It was a cool summer night as I walked along the road, trying to get to my job. I only lived about a mile away from where I worked, so when the temperature isn't too cold or hot, and the weather isn't rain or snow I walk to my job at the local supermarket instead. However, I was coming in so late as I had to change out the price tags. My store did it every Friday so I was working a midnight to 8 a.m. shift.

I was currently wearing clothes that were allowed by the store's rules. I had on a black polo with black pants, and had a grey backpack on my back. My boots were brown, and softly clacked against the asphalt with every step. Sure, I could wear red or white, but I didn't really think it would look that good. On my head I wore a black baseball cap with an orange Among Us bean on the front. I usually stored my work hat in my locker at work.

I had a slightly tan skin color, though I did have a few brown spots here and there across my body. My hair was a nice dark brown, and it fell nicely around my head. I was a guy, don't get me wrong, but for some reason my hair was that of a brunette's. Straight at the start, but curled lightly at the end. This caused the hair that wasn't covered by my hat to lightly bounce as I walked.

I had a semi narrow face, making my head almost similar in shape to that of a standard Mii. My eyes were a dark green, mixed with a bit of brown. I lived in a more rural area, so while there weren't any sidewalks for me to walk on for most of the trip, it was still nice.

As I walked, I looked into the night sky with a sad grin. Sure, the night was nice, but due to light pollution there were barely any stars. I closed my eyes and just let myself walk forwards without a care in the world for a moment. I went to take a deep breath and I must have caught a breeze of fresh air as when I breathed in there was none of the pollution that one would normally smell. It was then that a smile crossed my face as I continued to walk, not noticing that my steps now began to echo back to me.

"Man, for some reason I have a feeling that tonight ain't gonna be so bad." I spoke to myself until I bumped into something. I opened my eyes as I stumbled back, afraid I had bumped into a recycling or trash bin. Except, when I looked at what I bumped into, I was face to face with a marble pillar instead. I blinked rapidly in shock and turned around.

Behind me, was a rapidly closing portal. The edges of said portal were a mix of gold, purple, light blue, and a dark blue. My eyes widened in shock and I made a mad dash for the portal but by time I got to it, it was already gone. I could only look at where it was in shock, wondering what in the world just happened.

After a few moments I spoke. "What kind of Harry Potter shit is this?" I said, waving my hand through the area where the portal was. My hands only passed through the air. There was no fake wall, no strings, no mirrors, nothing but air. As I slowly came to this realization I looked up and around.

I appeared to be in some kind of royal hall, if the marble pillars were anything to go by. I absentmindedly walked back to the one I had bumped into, and ran my hand up and down the flawless surface. "Man, this is one nice lookin' place, whoever owns it must be shitting gold bricks to afford something like this." It was then that I heard something, a feminine giggle. Whirling around to the source, I found myself looking at 4 anthropomorphic equine women of varying shapes, sizes, and colors.

The biggest one was a pure white and wearing a flowing white gown that was just inches from touching the floor. She had a gold tiara with a single amethyst gem in the center. Just in front of said tiara though was a long, spiraly engraved horn. Her hair was like a solid aurora borealis, that went down to her where her feet would be, but in place of feet, were hooves. She also had gold bracers/bracelets on her wrists, with a fleur de lis shape. Gold slippers could also be found on her hooves with a similar shape to the bracers on her wrists. And lastly she had on a gold necklace with an amethyst in the center. She had maternal magenta eyes that looked at me in curiosity.

I can also tell all of them are female based on the fact that all of them had a feminine figure with breasts. At least, I hoped this was true. For all I know these were considered males wherever here is. The second biggest was a dark blue and she was wearing an elegant black dress that sparkled in the light. The dress hugged her figure nicely, accentuating her curves. She had on an onyx tiara that had a crescent moon made of pearl in the center. Her hair was more like a cloud that had been painted with the night sky. She had light turquoise bracers and slippers that were about half of a fleur de lis shape. Her eyes were a beautiful cyan and held a bit of mirth in them as they looked at me.

The smallest was a light purple, maybe lavender, wearing a violet dress with deep yellow accents. While not the color combo I would have gone with, it actually looked pretty good on her. She had normal, straight, violet hair, with a pink and purple streak in the center. She only had on a gold tiara with a spiky pattern, the tips ending in small amethysts gems. Her eyes were a vivid violet color that looked at me in shock and worry.

And the second smallest was bright pink in color, but wore a simple sky blue dress. She also had gold slippers and bracers that were similar in shape to the dark blue one's. Her amethysts colored eyes were scanning me, looking at me in curiosity. Her hair was an odd mix of purple, yellow, and magenta. In all, they were incredibly beautiful and pretty, yet the only one that wasn't taller than me was the purple one. The pink and dark blue ones were roughly the same height, but still an entire head over me. The white one, however, was over two heads taller than me. The purple one being roughly my height from what I could tell.

It was the dark blue one that had giggled, if its expression was anything to go by. I took them in for a few seconds before speaking. "Either I'm dreaming, I'm dead and angels are actually somewhat equine in shape instead of just humanoid, or I have been transported to another universe, planet, and slash or dimension." I said to myself as I took a few steps back, reaching into my jacket pocket and grasping the only weapon I had, a box cutter. "Who and what the fuck are you?!" I shout in confused shock, getting into a semi defensive stance.

"It's okay, calm down. We aren't going to hurt you." The white one said, holding her hands up in a placating manner as she stood from her throne, taking a few steps towards me.

"Bullshit! You literally just portaled me from my world to… wherever the fuck here is!" I yelled, glaring at them. I knew I wouldn't be able to do much against unknown aliens, but at least I would go down swinging.

"Please, your being here is entirely by accident. We have no intentions to harm you." Said the pink one, standing from the throne she had been sitting in. I don't know why, but her voice actually made me calm down a little.

"Accident? What do you mean by accident?" I ask, perplexed.

"Well, I was trying to contact a friend I had made in another dimension." The purple one responded, gaining my attention. "However… something went wrong. I don't know what, but somehow it led to what was supposed to be a window into her dimension becoming a destabilized portal. I was trying to shut it but then you walked right through it. After that it sort of just, well, collapsed in on itself."

"I understood all of that to a degree. But just a recap, you were basically trying to do interdimensional Skype, but instead ended up opening a portal to my world." I said, and got confused nods in return. "Then that means you can put me back, right?" The four look at each other for a bit.

"Um, maybe." The purple one said with a sheepish look.

"'Maybe'. Of course it's 'maybe'. When is it not 'maybe'? Everything is fucking 'maybe'." I grumble to myself as I rub a hand over my face. "Well that's just great. Goddamn it, why does the weird yet amazing shit always happen to me!" I sigh, then remove my hand from my face. "Well, if I'm stuck here for the time being, I might as well make the most of it." The four were now looking at me oddly.

"You seem to have accepted this rather quickly." The dark blue one asks.

"Yeah, well, it's either shock or because I'm a very logical person that I'm not reacting like anyone else would." I state as I cross my arms in a relaxed way.

"I… see." The white one said, a bit confused. "Anyway, I think introductions are in order. I am Princess Celestia, it is nice to meet you." Celestia looked about to go into a small bow but stopped herself. I'm pretty sure she didn't know if bowing was either a sign of respect or a sign of hostility where I'm from.

"Yes, bowing is considered a sign or respect. Though I much prefer the more classic, shaking of hands." I say, raising my right arm into a ready pose for a handshake. The Princess smiled and walked down from the dais her and the other's thrones were situated on. When she was right in front of me, I realized how much taller she was than me and it made me blush a little. I had a thing for females taller than me, so what? However, finding such females was hard considering I was as tall as my dad, who was 6 foot 5. She had to lean down a little as I raised my arm to meet hers.

When our hands touched, I felt a small tingle go down my spine as I held her hand. It was covered in a fine layer of soft, silky fur which felt incredibly Nice against my skin. "Nice ta meetcha. I'm Dylan." I said as we shook hands. Did I forget to mention how incredibly soft her hand was? 'Cause it is incredibly soft.

The princess giggled, and nodded as we ended our handshake. "Same." Her voice had a humored tint to it, which made me grin in return. The other three, by this time, had also walked down to greet me. The next one was the pink furred one.

"I'm Princess Cadence, a pleasure." She said as we shook hands.

"Trust me, the pleasure is all mine." I said with a blatantly obvious jokingly flirty tone, making the pink princess laugh. I grinned, knowing I had accomplished what I had wanted to do. The next one was the dark blue female.

"Mine name is Luna, tis an honor to meet ye." She said as we shook hands while she bowed a bit.

"Nice to meet you Luna. Like the old style of speaking you got going on there, very unique." Luna blushed a bit, rubbed her left arm with her right one as she backed away.

"We thank ye." The last one was the purple one.

"I'm Twilight Sparkle, but I mainly go by Twilight." I made a face at that.

"Please don't tell me you're not a vampire or something. 'Cause if so then I'm afraid I can't even be acquainted with you." They were all confused at that. This resulted in me giving my own view of the Twilight series. Now Twilight was making the same face I had.

"My name suddenly feels violated." She said, her muzzle scrunched up.

"How about I just call ya Twi, cause if I use your full name that damned series would just come back to my mind." Twilight agreed to this with a nod.

"Yeah, besides the fact that vamponies and were-ponies don't exist, those attributes just don't make any sense."

"And yet, most of the female population likes it because of one reason or another." I said, shaking my head. "I myself enjoy things with lots of lore to explore. Like the Doom series. It might be dark and even a little sad, but I still think it's pretty freaking sick." This greatly confused them.

"Doom series?" Cadence asked.

"How can lore become ill?" Luna asked.

"I don't mean literally sick, it's more slang for 'awesome' or some word similar to that. As for what the Doom series is, well, it's quite a long story that features demons, hell, a man who is literally too angry to die, and the death of a pet rabbit." This made them gasp.

"Why does such a horrid story exist?!" Cadence cried out.

"Because we can. And besides, that's just fiction. If y'all knew what some people of human history did, well, you'd think Doom was a bright, shiny, though very gory, day." I chuckle, then let out a yawn. "Ugh, goddamn. Y'all don't happen to have a spare room I can use till I can get a place of my own, do ya?" I say, rubbing my eye a bit.

"Of course, and you're welcome to stay for as long as you need as our honored guest." Celestia said with a warm smile.

"Thanks Celestia. Uh, I guess I'll see ya tomorrow morning… or later today, depending on what time it is here." I say, looking around for a clock.

"Tomorrow morning. Now come along, we have a lot to discuss after you wake." Celestia says, leading me out of the throne room. I wave goodnight to the others with a smile on my face, and they return the gesture.

As Celestia and I walked down the corridors I can see that they seem to have something akin to knights that would protect castles like in movies I had seen. Though instead of steel armor or even chainmail, they wore gold armor. I looked up to Celestia with a puzzled look. "Okay, I get gold is flashy and all, but why the hell do you have them wearing it as armor? It's a soft yet very dense metal. An average hammer could tear through it and it makes whoever is wearing it super slow having to lug around the armor." Celestia looks down at me, then at her subjects wearing the armor, a small frown on her face.

"Hmm, your kind seems to know a lot about such things." I just nod.

"Well yeah, but we've moved past things like metal armor. Metal armor hasn't been used in well over 300 years give or take. Sure we learn about it in history class or see it in medieval museums, but other than that, it is not really applicable. I mean, have you seen metal armor stop an arrow? Sure, it's good for slashes, but puncture attacks? Might as well be wearing paper." Celestia nods at this, contemplative.

"I see. And I am to assume your kind has stopped using swords and bows?" I made a so-so gesture with my hand.

"Kinda, archery and fencing are considered sports nowadays. No, the real danger is from guns. You try stopping a pinkie sized projectile traveling faster than the speed of sound." I say, raising my pinkie finger. Celestia's eyes widened as she understood the analogy.

"Yes, I suppose that would be rather hard to dodge, much less block. But how does such a weapon work?" I actually have to think about this for a bit.

"Well, we have this material called gunpowder. It has a wide range of uses but it all focuses on explosions. We used to use it to shoot cannonballs out of cannons as well as muskets and flintlocks. But nowadays we use it for sticks of dynamite and bullets. Heck, that's not even the most dangerous thing. We can turn a simple aerosol spray into a homemade flamethrower." I paused to wave my hands and get back on track.

"Anyway, the simplest way I can explain it is this. We pack a small amount of gunpowder into a section of a bullet, then put the part that is fired from the gun in front of the gunpowder. When the gun is used, the gunpowder is lit making a small explosion which propels the bullet out of the gun at high speeds." I explained. Celestia has her lips pursed but nods in understanding.

"A handheld cannon. Such a device has so much potential, good and bad." I nod along with her.

"Yep, and I just explained a handgun, I didn't even mention semi-autos, automatics, shotguns, sniper rifles. The list goes on. Even then there are different types of bullets. 50. Cal, armor piercing, thermite, tracers, and a whole lot of others I don't even know of. When it comes to the art of death dealing, we've certainly perfected it with our current level of technology." Once more, Celestia nods in agreement.

"Yes, your race certainly sounds dangerous." We turn a corner and start to go up a flight of stairs.

"And very paranoid. That was the other reason I don't really want to go back. With how much our culture paints anything that isn't human as a threat, they'd be more likely to shoot first, ask questions later or even never." I tell her as we crest the stairs. We were now in a long hallway with a set of double doors at the end with a stylized sun on each door. She leads me to a door which is right next to the double doors.

"I see. I thank you for your concern for us. But it is wise you get some sleep. My room is right there so if you ever need anything, as one of my guards to see if I am available. If not, then my sister, niece, or Twilight should be able to help you with whatever you wish to discuss." I nod but pause.

"Any particular reason my room is so close to yours?" I ask with a raised eyebrow.

"So I don't have to have another guard detail watch you. Our guards are more than capable of being able to watch over us while we sleep. That, and to make sure I will be instantly alerted if you tried anything. As it stands, you are the only human in Equestria. And that puts you on the endangered species list." I was going to comment on that but after a bit of thinking I shrugged.

"Eh, makes sense. Well, g'night princess. See ya when I get up." I said, opening the door to my room. But what I got was more extravagant than any hotel room I had stayed in. A massive bed that looked like it belonged to a queen, a custom made rug in the center of the same stylized sun Celestia had on her doors, a connecting bathroom, an open balcony and other such things. I was about to turn to Celestia, and ask that I get downgraded but she seemed to expect this.

"No, I will not be putting you in a different room. And if you want a more 'common' room, then you'd have to stay in either the guard barracks or the maid's quarters." I sigh and turn back to my room. Walking in I took off my boots and set them next to the door. I placed my backpack beside the bed and after doing so, I sat on said bed. Immediately I could feel how soft and how plush the mattress alone was.

"Holy shit, this feels amazing." I said, bouncing a bit. "Feels like a damn cloud." Celestia giggled as the horn on her head glowed. A corner of the sheets and blankets moving to show that the mattress was, indeed, a cloud. My eyes widened as I saw this happen. "Cloud bed… telekinesis… the hell kinda world did I fucking drop into." I rhetorically asked in a faint whisper as I looked from the glow around the sheets and blankets corner, to Celestia, then to her horn.

"One of magic. It seems your world does not have magic, yes?" I nod at that.

"Magic is only fantasy and sleight of hand to humans." I say in awe, poking the arua that held the blankets and sheets. The aura felt warm, like a comfortable ray of sunshine.

"Hmm, I suspected this. I think the next few days shall be filled with quite a bit of learning about our two worlds. I will need to cancel a few appointments, as well as day court." Celestia said, but added the last part to herself.

"Yeah, I would imagine so." I then sighed before flopping back on the bed. "Celestia, can I be honest with you?" I asked, wanting to get something off my chest.

"Of course Dylan, and I promise to keep it between us." I nod, but frown.

"I'm worried Celestia. Worried about my future, my family back on Earth, what your subjects will think of me, and a whole slew of other things that I can't think of at the moment." I stared at the ceiling, letting myself get lost in it. A few tears come to my eyes as I descend deeper into my little rant. "I'm afraid that they'll fear me. I'm afraid of what they will be willing to do to get rid of me. I'm… I'm scared Celestia. And I don't know what to do." I hear Celestia walk closer, before pulling me back to a sitting position. She sat next to me, then pulled me into a hug. I let myself cry into her shoulder as we hugged each other.

I could only repeat what I had said earlier over and over. "I'm scared… I'm scared… I'm scared." I don't know how much time passed as Celestia comforted me, but after some time I fell asleep in her arms.

Celestia felt Dylan slowly slump in her hold as he fell asleep. She felt terrible for being one of the causes of his current state. She had really wanted to see how her old student was doing, and when Twilight presented her a way to do that, she jumped at the chance. It took a considerable amount of magic to do the spell, and it seemed like, just for a second, it would work. Then Dylan walked through.

Celestia sighed, disappointed in herself for acting so hastily. She would do everything in her power to make it up to Dylan. She slowly released the hug, and using her magic removed Dylan's clothes till he was just in his boxers. She then slipped him under the covers while taking his clothes to get washed. Looking through his pockets, she took out a black bar that seemed electric in nature, a plastic device that held a small blade, a cable of some kind with a box on one end, and a folded piece of leather. She set these items, except for the one with the blade, on the nightstand beside the desk.

She would need to have either Rarity or one of her dressmakers make Dylan some more clothes in the morning. For now though, these clothes would need to get washed. She quickly made her way to the royal washroom, and had the bat pony maids get to work on cleaning Dylan's clothes with directions to his bedroom and instructions on what to do with his clothes. The maids nodded, and got to work. Celestia smiled and teleported back to the throne room where her sister, niece, and Twilight waited. "There you are sister, what took you so long?" Luna asked.

"He wanted to get some things off his chest before he went to sleep." Celestia explained. The three nodded before beginning to discuss what to do with the human.

"I do not think he will wish to stay in the castle. From what I have gleaned, the gender roles of our society and his are reversed. Similar to the dragons or the minotaurs. So, like a mare, he will wish to get a job and provide for himself." Twilight explained, as she looked over some notes she took after Dylan left. The other princesses nodded.

"Yes, however I don't think any of our subjects will be willing to give him a job. They are quite speciesist if their encounter with Twilight's zebra friend is anything to go by." Celestia said dejectedly.

"Not to mention how most of the threats to Equestria lately have been from other species that were previously unknown to them. Not including myself and Fizzlepop." Luna stated with a frown.

"Which just makes the problem even worse. Hmm, I might be able to get him a job in the Crystal Empire. But I don't think he is mentally stable enough for two sudden changes in environment. In a few months, maybe, but now would be too soon." Cadence said, sad she wasn't able to help her new friend.

"I don't think Ponyville would work either, what with Discord and Pinkie living there." The others immediately agreed to that.

"I might be able to find him something here in the city. But with how nobles are I doubt many would be that willing." Celestia sighed, rubbing her face.

"Hmm, there might be a few. I know Fancy Pants and his sister Fleur De Lis do employ species outside of ponies. Griffon guards, Minotaur workers, I think they even have a dragon working there though for what reason I have forgotten." Luna stated.

"There is also Saffron Masala and her restaurant. Though I don't know how good of a cook Dylan is." Twilight added in. It was then Cadence snapped her fingers and pointed at Twilight.

"What about Rarity's Canterlot Boutique? I'm sure Sassy Saddles would appreciate some help. Dylan might even be able to give her some design ideas." Cadence suggested with a smile. Twilight nodded.

"That sounds like a good idea. Though, what he'll be doing is up for debate." Twilight replied then pursed her lips in thought.

"Maybe something in the music industry? I don't know why but I think he is musically inclined." Celestia offered.

"We could ask to hear some music from his world. I myself think he has a nice voice. Though how it translates to singing is unknown." Luna said.

"That is true. But I think we should also talk about his diet. I'm sure you all also saw his canines." A round of nods to Twilight's observation.

"His race is obviously a predatory one. Yet he has no claws or anything other than intelligence and ingenuity. There is more than one way to be considered a 'predator'." Cadence added in.

"And his race seems fairly violent. You all saw how he reached into his jacket for a weapon, presumably." Luna said, crossing her arms.

"You are correct. Though this seems more like a tool than a weapon." Celestia said, showing the red and black plastic device. She put her thumb on a sliding piece of plastic and when she slid it, a metal blade popped out with a few clicking sounds. The exposed blade was barely an inch long. Luna scrunched up her muzzle at the sight of it.

"I would not even count that as a knife! What purpose does that thing even serve?" Luna asked, taking it and giving it a few swings. "And the blade is so thin! It can snap it off with ease by pure accident." Luna said, tapping the not sharp side of the blade.

"Hmm, perhaps there is a material in his world that needs to be cut so often, they developed a tool for anyone to use to cut it." Twilight offered.

"And what kind of material would that be?" Luna asked.

"I'm… not sure. But it must be mass produced enough for his kind to have a tool specifically for it." Twilight theorized.

"I think we've established he alone isn't that much of a threat. His entire race, however…" Celestia trailed off, imagining what horrors had been wrought on his world.

"I think he has barely scratched the tip of the iceberg. He talked about those muskets and flintlocks like they were old weapons from a bygone age. Who knows what kind of weapons an entire army has at their disposal in his day and age." Cadence stated, holding her arms and shivering a bit at the thought.

"That is one of the reasons why he didn't want us to find a way home. To protect us." Celestia sighed sadly. The others paused, thinking about this new information. "He knew, just from taking a look at our castle and guards, that we would be practically defenseless against his race… that is before he knew about magic." This caught their attention. Seeing that, Celestia continued. "He was shocked to see me use magic, and that his mattress was actually made of clouds. He told me himself that magic, to his race, is nothing more than tricks to the eyes and something of fantasy. Speaking of which, how did you know about the weapons he spoke of when he talked to me Cadence?"

The love Alicorn blushed, and rubbed her hoof against the carpet. "I miiiight have cast a scrying spell from a few seconds after you left to before you shut the door to his room. I'm sorry aunty, it's just, his emotions were all over the place. But out of all of it I could pick out a sort of attraction towards us. Though more prevalently, towards you. I really wanted to see how he would react to being alone with you. While I wasn't able to read his emotions, he seemed to really enjoy your company."

Celestia shook her head, sighing. "Cadence, I'm very disappointed in you. I expected such behavior from Twilight but not you. We'll talk about this later, but for now, final thoughts before we must be off to bed ourselves?"

While it took a bit for Twilight or Luna to speak up, they eventually did. "A world without magic. That must be why his race had to create such weapons." Twilight said, barely believing such a thing was possible.

"Most likely, yes. But as my sister said it is getting late. I bid you all a goodnight." Luna said, bowing to the others. The others bid her goodnight, and headed to their rooms to sleep. Luna stated in the throne room however to conduct night court.

Author's Note

I wanted to try something new. I hope you all like it. I will also be updating Avenging Nightmare by the end of the week. Or at least I will try. I recently got a promotion at my job and it has me working a lot more hours. This means a lot less time to write. Anyway, goodnight my friends, and I shall see you in the next chapter.