//-------------------------------------------------------// Those things on my mind -by Saro0fdemonz- //-------------------------------------------------------// //-------------------------------------------------------// The Infection //-------------------------------------------------------// The Infection DESCRIPTION A strange disease has spread throughout Equestria and when Rainbow Dash falls ill Celestia takes action, bringing a team together to discover the cause of the disease and build a cure before all of Equestria falls to it. The only hope is a single Earth Pony who seems immune to its affects, but what will they discover from the experiments performed on him? "Sir...is this wise?" the pastel green unicorn asked of her commander. The stallion stood tall and proud, gazing at the test chamber. A bright pink scar raced down his left eye, clashing quite well against his dark grey coat and his frazzled black mane. "This experiment was your idea AI, are you having second thoughts?" Commander Bolt asked her with a raised eyebrow. The mare quickly shook her head. "N..No Sir, of course not sir. I just don't think its wise to take it this far. I wanted to try something small at first...but this...Sir this is madness. What if there is a breach? We could all be infected!" The mare began to panic and the Commander sighed. "You wanted your chance to perform your little experiment and now you have it. Are you going through with it or not?" He asked. She bit her lip, glancing over at the stallion within the test chamber. His coat was a light chestnut color, his mane dark brown and absurdly curly, snaking its way down to his shoulders, almost hiding his piercing green eyes from view. There were many things strange about the stallion. He had no name, no known family and on top of all that, he had no cutiemark. He was only referred to as Patient Zero, the only pony immune to an unknown disease and their only hope of finding a cure. Princess Celestia herself had tasked them with the responsibility, taking it upon herself to keep it as quiet as possible. The stallion within the chamber rolled his eyes and tapped a microphone. "Hey doc are we gonna do this or not?" he asked. He couldn't see them through the one-way glass, but he knew they were there watching him. AI bit her lip, turning back to the console and sighed, blowing a bit of her cream colored mane out of her face and calming herself. "Alright, adjusting repressor levels to three and seven respectively. Let loose when ready Zero." she said through the microphone. The stallion grinned and widened his stance. At first nothing happened, then it began. The stallions eyes began to glow dimly and the chamber began to shake. AI lowered a pair of goggles over her eyes and gasped at what she saw. All around the stallion were strange particles filling the air with every color of the rainbow. His mane and tail lost their curls and became spiky and frizzled, sticking every which way as a chuckle escaped his lips. Her machines began to hiss and groan under the pressure. "Sir its too much!" The unicorn yelled, pulling levers and adjusting dials in her magic, trying to ease some of the pressure. "Keep going Patient Zero. We need to see the full extent of what we are dealing with." Bolt said through the microphone. "IFFFFFF YOUUUUUUU SAAAAAAY SOOOO!" Zero yelled back, his body hunched slightly as the pressure doubled instantly. The chamber began to fill with smoke, AI staring with wide eyes. "By Celestia...he's done it..." she muttered as the smoke began to clear. The stallions eyes were now pure white, his mane straight and streaked blonde with electricity dancing along his coat in quick short sparks. "What are the readings AI?" Bolt asked, moving over to the console. "Despite the parasites swarming around inside of him...everything seems normal, but his heart rate has tripled and his breathing has slowed. It doesn't make any sense. From all we've seen of the infected, the parasite takes a hold of the heart and brain and drains everything from them until theres nothing but an empty husk left over. It seems to be doing the opposite for him and rather than drain his strength its quadrupled it!" she said excitedly, a pen and pad furiously scribbling down notes in her magic. "What I don't understand is why we only see this effect in others after the parasite has already killed them." She muttered, looking over her notes. "HEY! CAN I RELAX NOW?!" He yelled, the one-way window cracking slightly. "Yes!" AI yelled through the microphone. Zero let out a slow breath, the levels dropping instantly and his body returning to normal, though a few sparks still jumped across his body. "When the buck are you gonna let me outta here?" he asked, tapping what he believed to be a camera. "As soon as we find a cure." Bolt said, mashing a button with his hoof. Zero gasped and coughed as smoke filled the chamber, knocing him out instantly. "Sir...was that really neccessary?" AI asked, standing from her console. "We don't know if he is contagious and we can't risk finding out. You're the only pony who understands any of this, if we lose you then we lose everything. Get your team together and get him moved back to his containment cell. I want eyes on him at all times and I want to hear good news the next time I see you." the mare tried to reason with her commander, but he simply waved her away with his hoof and left. She sighed, turning her eyes to the chamber and the now sleeping earth pony. There had to be a better way to handle this situation. //-------------------------------------------------------// What if: Twilight didn't stay in Ponyville //-------------------------------------------------------// What if: Twilight didn't stay in Ponyville This was a story I had started writing for someone and I only recently stumbled across it again. Said person never got back to me about it and I just forgot about it until now. This is a what if story revolving around Twilight. By the title you can probably guess that this is my take on what would've happened if Twilight had left Ponyville instead of staying as the Librarian. Twilight smiled, watching Princess Luna and Princess Celestia as the ponies of Ponyville welcomed them. Pinkie zipped around town, turning the entire place into party central to celebrate the defeat of Nightmare Moon. Celestia smiled at her student noticing something seemed to be bothering the young Unicorn mare. "Why so glum my faithful student? Are you not happy that your quest is complete and you can return to your studies in Canterlot?" "Nothing is wrong Princess, I can't wait to return to canterlot" Twilight smiled, not noticing the hint of disappointment in Celestia's gaze. Celestia smiled a bit, throwing aside her worries for now and nodded. "Very well my faithful student. We will be leaving soon. Do you have anything you wish to say to your friends?" Twilight looked around at the five ponies who had helped her defeat Nightmare Moon. "I guess all I can say is Thank you. If not for all of you we wouldn't have been able to defeat Nightmare Moon. But I have to get back to my studies, No Pinkie I don't have time for a party." she said, the party pony pouting and sighing quietly. "Okie Dokie Twilight, but if you ever get lonely or bored you can always come visit right?" "I'll be pretty busy with my studies Pinkie Pie. I still have a lot to learn." "Well, ifn' ya ever need us sugarcube, ya'll know where ya can find us." Applejack said with a smile. "Thats right, we'll always be the best of friends." Rarity added with a sparkle in her eye. "Um..w..we'll miss you Twilight." Fluttershy said softly "Oh hey Twilight, since your goin to canterlot and all, could ya put in a good word for me with the Wonderbolts?" Rainbow asked with a sheepish grin, Applejack punching her in the shoulder. "If I see them and if I have the time i'll let them know Rainbow Dash." Rainbow whooped and flipped in the air, quickly gathering herself and laughing a little. "We're really gonna miss you egghead, try not to bury yourself in all those books." Pinkie Pie burst into tears as Twilight began to walk away. "WAIT! what about a farewell party!?" Pinkie asked, her crying suddenly stopping. Celestia smiled a little. "That sounds like an excellent Idea Pinkie Pie. Twilight, do you think you could stay one more day to say a proper goodbye to your friends?" Celestia asked. Twilight wasn't one to say no to the Princess. Sighing a little she nodded, much to her teachers delight. Celestia hoped that in her time in Ponyville that Twilight would realize the power of friendship. But the Unicorn was too focused on her studies. Maybe this last day would do the trick, if not then Celestia would have to come up with another plan. The party lasted longer than Twilight would've liked. There were jokes she didn't get, games she didn't understand, and a few pranks from Pinkie Pie. Needless to say she wasn't exactly a fan of her now blonde mane. It had taken even longer to get away from the party, as Twilight had to chance down a lovesick floating Spike and drag him back to the library by his tail. "Spike, i'm tired, I need to fix my mane and we need to get ready to leave for tomorrow." "Aw come on Twilight, the party wasn't even finished yet." "How could you know that Spike? You were too busy staring at Rarity the entire time" Twilight sighed and looked around the Library. There were a few books she wanted to take back with her, but as she started grabbing them she realized Celestia would already have them in her own Library. She put the books back on their shelves and mumbled to herself as she searched for one book in particular. "Aha! Common Cure-alls for Pranks gone wrong. Just what I was looking for." She flipped through the pages, shocked at some of the spells one needed to reverse some rather cruel pranks, finally finding the one she needed. A dim glow surrounded her horn for a moment, flashing as it surrounded her mane and tail, the colors slowly fading back to normal. She sighed, tucking the book away and made her way upstairs, holding her quill's, ink wells, and scrolls in her magic and packing them away. Spike grumbled as he sat in his bed "Come on Twilight, can't we just stay a bit longer?" "No Spike. I know you've got this crazy crash on Rarity but I need to get back to my studies. Our only reason for coming to Ponyville was to stop Nightmare Moon." Spike sighed, laying down, his back to her as he angrily pulled his blankets up over himself. "Fine, whatever." the drake grumbled, Twilight shook her head and continued packing what little belonged to her in the library. She had only brought what she thought she would need, having left the rest of her things back in Canterlot. She couldn't help but smile as she thought of her room and the massive library there. She couldn't wait to go back and didn't get much sleep that night. The carriage sent for Twilight and her assistant matched the one that had brought them here, only with a few additions. A closed in roof and doors as well as a place to hold her belongings had been added onto it. Placing what little she owned from the Library of Ponyville into the cart she prepared to hop inside and leave, Spike grumbling as he drug himself toward the carriage. "Come on Spike, I'm sure you'll get over this as soon as we're back in canterlot and you get some of your favorite gems." Spike sighed. "Theres only one gem I want Twilight..." he said quietly, looking at Ponyville. Twilight was just confused by the remark. She had never heard Spike be so serious. "Well I'm sure Princess Celestia has at least one of each and every kind of Gem back in Canterlot, now come on Spike." Spike reluctantly climbed into the carriage with Twilight, waving goodbye to Ponyville as the pegasi took to the air, carrying them back to Canterlot. It wasn't a long flight, though Twilight wished it could've been faster. Spike spent the entire time grumbling and complaining while Twilight tried to focus on studying one of her books. She held the book in her magic carefully, her eyes scanning the page before her magic would flip the page. A small pain began to build up in her temple and she groaned, rubbing her hoof against it, gasping as the book split down the middle, pages flying everywhere. "What the hay Twilight!?" Spike yelled, snatching pages out of the air. "S..Sorry Spike. I don't know what happened. My head started to hurt and..." the door to Twilights right opened. "We're here Miss Sparkle." the pegasi said, moving aside so she could get out. The guards were already moving Twilights belongings back toward her room, Luna greeting them. "We...My sister and I are happy to see you return Twilight Sparkle. I cannot thank thee...you, enough for what you have done for me." "Oh, well it was what needed to be done Princess." "Even so, we are grateful of what thou hast done for us." "uh...we?" Spike asked, looking around and finding only Luna and the moving guards. "Its the old canterlot dialect Spike." Twilight explained. "Oh...I apologize. It has been a long time and I am still adjusting. Celestia has been trying to teach us the way ponies speak these days but it is taking time for us to adjust." Luna explained. "Its alright Princess. a thousand years is quite a long time for anypony. If I can help in anyway I'll do whatever I can." "That is very kind of you Twilight Sparkle. But for now I believe thou shoulds't retire to thine room." It was obvious Luna was struggling with her speech. Twilight made some mental notes of where the Alicorn slipped and walked along with Spike toward her old room, noticing the Alicorn turning down a long hallway, followed by guards. The room was just as she had left it. She sighed and smiled, walking through it slowly, a grumbling Spike following her and sitting down in a corner. "Oh come on Spike, are you still acting like that?" "I don't see why we had to leave all our friends behind Twilight." "Because I have to finish my studies with the Princess, Spike. Friends will just distract me from that." she pulled a book from one of the many shelves, the head ache returning, sending the book flying out the window. Twilight groaned and watched as the book fell into the garden below. "Shoot..." "Twilight, are you alright? You've never had trouble with your magic like that before." "I'm fine Spike. Its just a head ache. Magic is a complex thing Spike. I probably should avoid using any while I've got this head ache. Can you get me some of that special tea Spike?" she asked. The dragon, though still grumpy about leaving Ponyville, leapt to his feet and ran off to get the tea. Twilight smiled as a pegasus guard knocked on her window. "I believe this is yours Miss Sparkle." "Thank you, I'm so sorry about that..." "Its fine Miss Sparkle, though I hope you know books aren't meant to fly." he joked, returning to his post. Twilight held the book in her mouth, sighing a bit and setting it down on her desk. She flipped it open with her hoof and began reading. It was a simple book on Ancient Equestrian History that Twilight had only managed to get halfway through before being sent to Ponyville. There was still a lot left in it that she wanted to know. The head ache slowly started to return and as if on cue her assistant showed up with the tea. She smiled and took a sip, carefully setting the cup down. "Thank you Spike." "Sure thing Twilight." Even with the tea the head ache didn't leave. In fact it had only gotten worse, and now she couldn't even use her magic. She sighed, slamming her book shut, absentmindedly trying to lift it with her magic which refused to work. "SPIKE!" Twilight called out, the dragon peeking his head around the corner. "Yea Twilight?" "Can you put this book away for me?" "uh...sure Twilight." Spike said, grabbing the book and climbing on the ladder, slipping the book back into its place among the many other books in the room. Twilight plopped down on her bed, rubbing her hooves against her temples, gasping as a random burst of magic sent her flying out of bed and into the shelf, knocking over the books onto the floor. Spike sighed and slid down the ladder, picking up a few "Well, I guess they needed to be re-shelved anyway..." he grumbled. Twilight shook herself out of the pile, rubbing her head. "Twilight, are you really sure you are ok? What the hay was that about anyway?" "I don't know Spike...but I'm losing control of my magic..." //-------------------------------------------------------// Farewell //-------------------------------------------------------// Farewell Inspired by this image below, this tidbit was written in the silence of the night and the shattering of my soul. I will not continue it and I deeply regret writing as much as I did. Sad stuff is sad. Read at your own risk. https://camo.derpicdn.net/8f556996d96ee56062599f0fcde5ca679d0c6936?url=http%3A%2F%2Ffc07.deviantart.net%2Ffs71%2Fi%2F2013%2F076%2Fa%2F7%2Flook____finally_i_can_fly____by_rainbowspine-d5yc366.png All was silent save for the soft pit-pat of rain smacking against each pony gathered there that day. All with heads lowered and hearts broken. A shaken Rainbow Dash was the first to take the podium. She glanced at the casket, remembering all the time they had shared together. So much time wasted, so many days they could have had together, they had such a bright future. But now that was no more. That special pony was gone now and would never come back. She had begged Twilight and the Princess but they had told her there was nothing any of them could do. Reluctantly the pegasus mare had allowed them to begin this funeral. She took a slow shuddering breath, her eyes spreading across the crowd. They stopped on two little fillies whose eyes begged a question she had been asking herself. Why. Why didn't she catch her? Why had she let her fall? Rainbow lowered her head and took another breath. "We are gathered here today...to remember a filly who meant so much to us. A filly who only wanted to fly, to earn her cutiemark and to go on to do amazing things. I remember...when I first agreed to teach her to fly. She was so excited, so full of energy and raring to go. She started day one by jumping off the closest thing." Rainbow choked out a laugh, unable to look out at the crowd. It was her fault they were all here and all of them knew it. It had been Twilights idea for her to speak here and she had been promised nopony would attack her, but she could already feel the tension growing in the air. The only thing keeping her from running away to the safety of her cloud home was the simple fact that she owed her this much. Scootaloo deserved a proper funeral. She lifted her head once more, staring down each and everypony. "I didn't know that she could never fly..." "THATS A LIE! SCOOTS WOULDA BEEN AN AMAZIN FLIER!" Applebloom screamed through her tears. Mutters of agreement rang throughout the ponies until Twilight cleared her throat and stepped forward. "Its true everypony. Scootaloo was born with a rare deformity in her wings. The bones were too heavy and her wings were too small compared to the rest of her body. Normal flight would have been impossible for her. The fact that she was able to move them at all was an attestment to her willpower and strength. But due to their weight she would never have been able to hold herself in the air, let alone attempt flight with them." The unicorn explained. Rainbow shook her head. "No...if I had caught her...I'm sure she woulda found a way to fly Twilight..." Rainbow said, turning back to the casket where the filly lay. She placed her hooves on the side of it and leaned forward, placing a gentle kiss on her forehead. "I'm so sorry Scootaloo..." she spoke softly, turning back to the gathered crowd. "I don't care what any of you think of me. Today isn't about me, its about her. You have the rest of your lives to hate me, but today you remember her and all she did and all she would have done. I'm sorry Twi...I can't stay..." Rainbow fluttered her wings weakly and walked away from everyone, ignoring the glares and remarks as she made her way to a nearby hill, far away from the ceremony. She didn't belong there, she didn't deserve to be there as words of comfort were shared amongst family and loved ones. None of it was for her. She closed her eyes, those final moments playing back in her mind. "Look Dash! I'm flyin!" Scootaloo cried happily. She gasped in pain as a loud SNAP filled the air. It took Rainbow a moment to realize the young pegasi's wing had crumpled in two mid-flight, the filly plummeting towards the ground. Rainbow dived off her cloud, chasing after Scootaloo as she fell. The filly smiled up at her through her tears. Rainbow recognized the smile. She had seen it before, it was a smile that haunted her dreams and tugged at a life long forgotton. She pushed her wings harder, desperate to reach the filly. Though the ground was rushing towards them , getting closer with each passing moment. Scootaloo closed her eyes. "I...I flew...I really flew...thank y..." Her words were cut short as her body slammed into the ground with a loud thud. Rainbow threw herself into the filly, scooping her up and shaking her gently. "Scootaloo! Scoots answer me! c'mon!" she begged, cradling the filly. She felt something wet and sticky cling to her hoof, shaking as she stared at it, seeing it soaked in blood from a cut in the young pegasi's head. "HELP! SOMEPONY HELP PLEASE!" she screamed, ponies watching the scene in horror. A team of pegasi rushed Scootaloo to the hospital, but they knew it was too late to save the poor filly. Rainbow stood, walking out of view of the ponies gathered there. Standing on top of the hill and staring over the edge of the cliff. Down below were hundreds upon hundreds of jagged rocks, hidden only for a moment by a wave crashing over them. The jagged teeth formed a smirk, mocking her and her failure. She spread her wings slowly and took a step forward. She felt a hoof on her shoulder and turned, finding Fluttershy, the shy yellow pegasus shaking her head. "Rainbow...this isn't the answer." she said softly. Rainbow merely smiled, pretending she had no idea what the pony meant as she shrugged the hoof from her shoulder. "She's gone cause of me. Its all my fault. I shoulda caught her...she really did fly though...her first...and last flight. Its time for my last flight Shy. Take care of Tank for me." Twilight sighed as Rainbow marched away and took over for her, letting each pony come up to the podium in turn to say their final words. The last to reach the stand were Applebloom and Sweetie Belle, though when they tried to speak only tears came. Twilight gently held them, letting Rarity and Applejack take them after a moment. She took the podium herself as ponies prepared to lower Scootaloo into her final resting place. "We will never forget Scootaloo and all she meant to us. Though she is gone from our home, she will always remain in our hearts." "RAINBOW NO!" the scream filled the air, along with a sickening SHLICK. The crowd fell silent, save for a single ponies tears as she made her way through the crowd. Upon her back was a cyan rainbow maned pegasus. Her eyes tightly shut and a sad smile on her face. Fluttershy let the pegasus fall off her back gently, laying her in front of Twilight. "I...I couldn't stop her..." //-------------------------------------------------------// The Crusaders: A humanized Story //-------------------------------------------------------// The Crusaders: A humanized Story I don't remember what inspired this bit of story. It just happened. So here is what I have for it. Bloomera Applecord (Humanized Applebloom) The youngest of the Applecord family. Their bloodline being some of the strongest warriors under Celestia and Luna's rule. It is unknown where their freakish strength comes from. Scootera Windscar (Humanized Scootaloo) A berserker who befriends Bloomera and Belle(whose name I am still working on) Not much is known about her other than what she has shared with her companions. Belle Harpsicord(Humanized Sweetie Belle) Her magical voice has soothed more than the savage beast along with her powerful magic. She is a magi in training and the voice of reason among the crusaders in their hunt for the shards of the Elements of Disharmony. Her magic holds back the corruption of the shards, allowing them to hold onto them without feeling the affects of their power. Basically Celestia has sent them on a mission to hunt down the fragments of the Elements of Disharmony which were shattered in a battle against the bearers of the Elements of Harmony. They hope to collect the shards before their enemies can and plan to seal them away. Thats about as far as my brain got with this idea. "What do ya mean ya can't give us a room!?" she demanded, slamming her fist into the wooden framework of the desk that stood between her and the target of her anger. "Look, ah dunno who let you lot off yer mothers apron strings but I can't give a room t' a bunch o' kids" "KIDS?! THATS IT!" "WAIT!" she struggled against the grip of her friend and let out a huff of frustration, finally calming down, her other friend stepping forward with a sweet smile. "Kind sir, if you allow us to stay I'll lend my voice to your inn for the night. All I ask is that you let us have the room." "Yer voice huh? Well, what can ya do?" the man asked. She cleared her throat and began to vocalize a soft tune, the mans eyes wide as he listened. "The rooms yers!" the three girls grinned and cheered. "Thank you mister!" "Just be sure t' wow em kid!" the three made their way upstairs, collapsing onto the large bed with a sigh. "Ugh, this armor is killin me." the first said, slipping out of the heavy armor, her broadsword leaning against the wall. "Well ya shouldn't be complainin, we might've still been wanderin 'round if not fer Belle's singin." The third friend smiled with a light blush on her face. "Aw, thanks Bloom. Though it is kind of tiring to constantly be singing. But it gets us somewhere to stay for the night." "How far away are we from the castle anyway? I'm sick of walking." the first friend complained again. "Its just a few days march more." Belle said, untying her cloak and hanging it over the bedpost. "Yea and then ya'll will get yer own bed and can stop kickin me awake in th' middle o' the night." Bloom said with a laugh as she set her hammer on the side of the bed. The other two still wondered how their friend managed to carry around such a massive weapon, though as they thought about it the answer was clear. She was a member of the Applecord family afterall, the strongest family of warriors this side of the Mareindell river. "Not my fault I have nightmares." she grumbled "It doesn't matter you two. Bloom, Scoot, we'll be at the castle in a couple of days and we can hand all of this over to the Elements and be done with it." Belle said to both of them, testing the strings on her harp and humming a little. Bloom nodded. "Yer right Belle. fer now ah'm gonna get some sleep, while I can." Bloom said as she pulled the blankets over herself. Scoot stood, stretching a little. "Where are you going?" Belle asked, watching as her friend reached for her broadsword. "Don't worry 'bout it Belle. Jus' do your best with them, 'kay?" she threw her bewildered friend a smile and left the room, marching outside and behind the inn. It was there that a shadow waited for her, or rather, had been following her. She had noticed it when they found the shard and kept quiet about it, hoping the others hadn't caught on. There was something about this shadow, she wanted it all to herself without Belle's magic or Bloomera's hammer. "I know you've been following us. Just what do you want?" She asked the shadow. It turned its peircing red gaze on her, a chill running through her body. "The sssshaaard. Giiiiive iiiit toooo meee." the shadow said, its voice harsh and raspy. Scootera grinned, grabbing her broadsword with one hand and hefting it over her shoulder. "You want it, come get it." she said to the shadow, her eyes glowing a dim red as she rushed forward. The creature leapt for her only to be felled in one quick flick of her wrist, the blade slicing through the creature with ease, leaving it in two flailing pieces on the ground. She walked up to the upper half, stabbing her blade into what she assumed to be its gut. "Now talk, who are you and what do you want with this shard?" the creature merely grinned as it faded into her blade, its claws stabbing into her arm. She screamed as it continued to claw its way up toward her, its claws stopping in her neck. "AGGHHHHHH!" Bloom's eyes snapped open as the sound of her friend screaming reached her ears. In an instant she was up, her hammer in hand and leaping in the direction of her friends voice. Right outside her window and a floor down. She rolled as she hit the ground, her eyes wide as she spotted her friend being attacked by a massive shadow. The shadow was slowly sinking into Scootera's body. "Get away from her!" Bloomera roared as she rushed forward. "STAY BACK BLOOM!" Belle called out, her eyes glowing as she chanted a spell. Bloom froze in place, the shadow vanishing inside of Scootera who fell to her knees, gasping for air. Belle knelt beside her, her hand glowing as she rested it on her shoulder. Scoot gritted her teeth, shaking a little as a marking etched itself into her shoulder. Afterwards she pulled her arm back and slapped Scootera across her face as hard as she could. "What were you thinking?!" she yelled. Scoot said nothing as she stood slowly, using her sword to keep herself on her feet. "I was tryin t' keep you two outta danger. I saw it followin us and I wanted to know what it wanted." "We know what it wanted. It wanted that stupid shard!" "Yea but who sent it? I wanted some answers Belle!" "WE don't need any answers. We just gotta take the shard back and be done with it!" "HEY!" Bloom yelled, stepping between them. "Remember that we are suppose t' be quiet 'bout all o' this. Ah don't think anyone would be happy t' know jus' who we really are and what we are doin and ya'll are gettin close t' drawin a crowd our way." the three friends looked around, noticing a few people looking their way and quickly made their way back into the inn. "I'm sorry sir but we won't be staying the night. I will keep my word however and do my best." "Well, sorry t' hear that. Though ah thank ya fer bein a woman of yer word." Belle nodded, casting one last angry glance toward Scoot as she stepped on top of a nearby table. She cleared her throat and slowly drew her fingers over her harp, her eyes closed as she sang a tale to the inns patrons. It was a story well known in these parts. a lone rider protecting the town from invading creatures for the entirety of the night. The man was known only as Nyx, guardian of the night. Scoot watched, leaning on her sword. She knew Belle was mad at her but eventually she would forgive her. Bloom helped Belle down as she finished her song, the patrons cheering for more. "I'm sorry everyone, but my friends and I must be on our way, though we will try to visit sometime. Thank you all so much!" she said with a smile, her anger having faded as she sang. She knew in her heart that Scootera only meant well for them though she should have known better than to go out on her own. They were Crusaders, a team, they worked together. "That was beautiful! But do ya really hafta go?" "I'm afraid so." Belle said, tucking away her harp. "Well, allow me t' give ya a partin gift. Ah've a good horse out back in th' stables and she's been itchin fer an adventure. Guessin from yer clothes ah'd say ya'll are th' perfect ones t' take her off mah hands. Jus' take good care of her and she'll take good care of you." "Thank you so much! I promise we'll care for her with our lives." She truly was a beautiful mare, tall and proud, her coat a light brown and her eyes a fiery yellow. The mare seemed to instantly like Belle though it backed away when Scootera tried to come closer. "Guess it doesn't like me." She grumbled. "She can sense it Scoot." Belle whispered to her. Scoot raised an eyebrow though realization was quick to set in. She was the one carrying the shard, of course the horse would be able to sense the danger that came with such a thing. "I guess i'm walking then." //-------------------------------------------------------// Dinky: The Timelord?! //-------------------------------------------------------// Dinky: The Timelord?! AN:This is just a little idea that popped into my head after seeing a ponified version of "The Doctors Wife" with Colgate as Idris. "I'm sorry Ditzy...I'm so sorry..." The Doctor said sadly, unable to move from the boulder that kept them pinned. The pegasus only smiled at him as the Daleks advanced on them, blasters at the ready. "Its ok Doctor...Dinky is safe in the TARDIS a..and Twilight will take good care of her...I know it." She reached over, placing her hoof over his as tears stung her eyes. "I'm just glad...I got to be with you...in the end..." She closed her eyes, a content smile on her face. The Doctor gasped in pain as he managed to throw his hooves over her. "Doctor! what are you doing?!" She yelled. "I can shield you from them. Somehow...you have to get out of her Ditzy. Just play dead and they'll leave and you can escape." "Doctor..No!" she struggled underneath him, crying as the Dalek blasters charged. "I Love you..." The Doctor said, closing his eyes as the sound of blasters firing filled his ears. Though he felt nothing. Slowly he opened his eyes to find a light blue unicorn mare standing in front of them, holding two massive blasters over each shoulder with smoke drifting from the muzzles. He recognized her as Colgate, the Dentist of Ponyville. But what was she doing here? He looked around, realizing she had reduced the Daleks to nothing more than scrap. "Phew, just in time. You know Doctor, you really should be more careful." Colgate said, lifting the boulders in her magic and setting them aside. She sighed, looking at his body. "Here, lemme help." She placed her hoof against his broken legs, the Doctor watching in shock as regenerative energy left her hoof and repaired his legs, coursing through him all the way to Ditzy's wings. "B...but thats impossible...you can't be a.." He stuttered, Colgate putting a hoof against his lips. "Time-Lord? Well not exactly. I'm not really suppose to be here at this moment in time either. But you know that already. You changed the time-line to save Dinky afterall." the unicorn said as she sat down, lifting a sonic screwdriver in her magic and holding it before both the now healed pegasus and earth pony, the device whirring quietly. "hm, looks normal." Colgate gasped as Ditzy tackled her, hugging her tightly and crying. The young mare did her best to stay calm, wrapping her hooves around the distraught pegasus. "Dinky, you were suppose to stay in the TARDIS" Ditzy cried into the mares shoulder. Both the unicorn and the Doctor stared at the pegasus with wide eyes. "You know who I am?!" she yelled in surprise "She's Dinky?!" the Doctor yelled, the two looked at one another. Dinky sighing and giving a nod. "I'm Dinky from the future. You sent me back and Twilight took me in. She told me to stay away from the TARDIS. That someday you'd come back to me. But I knew better. I took the TARDIS and I went looking for you. A lot happened...I regenerated after an incident with some Cybermen and suddenly everything became clear. So...I went back through my own time-line and took my place as Colgate until the time was right and I chased you down when you finally came to this forsaken place." "All these years...you were right there...oh Dinky..." The Doctor shook his head, feeling like an idiot. "The only thing I don't understand is how mom recognized me." she said, looking into her mothers eyes. "I always knew it was you muffin...The way you always smiled when we came by with little Dinky...the way you always treated her...It was obvious...but if I said something then something bad might've happened." Ditzy explained through her tears, surprising both Time-lords with the knowledge she held. "Well..now that the cats out of the bag I can't really go back." She shrugged her shoulders sadly. "Nonsense. The Timeline has held itself intact because you realized Colgate needed to be in Ponyville. What will happen if she vanishes?" The Doctor asked with a smile. The unicorn sighed and shook her head. "Just can't argue with you can I?" She asked, smiling slightly. "Nope, now come on, we've got to get out of here. We'll be taking your TARDIS I presume?" the Doctor asked. Dinky nodded, lifting the cannons in her magic once more. "You know...I never thought I'd use these when I built them as a filly. It was just an idea, shifting light energy and dark matter into a source of power. It was actually a little Filly who told me I could make a cannon out of my prototype." she said with a smile. "But that doesn't matter now, we have to move. There are more Daleks on the way. I'll stop Dalek Sek and catch up with you" she held up her hoof and the Doctor gasped. "A vortex Manipulator. But how..." he asked, his eyes wide. "Spoilers" she winked and vanished.