Chapter 4

When I Dream the Dream

I slowly opened my eyes and found myself looking up at a baby blue sky. I felt the ground with my hand. It felt like cold concrete. I looked around as I laid on the ground. It seemed like the ground was all concrete everywhere I looked. I looked back towards the clear blue sky and relaxed. A gentle feeling of warmth filled my body. I took a deep breath and closed my eyes. I was hoping this feeling would never go away.

As I rested on the ground. I could feel a strange presence around me. It was like someone was watching me. I opened my eyes once again and looked around. I quickly sat up as a strange feeling flooded my body. It felt like the warmth of my blood was stolen. I slowly got up and looked around. Nothing seemed to have changed, but I couldn't help but feel this was familiar. I closed my eyes and took a deep breath.

When I opened my eyes; I was shocked at what I saw. I was on the edge of an Aircraft Carrier. I looked behind me and saw rushing water. I turned back around and started to walk towards the control tower. As I got closer to the tower; I could see the number 77 painted in white on the side.

"I am back on the H.W. Bush." I walked up to the tower and placed my hand on the cold steel. "Something about this is not right..." I looked around. "No one is here. It all seems to be abandoned."

I saw movement by the front of the aircraft carrier and I quickly moved my attention towards it. I could see white mist slowly pouring up over the edge of the runway. It seemed to slowly crawl on the ground towards the rear of the carrier. I slowly walked towards the mist as it rolled on the runway. As I got a few inches away from it. I got down on one knee and slowly put my hand in the mist. As my hand broke the surface; I quickly pulled back.

"Why the hell is that mist so cold?" I rubbed my hand to get it warm again. "It's like ice..." I slowly made my way to my feet and backed away from the mist.

I looked to the front of the carrier and noticed the mist stopped pouring over the edge. I looked to the rear of the carrier and saw the mist starting to condense. As the end of the mist slowly passed me; I decided to follow it. I looked up over to where the forms were condensing. The forms seemed to take on human characteristics.

By now; all of the mist was now condensed in the human forms. It seemed like nothing more was going to happen to them, but something down the line of human forms caught my eye. I could see one on the end start to change. I slowly walked down the row while watching the mist closely. I didn't know why, but I had an odd feeling around that mist. It felt like it was somehow dangerous.

I stood face to face with the mist. I watched as it slowly gained color. It took a few minutes for the body to get to a tan peach color. By now I could tell the human form was female. Shortly after; mist spun around the female. The mist quickly condensed into clothing. I looked at her face, but nothing was on it. I continued to watch, as the face started to gain volume. I quickly recognized her.

"Jessica?" I laughed a little. "What the hell is this?" I continued to laugh.

I quickly stopped laughing when the forms started to move. I quickly stepped to the side. I followed the line down the runway. I watched them as they occasionally stopped to pick something up off the runway. A few minutes later; we reached the end of the runway. I watched the forms stand up straight and just stand there. A sudden gust of wind blew passed me, so I quickly covered my face with my arm. When the wind stopped; I moved my arm away from my face and saw the mist has been blown away. I quickly looked around and saw a mist cloud moving away from the carrier at a fast rate.

I turned around and started to walk back to the tower. I quickly stopped when I saw something rise from the ground. I quickly realized that it was a Hornet rising from the main deck. I watched as misty human started to form again. As they formed; it looked like they were checking the aircraft. It then all made since.

"So that's me in the Hornet." I scratched my head. "Is this some kind of weird flashback?" I looked up in the sky. I then looked around my surroundings. "If this is a flashback; then I should be able to see a large storm... Right?" I continued to look, but all I could see was a blue sky.

I quickly turned to look towards the Hornet as steam jetted out from the carrier. Shortly after, the Hornet rocketed towards me. I watched it and a split second later; it passed right through me. I turned to watch it fly off. I looked around the sky, but I still didn't see any storm clouds.

"So why doesn't someone tell me why I am here." I sat down on the runway. "What am I supposed to do in this place?" I then heard a loud slamming noise. I quickly turned in the direction of the noise. "Hello!?" I yelled while looking around.

I got back to my feet and started to walk towards the tower. As I walked towards a heavy steel door; I couldn't help but feel angry. This emotion came out of nowhere and I had no idea why. I slowly stepped through the door and locked it behind me. I looked around and took in my surroundings. The air was cold and stale. It was like an old haunted house. I even had the feeling of being watched, but what frightened me the most is what I didn't see. The halls were completely empty. I just couldn't understand why I was here. As I started to walk down the hall, a faint whisper stopped me in my tracks.

"Hello?" I looked around for the whispers. "Can you hear me?"

"Be careful..." A faint whisper muttered. "Be careful..."

"Be careful of what?..." I asked in a very irritated tone. "Where are you?"

"Be careful..." The whisper said again.

"Where the hell are you!" I yelled at the top of my lungs. "If you are trying to piss me off... It's working! Now tell me where you are!" I looked around and listened carefully.

"Be careful..."

I quickly turn in the direction I heard the voice. I waited for a few seconds before I slowly walked down the hallway. I watched every corner to make sure nothing would pop out. I still had no idea what that whisper was talking about. What did I have to be careful from? I stopped at a cross section and looked around. I could go left, right or up a ladder. I got a strange feeling, so I looked behind me. A dark shadow looked to be slowly enveloping the walls and floor.

"What the hell is that?..." I slowly backed up. I then look down the other halls and see the same. I quickly turn around and started to climb up the ladder. "No choice!..." I said in a panic as I quickly climbed for my life. I quickly made it to the floor above and looked down the ladder. It appeared that the shadow stopped advancing. "What is that?..." I crouched down and looked at the shadow. "This is like some kind of sci-fi horror crap." I chuckled a little. "One of the low budget films." I started to laugh.

"Be careful." I heard again, but this was a little different. It seemed to be closer.

"Who are you?" I got to my feet and looked around again. "Where are you?" I said in a calmer voice than before. I then waited for an answer.

"Be careful human."

I quickly followed the direction of the voice. I turned down the hall and headed up some stairs. I quickly realized I was just outside the bridge. I opened the door and cautiously entered. As I slowly entered the room; I could feel that something in that room wanted me dead, but it also felt like I was protected. The only way I could describe it was someone having a gun to your head. Knowing they wanted to kill you, but you knew they could never pull the trigger.

"Thou should have heeded my warning human." A female voice said.

"Who are you?" I waited for a response. I jumped when I heard a loud slam. I looked behind me and see the door closed. I walked over to the door and tried to open it. I turned the latch as hard as I could, but with no success. "This is bullshit!" I kicked the door as hard as I could and turned to face the room. "Tell me who you are!" I yelled as I slowly walked to the center of the room.

As I stood in the middle of the room; I took in my surroundings once again. The only thing I could see out of the ordinary was the chairs. They were all completely empty. I walked over to the window and looked outside. It was completely dark; I was surprised I didn't notice until I walked up to the window. I placed my hand on the window and as soon as my hand made contact; a chill ran up my spine and the room got cold.

I turned around and saw white mist oozing from the walls and the computers. The mist seemed to evenly divide and roll towards the chairs in the room. I watched as the mist rolled up the chairs and slowly formed human shapes again. As they finished forming; I could hear a strange buzzing noise in the room. I started to hear whispers again, but they quickly got clear.

"Red Rocket to Avenger, I'm three minutes to the target." I quickly realized the voice was mine. Then it hit me; this must be my moments before I crashed. "I'm getting a little turbulence, but it's nothing. I will continue to push to target." A disembodied voice was quick to reply.

"Roger that Red Rocket. We copy you loud and clear." I turned to look at the mist next to the radio.

"I did not copy that Avenger; can you repeat? I did not copy."

"Roger that Red Rocket. We copy you loud and clear." I then saw the mist turn to face the room. Suddenly a misty human formed next to me in a split second.

"I need all of you at the top of your game! I want all the information you can gather on that Hornet." The mist started to walk towards the window. "I want to know where he is going at all times; tell me when he drops off the radar."
"Red Rocket to Avenger, my instruments are going crazy and I have a large wall of fog out here. How should I proceed?" I quickly looked in the direction of the radio man.

"Don't answer his call!" I could only guess the misty figure behind me said. "I am ordering you all to keep this to yourselves. This is nothing more than a training accident." I quickly looked at the mist behind me. "I want all the information transferred to the pentagon. When he crosses over; I want to know about it."

"What!" I yelled. "What the fuck is this!? What the hell did you throw me into you son of a bitch!" I ran up towards the mist and tried to grab it, but my hands only went through it.

"Red Rocket to Avenger; do you copy? I'm flying blind with no fuel. I'm turning back for an emergency landing. I have smoke in the cockpit." I turned to look back at the radio man.

"You're just going to let me die!? You're not even going to give me the decency to reply back!?" I grabbed my head as a small pain shot through. "Why!?"

"Re... Aveng... Engi... Lost power..." Static filled the radio on this end. "In... Free fall..."

I watched as none of the human forms showed any concern. I stumbled over to a steel table and balanced myself. Rage quickly filled every ounce of my body with what I just heard. I looked around the room as I started to get dizzy.

"Why?..." I looked down at the table. "Why would you do this to me?" I grabbed my head as the pain started to get worse. "Why would you betray me like this!?" I closed my eyes and I quickly bring my hands up; I quickly slam them against the steel table. I slowly opened my eyes and saw a large dent on the table. "I'm... Going to kill you all." I looked around the room one last time "I'm going to fucking kill all of you!" I yelled at the top of my lungs as the room started to violently shake.

The shaking quickly brought me to my knees and I grabbed my head in pain. I closed my eyes and clinched my teeth. Soon after the shaking stopped. I opened my eyes and looked around. Somehow I was in the cafeteria of the carrier. I slowly crawled over to the table and used a chair to pull myself up. I sat down and stared across the room. The rage inside me quickly left, but was replaced with self pity.

"What did I do to deserve this? What have I done in life that was so bad; to be betrayed like this." My eyes went hazy with tears. I rubbed my eyes and looked up at the ceiling. "No... I didn't do anything wrong. I served my country with honor, killed for my country and even enduring unspeakable imprisonments." I closed my eyes and took a deep breath. The room suddenly jolted.

I quickly jumped up and tried to open my eyes. I quickly bring my hands up to my face and feel the bandages. I then gently push the blanket off of my legs.

"Why are my eyes wet?" I feel around my head to try and undo the bandages. "I must have had a weird dream last night." I found the end of the wrapping and started to unravel it.

As the bandages became thinner and let in more light. I could make out a few objects in the room. I closed my eyes and removed the final piece of the bandage. I slowly opened my eyes, so they could slowly adjust to the light. When my eyes adjusted; I looked to my left and saw a neatly folded bed. I then saw a chair next to my bed with my clothes resting on top of it.

I reached over and grabbed my clothes. I slowly moved off the bed and sat on the side. I reached around my back and untied the gown. I quickly got dressed before anyone came into the room. While I sat on the bed; I started to look around for my boots. I continued to look, but I couldn't find them, so I opened the drawer of a small dresser next to the bed. I stood up and was amazed to see they had my gun with all my possessions. I grabbed my gun and wallet. I pulled the small strap out of the holster and put the strap in my pocket. I walked over to the window as I put my wallet into my back pocket.

I looked out the window and was shocked at what I saw. A lot of horses were walking all around the town, but my attention quickly turned towards the buildings. They have been demolished. Some missing parts of its roof and others had missing walls. It looked like a tornado ripped through the town.

"By the looks of the building material; this must be a third world country, but it's not like any third world I have ever been to," I said with confusion. "The building themselves look to be taken care of, but it looks like a large storm blew in," I laughed. "That explains the life stock, but why would the owner dye their coats such colors?" I turned around and I saw my boots under the bed I was resting in. "Well would you look at that; found ya."

I walked over to the bed and sat down. I grabbed my boots and started to put them both on. I was too preoccupied with my boots to notice the door had opened behind me.

"Good afternoon, James. How are you feeling?" Nurse Redheart said in a pleased tone.

"I am doing fine, Nurse Redheart. How are you today?" I was still fidgeting with my shoe laces.

"I'm doing fine; thanks for asking." I heard her shuffle with some papers.

"You mind telling me who took my boots off? Whoever it was did a real number on my shoe strings." I continued to undo the mess.

"I took them off," Nurse Redheart said in a confused tone. "I am sorry, I didn't mean to mess your shoe strings up."

"That's alright; I do tighten them a little too much." I turned to look for the nurse. I quickly made it to my feet when I saw a small white horse standing by the door. I tried to peer around the horse as it watched me. "Hey Nurse! Someone's livestock is in the room!..."

"Livestock?" A voice said. I then looked at the small horse. "What are you talking about, James?"

"Jesus! What the fu..." I tried to take a few steps back, but I tripped on my shoe lace and fell to the ground.

"James! Are you alright!?" I watched as the white horse ran over towards me.

"Stay back!" I yelled as loud as I could while scooting back as far and as fast as I could. I was quickly stopped as my head hit the corner of the small dresser. "Damn it!" I yelled as I grabbed my head.

"James! Are you okay!?" The small white horse came closer.

"Stay back!" I yelled while freeing my right hand to point at the horse. "Stay away from me!"

"But, James you might be hurt," The white horse said. "I need to see of you are okay." The small white horse slowly advanced.

"I said get back!" I yelled as I quickly grabbed my gun. I quickly got up on my feet and pointed my gun towards the small white horse. "What the hell is this!?" I yelled. I quickly moved my attention to the door as a small, light brown horse with glasses and some kind of shirt on.

"James, Nurse Redheart; what in Equestria is going on in here?" Asked the small brown horse.

"Dr. Stable?" I asked while backing towards the window. "What the hell is going on!?" I demanded while pointing my gun towards them both.

"Please calm down, James." The light brown horse started to walk slowly towards me. "I am Dr. Stable and this is Nurse Redheart." He motion towards the small white horse. "Do you remember us?"

"Of course I remember! I'm not an idiot!" I yelled. "I expected you to be human and not a talking horse..."

"Pony..." Dr. Stable said, but I quickly interrupted.

"That's not the point!" I yelled. "What am I do..." I was quickly brought to my knees. A sharp pain shot through my head as I remembered both of my dreams.

"Are you alright, James?" Both the doctor and the nurse rushed to my side. "Everything is going to be alright." I felt something touch my back.

"Don't touch me!" I let go of my gun and pushed them both away from me. "Don't you ever touch me again..." I watched them both back away.

"Please, James we are not a threat to you," Dr. Stable said in a relaxed tone, "Why don't you sit on the bed and relax for a little. I don't want you to collapse again."

"Right..." I grabbed my gun and slowly made it up on my feet. I put the gun in its holster and slowly walked to the bed. I slowly sat down on the bed. I saw Dr. Stable start to walk towards me. "I told you to stay away from me..." I said angrily while pointing at him.

"Okay, I'm sorry," Dr. Stable took a few steps back, "Do you mind if I ask you some questions?"

"Go ahead." I said while rubbing my forehead.

"Do you remember where you are?" Asked Dr. Stable.

"Yeah, a hospital." I paused when I remembered the conversation I had with Twilight yesterday. "I am in a hospital in Ponyville, in Equestria." I started to laugh.

"It's good you remember, but what is so funny?" Asked Dr. Stable with a confused look on his face.

"I knew everything," I continued to laugh, "I knew you were ponies; my dreams and the name of this town is a dead giveaway! I just didn't remember until now." I closed my eyes and took a deep breath. "Why?"

"Why what?" Dr. Stable asked while cocking his head. "Does something still hurt?"

"Never mind, it's nothing." I sighed. "I'm sorry; I over reacted and I shouldn't have yelled at you two."

"It's alright, James." Dr. Stable smiled and started to come closer.

"No..." I quickly held my hand up to stop him. "I over reacted, but I still don't want you coming near me. Not until I have a firm grasp of what is going on."

"Fair enough," Dr. Stable smiled, "Twilight is waiting for you in the waiting room. She is here to take you out to lunch."

"What?" I raised an eyebrow. "So I am guessing she is a horse too?"

"Twilight is a pony, Unicorn to be more precise," Dr. Stable smiled, "Like me."

"Like you?" I gave a closer look and saw the horn on the doctors head. I then started to laugh. "I can't believe I didn't notice until now!" I calmed down and looked closely at Dr. Stable. "I was too preoccupied by you talking horses to see the broader picture." I bring my head down and rubbed my forehead.

"Pony." Dr. Stable reminded me. "Would you like to stay another day to calm down? I can tell Twilight that you will be staying another night."

"No," I quickly cut off Dr. Stable, "I need to get out of here. The sooner the better." I stood up and rested my right wrist on the back of my gun.

I slowly walked passed Dr. Stable. I made sure to keep an eye on him as I passed. I then looked at Nurse Redheart by the door. She quickly moved aside and smiled. I walked out the door slowly with my hand still resting on top of my gun. I stopped in the middle of the hall just outside the door. As I looked down the hall; I saw a small lavender pony sitting on the floor next to a desk by the door.

A small white blur got my attention and I quickly looked to my right. Nurse Redheart was trying to pass me, so I stepped aside. I watched her as she slowly passed beside me. I jumped when I heard a loud slamming noise behind me. I quickly looked behind me and saw Dr. Stable standing by the door.

"You don't have to be so skittish, James." Dr. Stable smiled and slowly walked towards me. "May I pass by you?"

I kept quiet and stepped to the side. I watched him as he slowly passed me. I then started to follow slowly behind him. I kept a rough distance of about three feet behind Dr. Stable. The doctor then turned to the right and got behind the large desk. I was then standing a few feet in front of the lavender pony.

"Twilight Sparkle, I am guessing?" I asked as I took my hand up off my gun and relaxed my arm.

"I hope you remembered what I told you," She gave me a smile, "You can call me Twilight; Twilight is fine."

"Okay Twilight," Feeling no threat; I put my right hand in my pocket, "Where do we go from here?" I asked.

"Well," Twilight put her hoof to her chin and smiled, "I said I would take you out to lunch. I can't have you going home on an empty stomach after all." I watched as Twilight walked over to the lobby and picked up a small bag full of papers. She slung it over her back and walked towards the door. She then turned back and looked at me. "Come on, James; we don't have all day." Twilight smiled and walked out the door.

I quickly followed her out the door and caught up to her. I continued to walk with her into town. As we made in into what looked to be Town Square; I noticed a lot more ponies walking around. I slowed my pace and started to walk slightly behind Twilight. I then took my right hand out of my pocket and rested it back on top of my gun. Twilight then stopped, so I quickly stopped behind her.

"What's wrong, James?" Twilight asked while giving me a worried look. "Did I do something to scare you?"

"No," I looked around at all the ponies, "I've never been in this kind of situation before."

"What kind of situation are you talking about?" Twilight turned around and started to walk closer to me.

"Nothing... Nothing..." I took a couple steps back and Twilight quickly stopped. "Don't worry about it; I am perfectly fine."

"Do you not like me for some reason?" Twilight asked as she sat down in front of me. It looked like she was about to cry.

"No," I shook my head at her, "It's nothing like that. I'm just in a new place I don't know yet." I said in a slight irritation. For some reason I felt sorry for making her feel like she did. "This is the first time I have been in a place like this."

"If that's all," Twilight quickly got up and smiled at me, "You will get use to this place in no time." Twilight started to walk away, but quickly stopped and turned back and looked at me. "Let's get going, James; I am hungry."

"Okay." I followed close behind Twilight; still being cautious of my surroundings. "I have to ask Twilight."

"Yes." Twilight said as we continued to walk down the road.

"What happened to this town?" I asked as I looked around at the buildings.

"We had a little Parasprite problem today." Twilight replied as we turned to a small building with tables in front of it. "It's all okay now; Pinkie Pie got rid of them for us."

"Parasprite problem?" I asked as I watched Twilight sat down on a pile of hay next to a table.

"Yep, they are small balls of fur that eat any food they see." Twilight started to blush. "It was my fault they started to eat buildings. I cast a spell so they would stop eating our food, but as you can see. It didn't work out well." Twilight watched as I stood next to the pile of hay. "Is something wrong, James?" Twilight asked as she raised an eyebrow.

"Hmm," I gave the pile of hay a small kick and watched it fall over, "No; everything is fine." I got down on one knee and started to stack up the hay pile. "This is just a little different than what I am use to, that's all." I sat down and crossed my legs. I then looked up at Twilight and saw she was looking at me with a worried look again. "Is something wrong?"

"Doesn't that hurt your legs?" Twilight asked as she pointed her hoof towards me.

"No," I said in slight irritation, "Why would it?"

"I don't know, it just looks painful." Twilight put her hoof up to her chin again.

"Trust me, its normal for my kind to sit like this." I rubbed my forehead in irritation.

"So how many pilots are there where you live?" Twilight looked on at me with an excited expression.

"Pilots?" I asked in a confused tone, but I remembered our conversation we had yesterday. "No, pilot is my occupation. My species is called Human."

"Oh, so how many Humans live where you are?" Twilight asked with a smile.

"I think it's a little over seven billion people." I scratched my head. "By the way, where can I find a map?"

"I had a feeling you would ask me that," Twilight started to look through her bag on the ground, "Here we are. A map of Equestria." I watched in shock as the paper started to float towards me in mid air.

"How are you doing that?" I watched the paper being placed in front of me with a purple glow.

"Magic." Twilight smiled.

"So that thing yesterday with my head. It was magic?" I asked in a confused tone.

"It sure was!" Twilight exclaimed with pride.

"Interesting..." I scratched my head in disbelief. "I never believed in magic, but I have heard of legends where I am from about wizards and other magical things." Twilight quickly cut me off.

"You have magic where your form too!?" Twilight quickly got excited.

"I don't know." I rolled the map flat and looked at it.

I looked at the map for a few minutes. I tried to picture where this continent would be if it was on my earth, but it was hopeless. I rolled up the map and pushed it towards Twilight. I put my elbows on the table and rested my head between my hands.

"Is something wrong, James?" Twilight asked with a worried look.

"Yes," I put my hands down and looked at the table, "I am not on the same Earth."

"Don't be silly," Twilight smiled at me, "This is Earth."

"Don't patronize me, Twilight." I said in an irritated tone. "It's not a good time."

"I'm sorry; I didn't mean anything by it." Twilight's ears went down and she looked at the table.

I stayed quiet when I saw a tan pony walk towards us with something in its mouth. I watched as it placed the papers in front of both me and Twilight. I picked up the paper as the tan pony walked away; I then opened the paper to see what it was. From what I saw, it was a menu. I looked over the menu and saw nothing that I could even eat. I then remembered that ponies are herbivores. I put the menu down and sighed.

"Is something wrong?" Twilight asked in a timid voice.

"No," I watched as the tan pony started to walk towards us, "Everything is okay."

"Okay." Twilight quickly gave me a smile and turned to the tan pony.

"Are you two ready to order?" The tan pony asked.

"I'm ready," Twilight looked at me, "Are you ready?" Twilight asked and I gave her a quick nod. Twilight then turned back to the tan pony. "I would like a Daffodil and Daisy Sandwich please."

"And you sir?" The tan pony asked while turning to face me.

"I loaf of bread and water will be fine for me." I picked up the menu and handed it to the pony. I watched as he grabbed both menus in his mouth and walked away.

"You need to eat something healthy, James." Twilight started to glare at me. "Only eating bread is not a good diet."

"Neither is a diet of grass and flowers..." I quickly fired back in irritation. I looked at Twilight and it seemed like she was about to cry. "Look, I'm sorry. I am not usually this much of a jerk. I'm just under a lot of stress right now."

"It's alright, I understand." Twilight started to circle her hoof on the table. "So, when are you going to go back home?"

"Well..." I closed my eyes and took a deep breath. I had to calm down, or I would have snapped at Twilight again. "You might call this planet Earth, but it is not my Earth. I don't even know if I can go home."

"So you are going to stay in Ponyville?" Twilight asked in a slightly excited tone.

"You know what." I did my best to stay calm. "I don't know."

"Okay, well if you want; I have an extra bed at my house you can use." Twilight smiled. "If you can't go home, you can stay with me."

"Enough!" I yelled while slamming my hand against the table; making Twilight jump. "Don't say another word about my home. It is pissing me off." I quickly regretted what I said when I saw the look of fear on Twilight's face. "Please understand; I don't know how I got here, I don't know how to get home and I am still in a little bit of shock. I have never seen a talking pony before."

"I don't understand, James." Twilight looked at me for a few seconds before I quickly cut in.

"Humans are the only species on my planet that are able to speak." I rubbed my forehead. "Humans are the dominant species, Enough said."

"If you are the only intelligent species on your planet; then it must be very peaceful." Twilight smiled.

"Peaceful," I started to laugh, "Its anything but peaceful. We have wars going on all around the world. It is a very violent place, but it also has its good parts. It's the good that I try to hang onto."

"So you're alone?" Twilight's ears went down as she looked at the ground.

"Yeah," I looked up into the sky, "I guess I am."

"Oh no I didn't mean you." Twilight quickly replied.

I looked at Twilight and watched her for a few seconds. I then turned my attention to the tan pony walking out from the small building next to us. He had a tray balanced on his back and another tray in his mouth. I watched as he walked up to our table. He placed the tray in his mouth in front of me. He then grabbed the tray on his back and placed it in front of Twilight. I watched him as he walked away and I looked down at the bread and water.

"I sure hope he brushes his teeth." I picked up the bread and took a bite.

"What do you mean, James?" Twilight asked as her sandwich glowed a gentle purple and floated up to her mouth.

"It's nothing, never mind." I took another bite of the bread. "So you helped me out of the forest. Do you mind telling me where the path you took me out from is?"

"Yeah, but why do you want to know?" Twilight raised an eyebrow. "The Everfree Forest is dangerous."

"I need to see something. Besides, I bet it's not any more dangerous than any forest where I am from."

"I doubt that..." I sensed a slight competitive tone in her voice. "We have Timber Wolves, Manticores, Cockatrices and Hydras. I only mentioned a few; I don't want to get into detail on the plants." Twilight smiled.

"Wolves!?" I exclaimed while laughing. "If that is the hardest forest you have on this planet; I might as well stay!" I continued to laugh. "The Amazon Rainforest; that is the hardest forest you will ever be in. You have Jaguars in the trees along with snakes that can grow up to ten feet in length." I continued to laugh. "Don't get me started on the spiders. You can find spiders that are bigger than your head!" I pointed at Twilight. "Now let's move on to the water. You have Crocodiles and Piranhas that would like nothing more than to eat you alive. You can't even drink the water because of microscopic parasites. The parasites can kill you in two days flat and those are the good ones. The bad parasites will have you in so much pain, you won't even be able to crawl out of the forest. The pain will last for weeks and then you die; that is if you don't get eaten first."

"Okay..." Twilight brought her ears down again. "Have you ever been in the Amazon Rainforest before?"

"Well..." I rubbed the back of my neck. "I haven't and I never plan too." I took a bite of my bread and quickly took a drink of water.

"Then why did you bring it up if you have never been in your forest?" Twilight gave me a confused look.

"Because I have a good idea what to expect." I finished off my loaf of bread and water. "Besides, I am not asking you to come along. I will be fine on my own."

"But it's still dangerous." Twilight finished off her sandwich and watched me stand up.

"Like I told you, I'm not asking you to follow me. All I asked for you to do is show me." I reached into my back pocket and pulled out my wallet. I pulled out a ten dollar bill and placed it on the table.

"Ummmm, James." Twilight got up and pointed at my money. "What is that?" She asked.

"Its money." I quickly realized. "Right, my money here is probably worthless." I picked up the bill from the table and was about to put it back in my wallet, but Twilight stopped me.

"Do you think I can have that?" Twilight pointed at the money.

"Sure, why not." I held out the bill and placed my wallet back in my pocket.

"Thanks." Twilight smiled and quickly levitated the bill into her bag.

"No problem," I held up my hand to direct Twilight, "Now can you show me the path into the forest."

"Sure thing." Twilight smiled and levitated some sort of coins onto the table. "Let's go."

I followed Twilight through town. It didn't take long before we came to a small stream. I could see a forest across the stream and I had to wonder if that's the forest I crashed in. I cold chill ran up my spine as I remembered the forest in my dream. I just hoped I wouldn't see any fog in the forest. We passed over a small bridge and followed the path up to the forest.

"Thank you for the help Twilight. I will be fine from here." I started to walk into the forest, but something tugged on my pants pocket. I looked back and I see twilight biting my back pocket. "Let go of me!" I yelled and moved her off of me. "What are you doing?"

"I don't want you to go in the forest." Twilight's ears went down again. Twilight quickly perked up. "Not without me to protect you."

"I don't need protection. I am fine on my own." I turned around and started to walk into the forest.

As I walked down the path, Twilight close behind. I pulled my gun out and made sure I had a round chambered. When I was satisfied; I holstered the gun. I continued down the path and it quickly got familiar. I could recognize some parts of the path from my dreams. I slowed down and Twilight quickly broke the silence.

"So what is that black thing you just looked at?" Twilight asked in a strange tone.

"It's a gun." I continued to scan over the ground, looking for any trace of where I laid. "It's a tool we use for self defense and war."

"A tool for self defense and war?" Twilight asked ever more confused. "So it's a weapon?"

"That is sort of what I just said..." I replied in an irritated tone.

"No," Twilight glared at me, "A tool helps build things and a weapon doesn't."

"I'm sorry, but I am not in the mood to get into an argument right now." I stopped and looked at a small puddle. "I will explain it to you when I am in a better mood." I looked around and found a small path off the main trail.

"Okay," Twilight smiled in satisfaction, "I will hold you to it."

Twilight and I slowly walked down the small path and quickly came into a small clearing. I stopped just outside the tree line. It was easy to see my wreckage, but I wanted to make sure nothing else was out here. I slowly walked towards my wrecked Hornet with Twilight close behind.

"I want you to stay away from the wreckage." I pointed at my Hornet. "It is still dangerous."

"Then why are you going?" Twilight asked with a worried look.

"Because I know what I am doing." I started to make my way to the Hornet.

I slowly walked around the wreckage. By visually inspecting the aircraft while I walked around it. I concluded it was still very dangerous. The left wing was completely shredded and scattered over the clearing. The right wing was still intact and surprisingly enough and it still had a Sidewinder attached. The nose of the craft was so damaged; you would never have known it was suppose to be at a point. Looking back at the engine. You couldn't even tell it had two engines. It was crushed and morphed by the heat of the fire. The cockpit seemed to have the least damage. Only a few large dents and a lot of burn marks.

I slowly walked up to the craft. I slowly got down on one knee and started to feel the burnt ground. I turned my hand over to look at it. It was slightly damp with charred Earth sticking to my palm. I brought my hand up to smell the liquid and quickly realized it was jet fuel.

I looked around the bottom of the craft. I found a small leak from the fuel tank in the wing. I slowly felt along the wing. The steel was cold all the way around. I then started to feel around the main body; right where the liquid cooling units would be. I was surprised when I felt it was still warm.

I grabbed the front of the wing and pull myself up onto the wreckage. I slowly walked towards the cockpit. When I was close enough; I got on my stomach and started to slowly pull myself closer. When I got close enough; I peered inside.

"Damn it!" I yelled at what I saw. "The 20 Millimeter just had to be destroyed." I slowly scooted back. "Piece of shit." I stood up and slowly climbed down from the wing. I turned around and saw Twilight standing only a few feet away from me. "I thought I told you to stay away from this."

"But you looked like you needed my help." Twilight smiled at me while she sat on the ground. "I don't mind helping you if you need it."

"I think I will be fine." I walked under the wing and slowly prop my shoulder against the Sidewinder. I then stabilized it with my left hand and with my right; I pulled the pins holding it in place. The missile was released and now resting on my shoulder. "My god! This thing is a lot heavier that it looks!" I exclaimed as my kneed buckled with an extra two hundred pounds.

"Here, let me help you." Twilight said. I quickly turned my head to Twilight.

"No! Don't!" I yelled, but it was too late. The missile started to float upwards a few inches. "Stop!" I yelled and Twilight quickly released it from her magical grasp. The two hundred pound missile dropped a few inches on my shoulder. I quickly dropped onto one knee from the pain. "I told you I didn't need your help." I slowly stood up and walked out from under the wing.

"But you said it was heavy and I thought I could help you." Twilight quickly put her ears down and looked at the ground. "I'm sorry if I hurt you. I didn't mean it, honest."

"Look Twilight," I slowly walked up in front of Twilight, "I need to be honest with you." I paused a moment and took a deep breath. "I don't trust you; hell I don't trust any of you." I looked at Twilight as she stared at me with wide eyes. "When it comes to my stuff; I demand you respect my will for it. A lot of this stuff is dangerous and you could get hurt." Twilight quickly interrupted.

"So you do care for my well being." Twilight quickly smiled. "It's a start and I am willing to build off of that."

"Right." I didn't want to say it, but I didn't care. I knew that this stuff could be my only way home, so I had to protect it. "Sit tight Twilight; I need to take care of this missile." I slowly walked to the rear of the Hornet and slowly propped the Sidewinder against the tail wing.

I slowly stood up straight. I bring my right hand up and slowly rubbed my left shoulder. It didn't feel broken, just soar. I turned to face Twilight and quickly noticed she was franticly looking around. It was then I noticed, it was quiet.

I slowly scanned the tree line while resting my right hand over my gun. While I stood still; I could smell some sort of foul odder. It smelled like decomposing bodies and year old vegetables. Twilight quickly ran in front of me.

"Don't worry, James. I will protect you." Twilight said with confidence.

"Protect me from what?" I asked.

"Timber Wolves." Twilight quickly replied.

I looked in the direction Twilight was looking. I then saw a pair of glowing yellow eyes in the shadows. It seemed to be walking closer towards us.

"Get out of my way Twilight." I pulled my gun out and flipped the safety off.

"No!" Twilight yelled. "You will get hurt."

"Keep standing in my way and you will get hurt." I gently pushed Twilight away with my left hand. I slowly bring the gun up and took aim at the glowing eyes. I slowly walked forward as the glowing eyes moved in closer. I stopped when it slowly became visible. "Are you kidding me!" I put my gun down and looked at Twilight. "That thing is mad out of wood! How is that dangerous!" I yelled.

"They hunt in groups." Twilight slowly stepped back.

"Groups?" I quickly turned around and saw two more pairs of eyes slowly crawling out of the forest. I then quickly bring my gun up and aimed towards the one in front.

It seemed to wait for something. Soon after the other two wolf like animals walked out of the shadows. They slowly walked up besides the largest one. As soon as the largest one took its first step. I quickly fired off a round. A split second later; the largest wolf disintegrated into millions of wooden splinters. The other two quickly charged. I took aim at the one on the right. I fired a round and it quickly crumbled to the ground. I then aimed at the one on the left, but it was too quick. The wolf like creature lunged at my head. I then felt a strong gust of wind blow past my right ear and the wolf broke up into pieces right in front of me.

"I told you they were dangerous." Twilight said.

"I guess a thanks is in order." I turned around and smiled at Twilight. She still had a couple rocks floating by her head. "Thank you for hitting it with that rock." Twilight then gave me the biggest smile I had ever seen in my life.

"That's what friends do." Twilight quickly walked up to my side.

"Right." I flipped the safety on and put the gun back in my holster.

"I have to ask you, James," Twilight looked up towards me while rubbing here ear, "What was that loud noise you made? I heard three similar noises that day we found you in the forest."

"It is the quick expansion of gas in the barrel of the gun. It launched a small projectile out of the end of the gun." I looked up towards the sky. "It's the small projectile that will do the damage, not the noise."

"That sounds complicated." Twilight looked up at the sky with me. "You should sleep over at my house tonight. It is getting dark."

"No, I think I will stay out here tonight." I walked around the wreckage and up to the wing.

"No!" Twilight yelled. "I won't let you do that, it's too dangerous!" Twilight followed me up to the wing. "Didn't you learn your lessen when you almost got eaten by that Timber Wolf?!"

"I underestimated them and it won't happen again." I slowly lifted myself on top of the wing and laid down.

"But, James..." Twilight started to walk around in circles. "You are being unreasonable." Twilight stopped and looked up towards me.

"I already told you that I am staying here." I brought my arms up and folded my hands. I rested my head on my hands and looked up into the sky.

"You are going to come back with me. You said it yourself." Twilight quickly thought what to say. "You should take your own advice. This is our world and you don't know it. I will respect your stuff here, but please respect my advice." Twilight waited for a response.

"I will see you tomorrow Twilight." I took a deep breath. "I am still staying."

"Alright, James." Twilight turned around and started to walk. Shortly after, she turned to look at me. "I hope you'll be safe tonight, but if you change your mind. You'll be welcome any time." Twilight then walked off into the path.

I looked up to the sky and watched it slowly shift to a dark purple. The stars slowly became visible and the moon slowly rose in the sky. I found it to be a little strange; I continued to look at the stars. I was able to find a few familiar star constellations; I found Orion, Ursa major and minor. I closed my eyes while thinking about home. I quickly drifted off to sleep; imagining being in my own bed.

Author's Note

If you see any errors in my story. I would like to know, so that I can correct them. After I finish the corrections; I will be deleting the post. I would also like to hear your thoughts on the story if you have time. I am doing my best to keep the story flowing smoothly, so I hope you enjoyed reading this. I am having a lot of fun with this story, so I don't know when I will end it. If you have any ideas on how I can improve my writing. I would like to hear it.

P.S. This story is a rewrite of my last HiE. I hope that this version has better structure and depth. I would like to hear your opinion on the rewrite. Both good and bad comments are welcome, so don't be shy!