There's something that I want to ask about Applejack's family.
I've only watched the complete first season, and about fifteen episodes of the second season. None of the third season. So, I don't know everything. That's why I want to ask something that others may know.
So far, I've only seen the parents of Twilight, Pinkie Pie and Rarity appear on the show. The pegasi don't seem to have family, as I haven't seen any relatives of Rainbow Dash, Fluttershy or Scootaloo. But it's Applejack's mysterious parents that concern me.
I assume Granny Smith is Applejack's Grandma because her name is Granny and all. So, we have a generation skip here. Granny is there. BigMac, Applejack, and Applebloom are there. Their parents/Granny's child isn't.
Are they dead? Maybe, but here's the problem:
During the "Cutie Mark Chronicles" episode (which shows flashbacks of how the Mane Six got their Cutie Marks) we see Applejack as a young filly. APPLEBLOOM WASN'T BORN YET. Were Granny and BigMac there? Yes. Were Applejack's parents there? NOPE. So, since Applebloom still had to be born, the parents were still alive, but ABSENT.
Do you guys think that Applejack's parents are deadbeat and simply drop their children to Granny's care as soon as they're born? Do you think that Applejack only ever saw her parents the day they came to the farm to drop baby Applebloom and just went back to the world to live their lives of irresponsible hedonism? Did they ever appear on the show so my theory can be shot down?
Is this theory stupid and depressing?
I'm sorry...
CHAPTER TEN
DR. SELVIG
(Or, How I Learned to Stop Worrying and Love the Chaos)
"Feeling comfortable?" Bruce asks Tony Dash
"Yeah, but this is the 'calm before the storm'" Dash says, lying down in the chair while Bruce strapped the cables to her reactor "The part I hate comes when you push that button over there"
Banner chuckles "Well, thankfully, this will be the last time you'll have to go through this"
"Clint called a few minutes ago" Natasha, who was holding Loki's scepter for 'Emergency Shut Off' purposes, said "Loki can dissolve the magic block. In fact, he could do it all along. He just didn't because he's an asshole"
"Hear that, Dash?" Pepper said "Soon you'll be back to your home and all of this will be over"
"Yeah… I… want to thank you. All of you" Dash says "There are so many things I want to say…"
"We know" Pepper said
"Everything's good to go" Dr. Selvig announced "Now we just need Mr. Witchery to arrive so we can start"
"You won't have to wait long" Jarvis said "I detect a Quinjet about to land on the roof"
"That's it, girls. Finish line. Are you ready for this?" Dash asks Twilight Odinson
"Ready as I can be" Twilight smiles
"What about you, Applejack? Applejack?" Dash turns her head in Apple Rogers' direction
Apple was staring at Tony Dash's shirtless abs, blush on her cheeks.
"Applejack!" Dash shouts
"Uh, what?" Apple says as if she was waking up from a (day)dream
"Excuse me, I must alert y*!45¨457&*(SYSTEM FAILLLLLLLLURRRRGHS!46*(*&+}/#$"
"Jarvis! What's wrong?" Pepper asks, apprehensive
"BzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzDANG-DANG-DANGRERERER Lalala banana-a-a-a-a"
"JARVIS!"
"You-u-u-u-u-u-u-u-u Heeeeeehheeh have co-co-comp aneee $%&%$GUESTSSSSS AReVaYD()"
"What's wrong?" Bruce asks "Did he say 'guests arrived'?"
"Jarvis!" Pepper pleads one more time. But only static came back.
"This is not normal" Twilight muttered to herself "This is not good"
"I'll go upstairs to check it out" Natasha said, still carrying the scepter
"Be careful" Banner warned
Arriving on the Penthouse, Natasha sees no sign of life "Jarvis! Can you talk to me? Where are the 'guests'?"
"Beeeeee hi-hi-hi"
"What?"
"Behind grapefruit" he says, faintly
"Agent Romanoff!" Natasha turns to see Loki behind her "How kind of you to bring me my scepter"
"You!"
"It's fascinating what a little chaos magic can do to a machine, isn't it?" Loki says, smirking
"Lasagna" Jarvis said, with as much contempt as a computer could express
"What you did to Clint?" Natasha asks, angry
"What didn't I do?"
Angry, Natasha tries to hit Loki with the scepter, but he grabs it before it hits his face. After futilely trying to take the scepter out of his grip, Natasha tries to hit him with a roundhouse kick, but Loki grabs her leg with his free hand.
Unable to move, Natasha looks at Loki with an expression that she hardly ever demonstrates: fear.
Smiling, Loki makes a simple movement with his wrist and twists Natasha's ankle.
Natasha falls on the floor, holding back her screams. Loki quickly pins her down and grabs her hair, pulling it, so he can talk to her face.
"Such arrogance and stupidity" Loki smiles "to think you, a woman, could ever best me in battle"
Natasha spits on his face.
"Defiance. The last resort of the defeated" Loki says, before he punches her hard in the face, knocking her out.
Loki cleans the saliva off of his face and grabs his scepter.
"She should have been back already" Twilight remarks
"I don't like this…" Bruce says
"What's goin' on? Can somepony explain to me?" Apple says
"I'll go check" Pepper says moving towards the stairs
"That won't be necessary, Ms. Potts" Loki appears in front of her.
"Oh my gosh!" Apple says
"Loki!" Bruce shouts, moving towards them
"That's close enough!" Loki says, grabbing Pepper and pressing the blade of his scepter against her neck "Not one more step"
Bruce stops, his back turned against Twilight, Dash, and Apple, staring at Loki.
"Is that green I see in your eyes?" Loki asks him "Do you really think that is a good idea?"
Bruce's shoulders fall as he hangs his head in defeat.
"That's better" Loki says "Now, would you kindly give one step forward?"
Bruce eyes him with disgust but complies. Quickly, Loki touches Bruce's chest with his scepter, as Banner's eyes turn white.
"Oh, no" Selvig whispers
Loki laughs "Oh, what to do? I would love to make you squash your little friends, but the creature is too unpredictable for me to risk it. Turn around"
"Alright" Bruce says, numbly as he turns his back to Loki
With incredible speed, Loki throws Pepper against the wall, where she falls unconscious. In the same fraction of a second, with both hands free, Loki snaps Bruce's neck.
"Dear Celestia!" Twilight cries
"Bruce!" Dash screams as Bruce's body falls lifeless on the floor.
"You monster!" Apple shouts as she charges against Loki
Loki, however, stops her by grabbing her neck and lifting her with ease from the ground.
"Greetings. I believe we haven't been introduced yet" Loki smirks "I am Loki" and saying that, he throws her through the window, where she falls screaming to her doom.
"Applejack!" Dash cries "No!"
"Excuse me, I'm going to need this" Loki says, yanking the arc reactor off of Dash's chest
Dash's body begins to jerk with pain. Loki unceremoniously throws her out of the chair. She faceplants on the floor.
Twilight was horrified. This couldn't be happening. Her first instinct was to blast Loki with her magic. She even pointed her forehead at him. She even pointed it at Applejack, trying to save her. Useless. Helpless. Without her magic, what could she do? Just stare as her friends were…
Killed?
With tears on her eyes and rage on her heart, Twilight charges "I'M GOING TO KILL YOU!"
"Not if I kill you first" Loki says and stabs Twilight on her belly with the scepter.
Pain.
Twilight wanted to scream. But she didn't, like her vocal chords were too shocked to react. She has never felt so much pain. She touches her wound. She looks at her hands. Blood. Her blood. She falls to her knees.
"Pathetic sentimentalism" Loki says, and turns to Selvig "Hello, Doctor. I think it's time we restart our partnership"
Erik grabs a screwdriver from the table and presses against his own throat "I rather die!"
Loki smiles "You're not going to kill yourself, Doctor"
"Yes, I will!"
"No, you won't" Loki says and calmly touches Selvig with his scepter
"No…" is all Erik manages to whimper before his eyes turn a ghostly blue and he's under Loki's control once again.
"So, Doctor" Loki smiles "A little bird told me you found a way to make the portals self-sustainable"
"That's correct" Selvig said, smiling stupidly "Dr. Banner came up with most of the theory as he would tell you himself if you hadn't killed him"
"So, you could open more than one portal?" Loki asks "That would remain open indefinitely?"
"In theory, yes"
"Could you open one right now?" Loki lifts the arc reactor he pulled from Dash's chest "With this?"
"Sure" Selvig answered, smiling "We just need to charge it long enough to…"
"Erik…" Twilight says, faintly "Don't do it…"
"Silence!" Loki says, shooting a concussive blast from his scepter at her "Continue your work doctor"
Twilight falls just a few steps away, her face pressing against the cold floor. She now sees Dash trying hard to speak…
"Twi… Twilight… I…"
"Rainbow… Stay with me!"
Dash tries to speak again, but her mouth doesn't make any sound. Slowly, life vanishes from her eyes.
"Dash… no…" Twilight cries
Dr. Selvig presses the button. The machine in connection with Tony Dash's arc reactor opens the rift to Equestria. Loki concentrates on the hex on the other side. He removes it, replacing it by one of his own. Selvig turns off the machine, but the portal remains open.
"There. The portal is unblocked. Consider that a little gift of mine to you" Loki mockingly tells Twilight "Now, me and the doctor will take the machine and the Tesseract to make some portals of our own. We won't need this anymore" Loki drops the arc reactor on the floor and stomps it, destroying it, as Twilight watches, helplessly.
Back on the roof, Hill had regained consciousness.
"Barton? Barton?" Hill tries to awaken Clint, but it's useless "Shit! Agent down! Loki has escaped! Anyone copy?" she yells at her earpiece, but only static comes back. And she's pretty sure she heard the word 'Carpaccio' in the middle of the noise.
"It would be wise to stay down, Deputy Hill" Maria turns to see Loki and Selvig coming out of the roof access.
Hill raises her gun, but Loki's faster, touching her chest with his scepter. Hill was under his control now.
"Can you fly that vehicle?" Loki points to the Quinjet
"Yes, sir" Hill answers in the same manner she would answer Fury
"Please" Loki smiles, as Maria enters the Quinjet and Selvig loads the machine.
Clint manages to regain consciousness just in time to see them flying away "Shit…"
"Meat… balls… REBOOTING, PLEASE WAIT…" Jarvis voice comes from the ceiling "CALIBRATING PREFERENCES… Oh, it's good to be back…"
"I… I… I failed them" Twilight, who was slowly but surely recovering from her stab wound, said while choking back tears "I couldn't save my friends… They're… they're d…" she breaks down and cries
"Ms. Sparkle, please, pull yourself together" Jarvis said, with the best tone of urgency he could express "There's still a faint sign of life on Master Stark's body. I need you to replace his chest reactor"
"Loki… Loki destroyed it…" Twilight says, drying her tears
"Take this one" a mechanical arm comes out of the ceiling, holding a small circular object.
Twilight takes a second to stare at the mechanical marvel before grabbing the arc reactor and rushing to Tony Dash's side. "Please work, please work, please work…" she says, turning Dash's body and inserting the reactor on her chest.
After a few apprehensive seconds, Dash catapults back to life.
Twilight shed tears of happiness "Oh, Rainbow… I thought I lost you"
"I… I was…" Dash tries to say
"Don't say it"
"I talked with Tony Stark"
"Wait, what?" Twilight asks
"GAK!" Bruce coughs, as he suddenly gets up
"AAAAAAHHHHH!" Twilight and Dash scream in unison
"What… what happened?" Bruce speaks with difficulty, caressing his throat. Twilight notices a weird green glow slowly fading away from his neck.
"You… you were dead!" Dash shouts "Loki snapped your neck!"
"Wow, really?" Bruce asks
"YOU WERE DEAD!" Dash repeats
"Well, I got better" Bruce answers
"Got better?! YOU WERE DEAD!"
"To be fair, so was you" Twilight chimes in
"I'm hard to kill" Bruce explains
Suddenly, they hear a noise and turn to the stairs to see Clint and Natasha climbing down, using each other as crutches.
"Is everyone alright?" Clint asks
Twilight lowers her head "Applejack…"
Dash sheds a few tears.
"Pepper is hurt" Bruce says, putting her body gently in a chair "Nothing really serious, but she will need rest and care"
"Loki escaped" Clint says "We need to…"
"Hello? Can somepony hear me? Help!"
"Is that… Steve?" Natasha asks
"Applejack!" Dash shouts, and moves towards the broken window.
Looking down, Dash sees Apple Rogers standing on top of one of the many tower cranes surrounding the Stark Tower construction area, waving at her.
"Oh, thank Celestia" Dash sighs, relieved "It's Applejack! She's alright!" she yells to the others who come to see her.
"Can somepony help me out here?" Apple yells
"Stand back!" Clint says, unfolding his bow and taking an arrow out of his quiver. He aims a few inches away from Apple Rogers' feet and releases the string.
The arrow hits and attaches itself to the metal structure. Behind it, a strong steel wire led the way back towards the broken window.
"Climb up!" Clint shouts to Apple, while fixating the other end of the wire on the floor.
Apple looks down at the vertiginous height that separates herself from the ground "'Climb up', huh? Easy like that, huh?" she laughs nervously, and begins to climb.
"Nice shot!" Twilight tells Clint
"Guys, should we be worried about that?" Natasha points at the little rift in the time/space continuum that floats over the table.
"Oh, man…" Banner says "Loki opened a portal…"
"And he unblocked it too" Twilight says
"What?!" Bruce and Dash say in unison
"At least, that's what he told me… when I was bleeding on the floor…"
"When you were WHAT?!" Dash shouts
"Yeah, he stabbed me. You saw it, don't you remember?"
"Twilight, the only thing I remember is panic and hitting my face on the floor" Dash says "Are you alright?"
"Yeah, surprisingly" Twilight answered "I don't feel anything anymore"
"Fast healing" Bruce says "One of the advantages of being an Asgardian"
"Guardian of whose ass?" Dash asked
"Asgardian? What is that?" Twilight asked
"What you are" Bruce answered "Asgard is the homeland of Thor and Loki. They are a lot tougher there than the 'puny humans' from here"
"Is that how you survived?" Twilight asked "You're an Asgardian?"
"Who, me? Oh, no. No, no, no. I'm… I'm something else…"
"Can we go back to the orbiting light of doom?" Clint says, pointing to the rift
"Oh, right! You said it's unblocked?" Dash asks Twilight "So we can go back!"
"Loki said it's unblocked" Twilight pointed out "Do you really think we can trust him?"
"Are ya crazy?" Apple, who just arrived through the window, said "That son of a mule, sorry for my potty mouth, tried to kill us all! We can't trust that bastard in whatever it is ya two are talkin' about"
"But it could be our only chance…" Dash protested
"Rainbow Dash, there's no way we can be sure…" Twilight started
"Yes, there is" Dash said "I'll go"
Suddenly, Natasha has a strong headache. She looks at the rift, which is pulsing. Something doesn't feel right…
"Rainbow, are you sure you wanna go inside?" Bruce asks
"I'm not afraid"
"I know you're not" Bruce says "But this thing could take you anywhere. Far away from Equestria. As far as we know, Loki may have made it so anyone who gets in contact with it is disintegrated"
"So, we just wait?" Dash said "I'm sorry, but I'm tired of this. I'm willing to take the risk"
"You're willing to die?" Bruce asks
"Yes"
"You're willing to leave them?" Bruce points at Twilight and Apple
Dash stops. She looks at Twilight and Apple both with fearful looks on their eyes "I… Pinkie… Fluttershy, Rarity… They need me in Equestria…"
"We need ya here" Apple says
"You're needed in both places, Rainbow" Bruce says "But you can't help anyone if you're nowhere. And as far as we know, Tony may be the only trump card your friends have on their side. What will happen to him if you go inside, if anything goes wrong?"
Dash hangs her head and turns around, moving away from the portal.
"Believe me, you made the sensible choice" Bruce says
"That'll be a first" Dash replies with a small smile
"We need to do something about Loki" Clint says "He escaped in the Quinjet with Dr. Selvig and Hill under his control. We need to stop them before they get too far. Contacting the Helicarrier, explaining the situation, and requesting another Quinjet will take too long"
"So, what do we do?" Twilight asked
"Rainbow Dash, we need you to fly after them" Clint says
"What?!" Dash asks, incredulous "Did you suffer brain damage? I'm not a Pegasus anymore! I can't fly!"
"Actually, you can" Jarvis said
"Wait, what?" Twilight says
"I can?!" Dash asks
"She can?" Apple asks
In the middle of the room, a couple of tiles disappear to leave room for two mechanical boots "Ms. Dash, please insert your feet on the boots"
Dash gives in a puzzled look.
"If you don't put those boots on, I will" Clint says
Dash looks at Twilight, who nods. Dash puts the boots on. They lock in.
"Whoa! What the hay?"
Suddenly, two heavy machineries appear from the ceiling "Ms. Dash, please insert your arms in the apertures of the machines at your sides"
Dash gulps but complies. As soon as she does so, more machines appear from the ceiling and the ground, slowly encasing her in a suit of armor.
Twilight and Apple watch, dumbfounded
"The contingency plan…" Twilight mutters
"Man of Iron…" Apple whispers
"What the hay is going on?" Dash shouts, mildly panicking
"Please, stay still, Ms. Dash" Jarvis said "It will be over in an instant"
Finally, the helmet begins to assemble over Dash's head, who gives one last look of confusion and mild panic, before the faceplate closes in.
"Welcome to the Iron Man Suit, Ms. Dash"
Twilight Odinson and Apple Rogers stare at the red/gold metallic figure before them. Dash, who's just as confused, looks at her metal-gloved hands.
"I wouldn't point that to your face if I were you, Ms. Dash" Jarvis warns
"Uh… okay, then…" Dash says, pointing her palms down.
"Rainbow Dash, you…" Apple starts "You look great!"
"Do I? Thanks!" Dash replies
"I know you and your friends would love to talk about your new outfit, but I must remind you we have a Quinjet to catch"
"Okay, but… how I'm supposed to fly with this?" Dash asks him "I still don't have wings and even if I had, I'm not sure being encased in a heavy suit of armor, no matter how cool it is, would facilitate my flight"
"Since this will be your first time using the armor, I will guide you through most of the course" Jarvis says "Now, get ready for takeoff"
"Takeoff? What…" Dash begins to say when the jet boots ignite, launching the armor at neck breaking speed through the windows and towards the skies "HOLY SHEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEE…"
Twilight and Apple recover from the surprise.
"An armor… that can fly…" Apple stutters
"Stark built that?" Twilight asked, a feeling of inferiority briefly taking hold of her
"He built seven of those" Clint answers "Now that Rainbow is in pursuit, we need to contact the Helicarrier and explain the situation. They'll send someone to give us a ride. We better go to the roof"
"I'll stay here" Bruce says
"We need all the help we can get" Clint protests
"I think the Big Guy will be more of a nuisance than help under these circumstances" Bruce says "Plus, Pepper needs medical care"
The Big Guy? Apple Rogers and Twilight Odinson exchange curious looks
"You're not a medic"
"And you are?"
"I have first aid training" Clint replied
"Look, you may be a little more qualified than me to take care of her. But you are a LOT more qualified than me to go after Loki. I'm more useful here" Bruce says "Plus, someone has to keep an eye on that" he points to the rift
"Okay, then" Clint says "You ponies want to stay here too?"
"Ya said yaself" Apple says "Ya need all the help ya can get. And I'm not gonna let that monster get away with trying to kill my friends"
"I'll help anyway I can" Twilight says
And how can you help? Clint thinks but keeps to himself "Okay, let's go"
Natasha gives two steps, before falling down, holding her head, feeling a horrible headache.
"Tasha! Are you alright?"
"It's just my ankle" Natasha lies "It's nothing. Let's go"
"You call your head 'ankle' now?" Clint says "Maybe you should stay here with Banner, so he…"
"I said I'm fine" Natasha says, determined, going towards the elevator
"Where are we heading, sir?" Maria Hill asks, piloting the Quinjet
"That's a pertinent question, Deputy Hill" Loki answers "Where should we go first? Is the portal device ready, Doctor?"
"Point and shoot" Selvig answered, the stupid smile still glued on his face
"Well, now that you found a way to make more than one portal, we, obviously, won't open just one" Loki says "I believe our attack will be a little harder to contain once my troops are coming from portals on every single continent. Still, we need a noteworthy first stand. This may sound a little trite but… take me to your leader"
"Adjusting flight plan for Washington DC" Hill said "Hmm… Sir? It appears we are being tailed"
"Ms. Dash, I would appreciate if you stopped screaming"
"WHAT'S GOING ON?! HOW CAN THIS FLY SO FAST?! WHAT ARE THESE BLINKING LIGHTS ON MY FACE?!"
"The Heads Up Display showcases any information you may desire" Jarvis explains "and any information I may consider important or essential for the users of the armor, be it for their survival or the completion of their mission"
"This is only becoming 'essential' for my headache!" Dash replies "How can Stark read these stuff?"
"Master Stark has a multitasking mindset" Jarvis says "We are approaching our target. Use your hand repulsors to help you brake"
"Like this?" Dash puts her hands forward. She begins to move backwards "Whoa!" she turns her hands back to stop her momentum. After a few more brakes, she stays still, floating in the air "Hey, I think I'm getting the hang of this!"
"As you should. Master Stark designed the armor's software for intuitive use" Jarvis said "It shouldn't be much harder than flying on your own. Any other aspects of the armor like targeting and artillery can be activated by voice command or synapse tracking. Just think and I'll do the rest"
"Wait, you can read my thoughts?" Dash looks at a bird in the distance. Suddenly, her HUD zooms in, showing a picture and the name of the species "Cool! What else can you do?"
The HUD starts to fill up with all kinds of information Tony Dash requests by thought alone, from the world record for fastest solo flight (held by Stark himself) to cupcake recipes.
"This is so cool!" Dash laughs "Jarvis, you're awesome!"
"Ms. Dash, may I remind you we have a mission?"
"Oh, right. Sorry, Jarvis"
"It's quite alright" Jarvis replies "It feels good for someone to finally recognize my, as you would say, awesomeness"
Dash laughs "You're my kind of computer guy, Jarvis"
"Thank you. Target at 12 o'clock" Jarvis says "Taking the hostages into consideration, full assault and heavy artillery is out of question. A moderate repulsor blast will be good enough to delay them for a more efficient approach"
"Eh?"
"Point your open hands at it"
"Oh, got it" Dash fires at the Quinjet
"Incoming!" Hill shouts before the whole jet shakes, making her hit her head against the controls.
"Oh, Jesus!" Selvig says, trying to maintain the machine steady.
Irritated, Loki opens the loading ramp, so he can shoot his scepter at Tony Dash "Why can't you stay dead?!"
"Executing evasive maneuvers" Jarvis says as the Iron Man armor does a barrel roll.
Inside the Quinjet, Maria Hill recovers consciousness, no longer under Loki's control. Silently, she grabs her gun, aiming at Loki's head.
"Loki! Watch out!" the still brainwashed Selvig warns him
Loki turns just in time to dodge Hill's shot. Now, some of you may argue that Loki didn't need to do that because he's impervious to bullets. Humans are impervious to baseballs. Have you ever been hit by a baseball in the fucking face? It fucking hurts, man! Even if it doesn't kill you, you DO NOT want to be hit by a baseball in the fucking face!
"Shit!" Hill tries to shoot again, but Loki is onto her. He punches her in the face and, while she's disorientated, throws her out of the Quinjet.
"Loki just threw a hostage out" Jarvis said, while the HUD zoomed in Hill, displaying her picture, name, and rank.
"Got it!" Tony Dash said, and dashed to the rescue.
Loki sits on the pilot seat, angry. This is a job for servants, not kings. But he doubts the good doctor knows how to pilot this vehicle. Provisory situations require provisory actions. Good thing the Deputy already established a flight plan "Secure the device, doctor. We must leave this mortal cesspool they call a city immediately"
Meanwhile, Hill was still falling to her death before the, oh, so soft, metallic arms of the Iron Man armor caught her in the air.
"Nice day for a flight, isn't it?" Dash jokes to Hill
Hill only takes a second to bark orders "You need to go back to pursuit right now! Before Loki escapes!"
"Yeah, and I'm supposed to fight while holding you, huh?" Dash asks "What if he throws Dr. Selvig out too? No. I'll bring you back to the tower, then we try to put Loki back into the Cookie Jar, ok?"
"My safety is not a priority!" Hill stubbornly insists "Loki is a dangerous war criminal! You need to resume pursuit now!"
"No way, lady" Dash says "I'm bringing you to safety"
"Turn back now! It's an order!"
"You're not the boss of me!"
"It's charged!" Selvig says "Say the word and we'll open another portal!"
"Not here, doctor" Loki says "Their armed forces are still stationed on this area ever since our last battle. Response to a new attack would be immediate. That would be… troublesome"
"What about the one you opened in the tower?" Selvig inquired
"That wasn't for my troops" Loki says "That was just for our equine friends, as you should know already"
"Well, of course" Selvig smiled stupidly "But I have to say… it was surprisingly nice of you to unblock it…"
"Oh, I didn't just 'unblock' it" Loki smiled "I improved it. Now, the swapping process will be faster and randomized. The victim won't even need to come within reach to be displaced"
"Oh, that makes sense" Erik simply said, and went back to his work
What Loki didn't tell him, however, is that he had help. He can't quite explain it, but when he was performing his hex, he felt a mysterious force from the other side helping him. Like they both wanted the same thing. Who was it? Doesn't matter. It worked, didn't it?
"Here she comes" Clint tells the others, as Dash lands on the roof, carrying Maria Hill
"There you go" Dash says, dropping her "Safe and sound"
"He got way!" Hill protests "You let a mass murderer escape! I hope you're happy"
"You're welcome" Dash says, slightly irritated
"Rainbow Dash, that… that was…" Apple says "You were awesome!"
"Thanks!" Dash winks "Are you going to contest my 'Iron Pony' title now?"
Apple chuckles, and then says under her breath "Ya used your wings. Ya cheated"
"Says Ms. I'm An Earth Pony Which Means I Have A Natural Advantage At Strenght" Dash replies, angry "I won. Deal with it"
"You already rescued me!" Hill buts in, angry "Why don't you go back after him?"
"Actually, Hill" Clint says "I contacted the Helicarrier. Fury wants to talk with all of us before we take any further steps. They already sent another Quinjet"
"But…" Hill starts to protest but sighs "I… I can't remember where they're headed. I just know it's not here. I do remember something about Selvig being able to open more than one portal, and that Loki intends to exploit that ability"
"Why is Selvig helping him?" Twilight asks
"It's the scepter" Natasha explains "It makes everyone who's touched by it change their allegiance for Loki's. If you three are really going all the way through with this, you need to remember: Don't let him touch you with the scepter!"
The Quinjet arrives and every man, woman and pony in the roof boards it. Natasha walks with difficulty, tormented by her headache. She tries not to show it. Dash is doing a little dance inside the armor.
"Uh… Jarvis? Can I ask something just between us?" Dash talks inside the helmet "How do you take this thing off? It's been almost two days that…"
"You can pee inside the armor, Ms. Dash" Jarvis answers
"How did you…"
"I can 'read' your thoughts, remember?"
"Oh, right" Dash says "But… pee inside the armor? This doesn't sound very…"
"Don't worry, Ms. Dash" Jarvis replies "The armor was built with this predicament in mind. It runs it through a filtration system. You could drink that water if you…"
"Ok, ok. I got it" Dash says "…are you sure?"
"Yes, ma'am"
Dash was about to ask again, but she couldn't hold it any longer. She releases.
"Ah! Much better!" Dash said, relieved "Wait a minute! My pee… is coming from… THIS IS NOT A FINGER!"
15 minutes ago...
"I said I'm fine" Natasha says, determined, going towards the elevator
"Agent Romanoff" Bruce says "I can take a look if you…"
"You already have a patient, Doctor" and with that, she and the others took the elevator.
Bruce sighs and stays beside the unconscious Pepper. He analyzes the injuries. Nothing serious. Where is the First Aid kit?
"Jarvis? Where is the First Aid kit?" he asks, but receives no answer. Guess Jarvis is still recovering from Loki's attack in the tower: Unable to be in the Iron Man suit and the tower at the same time… Maybe he's running an anti-virus or something…
Bruce searches the lab, avoiding the glowing portal, looking for the kit.
He finally finds it under a table. His joy is cut short, however, when he turns and sees the portal expanding, ready to swallow him.
"Oh, crap…" is all he says before being sucked in…
Bruce blinks his eyes, as the world reappears before him. Except… this wasn't Stark Tower's ceiling!
He stands up and looks around. This is definitely NOT Stark Tower, it's a… a… bakery? Yes... A cake store to be more precise. Bruce approaches the glass counters to see his reflection. Yup. As he suspected. He's no longer in New York and he's no longer himself. He's a pony.
He understands now why Rainbow Dash freaked out when he showed her the picture of a pony. They were nothing alike. Bruce's pony body had big blue eyes, a round face, and, perhaps the most remarkably different characteristic of all…
…he was pink!