Conduits in Equestria: The Four Aces

Chapters

Prologue
Ch1; Dealing In
Ch 2; Ante Up
Ch 3; Small Blind
Ch 4; Big Blind
Ch5; Muck Draw
Ch 6; Check
Ch 7; Check-Call
Ch 8; The Flop

Prologue

Memphis, Tennessee. A thriving city known for its central trade locale, mouthwatering barbeque, and most recently, home to 4 powerful and unique conduits. ‘What is a conduit?’, one might ask… to which can be simply answered with, ‘a being with an extraordinary ability to absorb, control, and manipulate a certain element or material’.

Once upon a time, conduits were seen as a menace to society. Labeled as monsters and ‘bio-terrorists’ just for having abilities that most did not. Many had been persecuted, lynched, imprisoned, and scorned over the course of seven years. However, through the actions of a few, tenacious souls, conduits were beginning to be viewed under a different light.

First, there was Delsin Rowe. An Akomish tribe member, and a delinquent. His tribe in Washington were beset by the head of the Department of Unified Protection, Director Brooke Augustine. The reason? A group of conduits escaped detainment near his homeland, where he was both gifted and cursed with his own conduit abilities. Director Augustine laid siege to his tribe’s people in pursuit of the escapees, and in doing so, left Delsin with the responsibility to mend said tribe in the only way he could think how.

Over the course of a few weeks, and with the help of his newly awakened abilities, Delsin blazed a trail through Seattle, Washington. Tearing down the D.U.P. occupation, and even making friends with the conduit escapees, Abigail, Eugene, and Hank. Well, after leeching their powers, of course. Along the way, he also cut through to the heart of the Seattle drug trade, tearing that down too, and drove many of the gangsters, crime lords, and plenty of petty criminals, like the Akurans, out of town. These acts did not go unnoticed by the public, and with that, the public’s opinion of the ‘bio-terrorist menace’ had changed.

Of course, they weren’t the only group of conduits making a name for themselves. Halfway across the country, in the city of Memphis, Tennessee, a group of conduits known as ‘The Four Aces’ had also been hard at work with their own struggles. Having evaded capture after escaping the D.U.P.’s grasp as well, they at first thought to hide and run from their pursuers. When they became trapped within the city as it went into a D.U.P. quarantine, they decided that their only option was to fight their way out.

Their fight with the D.U.P. forces had eventually brought about something unexpected. As the conduits, Nataline, Samuel, Lu, and Isabelle fought, they discovered something about themselves that certain individuals tried desperately to keep secret. Their skills in their abilities were vast and adaptable, which would bring about the obvious question, ‘How did a group of ‘bio-terrorists’ become so strong since they had been imprisoned for years?’.

The Four Aces uncovered the answer to this question in time. It turned out that Michael Bertrand, Director Augustine’s second-in-command, had been secretly training some of the imprisoned conduits in Curdun Cay behind the director’s back. Bertrand’s plan was to sell off these weaponized conduits to the highest bidders on the black market. Understandably, the members of The Four Aces were shocked upon discovering this, and the fact that they, too, were meant to become these conduit bio-weapons.

It didn’t take long for these unlikely heroes to decide on what they should do with this information, and they soon made it their mission to put a stop to said plan and expose Bertrand, and the D.U.P., for their atrocities. The fight was hard, but in the end, they did it. Bertrand was defeated and criminalized. The city of Memphis no longer saw the conduits as evil or a menace, and the Four Aces were revered for their efforts.

Three months have passed since Augustine, Bertrand, and the D.U.P. have been exposed and dismantled. Conduits that had been wrongfully imprisoned within Curdun Cay were adopted into a growing number of conduit rights activist programs that would help them reintegrate into society. Society in the United States were slowly, but surely, changing their views on the conduit population as a whole for the better.

As it was, this left the members of the Four Aces with a lot more free time to do what they will with what their newfound freedom allowed. One such member, Samuel Reed, the wire conduit, was walking among the general populace like it was any other day. Occasionally, he’d get flagged down by a random passerby to take a selfie with them or to simply say hi and gush over him. Other than that, his jaunt northward through the city was uneventful.

It wasn’t long before he happened upon his destination, a fair bit away from the hustle and bustle of the inner city. An old, abandoned warehouse right next to Sandpit Lake. The place looked just as decrepit and rundown as the day he and his friends left it. A smile graced his lips as he remembered all the fond memories he had of the place. It was his and the rest of the Four Aces’ refuge while they fought against the D.U.P., after all.

Sam walked up to the main entrance on the side of the building, ignoring the ‘No Trespassing’ sign hung over it. The steel door creaked loudly from years of disuse, and a stream of light from the doorway spilled in to illuminate the first few feet inside. Like riding a bike, he walked in and took a few steps to the left to flip the main lever up on the breaker box without even looking. Flipping each breaker within the box brought more and more of the overhead lights on and brought further illumination into the dusty place.

Even after so long, the place hadn’t changed at all. Just a typical manufacturer’s warehouse, once used for fabricating and storing car parts. Only a few of the outdated machinery remained, too heavy to be moved and left to be forgotten and collect dust and rust. A raised coordinator’s office overlooked the entire floor from across the warehouse, while a mezzanine was built up on the right hand side as a sort of break area.

Although bare of the previous owner’s utilities, more recent additions made the wire conduit sigh with nostalgia. A set of couches sat in front of a thirty-two inch, LCD tv close to the coordinator’s office. A couple of hand made training dummies made out of concrete sat with plenty of burn marks and shards of concrete or wire strands penetrating them in the open central area of the warehouse.

The mezzanine had a few shredded up and vandalized D.U.P. banners and concrete barriers surrounding its edges. Evidence of a particular someone’s living space made up there. Although he couldn’t see from where he stood, Sam knew someone had taken the time to convert the coordinator’s office into another living space behind the hung up curtains blocking its windows.

High up in the rafters, a wooden platform was suspended mid air by a set of wire cables between the support beams. Hidden from few, the platform housed the wire conduit’s old living space and sleeping area back when he and the rest of the Four Aces lived in this ramshackled place.

This made Sam smile with the familiar sight, as it was the whole reason he was back at the Four Aces’ hideout. He was just about to head up to his old space, when he heard someone enter the warehouse through the rusty, squeaky door.

“Oh! Hey, Natie!” Sam called out to the electric conduit, “Whatcha doing here?”

The stoic female, although surprised at first, closed the door behind her. Sam took in her appearance as she did. No longer clad in her usual, sometimes ill fitting, second-hand clothes they all could scrounge from local thrift shops and donation centers. She now wore a more business casual outfit, complete with light grey slacks, teal blouse with her sleeves rolled up and over a grey blazer. Her dirty-blonde hair had been cropped short to just about shoulder length. Unlike how she used to have just left it long enough to tie back into a one long ponytail.

“I could ask you the same, Sam. How have you been doing?” Natie happily replied to her fellow conduit’s question.

At this, Sam smirked.

Putting on a mock pout and slumping shoulders, he over-exaggeratedly replied, “Oh my god! Who knew having a normal life would be so exhausting! Taking classes to get a GED, having a proper home/apartment to sleep in, having a part time job. It’s all so demanding! Oh, Natie! Call the D.U.P. and send me back to Curdun Cay! It’s all too much for me!”

Natie rolled her eyes at Sam’s usual over-dramatism.

Sam chuckled at her reaction before answering more thoughtfully, “Seriously though, that GED is a pain. I’m basically cramming four years of school into less than one. It sucks. Thought I’d take a break from studying and was gonna watch a movie, but realized I left a few of my favorites here at the old place. Came to pick them up.”

Natie understood, and even swept her gaze over the familiar scenery with a sense of nostalgia.

“Anyways,” Sam called out, gaining the electric conduit’s attention, “What are you up to? Last I saw, you and the Memphis council were really picking up on that conduit support program in Midtown.” Sam’s eyes drifted down to Natie’s hand, and the unknown object that occupied it. “Hey, whatcha got there?”

“Yeah, the council has been dragging their feet on that proposal. ‘Not enough in the budget’. Luckily, we recently got a few charity donations to help kickstart the program a bit sooner,” Natie answered while reaching under her arm for the file binder she had with her, and that Sam had pointed out, “And this is one of the program’s proposals that the donations are helping to fund.”

It seemed right to Sam that Natie was helping to head one of Memphis’ lead conduit rights groups like she was. She always fit well into the leader role, no matter how unsure she used to seem about it. As Natie dug into the binder, Sam came closer to get a closer look out of curiosity. He only caught a glimpse of some of the official looking documents before Natie snatched a colorful looking brochure out and snapped the binder closed. Natie held out the brochure, and Sam took it to inspect for himself.

In big, bold lettering, Sam easily read the cover out loud, “Conduit Citizens; Understanding who we are. Training and counseling sessions available for all applicants.”

Underneath the title was a picture of two hands engaged in a handshake, with one of them surrounded in a sort-of ethereal aura. Opening the brochure to read more, a satisfied grin grew on Sam’s face.

“Wow, Natie! This is awesome!” Sam praised his friend, “I knew you’d find a way to help more conduits out, and this is perfect!”

Not one to show much bashfulness, Natie scratched her cheek while looking off to the side, “It wasn’t just my idea. My friends in the activist group all pitched in to really pitch this to the council. Plus, this isn’t just for conduits. Family, friends, or even anyone who just wishes to learn more are welcome. This program is about giving conduits and non-conduits a middle ground to come together and support each other. Whether they be newly activated conduits needing help in understanding and controlling their abilities, or are those looking to learn about conduits in our society in general.”

“Huh, good pitch,” Sam said, handing the brochure back to Natie, “So, why are you back here? Forgot something you miss, too?”

Natie shook her head, “Actually, the activist group has been looking for a place to set up the new program. Somewhere large, affordable, and sturdy enough to instruct newly activated conduits as they learn to use their powers.”

“Ah, I see,” Sam understood his friend’s meaning whilst looking around their old hideout, “I definitely see what mean. This place is perfect. I’m almost gonna miss this place...and the cockroaches, and the terrible A/C, and the constant threat of the D.U.P. discovering this place, and the cockroaches. Oh, and did I mention the-”

His continued rant earned him a pointed glare from the electric conduit. He shut up, but not without a devious chuckle. Natie just sighed at his antics just as the main entrance door opened once more. Their simultaneous looks of curiosity eyed the pair of familiar newcomers as they entered.

“-doesn’t matter,” one of the familiar beings said, as if in the middle of a conversation, “Nobody else’s gonna want it. Besides, what are they gonna do, kick me out? I’d like to see any of them try.”

The soft spoken girl beside him entered the warehouse behind the asian man and shut the door politely, “Please, Lu. I just don’t think it’s safe for you to live here. I mean, yes, we did, but we didn’t have any other choice. Wouldn’t it be better to live somewhere more, um… liveable?”

Lu Yao Feng and Isabelle Wilmott, the final two members of the infamous ‘Four Aces’, and friends to the two other conduits already in the warehouse.

Sam had noticed that the asian man had been working out more. He was certainly a bit broader than the last time they met. A simple pair of jeans and white, tucked-in t-shirt formed his outfit for the day. It also seemed that Lu had let his hair grow out enough in the back to be tied into a rat’s tail. Last the wire conduit had heard, Lu had been hopping from job to job. A lot of construction based jobs, at that. Hours of concrete work for normal workers only took him minutes, which his various supervisors never took for granted.

Isabelle had been taking to wearing sundresses and the like, to compliment her fair complexion. Her golden-brown hair cascaded past her shoulder blades, having letting it grow out. Much like Sam, she had gone back to finish out her high school education. They even occasionally met up to hang out and study, together with a few other students that they had made friends with.

Upon noticing that they were not the only ones in the old hideout, Lu and Isabelle greeted their long time companions.

“Natie, Sam!” Isabelle excitedly ran up to them, “It’s so good to see you!”

They each took turns accepting the younger girl’s hugs before they turned to the less enthused asian.

“Oh, good. Everyone else is here,” Lu noted sarcastically while crossing his arms.

Sam smirked, “Ah~, someone wasn’t expecting a family reunion. Come on, Lu! Get in here! It wouldn’t be the same without our grumpy uncle!”

“Fuck off, you weirdo,” Lu growled.

Natie cleared her throat, turning to address the latest newcomers, “Not that I’m not glad to see you two, but what are you doing here?”

Lu grunted, but remained silent. This left Isabelle to explain their situation.

“Um, well. Me and Lu just sort of bumped into each other, and I wanted to catch up a bit,” Isabelle explained, “He mentioned coming back here, and since we were still catching up, we decided to visit the hideout together.”

Natie listened intently, nodding in understanding. Isabelle’s usual cheer turned into a frown as she talked some more, “I actually ended up asking Lu why he wanted to come back here after a while, and well- Natie, can you talk him out of trying to live here again?”

“What the fuck, Isabelle?!” Lu shouted.

Sam and Natie looked surprised by Lu’s outburst, but more importantly, by his plans. They all took to arguing. Natie explaining how she and the conduit rights group needed the space for their program. Isabelle tried to convince Lu again about how much easier it was living in a clean, safe apartment, and that Natie’s proposal would be a better use of the old place. Lu stood his ground, and claimed that no one else had thought to use the hideout before him. Sam cut in to snappily reply that he had arrived first, therefore, he had the sacred right of ‘dibs’ to decide what should be done.

While all that was going on, a shift in the air occurred. It was subtle at first, so none of the conduits noticed it at first. It wasn’t until Isabelle shivered and blew a small ball of fire into her hands that everyone else noticed the chill in the air.

“Anyone remember if there was a draft in this place?” Sam asked nobody in particular over the increasingly shifting air currents.

“Some of the windows are busted,” Natie noted, but her posture grew tense, “But this isn’t natural.”

“Sam, below you!” Isabelle shouted while pointing.

Tracing her pointed finger, everyone turned to Sam, or more specifically, the ground beneath his feet. Everyone stared, awestruck as motes of light appeared on the ground and then began expanding to surround the wire conduit in a bubble of intricate patterns.

“Sam, get out of there!” Natie shouted toward the stunned wire conduit.

However, unlike his friends, Sam wasn’t entirely afraid of what was going on. The swirling patterns that surrounded him were actually quite familiar to him. He had seen these types of patterns before, a long time ago, but his memory of them had not faded.

“A spell matrix”, Sam whispered to himself with a nostalgic smile on his face.

He suddenly felt something latch onto his arm, snapping him out of his fascinated trance. Turning to see who it was, he found Natie below him trying to pull him toward her. It was also at this point that he noticed that he had started floating within the spell bubble. Within seconds, Natie’s efforts became moot, as she too began to float due to some unseen force in the bubble she had stepped into.

“You idiots!” Lu shouted, “Isabelle, help me get them out of there!”

Isabelle could only nod and complied. Only, as soon as they stepped into the bubble, gravity became null and void, and they too became trapped and suspended within.

“This is your fault, dumbass!” Lu pointed an accusatory finger at Sam, all while trying to resist the unseen force in vain.

The wire conduit rolled his eyes, “You decided to just try and drag us out without thinking, and look where you ended up.”

“Sam, now is not the time!” Natie shouted over their bickering, “What is going on? Can you get us out?”

“I wouldn’t worry too much. This isn’t anything bad. At least, I’m like, ninety percent sure this is okay,” Sam reassured through the light around them that steadily grew brighter.

“What the fuck do you mean?!” Natie cried out in panic, desperately looking for a way to save her friends from whatever attack this may be.

Before Sam could answer, the spell matrix they floated within became blindingly bright. The four conduits let out surprised yelps as the force of gravity began to reassert itself. Only, instead of falling to the ground they knew to be only a few feet below them, they kept on falling into what they could only describe as a kaleidoscope of colors and shapes.

The fall turned turbulent, and Sam became queasy from the assault on his senses. The motions became so violent that he was starting to lose focus on his fellow conduits’ desperate cries. Before he knew it, his mind was growing foggy, and the edges of his vision were turning black.

The last thing he remembered before the void swallowed him was the image of his conduit friends fighting, and losing as badly as he was, against the sea of force thrusting them through an unknown plane of existence, and his thoughts about maybe being wrong about this being as safe as he promised.

Ch1; Dealing In

Author's Note

Well, that took a lot longer to publish than I originally intended. Sorry about that y'all. This week has been hectic at work. Got promoted to a supervisory role, and had to train the new crew that my production supers put under me. At the very least, most of them were easy to pick up on the tasks, but I still had to check over their shoulders every so often. Then, I almost always had to stay late to finish out my turnover for the morning crew and other new supervisor tasks.

Being an adult is hard...At least the pay is good. Anywho, now that next week is 'suppose' to be a lighter workload, I might be able to work on the next chapter and post a little earlier. Time will tell though. So, in the meantime, enjoy this one here!

As always, many thanks to my awesome-sauce editor and proofreader Regreme for all his hard work.

Ch1; Dealing In

“...stop!”

“...Not gonna...these asses!”

“Please… stand down…”

Sam awoke with a terrible headache. Other than that, it at least felt like none of his important bits were missing.

“...trying to trick us! That asshat Bertrand’s behind this, ain’t he!”

Sam wanted to yell at the obvious offender of loud expletives he knew to ‘shut the hell up, and let me sleep’. However, what did come out was more along the lines of an incoherent grumble. It also didn’t help that even with his eyes closed, he could feel the sting of midday sunlight trying to pierce through his eyelids. As he tried to roll over, someone had noticed his entrance to the waking world, a rather familiar and comforting someone.

“Sam! Thank god you’re okay,” Isabelle said as she helped her fellow conduit up to a sitting position.

Sam fought off the disorientation and opened his eyes as quickly as possible to assess the situation. Isabelle’s tone certainly sounded worried enough to warrant his immediate attention. More shouts and threats were exchanged in the background as Sam’s vision finally came into focus, and he was greeted with a very unusual scene.

Before him was Lu, his back to him and aggressively standing off against almost a dozen armored ponies. That last part certainly qualified for a double-take as these equines were not your run of the mill horses. No, a few had horns jutting out from their foreheads, denoting them as unicorns. Others were hovering above the ground on wings, making them pegasi. All of them, even those without either, held the distinct gleam of intelligence in their eyes as they faced off against the concrete conduit.

“Which ever one of you assholes is fucking with my mind better knock it the fuck off!” Lu yelled, conjuring shards of concrete around fists.

“Listen to me, human!” an oddly familiar voice called out from the guards, “You’re making a mistake. We are not your enemy.”

“Bullshit!” Lu yelled.

More concrete gathered between his hands, and he let loose a barrage on the ponies. Sam called out in desperation to stop. The ponies would not be able to survive such an onslaught. Sam knew this as he remembered that their magic was near useless against a conduit’s abilities. It was too late though, and all the wire conduit could do was watch in horror as the world slowed to a crawl. The fear in the ponies’ faces were etching themselves into Sam’s mind and image after image of the bloody inevitable played out in his head. There was no time to act, but by some form of perhaps divine intervention, the ponies were spared. Spared by the sudden appearance of beams of hazy, pearly-white light that shot the shards of concrete out of the air before they could reach them.

Sam, Lu, and even Isabelle, who was in the midst of helping Natie up to her feet, stared in surprise of the counter. A pegasus, one dressed unlike the rest of the guards, shot down to place himself between the guards and Lu, his wings outstretched threateningly and one forehoof scraping at the ground in challenge.

Lu shook off the daze first and growled menacingly at the pegasus. His arms were now fully encased in concrete, meaning he was getting serious. Sam immediately jumped, flinging himself between the two parties just before the tension broke.

“Wait!” Sam shouted, his arms outstretched in both parties’ directions in hopes of stopping the conflict.

Thankfully, it did. Or, at least, made everyone hesitate upon his sudden intervention. Either way worked if he asked himself.

“Sam? What are you doing?” Natie asked, fully on her feet now, “What’s going on?”

A rather sensible set of questions, but ones that would have to wait, as another familiarly gruff voice called out from the pony side.

“That is exactly what I would like to know, Human. Who are these other, er, humans?”

Sam’s eyes widened upon seeing the pegasus that spoke. It was the one that stood at the front of the contingent of pony guards. His auburn coat shining as healthily as his medallion-colored mane and tail. Though, unlike the rest of the guards’ platemail armor, this one wore a dark, padded coat like vestment that, by the looks of it, had segmented pieces of armor woven into it and covered his vitals. Perhaps it was like ceramic plating or something similar, but overall looking much more modern than the typical pony armor Sam was used to.

However, the most striking thing about this pony was the fact that his wingtips gave off the same pearly-white glow that the beams of light that blocked Lu’s attack shined with. Of course, even with all these differences, Sam could never forget that piercing, focused glare directed at him, nor the subtle undertone of annoyance he gave off from looking at the wire conduit.

“Wait, hold up,” Sam said, “Cappy, is that you?!”

The familiar pony let out an equally familiar exasperated sigh, “Yes, Human. And it’s ‘Administrator’ Aegis Flare, now.”

“What the fuck is going on here?!” Lu suddenly blurted out.

Natie agreed in her own words, “Sam, please. Just what is going on? What-... who are these creatures? How do you know them?” Both sides were confused to some degree, which just left the only conduit in the room with only the vaguest idea on what was the situation.

“Ok, see,” Sam started with addressing his fellow conduits, “I-wait! Waitwaitwaitwait!”

The wire conduit had suddenly realized something that he should have probably taken better note of in his assessment of his favorite guard captain earlier. Whirling back on the spot to face said pony, he scrutinized Aegis Flare, and more importantly, the pearly-white wisps of light coming from both his wingtips and dimly from his forehooves. Sam knew ponies, or at least, enough about ponies to know that a pegasus generating beams of light and glowing wasn’t ordinary. He ran through his head quickly on the possible explanations to this phenomenon, but only one could really stick with him.

“Cappy, you’re a conduit?” Sam asked, almost flabbergasted by the revelation.

Aegis Flare nodded, “Yes. There’s a lot that needs to be discussed, Human.”

“That there is.”

The angelic, motherly voice came from behind the guards. Everyone’s heads turned to see the Equestrian Royal diarchs enter the room that the humans and ponies were in. The ponies all bowed their heads subtly, but remained on guard against the perceived danger still in the room, which looked strikingly familiar to Sam as part of the Royal Castle from the interior that he could see.

Seemingly unafraid, and against the pony guards’ protests, Princess Celestia and Princess Luna strode up to the stunned wire conduit. Their smiles gave away their joy for once again being able to greet their visitor from another world. Sam couldn’t help but gawk at the two from the astonishment of being before more familiar faces that he thought he’d never see again.

“Hello, Samuel,” Luna spoke first, “It is good to see you again.”

Celestia chuckled at Sam’s continued stunned silence, “Indeed, but perhaps we should resolve the potential conflict that this confusion may be having on these other humans.”

Sam shook his head as his mind rebooted once more. Over his shoulder, he could see that his human friends all had varying looks of apprehension on their faces to the situation at hand.

“Guys, chill,” Sam tried to stress to his anxious companions, “They’re not threats. More like, friends.”

“Sam, explain,” Natie demanded.

Sam knew that tone. It probably didn’t help that he blew her off earlier, too, but he now had a chance to recover, and keep his ass from getting fried.

“... Do you all remember that time we got ambushed on the overpass, and I ended up disappearing for a few days?”

Lu and Isabelle nodded, but still seemed confused. It was only Natie that had a look of growing realization upon hearing Sam’s reply.

Natie collected her thoughts into the only logical conclusion she could think of to speak, “...You were actually telling the truth… all of it?”

Sam knew what she was talking about as the memory of his return home, and the shared disbelief they all had upon hearing Sam’s crazy story from months ago, came to mind. He nodded without a hint of deception and smiled knowingly. Isabelle gasped in understanding as everything seemed to click into place for her as well.

“What the hell are you talking about?!” Lu asked bluntly.

Isabelle leaned over to whisper to the concrete conduit. His face went through a gambit of reactions. Shifting from confusion, to surprise, and then back to disbelief.

“No fucking way! You’re telling me this dumbass actually came here? Like, actually came to another world?”

“Oh yeah,” Sam replied with a smirk, “Not to mention saved their city from a megalomaniac about as powerful as Bertrand, became a hero slash celebrity, and got a nice little vacation away from a certain concrete meathead that anyone would kill for.”

It didn’t take long for Lu to catch onto that last comment, and he stomped up in front of Sam and glared.

“Oh, you think you’re gonna get away with that?” Lu growled in Sam’s face.

Sam chuckled at how easy it was to rile him up still, “Well, that would imply that you’d be fast enough to catch me. Try emptying that thick head of yours, and you might have a chance.”

Before the two could get into their usual confrontation, they were both treated to an electrically charged slap upside both the back of their heads. Coincidentally, making them bash their faces against each other and dazing them. When their senses returned, they both saw the angry scowl of Natie glaring down on them. They both flinched and decided it was best not to anger her further.

Natie, now reestablishing her prompt to Sam, asked him once more, “Sam, for the love of God, just tell us what’s going on.”

Sam backed up out of swatting distance and cleared his throat, “So, princesses! These are my friends from my world, and the rest of the Four Aces. Natie, Isabelle, and Lu.”

The wire conduit figured that it was safer to address the snickering princesses first and finally give out some introductions. The princesses eyed Sam’s friends with contemplation, each giving their own wave or greeting.

“Natie, Isabelle, Lu,” Sam continued, “Back when I disappeared on that day, I came here. A lot of shit happened and I made friends with the natives. These are Princess Celestia, Princess Luna, random royal guards A through F, and Captain Aegis Flare, or as I call him, Cappy. Finally, there’s- hey, wait...where’s-”

“Sam!”

Barreled over by a purple pony that just teleported in front of him was not exactly how he expected to be greeted by his long time Equestrian friend. She tightly held onto him in a hug that would make a bear envious of her strength. The hysterical mare was speaking a mile a minute, with only bits of which Sam could discern. Some of it about how she was happy to see him again, and more about how sorry she was for some reason.

“Sparks,” Sam playfully acted like he was actually being choked out, “most people consider air to be a necessity from where I come from! Blurgh~!”

The purple pony, formally known as Twilight Sparkle, immediately let go and started apologizing even more while Sam chuckled over her enthusiasm. He even scooped her up into his own hug to put an end to that, which made her let out an ‘eep’ and fell silent.

“Hey, Sparks. It’s been a pretty long time,” Sam said to the pony slowly calming down in his arms.

She brushed a few tears from her eyes and smiled, “It really has. I’m so glad to see you again, Sam.”

Sam pulled her in for another embrace as he replied, “Same here...Say, not to ruin the moment, but I do have a few questions. First and foremost, when did you grow wings?!”

Twilight pulled back and blushed in embarrassment. Her gaze fell over her withers and the two feathery appendages that adorned her back and that seemed to rustle with her embarrassed expression.

“Those are, um...new,” Twilight fumbled over her words, trying to explain, “Well, not new new, just new for you I guess. There was this thing, and then another thing. The Magic of Friendship was involved, and I ended up ascending, which was another thing entirely.”

She continued to ramble, but stopped when she saw Sam holding back laughter.

“Sounds like you’ve been busy then, huh?” Sam asked.

Twilight let out a tired sounding sigh, her newly acquired wings sagging a bit, “You have no idea.”

“Heh, I guess three months can really catch up to ya.”

Sam’s comment was met with silence. As he scanned the crowd, they all wore similarly anxious expressions. Even Twilight, who had wriggled free of Sam’s grasp, looked up at him with an apprehensive stare. The purple winged unicorn fought to get the words out that would shock the wire conduit for a good long while.

“Sam...it’s been 2 years.”

Ch 2; Ante Up

Author's Note

Well, I gotta work on a better schedule to balance my new responsibilities with my free time. gaining a promotion and becoming a supervisor is tough. As for the chapter, still have a little more set up planned and then we can dig into the meat. Hope you all have a good rest of your weekend and enjoy. Oh yeah, I'm always open to criticism and comments. Let me know what you all think so far.

Big Mcthankies from McSpanky's- wait, wrong. As always, Regreme, you are the light in my- damn it, wrong cue cards again! Thanks for all your help in proofreading and editing.

Ch 2; Ante Up

“It’s been two years.”

Sam had an expression that could only be described as complete and utter shock. Two years. Two years was far more than he expected to hear, let alone hear at all. In fact, ever since returning to Memphis, he had accepted that he would never be coming back to Equestria. Now that he was back, and learned that he’d been away for far longer, he just had no way to respond.

“Sam, are you okay?” Twilight asked.

Her voice helped the wire conduit to snap out of his trance and finally process the situation.

“I-...wait, that’s impossible,” Sam denied, “This is a joke. I’ve only been back to Earth for three months.”

Twilight shook her head, “I’m not sure how it’s possible either. Maybe our worlds have a chronal dissidence. Or perhaps there was a temporal shift from the- ah!”

Sam caught the purple alicorn as her legs buckled from underneath her. All the energy she had just moments ago just seemed to evaporate, leaving her looking drained and rather flushed.

“Whoa, Sparks! Stay with me,” Sam worriedly said before calling out, “Is she okay? What’s wrong with her?”

“Twilight, I thought I told you to rest up,” Celestia piped up while coming to her side.

The solar princess knelt down to nuzzle the purple alicorn in Sam’s arms. She seemed to only be able to return the gesture half heartedly though.

Through a bleary expression, Twilight groaned out, “I’m sorry. I just needed to know if he was safe. The gate had never been used on such a scale before.”

Twilight shifted around in Sam’s arms, as if in an attempt to stand up, but the wire conduit had to catch her once more before she toppled over again.

“Hey, don’t push yourself,” Sam chided.

“Oh, don’t lecture me on ‘taking it easy’ Mr. ‘I’m gonna take on a giant shadow conduit by myself’,” Twilight chided back.

Her little outburst was short lived as she groaned again and tried to shake off her fatigue.

Sam turned up to face the white alicorn next to him, “What’s wrong with her? What ‘gate’?”

Celestia let out a sigh before nodding in the direction behind Sam, making him turn to see. The other human conduits followed the solar princess’ line of sight, and they all looked on in surprise at what they found. A machine, or what remained of the machine, stood among a field of scorched debris.

The main body of the contraption looked like a raised metal platform with an arch at its center. However, the arch, which appeared to be made out of a solid piece of of multi-faceted crystal, had a large chunk missing from it on one side. Much of the debris on the ground appeared to be that of the crystal. Surrounding the platform were a collection of other machines with archaic looking computer-like terminals and cables attaching them to the main platform. A few of these terminals looked to be blown out or melted by an unknown force.

“What the hell is that thing?” Lu asked first.

“It’s the machine we used to call Sam here,” Celestia answered, “And, inadvertently, the rest of you.”

The human conduits looked to each other, showing looks of confusion.

Twilight had finally managed to wiggle free of Sam’s grasp, even against his protests, “”I’ll be fine. I just need a minute.” She took a deep breath and steadied herself. “Ok...it’s-well, it was, the Spatial Access slash Ribbon Collider. I’m not entirely sure why it became unstable, but like Princess Celestia said, we used it to call you, Sam.”

Sam, as well as the rest of the conduits, were still confused. However, Sam looked to also have a contemplative look on his face that turned into a cheshire grin.

“Spatial Access slash Ribbon Collider huh? The ‘SpARC’ gate does have a nice ring to it, even if you tried to be sneaky about it, ‘Sparks’.”

Twilight groaned as Celestia and Luna stifled some giggles.

“I didn’t name it after myself!” Twilight proclaimed, much to Sam’s delight in her embarrassment, “Look, Leyline theorem is a highly complex topic, and the name reflects the machine’s purpose! That’s all!”

Sam continued to chuckle, but one person was growing impatient with standing around doing nothing.

Lu stormed past the wire conduit to get up in front of the three alicorns and vent, “I don’t care about this bullshit, or this fucking place. You got the asshat over there that you were looking for. So, I’d like to get back home, and start moving into my fucking warehouse like I planned, now!”

Although taken aback by the bulkier male human, their expressions became regretful.

“...Please understand,” Celestia spoke in a placating voice, “We had no intention of this happening.”

Twilight stepped forward, looking even more apologetic, “It was my fault. I should have run more tests. The collider became unstable...it’s broken, and will take weeks to rebuild.”

“What?!” the human conduits all collectively yelled.

Bickering between the group ensued while the ponies looked on in vain. Many insults and threats were thrown around, mostly by Lu, as they tried to figure out what they would do.

“Silence!” Luna’s voice boomed across area, and was just barely enough to cut through the din of bickering humans.

The Lunar Princess nodded to her sister as Celestia gave another slight sigh.

“I am truly sorry for the inconvenience. I know it is very little to offer in light of the situation, but let us at least offer you all a meal. We may also discuss any other questions you still have,” Celestia beckoned for the humans to follow her and the other ponies, “I promise, we will do everything we can to accommodate your stay until the gate is rebuilt.”

Lu, Natie, and Isabelle all turned to Sam, still unsure of the whole situation. The wire conduit gave them a nod, a reassurance that everything was still safe and the ponies were trustworthy. It wasn’t ideal, but if they had no other choice at the moment, they’d just have to roll with it for the time being.

With one last glance back to the metal platform and the pair of earth pony guards already cleaning up, they followed the rest of the ponies out of the debris ridden room.

Sam almost immediately recognized where they were once out in the castle’s halls. The room with the ‘SpARC’ gate was actually Twilight’s laboratory in the west wing of the castle. The other three conduits gawked at their surroundings, still in disbelief of the world around them. Sam got a small kick from this, and chuckled as the rest of the humans ‘oh’ed’ and ‘aww’ed’ from the decorum of the castle and scenic views of the castle grounds they caught from the windows. Sam may have been worried about the prospect of being stuck in Equestria again, even if it was less temporary than his last stay. However, the joy he felt about returning to the familiar, semi-regularly peaceful place was enough to set him at ease.

Sam suddenly felt a tap on his arm. Looking over his shoulder, he found Isabelle peering meekly about. She leaned up when she noticed she had caught Sam’s attention.

Whispering under her breath, she asked, “Sam, are you sure this place is safe?”

“Of course,” Sam replied earnestly, “I know the feeling. I didn’t trust this place at first either. Just give it a little time, you’ll see.”

“And if we can’t trust them?”

Sam turned over his other shoulder to find Natie with a very serious expression to match her soft spoken question.

“...We can,” Sam insisted, “But, if it makes you feel better. Windows, three down, south-west, five hundred out, then up and over.”

Natie nodded in confirmation to the cryptic phrase. She fell back a few steps to take in her surroundings a little more thoughtfully. Sam had mentioned the winged unicorns by name, along with the pegasus that had conduit abilities. Her eyes flicked to each one, taking note that the pegasus was trying to take inconspicuous glances back at the four of them from his position beside the winged unicorns. Natie could tell that he would more than likely be the biggest threat.

The rest of the ponies, about half a dozen, had carefully placed themselves both in front and behind her and her companions. Her first target would be the one directly behind her on her right. The surprise would only last a moment, but it would surely give her enough time to take down at least two more. She knew Lu would take the initiative and relish the chance to take out more at the front and possibly the pony conduit. With the bulk of their forces out, she and the rest of her friends could easily make it out one of the many windows on their left and escape with Sam’s instructions.

Of course, that was merely a fallback plan. Natie trusted Sam’s judgement, as with the rest of her fellow conduits, and if he said that these ‘ponies’ could be trusted, then she was at the very least willing to give them the benefit of the doubt.

Aegis Flare couldn’t help but glance over his withers at the quartet of humans behind him every so often. Even if the human known as Sam used to give him constant headaches with his antics, he would be lying if he said he wasn’t happy to see the wire conduit in good health and spirit. The others on the other hoof... The muscular male, Lu, made him feel guarded. His rude and offensive attitude made it quite apparent he was type that would rather be in a fight than a dialogue, not to mention his language reminded the old captain of a punk. The female in the sundress, Isabelle, was mousy. It was the only description he could come up with for the young female. Although, after quiet conversation with Sam, she grew more curious and openly took in the castle architecture and decoration with happy wonder in her eyes.

Then, there was taller female, Natie. Eavesdropping was highly unprofessional, but when he heard the exchange between Sam and this female, he couldn’t help but tense up a bit. That cryptic set of instructions and the look of understanding in Natie’s eye only made Aegis Flare feel even more uneasy as he watched the female.

He watched as she meticulously surveyed her surroundings. He could even see that she was counting the number of guards in their escort. A standard precaution for their guests, but he could see how it could appear to someone with combat experience like her. Oh, yes, Aegis Flare could never mistake the look of someone who has seen combat before. He had seen it in Sam when the wire conduit was stuck on their world before. In fact, all four of them carried themselves in ways that only those that had faced many hardships would. Aegis Flare remembered what the wire conduit had told him all those years ago. He and his friends were in a struggle on his world, a struggle that held their very freedom on the line.

When Natie caught him staring, he quickly turned away. He saw the look in her eyes. She wasn’t afraid to use force if necessary. He and the rest of the ponies would just have to show her, all of them, that that wasn’t necessary.

Not much longer afterwards, they were brought before an oak carved, double door that opened on their own. The three newest humans paused in surprise of the doors’ action, which Sam snickered at under his breath. Beyond the doors laid an elegant dining hall. The table looked to be able to hold at least twenty guests comfortably. Decorating the dining hall were tapestries with sun and moon insignias and a few of the Equestrian royal banners. All the humans, aside for Sam, stood in stunned silence at seeing such elegant architecture. They had to be ushered in to free up the doorway and then to their seats.

Celestia, Luna, Twilight, and Aegis Flare took up seats on one side of the table closest to the door while the guards posted themselves along the walls. Sam grabbed the first seat on the end opposite to the ponies and sat down. Natie, Lu, and Isabelle followed their fellow conduit’s example and took the rest of the seats beside him. Although, they did struggle to find comfortable positions at first on the wider, stool-like cushioned seats.

Almost immediately as everyone was seated, a wall facade on the far end of the hall opened up. A trio of unicorns poured out, followed by silver trays with food floating behind them in their magical grasps. Sam got another chuckle out of watching his friends stare in disbelief at the simple display of magic as the ponies laid the trays out before them. He continued to snicker with all the questions he got about it as he simply replied with ‘magic’. The serving ponies bowed before disappearing through the facade door, to the kitchen most likely.

“Please, help yourselves,” Celestia beckoned to the human conduits, “These are only the appetizers, but don’t let us hold back your appetites.”

Sam raised an arm, happily surveying the spread of colorful finger sized treats. He was about to snatch up a few when an elbow caught him in the side, causing him to yelp.

Natie scolded him with a stare before addressing the ponies, “Look, I don’t want to sound ungrateful, but what is going on? What is this place, and how does Sam fit into all of this?”

“Natie,” Sam tried calming her down without sounding chiding.

“No, those are all valid questions,” Princess Luna replied. Her starry mane twinkled and waved as she thoughtfully bobbed her head, “You see, we owe a great debt to your companion, Samuel. He, who had selflessly aided us and our kingdom in avoiding a catastrophe.”

The other humans turned to Sam in surprise, who only shrugged with a knowing smile.

Aegis Flare spoke next, further retelling of Sam’s exploits, “Two years ago, a pony by the name of Visionary Dusk tried to destroy Canterlot, ponynapped and experimented on innocent ponies, and committed several other acts of high treason in Equestria. If it wasn’t for the Human- ahem, Samuel, Equestria would have suffered far worse at the hooves of Visionary Dusk. Although, as much as we still owe him, we are in need of him once more.”

Again, Sam’s fellow human friends turned to him and stared in astonishment for the high praise they were hearing about him.

“I see,” Natie said thoughtfully, “I’m sorry. This is all just a bit too much to take in at once.”

Princess Luna nodded, “Of course. Tis understandable.”

“I suppose I really only have one other-”

“Bleagh! What the fuck is this shit?!” Lu suddenly blurted out.

Everyone turned to see the concrete conduit spitting a half chewed mess onto the table with one of the appetizers in his hand. It was toasted wafer with a humus and daisy petal spread.

“Oops, I’m so sorry,” Twilight said as she shuffled a couple of the trays around in her magic to present more edible choices, “I forgot humans don’t eat certain types of vegetation.”

“What? Da hell is in it then?” Lu angrily chucked the appetizers down next to the mess.

“Lu, fuck’s sake. You could have used a napkin. Just clean it up,” Natie scolded.

Lu scowled and crossed his arms, “Why should I?”

Natie gave him a glare, and slight crackle of electricity ran across her body. At that, Lu reluctantly snatched up a napkin and folded up the mess in it all while grumbling angrily to himself. The ponies watched the exchange, both curious and interested in the dynamic Sam’s companions shared.

Natie sighed audibly before readdressing the ponies, “Sorry about that.”

Celestia waved her hoof with a serene smile, “It is alright. I believe you were about to ask a question?”

“Yes,” Natie replied, taking a deep breath before continuing, “If you don’t mind me asking. Why is it that you tried bringing Sam back here in the first place? You said that you needed him, ‘again’?”

The question elicited a collective stare from the rest of the equally inquisitive humans. They all turned from Natie to the trio of princesses on the other side of the table. Celestia remained as stoic as ever, years of maintaining a cool expression under pressure helping her now. Luna, on the other hoof looked rather pensive, but unsure of how to answer. This just left Twilight, looking far more anxious than either one of the others, even shifting a bit in her seat in her anxiety.

Somehow building up enough courage to speak, Twilight elaborated, “I’m sorry. It was actually my idea to begin with. You see, Administrator Aegis Flare unlocked his latent abilities a little under six months ago.”

“Question,” Sam interrupted, “I’ve been wondering. Cappy’s a conduit, I can get that, but an admin? Admin of what?”

“Please allow the princess to finish, Human. We will discuss that later,” Aegis Flare answered, now remembering just how many migraines he was given at the hands of a certain ‘tactful’ wire conduit.

The glares from both Natie and Aegis Flare were enough for Sam to sit back and listen for the time being.

Twilight looked a little embarrassed for her friend, but continued nonetheless, “T-thank you, Administrator. Ahem. Well, thanks to Sam’s previous time here in Equestria, we understood what was going on, and were able to work with him, and over time, he was able to learn to control and utilize his powers to a degree. It was fascinating to be a part of those weeks in helping and studying his new found abilities. I almost couldn’t believe that another pony, not a part of Visionary Dusk’s unethical research, had come to gain such abilities. Of course, Administrator Aegis Flare was only the first.”

Twilight let that last comment hang in the air for a moment. Comprehension dawned on Sam and he knocked his seat over after shooting out of it.

“Wait?! Twilight, you’re telling me more ponies have become activated conduits?!” Sam exclaimed, both excited and flabbergasted by the news.

Twilight bit her lip and her shuffling became a little more nervous. The next words out of her mouth were accompanied by a dead silence that filled the room.

“Um...actually, they aren’t just ponies…”

Ch 3; Small Blind

Author's Note

As always, a mighty big thanks to the editor himself, Regreme!

I'm already working on the next chapter too, so I hope that this is me getting back into the groove. Y'all have fun with this one in the meantime.

Ch 3; Small Blind

The room remained quiet for a moment as this last statement settled in.

“Um, excuse me. What do you mean by ‘not just ponies’?” Isabelle meekly asked the question on the other conduits’ minds.

“Woah, wait!” Sam interjected, “That D.U.P. wannabe griffon wasn’t the only one?”

This also got the other humans’ attention. Especially the part about their mutually hated enemy, the D.U.P. More arguments broke out between them. Some demanded explanation, others tried to answer or placate, and others threw in the occasional insult.

“Shut up!”

The electric conduit was on her feet now, alongside Sam. Her dominating shout quieted the others so she could speak.

She looked at Sam and directed her next question toward him, “The D.U.P. were here?”

Sam made a motion with his hand, tilting it from side to side, “Eh, not exactly. Like I said, D.U.P. ‘wannabes’. Standard pawn gear, limited though. Armor was cobbled together. I actually never got a chance to look into it before leaving.”

“Then, I’ll explain,” Aegis Flare said.

All heads turned to the pegasus. He motioned for the humans to sit and reinstilled some order. So far, the gruff pegasus was still having a tough time gauging the newer humans. Each had wildly differing personalities, not unlike ponies. However, humans seemed to be vastly less predictable in behavior. He didn’t know if this was a common trait, or something specific among these four. Only time would tell.

With everyone reseated and calm renewed, Aegis Flare spoke, “During the time the first human was here in Equestria, I, and a significant portion of the royal guards, were in the midst of a string of missing pony cases. We came to find out that these were Visionary Dusk’s ponynappings that he was conducting for his illegal experiments. He was aided by a band of mercenaries made of two unicorns, one pegasus, and one griffon. Our first encounter with them came about during the failed assault of her majesty, Princess Celestia. I won’t be afraid to say that if it wasn’t for the first Human, the mercenaries may have succeeded.”

The other human conduits wanted to ask more about that story, but remained quiet as the gruff looking pony had more to say. “It wasn’t until after the Human returned to his world that we discovered that he was not the first to arrive in ours. Visionary Dusk, who is currently serving his sentence in Tartarus, revealed to us during our interrogations that he encountered several humans, these D.U.P. agents, during his exile. He was very detailed in his actions of subsequently conversing with them and learning about conduits, then drugging and experimenting on them for his ‘research’. This is where he was able to gain the humans’ equipment and equip his mercenaries with gear from your world.”

The explanation made sense, but that didn’t mean it wasn’t any less of a shock to the human conduits, including Sam. They sat there, stunned at what they heard. Initial feelings of ‘good riddance’ to the displaced D.U.P. agents were felt, but their months of recovery from traumatic events allowed them to feel a small pang of pity as well.

“I certainly have a lot of questions about all of this,” Natie said, “but I think we’re getting a little off topic.”

Princess Luna hummed in agreement, “I concur. Twilight, would you be so kind as to proceed?”

Twilight looked a little anxious, having been put on the spot like so. Her wings ruffled at her side to show her agitation. Sam still couldn’t quite believe his little unicorn friend now sported these new, feathery appendages. He would have to ask more about them later, seeing as the purple bundle of anxiety seemed to have finally collected her thoughts.

Taking a deep breath and letting it out to calm herself, Twilight timidly spoke, “Sam, and, um… Natie, Lu, and Isabelle was it? Wait, no. I-I really only can ask this of Sam.” Directing her hopeful gaze upon the wire conduit, Twilight swallowed hard. “I know this is out of the blue, and we- that is, ‘I’ really have no right to ask this of you, but… We need your help to teach some of the newly activated conduits on how to control their abilities.”

It was a good thing that Sam had been sitting down for that one. He could actually feel his mind grind to halt as he tried to process what he just heard. Not even the other humans could tell what to say next.

With nothing else that could be said, Sam asked the only thing that his mind could come up with at this point in time, “You want me to do what?!”

“I’m sorry, Sam,” Twilight apologized rapidly, “I know it’s a huge favor, and I wish there was another way than relying on you. It’s just, with Administrator Aegis Flare already having so many responsibilities, we didn’t have anyone else to call upon.”

Natie watched with rapt intrigue, although she could see how very uncomfortable the request had made Sam. He looked like he wanted to be anywhere else, even fighting a full squad of D.U.P. Knights by himself. Knowing him for so long, she already knew why he was so nervous, and it wasn’t about the request per se.

“Look, I know I helped get the guards up to speed on fighting conduits, and I helped stop a megalomaniac from destroying the city, but being a teacher? Do I look like someone with an ounce of teaching ability in this head of mine?” Sam asked, smiling nervously.

“He’s right,” Lu chuckled, “This dumbass wouldn’t know how to teach a fish to shit in the lake.”

Sam cast a sideways glare, but didn’t really do anything to counter the insult.

“Do not sell yourself short, Samuel,” Princess Luna said.

Aegis Flare grunted in agreement, “The princess is right, Human. Out of anypony that I can think of for this task, you’re the only one that I would put my full support behind for this decision.”

Natie watched as Sam’s anxiety rose. She hadn’t known he could be this uncomfortable with attention. Although, if she thought about it, he was always more at ease when that attention was directed more toward his antics and not himself directly.

“Okay, sure, but if you really want someone who can help you. Natie’s got much more experience at being a leader. Plus, she’s already been planning on setting up a training center for conduits back on our world, just like you’re asking here!”

Natie looked a little surprised at being put on the spot, even feeling slighted by Sam’s pass off like that. The wire conduit at least had the decency to look apologetic.

“Samuel,” Luna spoke up, “Excuse me for being blunt, but this isn’t like you. Honestly, we- that is to say ‘I’, half expected some form of quippy remark about ‘if we trusted you enough not to have a whole band of conduit pranksters running around by the end of this’... Listen, maybe you don’t believe in yourself, but we wouldn’t have thought of you to call upon if we didn’t think you were the best choice for this. Not just Twilight, nor Aegis Flare, but all of us.”

The wire conduit looked between the reassuring pony faces, and then over to his fellow conduits for help. Each carried various levels of support or sympathy.

Twilight was the next to speak up, even getting up out of her seat to canter over to her human friend’s side to show her compassion with a gentle hoof over his hand, “Sam. I can’t, and I won’t force you to help us. I’m sorry I dragged you and your friends out of your world just to ask for a favor.” The purple princess nodded to him and the rest of his friends. “None of you are obligated to help us at all, and I understand if you don’t want to. Like we said before, we’ll get the SpARC gate repaired as soon as possible, and you can return home. In the meantime, you’ll all be treated as ambassadors of your world, and provided with everything you’ll need for as long as you stay.”

The solemn vow was met with contemplative silence. Sam looked up to the other ponies across the table and saw they were all in agreeance with Twilight’s words.

“Well spoken, Twilight,” Princess Celestia said approvingly.

Natie considered everything she knew so far. It wasn’t much. There were plenty of unknowns that she’d rather be aware of, and she still couldn’t help but feel this was all just a crazy dream brought on by Sam’s nutty story months ago. Either case, Sam, and the rest of the motley crew were looking to her for a decision. Sighing internally, she did the only thing she could think of to do.

“Can you give us a minute?” she asked the ponies across the table, “We need to talk this over.”

Another nod from the Solar princess as she replied, “Of course. Take all the time you need.”

Natie thanked her and silently motioned for the others to follow to the other side of the room. Sam gave Twilight a quick smile before hopping up himself, also thankful to put off the stressful request. She was actually quite grateful for the spaciousness now as they moved out of the alien horses’ earshot. Now in a circle among her friends, she looked to gauge each of their current moods.

Isabelle seemed rather comfortable, trusting Sam’s words of the aliens’ hospitality. Now, she was taking periodic glances about to admire the colorful world when she had the chance. Lu just looked disinterested as always, but appeared to be listening all the same. Then, there was Sam. Natie still had trouble believing the alien horses, but Sam said they could be trusted. His relaxed demeanor around them helped reinforce that. Though as of right now, his misgivings of being asked to help them now was more evident, even as he tried to cover it up with his usual laidback attitude.

“Ok. First thing’s first,” Natie started off in a lowered voice, “Sam, what are we gonna do?”

Sam leaned back in surprise and replied in a hushed tone, “What?! What are you asking me for?”

“You’re the expert here,” Natie stated matter-of-factly, “Are we going to help them or not?”

This made Sam lean back even more. Just as Natie expected, he was still uncomfortable when put in the position to take the lead. It was a minor flaw he always had, even back during their time fighting Vice Director Michael Bertrand. He was smart, witty, and quick on his feet, but put in the spotlight, and he still flinches. Augustine’s second-in-command took full advantage of that when she had been captured, leaving the other three to fend off the assaults back in Memphis. Sam did his best to keep the other two together, but the constant pressure had been too much. They got lucky though, but Sam’s confidence took a big hit at that time.

Natie wanted to give some advice, but she, Isabelle, and Lu were the strangers in this land compared to Sam, so her perspective would’ve been bias, which in turn was why she was leaving the decision up to the wire conduit. Besides, unlike before, this wasn’t a do-or-die scenario. Natie believed this might be a good opportunity.

Sam contemplated everything that was said so far. He could train another conduit in how to use their powers, probably. He could at least give a few pointers, but this was definitely more up Natie’s alleyway. She was the leader, she was the mentor, she was the one already working on creating a conduit advocacy center for this very type of situation. He looked around the circle of his fellow conduits, each looking to him on what they were to do. He was the one they now needed.

Then, it hit him. The ponies only had intended to call for him, not them. Sparks, Sunny, Loony, and Cappy were his friends as well, and they needed his help.

“...These ponies did so much for me the last time I was stuck here. They took care of me, gave me a place to stay, and did everything they could to help me get back home. I owe them, so I don’t know how much help I can be, but I’m going to help them, help these new conduits, even if it’s just a little. Don’t worry though. I’m the only one they need, so you all can just relax and wait until Sparks gets that SpARC gate up and running. Equestria’s pretty awesome, or at least, Canterlot is. Most of when I was here last time was right here in the capitol.”

Sam looked like he had more to say, but before he could, Isabelle grabbed ahold of his hand with one of hers. Her smile clearly showing as a bright, fiery determination lit her eyes.

“I’ll help too,” she stated firmly, her determination having helped her overcome her usual timidness, “You said they helped you back when we thought we lost you for good. They deserve to know how grateful we are for helping our friend like that. Besides, if you call them your friends, I’d feel terrible for not offering to help anyways.”

Sam was taken aback. He wanted to say that this had nothing to do with the rest of them, that they weren’t obligated to help like he was. However, before he could, Natie cut him off.

Crossing her arms, she shook her head with a light smile, “Isabelle’s right. We owe them for keeping you out of trouble. Not to mention, Twilight, was it? She said that it’d take a couple of weeks to fix that gate. So, we’re stuck here until it’s fixed.”

Sam felt so relieved that he had such friends to support him like this. His guilt of having dragged them into this situation was still there, but the reassuring remarks and smiles were enough perk him back up. It was at times like these that he was glad to have them. Maybe with their support, he might actually be able to be this mentor figure his pony friends needed him to be.

Lu groaned in frustration, effectively ruining the moment, “Are you fucking kidding me?! I’ve got shit to do back in town! I don’t have time to waste being stuck in ‘Rainbow Horse Land’.”

“I thought about that, too,” Natie said, “but remember when Sam disappeared last time?”

Lu’s eyes rolled in their sockets, “Yeah, he gets to go on a vacation for three days while we had to bust our asses to get him back, and beat down those flying kill drones the Dupes sent after us,” Lu turned and glared at Sam, “By the way, thanks a lot for not being there, Asshole.”

Natie sighed, but turned to Sam to inquire about something that had been bugging her, “Sam, exactly how long did you say you were here, in Equestria, when you disappeared?”

Sam was about to just say ‘three days’ to avoid arguing with his friends again, when it suddenly clicked in his head what Natie was truly asking for.

“Four weeks,” Sam stated in realization, “I was here for four weeks!”

Natie nodded in confirmation, “Twilight said that two years have gone by since you were last here, yet it’s only been three months back on Earth. I don’t get how it works, but I think time must go by differently here. So, I don’t think we need to worry about people wondering where we are too much.”

“Well, I guess we’re playing by Narnia rules here,” Sam chuckled, much to his friends’ chagrin, “Who wants to go on an adventure to find some Turkish Delight?”

“Sam, shut up,” Natie pointedly glared at the wire conduit, “Ok, point being, it looks like even if we are here for a couple of weeks, we won’t be gone from our world as long, so there’s no point in lazing around when we can be useful.”

Sam was so grateful for his friends to be here with him, now more than ever. He hadn’t been sure how much he could offer before, but now with his fellow conduits by his side, he felt like he had a better chance. Of course, there was still one more that hadn’t thrown in his support. Then again, Sam wasn’t sure if the meathead of a concrete conduit would even be a good choice for this.

All eyes were on Lu now, who had folded his brawny arms over his chest in a defiant stance against the others. Who cared if he didn’t join in? These rainbow-vomit colored aliens already said he didn’t have to do jack shit. Why did they have to be so nauseating colorful anyway? Especially that gay-ass purple one that’s all buddy-buddy with Sam?

‘You know what? Fuck it. It doesn’t matter,’ Lu thought to himself, ‘If I get to fuck off for a couple weeks and still get back to Memphis before the foreman really starts asking? Then, that’s what I’m doing. Screw Sam! This is his problem anyway. They don’t need me, I-’

“Lu?”

The gentle call of his name snapped him out of his stupor. Isabelle beckoned to him with her pleading expression. Not just her though, both Sam and Natie were waiting expectantly for his answer. Lu wanted nothing more than to tell them to ‘Fuck off’ and to ‘Count him out’. What actually came out was a strangled, frustrated growl as he turned to the side to avoid looking at his companions directly.

“Fuck, fine! I might as well teach whoever the fuck these newbies are how not to take shit from anyone while they’re packing a good shard of concrete.”

Not exactly what they had been hoping to hear, but the others knew Lu meant well. That’s what mattered. They all shared a couple of knowing looks, and they now knew they were in agreeance. With their minds made up, they all came back from the far side of the dining room to be greeted by varying expressions of anticipation. The human conduits took their seats across from the ponies, a moment of tense silence reigning over all of them.

Sam’s serious expression fell away to reveal one of his trademark smirks, “We’re all in!”

Twilight let out a breath she hadn’t realized she had been holding. Luna and Celestia both tittered at Sam’s usual crass mannerisms. Aegis Flare grunted in approval, but gave Sam a warning look over his nonchalant response, although the other three humans seemed to chide Sam in their own way over the casual agreement.

“Thank you all for your support,” Celestia chimed in, “It can’t be said enough how grateful we are in having you here. Sam, Natie, Lu, and Isabelle.” The solar princess rose from her seat and splayed her wings out in a welcoming manner. “Let me be one of the first to say that if there is anything you may request of us, we will do our best to provide it to you. Thank you again for your kindness and willingness to help us in our time of need.”

With that, the solar princess bowed her head deeply in respect and recognition. The other princesses and Aegis Flare did the same, making the humans feel a little overwhelmed by the grand gesture.

“...Well, since you’re offering,” Sam broke the silence, a mischievous tone in his voice.

Natie tried to glare him down. So far, she’s been able to retain that these alien horses in front of them were royalty, and that the pegasus conduit was some form of military leader. All in all, these were some of the top dogs in the world. So, she had been careful not to seem disrespectful out of courtesy. She knew Sam was familiar with them, but that doesn’t mean that she also knew that his civility filter was faulty at best. Maybe he wouldn’t say something out of place, but the electric conduit knew that tone in his voice too well to know that he was about to lose all tact.

The ponies looked up to see the all too familiar smirk on the wire conduit’s face. Some were happy to see the expression on such a familiar face, but there was still a bit of dread on what it might bring as well.

Sam inhaled dramatically, and spoke in an unabashed manner, “You said these were just the appetizers. Let’s see where the real grub is, cause I’m starting to get hungry! Oh, and since we’re at it, I don’t suppose you’ve got some extra thaumium wire laying around, do ya?”

Ch 4; Big Blind

Natie woke up in the same fashion she had since the dismantling of the D.U.P. Her alarm on her phone woke her up at six A.M. on the dot. Her routine would be simple after this. Brush her teeth, use the restroom, get dressed, make a quick cup of instant coffee, gather up anything she needed from her work desk she’d need for the day, and then head out into the city of Memphis. However, this was not the case this morning. Her bed was far softer and larger than the second-hand mattress she bought months ago. Not to mention, there was a distinct lack of city ambience that came from living within the Memphis city limits.

The electric conduit sat up, adrenaline flooding her system at having awoken in unfamiliar territory. Nothing about her surroundings seemed familiar, which led to her almost charging out the nearest window or door in an escape attempt. Luckily, before her years of training could kick into overdrive, Natie remembered the day before. The crackle of electricity faded from her arms as she finally calmed down and took in the now familiar suite she slept within last night.

“This is going to take some getting used to,” she sighed as she untangled herself from the thick covers.

Even as her mind steadily became more aware, the knowledge of the previous day still felt almost too hard to believe to have happened. The lavishly decorated suite around her helped reinforce the reality of the situation though. The electric conduit stretched and felt her joints let out satisfying pops. Next up was to use restroom and shower. As she went about her usual morning customs, Natie’s thoughts returned to the previous day.

--o0o--

Sam’s requests were met with equal parts amusement and cringe. Natie was at least glad it hadn’t been anything more ridiculous, but she, as well as her fellow human conduits, wondered about this ‘thaumium wire’ he mentioned. The ponies appeared unconcerned, and Celestia’s horn lit with a golden sheen, more of this ‘magic’ the newer humans tried to get used to. A chime rang accompanying the light flare in Celestia’s magic, and the servant ponies that brought the appetizers came back through the wall façade at the end of the dining hall.

While they cleared the half eaten trays from the table, Princess Celestia put in a request, “If you’d be so kind, will you bring the spool of wire we prepared for our esteemed guest, Samuel?”

The pony said nothing, only bowing deeply to show his acknowledgement.

“What’s thaumium wire?” Isabelle asked as the servant ponies left.

“Oh boy, here we go,” Sam whispered while wearing a bemused smile.

The other three humans wondered what was so funny just as Twilight gasped in excitement.

“‘Thaumium’,” Twilight began to recite what might have been a textbook definition of said material, “and by extension, thaumium wire is a revolutionary, industrial product that is helping to modernize our society. Before the discovery and production of thaumium, any non-unicorn powered piece of technology required naturally occurring gems that were saturated with magical energies. To give a simple analogue, these gems were like batteries: harnessable chunks of energy, but finite.

“The production of thaumium solved this problem in that it can transfer natural pools of magical energy from one point to another, like a channel. As for its makeup, it’s actually a magic-infused zargon alloy that is both easily manufactured and has over dozens of practical applications. Though one particular use that is unique to Sam is that he can use it as foci to create spell matrices to generate magical phenomena!”

The purple, walking encyclopedia went on and on about how thaumium was used in their society. To Natie, Lu, and Isabelle, it sounded like electrical cables and power lines for a city power grid, but with magical energies, though much of the explanation was lost on them between ‘regulating flux variables’ and ‘tuning to natural leylines’. However, the part about Sam using this wire made it almost sound like he could use magic the same way these ponies could. Completely unbelievable to be sure, but then the three unicorn servants returned, bringing silver, covered platters as well as a hefty spool of wire out with their magic.

“Oh, yeah, come to papa!” Sam stretched out his grasp toward the floating spool first.

The unicorn carrying the wire faltered slightly under the predatory gaze of the human over him and spool. It took every ounce of his self-control not to scream in terror as the human snatched the spool out of the air, causing a small feedback from the touch to his magic. The trio gave each other a look and decided that it’d be best to place the platters down as quickly as possible and excuse themselves back to the kitchen.

“Sam... um... is that wire really that special?” Isabelle asked.

Sam sprouted a devious grin in response, “Oh, just you wait and see what I can do with this. You’re all gonna freak!”

Sam touched the wire, feeling the energy humming within it. He pulled his hand back, and with it, the wire followed. The material came to his beckoning and began to unravel from the spool and be absorbed by the wire conduit. Like reuniting with an old friend, Sam felt invigorated by the power settling within him once again. There was something different though. Nothing bad, but it was almost like this thaumium wire was more alive and responsive than the last time he had this power.

“Now, Human,” Aegis Flare warned, “This supply of thaumium is to help you with instructing the new conduits, and not to be misused, unlike last time. Understood?”

Sam waved one hand toward the pegasus while staring at his other, which was already entangled with strands of thaumium wire, “Yeah, yeah. Hey, guys! Check out what I can do!”

The other humans watched as Sam weaved the new wire into strange patterns and shapes. He seemed so excited to show off his unique abilities. He honestly couldn’t decide what trick he should show them first. It soon became apparent to the wire conduit however that in his time away from Equestria, he had forgotten much of his magical studies. That didn’t stop him for long as he did recall a few of the most basic spells he had learned, and then settled on one that he deemed the most impressive.

Sam had a few false starts at the beginning. The faulty patterns he created at first burning out like filaments. Though, after several tries, his basic ‘Telekinesis’ pattern flashed momentarily, and he laughed in triumph. Before anyone could ask what he was doing, the wire conduit pointed the pattern in his hand toward the covered platter in front of him. The pattern glowed, and the same golden aura shrouded the cover on the platter.

The other humans watched in shock and awe as Sam lifted his hand upward, followed immediately by the platter’s cover. The scent of a delectable bowl of clam chowder wafted from the uncovered platter, but all eyes were still on the now floating cover that was suspended in mid air in front of Sam’s hand and glowing wire pattern.

Sam sniffed curiously and then eye’d the dish in front of him hungrily, “Oh, man! This looks delicious!”

The other humans exploded into chatter and questions over what they just saw. Sam only taunted them further by laying the cover down on the table beside his dish and letting go of it from his magical grasp as nonchalantly as possible. Picking up his spoon, the wire conduit was about to dig in when he felt a chill run down his spine.

“Sam,” Natie called out in a dangerous tone...

...one that Sam knew all too well. His body tensed, and a nervous expression overcame his face. He looked over to his side to see a familiar, and oh so dreaded, scowl bearing down on him.

Natie narrowed her gaze on the wire conduit, “What did he mean by ‘last time’?”

More color began to drain from Sam’s face, which worried the ponies over this exchange. Natie rose from her seat, as did Sam to back away from the electric conduit who stalked toward him.

“During his last stay in Equestria,” Aegis Flare explained, “he was involved in a number of ‘pranks’ and misconduct that sometimes hindered the royal guards’ normal routines. There were also a few incidents where he had directly disobeyed my direct orders, even if some of them were with good intentions.”

‘Not helping, Cappy!’ Sam thought nervously.

Twilight tried to come to Sam’s aid, “He may have been a little obtrusive, but he still always tried his best to help others. ...well, there were his many times of disregarding instructions, especially about leaving the castle without an escort.”

‘Sparks, you traitor!’ Sam screamed mentally.

Crackling, blue lightning brought Sam’s attention back to scowling electric conduit looming over him.

Sam put his hands up in front of him defensively as he tried to explain, “Wait, it’s not what you think! You gotta admit, being trapped in another world can really throw you off, ya know? Plus, when I first arrived, I was half dead from the RFI bomb! I was completely out of it for a couple days!”

“...And the rest of the time here?” Natie asked dangerously.

Sam gulped, wondering if he’d have a better chance of escape in unfamiliar territory for Natie, “Um… pass?”

Sam’s world was turned upside-down. Well, more like, he was thrown over Natie’s shoulder in an electrically charged throw onto the marble floor were he remained dazed for the moment. Twilight gasped and galloped to Sam’s side to check on him. Isabelle got up from her seat as well and made sure Sam was okay, although she knew he more than likely was. Lu busted out laughing, while the ponies looked on in alarm.

Natie apologized, but explained about Sam’s mischievous tendencies, to which the ponies agreed were quite accurate. However, they asked if her treatment was necessary. Natie replied that it more often than not fell to her to keep the wire conduit in line, and that sometimes included giving him a little more physical reminder of his limits.

When Sam was asked if he was alright, he replied with a slight groan, “I’m good! ...ow. Just gonna, you know, stay down here for a minute.”

--o0o--

*knock, knock, knock*

Natie was just finishing getting dressed when the knock at the door came.

Beyond the portal, one of the royal guards called out, “Excuse me, Miss Natie? Are you awake?”

Natie buttoned up her blouse as she replied, “Yes. I’ll be out in a minute.”

“Not to worry, ma’am. The princesses wished to extend invitations to you and your companions for breakfast this morning.”

“Thank you. We’ll be there. I’ll be out in another minute to get the others.”

Gathering up her meager belongings, the electric conduit walked up and opened the door, only to be greeted by a duo of ponies in golden armor and armed with spears. She only tensed up for a moment, her training still not allowing her to be completely used to the situation.

*Bang, Bang* “Hey, dumbass! If your pony pals are gonna wake me up early, you don’t get to sleep in either!”

Natie breathed a deep sigh through her nose upon that exclamation. She then strode past the ponies to confront the one who was causing the commotion. Just two doors down, Lu was still banging away at another suite’s door. Isabelle was behind him, trying to calm him down while also trying to suppress a couple yawns. The pony guards behind them looked unsure of how to handle the situation and hung back, as not to incur the easily irritable human’s ire. Seeing Natie’s approach out of his peripheral, the concrete conduit stopped banging and crossed his arms over his chest.

“Lu, what’s the problem?” Natie asked, although still feeling too uncaffeinated to not sound irritated herself.

Jerking his thumb over in the door’s direction, he replied, “If that asshole wants his little ponies waking me up so early and think he can sleep in, he can kiss my ass!”

“Lu, calm down. I’ll take care of this.”

Natie was about to knock on the door herself, when the thing unlocked and opened on its own. Right on the other side stood the wire conduit himself, fully dressed and looking very much awake.

“Give me a break, Lu,” Sam yawned before exiting out into the hall, “I was in the middle of getting ready. I’m sorry you couldn’t get your precious beauty sleep, especially with how much you need it.”

“What did you say?!”

“Come on, guys. Isn’t it a bit too early for this?” Isabelle tried to quell the tension from rising further, “Please don’t start fighting here in the castle.”

Lu’s growling leer was matched by Sam’s cocky smirk, and the ponies watched as what might be a fight was about to break out. Natie put a stop to it, putting herself between the two and pushing them both back to arm’s length.

“It is way too early for this shit. Both of you cut it out. Right now,” Natie commanded.

The two male conduits backed off, knowing what kind of outcome would await if they tried to push it further. Tensions relaxed, and the ponies were glad that they did not have to get caught up in the mix. One of them found it to be the opportune moment to restate that the princesses were waiting for them in the dining hall with breakfast.

The promise of a hearty meal, and possibly some much needed caffeine, helped to reorganize the four humans’ priorities, and they were soon being led to said dining hall. Along the way, Natie noticed the halls were occupied by more ponies than the day before. Some wore maid uniforms and were busying themselves with cleaning. Others wore rich garments, which she could only suspect perhaps meant they were other residents of the castle and possibly royalty or nobility. However, they all got the same expression when they saw the alien creatures known as ‘humans’ striding past them. It was a fair mix of surprise, wonderment, and a touch of apprehension. The little, colorful equines began to whisper amongst themselves, and the humans knew it was very much about them.

Luckily, the hushed conversations seemed to be mostly expressions of curiosity as the guards and their human charges reached the dining hall once more and allowed them entry. Inside, Celestia, Luna, and Twilight Sparkle were patiently waiting with cups of tea or coffee held aloft in their magic as they conversed.

As the humans entered, Celestia set her cup down and smiled, “Ah, welcome! I hope you all had a restful slumber. Forgive me for saying, but as we had only expected one human to be called here, we had to rush the rest of your accommodations to be prepared. So, please, if there is anything that is not to your liking, let us know, and we will see what we can do to better accommodate you.”

“Oh, no, please,” Isabelle spoke up first, “The room was great! I’ve actually never lived or slept in a castle before. It’s like something out of a mythical story book!”

Celestia tittered at the youngest conduit’s gushing.

Lu shrugged, “Eh, the bed was nice at least.”

“We’re glad you’re all happy,” Twilight said, “If you’d like, we already have breakfast ready and waiting.”

The four conduits gave their appreciation and sat down in front of the covered platters laid out on the table for them. Sam gave a quizzical glance around the dining hall.

“Hey, where’s Cappy?”

Celestia answered this time, “He has a few engagements that he must attend to this morning. Not to worry though. We’ll be meeting him, along with the other conduits, after breakfast for introductions. So, please, enjoy your meals. I hear the kitchen staff are eager to know if our human guests, both new and old, find their meals noteworthy to their exotic palettes.”

“Sounds good,” Sam replied, “Welp, no reason not to dig in!”

Celestia, being as hospitable as always, used her magic to remove the covers from everyone’s platters. All revealed to be expertly crafted plates of french toast with a dollop of butter and drizzled with strawberry syrup and sprinkled with powdered sugar. Sam hummed in delight and had to stop himself from drooling over the meal. The other conduits were just as impressed, and couldn’t wait to dig in.

Small talk was shared as they ate, mostly more questions from the newest humans about Equestria and this world they were now on. Twilight gave academic, almost textbook like, answers to help them understand. The princesses couldn’t help but let their curiosity get the better of them as well, and asked what their world was like ever since Sam left.

The four humans worked to sum up their trials and tribulations over the last three months. From their constant battles with the D.U.P., to their discovery of Bertrand’s plan for them to be sold off as conduit weapons for the highest bidders. Then, there was their final battle against Bertrand himself and his elite operative unit. They had won and exposed all the D.U.P. dirty, rotten secrets. The ponies were equally impressed by their accomplishments and sullen over the hardships they were forced to face.

“Yeah, we even got to work with those other conduits across the country in Washington,” Sam pointed out toward the end.

Lu grunted, “They were alright. That chick, Fetch, was pretty hot though. Too bad she hangs out with a guy nicknamed ‘Banner Man’. Seriously, how lame is that?”

“Oh, come on, Lu. They were all great, including Delsin and Eugene,” Isabelle reasoned, “Not to mention there was the one in California that got us all in contact with Zeke and the ‘Conduit Rights’ organization.”

Lu laughed, “Oh yeah! He had an even stupider name! What was it again, ‘Ice Fairy’ or some crap?”

“Shawn, Shawn Kingston. Also known as the ‘Snow Angel’,” Natie corrected, with another sip of her coffee, “If it weren’t for him, we wouldn’t have been able to spread the D.U.P.’s secrets as fast as we did to sway the public.”

“Whatever. Still a stupid name.”

“As stupid as being called ‘Slab’?” Sam smirked.

Lu glared at the wire conduit, a look that dared Sam to say one more thing, so he could have a reason to knock his block off once and for all. Luna was pleasantly amused by the lively bunch that were Sam’s friends, and just as glad to know that he had such companions that have been by his side to support him all this time.

Luckily, the two butting heads had to postpone their usual spat with a guard entering the dining hall to speak with the princess of the sun. The guard whispered to Princess Celestia, to which she nodded in understanding.

“It seems that Administrator Aegis Flare and the other conduits are ready to meet with you four,” Princess Celestia informed, “If you’ll all follow me, I shall escort you to them immediately.”

The four human conduits agreed and got up from their seats to join the solar princess.

“I’m sorry that I’ll be unable to join you as well,” Luna bowed her head, “but I must retire for the day to resume my duties this evening. It was good to see you once again, Samuel. As with the rest of you, I hope I will get to spend time in your company later.”

“Have a good night, Loony,” Sam bid to her.

He earned an elbow in the side from Natie.

“Good night, Samuel,” Luna chortled, “I’ll see you this evening, sister, and you, Twilight.”

They all left the dining hall, the princess of the moon parting in a different direction from where they were being led. Natie and Isabelle conversed with Celestia more to learn more about Equestria. Sam and Twilight were busy catching up some more about their lives and what they’ve been up to, while Lu just followed along and kept to himself until he was needed.

Sam recognized the direction they were headed, and his suspicion was confirmed as they were led out onto the royal guard’s training field. There were a few guards milling about, maintaining equipment and cleaning, but in the center of the sparring ring was one grumpy looking pegasus in his new olive-colored overcoat and armored vest. Beside him were three individuals that the humans could only assume were the newly activated conduits that they were told about. And just like they were told, not all of them were ponies.

The first was a navy blue stallion earth pony. His mane and tail were a darker shade of blue and made him stand out less than most of his fellow, more colorful brethren of his species, even more so with his sapphire-blue eyes that matched the rest of his color scheme. The only part that varied from this pattern was his cutie mark, depicting a simple tan vase with a minimalist hoof print pattern on it. Before noticing the oncoming group of humans and princesses, he was casting curious glances out along the field and the guard ponies doing their work.

The next was a unicorn mare with a beige colored coat, and a deep violet shade for her curly mane and tail. Her cutie mark was a roll of camera film, with some of the film being stretched out like a ribbon. She tried not to seem too out of place, but her shifting from hoof to hoof revealed her slight nervousness.

Finally, there was a creature that Sam had only encountered in the heat of battle. A griffon. Though unlike Aras, this one looked less falcon like, and more sparrow like for his front half. His plumage and wings were a collection of grayish-browns with eye rings of rust brown that extended back from his eyes a few inches around his head. His feline half looked more similar to Aras’, but instead of being a washout amber color, this griffon’s fur was the color of mahogany. The most striking difference, however, was his demeanor. He seemed anxious, and stared mostly toward the ground, like he was trying to avoid eye contact. One foreclaw was folded over and constantly brushing up and down the other in an attempt to help calm his perceived anxiety.

Aegis Flare turned first to greet the oncomers with a bow, “Your Highnesses, Humans. Everything is prepared for the training.”

The two ponies and griffon quickly bowed themselves, the latter more clumsily and frantically than the others.

Celestia nodded, “Thank you, Administrator. Please rise, all of you.”

The ponies and griffon did as told and were now looking to the alien beings on two legs before them. There was a mixture of awe and nervousness they all showed to being in their presence. They’d been told that creatures from another world would be coming to help train them in their abilities that they came into possession of. Although, seeing them in the flesh was unlike anything they thought they’d be like.

The same went for the humans from another world. The reality of being on another world, being asked to help teach alien strangers from said world, and finally meeting the ones they were meant to teach left them all a little stunned.

“I’d like to introduce you all to the experts who you were told about that are here to help you today,” Celestia began to speak, “I know that this is all very unusual, and the day that you all discovered your abilities was quite a shock, but these four young humans have graciously agreed their time to offer us their knowledge and tutelage in the matters related to conduits. You see, they, too, are conduits themselves and have far more experience in the use of their abilities and how to properly train with them than we could hope to provide you with.”

The Equestrian residents looked even more stunned by this, and all stared at the humans with even more awe. The humans all gave affirmative waves to convey their understanding. The ponies and griffons made glances between themselves nervously, not really sure how to respond in this situation.

Twilight spoke up next, “Hello. I know I’ve spoken with you all before, and I won’t take up too much time, so you can all fully introduce yourselves. Like Princess Celestia has already said, this is all very strange and new. However, I used to know one of these humans you see before you, and we even became friends. He’s told me all about his fellow conduits before you, and I can guarantee that you couldn’t be in more capable hoo- er... excuse me... hands.

“I know you all must be pretty eager to meet each other after so long. So, would anyone like to go first?”

Author's Note

And now we finally get to meet the Equestrian conduits, but wait! Not all of them are ponies! What kind of powers will they wield? I bet you're all dying to find out. Well, then, you'll all have to wait until later. Mwuhahaha! Ok, I'm not that evil, but it'll be roughly a week before the next chapter. See y'all then!

Many thanks to the proud editor Regreme for all his help as always. May Valhalla welcome him with a warrior's greeting when the world ends.

Also, I snuck a little nod to another inFamous crossover fic here on FimFiction, written by FrostTheWolf. I used to help edit a couple of chapters from his crossover when I was first starting out. My love for inFamous and My Little Pony was fully inspired by then. So, I just wanted to pay a little tribute. Hey, Frosty! Here's to you!

Ch5; Muck Draw

Author's Note

Weekend update! Yes, I know I'm pretty late. things have been crazy busy ever since the pandemic, which meant an increased workload for yours truly (I'm considered 'essential personnel'). Though, now that most of the procedures are becoming easier to keep up with, I've finally got more time on my hands! So, enjoy.

Regreme, as always. A grand standing ovation to ya for sticking around to edit and proofread.

Ch5; Muck Draw

Nobody seemed to have the courage to go first, instead opting to stare at one another for the longest time. It got pretty awkward pretty fast.

“U-um, excuse me?” the unicorn mare nervously spoke up, “M-my name is High Exposure. I’m sorry to ask, but aren’t you the Wire Wraith?”

The question was directed toward Sam. Everyone turned toward the surprised wire conduit, some in curiosity and wonderment over finally getting to meet the hero of Canterlot in person, the others in just bewilderment over the new nickname. Recovering quickly, Sam cleared his throat and put on a cheeky grin, stringing his hands together only to pull them apart with wires strung between them.

“Well, I haven’t heard that name in a long time,” Sam said with a smile.

He seemed to weave the wires randomly, effectively turning them into a messy set of knots. Though, with a flick of wrists, the tangle of wire snapped taut. The shape of said wire easily resembled the outline of a pony.

The ponies and griffon gasped in awe at what they just witnessed.

“Wow!”

“Marvelous!”

“I-I’ve never seen anything like that!”

Basking in the attention, Sam exaggeratedly gushed, “I know, I know. I’m pretty awesome like that.”

The ponies and griffon were impressed indeed, but their attention soon drifted back toward the other three humans that had accompanied the princesses. The blue earth pony seemed to be analyzing them all with a critical gaze before speaking up.

“Hello, I’m Simple Piece,” he introduced himself in a measured tone, “I don’t want to sound rude, but I was told that there was only one human we’d be taught by before yesterday. Er, like I said, not trying to sound ungrateful.”

Before Sam could answer, Natie stepped up and gave a welcoming smile, something she had been practicing ever since having to work with a more public image.

“Her Highnesses asked for all of us if possible,” Natie lied, “Sam is skilled in his own right, but they thought it’d be even better to have more expertise.”

Simple Piece’s ears flicked while he regarded this new info. The three other humans all raised a hand and each manifested their element in the palms of their hands. The ponies awed at the display. Simple Piece hummed and smiled in satisfaction before extending a hoof out toward Natie. Although confused a little at first by the gesture, she soon understood the stallion’s invitation to shake hands. She clasped her hand over his hoof and shook.

“Thank you so much for all your help, then. I’m really looking forward to learning about Conduits,” the stallion cheerfully said while shaking.

It seemed that the friendly exchange was what High Exposure needed to untense from her own apprehension. More greetings were exchanged between the ponies and the humans, some a little less welcoming than others in Lu’s case, but introductions went smoothly enough.

That is, except for the griffon, who had remained rooted to his original spot. He continued to fidget nervously with his talons. Anytime he caught eye contact with anyone else, he immediately tensed up and looked away.

Sam approached him, which made the griffon flinch, but remained rooted to his spot like it was his only safe zone. The others watched as Sam placed his hands on his hips and smiled widely.

“Hey there!” the wire conduit announced chipperly, “Name’s Sam. You can call me that, or the Wire Wraith, or the half dozen or so other nicknames I’ve got. Seriously, I’ve got plenty to choose from.”

Natie watched as Sam tried his usual lighthearted approach, though it seemed this griffon wasn’t easily swayed by this easy-going demeanor.

The griffon finally spoke up, if only above a whisper, “My name is Gabriel…”

“Gabriel, eh?” Sam continued to act friendly, “Well, Gabriel. Nice to meet’cha! So, full disclosure, never really taught someone how to be a Conduit, but hey, guess we’ll both learn something new today!”

Sam’s encouraging words didn’t seem to have the intended effect as he had hoped. The griffon flinched even more harshly, almost as if he wanted to curl up into a ball and disappear.

“Human,” Aegis Flare called out, “I appreciate your eagerness to build friendships, but we should be getting started.”

Although a little disheartened by the griffon’s apprehension, Sam clapped his hands together and nodded in agreement.

“Twilight,” Princess Celestia said, “I think we can leave this to the humans’ care. Besides, we have an important meeting to get to this morning.”

Twilight looked disappointed that she couldn’t stay and watch, but her mentor was right. Sam and his friends had their tasks, and she had her own.

Twilight nodded and gave them all a quick wave, “I’ll be back as soon as I can. Take care everyone!”

The ponies and griffon bowed to the departing royals. Sam and the other humans all gave courteous nods and watched as they left. Now on their own, Natie devised a simple plan of attack to tackle their goal. She carefully considered each of her fellow human conduits’ strengths and weaknesses, even taking their alien charges’ first impression into consideration as well.

“Ok,” she said, “Aegis Flare, was it?”

The stalwart pegasus perked up at his name being called.

“So, here’s what I’m thinking. We’ll split up to divide the work. Each of us will work with one of you,” she motioned toward the equestrian conduits, “If one of us or you needs some help, we’ll swap around where we can.”

“Hmm...that sounds reasonable,” Aegis Flare hummed.

Turning to the equestrian residents, he spoke up, “Listen up, as Miss Chanelle said, we’ll divide you between the humans to start your lessons. They are your mentors, so listen to their instructions. If you have any objections, please voice them now.”

The ponies and griffon shared some apprehensive looks between themselves, but had no real protests to speak of.

Satisfied by the silent agreement, Aegis Flare turned back to Natie, “I think we’re ready to start then. Ms. Chanelle, did you have a preference on how they should pair up?”

Natie thought about it for a moment. Of course, she wasn’t too sure herself. As much as she wanted to defer to Sam, as he was their expert of this world, she knew he would just try to pass the responsibility back to her out of hesitation. The look on the wire conduit’s face clearly displayed just that in any case. Regardless, he was the only one among them that knew more about this world, so Natie knew who might be best paired with him.

“Sam,” she called out.

The wire conduit straightened up.

Natie pointed to him and then to the griffon, “Can you pair off with Gabriel?”

“You’re the boss,” Sam mockingly saluted, then stood next to said griffon, “Don’t expect miracles, cause damn it, Jim, I’m a conduit, not a miracle worker.”

Natie sighed internally, unfortunately knowing the movie reference. Next up was Isabelle.

“...Isabelle, how would you like to help...Simple Piece, was it?”

“Yes, ma’am,” Simple Piece nodded.

Isabelle sheepishly accepted Natie’s proposal and moved to the aforementioned stallion’s side. This left Natie with one final pairing, although one particular human did not seem all that pleased with the arrangement. High Exposure looked equally uncomfortable under the concrete conduit’s gaze.

“Lu-”

“Yeah, whatever,” Lu cut her off, “Let’s just get this crap over with.”

Natie would make sure to watch over him every so often.

“Ok,” Natie cleared her throat, “Today will be about fundamentals and introductions. Lu, Isabelle, Sam, just give them some basic exercises on affinity and manifestion.”

While the ponies and griffon looked confused by the terms, the humans nodded. They each herded their charges to an open area of the training field and got to work. Natie breathed a sigh of relief. The first step in her own program from earth she was working off of was working. As much as she hated relying on a method she and her fellow activists were still refining, this seemed like the appropriate time to implement it.

Her thoughts began to wonder as she watched her friends converse with the Equestrians, changing and developing her activists’ method as she watched. It was still rather odd to think about how her first lessons were not being used for humans. Or the fact that she was on an alien world to begin with. Maybe it was Sam’s movies she would hear in the background, but she secretly always thought ‘first contact’ would have been a lot more scary...and with more lazers.

She was so in her thoughts, she almost didn’t hear the pegasus, Aegis Flare, sidling up beside her. She glanced down at the auburn colored pony. He was very stern looking, his steps measured and controlled. Sam was right. He was a soldier by trade.

“How long will it take for them to complete the program?” he asked while still watching the others.

Natie thought for a moment, “I’m not sure. This is the first time I, or any of us, have really tried this.”

Aegis Flare grunted in understanding, “Still, it’s better than nothing. I may have had my abilities longer than them, but I’m still learning everything there is to them myself.”

Natie cocked an eye toward the stoic pegasus. She’d only seen him use his conduit powers once, but by the looks of it, he was already fairly proficient in them.

“If you wouldn’t mind me asking, Ms. Chanelle. Would you be able to train me as well?” Aegis Flare asked.

Taken a little aback by the sudden request, Natie thought about it. It wouldn’t be too difficult to offer him a few pointers and still keep an eye on the others. The electric conduit smiled, and nodded. She and Aegis Flare began their training by explaining their respective abilities. The electric conduit listened intently about all the ‘Light’ based powers that the pegasus had. This was certainly a new type of conduit power that Natie had heard of, but she would not let that deter her from doing her best to teach.

Across the field, Isabelle was nervously fiddling with her fingers, unable to look the blue earth pony in the eye. Natie had told her and the others to ‘go over the basics’, but that was easier said than done in her opinion. The blue stallion, however, waited patiently, never once giving off a sense of annoyance at this delay.

“So...Um, I-I guess we can start by introducing ourselves,” Isabelle finally spoke up, “Oh! Wait, we already did that earlier.”

Simple Piece shook his head, “No, it’s okay. I’m a bit nervous about this, too. I could tell you a little more about myself, if you’d like?”

Isabelle always was more comfortable around people she knew more about. She thought that if she did hear his story, she’d feel more comfortable in the long run. She nodded her approval.

Simple Piece, without missing a beat, offered up his hoof to shake, which Isabelle accepted while he reintroduced himself, “My name is Simple Piece, and I’m a Potter from the hamlet of Whinnyapolis.”

“‘Whinnyapolis’?” Isabelle echoed with confusion.

“Just to the east of Vanhoover,” Simple Piece explained, but only received more confused looks from the human, “Ah, that’s right! Humans aren’t from this world. I’m sorry if I confused you.”

Isabelle was quick to soothe the pony’s concerns, “No, no! It’s alright, I just didn’t understand where those places are. It’s not your fault.”

“I’m still sorry for confusing you,” Simple Piece said before turning and pointing to his left, “Whinnyapolis is that way. North-west of here, about 200 kilometers.”

‘Ponies use the metric system?’ Isabelle pondered to herself for a moment, “I see, that’s pretty far away.”

“Yeah,” Simple Piece said, “but it’s home.”

“Mr. Piece? I hope this isn’t too personal, but Sam had told us about ‘cutie marks’, and I was wondering what yours is?” Isabelle sheepishly asked.

Simple Piece looked over his flanks to which his namesake came from and smiled, “It’s alright. Ponies actually love to use them as ice breakers anyways. You can sometimes learn a lot about a pony by them, too. Did Mr. Reed tell you how we get them as well?”

Isabelle nodded, thankful she hadn’t committed some sort of faux-pas.

He cleared his throat as he recited what must have been a tale he was very fond of, “My family is actually from a line of accomplished masonry workers. My father took up his father’s business when his father couldn’t keep up with the demand.They traveled all the western coast of Equestria until my father met my mother in Whinnyapolis and settled down.

“My mother was an artist, mostly with glassworks. I grew up watching my mother make glass figures since my father went out on jobs for long periods of time. I loved how my mother made glass look like works of art, but when I tried to do the same when she taught me, I kept misshaping the glass or cracking it. I tried working with my father on one of his jobs, and although I loved the feel of something more solid in my hooves, I wanted to do something more than build structures or houses.”

“I saw a pottery class being taught in one of the towns me and my father were working in, and he gave me a chance to try it out,” a wistful gaze fell on his own cutie mark as he continued, “I watched as some of the other ponies in the class were making amazing works from clay, and I just felt like I was meant to be there. My first project was simply to make a bowl on a potter’s wheel. The clay was much easier and sturdier to work with than glass. I loved it, but it didn’t stop there. A simple bowl wasn’t enough for me. My mother’s teachings in glassworks helped me to decorate and shape the bowl into something else. I made it larger, so I could put designs on the outside. The teacher and other ponies almost couldn’t believe that it was my first time working with clay. I put some simple hoof print designs around the outside, just for some decoration.

“The class was only for a week, but I completed my first vase in three days, and when it came out of the kiln, I felt so accomplished with what came out, even if the designs were simple. It just happened that on that day, I got my cutie mark too!”

It was an endearing tale. Isabelle couldn’t help but feel happy for the stallion and his accomplishment.

“I’m so glad I got to hear that,” Isabelle clapped her hands together, “It was wonderful.”

Simple Piece chuckled, “Thank you. It’s always nice to share.”

Isabelle hummed in agreement, “I wish I could hear more, but I think we should get started with teaching.”

Simple Piece nodded in understanding. Isabelle certainly felt more comfortable with the idea of teaching, and the tale gave her just enough time to think about where they should begin.

Isabelle closed her eyes and lifted her hands up in front of her in a cupping motion. Simple Piece watched, intrigued by what the human in front of him was doing. Light began to sprout from the human’s hands. The source of which became apparent as the flame grew larger for all to see. It looked like a flickering candle cradled in her palms. Isabelle opened her eyes and kneeled down for the astonished pony to see.

“I’m a fire conduit,” she explained, “The way I’ve always seen it is that I am like this flame.” She nodded toward the flame in question, and they both watched as it grew larger. “Both warm and inviting. I know it’s silly, but it’s how I learned to understand my powers and myself.”

Simple Piece listened intently as Isabelle went on about how she learned to manifest her powers as she did now. The blue stallion took in every single word she said, nodding or humming as he took it all in.

“So, I guess this is a bit to ask,” Isabelle said, letting the flame in her hands putter out, “but what kind of conduit are you?”

“Sand,” Simple Vase responded simply.

Isabelle was only slightly surprised by how well the pony conduit was taking this all in, “Ok. I know this was a lot to take in, so if you’d like, we can stop for today.”

“Actually,” Simple Piece responded, “I think I’d like to give it a try.”

“A-Are you sure? It’s ok if you want to take it a little slow.”

“No, I’m sure. I think I know what I should do.”

Isabelle watched as the earth pony closed his eyes and raised his hoof out in front of him. His face contorted into a look of concentration. After a few seconds, flecks of dust began to swirl around his hoof. More of the dust appeared, and Isabelle realized that it was actually sand. She was stunned. She was amazed that he was able to manifest his ability with such control in such a short amount of time. Simple Piece opened his eyes and smiled at his accomplishment. It also helped to see the approving looks Isabelle was giving him.

So, with her lesson going smoothly, they continued on. As for another conduit of the concrete variety, his lessons weren’t going as smoothly.

“No, no!” Lu growled, “You need to just manifest it and blast it out! Like this!”

The concrete conduit thrust his hand out toward the wall of concrete he already made and blasted the face with more shards of concrete. The target looked about ready to crumble from how much he had taken his frustration out on it. High Exposure looked about as worse for wear. She considered herself a patient mare, but the way this human was berating her, not to mention his blunt personality, wore on her patience like nothing else.

She had at first been completely scared, even intimidated, by his harshness. Though as time passed, she began to see him more as one of her ritzy customers that could never be satisfied. In any big city High Exposure’s been to, there was always that one snobby, rich stallion or mare that just had to have the ‘perfect’ picture for an occasion. She had dealt with them all and their ridiculous demands.

‘I just need one more photo for my album.’ ‘You need to have better options for deals.’ ‘The sunset just has to be in the shot behind me.’ ‘But I’m only picking these photos, not all of them. Just give me a discount.’

All those and more of the many, many whiny demands came back to the stressed out mare. More often than not, she’d always grin and bear it until the customers were out of her mane and then scream into a pillow or something. Ever since her conduit abilities manifested, she had closed her business to avoid the added stress. Though thanks to Lu, that stress was being piled on exponentially. With the human still shouting in her ear, she snapped and let go.

The ground shook from the all mighty stomp of High Exposure’s hooves. She let out a frustrated cry of aggravation, and miniature spires of concrete burst from the ground in a line from her to the concrete target that Lu had set up. One last spike of concrete rose and split the target in half and showered the surrounding area with bits of the stuff around it.

The training grounds was quiet. High Exposure regained enough clarity to realize that she was breathing heavily and all eyes were on her. Realizing what she had done, she shrunk back and cowered, fearing that she had done something bad. However, the human conduit, Lu, began to laugh. High Exposure turned and gaped at the hysterical human that was teaching her. She thought he was insane, that she was about to be reprimanded or worse. What happened instead was not what she was expecting.

“Damn!” Lu smiled as he went over to inspect the concrete target, “I take back what I said about you ponies. You aren’t all a bunch gay wusses.”

The mare fell to her haunches, letting out a breath she didn’t know she was holding. The human that had spent the last half hour berating, and belittling her had actually given her what sounded like a compliment.

“I...Thank you. I just- Wait, what did you say about ponies?!” High Exposure angrily snorted.

Sam and Gabriel watched the exchange between Lu and High Exposure. The camaraderie that the two seem to be developing was something that was totally unexpected for the wire conduit. Sam couldn’t help but feel both happy and a bit jealous. Although, now was not the time for distractions.

It had just been over an hour. In that time, Lu, Natie, and Isabelle had developed a steady rhythm to their methods of teachings for their pony apprentice. However, it seemed that Sam and Gabriel were firmly stuck on square one… not for the lack of trying though. The griffon looked away dejectly from High Exposure and her slow, but steadily improving aim at the targets that Lu conjured up.

“Hey now,” Sam tried to sound optimistic, “we’re just getting started. It just takes practice!”

Gabriel flinched and shrunk in on himself even further than before. It seemed like no matter what kind of encouragement Sam tried, it just all fell by the wayside.

“Why...why don’t try some target practice? Like Lu and Exposé over there?” Sam asked.

Gabriel looked over at Lu and High Exposure once again, then back at Sam, this time with a bit of fear.

The griffon gulped and shakily replied, “I-I don’t know, Sam. I don’t think I can do it.”

The grayish-brown griffon was practically shaking. Sam was unsure of how to get through to the fear-strickened griffon. He had tried everything he had been taught back in Curdan Cay back when he was first starting out, minus the excruciating torture and abuse, of course. He hated admitting it, but Augustine’s instructions were invaluable when he was still learning how to control his power.

Sam put on another smile, “Come on! We tried breathing exercises, visualization, and muscle memory training. Why not just try jumping into the deep-end? Figuratively speaking, of course. We don’t have a pool around here to go swimming. Note to self; ask Sparks if the castle has a pool.”

The griffon looked conflicted. Sam could tell something was holding him back. He’d seen what Gabriel could do. At least, potentially. During their other exercises, the griffon had shown he was an ‘ink conduit’, as evident by the splotches of the colorful stuff across the training grounds around them, and even some on Sam’s clothes. It was an unusual power, and one Sam had never come across before, but it wasn’t the first time he’d met a new type of conduit before. Yet, the problem remained that the griffon was still having trouble even just manifesting his power in a stable way.

“Ok, if you think it’s best, Sam,” Gabriel answered.

Sam was having difficulty getting through to the fearful griffon as well. He thought it was just nerves, but this was something else. Regardless, Sam had to try, and that meant setting up some targets for the griffon to practice on.

“Yo, Lu!” Sam called out.

Lu growled at having been interrupted in the middle of his lesson, “What do you want, Asshole?!”

“Need some targets over here to practice on!”

“Make them yourself!”

“I would, but then I’d take away the only thing we keep you around for. It certainly wasn’t for your ugly mug, that’s for sure!” Sam shouted back with a smirk.

The concrete conduit fumed with clenched fists and jaw. Concrete rose from his body into a hardened pillar over his head. With a roar of anger, he lobbed the heavy slab of a projectile at Sam. It moved way too slow, and Sam only had to sidestep a few feet to the left to avoid it coming down on him. There was a round of confused, panicked, and angry looks thrown their ways, but Natie and Isabelle reassured the uninitiated that this was fairly typical so long as it didn’t escalate and Natie didn’t need to step in.

“Thanks!” Sam smirked, “Could use a few more if you can spare!”

“One’s all you’re getting!”

“Appreciate it!”

Sam turned back to Gabriel, who seemed terrified at what just happened.

“Ah, don’t look so worried,” Sam offered some reassurance, “His wind-ups like that are always so slow, you can see it coming from a mile away.”

The griffon didn’t seem too reassured, but Sam tried to press on.

“So, now that we have our target. We’ll step back a couple feet and see if you can hit it.”

Sam ushered the dazed griffon into position and faced him toward the concrete pillar embedded before him.

“I can’t hit that from here,” Gabriel shook his head.

“Sure you can,” Sam said.

Raising his arm toward the concrete target, wire strands began to emerge from his outstretched palm.

“First,” Sam began to explain, “just like our visualization. Imagine your arm to be like a tube. A tube that connects to your source within you. Draw your source through that tube like I’m doing.” The wire strands stretched out a few more inches from his palm to emphasize his point. “Now that your tube is loaded with your source, it’s all about pushing it out, and away. Just like this.”

Sam cocked his arm back a little before thrusting it out again much faster. The wire strands, now projectiles, flew through the air, striking the concrete pillar in the center-mass with the precision honed only through years of practice. Proud of his accomplishment of getting the needle like projectiles to pierce the hardened rock, Sam smiled, only to frown when he saw Gabriel quivering nervously beside him.

“I-I can’t do it,” Gabriel managed to squeak out.

Sam was nearly out of his optimistic attitude. He’s tried everything with Gabriel, but he wasn’t mad at the griffon, just frustrated with himself at not being able to help him. Kneeling down beside the griffon, Sam put a hand over his feathered back. Gabriel tensed up, thinking that he had done something wrong. When Sam began to stroke his back in a soothing motion, Gabriel finally looked up, and found a patient smile on the human’s face.

“Look, I know it’s tough,” Sam said, continuing his soothing strokes, “but that’s why we’re here. To practice, and soon enough, to make it easier.”

Gabriel was still shaking, albeit not as much after Sam’s reassurance. Getting up from his haunches, the griffon took a slow, deep breath, just like he was taught. Sam stood up as well, and just let the griffon do his thing. Gabriel let the breath out slowly, counting backwards from three. He repeated this exercise once more. Once he felt like he was ready, he raised his taloned foreleg up. He imagined his foreleg to be a tube, and let that tube reach down into himself toward the well of foreign power he now possessed.

It felt strange, alien, and weirdly enough, comforting. He closed his eyes and let the feeling of his strange power well up some more, heeding his call. Sam watched in awe as colorful droplets of ink emerged from his talons and pooled in his grasp. Although weird at first, the feeling of the ink running over his talons was starting to feel natural. Maybe it was Sam’s constant encouragement, or his own sense of ‘normal’ slowly changing, but Gabriel was finally starting to feel a little more confident in his abilities, maybe even enough to do as Sam instructed and hit the concrete like he said. His eyes opened to take aim.

Then, he froze. Whether from a trick of the light, or his fear settling back in. Gabriel watched as the pillar of concrete morphed into something. Something that screamed and yelled, in numerous voices of both fear and hate, all directed at him. His own fear turned into panic, and with it, his focus waned. The ball of ink he was about to shoot out, rippled and expanded, unexpectedly fast, too, and before Sam had time to react. The ink bomb exploded and knocked him and Gabriel off their feet. The others took notice of the commotion and gathered around. Sam got up quickly enough, suffering only from a few bruises from the concussive force. His clothes and features were a different matter, as they were peppered with even more, larger splotches of ink from where he was hit.

Isabelle helped him up, and he assured her that he was ok. Gabriel, on the other hand, was a different matter. Aegis Flare and Natie were trying to help him up, but he wriggled away from their grasps, leaving inky trails all over them. He saw what he did and gasped.

“I’m sorry!” Gabriel blurted out, sobbing, “I-I just can’t control it!”

Sam tried to say something, but there was nothing he could think of to make light of the situation.

“I think we should cut the training short for today,” Aegis Flare offered.

The others agreed silently, and moved to leave. Everyone except Sam, Natie, and Aegis Flare.

Natie spoke up softly, “Sam, go with the others.”

“But I want to-”

He cut himself off before he could utter the word ‘help’. It was his ‘help’, his ‘teaching’ that caused this. He failed, and he knew Natie could have done a better job than he had. He accepted this, and slumped his shoulders in defeat before turning away to follow the others back to the castle.

Gabriel continued to lie in the dirt, sobbing to himself, knowing that it was his fault that he failed. These humans were here to help him. Teach him how to be a Conduit, but he couldn’t do it. These powers he had were unnatural and foreign. He’d never be able to control them. Keep from letting them run rampant. He knew the pony guard and the female human were watching him, probably debating on what they’d do with a defect like him. It didn’t matter. In the end, he was a freak and a failure.

Ch 6; Check

Natie wasn’t surprised to hear where Sam had disappeared to. He always did prefer to perch himself somewhere high up to be alone. She always thought he took too much inspiration from his old 90’s movies for that though. It did take a bit of time to find the right castle turret that ponies saw him climb up to. It was also convenient to find a power line leading up to the turret’s spotlight that she could electrically ride up on.

That was certainly something she hadn’t expected to see in this world: the wonders of electricity. Natie did some research from the previous night and was surprised to learn that although Equestria’s development was fundamentally somewhere in the Late Modern Period, they also had many household amenities closer resembling Post Modern technology. Natie was at least glad they had a power grid that she was able to syphon off of, although the electricity here seemed somehow a bit different, like there was something else in the charge she absorbed.

She’d have to look into it later, as she sprang out from the spotlight in a crackle of electricity. Her body reassembled from the ions that they broke down into to travel the power line, and she was able to see the world through her regular eyes again, eyes that fell upon the sulking wire conduit on the other side of the turret.

Natie walked over to lean over the parapet wall, just as Sam was doing. The view she was granted was one of the city of Canterlot. Stretched out before her in all its glory, it was the first, and only, city built on the side of a mountain that she knew of. That, too, was also hard to believe until she saw it herself. She, like her peers, just had to chalk it up to this world’s laws of physics not being like their own and had to move on.

However, as grand as the view was, Sam was not enjoying it like others who would, if in their position. Instead, his head laid atop his arms with his eyes cast down. The only acknowledgement he gave to Natie’s presence was a short huff of air through his nose.

Natie tried to start the conversation, “You know, it wasn’t-”

“Just stop, Natie,” Sam cut her off, “I know what you’re gonna say, and you’re wrong.”

The wire conduit tilted his head to look away from Natie. She wasn’t about to let him brood in peace like he was trying to though.

“Sam, come on. It’s only been one day. I thought you were the one that said that you wanted to do this.”

“Well, that was before how badly I screwed up.”

“You didn’t screw up.”

“Yes, I did!” Sam pushed up to look Natie in the eye, snapping back, “I thought I could help. I thought I could be like you and be a mentor, but I can’t!”

Natie’s brow furrowed, “Who said you needed to be like me?”

Sam didn’t reply to this… not at first anyways.

“...You know I’m no good at being a leader. Hell, I’m not even decent at making a good plan,” Sam said.

Natie took a step closer to the wire conduit, “But you still tried.”

“Yeah, and look where that got me,” Sam cynically laughed.

“This isn’t about you, Sam!” Natie shouted, before taking a deep breath to calm down, “I know you, Lu, and Isabelle had it tough when Bertrand caught me in that trap. I know you tried your hardest to keep the others together til you all rescued me. And, I know it really hit you hard that your plan nearly failed when you rescued me, but right now, right here, this isn’t like back in Memphis.”

Sam wanted to lash back at her, but the electric conduit wasn’t about to give him a chance to keep beating himself down.

“We’re not fighting a battle here, Sam. It’s not life-or-death. We’re just here to try and help these people...ponies...griffons, what have you, become more comfortable with their lives as conduits. Every little bit helps, even if you don’t think so,” Natie’s voice softened a little more, “Even with Gabriel.”

“But didn’t you see what happened?” Sam countered, “I tried everything we were taught, and I still couldn’t get through to him.”

“It’s not exactly your fault, Human.”

The gruff voice was followed by a quartet of hooves clacking down the stony tower. The human conduits turned to see none other than Aegis Flare, who had flown up to meet with them after helping to escort Gabriel back to his room in the castle.

The pegasus approached the human conduits to elaborate, “Gabriel is a bit of special case to our program here in Equestria.”

Sam and Natie looked at each other and then back to the pegasus with questioning looks.

“I can give more details later, but after you left, Equestria started experiencing anomalies. Conduits then started to appear here in Equestria within the last few months. I was among some of the first. It took me some time to get used to my new abilities, but some other ponies that became ‘activated’ exploited their powers for their own benefit. Princess Celestia and Princess Luna appointed me to head a team that oversees cases involving Conduits. This also included cases of those that wanted to learn how to control their abilities, like Simple Piece and High Exposure.

“Like I said, Gabriel is a special case, as he is a member of the Griffon Empire. He is a courier between our nations, but he became ‘activated’ here in Equestria, while he was on a delivery job. Relations can sometimes be a bit fickle between ponies and griffons,” Aegis Flare looked away in a bit of shame, “Some consider our relation with the griffons unnecessary. This leads back to Gabriel. I’ve thoroughly been over his report.”

Natie and Sam were completely invested by what they’ve both heard. There were many questions they had, but the pegasus still had a little more to explain.

“On the day he became ‘activated’, a group of ponies had been harassing him in the city of Baltimare. It came to the point where these ponies got physical,” Aegis Flare sighed deeply, “Gabriel put two of those ponies in the hospital.”

Both of the human conduits gasped.

“It wasn’t his fault though. Like me, and the few others so far, Gabriel had no real control over his abilities. I’ve tried to explain this to him when the Griffon Empire released him into our care, but...I feel like he hasn’t accepted it for himself.”

Sam and Natie mulled over this new info, especially Sam. He thought that he was a horrible teacher, that it was his fault for not giving the griffon the proper instructions. Though now, he understood why Gabriel was having trouble. He was like him back in Curdan Cay. Sam shared a look with Natie, to which she understood and gave her approval. Sam still didn’t know if he was cut out to be a teacher or mentor, but he did know what he could do for the wayward griffon in that moment.

“Cappy,” Sam finally spoke up, “Where’s Gabriel now?”

Aegis Flare gave the wire conduit a quizzical look, but answered, “The eastern guest wing of the castle. Why do you want to know?”

“Because, I need to talk with him,” Sam replied with a smile, before leaping over the parapet to the ground below.

Aegis Flare’s wings instantly sprang out for him to give chase to the wire conduit. He knew he always meant well, but the former captain couldn’t help but feel a little worried. He was stopped by Natie, who blocked his path with an outstretched arm.

“It’s alright. He’s much smarter than most give him credit for,” she said, “He’s reckless and impulsive, but once he’s put his heart and mind to it, there’s almost nothing that can stop him.”

Aegis Flare folded his wings back to his sides and relaxed, a hint of a smile touching his features.

The gruff pony gave a short bark of laughter, “It’s funny. I know exactly what you mean.”

--o0o--

A short knock came from Gabriel’s suite door. Though before he could tell whoever it was to leave, it swung open to reveal the Wire Wraith himself.

“How’s it going, Gabe?” the wire conduit casually asked as he strolled into the room.

The startled griffon tried to tell him to get out, but the words kept getting stuck in his throat. Not to mention, a lot of his attention was on trying not to spatter even more ink all over the place, like he had been doing since he’d gotten these powers. He’s already ruined the sheets he slept on multiple times already, just like now, as the wire conduit’s presence made his anxiety skyrocket.

He wished he was allowed to wear that dampening collar, like before, but the other female human that stayed behind with Aegis Flare at the training ground refused to let him. Why couldn’t she see he was dangerous without it? Tears threatened to cloud his vision once more.

Sam watched as the griffon curled in on himself on the bed before him, obviously trying not to seem like a threat or accidentally lash out. The suite the ponies had put him up in was much like his own, only there were plenty of ink splatters covering the surfaces everywhere. The griffon himself looked miserable. His plumage and fur was all askew or matted, not unlike it was before, but Sam was trying not to mention it, out of respect. He wasn’t quite sure what a healthy griffon his age should look like, but Gabriel also looked a little on the skinny side.

“P-Please, leave,” Gabriel finally worked up the strength to say.

Sam sighed, “Sorry, can’t do that.”

“I d-don’t want t-to hurt you,” Gabriel meekly spoke out.

Sam didn’t reply this time, merely walking across the room to grab the writing desk’s chair to pull up to the side of the bed and straddle on backwards. His arms laid over top the back rest, and his head followed suit to lay on his arms. The griffon had shifted to the far end of the bed away from Sam, still avoiding eye contact. They sat there like that for a while, in the silence...

...until Sam spoke out, “I heard about what happened with you in Baltimare.”

This was one of the few times that the griffon had looked up toward Sam, but there was fear in the griffon’s eyes upon hearing this. More ink seemed to leak from his talons to drip to the once white sheets of the bed below.

“Hey, it’s alright,” Sam threw up his hands defensively, “No judgement here.”

“Why?” Gabriel sullenly asked, “I hurt those ponies, and-and I didn’t mean to. I was only trying to tell them to back off, and then it...it just happened. They were right! I’m a m-monster!”

The wayward griffon was openly sobbing at this point. He covered his head with his claws, like it was going to hide him away from the world.

Sam’s expression hardened a little, “Hey, listen here. You’re a Conduit, not a monster.”

Sam shushed the griffon before he could protest, not that Gabriel could speak even if he tried. His words kept getting choked up in his throat from his uncontrollable fits of sobbing.

“I actually used to think the exact same thing about myself, when I first manifested my powers,” Sam offered, much to the griffon’s surprise.

Gabriel had heard the tales about the Wire Wraith. Heroic, Confident, Strong, he’d heard it all. Then, just today, he had met him, along with three other humans, that were just as strong or brave. He watched as the wire conduit before him fiddled with a couple strands of his namesake between his fingers. Even now, Sam seemed so self-assured in his abilities, unlike him. It was hard to even imagine such a powerful being as fearful and miserable as he did right now.

“Oh yeah, that’s right. I wasn’t always a badass, like I am now,” Sam continued, playing with the strands of wire all the while, “It actually took me years to figure that part out. You wanna know how I got over that fear?”

A part of Gabriel wanted to say no, because that part of him still could only see himself as the freak of nature those ponies told him he was. Though the other part of him, the part that still had a sliver of hope, sprang forward. The griffon nodded his head eagerly. Sam looked Gabriel in the eyes, and although the griffon wanted to look away, he resisted the urge. The wire conduit gave him a hard look, but then, his expression softened into his usual welcoming smile.

“I found a way to use my powers for a little fun,” Sam answered simply.

Gabriel was confused. He expected something a little more profound, something virtuous or wise. Yet, that was all Sam said, and then, he went back to fiddling with the wire he was playing with in his hand. Gabriel was almost mad. He felt cheated, like he was meant to be given an answer that would solve all his problems, and he got nothing.

“I want you to check this out,” Sam said, cutting the griffon off before he could speak.

The wire conduit rose from his seat. More wires emerged from his hands, swirling and bending to his will. The display of control and power mesmerized the griffon. Sam flicked his gaze toward the griffon to gauge his reaction, satisfied to see he had his attention.

“It took me a long time to get to where I’m at now,” the wire conduit explained, all the while bending the wires into a maze as tall as him, “There were no shortcuts, no easy-to-follow guides. I had to work at it every day.”

The wires at first appeared to move about randomly, but as Sam’s speech went on, Gabriel could see the wire conduit was in fact, moving each strand in a specific way, into a specific place. He was creating a frame of something before his very eyes.

“There were times when I got frustrated because I failed to control my powers, times when I felt like I would never amount to anything but what others told me I was,” Sam continued, “A ‘freak’, a ‘devil’, or even a ‘monster’. There were even times when I felt like I should’ve just given up entirely. All of that was because the way I was being taught to use my powers was to only fight with them. One day, I got tired of that, and then, I got bored. I took a piece of wire and bent it. Then, I wrapped it around another piece, and then another, and then another.”

Sam’s last few statements were punctuated by him attaching a few more wires to his creation. Gabriel gasped as the wire frame finally took on enough shape for him to make out what it was. A griffon. The frame was minimal, but the shape was unmistakable. As Sam braided the last length of wire to attach as the tail, the wire griffon came to life and spread its wings. Gabriel could see the strands of wire that connected from the griffon’s tail to Sam’s fingers, and how he used them to manipulate the seemingly fluid motions of the previously inanimate wire griffon. It was awe inspiring, and simply amazing to watch.

Gabriel was mesmerized by the wire frame, even as it stopped moving after striking a majestic pose. He wished he could do something like what he just saw. His internal thoughts were interrupted by a tap on his shoulder. It surprised him, as it was Sam who had done it. Gabriel hadn’t realized that wire conduit had gotten so close, or that he was practically on the edge of the bed when he had tried to get a closer look at the wire frame. He was about to move away when Sam offered his hand. Gabriel looked down to see another frame, one that fit in the palm of the wire conduit’s hand. It was crude, simple, and nowhere near as detailed as the wire griffon, but Gabriel could tell it was a little stick-version of a human.

Sam held the human figure up as he spoke, “I don’t see my powers as a curse or something to fear. At least, not anymore. I chose to find something else to use my powers for, something I could enjoy doing, something that made me happy to have my powers. I chose to create.”

Sam took one of Gabriel’s talons and placed the little, crude figure into his claw. Gabriel himself was speechless. He had seen how the other Equestrians trained earlier that day. Sam had tried to teach him with the same methods, to no avail. The griffon had been scared, scared that no matter how much help the humans offered, he’d still never be able to use his newfound powers for anything other than hurting others. However, he now had two examples, one even in his very claw, that showed him the complete opposite.

He turned his head up to meet the wire conduit’s cheerful expression, and for the first time, did not have the urge to flinch or shudder. The sorrowful feeling inside him that had felt like it had a death grip on him finally began to loosen. The overwhelming sense of a relief that replaced it was almost too much for him to handle.

“C-can you teach me to create, too?” Gabriel asked.

The wire conduit smiled even more brightly, a feeling of accomplishment and relief of finally finding a way to help the wayward griffon settling in him.

Sam chuckled as he replied, “Of course I can, but you also need to find the way you want to create for yourself. I make wire frames because that’s what I can work with. You’ll need to figure how you can create with your ink.”

Gabriel almost became crestfallen again after hearing that. He shook his head to shake the encroaching thoughts of despair away and think a little more clearly. Sam said that ‘there were no shortcuts’, and that he needed to figure out his own way to create with his ink. It was hard. Gabriel wished that he could just make wire frames like Sam, but that was something he just wasn’t able to do. So, he thought a little more.

‘What can I create with ink?’ Gabriel thought to himself.

His eyes wandered around the suite for some sign or inspiration, but nothing seemed to jump out at him. His frustration was starting to build, and it seemed like he was about to just give up and go back to wallowing in his own self-deprecation. That is, until his eyes landed on the writing desk on the other side of the suite. Or, more specifically, the fresh stack of parchment laid out on top.

Sam moved out of the griffon’s way as he climbed down from the bed and followed him to the desk where he was focused on. Gabriel picked up one of the pieces of parchment, feeling the rough surface of the blank canvas before him. He never considered himself an artist, and he only used to doodle in the dirt back in Griffonstone when he was fledgling. He turned to Sam, but the wire conduit merely gave him a few gestures of encouragement.

Gabriel automatically reached for the quill and inkwell when he remembered that he was supposed to do this with his powers. He placed the sheet of parchment down on the desk in front of him and extended a claw toward the paper. His claw halted just short of the parchment’s surface as he realized that he had no idea what was going to draw.

He panicked for a second. His mind racing to find something that he could use as inspiration. His other claw squeezed around something, and he raised it to find that he was still carrying the little, human wire figure that Sam had given him earlier. He looked back at the much larger, and more intricate, wire frame of the griffon Sam also made. The ink conduit frowned as he wished he had the same level of talent as Sam did, but he then remembered something else Sam had said.

‘It took me a long time to get to where I’m at now...I had to work at it every day.’

Gabriel still felt a tinge of jealousy, but he was going to try and take what Sam had said to him to heart. Taking a deep breath, Gabriel closed his eyes and reached into himself. He felt the wellspring of his source start to awaken to his call. He imagined his arm as the tube that reached down into that well to draw out his power. The sensation of the ink flowing up was again, in a sense, comforting, and also still strange. He could feel the ink reach the tip of his outstretched claw and sit there, just waiting to be unleashed at his command.

Suddenly, he heard a voice. It was more like a crowd of voices, all of them calling him all sorts of nasty things. Through his closed eyes, he could see a blurry image of two ponies being loaded onto an ambulance, all because of what he did. His breath quickened, and the negative sensations began to overwhelm him.

“Gabe.”

Gabriel snapped out of his trance as Sam called out to him and placed his hand on his shoulder. The anxious griffon looked up to see the wire conduit’s encouraging smile. The grip he had on his shoulder was also merely that of a comforting presence. All of that combined banished the harsh whispers and images from the griffon’s mind, and he set back to work on the parchment that now had a few droplets of ink from his once shaking claw. Gabriel did his best not to let that get to him and continued.

His claw touched the parchment, and ink bled out. Gabriel grunted in concentration to keep the flow more steady. He moved his claw up, and then down, creating a downward ‘v’. He extended another line up from the tip of that ‘v’. His strokes became more fluid, and less shaky, as he went, emboldened by each stroke that came before.

Sam watched as the griffon worked, eager to figure out what he was drawing, and yet, he also wanted to look away and leave it as more of a surprise. The suspense was terrible, and he hoped it would last. The jet-black lines Gabriel stretched out were starting to fan out more, and Sam could tell at once the thing he was trying to draw out.

“Needs more color,” Gabriel mumbled to himself, becoming a little tired of the singular, blackness.

He concentrated a little more, and the ink from his claw started to shift. The shade became lighter, almost silvery. Gabriel extended the rest of his claws out and scratched about from the tips of two of the black lines. It looked like a jumble of wispy, silver lines, but Gabriel was okay with that. However, he wanted more. He had only used a quarter of the parchment, and the rest was almost like it was calling to him.

More lines of black came forth, and then, he added splashes of color. The whole ordeal felt it lasted for hours, as he fell into a trance. Before he knew it, however, he was finished. The ink conduit looked over his work and smiled at the outcome. By no means was it a masterpiece, but to him, it was worth more than that.

“Wow, I’m impressed!”

Gabriel squawked in surprise, having forgotten that Sam had been there beside him the entire time. He saw the wire conduit was inspecting his work, and somehow, that made the griffon feel embarrassed. He tried covering it up, even though he knew the wire conduit probably already saw the whole thing already.

Sam chuckled even more at Gabriel’s actions, “Ah, come on. You’ve got yourself a one-of-a-kind ‘Picasso’ there. Let’s get a better look at it.”

“O-okay,” Gabriel relented.

He uncovered his work, and Sam picked up the piece of parchment to inspect. Sam himself was no art critic, so it’s not like he could judge the griffon’s work. He even used to have trouble making simple wire frames himself, so he had no excuse either. Looking over the drawing, there were still plenty of flaws though. Flecks of spilled ink dotted the empty space. The outlines of shapes were either too thick or thin in places due to Gabriel’s inexperience with control. Sometimes, the colors bled into clashing hues, again from the lack of experience. Regardless of all that though, Sam could see that the griffon put his heart into this piece.

Four stick figures, humanoid stick figures, were all striking various poses. From their ‘hands’ stretched shapes and colors that were all too familiar to the wire conduit. Wispy, silvery strings on one. Jagged, grayish-brown squares from the next. Then, blue, barbed lines and funneling, reddish-orange columns from the last two sets.

“I know it’s not all that good,” Gabriel timidly spoke up, “I haven’t drawn in a long time. I’ve never tried it that way before, and-”

Sam cut him off, “It’s perfect, Gabe.”

For the first time since discovering his newfound abilities, Gabriel was happy to have them.

Author's Note

Hey, look at that, I've got a new chapter done already! I'm actually trying to put a little more effort into getting chapters done faster, but I won't compromise quality for quantity. If it takes a bit longer for some chapters I hope you'll be okay with that.

With that, Gabe seems to be coming to terms with his new life. Sam has found a way to help like he wanted to, and the Equestrians have the full support of their human friends to help them too. It seems perfect, doesn't it?

Thanks Regreme, for your continued help in being my editor and proofreader

Ch 7; Check-Call

“In just the past two days since the humans arrived, all three initiates have shown vast improvements in their abilities and control. My own training with Ms. Chanelle has helped me discover new ways of improving my own abilities as well.”

More good news. That’s what Celestia was happy to hear. Although surprising and unexpected at first, the arrival of the other three humans, along with Sam, have been a pleasant boon. Each of them were unique and a pleasure to get to know, when she got the time.

Natie, as she likes to be called, was a wellspring of knowledge and very level-headed. Lu, although rough and very crass, was loyal to his values. Isabelle was rather timid, but she has a fiery passion to help those around her.

Then, there was Sam. When she had heard what had happened on the first day, she became worried, both for Gabriel and Sam alike. The princess wanted to offer her wisdom to the matter, but before she could, word came to her that everything had worked out. Celestia was once again glad that Sam had such reliable friends at his side that he could turn to, both from his world and Equestria.

“Thank you for your report, Administrator Aegis Flare,” Celestia bowed her head in gratitude to the stoic pegasus, “It’s good to hear the program is working well for everyone involved.”

Aegis Flare grunted in agreeance. He had expected a lot more obstacles in this endeavor, if not from Sam and his lack of skill in teaching, then from the public’s opinion. It was hard not to see the uncertainty everypony had with such a paradigm shift in their understanding of the world around them. They may have had a couple years to cope, but such a change was bound to leave lingering doubts and concerns to consider.

Of course, that is why the princesses and him had developed the new department within the royal guard for him to preside over. At first, it wasn’t difficult, nor particularly demanding, and the good Admin merely had to take on a few extra responsibilities while still acting as a royal guard captain. That changed when the anomalies started to become a lot more common, and one pony suddenly became very aware of his latent powers. That pony was Aegis Flare.

When he became an activated conduit during a training exercise a few months after Sam’s departure, it came as a shock to everypony, including himself. He was scared, confused, and unable to cope with the suddenness of it all. Were it not for his time during the incidents with Visionary Dusk, and with the help and encouragement of Princess Twilight Sparkle, he was unsure if he would’ve been able to recover as he did. It took him weeks with the help of the newly crowned Princess of Friendship to understand and wrest control of his newly discovered abilities. Even then, it was a challenge.

Though as his control became more natural, another pony became activated. He was a petty thief who was harassing victims in Hoofington before, but with his newfound powers, he carved a devastating path through the streets. Although not nearly on the same level as their human ally, the brave Admin couldn’t just let this criminal continue to do harm. With the princesses’ blessings, he led his first ever mission against a malevolent conduit since the Canterlot Crisis. It was difficult, and left a lot to be desired, but he and the guards he led were able to apprehend the criminal conduit in the end.

It wasn’t over, as another pony conduit popped up in another city and was causing trouble. Aegis Flare apprehended him, too. His success in his missions made him the ideal candidate to become the mentor of the next pony conduit that became activated, but wished no ill-will. He helped as much as he could, but this was not something he was trained to do. When the next pony conduit appeared, that’s when Twilight and the other princesses decided that they needed help from an old friend.

“Administrator?”

Aegis Flare inhaled sharply, having not realized that he had been zoning out for the past few minutes.

“My apologies, your majesty,” Aegis bowed, “I didn’t mean to ignore you.”

The solar diarch tittered cheerfully. It wasn’t often she got to see the ever-focused pegasus before her with his head in the clouds.

“It’s alright, Administrator,” Celestia replied, “Please, rise. I was just merely thanking you for your time in delivering me such good news.”

Aegis Flare chastised himself mentally for his lack of focus, but still felt a hint of pride from the princess’ praise.

Celestia was about to dismiss the Administrator so he could get back to his duties, when a quiet knock on her chamber’s door came. A meek looking royal guard came in and bowed before the princess and admin, before standing at attention. The guard looked worried, which in turn, made the princess and admin worried.

Aegis was afraid to ask, but had no choice, “Report?”

The earth pony guard gulped and shakily replied, “Your highness! Sir! Samuel Reed and Isabelle Wilmott have slipped away from their escorts and left the castle grounds. Reports from the City Guard place them in the eastern section of the second ring.”

Aegis Flare could feel the old discomfort of the long forgotten headaches the wire conduit had put him through coming back. He had to repress the urge to angrily sigh as he heard the report. Perhaps it was too much to think that Sam had become more mature since he last saw him. Though to hear the other girl, Isabelle, following in his antics was a surprise. Celestia was of the same mind, although she trusted that their human guests wouldn’t be causing trouble, but rather just exploring their environment.

Another knock came and, unexpectedly, it was the other human female that entered this time. She looked angry.

“I’m sorry for barging in, your highness,” she apologized, before huffing, “I heard what happened. Can you tell where Sam and Isabelle are? More specifically, Sam?”

It seemed that Aegis and Celestia weren’t the only ones who’ve had to deal with a certain wire conduit’s antics, and that somehow made them feel sympathetic to the electric conduit’s frustration.

--o0o--

“Sam, I know the princesses said we were free to see the city,” Isabelle tried to sound annoyed, even as her wonder for her surroundings filled her, “but I know you’re lying that we were supposed to meet up with our escorts out here.”

Sam tried to act as innocent as possible. Isabelle had known him for too long to be deceived for very long, and gave him a disapproving look.

“What?” Sam tried to feign ignorance, “I know what I was told. We were to meet them out here in ten minutes. That’s why I said we had to hurry and vault the castle grounds’ walls just to make it here on time. Honest!”

Isabelle stepped in front of Sam’s path and narrowed her gaze on him. Sam tried once more to look innocent, but it seemed that Isabelle had had enough.

“Ok, ok,” Sam relented, “but, isn’t it better not having an armed escort following us around? Wouldn’t it send the wrong message of why we’re here?”

Isabelle looked around once more. Although weary, the ponies of this city seemed to be abuzz in their presence. Even a scant few had braved the trek closer to them to exchange a few greetings before scampering away.

“I still don’t like being lied to, Sam,” Isabelle huffed.

Sam knew she’d be mad for a little while and decided not to argue with Isabelle. He also knew she’d forgive him after he showed her that one donut shop just down the road from where they were standing. ‘Joe’s’ as he remembered it being called, an uncharacteristically non-pony name for a shop in a place like this. Just like the pony who ran the shop himself, also named ‘Joe’. Sam just hoped it was still there.

Canterlot was largely the same as he remembered it from the last time, lots of brilliant architecture on either side of it’s cobblestone roads. The upper ring was filled with the elite and aristocrats, while the second ring they now were in, was populated by the working middle-class mostly. Shops and businesses that were just as abundant as the apartment style homes surrounded them on all sides.

Though now, unlike last time, it appeared more modern, like a post industrialized England township. Power lines crisscrossed overhead, supplying the capital's populace with magically powered everyday amenities. Most of the shops with outdoor services had radios that played a mixture of jazzy tunes, an occasional radio show, or daily news. Street lamps that originally used to be oil and wick were replaced by poles with magic-powered light crystals. Sam saw a couple more innovations that gave the city a more modern look from the previous time he stayed here, but he and the rest of the human conduits had had the luxury of a ‘Twilight Lecture’ to fill them in.

In the end, Sam promised not to lie to Isabelle again while they were here as long as he got to show her what they came out into the city for.

“Alright, but you better keep your promise, Sam,” Isabelle sighed.

Sam was happy to get his way for exactly two point thirty-eight seconds before all color drained from his face. He spotted her before she called out to him in a very angry tone.

“Samuel Reed!”

Isabelle turned around to see just who she expected from the familiar voice. It was Natie, and she was pissed. Ponies were giving her a wide berth as she stormed down the street toward the other two humans.

“N-Natie, hey! We- I was just about to head back to let you know-”

“Can it, Sam,” Natie growled.

Forgetting her own anger toward Sam, Isabelle placed herself between him and Natie.

Isabelle pleaded with the furious electric conduit, “Wait, Natie! Please don’t be angry. It’s not his fault.”

Natie stopped just a few feet from them and crossed her arms, “He left the castle without his escort, and by what I’ve been told, this isn’t the first time he’s done it. Isabelle, please tell me you at least didn’t know about this.”

Isabelle bit the inside of her cheek. Torn between not wanting to see her friends fight, and still being angry with Sam. The wire conduit, on the other hand, was frantically looking for a way out of this situation. The city was a little different, but he was sure he knew the streets better than any of his other friends. It was about time he tested his theory of outrunning their strongest member of the The Four Aces, like he hoped.

“I had a good reason, I promise! Tell you later! Bye!” Sam cried out as he sprinted off in the opposite direction of the other two conduits.

Natie shot after him while Isabelle tried to call out for them to stop. She sighed, as neither of them heeded her words. She then casually took off after them, following the path of confused pony faces that gawked after the first two humans.

Sam may have had the advantage of knowing the terrain, but Natie was always faster and stronger. He barely kept his lead on her as they ran down the streets and back alleys. Him, shouting out apologies, while Natie pushed herself to catch up to her quarry. Knowing full well what would happen to him if she did catch up was the only thing keeping him from slowing down, even around sharp corners.

Sam’s frightful sprint would ultimately doom him, as the next alley he sprinted out of opened up into a semi-populated street. He was able to bob and weave through the foot traffic with a few stumbles, but luckily without bumping into any of the startled ponies. His final mistake was taking his eyes off the path in front of him to see where Natie was. He faced forward only to have a split second to cry out in surprise before crashing bodily into a unicorn who had her face buried in a book. The two tumbled to the ground in a tangle of limbs while onlookers winced in sympathy.

Sam recovered first, shaking off the few scraps he got from falling to the cobblestone ground. He looked down to see the unicorn underneath him having suffered more.

“Oh my god! I’m so sorry! Are you okay?!” Sam apologized.

He helped the little pony to her hooves and kept her steady as she regained her balance. In that time, Sam got a good look at the unicorn pony that he had inconveniently run into. She was a beige color that was mostly covered with a somewhat baggy, and ratty looking dark-purple sweater that had a few loosely sewn on pink buttons. Her mane and tail were a washed out reddish hue with two tone lavender highlight streaks. The forelock of her mane was tied up into a weird ‘braid’, which Sam could only guess to help keep it out of her eyes. The last accessory she had was a pair of thick-rimmed glasses that had seen better days haphazardly hanging off her muzzle, obviously dislodged from the collision.

The disoriented unicorn had finally returned to her senses and was looking about her surroundings. Sam tried assuring her that she didn’t appear to be severely injured, but was willing to see her to a medical center if needed.

“My books!” the unicorn finally gasped in shock.

That was not exactly the response Sam had expected, neither did he expect to be shoved out of the way to make room for the mystery unicorn to scramble to a pile of fallen literature a few feet away. She tried to salvage the books from the dirty roadside, but the damage was already done. As she levitated them out of a muddy puddle, a good number of them had had their pages soaked with murky waters already.

Her shock and horror quickly turned to anger as she rounded on the wire conduit with a growl, “You!”

Sam had just finished dusting himself off when he was confronted with the accusatory hoof in his face, “Me?”

“No, the other brain-dead lunatic that carelessly slammed into me. Of course, you!” she all but screeched in his face.

Sam could understand why she was upset. He’d be mad, too, if someone bowled him over, but she didn’t have to yell so loud.

“Look, I’m sorry. It was an accident, and I’m sure-” Sam began, before being cut off.

With a stomp of her already outstretched hoof, the beige unicorn screamed some more, “Oh, so just because it was an accident, that makes it okay?! Do you even realize what sort of books these are?!”

Sam, even though taken aback, glanced at one of the titles being shoved in his face, “‘The Complete Compendium of Morphogenetic Materia’?”

“Gold star to the monkey that can actually read,” the unicorn snorted snidely.

At that, Sam got a little offended, “H-hey, I’m not a monkey, you know? I’m actually-”

“I know what and who you are,” the bespeckled pony cut him off once again, “Samuel Reed, one of those conduits the princesses brought from the other world.”

Sam figured that it was probably already common knowledge in regards to he and his fellow human companions’ arrival, but the way this unicorn had said the word ‘conduits’ made him a little annoyed.

“You’re the one that was here two years ago as well and was involved in the Canterlot Crisis,” the unicorn continued with a roll of her eyes, “You’re also the one that fought against the discredited Visionary Dusk across nearly a quarter of the city, leveling quite a few businesses and homes, one of which was mine. Thanks for that, by the way!”

The unicorn’s rant had gained the attention of a crowd, and with it, the faint whispers of debate. Some were in protest of the negative words, but more were muttering in agreeance of the damage caused being an unnecessary tragedy. More than a few harsh words were slung his way. Although trying to appear unaffected by the words, Sam couldn’t help but feel a small pang of guilt for his actions two years ago. Determined to make up for his perceived mistakes, Sam knelt down beside the unicorn and sifted through the dirt to help pick up the remaining books.

“Look, I’m sorry,” Sam tried salvaging his optimistic demeanor, “Why don’t I help get these books up and cleaned for ya, huh?”

Before the unicorn could protest, Sam plucked one of the books up off the ground. Cleaning up the cover’s hard exterior was easy enough with a few swipes, but when he flipped it open he made another mistake. The pages were wet and covered in mud, so he tried brushing them off the same easy as the cover. The pages were too soggy for the rough treatment and with audible, squelching tears, they fell apart. Sam cringed and looked up to see the unicorn fuming and gnashing her teeth. She tried grabbing the book out of his hand with her magic, but she just became frustrated with every attempt just fizzling out and failing.

“I think you’ve helped enough,” the beige unicorn snorted, having to snatch the ruined book out of his hand with a hoof.

Just as Sam was about to insist on some kind of restitution, an icy shiver ran up his spine as he felt a malevolent presence right behind him. Before he could move out of the way, a firm hand grasped collar of his shirt.

“Causing more trouble, Samuel?” Natie growled as her grip tightened on his shirt.

It was no use now. If Sam tried to escape now, he’d only make his punishment worse.

“Natie, hey!” Sam tried to sound innocent, “Have you met my new friend, uh...psst, a little help?”

“I’m not your friend!” the beige unicorn growled.

Natie sighed, bowing her head apologetically, “I’m sorry if he was bothering you, miss. It won’t happen again.”

Natie heard the unicorn snort dismissively and glanced up in time to see her glaring daggers at the both of them before turning to leave. Even Natie felt the contemptuous response was bit on the rude side.

“Whatever. Now, if you’ll excuse me, I have better things to do than be harassed by the likes of you.”

With that, the disgruntled unicorn swept the rest of her damaged books from the dirt and stuffed them back into her saddlebags. She then stomped off in the opposite direction, which was more than a clue for the bystanders to stop gawking and disperse. This just left the two conduits, now made three with the arrival of Isabelle having finally caught up, to finish their own dispute.

“So, how are you liking the city, Natie? Gah!” the electric conduit hoisted the wire conduit into a one-armed headlock while she continued to glare down at him.

In a seething tone, Natie unleashed her pent up frustration, “Don’t you dare try to change the subject here! What the hell were you thinking?! Do you have any idea how much stress your little stunt put on the princesses?!”

“To be fair, we were told we could go out into the city anytime we wanted- Hurk!”

The headlock grew tighter at his blatant twisting of the words of the permission they were granted by the powers that be in this world. Natie started dragging the incapacitated wire conduit back in the direction of the castle.

“Wait! I was the one that wanted to come out and see the city to begin with. Sam shouldn’t be the only one punished,” Isabelle tried to defend.

Natie flashed a disapproving look in the meeker conduit’s direction. Isabelle shrunk back.

“The princesses said we were allowed out into the city under supervision, for everyone’s protection. Isabelle, I’m disappointed that you’d be the one to break their trust like that, but...” Natie gave the wire conduit in her grip another good squeeze, eliciting another gasp of discomfort, “...we both know it was his idea to sneak outside the castle’s grounds without our escorts.”

Isabelle looked down at her feet dejectedly, feeling guilty for her actions. Natie sighed, having felt sorry for upsetting her friend like so, but still needing to make sure their mistakes were clearly known.

“Come on, Isabelle,” Natie trudged on ahead, “We’re all going back and apologizing to our hosts. And we’re not going to let this happen again!”

That last statement was more directed to the struggling wire conduit in her grasp, who was trying everything he could not to get choked out and failing. Isabelle fell in behind Natie as they made their way down the streets. Pony passerbys watched in confused trepidation, but thought it best to not get involved with the human that could easily hold down their ‘Wire Wraith’.

Natie let out another exasperated sigh and thought to herself, ‘why do I feel like it’s going to be one of those days?

Ch 8; The Flop

Moondancer was a simple unicorn of simple needs. A decent home, a proper meal at twice a day, and her aspiration to graduate from one of the prestigious universities in Equestria, almost all of which were located in Canterlot, her home city. Of course, that all fell through on the day of the ‘Canterlot Crisis’. It burned her up just thinking about it.

The other residents of Canterlot gave her a wide berth as she continued to grumble to herself angrily down the street. It just so happened that the source of her ire had somehow picked the one path that intersected her route and unforgivingly bowled her over in the streets. Samuel Reed, AKA, the Wire Wraith, and the bane of Moondancer’s existence. Her life had been set until he came. Much like everypony else during the Canterlot Crisis, Moondancer was forced to flee the city. Although grateful to be alive, she had lost just about everything.

Her home that her late parents had left to her and her sister had fallen in the warpath set by Visionary Dusk. Anything that was remotely salvageable could fit into a singular, small cardboard box. This also included her research for her final term in the university. The professor gave everypony extensions due to the crisis, but Moondancer’s research had taken almost the entirety of her university years to conduct, time that the extension did not offer.

“Don’t they know how much work I put into it?” Moondancer seethed under her breath, “They wouldn’t even let me appeal for more time. Of course, what did I expect from a broken, unreliable government? They were so underprepared for the crisis. Not even a bit of financial aid for me or my sister. Homeowner insurance? Denied. Liability claims? None! Not even a proper apology for their lack of ‘help’.”

Much like many other residents, aid was slow to be received and left them to either leave the city to find somewhere affordable or scrounge for what they could to make ends meet.

Moondancer snorted in anger as she continued to rant, “Harmony bless my sister, but being a cafe barista is not what I aspired to be in life! It barely pays enough for that damned apartment! I hate it, and that pegasus that keeps trying to hit on me? Get a clue, asshole! If it wasn’t for the fact that I needed this job, I’d give that sleazy stallion a swift kick in the face! I had everything I wanted! I was going to have everything I wanted and more, but now? Gah! If it wasn’t for conduits, everything would be better off! I hate them! I hate Visionary Dusk! I hate Samuel Reed!

“They’re no better than that two-faced ‘Princess of Friendship’. Don’t think I’ve forgotten about you,” an old, familiar pain resurfaced in Moondancer’s heart at her words, “You were supposed to be my best-friend! What kind of friend abandons their friend? On their birthday no less. The same day my parents were killed! Not even a letter after I found out you became some national hero. No, you just up and left and made ‘new friends’. You were even one of the first ponies to successfully establish first contact and good, ‘friendly’ relations with extraterrestrial beings. Now, and now, you’re the ‘Princess of Friendship’? What a joke!”

“Hello, Moondancer,” a bland, unenthused voice spoke up to break Moondancer from her vigorous tirade.

Without even realizing it, Moondancer had made it to her destination. The Canterlot Library, one of Moondancer’s only safe havens in a city she was trapped in. Inside was the largest collection of knowledge known to Equestria, a veritable oasis in the desert, and yet, plagued with the constant nuisances that were other ponies. Also inside, sitting bored-looking as ever behind the reception desk, was another pony that Moondancer hated, though for vastly different reasons than the people in her internal rant.

“Musty Tomes,” the beige unicorn said the other unicorn’s name as if she was sucking on a lemon. Said unicorn behind the reception desk was the head librarian. She was old, as her wiry, grey mane displayed her age, only matched by the wrinkles lining her pale-blue face. A few more creases were set in her brow, but not from age, but rather to show her displeasure upon having to converse with the younger, combative unicorn.

The head librarian huffed as she adjusted her horn-rimmed glasses up higher on her muzzle and spoke, “Here to pilfer more of my books from my shelves?”

Moondancer narrowed her eyes at the elderly mare, “I’ve never stolen any books, Ms. Tomes. I’ve only ever checked them out, like any responsible pony would. Why should I be singled out just because I take my education more seriously than more than half the other ponies that come here to read nothing but trashy, romance novels?”

“Well, if you brought them back in a more timely manner, you wouldn’t have to pay for all your exuberant late fees. Or have your checkout times significantly reduced.”

The elderly mare said this in a matter-of-factly tone, all while shuffling and stamping some documents she had been working on behind the counter.

Moondancer ground her teeth at the chiding remarks, “How do you expect anypony to study the material properly with how little time you give them to check these books out?!”

“Volume, Moondancer,” Musty Tomes chided again, “Two weeks is the standard amount of time given to everypony, Moondancer. An amount you’ve taken for granted more often than not, and that is why your allotted time had been cut to only one week.”

Moondancer could feel a blood vessel about ready to burst at that. She really used to love this library. She really did. She even had a rather fond relationship with the head librarian, despite how crabby she could be, along with a few of the ponies she once considered to be more than just passing acquaintances that also came to this place with her. Though after the Canterlot Crisis two years ago, they all turned their backs on her.

All for different, but equally, selfish reasons. Two had to move to a different city, as they no longer could live in the prestigious city, their families no longer able to afford it. Another was on track to be accepted into the Royal Archives’ staff in the castle, like Moondancer herself wanted to be, but turned it down to pursue her selfish dream of ‘getting out and exploring the world before it was too late’, whatever that meant. And of course, there was the one that upped and became a national heroine, princess, and liaison for Equestria’s relations with interdimensional monkeys.

Twilight Sparkle. That name was enough to get poor Moondancer’s blood pressure to spike dangerously. They used to be more than friends, until Twilight stabbed her in the back. She was willing to give her a second chance during the time she heard that the purple unicorn was back in the city two years ago. Moondancer waited and waited, but she never came around to apologize. She never even came to say a simple hello. No, she apparently was too busy ‘helping’ a wayward space monkey who did nothing but cause trouble for all of ponykind.

Now, no matter where Moondancer went, she was surrounded by incompetence and stupidity. Even here, in her once so-called second home, the Canterlot library. It, too, had been infested with ponies that were looking to do nothing but make her life more difficult.

Moondancer fought to keep her volume down even as she sniped back from the earlier remarks, “I have been a loyal patron to this library for years! I’ve always respected the system and the books I check out! Unlike some ponies that think that a stupid comic book belongs in the same place as Galineigho’s works.”

“Your opinion is noted, Moondancer,” Musty Tomes replied dryly. She put her signature on the last form in front of her and then shuffled it, and the rest of the papers she had been working on, to the side. She finally looked up to let Moondancer know that she had her undivided attention. Moondancer internally rolled her eyes, knowing that her complaints were inevitably going to go unheeded.

Musty Tomes readjusted her glasses once more before addressing Moondancer, “Now, are you here to return your latest binge readings, or to complain about your own personal gripes?”

Moondancer was about to snap back at the elderly mare, but the first question made her gasp in dreading realization. Her mind went to the books tucked away in her saddlebags. The same books that had met an unfortunate fate, much like herself.

“Ahem, Moondancer,” Musty Tomes said impatiently.

And just like that, the beige unicorn was back to being furious. With a hesitant flick of her magic, she procured the ruined set of tomes from her bags and placed them on the head librarian’s desk in a heap. Musty Tomes took one look at the ruined books and clicked her tongue.

“I’m sorry, Moondancer, but this is unacceptable.”

“It wasn’t my fault,” Moondancer growled.

“Was it now?” Moondancer heard the skepticism which only made her angrier. A passing pony yipped in surprise and gathered up his fallen exam papers from his saddlebags. He was certain that he had secured them more thoroughly. Maybe it had to do with that frayed looking edge they slipped out of, but that made no sense, as these bags were practically brand new. He shrugged as he chalked it up to a mere draft.

“No, it wasn’t,” Moondancer hissed, “I was on my way here when I was attacked by one of those bipedal monkeys the princesses thought was a good idea to summon back.”

Musty Tomes sighed in frustration, “Moondancer, no matter the circumstances, you know the rules of this library, better than anypony I suspect. Once you’ve checked out a book, it is upon you to take responsibility for whatever happens to it. No exceptions."

Moondancer sputtered in anger before slamming a hoof on top of the reception desk, “But, I just told you, it wasn’t my fault!”

“Volume, Moondancer,” Musty Tomes shot back.

She didn’t think the beige unicorn had hit the desk that hard, but nevertheless, it appeared enough to flip the books up top open and fan out the soggy, torn pages.

The elderly librarian closed the books again and set them aside, “Now, seeing as these books are damaged beyond repair, I will need you to cover their costs in full. Also, as this incident is not your first violation of library rules, I’m afraid I’m going to have to suspend your privileges for two months.”

At first, Moondancer was just too gobsmacked to speak. Some of those books were limited editions that she had been waiting on for weeks while stuck on a waiting list to read. She certainly didn’t have the bits to throw around frivolously. She barely made enough to cover her half of the rent as is. Despite all that though, what caused her ire to return with a burning vengeance was the ludicrous punishment of her suspension.

“You can’t do this to me!” Moondancer screamed, and continued on before Musty Tomes could interject, “No! This is completely unfair! I was the one who was attacked! Why do I have to keep paying for others’ mistakes?!” The irate pony punctuated each statement by striking the reception desk with her hooves. “All I’ve ever wanted was to have a steady career and a peaceful life, but you, and everypony else, just keep taking it all away from me! I’m sick of it!”

Musty Tomes tried to interrupt Moondancer’s tirade, but the beige mare kept funneling her frustrations into the unblockable words. Moondancer herself began to feel weird, like her whole body was on fire. Though it did not stop her from spitting out the unending stream of vitriol in the overwhelmed librarian’s face. Her head was pounding from the sheer volume of her voice as she cursed out everyone that she believed had wronged her in her life. Her legs felt numb, yet hypersensitive at the same time. She ignored the concerned shouts from the head librarian for her to 'stop'. She even tuned out the rising tide of panicked cries from the ponies around her as they made for any exit they could to escape the evolving chaos.

Blinded by her rage, Moondancer let out one final agonizing scream to vent her overflowing frustrations to the world. When she was done, the world around her was quiet, aside from her ragged breaths. She slowly came back to her senses, and when she did, what she saw shocked and confused her.

“Wh-what?”

It was all she could manage in her startled state. Where once there was the ambient buzz of ponies meandering throughout the library, there was now near silence. There was a dull commotion coming from outside, but Moondancer paid it no mind. Looking to her surroundings, paper of all manner, from books to parchment were strewn about, but not in a random fashion. They all seemed to radiate out from around her.

Panic started to settle in. Moondancer was unsure, but it seemed like she had experienced a magic flare-up while lashing out. Not uncommon for unicorns in high stress scenarios. At least, that’s what she thought at first. As she took a step back from the epicenter, a few of the pages at her hooves followed. Not in a way like it was caused by the shifting of air from her movements, but rather as if the stray pieces of paper had a mind of their own.

“What in Tartarus?!” Moondancer gasped.

She tried to kick the pieces away, but they always floated lazily back toward her. One such piece made contact with her hoof, and she cried out at a weird sensation it gave her. She thought it gave her a papercut, but when she looked, she was completely fine.

She looked up and gasped again, “How-...Wait, what the-?!”

Embedded in the reception desk was that piece of paper she flicked away. Not only that, but more pieces of paper were also embedded in the desk and the wall behind it. Most, if not all, were folded into geometric shapes that she was very familiar with from her studies into various magics.

Moondancer looked down at her hooves upon feeling that weird sensation again. Pieces of paper floated around them, folding into more geometric shapes which would sometimes float into and out of her body. Lifting one of her hooves up to examine the phenomenon, she found that it was not caused by some magic she was using. Her horn was unlit, and the feeling of the paper moving about her was as if they were a part of her. Being a quick study, she found that she could manipulate the pieces of paper to her desires. Folding and unfolding them with a mere thought and simple gesture.

“I’m...one of those conduits.”

She had read the news, studied the publications on the subject, so there was no mistaking what she was going through. At first, Moondancer thought she should be scared, perhaps even panicked, but the more she thought about it, the more a welling sense of pride began to surface.

Moondancer clicked her tongue and giggled to herself, "And they said conduits were nothing but dangerous sociopaths. Obviously, they meant the ones who have no self control, unlike me." Moondancer emphasized her statement by fanning a display of folded paper in front of her with a hoof. "Shoot, I’m going to be late for my shift… You know what, no! I have better things to do than be harassed by that chauvinist asshole at work all day. In fact, I’m going to go give that poor excuse for a stallion a piece of my mind.”

With the finality of that statement, Moondancer gathered up her things and trotted swiftly for the main entrance, floating pieces of geometrically folded paper following in her wake the entire way.

“Hmm... why stop with that one stallion?” Moondancer continued to talk to herself, “Maybe I should give that monkey a piece of my mind as well. It’s his fault this all happened to begin with. I’d have to find him though, but he should be at the princesses’ castle. Oh well. One thing at a time, I suppose.”

The glass doors swung closed behind the newly delighted mare, leaving the library in a state of complete disarray and near silence. However, if Moondancer had paid just a little more attention, she would have noticed something amiss. Beyond the reception desk, amid the cascade of sharpened paper embedded into the environment was a patch devoid of any of the projectiles, a vaguely equine shaped patch.

For behind the desk laid an elderly mare, by the name of Musty Tomes, desperately clinging to what little life she had in a growing pool of her own blood after being peppered with numerous sharply folded paper. She tried to cry out for help, but the shock from all the pain and blood loss made her voice hitch into the tiniest of squeaks at best. The world was growing colder and dimmer with every second she laid there. Scared and alone; those were the last feelings she had before the inky blackness around her vision consumed her.