*Beep* *Beep* *Beep*
"Gosh, shut up! I'm not going to work today." I thought annoyed and swinging my arm around looking for the source of the noise.
I opened my eyes and saw a blurry room. I blinked again and it became clear. There were two windows letting in the golden rays of the late sun on to a chair. The beeping was coming from a heart monitor that was next to a pile of 'get well' gifts. Across from me was a door with a clip board attached, next to the door was also a TV. I looked to my right. On my right was a small table with a flower on it, the flower looked oddly familiar to me, but I couldn't put my finger on it.
"Oh good you're awake, I'll tell the doctor." I looked up and saw a nurse holding a clip board.
"Um, yeah, Ok." I said awkwardly. A few minutes later she returned with a doctor.
"Hello Nick, and how are we feeling today." He clicked his pen and prepared to write on his note pad.
"Um, fine, a little tired is all." He wrote something on the paper.
"Any aches or pains?" He asked looking up from his paper.
"Nope." I replied.
"OK, thats all, I'll send you friends and family in." He put the pen in his pocket and walked out the door. Moments later my dad and mom walked in.
"Oh honey how are you." My mom kissed my forehead.
"I'm fine mom, don't worry." I turned a little red.
"I'm glad to see you're Ok." My dad said, giving me a hug.
"And check this out." He had a big grin on his face and showed me a picture of a huge buck.
"Wow dad. You're twenty-one year old and only son, falls out of a tree stand and you still track the deer. I'm feeling the love." I gave him a disappointed look.
"Yep." He said with a grin and we all laughed.
"Nick, Nick, Nick, Nick!" I heard chanting coming from the hallway and getting closer.
"Hey, Nick!" Jim, one of my two best buds, said as he bursted in.
"Quite." A passing nurse told him.
"Sorry." He whispered.
"And Daniel!" I through my hands up.
"Hey." He said coming over for a hug.
"The doc says you'll be fine for the big game next week." Jim said, twirling a volleyball in his hand.
"Great." I said after Daniel had released me from his death hug.
"Your dad and I will be in the lobby if you need us." My mom said as they both got up to leave.
"Great now that they're gone we can do this." Jim looked at Daniel, who stood there thinking for a bit then realized what he was supposed to do.
"We brought you this." Jim held out his hands and Daniel placed an Xbox in his hands that he had pulled out of a bag he was carrying.
"And these." Daniel held up a load of games.
"Yes!" I exclaimed.
"You guys are the best!" I grabbed a controller as they set it up on a TV that was mounted to the wall.
After five hours straight of zombie and alien slaying we finally stop, because we had run out of spare batteries for the controllers.
"OK guys, I'm done." I rubbed my eyes.
"Crap." Daniel said tiredly as a zombie killed him while he was looking for more batteries.
"So tired." Jim complained as he fell back onto the small chair dropping his controller after he had landed. I looked out the window, it was pitch black, then I looked at the clock.
"Five o'clock." I announced, leaning back.
"I better get home." Daniel said grabbing his car keys.
"No man stay here. You're to tired to drive." Jim said with his eyes closed and his feet over the side of the chair.
"Yeah dude, I think its better if you just stay here." I tossed him a blanket and pillow.
"Night" Jim said now with both his head and legs on the sides of the chair.
"Night." I said getting comfortable with the plastic hospital sheets.
"Gmjof." Daniel mumbled as he fell on the ground using the pillow and the blanket I gave him to cushion his fall.
"Nick!" I far away voice screamed.
"Don't go! Come back!" It said getting closer.
"Quickly Nick! Eat this!" The voice said, now very close.
"Come on!" The voice cried, their voice cracking. I couldn't figure out who it was, then I heard another voice.
"Nick, you must return. We need you, ponyville needs you, Dash needs you." I jerked awake quickly sitting up, causing the bed to squeak.
"What?" I saw Jim turn his head towards me.
"Nothing just a really weird dream." I wiped sweat off of my forehead.
"Probably just some weird drugs that are giving your them." He turned his head back into the chair and went back to sleep.
"Yeah drugs." I looked at my lap.
"But who is Dash, and what is ponyville?" I thought as I looked out the window at the night sky.
I opened my eyes to a wide eyed Daniel who was right in my face.
"Daniel you're so weird." I pushed him away and Jim laughed.
"What time is it?" I asked sitting up and rubbing my eyes.
"Its ten." Jim answered, looking at his Ipod. The door opened.
"I'm going to have to ask you two to leave for a little bit. OK?" A nurse said popping her head through the door.
"Ok. Bye" Daniel grabbed his stuff, waved then left.
"Bye man. Get better fast." Jim gave me a fist bump then began to leave.
"See you tomorrow." He pointed at me as he left. I pointed back.
"All right what is it?" I asked the nurse.
"The doctor needs to ask you a few questions, is all." She brought the doctor into the room and closed the door and left.
"Whats up doc." I asked, he just laughed lightly.
"You're original." He looked down at his clip board again.
"Now down to business." He clipped his pen and put on a serious face.
"When we picked you up, you were dead." I swallowed hard when he said this.
"Wow really? I was dead?" I asked, thinking now that this wasn't just a bump on the head.
"But, we found marks on you'r body that did not correspond with a fall."
"OK." I said a little scared. "We even found a few bullet holes."
"The point is. Were you attacked?" He leaned on the bed rail.
"Um I don't think so." I said nervously.
"OK." He stood back up, and wrote something down.
"Another thing." He began.
"Shoot."
"While we were testing you blood, so we could give you some more, we found an unknown substance in your blood."
"You think I'm doing drugs?" I asked surprised.
"No. But this is where it gets weird so stay with me." You know its bad when the doctor is telling you something is weird.
"W-what?" I stumbled.
"After we revived you, all of you wounds heal instantly." I was shocked by this fact.
"We did further tests on the substance and found it boosted you immune system a thousand percent." I began looking for any wounds across my body, and I found none.
"But thats now what I'm concerned about." He now looked concerned.
"Go on." I anxiously awaited him.
"The human body is not meant to provide so much to one organ and it really taxes your body. Since it is boosted a thousand percent, it also takes a thousand percent more energy from you body. So, if you sustain to much damage, you'r body will try to heal itself as fast as posable." He paused.
"And..." I beckoned him to continue.
"Your body could drain to much energy and kill you."
"So, I shouldn't get run over by a car." I said jokingly.
"No." He said, with a stern face.
"Right." I said awkwardly.
"You can go home now." He clipped his pen and put his clipboard under his arm.
I opened the door to my small apartment.
"Aaaa. It's good to be home." I stepped in and took off my shoes and coat. Then took out the flower I had hanging out of my pocket that someone had given me as a get well gift.
"This flower...it's...odd." I twirled it in front of my face.
"Well, no time for that, I have to unpack." I dumped my backpack on my bed and sat down.
"Lets see. Dirty, clean, dirty." I sniffed a sock. "Ugh, dirty." I tossed it into a pile on the floor.
"These go to the hunting bin." I sat out a radio my hunting knife.
"But where do you belong?" I held up something that looked like a WWII radio. Then in my vision flashed a man holding a gun and laughing. He slowly faded into the darkness, when he was gone I began to hear crying. Then my room reappeared.
"W-what?" I held my head. After I recovered, began to look at the remote.
"Location, Earth." I read a label on the device.
"Time, 2012 AD." I continued down the list.
"Last location, Ponyville." I brought my head back.
"Where the heck is Ponyville?" I scratched my head.
"Last time, 2 AD." I was even more shocked to read this.
"Two AD? What the crap is this?" I stood up and looked around.
"Wait." I settled down and looked closer at the remote.
"Open portal." I read a label above a large button. I was about to press it, when I thought that if this was real and not a joke, I should go prepared. I reached for my phone.
"Daniel? Yeah what ever. Call Jim and get over here as fast as possible. What? No. I don't care about you twenty kill kill streak. Just come over as soon as you can. And bring every thing you would bring if you were in the wild for a year." I hung up the phone and grabbed every thing I thought I would need.
I opened the door, standing there was Jim, with a .22 caliber semi-auto rifle, a machete and a backpack full of extra clothes, food and navigation equipment. Daniel on the other hand had a machete as well. But his back pack had food, clothing, batteries, his Ipod and a flashlight. I had three guns, a shot gun, another shot gun, (This one shot slugs.) a rifle and a machete. In my backpack I had food navigation equipment, a flashlight, the device, first aid, extra clothing and lots, and lots of ammo.
"So why am I ready for the apocalypse?" Jim asked stepping inside.
"And why did I have to end my epicly long kill streak?" Daniel asked, also stepping inside.
"Daniel, shut up." Jim and I said in unison.
"All right guys just do as I say and don't ask me why." I brought them into my small living room.
"Why..." Jim said slowly, already breaking rule one.
"Just do it." I began to dig out the device.
"What's that?" Daniel put his hand on Jim's shoulder and peeked at the device. Jim shoved Daniel off.
"I have no idea." I shook my head as I searched for the button.
"Here." I press the button and I instantly felt like I was falling through space.
I felt a cold and hard tile floor on my face. I heard a groan that sounded like Daniel behind me.
"Daniel, Jim, you OK?" I asked lifting my head and looking around the large bright room.
"Yeah." I heard Daniel say.
"What the heck happened?" Jim asked, I heard him stand up.
"I don't know." I stood up and took out my machete, Daniel did the same. I began looking around the room, on the walls were computers.
"Jim where do you think we are?" I asked him.
"Jim?" I yelled.
"Jim talk to me!" I yelled at him again and looked over, he was staring shocked along with Daniel at a corner of the room I hadn't been to.
"What?" I looked in the direction they were looking towards.
"N-Nick?" A cyan color horse asked as it wiped it's eyes, kneeing next to a pool of blood. Jim quickly whipped out his .22 and pointed it at the pony.
"Nick y-you're alive." It jumped up and began to run towards me. I heard Jim take off his safety and I saw Daniel bring his machete to an attack position. I took off my slug gun and pointed it right at the head of the pony.
"N-Nick? What are you doing? D-don't you recognize me?" She began crying again.
"What are you?" I asked with a look of fear.
"I'm your best friend" She fell to he knees. Jim and Daniel did't like to hear that.
"I'm Rainbow Dash." She held he face in her hooves. I fell to the ground feeling like I just got smacked with a bat.
"I-it's all coming-" I rolled onto my face in pain.
"Nick!" Dash stood up and began to fly towards me.
"Stop!" Jim yelled still pointing the gun at her, while Daniel ran over to help me up.
"Daniel, Daniel." I rolled back onto my back and grabbed his hands.
"Yeah?" He asked as he dug through my backpack for the first aid kit with one hand.
"It-Its all coming back. I remember." I began to feel more at ease as I remembered Dash, Evergreen, Twilight and my adventure. I sat up.
"COME HERE DASH!" I yelled happily, a grin started across her face as she ran towards me.
"Aww." Daniel said still kneeing beside me as Dash and I hugged.
"Dude, Nick's hugging a multiple colored, talking pony." Jim said as he walked towards us with his gun on his hip.
"I'm taking his man card." Jim said as he stopped beside us and smiled.
"Guys this is Rainbow Dash." I stood up.
"Dash this is Jim." I pointed to him.
"And this is Daniel." I waved towards him.
"Pleasure." Daniel shook her hoof.
"Hey." Jim extended his hand and Dash shook it. I heard a beeping and began to look around.
"Whats that?" Jim asked.
"I don't know. Its not me." Daniel patted his pockets.
"Found it." I held up the portal device. A red light was blinking below the label 'low battery.'
"I guess I should turn it off." I switched it off and looked at Dash who was holding back a laugh.
"What?" I asked, she let loos her laugh and we were all looking at her now.
"What?" We asked.
"You'rw, you're all," She snorted. "Ponies." She resumed her laughter.
"What?" I looked at Jim.
"Dude your a pony!" Jim and I both exclaimed pointing at each other.
"You're, a brown pony!" He exclaimed.
"What? Really? I wanted something more." I inspected myself.
"Oh, you're cool with this?" He asked.
"No, but what ever." I shrugged.
"Well, what do I look like?" He asked anxiously.
"You'r a black pegasus with a black mane that has dark blue highlights so it looks like you hair is on fire.
"Sweet." He said seemingly satisfied.
"Guys," Daniel interrupted. "I have the weirdest boner."
"What really Daniel now?" I said disgusted. I turned around to Daniel looking crossed eyed at his forehead.
"Daniel thats a horn." I said relieved.
"Oh." He looked down from his horn. "Well, what do I look like?" He asked.
"You're white." I said plainly.
"Just white?" Daniel tried to get a better look at himself around the clothes.
"Yeah." I said now bored and relived that Daniel wasn't completely perverted.
"Hey dude." Dash said to Jim walking up to him.
"Yeah?" He looked at her.
"I guess I'm gonna have to teach you how to fly." She extended he wings. He stared at her wings.
"Yeah." He said lightly.
"Hey, my eyes are here." She snapped at him.
"Yeah, wait what?" He shook his head.
"Come on lets get out of here." I began walking out of the cave with Daniel.
"Wait!" Dash yelled as she picked up Evergreen and brought him over to me.
"Oh, hey little man." I held him in one hoof and gave him a light noogy with the other.
"I'm not going to ask." Daniel said walking in front of me. Evergreen ran up to Daniel and ran next to him to keep up. Jim trotted next to me and leaned in close.
"Dude, why do you have a kid?" He asked. I laughed.
"I have no idea." I stared strait ahead as I walked.
"He was being all macho and tuff and saved the kid." Dash said as she trotted in between us, Jim fell behind.
"So how you doing?" I asked.
"Well after I dropped you off at home, I came back then, 'poof' you're back." She replied making a poofing motion with her hooves.
"So you've had a hard past ten minutes?" I asked slightly concerned.
"Yeah, pretty hard." Her face turn gloomy, then she fell to the ground.
"Dash you ok?" I stopped and stood over her.
"Yeah its just this." She held up her bleeding leg.
"I'm no doctor but you should stay off of that." I rapped her leg in cloth.
"How else am I going to get home? I'm to tired to fly and I can't walk." She tried to stand and walk on three legs, but failed.
"I'll carry you." Jim trotted up and plopped her on his back.
"Ok. But you better not complain like him." She pointed at me and I laughed. "He called me fat! Can you believe that?" She was thrown into a fit.
"Wow, Nick. Really?" He gave me a disappointed look as he strained under the extra wait plus all of his stuff. "No matter where you are, Earth or, where ever here is, you NEVER call a girl fat." He shook his hoof at me.
"There's a girl here?" I said sarcastically and began to look around. Dash tried to hit me, but couldn't without falling off.
"Hit him!" She commanded Jim and pointed at me.
"My pleasure." A wicked grin came across his face as he landed his hoof across my head.
"Ow..." I rubbed my head.
"Hey guys, what the heck is Daniel doing?" Dash and I looked towards Daniel who was taking off his clothes. I ran up to him.
"Daniel what are you doing?" I asked him.
"I'm hot and she's not waring anything so apparently its the social norm." He pointed towards Dash.
"Hu, I guess I've never thought of it that way." I scratched my chin. "Wait, what? Daniel I don't care if it's the social norm. I don't care if we're surrounded by hundreds of naked women, I never want to see you with anything less then a full body suite on." He pulled off his shirt and put it in his backpack. I sheared away.
"Oh gosh. What has been seen can never be unseen." I told myself.
"Hey Nick! I've go a tattoo." He yelled with excitement.
"What really?" I inspected where he said his 'tattoo' was.
"It's a badge with a hell horse on it." I told him.
"Thats not a tattoo, thats a cutie mark." Dash commented as Jim walked up to us with her on his back. "After what you just called it, I'm calling it a tattoo." Jim said. "And Daniel, put you pants back on, please." Jim turned away and continued walking down to the exit.
"Really Daniel please." I followed Jim.
A short time later we left exited the cave and found ourselves in a canyon with a river flowing through it. I looked up at the stadium.
"We can't get up there. Dash do you know any way to get out of here?" I asked her. She thought for a second.
"No."
"Well then." I looked at Jim. "You're going to earn you wings early."
"What? I can't fly!" He told me.
"Listen up cupcake!" Dash smacked him on the head and began on instructing him how to fly.
A few hours and many failed attempts later, Jim finally was able to fly.
"Ok, I'm ready. What do you need me to do?" He asked with blood streaming from his bruised face.
"I need you to carry us all up there." At these words his face turn from black to bright red.
"I CAN'T CARY YOU!" He yelled. "Especially not Daniel." He pointed towards Daniel.
"Hey!" Daniel yelled back after finishing taking a drink from the river.
"I'll help you." Dash limped next to him.
"I can still fly." She tried to smile, but we knew her leg was killing her.
"Why don't just fly your self up." I took off all of my equipment and handed it to Jim to fly up.
"Fine." She slowly flew up to the top with Jim who was carrying our stuff.
"Ok hop on." Jim told me. "Daniel, I'll take you last."
"Kay." Daniel played with Evergreen while Jim flew me up. He dropped me off behind a rock about a hundred yards from the entrance of the stadium. He flew down and returned with Daniel and Evergreen.
"Ok good job Jim." I help Jim up after he fell down from exhaustion.
"Hey where is Dash?" Jim asked.
"She's probably behind the rock." Daniel answered as he went around the rock and Jim and I followed him after we grabbed our stuff.
"Holt!" There were three guards holding swords that were pointed towards us. Daniel, Jim and I quickly grabbed our guns and readied for a fight.
"Drop your weapons!" I yelled at them.
"Drop 'em or I'll wast you!" Jim yelled, taking off his safety.
"In the name of the princess, I order to lower your weapons and identify yourself." The lead guard ordered.
"I'm Captain Nick Davis of the first Ponyville division." I lied, I really had no idea what division, if any, I was part of. They sheaved their weapons and saluted.
"Sir!" They all yelled, Jim and Daniel just looked at me.
"Dude you're in the military?" Jim asked.
"Yeah." I walked up to them.
"Where is Dash?" I yelled in their faces.
"She was taken to the medical center, Sir!" The continued to salute.
"At ease." I walked away and they fell in behind Jim and Daniel.
"That was a show." Jim walked next to me.
"Completely. But I'm really a captain." I grinned.
We arrived at the medical center. It was packed with ponies that had head injuries or burns and other kinds of injuries.
"Wow man, what happened here?" Daniel asked as he watched a kid crying and looking for his mother. I put my hoof on his shoulder.
"A bomb." I pulled him away.
"I never thought this place could have this much violence also. When I arrived it seemed so...peaceful." Jim watched a mare cry over her dead husband.
"If theres evil, theres violence, so the good guys have to stop it." He looked at me after I finished.
"Yeah, we have to stop it." He straitened himself and began yelling for Dash. I was glad they started looking for her. I've never seen them like that, the looked scared and disgusted but they also had a fire in their eyes that said that they would try. They made me proud that day.
"There you are." I ran over to Dash who was sitting on a bench under the shade of a tent as a nurse rewrapped her leg.
"Yeah sorry. The guards found me and told me I had to go to the medical center." She explained.
"Its all good, we took care of them." Jim walked up with the gun on his shoulder.
"Hey you stallions there." A nurse yelled, she had to many patients and need us. We weren't used to responding to pony slang, so we ignored the nurse as she called for us.
"Hey you!" She yelled at us. "I need help!"
"Hey man, I think she means us." Jim tapped me. We walked over to help he.
"How can we help?" I asked.
"I need you to put pressure here on here stomach." She handed me a bloody rag. I looked at the face of the pony I was helping. It was a young mare, about the age of Dash. She had a white coat and a red mane. Standing over he was a colt about the same age holding her hoof and kissing her four head. She looked like she was fading away.
"Hey, hey you hear me?" I looked into her peppermint eyes.
"Y-yes?" She asked.
"Whats your name?" I asked her.
"P-peppermint." She said weakly.
"And who's this." I nodded towards the colt, he looked up at me.
"He's the, the most w-wonderful colt in the world." She smiled and brushed his face. He looked at me with a scared face.
"She's going to make it." I assured him, he nodded.
"C-can I do anything to help?" He stuttered.
"Kiss her for me." I tried to smile, he gave me a slight grin and kissed her. I looked at the wound and thought.
"Take it in man, its the last time." My fake smile turned to a frown.
"Hey do you need help?" Jim walked up to me with blood on his clothes. A thought popped into my head. I turned around and shoved my backpack into him then returned to Peppermint.
"What's this for?" He asked with a confused face.
"Go back to the hospital and take all the medical equipment you can!" His face turned serious and he nodded. He turned the remote on and we turned back to humans and he jumped in the portal. I looked back at the colt who was completely fine with it. I didn't blame him, he had more important things. An instant later Jim returned with an arm full of bandages and medicine.
"Now she's really going to make it." I began treating here with the new equipment. After one grueling minute the bleeding stopped and she began to recover.
"Thank you, thank you so much." The colt ran over to me crying with joy and hugged me, he was two feet shorter then me so I had to kneel.
"You're welcome." I patted his back.
"Hey you're not done!" The nurse grabbed my arm and dragged me over to another mare.
"Mister is my mommy going to die?" A filly asked me. I kneeled down to his height and hugged him.
"I'm not going to let your mommy die." I released him and went to his mother. She had a small piece of shrapnel in her neck. She was gasping for air, as I held her neck with a rag and held oxygen to her mouth.
"Jim help me!" I yelled to Jim who gave he pain killers and held the wound. When he saw the extent of the wound he looked at me and shook his head. A few minutes later her heart stopped.
I cursed and stomped my foot then began cried.
"Nick, its okay, you couldn't do anything." He put his hand on my shoulder.
"Mister, wheres my mommy?" The filly tugged on my pants. I knelt down and picked him up.
"She's in a better place." I told him. He began to scream.
"Mister you told me she would live!" He hit my chest, I brought him closer to me. "You lied!" His fit of raged turned into soft crying. "Mommy..." He sniffed. "I love you." He said quietly with his face in my shoulder. I took him over to Dash so she could look after him while I helped the others.
After three more hours of this, we finally treated or buried them all and we began to walk home. We were all silent as we began to enter a forest.
"So..." Daniel's voice trailed off as he tried to break the silence.
"Shut up Daniel." I said in an overly harsh tone.
"Hey man lighten up." Jim tried to calm me down.
"Jim shut up just, please!" I yelled at him.
"Dude calm down you couldn't have done anything!" He yelled at me.
"But I could have!" I yelled at him my voice cracking.
"Stop beating yourself up, it was't your fault. Some freak blew them up, you couldn't have stopped it!" He yelled back.
"I'm the reason they got blown up in the first place!" I began to cry. Jim was blown back by this.
"No man it wasn't your fault." He lowered his voice.
"No it was, that freak was trying to kill me and, well lets just say there was some collateral damage.." I kicked a tree. "And he tried to kill Dash too!" I pointed towards her.
"Nick, today you saved ten lives." Dash tried to calm me down.
"Yeah but if it weren't for me they wouldn't have needed saving." I began to calm down.
"Dude get over it." Daniel helped me up after I kicked to tree. I looked at him.
"It was so awkward when Jim started the portal." Daniel said, trying to change to subject. I cracked a grin and Jim began to laugh.
"I didn't have any clothes on so when it happened I was just like. Oh dios mís yo no permito." He said in a funny voice. Jim fell down with laughter.
"You know Daniel you really helped." I patted him on the shoulder, he grinned.
"Oh that reminds me." Jim pulled out the remote and turned it off, we turned back to ponies.
"This is so weird." Daniel inspected himself, then we continued on, with our spirits slightly lifted.
After another forty-five minutes of silent walking we finally arrived on the outskirts of ponyville on the opposite side from the Everfree Forest.
"Finally, I just want to sleep and forget about this day." Jim paused to complain then continued. I nodded in agreement and led them into town. We passed a hill that Fluttershy was atop of. She saw Dash who was in front of us and came down to greet her. We were hidden by Fluttershy's view by the hill the road turned around.
"Hi Dash did you win?" Fluttershy asked as she slowly hovered down to Dash.
"Yeah." She answered with pride.
"Oh thats great. Oh no, what happened to your leg." Fluttershy quickly picked up Dash's leg, knocking her off balance.
"Whoa, Fluttershy!" Dash exclaimed as she recovered.
"Oh I'm sorry..." Her voice trailed off, as she stepped back.
"Oh my..." Her voice trailed off again as she hid behind Dash and peered over her back.
"What?" Dash looked around franticly. Fluttershy pointed towards us as we came into view. We came into view in all of our tired, cranky and bloody glory. I had blood all up my pant leg and on my face. Jim had a swollen face and blood in the same places as me. Daniel was the cleanest of all of us, since he wasn't wearing clothes at the time. Though he had blood along his snow white face. We also looked like we would kill everyone, we were so tired and saddened.
"Who-who are they?" Fluttershy stuttered as she looked over Dash. We passed them and we peered through the corners of our eyes at them.
"Its Nick and his friends. They help the relief force at the race." Dash looked at us with a pitiful look. "They've been through a lot today, Fluttershy, just leave them." She began to follow us. We began to enter the busy town square but when all of the ponies saw us, they quickly quieted down and stared at us. I walked up to Applejack's stand, slammed money on the counter, took three apples and gave them to Jim and Daniel then began the walk to Twilight's. As I did this she looked at me fearful and slowly reached for the money as Big Mac prepared himself, if anything happened. I knocked on Twilight's door and was quickly greeted by Spike.
"Hi ya..." His happy smile turned into fear when he saw us. We walked inside.
"Hello." Twilight greeted us. "Whats your name?" She asked me.
"I'm Nick, thats Daniel the he's Jim." I pointed to them and the both gave a light wave.
"Nick, when did you become a pony?" She asked.
"Twilight, I really don't want to talk. Is my house finish?" I said tiredly.
"Um yeah, here." She tossed me the keys.
"Thanks." I left and Daniel and Jim followed.
We arrived at my two story house, along the outskirts of town.
"All right guys lets crash." I unlocked the door. Straight ahead were stairs and a hallway that went to the family room. To the left was the kitchen that also connected to the family room. Upstairs were four bed rooms and a bathroom.
"Thank you." Daniel and the rest of us dumped our stuff in separate rooms and went to sleep.
I awoke to knocking at the door. I lifted my face from the bed and slowly got up and stretched. The knocking continued.
"Hold on I'm a comin'" I said with a yawn. I opened to door. Standing in the doorway was the princess and two guards.
"I'm not dress for this." I said under my breath, tired and annoyed.
"Hello, Nick." She said in a honey sweet tone.
"Wake your friends, we need to talk." She asked me.
"Guys!" I yelled up the steps. "Get your butts down here!" I yelled even louder.
"I'm not cut out for this." I heard Daniel complain. They stomped down the steps, still in their dirty clothes.
"I heard you had a rough day yesterday." She began to leave and we followed.
"No duh." Jim said quietly and rolled his eyes. I shot an angry look at him.
"I have a job for you three." She stopped at a park bench and looked at us. We stopped and looked at her, as a few kids played in a field behind her.
"You saw what John did yesterday." She was now very serious, we nodded.
"I now see that humans posses the technology to enter our dimension." She picked a flower.
"I need you three to protect Equestria from any and all threats. Even if they're not human in origin." She awaited our response. We were all shocked at this job proposal.
"Huddle." I said and we huddled together.
"I just want to go home and for get about this." Daniel said.
"I don't know. This might be fun. I've alway wanted to join the military." Jim replied.
"I agree with Jim. Besides if we want to go home, we can use this and not a single second would have passed." I wiggled the remote. "I'm just worried if we come across something we can't stop-" I was interrupted
"Like the marines?" Daniel interrupted
"Like the marines." I replied.
"What about other things like, a job, family, Girls?" Daniel asked franticly when he thought of girls. "What if we stay here for ten years and we go back and look ten years older?" He asked again. I looked Daniel then Jim.
"Its part of the risk." They acknowledged this and nodded. "Who's in?" I asked and shoved my hoof into the middle of the circle. They placed their hooves on mine.
"Ooora." Jim said quietly.
"So do you accept? She asked.
"Yeah. We're in." I answered.
"Good, I'll get Rarity to make you some uniforms." She began to walk away, then stopped and turned her head.
"Thank you." She said with a tint of happiness, I tipped my air hat to her.
"Well what now?" Daniel asked, I turned to him.
"I don't know. See the sites?" They nodded in agreement.
"Well we should change first." Daniel stated, we looked at our clothes.
"I concur." Jim replied. We walked back to my house and removed our clothes. Instead of replacing them, we decided to go with the flow and not wear any.
"Who dude!" Jim exclaimed. "I have a hell horse on my butt also!"
"Same here." I said looking at my cutie mark. The only diference between our marks is that Daniel's was a unicorn, Jim's was a pegasus and mine was just a straight up horse.
"What do these things represent?" I asked, they both shrugged.
"What ever lets go." Daniel left the house and began walking in a random direction and we followed.
We walked in along the road for about five minutes when we came across a school house.
"Even ponies have to go to school." Daniel said, amused.
"Well lets learn something." I began to walk towards it.
"Nick, always looking to learn something." Jim rolled his eyes and followed.
"Calm down children." The teacher asked as the children talked and through paper balls at each other. Then she saw us and walked over to us.
"Oh thank goodness, some colts to make these children behave." She pointed towards the kids who didn't notice us.
"Um ok." I stepped forward. "Alright children." I said in a commanding voice. "Listen to your teacher and behave." The fillies looked scared when they noticed us.
"Miss Chirlee." A student rose her hoof.
"Yes?" Chirlee asked.
"These are the stallions we were telling you about. The bloody ones." She slowly retracted her hoof. Chirlee looked at us.
"Who are you?" She took command.
"I'm Nick, thats Daniel and this is Jim." I pointed to them.
"And why were you scaring my students with you bloody clothes?" She asked again.
"We-" I looked at Jim and Daniel.
"Well? She sounded annoyed.
"We helped the relief force at the stadium." I finally spitted out.
"Oh," She was shocked. "Well, I do apologize for me and my students and thank you for your service." She blushed.
"No prob." I raised my hoof. "Now were out of town and we would like to sit in on a class." I told her.
"Yeah, I know, your the human right? But why are you a pony." She looked at Jim.
"We really don't know. But can we sit in on a class?" I asked again.
"Yes, please." She pointed towards some empty seats.
"Ok class please greet these brave young stallions and welcome them to your class." Chirlee told the fillies.
"Thank you." They said in unison, we nodded and took our seats. I sucked in my gut so I could fit into the small chair. I turned towards the front of the room and began listening. I heard Jim snoring and Daniel's chair squeaking as he tried to fit into the chair. All of the kids sat looking at us awkwardly, like we were going to eat them. I tried to ignore them as they stared at us. The teacher noticed the interest the fillies were taking in us.
"Mr. Nick would you please tell the kids about your home?" She closed some books.
"Jim." I backhanded him.
"What?" He awoke. I motioned to the front of the room. "No way man. Daniel?" He looked at Daniel. Daniel quickly shook his head.
"Fine." I got up and walked to the front of the room. "Any questions?" I folded my hands and looked around the room. A young colt raised his hoof. I pointed to him.
"Can you fly?
"No." I shook my head.
"Do you have a princess?" Another one asked.
"We have Queens and Kings but no of them posses the power that your princess possesses." I answered.
"Then how does your sun and moon rise and set? Do you have a sun?" She asked again.
"Its complicated." I didn't want to get into gravity and mass and all that.
"What do you look like?" The youngest colt in the class asked.
"We...look like...this." I said as I drew a picture on the blackboard.
"You're short." He commented.
"This picture is not to scale. I'm four feet taller then you when I'm a human." Their eyes widened.
"Why can't you just show us?" He asked.
"Fine..." I dropped my shoulders and whipped out the remote.
"No! No! We don't-!" Jim got up and began to run towards me. I press the button and we turned into humans again.
"Have any clothes on." He slapped his face.
"Oh now I see..." I looked down.
"Oh dios mís yo no permito." I heard Daniel shout.
"Thats a weird place for a horn!" A kid shouted.
"I knew you had unicorns in your world!" Another one shouted. I looked over at Chirlee who had wide eyes and her entire face was red.
"I think we better go." I ran out of the building with Daniel and Jim following.
We stopped under a tree to catch our breath and we began to laugh.
"That was horrible." I said in between laughs.
"I don't think any of the ponies beside the teacher new what happened." Daniel laughed.
"I would like to be a pony again, please." Jim asked.
"Alright." I turned us back into ponies.
"Now lets continue." Jim began walking again. We were walking in a field that had a small hill with a tree on top of it over looking the town. We reached the top of the hill, it had a few small clouds over it so we decide to sit down in the shade of them.
"Its a nice day." Jim leaned back agains the tree.
"Yeah, I wish it would stop raining tomato juice though." Daniel wipe something red from his face.
"Its not raining and it doesn't rain juice here." Jim said. I wiped some from Daniel's face and licked it.
"Guys this isn't juice..." I looked up to cloud and saw a rainbow mane hanging over the side. We heard laughing.
"Rainbow Dash? More like Rainbow Trash." The laughing and mocking was coming from another cloud.
"Jim go up there and check it out." I motioned towards the cloud Dash was on. He staggered up to cloud.
"Hey man back off." An idiot sounding colt said.
"Yeah man back off." Another said in a high pitched winey tone.
"Back off, I'm going to take the trash back to my place and we're gonna have some fun." This one sounded the dumbest of them all, so he must have been the leader.
"Shut up you faggot!" I heard Jim shout.
"Jim just bring here down here. We'll deal with them later." I commanded him.
"Fine." He grumbled as he turned around and bent over to pick her up.
"I said back off!" The leader shouted, I saw Jim flying over the edge with Dash in his arms. Jim landed on his head, he look completely stunned. They quickly flew down and began beating Dash but Jim covered her with his body, the continued anyway. Daniel and I tackled the three and we began rolling down the hill. Then began the brawl. They put up a good fight but Daniel was bigger and I was faster then them. After I knocked two out and tied them to a tree the other one ran off then I went up to help Jim.
"Hey man are you ok?" I grabbed his arm and pulled him up.
"I'm good, lets get her to a doctor." She was knocked out and badly bruised. He picked her up and he began walking to a hospital.
"Let me carry her you're pretty beat up yourself. I grabbed one side of Dash
"Yeah help me with her. She's fat." We smiled.
"Oh hey she' awake." Jim said as he sat up from a chair in the corner of a hospital room. He drew the attention of the five mares in the hallway and Daniel and I.
"She's awake! Yea!" Pinkie Pie bounced in and let loose an explosion of confetti.
"Oh dear, please calm down." Rarity fluffed her mane as she entered the room behind Pinkie.
"Whoa." Dash sat up and rubbed her head. "What happened?" She asked.
"Daniel what's the technical term for it?" I motioned to Daniel.
"I believe it is assaulted." He replied.
"Yes thats it. You were assaulted." I placed my hoof in my other.
"Was it those punks?" She asked in a harsh tone.
"I don't know. Was it?" I looked at Daniel.
"I couldn't tell after we were done with them." He smirked. "Well Jim wouldn't know about that." He looked at Jim who rolled his eyes.
"Tell me what happened?" Dash jumped to the edge of the bed.
"Long story short Jim saved you." I shrugged.
"Oh." She looked at Jim who grinned and turned red.
"I just remembered. We still have to find the other guy. Come on lets go. Lots of paper work, eat lunch." Jim quickly changed the subject then grabbed us and left the room. We walked outside of the hospital.
"Oh gosh." I froze as a feeling of terror washed over me.
"What?" They both asked.
"I left Evergreen with Dash after we went home?" I asked.
"Yeah..." They continued to stare at me.
"And we found Dash bleeding on a cloud?" I asked again.
"Yes..." They asked.
"Soooo? Where is he?" I looked at them and they looked at each other.
"Men." I turn stern and looked at both of them. "We have a mission. Lets go." I began walking home.
"So what are we going to do?" Daniel asked as I tossed him a rifle.
"We-" I jerked the strap on my backpack. "are going to find Evergreen and beat the crap out of whoever or whatever took him." I put a shot gun over my back.
"That sounds like a plan." Jim cocked his gun with a smirk.
I whipped out a map.
"Where are we going to check first?" Jim peered over my shoulder at the map.
"The forest." I circled the forest on the map.
"Thats a long way away." Daniel looked worried.
"What? You've never walked?" Jim slapped the back of Daniel's head.
"Come on lets go." I folded up the map and began walking towards the Everfree Forest.
We were on the edge of the forest, right next to Fluttershy's cottage.
"Guys, there's a ton of crap in here that wants to kill you." I made sure they heard this.
"My day just got a lot better." Daniel cocked his gun.
"Well lets get this over with." Jim adjusted his backpack.
As we creeped through the dark, quite forest, I could hear their heavy breathing and the clinking of their equipment. I hear a low growl deep in the bushes. I motioned to Daniel and Jim to remain quite and move up. I moved over to a tree and peered around it through the thick bush. I motioned to Jim to raise his gun and shoot after I identified the target. I began to crawl through the bushes as Daniel and Jim covered me. Then I heard what sounded like crying and I stopped to look through the scope of my gun to try to find what was making the noise. Daniel also noticed and crawled up to me.
"What is it?" I asked him.
"Jim saw four figures in a clearing up ahead." He whispered.
"What did they look like?" I whispered back.
"Three of the figures look like ponies but we don't know about the other." He answered.
"We have to assume its hostile. Also I'm going in, cover me." I told him and he nodded and returned to Jim. I crawled to the point where my head was poking out of the bushes and was now in the clearing. I saw three fillies hugging each other and cowering in fear of a manticore. I rolled my eyes, upset that this of all things was what we were up against. The beast was raising its claw to attack, I quickly aimed my gun at its head. Then the fillies began running towards me. This caused the beast to move and I lost my angle. They fillies saw me in the bushes and jumped on my head and began clinging to me, shaking with fear. Jim saw what was happening and let off a shot that hit the manticore in the shoulder.
"Hey get off! I can't see!" I stood up and began prying them off my head. I pulled one off of my face and I saw a giant, angry manticore about to hit me. I turned around so the fillies didn't get hit. After he hit me I flew into a tree, the fillies scattered around me but were not hurt. I was dazed and I heard .22 rounds going off and roaring. I quickly got up stumbled around as I regained myself then joined in the the fight. I shot it in the back as Daniel distracted it and Jim snipped it from a tree. After three minutes of dodging, we finally killed it.
"Whoo!" I breathed heavily as I rested on my gun.
"That was intense." Daniel sheathed his machete.
"Aww snap!" Jim bragged as he emerged from the bushes. "Did you see those shots?"
"Hey Nick!" Daniel yelled at me. "How 'bout one for the scrap book?" He put one leg on the beast's body and rested on his gun while I laughed.
"I just realized." Jim froze.
"What?" Daniel and I looked worriedly at him.
"I'm a freaken pony in an alternate dimension, killing monsters." He began laughing and we began laughing with him.
"And we're bosses at it!" Daniel exclaimed.
"Yeah but lets get back to business." I reloaded my gun and put it on my back.
'"Wait." Jim stopped me.
"Yeah?" I looked back at him.
"What are we going to do with them?" He motioned to the fillies, who were hugging each other and shivering. I shrugged.
"Why don't we ask them if they've seen the kid?" Daniel suggested.
"Ok." I leaned closer to them. "Have you seen a colt, ye high, he is green and brown." I asked them
"Yeah we've seen him!" The white one yelled. I sheared away at the high pitched yell.
"We came in to save him!" The yellow one continued.
"So we could become-." The orange one stopped.
"CUTIE MARK CRUSADERS LIFE SAVERS!" They screamed. I reeled back, my ears bleeding from the noise.
"Oh my gosh." I held my ears as Daniel and Jim laughed at my pain. After I recovered, I walked over to Daniel and Jim.
"What are we going to do whit them?" I motioned over to the fillies, who had stupid grins on their faces.
"Leave them." Jim had an emotionless face.
"We can't just leave them." I begged.
"I'm not here to babysit." Jim put his hoof up.
"I think we should take them. They'll die if we leave them." Daniel looked at them.
"Fine." Jim sighed and rolled his eyes.
"All right hop on." I walked over to the fillies and they began to follow me.
We went back to the main path and continued into the forest.
"So where do you come from?" One asked.
"How do you walk?" The other one asked.
"What do you eat?" The last one asked.
"My gosh! SHUT UP PLEASE! You've been asking us questions for hours!" Jim begged.
"Man, overly aggressive." The orange pegasus pony complained. Jim got enraged by this and was about to have a witty come back but I stepped in and stopped him before it worsened. He grumbled and fell behind with Daniel.
"When are we going to turn back?" Daniel began to fall behind farther and farther.
"When we find him." I slowed down so Daniel could catch up.
"Hey guys! Look!" Jim pointed towards a mud puddle at the mouth of a cave with a muddy Evergreen smack in the middle.
"He would." I said disappointed that I had to carry a muddy kid four miles back. "Well lets get him and head back." I walked over and dropped him on my back. I turned around and began to walk back when I felt a very warm breeze come from the cave. I turned around and my tail was on fire. I franticly ran around beating it with anything I could find when a dragon emerged from the cave.
"Well this wasn't in the broacher." Daniel commented cooly as we stared in fear at the dragon.
"Shut up Daniel and get you rear in gear!" We began running as the great beast chased us, knocking down trees as it went.
"How are we going to kill this one?" Jim shouted over the noise of crashing trees and fire flying by him.
"I don't think we can!" I replied, dodging a burst of fire.
"Then I'm out of here!" Jim shouted then he took off leaving us below.
"WOW! You totally would!" Daniel shouted up to him.
"You mad?" He had a smug grin on. The dragon to take notice of him and it took off after him. Jim was shocked and began flying faster, while we watch from below and chuckle at his misfortune.
"You mad." Daniel retorted, holding back a laugh.
"We should help him." I stopped laughing and aimed my gun.
"Yeah you're right." Daniel also lifted his gun and we let loose a volley of fire on the dragon. After expelling half of our ammo we landed a critical hit in it's wing and it began to fall to earth.
"Yeah!" I high-hoof Daniel as the dragon began slowly gliding back to it's cave. Jim landed on his face at our feet, tired from flying.
"Problem?" I had a smug face as I hung over him. Daniel and I began laughing again. Jim grumbled as he got up and dusted himself off.
"Now!" I exclaimed getting back to the topic at hand. "Lets get back home and have some victory bacon!" Their eyes glowed at the word bacon.
"I'm not sharing my bacon with them." Jim jerked a hoof at the fillies.
"Dido." Daniel commented.
"Then lets take them to their homes." I suggested.
"Ugh."Jim sighed. "Lets go." He began to slowly shuffle down the road.
"He looks like he's marching to his doom." I commented on Jim's zombie shuffle.
"I don't care I just want bacon." Daniel began following Jim.
"Thank you!" Apple Bloom shouted back to us as she ran to her house.
"One more little brat to go." Jim mumbled.
Now, um whats your name again?" I asked the purple and orange pegasus.
"Scootaloo." She replied.
"Ok Scootaloo, where do you live?" I flipped the map over in my hooves.
"Well you see-" She was interrupted.
"Hey you stallions!" A drunk stallion stumbled towards us. "Give my back my daughter, you, you hooligans or I'll call the cops on your butts." He spilled some of his cider as he yelled at us.
"Is there a problem?" I asked him as I stepped forward.
"You tell them who I am." He motioned towards Scootaloo. She hid behind me and avoided the question.
"I think you need to go home." I began to walk him away.
"I'm not going anywhere without her." He jerked his arm out of grip and punched me and ran towards Scootaloo, who began running away.
"Guys get him!" I yelled at Daniel and Jim, who quickly stopped him.
"Let go of me you!" He struggled in their grip. "YOU!" He shot a stare at Scootaloo.
"When you get home I'm going teach you some manners!" He tossed his drink at her.
"Get rid of him." I ordered and they tossed him in an alleyway. He grumbled and kicked a can as we walked away.
"Finally, now where do you live?" I asked her after I had recovered from the hit. She looked up and thought.
"I live...um... I'm visiting from my grandparents. You see my parents are dead, so I live with my grandparents and I'm just visiting my friends." She put on a fake grin after she finished. I decide to play along.
"So where are you staying?" I asked again
"In um... The Ponyville Hotel. But they're closed right now so I can't get to my room. So I guess I'll have to stay with you." She continued with the bad grin.
"Uhu, yeah." I said sarcastically.
"We are not taking her home." Jim objected.
"Well what else to you suppose we do with her?" I asked him.
"Like she said, she's visiting friends. Lets just dump her with them." He was firmly against bringing her home.
"We're not dumping her on somebody else." I objected. "Its like, what? Nine?" I asked Daniel and he shrugged.
"Ok, fine we'll take her home. But who here knows how to care for a kid? And a pony at that." He had a good point, but I thought I could handle it.
"I won't be much trouble. Just give me some food and a bed." She interrupted with a glad face.
"Good, cause we don't know a lot about kids. I know the most out of these two, but I'm no father." I warned her.
"Yeah, so if you start puking you guts out or crying because of the monster in your closet. You're on your own." Jim warned also.
"Jim, you're so harsh." I peered at him and shook my head.
"I'm starving lets go." Daniel shoved his way between us and began walking home and we followed.
"So where is this bacon?" Jim rubbed his hooves together and began opening cabinets.
"Not here." I remembered its at Twilight's.
"You lied about bacon?" He yelled. "Never lie about the bacon, man!" He continued
"I did not lie about the bacon!" I yelled in defense as he stared into my eyes, a few inches from my face.
"Then get the bacon." He sneered.
"Sheesh I will, calm down." I went and got the bacon then came back.
"I don't think we should eat this when we're ponies. Ponies only eat grass and stuff like that, their systems weren't meant for meat. I heard an attack upon the plate of bacon the Daniel had in front of him.
"Or you know, ignore me." I rolled my eyes. "Well what do you want to eat?" I asked Scootaloo. "We-we got grass in the back yard? You could bring some in? I guess." I said feeling bad I was telling her to go eat in the yard, or eat the yard.
"Ok!" She hopped right out the door.
"That was easy." I was interrupted.
"Ugh guys I don't feel so gre-" Daniel puke right on top of the table, spoiling all of our bacon.
"Oh come on! Aim for the floor at least." Jim yelled as he quickly sat up to dodge the wave of vomit.
"Jim calm down. Now what to do with you?" I folded my arms and thought.
"I think-" Daniel tried to reply but he vomited again before he could finish.
"Well now we have a baby, a little girl, and now this!" Jim through his arms up in frustration.
"Just shush." I pushed my chair out. "Do we have a bucket anywhere?" I patted Daniel on the back while he vomited.
"I have no idea." He paced the room.
"Well find one." He shook his head and grumbled away looking for a bucket.
"Nick why didn't you-" Daniel was interrupted by another wave. "Ugh. Why didn't you tell me not to eat the bacon?" He said sarcastically and I rolled my eyes.
"Found one!" Jim announced, holding up the bucket and closing the front door behind him.
"Alright, here." Jim handed the bucket to me then I passed it the Daniel.
"Who's going to clean this up?" I asked as I stood up and over looked the pool of vomit on the floor.
"Not me. Good night." Jim quickly went upstairs.
"Wait-" He got away before I could stop him.
"Ugh I feel like crap." Daniel slowly hobbled up the stairs, holding the bucket to his face.
"I picked some gra-" Scootaloo stop in the door, staring at the mess. She put her hoof to her mouth and puked.
"Oh come on!" I yelled holding a mop in my hoof.
"I'm not in the mood to eat any more." She jump over the puddle and went up stairs.
"Dear old Nick gets screwed again." I rolled my eyes and began cleaning.
"Ugh, finally, I'm done." I sighed as I pulled back the covers on my bed and prepared to jump in. Then I heard a noise on the roof.
"Fine time for someone to be robbing this house." I cocked my gun and looked out my bed room window. Hanging over the side were Scootaloo's hooves. When I opened the window the noise became clear so I could make it out. It was her crying.
"I can't, no I should, but." I argued with myself. "Fine. You win." I began climbing to the roof. She stopped crying when she saw me bending the gutter as I hung by it.
"Whoo, could you do this on the ground floor." I breathed as I sat down next to her. I manage to get her to crack a small grin.
"Whats wrong?" I asked concerned for her.
"Promise me you won't take me home. Please?" She begged, laying her head on my lap and continuing to cry.
"He was your father, wasn't he?" I asked her, rubbing her back.
She sniffed. "Yeah."
"Does he hit you?" I continued to dig.
"Yeah." She said softly.
"Have you told anyone?" I leaned back and stopped rubbing her back.
"Yeah. But no pony believes me. They've never even seen him, so they don't believe me. They only ponies who now his name is the bar tender and the police." She sighed.
"Well now I'm the police so I'll take care of him." I smiled slightly
"Thanks." We sat there staring at the full moon and she began to fall asleep on my lap. After a few minutes of her sleeping soundly, I picked her up and turned around and noticed a hatch going to the addict. I rolled my eyes at my stupidity then I climbed down the ladder and walked into my room. I sat her down in my bed and tucked her in, I noticed a large bruise under her mane and I frowned. I pulled the blankets over her and closed the door when I left. I went downstairs and laid on the couch. I Sat there thinking about what happened that day. How was I going to do this day after day? I closed my eyes and just thought about the upside to all this.
*Crash* *Bang*
"Get back here." I heard an angry Jim growl.
"Ha! You're so fat and old!" I heard an unknown voice yell. I opened my eyes and looked into the kitchen from the couch. Jim was chasing, what looked to be a larger version of Evergreen. I moaned and got up to help him.
"Hey kid get out of my house!" I yelled at him as I shooed him out.
"Hey watch it pops." He dodged me and run up stairs. I chased him to my bedroom door where he was standing, staring. I leaned in next to him.
"Whoa, is she an angel?" He asked me. "She's beautiful." He said in aw. He was staring at Scootaloo, who was sound asleep and drooling on my pillow.
"Not what I would call beautiful, but what ever." I said under my breath.
"There you are." Jim growled as he poked his head up the steps.
"Uh oh." The kid said.
"Gotcha!" Jim grabbed him and began giving him a knoogy.
"Thats the last time you fill my cereal with hot peppers." He barked angrily.
"Hey let go of me you alien freak!" The kid struggled and flailed his arms around wildly.
"Alright Jim I think he's had enough." I motioned for Jim to drop him. Jim took this quite literally and dropped him on the floor.
"Ow." The kid rubbed his head and hind.
"Now who are you and why are you in my house." I interrogated.
"OK, first I live here. Second I'm your son. Can't even recognize your own son..." He mumbled the ending.
"Yeah right." I rolled my eyes. "My 'son' is an infant and he's sleeping on a pillow in the corner." I pointed towards a small bed in the corner of my room.
"Um, Nick?" Jim looked worriedly into the room.
"Yes?" I asked.
"Its empty." He pointed this out.
"Told you, pops." Evergreen said in a mocking tone.
"Ok fine. Your my son, so zip it with the smart talk." I barked at him.
"So why is he so big now?" Jim asked.
"You guys really know nothing about kids do you?" He asked with a smug look. We shook our heads.
"When a child turns six months old, they quickly begin to develop speech and they grow alot."
"Oh, what about puberty?" I asked.
"That happens when they turn one and a child is fully grown by the age one and a half." He explained.
"Well then. Since your my son, you are going to learn how to be a man, or colt." I took command.
"Lets get Daniel up." Jim suggested.
"Ugh, hey guys..." Daniel moaned as he left his room holding a bucket to his mouth.
"Never mind." I said to Jim. "Hey where did he go?" I looked around for Evergreen and I also noticed Scootaloo was gone.
"Good, that little brat is gone." Jim snipped.
"We have stuff we have to do anyway. We can keep an eye out for them while we do it." I said.
"What stuff?" Jim asked.
"We have to get proper food, we have to get our uniforms and we have to get Daniel something-" Daniel puked into his bucket. "So he'll stop doing that." I looked disgusted at the bucket.
"Yeah..." We slowly backed away from Daniel then left.
I closed the door behind me as Jim and I stepped onto the sidewalk in the front of my house. I took a deep breath of the cool, moist, morning air and walked to the small white picket fence that bordered my lawn and also housed my mailbox.
"Do we have any mail?" Jim asked jokingly.
"In fact we do." I pulled out three envelopes each one addressed to the each of us. "This is for you, this is for Daniel and this one is for me." I handed him the letter.
"From the the princess. To her faithful guards." I read the letter aloud. "Inclosed are your first of many pay checks of one-hundred bits to each of you." I pulled out a small sack with gold coins in it and Jim pulled the same sack out of his.
"Well, that solves the money problem." I tossed the sack up into the air.
"I wonder how much they're worth?" Jim peeked inside of the bag.
"Lets go find out." I began walking with a spring in my step towards the center of town.
I was just about to enter the center of town when I saw a soaking wet, white mare running around with a towel rapped around her head. She looked so angry, I swore I could see the steam rising from her head.
"Nick!" The familiar voice of Rainbow Dash snapped. "Have you seen Scootaloo and Evergreen?" I was wondering if I should tell her anything for fear of my own safety and theirs. Instead I tried to change the subject.
"um...Hi." I said awkwardly staring at the sky with her face shoved into mine.
"Where are they?" She said in a low, hostile tone.
"I have no idea. What happened to your color?" I said very quickly.
"They replaced all of my soap and shampoo with bleach." Jim tried to hold back a laugh and Dash quickly shut him up with a stare of death.
"Well sorry we couldn't be of any help, but we really must go. Bye!" I grabbed Jim and high tailed it out of there.
"Now, back to work." I searched the many food stands for something good.
"Now that we're done with that, lets go pick up our uniforms." I smiled and tossed an apple onto the mountain of food on Jim's back.
"Hello? Hello? We're back." I opened the door to my house.
"Hey. What did you get?" Daniel paused from puking in the bucket and turned to us.
"Carrots, apples, lettuce, stuff like that." I answered him.
"Don't help me..." Jim said sarcastically as he struggled with the weigh of the mountain of food on his back. I helped him in and began putting away the things.
"Well did you get any meds?" Daniel asked. "For me-" He was cut off and I heard him trying to puke but he was empty.
"ugh help." He moaned.
"Don't worry Daniel we'll go get you some stuff after we put this stuff away; and look!" I held up our new uniforms. We each had two, a formal one and a combat one. We could ware each one no matter if we were a pony or a human. The formal uniform looked like your normal uniform, it was a pitch black with our squad's emblem on the arm. Our squad emblem was also the same as our cutie marks, so they matched.
"Now that we have these." I pointed to the uniforms. "We can kick butt and look good doing it." I put on the combat uniform. "Now lets get your meds." I shook myself to settle the new clothes.
"Seeing as how you just put on a combat uniform, this is no walk down the street." Jim sighed, knowing he had more work to do.
"Yep!" I replied cheerily, grabbing my gun. He rolled his eyes and followed me out the door.
"So why do we have to go into the forest again? Jim looked into the dark Everfree forest.
"Because there's zebra that lives in there and she can help us." I tore my gaze from the forest.
"Why don't we just go to the doctor? Ponies have doctors right?" He was looking for a way out of the job.
"Well- We- He-." I struggled to answer him.
"Mmh." He nodded and waited for me to reply with a smug look.
"Fine, we'll go to the doctor." I dropped my shoulders and my gun in defeat and we went to the local doctor.
"I'm sorry boys, but I've never had to deal with somepony eating meat. I can't help you." The doctor replied after searching through her cabinets for some medicine.
"Ok then." Jim dropped his head.
"HA! Now we have to go into the forest." The doctor made me quite down after my sudden outburst.
I was cheerily walking down the road with dreary old Jim following me when I saw Evergreen stumbling home with a black eye and a small trickle of blood running from his nose, leaving a trail in the dirt. I step up to him and looked into his eyes and I knew what happened.
"Jim." I said a deep, angry voice.
"Yeah?" He asked unaware of what to do.
"Call a doctor." I turned on the remote and turned into a human. I stood to my fool hight, I cracked my knuckles then I went on my way.
"Nick! What are you doing?" Jim yelled after me. I stopped and turned to him.
"I'm pissed and I'm going to solve the problem." I replied in a dark, low tone. He nodded and I continued on.
"Is he going to be OK?" Evergreen asked Jim.
"You know, Nick hardly ever gets this angry, but when he does." Jim whistled. "I'd stay out of his way."
I slammed on the door of the small shack this guy called home. I heard two voices inside stop talking then I heard hoof steps coming closer. The drunken stallion from before greeted me.
"Wada ya want?" He asked in a drunken slur. I let one loose sending him onto a table where the other pony was sitting with a small briefcase. The younger stallion removed his papers from under the drooling drunker and folded them up then placed them in his briefcase.
"Sorry about that." I apologized to him.
"Oh no. You're fine, I was just leaving." He stood up and left, I followed behind him.
I hummed as cooked some bacon in the early morning.
"Life's good." I dropped the bacon onto a plate and moved to a chair out front. My seat was wet from the morning dew but I didn't mind, I went on happily eating my bacon as ponies began to start their morning routine.
"Hey." Jim stepped and sat down next to me holding a cup of Joe. I gave him a hive five as he sat down.
"So now what?" He asked as we watched the birds hop on the ground.
"I don't know. Do our job?" I shrugged and ate another piece of bacon.
"What's our job?" He asked again.
"Well, we are the military and or police so I guess we just protect and serve." He frowned.
"So how do we start?" He sipped from his coffee after he asked me.
"We keep the people safe from the monsters over there." I motioned towards the forest. "and from anything else."
"Ok I gotcha." He nodded.
"Well better wake up Daniel." I finished my last piece then we both stood up and went inside.
"Daniel!" I yelled up the steps on my way to the kitchen.
"WHAT?" He yelled back.
"GET YOUR BUTT DOWN HERE!" I replied then went to clean up my mess.
"What?" He asked as he stomped down the steps.
"We have work." I explained to him.
"Why?" He rubbed his eye. Jim and I just stared at him.
"So we can get money so we can eat." Jim explain.
"Oh." He realized what he had said.
"Come on." I tossed him his equipment and a piece of toast.
"So what are we doing today?" Daniel asked, putting on his combat uniform.
"We just patrol and stuff." I inspected all of my stuff.
"K." he replied. "I can do that."
"Ready?" I asked them.
"Yeah." They both replied.
"Then lets go!" I stepped out side and began walking with them following behind.
"Ok Jim you'll be stationed here. Daniel you'll be here. Take these radios also." I tossed them each a radio after I pointed out where they would be stationed.
"Wow." Jim sighed.
"What?" I asked.
"You put me next to the school." I remembered that Jim wasn't to keen on children and how his life would suck if I left him there.
"Well sucks for you." I smiled then I went to my old bench in the middle of the town.
I laid back on my bench and watched ponies trade with each other and converse. I remembered that I left the portal devise on and proceeded to turn it of and turn into a pony once again. I noticed a red a black mare across the street selling flowers. For a second we made awkward eye contact but I quickly broke away and instead began looking at the pastries and cakes at another shop. I looked back over at her and I noticed a young stallion running from her stand holding some money and being chased by her. So I began to do my job and I gave chase. As I chased the thief, I bumped a few ponies down and almost started a fire. After a few minutes I stopped the thief and the mare followed shortly.
"Whoo. Thanks." She wiped her hair away from her face.
"No prob." I replied as I held him by the scruff of his neck.
"I've never seen you before." We started up a little conversation.
"Really? I've always been selling flowers from that stand." She replied. "Are you new to Ponyville?" She asked.
"I've been living here for about a week" I tried to remember how long it's been.
"Well I could show you around." She slowly dug at the ground with her back leg.
"Hey!" The thief yelled. "Are you going to take me to jail or what? Because I don't want the listen to you two flirt all day." He said very annoyed.
"Oh shut up." I hit him over the head.
"When do you get off?" She asked.
"I get off at four." I answered.
"Perfect. After I show you around you can repay me by buying me dinner." She smiled and trotted off.
"Wait what?" I stood there holding the thief as she trotted away.
"Hey love bird!" The criminal yelled at me again.
"Wow you're eager to go to jail. Let me help you then." I dragged him off to jail.
"Hey Daniel!" I greeted him as he approached our house after we had finished with the day's duties.
"Hey. How did your day go?" Daniel asked as he got closer.
"Fine, nothing much. Though, I think I got a date. You?" I asked him after I had finished scratching my head.
"Same thing, besides the date thing." He replied and I nodded.
"Oh look there's Jim." We looked down the road to see a sorry sight.
"Hey." Jim said drearily. His mane and tail were braided and he had splotches of paint all over him.
"What happened to you?" I asked.
"The kindergarteners." He said in an annoyed tone.
"Oh." I ended the conversation and looked to Daniel to start a new one.
"Uh well, Nick got a date!" Daniel quickly gave me a side hug.
"You're dating pony?" Jim sounded disgusted.
"Well it's not really a date, she's just showing me around." I awkwardly replied.
"Good." And with that he stomped inside and began unbraiding his mane and tail.
"Glad thats over." I commented Daniel agreed with me. "Well, got to go. Bye!" I waved to Daniel as I left and he waved back then went inside.
"You're late." My mare friend commented as I arrived at her stand.
"I'm not late its only-" Looked at a nearby clock. "Four fifteen."
"Well you're her now so lets go." She grabbed my arm and dragged me around the town.
"And that is Sugar Cube Corner." She pointed towards a building that looked like it had a pop-tart for a roof. "Now-" She stood in front of me and grabbed both of my hooves. "Where are you taking to dinner?"
"What about that nice cafe you showed me a few minutes ago?" I motioned with my heads towards the direction of the cafe.
"Mmh, OK." She reluctantly agreed and I took her there.
"I never caught your name." I stirred my ice water with a straw.
"My name is Rose. You know because I sell flowers." I took a bite out of her sandwich.
"Rose, thats a nice name." I leaned back in my chair.
"Now tell me, what's your name?" She grinned slightly.
"I'm Nick." I made eye contact with her.
"Well, Nick, I'll see tomorrow and maybe you can take me to a classier place next time." She finished her sandwich, I smiled and laughed.
"Yeah, maybe. Bye." I waved to her as she left. "Check please." I called the waiter over and payed for her meal.
"Hey Jim. What's up?" I closed the door behind me as I entered my house.
"Nothing. You?" Jim had finished cleaning himself up.
"Not much, just came back from my night with Rose." I sighed at her name. Jim stood up and walked over to me with a cross look on her face.
"Uh, hi." I leaned back as he stared at me.
"Screw you." He said in a low tone.
"What?" I said confused then he slugged me in the face sending me stumbling back into the door.
"WHAT HECK WAS THAT FOR?" I yelled as I held my nose to stop the bleeding.
"I know when you like someone and YOU sir had that look." He stopped and pointed at me while he was on his way back to the couch.
"What? No. We're just friends, so what?" I went to the kitchen and go a napkin to clean the blood from my face. He stood up and walked over to me a second time. Thinking that I was in for another hit I braced myself.
"WE are humans. THEY are horses. HORSES are barn animals. THEY ARE BARN ANIMALS, DISGUSTING, FILTHY, STUPID BARN ANIMALS AND WE SHOULD NOT BE BEFRIENDING THEM!" He point at the door when he talked about the ponies. I heard glass break and I looked over just in time to see Dash's tail disappear behind the door frame.
"THIS PLACE IS INSANE! KNOW WHAT? SCREW THIS, I'M LEAVING!" He walked over to my jacket but I stopped him before he got the device.
"WHERE DO YOU THINK YOU'RE GOING? YOU CAN'T LEAVE, WE HAVE TO FINISH!" I yelled in his face. He grabbed my by my collar and crashed me into the wall.
"THE ONLY THING STOPPING ME FROM LEAVING IS YOU! YOU WANT US TO STAY HERE! THERE IS NOTHING WE HAVE TO DO! IT'S JUST YOU AND YOUR STUPID PONIES THAT ARE SO DEAR TO YOUR HEART!" He grabbed the devices and left. After he left I walked over the broken picture frame and knelt down next to it and picked it up. It was a picture of Dash and Jim just after we saved her from the three protagonists, Daniel, Dash's five friends and I were in the background.
"Way to go, jerk." I held the broken frame in my hands.
"Hey guys what's all the yelling about?" Daniel came down the steps.
"Nothing, we were just horsing around." I put the picture on a stand next to the couch.
"Where's Jim?" Daniel looked around the room.
"He's blowing off some steam." I cleaned up the mess and went to bed.
The next day I got up and quickly ran into town to pick up a few things.
"Hey AJ how's it going." I loaded a few apples into a bag and tossed her some money.
"Yer back again? Wow are ya feedin' an army?" She looked surprised that I was there.
"Yea, Daniel and-" I stopped.
"Well thanks fer yer business." She tipped her hat to me.
"You're welcome." I began to wonder what she meant again. Maybe it wasn't normal to run to the store every few days like back home, well it isn't to normal there either. I walked by the same young stallion I saw at the drunker's house. He motioned to somepony I didn't see but I thought nothing of it at the time.
"Apples, apples, apples..." I talked to myself as I walked into the kitchen to put the apples away. I opened the cabinet that they were stored in and a ton of apples fell out.
"What? But yesterday we didn't have any apples." I turned an apple over in my hooves.
"Hey." Daniel walked into the room and began munching an apple.
"You got more apples? Thats like your third trip today." He took another bite.
"No, Its nine in the morning how could I have gone to get apples three times and why would I?" I just stared at him and he stared back.
"Nine in the morning? Are you crazy? It's three in the afternoon." He pointed towards a clock on the wall.
"No, no, no." I shook my head. "I just woke up and left to get apples, there's now way its three, the clock must be wrong." I motioned towards the clock.
"Fine if you don't believe me, look." I opened our money bag and showed it to me.
"And?" I peered inside.
"Yesterday the bag was half full, now its almost empty." He closed it and sat it down on the counter.
"So?" I asked again.
"You spent all of that money on apples." He motioned towards me then the apples.
"Mmh, odd." I just stared at the apples.
"Oh well! I guess I slept in." I clapped my hands together. "Well, I'm going outside." I grabbed the newspaper and an apple and went out side.
"Hey pops!" Evergreen yelled as he ran by with his friends.
"Hey." I waved.
"Let's see." I scanned the paper for anything interesting.
"Mmh, nothing really. Wait." I inspected the paper more closely. In the paper there was a picture of the same stallion I had seen last night.
"Wanted for theft and trespassing." Was posted under his photo.
"Hay Daniel!" I yelled into the house.
"What?" He replied.
"I think we got something." I folded the paper and went inside.
"Finally, I was getting bored." He got up off the couch and walked over to me. "So what is it?"
"This guy." I showed him the picture. "I've seen him twice in the past two days and I think we should get him."
"Great!" He exclaimed. "Lets go!" We grabbed a few things then went to find him.
"Okay, where do we start?" He asked as we huddled together to make a plan.
"We I just saw him, so-" I stopped as the stallion walked by walked by.
"Good day." He tipped his hat. Daniel and I just stood there wide eyed that we found him so easily.
"You're under arrest." I pointed at him. He just grinned and kept on walking.
"Stop!" I grabbed for him but I went right through him.
"You can't stop want you can't touch." He grinned again then ten clones of him popped out of no where and began mimicking his every move. Daniel and I just began swatting at every moving thing we saw in hope of catching him.
All of the clones began laughing.
"Now die...pops." He stabbed me in the chest and I blacked out