Of Corruption and Sacrificeby Silversoul1kChaptersPrologue- I Almost Die... Why only Almost?!?!Chapter 1 - They Almost Solve a MysteryChapter 2 - I Give Them Almost All Their AnswersPrologue- I Almost Die... Why only Almost?!?!Prologue I Almost Die… Why Only Almost? This is where I belong. I thought to myself, as my blade sank home. Equestria is better this way. With a degree of anger unnatural to me, I twisted the dagger. The corrupt manticore that had my dagger in its back let out a cry of pain, which only served to remind me why I was here, and not among the ponies... I was a danger. Taking mercy on the corrupt beast, I ripped the dagger out of his back, and shoved it into the back of his head, ending his life immediately. I sighed. Only three months in this new world, and I was already poisoning it, in ways its true inhabitants couldn't imagine. I had woken up six months ago, to the sight of three ponies standing above me. They spoke English flawlessly, were extremely kind, and wouldn't have known I was a human if I hadn't told them... They had never heard of humans... They told me this land was called Equestria, and it was ruled by an alicorn named Princess Celestia. She was a good and just ruler, and it was a land of harmony. Equestria had its troubles, but where I was from, they seemed like nothing. Oh, that's something else; I had no memory of myself. I knew I came from Earth, I knew of humanity, and I knew that, where I was from, there were no talking ponies. I knew of Earth, its people, its cultures, and its troubles, but the only things I knew about myself, were my name, and my skill with my saber and dagger. I had no idea who I was, or what I was doing here. I stayed with the kind ponies for a month, then things started going wrong. They lived on the edge of the Everfree Forest, and were used to the occasional monster attacks, but after I arrived they grew in frequency and ferocity. The monsters seemed to target me specifically, and they started looking different. Mainly, they looked darker. Their teeth became longer and sharper. In general, they just became more dangerous and evil, both in how they looked, and how they acted. I dismounted the corrupt manticore I had just killed, removed my dagger from its head, and cringed. No matter how many of these creature I killed, two things remained the same. First, I hated it. I hated having to kill, and only my self-preservation instinct could make me land a death blow on another creature. Secondly, I hated blood… and brains… and mess… and mud… Yeah, I was a little prissy like that. Wiping my dagger blade on the creature’s mane, I looked down at myself… And cringed again. From head to toe, all five feet, nine inches of me were covered in blood… and mud. My pale white skin and tight black leather armor was turned red and brown from the blood and mud. I could feel the mess my brown hair had become. Now, I was never very concerned with looking nice, but I hated feeling messy… And it was taking all my self-control to not have a fit over how gross I felt. Turning toward my cave/home I had found in the forest, my thoughts turned toward the bath I was going to take when I got back. Beyond the blood, mud, and organs the beast had gotten on me, I knew that the mess I was, wasn’t just the manticore’s remains. The beast had managed a few hits on me it the tussle. Nothing overly deep, and defiantly nothing to worry about. They were just minor annoyances, except for one slash it had gotten on my right forearm; that one actually hurt. The armor on my right arm was probably ruined, and the rest of it was just managing to not fall apart. I probably only had a few more fights left in me before I died. I was so caught up in my thoughts, I didn’t sense the approach of the reaver until it was upon me. Reavers were small, dark skinned humanoids, with two legs, two arms, and three fingers and three toes at the end of each limb. The inside of each finger and toe was as sharp as a razor. Their eyes looked like a cross between a bug’s eye, and a gemstone. Their mouths were too small to be used as a weapon, so I never paid them much attention. They were a surprisingly stealthy lot, considering their claws. As I felt his claw shred into my back, I let out a curse, and twisted into a forward roll, coming up facing the direction I came from, and in self-defense mode. In my self-defense mode, everything seemed to move slower, everything seemed to have enhanced detail, and only the most extreme pain got through. I had no idea why my perception of the world seemed to change like this when I was in any perceived danger, but I didn’t question it. If it wasn’t for this perception change, I know I would be dead, at least twelve times over by now. As I came up in a crouch and turned to face my attacker, he was nowhere to be seen. I knew what the sneaky bastard had done half a second too late. Another wave of pain burned across my back, as the reaver, who had followed my roll and stayed at my back as I turned and came to a kneel, took another swing with his razor like talons. Knowing another roll would produce the same results, I took my second option… Which was an option that I knew would have my fighting instructor (whoever he/she was) turning in his/her grave, and (with my back slashed open) would have every doctor in existence cringing. I went into a backward somersault, which I ended halfway through by propelling myself into the air with my arms, causing me to flip right over, and land behind the surprised reaver. “Bitch” I muttered to myself, as I rammed my saber into the base of its neck, and down its spine. The things head snapped back as it’s whole body went ridged and died almost instantly. That was the nice thing about reavers; they had no voice box, so when they died, they wouldn’t yell and attract other monsters. I grinned to myself. Normally I didn’t like killing, but these things were just pure evil and needed to be put down. Then my grin turned into a grimace and loud curse as my adrenaline faded, and I truly registered the pain from the damage the creature had done to my back, combined with the damage the manticore had caused, and my own unorthodox movements which had caused those injuries to become exponentially worse. I fell to my knees from the pain. “Damn bastard,” I muttered to myself. I didn’t care so much about dying, as that would actually be a boon to this peaceful world, and would be more than worth it for the good my death would cause the ponies. No, I didn’t care that I would die, I cared that dying hurt so damn much. Against the advice of every doctor on the planet, I decided I would try to move. After all, if I got to my cave, my chances of being eaten alive were smaller… And THAT would be an even worse way to go, I’m sure. I made it about twenty feet, and then collapsed from pain and exhaustion, letting out a loud “SHIT” as I did so… Well, I thought to myself, my sarcastic sense of humor coming out, THAT’S not gonna happen, I guess I didn't have a couple more fights left in me… At least it’ll finally be over, and I won’t hurt this perfect planet any longer. As I lay on my stomach, my lifeblood beginning to pool around me, I realized it was funny how my last thoughts before I was going to die, were for ponies I never even knew… But of course, fate’s a bitch, and wouldn't let me go that easily… Chapter 1 - They Almost Solve a MysteryChapter 1 They Almost Solve a Mystery Twilight Sparkle was pacing in her library, waiting for a letter from her mentor. Princess Celestia had sent her letter two days ago, letting her know that she might soon have a very important mission for Twilight and her friends. The purple unicorn mare was starting to lose patience. If was such an important mission, she thought to herself, why is it taking her so long to tell me what it is? That’s it! “SPIKE,” she shouted. About two seconds later, a small purple dragon poked his head around the kitchen doorway. “What is it, Twi? I was in the middle of third breakfast… Or was it first lunch?” he said, trying to remember what meal he was actually eating. “Sorry, Spike, but I need to write a letter to the Princess,” She told him, in a slightly apologetic voice. The baby dragon sighed. “It’s OK. Give me a sec,” He gathered the necessary parchment, quill, and ink, and prepared to write. “OK, shoot.” Twilight took a deep breath and began: “Dear Princess Celestia, I was wondering if you were still- And at that very moment, Spike began to gag, a belched up a sealed scroll in a cloud of smoke. “Oh,” Twilight said, startled. “Never mind about that letter, Spike” She indicated the letter he had been writing, then the one he had just belched up. “I’m sure this one will make the other one unnecessary” The dragon let out a huffy snort, crumpled up the letter he had been writing, and returned to the kitchen to finish his meal. The purple mare wasn’t even aware he had left, she was so absorbed in the letter the Princess had sent her. “My dearest student, Twilight Sparkle, I have a situation that requires the immediate attention of you, and your friends. Lately there have been a disturbing number of violent monster attacks in and around the Everfree Forest. Of this, I’m sure you are aware, as I know you closely follow such news. What you may not be aware of, is the reason for the frequency and ferocity of these attacks. Through examinations conducted by my sister and I of the animals conducting these attacks, it is clear they have been warped by some corruptive influence. The most disturbing trend in these animals, in that neither my sister nor I seem able to reverse its effects. While we believe Discord is NOT responsible for this corruption, it still bears his chaotic form of corruption, so it would not be wise for my sister or I to leave Canterlot while it remains a possibility he is responsible. Therefore, it becomes YOUR duty to investigate the source of this corruption, which seems to reside somewhere in the Everfree Forest near Ponyville. Please, take all of your friends who are available to search RIGHT NOW, and do not wait on those who have prior engagements. It is imperative you find the source as soon as possible, before somepony loses their life. Wishing you the utmost luck in your search, Princess Celestia Ten minutes later, Twilight had her pack on, and was galloping toward Rainbow Dash’s cloud house. She would see if Dash was available, and if she was, Twilight would have her check on the others as Dash could do it much faster than she herself could. As she came to a stop at Dash’s manor, she shouted, “Rainbow Dash! Are you up there?” After about three seconds she heard a sarcastic, “No…” It was definitely Rainbow’s hoarse, and bored voice. “Dash!” the annoyed unicorn yelled, “This is important!” The cyan pegasus with a rainbow mane and tail was still not very concerned, until she remembered what happened last time she didn’t take Twi seriously when she said something was important. Three seconds later, she was hovering in front of the unicorn, and asked her voice full of concern, “What is it Twi?” Twilight explained the mission. “…And I was hoping you could gather the others who were available to help us go investigate.” She finished. Rainbow Dash nodded. “You can count on me,” The element of loyalty told her, “I’ll meet you over by Fluttershy’s cottage, and we can start our search there.” Twilight nodded back. “OK, I’ll meet you there.” The unicorn agreed, before charging her teleportation spell, and transporting herself to Fluttershy’s in the blink of an eye. After telling Fluttershy the importance of the mission, making numerous promises about everyponies’ safety, and telling her the mission might be entirely impossible without her, she very reluctantly agreed to go into the forest with them. After about fifteen minutes, Rainbow Dash showed up, followed by Rarity… And nopony else. “Dash, where are Pinkie Pie and Applejack?” Twilight asked. Rainbow Dash huffed. “Well, the Cakes went to Manehatten for a sweets convention, so Pinkie has to watch the little ones, and wouldn’t just take them with us. Applejack went to the same convention, trying to get ideas for new apple based sweets to sell.” Rainbow Dash rolled her eyes. “Yeah, I know those are dumb reasons, but there was nothing I could do.” Twilight decided not to argue the fact that those WERE VERY good reasons not to come, and just nodded instead. “OK, we can do this with just the three of us. Does everypony know our mission?” She looked around, and all the ponies made reactions in positive. “Then let’s get out there and look-” She was interrupted as Dash zoomed out over the Forest. “Together…” Twilight finished lamely. She sighed, but then Rarity spoke up. “Oh darling, don’t worry. I’m sure Rainbow Dash will come find us sooner or later, and until then, she’s a strong pony and is perfectly capable of taking care of herself.” “I hope you’re right,” Twilight responded, as the rest of the ponies started searching on hoof. After about an hour of searching, a thoroughly shaken Rainbow Dash joined them. “Have you girls seen it yet?” She asked them shakily. “Why, whatever do you mean, Rainbow Dash?” Rarity asked, obviously alarmed at Dash’s rapid mood change. Dash turned to address Twilight. “Twi, the trees up there are… Wrong… I just can’t think of another word for it.” She said, shaking her head. “You’ll know what I mean in a minute.” Dash began walking with the rest of them, slowly and subdued. Fluttershy fell back with Rainbow, and tried to comfort her, while Rarity began to speak to Twilight slightly further ahead. “Umm… Twilight, what do you think Dash meant by ‘Wrong trees’?” Asked Rarity. Twilight just shook her head. “I have no idea… But we’re about find out.” She said as they came to a small clearing. And find out, they did. All the trees on their side of the clearing looked like normal Everfree Forest trees (an oxymoron, if ever there was one), but the ones on the far side seemed… Darker, more wild looking, even more than the rest of the trees in the Everfree Forest. They seemed to emanate an aura of wrongness, like they had come straight from a Stable King horror novel. The trees Nightmare Moon changed seemed scary, but not dangerous like these, and they were nothing like Discord’s style. A shiver passed through the four mares as they looked at the trees, and Fluttershy actually squeaked in terror, and hid behind Rainbow Dash, shuddering. Dash herself was also terrified of the trees, but her simple macho attitude made her stand firm on the outside. Rarity was transfixed on the trees, and the normal part of her was scared, but the dress maker inside of her, had her examining, albeit from a distance, the intricate, almost woven pattern of a small section the tree branches. Twilight was scared too, but her curiosity got the better of her. She began to approach the trees. “Why do they look like that?” She asked nopony in particular. Rarity gave an “Ah ha,” and approached the odd section of tree branches, still mildly intimidated, but no longer scared. “What are you doing?” Twilight asked, concerned. “This,” she said simply, as reached up her hoof to the area of trees, and pushed. Only, that particular part of the foliage wasn’t exactly solid. Rarity’s push separated the tree branches that had been woven across an almost pony sized hole in a extremely large tree. “OH MY” Rarity let out a small scream as she fell through the hole, and into the tree. “Rarity!” The other three yelled after her, as they plunged into the hole. “What’s wrong?” Dash yelled, as their eyes adjusted to the gloom of the interior. “Oh, nothing’s wrong, it’s just this tree is surprisingly clean.” Rarity responded, in a calm, yet interested tone. All the other mares groaned, but as their eyes adjusted, they had to agree with her. There was a small, but neat bed pallet made of grass in one corner, something that looked a bit like a chair on one side, and a large, deep pool of clean looking water at the very back. And the whole thing was VERY neat. Before they really got a chance to look around though, they heard a yell from nearby. “SHIT” They didn’t recognize the word, but the voice sounded like a stallion, and he sounded like he was in serious pain. They looked at each other, but before any of them could say anything, Fluttershy, who of course couldn’t stand the thought of just standing there while somepony was in pain, galloped out the entrance of the cave. “Fluttershy, wait!” Twilight yelled, but the kind yellow pegasus was already out gone. Twi turned to Dash and Rarity. “We have to go after her,” they all said together, then turned and gave chase. To their surprise, Fluttershy hadn’t gone that far… In fact, she was only at the edge of the clearing to their left. She was just staring out from behind a tree. “Fluttershy, what are you looking at, dear?” Asked Rarity. Fluttershy just nodded in front of her. They looked, and saw what appeared to be a bipedal, nearly hairless… Monkey? It was wearing a black suit of some sort, and was laying on its stomach. Its back was torn to shreds, and bleeding heavily, but even so, fear of the unknown creature stopped Fluttershy from approaching it. Rarity went woozy, and fell to the ground, but when she realized nopony was paying her any attention, she stood back up with a little huff. Dash was just stunned. She’d seen her share of blood from training accidents, but never quite this much at once. Twilight, however, kept her wits about her. “It may be dying,” She said, mentally taking on the role of a field medic. “It’s lost a lot of blood. We need to make sure it’s still alive, and if it is, stop the bleeding and get it to a hospital.” After glancing at the others, and realizing they were going to be no help in this, she sighed and used her magic to check it for a heartbeat. There was one, but it was faint and if they didn’t stop the bleeding soon, it would die. Taking a deep breath, and focusing her magic, she managed to heal its wounds enough to stop the bleeding before her magic failed her. Healing a creature when she knew nothing about its anatomy was a very tricky and tiring process, and she hadn’t studied healing magic much as it was. She turned to the others. “Snap out of it!” She yelled at them, and, to her surprise, they did. “What do you need us to do, Twi?” Dash said. “OK, Fluttershy, it’s unconscious, but just in case it wakes up, I want you to be talking to it to keep it calm.” Fluttershy nodded. “Rarity, can you whip up a stretcher from those tree branches that were covering that hole?” Again, a nod. “Dash, you and Rarity, with her magic, will need to carry it, as I’m out of magic. You all got that?” They nodded, even Rarity, who wasn’t happy about having to carry the thing, even if it WAS with her magic. “Good,” Twilight said, “First we get this thing to a hospital and healed… Then we find out what it is and what it’s doing here.” Chapter 2 - I Give Them Almost All Their AnswersChapter 2 I Give Them Almost All Their Answers The first thing I was aware of, was pain. My back felt like it had been put through a meat grinder, and knowing some of the animals in the Everfree Forest, that may not have been far from the truth. Then I remembered what happened. I had been attacked by a reaver, and it had managed two very powerful and direct slashes along my back, which had left it in ribbons. But the fact I felt pain meant I wasn’t dead. How? If the blood loss hadn’t killed me, then some animal should have found and eaten me. In the unlikely circumstance neither of those happened, infection alone should had done me in. How was I still alive? And more importantly, why was I still alive? I believe everything happens for a purpose, but what was the purpose in me staying alive? All I did was cause pain to others… I gave myself a quick mental shake. No point in becoming so philosophical right now. That would only lead to depression. First things first, I thought to myself, let’s see where we are. I tried to open one eye, and my efforts were rewarded… By a burning sensation in my retina from electric light. My eyes snapped shut, and I groaned. There was only one place that would be so cruel to a person who was suffering from deathly injures. A hospital. So I’m in a hospital, I thought to myself, after my eye stopped burning, that must mean someone saved me… Or somepony. I began to hear voices, but they were muted, like I had cotton in my ears. Before I could decide whether or not it was worth trying to open my eyes and see them, I began to feel very tired. Somehow, a part of me recognized the feeling, even though I couldn’t ever remember feeling it. Sedative… They’re putting me back to sleep, I thought, annoyed, as I lost consciousness. I awoke some time later, and the blinding light had been removed. Thank god, I thought, maybe the hospitals in Equestria aren’t as bad as the ones I know of from Earth. I managed to turn my head from side to side and study the room… And the twisting of my shoulders reopened the gashes on my upper back. This time I managed to overcome the pain with nothing more than a grunt, and study the room. Sadly, it was less than impressive. It looked just like a normal hospital room from Earth, except the diagrams of humans and human body parts were replaced with ones of ponies and pony body parts. A nurse pony rushed into the room, no doubt alerted to my activity by the numerous devices they had me hooked up to. She was an almost starched white, with a pink mane and a red plus on her flank. I just turned and glared at her, freezing her in her tracks. I was in no mood to be sedated again. “Where am I?” I asked her, not really expecting a response. I got one, though. “Y-y-you are in P-P-Ponyville H-Hospital, S-sir.” She stammered, clearly unnerved by me, but why she was unnerved I had no idea. “The unicorn Twilight Sparkle, and a few of her friends brought you in about four days ago.” She seemed to be getting her nerve back, but I wasn’t concerned about that. I had been in the hospital for FOUR DAYS?!?! They had kept me constantly sedated for FOUR DAYS?!?! I could have DIED from simple malnutrition, as they had no idea what I, as a human, needed to stay alive. “How did you know what to feed me?” I asked. “A book,” Said a voice from the door. It was a sure sign of the extent of my injuries that I hadn’t heard her approach the door. Ponies weren’t exactly the stealthiest of creatures, especially unicorns, which this one happened to be. Standing a bit over four feet high, the average for ponies, with a light lavender coat, purple eyes, a dark blue mane and tail with a purple-pink highlight in both, and a purple and white star cutie mark; she was an interesting sight. As she entered, the nurse who had come in to see me decided I was in good hands (hooves?) and she could go attend to her other duties. I wonder if purple’s her favorite color, I thought to myself sarcastically. Out loud, however, I asked, “And who are you?” “I am Twilight Sparkle, personal student and friend of Princess Celestia, and wielder of the Element of Magic in the Elements of Harmony… And you are?” She sounded very official, almost rehearsed. I sighed. Sometimes I wish I actually had a title, but no I was just, “Lavitz, a human,” I told her. Her eyes widened. “So you ARE a human,” She gasped, and continued excitedly, “I thought that’s what you looked like, from the diagrams, but my book said they were all extinct CENTURIES ago,” She hung her head sadly, “That they killed themselves off in a ‘War’” She said that last word, like it was something she didn’t quite understand, but knew it was a sad thing. Before I could ask her more on the subject, though, a nurse wheeled in a stretcher with an irate, cyan colored pegasus on it. “Come on, I’m fine, see?” She said in a slightly hoarse, scratchy voice. She tried to move her right foreleg, which was in a sling, but it only caused her to grimace. She continued, still trying to convince the nurse she didn’t need to stay. “Well, I will be fine soon, so there’s no reason to put me in the hospital for a few days.” “Now, Rainbow Dash,” said a doctor who had followed them in, “It’s just precautionary. You’ll just be here a couple nights, and once we know it’s healing up right, we’ll let you out. And next time you practice your ‘Buccaneer Blitz,’ maybe you’ll be more careful.” He turned to leave, but caught sight of me, up and awake, and froze. Twilight saw this, cantered up to him, and whispered something in his ear. He nodded at her, motioned to the nurse who wheeled the blue one, Rainbow Dash, in the room, and they left. “Twi, what are you doing here? I just got here.” Said the cyan pegasus puzzled. She obviously hadn’t seen me yet. Twilight nodded toward my bed. “Dash, let me introduce your bunk mate, Lavitz.” Dash’s look turned from puzzled to shocked when she saw me. This gave me time to examine her closer. She had a cyan body coat, rosy red eyes, a mane and tail that looked slightly unkempt and had all the colors of the rainbow, surprisingly in the right order, too, and cutie mark that was a cloud with a rainbow colored lightning bolt coming out of it. This mare could be fun to hang out with, she hates hospitals as much as I do, I thought to myself. I was about to reach out a hand to shake her hoof in greeting, then I remembered my predicament. “Well,” I began, “I would shake your hoof, but seeing as how I can’t move my shoulders without opening up my cuts…” I almost shrugged, then remembered again how bad an idea that was. This was going to take a while to get used to. “Uhh… You can talk?” She asked with wonder. I furrowed my brow in annoyance, but before I could say anything, Twilight stepped in. “Rainbow Dash,” She said sounding affronted. “I told you he was a human and that humans could talk. They are just as intelligent as anypony. Or, they were…” She turned to me. “I was meaning to ask, where are you from? Nopony has seen a human in millions years. We assumed they were either extinct, or just an old mare’s tale.” I chuckled. “Well, I wish I could tell you,” I said, “but it’s a bit hard to give you an answer, when I don’t even know where I’m from.” I tapped the side of my head. “Amnesia will do that to you. I could tell you anything you want to know about humans, in general, but I can’t remember my own history beyond three months ago.” I suddenly went silent remembering what I had caused in the last three months. Twilight didn’t notice though. She was too wrapped up in her own thoughts to realize I had just went silent. About three months ago, she had been sent a letter by Celestia telling Twi that a disturbance had occurred near Ponyville, and to keep her eyes and ears open in the future. And Twi had done that for the next three weeks, and just about the time she decided it was nothing, the stories started popping up about the creatures in the Everfree Forest becoming more and more violent. Those stories were what had led her to this moment, and this human. It was too much to be just coincidence. At the same time, I was wondering if they would kill me if I told them what I had been unintentionally causing… And if they would kill me, would it fix the problem? Dash, however, was growing bored with the silence. “So Lavitz… How fast are most humans?” I chuckled. “Most humans are quite slow, maxing out at only about a fifteen mile per hour sprint. I am not a normal human, however. If I push myself, I can get up to about forty-five miles per hour, and under certain circumstances, even higher… No idea how I can do it, though. According to normal human anatomy, that degree of self-induced speed should be physically impossible.” I shrugged, and cringed in pain as I remembered that was a bad idea. Dash didn’t understand everything that was said there, it sounded more eggheady like something Twilight would say, but she got that I moved impossibly fast for a human, and she wanted to see how I matched up against “The Fastest Flyer In Equestria.” “Cool, but there’s no way a two legged human like you could best ‘The Fastest Flyer In All of Equestria’” She boasted, smirking at me. I grinned, and decided it would be worth it to rise to the bait. “All right, Dash, you’re on… As soon as we can both walk again” She looked at my back, and I looked at her broken leg. Then we both laughed, realizing it might be quite a while before that race actually happened. Twilight watched this interaction with narrowed eyes. She knew there was some connection between me and this corruption in the Everfree Forest, but she didn’t know what that connection was. She decided she would write to the Princess, and see what she knew about humans, and what their powers might be. She was brought out of her contemplation by the sound of her name. “I’m sorry, what was that, Dash?” “I said,” Dash began, annoyed that she had to repeat herself, “You’ll need to tell Pinkie about him, so she can get started on planning his welcome to Ponyville party, as well as telling the others so they can come visit us.” “You don’t need to have this… Pinkie, go through the trouble of hosting me a welcome party.” I told them, especially since you’ll all want me gone once you find out what I cause, I added to myself. Twilight was about to say something, but Rainbow Dash cut her off without even realizing it. “Don’t worry, Pinky Pie lives off of parties. She’d be upset if you told her not to give you a welcome to Ponyville party.” Dash shrugged, “It’s kinda her thing, hosting parties.” I sighed, already recognizing defeat. “Fine, she can give me a welcoming party, but only a few peop- uh, ponies, OK? I’m not a big ‘people person’ as we humans say. Let’s say, ten ponies at the very most.” Dash and Twilight looked at each other. Ten ponies? This was going to be one of the smallest welcoming parties Pinky had ever hosted, but it would still be a welcoming party. “All right,” Twilight said, knowing that pushing me might not be a good idea. “I’ll let her know about him, and she’ll get your party set up for when you get out of the hospital,” She shot me a mischievous grin as she left. “In about two weeks.” I groaned. Two weeks? I’d die of boredom before I got out of here. I glanced over at the cyan colored mare in the next bed, who appeared to be pouting about being stuck in the hospital for a few days, instead of out practicing her flying. Well, I thought to myself, at least I have a cool roommate for a while. Since I may be here a while, might as well get to know some ponies. “So, Rainbow Dash, what do you do here in Ponyville?”
Prologue- I Almost Die... Why only Almost?!?!Prologue I Almost Die… Why Only Almost? This is where I belong. I thought to myself, as my blade sank home. Equestria is better this way. With a degree of anger unnatural to me, I twisted the dagger. The corrupt manticore that had my dagger in its back let out a cry of pain, which only served to remind me why I was here, and not among the ponies... I was a danger. Taking mercy on the corrupt beast, I ripped the dagger out of his back, and shoved it into the back of his head, ending his life immediately. I sighed. Only three months in this new world, and I was already poisoning it, in ways its true inhabitants couldn't imagine. I had woken up six months ago, to the sight of three ponies standing above me. They spoke English flawlessly, were extremely kind, and wouldn't have known I was a human if I hadn't told them... They had never heard of humans... They told me this land was called Equestria, and it was ruled by an alicorn named Princess Celestia. She was a good and just ruler, and it was a land of harmony. Equestria had its troubles, but where I was from, they seemed like nothing. Oh, that's something else; I had no memory of myself. I knew I came from Earth, I knew of humanity, and I knew that, where I was from, there were no talking ponies. I knew of Earth, its people, its cultures, and its troubles, but the only things I knew about myself, were my name, and my skill with my saber and dagger. I had no idea who I was, or what I was doing here. I stayed with the kind ponies for a month, then things started going wrong. They lived on the edge of the Everfree Forest, and were used to the occasional monster attacks, but after I arrived they grew in frequency and ferocity. The monsters seemed to target me specifically, and they started looking different. Mainly, they looked darker. Their teeth became longer and sharper. In general, they just became more dangerous and evil, both in how they looked, and how they acted. I dismounted the corrupt manticore I had just killed, removed my dagger from its head, and cringed. No matter how many of these creature I killed, two things remained the same. First, I hated it. I hated having to kill, and only my self-preservation instinct could make me land a death blow on another creature. Secondly, I hated blood… and brains… and mess… and mud… Yeah, I was a little prissy like that. Wiping my dagger blade on the creature’s mane, I looked down at myself… And cringed again. From head to toe, all five feet, nine inches of me were covered in blood… and mud. My pale white skin and tight black leather armor was turned red and brown from the blood and mud. I could feel the mess my brown hair had become. Now, I was never very concerned with looking nice, but I hated feeling messy… And it was taking all my self-control to not have a fit over how gross I felt. Turning toward my cave/home I had found in the forest, my thoughts turned toward the bath I was going to take when I got back. Beyond the blood, mud, and organs the beast had gotten on me, I knew that the mess I was, wasn’t just the manticore’s remains. The beast had managed a few hits on me it the tussle. Nothing overly deep, and defiantly nothing to worry about. They were just minor annoyances, except for one slash it had gotten on my right forearm; that one actually hurt. The armor on my right arm was probably ruined, and the rest of it was just managing to not fall apart. I probably only had a few more fights left in me before I died. I was so caught up in my thoughts, I didn’t sense the approach of the reaver until it was upon me. Reavers were small, dark skinned humanoids, with two legs, two arms, and three fingers and three toes at the end of each limb. The inside of each finger and toe was as sharp as a razor. Their eyes looked like a cross between a bug’s eye, and a gemstone. Their mouths were too small to be used as a weapon, so I never paid them much attention. They were a surprisingly stealthy lot, considering their claws. As I felt his claw shred into my back, I let out a curse, and twisted into a forward roll, coming up facing the direction I came from, and in self-defense mode. In my self-defense mode, everything seemed to move slower, everything seemed to have enhanced detail, and only the most extreme pain got through. I had no idea why my perception of the world seemed to change like this when I was in any perceived danger, but I didn’t question it. If it wasn’t for this perception change, I know I would be dead, at least twelve times over by now. As I came up in a crouch and turned to face my attacker, he was nowhere to be seen. I knew what the sneaky bastard had done half a second too late. Another wave of pain burned across my back, as the reaver, who had followed my roll and stayed at my back as I turned and came to a kneel, took another swing with his razor like talons. Knowing another roll would produce the same results, I took my second option… Which was an option that I knew would have my fighting instructor (whoever he/she was) turning in his/her grave, and (with my back slashed open) would have every doctor in existence cringing. I went into a backward somersault, which I ended halfway through by propelling myself into the air with my arms, causing me to flip right over, and land behind the surprised reaver. “Bitch” I muttered to myself, as I rammed my saber into the base of its neck, and down its spine. The things head snapped back as it’s whole body went ridged and died almost instantly. That was the nice thing about reavers; they had no voice box, so when they died, they wouldn’t yell and attract other monsters. I grinned to myself. Normally I didn’t like killing, but these things were just pure evil and needed to be put down. Then my grin turned into a grimace and loud curse as my adrenaline faded, and I truly registered the pain from the damage the creature had done to my back, combined with the damage the manticore had caused, and my own unorthodox movements which had caused those injuries to become exponentially worse. I fell to my knees from the pain. “Damn bastard,” I muttered to myself. I didn’t care so much about dying, as that would actually be a boon to this peaceful world, and would be more than worth it for the good my death would cause the ponies. No, I didn’t care that I would die, I cared that dying hurt so damn much. Against the advice of every doctor on the planet, I decided I would try to move. After all, if I got to my cave, my chances of being eaten alive were smaller… And THAT would be an even worse way to go, I’m sure. I made it about twenty feet, and then collapsed from pain and exhaustion, letting out a loud “SHIT” as I did so… Well, I thought to myself, my sarcastic sense of humor coming out, THAT’S not gonna happen, I guess I didn't have a couple more fights left in me… At least it’ll finally be over, and I won’t hurt this perfect planet any longer. As I lay on my stomach, my lifeblood beginning to pool around me, I realized it was funny how my last thoughts before I was going to die, were for ponies I never even knew… But of course, fate’s a bitch, and wouldn't let me go that easily…
Chapter 1 - They Almost Solve a MysteryChapter 1 They Almost Solve a Mystery Twilight Sparkle was pacing in her library, waiting for a letter from her mentor. Princess Celestia had sent her letter two days ago, letting her know that she might soon have a very important mission for Twilight and her friends. The purple unicorn mare was starting to lose patience. If was such an important mission, she thought to herself, why is it taking her so long to tell me what it is? That’s it! “SPIKE,” she shouted. About two seconds later, a small purple dragon poked his head around the kitchen doorway. “What is it, Twi? I was in the middle of third breakfast… Or was it first lunch?” he said, trying to remember what meal he was actually eating. “Sorry, Spike, but I need to write a letter to the Princess,” She told him, in a slightly apologetic voice. The baby dragon sighed. “It’s OK. Give me a sec,” He gathered the necessary parchment, quill, and ink, and prepared to write. “OK, shoot.” Twilight took a deep breath and began: “Dear Princess Celestia, I was wondering if you were still- And at that very moment, Spike began to gag, a belched up a sealed scroll in a cloud of smoke. “Oh,” Twilight said, startled. “Never mind about that letter, Spike” She indicated the letter he had been writing, then the one he had just belched up. “I’m sure this one will make the other one unnecessary” The dragon let out a huffy snort, crumpled up the letter he had been writing, and returned to the kitchen to finish his meal. The purple mare wasn’t even aware he had left, she was so absorbed in the letter the Princess had sent her. “My dearest student, Twilight Sparkle, I have a situation that requires the immediate attention of you, and your friends. Lately there have been a disturbing number of violent monster attacks in and around the Everfree Forest. Of this, I’m sure you are aware, as I know you closely follow such news. What you may not be aware of, is the reason for the frequency and ferocity of these attacks. Through examinations conducted by my sister and I of the animals conducting these attacks, it is clear they have been warped by some corruptive influence. The most disturbing trend in these animals, in that neither my sister nor I seem able to reverse its effects. While we believe Discord is NOT responsible for this corruption, it still bears his chaotic form of corruption, so it would not be wise for my sister or I to leave Canterlot while it remains a possibility he is responsible. Therefore, it becomes YOUR duty to investigate the source of this corruption, which seems to reside somewhere in the Everfree Forest near Ponyville. Please, take all of your friends who are available to search RIGHT NOW, and do not wait on those who have prior engagements. It is imperative you find the source as soon as possible, before somepony loses their life. Wishing you the utmost luck in your search, Princess Celestia Ten minutes later, Twilight had her pack on, and was galloping toward Rainbow Dash’s cloud house. She would see if Dash was available, and if she was, Twilight would have her check on the others as Dash could do it much faster than she herself could. As she came to a stop at Dash’s manor, she shouted, “Rainbow Dash! Are you up there?” After about three seconds she heard a sarcastic, “No…” It was definitely Rainbow’s hoarse, and bored voice. “Dash!” the annoyed unicorn yelled, “This is important!” The cyan pegasus with a rainbow mane and tail was still not very concerned, until she remembered what happened last time she didn’t take Twi seriously when she said something was important. Three seconds later, she was hovering in front of the unicorn, and asked her voice full of concern, “What is it Twi?” Twilight explained the mission. “…And I was hoping you could gather the others who were available to help us go investigate.” She finished. Rainbow Dash nodded. “You can count on me,” The element of loyalty told her, “I’ll meet you over by Fluttershy’s cottage, and we can start our search there.” Twilight nodded back. “OK, I’ll meet you there.” The unicorn agreed, before charging her teleportation spell, and transporting herself to Fluttershy’s in the blink of an eye. After telling Fluttershy the importance of the mission, making numerous promises about everyponies’ safety, and telling her the mission might be entirely impossible without her, she very reluctantly agreed to go into the forest with them. After about fifteen minutes, Rainbow Dash showed up, followed by Rarity… And nopony else. “Dash, where are Pinkie Pie and Applejack?” Twilight asked. Rainbow Dash huffed. “Well, the Cakes went to Manehatten for a sweets convention, so Pinkie has to watch the little ones, and wouldn’t just take them with us. Applejack went to the same convention, trying to get ideas for new apple based sweets to sell.” Rainbow Dash rolled her eyes. “Yeah, I know those are dumb reasons, but there was nothing I could do.” Twilight decided not to argue the fact that those WERE VERY good reasons not to come, and just nodded instead. “OK, we can do this with just the three of us. Does everypony know our mission?” She looked around, and all the ponies made reactions in positive. “Then let’s get out there and look-” She was interrupted as Dash zoomed out over the Forest. “Together…” Twilight finished lamely. She sighed, but then Rarity spoke up. “Oh darling, don’t worry. I’m sure Rainbow Dash will come find us sooner or later, and until then, she’s a strong pony and is perfectly capable of taking care of herself.” “I hope you’re right,” Twilight responded, as the rest of the ponies started searching on hoof. After about an hour of searching, a thoroughly shaken Rainbow Dash joined them. “Have you girls seen it yet?” She asked them shakily. “Why, whatever do you mean, Rainbow Dash?” Rarity asked, obviously alarmed at Dash’s rapid mood change. Dash turned to address Twilight. “Twi, the trees up there are… Wrong… I just can’t think of another word for it.” She said, shaking her head. “You’ll know what I mean in a minute.” Dash began walking with the rest of them, slowly and subdued. Fluttershy fell back with Rainbow, and tried to comfort her, while Rarity began to speak to Twilight slightly further ahead. “Umm… Twilight, what do you think Dash meant by ‘Wrong trees’?” Asked Rarity. Twilight just shook her head. “I have no idea… But we’re about find out.” She said as they came to a small clearing. And find out, they did. All the trees on their side of the clearing looked like normal Everfree Forest trees (an oxymoron, if ever there was one), but the ones on the far side seemed… Darker, more wild looking, even more than the rest of the trees in the Everfree Forest. They seemed to emanate an aura of wrongness, like they had come straight from a Stable King horror novel. The trees Nightmare Moon changed seemed scary, but not dangerous like these, and they were nothing like Discord’s style. A shiver passed through the four mares as they looked at the trees, and Fluttershy actually squeaked in terror, and hid behind Rainbow Dash, shuddering. Dash herself was also terrified of the trees, but her simple macho attitude made her stand firm on the outside. Rarity was transfixed on the trees, and the normal part of her was scared, but the dress maker inside of her, had her examining, albeit from a distance, the intricate, almost woven pattern of a small section the tree branches. Twilight was scared too, but her curiosity got the better of her. She began to approach the trees. “Why do they look like that?” She asked nopony in particular. Rarity gave an “Ah ha,” and approached the odd section of tree branches, still mildly intimidated, but no longer scared. “What are you doing?” Twilight asked, concerned. “This,” she said simply, as reached up her hoof to the area of trees, and pushed. Only, that particular part of the foliage wasn’t exactly solid. Rarity’s push separated the tree branches that had been woven across an almost pony sized hole in a extremely large tree. “OH MY” Rarity let out a small scream as she fell through the hole, and into the tree. “Rarity!” The other three yelled after her, as they plunged into the hole. “What’s wrong?” Dash yelled, as their eyes adjusted to the gloom of the interior. “Oh, nothing’s wrong, it’s just this tree is surprisingly clean.” Rarity responded, in a calm, yet interested tone. All the other mares groaned, but as their eyes adjusted, they had to agree with her. There was a small, but neat bed pallet made of grass in one corner, something that looked a bit like a chair on one side, and a large, deep pool of clean looking water at the very back. And the whole thing was VERY neat. Before they really got a chance to look around though, they heard a yell from nearby. “SHIT” They didn’t recognize the word, but the voice sounded like a stallion, and he sounded like he was in serious pain. They looked at each other, but before any of them could say anything, Fluttershy, who of course couldn’t stand the thought of just standing there while somepony was in pain, galloped out the entrance of the cave. “Fluttershy, wait!” Twilight yelled, but the kind yellow pegasus was already out gone. Twi turned to Dash and Rarity. “We have to go after her,” they all said together, then turned and gave chase. To their surprise, Fluttershy hadn’t gone that far… In fact, she was only at the edge of the clearing to their left. She was just staring out from behind a tree. “Fluttershy, what are you looking at, dear?” Asked Rarity. Fluttershy just nodded in front of her. They looked, and saw what appeared to be a bipedal, nearly hairless… Monkey? It was wearing a black suit of some sort, and was laying on its stomach. Its back was torn to shreds, and bleeding heavily, but even so, fear of the unknown creature stopped Fluttershy from approaching it. Rarity went woozy, and fell to the ground, but when she realized nopony was paying her any attention, she stood back up with a little huff. Dash was just stunned. She’d seen her share of blood from training accidents, but never quite this much at once. Twilight, however, kept her wits about her. “It may be dying,” She said, mentally taking on the role of a field medic. “It’s lost a lot of blood. We need to make sure it’s still alive, and if it is, stop the bleeding and get it to a hospital.” After glancing at the others, and realizing they were going to be no help in this, she sighed and used her magic to check it for a heartbeat. There was one, but it was faint and if they didn’t stop the bleeding soon, it would die. Taking a deep breath, and focusing her magic, she managed to heal its wounds enough to stop the bleeding before her magic failed her. Healing a creature when she knew nothing about its anatomy was a very tricky and tiring process, and she hadn’t studied healing magic much as it was. She turned to the others. “Snap out of it!” She yelled at them, and, to her surprise, they did. “What do you need us to do, Twi?” Dash said. “OK, Fluttershy, it’s unconscious, but just in case it wakes up, I want you to be talking to it to keep it calm.” Fluttershy nodded. “Rarity, can you whip up a stretcher from those tree branches that were covering that hole?” Again, a nod. “Dash, you and Rarity, with her magic, will need to carry it, as I’m out of magic. You all got that?” They nodded, even Rarity, who wasn’t happy about having to carry the thing, even if it WAS with her magic. “Good,” Twilight said, “First we get this thing to a hospital and healed… Then we find out what it is and what it’s doing here.”
Chapter 2 - I Give Them Almost All Their AnswersChapter 2 I Give Them Almost All Their Answers The first thing I was aware of, was pain. My back felt like it had been put through a meat grinder, and knowing some of the animals in the Everfree Forest, that may not have been far from the truth. Then I remembered what happened. I had been attacked by a reaver, and it had managed two very powerful and direct slashes along my back, which had left it in ribbons. But the fact I felt pain meant I wasn’t dead. How? If the blood loss hadn’t killed me, then some animal should have found and eaten me. In the unlikely circumstance neither of those happened, infection alone should had done me in. How was I still alive? And more importantly, why was I still alive? I believe everything happens for a purpose, but what was the purpose in me staying alive? All I did was cause pain to others… I gave myself a quick mental shake. No point in becoming so philosophical right now. That would only lead to depression. First things first, I thought to myself, let’s see where we are. I tried to open one eye, and my efforts were rewarded… By a burning sensation in my retina from electric light. My eyes snapped shut, and I groaned. There was only one place that would be so cruel to a person who was suffering from deathly injures. A hospital. So I’m in a hospital, I thought to myself, after my eye stopped burning, that must mean someone saved me… Or somepony. I began to hear voices, but they were muted, like I had cotton in my ears. Before I could decide whether or not it was worth trying to open my eyes and see them, I began to feel very tired. Somehow, a part of me recognized the feeling, even though I couldn’t ever remember feeling it. Sedative… They’re putting me back to sleep, I thought, annoyed, as I lost consciousness. I awoke some time later, and the blinding light had been removed. Thank god, I thought, maybe the hospitals in Equestria aren’t as bad as the ones I know of from Earth. I managed to turn my head from side to side and study the room… And the twisting of my shoulders reopened the gashes on my upper back. This time I managed to overcome the pain with nothing more than a grunt, and study the room. Sadly, it was less than impressive. It looked just like a normal hospital room from Earth, except the diagrams of humans and human body parts were replaced with ones of ponies and pony body parts. A nurse pony rushed into the room, no doubt alerted to my activity by the numerous devices they had me hooked up to. She was an almost starched white, with a pink mane and a red plus on her flank. I just turned and glared at her, freezing her in her tracks. I was in no mood to be sedated again. “Where am I?” I asked her, not really expecting a response. I got one, though. “Y-y-you are in P-P-Ponyville H-Hospital, S-sir.” She stammered, clearly unnerved by me, but why she was unnerved I had no idea. “The unicorn Twilight Sparkle, and a few of her friends brought you in about four days ago.” She seemed to be getting her nerve back, but I wasn’t concerned about that. I had been in the hospital for FOUR DAYS?!?! They had kept me constantly sedated for FOUR DAYS?!?! I could have DIED from simple malnutrition, as they had no idea what I, as a human, needed to stay alive. “How did you know what to feed me?” I asked. “A book,” Said a voice from the door. It was a sure sign of the extent of my injuries that I hadn’t heard her approach the door. Ponies weren’t exactly the stealthiest of creatures, especially unicorns, which this one happened to be. Standing a bit over four feet high, the average for ponies, with a light lavender coat, purple eyes, a dark blue mane and tail with a purple-pink highlight in both, and a purple and white star cutie mark; she was an interesting sight. As she entered, the nurse who had come in to see me decided I was in good hands (hooves?) and she could go attend to her other duties. I wonder if purple’s her favorite color, I thought to myself sarcastically. Out loud, however, I asked, “And who are you?” “I am Twilight Sparkle, personal student and friend of Princess Celestia, and wielder of the Element of Magic in the Elements of Harmony… And you are?” She sounded very official, almost rehearsed. I sighed. Sometimes I wish I actually had a title, but no I was just, “Lavitz, a human,” I told her. Her eyes widened. “So you ARE a human,” She gasped, and continued excitedly, “I thought that’s what you looked like, from the diagrams, but my book said they were all extinct CENTURIES ago,” She hung her head sadly, “That they killed themselves off in a ‘War’” She said that last word, like it was something she didn’t quite understand, but knew it was a sad thing. Before I could ask her more on the subject, though, a nurse wheeled in a stretcher with an irate, cyan colored pegasus on it. “Come on, I’m fine, see?” She said in a slightly hoarse, scratchy voice. She tried to move her right foreleg, which was in a sling, but it only caused her to grimace. She continued, still trying to convince the nurse she didn’t need to stay. “Well, I will be fine soon, so there’s no reason to put me in the hospital for a few days.” “Now, Rainbow Dash,” said a doctor who had followed them in, “It’s just precautionary. You’ll just be here a couple nights, and once we know it’s healing up right, we’ll let you out. And next time you practice your ‘Buccaneer Blitz,’ maybe you’ll be more careful.” He turned to leave, but caught sight of me, up and awake, and froze. Twilight saw this, cantered up to him, and whispered something in his ear. He nodded at her, motioned to the nurse who wheeled the blue one, Rainbow Dash, in the room, and they left. “Twi, what are you doing here? I just got here.” Said the cyan pegasus puzzled. She obviously hadn’t seen me yet. Twilight nodded toward my bed. “Dash, let me introduce your bunk mate, Lavitz.” Dash’s look turned from puzzled to shocked when she saw me. This gave me time to examine her closer. She had a cyan body coat, rosy red eyes, a mane and tail that looked slightly unkempt and had all the colors of the rainbow, surprisingly in the right order, too, and cutie mark that was a cloud with a rainbow colored lightning bolt coming out of it. This mare could be fun to hang out with, she hates hospitals as much as I do, I thought to myself. I was about to reach out a hand to shake her hoof in greeting, then I remembered my predicament. “Well,” I began, “I would shake your hoof, but seeing as how I can’t move my shoulders without opening up my cuts…” I almost shrugged, then remembered again how bad an idea that was. This was going to take a while to get used to. “Uhh… You can talk?” She asked with wonder. I furrowed my brow in annoyance, but before I could say anything, Twilight stepped in. “Rainbow Dash,” She said sounding affronted. “I told you he was a human and that humans could talk. They are just as intelligent as anypony. Or, they were…” She turned to me. “I was meaning to ask, where are you from? Nopony has seen a human in millions years. We assumed they were either extinct, or just an old mare’s tale.” I chuckled. “Well, I wish I could tell you,” I said, “but it’s a bit hard to give you an answer, when I don’t even know where I’m from.” I tapped the side of my head. “Amnesia will do that to you. I could tell you anything you want to know about humans, in general, but I can’t remember my own history beyond three months ago.” I suddenly went silent remembering what I had caused in the last three months. Twilight didn’t notice though. She was too wrapped up in her own thoughts to realize I had just went silent. About three months ago, she had been sent a letter by Celestia telling Twi that a disturbance had occurred near Ponyville, and to keep her eyes and ears open in the future. And Twi had done that for the next three weeks, and just about the time she decided it was nothing, the stories started popping up about the creatures in the Everfree Forest becoming more and more violent. Those stories were what had led her to this moment, and this human. It was too much to be just coincidence. At the same time, I was wondering if they would kill me if I told them what I had been unintentionally causing… And if they would kill me, would it fix the problem? Dash, however, was growing bored with the silence. “So Lavitz… How fast are most humans?” I chuckled. “Most humans are quite slow, maxing out at only about a fifteen mile per hour sprint. I am not a normal human, however. If I push myself, I can get up to about forty-five miles per hour, and under certain circumstances, even higher… No idea how I can do it, though. According to normal human anatomy, that degree of self-induced speed should be physically impossible.” I shrugged, and cringed in pain as I remembered that was a bad idea. Dash didn’t understand everything that was said there, it sounded more eggheady like something Twilight would say, but she got that I moved impossibly fast for a human, and she wanted to see how I matched up against “The Fastest Flyer In Equestria.” “Cool, but there’s no way a two legged human like you could best ‘The Fastest Flyer In All of Equestria’” She boasted, smirking at me. I grinned, and decided it would be worth it to rise to the bait. “All right, Dash, you’re on… As soon as we can both walk again” She looked at my back, and I looked at her broken leg. Then we both laughed, realizing it might be quite a while before that race actually happened. Twilight watched this interaction with narrowed eyes. She knew there was some connection between me and this corruption in the Everfree Forest, but she didn’t know what that connection was. She decided she would write to the Princess, and see what she knew about humans, and what their powers might be. She was brought out of her contemplation by the sound of her name. “I’m sorry, what was that, Dash?” “I said,” Dash began, annoyed that she had to repeat herself, “You’ll need to tell Pinkie about him, so she can get started on planning his welcome to Ponyville party, as well as telling the others so they can come visit us.” “You don’t need to have this… Pinkie, go through the trouble of hosting me a welcome party.” I told them, especially since you’ll all want me gone once you find out what I cause, I added to myself. Twilight was about to say something, but Rainbow Dash cut her off without even realizing it. “Don’t worry, Pinky Pie lives off of parties. She’d be upset if you told her not to give you a welcome to Ponyville party.” Dash shrugged, “It’s kinda her thing, hosting parties.” I sighed, already recognizing defeat. “Fine, she can give me a welcoming party, but only a few peop- uh, ponies, OK? I’m not a big ‘people person’ as we humans say. Let’s say, ten ponies at the very most.” Dash and Twilight looked at each other. Ten ponies? This was going to be one of the smallest welcoming parties Pinky had ever hosted, but it would still be a welcoming party. “All right,” Twilight said, knowing that pushing me might not be a good idea. “I’ll let her know about him, and she’ll get your party set up for when you get out of the hospital,” She shot me a mischievous grin as she left. “In about two weeks.” I groaned. Two weeks? I’d die of boredom before I got out of here. I glanced over at the cyan colored mare in the next bed, who appeared to be pouting about being stuck in the hospital for a few days, instead of out practicing her flying. Well, I thought to myself, at least I have a cool roommate for a while. Since I may be here a while, might as well get to know some ponies. “So, Rainbow Dash, what do you do here in Ponyville?”
