The Masked Stallion

"W-w-what?" Bolt stammered, and froze right on the spot.

"Don't be afraid, Highflyer. Come closer." A voice grumbled, old but keen. Bolt slowly slid his hooves forward, waiting for a death trap to slam into his face and destroy him.

Nothing happened.

"Come on." The voice called. Bolt forced himself to walk normally towards the very dim light in the corner of the room. "Sit down." Bolt quietly sat down on the wooden bench, facing a hooded stallion just like himself.

"You seek guidance." The stallion said. He slid his hoof onto the wooden table, grasping something in the palm of his hoof. Bolt steadied his hoof onto his scabbard, ready to pull it out as soon as the hooded stallion decided to kill him.

"You try my patience." The stallion said, with the same blank tune, neither happy or angry. Bolt released his grip and looked at the hoof, gritting his teeth. The stallion revealed the item in his hoof, a piece of ripped paper. He closed it again, and revealed the item once again, but surprisingly now being little ripped pieces of paper. Bolt looked at the stallion, now throwing the pieces of paper in the air.

"Danger is coming. You must flee now. They are after you." He paused and scrambled to find something. After a few seconds, he pulled out a golden necklace with a symbol on it. "Ponyville. Train 67. Twilight Sparkle and her brother." He panted, and pushed the items off Bolt's back. "Quick!" Bolt didn't hesitate. He sprinted towards the door and looked back a second to see the hooded stallion's eyes, neon green. He looks familiar, Bolt thought. He galloped through the door and waved to the stallion  to see him smile weakly.

"Train 67, here we go." Bolt mumbled, and sped up his gallop towards the Pony Express.

Bolt fumbled with his ticket. "Uh, Train 67." He stammered, and pulled his hood down.

"Alright, y'all. But first, why in Equestria y'all gotta get a crazy getup, mister?" The trainmaster stallion asked, pointing to the cloak. Bolt gulped. "Uh...I...I...I need to surprise my foals. Ya know, the usual creepy stuff. It's..Blossom's birthday today." He lied, and smiled.

"You must really care about em'. C'mon, the train's bout to leave." Bolt followed the trainmaster to his cabin, and waved as the train chugged away.

"Next stop, Ponyville!" The train driver hollered from the front of the train. Bolt sighed. Nothing much to do. He laid on his bed, waiting for the next stop to fly by. Nothing happened.

Nuts. Bolt gritted his teeth and stood up. "Time to be productive." Bolt looked around the room and reached for a few pamphlets and maps. "Twilight Sparkle...Twilight Sparkle." Bolt quickly flipped through the pages, anxious to find the right page.

'Twilight's Library'

Bolt stopped. He read the words out loud. "Twilight's Library, a great place to borrow books and return them. Merchandise available if asked for." Merchandise? Bolt shrugged and read on. "Address: Ponyville, Sparkle Lane. Hayrides available if asked for at Ponyville Train Station." Bolt paused and took out a pen to circle the contents. Just as he was about to, there was a knock on his door.

"Ello?" A voice asked. Bolt looked at the door weirdly and coughed. "Oh! Uh, come in." He pulled his hood down to avoid any more accusations and faintly resembled a orange pony, sounding very western.

"Ah think this is supposed to be my cabin." She coughed awkwardly, and Bolt looked down. "Well, uh, I guess we can share." Bolt popped up, and started to clean up his mess of pamphlets and maps.

"What're ya readin'? Ah can help, honest." The pony smiled and Bolt couldn't help but sigh. "Uh, I need to get to Ponyville to see this pony called Twilight Sparkl-"

"Twi?" The pony questioned. "Ya wanna see Twi?" Bolt nodded faintly, and she chuckled. "Just yer luck, mister. She's one of 'em Elements of Harmony, like me. She's a close friend." Bolt raised his head hopefully. "Really?!" He almost yelled, and his face started to beam and smile. The pony grinned. "Yes sir! I'm an Element of Harmony, Honesty. My name's Applejack, and ah think y'all can get Twi to help you out. But what for?" Bolt stopped.

"Uh...just something."

"If it's sometin', silly, y'all gotta tell me what it might ought ta be!"

"Oh..alright." Bolt sighed. I guess I can trust this pony. He quickly flipped his hood. "Make a long story short. I need to find my brother. I'm part of the Canterlot Elite. Ran from town to town to find him. Encountered someone, told him my story, now the guards are after me." Applejack widened her eyes. "So YER the one Celestia's been talkin' bout!" She declared, and frowned. "She gave us orders ta report ya." Bolt frowned.

"Please don't. I need to sort this out...please." Applejack looked at Bolt's pleading face, and imagined Princess Celestia discovering the secret.

"...Awh, alright. Just a lil' bit."

The two ponies spent the rest of the train trip chatting to each other and learning about their background lives, eagerly asking questions and answering each one with great details.