Ponyville, Equestria

Around Eight PM.

It was quiet in Ponyville, as expected of a town of its size in the evenings. A few ponies were in the streets, heading to their evening destinations or home. Lights were winking out in buildings across the village, and the lamps were coming to life.

In this stood the Castle of Friendship, home of Twilight Sparkle. She had her assistant, the young dragon Spike, were cleaning up their dinner dishes after a meal with their friends, the Elements of Harmony.

As they cleaned and loaded the crystalline plates, glasses, and utensils into the dishwasher, Twilight Sparkle perked up suddenly.

"What's up?" Spike asked.

"I've got a weird feeling, all of a sudden." Twilight replied, turning off the faucet. "Like something big's going to happen soon."

"Don't tell me you're getting a Pinkie Sense of your own, Twi." Spike replied.

"Well, it's not like the Pinkie Sense at all." Twilight smirked slightly. "This isn't as complex as her precognitive abilities. This is more...like a gut feeling."

"Really?" Spike asked, now curious. "Like what?"

"I have a feeling that in the morning, we're going to be dealing with something big." Twilight said quietly. "But I don't know what that might be."

"Well, as you said, we can deal with it in the morning." Spike reassured. "Let's get to bed."

Twilight closed the dishwasher using her magic and followed Spike upstairs to their shared bedroom. Both were soon sound asleep as the castle's lights dimmed automatically in an arcane manner, one of its many quirks.

However, had they stayed awake for a few more minutes, they would've seen four pulses of white light appear in the Everfree, near the old castle of the two sisters.

====

Suzaku Kururugi felt numb all over. His eyes refused to open, and he struggled to regain his consciousness at first. Eventually, his stamina returned to him, and he opened his eyes.

As he peered down at himself, his eyes widened in shock. His human body had changed into one more akin to an equine, with a tan coat. His eyes and hair were unchanged, but what suprised him the most was the tattoo or marking on his flank, along with the wings on his sides.

It portrayed a shield surrounded by pale flowers on the foreground of a star. As he struggled to his feet, or now hooves, he noticed something lying nearby.

The object in question was a shortsword made from steel. Its handle was a pale gray and carved in the shape of a lion, with a simple ovular handguard. Inscribed on the blade was a picture of something Suzaku did not expect.

The engraving looked like the activation keycard for the Lancelot Albion, the combat mecha he had once piloted. Suzaku took the blade, and slung it over his shoulder. As he looked around, he could see the castle he was in had certainly seen better days. The bricks were cracked and worn, and the structure itself looked like it had been ransacked at some point.

Suzaku shook his head and began to walk around the area, finding that many of the doors were locked or wouldn't open.

Then, he saw her. Another equine with a female shape lay in the middle of a courtyard, her coat a pale tan, sporting both wings and a horn. But what he recognized was her even-toned pink mane and its distinct style. Only one person had those features, the one person he cared for the most.

Euphemia…Euphie...

As he lunged forwards and dropped down to her side, Suzaku quickly checked over her body for any sign of injury, like a Knight was supposed to. To his relief, there were none to be found. As he leaned back in elation, he heard a whisper.

"S...Suzaku?"

He looked down to see she was awake, her purple eyes staring at him in a mix of shock, relief, and love. She hesitantly got up before throwing herself into his embrace. While it felt awkward to do it like he was, it was one he never wanted to let go from.

"Euphie…" he said quietly. "You're alive...how? Do you know what happened to us? Where we are?"

She shook her head no.

"The last thing I remember was seeing your face in the hospital aboard the ship...then, now." Euphie replied. "That doesn't matter, though, are you okay?"

Suzaku nodded in reply, gently helping his Princess to stand upright. As they came together, Suzaku suddenly tightened up at the sound of footsteps coming their way. As he spun around and took a defensive stance, his new sword at the ready, he could hear a voice.

"Now who the hell are you?"

The voice in question came into view, which turned out to be two more equines. The first had a horn and wings like Euphie, only she seemed a little younger than her. Her mane was a mixture of yellow, blue, and white in an intricate pattern. Her pale blue eyes showed her youth and grace.

The other, a male like Suzaku, was a bit older than himself, with a more toned frame. He wore a red mask that reminded Suzaku of a raging wildfire, with a dark blue cape. An ornated decorated Katana lay on his back, with the pommel shaped like a drill. his dark eyes and tan coat on a blue-red mane radiated energy and action.

As they glanced at each other, the male came forward.

"Well, this is strange." he said. "But I guess we're in the same boat as you?"

"And what boat is that?" Suzaku asked.

"Just woke up as an equine with no recollection of why or how?" the stranger replied. Suzaku lowered his sword, and nodded.

"Well, damn." he replied. "Guess we should introduce ourselves?"

"Yeah, you first." Suzaku said, a bit more warily than he meant to be.

"Fine. I'm Simon. This is Nia." Simon said. "You?"

"Suzaku Kururugi." Suzaku replied. "This is Euphemia, or Euphie for short."

"Nice to meet you both." Nia said. "But, now what do we do? We can't stay here forever."

As if to accent her point, there was a howl of an animal in the distance. Suzaku and Simon looked at each other, and then their respective swords before nodding.

"So, you got any ideas?" Simon asked.

"Yeah…" Simon motioned over to a window overlooking the forest below. In the distance was a faint cluster of lights, and the four realized it was a distant town or settlement.

"Well, I guess we go there and try to find help." Euphie said. "We can share our stories later when we're out of this forest and in a safe locale."

"Agreed." Simon added. "Well, let's get a move on."

====

As the four of them exited the castle, they didn't notice three shapes in the clouds come closer. in fact, the shapes were Lunar Guard Chariots, bearing the Princess of the Night and two groups of her guards.

The reason for their presence was the occurrence of several pulses of magical energy that both Princess Luna and Princess Celestia had sensed. These pulses were best described as ripples in a pond from a thrown stone. Normally, the figurative stone would be small and their effects negligible.

But these pulses were unlike that. In this case, the thrown stone wasn't a stone, but a boulder being cast into the lake, not in total but for each individual pulse. When the ripples hit Canterlot, Luna had immediately sprung to action on her sister's advice.

Because the last time such a power had disturbed them...let's just say that it had originated from a dire threat to Equestria, and the Princesses weren't keen on fighting that battle again anytime soon.

As the Chariots came closer, the sound of wings flapping startled the four strange ponies, who spun around at the noise. As the Chariots landed, Princess Luna's eyebrows shot upwards at the sight of the two alicorns in the group. Their male counterparts, both pegasi, were either very protective of them or romantically involved, she reasoned, judging by their protective stances.

Luna motioned for her Guards to stand down and approached them, the two males raising their eyebrows in surprise and shock.

"Who are you?" the younger male asked. "What do you want?"

"Peace, I assure you." Luna replied, recognizing that they were armed. "I am Princess Luna of Equestria, mistress of the Night. Are you four in need of aid?"

"You could say." the other male replied. "So that's where we are, Equestria?"

"Indeed." Luna replied. "I would ask where you are from for you to not know of it, but the Everfree Forest is not the place to be at night. If you'll come with me, I can take you to shelter in Canterlot, where I can hear your stories, among other necessary undertakings. Is that to your liking?"

"Very much so, yes." said the older alicorn. "I'm Euphemia Li Britannia, though I just prefer Euphie. This is my Knight, Suzaku Kururugi."

"I'm Simon, and this is Nia Teppelin." Simon added. "Well, Princess Luna, lead the way."

Luna beckoned to the lead Chariot, and as the four of them boarded, Luna took the helm. They ascended into the sky, and began the flight back to Canterlot as the moon reached the highest point in the night sky.

Author's Note

Yeah, I've been wanting to do this for a while.