"Pick me up."

Daedalus looked down with a deadpan stare directed toward the dappled alicorn laying sprawled out on a cushion. Though the duel had ended half an hour ago, she was still drenched in sweat and appeared physically weak- or she was incredibly good at faking. A point in her favor, Celestia had explained that an alicorn's magic is tied to all of their traits and, in times of magical exertion, they were completely weakened. Then his deadpan stare shifted into a small smirk as she gave him a concerned look. "Is this your boon, Luna?"

She leveled a full, powerful pout at him as her ears folded back with a sad look on her muzzle and tears welling up in her eyes. Daedalus made the mistake of making eye contact with her and her sad, lonely look combined with the weakened aura of longing made him give in with a sigh. He crouched down and wrapped his arms around her barrel and lifted her up. She was surprisingly light and he took a moment to adjust her to be more comfortable in his grip as she made a surprised noise and gave him a wide eyed look. She clearly didn't expect him to give in. Daedalus just gave her a slight shrug in response.

By this point, almost everyone else had already left. Most of the Bearers had gone back to their rooms to prepare for the next train and the Captain had gone back to his duties. Only Twilight, Celestia, and Cadence remained with him. He glanced over at the other alicorns and saw an amused smile on Celestia's face while Cadence gave him a knowing smirk that he didn't quite get. On the other hand, Twilight was staring with a mix of fascination on how easily he lifted the second largest pony in Equestria, or mortification that he was carrying one of the diarchs like a foal. He broke the silence as he turned to face them. "So where are we going?"

In response, Celestia's horn lit up with a golden glow of power before they were teleported. A sharp crack signified their arrival in another room and Daedalus took a look around. If he had to guess, they were in some private study or lounge where the rulers relaxed and wound down. Rather than the marble of the rest of the castle, the walls were paneled in a dark, pretty wood that he couldn't identify immediately. A lit fireplace in the center of the left wall gave the room a warm, cozy feeling and a flickering golden orb in each corner illuminated what areas the fire didn't. Situated in a half square around the fireplace, a comfortable looking seating area with cushions, couches, and tables gave a place for plenty of guests to sit. Opposite the fireplace, the wall was lined with full bookshelves. After a moment, he realized most of them weren't in English or whatever they called it in Equestria. Small miracles that at least one language carried over between worlds and it happened to be a language I knew.

Daedalus moved over to the fire and sat down on one of the large couches and set Luna next to him. She immediately sprawled out again with her wings fanned out and hooves stretched high in the air with her head resting on his leg. Absentmindedly, he reached down and began to run his hand through her mane as he reclined back as everyone got comfortable. Unsurprisingly, Twilight sat down next to her mentor and the larger white alicorn draped a wing across her student as Cadence made herself comfortable on one of the large cushions. He glanced down suddenly when he felt Luna shift under his hand and noticed she was looking up at him with her muzzle tinted a shade of red. "What? Want me to stop?"

Quietly, she shook her head as Celestia chuckled and explained. "Ponies quite enjoy having our manes combed and wings preened. It's a sign of close friendship and trust between two ponies, so Luna was just a bit surprised. I'm sure she doesn't mind at all, though~" Her tone took a teasing turn as she looked down at her sister who just huffed and glanced away. Daedalus couldn't help but notice that she made sure not to pull away from his hand, though.

"Ah, that reminds me that I'm going to have to learn a completely different culture." Daedalus said with a chuckle. "I think I'll enjoy it though. It'll be a big change, ponies seem to be quite physical with their affections."

"Just keep away from the flanks, hind legs, and tails and you'll be fine." Cadence explained with a small smile. "Hugs and coat or mane brushes are something friends do as a way to say 'I'm here and I care for you.' It's also a good idea not to touch wings unless you're close friends. The feathers of alicorns and pegasi are sensitive to pressure, and being allowed to preen wings is a sign of close friendship and trust. After all, pegasi have trouble preening easily and if its not done right, it will make it harder to fly and can cause an accident."

Daedalus nodded in understanding before he looked back down to Luna and asked the question they were all gathered for. "So, little Mistress of the Night, what's the boon that you'll ask of the poor man you partly vaporized?"

She gave a little huff and smirked playfully at him. "Continue your teasing and I'll vaporize the other half! Just for thine slight, you must remain here and continue brushing my mane until I'm feeling better. It's quite warm here by the fire. Our talk yesterday led to us only asking you questions, so now I suppose it would be your turn to learn about us and our world."

"Alright, obvious distraction aside, I would appreciate the chance to get some answers for things I've wanted to ask for a while. First of all, are you divine? You seem pretty divine." Immediately, a small blush appeared on the muzzles of all the alicorns present at the way he phrased it, though they knew what he meant.

"Flattery will get you everywhere, Daedalus." Celestia joked before she answered his question. "In truth, my sister and I are near divine. As you've likely been told, I raise and lower the sun just as my sister does the moon. I am the Alicorn of the Day just as she is the Alicorn of the Night. Blessed by these powers, we are incredibly powerful even among other alicorns. Even more than that, our attunement to our respective fields give us the aura that you've been feeling when you're near us."

When Daedalus nodded, she continued. "My sister and I are not eternal, omnipotent, or omniscient. We are just ageless, incredibly magical ponies with a few extra gifts. Though, sometimes our auras can cause problems for us, as I'm sure you can understand in Luna's case." The last bit she added with a knowing smirk to her sister, the eternal sibling war of embarrassment continuing in these two demigoddesses. Luna only blushed harder and looked away as both Daedalus and Cadence laughed together and Twilight gave a soft smile. "Cadence and Twilight are both powerful in their own rights, and Twilight may grow to become more generally powerful than my sister and I being the Alicorn of Magic. Although, any spells related to our domains will be magnitudes more powerful than anything Twilight can bring to bear."

"Wait, what?" Twilight asked, her head quickly turning to look at Celestia as she gave her a shocked look. "You never told me I'm going to end up that strong!"

"Twilight, your power is magic itself." Celestia said quietly, leaning down to give her student a nuzzle. "At your peak, you will be the strongest alicorn and will be incredibly versatile. We believe you will even be able to use magic that is specific to the three of us, just not to the same strength we do. We know you'll be a wonderful alicorn, Twilight, and have complete faith in you."

Twilight was clearly at a loss for words and just gave a shy smile to her mentor and returned the affectionate nuzzle. Celestia tightened her wing over the smaller alicorn's back and nearly hid her from sight entirely as just her purple muzzle poked out. After a moment of silence, her subdued voice came out from under Celestia's wing. "I'm just... how do you know I'll use that power right?"

It was Daedalus who spoke before any of the other three could as he gave the worried looking pony an understanding smile. "Twilight, compared to the average human or pony, the five of us are practically gods. I can't speak for anyone else, but I haven't lived by my power right. I've hurt a lot of people. But because of you and your friends, I can choose how I'm going to live and use my strengths. I think you're doing just fine."

"Nightmare Moon, Discord, Sombra, and Discord again. Daedalus is right. You are doing just fine, young Twilight." Luna agreed with a warm smile directed toward the newest alicorn. As she continued, Daedalus filed away Nightmare Moon and Sombra for later research. "Thanks to you, I am myself again. Thanks to you, the crystal ponies are free and ruled by the Lady of Love and her husband. Thanks to you, our sworn enemy is now an ally, something I never thought would be possible."

"You six are heroes, Twilight. By now, you and your friends have saved hundreds of thousands of ponies. I think you're using your power perfectly." Cadence said as she gave her sister in law a loving smile. Twilight was clearly feeling better if a little overwhelmed at the praise, a small blush on her muzzle as she averted her eyes.

Smiling radiantly at the young alicorn snuggled under her wing, Celestia couldn't help the pride that filled her heart. Twilight had come a long way from the socially awkward teen to the powerful alicorn she now was. Holding her a little tighter, Celestia looked back to Daedalus and nodded for him to continue.

"A bit less of a question of the world and more about you, why is everyone so calm about me being what I am? After all, I'm a stranger in this world wielding dangerous and unknown powers. Don't take this the wrong way, but I gave one promise I wouldn't do anything bad and now I'm treated like a good friend." Daedalus asked curiously, glancing between each of the ponies in turn. "I appreciate it, but this wouldn't have happened on Earth."

Twilight gave him a concerned look as she peaked out from under Celestia's large wing. "Daedalus... what did you expect would happen?"

Daedalus gave a soft hum as he thought it over. "Being an unknown species from another world, it's hard to say. I definitely would not have been allowed out and about around the general public either way, but after attacking you when I first arrived I most likely would have been contained and studied. Once my powers had been discovered, focus on my containment would have shifted to to either replicating my power or neutralizing me as I had already proven myself to be a threat. It all would have depended on what country found me and what kind of person was in charge at the time."

While Twilight seemed speechless, Luna instead tilted her head to gently nuzzle his hand as it continued to run through her mane. "Equestria is not that kind of place. Even if you had truly been an enemy rather than controlled, you would not have been treated that way. We would have attempted to reform you or imprison you if it was not possible. Experimentation or execution would never have been an option. That's not the kind of place Equestria is."

Cadence nodded in agreement. "Equestria is a place of harmony, friendship, and love, not hate or cruelty. Celestia couldn't have built a thousand years of peace with those ideals."

With a kind smile, Celestia gazed at the virus relaxing with Luna sprawled out against him. For the second time, Daedalus found himself under the full focus of her aura as a feeling filled him as if he had just came home after a long, tiring day. "To answer your question, Daedalus, its because we trust you. Not only do we have faith in the Elements of Harmony who purified you of the evil infecting your mind and ensured it could never take root again, but that 'one promise' you gave us was under the effect of a truth spell. Equestria and even ponies as a whole are very trusting. As long as you do right by your friends and neighbors, this land is an amazing home that welcomes anypony and everypony- pony or not."

"Once everypony gets over the nervousness of a new species." Twilight added with a sheepish smile as she thought of Zecora, the friendly zebra that Ponyville had shunned so long ago. With a light giggle from the alicorns, the group fell into a comfortable silence and they relaxed together as Daedalus' mind wandered.

Finally, he was free of Mercer. It may have taken two years and going to a new world entirely where magic and fantasy was real, but he was free. In Equestria, he was already friends with royalty and who he was figured were national heroes. Then his thoughts drifted to his plans for the future. Without need for food, water, or shelter, he didn't necessarily need to work. At the same time, with eternity ahead of him, he would need something to occupy himself with and money was always nice to have, especially when you didn't really have to buy food, clothes, or hygiene products. Maybe he could find some way to work for the Princesses. He did have quite a few talents from the various people he had consumed but felt that they wouldn't be all that useful here, both with the lower technological progress and the fact that magic likely replaced a lot of what technology did on Earth.

Luna nipped his hand. As he looked down at her, she gave an innocent smile with a twinkle in her eyes. "So about that boon."

Chuckling, Daedalus nodded with a teasing smile. "What is thine desire, Mistress of the Night?"

Giving him a playful pout, it quickly turned into a small smile. "You are a powerful warrior, Daedalus. I'm sure you were not using every trick you had to fight me and you held your own against an alicorn. Not many can boast that. As such, I'd like you to join the ranks of my Hunters, a group of warriors who serve under me as monster hunters and personal guards. Do you believe this boon to be unfair?"

Daedalus raised an eyebrow as he smirked down at the pony laying on him. "That sounds like you just want me around more."

Not rising to the tease, Luna just gave an awkwardly shaped shrug since she was laying on her back. "Somewhat. It would be nice having another immortal around Canterlot, especially one who hasn't been raised since birth to see us as goddesses. It's nice to occasionally be treated as Luna the Pony and not Luna the Night Diarch. Truthfully though, I feel you would be an incredibly efficient and capable hunter. Of course, as you will be working directly under me, you'll be paid quite handsomely. Not to mention, being a Hunter is very prestigious as they are some of the best warriors and protectors in Equestria."

He thought it over as he hummed softly. It did match the idea he had just considered. Not to mention, it would help to remove some wariness from him if his whole job was keeping ponies safe- unless him being a hunter made them more wary. "I think that's a fair boon, Luna. I accept."

"Wonderful! You've gone through the entrance test already when you dueled me." Luna explained as she gave him a wide smile. "Tomorrow, you'll meet with Captain Iron and receive the details of your job, what you'll do, and what you'll face. Any questions for me now?"

"I can direct any to Captain Iron." Daedalus responded. Luna rolled off of him and stood up as she quickly shook herself.

"Huzzah! I'll take my leave now and so will my sister, as much as she'd love to continue pushing her meetings off on the council." Luna smirked toward her sister who pouted in response, squeezing Twilight to her tighter. The purple alicorn only let out a cute squeak before Celestia let go and stood as well.

"Sadly, she's right." Celestia said with an over exaggerated sigh.

When Celestia let go of her and stood, Twilight fixed her wings and stood up as well as she gave Daedalus an apologetic smile. "If it's alright, I'd like to take Cadence and Shining and visit my parents here in Canterlot. I haven't seen them in a month and I'd love to have a day with my family."

"That's fine. I've got a city I can explore if I get bored." Daedalus said with a chuckle and gave her withers a pat as she walked past him with Cadence right behind her. Luna gave him a quick nuzzle on his shoulder as she left as well. He figured Celestia would follow right behind her sister but she walked up to him instead.

The Evolved was blindsided when two large, warm wings wrapped around him and she rested her head on his shoulder as she gave him a pony hug. "Thank you, Daedalus."

"For?" The man asked, unsure what she was thanking him for. Either way, he returned her hug as he wrapped his arms around her big neck.

"My sister. She may not seem like it, but she doesn't have a lot of friends. Because of circumstances that aren't mine to share, she doesn't really know anypony anymore. She's very happy to have Cadence in our family and loves Twilight just as much as I do, but still. Even her Hunters, who she shares more of a familiar bond with occasionally fall into the habit of treating her like a princess and a goddess, not a friend. I think you and her will get along very well." Celestia explained softly before she pulled back. She had that same warm smile that she seemed to love so much as she looked him in the eyes.

"Then thank you too, Celestia. For giving me a place I can come to call home. For trusting me and giving me my freedom." Daedalus said, meaning it entirely as he returned her smile.

"You're very welcome, Daedalus. I look forward to counting you among my close friends." Her horn flashed for a moment before she handed him a small pouch. Taking it with a metallic clink, he looked at her in confusion as he assumed it was money. Celestia only smiled wider, giving him a little wink. "A little bit of spending money. Consider it a gift for befriending my sister. It's not a lot, but it's enough for a few good meals or nice things. More, if you leave Canterlot. Just don't be late for tomorrow."

A second later, Daedalus wrapped his arms around Celestia's long neck again and gave her another hug. "You really are nice. I've experienced more kindness from strangers here than I ever did before my infection."

"That's just what we ponies do, Daedalus." Celestia said, nuzzling his cheek gently.

"Call me Jay." Daedalus responded, letting go of her with a content smile. "That's my real name, before I got infected. I didn't use it anymore after."

Celestia nodded with a radiant smile that only widened as she suddenly leaned in close. Jay's eyes widened for a moment just before her snout touched his nose, gently booping him. Then she left the room with a parting nuzzle and left Jay alone. After a moment, Jay shrugged as he assumed the boop was the same as a nuzzle or something similar. Then he turned and exited the room as well, long enough after that Celestia was already gone. Instead, Daedalus was greeted by an unfamiliar unicorn mare. She was actually pretty tall and came up to his chest like Twilight did. Her silver coat contrasted with her midnight blue mane and tail, and her flank held the imagery of five shooting stars behind the full moon. Underneath her mark, a splotch of black imitated the night sky and reminded him of Luna's own mark. When his eyes met hers, he recognized the familiar pink eyes that shone with amusement. "Lance Corporal?"

Starfall smiled, clearly happy to be recognized as she nodded rapidly. "Yup! Though, just Silver or Star or Starfall works. I'm off duty and was just heading out to get something to eat when I passed Princess Luna. I took the chance to ask about you and she told me you were going to explore Canterlot, so I came to see if you wanted company! I don't have anything to do today and figured it'd be better than exploring this stuffy city alone."

Daedalus smiled as he listened to her fast, excited tone. He couldn't help but remember the advice she had given him that had worked out wonderfully. "I'd be honored to have you show me around, but I have to thank you. The advice you gave me was just what I needed."

"See! I told you that trusting the Princesses was good!" She said with a good-natured grin, gently bumping him with her horn. "I'm glad you took it, though. I know it can be scary being in a strange place but Equestria is a home you won't regret! Now, come on, I know a great kitchen down in the lower side. If your teeth mean anything, you'll love their jambalaya!"

Chuckling at her energy, Daedalus followed behind her as she trotted ahead of him. Constantly glancing over her shoulder, Starfall couldn't help but keep a wide smile on her muzzle as the strange apelike creature followed her. "Ponies are everypony's best friend!"

Jay couldn't help but agree with that.

Author's Note

As of the posting of this chapter, I'm twenty chapters ahead of the story. It may not happen every single week, but expect double updates more often than not. I'm writing faster than I'm posting, even counting the fact that I go over each chapter three extra times for editing and quality improvements.