Chapter 8

Wow! This is so beautiful! Some time has passed since the little incident, and tomorrow at the conference, I will be attending as Twilight's personal guard here in the Crystal Empire. Twilight often complains about the problems her new wings cause, which I can definitely attest to, given the issues we had when we arrived here.

I've spent a lot of time at the drawing board over the past three days. I designed a new hunting bird for Twilight, which is actually a falcon with a magic focus. Just now, I entered my room and collapsed onto the bed. That day, the reason I need to be here now, I don't know why, but it's like a good movie—I can't watch it enough times. I close my eyes, and almost instantly, a CD player, a TV, and that particular memory CD appear.

Bender, wait! It was Twilight. As if I didn't have enough problems at that moment. What was that? What do you mean you didn't protect her? I’ve thought a lot about this from an external perspective, but it was very hard to stop myself from crying right then and there. It felt like an eternity for me at that moment.

You know, Twilight, there is an ancient tradition in my homeland. If a stallion cannot protect a mare, he is no longer worthy of that mare's attention. Looking back, it’s a good blend of Hungarian noble mentality and Japanese samurai culture.

Bender, I don't really understand this; I've never heard of anything like that, but I know it’s not your fault. I turned my head away at that, but I remember that feeling so well it still haunts me to this day, which is saying something considering I’m autistic. I never remember such small details, but this—this was somehow important… THIEF! SHE STOLE MY CROWN! My eyes open. That voice was Twilight's. What could have happened? I jump up and run out.

A sharp pain cuts into my side, just below my wing, as a unicorn bumps into me. Shortly after, the source of the pain disappears, meaning the unicorn teleported. Oops, I think I just paralyzed myself again, and…

Bender! All I see is Bender vanishing into a mirror along with the crown. Where did they go? I asked the mare lying beneath me.

Sorry, Princess. She suddenly teleported from under me and stood by the mirror. Goodbye! With that, she also went into the mirror.

What in the spirit of Equestria happened here?

My head is pounding, and suddenly, I feel strange. Where am I? I wonder. I open my eyes to see a large U-shaped building with stairs and red paint—a typical American school. Then I look at myself. I’m human now. Unlike before, my pony colors have remained. My clothes are mostly right: a loose red shirt and jeans with a six-pointed star button. Wow, why does this feel familiar? However, I still feel a bit of tingling. My hair is still standing up and tingling, which is pretty weird. Let’s get up! As I stand up, I see that my height is not what it used to be—I’m about as tall as a seven-year-old. Okay, this is definitely weird. The tingling stops as soon as I take a step, clearly just residual.

As I’m examining myself, I notice something that catches my eye the most. More precisely, it catches my eye—the prosthesis! I took it out last night, and… Great, what do I do now? Anyway, I’m not staying here.

I start walking, trying to figure out which city I might be in. I covered my eye with a blindfold for lack of a better option and kept it closed. As I walk, I see a sign.

Today, the greatest air show in history is being held with original WWII planes. The parade will also feature the two strongest tanks from each nation. I have to see this. I thought to myself, and using the "You Are Here" marker and the festival location on the map, I tried to navigate.

I turned a corner and… Well, I expected to run into a familiar face because as I walked, I saw a girl resembling Sweetie Belle. But this girl had a red shirt, red skin, the same pants, and one of her eyes was visibly not moving. I bumped into her.

"Hey, Fercsi!" She raised an eyebrow, circled me, and then her jaw dropped.

"Who are you?"

"I’m you, just from another world."

"Uh-huh, okay, what’s my favorite combat vehicle?"

"Japanese Type 2 Ka-Mi light tank, Hungarian 38M Toldi light tank, Hungarian Zrínyi assault gun."

"Okay, that’s wild, but how did you get here?" I thought about it but couldn’t really remember anything.

"I have no clue. Wait, were you born here?" She scratched her head a bit and then spoke.

"No, I was born in Ponyville, but everyone had different names there, like…"

"Ferenc, Cintia, Marta, and Masha? By the way, how did you get here?"

"Well, wait, why did you just list the Cutie Mark Crusaders?" My eyes widened, and I nearly fainted. "Anyway, a unicorn shot me."

"Alright, you know what, I’m going to the parade, and before the world ends, let's forget we met." I said and hurried off, just hearing her say.

"Okay."

Well, that was weird. I thought and didn’t slow down.

As I got back to the school with my double, I felt something was off. The human versions of the Element Bearers were running around for the crown.

Alright, this is weirder than when I stole a Toldi and wasn’t chased by half the army. It’s also strange to drive a tank with my own self, but this is over the top.

At that moment, we turned in front of the statue when a yellow, red-haired, and also yellow-skinned girl put the crown on her head. Suddenly, a magical beam shot up from the ground, and soon, a strange demon stood before us. This was not something worldly. No, no, no, this was clearly Equestrian magic.

"Twilight?!" The now-human princess turned around, and when she saw me, she was both thrilled and astonished when I peeked out from the turret. "What the heck is going on? Woah!"

I climbed back in as best as I could because that demon almost hit me with something. Alright, Bender, Bender, think, what do you do in this situation? Oh right! I quickly loaded the cannon and aimed at the demon through the periscope, which wasn’t easy considering it was above us and not in front. Take that! I pulled the trigger, and the cannon fired. The shot didn’t hit directly, but it did catch it.

"What are you doing?!" My double trembled a bit. I was about to answer, but as soon as I opened my mouth, a beam pushed the light tank backward despite the brakes, almost hitting one of the glass bases. "Okay, I’m not even asking what this is."

"Good idea, move forward before it reloads!" The tank moved, and I started shooting with a smaller gun. I get they wanted to have a firing demonstration too, but why did they need a full ammo load? That remains a mystery.

"Fire! Shoot it!" I was about to start firing again when I saw the whole school under some hypnotic spell. The cannon was loaded, so I fired again, and this time, a beam shattered the shell too close to the tank’s gun, damaging it as well. The next thing I knew, the beam pierced through the turret, and I blacked out.

The magic ultimately burst out from us and the crown. "You know, Sunset, you may have power, but the greatest strength isn’t in your possession. This is the magic of friendship." Now, where the rainbow laser stood, there was only a crater. In it was Sunset Shimmer. Then I turned towards the strange vehicle. "Bender! Are you alright?"

"Yes!?" "Yes!?"

That surprised me—two voices, both answering to Bender? What’s going on in there? Then two Benders climbed out from different points of the vehicle. Okay, again. WHAT IS GOING ON?!!!

"Don’t shout, I just bumped into my counterpart from this world, that’s all." With an oh of realization, I continued, "Well, what should we do with her then?" pointing to Sunset Shimmer. "If you want, we can finish her off."

"No, of course not! Everyone deserves a second chance." I slowly approached and managed to free her from the crater. Regret, remorse, and brokenness danced in her eyes as she cried, and almost everything she wore was torn...

That scene was too girly for me to bear watching. As they discussed what everyone should do to be a good friend, pony… uh, person, and more. Celestia placed the crown on Twilight’s head a second time, rewarding her with true justice.

Afterward, the high school students returned to the school, presumably continuing the school dance. My double and I remained with the Toldi.

"Well, looks like that’s it, right?" My other self stood and stared for a while. Then…

"Looks like you’re going back, and I’ll figure out something reasonable for the 38M."

"Yeah. Do you think we’ll see each other again?" As I sat there, I thought about it for a while, but no answer came to his lips. We sat there for a long time, and in the meantime, the moon got closer to the point where the portal would close.

"Well, I guess… the portal opens again in 30 moons. I’ll try to visit you then."

"So be it, my friend." As we agreed on this, Spike returned, looking strange as a dog, but honestly, everything here was strange.

"Bender, already back from Equestria! Tell me, how did you manage to bring this here?" The 38M is indeed not a common vehicle.

"Well, you see, it went like this...

After parting ways with my other self, I reached the parade. There were many T-34s, followed by some German tanks, Panzer III and II, a few StuG IIIs, and finally, I saw the 38M and 40M.

After that, I started looking for foods I couldn't eat in Equestria, since ponies don't eat meat. As I walked through the city, I spotted a bakery. It was getting late, and I needed a place to stay. Anything was better than the street. While I was walking, I thought to myself that I'd kill for some garlic cream soup, and I'd fight my way through Mordor for croutons. I turned into a side street with many houses with gardens, naturally without fences, and made of wood. When I was truly human, I didn't like these houses, finding them cold.

The next morning, I woke up in an alley. I had found a reasonably comfortable mattress. As I walked, I suddenly found myself back where I started—the high school. However, I saw a girl who was so out of place she looked like she came from the Middle Ages. She wore a purple dress, talked to a dog, and her clothes were disheveled. I didn't really know what to make of it, nor did I care. I decided it would be a good idea to sit down. It was nearing noon, and I felt a familiar pain I hadn't felt in a long time—my stomach ached with emptiness. I sat down at the base of the statue in front of the school, with the shadow stretching towards the building, so I sat facing the school.

As I sat there, it felt like my back wasn't touching anything, which was strange. I put my hand back but didn't feel anything. How was this possible? I thought maybe I hadn't reached back far enough, so I reached back further, and suddenly something grabbed me. I tried to pull my hand back, but whatever it was pulled harder, and I fell backward. I thought my neck would break as I bent back like a doll.

I realized I had to act quickly, so I tucked my head and rolled backward like I was doing a somersault. The next moment, I was back in Equestria. The one who "grabbed" me was Applejack, so it was no wonder I had no chance against her.

"Applejack!?" In the room were the princesses, Twilight's friends, and some guards, but Twilight and Spike were not there.

"Wait! Wait! Wait! Why didn't you stay home?" This was completely incomprehensible to me.

When they told me what had happened, I snuck back here that night...

As I reached the mirror, I heard a strange sound—well, it wasn't really strange; I just knew I wouldn't be hearing it soon. It was my horn sizzling, which would be disadvantageous here but invaluable there, I thought as I stepped through. I had walked about ten meters before I ran straight into a girl. Her hair—well, what can I say, she had been lying in a crater just a few moments ago, like one left by Yamato shells. When I saw her, I wasn't afraid, but that quickly changed when I realized I was defenseless here.

"Hey, watch where you're going!" I remembered an idea that had saved me many times abroad in the past.

Bocsi nem láttalak.! Nem láttalak, azt hittem ilyen későn már senki nincs itt. " She gave me a strange look. I knew she didn't understand what I was saying because they hardly teach Hungarian here. "oh megint bocsi! beszélsz magyarul?" She groaned and left me there. Well, this girl was exactly how they described Sunset Shimmer. I started following her from a safe distance.

I learned about her plan with the crown, and I knew I had to act.

Since I'm a learning fanatic, I knew I would find her at the school, specifically an elementary school. However, I had no idea where to find it. Sometimes problems solve themselves, as I spotted the 38M from yesterday's parade, where they were showcasing a simulated battle with it.

I stole it and almost ran over my doppelganger, then we came here, but from this point, you know the story," finished my other self.

"Wow! Wait, how did you... never mind." Then the other world's Twilight and her friends returned, and they looked worried.

"Will we see each other again?" asked the cowgirl. My other self had already half-crossed the portal, but finally looked back and saluted before disappearing. Shortly after, Twilight also walked through, and with a bright flash, the portal closed. Pinkie tried to follow her, but it was too late.

"Is this really our last adventure?"

As I lay down again as a pony, I could hardly believe the adventure I had been through. However, I hadn't told them the whole truth; in reality, it was my other self who stole the tank and found me with it after eavesdropping on Sunset’s plans. I didn’t dare tell Twilight this because if she found out, she would never see me as who I want to be.

Sleep overtook me, and I was once again sitting in front of the TV, but now a different DVD was playing, showing me what Silver Spoon had been dreaming about. I stood up and walked through a door, finding myself in the space between dreams. I still don’t understand how this works, but I love using it. I found Silver Spoon's dream and entered. I started looking at the memories and found one particularly interesting one. Diamond Tiara, Sweetie Belle, and Silver Spoon were walking together. All three had glittering eyes, the sun was setting, just hiding behind the town hall, when suddenly two stallions appeared out of nowhere. It was hard to believe how they looked: two fat, dirty, obviously smelly stallions who hadn’t seen a mare since birth.

Diamond cowardly took the rabbit’s path. Sweetie Belle and Silver Spoon, however, were caught. I turned away, not wanting to see what I dreaded, but it didn't happen. The memory began to blur. Tiara returned with a police officer and her father. I turned it off because I felt I knew what I had to do.

I entered the dream and started shaping it. The magic of dreams allows me to see everyone's memories clearly—what actually happened and how they experienced it. Silver Spoon sees Diamond Tiara as... oh, I hate the word—her mistress or lady—because she likely embellished the story. The memory was blurry towards the end, which meant only the subconscious preserved it for the "future."

I transformed the dream space into a movie theater. Silver Spoon thought it was part of the dream, sitting down with a large tub of popcorn in her hooves. I sat behind her and next to her, trying not to be suspicious, pondering how to show her the events. I decided on a good old reality vs. imagination movie and started the screening.

When Silver Spoon recognized the scene, she burst into tears and ran out. I followed her and saw her standing in front of the theater, crying. I’m not sure why, but what doesn’t work in real life works in dreams—I felt that bitter taste on my tongue that always accompanied my melancholy.

“Silver Spoon?!” As I approached her, she tried to wipe the tears from her eyes. She turned her head away from me, and although I couldn’t see, I knew she was still crying. “Do you want to talk about it?”

“Leave me alone, Bender!” she sniffled twice and then started speaking. “Why was I such an idiot to choose this gut-wrenching creep over Sweetie Belle, who kept lying about saving me alone and that I owed her one?..."

As I stood there, I felt terrible, but deep down, I knew what I did was right, though I didn’t understand why it had no practical use. I felt awful and...

I woke up abruptly, realizing the reason was Fluttershy. My face was wet. Was I crying? Fluttershy hugged me tightly, clearly worried. “What happened, sweetie? Did you have a bad dream?” I thought about it and realized what I had just done.

“Y-Yes, a very bad one,” I said, and for once in my life, I took advantage of them not knowing my real age and started crying out loud. Even though today was the last day when I was supposed to present the Falcon (the hunter), I didn’t care, just cried and cried until I couldn’t cry anymore and felt drier than the Sahara.

“Fluttershy, do you know what I dreamed?” I finally asked. She looked at me with those big eyes, just like when my mother comforted me as a child.

“Bender, no matter what you dreamed, you must remember that it was just a dream.” Her voice was so soothing that I didn’t want to tell her what happened, so we stayed like that for a while before I got down.

“Thank you, Fluttershy! I think I’m feeling better now,” I said, still sniffling.

I went to have breakfast, and then Twilight "Princess" came for me. I thought about what to say; many opposed my plan because its production requires precise, expensive work. The current military force is more for show, and many refuse to admit it.

The conference room had a large U-shaped seating arrangement and a podium made of crystal, with a smaller projection at the opposite end of the U. Princesses Luna, Celestia, and Cadance sat on the larger projection, while representatives from all significant Equestrian settlements, except Canterlot and Ponyville, and the leaders of Amethyst City, the capital of the Crystal Empire, were present, as they were the princesses. I was sitting alone in the row before the U-shaped seating, with a "Guest" sign in front of me, hung on the crystal wall separating the central area. Let’s see what happens, I thought.

“The assembly calls Apple Cake, representing Appleloosa!” echoed through the room. I was next. It’s a good thing that less important matters are handled at the beginning of the meeting, and my hunter program for the military is secondary because despite the possibilities, the engine imposes significant limitations; for example, the machine can’t perform a loop. Fortunately, a recent little adventure of mine gave me a good idea.

“The assembly calls Twilight Sparkle's protégé, Bender, to present the military program.” The room fell silent, but I clearly heard the whispers as an eight-year-old foal stood up.

“Deep breath, Bender! Deep breath!” I kept telling myself, and when I felt I wouldn’t burst into ball lightning, I started my monologue. “Distinguished leaders, I am Thunder Bender, but unlike you, I wasn’t born within Equestria’s secure borders. No, not at all; I’m a child from a poor colony many hundreds or even thousands of miles away. However, what keeps you in power now is what drove me from my home and took my parents from me. Since my arrival, I’ve had the opportunity to experience the pillars of life and security here—the Elements of Harmony. Despite my age, I see clearly that this is insufficient. We cannot rely on six magical jewels that only six ponies can use!...

“Excuse me!” I stopped my speech and saw that the representatives from Manehattan and Las Pegasus had interrupted. “What is a little foal doing at this meeting? Princess, this must be some sort of cruel joke; surely you don’t expect us to listen to a foal who can’t even control his magic?”

“Ahem! Excuse me, but we did not grant you the floor,” Princess Celestia snapped at him. “Bender, please continue!”

“Thank you, Princess. Where was I? Oh yes! Our military is not adequately equipped. The Falcon and its companion, the Silver Arrow, even if only existing as plans, are feasible and, unlike the Elements of Harmony, can be produced in significant numbers! I don’t deny that there are enemies here against whom this will be insufficient, but against forces like the one deployed during the changeling invasion, they could be effective and dangerous weapons! Moreover, it doesn’t require exceptional strength; even a flightless pegasus can operate them, and the hunter’s focus works with the magic of a weaker unicorn, while the bomber’s bombs can be released by even an earth pony.” I fell silent and sat down...

Author's Note

Hello, everyone! The truth is, I've never seen the first EQG, so I only included the beginning and the end.

The Hungarian text roughly means: "Sorry! I didn't see you, I thought no one was here this late." and "Oh, sorry again! Do you speak Hungarian?"

I hope you enjoyed the chapter. See you soon! (Mickey Mouse sound effect)