The next house held various labeled metal parts which none of the five friends could recognize or make sense of. Each label contained a stone plaque with a one to two paragraph explanation written of the object it was attached to. Pinkie Pie seemed to be the only happy pony in the room, wide-eyed with an ecstatic grin.
"Shiny!" she squeaked, dashing from one display to another.
Doctor Fuse rolled his eyes and focused his attention on the others. "Am I right to assume that none of you were told of the history of humans in Equestria?"
Applejack shrugged. "I was sorta told…"
"You were never told of when they came?"
The blonde-haired, freckled girl shook her head.
Doctor Fuse gestured to the metals and explained, "Around the time of the reign of Discord the humans arrived in Equestria…Not very good timing, really. The ponies were on edge from lack of sleep and stress, as you can imagine, and seeing the strange object fall from the sky was scary enough—the ship was believed to be yet another one of Discord's new ways of wreaking havoc. But when even stranger looking creatures came out, rumor spread that the new arrivals were attracted to Equestria in the same way that Discord was attracted. This gave the relationship between ponies and humans a very rough and awkward start…" He raised his eyebrows to emphasize his next point. "Ponies were too suspicious to interact or even speak with humans. In their fear they avoided the humans or watched them from a safe distance. As a result, the humans did not understand how civilized and intelligent the ponies were—ponies on this planet carry a striking resemblance to a creature from their planet that humans had domesticated—"
"Dom—domesticated?" interrupted Pinkie Pie, pausing to tilt her head to the side curiously.
"Like owning a pet," Doctor Fuse explained, "except the creatures couldn't communicate with humans and vice versa, like ponies can, so the creatures weren't asked to be their pets."
Twilight, Spike, and Applejack frowned seriously. Fluttershy appeared upset.
"Making them pets without asking is very rude," Fluttershy stated, her firm tone disintegrated by her soft voice, "
"But the creatures they took captive were treated well," added Doctor Fuse, "And, to be fair, remember that they could not communicate with animals."
"They still can't…" whispered Fluttershy bitterly, looking down at her human feet with sadness.
Applejack put a comforting hand on Fluttershy's shoulder.
Doctor Fuse turned away apathetically. "They were given food, water, shelter and love. And any human masters that were cruel to their animals were discouraged by human society. Or so they've told us…Anyway, we will come back to that later. What you see in this room are parts of the same ship that fell from the sky and landed in Equestria. "
Applejack blinked in disbelief and interrupted, "Wait a sec—so they fell from the sky? How is that possible?"
"The humans were from a different planet—actually, a different solar system entirely," answered Doctor Fuse, seeming grateful for the question that synchronized with this history lesson, "The museum library includes the journals of some of them, which tell us their reasons for embarking on such a long and tedious mission. The planet they were living on was apparently experiencing total chaos as well. However, this kind of chaos would inevitably destroy their planet and everyone on it. So the humans created a program titled, 'Noah's Ark.' 'A plan to preserve the human race,' one of the human writers called it; large space ships, or space arks, were built to carry large quantities of their people and their people's knowledge—"
"Ah," whispered Twilight to herself, "That is where the books come in…"
"—To planets that seemed to support life similar to their planet's life. Their ship was chosen for our planet. I could take all day fascinating you with how and why, but we can get into that later (if you so desire). Basically, what you need to know is a little about how intelligent and brave their plan was."
Doctor Fuse stepped over to a metal structure that looked like a large, stretched out egg.
"Who is Noah?" asked Pinkie Pie.
"I don't know," answered Doctor Fuse dismissively, gesturing to the egg. "Humans call this kind of stuff technology. By the time of their planet's chaos they became very advanced in science. They were capable of phenomenal feats, like the space ship Noah's Ark 042. What you see here was part of that ship and a product of their genius—it is called the Cryptasis Crib. Imagine fashioning hundreds of these to fit on a giant ship! But its function was more astounding. It could keep any living creature in a state of hibernation for more than thirty light years away! Well…not really hibernation—"Doctor Fuse backtracked when he saw the stunned look on Fluttershy's face, "It is called Cryptasis. I try to simplify things to make it easier to understand. 'Cryptasis' is a state like death. Basically, the Cryptasis Crib places your entire body, metabolism and all, on hold. The creature inside is essentially frozen in time so that no aging occurs until the Crib is triggered to bring the body back to life again…Yes, Twilight, isn't it fascinating? It is very much like dying, but you can come to life again because of the special conditions the Crib induces."
Twilight was certainly impressed. Her mouth hung open in astonishment. "Does…does it still work?"
Doctor Fuse shrugged. "As I said, a preserving charm from Celestia is on every object in this museum. But no one has wanted to try the Crib on themselves, let alone anyone else. We were not allowed to keep information on the Cryptasis Crib, so we would be guessing on how to run it…" The Doctor ran his fingers over the Crib. "Of course, this came with a risk. Records show that the Cryptasis Crib had about a twenty-three percent chance of failing (the creature inside really dying), which only increased with the length of time the creature was in the Crib. But that didn't deter the humans! They just added twenty-five percent more people and twenty-five percent more machine to the ship! They calculated how many people were needed for a new civilization, you see. And not just anyone could go. The best of the educated professionals of society were chosen; people knowledgeable enough to contribute to the group and pass that wealth of knowledge onto posterity were hand selected for the cause…Well, except the politicians were also included, for they were the ones doing the selecting…they were the only exception. Anyway, the population chosen had greater ratio of females to males, for obvious reproductive reasons. From these records we can admire the clever and calculating nature of these animals." The Doctor looked around at the group expectantly.
Fluttershy didn't meet his eyes. She whispered in Applejack's ear, and Applejack nodded solemnly. Pinky Pie was using the reflection of the Cryptasis Crib to make silly faces. She giggled to herself. Spike's reaction was intentionally reserved and thus unknown. Only Twilight seemed to comprehend the magnitude of what he was saying.
"I wouldn't call it brave," she thought out loud, "there was no other choice: take the risk or die anyway. And they probably left more behind than they saved."
The Doctor shrugged and admitted, "From reading their journals, I can assume you are right. They only had so much time to build so many ships, and resources were tight. The ships and everything else were actually kept top secret so that the public wouldn't panic—so the ones left behind could enjoy the rest of the time they had, rather than worrying—"
"You mean rather than using their numbers to rebel and demand a spot on the ships too," murmured Spike.
Dr. Fuse shot Spike a criticizing glance. "Don't think, from this story, that it was easy for them. Many human writers expressed guilt for surviving."
A skeptical glint showed in Twilight's eye. "Are you sure you aren't just putting these creatures on a pedestal? I have yet to hear about what is so courageous about this species. Intellect is cold and useless without compassion."
Doctor Fuse smiled. "I'm a scientist, dear. I don't believe perfection exists anywhere. I could tell you all about the human's faults, if you wish, but—" he glanced at Fluttershy, "—since some of you like to focus on those things anyway, I decided to enlighten you rather than help you discourage yourselves."
Fluttershy looked up at them and blushed.
"Well y'ur doin' a pretty bang-up job of it," muttered Applejack. Once the Doctor looked away she whispered in Fluttershy's ear, "Don't mind him, Sugarcube."
"Look at all of you, lecturing me like you know so much. If you have it all figured out, then why are you here?" laughed the Doctor, his words cutting their tongues to silence. "You are ignorant of the kind of bodies you possess. You do not want to try to appreciate them. As for you, Twilight—don't you think it's a bit hypocritical to scold me about pedestals? How do you suppose you viewed Celestia?"
Now it was Twilight's turn to blush.
The Doctor sighed and motioned toward the door. "I can see now that I could telling you about the rest of these parts here would prove to be a waste of my time. But just wait—we have a couple more places to go before the Grand Finale; come with me to the next house."
Each room that followed was even more fascinating than the one preceding it, although the friends would never admit that to the Doctor. Piece by piece the story of humans and ponies was put together, illustrated by mostly human, but also some pony, artifacts…
The Doctor told them that many humans were dead inside the ship, and so the first thing they did in Equestria was bury their dead. During this time various journal owners wrote about their first impressions of the place. In one room Doctor Fuse showed them the pages of a few of the human's journals.
One was a biologist's first journal entry since her awakening. It read, "This planet is like a natural disaster in and of itself! I wonder if we have all died or gone mad. The shape of the land is always changing under our feet, the sun and moon rise and fall unpredictably, and sometimes chocolate rain falls from the sky. The flora and fauna are very much like Earth's, except for one added ingredient that I can only compare to 'magic.' In our world magic is a mere trick of the senses, but this magic seems to be no trick. I endeavor to understand how all of what I am observing is possible."
"It is important you remember her," Doctor Fuse remarked, "she solved the mystery of magic."
Twilight glanced up at him doubtingly, but decided to wait for the explanation later; she was beginning to see that it would be better that way.
A botanist had written in his journal, "A few of our men on a scouting party disappeared for a couple days and returned to us severely altered. One was only a few inches tall, another had a nose that drooped down to the ground, and another's skin was bright violet. I can't help but ask myself—are we dead? Or have I lost my wits? I am absolutely shocked and perplexed. When I asked them what had happened, they only told me about a field of beautiful blue flowers that I should take a look at. I am worried about what we may stumble upon next."
"Those blue flowers must have been Poison Joke…" whispered Spike.
"Very good," confirmed the Doctor.
"But that raises the question…" Spike's brows furrowed as he focused on the puzzle. "How come humans cannot use magic but magic can use them?"
"Excellent question, Spike," praised Doctor Fuse, beginning to warm up to the boy. "You are getting ahead of my story, though."
"You take waaaaaayyyy too long telling stories!" whined an exasperated Pinkie Pie, "at this rate, when will we have time for Ring-and-Run?"
Doctor Fuse ignored her and showed them another journal from a zoologist. Naturally, the human zoologist focused on the fauna. He impressed all of the friends when they read his insightful words on the first page of the journal: "I know that the human brain is prone to anthropomorphizing animal behavior, but I could swear on my life that there is something unique about these ponies. The other creatures in the area flee from us just the same, but this morning when I awoke early I spotted two ponies staring into the camp from the shadows of the trees. I swear they were speaking to each other, as if discussing what they thought of us. The look in their eyes alone tells of sentience. I felt as if I was looking into a human face."
The politician's journals were the least interesting: "Everyone seems to be settling into their duties just fine. It is now my responsibility to ensure that all are playing their part to make our new start successful. This planet is a dreadful and frightening place, almost makes one wonder why we bothered to escape our end. Survival is so deeply ingrained into us. Tomorrow my other surviving fellow politicians, Forion and Zylanx, will discuss the writing of a constitution for our new colony. We haven't encountered any serious threats from the planet's environment yet."
Doctor Fuse snapped the journal shut. "You would have thought that Discord would be annoyed by the uninvited intrusion of the humans—that he would have given the humans hell—"
"Hell? What the hell is that?" Piped Pinky Pie.
"An imagined land of suffering associated with superstition," Doctor Fuse explained quickly, "But Discord had something else in mind. Instead of showing himself, he simply watched them, amused at how they and the ponies reacted toward each other..Or at least that is my speculation, for he didn't interfere for weeks…"
Spike humphed bitterly to himself. He could picture Discord sitting on a cloud above the humans with a tub of popcorn.
"Ponies and people didn't speak the same language back then," Doctor Fuse added, "the humans had only stored a week's rations in the ship but when it was exposed to the air most of it shriveled and spoiled—you will want to keep that part of the story in mind—So they had an immediate need for food…" the Doctor offered an awkward smile like an apology as his sentences began to limp together. "Humans are omnivores…not like ponies, who are herbivores. The easiest thing to do was trap animals, because they couldn't be sure which plants were poisonous to them or not. The chemists tried analyzing the vegetation, however, there were elements there unlike any in the periodic table. So, the solution…"
"Oh no," cried Fluttershy softly, "how awful."
"What? It's no different than what timber wolves and dragons do."
"Hey! Not all dragons!" Spike corrected offensively.
Doctor Fuse rolled his eyes. "Yes, they began trapping animals to eat…well, that and collecting chocolate rain. But they did not eat ponies! They wanted to domesticate them as they domesticated the creatures on their planet, for they would be a good means of transportation—"
"Against their will?" asked Applejack, a fierce look in her eyes.
Doctor Fuse nodded indifferently. "Will you all quit interrupting me, please?"
"That don't sound much better than being trapped and butchered!" retorted Applejack passionately, "Domestication sounds like—sounds like—!"
"Slavery," Doctor Fuse finished for her matter-of-factly. "I believe that is the word you are looking for."
"Slavery? What is that?" asked Pinky Pie. "Sounds like gravy! Heehee."
No one else knew what that word meant, a foreign concept to the world of Equestria.
"Slavery means making someone serve you without consent or payment," Doctor Fuse answered dryly, "But don't be so quick to judge the humans. There is a part of history that you have yet to learn about." The tour almost ended there. Fluttershy started crying softly and Applejack started a yelling match with the Doctor. But with mediation and urging from Twilight they pressed on and the Doctor continued the tour. The information they learned went as follows.
Each human stuck to their specialty and used it to better the colony. The politician humans established a new government and economy while others built fences and captured many ponies. The humans realized immediately through their interactions with the creatures that the ponies were not dumb animals; the ponies seemed to have a higher level of consciousness than the creatures of their home planet. But because ponies had a different language than humans, the various noises they made were not suspected to be sophisticated speech.
Only a few scientists believed that the ponies were intelligent enough to have their own language, but these scientists were laughed. Then the humans discovered the houses the ponies lived in, and the land they cultivated. Unicorns were also discovered, along with Pegasi, which fit into human mythology and made them more open to the idea that these animals could even be wise. If the ponies were united they could have turned the tables for the humans but the humans only experienced small rebellions from families of captive ponies, which were suppressed easily with human technology. After a slow start their success over the challenges of the disorganized world gained momentum. They felt they had, with their research and technology, tamed the insanity that was the planet Equestria.
During this time Discord finally showed himself and asserted his dominion over. He apparently figured that it was time they learned their place. So far, the humans were pleasing him—they made for great entertainment, both in how they interacted with other humans and how they interacted with ponies. But he did not want them to get the wrong idea and think that they could usurp the planet. He made it clear to them that they were allowed to stay only as long as it pleased him.
Discord's favor allowed the humans to continue domesticating ponies. He didn't want them to suspect that the ponies were as aware as humans were. Some humans, upon discovering the pony houses and gardens, objected to their treatment and demanded that the humans let them be. Others said that although the ponies acted human they were not human and it didn't hurt to use them for the survival of the colony. Tensions rose not only between ponies and humans, but between humans.
"Discord must have really enjoyed watching every minute of all of that progress," remarked Twilight bitterly.
"And he would also be sorely disappointed," replied Doctor Fuse. "The zoologist I showed you—the zoologist whose journals you read from—he was the first human we have record of that began to try to communicate with ponies. He bought what he observed to be the smartest captive ponies as pets in order to study the noises they made. And, as a result, he proved to the human colony that the ponies did indeed have an actual language and humans could talk to them. He was the first human to learn pony language."
Doctor Fuse showed them the Zoologist's book that held a complete vocabulary of pony language.
However, by the time this discovery was made the ponies were a part of human colony life. The ponies were very much depended on by the colonies and so most of the people that owned them didn't want to free them. But that did not discourage the zoologist. He secretly left the colony in the night and went to the ponies to explain the need for understanding between the two species—the need to show the humans that although they were not the same shape they still deserved the same rights. Only this form of action could stop their loved ones from being stolen away.
The pet ponies that the zoologist freed helped allow the ponies to trust his word of advice. With the zoologist's direction, all ponies everywhere marched to the colony and encircled the human camp. They made their terms clear: if the humans agreed to free the ponies they held captive and give ponies the same rights as humans, then the ponies would agree to help the humans by their own free will, as long as humans reciprocated that help. Not all ponies liked these terms or wanted to forgive the humans (especially ones who had been captive or had someone they loved domesticated), but the zoologist reasoned that it was the only way to live in peace and end a cycle of opposition between species. The humans, not able to deny the sentience of the ponies any further, agreed to those terms. Human and pony started working with each other on equal terms.
The actions the zoologist took also happened to be a beneficial message to the Equestrian society as a whole; He had been the one to remind the ponies of the importance of being united. Thus the pony tribes—reluctantly but graciously—decided that it was time to put aside old grudges and start out fresh. Forgiveness healed old hurts not only between humans and ponies, but also between the pony tribes. Friendship eventually developed as oaths of honesty and time progressed.
"But, as you can imagine, Discord was not pleased with this," said Doctor Fuse.
Discord hated the harmony that was developing between the two species. He induced a fresh batch of chaos upon humans and ponies, one never seen before. The good zoologist went missing and was never found again. The pony that was leading the reunited Equestria also vanished. Unimaginable events caused the humans to wonder if they had all turned insane, or induced insanity amongst some members of the human colony.
However, the ponies kept to their word: they helped the humans through it. Since the ponies were used to magic, they were able to keep their cool and reassure humans to do the same. In this way they saved many humans from going insane. And the humans were able to reciprocate: whenever one of Discord's tricks threatened the pony's way of life, the humans offered up inventions to counter the effects of Discord's shenanigans. In this way they saved many ponies from unbearable suffering. In the end, Discord's deeds served only to strengthen bonds and form solidarity between beings.
"Then," said Doctor Fuse with a tone of importance, "the ultimate human invention was made."
The next room he brought the friends into was dimly lit. Various glass cases were erected on stands all over the room. Inside the last case was a rod of some sort with wires and other objects attached. Each case before that seemed to have evolved from the one before it, and the one before it, and so on.
"The biologist I showed you—the journal you read from her—from the moment she stepped foot on this planet she only had one interest." He stepped over to the closest glass case display. "She could care less about the survival of the colony. She cared about solving puzzles, the greatest puzzle being the existence of magical life and magic itself on this planet. Why were some life forms magical while others weren't? She wondered. Why were some life forms more powerful with magic than others?" He gestured to the room. "These inventions were only one branch of her means of getting answers. She learned about properties unique to Equestria. She used all of these in her experiments and meticulously recorded data. She was able to get some Chemists and Geologists to aid her with their own extensive knowledge, and then..." He pointed to the case in front of him. "She made the most important discovery. This discovery would dictate the next sequence of events in history. It would change the dynamics of Equestria forever."
The glass case was very tall. It held what looked like a unicorn's horn, twisted and chalky. "She learned about a special type of radiation that the Equestrian sun emitted, unfamiliar and unidentified. Of course, she named this foreign radiation 'magic.' She observed that Magic Radiation reacted with certain elements in Equestria, elements that resided inside both fauna and flora alike. Some of the wildlife had adapted to be able to harvest and metabolize this radiation. What you are seeing here in this room is the last of her primitive experiments to confirm her hypothesis."
"Harvest and metabolize radiation?" asked Twilight, her tone betraying her imposed air of skepticism.
Doctor Fuse smiled appreciatively. "Of course, it is a complicated process. It involves more than just the radiation—specifically, electromagnetic waves emitted by the body—but it would take too much time to explain it right now. Maybe later."
"Is…is that a real…" asked Applejack somewhat hesitantly, her nose wrinkling at the horn in the case.
"Don't worry, it is not from a unicorn. It only imitates a unicorn horn. The biologist's hypothesis was that the horns on unicorns acted as harvesters of the special radiation from the sun. The horn draws the radiation into the body and the body metabolizes it to form a forceful energy, the energy that gives unicorns their magical ability!"
All of the friends stared at Doctor Fuse with wide eyes.
"Amazing, isn't it?" smiled the Doctor. "She also found out that the reason why unicorn horns have evolved to be twisted—instead of flat—is because the twisted form increases the surface area, which increases the amount of radiation harvested, which increases the ability and power of magic! In other words, unicorns were naturally selected to have twisted horns because they were able to do more magic."
Twilight had to remind herself to breath. "This—this is—"
"Er, what's this about evolution and natural selection?" asked Applejack suspiciously. She had never heard the terms before.
"That would also take time to explain," dismissed the Doctor, continuing his history lesson instead. "She took samples of a unicorn horn and created the artificial horn you see here from elements she collected around Equestria. It was not as effective as a real horn, but it proved her hypothesis to be true countless times. So then she set to learning a separate mystery—how do Pegasi have their unique powers? She discovered that it was because their hooves are made of similar materials! They aren't able to harvest the Magic Radiation as much or as well as horns, but it is enough to give them their ability to manipulate weather and handle clouds."
Fluttershy stumbled backward.
Applejack caught and steadied her. "Are you ok?"
"Yes…" she said faintly, trying to catch her breath. "I'm…I'm just…surprised."
Spike grabbed Twilight's hand all of a sudden to get her attention. Before he could say anything Pinkie Pie plopped down onto the ground and scowled up at the horn in the glass case. "Whatever, big deal. We skipped Ring-and-Run for this thing? Ugh."
"Twilight," said Spike urgently, tugging at the purple haired girl's hand, "Do you suppose this is why Discord has so much power? He has two horns on his head, and I wouldn't be surprised if his hooves also—"
The thought felt like an electrocution to Twilight.
"Smart boy," approved Dr. Fuse, nodding to show how impressed he was. "That was the biologist's hypothesis as well. So can you guess what she did next?"
An idea suddenly sprang to Twilight's mind, but she quickly suppressed the thought in fear and disbelief. Dr. Fuse was too quick, for he noticed the strange shift in her expression before it was tamed.
"I think it may have occurred to you by now," Dr. Fuse said proudly, scanning the faces of the five friends, basking in the moment. "She set out to inventing something that would harvest Magic Radiation better than unicorn horns or Pegasi hooves. She would not live to see the full extent of her work, but her apprentice did not fail her. Her apprentice, through continued experiments and research, forged the Elements of Harmony."
A shock of silence followed as all of the friends took a moment let this sink in.
Twilight suddenly felt like she was choking. A plethora of emotions crashed down on her all at once. She had a sudden urgency to run from the room, which she held back. Unwanted salty tears blurred her vision and something pressed down upon her chest, constricting the air from her lungs. Torn by the confusing torrents of sensations, and not knowing what to do with them, she sunk down to the floor and buried her hands in her hair.
"Twilight! Are you okay?" Spike knelt down next to her with a worried expression. Applejack and Fluttershy followed suit.
"I wasn't expecting this kind of reaction," laughed Doctor Fuse. "Seems a bit overdone, in my opinion. But then again, it is very human to—"
His words were the catalyst that opened a direction for Twilight's flood of emotions.
"I'm sick of hearing about humans!" yelled Twilight, her words ejecting from her mouth almost involuntarily. "We are not humans! Our bodies were transformed against our will! And I refuse to live in this body for the rest of my days!"
Fluttershy gently caught Twilights hands to cup them in her own soft fingers. "There there, Twilight, this means we have a way to fix this…"
"Actually, we don't," corrected Doctor Fuse, "Thanks to your beloved Celestia the information was lost. I don't know what she did with it, and—"
"Will ya' shut y'ur yapper fur jus' one apple-buckin' minute?" Spat the flustered Applejack at Doctor Fuse.
"See, I told you we should have just played Ring-and-Run," said Pinky with a twinge of vindication as she awkwardly stood nearby and glanced at the door of the house longingly.
Spike tried to think of something comforting to say, but he was wrestling with the same things that Twilight was.
"You weren't planning on helping us find an answer—were you?" accused Twilight hoarsely to Doctor Fuse.
Doctor Fuse shook his head. "This feral outburst is most inappropriate."
Pinky realized the seriousness of the situation. She started hopping in front of Twilight, calling her attention. "It's ok, Twilight, you will come up with a plan! You always do! You are the smartest pony ever. You need to cheer up. Want me to bake you something? I haven't tried to do it yet in this body but I think—"
Twilight wasn't listening. She felt like an idiot after reacting this way. What was it? She still could not pinpoint the emotions coursing through her body; they mixed together into a slippery mess. Her fingers tingled.
The Doctor knew better. "Which is it that has you so crippled, Twilight?" He asked her, "The fact that you have been lied to by people you trusted? Or the fact that humans should receive all the credit for the civilization of Equestria today?"
"Your glorification of humans is speculative!" retorted Spike, "If they were truly a superior race, then how come they could not save their own planet from destruction? They abandoned their home for a new one. They had no power before they found Equestria!"
"And humans would not have survived without us!" added Twilight. "They survived because they took advantage of our abilities!"
"That is certainly true, but Equestria would not have survived without humans. Which do you suppose is more worthy of praise?"
"How can you have such love toward a species you never knew? A species that enslaved your people and—"
"I will parry that question back to you, girl!" Doctor Fuse shot back. "The flesh that you have now is of the species that was responsible for overthrowing Discord. They knew that the Elements would only work for a creature that had evolved to metabolize the Magic Radiation; harvesting the energy was not enough—it had to be used, and humans did not have the biology in them that could do that. They gave Celestia and her sister the Elements. They gave them the power to defeat Discord! They did that knowing that they had also given the ponies the power to eliminate their species as well. The land of Equestria found peace and order again, only thanks to the trust that the humans showed them!" His eyes narrowed as he emphasized his last lesson. "A trust that was not returned by the Equestrians."
The five friends were all stunned into silence. A heavy void of noise hung in the hair for a very long moment. Doctor Fuse kept his eyes glued to Twilight, waiting for what she would say. Twilight could only stare into his eyes, her mind brewing over this new bit of knowledge.
The sound of a wringing bell broke the silence and stirred the friends awake from their state of shock.
"It is the bell signaling supper time," explained Doctor Fuse dully. "Just as well, I think we are finished speaking about the past for the day. Will you join us for our evening meal?"
He made his way toward the door and opened it, cordially gesturing the friends to exit.
The friends looked to Twilight, who stood up and straightened. "You do not plan to help us. Do you."
Doctor Fuse smiled. "Is that what all the fuss is about? I've been helping you all along."
"By giving us a history lesson?" retorted Twilight. "You know what I meant."
Doctor Fuse shrugged. "Even if I wanted to help, there is nothing that can be done. The Princesses saw to that. Cestestia removed any knowledge that could be useful against magic and Luna made us all unmagical. It is ironic, isn't it? The sisters started it and finished it."
"I think you are lying," said Spike, his eyes squinted disapprovingly at the Doctor. "I think you know enough to know there is a way. But you like being human."
Noticing that the friends were not going to go first, the Doctor left out the door, forcing the friends to follow him. Once outside, they discovered that people were moving throughout the museum. Doors of some houses began opening and humans, young and old, poured out, all heading in the same direction. Some of them shouted a greeting to Doctor Fuse and the others. Others were immersed in a book and walked with the pages under their noses.
Doctor Fuse smiled wider. "I am not alone. All of us here at Anthro enjoy being human. Hands make our work much easier, not to mention the aesthetics of being human." He waved a hand to the crowd of people passing by. "You have reason to be suspicious of dishonesty, but I do not care to convince you otherwise. I am merely interested in giving you history."
"What good are stories from the past?" asked Applejack. "Is teachin' history the only thing important to ya'?"
Pinky Pie was not listening. Her eyes shimmered with excitement at all the people passing by. "I didn't know there were so many humans here! I will make so many new friends! Yay! Can we go to eat now, Twlight? Can we, huh? Can we?"
"You will adapt. You will like being human," assured the Doctor. "Have you noticed the aesthetics of the human body? Have you realized the power that hands possess? Take a moment to feel the texture of a blade of grass or a feather. Hands were also what gave humans the power to invent things—"
"No," interrupted Twilight, glaring at the man with fixed determination. "We are not humans. We will find a way to be our original form again."
The Doctor sighed. "Very well. Chase after a hopeless cause for as long as you like. You would have only wasted a small portion of my time. Meanwhile, come join us for supper."
"Yes!" Pinky Pie tugged on Twilight excitedly, "Let's go!"
"Very well…" sighed Twilight.
The friends followed the Doctor to the dining halls.
Spike whispered to Twilight, "I think there is something the Doctor is not telling us."
"I have the same inkling," Twilight whispered back, "You think he will let us look around here on our own?"
"No use asking…let's plan on doing that tomorrow."
Twilight ruffled Spikes hair affectionately and smile calming down a little bit. There was still a small glimmer of hope.