Author's note: Sorry about the wait for this story, I was on vacation. Anyway…
Equestria and the Time Lord Episode 7: The Desert Zone
Prologue: The Deadly Assassin
=Gaia, The Desert Zone, The Tunnel Systems Beneath the Desert Zone, Section G, The Coordinator's Office, 345, 075 C.E. =
A thick desert as far as the eye could see. Many ponies found it difficult to imagine anything beyond this. Some of them had even formed a religion that there was no world, only the desert. In truth, it was not only the desert. The sun hung in the sky, burning hotter and brighter than it ever had before. Pure red dragons flew through the sky, disoriented and trying to escape the heat, which stretched on for hundreds of miles. And soon, something that came from farther away than they could ever conceive arrived…
But beneath all that sand, there was a very different sight indeed. There was an office. In the corner next to the door there was a small barely grown red dragon that was lying almost stone dead, like it was frozen. There was no furniture, save for a large desk. There was no clutter on the desk, except for a laptop that had a huge many wires running into the wall.
And sitting at a swivel chair that was leaned back was what might well have been a pony, but you couldn't tell. He was draped in black robes that stretched very baggily over his hooves and body, and the conical hood of it stretched over his face, leaving only circles big enough for his eyes to reveal any of his entire body. Out of his sleeves for his fore hooves came two bony hands, but you couldn't tell if they were real or mechanical, one of which was grasping a paintbrush, and the other painting a clear gel along the ring of a helmet like metal hat.
An image appeared on the screen of the computer. It was the image of the species that ponies had evolved from and would evolve into. "Have you finished all of the preparations for the assassination today?" he barked at him.
"Just about. It has been arranged." He said in a raspy, quiet voice.
The image disappeared, leaving the screen black. He continued to sit at the chair, painting the thick gel all around the ring of the hat in preparation for the forthcoming assassination.
=Gaia, The Desert Zone, The Desert Zone Safety Systems, Just Outside the Pony High Council, 345, 075 C.E. =
The Doctor, smiling, stepped out of the TARDIS shortly after it materialized in the center of a white with a tint of grey hexagonal room. "Here we are! Let's see where we are!" he said enthusiastically.
Romana stepped out behind them. "I wonder what this place was built for."
"We'll soon find out." The Doctor said as he began to get into a discussion with her.
Daring Do stepped out in a depressed fashion. She wasn't so enthusiastic about exploring anymore. Traveling with the Doctor had started to become depressing to her, and she didn't think she could do it any longer if a tragedy kept happening wherever they went.
"You coming?" The Doctor called out to her as he went through the door.
Daring Do put on a brave sort of face and went through the door behind the others.
Beyond the door was a long row of chairs, and on those chairs were ponies. All those ponies were wearing light gold robes and hats reminiscent of the hats they wore on Gallifrey. They were all arguing about some form of political issue of some sort.
"We cannot leave this zone. The heat suits cannot support us for long enough to escape its climate." One said abrasively.
"But the Jungle Zone is the only place hospitable enough to support us all indefinitely." Another argued.
"What are you trying to do, spark a war with the Ice Zone and the Mountain Zone? I've heard reports that they want to go to the Jungle Zone as well." Another one said.
"I agree with him. The Jungle Zone is smaller than all the others in what was once Equestria, so there is only room for one to live there." Another one of them agreed.
The Doctor saw this was going nowhere fast, so he stepped forward. "Hello." He said, making his presence known.
Quite a few of the ponies that were arguing jumped in the air. One of them that had a light grey coat as judged by his face and tufts of graying brown hair sticking from his hat. "Who are you?" he said.
"I'm the Doctor and these are my friends," The Doctor said.
"Where did you come from?" he said, still surprised.
"We're just visitors to this place." The Doctor said.
"But no one can come here from the outside with the heat around here. It's not possible." He said, still suspicious.
"I assure you we mean you no harm." The Doctor said.
At that second, the one who had said that they couldn't leave their zone began screaming as he clutched at his head, sinking down to the floor, lying motionless.
"Cardinal Syril!" He yelled as he ran over to him.
"Well that was sudden." The Doctor said as he pulled off the helmet he wore. All the flesh that was beneath the ring of the hat was swollen and purple. He noticed that there was a clear gel on the ring of the helmet.
"Don't touch that!" the one who had first talked to them. "Its biocide plus." He said
"You have that around here? I thought this dimension was supposed to be peaceful. Biocide plus eats right through your skin." The Doctor said.
"How did this happen?!" asked a panicked member of the council.
"It's the work of Milton!" shouted another panicked one.
The one who had first spoken to the Doctor faced the crowd. "Be rational. We all know that Milton is a myth." He said calmly.
=Gaia, The Desert Zone, The Tunnel Systems Beneath The Desert Zone, Section G, The Coordinator's Office, 345, 075 C.E. =
"A myth, am I?" The hooded, obscured pony/ creature as he identified himself as Milton. "They will soon wish I am only a myth." He turned to the computer and pressed a button on it.
The image of the one that had ordered the assassination appeared.
"The assassination has been carried out accordingly. But three ponies have arrived in the hall of the high council. They will be blamed for the assassination, and then they will die. The amount of ordinary ponies in the city must stay the same for things to go as planned. I have told you." Milton said as he turned off the computer and waited.
=Gaia, The Desert Zone, The Desert Zone Safety Systems, The Hall of the Pony High Council, 345, 075 C.E. =
"Who is Milton?" The Doctor asked.
"We know that ponies are evolving into what we call the Moloids, that want us out of the way. Some say there is one called Milton that coordinates attacks against us, one of their leaders. Most say it is a silly belief, nothing more." He said.
"I see. By the way, what's your name?" The Doctor asked.
"I am Castellan Augustin." Castellan Augustin said simply.
"Castellan Augustin… Who do you think did this?" The Doctor and Romana asked.
"You have an intimate knowledge of what was used to kill him." Augustin answered.
"Not again." Daring Do groaned, having been speechless throughout the whole ordeal. 'Not again indeed. It's happening all over again. Somepony died. And the Doctor is almost egging something worse to happen on!' she thought.
"But we didn't do it!" Romana protested.
"I'm not going to accuse you yet, but it's too great a coincidence to ignore. I shall escort you." Augustin said as he led them away.
Meanwhile, a shadowy figure leaned against the railing as he aimed his gun and fired three shots in their direction.
BANG…BANG…BANG…