Author's Note

Ok so I might be redoing some of the dialogue from the show except maybe redoing key parts to help the Remnants fit in, mainly to try to aid this little world I'm trying to build so if something doesn't match up from the show it's not the end of the world. I should also note that the player character in remnant from the ashes simply does not exist here so there we go!

The road less traveled

It's time's like this where I curse my sheer and utter lack of forethought because after I try to be cool and impress some mares... Well that was the longest minute of my life. Filled with sweet nothingness as the pin-prick eyed mares, every single one of them, stare at me some with fear and a couple with anger. As this silence lingers on I find myself being extremely thankful for the hood on my coat hiding my eyes, my near useless mini gas mask obscuring my fangs and the dark of the forest obscuring my chitin covered hide, they would escalate this already awkward situation.

Trying again in all my smartness "You ladies come here often?" my voice now thick with hesitance and caution as I see the cyan one reaffirm her aggressive stance, wings never relaxing, still fully flared.

I'm was about to make the situation worse by commenting on the not-so-lovely atmosphere but am silenced by a strong tug, knowing these two well enough I safely assume that Scrapper pulled me back, he was always the voice of reason in our little terrific trio.

"You'll have to excuse my travel partner fine mares, he's an idiot" Well he isn't wrong... "But since he decided to make contact I'll ask you if those wooden creatures have appeared recently or if they have been here a while" He asks them, his voice stoic as he regards them and I'm sure his face would have been too if it wasn't covered by the welders mask dinner bowl combo helmet.

The mares relax, if only a little, at his firm and somewhat disarming tone, but still remain tense at what they witnessed only minutes before.

"And why should we tell you?!? Are you some kind of spy?!?" the cyan mare accuses. The only thought I commit to that statement is what?

"I assure you that we only came to-" He tries to explain but is interrupted by her again, god even I know when to let the colt speak.

"What if you were sent by Nightmare Moon to stop us from getting the elements of harmony? Or maybe you were trying to capture us! Or-" She tries to ramble on about what we could be doing in this dark foreboding forest but Scrapper had had enough. It's hard to get him angry but rub him the wrong way and he loses it quick. I learned that the hard way, my flank still aches every now and again.

"SHUT UP YOU STUPID RAINBOW-MANED WHORSE. IF WE WERE HERE TO STOP YOU GETTING YOUR BLOODY ELEMENTS WE WOULD HAVE LET THE ROOT DO IT FOR US" He tore off his helmet, revealing his black mane on top of his grey coat, launched forward and grabbed her muzzle and hauled her over to my chest, or more accurately, the axe taking up residence in it. "Look at it." The Pegasus turned to look from him to my +1 but immediately averted her gaze. This was getting very uncomfy. "Look. At. It." He commands in a harsh tone and she does so, albeit her face paling a bit.

"If my friend Hunter here was a regular pony he wouldn't have survived that so tell me. Little mare. What would of happened if we didn't show up" She opted to remain silent. An unwise choice in the presence of the now livid Scrapper. I'd pray for her safety but I'm a bit busy shitting bricks myself.

"You know, we jumped into action to protect you lot from those Root. But you know how we handled them so easily?" He asked nopony in particular. "We have to kill dozens of them almost daily I can tell you something. Those are among the weakest Root we've seen and yet they're more than capable of killing us if we aren't paying attention. So. Little mare. What do you think would have happened if we didn't kill them before they got to you? Tell me. Now." His voice was so calm yet so furious, so gentle yet so rough. It sent chills down my spine and I wasn't even on the receiving end of it.

Now trembling she tries to answer "W-w-we w-would have-" but she never finished as X snapped out his trance.

"Scrapper that's enough!" X said while galloping over to him. Scrapper turns toward him just in time to catch a glimpse of X as he gets a sweet haymaker to the jaw. Damn. Now I pride myself on being bold and and facing everything with a smile but I don't think I'd EVER have the stones to do that.

Now clutching his aching jaw, Scrapper looked to X with a growing look of shame on his face as realization struck him.

"I lost it again didn't I?" He asks but before anypony could open their mouth to respond, he was already gone.

Deciding to deal with him later X turns to the mares "Now look we obviously aren't the nicest bunch but if there's more Root out there then I'd like to offer my assistance as an escort to your destination, actually, sorry ladies but we will be with you. While you may be able to handle yourselves the Root are something else entirely. This is non-negotiable as I now see you as my responsibility and you will leave this forest in one piece" He states with a tone of finality.

Now this has a range of reactions from the yellow ones further cowering to the pink ones ever growing smile and the cyan one still looking crestfallen from Scrapper's little rant to the orange ones ever squinted eyes.

"Despite my reservations about this... You three at least look like you know what you're talking about" the purple one agreed. More than a little confused from Scrappers extreme and sudden mood shift.

After a few more minutes of bumbling around I painfully dig the axe out of my chest and we get moving, feels strange being in one spot for that long, especially without shooting shit. Scrapper joins us after X went to check on him and reattaching his helmet to his side. His return was met with a couple jolts as I chuckled at their reaction.

Now as we're trotting in total silence the cyan one looks really... upset. As much as she probably deserves it for something or other, I slow down from the middle of the pack and turn my head to make sure I don't bump into anypony. I spot that cyan mare at the back of the pack with Scrapper being just as slow. Being on the receiving end of Scrapper before, I can relate the feeling of shitiness she is no doubt feeling right now. Scrapper spots me and gives a sad yet knowing smile and quickly speeds up to take my previous place. All my gear chunking along. I take up space next to her, maybe a bit too close, and open my gob.

"I'm not good at these kinda talks but I know how you feel. Trust me I've taken enough of Scrap to know who he is by now." She gives me a sad look. At least it's better than looking at the ground, PROGRESS, I hope "He does everything for a reason, he probably saw your behavior as something that could bring the rest of us in harms way or something. I'm not him nor am I a mind reader but I know a fair bit about the colt behind the armor. Like how he cuddles a small frayed teddy bear when he sleeps or nuzzles it when he thinks nopony's around" I speak that last part a whisper to preserve some of his dignity and get a chuckle for my reveal. "He's not a bad colt when you get to know him but when you rub him the wrong way, what you saw, is a whole different animal. What I'm saying is, he cares too much. But personally I wouldn't want him any other way" I finish. She looks a bit better, brighter with a small smile on her muzzle, no doubt about his little bear 'Sir Fuzzball' which I'm still struggling to not laugh about to this day.

"Hey thanks for coming to talk to me and sorry calling you guys spies. I just didn't want anything happening to my new friends and those wood things really put me on edge" She explains with me nodding along.

"Yeah that'll do it. Those things you saw, we call them devils, only because of the horns. They're actually the second easiest root to deal with but the only problem with them is 'If they're is one, there's more' that's what commander Ford said to me though. I'm Hunter by the way" I find conversation come easy around her. She just gives me this vibe I guess.

"Rainbow Dash and you seriously call them devils? Well I guess the horns make sense but they just look like some kinda glowing, living weeds" She said back to me seemingly just as easily but much more cheerful.

"We do and let me tell you they are weeds-" I try to make a joke about how I'm the weed killer but was cut off by-

"MANTICORE!" Shouts the purple pony. The three remnants of the group spring to action, like X rolling from the front back to us to give himself aiming room but we quickly spy the yellow pony trying to stop them fighting, we look at each other and think the same thing 'this is her battle' as the white one jumps at the manticore and bucks it in the face.

"Take that you ruffian!" She taunts in a high society voice that I already dislike. The manticore responds with, surprisingly not a claw or bite to the face, but a roar that knocks her curly mane out of whack. I thought she was fine but she turns and runs away screaming about her hair. She one of those then. Ohhh boy.

With me distracted the manticore decides to smack me with it's large paw, sending me easily 10 metres before I even hit the ground, before I smash into a stray tree. Damn trees they should grow in a different place if they're gonna end up in MY way.

Rainbow Dash sees this and charges the manticore as the orange pony gets flung off it's back. Rainbow Dash misses her 'all yours partner' and quickly starts creating a mini tornado around just the manticore. She's fast is all I think before passing out.

I'm awoken by a splash of water being thrown into my face, mainly from it going straight through the mask and up my nostrils. One coughing fit later I look around me and see I'm the center of attention. They all look at me differently. From my team's look of disappointment, or more so a disappointed look in the fact I didn't dodge, the purple's look of thought or what I believe is a thinking face, orange's look of suspicion, highty tighty whitey's look of disgust while looking at our clothes and Scrapper's armor, pink's and yellow's look of concern and Rainbow's clear worry.

"Hi" I greet stupidly which gets a sigh of relief from most present.

"I think he somehow got dumber from that, didn't think you could get that low of an IQ" He jests which earns a laugh from all but Dash and I. Me from giving him a raised brow but Dash was a bit busy helping me up so she just gives him a sour look.

With that, we continue on our trek to wherever they're going we learn of orange's, now known as Applejack or AJ, saving purple, also now known as Twilight Sparkle, from definitely dying by way of falling off cliff. I haven't caught the pink ones name because she has yet to stop talking, and she's talking so fast it's basically white noise, I haven't caught a word of it. The yellow one has yet to talk to us, she's really jumpy, like REALLY jumpy. This one time I stepped on a twig, by stepped I mean reared up and crushed because it was thick, she screamed and darted underneath AJ. Rainbow, still next to me, just gave me a smirk and raised eyebrow.

'Jeez how far are these mares going?' I thought to myself as the path got darker, but remained clear for me due to changelings naturally living in dark places, this remains true in Ward 13 I love my dark corner.
The fondness for my corner is short lived as something I am not fond of immediately covers my hooves, and fills holes in said hooves. 'That isn't gonna be fun to wash out at all' I think more than just a bit sourly.

“Ugh, my eyes need a break from this icky muck” Rarity declared.

“That ancient ruin could be right in front of our faces and wouldn’t even know it” Twilight shouted out in frustration.

A ruin eh? These bunch don't seem like the tomb raiding sort... Wait didn't Rainbow mention something about 'The Helements' or something?

“Pardon me, I didn’t see you there” Rarity apologized after unknowingly walking into X at the front, who had slowed down to avoid bumping into anything, knowing about my night vision yet also knowing I wouldn't warn him. Clever colt.

“Right over here I think there’s… Guh.” Rainbow called out and was bumped into by Pinkie Pie who somehow ended up going the wrong way.

“Oh wait. Ah think Ah stepped in somethin’.” Applejack said as she paused in place and held up a mud-covered hoof. 'Huh first time she's spoke up since we appeared' I thought.

“Ahh!” Fluttershy suddenly screamed, startling all of them.

“What? It’s just mud?” She commented as she stopped in place as a tree loomed over her. She shouted in alarm and fled to land close by Fluttershy.

Me and the Boys ripped out our guns, not because of the trees but because of a certain group of things appearing from the ground which isn't all that different from the usual considering what they are.

Hollows.
At least 11 so far but they normally live in groups of, much bigger.

"RUN!" X roars as he opens fire. The sound of said gunfire startling them into running deeper into the looming yet unmoving trees. 'They'll be fine' is my last thought as I let all higher thinking go, and open fire.

Scrapper having a pump action/lever-on-top-of-his-pipe action just storms into the group of now 16 Hollows. 'Wait didn't we already kill some of those?' The corpses confirm my thoughts but the now 18 Hollows obviously don't care. So after reloading another drum into my typewriter I let my mind wander as I gun down a few more Hollows, don't need to think about it, Hollow's are the weakest Root there is. I think of the mares, mainly Dash and her pretty mane but I can't help but think of all of them and how much more comfortable they are with us with the exception of yellow. Even AJ is less suspicious of us, still is though, and den dere be pink. The only thing I ever caught from her was 'Bestest best funnerific party ever' before promptly losing her again.

My train of thought is wrecked however by a lance of sharp pain going through my left foreleg. Looking to my trusty appendage I find an 'arrow' poking though where one of my holes definitely aren't. That butchery of the fine art of archery can only be left behind by only one type of thing.

A Sapper.
Quickly digging it out of my hoof and rolling away, it explodes in it's usual big puff of pink dust. One thing I learned very early on. Don't underestimate the danger this cloud of dust presents. It can hide other Root from you, and if you breathe it in it burns your lungs, slowly damaging them. Worst case scenario with it though is afflicting you with Root Rot, which causes short bouts of painfully violent coughing, enough time to take a nasty hit from just about anything.

With the risks of this unassuming dust cloud in mind I unload what I can into the Sapper but it, infuriatingly, teleports away, as they always do.

"Careful. Sapper around" I call to my team. Without making sure they heard I assist in clearing the rest of the Hollows.

I take note of X seeing something and snapping his rifle at it before using his trained aim to shoot five round into what I would think is a skull.

"Sapper down" X calls out, relief laced thoroughly in his voice.

"Last Hollow's splinters" Scrapper says only adding to the relief I now feel.

"Lets go get the mares" X declares and we quickly fall in behind him before he pauses and slowly turns around, with a sheepish smile on his muzzle.

"They went this way" I state whilst stepping forward leading him through the now normal looking trees.

As we trot along the sound of laughter quickly fills our ears and we start following it. About 10 seconds later we find them all down on their backs, laughing up a storm. We share a look and let them calm down on their own. Which took a little too long for my liking, they spot us. X, now smiling, simply jerks his head in the direction we just came. Getting the idea they all get up and start trotting along, giggling occasionally, with the pink one taking the lead, us remnants bringing up the rear.

After a while and a lot of giggling later we come across a raging river, now as us remnants are transfixed on the sheer fact they're is ACTUAL NATURAL WATER here, the mares having found a grieving and sobbing serpent. Me having an irrational fear of anything snake-like quickly excuse myself under the guise of 'I think I heard something' flimsy? Yes. Overused? Probably. I just had to get away from that thing.

'I should probably go back' I think but the though of seeing that thing again makes me quickly drop the idea. 'They'll be fine' I assure myself yet I can't help but worry. A large amount of water movement catches my attention and chance a peek out of the bush. I see only my two partners by the now calm water so I approach.

"Uhh... What did I miss?" I ask almost hesitantly.

"The serpent swallowed them and swam away before we could do anything. I'm sorry" X explains, both him and Scrap wearing grim looks.

"WHAT?!?" I ask actually horrified that they-

"HAHAHAHA!!" They break out laughing loud enough to have me pin my ears. Sonsabitches.

"Na something happened to his mustache, Rarity fixed it, he helped them across, they went ahead and we called that we'd wait for you" X summarized for me still chuckling.

"Yeah right... You got me. Lets just get to those damn mares already" I state fed up at the fact that he actually got me that badly. I'm now extremely glad that the hood covers my eyes lest they see just how real my reaction was. They heard the relief and sadness in my voice though.

"You okay? You sounded genuinely upset they were apparently eaten..." X asks me. Looking slightly regretful that he upset one of his squad mates with what he thought would be a harmless joke.

"Well... I just feel strangely close to them even though we've only known them for so little" I explain. "I mean I like Rainbow quite a bit, we just click you know?"

"This isn't about the love eating is it, being a changeling and all?" He asks deadpanned. I can understand where he's coming from but love has many forms, I already get enough from both of them from our shared Brotherhood.

"No! A little hurt you'd think that but I just feel like we were kinda... meant to come here and meet them because if that World Stone show'd up. Where's the Remnant that activated it and why haven't our Dragon Hearts alerted us of more coming through?" A valid point I believe and by the looks they're giving me, something they're wondering themselves. Our Dragon Hearts would synchronize, with a soft hum, so we could heal each other but they've been completely silent. "You guys feel the same as I do about them huh?" Receiving confirmatory grunts I continued "We made quick friends eh? And we don't remember anything about ourselves too. Being Remnant is all we know now" I say solemnly with them agreeing.

Suddenly worried about my Dragon Heart I quickly reach over my wither, into my bag, and pull out my beloved glowing rock. Finding it to be glowing strongly with it's mysterious power. Good. A Dragon Heart with no more 'charges' has no glow, appearing as a dull red, and therefore useless until recharged at the next World Stone making any injuries, without the use of a bloodwart or healing mod, permanent because we'd definitely find a World Stone before they even start naturally healing.

Catching onto what I was checking they pull their own out finding very much the same thing. We'd have all died without our Dragon Hearts long ago, these things are priceless and entirely necessary in the world outside the Ward. Hell we have died a few times, but not all of us thankfully. The World Stones do many things but by far the most useful is bringing the dead back. As long as one of us lives and makes it to a Stone we'd all be brought back. Commander Ford experimented with the World Stones long before any of us found one and ended up in the Ward, but not in the traditional sense. She discovered that they can only support teams of three Remnant's at a time before they begin being inconsistent like not healing wounds or not refilling ammo but there was a couple times when a Remnant wasn't revived and was lost. The experiments stopped immediately after.

After a quick inventory check and being satisfied at what we had left we started galloping in the direction the mares went.

We found them waiting at a cut down rope bridge, or at least five of them. I was about to ask where Rainbow was but she came from the other side that was obscured with fog as soon as the bridge was fixed in position and stated 'she'd never leave her friends hanging.

We greeted them but after seeing the state of the bridge and knowing the sheer wait of our gear, we jokingly told them in ye olde speech that we will have to go around while subtly calling Scrapper fat, despite him being more muscular than everypony present, that surprisingly earned a disappointed look from all of them with the exception of Twilight, did they feel the same as us?

So we waved and went around, looking at the chasm it's long, like really long. With a mental sigh I begin forward, along the chasm being quickly followed by the other two. We came to an unspoken agreement long ago about who leads when. Me when we're navigating, Scrapper when we're in hostile areas and X for just about everything else. We've only broken a few times but they've only ended poorly, like when I first greeted the mares immediately after a fight. Not my smartest move.

So after a solid ten minute trot, which quickly turned into a canter, we arrived at our destination only roughly fifty metres from our original location.

Upon our arrival we're greeted with a hug by a hyper pink blur, she is also quite fast, quickly followed by the rest. Rainbow hugs me a bit tighter than the others and the same goes with Scrapper and AJ but I don't mind it, we talked about this.

Confused for a second I ask "Where's Twilight?" and am answered, very surprisingly, by Fluttershy. Having been told her name by X when I was bumbling in the bushes at the river, same as Rarity and Pinkie Pie. "She's in the castle doing a spell. Don't go in there and break her concentration. That is... if you don't mind..." She adds once again shy. 'cute' I think to myself.

We sit down on our haunches in the dirt and converse. This just feels nice and not the sheer amount of friendship love I'm absorbing but the ability to be treated normally, it's so alien.

"Yah know Ah've been meanin' ta ask but what are those thangs you colts're carrying around? Ah've seen you's use them when fightin' but just... What are they?" AJ asks in a thick country accent. They all look to me expectantly and Iook to X trying to mentally ask for an affirmative. He seems to understand and gives a quick nod. They see this and look confused for a second before seeing me take my typewriter off my backpack and repeating pistol off my right flank.

With a sigh I start "This is a gun. More specifically this is the Chicago Typewriter, the big one, and the repeater pistol, the little one, the small one is given to all Remnants as it is a solid weapon, if a bit weak" I try to continue but am interrupted by Rainbow who scooted a bit closer to me.
The Typewriter
The Repeating Pistol

"What's a gun?" She asks, irritating me a bit. I like her but I don't like getting interrupted especially if I was asked a question.

"Please ask questions after but a gun is a weapon that can fire small pieces of metal at VERY high speeds. Designed to, as you saw, kill" That word rattles them a bit, Fluttershy squeaks, but they remain quiet and listen in again.

"You haven't seen the repeater pistol in action but it's actually our main weapon. Now we categorize weapons in three ways, Hoof gun: being small and easily stored on-pony, Long gun: Being larger and having, usually, a harder punch than Hoof guns and melee: Like swords and stuff. Hoof guns, like the repeating pistol are used when simply traveling or when there is no large threat. Long guns are used when they are needed due to not being able to carry much ammo for it, they're used when there is a large threat, multiple threats or when something needs to be protected, like you mares. Melee is used when ammo is low, there is only one threat, often small, or using ranged weapons isn't very effective" I explain in length. "Now I know I'm not smart but I know this off by heart because if you want to survive where we come from. This knowledge is a requirement" I add after a moment of thought.

"So wait when Scrapper said you have to kill dozens those 'Root' almost daily... Then.. How long have you been fighting them?" Rainbow asks me. I give her a grave look. Both of my partners share my look but are giving them all the 'thousand yard stare' so it's up to me.

"Three long hard years. Let me tell you, it hasn't been fun" I respond numbly. That gets a shocked look and gasp from all of them. Pinkie's mane even... deflates? "But we do it because we have to. If we don't... Then ponies will starve, ponies will die. We scavenge food from a ruined city almost every day. We get dirty water to purify from swamps" I decide not to mention that the swamp I'm talking about is actually on a different world. "We scour entire city blocks for medicine to heal the sick and we do it because we have to. Because very few ponies are willing to go into a city riddled with root" I also decide to mention what Remnants are and only those 'chosen' by the World Stone can even go outside because of the huge actual Roots that blocked the only door.

They quickly catch what I was saying and give all three of us a sympathetic look with a reassuring smile. It warms my heart to know they care about us even though we met a little under an hour ago.

"Well it's good to know that some fine young colts are stepping up for the unfortunate few that cannot" Rarity states giving Scrapper a pat on the back then giving a little grimace at the state of his armor but quickly hides it like before. I catch onto this yet again and decide to give voice to a nagging in the back of my head.

"What's wrong with his armor?" I ask her while raising a brow. My question surprises her a little but she corrects her self and responds.

"Well it doesn't do to have such heroes to be toting around in... ugh... whatever it is you're wearing" She says in disgust. I really didn't like that but due to the situation of our new found friendship I refrain from letting anger drive my response. But I do let spill on our real situation back home.

"Didn't you catch onto why I said 'scavenge'? Our wo- city as we knew it is gone. It has been for three and a half years now and it isn't coming back. It has to work not look pretty" I explain barely holding back a frown but then she tries to salvage the situation in the worst way possible. I admit she didn't know but... I couldn't hold it back any longer after her 'salvage attempt'.

"But darling home isn't a place, it's the ponies. Why I'd say you could be homeless and have a home as long as family is with you" She quickly responds. But as I said, she only made me angry.

"IT IS GONE!!! THE BUILDINGS ARE THERE BUT FAMILY? I DON'T KNOW A SINGLE PONY WHO HAS ANY FAMILY LEFT! There is maybe, MAYBE twenty ponies left in that entire place. but you know the worst part? Remnants don't remember. ANYTHING of who we used to be. A side effect of becoming what... WHO we are. That's where we get our name. We're a 'Remnant' of the pony that decided they could help. Home is gone..." I finished, sounding depressed. I sure as shit felt like it. Knowing my outburst was wrong I covered my face in my hooves, not wanting to see her reaction. I don't like her attitude but she's still a friend.

While I'm feeling sorry for myself I feel a hoof fall onto my wither. Looking up I see it's Rainbow, a bit teary eyed. She soon decides her reassuring hoof isn't enough and goes in for a 'healing hug' and that's what does it. I hug her back as those three years of grief, of not knowing who I was anymore made themselves known. I cried. For the first time in any memory I ever had. I look over Rainbow's wither and see X and Scrapper barely holding themselves back, having face the same dilemma as I, whilst also receiving hugs of their own. AJ to Scrapper and Pinkie to X. This lasts for a good five minutes before all the tears have dried up. I look to Rainbow and see her giving me a supportive smile so I give her a smile of my own before going in for one last hug before reluctantly separating.

I look over my new friends and notice all of them have tear stains of varying degrees. Us Remnants having surprisingly fared the best. The worst was Pinkie, that actually makes sense considering anytime she drove conversation she kept it active and energetic, but most importantly, Happy.

From the waterworks casual conversation picked up going from our 'welcome to Ponyville' party, 'Ponyville?' I thought, to my crippling fear of snakes, which got a round of giggles. 'I hate you X' I thought bitterly.

It was going well, Pinkies mane reflated at some point, up until a scream of surprise and loud bang sounded from the ruins. Getting up we all galloped inside. We found nothing, this was a jarring situation until I spotted a flash at the top of a tower.

"There!" I called out to everypony.

We were all about to try to make our way there through a door at the end of the room until the sound of dirt being breached caught my sharp ears.

I look to my team and put my hoof on my pistol and they quickly get the silent message. 'Root'

"Go help her, we have company!" X calls to the mares, AJ and Rainbow say they're going to help but I quickly shoot them down.

"Sorry girls but you won't be able to handle them. I don't doubt your abilities in combat but let us do what we're meant to. Go help Twilight. She'll need you a lot more than we will" I say leaving no room for argument by shoving all of them, it was quite easy none of them were ready for it, shut the door to the room we're in and pull down a nearby barely standing statue of an alicorn to keep it shut and seal the deal. The banging on the door was expected but not how quickly it left, it didn't concern me what was now walking through the doors did though.

A root Hulk.
'Here we go' I thought. It did worry me when I saw numerous Devils and Hollows follow it in though. Not wanting to give them a chance to reach the mares I stood broadly, removed my hood to give me clarity of vision and tore my Typewriter off my back. The others quickly following and widening the gap between the three of us as to not interrupt each other.

"The Hulk is mine, you guys get everything else" My personnel vendetta against them shining brightly through my harsh tone. I get grunts of acknowledgement and no protests. Good.

The Hulk decides it wants Scrapper though and begins toward him but turns it's attention to me after I address it by way of bullets. I only use a few knowing the Typewriter isn't that great at that range. I want to kill it not annoy it.

After it sees me as the one that shot it, it drags it's huge sharp piece of metal behind it as it sprints full tilt at me, nothing following it. Even better, it's all I wanted and now I can give it my full attention.

Knowing it can't understand me I don't waste breath with taunts I 'politely' wait for it to reach me and when it brings it's massive sword forward by way of uppercut quickly roll by it's right shoulder, narrowly missing the blade on it's path, and begin just unloading into it's back. Even when it turns around, lengthening it's left swordless arm while doing so, it swings it's left arm at me. I respond by ducking under it while backing up, it being so huge makes the feat near effortless. As I come back up i take aim once more and begin shooting into it's body and broad shoulders, avoiding the face due to the thick metal plate there. As it just recovers from it's massive swing my typewriter clicks empty, I reach back for another drum but don't find one. 'Damn it' I thought. Throwing it aside I rear up and pull out my sidearm and remain on my hind legs with the aid of my insectoid wings.

After pulling out my sidearm I notice the Hulk winding up a horizontal swing. Knowing that I don't have enough time to duck under it or roll ,aided by the buzzing of my wings, I jump over the swing which was quite impressive if I do say so myself. During this jump I hear a feint 'magic!' in the background but as my focus is elsewhere, it's largely ignored. After I land from the mighty leap I quickly fire all 15 rounds into the Hulk and it stumbles backwards. Not really wanting to reload, I pull my scrap sword off my bag and charge the Hulk. In a last ditch effort to end me it bring it's sword up and brings it down. Thankfully I see this through my bloodlust and dodge at the last second, while I did dodge, not all of me made it through. The white hot pain going through my left hindleg is almost unbearable. While in this pain I still manage to focus enough and wind up a swing of my own, using the rage I feel towards Hulks and using the pain to make the fire of hatred burn hotter I swing with all my might and catch it in the middle of the chest. Due to the damage it sustained already this swing ends the Hulk but due to it being made out of wood it brings my sword with it as it falls backwards. Leaving me defenseless.

It doesn't matter though, everything else is being put down by X and Scrapper. A flood of pain brings my attention to what remains of my hoof. As I stare at my now lack of hoof I assess how much of it I have left. Straight through the cannon-bone. Ye-ouch. I crawl around the ground, not wanting to test my three hooved balance just yet, as I collect what I threw aside.

As my luck would have it though X sees this and pokes fun.

"*Gasp* Honey look! Baby's crawling around now!" He exclaims with a look of pure joy on his face. Scrapper looks confused for a second before seeing what he was talking about. I hoped his level-headed attitude would help me here. I was wrong.

"Atta' boy!" He exclaims with just as much joy but his face is obscured by his helmet but I'd bet he's sharing X's shit eating grin.

"Goo goo ga ga motherfuckers" I declare in a baby voice. While picking up my severed hoof.

We share a chuckle at this but it ends abruptly as the door moves once again but doesn't budge, we look at it but don't concern ourselves with it. That is until the rubble is enveloped in a yellow almost golden aura. I would've panic'd but I already pulled up and re-affixed my hood and thought it could be was twilight or Rarity since I don't know the color of either of their aura's.

I certainly didn't expect a huge pure white mare with a flowing rainbow mane with a smaller dark blue mare with a stark blue mane open the door with the mares from before with them.

We stare at each other for a while, the girls behind them noticing us and starting towards us but is stopped but the tall white one as she surveys the damage and death we've caused.

She look kinda angry when she talks "What have you done?" she spat at us. A degree of venom in her voice. This is new.

Not knowing how to respond for once X just gives her an "Uhhhh..."

She obviously didn't like that answer as she immediately covers us in her magic and yanks us forward with yelps of surprise from each of us.

"I should have you thrown in the dungeons for ending all these lives you murderers!" She spat at us. Clearly angry and the other new mare looks almost as angry. Until she a look of recognition goes across her features. 'Wait Have us thrown in the dungeons? So she must hold some power in this world, how much is the new question.

"WAIT SISTER! Those things are evil!" She tries to tell her apparent sister. She took it the wrong way though.

"Yes I know Lulu these... things... are evil indeed. Tartarus is far more fitting..." She responds with glee. The mares we know all gasp at this with barely suppressed tears. She was about to send us to this 'Tartarus' but was interrupted by her sister. Rather Physically too.

"No sister! Not them the things they... Ugh... Killed" She chokes up on the last word. Yeah evidently this place isn't used to this level of death, let alone the scale of what they see before them. Well hey at least the full body crash from her sister broke her concentration and we drop from her telekinesis.

"What do you mean sister?" She asks. Still eyeing us but not bothering to restrain us again.

"Whilst we were Nightmare Moon we have witnessed them protecting the Element Bearers from those creature that appeared to be trying to kill them and the Bearers" She explains and I go bug-eyed or rather even more bug-eyed than I already am at her explanation. 'She could see us?' I thought to myself, Ignoring her 'we'.

"Can you confirm this my pupil?" She asks while looking at Twilight but she had to ask again in length due to her, and the other now 'Bearers', due to them seeing my now lack of hindleg.

"Yes Princess. They did" She confirms. She then turns and gallops towards me with no small amount of worry in her eyes, the one now known as the 'Princess' lets her this time.

"We need to get you to a hospital! You're bleeding everywhere!" She exclaims while looking at hat remains of my leg.

"It's cool I've lost legs before" I say dumbly before realizing what I just let slip.

She furrows her brow while giving me a look that screams 'Explain. Now.'.

I look to my comrades who are both looking at me with great disappointment and whisper "whoops" to them. They just shake their heads, synchronized too.

"Alright I'll tell you how we fix this" I open my mouth to tell them of the World Stone but quickly figure they won't believe me. So I go with the better alternative. "Actually I could just show you" I offer.

Twilight gasps at this. "You'll show us how to save other ponies' limbs?!? This could be a huge step for medicinal science" She squeals in excitement. Yeah I thought she was knowledge hungry. X is too, explains why they got along so well. So I hate to break her hopes like this.

"Sorry Twilight. It only works on VERY very few. I'll still show you though" Getting nods of agreement from the other two.

She deflates a bit but the excitement is still there. I look over to the other and find similar interest in them too, even the Princess, along with a bit less hostility from her.

I go to turn but trip, unused to having only three legs to work with. I look up with a sheepish smile as the Princess looks down upon me with a raised brow and smirk.

"It appears I cannot trot. Help a crippled colt would you?" I ask. Not attempting pleading eyes or a little smile as they can't see it, still covered.

"Of course my subject" She replies in a gentle and calm motherly voice. Wow. And this is the same mare who threatened to send to to Tartarus? I have zero clue what that is but due to the reactions of our friends, it can't be good.

I am yet again enveloped in her magic but am gently raised this time around. Keeping my still bleeding leg away from her pure white coat out of respect. "Onward my comrades! You know the way" I start with vigor and a pointed hoof but finish with monotone and a dismissive wave.

Giving a chuckle to my antics they do a 180 and continue the way they came but not before asking the Princess to reinforce the bridge with her magic. She asks why but they simply stare at her. "Right" She says in realization to how much Scrapper would way.

We expected her to help us get across yes. But none us, not even her sister, expected the huge, pure magic bridge that she constructs for us.

"You know why don't we just teleport?" Asks Twilight. The Princess looks to me about to ask herself but I cut her off.

"Because I doubt YOU even remember just where we met Twilight. Don't you have to know where you're going to teleport there?" I ask in response to her question.

"*Sigh* yes you do" She says dejected at more walking. For once I'm actually glad to be crippled.

Twenty minutes. TWENTY minutes we were walking for, going the way we came. Almost everypony but the Princesses, having learnt that the other was a Princess too, was asking 'Are you sure we can't teleport?' and I too wish we could but we can't so tough.

But we finally came upon the clearing of where our impromptu quest began. Motioning with my hoof to X he nods and takes a hard left. Through a bush that looks cleanly cut. My scrap sword may be rusty, but it's certainly sharp. The Princesses look a bit concerned about heading off the path but follow with the also nervous Bearers tailing.

A little while into the not-so-beaten path, everypony sees the three sets of hooves in the somewhat muddy ground. The familiar orange glow of the World Stone, the promise of it's safety. The ponies notice this too and get a little excited.

Eventually Scrapper clears a large bush that we pushed aside on our way through and the World Stone is bear for all to see.

The Princesses jaws drop, so do I, at the sight of the magnificent World Stone floating off the ground, a similar reaction is expressed by the others. Twilight though. She zips up to it and tries to touch it, but something unusual happens... She can't reach it. It looks like the Crystal is keeping her at bay by at least a metre by some unseen force. Frustrated she tries her magic but the World Stone actually fights back. This unseen force targets her horn a appears to cause her some pain. Unwisely she continues, to which she falls unconscious.

The bigger Princess turns to us for an explanation but doesn't even ask at our, rather X's, dropped jaw and all of us staring dumbly at where Twilight now lays.

"I'm guessing that isn't meant to happen?" She asks us, we shake our heads, yet again synchronized.

I try to make sense of it. "Well when other Unicorns tried anything magical near the World Stone, it usually doesn't end well but this is the worst I've ever seen" I say more to myself than anything.

Scrapper walks over to her and throws some water on her face from a bottle he retrieved beforehand, but not before pulling her a bit away from the World Stone.

She wakes up with a yelp and asks "What happened?" Still a bit groggy.

"You just did something I was about to warn you about but I was a bit too busy wondering how it kept you away. I've never seen that before" X explains.

"Ugh I'd like to see you do better" She sneers, not a morning pony eh? I'll keep that in mind.

Adopting a smug look, X simply trots over, quickly passing the barrier Twilight encountered and put his foreleg on the World Stone. Amusingly her jaw drops, chuckles ran through-out the area shortly afterwards.

Following through with the demonstration X places his other hoof upon the Stone. Scrapper quickly follows, doing the same. I hobble over and also place my hooves on the World Stone, ignoring Twilight's groan. What happened next was procedure for us but very surprising for everypony else though.

A flash of light erupts from the Stone. Earning a gasp of surprise from the non-Remnants. The light persists for a second or two maybe five, I was too busy basking in the feeling of my body being reinvigorated by the World Stone and my hindleg being reconstructed. After a it's all said and done the light fades almost as quickly as it appeared. Feeling much better I stretch out my newly reattached hindleg with a pop, unknowingly displaying it for all, this got another gasp of surprise from all non-Remnants at the sight of my hoof.

I turn and pose, I'm not even sure if I did a strong looking pose well but I did it. I then address them. "That my fine mares. Is how you fix a hoof" I even do an over-exaggerated bow to spice it up. They were too shocked to react though.

"A fine trick you have, I think we'll take this 'World Stone' in for study" The tall Princess states. But the moment she finishes the World Stone does something that is, yet again, unusual for it. It's soft glow intensifies tenfold, blinding her. After a few seconds it resides but still remains stronger than before.

"I don't think it wants to love" Scrapper observes. His way of addressing her gets a shocked look from the Bearers but a chuckle from her.

"Do you not know who I am, my subject?" She asks jokingly, the shocked Bearers turning to her now. I don't blame her we never told her we aren't from here. I think we shouldn't mention this may in fact be a different world.

"No. Not a clue. We come from very far, which makes me question what the Root are doing here" He supplies.

"I'm assuming those wooden creatures are these 'Root' you speak of?" She receives a nod. "And you know of them well?" To which she receives another nod, a bit slower this time though. "Then I will ask what we are facing, if they are not from here the Royal Guards may have trouble dealing with them..." She starts rubbing her chin in thought.

"The Root are evil. That much is clear. But they are endless and they are ruthless. They do not hesitate to kill and it is all they seem to know. There are many different types of Root and much be dealt with differently. None of them are ever alone, where there is one there may be hundreds" He gives them a brief run down on the Root, while we know a lot more he just summarized it.

"Do you think our Guard can handle it?" She looks a bit worried now.

"We'd have to see a regiment of your Guard to tell you that, no military is the same. While my team and I may not remember anything in terms of military, we can see combat capabilities, prowess and quality of equipment" He answers. Making her deflate a bit.

"We shall have a regiment sent here under the guise of a security risk, maybe something else that doesn't make them think it's an inspection. But since you three are the experts on the Root we shall let you judge them" She declares she was about to turn to her sister, I think, but realization quickly strikes her.

"You said you don't know who I am?" She receives a head shake this time. "Well introductions are in order then. I am Princess Celestia, once ruler of Equestria, but now co-ruler" She says that last part while looking at her sister.

"And I am Princess Luna, Co-ruler of Equestria, may we have your names?" She asks politely.

X trots from the World Stone to in front of her, followed by me trotting to his left side, and introduces us. "I am X, impromptu leader of our team, to my left is Hunter he's our navigator and tracker and to my right is Scrapper he's our Muscle. It is a pleasure to meet you Princess Celestia and Princess Luna" As he finishes we bow in sync. 'smooth' I think with satisfaction.

Surprisingly they're taken back a little at X's formal introduction, understandable at how we look like we live in the wastes.

"It is a pleasure to meet you X, Scrapper and Hunter. I will see to it that some living arrangements are made in Ponyville" She says to us, pleased by our manners.

"Now that introductions are done we shall head to Ponyville to celebrate the Summer Sun Celebration and the return of Princess Luna!" She declares with joy.

We had no idea just how much the next few days had in store or us.