Another chance

What the? Well, this is definitely strange—both the sun and the moon are up. The sky is torn in half. I suppose this must be what the Summer Sun Celebration looks like. Fluttershy came back yesterday to help with the local festivities. It’s a pity they didn’t approve the planes. Yet! Actually, it’s still under review, but I’ll have to go to the Crystal Empire again. Mayor Mare supported the idea of setting up a small airport near Sweet Apple Acres for testing purposes. Fortunately, my assistants built five prototypes of my model while I was away.

I already had a club at school where I taught a few weak-flying pegasi the basics, but now even adult ponies might join. However, that’s not important right now. The sky is the priority.

Fluttershy! No sound or response. Flu-ter-Shy! Where are you?! Usually, if she doesn’t answer, she’s sleeping, but if I’m not mistaken, it’s a bit late for that. Her room is in the attic, directly above mine. I open the door, but aside from needing some ventilation, there’s nothing unusual. Fluttershy? I walk over to her bed, and if she didn’t like sleeping with her wings as a second blanket, you wouldn’t even know she was there. Fluttershy? I give her a little nudge, but she seems really tired.

“Alright, alright, honey, I’m getting up,” she mumbles. Honey? I never thought I’d hear that again—my mother used to call me that, but that was years ago. She must be dreaming about it, and while I’m glad, it’s not necessarily a good thing. I never wanted a new mother, although…

“Scoutalu!”

“Butterscotch?! Do you know what happened to the sky? When I woke up in the clubhouse, I expected to see the sunrise, but instead, the sky is split, and black roots are emerging from the Everfree.”

“I have no idea, but I know who might.” As soon as she said that, I perked up. Bender probably knows. Well, that excitement didn’t last long.

“Okay, let’s assume he does know, but even if he does, we can’t ask him. The Everfree has gone wild. We should tell the guards or someone—they might be able to do something.”

“I’m guessing you don’t know any spells that could deal with this?” If I hadn’t seen Applejack myself, I wouldn’t believe she could look so desperate.

“The thing is, this crazy forest is affecting my horn too,” Rarity said seriously, and I could tell she meant it. I had seen what Sweetie Belle’s horn had done.

“I have a feeling if this continues, we won’t be able to stop it. We have to act!” I wasn’t sure what I was saying, but anything was better than nothing. Until Twilight gets here, I’ll prove that planes are indeed useful. To the hangar!

“Bender, I don’t want to offend you, dear, but what exactly are you planning? I don’t think your little machines are going to stop this,” Rarity added, perhaps stalling for time, though in this situation, I couldn’t blame her. Maybe she was just scared.

“You’re right, they won’t stop it, but they can slow it down. Twilight will know what to do. But until she’s here, we have to step up and do everything we can.” That got them motivated, and they agreed to the plan. It’s amazing that it takes a little filly to get anything done.

As we headed to the hangar, I used my horn to try and tear through the roots, and it worked pretty well. Around one corner, I saw Scoutalu and all of our classmates, except for Tiara and Silver. They noticed me too, and for some reason, they seemed really happy to see me.

“Bender!” Scoutalu rushed toward me so fast that if I didn’t know better, I’d think she was flying. “We thought the Everfree had swallowed you up.”

“Well, it didn’t, but we’re going to need help. Send everyone to the Golden Oak Library. We’ll meet at Diamond’s in five minutes.”

I heard her start to say something, but the roots made it hard to move. I think it’s best to just bring the bombers and take down the clouds with the Falcon. Diamond’s makeshift hangar was nearly overgrown, but most of the planes were intact. Unfortunately, the Falcon was so overgrown that it might be damaged.

By the time we reached the library, Bender had four new planes ready. He was towing a large teardrop-shaped metal object. The area around the library had fewer roots, but it wouldn’t stay that way for long. “What’s the plan?” I asked.

“These are bombers, my newest planes. We’ll take off and destroy the roots at the edge of the Everfree Forest.” As he explained, it sounded like a good plan. Sure, why not—what could go wrong?

“Alright, tell us what to do.” He paused, thinking about the next steps. Then finally, he looked up from his hooves.

“Scoutalu, Rumble, you two will pilot one each. I’ll stay on the ground to load up a pair while you’re bombing, and we’ll search the library for anything useful against the plants. So those who aren’t loading bombs will search for solutions inside.”

I was always impressed with how quickly he figured things out. If it weren’t for how strange he was, well… “Scoutalu! Into the bomber! Let’s go, I’ll show you how to bomb.”

“Oh, sorry, Bender! On my way.” I jumped into the last empty plane and took off.

We were flying just below the black clouds. From up here, I could see how much of the area was covered by roots—it was incredible. As far as the eye could see, everything was black. We were flying over a completely overgrown field, and if I’m not mistaken, this used to be Sweet Apple Acres. Bender signaled with his light, “Follow me,” and suddenly flipped his plane upside down, diving nearly 90 degrees. The plane made a strange noise, like a rumble, but different somehow. There wasn’t much to do but follow his lead.

Flying like this felt strange, and that’s when it hit me—we didn’t know how to release the bombs! I hoped the planes themselves weren’t the bombs. Then I looked around and saw a lever on my left wing with a “B” scratched onto it. With no better option, I pulled it when Bender dropped his bombs, and I heard the same whistling sound from his plane.

The planes were almost at the ground, so I quickly turned mine around and pulled up, but the tail caught the bomb slightly. A moment later, Rumble pulled up his plane too.

When we landed, Bender parked his plane to the side and got out, the propeller slowly spinning to a stop, and we followed suit. As soon as the engine cut off, he walked over to us. “Alright, quickly switch to the fully loaded planes, and take mine too.”

“Hey, Apple Bloom! Could you help?” I saw her peeking out from behind a book. The library was packed; I’d never seen so many ponies here. Our entire class, the sisters of my friends, and their friends were all there, except Twilight and Rainbow Dash.

Bloom put down the book and quickly trotted out of the library. "Bender, how can I help?" she asked, while Bender was attaching a bomb. It looked like some sort of magnetic system, because as I watched, these things barely moved.

"You're good to go!" he said, turning to Bloom.

I heard the engines start, and the planes began to take off. "Apple Bloom, could you please help with the bombs? By the time they return, we need to have the planes ready to go again." The planes had already taken off, and I knew they'd be back soon.

"Alright, but I don't think this will work." Apple Bloom had a point. It was true that after we dropped the bombs, the roots almost immediately started growing back. But maybe, if we make them grow again in the same spot, it won't be as fast as before. "Though, you know what, I trust you. If you say this will help, then I believe you."

"Great, then let's get moving," I thought to myself.

"Push it here, and I'll attach it." I enjoy this kind of work. It's no wonder I help them out so much—if needed, they always return the favor. Though, perhaps, there might be more to it.

Bloom went behind one of the library's branches and started pushing out a large raindrop-shaped bomb. You could tell it wasn't easy, considering it weighed nearly 4.5 tons. But in this world, an average earth pony can move between 10 to 15 tons. Even I could handle it, so she'll get the hang of it, eventually, right? "Bender! What's in this thing?" Her voice strained as she clearly struggled, so I rushed over to help.

"You know, gunpowder has weight, especially when... Uh, it's really heavy. But why? When I pushed the last one here, it was fine... Something's messing with my horn, though it doesn't feel like electricity. What is this?" I looked up, and my jaw dropped. The roots had climbed onto the bomb and were blocking it, completely covering it and dragging it down. "Apple Bloom, step back!"

"Why? What's..." She panted, still straining. I grabbed her head and pointed it upward. As she saw the vines, she gasped, "Oh, I get it now. But how are we going to..."

"Leave it to me." I focused with my horn. It was hard, since I'd used a lot of magic today, but I had to do it. "Fouco!" I cast the spell, and the vine burst into flames, starting to disappear. Then I noticed something. A small part of the root had penetrated the bomb. My eyes widened, and I knew... "Apple Bloom! Run!" But it was too late. The bomb exploded, and... blackout.

The bomb hit the house behind the library, but other than that, I wasn't seriously hurt. Bender, though... he wasn’t so lucky. The bomb had left him with a hundred wounds, some deep, some shallow, but all terrible. It had nearly torn off his wings, and a small piece of his horn had broken off. His magic was running wild, and it was almost impossible to approach him. But another magic, a greenish one, appeared, seeping into his horn before vanishing.

"Bender! Bender! Are you alright?" As he lay there, it was like he had been poisoned. His body trembled uncontrollably, and as I tried to wake him, I felt he was burning up. "Rarity! Scoutalu! Somebody?!" At that moment, I saw something smoking as it fell from the sky. I didn’t know what it was, but it couldn’t be anything good. Then a strange sound echoed—a growling, perhaps the best word for it. The house in front of us had a cellar entrance, but something began to appear in its place, a blue box or something like that. It had "Police" written on it and was flickering in and out of existence.

Then, finally, it stopped. Standing before us, the door suddenly swung open, and out stepped a pony I could swear I’d seen before. He had a brown mane and coat, with an hourglass cutie mark and a look that was like nothing else. Behind him appeared another pony, one that I couldn’t quite place, but seemed familiar. "Inside, now, kids!" the stallion shouted. He didn’t need to say it twice. I hoisted Bender onto my back and rushed inside, not yet aware of what had begun.

Once inside, I was amazed at how much bigger the box was on the inside. I had seen something like this before when Twilight tried to build a small safe that could hold all her books, but was no bigger than a nightstand. This, though, was something entirely different. It was so vast that I couldn’t even see the end of the hallways. "So, what’ll it be? I think I have some soda, or maybe some cider lying around."

"Who are you?" I asked, already suspecting the answer wouldn’t be simple, but still caught off guard by it.

"The Doctor."

"Okay, but Doctor who?"

"Just the Doctor." At this point, I gave up trying to figure it out. "Oh, I see your friend is injured. What happened? Were you attacked by lashvine?" As he listed these absurd possibilities, he was examining Bender with some strange device that made a buzzing sound.

"One of his inventions exploded on us. We need to take him to a hospital."

"No need! I’ll just set this here, and... His wounds began healing instantly, and Bender suddenly looked a lot better. "There you go, he’ll be awake in no time."

"Wow! How did you...?" A grey hoof covered my mouth, and I heard a familiar "shhh" sound.

"You’re better off not thinking too hard about it. The Doctor’s always like this." The voice came from a grey, blonde-maned pegasus mare with eyes that pointed in opposite directions, and her cutie mark was a cluster of bubbles. She held a small unicorn in her arms. I didn’t have much time to ask her anything because...

"Alright, we’re here, Derpy! 992, exactly July 12th, 15:23. Take care of Dinky, and make sure they don’t find her in this timeline." I didn’t think much of that comment at the time, but then something dawned on me.

"Wait, are we in a time machine?" Everyone froze, even the pegasus standing in the doorway stared at me. Bender, who had just woken up, smiled and said...

Apple Bloom collapsed, unconscious, while the Doctor pulled a few levers and switches. After a final wave, Derpy stepped out. The city was dark, illuminated only by the horse-shaped moon. Derpy took a deep breath and headed toward her house. Her life had been decided. She was now a mother, and she had to ensure that Dinky had the best mother possible.

The TARDIS took off with its usual sound, leaving a small sapling in its place.

After we took off, the clouds suspiciously began to gather behind us. Rumble kept his head down. As we were slowly surrounded, the moment came to drop the bombs. We turned the plane around and began to descend—falling. The clouds began striking us with lightning. I panicked and pushed the nose of the plane down hard. As I neared the ground, one of the lightning bolts hit the bomb carriage, causing it to break off and crash to the ground. As I flew through the dust cloud, something got into the engine, and it started smoking. I completely lost sight of Rumble. When I emerged from the dust, I pulled the nose of the plane up and pushed the engine's power much higher. However, as I ascended, I heard a strange noise, and the engine, still smoking, shut down. The plane began to plummet toward the ground again, and I barely managed to jump out in time, landing in a crater.

When I hit the ground, I heard a crack and felt sharp pain in my front right hoof. Though I wasn’t certain, it seemed broken. As I tried to crawl out, I accidentally stepped on it, and I think that's when every animal nearby decided it was time to leave. I screamed so loudly that the wreckage of the plane, which was about ten meters away, shook. That's how I knew for sure—yes, my leg was broken.

I looked up at the sky and saw that Rumble was still fighting. He banked left, then turned right, spinning around his axis. He even tried a spiraling dive, but the clouds pursued him relentlessly. As he climbed, he went through one of the clouds, which then directly hit the plane's engine. Thick black smoke poured from the engine, and I couldn’t see what Rumble was doing. As the smoke began to clear, I saw that Rumble was now trying to escape using his own strength. But the clouds seemed furious with him—they kept striking, and one finally hit its mark.

He plummeted helplessly, unconscious. I acted. Stumbling forward on three legs, I tripped over a root. Rumble fell through another lightning bolt, which set his feathers on fire. He then crashed into the ground, where the roots quickly began to entangle him.

At that moment, I saw and heard an explosion in Ponyville.

Stepping out of the phone booth, I felt strangely disoriented, but I decided not to dwell on what had just happened, as the vines were already attacking. Apple Bloom and I barely made it to the library before Applejack threw herself onto Bloom, hugging her tightly.

"Where were you, sis? When I heard the explosion, I was so worried about you!"

"Actually, I was the one in danger, thanks for asking. I'm fine too, by the way," I muttered under my breath, but I couldn't really blame her. Suddenly, the world went yellow, which could only mean one thing—I was caught in one of Fluttershy's incredibly strong hugs.

There wasn’t time to process everything, though, as the vines broke in and immediately grabbed Applejack and the others. They were quickly engulfed, but these vines were different. As I came to my senses, I shook one off, but it was like trying to stop a flood with a sponge—all five ponies were gone.

At that moment, a root targeted me as well. Panic set in, but suddenly something happened. My horn flared for a moment, releasing a massive glowing orb, white-hot, and then the world went completely dark.

“Feri! Feri!” I couldn’t see anything but darkness. “Feri?” Yes, that was my name, though it had been so long since I heard it, I could barely remember it—even though I had been to the other world not long ago.

“Feri! Wake up, sweetie!” That voice—it was so familiar, yet I couldn’t place it.

“Who… who are you?” As soon as I asked, a memory surfaced of a similar voice—my mother’s voice. But it couldn’t be her, not after what happened in the other world.

“Don’t you remember me, sweetie? It’s me, your mother.” When I heard that, I couldn’t hold it in anymore. I blinked and squinted, trying to see, but no matter what I did, I couldn’t make anything out.

“Mom! I can’t see you! Where are you?” There was no answer, but I felt something I hadn’t felt in a long time—my mother touched my forehead, kissed it, and hugged me.

“My son, it’s been so many years since you left, but don’t forget, no matter where you are, this isn’t who you are. You don’t have to be a genius, just make up for what you’ve missed.” Her words were soothing, I won’t deny it—tears welled up in my eyes. Then she slowly let me go.

“I must go now, but don’t forget, I’ll always be with you. In your soul, in your heart.”

“Mom! Please, stay—just once more, let me—” I couldn’t finish my sentence as she hugged me tightly once more, and this time I hugged her back. A movie I had seen long ago came to mind, and somehow, it was the perfect thought in that moment. I started singing softly:

"Oh, if I were a star,
I would drip down from the sky,
My yellow light upon the earth,
But from there, I’d never return,
For I’d never see my mother again."

It was her favorite song, one I had heard as many times as I wanted, and now, I was happy to sing it for her. She let go, but she said one last thing before she disappeared.

“Never forget who your role model is—Leni…” Her voice faded away at the end, but I knew what she meant. Yes, I am Thunder Bender, the one who preserves the teachings of Lenin… But what do I preserve? I pondered and reflected, and then it hit me: empathy, helpfulness, and the sacred ideals of equality. Never again will—

“Bender! Bender, wake up!” I opened my eyes, and what I saw were… my friends. Scootaloo, Sweetie Belle, Apple Bloom, and… who’s this? His coat was jet black, but his mane was a mix of orange, red, and everything in between. He wore strange glasses and braces? I didn’t even know they had that here. And from his jawline, he was a colt, just like me. What was even weirder were his wings—they were just like mine, featherless. But his horn didn’t spark like mine. He wasn’t like me, but someone had tried very hard to make them believe he was.

“Uh, girls? What happened? And who is he?” I pointed at the colt. To my surprise, he was the one who answered.

“Well, Princess Twilight banished the vines and saved us. By the time we found you, you were already lying here, and there was this weird booth with a stallion inside. He left this behind.” He held up a small note with a few words written on it: Nightmare Moon and Daybreaker. It made no sense, that’s for sure, but I didn’t have time to think about it, because the colt spoke again.

“My name is Cycle—Daynight Cycle…”

To be continued...