Brave New World, Attack of the Changlings

Twilight and Owen found Fluttershy tending to a soldiers wounds in the medical ward with the help of Zecora. Her pink hair was everywhere and the timid pony looked like she hadn't slept for days. She smiled at Twilight when she saw her friend approach. Fluttershy nodded at the wounded infantryman, telling him that he could leave.

The ward itself was a brilliant white with potions lining dustless shelfs. There were implements for operations lying on tables and there were several ponies getting ready to be fixed. Fluttershy was wearing a white shirt, stained with tiny droplets of blood. Her hoofs, however were clean.

"Goodness, hello Twilight. What brings you here Princess?" She asked politely.

Fluttershy's eyes widened with fear when she saw the Professor. Owen figured that this may be because he had hurt her friend, Discord.

"Hi there Fluttershy, how are you?" Twilight said.

"I'm fine thank you, Zecora's been teaching me to how to brew healing potions for all these poor ponies."

Zecora looked grateful for this compliment, and she trotted off in search of more herbs for a potions she was currently creating.

"Me and the Professor are going to ask you a few questions, if that's alright with you."

Fluttershy seemed uncomfortable and she looked nervously at Owen, who was staring at her with a kind smile. Owen continued.

"We need to know the location of your friend, Discord."

Fluttershy's eyes opened wide and her mouth parted slightly. After a few brief seconds, she closed her mouth again. She looked at the ground in shame.

"Please." Owen said.

"I- I can't tell you..."

Twilight seemed confused. So she did know where he was? Then why not tell us?

Owen was thinking the same thing and he exhaled in annoyance.

"Please Fluttershy." Owen pleaded. "We need to know where he is, otherwise more ponies are going to get badly hurt. We need him."

The Professor had hit a raw nerve, just as he had planned to. Be cruel to be kind as his grandmother had always said. Fluttershy started to cry.

"Okay! I'll tell you... I can't bear the thought of anymore innocent, little creatures being hurt for no good reason! But he told me never to tell anypony where he was..."

"Where is he Fluttershy?" Twilight asked.

Fluttershy pointed to a pony sitting by himself playing with a bat and ball on a large brown barrel. He had the same twisty beard as Discord. This pony seemed totally oblivious to anyone and anything around him as did everyone to him, in fact it was like he was totally invisible to rest of the world. Owen smiled happily and turned back to Fluttershy.

"Merci, you have done this world a great service." He kissed her on the hoof.

Fluttershy went a very deep red and began to mumble her thanks. Owen smiled and he and Twilight walked towards Discord. Fluttershy giggled and turned back to her duties.

"That." Twilight said. "Was disgraceful."

"We do what we must to get what we want." Owen shrugged.

***

The rest of the Professor's friends had been given jobs to do by Admiral Rainbow Dash. Ebony, Tom and Hurricane were working with the Pegasus Royal Air Force, trying to build tri-planes that Tom had originally used in the fight against Discord. Tom was pacing up and down as his fellow mechanics built the planes with their magic and their hoofs. Ebony painted the planes red as they came by on large conveyor belts and Hurricane was using a rivet gun to nail the wings to the body of the plane.

Aimee, Jake and Derpy were working with Quatermane trying to create new weapons to use against the changelings. Jake was messing with some form of chemical, causing the entire room to go up in smoke. Quatermane was building some form of saddle-mounted machine gun, similar to that of a Tommy Gun with the drums also attached to the rear of the saddle. He attached it to Aimee, running the saddle through her wings. He pointed at a target on the wall.

"Now, use your wings to pull the triggers." He said.

Aimee tensed her wings and pulled the triggers. The rainbow bullets shot out of the twin barrels, tearing the target to pitiful shreds. Quatermane nodded his head.

"Excellent, we shall begin work on more immediately."

Hurricane walked up to them.

"Where's Jake?" He asked.

Jake wandered around a bit until he came across a room. The room had a sign above it's entrance, telling him that this was the Archives. He pushed open the door, surprised to find that the door didn't have a lock. He put his head around the door, his eyes open and his eyebrows up and questioning. He slipped into the room like a silent assassin. He saw a single desk with a single file on it.

He opened up the file and emptied it's contents all over the desk. Most of these were Owen's blueprints, but some of them were other bits of paper. News reports and tables containing data. Jake picked up one of the newspaper cuttings and read it.

It stated that there had been some form of crystal mirror underneath the Castle in the Crystal Empire. This mirror acted at a gateway, much like the one Owen had made. He read that Twilight had made her way over to a world filled with bi-pod animals known as humans...

"This can't be right..." Jake murmured as he continued reading.

Twilight had gone to some form of human secondary school and met friends there that majorly resembled the ones back in Equestria.

"Parallel universes... My god...Then maybe there might be another home for us..." He whispered, his eyes filled with hope.

Jake replaced the paper quickly and slammed the folder shut. He left the room silently and rejoined his fellow companions.

***

Owen cleared his throat when he went up to the pony resembling Discord. The pony stopped playing with his bat and ball and simply stared at the Professor. He growled low then sat up. He bowed to Twilight.

"Your Majesty." He murmured.

"Tell me who you are?" She asked.

The pony sighed and his hoof made a sudden movement. There was a flash of bright light and the pony had disappeared. In his place stood a very tall and very distraught draconeques. His lion and chicken arms were folded and his expression was annoyed. He was looking at the Professor.

"Well. If it isn't the pony who turned me back to stone with his wondrous technology!?" Discord mocked.

Owen was in no mood to play with the King of Chaos, so he began his talk.

"Discord, I know we have had our disagreements in the past..." The Professor started.

"You shot me..." Discord moaned.

"It was an accident."

"...Six times." Discord finished.

Owen put his hoof on his head. They were getting nowhere fast.

"We need your help. Please." Owen asked.

Discord's ears picked up and he turned to the Professor. He had a grin glued to his face. He flexed his fingers.

"Oh? So you need my help, do you?"

"As your Princess, I order you to do as the Professor says!" Twilight commanded.

Discord narrowed his eyes and growled in frustration. He clicked his fingers and created a tin can, which he kicked angrily. He clicked his fingers again and was holding a pencil and paper. He sat down in a position that showed he was ready to write down anything that was said.

"Very well. What do you need me to do?"