Apex Is Coming

I couldn’t sleep well that night. I kept having nightmares about everything that had happened to me. Getting betrayed by my boss, losing my team, getting tortured, losing an eye, and finally, getting sent to another world. Would certainly make for a cool book.

I awoke to something poking my side. It felt hard, and it kept jabbing me in my ribs. I quickly responded to this by trying to swat it away with a hand and just roll over. I instantly regretted that as I had forgotten that I was sleeping on a couch. I ended up face planting on the hard, wooden floor.

“Oh no, I’m sorry. You were just sleeping for so long, I got worried.”

I rolled over and looked up to see Twilight. She was looking at me with concern in her eyes. She kept ranting about my safety and the way I was sleeping, I’m pretty sure she was also scared that I might hurt her because she had practically harmed me. I didn’t want this to be the first thing I heard in the morning, so I put a finger on her lips. “Shhhh. I’m fine.”

After a while she calmed down, and a small smile formed. “Oh Good. I thought I hurt you.” She trotted away and up the stairs to her bed. I stood up and let out a loud yawn while stretching. I then noticed something was missing.

“Did Spike ever clean my stuff?” I asked while tightening the towel around me. I watched as Twilight peeked her head over the edge, holding a branch in her magical grasp.

“He should be doing it now. Also, do you still need this?” All I did was shake my head and sit back down onto the couch. I watched as Twilight trotted down the stairs, my stick floating behind her.

She trotted by me and headed down the stairs leading to the main lobby. I wanted to go back to sleep, but not if I was going to continue having those nightmares. I stood up and grabbed my glasses and headed towards the kitchen.

I turned them on and watched my vision brighten. After they were fully on, I called out ‘time’. Just like always, a digital clock appeared, showing me that it was nearly 13:00.

I pushed past the doors and stepped into the kitchen. I then made a beeline for the fridge and swung it open. I started rummaging through it, looking for the leftovers from the day before. I started muttering curse words at not being able to find them. “Saint, are you okay?” I turned around and saw Twilight with a concerned expression on her face.

I closed the fridge and looked down at her. “I’m straight. Also, do you know what happened to the leftover pizza?” I asked while crossing my arms. I’m going to be annoyed if Spike ate it.

Twilight frowned at me. “I’m pretty sure Spike ate it for lunch.” I sighed and walked back into the living room and sat onto the couch. I couldn’t change and go get my free pizza till Spike cleaned my stuff.

Twilight was still following me for some reason. She opened her mouth to say something, but I cut her off. “I don’t mean to be a dick head or anything. But when can we send that letter?” Annoyance was evident in my tone.

Twilights frowned seemed to deepen, she let out a long sigh and looked at me. “When Spike gets here, I’ll write it and send it out.” I watched her trot away for a bit as she turned around and walked down into the lobby. As I was doing this, I noticed that she also had one of those cutie marks. It just seemed to be a big, dark purple star surrounded by smaller white stars. So Spike wasn’t messing with me when he said everybody had one.

I decided to just chill on the couch and wait for Spike to get back. I had nothing else to do, so I decided to mess with my glasses and see what other commands it had.

After about half an hour of command testing, Spike walked up the stairs with Twilight behind him. Sadly, during that time, I couldn’t find any new commands. Guess I should ask Sara if I ever make it back.

Spike had my suit and boots in a basket, while Twilight had a quill and a paper in her magical grasp. I quickly got up and grabbed my stuff and went to the bathroom.

After changing into my stuff and throwing the towel into a hamper, I exited the bathroom and went back into the living room. “You definitely clean better than the maids.” I started stretching and cracking my knuckles. I actually wasn’t lying, my suit was all nice and warm and smelled like apples.

“You have maids!?” Spike gasped while running up to me. I glared at him, but then realized he couldn’t actually see it.

“I only talk to people who leave me food.” I pushed by him and stood next to Twilight. Spike seemed to scratch the back of his head while Twilight just rolled her eyes. “You’re lucky Red was nice enough to offer me free food.”

Twilight gave me a confused look at first but quickly shrugged it off. “Okay, Spike, take a note.” Twilight levitating the quill and paper to Spike. I don’t know why she doesn’t write it herself.

Spike grabbed it in mid air and got ready to write. Twilight then looked at me with a awaiting gaze. “Tell them you discovered a new species and they have an important message.” I walked over and sat on the stairs that lead to Twilights bed.

Twilight nodded at me and began to talk as if she was giving a speech. “Dear Princess Celestia.” She began to pace back and forth in the room. “I’ve recently stumbled across a new species called ‘Humans’. So far, I have only encountered one member of their species, a male, and am allowing him to stay with me for the time being. He has turned out to be intelligent and has informed me that he would like to speak to you in regards to something important. Your personal student, Twilight Sparkle.” I was definitely not ready to hear that last part.

“Whoa, you’re her student?!” I jumped to my feet. If she was her student then I could easily meet her.

Twilight stopped pacing and looked at me with a smile. “Yep, she’s been my teacher since I was a filly.” After she finished, I watched as Spike blew green fire onto the letter.

“YO! What are you doing?!” I was annoyed and irritated that he had just burnt the letter.

He looked at me in confusion and opened his mouth to respond, but Twilight did so before he had the chance. “That’s how he sends the letters. When he does that, the letter gets sent directly to Princess Celestia.” That doesn’t make any sense at all.

I sat back down on the stairs and started to flex my fingers. “How long does it usually take?”

“Should only take a couple of minutes. Unless she’s super busy.” Spike said while jumping onto the couch. I let out a loud groan and began waiting.

After roughly three minutes of me just messing with my fingers and hair, I heard Spike let out a extremely loud burp. I was about to say something about the pizza till I realized that a letter had come out of his mouth.

He caught the letter before it could hit the ground and opened it. After coughing twice, Spike spoke in a announcer like tone. “Dear Twilight Sparkle. I’m afraid that I won’t be able to speak with your new found friend currently. Since the Grand Galloping Gala is right around the corner, I’m extremely busy with the preparations for it. If he would like, I’ll gladly speak to him then.” So I have to wait for a ball to speak to her? Spike wasn’t finished because he then added. “Also, make sure that he isn’t dangerous. Just yesterday, I felt a chaotic force appear somewhere around the Everfree Forest. I have already sent a contingent of royal guards, including your brother, to investigate. Sincerely, Your teacher, Princess Celestia.”

I was definitely annoyed that I would have to wait to speak to the people in charge. I let out a groan as I stood up and started to walk to the stairs leading to the lobby. Before I could get there, Twilight slid in front of me with a sad expression. “Saint, what’s bothering you?”

“Like I said earlier. I’m straight.” I was trying to suppress my anger as I told her this. I tried to get by her, but she didn’t move.

“Saint, please. Something is clearly bothering you, I want to help you.”

“The fuck? Why do you care? We just met yesterday.” I started getting angry. Twilight slowly backed up a bit.

“Calm down, Saint.” There was a hint of nervousness in Spike’s voice as he said this. I looked at him and he quickly turned away.

“Saint, I just want to know if you’re the chaotic force princess Celesta felt.” Twilight seemed to have gained some courage as her voice sounded more confident, and almost accusatory.

I let out a sigh and turned back around to sit on the stairs. “I mean, I did come out of a forest.” Twilight seemed to calm down a bit as she approached me.

Twilight set her hoof down onto my shoulder. She levitated my glasses off my face and looked into my eyes. “Saint, be honest with me, are you the chaotic force? I won’t even use the lie detection spell because I trust you.” I don’t understand why she trusts me so much. What had I ever done to earn that from her?

I looked deeply into her purple eyes. They reminded me of something that I’d seen before. They awakened a memory from around a couple of months ago.

“This is extremely boring,” I said while spinning in Sara’s chair.

“This isn’t supposed to be fun,” Sara responded, clearly annoyed that I wouldn’t sit still. Sara was trying to test something on me and kept asking me questions that I didn’t really understand the meaning behind.

“What’s the point of this?” I stood up and began walking over to her. Sara was currently putting metal objects into a box labeled trash.

“It’s for your new medical staff member. The more they know about you the better.” I forgot I needed a new one. The last one quit because I was an asshole to them.

I jumped up and sat down on the counter next to Sara. “What’s the point? Why can’t you just do both?” I really didn’t want to have someone I never met before mess with my body.

She let out a loud sigh and looked at me. “Because I’m not trained to do it.” She handed me a piece of scrap metal. I examined it and it seemed to be a piece of a broken impact grenade. I quickly slipped it into the box.

“Why do I even need one?” I looked away from Sara. I definitely didn’t want a new medical staff member. I actually didn’t want one at all.

“Sai-“ I cut Sara off my placing a finger on her mouth. After a couple of seconds I removed it and she continued. “Alpha, You need one so they can look after your mental health. Also, they program your nanobots.” I had to cut Sara off because every room in the facility was monitored. Besides the living areas.

“That’s true. But I think I’m perfectly fine.” I slipped off the counter and headed back over to her chair. I sat back down and stretched out my legs.

Sara slammed a metal object onto the desk and walked over to me. She grabbed the sides of the chair and leaned in closer to me. “You’re not fine, Alpha. You have issues. You need help.” Her eyes bore into me, she even seemed hurt for some reason.

“I don’t know what you’re talking about,” I quietly said while pushing her away

Sara looked hurt at first, but she leaned in and hugged me. I definitely wasn’t expecting this. “Alpha. I’ve known you for years. I know it’s hard on you. You were abo-.” I cut her off by squeezing her tightly. I didn’t want to think about that day.

“Ok. I get it, just please don’t make me remember that day,” I said while on the verge of having a panic attack.

“Sorry.” We stayed like this for a couple of minutes. Just embracing each other and enjoying the moment. The hug was broken as Sara stood up and looked down at me. “I know it’s hard Alpha. But promise me, that you’ll at least find someone you can trust. Find someone that you can trust with everything.” I was about to respond to that but then she continued. “You already trust me so I don’t count.” Dang it.

I let out a sigh. I knew she was right, I needed to open up more and actually trust people. The only people I’ve ever been able to trust were my team and Sara. They were all I ever had. “Fine. You’re right, I’ll find someone. I promise.” I honestly hated making promises, but I really did need to change. Sara gave me a warm smile and went back over to continue her job.

“Also, that’s the only hug you’re gonna get.” She spoke coldly.

“What!” I shouted while jumping out of the seat and running over to her. “Why?”

“Because it’s out of character.” Was the only response I got. That actually made sense and I decided to just drop it. I went back over to the chair and sat down. I spun around and started messing around with her computer.

After a couple of minutes of playing ‘Type Racer’, I was kinda annoyed that I couldn’t get pass 70 words per minute, I remembered something. “Wait, when’s the new medic coming?”
“Should be about now.” I didn’t get a chance to respond as I heard the automated door open. I spun around in the chair and was almost thrown off of it as something jumped onto me.

“Oh my god! It’s really Alpha. I thought you were a myth!” The voice was young and high pitched. I looked down to see a young girl with blond hair squeezing me.

“What?” Was the only response I had. I looked up and watched as Sara let out a sigh.

“Her name is Alice, and she’s kinda a big fan of yours,” She said while trying to pry Alice off of me.

“How? No one should know about me. And she’s like 13!” I shouted while also trying to push Alice off of me. Her grip tightened a little as she looked up at me.

“I’m 15!” She shouted back at me. I started to get annoyed.

“Get off!” I kept pushing and struggling but she wouldn’t budge. I looked over to Sara for help. But all she did was go back over to her stupid box.

“No! Only a little bit longer.” Alice began squeezing me more. She looked up at me, she had a big smile on her face and her blue eyes seemed to bore into me.

Her eyes seemed to slowly turn purple while her face seemed to morph into a pony’s. I then realized that I was just having a flashback of a distant memory.

“Wait, what was the question?” I had completely forgetting what was happening. Twilight removed her hoof from my shoulder, set my glasses back on my face, and let out a groan.

“Please, Saint, you’re making this harder than what it has to be. I want to trust you, but you’re just making it more difficult for me,“ Twilight cried out . It even sounded like she was going to start crying.

I remembered Sara’s words. They replayed through my mind. Could I actually trust Twilight with anything? Was she the right one? Out of everyone I met, Twilight was always trying to protect and help me. She let me stay the night and didn’t let her friend harm me. She even healed me when I was hurt and had weapons.

But what if this was just a part of her plan? What if her intentions were elsewhere and she planned on using me for something?

I let out a loud breath. I then looked over at Twilight and Spike. Spike seemed interested and nervous while Twilight looked hurt and sad. “Hey, Spike, can you give me and Twilight a minute?” I asked while looking at him.

He jumped up and stood on the couch. “What, why? I want to know if you’re the chaotic force.” He sounded annoyed that I was excluding him.

“I’ll let you play with my helmet. I’ll even turn it on for you,” I said in a cheerful tone, even if I wasn’t cheerful at all.

Spike seemed intrigued by my offer. “Deal! I knew there was more to it.” He began jumping on the couch. After a couple of jumps, he climbed down and headed downstairs. After about ten seconds, a door could be heard being opened and then closed.

I looked over at Twilight, she seemed to be curious and concerned at the same time. She didn’t even look sad anymore. She was probably curious about what I meant by turning on the helmet. “Twilight, why do you trust me so much?” I was definitely curious to know why she put so much stock in me not trying to mislead her. She met me just yesterday and she trusts me so much.

Twilight was snapped out of her confusion and looked at me. Her horned started to glow its signature purple. She trotted over to me and touched the tip of her horn onto my chest.

She then looked up to me with her lavender eyes and smiled. “I cast the lie detection spell on both of us.” A little smile was forming on her lips.

“So I can tell if you’re lying too?”

She nodded once. “Yes, here, I’ll show you how it works.” She then cleared her throat and began to speak again. “My name is Saint.” She tried mimicking me, which she didn’t do a good job at.

I was about to respond to her but I heard a light buzzing sound. I started to look around the room wondering where it was coming from. My search was cut off as Twilight started to giggle. “At least I know it’s working. When you hear that, it means that I lied.” I looked back at her and watched as she trotted over and jumped onto the couch.

“That’s fucking weird.” I muttered, the buzzing sound stopped and I was able to finally think straight.

Twilight levitated over a book on one of the many shelves and then opened it. “There’s other stronger variants of the spell.” She levitated the book in front of me and I grabbed it. “I learned them all, but I still prefer the original.” The book she gave me was opened to a page that was tilted ‘Lie Detection’. Fortunately, it was in english.

The other versions of the spell scared me a bit. I read over the many variants and some stood out. One apparently sent pain into the liars body, while another burned the liar.

I quickly set the book down onto the stairs and looked back at Twilight. She was still looking at me with a smile. “So, why do you trust me?” I asked while leaning forward a bit. Her smile took a hit.

“It’s because you remind me of Spike.” Wait, what? She continued while sounding depressed. “I hatched Spike when I was just a filly, it was an accident caused by Rainbow Dash.” That’s her full name?

“Seems like she causes trouble a lot.” I went over and took a seat on the couch next to Twilight.

She moved over a bit and looked away from me. But eventually, continued speaking. “A lot of ponies were afraid of him. I had to convince everypony he was safe and wouldn’t harm them.” She looked up at me. Her eyes sparking a bit. “That’s why I trust you. It’s because no one should be judged by your looks. You should be judged by your actions. So until you prove that you can’t be trusted, I think you should be given the benefit of the doubt.” I was actually surprised by Twilights wisdom, I had been expecting her to say something dumb. But If I’m being judged by my actions, than I definitely belong in hell.

I started at her for a couple of seconds. “Did your teacher teach you that?”

She looked away from me awkwardly. “Yes.” I heard her mutter.

A couple of minutes passed by. We both didn’t say anything, just staring at whatever we could find in the room. But I looked over at Twilight. “I might be the chaotic force.” I decided to break the awkward silence.

Twilight turned around to look at me. “You mean you’re not certain?” She cocked her head to the side a bit.

“Nope.” I stuck my tongue out at her. She rolled her eyes at me and closed them, as if she was deep in thought.

Then she opened them. “Well. You’re definitely not lying.” She began to frown a bit. “Are you okay?” She asked, sounding concerned.

I turned away, unable to look her in the eyes. It was now or never. Should I trust Twilight? I looked back down at her. She was wearing a full frown this time. “No.” Was the only thing I said. I needed to trust someone in the world. As much as it hurt me, as much as it broke me. Sara was right. I needed to change my ways.

“What’s bothering you?” Twilight was clearly worried and concerned about me.

I looked deeply into her eyes. “I need to trust someone in this place. All I’m going to say now is that I’ve been betrayed.... and that I was sent here, by the people who betrayed me.” I choked on my words slightly. I decided to give Twilight a chance, I’ll slowly build up my trust with her, until I can tell her the whole story.

Twilight looked shocked at my words. “Why?! How did they even send you here!?” She looked like she was about to ask more questions but I cut her off by covering her mouth with my hand.

“I don’t know all the details. But that’s all I’m telling you for now.” I released my hand from her mouth.

“But why? I don’t understand. Why don’t you trust me?” I watched as tears seemed to be forming at the edge of her eyes. “I just want to help.” She muttered quietly.

I let out a sigh and began to speak softly. “Twilight. I have a lot of issues. I decided to put a little bit of trust into you because of all you gave me.”

She wiped her eyes using a hoof. “I just don’t get it. Why were you betrayed?”

“It’s a long story that I will tell you one day. Well, as long as you don’t break my trust.” I smiled at her.

She let out a sigh. “Ok, Saint, I trust you’ll tell me one day.” Her horn stared glowing. I watched as a desk next to us started glowing. It opened, and out came a quill and some paper. “But can I ask some general questions? I hardly know anything about you! And it’s hard to trust someone you barely know!” She smiled brightly at me.

She was definitely right. I really don’t know anything about her. “Sure, ask away.” Twilight looked like she was about to ask a question, but before she could, her ears flopped down and she frowned. “What’s wrong?”

She let out a groan. “Somepony’s at the door.” She slid off the couch and looked over to me.

“What? I didn’t hear anything.” I stood up as well and looked at her. She rolled her eyes and trotted down the stairs that lead to the lobby, of course I followed behind her. When we entered the lobby, I finally heard the knocking. It was so faint that I doubted it was even a pony.

Twilight trotted over and opened her door. I peered over her to see the yellow pegasus from earlier. She seemed to notice me because she quickly hid behind her hair. “What’s the matter, Fluttershy?”. I just rolled my eyes and went back upstairs. Her name definitely fits her personality.

After a couple of minutes of me just trying to scratch Apex off my suit, which was met with as much success as trying to stab someone with a hammer, Twilight came up the stairs. “Sorry, she wanted a new book about animals.” She floated a bag up and over to her bed as she said this.

“Say, does she know any manticores?” I was curious to know if the manticore I met was talking about Fluttershy.

Twilight didn’t hesitate at all. “Yeah, she does. She’s met all sorts of animals.” She said while floating a quill and paper next to her. “Now, on to those questions!” She had a bright smile on her face as she said that.

I quickly shook my head before she could even ask anything. “I’m hungry, and I was promised free pizza at this one restaurant.” I quickly moved past her and headed to the lobby.

She followed behind me as I pushed opened the front door to the library and headed Into the bright, sunny afternoon.

All the ponies of Ponyville watched as I walked around swiftly, looking for that Pizza place. Sadly, I didn’t remember how to get there. I paid the staring ponies no mind and ignored their curious glances. Twilight eventually caught up to me. “Don’t just run off like that!” She started trotting by my side.

“I’ll let you ask all the questions you want during my lunch.” I kept looking around, unable to find the place. I wasn’t planning on sharing any of the pizza with her though in all honesty.

“Good, I’m just curious to know more about you and where you came from.” She said in an enthusiastic tone. I don’t know why she’s so excited.

“Ooo, I have a question!” I instantly jumped at the new voice. I turned around and saw Pinkie Pie standing next to Twilight.

Twilight seemed just as startled by her randomly showing up as I was. “I’m not even going to ask,” She muttered while bringing a hoof up to her temple.

“I will though. Where did you come from?” I asked while getting annoyed. How did she sneak up on me?

All she did was giggle at me. “I’ve been here the whole time!” She started bouncing closer to me. “How old are you?!” She looked up to me and had a massive smile on her face.

“Why does that matter?” I asked while turning away and continuing my look for my lunch spot. I didn’t get much of a chance though as Pinkie zipped in front of me.

“Come on, it’s super, duper important!” Her massive smile still plastered onto her face. I tried to move past her again, but she side stepped to the direction I was moving.

“Now that I think about it, I do want to know how old you are,” Twilight said while trotting over to me and looking up at me with a questioning look.

I was definitely getting annoyed and becoming uncomfortable. But then again, they can’t really do much with the information. “I’m either 19, 20, or 21.”

Pinkie stopped bouncing almost immediately, while her smile disappeared. All she did was look up at me with her big cyan eyes. Then she started giggling. “You can’t be three ages at once silly.” Her smile returned.

I looked over to Twilight expecting to hear a response. But she seemed shocked for some reason. “You good?” I asked.

“You’re not lying?” She asked me with a confused look on her face. Then I remembered that the spell could still be activated.

“Twilight, I just said I’m going to start trusting you. I’m not gonna lie.” I began moving past Pinkie to continue my quest for pizza.

I wasn’t able to do so for long because Pinkie zipped right back in front of me. “How do you not know your age?” Twilight asked while trotting over to me and Pinkie.

I let out a extremely long and loud sigh. “It’s because I don’t know when I was born.” I really didn’t want to have this conversation. “Only reason I know the age gap is because of my doctor.” Alice really did help me out a lot back then.

I wasn’t lying when I said I didn’t know when I was born. Alice was able to tell approximately how old I was by a blood test, but I digress.

I watched as Pinkie’s hair seemed to deflate a little. She looked up at me with a sad expression, tears even seemed to be forming. “That’s so sad!” She choked out. She stood on her hind legs and wrapped her hoofs around me.

I decided to hug her back because I’m a nice person. After a couple of seconds I broke the hug. “It’s fine, don’t worry about it.” I pushed past her, looking for my free lunch.

Finally being separated from those two allowed me to find the ‘Cheesy Princess’. I rushed inside as fast as I could. Luckily, there was only a couple of ponies inside. Not so luckily, they instantly ended their conversations and began looking at me. I tried my best to ignore them and walked over to the counter.

Red Domino was behind the counter, pushing buttons on the cash register. I really wanted my pizza so I tapped the counter twice. She instantly looked my way and smiled. “Hey, Saint.”

“Hi.” I then pointed towards the stack of menus she had on the counter. “Sooo, I came to cash in on that pizza.” I was starting to get really hungry.

She looked at what I was pointing to, then looked back at me with a smile. “Of course, just take a seat and I’ll get you what you want.” She said while floating a menu over to me. I grabbed it and went to go sit down at the same spot Spike and I used yesterday.

After looking over the menu, I decided to just get one large cheese pizza and a water. Considering there’s no meat toppings, and several toppings were things I couldn’t eat, cheese was all I could get. I set down the menu and started to wait for Red to come over and take my order.

After waiting a couple of minutes, I watched as the menu started to glow a familiar color. I turned around and watched Twilight trot over and sit in front of me. She opened the menu with her magic and examined its contents. “You know my meal is free right?” I asked Twilight. I’m hoping she knows I’m not paying for her meal.

“I figured that.” I watched as she sat the menu down on the table. “I can pay for myself, don’t worry.” She smiled at me. I opened my mouth to speak, but before I could she continued. “Also, I’m sorry.” Her smiled instantly turned into a frown.

“For?”

“I shouldn’t have pushed you like that. I didn’t know it was personal.” She sounded sincere.

“About my age? It’s fine, it’s not really a big deal.” I started cracking my knuckles. Twilights ears twitched a bit and she flinched with each crack. “Also, what took you so long? I thought you were right behind me.

“Pinkie wanted to talk about something.” She shifted her gaze to the other booths. I followed her gaze, and to my surprise, I saw Red trotting over. Quill and notepad in her magical grasp.

I smiled as I watched her approach. “Sorry about that. Now what can I get you two?”

Twilight ended up only ordering hay fries, while I had my large pizza and water. After Red left to actually make our food, Twilight and I just sat in silence, just enjoying each other’s company, until I remembered something from earlier. “Wait. What’s a Grand Galloping Gala?” I was guessing that it was some type of party, but that’s all I knew.

“It’s a ball that the princesses host. It only happens once a year.” Twilight responded. Ok good, just like I expected, it’s a party.

“When is it?”

“It’s in a few months. My friends and I should be getting our tickets soon.” I started choking on air after Twilight finished that sentence. I definitely was not expecting that. “Are you okay!?” Twilight asked with worry and concern in her voice.

I pounded my chest a couple of times. “Yeah, I’m fine.” Why does it take so long to plan a stupid ball? I needed to speak to them as soon as possible. “It’s just that I can’t wait a couple of months.” I finished while finally calming down.

Twilight seemed to relax as well. “I was planning on going to Canterlot to visit my parents next week.” She smiled at me as she continued. “Would you like to come?”

“How does meeting your parents help me?” I started to get annoyed.

Twilight seemed to notice the annoyance in my voice, because her smile turned into a frown. “Well, I might be able to at least see princess Celista for a few minutes.”

“Oh shit. Then I’d definitely like to come.” I was excited to know that I could speak to the princesses much earlier than planned.

Red ended up bringing our food by. Twilight and I ate while casually talking about meeting her parents. I also decided to be a nice person and give Twilight a few slices.

After we both finished, Red stopped by with the bill. Just like she promised, my meal was completely free and the only thing on the bill was the hay fries. After Twilight payed for her food, we both headed towards the exit.

After exiting the building, Twilight took the lead by walking in front of me. I followed behind her while watching the ponies of Ponyville pass by.

We didn’t walk for long because Twilight stopped suddenly, almost making me bump into her. At first I thought we were at the library, but instead, we were standing in front of an unfamiliar building.

The building was very elegant. It had large windows on the ground floor with purple and white adorning the entire building. I figured it was some type of beauty store, which made me think, did the ponies use makeup and stuff? I mean, I definitely couldn’t tell, at the end of the day, they were still ponies.

But the image of a beauty store was instantly ruined. “This a ride?” I asked, wondering why there was a merry-go-round at the top.

Twilight giggled at me as if she thought I was joking. “Of course it’s not.” She pushed the door open with a hoof and trotted in. A dinging sound could be heard as we entered the building. I looked around and noticed many pony shaped mannequins. Some of the mannequins were even wearing clothing, which was weird considering that the ponies don’t seem to wear any. There were also several full body mirrors in the room, but I had to bend down to actually use those.

“One moment please!” A familiar elegant voice could be heard in a distant room. I looked down at Twilight and she was looking up at me.

“Why are we in a clothing shop?” I asked, while raising a eyebrow.

“Well, I’ve been thinking.” She trotted up to one of the mannequins.

“That’s usually a good thing.” I moved over and stood next to her and examined the mannequins. It was wearing a classic tuxedo with a red tie to match.

“You know what I meant!” She huffed, while turning to look at me. I paid her no mind as I went to go look at the other pony clothes.

I didn’t get much time to look because that elegant voice from earlier spoke again. “Welcome t-... Oh, hello, Twilight dear.” I looked over and saw the white unicorn from yesterday.

Twilight must have not been paying attention, because she jumped a bit when the other unicorn spoke. “Hi Rarity, I was wondering if you could help me with something.”

Rarity beamed at the opportunity to help Twilight. “Of course darling. What ever do you need?” Excitement clearly evident in her voice.

“Well, it’s not me you’ll be helping.” Twilight then trotted over to me and swatted me in the back with her tail. “I was wondering if you could help him.”

It only took a second for me to register what she had said. “The fuck?” I turned to look at her. All she did was smile up at me. I looked over at Rarity and she seemed to be just as perplexed as me. I’m glad Rarity had seen me before, she wasn’t freaking out or staring like the others.

“With what darling?” Rarity asked while shifting her gaze back to Twilight.

“Yeah, with what?” I crossed my arms while glaring at Twilight.

Her smile didn’t fade at all. “Well, I’ve noticed you’re always wearing those clothes.” She gestured towards my suit. “And I’ve been thinking that maybe you needed more.” Well, she certainly was right, even if my suit was washed, I still felt pretty gross in it.

“What makes you assume that?” I asked, curious as to how Twilight came to this conclusion.

“Well, you’ve been wearing that ever since you got here. And the only time you took it off was to shower.” She started pacing back and forth. “And you kept the towel wrapped around you until you were able to wear it again.” She stopped pacing and looked back at me and Rarity.

“I’d love to make clothing for you, Saint!” Rarity chimed in. “It is pretty uncouth to wear the same thing everyday.” She began to trot deeper into the building.

“I’m impressed.” I began while leaning against an empty wall. “You assumed all that just from my behavior?”

Twilight smiled brightly “I’ve been studying you as much as I can.” She trotted up to me and continued. “I’ve also been studying your stuff, so far, I couldn’t really tell what the metal balls were, but your weapons are made out of materials I’ve never seen before!” She seemed to be bouncing in place.

“It’s a newly discovered metal where I’m from,” I added, making her even more excited.

“Really!? So far all I can tell is that it’s not from Equestria... I would have studied your clothes, but they were being washed.” She continued

“Creepy.” I muttered while trying to slide away from her.

Twilight must’ve heard me because her ears flopped down. “I’m sorry, it’s just that I’ve never seen anything like this before.” She looked away from me with a frown.

I couldn’t help but let out a loud sigh. “I’m fucking with you.”

Twilight instantly brightened up at that. “Good, I thought I really did creep you out.” Her smile came back. She continued speaking though. “Then there’s your helmet. I haven’t had the chance to study it either, but what did you mean by turn it on?” She was looking me over as she asked this.

“I have so much to show you, Twilight, but I will eventually.” I replied. I definitely would show her everything one day.

“I trust that you will, Saint.” She smiled warmly at me.

The moment we had going was ruined as Rarity entered the room carrying a bunch of measuring tape along with a notepad and quill. She was levitating it all with a blue aura next to her. ”Sorry for the wait. Right this way darling.” Rarity guided me over to a raised platform that was surrounded by mirrors.

I stood in the center and raised both of my arms. Rarity started measuring my body while writing my measurements in the notepad. “I can’t wait to see you in a suit, Saint. It would be simply define.” She spoke in her usual elegant tone.

“I was hoping for something simple.” I spoke while looking away from her gaze.

“Simple! I can’t just give you something simple darling.” She finished her measurements and went to go back deeper into her shot.

But luckily, Twilight came to my rescue. “He’s right, Rarity. Maybe when the Grand Galloping Gala comes around you can make a suit for him.”

Rarity frowned at Twilight. After a couple of seconds she responded. “I suppose I could do something simple. But when I make the suit it’s going to be the center of attention!”

I just rolled my eyes and then I remembered something important. “Hey, Rarity, can you help me with something?” I asked while rubbing the back of my head.

Both Twilight and Rarity looked at me with curiosity. “Of course I could darling! Right this way.” She began to trot deeper into the building.

I looked over at Twilight and she was still looking at me with curiosity. “Just head back to the library. I don’t know how long this is gonna take.” I turned around and followed Rarity

“It’s fine. I’ll wait outside.” Twilight responded. I don’t know why she was planning on waiting outside.

I met back up with Rarity, we were standing in a room which I believe to be her workshop. Yarn and fabric of all kinds were sitting on shelves. Unfinished clothing project were displayed on a table next to some stitching machines.

“What did you need darling?” Rarity questioned.

“Think you could do my hair.” I asked while pointing up at it.

Rarity just stared at me for a second. Not saying anything. Then she just smiled brightly. “I would love to!” She levitated me over to a chair with a massive mirror in front of it. She sat me down in the chair, which ended up being way to small for me. “So, what can I do for it?” She spoke while ignoring my discomfort.

I took off my glasses and set them to the side. I stared at myself in the mirror. My one brown eye looking back at me. My short black curly hair was messy and dirty. I definitely did look like a mess. I tried to ignore Rarity’s concerned looks at my one glossy eye. I honestly didn’t care much about it, I was just hoping it would heal eventually. “Think you could straighten it and dye it purple?” I thought back to the deal I had with my ex team member.

I bet he’d be surprised when I came to save him with my hair actually being purple. I couldn’t help but smile thinking back about Charlie. “I could do that. What shade of purple were you thinking?” Rarity said cutting into my memories.

“Ever seen a gengar?” Gengar was always my favorite Pokémon. I definitely would like nice with that color.

“A gang what?” Rarity asked. Guess Pokémon isn’t a thing here.

“Never mind.” I thought about getting dark purple but then a wild thought hit me. “What about Twilights coat?”

Rarity gave me a mischievous grin. “Any reason you’d like that color?” She asked while hitting my shoulder with a hoof. All I did was shake my head and roll my eyes. After a while Rarity let out a giggle. “It shouldn’t be long.” Then she went to town on my hair.

After roughly ten minutes of Rarity doing her thing and me just zoning out,she finished and patted me on the shoulder. “Voilá!” I was snapped out of my daze and I looked myself in the mirror.

She definitely did a good job. My hair was straightened and purple just like I asked. My hair was longer and hanging lower on the right, it was slightly blocking my right eye’s field of view, but then again, it doesn’t matter since that was that eye had been blinded.

“Perfect.” I said while moving the hair out of my eyes and grabbing my glasses. I slid them on as I stood back up. Luckily, the glasses kept my hair from covering my eyes.

“I’m glad you like it.” Rarity spoke in a sweet and gentle tone.

“Thanks, Rairty, I will definitely find a way to pay you back.” I began stretching and cracking my fingers.

Rarity’s ears twitched at each crack. “Don’t worry about that darling. Anything for a friend in need.” I didn’t consider her a friend, but I guess I can pretend I do.

“Thank you.” I moved past her and headed back to the entrance. “Also, when do you think the clothes will be done?” I spoke while reaching for the door.

“Sometime tomorrow dear. I will see you then.” She called out.

I exited the shop and found Twilight standing off to the side, watching the ponies of Ponyville go about their day.

I stood next to her and watched some of the ponies pass us by. “Sorry it took so long.” I then noticed that there weren’t that many ponies about. I guess it was getting later in the day, but usually there would be more mingling around.

“It okay. I wasn’t wai-.” Twilight abruptly stopped talking. I looked over at her and saw that she was staring at my new haircut.

“Like what you see?” I jokingly asked.

Twilight shook her head repeatedly, apparently trying to snap herself out of her daze. “Yes.” Was the only thing she said as she began trotting away from me.

I quickly followed behind her and continued. “Don’t think too deeply about it.” I stepped in front of her and began walking backwards.

“If you say so.” I then realized she was blushing slightly.

“Anything else on the agenda?” I’m hoping we can just go home and I can nap.

Twilight shook her head before she replied. “No, I did everything I needed to do.” I was about to turn back around and walk side by side with but something wrapped around my legs.

The thing around my legs instantly tightened. I hopped around for a bit before falling onto my back. I tried to roll over, but before I could, I felt something jump up onto my stomach. “We got em!” A childish voice with a southern accent shouted.

I looked at the pony who jumped me. It turned out to be a filly. She had a yellow coat with a red mane and tail and orangish eyes. To top everything off, she had a huge red bow in her mane. “Nice job, Applebloom!” Another filly spoke with a raspy voice. I looked over at the other filly. This one had an orange coat and tail, with a magenta mane styled into Rainbow Dash’s mane, along with purple eyes. She also had a small pair of wings.

“Fuck off.” I spoke in a cold voice. The filly named Applebloom instantly jumped off of me and hid behind the orange pegasus.

“It can talk!?” Another high pitched voice spoke. I looked over at Twilight and she was trying her hardest not to laugh. Right next to her was a filly unicorn. She had a white coat with a purple tail and mane, both of which had a different shade of purple streaking through it. She had a pair of greenish eyes as well.

After sitting up and untying myself, I stood to my full height and glared at the fillies who practically jumped me. All three of them were huddled behind Twilight.

I let out a loud sigh and rubbed my temples. “Not even worth it.” I muttered. I ended up turning around and just continued on back to the library.

I didn’t get far because Twilight came trotting over to my side. “I’m sorry, those three usually don’t mean any harm.” She spoke in a panic.

“It’s fine.” I spoke without looking down at her. The rest of the walk back home continued in silence. Twilight kept looking up at me when she thought I wasn’t looking. Advantages to wearing sunglasses, no one knows what you’re looking at.

After a couple of minutes, I spotted the treehouse. I let out a sigh, I’m happy to finally be able to rest, though I noticed something off about the library immediately. All of the lights were off. I know for a fact that it hadn’t been like that when Twilight and I had left.

“What?” I turned to look at Twilight.

“I guess Spike came home and went to bed early.” She gave me nervous smile. That definitely did make the most sense. I just shrugged my shoulders and opened the door.

“Damn this bitch dark.” I muttered out loud. My sunglasses made it extremely dark and almost impossible to see inside the building. I went to turn on the lights, hoping that I could see a bit better.

But before I could, a bunch of lights flicked on. “SURP-“ Reacting on instincts, I immediately slammed the door shut. I didn’t have time to think because my body was already running in the opposite direction of the library. But I didn’t get far, because I soon started floating a few feet off the ground.

“Let me go!” I shouted trying to get out of Twilight’s magical grasp.

“Im sorry, Saint.” She spoke quietly.

I stared at her as she lowered her head. “Uhh, you good?” I asked, wondering what her deal was.

“I betrayed your trust. I knew this party was happening. I tried to get Pinkie to stop it, but it’s almost impossible to make her not throw a party.” She sounded like she was about to have a panic attack.

“Jesus, Twilight, relax.” I spoke while crossing my arms in mid air. She lifted her head up to look at me. “Listen, I’m not gonna blame you for something you have no control over. So let’s go sleep at a hotel or something” I pointed in some random direction

Twilight cocked her head to the side thinking of a response. “We can’t! Pinkie takes her parties very seriously. She’d be devastated if we skipped it.”

“And?” I wasn’t seeing a problem here.

“I can’t do that to her!” She said frantically

I let out a loud groan. “Twilight, I specifically remember saying I hated crowds.” I was very annoyed at this point. I had barely gotten a glimpse inside the room, but judging by the many unfamiliar voices I heard shout, I could tell that there was a crowd.

“I know, I know. I’m sorry. Just please, bare with it.” She looked up at me with puppy dog eyes. I had to look away, I couldn’t fall into the cute trap.

“No.” I closed my eyes and gritted by teeth.

“Please, Saint!” She sounded like she was about to cry. “I know that it’s unfair of me to ask, but I didn’t know what to do!”

I let out a sigh. It actually hurt to hear a pony beg. “Fine.” Twilight instantly seemed to brighten up. “Under three conditions.” I held up three fingers to emphasize.

“Anything.” She smiled up at me.

“One, you can’t leave my side at all throughout the night. Two, I’m sleeping in your bed tonight. Three, if Pinkie plans anymore parties, tell her to keep the guest list under seven.” I watched as Twilight closed her eyes. Pondering everything I said.

“Deal.” Her smile brightened. I watched as the aura around Twilight’s horn died down. I felt myself start to fall, but luckily for me, I landed on both feet. After stretching for a bit, I headed back to the library.

All the lights were still off, so I figured they were waiting till I came back. I cracked open the door a little so I could speak. “Aye yo... my bad, thought the spot was getting robbed... pretend I just walked in for the first time.” I heard a few snickers from inside, but still closed the door.

I turned around and saw Twilight looking up at me with a warm smile. I looked back at the and started breathing in and out. After repeating this a few times, I decided I was ready. I pushed the door open.

Just like before all the lights flipped on. “SURPRISE!” Many ponies from around town were standing inside the lobby of the library. The room was covered in streamers and other party favours.

The ponies who used to stare as I walked by, were now all smiling at me. I instantly felt myself tense up and begin to shake a little. This was why I wasn’t a soldier who fought on a battlefield. The room was easily somehow holding fifty ponies. I didn’t want to move. But my wish was denied because I felt something grab me and pull me to the center of the room.

“Hiya Saint! Nice hair by the way!” Pinkie Pie spoke, holding my hand somehow in her hoof. “Now that the guest of honor has arrived.” She let me go and jumped over to a classical looking phonograph and put the needle onto the record. “Let’s get this party started!” I listened as I realized the song sounded like a old party song from my world.

I watched as all the ponies in the room started doing there own thing. Some were at a punch bowl while others were at a snack bar. Even if I was the guest of honor, I was glad they were leaving me alone.

“What’s this party for exactly?!” I had to shout my question because of the music.

Pinkie smiled brightly at me. “It’s your welcome to Ponyville party of course!” After she finished speaking she went into a giggling fit. “I didn’t expect you to open the door and leave like that.” She was still giggling even after saying that.

“That was hilarious, Saint.” Spike walked up to me with my helmet on his head. I rolled my eyes and angled Spike’s head slightly. I then pressed the button that actually turned on the helmet. “Whoa!” He shouted as I let him go. The helmet must have just lit up, allowing him to see better. After a couple of seconds, he continued. “Awesome!” The time and map must’ve just popped up.

“What is it, Spike?” Twilight’ voice was filled with curiosity and wonder. Everyone around us watched as Spike reached out and tried to grab something.

“You actually can’t touch that stuff.” I tried to hide my laughter slightly.

“Touch what!?” Pinkie Pie spoke while reaching for the helmet.

I quickly swatted her hoof away. “It won’t fit. You’ll probably end up breaking it.” Pinkie began to pout and look at me with puppy dog eyes. I countered this by walking away.

While walking away, I noticed a punch bowl. I instantly headed over to it, because I was honestly thirsty as all hell. I grabbed a cup and poured myself some punch.

I didn’t even get the chance to drink any because the cup was engulfed in a purple aura. I turned around and watched as Twilight approached me.

“Sorry, can’t have you drinking that.” She dumped my cup back into the bowl.

“What, why?” I questioned.

Twilight gave me a confused look. “Because you’re not old enough.”

The dots connected as I realized what it was. I honestly didn’t care, so I grabbed another cup and filled it up as quickly as I could. After it was filled, I walked away while drinking it. “Saint!” She groaned as she followed me. “You’re underaged! You can’t drink that stuff.”

“And?” I tried my hardest to ignore Twilight as I went over to the snack bar. Sadly, there were a bunch of ponies loitering near it. I let out a sigh, annoyed that I’d have to deal with ponies I didn’t know to get something to eat. I decided to just forget it, I then walked away and headed to the door that lead to Twilight’s lab. I was starting to feel claustrophobic.

I didn’t get far, because I noticed Twilight was at my side. “You can’t drink anymore!” She shouted up at me.

“You sound like Beta.” I quickly spat out and went to go push open the door.

Sadly, before I could, I felt something tap my hip. I turned to look at what had tapped me, and it turned out to be Fluttershy from earlier. “Yes?” I questioned.

She let out a squeak as she looked down. I watched as her hoof seemed to be tracing the wooden floor. “Welcome to Ponyville.” She muttered quietly.

“Thanks.” I focused my attention back at the door. Sadly, Twilight was standing in my way, giving me another stern look.

“You can’t skip the party, Saint.” She said, unmoving from her location.

I let out a loud sigh and groan. “Whatever.” I started to lean against the wall next to the door. I honestly enjoy partying, but only with people that I actually know and trust.

I sometimes ended up partying with my team. We only did it after completing a difficult mission. Delta always invited a bunch of doctors and engineers which always made Beta, Charlie, and I uncomfortable.

Then there were the parties with Alice and Sara. Sometimes we would get together and just hang out like friends. But sometimes Alice would invite her classmates from the learning program. So, sometimes Sara and I ended up standing in a corner, awkwardly watching her talk with her friends.

My train of thought was ruined as I felt something poke my knees. “Hi girls.” I heard Twilight say. I looked down and saw the three fillies who jumped me. The unicorn was the one who poked me.

“Sorry, for earlier mister.” The unicorn spoke. All three of the fillies bowed their heads slightly.

“It’s cool, I’ve been jumped before, nothing new.”

“Really!?” All three of them spoke in unison. I didn’t understand why they were so excited.

“Yeah” I smirked adding to their excitement.

“What happened, did you beat them all up?” The orange filly was rapidly flapping her tiny wings.

“Guess you could say that. So, why’d you jump me?”

All of them looked away with sheepish grins. “I heard my sister and Rainbow Dash talking ‘bout some monster.” The southern filly spoke. “She said it took Twilight hostage!”

I rolled my eyes at hearing this. I was about to say something but the filly unicorn spoke next. “So we thought we could get our cutie marks in hostage rescuing!”

“That would make for a cool mark.” I encouraged the three fillies. “Keep trying for that one.” All three of the fillies smiled brightly at my words. I decided to walk away before any of them could try continuing the conversation.

After moving throughout the crowd of ponies, and stealthily grabbing another cup of punch, I spotted something that annoyed me. I saw Rainbow talking to the farm pony. I was curious as to why she came, knowing it was my party, and that I didn’t like her. I decided it was a bad idea to pick a fight, so I just ignored her.

After an hour of me just stuffing cupcakes down my throat, dragging Twilight around, and being forced to talk to random party guests, the party was finally over. During the party I ended up getting a severe migraine, it felt like Beta had somehow gotten into my head and was trying to use his hammer to break out. Sadly, I couldn’t rest yet because the only ponies who remained were Twilight and her friends. Spike was passed out next to the stairs with my helmet on.

I went over to him and tried to pry it off his head, I would be pretty upset if he got drool inside of it. “What are you doing?” I heard Twilight question from behind me.

After successfully pulling the helmet off, I held it in my hands. “Getting my helmet back. Shits expensive,” I forced out from between clenched teeth before turning to face her.

“Expensive how? It looks like a simple design.” Rarity decided to join the conversation.

“Why the fuck are you still here? Actually scratch that.” I then pointed to each of the extra ponies in the room. “The fuck are you all doing here?”

Fluttershy hid behind Twilight, while Rarity backed away. Pinkie jumped in front of me and spoke in her usual bubbly cheerful tone. “To help clean up of course!” She jumped over to a half eaten cupcake on a bookshelf and ate it.

I just rolled my eyes and sat down on the stairs Spike was on, obviously moving up a bit so I didn’t sit on him and closed my eyes and began to massage my temples to try to ease the pain I was in. “Before I forget.” I turned my head and cracked my eye open, looking over at Twilight and gesturing for her to move. She obeyed and moved, showing the shy pegasus. “You know any manticores?” I don’t remember seeing that many yellow ponies, so I was betting on her being the one.

She perked her head up a bit. “I do.... why?” She asked, unable to keep eye contact with me.

“A pair helped me out.” I stood up and walked over to her and kneeled down. “I wanna see if I can find them and say thanks.” I spoke as softly as I could, both to not scare her and to keep the pounding in my head from getting worse.

“I know a couple. I might be able to help.” She looked at me and smiled. I couldn’t help but smile back. I wonder if she knows they can talk.

I turned back around and headed back to the stairs. I didn’t get far because Twilight slide in front of me. “You met a manticore?!” She shouted up at me, causing me to squeeze my eyes shut and wince.

I moved past her and continued towards the stairs. “Yeah, they pointed me in this direction.” I took a step up the stairs and turned around to face the ponies. “Catch.” I threw my helmet at Twilight, and just like I expected, she caught it in her magic. “It’s already on, so do your thing. Also, don’t break it.” I doubt she’d actually break it, but just to be on the safe side.

I watched as all the ponies eyes were glued onto the helmet. “If you girls want, you can use it.” All of them had looks of nervousness. Well, besides Pinkie and Rainbow, they both looked pretty excited. “Actually, not you.” I pointed a finger towards Rainbow.

“What?! Why not?” She shouted as she began glaring at me. I winced again at the shouting. What was it with these ponies and loud noises?

“Cause fuck you, that’s why.” I was actually tired of her. I probably would’ve strangled her by now if it wasn’t for the fact that she’s Twilights friend. I stepped off the step and slowly walked towards her. “Ever since I got here you’ve been a pain in my ass.” The room was deadly quite, all that could be heard was Fluttershy’s whimpering

“Why don’t y’all just get along now.” The farm pony spoke.

“Can it, Applejack!” Rainbow shouted while flapping her wings repeatedly.

Everyone in the room gasped. “Rainbow, calm down.” Twilight spoke calmly.

“Why should I?!” Rainbow shouted while glaring at Twilight. I honestly didn’t care about her little temper tantrum and my migraine had only gotten worse with all of the yelling. So I turned around and headed back to the stairs.

After climbing up them, I instantly made a beeline towards Twilights bed. I set my glasses down onto her desk and threw myself onto her bed. Turns out, it was incredibly soft and comfortable. She even had a bunch of violet pillows. Sadly, my legs hung off the side, so I was forced to curl my body into a ball just to sleep.

Sadly I didn’t get to sleep as I heard the sound of hoofs against wood. A moment later, Twilight began speaking. “Sorry about Rainbow. She’ll come around eventually.” I’m hoping she doesn’t, hearing her voice hurts my ears.

“It’s fine.” I turned around to face her. She was holding my helmet in her magical grasp next to her.

“I’m going to study for a bit then head to bed.” She spoke with a soft voice.

“Okay. Night Twilight.” I turned back away from her and snuggled against the pillows.

“Thank you. And goodnight.” I listened as she left the bedside and headed downstairs.

I’m hoping next week comes by fast so I can meet the rulers of this stupid place. Hopefully I can convince the rulers to help me out. But I’m mainly hoping that everyone back home is safe. I will find a way back and I’ll save them. And that’s a promise.