Chapter 3: Misunderstandings
Chimera POV
The chimera was watching Michael the whole time. He had watched as Nightmare Moon appeared from the shadows and restrained him. He had watched as Michael befriended her and listened to her, instead of thinking she was hostile. Michael was different from the humans he'd seen in the past. They were terrible people who took advantage of anyone when given the chance. Michael on the other hand, listened to the problems of a person, or pony he just met.
The chimera had eavesdropped on their overnight conversation, and learned a few things about Michael. For one, his world is far more technologically advanced than Equestria. Though they lack magic, the machines they built make up for it. Michael is a prime example of their technology. The suit of armor seemed durable enough to withstand anything. His rechargeable shield was even more protection, able to resist most things. Though magic seemed to be very effective against them, Michael would probably have dispatched the attacker before anything could happen. Michael was also the fastest runner he'd ever seen, and the strongest. Probably stronger than Applejack.
Nightmare Moon seemed truly sorry for her sins. She revealed her true feelings to Michael, which surprised the chimera a bit. She just met a human that was thought to be extinct, but his personality was enough to let her trust him. Nonetheless, the chimera still had a few questions in his mind. Was Nightmare Moon actually sorry? Or was she just using the human in some scheme? Anyway, the Mare of the Night allowed him to stay the night, which also shows her trust in him. She trusts him enough to know he won't harm her while she slumbers.
When morning came, the human gathered up the little possessions he had and headed out the door. He proved his speed by dashing over the ravine and sprinting down the path towards Ponyville. It was hard for the chimera to keep up.
As he followed Michael, he noticed a manticore flying above him, getting closer and closer to the human by the second.
'This will be good,' the chimera thought.
The human somehow new the manticore was following him, because he threw out a bone crushing kick that caught the manticore in the chin. It flew backward and crashed into the ground.
The chimera gazed through the trees and enjoyed the show.
Michael and the manticore didn't do much. Michael just dodged the manticore's attacks. But eventually some poison flew from the manticore's tail and landed on his shields. They flickered a moment, distracting Michael. This gave the manticore the chance to lash out with his tail again.
Michael didn't see it in time and was caught across the face with it. The durability of Michael's armor was proved as he crashed straight through several trees and landed on the ground, creating a small crater.
Michael got up, and the chimera noticed his cracked visor.
The manticore once again pounced at Michael. But the clever human simply sidestepped out of harm's way. And when the manticore's head was below him, he brought his elbow down on its skull.
The manticore yelped in pain as it crashed to the ground. The chimera was impressed. The human took a manticore down with a single physical attack. Michael's strength truly was comparable to Applejack's. Michael also mentioned something about armor speed enhancements, where he could sprint faster than now. Perhaps even as fast as Rainbow Dash flies.
The human sprinted down the path once again before the manticore regained consciousness.
The chimera barely kept up with him, because he didn't want to be detected by the human's "senses." Eventually, Michael made it to the edge of the Everfree, which opened up to a familiar clearing. The human stayed back a bit, checking for any threats before moving into the open. He didn't see anything but the hundreds of animals who dwell here. He left the cover of the trees and walked over to a bridge. The animals didn't seem to mind him, as if they knew he wouldn't harm them in any way.
The chimera was losing sight of the human, so he too moved closer. Right away, he noticed the tree cottage. Michael was nearing it, but then ducked behind a bush when he heard voices inside.
The chimera immediately recognized the voices. The first was none other than timid little Fluttershy. The other was pesky Twilight Sparkle. He didn't really like Twilight. She did ruin his "fun" after all.
The chimera overheard Twilight and Fluttershy talking about animals or something. But then, Twilight suddenly stopped in mid-sentence. What was wrong?
The chimera left his bush and climbed to the top of the tree cottage so he could hear better.
"Someone is watching us," Twilight said.
The chimera saw Michael was at the window now. He could tell the human was shocked that she somehow new someone was there. The lavender unicorn approached the window. Michael immediately ducked out of sight.
The chimera waited for Twilight Sparkle to open the window, but she never did. Instead she said, "Hey, Fluttershy, I'm going outside to check."
Michael heard the words as well, since he backed away from the window and sulked low under a bush. The chimera heard the door creak open as Twilight peeked through.
"Hello? Is anyone out there?"
She walked over to the window Michael was at and looked around a bit before muttering something. The chimera couldn't make out what she said.
"INCOMING!"
The chimera recognized that voice immediately. Cocky Rainbow Dash. The "Fastest Flyer in Equestria!" The chimera couldn't wait until she raced Michael.
He looked up to see the cyan pegasus crash right into Michael.
"Ow… What the hay?!" she shouted as she stood up. The chimera thought she had found Michael for sure.
"Well either than hitting a solid rock, I'm fine!"
Never mind. She really missed the metal human that she landed on? She can definitely be stupid sometimes.
Michael didn't move from his spot, so he was probably thinking the same thing.
The two ponies were arguing about something. Rainbow Dash was boasting and Twilight wasn't able to do something with her. Anyway, the two turned and walked toward the cottage. Michael saw his chance and rose from the bush and tiptoed a few yards toward the forest.
The chimera decided to mess with him and plucked a twig off the tree cottage. Then he tossed it in front of Michael. A perfect throw too, since Michael's foot landed right on it, letting out a satisfying snap.
Both ponies froze and immediately turned to the source of the sound. They stared at the human for a second, trying to process what they were looking at.
Michael on the other hand froze as soon as he stepped on the twig. He slowly turned and met the eyes of the two ponies. They just stood there for a few minutes.
Then Rainbow Dash shouted, "Twilight! Stun it with some magic and I'll take it down!"
Of course she would resort to offense. Twilight responded with a dizzy spell. She shot it straight at Michael who didn't seem like he knew what to do. The beam collided with his shields, which seemed to absorb it.
"Hit it again, Twilight!" Rainbow Dash shouted.
Twilight launched another beam at Michael. His shields were down from the last beam, and now he was vulnerable. The chimera knew he was done for.
But at the last second he raised his arm and a blue shield emerge from it, deflecting the beam.
Twilight got pissed at what she saw. She tried to connect the dots as she wondered how he deflected magic. The chimera suppressed his laughter, as Rainbow Dash seemed to prepare to charge. And of course, she didn't think this decision through.
She flew straight at Michael, determined to take him down. Michael had lightning reactions though, and raised his shield in her direction. She crashed right into the shield and jumped back, stunned from the collision.
Frustrated, she shouted, "Twilight! Just use your levitation spell."
Twilight blushed, completely embarrassed that she forgot that spell. Her horn began to glow a pink aurora, as Michael was too enveloped. He rose into the air, while his magic-deflecting shield dissipated. The spell seemed to block his armor's functions.
Michael was helpless in the air. There was nothing he could do. Only until the very "smart" rainbow pegasus flew in and tackled him. She pretty much freed him from the levitation since that fall did absolutely nothing. The chimera chuckled a bit when he saw Michael pick up Rainbow Dash. She probably felt so dumb right now.
But Michael was holding her with his shielding arm, so he couldn't block the ten lasers that erupted from Twilight's horn. This was ten dizzy spells we're talking about. Ten on any regular being would knock them out cold before they hit the ground. But Michael, mentally toughened, was able to fight it a bit, before stumbling into a bush and passing out.
Twilight trotted over to the unconscious Spartan and levitated him inside Fluttershy's cottage.
The chimera was pretty amazed at what happened. A regular human being in Michael's place would have definitely crushed Rainbow Dash and then probably killed Twilight Sparkle too.
But Michael once again tried to be passive, and got caught for it. Well… it was kind of the chimera's fault, but he knew the ponies wouldn't harm Michael. At that he slithered down the tree and back into the forest. The ponies were lucky Michael was the one that was sent to Equestria.
The chimera brushed his thoughts aside as he saw a group of royal guards flying overhead. He stayed out of sight and wondered, 'What is the royal guard doing here? They probably figured out I escaped the stone statue.'
But then he heard one shout something about a metal creature. They must've seen Michael. Well, they're too late.
The chimera sulked in the underbrush as the guards flew overhead passed his hiding spot. Once they were out of sight, he emerged from his place and moved deeper into the forest.
But then a thought occurred to him. How did Rainbow Dash not see him on the roof of Fluttershy's cottage? She really must not pay attention if Discord HIMSELF was sitting on top the tree.
Location: Fluttershy's Cottage
2 Hours Later…
Rainbow Dash was sitting against the wall with a bored expression. They had just taken down a metal creature a couple hours ago and it was now on the floor of Fluttershy's cottage. Twilight said she needed to check on Spike and message the Princess about what they found. She said she'd be back later.
"What is taking Twilight sooo long?" Rainbow Dash moaned, "I don't know what to do!"
She stood up and walked over to the unconscious creature. She looked at his visor, admiring it.
"These shaded are the COOLEST though!" she exclaimed, "I wonder what it will do once it wakes up…"
Fluttershy walked in, "I hope it's a very nice monster when it wakes up."
"Yeah, I agree with you on that one," Rainbow Dash sighed, "When we were looking at it outside earlier, we saw a pair of eyes inside the super COOL shades. So we know it's not made entirely of metal."
Just then the door slammed open, and an orange Earth pony trotted in. Her mane and tail were blonde and she wore a Stetson hat. She spoke out in a southern accent.
"Ah came as fast as ah could, Rainbow Dash!" she shouted as she came in.
"Did Twilight get you?" Rainbow Dash asked.
"Yup! She said she could use the extra horsepower!" Applejack replied with a grin, "Anyway, where is the… uh… creature thingy?"
"It's over here on the floor," Rainbow Dash replied as she led Applejack towards the center of the room. Applejack gasped as she saw it. "That thing's huge!"
"Yeah! I know right? Doesn't it have the COOLEST shades?!" Rainbow Dash asked.
"Uh… yeah… I reckon so…" Applejack muttered.
She knocked on the metal shell. "Uh… is there anythin' in there?"
"We think so," Rainbow Dash replied, "There are eyes behind the shades."
"So your saying this thing attacked ya by surprise?" Applejack asked.
Rainbow Dash was going to respond right away, but stopped herself. She was in deep thought before responding, "Actually, we kinda… attacked it first."
Applejack glared, "Then how do ya'll know it's evil then?"
Rainbow Dash smiled faintly, "We… uh… don't?
"Then why'd ya'll attack it?"
Rainbow Dash suddenly realized their mistake, "Wow… now that I think about it, it did seem like it was trying to sneak away. Now it'll probably be angry at us when it wakes up!"
"Don't worry, Rainbow," Applejack said, "That's why I'm here. If it gets rowdy, then I'll give it a good whoopin'!"
Rainbow Dash giggled, "Actually, Applejack, I think it may be stronger then you."
Applejack frowned, "Ain't no way some critter is stronger than me! Heck, if it wakes up and doesn't want ta fight us, then I'm gonna challenge it to an apple-bucking contest!"
"Good luck with that, Applejack," Rainbow Dash teased.
Michael POV
Michael groaned as he opened his eyes. He had a terrible migraine that felt like someone was driving a nail through his brain. He was about to sit up when he noticed two ponies conversing in front of him. One was a cyan pegasus with a rainbow mane and tail. The other was an Earth pony. She had an orange coat and a blonde mane and tail. The Stetson hat sitting atop her head finished the look of a farm girl.
Michael went through a flashback as he remembered the rainbow pegasus.
'Her name was… Rainbow… Dash?' he thought. The other he never saw before. The two were arguing about him, how he may be stronger than the orange Earth pony. Oh, he was stronger than her all right.
Michael went through his options. He noticed the hard-light shield icon at the bottom of his visor. It was still functional along with his thruster pack. He could jump up and bash the ponies out of the way and get to the door. But he didn't want to harm them. He could've sworn he saw them from somewhere. But where?
He slowly turned his head and saw his knife and pulse grenades on the table. Thank God they didn't touch the grenades.
Michael slowly sat up when their backs were turned to him. Then he slowly stood up. He almost hit his head on the low ceiling designed for ponies only. He glanced at the table and slowly walked towards it, making sure his steps made no sound at all. The two ponies were still arguing about him. They were too distracted to notice him. As he reached the table, he grabbed his things, but didn't latch them to his chest yet. They would make a clinking noise when they attached. He turned to look back at the ponies, who were now on a different topic. Something about a race.
Things couldn't be going any smoother as he walked toward the nearest window. He unlatched it and slowly pushed it open. It made a loud creak on its hinges. Michael cursed himself as he turned to look back at the ponies. Thankfully, they were too busy arguing about that "race without wings."
Michael chuckled as he turned and dove out the window. He landed in the same bush he was in earlier and peeked out. No one had seen him. Good. Now all he had to do was leave. He rose from the bush and looked beyond the bridge that led him to the house in the first place. To the right was the dark forest he had just ventured through. To the left was a path that led back to an old fashioned looking town.
'The town it is,' he thought.
He stepped out of the bush and was about to run down the path when he heard someone shout.
"Hey! When did you wake up?!"
He turned around and looked at the door to the tree, and saw that lavender unicorn from the fight.
'Oh great, she was about to walk inside the house too,' he thought.
"Looks like I'll have to take you down again!" she shouted. Her horn was surrounded by the pink aurora.
Michael didn't feel like fighting right now. He still had that death migraine lurking about his mind. He didn't have time for this.
He held up his hands, "Wait! Why don't you listen before thinking I'm a threat!"
Twilight's horn immediately stopped glowing as her jaw dropped. "You can talk!?"
"No duh, genius," Michael said, a little annoyed, "Anyway, I'm not here to fight you or anyone living here. So you can stop trying to attack me."
Twilight felt bad, "Oh… man… I… er, I'm sorry, okay?"
"You're fine, earlier I was trying to sneak away until you guys assumed I was an enemy."
Twilight was taking this all in. The creature could talk, and it had its own feelings.
"Yeah…" she drooped her head, "I'm sorry about that. It's just… we've never seen anything like you before."
"I could tell," Michael said sternly.
"Look, I understand why you're upset, but first I need to know what you are," she said with a solemn look.
"Well, I'm a human."
That solemn gaze turned into a smile, as she burst into laughter. Michael rolled his eyes behind his visor and stood there, arms crossed, waiting for her to stop laughing.
Twilight laughed for a few minutes before the door to the tree house slammed open and three ponies poured out. Two of them were the rainbow and country ponies while the third was the butter colored pegasus he saw before he passed out. They looked at the unicorn rolling on the ground in laughter. They turned their gaze toward Michael with angered expressions. The Earth pony spoke first.
"What'd ya'll do ta Twilight?" she asked.
"N-Nothing I-"
"He probably used some laughing spell thingy on her!" Rainbow Dash shouted.
"N-No! I just-"
"See? I told you it was bad news!" Rainbow Dash said as she cut him off again.
"SHUTUP!" Michael shouted. The three jumped back in shock. Even Twilight had stopped laughing and stared at him.
Michael continued, "I'm not here to harm ANY of you. OK? No fighting. Nothing. Just hear me out."
The butter pegasus spoke up, "Oh my. It can talk."
Michael got a bit annoyed from that, "I'm a he."
The four ponies all sat there and listened to him, still shaken from his outburst.
"OK. Now that I have your attention. I'm not some random creature that lived in the forest over there. I'm a human. You see, I tried to explain that to your purple friend over here, but she thought I was joking. That's why she was laughing uncontrollably."
The ponies nodded in agreement, still eager to hear more.
"Second, I was trying to sneak away from the two of you," he pointed at Rainbow Dash and Twilight Sparkle, "NOT, try to do some random sneak attack kind of thing. That's not me. I don't attack unless there's reason."
The ponies stared at the ground a few moments, shameful of their mistake. Twilight spoke up.
"But can you prove you're human? To the best of my knowledge, humans are extinct. Plus, all I see is some metal… thing."
"That's cause this metal shell I actually armor," Michael said, "See?"
He unlatched his helmet and lifted it off his head, revealing his face. The first three ponies seemed to be awestruck. But Twilight was marveled, trying to put together that an "extinct" being was standing right in front of her.
Michael was growing a bit worried from the awkward silence. "Um… hello?"
"Uh… W-What's your name?" the butter pegasus asked with a very soft voice.
Rainbow Dash immediately regained her confident posture, "I bet his name is something AWESOME like, Midnight Warrior or Dark Knight!"
"Actually… my name is Michael."
Rainbow Dash looked at him with a "really?" look. But Twilight looked fascinated.
"That sounds exactly like a human name, from what I've researched so far!" she said.
Once again, Michael rolled his eyes. She seemed to be the smart type around here.
The orange Earth pony stepped forward and looked up at Michael with her green eyes.
"Um… sorry Michael. We didn't mean to er, accuse you or nuthin'. We just hadn't seen anything like you and ah guess, we got carried away. By the way, the name's Applejack."
"I understand," Michael said, "And it's OK Applejack."
She grinned up at him, "Thanks fer fergivin' us! We usually don't like to fight anyway."
"Hey, no problem. I don't want to fight you guys either."
"Anyway," Rainbow Dash said as she flew over to his side, "Where are you from?"
"I'm from a different planet if that's what your asking."
Twilight jumped in, "Then how are you here?"
"I honestly don't know," Michael replied, "I was on a mission when I came in contact with some kind of forerunner artifact."
"What's a forerunner artifact?" Twilight asked.
Michael didn't feel like explaining all this to any of them, so he simply replied, "I'll tell you later once I got some time."
"Why the rush?" Rainbow Dash asked, "I want to know about some of the AWESOME adventures you probably had!"
"Sorry, I can't," Michael explained, "I'm just as curious about you guys as you guys are about me, but I need to explore this place a little. Get a feel for it, you know?"
"I get it." Twilight said, "We can take you to Ponyville, that town over there. Just so the ponies living there know that you're not evil or anything since your with us."
"I mean… you don't have to…" Michael stammered.
All four of the ponies gathered around and stared up at him.
"We want to," Twilight said.
"Well since you're putting it that way, why not?" Michael said.
"Well what are we waitin' for?" Applejack asked, "Let's go!"
Michael turned towards the path to Ponyville and stepped aside, "Lead on."
Twilight stepped in front of Michael, Applejack jumped to his right, Rainbow Dash flew to his left, and Fluttershy followed the rear.
As a group, they walked over the bridge and down the path to Ponyville.
Nightmare Moon POV
The Mare of the Night gazed out her window towards the Everfree forest. She was gloomy, saddened that Michael already left. He was the only friend she really had, and he had a passion for the night. But the part of him she liked the most of the human was his ability to listen. To understand the feelings of another and make that person feel… more lively. Ever since he showed up, she had less bad thoughts. She looked on the brighter side of things.
She longed for him to return. She wanted to talk to him about her feelings, because he would always respond with an open answer. He doesn't want to force her to do anything she doesn't feel comfortable doing. He just makes the atmosphere more bearable.
But that war he's been through. He's really dangerous when threatened. Hopefully Celestia doesn't threaten him. No, she knows Celestia won't threaten him. He's too kind-hearted to give off any hostile impression. Heck, maybe he could persuade Celestia to give Nightmare Moon a chance.
"Please return Michael," she whispered, "Please be safe."
Location: Canterlot Royal Palace
Princess Celestia was once again sitting atop her throne. She was unrolling a scroll with her magic. It was a letter from her student, Twilight Sparkle. She usually doesn't send messages until the evening, so this must be something important.
She finished unrolling the scroll and read its contents.
Dear Princess Celestia,
Rainbow Dash and I have found some kind of metal creature by Fluttershy's cottage. It didn't seem like it wanted to harm us, but when we attacked it, it used some kind of anti-magic shield. It even seemed like it doesn't feel pain, except for the headache I gave it. I don't know if you know anything about the creature or not, so we're going to bring it to Ponyville. Please meet us there.
Your Faithful Student,
Twilight Sparkle.
Celestia rolled the scroll back up and tossed it aside.
"Guards!" she shouted, "Be ready to travel to Ponyville! We have the metal creature located!"
"Yes, your majesty!"
Celestia was determined to figure out what this thing was, "Send someone to notify Princess Luna! Tell her I'll be in Ponyville for the next few hours!"
Back at Ponyville…
As soon as Michael came into sight, he received several uneasy stares. Actually, every single pony in the town was giving him uneasy stares. All except for a single unicorn. She had a sort of turquoise coat. She was whispering something to another pony, while both of them were looking at him. Then she began to walk up to the group. Twilight groaned.
"Well, here comes Lyra," she whispered to Michael, "Just don't talk. I'll explain later."
Michael nodded in agreement. Lyra had a smirk on her face, as if she recognized him.
"Hey, Twilight!" she shouted as she trotted over, "What is the metal thing?"
"Well it's-"
"It's a human, isn't it?" she asked, still with the smirk on her face.
Twilight hesitated a moment, "Actually it's a… a forerunner being sent from outer space!"
Lyra's smirk immediately changed into a frown, "Wha-?"
"Yeah!" Rainbow Dash said, "We found it in the Everfree! Doesn't it look totally awesome?"
Lyra backed off, "Yeah… It looks pretty cool I guess. Anyway I have to go so-"
She didn't even finish before galloping down the street.
Michael spoke up, "Why couldn't you just tell her that I was human?"
Twilight looked up at him, "Lyra is OBSESSED with humans. She spends almost all her time researching them. If she ever finds out if you are human, you'll probably have a worse migraine than what I gave you a few hours ago."
"Yeah. I get it," Michael muttered.
They walked on for a few minutes before another tall tree came into view. Like the previous one by the forest, it had windows and a door.
Applejack spoke, "Here we are! Twilight's library!"
"Library-?"
"Yeah," Twilight muttered, "I hope it doesn't bother you…"
Michael was taken back, "Oh, no. I actually enjoy reading."
This brightened Twilight's mood a bit as they approached the library.
"Allow me," Michael said as he reached for the door handle.
But before he could turn it, Twilight shouted, "Princess Celestia!"
Michael turned to see the purple unicorn running towards an extremely taller alicorn. Her coat was a pure white and her mane billowed around her the same way Nightmare Moon's did. She must really be the princess then.
"Why hello, my faithful student," she said calmly as the two embraced, "And I see you have befriended the creature you told me about."
Michael didn't really care for the princess since she wouldn't forgive Nightmare Moon. It's not like the sweet alicorn really did bring an eternal night. She even wanted to be forgiven, to be loved by her subjects.
But Michael feels like there something up.
'I wonder if Celestia is feeding her people lies,' he thought, 'Perhaps she attempted to apologize, but Celestia wouldn't allow it.'
After the embrace ended, Celestia directed her attention to Michael. She slowly walked over and examined him.
"I feel like I've seen something like this thing before…" she muttered.
"Umm… actually, Princess… the creature is a… he."
Everyone turned to look at the butter colored pegasus, who backed away a few steps at the sudden attention.
"Fluttershy?" Rainbow Dash asked, "It's not like you to correct ponies like that."
The timid pegasus stayed silent.
"How do you know it's a he?" the princess asked, looking at Fluttershy.
"Well… he uh… said it himself."
Celestia turned back to Michael, "He talks?"
"Well yeah," Twilight said, "That's what humans do. Talk."
Celestia put two and two together, realizing what Michael really was. A look of complete rage and hatred filled her eyes as her horn began to glow. She jumped back from Michael, taking the form of a fighting stance.
"Princess!" Applejack shouted, "What're you doin'?"
"Do you four know what you've done?" the princess asked, keeping her eye on Michael.
"W-What did we do?!" Twilight asked, starting to panic.
Celestia shifted her gaze to Twilight, glaring at her.
"Do you even know what humans have done in the past?! They are evil! They ruined the harmony of Equestria and I'm NOT going to let that happen again!"
"Princess! You don't understand-!"
"No, Twilight Sparkle! YOU don't understand! These humans have done nothing but evil in the past. Don't get in the way!"
This shocked Twilight. The princess has never acted this way before. This is the first time she ever snapped at Twilight. Perhaps humans were a problem in the past. But Twilight couldn't help but feel that Michael was different.
Twilight stepped back and drooped her head. She didn't want to anger the princess anymore. She just hoped that she wouldn't harm Michael.
"Human, you will pay for the crimes your ancestors committed in the past!" she shouted at Michael, who took on a defensive stance. Celestia's horn began to emanate a golden light
Michael was growing annoyed of the princess's accusations. Nightmare Moon was right. She didn't think things through. She doesn't listen. What made it worse was that she was treating him like she did Nightmare Moon. Assumptions.
Celestia's horn was absorbing light as if she was charging up something very powerful. Michael already knew what was coming. She was the princess after all; therefore she was probably the most powerful.
Michael was about to activate his hard-light shield, until he saw what was coming at him. An extremely large beam of light erupted from Celstia's horn and soared straight at him. The attack caught him off guard. She must really hate humans. Michael was too busy thinking when the beam grew closer. Realizing what was coming at him, he activated his thruster pack and launched himself to the left of the beam.
But he was too late. The beam completely missed most of his body, but drove right through his entire right arm. He cried out in pain.
His arm was burning far worse than fire. It felt like he just dipped his entire arm into a pool of lava.
'Do I dare look at my arm?' he thought to himself.
He turned his head to the right to see his armor completely seared off. His arm was burnt black. His entire right arm armor and shoulder armor was gone. It looked like it was just ripped off. And guess what? His hard-light shield deployed on that part of the armor. Now it's gone. Good thing he has an extra in the tactical hard-case on his hip.
But he didn't even have time to retrieve it as another large beam of light shot from Celestia's horn. He knew the danger of it this time and dove out of the way. Celestia snorted in anger.
"You can't win, human! You WILL fail!"
Michael didn't have time to reply as a third beam launched from her horn. He dove out of the way again.
Suddenly, Michael felt something slam into his back, causing him to stumble forward. Then something else knocked him backward. He regained his balance and looked around. There were pegasi everywhere, surrounding him on all sides. They all wore some sort of armor.
'Great,' he thought, 'I bet these are royal guards.'
The same pegasus that hit him dove toward him again. He simply ducked and grabbed his tail. The guard yelped in pain as Michael pulled him in and threw him at another pegasus. The two collided and crashed to the ground. Two more swooped in to get an easy shot, but ended up getting slammed into each other. A fifth pegasus flew circles around Michael, trying to confuse him. But Michael maintained his focus and reached out. He grabbed the shocked pegasus and slammed him into the ground.
Michael regained his composure and looked around. Five pegasi lay on the ground, writhing in pain. But Michael completely forgot about the princess, who he had his back to. She launched another, but smaller beam of light.
He turned his head to see behind him and realized the beam, but not early enough. The beam caught him in the leg and ripped through his armor, then ripped through his leg. The beam burned through the armor on the other side of his leg, resulting in a steaming hole at his hip. Michael cried out as he doubled over, unable to stand on the injured leg.
He was hopeless. There was nothing he could do. No gun and no shield. The thruster pack he could use, but it would be pointless. He didn't want to toss a pulse grenade at her, because he didn't want to be seen as a killer. That would just cause more trouble. He just laid there, holding his leg, helplessly. The princess walked toward him slowly, her horn still glowing. Once she got to him, she looked down and glared at him with an intent look.
"Human," she began, "For the crimes of-"
That was it. Screw the pain. She was really pissing him off.
He raised his hand at her, "For the LOVE of God, just shut up for a second!"
Celestia's horn immediately lost its golden glow as she jumped in shock. How dare he say such a thing to her.
"You have no right to talk to me-"
"No!" Michael shouted cutting her off, "Excuse my language, but cut the bullshit! I have been going through a pretty bad goddamn war back in my world! Now I somehow appear in this world, and God knows why I did, and you just straight up accuse me of something I had no knowledge about?! You just HAVE to assume that EVERY single human is evil?! Well you know what I have to say? Bullshit! Just cause humans in the past have done bad things, doesn't mean I will do the same! Now you can kill me right here, right now! I don't care anymore! Just remember that you killed an innocent person, and that's a crime that is completely unforgiveable!"
His words echoed through the quiet town. Every single pony was crowded around the scene, a look of complete bewilderment on all there faces. Twilight, Rainbow Dash, Applejack, and even Fluttershy looked extremely worried. Princess Celestia herself was staring at him in awe. They didn't know he was in a war. They didn't know what he had been through. And now, Princess Celestia herself drooped her head low, and began to cry. Michael felt bad about making the princess cry, but he knew it was the only way to get her to understand.
Her horn suddenly began to glow once again, but instead of the raging golden color, it was a gentle white. Michael's helmet was removed from his head, and Celestia stared at him directly in the eyes. She was still dropping tears as she just stared into his eyes. She saw the pain and anger he contained. But she also saw the gentle kindness he had. She then realized her wrong.
She slowly muttered, "Human… I… I don't know what to say. You are right. I cannot hold grudges from something that happened a thousand years ago. I can see the kindness in your heart and realized my mistake. I truly am sorry for all of this. I just ask for your forgiveness, and I understand if I don't… deserve… it."
Michael was speechless. He didn't know that the princess could even consider apologizing. He felt somewhat… relieved. A sensation of relief relaxed his body, as his muscles released tension.
"So can you perhaps… forgive me, for my actions?" Celestia asked.
But he was already out. He passed out as his body relaxed. He was exhausted, and his body needed rest. Celestia closed her eyes and smiled, tears staining her face. She regained her royal posture and lifted Michael's limp body off the ground with her levitation spell.
Twilight dashed over, "What are you going to do with him, Princess?"
Celestia smiled warmly, "Don't worry, Twilight. He will be just fine. And… sorry for snapping at you. I was wrong."
"Don't worry, Princess!" Twilight said, "Ponies make mistakes. I understand."
"Thank you, Twilight," Celestia replied, "I'm going to take him to the hospital in Canterlot."
She walked over to her chariot and laid the human down on his back in it. The other royal guards were loading the injured guards into other chariots as well.
"I'm actually… glad he said what he said," Celestia muttered, "I probably would have killed him in my blind rage."
Twilight looked up at her teacher, "He's lucky."
Celestia frowned, "By the way, Twilight, do you by any chance know his name?"
Twilight smiled, "His name, is Michael, Princess."