He didn't have much time. Jean was surprised to see how little time the self destruct mechanism gave for evacuation. But then he remembered that if it was ever activated, only one person needed to evacuate, so he figured it made sense. As he made his way outside the facility, it almost felt like another trap set by Ma'alefa'ak. Random explosions burst out of the ground in front of him, debris came crashing down in front of him from the ceiling and doors were sealed shut right in front of him, leaving him barely enough time to slip through. He didn't want to waste time with phasing.

The laboratory had several rooms and corridors with lots of twists and turns. It would have been easy to get lost in there, but Jean had a lot of recent experience with mazes and he had thoroughly explored this facility while searching for the center room and witnessing Ma'alefa'ak’s crimes for himself in their entirety. The sights he's seen weren't easy to forget, providing him good markers to remember just where he was and where he needed to turn.

But even with his excellent memory and great speed of flight, he still just barely managed to reach the entrance and phase through it before the entire laboratory went up in flames. The dome that hid the entrance exploded behind him and threw him off course, causing him to crash into the ground. He turned back to see a giant column of fire and smoke emerging from the ground, signaling the destruction of the laboratory and all of the atrocities committed there. Jean let out a huge sigh of relief and allowed his exhaustion to catch up with him and collapsed onto the ground to take a few relaxing breaths.

Unfortunately, fate would not grant him even a few precious moments of rest. As he rolled onto his back, he noticed a dark figure standing over him, who only could have been Ma'alefa'ak. Jean fought off his exhaustion and got back on his hooves the face the maniacal Green Lunar, but he was in for a nasty surprise when he saw him holding the battered and bruised body of Mor’ng in one of his front legs. Jean saw that her heart was still beating with his x-ray vision. She was still alive but that could easily change in Ma'alefa'ak’s grasp.

"Hiding behind an innocent foal?" Jean spat. "Why am I not surprised? I knew you were depraved beyond measure, but I did not assume you to be so pathetic." He was obviously trying to rile up Ma'alefa'ak, but it wasn't working.

"Who's hiding?" The villain rebutted as he tossed the young mare's body away like a sack of trash. Jean was enraged by the act and the only thing that kept him from throwing himself at Ma'alefa'ak was his concern for Mor’ng. He flew to check on her, which Ma'alefa'ak surprisingly didn't interrupt.

"A White Lunar showing concern for a Green one?" He taunted. "Now I've seen everything." After making sure that Mor’ng was not too hurt, Jean took his cape off and wrapped it around the young mare's body protectively before turning back to Ma'alefa'ak.

"It is over, Ma'alefa'ak!" Jean growled. "You have lost. Your laboratory and your twisted research are gone. The pointless death and suffering you caused has come to an end. Let us not cause any more." Jean knew the chances of Ma'alefa'ak accepting his offer for a peaceful resolution were slim to none, but he still felt the need to try.

"That may be so." Ma'alefa'ak replied. "I may have lost, but if there's one last thing I'll do, it's gonna be making sure you don't win." He then took off his cloak before throwing it aside, revealing his bare Lunar form to Jean.

Jean stared at him in confusion which turned into horror as he stepped back upon witnessing Ma'alefa'ak’s body start to violently convulse and change shape. His body began to increase in size, becoming bulkier and more muscular, his limbs stretched out further and a sharp, pointy spike began to grow out of his head.

Jean's eyes widened in shock as he recognised the creature in front of him. It was the same one he saw at the end of his nightmare when Ma'alefa'ak first appeared in his life. The creature was now several meters taller than him. It let out a piercing shriek as it stomped its front legs into the ground with such strength that it made the ground beneath Jean tremble.

"WITNESS MY TRUE FORM, J'INN J'INNZ!" Ma'alefa'ak roared. "FOR IT SHALL BE THE LAST THING YOU EVER LAY YOUR EYES UPON ON THIS PLAIN!"

Ma'alefa'ak then reached over to a large rock that laid nearby and picked it up before bringing it down on top of Jean. The White Lunar jumped back just in time to avoid it. Jean flew up and charged straight at Ma'alefa'ak’s head, delivering a punch to his face. He was strong enough to make the giant slightly stumble back, but it instantly recovered and swung its hoof at Jean, swiping him out of the air like a fly.

Jean then attempted to use his heat vision on the creature. As the heat rays made contact with Ma'alefa'ak’s skin, he could hear a sizzling sound coming from it as the Green Lunar grunted in pain. He was obviously doing damage to him, but he couldn't keep it up as Ma'alefa'ak used his own heat vision to counter him. His heat rays were obviously bigger and that meant Jean needed to cease his attack to escape them.

Jean was forced to flee from the heat rays scorching the ground behind him, leaving him little to no chance for a counter attack. But he suddenly got an idea. He started moving towards Ma'alefa'ak while still flying in circles to avoid the onslaught from his eyes. He slowly got closer to him until he managed to reach his legs. He stretched out his front legs and wrapped them around Ma'alefa'ak’s.

The sudden sensation of his legs being squeezed so tightly forced Ma'alefa'ak to cease his optical attack as he started losing his balance in Jean's grip. Jean gave his arms a firm tug and with his super strength, he was able to pull Ma'alefa'ak’s legs out from under him, making the Green Lunar collapse.

He was about to elongate his arms even further to completely wrap Ma'alefa'ak up, but the Green Lunar quickly recovered and with his own super strength, he was able to give all four of his entangled limbs a tug, pulling Jean off his legs, launching him over himself and slamming him into the ground on his other side.

Ma'alefa'ak shook Jean's stretched out limbs off and got back on his hooves before raising one of them and attempting to squash the White Lunar. Jean pulled his legs back just in time to stop the giant hoof from connecting with his body. He was able to hold it with his super strength but he knew he wouldn't be able to keep it up forever.

He ignited his heat vision and fired his heat rays at the bottom of Ma'alefa'ak’s hoof. Eventually, the heat on the Green Lunar's hoof became so unbearable that he had to let go. Jean flew back away from him and landed back on his hooves. This wasn't gonna work in the long run. He had to think of something to put an end to this fight and fast.

'The transformation...' Jean's eyes widened as he heard Mor’ng's voice in his head. Apparently the young mare regained consciousness and re-established the psychic link between them. 'You can do it too.'

'Mor’ng! Are you...' His concern for the youngster quickly drew his attention away from the fight and he almost paid for it as he barely managed to avoid another strike from Ma'alefa'ak. Mor’ng must have sensed it too as she let out an alarmed gasp.

'I'm fine! You should be more worried about yourself!' She reprimanded.

'Point taken.' Jean groaned in annoyance. 'What was it you said about the transformation?'

'What Ma'alefa'ak turned into, it's the true form of the Lunars! Including the white ones! Meaning you can turn into that too!' Jean looked up at the monstrosity Ma'alefa'ak turned himself into. This would be his true form? Even while living among ponies where he knew he stood out, he never saw himself as a monster. But to see what he really was inside was more than a little frightening.

And even if he would do it, this was something he has never done before. He had no idea how to do it. How could Ma'alefa'ak have done it? He didn't have much time to ponder on it as the now huge Green Lunar raised his hoof for another strike. Jean had to move quickly to avoid them. His attacks have grown more fierce and furious. As if the Green Lunar completely lost every bit of composure he had left and submitted himself to some primal fury.

"YOU PATHETIC LITTLE INSECT!" He roared as he punched the ground again, missing Jean by mere inches. "YOU AREN'T EVEN AWARE OF YOUR OWN POWER! EVEN AMONG THE WHITE LUNARS, YOU ARE A DISGRACE! IT'S FITTING THAT YOU WILL DIE OUT HERE IN THE MIDDLE OF NOWHERE AND NO ONE WILL REMEMBER YOU!"

It became increasingly harder to avoid Ma'alefa'ak’s attacks. He had his sights set on Jean and he wanted to shed his blood. "YOU HAVE BEEN ESCAPING ALL YOUR LIFE! RUNNING LIKE A COWARD! BUT NOW YOU HAVE NOWHERE LEFT TO RUN!" The enlarged Green Lunar took a deep breath and exhaled towards Jean, sending so much dust in his way that he had to cover his eyes and completely lost his sense of direction.

"THIS IS THE END FOR YOU! AND THE WHITE LUNARS!" Ma'alefa'ak roared as he marched up to Jean and lifted him out of the dust cloud. "AND SINCE YOU DESTROYED MY LIFE'S WORK, I WILL BE HAPPY TO RETURN THE FAVOUR!" He taunted with a cruel smirk. "AFTER I'M DONE WITH YOU, I WILL RECREATE MY EXPERIMENTS ON YOUR LITTLE FRIEND!" Jean's eyes widened upon him mentioning Mor’ng, which did not go unnoticed by Ma'alefa'ak.

"TOUCHED A NERVE THERE, DIDN'T I?" He mused as his grin widened. "THAT'S RIGHT! EVERY SINGLE THING YOU WITNESSED DOWN THERE, SHE IS GOING TO GO THROUGH, SLOWLY AND PAINFULLY! AND AFTER SHE FINALLY EXPIRES, I WILL VISIT YOUR ADOPTED HOMEWORLD NEXT!"

That was the last straw. Jean felt the same primal rage rising in his chest that drove Ma'alefa'ak’s attacks. He's already lost one homeworld to this monster. He wasn't about to lose another. Ma'alefa'ak saw him starting to move again and he threw him against the ground with such force that Jean bounced a few times before coming to a stop.

"YES! I WILL BE LOOKING FORWARD TO SEEING WHAT KIND OF NEW, INTERESTING MUTATIONS I CAN CREATE FROM MY VIRUSES USING YOUR LITTLE PONY FRIENDS! ESPECIALLY THAT ALICORN YOU SEEM TO BE SO FOND OF!"

With his whole body aching, Jean struggled to pull himself together as he looked up at Ma'alefa'ak with a hateful scorn. "OH, DON'T GIVE ME THAT LOOK, J'INN! YOU WENT THROUGH LOSING ONE FAMILY ALREADY! WHAT'S ANOTHER?" With shaking hooves, Jean stood back up and let go of all of his inner restraints.

"WELL, IT WAS FUN, J’INN, BUT QUITE FRANKLY, I'VE GOTTEN REALLY BORED OF IT BY NOW!" He raised his hoof again and moved it above Jean, ready to bring it down. "SO PLEASE, WOULD YOU BE SO KIND AND JUST DIE ALREADY?!!"

"NO!!!"

The yell Jean let out was so loud and forceful that Ma'alefa'ak actually trembled, making him stumble back. Jean panted heavily as he gave in to his inner anger. He still had no idea what he should do to achieve Ma'alefa'ak’s state, but he felt something inside him snap.

Every terrible thing Ma'alefa'ak has committed, all the things he just said and all the creatures that Jean held dear he posed a threat to have come together in Jean's head, creating a desire stronger than anything he has ever felt before. A desire to finally put an end to this monster's crimes.

The Green Lunar backed away in disbelief as he witnessed Jean's body changing and growing until he reached the same size and shape as Ma'alefa'ak. The grown White Lunar turned his head towards his adversary with a savage look that almost mirrored the one he was wearing just a minute earlier.

Ma'alefa'ak actually found himself taking a step back. He had no idea Jean was capable of displaying such raw fury. He wasn't sure how it could have happened, there was only one thing he knew for sure: he managed to royally piss Jean off and for the first time since meeting him, he wasn't sure how things were going to turn out.

"I AM GOING TO TEAR YOU TO SHREDS!" Jean roared before leaping forward and tackling Ma'alefa'ak to the ground. Pulling his hoof back, Jean delivered punch after punch to Ma'alefa'ak’s muzzle, but the Green Lunar had enough strength left in him to raise his own hooves and block the next strike. He then pushed Jean's hooves apart and landed a headbutt onto his now defenseless muzzle.

His attack had enough strength in it to push Jean off of him before launching a counter attack. He charged at him with speed and carried him until they both crashed into the wall of the crater. He grabbed Jean's and pulled it before smashing it back against the crater wall repeatedly, but Jean managed to wrap his hoof around a large rock and smash it against Ma'alefa'ak’s face.

The Green Lunar was sent back onto the ground and Jean was about to jump on him again, but before he could pin him down, Ma'alefa'ak kicked himself away from the ground and flew up, fleeing away from the furious white giant. Even though they were now evenly matched, the fury of Ma'alefa'ak seemed to have transferred to Jean and was replaced by panic. The tables have thoroughly turned.

Jean took off after him and the two chased each other across the lunar surface for such a long time that Jean was certain they must have flown around the entire moon a few times already. And frustratingly, he wasn't getting closer to the Green Lunar. He had to find a way to put an end to this chase.

He unleashed his heat vision on Ma'alefa'ak and he managed to hit him in the back, throwing him off course. This did slow him down a little, as it took him some times to regain his altitude, but he did it before Jean caught up with him. The White Lunar fired his heat vision at him again, forcing him to keep dodging which cost him the speed he needed to keep the distance between him and Jean. At this rate, he would catch him soon. And he couldn't let that happen.

He waited until Jean ceased his attack on him and when he heard the heat rays behind him finally cease, he quickly spun around and fired his own heat vision at Jean. The White Lunar quickly countered with his own and the two pairs of heat rays collided in the air, creating a large ball of heat energy between them. The ball grew bigger and bigger until it eventually became too big and exploded in the faces of the two Lunars, sending them flying back several meters.

When Jean recovered from the blast, he began to scan his surroundings for Ma'alefa'ak, expecting an immediate attack while he was disoriented. When no such attack came, he began to scan his surroundings for the Green Lunar and noticed his shape flying away from him in the direction of the sun. Jean's eyes widened, realising that if Ma'alefa'ak got too close to the sun, he would be powerless against him, he had to stop him.

He sped off after him, but as they got closer to the sun, Jean could feel the scorching heat burning him hotter with each passing second. At this rate, it won't be long before he would succumb to it and lose his powers. He was forced to come to a halt. He had only one chance left.

He reached out with his forelegs in Ma'alefa'ak’s direction and extended them towards him, stretching them longer than he ever did before. So long in fact that it began to hurt so bad that he felt like they would fall out of their sockets. But in the end, he did manage to wrap them around each one of Ma'alefa'ak’s hind legs.

"YOU WILL NOT ESCAPE ME YOU COWARD!"

Once he caught onto him, he began to fly backwards, drawing him away from the sun and back towards the moon. Unfortunately, he didn't watch where he was flying and he ended up speeding into a meteor field right behind him. The impact forced him to let go of Ma'alefa'ak, but there was enough strength left in Jean's pull to make him crash into the same meteor field.

The Green Lunar roared in fury as he grabbed two meteors and placed them onto his hooves before launching a flurry of attacks on Jean. The White Lunar still had not recovered from the crash so it was easy for Ma'alefa'ak to land hit after hit onto his head. Jean probably wouldn't have been able to escape the onslaught, but fate came to his aid. One of the meteors crashed into Ma'alefa'ak’s head from behind, making him cease the attack and giving Jean time to recover and escape.

Ma'alefa'ak quickly snapped out of his stupor and was about to resume his attack, only to notice that Jean was gone. He looked around for him, but to no avail, all he saw was the meteors floating around him. Or in one very specific meteor's case, toward him. Before Ma'alefa'ak could realise what was happening, the giant rock crashed into him and sent him hurling towards the moon's surface at breakneck speed.

If the moon had an atmosphere, Ma'alefa'ak surely would have burnt to a crisp by now. But even without that, the impact on the surface once the meteor slammed him into it was so huge that it sent a shockwave throughout a ten thousand yard radius. It ended up almost creating a new crater in it, so suffice it to say, it was strong enough to knock all the fight left in Ma'alefa'ak out of him, making him revert back to his standard Lunar form. The meteor rolled off his chest and transformed back into Jean Jeans, the victor of the lunar showdown.

The Lunar Hunter stood over the unconscious form of his adversary, but strangely enough, he found himself unsure of what to do with him. Should he kill him and avenge all the creatures whose lives he destroyed? He wasn't sure. His fellow crimefighters back on Equestria probably wouldn't appreciate that. They always restrained themselves when it came to taking the lives of their foes. If Batmare could keep herself from killing the Joker, then any villain deserved mercy.

Should he take him into custody and take him back to Equestria to stand trial? He doubted that even one of Luna's facilities could hold him. Should he try to convince him to make amends and turn a new leaf? He was more than certain that he was far beyond that point. Even if he offered him that chance, his hatred for the White Lunars was far too great. He would never change his ways. No matter what he came up with, there was a flaw in it. What should he do?

'I might be able to assist you with that.' Jean jumped as he heard Mor’ng once again connect their minds.

'Mor’ng? Where are you?' He asked in concern.

'Right here.' Jean turned around and sure enough, the young Lunar mare was right there, making her way towards Jean with slow but steady steps. "I believe this belongs to you." She said as she returned Jean's cape to him before continuing her way to Ma'alefa'ak who was slowly coming to.

"What are you planning to do with him?" Jean asked as he reattached his cape to his shoulders. Mor’ng turned back to him with a sinister smirk.

"Do you know what happens when a Green Lunar is injected with the same virus he developed for the White ones?" Jean raised an eyebrow.

"The same thing that happens to a White Lunar? He gets sicker as he uses his powers?" He guessed. Mor’ng shook her head.

"No. He loses his powers permanently." She said as she pulled out a vial from her cloak. "Get up, you scum!" She growled as she kicked Ma'alefa'ak. "I've been dreaming of this moment for a long time. I want to see your face when it happens!" Ma'alefa'ak coughed and moaned in pain as he writhed on the ground.

"What are you going to do..." He spat in disdain, fully accepting that he has lost. "Kill me?"

"Kill you?" Mor’ng scoffed before attaching a syringe to the vial. "Death is too good for you." She mused as she injected the needle into Ma'alefa'ak’s neck. "There are fates worse than death."

As the infection spread throughout his veins, Ma'alefa'ak felt like all of his life force was being drained from him. It was like icy water was being poured into the inside of his body. Jean noticed that the green from his skin was beginning to fade away as he became extremely pale. Not as pale as a White Lunar but close enough.

Mor’ng then walked over to a rock formation and pressed it down, making the ground open up in front of them, making Jean realise that they were standing at the entrance of the Chamber of the Ancients Again. When Ma'alefa'ak realised this too, his eyes widened with more fear than he ever felt before. He finally pieced together what the young mare had in mind for him.

"There are countless Lunars down there who died because of you!" Mor’ng exclaimed. "Their souls cry out for retribution! And they shall have it!" She then simply picked Ma'alefa'ak up and tossed his body down the staircase leading to the chamber. The depowered Green Lunar had no way of struggling his way out of her grasp. This was gonna be his own personal Tartarus for the rest of his days.

When he landed at the bottom, he could already hear the angry whispers and ghostly hoofsteps of the deceased getting closer to him. In a last, desperate attempt to get away, he began to run up the stairs towards the entrance, but it was already too late. Before he could reach the gate, he felt the cold dead hooves of the labyrinth's spirits wrapping around his body and pull him back into the darkness. The last thing he saw of the outside world was Mor’ng standing at the top of the staircase staring down at him with a satisfied smirk.

"Have a fun reunion." She taunted before slamming the gate shut and using her heat vision to seal it. "And good riddance." Jean watched the young mare as she walked away from the entrance and sat down in the middle of the crater. Her expression shifted to a blank stare as she was looking up at the stars without saying anything. An entire minute has passed before Jean finally spoke.

"Are you alright?" Mor’ng slowly sighed.

"Define alright." She said with no emotion. "I finally had my revenge on that bastard and it feels every bit as good as I expected, but now, I'm not sure what to do. There is nothing left for me up here." For the first time in a long while, Jean knew exactly what he had to say.

"I felt that way too before." He said, sitting down next to Mor’ng and putting a hoof on her shoulder. "Before this whole mess, I have never even known my family. I felt like I was the only living soul on this entire moon. It was maddening to roam aimlessly around this empty world with no purpose." His grim expression slowly turned into a soft smile. "Until I found it."

"You found what?" Mor’ng blinked curiously.

"My new purpose. I have discovered a friend who was just as alone out here as I was. She was from a different world and when she returned home, I followed her. I discovered a new home, new friends and a new purpose. If you want to, I can also share it with you." Mor’ng just blinked uncertainly for a few seconds.

"Are you sure about this?" She was no longer the vengeful Green Lunar out for Ma'alefa'ak’s blood, she was just a lost and confused little girl.

"You said it yourself, there is nothing left for you up here." Jean replied. "And remember what I said back in the chamber? Our meeting could mark a new beginning for the Green and the White Lunars and serve as an example to our new world." He finished before standing up and extending his hoof to Mor’ng. "If you want."

Mor’ng hesitated. On one hoof, entering a new, unknown world with alien creatures felt like abandoning the place where she belonged, abandoning the memory of her kind and running away like a coward. On the other hoof, it beat sitting around on the lifeless moon and she would lie if she said the thought wasn't exciting. Eventually, she made up her mind.

Princess Luna entered her study after a night of dream walking full of concern and trepidation. It has been over a week since her assistant and good friend, Jean Jeans set out to track down the Phantom that had been haunting him for a while now and there have been no signs of him ever since. She was starting to worry if she would ever see him again. She didn't know what she would do without him.

As she sat down behind her desk to start her morning paperwork, she was surprised to see a tray of her favorite breakfast and a cup of coffee in the middle of it, just the way she liked it. Her hopes for her friend's safe return began to rise as she knew that Jean was the only one who knew how to make it this way. The door to her study opened again and she looked up to see Jean in his pony form walking in with a stack of papers on his back.

"Good morning, your highness." He greeted cheerfully like it was a perfectly normal morning. "I took the liberty of making you breakfast and organise your paperwork. You should be done by lunch and have the entire afternoon off for..." Jean didn't get to finish as Luna flew up from her chair and pulled the stallion into a strong embrace, making him drop everything. A pony who didn't have Jean's Lunar resilience would have probably been crushed, but he just returned the hug. "Well now, it is going to take a little longer." He joked. Luna couldn't care less, she was just happy to have her friend back.

"I was getting worried about you." She whispered into his ear. "Never disappear like that again or I'll seal you into the moon like my sister did with me."

"Well, it is not like I had much choice in the matter." Jean chuckled. Paperwork for the day was quickly forgotten as the two friends sat down and he told Luna everything that transpired in the last week. The alicorn listened intently, her reaction being a mix of fascination, shock and excitement.

"So you finally know the story behind your kind's disappearance." Luna said. "I'm sorry you had to learn it this way, but at the very least, with the guilty party punished, you can finally move on. And you are not alone anymore either."

"Indeed." Jean nodded. "I still feel like it will be a long time before I feel like I truly belong in Equestria, but with young Mor’ng by my side, I do not feel like I am the only one anymore."

"Speaking of," Luna interjected. "Where is she right now?"

"I sent her up to Manehattan." Jean replied. "Miss Sparkle was delighted by the opportunity to educate her in the history and the customs of her new home." Luna was seemingly none too pleased by this.

"You seem to put an awful lot of faith in her, Jean." She said disapprovingly.

"I do." Jean replied with no hesitation. "You on the other hoof do not seem to have as much faith in me as I believed." He then pulled out a dossier from his coat and laid it in front of his mistress on her desk. Luna's eyes widened when she realised what it was. "Care to explain this to me?"

"Jean, please! You have to realise that we must prepare for the eventuality our heroes go astray. Project Amazo is an excellent contingency plan."

"Oh, I can testify to that." Jean retorted, recalling his fight with the android. "Though I was under the impression you had no secrets from me. I promised that I would never read your mind, Luna, but I am starting to feel like you are abusing that privilege." Luna did feel slightly ashamed, but she managed to hide it.

"I have no regrets, Jean." She replied firmly. "Everything I do is to ensure the safety and protection of Equestria and its population. There will be a time where you are no longer here to save us and we have to be ready to save ourselves." They sat in a slightly awkward silence for a few seconds before Jean let out a sigh.

"I believe we will have a lot to talk about in the following days." He said before standing up. "But now if you will excuse me, I have an appointment." Luna raised an eyebrow.

"An appointment with whom?"

"Remember when you said the discovery of my true identity created much fallout?" Luna nodded. "Well, I am meeting with somepony who can set the record straight. As well as help me clear a few things in my head."

"And that is my story." The Lunar Hunter finished before taking another sip of his coffee. The spectacled mare sitting in front of him quickly finished writing down everything he just said before snapping her notebook shut.

"Well, that is one dang of a story, Mr. Hunter." Lark Cent told him excitedly. "Thank you for choosing the Daily Sun to put it out. My boss is gonna be over the moon with the sales of our copies tomorrow. No pun intended." Jean chuckled.

"You are most welcome." He said finishing his coffee.

"Are you sure this was the right place to meet?" Lark asked, looking around the small little café they were sitting in. There were a few guests and she could catch glimpses of them staring.

"Of course." Jean replied. "I thought it would show them that I consider myself to be one of them. Just an ordinary citizen giving an interview during a light meal."

"Makes sense." Lark replied before standing up and gathering her equipment. "Thanks again. I'll be sure to send you a copy once it's out."

"My pleasure. Though, in exchange for the interview, I was hoping you could give me some guidance." Lark immediately knew what Jean meant. Twilight told her everything about this guy, including his knowledge of her true identity.

"I'm always happy to help any way I can." She replied, sitting back down. "What do you need?" Jean pondered about how he should word the question for a few seconds before finally speaking.

"How do you do it?" The mare tilted her head in confusion.

"Uh... I'm not sure I understand the question."

"How do you never lose hope?" Jean continued, making sure nopony was overhearing them. "There were several times during the last week where I almost lost mine but you kept going and I just wonder how you do it. We are both the last known specimens of our respected races but you never lose hope of keeping its legacy alive."

"Well, it ain't easy." Lark explained. "My father told me that I am just as much of a child of Equus as I am of Krypton. The best of both worlds as he put it. So I know while the world I was born in is gone, the one I called home all my life is still here. And as long as it stays that way, I'll never stop fighting."

"I think I understand." Jean said. "You grew up calling the world of ponies your home. That makes it easier to see yourself as one of them. I arrived on this world much later and the only pony I truly know is Princess Luna."

"I feel for you, sugarcube." The mare replied, no longer bothering with the Lark Cent disguise. All Jean saw was Applejack right now and for some reason, he was completely certain at that moment that this was her true face. "Sounds to me that you should go out more and interact with other ponies too once in a while. And from what Twilight told me, you're not exactly alone anymore."

"Oh, she told you about her?" Jean asked in slight surprise.

"Your new surrogate little sister she is tutoring in Manehattan?" Applejack smiled brightly. "She sure did!"

"I never saw our relationship in that light." Jean admitted. Applejack looked at him for a few seconds and she finally knew the kind of guidance she needed to give him.

"Well, you came here for my advice and I will give it to you. You are not alone anymore, Jean. Unlike me, you actually have someone from your kind here with you. She will need you to be like a big brother. To support her and guide her every step of the way. I do have a little sister and while she isn't from my world, let me tell you every single thing we do together and every single moment I have with her? I wouldn't trade it for anything. So if you need something to give you hope when there seems to be none, let her be your hope, sugarcube. Because you'll never find a better reason to go on than family." She then poured herself some more coffee and raised her cup in front of Jean. "To little sisters!"

"I will drink to that." Jean chuckled as he knocked his cup against hers before they downed their content in one gulp.
"Say, Twilight seems to take good care of your little sister." Applejack said. "You think she needs some work around the library?"

"Well, she does have Spike to help her out." Jean replied. "But I suppose more help is always welcome. Why do you ask?" Applejack's face fell. What she was about to tell Jean was not a happy topic.

"Well, you see, sugarcube, it's like this…”

Author's Note

And thus wraps the first story of Omnibus 2! I hope you all enjoyed it! I wasn't sure if you guys would be engaged in it as much as the stories in Omnibus 1, given the first volume was about an OC, but it wasn't like there was a pony character from the show who could just become the pony Martian Manhunter. Well, I could have made one of the ponies from the show reveal themselves as a disguised Lunar, but that only came to my mind halfway through the story. Would that have been better? You tell me.

Anyway, in the next volume, we'll return to Manehattan where Twilight is having a little trouble with her sevret crimefighting career, but of course, she's too stubborn to accept help. As if that wasn't bad enough, Applejack asks her to give work to her little sister around the library after some family issues left her stranded with the Oranges in Manehatta. How will she handle the situation? Find out next time in...

The Batmare Volume 2: The Bat and the Bird