed against her cream coat. "N-no h-he just a friend." She waved her hand, trying to clear the misunderstanding.

"Yeah, we just met today, and she was showing me a good place to eat. Speaking of that, may I see your menu?" I asked, trying to help calm down Coco.

Saffron hands us two menus, which makes me wonder why the host didn't do that earlier. Looking through the menu, I saw a good amount of dishes that I think I would enjoy. One dish I saw that piqued my interest. 'Chicken curry?' I recently learned that ponies do eat chicken, but only for nutritional value. "Yeah, I'll have the chicken curry please."

Once we placed our orders Coco and I patiently wait for our meals. "So you work at a Boutique, my friend Rarity owns."

Coco's eyes lit up a bit as she leaned in. "Your one of Rarity's friends?" I nod my head. "I'm working at her shop in Manehattan."

I was surprised too. "Wow, no kidding? Talk about a small world."

Soon Saffron walked back with our meals, for Coco she got veggie curry. While for me, I had chicken curry. I've never actually had this kind of dish, though I'm no stranger to spicy meals and I've even tried the regular curry. The meal looked simple enough. White rice covered in a curry colored soup with pieces of skinless chicken meat. But oddly enough I don't see any other ingredients like vegetables. I take my spoon and scape up a bit of the soup to taste it, bringing it to my lips I open my mouth and taste the soup, and my only thoughts were… ‘Holy hell that's spicy!!' I quickly grabbed my cup of water and guzzled the whole thing down soothing my taste buds. I huffed trying to cool down my mouth, even more, all the while Coco was giggling into her hands at my antics. I took another spoonful of my meal this time getting rice with my curry. As I shoved the spoon into my mouth, expecting to feel the burning sensation from before, I was surprised. The taste has mellowed no doubt thanks to the rice, and I'm able to taste a savory taste that I could pick up on while eating the soup alone. It's not that there aren't any other ingredients inside, but that they were in the soup. I take another spoonful making sure to pick up a piece of the chicken. The moment the meat reaches my tongue, it immediately dissolves, it was nice and tender and needed no additional chewing to break down.

Once we finished our meal, I left satisfied. I've never had a dish that was so flavor-packed that I couldn't stop eating until it was all gone. I would go as far as to say that this may be the best curry dish of them all. Soon Saffron returned with our check, Coco was about to pull out her money bag, but I quickly beat her to the pouch paying for both of us. She gave a rather shocked expression, probably not expecting me to pay for her as well. "Consider it my way of saying thanks for showing me to this place; I might have a reason to come to Canterlot now."

Though reluctant, she accepted my offer. Before Saffron left, Coco stared at the beautiful chef looking confused. "Is everything alright, Saffron? You look upset."

The chef quickly snapped her head to attention as she was in a daze. "O-oh yes I'm fine, it's just…" She looked away with a sad expression. "Well, it's just that a few pegasi customers have been requesting for a new dish, one that contains fish and pasta. The only problem is that I've never heard of such a thing, I rarely use fish in any of my other recipes, but one that is also a pasta dish as well." She rubbed her left arm while looking at the floor, defeated. "I'm not sure I can come up with anything."

"Is it that much of a problem. I mean so a few customers don't get what they requested, not every restaurant will have what everyone wants, right?" Coco asked, trying to help ease the chef's nerves.

"It's not that Coco. I can't stand the idea that I couldn't come up with something that would make our customers happy. To me, it feels as though I have failed them. I want to bring joy and happiness with my cooking." Saffron took the seat next to us and buried her face in her hands as a sign of defeat.

"Hmmm….." I hummed to myself while tapping my right foot. "Tell me, Saffron, did they specifically say that the dish could "only" have fish and pasta, or could other ingredients be added?"

Saffron looked up at me, looking up as she thought back to her customer’s request. "I believe they mostly wanted a dish where fish and pasta are the main focus, but other than that I don't believe they specify on just those two. Why do you ask?"

I stand up and do a little stretch to help aid digestion. "Last question. Is there a market place around here where I could buy ingredients?"

The two mares looked to each other as if trying to figure out my plans. "Well, of course, there is one a few blocks north of here but...”

I made my way to the door and turned before exiting. "Just hang on I think I know a dish that might be what you're looking for." That was all I said before I exited the restaurant and made my way north.

I returned within fifteen minutes with bags of ingredients in my hands. "May I borrow your kitchen?" Saffron still confused nodded with hesitation and pointed to the kitchen.

Walking through the doorway that led into the kitchen, I set down the bags of ingredients on the counter, "What are you going to make?"

I smiled and looked back at the two mares. "I'm going to make Tuna Casserole. A dish I learned how to make back on my world." I pulled out all of my ingredients and spread them on the counter. 'Alright Nail why don't you explain what we are up to?'

'Thought you'd never ask. Hello all you readers, Nail here again and with a delicious recipe that you at home can make.

First, you'll need the following ingredients and items

4 cans of tuna (in oil or water whichever you prefer)
1 family size can of cream of mushroom
1 pound of elbow noodles
1 pound of mild cheddar
Salt & Pepper
A large pot to boil your noodles and later mix your ingredients.
And a colander to strain the noodles.

Step 1. Put you noodles to boil for the set time on the package.

Step 2. Remove all lids from your cans so that they are ready to mix in when the noodles are ready to be strained.

Step 3. Once the noodles are cooked properly empty then out into the colander and strain the noodles and put them off to the side for the end.

Step 4. Keep the pot on the stove at medium heat. Then add the four cans of tuna in and stir them around till their a nice light brown.

Step 5. Once your tuna is nice, and brown, add the cream of mushroom next and carefully stir it together. You can add salt and pepper in now or later depending on how you want it to taste

Step 6. Once your tuna and cream of mushrooms are nice and mixed, it's time to add the cheddar. Make sure not to add the whole thing at once. Take small hand fulls and add it in and stir till the cheese is nice and melted in. Repeat this process until you used all the cheese.

Step 7. Once your mix is ready, you can carefully add the noodles into the mix and stir it all together. (Warning if the pot isn't big enough some of the noodles will spill out.

And that is how you make Tuna Casserole!!'

Once I had finished cooking, I grabbed two bowls and served both girls a portion. The gooey and sticky pasta clung to their spoons as they scooped up a part of it. The two mares seemed rather cautious of the new dish as it didn't seem appealing to the eyes. But Saffron decided to take the initiative and placed the spoonful into her mouth. She slowly chewed for a few seconds before her eyes shot open and she hummed in delight swallowing what she had in her mouth before taking another scoop and putting it into her mouth. Her actions didn't go unnoticed as Coco took a bite of her serving and had a similar reaction and indulged in the meal.

Once both had finished their meal, Saffron was the first to comment. "It's delicious! I will admit I was put off by its appearance, but the taste is amazing."

"I agree, I usually would never consider eating fish since it's more of a pegasus thing, but even I must admit that it tasted really good," Coco added.

"I'm glad you like it; it's a recipe my mom taught me when I was younger." The mention of my mother brought back so many wonderful memories of the times we would cook together. But this thought made me wonder if she and my dad are looking for me as we speak.

"Jack!" Saffron shouted, snapping me out of my trip down memory lane. "Are you alright? We had been talking to you for a while, but you wouldn't respond."

I shook my head, trying to clear my mind. "Uh yeah sorry I just got lost in thought is all?" I nervously scratched my head feeling rather embarrassed that I zoned out. "So what were you asking?"

"I was asking if I could put this on our menu, this dish is sure to please the customers, especially the pegasi."

"Oh yeah, sure no problem let me just write down the instructions for you." Saffron ran to the counter in the front and came back with a quill and paper. After writing down the steps and double checking to make sure they are correct and in order, I handed the recipe to Saffron. Checking the time I saw that I only had a good two hours before the train was supposed to leave.

"Well I hate to leave, but my train will probably leave within the next two hours, and I want to make sure I'm on it when it leaves."

Saffron and her father who I learned is Coriander Cumin waved me off, and just as I was about to leave the restaurant I felt my hand gently grabbed. Looking back, I saw that Coco was the one holding my hand. She fidgeted around for a minute staring at the ground before looking up at me. "W-when you’re not busy and have the chance, please visit me in Manehattan. I would go with you if I didn't still have some errands to run while I’m here." She looked away for a moment biting her lower lip. "So will you visit me, I still need to thank you for saving me?"

I had mentioned before that we were even, but something tells me that she won't take that to heart. 'Well, what harm would it do to visit a friend?' I gently held her hand. "Sure thing Coco I'll try and visit when I can, I promise."

Her cheeks started to glow before she finally let go of my hand and smiled at me. "Okay, I'll see you later, I hope."

"Count on it." I waved goodbye one last time before heading out and getting into a light jog back to the train station.

'Dude you are so dense sometimes.'

'What do you mean by that?'

'Forget it. I'd just be wasting my time.' I shrugged it off and continued my jog.

By the time I got to the station, the sheep had finally cleared off the tracks, it was also getting close to night time, which meant I'll probably have to sleep on the train. So rather than sleep on the seat, I paid a bit extra to get one of those luxury cars with a bed inside. If I was going to spend the night on a train, it's going to be in style. I shoved my luggage under the bed, and kicked off my socks and shoes, took off my goggles, my hat, and gloves. Laying down and covering myself up, I started to get comfortable. The gentle chugging of the train car was rather soothing actually, and I found myself slowly nodding off to sleep.

A dark void, that's all I can see. I turned and looked around, trying to see if anything is nearby. "Hello? Is anyone there?" I called out into the dark void.

I tried to turn once more, but my body was no longer responding to my commands. "The hell?" I tried to move any parts of my body but with no result. Soon a blinding light pierced through the darkness and blinded me, causing my eyes to close. The light slowly had dimmed down. I slowly opened my eyes. I was no longer in the dark void, but instead floating the air in some city. Looking around, expecting to see ponies walking around, I was shocked to see that there were humans instead. Upon further inspection, I recognize some of the building as Los Angeles, specifically near the Convention Center where the anime expo they had the anime expo.

"But why am I seeing this now?" I asked no one in particular. I continued to scan the area until I saw something that caught my eye, a black Cadillac that was moving with the flow of traffic. I couldn't put my finger on it, but something about that car seemed familiar. For some reason, I felt compelled to follow this car on its journey, and it would seem my body had agreed with me as I started to follow the car from the air.

The longer I watched this car, the more I felt like I've seen it somewhere before. "But where?" Taking my eyes off the car to see where it was possibly going, I could see the Convention Center up ahead. The car quickly picked up speed as the center was within its sight. It wasn't speeding or cutting through traffic mind you, but it did seem to be in a hurry all of a sudden. "Why the sudden rush all of a sudden?"

I tried to fly in closer, hoping to see the passengers and possibly know why I was watching this car. The car was now crossing the street as the light turned green. Just as I was about to get close enough to see who was driving a loud honking notice came from my right. When I turned, I saw another car quickly approaching out of nowhere. I could barely make out the driver, he was a middle age man with a matted beard, with beer cans scattered across the dashboard of his car. The man honked once more before his car smashed into the back of the black Cadillac, sending said car swerving out control until it crashed straight into a nearby building. The collision was a disaster as the front caught on fire, and for some unknown reason, my heart started to ache with immense pain. Was I feeling guilty for whoever, was in the car, if that was the case, then why do I feel like a part of my heart was torn out.

I wasn't left alone long enough to contemplate this new pain as another horn snapped me from my thoughts. Turning, I could see a large semi-truck heading straight for me. Its load whistling rang in my ears before I feel my body hitting the ground. Upon impact, I woke up inside the train car. I quickly scanned my surroundings, whipping my head side to side as I took in every detail. "It was just a dream?" I sat up straight breathing in trying to calm down. "It was just a dream," I confirmed to myself breathing easier. However, the pain in my chest still stung. I clenched the part of my chest that was above my heart. "Then, why?" I clenched harder as the pain was still there. "Why does it still hurt so much?" I asked myself as a single tear trailed down my cheek.

Looking out the window, I could see that it was still nighttime. However, I could see the sun's light barely creeping over the horizon. Upon further inspection, I could make out the outline of a city where the train will eventually stop. I could tell it would take another two maybe three hours before we arrive. So I got back in my bed and tried to sleep, but the pain I felt in my chest still ached. "What is this feeling?"

When the train had made it to the station, I quickly ran to where I was supposed to go to register for the auction. Next, I went and found myself a hotel to rent and rented a room. Unfortunately, the closest one was two miles away from the auction itself. I took out Celestia's letter and confirmed that the auction would take place at around 6 PM, the current time was 8 AM, so I had ten whole hours to kill. I was still feeling groggy from the train ride, so I choose to go to my room and try and get some more sleep.

I had slept a good four hours; I didn't want to sleep the whole day away as I was acutely curious about exploring this city. When I got outside, I could see skyscrapers towering over me, the busy streets with ponies trying to get to their destination. I had always wanted to visit New York back home, but never got the chance, so in a way, this was the next best thing.

I went to a griffin restaurant to enjoy a meal that actually had meat dishes, not saying that my meal at the Tasty Treat wasn't satisfying, it was just that I enjoyed having a meat dish cooked for me, back home while I did have some of the digimeat I still had to prep and cook it. What can I say I'm a bit lazy and rather have someone else cook?

After eating a satisfying meal, I looked around the big city some more. While it's true, I've never been to the state of New York. I could see some iconic landmarks like this world's version of the Statue of Liberty, the Chrysler Building, and even Madison Square Gardens.

'Uh, dude, have you noticed that too?'

'Noticed what?'

'That Equestria is almost a cut and paste of Earth but with pony puns added in.'

'.....well shit your right. I guess I've been so busy trying to adjust that I didn't take the time to notice.' I scratched my head feeling somewhat stupid.

'Hope no one decided to sue.'

I couldn't help but laugh at the very thought as I strolled around a park. The park itself was beautiful, green grass a clear blue pond with ducks swinging across the water. I found a bench that had a good amount of shade and sat down to enjoy the scenery. There was a nice gentle breeze blew and the sound of birds chirping in the trees. This was a peaceful and relaxing moment right here.

"LEAVE US ALONE!!" Or at least it was before that. I looked around for the source of the yell. Across the pond, I saw two stallions ganging up on a bunch of kids. Oh someone is about to get their flanks kicked today.

Walking backward, I tried to gain some running space. Once I was far enough back, I quickly sprinted forward at top speed, as soon as my feet near the edge of the pond, I jumped as hard as my legs could push me. Thanks to my belt with the gems I easily make it across the pond, and what's more, I was on a collision course with one of the stallions. I adjusted my stance mid-flight so that my right leg was out, and my left leg pulled in. "HEY, JERK!!" I called out getting the stallion attention just before my foot smashed into his face, sending him flying back.

The moment I felt my momentum fading, I twisted my body midair landing on my feet and putting myself between the kids and the last stallion. However, instead of staying to fight me, he ran and picked up his unconscious friend and left. With the threat now taken care of, I turned to the two kids. One was an earth pony filly; she had short hot pink mane and tail, tan fur, and emerald eyes. She wore a long-sleeved shirt with horizontal stripes the strips, were two shades of brown, and green cargo pants. The second was a pegasus colt with a pale white coat with light brown mane; he wore a simple brown long sleeve shirt and white pants. Something about him seems familiar, but I can't seem to put my finger on it.

Casting that thought aside, I knelt to talk to the two foals. "Are you two okay, you didn't get hurt, right?" The earth filly seemed a bit on edge as she started to glare at me something fierce. "Whoa take it easy kid, I'm not here to hurt you." I held up my hands in defense. "Listen I'm not your enemy, my name is..."

"Jack?" The pegasus colt asked while also finishing my sentence.

"Yeah, but how did you know already?"

The colt stepped forward, seeming more relaxed than before. "I'm Featherweight; I'm in the same class as Kotemon and Bearmon. You came to show and tell last week."

"Oh, so that's where I remember you from." Last week Mrs. Cheerilee class was having a show and tell for the student; they were allowed to bring anything or anyone. And Kotemon and Bearmon choose me for their show and tell project, bless their hearts. "Wait if you're from Ponyville then what brings you over here to Manehattan?"

"Oh well, my dad and I are visiting my mom who lives here, see my dad is a masseuse in Ponyville, while my mom works here in Manehattan. Her job requires her to be close, so she had to move here." He then gestured to the filly. "While I was here, I met up with Babs; she's my friend here in Manehattan." He gently nudged her closer to me; she was still looking at me like I was a threat.

'Hold on, Babs? That name sounds familiar.' I tried to remember where I heard that name before. My memories floated to my time back on the apple farm, more specifically, when I worked with Apple Bloom. 'Wait, that's it.` I gave the filly a warm smile. "Your name is Babs Seed, your Apple Bloom's cousin’s right?"

I must have hit the nail on the head since her expression softened. "Wait you know ma cousin Apple Bloom?" She asked in an almost New Yorker accent.

I smiled and nodded. "Sure do, I tend to help out on the farm, and whenever I work with Apple Bloom, she would always mention you."

"Well sorry, fer give ya the stink eye." Babs apologized while looking down and kicking a nearby pebble.

"Nah don't sweat it, I would have done the same after some thugs tried to hurt me. Speaking of which, who were those two goons anyway." I didn't bother to take in their detail due to my quick attack.

"There just a bunch of street thugs who pick on anyone smaller than them," Featherweight added. "Thanks again for helping us, Jack."

I waved it off and stood back up. "It's no problem, but maybe you two shouldn't be out here without perinatal supervision until those guys are behind bars." Both of them nodded and started to walk off to where I presume to be where one of their parents were.

Babs turned to look at me and inhaled deeply. "Thanks for saving us, you looked cool when you kicked that guy, and tell ma cousin I said hi!!"

I chuckled a bit and waved to the two as they left. "Will do!!" Before I turned and left, I saw Babs reach over to hold Featherweight's hand. And even from this distance, I could see his ears burning red. 'Oh...are those two an item? How cute."

I got back to the hotel to change into my suit. While I despise the nobles and their pompous attitude, I wasn't going to give them any chance to insult my wardrobe. I had only thirty minutes till the auction started, I'll admit I was cutting it close. I grabbed my pass and my bits, it felt weird carrying a large bag of coins around, but I didn't have any other means. Though I did recently learn that Equestria does have credit cards. I didn't think to get one since I was so busy, and I had to rush over here. Discomfort aside, I was ready for the auction.

As I was walking down the street that led to where the auction was, and I tried to remember how much the starting bid for the spirit of light. 'I think it was one thousand bits? Quite low, but then again maybe the pony who found it didn't know how much it was worth and just slapped a price on it.' I also took note that I had a good fourteen thousand bits left in my bag. 'That luxury car and hotel room weren't cheap, plus all the time I ate out.'

I was nearly at my destination. The building was just ahead. There were only fifteen minutes left; I was cutting it close. However, just when I think I'm in the clear, I caught something out of the corner of my eye. Two large earth ponies were forcing two nobles down an alleyway. I stared for a moment and weighed my options. 'I mean I don't technically have to help right? I'm not obligated to help everypony I see in trouble. Besides their unicorns, I'm sure they can…' Before I could finish my thoughts, I saw the two earth pony thugs quickly put rings on the two nobles horns. 'Those kinds of rings can’t enable magic! Shit whoever those guys are they know what they're doing.' My time was running out, in only ten minutes the auction would start, and I won't be allowed to take part if I'm late. The two nobles were trying to fight back, but one of the tugs pulled a knife out, causing the two unicorns to fall back into the alley. 'Ah fuck it, I can't stand and watch.' I bolted across the street in pursuit.

I came around the corner where I saw the two earth ponies trying to stick up the two nobles. "Just gives all your bits and nopony gets hurt ya got it?"

'Geez, it's just like with Coco Pommel except for money.' I got a little closer until I was only a foot away. "Hey!" I shouted, getting both.

"What in Tartarus? Is that a hairless monkey in a suit?" The Biggest thug who had a greenish grey coat with an orange mane a tan vest and pants, and a scar over his right eye.

"Hehe looks like it too me. Maybe the circus is in town or something." The second wasn't as tall; he had jet black mane with grayish fur, he wore a pair of sunglasses, a black shirt, and black jeans. He took a glance down to where my bag of bits was. "Hey Brutus check it out, the monkey is loaded."

The larger stallion smiled, turning his attention on me. "Well look at that looks like we hit the jackpot. The boss is going to like this; we'll come out richer even if the stupid statue doesn't get sold. Lucky us, eh Slick?"

'Statute? What are they talking about?' The one known as Brutus stepped forward, cracking his knuckles. "I'll give you guys’ one chance. Leave those two alone and get out of town. Otherwise, you two are going to enter a world of hurt."

The two thugs looked to each other before bursting into laughter, clutching their sides. "Hahaha oh that's rich, you a scrawny little hairless monkey is going to hurt us?" Brutus barked as he slapped his knee. "Tell you what hand over your money and I wo-" I cut his sentence short as I firmly planted my fist into his abdomen causing a small amount of blood to gush out of his mouth.

Brutus doubled over clenching his gut. I grabbed him by the top of his hair and pulled it up, forcing him to look at me. "You used the S word." My gaze is cold, with no hint of mercy in my eyes. "You shouldn't have done that." Wrapping both arms around the back of his head, I forced it down as I drove my right knee to slam into his face. However, it wasn’t over as I continued this process until I was sure that he was unconscious. I lifted his head by the hair on his head; once I saw that his eyes rolled into his skull, I dropped him, letting him fall face first onto the concrete grounds.

I turned my gaze onto the one known as Slick. His body was trembling mess from witnessing the downfall of his friend. "So what was that joke you made earlier about me in a circus?"

The stallion looked around frantically before slipping his hand into his pocket and pulling out his switchblade and holding it out in his shaking hands pointed at my face. "S-stay back, I-I'll use this!"

'Hmm , let's see the last blade I snapped in half with my fingers, well no reason I can't do that twice right?' I raised my hand to grip the blade. I felt a slight sting as the edge of the blade cut into my skin, but with a flick of the wrist, I snapped the blade as easily as the last time. I dropped the broken blade and showed my bleeding hand, but thanks to my belt, the wound easily started to heal. The sunglasses slipped down the stallion’s muzzle, allowing me to see the terror in his eyes. I pulled back my arm back and clenched my fist before thrusting it forward and smashing my knuckles into Slick's cheek, sending him slamming against the nearby wall knocking him out.

I walked over to his unconscious body and whipped the blood of my hands with his shirt. I turned to the two nobles expecting looks of terror or disgust. Instead, they were rather calm when looking at me. Both were unicorns. The stallion had white fur and light blue mane and eyes; he had a full black tuxedo on with a light purple bow tie and a monocle on his left eye. The second unicorn was a mare she too had white fur, but she had a long light pink mane with light purple eyes. She had a beautiful white dress with the sleeves being a light pink.

I wanted to ask if they were okay, but my phone alarm started to go off, frantically I pulled it out and saw the notification I had set. 'I only got two minutes left!!!" I was about to dart out of the alleyway to head to the auction but stopped before leaving the two nobles. "Hey I'm sorry, but I need to go, you guys can get the royal guards right? I asked jogging in place waiting for their response, and I didn't have to wait long as they both nodded their heads. "Great, see ya!!" And with that, I ran as fast as I could to the auction house.

Thankfully I had made it to the building with only seconds to spare; I did get some snark from the employees about how close to being locked out I was. I found my assigned seat and waited for the auction to begin. For three whole hours, I waited passionately as different items were auctioned off and bought, I even came close to falling asleep out of sheer boredom. Until finally…" The next item on our list is a rather peculiar statue; the origins of said object is unknown." The stallion who was in charge of the auction said as another pony placed the spirit of light on a pedestal in the center of the stage for all to see. "The starting bid is one thousand bits."

The crowd whispered among themselves as of debating whether or not they would bid on such an item. I waited for a few moments to see if anyone would try and buy it, but when no one seemed interested, I took my chance. Raising my hand, I called out. "One thousand bits!!" Some of the nobles turned their heads looking at me rather confused.

The bid caller looked stunned for a moment before getting his act together. "Eh one thousand bits from the Digimon ambassador. Going once…twice."

Just as he was about to slam the gavel, "One thousand five hundred!!!" Someone called out from my far right. Turning to see who would bid against me, all I saw was a cloaked figure.

Once again bid caller was confused, he looked at his list for the mysterious figure name. "Um, fifteen thousand for P9 going once…."

"TWO THOUSAND!!!" I shouted, not letting whoever this P9 guy outdo me.

"TWO THOUSAND FIVE HUNDRED!!" He didn't even let the bid caller say a word.

"THREE THOUSAND!!" I shouted as the bid caller was about to say something.

For the next ten minutes P9 and I went at it, anytime we had placed a bid, the other would increase the amount by five hundred. For a while, he seemed unsure if he wanted to outbid me, but sure enough, he did. Now our current bid was up to ten thousand, and P9 while cloaked, and his face hidden showed a sigh of annoyance and hesitation. I only had another four thousand bits left to bid, so the time is now or never. "FOURTEEN THOUSAND BIT!!!!" The crowd let out an audible gasp as I stood up, staring down the stallion.

P9 was silent for a good amount of time. The caller, finally seeing an opportunity to speak raised his gavel. "Fourteen thousand bits, going once…..twice….." He was about to bring down his gavel, and the spirit would be mine.

"FIFTEEN THOUSAND!!" The crowd gasped even louder, and I could feel my heart sank, for I didn't have enough to outbid that.

I could see a smug grin on P9's face as he could tell I was about to lose. The bid caller waited before speaking. "Fifteen thousand bits, going once…..going twice."

I lowered my head in defeat, as I was about to lose yet another spirit. The bid caller gavel was to about to hit when ..."Thirty thousand bits." A voice called out from the crowd, but it wasn't P9's voice No this voice was new, it was much more smooth and refined, when I tried to pinpoint who it was I couldn't see who had just bid.

Even the bid caller was stunned as he stared at who had just placed the bid. "Thirty thousand going once, going twice...sold!!! The statue goes to one Mr. Fancy Pants!!!" The crowd started to clap for whoever this Fancy Pants guy was. Both P9 and I were devastated at our lose, me more than anyone.

When the auction was over everyone made their way to the lobby to converse and brag about their purchases. I on the other hand was trying to find out who P9 was and why he was bidding against me, but I couldn't find a trace of him. I thought about looking for that Fancy Pants guy to see if I could bargain with him for the spirit of light, but considering how he easily bid double what P9 put out I was sure that I probably wouldn't be able to afford to buy it off him anytime soon.

I was just about ready to exit the building, and head back home to sulk in my lost when I felt a tap on my shoulder. Turning around I saw two familiar faces, the two unicorn nobles I saved from before. "Good evening to you sir." The stallion said giving a small bow, one I quickly returned. "We never got the chance to give our thanks for you help from before." Something about his voice seemed familiar for some reason.

The mare stepped forward giving me a bow as well, and like I did with her friend I gave one as well. "It was very brave and noble of you monsieur." The mare had a French accent which in my opinion fit her very well.

"Well thank you both, there are just some things I can't turn a blind eye to." I looked up at both their horns to see that those rings were gone. "I take it the local authorities managed to remove those rings that restrain your magic?"

"Oui the guards had removed then once ze arrived." The mare rubbed the base of her horn with what looked like a sense of relief.

"Unfortunately before the guards could arrive those two brutes came to and managed to escape." The stallion huffed. "We did manage to give the guards their description and names, but that's all we could have done." He folded his arms slightly irritated.

"Well I'm just glad you two are alright, I'm sorry I had to leave you guys when I did, but I needed to attend this auction very badly." I Iet out a heavy sigh. "Not that it matters anymore considering I couldn't get what I came all this way for."

I was about to turn and leave but was again tapped on the shoulder by the stallion. "Now hold on just a minute sir, we still haven't showed you our gratitude for helping us earlier."

"Oh, there's no need for that, I was just happy to help is all." I said holding up my hands.

The stallion shook his head. "Be that as it may, I still would like you to accept this, besides I think you might reconsider once you see what I have to offer." The stallion winked and carefully took my hand and turned it so that it my palm was facing up. Before I could ask what he was doing his other hand came from being his back and placed something into my hand. When he moved his hands away I thought my eyes were about to explode from shock. There in my hands was the spirit of light! I was speechless for a few moments before looking up at the stallion. "We never got the chance to formally introduced ourselves. My name is Fancy Pants." He wrapped and arm around the mare's waist and gently pull her in for a peck on the cheek. "And this lovely mare is my wife Fleur-de-lis."

The mare giggled before giving her husband a peck on the cheek as well. "You always know how to treat a mare." She looked at me and smiled. "It's a pleasure to make your acquaintance monsieur ambassador."

While I was still a bit shocked, I quickly shook my head to clear my mind. "First of all ,I'm Jack Owen's it's nice to meet you both, and thank you for this." I held up the spirit. "And secondly, why did you buy this to just give it to me?"

"Well originally I was going to give you some bits after the auction was over, but when I saw how desperate you were to purchase that item, and that you were about to be out bid by that P9 fellow, I thought that this would be a good gift to show my thanks."

I was left in disbelief, most of the nobles I have met were arrogant, cruel, and selfish ponies. But here are two kind and truly noble ponies. With no other way to show my gratitude I simply lowered my head to them. "You have no idea how important this means to me. Thank you both."

"Oh please none of that, it's the least we could do after you saved us." Fancy added trying to get me to stand straight.

While I was still incredibly grateful a question did come to mind. "By the way, do either of you know who that P9 guy was, he didn't look like noble to me?"

Fancy tapped his chin trying to think no doubt on my question. "Well the only logical answer I could give you, is that he was most likely a representative for some pony instead. "

"A representative? What's that?"

"Well to put it simply, some nobles tend to keep what they wish to purchase a secret, so they will often pay somepony to take part in these auctions in their place. The representative is given a certain amount of bits to bid for whatever item the Nobel wants." He looked around at the guests. "Unfortunately without knowing who was meant to be here I can't say for sure who P9 was hired by."

While I didn't get the answer I wanted, I do know that some noble wanted to buy the spirit of light, the only question left was why? "Well I appreciate the information still, and I'm eternally grateful for this." I held up the spirit. "Now I cam head back to Ponyville with my head held high."

"Ah so your from Ponyville, well then that must mean your suit was made by Ms. Rarity correct?" Fancy pants inquired.

"Uh yeah how did you know though?" I quirked a brow.

"My wife Fleur just adores her work, and I'm willing to bet she be well known arcos Equestria soon enough." Fancy added before looking at the wall clock." Ah well we would love to stay and chat but me and my wife have other matters to attend to." He reached into his pocket and pulled out a card. "If you ever find yourself in Canterlot please come see me, I wanted to you about a few things in regards to the Digimon." And with that both Fancy and Fleur departed off.

"Well these past two days have been rather odd." I shrugged my shoulders and pulled out my D-tector and pressed the button that absorbed the spirit of light in, the symbol of light appeared on the monitor. "Well mission accomplished. Time to head home." And with that I made my way to the hotel to grab my stuff and go home.