The Broken Compass

Chapters

Down the Rabbithole
A Brave New World
Out of the Frying Pan
Into the Fire
Cry Havoc
Let Slip the Dogs of War
What Lies Ahead

Down the Rabbithole

It was admittedly rather cold for Georgia. Fall was in full swing and the weather certainly helped the brown and amber leaves to signal its arrival. It almost made Jase shiver as he turned on the car’s heater. He turned on the radio to see what was on and distract him from the cold. He adjusted the knob, finding mostly white noise, until it tuned into the local rock station, 102.9. Up Around the Bend by Credence Clearwater Revival reached his ears and he grinned, soaking in one of his favorite songs ironically, especially given it was an old protest and anti-military song.

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"You mind turning that down, Jase?” Jase shot a glance at his friend Jude. Admittedly, Jase and Jude looked almost identical at first glance. Similar slender body structures, same brown eye color, and the same dark brunette hair color. But once you stripped away their physical differences, they were two contrasting halves. One thing that was obvious at the current moment was their distinct tastes in music

Jase shrugged and turned down the volume, knowing that Jude really didn’t care for much classic rock. He sighed, realizing how his friend would never truly appreciate such amazing music.

Jude smiled widely. “Thanks. You know, we have reason to celebrate.” His usual jovial attitude came back as he remembered. Jase lifted an eyebrow wondering where this was going. Surprised that he didn’t pick up on his hint, Jude looked quizzically. “Don’t you remember? You got early acceptance to North Georgia!”

Jase started to smile a mile wide. It was really an accomplishment on his part to get into the college, especially given his inability to test or study well. That was another distinction between the two. Jase was a lot less studious than Jude. Often, Jude could be seen just pressing his face into a book or writing in his poetry and creative writing notebook to further the stereotype he fit into, he wasn’t anywhere near in shape. Not that he was overweight, but he was far too scrawny to make much progress in physical activity. He avoided social convention, but not out of shyness or fear. He just saw it as not worth the effort and unnecessary.

Jase was the usual antithesis to this. He was extremely bold and boisterous and was a rather active athlete. Not only was he an athlete, but he also was hoping to join the military. Honestly, if it weren’t for Jude convincing him to wait until college, he would have enlisted rather than waste away four years with studies he wouldn’t need. On that particular subject he was weaker; though he wasn’t necessarily an idiot, he also was not intelligent, certainly not to Jude’s degree. Jase’s knowledge was limited, doubly so in fields like math and science. One subject he knew much about was physical activity, especially shooting. He was a good shot; he was no sniper, but was well familiar with rifles and pistols.

“That is cause for celebration. Now I can go into ROTC and join the military in a few years, with an officer’s pay. You know, Jude, with your tactical smarts, I’d serve with you any day.” Jude looked at him with a joking smile.

“Oh, no way you’re dragging me into that Jase. The military may be ideal for you, but I prefer a more peaceful future, especially given my skills and declination towards violence.” Now it was Jase’s turn to exchange a look, this time one of confusion.

“What’s so bad about violence?” he asked.

Jude shrugged. “Call me pacifistic if you want, but the philosophy behind violence just doesn’t seem to solve any problems. War causes war.”

Jase groaned. Jude was a great guy, but sometimes that “philosophy” he studied just made him seem like some hippy egghead. “Are you honestly telling me that violence is never the answer?”

“Violence is never the best answer,” Jude quipped back. “Sure, it’s a temporary solution, but the consequences of violence make it a rather short lived resolution.”

Jase took his eyes off the road a moment to glare at his friend. “Alright, wise guy, then what is the solution?”

Jude pondered this a moment. “hmm… Love? Tolerance? Greater human understanding?”

Jase barked out laughter at his friend’s response. “You really believe that?”

“Oh, shut up,” snapped Jude. “I guess I’m a lone idealist.”

“Yeah, you are,” Jase stated, followed by a glare. He decided to change the subject. “So, I was thinking of going a walk later today. You want to come with me?”

Jude’s face lit up. Taking hikes was one of the few activities they both loved. Jase enjoyed being outside and walking around in fresh air, and Jude often found poetic inspiration from nature.

“Sure,” he finally said as Jase pulled the car over into the neighborhood. “Meet at the usual spot?”

“You know it,” replied Jase. Jude smiled as he got out of the car and walked off to get ready for a trek.

As Jase exited the car, he missed the relative warmth of the cab. The air outside was frigid and he wanted to warm up a bit before heading out again to walk around. He sauntered away from his car and into his house. Luckily, the air was nice and cool within his air-conditioned abode. He wondered if his dad had come home yet, not thinking to check the garage for his car. “Dad, are you home?” He called out as he looked beyond the foyer. There was no answer

He retreated upstairs to grab some better clothes and his gear. He selected his old Civil Air Patrol camouflage from his room and contemplated wearing them. After a moment’s thought, he hung the shirt back up. The pants would do nicely though. He kept looking and finally found a plain tan t-shirt to go with it.

“That should be durable enough…” he said to himself and began to look further around his room. “Now, where is that jacket?” He frantically searched around his room, tossing clothes and other miscellaneous items from the floor as he scanned it.

Suddenly, the jacket he was searching for came into view. It was his pride and joy, especially to keep him warm. It was a thin but tough, dark brown canvas jacket, much similar to a military style, even though it obviously was of civilian make.

The part that made it special was that Jase’s grandfather had given him three patches that had belonged to him. One was a Staff Sergeant insignia, the same he had worn on his uniform. The second was an airborne band that was above the sergeant insignia, both stitched onto the left shoulder. The final patch was an American flag that covered most of the upper back, from shoulder to shoulder.

“There you are old timer.” Jase said to himself. The jacket constantly reminded him of his grandfather. Always there for him, always teaching, always caring…

Jase shook himself back to reality. Jude would be waiting on him and the moment didn’t call for sentiment. He hurriedly donned the clothes, slung his hiking pack on, and grabbed the compass on his dresser, securing it in a pocket of his pack’s strap. He ran down stairs before a realization hit him.

It had been a long time since he had done any target practice, and his father was gone.

For a moment the thought just hung in the air. On one hand, his father would be furious on an apocalyptic level if he knew Jase had snuck the pistol out, and his fury would only be rivaled by Jude’s.

On the other hand… He did have a strange urge to shoot, and his dad probably wouldn’t be home before they were back…

Jase walked to the “gun closet”, as his father had termed it, and opened the door. Inside there were a wide variety of different firearms that belonged to his dad. He saw the 1911 pistol laying on one of the shelves, two small boxes beside it of .45 ammo. What’s the worst that could happen? Squeezing off some rounds wouldn’t hurt. He grabbed it and the boxes and shoved them into the bag before closing the closet back and heading out the backdoor and into the woods to the meeting point

…

“Took you a while, man,” stated Jude, who simply wore a blue V-neck t-shirt and khaki cargos in spite of the cold. The only things Jase knew he was bringing were his writing notebook and that small, pocket-sized copy of the King James Bible he always carried when they walked.

“Sorry, Jude. I had to grab a few things.” They were at the very edge of the woods now, just a quarter mile or so from his house. Jase picked up the machete he kept there to clear foliage and strapped it onto his belt. “So, where are we walking today?”

Jude paused a moment and thought. “How about we go to the creek?” He asked, referring to a waterfall and creek not far from the edge of the woods. That would be a good place to start. Jase nodded and started walking beside his friend.

“Since I chose the music in the car, it’s only fair you do the same now,” Jase said with a grin.

Jude returned the grin. “Thanks. Let me look for something.” He pulled out a cell phone and started flipping around before selecting a song.

They walked with no conversation but the accompanying music between them for a while until finally Jude spoke up.

“You know, it really is a big deal. You getting into North Georgia, I mean.”

Jase was taken a bit aback. “Yeah, I guess. It doesn’t matter. I’m going military regardless, and a college degree won’t affect that at all.” Now it was Jude’s turn to be uncomfortable with the words hanging in the air. He hated the idea of Jase becoming a soldier.

“Why do you have such a strong urge to go and fight?” Jude inquired as they strolled past a thick old stump that doubled as a landmark. Jase stroked an imaginary beard a moment before giving a short, resolute answer.

“Honor.”

“Honor? What honor?” Now Jude’s voice was growing subconsciously.

“It’s the honor of serving something greater than myself. It’s the honor of defending the weak.” Jase spoke with passion on the subject.

“And what will honor do when they’re sending a folded up flag to your mother?” asked Jude with venom practically dripping from his tongue.

“Jude…” Jase began. “We’ve talked about this. It’s a risk I’m willing to take. It’s worth it to protect those who can’t protect themselves.”

“By causing violence?” Jude’s point of view on violence was starting to become rather annoying.

“This again? Violence isn’t perfect, but it is necessary.” Jase’s tone was adamant that the discussion of this was over, but Jude looked as though he was not finished.

“There is no situation where it could ever be the best answer, Jase. It’s just-”

“OK, Jase. You want to get down to brass tacks, then fine. Say some guy has you at gunpoint and is utterly mad. Let’s say he wants to kill you for the sake of killing you. What is the answer?”

Jude thought a moment. “Try to talk him out of it.”

Jase face palmed. “You can’t talk a madman out of it. That is the definition of insanity.”

“Well then I’d try to escape,” Jude said.

“What if you’re trapped in an alley and can’t escape?” Jase’s face was getting red now, showing his infamously short temper.

“Well… I know where I’m going,” Jude replied.

“Pardon?” Jase said in genuine confusion.

“When I die, I’m going up into the clouds, Jase.”

Jase groaned. “You would just die rather than fight like a man?”

Jude shrugged. “If it was my time.”

Jase’s face reddened and Jude braced himself, knowing a hell of a shouting match had just opened up, but both of them froze as they heard soft footsteps. Jase was quite a woodsman, and judging by the pace and noise of the steps, it wasn’t an animal. He signaled Jude with a finger to his lips to be quiet as he crouched down to remain hidden.

Jude stayed down and still. If something seemed off to Jase in the woods, it was usually good enough reason to be cautious as possible. Jase, however, begin crawling quietly, unwilling to give the slightest noise until he resolved the mystery. As he carefully peered through a bush in the direction of the sound, his mouth dropped open and his eyes went wide. “What the hell...” He trailed off, mystified. Jude’s curiosity got the better of him and he came up beside Jase to have a look.

There, walking about in front of them was a girl who looked very out of her element in the surrounding woods. She had long purple hair which trailed down either side, framing her face, and a very thin, pale figure. Her face was gaunt too, and for someone walking around in the woods, she was oddly dressed considering her skirt, thigh high leggings, and button up shirt and bow tie were not at all good for long walks in the wilderness. But that’s when her weirdest feature showed as she turned slightly: Her eyes were purple! Not blue, not green, not even hazel, but a deep shade of purple!

Jude began to stand up, but Jase quickly pulled him back down. “What are you doing?” he whispered.

Jude looked indignant. “She’s obviously lost. We need to help her.” Jase looked even more adamant with his expression. “We don’t even know who she is. Stay down,” he said in a tone that was a bit too loud. He realized this because at that moment, the girl started looking around. Jude saw his opportunity and stood before Jase could stop him.

The girl froze, staring at him with a curious but fearful expression. “Hey,” he began. “My name is Jude. Are you lost miss? We could help you-”

Before Jude could finish she bolted off. He quickly followed after her, grabbing Jase’s machete to cut through the dense brush. “Jude! Don’t!” Jase shouted to no avail. He cursed under his breath and went after them both.

Meanwhile, Jude was running fast. Jase had told him many times about search and rescue procedures he had learned in Civil Air Patrol when he was younger and about how some lost persons reacted with fear and would flee if approached hastily. He cursed himself while trying to clear what dense foliage was in his way with Jase’s machete for being so direct and forceful.

It wasn’t long before Jase had caught up to Jude and was mere inches from him. They ran up hill, which gave Jase, as out of shape as he was and weighed down by all his gear, just enough of an advantage to catch up. But suddenly, as the hill crested and he was on Jude’s metaphorical heels, he felt a sudden falling sensation.

The ground beneath them had suddenly just dropped out of existence and they both screamed as they fell. Approximately twenty feet later, they hit the ground hard. Jase let out a massive groan of pain. He saw nothing but red for a few moments and as his mind cleared, as did his vision, revealing one of his thumbs bent the wrong way. He shuttered as he realized what first aid mandated. He removed his hat and bit on it while he slowly gripped his thumb. The mere pain of touching it was enough to make him groan again. He readied himself and counted to three.

On three, he jerked his thumb, popping it painfully back into place. This time, a scream, not a moan, escaped from the intense anguish. The pain didn’t stop, only lessened, and his torso didn’t feel any better. Suddenly, a thought sent him into a panic. Where was Jude?

Against his bodies pained complaints, he managed to get sitting up, and after greater effort, onto his hands and knees. That’s when he saw Jude. He was lying in close proximity to Jase’s landing spot. He was bloodied and bruised in a similar manner, and one of his arms looked badly injured, but the next thing Jase noticed sent him into complete terror. Jase’s machete had landed squarely on Jude’s chest, or possibly the other way around, which had caused a massive gash that was bleeding profusely.

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“Jude! Jude! Oh, my god, oh my god! Jude!” Jase began to shout such phrases hysterically as fear gripped him. He ignored the pain, adrenaline now taking over, and half-sprinted over to Jude. He ham fistedly opened his bag and the medical bag inside and started to treat the wound with first aid. He looked back momentarily to Jude’s face as he checked his pulse. Shock was already setting in and Jude even seemed speechless.

“Jude, don’t you give up on me! Don’t you dare give up on me!” Jase was pleading now, tears streaming uncontrollably. Jude seemed as if he tried to say something, but couldn’t. Suddenly his eyes closed and he fell limp. Horror gripped Jase as he felt his best friend had just died in his arms.

He was re assured with a less grim realization when he realized Jude was still breathing and had a pulse still. He had gone unconscious, likely due to shock setting in. At ease that at least his friend was alive and that there was hope, Jase continued sanitizing and dressing the wound. After fighting with the bloody gash for what seemed like hours, he was confident he had healed it as much as possible, although he was still bleeding out. Jase had to go find help for both of them, or Jude might die within hours.

He took a look at Jude’s arm and realized it was also broken in addition to the other injuries. Jase quickly dropped the rest of his pack and, fighting off sheer agony, lifted Jude. The pain was immense, but Jude needed medical attention, and though his injuries weren’t life threatening, the initial adrenaline was out of his system, leaving him fatigued.

Jase kept slowly limping with Jude on his back, trying his best not to let go. He looked around and took note, however, that this didn’t seem like any part of Georgia he had ever visited. The flora was completely different, and even the ground felt different from the red clay he was raised on. It was less humid too, and the more he thought about it, the odder it was that they had fallen through nothing into this… place.

As Jase finally broke the tree line after about twenty minutes of stumbling and limping, he thought he hallucinated… he couldn’t believe his eyes…

… Jase saw in front of him an angel. She was very pale and fair skinned. Her long pink hair seemed to flow down her small frame. She wore a yellow sundress that had openings at the back for her wings. She was smiling at a small group of squirrels in front of her.

Jase’s heart leapt into his throat. This was his chance to get help. “Hey! Hey! Over here! Please help! Hey!” he began calling over and over again to the young woman with wings. She turned and suddenly went from a smile of pure joy to a mortified expression. Jase’s energy suddenly ceased aiding his legs and he collapsed onto his knees.

She sprinted towards him, still scared out of her wits by the look of it. “Help! Please Help!” Jase called, but his ears stopped hearing at all except for white noise. The fringes of his vision started to fade and he frantically held onto her to stay vertical, his bloody hands and arms staining her dress. He collapsed again, lost the strength to even hang on. His vision got even blurrier as her concerned face went out of focus.

“Please… Help…” He hoped he succeeded saying before everything faded into darkness and numbness.

A Brave New World

Reality seemed to sort of pass in and out of being recognizable to Jase. Every now and then a flash of cognizance would come to him. Most of the things early on were easy enough to see or hear…

… That pink haired angel, still terrified and standing over him, screaming for help…

… The same angel trying to carry and drag him…

… A couple of nurses lifting him onto a stretcher and carrying him inside…

… A few doctors standing over him in a surgery room operating on him…

After that the world started to become completely a blur. The next thing he consciously felt was searing, constant pain all around him. If it weren’t for the previous numbness, it would have elicited a bloodcurdling scream. His vision turned from absolute darkness to a deep red and began to grow lighter.

As the light came in, he started to see blocky, fuzzy images. He realized then the images were a headboard directly above him, followed by some balloons, an IV stand, and the ceiling. In his foggy state, it took a moment to recognize the room he was in, but when he did, a calm feeling started to overtake him.

It was a hospital room.

The calming allowed Jase’s mind to process at a normal rate again. He began to look around and saw a redheaded nurse walk over to a patient next to him. “Ma’am…” he meekly whispered.

She turned and gave a surprised look. “Hey. You gave us quite the scare. We weren’t sure you were going to make it when you first got in here.” She scanned some monitors near Jase and made quick notes on the clipboard she carried. She drifted from the machines over to Jase’s side, evaluating his condition.

“How… How did I get here?” Jase asked.

She continued checking, taking his pulse as they conversed. “Well, you had an angel looking out for you.” She smiled at him and for the first time since he woke up, Jase smiled.

“You have no idea, ma’am. I saw her. Imagine that! I saw an angel, but of course they don’t exist, so I guess I was just seeing things.” The nurse just stared at him for a while, a confused expression at first. Then she smiled again, but this was more of a motherly, concerned smile.

“Oh, dear… The doctor did say your head was pretty banged up… Well, I would say get some rest, but five days of sleep is probably as much as you could take, right?” She jotted down more notes and was about to exit.

“Wait, ma’am. Where is this hospital: Alabama or Georgia?” She gave him another confused stare before smiling again in the same way.

“Honey, I don’t know where you are talking about, but you’re safe and sound in Ponyville now,” she said as she walked out of the room.

Jase sat stunned. What did she just say? Ponyville? He knew that thing- whatever it was that happened in the woods- had landed him somewhere else. But how far had it taken him? He had never heard of Ponyville before.

Jase tried to push the thought out of his head and began inspecting the surroundings. The hospital room seemed rather standard. He began examining himself and saw that the small cuts and bruises had been thoroughly treated and bandaged by the look of it. Even his injured thumb felt almost normal again. There was an IV stuck into his right forearm and connected to a bag hanging from the stand above him.

Satisfied that he was well patched up, Jase looked at the balloons that were colored light blue and yellow. A card was tied to the cord the balloons were fastened to. Jase picked it up and opened it, shocked by the note.

Make your day worthwhile!

Remember to smile!

Get well soon!

-Pinkie Pie

Jase reread the card, utterly stunned. Who the hell was Pinkie Pie? How did she know him? This was all so confusing. Suddenly it hit him. The nurse’s hair was pink. Maybe it was her attempt at being kind to him. He smiled now, relieved that some stalker hadn’t left those. He let his eyes close and some time passed before they opened again.

When he did reopen them, he was startled to find a girl staring at him with an exaggerated smile plastered on her face. She wore a knee length, light blue skirt with a bright pink tee shirt that matched the tone of her frizzy hair in the same way the skirt was similar to her eye color. “Ah!” Was the first thing Jase managed to get out before flailing his legs in surprise. His momentary panic halted and he looked at the stranger, still a little confused.

“Can I help you?” he asked. Her smile somehow grew wider as she gasped.

“Oh my gosh! You can talk! The doctor said you hit your head pretty bad, so I was all sad, but then Nurse Redheart said you were waking up and about and I thought I’d drop by and say HI!” She shouted the last word. Jase’s already sizable headache was not helping his patience with the ringing in his ear.

“Umm… Ok. Who are you?” Jase inquired. She giggled, not losing that exaggerated smile of hers.

“Well, I’m Pinkie Pie, silly willy.” Jase’s eyes widened as he groaned in understanding.

“Oh! So you’re… Pinkie Pie?” The sentence began as a statement, but became less certain as it went on. What was her real name? Was Pinkie Pie a nickname? She shook her head vigorously.

“Yep yep yep! I came to say hello and smile. So, what’s your name, what’s your favorite color, Where you from, what do you like, and what’s favorite cupcake?” She spat out the words faster than a turret.

“Ok. Slow down a bit. I’m Jase Foster. I like Green. I’m from Fortson. I like anything chocolate flavored…” He counted on his fingers. “I think that was all of your questions.”

She cocked her head to the side with a blank expression. “Fort Son? I’ve never heard of it. Where is it?”

“Well, it’s about 25 miles North of Fort Benning.” She started to laugh heartily “What’s so funny?” Jase asked.

“Well,” she said, “that’s just silly! Who would put two forts next to each other?” Jase tried to say something, but his mouth simply hung open. This pink haired, bouncing ADHD diagnosis had just rendered him utterly speechless. He only managed a one syllable response.

“Huh?”

She laughed some more. Jase collected his thoughts again after a moment. “Well, at any rate, thank you for the card.” He smiled at her. She returned the favor.

“Pinkie? Can… Can I come in now?” a small voice asked from outside of the room.

Jase stared at the doorway confused. “A friend of yours?” he asked. Pinkie shook her head yes.

“Come here, Flutters. He’s awake.”

“Flutters? Who are you talking about?” Jase looked with her and his heart skipped a beat when he realized he was looking right at the angel that saved him. He screamed, soon followed by the terrified squeal of the angel as she ducked almost completely back into cover. Pinkie joined in, screaming out of excitement rather than terror. After a moment, Jase caught his breath again, looking at pinkie surprised.

“She has wings!”

“She has wings,” pinkie repeated.

“She has wings!”

“No, Pinkie Pie, you’re not getting it. She. Has. Wings!” Jase punctuated each word with a gesture at the cowering angel. Pinkie Pie cocked her head again.

“Well, duh. She’s an angel.” Jase was utterly dumbfounded. What was she on about now? What insanities were left for her to say? What did she mean angel? Then it hit him and his eyes went wide.

“Holy shit I’m dead.” He gripped his temples as he fell back onto the pillow, leaving the two girls to exchange puzzled stares. Pinkie shrugged as Fluttershy came closer, no longer startled by this eccentric stranger.

“Umm… No, you’re not dead. You did get hurt really bad, but I got help from the nurses and you healed up…” said the surprisingly timid angel. Jase was still too lost in his own thoughts to hear her. Maybe he died when he felt that falling sensation. Yeah, that kind of made since, and it would explain why he was here, wherever this was, when he landed. But that also would make no sense. How had he fallen to his death in the first place? There wasn’t a drop off there.

“So… If I’m not dead, where am I?” He asked, genuinely confused.

The angel smiled for the first time since he spotted her near the treeline. “Well, you’re in Ponyville.”

“Right, but where is that?” Jase inquired, halting the urge to facepalm from the answer’s redundancy.

Her smile faded ever so slightly. “It’s in Equestria.” Jase showed no sign of recognition of the name. “You know, it’s a country on Equis.”

Jase suddenly lit up. “Wait, this Equis… Is that the name of this planet?” Both of the girls exchanged looks again and then shook their heads up and down.

Jase’s eyes grew wide with understanding as he sat back up. “I’m not on Earth… I’m on another planet.”

“Earth?” Pinkie interjected, breaking his train of thought. “You are on Earth. There’s dirt two feet below you.”

“No, you don’t understand, Pinkie,” Jase started, wondering how exactly he would explain this. He was about to start fumbling through an explanation of his home, when he heard a familiar voice from the doorway.

“So this is the welcome I get?” Jase turned his head to see Jude walk through the door in a hospital gown, an IV stand connected to him and rolling behind him.

“Jude!” Jase bolted up. “Damn, I missed you, buddy. I thought we wouldn’t make it.” The two girls exchanged a look yet again, starting to question the sanity of their guest. Pinkie, finally intent on getting some answers, was the first to speak up.

“Who are you talking to?” She asked quite matter-of-factly.

“I’m talking to Jude.” He said, glancing in her direction with a smile.

Pinkie looked around the room and then the ceiling and out the window before cocking her head. Jase raised an eyebrow at the hyperactive girl. “I don’t see anyone here…” she said, utterly confounded. Again, Jase realized something and began to chuckle lightly. “What is it?” Pinkie questioned perplexed.

“Of course you can’t see him,” Jase said through his laughter.

“Why?” Both exasperated girls asked, completely puzzled by the stranger’s cryptic answers. Then he gave an even more enigmatic response.

“Simple: he’s in my head.”

Out of the Frying Pan

Shining Armor, Captain of the Guard, paced back and forth in the throne room of Canterlot. His mind was boggled and he was easily growing frustrated.

“I don’t know, Princess Luna,” he said to the sovereign sitting on one of two thrones in the ornate room. “I just don’t know if we would be able to survive such bitter conflict.”

The young woman to whom he was speaking was pondering, a stern and regal look on her face. She exhaled, locking her fingers together as she leaned forward. “Captain, I’m not asking if it will happen. I’m saying that it will happen.”

“Your Highness, We can’t risk these wars, not in the weakened state that we have slipped into…” Shining Armor trailed off.

“Weakened?” Luna sat up and glared as if offended. “Captain, we are by no means weakened as a nation. This is the great Equestria, after all. We may have had some minor setbacks recently, but-”

Shining cut her off with a swift about face and almost let something slip out of his mouth. “Permission to speak freely, your majesty?” She nodded, unsure of what the Captain would say when not bound by formal decency.

His face turned red with anger. “With all due respect… Minor setbacks? The past two years have been hell on everyone. The Harpy kingdom to the North is dead set on declaring war with us, we already are concentrating all of our forces on the Dragons, and that leaves the Shifters to do whatever they want with the more rural and isolated areas of the kingdom with no one stopping them. The Earthborn are going on strike and their conditions are horrid in some cities from the discrimination, the Angels are attempting to secede, and the Mages are too busy squabbling over what’s left and hoarding what little wealth they can cling to. And now, on top of all of that, we have these random anomalies generating portals for Tartarus’ sake. Explain to me how these are minor setbacks!”

His rant ended as a shocked princess sat before him. Then her face turned crimson as she donned a scowl. She motioned for the guardsmen, the only other people in earshot, out of the room. Shining Armor regretted overstepping his bounds and was about to apologize when the princess, rather than yell for his rudeness, practically broke down in a nervous fit.

“Captain Armor, what do you want from me? Do you want me to clap my hands and everything suddenly gets better? I can’t do anything but watch the fires from my throne! I’m not Celestia!” The princess shouted before completely losing her composure as tears cascaded from her eyes.

There it is, Shining thought to himself. Since Celestia had mysteriously vanished without so much as a magical trace two years ago, Luna and Twilight, Shining’s own sister, had to share the workload and responsibilities that Celestia once took care of. However, Luna was much younger and less mature than her sister or Twilight, in spite of her age which was beyond a thousand. Shining looked around to be sure no one was watching before putting a hand on the young woman’s trembling shoulders.

“It’s alright, Luna. You’ve been doing as well as anyone in your position could. Just hang on. You’re an amazing leader and you and my sister are working wonders. Have faith.” His hands were scarred and leathery from battle and yet they did have a talent for providing a brotherly comfort.

Luna looked up and smiled through red eyes at him. “Thank you, Shining… It just gets to me sometimes… I miss her so much…”

Shining smiled back. “One day she will be back, and then she’ll tell you what a great ruler you have been in her absence.”

Suddenly the doors flung open and a very familiar female mage came through the huge double doors.

“Twilight,” Shining Armor called, excited to see his little sister. She ran up and hugged him.

“Well, if it isn’t my BBBFF. I missed you.” They broke the hug and Shining Armor noticed that Twilight was in a rough condition. Her clothes had been frayed, and scratches and nicks ran along her hands.

“Oh my gosh, Twily. What happened? I told you you shouldn’t have gone. We could have sent a guard.” She shook her head in mock frustration.

“Shining, you know I’m the foremost on magic since-” she stopped herself short, noticing Luna within earshot. “You know. Anyways, I needed to inspect these anomalies first hand. I went inside one briefly, but strangely enough, my wings disappeared and my magic wouldn’t work either.”

“You were no longer an Archon?” He was shocked. Archons were an ascended form of the other races of men, possessing the unique attributes of all three tribes. Archons were extremely rare, and with Celestia gone, only three existed; his wife Cadence, his sister Twilight, and Princess Luna.

“Yes, but there was more than that… I saw a strange human there. He was built like an Angel or Mage, lacking the muscle of an Earthborn. But he also didn’t have the pointed ears of a Mage or the wings of an Angel.” Her brother was even more surprised. Could another breed of humans exist containing none of these features, and what features would they have instead? It was too deep for him to think on in his sleep deprived state.

“Well, the good news is that you’re safe, and I’m not allowing you to go on these missions anymore.” Twilight gave him a deadpanned look.

“If memory serves, Captain, I out rank you now. Besides, who else is knowledgeable enough about portals and dimensional shifts to do it?” After a moment of thought she had a brilliant idea.

She quickly ran up to her study and scrawled hastily on a piece of paper. Shining Armor kept up with the frantic girl as she ran looking for quills, ink, and parchment. “What are you doing?” He asked, honestly lost on what was transpiring.

“There’s one person who can help us. He’s well travelled throughout portals and dimensions, vastly intelligent, and very powerful,” said Twilight as she dotted the last period on her letter.

“Who?” Shining asked as she sent the letter off to Spike. She turned to Shining Armor, a genuine smile on her face.

“The Doctor.”

…

“Wait… He’s in your head? As in Jude doesn’t exist?” Pinkie Pie was utterly confused as Jase’s laughter died down. He looked at her, trying to think of wear to start.

“Pinkie… Did you ever have an imaginary friend growing up?” Judging by her childish demeanor, Jase had a feeling he already knew the answer. She shook her head yes. “Well, Jude is a lot like that. He’s a separate person in my head.”

“So… He’s imaginary?” she asked, still not certain of just what to make of the situation. Jase ran his fingers through his hair.

“Not quite… You see, Pinkie and Fluttershy, I’ve had Multiple Personality Disorder since I was young, and Jude is the other personality. He’s a completely separate but real person I share a body with. He can even take control. Watch this.”

Jase made a blank expression and then lit up again with energy and excitement. He marveled at his hands, wiggling his fingers and laughing. “Been a long time since I was in control. Fantastic,” Said Jude.

Pinkie looked him over and she finally felt like she understood. “Oh! I get it. Like me and Pinkamena,” she exclaimed.

Jude realized again that the two girls were there and instantly seemed to withdraw into a shell. “Oh… Hi…” he said awkwardly, unsure where to go from there, wearing an empty smile.

At this point, Fluttershy notice his demeanor and how he carried himself had changed dramatically. Jase was a lot more serious and direct with actions and thoughts. Jude on the other hand seemed relatively lighthearted. The two also had two different social attitudes; While Jase was confident and sociable, Jude seemed to tend more towards reclusive behavior.

“Umm… Hello, Jude. My name is Fluttershy,” the angel said meekly. It was highly out of character for her to introduce herself first, but she had a feeling Jude was just as timid. He gave her a much more convincing smile in response.

“Elated to make your acquaintance. I’m Jude Foster.” He extended an unsteady hand towards Fluttershy that got all the more unstable when she took it in her own.

Wow… and I thought I was shy, she thought to herself. “Can you tell us more about you and Jase, Jude?” she asked.

Jude pondered. “Ah, so that’s the situation…” he said off to the side as though talking to no one. “Well, judging by the situation, I am from a different reality than here. You see, in my world, angels don’t exist.”

“What about mages?” Jude raised an eyebrow at her question. She noticed and started to explain a bit more in depth. “You know, a person able to use magic, has pointy ears… Like you do?”

Jude began to laugh, lifting his hand to the side of his head. “Fluttershy, I’m pretty sure I don’t have-” Jude shrieked in surprise as his fingers touched a tapered ear. “What the… How did I get those?”

“Do they not have mages where you come from?” Fluttershy asked. Jase shook his head no. He was still in disbelief on the transformation he had taken.

“Magic doesn’t even exist where I come from,” he answered. Both girls gasped as though he had said gravity itself didn’t exist. Before the conversation could continue further, the same nurse walked in staring at her ever present clip board. She smiled when she looked up and saw the two girls with the patient.

“Oh, good. You’re awake. And I see you have company.” She walked over to Jude and checked some of the monitors. “Well, you seem to be healthy enough to check out. The doctor already cleared me to wrap things up.”

She bent down to his arm with a cotton ball and tape stuck onto her sleeve together. She withdrew the IV- Jude barely holding in a grunt from the unexpected pain. She swiftly covered the wound with the small dressing attached to her sleeve. “I want you to leave that on for a little while so the blood can clot. Alright?” Jude shook his head in response and she smiled before exiting the room.

“Wait! Where are my clothes?” Jase called out to no avail. Fluttershy pointed over to a neat pile of clothing in the corner of the room. He recognized Jase’s jacket and camouflage pants alongside his boots.

Of all the clothes he had to stick me with, Jude thought. He threw off the cover and was about to get up before remembering that he had nothing but a hospital gown on. “Umm…” he said slightly embarrassed, “Can you girls give me a minute?”

Pinkie giggled and shook her head. Fluttershy was oblivious a moment, and then realized what he was asking of them, blushing a deep crimson. She whispered a small, “Oh, of course,” before exiting the room with Pinkie. Once they were gone Jude closed the door and began putting the clothes on. He slung the pack onto his back, feeling its weight slightly more than he remembered. He shrugged it off as slight weakness from the injuries.

The injuries had healed quite well. The only true pain was a medium sized stabbing pain in his side, underneath the dressing. He then noticed the last piece of equipment Jase had brought through was the old compass he carried. He picked it up, noticing how the frame and glass was shattered inside. The needle had gone skewed, making it impossible to use for navigation.

“What a fitting metaphor…” Jase thought out loud. He then proceeded out the door to catch up with the girls.

…

As the girls walked him around town, they caught Jude up on some basic facts about this new world. They told him that there were three races of people: winged angels, mystical mages, and the strong earthborn. There was a fourth race called the archons that possessed the abilities of all three, but they were very rare.

They also said there was once a Princess named Celestia who was really the ruler of this realm, though she had gone mysteriously missing two years ago, and since then they had all been on the brink of war.

“Here’s one that’s been bugging me,” Jude said as they walked through the streets. “Why is everything named related to horses, like Ponyville and Canterlot and such?”

“A long time ago,” Fluttershy said, “There were ponies who were worshipped by our kind. They were the first to teach humans to use tools and educate them. Then, they suddenly vanished without any clues left behind. In honor of them and for good luck and tradition, many things are still named after them.”

“Really? So, horses don’t exist here?” Jase pondered the thought.

“No. Why do you ask?” Fluttershy countered.

“Well, in my world, horses are common.” Fluttershy’s eyes lit up. She looked at him with an expression that basically said “Are you serious?”

“However, in my world they are nowhere near human intelligence, certainly not enough to use tools or even speak.” Jude, noticing they were walking farther and farther from town suddenly wondered aloud, “Where exactly are we going?” as a white picket fence framed the road with apple trees in the background.

“We’re going to see our friend Applejack!” Pinkie shouted to the ceiling. “She would love to meet someone new and maybe she’ll even have room for you to stay while you’re a stranger here!” Jude had noticed the infectious good vibes that the pink haired girl gave as he smiled.

“Well, that sounds fantastic.” They got to a gate that gave way to a road with a farmhouse and barn not too far down it.

“This is the place I assume?” He asked.

“Yeah, this is Sweet Apple Acres, her family orchard.” She began to hop skip and jump with excitement, and Jude found himself smiling again.

“Ok, then. Let’s go meet her. After all, I’d love an apple or two right now. I’m absolutely starving. Do you think-” Jude was interrupted by a high-pitched scream followed by a deep howl coming from the farm’s direction and the three froze. “Who- no, what- the hell was that?” Jude asked, startled.

Fluttershy, with a look of terror answered, “That sounded like Applebloom, Applejack’s little sister. Jude tried to have a coherent thought through all the things running around his mind in circles. “And the other thing, what was it?” Jude inquired. Fluttershy’s lips quivered as she finally got out one word.

“Shifters.”

Into the Fire

Fluttershy leapt into an apple tree before Jude could react to that strange word she had just said. “Shifter? What is a shifter?” He asked. Pinkie at least stood still, but that was about the extent of her bravado. She was frozen in a thousand yard stare at the farmhouse, a worried expression on her face. Jude waved a hand in front of her, but no reaction came from her. “What the heck is wrong with you two?”

Suddenly, another shout rang out, but this one was distinctively lower in pitch and was less one of fear than one of surprise. Both girls instantly came back to life, Fluttershy’s head popping through the leaves. “Applejack!” they shouted in unison.

They dashed down the road to the farm house terrified as Jude was left in the dust, utterly confused. Umm, Jase. Do you have any clue what just happened?

None whatsoever, his other half responded. Jude, something doesn’t feel right. Maybe you could let me stretch my legs a little while? Jude thought about it. Whatever a shifter was, it seemed like it was something to fear and Jase had a good bit more bravado than Jude, especially in the presence of danger.

Sure, Jude responded. Please be careful, Jase. This is obviously a very fragile situation, whatever it is. Jase nodded internally as he again regained control of their shared body. He took a second to take in the surroundings before running off in the same direction the two girls had just bolted off.

Jase sprinted, passing rows of apple trees along the way. The road finally crested into a hill, and as he crested it, a strange scene lay out before him. The two girls stood petrified, staring just in front of him. Many crates of apples and pieces of farm equipment were torn asunder and scattered around the ground. Jase saw a young woman with green eyes and blonde hair and a smaller, younger girl with red hair. Both had the look of farmhands and the older girl was wearing a familiar looking Stetson cowboy hat. Admittedly, in different circumstances, Jase might have considered the older one rather attractive, but his mind was in overdrive when he noticed the last and most frightening detail of this scene.

The girls were being seized by several beastly monsters, five in all. There was one holding each arm of each girl and one just pacing in front of the girls. They were very muscular seeming, humanoid figures. Long, matted fur covered their bodies and long sharp claws protruded from their fingers where fingernails should have been. The beasts wore a patch work of clothing, some of which seemed to resemble armor. They were bearing their teeth, showing hideous fangs.

So, this is a shifter, Jase thought to himself. No wonder the girls were so scared. Just as the thought had crossed his mind, a large, burly farm hand ran up to the scene, a concerned but angry look across his face.

The shifter that was pacing, and presumably the leader, twisted his lips into a vile grin at the sight of the young man. “Ah… Big Macintosh. You’ve arrived perfectly on time.”

The young man seemed annoyed, especially with the chummy tone the shifter was taking with him. “What do you want, Fang?”

The shifter, obviously named Fang, feigned a more official demeanor. “Always so serious… Well, if you must be so damnably solemn, then the problem is that you were late paying your defense tax.”

“You mean extortion,” Big Mac said. The faux frown on the shifter’s face turned more authentic.

“Watch your tongue, Big Mac. You’re already in a great deal of trouble,” Fang hissed under his breath. “At any rate, you’re very late, and we’ve grown… impatient. And when we grow impatient…” He flexed his claws out. “… We shifters can get so pestered and frustrated, so we have been sent to compel tribute.”

“We don’t have the money, yet.” Big Mac stated. “It has been a hard growing season and your taxes have been too heavy. We won’t have any money left until the growing season.”

The shifter cackled. “Oh, we know you have no more money…” he walked over to the two young women. “… But you do have them.” He ran a claw along the older one’s jaw.

“You’re not taking them.” Big Mac barely got the statement out through gritted teeth. His fists clenched unwittingly.

Jase was watching all of this unfold in sheer horror. Whatever these things were, he was already starting to see the reasons they were feared. He wished there was something to do other than stare dumbly before a sudden, crazy idea flew into his mind.

Fang smiled wider and took a sniff of the older girl’s blonde hair. “Take another sniff, and I’ll knock every one of those sharp pearly whites out and make you eat them,” she responded.

The shifter growled before giving way to an amused smile. “This one has some fight. I’d love to teach her how she can actually use that mouth of hers.” The other shifters snickered briefly. Fang turned his attention to the younger ginger girl.

“Still, I prefer them young.”

The little girl tried in vain to hide her terror. Fang extended his grasp to the point he was almost touching her.

“Get back.”

Suddenly, every eye turned in shock to see Jase, now moving closer to the scene with newfound bravado. Jase, what the hell are you doing? Jude asked within his head.

Just trust me[/i], Jase responded. The lead shifter seemed irritated by the newcomer interrupting this important business transaction. “This is not of your affair, mage. Leave,” he barked.

“Oh, I will- Fang, was it? - but you first.” Fluttershy and Pinkie seemed astonished, as though Jase had just told God himself to piss off. Big Mac and the girls looked at the stranger curiously, trying to figure out what to make of him. Even the other shifters were caught off guard by the boldness this mage had shown by talking out of turn.

The only one who called the bluff Jase was putting out was Fang, who laughed another one of his screeching cackles.

“Oh and what if I don’t?” For a moment, Jase second guessed his actions. Maybe his timing and actions weren’t the best planned, but it was too late to back out, and he had one last card to resort to.

“Then I’ll use this,” Jase responded, raising the pistol that he had left in his pack.

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While the attention was focused on the two girls, Jase had retrieved it from the side pocket. Dude, what the hell? Jude shouted surprised.

Jude, if there were ever a time you should be quiet and trust me, it’s now, Jase responded. Meanwhile, the shifter looked very curiously at Jase and the shiny metal device in his hand. “How will that make me leave? It isn’t even a sharp blade.”

“Do you have any idea how this works? I’ll give you one last warning: get the hell out of here!” Jase shouted. Suddenly, Jase felt… strange. An unfamiliar rage clouded his mind. The swelling sensations in his chest, the semi blurriness of his vision, even the way his tone was raised were all odd. He felt his control slipping.

Fang turned, grinning with his teeth. This stranger was no threat, just empty words. He turned to the older girl and smiled wider, blowing rancid breath at her. He just stared a moment at her, letting the fear of anticipation rise within her mind. Suddenly, a hairy fist flew into her stomach. She yelped loudly as tears out of reflex escaped her eyes. The two shifter holding her were the only things keeping her from doubling over on the ground.

“You see mage? You people are weak, pathetic. We are gods among you. We are-” Fang was suddenly cut off by a huge boom that resounded like a peal of thunder. Again, everyone’s eyes went wide. Fang looked down, shocked as a hole had appeared in his abdomen, gushing out blood. He fell to his knees, gripping his stomach and grunting in pain. He met Jase’s unwavering eyes for one moment before finally falling face first to the ground.

The most shocked of those who watched the events unfold were the shifters, who had now let go of the girls and were staring in fear at Jase. “Black magic…” One of them whispered. “Alchemy,” another said, as if complementing the phrase of the other dog. Jase, a cold gaze frozen on the dogs, raised the pistol again, but it was unnecessary. As soon as he did, they yipped and ran off.

A few moments passed before the two captives rose again to their feet. Big Mac quickly walked over and helped them up. “Are you alright, Applejack?” he asked the older one. She smiled weakly. “Yeah. I am.”

Big Mac returned the smile as he helped the younger girl onto her feet. He then turned to the stranger. Jase was still standing there, petrified in his angry stare and still holding the pistol level.

“That was super awesomazing!” Pinkie shouted, starting to bounce happily once more. Fluttershy was just breathing to calm down a bit. This level of excitement was a bit too much for her.

“You do know that’s not a word, right Pinkie?” Applejack asked sarcastically grinning. Big Mac helped her walk up to the stranger, still aching from the blow she took moments ago. “Whoever you are, thank you for your help. You saved my sisters from those jackals,” Big Mac said gratefully. He extended his hand towards Jase, but Jase didn’t take it. He didn’t even move, still glaring with the gun pointed forward. “Umm… Hello?” Big Mac asked, baffled by the state the stranger was in.

Jase snapped back to reality, shaking his head clear and dropping the gun. Had he just blacked out? What had just happened? He looked around and took in what he had just done. He then realized Big Mac, who was a whole head and a half taller than Jase, still had his hand extended. Jase shook off the strange situation that had just happened and shook Big Mac’s hand with a smile. “Oh, um. No problem. I don’t think we were introduced. I’m Jase, Jase Foster.”

Big Mac’s grin returned. For a second, Jase had him worried. “I’m Big Macintosh, and these are my sisters, Applejack and-”

Big Mac gestured to an empty spot. Applebloom ran up and hugged Jase’s leg. “That sure was brave of you, mister Jase.” Jase was taken a bit aback by the sudden growth on his leg. He tried not to have a heart attack out of the sheer cuteness of the little girl attached to his leg.

Jase shrugged, feigning a cocky attitude. “Again, you’re welcome, miss…”

“Applebloom,” she responded.

He smiled again before looking up at Big Mac with a slightly more serious expression. “Well, at least those shifters are gone.”

Big Mac’s face darkened as the thought occurred to him. “Oh, darn. I hadn’t thought of that.”

Jase looked at him, trying to understand. “Thought of what? I killed him.”

“Exactly. Now Longtooth will be angry with you.” Jase shrugged as if the name didn’t mean anything to him.

Big Mac was surprised. “You really don’t know? He’s the leader of the whole shifter clan, the alpha male, and considering you killed his own brother, I reckon he isn’t too happy with you.”

“And? I mean, how many of those things are there? Ten? Fifteen?” Big Mac shook his head ominously.

“There are at least a few thousand, probably more.”

Jase’s jaw hung open at the prospect. A few thousand of those things would be impossible to run from, and suicidal to fight. “But why would he be that angry with me? I only killed that one there!” Jase motioned towards the dead shifter.

“Precisely,” Big Mac responded, “You killed him. That was Fang, Longtooth’s brother.”

...

In a distant place, an old enemy floated in a void of black nothingness. The empty space had grown infinitely real, and yet unreal. The uncertainty of what existence, nonexistance, death, life: these were the things that constantly tormented the phantom.

Suddenly, for a brief moment, the void was filled with something. An image of what was happening, worlds away on the apple farm. It watched inquisitively as to what was happening. As he watched, his curiosity turned to glee. This was a golden opportunity, and a chance for the phantom to finally break free of its prison. Then the phantom did something most unpredictable, something it hadn't done since as far back as it remembered.

It smiled.

Cry Havoc

Jude shifted uncomfortably in his seat. The auditorium of the town hall was boisterously noisy and a little on the warm side, even though it was mid-fall. He glanced around the crowded auditorium at all the people there. Shortly after the incident with the shifters, Jase had felt suddenly, inexplicably exhausted, though he only mentioned to Jude what happened with the blackout and how it had made him feel strange. From there, Big Macintosh insisted on alerting the mayor to the situation, who had then called a hasty town meeting. Needless to say, the people who hadn’t witnessed the event themselves were anxious to know why they had been summoned at such short notice.

Upon closer examination, the crowd was rather diverse. For one thing, they all possessed many different, and even unnaturally colored eyes and hair. The stranger thing, though, was the differences in their races. Some were angels like Fluttershy, some looked like simple humans, with the exception of a slight height and size difference, and some had that peculiar light frame and tapered ears much similar to his own body. The latter group fascinated him, given that according to what his recent acquaintances had said, they were able to control magical energy and channel it into direct power. Jude couldn’t help but be curious if he had the same power, latent within his mind. Could he really manipulate the very fibers of reality itself?

As Jude looked around the auditorium, he caught some of the people in question looking at him. They wore a mixture of different expressions, most looking curious, no doubt puzzled given how much he must be sticking out as a new comer in such a small town. Some glared in suspicion, their eyes narrowing in silent judgment. Others just flashed a welcoming smile at him. Jude wondered what was giving him away so much that he stuck out like a sore thumb.

He decided to abandon watching the crowd and turned to the young woman that he had met, Applejack, who was sitting next to him.

“So… Exactly how bad of a situation is this, on a scale of one to ten?”

She seemed very nervous, but not necessarily scared as she turned towards Jude. “I’d have to say a fifteen. These shifters aren’t the nicest of varmints.”

Jude tried his best not to comment on here using the term varmints. “I thought all they are is bullies? Doesn’t that mean they’re mostly talk and don’t have a whole lot of fight in them?”

Applejack raised an eyebrow. “How many bullies do you know that won’t eat up a defenseless kid?”

Before Jude could answer, the mayor took the stage, sweating bullets. She seemed to be an absolute wreck with uneasiness. She put on a rather weak smile before tapping the microphone twice and clearing her throat. “Attention, everybody. I have some… unsettling news. It would seem the shifters have become very angry with us, and are no longer satisfied with our peace offerings. I’m afraid they are coming to raze the town.”

There was a chorus of gasps, followed by mumbles from the crowd as the last words reached their ears. “Why are they angry?” someone called out from the crowd above and to the left of Jude. The mayor suddenly seemed even more nervous, if that was even possible. Her smile collapsed into a scared look.

“Well, there was an incident in which… Fang was killed…” Suddenly all of the side conversations and mumbling was sucked out of the room, leaving everyone in utter silence. For a moment, that was all that inhabited the room, creating tension so thick it could be cut with a knife. Finally, another person spoke what everyone but Jude and the apples were thinking in the auditorium.

“Who in the name of Celestia is crazy and stupid enough to do that?” someone called from the balcony level of seating. This question carried a much more angry tone than usual, giving Jude the inclination to slip farther in his chair.

“Well…” the mayor trailed off, unsure of how to answer that. “… It was truthfully an accident. You see, at Sweet Apple Acres-”

“So it was you apples’ fault!” Shouted a girl with long blue hair in Jude’s direction, interrupting the mayor once more. A chorus of angry comments rained down in Applejack and Big Mac’s direction. Applejack seemed frustrated by this reaction.

Jude’s fear momentarily subsided, having had enough of the Apples being blamed for a mess that he caused. “Hey, calm down! She didn’t do anything. I did. I accidentally killed Fang.” Suddenly, as the crowd turned their attention toward Jude, his self-consciousness returned at what he had just admitted.

“And who exactly are you? The Great and Powerful Trixie demands to know!” inquired the same blue haired girl. Jude suddenly lost any confidence he had just acquired. He rubbed the back of his neck nervously as he thought, Come on, Jude. What would Jase do right now?

“My name is Jude Foster,” He stammered, “I mean, I’m not… but I am… Well…”

Before he could clarify, the abnormally rude girl cut him off again. “And what exactly are you going to be able to do, Jude Foster, to help this situation?”

“Get the hell out of Jude’s face and we might be able to come up with something,” He heard himself rebut without consciously saying it. Jude was stunned a moment. Jase? He said mentally to his other half. I thought you were asleep.

I was, Jase responded. Now, scoot over and let me bail you out. Jude gave up control of their mutual body to Jase, glad to be out of the hot seat. Jase on the other hand started staring daggers at anyone who gave him a look, which seemed to be effective since most shied away shortly afterwards. “Now, yes, I did shoot and kill Fang, and from the look of it you should be glad. That bastard was bad news.”

Before the argument could go much further, the mayor butted back in, speaking a little louder into the microphone now. “Back to the problem at hand, everyone, the shifters have been spotted moving here in a relatively large number. They’ll be here by morning tomorrow.”

There was a chorus of surprised gasps from the audience. “There’s no way a detachment of the royal guard will be able to arrive in that time,” Big Mac muttered to himself, unaware that Applejack and Jase next to him overheard.

“I’m afraid…” continued the mayor, “We have no choice. We have to surrender, or they will tear everything to pieces. Please, go to your homes and hide what you must.” The mayor’s tone grew much shakier towards the end as people began to sullenly get up and leave. Others remained in a panicked state, loudly shouting about the fact that they would all surely die.

Jase looked around the room, guilt welling up in his chest. He could lie to them all he wanted about how he had helped them by killing Fang and could put on his best poker face, but he could not lie to himself: He had singlehandedly destroyed these people’s livelihood. Though he stayed resolute in his outward appearance, he felt like his gut had been punched and hollowed out, especially at the thought of letting down all these people.

But that was when fortune had a funny way of changing. Jude, from the backseat of the body he shared, saw something that caught his eye on the wall of the assembly hall. It was a picture, a map of this town. He couldn’t picture this town while walking around, but now that he could see it from an aerial, top down view, an idea struck him.

I know how we can defend it! Jude told Jase. Jase inwardly shot a sidelong glance at his other half. What are you talking about, Jase responded

Jase, you’re going to think I’m crazy, but I think I actually know a way to beat the dogs. If you look at the town, I remember a strategy I read about that could apply here. Jase sat for a second and thought about it. Jude was certainly good with organization and thinking about a situation from a precise, strategic point of view.

He furrowed his brow. Are you absolutely certain this plan has potential, Jude?

Jase, Jude responded, you know that I wouldn’t bother bringing it up if I didn’t know this could work. Please trust me on this one.

Jase rubbed his temple and sighed. Alright, Jude. Give it to me. What’s your plan? Jude began telling Jase his plan, and the more Jase heard, the more he became confident that it could actually work. After all, one of Jude’s biggest hobbies had always been military history, regardless of his inclination to pacifism.

Ok, Jase said after the extent of the plan was laid out before him. Tell the rest of these people.

Are you crazy, Jude responded. I am not a good speaker. You tell them, you have that ability to rally people. Look, I told you the plan, so now you translate that to them. Add in whatever you need to, but they need to know that they can win.

Jase nodded and stood up. He walked by Big Mac and up to the stage before Big Mac could stop him. “Mrs. Mayor!” He called out. She slowly turned from the microphone, in disbelief at the stranger getting up onto the stage. People in the auditorium slowly shifted their attention over to the stage. “Excuse me, but I have a better plan. I know a way we can actually defend the town from capture.”

Some of the crowd started to heckle Jase from the auditorium floor and many more looked surprised that this stranger had the nerve to offer a way for them to dig themselves out of a problem he had ultimately created. One of them, the girl who called herself Trixie, spoke up what many of them were thinking.

“And why exactly should we trust you?”

Jase did something rather out of character at the subconscious behest of Jude; he remained perfectly quiet and thought for a couple moments before saying what he was thinking, which equated essentially to “Screw you, that’s why.” Instead, he took a deep breath and paused for about five seconds before continuing.

“Well, you can’t. You can’t trust me a bit. I barely know any of you. I have come here, and the only thing I’ve done is messed up what you had going here. Hell, I’m just some guy. I’ve never fought someone, or been in an army. Hell, closest I’ve ever been is in football. I don’t even know why I’m here.

“But listen up, because here is something I do know. I know you’re afraid right now. I can see the fear you all have: fear of your life being taken from you, fear that everything you love will be taken from you, even fear that all hope is utterly lost. But I’m about to tell you something that those shifters don’t want you to know.

“Fear is not real. It is a product of thought you create. Do not misunderstand me: danger is very real, but fear is a choice. Fear is only something that exists so long as you sustain and feed it, and is only going to subdue and kill you in the end. However, just as fear itself is a choice, so is courage. Courage is the acknowledgement that danger exists and that it can be overcome, and where courage thrives, fear is absent.

“So now I’m giving you an important choice. Will you let your fear consume you, give in to the power it has over you, and seal your own fates, or will you stand with me, free yourselves, and prove to these dogs that even if they can take everything from you, you will never relent your freedom from fear?”

The reaction from the auditorium was an odd mixture of enthusiasm and confidence. Jase was surprised that actually worked, rallying these people so effectively with nothing more than speech. Great speech, but you do realize you stole that bit about fear from After Earth, Jude corrected.

They obviously don’t know that, Jase retorted.

…

Jase sat up on the bed and looked out the window as small edges of the suns corona were barely visible, framed by the encroaching dusk. Jude had gone to sleep a short time ago, keeping Jase alone with his thoughts.

The Apples, thankful for his assistance with the shifters earlier, had offered him supper and a room for the night. Living in Georgia, Jase had grown up to love homestyle southern cooking, and the meal they had shared was certainly some of the best food he had tasted in a while. After a long, discussion filled dinner about the Apple family and farming and such, they had all come to the consensus it was time to hit the hay. The friendly farmers had also agreed that it would be the least they could do to give him the guest room to sleep in.

As the sun sank lower and lower, now that the excitement of the day’s events was all through, he had time to really think about his situation. He was worlds away- literally- from home and all he knew. He saw his mom panicking in his mind’s eye, his father frantically calling the police with no idea where Jase had gone, let alone the fact that the gun was missing too. What if they thought that he had run away from home and blamed themselves, rather than knowing the truth, that he was condemned to a different dimension? Jase got to thinking about all the great things he would no doubt be missing in this new world. Video Games, Football, Coca-Cola, Music.

That’s when he suddenly remembered that he did have music with him. His phone was still in his pocket from the initial fall into this world. He slipped his hand into his pocket. The small plastic device met his fingertips as he pulled it out and unlocked the screen. The battery indicator flashed the words, “Warning: less than 20% battery.”

Jase ignored the warning as he fiddled with the tiny machine, pulling up the music player app. He shuffled through the list of music he had and decided to stop on a rather fitting song for this particular moment.

Youtube Video

The gentle melody continued to play as Jase thought about the events that would follow tomorrow. The somber, haunting beauty of the notes expressed all the calm he found paradoxical within himself. These people had put a lot of trust in him to come up with a plan that would either save or destroy their entire livelihoods. How could he measure up? He was no hero, no savior, and though he would never admit it to anyone, especially Jude, he hardly had a clue what he was doing. He was just some kid who had fallen into another world as alien to him as night from day. He was both literally and figuratively lost without any compass to guide him.

He began singing the lyrics to himself, keeping his eyes fixed on the still present horizon, his thoughts drifting to his grandfather. The old man had always had certain wisdom to him. It was like he knew everything about a problem and how to fix it before Jase even talked about it to him. That degree of confidence and intelligence Jase’s grandfather could show surpassed even what bravado Jase showed and the man was a great leader.

“That’s interesting music you’re playing.” Jase stopped singing and turned a little startled. He saw Applejack in the doorway, her signature hat off for the first time. She wore a simple nightgown, and her hair was straight rather than the ponytail she wore before.

“Umm, thanks,” Jase said, his thoughts swinging back to reality. “It’s a classic where I come from.” She walked through the doorway and stood opposite the side of the window Jase was sitting by, leaning against the wall.

“It’s got a bit of a gloomy vibe to it though,” she said, looking out the window. Jase hadn’t noticed before how normal she seemed, relative to the other people he had met in this place. She seemed perfectly human: natural blonde hair, tan skin, even pristine eyes that were both otherworldly and familiar at the same time. She was one of the few things here that reminded him of home, especially with her gentle southern accent.

“It does have that undertone to it. Jude told me once that it was written about the time when a defender would keep watch in the old days to spot the invaders, the calm before the storm.” He shrugged, realizing he was probably coming off as too bookish. “But, I don’t know. That’s just what he said.”

She turned her eyes from the window back to Jase. “Jude seems like a smart sort. I’d imagine he was the one to come up with the strategy?”

“Yeah…” Jase admitted, a bit embarrassed that it was so obvious that he didn’t come up with something sooner or better. “I’m just the mouthpiece that said it.”

Applejack, realizing she might have stepped on a sore subject, changed the conversation. “Why do you have them funny pictures on your jacket?” she asked, motioning to the patches.

Jase had all but forgotten in his reverie of how much she felt like home that she was actually from a different world. He pulled off the jacket and said, “It’s simple, really.” As the jacket came off, he laid it in his lap and gestured to each symbol. “This,” He said pointing out the American flag patch on the back, “Is the banner of my country. It’s a place called America.”

Applejack looked over it curiously as Jase continued to explain. “These thirteen stripes represent the original thirteen colonies that came together to found it. And these stars- fifty in total- represent the fifty states, similar to the colonies, which are no part of it.”

“What about those two?” she queried, pointing out the airborne insignia above the emblem of the staff sergeant rank.

“Oh… Those… Well, they were my grandfather’s. He was in the military a very long time ago. He gave these patches to me.” Jase said, running his fingers along the small canvas strips on the shoulder of the field jacket.

“It sounds like he’s a good man.” Applejack said, smiling with reassurance. Jase’s smile drooped a little though as Applejack’s grew.

“Well, he was… He passed away from a heart attack about a year ago…” Applejack suddenly felt awful about bringing up the point.

“I’m real sorry, sugarcube. I didn’t mean to remind you,” she began, but Jase shook his head at her, his face slightly less somber.

“Its fine, Applejack. I just miss him a lot. He was more than just a grandfather to me. He was like my mentor, at everything. He taught me literally just about all that I know. It was like having a best friend, second father, teacher, and commander all rolled up into one. When he was gone, it just left a big hole.”

Applejack lowered her chin a bit sullenly. “I know what you mean. Both my parents died when I was very young, and then not too long ago we lost my grandmother. The same way you described your grandfather is exactly how I feel about her. She always used to tell me, ‘Applejack, you are just the sweet little apple of my eye.’” She grinned from the happy memory as a tear slipped down her face, but after not so much as a second, the frown returned. “The shifters had taxed us too heavily to afford the medication she needed and she passed away from the disease a few weeks later.”

“I’m so sorry, Applejack.” It may have been a weak thing to say, but it was all Jase could think of. Surprisingly enough, though, Applejack turned to him and smiled.

“I’d almost given up on everything. On things getting better, or even staying as good as they were, but you changed that. Jase, you may think you’re just a mouthpiece, but let me give you the honest truth. I see an amazing leader in you. I see someone who we desperately need. I see you giving us something we haven’t had in a while.”

Jase, taken aback by the farmer’s brutal honesty, looked at her, noting how distracting her green eyes could be when they hooked you. “What on earth could I give any of you that is any good whatsoever?” She leaned over and put a hand on his shoulder.

“Hope.”

Just then a loud “Ahem” was heard from the doorway. As they both turned they saw a rather stern faced Big Mac in the doorway. “Applejack,” He bellowed, “you should probably go to bed. It’s an early morning tomorrow.” Applejack rose to her feet and nodded before shuffling down the hall, leaving Big Mac and Jase alone.

Big Mac turned to face Jase, his expression very clear and severe. “Now listen, Jase, I appreciate all you’ve done and all you’re doing, but I really want you to stay away from AJ, you understand? She has lost so many people she cares about that it would kill her to get attached to someone else just for him to go also. I want you to do that for me, you got it?”

There was nothing angry, mean, or frightening in Big Mac’s tone, but the sheer size of the farmer intimidated Jase to give a small nod. “Alright. You get some good sleep, now,” he stated before walking down the hall.

Jase turned the lamp on the drawer off before lying down under the sheets. Thousands of thoughts swirled around in his head before the gentle fingers of night silenced them all.

Let Slip the Dogs of War

“Are you all equipped, Doctor?” Princess Twilight asked. Time Turner checked the pocket of his trench coat, moments later pulling out a small, pen like device.

“Yes, Miss- I mean Princess- Twilight. I do believe Miss Hooves and I are all packed.” He gestured to a strange blue wooden box that had the words Police Public Call Box written across the top. Derpy popped her walleyed head out from the doorway of the blue box, a muffin in her hands.

“Yeah, Twilight. I have my muffin. I’m all set to go,” she said in a slightly ditzy voice. She derped as she took a bite of the muffin. The Doctor smiled at her before turning back to Twilight, a serious demeanor.

“You have my honor, Princess. I’ll find the reasons for these portals and report back. It’s the least I can do after your help while I was fixing my TARDIS.” Twilight smiled.

“Are you sure you are up for this, Doctor? You don’t have to go.” The doctor gave a random grimace as she said the last sentence. He regained his composure and smiled again. “Twilight, I have seen a great many more dangerous things in the multiverse than some random, small anomalies appearing. Believe me, I’ll be fine.”

Twilight shook her head. “Good luck on your journey, Doctor. I hope you can solve this mystery for us all.” The Doctor nodded, smiling one last time before stepping into the box. Derpy waved from the doorway shouting, “By, Twilight!” Twilight waved back to her, giggling a little at how unintentionally charming the blonde girl was being. The door slammed shut and the box slowly vanished to the sound of a strange mechanical noise.

Twilight was nervous. The scene for Equestria was anything but ideal right now. The Harpies to the North threatened war, these portals were randomly opening up everywhere, and her dearest teacher was missing. The last one was by far the worst crisis. In times of trouble, Celestia had always been there for her, watching, helping, and guiding her way. Now she was completely on her own and everyone was looking to her for leadership. The last thing she needed was another catastrophe.

Just as she was thinking this, an angel guard with the uniform of a courier flew through the door. He doubled over, gasping for breath from running such a long way. He regained his composure after a moment by standing at attention, but his attempts to even out his breathing were comedic at best. “Princess!”

Twilight twirled about, snapping back to reality. “Yes, courier. Do you have a message?”

He only was able to manage a few syllables between gasps. “We have news… of shifters… spotted to… South of… Ponyville.”

“What?” Twilight yelled, shocked. “How many? Why? When will they be there?” The poor courier tried his best to keep up with her hurried reaction.

“They’re a large… raiding party… they’ve arrived… To pillage and… burn the town.” Twilight was stunned. What could have provoked them so greatly as to risk a direct attack on a settlement? Regardless, her friends needed her, now. “Courier, run and get my brother. Tell him to ready the chariot.” Twilight turned and ran to her royal study to grab equipment.

The courier saluted and turned to go, although he muttered inaudibly, “Why can’t… I ever… catch a break?”

…

Thorn marched on through the valley with the ragtag group of shifters. They had been marching for the last twenty hours, save for a brief camp that only awarded them three or four hours rest. Were it the wishes of just about any person on the planet to give such an order to Thorn, he would have told them to go shag the nearest boulder.

But this was different. This was the direct word of Longtooth, and over a Bloodvow at that, the most sacred of all rituals of The Pack. Whatever drove this mage to the madness of killing the most beloved brother of Longtooth, he hoped it was worth it. Now the full wrath of The Pack was about to come down on him. Still, at least it gave the shifters an opportunity to loot and plunder. He heard the apples here were sweet and tasty, and the same was said about the residents. Thorn smiled to himself at the thought.

His thoughts were interrupted when the hill, giving way to a clearing and wide pasture that extended almost half a kilometer to the town. But something looked off. The entirety of the town was boarded up, makeshift walls closing in a central region of the buildings. The rest seemed as though they had been hastily barricaded. Thorn waved a hand, signaling the force behind him to stop.

“Something isn’t right…” He stated over his shoulder. That was an understatement. The townies of Ponyville were practically cringing in fear from the power of The Pack. Even if this upstart would-be-revolutionary had stirred the people up, it was unthinkable that they would try this pathetic attempt at fortifying their meager town. Still, there was an eerie feeling rising in Thorn that the appearances were deceiving.

“Form up and keep your grouping tight. Remember, puff out your chests and these lightweights will line up on their knees.” Thorn drew a cleaver from his belt and held a dagger reversed in the other hand. The other shifters drew an assortment of various weapons collected from raids as they slowly advanced towards the town. They were now close enough to get a better look, only about a hundred meters from the obvious and seemingly only gate to the wall. As they approached, the eerie sensation was growing more amiss. There was a lack of any sound or sight of any other living things.

Thorn decided he would scare the runts out, taking on a bolder stance as he neared the gate. “Alright, you human scum. The great Longtooth has decided to be merciful upon you all in a boundless demonstration of his benevolence. He has given orders that you and your town will be spared so long as you comply to the following terms. First, this town and the rest of this area are now under his direct rule, and taxes are to be doubled, effective immediately. Second, you are to hand over the rogue mage, the one who wears a starred flag on his back.”

Thorn waited as only silence met his demands. He became flustered at the gall of these humans, to keep him waiting when he held all the leverage of the situation. He scoffed, “We raze the whole place, then.” He said over his shoulder to the shifter waiting on his left. The shifter smiled wickedly, bringing up a torch out of his sack. He took a moment or two to light it after three failed strikes with the flint. On the fourth, the torch brilliantly caught fire in a blaze. He chuckled malisciously as he walked to the wooden walls, intent on burning the whole thing.

He was interrupted, however, when a peal of thunder seemed to come from nowhere. The shifters stood stunned, even Thorn, as they searched the sky. No clouds were visible to their eyes as they craned their necks upward.

“What in all Equestria was that?” the shifter with the torch asked, looking in all directions frantically. Thorn looked around, but with much more purpose than these rag tag runts fresh out of recruitment. He sniffed, hoping the wind would carry a faint hint of some clue. He could smell something… Something strange, yet familiar. It was the smell of a human, a young man by the scent, and under a great deal of stress.

Suddenly, just as Thorn picked up a scent, a loud yell came from directly behind them. Thorn turned and saw a small speck moving from the tree line towards them. The speck drifted closer into view, revealing a young man, barely on the cusp of adulthood. He shouted somewhat hoarse as he ran towards the larger group of shifters, brandishing a blade that was similar to a sword and a strange looking metal object in the other. In spite of his actions, he didn’t look threatening, and was a bit of a runt.

Thorn smiled. This is all the human’s could muster? he thought to himself, seeing the disheveled walls with an obvious open corridor and then looking back to the young man. He hardly passed for a warrior. He was scrawny; he seemed tall enough, yes, but his height gave away a wiry frame that had little muscle to its appearance. Snapping his neck would be easy, like breaking a toothpick.

No sooner had the thought crossed his mind as another peal of thunder rang out across the vast plain, but this time, it was met with fear and confusion. As the thunder burst out, a high pitched ringing noise accompanied it, as though something had just flown overhead. Instinctively, the fresh troops ducked, their mind’s still trying to grasp what had just happened. But there was a small, unsettling fact that Thorn had picked up on, something the fresh blood wouldn’t pick up on.

The sound came directly from the young man, and he wasn’t using magic.

Suddenly, a massive force of humans likewise charged from the trees. They shouted in a similar manner as the young man, creating a huge din that overtook the field with noise. The young recruits began to panic, not expecting to meet any resistance. Thorn noticed something strange in their formation, however. As they approached, they maintained a linear formation, but at a forty five degree angle with the position of the shifters, leaving the entire left side of the field wide open to become flanked. Seeing a gap in their defenses, Thorn decided to make the most of the advantage and shouted to his raiders, “Swing left! Form up!”

The shifters were beginning to form up into a line, when a second force of humans charged in towards their back, shutting away the planned flanking route. Thorn looked about anxiously. Why would these humans go to all this effort to set up this ambush? The shifters could just flee. What was stopping them from-

A realization hit Thorn like a hammer to the chest. He turned about and saw the large wall. It extended to the tip of their ranks. These walls were never meant for defense. It was all a trap from the beginning. The two forces of humans had cornered them against this crude gate to gain the tactical advantage of numbers.

The human forces bore down and finally made contact with the first line of shifters. A mighty clash was audible as the defenders met their trapped invaders. In a straight fight, the shifters superior combat skill and equipment would have been a large determining factor, but between the chaos of the panicked fresh bloods attempting to fight and the trap they had walked into, it was quickly becoming a slaughter. Thorn searched, desperate for some option. The only direction left unblocked was the corridor of the gate which seemed to be the shifters’ only hope for nullifying the humans’ advantage of numbers. “Quickly! Fall back behind the gate!” he called out to his brethren, many of whom were already pre occupied with the fight. The few free shifters left, all in all a cohort of less than sixty, scurried through, falling back.

The corridor opened up about fifty metres past the gate into the town square. As the dogs sprinted desperately for relief from the encroaching defenders, one of them simply vanished directly beside Thorn. Surprised, Thorn looked down to see his comrade impaled in a deep pit of makeshift wooden spikes. He then noticed there were far a large number of leaves on the ground and as another dog stepped on a patch of leaves and into another trap. “Avoid the leaves!” He called out, a bit too late as quite a few shifters were finding out the hard way.

The nightmarish trench finally gave way to the center of the town. The number of shifters had drastically dwindled by the time they regrouped, coming to barely a cohort of forty. The onslaught seemed destined to continue as the opposing group appeared seemingly from nowhere behind them. Thorn didn’t understand how they got to the back of his forces so fast, nor how they had avoided the treacherous bed of traps they had all just run into, but somehow they had gained a way through. Thorn braced himself, feeling that the shifters would need to make their last stand here if they had any chance.

…

Jase was surprised that this plan was still going off without a hitch. He was partially afraid that the shifters would call his bluff, , rushing them rather than going into the funnel they had filled with traps. For all their warrior spirit, these shifters seemed to have low morale, being easily confused and altogether an unprofessional military force.

This was highlighted by their continued bemusement when they came from the flanks, using the gaps in the gate that Trixie, who had an odd habit of referring to herself in third person, had been cloaking. Once the shifters had retreated back behind the funnel, Jase had lead those who could still fight through, preparing to rout the shifters one final time.

Now, the tactics and smoke and mirrors had vanished. This battle had turned into chaos as the two forces met. The battlefield was completely tumultuous, shifters growls and human shouts filling the air, mangled corpses of both sides, and a great deal of chaotic fighting.

It was distracting enough that Jase didn’t see the shifter charging into him from his side. He slammed into Jase, tackling him to the ground. Jase started to recover cognition as his back met the dirt and he swung blindly with his machete, nicking the shifter in the face. The dog howled, reeling slightly as blood dripped from the wound. In anger, the dog nailed Jase with a powerful blow of his claws, putting three deep gashes across Jase’s shoulder and knocking his machete out of his hand.

The shifter put two large, meaty clawed hands onto Jase’s throat and pressed down, pinning him to the ground. Jase’s eyes went wide as he gasped. He desperately tugged at the shifter’s arms as small gasps barely went through his throat. His legs kicked and jolted under him in reflex, powerless to get him away. The shifter growled further hatred, the wound on his face continuing to bleed.

Jase felt himself slipping out of consciousness, the telltale black closing in over his vision. If he could see his own face, he’d bet his life it was blue by now. He had almost given up hope, when he suddenly caught sight of his pistol, on the ground and just out of reach of his right hand. Adrenaline kicked in as he urgently stretched his arm as far as it would go for the pistol. He needed it. He wanted that gun so bad he could see himself grabbing it, could see it floating into his grasp.

Wait… It was floating into his grasp. Jase was stunned as a field of yellow aura surrounded the pistol, hovering it into the air. Was he so oxygen deprived he was hallucinating? The gun continued to clumsily float through the air before he felt his palm make contact with the cool steel of the handle. Hallucination or not, that felt real. He raised the barrel up against the shifters temple, not hesitating to fire. The shifter’s lifeless hands went limp as a hole appeared in the side of his head. His face was frozen in shock as he crashed down onto the ground beside Jase, motionless.

Jase would have been startled by the paranormal occurrence with the pistol if he didn’t see his vision strangely continue fading, but this time it wasn’t fading to black. It was fading to red. He felt the same feeling on the farm, as though his body had been put on autopilot and his commands to it met no response. He was seeing himself charge another shifter before savagely thrusting the blade of his machete into the shifter’s stomach, forcing it to yelp in anguish. Yet another saw this and charged at Jase in fury, only to meet with a bullet from the pistol borrowing into his chest.

The battle began to die down and the few shifters left were mostly scrambling to retreat. One in particular caught Jase’s cold, furious eyes, heavily contrasting his own fear filled pair. He turned and ran, terrified of the madman he saw before him. Jase chased after him, machete in hand, wailing a battle cry. He leapt onto the shifter, knocking him to the ground. The shifter looked up to see Jase, the machete high overhead and issued a last frightened bark before Jase bared the blade down on his skull.

Jase looked up to see The villagers no longer fighting and one lone shifter, propped against a tree, wounded. He was the leader Jase had seen earlier. “Well done, human. You had the gall to rout even me, Thorn.” He gave a slight chuckle which devolved into an awful cough during which blood spattered from his mouth. Jase looked at the creature in pure hatred. No, hatred was too strong for what this mutt deserved. He only felt disgust.

“I let you live only to give a message,” Jase heard himself say. “Go back to your master, and tell him that he will leave these lands, forever, so says Jase Foster.” The shifter looked up with a slight smirk.

“Is that all, mage clan?” Thorn was waiting to see how the human would banter back, but was greeted with a massive pain below his knee cap. He jerked and howled in pain as his lower half of his leg was completely separated from his body. He grasped at the nub, gushing blood over his hands.

“Tell him worse happens to people who cross me,” Jase said, gesturing to the amputated leg. “I’m sure it’s a long crawl from here. If you hurry you might reach your master before you bleed out.

The shifter looked at the young man, now covered in blood of his enemies, his eyes cold as a murder’s. “I was wrong about you, human. You are brutal. You would make a good warrior.” He then slowly crawled away, groaning in pain as he did.

Many of the villagers set, stupefied at the violence they had just seen. Applejack most of all saw a side she had not recognized in Jase, a side frankly she thought impossible for him to be truly capable of. Nevertheless, she saw a true soldier in front of her, scars and all. “Jase…” she said in a small voice. She walked over and gently laid a hand on his shoulder.

Jase wheeled about, brandishing the gun before seeing Applejack’s face. Suddenly, he felt calm, extremely calm. Her green eyes drew him in, distracting his gaze and mind from all else that existed. They were so stunning, so familiar, so soothing. He felt his muscles relax and the red began to fade from his vision. His limbs slowly started to respond to his commands as he made himself drop the pistol. “It’s over. We beat them back.”

Applejack smiled, prompting Jase to quickly follow suit. The rest of the townsfolk began to cheer and clutch each other close, realizing the battle had been won. Jase stepped forward. “Citizens of Ponyville, you are free.”

The simple words caused much celebration as the humans relished in their earned deliverance from the shifters. Big Macintosh, a wound on his arm, patted Jase on his unwounded shoulder. “Thank you, Jase. You’ve done this just as much as we have.” Jase nodded in approval, outwardly relishing the fact that something he did had actually turned out well.

Inside, however, he worried about these random rage moments popping up as though he were The Incredible Hulk. Something felt wrong, and he worried that it might only get worse.

…

Dizzy Strider shivered, the autumn cold bracing against his already chilling metal armor. He stumbled through the courtyard on the way to his next post, barely staying on his feet. The cold always had Dizzy drinking and draining an entire one of his flasks had already made him a bit more tipsy than usual, even for Dizzy. This was the good stuff, after all. Apploosan styled braeburn cider.

He finally managed to reach the guard post on the Northern gate. After ascending a flight of stairs, he saw his fellow lieutenant sitting at the guard station, eyes fixed upon the horizon. He was a darker skinned soldier, and rather than a guard uniform, he wore a traditional form of Zebrican attire, complementing his wild, long hair and the markings that adorned his body.

“Good evening, Shujaa,” Dizzy slurred out as he addressed the other guard. Shujaa was a foreign royal who was from the kingdom of Zebrica, one of the princes of the land. In his country, a young man must go on a pilgrimage and travel throughout the world until his purpose in life is made clear to him. They were unlike the people in Equestria; they didn’t gain cutie marks to show their special talents. Instead, when a Zebrican reached adulthood, he or she would refine and practice whatever talent they chose and would travel to use it, the tattoos representing the experiences they had accumulated.

Shujaa turned, a little surprised, but smiled seeing a familiar, friendly face. “Ah! Hello, Dizzy. What brings you here, my friend?” Shujaa spoke in a rather thick accent, which didn’t help Dizzy’s already hindered faculties.

“Oh, I haven’t since last Tuesday,” He answered before taking another swig of his second flask. Shujaa cocked his head to the side, confused by the answer, but decided to let the question hanging in his mind go. Dizzy’s mind, however, was having a much harder time catching up with his mouth. He noticed Shujaa was still wearing rather scant Zebrican clothing, only having been a member of the court and Captain Armor’s knights for a short time. He blurted out, “Say, partner, would you like to have some better clothes to stand watch? It’s awfully cold and we have more armor in the armory.”

Shujaa shook his head, still smiling widely. “I appreciate your gracious offer, my friend, but I am perfectly comfortable in these garments. It is, after all, the tradition of warriors amongst my people.” Dizzy shrugged and took another deep swig before shivering and grinning. “Why do you drink so much on duty? The Captain will have your hide if he finds out.

Dizzy recovered before answering, muffling a burp into his hand. “No chance of that. The Captain had to leave all urgent like. I don’t know what for, but it had to be something pretty important to take his sister with him.” He shrugged and tucked the flask in his belt.

Their conversation was broken by silhouettes in the distance, barely visible in the moonlight. They were flying, which was strange because no aerial patrols were scheduled for the night. As the figures grew closer, Dizzy’s drunken vision kept the blobs too blurry to see anything clearly, but Shujaa identified them as they reached the gate: four smaller harpy elites with one large one heading the flight.

They landed just in front of the gate and Shujaa grabbed his spear, trying to look official as he neared them. Dizzy zat preoccupied in the corner of the small post, swatting at intangible flies in the air, chuckling loudly about it. “Greetings, and welcome to Canterlot Castle. Please state your business,” Shujaa tried to say in an authoritative tone.

“Yes, I am the head of this diplomatic party,” Said the lead harpy, much larger than average in person. He looked grizzled and older, certainly a military bearing even without the ostentatious uniform. Shujaa noticed an unsettling mix of coldness and malicious intent in his gaze. “Where is the Princess Twilight Sparkle and Captain of the Guard Shining Armor? I demand to see them.”

“I am sorry, sir, but they are gone at the moment,” Shujaa replied as politely as possible. The harpy’s slight smirk quickly transitioned to a scowl.

“Ah, I see…” he mocked. “How irresponsibly inconvenient of them. Well, you may show us to the space for diplomatic lodgings and we shall wait until they return there.” The harpy smiled again, a sarcastic, rueful grin crossing his face.

Go to Tartarus, you discourteous bird, is what Shujaa wanted to say, but he held his tongue. The political ramifications of such actions would be bad, and it is certainly not what the Captain would want him to do. Also, as much as he hated it, this harpy seemed to be a force to be reckoned with and possibly even feared. “Very well. I will show you and your party to our guest wing, Mr.…” Shujaa trailed off. The bird gave a wider grin and mocked a pose of regal elegance.

“I am the great and powerful Captain Ray, at your service.”

What Lies Ahead

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