It was early in the morning when I arrived in Mombassa. So early, in fact, the sun hadn't had the chance to rise yet, though that didn't stop the local merchants. They gathered close to the tracks yelling in their native tongue for someone to buy their wares. At the moment a couple of young ladies were trying to sell me fruit and would have kept pestering me, if not for someone calling my name. " Colonel Armor! Colonel Armor!" A man came up to me, calling my name and helping me get rid of the persistent young women. " Colonel Armor, yes?"

I took his hand and shook it. " I'm Colonel Armor."

" Welcome to Zebraza, sir, and good morning." He gave me a wide smile. He was a bit shorter than me and had a mustache that was poorly trimmed. " Flash Sentry. I am to assist you at Tsavo. But Fancy Pants will have told you that, surely."

" No, actually. He did give me his monster speech." I told him with a small chuckle.

" That. Oh, I know Fancy seems dreadful, but once you truly get to know the man, he's much worse." We shared a laugh at the small joke he made. " And I'm one of his defenders. Forget him for now. Follow me, sir." He led me towards the front of the train. " It's your first trip to Zebraca, yes? Good, because I've reserved the best seats on the train." We made it to the very front of the train where there was a two-man bench nailed to it.

We put my luggage underneath the bench, and we took our seats just as the train whistled, signaling its departure. A few minutes passed and the train started chugging its way forward.

A couple of hours had passed and the sun was coming up over the horizon. With the light, I was able to see much of the landscape, and it was beautiful. We saw all kinds of animals race alongside the train, and Flash would often point out different things of interest. We came across a small herd of giraffes, running in the opposite direction. " They're amazing, aren't they?"

This was a good opportunity to share my knowledge of Zebraca. " You know the most amazing thing about them? They sleep only five minutes a day."

The train kept going and soon we came across a pack of hyenas. " Don't like them much." Flash made a point to sneer at them as they ate some poor animal.

" The females are bigger. Only animals here like that. Have to be, or they wouldn't survive because the males eat the young." As I was watching them, I could feel the glare that Sentry was giving me.

We rode by a small river where a thunder of hippos was lazing about. " Anything special about them?"

" Well, it's just that they fart through their mouths." This got Flash to laugh while looking at them. " I bet they don't kiss very much."

" I've lived in Zebraca for a year, and I don't know what you know. How long have you been here?"

I pulled out the pocket watch, Cadence had given to me for our third anniversary and looked at the time. " Just about twenty-four hours. But I've been longing for this all my life." We rode the train through the rest of the day, and when it was night, we retired to a small cot each in the passenger car.

The next day, we arrived at the campsite where the bridge was to be built. All around me, there were workers toiling away at the rails, burning the brush away, or gathering materials needed for the project. " Welcome to Tsavo." The train pulled up to the station where we disembarked. As I was walking with Flash, there was a Zebracan woman giving orders to the workers in their native tongue. " Zecora!" Flash had yelled over to her. " Zecora's camp liaison, absolutely indispensable. She's the only one here everyone trusts." He told me as we approached her. She wore a brown cloak and wore gold rings around her neck and ears. She carried with her, a gnarled staff she used when talking to the workers.

" Does she speak Equestrian?"

" And very poor Prench." She came over and waited for instruction.

" Zecora, Colonel Shining Armor." Flash introduced me to Zecora.

" The bridge builder." She took my hand and shook it. " We've been getting ready for you."

" Good. I'd like to see the bridge site."

" I've got some medical supplies to deliver. Come along to the hospital when you're done." Flash went back to the train to get said medical supplies.

" I'll bring him, Flash." Zecora led me along the track, heading towards the river while directing others along the way.

" Where are you from, Zecora?"

She went and pointed towards her left. " That way, beyond those mountains." She kept walking.

" I'm from..." I looked up in the sky and judging where east and west were, pointed to where I thought Canterlot would be." over there." We kept walking down the track while I looked at all the work that was being done. A couple of times, I would catch a worker giving the other workers a dirty look, Usually a Zebracan leering at the Indians. " Everything seems to be under control."

" Thank you. If it is, it's a miracle."

This caught my attention. " Why is that?"

" The truth is, the workers don't like each other ar all. Obviously, the Zebracans hate the Indians, but the Indians also hate other Indians." She pointed over to a group of Indians that looked to be Hindu. " The Hindus believe cows are sacred, while the Muslims eat the cows." She then pointed over to the other group of Indians, showing that they are Muslim.

" Do you eat a cow?" It would be funny to know the camp liaison, makes things worse for her.

" Of course." We walked between a small herd of cows as we went on our way.

" I've worked with both Hindi and Muslim. Perhaps I can help."

" You can certainly try. It won't work. Nothing works here. Tsavo is the worst place in the world." We passed by the blacksmiths forge where they were toiling away with making the parts for the bridge. After a few more feet, we made it to where the bridge would begin. Many workers were down on the river banks clearing away the brush and doing their best to make the ground level. " Advance camp is across there." Zecora pointed across the river, where the other set of track would be connected by the bridge.

" How many workers?"

" Three-thousand men laying track. Even though your bridge is not yet built, each day they move two miles further away." We both went down the hill a little to get a better inspection of the worker's progress. " Did it look like this in your mind?"

" No." I took off my hat and wiped my brow. " This is more difficult. It should be difficult. What better job in all the world than to build a bridge? Bring land over water. Bring worlds together." I took a long look at the bridge site before I decided to head up and find the hospital.

Author's Note

Alright, another chapter done and on the same day. That makes me feel good. Anyway, I hope you're liking the story so far, and if this sort of thing gets more popular. I'll do other movie crossovers.

Clip.