Earth, Washington DC

The White House, Medical Wing

It was raining steadily outside, and the weather seemed to match the mood of the Division and JTF personnel that remained at the White House. The Black Tusk assault that occurred only two weeks ago had been a severe blow to morale, and many of the staff were significantly less optimistic than before about their chances.

It was even more so for the Division Agents. Their SHD server had nearly been destroyed, and the Black Tusk had successfully captured the Perfusion Bioreactor, a critical piece of technology. Not only that, it was now common knowledge among civilians and the settlements that the White House would no longer be as secure as it once was.

Coupled with the Black Tusks’ capture of three key Division staff members, the loss of Captain Frederick Lewis, and the deaths of many JTF and civilian militia, it seemed that nothing would make the mood any more dour.

Agent Jacob Samuels certainly shared that feeling, as he lounged by a windowsill in the medical wing, near Bardon Schaeffer’s hospital bed. He and his squad of Agents had been the first to return to the White House during the assault, and it was still fresh in their minds how they had nearly lost so much, all in one night.

“Are you still with us, Sheriff?”

Agent Samuels turned to see Manny Ortega approach, and he stood up to acknowledge the White House’s Coordinator.

“I’m here.” Jacob replied. “What’s up?”

“Just checking in.” Manny replied. “How’s your team doing?”

"They're fine, Manny." Jacob sighed, getting up and off the windowsill. "It's never been like this for us before. Our home was attacked, we lost the Perfusion Bioreactor, a lot of good people died…and Lewis went with 'em. There's so much that’s wrong with our current situation right now…I just don’t know where to start."

“Agreed.” Alani Kelso added as she stepped forward. “Right now, we’ve got something to take care of.”

“What might that be?” Agent Samuels asked. Kelso simply held up her SHD Watch, tapped its screen a few times, and a 3D-holographic map appeared. Manny and Agent Samuels recognized the displayed building as the headquarters of the CIA in Langley, Virginia.

“About ten minutes ago, there was an energy surge in Langley that we traced back to the CIA headquarters.” Kelso said. “ISAC also detected an unknown type of radiation from the epicenter of the blast.”

“Radiation? What kind of blast are we talking about?” Manny asked.

“Some kind of lightshow, but there was no real damage to the building itself from what our surveillance drones could tell.” Kelso motioned to the hallway outside, and the three of them stepped out of the medical wing. “Without Cindy though, it was hard to tell. It wasn’t nuclear radiation, however. We would’ve noticed if it was.”

“Yeah…probably.” Manny gave a slight scowl. “What else?”

“We also intercepted some kind of radio signal coming from the site.” Kelso added. “Whoever’s there must’ve stumbled onto something. Whatever that might be is anyone’s guess.”

Manny was silent for a few moments.

“Sherriff, take your team and head over to Langley, and see what’s going on. Kelso, monitor them from here. I’ll see if I can reach anyone over there on the radio, maybe we can get a clue about whatever’s happening.”

“Got it.”

“Roger that.”

As both agents headed out, Manny looked over at the still-comatose form of Bardon Schaeffer, and gave a sigh of exhaustion.

“Let’s just hope this is worth it.” He murmured before he then began the walk back to his office.

Two Days earlier…
Equestria, Ponyville Staging Area

Castle of Friendship

As the Elements stood on the balcony of Twilight’s castle, watching several Solar Guards move crates of supplies onto carts, Sunset Shimmer poked her head out of the doorway, catching Princess Twilight’s attention. The Elements had been taking a refresher with some hot tea and some of Pinkie’s cupcakes, but it seemed now that break-time was over.

“What is it, Sunset?” Twilight asked.

“Prince Blueblood’s here, and he’s got a coffer full of bits with him. Says he came to help however he could.” Sunset replied. “You wanna handle this, Twilight?”

“Yes, I’ll be there momentarily.” She said, heading past Sunset and down the stairs that led to her Castle’s main hall. “I wonder what Princess Celestia bribed him with in order to get his support.”

“Well, I wouldn’t say “bribed”, Twilight.” Sunset replied. “Blueblood, to put it honestly, may be a pain in the flank at times, but he keeps his hooves clean and his nose out of trouble.”

“What makes you say that?” Twilight sounded surprised. “He was absolutely horrible to Rarity at the last gala we attended.”

“First, you do have to admit Rarity’s expectations were really unrealistic regarding that particular evening.” Sunset sighed. “Second, I’ve had to work with Blueblood before, when I was Celestia’s student, and honestly…he’s too tethered to what others think about him. I’ll give him credit, he’s a good negotiator and a whiz when it comes to organization and setting up events.”

“Really?” Twilight stopped walking and looked at her friend in shock. “I didn’t know that.”

“With all due respect, Princess…” a voice said from behind them. “There’s a lot of things my fellows don’t know about me, and yes, Sunset Shimmer’s analysis is accurate. I…do have trouble setting myself apart from what others expect of me.”

“Anyway…shall we get to business?” He asked, and both Sunset and Twilight nodded. As they stepped into the main hall, two Solar Guards approached with a clipboard and pen at the ready.

“Prince Blueblood, we just received your contributions.” One of the Guards said. “We just need your approval for the transfer.”

“Ah, yes. There we go..,.” Blueblood said, signing his name onto the document on the clipboard. “What else is there?”

“A stallion by the name of Filthy Rich is here, says that he needs to speak with Princess Twilight immediately.” The other guard said, turning towards Princess Twilight. “Apparently a trio of mares are causing a panic in town, saying that we’re going to war…and generally acting out in hysterics…what should we do? Most of the citizens are ignoring them, but I don’t know how long that’ll be the case.”

“Thank you, I’ll handle this myself.” Twilight nodded, giving a sigh of frustration as she moved to the doorway.

“Does this happen all that often in Ponyville?” Blueblood called out.

“Too often.” Twilight responded as she exited the castle, and headed for the town square. Blueblood then turned to the two Solar Guards, who straightened up, waiting for their next orders.

“Judging from the Princess’s tone of voice and the current circumstances, think it best if we all took a ten-minute break.” Blueblood said. “Hopefully we’ll all be rested and refreshed by the time Princess Twilight comes back.”

“Yes, sir.” The two Guards nodded and quickly headed towards the back patio.

“So, Sunset…would you mind telling me about what exactly happened in this other world? My aunt told me a few things, but I think I am missing some of the finer points of the situation.”

“Sure thing.” Sunset nodded as they both sat down on a nearby couch. “Just brace yourself, it’ll take a while, and a lot of it won’t be pleasant.”

“If it’s in line with the mental picture my aunt showed me…I’ll take your word for it.” Blueblood replied as they settled in. “However…there is one thing that I want to know first and foremost.”

“Shoot.”

“How exactly did you come to inhabit this world in the first place?” Blueblood asked. “I know that you were once Celestia’s former student, but one night, I heard there was a disturbance involving you, and I never saw you again after that.”

Sunset sucked in a breath as she began, telling Blueblood of that fateful night in the Crystal Empire, her days at Canterlot High, all the adventure she had with the Human Elements..and eventually, the Green Poison outbreak in Manhattan, and the collapse of civilization on Earth as they knew it.

The entire time, Blueblood was mostly silent, only asking a few questions regarding Sunset’s story, or for clarification on a few Earth-based subjects, such as the Internet or the usage of firearms.

As Sunset finished her story, Blueblood looked at her sympathetically, and placed a hoof on her shoulder.

“For what it’s worth, I’m sorry that all happened.” He said quietly. “Anyway…we should get back to work. I reckon that it has been far more than ten minutes.”

“You got that right.” Princess Twilight said, approaching them both in a much more relaxed manner. “It’s been nearly an hour, but you were so deep in conversation that I didn’t want to disturb you both.”

“Well, thanks for that.” Sunset replied. “Ready to get back to work?”

“As I’ll ever be,” Blueblood nodded, and they all headed outside to the backyard, where the long task of getting everything ready awaited them. After all, a task like saving a world didn’t come with a schedule.

Author's Note

UPDATE!